What was Max Mayfield doing in a bus with one emotionally confused teenage boy and two socially awkward younger boys?
That was what she was asking herself. Lucas brought her here, saying that he had "proof" of what he had been talking about was real, although she had yet to see it. There was nothing but awkward silence and, in an attempt to kill it, she brought up what Mike said to her that time in the gym, before she was weirdly thrown off her skateboard.
"By the way, you two, what's up with Mike?" Lucas and Dustin immediately turned their heads to her at the sound of their friend's name being dropped. They wore expressions of worry and concern as if they instantly assumed something bad had happened to him.
"What?! What do you mean what's wrong with him?" Dustin interrogated her, leaning in and being too close to Max for her comfort. Lucas did her a favor, gently nudging him away.
"What are you talking about, Max? Is there something wrong with him?" She shook her head.
"No… It's just the other day. I asked him why I couldn't be in your stupid little party and he said that it was already full and this girl, Eleven, was the mage. And when I asked him about it, he said that she was both nobody and someone that moved away."
The two boys' looked downwards. They already had a good idea of what their answer would be. They took their eyes off the floor of the bus to exchange glances.
"You tell her." Dustin said. Lucas shook his head wildly.
"Nuh-uh, you tell her. I already told her pretty much everything else. It's only fair." Dustin released a big sigh and whisper-screamed,
"Ugh, fine." He turned to Max, obviously annoyed.
"Tell me what?" she asked.
"So… Eleven, or 'El' as we, or mostly Mike, like to call her, was…" He scratched his head, trying to come up with the appropriate words to say. "Well, let's just say she was really, really important to Mike."
There was no need for Max to say anything other than, "Oh." She understood very clearly what Dustin was saying, but he continued to go on.
"Like, my god, he loved her although he'd never admit it. After she disappeared, he was like a zombie, and they still called Will the 'zombie boy'. He got super depressed for, like, a month. He'd skip class sometimes and, some days, not even talk to us at all. Eventually, his parents got sick of his shit and he pretended to be normal, but we all knew he was still obviously hurting. She was the 'Juliet' to his 'Romeo'. Or the 'Sam Baker' to his 'Jake Ryan'." (1984 Sixteen Candles ref.) Lucas stifled a laugh as did Dustin. They began imitating a heartsick Mike.
"Oh, El, I'd give my whole entire life just to see you again!" Lucas mocked.
"El, I love you! Please come back so I can marry you!" Dustin guffawed.
"El, please come back to me! I miss you so, so much!"
"My heart aches everyday I don't see you!"
The three of them, Max included, started laughing. Steve looked at them with a raised eyebrow, probably wondering what the hell he was doing with his life.
"Oh my god, I'm crying…" Lucas said between gasps for air. He was laughing so hard he was crying. Dustin didn't let an opportunity pass by to razz him about it and he started laughing harder.
"Please do us a favor and don't tell Mike about this. If he heard us, he'd probably freakin' maul us. Mike hates it when we tease him about El." he asked of Max.
It was clear to her why Mike had gotten so upset that day. He was so clearly in love with this girl, Eleven, and it'd kill him to accept Max into their party because it'd be like giving up on and replacing El, although that was and will never be Max's intention. Eleven was an integral part of their group and it wouldn't kill Max to wait until she was back (if she'd ever be back) to try again to be a part of their party.