[Chapter five: Dig Dug]
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THE LINE RANG continuously, the only words she heard were from his voicemail.
Joyce huffed, looking at the extra papers that rest in a messy pile on the table.
She grabbed the paper and looked around the room to find the placement for it, occasionally turning the paper in different angles to see where it corresponded.
The whole house was now covered in these blue vines, which would have been confusing to anyone who passed by and didn't know what was going on.
"Hey." Dannia interjected. Joyce looked over to where she was pointing and gasped quietly.
She walked over to where there was a missing paper and hastily put tape to connect them.
"It's like.. I feel what the shadow monster's feeling."
"See what he's seeing." Will added, his eyes slightly bloodshot, and he sweat like crazy.
"Like in the upside down?" Mike questioned, analyzing the papers in Will's room.
Will nodded. "Some of him is there."
"But some of him is here too.."
"Like in this house..?" M/n asked.
"In this house and.. in me.." Will's voice wavered quietly.
"It's like.. he's reaching into Hawkins more and more.. and the more he spreads the more connected to him I feel." Mike and M/n sat down next to Will, both on each side.
"And the more you see these now-memories." Mike nodded.
"At first I just felt it, in the back of my head."
"I didn't even really know it was there.."
"Like when you have a dream and you can't remember it until you think really hard." Will explained.
"It was like that."
"Now it's like.. now I remember, all the time.."
"Maybe.." Mike started.
"Maybe that's good..?"
"Good?" M/n and Will questioned, confused.
"Just think about it, you're like a spy now. A superspy!"
"Spying on the shadow monster."
"If you know what he's seeing and feeling, maybe that's how we can stop him."
"Maybe all this is happening for a reason."
Will looked around his room. "You really think so?"
"Yeah, I really do."
They all looked over at a picture of the creature that was slaying on the floor.
"What if he figures out were spying on him?"
"What if he spies back."
"He won't." M/n reassured.
"How do you know." Will whimpered. M/n reached over and held Will's hand tightly.
"We won't let him."
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M/n didn't know when he was going to tell them.
It seemed like every time it was the right moment to tell, they would change the subject to something else.
How was he supposed to tell them that he was not only seeing the shadow monster as well, but also their friend who was supposedly dead.
They'd hate him.
Atleast he thought they would. Maybe this was God's way of telling him 'you'll always be alone'.
But it also didn't seem reasonable to tell them, maybe he shouldn't.
Maybe this was something he should keep to himself.
He groaned, looking at the ceiling. He had been awake for a while now, all his attempts at falling asleep were futile, he was worried for everyone else.
What would happen to them? It was a random question, but it was a serious one. One that stuck to him the moment he stepped up the Byer's house.
M/n jumped up when he heard a sudden gasp from the bed next to him.
"Will.. what's wrong?" M/n asked. Will looked over at him, his eyes wide open and a terrified expression.
"Mom." Will grasped his Mom's shoulder, she turned around immediately. "Yeah?"
"I saw him."
"You saw who, baby?" She furrowed her eyebrows.
"Hopper."
"I think he's in trouble."
"I think he's going to die."
Will scribbled on the paper, pressing harder in some areas.
Will abruptly dropped the crayon.
"Is this where you saw Hopper, Will?" Dannia looked at the paper and back at Will for confirmation.
"I think so.. yeah." Will nodded slowly.
Joyce grabbed the piece of wrapping paper and tried to looked around her house to see where it went.
"Here!" M/n shouted after a few minutes of searching. He pointed to the fridge.
"Okay, so Hopper is here.."
"Yeah, so now we just need to find out where here is right?"
"Right.."
"Did he say anything? Before he left." M/n asked her.
"Something about vines..?" They looked at the window that let them have a view of the view of the driveway.
"Hopper." Joyce whispered.
But it wasn't him, and it was infact Joyce's boyfriend, Bob.
Joyce sighed and walked out to talk to him while everyone else stood inside the house.
Eventually they all stood inside. Bob looked around trying to take in his surroundings.
"You drew these? Yourself?" Bob turned to glance at Will. He nodded.
"Why, exactly?"
"I.. I told you the rules.. no questions.."
"We just need you to figure out where this is-" Joyce turned around when she noticed that he wasn't following her.
"Bob. Bob!"
Bob nodded and gave the games he was holding to Dannia who was next to him.
Joyce marked an X with a red crayon over the paper that Will drew on.
"That's the objective, find the X."
"Yeah? What's at the X, pirate treasure?" Bob joked.
"Bob. No questions."
Bob nodded before ushering Joyce to one of the rooms.
M/n sighed once again. They all say down at the table waiting patiently for their conversation to be over.
"Okay, I get it, if that's lake Jordan, than you can probably find.. yeah, that's sattler's quarry!"
"And then if you just follow it naturally it moved to.. the Eno river. There it is!" Bob pointed to the corner of the living room, pointing at random shapes.
"Okay so, the lines aren't roads, but they act like roads. And they act like roads cause if you follow them you'll see they don't go over water. And that's the giveaway! Ha!"
"Don't you get it! It's not a puzzle. It's a map."
"It's a map of Hawkins!" Bob concluded.
Everyone else sat agape, surprised that he managed to figure it out in ten seconds despite only being there for about 6 minutes.
"Right, Will?"
"Alright, I'm 3.6 inches what do ya got!"
"I'm not sure! Ms.Quinton?"
"Just a second! Twenty one feet, four inches."
"What about Tippecanoe to Danford Creek?"
"Danford? W-wheres Danford?" Dannia looks over at Joyce.
"Dinning room." Will and M/n answered.
"Sixteen feet, ten inches."
"How about Danford to Jordan?"
Dannia sighed as Joyce took away the measuring tape from her.
"T-thats gotta be enough."
"It's not, it's really not."
"Can't you figure it out?"
"Well it's hard, the ratio isn't exactly one-to-one."
"I mean, if you're twisting my arm, and you are twisting my arm.. I would say that the X is.. maybe.."
"A half mile southeast of Danford?"
Joyce gasped in relief kissing his cheek. "thank you! Thank you."
She grabbed the map as the other followed her out to the car.
"What are we.. really going?"
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Gabe decided that he was gonna help Steve apologize to Nancy, because he was a very good friend. He gave him advice because Steve was honestly terrible at them.
He watched as Steve got out of his car and walked to Nancy's house, reciting the lines that he was practicing in the car just minutes before.
Gabe sighed looking away, feeling proud of himself.
Steve didn't know what he was feeling. It was a feeling he felt like never had. Each time he looked back at the boy who was sitting in his car his heart beat accelerated.
But whenever he looked back at the house in front of him he didn't get that same feeling, it was confusing for him.
"I'm sorry. What the hell am I sorry for..?"
"Steve." He turned to his right, looking at the owner of the voice.
It was someone he didn't expect.
"Are those for Mr. or Mrs. Wheeler?" Dustin walked over.
"No..?"
"Good." He snatched the bouquet of flowers from his hands and walks over to his car.
"Hey! What the hell?"
"Nancy isn't home."
"Then where is she?"
"Doesn't matter."
"We have bigger problems than your love life." Dustin walked over to the backseat, seeing that someone was already inside the front.
"You still have that bat?"
"Bat? What bat?"
"The one with the nails."
"Why?"
"I'll explain on the way."
Dustin got into the backseat.
"Now?"
"Now!"
Gabe turned back to look at who was sitting in the back. "Dustin? What the he-"
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"There's nothing. There's nothing here." Mike looked out of window.
"A-are we close?" Joyce turned to briefly look at Bob.
"We're in the vicinity."
"What does that mean?"
"It's mean that we're close! I don't know, it's not precise.."
"But we did all that work.."
Bob and Joyce continued to argue while the four on the back were trying to look out the windows, trying to spot the sheriff's cruiser.
"Turn right." Will interrupted.
"What?"
"I saw him."
"Where?"
"Not here! In my now memories."
"You're what?-"
"Turn right!"
Joyce's swerved coming into contact with a sign as they all shouted. Joyce suddenly pushed on the brakes when they could see the cruiser in front of them.
"Is everyone okay?"
"Superspy."
"What's Jim doing here?"
"I think I pissed my pants.."
Everyone's was freaking out trying to comprehend what happened.
"I need you to stay here."
"No mom! It's not safe-"
"That's why I need you to stay here!"
Dannia hopped over the front seat to get out. The three adults walked towards the front of Hopper's car to look into the hole.
M/n groaned, he opened the door ushering Mike out so he could get out.
The three cautiously walked over to the, worried that something might jump up at them.
"Do you see anything?"
"I mean.. in your now-memories?"
Will shook his head.
The sounds of screeching tires alarmed them, turning around seeing multiple vans coming their way.
"Shit."
"Hopper!" "Hop!"
Joyce and Dannia shouted as they followed eachother, Bob behind them.
Joyce shone the light in an open area, catching sight of something, Dannia walked over to it.
"Over here!"
They crouched down trying to pull away the vines that wrapped around him.
"It's choking him."
"Knife.." Hop managed to say in a hoarse voice.
"Uh k-knife.." Dannia looked around for a knfie seeing that is was closer to Joyce she pointed it out.
Without missing a beat she grabs the knife and cuts away at the vines, she gave the knife to Hopper when she freed his arm.
They helped him up, giving up sighs of relief.
Bob turned around and shouted when he saw a man in a white hazmat suit carrying a flame thrower.
They all rushed out.
The three boys stood around watching the men surround the hole shouting codes and other things at eachother.
Will grunted and fell to the floor in pain alerting M/n and Mike.
They kneeled down next to him.
"Will! Will you okay??"
Will didn't answer as he groaned in pain, holding his abdomen.
"Will what's wrong!"
Will turned over, convulsing sending both M/n and Mike back out of fear of hurting their friend.
They didn't know if Will was screwing or of it was the ringing in their ears that made it sound that way.
All they could do was watch Will as he continued to seize, watching the men shine their lights on him.
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