Hey guys! This is a story taking place the week leading up to the Snow Ball a year after Season 1. It's going to be pretty short - I have 8 chapters planned. Please give me feedback; constructive criticism is always appreciated and while I do have a basic plot planned out, I can incorporate some of your ideas. This is my first fanfiction here, so don't be too harsh! Anyways...enjoy!
"So..." Mike bit his lip and took a deep breath. His knees visibly shook and his nails were pushing half-moons into his palms. He wasn't really nervous, though, not at all. Just a good actor. That's what this was, all an act. But she didn't have to know that. "D-do you...wanna go to the Snow Ball together?"
Jennifer Hayes regarded him silently, her expression unreadable. She looked at him, up and down, as if she didn't see him every day at school. "Okay."
"R-really? Great!" Mike put on his giddiest smile. "That's - that's great. I can pick you up at seven next Friday, how does that sound?"
"Fine. Thanks, Mike." Her mouth curled up in the corners. "I'll see you tomorrow." She turned and walked away, her blonde hair swishing back and forth with each step. Mike watched her red backpack disappear down the hallway, then slung his own over his shoulder and went out to the parking lot. Lucas, Dustin, and Will were already waiting by the bike racks.
"So guess who just got a date for the Snow Ball?" Mike jabbed his thumb toward his chest. "Jennifer Hayes."
"Jennifer Hayes? I thought she was madly in love with Will. Did you see her crying at his funeral?" Dustin propped his foot up on the pedaland started down the road.
Will was silent for a moment as they all followed. Then he said quietly, "What about Eleven?" He had never met the girl who'd saved his life, but he'd heard all about her – from Lucas, about her unnatural powers; from Dustin, about the sacrifice she'd made to banish the monster that Will was all to familiar with; and from Mike, about her love of Eggos and her tragic past and how pretty she was. Mike hadn't stopped thinking about her for a month – and now he was going to the Snow Ball with Jennifer Hayes?
"I figure it's time to move on," Mike replied. "She's not coming back. I get that now."
The other three exchanged looks before they moved onto the sidewalk, their wheels popping up onto the cement. They were silent until they reached the intersection where they had to break off.
"Okay. You guys go finish your homework, and then you're sleeping over, right?" Mike called as Dustin and Will turned left and started toward their houses.
"Right. See you," Dustin yelled back.
Lucas and Mike went on for a little while until their paths diverged. With a hasty "bye", Lucas disappeared behind his house. Mike stood up on his pedals and pumped his legs harder, the air whipping by faster with each turn of the wheels. He had to go home and work on finding El.
He was breathless by the time he reached his house, propped his bike up against a wall in the garage, and raced up the stairs to his bedroom. He grabbed his walkie-talkie from under the bed and thundered back down two flights of stairs to the basement.
El's blanket fort was still there, the blankets drooping and the whole structure tilting towards the floor. An empty Eggo box lay squashed inside it, and the Millenium Falcon sat beside it, looking lost. Mike's breath caught in his chest as he knelt down and turned the walkie-talkie on, the knob already turned to the right channel.
"El? It's me."
Silence for a while. Then a growl. Breathing – definitely El's.
"I know you can't hear me, Eleven. I'm sorry. But I'm coming to get you, okay? I'm going to keep trying. I'll find you. We can go to the Snow Ball together. You really have to come back before then, because I asked Jennifer Hayes so my parents and the guys will think I'm moving on. They don't believe you're alive. Anyway, if I don't find you I'll have to go with her. But don't worry. I'll find you.
The growl got louder and louder until it became a deafening roar, and the ragged breathing broke into a scream.
Mike turned the walkie-talkie off. God, he was scared.
He pushed a puff of air from his lips and blinked a tear from his eye.
"I'll find you," he repeated, even thought there was no one there to hear it but the empty blanket fort. "I'll find you."
So...there it is. I hope you enjoyed it! I hope everything makes sense - let me know if anything is off. Please review. I know it's not perfect, and I'd love to hear what you guys want me to change or add for the next chapter, which will be about the sleepover. It won't be a very intense one, but it'll give me a chance to have some fun with the characters! Also, is this a good length for a chapter or would you prefer longer?