"Leave me alone, Lucas…"
"Just tell me, Max." Max stops walking, and although the inside of the house is noisy, it seems deathly quiet in the backyard.
Lucas waits quietly as different basses from the stereo signal changes to the music. They sit in silence for at least 10 minutes. It's the longest 10 minutes of his life. He waits because he knows she needs this, and as annoyed and stressed as he is already, he wants Max back and he needs to know why she hates him.
"December 23rd." It's the first word she said in a while.
"What is that?" He guesses, "The day before Christmas Eve!"
"No, you idiot," she admonishes him without malice. "It's Billy's birthday. I never actually celebrated it before, or wanted too. He treated me the worst when he was alive, but after everything that happened—I didn't want it to be over like that. I didn't want to just forget him. His dad wasn't going to do crap for him. Honestly, he acts like Billy never even existed. I told you over the phone a week before that I wanted to do something for Billy. I planned to go to the cemetery, visit his tombstone, maybe even leave some flowers," she shrugs, "but you forgot about those plans completely and chose to hang out with your friends instead. I couldn't go alone so…" Lucas hangs his head in shame. She continues, "You apologize and apologize, but you don't even know what you're apologizing for."
Lucas never felt this bad before. While he knew he wasn't perfect, he didn't think of himself as cruel. After what he did and how he blamed her, he's surprised she would even speak to him. She was even trying to forgive him, but although he was a complete jerk who didn't deserve her—not even close.
"Max…I wish I could say something else, something I haven't already said, but I'm really sorry. I'm so, so sorry and I swear, I will never forget something like that ever again. I was wrong and I should have been there for you," it's not enough and he knows it.
"This has been the hardest year for me. I thought at least I had you. That we had each other," she breaks down into tears. Lucas sees an opportunity to comfort her and wraps his arms around her.
"Are you having fun?" Eleven asks Will. He seems a little off to her.
"Me? Oh yeah, I'm fine," he brushes off her concern. Mike glances over at him quickly to see how he's doing. He was always good at reading his emotions. Two summers ago, Mike was the only friend at the hospital to see what Will went through. He could tell he was tense.
"You sure because it looks like you're sweating. Do you need to go outside?" he asks him.
"Mike, I'm fine, really," Will smiles, but neither one believes him.
Mike nods his head trying to get into the music, but stops. "Hey, do you want to go change the music? It sounds like super annoying Euro-trash."
"I can't tell the difference," Dustin comments. Mike gives him a look so Dustin will follow him to the DJ.
"Okay, okay geez," Dustin grumbles.
Will sees that he's been left alone with El and shifts uncomfortably.
"Hey, friends don't lie remember," she smiles at him. "You're safe here," she puts a comforting hand on his shoulder.
Ms. Byers is the closest person to a mother El has ever had. After what happened to Hopper, Joyce took care of El as fiercely as she took care of Will and Jonathan. She made sure she had a home with love and whatever support she needed to get through the first few months without her dad. Because of that, Will felt like the brother she never had. At the school, everyone assumed they were brother and sister, and they didn't bother to correct them. It made the transition easier having a piece of home and someone who knew their shared history.
"I just got a weird feeling before, but I think it was just old trauma."
"Trauma?" she asks.
"Yeah a scary pain or a situation that happened in the past—it sticks with you. I think I was just reminded of trauma and—" he loses his words and shakes his head. Eleven nods understandingly.
Although they weren't close friends when they were both living in Hawkins, they had to rely on each other when they moved away. They were both new freaks in town. In Hawkins, Mike had been the only one who talked directly to her. Will and Eleven didn't know they had anything in common when they moved away, but they learned. Besides keeping their thoughts to themselves and their feelings bottled up sometimes, they were both very good at being honest with as few words as possible. They needed this connection for her to deal with Hopper's death and Will to accept the changes to his life.
"Talk to me."
~A.N. SEVEN CHAPTERS if you're still reading THANK YOU! Leave comments of all reactions and theories for my fanfic thus far. TY :)