dig dug

✧

"YOU'LL NEVER GUESS WHAT I FOUND"

Ruth looked up from the T.V, popping another cherry in her mouth. A grin grew on her face as she saw her dad skip into the living room, boxes in his hands.

Bob and Rue usually spent their Saturdays at home, kicking their feet up and laying back while watching a good movie and eating snacks that could fill them for the next two days. However, today, Rue and Bob had gotten home only half an hour ago from Rue's baseball practice, so they're lazy day was delayed as Rue sat on the couch in her uniform.

Bob placed the box on the carpet, and Rue slid off the couch to see what he found. She gingerly placed her bowl of cherries to the side, looking at him expectantly.

"What did you find?"

"You're gonna have to open it to find out, silly,"

Laughing, she shook her head, opening the box. Dimples creased on Rue's cheeks as she smiled. "Oh, wow," she breathed, taking out toys that brought her nostalgia.

"I found them while looking for a few puzzles for Will," Bob nudged her shoulder as Rue pulled out a pink teddy bear.

"Mr. Blushy!" she giggled, caressing the bear softly before hugging him. She trapped her lower lip between her teeth, trying to suppress her smile as the teddy bear still lingered with warm memories from when she was five and younger. Mr. Blushy still smelled like her old home, like chocolate and apples and a hint of cinnamon.

A tear trickled to her green eyes as she looked back at her dad, who was beaming happily. "You kept him?"

Bob scratched the back of his head, nodding. "Well, yeah. After your mom and I broke it off, I wanted to see you, I really did, but I guess I was a bit of a coward. I kept Mr. Blushy for a memory of you. I missed you, and calling you every Sunday just isn't the same."

Tears slipped on her eyes, and Rue was happy to say they were tears of joy. She rarely cried for joy. And she felt like it was one of the best feelings in the world.

Putting the stuffed bear down, she jumped into Bob's arms, hugging him tightly. The tears continued to fall as he hugged her back.

Bob and Rue stayed like that for a while, mostly because Rue wouldn't let him go, scared that if she did, he'd disappear forever.

"Are you ready to go to the Byers?" Bob asked softly, running his hand through his daughter's hair.

Rue nodded, her wet cheeks brushing over his chest. Sniffing, she slowly pulled away, a big smile on her face. Bob blinked for a minute. The smile Rue held was different. It wasn't the smile she'd flash every day, but it was brighter, and her eyes seemed to sparkle as the smile reached them.

Bob grabbed his brain teaser games from the floor as they stood up. Rue picked up her bowl of cherries and the box of toys and quickly put the box away in her room before placing the bowl back in the fridge.

Her eyes lingered on the new medal she'd earned from the baseball game the day before; it was hanging on the fridge door with a large magnet so it wouldn't fall. A satisfied grin grew on her face.

"Come on, Rue!"

"Coming!"

She ran out to the car, where Bob was waiting for her. "I hope Will's okay," she said, hopping into her seat.

"I'm sure he's fine, Joyce said it's just a fever."

Humming, Rue clicked on her seatbelt, thinking otherwise. What she saw on the field wasn't a fever — it was something else — and she noticed it.

Looking in the backseat, Rue noticed her bag and bat. She quickly grabbed her Walkman as her dad started the car.

Before she knew it, they had pulled up at the Byers' residence. Rue and Bob walked out of the car, only to find Joyce rushing out of the house towards them.

"Surprise!" Bob grinned, "I would've called, but you said not to clog up the line." he started as he and Rue walked up to the porch where Joyce stopped them from coming any closer.

"I know — I," she started, shaking her head. "We're fine we don't need anything."

Bob shook his head, looking back and forth from Joyce and the door, "When I was sick as a kid — and I got sick all the time as a kid - nothing made me feel better than focusing on these brain teasers. And the same for Rue!"

Rue nodded, her bangs flowing with the fall breeze.

"Those are great. Ahh . . ." Joyce hesitated, and Rue could tell something was going on by the way she kept scratching her neck.

Bob grinned, "I could teach him how to play," he said, quickly glancing down at the games in his hands.

"He's sleeping," Joyce pursed her lips.

He sighed, "Okay, could I wait with you?" he smirked, earning a grossed out look and groan from his daughter.

Joyce chuckled at Ruth's reaction, "Listen it's just not a good time."

"I tried," he shrugged.

"But um, you know what? I'll call you okay?" she kissed him on the cheek, then leaned down to press a kiss on Rue's forehead. "Okay alright, thank you. Bye, Rue, sweetie!"

The two Newby's started to walk back to the car before Joyce called back out again. "Bob!"

They turned around with a smile of triumph, and Bob said: "That's my name."

After Joyce told them strange rules, the Newby's walked inside. Rue's mouth dropped after finding what used to be the living room — covered in paper. There was red paper, white paper, and something she wondered if it was toilet paper. All of them covered in messy blue and black scribbles.

"Huh," she huffed, spinning around to see that all the pages and paper put together were like a puzzle that put her dad's brain teasers to shame. Her mouth was open wide, and as far as she knew, these lines, or paths, or whatever they were, covered the whole house.

"Hmm, you drew all these yourself?" she could hear her dad ask. "Why exactly?"

"I told you the rules, no questions," Rue watched as Joyce pointed her finger at her dad, making her chuckle.

She slowly walked up to them, where she noticed Will and Mike were there as well. Her gawking at the lines and scribbles had made her miss the two boys.

Mike narrowed his eyebrows at her. He had also just noticed she was there. With his eyes on her, he now spotted her change in hair and odd outfit attire, dirty white pants with orange stripes at the sides, and a white, orange and blue jersey that said Newby 002 in bold orange on the back.

"'Same thing she wore on Halloween." he thought.

Rue turned to face Mike, furrowed her eyebrows at him. "What did you say?" she asked smoothly.

"Nothing," Mike huffed, "I didn't say anything."

"Oh, sorry. I thought I heard something."

Mike nodded but kept his eyes on her as she sniffed softly.

"Bob," Joyce called, walking down the hall a little bit. Everyone followed her. "I need you to find," she started, scribbling a red X over one of the vines. "This."

Kneeling, Bob looked at the X, then at Joyce, then back at the X.

"That's the objective, find the X," Mike told him.

Rue smiled, shaking her head. It felt like they were doing a little treasure hunt game. She shared a looked with her dad, and it seemed like it was thinking the same thing.

"What is X? Pirate treasure?" he joked, and Rue chuckled.

"Bob — no questions." Joyce said seriously, wiping off the grins on the two Newby's faces.

"Okay," he stood straighter before pulling Joyce away from the kids, "Just give us a second."

They walked off.

"Alright, what's wrong?" Mike said suddenly, turning towards Rue, who stood next to Will, trying to ask how he was doing with his fever.

Rue blinked, "What?"

"I don't know — " he shrugged, "You seemed different — "

"You got a haircut!" Will beamed, tugging at her hair, making Rue yelp and slap his hand away while he laughed.

Mike rolled his eyes, "That's not what I meant."

"I don't know what you mean," Rue told him, "I feel fine — I feel great actually, I haven't felt this good in a while."

"Yeah — right."

A smirk grew on Rue's face, and she felt herself become taller for a moment, "If anyone's acting differently here, it's you, Mike Wheeler."

"What? What's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't know," she mocked him. "You haven't insulted, me yet,"

Will let out a snort, shaking his head, and he walked to the dining table, which was in the kitchen for some reason. Rue followed Will, grinning as she heard Mike trail behind her.

"I don't insult you."

"Yeah, and my mother's still alive," she nods, sitting next to Will. "If you don't insult me then what do you do?"

"I — I," He stammered, still caught off guard with the way she slipped the fact her mother was dead. Mike didn't get the chance to say anything as Bob and Joyce walked into the kitchen.

"Okay, I get it. That's Lake Jordan," Bob pointed towards a circle between the blue vines. "And if that's Lake Jordan, then you can probably find," he started to snap his fingers, "yes!"

Will and Rue looked at each other for a second in confusion before Mike pulled out a chair and sat with them, resting his face on his hands.

"Don't you get it?" Bob walked back towards them. "It's not a puzzle. It's a map! It's a map of Hawkins!"

"Ooh! How fun!" Rue beamed, and Bob nodded.

（ ₊˚. ✰┊📼 ! ）

"Alright, I'm three point six inches. What do you got?!" Bob yelled across the house.

"I'm not sure!" Mike shouted back, "What about you, Rue?!"

"Hold on!" she called, running through the hall with the measuring tape at hand. Everyone yelling at each other — back and forth throughout the house — trying to measure from lake to lake.

Rue ran to the living room, leaning over the couch to lake Tippecanoe. "Twenty-one feet four inches!"

"What about Tippecanoe to Danford Creek?" Joyce asked, tapping on the lake from the map.

Rue shook her head in confusion. "W-where's Danford?" she stammered.

"The dining room!" Will called, the girl running over towards him and going to her tippy toes to measure it.

"Sixteen feet ten inches."

"How about Danford to Jordan?" Bob asked.

"Dad, my arms are getting tired," Rue wined, throwing her hands down.

Joyce agreed, looking down at the map sitting before her. "Yeah, it's gotta be enough."

"It's not really. It's really not."

Rue groaned, rolling back up the tape, then walking over to where everyone else was. The three kids leaned on the table while Bob and Joyce argued like an old couple.

"Okay if you're twisting my arm. I would that the X is . . . " he started to draw along the Hawkins map. "Maybe, half-mile of the east of Danford?" he tilted his head up to face Joyce, who thanked him multiple times and kissed his cheek, grabbing the map.

Mike and Will looked at each other before going after Joyce, once again leaving the Newby's confused. "What are we — we really going?" Bob stood up, running after them.

"This is crazy." Rue muttered, picking up her bag and bat and following everyone. All of them got in Joyce's car, Bob with the map, Joyce driving. Rue sat with Will to her right and Mike on the left. Bob started to say directions, and Joyce hit the gas.

At the edge of the cloud, there was a brilliant white patch, like a turning page catching the sun. The rest was dove grey with a subtle hint of purple, just enough to announce the coming sunset. The moon started to rise, and daylight lost. The sky painted with dark purples and blues, splattered with constellations from the stars, and the moon stood in the sky, welcoming everyone who stood under it with its light.

They ended up driving around farms. Only grass and pumpkin patches from Halloween are in sight. "There's nothing, there nothing here," Mike said, pointing out the obvious after looking out the window for a good ten minutes.

Joyce sighed, her eyes still on the road. "Are we close?"

"We're in the vicinity,"

"Bob, please use english," Joyce shook her head as Will started to close his eyes. Rue just thought he was falling asleep, and she wouldn't blame him.

"We're close! I mean, I don't know!" he exclaimed in distress.

"So then we did all the work for nothing?" Joyce said, shaking her head.

Rue groaned, throwing her head back on the seat, not able to stand the two of them arguing.

"Turn right," Will gasped, making her jump.

Joyce glanced at him from the rear view mirror before looking back at the road, not seeing a right. "What?"

"Just turn right!" he yelled.

She turned the wheel, making them hit a sign.

Rue felt as if she'd stopped breathing as she held the hand closest to her, holding it tightly, trying to calm herself as the car went through a pumpkin patch. The car bumped up and down, and everyone yelled, making her heart race fast, flashbacks of the crash shooting through her mind as she tried not to scream or cry.

Joyce stopped the car in front of a police one, quickly looking back at the kids. Bob turned around as well, the two adults looking especially at Rue, knowing she would have freaked out the most.

Bob's face softens as he saw the girl have tears prickling in her eyes and her trying to catch her breath, "Rue, are you okay?" Bob asked his little girl.

Rue didn't respond, only nodded while breathing heavily. She was shaking as her good mood flew out the window. Rue felt her hand gripping tightly to another, her nails digging into their skin. She looked over to see Mike cringing while she clutched his hand. Rue quickly let go, muttering hundreds of apologies as his hand now had bright red nail marks.

Bob turned back around, then furrowing his eyes after seeing the police car before them. "What's Jim doing here?" he asked. "Joyce?" He called after not getting an answer. He turned his head over towards her as she opened the car door.

"Boys — and girl. I need you to stay here — "

"No, mom," Will started as she started to get out of the vehicle, Bob doing the same. "Mom, mom! mom! It's not safe!" he called.

"That's why I need you to stay here!" she said sternly, "stay here!" she slammed the door shut and walked deeper into the pumpkin patch, Bob following closely.

Will started to get out of the car.

"Will," Rue called as he got out of the car, shutting the door. She and Mike shared a look before they got out as well, Rue grabbing her bat and bag — just in case — then hopping out with him.

Mike closed the door behind her. The two walked up to will, who stood before a large whole. "Do you see anything?" Mike asked Will, "I mean, in your now-memories?"

Will shook his head no.

Seconds later, the three kids heard several engines coming closer. They turned around, and the vans' headlights almost blinded them. It only took minutes until a bunch of men started to rush out of the vehicles in hazmat suits and blowtorches, then running down the whole Joyce and Bob went in.

Rue watched in wide eyes as Will suddenly clutched onto his stomach, dropping on the ground in pain. "Will," she gasped, sinking to her knees. "Will," she cried, trying to shake him out of his trance.

"Will," Mike spoke in worry when Will shook on the ground as if he was having a seizure.

"Will, Will!" they both kept calling his name until Will turned around and shook violently, screaming and shrieking, his eyes rolling to the back of his head.

Rue jumped back in surprise, landing on the wet grass. Her eyes were wide, and she felt paralyzed as she and Mike watched their best friend go crazy.

（ ₊˚. ✰┊📼 ! ）

i love rue and bobs relationship

wouldn't it suck to see that end.