“Major storms are said to hit Hawkins at about 7:45 pm tonight, giving anyone still out on the road about an hour to get home or take shelter. The roads will be very slick, and staying indoors is advised.”
Will stood outside of the Wheeler’s garage, zipping up his vest as the weather man talked on the radio. The rain had already started, but it wasn’t much more than a drizzle.
“Are you really sure you want to go home on your own? It could get serious.”
Mike asked, looking up at the grey sky. It didn’t look too dangerous to him.
“Trust me, I’ll be home real quick. You don’t need to worry the storm.” Will assured Mike as he hopped up onto his bike.
“Just be careful around Mirkwood.” Mike said. Will nodded as rode away into the darkening grey, slowly getting out of sight. He could take care of himself. At least… Mike hoped so.
---
Mike wasn’t sure how many minutes it had been, or if it was only seconds after he’d walked through the front door that he was already rushing back out into the garage, Nancy trailing angrily behind him. It was incredible how fast the storm was able to go from a drizzle to what felt like a hurricane.
“Mike, I swear, if you’re responsible for Will getting hurt in any way shape or form, I am literally going to kill you.”
Mike pulled his hood over and zipped his jacket up.
“I get it, I get it, jeez, I can go find him myself, he’s probably like a block away.”
He wasn’t very happy with his current situation. The moment he walked through the door, Nancy started yelling at him for letting Will go home, saying Jonathan called and asked her to keep Will at their house until the storm passed. And now they were both outside in the pouring rain to find Will and bring him safely back to their home.
With the car not available, Nancy had to grab her old bike from the garage and cycle in the direction of Will’s house with Mike following closely behind.
Even though Mike knew Will was capable of taking care of himself, he was still worried they wouldn’t find him. It wouldn’t be the first time he went missing, and the storm really was getting scary, even for a kid his age.
Mike switched on his bike’s light as they made their way slowly and carefully down the slick road. The wind didn’t blow past them, but seemed to push them down the road, trying to knock the two down or lead them into the woods. It made Mike feel even more anxious, knowing that Will was smaller than him, and not as strong.
“Do you think he’s okay?” Mike yelled over the sound of rain. Nancy kept her gaze straight forward, focused.
“He’s fine. Worst case scenario, he’s already home and we have to bike back to our house in the rain.” Nancy assured her brother, peering through the thick veil of fog and rainfall. The two continued on down the path, a growing sense of slight dread falling over them. The further they got, the higher chance there was that… something happened.
Mike took his hand away from the handles for a moment and wiped water from his face.
He looked up for only a moment, but hit something in front of him. Mike yelped as he fell from his bike onto the road.
“Shit, Mike are you okay?” Nancy yelled. Mike sat up straight and rubbed his head. He looked in front of him and saw two eyes staring back. They were partially covered with short hair, wet and sticking to a face.
