hopper and joyce were off looking for will and the teens were left with the kids. however, as they all sat together they knew more had to be done. although they knew the whereabouts of will, there was still the demogorgan that they had to worry about. if hopper and joyce encountered the creature who knows what would happen to them. lydia felt so helpless. she followed jonathan out of the gym to where nancy sat and took a seat on the bench while jonathan opted for sitting on the floor next to their friend.

nancy was focused on a spot on the floor and continued to fixate on the spot even after her friends joined. the silence that fell amongst the teens was haunting. lydia invited the feeling of the cold metal as she rested her palms on the edge and curled her fingers on the bottom of the bench. pure fear was bubbling up inside of her; her anxiety brewed at the thought of what she might have to encounter again.

"we have to go back to the station." nancy's voice was barely above a whisper. jonathan and lydia turned to their friend with looks that could only be described as bewildered.

"what?"

"your mom and hopper, are just walking in there, like bait. that thing is still in there. we can't just sit here, and let it get them too. we can't." every word she whispered was filled with malice and concern. nance wanted justice. or even better, revenge.

~

after they had snuck into the police station to retrieve their stolen supplies, the trio headed back to the byers house. the house where it all began. they intended to kill the demogorgan and they intended to do it right.

with a sudden stop, they arrived at jonathan's and got to work almost immediately. from screwing in lightbulbs to pouring a trail of gasoline, they continued to rig the house to ensure that the demogorgan wouldn't be leaving alive.

standing together, the group took a look at their work and collectively took a deep breath in, mentally preparing for what they were about to do. they went over the plan once more before cutting deep into their palms. as the blood flowed out of their hands, it glimmered under the christmas lights as if it were the blood of the gods. this was the point of no return.

~

nancy wrapped up jonathan's hand as the brunette sat on the floor with her back against the coffee table. she paid no attention to the other two and instead got lost in the lights that hung above her. they reminded her of her father, in a strange way. she remembered being tangled up in christmas lights as they decorated the house. she remembered the numbness that pricked her cheeks and the cold that nipped at her nose. the pink bonnet that just barely covered her ears that had the same pattern as the mittens she donned on her chubby hands. she remembered her dad's worn out levi's that hung above his low-cut adidas. the scent of the brisk winter air reminded her of a happier-

"jonathan! are you there man?! it's-it's steve! listen, i just wanna talk!" the aggressive rap of steve's knuckles against the door made lydia snap out of her trance. nancy answered the door which caused some shocked remarks from the beaten boy. he tried to resist his girlfriend's orders and every word he said cut the brunette deep.

"nonono, listen, i me- i messed up! i messed up. okay? really, please." tears welled up in lydia's eyes and she begged them not to fall. not over steve. "i just wanna make things right. okay? please." then his eyes found their way to the bandages. his immediate concern was no longer jonathan, he was only occupied with the well-being of nancy. before anything could be comprehended, steve was standing right in front of lydia.

she jumped to her feet and looked at him in the eye. she didn't realize that the tears had refused her orders and were now streaming down her face, causing her mascara to run with it. he locked eyes with her for a quick second for pulling her in and letting a couple tear escape out of his eyes. upsetting her was one of the worst things he had ever done in his life. it hurt him more than anything. this girl would have taken a bullet for him and he had shattered her trust in him. it broke him.

the hug only lasted a couple seconds, but it felt like eternity. and once he pulled away, the absence of warmth jerked lydia back to reality. then, everything started moving fast. jonathan was trying to push steve, and steve was asking a lot of questions, then nancy pulled her gun on him, and all lydia could do was watch. she watched as her friends screamed at each other before feeling the hairs on the back of her neck stick up. she whipped around and watched as the lights flickered.

"guys!" she screamed, turning everyone's attention to the spectacle around them. nancy stood agape for a second before jonathan sprung for his bat. frantic questions were thrown about by steve, while the others turned frantically looking for their target.

then, a crash came from the ceiling and they watched as the familiar monster appeared. lydia grabbed steve's hand and pulled him toward will's room, yelling at him to jump over the bear trap.

"jeez! jesus! what the hell was that?!" the poor boy exclaimed. however, his concerns were shut down by a simultaneous 'shut up' from the others. they watched the yo-yo with suspense, waiting for the slightest movement. lydia and steve held onto each other, not thinking about what had happened in the past. they were there together and that's all that mattered.

soon, the hallway became silent. jonathan led them out of the room; he peered out into the hallway and was disappointed yet relieved that he didn't see the demogorgan. with steve and lydia hand in hand, they creeped around the corner to the living room- only for it to be empty. the brunette sighed as the boy next to her began to freak out.

"this is crazy, this is crazy!" he exclaimed for heading to the phone on the wall. he started to dial a number before nancy pulled it from his hands. lydia held him at an arm's length and looked him dead in the eyes. as terrified as she was, she was not about to have steve put himself in danger too.

"that thing is not staying away for long so you better book it or else you're gonna get hurt too!" his eyes darted back and forth while looking at the girl, looking for any hint that she was joking. but she stared back at him with such intensity he knew she wasn't messing around. he ran out of the house and lydia stood still, knowing that she just kicked her best friend out of her life once again. however, she did not have the luxury of feeling sad. for almost immediately after steve left, the lights started flashing again.

she ran to where jonathan and nancy were standing and they all stood back to back, turning to get every angle of the living room.

"where are you?!"

"come on!"

"come out you son of a bitch!" then, all the lights went out and only a low growl could be heard.

"lydia!"