further apart // max mayfield x oc

4: i (the flayed)

"it's all for you, it's never not for you!"

——

"i found him..." el muttered to the party, who were sat around her on various chairs in mike's basement. "where is he?"
"woods. he's with ... will's mom?"
"my- my mom?" will exclaimed, leaning forward and suddenly taking interest. "what are they doing?"
"ill-annoy... they're going to ill-annoy!" will and mike exchanged a confused glance, interrupted by mrs wheeler calling them for breakfast. as much as felicity loved her cooking, now was really not the time. "illinois? like, the state?" she asked, realising what eleven was trying to say. "ill-annoy." she confirmed.

——

the tap squeaked as max turned it on and dampened a washcloth to wipe the blood from eleven's nose. her eyes moved down to the bruises on her neck from what billy had done, rage flaring up inside her. "does it still hurt?"
"o-only when i talk..."
"well it's a good thing you're not mike then, blah blah blah, you'd be in constant pain!"
the pair giggled. "i'm like you and lis!" el added with a grin. "yeah..." max replied. a sudden sinking feeling reappeared in her chest."you should talk to her," el pushed, "i know you still care about her."
"it's not that easy-"
"max."
"alright. i'll try, ok? i can't promise anything!"

——

"something isn't right. i can't get hopper off my back all summer, and now he's hiking with will's mom to illinois?and dustin's MIA too? this can't be a coincidence." mike ranted as he paced the room. felicity fidgeted in her seat. she'd assumed he was staying with steve, they'd had sleepovers before, but now she was starting to get worried.
"what does it matter!" lucas cut in. "the bottom line is, they're not here. it's up to us!"
"up to us to do what exactly?"
"find billy and stop him!"
"ok, yeah. that's a really nice sentiment, but even if el could find him again- and that's a pretty big if- then what?"
"we burn the shit out of him, and make sure that this time he doesn't come back."
"ok, then what?"
"then we've won!"
"no, that's the problem, we don't win. you got the mind flayer out of me and he came right back. stopping billy isn't enough, we have to stop the mind flayer." will explained.
"how in the hell do we do that?"
"i don't know, but maybe el does!" he replied, looking over at the bathroom door.

"what are they still doing in there?"
"i don't know, girls just like hanging out in bathrooms?" lucas shrugged. this earned a loud sigh from felicity. "they're conspiring against me..." he concluded.
"that's what you're worried about right now?" she said, standing up to take a handful of cereal from the box lucas had found. "well, it's not my main concern, it's a sub-concern."
"i thought you broke up?" will asked.
"we're taking a break! you wouldn't understand."
"she said she dumped your ass! that doesn't sound like a break!" felicity pointed out.

"it wasn't! you guys realise we can hear everything you're saying in here, right?"
max called from behind the door.
"conspiring. i told you!"
before mike could launch into another speech, there was another knock from upstairs. "mike? open the door!"
"i'll go," felicity mumbled, glad to have an excuse to leave the basement. she pushed open the door with a small deal of struggle, to reveal nancy and johnathan, looking panicked and out of breath. "shit, come in..."

——

"it was the same thing. they exact same thing that happened to will last year. and look at this, look at the body temperatures," nancy gestured to a hospital form on the table, "95 and 96, he likes it cold!"
"ok, so this crazy woman who was eating fertiliser-" mike started.
"mrs driscoll."
"right, yeah. what time was this attack?"
"last night, around nine i think?"
"you waited all night to call?" jonathan exclaimed, scrunching his eyebrows in concern. "you weren't there?" will questioned him. "well no, but i'm here now, aren't i?"
"hallelujah," nancy smirked. "so what time was your... sauna test?"
"around nine" the party chorused.
"so that proves it! that proves my theory!"
"she's flayed, just like billy," felicity said, remembering the deranged look billy had last night. "the mind flayer, he flays people. once they do that, they basically become him" mike translated. "if there are two flayed, we have to assume there are others..."
"heather?" eleven suggested. "billy was... doing something to her. she was scared. she was screaming. bad screams."
"i'm sorry, i'm lost. who's heather?" nancy asked before lucas had the chance to question what a good scream would be. "she's a lifeguard at the pool?" max cleared up.
"wait... heather holloway?" max and eleven nodded. "tom!" johnathan blurted, looking at nancy with wide eyes.