HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM
✧･ﾟ: * Max and Eleanor walk into Mr. Clarke's classroom with Dustin and Lucas as soon as the bell rings, signaling the end of the day.
Nora is radiating worry. She didn't notice until she had recalled the events of the day during Math (mostly the holding hands with Max), but Will had gotten suddenly quiet while looking at Dart. As if. . . no, that's ridiculous. . . but did he recognize it? Is Dart from the Upside Down? That would suck.
"This is the reason I was late," Dustin puts the box on Mr. Clarke's desk slowly.
Mr. Clarke smiles at the contraption, "Pretty neat. These doors function?"
Dustin's face falls for a second. "Well, yeah , obviously. But it's not about the trap, it's what's inside. Now, this very well may change your perception of the world. . ."
Mr. Clarke keeps the smile on his face, "Consider my interest piqued."
Dustin smiles proudly before taking on a serious tone, "Alright, first, let's just clarify that this is my discovery, not yours-"
"Dustin, Jesus!" Lucas exclaims, frustrated. "Just show him!"
"I'm just trying to clarify-"
"Dustin!" Max and Nora shout together.
"Okay, fine." His smile is back.
"Stop!" Mike rushes into the room suddenly, surprising everyone. "I'm really sorry, Mr. Clarke. It was just some stupid prank." Mike goes up to the table and grabs the box.
"What the hell?" Dustin asks, going for it quickly.
Mike keeps out of his reach, urgency in his voice, "We need to go, right now. Right now!" He rushes out of the room, the other kids following close behind as he heads int he direction of the AV Room. Nora is confused again. He pushes everyone into the room before stopping at Max. "Not you," he slams the door in her face.
"What's wrong with you?" Nora asks, angrily. This is too overwhelming.
"She can't hear this," he says sternly in his usual bossy tone. "I think that Dart might be from the Upside Down. Will told me that last year, on Christmas Eve, he coughed up something that looked a lot like dart."
"Hello? Guys? Can I come in yet?" Max bangs outside on the door.
"No!" Mike yells and Nora sighs in annoyance. She gets the whole "keep Max safe" thing, but Mike was really getting on her nerves now.
"I don't understand," Lucas says.
"What do you not understand?" Mike asks, as if he weren't just talking at the speed of light.
"Will saw something that looked like Dart last year?" he tries clarifying.
"Kind of," Will answers. "But there was no tail."
"But then he heard it yesterday," Mike says. "The same exact sound."
"Why didn't you tell us earlier?" Dustin asks, probably still annoyed about getting so excited to share Dart, only to have him taken from right under his nose.
"I wasn't sure," Will looks down and Nora feels a pit in her stomach. Why couldn't things have just gone back to normal?
"So, it's a coincidence," Dustin says, holding onto any belief Dart wasn't from the Upside Down.
"Or not," Mike speaks up. "What if when Will was stuck in the Upside Down, he somehow acquired True Sight?"
"True Sight?" Lucas asks, speaking Nora's confusion.
"It gives you the power to see into the ethereal plane," Dustin explains.
Nora waits for Lucas to ask for elaboration, but when he doesn't, she finally speaks up. "What does that mean?"
Mike looks at his skeptical friend. "It means, maybe these episodes Will keeps having, aren't really flashbacks at all. Maybe they're real. Maybe Will can somehow see into the Upside Down.
"So, that would mean," Lucas starts.
"Dart is from the Upside Down," Nora finishes with a sigh as Mike nods.
"We have to take him to Hopper," Lucas finalizes.
"I agree," Mike states.
"Me too," Nora adds.
"No way!" Dustin immediately defends. "If we take him to Hopper, Dart's as good as dead."
"Maybe he should be dead," Mike shrugs.
"How can you say that?"
"How can you not? He's from the Upside Down!"
"Maybe. But even if he is, that doesn't automatically mean he's bad!"
"That's like saying just because someone's from the Death Star that doesn't make them bad!"
"We have a bond."
"Just because he likes nougat?" Mike laughs sarcastically.
"Because, he trusts me!" Dustin yells.
"Dustin," Nora tries calming the two boys down.
"No! I promised I would take care of him-" Dustin was cut short as the box started rattling, Dart seemingly trying to get out. Nora took a step back and was disappointed to know Max's hand wouldn't be there. The box is flipped over on it's side and Mike reaches for the speaker to use as a weapon. "Don't hurt him," Dustin warns.
"Only if he attacks," Mike replies.
"Just open it already," Lucas tells him. Nora turns her head slightly away as Dustin presses a button and Dart flies out, bigger than ever.
"Holy shit!" Nora gasps as he starts growing a leg on either side of his body, twitching around aggressively. Mike slams the speaker on the table, but Dart jumps back in surprise.
Max pushes the door open after picking the lock, and Dart runs out of the room.
"Shit," Mike yells, after Max jumped in surprise.
"Where'd he go?" Lucas asks as the party runs to the door, Nora grabbing Max's hand to keep her from falling in surprise.
"What was that?" Max asked after giving Nora a thankful smile (it looked more like a grimace, but we'll ignore that), and letting go of her hand.
"Dart!" Mike answers. "And you let him escape!"
"Why'd you attack him?" Dustin turns to Mike angrily.
Mike pushes past him to the direction the creature ran in, "Come on."
"Don't hurt him," Dustin runs after him. "Don't you hurt him!"
—
✧･ﾟ: * The group split up to try to find Dart. Mike covered the East, Dustin got the West, Will went South, Lucas did the North, and Eleanor outside. They didn't give Max area, assuming (hoping) she'd go home, but she just wondered around. Nora was indifferent to the idea.
On one hand, she didn't want Max to get caught up in all this craziness, but considering she wasn't going away anytime soon, might as well let her into the party, right? I mean, of course it was dangerous, but it was just as dangerous for the rest of the party. What if what happened with El happened again though. . .
"East is clear. No sign of Dart," Mike's voice through the radio shakes Nora out of her thoughts, and she continues around the school.
No sign of the little demon creature.
"West is clear too," Dustin speaks up. "Will?"
"South is clear, Lucas? Anything?" Will asks after a second.
A few foot steps is heard on Lucas' end before his voice, "Nothing here, man. Nora?"
Nora just sighs pressing the talk button, "It's not outside." She keeps looking though, behind columns, and through windows.
"He," Dustin corrects. "Dart is a he."
"Shut up, Dustin."
"Guys," Will's hesitant voice is heard after a few minutes. "I think I found him."
"Where?" Dustin asks, eagerly.
"In the bathroom by Mr. Salerno's."
"Copy that," Mike states for the rest of the group.
Nora goes to the closest entrance only to be pushed out by Will rushing to the front lawn.
"Will?" Nora tries to stop him. "Will!" She stands back as he runs out onto the field. He slows down towards the middle and looks up. Nora slowly starts to follow, walking hesitantly. Horror movie shit right here.
She tries looking up to see what he's looking at, but there's nothing in the sky. . . nothing visible to Nora at least.
His face gets paler and sweatier, and Nora speeds up to try to reach him. She speaks hurriedly into her radio, "Mike. Guys. Will's- he's on the field-" She broke into a sprint. "I think it's another episode-" she dropped the radio to the ground, overwhelmed with worry. "Will! Hey!" Nora stops in front of him, her hands shaking his shoulders. His eyes looked like they were moving behind his closed eyelids, and if Nora weren't incredibly stressed, she'd probably be creeped out.
Mike runs next to Nora, shaking Will with her. "Will?! How long has he-"
"I don't know," Nora interrupts him with urgency.
She hears footsteps coming and pulls Mike out of the way as Joyce came over. She put her hands on her sons shoulders, not unlike Nora, before crying his name.
"I think he's having another episode," Mike steps into line with the rest of the party who showed up.
Max grabs Nora's hand suddenly.
Will gasps awake after Joyce continuously shouted his name. Everyone stares at him, worry polluting the air around them.
"Oh, my God," Joyce hugs Will quickly. "Are you okay?"
Will didn't answer, just. . . staring. Something was off, Nora knew.
Everyone ushers each other of the field, still stressed. Max still holding Nora's hand.
"Okay, that totally freaked me out," Max states as the group stood on the front steps, watching Will drive away with his mom, both seeming quite shaken up. "Did that not freak you guys out?"
"Two episodes in two days," Lucas sighs.
"It's getting worse," Mike nods.
"Do you think it's True Sight?" Lucas asks. Mike gives him a look and Nora nods her head towards Max. . . who is still holding her hand.
"What's True Sight," Max asks, probably more confused than ever.
"It's nothing," Nora smiles, sighing with Max at the all the secrets.
I have to tell her.
a/n:
guys, i can't figure out if i like my friend platonically or romantically pls help