November 12th, 1983

Byers House

The monster crashed onto a heap on the floor in front of us, slowly rearing its head to the side in order to look in our direction.

Letting out a scream, Nancy was the first to run out of the living room, followed closely by Jonathan who ran ahead of Steve and me, seeming to have quickly forgotten about the unwelcomed guest. Clutching tightly onto Steve's hand, I quickly dragged him down the hall with us and towards Will's room.

"What is that thing!" Steve yelled, looking over his shoulder in horror at the monster that chased after us; crashing into walls and growling loudly as it swung its claws out. "Explain later! Let's go!" I yelled back, still holding onto his hand in order to drag him down the hall. "Jump over the trap!" I instructed as I quickly weaved past the bear trap that he had yet to notice.

As if his eyes couldn't get any wider, Steve finally tore his eyes away from the monster. "Trap? What do you-- Whoa! What the fuck!" Steve yelled, jumping over the bear trap, with the monster remaining close behind us.

Running into Will's room, Jonathan slammed the door behind Steve and me, quickly throwing my bat at me as I passed him. Raising the bat in the air, ready to swing in case the monster did crash through the door instead of stepping on the trap with Steve still clinging to my other hand as he hid behind me.

The room fell quiet as the four of us listened to the monster bang against the walls of the house, then suddenly its rampage stopped, the hallway falling silent.

"What is it doing?" Nancy asked, holding the gun up at the still-closed door. "I don't know..." Jonathan whispered, eyes tracing away from the yoyo that rested on the chair in front of us before slowly making his way up to the door.

Turning the handle slowly, Jonathan carefully made his way into the hall; holding his lighter out at the ready in front of him. Following close behind him was Nancy, me, and then Steve who stayed silent, still hiding behind me with a painful grip.

The house looked empty. Normal, really... all things considered. With the trap still set and ready to go off, the lights in the hall slowly began to flicker on and off again, before one final click rang through the air, leaving the lights on like nothing had happened.

"Do you hear anything?" I whispered, slowly lowering my bat; somehow causing Steve's grip on my hand to tighten slightly. "No." Jonathan let out a groan and put the lighter back in his pocket, making his way back into the living room. Slowly, Steve slipped his hand from mine as he began to mumble to himself. "This is crazy... this is crazy. This is crazy. This is crazy!" Steve's mumbling quickly turned into shouting as he ran towards the phone hanging on the wall. "No!" Nancy followed behind him, quickly slapping the phone out of his hand.

"What! What are you doing?" Steve looked on the verge of a panic attack, as Nancy raised the gun back up at him. "It's going to come back!" She shouted, causing him to flinch away as he turned to Jonathan and me for help. "You need to leave, Steve..." I mumbled with a frown, "It isn't safe here."

Shifting his eyes between the girl behind the gun and me, he didn't remain in thought for very long before he was running away from Nancy and making his way out the door and towards his car.

Rolling their eyes at the boy, Nancy and Jonathan stood next to each other in the center of the room, while I moved to close the door that Steve had left open, watching as he fumbled with the keys to his BMW. Shutting the door with a gentle push, I turned back to face the two teens as the lights above us began to flicker again.

Gripping my bat tightly, I made my way to stand beside Nancy and Jonathan as the flicker of the lights began to amplify. "Come on... Come on, where are you?" Jonathan whispered to himself as the three of us looked around the living room.

Slowly stepping away from the two, I traced my eyes over the living room before the lights suddenly crashed, throwing the house into darkness. Taking a hushed breath, I struggled to move back towards Jonathan and Nancy in the dark. "Do you see it?" Jonathan suddenly called out. "No..." I whispered, moving to face the direction I thought I heard him.

The sound of the floorboards creaking behind me caused me to freeze in my place. The sliver of hope that I had for it to be Jonathan or Nancy behind me was quickly torn away as an animalistic growl sounded from behind me.

"Nell! Behind you!" Jonathan screamed as his eyes began to finally focus through the darkness, but his warning did little to protect me as the monster lashed its arms out at the sudden noise, slamming me back into the door and quickly knocking the wind out of me. With a slam of my head against the frame, my bat fell from my hand; landing a few feet away from me as I crumpled to the floor.

Unable to move and trying to catch my breath, I watched as Jonathan began to shout something to the monster; though I couldn't hear anything past the ringing in my ears, it quickly stole the attention of the monster. Moving from its place, the thing was quick to jump on top of Jonathan, peeling back the petals of flesh that made up its face to reveal its multiple rows of teeth.

Struggling to pull myself up, I reached a hand out for my bat; my fingers just barely grazing the wood handle. "Go to hell, you son of a bitch!" Nancy suddenly called out, firing a few rounds of bullets at the monster, pulling its focus away from Jonathan and onto her.

Watching the girl as she continued to shoot at the monster that had yet to cower away from the weapon; the door beside me was slowly pushed open allowing for a figure to slip in. Kneeling beside me, I quickly recognized the figure to be Steve. "Nell.." He whispered, looking over the injury on my head.

Moving to cover the gash on my temple, I slowly pushed his hand away from my head. "The bat..." I whispered to him. Getting the point, Steve picked the bat up from off the floor and made his way towards the monster that started to close in on Nancy, slamming the nails into its chest before it could get to her just as she ran out of bullets.

"Steve?" Nancy gasped as Steve pulled the bat back out of the chest of the monster and swung again. Carefully leading the monster down the hall, Steve avoided the monsters thrashing arms and landed a few more hits on its chest before he had the opportunity to kick it back into the trap.

"He's in the trap! He's stuck!" Steve yelled as Jonathan began to help me off the floor. Making our way towards the monster, Nancy yelled, "Now, Jonathan! Now!" Giving him the signal to pull out his lighter.

Flicking the lighter on, Jonathan threw the flame into the path of lighter fluid that led to the trap that was now connected to the monster.

The high-pitched screeches of the burning monster hadn't lasted longer than a minute before the only sound in the hall was just the sound of the crackling of the fire. Grabbing the fire extinguisher from off the wall, I pointed the nozzle down at the flames, quickly putting it out.

The lights above us began to flicker on and off yet again, but now once they had stopped, the house went pitch black and remained that way. Coughing at the mixture of fumes in the air, the four of us looked around the hall for any sign of the monster. "Is it dead?" Nancy questioned as she squinted down at the trap.

"I don't think so.." I whispered, waving a hand through the smoke as I walked towards the empty trap; finding blood and small pieces of flesh surrounding the piece of metal, though there was no sign of the monster it had captured just a few seconds earlier.

Above us, the Christmas lights began to slowly turn on, creating a single path of lights down the hallway and into the living room. Steve and Nancy raised their weapons at the lights, though Jonathan and I quickly recognized it as what Mom had been trying to describe to us.

Following the path out into the living room, the lights came to a stop in front of the still-open door. "Mom? Is that you?" Jonathan called out to someone that we couldn't see, tears growing in his eyes. Grabbing Jonathan's hand, the two of us followed the light outside and watched as the porch light flickered on followed by the post light from across the lawn.

"Where is it going?" Nancy asked from behind us as she and Steve followed us outside. "I don't think it's the monster..." I whispered to her as the lights slowly died out.

~~~

An hour after the fight against the monster was over, it felt as if something had shifted in the air. Maybe the battle was really over? The monster was gone...

Putting the phone back on its receiver after it had been left dangling in its place, it began to ring almost immediately just as I clicked it back in its place. Picking back up the phone, I quickly brought it to my ear to hear the sound of my mother's cries carry through the speaker. "We found him." She spoke through her tears, "We're at the hospital, hurry."

Hanging up the phone, I smiled down at the ground and yelled for Jonathan. "We have to go to the hospital!" I instructed, already moving to open the front door. Furrowing his brow in confusion, Jon moved to grab his keys from his pocket, "Is everything okay? Is Mom okay? What happened?" The questions slipped out of his one after another.

Shaking my head, a tear slipped down my cheek, "She found him... Will, he's back." I grinned up at him and for the first time in a week I felt like I could breathe again.

After grabbing a few things from his room, Jonathan, Nancy and I quickly ran toward his car, though a hand quickly stopped me from entering the car. "Nellie, wait!" Steve chased after us, stopping me in my tracks.

"I know... I know, you're sorry but I have to go." Shaking his head, he awkwardly placed his hands in his pockets, "Actually, I wanted to come with you guys... Make sure he's okay too." He mumbled with a timid grin.

~~~

After rushing into the hospital, Jonathan and I quickly approached the check-in desk to ask the receptionist what room Will had been placed in. The woman pointed us in the direction of the waiting room where we found Mom, Hop, and the party waiting. "He's okay, right?" I asked after Mom had pulled both Jonathan and me into a hug. "The doctor said he could wake up any minute."

Making our way out of the waiting room almost an hour later, a nurse cleared us, allowing us to wait in his room. Jonathan and Mom sat on the left side of his bed while I took a seat on his right, lightly holding onto his hand, not wanting to wake him up.

Not long after we had entered, Will's eyes slowly opened to reveal his brown orbs. Smiling between the three of us, he finally spoke in a hoarse voice, "Where am I?" He whispered, still sounding as if he hadn't quite woken up.

"You're home... You're home now." Mom spoke soothingly to him and rubbed his arm while Jonathan held his hand. "You're safe." Jonathan spoke and Will smiled down at him, "Jonathan..." Will mumbled as he reached for his hand. "Yeah... It's me, buddy." Jonathan began to cry, though still smiled down at our little brother.

"We missed you." I whispered to him, causing him to turn toward me. "Nellie..." His smile slowly dropped when he noticed my bandaged hand, "Are you okay?" Letting out a small laugh, a few tears fell down my cheek. "This? It's just a cut, it's nothing..." I shook my head at how selfless he was, "You're worried about me..." The three of us laughed, while Jonathan moved to retrieve the stuff he had brought for Will.

"Hey, I'm gonna go get the boys..." I whispered to Will and Mom, slowly letting go of Will's hand before walking out of the room.

Making it into the waiting room, Mike instantly jumped from his seat as soon as I opened the door. "Guys! Guys, he's up!" Mike shook the two sleeping boys from beside him, causing them to jump away from each other. The three boys quickly ran past me and down the hall towards Wills room while Steve stood up from his seat to move toward me.

"How is he?" He questioned as the two of us walked back into the hall that I had just come from. "I actually think he's going to be okay." I smiled up at him. Will was strong, he had made it so long in that place, I knew he had it in him to bounce back from what had happened.

Leaning against the wall, he put his hands in the pockets of his jeans as he smiled down at me. "I really am sorry... For everything I said. I was just angry and confused, and--" "Steve..." I stopped him, lightly placing my hand on his arm. "What's done is done... Besides, I hope Jonathan made his point." I let out a giggle and pointed towards his black eye that was slightly less swollen now.

"I deserve worse." He shook his head, quickly dropping his smile. From behind him, I noticed Nancy walk into the hall, arms crossed awkwardly over her chest as she between the two of us. "Everything okay?" She asked and walked towards us, coming to a stop next to Steve.

Nodding I looked down at the floor, "Absolutely... Steve was just apologizing for what he said in the alley." I mumbled with a tight-lipped grin as Steve's gaze shifted away from me and onto Nancy.

~~~

~~~

"Something is coming... Something angry... Hungry for your blood... It is almost here." Mike spoke lowly as the Dungeon Master yet again, hiding the new character piece from behind his board and out of our line of sight.

"What is it?" Will asked excitedly, "It's gotta be the thessalhydra." I spoke from beside Will, while Lucas quickly argued against me. "No way! It's not the thessalhydra." He fought with a grimace. "It's gotta be." Dustin agreed with me just as Mike slammed the game piece onto the board. "The thessalhydra!" He yelled.

The party groaned, "Dammit!" Lucas threw his hands into the air, "Will, your action!" Mike yelled again and Will stared down at the board in contemplation. "What should I do?" Will asked us, "Fireball him!" Lucas yelled Will turned to Dustin for an answer, "Fireball the son of a bitch."

Will turned to me, "Fireball its ass." A wide grin grew across Will's face as he threw the dice onto the table.

"Fourteen!" He yelled, standing up from his seat with excitement. "Direct hit!" Mike cheered for my brother as he looked back down at his script. "Will the Wise's fireball hits the thessalhydra. It makes a painful screech-" The boy released a dramatic screech to represent the monster, "-and then... it crumbles to the ground. Its clawed hand reaches for you one last time, and.. and.. and!" Mike drops to the floor, playing as the now-dead thessalhydra. The boys around me cheered, jumping up with them, Will pulled me in for a hug "You did it!"

"Nell, you cut off the monster's seven heads and Dustin places them into his bag of holding. Lucas, you carry the heads out of the dungeon, victorious, and you present them to King Tristen, he thanks you for your bravery and service." Mike begins the speech to wrap up the campaign.

"Whoa! Whoa, whoa. That's not it, is it?" Dustin stops Mike from continuing his script. "Well, no. There is a medal ceremony."

"Medal ceremony?" I scoffed, "The campaign was way too short." Lucas argued with Will quickly nodding in agreement. "It was ten hours!" Mike argued against us.

"But it doesn't make any sense?" Dustin continued, "Like, what about the lost knight?" I asked, "And the proud princess?" Lucas continued, "Or those weird flowers in the cave?" Will finished while Mike rolled his eyes at us.

"Well, I don't know.." Rolling my eyes at the boy as he tried to come up with an excuse for all his plot holes, I stood up from my place at the table, pulling my hair out of the ponytail I had tied it in at the beginning of the game. "You boys continue your little argument. I need to use the restroom." I stated, laughing as their arguing faded behind me as I hurried up the stairs.

Making my way upstairs, I went to open the door to the bathroom, only for the handle to twist to the side before I could grab it.

Quickly taking a step back from the door, I came face to face with Steve, he was clad in an ugly Christmas sweater and his bruises seemed to have finally healed. "Nellie..." He muttered, shocked to find me in the hall, while I was far from shocked, after practically hiding from him in the basement all day. "I didn't know you were here?"

"D&D campaign..." I muttered, the hallway all of a sudden feeling extremely cramped and small. "You still play that?" He smirked, taking a step closer to me, our chests practically bumping.

Stuttering on my answer, he lightly grazed his hand over mine. "It's cute." He stated before nudging me towards the bathroom. Leaning down, his lips just barely grazing my ear, he whispered before he disappeared back down the hall, "I'll see you later." Leaving me a blushing mess in the hall.

~~~

Once Jonathan had arrived, I was quick to usher Will out of the basement and soon out of the Wheeler household. Only to be greeted by Nancy at the front door before we could leave. "Wait, Jonathan. I uh- I got you something. Merry Christmas." She called out bashfully.

Taking the gift from her hands, he frowned slightly. "I didn't get you anything."

"It's not like that, just.. Merry Christmas." She smiled up at him before placing a kiss on his cheek.

Making our way out of the house, Jonathan's face remained flushed. "Are you sure you don't wanna spend the night with Nance?" Jonathan asked as we got into the car.

"I'd rather be at home with you guys." I lightly ruffled Will's hair as he jumped in front of me, stealing the front seat.

This was true, I did want to be with my family, and with the closer it got to Christmas and after Will's disappearance, I realized how important these small, irreplaceable moments were.

But, a small part of me inside knew that the reason I had turned down Nancy's sleepover was that Steve would be there for half the night.

After the events that took place last month, Nancy never questioned what was happening between us, at least not to my face. But I figured the best way to avoid hurting her was to act as if nothing had happened at all. Cause that was what happened, nothing. Right?