The car slows when they pull into the parking lot of the mall. Jonathan, in the driver's seat, peers through the windshield to see where the station wagon is going. Will sits beside him, his head against the window, and stares out at the station wagon. Her face is visible through the back of the car, sitting beside Mike. El. She's all he can think about right now, save for what Mike said in the store, but he's trying to forget about that. Is Max right? Will El understand what's going on with him? The powers? Should he even explain it? Maybe everything that happened at the hospital, at the cabin, maybe all of that wasn't him. Maybe it only seemed like it, and he was going crazy. Maybe it was all in his head. It's not like he's anything like Eleven. He's nothing special like her. No, he's just Will Byers. Zombie boy. Freak.

"What's our plan exactly?" Dustin asks from the back seat, squashed between Robin and Steve.

"We'll have to talk with the others," Jonathan says. The station wagon turns a corner, dodging around a bus driving past. "I'm surprised the mall is still open. I figured the Russians would close it after you guys got into their base."

"They have to be inconspicuous," Robin says. "If they close down the mall, people are going to notice."

"You call that inconspicuous?" Dustin gestures out the window to where dozens of Russian guards are standing around the loading dock. Will watches them march back and forth in front of the secret elevator and talking into walkie-talkies. As Jonathan slows the car, the station wagon continuing down to the main entrance of the mall, the Russian guards turn their heads to stare directly at them. Will's heart shoots into his throat.

"Oh, shit!" Dustin shouts as bullets fire away at their car. Will ducks down, covering his head. Metal clangs, the back window shatters, and Jonathan slams his foot on the gas, booking it to the other end of the parking lot.

Wheels screeching, they tear around the main entrance of the mall and out of the line of fire before slowing down in the middle of the parking lot. Glancing around at everyone, Jonathan squeezes Will's shoulder. "Everyone alright?"

"Yeah, just great," Steve mutters, rubbing his forehead.

"Is that smoke?" Robin asks, nodding to the hood of the car.

"Dammit," Jonathan mutters. The engine sputters to a stop.

Robin peers out the back window. "It doesn't look like the Russians followed us."

"Yeah," Steve says, "but now they know we're here."

"I don't get why they started shooting at us," Robin says. Huffing, Jonathan gets out of the car and throws open the hood. "I mean, we didn't even do anything. We were just driving by."

"They must've recognized the station wagon," Dustin says. "Remember when Nancy picked us up? The Russians saw us drive away in it."

Jonathan slams the hood back down. "Dammit!"

"Is it shot?" Will asks, getting out and going to stand beside his brother. Steve, Dustin, and Robin join them, examining the bullet holes littered about the car.

"Yeah, the whole damn thing is."

"What do we do?" Robin asks.

"I don't know."

Will and Dustin lean against the side of the car. Farther down the parking lot, the station wagon spins around, speeds in their direction, and parks beside them. Nancy gets out of the car along with everyone else and rushes to Jonathan's side. "What happened?"

"What happened?" Steve shakes his head. "The Russians shot at us, that's what."

"They what?"

"Didn't you hear the gunshots?" Dustin asks.

Nancy frowns. "No, we were on the other side of the parking lot."

"Yeah," Max says, gesturing to Lucas and Erica, "and those two wouldn't shut up."

"Hey, blame Lucas all you want," Erica says, "but I wasn't the one complaining that I should go home."

Lucas huffs. "You should go home. Mom will kill us both if she knows you're here."

"She'll kill you if she knows you're here."

"Oh my god," Max says, rolling her eyes.

Jonathan knocks his hand on the hood of his smoking car. "So what's our plan?"

"We're thinking we need two groups," Nancy says, "one going into the Russian base, and another out here to keep look-out."

"How are we supposed to communicate?" Will asks. "Our Supercoms don't reach all the way down there unless we're on Cerebro."

"Shit, you're right."

"Three groups then," Dustin says. "One in the Russian base, another on look-out, and another at Cerebro."

"Right, so who's going where?" Erica asks.

"Hold on." Nancy raises her hand. "Maybe we should make sure we can get into the Russian base first before anyone goes over to Cerebro."

"We'll have to get rid of those guards," Robin says.

Looking like she's about to pass out, El steps forward. "I'll do that."

"Are you sure you should?" Mike gestures to her bandaged-up leg.

"I can do it."

"Okay, so El is obviously going to the base to close the gate, and I'll go since I can use one of the guns from off the Russians to help her," Nancy says, "but who else?"

"Erica and I can go with you since we know the layout," Dustin says.

"No way," Lucas says. "Erica's not going back in there."

"Alright, so where do you want her to go?"

"What about Cerebro?" Will suggests as Erica rolls her eyes.

Lucas shrugs. "Fine by me."

"We'll go down to the Russian base as well." Steve motions to himself and Robin. "We know what to expect, and there's no way I'm letting you kids get killed down there."

"I'll go with you guys, too," Mike says.

"Why?" Will asks before he can stop himself.

Mike looks at him with furrowed eyebrows, but Jonathan, who hadn't heard Will, goes on to say, "Alright, so then who's going to Cerebro and who's staying look-out? Will, I'm going wherever you go, buddy."

"If the Mind Flayer comes here," Will says, keeping his eyes off Mike, "then I should stay look-out since I can sense him. I'll be able to warn you."

"I'll stay here, too, since we've got the fireworks," Lucas says.

Max frowns. "I'm staying also. If the Mind Flayer comes, Billy, if he's not already a part of it, will probably come with it. I need to stay in case that happens."

Lucas furrows his eyebrows. "Okay, so who the hell is going to Cerebro? Just Erica? Because that's not happening."

"Why don't you go?" Mike asks.

"One word, Mike. Fireworks."

"Mike should go," Will says.

"No, I'm going down to the gate with El."

"Why? What good would that do?"

"What?"

"How are you going to help?"

Robin waves her hand to interrupt them. "If you are going to Cerebro, doesn't at least one of you need to drive there?"

Everyone blinks.

"I'll go then," Jonathan says. "Mike, you can go to the gate if you want."

Mike looks at Will, his nose scrunched up, and Will realizes he's glaring at Mike, so he glances away before focusing his eyes on the ground.

"Okay, so that's settled," Nancy says. "Should we get to it then? We'll get rid of the guards, open the door to the elevator, and then you guys can leave for Cerebro. Here." She hands Jonathan the keys to her station wagon. "You guys can drive somewhere where you can keep look-out of the loading dock, and once we're in, you and Erica can get to Cerebro."

Nancy, El, Dustin, Mike, Steve, and Robin head to the loading dock while everyone else gets in the station wagon and finds a place to wait at the edge of the parking lot. Will, Lucas, and Max get out and lean against the side of the station wagon while Jonathan paces in front of them and Erica sits in the passenger's seat.

Slumping against the side of the station wagon, Max nudges Will. "I forgot to ask you earlier how you were doing. After what Mike said about El in the cabin. You two seemed a bit tense."

Before Will can respond, Jonathan stops his pacing and looks at Max. "Wait, you know about Mike and Will?"

Glancing at Will, Max nods. "Yeah, I guess. You know, too?"

"Of course he knows," Will says. "Everyone knows."

"Everyone? Since when?"

"Since Erica started blabbing about it to everyone," Lucas says, taking out his binoculars and looking towards the loading dock. "Are they just walking right up to them?"

"Looks like it," Max says. "Anyways, wait... so who else knows exactly?"

"Well, you three," Will says, "Erica, Steve, and Robin."

"Steve knows?" Jonathan says.

"I'm sorry." Erica pokes her head out of the open window. "But what is it that we know exactly?"

While Will buries his face in his hands, Max replies, "Mike and Will like each other, but Mike's being a dick about it."

"No, Max," Will mumbles. "Mike doesn't like me. He's in love with El."

"Bullshit."

"Oh, shit," Lucas says. Everyone looks to him while he gapes through his binoculars. "El just fell down. I think something's wrong."

"What?"

Shouts from the loading dock fill the air. Will squints towards it, but all he can see are shapes moving about.

Everyone barrels into the station wagon and speeds towards the loading dock. The car screeches to a halt, and they all rush out to El's side. She's lying on the ground, wincing and holding her leg. The bodies of Russian guards are scattered around them. "What happened?" Jonathan asks.

Mike struggles to help El to her feet. "There's something wrong with her leg."

Jonathan gestures to the side door. "Get her inside."

Steve and Mike hoist her up and carry her inside the building. Everyone follows behind them, but just as the door's about to shut, Will glances back out and notices the elevator door opening. A group of Russian soldiers storm out, spot Will and his friends, and march after them. Will yanks the door shut and races after the others. "Guys, guys, guys, they saw us!"

Robin pulls Will ahead by the sleeve. "What? Who?"

They all duck their heads as gunshots hit the side door.

"Shit!" Dustin waves his arms, motioning everyone to move faster. They tear into the food court, the Russian guards busting the side door open, and El stifles a cry.

"Everyone hide," Dustin hisses, jumping behind a counter. Steve and Mike haul El into a dark hallway past the Sam Goody, the rest of them duck behind the counters of stores, and everyone falls silent as the Russian guards storm inside the food court.

Will finds himself squished between Nancy and Jonathan behind the Orange Julius counter. The footsteps of the guards draw closer. Holding his breath, Will hugs his knees to his chest and squeezes his eyes shut. He's hit with a feeling of déja-vu, remembering the moment a mere two nights ago when he and Lucas were both hiding behind a mall counter from a Russian guard.

He opens his eyes when someone nudges his side. Jonathan. His hand is stretched out in front of Will. With a smile, Will takes his hand and squeezes it. Turning to Nancy, whose jaw is trembling, Will offers her his other hand. She glances to him, smiles, and takes it. As the Russian guards speak into their walkie-talkies, Will closes his eyes and takes a slow breath out.

He nearly jumps out of his skin when a car alarm goes off nearby. He raises an eyebrow as he listens to what's going on on the other side of the counter. People start shouting and a crash echoes throughout the food court before the car alarm stops. He, Jonathan, and Nancy get to their feet, crouching as they peer above the counter. Scattered on the floor from one end of the food court to the other are the bodies of the dead Russian guards, and all the way at the end, a red car is flipped on its side against the wall. In front of the Sam Goody, El, Steve, and Mike stand staring at the dead guards, blood dripping down El's face. From behind one of the counters, Dustin jumps up and shouts, "You flung that thing like a Hot Wheel!"

El smiles before collapsing to the ground.

Everyone rushes from their hiding spots to her side. Mike kneels beside her and squeezes her shoulder as she whimpers, "My leg, my leg."

"Her leg, her leg, okay. Get that off," Jonathan says. He and Nancy pull up her pant leg and unwrap the bandage. Her wound is swollen and bloody, almost inflamed. Will gags as something moves underneath her skin, and she lets out a strangled cry.

"El! El!" Mike shakes her shoulder, but she doesn't respond. Only cries louder. "El! El, are you okay? El! El! El!"

A scream erupts from her throat.

Erica peers at El's leg. "What is that?"

"There's something in there."

"No!" El screams.

"Jesus Christ," Dustin murmurs.

"Keep her talking," Jonathan says. "Keep her awake, okay?" He dashes across the food court and into one of the stores, leaving everyone else to try and comfort El. Her face is sweaty and bloody, and she struggles to hold in her screams.

"Jesus Christ," Dustin murmurs again.

"Hey, hey, hey-" Mike holds El by her shoulder. "Stay awake, stay awake. Let's get her on this side, get her on this side."

Dustin, Nancy, and Mike shift her around as Steve says, "Easy, easy, easy."

Robin, gaping down at El, stutters, "It's, uh... You know, it's not actually that bad. There was a... the goalie on my soccer team, Beth Wildfire, this other girl slid into her leg, and like, the whole bone came out of her knee, six inches or something, it was insane."

Will, along with everyone else, eyes her.

"Robin," Steve says.

"Yeah?"

"You're not helping."

"I'm sorry."

Jonathan races back to El with a knife in his hands. "Okay." He kneels beside her. "All right, El? This is gonna hurt like hell, okay?"

She nods through her tears. "Okay," she sobs.

"Need you to stay real still." He puts on kitchen gloves and hands El a wooden spoon. "Here, you're gonna want to bite down on this, okay?"

She takes the spoon and puts it between her mouth.

"Jesus Christ," Dustin says. "Holy shit, holy shit."

Glancing around at everyone, Jonathan holds the knife above her wound. Mike, clutching onto El, gives him a nod. "Do it."

"Okay." Taking a breath, he cuts into her skin. Her screams echo through the food court as she bites down hard on the spoon.

"Oh, shit," Dustin says.

Jonathan sticks his hand into El's leg, digging his fingers under her flesh. Everyone winces and groans. El screams louder, whimpering. The insides of Will's stomach knot together, and he's sure he's about to throw up.

"Jonathan!" Nancy shouts.

"Stop talking!" He digs his fingers around in El's leg, trying to get to whatever is writhing around in there. "Goddamn it!"

"No!" El cries, spitting the spoon out of her mouth. "Stop it! Stop! Stop!" Waving her arm in the air, she sits up away from Mike. "I can do it. I can do it."

Jonathan pulls his arm away. Panting, El aims her hand at her leg, her eyebrows knitting together as she concentrates. Her face scrunches up. "God! God!"

The thing in her leg struggles against her, squirming underneath her skin. Baring her teeth, she opens her mouth and screams. The glass in the store behind them shatters. Will ducks out of the way of the flying glass, knocking into Mike and stumbling over to Lucas.

On the floor, El rips the fleshy creature out of the wound in her leg, still screaming, and hurls it across the court where it lands on the tiles. It squirms about and starts moving away until a heavy boot comes down on top of it, crushing it. Will looks up to see the owner of the boot, Hopper, along with his mom and another man, standing and staring at them.