Shadows of the Night •a Stranger Things story•

I'm Proud of You

November 1st, 1984
Hawkins, Indiana

Steve Harrington and Ronda Jones both wait hesitantly as Christine Hopper carefully turns away from the high school parking lot and faces the Hawkins middle school. Chris suddenly darts toward the back field of the middle school, dropping her school bag in the process. She races around the corner, ignoring Ronda and Steve shouting out to her.

"Will!" Chris snaps her head to the left, where she sees Dustin, Lucas, Joyce Byers, and Maxine Mayfield—the party's new friend. Chris hasn't met her yet. The four of them are running toward Mike, who has a hand on Will's shoulder, shaking him.

Will Byers stands in the field behind the middle school, looking out into the woods, although the woods is not what he's staring at. He pays no attention to Mike. The others hurry to a halt around Will and Mike.

Mike glances at Chris. "I just found him like this! I think he's having another episode!"

Joyce grabs Will's shoulders, watching as his eyes roll to the back of his head, his lids fluttering open and closed rapidly. "Will! Will! Will! Sweetie, wake up! It's Mom! Will!" Joyce's voice fills with panic. She glances at Chris for a brief moment.

Steve and Ronda reach the group. Steve is holding Chris's bag over his other shoulder. He watches his girlfriend closely, wondering if she'll do anything—if she can do anything about it. Chris slips between Dustin and Lucas, getting close to Will as Joyce continues to try and reach out to him.

"Will, wake up! Can you hear me? Will, please, just wake up."

Chris holds out her hand, gently placing it on Will's arm. He's ice cold; shocked Chris jumps back. Will gasps, his eyes snapping open, re-focusing. He glances at Chris, as if the temperature of each of their skin surprised him out of his trance.

Joyce quietly ushers Will to her car in the parking lot. Will hasn't spoken a word of what happened. The group of young teens follow close behind, wide-eyed and solemn-looking. Ronda grips her hands together tightly, hovering around the middle schoolers to make sure they're all okay. Steve stands behind Chris, still carrying both of their things.

Max Mayfield is the first to speak as Joyce drives off. She has her skateboard in one hand. Her red hair is tucked behind one ear. Anyone that did not know any better might think that Max and Chris were sisters, only because of their hair color. "Okay, that totally freaked me out. Did that not freak you guys out?" Max glances at the older teenagers for some reassurance.

Lucas sighs, staring between his two best friends. "Two episodes in two days."

"It's getting worse," comments Steve, frowning deeply.

Dustin throws a look over his shoulder to Chris, then back to Mike and Lucas, leaning in slightly. "You think it's True Sight?"

Max goes alert, curious. She wants to be included. This experience freaked her out. She's in the dark here and would like some clarity herself. "What's True Sight?"

Mike huffs to himself, watching Will in the car as Joyce turns at the spot sign on the corner. Lucas shakes his head, squinting in the slowly setting sun. "It's nothing."

"This is the second time you've heard Will talking...in your head?" wonders Ronda. She's sitting on the couch in the Hopper trailer. She doesn't know that Hopper doesn't live here anymore, or that Chris spends sixty percent of her time living in her great-grandfather's old cabin buried in the woods and surrounded by makeshift alarm systems. A handy trick her father picked up from his time in the war he never discusses.

Chris furrows her eyebrows together. She has her forehead pressed up against the window facing the tiny lake near the stationary trailer. The glass feels cool, and right now it's exactly what she needs to help clear her head. The burns that Nine has left on her skin are nearly non-existent now, but she feels her skin throbbing where he's left his mark.