Apocalypse, Steve Harrington

Chapter Eleven. Lost In The Woods

ELEVEN
— lost in the woods

SHE WAS IN a bubble. Her own, personal, bubble, and she truly could not be bothered. The sounds around her were muffled; the branches snapping below her feet, the cool breeze rushing through the trees, the quiet chirping of the birds, and the bickering of the pair behind her. She couldn't really hear any of it, almost as if someone was pressing their hands over her ears. It was peaceful— until Nancy and Jonathan's voices broke the sound barrier.

   "Yesterday, with the camera— he's not like that. He was just being protective."

    They were monster hunting— they were monster hunting, and the pair was bickering over Steve Harrington. Lucy walked ahead, hands stuffed in the pocket of her hoodie as she tried her hardest to zone out again, hazel eyes blankly boring into the open space before her.

"Protective. Yeah, that's one word for it," Jonathan scoffed and turned away from Nancy.

She liked her peace, but it was hard to resist a good conversation. Shooting the boy a look, Lucy spoke. "You had naked pictures of his girlfriend, man," she cringed. "Douche move to break your camera, sure, but you were being a creep."

He pulled his lips into a tight line. "He was more concerned about your photos, anyway," Jonathan spoke, pointing the bat in his hands towards Lucy.

"What?" she squinted her eyes at him, scoffing. "That's not even my point."

Nancy cut the girl off. "She's just saying, Steve had every right to be upset—"

     Shifting on his feet, Jonathan's gaze was pulled back to Nancy. "Okay, but does that mean I have to like him?"

The brunette exhaled. Shrugging, she mumbled between her teeth. "No."

    Jonathan waved a hand in the air. "Listen, don't take it personally, I don't like most people," he said, picking up his pace. "He's in the vast majority."

The girl crossed her arms over her chest, almost in a petty manner. "I was actually starting to think you were okay," Nancy scoffed. "I was thinking, 'Jonathan Byers, maybe he's not such a pretentious creep.'"

   He shot back. "Well, I was starting to think you were okay. I was thinking, 'Nancy Wheeler, she's not just another suburban girl who thinks—'"

    Lucy was beginning to understand how annoying she and Steve sounded when they argued. "My God, would you two stop bickering!" she called, shoving herself between Nancy and Jonathan. "We're gonna walk the rest of this way in silence, I don't want a single sound out of either of you," Lucy said, firmly.

So, that's exactly what they did— the trio walked in an uncomfortable silence until the sun fell and darkness filled the sky. Under the light of shining stars and the flashlight in her left hand, Lucy stepped past the crunching leaves and the delicate branches as she maneuvered her way through the woods. Her back was aching, her eyes were dropping, and she was pretty sure this monster hunting mission was useless— they weren't going to stop until Nancy said so, though.

The girl behind her came to a halt. She stopped moving completely, eyes squinted and ears perked in concentration. Jonathan scoffed, "What, you you tired?" he spoke to Nancy.

"Shut up," she spoke, listening. "I heard something."

Lucy's brow twitched when she heard it; the soft, high pitched whimpering of an animal. She shot her head up, eyes searching the dark surroundings for the source of the sound. Waving around the flashlight, she followed where her ears took her— laying beside a bush was an injured deer, it's torso bloodied.