𝐄𝐌𝐎𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐀𝐋 𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐂𝐔𝐄! ✽ 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻

38

❝𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐕𝐄, 𝐁𝐄 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐅𝐔𝐋,❞ sheridan begged as the boy tugged open the first cellar door. as much as the girl disapproved, steve was very insistent that he go ahead of her. she knew he was simply protecting her, but she couldn't help but want to protect him, as well.

"dani, i'm not even in the cellar yet," steve sighed as the second door swung ajar. dustin shone the flashlight into the abyss that was the cellar. sherrie shivered, the cold air nipping at her exposed skin. steve glanced back at the girl and set the nail bat down. he tugged off his members only jacket and extended it out to her. she smiled a thin-lipped, but grateful, smile as she pulled it over her arms. it was warm and it smelt like steve. more shivers tingled down her spine.

dustin handed the flashlight to steve, who continued to examine the concrete plateau. "he must be further down there," dustin reasoned.

"oh god," sherrie groaned. she placed her hand over her eyes as her head tilted upwards towards the starry sky.

"i'll stay up here, in case he tries to... escape..." both steve and sheridan glared at the boy with disgruntled expressions.

steve shook his head and sighed. he stood up to begin the trek into the cellar. dani trailed behind every step he took. she nabbed the flashlight from his hand and wrapped her arms around his. he extended the nail bat in front of them. as they reached the bottom of the steps, dani noticed the string to a lightbulb; she released steve and dashed in front of him to turn it on. just as she did, she noticed a gruesome substance just ahead of them. "holy shit," she rushed out before clapping her hand over her mouth.

"what?" steve hastily asked as he rushed over to the girl. his brows dipped once he noticed just what she had seen. the red-haired girl spun around and buried her face into his chest.

"i'm gonna hurl." steve placed a gentle hand on her back. the pale, slimy sheet sputtered as steve nabbed the bat from sheridan and used the end of it to pick it up. a mucus-like fluid consistently dripped from its ends.

"dani? steve?" dustin questioned from the surface. dry november leaves crunched under his sneakers as he inched towards the stairs. "guys, what's goin' on down there?"

steve let go of sherrie as she marched towards the entrance. she shone the flashlight up into dustin's face, just as steve had earlier in the night, which scared the boy right out of his own skin. "your little pet left us a present."

dustin followed dani down into the makeshift shelter and was greeted by steve holding up the scummy material. "oh, shit," he cursed. steve then pointed the bat out in front of the two, angled at the opposite end of the cellar. "oh, shit!" the boy repeated.

"what else'd you find?" dani questioned steve, pressing a hand against his arm. he nodded for her to follow him. the three gradually made their way toward the corner. sheridan shone the flashlight ahead of them. she realized then that an enormous chunk of the brick had been torn from the wall, and a dirt tunnel had grown behind it.

"no way..." dustin whispered. "no way."

✽