Always Be There For You ~ Dustin Henderson x Reader

Chapter 29: Vecna's Curse

 Dustin and I frolicked through the fields of Hawkins. Dustin chased me playfully as I ran the other way, not wanting to be caught for whatever reason. I ran as fast as I could, but my pace began to slow as I ran out of breath.

"Gotcha!" Dustin shouted as I felt two hands land on my shoulders. I shrieked and giggled at the sudden contact. I turned around to look into his eyes, only to see a familiar metal wall.

I whipped back around, only to see what was once a field filled with flowers, was now the interior of my Russian cell. I spun around in every possible direction, searching for a small remnant of what was once there.

"Dustin?" I called, "Dustin?! Dustin! Dustin! Dustin!" My screams for help got more and more intense as I slumped against the wall of my cell. I buried my head in my hands, but my attention was drawn away by the sound of a door opening.

I saw a familiar silhouette in the doorway, but couldn't make out any of the features. It was Ozerov. He took a step closer. And another step. And another. And another. And another, until he was a few inches in front of me.

Ozerov squatted down and looked into my eyes. Then, his mouth gaped open. His jaw unhinged like something out of a horror movie, and his eyes rolled back into his head. He let out a visceral scream, but not a scream you would hear from a Russian man. It was a young woman's scream.

It got louder. And louder. And louder. And louder. Until...

I shot up from my bed in a cold sweat. I shakily wrapped my blankets around me as I wept. It was just another nightmare. It wasn't real, I reassured myself, it wasn't real. I pulled my head out of my mountain of blankets and looked at my surroundings. Sitting in the darkness without my glasses on made me feel incredibly uneasy, and made that sickening feeling of being watched fifteen times worse.

I blindly reached onto my nightstand and flicked on my bedside lamp. I let out a sigh of relief as light poured into my room and I placed my glasses on my face. That was a lot better. I checked my clock; it was midnight.

I carefully climbed out of my bed and pushed open my bedroom door. I tip-toed down the hallway, trying not to make a single noise. I noticed Steve's door was slightly open, so I peeked inside. Steve was sound asleep. I wanted to wake him up and tell him about the horrifying nightmare I had just experienced, but he had work in the morning. I couldn't wake him up at this late with a clean conscience.

I crept down the stairs and stared at the front door. There was only one place I could think to go. I snatched my shoes that sat by the front door and quietly put them on. I stood with my hand on the doorknob and looked back at the staircase for a moment, before unlocking the door and heading out.

I hastily rode my bike to Dustin's house, not wanting to prolong the amount of time I was alone in the dark again.

Once I arrived, I carefully tossed my bike on the side of his house. I found a box I had placed beside Dustin's window the night prior and hopped atop it. I lightly tapped on Dustin's window. I waited for a moment before tapping again, this time with more urgency.

"Dustin!" I whisper-yelled, "Dustin!" I heard the sound of something stirring from the other side and impatiently waited. The blinds began to unfurl and I was greeted by the tired face and lopsided curls of my sleepy boyfriend. My heart dropped seeing him like that, I felt horrible. I had clearly just interrupted his slumber and he didn't seem entirely pleased.

He slowly blinked at me before flicking on his bedside lamp. Dustin's eyes focused on me and his expression went from annoyed to sorrowful as they landed on the dried tears on my cheeks. Dustin quickly swung the window open and held his hand out to help me in. I took it and carefully slipped through.