__________
c h a p t e r s i x t y - t w o
"Sam, what happened? I thought you were ready?"
"I am," she steps away from him, voice trembling. "But isn't this the fun part for you? Chasing your victims."
"I'm freeing you, Sam. No more performing to what society wants. You're finally accepting that you don't deserve..." he stalks towards her, mirroring each step she tries to put between them.
"Anything!" he lunges towards her, prompting her to run out of the room and down the stairs.
Of course, the steps begin to crack with each step, making it harder to outrun her monster.
"This plan better work," Sam lets out a breath, running to the front door, only for it to be boarded up.
Little did she know Max was doing the exact same, completely unaware of her torment.
She opens another door, trying to get out as she hears Steve yelling on the other side.
"Sam, let me in! You're not gonna leave me for dead again, right? Sam!" his voice only grows angrier, as she steps back, eyes teary.
Remembering what Max said about focusing on the good memories, she takes a deep breath, allowing her brain to be flooded with the best times in her life.
Dawn and her having a dance party in her room, singing terribly to the dumbest songs.
"You can't run from me, Sam!"
Movie nights with her family.
"Open the door!"
Her first date with Steve.
"It should've been you that night!"
Sleepovers with Robin.
"It's time to say goodbye."
Telling Steve she loves him.
And suddenly, she was alone, at the Indianapolis State Fair, watching the rides light up, and fireworks in the sky, all while she tries to catch her breath.
She did it. Right?
______
"What do I do?" El asks, unsure whether she should leave Sam's mind and enter Max's.
"It's a trick, El," Bianca realizes. "You said that he told Sam she was next, right?"
"Yes."
"He told her his entire plan, why would he do that?" the brunette attempts to rationalize, voice shaking in fear of being wrong. "He has them both because he wants the group to be confused. If they don't know which one to save, it gives him time."
"So which one is it?"
"How long does it take for her to switch minds?"
"Bianca..."
"I don't want to be wrong. She has to check both."
"What if there's not enough time?"
"I'm in. I see... a girl. A young girl."
"What does she look like?"
"Her hair is black and really long. She has glasses and she's drawing in a purple notebook."
"It's Sam. When she was a kid, she was obsessed with this purple sketchbook. El, what else do you see?"
"Hi," A much younger Steve approaches Sam, holding a pink pen with a furry tip.
"Hi?"
"A boy."
"You, um, you dropped this yesterday. I tried to give it to you, but you like ran inside when the bell rang," he awkwardly passes it to her.
"Thanks," she places the pen next to her, returning to her drawings.
He doesn't move, though, making her look up in confusion. "Is there something else?"
"Well, what's your name?" he sits next to her.
"Samantha," she shortly remarks. "Yours?"
"Steve. Steve Harrington," he brushes his hair out of his face. "What are you drawing?"
"It's Steve."
"El, I think you're in a memory," Mike furrows his eyebrows.
"Is there anything odd or out of place? Any sign of Vecna or the Mind Flayer?"
"It's nothing, really, just something to pass the time. I don't like recess all that much," she sighs, letting him see the drawing.
It was actually a beautiful drawing of the sun, with the word "Luz" at the top.
"What is that? Luz?"
"It's my middle name. It means light in Spanish," she explains.
"It's a cool name. And the drawing is really cool," he compliments. "I'm sorry about Carol. She's a total jerk."
"Most people are," she shrugs.
"Well, they shouldn't be. Don't listen to them. I think you're cool, Luz."
"And that changes everything?"
"Maybe," he shrugs. "Friends?"
"Sure, Steve Harrington."
"No, everything's normal. Except..."
Looking away from the now smiling kids, she spots the Ferris wheel in the middle of the playground.
"There is something that doesn't fit. I think it is another memory."
"A memory within a memory?"
None the wiser, Sam was busy waiting for the group to finish the plan and put her headphones back on so she could be back in the normal dimension.
Of course, as soon as she felt comforted by the setting, the rides begin to eerily slow down, the music growing creepier by the second.
"Sam..." Vecna taunts. "Did you really think you could get away?"
"No," she shakes her head, trying to return to her happy memories as the sky grows red.
"I have you now, Sam."
______
"What is taking so long?" Dawn turns to Lucas, discomforted by the shallow breaths Sam and Max were taking.
"I don't know," he frowns, going over to the window to signal Erica.
When he doesn't see her, he raises an eyebrow in confusion. "I don't see her light."
"I'll go check on her. Make sure they don't get Vecna'd," the blonde points to Sam and Max, before walking downstairs.
As soon as she opens the front door, she gets grabbed by one of Jason's minions, who places a hand over her mouth, preventing her from warning Lucas.
Jason walks right in as she struggles to get out of the jock's grip. "Dawn Henderson. What exactly are you doing back in Hawkins? Flynn, you can let her talk."
She glares as the jock removes his hand, holding a Swiss knife up to keep her from running or screaming. "Just visiting. I didn't know you were on border control."
"I see you still have a sense of humor. So tell me, where's that brother of yours? You know what mess he's gotten himself into?"
"You're gonna have to be more specific. He's kind of an idiot," she rolls her eyes, a nervous laugh escaping her.
"The cult. Hellfire?"
"Cult? Have you lost your mind?"
"You know, now that I think about it. I saw you and Eddie Munson together last summer. You looked awfully close," he leans forward, a crazed look in his eyes.
"I don't know what you're talking about. Where's Erica?"
"Sure. Someone else might," he threatens, ignoring her question to go up to the attic.
She tries to follow, but Flynn holds the knife back up, shaking his head.
"Where is she?" she repeats.
"The runt is fine. Where's Eddie?" Flynn questions.
"I don't know, are you crazy?" she struggles in his grasp.
"Stop resisting!" he fights back, tightening his grip on her so much it was beginning to hurt.
"You don't understand, I need to go up there. It's life or death," she attempts to explain.
"So it really is a cult? What'd you do to Chrissy?"
"I didn't do anything to her! Flynn, please. I know it sounds weird but I know what's going on here. And a lot of people are gonna die if I don't get back up there."
"I always knew you were a witch. With your freaky music and that creepy van."
"I'm not a witch, you idiot. Now, let me... go!" she rolls her eyes, elbowing his stomach hard enough for him to let go.
As soon as she does, she knees him in the crotch and punches his jaw, immediately running towards the steps.
Of course, right before she can get there, he recovers, grabbing her again and pushing her into the wall, hard.
"You shouldn't have done that," he stands over her, anger in his words.
Lucas wasn't doing much better, as Jason jumped to the conclusion that Sam and Max were ritual sacrifices and was now holding him at gunpoint.
"Here's what's gonna happen: I'm gonna back away to the top of the stairs there. Then, I'll watch as you wake them up from whatever the hell this is."
"I can't," he slowly turns around. "Jason, if I wake them too soon, we all die."
"You don't wake them up right now, you die, Sinclair," he turns the safety off. "Just you."
The boy shakes his head in fear as he hopes Dawn and Erica are fine, and that the rest of the group would just finish the plan already.
"I can't."
"What is your motive here? What did Sam do to you?"
"Jason, it's not what it looks like, I swear."
"Unless she's one of you. Her little sister is always running around with you, isn't she?"
"Jason, please."
"Wake them up!"
______
Sam, still deep in her mindscape, looks around in fear as she hears Vecna's voice all around her.
"Why are you even doing this?" she cries.
"You think I don't see what you're doing? You think I don't see everything?" he reveals, showing her how all of her friends were completely incapacitated right now.
Lucas held at gunpoint. Eddie cycling away from a hoard of bats as Dustin screams his name.
"What?" she shakes her head, trying to return to her positive memory.
"You thought you could trick me? You thought your friends could stop me? I see them, I see your friends. Just as clearly as I see you," he places his hand over her face, showing her Steve, Nancy and Robin being suffocated to death. "I can feel them. I can feel them dying," he continues.
"Please," she weeps.
"It's time, Sam. But not for you," he reveals his real plan, showing her Max in the same position. "Not yet."
"No, no, you said you were-" she grows angry.
"Nobody escapes me. This time, you lose," he growls, telepathically tossing her into one of the games, before completely disappearing.
And just like that, she is knocked back into consciousness, eyes widening to see Jason holding a gun up to Lucas.
"What happened? Jason, what are you...?" she looks around in confusion. "Where's Dawn?"
"Sam, how'd you get out?" Lucas asks.
"It wasn't me he wanted. He's after Max," she explains, standing up, but immediately feeling dizzy. "We need to..."
"You should sit down," he moves to help her, only for Jason to remind them of his presence.
"Get the hell away from her, Sinclair!" he shouts, moving to help Sam. "What did they do?"
"Jason, stop," she scolds. "He's not doing anything."
"His cult killed Chrissy."
"There is no cult," she emphasizes.
"Wait a minute. Are you in on this Hellfire bullshit?" he points the gun in her direction. "You helped kill Chrissy?"
"No, Jason. I promise you there is an explanation, just put the gun down. It's not a cult."
"Then wake her up."
"We can't."
"We have to soon," Sam warns Lucas. "He found her."
"Who?"
"We call him Vecna. He lives in another dimension, that's why you can't see him," Lucas nervously explains, and every few seconds, Jason's eyes drift to Sam's, trying to confirm.
"And Eddie Munson and his Hellfire acolytes, what, you all summoned this Vecna?"
"Jesus Christ," she rolls her eyes. "Eddie is not a cult leader, he didn't do anything to Chrissy."
"Then why was she at his trailer that night?"
"She was buying drugs, Jason. He's a drug dealer, in case you forgot all those parties where he sold to you and half the basketball team," she steps in front of Lucas, hands up.
"No, no, Chrissy wouldn't touch a drug," he frowns. "She's good. She's not like you."
"Fear changes people, Jason. She just wanted some peace. She was afraid, because Vecna, he makes you see things, horrible things. I saw them too. You can't sleep or eat or function because you're so afraid. And then he kills you. And I'm so sorry that he got to her before we could help her, but I promise you we didn't have anything to do with it. Neither did Eddie."
"She would've told me."
"Would you have believed her?" she raises an eyebrow.
"You're lying. She would never go to that freak! Never!"
"You're wrong about Eddie," Lucas cuts in.
"Lucas, stop," Sam warns, eyes trained on the gun pointed at her.
"No, but I was wrong about you," he pointedly stares at Lucas. "I never should've let you in the door. And you, Sam? I always knew you were one of them."
"One of who, exactly?"
"A freak," he sneers, and maybe a week ago that would've been enough to send her spiraling, but today it just made her angry.
"Maybe you're right, you shouldn't have let me in," Lucas glares, speaking up before Sam can. "But I never should've knocked. I thought I wanted to be like you. Popular, normal. But it turns out, normal's just a raging psychopath."
"You have five seconds to wake her up," he stands firm.
"We tried to be nice," Sam narrows her eyes, pulling the gun out from the waist of her jeans. "Put the gun down, Jason."
"Am I supposed to be scared? Pretty little thing like you wouldn't shoot me. You probably don't even know how to," he chuckles.
"You wanna test that theory?" her face remains unchanged as she switches the safety off.
They stand off for a moment, before he makes a quick movement, prompting her to shoot near his feet.
"Next time, I won't miss," she quirks an eyebrow.
"Get off me!" they all hear Dawn scream, clearly in pain, which draws Lucas and Sam's attention long enough for Jason to tackle her to the ground.
She hits the floor hard, head crashing directly onto one of the Walkmans, crushing it in pieces as the gun skids across the room.
"Lucas, grab the gun," she shouts through gritted teeth, feeling the back of her throbbing head, which had started to bleed.
Jason doesn't let him get far, laying punch after punch on the boy as Sam struggles to get up, the room spinning as she does. She does hear the second Walkman break under Jason's feet, practically solidifying Max's fate.
She gathers just enough strength to grab a wood plank from the corner, hitting his back with it. He drops Lucas immediately, the boy wincing in pain as he attempts to regain his strength.
Taking advantage of Sam's reduced physicality, he snatches the plank from her, pushing her back to the ground, this time wrapping his hands around her neck as well. "You killed Chrissy."
She gets a sense of deja vu as her lungs begin to hurt, quickly running out of oxygen. "No..."
However, this time, she finds the upper hand, kneeing him between the legs, and pushing him off of her.
Before he can begin to fight back again, Max begins to levitate, sending Lucas and Sam into a state of panic. It didn't help that they could still hear the commotion from downstairs, only hoping Dawn was the one kicking Flynn's ass.
There was one hope in the duo's minds: Please let Steve, Nancy, and Robin end this before it's too late because their failsafe plan? It was looking a little faulty.