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March 21, 1986
THOUGH AMARA HAD TRAINED HERSELF to be on the lookout for any signals that Hawkins was in peril once again, pinpointing them was no easy feat. There was no way she could have foreseen that the anniversary of Will's disappearance could coincide with fighting a drove of Demodogs, or that a new mall was in reality a camouflage for a foreign mission to reopen an interdimensional gate that should've remained untouched. As a new year commenced and the snow melted away Amara and her friends kept an eye out for anything abnormal, but so far her biggest concern was shaping up to be committing to a college by May (yes, she'd been accepted into multiple colleges throughout Indiana to her absolute shock).
How could she have imagined that a basketball game would precede the end of the world?
Amara had never been one for attending sports games, but Lucas had implored her to come to the championship and she wasn't going to miss out when Mike and Dustin's final Hellfire Club meeting would likely prevent them from supporting their friend. Steve had agreed to go as well, intrigued to see if his coaching sessions had paid off, and Robin's role in the marching band required her to be there regardless. For the girl who had once outright refused to watch any sports games other than Robin's, she had come a long way from where she first started.
The day began with Amara slumped over her breakfast at half past six, wondering why Hawkins High was forcing them to come to a pep rally an hour before classes began. Steve was driving that day – Amara typically drove on the days Mike, Lucas, and Dustin had Hellfire Club meetings, but since Steve would be attending the game they figured it would be easier to use his car in the likely event their companions needed a ride home. Amara had a busy day ahead of her in the form of a pep rally, school, her job, and the game, but busy had a way of helping everyone in the Reid family stay afloat.
Eurydice was practically drowning in an endless pit of nothing.
"No, no, no, no, no. Come on!" said woman bemoaned, attempting and failing to direct the smoke ascending from their defective toaster to the open window before it set off the ceiling sprinkler. By now the front page of the daily newspaper was inundated with soot from the effort. "I don't have time for this right now!"
(It's easy to misinterpret having too much time as not having enough of it)
"Need any help?" Amara inquired before realizing too late that she was only distracting her mother. "Sorry, you can ignore me – "
"Just put a towel under the sprinkler in case it goes off," Eurydice relayed, swatting viciously at thin air. "That would be a huge help, thanks!"
"Got it," Amara did as she was requested, ensuring that the surrounding area was covered as well. "I think we're gonna need a new toaster – this is the third time something like this has happened."
