A//N: A little on the short side. sorry!
||𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑'𝐒 𝐏𝐎𝐕||
"Guys, guys! This is crazy."
The boys had gone on some tangent, trying to debate what we should do. The three of them stood in a circle debating while I sat next to El, an arm around her trying to warm her up.
"We can't just wait around." Mike finished.
"Mike, in case you forgot, we're still fugitives. The bad men are still looking for us." Lucas said.
At that moment, Dustin jumped in.
"Yeah, and we don't even know where your sister is."
"El can find them."
"No, Mike." I spoke up, grabbing all their attention. "Look at her, she's exhausted. She's already done more than enough for us in that last 24 hours alone. She's only human, she needs rest." I defended.
El didn't say anything, so she laid her head on my shoulder in a tired manner.
Mike frowned a little, indicating he knew that I had a point.
"I still think we should stick to the chief's plan." Dustin concluded.
"Exactly." Lucas eased. "We stay here, keep El out of sight and keep her safe. That's the most important thing, remember?"
A small smile found its way onto my face. I'm glad Lucas is looking out for El. She's truly one of us now.
"Besides, she's okay. She's with Jonathan."
"Yeah, and she's kind of a badass now, so..." I chuckled at my brother's comment.
He wasn't wrong about that.
My head perked up when I saw him turn around start to exit the gym.
"Well, where are you going? You just said stick to the plan!" Mike exclaimed.
"I am. I'm just gonna go get some chocolate pudding. I'm telling you, Lunch Lady Phyllis hoards that shit."
"Are you serious?" Mike yells while Lucas trails off after my brother at the mention of pudding.
"El needs to be recharged!" Dustin finished, before disappearing past the gym doors with Lucas.
⊹ ⊹ ⊹
"Found it! I knew she was hoarding it."
Dustin and Lucas began grabbing as many cans of chocolate pudding as they could carry, as Dustin continued rambling about it.
"I knew it."
"Yeah."
"Always lying, saying she's out. Bald-faced liar." He turns over his shoulders, his arms overflowing with pudding cups. "MIKE! I FOUND THE CHOCOLATE PUDDING!"
I chuckled and shook my head as I watched the boys hoard their own new stash of pudding.
The three of us had joined Lucas and Dustin in the cafeteria. I was leaning my back against the doorway that separated the cafeteria from the kitchen, my arms folded as I waited for the supply of food. I wanted to let Mike and El have a moment alone so I kept my distance.
"Okay!" He shouted back, clearly annoyed.
I chuckled under my breath once more.
My limbs began to grow tired and I found a seat at one of the tables closest to the kitchen and I was clear across the room from Mike and El. I slouched in the chair, my legs stretched out lazily across the ground and I began fidgeting with the hem of my shirt.
I want to think about anything but everything that just happened. Given the circumstances of course, it's pretty much impossible. My heart sank at what Will must be going through right now.
He sounded so... so weak. I wanted desperately to help him, but there was nothing for me to do.
It was then that I couldn't help but overhear Mike and El's conversation. They were talking very softly.
"My point is, they'll take care of you. They'll be like your new parents, and Nancy, she'll be like your new sister."
"Adopted? Like Y/n?" She asked hopefully.
I suddenly felt a pair of eyes on me and I looked up to see El looking at me and I smiled politely and looked to a slightly disappointed looking Mike.
"Will you be like my brother?" She asked.
He scrunched his face up in disgust and I had fight a bellow of laughter. What came out was a series of snickers that luckily they didn't catch.
"What? No, no."
Tuning back out, my mind wandered to Will again. It was easy then for the chuckling to die down. My face quickly fell and I began fidgeting once more.
I tried to picture what happened in there. The Upside Down, or wherever it was that El was able to speak to Will.
To see him.
I suddenly envied her.
I miss him so much and I wish there was more I could do.
The reality of everything that had happened recently hits me like a ton of bricks every time I think about it. What I was able to do. Like I get the news of it all, every time I think about it.
And I still haven't told anyone yet.
More guilt and anxiety hit me all at once again.
It was then that two words pulled me from my trance once more. I couldn't help but listen as the two spoke, while I kept my head down and focused my eyes on my hands.
"Snow ball?" El asked confused.
"It's this cheesy school dance, where you go in the gym and dance to music and stuff. I've never been, but I know you're not supposed to go with your sister."
"No?"
"I mean... you can, but it'd be really weird. You go to school dances with someone that, you know... someone that you like."
I couldn't help but frown, all of this felt too familiar. But yet nothing like this had ever happened to me. Deep down I knew what was wrong but I was fighting to acknowledge it.
"A friend?" She asked brightly.
I felt a wave of guilt wash over me and I frowned.
"Not a friend," Mike sighed. "Uh... uh... Uh, someone like a..."
Something about all this was making my chest feel heavy. I felt isolated, like something was missing.
Someone.
I couldn't stop my eyes from wandering to the duo and I saw Mike quickly and nervously lean over and gave El a kiss.
Suddenly, it felt as if someone punched me in the gut.
And it wasn't from jealousy. Far from it. I was happy for them, and I thought they were adorable. But Lucas's words from a few days ago popped into my head.
《•••》
"That doesn't prove anything! We're best friends! So what if we're close?"
He laughs. "Yeah, just as close as Nancy and Steve! And you're no better. You just haven't realized it yet."
《•••》
My heart would have fluttered violently by now but it feels too heavy.
A strong wave of guilt washed over me at the thought that I might not ever get a chance to see him again. Much less share innocent moments like these with him.
Having been fidgeting with the hem of shirt once more, I caught sight of a tear land softly on my lap. I hadn't realized I had been crying.
I quickly wiped it away when I heard Mike get up front the table suddenly.
"Stay here," He suddenly ran out of the cafeteria doors and I caught sight of a blushing El staring after the boy.
Suddenly, Dustin and Lucas barged in carrying a hoard of chocolate pudding and dumped it on the table before El. I stood up walked towards the table, eager to have a taste of pudding that sounded so good after all that has happened.
"This will charge your battery right up, I'm telling you." Dustin smiled, handing El a pudding cup.
I gladly grabbed one off the table when suddenly, Mike came running into the hall gasping for breath.
"Guys! Guys!"
"What?" I asked.
"What is it?"
Mike came to halt, completely out of breath.
"They found us."