Alex wasn't quite sure how he got here, sitting in a strangers basement surrounded by a bunch of people he didn't know. He was squeezing Justin's hand into oblivion, but it wasn't like Justin wasn't used to it by now. His eyes flicked around the room at the five kids in front of him, looking at him and waiting for him to talk, except for one. The one that found him in the woods, the one that took him here, the one that walked in slow motion.
He had black hair and dark brown eyes, he had freckles dotted along his cheeks and nose, going over the bridge and under his eyes. He was wearing a bluish greyish collared shirt with stripes along the front. He had on a navy blue jacket and some light brown jeans, along with what looked to be white shoes but were so filthy that they looked more to be a brown/grey color.
There was a girl with long red wavy hair and bright blue eyes. She had a light patch of freckles on her face and red sunglasses on her head. She had a tight white short sleeved shirt with red stripes on, along with high waisted blue shorts and a red belt. She also had some white vans on like him, and that almost made him smile, but then he remembered the situation he was in and his face dropped again.
There was a dark colored boy with black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a camo bandana and a white shirt with red sleeves to his elbows and Japanese written on the front. He had on some dark grey jean shorts and some brown shoes. The boy next to him had long curly auburn hair and was missing his front teeth. He had on a green shirt and hat that said "Camp Know Where". He was wearing grey shoes and some light blue jean shorts. He also had brown eyes. On the other side of the boy with black hair was a boy with light brown hair. He was wearing a long sleeved light brown shirt with red and white stripes. He had on some short workout shorts and some white shoes and he had brown eyes.
Alex felt Justin squeeze his hand, and he looked at him, then looked down and Justin's red hand. Alex stopped squeezing and he saw Justin let out a loud sigh, tilting Alex's chin to look at him. He moved his head away, looking at the ground and trying to avoid everyone's gaze in the room, especially the boy in front of him. When he first saw him, he was walking in slow motion and he looked to be glowing. He felt something towards him, something more than what he did with Nori, something so much more.
"Alex, listen, I know this is hard for you, but we need to know what happened to you. Can you please try to do what they ask for me?" Justin asked, pulling him closer and kissing his forehead. Alex huffed, looking at Justin sadly before nodding and turning to the attractive boy in front of him. He had a sour look on his face, and Alex felt anger bubble tightly in his stomach at the thought that it was because of how Justin was treating him. Was he homophobic? He noticed the sad look in the boy's eyes from next to him, looking at the boy with freckles sadly, and he frowned.
"Do you think you could try to move something with your mind," the girl asked. Alex looked at her, nodding softly as he got more comfortable on the couch. Before he knew what was happening, he felt like there was something on the other side of him. He lifted his hand, turning to see a pencil floating in the air. He dropped his arm, fear painting across his expression as he leaned back into Justin.
"It's okay, I'm right here. I'm right here, don't worry, you're doing great," he cooed, rubbing the sides of his arms as he helped him to sit up.
"Can you tell us when this happened, or when you started to feel something different?" The dark boy asked, and before he could say anything, Justin spoke up.
"Before he does anything else, we need to introduce each other, yeah," he asked, looking at everyone with a soft glare. They nodded, and the freckled boy rolled his eyes, and Justin had to bite his tongue to keep quiet. "I'm Justin, and I'm Alex's step brother." He said, and he watched as relief painted across the freckled boy's face. A few of them looked a bit shocked, probably because of the way he was acting towards the smaller boy.
"I'm Max, and this is my boyfriend Lucas," she said, grabbing hold of the dark boy, Lucas's hand.
"I'm Dustin!" The curly headed boy said, smiling widely, and Alex giggled softly, tucking a stray hair behind his ear and leaning into Justin.
"I'm Will," the boy next to the freckled boy said, putting on a small smile, making Alex blush softly.
"And I'm Mike," said the freckled boy. Alex looked at him, trying to hide the blush on his face when the boy, Mike, smiled at him and reached out his hand to shake. He brought a shaking hand forward, connecting their hands and moving them slowly. Mike's hands were so soft, he never wanted to let go, but he did. "Could you tell us about how this happened." He asked sweetly. Alex nodded, leaning back into the couch as his palms began to sweat, rubbing his hands together.
"It started when my mom told me we were moving, when I heard the name Hawkins, Indiana my stomach started to turn. I thought it was nothing at first, just the thought of moving. Then, everytime I heard the name I had the urge to hurl, and sometimes I did. The day that we left, my stomach got worse and worse to where the pain was unbearable, so I just tried to fall asleep. The dream was a bit weird. We were in a small house, maybe even a cabin, and there was this thing. I'm not quite sure what it was, but it was disgusting. I can't exactly remember much, but what I do know is that you were all there, and a few others," he said, pausing to breathe. "I woke up. We were nearing the Hawkins sign, and when we passed it I felt a giant wave hit me. I felt a warmth fill me, I felt complete, I felt-"
"When was this?" Lucas asked quickly, so quick that Alex almost didn't understand him.
"Yesterday morning?" He said, looking at the group, seeing their faces change.
"That's when El lost her powers," Mike said, rubbing his face. Alex felt his breath quicken, realization hitting him that this was all real. Suddenly he couldn't breathe, he was choking on his breaths, gasping for air as his eyes welled with tears. He could see Justin laying on his back, pulling him backwards under him. He lifted his shirt up, running his hand over the scars on his tummy and humming softly. He could see everyone looked shocked and confused except for Will, who got up and crouched down next to Alex.
"Alex, listen, I know how hard this is to hear," he said, pausing to take Alex's hand in his. Alex started shaking violently, trying to break free from Justin's grip and run, but Justin was too strong, tracing every scar very slow. "It's scary, I know, but trust me I completely understand. Well, maybe not completely, but mostly. You just need to focus on something else, something that makes you smile. Think about anything but what's happening, okay? Can you do that for me?" He asked, squeezing his hand. Alex nodded, a small sob racking his body. He looked around the room, trying to find something that could clear his mind, and he found his eyes falling onto Mike. His breathing slowed, barely, but enough for Justin to notice and look at Will. Will looked at Mike, signaling him to come over. He hesitantly stood up, walking over to the three boys on the couch. Will moved, pointing to Alex's hand. Mike bent down, grabbing Alex's hand in his and making sure no one was watching when he intertwined their fingers. Alex felt Justin pull his shirt up more, running his finger between his biceps, not noticing Mike's stare or the blush on his cheeks.
"Shh, it's okay, it'll be okay. I promise, and you know I never break my promises," he said, kissing the corner of his ear. "Just remember that-" Justin was cut off by Alex trying to break free, it wasn't working. Nothing was working. "I'm really sorry, this usually works!" He said, everyone giving him sympathetic looks. "I think you guys should leave the room for a minute, I'll explain- Alex, calm down!" He said, watching as everyone walked into a different part of the room. Leaving Justin alone with the anxious boy.
