1. The Vanishing of Will Byers

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Rory spent each weekend at Hawkins garage fixing cars with her father, Magnus. The two of them kept the Mc'kenna Garage (the only garage in Hawkins) running as smoothly as possible. Rory wasn't her birth name but the nickname given to her by her dad. She preferred the name. Only when her father was mad ,would her full name be used.

"Hey Rory, how's she doing?" A voice asked. Rory rolled out from underneath the BMW 733I, to come face to face with a crouching Steve Harrington.

"She'll be fine once I've finished servicing her Steven" She said in a huff. "Do sit down or something you're making me uncomfortable hovering like that."

She rolled back under the car with a huff when the boy made no indication of moving. Rory really couldn't stand Steven Sometimes. She'd known him all her life, living down the road from him. They had been friends until he thought his popularity was more important than friendship.

Rory was by no means unpopular however she wasn't popular either. Her exterior aesthetic could be interpreted as quite intimidating so she was never outwardly bullied unlike some of her peers in hellfire club. She didn't care about how others perceived her, she would vocalise her opinion when she felt like it. Social cues flew over her head and small talk made her uneasy.

Rory finished checking over the chassis of the BMW and rolled out again. Hopping up from the floor she turned to Steve.

"Okay Steven, I've replaced your brake pads, changed your oil and put new tires on. Be careful of the potholes and you're good to go." She explains.

"Thanks Rory '' Steve smiled. It was one of those times when they were alone and it was back to acting like when they were friends.

"It's no problem. It's my job" Rory smiled.

She never did understand how someone she was once so close to could act so cold to her when he was with his "friends" but act like he had done nothing wrong when they were alone.

Stupid school social patriarchy.

After Steve had left Rory went to find her dad working on a beat-up 1967 mustang fastback. He was lent over the hood working on the engine.

"Hey Dad!" Magnus Mc'kenna was a giant of a man, his face hard and ginger beard stained with oil from the cars he so loved working on.

Bullitt was Rory's favourite film of all time, of course Magnus has made it an almost monthly ritual to watch it after it came out on VHS. The replica Mustang the Mc'kennas were fixing up was a passion project for them.

It had begun the summer of 1980 when Esther Mc'Kenna had sadly passed away from a long battle with cancer. Magnus had no clue how to manage his grief so he purchased a badly beaten 1967 Mustang fastback in an attempt to spend time with the oldest Mc'kenna child. It worked. Rorey grew incredibly close to her father during the late evenings under the hood of the car and learned important mechanical skills, which became of great use when she began to work on clients cars in the workshop.

The youngest Mc'Kenna child, Marcus, became more isolated, he didn't like cars or understand mechanics. He tolerated the monthly Bullitt viewings, but he would rather spend his time at his friends house playing D&D. D&D used to be something he bonded with his sister doing but she only ever seemed to want to play with the hellfire club at school now. He missed his mother dearly, he missed the hikes they would go on together and make-up fantasy adventure stories about fairies living in trees. His mother had a wonderful way of making you believe the whimsical stories she would tell. She was an author, but her favourite book to read to the siblings at bedtime was The Hobbit.

Marcus was sitting on the stool at the workbench next to the mustang. Looking up from the book he was reading, before his dad could reply he asked, "Can you take me to Mikes, please?"

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