heat waves₁ [s. harrington]

v i

Saturday, 12 November, 1983

"Hey, it's Nancy, I need your help," says Nancy over the phone.

"Oh God, is everything alright? I haven't heard from you in two days," I cry.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she says. "But please, come over to the Byers' house."

"I'll be right over," I say, hanging up the phone.

As I'm leaving the neighborhood, I pass Steve's car. He's on his way home. His lip is split and the skin around his left eye is covered in dried blood. I stop my car and roll down my window. He does the same.

"What the hell happened?" I ask.

"Long story," he says.

"Who did this?" I ask.

"Byers."

"I thought you were going to apologize to Nance."

"I was. But then Tommy and Carol tried to convince me otherwise," says Steve.

"Why'd you listen to them? They're probably the dumbest people in our grade," I say.

"I don't know. But, please, don't go by the cinema right now, I'm not proud of what I did," he says.

"Um, I've got to go, I promised Nance I'd help her out with something. Secret agent stuff," I joke. "But please, make things right. With Jonathan too."

"I'll try."

I drive off, speeding a bit so I can get to Jonathan's house quickly. When I arrive, there's already a bunch of people there. Nancy and Jonathan are accompanied by Mrs. Byers, the chief of police, Nancy's brother Mike, and three of his friends. I don't recognize the girl with the shaved head.

I take a seat next to Nance and listen as the kids explain a phenomenon they call "the Upside Down," a place where they think Will and Barb are. They use a lot of terms I know from physics class, things I would expect a ten year old to know. At least, I think they're ten. I think they're a little older than Tim, who's eight.

"Is there any way that you could reach Will?" asks Mrs. Byers. "That you could talk to him in this-"

"The Upside Down," finishes the girl, Eleven. She nods.

"And our friend Barbara?" asks Nancy. "Can you find her too?"

Eleven nods, a little slower and warier this time.

We sit and watch Eleven, who sets a walkie talkie so it's staticky. She closes her eyes, slowing her breaths. No one moves or speaks. It's very strange. The lights above us flicker, causing everyone to look up.

Eleven opens her eyes. She looks sad. "I'm sorry," she whispers.

"What? What's wrong? What happened?" stutters Mrs. Byers.

"I can't find them," says Eleven, her voice cracking a little as she blinks back tears.

She leaves to the bathroom for a few minutes, allowing the rest of us to talk. The boys take the time to explain about her powers. A girl with superpowers. This is starting to feel like one of Tim's superhero shows.

"Whenever she uses her powers, she gets weak," explains Mike.

"The more energy she uses, the more tired she gets," adds Dustin.

"Like, she flipped a van earlier," says Lucas.

"It was awesome," says Dustin.

I'm not sure whether or not to believe them. Maybe this was how the police officers felt when they were questioning me on Thursday.

"But she's drained," says Mike, and I pay attention again.

"Like a bad battery," says Dustin.

"How do we make her better?" asks Joyce.

"We don't," says Mike. "We just have to wait and try again."

"How long?" I ask.

"I don't know," says Mike.

"The bath," says Eleven. I jump, not realizing she was behind us. That girl is quiet.

"What?" asks Joyce softly.

"I can find them," says Eleven nervously. "In the bath."

...

A half hour later, the nine of us are outside of the middle school, gathering supplies to build a sensory deprivation tank, using instructions from the boys' science teacher.

When we're finished, Eleven puts on a pair of covered lab goggles and steps into the tank. She lays down like a starfish, floating on her back.

The gym lights flicker and go out. The only light is coming from the moon shining through the windows.

"Barbara?" asks Eleven.

I take Nancy's hand, squeezing it. Elevens's silent for a few moments, then starts breathing heavily. The lights flicker again.

"What's going on?" asks Nancy.

"I don't know," says Mike.

"Is Barb okay? Is she okay?" I ask.

Eleven starts crying. "Gone. Gone. Gone."

I put my hand over my mouth, stifling a cry. Nancy leans her head on my shoulder. Barb can't be. She can't be dead.

"It's okay," says Joyce, trying to reassure Eleven. "It's okay. It's okay."

She and Hopper take Eleven's hands.

"It's okay, we're right here. We're right here, honey," says Joyce. "Don't be afraid."

"Castle Byers," whispers Eleven. "Will?"

Joyce snaps her head to Jonathan, who looks dumbfounded. Did she find Will?

"Tell him I'm coming," says Joyce.

"Hurry," says a voice from the radio. I've never heard it before, but I know it's Will.

"Okay," says Joyce, her voice shaking. "Listen, you tell him to stay where he is. We're coming. We're coming, okay? We're coming, honey."

Eleven sits up and all of us jump back. Joyce is quick to hug Eleven, who is shaking like a leaf.

"It's okay," says Joyce. "I've got you, honey. You did so good."

I sit for a few minutes, letting the information sink in. Barb was gone. Sweet, awkward, Barb. One of my best friends. Dead. But Nancy and I would be the only ones who cared enough to know the truth.

"I have to go home," I say.

I get up to go, hugging Nancy one more time.

"Are you okay?" she asks, tears in her blue eyes.

"I will be," I say with a sniffle.

It's not until I get to my car that I start to sob.

an: this might be my last update for today, i'm not sure. i might be splitting the last episode into two parts, we'll see. i hope you enjoyed!