chapter vi.
old wounds still bleed
"OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR, JACKASS!" Val's voice echoed down the street as she pounded on the door to the Anderson home. Around her, porch lights flickered on, neighbors on their way to open their doors and shake their fists at Val for waking them up at the unholy hours of the night. She didn't care if old man Richard from down the street was going to yell at her; if she got her hands on Mason anytime soon, she was going to do much worse than yell. If he would open the damn door.
"Mason!" Val shouted, pounding the door with her open hand. "I know you're in there, shitbrain! Open the door!"
The only reason she was stuck in such a position was because both Sarah and Peter were away for a few days, spending two nights at Sarah's mother's while they helped Grandma Blythe clean out her attic. They had trusted Val and Mason to be the responsible teenagers they knew them to be and take care of the house while they were gone, which translated into 'Mason, don't throw any parties and Val, don't smoke any pot.'
Neither had happened, actually, but that was only because Mason wouldn't let Val into the fucking house. Steve and Robin had dropped her off after their home-visit to Eddie at Reefer Rick's, and it was well into the night when Steve's station wagon rolled to a stop in front of the Anderson household. Val had trudged her way up to the front door, but she already knew Mason would be a jackass before she even knocked the first time.
"Mason, I swear to God," she said, thumping her forehead onto the door. "If you don't—"
The lock clicked from the inside. Val picked her head up and took a step back, almost surprised that Mason had actually given in. But when the door swung open, it was not Mason standing on the other side of the threshold—it was none other than Hawkins High's own basketball team captain, Jason Carver.
Val's face immediately split into a scowl. "What the hell are you doing here?"
Jason shot her a charming grin. "Your lovely foster brother offered to let us spend the night."
"Us?" Val repeated as she pushed past him and into the living room. "That little shit never lets anybody sleep over, much less multiple—"
Her words died in her throat as she rounded the corner and took a look into Mason's open bedroom door. Inside and sprawled across his floor was practically the entire basketball team. Some were asleep, some were awake, and some were somewhere in between the two states, nursing a bottle of alcohol in their clutches. Among the many, Val recognized Lucas, the freshman, and her own foster brother—who looked to be on the more intoxicated side of things.
When she stopped in front of the door, Jason fell into place behind her. He put a hand on her shoulder. "Welcome to the party, Val. You know, when Mason told us he had a foster sister—and believe me, he didn't tell us because he wanted to, he told us because he had to—I just.. I was never expecting it to be the wannabe-gothic-punk girl that sits alone at lunch every day. That just... it's just mind-blowing to me."
"Why here, Mason?" Val asked her foster brother, curving her back so her shoulder slipped out of Jason's grip. "Why tonight?"
"Because," he replied, his words slightly slurred, "Mom and Dad aren't home, and Mom would've been a pain in the ass..."
"Yeah, you know," Jason continued for him, "me and the guys, we've been out all day lookin' for—" He stopped himself, then shook his head and let out a quiet laugh. "Shouldn't say... I shouldn't say. But you know, hunting really takes a lot out of ya, and we all needed somewhere to stay—"
