Chapter 36: Terror at Night
"It is good to see you again…" a voice calls out.
Bright lights fill the darkened void as the two entities meet.
"It is time to try again…" the lights agree.
"Weaken your enemy with the strongest element of all… fear…"
…
"Jane Hopper. it is time for your presentation," the teacher announces.
Eleven swallows heavily and grips the edge of her desk. Her cue cards lay in front of her, Mike had helped her write them out and she'd practiced in front of Papa a million times. She can feel tears slowly rising in her eyes. To say she was scared was very much an understatement.
She can't do this… she can't… she's not ready!
Suddenly, a hand reaches out
"You'll do great…" Mike whispers, holding her hand and smiling. "Remember you can do anything."
Mike's gentle eyes give her the surge of confidence she needs, she smiles before standing up and grabbing her cards.
Walking up the aisle of desks seems to take forever, getting further away despite how far she goes. All she can hear is her heart racing, nothing else.
She pauses at the front, next to the teacher's desk and her back to the class. If only she could do her presentation like this… yet there would still be eyes on her. They were burning into her back, and it stung. They were all judging her… the weirdo.
"Whenever you are ready Miss Hopper," the teacher's deep voice says. "But please do face the class when you start."
Inhaling, Jane turns to face her peers. She stares hard at her cards before looking upwards. For a moment her knees buckle, and she stops breathing.
Mike, Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Will were there. Dustin gives her a thumbs up while Max and Will nod to let her know she's supported.
"M-My presentation is…" she swallows, all eyes staring at her. While her friends were there to support her there were so many strangers. People who could be mean to her. Make her time in school a living hell
"I-Is about the history of the Oregano Trail…"
There's a snicker in the back at her mispronunciation
El feels her face go red in embarrassment and her mouth hangs open as she struggles to correct herself.
"I…I mean the Oregon trail and the journey of the pioneers…"
Mike nods to her and smiles at her.
"W-When America was just starting out… many settlers headed along what became the Oregon trail…"
Eleven allows the words to spill out of her in the order that she practiced. The longer she speaks, the more comfortable she becomes. Her classmates' eyes are still on her, some with boredom, some with feigned interest, but all she cares about is finishing her presentation and getting a good grade.
"The trail of course was not without its dangers. Disease like typhoon…"
This time someone actually laughs out loud.
Red in the face again, Jane tries to correct herself.
"I…I mean…Typhoon… typhoon…" she stumbles. "T-typhoon."
Why can't she say the right word? She knew it, Papa even helped her with proper pronunciation and yet she kept saying it… like she can't control it.
Several more people begin to laugh as she continues to say the same word over and over.
Eleven's mouth hangs open and she tries to stop but can't. Now she's saying more random words that have nothing to do with her presentation.
"Sparkplug… balloon… rocket man… dead… docket…"
Pretty much the whole class is laughing now, except for her friends. It's so loud that it's hurting her ears. Like an echo, it bounces off the walls and hits her. She squeezes her cards so tightly and tears are pouring from her eyes. Her throat burns from saying these words as if coming from a megaphone. Eleven desperately looks at her friends, pleading for help. Why isn't Mike coming to help? Why isn't Max swearing and telling everyone to shut up? It's then that she sees the hint of a smile on Lucas' face. A lump begins to swell in her throat and tears continue to pour from her eyes. She just wants to disappear.
"Blockade… laser bolt…buck…"
Dustin puts a hand over his face to try and mask his smile while Will looks in actual pain from holding in his laughter. He puts his head down to hide it.
Then it happens…
"Wart…"
Lucas gives a loud snort, which cracks the dam, and he begins to laugh with the rest of the class. Dustin slams his fist down before bursting into full-on cackles of glee.
Their laughing is like being stabbed in the stomach, the girl's insides churn with the betrayal of her friends. Her knees buckle and she can't stand up any longer. Will raises his head and he's crying with laughter.
Jane then looks at her best friend and they lock eyes. She pleads for her help, but Max gives a sly smirk before joining the others in laughing at her.
On her last attempt, she turns to the one she loves. Mike is trying not to... She knows he is, but the corners of his mouth go up… he even bites his lip and pinches his arm to stop.
For a split second, his gentle and kind brown eyes turn yellow before it all ends.
Mike's laughter is the loudest of all, pounding against her eardrums and the whole world comes crashing down. The lump in her throat stops her breathing for a moment, which does stop the scramble of words, but she then collapses to her knees as a result. Trying to get air, she clutches her stomach. She's in so much pain that she wants to vomit and then die. Everyone has turned her against her. She truly is the freak she was meant to be.
The laughter gets louder and louder, her ears are bleeding from the noise.
Jane throws her hands over her ears, tears streaming down her face. The laughter was in her head… so loud… make it stop… please stop.
"STOP! STOP!" she screams as if her throat is raw. She sobs and still kneels to drown out the sounds. "STOP!"
Suddenly, there's silence.
It takes a moment for Eleven to realize that there is silence. She felt as though she's truly lost her mind, but the silence is now ringing in her ears.
Trying to catch her breath, the crumbling girl looks up, the entire class has decayed to skeletons sitting in their desks, smiles still on their bony faces.
"MIKE!" Eleven cries out, seeing her boyfriend and all her friends have met this fate.
"I love a good show…"
Everything goes silent and the once brightly lit classroom is dark, with only blue light beaming through the windows.
Eleven turns around to see the teacher at her desk reading with the newspaper held up in front of her face… Except it didn't sound like the teacher. It had a deeper tone and was much hoarser. Dirty curled shoes with orange pom-poms on the toes lay on the desk and white gloves grip the pages.
Slowly, as the newspaper is lowered, El steps back in horror. The head of the teacher has expanded in size, creating a massive forehead, with tufts of orange hair framing the top. The limbs have been stretched, making them unnaturally long and she is wearing a dirty and ruffled silver jumpsuit with orange buttons. Her face is covered in white makeup with red lines. With a single shake, the face of the teacher vanishes, and in its place is a strange clown with yellow eyes. Its mouth curls up into a sinister smile.
Something clicks in her mind and the young girl recognizes the face. She'd seen him before.
The clown then tosses the paper aside and leaps onto the desk, towering over her. Eleven backs up into a desk, Dustin's desk and she screams in horror as his skeleton collapses into a pile of bones and dust on the floor.
Tears staining her face, she looks back at the grinning clown.
"Extra credit for making us all laugh ourselves to death," the clown says, still in the teacher's voice.
He then cocks his head to the side.
"But I'm disappointed in you Eleven," Papa's voice says. "You should be able to give a better presentation than that."
Hearing his voice again, the poor girl is left shocked. Tears had suddenly stopped. Why was he here? How does he know Papa?
"We all float down here Eleven… and so will you…"
"GET AWAY!" she screams.
The girl throws her hands up to try and throw this monstrous clown off the desk, but nothing happens.
Through her tears, she makes a break for the door.
She grabs the knob and wrenches at it, trying to get out.
"LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT!" she pleads, her heart in her throat and her muscles sore from trying to pull it open. She even pounds on the door, hoping someone will hear it.
She can feel the clown behind her. His feet hit the ground with a loud thud. Each step is accompanied by the jingle of a bell. Each orange pom-pom dances slowly along the filthy blue floor, the white shoes sliding ever closer.
"LET ME OUT!" she cries
Finally, the door opens, only to reveal the Gate that she'd closed waiting for her.
Its reddish-orange glow practically blinded her.
Before she can scream, something yanks her through.
…
Eleven jolts up from her bed panting and shaking. Her bed jumps up due to her telekinesis, but this doesn't stop her from leaping right out of bed and diving for the light on her vanity. With a click, everything is right in the world.
With the warm glow of her light, she can gather her thoughts and catch her breath. She wasn't in school. She didn't have to make a presentation and no one, especially not her friends, was laughing at her.
The shaken girl wipes sweat from her forehead, and she notices that she's soaked through Hopper's old pyjamas with sweat and likely tears down her front. Her brown hair clung to her cheeks and neck from the moisture. Her eyes burn from being so dry and her throat is raw, likely from her screaming.
Still shaking, the ringing in her ears slowly recedes. The sounds of the TV and Papa's snores replaced it, bringing her even more comfort, knowing she was at home safe.
She slowly walks to the door and goes into the living room. Papa was sleeping in his usual spot, a half-finished beer still in his hands. It was surprising that he had not heard her terrified screams. It's then she looks at the TV and sees that it's a late-late horror movie, meaning her screams likely sounded like the ones from the movie. Turning off the TV, the girl grabs a blanket from the couch and throws it over her father. She then takes the beer from his hand and turns off the nearby lamp.
She hurries to the bathroom and splashes some cold water on her face to cool the heat. She then goes to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
At the sink, she stares outside into the darkness. Only the faint lighting of the moon is coming through the trees and casting a few shadows against the cabin. An autumn breeze moves the branches, making them look like hands waving at her.
Turning back, Eleven leans against the counter to drink.
It's just a nightmare kid… nightmares can't hurt you… she thinks to herself. Papa had told her this… but it still felt so real. And why was that clown back? He'd been in her dream before… why was he talking about floating? Why did he like her old Papa's voice? Why were his eyes so yellow?
She tries to shake the face of her mind and focus on her breathing.
Her friends would never laugh at her. Never, they would never do that. They care about her too much. Also, she wasn't in school. She only has a tutor. None of it was real.
She rubs her eyes and decides to try and go back to bed, making sure to leave her door open and the light on for the rest of the night.
…
"So easy…" the Flayer chuckles, admiring their work from inside the projected bubble.
"Exactly," IT says. "She may have unusual abilities, but at the end of the day… she is human. And all humans have weaknesses and fears… it's what makes them easy prey… She is certainly strong too… resisting some of the influence. Humans can bend and snap back, but when pushed to the end they will always. ALWAYS break."
"And she will…" the Flayer says. "She will."
A/N: Sorry it's been so long since I updated. The end of the school year is a busy time. Hope everyone enjoyed Season 4. I laughed, I cried, I jumped, and everything in between.
Special thanks to norozco772 for your comments and praise. I do like some of your ideas and I hope to maybe utilize them in later chapters. No promises, but I do like your suggestions. Thank you for your support.