In A New Light || Steve Harrington

9. Coffee and Bear Traps

[Trigger Warning: Panic Attack]

Come on, come on, come on. There must be a way out, Ben struggled to think as he ran through the sickly forest, his hand tightly wound around Nancy's. There must be a way out.

The strange vines that covered the floor threatened to trip them. The spores that littered the atmosphere scratched at their throats. White film clung to their clothing. It was as if the world was made to sabotage them. Growls echoed through the forest. The monster was behind them, next to them—everywhere. Its roars reverberated from every direction, trapping them like mice in a labyrinth.

"Where do we go?" Nancy gasped, slipping on a pile of slime.

Ben quickly steadied her, stopping for only a second before they sprinted deeper into the woods once again. "I don't know."

They could hear a distant voice shouting from somewhere in the woods, sounding like it was speaking through a wall. "Nancy! Ben!"

Jonathan was on the other side. He wouldn't know where they were. They could die here, and their bodies would never be found—trapped in a strange, new world. The thought scared him. Alone and defenseless, their corpses would become food for whatever plant and mutated creature that lived in this awful place.

"Nancy! Ben! Where are you?"

"Jonathan!" Nancy's voice echoed, his name repeating on her lips. Their breaths were heavy, desperate for clean air. "Jonathan, we're right here!"

Ben shook his head, tired tears forming in his eyes. He could already feel the pressure on his chest, the monster's hot breath on his skin. "We have to be quiet. It's going to find us if we don't."

"We won't find the way out without him," she told him. She turned to the woods and shouted. "Jonathan, where are you?"

Ben dragged her behind a tree, stripping the rifle off his back and prepared himself to shoot. He aimed the weapon at the trees and assessed the scene, making sure to keep Nancy behind him. In the frenzy, she had dropped her bat amongst the plants somewhere behind them, leaving his gun as their only defense. He pressed his finger on the trigger, but there were no movements, no screams to show its location.

Where the fuck is it?

"Jonathan, we're right—we're right here!"

He gestured at Nancy to keep running, not wanting to risk being in one place for too long, but the more they ran, the more confused he was about where they were going. Nancy called for Jonathan again, but his voice had grown too faint. They were too far from the tree they had entered from.

"I'm right here! Guys! Just follow my voice!"

"What the fuck does he think we're doing?" Ben scoffed; his lungs burned from the spores floating around them. "Having a fucking tea party?"

Nancy ignored him, setting off in the voice's direction. "Jonathan!"

He followed her lead; a path he hoped would take them back to the portal. The brunette skidded to a sudden stop, almost causing Ben to topple over her. He was about to protest when he caught the silhouette of the monster standing in front of them.

It growled at the sight of them.

"Nancy, run!"

Ben shot a couple rounds at the strange being. It stumbled as the bullets hit various parts of its body—burrowing deeply into its shoulder and torso. He could hear Nancy running behind him, shooting a couple more rounds at the monster as it slipped back into the shadows. The teen could only hope he did enough damage to slow it down or at least give Nancy enough time to escape.