we go to the same junkyard we were at when el first led us to the "gate". we all breath heavy as we set our bikes down. i look at lucas and he hugs me. i hug him back. "holy..holy shit! did..did you see what she did to that van?" dustin asks. i step away from lucas. "no dustin we missed it." i say. "i mean that was.." dustin says. "awesome." lucas says. we all look over to him. "it was awesome." lucas says. he walks over to el and kneels down infront of her. "everything i said about you being a traitor and stuff... i was wrong. i'm sorry." lucas says and puts his hand on her back. "friends..friends don't lie. i'm sorry, too." el says. "me too." mike says. mike sticks his hand out to lucas. lucas stands up and shakes mike's hand.
"this is randolph road, right here." lucas says drawing in the dirt. "the fence starts here, and goes all the way around. and this is the lab right here. the gates gotta be in there somewhere. it's gotta be." lucas says. "who owns hawkins lab?" i ask. "this sign says department of energy." lucas says. "department of energy? what do you think that means?" dustin asks. "it means government. military." i say. "then why does it say energy?" dustin asks. "just trust me all right. it's military. my dads told me before." i say. "she's right. there's soldiers out front." lucas says. "do they make like, lightbulbs or something?" dustin asks. "no weapons. to fight the russians and commission and stuff." i say. "weapons." lucas says. "oh jesus this is bad." dustin says. "really bad the place is like a fortress." lucas says. "well, what do we do?" dustin asks. "i don't know, but we can't go home." i say. "we're fugitives now." mike says. i hear a helicopter in the distance. "guys." dustin says. "do you hear that?" he asks. "go go go go go!" i say and stuff my bike under the bus. i run to the back of the bus. lucas sits next to me. "get down!" mike says. i lay on the floor and lucas holds my hand.
"mike, are you there? mike?" we hear nancy's voice from the walkie talkie. "you guys hear that?" dustin asks. "mike, it's me, nancy." nancy says. mike quickly grabs his walkie talkie. "mike we need you to answer." nancy says. "is that your sister?" i ask. "this is an emergency mike. do you copy?" nancy asks. "ok this is really weird." dustin says. i grab the walkie but mike grabs it from my hands. "don't answer." he says. "she said it was an emergency." lucas says. "what if it's a trick." mike says. "it's your sister." i say. "what if the bad people kidnapped her?" mike asks. "i need you to answer." nancy says. "it's like lando calrissian dont answer." dustin says. "we need to know that you're there mike." nancy says. "listen kid this is the chief if you're there pick up." hopper says. "we know you're in trouble and we know about the girl." hopper says. everyone stays silent. i grab the walkie out of mike's hand. "this is y/n walsh. i'm with mike, dustin, lucas, and el. we copy." i say into the walkie. "we're here." mike says into the walkie.
dustin paces around the bus as we wait for the chief. i sit on the same seat as lucas. "will you stop pacing?" mike asks. "it's been way to long. do you know what? maybe you're right. maybe this is all a trap and the bad men are coming to get us right now!" dustin says. "it's not a trap. why would the chief set us up?" lucas says. "nancy, maybe, but the chief?" i ask. "lando calrissian." dustin says. "would you shut up about lando?" lucas asks. "i don't feel good about this. i don't feel good about this!" dustin says. "when do you feel good about anything?" lucas asks matching dustins voice level. "lucas calm down." i say quietly. we hear cars approaching. we run to the front of the bus and see two black cars approaching us. "shit!" dustin yells. we run to the back of the bus. we duck down behind seats. "shit shit shit." i whisper. "lando." dustin says. "you think they saw us?" lucas asks. "both of you, shut up." mike says. the bus door opens and i reach for lucas' hand. he grabs mine and i squeeze his tight. there's grunting and gun shots. the chief walks into the bus. "alright let's go." hopper says. "let's go!" hopper says again. we grab our thing and follow him out. it nears night time and we pull up to the byers' house. "mike. oh my god. mike!" nancy says. nancy hugs mike. "i was so worried about you." she says. "yeah,uh...me too." mike says. nancy looks past mike at el. "is that my dress?" she asks.
we walk inside and mike draws out the example mr clarke showed us at 'wills' funeral. "okay so i'm this example we're the acrobat." mike says. "will and barbara, and the monster, they're this flea. and this is the upside down, where will is hiding. me clarke said that the only way to get there is through a rip of time and space." mike says. "a gate." i say. "that we tracked to hawkins lab." lucas says. "with out compasses." dustin says. the adults look confused. "okay so the gate has a really strong electromagnetic field, and that can change the directions of a compass needle." i say. "is this gate underground?" hopper asks. "yes." el says. "near a large water tank?" hopper asks. el nods and says yes again. "h-how do you know all that?" dustin asks. "he's seen it." mike says. "is there any way that you could..that you could reach will? that you could talk to him in this." joyce says. "the upside down." el says. "down. yeah." joyce says. el nods. "and my friend barbara?" nancy asks. el slowly nods.
el sits with a walkie talkie and a picture of will and barb infront of her. we all stand around her. she's trying really hard but nothings happening. the lights flicker. she opens her eyes. her lips start to quiver. "i'm sorry." she says. "what what's wrong what happened?" joyce asks. "i can't find them." el says. she gets up and goes to the bathroom. i go with her. she starts crying. "hey, it's ok." i say and put my hand on her shoulder. she runs the water and splashes it on her face. "you did a lot today, maybe your powers are just worn out." i say. she turns to look at the bathtub. "no." she says. we walk out of the bathroom. "the bath." el says. "what?" joyce asks. "i can find them. in the bath." el says.
dustin goes to call mr clarke. "mr clarke. it's dustin." dustin says. i stand next to him. "yeah, yeah. i just, i..i have a science question." dustin says. i can't hear mr clarke. "do you know anything about sensory deprivation tanks? specifically how to build one?" dustin asks. "f-fun." dustin stutters. "you always say we should never stop being curious. to always open any curiosity door we find. why are you keeping this curiosity door locked?" dustin says. dustin quickly grabs a pen and paper to write down what mr clarke says. "uh huh." dustin says writing. "uh huh, how much?" he asks. "yup all right yeah we'll be careful." dustin says. "i'll see you on monday, bye." dustin says and hangs up with phone.
"do you still have that kiddie pool we bobbed for apples in?" dustin asks joyce. "i think so. yeah." joyce says. "good then we just need salt. lots of it." dustin says. "how much is lots?" hopper asks. "1,500 pounds." dustin says. "well where are we gonna get that much salt?" nancy asks. "the school." i say. we all pile into the chief's and joyce's car.
we swerve into the school parking lot. we run inside. i help dustin and lucas set up the kiddie pool. "it's upside down." i say. "how does this thing work?" dustin says. "try that side." lucas says. "son of a bitch!" dustin says. "pull it back. pull it back." lucas says. "i am!" i say. "one two three." lucas says and we all pull it. it flops to the ground. "stupid bitch." i say. we finally manage to get it up. nancy and mike come in with the hose
we run the water and lucas makes sure the temperature is just right. "colder!" he yells. "warmer!" he yells. "right there!" he yells. hopper and jonathan come in with the packs of salt. dustin drops eggs in it to see if it'll float. first try, no success. second try, no success. third try, the egg floats. we smile at eachother. mike sets down his walkie talkie and turns the static all the way up. el takes off her socks and puts on goggles with duck tape over it. el sighs and steps in the pool. she lays down and floats. the lights flicker out. i sit down next to lucas. everything is still and quiet. "barbara." el says. we all lean forward. el's breath gets heavy. the electricity pulses. "what's going on?" nancy asks. "i don't know." mike says. "is barb okay? is she okay?" nancy asks. "gone. gone. gone. gone! gone!" el says. "it's okay. it's okay." joyce says to el. "it's okay we're right here. we're right here honey." joyce says. "don't be afraid." i say grabbing her other hand. "castle byers." el says. we all look at eachother. "will?" el says. joyce gasps. "you tell him..tell him i'm coming. mom is coming." joyce says. "hurry." we hear wills voice over the walkie talkie. "ok listen you tell him to..to stay where he is."joyce says. "we're coming. we're coming, play? we're coming, honey." joyce says. lucas grabs my hand that isn't holding el's. el shoots up and dustin, lucas, and i gasp. joyce hugs her. "i've got you." she says.
we get a towel for el. she sits down on the bleachers and we all huddle around her. she leans on mike. i rub her shoulders. mike walks away. "they're gone." mike says. "what?" i ask. "nancy and jonathan. his cars gone." mike says. "they're probably just sucking face somewhere." dustin says. "gross." lucas says. "no. no way!" mike says. "did they go with the chief?" i ask. "i don't know." mike says. "no." el says. "what? did you see them? do you know where they went?" mike ask. "yes." el says. "where? where did they go?" mike asks. "demogorgon." el says.
"guys, guys! this is crazy. we can't just wait around." mike says. "mike, in case you forgot we're still fugitives. the bad men are still looking for us." lucas says. "yeah and we don't even know where your sister is." i say. "el can find them." mike says. "she's done enough today mike." i say. "i still think we should stick to the chief's plan." dustin says. "exactly. we stay here, keep el out of sight and keep her safe that's the most important thing, remember? besides she's okay she's with jonathan." lucas says. "yeah and she's kinda a badass now, so.." dustin says. dustin starts to walk off. "where are you going you said stick to the plan?" mike asks. "i am. i'm just going to go get some chocolate pudding. i'm telling you, lunch lady phyllis hoards that shit." dustin says. "are you serious?" mike asks. "el needs to be recharged." dustin says continuing to walk. lucas and i follow him. dustin walks into the kitchen but lucas stops me. "um. so," he puts his hand on the back of his neck, "there's this thing, in school, that we do. it's a dance. that we do every winter. so uh. i was wondering if maybe, if we make it out of here alive, you wanted to go with me?" lucas asks. i smile. "i'll think about it." i say and kiss his cheek.'i walk into the kitchen with dustin.
"found it! i knew she was hoarding it!" dustin says. "you want some y/n?" lucas asks me. "i'm good." i say. "always lying saying she's out. bald-faced liar. MIKE! I FOUND THE CHOCOLATE PUDDING!" dustin yells. the boy continue to grab the pudding. "okay!" mike yells back. we set the pudding on the table for el to eat. "guys! guys!" mike says running in. "what is it?" i ask. "they found us." mike says. we run and hide. i hold lucas's hand. "how did they find us!?" i ask. "lando." dustin says. guards bust through the door right infront of us and we run. "go go go go!" mike yells. we turn in the other directions and run. we get trapped on all sides by the bad men. a lady points a gun at us. their flashlights flicker and el uses her powers. all of them shake and bleed through their eyes. they drop dead to the floor. el faints. "el! she won't wake up! el!" mike yells. "we have to carry her!" i say. "step away from the girl." a man in a trench coat says. we all stand up. "no!" mike says. "if you want her you have to kill us first!" mike says. we all step up. "that's right!" dustin says. "eat shit!" lucas says. men come up behind us and grab us. "oh no no no!" mike yells. "no! no! get off me!" dustin yells. "you idiot!" lucas yells. i thrash around in the mans arms. "rape!" i scream. all of us yell and thrash around. the man in the trench coat walks up to el. "let her go!" i yell. "eleven? eleven can you hear me?" the man asks. "papa?" eleven asks weakly. "yes, yes, it's your papa. i'm here now." the man says. "get off of me!" lucas yells. "let her go! let her go you bastard!" mike yells. el whimpers and looks around. "shh shh you're sick. you're sick but i'm going to make you better. i'm going to take you back home where i can make you well again. where we can make all of this better, so no one else gets hurt." the man el calls papa says. "bad. bad." el says. she points over to us. "mike. mike. y/n. mike." she says pushing his hands off of her. the electricity spikes and flickers. "blood." mike says. "what?" lucas asks. "blood." mike says again. "it's attracted to blood!" i yell. there's pounding on the wall. the bricks start to break. a creature emerges from the wall. "demogorgon." dustin says. the men let go of us to grab their guns. we rush over to el to lift her up. we carry her through the halls. "come on come on come on!" i yell. "oh my god!" dustin says. we go into a classroom and lock the door. dustin carries el to the back of the classroom. "come on, come on." dustin pants. we lift her up on a table. she grabs mike's hand. "just hold on a little longer, okay?" mike asks. "he's gone. the bad man's gone. we'll be home soon, ant my mom she'll get you your own bed. you can eat as many eggos as you want. and we can go to the snowball." mike says crying. tears come to my eyes. "promise?" el asks. "promise." mike says. the monster screeches. there's gunshots and thudding. i grip onto lucas' arm. the gunfire stops. "i-is..is it dead?" dustin asks. the demogorgon breaks down the door. "go go go go!" mike yells. "get the wrist rocket get the wrist rocket now!" dustin yells. the monster roars. "go go go go go!" mike yells. lucas digs in his bag. "get the rocks get the rocks get the rocks!" mike yells. "getting the rocks!" dustin yells back. "give me one!" lucas says. "come on!" dustin and i yell. "kill it bastard!" dustin yells. "kill it kill it! go go go!" mike yells. the first hit does nothing so we give him another rock. "kill it now!" i yell. "hit him again!" mike yells. "it's not working!" lucas yells. we hand him more rocks. "get it get it!" dustin yells. everything feels like it's in slow motion. i hand him the one i fell on. everyone is screaming. lucas aims. he lets the rock fly and the demogorgon flies back. el emerges from behind us and walks towards the monster. "eleven stop!" mike yells running up to her. she pushes him back with her powers. he flies and hits a cabinet. we all breath heavily but stay silent. the monster screeches. el walks closer to it. she turns around. "goodbye mike." el says. a tear slips from my eye. "no more." el says and lifts her hand up. she uses her powers on the monster and it lets out a blood curdling screech. the boys and i cover our ears. el begins to shake and scream. the demogorgon begins to disintegrate. when we all look up and uncover our ears. she gone. el's gone. "el?!" i yell. "el? el?" mike yells. "el!" "eleven!" "el?" we all call out. "el, where are you? eleven! el?" mike yells with tears in his eyes. i start to cry. i turn around and hug lucas. i cry into his shoulder. he wraps his arms around my waist.
we're forced out of the building by police. i try and call my dad on a payphone. i can hardly talk. "daddy. i'm at the school," i hickup, "please come pick me up." i say. "just get one of your little friends to bring you." my dad says, he sound drunk. "dad please." i get cut off by the phone line going dead. i slam the phone down. "fuck you." i say. the wheelers speed into the patching lot. "michael!" mrs wheeler says. "michael?" she asks. her and ted walk past me. i stand alone in the middle of the parking lot. i look around. i sigh and start walking home. i wipe my eyes. i see a light pull up behind me. i turn around and see a car. i get farther from the road. the car pulls out next to me and mrs. sinclair rolls down her window. "get in sugar." she says. i sniffle and get in the car. i sit next to lucas. he holds my hand.