e l e v e n

Chapter Three: A Voice

"Boys!" Joyce called from the kitchen, "Dinner!" Smells of ham and cheese wafted up to their noses and tempted their stomachs. They raced downstairs. The four boys took their places at the table alongside Joyce and Johnathan. Will stood up, a look of nausea on his face.
"Will?" Joyce asked, still with that constant irrational worry about her son's safety.
"I've just gotta go to the bathroom." He said, hurrying towards the bathroom. The three boys exchanged worried looks, but nonetheless continued on eating.
Will reappeared about five minutes later, his face pale, subconsciously wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. Mike was suspicious. Combining that with the way Will had been acting earlier.
They spent dinner laughing over stupid jokes, and discussing the plights of their latest crusade.
"Johnathan, can you drive the boys home?" Joyce asked. None of them risked riding in the dark anymore.
"Yeah sure" Johnathan replied, retrieving his keys from the key rack. Dustin and Lucas grabbed their bikes and placed them in the trunk of Johnathan's car, a trunk once filled with guns and traps. Mike was a little slower, he was hesitant to leave Will. He looked back at his friend.
"Mike, come on." Dustin said with annoyance, looking up at the clouds over them, and hearing the distinct sound of rolling thunder "Before it starts to rain." Mike turned back to Will again. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"Honestly Mike, I'm fine. Stop worrying and go home."
"Okay" Mike said, heading to the car
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They dropped of Lucas first, then Dustin, and then it was just Mike.
"Mike?" Johnathan asked from up front
"Yeah?"
"Why were you so worried about Will earlier?" The concern for his brother evident in the way he spoke.
"He's started acting really skittish lately, like how he was right after...you know..." Mike didn't want to mention the incident, and the painful memories it brought back, especially about her.
"In what way?"
"Disappearing off to the bathroom and returning with this face as if he'd seen..." he trailed off, hoping it couldn't be true.
"You don't think..."
"Wouldn't he tell us?"
"I dunno, Will might just not want to worry us." Johnathan said, not sounding so sure himself. Their conversation was brought to a stop when they reached the driveway of the Wheeler home.
"You good? Or do you need me to walk you up to the door."
"I'm fine, but thank you." Mike said, opening the car door "Just keep an eye on Will. Let me know if there's anything strange."
"I will, don't worry"
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"Hey sweetheart." Mike's mother called from the living room, turning off the tv "Everything okay?"
"Yeah!" Mike said, a little to quickly and enthusiastically. He faked a yawn. "I'm really tired, I think I'm going to head up to bed."
"Goodnight darling." His mom called as he hurried up the stairs. The way Will had been acting had brought back painful memories of her. Of Ell. He didn't want to think about her. He was worried. Was she dead? Alive? Had the "bad men" gotten to her again? Or worse the upside down. What if she was trapped there? How would he know? He dismissed those thoughts.
She's dead Mike, get over it.
He wished it wasn't true.
After getting easy for bed, he did what he always did before he fell asleep.
He positioned a flashlight and walkie-talkie on his nightstand, and a pocketknife inside the nightstand drawer. He reached over and shut of the light and made himself comfortable in the blanket.
It had been about five minutes, and he had nearly fallen asleep when he heard a soft quiet voice.
"Mike."
It was muffled and static made it harder to make out the word. He quickly grabbed his flashlight, hoping to find the source of the voice
"Mike"
He heard it again, from the walkie-talkie. He knew that voice. But it couldn't be
"Mike, don't forget me"
It was. He grabbed the walkie-talkie.
"El?" He said hoping he could talk to her "Where are you?" Still nothing
"El?" He gave up hope of a response. Sighing he placed everything back in its original place and crawled under the covers again. It was El, she was alive.