And the Earth, It Will Shake

Chapter Three - Episode One (CONT'D): The Vanishing of Will Byers

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"... Now, the 'Metric System,' proposed by French astronomer and mathematician Gabriel Mouton, is considered an international decimal system that uses the meter, liter, and grams of an object in order to determine its length, liquid volume, and mass. This system was adopted from France back in seventeen ninety-five, and it has..."

You weren't paying attention to your teacher at all.

After making it into Hawkins High with three minutes to spare before the bell rang, you'd begun to fidget in your seat relentlessly, legs tapping the ground in an unspecified rhythm. Sitting in place when such pressing matters were pulsing at the forefront of your mind wasn't healthy, and you'd already debated on skipping the rest of the school day multiple times after you'd failed to answer Mr. Salinskis simple question during Physical Science.

But you stayed, having already asked the office ladies at the middle school to notify the high school if anything came up. If you left now, and they called to give an update-?

You'd feel even guiltier than you do now.

So, you sucked it up. Sat up straighter in your seat, forced down some jumbled notes that you'd never be able to decipher come tomorrow, and tried. Time felt agonizingly slow as you faked the ability to retain the information being provided to you by the working adults, but you would do it as many times as needed if it meant you'd be able to know what happened to your kid.

"... So, to simplify- when using the metric system, one must know that it is a formula that simplifies units of measurement by converting both big and small units using multiples of ten. Now, if you could all bring out your notebooks, I want to do some practice problems with you all before the bell rings for lunch-"

A knock at the door cut the teacher off, his haggard face looking expectantly towards the entrance as he asked them to come in. Everyone turned to see who would step inside, and you tapped your pencil against your thigh wildly, in a nervous fit.

The classrooms door creaked lowly as it opened, it's hinges needing a good round of oil or replacing. An old office aid popped her head in- bleach, blonde hair pulled up into a tight bun as she gave a small smile. "Sorry for the interruption Mr. Mitchell. I was told to come and get L/N. She's to pack her things and head towards the office, someone's waiting for her."

Hurriedly, you looked to your teacher, waiting for his go ahead before leaving the class. The middle-aged man sighed, adjusting his glasses as he picked up a sheet of paper from his desk. "If you can stop by after-school, I'd be more than happy to show you how to do the practice problems. If not, don't worry about the homework. We'll be going over this subject tomorrow anyways."

Swallowing hard, you gave the teacher a strained nod, taking the sheet of paper he held out to you. You stuffed it into your notebook, before shoving it into your school bag, zipping everything up as you walked out of the class.

You followed the office aid towards the office, her attempts at small talk going unheard. Whatever it was they needed to pull you out for, it probably wasn't good, and you began to feel your stomach numb over, queasiness taking vicious stead as you went.

Taking two right turns, then a left, you finally reached the front office, trying not to run ahead of the worker next you. You had to be calm, or else they wouldn't provide you with any form of information. Good or bad, you had to take it like a reasonable adult, and accept any type of consequences that might head your way.

You opened the door and let the blonde in first, taking a second to slow your breath before forcing yourself to step in as well. It was empty inside, save for the other secretary behind the desk and a man in a standardized Hawkins Police uniform.