CULTASTIC
March 22nd, 1986
⏰ 9:30 am, 📍Hawkins, Indiana
༺♥༻ The kids arrive at Family Video and leave their bikes fallen on the ground next to the entrance.
Max and Dustin rush through the doors with Stephanie close behind them.
"Hey, Steve." Dustin pants as he walks up to the counter.
Steve points to the TV. "You see this?" He asks, probably talking about the news.
"How many phones do you have?" Stephanie called, completely ignoring her brother.
"Someone was murdered." Steve tries again.
"How many phones do you have?" Stephanie repeats, hoping that it'll stick into his head.
"Two. Why?" Steve shakes his head and turns to Robin.
Robin returns the same worried look. "Technically three, if you count Keith's in the back."
Dustin nods. "Yeah, three works."
"What are you doing?" Steve sighs, shaking his head.
Dustin throws his backpack over the counter, knocking basically everything off of it.
"My pile!" Robin yells, jumping back.
Then Dustin throws himself over the counter. Swinging his legs around, hitting everything else off of it.
"No, no, no!" Steve yells while trying to push Dustin back. "My tapes!"
Dustin sits himself in front of the computer and starts frantically typing.
"Oh, my God." Max sighs as she pulls Stephanie by the hand through the door — a much easier way to get through.
Steve throws his arms up. "What are you doing, man?"
"Setting up base of operations here." Dustin responds, probably not listening.
"Base of operations?" Robin repeats while picking up everything that got knocked over.
"Get off." Steve tries to pull Dustin away from the computer.
"I need it." He argues back.
"For what?" Steve scoffs, as if Dustin pulled him away from the computer and started using it.
"For Eddie's friends' phone numbers." Dustin answers, tired of the questions.
"Oh, yeah. Your new best friend you think is cooler because he plays your nerdy game?" Steve mutters to himself, still loud enough for everyone to hear.
"Thats crazy, I think I've said something exactly like that before." Stephanie laughs, turning to Max.
"I never said that." Dustin turns back to Steve.
"Seriously, you guys, maybe on a Monday you can play around, but it's Saturday." Robin pops up from the floor, putting everything back up. "It's our busiest day."
"Oh, yeah, loads of people." Stephanie fakes as she looks around the deserted store.
"Robin, I totally empathize, but this cannot wait until Monday." Dustin says at the same time as Stephanie.
"What, cause calling all of Eddie's friends is a dire emergency?" Robin continues complaining as she picks up more items from the floor.
"Correct!" Dustin yells, already having enough of the questions. "Can you fill them in while I do this?" He sighs like an overworked mother.
"Fill us in on what?" Robin asks, giving a look between Max and Stephanie.
After a few moments of silence, Stephanie speaks up after deciding that Max won't start anyway. "You know the student that got murdered, right?" She sighs, watching Steve and Robin give a confused look to each other.
"We know who it is." Max finishes, looking anywhere but at the two.
"And we have an idea of how she got killed." Stephanie adds, feeling a cold feeling through her body, similar to how she felt at the mall last summer.
Steve raises an eyebrow. "She?"
————
༺♥༻ After retelling the long story to Steve and Robin, everyone was finally on the same page and stared calling Eddie's friends.
Stephanie, however, decides to call Lucas first. She knows he'll still be at the abandoned Benny's Burgers restaurant, as it's a common hangout place amongst the basketball team.
After a few rings, the other end picks up. "Who's this?" The voice, who Stephanie distinguishes as Jason asks.
"Can I talk to Lucas?" Stephanie immediately says without acknowledging Jason's question, not having the time to answer.
"Why?"
Stephanie rolls her eyes. "Why not?"
"Fine. I'll get him."
"Great." She fake smiles, even though he couldn't see her.
"It's Lucas."
"Lucas? It's Stephanie. Does Jason know who was killed? What's going on there? We're trying to find Eddie."
"Steph, it's bad. They think Eddie killed Chrissy and they're calling Hellfire a cult. They're getting ready to hunt Eddie down. You need to come."
"I can't, Lucas. I have to stay with Max."
Stephanie hears Lucas sigh through the phone. "Okay. Just be safe."
"Yeah. You too."
As Stephanie puts the phone back into the cradle, she looks up at Steve. "The basketball team thinks Hellfire is a cult and they're trying to hunt Eddie down."
Steve's eyes widen. "Seriously?"
"Yeah." She nods her head.
Max hangs up the phone. "Hey, guys, I might have a lead." She cracks a smile.
"Really?" Stephanie smiles, trying to decide if that's considered good news or bad.
"Apparently, Eddie gets drugs from some guy named Reefer Rick, and sometimes Eddie crashes there." Max answers, her tone confused and unsure.
"That sounds promising." Robin grins. "Where does Reefer Rick guy live?"
Max rolls her eyes. "See, that's the thing. No one knows, really. He's more of a...legend than someone that people actually know."
"Well, what about a last name?" Dustin shrugs.
"I don't know that either." Max cringes while taking a glance at Stephanie, who's deep in thought about what to do.
"I bet the cops know the last name." Steve comments, making the other four whip their heads towards him in confusion.
"No, Steve." Stephanie shakes her head. "Just no."
"Yeah, cops." He continues, organizing movies he's organized about a million times. "I mean, listen, if this Reefer Rick is actually a drug dealer," Steve lowers his voice as he turns around and leans closer, sliding his arms across the counter. "I guarantee you he's been busted at some point. Means he's in the system."
"The cops?" Dustin steps closer to Steve.
Stephanie furrows her brows. "The same people we are trying to avoid?" She crosses her arms. "The reason we came here was because we didn't tell the cops."
Steve throws his hands into the air. "I mean, I think at this point they should be filled in on what's going on."
"Maybe if Hopper were here." Stephanie frowns, remembering for probably one of the first times that Hopper isn't here. "But the cops can't know."
"You think Eddie's guilty, don't you?" Dustin nods, inching closer and closer to Steve.
"That's not fair!" Stephanie scoffs, taking a step towards Dustin. "It's the best bet that he did it as of right now. I don't think he did and I know you don't either, but it's either that or the Mind Flayer, or something is back."
Steve gestures towards his sister. "Exactly. What she said. Innocent until proven guilty and all that stupid substitution shit."
"Constitution." Stephanie corrects.
"Yeah, whatever. I just don't think that we can, y'know...rule it out."
"That's precisely what we're trying to do here, Steve." Max shakes her head, confused as ever.
"And maybe we'd have a little bit more luck if you spent less time tying to find a girlfriend and more time trying to find Eddie!" Dustin argues, gesturing around the empty store.
"I mean, someone has to attend to the costumers, right?" Max shrugs, not seeing the big deal Dustin has to create.
"Especially if they're babes, right?" Robin winks, giving a look to Stephanie.
Stephanie catches on and points to Robin. "Exactly." She nods. "Babes for Steve, babes for me, babes for Max, and babes for you."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Steve scoffs and rolls his eyes.
"Why don't we look in the computer to find everyone who has accounts here?" Stephanie suggests, knowing that it would work but waiting for an opportune moment to say it.
"That just might work." Robin smiles, rushing to the computer. "We don't need a last name."
Robin types some stuff into the computer and almost like magic, every guy named Rick with accounts at the store pop into the screen. "Twelve Ricks already have accounts here."
"That's a lot of Ricks." Max points out.
"So, let's narrow it down." Stephanie shrugs. "See what they've rented out."
Robin presses the first Ricks name. "Rick Alderman's latest rentals are Annie and Dumbo." She reads as they come onto the screen. "What are the chances our drug dealer has a family?"
"Not likely." Stephanie answers, losing some of her hope.
Stephanie lowers her voice and whispers to Max, "Remember that ongoing joke that you were Annie for like, six mon-"
Maxs hand flies to cover Stephanie mouth. "I thought we swore to never speak of that." She whisper yelled, holding back a smile.
Stephanie pulls her hand away. "You can laugh, I know I'm funny."
Max laughs, but catches herself, as she's probably not supposed to be laughing at a time like this."Shut up, Chrissy Snow."
Stephanie's eyes widen. "We don't talk about that one either."
Robin, Steve, and Dustin rush out of the store, leaving Max and Stephanie behind.
"Wait!" Max yells, running after the three.
"Hurry up, lovebirds!" Robin yells in a sing-song voice.
"Oh, my God." Stephanie scoffs and rolls her eyes.
As the five run to the car, Stephanie notices that the two have found each others hands, reminding her of last summer.
༺♥༻
HEY BITCHES IM BACK.
so i'm sorry this took so long bc it's finals week and i was busy not studying bc i don't do that and hope for the best anyways.
but whatever 🤪
also a little life update: i have a dance recital tomorrow 🤭 10 years going strong 💪🏻 (i'm quitting) (the studio is toxic and i don't like it there)
anyways bye besties 🥰🥰
6/16/23