OH!
✧･ﾟ: * Nora loves Nancy, but the girl is the worst driver.
She's going, like, a hundred over the limit, sending everyone flying at every turn and pothole. As they pull into the Holloway's everyone rushes out of the car, desperate to get away from the death trap.
Nancy and Jonathan lead the group up, and Nancy rings the doorbell multiple times. Once it's clear no one's home, they turn to El, and she swiftly turns her head and unlocks the door.
They file in, looking around. "Tom? Heather?"
"Jesus, it's freezing," Max instinctively huddles into Nora as Nora did the same with her.
They make their way to the living room and a strong smell hits Nora in the face.
"Do you guys smell that?" Nancy turns to the group. They all make their way to the kitchen, where the scent is even stronger.
Nora almost throws up at the sight of half-empty bottles of bleach and gasoline.
"Oh, God. More chemicals," Nancy observes them with furrowed brows.
"Do you think they're guzzling this shit?" Jonathan picks up a can.
"Yeah, either that or they went on one hell of a cleaning spree."
"But last year, Will didn't eat chemicals," Max turns to the boy. ". . .Did you?"
"No," Will shakes his head. "This is something new."
"Mister Clarke. Fifth grade. Posit," Mike starts, looking to the party. "What happens when you mix the chemicals together?"
"You create a new substance," Will nods along with Lucas and Nora.
"What if they're making something?"
"In themselves?" Max seems confused. "I mean, come on, if you drink this crap, it'll kill you."
"Yeah," Lucas nods. "If you're human."
Nancy moves to the dining room where another smell of the food that hadn't been cleaned up a few nights ago sits.
What catches Nora's attention is the red stain on the carpet and the wine bottle lying on the floor. I could get Hawkins on 'Unsolved Mysteries'.
"Blood," Nancy leans down. "Yesterday, Tom had a bandage on his forehead."
Nora spares a glance at her injured hand.
Picking up the wine bottle, Nancy notices a bloodstain on the label, "he was attacked."
They follow the bloodstains through the house, leading themselves to the garage. The creaking of the door as Nancy opens it added an unnecessary creepy factor to the whole ordeal.
An old rope lies on the ground until Jonathan picks it up. "They must've tied them. They must have taken them somewhere."
"Mrs. Driscoll," Nancy states. "She kept saying, 'I have to go back.' What if the flaying, it's taking place somewhere else. There must be a place where all this started, right? A source."
"Somewhere he didn't want me to see," El agrees.
"If we can find the source, then maybe we can stop him," Nancy suggests. "Or at least stop it from spreading or doing whatever the hell he's doing with those chemicals."
"How do we find it?"
"Mrs. Driscoll," Will answers. "If she wants to go back so badly, why don't we let her."
Nancy and Jonathan share a look and Nancy nods. "Let's go."
—
✧･ﾟ: * By the time the group reaches the hospital, the sun has already set. Nora had no time to admire the pink and orange skies as Nancy's driving seemed to get worse at every little lane switch.
They all burst into the hospital and try heading straight for Mrs. Driscoll's room.
"Whoa, whoa! Excuse me, where do you think you're going?" A lady at the front desks pauses them.
Nancy awkwardly turns with a smile as the gang stops in their tracks. "Oh! Um, I was just going to visit my grandma again. And- and this. . . this is my family. . ."
Everyone smiles at the lady as she scrutinizes them with her eyes, resting her gaze on Lucas.
". . . Extended."
"I don't care," the nurse sasses. "You know the rules, two visitors at a time."
Nora quickly counts everyone there on her fingers.
"Yeah, but-" Nancy tries.
"Two."
Nancy rolls her eyes and turns to the kids. "Alright, you guys go wait in the waiting room. Jonathan and I will go find Mrs. Driscoll."
They nods and make their way to the seats as Nancy and Jonathan go to the elevator.
Lucas and Mike make a beeline for the vending machine, Will sits comfortably in a chair, and Max, El, and Nora flip through the magazines on a nearby table.
Nora picks up a Vogue and sits in a chair, Max plopping next to her, leaning over to see the contents.
"Oh, come on, you piece of shit!" Mike suddenly yells, aggressively abusing the vending machine.
El easily turns her head, dropping half the snacks to the bottom. Mike thanks her awkwardly, and everyone goes back to what they were doing.
"Nor," Max suddenly hissed.
Nora looks in surprise at her low tone. "What?" She asks in a loud voice.
"Shhh," Max hushes her and quickly jerks her head towards where a few random people were sitting. "Five O'Clock."
Nora turns her head to just see a group of sad looking people, hunched over in their own world. "What?" She repeats, quieter this time.
"That guy is totally checking you out."
Nora scans around and catches the eyes of a guy in a blue sweater. Upon eye contact, the boy smiles and Nora gives an awkward wave back and quickly turns to Max.
"Oh, my God," Max basically squeals. "Go talk to him."
"What, why?" Nora looks confused. That was so awkward.
"Because he likes you! Ask him out or something."
"What?" Nora says for what feels like the millionth time. "I don't even know him. I don't want a boyfriend. Oh, my God," she turns back to her magazine and flips to the next page.
Nora glares as Max snatches it out of her hands. "Are you allergic to them or something?" Max says joking, but Nora just gets annoyed.
"No, I just don't see the appeal in making out with someone I just met." I'd rather make out with y-
"You don't have to make out with him!" Max also starts getting defensive.
"That's not the point."
"Then, what is the point?"
"Why can't you just drop it?"
"I-" Max's face falls and Nora instantly feels guilty.
"I'm sorry," Nora shakes her head before standing up and going towards the bathroom.
She breathes heavily against a sink but just shakes herself out of it. Jesus Christ, Nora. Calm down. You're okay. It's not a big deal. Literally just tell her. She'll get it. . . right?
"Nor?" Max hesitantly comes into the bathroom.
Nora immediately collects herself. "Hey," she breathes. "I- I really am sorry."
"I know," Max walks forward meeting Nora beside her, both girls looking at each other in the mirror. "It's okay."
"I- I don't know what got into me. . . I just-"
"Hey, really, it's okay," Max assures. "I'm sorry too, for pushing you to do stuff you don't want to."
"You weren't! I just. . . um-"
"You can tell me anything," Max interrupts.
Really?
Y'know what?
"Okay. . ." Here goes everything. ". . .Max. . . I-" Nora took a deep breath and shifted her gaze to her own eyes in the mirror. "I like girls."
Max is quiet and Nora is terrified. "And guys!" She adds hastily. "Girls and guys. Both. Neither. I don't know. I-"
"Me too," Max cuts off the almost rambling girl.
Nora moves her eyes again and this time sees Max looking at herself.
"I like both too. . . I, um, I actually broke up with Lucas for this girl."
Nora's eyes drop to the floor just before Max's try to look at her.
"Oh."
"Yeah. . . she, um, she and I are really close, and I was always worried of ruining our friendship. . ."
I totally get that.
"I wonder if I should make the first move," Nora turns her whole body and finds her self face-to-face with the redhead.
Taken aback by the sudden brightness of her blue eyes, Nora stutters slightly. "I- um, I dunno. . . I mean. . . Yeah. Yeah. She would like that." Nora tries speaking from experience, but the close proximity with Max is making her head fuzzy.
Nora ignores everything she just heard about Max's crush, and slowly tilts her head forward, Max doing the same thing.
They get closer and closer and closer. . .
Suddenly the lights start flickering and they look up in surprise.
"Oh," Nora whispers, giving Max one last glance before the girls rush out of the bathroom.
They see the other kids huddling around each other, all looking at the lights, and Nora and Max go to do the same.
Will places a hand on the back of his neck. "He's here."
The kids run over to the elevators, ignoring the nurse lady when she tries to slow them down. They make the soundless decision that the elevator will take to long, so they head to the stairs instead.
The continue climbing upwards and slow down slightly at the sound of. . . growling. . . and screaming. . .
They then sprint down a hallway to where the see Nancy and Jonathan struggling with a door. El pushes them a side and tosses her head up to slam the door open.
The sight before sends goosebumps up Nora's arms.
"Jesus!"
"What the fuck?"
"Oh, wow."
The monster before them charges forward and Nora grabs Max's hand reflexively.
El quickly tosses the monster to the left, then right, then to the ceiling and it falls down with the ceiling tiles.
The creature snarls and makes a move forward again. El lets out a scream and throws out both her arms and sends the creature soaring out the window.
The group - besides Nancy and Jonathan - instantly run away as fast as possible, to the main floor, and out the doors.
There, they see the monster reduces into a liquid and sink down a storms drain, leaving nothing but a few bones. . .
a/n:
i'm getting annoyed w myself now