Chapter Text
It was a typical summer afternoon in Hawkins. The sun beat down hard on the Wheelers’ backyard, where the group—Eleven, Max, Mike, Lucas, Dustin, and Will—sprawled across the grass amid scattered soda cans and endless chatter. Laughter rang out, the radio played low in the background, and the mood was as light as ever.
Lucas, like most boys his age, couldn’t resist a good tease—especially when it came to the girls. He was the kind of boyfriend bold enough to poke at Max in ways no other teenager would dare. Right now, he held her Walkman high above his head, dangling it just out of reach.
“Haha, can’t reach it, shorty!” he taunted, flashing that smug grin.
Max narrowed her eyes, face flushing with irritation. Then she stepped forward, sized up the distance, and answered with a sadistic little smile.
“Yeah, but my height is perfect for this.”
She drove her knee upward with force, landing a clean, direct hit right between Lucas’s legs.
The impact was devastating. Lucas let out a strangled yell and crumpled instantly, curling into the fetal position on the grass. Pain exploded inside him like a grenade: a searing wave that shot through his body, blurring his vision. He clutched himself desperately as tears streamed down his face.
The other three boys—Mike, Dustin, and Will—reacted in perfect unison, each one wincing in instinctive sympathy, hands flying protectively to their own crotches as horror and secondhand agony washed over their faces.
“Ooooh, that had to hurt like hell,” Mike muttered under his breath.
Max, wearing a satisfied smirk, calmly bent down and plucked the Walkman from Lucas’s trembling fingers. The move made her feel… powerful. In one swift motion she’d dropped a boy taller and stronger than her. Hitting that hidden weak spot, tucked right between their legs, was deeply satisfying.
“Sometimes I swear you like getting kicked in the balls, Lucas,” she said with a wicked laugh. “You know damn well I always do this when you piss me off.” She straightened up. “Come on, El?”
Eleven blinked, still processing the scene. She followed Max automatically but couldn’t help glancing back. Lucas remained curled on the ground, moaning softly, face twisted in pain. The boys around him looked almost hypnotized by their friend’s suffering, frozen and unsure how to respond.
[…]
As they walked away from the group, Eleven frowned, genuinely puzzled. How could one single blow cause such excruciating pain in someone?
Max noticed her friend’s concerned expression and tried to lighten the mood.
“He deserved it. He’s been annoying me all afternoon,” she said casually.
“But… shouldn’t we take him to the hospital? He looks like he’s in a lot of pain.”
Max stopped walking for a second and turned to her with a mix of amusement and pity.
“Relax, El. It was just a little knee to the balls. He’ll live.” She smirked, remembering the gratifying thud of the impact.
Eleven tilted her head, still confused.
“Balls?” she asked, completely sincere.
Max’s eyes widened and she burst out laughing.
“Oh my God, you really don’t know?” She leaned in closer, dropping her voice like she was sharing the most powerful secret in the world. “Guys have two little balls right there, between their legs. They’re super sensitive. Like… their ultimate weak point. One good hit and bam—they turn into jelly.”
Eleven processed the information in silence for a few seconds, staring at the ground. Then she looked up, curious.
“So… any man?”
Max nodded slowly, her grin turning mischievous.
“Any man.” She shrugged. “Their bodies are as fragile as their egos. You just discovered the single greatest weapon any girl can have, friend.”
Eleven didn’t reply right away. She simply repeated the information in her mind, as if filing away something new and extremely useful.
And deep in the back of her thoughts, a tiny spark of curiosity flickered to life.