on July 4th, just 1 week later, everyone in town was stoked about the Independence Day fair opening up in Hawkins. Will had been feeling a little better, he was just starting to re-adjust to home. he was starting to talk more around us, to me, to his family. I was really starting to think he was going to be okay.
All of my friends were hanging out today, but not me. I had to work at family video, I hadn't came into work much with everything going on, I even had to take a break from baseball. but my job is strict, I had to take this shift otherwise I'd be fired. But i would get off just in time for the fair. instead of my friends hanging out at the mall, they came to my work and hung out there until my shift were to end. They walked in surprisingly, I thought they'd want to get scoops or something else.
-"shouldn't you guys be at the mall? Or at the park or something?"
-"yes, but we were too bored without you." Lucas said, sarcastically.
-"okay, well I'm a little busy stocking up movies, and in case you didn't read the sign on the window, it says no loitering." I tapped on the glass as they followed me around.
-"it's the fourth of July! You shouldn't even be working today." Dustin complained.
-"well I am, I need the money and I'm not working at the mall. it's too much, I need this job. Just go, I have like 3 more hours until I close up. I'll meet you guys there at 7." I say.
-"whatever, see ya." Max said, as all of them left the store. will was with them, I guess he forgave max. I mean, it wasn't such a huge deal. i forgave her too anyway, it was an accident. And Will and I were starting to get better, we're hanging out and talking more. he's been acting pretty normal, like he's okay. which makes me very happy. im glad his life is starting to pan ou-
-"I don't pay you to loiter either, wheeler." Keith commented.
i rolled my eyes, before displaying all the movies on the racks.
after work, I left. Leaving my boss, Keith, alone. i went home to dress into comfier clothes. i wore a hoodie with shorts. I rode my bike downtown where the fair was. I looked around for my friends, they were all waiting by the fence. I jogged over to them.
-"finally, it's 7:12!" Max complained.
-"sorry, Keith wouldn't hop off my ass. but I'm here now, let's go." I clap my hands, following after my friends.
the night was such a blast, we all laughed and ran around together. every time i looked at Will, he was always looking at me. As if he needed to tell me something. But when he knew I was looking back, he looked away.
we all got tickets to go on the Farris wheel, dustin and Lucas wanted to sit with each other, as did El and max. So it left me and Will sitting on the same one.
we sat down and as we started going up I had to make sure he was okay.
-"are you okay?" He asked.
-"of course, why do you ask?" He said with a softer voice.
-"because, you've been eyeing me all night. Is there anything you want to tell me?" I ask, looking him in the eye.
-"I wasn't going to say this until after the ride, but I think I'm ready." He explained.
-"ready for what?" I squinted my eyebrows.
-"to start dating again."
the ride ended, the rest of our friends didn't notice Will taking me behind one of the food stands.
-"are you sure? It's only been a week! i don't want you to be in a relationship with me in the wrong headspace." I ask.
-"i'm positive. I'm ready, I love you. you make me feel safe, I don't want to wait anymore. There's no point." he sighed in relief.
-"are you 100% positive?" I asked once more.
-"stop asking, or I'll change my mind." We both chuckled.
I pressed my hand on the side of his warm, red face and kissed him, slowly. It had been so long since I felt his lips against mine, I almost forgot how it felt. It was great to have that feeling in my stomach again when I kissed him. The feeling of fireworks.
as he kissed me back with his arms wrapped around me, the fireworks started booming in the air. we stopped to look up, and smiled before kissing again. He ran his hands down my back as we kissed, but we pulled away when we realized how long we've been back here. We didn't want to walk out together, they'd know we were together. We went out separately, Will went out first, saying he didn't know where I was.
i was waiting a few minutes until walking out, but before I could someone grabbed me by the hood and shoved me to the floor. I couldn't tell who it was, but they shoved a needle in my neck, I would guess it was liquid ecstasy because as they put a bag over my head, I fainted.
wills pov -
i walked out to where I saw the rest of my friends.
-"where have you been? Where's mike?" Max asked.
-"I don't know, he went to look for you guys." I lied.
I really didn't want them to know more than they already do. So I just waited for him to come out, but he never did. As we were looking around, I snuck back to where we kissed. He was no longer there. But what was there was a half empty syringe. I slowly walked over to it and picked it up, I yelled for them to come over.
they ran to me, I was kneeling down to it. I stood up and showed them, they looked at me, worried.
-"what do we do?" El asked.
I noticed a piece of paper on the ground, as they were arguing I picked it up and read it.
-"we need to call the police!" Max said.
-"we can't." I said.
they all stopped to look at me, standing up with the note in my hand.
I gave them the note.
"you don't deserve him, Will. Call the police, and your family is next. - Troy Harrington"
-"that prick!" Lucas yelled.
-"this is not good, this is not good!!" Dustin repeated pacing in circles.
-"what do we do?" Max asked, stressed.
-"everyone just calm down! I have a plan."
we walked to max's car where she had a phone book in her glovebox. I went through the pages to where I found Harrington.
I looked through the names until I saw his dads name, I tore the page out and we both rushed towards a phone booth.
i dialed the phone number, and after getting sent to voicemail I called again.
As I was about to give up, someone picked up.
-"hello?" Troy said from the other line.
-"Troy, please don't hurt mike! What do you want?" I ask.
He laughed.
-"please, I'll do anything. Just leave him alone!" I begged.
-"you want your boyfriend back, huh? In 5 minutes, otherwise.. your boyfriend will be saying hi to your daddy."
-"the pools closed?"
-"find a way in. Come alone!"
he hung up on me, we all ran to her car again and speed to the pool, there was so much traffic to get through. It took way over 5 minutes to get there from all the cars in the way. I was worried he was dead. I told her to drive faster, we nearly crashed twice before we got there.
before we got out of the car, she stopped me.
She pulled a gun out of the back of her glovebox and reloaded it.
-"what is that?!" Dustin asked.
-"just incase!" Max said.
-"be careful." Lucas said.
-"we'll be watching." El said.
-"stay low, don't follow me unless I'm in danger." I said, before shutting the door and climbing the locked fence.
as I walked to the pool, nobody was there. Not mike, Troy, nobody.
-"hello?? Mike?! Troy?!" I yelled out.
As I was looking around, I noticed something in the pool. There was something under the water.
that's was when I realized, it wasn't a "thing".
It was mike.
-"mike!"
i jumped in and tried pulling him up, but something was keeping him down. I looked at his feet, they were chained to large bricks.
i kicked and kicked at the chains, they wouldn't break. I tried for minutes to break them. And when they snapped, mike floated up to the top.
i swam back up and helped him out of the pool.
I hovered above him, trying to hear if he was breathing or not.
-"mike, please be alive." I whispered with a shaking voice.
i put my ear up to his chest, he was still breathing.
I started to cry as I pumped against his chest, counting down to 30. I breathed in his mouth, but he didn't wake up. I was completely falling apart trying to save his life. Trying over, and over. He wouldn't wake up.
-"mike, please! Please wake up!" I cried.
-"you're late."
i stood up, Troy was in front of me, standing next to Mike.
-"you knew what would happen if you were late." He said, taking slow steps towards me making me back up.
-"what have you done?!" I yelled.
-"you never deserved mikes attention. He was going through things to, but you never asked him if he was okay, ever! You only worried about yourself."
-"that's.. that's not true!" I stuttered.
-"yes it is, you know it! He should've been with me! i would've been there for him when you couldn't! That's why he cheated on you! you wouldn't give him what he wanted."
-"shut up." I said quietly.
-"so he turned to someone who could."
-"SHUT UP!!" I yelled, pushing him.
He grabbed me by my shirt and started to punch me.
-"you're fucking weak, just like mike was when I killed him." He laughed.
I punched him in the jaw, making him step back.
-"hey." A voice from behind troy whispered.
Troy turned around to mike, holding a brick over his head. He smashed it above Troy, making him fall to the ground.
I ran over to mike, who had fallen to the floor.
-"mike.. no, no, no, no. Mike!!" I shook him.
All of my friends ran to me, hovering above mike.
-"mike, please don't die! We're going to get you to a hospital! Please just stay awake!"
-"will." He whispered.
He looked up at me, with a slight smile on his face. But it slowly faded away as I felt him stop breathing. He was still, his eyes were wide open. He was gone.
I heard sirens in the distance, pulling up to the pool.
-"no.. mike!" I sobbed over his chest, his dead body. I hysterically cried over him, trying to do CPR again.
-"Will.. he's gone." max said, crying.
-"no he's not, he's still in there." I said trying to stay calm.
-"you have to let him go, man." Lucas voice cracked.
Paramedics took him away into an ambulance. I watched as they gave him CPR, his heart beat was gone.
after watching them try their best, they gave up.
Until mike gasped for air waking up, they put a breathing mask over his face as he tried to stay awake.
i put my hand over my face as they tried to stabilize him.
how is that possible, his heart wasn't beating, now it is.
All my friends hugged me as I cried over their shoulders. I didn't know what to do at this moment. What if he doesn't stay alive?
what if Troy was right?
It was my fault.