"Darling, I'm a nightmare dressed as a daydream."
Underneath the golden heart and perky smile, Carly strived for chaos. Carly had a deep, dark secret of a hidden power, connected to the minds and emotions of others - a secret that Carly's step-brot...
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"MAX, ARE YOU ANGRY WITH ME?" Carly asked her sister.
Both Mike and Lucas found themselves busy, staring at the destruction of the lower level of the mall. Carly's eyes never left her sister, who wrapped her arms around stomach, finally daring herself to meet her older sister's stare.
"Why would I be angry?" Max questioned. "You only kept superpowers from me, but I get it. Some secrets have to be kept."
"Like you being involved in all this?" Carly guessed.
"I guess," Max agreed, frowning. "I just never wanted you involved."
"You know, I would have told you," said Carly, offering her little sister a tiny smile. "But... we lost touch after you moved and I didn't want to risk losing you completely."
"Carly, you never lost me," Max told her. "I was just hurt."
"It hurt me too," Carly confessed.
Max's face softened at that with the two knowing they were out of the woods over Carly moving to her dad's, but they were yet to find peace with it.
"Did you ever use your powers on me?" Max asked.
"Sometimes I can't help reading emotions," said Carly. "It's hard to explain, but it only happens when I hold something that belongs to you."
"So you know..."
"That you've been pissed about me for leaving you," Carly confirmed. "Yeah, but I know that anger is for Billy too since you know the truth now."
"I was so angry that you had the choice," Max explained. "You took it but left me. I get why now, and I'm so glad you did, but I wish you hadn't left me."
"I came back for you," Carly told her. "I wanted this summer to be about us, but... here we are."
Max finally smiled. "Welcome to Hawkins, I guess."
"I kind of see why you like it," Carly confessed. "Crazy thing is, I kinda don't want to go."
"Because of Hawkins or Steve?" Max questioned, raising her eyebrows with a smirk.
Carly's cheeks became rosy as she nervously tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Maybe because of him," said Carly. "But I've made a few good friends here too. Mostly, though, it's because I don't want to lose you again, Max."
"As much as I hate sharing my room with you, I don't want you to go either," Max told her honestly.
The two shared a smile, finally finding that peace between them again.
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Carly kept close to the five younger teenagers, where Carly knew them more than the couple that was joining them. Already, El was struggling to put pressure on her leg as Mike and Max kept her standing with Carly hovering close, worrying.
