Chapter Text
Everyone was getting ready to face Vecna after going over the plan outside, but Will stayed in, sitting by himself, looking at the board where they had gone over everything.
After years of working towards finally accepting himself, Will didn't expect to be set back by so much. Vecna had taken so many things from him, and right when it felt like he was finally taking his life back into his own hands, having power over not just Vecna, but his own life, it seemed like it slipped in an instant. The empowerment of feeling normal, despite being different, not being alone, finally feeling like maybe just maybe he had a future outside of suppressing his feelings, having a chance at happiness, his definition of happiness slipped through his fingers after Vecna took him. Every doubt, fear, insecurity, some he didn't even know he had, flooded his mind. No matter how much he accepted and loved himself, there was no guarantee that anyone else would see him the same. There were scenarios where he pushed everyone away because he's scared of how they may feel, some where he made the mistake of being brave and reaped the fruits of his labor. Those were the worst, everyone else running away from him, before he had the chance to do so himself, the looks of disgust, the feeling of his stomach dropping when he realized that no one would ever see him the same ever again, and that he was too far gone to go back, no undo. There were some where everyone didn't leave right away, but also didn't treat him the same, Lucas, Dustin, Mike... They would keep their distance, no more hugs or any contact, until they just drifted apart completely. Mike was always the worst in all of them, the most disgusted, the most bothered, the one who saw through him the most. All of it was too overwhelming just thinking about it put a lump in Will's throat. He had a tight grip on his hair and sighed.
"Will? Is something wrong? You've been quiet." Joyce says softly, putting her hand on Will's shoulder
Will looked up, trying not to let his eyes get teary. He knew the only way to overcome any of this was to prove his thoughts wrong. He knows Vecna, he knows the tricks he plays, he knows why he picks to show you what he does, why he picks what to show him, because while he didn't show his family dying or something atrocious, he showed him something that Vecna had nothing to do with, something that defeating Vecna could never fix, something so real and personal, so realistic, so easy, so possible, but despite all of this, his mom has been through hell and back for him. If he was going to tell anyone, he knew it was going to be her. He had never directly came out to anyone, but Jonathan probably knew, but he didn't have to say anything for that. This was different. His mom always defended him, comforted him when kids or his dad called him "queer" or "gay," even when the rumors of him running away with some other freak got him killed. She was always there, but even so, he felt a sliver of doubt. Comforting him was different than hearing that what they said was right.
"Will?"
"sorry I've just been thinking."
"About?"
Will stays quiet for a bit, thinking whether he should really do this. "About what I saw when Vecna was in my mind.. I haven't been completely honest about it because I don't know how to tell you or anyone." Will’s voice is a little shaky he's second-guessing every word. Joyce takes a seat next to Will and puts her hand on his back
"You know you can tell me anything, but remember what Vecna showed you isn't real. He plays tricks, he messes with your mind just to get into your head."
"And it worked, Mom!" It comes out harsher than he expects: "What I saw wasn't from him, it was from me, every doubt, every fear..." The words start to bite back, and he hesitates
Joyce nods slightly, and waits patiently for Will to continue giving him an encouraging look. It makes him feel a bit better, but not completely.
"I just.. Don't want him to have control over me anymore, he targeted what I wanted to hide because he knows that I'm scared of what will happen if I tell anyone, I'm scared of losing people I care about, but I'm tired of hiding, I'm tired of pretending.. How are we supposed to stop Vecna if I can't even stop myself from being afraid?" Will swallows, pausing, thinking of how to form his next sentences as carefully as possible
"You know I'd never want you to hide anything from me, and that you don't have to be afraid, there is nothing you could tell me that would make you lose me." Joyce says, leaning a little closer.
"I know.. It's just-"
"Will?"
Will's head swings back to see Mike standing by the door. He nearly gave him a heart attack.
"Can you give us the room for a few minutes?" Joyce asks in a tone that says to treat the matter with urgency
"Oh, sure." Mike says a bit sheepish nodding while turning around to make his way out
"Wait." Will's mouth moves faster than he can think
While this scares the ever-loving shit out of him, Will knows that out of everyone, he is the most scared of Mike knowing that it would be the biggest relief to him if he reacts well, but the thought of his reaction makes his heart ache. Mike turns back, and his eyes make contact with Will's.
"You should hear this, too." Mike has a faint, confused look on his face, but he makes his way over and pulls up a chair next to Will
Mike has always been a safe place for Will every time he needed someone, he was always there. He always knew what to say to make Will feel better. Every time he lost himself, Mike was always the one to find him. Even when Will didn't know where to look, he always made Will feel confident, always bringing out different parts of him. When things go wrong, he's the first place he wants to go to hide. While it's obvious that Will feels more than anything platonic towards Mike, beyond that, they are best friends, maybe they aren't as close as they used to be and have had their rocky moments, but underneath that, he's one of the first people Will wants to support him. With that tiny bit of comfort, Will tries to swallow any fear or doubt he has.
"Before I say anything, I just need you guys to know that this isn't new, and this is something that has always been there, been a part of me, I mean, a-and I just don't want you to think I'm any different than I am before I told you this." Clearly, the fear was coming back up because Will was starting to feel choked up. Mike and Joyce nod slowly, Joyce's eyebrows are frowned giving Will her full attention, while Mike's face is a bit blank with his lips tucked in a bit.
"Um, I had this kind of crush on someone, but it wasn't the sweet butterflies in your stomach type of feeling. It was like everything I liked about this person was a reminder that I-I was different and that was wrong. I knew they weren't like me." Will's tears finally started dripping down his face "It took me a long time b-but I realized that it wasn't my fault, and it wasn't anyone else's either, and I finally started to think things were okay, but after what Vecna showed me, no one treating me the same, treating me like I was a freak or a disease" he started to sob
"I know that I am okay with this part of myself, and I know that you guys could be too, and it was never really about me being a freak just because I liked him o-or because I was different I-It showed me just how similar we were a-and how I was barely different at all-"
"Him?" Mike said
Will was looking down, scared to see the reactions of his mom and Mike, but when he looked up to scan Mike's face, he was a bit more confused than disgusted.
"Yes, him"
"Who's him?"
"The guy I liked, Mike"
Will chuckles a little, and it cuts through his crying. For a moment, Mike's cluelessness made him forget how strong the words that just came out of his mouth were. As soon as he said it, it felt wrong, and the tears came back as he coughed a bit. He watched as Mike's eyebrows raised slightly and his face went from shock to embarrassment with a faded sheepish look, his lips tucked into a straight line at his slowness to connect the dots, before he quickly recovered to a serious enough face. Will then turns his head to his Mom, who looks like she could burst out in tears at any second, before he knew it, he was being hugged by her.
"Will, you could never lose me ever, especially not over this." The words hit like a truck. Will thought he was crying rivers before, but the way he was crying now made that look like light work. He was hugging his Mom like it was the first time he had seen her, and in a way, it was the first time she had seen him fully. Will glances at Mike, and his heart almost drops when he sees him smiling.
"If having to save the world like 3 times just to find you again didn't make me run away, I don't know how you could think this would even come close," Mike said with a teasing smile on his face. Will scoffs and laughs, Joyce lets go, and Mike holds out his arms and goes in to hug Will, but he playfully shoves Mike back. Mike gasps, but the grin doesn't leave his face as he goes in for another hug. This time, he hardly gave Will anytime to react, nearly knocking him off his feet.
Will hugged Mike tightly in that moment, he almost forgot that the world could end today. For once in a long time, Will was just soaking in the moment and living in it. His mind wasn't filled with doubt that maybe this was an act, maybe things were okay now, but what about later? It felt like the only events happening in the world were happening in this room, almost like a fantasy. After he and Mike finally broke their hug, Will felt like he was ready for anything, like even if the world ended, which obviously no one wanted, at the very least, he could go knowing that this was off his chest. That Mike, the one who had always made him so happy yet so stressed and upset, didn't see him differently and loved him, even if it was just as friends. Will wipes his eyes.
"Alright, well, we still have to stop the world from ending, and I think I'm ready to face him."
Joyce has a concerned look on her face. "Are you sure?"
"No, not really, I want to be able to help in any way I can. What if El needs me? Maybe now if I slip into Vecna's mind I can..." Will pauses in truth, he wasn't too sure himself. Yes, he just got over one of the fears Vecna broke him with, but what if he just found something else? Vecna chose Will because he was weak, easy to break, and, well, Will didn't exactly prove him wrong. Mike puts his hand on Will's shoulder.
"You saved Max, me, Lucas, Robin. If anyone has the power to help El and kill Vecna, it's you. I mean, you are a badass sorcerer."
Will chuckles, "Didn't you say I was like Vecna, too?"
Mike laughs, "I did not say that."
"Might be the head injury from earlier catching up to you."
Mike scoffs and yanks his hand off Will.
"Well, " Joyce says, snapping Will and Mike back into the very serious conversation that was being had "If you believe you can do it, I believe you can too."
Will smiles and nods.
They all head to start getting ready to leave and enter the upside-down. Will is packing a bag, and Mike is next to him, making some Molotov cocktails.
"Hey, so I was kind of curious. I know that we haven't been as close as we used to, but how come you never told me?" Mike says
Will turns his head to Mike and just stares at him due to the absurdity of his question.
"It was kind of hard to bring up." Will says in a tone that screams are you being serious right now
Mike looks away, clearly embarrassed. "Right, right, I know, sorry. I just meant, I guess it's just kind of crazy to me. We used to tell each other everything, you know? To think that you went through all of that and had an entire crush on some guy without me knowing is just kind of, wow I guess."
"Yeah... I get what you mean, but I just.. Didn't know what you'd think.. or anyone really." Will looks down, obviously, there was way more to it, but what was Will supposed to say? Well, I wasn't okay with myself with my feelings, and oh well, also I've been in love with you since we met, and you have a girlfriend who is also my sister, funny story, right?
"Yeah, I understand, but I don't know how you could have ever thought that'd just be the end. That all of a sudden you wouldn't be my best friend." Mike looks down, frowning a bit at the thought.
Will smiles at Mike, "Well, now I know, right?"
Mike glances up at Will quickly before looking up again and smiling.
"Right."
"IS EVERYONE READY?" Hopper yells
Mike and Will quickly finish up before loading up the car and heading to the Upside Down.
After riding through the portal to the Upside Down and driving for a while, the truck comes to a stop.
"shit" Dustin says
"What? What is it?" Lucas says while stepping outside the truck
Will looks out, too, and immediately it feels like his blood runs cold. The tower is barely holding itself up, it looks like something has come and wrecked it, but what? Demodogs? More Demogorgons? Any of Vecna's pets? But how would Vecna know they needed the tower? Will buried his head deep into his hands he feels sick all of a sudden. Is it happening again? Is Vecna still using him to spy? Was the world seriously about to end because of him? Because he was too weak? No, because he still is too weak? His ears start ringing, and he hears the others figuring out plans on how to keep the tower up, but he can't make out the words.
"-----"
"w--"
"WILL!"
He snaps back into reality and looks up to see Johnathan concerned, holding him by his shoulders.
"I can't be here, I need to leave" Will says, his voice cracking.
"What?" Johnathan says, confused, as Will squirms, trying to get out of his grip
" Don't you get it? Vecna's using me again. Why would the tower, the only thing we need to go into the abyss, be destroyed? I need to be out of the plan. I can't be here. I'm going to ruin everything" Will says, talking quickly like he's spiraling, the lump in his throat making it harder to speak after every word.
"Calm down, we don't know if this was Vecna or even if it was because he's spying on you." Johnathan says, trying to reassure Will, but it was too late for that. Will felt as if he saw all the evidence he needed. The last thing he was going to do was sabotage the plan any further. Will pushes Johnathan off of him
"No, I know it's him!" His words come out harsher than he intends. " I don't want to be one of his tools anymore." His voice ran a bit deeper than usual.
Johnathan stands there, caught off guard for a few seconds before finally saying, "Okay. We'll figure something out."
Will looks around and notices that everyone is staring at him. He feels embarrassed about his outburst.
"Thank you"
He says with his head down, he goes back into the truck in fear of overhearing anything about the plan outside of the truck, and everyone else is figuring out what to do with Will.
"What's wrong with him?" Lucas asks Johnathan
"He thinks Vecna's spying on him again, and I don't know, that's why the tower is messed up?"
"Shit, we can't have Vecna knowing parts of the plan, not now" Dustin says, clearly stressed. Lucas turns to everyone else.
"So what are we supposed to do with him?"
"Can't we just put him somewhere and pick him up when this is all over?" Steve jumps in
"What? Alone? No, what if something happens?" Joyce quickly objects
"Yeah, just because we haven't run into anything yet down here doesn't mean we are alone. Clearly, Vecna knows we are here, and he still has demos if he did this." Lucas adds
"Will could take care of himself, even if there were demos. He still has his powers," says Robin. "Maybe it wouldn't be such a terrible idea? Unless anyone has any better ones?"
"I do." Mike finally jumps in, breaking through all the noise. Everyone's heads turn towards him. Will is startled by the sound of the truck's back door opening, its Mike with a long strip of fabric. Will gives Mike a confused look while Mike gives him an awkward smile.
"Does this ring any bells?" Will thinks for a moment, and then it hits him he puts a hand on his forehead and sighs.
Mike blindfolds Will outside the truck. Mike lets Vickie and Max know that he and Will are heading back to the Squawk. He made sure to tell them not to speak or make a noise upon seeing them, so Will didn't know where they were or who they were with. To reassure Will, they told him that they were moving Max and Vickie, but really, they were staying in the same place. Mike guided Will through the doors into the broadcasting room. Mike knew it wasn't the most foolproof plan, but at least now, Vecna would know that we were onto him and switching tactics. This way, Will wouldn't be alone, and Mike could keep an eye on him at least until they needed him. He guided Will to a seat and sat next to him. Will was just silent.
"Are you okay?" Mike asks, and it takes Will a few seconds to answer, "Yeah, I guess."
Mike looks at Will, concerned, not that Will could see anyway. "It's just, I can't believe that even after everything, I guess I feel like I'm still a liability." Will scoffs a little it feels ridiculous to him. He finally thought that he was going to play a big part in all of this. Defeating Vecna after everything he's done to him, and instead he's sabotaging the plan yet again, and has to be hidden away from the action, even dragging Mike along with him. Mike puts his hand on Will's shoulder.
"What? No, the last thing you are is a liability. You saved us, you saved me-"
"And then I almost got Max killed." Will brushes his hand off
Usually Mike's words made him feel better, but right now he didn't want to hear them. "In fact, honestly, you shouldn't even be in the same room as me, who knows what could happen."
Mike stays quiet for a bit, scanning the ground. "If it'd make you feel better, I could leave and lock the door, but, for what it's worth I don't think Vecna's using you. Why would he let you break his leg or let you save us?" Mike says while getting up to lock the door
"I don't know.. All of this is just making me feel like I'm going crazy. Ever since I've been using my powers, I've been..."
"Different?” Mike says as he closes the door and takes a seat against it on the other side.
“I noticed that you have been acting a little... not yourself.. Especially when talking about Vecna’s plan… his vessels."
"Yeah... It's like every time I use my powers, his memories, thoughts, and feelings flood my brain, and they've been getting stronger like they're corrupting my thoughts? I don't know, maybe you were right... Maybe I am.. Becoming him.."
"Will, you know I didn't mean that. I was just making theories about your powers. You're nothing like him, I don't think you could ever be. You're you, and I think even if you were to get lost.. In his mind, you'd be able to find yourself. Always."
Will stays quiet for a bit, and he lets Mike's words sink in. It did make him feel better, having Mike believe in him, but nothing was for sure. Mike's nice words weren’t going to defeat Vecna, and with everything going on, it didn’t seem like Will would either.
“And, if it makes you feel any better with everything going on, I don’t think I’ve been feeling myself either. So much has happened, I guess I haven’t been really in the moment. I haven’t been able to sleep either. Guess we’re both going crazy.”
Will let out a tired laugh, “Crazy together?”
The phrase brings them both back to what feels like the same situation in a different font. In a way, it's comforting, as if they got through it once, they could again, even if the circumstances were so different now.
Mike huffed a small laugh and grinned, “Yeah.. Crazy together.”
Meanwhile, Dustin, Lucas, Joyce, Jonathan, Steve, and Nancy are rushing to figure out ways to keep the cell tower up. They didn’t need the tower to stay up long, just enough for them to get into the abyss. One of the 4 legs of the tower is loose, causing it to lean. There were minor weak spots in other places, but those were nothing to worry about as long as they found a way to bolt the loose leg to support the rest of the tower. Everyone was looking at Dustin for the plan.
“Well?” Steve said, expecting something from Dustin
“I’m thinking,” Dustin said, shooing Steve away. Steve just groaned. Dustin knew they were running low on time. How in the world were they supposed to keep a leaning tower up with just the supplies with them?
“Do we have anything heavy?” Dustin asked
“Not heavy enough to hold the tower if that's what you're thinking,” Lucas jumps in
Dustin just rolls his eyes.
“I think I saw cinder blocks nearby, some type of road work.” Robin answers.
Dustin nods, “We’re going to need Murray here now. We don’t have the tools to fix the tower, but we can keep it standing.”
Dustin calls Murray, the tower is leaning on the loose leg. They need to get the weight off of it, so Steve and Lucas tie a cable on the opposite side of the tower to the truck. Nancy, Robin, and Dustin gather any wooden support sticks they can to hopefully keep the loose leg steady. Murray starts his truck, and the metal screeching and bending make everyone's blood run cold as it starts to move. Finally, when it’s centered, Dustin yells for Steve and Jonathan to put Cinder blocks under the truck's wheels to keep it in place while Nancy and Robin rush to nail and wedge in any support they can for the loose leg.
Everyone stood back looking at the tower. It was steady for now, but definitely not for long. The abyss started to move.
“We need to start climbing now,” Nancy says quickly, immediately after she runs for the tower, and everyone else follows her lead.
Meanwhile, El, Kali, and Hopper were at Hawkins' lab preparing for El to go into the tank.
Hopper is helping El be lowered into the tank. El feels guilty about what she has to do, staying upside down. Not too long ago, Hopper was just opening up about Sarah, and now she was going to leave him, too, but it was for his own sake. On the other side of the guilt was spite and anger because she knew that Hopper would be upset with her for this decision, even though he basically wanted to share the same fate.
“Alright, two knocks mean that the abyss is moving, one means it stopped. Remember, when you see him, don’t attack right away. Wait till Dustin signals that the abyss is close enough to the tower. Let’s just hope Dustin is right.” Hopper says
El can barely look at him she just nods in response. Hopper notices.
“If something does go wrong… I need you to promise me you won’t pull me out. Not until he's dead.” El says firmly
Hopper just looks away and thinks before leaning in close to El.
“Well, I need you to promise me we are all making it out of here. The military and Doctor Kay are problems for another day. Today we are fighting, so we have other days to figure that out, peaceful ones, not final days. Deal?” He says softly as if he were gently parenting her.
El is conflicted, she's annoyed. She doesn’t want to sacrifice herself, but what choice did she have? Hopper made it sound so easy, but it wasn’t. She has always had to hide. She's never gotten to be normal, at least this way. Not only did she not have to worry about the military, but Hop wouldn’t have to worry either. He's done a lot for her, sacrificed a lot for her, even willing to sacrifice himself. She takes a sharp inhale. She wants to mindlessly agree and lie, but she can’t.
“It isn’t that easy.” She bites her tongue
“What?” Hopper snaps out of his soft tone
“I can’t… Hide forever..”
“It wouldn’t be forever. We could figure something out, we did it once, we could do it again.”
“No,” Kali jumps in. “This is bigger than us. There is no safety, there is no happy ending. We will be caught, and we will never be able to live normally.”
El looks at Kali, shocked, while Hopper frowns at her, “What are you suggesting?”
Kali looks at El for a response, and so does Hopper, but she stays quiet.
“To end it.. To stay in the Upside Down.” El tries to keep eye contact with Hopper, but it’s hard when she can see the mixture of anger, disappointment, and sadness.
“No, you’re not. End of discussion.”
El frowns and raises her voice, “It’s my decision, you don’t get a say in it.”
“I’m not detonating it unless you're safe.”
“That's unfair!”
Hopper slams his hands hard on the railing behind him. “Unfair? What you're doing is unfair to yourself! You’re not a hero, El, you’re not a lab experiment, and you’re not giving up. You’re a 16-year-old girl. You’re my daughter, and life has been unfair, but we are trying to set things right, and I know we can.”
El starts to tear up, she can’t think of anything to say. “I have to end the cycle.” her voice cracks
Hopper’s tone shifts into a softer one. “We will, but not like this. You deserve a real life or at least one where you're not alone, and I can promise you that you will never be alone.”
El looks at Kali, her face is unreadable, but less tense than it was before. When they make eye contact, she looks down as if she's thinking. El looks back at Hopper.
“Okay.. Okay, let's do this.”
He nods as he helps lower her into the tank.
Vickie rolls Max to the lounge of the Squawk she makes sure to be a good distance from the room where Will is being held. She makes eye contact with Mike, who’s still sitting in front of the door chatting with Will. When she looks back, Max’s eyes are rolled back in a trance-like state. Vickie gets a little freaked out, but she keeps her composure, knowing that this is part of the plan.
Max gets up from her wheelchair and opens the doors of the Squawk. Seeing that she is in the dark mindscape, amidst the darkness, she sees El and Kali. She runs over to her.
“Where are we?” Max asks while following El, who's walking with a purpose
“My mind, I’m using it to connect us. Bring us to Vecna.” El answers quickly, and before they know it, they are in front of a creepy replica of Vecna. Max grimaces at the sight of him. The thought of just escaping his mind just to end up back there to defeat him feels somewhat ironic. Max swallows back any fear as El touches Vecna and throws them into his memories, starting from the beginning, the hallway of Henry’s high school. Being back there so soon throws Max into a loop. She's usually unfazed by a lot and strong when she has to be, but it was just so soon.
“Max?” El puts her hand on Max's shoulder. “We don’t have much time, lead the way.”
Max shakes her head, “Right, right, just give me a sec. I just need to think.” She scans the hallway and starts walking
“I thought you knew how to get around this place.” Kali says harshly.
“I do, but it’s huge. This place is basically endless. But there are shortcuts.” Max rushes to a poster on the wall promoting a play and rips it, revealing that there is an entrance behind it. “And only I know them.” She gives Kali a look before going in. Kali looks at El, and she just smiles sheepishly before following Max. They scour memory after memory, secret entrances and passageways were riddled all over the place, or at least that's how Max made it seem really took her hundreds of runs through the place to so confidently know where each memory led to. Even with the fast pace they were at, going through each “room” was taking too long.
“Max, we need to be faster.” El gently urges
“I know, I’m trying. We are almost there.”
Back at the tower, the abyss was quickly approaching. It looked like the tip of the tower lined up just enough to pierce the tear into the abyss. As soon as the tower ripped into the abyss, it wobbled. Everyone grabbed onto the railing. Nancy yelped, Lucas screamed, and Jonathan grabbed Joyce. The tower finally balanced, but everyone knew it wasn’t going to stay that way for long. Nancy started climbing up the tower first. She stuck her hands in the small tear the tower already made and ripped open the thin, fleshy casing. After making it in, she helped Joyce, Dustin, and Robin in. Lucas was climbing up the tower when everyone froze at the sound of metal bending. Below the tower, Murray’s truck was starting to be pulled backwards, pushing even the cinderblocks back, causing the tower to lean to the left.
“HURRY” Nancy yelled, holding out her hand for Lucas.
“I’M TRYING” Lucas yelled, scaling the tower and yanking Nancy’s hand for support. Jonathan and Steve were right behind him, climbing. Murray starts the truck, trying to pull the tower in the opposite direction to keep it somewhat balanced, but it only slows the process. The tower falls so far that Jonathan and Steve are hanging off the side of it.
“Shit, shit, shit!” Steve yells at the sight of the ground below them
Jonathan climbs up to the point where he’s standing on top of the tower, reaching for everyone’s hands, but it’s not enough. Steve follows behind him.
“Here, hurry!” Steve offers Jonathan a leg up. Jonathan hesitates for a second, but then nods. His hands finally make contact with Nancy’s, and they pull him up.
“Steve!” Dustin cries out, his voice cracking
Everyone’s heart drops at the sound of a snap. The cord connecting the truck to the tower breaks, and the tower starts falling at a rapid speed. Steve is too far from the opening. In a last attempt, he runs and jumps in hopes of making it.
He falls
Before he knows it, his hand slaps against someone else's. The contact stings like his skin is being pulled off its Jonathan with half his body hanging out the gate, and everyone holding onto him. Steve looks down and watches as the tower below him completely breaks apart. The sounds of metal scraping together make him flinch. When they finally pull him up, everyone's breathing heavily. He makes eye contact with Jonathan.
“You saved me.” He says with a mixture of shock, confusion, and gratitude
Jonathan just gave him a confused look and nodded slightly. “Well, you saved me.”
Before Steve could say anything else, Dustin hugged him, tearing up. Steve just hugged him back.
“I thought you were a goner.” Dustin whispers, trying to keep his composure
Steve breaks the hug and smiles slightly, “WelI couldn’t be, you die, I die. Right?”
Dustin chuckles, “I wouldn’t have to if you would stop playing hero.”
Steve just rolls his eyes, but when he does, he finally actually looks at where they were. The abyss looked like a desert. There were no vines around, but bats still riddled the area. If Dustin’s theories were right, then this should be where the demos all come from, which means they could be anywhere. With caution, they venture forward, where in the distance they see some sort of tree-like growth.
Dustin grabs his Walkman. “We’re in.”
Max, El, and Kali were in the middle of a loud play. Loud drums are being played everywhere, and colorful lights are blinding them. El looks at Max, confused and stressed. She hears Hopper banging against the tank, letting them know to hurry. “What's happening, what are we waiting for?!” El yells, “Just trust me!!” Max yells back. The lights start to flash rapidly, and the drums get quicker and quicker until Max yells, “Now!”
Max opened the curtain, and right in front of them sat Henry, at a dining table, holding hands with all the kids sitting in the center. With one swift move, El used her powers to throw him out the window. Except right when she moved to do so, she froze. She struggled, but there was no use Henry had her in his invisible grasp. He knew they were coming, he simply opened his eyes and stared at them with his typical bone-chilling face. Kali lunged at him, but she was caught, too. Kali instantly vanished like a gust of wind blew her away and stabbed him from behind. Kali’s illusion caught him off guard enough to loosen his grip on El, who threw him out of the house using her powers. All of the kids woke up startled by everything going on, while Holly just threw herself into Max’s arms.
“I knew you’d come back for me!” she said, tearing up a little
“I should’ve never left.” Max said, hugging her back. The other kids start to gather around Max. “It’s the monster!” “Get away from Holly!” Max pulls Holly away from them and shouts, “I am not the monster, and I can prove it.” The kids all look at each other, confused, Holly included.
Henry climbs back into the house he’s mad. El is there, and he immediately uses his powers to grab her and bring her over to him. El is struggling, but smug “Are you surprised they abandoned you?” There wasn’t a reaction her words could provoke that wasn’t already written all over his face. “Tell me where they are.” El’s face scrunches up, and she frowns, “Never.” Henry just stares at her. He raises his arm as it transforms. Fleshy vines come out from his sleeves and fuse into his hand until it resembles some sort of claw. “There's no point in hiding Eleven. We both know I’ll get it out of you one way or another.” As his hand makes contact with Eleven's face, she immediately grunts and struggles. She fights back with everything she can, but Henry is stronger than ever. He finally breaks into her mind and sees that Kali had put up an illusion near them, shielding the kids so that they could see Henry’s transformation. He immediately throws his hand in the direction of the illusion, but as it turns to dust, there is nothing behind it. He scoffs. “You think you're so smart.. But your mind wasn’t the only one that was easy to get into.” Kali rushes him from behind, but before she can make contact, he disappears.
Back at the Squawk, Will and Mike are chatting between the door still. Mike and Will are laughing together.
“Really, Mike? Orange? A Mohawk?” Will says, while giggling still at the thought of it
“I thought it’d be cool? I don’t know!!” His voice becomes slightly higher-pitched from embarrassment, but he's laughing too.
After the laughing calms down and it’s quiet, Mike thinks for a while before saying.
“Hey Will”
“Yes? Hey”
“Can I at least ask how he was like if you won’t say who it was?”
Will scoffs, “No, what's with you and this guy?” he says sarcastically.
“I’m just curious! Like I said, it was already a shock, I didn’t know at all, can’t I know now? What happened to best friends?” He says in a playful pleading tone
Will stays quiet for a while before he can say anything. Mike’s already talking again.
“I mean, it’s not like I’m going to be judgey, or at least not to you, maybe I’ll judge him. I mean, how could I not? This guy seemed to really put you through a lot, and I don’t get how he could not like you.” Mike says ranting
“You know how he could not like me,” Will says firmly.
It catches Mike off guard, and he quiets down a bit. Will can’t see it, but Mike’s smile dropped completely at his change of tone. Mike wishes that he could rewind time so he didn’t say something stupid.
“I honestly don’t get why you care so much anyway.” Will looks down, not that he could see anything through the blindfold.
“I don’t know, I guess we haven’t been as close lately, and hearing something so big, like you liking someone, and me having no idea, kinda sucks, I guess. I mean, that's huge for you, and this guy seems like he was an asshole anyway. I guess I care cause It’s you, Will. We’re supposed to be best friends, we've always been.” Mike rests his hand on the back of his neck. He doesn’t even really know what he’s saying it feels way too much of a vulnerable conversation considering everything going on, but he’d be equally as uncomfortable if the world wasn’t ending.
The room is silent
“Will?”
Nothing
Mike turns to the door and knocks, “Um, Will?”
It’s still quiet, and Mike starts to get worried. He’s seriously on a roll with saying the wrong things today, then his thoughts disappear as he hears some shuffling on the other side of the door.
“Will?”
“He’s gone.”
Mike flinches hard and backs away from the door. That didn’t sound like Will.
He stares at the door for a few seconds and slowly gets up. He puts his ear against the door. It’s quiet again.
BAM
He throws himself back, startled. It sounds like Will is throwing himself against the door to get it open, but it should hold. He peeks out of the corner to check on Max and Vickie. He doesn’t see Vickie. It’s dark, especially where Max is. Mike walks towards her, scanning the room. Max is fine, she has her eyes closed in a trance-like state because of El. That's normal. Mike reached out to touch her when Will grabbed his hand. Mike, startled, pushed him away, causing him to crash down onto the floor. He felt terrible about it, but he knew he wasn’t in his right mind right now. When Will looked up at him, his eyes were white, and he was mad, probably the most furious Will had ever looked at him. Will lunges at Max, but Mike grabs him and tackles him down. He was scared to hurt Will, but it was clear Will wasn’t scared to hurt him. Will punches Mike in the face, hitting his left cheek, and pushes him off. Mike grunts. As Will tries to get up and walk over to Max, Mike pulls his leg, tripping him.
“Stop it! Snap out of it, Will!” Mike cried
Will just stared at him and kicked him off. Mike couldn’t stand seeing Will like this. He knew he was stronger than Vecna. He knew Will could never hurt Max, either, or him. But, more importantly, he didn't want to believe this could even be happening. Will was always Vecna’s pet, always being used, always having something bad happen to him, and well, it’s not like Mike didn’t add to that before. All of Mike's guilt came crashing down on him like a wave, seeing Will like this. What if Will could never snap out of it? He’d never get to apologize again for everything, and he’d never get to tell him things. Things that he didn’t even know he wanted to say, things he didn’t even know were there, things that only Will could make him feel or think, things that maybe only Will could understand. Mike watches as Will walks towards Max, and in a last attempt, he throws himself up and dashes, pushing Will aside, grabbing her wheelchair by the handles. Before he could try to run away with her, he felt someone hit him from behind. He falls and takes Max’s chair down with him.
Vickie tries to grab Max, but she misses by just a few seconds. Max falls slightly out of her wheelchair and wakes up startled.
In Vecna’s mind, Max is leading the way to the cave when they hear the bushes move behind them. Everyone gathers behind Max when El and Kali come out. Max gives them a confused, concerned look when El says, “He disappeared.” Before Max can react, she gasps before disappearing. It throws the kids into a panic. One of the kids yells, “She disappeared like a ghost, oh my god!” All of them start to scream, “We’re all going to die!” Holly is freaked out, too. El is shocked and confused. “We need to get to the cave!” Holly yells. El nods and tells the kids to move along.
“Mike?! Are you okay? Are you, you??” Will yelled while getting on the floor and holding Mike up. Will’s shoulder ached, he had to try to break open the door after he heard Mike stop replying, and Vickie screaming his name. When he opened the door, he saw Mike yelling at Vickie, attacking her, calling her “Will". Mike’s eyes were open but all white. Will grabs his walkie.
“Hopper? Hopper, can you hear me? Over”
“Yes?”
“Something's wrong, Vecna’s moved, he's in Mike’s mind. He must’ve been using Mike to spy? I don’t know.”
“What?”
Hopper hurries to take El out of the water tank. El is startled when coming out, “What are you doing??” She is upset. “It’s Mike, he’s in Mike’s mind.”
El is shocked, “What?”
“He used Mike to attack Max, but right now he’s in there. You have to bring the fight to him. Hurry.”
El thinks quickly about what Vecna could want with Mike? It made sense why he knew they were coming, where Max was, and the tower. But it felt like something wasn’t right. She couldn’t dwell on it too much she didn’t know how much time Mike had. This was probably a trap, but what other choice was there? She didn’t want Kali looking through Mike’s memories she told her that when she found Vecna or Mike, she would grab her, but for now, she was going in on her own. She went back in the tank and searched for Mike.. She
El walks towards Mike in her mindscape. She sees Will holding him, and she kneels before touching him. Once she enters his mind, she watches as a memory unfolds around her. It seemed like Mike remembered Max’s method of hiding in happy memories to get away from Vecna. She just hopes that Vecna hasn’t caught on too. She’s in Mike’s basement, and she watches as a tiny version of Mike is running a DnD campaign.
“It’s the Demogorgon!" Mike yells
The rest of the party groans before yelling at Will to roll his dice.
It was nice to see old times like this, even if it was before they met El. She had never seen what their life was like before that. It was nice to see them all happy before things got bad because of her. She walks past them and opens the door upstairs to the rest of Mike’s house, but behind it is another memory. Except something was wrong. She saw Hopper talking to Mike, Dustin, and Lucas, telling them about Will’s absence. She watches as all of them jump up to answer questions about him. This wasn’t a happy memory. What was Mike doing? She continued walking, and before she knew it, she was in the woods. She sees Mike, Dustin, and Lucas riding their bikes in the rain and stopping because they found her. In that huge T-shirt, head shaved, soaked from the rain, terrified. Mike did say it was the best day of his life, but Mike wasn’t hiding in this memory either, so she kept walking. She looks around, and it’s Halloween. She remembers how upset she was about Hopper not letting her go trick or treating because she needed to stay hidden, stay safe. A lot like how she’d have to be if she decides not to stay Upside Down. A lot like how she just was, but that was different. At least now everyone knew where she was, how to contact her, and she wasn’t alone. She walks into Will’s old house and sees Mike and Will talking on the couch. She watches as Mike puts his hand on Will’s, saying something about going crazy. Will glances down at his hand and smiles softly. El is starting to realize Will is in a lot of these memories, but he is Mike’s best friend Afterall. She looks at the way Mike is looking at Will, how soft it was before going to the next room. She's in Mike’s house, and she sees Lucas pacing in a room, he’s mumbling something about Max. She walks past him and hears yelling. She sees Mike and Will fighting. Will looks like he's going to cry, and Mike, as usual, is being dismissive. He hears Will say that Mike was ruining the party for some “stupid girl.” El knew he was talking about her, while part of her wanted to be offended, she knew Will didn’t know her that well back then, and he would never say that now, he cares and has done so much for her. She feels a bit bad, she just saw how close Mike and Will were before they dated. It must’ve been hard for Will to see Mike away so much. El knows more than anyone that seeing someone grow and change is hard, especially when it comes to Mike.
“It’s not my fault you don’t like girls!” Mike shouts loudly
It startles El a bit, snaps her out of her own memories. She watches as Mike looks down and starts talking a bit softer to Will, before Will bikes away in the rain. Something is wrong. Why are these memories sad? Why were they centered around Will? El thinks to herself before going to the next memory. She’s in the pizza delivery van from last year. She sees Will pulling out the painting he was hiding from her, she watches as he gives it to Mike. Mike smiles from ear to ear.
“You painted this?”
“Yeah! Well, El told me what to draw.”
She listened as Will, with tears in his eyes, talked about how Mike made her feel normal despite being different, and how much he meant to her. It was a lie. Mike, at the time, only made her feel different, like she was a monster, the last thing he did for her was make her feel normal. He even made her feel crazy at times.
“El needs you, Mike, and she always will.”
El froze there for a few seconds. Like a soft wave of realization washed over her. She watches as Mike just smiles at him while looking at the painting, and she watches as Will cries. She reaches out to comfort him, but her hand goes through him. She doesn’t like seeing Will like this. She doesn’t like finding out this way. She jumps as she hears lightning coming from outside the car. She opens the door and walks out towards it.
Is she walking in the forest again? It’s raining. This doesn’t seem like a happy memory. El starts to walk faster, and sirens are blasting in her ears. She thinks she knows this one. She pushes through the trees and trips as she is walking down a hill. When she looks up, she sees the ambulance and police cars. She sees Mike, Dustin, Lucas, and her. She watches as Will’s body is pulled out of the water on a stretcher. She walks closer and watches as Mike, on the verge of tears, yells at her younger self before biking away crying. She looks at him, bikes away before looking back and realizing Mike was here, sitting curled up in front of one of the cars. She runs over to him and puts her hand on his shoulder.
“Mike?”
He looks startled
He’s crying. It’s the first time she’s seen him cry in a long time.
“El? You found me.” He wipes his eyes and gets up as if nothing happened. “Let's get out of here.” He almost tries to walk away.
“Mike, stop.”
Mike turns his head. “Yeah?”
“I know.”
Mike’s face drops. He turns his body to fully face her. “What do you mean? Know what?”
“I know why Will was in so many of the memories you chose, and I know why he's in all your worst ones, too.”
Mike opens his mouth to say something, but the words don’t come out. Before he can push through it, El keeps talking.
“And I want you to know it’s okay.”
“What?”
“Look, Mike.. We haven’t been happy in a long time. Maybe we loved each other back then when we were kids, but I didn’t even know what love was.. And maybe you didn’t either. I just wanted to be normal, a normal girl, living a normal life, with her normal boyfriend.”
At first, Mike is silent, El almost thought he wouldn't answer before he softly said “Me too..” Mike looked down. It felt like El was taking all the words out of his mouth. “I’m sorry, El.”
“I’m sorry too. I still love you, but like how I love Will.” El pauses for a second, “And I know you don’t love me like how you love Will.”
Mike is caught off guard, hearing her say it so bluntly. He could never even say it to himself or think about it. The ghost of a smile appears on his face out of shock.
“And I know he loves you, too.”
Mike looks up at her, “What? How?”
“Because I didn’t tell him to paint that painting, Mike and I never told him any of those words.”
Mike just stands there, shocked, his mind racing. Was he “him”? He put his hand over his mouth. The thought made him smile a bit, and before he knew it, behind him opened a portal. He saw his unconscious body at the end of a long path into this red world. He looked back at El, confused. El remembers Max telling her that to escape Vecna’s mind, all she had to do was think of Lucas or something that ties you to the real world, your safe place. Before El could say anything, her leg was pulled by a vine, and she fell. When she looked back, she saw Vecna.
“Found you.”
She looks at Mike and yells, “Run!”