‧₊ ·˚ ༘❁ ┊ep 1. mad max. ▬▬▬▬▬▬
꒰ ✎ ꒱ؘ STARGIRL, a stranger things fanfiction
It had been months. By months I mean at least a year. Franny was... I would say depressed after Eleven disappeared. She wouldn't get out of her bed. The only time she would ever come out of her room was to eat or use the restroom, maybe get a little bit of food.
Her mother bought her a TV because of how rarely she would come out of her room. Paola felt bad because she knew a secret and she couldn't ever tell Franny. At least that's what Hopper told her.
Paola still told her anyways. Franny went blank-faced when she heard.
"Que?" Was heard from Franny's mouth in complete utter shock. She jumped back in surprise, her hand over her heart. What?
Hopper eventually found out by Paola. Hopper allowed once a week's visit from Franny. No one else knew besides her family.
After a few weeks, Franny became her bright self once more. Invited Lucas for more swapping spit sessions. They eventually stopped for a few months, but, Lucas couldn't help himself. He snuck kisses here and there when Mike, Will, and Dustin weren't looking.
They hid it pretty well.
Lucas would say they made each other happy. They blushed every time their hands would meet.
Franny loved it.
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Franny walked into her kitchen and looked at her mom who was chopping olives. Paola looks up at her dark-haired kid who gives her a look.
"How much.?" Paola asked, setting down her knife and walking to her purse.
"About 20? In coins." Franny gave her a smile and Paola sighed. "Okay. Here."
She handed her the coins and Franny thanked her and hugged her. "I'll be back at 9."
Paola nodded. She rushed to her room as Dustin and Lucas were asking how much each other had.
"I got 20," Franny spoke into the radio. "How?" Dustin questioned.
"My mom. She got a better job." Franny replied. "What about you Lucas?"
"I have 6. Mowed Old Man Humphrey's lawn." He laughed. Franny chuckled. "Where does he have that kind of cash? He's old."
"Okay. Call Mike now." Franny recited. "You call Mike." Lucas quipped. "You call Mike." Dustin drawled.
"I have to go take a shower from doing real work, like a man." Lucas joked. "Over and out."
"I also have to go. Gotta eat my mom's famous enchiladas." Franny replied. "Bye Dustin! See you later." She put her antenna down and put her walkie-away on her dresser.
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Franny waited for the four to show up. Mike, Lucas, and Dustin arrived a few minutes later than they were supposed to meet.
Will showed up a little later than them. Franny gave Joyce a wave and a smile. She waved back as she watched her son go inside with the others.
To slay the dragon, use the magic sword.
Dustin was playing Dragon's Lair as the others watched around him. Franny loved how Princess Daphne looked in the game. She was amazed by her.
"Oh, Jesus! I'm in uncharted territory here, guys." Dustin complained about how bad of luck he was in.
"Down! Down! Go down!" Lucas noted. Dustin used the controller to move their character down. "I'm going!" Dustin replied back.
His character runs past a sword and they all chant for Dustin to get the sword.
Before Dustin could use his character to slay the dragon, his character was burnt into ashes.
"No. No. No!" Dustin hit the game box. "I hate this overpriced bullshit!" He kicked the bottom of the game box. "Son of a bitch! Piece of shit!"
"You're just not nimble enough. But you'll get there one day." Lucas proposed. "But until then, Princess Daphne is still mine." Lucas crossed his arms. Franny rolled her eyes and scoffed. Lucas gave her a sorry and he was just joking look.
She laughed, "I'm just teasing you." She whispered.
"Whatever. I'm still top on Centipede and Dig Dug." Dustin expressed, that he knew Franny was better than him at Dig Dug. He was just too scared to admit it.
"You sure about that?" Gabby, a friend of the group chimed in. They turned their heads to her. "Gabby what are you talking about?" Lucas asked.
She gives them a smirk and then walks away. Dustin's eyes go wide. "Shit." Was heard from his mouth as he moved past Will and Mike and rushed to Centipede and Dig Dug.
Dustin looked at the top scores at each game.
"751,300 points?" Will exclaimed. "That's impossible," Mike added.
"It's really not. I've gotten up to 725,000 before I moved here." Franny began.
He turns to Gabby, "Who's Mad Max?" He questions. Gabby shrugs her shoulders. "Better than you." Keith chimed in. Dustin flips him off.
"Tell us. Please. Is it you?" Franny added. "You know I despise Dig Dug," Keith mentioned his hate for the game.
"Spill it, Keith," Dustin chimed in again. Keith stuffed another Cheeto into his mouth. "You want information, I need something in return." Keith looks at Mike and Franny.
They all look at the two. "No, no, no. No way. You're not getting a date with our sisters." Mike put forth.
"Guys come on, just get him the dates." Lucas insisted. "I'm not trying to prostitute our sisters!" Mike expressed back.
"But it's for a good cause," Lucas added. "No, don't get him the dates. Know what?" Dustin chimed in. "He's going to spread his nasty-ass rash to your guys' whole family," Dustin finished.
"Acne isn't a rash and it isn't contagious you prepubescent wasted." Dustin gave him a look. "Oh, I'm a wastiod? They both shouldn't go on a date with you."
"You make like what? $2.50 an hour?" Dustin questioned as Keith kept putting Cheetos in his mouth.
Franny rolled her eyes. "Fine, I'll get you the date, just tell us who Mad Max is." Keith nodded. "Gabby, take it away." He stuffed another Cheeto into his mouth.
"I've seen them a few times around here. I've talked to them at least once or twice in here when I watch them play. They're pretty good. But not as good as Franny."
"I'll let you get back to your game." Gabby began as she waved and walked away. "See you at school Monday." She went back to where her mom was.
Franny noticed Will was gone she gestured to Mike who saw Will outside looking up. Mike walked out to go get Will for his turn in Dig Dug.
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Franny and Will open their locker together. Will spots a newsletter on the top shelf of his locker. He takes it out and Franny spots him reading it.
"Hey, Will. Ignore them. They're just jealous they can't do that once they die." Franny gave him a pat on the back and smiled. He thanked her.
The bell rings and Will shoves the paper in his locker. They walk to Mr. Clarke's class. Mr. Clarke changed his classroom around and the party plus Gabby still sat in the front.
Mr. Clarke placed down a replica of the human brain. "Meet the human brain." Mr. Clarke explained about the brain as Franny was drawing in her notebook.
Everyone wasn't really into learning about that, but the rest of the party was. "There are a hundred billion cells inside of this miracle of evolution." The boys looked at each other in amazement.
Franny continued to draw in her notebook, a student's bubblegum pops as the door opens.
"Ah, this must be our new student." Gabby's eyes widened as she watches the girl who she would watch play dig dug in the arcade be in her own father's classroom.
"All right. Hold on there, you don't get away that easy." The redhead stops in her tracks and steps next to Mr. Clarke's desk.
"Dustin, drum roll." Dustin closes his book and pretends to give a drum roll.
"Class, please welcome, all the way from sunny California. The latest passenger to join us on our curiosity voyage, Maxine." He gives jazz hands to Max.
"It's Max." Franny looks up from her notebook to the name Max. Dustin's smile faded.
"Sorry?" Mr. Clarke asked. Franny looked at Lucas who looked at her the same time she did.
"Nobody calls me Maxine. It's Max." She told Mr. Clarke.
"Mad Max," Lucas whispers to Dustin. "Well, all aboard Max." The six watch her curiously as she sits down in the back of the classroom.
They make eye contact. The four turn away but Gabby and Franny still make eye contact with her.
Gabby waves at her and gives a nice welcoming gesture, Franny does the same. Max noticed Gabby from the Arcade and smiled at her. Max didn't really know Franny, but she assumed that she was a friend of Gabby's.
At lunch, the six spy on Max skateboarding. "There's no way that's Mad Max. Yeah. Girls don't play video games." Franny sighed and nudge to Mike. "Well, I do. So that clearly makes sense that girls play video games." Franny expressed. Gabby agreed with Franny.
"But still, you can't get 750,000 points on Dig Dug."
"Like, I said. It's possible." Franny added. Mike ignored her. "But her name is Max," Lucas added. "So what?" Mike quipped.
"How many Maxes do you know Mike?" Franny chimed in, crossing her arms still looking at Max. "I don't know."
"Zero. That's how many." Lucas finished. "Yeah, she shows up to school the day after someone with her same name breaks Franny and I's top score?"
Gabby pulls Franny away, "I have to tell you something." Gabby gulped.
"What is it?" Franny asked. Gabby exhaled, "Max is Mad Max. I've known, she showed up last week, my mom who works at the place uhm told me to help her out with all the games she wanted to try. So, I helped her, and we kind of hit it off," Gabby paused. "and she let me watch her play and she asked me to watch her play Dig Dug again and I want you to come since we've been hanging out more." Gabby finished.
Franny nodded. "Yeah, sure okay. We'll go with her." Franny hugged Gabby and smiled. The two walk back to the five and spot them running to the trash can.
They run to them. "What are you doing?" Franny began. "Nothing," Mike replied.
"I got it!" Dustin lifts his head out of the trash can and opened the note.
Stop spying on me, creeps. Was read from the six. They all sighed. "Well, shit."
"William Byers." The principal called out. The six all turned to him as they watched Will give a bye and walked toward the principal.
"Do you guys think he's okay?" Dustin asked, as they watched around the building. "He's always weird when he has to go in," Lucas added.
"I don't know, he's quiet today." Mike began. "He was never like this when he was released out of the hospital." Franny worried for her friend as she watched him get in his mother's car and drive off.
They all observe concernedly.
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After school, Gabby, Franny, and Max all went inside the arcade. "I have spare money," Franny told Max.
"So, you're the stalker's girlfriend, right?" Max laughed. Franny went blank face. "He's not my boyfriend." She replied.
"That's at least what you think. Trust me I see the way he looks at you in class." Max smiled as she grabbed some of Franny's money.
"C'mon you've come to watch me play Dig Dug and beat your score, Franny." Max rushed to Dig Dug as she entered coins.
Franny and Gabby watched from each side of the game box. "How long have you been playing."
"Since I was seven, that's on how I've gotten good and beaten you." Max kept her concentration on Dig Dug.
Franny turn's her head to the window and spots Lucas and Dustin. She goes wide eyes; they see her looking at the two and they duck down. "You've got to be shitting me."
"What?" Max asked. Franny looked back at Max. "Oh, Uhm, nothing. Thought I saw my mom here for me early."
Max and Gabby laughed.
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Franny waves a bye to Gabby and Max. "I had fun with you guys today. Do you guys maybe want to hang out at lunch tomorrow?" The two nodded. "Sure, as long as your stalker friends and boyfriend aren't there."
Gabby and Franny chuckled at that. "Promise they won't. But they want me to be in a costume with them. Going as Wednesday Addams."
"Are you kidding me? I love Wednesday!" Max laughed and smiled. "See you tomorrow Miss. Addams." Max commented on her costume as Gabby and Max went back inside.
Franny got into her mom's car and smiled at her as she closed the door. "Had fun?" Paola asked.
"Lots."