STARCROSSED ▷ steve harrington

06. the monster and the superhero - part two

CHAPTER SIX — THE MONSTER AND THE SUPERHERO
PART TWO

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THEY FOLLOWED the sound of sirens down the road, staring ahead in anticipation. It was the first car ride in a long time where the silence hadn't been from anger or ongoing tensions—it was because they were anxious. Police lights flashed, and the street was closed off by signs.

There was a large white sheet covering something in the middle of the road, and when Steve pulled the car to a stop, she could tell there was a body underneath. Heart pounding, she glanced to the others in the vehicle with her, terrified that any one of them could be next.

"Hold on," Max said as they all opened their doors. "Is that... Is that Nancy?"

It was her, Jackie realized with a start, and Nancy recognized them just as quickly, raising her hand up into a small wave as the cops continued to question her. Jackie met Steve's gaze over the roof of his car, and she could tell from his expression that they were both thinking the same.

Back at the trailer park, they gathered by one of the picnic tables, which was covered by a roof that looked ready to collapse at the next gust of wind. They had just finished filling Nancy in on everything they'd learned, and she was wearing her Nancy Drew expression again.

"So you're saying that this thing that killed Fred and Chrissy, it's from the Upside Down?"

"If the shoe fits," Steve mused from across Jackie, catching her eye again. Her foot was tapping anxiously against the ground, and all she could look at was the trailer before her, where her mother could be seen sitting on a lawn chair, drinking a beer. No one else seemed to be paying attention to her, but that was the only thing she could focus on.

"I'll be right back," Jackie announced, rising to her feet.

"What? Where are you going?"

"I need to do something."

Steve watched her. "Do you want me to come—"

"No," she cut him off. "No, it's okay. I'm good. Thanks."

The rocks skidded out from under her shoes as she crossed the dirt road to the trailer. Her heart pounded in her chest when she reached the door, but she did not hesitate to push it open.

Cautiously, she called out. "Mom?"

There wasn't an answer, but she didn't know what she'd been expecting. Though, she was surprised to see that her mother was still awake, and sitting at the small circular table they had for the kitchen.

"Oh, God," Susan pinched the bridge of her nose. "You here to tell me about what a worthless piece of shit I am again?"

Jackie swallowed the bile that threatened. "No. No, Mom, I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry. I should've never said those things to you."

"No, you shouldn't have," she stood, and took an unsteady step closer to her. "And I am disgusted by your behavior, and how you think I should choose to live my life after what hell I've been through."

"I know, I'm-"

"I'm going to need you to listen to me. Be quiet for once in your life, got it?"

Jackie's mouth went dry. She blinked rapidly to keep the tears from forming. Yes, she knew she had this lecture coming. She deserved it after what she'd said, but still, hearing her mother speak to her with so much venom in her voice was enough to make her feel ill.

"I never raised you to treat me the way you treated me the other day. You have become an embarrassment, you've got a shitty job, and no plans for your future, and yet you believe you can walk around and tell me how to handle my pain? No, Jackie. And I will not stand for it. If you want to judge me, so be it. But it will not happen under my roof."