Here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
Becky and Carl worried more about Terry and the kids, seeing as it's been a couple of hours and they still haven't shown up. Hanging out at the fair was only optional for them because they came to visit to hang out with family.
They reached to Carl's car, Becky carrying Tina out of the stroller as her husband began folding it. "Not attending this fair is unusual for your family?" Carl asked her.
"Yeah," she answered, rocking her daughter in her arms as she opened up a side door. "Jane always pestered Terry to make her and Kali go. It's weird that they'd stay at home during the Fourth of July."
The dark-haired man shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe Jane didn't want to go this year. She is getting older."
Becky smiled a little, remembering something from her childhood. She placed Tina on her booster seat and buckled her up. "Terry did get over trick-or-treating when she was her age, so..." She shrugged. "Maybe you're right." She gave Tina her stuffed toy before closing the door and getting to the passenger's side. Carl put the stroller in the trunk and went to the driver's side, his keys out. "I just hope everything's alright with them."
They entered into the car, her husband a bit puzzled. "Why do you think that?"
"Weird things have been happening in Hawkins for the last couple of years, honey." They buckled up, looking at each other. "It's why we want them out of here."
He nodded, understanding. "You're right." He then put the keys in and started the engine.
After Mike screamed, he began sobbing and whimpering as whatever was in his leg continued crawling in it. Erica looked forward in disgust. "What the hell IS that?" she asked.
"S-something's in there," Jane answered, her voice shaking. "We need to get it out of him!" Mike wailed, having her hold his hand tightly. His fingers dug into her skin and she let him.
Jonathan looked thoughtful, saying, "Keep him talking, keep him awake!" He then stood up and ran away, probably to find something to get whatever it was out of him.
Everyone was still around him, Jane still holding his hand. Dustin got his shoulder and Lucas his other hand. "C-come on, Mike, stay awake, stay awake..." the tomboy said, her voice still shaky. She thought of something, looking up at her guy friends. "L-let's turn him over on this side." She, the boys, and Terry managed to pick him up and move him to the side she was talking about, Mike crying and whimpering.
Andrew was hyperventilating because this...this was reminding him of what he saw in Vietnam. One of the soldiers had a chunk of his leg blown off. His wailing and screaming as blood gushed from his wound was horrific. It was made worse when he dragged himself to save him, a bug landed on his wound. He never thought he would see anything that reminded him of that again. This...this was worse, especially since this was a kid.
"Y-you know, it could be worse!" Robin suddenly stated, everyone looking up at her. "I was in this soccer team, and the goalie, Beth Wildfire, had this other girl slide onto her leg and the bone came out of her knee. I think it was six inches, but it was brutal." Hearing this made Andrew breath hyperventilate more, his blood running cold as he remembered the wounds of soldiers in Vietnam. Terry took notice of that, seeing that he was having a panic attack...possibly from P.T.S.D. He did tell her he fought in Vietnam.
She moved away from Mike for a second as Steve said in a serious tone, "Robin?"
"Yeah?"
He shook his head. "You're not helping."
She frowned, but understood. "Yeah, sorry."
"Andrew," she whispered to him, the man looking up at her and calming down a little.
He swallowed and looked down. "I'm sorry..."
She shook her head. "Don't be sorry about that. I understand." She held his hands tightly and he squeezed hers for comfort, trying to get his breathing right.
Jonathan finally got back with some supplies and gloves in his hands, kneeling in front of the sobbing Mike again. "Alright, Mike?" The freckled boy looked up at the auburn-haired teen with teary eyes. "This is gonna hurt like hell, okay?"
"O-kay..." he replied, his voice choked.
"I need you to stay real still." He grabbed a wooden spoon. "Here, you'll want to bite down on this." He gave it to Jane, who then put it in his mouth. He then got out a knife and hovered it over the swollen bite.
Terry faced Andrew and said softly, "You don't need to look if it brings bad memories. Just look away." He just nodded at her, looking away to his right.
"Holy shit, holy shit..." Dustin kept muttering.
The teen looked up at everyone for approval, Jane saying, "Do it, please."
He sighed and looked down...bringing the knife down and cutting through the bite. Blood and puss poured out of it as Mike cried and screamed in pain, muffled by the spoon. Everyone but Andrew looked at this in horror, the man wincing at the sound of the cut. Jonathan gulped and put the knife away. Mike sobbed as the teen closed his eyes. He had a hand go over his cut bite and then get into it. Mike screamed loudly, everyone disgusted and wincing at that. He continued screaming as a shaky Jonathan moved his fingers around to get the thing out. This was causing him nothing but pain.
"Jonathan!" Kali exclaimed.
"Don't talk to me!" he shouted, moving his fingers around again.
Mike screamed again, shaking his head. He spat out the spoon and yelled, "NO! STOP! STOP IT!" Kali put a hand on his shoulder, making him stop and look up at him, seeing the pained crying expression he had. "STOP! STOP!" He really did, getting his fingers out of the cut. He tried sitting up, muttering shakily, "I-I can do it." Everyone looked at him with wide eyes, even Andrew. "Let me try." The teens looked at each other and nodded. Everyone watched him with worry, especially Terry and Jane.
He panted and tilted his head down, hovering his hand over the cut. He used his power, making him grunt and exclaim in pain. He could feel it getting to the cut, but it was stinging him. "God..." he said in a strained voice. "God!" The bite began lumping up as chitters were heard through it. Everyone looked disgusted, Andrew looking away again and feeling sick to the stomach. Then the boy screamed from the top of his lungs as a small head(?) popped out of his bite. He continued screaming and using his power to pull it completely out. It began to be so powerful that the glass of The Gap shattered, making everyone shoot back. He finally pulled the whole thing out, giving him the final dose of pain. Everyone looked at it in horror. He still screamed as he held his hand back and threw it far from him and everyone else.
It let out a small, pained screech as it tried to crawl away. Then suddenly, a boot came down and squashed it, making it into a small blood puddle. Everyone, including Andrew, looked up at who killed the creature inside of Mike's leg, Mike looking up wearily.
After being gone for so long, Jim and Joyce were finally back, Murray as well.
A wave of emotions hit Mike when he saw his adoptive father, after all he's been through just now.
...
Hanging around at the main lobby of the mall, the group tried to catch Jim, Joyce, and Murray up with what's happened in Hawkins, since Terry didn't give out many details during the phone call. "So, the Mind Flayer built this monster in Hawkins," Jane began explaining to them, hanging out near the fountain with the rest of the group while Joyce and Jim sat on a bench across from them. Mike's cut was re-bandaged and he sat next to his adoptive father, leaning against him. "To...stop Mike and pave a way into our world."
"It almost did, too," Terry added. "What Mike pulled out was a tiny piece of it."
Jim nodded. "How big is this thing?" he asked.
Jonathan scoffed and answered, "Big."
"Thirty feet, at least," Andrew added.
"It...also destroyed your cabin," Max also added, shrugging. "Sorry." The police chief sighed deeply.
"So, just to be clear..." Joyce said, looking at the weary Mike. "This monster, it looks like the Mind Flayer and it's some kind of...gigantic weapon?"
"Yes," Terry answered.
The brunette looked worried. "Is it even still alive though? Is it still out there?"
"I mean, Mike beat the shit out of it and split its head in half," Lucas said dryly, then nodded. "But yeah, it's still out there."
"But if we close the gate again..." Will said.
"We cut the brain from the body," Max added.
"And boom, it's dead," Lucas finished for them. "Theoretically." Jim looked down, trying to process all of the information given. As if what Joyce said earlier in the day wasn't enough...
Suddenly, Murray called out, "Uh, hello?!" Everyone faced him, seeing him wave around some papers.
...
They went to one side of the food court and discussed what they need to do to shut the gate and fight back against the monster and the only Flayed left. Later, everyone was wandering around, doing their thing. When Jim got an assault rifle off of a dead Russian, Terry approached him, her arms crossed. "Jim," she said.
He faced her and replied, "Yeah?" He strapped the gun over his shoulder.
"Why didn't you and Joyce tell me anything before leaving?" He froze up, looking like he was struck by lightning.
"Uh..." He was thinking of lying to her, but then he realized that he's always been lying. Why lie at this time when he could tell the truth and get it over with. He sighed and answered, "I...didn't want to confront you after...not doing the heart-to-heart with Mike." She raised her eyebrows, looking a bit surprised. "And also, we thought the Lab was behind all this, so we left you behind." She thought so, though the first reason caught her by surprise.
She looked thoughtful, then replied, "Jim, I'll be honest, right now, I really want to yell at you for not going through with it." He pursed his lips and nodded in understanding. "But I'll do that after the gate is closed and you come back. And I understand why you guys didn't tell me." She shrugged. "But you could've given me somewhat of a heads-up."
"We couldn't risk calling you-"
"You didn't have to call me."
He frowned, knowing she was right. "Sorry."
She smiled at him a little. "Just come back in one piece, alright?"
He nodded, smiling back at her. "Alright. Keep Mike and everyone else safe."
She nodded back at him. "I will." He suddenly realized that he still had feelings for this woman...but they were overpowered by other feelings...for Joyce. He grabbed a walkie and walked away, Terry sighing. She only had a little bit of feelings for him, since she felt stronger for Andrew. But she was getting over it and he seemed to be doing the same. At least the only awkward thing between them now was the heart-to-heart situation.
When they were talking though, Erica and the kids were in the middle of the food court. Jane and Will was supporting Mike up, the auburn-haired boy trying to hide the weird feelings he was getting from being near him. Erica said, "Yeah, it's official. He'll die, they'll all die."
"Yup," Dustin replied plainly. "That's very likely."
Lucas and the other kids looked puzzled. "But you guys survived," he stated.
They both turned to him. "Yeah, barely." The curly-haired boy looked at his friends. "We could've really used you guys down there."
Jane smiled a little, saying, "We could've used you up here too." Mike smiled and nodded.
Will nodded too. "Yeah, we missed you."
"Big-time," Lucas added, also smiling.
He smiled back at the kids and they all got into a group hug. "I missed you guys too," he replied warmly. "Big-time." They all exchanged smiles.
Erica looked weirded out and said snarkily, "Please don't cry, you bunch of nerds."
They looked at her, their smiles dropping while Lucas looked annoyed. "Erica, what the-"
She looked just as annoyed. "Say my name again, I dare you." They glared daggers at each other before Jim appeared to give Dustin the walkie for communication.
When Dustin gave him the rundown of what he, Erica, Steve, and Robin needed to do, Jim decided to walk away from the kids and to Steve, who was talking to Kali, Jonathan, and Robin. "Hey," he called out to him. The teens looked at him as he got out some keys and tossed it to him. He reached out and grabbed them. "You're gonna drive Dustin and Erica to some spot where he set up...Cerebellum?"
"Cerebro," Kali and Steve corrected him.
He sighed. "You and you." He pointed at Steve and Robin. "Go."
They nodded, getting off of the restaurant counter. However, Steve turned to his friend and girlfriend, saying, "Okay, you two stay safe." He looked at Jonathan, pointing at him. "I'll kill you if she gets hurt."
The auburn-haired teen scoffed. "Don't worry, I've been looking after her ever since you went M.I.A., so..." Kali snickered while Steve sneered.
"I'll look after myself," she told him, making him looked reassured. She then looked at Robin. "And Robin?" She looked at her.
"Yeah?"
"Make sure he doesn't do any stupid shit when you guys get there."
Robin laughed a little and gave her two thumbs-up. "You got it." Steve sighed and shook his head, waving them goodbye as they joined up with Dustin and Erica, going to the mall's entrance.
...
Later, Kali and Jonathan were shown the keys to everything in Murray's place by Murray himself, paying close attention to it. Joyce was having an emotional talk with Will. Jim and Mike sat next to each other on one of the benches of the main lobby, holding each other's hands with Mike's blue elastic band holding them together. "My battery's low, Pop," the freckled boy stated, looking up at him. "But it'll recharge."
"I know it will, bud," he replied, his voice a little low. "I know."
"I can still fight."
He smiled at him. "Better than any of us combined." His smile dropped. "But right now..." Mike looked away from him. "I need you to be safe. This thing is after you..." He shook his head. "Not me." Mike didn't say anything. "Do you understand?" He flattened his lips, looking both frustrated and forlorn. Seeing that look made Jim more sympathetic to his son's situation. "Hey..." He placed a hand on top of his head and went down his hair, making the boy look up at him. "I know this is hard, but I need you to understand, okay?"
It was hard enough for Mike to have a rough few days and not have the man that he considered to be a father by his side. He wanted to kill the fleshy Mind Flayer and get this over with, but...he was feeling low on his power, lower than ever actually. It was a huge risk, a risk that could get him killed. He didn't want that for Pop...or Jane...or Terry...or everyone else he considered important to him.
He nodded and they pulled each other into a tight, yet tender hug. They both held back their tears since they refused to believe that this was their last goodbye.
Meanwhile, after hugging Will to death, Joyce looked around for Andrew, who leaned against a pillar and took out his keys. She got in front of him, asking, "Andrew, right?"
He looked down at her and nodded. "Yeah, that's me."
"Listen, I know we just met, but you think Terry is a good friend, right?"
He nodded at her and answered, "Absolutely."
She nodded back, her hands on her hips. "Okay. I just want to say, she's my best friend. We've been friends since high school." He nodded a little, knowing that already. "I care a lot about her, so I'm expecting you to take good care of her while we're gone."
He looked confused at her demand. "Wait, you're not coming with us?"
She shook her head. "Change of plans. I'm going with Murray and Hopper. You protect Terry, make sure she's fine."
His eyes widened as he nodded. "Um, okay."
"Okay." She placed a hand on his arm. "You seem like a good man, a man that keeps his promises. I hope you don't change my mind."
He shook his head, holding his hands up. "You can count on me, Joyce."
She smiled, letting her hand off his arm. "Good." Terry had told him that she could be assertive when it comes to those she cares for. It clearly showed. Plus, despite her small height, she seemed like a strong woman, just as Terry said she was. He almost reminded of him of Stacey...he hoped he could save her. But he will protect Terry, no matter what.
Meanwhile, Jane slowly approached Mike and Jim and cleared her throat. They were released from their hug to look up at her, seeing Lucas and Will approach too. "We should probably go," she told them. They looked understanding before looking at each other. Jim smiled a little at his son and nodded, making him smile back. The two boys then helped Mike up.
They were about to leave together, but Jim actually had something to say to his son's girlfriend, so he said, "Jane, wait." She stopped and turned around, a bit puzzled. He gestured her to come closer, in which she did.
"What is it?"
He took a deep breath and rubbed his face. "Before you go, I just wanna say sorry." She raised her eyebrows. "For yelling at you in the car, for not talking to Mike about not hanging out..." He shook his head and shrugged. "That was completely shitty of me to do."
She scoffed and crossed her arms. "It was."
He rubbed his temple and nodded. "Mike was heartbroken and I'm sure you were too."
"That's an understatement."
He pursed his lips. "Yeah, it probably is. Still..." He laced his fingers together and looked up at her sincerely. "I'm sorry. It's not like I wanted you two to be unhappy together. I didn't want you to be upset too. But I completely screwed that up."
Jane let out a deep sigh, processing his apology. "You did screw up," she finally said. He nodded again, frowning before he saw her smile. "But, everything worked out in the end. I even learned something." He was surprised, pleasantly surprised, so he smiled at her. "You're not gonna do all that to me again, right?"
"Absolutely."
"Jane," Lucas called out. The two looked back at the kids, who were looking at them. "We need to go!"
"Okay!" she called back loudly before facing Jim again.
He placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Be careful, Jane, and protect my son."
She nodded, keeping her smile. "I will, trust me." She then gave him a little hug, surprising him more. It only lasted a few seconds, then she ran and caught up with everyone else. Jim stood up and smiled to himself as he saw Jane and Mike talking a bit. Only when he and Terry talked to Mike last year did he feel this good about letting feelings out...
Just like what he intended for his delayed heart-to-heart.
Everyone finally got outside. Kali and Jonathan separated from the group to get to their own cars, which were the only ones parked in the lot. Jane was near the boys, keeping a close eye on Mike. He suddenly winced and groaned a little...his nose bleeding. She gasped and looked just as worried as the boys were. "Mike, you're bleeding," she said, her voice matching her expression.
"Are you...alright?" Will asked.
He nodded and lied, "Yeah, I'm alright." He didn't know why he was getting a sudden headache and nosebleed though.
"Come on," Lucas said. They were in front of the side door of the van, Jane opening it and the boys slowly getting him in. "Lay down." Terry got into the passenger's side and Andrew the driver's. From afar, the teens unlocked their cars and got in.
Andrew put the keys in at the same time as the teens did in their own cars. He then turned it to start it up. However, the engine sputtered and didn't start up. That confused the adults. As Andrew tried again...
...
Kali did as well, looking just as puzzled. Her engine sputtered and didn't start up. "What the hell...?" she muttered before trying again...
...
...at the same time as Jonathan. "Are you kidding me?" he muttered in frustration as he tried again.
...
The kids looked confused at the long-haired man's attempts to start up his van. "What's going on?" Jane asked.
"I don't know," he answered as he tried to start it up once more, failing. "This was driving just fine before."
"Is your engine old?" Lucas asked.
"It worked earlier."
"Did you leave the lights on?" Will also asked.
"No." He tried again and failed.
"Do we have enough gas?" Jane also asked.
"Yes!" He tried once more and failed again, huffing. "I don't get it."
"Open the hood," Terry suggested. "Then we'll see what's going on." They both exited the vehicle to do just that.
...
Kali and Jonathan got out of their cars as well, their hoods already open due to a button inside of them. They popped open their hoods and looked inside of them. Their eyes widened when they realized that something was missing...
...
Terry and Andrew saw that something was missing as well. "Where's the ignition cable?" she asked.
Andrew tried looking for it, but couldn't find it. "It's gone," he answered in shock.
...
Kali and Jonathan looked at each other, knowing that they were in the same predicament. They then looked at the van, seeing the adults outside of it looking at the hood too. Kali yelled, "Are you guys missing the ignition cable too?!" They looked at the teens and nodded, looking completely worried.
Suddenly, they all heard a car's engine revving from afar. The adults and teens looked at the direction it came from. Not too far from the teens, the car's lights turned on as its engine revved again. They looked aghast, the teens seeing that it was...Billy's car.
Inside of there were Billy and Stacey, just coldly staring at them while sweating. The teen continued to rev the engine, the both of them twitching.
Inside of the van, Max looked horrified, muttering, "Billy." All of them looked shocked before the side door suddenly opened.
Andrew was there, yelling, "Back in the mall! Go!" The kids scrambled out of there, Jane and Lucas helping Mike out.
"KALI! JONATHAN! GET OUT OF THERE!" Terry yelled.
They were both panting and looking at each other. They knew they were going to risk their lives just to reach to them, but they couldn't just stay out here. They exchanged nods for running like hell to the entrance.
Back in the car, Billy asked, "Should I run them over?"
Stacey shook her head. "We kill him first." And so they just sat there as they saw the teens eventually reach to the entrance, join up with the others, and get in.
Stopping right here. How was this chapter? Any typos or mistakes I might've missed?
So, I might've spent a lot of time writing the whole finale in different chapters. Hope you like this appetizer of a chapter because there'll be more to come in this finale! More that'll be kinda different from the canon one...
Keep supporting this fanfic and I'll see you guys in the next chapter!