Eddie and I didn't talk about about what happened at the boathouse. The kiss and the argument. I think we both agreed it was awkward to admit to.
We walked for hours until it got dark. We pushed through bushes every ten minutes. Dustin looked at his compass and a grin spread across his face.
"Something's happening."
"Dustin? Can you slow down? Dustin?" Eddie ran after the boy.
"I think we're getting close!" He said as he almost tripped.
"Watch your step big guy." Eddie pulled him back.
"Oh man. You gotta be shitting me." Steve panted.
"Yeah. I thought these woods were familiar."
"Lover's Lake." Robin said out of breath.
"This is... confounding." Dustin admired everything while everyone else stood confused.
"There's a gate in Lover's Lake?"
"Whenever the Demogordon attacked, it always left an opening. Maybe Vecna's the same way." Nancy turned back at us.
"Yeah only one way to find out."
We got Eddie's boat that washed up on the shore and with me still shaking, I volunteered to babysit while Steve, Nancy, Robin, and Eddie got in the boat to find the gate. Eddie hopped in roughly, followed by Robin, Steve and Nancy. I noticed Eddie sending me a quick smile before they started leaving.
"Bedtime at nine kiddos!" Robin called. "Miss you already!"
"I'm 19!" I yelled back.
After a while of paddling, they suddenly stopped. Dustin immediately took the walkie.
"Guys, what's going on? C'mon guys talk to me what's going on?"
"Uh— Dustin your compass has gone from wonky to wonky with a capital—ahhh" Robin cut off.
Steve stood up and took his shirt off, preparing to get in the water.
"Eughh. When'd Steve get so hairy?" Lucas groaned.
"Right? I keep telling him he needs to tame that jungle but he claims the ladies dig it."
"Okay Dustin, 'tame that jungle'? Really?" I groaned as well. Dustin shrugged.
"Let me see." Max took the binoculars from Lucas, trying to see the four of them.
We waited as Steve dove into the water.
"You guys realize.. that theres a gate in water? Watergate!" Dustin laughed. Lucas, Max, and I were not amused.
Dustin mumbled under his breath. Steve had been in the water for a while. Suddenly we heard walkies coming from behind us.
"Shit! Down!" I whispered.
We hid behind a tree, waiting for the cops to pass. They sounded like they were really close.
"Dustin you're a goddman Einstein. Steve found the gate—" Robin came on the walkie but Dustin turned it off.
"Cops."
"Shit. Shit."
"We can't let them find Eddie." I muttered.
"Hey. Stay with me." Max stood up and called to the cops. "Hey! Officers! Over here! I found the killer! This way!" We shushed her but she continued lead the cops. I stayed back, not wanting to leave Eddie. Knowing me, I was definitely a narcissist but I was good at hiding it. Normally I would've sprinted out of the woods but something held me back.
"Fuck. Okay I need to go in there." I turned to Dustin.
"No you don't. Why?"
"I can't leave Eddie." I didn't wait for him to protest.
I took a large stick and got in the water, swimming to the boat. Dustin and Lucas yelled at me but I ignored them. I saw Nancy jump in with Steve followed by Robin. Eddie stayed on the boat cursing. He noticed me and helped me into the boat.
"Jade! What the fuck are you doing out here?"
"I'm your hero, remember?" I panted. "We need to get down there. Either we stay here hopeless and get caught by the cops or we go down there and kill that son of a bitch Vecna."
Eddie nodded and I took his hand, pulling him into the water with me. We made our way through the gate where Steve was being eaten alive by huge bats. It was cold in the Upside Down and dark. Loud crashes and screeches came from everywhere.
I lost my stick on the way down but was able to find a boat next to Steve. I took an oar, wacking the bats away while Nancy and Robin tried to free him from the bats. I few of them bit me here and there but in the moment I was fine. Right? Another one bit my ankle and I yelled in agony. This one I couldn't get off. Eddie suddenly chopped it's head off with his oar. He took the head out of my ankle as I winced and grunted.
I tried to stand up but I immediately lost balance. Shit. This was just great. I took off my flannel leaving me in just a white T-shirt. Blood bled through at my thigh, arm, abdomen, and ankle. Steve's wounds were worse. They were more swollen and he'd been here longer.
"Uh- do you guys think these bats have like..
rabies?" Robin asks.
"What?"
"It's just that.. rabies are like my number one greatest fear, and I think we should probably get you guys to a doctor like really soon because once the symptoms set in, its too late. You're already like dead."
Silence passes over us before I break it. "Yeah. Good to know Robin."
Loud screeches came from above us. Red thunder struck in the distance and the demo-bats soared in the dark sky. Robin runs behind Steve and Eddie, I follow, limping. Demo-bats landed in front of us, screeching loudly.
"All right. There's not that many. We can take 'em." Steve whispered.
Eddie grabs my hand without looking back. His grip tightened as the thunder struck louder and more demo-bats screeched.
"You were saying?" Robin says nervously.
"Woods. C'mon!" Nancy runs into the trees and Steve and Robin follow.
Eddie wraps my arm around him, helping me through the woods.
"Eddie. I'm slowing you down." I pant.
"I don't care. I'm not leaving you here to be eaten alive by those things."
We ran as far as we could. It felt like miles and miles. I was slowly losing my breath and blood. We hid under the Upside Down version of Skull Rock, letting the bats pass. I sat leaning against the rock, trying to catch my breath. The longer we hid the tighter Eddie held my hand. I rubbed his hand with my thumb, trying to calm him down. The bats finally pass and Robin was the first to stand up.
"Oh. Okay. That was close." She pants.
"Yeah. Too close." Eddie's voice cracks.
Steve lost his balance and fell onto a rock, grunting.
"Steve?"
"I'm fine. I'm fine." He struggles to say.
"No. No no no no no, you're not. You're losing blood. C'mon. C'mon sit." Nancy rushed to help Steve.
Steve removed his hand and revealed a gnarly bite. It horrified me to know that that could be on me as we speak. Nancy ripped her shirt to bandage the wound and Robin tries to calm Steve down.
"Jade. Let me see your bites." Eddie turns to me.
"What? No, I'm fine. Steve's bites are far worse than mine we should be focused on him."
"Jade, it doesn't matter. What matters is that you were bit and youre losing blood. We also don't know the side effects of those things." Nancy states as she rips her shirt more.
"Not to mention... you can't walk." Eddie adds.
I let out a sigh, not replying. I didn't want to deny or accept their hospitality. Bandaging up my ankle won't help me walk. I pulled up my jeans and saw the bite on my ankle. It was bleeding more than Steve's but it wasn't as big. Suddenly, Eddie wrapped up the wound with part of his shirt to stop the bleeding.
"What about the other bites?" He looked up at me.
"I don't know. I can't feel them."
He pulled me off of the rock and I stood leaning against it. The bites on my arms and legs weren't bad and the one on my abdomen was the least of my worries. Eddie reached to rip his shirt more but I protested.
"No. No more ripping. I don't want you walking around shirtless." I panted.
"You're gonna bleed out."
"I'll be fine."
"Jade."
"I'm fine!"
He sighed and took off his jacket, giving it to me. Eddie hopped up on one of the rocks, getting a better look at the thunder.
"So uh.. this place is like Hawkins, but with monsters and nasty shit?"
"Pretty much." Nancy helped Steve stand up again. "Wait, watch out for the vines. It's all a hive mind."
"It's all a what?"
"All the creepy crawlies around here dude. They're like.. one or something. You step on a vine you're stepping on a bat, youre stepping on Vecna." Steve explained. Eddie nods nervously.
"But everything from our world is still here right? Except people? Obviously?" Robin asked.
"As far as I understand it, yeah."
"So theoretically, we could go to the police station and steal guns and grenades and whatever we need to blow up those bat things that are guarding the gate."
"Mm- yeah, I highly doubt that the Hawkins PD has grenades, Robin. But um guns yeah, sure." Steve says in a 'duh' tone.
"Well we don't have to go all the way downtown for guns. I have guns in my bedroom."
"You. Nancy Wheeler, have guns, plural, in your bedroom?" Eddie jumps down from the rock.
"Full of surprises, isn't she?"
"A Russian Makarov and a revolver."
"Dibs on revolver." I raised my hand but quickly put it back on the rock for support. Steve and Nancy muttered something to eachother I couldn't hear.
Eddie threw his vest to Steve. "For your modesty, dude."
Suddenly a loud crash happened and everything shook. Eddie ran to me and caught me before I fell off the rock, I grabbed Robin, half for support and half to protect her. In the distance a loud distorted roar echoed.
"Yeah, so guns seem like a pretty good idea to me." Eddie shakes.
"Yeah me too." Robin agreed.
"So what are we waiting for?" Steve put on his jacket.
Eddie pulled me up and Robin helped. It was not easy to stand let alone walk to the Wheeler's. Robin soon walked ahead of us, leaving Eddie and I stumbling behind all of them.
"Do you really have to do this? I honestly wouldn't mind cutting my foot off at this point." I panted.
"For someone who's supposed to watch over me, you're quite stubborn. If you really want me to, I could leave you here to be eaten alive by flesh bats."
"Go for it."
Eddie glares at me for a second before continuing to walk with me still leaning on him for support.
"Suit yourself." I muttered.
Another earthquake came and Eddie quickly held onto a tree for support, still holding me up.
"Here we go again." He says in frustration.
I felt like a weak twig holding on by a thread. I slowed everyone down.
Nancy suddenly ran out of the woods and stared in the distance. We all ran up to her and saw her house, alone and isolated in the dark.
I was exhausted. Weak. I didn't have the physical or mental strength to do anything. I almost forgot that I was on the verge of death by Vecna.