No One Left Behind

Chapter Thirty-Four

(Late that night - Same Outfit. Start Song) 

It was surprising that we were able to fall asleep. I, on the other hand, couldn't sleep for shit. My eyes focused on the ceiling fan as it circled around and around. I had gotten some sleep, but not enough to be fully rested. I woke up in the middle of the night, meaning three am. I looked around and noticed that everyone was sleeping. Steve laid beside me, his eyes closed. 

I went to get up but was stopped by Steve setting a hand on my arm. From the moonlight coming through the windows and the light on the stairs, I could see the concern on his face. "I'm just gonna get some water," I said. "Want me to come with you?" he asked. "I'll be fine," I replied, getting up from the couch. 

"M'kay. But if you're not back in a few minutes, I'm coming up there," he claimed. "That's what I thought," I whispered. He quickly kissed my lips before laying back down, keeping his eyes open. I silently walked up the stairs, slowly opening the door. The kitchen was right off the basement stairs, which was nice. I sighed in relief when I didn't hear anyone wake up. I grabbed a plastic cup before walking to the sink to grab some water. 

Goosebumps rose on my arms when the water fell on my skin. I gulped down the water, thinking back to today's occurrences. The vision of Max hovering in the air kept making its way into my head. No matter how many times I tried to convince myself, I still felt unsure about her well-being.

Unbeknownst to me, Steve walked up the stairs after noticing my time away was longer than five minutes. "Oh, god. Steve," I jumped. He apologized and shut the door behind him. "You okay?" he whispered, joining me at the kitchen table. "Yeah," I set the cup beside me. There was a long pause before I continued speaking. "I couldn't sleep," I said. 

"Me neither. I thought I would, but I've never really been one to sleep," he said, trying to lighten the mood. I softly chuckled. We fell silent again. Steve looked at me, then decided to speak some more, trying to keep the silence from coming back. "Did you read Max's letter?" he spoke. I shook my head. "No. I'm afraid to," I sighed, "I'm afraid that if I read it, I won't be able to look at her the same. Because when I look at Max, I still see that spunky redhead who loves the arcade, loves the color pink despite her denying it, and loves your corny jokes even though she constantly says she hates them."

I sniffled. I tried to wipe my tears, not wanting to cry in front of Steve. I knew that if he saw me cry, it would just make him even more nervous than he already was. "But I know it because she does that little nose crinkle when you tell them," I finished, "Since Billy's death, it's all disappeared. She doesn't talk to me when I help her with homework. She doesn't come with me on my grocery runs like she used to. She won't call the Byers with me." 

Steve set a hand on my knee, running his thumb up and down. "And then I'm reminded that I'll never be that same girl I was Junior year. We'll never be those same kids because we've experienced things that nobody our age should have to go through," I said, already sobbing. Steve instantly wrapped his arms around me, bringing my head to his shoulder. 

Steve kissed the top of my head, lingering for a second before letting me go. He gazed at me with his hands on my face. "It's all gonna work out, okay? We're gonna get this Vecna creep and end all the shit or future shit he's gonna cause," Steve said. I chuckled at his choice of words. "That's my girl," he said, seeing my smile. 

He brought me in for another hug and kissed my lips. "You wanna try falling back to sleep?" he asked. I nodded against his chest. He stood up from the table with my hand laced with his. Steve got me some water, telling me to drink before heading to the basement. That night I fell asleep right when I was in Steve's arms. (Stop Song)

📻📻📻📻

(Later - Same Outfit)

Stella, Hazel, and I used to play hide and go seek at the Creel house. We stopped playing at the house after fourth grade right when Stella pricked her finger from a rusted metal chair. Her mother wasn't very happy when she discovered where we used to play. There was a little door at the back of the house that was once boarded up, but we took the boards down when we were little.