"We just tell our parents that we have AV Club after school. That'll give us at least a few hours for Operation Mirkwood."
Nine walked around the basement, admiring everything on the wooden walls. There were a lot of drawings taped to them and he vaguely wondered if they were done by Mike's sister or if they were some old drawings Mike did. It reminded Nine of the stuff he used to do back at the lab. Nine wasn't left alone very often but when it did happen he would be sent to his room. It wasn't much, just a small white room with a bed and a desk, but it was Nine's space. He didn't have a lot to do so he took up drawing when he could. He wasn't very good at it but it calmed him down and made him happy. That was the only motivation Nine needed to keep doing it.
"You seriously think that the weirdo knows where Will is?"
Nine looked over to the table that Dustin, Lucas, and Mike were gathered around. Nine had already gotten used to Lucas' special name for him and Eleven. Nine didn't really know what the word meant but he doubted it was good since he'd been calling them that since their first night at Mike's. Unlike Nine, Eleven didn't seem too bothered by it.
Nine glanced over at her from where he stood across the room. She was laying on the couch and toying with the super-comm again. Nine really didn't know why she liked it so much. It only ever made different static noises, unless someone was within range to speak. It didn't seem like anything special to Nine.
"Just trust me on this, okay?"
Nine turned back to the other three boys in the room as Mike spoke.
"Okay." Lucas nodded.
"Did you get the supplies?"
"Yeah." Lucas leaned down as he began piling stuff on the table.
"Binoculars from 'Nam. Army knife, also from 'Nam. Hammer, camouflage bandana, and the wrist rocket." Lucas smiled proudly as he showed off the last item.
"You're gonna take out the Demogorgon with a slingshot?" Dustin sneered.
"First of all, it's a wrist rocket. Second of all, the Demogorgon's not real. It's made up! But if there is something out there, I'm gonna shoot it in the eye..." Lucas gripped the yellow rubber on the slingshot and pulled it back. It made a loud snap as he let go and Dustin flinched. "And blind it."
Mike rolled his eyes at Lucas and turned away from him.
"Dustin, what did you get?"
Dustin grabbed the small green backpack beside him and dumped the contents messily on the table. Nine, who was getting bored, walked back over to the couch to sit with El.
"Well, alrighty. So, we've got Nutty Bars, Bazooka, Pez, Smarties, Pringles, Nilla Wafers, apple, banana, and trail mix." Dustin held up each snack as he called it off. He smiled up at his friends once he was done, only to meet their blank stares.
"Seriously?" Lucas glowered.
"We need energy for our travels. For stamina! And besides, why do we even need weapons anyway? We have them!" Dustin gestured towards Nine and Eleven.
"She shut one door!"
"With her mind! And he literally took control of yours!" Lucas sighed as Dustin went on. "Are you kidding me? That's insane! Imagine all the other cool stuff they could do!"
"Like..." Dustin turned around and jogged over to where Nine and Eleven sat. Nine thought he was gonna grab one of them but instead he went to the other sofa next to them. He pulled off one of the many blankets covering the chair to reveal some sort of toy. It was a large gray object but Nine had no clue what it was supposed to be. He could only assume it was something from one of the movies or comics Mike liked. Dustin grabbed it and grinned at his friends. "I bet... that she could make this fly!"
Dustin turned to look at the pair on the couch. El was paying no mind to the curly haired boy, instead continuing to fidget with the Super-Comm she seemed so obsessed with.
"Hey. Hey." Dustin whispered. Eleven looked blankly up at him as he held the toy. "Okay, concentrate. Okay?"
Dustin let go of the toy, letting it drop to the floor with a loud clatter. Nine heard Lucas let out a sigh at the noise. Nine honestly didn't know whether he should be mad or laugh. He thought it was funny that Dustin figured they would just use their powers whenever commanded to but it also made him upset. They weren't dogs! They didn't have to do anything they didn't want to and Nine would rather die then have to go back to being someone's experiment.
"Okay, one more time." Dustin picked the gray thing back up again as Nine eyed him.
"Use your powers, okay?" Eleven held eye contact with him as he let it go. It fell to the floor again as Lucas shook his head.
"Idiot."
Mike, having seen enough, ran over and picked up the toy.
"They're not dogs!" Mike was about to speak again when a voice yelled from upstairs.
"Boys! Time for school!"
Mike, Lucas, and Dustin hurried to pick up their stuff. Dustin and Lucas ran upstairs but Mike crouched in front of them.
"Stay down here." He said seriously. "Don't make any noise, and don't leave. If you get hungry, eat Dustin's snacks, okay?"
"Michael!"
"Coming!" Mike yelled. Nine flinched at his tone but said nothing. He turned back to face the two of them again. "You know those power lines?"
"Power lines?" El questioned.
"Yeah. The ones behind my house?"
"Yes." She nodded.
"Meet us there, after school."
"After school?" Mike looked to Nine as he spoke. Nine didn't know what school was. Sure, Mike had mentioned it a couple of times but he'd never really explained what it was. Was he supposed to know that?
"Yeah, 3:15." Nine gazed at him, trying to understand what he was saying. Suddenly, Mike's eyes lit up as he held up his wrist.
"Ah." He fumbled with the device on it before he got it off. Mike held the small thing out towards Nine, who reluctantly stuck his own hand forward. Mike wrapped it around his wrist and clipped it together. It was then that Nine got a good look at it. It felt weird but it didn't hurt. It had a rectangular screen on the top with numbers on it.
"When the numbers read three-one-five, meet us there."
"Three-one-five." Eleven repeated. Nine would have to make sure to remember that.
"Three-one-five." Mike gave a soft smile before before bolting to grab his bag. Nine watched as he ran up the stairs before looking back down at the object on his wrist. There really was a lot he needed to learn about the world.
——————
Nine fiddled with the clear wrapper of his Nutty Bar as he watched El. She was sitting on the floor in front of the couch and staring intently at the toy from earlier, keeping it floating midair.
It had been awhile since the others had left. The numbers on the device Nine had read 12:19. With all the time alone to think, Nine realized that he may have seen this thing before. If not, it was at least something similar. He remembered that Papa also used to wear something like this. It didn't look exactly the same. Papa's was a circle, unlike Mike's. Nine didn't know if they were the same since Papa's was usually covered up by his sleeve but from the few glimpses Nine got of it, they didn't look too different.
Nine looked back at Eleven as she let the toy drop to the floor. She reached back to grab the Super-comm that was next to him and flicked it on. The sound of static filled the room and Nine tried not to roll his eyes. He was beginning to get tired of that noise. Luckily, El seemed to be getting bored of it too. Almost immediately after turning it on she sat it down. She looked around the room before her eyes landed on the stairs.
Nine did not like the look on her face. She was doing a really bad job at holding back a smile and that meant she wasn't up to anything good. Nine's suspicions were confirmed as she turned around to look at him.
"Come." She said as she got on her feet. He opened his mouth to protest but she was already walking away. Nine sighed as he sat up and went after her.
Eleven was already sneaking through the hallway by the time Nine got to her. They walked cautiously, listening in case someone were to come back. They'd already almost been caught once, they had to be extra careful, especially since no one would be there to cover for them this time.
Nine looked around as they made their way into the living room. If they were going to look around on their own then Nine figured he might as well look for stuff he hadn't seen before. Eleven made her way over to the Lay-Z-Boy and Nine laughed as she let the chair down.
Nine stopped as something next to the chair caught his eye. There was a small basket under the table. Nine dropped to his knees as El walked past him towards the TV. He grabbed the side of it and pulled it towards him.
It was filled with what looked similar to books. Nine wasn't allowed to have a lot of books back at the lab, but he was given them every once in awhile. Mostly to keep him entertained if they didn't plan on talking to him for the next few days. They were never long, only a few pages long, but Nine liked them. His favorite was one called The Giving Tree. He had begged Papa to let him keep it, and surprisingly, he let him. It was one of the only things he ever 'owned' at the lab. Nine loved it. It made him a little sad though, he wished he had someone like the tree to be there for him. Honestly, that's why Nine liked the book so much. If he couldn't have anyone like that for himself, he could at least imagine he did.
Nine picked one of the books up from the basket. These were different from the books he had read. They didn't have a hard cover, instead they felt like smooth paper. There were almost more pictures than there were words! It was covered in photos of women, clothes, and other stuff that Nine didn't even know the name of. What kind of book was this?
Nine continued looking through the basket of books. They all looked so similar yet different. The biggest difference was the pictures. Some of the books seemed to be dedicated to plants while others focused on electronics. Nine didn't know what these were or what they were for but he definitely preferred the books they gave him back at the lab. That seemed to be the only thing that the lab did better than the outside world.
Nine gathered and placed all of the books back in the basket before pushing it back next to the table. He pushed himself off the floor and turned around.
Eleven was seated on her knees in front of the TV. Nine had been so distracted that he didn't hear her turn it on. Nine moved to the side so he could see the screen. The first thing he noticed was the bright colors. Everything seemed so much brighter outside of the lab. He could see a bunch of smiling happy people running around on the beach. What was strange was the giant can of Coke rolling behind them.
"-And the things that you do, Coke is right there with you! Coke is it!"
Nine grinned at the tune and bobbed his head gently as he listened.
"When you want to feel me fresh! Coke is it! And when you're thirsty for the best! Coke is it-"
Nine snapped out of his daze when the TV started to static. He looked over at El who had her eyes closed. Nine frowned and bent down next to her. He reached out to grab her and when his hand touched her shoulder her eyes opened. The TV stopped with the static immediately.
"The biggest taste you'll ever get! Coke is it! Coke is it!"
Nine ignored the music in favor of checking on Eleven. She didn't even seem to realize he was there. She just stared at the TV. Nine shook her arm lightly and she finally turned to look at him. Nine tilted his head at her questioningly.
El seemed to understand what he was trying to ask as she quirked the corner of her lips up in a small smile. Nine felt bad but he was sure she'd be fine. Nine knew a bad memory when he saw one. They weren't fun but there was nothing they could do about it. That kind of thing was just normal. Everyone has memories like that.
Nine returned the gesture before looking away from her. He wondered if there was anything else in here that he had never seen before.
——————
Nine followed El as she went up the stairs. The two of them had scrounged around the living room for awhile before they got bored. Nine felt like they should go back downstairs and stay there like Mike wanted them to but he wouldn't just leave Eleven alone up here. So, they were now heading upstairs to Mike's room.
Nine turned and looked down at the bottom of the stairs. He really didn't like doing this. He was terrified that someone would come in and find them while they weren't being careful. If El wasn't gonna be alert then he had to be.
Nine whipped his head back around as he tripped on one of the steps. Eleven turned to look at him as he steadied himself. She was trying to hold back a smile but he could see the amusement in her eyes. Nine felt blood rush to his cheeks as they kept going. So much for being alert..
When they reached the top of the stairs Nine turned to go to Mike's room but El grabbed his wrist. She led him to the right towards another door. Nine wasn't sure they should be looking around other rooms. Someone could notice they'd moved something if they weren't very careful.
Nine followed close behind as El nudged the door open. The small room most likely belonged to Mike's older sister who's name he'd already forgotten. He doubted it belonged to the youngest considering the bed size.
The wallpaper was made up of thin vertical light pink and beige lines and the carpet a navy blue. The bed had a thin white frame and a patch quilt with the same colors as the walls and carpet. It sat in front of the window and took up the majority of the room space. Right next to the door was a small white desk with papers littered across it.
Nine stepped over to the desk. He tried to read some of the papers but the words were too complicated. He didn't understand it at all. Instead, he opted for looking at all the pictures on the board over the desk. There were tons of small pictures stuck to it with what looked like really small needles. Nine had seen these at the lab before but he didn't know what they were called. The pictures all had Mike's older sister in them so Nine knew he'd guessed correctly. Half of the pictures were just her by herself. Some that looked recent and others that were clearly taken when she was very young. However, the majority of them were her with this one girl. She had short bobbed red hair and pale skin. Her face was littered with freckles and she had black thick-rimmed glasses. Nine guessed it must be some close friend.
Nine turned to face El when the sound of music cut through the air. She had opened a small white box that was sitting on the drawers. The box had a little person inside and the figurine spun as the soft music played. Nine thought the sound was surprisingly comforting.
Nine was almost disappointed when Eleven closed the box and the sound stopped. El turned away from the drawers and they both turned back to look at the photo board.
Neither of them said a word as they looked at the pictures. Sometimes, Nine wondered what El was thinking. He was good at guessing but it was harder to tell with Eleven than with other people. She didn't give off as many physical or verbal cues. As close as they were, they were still very different people. Nine knew that others would disagree but they didn't really know them. All they saw were two kids who never talked or left each other's side. They didn't see that Nine was more introverted than El. They didn't see that El relied on her instincts to tell her what to do while Nine thought things out. They were similar in a lot of ways but they weren't as similar as everyone thought they were.
Nine wished they were. Then he might be able to tell what was troubling her as she stared at the picture of Nancy's friend.
——————
Nine leaned against the metal fence as Eleven paced. He looked down at the thing on his wrist as he listened to her muttering.
"Three-one-five. Three-one-five. Three-one-five.."
Nine held his wrist out to her, displaying the bright green 3:17.
They had been out here for two minutes. Nine was anxious because of how open the area they were in was. There were a few thin trees to their left but other than that there was nothing they could use to hide. He just had to hope that Mike, Lucas, and Dustin would get there soon.
Nine flipped around as he heard a hiss from behind him. On the other side of the fence was a small orange cat. Nine relaxed at the sight. At least it was nothing that could really hurt them. The cat could try and scratch them but he doubted it would happen from the other side of the fence.
Nine didn't have much experience with animals but cats were one of the few he'd interacted with before. Animals were often used as test subjects when he was working on his powers. Nine remembered how frustrated he was at not being able to control the cat and make it do what he wanted. Papa had been so disappointed. He'd gotten punished every time.
That didn't matter anymore though! He did get it eventually. He remembered how happy he was the first time he managed to control the cat. Looking back on it, it was a simple task. All he had to do was make it eat the food that Papa had set out. Nine wasn't sure what the food was but it smelled sweet. It was a bunch of small brown shavings. Papa had said that cats normally didn't like that food and wouldn't eat it so that was his challenge.
Nine remembered concentrating so hard. He had been determined to finally succeed and he did. He had managed to tap into the cat's head and make it eat some of the shavings. Papa had never looked so pleased.
Nine looked over at Eleven and zeroed in on the look on her face. He stepped forward and put his hand on her shoulder. She was breathing heavily as she held her gaze on the cat.
Nine shook her shoulder gently. She looked over to him and Nine took a deep breath. El mimicked him and Nine decided to keep leading her until he felt she was okay.
"El! Nine!"
The duo looked over to their left to see the boys walking up to them, bikes at their side.
"You okay?"
They nodded. Mike seemed to accept their answer and the three boys turned their bikes around.
"Hop on," Mike patted his seat and motioned El forward. "We only have a few hours."
Nine walked over to Dustin and got on the back. The group took off towards the road as Nine tried to hold on as tight as possible. He didn't think he liked bikes very much.
——————
Nine let his eyes wander around the forest as they trudged uphill. The leaves were a crisp brown and they crunched satisfyingly under his feet as he walked. They had been walking for awhile now and as much as Nine loved the view, he hoped the place El was taking them to wasn't far.
"So, you can control minds, right?" Dustin asked. "That's super cool! You two are kind of like superheroes, you know that?"
Nine bit his lip as he tried his hardest to ignore him. Dustin was nice but Nine wondered if he was capable of shutting his mouth. Maybe this was normal and Nine just wasn't used to this much conversation but he was losing his ability to care. Who cares if it was normal? Nine was never talkative and he doubted that he would change in the future.
"Do you have a favorite superhero? Mine changes a lot but right now it's Wolverine. Do you even know what superheroes are? It's totally fine if you don't! I can let you borrow some of my comics if you want."
Nine let out a breath as he stared ahead. Hopefully, if he kept refusing to respond, he would stop talking.
Nine felt a tap on his right shoulder and turned to look at Lucas.
"Sorry about him," He whispered. "He gets like this when he's excited. He should calm down eventually."
Nine smiled at that and nodded. He was glad that Lucas didn't seem the type to talk your ear off. He may not be as friendly but Nine could understand that. He could actually relate in some ways. Now he just had to hope that he was right.
——————
It got dark awhile ago. Nine was grateful that their bikes had lights on them. It wasn't much but it was something.
Nine felt relief flood him as Mike and El stopped walking. Finally!
Eleven had led them to a small white house. Will was here? It looked like people lived there. Was someone holding him in there?
"Here." El said.
"Yeah, this is where Will lives." Mike nodded.
"Hiding."
"No, no, this is where he lives," Mike explained. "He's missing from here. Understand?"
Lucas and Dustin dropped their bikes as the three of them finally caught up to them. Lucas glared at Eleven.
"What are we doing here?" He asked.
"She said he's hiding here."
"Um, no!" Lucas stared at Mike in disbelief.
"I swear if we walked all the way out here for nothing-" Dustin started but Lucas cut him off.
"That's exactly what we did! I told you she didn't know what the hell she was talking about!"
Nine flinched at his tone. This was going great.
Although, Nine was confused too. If he really did live here then he didn't understand how he could be hiding here. Surely they would have checked here first?
Mike turned back to El.
"Why did you bring us here?"
Eleven stammered as she stared at him. Nine felt awful. Even if he was confused too, he knew El wouldn't have led them here for nothing. Besides, Eleven was good at using her powers. He doubted she had made a mistake. There had to be a reason she thought Will would be here.
"Mike, don't waste your time with her."
"What do you want to do then?"
"Call the cops, like we should have done yesterday."
Nine tensed at that. If they tried to call someone they'd be killed. Then him and Eleven would be sent back to Papa. They had just got out. They couldn't go back! It was practically a miracle that they'd managed to escape the first time. If they got caught then there was no way they'd ever get out again. This was their only shot and he refused to watch as someone gave their location away.
"Guys!"
All four of them turned to look at Dustin. He had walked in front of them while they were distracted and he was staring straight ahead.
They each stepped forward as the sound of sirens got closer. They all watched as two small cars with blue and red lights flew past, followed by a bigger white car with red flights at the top. Nine had no idea what they were but Nine knew they must be important.
"Will…" Mike said it so quietly Nine almost didn't hear it.
They raced back to get on their bikes and took off. Nine felt water splash at the bottom of his pants as they rode over a puddle. He really hoped it wasn't really Will.
——————
Nine held his feet close to his chest as they rode down the dirt road and stopped behind a big red car. They were in front of a lake now. There were a lot of people there. Nine guessed some of them were cops but he didn't know which ones or who the others were.
They quickly got off the bikes and crouched next to the car, trying to see what was happening without anyone noticing them.
Nine watched intently as two men lifted a small body out of the water. Will. He didn't know who else it could be.
"It's not Will. It can't be." Mike murmured.
The two men brought the body to shore together where the others were waiting.
"It's Will. It's really Will."
How? Eleven said he was alive and Nine trusted her. She wouldn't have said it unless she believed it. Nine looked over at her and felt his heart break at the disbelief on her face. She didn't understand either.
They all turned away from the scene and Mike leaned against the other side of the car.
"Mike.." Eleven started as she put her hand on his shoulder.
Nine panicked as Mike hit her hand away. He quickly went to her side, ready to help if things got physical. He understood that Mike was angry but he wouldn't let someone treat his sister like that.
"Mike? Mike what? You were supposed to help us find him alive! You said he was alive! Why did you lie to us?"
El backed up as Mike stepped forward. Nine moved slightly in front of her. He didn't foresee this having a good ending.
"What's wrong with you? What is wrong with you two?" Finally, he noticed Nine standing beside her. Better late than never.
Eleven teared up as she shook her head. "Mike.."
"What?"
He waited for her to say something but she didn't. Mike scoffed as he walked off.
"Mike, come on. Don't do this, man." Lucas had tears in his eyes too. Nine felt bad for them. He knew they were really hurt over Will right now. "Mike!"
"Mike, where are you going? Mike!" Dustin called after him.
Mike ignored them all as he picked up his bike and ran back up the hill. Lucas yelled at him again but he didn't even turn to look.
Nine turned to look at El. She had her head in her right hand and Nine reached out to grab her left one and squeezed. He pushed down his own sadness as he watched the other boy take off. He felt bad for them but he had to stick with Eleven. She was his priority.
He didn't know what they were gonna do now but he would make sure they figured it out. He was determined to make sure things worked. If they didn't then they could get caught again and Nine refused to go down without a fight.
——————
I'm back~! I'm so sorry I've been gone for so long! There's been so much going on in the world recently and I've been making sure I keep the things in my personal life my top priority, as much as I love writing.
I lost my motivation and creativity after school ended due to problems with my laptop (This chapter got completely deleted twice), family, and mental health but I'm elated because with some advice from my therapist and the support you all gave me, I found my motivation again! I wrote the last of this yesterday and today! And while it's not perfect, I'm so happy to have finished it.
I wanna thank everyone who's left kudos and comments, it means a lot to me. Not to mention, some of you have left some amazing ideas in the comments that I would love to incorporate when the time comes.
So, I'm so happy to finally find my motivation again and thankful to all of you! :)
Until next time, baiii!
-Merce