Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I look at you and my blood boils hot
I feel my temperature rise
I want it all, give me what you got
It's hunger in your eyes

The music blasting through the headphones perched on her auburn head drowns out the tapping of her pencil against the counter. Her eyes racking over the different college pamphlets, scholarship and financial aide applications. Nickey Mayfield needs to get out of Hawkins, Indiana. She desperately wants to, anyway. But the roiling in her stomach almost sends her to her knees hunched over the trash can spilling her guts out. 

A year ago if you asked her about collage she'd have talked your ear off about all the different ones she'd thought about going to and how far away they were from this Podunk town. Like the actual number of miles away. She was so excited to get away from her asshole step-brother and step-father. All they'd brought to her life was misery. She was also itching to get as far away from the interdimensional demons that had seemed to invade her life since moving to Hawkins. But now, the thought of leaving her sister behind with their mother, who can't be pulled away from the bottle for longer than a few minutes to pay attention to them, is like a nightmare in itself. It makes her skin crawl. 

After Billy died and his dead beat dad hit the road her mom kind of collapsed in on herself and Max followed suit which left Nickey to take charge. Watching the both of them slowly deteriorate over the last year has almost worn her spirit to the bone. Especially Max. The girl that wanders around with her headphones permanently glued to her ears is just a shell of the sister Nicky knew. There's nothing more that she wants to do than help her, it's one of the reasons she stayed back from going to college. Nickey is starting to fear that there's nothing she can do for Max. 

Suddenly a hand flashes in her face jarring her out of her thoughts. Nickey blinks furiously as she drops the pencil she was holding and pushes the headphones back to rest on her neck. The same song playing through them plays over the stores speakers. When she looks up a long haired guy stands before her on the other side of the counter. She recognizes him, from school she thinks. No. She's seen him at the trailer park for sure. He tosses down a Dio cassette and some cash then it clicks. Eddie Munson. Eddie "The Freak" Munson to be specific. That's what everyone around Hawkins calls him anyway. Nickey doesn't really know much about the guy. She knows Mike, Dustin and Lucas are in his Dungeons and Dragons club at the high school. The high school Eddie should have graduated from two years ago. 

Eddie clears his throat and Nickey realizes she was staring at him. Quickly she grabs the cassette and cash off the counter, "Sorry." She mumbles. She fumbles through the register collecting his change after stuffing the receipt and cassette into a bag. The bag crinkles as he takes it from her and his palm warms her fingers as she plops the coins into his open hand. "Have a nice day." She says with her best customer service voice and smile. 

For a moment she thinks Eddie wants to say something because he stands there looking at her with his round, warm brown eyes and his mouth slightly agape, but he just pockets the change, turns on his heel and walks out the door. 

Behind her she hears snickering. Glancing over her shoulder she sees Stanley, the record shop owner, holding a new box of cassettes. He’s shaking his head back and forth making the lights bounce off his bald brown head. 

“What?” She questions and Stanley just laughs again, “Oh, come on, what’s funny?” 

Stanley sets the box down on the counter, “Nothing.” He shrugs, “That kid has just been in here a lot this week.” 

Nickey’s forehead crinkles, “So?” 

The man gives her a sidelong glance before sighing, “Put these out, will ya?” He slides the box toward her then starts walking to his office. 

“You’re seriously not gonna tell me?” She shouts after him. 

He laughs again, “You’ll figure it out.” 

Nickey huffs a breath before pulling the box of cassettes closer and ripping the tape off. 

A shrill ringing startles Nickey causing her to nearly knock over and entire shelf of records. She lets out a string of curses as the phone continues ringing. Quickly she makes her way over to the counter, “Stanley’s Records, how can I help you?” She asks with her voice an octave higher and sweeter than normal. 

“Nickey! It’s Mike.” His voice comes out huffy and rushed, like he was just running.

”Mike? Why are you calling me at work?” Her stomach twists, “Is something wrong with Max?” 

“What? No.” He says and she almost sighs in relief, “I’m calling to ask what your plans are for tonight.” 

Her eyebrows pull together as she leans against the counter, “I’m going to Lucas’ game, why?” 

“Well, what if instead you come and sub Lucas at Hellfire tonight.” Mike says and she can practically see his wide eyed hopeful gaze through the phone. 

“Your D&D club?” She asks with a grimace and he hums, “Yeah, no thanks.” 

Mike groans, long and loud, it rattles the speaker “Come on, Nick. You don’t even have to know how to play, just come and roll the dice a few times. I’m desperate here.” 

“Sorry, Mike. I’m not interested in your little game or hanging out with your nerd friends.” Nickey says firmly and Mike groans again. 

“You know you suck, right?” He says sounding defeated. 

“Love you, too, kid.” The sarcasm drips off her tongue. “Don’t call me at work again unless it’s something serious.” 

Mike clicks his tongue, “This is serious!” 

“Bye, Michael.” Nickey says and hangs up the phone. 

Walking the halls of Hawkins High again feels like a strange twist of nostalgia and revulsion. It's not that Nickey had a particularly hard time in school, she wasn't bullied or anything. Not in Hawkins, at least. But every corner she turns makes her think of Billy. It feels like he's looming over her shoulder, watching and waiting. For what, Nickey doesn't know, but it never did take much for Billy to turn on someone. That she can speak about from experience. 

She steps into the gym, the band playing and the people in the stands shouting. Her sneakers squeak against the floor as she follows behind Steve and his date, Brenda. She seems like a nice girl, but she didn't stop talking the entire ride here. 

She twists her blonde permed hair around a finger and smacks her gum, "Does it bother you that, like, we might win a championship right after you graduated?" Brenda asks to Steve animatedly. 

Steve puts on a grimace of a smile and Nickey tries her best not to laugh, "Yeah, that's an interesting point. Thank you so much for bringing that up, Brenda." He says and ushers her up into the stands. Steve turns and gives a bemused look to Nickey who just rolls her lips into her mouth and shakes her head. 

The red head swiftly claps him on the shoulder, "Thanks for the ride, Harrington." She turns to find her own seat but Steve wraps his hand around her wrist and pulls her back. 

"You are not leaving me alone with her." He states desperately. "I won't survive." 

Nickey rolls her eyes, "You're the one that wanted to take her out. Now you've gotta deal with the consequences of being the horndog that you are." 

Steve gives her a flat look, "Nick, please. Just, like, sit behind us or something. I'm begging." 

She takes in a long sharp breath, "Fine, but you owe me. Big time." 

"Perfect, thank you." Steve rushes out the words then drags the both of them up the steps into the stands where Brenda is waiting. He pats the glossy wooden bleacher behind him and looks up at Nickey with a thankful smile as she settles into the. Off to the side she spots Robin, decked out in her band uniform, playing her little heart out. The two girls catch each others eye and exchange smiles. 

Just as the band finishes playing a teacher walks out onto the court and speaks into a microphone, "Now, please rise for our national anthem." He instructs the crowd and they follow suit. Nickey pushes up to a stand and half heartedly places her hand over her chest, "Singing for us tonight, we have a very special guest. All the way from Nashville, our very own, Tammy Thompson!" The crowd erupts into cheers as Tammy practically sashays onto the basketball court. Her puffy pink skirt swishing with each step of her white cowboy boots. Between the three of them, Steve, Robin and Nickey exchange knowing glances. 

The mic sends out sharp feedback sounds as Tammy takes her place in front of it. She cracks her mouth wide open and begins to sing, the notes falling out are anything but graceful. Each one cracks and chokes. Nickey grimaces and resists the press her palms over her ears.

"Told you." Nickey catches Steve's whisper. He's looking over at Robin, "Muppet." Again Nickey has to bite her lip to keep from laughing.

"Wow." Brenda starts, "She sounds amazing doesn't she?" Steve gives her a wide eyed look before glancing over his shoulder to Nickey as he draws his brow down and shakes his head. 

Finally Tammy's assault on everyone's eardrums ends. The crowd claps and cheers for her once more as she sashays back off the court. Then the game starts. 

It's going about as well as any Hawkins game goes. Not great, not terrible. The Eagles are definitely not winning right now. And Nickey can see how it's affecting the teams captain. Jason, she thinks his name is. He's angry and shouting at the other team's players. This is one of the many reasons she doesn't like sports. All the useless aggression for no reason. It's just a bunch of dudes chasing and throwing a ball around. But she's here to support Lucas. Who is currently bench warming, like he does every game. But that's not the point. Lucas has sort of become a little brother for Nickey. Especially with the fact that he and Max dated. She's felt kinda bad for the kid since Max dumped him. She tried her best to get her sister to rethink her decision, but it was like talking to a brink wall. Whatever bullshit reason Max gave for the break up was just that- bullshit. Lucas makes Max so happy and Nickey has no idea why she'd want to give that up. But just because they're not together anymore that doesn't mean Nickey can't be there for him. The both of them need it. 

Nickey stands and starts to make her way down the stands when Steve yanks her back again. "Where are you going?" He questions with a desperate look in his eyes. Brenda has been talking his ear off for the entirety of the game. An irritant to her as well and she needs a moment without having to listen to the girl speak.

"To pee." Nickey states flatly, "Do you want to come with?" Sarcasm drips off her tongue as she pulls her arm from Steve's grip and continues down the stands. 

Nickey bumps the restroom door open with her hip after finishing her business. The paper towels were out so she shakes her wet hands out for a few seconds then when that proves useless she drags her hands against the denim of her shorts. She then bends over the water fountain to take a long sip. Then someone screams. Nickey bolts upright. She wipes her mouth and peers down the hallway toward the screaming. Whoever it is, is too far away for her to make out what they're saying. Cautiously she steps closer to the noise. Her stomach twists. All the things she's seen over the last few years make any unexpected sound a waking nightmare. It takes a lot of Nickey's concentration to keep from completely spinning out on a daily basis. 

The closer she gets the less it sounds like screaming and the more it sounds like excited shouting. That lessens the twist in her stomach. It's coming from the drama classroom. Nickey steps in front of the door then pushes up on her toes to peek in the small window. Inside the room she sees a group of guys sitting around a table. There's papers spread around and what looks to be a game board. At the head of the table she sees a familiar face sitting in what looks like a throne. Eddie Munson. He's got a wide smile and a wild gleam in his eye. He's talking but she can't make out what he's saying, but everyone at the table is listening to him intently hanging on every word. 

Suddenly a pair of eyes are staring back at her own. Nickey stumbles back a bit and lets out a sharp gasp. The door swings open as she rights her feet and clutches her chest, "Jesus Christ, Henderson." 

"What are you doing?" Dustin asks looking a little dumbfounded. 

Nickey shakes her head, "Nothing. I heard all the noise." She explains, "The shouting." Dustin's features soften. He knows exactly what she was thinking just a few moments ago. It's a little weird, he's always been like that with her. Ever since they met, Dustin just knew what she was thinking and how she was feeling. She's never been able to figure out how the hell he could do that. It's actually kind of annoying.

"Everything's okay." He assures her, "It's just Hellfire." 

"I gathered that." She says and guts her chin out to the room behind him just as Mike appears over Dustin's shoulder, "So this is what you guys are doing instead of going to Lucas' game?" 

The two boys share an ashamed glance, but as quickly as it came it's gone because more shouting comes from behind them. "The hell are you two doing? We have a campaign going, in case you forgot." They both step aside to reveal Eddie leaning forward in his throne with an exasperated expression over his face. 

"Sorry, it's just our friend." Mike explains. Eddie looks past the two boys then immediately straightens up at who he sees. His mouth hangs slack. Nickey Mayfield is the last person he thought he'd see interrupting a Hellfire meeting tonight. Sure, he'd thought about it, but he never thought it would actually happen. 

Nickey tosses some hair off her shoulder, "I'm gonna head back to the gym. Have fun with your nerd game." She says with a small wave before twisting her hips and heading back to where she came from. 

Mike and Dustin return to the game table and Eddie clears his throat then repositions himself in his throne, he inclines his head toward the boys, "Shall we finish what we came here to do?" 

Back in the gym Nickey has settled back in her seat on the bleachers behind Steve and Brenda, who is still chattering away. Lucas finally got put in to play. Seeing him run across the court with the team makes pride swell in her chest. The Hawkins Tigers are actually doing much better with him on the court. The score is so close. Every now and them when Lucas has the ball Nickey stands and hollers for him. Every now and then, when he can Lucas gives her a smile. Never before has Nickey been so invested in a sporting event. She's leaning forward in her seat, her lip between her teeth intensely watching. Any other day she wouldn't care if they won or lost, but she knows how happy it would make Lucas to win. 

The clock on the scoreboard is winding down to the last seconds. Just one more point and Hawkins wins. Nickey's fingers are digging into Steve's shoulder as she watches one player shoot the ball and miss. If falls back into the mass of teenage boys below the basket and somehow Lucas grabs it. He twists out of the shuffle and spines to face to goal post. The clock reads two seconds. He jumps. One second. He lets the ball fly. Zero seconds. The buzzer sounds. Everyone in the stands rises to their feet. The anticipation is almost palpable. And the ball sinks through the basket. The crowd erupts into cheers. Including Nickey, who may just be screaming the loudest. Nickey leans forward with a whoop and wraps her arms around Steve's neck. He grabs her arms and lets out a particularly loud shout. She unfolds her arms and holds her hands out so Steve slaps his palms against her a few times. The team lifts Lucas up onto their shoulders and the whole gym starts to chant for him. 

With her hands shoved into her pockets Nickey walks across the school parking lot, quickly she spots Lucas with the team. She sprints over the pavement and just as the team splinters off away from him she throws her arms around him. Lucas lets out a surprised gasp, "You did it!" Nickey shouts and Lucas returns the hug. "I'm so proud of you. That was amazing." 

Lucas steps back from the embrace and gives a halfhearted smile, "Thanks for coming." 

Nickey pushes her wind blown hair from her face, "Of course, I'd never miss your games." Unlike Max is what she doesn't say. And she doesn't have to say it either, she can see Lucas is thinking the same thing. Nickey had tried to get Max to come, thought of every bribe she could come up with but she refused. Seeing the both of them being so miserable without the other makes Nickey's heart ache. 

Voices erupt behind them. Nickey looks over her shoulder and sees a very pleased looking Hellfire Club bounding out of the school. She looks back to Lucas. He's watching them with a disappointed expression. Nickey's smile falls and she wants to wrap him in another hug but before she can even move one of his team members appears at his side. Patrick she's pretty sure. 

"Lucas, come on, man." Patrick says and tugs on his shoulder. 

Lucas looks back to Nickey. She nods toward his waiting team, "Go have fun. You deserve it." She puts on a smile for him. Lucas gives her a grateful nod, "Be careful." Lucas and Patrick turn and start walking. Nickey waves her hand wildly at their backs. 

Nickey looks back at the Hellfire kids, they're still celebrating. Completely unaware of what they've done to one of their friends. Before she even knows it Nickey is stomping across the parking lot to them. 

Mike spots her coming, "Nickey! It was so awesome! You should have seen it. Erica-" 

"How could you do that to Lucas?" The words fall out of her mouth fast and heavy. Aimed precisely for their chests. They hit their intended target because both Dustin and Mike blink at her silently. "One game. You couldn't not play your stupid board game for one night?" 

"Hey!" A curly brunette haired boy speaks up, he's younger than her but older than Mike and Dustin. "It's not a stupid board game." 

Nickey sneers, "Oh, shut up." She looks back to Mike and Dustin, "Lucas really wanted you guys there tonight and you let him down. And Erica, the guy is your brother, come on?" The girl just rolls her eyes while the boys look only the tinniest bit ashamed of themselves. Out of the corner of her eye she spots Eddie emerging from the school twirling his keys around his finger. 

"Eddie!" The brunette boy calls. Eddie approaches the group, slightly wide eyed, "Explain to this chick that D&D is not a stupid board game." He crosses his arms over his chest as Eddie's eyes drift to Nickey. His mind goes entirely blank. 

Nickey ignores the both of them with an eye roll. Behind her a horn sounds. She looks over her shoulder to see Steve standing behind the driver side of his car and waving her over. She nods curtly before looking back to the boys, "Lucas made the winning shot by the way." Mike and Dustin look up wide eyed, "Yeah, first time Hawkins has won a championship in twenty two years and Lucas made the winning shot. And you guys missed it." Steve honks again behind her and she throws up the bird. "I gotta go. I'm glad you guys had so much fun with your game." 

Nickey turns on her heel and Eddie watches as she walks away. Her hands stuffed in her pocket and the moonlight bouncing off her red hair. His shoulders droop as he sees her slide into Steve Harrington's car. Of course. 

"Eddie, man, you okay?" Mike asks. 

Eddie blinks then plasters a shit eating grin on his cheeks, "I'm great." He says boisterously. He claps Dustin and Mike on their shoulders, "Bye." He says then strides off toward his van. 

"What the hell?" Dustin throws his arms out to the side. 

"I got some business to take care of." Eddie says over his shoulder. 

The headlights of Steve's car illuminates the drive in front of Nickey's trailer. She quickly thanks him for the ride and hugs Robin goodbye before sliding out of the backseat and heading inside. The first thing she spots his her mother passed out on the couch with the TV still going. Nickey rolls her eyes and shuts the thing off then places a blanket over her mom. She yanks her sneakers off then carries them into her room. Her shared room with Max. The younger girl is laying on her bed flipping through a comic book. Nickey tosses her shoes to the floor then begins changing into her pajamas. She waits for Max to ask about the game or Lucas but she remains completely quiet. 

"Tigers won." Nickey says as she ties her hair up. "Lucas made the winning shot." If Max heard she doesn't make any indication, she just keeps reading. Nickey sits on the edge of Max's bed. "You doing okay?" She asks and for just a second Max's eyes flitter up over the top of the page to look at her sister. A huff falls through Nickey's mouth and she decides to give up for the night. "Did you feed the dog?" 

"Mhm." Max offers as a reply. "And cleaned up Mom's beer and put her cigarette out." 

Nickey's heart weighs heavily in her chest. To be truthfully honest, neither of them should be having to clean up after their mother like this. But Nickey really hates it when Max has to do it. If she could she would carry the burden of everything the two of them have been through on her shoulders alone. To take what Max is going through and hoist it for her so that her sister can just be happy and free would be a sacrifice she'd make in an instant. 

"You want me to brush your hair?" Nickey asks with sudden lightness. And although they both know it's, a ghost of a smile pulls the corners of Max's mouth up. She tosses the comic to the side and sits up right. 

That's how the both of them ended up tangled together asleep on Max's bed, the hairbrush still in Nickey's hand.

Nickey wakes with a jolt when she hears screaming. She glances at Max who is still sound asleep. Then she sees lights flickering outside. She slowly stands to her feet and peers through the blinds. Across the street the lights at the Munson trailer are going crazy. This isn't unusual though. The electricity out here sucks, sometimes people's lights flicker. She could have sworn she heard screaming though. Could just be Eddie playing his music again. The lights stop. So does the screaming. Then Eddie runs out of the trailer frantically and into his van. He peels out of the drive and speeds away.

”What’s going on?” Max asks behind Nickey making her jump.

Nickey shakes her head, “Nothing. Let’s just go back to bed.” 

The two girls share a knowing look. And although this makes Nickey's gut twist, she shakes her head and climbs back into bed with Max and closes her eyes. It's probably nothing.

Chapter Text

Nickey yawns and stretches her muscles out as she stumbles into the kitchen, still tired and a little sore from being squeezed into the tiny bed with Max all night. She rubs her eyes then quickly starts the coffee pot after filling it with both water and coffee grounds. Sliding into the counter as she waits for the liquid to brew. Luckily she doesn’t have work today. It’s her first Saturday off in a while actually, which she’s grateful for, but at the same time she still feels a tinge of guilt. Nickey has been trying to help her Mom pay the bills while also trying to save for college…Or something that will get her out of Hawkins at least. 

Just as the coffee stops dripping and Nickey pours herself a mug full Max walks into the kitchen. She heads straight for the cabinet over the sink and pulls out the bottle of Tylenol. Nickey watches her sister over the edge of her mug. Max plops some pills into the hand then fills her palm with water from the tap then dumps both into her mouth, knocking them back quickly.

”Another headache?” Nickey questions as she eyes the young girl. Max gives a short nod. “You’ve been having those a lot lately.” She states. 

Max shrugs, “I’m fine. They’re just headaches.” 

Outside sirens blaring catches the attention of both Mayfield girls. Nickey places her mug on the counter as she removes herself from it. They share a look of curiosity and confusion before heading to the front door. On the porch they both stand in their pajamas and watch as four police cars come barreling through the neighborhood and turn onto their street then park right in front of Eddie Munson’s trailer. Nickey’s stomach twists and she knows something is wrong. Very wrong. The lights last night and the screaming weren’t nothing. But she won’t let Max know she’s worried. She can’t. Max already has enough on her plate. 

“Look’s like that Munson boy is up to no good again.” Nickey’s head whips to the side as her mother appears. She swallows then turns away. They never talk about the various states of drunkenness the girls find their mother in. She always just acts like everything is normal. 

“Guess so.” Nickey responds to her mother’s statement. 

A clamoring of officers start swarming the trailer. Chief Powell walks up to Mr. Munson. Eddie’s uncle. Then he and a deputy enter the trailer. 

Max takes a few ginger steps down the stairs of the porch. Nickey follows close behind, that twist in her stomach tightening ever so slightly. 

Slowly they both make their way across the street and while Max tried to peer inside the trailer Nickey is too busy watching the cops buzzing around like wasps looking for someone to sting. 

“Hey!” Someone shouts causing both of the m to jolt and spin around. A cop stands before him and he looks angry, “You can’t be out here. Get back inside.” He demands. 

Nickey wraps her arms around Max’s shoulder then drags the both of them back to their own trailer. 

Now back inside Nickey takes a few stranding breaths and musters up a neutral appearance. She glances over to Max and she can see the gears working in her head. Nickey takes up her sister’s arm and pulls her into their room. “Stay out of it.” 

A crease appears in Max’s brow, “I saw something.” 

Nickey starts digging through her dresser for an outfit, “No, you didn’t.” She takes out a pair of jeans and pulls them onto her legs. 

“You saw something too." Max states. Images of last night trickle into her mind. The flickering lights. The screaming. Eddie looking scared out of his mind and running away. 

“No.” She says flatly, “Neither of us saw anything.” She yanks a t-shirt over her head. 

“This is weird.” Max says from her spot on the bed. “Isn’t it?” 

A long sigh falls through Nickey’s mouth, “Max, please.” She turns toward her sister, “Just stay out of this. Let the cops deal with it. We don’t need to get involved.” 

“But what if-“ 

“No.” Nickey grabs her sneakers and starts to put them on, “No ‘what if’. I promise, nothing good can come of getting involved in this.” 

Max crosses her arms over her chest then presses her lips into a tight line. Always the stubborn one. Nickey finishes tying off her laces then grabs her worn corduroy jacket. At one point in time it was a dark navy color but now it’s more of a royal blue. 

“Where are you going?” Max asks with an accusatory tone. 

“Hang out with Steve and Robin.” She answers quickly, she needs to talk to them about this, “Just stay here and stay out of trouble okay?”

”Why do you get to leave?” 

“Because, I’m the big sister.” Nickey kneels in front of the bed, “Promise me you won’t do anything stupid. Please.” 

Max chews her lip then drops her arms to the side. A sign of defeat. “Fine.” 

Nickey straightens and forces a smile, “Good. I’m sure this is all nothing anyway.” Not even she believes that. She leans down and presses a kiss to Max’s forehead and Max shoves her sister away with a disgruntled groan. 

As quietly and as quickly as she can Nickey slides through the trailer and out the back door then books it through the woods before the cops can notice. 

Nickey throws open the door to Family Video panting and trying to catch her breath. Why the hell did she run all the way here? When she brings her eyes up she sees Robin and Steve staring at her as if she's got multiple heads. Robin's holding a VHS in her hands and it seems she was just presenting it to Steve for their morning movie pick. 

"Where's the fire, Nick?" Steve asks, hands on his hips, looking truly concerned. Nickey shakes her head and swallows hard. She waves her hand then darts for the counter. "What are you doing?" Steve and Robin follow her but she just waves for them to follow her again. She grabs the remote and turns the TV on. She figured that by the time she got here the news station would have made it to the trailer park. And she was right.

"We're in the Forest Hills Trailer Park in east Roane County. We don't have a lot of details right now, but we can confirm that a Hawkins High student was discovered early this morning. Police have not yet released the victims name although we are told they're currently in the process of notifying the family." The reporter continues on as Nickey turns back to Steve and Robin who are both slacked jawed and a little pale. 

"Holy shit." Steve breathes. 

Nickey nods fervently, "Yeah, holy shit." She leans against the counter and crosses her arms over her stomach, it's still twisted into knots. "There are cops everywhere. Whatever the hell happened, it's bad. Like really bad."

Robin gives Nickey a once over, "Did you see something? You're kinda freaking me out." 

Nickey shakes her head, "No- I mean, yes- No. Maybe. I heard a scream last night." Steve and Robin both blink at her mouths agape once more, "And the lights were flickering. Which happens, but I don't know." She slowly shakes her head again, "I just have this feeling in the pit of my stomach that this time it wasn't the faulty wiring." 

Hands land on Nickey's shoulders. "Okay. You need to relax." Robin says, her voice smooth and steady with just that little touch of rasp that it always has. "And that's coming from me. Someone was murdered. This is not any of the bullshit we've dealt with creeping back up on us. Okay?" 

Not trusting herself to speak Nickey simply nods. "I'm sure the cops will find whatever creep that did this." Steve says but the only creep that comes to mind is Eddie. Well, she wouldn't really categorize him as a creep. She doesn't know him well enough to categorize him as anything really. "Don't freak out." Steve continues and Nickey looses a breath.

The red head puts a hand to her forehead and lets out a laugh. Then another. "You guys are right. I'm being a little ridiculous aren't I?" Her friends both give her a nod, "Thanks for calming me down. It's just after everything, it's easy to assume the worst." 

Robin steps back and grabs her backpack, "I got that new comic you've been wanting. Do you wanna read it? Might help with the shaking." She says and Nickey glances down at her hands. She is indeed shaking. Trembling actually. And again Nickey nods. But even as she wraps her hands around the pages and she climbs onto the counter and places the comic in her lap she just can't shake the feeling in her gut that something isn't right. Not right at all. 

Eventually Nickey does stop shaking. The sands of her mind settles and the thumping of her heart slows. As she flips through the comic book she starts to think. Of course nothing is wrong. She's just overreacting. And anyone who has been through what she's been through in the last couple of years would. Whatever happened last night at Munson's trailer wasn't other worldly. The lights flickered because of the crappy electricity in the neighborhood. Eddie screamed and ran because he probably did something he shouldn't have. And the cops will figure it all out then everything will be fine. That's the logical answer. So that's what she keeps telling herself as her eyes rove across the printed words in her lap. Because it has to be fine. Because it is. Because anything else isn't an option. 

The reporter continues to drone on and on, but the words dissipate before Nickey can really comprehend them. Something about the cops doing a thorough search of the trailer or something. And questioning of potential witnesses that last saw the victim. Who ever they are. 

Suddenly the bell on the Family Video door chimes and Nickey glances up from the comic pages. Max and Dustin come barreling inside. Nickey blanches for a moment before her face twists into anger. "I told you to stay put." She says through her teeth as she hops down from the counter.

Both Max and Dustin ignore Nickey as they march up to the counter where Robin and Steve are watching the TV, "Steve. How many phones do you have?" Dustin asks. 

Steve ignores the question then asks one of his own, "Did you guys see this? Someone was murdered." 

Dustin leans into the counter and repeats his question aggressively, "How many phones do you have?" 

"Uh, two, why?" Steve answers. 

Nickey steps closer, "Yeah, why?" She asks with her arms crossed over her chest and gives her sister an accusatory stare. Max just makes an annoyed face and looks back to Steve and Robin. 

"Technically, three, if you count Keith's in the back." Robin adds.

Max turns to Dustin, "Yeah, three works." 

"What are you doing?" Steve asks skeptically. 

Dustin shrugs his backpack off and tosses it onto the counter. Nickey grinds her teeth, still staring at her sister, "Max. What's going on?" Before anyone can answer her question Dustin slides his backpack across the counter and onto the floor, knocking the stack of tapes over. Steve and Robin both shout their grievances for the mess. Dustin ignores both as he jumps over the counter and sits at the computer. 

"What are you doing, man?" Steve exasperates. 

"Setting up base of operations." Dustin says simply as he starts to type away. 

"Base of operations?" Robin questions as she tries to clean up the mess he made.

Max rounds the counter finally and stands over Dustin's shoulder while he continues to type. Nickey grabs Max's arm and pulls her in close, "What the hell, Max? I told you to stay put." 

Her sister shrugs, "I had to do something and I wasn't gonna let you just act like this isn't happening." 

Nickey rolls her eyes and starts to make a snide comment back when she hears Dustin say a familiar name. "Eddie?" That knot in her stomach that she worked to unravel is slowly startling to twist back up. This is seemingly headed in the direction that she didn't want it to go. And that means...Well, it only means something awful.

Steve rolls his eyes, "Oh, Eddie. Your new best friend who you think is cooler because he plays your nerdy game." He says sarcastically and sounding very, very jealous. 

"Yes." Dustin drops his head back in annoyance then suddenly straightens to look at Steve once he's processed the words he just said, "I never said that." 

"Seriously, guys, maybe on a Monday you can play around in her like toddlers, but it's Saturday." Robin says as she stacks the tapes back onto the counter, "It's our busiest day." She punctuates by slamming down a sign that was also knocked over in Dustin's counter hop. 

"Exactly." Nickey quips, "And we seriously shouldn't be getting involved in this." She says that part quietly and only to her sister. Max waves her off and focuses on the computer screen. Nickey want to scream and yank her own hair out. 

Dustin continues typing away, talking without looking back, "Robin, I empathize, but this cannot wait until Monday." Steve puts his face into his hands and groans. 

Robin throws her arms up, hands full of papers that were also knocked down, "What? Because calling all of Eddie's friends is an emergency?" She asks sarcastically. 

"Correct." Dustin snaps. 

Steve bends to help clean up the mess Dustin created, "Do you want me to strangle him or do you want to do that?" Steve asks Robin. 

She gives him a wide smile, "We could take turns." She says brightly. 

"I would like in on that." Nickey adds as she looks to Dustin who is still typing at the computer, "Because what the hell is going on, Henderson. And why did you drag Max into it?" She almost feels silly for asking. Because she knows what these two are up to. She definitely knows. But maybe if she pretends she doesn't then they won't actually be doing what she's fearing and that means that none of what she's terrified of is actually coming back again. Maybe, just maybe. 

Dustin turns to Max and says, exasperated, "Can you just fill them in while I do this?" 

Robin spins around on her heel and asks, just as equally as exasperated as Dustin, "Fill us in on what?" 

Max looks cautiously between Robin, Steve, and Nickey. It's like she's holding her breath, which inadvertently makes Nickey hold her breath. She so desperately doesn't want the words that are swarming around in Max's head to come out of her mouth. But at this point it feels like she has so little control left, so what can she do? 

Max puffs her chest as she takes in a deep cleansing breath and Nickey releases the hold on her own, "Last night I saw Chrissy Cunningham go inside Eddie Munson's trailer." 

Steve and Robin's gaze drift to the television where the reporter is still talking, but Nickey blinks furiously for a moment, "Wait. Chrissy Cunningham? You didn't tell me that." What the hell would Hawkins High head cheerleader be doing at Eddie Munson's house? And why wouldn't Max mention it? 

Her sister just continues on with a short shake of her head, "I didn't think it mattered at the time. Anyway, I heard him screaming." Max's eyes drift to Nickey, "So did Nick, it woke us both up. And then the lights were flickering, which not that weird that place is a piece of shit, but Eddie...." Her voice drifts for a moment and Nickey can clearly see what she's thinking about. She witnessed it too, that look on his face. "When he ran out and got into his van, he looked terrified. Like actually really scared. And maybe it's because he just killed a girl or because..." Something else did, is what she doesn't need to say. They all know exactly what she means. They'd witnessed it enough. 

Nickey can feel Steve's gaze burning a hole into the side of her head. She tries desperately not to meet it, she doesn't want to see the look on his face. That mix of concerned big brother and irritated best friend. It was only a look that he could give her. In the recent years in Hawkins Steve took on that role of best friend and big brother in Nickey's life. She was severely lacking in both. So when she and Max got wrapped up in the world beneath Hawkins, Steve slipped right in to take care of both of them. Most of the time Nickey was grateful for it. But at times like this, when the guilt that look created in her very soul, she wished the earth would open up and swallow her whole. 

Finally Nickey glanced to her side and there he was, with his stupid Farrah Fawcett hair, glaring at her. Eyebrows pulled together and hands on his hips. "Why didn't you mention any of this when you came in?" He asks.

Nickey fumbles with the words for a moment, her mouth opening and closing like a fish gasping with her arms waving about in front of her. "I just- I didn't want-" She lets out a frustrated groan and presses the hells of her palms into her eyes, "Because, I just didn't, Harrington. Can we just deal with this now, since apparently that's what you two came here to do." She tosses her arm out at the two younger kids with irritation laced in the syllables. Nickey shares a look with her sister. The kind that only older siblings can give, the one that makes you know they're upset with you and it pins you in place and makes your chest ache a little while all at the same time it's so irritating that you want to punch them square in the nose. 

"Perfect!" Dustin declares from his spot in front of the computer. The group gathers around him and stares at the screen. A list of customers is pulled up with phone numbers to their right, "We can use this to call Eddie's friends and find where he is." He starts writing down numbers. 

"And what exactly are we going to do when we find him?" Nickey asks and chews the inside of her cheek. 

"Talk to him, find out what really happened last night." Dustin says determinedly. "Robin, can you get Keith's phone?" He asks and she nods, "Okay. You, Max and I can make the calls." 

Robin heads to the back and Steve, still with his hands on his hips, says, "I don't like this." 

"Me either." Nickey adds crossing her arms over her chest. 

"You don't have, too." Dustin says and Nickey rolls her eyes, "You just have to help us find Eddie." 

The sound of phones being hung up is really starting to grate on Nickey's nerves. And with each dead end her stomach twists tighter. She's run through every possibility of where Eddie might be and what might have happened to him. Not that she'd know where he'd go, she doesn't know anything about the guy. But there's also few places in Hawkins where someone could actually hide. But the possibility that whatever killed Chrissy has found Eddie, where ever he is, and he's already dead too. Unless of course it is Eddie that killed Chrissy, which mean that they will just be walking into a very dangerous situation. Well, any possibility is a very dangerous situation, isn't it. Supernatural or not. 

God, this is exactly what Nickey wanted to avoid. She thought all this shit was done and over with. How could this be happening again? El closed the gate. Didn't she? She lost her powers doing it, and Hopper. The gate has to be closed. It just has to be. 

Dustin angrily slams the phone back onto the receiver with a huff. Nickey raises her eyebrows and Dustin shakes his head so she crosses another name off the list laying in her lap as she sits on the counter next to him. Their options are dwindling, quickly, and they need to find Eddie. Soon. If not to confirm that he's not a murderer before the cops discover his hiding place then to find out what really happened at the trailer last night. The fear creeps into Nickey's mind that she's not going to like either answer. 

Max hangs up the phone and turns to lean against the counter, "Hey, guys. I might have a lead." 

Nickey's head perks up at that while Robin and Dustin both turn their attention toward the younger redhead, "Seriously?" Dustin asks, his voice filled with a mix of relief and happiness.

Max nods, "Apparently, Eddie gets his drugs from some guy named Reefer Rick and sometimes Eddie crashes there." Nickey's back straightens at the name and recognition is apparent on her features. She had now idea that Munson was the Eddie Rick had mentioned to her a handful of times.

"That sounds promising." Robin says, "Where does this Reefer Rick guy live?" 

"See that's the thing," She starts with a wince, "No one knows. He's more of a legend than someone people actually know." 

Nickey squeezes her eyes shut for a moment and contemplates letting them know what she knows. The quicker they find Eddie the quicker this can all be over, so Nickey opens her eyes and speaks hesitantly, "That's not actually true. I-I know him. Sort of." Three pairs of eyes land on her, each with varying degrees of shock. Robin raises her eyebrows in silent questioning. Nickey shakes her head and starts fumbling with her fingers, "I...get weed from him. Sometimes." She shrugs. 

Max blinks a few times, "We can talk about that later, but you know where he lives?" She asks. 

"No." Nickey answers and Dustin's shoulders droop, "We only ever met in the woods, but he's definitely more man than myth." 

"What about a last name?" Dustin asks and Nickey just shrugs causing him to grumble. The guy only ever introduced himself as 'Reefer Rick', probably for safety reasons. She never asked either. 

"Bet the cops know the last name." Steve's voice pulls their attention to where he stands stuffing VHS tapes into a bin at the front of the store. 

"What?" Max asks. 

Steve continues to stuff tapes and says, "Cops." The other four share a look amongst themselves and wait for Steve to continue, "I mean, listen," He turns to face them and leans his forearms on the counter, "If this Reefer Rick guy is actually a drug dealer, I guarantee you he's been busted at some point. Means he's in the system."

"The cops?" Dustin asks, almost dumbfounded that Steve would even suggest such a thing as he stands to his feet, "Really, Steve? That's your suggestion?" 

Steve waves a hand about, "I mean, I just think at this point they should be filled in on what we know, what's going on." 

"You think Eddie's guilty, don't you?" Dustin accuses. 

A line forms on Steve's forehead as he pulls his eyebrows together, "Whoa, whoa, whoa. I believe in innocent until proven guilty and all that constitutional shit." Nickey snorts at that and Steve flips her off which she returns, "I just, you know, I just don't think we can rule it out." 

"That's precisely what we're trying to do here, Steve." Max explains with a sharp edge to her voice.

Nickey hops down from the counter she was perched on and raises her eyebrows, "And what exactly do you think the cops are going to do?" She asks with a shrug and Steve just opens and closes his mouth, "I mean, it's not like we can tell them that we think some creature from an upside down version of Hawkins killed a teenager in Eddie Munson's trailer and he had nothing to do with it." 

Dustin snaps his finger, "Exactly. Besides maybe we'd have a little more luck if you spent less time trying to find a girlfriend and more time trying to find Eddie!" He exasperates and throws his arms out. 

Steve gestures widely to the store, "Oh, well someone has to attend to the customers." 

"Especially if they're babes, right?" Robin asks sarcastically with a wink.

"Hey, not fair." Steve points at Robin as a guy walks into the store behind him. Steve continues on obliviously, "I attend to all customers equally. Babes and non-babes alike. We've got a very big selection in here. It can be super overwhelming for these people." Nickey can't help but to roll her eyes dramatically. 

Robin smiles, "Yeah, it can be." She says and whirls around to the computer. Nickey can practically see the cogs turning in her head. "Maybe we don't need a last name." She starts typing. Steve makes his way around the counter and the four of them crowd Robin's shoulders to look at the screen. A list of names pop up, "Twelve Ricks already have accounts here." 

"That's a lot of Ricks." Max points out.

"So, let's narrow it down." Robin says and punctuates each word with a hit of a key. "Rick Alderman's latest rentals are Annie and Dumbo." Robin looks to Nickey, "What are the chances are drug dealer has a family?" 

"No way." 

She turns back to the computer and hits another key, "Alright. Rick Conroy. Sixteen Candles, Teen Wolf and Romancing the Stone." She says the last with a soft laugh to which they all reply with a chorus of 'No.' Robin hits a key again, "Okay. Rick Joiner. Mask, Footloose and Grease." Another no. "Rick Kimbrough. The Blue Lagoon and Splash." Definite nope. "Rick Lipton. Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Cheech and Chong's Next Movie. Cheech and Chong's Nice Dreams. Cheech and Chong's Up in Smoke." 

The corners of Nickey's mouth turn up, "That's him for sure." 

Dustin laughs, "Bingo." 

"Lipton?" Max questions. 

"Spelled like the tea." Robin answers, "2121 Holland Road." 

"That's out by Lover's Lake." Dustin comments. 

"Middle of nowhere." Nickey adds. "Perfect place to hide." And she hopes that's all he's doing. She doesn't not want to stumble onto a corpse today.

"Let's get outta here then." Dustin says then starts rushing to gather his backpack. 

Robin and Steve ditch their Family Video vests and the five of them rush out of the store after making sure that it's empty. Robin locks the door as the rest of them stuff into Steve's car. 

Chapter Text

By the time they arrive at Reefer Rick's the sun has already set and the moon has taken it's place. The place is eerily quiet. There aren't any street lights this far out, it's nearly pitch black. The most light comes from the moon bouncing off the water. Of course Reefer Rick would live way out here on the lake, away from everyone. Although, it seems he doesn't live here anymore. Or for the time being, he probably got picked up recently. 

Each of them with a flashlight in hand make their way to porch and stand in front of the door. Nickey stands close to Max, keeping watch of her. She puts a hand in her jacket pocket and runs her fingers over the small bag of Tylenol she's taken to carrying around. Max's headaches seems to come out of nowhere, so she's always prepared just in case. Nickey can always tell when Max starts to get one, it's this certain way she holds her head to the side, like she's trying to relieve the pressure.

Dustin presses the doorbell and they can hear it echo through the house. No one answers. He presses it again. And again. And again. 

Steve rolls his eyes and sighs, "Okay. Well, that's settled. I guess he's not here." 

Dustin brings his fist up and bangs on the door, "Eddie! It's Dustin!" 

"Great." Steve says sarcastically. 

Robin takes a step off the porch and flashes her light through the windows, trying to peer inside. 

"Look, we just wanna talk, okay?" Dustin continues yelling, "No cops, I swear. We just wanna help." 

Nickey leans forward to peer over Dustin's shoulder, "Do you really think it's the best idea to be yelling all of this?" 

Dustin ignores her and bangs his fist on the door again, still shouting Eddie's name. Steve shushes him and Dustin rings the doorbell again. Still shouting for people who are definitely not going to answer. Nickey leans back and gives a tight lipped nod as she watches Robin and Max look through the window. The knot in her stomach hasn't loosened at all. It might just be getting worse the longer they stand here and the longer Dustin screams into the void.  

"Hey, guys." Max calls, gathering everyone's attention as she stands off the side of the house with her flashlight pointing toward the lake. The four other teenagers gather around her to see that she's staring at a boathouse.

"Even better place to hide." Nickey comments. 

"Yeah, if you're crazy." Steve mumbles under his breath and Nickey jabs him with her elbow in his ribs. He gives her a 'what the fuck?' look and she just rolls her eyes. 

They all march down toward the boathouse together.

Nickey and Robin try to peek through the window with their flashlights, but aren’t able to see much of anything. Steve slowly pushes open the door and it lets out a loud creek in protest. The smell hits Nickey almost immediately after she steps over the threshold, she scrunches her nose then shoves it into the bend of her elbow. “It smells like fish and feet in here.” She groans as she steps over a discarded net. The place is a disaster of a mess. Fishing gear is strung about all over the floors, poles and nets lean haphazardly against the walls. A strong enough breeze would probably knock them over. In the middle of it all is a small tarp covered motorboat parked in the dock. No wanted metalhead in sight.

"Hello? Is anyone home?" Robin asks into the empty air. No one responds.

"What a dump." Steve comments as they look through the small building. Nickey follows behind Steve, eyes wandering when he grabs an ore off the wall and stabs the paddle end of it into the tarped boat making her jump. 

"What are you doing?" Dustin asks incredulously. "What are you doing?" He repeats in a whisper with a sharper tone.

Steve keeps stabbing at the tarp, "He might be in here." 

Nickey nods slowly, "Yeah, lets just play whack-a-mole with him. That's a great idea, Steve." She says with a sarcastic smile, which Steve just makes a face at and continues assaulting the tarp. 

Dustin gestures to the boat, "Just take the tarp off." 

"If you're so brave, you take the tarp off." Steve returns and Nickey rolls her eyes. She is surrounded by children.

"Hey." Max says from the other side of the boat causing Nickey to look in her direction. "Look over here." She shines her light at a work table littered with empty food wrappers and beer bottles. "Someone was here." 

Robin goes to Max's side and eyes the table, "Maybe he heard us. Got spooked and ran." She suggests. 

"Don't worry. Steve will get him with his oar." Dustin says sarcastically. 

Steve continues poking the tarp, "I know you think you're being funny, Henderson, but considering the fact that everyone in the room has nearly died about a hundred times, personally, I don't find it funny in the slight-" Steve's sentence is cut short when the tarp is thrown up and he's thrown against the wall. Nickey lets out a surprised scream and barely ducks out of the way in time. 

Robin and Max come rushing over as Eddie slams Steve into the wall. Everyone is shouting, voices mixing together telling Eddie to stop. He's got the broken end of a bottle poised at Steve's neck. Nickey grabs Max and wraps her arms around her sister's shoulders, pressing the girl tightly into her chest. 

"Eddie! Eddie! Stop!" Dustin cries out, "Eddie!" Finally he turns his head to look at the other teenagers, still with the bottle to Steve's throat. Steve is straining to keep out of reach of the jagged glass. Eddie's eyes are wide and wild and he's breathing hard, it doesn't even seem like he knows who is in the room with him, "It's me, it's Dustin. This is Steve!" Eddie looks back to the boy he has pressed against the wall, "He's not gonna hurt you, right, Steve?" 

"Right. Yeah." Steve breathes out still straining away from the bottle. 

"Steve, why don't you drop the oar?" Dustin instructs and Steve follows. Eddie turns the bottle closer to Steve's throat making him strain even further.

"He's cool! He's cool!" "Hey!" Dustin and Nickey's voice fill the air as they both shout.

Eddie's eyes stay locked on Steve, refusing to back down, "What are you doing here?" Eddie questions and Nickey can tell he's trying to keep his voice calm but it wavers, showing the fear hiding underneath. That she doesn't blame him for. Not one bit.

"We're looking for you." Dustin explains slowly. 

"We're hear to help." Robin adds causing Eddie to turn his head sharply. An expression of disbelief and confusion on his features. 

Dustin continues trying to bring Eddie back from the edge, "Eddie, these are my friends." He points behind himself, "You know Robin, from band." She mimes playing her trumpet, "This is my friend Max. The one who never wants to play D&D." He points to the girl wrapped protectively in her sister's arms, "And her sister Nickey." Eddie's eyes land on her face and just for a split second she could swear his eyes soften but it's gone so fast she's not sure it was even there in the first place. Even so she can't explain why her chest warms at the mere thought, "Eddie. We're on your side. I swear on my mother." Eddie looks away, like he's thinking, "Right, guys?" 

"Yes. Yes. We swear." Max says. Nickey's own desperate agreeance floats underneath.

"O-on Dustin's mother." Robin adds.

"Yeah, Dustin's mother." Steve says thickly, still trying to keep away from the glass at his neck. 

Eddie stares down at Steve. Steve winces and sweat dots his face. Finally Eddie releases his grip and backs away. Steve sighs and steps away to lean against a table. Nickey releases her hold on Max and goes with Robin to cheek on their friend. She puts her hand on his shoulder and Steve just nods as he rubs at the neck. Eddie presses his back into the wall before sliding down. Nickey's gaze flutters to him and Dustin tentatively steps closer. Eddie's hands rest on his knees and his eyes are far away. He's trembling all over. Utterly terrified. Which, if what they think is going on is what's going on, then she gets it. All too well. 

"Eddie." Dustin says his name cautiously as he kneels down in front of him, "We just want to talk." He reaches for Eddie's hand but he jerks it away, "Okay." 

Robin crouches down next to Dustin, "We want to know what happened." 

Eddie sniffs and his voice is watery as he speaks, "You won't believe me." He shakes his head like he can dispel the memory. 

Max quirks her head to the side, "Try us." 

Eddie gives her a shocked look for just a moment before looking away again. He swallows harshly and his bottom lip wavers as he takes in a breath. It takes him a few minutes to compose himself. He shakes his head and runs a hand across his face. Before Nickey can even process what she's doing, she steps closer and kneels next to him. She takes the bottle from his hand and tosses it aside then slides her hand into his palm. She honestly surprised at the warmth of it. He whips his gaze to her and she can see the astonishment on his face. Nickey just squeezes his hand and nods for him to continue. It's a trick she learned from a school counselor before her family moved. To have something tangible to hold onto and distract yourself with can help make talking easier. Eddie squeezes Nickey's hand, almost to the point of pain but she doesn't dare yank it away. She can feel the others staring at her, but they don't matter right now.

Eddie sniffles again then averts his eyes from everyone's gaze, "She just wanted drugs, man." He sighs heavily and squeezes Nickey's hand again. "That's it. I went to get them and when I came back, she was just standing there with her eyes rolled back in her head. Then her body just, like, lifted up into the air and uh..." His voice is thick and shaky. Nickey squeezes. "And she just, like, hung there. In the air. And her bones- mmh." Eddie pinches his eyes shut with a soft whimper, "Her bones started to snap." Nickey has to fight a flinch at that, "Her eyes, man. It- it was like there was something inside her head, pulling. I- I didn't know what to do, so I...I ran away." He says it like he's only just realized it. "I left her there." He looks up at everyone then scoffs and pinches the bridge of his nose, "You all think I'm crazy, right?"

Dustin shakes his head, "No, we don't think you're crazy."

"Don't bullshit me, man!" Eddie bursts, "I know how this sounds!"

"We're not bullshiting you." Max says. 

"We believe you." Robin tells him and Eddie lets out an exhausted breath. He shakes his head with disbelief.

Nickey puts her hand on Eddie's knee and his watery gaze locks with hers, "You don't sound crazy." She assures him, "Not to us." And for a moment, just a moment, Nickey takes him in. She really looks at him. Of course, she's looked at him before, but she's never really seen him. Her eyes roam over his features, every soft line that makes up his face. The way his nose turns and the curve of his lips. Mostly she's hooked on his eyes. If you looked up doe eyes in the dictionary she's sure you'd find a picture of Eddie Munson's brown ones right next to it. 

"Look," Dustin speaks cautiously pulling Nickey out of their staring contest, "What I'm about to tell you, might be a little difficult to take.

Eddie gives Dustin a strange look and he warily nods, "Okay?" 

"You know how people say Hawkins is cursed?" Dustin asks, "They're not way off. There's another world. A world hidden beneath Hawkins. Sometimes it bleeds into ours." 

"Like ghosts and shit?" 

"There are some things worse than ghosts." Max says ominously. Memories of gore and guts whirl in Nickey's head. A demodog tearing into her shoulder. The Mind Flayer spearing through Billy's chest. Nickey squeezes her eyes shut and pulls her hands away from Eddie. She steps away and presses her back to the nearest wall with her arms wrapped around herself trying to push away the sights and sounds of the last two years. Eddie's eyes linger on her for a moment.

"These monsters from this other world, we thought they were gone." Dustin continues, "But they've come back before. That's why we needed to find you." 

Max speaks again, "If they're back again, we need to know." 

Robin's voice joins, "That night, did you see anything?" 

"Dark particles, maybe?" Max asks. 

Eddie shakes his head. 

"It would almost look like dust. Swirling dust." Dustin says. 

Eddie shakes his head again, "No, man. There was nothing you could see or-or touch." He continues, "You know, I tried to wake her, man. She couldn't move. It was like she was...she was in a trance or something."

"Or under a spell." Dustin offers. 

"A curse." 

"Vecna's curse." 

Nickey's eyes bounce between the two boys with lines of confusion etched onto her face. She's not the only one who feels left out of the conversation. "Who's Vecna?" Steve asks. 

"An undead creature of great power." Dustin answers in a way that makes Nickey swallow and sends chills over her skin. 

"A spell caster." Eddie says. 

"A dark wizard."  

A bout of silence falls over the boathouse. The kind of silence that creeps over you skin and down your spine. It's heavy and oppressive and demands to be heeded. It just makes Nickey want to wrap her arms even further around herself and curl into a ball. But she can't do that. Not with an imminent danger coming from all sides. And not with Max. She's the most important, above anything else Nickey is going to keep her sister safe. That's been Nickey's soul purpose ever since she could remember, but especially since Billy walked into their life and then they walked into the Upside Down. So she unfurls her arms and straightens her spine then pulls in a steading breath. 

Robin stumbly breaks the quiet, her voice pitching up occasionally. "We know this is a lot to take in and it's all kind of crazy, but we believe you and we're gonna help." She says. Eddie gives her a wary and cautious look. 

Dustin kneels down in front of Eddie, "We're gonna fix this. You just have to trust us." He says and Eddie just stares at him for a long moment with those wide eyes of his. Eventually he gives Dustin a shaky nod. "Okay. We have to go, but we'll be back tomorrow to check on you." Dustin pushes to his feet then turns to Nickey, "You gotta stay here with him." 

An expression of shock passes over Nickey's features, a similar one on Eddie's face, "What?" She asks as she pushes off the wall. 

"Well, someone has to stay with him!" Dustin says, flailing his arms wildly. 

Nickey's brow furrows as she crosses her arms over her chest, "Alright, but why does that someone have to be me? I don't know this guy." She points out. Eddie winces slightly at that.

Dustin groans, "Well, Max and I can't stay. Robin will just freak him out even more, no offense." He says over his shoulder to her. Robin just throws her hands up and shrugs, "And Eddie did almost kill Steve. So that leaves you." He says, "Plus, you were pretty good at calming him down. You seem to be the best candidate for Eddie Watch." 

Nickey rolls her eyes with a huff while at the same time her cheeks warm over and she thanks her lucky stars for the poor lighting, "I just did that so he'd talk to us." 

"And it worked. So you have to stay." Dustin shrugs with a nonchalance that makes Nickey want to whack him over the head. 

Her eyes fall to Max, "Come on, it's not like Mom will notice you're gone anyway." She says, "And if she does I'll cover for you." Max assures her older sister and offers a weak smile. Which seems to be the only kind of smile the younger girl can muster up these days. Nickey can't even remember the last time she saw Max really smile. It was definitely before July 4th.

A long exaggerated sigh falls from Nickey as she throws her head back in defeat with an eye roll. "Fine." She brings her head back to glare at the rest of them, "But you guys better be here in the morning or so help me god I will kill each of you with my bare hands." She threatens which is answered by a chorus of nods. Eddie watches on silently with wide eyes and raised eyebrows. Dustin tosses her a walkie from his backpack as the group makes to walk out, "Take her straight home, Harrington!" She calls with a point to her sister who sighs and rolls her eyes in a similar manner to what Nickey did just moments ago. Steve throws a thumbs up and the door closes behind them leaving Nickey and Eddie alone in the boathouse.

Nickey turns back to Eddie who is still seated in the boat and he stares up at her, a trace of amazement in his eyes. She gives him a tight lipped smile. "Hi." 

He nods, "Hey." 

Well, this awkward.

Chapter Text

Nickey sinks down onto a rickety stool and peers out the window. Steve's headlights disappear behind some trees as he drives away. Suddenly she takes interest in her fingers as she plays with them in her lap, her feeble attempt to distract herself from the weird tension floating overhead. Because this is fucking awkward. She's not sure what she should say to him, if she should say anything. She and the others just dropped a huge bomb in his lap and he himself just witnessed the cheer captain brutally murdered in his trailer. Anything she can think to say seems too unimportant or unhelpful.

Truthfully, even if the circumstances were different Nickey wouldn't have any idea what to say to him. The only things she knows about him is that he's a third year senior, he's been labeled the town freak and he plays Dungeons and Dragons with Mike and Dustin. They had passed each other in the school hallways a few times before she graduated and even shared a few classes, but they'd never had an actual conversation. Not that either one intentionally avoided the other, they just had never talked. Now here they are, sitting in thick silence trying to keep the cops and or an angry mob away. 

"Kiss." Eddie says suddenly and Nickey's head snap to him. She gives him a confused look and he immediately realizes what he said, "Oh! No, no, no. I meant you like KISS the-the band." He stumbles through the words with reddened cheeks. 

Nickey slowly nods, "Yeah. How'd you know that?" 

He clears his throat and shakes his head a bit, like he's trying to rid himself of the memory of just five seconds ago, "The record store." He says and Nickey inclines her head remembering the fact that he's been in multiple times this week, "KISS is always playing when I see you there, I just assumed." She gives him a bemused look and that heavy silence returns. Eddie huffs a small breath and internally curses himself. Honestly, Eddie wanted to talk to Nickey for a while now. It would be just his luck that these are the circumstances that grant him the opportunity. He's been pining after her ever since she showed up on her first day of school, not that he'd ever admit that to anyone. He was just way too nervous to ever walk up to her, and then he saw her with Billy and every chance he thought he could have extinguished themselves. Eddie knows Billy was just Nickey's step brother, but it just reminded him where she came from and who he is. No way a girl from California would ever want to talk to a guy like him. So he stayed away, quietly pinning from a distance. "Do you want some bud?" He asks quickly causing Nickey to look at him again. Eddie shrugs, "I just thought it would make things less-" 

"Awkward?" Nickey finishes for him and he nods sheepishly. "Sure." She stands from the stool and steps down into the boat. It rocks slightly so instinctively Eddie grabs her hand as she lowers herself into the seat across from him. She still isn't over the warmth of if. 

He pulls his hand away once the boat stops teetering then reaches into his pocket to pull out an already rolled joint and lighter. Eddie settles the joint between his lips then lights it before taking a long drag. He passes it to Nickey and she does the same. The smoke fills her mouth and lungs, she holds it for a moment to let the effects begin their magic then lets it billow out of her parted lips.

Eddie raises his eyebrows slightly, "Not my first rodeo." Nickey says taking a quicky drag before handing it back. Smoking was a habit that she picked up as a result of the last two years. After all the shit she's been through, smoking is the only thing that lets her forget about it. Even if it is only for a little while. It's a reprieve she's grateful for, not matter how short.

A few smoke rings fall from Eddie's lips before he speaks, a little tentatively she notices, "Actually, the record store isn't the only place I've seen you before." He says and Nickey quirks her head to the side. "You live across from me, at the trailer park. Max is your sister, right? I've seen you two together." 

Nickey nods, her lids drooping slightly, "Yeah. Max is my sister and yeah, we live in that shitty trailer." 

He leans in a little. Heat creeps up Nickey's neck at the proximity, "I know it's not really my business or anything, but is she okay?" The question takes Nickey back. No one other than Lucas has asked about how Max is doing these days. She didn't think anyone other than them had actually noticed something was wrong. And now here was this stranger, and he's noticed. "It's just- I've seen her around school and she kinda seems like-"

"A zombie?" Nickey offers as she takes the blunt from his fingers then places it between her lips. 

Eddie blanches for a moment, blinking rapidly, "I was going to say sad, but yeah, that works too." He says then stanches the blunt back and leans away.

She shrugs and blows a puff of smoke from her mouth. Her gesture is nonchalant but there's an air of sadness around her, "She's been like that ever since Billy died." She speaks with a tone that tells Eddie she doesn't entirely share her sister's sentiment.

"You don't seem too cut up about it." He states and she shrugs again, "I thought he was your brother." 

Nickey's face hardens as her gaze snaps up to meet his. The looks chills him to his core and freezes him in his spot, "Billy was not my brother." She speaks with the sharpness of a razors edge, "He was just the asshole son of the asshole guy my mom married."

"Sorry, I didn't mean-"

"No, it's not your fault." Nickey says and runs a hand over her face trying to dampen the anger bubbling up in her veins, "Billy is just a sore subject for me." She admits but almost immediately wishes she hadn't. She's never talked to anyone about what happened with her and Billy. Not even Max, she only knew about what she heard or saw. Nothing more. That's how she plans to keep it that way for as long as she can. So why does she feel so comfortable letting out even the smallest vulnerability right now? It's got to be the weed.

Eddie plasters a smile onto his face, but it doesn't reach his eyes. He's forcing it for her benefit, "What? No brother of the year awards from you?" He jokes and even though it's a terrible joke the corners of Nickey's mouth tip upward.

She shakes her head sending ashes from the joint she took back falling around her, "Nope."

He sits upright again, leans forward again, takes the blunt back and finishes it before dropping it and stamping it out with the toe of his sneaker. Nickey, suddenly warm all over, shakes her jacket off her shoulders and tosses it to the ground. She's unsure if it's the weed or the close proximity. Eddie's eyes rake down her now exposed skin with alarm in his eyes, "That is a nasty scar." He states, eyes still glued to the flesh peaking out from under her the sleeve of her t-shirt. The rest of it wraps around her shoulder.

Nickey's gaze follows his and both of them examine the ridges of tissue that make up her upper arm, "Yeah, demodogs are a bitch." She says with a bitter laugh. The day at the hospital is burned into her brain. Sometimes she can swear that she can still feel the creature ripping into her skin. It was purely luck that Nancy and Jonathan were there in time to save her. At times she wonders what would have happened to Max if she lost both her and Billy. Just the thought of it makes her stomach twist. Nickey clears her throat and shakes the thought away. Eddie opens his mouth, probably to ask how she obtained the scar, but she speaks before he can, "You're not what I thought you'd be." 

Eddie's throat bobs and his turns his eyes downcast, "Really?" He expects she thinks the worst of him. And why wouldn't she? Everyone else does. 

"Mhm, everyone says you're a freak so..." Nickey trails and finally Eddie's eyes meet hers as he anticipates the thrashing she's about to throw his way, "I was expecting you to be at least a little bit freaky. It's kinda disappointing, Munson." A smile splits her cheeks and Eddie laughs. A thunderous sound that makes her chest tighten and stomach flip. 

He runs his hands over his thighs as he leans closer, "Honestly, you're not what I thought you'd be either. Actually, I thought you might kinda be like Billy." He says and Nickey's smile drops, "But you're not!" He says in a panic, "At all, you seem like the exact opposite."

Nickey chews on the inside of her lip. Anyone thinking she's anything even remotely like Billy makes her want to hurl. Everyone always thought he was so cool. But they didn't know him. They didn't see the way he treated her or Max. The bruises he left on their arms where he squeezed too tight. They didn't see the way he screamed in their faces. The way he slammed doors and broke dishes when he was angry. Which was often. They didn't see that he learned it all from his dad. Through all his sweet talking and good looks, they couldn't see how hateful he truly was. They didn't know it all because Nickey never told anyone. 

"You okay?" Eddie asks. 

"Do you know why we moved to Hawkins?" She asks and Billy gives her a quizzical look, "I mean, other than my stepdad's job." She clarifies before sucking in a deep breath and straightening her shoulders. Her eyes lock in on her fingernails as she picks at them, "One day I guess I pissed Billy off pretty badly, and I don't even remember what it was. It was probably something really stupid. But..." Eddie's gaze catches Nickey's when she looks up and for a moment she struggles to find her words, "He started this rumor that he was sleeping with me. People at school started calling me names. Brotherfucker, shit like that. Guys would grope me in the halls or follow me home." Nickey blinks rapidly, pushing away both the memories and the tears that came with them, "It got so bad that we didn't really have any other choice but to leave. He always denied to our parents but I know it was him. And because he was the cool guy, because he was fucking Billy, no one called him disgusting or a slut. He was just getting some ass from his desperate stepsister." Nickey jolts a bit when Eddie slides his hand over hers causing her skin to prickle, "Billy was a sadistic asshole and I will never be anything like him. I hate him and his bastard father for ditching us." A shuddering breath flows through Nickey's chest. That's the first time she's ever told anyone about what Billy did to her. And although it hurts, it fucking hurts, she feels like the world has lifted off her shoulders. 

Eddie looks at her with his mouth slightly agape, almost like he's in awe, "I-I knew Billy was a shit, but...Fuck. I'm sorry." His voice is barely above a whisper, he's so close that he doesn't need to speak much louder and his words make Nickey's spine tingle, "I get it, sort of. I've been bullied my entire life. You know, I've been beat up, called a freak, the whole shebang. My Dad abandoned me at my Uncle's place after my mom died then got himself into prison. Trust me when I say that I can relate." He squeezes her fingers, but unlike earlier when she was comforting him it doesn't hurt. Now he's comforting her, trying to tell her she can trust him, "I don't think you're a sadistic asshole. And I'm sorry that Billy was. You deserved a better brother than that." 

He runs his thumb over the back of Nickey's hand leaving fire in its wake, "Step brother." She corrects, she can't help herself, "But thank you. Although, I really think, with the situation at hand, shouldn't I be the one trying to make you feel better?" She asks with a teasing grin.

He smiles, "Probably." Then he shrugs, "But I like this. It lets me not think about the fact that I'm probably wanted for a murder I didn't commit. Oh! And the fact that there is an alternate dimension of Hawkins with monsters that killed a teenage girl in my trailer." He shrugs lightly, but she can tell in is face that he isn't feeling as nonchalant as he's pretending, "I like the distraction." 

Nickey laughs dryly, "Well, then I'm glad I could distract you." A small smile tugs at the corners of her lips. This isn't how she thought she'd be spending her day at all. To be completely honest, she never thought she'd ever hang out with Eddie Munson. Not that she had anything against him, the opportunity just never really presented itself. And now she can't ignore this creeping thought in the back of her mind that she should've started hanging out with him a long time ago. 

Eddie's smile softens just a bit and she can swear his eyes are sparkling as he look at her, "Can I tell you the truth?" He asks and Nickey nods slowly, "I've always kind of hoped you weren't anything like Billy?"

Nickey's forehead crinkles as she furrows her brow, "Why?"

He looks away for a moment then his grip on Nickey's hand tightens, she forgot he was even holding it. "Because ever since you showed up in Hawkins I've wanted to know who you are." The tightness in her chest deepens and her stomach flips again. Her skin where it meets his feels like it's blazing. She's never felt like this around anyone before and she's not sure whether she should embrace this feeling or run away as fast as she can, "I thought you were the prettiest girl I had ever seen and I was too afraid to say anything to you because I'm a wimp." He smiles and Nickey huffs a laugh through her nose. "But you are so much more than I ever expected and I know we've only spoken to each other for the first time," He checks the watch on his wrist, turning your hand with his, "About five minutes ago but it's been the best five minutes I've had in the last 24 hours. All things considered." A wide smile spreads onto her face and a matching one spreads on Eddie's, "There it is." He says.  

"What?"

"That smile right there is what made me want to know you." 

Nickey tips her head back with a rumbling laugh. Playfully, she shoves Eddie's shoulder with her free hand, "Alright, Casanova." He laughs this time and it makes her heart feel like it's going to explode. "I think the weed has gone to your head."

His eyes narrow and he quirks his head to the side, "Isn't that where it's supposed to go?" 

She sticks her tongue in her cheek, trying to keep herself from smiling, "Ya know, I'm supposed to making sure no one finds you. I'm fairly certain flirting is not apart of that." 

"Can't we do both?" 

Nickey rolls her eyes and even though she doesn't want to, she gently removes her hand from Eddie's grip. She watches as his hand falls away from her body. Her eyes trace over the sly smile on his face. The heart beat thundering in her chest is loud in her own ears. So loud she's wondering if Eddie can hear it too. "It'd be a lot easier to do this if Hopper were here." She says, mostly thinking out loud. A bittersweet smile turns up her lips. 

"Hopper?" Eddie questions, "Chief Jim Hopper?" Nickey nods, "How would this be easier? Do you know how many times that guy caught me speeding? How many times he almost caught me with drugs? Chief Jim Hopper hated me, there is no way in hell this situation would be any different-" Eddie cuts his own ramble short as a look of realization softens his features, "He knew about all this didn't he?" Nickey nods again with a tight lipped grin, "Yeah." Eddie sighs resting his chin in his hand. "There's a lot about this town that I have no clue about isn't there?" 

Nickey hums, "There's a lot that a lot of people don't know about. Like the fire at Starcourt for instance." She says and Eddie gives her a curious look, "Definitely not entirely an accident. Definitely because of the same shit we're dealing with right now." Nickey glances down to her fingers where she's picking at the already chipped nail polish. Memories flood her mind. Specific memories of a specific memory. 

"Billy...didn't die in that fire, did he?" Eddie concludes. Nickey gives a shake of her head. "Something from this...other world...killed him?" And although he phrases it like a question he says it like a statement. Like he's just put the pieces of the puzzle together himself and it's all laid out on a table in front of him.

"The kids were calling it the Mind Flayer. It was this huge monstrous thing. Took up the entire food court." She recalls as she continues to pick at her nails. "It was controlling Billy, making him do horrible things to other people. And he tried to fight it, I could tell he was trying. And I just stood there and watched it kill him. I didn't run. I didn't scream. I didn't cry. I just watched." Nickey's voice has lowered to barely above a whisper. A chill runs down her spine as the scene plays in her mind. "It was like I couldn't move. The only thing that snapped me out of it was Max. I heard her scream. And I remember just holding her while staring at this lifeless body on the floor that had been ripped open." Eddie looses a shaky breath as he runs his palms over his thighs. Nickey stammers for a moment, realizing the weight of her words, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have told you about that. You're already freaked out enough. I just don't talk about this stuff very often and it's all sort of just tumbling out." 

Eddie shakes his head, "No, no. I-I should know what I'm really up against here. Right?" He's trying to put up this front that what Nickey has said hasn't completely unnerved him to his core. She can see that it has though. With the way his hands shake and the color has completely drained from his face and the way his breathing falters every so often. 

Nickey leans forward and puts her hand over his to stop his trembling, "We should probably get some sleep." She says softly. For a moment it seems like Eddie didn't hear her until he slowly nods. She offers a weak smile which Eddie tries to return but it's more pained than anything. 

For a long while Nickey sits in the silence of the boathouse waiting for Eddie to fall asleep. She curses herself for telling him about how Billy died. Hadn't the guy been through enough? But she just couldn't stop the words coming out of her mouth. That was the first time she'd ever talked about it to someone. Max never wanted to talk about, which Nickey could understand. It was way too traumatic for the both of them. None of the others would really understand, they all hated Billy. Nickey did too, but at the same time he was her stepbrother. He was apart of her life. Saying it's complicated would be putting it lightly. But did she really have to take the first opportunity she found to dump her trauma onto someone who just experienced something very similar? It felt like such a relief to finally tell someone what actually happened at Starcourt, but was telling it to Eddie worth it? All she really accomplished was scarring him even more than he already is.

She glances over to where Eddie lays. His chest slowly rising and falling, mouth slightly opened. It's probably the first time he's slept in at least twenty four hours. He's probably exhausted. Nickey slides her jacket back over her shoulders and sinks down onto the floor of the boat before wrapping her arms around herself to try and get some sleep herself. 

Nickey only gets about an hour of sleep when the boat rocks harshly and a sharp gasp makes her eyes fly open. She whips her head back and forth looking for the intruder she suspects has entered the boathouse, but no one is there. Heavy breathing brings her attention to the boy at the other end of the boat. Eddie sits with his head between his knees, his arms wrapped over his head as he takes in large gulps of air. 

"Eddie." Nickey says his name softly, trying not to startle him. She creeps closer to him and places her hands over his arms. Gently she pries his arms away from his head. She leans down in an attempt to catch his gaze, "Eddie." She says again. 

His whole body trembles as he slowly, so slowly, lifts his head up. His cheeks are wet, streaked with tear stains. "Do they ever stop?" Eddie asks on shaky vocal chords. He doesn't elaborate, Nickey knows exactly what he's asking about. The Nightmares. 

Nickey swallows as she releases his arms and places her palms against his cheeks, swiping tears away with her thumbs, "I wouldn't know." She answers truthfully. Eddie shudders at that, squeezing his eyes shut. "One day they won't be so bad, but I don't know if they'll ever stop. I'm so sorry, Eddie." Nickey lets out a sound of surprise when Eddie's arms dart out around her waist. He pulls her into himself and he buries his face in her shoulder. Nickey settles her hands into his hair and lets him hold her. She can't change anything that has happened but she can give him this much. A little bit of comfort. He deserves that much. 

Chapter Text

Nickey's eyes flutter open when the boat rocks a little too harshly. She rubs the sleep from her eyes and a yawn falls from her lips. The boat wasn't too terrible to sleep in. Although that must be because of the warm thing she's laying on. Her eyes clear from the sleepy haze and she sees that that warm thing is Eddie's chest. They must have fallen asleep still in each others arms last night. Eddie's eyes are still closed and his chest is slowly rising and falling, clearly still asleep. A groggy smile makes it's way onto Nickey's face. Eddie's arms is draped over her waist and their legs are tangled together. All of it feels so casual, so normal. Too normal for the situation at hand. 

"I can feel you staring." Eddie's voice is thick with sleep and he keeps his eyes closed as he speaks.

"Can't help it." Nickey says and she nuzzles closer into Eddie's side. He's warm. His arm tightens around her, "You know, you're kinda pretty, Munson." 

He cracks an eye open at that, "Only kinda, Mayfield?" Nickey just smiles at him. He closes his eyes again with a grin as he brings his hand up to tangle into Nickey's hair. She leans into his touch.

"Anymore dreams?" She asks abruptly. Eddie's movement halt and for a few long seconds he doesn't do anything. Then, finally, he shakes his head. A wash of relief flows over Nickey, glad that for just a few hours his mind was clear of monsters. It's awful enough to experience what he went through in real life, but to live it over and over again in your sleep is nearly just as traumatizing. She would know.

Suddenly the door flies open causing the both of them to bolt upright in the boat, "Jesus Christ!" Eddie shouts as Robin, Steve, Max and Dustin walk into the boathouse. 

"Delivery service." Dustin says with a sly smile as he holds two grocery bags up. 

"Cozy?" Robin asks smirking at the two still sitting in the boat.

"Gross." Max mumbles under her breath. Nickey rolls her eyes before climbing out of the boat. Eddie's hand falls away from where is rested against her hip leaving the spot cold. "Brought you a change of clothes." Max says and tosses a bag to her sister. 

Nickey catches it, "Thanks." She tugs Robin, Max, and Steve in front of her body as she tucks into a corner with their back to her. 

"What are we doing?" Steve asks with a glance at her over his shoulder to which she wacks him in the back of the head. He grumbles under his breath as he rubs at the spot.

"Being a wall, stop looking." She instructs as she pulls her shirt over her head then replaces it with the one Max brought. A KISS t-shirt from a concert she went to with their dad. Quickly she toes off her shoes and changes into the new jeans. "Okay, you can move now." She says after zipping. The three of them disperse and Nickey slips her sneakers back onto her feet. Now she can see Eddie is still sitting in the boat, only now he's tearing into a box of Honeycombs and shoveling handfuls into his mouth like he's never eaten before. To be fair, this is probably the first time he's eaten something in the last day. 

Nickey sits down on the ground next to the boat and shoves her own hand into the box of cereal and stuffing it into her mouth. Eddie digs in a bag at his side and pulls out two bottles of Yoo-Hoo. He hands one to Nickey then opens one for himself. 

"So we got some good news and some bad news." Dustin starts, "How do you prefer?" 

"Bad news first, always." Eddie says through the cereal in his mouth.

Dustin nods, "Alright, bad news. We tapped into the Hawkins PD dispatch with our Cerebro and they're definitely looking for you." Eddie's face falls and Nickey's chest tightens. This is not good. "Also, they're pretty convinced you killed Chrissy." Yeah, not good.

"Like 100% kind of convinced." Max adds. 

"Shit." Nickey mumbles under her breath. 

"And the good news?" Eddie asks with a tinge of hope in his voice, yet that dreadful waver still present.

"Your name hasn't gone public yet." Robin answers, "But if we found out about you, it's only a matter of time before others do too. And once that gets out, everyone and their shallow minded mother is gonna be gunning for you."

Eddie stares at the bottom of the boat with a broken expression on his face that makes Nickey want to reach for him, "Hunt the freak, right?" His voice cracks and Nickey winces. 

"Exactly." Robin confirms. 

"Shit." Eddie says shakily and this time Nickey does reach for him. She places her hand on his shoulder, but he won't look her way.

"So, before that happens, we need to find Vecna, kill him, and prove your innocence." Dustin says as if it's really that simple. 

Eddie balks at Dustin, "That's all, Dustin? That's all?" He says sarcastically and Nickey pulls her hand into her own lap. Eddie does glance at her this time. She can't read his face though. She knows he's scared and confused, but there's something else in his gaze and she can't place it. 

Dustin makes a sound of confirmation, "Yeah, that's pretty much it."

Robin leans forward against one of the wires holding the boat in place, "Listen, Eddie, I know everything Dustin is saying sounds totally delusional, but we've actually been through this kinda thing before. I mean they have a-a few times." She says gesturing to the rest of the group, "And I have once. Mine was more human=flesh based and theirs was more smoke related, but bottom line is, collectively, I really feel like we got this." She smiles wide and confident trying to assure the metalhead that they all know what they're doing. Eddie just has a look of bewilderment on his face.

Steve starts speaking from his position against a beam, "Yeah. You see, usually we rely on this girl who has superpowers, but those went bye-bye so...."

"So we're technically more in the sorta..." Robin starts, she and Steve start speaking over each other scrambling for words.

"Brainstorming phase." Max offers. 

Steve snaps his fingers with a grateful point to the younger Mayfield sister, "Brainstorming." 

"There's...there's nothing to worry about." Dustin sputters and Steve gives a faux confident scoff.

Nickey pinches the bridge of her nose and squeezes her eyes shut, "Good lord." She mutters to herself. Although her head snaps up at the sound of sirens coming closer. 

"Tarp! Tarp!" Robin shouts at Eddie in a panic. 

Quickly Eddie lays back in the boat and Nickey helps throw the tarp back over him. Then the five of them rush over to the window and peer out. A cop car followed by an ambulance speeds past. A few more cop cars tail the ambulance. Nickey shares a quizzical look with Robin, hearts pounding heavily in their chests. When they're sure no one is coming for them, they all retreat from the window. 

Nickey kneels down next to the boat and pulls the tarp back, "Coast is clear." Eddie lets out a relieved sigh and sits upright. Nickey looks to her friends, "Okay, we need to start brainstorming. Fast. Because that," She points sharply to the window, "Cannot be good. Has anyone talked to Nancy?" 

The group shares glances between one another. 

"Nancy Wheeler?" Eddie asks with shock on his face, "She's involved in this?"

Nickey nods, "Yeah, and we should probably go find her and tell her what's going on. We could really use her brain right now."

"That's a good idea." Steve agrees. 

"We should also figure out if wherever those cops are going is connected." Dustin says causing the attention to turn to him, "It could be another victim." 

A sick feeling rises in her gut. "Right." Nickey says on a breath. She turns to Eddie who is already looking at her, "Are you gonna be okay on your own for a bit?" She asks. 

Eddie looks at Nickey for a long minute, contemplating while chewing the inside of his cheek. His fingers flex as if about to reach for her but he just curls them into his palm. Finally he nods, a bit shaky. "Yeah, yeah. I think so." She blinks, she wasn't sure what answer she expected him to give. But she recognizes in that moment if he had said no, if he had asked her to stay with him, she would have.

Nickey grabs the walkie from the floor of the boat and shoves it into Eddie's hand, "Alright. If you need anything use this, okay?" He gives a slow nod. "Stay out of sight. I'll be back as soon as I can." She promises and gives his free hand a quick squeeze before rising to her full height. 

The group starts filing out of the boathouse. Quickly Nickey gathers her discarded clothes in her arms before tossing a look over her shoulder at the boy sitting idling in the boat. There's about a million different emotions on his face. Worry. Fear. Disbelief. As much as she can, Nickey musters up a smile. Eddie's eyes catch hers and just for a single moment she can see some hope in his eyes. Hope that this all may actually work out. But as quick as it came it was gone. And for whatever reason, in that moment, Nickey becomes bound and determined to see that hope again. 

Once piled into Steve's car he heads off in the same direction the cops and ambulance were heading a few moments ago. After just a few minutes of driving they can see other cars parked on the side of the road. The closer they get and they can see people walking around. Then they spot the barriers. Steve parks and they all step out of the car. There's cop cars everywhere. A few are walking around the scene. There's a news van, their crew is meandering as well. Then in the middle of it all, surrounded by three cops, is the exact girl they've been looking for. 

Nancy spots them. A sad yet relieved expression grows on her face and she gives them a small wave of her hand. 

When Nancy was finally able to get away from the officers questioning all the group of teenagers headed back to the trailer park where each explained their sides of the story. They explained Chrissy going to Eddie's trailer for drugs and being murdered by who they deduced to be Vecna, then finding Eddie and explaining everything to him. Nancy explained that she and Fred went to the trailer park to try and get a scoop on the murder that occurred, then that Fred had seemed to just disappear while Nancy was speaking to Eddie's Uncle who informed her about this Victor Creel creep. Then she explained that Fred had been found on the road in a very similar manner to how Chrissy was killed. 

"So you're saying, that this thing that killed Fred and Chrissy, it's from the Upside Down?" Nancy asks on a croaky voice, tired from speaking. Possibly from crying. 

"If the shoe fits." Steve says.

Dustin continues to explain further, "Our working theory is that he attacks with a spell or a curse. Now whether or not he's doing the bidding of the Mind Flayer or just loves killing teens, we don't know." 

Max interjects, "All we know is, this is something different. Something new." 

Nancy shakes her head, "Doesn't make sense." 

"It's only a theory." Dustin says. 

"No. Fred and Chrissy don't make sense." Nancy clarifies. "I mean, why them."

Nickey raises her brow, "That's a fair point. I honestly can't think of any two drastically different people, so why did Vecna go after them both?" 

"Maybe they were just in the wrong place." Dustin offers. "They were both at the game." 

"And at the trailer park." Max says as if a bout of clarity just hit her.

"We're at the trailer park." Steve says suddenly uneasy and glances around, "Uh, should we maybe not be here?" 

The thought that this place, her home, however much she hates it, being the reason two teenagers are dead sends a chill through Nickey's spine. 

"There is something about this place." Nancy says, "Fred starting acting weird the second we got here." 

"Acting weird as in..?" Robin asks. 

"Scared. On edge. Upset." Nancy answers as if she's unsure how to describe the boy's behavior. 

Dustin turns his eyes to Max, "Max said Chrissy was upset too." 

"Yeah, but not here." She clarifies, "She was crying in the bathroom at school."

Robin braces herself against the picnic table they’re all sat at, “Serial killers stalk their prey before they strike, right?”She inquires, “So, maybe Fred and Chrissy saw this Vecman-“

Dustin cuts in to correct her, “Vecna.” 

Nickey rolls her eyes and rests her forehead against her hand, “Does it matter?” 

“Yes.” He replies pointedly and Nickey huffs. 

“I don’t know about you guys, but if I saw some freaky wizard monster, I would mention it to someone.” Steve says. 

“Maybe they did.” Max suggests, “I saw Chrissy leaving Ms. Kelly's office. If you saw a monster, you wouldn't go to the police. They'd never believe you. But you might go to your-"

"Your shrink." Robin finishes for her. 

Nickey takes a moment to try and process the information they've gathered. They know there's a monster, Vecna. They know he's killed two teenagers so far. And that one of them went to see the school counselor. There's a possibility that so did the other one. It's the same counselor that her little sister speaks to. Suddenly Nickey feels the need to fall to her knees and bow her head to pray to God, or anyone and anything, that Ms. Kelly is just a coincidence. 

There's many things that Nickey can protect Max from, she's been doing it for years. She protected her from the school bullies when they lived in California. She protected her from their step dad. She protected her from Billy the best she could. She's been trying to protect her from their mother's drinking. She doesn't know if she can protect Max from an interdimensional monster. 

Max, seeing her sister staring in her direction, gives Nickey a confused glare. Nickey blinks rapidly trying to push away her own thoughts and averts her eyes. 

"I can ask Ms. Kelly about Chrissy and Fred. See if they told her anything about seeing monsters." Max says. 

The group rises from the picnic table and heads back to Steve's car. Nancy splits off heading for her own car. 

"Whoa, whoa. Nance." Steve hurries after her, "Nance!" She stops and spins on her heel, the rest of the group stands around Steve's car watching, "Nance, where are you going?"

"There's just something I want to check on first." She says while walking backwards to her car.

"Something you maybe wanna share with the us?" Dustin asks.

Nancy shakes her head shyly, "I don't want to waste your time. It's a real shot in the dark."

"Yeah. Okay, are you out of your mind?" Steve asks incredulously, "Flying solo with this Vecna creep on the loose. No, it's too dangerous. You need...You need someone to..." Steve's voice drifts and Nickey eyes him carefully. Nancy just watches him with raised eyebrows. Steve turns and tosses his keys, Robin clumsily catches them, "Here. I'll stick with Nance, alright. You guys take the car, check out the shrink."

"I don't think you want me driving your car." Robin points out before Steve can walk away. 

"Why?" He asks. 

"I don't have a license." 

"Why don't you have a license?" 

Robin shrugs, "I'm poor." 

Steve looks to Nickey with raised eyebrows, "It took me four tries to get my license and I literally haven't driven a car since." She says and he gives an exasperated sigh.

"I can drive." Max suggests. 

Steve whips his head in her direction, "No! Never again, please. Anybody, but you. No." Nickey glances at her sister and has to bite back a laugh. She told her all about having to drive Steve's car with a brick strapped to the pedals while he laid unconscious in the backseat after Billy beat the shit out of him. Dustin gives Steve a mischievous look, "No chance." 

"Come on." Dustin begs. 

"No." 

Robin shakes her head then grabs Nickey's wrist. She lets out a surprised squeak as Robin tugs her forward, "Alright, this is stupid." Robin yanks a walkie out of Dustin's backpack then shoves Steve's keys back into his hand, "Us ladies will stick together." She declares with the both of them now at Nancy's side, "Unless you think we need you to protect us." She says sarcastically. Steve just gives her and annoyed smile and Robin laughs then the three girls start toward Nancy's car.

"Be careful!" He calls after them.

"Max, take care of Steve for me!" Nickey calls back over her shoulder. Steve flips her off to which she returns the gesture with a wide sarcastic smile.

Three teenage girls walk up the steps of the town library while the clock tower tolls in the background. Something that would be a normal sight on any normal day. The conversation being had is nothing short of abnormal. 

"Okay. Help me get this straight. Eddie's uncle, Wayne, thinks that Victor Creel escaped from Pennhurst Asylum and that he's the one running around Hawkins committing all these murders?" Robin repeats back what Nancy told her and Nickey in the car on the way over. How she talked to Wayne and he told her this story about Creel and how his whole family died with their eyes gouged out and how he was arrested for it then sent to the asylum. 

"Pretty much." Nancy says.

"But Victor committed the eyeball murders, like, way back in the 50s." 

"Well, 59." Nancy specifies as she swings the door to the library open. 

Nickey narrows her eyes for a moment as she thinks, "These murders happened way before El was even born and we found the Upside Down. Like thirty years before. So this Victor guy is, like, seventy something years old."

Nancy looks around the empty librarian desk impatiently, "Yep." She taps the bell on the counter letting out a sharp ring. 

Robin leans her elbow on the counter then rests her chin in her hand, "So, he's a grandpa murderer, who can turn invisible and lift people into the air." 

"It doesn't make sense, I know." Nancy says with a tight lipped smile. Nickey can feel the tension radiating off of Nancy's body, "That's why I said it was a shot in the dark." Nancy taps the bell again.

"I know. I just thought by 'shot in the dark' you were being modest or hiding something super solid up your sleeve that you were gonna wow us with later." Robin starts and Nickey can just tell the girl is about to go on a tangent. Nancy starts rapidly tapping the bell. "But this is really, truly a shot in the dark. Like we are snippers with blindfolds who've been spun around fifty times." 

Nancy sighs in exasperation and rapidly taps the bell once more. Robin looks to Nickey with raised eyebrows and Nickey just gives her an awkward shrug.

"Coming!" A sharp voice fills their ears as the librarian comes out of the office carrying a stack of books which she places on the desk.

"Hi. Sorry. We're in a bit of a rush. Could we get the keys to the basement archives?" Nancy asks politely.

"Of course. Give me one sec." The librarian says then turns away.

The three girls stand in silence waiting for only a few moment before Robin speaks again. "Did I come of mean or condescending or something?" She asks Nancy.

"No." Nancy answers quickly. 

"Right. It's just, you seem annoyed." Robin says and Nickey shoves away her urge to scream 'YES!' Robin goes on, Nickey pinches the bridge of her nose. This is not going to go well, "You don't know me very well. I don't really have a filter or a strong grasp of social cues." 

"Okay." Nancy says quietly and absolutely trying to get Robin to stop talking.

Robin doesn't stop talking, "So, if I say something that upsets you, just know that I know it's a flaw. Believe me, my mother reminds me daily." 

Nancy looks at Robin for a moment and shakes her head, "Got it." 

Thank the God above the librarian returns finally, "Alright, ladies. Here you go. Have fun." 

Nancy takes the keys from the woman and offers her a smile, "Yep. We'll try." Nancy turns away from the desk and starts heading for the basement. 

Robin looks to Nickey as the two of them follow Nancy. "She hates me." Robin whispers. 

Nickey shakes her head, "She doesn't hate you. She's just...." She tries to think of something to say to remedy the situation, "Stressed?" She lands on finally. Robin gives her a flat look to which Nickey squeezes the girls elbow, "Just give her some time, this is really egregious circumstances to try and get to know someone under. And you just talk. So much." Nickey smiles brightly hoping to soften the statement. 

Robin squeezes her eyes shut and groans. 

"Listen, I love you for it, but you gotta give people time to get used to you. You can be a lot. I love you, but it's the truth." Nickey says then tugs Robin forward, "Come on, we have article about a family annihilator to read."

Chapter Text

Nickey's eyes feel like they're going to melt and drip out of her own head. She, Robin and Nancy have been reading article after article about this Creel guy for what feels like hours at this point. All of them say essentially the same thing. Dead family with missing eyes and contorted bodies with the father being the lone survivor. Creel is sent to the looney bin. Nickey squeezes her eyes shut then presses her palms against them before going back to reading over Robin's shoulder again. The longer this goes on the harder it is to concentrate. Her mind keeps bouncing around. Obviously she's wondering what's up with Max and if she's okay. Has she had any headaches? Does Steve have Tylenol with him? If not would he get her some? Probably, but she still worries. Then she starts to think about how Eddie is doing all by himself. He's probably still freaking out. Probably still confused. He might be lonely. Should they have left him alone? 

"Anything, uh, juicy over there?" Robin calls out to Nancy pulling Nickey's focus back. 

"Nothing new." Nancy replies sounding a little exasperated. 

"Yep, same here." Robin says, "Victor seemed like a normal guy. Dead family, missing eyes, took a plea deal, sent to Pennhurst. Blah, blah, blah." Robin leans around the archive reader after a moment of silence, "What are we looking for exactly?" She asks but Nancy doesn't give a response.

Nickey leans around the opposite side and sees Nancy is still sitting on her side and hasn't vanished. "Nance?" Again no answer. 

Robin brings her fist up and knocks rhythmically on the side of the machine. 

Finally, Nancy leans her head to the side giving attention to Robin. 

"Any mention of dark wizards or alternate dimensions? Things in that vein?" Robin asks.

Nancy drops her head for a moment, "I don't know. Okay?" The irritation in her voice is enough to make Nickey jump, "It's starting to seem like this was just a big waste of time." Nancy stands from her seat and paces a few feet away before whipping around to face Robin again, "And you're obviously bored, so why don't you call Steve?" She says his name with a sharpness, "I'm sure he'd come pick you up. And, I mean, I'm not really in danger here, so..." Nancy finishes then turns on her heel and heads further down into the archives. 

Robin turns to Nickey with a bewildered expression and she just shrugs. "Stay here a sec." Nickey instructs before following the footsteps of her friend. Hurriedly trying save this mission from being a complete disaster.

Once Nickey descends the steps she sees Nancy digging through another drawer of archives. "Nance? Is everything alright, that was a little intense back there." She says keeping her voice light as to not upset her again. Something very obviously has the girl wound way too tight. 

"I'm fine." Nancy says with a shake of her head. 

Nickey nods slowly, "Okay. Listen, I know Robin can be a lot, but could you maybe just give her a chance instead of biting her head off for seemingly no reason?" She pleads. Nickey needs them to get along. They're her only girl friends and if they can't stand each other? Well, then she's fucked.

Nancy meet's Nickey's gaze, "I just want to figure this out." She says firmly. 

"You're too damn hard on yourself, you know that?" Nickey asks and for the first time since they arrived at the library Nancy isn't so tense. She breathes a small sigh and turns to Nickey with a familiar softness in her eyes. "Can you relax a little?" 

Just then Robin comes fumbling down the steps like the whirlwind she is, "You do know that Steve and I are, like, totally not a thing, right?" The girl ask causing Nickey to squeeze her eye shut in a wince. Sometimes she really wishes Robin could just keep her mouth shut.

"What?" Nancy asks incredulously already tensing back up.

Robin walks the rest of the way down the steps and comes to stand next to Nickey and Nancy, "So, I figure that you and Jonathan are still going strong because you guy are going to college together." Robin yanks open a drawer, "And you're one of those unstoppable power couples, but I...I just wanted to make sure you knew that Steve and I are just friends. Like, platonic with a capitol P." Nancy gives a tight lipped smile. Robin sighs and gives Nickey a pleading look. Nickey returns a look that asks What do you want me to do, short of telling her that she has a better chance with you than Steve ever would? 

Nickey raises her eyebrows at Nancy silently begging her to heed her question from a few moments ago. Nancy ignores her.

"Just in case, that's adding any tension between us." Robin adds.

Nancy looks up from the archives, "It wasn't." 

Nickey rubs the spot between her eyebrows as if she can rub away the headache this conversation has caused, "Okay. Well, you two keep looking for...whatever the fuck it is we're looking for." She steps around Nancy and takes the walkie from Robin's pocket, "I'm gonna go check on our murder suspect." As Nickey passes by Nancy before heading up the steps she gives the girl one last pleading glance. 

Once on the upper level she settles into a chair in a corner and brings her knees into her chest. She presses the button on the walkie as she holds it before her mouth, "Munson, you there?" She waits a moment, but no answer comes through. "Munson?" She tries again. For whatever reason her chest tightens, "Please tell me you still have eyeballs right now." 

The walkie crackles then a voice answers, "Eyeballs are intact, Mayfield." The tightness in her chest ebbs away, "What's going on?" Eddie asks. 

"Not really sure, honestly." She answers, "We've got a couple leads, I think. Also, you should probably know that your body count is up to two now." 

"What?" 

"Yeah, that ambulance this morning was for a friend of Nancy's, Fred." She explains, "They were both at the trailer park last night. We're trying to figure out how it all connects."

For long few minutes he doesn't answer and Nickey thinks he threw the walkie out the window or something. It's what she'd do. But then he says, "Fuck." His voice wavers and her heart aches. 

Nickey chews on her lip desperately trying to think of what she can say that will change anything, but there's nothing. No words will change the fact that he's wanted for possibly two counts of murder now. She sighs through her nose, "I'm really sorry, Eddie." It's all she can come up with. It's not a real comfort, but it's better than nothing. 

Again, it takes him a few moments to answer, "Not your fault. But uh, I was wondering if maybe..." His voice fades, "Maybe, you'd come back tonight?" He pushes out all the words in one breath, like he was afraid he wouldn't say it at all. 

Nickey blinks rapidly and her heartbeat matches it, "Oh, really?" She can already feel her face heating, she's grateful he can't see her right now.

"Yeah, I think you being here helped." He says and she pulls her bottom lip between her teeth to keep from smiling, "I think I might actually sleep if you're here." 

"Okay, yeah." She answers, "I'll be there." 

She can hear him loose a breath, "Cool." 

"Cool." 

Just then Nancy and Robin come bounding back up the stairs looking more hopeful than they have all day. Nickey turns to the walkie again, "Hey, I'll talk to you later. I think we may have something, I'll keep you updated." She doesn't wait for Eddie's response as she joins Nancy and Robin. 

"Ah. Elvis cloned by aliens." Nancy reads with feigned amazement. 

"You never know." Robin says. Nancy narrows her eyes at the girl before rolling them and turning away.

Nickey looks over Robin's shoulder as she continues to scroll through the newspaper. "What the hell is this shit?" 

"The Weekly Watcher." Nancy replies sounding incredibly irritated. And looking like she could throttle Robin at any given moment.

"The conspiracy dudes?"  Nickey furrows her brow and give Robin a wary glance. 

But Robin ignores both girls as she reads from an article with a ridiculous voice, "Victor Creel claims vengeful demon killed family. The murder that shocked a small community." 

Behind them Nancy laughs humorlessly, "Very funny." 

"I'm not kidding." Robin says suddenly very serious, "Get over here." She beckons Nancy then continues reading from the article, "According to several insiders, Victor believe his house was haunted by an ancient demon. Victor allegedly hired a priest to exercise the demon from his home." Robin turns her attention to the other girls, "Pretty novel for the 50s. Exorcist wasn't out yet." 

"Keep going." Nancy insists. 

Robin turns back to the article, "Okay, so Victor claimed this exorcism failed, but it angered this demon, which then murdered his family, removing their eyes. Victor believed he was spared as a punishment." 

"Punishment?" Nickey questions aloud. 

"That was pretty convenient for Victor." Nancy says. 

Robin whips her head toward the other girl, "Yeah, or super inconvenient. Victor was declared legally insane by the court, right? What if this is why? I mean, it sound pretty insane it just didn't go public because-" 

"The plea bargain. The records were sealed." Nancy finishes for Robin.

"What if a demon did invade Victor's home. It's just, this demon wasn't any old demon." 

"It was Vecna." Nancy concludes. 

Nickey blanches for a moment. They could actually have some sort of a solid lead right now. Something that could possibly save Eddie. Maybe. "We gotta find the others, lets go." She ushers tugging at the other girl's arms.

The three girls rush back up the steps to the main level of the library. Nancy tosses the keys onto the counter as the pass by and they push out the front doors. It's dark out now as the bound down the steps toward Nancy's car.

"Dustin, do you copy?" Robin speaks into the walkie. 

He replies immediately, "Yeah, I copy." 

Nickey yanks the walkie from Robin's grip and starts speaking excitedly, "Our girl Nance is a fucking genius." Nancy gives an appreciative smile. "Vecna's first victim was back in 1959. Her shot in the dark was a bulls-eye." 

Dustin takes a deep breath, "Okay, that's totally bonkers, but I can't really talk right now." 

The three girls come upon Nancy's car and Nickey settles her palm against the doorhandle, "What? Why?" 

"We're breaking and entering school to retrieve some confidential and extremely personal files." He explains. 

Nickey goes red hot with anger in a second, "What? With my sister? Are you shitting me, Henderson?"

"Just get your ass over here, stat." He orders and Nickey has to bite her cheek to keep from cursing him out, "We'll explain everything." 

"I thought they were talking to Ms. Kelley?" Nancy asks incredulously. 

Robin rolls her eyes, "We leave them alone for two hours." 

"You get my sister arrested, Henderson, and I will kick your ass." Nickey says into the walkie before shoving the antenna back down and getting into the car.

Nickey wants to throw up.

She wants to scream until her lungs ache.

She wants to throw things.

She wants to punch the walls 

She wants to set the whole goddamn world on fucking fire. 

She wants to do anything that will make this feeling in her chest go away. Right now she can't even see straight, her whole vision is blurred by the information they all just learned. Information about Chrissy and Fred. The both of them experiencing terrible headaches, nightmares that left them in a cold sweat, and visions. Visions her little sister Max just had her first of. A grandfather clock in the dead end of a hallway. Chrissy's headaches started a week ago. Fred; six days ago. And Max? Her headaches began five days ago. And Chrissy and Fred both died less than 24 hours after their first vision. 

So Nickey is losing her fucking mind right now. 

A hand squeezes Nickey's shoulder. She looks with glossy eyes to see Steve glancing down at her with so much sympathy in his own eyes that it alone makes her want to burst into tears. 

But a sound, almost like a door opening and closing, grabs everyone's attention. They all jump and turn toward the door. 

"Stay here." Steve instructs as he slips his hand off Nickey's shoulder and heads to the door. He stops only to grab a lamp. 

The rest of them, Nancy, Robin, Dustin, Max and Nickey all share glances among one another and wordlessly, unanimously decide they will in fact not be listening to Steve. 

Slowly they follow Steve out into the dark hallway, making sure to keep a few steps behind him as he leads the way with his lamp. Nickey keeps close to her sister. More clattering sounds echo through the empty halls. Then rapid footsteps. Then someone is bounding around the corner and when Steve bucks the lamp up they let out a scream causing the rest of them to shout in response.  

"It's me! It's me!" Lucas yells breathlessly. 

"Jesus! What's wrong with you, Sinclair?! I could've taken you out with this lamp!" Steve screams and shakes the lamp in his fists. 

"I'm sorry." Lucas pants trying to catch his breath. "Sorry, guys. I was biking for eight miles." He holds a finger up to the group as he breaths in gulps of air. "Give me a second. Shit." Lucas straightens, "We've got a code red." 

"What?" Steve questions.

Lucas completely ignores Steve's question as he walks right past him, "Dustin. I've been with Jason, Patrick and Andy and they've gone totally off the rails. They're trying to capture Eddie, and they think you know where he is. You're in terrible danger." 

As if any of this couldn't get any worse. Nickey scrubs her hands over her face. 

"All right. Yeah, that definitely sucks, but we've got bigger problems than Jason right now." Dustin says then looks over his shoulder at Max. Lucas' face drops as he understands that something is very very wrong. His eyes drift to Nickey, looking for answers, but she just gazes sadly at her sister. 

The whole process of explaining everything to Lucas just reignites the fire in Nickey's veins. She doesn't think she's ever been this angry before. Not even at Billy. Every part of her just want to explode with rage, she's so furious. And she honestly doesn't even really know who she's so furious with. Vecna, for trying to kill her sister, obviously. But, she's also angry with her mother for marrying someone new, and giving them a terrible stepbrother and father combo, then taking them to this small town in the middle of no where Indiana where there just happens to be an alternate dimension filled with monsters that killed their stepbrother which in turn has somehow made Max the next victim of these monsters. She's also furious at God, if the fucker even exists because she's highly doubting it at this point, because how could he let this stuff keep happening? The amount of evil that has happened in her life has got to be definitive proof that he doesn't exist and if he does then he certainly doesn't give a shit about her. 

Nickey is still seething as she sits silently in the corner of the Wheeler's basement. The group decided to retreat there for the night so they could all keep an eye on Max. Just in case. So, Nickey stares blankly ahead as she watches her sister. Rage turning over and over underneath her skin. 

"Nick." Someone says but her eyes remain forward. "Nick." She remains unblinking in her calm and silent rage. "Nickey!" The person shakes her shoulder.

"What?" She snaps as she turns her attention away from her sister finally.

Steve shoves the walkie toward her, "Munson wants to talk to you." He says with a curious gleam in his eyes.

She blinks at the walkie in confusion, but takes it in her hand, "Watch her." She instructs before stepping away into the bathroom. Once the door clicks shut she leans against it and lets out a shuddering breath that almost has her on her knees. "Yeah, Munson?" She says into the walkie. 

The device crackles, "Hey, I know it's late which is kind of why I'm calling, I guess? But, I was just wondering when you were gonna show up? Or if you were gonna show up at all?" 

Nickey's forehead crinkles, "What are you talking about?" 

"Well, you said you were gonna come by so, I sorta expected you to come by." He says sounding both annoyed and hurt. 

The realization hits her and she knocks the back of her head against the door, "Oh my God, Eddie. I'm sorry." 

"You could've just said no." He says sounding mostly hurt this time. 

She shakes her head, despite the fact that he can't see her, "No, I was going to come, it's just- It's Max." The anger she's been feeling suddenly gives way to the sadness and she tries to blink back the tears but she can't stop them. 

For a long minute he doesn't say anything. "Is she okay?" And that sentence sends Nickey over the edge. The damn that was her anger and rage finally breaks under the pressure of the tumultuous waves of grief.

Tears flow freely over her cheeks and her chin wobbles. She tries to keep her volume low as to not disturb the others, but she's not sure it's working. Nickey sucks in a breath and stables herself long enough to explain to Eddie what's going on. She tells him everything. From the nightmares to the headaches to the nosebleeds to the visions. She explains how Max is basically a ticking time bomb with no countdown clock. "I don't know what to do, Eddie." Her voice is faint and raw from her choked sobs. "She's just a kid and...and- She's all I've got. I can't lose her. I can't protect her." 

"Hell, Nickey." Eddie says faintly over the walkie, "I really wish that I could tell you that it's all gonna be okay and that Max is gonna be fine, but...." His voice tapers off and the walkie crackles a few times before he speaks again. "I don't know what to say, Nick. I wish I did. I wish there was something I could do to make you feel better. Do something to fix this." 

She sniffles then wipes at her cheeks. "Me too." Nickey whispers. If there was something she or anyone could do to save her sister she'd do it. Give anything up in a heartbeat. There's no one more important in the world to her than Max. To lose her would mean losing everything. Everything Nickey has done in her life has been for her sister. "Um, we're all at the Wheeler's so, if you need anything..." 

"Yeah, I know." He says softly, "Listen, Nick, I'm really good at the talking stuff, but I'm a good listener. Also I have nothing else to do since I'm now Eddie The Banished. Plus I like the sound of your voice." He says and despite herself and despite everything the corners of her mouth tip upward. "Are you smiling?" He asks. 

Nickey bites the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling further, "Thank you, Eddie." 

"Night, Mayfield." 

"Night, Munson." 

Chapter Text

Steve is talking. Dustin is talking. Lucas is talking. Nickey isn't listening. Her eyes are stuck on Max's back. She's sitting at the desk in the Wheeler's basement writing. What? Nickey has no idea, but she hasn't stopped watching her the entire time. Nickey's arms are wrapped around her knees, where her chin rests, with her back pressed against the cushions of the couch. The inside of her lip is chewed raw as she's kept the flesh in between her teeth while watching her sister. Every once in a while her mouth fills with blood. 

Max has complained about the staring from time to time as well. She says Nickey is being overbearing. Nickey says she's just going to have to deal with it. Truthfully, she's not sure what else to do besides watching Max. Not that staring at her will keep this Vecna fuck away. But she feels like she'll go absolutely crazy if she tries to do something else. Nickey wants to let her sister be, she really does, but she just can't. Her body and brain won't let her. Save for the few moments her mind drifts to the metalhead in the boathouse, worrying if he's okay. Those moments only last a few seconds though because she'll click the button on the side of the walkie that sends a beep signal to the other. Every time an answering beep comes through the walkie clutched in her hand she can release a breath for just a second. 

"Any idea what she's writing?" Dustin asks bringing Nickey out of her stupor. His gaze is on Max. The two other boys turn their eyes to her as well. "Did she sleep?"

"No." Nickey's answer is automatic. She only knows because she didn't sleep either. 

Lucas looks to Dustin, "I mean," He looks back to Max, "Would you?" 

The door to the basement opening grabs their attention. Robin and Nancy bound down the steps. "Okay, so," Nancy says breathlessly. Both she and Robin have conspirators grins on their faces. "We have a plan." 

Nancy and Robin both take as seat, each of them pass along a file folder to the person nearest them. Nancy's to Dustin. Robin's to Steve. Both boys open the folders and start to read through them. 

"Thanks to Nancy's newspaper minions, we are now rock star psychology students at the University of Notre Dame." Robin explains.

"I'm now Ruth." Nancy says. 

"And I'm Rose." Robin says.

"Ruth?" Steve questions and Nancy just quirks her head with a smirk. 

Dustin glances up to Nancy from the file folder in his hands with an impressed look on his face, "Nice GPA." 

"Thanks." She says cheerily before continuing to explain their plan, "So we Pennhurst Asylum, told them we'd like to speak with Victor Creel for a thesis we're co-writing on paranoid schizophrenics-" 

"To which they said no." Robin interjects.

Nancy continues, the two girls having become a well-oiled machine seemingly overnight, "But we landed a three o'clock with the director." 

"Now all we have to do is charm him and convince him to let us talk to Victor." Robin adds.

"Then maybe we can rid Max of this curse." Nancy says and it takes everything in Nickey to not grab her sister and run. As if they could outrun a creature from an alternate dimension. 

Nickey presses the button on the side of the walkie. 

Beep.

.

.

.

Beep

She sighs softly through her nose.

Steve starts talking, "Yeah, about that. We've been doing our Victor Creel homework." That must be what they were talking about when Nickey wasn't listening. "We got some questions." 

"Lots of questions." Lucas stresses.

"So do we. Hopefully, Victor has the answers." Nancy says. Nickey hopes he does too.

"Wait, wait, wait a second." Steve says abruptly and looks up at Nancy with confused lines scoring his face, "Where's mine?" He asks with an incredulous laugh as he holds up one of the file folders.

Nancy quirks her head to the side with her lips in a tight smile. Nickey can't help the the snort that comes out of her. Steve glares at the girl. 

"Sorry, Stevie." Robin says with a wicked smile on her face, "I told you, us ladies gotta stick together." 

The humor in Nickey's face vanishes, "Wait, I'm not going with you am I?" She asks with a pointed look at her sister. Like hell she's leaving Max. Not until Vecna is dealt with. 

Nancy shakes her head, "No. It's just Robin and me." She stands to her feet then gestures to Robin, "We gotta get ready." 

Both girls start heading up the stairs and Steve follows close behind. Nickey chews her lip then decides she's not going to miss this argument. "Watch her." She instructs Dustin and Lucas firmly before flying up the steps. 

She follows them all the way to Nancy's room. Nancy throws the door open and Steve is right on her tail. If this was a cartoon there would be a dust cloud behind the two of them. 

"Nancy, you're out of your mind if you think I'm babysitting again." He says as he follows her to where she stops in front of her closet. 

Nickey plops herself on the bed eyes glued to the exes.

Nancy whirls to face Steve, "First of all, they're not babies anymore. And Max is in real danger she needs people around her." 

"I know, but why does it always have to be me?" 

Robin walks into the room and erupts, "Oh my God, you have a Tom Cruise poster." Robin stops short then turns to Nancy with a wily smile on her face, "You have a Tom Cruise poster." 

Nancy looks over her shoulder at the girl as she digs through her closet, "That's old. It's just-" Robin lets out a laugh as she kneels next to Nancy's night stand and starts looking through her cassettes, "Can you please not touch anything." She says sharply. 

Nickey and Robin share a look, both girls wearing amused smirks on their lips.

"I can't do anything here, Nance." Steve stutters out, "Maybe I can be helpful with this asylum director dude. I don't know, I could turn on my like," He starts snapping and making popping sounds, "Turn on my charm." 

"Not the kind of charm we need." Nancy says. 

Steve turns away from her, "Ouch." 

"I'm not sure how charming he would find being called an asylum director dude, Harrington." Nickey says from her perch on Nancy's bed. Steve glares at her once more. Nickey throws a pillow at him, "Quit pouting. I need you to help me with Max get over it." Steve tosses the pillow back to Nickey, but his features have softened. He looks at Nickey almost pitifully and she has to turn away from him.

"No, I just-" Nancy sighs through her nose, "Look, I did a little digging last night, and it turns out this Dr.Hatch is a distinguished fellow of the American Psychiatric Association," Robin abandons the side table for Nancy's dresser as Nancy continues on, "And a Harvard visiting scholar, okay? This is a lifelong student of the world. If we're gonna win him over, then we're gonna have to convince him that we are, too." Nancy spots Robin as she picks up a music box. Nancy turns back to the clothes in her closet, "That, like him, we too are academic scholars." 

Robin turns toward Steve and presents the music box, "Holy shit, there's a little ballerina in here." She whispers and Nickey has to bite the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. 

Steve turns to Nancy with his eyebrows raised, "Academic scholar? She's giving you an academic scholar vibe?" He gestures to Robin. "Yeah"

Robin closes the music box with an eyeroll and puts it back in it's place.

Nancy pulls out a frilly pink top from her closet, "No, but she will." 

Robin's eyes fall over the garment hanging from Nancy's grip, "Oh, please tell me that you're joking." 

With Nancy and Robin on their way to Pennhurst there really is nothing left for the rest of them to do but stare at Max. She's still sitting at the desk writing whatever it is she's writing. Nickey's nerves are wound so tight that she thinks they might snap at any second. She presses the button on the side of the walkie. 

Beep

.

.

.

Beep

An exhale. 

Across the room, Max stops her movements and looks over her shoulder at the four other people in the room with her. "I know you guys are staring at me." She says. The boys all avert their attention with mumbled words. Nickey keeps her eyes forward. Max sighs, "How you think your eyes boring into the back of my head is protecting me from Vecna, I don't know." She stands from her seat and approaches the group. The boy are still pretending they weren't watching her, "You can look at me now." They drop their acts mumbling apologies. Max takes a brown envelope from a stack of them in her hand and presents one to Dustin, "For you." He just stares at it and when he doesn't take it Max shakes it around in his face. Dustin accepts it then she presents the next one to Steve, "For you." Then to Lucas, "Um, for you." Then she turns to Nickey, "And, for you." 

Nickey looks up at her sister with a wary expression then back to the envelope hanging in the air between them. Tentatively she reaches out and takes the paper between her fingers. Scrawled across the front is her own name in Max's handwriting. It's stuffed thick. Max looks down at her sister with the saddest expression Nickey has ever seen. 

Max takes three more envelopes from her stack and hands them over to Lucas, leaving one in her hand, "Give these to Mike, El and Will. If you can ever get ahold of them." They've been trying to call the Buyers' house for days to tell El specifically about what's going on, but the line is always busy. Guess, Joyce's new phone line job is taking up all of her time. 

Dustin and Steve both flip their envelopes over and start to open them. "Hey! Wait! What are you doing? That's not for now. Don't open it now." Max says abruptly. 

"Okay." Dustin says and closes the envelope again. 

Nickey looks up from her own envelope to her sister, "Max, what are these?"

Max looks to Nickey and swallows, "It's a..." She stops like she can't really get the words out, "It's a fail-safe. For after. If things- if they don't work out." Max says and Nickey's heart sinks to her stomach. There's a roaring in her head and she's not sure if it's her blood suddenly pumping faster or if she's yelling. Nickey squeezes that button again.

Beep

.

.

.

Beep

It doesn't make her feel better this time.

"Whoa, whoa. Max, things are gonna work out." Lucas says. 

"No!" Max says sharply, "No, I don't need you to reassure me right now and tell me that it's all gonna work out because people have been telling me that my entire life and it's almost never true. It's never true." Her voice softens and water lines her eyes, "I mean, of course this asshole curses me. I should've seen that one coming." Max takes a sharp inhale of breath. Then she looks to the walkie clutched in her sister's hands, "If we go to East Hawkins will this still reach Pennhurst?" She asks while pointing to the device. Lines of confusion carve Nickey's face as she stares up at her sister.

"Of course, yeah." Dustin says. 

"Wait, why are we talking about East Hawkins?" Steve questions. Max just looks at him. "No. No. No." 

Max immediately turns grabs her backpack, slings it over her shoulder and starts heading up the stairs. The rest of them quickly shoot to their feet and follow her. The whole way through the house Steve is trying to get Max to turn around and go back inside. Nickey doesn't really care where Max is as long as she's with her. 

Max bursts through the door and starts marching down the driveway towards Steve's car. "Max! Max, seriously!" He calls after her as he catches up to her side, "Seriously, I'm not joking, okay. I'm not driving you anywhere."

"Steve, if you think that I'm going to spend what is likely the last day of my life," Nickey winces at that, "In the armpit that is Mike Wheeler's basement, then you're out of your mind. So, either take me where I need to go or you're gonna have to tie me down, which is technically kidnapping of a minor. And if I live to see another day, Steve, I swear to God, I will prosecute." Max threatens now standing at Steve's car. She yanks on the handle, but the door doesn't open. Max turns to Steve with a stone cold look on her face, "Open the door."

"Uh, no." Steve says firmly. 

"I know a good lawyer." Max returns, that cold look still on her face. 

Steve looks to Nickey, who is standing on the other side of the car at the passenger seat. He gives her a pleading look. Nickey shrugs with an eye roll. She looks to her sister. Max still has cold determination on her face. Nickey looks back to Steve, "Just take her where she wants to go, Harrington." 

Steve scoffs and yanks his keys out of his pocket as he gives in begrudgingly. "Henderson, that super walkie of yours better reach Pennhurst." He unlocks the car and they all step in. 

Nickey looks over her shoulder to Max. For a moment she hesitates before getting into the car. Her expression is no longer cold, she looks paler and anxious. Which, considering the circumstances, she probably she be those things. But deep in Nickey's gut she can tell that this is different. Max's eyes slide to her sister's as Steve starts driving. Nickey would do anything in the world to stop Max from looking at her the way she is right now. Like this is the last time they'll ever see each other. She runs her finger over the edge of the envelope in her pocket. Then, Nickey slides her arm into the back seat and grabs Max's hand. She squeezes tightly. Max squeezes back. A thousand promises in that touch. Promises that Nickey isn't sure she'll be able to keep. 

Max retracts her hand and quickly instructs Steve that they need to stop at the trailer first. 

Nickey settles her hand in her lap and turns fully facing the front with her heart in her throat. 

"This better be fast, Mayfield." Steve says as he parks the car in the driveway. 

"Twenty seconds." Max says as she steps out of the car and flings her bag over her shoulder then heads into the trailer. 

Steve looks over his shoulder to Dustin in the backseat, "That thing's got batteries in it, right?" He asks with a glance at the walkie in Dustin's lap. 

Dustin sighs and looks away from Steve, "I'm not even answering that question." Steve blinks at him then shakes his head, "Yes, it has batteries." Dustin says just slightly perturbed. 

"Yeah, I got it." Steve returns sharply. 

Nickey gives her own sigh with an eye roll before twisting around and snatching the walkie away from Dustin. She presses the button on the side then glues her gaze back on the trailer in front of them. 

"Hey!" Dustin shouts. 

"Why do you keep pressing that button?" Steve asks at the same time.

The returning beep sounds and Nickey tucks the walkie away further into her lap. "Just making sure." She answers with a half shrug. 

Dustin lets out a soft laugh, "Yeah, that's why." 

Nickey whirls around in her seat and gives the boy a death glare. Lucas and Dustin both turn their attention to Nickey. 

"What's going on?" Lucas asks. 

"Nothing." Nickey says through her teeth with her eyes still on Dustin who is smiling innocently. 

"Uh, uh. Nick, what's up with the walkie signal?" Steve asks pressing her with a stare. 

She turns her gaze to Steve, "I said, nothing. I can't check to see if the guy wanted for murder is still alive?" 

Dustin leans forward putting his head between the two older teenagers, still smiling, "Oh yeah, I'm sure it has nothing to do with the fact that you were cuddling with Eddie when we showed up at the boat house." 

"What!?" Lucas shouts from the backseat. 

"Wait a minute," Steve waves his hands around, "Is that what this is? You like Munson?" 

Nickey's cheeks warm and she thumps Dustin on the forehead. He rubs the spot as he leans back in his seat with a grumble. "No." She insists, but she doesn't even believe is herself. 

Lucas pops his head over Nickey's shoulder, "You and Eddie were cuddling?" He asks incredulously. 

She shoves Lucas back with a groan, "No, we just fell asleep next to each other." 

Dustin hums in the backseat and Nickey contemplates going back there and strangling him. But she realizes that Max hasn't come back yet. Utter terror courses through her body, "Where is Max?" She asks and steps out of the car. 

The three boys follow suit, "Nickey, where are you going." Steve demands. 

"To get my sister, in case you forgot an interdimensional monster is trying to kill her!" Nickey's heart is beating hard against her chest, her stomach in her throat. She squeezes that button so hard that her knuckles turn white. Just as Nickey turns back to find her sister, Max comes around the corner of the trailer. She's panting heavily and looks like she's gonna be sick to her stomach, "Max?" She walks past Nickey without a word, "Max, are you okay? What happened?" 

The responding beep comes through.

"Nothing. I'm fine." She says flatly and yanks the car door open. 

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. You alright?" Steve asks. 

"I'm fine. Just drive." Max instructs and climbs into the car. 

Steve looks to Nickey, both of them sharing very concerned looks with one another. Nickey just shakes her head and gets back into the car. She looks back at Max who keeps her eyes averted as she stares out the window refusing to meet her sister's gaze. Nickey didn't know it was possible for her to be even more worried than she already was. She wants to lean out the door and empty her guts from the way her stomach is turning. She blinks back the tears starting to line her eyes, trying to rein in her emotions. She has to be strong for Max. She can't freak out, not in front of her. That's not what Max needs. 

Nickey squeezes the button again.

Beep

.

.

.

Beep

Chapter Text

Max is in the backseat mumbling directions every few minutes, still refusing to look at anyone. Whatever happened at the trailer really shook her up and it's making Nickey even more worried. She didn't even know that was possible at this point. Every few minutes Nickey looks over her shoulder hoping to catch Max's eyes, but her sister just stares out the window blankly. 

She realized where Max was directing Steve to a little while ago. Her stomach has been churning ever since and she's pretty sure she's bitten her lips raw. 

Steve, seeing the distress Nickey is putting herself through, reaches over and squeezes her knee gently. She gives him an appreciative tight lipped smile. 

"Turn here." Max speaks up from the backseat. 

Nickey twists in her seat, "Max, do you really want to do this?" She asks, but Max doesn't answer. She just gives Nickey a look that has her wanting to throw up in her lap from the utter despair in her sister's eyes. 

Steve slows the car to a stop in the Roane Hill Cemetery. Immediately Max gets out of the car. Lucas follows her. Nickey can see Billy's grave from where they're parked. She knows that it's empty, and she knows that it's crazy to feel like at any moment he's going to pop out from behind a tree and come after her. But the chill in her spine makes her want to turn heel and run as fast as she can and as far as her legs will take her. 

Nickey leans her head back and closes her eyes. 

Whispers. That's all Nickey hears everyday. Whispers. They seem to follow her everywhere she goes. At her locker. In her classes. In the cafeteria. In the halls. In her neighborhood. She can't outrun them. She tries. She tries not to hear them. But they swirl around her like the wind and she can't bat them away. The eyes that come with them aren't much better. They linger and glare. They're both interested and disgusted. Mostly they're hateful. So, so hateful. 

Nickey shuts her locker and tugs her backpack higher onto her shoulder before she starts venturing down the hall. 

"Whore." Someone sneers as she walks by. Someone else laughs.

She bites down on her jaw to keep herself from reacting. That's what these people want. A reaction. She won't give it to them. Nickey puts her headphones over her ears and presses play on her Walkman. Although she can't really hear the music over the buzzing of her own head. Her fingernails press into her palms leaving angry red crescent moon shapes in the skin. 

Another passing person says something she can't hear. Another group of laughter flitters by her. What makes today different she's not sure, but the backs of her eyes are stinging and her vision is becoming blurry. Nickey squeezes her eyes shut pushing the tears back. That's something she won't let them see. They won't see her tears. Never. 

A harsh hand grabs her arm in a tight grip and yanks her under a stairwell. She lets out a yelp. Another hand pulls her headphones off, tossing her hair about in the process. Nickey pushes her hair out of her face and recoils at the person gripping her. 

Billy yanks her closer, pressing their chests together, and bile rises up Nickey's throat. "Did you tell my Dad that I'm the one saying we fucked?" He asks roughly, his voice vicious. 

Nickey forces herself not to shake, she points her chin and says, "Why shouldn't I have? It's the truth." 

A wicked humorless laugh, "Oh, you are so dead." He says through his teeth, his nails dig into the flesh of her arm. 

"Let me go." She demands and tries to pull away. 

Billy yanks her back, "Why? This is what you want, isn't it?" He asks tauntingly, a feral grin splitting his cheeks. "You're the one always saying 'Fuck you.' So, what's the problem?" 

He brings his face a hairsbreadth away from her own and she pulls back as far as she can. She can still smell the cigarettes on his breath. Then, just because he can, he brushes his lips against hers. Barely. She barely feels them, but it's enough. Nickey pushes against his chest as hard as she can, but he keeps his grip. This time when he laughs it's like he actually finds this funny.   

Finally he tosses her back into the wall behind her. He gives her one last glare, "You're dead." He promises before walking away. 

A shuddering breath sends her into a shaking heap on the floor. She rubs at her lips trying to remove the feel of his. Nickey buries her head into her lap trying to regain the air that escaped her lungs. 

"Nickey." A guttural voice whispers through the air. "Nickey." 

She lifts her head, her wet cheeks shine in the light passing through the steps above her. Slowly she peers around the corner. The whole school has gone dark. And freezing. There's dust floating through the air. This isn't right. Nickey stands to her feet and steps out from the stairwell. 

"Billy?" She croaks out. 

"Nickey." The voice answers, but it's right behind her now. 

She whirls around to see, not Billy, but a creature. A creature made of what looks like large fleshy vines. He lifts one hand, it's fingers unnaturally long and tipped with razor sharp, pointed nails. The hand covers her face.

Nickey's eyes fly open with a sharp intake of breath. The car is empty now. The boys are standing outside watching Max. She's sitting in front of Billy's grave with a letter in her hands. Nickey sighs and runs a hand through her hair. She's okay. She's fine. She's in Steve's car. He's right outside. So are Dustin and Lucas. Max is there too. None of that was real. Well, most of it was. But the end. That creature. It's not real. Can't be real. It just can't be. 

Nickey tosses the walkie back and forth in her hands for a few minutes before pressing the button and bringing it to her mouth, "You there, Munson?" 

A crackle, "Still here, Big Red." Eddie answers, "Not going anywhere, anytime soon." He sighs. 

Nickey laughs through her nose and shakes her head, "Don't call me that ever again." 

He laughs softly, "Got it." A moment of silence passes, "Are you okay?" 

"Other than everything with Max, I'm fine. Why?"

"You just sound a little off. That's all." He says making her heart clench. "You sure you're okay?" 

Nickey rolls her bottom lip into her mouth and bites down on it. She glances out the window to her sister, she's still sitting there reading that letter. Nickey yanks her own letter from her pocket and stares down at it. "We're at the cemetery." She says sliding her finger over the sealed edge. 

"What are you doing there?" Eddie asks.

Nickey sniffles and wipes at her cheeks, "Max wanted to visit Billy. She, uh, she wrote us all these letters. J-just in case. For after." She pulls her knees up into her chest and presses her forehead to her knees. 

"Damn." Eddie whooshes out, "That kid really knows how to pull the heart strings." 

"It's not funny, Eddie." Nickey snaps.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry." He speaks sincerely, "You're not gonna have to read that letter, Nick. Not if Harrington and Henderson have anything to do with it. They're gonna make sure that Max is just fine. Especially Henderson, I mean that kid loves you. Probably more than he loves Harrington." 

Nickey's forehead crinkles, "What are you talking about?" She questions with a glance at Dustin who is leaning against the hood next to Steve. Dustin catches her eyes and gives her a concerned look, she just forces a smile and shakes her head. He gives her a non-believing look, but turns his attention back to Max. 

Eddie makes a confirming sound, "Yeah, the kid talks about you all the time. Says you'll hang out with him when Harrington is busy. He talks about you like you’re his big sister. So, trust me, Little Red is gonna be fine." 

A chuckle rattles against Nickey's chest, "Don't let her hear you call her that." She says then her heart stops dead in her chest as she looks up to Max once again. Nothing that she can see has changed. Max is still sitting cross-legged in front of Billy's headstone. But she's sitting too still. Something in Nickey's gut knows something isn't right. "I have to go." She says quickly. 

"What?" 

"Something is wrong with Max." Nickey says. She tosses both the walkie and letter into her seat as she practically launches herself out of the car.

"Wha-"

"Nick?" Steve calls after her when she stomps past him. 

"Maybe you should just give her a second." Dustin suggests and Nickey ignores him. 

The closer and closer Nickey gets to Max the tighter and tighter her stomach twists. Her heart is pounding against her chest and her palms are sweating. Something is wrong. She can feel it.

"Max." She calls when she gets in earshot of her sister. Max doesn't move. "Max." She calls again, closer now. Still, Max doesn't move. Finally close enough to touch, Nickey kneels at her sister's side. Max's eyes have glazed over and rolled into the back of her head. Nickey cups Max's cheeks, "Max!" She gently shakes her, "Max!" Nickey's heart drops into her stomach. Terror takes over. "Steve! Steve! Help!" Nickey starts shaking Max's shoulders, "Max, wake up! Please!" 

Nickey is vaguely aware of Steve, Lucas and Dustin now surrounding her and Max. They’re all shouting. Max still isn’t moving. 

“Steve, do something! Please!” Nickey yells through the tears streaming down her face.   “Max, you gotta wake up!” 

Steve grabs Dustin by his sweatshirt and yanks him close, “Call Nancy and Robin! Go! Call Nancy and Robin!” 

Dustin stumbles away, Nickey can barely even register the sound of his retreating footsteps. 

Nickey grabs Max’s hands in her own and squeezes. She squeezes hard, it probably hurts but she doesn’t care right now. All she cares about it getting her sister to wake up, “Max, listen to me. I’m right here. And I- I I’m not going anywhere, okay? You just- you gotta wake up. Max, please.” Nickey’s voice cracks through her begging, “I’ll do anything, just wake up!” 

Dustin lands on the ground next to her and unceremoniously dumps a pile of cassettes and a player, “What is this?” Lucas questions. 

“Her song! What’s her favorite song!?” Dustin demands.

”Why? Why?” 

“Robin said if she listens- It’s too much to explain right now. What’s her favorite song!” He repeats desperately. 

Nickey's eyes dart frantically over the pile of cassettes, she starts shaking her head furiously, "I I I I I don't know, I can't remember!" She whimpers.

"I know!" Lucas says as he, Dustin and Steve start sifting through the pile. "I got it!" Lucas shouts and takes the cassette from the case then shoves it into the player. 

Dustin places the headphones over Max's ears, "Now!" He yells and Lucas presses play. 

Nickey turns to her sister, still holding her hands and still squeezing. "Come on, Max." She whispers, "Come on." But she still looks the same as before. Her eyes rolled back and unresponsive. Nickey chokes on a sob, "It's not working!" 

Steve holds onto Nickey's shoulders behind her, "Just hang on." 

Everyone is shouting. Everyone. And Max is still catatonic. This is exactly what Nickey was afraid of. She's supposed to protect Max from the things that can hurt her, but how can she protect her from this? She doesn't know how to fight this. And how will she explain it all to their Mom? She's been teetering on the edge for so long and this? This will break her. For good. It will break the both of them. 

Even though she doesn't believe in them, Nickey is sending up a prayer to every God she can think of. If one of them is real, if one of them is listening. They have to save her sister. They have to. Because Max deserves to live. She deserves it. More than anyone Nickey knows. She still has to do so many things. 

Then Max starts to lift and for a moment Nickey is relieved. Her heart swells with hope. Her sister is okay. She's fine. This is all over and they can go home. But then Max keeps lifting. Higher and Higher into the air. And that hope crashes around her into a million little pieces. Nickey grips onto Max's fingers tighter, trying to keep her down to the earth. 

"Max!" They're all shouting around her. 

"No!" Nickey's scream is piercing as Max's fingers slip out of reach. "No, no!" Nickey grabs at her sister, looking for something to hold onto. Max's body keeps floating up, up, up. The tip of her shoe slides past the tips of Nickey's fingers. "MAX!" Her name is a blood curdling scream on her sister's lips. "MAX!" Nickey's screams are so loud that she can't hear the others screaming along with her. 

Nickey tears her hands through her hair as she stares up at her sister. She never knew she could feel pain like this until now. It feels like the very air has been ripped from her lungs. It feels like her limbs are being pulled off one by one. The pain is burning up her throat, her cheeks and her eyes while it freezes up her spine. It's agony. Pure agony. None like she's ever known before. It feels like losing a piece of herself, her soul. Her sister. Her baby sister.

It's not supposed to be like this. It was never supposed to be like this.

Nickey takes in a sharp breath, "Take me." She whispers to herself. "Take me!" She yells it this time. Loud and clear. "I know you're listening, you son of a bitch! Take me!" 

Steve whips he head around, "Whoa, what are you doing?" 

"He's not taking my sister." Nickey shakes her head. There's a pounding in her ears. "You hear that?!" She yells into the sky with tears glinting on her cheeks, "Come and get me, you bastard!" 

Steve grabs Nickey by her shoulders and forces her to look at him, "Are you insane?" 

She throws his arms off of her and steps closer to where Max hovers, "Let her go and take me instead!" Nickey's voice seems to echo around them, like its bouncing off the headstones.

A sharp gasp sounds above Nickey. Then her sister is plummeting to the ground. A broken sob breaks through her as her legs crumble beneath her. Nickey wraps her arms around Max, the boys doing the same. 

Max's panting breaths fill Nickey's ears and she sobs with relief. "I got you. I got you." She whispers. Max's hand wraps tightly around Nickey's arm and she squeezes like she's trying to make sure her sister is real. Nickey buries her face into Max's neck. "I got you." 

Nickey has curled her body around Max, the two girls sitting on the couch together in the Wheeler's basement. Their friends are scattered around them on the floor sleeping. Each of them have been taking turns staying awake with Max to make sure nothing happens to her. Neither sister has been able to sleep. They've been holding each other ever since the cemetery. It's like they think the other will disappear if they let go. 

Nickey runs her hand over Max's hair when her sister turns her head up, "You should sleep." Max says lowly to not disturb the others. 

"So should you." Nickey counters, her voice comes out rough against her throat. 

Max goes quiet again. She settles further into Nickey's side. Nickey tucks Max's head against her shoulder and rests her chin atop of it as she continues to stroke the younger girls hair. 

"Were you really gonna switch places with me?" Max asks in a hushed, warbled voice. 

Nickey's fingers still in Max's hair, "You heard that?" It didn't seem like Max was even in her own body at the cemetery. That must have been terrifying. To be in whatever trance that Vecna put her in and still be able to hear her friends and sister pleading for her at the same time. Granted Nickey has no idea what it is exactly Max saw since she hasn't really talked about it, but she can take a few wild guesses. 

She nods, "I could hear all of you." Max lifts her head and looks directly into her sister's eyes. "You would really give up your own life for me?" 

"Of course." Nickey answers without missing a beat. "You're my sister. Max, you are the most important person in the entire world to me. I'd do anything for you." 

Tears now trail down Max's cheeks, "Is that why you didn't go to college?" 

Nickey sucks in a long breath then releases it through her nose. She swallows, "I didn't want to leave you to deal with Mom on your own. That's not fair." It weighs on Nickey to take care of their mother the way she does and she only nineteen, she couldn't imagine what it would be like for a fourteen year old to do it all by themselves with no one else to lean on. 

"Promise me, that no matter what happens, you'll go to school." Max says. Nickey opens up her mouth to refute or barter, but Max doesn't let her, "Go to school, Nick. Then become the best selling author to ever exist like I know you will be. Promise me." 

"Author?" Nickey questions. It's what she's always wanted to be. That's her dream. But it's a dream she's never told anyone about. Not a single soul. It's something she's kept to herself out of fear of people's reaction and the fact that she might not even be good enough to achieve it.

Her little sister's cheeks flush slightly, "I read a couple of your journals." Max admits and Nickey's jaw drops open. "I'm sorry. But you're good. You have to do it for me. Promise."  

The tightness in Nickey's chest pinches over her heart, "Okay. I promise." She continues smoothing over Max's hair, "But you're gonna be fine. Nothing is gonna happen to you. Not with me around." 

Max gives a humorless laugh, "Yeah, I'm sure Vecna is terrified of overprotective big sisters." 

A flash of clawed fingers pass through Nickey's mind. She plasters a wide grin over her lips then gently tugs at Max's hair, "He better be." Max just rolls her eyes and leans into her sister's side again. "Get some sleep." 

"I'll try." Max mumbles. 

It's freezing. Like seriously freezing. After living in Indiana for nearly three years one would think Nickey would have gotten used to how cold it gets here, but she never has. That's one of the things she really misses about California; the warmth. Sure, white Christmases are cool, but she'd trade them for just a little bit of heat right now. The tip of her nose is stinging and she'd be surprised if her fingertips aren't blue. She tries to bury herself against Max only to realize she's not there. And she's not laying on the Wheeler's couch anymore. 

Nickey pries her eyes open to a red glow and she's laying on the ground. Thunder cracks in the distance. She pushes herself upright slowly and cautiously looks around. The woods from behind her house surround her. Dust falls around her like snow. Her stomach sinks. Nickey stands to her feet then dusts her hands along her thighs. Only it's not dust that comes away on her jeans. Two red trails stain the fabric. Nickey gropes at herself to find that one side of her body is covered in blood. As is the ground she was just laying on. 

The contents of her stomach threaten to come up her throat. Quickly she finds purchase against a tree to steel her wobbling legs. Nickey takes in large gulps of air as she rests her forehead against the bark. 

"NICKEY!" A screech fills the air and Nickey immediately straightens. "NICKEY!"

"Max." Nickey whispers then breaks off into a run toward her house. 

She tries to ignore the splashing sounds of the blood under her shoes as she bolts through the woods. She's jumping over vines and protruding tree roots, whacking away low hanging branches and dust from her vision. But she knows these woods like the backs of her own hands, she's snuck out through them enough times. So, the trailer park comes into Nickey's view in moments. She nearly stops at the sight of it. Her home is covered in thick vines, so much so that if she didn't know that's where it stood she'd have no idea there was a trailer under it all. She forces her legs to continues forward, even if her heart has stopped beating in her chest. Another piercing scream of her name echoes through the air. 

Nickey bounds up the wooden porch steps and yanks open the door with all her strength. What she see inside does make her legs stop functioning this time. 

Max hangs in the air over the coffee table. Only she's being held up by a clawed hand around her neck. She's scratching at the arm attached and kicking her legs against his abdomen. He squeezes and Max lets out a strangled sound.

Slowly, Vecna turns her head to Nickey, "You can't save her." He says. Not tauntingly, but matter-of-factly. 

Max's eyes find Nickey's. They're pleading and begging to be saved. But Nickey can't move. She's trying, but she can't. The life is leaving her sister's eyes and she can't fucking move. 

Nickey's eyes fly open with a start. She scrambles upright while panting and frantically searching for Max. She's back in the Wheeler's basement on the couch. Max is curled up on the other end sleeping. 

"You okay?" A voice asks and Nickey flinches. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." The voice finally registers as Steve. "What happened?" 

Nickey shakes her head, "Nothing. Bad dream." 

Steve needs no further explanation. None of the people in this room need explanation for bad dreams. They all get them. Not the same dreams, of course, but the reason they happen in the first place is all the same. "Do you want to talk about it?" He asks. 

"No." Nickey smooths her hair back and rests her elbow on her knees as she tries to steady her breathing. Even if she did want to talk, she wouldn't even know how to explain it. Are these dreams actually Vecna invading her mind or is it just her anxiety over her sister torturing her mind? And honestly, she doesn't know what she'd do if it's the former that's true. "Sorry, I fell asleep. It was supposed to be my watch." 

"It's fine. You need to sleep. Both of you." He nods to the girl on the end of the couch. 

"Yeah." She mumbles. 

A warm hand slides over her knee, "We're gonna protect her, Nick." Steve promises. 

Nickey smiles halfheartedly, "I know." The back of her eyes start to burn and she blinks rapidly. With an intake of a sharp breath she stands to her feet, "Bathroom." She mumbles. Steve nods. But she doesn't move. Her legs are stiff, her knees won't bend and she can't lift her feet. Her entire body feels weighed down. Turning her head, Nickey looks at Max who is still on the end of the couch curled into a ball and sleeping. 

Steve's fingers envelope Nickey's, it's only then that she realizes her body is trembling. "She's safe." He assures her. "And so are you." 

Numbly, Nickey just nods her head then wills her limbs to stop shaking and move. She grabs the walkie before shutting herself in the tiny bathroom. Hugging the device to her chest she sits cross-legged on the tile floor. For the next few minutes she masters her breathing so she doesn't completely lose herself. She doesn't have the time or the strength to lose it. Everything that Nickey is and ever will be has to be focused on keeping Max safe. 

Once she can breathe normally again and her legs don't resemble autumn leaves in the wind, she stands. She places the walkie on the back of the toilet then flips the faucet on. She watches the sink fill with water until it's nearly overflowing before shutting in off. Cupping her hands under the water she brings the cold water to her face and scrubs her fingers across her skin until it's nearly as red as her hair. Nickey yanks the towel off the wall and dries her face. 

She sits on the edge of the toilet, the walkie in hand again. She fiddles with the buttons and switches careful not to change the station. Her hands need to be occupied with something or she'll rip her own hair from her scalp. 

Nickey rolls her bottom lip into her mouth then presses the button on the side of the walkie. 

Beep.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Beep

For reasons Nickey is unsure of and is not planning to unpack anytime soon, relief washes over her. 

"Hey." She speaks softly into the receiver. 

"Hi." Eddie answers just as softly. 

Nickey tucks her legs under herself, "Did I wake you up?" She asks and chews the inside of her lip. If so, she'd absolutely hang up and let him go back to sleep, but she really wants someone to talk to. And again for reasons unknown to her or that she simply won't admit, Nickey wants to talk to Eddie. 

Shuffling sounds, and a grunt. "I was trying to sleep, but I don't think that's happening anytime soon." He says and she gives a pained smile, even if he can't see it. "How's your sister?" 

Nickey takes in a deep breath trying to steady herself so she doesn't break down, "Honestly, I don't know. I mean, physically she seems fine, but she won't talk about it." She shakes her head, "And I don't want to force her, it's just... That was the most terrifying thing I've ever seen in my life." She doesn't think there will ever be a time when she can close her eyes and not see it. 

The walkie crackles then Eddie's voice follows, "Yeah, it's pretty fucking terrifying." Eddie sighs, not indignantly, but with understanding. His dreamland hasn't been filled with a fleshy monster like Nickey, but he doesn't think he'll ever stop seeing Chrissy's mangled body when he closes his eyes. "Should we talk about it?" He asks in an unsure tone, "I don't really know how to navigate any of this stuff, you know? You've apparently got a lot more experience with this shit than I do."

Nickey shakes her head, realizes Eddie can't see her then clears her throat, "No. I don't want to talk about it. Do you?" 

"No." 

"Okay." She says, "I will if you ever want to, Eddie. Really. I think," Nickey shrugs keeping her shoulders up around her ears for a moment, "I think I just wanted to hear your voice. Is that okay?" 

Eddie laughs softly, "Yeah. Yeah, that's okay. Is there anything you wanted to hear in particular? I mean, you must have a request if you wanted to hear my voice at three in the morning." He says teasingly. 

With a soft smile, Nickey leans back against the wall, "Say anything. Just something, so neither of us have to think about what's going on right now. I want to escape reality for a few minutes. Normally this would call for a smoke session but you are currently indisposed so...Will you help me, Munson?" 

"Of course, I will, Mayfield." He goes quiet for a moment then hums, "Do you wanna hear about the first time I saw you?" 

"Does it make me a narcissist if I say yes?" 

"A little." Eddie says and they both laugh. "Anyway, let me tell my story..." 

Eddie was running late to school. Nothing new, he's late nearly everyday. The tires on his van screech as he pulls into the school parking lot. He throws the gearshift into park then kills the engine, but he doesn't get out. First period is science and he hates his science teacher, so sometimes he'll sit in his van for a bit and head in when his second class starts. Or third class. 

Just as he's reaching into his metal lunch box for a joint movement catches his eye. He ducks down a bit, thinking it might be Principal Higgins or a teacher. But it's actually two other teenagers. A boy and a girl. They're arguing. He's too far away to hear, but it looks pretty intense. He sits up and watches them, lets be honest here Eddie is very nosy. 

The guy he can tell from the jump is a douchebag. The way he's walking and the way he's moving his hands as he's talking and the way he's looking down his nose at the girl he's arguing with all just spell dickhead. He's barely letting her say anything. It's like every time she opens her mouth he's already got a rebuttal for what she's going to say before she even says it. 

The girl, though. Her arms are crossed over her chest, her jaw is clenched and she's slowly shaking her head making the wave of her red hair bounce. Eddie can see the scattering of freckles on her face from where he sits in his van. And what a pretty face it is. Even set in anger. Immediately Eddie is intrigued.

Eddie's never seen them before, so he assumes they must be new. And since the two don't look related he also assumes they're involved somehow and this must be some kind of a lover's quarrel. He sits back in his seat with a bit of a huff then brings the joint to his lips as the two go inside the school.  

After getting sufficiently high and then coming down enough to at least appear functioning, Eddie steps into his third period class. He settles into a chair at the back of the classroom next to his friend Gareth. 

"Hey, man." Gareth greets. 

Eddie nods then opens his mouth to say something when the girl from the parking lot enters the classroom. Much closer now, Eddie can see that the girl is actually gorgeous. Her eyes are a warm green, there's a concentration of freckles over her nose and her smile. Oh man, her smile. Bright and inviting. 

"Who is that?" Eddie asks Gareth, his eyes still on the girl as she talks to the teacher. 

Gareth looks up, "Oh, she's a new girl. Her name is Nickey Mayfield, she just moved from California." He explains. "She's in my first period. She didn't really say much." 

Eddie still watching, the teacher points to the only empty desk in the classroom which happens to be next to Eddie. Nickey nods to the teacher then makes her way over to the seat. Eddie swallows and straightens in his chair in an attempt to seem normal.

Nickey settles into the seat and pulls a notebook out from her backpack, but in doing so she accidently drops a book onto the floor. It slides over the tile and lands next to Eddie's foot.

"Shit." Nickey whispers under her breath. 

Eddie bends over and picks the book up. It's a copy of The Hobbit. The corners are frayed a bit and the spine has been cracked multiple times. It's obviously been well loved and Eddie has to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from smiling too hard. 

"Here." He says holding the book out. 

"Thanks." Nickey says with a soft smile and accepts her book back the tucks it into her backpack. 

Nickey turns back to her own desk and starts scribbling in her notebook. Eddie's eyebrows pinch and he cranes his neck to see what it is she's writing since the teacher hasn't even started class yet. Just as Eddie opens his mouth to ask Gareth grabs his attention with an idea for Corroded Coffin, their band. By the time he's finished discussing that the teacher had started the class and Eddie lost his opportunity to talk to Nickey. Talking during class isn't something he's normally concerned about, but Nickey seemed like the type of person to take school seriously, that much was obvious from the way she took notes. Different color pens, highlighters and sticky notes. So, Eddie left her be.

T hen chickened out of every chance to talk to her from there on out.

The smile on Nickey's cheeks is starting to hurt. Eddie is a good story teller with his different voices and dramatic flares. "I can't believe you remember that." 

"Is that weird?" He asks apprehensively. 

Nickey shakes her head, "No. It's nice to know that I can attach a good memory to that day now." 

On the other end of the walkie Eddie smiles to himself, "Hawkins High didn't present you with a phenomenal first day of school?" He asks and Nickey can practically see the sarcastic raise of his eyebrows. 

"Moving halfway across the country in the middle of the school year and having to ride to school with my asshole stepbrother did not equal a great day for me." Nickey says with a sigh, "But now I can remember you instead of all that. Thanks." 

"No prob- Shit!" Eddie whispers then Nickey hears something that sounds like the walkie falling to the floor. 

Her back becomes as straight as a bowstring as she sits up and anxiety crawls up her spine, "Eddie? Eddie, are you okay? What happened?" 

Heavy breathing comes through the walkie followed by an exasperated sigh, "Sorry, I saw headlights and I thought someone found me. False alarm." 

Nickey physically deflates. "Are you sure?" 

"Yeah, I'm okay." 

Nickey plants her face in her free hand and takes in a gulp of air, "I'm so sorry." 

"Why are you sorry?" He asks sounding genuinely confused.

"Because you have to hide out in basically the middle of nowhere because you're wanted for a murder you didn't commit because of some shithead monster from an alternate dimension and it's just not fair and I'm so so sorry."  She sniffs, "You shouldn't have to go through this." 

For a long while neither of them say anything, letting the silence settle like a heavy blanket. And it's the closest thing to comfort either of them have felt since this all started. It's unexpected but welcomed with open arms. Nickey knows first hand that easy comforts become far and few between when you get tangled in the bullshit she's been apart of the last three years so you should take them as they come. And she'll gladly give and take this. 

Eddie speaks first, "No one should have to go through this. But knowing you're on my side makes it a little easier." 

Nickey smiles softly, "You know, we're gonna do everything we can to get you out of this. I promise." 

"I know." Eddie says and he sounds like he actually believes that. "You should probably try and get some sleep." 

"Yeah, probably. You should too." 

"I'll give it a shot, but I make no promises." He says. 

Nickey wipes at her face and tries to prepare herself to face reality once more, "Stay out of trouble, please. If you need anything, tell us." 

"Believe me, I am not leaving. I have no interest in getting arrested for murder." Eddie sounds like he's joking but Nickey can hear the underlying fear in his voice. 

"I told you, we're not letting that happen." Nickey says firmly, "I'll talk to you later, okay?" 

On the other end of the walkie call Eddie nods to himself, "Like I have time to be waiting around the walkie talkie for you to call, I'm very busy man." Nickey rolls her eyes and bites the inside of her cheek to keep from laughing. "I bet you're smiling right now." 

"Goodbye, Eddie." 

Eddie snorts, "Bye, Nickey."

Chapter Text

"Dustin!" Nickey jolts awake from her curled position on the end of the couch at the sound of Eddie's voice coming through the walkie talkie cradled in her lap. "Earth to Dustin." 

Nickey sits upright and rubs the sleep from her eyes before bringing the walkie to her mouth, "Hey, Eddie." She says groggily followed by a yawn. 

"Nick, apologies for waking you milady but, I'm gonna need a food delivery like, really soon, unless you want me going out into the world." Eddie says. 

Shaking her head Nickey leans into the walkie, still sluggish from lack of sleep, "Yeah, not a good idea. Just stay put, we'll come to you as soon as we can. Okay?" 

The walkie crackles, "I have no plans of going anywhere. But uh.." His voice trails for a moment. 

"But what?" Nickey asks. 

"I hate to ask this but, could you pick me up a six-pack?" 

Nickey rolls her eyes and fights the urge to groan at the risk of waking the others up, "Seriously, Eddie?" 

"I know, I know. It's stupid as shit drinking right now, but uh, a cold beer would really calm my jangled nerves." 

Nickey pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs inwardly when her eyes drift down to the other end of the couch where she last saw her sister asleep. Only now the couch is empty and her sister isn't anywhere in sight. Her heart plummets to her stomach. "Shit, I'll call you later, Eddie." 

"No, no-" 

She tosses the walkie down as she launches herself off the couch and onto the floor right in front of Dustin. She grabs the boy's shoulders and shakes him, "Dustin!" 

Dustin tosses his head back and smacks into the glass of the TV behind him fully waking him, "What?" 

"You told me to sleep and you'd watch Max!" 

"Right." He rubs at his eyes. 

"Where is she?!" 

"She's right there." He turns to his head to the empty couch, "A second ago. I swear, I just dozed off for.." He glances at his watch then slowly looks up at Nickey, "An hour." 

Nickey groans deep in her throat and racks her hands through her hair, "Dustin!" Guilt begins to eat away at her insides making her feel empty in more ways than one. 

"I'm sorry!" 

Nickey turns to Nancy who is sleeping on the floor a few feet away and shakes her awake as well, "Nance, Max is gone!" 

Nancy sits up quickly, her eyes dart between the empty couch and Nickey, "What? I thought Dustin was on watch?" 

"He fell asleep." Nickey says then both girls turn to glare at the boy. 

"I'm sorry!" 

Nancy scrambles to her feet before grabbing Nickey by the hand and leading her upstairs, Dustin following close on their heels. The sounds and smells of someone cooking breakfast greets the three of them as they march around the corner and into the kitchen. 

With a sigh of relief Nickey stops short at the sight of Max sitting at the kitchen table with Holly, the Wheeler's youngest child. Her heartbeat settles and the urge to empty her guts disappears instantly.

"Morning, guys!" Mrs. Wheeler greets cheerfully behind them, "Everything, okay? Nickey you look like you've seen a ghost, honey." Mrs. Wheeler presses the back of her hand gently against Nickey's cheek.

Nickey pulls back, "No, I'm fine." She says quickly then makes her way to her sister. 

"I think it's so sweet that you guys are sticking together like this." Mrs. Wheeler smiles at her oldest daughter. 

"Could try sticking together at a different house for a change." Mr. Wheeler says grumpily looking up from his paper while he reads at the breakfast bar. 

Nickey rolls her eyes behind the man's back and places herself in the empty chair next to Max. She reaches out and pushes the headphones off her sister's ears, "Next time you want to vanish, let someone know. Preferably me so I don't go into cardiac arrest at 19." 

"Sorry." Max mumbles. Nickey smooths back Max's flyaways with her hand and gives a sad smile. 

Nancy joins the other girls while Mrs. Wheeler turns to Dustin, "You know you're welcome here anytime." 

"Totally. You're like family." Dustin points to the pile of pancakes on the bar, "May I?" 

Mrs. Wheeler hands him a plate, "Absolutely." 

"Yeah, why not?" Mr. Wheeler asks sarcastically, "Take us for all we're worth." 

"Okay!" Dustin smiles brightly as he begins filling his plate.

"Hey." Nancy greets Max gently, "You okay?" 

Max shrugs slightly, "Just couldn't sleep. People kept blasting music in my ears, for some reason." Max turns to the youngest Wheeler, "But Holly let me borrow some of her crayons. We've been having a fun morning, right Holly?" Holly hums in agreement across the table, too busy with her Lite-Bright to give a verbal answer. 

Max's statement brings both Nickey and Nancy's attention to the several drawings strewn across the kitchen table. They're all look pretty much exactly the same. Red skies, bits of dark floating objects. All equally ominous. They remind Nickey of what she saw in her dreams. They make her stomach unsettle. 

"Is this what you saw last night?" Nancy asks. 

"I mean, it's supposed to be. I thought it'd be easier to draw it out than to explain it but...not so much." Max says with a sigh. 

Nancy pulls a particular drawing towards them. It looks like two mangled corpses tied to red pillars of some kind. "Is that...?" Chrissy and Fred is what she doesn't have to say. Who else could they be. 

"It was like they were on display." Max says then waves her hands over the drawings, "And then there was this red fog everywhere. It was like a dream. A nightmare." Nickey knows all too well what she means. 

"Do you think Vecna is just trying to scare you?" Nancy asks.

"With Billy? Yeah." Max confirms the points to a picture, "But when I made it here, I don't know, something was different. It was like he was surprised almost. Like he didn't want me there." 

Nickey furrows her brows, "How is that possible? He's the one who got in your head. How could you have gone somewhere you weren't meant to be?" 

"Maybe you infiltrated his mind." Dustin suggests as he takes a seat at the table, "He invaded your mind, right? Is it that big of a leap to suggest you somehow wound up in his? Like Freddy Krueger's boiler room!" 

"Freddy Krueger?" Holly squeals. 

"He's a super burned up dude, with razors for fingers and he kills you in your dreams-" 

"Dustin." Nancy reprimands before he can spill anymore gory details to the kid. "Seriously?" 

Dustin looks at Nancy wide eyed for a moment before realizing what he's done, "Sorry, it's a movie. Not real." He explains to Holly who doesn't look the least bit convinced. She's surely going to be sleeping in her parents bed tonight. Dustin turns back to the girls, "Just...think about it. What if, you somehow unlocked a back door to Vecna's world." 

"A back door?" Nickey questions, "You think Max just waltzed right in?" 

Dustin waves her off as he picks up a drawing from the table, "Maybe the answer we're looking for is in the incredibly vague drawing." He says as he examines it, "God, we need Will." 

"Yeah, no shit." Max fires back, "But I tried them again this morning, and it's still the same busy signal." 

"Seriously?" Nickey turns to her sister who just nods. "What the hell?" She whispers. Nothing about this sits right with her. The only other people in the entire world who could help them at this moment are halfway across the country and the phone is too busy?

Nancy picks up the drawing Dustin was inspecting, "Is this a window?" She asks Max. 

Max nods, "Yeah." 

"Stained glass with roses?" 

"Yeah." Max turns to Dustin, "See? I'm not so terrible after all." Dustin answers by making a face to which Max returns. 

Nancy, still laser focused on the drawing continues, "Yeah, well, it helps that I've seen this before." 

Nickey leans over and looks over the drawing, "You have? When?" 

Instead of answering the question Nancy begins folding and moving the drawings across the table. Nickey, Dustin and Max all watch on with curiosity. She takes each paper, folding the edges around different parts of each drawing and then places them together, almost like... "A puzzle?" Nickey wonders aloud when Nancy takes a sharpie and begins outlining the fragments of the drawings. 

"It's pieces of a house." Max concludes. 

Nancy adds details to the puzzle as she speaks, "Not just any house." She says then places the drawing of the stained glass roses in the place of the front door. 

Nickey's mouth drops open, "The Creel House." She leans back in her chair with a surprised scoff, "It's actually connected. Holy shit." 

Nancy grabs Nickey's arm and pulls her out of her seat.

"Where are you going?" Dustin asks.

"Waking the others." Nancy says over her shoulder as she continues tugging the other girl along. 

Nickey struggles to keep with Nancy's quick pace, she's always been a little unbalanced on her own feet. She's got countless scars and bruises to prove it. "By the way, Eddie called earlier, he needs food." 

"Yeah, yeah." 

Nickey continues to stumble along behind Nancy and the images of Max's drawings swirl with the memories of her dreams. And she realizes they may not be just dreams. An uneasy dread crawls up her spine. Has Vecna been creeping into her mind just as he has been doing to her sister? If he is then why? Is he trying to scare her into not protecting her sister? If that is his goal and Nickey does stop then what happens to Max? 

Nickey trips as the two girls descend the steps and Nancy quickly rights her. Without thinking Nickey grabs Nancy's arm halting her, "What?" Nancy asks frantically. 

Nickey opens and closes her mouth like a fish out of water, internally debating on whether or not she should mention the dreams. The group having the knowledge is only going to make them hover over her as they've all been doing to her sister. 

"Nothing." Nickey says and presses her lips into a thin line. 

Nancy gives her friend a concerned looks for a moment before deciding to drop it and continue down the stairs to tell everyone else what she figured out. 

The Creel house is nothing short of creepy. All the windows and doors are boarded up, overgrown plants crawl up around it like outstretched hands waiting to grab whoever comes close enough. It's right across the street from an equally abandoned and decrepit park. Both look like if the wind blew hard enough they'd disintegrate and float away. The sight of it give Nickey the chills, goose flesh climbs her arms. She keeps close to Max as they walk up the steps. 

Steve and Nancy both yank nails out from the board covering the door. :"What exactly are we supposed to be looking for in this shithole?"

Nancy sighs, "We're not sure." She yanks another nail, "We just know this house is important to Vecna." 

"Because Max saw it in red soup mind world?" He questions. 

"Basically." Nancy answers shortly. 

"Great." Steve sighs. 

Nickey kicks Steve in the side of his leg lightly, just hard enough to irritate him, "Quit yapping and keep pulling." Steve makes a face and Nickey returns with a particular finger. 

Next to Nickey Dustin shrugs, "Maybe it holds a clue to where Vecna is. Why he's back. Why he killed the Creels. And how to stop him before he comes back for Max." 

Everyone exchanges various wary glances as the comment leaves an unsettled energy.

"We don't think he's in there," Lucas says cautiously. "Do we?" 

Max shrugs, "Guess we'll find out." 

The board covering the front door falls and lands on the porch with a loud thud sending dirt, dust and leaves flying. Nickey waves her hand in front of her face trying not to inhale. 

Steve twists the doorknob to no avail, "It's locked. Should I knock, see if anybody's home?" He asks sarcastically. 

"No need." Robin says behind them as she holds up a brick, "I found a key." 

The group takes a few steps back clearing the space in front of the door and Robin launches the brick at the stained glass in it's center. The brick flies through easily leaving a large hole in it's wake. Steve peers through the broken panel for a moment before reaching his arm inside, grappling for the doorknob then unlocking it. The door swings open with a long creak adding to the creepy-ness of the whole house. Steve steps inside first and the rest of the group files in behind him. 

Nickey scrunches up her nose at the scent of decades old dust when she walks in. The floorboards whine under everyone's foots steps, again creep factor added. Cobwebs hang from every surface and the wallpaper is peeling away. It looks like the house was left exactly as they found it the day Victor's family died. All the furniture is still here, there's still photographs hung on the wall. Albeit they look like they could fall to the floor at any moment. There's even decaying flowers still sitting on to the foyer table. 

Lucas turns the switch on a lamp back and forth but no lights come on. "Looks like someone forgot to pay the electric bill." He muses. 

Dustin flicks on his flashlight in response and everyone else follows accordingly. 

"Where'd everyone get those?" Steve asks Dustin genuine confusion twisting his face. 

Dustin turns to face Steve with a flat expression, "Do you need to be told everything? You're not a child." He says exasperated. 

"Thank you." Steve says sarcastically. 

Dustin shrugs off his backpack and hands it to Steve, "Back pocket." He instructs.

Begrudgedly Steve takes the backpack and the flashlight. Before Steve can toss the bag away Nickey yanks it from his hands and pulls out the walkie talkie then drops the bag to the ground. Quickly she checks to see if the signal works then tucks it into her side. 

"What do you need that for?" Steve asks teasingly, "To call your boyfriend?" 

Nickey sneers then jabs the end of her flashlight into his stomach causing Steve to groan out and fold over. 

"Hey, guys?" Max calls out and Nickey is immediately at her side. "You all see that right?" Max asks once everyone has crowed around her. She's peering up at a grandfather clock. 

A few confirmations sound. 

"Is this what you saw?" Nancy questions delicately, "In your visions?"

Nickey slips her hand into her sister's and squeezes. Max nods, her eyes still locked on the clock. 

Robin takes a few steps forward to stand behind Max, "I mean, it's...just a clock. Right?" Carefully Robin steps around the younger Mayfield sister and puts herself right in front of the clock. She reaches her hand up and wipes the dust of the face. She looks over her shoulder, "Like a normal old clock." 

Max leans into Nickey slightly who is still holding on firmly. Flashes of her dreams run through her mind. She never once saw this clock. For some reason that doesn't settle her anxieties at all. 

"Why is this wizard obsessed with clocks?" Steve thinks out loud. "Maybe, he's like, a clockmaker or something?" 

"I think you cracked the case, Steve." Dustin says sarcastically with a shake of his head. 

"All I know, is the answers are here." Nancy says looking around the dust covered foyer, "Somewhere." Nancy shifts into leader mode quickly, "Alright, everyone stay in groups. Robin and Nickey, upstairs." She says with a nod of her head. 

Nickey glances down to her sister, "I'll be okay." And before Nickey can even open her mouth to argue Max drops her sister's hand and steps off with Lucas. 

With a sigh Nickey turns and heads up the steps behind Nancy and Robin. The three girls turn into a bedroom at the end of the hall, it looks like it once belonged to a little girl, chills run over Nickey's spine. She presses the button on the side of the walkie. No responding beep answers. She turns it over in her hand and then turns the channel but nothing comes out of it. 

"Damn." She whispers. 

"What?" Robin asks suddenly at her side. 

"Walkie doesn't work in here." She answers lowly. 

A wide grin spreads over Robin's face, "Why do you sound so disappointed?" She muses gleefully, "Worried you won't be able to talk to Eddie?" She singsongs his name while playfully poking at Nickey's arm.

Nickey pushes Robin away, "Seriously, you and Steve are on thin ice." 

Robin huffs a laugh, "Oh, come on. It's not our fault that you go all heart eyes around him." 

"I do not!" Nickey refutes while at the some time silently thanking god that all they have to illuminate the dim room is a few flashlights otherwise Robin would be making fun of her flame red cheeks. 

"Who is going heart eyes around who?" Nancy asks, a suspicious gleam in her eyes. Detective Wheeler, always after the secrets. 

"No one!" Nickey shouts over Robin's giggling. 

"Our little Nick has a crush on Eddie 'The Freak' Munson." Robin says with another giddy laugh as she drops her arm around Nickey's shoulder.

Nickey sighs and pushes Robin off, "No I don't." She lies flatly to Nancy before turning to inspect the room. 

Robin scoffs, "Please, you should have seen them cuddled up in the boat at Reefer Rick's." 

Nancy turns to Nickey wide eyed, "You cuddled with him?" A smile lines her mouth. 

Nickey sputters for a moment trying to think up something to say, "He was freaking out, it's not a big deal. Can we just drop this? I mean, we have some bigger things to be worrying about right now." She says with a wide gesture around the room, "Like, saving my baby sister for example. That's the reason we're at this fucking house. Not to berate me for a crush I don't even have." Nickey huffs.

"Right. Sorry." Robin concedes with an apologetic smile before turning to continue the examination of the room. 

Nancy looks at Nickey with concern set in her eyes. Nickey ignores this and turns back to the bookshelf before her. They're covered in so much dust she can barely make out the titles on the spines. A spider crawls over the edge of one and Nickey quickly steps away. 

She gnaws on her lip as she paces the room. She feels a little bitchy for snapping at Robin like that. In the midst of the situation that Max is in Nickey feels like she shouldn't be so worried about some guy she just met. It's making her feel guilty and Robin pointing out her feelings just made it all that much worse. Does that make her an awful sister? Being concerned for a guy that she hardly knows when her little sister is being hunted by a literal fucking monster trying to kill her. 

Across the room Nancy sighs, "I don't think there's anything in here. Come on." She says and steps out of the room. 

Nickey makes to follow her when Robin steps into her path, "Hey, look, I didn't mean to make you upset or make it seem like saving Max is unimportant. I was only teasing." 

"No, I know, Rob." Nickey shakes her head, "This is all just starting to really get to me, I think. A-and I don't think I'm in the headspace to confront whatever it is that I'm feeling right now." 

"So, you're not mad at me?" Robin asks with an unsure smile. 

Nickey smiles spreading the freckles across her lips, "No, I'm not mad at you." 

Robin wraps her arm around Nickey's shoulders and gives the girl a squeeze, "Good, I hate it when you're mad at me." She tugs the girl along, "Now, let's go save your sister." 

They step back out into the hallway to where Nancy just disappeared to to find her picking what looks to be spider webs out of Steve's hair. 

"If there's a spider nesting in there you're never gonna find it until it till it lays eggs and all the babies spill out." Robin jokes as she walks past the pair and turns into another room. 

"What's wrong with you?" Steve asks, "Robin, seriously." 

Robin just chuckles to herself in response. 

"You should be thankful it's your hair and not your ears." Nickey says cheekily while she follows Robin. "Although, there's not much between them to eat." 

"Seriously, the both of you suck." Steve says with a disgusted look on his face. "They've got problems." Steve mutters. 

Nancy sighs, "Yeah, tell me about it." 

"It's cool you and Robin are friends now." Steve says, "Maybe after we find Vecna, kill him, save the world and stuff, maybe we can all go out or something. Ya know, me, you, Robin. Jonathan when he's back. Nickey and Eddie if she ever gets the balls to ask him out." Steve says pointedly. Nickey just shoots him an obscene gesture, "That makes it sound like a triple date or something, but we're not dating. Me and Robin. Not like we're dating. Right? She told you that? That we're not?" He rambles. 

Nickey looks to Robin with a secret amused smile. Robin bites her lip to hide her own grin.

"Yes, she made that very clear." Nancy confirms.

"Platonic with a capital P." Robin says while surveying the bedroom. 

"Yep, thank you." Steve says with slight annoyance. 

He starts whispering too lowly for either of the other girls to hear so Nickey turns her full attention back to Robin. 

She brushes up against the other girl's shoulder, "So..." She says softly as to keep Nancy from hearing. 

"So...?" Robin repeats while inspecting the bookcase in front of them. 

"Robin and Steve sitting in a tree." Nickey sing songs teasingly. 

Robin's face twists, "Gross. Don't be disgusting, Nick." 

"Well, I had to get you back for teasing me." Nickey states as she turns over a figurine on a table. 

"You forgave me!" Robin throws her arms out in exasperation. 

Nickey laughs again with a shrug, "I do, but that doesn't mean I wasn't gonna get you back. Come on, Rob, you've known me long enough to know this." 

Robin nods slowly as she stares down her friend, her eyes turn to slits, "Fine, two can play at this game." She says ominously and turns out of the bedroom. 

Nickey jogs after her and sticks her head out of the door frame as she speaks, "What's that supposed to mean?" 

"You'll see." Robin calls over her shoulder with a maniacal laugh.

"Shit." Nickey mutters under her breath. 

"Nickey!" Max's voice shouts from downstairs and her feet begin to move of their own accord. 

She pushes past Robin then rushes down the steps trying not to trip over herself and get to her sister as quickly as she possibly can. "What? What? Are you okay? What happened?" Nickey asks frantically, her chest heaving as she tries to catch her breath. 

She finds Max and Lucas in one of the downstairs rooms. Both of them have grim expressions on their faces. It's only then does Nickey recognize the flickering lights. Flickering lights in a house without electricity. "Shit." Nickey swears under her breath once more as the realization washes over her. 

Quickly, everyone else is gathered to witness Max and Lucas's findings. They all find themselves in the dining room staring up at the chandelier as the bulbs pulse. Nickey makes sure to keep close to Max, always in reach. 

"It's like the christmas lights." Nancy whispers. 

"Christmas lights?" Robin whispers back in confusion. 

"Yeah, when Will was in the Upside Down, the lights..." Nancy pauses as if searching for the right words, "Came to life." 

"Vecna's here." It's not a question. They've been through this too many times to blame the lights on faulty wiring or any other shit. Lucas continues stating the knowledge they all share. "In this house. Just on the other side."

Instinctively, Nickey wraps her fingers around Max's hand. She tries her best to give a reassuring squeeze but her fingers feel as weak as her resolve. The mask she puts on for her sister, the one that says that it's all going to be okay, keeps threatening to crack and she's not sure how long it will be before it shatters completely. 

Max squeezes back, her grip much stronger than her sister's. 

Just then the lights go out letting the darkness return. 

"I think he just left the room." Robin says almost breathlessly. 

"Did he hear us?" Max wonders aloud.

"Can he see us?" Steve asks sending a chill down Nickey's spine. 

"Headphones." Lucas instrusts causing Max to drop her sister's hand and shove her headphones over her ears. Nickey rests her hands on Max's shoulders at the loss of contact. 

Nancy goes still for a moment before addressing the group, "Wait, everyone turn off your flashlights and spread out." Everyone follows her lead, one by one the flashlights dim and people exit the room. 

"We won't be able to see if we turn off our flash...lights." Steve sighs, perturbed at being ignored and left alone.

Night has fallen leaving the house even darker than when they arrived. Nickey chews her lip as she slowly prowls through the house dark flashlight in one hand and unresponsive walkie in the next. Every few steps she presses the side button hoping that she may have stumbled into a receptive spot. Nothing. She's starting to worry. She promised Eddie they'd bring food as soon as they could, but that was hours ago and with no communication in between. She just hopes he doesn't think they abandoned him. That she abandoned him. 

A chill licks up her spine as she walks alone. It feels like she's waiting for something, someone, to jump out of every corner. She can still feel the whisper of him calling her name from her dreams. Nancy's words from earlier today replay in her mind. 

Do you think Vecna's just trying to scare you?

Nancy was asking Max but right now Nickey can tell if Vecna is trying to scare anyone it's her. And if she's being honest? He's doing a damn good job so far. 

"I got him!" Robin's shout causes Nickey to jump. "Got him!" 

The group congregates to where Robin stands with her flashlight pointed at the ceiling a beacon of light pouring from it. 

"I got him." Robin says again and her flashlight darkens. "I had him." She says turning to the group. 

Suddenly Steve's flashlight flares. Steve moves his arm, his flashlight remains lit, "Oh, I think he's moving. He's moving, he's moving." He says hurriedly as he begins to follow the light. The group follows behind him across the house close on his heels.

They pass back into the foyer then up the stairs again. But once on the landing Steve's flashlight blinks out. 

"Shit." He breathes, "I lost him." 

"No you didn't." Max says as she pushes out from the group. She walks over the landing to the wall and pulls open a door. Inside is another set of stairs and a pulsing light.

In a single file line they all step through the door and up the steps with Max leading the charge. 

"It's an attic, of course it's an attic." Robin whispers nervously as she enters the stairwell. 

Bringing up the rear of the group Dustin stops asks, "Hold up, guys. What if he's leading us into a trap?" They all ignore him continuing up the stairs, "Guys? Guys? Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit." 

Although for just a moment Dustin's question gives Nickey some pause. She stares at the back of her sister's head the entire way up with dread curling in her stomach.

A single flickering bulb hangs in the middle of the room when they enter. As each one of them steps closer each one of their flashlights flick on. 

"Okay, what's happening?" Steve asks.

The flashlights brighten and dim then brighten and dim again. Over and over until finally, one at a time, they burst. The single bulb does the same. 

Chapter Text

"What the fuck just happened?" Nickey asks in a shuddering whisper. Everyone stands stock still in the circle, exploded flashlights still in hand. Nickey grips her sister's arm tightly to try and keep her trembling at bay. 

Steve opens and closes his mouth, gaping like a fish, "I don't know, but I think we should leave." 

"That's probably a good idea." Robin agrees with her own weak whisper. 

The group scrambles to exit the attic and rush down the stairs. Once in the foyer someone throws the front door open, each one of them barrels through it. In just a matter of moments they're all piled into Nancy's car and speeding down the street away from the Creel house. 

Nickey presses her forehead against the glass of the window, "We don't have to ever go back there, right?" She asks. 

No one answers which is an answer in itself. Her shoulders deflate and she presses the walkie still in her hand to her chest, squeezing the side button. Now that they're out of that house she should check on Eddie to make sure he's alright after so many hours of no contact with the outside world. 

For the second time in a minute she gets no answer. Her brow pinches as she looks down at the device. It's not dead and it's got a signal. 

She brings the walkie to her mouth, "Eddie? You there?" 

No answer. 

Nickey feels eyes on her. She finds Dustin's. He almost seems anxious. She shrugs. 

"Eddie? It's Nickey." She shakes her head, "It's everyone. Are you there?" She asks again. 

No answer again. 

A sinking feeling settles in her stomach. 

"He's probably just sleeping. It's late." Steve offers with a soft gaze. 

Next to her Robin nods, "Yeah. Don't worry, you can talk to your boyfriend in the morning." She teases and pokes Nickey in her ribs.

Nickey swats her friend away then despite herself and despite everything she lets out a soft huff of laughter. 

Robin leans into Nickey, "He's gonna be okay." She whispers with a comforting smile. 

The pool of dread still sits in Nickey's stomach as she nods, it's probably because of what just happened in the Creel House she decides. She settles into her seat and turns the walkie over in her hand. 

Just for the hell of it she presses the button on the side once more. 

Still no answer. 

Nickey rolls her bottom lip into her mouth and chews.

Nickey's mouth tastes like iron. She's surprised there isn't a hole through the side of her cheek with the way she's been worrying at it with her teeth. All morning she's been trying to check on Eddie with the walkie but he's not answering. And worrying about him on top of worrying about her sister has caused her to tear the inside of her cheeks apart. But she doesn't want to mention it to anyone else because they all seem so convinced that he's fine. And she'd just prove them all right that she does feel something for Eddie. That's not a conversation she wants to have right now. Or probably ever. 

Nickey moves on to chewing at her bottom lip, the walkie still held in her grasp, while they head to deliver food for Eddie. Hopefully she'll find some answers as to why he hasn't been answering. At best his walkie batteries just died and he couldn't find replacements and at worst...She doesn't want to think about the worst. 

"Not to be a wimp, but maybe can I sit in the car for this visit?" Robin asks from the front passenger seat, "Because this is going to totally and royally suck." 

Nickey stops torturing her lip and leans forward to stick her head between the two front seats, "You can mouth off to crazy Russian soldiers who literally tortured us but telling Eddie bad news is too difficult for you?" 

Robin turns her head with a mischievous grin on her lips, "Well then why don't you tell him?" She hums and Nickey narrows her eyes, "You can tell you love him while you're at it." 

"I do not." Nickey grumbles through her teeth while her cheeks burn all the down to her neck. Next to her Max scoffs a laugh. Nickey whips her head to her sister, "Shut up." 

Max shrugs, "I didn't say anything." 

"It'll be fine." Nancy turns the conversation back to the point from the driver's seat, although it's not backed with much confidence. 

"I just can't stand to see those dull eyes of Eddie's break again. I really, really can't." Robin says. 

From the very back of the car Steve speaks around a mouth full of Pringles, "At least he can drink himself into feeling better." He lifts the pack of beer to further prove his point.

"That's what my mom does." Max says glumly. Nickey sighs softly before taking her sister's hand and giving it an assuring squeeze. Max squeezes back.

"Why don't we just give it a trial run?" Robin suggests and picks up a faux positive cadence. "Uh, 'Hey Eddie, good news first this time. We got you some Dustin approved junk food and that six-pack that you requested. Oh yeah, and we found Vecna. Only bad news is that he's in that other, darker, much scarier dimension, that we told you about and the gate is closed, so we have no way of getting to him. Like, he's entirely shut off to us, so basically, you're screwed. And, no, I know you were already screwed, but now you're like doubly, tripily screwed.'" Robin exasperates. 

"Whoa, wait." Lucas starts at Nickey's other side, "Maybe we don't put it like that." He says gently. 

Nickey nods, "Yeah, I think doubling down on the screwedness of it is where you went wrong. Maybe a rewrite?" She suggests to which Robin glares at her over her shoulder. Nickey shrugs, "Also, never give me bad news ever." 

"'We're one step closer to finding Vecna.'" Nancy says, "That's what we say. That's what's important." 

"See, Robin? Positive spin can make all the difference." Steve says, he and Dustin still eating Pringles.

"Uh-huh." Is all Robin says in response. 

Nickey turns in her seat to Steve and Dustin, "I thought those snacks were for Eddie?" She asks with a quirked eyebrow. "Why are you two stuffing your faces with them?" 

Before they can answer Nancy says, "Oh shit." 

Everyone in the car becomes very alert at that. As they get closer to Reefer Rick's they can see that a crowd has formed around the front lawn. There are cops cars and a news van. Nickey's stomach twists and she pulls her lip into her mouth again.

Nancy parks and everyone hastily scrambles out of the car. "Come on. This way." She instructs and they all follow her behind the news van. 

Chief Powell stands with a deputy and addresses the news reporter as well as the crowd, "The Roane County line received a call last night a little after midnight reporting a homicide out here on the lake." 

"Fuck." Nickey mutters under her breath. Her stomach feels like it's just one big ball of knots and someone keeps pulling it tighter and tighter.

"Officer Callahan and I arrived first on the scene." Chief Powell continues, "We made our way to the shore of Lover's Lake about ten yards from that house you see behind me. It was there that we found the victim, an 18 year old senior from Hawkins High, Patrick McKinney." 

Nickey, as well as everyone else, turns her gaze to Lucas, "They found him." She whispers in horror, "Fuck." The knots tighten. 

"His limbs, his body, it was disfigured. There was an eyewitness on the scene." Chief Powell says and Nickey bites down on her cheek so hard her mouth fills with blood, "We have also identified a person of interest." He continues and lifts up a glossy black and white photo that makes Nickey's knees go weak, "Eddie Munson. We encourage anyone with information to please come forward."

"Oh man." Steve grumbles, "This is not good. This is really not good." 

"You've got a lot of questions and I'm going to answer as many as I can. Two o'clock at town hall, where anyone from the Hawkins community is welcome. But right now, I've got some work to do and I appreciate your understanding." Chief Powell finishes and the crowd start clambering over one another to be heard as they shout their questions. 

Suddenly the walkie in Nickey's hand crackles to life and a familiar voice greets them, "Dustin, can you hear me? Nickey?" The slightly desperately, "Nick? Come, on." 

Nickey yanks the walkie up to her mouth, "Eddie? Are you okay?" Everyone has now crowded around her to listen in. 

"Nah, man, I'm pretty goddamn far from okay." He says. 

"Where are you?" 

"Skull Rock." He answers, "Do you know it." 

Nickey gapes for a moment trying to think, "I've heard of it, I've never been." 

Dustin speaks up, "I know it. It's near Cornwallis and-"

Steve cuts him off, "Garrett, yeah. I know where that is." He says and starts back to Nancy's car with everyone following behind him.

Nickey speaks into the walkie as she makes her way back to the car, "Eddie, just stay where you are. We're on our way." 

The sound of dry leaves crunching under her soles accompanied by the sound of Steve and Dustin arguing are not a pleasant combination to listen too. But it's what Nickey has been hearing since they stepped foot into the woods. 

"Dude, I'm telling you, you're taking us the wrong way." Steve insists for the upteenth time. Nickey rolls for the upteenth time as she walks behind them.

"It's north. I'm positive." Dustin counters, "I checked the map." He says and waves the paper in Steve's face. 

"You do realize Skull Rock is like a super popular make-out spot." Steve says and Nickey rolls her eyes once more. 

"Yeah, so?" 

"Yeah, well, it wasn't popular until I made it popular." Steve says. "I practically invented it." 

Nickey grimaces scrunching her nose, "Gross." She mutters. 

Steve turns to look at her over his shoulder, "Don't be jealous." He says with a proud smirk.

Nickey pretends to hurl into the paper bag of snacks she's carrying. 

Steve shakes his head then veers off the path Dustin was leading them on. "We're heading in the wrong direction." 

"Steve." Dustin calls. 

Exasperated Steve waves the young boy on, "Stop whining. Let's go. Trust me." He insists and ducks under a branch. 

"Steeeeeve." Dustin whines as he follows after him. 

Nickey tosses a look over her shoulder to check on Max before ducking beneath the branch herself. She's been doing this ever since they entered the woods. Every few minutes she'll glance back to make sure Max is okay. And if Lucas wasn't with them Nickey would have insisted she walk with her sister like she said she would when they arrived. Max was not about to let that happen. She knows her sister is just trying to protect her but she's starting to feel a little smothered with Nickey constantly hovering. 

Nickey turns back and sees Dustin and Steve are still bickering back and forth. She groans before catching up and stepping between them. "Will the two of you shut up?" 

"I have a map, I know where I'm going." He shakes the paper again. 

"Listen, Dustin, as much as I hate to say this and I do mean I hate it." Nickey sighs, "Steve knows where he's going." 

"Ha!" Steve bursts. 

"Oh, shut up, you whore." Nickey retorts. 

"Hey!" 

"Ha,ha!" Dustin laughs.

Nickey shrugs one shoulder, "It's not my fault you're a slut. Although you have been lacking a little since we graduated. What's up with that?" 

Steve sighs dramatically, "Nothing." He glances behind before quickly whipping his head back forward. 

Nickey looks over her shoulder to see Robin and Nancy talking. She knows damn well it's not Robin he's stealing a glance at. Her mouth drops open as she turns back to gape at Steve. "You cannot be serious, Harrington." 

For a moment Steve opens and closes his mouth like he's trying to force a thought out then suddenly he switches gears, "Hey, look!" He says and pushes through a bush, "Oh, boom! Bada bing, bada boom. There she is, Henderson. Skull Rock." 

Nickey pushes through the bush with Dustin following behind her. When she emerges there is in fact a giant boulder that looks sort of like a skull. Why anyone would want to make out with Steve here, she doesn't know. 

Steve continues his taunting, "In your face, man. In your stupid, cocky little face." 

"Doesn't make sense." Dustin remarks.

"Yeah, yeah. Even with it staring you right in the face, you can't admit it." Steve says gazing up at Skull Rock with his hands on his hips, "You just can't admit you're wrong, you little butthead." 

A pair of feet thudding on the soil behind them causes Nickey to practically jump out of her skin, "I concur." A familiar voice says, "You Dustin Henderson are a total butthead." Eddie says and the tightness of Nickey's stomach disappears at the sight of him.

"Jesus, man, we thought you were a goner." Dustin says and throws his arms around Eddie. 

A heavy sigh of relief washes through Nickey as she watches Eddie awkwardly wrap his arms around Dustin. "Me too, man. Me too." He says and removes himself from Dustin's hold. Then his eyes fall on Nickey, freezing her in place.

Her heart is ramming against her ribs. And her tongue feels like lead in her mouth, "I'm glad you're okay." She says, "Well, as okay as you can be." The rest of the group has gathered around now, "We brought you some food." Nickey says and thrusts the bag toward Eddie. 

Steve leans into her, "That was so smooth." He whispers.

Nickey jams her elbow into his side, "Shut up." She seethes with her teeth clenched. 

Eddie takes a step forward and grabs the bag from Nickey, "Thanks." He says before peering inside. He starts rifling through the bag and pulling out the various treats as he makes his way to squat under Skull Rock.

Nickey has the urge to reach out and grab his arm or his hand when he walks past her, but she can't bring herself to do it with so many people around so she just curls her fingers into her palm and crosses her arms over her chest. 

"We should probably fill each other in on what happened last night." Nancy says then begins to tell Eddie about the Creel House. From the creepy story about the suspected murder of Victor Creel's family to the exploding flash lights in the attic.

With an amused smirk plastered on her lips Robin says, "We tried to walkie you, but it didn't work in the house." She looks at Nickey with a pointed gaze."I think the creepiness interferes with the signal."

"What happened to Patrick?" Lucas asks solemnly. 

Eddie looks to Lucas sympathetically for a moment before sniffing and turning his head away, his eyes land on Nickey. He holds her gaze as he speaks. "I was hanging out in the boat house when they showed up so I hid under the tarp. I could hear them in Rick's house. So I heard when they left and I figured there was only one other place they could go. I started rowing the boat out onto the water. Jason and Patrick must have heard me because they were on the shore and then in the water coming after me. I tried to start the engine but I wouldn't work. Then all of a sudden, Jason is yelling at Patrick and he wouldn't move. It was like something pulled him down from underneath." Eddie swallows then looks off with a far away gaze, "Then it was just like what happened to Chrissy. He was hanging in the air. Then his bones snapped. Then his eyes..." Eddie shakes his head like he can shake away the memory, "Then he was gone and I swam away. When I got to the shore I tried calling you guy, but uh.." He takes a drink from a canteen, "My walkie was busted, man. Drenched. So I did the thing that I do now, apparently. I ran." He says with a sarcastic smile as he splay's his hands in a wide gesture. Like he's trying to mock himself.

Nickey chews her lip. She wants to comfort him, for some reason. She wants to tell him he didn't do anything wrong by running away. Any sane person would run from something like that. The most insane part is she wants to wrap her arms around him and hug him tight. But she can't. Not with everyone around. 

"Do you know what time it was? The attack?" Nancy asks.

"Yeah, no, I..I know exactly what time it was." Eddie answers and starts fidgeting with his watch, "My walkie wasn't the only thing that got soaked." He tosses the watch to Nancy.

Nancy nods as she reads the time, "9:27." 

"Same time our flashlights went kablooey." Robin says.

"Which means what, exactly?" Steve asks. 

"That that surge of energy was Vecna attacking Patrick." Nancy explains then tosses Eddie's watch back to him. 

Robin sighs, "Well, we're one step closer. We know how Vecna attacks." 

"And where he attacks from." Lucas adds.

"So now we just need to sneak into his lair in the Upside Down and drive a stake through his heart." Max says. 

"If he even has a heart." Robin says. 

Nickey runs her hands through her hair in frustration, "Why does this always end up with us somehow going into the Upside Down." She grumbles. 

"A stake?" Steve questions completely disregarding Nickey, "Is he like a vamp? Is he a vampire?" 

"It was a metaphor." Max says exasperated. 

Eddie speaks up from his spot under Skull Rock, "A bullet should work on him, right?" 

"I say we chop his head off." Lucas suggests.

"I'd say all of the above, but we can't do any of that until we find a way into the Upside Down." Nancy says.

"We need El to get her powers back." Max says only slightly annoyed. 

Nickey kisses her teeth, "Ironic that we need the girl who lost her powers closing the gate to the Upside Down so that nothing could get out in order for us to get in." 

Steve throws his head back, "Everything was way easier. We had this girl. She had superpowers."

"Superpowers. Yeah, you mentioned her." Eddie says, "Hey, uh, Henderson isn't cursed is he?" He asks. 

Nickey turns to see Dustin manically pacing back and forth over the forest floor. 

"Cursed? No,no. He's fine." Steve says, "Mental? Absolutely." 

"Boom!" Dustin shouts suddenly causing everyone to turn their attention towards him. He points his finger at Steve, "Bada...bada...boom. I was right. Skull Rock was north." 

A groan falls from Nickey's mouth as she rolls her eyes. "Oh my god. This again?" 

Eddie glances at Nickey. "What's going on?" 

She rubs her temples, "God hates me, that's what's going on." 

"Seriously? You're serious?" Steve asks indignantly and Dustin hums, "This is Skull Rock! Okay? You are totally absolutely wrong. Right now!" 

"Yes." Dustin agrees, "And no." 

"Oh my god." Steve buries his face in his hands. 

Dustin displays the compass in his hand, "This compass worked correctly when we left the Wheelers. It was correct when we got in the car on Curly. But it started to slip the further east we went. Now it's way off. When I was leading us here I wasn't wrong. The compass was." 

"So you're using faulty equipment. Dude, you're still wrong." Steve retiterates. 

"Except it isn't faulty." Dustin says, "Lucas, you remember what can affect a compass?"

"An electromagnetic field." He answers like he's just realized something. 

"Yep." Dustin agrees while looking very smug. 

Robin quirks her head, "I'm sorry, I must have skipped that class?" She goads them to explain.

"In the presence of a strong electromagnetic field the needle will deflect towards that power." Dustin speaks very enthusiastically, "So either there's some super big magnet around here or..."

"There's a gate." Lucas finishes for him. 

"But we're nowhere near the lab." Nancy says. 

"And El closed the gates." Nickey adds. "You might recall she lost her powers doing it. Like, we just had a conversation about this." 

"But what if, somehow, there's another gate? A gate that we don't know about. It has to be smaller. Way less powerful." 

"A snack sized gate." Robin quips. 

Steve, still confused, asks the questions on everyone else's minds, "How? Why?" 

Dustin shakes his head, "No idea. All I know is that something is causing this disturbance, and the last time we've seen anything like it, it was a gate. And I hope it is, because then we'd have a way to Vecna. And a shot at freeing Max from this curse." Without missing a beat, Dustin turns and starts to walk away while Nickey's eyes fall onto her sister and a slimy feeling curls her stomach into knots. 

"Where are you going?" Steve calls after Dustin, "Hey,hey,hey,hey. Eddie's still a wanted man, we can't just go for a hike in the woods." 

Dustin presents his compass once again, "This little steel capsule might be the key to saving both Max and Eddie. What say you, Eddie the Banished?" 

Everyone turns to the metalhead still crouched under Skull Rock, "I say you're asking me to follow you into Mordor. Which, if I'm totally straight with you, I think it's a really bad idea. But, uh, the Shire...the Shire is burning." Dustin starts hopping excitedly as Eddie pushes to his feet, "So Mordor it is." He decides before cutting through the group to follow Dustin. 

"What is Mordor." Steve asks under his breath as he turns to follow. 

Nickey scoffs, "I'm begging you to read a book, just one. Literally any one of them." 

Steve just makes a face which Nickey mocks. Steve lightly shoves her shoulder and she shoves him back and back hands him on his bicep.

Eddie runs back and grabs his walkie and canteen off the ground from where he left them. 

"Get your stuff, dude. Let's go." Steve says, sounding still slightly annoyed by Nickey's pestering.

Nickey trudges along behind Steve to catch up with the rest of the group following Dustin through the woods. Eddie falls into step next to Nickey but he doesn't say anything. Nickey wraps her arms around herself and starts chewing on the inside of her cheek again.

Chapter Text

Nickey is still absentmindedly chewing on her cheek as she walks through the woods, following Dustin's lead. The sun is starting to set casting the trees around them in a soft orange glow. But the looming danger leering over the shoulders of each of the teenagers is not forgotten. Though some of them pretend otherwise, each of their spines are wound tight with trepidation. 

Nickey keeps her eyes on the back of her sister's head, as if staring hard enough will keep Vecna away. She attempted to glue herself to Max's side but that only got her a look of irritation and a ground so she stepped back. If she had it her way Nickey would have taken Max by the hand and run in the opposite direction of this supposed gate. But that would likely send them right to Vecna. 

Eddie is still walking at her side not saying a word. Every once in a while Steve turns to look pointedly at Nickey and then to Eddie and then back to Nickey again. Nickey ignores him every time and Eddie doesn't give any indication that he notices. 

Nickey isn't sure what is going on with the two of them. She became so comfortable with Eddie in the boat house and now it's like she doesn't know how to talk to him at all. Now that everyone’s pointed out that she might have some kind of feelings for him she doesn’t know what to do anymore. She's never been one to be nervous around guys, crush on them or not. But now it feels like her stomach has twisted upside and backwards. Her tongue is knotted in her mouth and she can't figure out what to say to him.

She wishes they were alone so she didn’t feel so nervous. 

Okay.

She’ll admit it. 

Nickey does have some, little feelings for Eddie.

She likes the way he makes her feel at ease and comfortable. He's easy to talk to. It's nice to be able to not have to think about what she should or shouldn't say around him. Well, normally anyway. Right now, surrounded by her friends and with the knowledge that they have taken notice of her crush, she doesn't feel so comfortable or at ease. 

Other people always have to complicate everything. 

Nickey sighs softly then glances at the boy keeping pace with her. She never thought long hair on guys was attractive before. She was always pestering Steve to cut his. But now she finds herself wanting to reach out and put her fingers in Eddie’s hair. Just to know what it feels like falling through the spaces between her fingers. 

Eddie has a pretty face, that’s for sure. But it's his eyes for her. 

Oh, his eyes.

Nickey finds herself wishing she could stare into them all day. They’re captivating. She's never seen anyone with such beautiful eyes before.

Suddenly Eddie turns his face and she's looking into his eyes. “Uh, you’re staring.” He says a little awkwardly.

Nickey rips her eyes away, her face burning, “Sorry. I was just..thinking.” 

Eddie steps a little closer, her shoulder brushing his arm which makes Nickey notice for the first time that he’s about half a foot taller than her, “About?” He asks.

Nickey shrugs, "Nothing. Everything." Her eyes slide back to her sister again. "How much we all must have fucked up in a past life to be here now. Ya know, the fun stuff." 

A ghost of a smile presents on Eddie's lips as he watches the ground beneath his feet. It's gone as fast as it came though. His eyes seem distance when he lifts his face again. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what he's thinking about. To have to witness a teen girl be basically twisted into a pretzel in your own home is traumatic enough. But to see it happen to someone else again? There's no telling the turmoil rolling though his head right now. Nickey wishes she could wash it all away somehow.

"I'm sorry you had to see that. Again." She says and her hand brushes his arm lightly. 

He looks to where her fingers meet the leather of his jacket and mumbles, "Yeah, me too." 

Nickey drops her hand and rolls her bottom lip into her mouth. 

Eddie drops his voice slightly, "Thanks for coming when I called." He says surprising Nickey. She turns her gaze up to him and he's got a soft smile on his lips again making her stomach flip. 

"Of course." She says and tips her head to the side, her eyebrows pulling inward, "Did you think we forgot about you?" 

He turns his face away and shrugs half heartedly. "Wouldn't be surprising." He mumbles.

Nickey's chest tightens, "I wo-" She clears her throat, "We wouldn't forget you. We stick together." Eddie finds her eyes. They track over her face, searching for something she's unsure of. Nickey smiles and looks to the group of people walking ahead of them, "Trust me, you will never get rid of these people. It's impossible. You've basically been forced into a lifelong friendship with all of them." She turns her tone lighter to try and bring Eddie's mood up. 

One corner of his lips pulls up as he give the group a once over of his own before looking back at Nickey, "There's something I just can't wrap my head around." Eddie says and she tips her head to one side, "Well, something other than the alternate dimension shit." Nickey looks up at him with a small smile and it takes him a moment to remember what he was saying. "Okay, you and Wheeler beings friends. Makes sense. You and Robin? Yeah. Lucas is Max's...Whatever that is. Even Dustin I can rationalize." 

Nickey hums a little amused, "What's your point, Eddie?" 

"Even with all this insane interdimensional demon bullshit that you all have apparently been through together," He gestures wildly, "I just don't understand how someone like you and someone like Steve Harrington of all people are friends." 

Nickey lets out a soft laugh. Her eyes find the back of Steve's head. He's now back to arguing with Dustin about god knows what now. She shakes her head before looking back at Eddie, "He's a good guy." Eddie gives her a look that conveys that he doesn't quite believe her. "I know that's kind of a hard sell with his...reputation. But he is. I promise. He helped me a lot with the whole...Billy thing. And I wouldn't have met Robin if he didn't convince me to work at Scoops Ahoy with him last summer." She shrugs lightly, "Steve's got a couple of perks." 

Eddie turns with a wild amusement in his eyes, "You worked at Scoops Ahoy? Please, tell me you had to wear that ridiculous sailor outfit."

Nickey groans and buries her face in her hands, "Please, don't remind me." Eddie laughs deep in his throat, it's a joyous sound that sends butterflies whirling through her stomach. 

"Please, tell me you still have it." 

Nickey drops her hands with a shake of her head, "No way, I burned that thing." Eddie gives her a look of dramatized disappointment, hanging his head back with a puffed out bottom lip, "It was covered in blood and vomit!" 

He scrunches his nose up and Nickey has to fight the urge to boop the end of it, "Do I want to know?" 

She shakes her head laughing softly, "It's a long story." 

"Maybe you can tell me one day." He says gently and her stomach flips. He shrugs, "You know, after all this bullshit." 

She smiles up at him, "Yeah. After all this. I could do that." 

Eddie nods biting back a smile, "Cool. And maybe you could come to a Corroded Coffin gig. Again, after all this bullshit blows over." 

"That sounds fun." She says, "I don't have a car though, so I'd need a ride." 

"Yeah, I-I could pick you up." He says trying his best to not sound overly excited. 

"Cool." Nickey says her smile widening and cheeks warming. She silently thanks the setting sun for hiding the color blooming across her face. 

A few minutes of silence passes between the two and the sun sets completely leaving them in darkness. A few flashlights flicker on in front of them. Nickey turns back to basically stalking her own sister. She's so enthralled in watching the back of Max's head she nearly jumps out of her own skin when Eddie leans into ask her a question. 

"So, this is like..." He bites the inside of his cheek, seemingly nervous to ask his question, "It's- Is this a date?" He asks finally with red cheeks. 

Nickey chews her lip for a moment, looking up at him, "We'll see." She says and Eddie pulls his brow in, "If it goes well it can be a date." 

"If it doesn't?" He asks cautiously. 

She shrugs, "Then it's just two friends having a bad day together."

"We're friends?" He questions. 

She smiles up at him, "I told you, you basically signed a lifelong contract."  

Ahead of them Dustin suddenly starts racing through the trees. 

"I guess we're running?" Steve says before picking up his own pace. 

Everyone starts trying to catch up with him as Dustin leaves them behind, his mission in front of him. 

"Dustin!" Eddie calls after him, "Can you slow down! Dustin!" 

He either doesn't hear Eddie or is blatantly ignoring him. Nickey is willing to bet it's the latter. 

Over his shoulder Dustin shouts while continuing to walk, "I think we're getting close." 

Eddie, now right behind Dustin, grabs his shoulder before the boy walks right into Lover's Lake. "Watch your step, big guy." 

The rest of the group files out of the words and onto the small shore. 

Steve, breathing heavy, sighs out, "Oh, man. You gotta be shitting me." 

"Yeah." Eddie agrees, sounding not at all pleased, "I though these woods were familiar." 

"Lover's Lake." Robin announces before leaning over to whisper in Nickey's ear, "Perfect for you and a special someone." 

Nickey shoves Robin away, rolling her eyes once more, "Shut up." She says through her teeth.

"This is confounding." Dustin says. 

"There's a gate in Lover's Lake?" Max questions aloud.

"Whenever the Demogorgon attacked," Nancy says, "It always left an opening. Maybe Vecna's the same way." She suggests. 

"Yeah, only one way to find out." Steve says. 

Nickey sighs heavily, "I'm so sick of there only being one way to find out." She turns to Eddie, "Where's the boat?" 

“Stop staring.” Max says glancing over her shoulder to look at Nickey.

”Sorry.” She mutters but she can’t pull her eyes from Max. A sinking pit has formed in Nickey's stomach. She just can't shake the feeling that something is going to go very wrong, very quickly and very soon.

The water of Lover’s Lake gleams in the moonlight as they all stand on the shore watching Steve and Eddie drop the boat into the water's edge. Of course, this is where Dustin’s busted compass lead. His thinking is that there’s another gate to the Upside Down here. What exactly the plan with the gate is, Nickey is unsure. What the hell are they supposed to do if the find Vecna? El isn’t here and she doesn’t have her powers. How are they supposed to fight him? 

“I’m just gonna-“ Robin places her hands on both Eddie and Steve’s heads as she steps between them onto the boat. “Thank you.”

"Yeah, that works too." Steve mumbles indignantly under his breath. 

Eddie follows onto the boat and then offers a hand to Nancy. She accepts and he guides her onto the boat.

Eyes turn to Nickey expectantly and she looks to Max again. The younger Mayfield looks at her sister with an annoyed expression but under it Nickey can see the sliver of appreciation for her concern, “Just get on the stupid boat, I’ll be fine.” 

Nickey chews her lip for a moment, "I think it'd be better if I stay with you.” She says trying her  best to be stern but the words come out cracked and sad. The overwhelming worry is crawling up her throat. If she gets on the boat it will be the first time since the cemetery that she'll be too far out of reach to help Max if something were to happen.

“I’ve got other people to watch out for me. You don’t have to do it all the time.” Max says as she swallows a lump in her throat. “Go.” She urges again. But Nickey still doesn't move. So Max leans in close to her sister and speaks in a hushed tone, "Do you want to save me?" The question takes Nickey aback. She's too stunned to even speak, she just stares with her mouth hanging open. "Get in the boat." Max repeats sternly. 

The older Mayfield girl looks to her friends waiting in the boat for her. Her eyes drift to Steve who is still crouched down by the engine, he gives her a small nod.

Nickey places her hands on either side of Max's face and presses a long kiss to her forehead, “I’ll be back, I promise.” 

Max pulls back from the embrace with a faint smile, “I know.” 

Nickey gives Lucas a pointed look, wordlessly begging him to take care of Max. Lucas nods, a look of understanding gracing his features.

Reluctantly she steps away from her sister and towards the boat. Eddie reaches a hand out to Nickey and she gratefully takes hold of it. She expects him to let go once you’re in, like he did with Nancy, but he just twines his fingers through her own. A heat creeps across her cheeks and she ducks her head hopping her hair hides it from view.

Robin can't contain the smirk on her face as she watches her friend. She gives an over exaggerated thumbs up and makes a kissy face. Nickey just shoots her the finger in reply.

Dustin makes to climb in but Eddie stops him with his free hand shoving the boy away from the boat, “Hey, hey, hey. You trying to sink us? This thing hold four people, tops. Okay?” 

“It’s better this way, okay.” Nancy starts, “You guys stay here with Max. Keep an eye out for trouble.”

”You keep an eye out!” Dustin spouts pointedly and Nancy’s face screws in, “It’s my goddamn theory!” 

“You heard Nance.” Robin says.

”Who put her in charge?!” 

“I did.” 

Nancy steps forward and extends her arm, “Compass.” 

Dustin huffs then begrudgingly hands over the compass. 

Nickey looks to Max and Lucas still standing behind Dustin, “Watch out for her, please.” She practically begs on a wavering tone. Both Lucas and Dustin just nod. Max makes a cross-cross mark over her heart and Nickey does the same. Something the sisters have done since Nickey was little were a little. A way to say I love you without saying it. 

Eddie and Nickey settle into the seat of the boat. Nickey still watches her sister. Eddie squeezes her hand quickly before grabbing an oar.

"Hey, here you go." Steve tosses Dustin’s backpack to him, rather aggressively, before pushing the boat off the shore and climbing in.

“You said four!” Dustin shouts. 

Steve mumbles a sorry and shrugs his shoulders. 

“Bedtime at nine kiddos!” Robin shouts teasingly, “Miss you already!” 

Nickey's eyes remain glued to Max’s figure as it grows smaller and smaller the further in they all go. Eddie’s let's his shoulder brush against Nickey as he rows. She leans into the touch craving the solidity of something to lean on as she squished between Eddie and Robin.

She peers over the side of the boat as it drifts through the water. Looking for what? She doesn't know. Something Upside Down-esque? Something other wordly. 

“Whoa! Wait! Slow down guys!” Nancy shouts suddenly. Eddie and Robin ease the boat to a stop and pull the oars in before turning to face Nancy. She brings the compass into the middle of the boat, Steve shines the flashlight over it and it’s spinning like crazy, making metallic sounds as it whirls. 

Nickey swallows against the sudden dryness of her throat, "Guess we found the gate." She turns to Eddie, "This is where it happened, isn't it?" She asks and he nods grimly. 

Dustin’s voice crackles through the walkie asking what’s happening. 

Robin clicks it on, “Dustin, your compass just went from wonky to wonky with a capital ‘waah!’” 

“Steve, what are you doing?” Nancy asks alerting the rest of the boat to him pulling off his shoes and socks. 

“Somebody’s gotta go down there and check this thing out.” He explains, “Unless one of you four can top being Hawkins High swim co-capitan and a certified lifeguard for three years, then it’s gotta be me. No complaints, alright?” 

Eddie shakes his head, “Hey, I’m not complaining. I do not want to go down there.” He glances over the side of the boat at the water. 

"Well, I reserve the right to complain and I'm exercising it." Nickey says and Steve heaves a sigh, "Uh, uh. Don't sigh at me, you can't go down there alone. What if something happens? No, no way. There has to be another way." She says frantically. Eddie reaches out and squeezes her knee, leaving his palm there. 

"This is the only way." Steve says definitively. Nickey opens her mouth to argue but he cuts her off, "No. You can yell at me later, but I'm going." 

Nickey huffs but doesn't give any rebuttal. Eddie squeezes her knee again.

Steve yanks his sweater off while Eddie pulls a grocery bag from his jacket pocket. He dumps the cigarette box from inside and wraps it around the flashlight. “Hey. Good luck.” Eddie says as Steve takes the light. Steve then chucks his sweatshirt into Eddie’s lap. 

From the corner of her eye Nickey notices Robin smiling at Nancy. She turns her attention away from Steve to see Nancy staring up at him. Her eyebrows shoot up in surprise. 

“By the way,” Steve says then waves his hand to where Eddie has his hand resting on Nickey's leg again, “Whatever this is…just- Don’t be a jackass.” He says to Eddie who just nods awkwardly as if taking a reprimand of a father.

An irritated whine slips from the back of Nickey's throat, “Go, Harrington, before I push you in.” Although her heart flutters a bit at his protectiveness. He’s become the brother that Billy never was. She doesn't know what she'd do without him. It's why she doesn't want him to go.

Steve turns back to the water and Eddie sticks a cigarette in his mouth. He flicks his lighter on but before he can bring it close enough Robin snatches the stick from his mouth and tosses it into the water with a muttered “Gross.” 

Eddie turns his hand out in a “what the fuck?” gesture and Nickey can’t help but to huff a laugh. Eddie pinches her side and she whips her face toward him, to do what Nickey is unsure because he presses his lips to her temple. Only for a brief moment but it leaves her skin warm and her heart beating just a little faster. 

"Steve." Nancy says abruptly making him stop and glance over his shoulder, "Be careful." She warns gently. Steve nods. 

"Don't you dare fucking die." Nickey says pulling Steve's attention to her.

"Don't worry about me." He says. Water sprays as Steve lunges over the side of the boat and an eerie silence falls over the boat.

The seconds passing feel like minutes as they wait for him to reappear. And every horrible possibility runs through Nickey's mind. He's already drowned, somehow. Vecna got to him. A demo-something killed him. 

"Breathe." Eddie whispers against her ear. 

Nickey grabs Eddie's hand from her knee and squeezes it between her fingers. 

"Where are we at, Wheeler?" Robin asks Nancy. 

"Closing in on a minute." She answers glancing at her watch.

"Okay." Robin breathes out.

A moment later Steve breaks through the surface of the water causing a chorus of shocked screams to rock the boat. “I found it!”

Nancy leans over the edge of the boat, "You found it?" 

Steve nods, trying to catch his breath, "I found it. Yeah, I found it." 

“Dustin, you are a goddamn Einstein.” Robin speaks into the walkie, “Steve found the gate.” 

Steve pants as he holds onto the edge of the boat, “It’s pretty wild. It’s more a snack-sized than the mama gate, but still, it’s pretty damn big.” Suddenly Steve is yanked down into the water causing the teenagers in the boat to panic.

"Steve!" Nickey yells, nearly jumping out of the boat herself. Eddie wraps an arm around her waist keeping the girl aboard.

Steve, with his grip on the side of the boat, pulls himself back above the surface. They all share the same nervous and confused expression, including Steve who still bobs in the water. 

An eerie moment of calm settles before Steve is once again yanked under the water. He loses his grip on the boat this time sending the teenagers into chaos of shouting over one another in terror. 

“What the hell was that, man!?” Eddie shouts at Nickey's side. 

“Nancy, really what happened?!” Robin’s voice shakes and Nickey's heart clenches at the sound. 

She buries her head into her hands, “Oh God, oh God, oh God.” Nickey mumbles repeatedly. 

Nancy stands glaring over the water and makes to move when Eddie holds his hand out stopping her, “Wait, wait, wait. You’re not going in there, are you?” 

“Just wait here.” Nancy instructs before diving into the water. A chorus of her name follows. 

"Goddamnit!" Eddie exasperates.

“Jesus!” Nickey shouts in frustration. “Why’d she have to do that?!” 

When Nickey lifts her head she see that Robin has turned her back to the water and is now sitting on the edge of the boat. And she can just see the gears turning in Robin's head.  

“Robin.” Nickey says with a warning tone as she eyes the other girl. 

“No, no, no.” Eddie starts, “What are you doing? She said to wait.” 

“Yeah, I heard her.” Robin answers and Nickey let's out a whiny groan. 

“She’s in charge.” Eddie says. 

“Are you kidding me? I made that shit up.” Robin pinches her nose and falls backwards into the water. 

“Goddamn! Lying son of a bitch!” Eddie screeches next to Nickey. 

She leans her head forward for a moment, internally contemplating what to do. But she already knows what she has to do. What she needs to do. “Oh, fuck.” She breathes out. Nickey looks up to the shore, expecting to see Dustin, Lucas and Max standing watch. But the shore is void of the three freshman. Her heart kicks up into her throat.

"Where the fuck is Max?" She asks causing Eddie to turn his gaze to the barren shore of the lake. 

"Oh Goddamnit.:" He grumbles into his hands. 

A long list of expletives flies from Nickey's mouth, "Fucking shit! Son of a bitch! I'm gonna kill both of those little assholes! What the fuck is wrong with them! I don't have fucking time for this shit!" 

She heaves a heavy breath before standing up.  

A hand snatches Nickey's arm as Eddie follows to stand with her, “No, you’re not going down there too.” 

She yanks her arm away, “I can’t leave them down there. I’ve been there, Munson. It’s literal hell. I have to help. If I can't help my sister, the least that I can do is help Steve. I know you don't really care for him but he's my best friend and I'm not gonna let him die.” 

Eddie buries his face in his hands and groans, “Jesus Christ.” 

Nickey takes his wrists and pull his hands away forcing him to look at her, “Listen," She sighs heavily, "There’s a very real chance that I won’t come back. That none of us will come back.

The color in Eddie’s face drains, “Don’t say that.” His voice is breathless and she can swear she can hear his heartbeat. 

“I wish it wasn’t true, but….” Her voice trails then she locks her gaze with his big doe eyes, “Just in case.” 

He furrows brow as he looks over her face, “Just in case what?” 

"Just in case we don't get that date." Nickey leans up and presses her mouth to his, letting his hands fall away from her grip. They wrap around her waist and Eddie pulls her tightly against him. Nickey's own hands find purchase on the nape of his neck, tugging at his hair causing his mouth to open on a soft gasp. His mouth is searing against her's, sending fire throughout Nickey's whole body. The kiss is also comfortingly soft, his lips fitting perfectly with her own.  He pushes his tongue past her lips and into her mouth, making Nickey want to hold on to him forever. And how she wishes she could. Right now, she wants more than anything to save the way he tastes and feels to her memory. More so, she wishes that they weren't in a life or death situation. He pulls back for a moment to breathe then his lips are right back where they were a second before. She can feel his rings through her shirt as his hands press into her back, not wanting to let go. She doesn't want to let go either.

But way too soon Nickey pulls back from him, “I gotta go.” She whispers against his lips. She steps out of his embrace, he’s still recovering from the kiss so he doesn’t even think to hold on. 

“No! Wait!” Is the last thing she hears before diving into the water. 

Chapter Text

Nickey is cold, slimy and wet when she get through the Lover's Lake gate. Her hair sticks to her cheeks and the back of her neck. She's panting and trying to catch her breath. She's in the Upside Down. Has she ever mentioned how much she hates the Upside Down? It's a lot. There's a short list of people that she'd willingly go into the Upside Down for. And unfortunately, Steve Harrington is on that list.  

Nancy and Robin, who went through the gate just moments before Nickey did, help the girl to her feet. Just as the soles of her shoes hit the ground someone slips in through the gate. Eddie rolls onto his back, breathing heavily with his hand pressed to his chest. 

Nickey steps away from the girls and offers Eddie a hand. He places his palm in her's and allows Nickey to pull him up. For just a moment, because that's all they have, Eddie looks around in terrified astonishment. Nickey places a hand on his cheek and forces him to look at her. He stares down at her with his mouth hanging open. She gives him a grateful look before taking his hand and tugging him toward the other girls. 

"Let's find Steve and get the fuck out of this hellhole." Nickey huffs out. 

Thunder claps loudly in the distance followed by red bursts of lightning, but it's the sound of someone struggling that catches their attention. 

"There!" Nancy points and there's Steve. He's squirming on the ground with some creatures attacking him. 

They all break off into a sprint toward Steve. 

There's a boat tangled in vines on the ground a few feet away from Steve. Eddie grabs an oar out of it while Nancy picks up one that was laying on the ground next to Steve. He must have been trying to use it to fight the creatures off, which now up close Nickey can tell they're some sort of bat things. 

The sight before her makes her stomach turn. One of the bats has it's tail wrapped around Steve's throat choking him. Steve is trying to pull the thing off with no luck. Two other bats are biting at Steve's abdomen, he tries to whack them off while also trying to keep the bat tail from suffocating him. 

Nancy takes her oar and swings sending one of the bats on Steve's stomach flying. She whacks away the other and Robin stomps down on the one wrapped around Steve's neck. Nancy takes to whacking at it. 

"Kill it! Kill it!" Eddie shouts holding his oar close to himself. 

A skittering sound draws Nickey's attention, "Eddie!" She shouts in warning as another bat flies in behind him. 

"Shit." He breathes out and swings hard at the rotten creature. But this one doesn't fly away like the other, it spins back around and heads straight for Nancy. "Nancy! Behind you, look out!" Eddie shouts just as the bat latches onto Nancy's back. 

Nancy drops her oar with a scream. "Get it off! Get it off!" 

Robin and Nickey grab the bat's tail and start trying to yank the damn thing off, "Oh, gross it's slimy!" Nickey whines. 

Next to them Eddie swings at another back breaking his oar in two. The head of it goes flying across the lake bed. "Goddammit! Shit!"  

On the ground Steve has finally loosened the bat's tail enough to pull it away from his throat. He yanks it down to his mouth and does something that makes Nickey's stomach turn. He takes a bite out of it, making the creature squeal out and unfurl it's tail. The animal makes to fly away but Steve keeps it's tail in his grip and starts swinging it against the ground. 

Robin and Nickey finally remove the bat from Nancy's back but in the process one of the creature's claws catches Nickey on the cheek. She yelps and presses her hand to her face while Robin throws down the bat and Nancy repeatedly smashes it with the oar she dropped.

Eddie shouts behind them as he stabs at a bat with the broken end of his oar.

Steve whacks the bat down one final time before placing his foot on it and yanking the thing clean in half. He tosses away the half in his hand before spitting out the blood dripping from his mouth. 

"Jesus Christ." Eddie breathes out, then shouts in frustration, "Jesus H. Christ!" He throws down the broken end of his oar. 

"Are you okay?" Nancy asks Steve spinning him around to take a look at his wounds. 

Steve breathes heavily, "Well, they took about a pound of flesh. But other than that, yeah, never better." 

Nickey grabs at Steve's arm turning her toward him, somehow getting blood on her own arm. Whose blood it is she doesn't want to know, "Are you sure you're okay, that looks, like, hospital bad." 

"I'm good, Nick." He says pushing her arm away, "Hey, you got cut." He takes her chin in his fingers to examine the split in her flesh. 

Nickey whacks his hand away, "You're missing two out of six abs and you're worried about a cut on my face?" She laughs with little humor.

"You got cut?" Eddie asks now at her side, although she's not sure when he got there. 

"I'm fine." She says as Eddie takes her face in his hands. He moves his thumb over the cut wiping away the blood and she hisses at the contact. He mumbles a sorry, "It's okay." Nickey wraps her fingers around his wrists and pulls his hands away from her cheeks. She takes a moment to look over him for injury.

"Uh, do you think that theses bats have, like, rabies?" Robin asks nervously as she crouches over a dead bat examining it with a flashlight drawing everyone else's attention. 

"What?" Steve asks incredulously, still panting for breath. 

Robin stands shakily to her feet, "It's just that rabies are, like, my number one greatest fear. And I think we should get you to a doctor, like, really soon. Because once the symptoms set in, it's too late. You're already, like, dead." The girls ramble end with her voice echoing and the rest of the teenagers staring at her with blank expressions.

The sound of bats howling breaks through the silent tension. A swarm of the creatures are flying right for them. 

Robin rushes to hide behind Steve and Nancy. Eddie tugs on Nickey's arm as he pulls the both of them closer to their friends. 

The bats land in a circle around the gate, a few of them screeching out. 

Steve huffs, his chest rising and falling heavily, "Alright, there's not that many. We can take 'em. Right?"

A crack of lighting brightens the sky following the sound of more bat screeching. In the distance a swarm of hundreds of the flesh eating little monsters are flying towards them. 

"You were saying?" Robin asks.

Nickey's heart drops like a rock to the bottom of her stomach as she digs her nails into the leather of Eddie's jacket. 

"The woods. Come on." Nancy basically orders the rest of them to move their feet. 

Nickey turns and kicks up her heels, bolting for the tree line as fast as she can. "Don't step on the vines!" She calls out as a last minute warning. 

Eddie complies, but asks, "Why?" 

"Just don't!" She says picking her feet up over the vines littering the lake bed.

Smushed between Nancy and Eddie with her heart pounding in her ears Nickey sits crouched underneath Skull Rock watching the demobats fly overhead. The sound of their screeching and the thunder mixed together sends shivers over her spine that has nothing to do with the freezing temperature. 

But even with the weight of Eddie's hand on Nickey's back all she can think about is how much being here in the Upside Down is reminding her of the dreams she's been having. She clamps her hands over her ears to try and block out the sound of the bats and squeezes her eyes shut to the world around her. Images flash over the inside of her eyelids. Max's body hanging in the air with her bones twisted in ways they shouldn't be. Billy standing over Nickey, blood drenching the front of his chest. Herself tangled in vines with Vecna's claws just a breath away from her face. 

Nickey

She forces her eyes open and pulls her hands away from her ears. The voice echoing in her head nearly making her jump out of her skin. She tells herself it's not real. Not real. Not real. Not real.

Robin is the first to stand to her feet when the demobats have gone, "Oh...okay." She says shakily walking out from under Skull Rock on unstable legs. "That was close." 

"Yeah." Eddie agree's breathlessly, "Too close." He offers Nickey a hand which she slowly takes trying to force herself to not shake. The two of them follow Robin out. 

But Nickey stops when she hears Nancy call out Steve's name in concern. When she turns she sees him leaning against the bolder wincing.

"I'm fine. I'm fine." Steve says as he turns to rest the back of his head against the stone and press his hands against the wounds on his abdomen. 

Nickey lets go of Eddie's hand and makes her way to Steve's side. "Oh, shit." She whispers at the sight of him. The tears in his skin are practically pouring blood. 

"No, no, no. You're not. You're losing blood." Nancy says as she checks over him. "Come, on. Sit." Nancy instrusts as she pulls both herself and Steve to their knees. 

When Steve removes his hand from his stomach Nickey lets out a small gasp at the blood continuing to come out of them. "Nick, you don't have to be here." Steve says as Nancy starts ripping the bottom of her shirt off. 

She shakes her head with a rough swallow, "No, I'm not going anywhere." 

"I know you hate this blood and guts shit. Go, I'm okay." He insists. 

She takes a moment then notices how the cuts are throbbing and for a second she's dizzy. "Okay." She agrees shakily then walks out from under the rock to where Eddie is watching. 

Eddie gently takes her arm by the elbow and guides her over to a much smaller boulder nearby. Nickey settles her way onto the ground still trying to catch her breath and keep from expelling the contents of her stomach all over the ground.

Robin, now settled on the ground next to Steve and Nancy, starts her rambling again, "So, the good news is that I'm pretty sure wooziness is not a symptom of rabies. But if you start having hallucinations or muscle spasms, or you start feeling aggressive, like you want to punch me, you should totally let me know-"

"Robin." Steve cuts her off.

"Yeah?" 

"I kinda wanna punch you." 

Robin laughs roughly, "Sense of humor's still intact. That's a good sign."

Nancy holds up the end of her mangled shirt and Robin makes herself scarce. 

A presence settles next to Nickey. She turns to face Eddie, “Thank you, for coming to help.” She says softly, “I know you didn’t really want too." She shakes her head, "I-I don't blame you. No one wants to do this shit. But thank you."

Eddie takes her hand while pulling the bandana from his back pocket,“You didn’t really give me much of a choice.” He says then starts wiping Steve’s blood off her arm. 

Nickey's head quirks to the side, “What do you mean?” She asks searching his face for the answer. 

He looks at her with amusement in his eyes, well, as much amusement as one can muster after having gone through what they all just did. “You really thought you could kiss me like that and I wouldn’t go after you?” He says as he brings up a clean side of the bandana to wipe her cheek. 

She gives a half-hearted shrug as the sides of her lips pull up slightly, “I was kinda hoping you might, Munson.” 

“That was some very good hoping, Mayfield.” Eddie smiles before pressing his lips to Nickey's once more. She gasps just a little before leaning into him. He cups her cheek as his mouth moves over hers. Her hand finds the fabric of his shirt and she fists it, keeping him near. When he breaks the kiss, much too soon for her, he rests his forehead against hers.  “Because, I’m gonna need a lot more kisses from you.” 

"I'm might be able to do something about that." She says pressing her puffy lips together to keep from smiling. 

Eddie reaches out and brushes away a wet strand of hair from Nickey's cheek before standing. He pulls Nickey up with him by her hand. He kisses the top of her head then looks over he shoulder to the scenery around them. He drops her hand and starts climbing up the boulder they were just leaning against. 

Nickey catches Robin's eye and the girl has an amused grin on her face. She mouths, Eddie and Nickey sitting in a tree. Nickey gestures rudely to which Robin just huffs a laugh through her nose. 

"So uh," Eddie speaks from the top of the boulder, Nickey turns to look up at him just as Eddie turns to face the teenagers on the ground, "This place is like Hawkins, but with monsters and nasty shit?" 

"Pretty much." Nancy answers as she helps Steve out from under Skull Rock. Eddie nods curtly and makes to come down the boulder when Nancy stops him with a warning, "Wait, watch out for the vines. It's all a hive mind." 

Eddie's brow pinches as he look down at the plants covering the stone, "It's all a what?" 

"All the creepy crawlies around here, dude." Steve explains, "They're, like, one or something. You step on a vine, you're stepping on a bat, you're stepping on Vecna."

Eddie nods again, "Shit." He says, his voice thick. 

Slowly he makes his way back down the rock, being very careful not to step on the vines.

"But everything from our world is still here, right?" Robin asks, "Except people, obviously." She tacks on.

Nickey nods, "Yeah, I think that's the gist of this place." She offers a hand to Eddie which he takes and jumps down from the boulder. 

"So, theoretically," Robin continues, "We could go to the police station and steal guns and grenades and whatever we need to blow up those bat things that are guarding the gate." 

"Yeah," Steve drags out, "I highly doubt the Hawkins PD has grenades, Robin. But guns, yeah, sure." 

Nickey's gaze drifts to Nancy who seems to be thinking the same thing as her, "Going downtown is not necessary." Nickey says, almost smirking. 

Nancy nods in agreement, "I have guns. In my bedroom."

Creases appear in Eddie's forehead as he looks to Nancy in disbelief, "You? Nancy Wheeler? Have guns, plural, in your bedroom?"

"Full of surprises, isn't she?" Robin says, her anxiousness seeping through her words. 

Nickey turns her head to Eddie who stands at her side, "After all the things you've seen and heard over the last few days is this really that surprising?" She asks with raised eyebrows and a tone bordering on sarcasm.

Eddie just reaches out and lightly pinches her side for the second time tonight. She wacks his hand away which he takes as an opportunity to slip in fingers into her own. 

"A Russian Makarov and a revolver." Nancy states bringing their attention back to the situation at hand. 

Steve coming up behind Nancy says, "Yeah, you almost shot me with that one." 

She turns to him with a wry smile, "You almost deserved it." 

The corners of Steve's mouth pick up, but before it can turn into a full blown smile a wad of fabric hits him square in the face.

"For your modesty, dude." Eddie, who slipped his vest off just a moment ago, explains.

Nickey goes to laugh at the absurdity of the moment mixed with the direness of their situation when the ground under her feet begins to violently shake. She throws her arms out trying to keep her balance but there isn't anything for her to hold onto except for Eddie. Her fingers wrap around his forearm in a desperate attempt. Eddie wraps an arm around Nickey's waist as he crumbles to the ground bringing her down with him. The two land in a heap and immediately Eddie pushes her head into his chest and braces his arms over her. 

Eventually the shaking stops. Nickey pries her head up from Eddie's hold. She looks around to make sure the others are okay. Robin is sprawled out on the ground next to them while Steve holds Nancy up as they lean against Skull Rock.

A loud animalistic sound echoes followed by others seeming to answer in response. A shiver races up Nickey's spine.

Breathing heavily Nickey tries to sit up but Eddie's grip on her waist tightens keeping her close, "Yeah, so, guns seem like a pretty good idea to me." He says. 

"Yeah, me too." Robin agrees from her spot on the ground. 

"So, what are we waiting for?" Steve says as he slips Eddie's vest over his shoulders then flips the flashlight on walking around the two tangled together on the ground. 

Eddie reluctantly unwraps his arm from Nickey's waist and stands to his feet, pulling her up with him. On nervous legs they begin to make their way through the woods towards the Wheeler's house. For guns. 

It doesn't take long on their trek through the woods before Nickey's mind starts to wander back to Max. She can't believe Max just ran off like that. Or that she herself dove through a fucking gate after Steve when Vecna is going after her sister. And now she's stuck in the Upside Down with no idea how any of them are going to get out. Nickey has no clue whether or not Max is safe. That's probably what's eating at her the most. They have no way of contacting any of the kids unless they try and do what Will did with the lights. But then they don't know where the kids are so it'd basically be a shot in the dark if they could try the lights. 

Nickey rubs hers palms on her thighs, trying to wipe the stress sweat away. It's not working. All she can think about is Max. Max at the cemetery specifically. The image is burned into her brain. She won't ever be able to forget it. She sees it every time she closes her eyes.

"You planning to chew a hole through your lip or..?" Eddie asks suddenly at her side causing Nickey to flinch. "Are you okay?" 

She blinks slowly and stops worrying the skin of her lip with her teeth. A metallic taste fills her mouth. She shakes her head, "I'm so worried about Max. I-I mean, I just left her. Something terrible could happen while we're stuck in this shithole. I shouldn't have gotten on that stupid fucking boat. I'm the big sister, I'm supposed to protect her and how the fuck can I protect her from a fucking alternate dimension?" 

Eddie doesn't say anything for a few minutes. She didn't really expect him to have an answer, she just needed to vent for a moment and he listened. That's all she wanted. Besides, no one could have the answer that she needs. "This isn't the first time you all have dealt with this, right?" He asks. Nickey looks up at him confused, "I mean, obviously this has been going on for years and none of us in Hawkins have been the wiser. Which is fucking insane I have to say, because how the fuck were you all able to keep this a secret for so long. I can barely keep a secret to save my life. Obviously, I won't tell anyone about this, not that they'd believe me anyway-" Eddie cuts himself short when he sees Nickey looking up at him with raised eyebrows, "What I'm trying to say is, you've protected Max from this stuff for years. And before you say it, I know the kid is traumatized by what happened to Billy. But she's still here. And she'll still be here when we get out of this god forsaken place. You're a good big sister. Max knows it too. Don't be so hard on yourself, okay?" 

Nickey's chest warms and she can't help the smile that splits her cheeks or the tears that burn the back of her eyes when she looks away from him too flustered to find any words. There aren't any that would fully express how what he said is probably one of the kindest things anyone has ever said to her. No one has ever really complimented her like that before. Not even Max, not that Nickey would expect that her little sister would ever say something like that outloud. She knows how much Max loves her, she doesn't need to say it. But still, it's nice to hear someone say good job once in a while.

She looks up and Eddie is watching her with those doe eyes making her heart flip. "You didn't just say that hoping I'd kiss you again, did you?" She asks with a crooked smile. 

Eddie laughs, "No, I mean it." He shrugs, "Although, kisses are acceptable forms of payment for compliments." After a moment he adds, "Or other things." 

"Oh, do I get free drugs with this deal?" She asks, a soft laugh on her lips that makes Eddie's chest tighten. 

"Play your cards right and maybe." He says nonchalantly and they fall into a comfortable silence. 

Nickey places her hand on Eddie's shoulder making him stop. She uses that hand to pull herself up onto her toes and press her lips to his cheek. "Thank you." She whispers when she pulls away. 

"Yeah." Eddie says in a whisper as his eyes trace over the features of Nickey's face, the corners of his mouth tipping up gently. His dimples slowly appear one by one and she fights the urge to reach out and touch them. 

Nickey removes her hand from Eddie's shoulder and the two start walking again, still making sure to be watchful of the vines. Nickey clears her throat and glances upward, "You know, you should really take your own advice." She says. 

Eddie looks confused, "What are you talking about?" 

"You shouldn't be so hard on yourself. About Patrick and Chrissy." She says and Eddie turns his eyes away to look ahead of them, "What happened to them isn't your fault. Especially Chrissy. I know you feel like an asshole about leaving her but you shouldn't." 

He scoffs and shakes his head, "Oh yeah, I'm your all american golden boy, ya know? I watched a girl get murdered and took off with my tail between my legs-"

Nickey grabs his arm making Eddie stop and stare at her wide eyed, "Listen to me. Anyone, literally anyone, would have done the same thing." Eddie opens his mouth to argue but Nickey stops him, "No. You didn't watch someone get shot or stabbed or something. A girl was levitated in front of you. You're not the only person that would have run from that. You have to stop blaming yourself. It's not your fault." 

Eddie blinks down at her, "I keep thinking, what if-" 

"Don't." She say abruptly, "Don't play the what if game. He wasn't coming for you and got her by mistake, that's not how this place works. Trust me. There was nothing you could have done to save her, Eddie. Do you hear me?" His eyes dart around Nickey's face for a moment before he nods slowly, "Say it. Say it's not your fault." 

He swallows roughly, "It's not my fault." His voice is thick like it's stuck in his throat, like he had to force himself to say it as if he doesn't actually believe the words coming out of his mouth. And he might not, but Nickey will spend the rest of her life trying to make him know the truth of those words for the rest of her life if she has too. 

Nickey trails her fingers down Eddie's arm until they find the cold skin of his own. She slips her fingers between his before tugging him along through the woods. 

Chapter Text

"Eddie." Steve calls out from behind Nickey and Eddie, "Eddie." He calls out again, now close enough to grab both of their attention. Steve falls in line on the opposite side of Eddie from Nickey, "Hey, man. I just want to say thanks. For saying my ass back there."

Eddie huffs, "Shit. You saved your own ass, man. I mean, that was a real Ozzy move you pulled back there." He says and a wide grin splits Nickey's face as she peers around Eddie to see the confused look on Steve's face. He's hasn't got a goddamn clue what Eddie is talking about.

"Ozzy?" 

The three of them step over a downed tree, "When you took a bit out of that bat." Eddie clarifies but Steve only becomes increasingly confused as Eddie goes on, "Ozzy Osbourne? Black Sabbath? He bit a bat's head off onstage." 

"I don't-" 

"No? Doesn't matter." Eddie says with a glance to Nickey who just shakes her head, "It's very metal, what you did. That's all I'm saying." 

"Thanks." Steve says awkwardly. 

Nickey rolls her bottom lip into her mouth to try and keep the smile off her face. Seeing Steve and Eddie both make just a little bit of effort to get to know one another makes her happy. Steve is incredibly important to her and it seems that Eddie is on his way to becoming an important person in her life, or at least she hopes so. And if Steve didn't like Eddie or vice versa she wouldn't know what to do. Steve is someone Nickey needs in her life, she knows that. Eddie is starting to feel the same way to her. She feels like that must be insane. To need someone you've only really spoken too for the first time just a few days ago. 

Eddie catches her gaze and she smiles at him. He hooks his pinky through her's then turns back to Steve. "Henderson told me you were a badass. Insisted on the matter, in fact." 

"Wait, Henderson said that?" Steve ask as if that shocking. 

Nickey rolls her eyes with a scoff, "Please, like you don't know. He idolizes you." 

"Oh yeah." Eddie agrees, "Shit. Kid worships you, dude. Like, you have no idea. It's kind of annoying to be honest." Steve laughs through his teeth, "I don't even know why I care what that little shrimp thinks but, uh, I guess I got a little jealous, Steve." Eddie and Steve hold each others gaze for a moment before Eddie continues, "I guess, I couldn't accept the fact that Steve Harrington," Eddie draws his name out, "Was actually a good dude. Rich parents, popular, chicks love him. Not a douche? No way, man. No way."

Nickey glances over at Steve. Most wouldn't notice it, but she does. The way his jaw tightens and his mouth turns downward. Eddie has no idea the way his words cut Steve. He doesn't realize they would either. That Steve actually cares what other people think about him. Nickey tries to catch his eyes but he won't look up. 

Eddie goes on, "That flies in the face of all the laws of the universe and my own personal Munson doctrine." A beat passes then Eddie leans into Steve, "Still super jealous as hell, by the way." Steve pushes Eddie away with a laugh. "Which is why I never would have jumped in that lake to save your ass. Not under any uh...normal circumstances." He admits as he glances around the erie woods," 

A branch snaps in the distance and an animal screech follows. Suddenly they're frozen to their spots. Steve waves the flashlight around, but nothing comes bursting out of the trees. 

Eddie takes the first tentative step, "Nope. Outside of D&D, I am no hero. I see danger and I just turn heel and run. At least that's what I've learned about myself this week." 

Nickey fully grabs Eddie's hand and squeezes at the same moment Steve lightly taps Eddie's chest and says, "Give yourself a break, man." 

"See," Eddie starts making the trio stop, "The only reason I came in here was 'cause those ladies," He say with a point at Nancy and Robin walking ahead of them then he glances back at Nickey, "And this one, came in straight after you. Now I was too ashamed to be the one who stayed behind. But Wheeler right there, she didn't waste a second." 

Steve stares straight ahead at Nancy's back and a pit forms in the bottom of Nickey's stomach. She can tell where this is going and it's nowhere good for anyone involved. 

"Not one second." He continues, "She just dove right in. Now, I don't know what happened between you two, but if I were you, I would get her back." 

Nickey's eyes go wide as she yanks on Eddie's arm forcing him to turn his attention to her, she aggressively shakes her head. Eddie gives her a look that says What? She mouths back while still shaking her head, No!

Suddenly the ground under their feet starts to shake again. Nickey's knees nearly give way underneath her when Eddie catches her around the waist and holds them both up by leaning on a tree. "Here we go again." He seethes through his teeth. 

The vibrations rock through Nickey's legs making it harder and harder to stay standing. She grips at Eddie's jacket in an attempt to find some stability. 

"Nancy!" Robin's voice rings out alerting Nickey to what appears to be Nancy running through the woods across the unstable ground, "Where are you going? Nancy!" 

"What is she doing?" Nickey grumbles still struggling to keep herself upright. 

Finally the ground settles and Nickey pushes away from Eddie to follow the path Nancy took off on. Robin is right on her heels with Eddie and Steve following. 

At the edge of the woods is where they find Nancy standing and staring out at the Upside Down version of her home in the distance. The field in front of them is decimated. Downed power lines and large tree branches cover the ground on top of the vines, looking much like a strong tornado just blew through. Or an earthquake. 

"Come on." Nancy instructs the group and without even waiting for them she begins the walk toward the Wheeler household. 

Nickey chews her bottom lip for a moment and her stomach tightens, renewed fear settling over her. She squeezes her eyes shut to try and quell the anxiety. 

Nickey. You can't save her.

She opens her eyes, now welling with tears, with a sharp breath to see that the other three have started walking away. She wipes at her face and quickly catches up and tries to make herself appear as calm as she possibly can be.

The Wheeler's front door creaks open and they file inside. It doesn't look much different that the outside. Vines run along the walls, the floor, over the furniture. Dust is still spinning through the air. It actually might even be colder in here than outside. Nickey runs her hands over the goosebumps on her arms. It doesn't do much. 

Steve steps into the dining room with the flashlight when Robin says, trying her best to cut the tension, "Might be time to get a maid, Wheeler." 

Nancy ignores her, "Come on, I don't want to stay her longer than we have to." She says then starts up the stairs. 

They follow her lead and head to her bedroom. When they walk in Nancy goes straight to the closet. Nickey looks around and a strange feeling tells her something isn't right. Something is off. Nickey has been in Nancy's room countless times and this doesn't feel like a room she's ever been in. It's off even for being in the Upside Down. 

Nancy rips open the closet doors and pulls down a shoes box. She takes it to her desk and opens the box with Robin and Eddie at her side. Nickey still examining the room. 

It's Eddie's voice that grabs her attention, "Those aren't guns." He says and she whips her head in their direction before making her way to his side. Sitting on the desk is a shoe box with shoes. She frowns down at them. 

"These heels are a bit pointy, but I was hoping for something along the lines of deadly projectile." Robin says with a sarcastic bite.

"I don't understand." Nancy says utterly bewildered. 

"Maybe you left them somewhere else." Eddie suggests. 

"There's a six year old in the house, I know where I keep my guns." Nancy snaps over her shoulder. She looks back at the shoe box, "And also, I threw these away years ago." 

Nickey shakes her head, "I can't explain it, but it feels different in here." She says and Nancy gives her a quizzical look, "Not just because we're in the Upside Down. It's like I've never been in this room before." 

Nancy turns back to her desk and starts to examine the clutter atop of it. She grabs a stack of index cards and starts shuffling through them. 

"I get that grades are important to you, but perhaps studying could wait until we get out?" Robin says. 

"These are from sophomore chemistry." Nancy states then drops the cards back onto the desk as she looks up to the wall in front of her, "And this...this wallpaper," She starts pacing around the room in a frenzy, "This is old wallpaper. And this mirror, this went to a yard sale." 

Nickey looks at the cork board over Nancy's desk and yanks a photo down, "I've never seen this before, this should be that polaroid of us we took at the pool last summer." That knot in her stomach tightens.

Nancy turns to her bed, "And you..." She lifts a stuffed animal off the mattress, "You're not supposed to be here. No, I gave you to cousin Joanna two years ago." She continues pacing across the room only to stop at her bedside table and pick up a journal then start flipping through it. 

"What is it?" Eddie asks, the three of them now standing behind Nancy. 

"Nancy, you're freaking me out." Robin says.

Still staring at the journal in her hands Nancy answers, "I think the reason that my aren't here is because they don't exist yet." 

"They don't...exist?" Eddie asks through clenched teeth. Nickey can feel his anxiety growing by the second. She wraps her hand around his forearm and leans into his side, hoping to soothe the both of them. 

Nancy turns back around, "This diary should be full of entries. It's not. The last entry is November, 6 1983." Nickey straightens, "The day Will went missing. The day the gate opened. We're in the past." 

Nickey shakes her head, "How the fuck is that possible?" 

Before anyone can answer Steve's voice carries up the stairs, "Dustin! Dustin!" He shouts sounding very distressed. 

The four of them immediately run out of Nancy's bedroom and down the steps. Steve is still yelling and waving the flashlight around frantically in the dining room. "Hello? Hel- Hello?!" 

Robin leans in and whispers, "Maybe he really does have rabies." 

"Hello! Hello!" Steve continues yelling and waving the flashlight looking every bit of a lunatic.

"Steve, what the fuck, dude?" Nickey calls out. 

Suddenly the four are blinded by light when Steve turns the flashlight on them, "He's here." He says, "Henderson. That little shit, he's here. He's like...He's in the walls or something. Listen. Just listen." Steve informs trying to catch his breath. "Dustin. Dustin! Dustin!" Steve spins around and starts his search once more, "Dustin, can you hear me?" 

Nickey stares at her best friend in complete bewilderment and just as she starts to contemplate whether or not she might need to send him to that asylum Nancy and Robin visited, she hears it. It's muffled and distorted, but it's there. "Holy fucking shit." She breathes out. "That's Henderson." 

"Where..." Nickey trails off as she fully steps into the dining room, "Dustin!" 

The others spread out through the room and start shouting for the boy. There's never an answer. 

"All right, either this kid can't hear us or he's being a total douchebag." Steve determines. 

"Will found a way." Nancy says, like an idea has just come to her.

Steve turns to her confused, "What?" 

"Will. He found a way to speak to Joyce through the lights." Nancy explains and starts moving. 

"Lights?" Steve wonders aloud.  

Nancy starts messing with a lamp, trying to turn it on. "Try the switch." Steve tells her. 

She starts flipping the switch up and down but no lights come on, "It's not working." She grumbles in frustration. 

Nickey glances around looking for another light source to try, "Does this place even have electricity?" 

"Guys." Steve calls out, "You seeing this?" 

Nickey looks up to see Steve pointing the flashlight at the chandelier. And the air around it is...sparkling? She takes a slow step towards it. "Wow." She mutters in amazement. She hesitates for just a moment before lifting her hand and placing it into the glittering dust. It glows even brighter around her fingertips and tingles over her skin. Like when someone whispers in your ear. 

"Whoa." She hears Eddie say behind her as the rest of them crowd around the light. 

Each of them slowly puts their hand up next to Nickey's and drags their fingers through the sparkle. 

"It..tickles." Steve says as if he wasn't expecting the sensation. 

"It kinda feels good." Robin says. 

Nancy pulls her hand away, "Does anyone know morse code?" She asks and is answered with echoing nos as the rest pull their hands down. 

A beat passes then Eddie speaks, "Wait, does SOS count?" Nickey turns to look at him with a flat expression, "Is- is that good?" 

Nickey's eyebrows shoot to her hairline, "Yes, Munson, that's great." She taps his arm repeatedly, "Do it, do it. Hurry, so we can get out of this hellhole." 

"Okay." Eddie says and grabs Nickey's wrist so she stops hitting him. She mumbles an apology then Eddie lifts his hand once more and starts flicking his fingers into the glitter air. Each time the light grows a little stronger. He repeats the motion over and over. Nickey can't help but stare. He looks down at her over his shoulder and a smirk tilts the corner of his lip. She shoves her elbow into his side while heat warms her cheeks. 

The sound of who she assumes is Erica talking fills the room.

"It's working." Robin says. 

"Hey, uh," Dustin's voice echoes faintly, "Remember when I said they wouldn't be stupid enough to go through Watergate?"

"Yeah?" Lucas' voice answers.

"I overestimated them." Dustin says. 

Nickey scoffs, "Oh that's nice. Little shit." 

The five of them sit on their knees crouched in front of Nancy's bed waiting for Dustin to execute the plan he came up with in order for them to communicate. There's a number of things going through her mind that Nickey wants to say. But the main questions she needs answers to are one; How are you going to get us out of here? And two; Is Max okay? She really, really needs to know if Max is alright. And she needs her to know that she didn't just abandon her at the lake. 

Nickey has her lip between her teeth again, chewing it to oblivion as she anxiously waits for Dustin. Fingers wrap around the hand hanging at her side. She glances to Eddie but he isn't looking at her. He's just as nervous as she is. She squeezes his hand, maybe he needed someone to hold onto just as much as she did. Nickey presses into his side and Eddie tightens his his hold on her fingers. 

"Okay, you guys seeing this?" Dustin's voice comes through muffled, but they can hear him. 

Faintly, the glow of the flashlight Steve has pointed at the bed starts to sparkle. Just like the light downstairs. Nancy puts her hand in it and it glows. 

"Holy shit!" Dustin shouts with a laugh. Nickey can only assume that's a good thing. "Okay, we're not gonna move it, but we're gonna unplug it. Stand by." The glow disappears. "Okay, try it now." 

"Okay, uh. Um." Nancy mumbles as she tries to think of something to do before sticking her finger into the sparkling air and writing out the letter 'H' then an 'I'.

"Hi." Dustin reads, "Hi!" Both Lucas and Erica greet them as well. "That worked!" 

A resounding sound of celebration erupts from the group. Yeses and joyus, relieved laughter come from each other mouths. 

Eddie leans forward and shouts, "Hi!" Nickey pulls him back laughing. 

Nancy turns back to the glitter and starts writing again. 

The mumblings of the three kids trying to figure out what Nancy is writing out echo through her bedroom. 

"Stuck!" Erica concludes. 

"Okay, okay. They're stuck in the Upside Down!" Lucas says. 

"Uh, you guys can't get back through Watergate?" Dustin asks.

"What the hell's Watergate?" Steve asks. 

"Cause it's in water and it's a gate." Robin explains flatly. 

Nickey rolls her eyes, "Of course, he named it." 

"That's cute." Eddie says next to her and she can't help the smile that grows on her cheeks. 

Nancy starts writing in the glitter again. 

"Guarded. Okay, Watergate's guarded." Dustin says. "We think we have a theory that can help with that!" 

Relief grows in Nickey's chest, "Thank God." She mutters and rests her forehead on Eddie's shoulder. 

"Genius child." Robin says.

"We think Watergate isn't the only gate." He says. "That there's a gate at every murder site." 

Nancy turns to the group, "Does anyone understand what he's talking about?" 

"Uh uh." 

"No." 

"No idea." 

Nancy draws a question mark in the air. 

"Okay, seriously? How many times do I have to be right on the money before you guys just trust me!?" Dustin shouts in exasperation. 

Nickey goes wide eyed and shakes her head, "Geeze." 

"Jesus Christ, this kid's gotta get his ego in check." Steve says. 

Eddie leans in, "It's his tone, right?" 

"I know." Steve agrees.

"Okay, how far is your trailer?" Nancy suddenly asks Eddie.

"Seven miles." He answers and the realization comes to Nickey. Vecna killed Patrick at the lake, there's a gate in the lake. Vecna killed Chrissy at Eddie's, there has to be a gate at Eddie's.

"Nancy?" Robin starts, "Uh, I know your house here is, like, weirdly, creepily frozen in time and shit. But haven't you always had bikes?" 

"They should be outside." She says. 

Steve stands to his feet, "Then let's get the fuck out of here."

They all start to move, but Nickey's shouting stops them, "Wait!" Each of them turn to stare at her expectantly. Not once has she heard her sister's voice since they found the kids and it's caused a pit to form in her stomach like a ball of lead and she can't let it fester any longer. "I have to know." She says then reaches a finger into the air and writes three letters. MAX? 

No one answers for a moment and her stomach twists, then someone clears their throat. "She's okay." It's Lucas that answers, "We don't really have time to explain what happened, but I promise we're watching out for her, Nick." 

Nickey takes an inhale of breath and runs her hands over her sweat sticky face. It doesn't really make her feel better, she'd rather speak to Max herself so she can know without a doubt that she's okay. 

A hand drops onto her shoulder and she turns her head up, "We gotta go, Nick." Steve says with a squeeze. "She'll be okay. They'll watch out for her, you know they will." 

She does know that. Of course she does. The kids would never let anything bad happen to Max. Still that lead ball sinks deeper into Nickey's stomach. But she doesn't have much of a choice here. They need to get out of the Upside Down. 

With a shallow nod she turns back and writes one more message. OK. THANK U. 

"Okay, now hurry!" Dustin shouts and Nickey's on her feet following the others out of Nancy's bedroom and down the stairs. 

Once they all step outside Nancy leads them to the side of the house where the bikes are. Steve, Robin, Nancy and Eddie all grab the handlebars of a bike and pull them upright before swinging a leg over the seat.

"Wait." Nickey calls out and the others stop to look over their shoulders at her. "There's only four bikes." She says with a glance around. 

Nancy mutters a curse under her breath. "Uh.." 

Eddie glances down at the bike he's on then looks up to Nickey with a slight grin on his face, "Mine's got pegs." 

Nickey's eyes spot the small metal bars jutting out from the back wheel of Eddie's bike. She turns to Nancy, "Are you sure Mike didn't have, like, a skateboard or something?" 

"Come on, Mayfield," Steve groans, "We don't have time for this. Get on the pegs and lets go!" 

Nickey narrows her eyes and Steve and he just waves her on hurriedly. With a groan in the back of her throat, Nickey stomps over to Eddie and climbs onto the pegs. She wraps her arms around his shoulders and locks her fingers together. "God help me." She mutters. 

"Seriously?" Eddie says with raised eyebrows. 

"I've seen you drive." Nickey retorts.

Eddie rolls his eyes, "You'll be fine. Just hold on tight." He says the last part with a soft laugh.

Then the group of them are riding down the street with Eddie leading the charge. The wind is whipping Nickey's hair around and making her eyes water. She squeezes them shut and buries her face in the crook of Eddie's neck. She can feel him laugh.

"I swear if you let me fall, I'll kill you." She speaks into his hair. 

A hand wraps around her wrists and squeezes, "I got you, Mayfield." Eddie says into the wind. 

Four bikes roll into Eddie Munson's front yard and drop as the five of them jump off. 

"That's gotta be a Guinness World Record." Robin says, "Most miles traveled interdimensionally." 

The all start for the door when Nickey grabs Eddie's hand and pulls him back toward her. He looks down with furrowed brows as he tries to catch his breath. "Thanks." She says. 

"Yeah." He answers with a small shake of his head. 

She pushes up onto her toes and presses a kiss to his cheek. 

"Just inhaled a bunch of that crap." Steve coughs, "Stuck in my throat." 

Nickey pulls away from Eddie and smacks Steve on the back causing him to cough once more, "Better?" 

Steve mimiks her with a high pitched tone as he clicks on the flashlight. 

Eddie pulls the door of the trailer open and leads everyone inside. 

The inside of the trailer looks exactly like the inside of the Wheeler house. Disgusting vines wrapped over every surface and dust floating through the air. There's only one difference. The red, glowing, fleshy mass in the ceiling. 

"Goddamn." Steve says astonished as he turns the flashlight off.

"This is where Chrissy died." Eddie says, "Like, right where she died." 

"I think there's something in there." Robin says.

A shadow hovers on the other side. Then, whatever it is, starts to push at the flesh. It stretches and squelches. 

"What the hell is that?" Eddie wonders aloud.

The shadow continues to push and then the flesh bursts sending bits flying. Robin lets out a scream as the all jump back. 

"Oh nasty." Nickey grumbles. 

What looks like the end of a stick whacks around the now gaping hole in Eddie's ceiling for a few moments before pulling back. The edges of the hole drip goop. Nickey scrunches up her nose at it. 

Tentatively Steve takes a step towards it. Then another. Nancy follows, so Robin starts to follow too. With a glance back at Eddie, Nickey makes to follow as well. He's right behind her. 

"No way." Steve says staring up at the hole. 

Nickey stretches her neck to see what it is that Steve's looking at. Her heart flips into her throat when it finally comes into view. 

With a laugh, Dustin waves. "Hi, there." 

Nickey lets out a relieved laugh, "Max." 

"Hey." Her sister waves. 

"Holy shit, this is trippy." Robin says. 

There the kids are. In Eddie's trailer. In regular, monster free, Hawkins. Most importantly, to Nickey at least, there's Max. Safe and whole and not Vecna-ed. 

Chapter Text

On the regular world side of the gate Max and Lucas drop a mattress onto the floor. A very...stained mattress. 

"Those stains are uh..." Eddie starts to explain, "I don't know what those stains are." 

Robin gives a very disapproving hum. 

"Gross." Nickey mumbles. 

Dustin and Erica step into view with the former carrying a wadded up sheet. "Not sure how these physics are gonna work, but uh.." He tosses the sheet up on his end and it unravels down through the gate to hang in the Upside Down like a rope. "There we go. And if my theory is correct..." Dustin lets go of the sheet and it hangs suspended in the air. "Abracadabra." 

"Holy shit!" Max exclaims.

"Alright, pull on it, see if it holds!" Dustin yells up at the ceiling gate. 

The Upside Down group exchanges looks before Robin decides to take the step forward and yank on the sheet-rope. The thing doesn't budge. 

"This could actually fucking work." Nickey says and tugs on the sheet herself. 

Dustin laughs excitedly on the other side. 

"This is the craziest shit I've ever seen in my life," Erica states, "And I've seen some crazy shit."

Dustin offers his hand over his shoulder and Erica high-fives him. 

Robin steps forward and wraps her hands around the sheet, "Guess, I'm the guinea pig." With a grunt she hops up and wraps her legs around. Slowly, she starts pulling herself upward. 

Inch by inch Robin climbs and slips through the gate. Until, finally, the gravity of the real world grabs ahold of her and she falls flat on her back on the mattress. 

She sits upright, "Oh, thank God." She heaves, "That was fun." Dustin offers her a hand and helps her to her feet. 

Still in the Upside Down Nickey smiles in relief. 

"Alright, I guess I'll go." Eddie says at Nickey's side before he grabs onto the sheet-rope and begins to pull himself up. Nickey watches a bit nervously as he passes through the gate. Gravity pulls him the rest of the way through and he flips onto his back. He sits upright, "That...was fun. Shit." Dustin pulls him up off of the mattress. 

Nickey glances to Steve and Nancy then back to the gate. Max stares up at her expectantly. "My turn." Nickey grabs the sheet in her fists and hauls herself up with a grunt until she can wrap her legs around it. "Oh, I failed this in gym." She groans and her muscles strain and she continues to pull herself up the sheet-rope.

Pieces of red hair fall into Nickey's vision as her head passes through the gate and she goes from being upright to upside down. Suddenly the pull of gravity switches and she's yanked through the rest of the gate with a cursed yelp. She lands flat on her back onto the mattress, now staring up at Steve and Nancy who are staring up at her. 

She huffs a laugh and she sits up, "Fuck, that really was fun." 

A ringed hand is offered, which Nickey accepts and is then pulled to her feet. Eddie pulls her up so quickly she stumbles over her own feet and collides with his chest. He wraps an arm around her waist to keep her standing. His cheeks go rosy, "Hi." He says softly. 

"Hi." Nickey echos, a little breathless from the proximity. 

Someone clears their throat and the two turn their heads at the sound. Dustin stands to the side of them with his arms crossed over his chest and his eyebrows pulled down. "What the hell happened in there?" He questions and narrows his eyes at their entangled bodies.

Nickey steps back from Eddie and drops his hand, "Don't start, Henderson. I'm still pissed that you ran off with Max and I have a feeling that you all got into some big ass trouble which is the exact opposite of what I asked of you." 

Dustin's expression drops and Eddie has to bite his lip to keep from laughing. 

"I'm fine, Nick." Max says and suddenly she's engulfed in a pair of arms. 

"I'm so glad you're okay." Nickey says into her sister's hair. 

Max's arms tighten around Nickey's waist, "I'm glad you're okay, too. And, I love you and all, Nick, but you kinda stink right now." 

Nickey pulls back and Max smiles up at her, it's more of a grimace than anything, "Wow, thanks." She releases her sister from her hold and looks back to the room full of people, "Wait, where are the other two?" She asks then steps into the mattress and looks up into the gate. 

The others gather around when a sharp gasp falls from Nickey's mouth. On the other side Nancy stands stock still while Steve shakes her trying to get her attention. 

"Vecna." Max states.

Nickey glances down at her sister then back up. "No." She whispers. "Nancy! Nancy!" She shouts and makes to grab for the sheet-rope but hands pull her arms back. "Let me go!" She shouts, eyes burning with tears. 

Eddie keeps his grip on her, "You are not going back in there." 

"We need to do something!" She shouts and yanks her arms away. 

"What we did for Max we can do for Nancy," Dustin says, "Eddie, where do you keep your music?" 

He nods down the hall, "My room." 

The hoard of them take off towards Eddie's bedroom leaving Erica to keep watch in the living room. 

"Grab everything and find something Nancy likes, hurry!" Dustin shouts frantically as they all start tearing the room apart. 

Nickey goes to the dresses and throws open drawers finding nothing but clothes. She drops down to her knees and begins shuffling through the bottom drawers, hoping to find what? She's really not sure. A secret stash of ABBA tapes, maybe? She looks under the bed and finds nothing but a stack of metal magazines with scantily clad women on the cover.

She drops the magazines to the floor, "Ew!" She exclaims. A sneaker kicks them back under and Nickey looks up to see Eddie with an arm full of cassettes looking like a deer in headlights. "I'm not doing anything that is in those. Ever." 

He nods, "That's fair." 

Erica runs into the room, "Steve says you need to hurry!" 

"Yeah, no shit!" Dustin calls over his shoulder as he and Lucas tear through tapes. 

"We're trying! We can't find anything." Max shouts. 

"Seriously, what is all this shit?" Robin asks from her spot on the bedspring, hands full of metal cassettes. 

Eddie drops his arm full of tapes in front of Robin, "What are you even looking for?" 

Frantically, Robin starts listing off musicians, "Madonna, Blondie, Bowie, Beatles? Music, we need music!" 

Eddie snatches the Iron Maiden tape from Robin and shouts in a rage, "This is music!" 

Nickey stands to her feet, grabs the cassette and chucks it across the room, "That's not helping! Eddie Munson, so help me God if you don't tell me where the fuck you keep the music you pretend you don't listen to right now, you won't have to worry about going down for murder, do you hear me?" 

Eddie looks back at Nickey wide eyed. He starts to open his mouth to answer her when Erica runs back into the room, "She's back!" 

A gasp of relief rocks through Nickey's body. "Thank God." She mutters under her breath as she leans forward and rests her forehead against Eddie's chest. 

After getting Steve and Nancy safely through the gate, the group decided it might be safer to move their operation across the street to the Mayfield trailer. Which is where Nancy explained what she saw in her Vecna trance. That being that Vecna is really Henry Creel and he killed his mother and sister, not his father and not a demon like his father thought. And he ended up being the first of many children to end up in the care of Dr.Brenner at the Hawkins lab, just like Eleven. He was One. Nancy said there was a bunch of dead kids, and El might have been the one to kill them. She said Vecna was ranting to El about how messed up the world is and that together the two of them could somehow fix it. But El didn't want that and she sent him through the wall, somehow opening the first gate to the Upside Down where he has been terrorizing the world ever since. 

Nancy sits in a chair in Nickey's living room staring blankly and trembling as she continues, "He s-showed me things that haven't happened yet. The most awful things. I saw a dark cloud spreading over Hawkins. Downtown on fire. Dead soldiers. And this...this giant creature with...a gaping mouth. And this creature wasn't alone. There were so many monsters. An army. And they were coming into Hawkins. Into our neighborhoods. Our homes. And then...He showed me my mom. And Holly. Mike." Her voice cracks as tears fall down her cheeks, "And they were...they were all-" 

Nickey pulls her knees up to her chest and wraps her arms around her legs from her spot on the floor in front of the couch. She wants to comfort Nancy but she doesn't know how. What is there to say? What is there to do? Hands squeeze her shoulders and she leans against the legs behind her. Eddie's fingers are a weight that she welcomes, he runs the pads of his thumbs over the fabric of her shirt. 

"Okay, but he's just trying to scare you, Nance." Steve says and Nickey glances up at him. "Right? I mean...I mean, it's not real."

"Not yet." Nancy says and Nickey turns to look at the girl with tears tracking her face, "But there...there was something else. He showed me gates. Four gates. Spreading across Hawkins. And these gates, they looked like the one outside of Eddie's trailer, but...they didn't stop growing. And this wasn't the Upside Down Hawkins. This was our Hawkins. Our home." 

A heavy and tense quiet settles over the group. It's palpable. Tangible. Until it's shattered. 

"Four chimes." Max says and Nickey nearly breaks her neck with the speed she turns to look at her sister, "Vecna's clock. It always chimes four times. Four exactly."

"I heard them too." Nancy says. 

Max shakes her head slowly, "He's been telling us his plan this whole time." 

"Four kills." Lucas concludes, "Four gates. End of the world." 

Suddenly it feels like a grand piano is sitting on top of Nickey's chest. Three gates are already opened because three kills have already happened. Which means Vecna just needs one more. Chrissy, Fred and Patrick. One more. And they stopped one of his kills.

"If that's true," Dustin says, but to Nickey it sounds like he's speaking into a wind tunnel, "He's one kill away." 

Chrissy, Fred and Patrick. One more.

Behind her Eddie grumbles with panic into his hands, "Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ." 

Chrissy, Fred and Patrick. One more. 

"Try 'em again." She hears Steve vaguely. 

Chrissy. Fred. Patrick. One more.

One more. 

One more. 

One more.

Nickey is vaguely aware that Steve is talking. Max is talking. Dustin is talking. People are talking all around her but she can't hear them over how hard her heart is pounding against her ribcage. Her chest is heaving to try and fill her lungs and give her heart some room to beat because suddenly it feels too big for the space it occupies. Her throat goes dry and she swallows against it but it only burns worse. She's sure someone has double, triple, quadruple knotted her stomach and it's pushed a lump so far up her esophagus that she can hardly breathe around it. Blinking. That's all she keeps doing. She blinks, blinks, blinks at the empty air she's staring into because she can't make herself move. This body that she's lived in for nineteen years doesn't work now. The joints are rusted and every inch of them aches. Every part of her aches at this realization she's had. And no one around her has seemed to put it together. 

None but one. 

Nancy's voice breaks through the fuzz in Nickey's ear, "We have to go back in there. Back to the Upside Down." She says with an urgency only to be met with a chorus of disapproval. Nickey doesn't say a word. She doesn't even flinch. 

Steve stands to his feet and makes his way across the room to Nancy, "Let's think this through." He tells her.

"What is there to think through?" She shoots back.

"We barely made it out in one piece." Steve reminds her. 

"Yeah, because we weren't prepared." Nancy argues. "But this time, we will be. We'll get weapons and protection. We'll go through the gate, we'll find his lair, and we'll kill him."

"Or he'll kill us." Steve counters, "The only reason that you survived is because he wanted you to. He's not scared of us." 

Robin stands to her feet to join the argument, "And for good reason. We were wrong about Vecna. Henry. One. S-sorry, what are we calling him now?" 

"One." 

"Vecna." 

"One." 

"Henry." 

Names are thrown around the room.

"Right. We've learned something new about Venca/Henry/One." Robin continues. "He's a number, like Eleven. Only a sick, evil, male child-murdering version of her with really bad skin. But m-my- my point is, he's super powerful. He could turn us inside out with a snap of his fingers. It's not a fair fight." 

"So then why fight fair?" Dustin says, "You're right. He's like Eleven. But that gives us an upper hand. We know Eleven's strengths. And weaknesses." 

"Weaknesses?" Erica questions. 

"When El remote travels, she goes into this, sort-of, trance-like state. I bet the same is true of Vecna." 

"That would explain what he was doing in that attic." Lucas says.

"Exactly," Dustin says sounding excited, "When he attacks his next victim, I'll bet you he's back in that attic, physical body defenseless."

Steve speaks, his voice full of sarcasm, "Defenseless? Yeah, what about the army of bats?" He asks while gesturing to the bruise around his neck. 

"Right. We'll have to find a way past them. Distract them somehow." Dustin says. 

Eddie's voice makes Nickey flinch pulling her out of her stupor enough to glance at the people around her. Everyone looks tense. "And how do we do that exactly?" Eddie asks.

"No idea." Dustin answers, "But once they're gone, he doesn't stand a chance. It'll be like slaying sleeping Dracula in his coffin."

"That all sounds good in theory, but there is no pattern to Vecna's killings." Robin says, "I mean, at least not one that I can decipher. We don't know when he's going to attack next. We don't even know who he's going to attack." 

"Yes, we do." Nickey speaks finally and her voice grates against her throat. Every eye turns to her, all of them looking a little bewildered, but Nickey's eyes are on her sister as silent tears roll down her face because she can the exact same thing is running through Max's own mind. 

Max stares back at her older sister with a look that crumbles Nickey's heart bit by bit. "I can still feel him. I'm still marked. Cursed." She says. "I ditch Kate Bush, I draw his focus back to me." 

"No." Nickey says as firmly as she can through her shaking vocal chords and the same time Lucas is speaking Max's name so softly. 

"You can't." Lucas continues. "He'll kill you." 

Max turns to him, "I survived before. I can survive again." She turns back to the room, "I just- I need to keep him busy enough so that you guys can get into that attic. And then you can chop his head off. Stab him in the heart. Blow him up with some explosive Dustin cooks up. I honestly- I really don't care how you put that asshole in his grave. Just..whatever it is...whatever you do...try not to miss." 

Nickey's jaw is clenched so hard she's surprised her teeth haven't cracked from the pressure. "No." She repeats, anger now in accompany. "That's not happening." 

Max looks down at Nickey on her spot on the floor. And suddenly Nickey feels like the little sister throwing a tantrum and Max is the big sister trying her best to diffuse it. "Nick-"

"No." Her voice booms. "I'm not going to let you kill yourself. Fuck that. We'll find another way." 

"There is no other way. You know that." Max says blinking back tears of her own. 

Nickey shakes her head, "No. No. I refuse to accept that." She stands to her feet, Eddie's hands falling away from her, "I refuse to believe that the only option is you putting your life on the line. We can think of something else." She says and looks around the room. Waiting for someone, anyone, to offer and alternative. But they won't look at her. They each find something else to be interested in when her eyes find them. 

She locks gazes with Steve. She pleads with her eyes and he just blinks back at her. For a long moment he closes his eyes and looks at her. A sadness on his face but also a knowing. It tells her exactly what she doesn't want to know. 

A shuddering gasp comes from her body when she opens her mouth. Nickey throws her arms up and turns on her heel heading for her bedroom. Someone wraps their hand around her upper arm trying to stop her. She knows it's Steve. She doesn't even have to look to know that. 

"Don't touch me." She yanks her arm from his grasp and runs into her bedroom. 

She collapses onto her bed and buries her face in her hands. Heaving breaths push her chest up and down. It's like her lungs can't get full. They just keep sucking in air, but it's never enough so they try harder on the next intake. Then her muscles feel restless so she's on her feet again pacing the length of the room. Tearing her hands through her hair. Stillness is no longer available to her. Every part of herself feels completely untethered, as if she's floating and falling all at once. 

Chapter Text

Nickey's eyes fall on her dresser across the room. The top and wall just above it are decorated with pictures. She steps over to it and places her arms on the edge before resting her chin atop her hands. A particular photo grabs her attention. It's from Max's last birthday in California, the summer just before they moved to Hawkins. Nickey forced the girl into a hug when their mother approached with a camera in hand. She pulled a ridiculous face and as much as Max wanted to act like she hated the embrace a wide smile made its way onto her face anyway. Nickey lifts the frame off the dresser and clutches in her fingers. 

"That's a nice picture." A voice suddenly at her side makes Nickey jolt. When she looks up Eddie is standing next to her admiring the photos she has tacked on the wall. He lifts his hand to one and runs his finger along the edge, "Like this one, too." He says and Nickey drags her eyes to the photo. It's one of her and Nancy at the pool, like the one missing from Nancy's Upside Down bedroom. Eddie turns his head to her with an amused grin on his face, "You look hot in a bikini." 

Nickey rolls her eyes and returns the photo she was holding back to it's place on her dresser then marches back to her bed. She pulls her knees up to her chin and wraps her arms around herself. 

Eddie turns around with reddened cheeks, "Okay, I'm sorry, that was stupid. I know. I say dumb shit when I don't know what to say." 

Nickey shrugs half-heartedly, "There's nothing to say." 

He sighs before making his way to sit next to Nickey and he watches her for a moment, trying to get her to look at him but she just stares straight ahead at the pictures mapping out her life in front of her. And her chest constricts at the thought of there being a last picture with her sister. 

Eddie follows her gaze to a particular picture. He recognizes the younger versions of Nickey and Max, probably around ten and five. But he's never seen the man standing between them. Although he does see some features he's seen before. The same freckles that spread across Nickey's face when she smiles are on his cheeks. Max's nose is on the man's face too. 

"That your Dad?" He asks softly. 

Nickey sniffs then drops her eyes. "Yeah." 

"He still in California?" Eddie asks and immediately wishes he could take the question back when the edges of Nickey's expression shift from soft sadness to hard anger.

She shrugs, trying and failing to seem indifferent, "Maybe." She says, "I wouldn't know. He doesn't call anymore." 

Eddie nods his head with empathy. God knows he's had his fair share of shitty parents. Getting practically dropped on his uncle's doorstep was probably the best thing that's ever happened to him. And now poor Wayne has to deal with this fucking mess. 

Eddie's hand slides back against the fabric of the comforter and the tips of his fingers nudge something. He glances over his shoulder and sees a black bound book. He grabs it and turns it over, looking for a title or a name. Some kind of indicator as to what it is he's holding. 

"What's this?" He asks, still turning it over in his hands. 

Finally, Nickey looks away from the photos. "Nothing." She says quickly taking to book from Eddie's hands before he can open it. 

He looks up at her wide eyed as she clutches the object to her chest. "Nothing?" Then he throws his hands up in mock surrender, "Listen, I won't snoop if it's your diary or something. I was just curious. Although, I would like to know if there's any entries in there about the really cute metalhead that lives across the street." 

And despite herself Nickey smiles. Even laughs a small laugh. It's only for half a moment but it steals Eddie's breath anyway. "It's not a diary." Nickey says looking down at the book in her hands. "It's- it's just some stories I wrote. That's all." She runs her fingers down the binding, the temptation to flip open the cover keeps knocking at her heart. 

Eddie turns his head, "Stories? Like books and shit?" 

Finally, Nickey meets his eyes and she laughs a short laugh for him, "Yeah, like books and shit. I've always wanted to be a writer." 

"Then what the fuck are you doing here?" He asks. 

Nickey's face falters, "Someone needs to take care of Max." 

For a long moment Eddie doesn't say anything. He just watches the way Nickey's face crumbles and the way it makes his chest ache to see her like this. Then he nods with a sigh, "You know, I think the kid's mind is made up." He speaks softly but the words still cut Nickey. 

"She shouldn't have to make that choice." Nickey's voice cracks and she can feel fresh tears building behind her eyes. "She's only fourteen. She deserves so much more than fourteen, Eddie." 

He brings his hand up and cups her cheek. She leans into his palm. "That's why you gotta stand by her side. Don't let her do this alone." 

Nickey brings her hand around the back of Eddie's neck and pulls him forward to close the space between them. Her mouth slides over his own as she kisses him gently once, twice. She brushes her nose over his as they pull apart. 

"What was that for?" He asks breathlessly. "I mean, I'm not complaining." 

Nickey smiles, but it doesn't reach her eyes, "Just because."

The pad of Eddie's thumb sweeps across Nickey's cheek bone and he smiles softly at her. Then his eyes peek over her shoulder and he's pulling back from her. She looks up at him confused. Eddie points with his chin toward the door behind her, "You have a visitor." Nickey turns and Max is standing in the doorway. "See you in a bit, okay?" Eddie says as he stands to his feet then makes his way out of the room. 

Max takes a few tentative steps into the room. Headphones hanging around her neck and hands clasped in front of her. Only fourteen years old. 

A refreshed wave of tears build in Nickey's eyes as she watches her sister. "You can't do this." Her voice comes out strained and weak. Afraid. 

"This isn't your decision, Nick." Max says gently. 

"It's not fair." Tears anew begin to fall down Nickey's face, "I don't want to lose you." 

Max sits down on the bed in front of Nickey, "You won't. I can do this. I have to do this." 

Nickey shakes her head, "No, you don't." She insists, "There has to be another way. We can figure something else out. We just need some time." 

"We don't have time." Max says with a finality in her voice. 

"But I'm supposed to protect you, that's my job. And-" Nickey gasps on a harsh breath trying to steady herself, "And I can't protect you from this. I don't know how. Please, don't do this." 

Max blinks rapidly and turns her face away from her sister. She sniffles. She’s trying to keep Nickey from seeing her cry, it’s not working. Tears worm their way free to slide down her cheeks. 

“Please, Max.” Nickey begs again, her voice soft this time like all her energy has already been spent. 

Max wipes at her face then looks back at her sister, “My whole life, you have done everything to keep me safe. Before Billy and the Upside Down ever came into the picture, you were the one person I could always count on.” The words make Nickey's heart constrict and fresh tears to fall. Max takes her sister's hands in her own and squeezes, "Let me protect you this one time." 

Nickey's throat burns as she struggles to keep the emotion from her voice, "This is a really big one time."

With a faux casual shrug Max says, "Then I guess, I'll just owe you one for the rest of my life." She's trying to be humorous and lighten the tension in their shared bedroom but it's not working. Nickey pulls in a shuddering breath and breaks from her sister's gaze. Max sighs, "This is our chance, Nick. We could finally be finished with this. I need you to stand with me." 

A tear rolls over Nickey's lip as she shakes her head the saltiness settling on her tongue, "I know it is, I know. And that's what we've been trying to do. We've just been through so much these last few years and it's so hard to let go. I don't want to let you go. It's not fair." She repeats. 

"None of this is fair." Max says, once more making Nickey feel as if their roles have swapped. She's now the younger sister being reminded of the truths of life by her big sister. "I have to do this." She whispers. 

A long moment of silence stretches between the siblings, the only sounds being their beating hearts and tears tracking over skin. Finally Nickey wraps her arms around Max and hold on tightly. "I know you do." She says into Max's ear.

The younger sister pulls back, "Come on." She says as she stands to her feet pulling Nickey up, "We have a world to save." 

"Oh wait." Nickey pulls Max to a stop before she starts wiping her hands across her cheeks, "Can't go out there all splotchy. Then people would know you have feelings." 

And despite it all they both laugh softly. 

Max reaches up and wipes Nickey's cheeks too, "Yeah, I guess the world can wait a minute or two." 

Nickey smiles sadly, then again wraps Max in her arms and holds her close. She rests her cheek on the top of Max's head. Arms wrap around Nickey's middle and squeeze at her waist. Both girls standing in the middle of their shared bedroom holding onto one another for dear, dear life. 

Everyone has gathered around the Mayfield's dining table when Eddie slams down a Yellow Pages. He's apparently come up with something while Nickey and Max were talking in their bedroom. Both girls now have dry faces but bruised hearts. 

Eddie points to an ad in the corner of the page, "Check this out; The War Zone." A shirtless man stands holding a very large gun strapped to his chest with the american flag waving behind him. "I've been there once. It's huge. They've got everything you need for uh, well, uh, killing things, basically." He explains. 

"Do you think fake Rambo has enough guns there?" Robin asks glaring down at the ad. "Is that a grenade? I mean, how is any of this legal?"

"Well, lucky for us it is, so..." Eddie says, "This place, is just far enough outside of Hawkins. As long as we steer clear of the main roads, we oughta be able to avoid cops and, uh, angry hicks." 

"If we're trying to avoid angry hicks, maybe we shouldn't go to some store called The War Zone." Ericka says.

Nickey glances down at the ad one more time and grimaces, "Yeah, I don't know about this, Eddie. This place seems sketchy at best." 

Nancy stands upright, "Normally, I'd agree. But we need the weapons. I think it's worth the risk."

"Me too." Lucas agrees. 

"Yeah, but is it worth the time?" Dustin asks, "It'll take all day to bike there and back." 

Nickey turns pointedly to Eddie, "And I'm not riding on your pegs again."

Eddie smirks at her before turning back to Dustin, "Who said anything about bikes?" 

"What? You got some sort of car we don't know about?" Steve asks. 

Eddie stands up and looks to Steve an even wider smirk spreading across his face, "It's not exactly a car, Steve. And it's not exactly mine, but it'll do."

With her eyes to the ceiling Nickey tries to prepare for whatever it is that Eddie is talking about, "I really don't like where this is going." 

Eddie whips around to Max, "Hey, Red. You got a ski mask or a bandanna, something like that?" 

Nickey groans, "Oh, I really don't like where this is going."

Hands cup Nickey's cheeks and she's being forced to look forward, "Just relax and trust me." Eddie says then releases her face to follow Max. 

When Nickey looks up everyone else is staring at her with varying degrees of surprise on their faces. Some of them are even confused. Erica seems downright disgusted. 

"What?" Nickey asks with a shrug. 

"I thought you had better taste." Erica says. 

"Are there Upside Down versions of us and did you bring back the wrong Nickey?" Dustin asks Steve looking absolutely bewildered. 

"Seriously, what the hell happened down there?" Lucas asks Nickey. "You've never even looked at Eddie before and now he's comforting you and touching your face?" 

"Oh, just shut up." Nickey barks while her cheeks burn. 

Robin laughs lightly, "You seem to be quite the smitten kitten." She says and Nickey flips her off which only entices her more.

Dustin leans across the table to Lucas, "You know, this could be advantageous for us. We could really use an on call alternate for Hellfire. Just in case, you or someone else, can't make it like last time-"

Nickey smacks her palms on the table, "Not happening in a million years. I'm not ever playing that game."  

Erica scoffs, "And hello? I'm right here." 

Lucas and Dustin both start to speak when Max and Eddie emerge from her bedroom with Max's Michael Myers mask from halloween, like, two years ago. 

"Jesus Christ." Nickey mumbles under her breath. 

Eddie saunters over to her and tosses an arm across her shoulders forcing her to walk along with him as he pulls the mask over his head. "Let's do this."

The group of teenagers, being led by a twenty year old in a halloween mask, are running across the trailer park. How no one has noticed a group of kids this large, only God knows. 

Eddie leads them around the back of an RV. Nickey recognizes the couple sitting out front watching TV. They're not exactly the most kindly people, but they've never bothered her before. They make their way around the back where Eddie slides open the back window before pulling himself through. He lands in a heap on the built-in couch then rips the mask off his head. 

"That was suffocating." He mumbles then helps Nickey through the window. Everyone else follows suit. 

Eddie makes his way to the front of the Winnebago and plops down into the driver’s seat after locking the door. He starts digging through a tool bag he commandeered from somewhere. Nickey crouches down next to him to try her best to keep watch of the door while also trying not to shit her pants from the anxiety rushing through her bones right now. 

Steve comes up behind them as Eddie pulls a pair of pliers from the bag and promptly puts them in between his teeth. 

Nickey groans in disgust, "Oh, don't put that in your mouth." She yanks the tool from him. 

Eddie reaches under the steering wheel and pulls wiring out then grabs the pliers from Nickey and starts cutting. Nickey's eyes can't help but trail his hands. They move quickly and confidently. He's definitely done this before.

"Where'd you learn how to do this?" Steve asks as if he can hear her thoughts. 

"Well, when the other dads were teaching their kids how to fish or play ball, my old man was teaching me how to hot-wire." Eddie says tightly, "Now, I swore to myself I wouldn't wind up like he did, but now I'm wanted for murder and soon, grand theft auto. So, uh, really living up to that Munson name." He says with an air of sarcasm but it's too forced for Nickey to believe. 

Robin rushes up, almost panicked, "Uh, Eddie, I'm not sure I love the idea of you driving." 

Nickey's stomach drops, "Oh, me either." Eddie turns to her, "No offense, it's just I've seen you drive and I- well, I'd like to live before we die." 

"Rude." Eddie says, this time with real sarcasm. He turns back to Robin and Steve with a wide grin, "Oh, I'm starting this sucker. Harrington's got her, don't ya, big boy." Eddie says leaving both Steve and Nickey bewildered. He turns back to the wires in his hand and with one flick the engine roars to life and the radio cuts on.

Nickey's eyebrows shoot to her hairline but she doesn't have the chance to even think or comment on the sentence that just left Eddie's mouth before someone starts banging on the door.

"Shit." Steve curses under his breath as Eddie jumps out of the seat and he jumps into it. 

Eddie grabs Nickey and drags her into the back of the RV with him. She shoves Robin to get her moving, the three of them stumbling their way back. 

"Everybody, grab onto something!" Steve shouts. 

Chaos is raining on this RV. Bodies moving and shouting on both the inside and out. 

"God dammit, Steve, go!" Nickey shouts as she clutches onto the back of Eddie's jacket as he climbs into a seat.

"Drive, Steve, drive!" Dustin screams from the couch at the back where he and Max are clutching the cushions for dear life. 

Finally Steve throws this Winnebago into gear and floors it. 

"Shit, they look pissed." Dustin says glancing out the back window. 

"I mean, it's not everyday you lose your house and car in one fell swoop." Robin says. 

Nickey scoffs haughtily then glances up to see Eddie whipping his head around. "Are you really headbanging right now?!" 

"Hell yeah! It's fun, you should try it!" He shouts with laughter.

"Hold on! Hold on!" Steve shouts from the driver's seat as he makes a sharp turn.

Nickey is thrown forward into Eddie, the both of them fall into a pile on the seat. Eddie wraps one arm around Nickey's waist and the other grasps onto a cabinet for some stability. He lets out a loud laugh while Nickey is trying to keep the contents of her stomach down, which isn't much.

Steve turns onto the main road and the first part of the plan is complete. Eventually he slows down to legal speed and they're cruising their way to The War Zone.  

Everyone settles into seats around the Winnebago. Eddie unwraps himself from Nickey's waist as they both sit upright in the seat that's barely big enough for the both of them. Nickey runs her fingers through her hair before glancing over her shoulder to her sister. Max catches her eyes and gives an exaggerated thumbs up to signify that she's okay. Turning back around Nickey take in a few long breathes to try and soothe her rattled nerves. 

Eddie knocks his knee into her's, "You okay?" He asks quietly. 

She nods, "Yeah, I'm good." Nickey rests her elbows on the table in front of them then puts her cheek on her fist as she looks at Eddie, "So, you can hotwire?" 

He laughs under his breath as he shakes his head, "It's not really a skill I'm proud of." 

"Well, it helped us out so, I'm grateful." Nickey says which earns her a small smile. She leans into him a little and lowers her voice so that only he can hear, "Plus, it was kinda hot." 

Eddie's eyebrows shoot up and his face flushes. He opens and closes his mouth making sounds but never forming actual words. His brain has turned to mush. Nickey laughs as she leans away. Eddie snaps his mouth shut giving up on trying to not sound like an idiot. Under the table Nickey reaches out for his hand and slips her fingers through his own. Eddie squeezes her hand and brings their entwined fingers to rest in his lap. His thumb sweeps across the back of her hand rhythmically. 

On the other side of the Winnebago, Dustin clears his throat loudly. Nickey and Eddie turn their attention to him and are met with a pointed glare. 

"What?" Eddie asks.

Dustin scoffs, then sputters, then waves his arms around with an incredulous look on his face. Finally, he gains control of himself and points to Nickey and Eddie, "What is going on?" 

Eddie's brow furrows and makes a show of looking around the RV, "Uh, well, we just stole someone's house and we're going to get weapons to fight an interdimensional demon." He says slowly like he's talking to a toddler. 

"Ha.Ha." Dustin laughs humorlessly. "I meant you two. What is going on with you two?" The aforementioned two look at one another. Eddie cocks his head to the side and raises his eyebrows in question. Nickey shrugs her shoulders in answer. Dustin sighs when they don't speak, "Why are you guys holding hands?" He points at their joined fingers under the table, "And why did Eddie volunteer to check on you after you freaked out about Max?" 

Robin laughs under her breath and Dustin turns to her, "Come on, Dustin, I thought you were, like, a genius or something. I'm sure you can figure this one out on your own." She pats his shoulder, "I mean, unless Babysitter Steve hasn't had the birds and bees talk with you yet?" She says loudly enough for Steve to hear in the driver's seat. Steve just makes a face at her in the rearview mirror and Robin laughs again. 

Dustin shakes his head, "It just doesn't make sense, I mean, you two hadn't even spoken to each other until a few days ago. How could this have happened?" 

Nickey tries to keep the laugh bubbling up her throat down as she speaks, "Dustin, relax." She reaches over and pats his knee, "You don't have to worry about anything. No matter what happens, I'll still be like your cool big sister and you can still have your nerdy game club. Nothing is gonna change that." 

"Nerdy game club?" Eddie says at her side. 

She turns back to him and puts on a tight smile, "No offense, but you're all a bunch of nerds." Eddie huffs a pout and Nickey rolls her eyes, "You're a cute nerd." She whispers to him and the corner of this lip turns up. She turns to Dustin again, "Now, can you just let it go for the love of everything good that is left in this world before you give yourself an aneurysm." 

Dustin starts to open his mouth but thinks better of it when Nickey gives him a hard look. He clamps his mouth shut and turns himself away from her glare. 

The Winnebago quiets from there as the trips falls into a lull. The road stretches on before them with the radio whispers. Nickey looks over her shoulder to Max. She's sitting on the couch in front of the back window, alone with her headphones on her ears. She want to go over and say something to her, talk to her, but she's not sure what to say at this point. There's too much and nothing at all to be said between them. And Nickey isn't sure that she's the person Max really needs at the moment. 

Nickey catches Lucas looking back at Max too. Their eyes meet and he asks her a silent question. She smiles at him softly before nodding toward her sister. He smiles back at her before getting to his feet and joining Max on the couch. 

Exhaustion comes over Nickey like a truck. She hasn't gotten any good sleep in the last twenty four hours and it's catching up to her now. Her eyelids are starting to get heavy and hard to keep open. Nickey pulls her fingers from Eddie's grasp. He starts to question her when she turns her back to his chest and drapes one of his arms around her. Her head falls back against him and her eyes close. Eddie smiles down at the girl pressed against him before settling his head against the wall and letting his own eyes drop shut. 

Chapter Text

When Nickey wakes up Steve is throwing the Winnebago into park around the side of The War Zone. He, Robin, Nancy, and Erica go inside to collect the supplies. Max goes along as well with Nickey's very reluctant permission. She, Lucas and Dustin stay in the RV to keep watch over Eddie just in case something happens. 

Nickey gazes out the windshield for a moment with a grimace on her face at all the people and cars in the parking lot, "This place is really busy. It's like everyone in Hawkins is here." She says then leans back in her seat. Her eyes fall on Eddie who looks increasingly nervous by the second. He's sunk down into his seat to keep out of sight. Then she realizes why it's so busy. The whole town thinks he's a murderous cult leader on the loose and they might be next. Nickey puts her hand on his thigh and squeezes. "Remember what I promised. We're gonna get you out of this. Everything is gonna be fine." 

Eddie puts his hand over her's and gives Nickey a grateful smile as he squeezes her fingers. She leans forward and drops her voice so only he can hear, "We can talk about something else. Something to distract you?" 

He clears his throat with a nod, "Yeah, that- that's a good idea." 

"Okay." Nickey says, "Anything in particular you want to talk about?" She asks and he just shrugs, uncertain. "Alright, um...oh, here's something. How'd you learn to play guitar?" 

Eddie's face visibly brightens at the question and she can feel him start to relax under her hand, "My uncle got me a guitar after I moved in with him when I was eight." He shrugs his shoulder, "I don't know why, I guess he just wanted to make me feel better after losing my mom. Or maybe he just didn't know what to do with me." He jokes and Nickey smiles, "I've always loved music though, so I was fucking excited. Everyday, well at least when he had time, Wayne would sit down with me to show me how to play." The image of young Eddie sitting with a guitar perched in his lap with his uncle standing over his shoulder warms Nickey's heart. "He said he was in a band in high school. A lot of stuff I learn to play by ear though. And I still have to guitar he gave me in my room." 

Nickey recalls seeing an acoustic sitting against the wall while they all ransacked Eddie's bedroom while trying to save Nancy. Which was only hours ago yet it seems like days. 

"The acoustic?" She asks and he nods with a proud smile, "Your uncle sounds nice. I can't wait to meet him." She says. 

Eddie whips his head up so fast Nickey feels a gust brush her cheeks, "You want to meet my uncle?" He asks almost bewildered. 

She shrugs with a smile, "Sure." 

"Does that mean I have to meet your mom?" He asks now nervousness returning for a different reason. 

Something like a grimace presents itself on Nickey's face, "That may have to be held off on for a bit. I need to talk you up to her first. You're not exactly her favorite neighbor." 

"What the hell is taking them so long." Dustin's voice cuts through the air as he paces up and down the isle of the Winnebago staring at his watch. 

"Will you sit down, please?" Nickey asks, "Wearing a hole the carpet isn't going to make them go any faster." 

Just then the door swings open and bodies barrel inside in a frenzy with bags being tossed in all directions.  

Lucas whips toward the door, "What happened?" 

"We gotta go." Steve says and he rushes into the driver's seat. 

"You're old friends are here." Erica explains talking to Lucas. That can only mean one thing. 

Nickey glances at Eddie whose face has gone ghostly white. "Jason having the same idea as us cannot be good." She says quietly and mostly to herself as her stomach drops. 

"Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!" Dustin shouts at Steve. 

"I'm going! Sit down." Steve shouts back and the RV lurches forward then they're speeding out of the parking lot.

Once they're out of the parking lot and safely making their way down the road at a reasonable speed Nickey makes her way to her sister to check on her. Max is back in her spot at the back of the RV staring out the window with her headphones on. She settles in front of her and tugs the headphones back to hang around Max's neck. 

"Hi." Max says softly. 

"Hi." Nickey returns. "How are you feeling?" 

Max goes back to staring. For a long moment she doesn't say anything and Nickey contemplates just leaving her alone. But finally, "Okay, I guess." 

Nickey leans in and takes her sister's hand, "You don't have to do this. Just give me the word and you and me can be outta here. I'll steal the Winnebago if I have to. We'll go where ever you want as long as it's far away from here." 

Max turns her head, "Really? You'd really leave all our friends behind? For me?"

"I'd do anything to protect you." Nickey says and swallows around a lump in her throat. "Literally, anything. How could you not know I'd give up everything for you. You're my sister, the most important person in the world to me." 

A sad, sad smile spreads on Max's face as her eyes well with tears. She blinks rapidly to keep them from falling. And for just a moment Nickey sees Max as she was when they were just kids. Before they knew about alternate universes, and demogorgons, and girls with superpowers. Before they knew that Hawkins, Indiana even fucking existed. When things were so much simpler and they had no clue how complicated life could really get. When they were soft and small and fragile. And it was all just so easy then. And for a few moments Nickey wants to rewind the clock. She wants to go back to that time of ignorance and hold her sister close to her chest and never let her go. 

Max clears her throat then wipes at her face, "You've protected me for my whole life. And I've never said thank you for that." Nickey starts to argue that she doesn't have to but Max keeps talking, "It's mine turn to do the protecting. I'm doing this to help save Hawkins, yeah, but I'm doing this so that you can have the life you deserve, Nick. You deserve to get out of here and go to school and write the best fucking book ever." Now Nickey's eyes start to well. Max leans toward her sister, "Please, let me do this for you. Quit trying to stop me." 

"This isn't easy for me." Nickey says on a shaky breath. 

"I know." Max says like she knows exactly how scared Nickey feels right now. Because she does. She feels so much terror in her very soul she's not sure how her heart hasn't exploded. 

"I love you." Nickey whispers as tears roll down her cheeks. 

Max leans forward and rests her head on Nickey's shoulder, "I love you, too." She whispers back. Nickey wraps her arms around Max's shoulders and just holds her baby sister. 

It wasn't too long before Max decided she had enough love and affection so Nickey let the girl be and went back to her seat. As she settles in she realizes that Robin really hasn't spoken much since she got back in the RV. And she looks a little forlorn. She's not used to seeing Robin like that. Normally she's a never ending ball of energy who never stops talking.

Leaning across the aisle Nickey knocks Robin's knee with her hand, "You okay, Rob?"  

Robin looks up from the hand, which she was playing with in her lap. She opens her mouth as if she's about to say she's fine but then thinks better of it, "I saw Vic-" She starts then stops herself short as she glances around at their very close company. "I saw Victor at The War Zone." 

Nickey's eyebrows shoot up to her hairline, "Really?" She asks almost giddy, but confusion quickly overtakes that emotion, "Then why are you so mopey?" 

She quirks her lips to the side before answering, "Victor wasn't alone." 

It takes a moment for Nickey to put together the pieces but when she does her heart breaks for her friend, "Oh, Robin. I'm sorry." Nickey takes Robin's hand and squeezes her fingers. 

"Yeah, me too." Robin shakes her head. 

Nickey turns toward the front of the Winnebago. Steve's already looking back at her in the rearview mirror, the same look of sadness on his own face that is on her's.

Sitting criss-cross in a random field holding a box of jumbo sized nails, Nickey watches as Dustin and Eddie both hammer the nails into the tops of metal garbage can lids. Macgyvered shields. Steve and Robin are sitting by the RV creating Molotov cocktails. Lucas and Erica are making spears while Max is helping Nancy saw off the end of the rifle she bought. 

A normal day in Hawkins. 

Eddie stands to his feet and starts swinging the shield around. "How's she feeling?" Dustin asks.

"Light. But durable." Eddie answers, he turns and punches through the air with it. "Deadly. But reliable." 

Dustin laughs lightly. And Nickey can't help the stupid smile that graces her lips. 

Then in a gruff, dramatic voice Eddie says, "Hear me now...There will be no more retreating..." Then in his normal voice, "From Eddie the Banished." 

Nickey laughs under her breath and shakes her head up at him. But that smile never falters. 

Dustin stands behind Eddie, his own shield in hand, "Hey, you're really ready for bat-tle." He says with a chuckle. "You get it? Bat-tle. B-A-T." Eddie just stares at Dustin blankly while Nickey grimaces at the terrible pun. "No?" Dustin asks as he and Eddie both put their shields down, "I thought that was a good one." But Dustin barely finishes his sentence before Eddie barrels into him. 

Eddie and Dustin grapple with each other for a moment before Eddie throws Dustin back. 

"You son of a bitch." Is all Dustin says before he rushes at Eddie himself. 

Nickey lets out a throaty laugh as she watches the two wrestle like children. 

"No wedgies! No wedgies!" Dustin shouts before he and Eddie release each other. 

Eddie grabs Dustin by the back of his neck and holds him close, "Never change, Dustin Henderson." Eddie says on a breath. "Promise me?" Nickey watches the two almost in awe. She'll never understand the dynamic of brothers ever. 

"Wasn't planning on it." Dustin replies sounding a little dumbfounded himself. 

"Good." Eddie says. "Good." He repeats then Dustin echoes as the two laugh. Eddie pats Dustin on the shoulder before letting him go and turning toward where Nickey sits, "Hey, Sinclairs." He calls out, "How are those spears coming along." 

In the distance Lucas enthusiastically sticks a thumb in the air. They're too far away for her to hear but by the way Lucas drops his hand she knows Erica said something very sassy to him. 

Nickey turns her head up to Eddie who is standing next to her. When Eddie feels her watching he meets her gaze. "What?" He asks. 

"You're such a dork." She says with a laugh. "Here me now.." She mimics his voice and laughs even harder.

Eddie drops to a crouch, "Shut up." He tries to sound stern but the small smile on his lips gives him away.

Nickey leans toward him, "It was very cute." 

"Yeah, whatever." He says and before Nickey can make a retort Eddie has closed the space between them completely pressing his lips to hers and winding his hand into her hair. 

"Really?" A voice asks and they break apart to see Dustin standing behind them looking very unimpressed. "Is this what I'm going to have to deal with now?" 

Nickey chucks the box of, now closed, nails at Dustin, who fumbly catches them. "Finish your shield." She instructs. 

Max calls Nickey's name across the field and she whips her head around, "We got you some clothes to change into." 

Glancing down at her dirtied and torn clothes Nickey grimaces, "Thanks." She calls as she stands to her feet. She grabs Eddie's hand and tugs him along with her. "Come with me." 

Eddie stares at the back of her head bewildered, "Why?" He can swear he can hear his own heart pounding against his ribs. 

"Just come with me." 

The two of them trudge their way through the field to the RV. Steve and Robin both watch as they approach with shit eating grins on their faces. 

"Neither of you say anything." Nickey says as she pushes Eddie into the RV in front of her. Steve opens his mouth to speak but Nickey shows him her middle finger before shutting the door behind herself. 

Nickey starts digging through bags looking for the clothes her sister mentioned. "Here, I think this is for you." She says to Eddie as she hands him a bag. 

He accepts it then tosses it onto the empty seat next to him. Nickey straightens with the bag of clothes for herself. "What are we doing?" Eddie asks, but she doesn't answer him. 

Instead, Nickey turns her back to him then slowly starts to lift her arms. "When I say so, pull my shirt off as fast as you can." 

Eddie isn't sure he heard correctly. She couldn't have possibly said what she just said. "What?" 

"Just do it." She says, but now she's speaking like it's taking all her effort. And she's lifting right arm really slowly. "Okay. Do it." She says once her arms are above her head. "Hurry." She grunts. 

Eddie grabs the hem of her shirt and lifts it off of her body. He tosses the shirt away as he stares at her back in awe. He doesn't even hear the sounds Nickey is making as she lowers her arms back to her sides. Then she turns around and his eyes practically bulge out of his head. Right in front of him are Nickey's boobs. Nickey crosses her left arm across her chest and Eddie blinks himself back to reality. That's how he realizes Nickey is rubbing her right shoulder and her face is twisted in pain. And he's seeing how far that scar really goes. Thick pink lines run themselves across the skin of her shoulder, they reach just under her collar bone. 

"Holy shit." Eddie doesn't mean to say it but the words come out anyway. 

"Yeah." Nickey says with a wince as she rubs at the ridges of skin. 

"Does that hurt?" He asks which he realizes is a dumb question as it leave his mouth. 

Nickey drops her hand away, "Sometimes. When I put too much stress or overwork it, it'll start to hurt. I think some nerves were damaged when that thing bit me. So, sometimes I need help getting dressed and stuff. Thanks." 

Tentatively, Eddie takes a step closer, "Can I...I mean..Will it hurt if I touch it?" He asks holding a hand in the air above her shoulder. 

She shakes her head, "No." 

Slowly Eddie drags his fingers across her skin. It's soft and warm to his surprise. The tips of his fingers ghost over her collar bone and she shudders. He drops his hand away. 

A small smile presents on Nickey’s lips, “Just cold.” She says and grabs his wrist bringing his fingers back to her shoulder. 

Eddie searches her eyes for a moment and Nickey nods. He begins tracing the lines on her skin once more and suddenly this feels much more intimate than before. 

“This really doesn’t hurt?” He asks, his voice is heavy and soft. 

Nickey shakes her head, “Only hurts when I move it.” 

His next movement is awkward and unsure when he brings his other hand up to her neck. At first he fully grasps her throat then moves his hand to her shoulder then finally settles it on the space when the two meet. He shuffles his weight on his feet but when Nickey puts a hand on his stomach he goes rigid. 

“It’s okay.” She whispers into the space between them. 

Eddie takes a deep breath then slides the hand covering her scarred shoulder down her arm. “It wouldn’t hurt if I…” He doesn’t finish his sentence as he places his lips over the torn skin. The hand on his stomach fists the fabric of his shirt. 

Nickey makes a contented sound in her throat as Eddie continues to kiss over her skin. She pushes up on her toes and tilts her head for him. With this Eddie gains a bout of confidence and returns his hand to the side of Nickey’s neck. Then he wraps his arm around her waist and pulls her so she’s flush against him. His hand skims her bare back until it meets the band of her bra. 

She sighs when Eddie finally brings his lips to her throat. Then Eddie’s fingers slip beneath her bra band. 

Nickey grabs his arm and pulls away. Eddie stares at her, lips parted and puffy. “Slow down.” She says with wispy breathes falling from her mouth as her chest heaves against his own. 

“Sorry.” He drops his gaze from her eyes, “I don’t do this often.” He admits a blush spreading across his cheeks. 

A hand on his face turns his eyes back to Nickey, “Me either.” She says smiling gently. “Just, not the best time right now.” 

Eddie swallows deeply, “Right.” He agrees and drops his arm away from her waist. 

Brushing back the hair from his face Nickey demands his attention, “Later, I promise.” 

“Really?” He asks in utter disbelief. For the second time in the last ten minutes she’s surprised him like this. 

“Mhm.” She hums as she grabs a long sleeved shirt, “Help me out?” 

It takes Eddie a few seconds to gather his senses but he takes the shirt and slips it over her head. Slowly he helps her put her arms in doing his best to keep it as painless as possible. Then Nickey grabs a tactical jacket and he helps her put that on too. 

When he’s done Nickey grabs his wrist, pushes up on her toes and places a soft kiss on his mouth. “Is this crazy?” She asks when she pulls back.

”Going after an interdimensional creature? Yeah, it’s fucking crazy.” He answers with an edge of humor in his voice as he looks down at her as if she might be crazy herself. 

Nickey shakes her head with a laugh, “No, no. I mean…This.” She gestures to the both of them, “How I feel. I’ve never fallen for someone so fast before.” She speaks and Eddie listens intently, hearing her words, “And what’s more is that you’d been there, under my nose for so long and I didn’t realize it.” 

Tipping his head to the side Eddie smiles. “Technically, you’re under my nose.” 

Again Nickey laughs. Eddie smiles brighter. 

With a nod toward the bag waiting on the seat next to them, Nickey steps out his space, “You should probably put that stuff on.” She says. 

Eddie dumps the bag funding only a tactical vest and a pair of boots. Finding a pair of boots for herself Nickey pulls them on and tightens the laces. 

Once Eddie has finished putting the vest and shoes on he eyes Nickey with a wary look on his face. 

“What?” She’s asks when she realizes he’s watching. 

Rubbing the back of his neck Eddie opens his mouth but words don’t come. 

Nickey cocks her head as she steps close to him again. “You okay?” 

He nods, “Yeah, I’m okay. It just…” Eddie chews his bottom lip, “How exactly is it that you feel?” 

The space between Nickey’s eyebrows bunches as she tries to understand what he’s asking. Then it dawns on her and she looks up at his face. Her features open where his are tight with worry. “I like you, Eddie.” She says and he visibly relaxes, “I know I’ll probably regret saying this, but I like you more than I’ve ever liked anyone before.” 

With a sly smirk forming on Eddie’s lips, Nickey’s suspicions are proven true. She does regret saying that. 

“Really?” He raises his eyebrows almost triumphantly. “Me? Eddie ‘The Freak’ Munson?” 

“Don’t start.” Nickey says trying to suppress the smile rising on her face. 

“I mean, what will everyone at school say?” Eddie puts a hand to his chest dramatically. 

Nickey shakes her head, “I graduated already, so I don’t care. Even if I was still in high school, I wouldn’t care what any of them have to say.” 

Slowly Eddie drops his hand and finds Nickey’s eyes, “Really?” 

She nods with a smile, “Really.” 

"Oh." 

Again the space between her eyebrows bunch, Nickey cocks her head to the side, "Why do you sound so surprised?" 

Halfheartedly, Eddie shrugs, "I don't know. I guess, it's just because every other girl I've been with has always wanted it to be a secret. They cared what other people had to say about me. Probably thought the same things too" He breathes in deeply as if he needs a moment to collect his thoughts, "Never in a million years did I think I'd actually get a chance with the girl I've had a crush on forever and I certainly didn't think she wouldn't want to hid the fact that she'd willingly hang out with the town freak." 

Nickey places her hand on Eddie's chest, over his heart as her own aches in her chest. She knew people at school picked on Eddie, she just didn't realize how deeply it all truly went. To not be able to have a real relationship with someone because they're afraid of what it would do to their reputation must be exhausting and all together heartbreaking. Everyone deserves to be loved for who they truly are. 

"Well, those people are assholes. And shallow." Nickey says and Eddie's heart beats against her palm. She looks up at him, locks their eyes, "I like you, Eddie Munson. Privately and publicly, if you'll allow me." 

Eddie's hand comes up to rest on her wrist, a smile appears that brightens his entire face. "Please, please do." He whispers dropping his face to hers. He barely sweeps his lips over Nickey's when she pushes up onto her toes and kisses him hard. 

Chapter Text

The drive back to Hawkins feels heavy and ominous. No one speaks a word. Voices seem too loud for the energy in the van. It sits on Nickey's chest and makes it hard to breathe as if a dense fog has seeped into her lungs and taken residence from the moment they set out to return and begin their mission. Every minute passes too quickly and not quick enough. The anxiety roiling through Nickey's stomach makes her want to shove her head out the window and empty whatever is weighing so heavily in her gut. 

Nickey turns her face up and catches Max's gaze. Barely perceptible, Max gives a nod and Nickey's anxiety ebbs the tiniest bit. She returns the gesture when Max brings a hand to her chest and makes a cross over her chest. A breath whooshes from her lungs as her heart constricts. Nickey traces the same symbol over her own heart. Although, there's been a creeping feeling that she hasn't been able to shake ever since they created this plan that it's not going to go the way she wants. The closer they get to Hawkins the stronger it gets. She looks to her sister with pleading eyes begging, for what she's unsure. But she can only hope and pray that Max listens. 

The Winnebago comes to a stop in front of the Creel House. Ever the devistatily ominous figure in the waning sunlight. 

One by one, Erica, Lucas and Max step off the van and stand at the edge of the yard. Then Nickey makes to follow them, because of course she's going where her sister goes. There's no question about it. But as soon as her foot makes contact with the step Max spins around on her heels and utters a single word. 

"No." 

Nickey blinks then looks around them trying to discern who exactly Max is talking to. "What?" She asks, that pit in her stomach sinking ever deeper. 

Max shakes her head, "You have to go with them." 

A deep line forms on Nickey's brow and she sputters out a response, "W-what? That's not- That's not the plan. I'm supposed to go with you." 

"No." Max repeats the word with conviction that Nickey is very familiar with, "I let you think that so you couldn't argue with me when it came down to it. I can't let you come with me." 

Nickey is still standing in the doorway of the RV as she shakes her head wildly, "What are you talking about? Of course, I'm coming with you. You're my sister."

And though she tries her best to keep them at bay, tears line Max's eyes, "I've made my decision, Nick." 

"It's not your decision." Nickey say as tears spill down her face and she tries to exit the Winnebago when an arm wraps around her waist and pulls her back in. She tosses an incredulous look over her shoulder to see Steve standing behind her. "Let me go!" She demands and pushes at his arm, but he's stronger than her and he doesn't budge as she thrashes in his arms. 

Max looks past Nickey to her captor, "Keep your promise." Then she looks back to her sister, "I love you." It's the last thing she says before she shuts the RV door. 

Nickey finally escapes Steve's grip but before she can even move to the door again, someone else has a hold of her. This one is gentler and meant to comfort rather than restrain. She looks up at Eddie then to Steve as he gets back into the driver's seat and begins to drive away from the most important person in the world to her. 

"What the fuck is going on?" She asks angrily through her raging tears. "What is she talking about? What promise?" A long moment passes with no one speaking so Nickey stomps her foot like a child having a tantrum, "Answer me!" 

Steve looks back at her through the rearview mirror with sad eyes, "She made us promise that we'd wouldn't let you go with her." He explains. 

The words bounce off her skull as she struggles to comprehend them. That couldn't possibly be right, she couldn't have heard what he said. 

Her shoulders sag against Eddie's chest as he holds her upright, "Why?" The single word is an effort to push out of her mouth. 

Steve shakes his head, "She said it was a precaution. In case something happened." 

Nickey's jaw goes slack. "In case we can't save her." She finishes for him in a haunting whisper. Even facing her own fate Max is thinking of her sister. If the roles were reversed and Nickey was the one knocking on death's door she wouldn't want Max around either. She wouldn't want her to see that. Once again she feels like she's the younger sister, being shielded from the dangers of the world. 

Her tears stop spilling and her spine straightens while she stares straight ahead. Seeing but not. She can't feel anything. She's just empty and the realization that they have to defeat Vecna or this may be the last time she ever sees her sister again. And she didn't even say 'I love you'. 

Nancy sees this clarification unfold on Nickey's face and darts to her feet. "Hey, don't do that." She takes Nickey's face in her hands and forces her to look at her eyes, "You can't do that, not now. You can't shut down. That's how you nearly got your arm torn off, remember?"

The hazy look in Nickey's eyes start to lift as that day in the hospital floats to the forefront of her mind. She saw the demodog coming for her and completely shut down as her terror took over. It latched onto her shoulder in a second and she was hardly conscious for the event until she felt it's teeth shredding her skin. 

"Max needs you." Nancy says firmly but not unkindly. "Stay with us, okay?" 

A shuddering breath makes it's way past Nickey's lips as she comes back into herself and she nods. 

"Outloud." Nancy commands. 

"I'm here." Nickey's voice is a whispering answer and it grates against her throat. 

Nancy nods, "Good." She tucks Nickey's hair back, "It's gonna be okay." 

Nickey bobs her head and Nancy returns to her seat. Eddie's arms unwind from her waist and he slides his hands down her arms. She turns around but doesn't meet his eyes, she stares straight ahead at his chest. He takes her hand and settles them both into a seat. 

"I'm sorry." He whispers softly against her hair. 

She shakes her head. Finally she turns her eyes to his, "We have to kill him. We have to win, Eddie. For good this time." 

For a long moment he stares down at her, just taking in the determination in her features, "I know." 

"I can't lose her." 

Eddie shakes his head, "You won't. I'm not gonna let that happen. None of us will." He squeezes her hand with his fingers, "We're gonna kill that son of a bitch." 

The Winnebago eases to a stop in the woods behind trailer park. Steve throws it in park and they all gather around the table. The air is still so heavy, it's so hard to breathe. Nickey squeezes her eyes as tightly as she can for just a moment to wish as hard as possible that when she opens them that this will all have been a terrible, terrible dream. But her eyes open and everything is still the same. The sun is still down, the fight against Vecna is still on and the foreboding feeling in her stomach still rages. 

"Okay." Nancy breathes, "I wanna run through it one more time." She says as she turns to face them. "Phase one?" 

"We meet Erica at the playground." Robin answers and Nancy gestures for her to continue, "She'll signal Max and Lucas when we're ready."

"Phase two." 

This one Steve answers, "Max baits Vecna." He says with a cautious glance to Nickey, who feels like she wants to up chuck. "He'll go after her, which will put him in his trance." 

Eddie squeezes her shoulder from his stance behind her. 

"Phase three?" 

"Me, Eddie and Nickey draw the bats away." Dustin answers. 

An attempt at cutting the tension, Eddie ruffles Dustin's head about. 

"Four?" 

Again Robin speaks, "We head into Vecna's, hopefully newly bat free lair, and..." She lifts the Molotov Cocktail in her hair with a gentle shake, "Flambé." 

"Nobody moves onto the next phase until we've all copied." Nancy says authoritatively. "Nobody deviates from the plan no matter what. Got it?" 

A chorus of "Got it." answers her question. 

Without another word, they gather their supplies, exit the RV and walk into the trailer park to head for Eddie's trailer. 

Nickey's mind feels like a slug as she walks. She's not even aware of her own steps, she's on autopilot. She's trying to stay present and be aware but it's so hard when she knows where Max is and what she's going to do. Max is just a kid and Nickey should be there, that's how she should be helping. Instead she's trudging along with a makeshift spear and shield to fight demonic bats.

She takes in a deep cleansing breath and continues on toward Eddie's trailer. This is for Max. It's all for Max. She keeps reminding herself that she's going back into the Upside Down to save her sister. She can do this. 

Steve throws open the door and flips the light on, the rest of them following in after him. He drops the bag that's carrying an axe from his shoulder as he stares up at the rope of sheets hanging from the ceiling that both a lifetime and not that long ago was used to escape the Upside Down. Now it's their way back in. 

"Be careful." Dustin says to Steve. 

"Thanks, buddy." He pats Dustin on the shoulder then steps forward and grabs ahold of the rope. "Here goes nothing." Then Steve is pulling himself up. 

Nickey watches as he climbs, stomach still turning and twisting with dread. The top half of Steve's body slides through the gate, then he gives himself one last pull before he flips himself onto his feet in a dramatic show of a dismount. 

"Woah." Robin waves her hands in faux amazement as Steve casts a glance up, "What does he want us to do, applaud?" 

"Probably." Nickey says with the corner of her mouth tipping up. The normalness of the moment eases some of the the tension in her stomach.

Steve disappears from sight for a moment to drag in a mattress for them to land on, much like when they escaped before. "Alright, lets go." 

Nancy drops her bag and begins the climb up the rope. 

A frown presents on Nickey's face as she watches her friend slip through the gate. 

"What's with the face?" Eddie asks in her ear. 

"I never thought I'd say this but, I'd take your mystery stains mattress over that one anyday." Nickey grimaces as Nancy lands on the filthy sheets. 

She feels Eddie smirk against her skin, "Is that your way of telling me you want to get into my bed?" 

"Shut up." Nickey shoves her spear against his chest as she steps toward the sheet rope. 

With a grunt she hoists herself up and climbs until gravity takes hold of her and she flops onto her back. Quickly she pushes herself to stand and dusts herself off. Then bags and weapons are tossed through the gate and removed from the mattress so that Robin, Eddie and Dustin can make their way through. 

Steve and Eddie both grip Dustin by the collar and yank the boy to his feet. Everyone grabs their gear and starts to head out the door. It's time to put the plan into play. 

Nickey, Eddie and Dustin stand together, prepared to initiate their part. 

Nancy, Robin and Steve walk across the lawn heading to the Creel house to hopefully and successfully complete their part of the plan. Killing Vecna. 

Steve stops and spins around on his heels to approach the three other three. "Guys, listen. If things here start to go south, I mean, at all, you abort. Okay? Draw attention to the bats. Keep 'em busy for a minute or two. We'll take care of Vecna. Don't try to be cute or be a hero or something. Okay? You guys are just-" 

"Decoys." Dustin cuts him off with slight irritation in his voice. "Don't worry. You can be the hero, Steve." 

"Absolutely." Eddie agrees with a lilt of humor in his tone. "I mean, look at us. We are not heroes." He drags out the middle of his sentence to further prove his point. "No offence, Nick." He says quickly as the redhead quirks her head at him. 

Nickey just hums under her breath. "You." Steve says, his voice so serious it sends a chill down Nickey's spine. She stares back at him, her eyes going round. A hand wraps around the back of her neck and Steve gives it a squeeze, "I'm sorry about earlier with Max. But I made her a promise, and I'm gonna make you the same one. I'll get you back to your sister." He says and emotion chokes her, "Just do your part and get out, okay?" 

Too afraid of her own voice Nickey just nods and squeezes the arm of the hand on her neck. Steve then turns his attention to Eddie. "Make sure she's safe." 

"Of course." Eddie answers, the humor from his voice gone completely. 

Steve drops his hand away from Nickey then turns and walks away once more. 

A beat passes before Eddie takes a step forward, "Hey, Steve." The other half of their team stops and turns toward the metalhead. Steve gives his full attention. It takes Eddie a moment to speak before he says, "Make him pay." 

Steve gives a curt nod and Eddie returns it. Then Nickey, Dustin and Eddie watch as Steve, Robin and Nancy leave to face off with their deadliest opponent yet.

Siding, chain link fencing and wood planks are ripped away from their holdings anywhere that can be found in the trailer park and taken to Eddie's. All of it to reinforce the outside of Eddie's trailer in the hopes that it will keep them safe from the demobats when they attack. 

"Do you really think that this will work?" Nickey asks as she pushes the electric drill into the metal. 

"It has too." Dustin says as he takes a step back, "Or at least long enough for us to get out." 

Nickey sighs and looks over her shoulder at the horizon. Lightning flashes and animals screech. She shivers while her eyes fall closed. 

Screaming cuts through Nickey's frozen state and forces her system to start once more. Without thought she runs across the tiled floor of Starcourt Mall to where Max sits crumpled on the floor over Billy's mutilated body. She lands on her knees with a loud thud that will surely leave bruises, but that doesn't matter right now and neither does the pain. All that matters right now is getting to her sister. She throws her arms around Max's shoulders. Max leans back into her sister as sobs wrack her body. Yet Nickey's eyes are dry as she blinks down at Billy, who is trying to gasp for his final breaths. She can hardly comprehend what's just happened. Of course she watched as that thing shoved it's way through Billy's chest when he stepped in front of El. And she watched as he collapsed to the ground, his blood and guts spilling out from his body. But all it felt like she saw it happen in snippets and now her brain can't quite piece it all together and make it make sense.

Nickey stares at him and he looks up at her. Tears trail down his temples as he sputters blood. She doesn't know what to do. The two of them stare at each other for what feels like hours but isn't even a few seconds. 

"Billy?" His name is a hoarse whisper on her lips. She says it like she's confused about about why he's here as if he were just laying on the floor for no reason at all. Because she is confused. She doesn't understand why he put himself between El and the Mindflayer. She just can't match up the Billy she's known for years to the man laying on the flower bleeding out in front of her.

Billy opens his mouth and forces some words out. "I tried to fight him, Nickey. I really did." He coughs and blood bubbles over his lips. "I'm sorry." He says and it's the last words he says. His eyes fall shut and don't open again.

What exactly he's apologizing for she'll never know because he stops coughing and his chest stops pushing out ragid breathes. 

El appears at the sisters side and wraps her arms around the two of them. Nickey barely recognizes that another person is touching her because she can't take her eyes off the body laying in front of her. The man that tormented her for years is dead. He's dead after being possessed by something. Something that forced him to do horrible, horrible things for the creatures of the Upside Down. And his last words to her were an apology. 

Tears don't come to her. They never do as she sits and stares. Nickey can't rip her gaze away. Her sister is sobbing in her arms and Nickey has no idea how she should feel at this moment. And that scares her. 

"Nickey?" Dustin's voice cuts through her memory and her eye fly open, "You okay?" 

Nickey swallows a breath and nods, "Yeah, it's just, this place makes me think about Billy." She shakes her head. "Can you get more siding?" She asks Dustin when he opens his mouth to speak. 

For a moment the boy opens and closes his mouth as if trying to formulate a sentence to say but then he just nods his head and turns away.

Eddie turns his head in question, then he sets his drill down and takes a step to Nickey who is pretending that she doesn't notice him as she drills away at the side of the trailer. His hand encases hers and she releases the trigger. "Do you need a minute?" He asks quietly. 

She pulls her bottom lip into her mouth and leans her forehead against the back of Eddie's hand. "I hate this place so much."  

"Do you want to talk?" Eddie asks as he brings his other hand up to the back of her neck and gives a gentle squeeze. 

Nickey shakes her head slightly, "No, not here." Talking about everything here makes her skin crawl and her lungs seize, it feels like playing into Vecna's hands and giving him more power over her than she's willing to give. "Let's just get this done so we can get the fuck out of this hellhole." She says picking her head up and pulling the trigger on the drill once more. 

"You don't have to tell me twice." Eddie speaks over the whirring of the drill before leaning in so Nickey can hear him, "Whatever it is, if you don't want to tell me then you don't have too. But if you do want to talk, I want you to know I'll listen." 

Eddie turns back to his own drilling as Nickey stops to stare at him. And in that moment she's overwhelmed with guilt. 

"I'm sorry." She blurts unable to hold the words inside. 

With a furrowed brow, Eddie lets his drill dangle at his side as he stares down at Nickey, "For what?" He asks. 

Nickey shakes her head, "All this time I've been dumping all over you as if you haven't just experienced the most traumatizing thing in the world. I've barely tried to make sure that you're doing okay while I'm moping and whining about my own bullshit and that's not fair to you." Eddie opens his mouth and Nickey shakes her head, "No. You just got thrown into this and I'm leaning on you for support. I'm sorry." 

A hand cups Nickey's cheek, cold rings and warm fingers pressing into her flesh. "It's okay. I'm honestly not ready to process all of this yet and you've been able to distract me from it all." Eddie says as he runs his thumb over her skin. 

"Distract you how?" 

"Just by being here." Eddie answers, "All the nerves that come up when you're around keep me from completely descending into a downward spiral." He pulls one shoulder up and a sideways smile appears on his mouth, "So, I guess what I'm saying is; thanks for being so hot."

All the anxiety and tension leaves Nickey's body in one exhale as she rolls her eyes and shoves a hand against Eddie's chest. "You're an idiot." She says, a smile on her face all the same. 

A small laugh rumbles his chest as he slides his arm around Nickey's shoulder and presses her against him. 

Just then is when Dustin returns pulling a tarp loaded up with siding behind him. "Seriously?" He asks, his voice incredulous. "If this is what I'm going to have to deal with from now on, I'm getting different friends." 

Nickey throws a glare at him over her shoulder, "Oh, shut up and help us finish this." 

Chapter Text

Nickey, Eddie and Dustin all stand outside of Eddie's trailer to admire the work they did in their attempt to turn it into an impenetrable fortress.

"Not bad." Eddie says. 

"Not bad at all." Dustin agrees. 

"Are you sure this is enough?" Nickey asks with dread in both her voice and stomach. She can't get past what those things did to Steve, they took a chunk of his flesh. She's not sure that a few layers of fence and siding will hold them back for very long. 

 "We've got a plan, everything is going to be fine, Nick." Dustin says, almost sound excited. 

A hand wraps around Nickey's forearm gently. She turns her face up to Eddie, "We got this." 

Nickey looks back at the fortified trailer and lighting cracks in the distance followed by the boom of thunder. Everywhere she looks is just on big warning sign that screams 'GET OUT NOW!' But she has something much more important than herself to fight for right now. She's got to save her sister and if this is the way to do it, then fuck it. 

Eddie squeezes her hand and she looks back at him, "Let's do it." She says. 

With a snort, Eddie smiles then reaches around to pat Dustin on the shoulder. "Now for the fun part." 

The three of them make their way into the trailer and then into Eddie's bedroom where it seems to Nickey that he falls into a trance. Only it's not Vecna that's got all his attention. It's the guitar hanging on his mirror. 

Eddie makes a sound of amazement and she could almost swear he whimpers too. Slowly he walks across the room toward the instrument. "It's like...she was destined for an alternate dimension." 

She? Nickey had heard many guys refer to many things in their lives as shes. Cars, boats, motorcycles, and even skateboards but never a guitar. And with the way Eddie is looking at his guitar as he plucks it off the mirror makes her feel like she's intruding on something she should absolutely not be privy to. 

"Do you two need a minute?" Nickey can't help the words that fly from her mouth. 

Eddie's head whips over his shoulder, "What?" 

She throws her hands up in defence, "Sorry, it just feels like I'm interrupting something." 

Eddie's gaze flattens for just a second before he turns his attention back to the guitar in his hand and he's in awe once more. "What do you say, Henderson? Are you ready for the most metal concert in the history of the world?" 

"Is that a rhetorical question?" Dustin replies with a wide grin and sounding almost as awestruck as Eddie looks. 

Eddie, now facing both Nickey and Dustin, puts the strap of the guitar over his head and flings it around to his back, "Let's do it." Then he leads the way out of his bedroom.

Nickey makes to follow when Dustin grabs her arm. "Don't worry, he looks at you like that when he thinks no one is looking." He whispers. 

"I was only joking, Dustin, I'm not actually jealous of a guitar." Nickey says trying not to laugh. 

Dustin shrugs and lets go of her arm, "I know. I just thought I should tell you." He says then walks out the room without waiting for Nickey to reply. 

A smile breaks out on her face. She really thought what's going on with her and Eddie would be an uphill battle with Dustin. Turns out she was wrong. Then her cheeks start to burn furiously as she thinks about Eddie looking at her the same way he was just looking at his guitar. The way he looked at that thing made her wonder if he wouldn't hesitate to jump it's bones if it turned into an actual woman. And he looked at her like that? 

"Nick, come on!" Dustin calls from the living room breaking her from the spiral of her own thoughts. 

As she emerges from the bedroom she hopes they can't tell how flushed she was a moment ago or they'd definitely be able to guess where her mind just went.

Eddie looks up when she steps into the room and studies her face for a moment, "Are you okay?" He asks completely sincerely and like he has no idea what she was just thinking about. 

Nickey swallows and tries to will her cheeks not to burn as she nods with a hum. 

He tips his head toward the door and smiles brightly, hopefully at her and says, "Then let's go, we've got some very important people to save."

The sky crackles with lightning and booming echos of thunder follow. Each flash of red across the horizon sends a jolt of nasua into Nickey's stomach. In the distance she can hear the terrible screeching of creatures. Some of them she's sure she's very familiar with and some she's sure are creatures she's only met in her worst nightmares. This place has never felt so ominous as is does right now. She didn't know that was possible. 

"What are we waiting for again?" Nickey asks staring blankly out at the sky, her hands wringing together against her stomach as lightning cracks and the sky bleeds once more.

She can hear Dustin and Eddie slowly unwinding cords behind her, and their eyes are burning holes into the back of her skull, "Um.." Dustin starts softly, "Just for Vecna to find Max so she can distract him." 

Nickey squeezes her eyes shut for a moment and she digests the words being said to her for what seems to be the millionth time, "Right. Just double checking." More like triple, quadruple, even quintuple checking. She's lost track of how many times she's been told the plan, nevermind how many times she's gone over it in her head. 

No matter how much she wants it to, it never changes.  

The thud of wires falling to the ground follows a whisper that Nickey can't hear over the wind blowing in her ears. Or maybe she can't hear over her own mind raging. Or maybe it's both. Whatever it may be, she doesn't hear what Eddie says and she doesn't hear him walk over to her. 

When he puts a hand on her shoulder she jolts against the touch. 

"It's just me." Eddie speaks gently as he turns Nickey toward him as softly as he can.

"Sorry." Nickey whispers, "I'm a little nervous, I guess." 

Eddie nods his agreement, "That makes two of us." 

Her brow pinches, "Really?" 

"Are you kidding?" He drops his voice to a whisper, "I'm shitting my pants here. This is gonna be the most important gig of my life. Literally." 

Nickey opens her mouth to give him some encouragement then abruptly closes it as she shakes her head, "I was going to tell you that you'll be great, but I don't think I've ever actually heard you play." 

Eddie frowns and his eyebrows pull together, "Of course you have. I play all the time, obnoxiously loudly, there's no way you haven't heard me play before." 

"Well, yeah, but I don't think that really counts when I have to hear it through the walls...and my pillow." Nickey says and Eddie drops in mouth open in faux offence, "I'm sorry! But do you really have to play WASP until three in the morning? Some of us have to sleep, you know." 

The edges of Eddie's mouth pitch upward and he lifts his chin proudly, "You know WASP?" 

Nickey rolls her eyes, "I work in a music store, don't sound so amazed, it's literally my job to know." 

Eddie hums as his eyes turn skeptical, "Is that it? You didn't look for the songs you heard me playing because you're just so in love with me? Because that seems to be the more likely story to me." 

"You caught me." Nickey shrugs, "I was just so obsessed with you that I just needed to know what that song you were playing over and over again that kept me awake all night was." 

Eddie smiles and Nickey's facade cracks as her own mouth twists into a grin as she stares up at the man before her. She reaches her hands up and brings them around to the back of his head where she grabs the ends of the bandana wrapped around his head. Some splotches of her blood are still visible on the edges. Nickey tightens the knot then adjusts it so it lays straight across Eddie's forehead. 

"You're gonna play great." Nickey whispers into the space between them. 

The smile on Eddie's face deepens. 

The crackle of the walkie talkie breaks the atmosphere. Robin's voice comes through, "She's in. Move on to phase three." Nickey's stomach drops to her feet and her heart jumps into her throat. 

"Copy that. Initiating phase three." Dustin relay's to Robin. 

Eddie grabs Nickey's chin and turns her back to him, "We're gonna save her." He promises and she nods numbly. 

"Let's hope they hear this." Dustin says as he plugs the final cords together and then cranks the amp up as loud as it will go. 

Eddie grabs the guitar pick hanging around his neck and yanks it away, "Chrissy, this one's for you." Then he starts playing. 

Nickey's heart warms at the sentiment. He's been beating himself up since it happened, senselessly blaming himself for the girl's death. To see him try and avenge her, in his own way, brings a smile to her face. Chrissy deserves it. She was sweet, always, even if her friends and boyfriend weren't. Eddie deserves the chance to fight for not only Chrissy, but himself too. This whole thing was sprung on him in the worst possible way and he didn't get the opportunity to prove himself at the start, but now he's got it. 

The roof shakes with each strike of a chord as the amps echo the notes Eddie plays. It almost seems like the lightning cracks the sky in time with his playing. Nickey immediately recognizes the song. Master of Puppets by Metallica. It came out not even a month ago and he's already got it memorized. He must have learned it by ear. She was the one who sold him the cassette the day it came out. Awestruck is the only word to describe the way she's looking at him as he plays. Nickey knows hardly anything about the technicalities of playing music but even she knows that this song is incredibly difficult to play. And Eddie is playing the fucking shit out of this song. 

A shrieking breaks through the sound of Eddie's guitar. Nickey looks up at the red sky from her spot crouched by the amps. A swarm is quickly approaching. 

Dustin glares up at the sky through his binoculars. He turns toward Eddie and shouts over the shrieking and guitar chords, "Eddie! We gotta lock down in t-minus thirty seconds!" 

Eddie nods and starts playing even more ferociously than before. Nickey didn't realize that was possible. 

But the seconds are passing by fast. 

"T-minus twenty!" Dustin warns in a shout. 

The mass of screeching creatures is quickly growing closer and closer. Nickey's stomach is twisted into an intricate knot that she's unsure of how to undo. 

"T-minus ten!" 

Eddie's playing kicks up but so do the speed of the bats flying toward them. 

"Five!" 

The creatures are dangerously close now. Nickey could empty her guts. She's not sure how she hasn't already.

"One!" 

Eddie rips one final riff and it echoes so loudly in Nickey's ears that it feels like her brain has been shaken up inside her skull as the notes rattle around. 

In one swift motion Eddie rips the amp cord out of his guitar and swings the instrument around to his back. 

"Move, move, move!" Dustin yells as he runs across the roof. 

Nickey launches up to her feet and follows. The bats are quickly closing in on them. A hand wraps around her own and suddenly she's being pulled along. 

Each of them jump down onto the roof of a truck that sits at the side of Eddie's trailer then down onto the bed before rushing onto the porch. They're in a race against both time and the demobats that are getting much too close for comfort. 

Dustin is the first to make it into the trailer and Eddie basically launches Nickey after him when he pushes her ahead. 

"Eddie!" Nickey shrieks as she stumbles into the trailer. 

"Eddie, shut it!" Dustin shouts. 

The clang of metal against chain link fence echoes as Eddie throws the makeshift gate that they wrapped around the porch shut. Metallic clanking follows as bats smack into the fencing. 

Eddie rushes inside and shuts the door behind himself. He settles against the wall and take in several deep breaths. 

"Dude." Dustin says through his own heavy breathing. 

Nickey slumps against the wall herself and fights the urge to sink to the floor. Her legs feel like jelly as the adrenaline drains from her body.

"Most. Metal. Ever!" Dustin shouts and then the two of them are shouting and jumping and screaming. 

The sound of bats barreling into the fencing still sounds outside as Eddie and Dustin come down from their excitement. 

Nickey's eyes drift to Eddie who stands with a proud smile and a heaving chest to match her own. "That was...you are an amazing guitar player." Her voice comes out breathless. "Like, insanely good." 

"Uh, of course he is." Dustin says as if it should be a well known fact. "You should check out his band." 

Nickey, eyes still stuck on Eddie, says, "I should." 

"Henderson, go get the shields and spears." Eddie says patting him on the shoulder as he takes a step closer to Nickey. 

"I can't carry all those by my-" 

Eddie cuts Dustin off with a firm, "Go." 

For a moment Dustin stares at the two of them with eyes hard and a grimace on his face before throwing his hands in the air with defeat then spinning around on his heel and walking into the bedroom, "Make it quick!" He shouts over his shoulder. 

All the air in the room seems to leave with Dustin and Nickey takes in a sharp breath. 

Her mouth falls open but no words come out, she's not exactly sure what to say to him. It's just that her chest feels tight, and her heart is racing, her skin feels like it's on fire and now her brain doesn't seem to function anymore. 

Eddie braces his hand on the side of her neck and she's sure he can feel the pounding of her heartbeat and that makes it beat harder. His fingers slide around to her nape and up into his hair. "Thank you." He whispers into the space between them. 

Nickey's brows pull in, "What for?" 

His grip tightens slightly, not enough to hurt but enough to make sure she's listening, "For helping me, then letting me help you. For taking a chance on me. Most people don't even give me the opportunity, but you did. No questions asked." 

The corner of her mouth pulls up, "A few questions were asked." She says because she can't stand the feeling between them. The searing tension building in her chest and she wants it so stop, she wants the bubble to burst because he cannot possibly be thanking her for this. She doesn't deserve the credit, she hasn't been any help to him. She hasn't been any help to anyone since to found out that Venca is after her sister. And how could she possibly be feeling these emotions right now when her sister is probably having the fight of her life at this very moment. She shouldn't be allowed to feel like her heart might burst from her chest at any moment.

Eddie doesn't laugh he just pulls Nickey that much closer and their chests are pressed together. "I'm serious, Nickey. I might still be hiding out in that boat, smelling like fish and feet if it weren't for you. Hell, I might be dead right now."

"Don't-" 

"I'm not done. You, and our friends gave me shot that I didn't deserve, you allowed me to grieve for Chrissy in the way I needed. And I want you to know that I will spend the rest of my life trying to deserve the kindness you've given me." Eddie's thumb slides along Nickey's jaw and he turns her face up to his. "Thank you for letting me redeem myself." 

Nickey shakes her head so gently Eddie wouldn't have seen it if he weren't so close and touching her, "You don't need redemption." 

Before Eddie can refute the statement Nickey pushes up onto her toes and presses her mouth to his. Fingers curl in her hair as an arm wraps around her waist, holding her as if she may float away at any moment. His twists the fabric of her shirt as his fingers curl into a fist as he clutches her even tighter. She braces her hands against his cheeks trying her best to put all the things she feels and the words she doesn't know how to say onto his skin. Because this kiss feels different. Everything about it is different. There's so much emotion in it that Nickey fights back a torrent of tears building behind her eyes. Something about the way he's holding her and how his mouth is moving against her own is so far from the other kisses they've shared. This one is definitive. Of what? She's not sure, but she presses into him and she hopes he understands all that's in her heart. 

Because this kiss. This kiss is scaring the hell out of her. 

"I'm coming back in!" Dustin yells.

Eddie gently pulls back from Nickey and she slowly lowers herself back onto her feet. His eyes are so bright yet so terrified that her throat pinches. But from the way he squeezes her hand she's sure that her own eyes are reflecting the same emotions. 

By the time Dustin reappears, luging spears and shields, the two of them are standing far enough apart to not cause suspicion. If it were anyone else they'd most likely have the decency not to say anything. But it's not anyone else. It's Dustin. And he doesn't know decency. 

"Just because you two are acting like there's a crack in the floor separating you doesn't mean I don't know that you just had your tongues in each other's throats." He says as he drops the shields and spears at their feet. "I'm not stupid." 

Nickey shakes her head but ignores his comment as she bends to pick up her weapons. "So," She twists the spear in her palm, "How do we do this?" She asks and notices the sounds of the bats have increased. They're so pissed and the only thing between them is a very thin sheet of tin roof. Her stomach sinks to her toes. How the fuck are they going to survive this? 

"Back to back?" Eddie suggests.

Dustin and Nickey share a look before nodding. "Back to back." 

So the trio stand with their backs together as they slowly spin in the middle of Eddie's living room. Waiting and listening to the bats try to force their way inside to enact their revenge against them. Each screech and squeal sends a jolt of awareness through Nickey's body. She's not facing half of what Max must be going through right now and she's scared shitless. She can't imagine how Max could be feeling.

The bats bang and squeal against every side of the trailer for what seems like a lifetime but no time at all, all at once. And then they stop. The squealing seizes and the banging stops. Everything just goes...Quiet.

A terribly horrible feeling builds in Nickey's spine. She glances to Eddie who wears the same concern on his face. 

"Hey, dipshits!" Dustin suddenly shouts, "Give up that easy, huh?!" 

At the same time that Eddie shushes the boy, Nickey turns over her shoulder to him, "Shut up!" She hisses through her teeth.

"Is that really necessary?" Eddie asks with equal irritation.

A loud clattering like claws against metal sounds from above them stealing their attention. 

"They're on the roof." Eddie says, raising his spear in preparation.

"Shit.Shit.Shit." Dustin mutters under his breath. 

Nickey white knuckles the rod of her spear as she follows the sound of the bats clattering across the roof. She follows right behind the boys as the slowly start to make their way toward the kitchen. Exactly where the bats seem to be headed. 

The closer they get the louder the bat seem to become. And Nickey realises exactly why as she stares up at the ceiling of the kitchen. 

"The vent." She breathes out in horror. 

"They can't get in through there, can they?" Dustin asks.

And of course because fate is an evil, evil bitch with a fucked up sense of humor, as soon as the words leave Dustin's mouth one of the bats punches the vent out, sticks its head inside and lets out an insidious screech sending the three humans into screaming fits of their very own. 

The three of them stab haphazardly at the bats trying to enter through the knocked out vent. Dustin screaming for the things to "Die!" over and over again. Nickey just plan screaming. She's not even sure she's hitting the damn things with the way she's aimlessly stabbing at the hole in ceiling.

Then suddenly Eddie stops stabbing and steps back dropping his spear to the ground. 

"The fuck, Eddie!?" Nickey shouts. 

"Get out of the way! Get out of the way!" He demands. 

Nickey guesses she doesn't move fast enough for him because with one hand he slides a chair into the center of the kitchen and with the other he wraps around her waist and pulls her out of his way. In the blink of an eye he's on the chair and shoving his shield into the ceiling with a scream.

With a sigh of relief Nickey crumbles to the floor. "Oh my God." 

"Holy shit." Eddie breathes heavily as he turns to the two below him. 

"Nice." Dustin says with slight disbelief in his voice. 

"Thanks." Eddie says and they exchange a weak high-five. 

Nickey shoves her head in between her knees and forces herself to take a deep breath in, "Oh, I'm gonna puke." 

Then Dustin's head whips up, "Are there anymore vents?" Nickey's head whips up sending a new wave of anxious nausea through her stomach. 

"Oh, shit." Eddie jumps down from the chair and Nickey scrambles to her feet, the both of them grabbing their spears. 

Both Dustin and Nickey follow Eddie as he rushes toward his bedroom. As soon as they step over the threshold a swarm of demobats burst up and out of the corner of Eddie's room. 

"Shit!" Dustin screams. 

"Fuck!" Nickey screams. 

Eddie shoves Nickey and Dustin out of the room as he tries to escape his own bedroom and then he slams the door shut. 

They all back down the hallway to the living room and Nickey watches in horror as the door starts to splinter. 

"That's not gonna hold!" Dustin screams over the sound of them pounding and screeching. 

"Let's go! Let's go!" Eddie screams. 

Nickey drops her spear and shield then turns to Dustin. "Go!" She shoves him toward the rope and he grabs on then pulls himself up.

Dustin groans as he tries to pull himself through as quickly as possible. Nickey's eyes are stuck on Eddie's bedroom door. She watches each splinter as it flies off. She watches how the hinges seem to hold a little less with each bombardment of demobats. She watches the gap between the door and the frame grow wider by the second. 

"Nick, go!" Eddie shouts at her and she jolts into reality. 

She shakes her head and tries to take the shield and spear from Eddie's hands, "No, you go!" 

Eddie looks at her as if she's grown a second head, "Are you insane? Your sister needs you! Now, go!" 

Those words hit her like a brick to the stomach. What is she thinking? Of course, she needs to get to Max. And she can't do that if she's been picked apart by carnivorous bats. 

"Right." She says, her voice shaking from fear or the terrible dread in her stomach that has yet to leave her, "You're behind me, right?" 

"Yes, Now, go!" Eddie repeats himself. 

Nickey turns to the rope and grabs ahold. Dustin is on the other side of the gate shouting at the both of them to hurry. It's a miracle Nickey can even hear him over the combined sound of the bats trying to break down the door and the pounding of her heart in her ears. Her arms tremble as she pulls herself up and she's unsure if it's from her lack of upper-body strength or the absolute terror rushing through her veins. 

All at once gravity takes ahold of her as she crosses to the other side of the gate. Nickey's body flips and she lands on her back staring up at the Upside Down where Eddie is now alone. 

Quickly, she rolls off the mattress and scrambles to her feet, "Eddie, come on!" She shouts frantically at the ceiling. 

Eddie tosses the spear and shield aside then hoists himself up onto the rope. He only pulls himself up a few inches before he stops and hangs midair. Nickey's stomach drops to her feet. 

"Eddie, come on! Let's go!" Dustin shouts trying to get him moving again. 

"Eddie." Nickey's plea is a whisper. Because she can see the cogs turning in his head. The idea that has formed behind those beautiful eyes of his. 

Dustin is shouting at Eddie in a panic next to her but she can hardly comprehend what the boy is saying as she stares up at the ceiling. And she can't seem to take in a full breath to fill her lungs. And her heart is stuttering in her chest. A new wave of cold sweat coats her skin. Her throat pinches and her eyes sting.

Their eyes meet and Nickey takes in a sharp gasp of air as she understands what he intends to do. 

Eddie slowly lowers himself down to his feet. 

"Eddie." Dustin's tone changes as he seems to finally catch up to what the other two already know is about to happen. When Eddie takes a step back the panic returns to his voice, "Eddie! What are you doing?!" 

"Eddie!" Nickey shouts his name, her voice breaking the syllables apart. "Please, dont!" She begs and fears it falls on deaf ears. Her fists are clenched so tightly at her sides she can feel her palms welling up with blood. "Don't do this! That's not fair!" 

He looks up at her for just a moment with an apology in his eyes before grabbing his weapons and slicing the rope away with his spear. 

"Eddie, no!" Dustin shouts as the sheet crumbles to their feet. He continues his pleading as Eddie shoves the mattress away in the Upside Down, "What are you doing?!" 

"Buying more time." Eddie answers calmly, more calm that Nickey has ever seen him. He's determined. 

"You son of a bitch! Fuck you!" Nickey screams at him making her throat burn as her voice rips at her vocal chords. And tears are running down her cheeks, leaving lines on her dirty skin. "Eddie!" 

"I'm sorry." Is all he says before he disappears from sight. 

Chapter Text

Nickey stares up at the empty living room reflected in the ceiling and a fear so intense that she's physically trembling crawls up her spine. The emotions in her body are so vicious and accumulative that she feels she might actually explode because she's not sure where to put them. There's no room for them anywhere. Her chest is tight and her lungs won't expand to draw in any air. 

That can't have just happened. Eddie couldn't have done what he just did. There's no way he cut that lifeline between them. His lifeline. His way back. They were safe and so, so close. He slipped through her fingers like grains of sand. 

Suddenly Nickey's focus snaps back. Dustin flips the mattress out of the way before grabbing a chair and placing it in the middle of the living room. 

"What are you doing?" Nickey asks in a watery voice. She wipes at her cheeks and they come away wet. 

"Helping, Eddie!" He says as if that should be obvious, as if there were any other option than that. 

Adrenaline starts pumping through Nickey's veins and she goes into autopilot. "Wait!" She shouts to Dustin but he ignores her as he charges for the chair and uses it to launch himself up to the gate. He grabs onto the edge of it and starts pulling himself through. "Dustin!" 

The boy grunts, "I'm not waiting around for Eddie to get killed! You can stay here if you want but I'm helping him." Just as he finishes his sentence Dustin slips through the gate and plumits to the ground. Nickey winces at the crunch of bone and the scream of pain that follows. 

Nickey runs at the chair herself and jumps to grab onto the gate. She pulls herself up and through the gate then flips to land on her feet. She stays upright but the pain barking up her legs threatens to send her to her knees. But she doesn't have time for that. So, she pushes the pain aside and grabs ahold of Dustin to bring him to his own feet. 

"I wasn't tell you to stop," Nickey huffs, "I was telling you to wait so I could help you get through without getting hurt." 

Dustin tries to take a step but his leg nearly gives out under him. Nickey drapes one of his arms across her shoulders to hold him upright. "Sorry." He says through a hiss of pain. "How'd you do that?" 

Nickey hauls him up a little taller as they trudge toward the door, "I used to do gymnastics back in California. Guess, I still got it." SHe huffs an attempt at a laugh. "My coach would have pitched a fit if he saw that landing, though." 

With Nickey's help Dustin limps across the living room, only stopping to grab spears for them both. Then they're out the front door and Nickey is helping him hobble down the front steps.

"Eddie!" They both shout his name simultaneously. 

She can hear the frantic beating of bat wings, but she's not sure where it's coming from. But from the sound they're close and there are so, so many bats. 

"Eddie!" Dustin shouts his name again as they make their way across the lawn. 

Nickey calls out to him again. Eddie doesn't respond and that makes her stomach twist, she has to fight the bile threatening to slide up her throat. "Eddie!" She screams again. 

Dustin and Nickey make there way around the side of Eddie's trailer and the sight they come upon makes her heart drop and her blood run cold. 

"Eddie!" An inhuman screech falls from her lips as she watches the massive cloud of demobats swarming into some sort of fucked up tornado with Eddie at the very center. 

She's not sure it's real, but she could swear he turns his head at her voice for half a second and her heart withers in her chest as the pieces fall into place. 

Eddie's sacrificing himself. He's keeping the bats occupied to give Steve, Nancy and Robin more time to kill Vecna so that they can save Max. He's giving his own life for them. People he didn't know until a few days ago. People who didn't want anything to do with him until a few days ago. 

They'll never go on that date, she realizes. He'll never kiss her again. Never make her laugh again. She'll never get to tell him stories about California. The happy ones about days spent at the beach with her mom and sister. He'll never get to tell her his stories. She won't ever see him play again. He'll never get to play again. She won't go to his band's shows. She'll never be able to to convince him to give college a try when he finally graduates high school. He won't graduate high school. 

They'll never get to fall in love. Truly and deeply in love like she knows they're meant to. She knew it from the first time they kissed that he'd be the last person to ever feel her lips. She knew they'd fall so deeply in love with one another that it threatened to rip her heart from her chest in an effort to be closer to his own. 

Nickey won't have it. That's not an option. Eddie dying is not an option. And it won't happen. Not today. 

A plan forms her in mind in milliseconds. Faster than she can breath. 

"Try to help him the best you can." Nickey instrusts Dustin and unwraps his arm from her shoulder. 

"What are you doing?" He questions as he struggles to stand on his own. 

"Saving Eddie's life." She says in one breath before taking off in a run to the other side of the trailer. 

Nickey hears Dustin bellow her name but she has a mission and can't be swayed. She charges into the trailer and immediately finds Eddie's discarded guitar and slings it over her shoulder. Then she's running outside once more and climbs onto the truck they used to get down from the roof what seems like both minutes and years ago. 

She hauls herself onto the roof and the screeching of bats seems to be getting louder and louder. When Nickey gets to her feet she turns her gaze to where Eddie still stands in the swirl of evil given breathing forms. Each one of them seems poised to attack, just waiting for the opportunity.

Eddie has his shield and spear in hand standing like a warrior before battle. He lets out a cry of something Nickey can't make out over the sound of demobat wings flapping and the terrible noises they keep making. She can't even hear over the sound of her heart pounding in her ears.

Nickey finds Dustin on the ground. He's limping across the lawn much faster than she thought him able to in his condition but he's still to far away to help Eddie. Her heart beats a little faster.

An awful, awful sound brings Nickey's attention back to Eddie. A bat has departed from the swarm and darts for Eddie, teeth bared and ready to kill. 

For a moment everything stops. It's as if time itself has frozen. Nickey can't move, she can't breathe. Her knees shake and threaten to give out under the weight of her terror. All she can do is watch as this horrible creature dives for Eddie. 

But Eddie swings his shield up and knocks the bat away. And Nickey can't help the sigh of relief that falls from her lips, even as tears track down her cheeks. Although her relief is short lived. The other bats have become brazen and start to one by one attack Eddie. 

"Eddie!" Dustin calls out, and he's still just so far away. 

Nickey spins on her heels. "Shit, shit." She grumbles at the sight of the tangled cables they abandoned during their escape to the trailer. 

She drops to her knees and starts frantically tugging at the wires trying desperately to find the amp plug in time. Her fingers shake, or maybe it's her whole body that's trembling like a leaf in the wind. It doesn't help that she can hardly see past the tears in her eyes either. They're making everything seem wobbly and smeared like fresh ink on a page. 

"Fuck!" Nickey shouts at the cords in her hands as if her anger will untangle them for her and bring forth the one she needs. 

On the ground Eddie screams again. But this time it isn't a war cry but a cry of pain. One of them got to him. Dustin's voice carries his scream of Eddie's name and it's more frantic, more worried now. Nickey chokes on a sob that's forced it's way up her throat and out of her mouth. But she refuses to stop what she's doing, refuses to turn and see what's happening behind her. She won't see if Eddie is still standing, if he's still fighting because she's choosing to believe that he is. She's choosing to believe that she still has time to save him. 

Through her tears she sees something metallic glinting after a crack of lightning flashes red across the sky. 

On her hands and knees she crawls across the rooftop and grabs the amp plug in her palm. She takes in a steading breathe and forces her tears to stop flowing as she sits on her knees, flings the guitar around to her front and plugs the amp cord into the base of the guitar. The amp lets out a whine through the speakers.

"He's gonna kill me for this." Nickey mutters to herself as she places her fingers at random points on the neck of the guitar with one hand then then slashes her fingers across the strings in a violent arc with the other.

A horrible, terrible, awful sound erupts from the speakers around her. She fights the urge to cover her ears and continue to haphazardly pull her fingers down the strings of the guitar. None of the notes sounding are correct, of that much she's sure and she's surprised her ears aren't dripping with blood at the noise she's making. The roof beneath her knees is rattling and she continues her assault on Eddie's guitar.

But over the sound of the guitar strings Nickey hears it. The bat's screaming. Screeching and hissing sounds join the awful song Nickey is playing. It's like they're offended by how she's playing such a precious instrument. Like her misuse of it is making them angry. 

Good.

Nickey starts to play harder, louder somehow. And she dares a look over her shoulder. The tide is turning. The bats are breaking away from the swarm captivating Eddie. And they're headed straight for her. 

This time she doesn't have the precious seconds to make a getaway. She wasn't planning on using them, even if she did have them. She needs to get the bats away from Eddie and give both him and Dustin enough time to getaway. She only hopes that Eddie will forgive her if his guitar gets ruined. 

Although, Nickey does wish she had the time to tell Dustin goodbye. To thank him for all he's done for her and for Max. She would have asked him to tell Max goodbye for her and that she's so, so sorry. A sob breaks through Nickey's lips and her tears run anew. The wind picks up as the bats get close, her hair swirls around her head. God, she wishes she could talk to Steve one last time. Make fun of him with Robin again. Oh, Robin. She's going to miss her. And Nancy, she won't get to watch her turn into the amazing woman Nickey knows she'll become. She wishes she could see all the kids grow up, see what kind of adults they become. Because they will grow up, this she knows without a shadow of a doubt. It wouldn't be right if they didn't. It wouldn't be fair. They deserve to grow up and live their lives, they deserve to be happy. 

Nickey is willing to give up everything for that to happen. 

She plays harder, louder, somehow. Her chest burns from how hard she's crying and she can't see past the blur of the tears in her eyes. Her cheeks are soaked and her hair sticks to her face. 

A blinding pain blasts through her side and she collapses to the roof with a howl of pain. Nickey drops the guitar away and both hands clutch her side. All the air is sucked from her lungs as she can only feel the pain of her torn apart flesh. She tries to take in a breath but can't force any air down. 

God, is this what it felt like for Steve? And yet he somehow managed to get up and fight? 

Nickey presses her forehead to the rough surface of the roof and tries to get herself together. Forcing one hand away from her side, she uses it to brace herself and with it shaking underneath her she pushes her body up. She grits her teeth against the pain as she stands to her feet. 

She pulls her palm away from the wound and it comes away red and shiny. Nickey sighs heavily. 

Nickey blinks. It's quiet. Of course, she's no longer commiting her assault on human ears with her guitar playing anymore but the sound of leathery wings flapping has disappeared. Nothing is making unnatural screeching noises. Or crackling thunder. All Nickey can hear is the sound of her own labored breathing. 

All around demobats lay lifelessly on the ground. As if they just dropped dead. Literally. It's like all of a sudden, mid-flight, they all just dropped out of the sky. 

Nickey stares out, a deep furrow in her brow. She spots Dustin. He's sitting on the ground with Eddie propped up against his chest. They're too far away for her to tell what's going on. To tell if he's alive. 

She spins on her heel and it takes everything she has to ignore the pain and climb down the roof as quickly as she possibly can so that she can get to Eddie. Nickey trudges across the ground, forcing one foot in front of the other, and she can feel her wound spit out more blood with each step she takes. But she doesn't care because she's getting closer to Eddie. She can hear ragged breathing and low moans of pain. 

"Eddie!" She calls out when she's finally in earshot of him. His head whips up and God, his face is covered with blood. Nickey bites the inside of her cheek to keep in the sobs trying to escape her lips. But Eddie's chest caves in deeply before raising again, as if he's taken a huge sigh of relief at the sight of her. 

Eddie tries to stand up but Dustin grabs his arm, Eddie turns and opens his mouth, presumably to argue with the boy. Nickey, now just a few steps away, "Don't get up." She instructs with a voice much more stable than how she really feels.

"Are you okay?" Dustin asks at the same time Eddie opens his mouth to speak. 

"Are you insane?" Eddie questions with an incredulous tone but his face is nothing but pure relief. 

Nickey sinks down to her knees with a wince, "I'm sorry I touched your guitar, but those things were going to k-" 

"You think I'm mad about the guitar?" He interupts her, his face completely bewildered. There's a bite taken from his neck, she notices. That explains the blood on his face. He's got a huge bites on his torso, similar to the gash on her own waist.

She shrugs lightly, "Aren't you?" 

Eddie stares at her for a moment, eyes wide and mouth agape. Then he launches forward, faster than she thought he could move in the state he's in. Finger's wrap around her forearm and tug her foreword. Nickey opens her mouth to let out a yelp of pain but the sound is devoured by Eddie's mouth landing on top of her own. 

And the world ceases to exist. 

The pain in her side fades away. The bitter cold seeps out of her bones and is replaced by a delicious warmth that starts in her chest and spreads throughout the rest of her body. Everything becomes blissfully quiet and all she can hear is her heart beating in tandem with Eddie's heart. It's the best sound she's ever heard.

When Eddie pulls back the both of them take in great, heaving breaths to fill their lungs. But Eddie keeps his grip on her arm and he holds her stare with his own, "I don't give a damn about the guitar." He says into the space between them and Nickey's eyebrows raise, "Why the hell would you put your life on the line like that?" 

Nickey swallows, "Because, there are easier ways to cancel a date with me than getting yourself killed." 

And despite it all, Eddie laughs. It's cut short and he winces, but still, he laughs. 

"I hate to break up this love fest," Dustin says with a slight grumble, "But we still need to get out of here."

Eddie releases Nickey's arm and she sits back, "What happened?" She asks while looking around at the bats laying on the ground, "Did- did they?" She can't say it, she won't say those words out loud in case they might not be true. 

"I don't know." Dustin admits, "But we have to go." 

Nickey nods, "Can you walk?" She asks Eddie. 

"Maybe with some help." He says through gritted teeth as he tries to get his feet under himself. 

"You and the rest of us." Nickey says as she stands up. 

Dustin gets to his feet, favoring his uninjured leg. Then he and Nickey grab Eddie and haul him up. Each of them drape one of his arms over their shoulders, holding him up between the two of them. Really, it's more like the three of them leaning on each other for support as they all limp across the dirt floor back to Eddie's trailer where they will attempt to get back to Hawkins and hopefully the rest of their friends aren't far behind them.