Disclaimer: I do not own or profit from Stranger Things or its plots or characters.


CHAPTER 4: THE BODY

This was the worse pain she had ever felt. Her chest was constricting, the weight making it difficult for her lungs to expand and her heart felt like it was being crushed.

Eleven wasn't sure if it was because of her powers or because she seemed to be more attuned to Mike's feelings. Either way, she could feel his pain so acutely that it was making her own heart twist in agony.

When she got back into her fort, Eleven had curled up and cried, knowing Mike was upstairs crying too. She could feel it. From her limited time outside the lab, Eleven was only certain of one thing in this new world: she never wanted Mike to hurt.

His harshness earlier had surprised her at first. His raised voice and cold eyes made it feel as though she had been stabbed in the gut. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't hurt by the way he had shoved her hand away; not in the ouch kind of way but in the heart hurt kind of way. He didn't believe her that Will was hiding and that was what upset her the most because friends don't lie and she thought they were friends. Why couldn't he see that she was telling the truth?

She understood now though. He was mad at her because he was hurt. He thought she had hurt him on purpose by lying about their friend being alive. She knew all too well the anger that came out of pain. After all, she had killed two guards who tried to lock her in the small room because she was angry and scared. Her heart would always be missing a piece since she had killed people, but Mike's heart was still whole so he could still feel everything.

Even she couldn't explain how their friend's body had ended up in the water, but she knew it wasn't really him. She could feel that too. But how could she show Mike that?

So, she promised herself she would find a way to listen to him with the Supercomm. Whereas she had been fiddling with it before, she was now determined to get it to work. She had to. Or Mike's pain would continue unnecessarily.

She had been surprised to say the least when Mike had come down to the basement later that evening. He didn't say anything to her, but he wordlessly made his way over to the couch, holding some pieces of paper she couldn't see. She didn't ask but continued to give him space and focused on tuning the radio.

"Can you please stop that?" Mike snapped at her sharply, so she stopped for a moment, not wanting to upset him further. She watched him return to looking at the paper, but then she thought about how happy he would be if he could hear Will that she flicked it back on a second later.

"Are you deaf?" he asked angrily but she didn't look up, staring determinedly down at the Supercomm, but his raised voice drew her attention back to him, "I thought we were friends, you know, but friends tell each other the truth."

Eleven could see the pain still fresh in his dark eyes, so she had look away because it made her heart hurt again to see him hurt. She wished more than anything in that moment that she could take away that pain, that she could find the words to tell him everything. She was telling the truth, but he didn't know that and she couldn't really blame him after the events of the night. Mike wasn't done speaking though.

"And they definitely don't lie to each other. You made me think Will was still out there, that he was still alive, but he wasn't, he wasn't," Mike added in an accusatory voice, tainted with his pain.

Eleven met his gaze and opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. Maybe he could see in her eyes that she hadn't lied at all. But in his anger Mike looked away from her and he couldn't seem to understand her the way he had before. Or maybe he was done trying.

"Maybe you thought you were helping but you weren't. You hurt me," he continued, his voice a shade softer before rising again, "Do you understand? What you did sucks. Lucas was right about you… all along."

Her heart ached, but she stared at him unflinchingly. She could take it. He obviously needed to say these things and if it made him feel better then she would listen. Even if he was wrong, even if it hurt her too. If she could've just somehow conveyed better where Will was, or better yet, if she had never opened the Gate then Mike wouldn't have gotten hurt. But to hear that he thought that Lucas was right… that she was a weirdo… that felt like a punch to the gut.

More determined than ever to win back Mike's trust and heal his pain, Eleven focused every ounce of power she could into that Supercomm.

A second later, a young boy's voice sang weakly through the speakers, "…you gotta let me know…. Should I stay or should I go? Should I stay or should I go now?"

Mike's dark eyes snapped towards the sound and she watched his reaction hopefully, blood dripping from her nose. His eyes widened in shock and he rushed forward, kneeling down in front of her as she held the Supercomm out to him like a peace offering.

"Should I stay or should I go now? If I go there will be trouble, if I stay there will be double."

Mike took the Supercomm and broke the connection, speaking into it as if that was how it worked. Reaching into the Upside Down to reach him had taken a lot out of her, but she tried to hide it from the boy in front of her, anxious to see if he would believe her now.

"Will, is that you? It's Mike! Do you copy? Over," his words came in a rush and she watched him.

Did he believe her now? Had she done good? Whenever she used her powers in the lab it was because Papa demanded her to or risk being put in the dark room or zapped by the guards. But this was the first time she had wanted to use her powers to help someone. And she so desperately wanted to help Mike, to make him see that his friend was still alive and that she hadn't meant to hurt him.

"Will, are you there? Will?" Mike continued, after waiting for a response, and she closed her eyes momentarily in relief- Mike would finally believe her and his pain would end. Seemingly, realizing that Will wouldn't be able to respond, Mike lowered the Supercomm and met her gaze. Apparently, he was the one having difficulty finding words now, but his voice was soft again, "Was that… Was it…?"

So, she finished for him as he had done for her countless times,

"Will."


He wasn't sure what had compelled him to go to the basement last night, but Mike was glad he did. His heart felt like it had been torn from his chest. El had made him believe that Will was alive, but he was dead. Yet, as hurt and angry as he was, Mike couldn't help the feeling that El hadn't actually lied. Maybe she truly believed that Will was alive, but it had gotten his hopes up, so to see Will's dead body had crushed him. Not only was one of his best friends dead, but it was a slap in the face that the girl he defended time and again, had betrayed him.

So, after he had cried in his mother's arms like a baby, Mike had gone to his room and was getting ready for bed, just going through the motions. Something was drawing him to the basement though. He convinced himself it was to go be near where he and Will spent most of their time, but El was down there too.

He had been a real asshole to her, no doubt about that, both earlier when they thought they saw Will's body and while she was playing with the Supercomm. After hearing her channel Will somehow, Mike almost immediately felt shame and guilt course through him.

He shouldn't have yelled at El anyway, but she had been telling the truth after all, which made him feel exponentially worse.

Now, he stared at her in utter disbelief, holding the Supercomm limply in his hand, Will's voice long gone. But there had been no mistaking it. Will's voice was unmistakable, singing that song he liked.

Chocolate brown eyes stared back at him, hope shining in them, making Mike's heart clench painfully in his chest. She shouldn't be looking at him like that. She had been telling the truth all along. He was the one who had been a total jerk. He didn't deserve to be near her at all after the way he treated her.

"El…," he said her name quietly, ashamed. All his previous anger was gone, just like that. When he had heard Will's voice it just evaporated into thin air, along with the feeling of hurt and betrayal. All that was left was paralyzing guilt.

El just continued to look at him, her brow furrowed slightly, and he had to look away from those piercing eyes if he was going to be able to apologize. Somehow, he found the courage to keep speaking, "I am so sorry. I shouldn't have yelled at you like that. I was wrong and I was being a total mouth breather. I should have believed you. I should-."

"Mike," El's gentle voice cut him off more quickly than if she had shouted. He met her gaze, as she spoke again, "I understand."

She had said those exact same words to him earlier and it made his chest swell with happiness. He could feel the smile curl his lips as he watched hers do the same.

After all the shitty things he had said to her, after accusing her of lying when all she was trying to do was help them find someone she had never met, El had still forgiven him. Mike knew that meant something coming from a girl who had been through whatever hell she had.

Mike finally noticed how close their faces had come as his eyes fell to the blood on her upper lip.

Needing space and a moment to think, Mike jumped up from his spot on the floor, breaking their eye contact. He went into the bathroom and grabbed some tissues before making his way back over to her. Once again, he knelt in front of her, looking at her shyly and gesturing to her nose.

"Is it okay if I-uh- can I get that?" he stuttered, nervously. Her brow furrowed again in confusion, but she nodded slightly. Mike reached up and tenderly held the tissue to her nose, soaking up the blood there. He could feel her eyes watching him as he did this, but she didn't flinch away like before when he had tried to touch her tattoo. He glanced up to her eyes briefly, just long enough for his heart to double its rhythm and his cheeks to flush.

He lifted the tissue away, giving it one final dab to clean whatever blood was left. He balled it up in his hand and chanced another glance at her, feeling the need to say one more thing.

"Thanks, El… for trying to help us find Will. I promise I'll believe you from now on," he told her firmly and she smiled one of those rare smiles again. There was fluttering in his stomach and he was pretty sure his whole face was a nice shade of red at this point.

He smiled back at her before standing up, and making to pull the sheets down over the fort, "'Night, El."

"'Night, Mike," she replied, and Mike watched as she laid back on his sleeping bag. And something in him wanted to stay down here with her. He knew he couldn't, his mom would come down here looking for him if he wasn't in his room. But El seemed to be like a magnet, holding him there, until he finally was able to lower the sheets and make his way up the stairs.


Sleep came easily to Eleven that night for the first time in a long time. It seemed like each day she spent at Mike's house she felt safer and more relaxed. The fact that she had used her powers also helped her sleep since it had drained her and made her even more tired. But it was also the peace of mind, knowing Mike wasn't mad at her anymore. He promised to believe her and that made her heart happy.

In the morning, she heard his tell-tale foot falls on the wooden stairs and she sat up immediately, excited to see Mike. He lifted the sheets with an excited smile on his face and it made her stomach feel funny. Good funny.

"Hey, El," he greeted her brightly, "Did you sleep okay?"

She nodded but also spoke, "Yes."

He smiled at her and handed her his usual Eggo's before he sat down next to her as she ate them. She could sense that his mood had turned serious again, but she waited for him to speak.

"Do you- Do you think you could do that again?" Mike asked her hesitantly, and she glanced sideways at him, not sure she was understanding what he was asking. Mike seemed to sense this, so he elaborated, "Could you find Will again and show Dustin and Lucas what you showed me last night?"

His voice was so hopeful. She could tell he really wanted her to do this but also he seemed like he didn't really like asking her to do it. But she was happy to try again so Lucas and Dustin would believe him and her, especially if it made Mike happy. So, she nodded in agreement and his bright smile returned.


Somehow, Mike had convinced Lucas to bring Dustin over, all of them staying home from school, so he could have El show them what she had shown him last night. Now they sat in a semi-circle around El in front of her fort as she used her powers on the Supercomm.

Sure enough, they heard the sound of Will whimpering where ever he was. There was no disputing it, or so Mike thought.

"We keep losing the signal, but you heard it, right?" Mike could barely contain his excitement as he looked at the other two, trying to gauge their reactions.

"Yeah… I heard a baby," Lucas said with his usual skepticism.

"What?"

"Mike, you obviously tapped into a baby monitor. It's probably the Blackburn's next door," was Lucas' rational explanation which only increased Mike's frustration.

"Uh, did that sound like a baby to you? That was Will," Mike insisted. This must have been how El felt last night when no one believed her, something he still felt guilty about.

He had been so cruel to her, and he had been wrong. She hadn't lied at all. After apologizing profusely to her, Mike swore to himself that he wouldn't react that way again. After everything she had been through El didn't deserve to be treated the way he had treated her last night.

"Mike," Lucas began but Mike cut him off quickly.

"Lucas, you don't understand. He spoke last night… words, singing that weird song he loves… even El heard him," Mike persisted, undeterred.

"Oh, well, if the weirdo heard him then-," Lucas sarcastically mocked El and Mike opened his mouth to tell him to stop calling her that when Dustin cut in,

"Are you sure you're on the right channel?"

"I don't think it's about that. I think somehow she's channeling him," Mike explained his theory, watching as El stared down at the Supercomm in her lap. He could feel Lucas' skeptical sideways glance.

"Like Professor X," Dustin said in dawning understanding, a smile curling his lips, but Lucas would have none of it.

"You actually believe this crap?"

"I don't know… I mean, do you remember when Will fell off his bike and broke his arm? It sounded a lot like that," Dustin contended, and Mike knew he was finally getting somewhere.

"Did you guys not see what I saw?" Lucas asked incredulously, glancing between them, "They pulled Will's body out of the water. He's dead!"

El looked up at this. Mike could tell she didn't like Lucas' yelling but she said nothing.

"Well, maybe it's his ghost, maybe he's haunting us," Dustin tried diplomatically.

"It's not his ghost," Mike insisted again, but Lucas challenged him immediately.

"How do you know that?"

"I just do!"

"Then what was in that water?"

"I don't know!" Mike was emphatic. "All I know is Will is alive! Will is alive! He's out there somewhere. All we have to do is find him," he asserted, and he could see from Lucas' defeated look that he had planted the seed of doubt in him. Sure, they all wanted to believe that Will was alive, but Mike just knew it and he needed them to know it too.

"This isn't gonna work. We're gonna need to get El to a stronger radio," he told them after listening to El tune it for days, he just knew that it was not going to be enough. After all, the Supercomm was barely powerful enough to reach Lucas' house next door much less wherever Will was hiding.

"Mr. Clarke's Heathkit Hamshack," Dustin offered, and Mike agreed whole-heartedly. That's exactly what he had been thinking.

"The Heathkit's at school. There's no way we are going to get the weirdo in there without anyone noticing," Lucas reminded them, ever the pessimist, before gesturing towards El, "I mean, look at her."

Mike did look at her, really looked at her. Sure, El didn't look like all the other girls he knew, but all the other girls he knew didn't have superpowers or were being chased by bad men, or had been through whatever horrors she had. But she was still pretty, with her buzzcut, in his sweat pants and sweat shirt.

El glanced up, apparently feeling their stares. Her chocolate brown eyes were confused, and Mike wanted to slap Lucas again for calling her a weirdo and making her feel like she wasn't one of them because to Mike she was a member of the party and maybe even more.


Eleven didn't completely understand why they needed to change her appearance to go to their school. Was this a place where you needed to look different? Mike hadn't changed his appearance to go to school. She didn't ask because she trusted Mike and he said it would help her stay hidden from the bad men, so they wouldn't recognize her, then she would do it.

When Mike guided her to sit down in front of him and he grabbed a box full of strange tubes and brushes, Eleven was even more confused. Again, she trusted Mike, so even though she was a little taken aback when he brushed some kind of powder on her cheeks she backed away instinctively, because it kind of tickled, but then leaned in when Mike gestured for her to so he could continue.

Then he had taken a tube of some kind and brushed it along her lips. She wanted to ask a hundred questions, but she was distracted by the feeling of Mike's face being this close to hers. Her eyes stayed fixed on his as he worked, his brow creased in concentration. It made her stomach get a fluttery feeling as if she had swallowed a dozen butterflies whole and they were flying around in there.

After last night, Eleven had been so worried Mike wouldn't want to be near her anymore. Which is why she tried so hard to show him that she hadn't been lying since she wasn't able to find the words. She was so relieved he was looking at her like that again and more importantly that he believed her.

She was slightly disappointed when Mike said he was finished and Dustin handed her a dress and hair to put over hers. Since she had learned you had to change in privacy Eleven went into the bathroom. Even though these clothes were foreign to her and it took her a little while to figure it out, she somehow managed to do it after Mike called through the door several times, asking if she was okay.

Finally, she stepped out to the awaiting boys. Mike was facing away from her at first but at the sound of the door opening behind him, he turned and Eleven could see his dark eyes widen slightly, his mouth hanging open as he gazed at her. At first, she thought maybe she had messed up and put the clothes on wrong.

"Wow, she looks…," Dustin began, his words trailing off as he looked at her appreciatively, but Mike was the one to finish the sentence for him.

"Pretty," his voice soft and his eyes were honest.

Even though Eleven knew the other two boys were in the room, it felt as though it was just her and Mike. She looked only at him and his dark eyes were fixed on hers. She felt those butterflies again and she couldn't stop the slight smile that curled her lips. The butterflies only seemed to come around when Mike looked at her like that.

"Good… you look pretty good," he edited, trying to sound offhand. She could sense that he had remembered Lucas and Dustin were there and she watched his demeanor change.

She walked past them to the large mirror in the hallway and Mike followed her, watching her in the reflection. It was odd seeing herself with long hair… Papa had made sure it was cropped short for as long as she could remember. He said it made the machines work better any time she asked. But maybe now that she was free she could have hair?

"Pretty…. Good," she understood these as two separate things. How could someone look like they were good? But she liked the way she looked, and Mike made her feel good. She wished she could feel this way all the time.


The quickest way to get to school was through town, so El hopped on the back of Mike's bike as was becoming their ritual and they rode off. He could feel El's weight adjusting behind him and could sense she was looking around at everything she could. Her hands were gripping his shoulders tightly, but he didn't mind, quite the opposite actually.

They made it to the school and parked their bikes out front, Mike holding his steady as was becoming his norm so El could dismount. His eyes watched her as she stared wide eyed at her surroundings and he felt a little sad. She hadn't said it, but he just knew that the bad men never let her go anywhere, why else would such simple things in the world leave her in awe? It made his heart ache, but he was happy she was getting to finally experience things and he could be there with her when she did.

They made their way into the school, glancing around to see if there was anyone around. So far so good.

"Okay, remember, if anyone sees us, look sad," Mike told them. They strode purposefully to the AV Club room, the principal reminding everyone over the intercom about the assembly for Will.

"It's locked," he said with exasperation as he tried the handle. Couldn't one thing go smoothly?

"What?" Lucas said as he tried the door himself. He never was one to believe anything he didn't observe firsthand.

"Do you think you can open it? With your powers?" Dustin suggested to El but she never had a chance to respond because someone came around the corner that instant.

"Boys."

It was Mr. Clarke.

They all snapped to attention, looking as innocent as possible.

"Assembly's about to start," he reminded, looking at each of them suspiciously. They had to throw him off.

"We know… we're just… you know," Mike did his best to look distraught and he thought he didn't do too shabby but then the others had to open their mouths, starting with Lucas' lame addition,

"Upset."

"Definitely, upset," Dustin added. Mike mentally rolled his eyes, these two would never be actors.

"We just need some alone time," Mike said sorrowfully but again Dustin had to ruin it.

"To cry."

"Listen, I get it. I do. I know how hard this is, but let's just be there for Will, huh?" Mr. Clarke said sympathetically, and Mike could see Dustin nod solemnly, "and then," Mr. Clarke dug around in his pocket and tossing Mike's the keys," the Heathkit is all yours for the rest of the day. What do you say?"

That had worked out way better than even Mike had hoped. So well, in fact, that he felt a little guilty for lying to Mr. Clarke since he was being so cool about this.

But then, unexpectedly he shifted his gaze and addressed El, "Hey, I don't believe we've met. What's your name?"

Panic set in and it froze all of them. Left to her own devices, El began to tell him the truth, "Eleven."

"Eleanor!" Mike practically shouted, not quite fast enough, "she's my…uh…." Girlfriend, is what he wanted to say, but he scrambled to think of literally anything else. He was drawing a complete blank which left the door open for Lucas and Dustin to screw things up.

"Cousin," Lucas inserted.

"Second-cousin," Dustin amended quickly, making Mike internally cringe. The thought of being related to El made him a little nauseous.

"She's here for Will's funeral," Mike explained, gathering himself slightly and wishing this interaction would be over soon.

"Ah, well. Welcome to Hawkins Middle, Eleanor. I wish you were here under better circumstances," Mr. Clarke said to her with a compassionate voice. Mike could see El didn't know quite how to respond and she looked to him for a moment before replying quietly,

"Thank you."

"Where are you from exactly?" Mr. Clarke asked, his eyes narrowed as if trying to place her accent. Mike's heart was sinking the longer this went on. How many lies would it take to end this?

Again, El was perpetually honest and spoke before they could intervene.

"Bad place," she said seriously, shaking her head slightly. Panic was back as they tried to recover.

"Sweden," Dustin supplied, and Mike ran with it.

"I have a lot of Swedish family."

"She hates it there," Dustin dead-panned.

"Cold," Lucas piped in.

"Sub-zero," Dustin always went a little too far, but it seemed to confuse Mr. Clarke into silence temporarily.

"Shall we?" he asked, and they quickly agreed, heading towards the gym.


Eleven had been nervous when they first walked into what they called the gymnasium because every person in the room had been staring at them. But as she sat next to Mike and everyone's attention went back to the man speaking in the middle of the room, she began to relax a little.

She had never seen this many children in one place before. They were all here for what Mike called school. It was so interesting. She made a mental note to ask Mike all about it later.

Sensing the dark-haired boy next to her tense up, Eleven looked at him to see him staring at someone further down. She leaned forward to see who it was and she just knew from Mike's reaction and their mean laughter…

"Mouth breather," she whispered to Mike and he slowly turned to glance back at her. She could see the confusion in his dark eyes, but she knew she was right. This boy who was laughing about Will's supposed death was the same one that hurt Mike. She could still see the scrape on Mike's chin, anger rising in her chest as she thought about anyone causing Mike pain. For now, she sat back, her mind thinking of all the ways she could hurt them for hurting Mike.

When the man stopped talking, almost in unison everyone stood and scattered throughout the gym, exiting through various doors. Eleven kept her eyes on Mike, feeling the anger rolling off of him in waves. She wasn't sure what he was going to do but she followed him, making sure he was okay.

"Hey! Hey! Troy! Hey, Troy!" Mike yelled at the mouth breather as he was walking away. He seemed to have finally heard Mike because he turned around with the other mean boy, "You- you think this is funny?"

"What'd you say, Wheeler?" he challenged Mike and Eleven bristled. He wasn't allowed to speak to Mike in that voice.

"I- I saw you guys laughing over there, and I think that's a real messed up thing to do," Mike stumbled on his words at first in his rage, but his voice hardened as he spoke. Even though they knew Will was alive now, these mouth breathers didn't, and it wasn't right to joke about Mike's friend being dead. Eleven stood right next to him, watching the two mouth breathers, almost daring them to do something so she could use her powers on them.

"Didn't you listen to the counselor, Wheeler? Grief shows itself in funny ways," the taller boy wasn't taking Mike seriously. Eleven took her eyes off of Mike and the mouth breathers momentarily, only because she could sense more eyes watching, a crowd forming around them as they sensed a fight.

"Besides… what's there to be sad about anyway. Will's in fairyland now right? Flying around with all the other little fairies. All happy and gay. Lalalalala," the shorter boy joked, making the other one laugh.

Eleven didn't understand exactly the mouth breather's words but she understood his intent. And she also could feel how upset and angry Mike was beside her and it was making her feel upset and angry too.

She watched Mike's face carefully, sensing he was on the verge of doing something. And she was right. Because as the mouth breathers turned and walked away, Mike rushed forward and shoved the one called Troy hard in the back, sending him to the ground. The children all around gasping in shock. From Mike's gentle nature she knew this wasn't behavior that was normal for him.

She knew the mouth breather would retaliate and she'd be there when he did.

The mouth breather pushed himself up from the ground and charged at Mike, yelling, "You're dead, Wheeler! Dead!"

But she allowed him no more than two steps in Mike's direction. She would not let him hurt Mike and she certainly wasn't going to let him make Mike dead.

Focusing her mind, despite the various distractions around her, Eleven tilted her chin downward and forced the mouth breather to urinate on himself. It was the first thing she had thought of to humiliate him. In the lab, she remembered one of the guards wetting himself when she scared him by using her powers for the first time and the other guards had made fun of him for months. So, she knew this would have the desired effect and maybe get him to leave Mike alone.

The kids around them laughed but Eleven continued until his bladder was empty and urine was running down the entirety of his leg, making a small puddle on the floor at his feet.

Slowly, Mike turned to look at her in wonder and she smiled back at him. She liked how he was looking at her. It made her feel good, but she could feel the tell-tale blood tickling her nose. So, she swiped the blood away with her hand, and spun away towards the door, but not before giving Mike a meaningful look.


Mike could hardly keep the smile off his face. The image of Troy wetting himself in front of the whole school was one he would keep with him for a long time. He had been so sure that he was going to get pummeled as the bigger boy had charged at him, but he had watched in awe as he froze in place, no longer in control of himself.

El had saved him and punished Troy in the process for being the bully that he was, and Mike couldn't have appreciated her more. The other day Lucas had said she wasn't a superhero, just a 'weirdo,' but this sort of proved him wrong.

But they were on a mission, so he forced himself to stay focused on the task at hand. They had finally managed to get into the Audio Visual room, unlocking the door with the keys Mr. Clarke had given them, and locking the door behind them. Mike pulled the chair out for El and she sat down, seeming to study the machine for a moment.

"Now what?" Dustin asked as they all crowded around her. Mike turned on the radio and answered,

"She'll find him. Right, El?" Mike turned his gaze to her, but she stared resolutely forward, her lips slightly parted as she looked down at the large radio. He had the utmost faith in her, but she didn't respond. She seemed to be in her own world as Mike fiddled with knobs, tuning it but he stopped as soon as her eyes slid closed, her hands flat on the table on either side of the Heathkit.

Something about her demeanor had changed and for a moment Mike had a bad feeling about the whole thing, like he should call the whole thing off. But Will's life was in danger and they wouldn't be able to find him without her. As the static filled the room, something about the energy change in the room, he could tell whatever she was doing was working.

"She's doing it! She's finding him," he said excitedly as he watched her face carefully, watching for any sign of distress from the girl.

"This is insane," Dustin added, but Lucas still wasn't a believer, even after everything El had showed them.

"Calm down, she just closed her eyes."

But just as his words ended, the single light bulb above them went out, plummeting them all into darkness. The boys eyes shot upward and gasped in surprise.

"Holy...," Dustin breathed, but then an ominous thumping noise could be heard over the radio, drawing their attention back to the radio.

"What's that?" Dustin asked apprehensively, looking around at each of them. They had no idea, but it didn't sound good.

The radio crackled a little and then very distinctly, a weak whimper came through the static, "Mom?"

"No way," Lucas couldn't believe it. Even hearing it, his brain couldn't register that he was actually hearing Will. But there was no doubt and they all shouted out for their friend,

"Will!?"

"Will?! Are you there?!"

"Will, can you hear us?!"

The thumping sound continued, as did Will's voice calling to his mother.

"Why can't he hear us?" Lucas growled in frustration.

"I don't know!" Mike was equally as frustrated as the sound of their friend's fearful voice continued, "It's like home but it's so dark and it's cold! Mom!"

Terror pierced every word from Will, and it was getting harder and harder for the boys to listen. Mike's heart pounded in fear for his friend's life as each word seemed to indicate he was in greater danger than any of them could have imagined.

Then all of sudden the Heathkit shot off sparks and spontaneously caught fire. Mike made to step forward towards El but luckily Dustin was quick on his toes because he grabbed the fire extinguisher off the wall and smothered the flames.

The light had come back on but alarms were sounding all around them. Mike then noticed the familiar bloody nose on El after she used her powers but something else was off about her too.

As soon as the flames were out, Mike bent to her eye level, grabbing her by the shoulders gently but firmly, so he could turn her towards him and look into her eyes.

"El, are you okay?!" Mike asked, fear coursing through him, but she didn't respond. She just stared at him blankly, the blood having traveled all the way down to her upper lip.

His heart felt like it was in his throat as he searched her eyes to see what was wrong with her. She looked awful; all of the color had seemed to drain out of her face, so much so that he could see the spider web of veins on her face. Her breathing was shallow and she blinked slowly as if it was a struggle to even keep her eyes open.

She must have strained herself, overexerting her powers, and Mike wished he had listened to his instinct when he felt something was up with her.

"Can you move?" his worry turning into full blown panic. He had never seen her like this. She was so weak that she couldn't even speak. His breathing was becoming labored, wishing she would just say something, anything so he knew she was going to be all right.

"Help her up!" he ordered, running to her side and lifting her by the arm, while Lucas did the same behind her. Whatever ill-will Lucas had felt towards her vanishing in the heat of the moment. Dustin moved in and lifted her feet.

They knew there was no way they were going to be able to carry her out of the school like this, so they hastily found a cart and put her gently down onto it. It was still going to draw a lot of attention, but they didn't have much of a choice. They needed to get El out of the school and to safety so they could figure out what was wrong with her.

They wheeled her out of the school as fast as they could, Mike leading the way. All the while, Mike's eyes kept looking over at her as El leaned back limply on the cart, praying that she would be okay. He needed her to be okay.


A/N: I hope you all had a good new years! Thank you guys so much for your awesome reviews! Please keep them coming! I always appreciate honest feedback so your kind words and super encouraging to me. This chapter was super challenging for some reason so let me know what you think. I hope to get a chapter out almost every day but with work and all it's going to be challenging. Luckily, like I said it's all pretty much written and each chapter just needs some editing, so you'll never have to wait too long for a chapter, I promise. As always, thank you so much for reading and reviewing!