𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 ( 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐫 )

7| i just want to know if you remember that night.

it was the first tuesday following the sleepover, two fifths of the way through the school week and mike wheeler was already fed up with it, even though only one class had passed so far, mike wanted to scratch his eyeballs out or slam his head against the wall continually. mike was stuck in his science class with mr clarke, the other party members enjoyed every second of him talking but mike never felt the hype over him, he was a good teacher - he got the source material he needed for his tests and for the soon future, but it didn't mean that he wanted to admire him that much about it. mike sat at the back, by the window. he often gazed out of it when he finished taking notes before the others or when mr clarke puts a movie or documentary on the bulky television to show to the class.

the set placed in the window that mike knew every fine intricate detail of was the school entrance, where he and his friends would drop off their bikes after cycling ten or fifteen minutes to get to school everyday. where the kids that lived a little too far away for their parents to drive them to school every morning or them to cycle to their education, they had to catch the yellow school bus that often arrived the same time as the boys pulled in to lock up their bikes, often breathless and with red faces from early exercise.

the setting was normally plain, noting ever happening, the grass dead and a lifeless shade of yellow. life never seemed to breathe on the grounds between the hours of education, unless someone got picked up from school early to visit the doctor or dentist - but that's only on a special occasion. nothing happened or seem to move, apart from the wind blowing past the trees or the cars driving by on the road behind the bushes.

the time was exactly twenty seven minutes past ten and thirty two seconds and counting, mike had gone into a trance with the dancing grass outside the window, the certain patch of turf seemed to be far for center sight for mike, so his neck was angled so he could see the desired grass, it soon ached badly but it some way it was luring him into a sleep, until a screeching noise erupted his peace and tranquility. he moved his eyes to the car pulling in two parking spaces. no-one else seemed to notice the metal head music booming from that car's radio but seemed to pretend that mike was the only one hearing it.

seconds later, a familiar redhead shot out the car and firing up a tasteful middle finger at the driver, who mike could only assume was billy - her stepbrother. mike had thought (more like assumed) that max was sick or had a doctor's appointment and wished it was true; that meant a day without lucas or dustin googling over her at break and lunch and they could return to being normal again since the sleepover incident, but no - max had to ruin it by turning up to school this soon, late as well. yesterday had gone so well with her absence. the car zoomed off into the distance leaving max staring at the school entrance, mike watched her hesitate to walk in, she soon stumbled her way into the school.

moments went by and max had bursted into her science class, mr clarke gave her a lunchtime detention that she would have to spend with him, max didn't show any sign of interest and sat in the only available space left in the class - next to mike, not even sparing him a glance as she walked past.

she sat up straight, arms crossed, mike noticed. it wasn't even spring break but every local could notice that hawkins was already heating up - and soon it became difficult to handle the heat with a jumper or a long sleeved shirt in a stuffy classroom. max was one to surrender any sign in increase of temperature, she hated sweating, panting, the lot. so why was she wearing her red sweatshirt and pulling the sleeves over to cover her knuckles?

max wasn't paying attention to whatever mr clarke was going on about, so mike staring at her, not so secretively, with wide eyes, watching her play with a metal ruler she had pulled out of her pencil case, that soon got her attention quicker than the boy expected. she turned to face him in a swift moment, locking eyes with him. she squinted her eyes as if she was sending a message to him telepathically, mike got the impression that max didn't want him to keep staring at her and stared outside the window once again.

as max turned her head viciously in the other direction, making her hair sprawl over her shoulders and desk, his mind flashed back to the very early morning of the resulting sleepover, mike had woke but max still sleeping soundly, still oblivious of their embrace during the entire night. the way her way was curled delicately on his pillow and chest, the locks covering her face and protecting her identity. he briefly remembered how it felt, her hands grazing near the lower parts of his back, which had become bare as his shirt strangely started to rise, he assumed during the night because of his own shuffling in the sleeping bag.

fortunately, the time seemed to fly by before he could even manage up the confidence to talk to her and maybe even talk about the incident and very after he was about to write out a note for her, the school bell rang - deafening anyone who heard it, that it was time for break. max packed her backpack the quickest out of everyone, despite barely taking anything out, and darting out the classroom with her skateboard. max was never one to leave early, but mike guessed that he put her off staying in the classroom any more longer she needed too.

everyone else had left the classroom all except mike, lucas, dustin, will and mr clarke. mike watched from his desk at the back as dustin was showing something off to his beloved teacher what he made over the weekend (though he gained some disproving looks when he said he did it all by himself, when the whole party had to help him piece this thing together), mike still had no clue what it was or what is was for, the only thing he knew at the moment was that he was starving.

finally, dustin shut his cakehole up and mr clarke dismissed them to break, it was slightly colder outside than inside, but mike wasn't complaining - he was eating his sandwich, ham and cheese sandwich. he was watching will draw next to him, will was drawing the party as their designated party roles in d+d and mike thought it looked really good so far and couldn't wait for the finished product of such craftsmanship. lucas and dustin were arguing or talking civilly very loudly, mike couldn't really tell anymore. but he didn't care, he had a sandwich, a ham and cheese sandwich.

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oh my days, guys. hey, i'm alive :P.
i had to split tuesday into two parts.
so the next part will be coming out soon,
don't worry you want have to wait a year for it either,
i promise ;)

i love all you guys,
your appreciation of this work means a lot!
hope you all are staying safe!