"I'm just saying it's not the best time to be going to a party."
"What's the worst that can happen?" Mike asks Dustin.
"Bad stuff. Worse. A lot worse."
"You're crazy!" Mike hears a noise and his head shoots to the right as he sees a bus approaching. "Look it's coming!" He checks his watch. They're not late, he thinks to himself.
"It's a good system. They manage 3 trips a day and it runs every 6 hours now. The road system has improved to produce easier, delay-less, traffic-free trips." Mike gives him a curious look with furrowed eyebrows. Dustin opens his mouth into a giant "WHAT" shape. Mike shakes his head and turns back to the bus, which will park right across from the pair. He shakes his keys aimlessly and walks toward it as it begins to empty. The first head is a familiar bowl-cutted friend of Mike's.
"Will! Will!"
"Mike!" he throws his arms around his friend. The last 4 months had been actual hell. It was closing on the last months of their freshman year and first full year not attending the same school since they met in Kindergarten.
"I-I-missed—"
"WILL!" Dustin's voice reached a deeper register and took Will's attention. They proceeded to grip onto each other for an excessively long bear hug with Will being lifted off the ground twice in the process.
Mike's attention is drawn back to the bus where the next passenger to disembark is…
"El!" she doesn't waste time nearly jumping into his arms. She drops her duffel bag to reach the back of his neck and hold on easier.
"Mike," she whispers into his ear; it's more like a sigh.
While Thanksgiving had worked out in terms of him going to visit her and Will for an overnight stay at Ms. Byers' house, Christmas hadn't worked out. It had been months of trying to keep things the same while everything had changed. He dreamed about the easy days of the early summer when he'd visited her cabin daily and kissed her just as often.
"Alright lovebirds, let the bus leave," the driver says loudly. Mike looks up and El peeks over her shoulder. Mike still holding onto her takes enough steps back that the mechanical door has the room to close and the bus can take off.
Dustin grabs her bag off the pavement.
"You heard him, lovebirds, let's at least get back to the car."
"Dustin," she smiles and hugs her friend. "It's good to see you."
"Good to see you too," he says politely before adding on, "everyone please back to the car. The sooner we leave the sooner I may be able to get home and convince Suzie not to dump me."
"You got dumped?" El's eyes go wide.
"Don't give her any ideas please, I've already been on the receiving end once. It's not fun," Mike shivers. El smiles at him pityingly.
Lucas was already in bed, but he couldn't sleep. He tossed and then turned back over. Checking the clock on his desk, he realized why it was even more difficult to sleep. It was 8:15PM. Who goes to bed at 8:15PM? He disparaged himself. Get it together, Lucas! He thought.
He looked at his side table at the last picture taken of him and Max. He didn't know what he'd done wrong, but when she dumped him again after what he thought was a small fight, she didn't take him back and she became more distant with the rest of the party. The year of losing kept getting worse.
"Lucas! Lucas, do you copy?" Mike was radio-ing him again.
He ignored the static and closed his eyes.
"Lucas, please come. I haven't seen you in months. It would be great to see you. Everyone's coming please," this was a different voice—Will.
"HI LUCAS- SSSS," that would be Dustin. He probably got spit all over the walkie.
"Lucas, I don't know what's wrong, but I would like to see you again, friend, before I have to go back. Hope to see you there. Over," and last was Eleven.
Lucas got up and looked in the mirror. He could look worse. He'd been better, but that didn't mean he couldn't kill at this party tonight. Max wouldn't know what hit her.
~A.N. LUMAX fans hang tight! It's going to be a wild ride. Leave comments on how you want Lucas and Max's relationship to unfold and what you think of their relationship on the show?! :)