STARCROSSED ▷ steve harrington

04. the case of the missing lifeguard

CHAPTER FOUR - THE CASE OF THE MISSING LIFEGUARD

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JACKIE WAS ON her way out the door when she ran into El and Max. She stopped in her tracks, watching the two of them approach the house with grim expressions. "Hey girls," she greeted, somewhat warily. "Everything okay?"

Max sent a very unconvincing smile at her older sister, while Eleven stared awkwardly at the ground. "Yeah, everything's fine. Have you seen Billy?"

Jackie shifted on her feet at the question, crossing her arms as the front door swung shut behind her. First the Cynthia thing and now her sister was suddenly concerned? "No, not in the last two days actually. He even blew off one of his shifts at work, which is insane, by the way. You know he loves to get that group of mom's attention. Freak. Anyway, why?"

The younger teens shared a look, before glancing towards Jackie again. "Something weird has been happening, and we think Billy is involved. Eleven can use her powers to like...locate people. Do you want to stay and help us?"

"I can't," Jackie said, her thoughts on what else was happening right now. "I have to um, help Steve at the mall today." Her words came out rushed, a sign that she was lying, but Max didn't seem to want to question her on it. Her mind seemed elsewhere. Jackie made her way to her car. "Let me know what happens, though okay? I hate our step-brother, but it's not like I want him kidnapped and dead or anything."

"We'll let you know if we find anything," Max assured, though she didn't seem confident about it. "See you later."

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Back at the mall, Jackie crouched behind some fake decorative bushes with Steve and Dustin. The three of them were on the lookout for secret Russian spies, although she had to admit it sounded pretty insane. She doubted they were just going to do illegal stuff in the middle of a crowded mall, and in broad daylight. But she kept her mouth shut.

"Uh," Steve's voice broke her out of her thoughts. "I don't know exactly what I'm supposed to be looking for."

"An evil Russian spy," Jackie clarified with fake annoyance in her voice. Steve nudged her side with his elbow, making her grunt as he peered through the binoculars. She elbowed him back without glancing at him. The three of them probably looked extremely ridiculous at the moment.

"Yeah, exactly. I don't know what an evil Russian looks like."

"Tall, blonde. Not smiling."

"You just described Billy," Jackie mumbled, and then she dramatically threw her hands up. "Actually, I wouldn't even be surprised at this point."

"Mhm," Steve said, pursing his lips together in agreement. He moved the binoculars around as he looked in different sections of the mall.

"Also look for earpieces, camo, duffel bags, that sort of thing." Dustin told him.

"I never understood camo," Jackie admitted. "Like, you don't become invisible. Why would they wear camo to the mall?"

"Jackie," the curly haired boy reached around Steve to smack her shoulder. "Shut up."

Steve paused on something, "oh you've gotta be kidding me."

The other two perked up immediately. "What?"

"Anna Jacobi's talking with that meathead Mark Lewinsky."

"The guy from our bio class?" Jackie asked, and he nodded. A gasp escaped her lips as she snatched the binoculars from him to get a look. "No way! He's such a skank! She's way too pretty to be with him. She deserves better."