Evanescent | Stranger Things ¹

𝐢𝐱. 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐫𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩

[ ix. the broken spaceship ]

november 9th, 1983. wednesday.

⇝ ⇝ ⇝

"STUPID, STUPID SHIRT!  THIS is ridiculous!"

Melanie let out a sigh of frustration and abruptly yanked off the tight, long-sleeved shirt that she had attempted to put on over her cast. Her narrowed, angry eyes quickly flickered over to the desk near the bunkbeds and her attention settled on the pair of gleaming scissors. For a split moment, Melanie considered the chances of being able to saw through her cast with such dull blades. Then she shot the idea down for something more realistic.

And more dangerous.

Putting on a robe, she left her bedroom and crossed over the hall to Nancy's.  The eldest Wheeler daughter had not come out of her room yet despite the fact that school started soon, and a part of Melanie thought briefly that she might still be asleep.  Since Melanie had spent the whole night prior unable to sleep, thinking about Will, she had been awake to hear the argument between her mother and Nancy ensue when her older sister had arrived home past midnight, way after the supposed school event meant to honor the Byers' family finished.  Karen had been livid—but like always, Nancy talked her way out of it.

Melanie rapped her fingers on the door. "Nancy?" She called. "Are you awake?"

There was no response for several seconds, and just when she about to walk away in defeat, Melanie heard the soft padding of footsteps on the other side of the closed door. She heard the faint click of the door being unlocked and then she was finally face-to-face with Nancy.  Her older sister was dressed nicely, her hair all done up and her makeup finished, yet she did not look excited to see Melanie in the slightest.

"What do you want?" She deadpanned.

"Can I borrow that blue, long-sleeved shirt of yours?" Melanie questioned. "You know, the one that's too big for you?"

"If it's too big for me, what makes you think it'll fit you?" Nancy retorted.

"I just figured I might get the sleeve to fit over my cast," She insisted, shrugging her shoulders. When Nancy did not budge, Melanie tilted her head to the side. "Please?"

Nancy rolled her eyes, but ultimately spun back on her heel and disappeared into her girly, pink-cladded room without a word. Meanwhile, Melanie waited in silence, and rocked back on her heels without ever stepping over the threshold. She did not go into Nancy's room very often—mostly because she was not allowed—but she was glad that she avoided it.  With no contact between the two sisters, Melanie held a very slim chance of ever being forced into sharing a room with her, and she would rather sleep in the backyard than ever share a room with Nancy.

Finally, Nancy returned and thrust a blue sweater in Melanie's chest. "Don't stretch it," She warned. "Or else, you're dead."

"Dead?" Melanie repeated, showing fake surprise. As she threw the sweater over her shoulder, she batted her eyelids innocently in her older sister's direction. "So, how was the assembly?" She wondered, albeit almost too loudly. "It surely must have been a spectacular service if you weren't home until midnight. But . . . If I'm dead, how will I possibly ever be able to tell Mom that the only reason you even went—if you were ever even there to begin with—was just to see—"