CHEF
└─── °∘❉∘° ───┘
IT WAS ALREADY SUNSET when the group arrived, Max lay on the couch in Mike Wheeler's basement. Celeste was on the floor right beside Max while Steve explained to the three teens what happened to the girl.
Celeste didn't get to go home the night before, so she ask Karen if she could call her aunt. Luckily for her, her aunt knew Karen Wheeler so Aunt Jaune approved on it.
After a few minutes, they heard a loud knock coming from the door. Mike walked up to the door and slowly opened it, revealing Nancy and an exhausted Robin.
"Where is she?" Nancy promptly asked and shoved Mike out of her way.
Nancy breathed in when she saw the red-haired girl in deep slumber.
The Wheeler girl widened her eyes when she turned to look at the long-haired girl beside the couch, "Celeste?"
"How—"
Mike halted, "Why does everyone in this household know Celeste before they even meet her?"
"Celeste, oh gosh. You're back!"
"We lived in hawkins before?" Celeste frowned.
Mike scratched his head, "I need to recall."
—
Everyone else was sleeping when Celeste, Mike, and Max wakened up. The long-haired girl agreed that she will be the one who'll prepare their breakfast. She, of course, cooked the classic pancakes, eggs, and toast bread.
"That smells good." Max complimented, not looking up from her drawing.
Celeste giggled, "thanks."
"Does it taste good though?" Mike teased while grabbing three plates from the cupboard.
" 'Course it is. I'm a good cook." Celeste rolled her eyes.
After cooking, the three sat at the dinner table, eating up the food that Celeste made. Seconds later, Karen Wheeler came to the kitchen with a surprised look.
"Who cooked?"
Celeste nervously smiled, "I cooked pancakes, eggs, and toast bread. We didn't want to bother you, Mrs. Wheeler. Eat up!"
"Such a sweet kid." Karen grinned.
Mike smirked, "It's too salty."
"No, it's not. You were literally devouring the pancakes and even asked me to give you mine." Celeste scoffed, before smiling with pride.
"Pancakes are my favorite now." Mike chuckled and snatched one of the pancakes on Celeste's plate.
Max raised a brow with a mockery smile, "Really? I thought waffles were."
"I say pancakes are better." Celeste shrugged.
"Mm-hm." Mike hummed grabbing another pancake from the poor girl's plate.
Celeste glimpsed two figures on the side of her eyes, she looked at Nancy and Dustin who stomped their way toward them.
"Morning, guys." Karen Wheeler greeted the two, "everything okay?"
Nancy and Dustin breathed out, "Yeah. Yeah. Everything's okay."
Karen smiled, "I think it's so sweet that you guys are sticking together like this."
Ted who was reading the newspaper muttered, "could try sticking together at a different house for a change."
Nancy ignored her father's statement and walked to the three, Celeste and Max greeted Nancy who also greeted them back.
"You girls okay? Max?" she smiled, completely dismissing her brother.
"Yeah, just couldn't sleep. People kept blasting music in my ears for some reason." Max sighed gazing at her drawing.
Max has her headphones on and the song by Kate Bush has been blasting in the redhead's ears for the past few hours.
"Holly let me borrow some of her crayons. We've been having fun, right, Holly?" Max grinned turning to Holly Wheeler who answered back with a hum.
Nancy peeked at Max's drawing, "Is this what you saw last night?"
Max shrugged, "I mean, it's supposed to be. I thought it'd be easier to draw it out than to explain it, but. . . not so much. It was like they were on display. And there was this red fog everywhere." Max explained showing her drawing, "It was like a dream."
Celeste spoke not looking up, "A nightmare. You think Vecna was just trying to scare you?"
"With Billy? Yeah." Max nodded.
"But when I made it here. . . I dunno, something was different. He seemed surprised, almost. Like he didn't want me there." Max explained.
"Maybe you infiltrated his mind. He invaded your mind, right?" Mike creased his brows.
"Is that a big leap to suggest you somehow wound up in his? like Freddie Krueger's boiler room." Dustin continued for Mike, suddenly appearing in between Celeste and Mike.
"Freddie who now?" Celeste asked looking at the boy.
Holly also spoke, "Freddie Krueger?"
Dustin began to clarify, "He's a super burned-up dude with razors for fingers. And he kills you in your dreams." he showed his hand imitating the claws.
"Dustin, seriously?" Nancy glared at the boy, pointing to max.
"Sorry. It's a movie. It's not real. just. . . think about it. What if you somehow unlocked a backdoor to Vecna's world? Like, maybe the answer we're looking for is somewhere in this incredibly vague drawing. God, we need Will." Dustin said grabbing one of Max's drawings.
"Yeah."
"I tried to contact them again this morning, and it's the same busy signal." Celeste stated.
Mike gulped, did he really forget that his girlfriend still exists?
Nancy grabbed one of the drawings, "Is this a window?"
Max nodded, "yeah."
"Stained glass with roses." Nancy lowly gasped still holding the drawing.
"Yeah. See? I'm not so terrible after all." Max sarcastically smiled at Dustin who also sarcastically smiled at her.
"Yeah. No shit, Dustin." Celeste rolled her eyes finishing up the food, which Dustin replied with a middle finger that Holly copied.
She sat up and went to the sink and washed the plates she used. Mike came to the kitchen, holding the used plate and utensils and giving it to celeste. The long-haired girl silently cursed for being so slow that she have to wash Mike's.
"Oh dear, you didn't have to do that." Karen smiled at the girl.
"It's alright, Mrs. Wheeler. Just manners." Celeste smiled back.
"Really? You sound forced." Mike whispered to her while she glared at him.
"Your future husband surely will be lucky." Karen chuckled patting the girl's back.
Celeste laughed shaking her head, she and Mike came back to the table seeing Max's drawing puzzled up together revealing a drawing of a house.
"—it's not just a house. It's Victor Creel's house." Nancy said standing up.
"Where are you going?" Mike asked.
"Waking everyone up."
END.
MA33VE SPEAKS !
honestly, i prefer waffles over pancakes