at first, you started off as an outcast. you were different. you weren't the same as the perfect people living in hawkins. and neither was i. i guess that's why we sorta clicked when we first met. and then hopper and my mom started dating, we started seeing each other more often, we grew closer, and we started telling each other our secrets. a few months later, our parents got married, and you 'n hop moved in with us.
now, when you spend almost 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 4 weeks a month and twelve months a year with someone, you get a pretty good understanding of what they're really like. when they're at their worst, when they're vulnerable, and what they're capable of doing. i mentioned us sharing secrets earlier, didn't i, el? and since you were so kind as to share one of my biggest ones, how about i return the favour? i'm sure that some of the people listening would love to know some of the things you've done. actually, i think i'll wait. if i want people knowing your secrets, i'd rather tell them all at once. and now you're probably thinking 'how the hell can a dead person go around dishing dirt?' well, to answer your burning question, with the copies i made of these tapes, is a notebook. 11 notebooks, to be exact, filled with every little thing i know about all of you. don't bother trying to find yours, by the time you find out who the safe keeper is, every detail about you, along with these tapes will be released into the media of hawkins high. you fuck up my life, i fuck up yours ten times worse.
oh, and el? just because mike was 'so in love' with you, doesn't mean that he was oblivious to cheating.
since the day that hopper and el moved into the byers household, will and the brunette girl were known as the 'dream siblings'. they had the perfect relationship with each other, never fought, never got jealous and never complained about each other. until one day. it's funny how one small kiss changed the lives of william byers and eleven hopper.
"will please, don't tell him, i promise you it wasn't what it looked like." the girl desperately pleaded to her brother.
"really? cause it looked a hell of a lot like you and lucas sucking each other's faces off!"
the siblings stood on opposite sides of the living room, yelling at the top of their lungs at each other. lucky they were the only ones home. for now.
"oh please, will! just but out! you know it meant nothing to me!"
"you don't even care about mike! the only reason you're with him is so you can show off your shiny boy toy to the whole school"
"and the only reason you care is because you're in love with him. that's right will, you think you're sooo good at hiding it but the truth is that it kills you to see me with him. and the worst part is you can't even admit it."
the front door gently unlocked and in walked joyce, her usual cheery smile lit up her face. "hey guys,
i'm home. anyone want a snack?" her soft voice went unnoticed by the two teenagers who's eyes were locked on the other. their voices lashed out across the room like a blazing fire.
"just shut up!"
"you're not supposed to like boys the way girls do!"
everyone froze. a buzzing noise filled will's head as everything around him played in slow motion.
the sound of keys hitting the ground broke the silence. "what?" joyce spoke, almost inaudible.
"i..." eleven tried to think of something to say, without making the situation worse.
"el" the brown haired boy gave the girl a disheartened look, his voice breaking "why would you say that?"
joyce stood by the kitchen table, her legs paralysed and her eyes glued to the two kids standing before her.
tears rapidly formed in the boy's eyes and began to spill down the sides of his face. "this was supposed to be my thing that i told people when i was ready. you had no right-"
eleven interrupted him "oh what do you care? you know she knows." she pushed past will, hitting him on the shoulder and storming out of the house, slamming the door closed behind her.
will was now left alone in the room with his mother, both of them staring at each other. he stared at the woman with a scared look on his face. his mouth slightly open and his green eyes filled to the brim with salty tears. joyce's face beamed with compassion, her features softening as she took a step towards her son. the small boy turned around and bolted down the hallway and into his room, closing and locking the door as fast as his shaky hands would allow. the older woman ran after him, knocking lightly on the brown wooden door.
"will, sweetie?"
"go away mom!" a muffled scream came from the room.
she tried again "will, please." her soft voice was filled with concern for her youngest son. she didn't want him to have to deal with this by himself.
"i said go away!"this time, she listened. leaving the boy alone and heading for the kitchen.
inside his room, will sat on his bed, his head buried in his pillow, letting the soft material absorb his warm salty tears. a faint knock could be heard coming from the outside of the small boy's bedroom window. will sat up and looked in the direction of the noise. none other than michael wheeler was standing on the other side. will swiftly wiped his tears and proceeded to let the taller boy in.
the smile that was on mike's face instantly fades when he notices the smaller boy's read puffy eyes and tear stained cheeks.
"have you been crying?"
a tinge of embarrassment ran through will's body as he realised how terrible he must have looked, nevertheless, he pushed aside the thought and turned his focus to the company of his best friend.
"uh, yeah. el and i had a fight."
"a fight? are you okay, are you hurt?"
"no, no, it wasn't physical, i'm fine."
"i care about you a lot, will. you know that, right?"
the green eyed boy felt his cheeks flush and he did his best to hide it. the two simultaneously sat on the end of will's bed.
"so what was the fight about?"
"oh, uh" will stammered, not sure if it would upset his best friend "nothing important."
"nothing important? you and el never fight, it must have been something."
"it really doesn't matter, mike." will avoided eye contact with the raven haired boy, fiddling with his hands as they sat in his lap.
"don't you trust me?"
"no! i-i mean yes.." the small boy fumbled with his words "of course i trust you, it's just that.." he closed his eyes and let out a sigh "it was about you."
"me?"
"uh, yeah.."
"oh."
there was a silent pause for a moment.
"i just don't think she's treating you right. you des-"
"i know she's cheating on me."
will's head turned in shock "you know? why don't you say something"
"because i'm scared. i mean, what if i end things with eleven and then i never find anyone? what if she's the only person that ever wants to be with me - screw that, she doesn't want to be with me anyway, she's cheating for christ's sake!" he exhaled, running a hand through his mop of hair. "i don't want to be alone forever, will." his voice softened, he turned to will with pain filled eyes.
the smaller boy took the larger boy's hand in his "i promise you, there's someone else out there that's going to fall in love with you, for real, and want to be with you every second. they're going to treat you right, and they won't want to change anything about you. i promise they're gonna love you more than you could ever imagine."
"how can you be so sure?"
will's eyes flickered down to mike's lips for a split second before returning to meet his eyes. "i just know." he gave a small reassuring smile and the older boy returned it, their hands still intertwined, each boy pretended not to notice so they wouldn't have to let go.
WOW HI ITS BEEN LIKE YEARS HOW ARE U HOWS LIFE DO U STILL CARE ABOUT THIS STORY
and the million dollar question: who's tape do u think is next?
heres a lil disclaimer bc i don't think i was very clear about it in the introduction
1. the upside down doesn't exist in this au and will never
went missing
2. el was adopted by hopper, she didn't come from hawkins
lab
3. el doesn't have powers, when it says she was different
it means physically different (short hair, didn't talk etc)
4. some of the events from season 3 don't apply to this
book (eg. the byers moving)
5. the events in the tapes are NOT chronological. the
events in this tape happened before max's party,
stan's tape, etc. (sorry if that makes it confusing)