xxxii. bohemian rhapsody

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CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO:
BOHEMIAN RHAPSODY

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MIKE AND MAX helped Eleven out to Nancy's car. Jonathan and Nancy were instructed to take them to Murray's house where they would all be safe while the adults took care of the Mind Flayer once and for all. Eleven had started complaining about her leg again once they got outside the mall. Liz opened up the back door of the Station Wagon and let Max and Mike set Eleven in the back, so she could lay down. Nancy and Jonathan got into the front seats while Mike stayed with Eleven in the back. Liz, Max, Lucas, and Will got into the middle, having to squeeze together tightly to fit.

Nancy put the keys into the ignition and turned them. The car wasn't starting and the engine was making strange noises. Due to the noises coming from the engine, Liz figured the engine was most likely dead. Nancy continued to turn the keys, trying to get the car to start, "You can't be serious! Come on!"

"Didn't your mom just buy this car?" Lucas asked.

"Yes," Nancy sighed in annoyance. "I'm sure it's fine."

"Did you leave the lights on?" Will asked, trying to be helpful as he knew if Nancy left the lights on, the engine would die and the car wouldn't start.

"No!"

"Do we have gas?" Lucas asked.

"Yes!" Nancy yelled before aggressively turning the key once again. "Come on!"

Jonathan reached forward, stopping his girlfriend from causing more damage to the engine by aggressively trying to start it, "Stop, stop! Pop the hood."

Nancy obeyed and popped the hood as Jonathan got out of the car. He opened up the hood and started observing the engine as Nancy stepped out of the car. They observed the engine for a few seconds before the sound of an engine revving distracted all of them. Everyone whipped their heads to the left, seeing a blue Camaro in the middle of the empty parking lot. The lights turned on and everyone knew it was Billy.

Liz started to take deep breaths as did everybody else out of fear as Billy continued to rev the engine of the car. He was challenging them. He revved the engine every second, trying to scare them and it was working. Nancy tapped on the window to the right of them, yelling, "Back in the mall! Back in the mall!"

Nancy opened up the door and everybody rushed out, practically tripping over each other. Max and Mike grabbed Eleven as everybody ran back through the doors of Starcourt. They stayed in the food court and some of them had started getting weapons just in case they could find no other way of leaving. Mike had grabbed one of the walkie talkies and went onto Dustin's channel, trying to see if any of the Scoops Troop would answer but none of them were. Lucas had grabbed his slingshot and Nancy stole a gun from one of the dead Russians to check how many rounds were in the handgun, which made Max flinch beside Liz, "You're gonna kill him, aren't you?"

Nancy frowned, "This is just a precaution, okay?"

"And not just against Billy," Will reassures her, not wanting her to think they were only after her brother. "If he knows we're here, so does the Mind Flayer.

Liz nods. She places a hand on Max's shoulder and squeezes, trying to reassure the girl, "Everything is gonna be fine. Billy is stronger than he was before because of the Mind Flayer, he's gonna be fine after all this is over, just like Will was."

Max nods, forcing a smile on her face as she nodded. Liz reached around and gave her a small side hug and Max rested her head on Liz's shoulder, thankful for the girl's touch. Nancy eyed the vehicle Eleven had thrown across the mall and frowned, "No chance that thing'll drive, right?"

"We don't need it to drive," Jonathan tells her, shaking his head. His eyes widened as he realized they might have a way out. "We just need the ignition cable."

The group quickly headed over to the turned over vehicle which was directly against one of the restaurants in the food court. They each stood on the side of the vehicle that was pressed up against the restaurant and started pushing. They pushed as hard as they could, each of them scrunching up their faces and flexing their muscles, trying desperately to get the vehicle to turn over. All they needed was the ignition cable and they would be home free. The metal squealed as they pushed it but wouldn't budge. Finally, after admitting defeat, they let go and let the vehicle smash against the restaurant once more.

"Let me try," Eleven offers. Liz looked up at the girl as she took deep breaths, her body tired from trying to overturn a car. Eleven's eyes were sunken in and it was clear her body was weak as she was lightly shaking.

Mike shook his head, panting from the strain he had just put on his body, "El..."

Eleven took a step forward, limping slightly due to her injury, "I can do it." The group backed away, allowing Eleven to do her thing. She stuck her hand out and focused on the vehicle. The metal squealed and buckled underneath her abilities but it wouldn't budge no matter how much energy Eleven put into it.

Finally, Eleven gave up, letting out a frustrated sigh. Mike suggested they use metal poles to help get more leverage to push the car. The group quickly collected a couple of metal poles around the food court and got back behind the vehicle. They stuck the poles between the restaurant and the car before starting to push. They were able to quickly get the car on its side before taking a small break to breathe and rest their aching muscles. Jonathan encouraged them to continue, "Okay, great. Now all the way. Ready?" The group turned the poles over and set them against the car, "Three, two, one, push!"

They pushed with all the muscle they could muster and by a miracle, the car tipped over. They sighed in relief as Mike cockily said, "Told you. Physics."

Nancy and Jonathan hurried over to the hood. They stuck their hands underneath, trying to get it open but it wouldn't budge. Nancy looked in the car, searching for a latch to open the hood as the rest of the group stood by and waited for the older teens to be done, so they could leave. Liz watched as Nancy struggled to find the latch to open the hood. She was about to try to help until a pounding sounded all around them. Liz furrowed her brows in confusion as she observed the food court but she quickly realized it wasn't coming from inside the mall. The pounding noise was coming from the skylight of the mall. Liz looked up at the ceiling and watched as the glass started to crack from the weight of the Mind Flayer. Liz dropped her jaw and her eyes went wide just as Mike gasped, "Nancy!"

Liz didn't have time to comprehend what was happening until the glass skylight caved and came crashing down, glass flying everywhere as the floor shook from the Mind Flayer falling into the mall. Liz, along with Will, Jonathan, Mike, and Lucas ducked behind the car. The Mind Flayer roared, the sound echoing throughout the mall. Liz closed her eyes at the noise and started to shake from fear.

"Griswald Family, this is Scoops Troop! Do you copy? Over!" Dustin's voice shouted from the walkie talkie. "Griswald Family, I repeat, this is Scoops Troop. Do you copy --"

The Mind Flayer picked up the walkie talkie and roared once again before throwing against the ground and breaking the cover. Dustin continued to scream into the walkie talkie but nobody could answer as they were too busy hiding from the Mind Flayer and trying not to get killed or eaten. Liz took deep breaths as she sat between Nancy and Lucas behind the car. The Mind Flayer continued to roar as it walked around the food court and every time it came close to the car, Liz felt her heart drop. Liz slowly looked behind the car, spotting the gigantic Mind Flayer that seemed to have gotten bigger since they last saw it.

Lucas grabbed his slingshot, which made Liz's eyes widen. She knew they had to do something as the Mind Flayer was inches away from killing Max, Mike, and Eleven but she didn't want anybody else to get hurt. Lucas stood up and shot his slingshot at a balloon, the loud popping sound distracting the Mind Flayer. He sat back down immediately and the Mind Flayer started to move. Jonathan glanced over the car for a moment before whispering to the group, "Go, go, go, go!"

They stood up and jumped into the pizza place in front of them. They went to the back room and down the hallways that connected all of the stores before running up a set of stairs. They ran down a couple of hallways and more stairs before finally ending up outside the mall once again. Liz, Lucas, and Will got into the back seat of the car while Jonathan and Nancy quickly put in the ignition cable. Billy was still outside the mall and revved his car engine once more at them. Jonathan got into the car while Nancy stood outside it, gun raised at Billy's car. Jonathan tried to start it but even with the ignition cable, nothing was happening, "No, no, no! Come on!"

The sound of an engine revving and tires screeching echoed around them as Billy put his car in drive and slammed on the gas. Liz's eyes widened as Billy started driving straight towards them. Nancy started shooting and the kids started yelling at Jonathan to hurry up. The car started getting dangerously close but Nancy continued shooting. Liz's eyes widened as the car was a few feet away from them. The headlights blinded her and she quickly ducked down with Lucas and Will and closed her eyes, waiting for the impact that never came. Instead, another car slammed into Billy's, knocking him away just in time.

Liz was shaking as she sat up again. She looked up and saw that it was none another than her brother who had saved them. She smiled at him and sighed in relief. Liz had come closer to death in the past week than most people ever did in their lifetime. The same roaring from the Mind Flayer sounded as she looked up once more, seeing the Mind Flayer was on the roof of the mall once again. Thankfully, the car finally started and everybody got in, Liz, Lucas, and Will in the middle while Steve and Robin got into the back.

They headed off, Hopper slamming his foot down on the gas as the Mind Flayer chased them. Liz's heart was practically beating out of her chest as the Mind Flayer continued to follow them no matter how many turns they took or how fast they were going. They were on a random road when a random girl's voice came through the walkie talkie in Robin's hand, "Dusty-bun, do you copy?"

"I copy, Suzie-poo," Dustin responded through the walkie talkie. "It sounds much better now, thanks. Okay, so listen, do you know Planck's constant?"

"Do you know the Earth orbits the sun?" Suzie responded.

"Okay, so I know it starts with two sixes, and then a... What is it?"

"Okay, let me just be clear on this," Suzie started. "I haven't heard from you in a week, and now you want some mathematical equation that you should know so you can... save the world?"

"Suzie-poo, I promise, I will make it up to you as soon as possible," Dustin promised her.

"You can make it up to me now," Suzie responds. "I want to hear it."

"Not right now," Dustin responds.

"Yes, now, Dusty-bun!" Suzie argued. Liz furrowed her brows in confusion, wondering if that conversation was really happening at a moment like this.

"Suzie-poo, this is urgent!" Dustin urged her.

"Yes, yes, you're saving the world, I heard you the first time," Suzie tells him. Liz could practically hear Suzie's eyes rolling. "But Ged is also saving Earthsea and he's about to confront the shadow, so this is Suzie, signing off."

"Wait, wait wait! Okay. Okay," Dustin sighed.

Liz didn't know what was going to happen but she definitely didn't think Dustin and Suzie were going to start singing Never-ending Story together. Liz was between Lucas and Will in the middle seats as she looked over her shoulder at the walkie-talkie Robin was holding. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. Behind the car was the Mind Flayer still chasing after them while Dustin and Suzie harmonized together, "This can't be happening right now."

Finally, after a minute, the singing stopped and Suzie gave them the numbers they needed, "Planck's constant is 6.62607004."

After driving another mile, the Mind Flayer had finally slowed stopped following them. It roared into the night before turning around and running back towards the mall. Jonathan turned the car around the second Steve announced it had turned around. He slammed down on the gas and the group started following the Mind Flayer back towards the mall.

The Mind Flayer beat them there, the group being able to hear it from the parking lot. They went in through the mall from the back and went through the back hallways to the second floor of the mall. They brought in the fireworks, using Lucas's idea as they had nothing left to try. When they got in there, the Mind Flayer was towering over Eleven, roaring loudly. Lucas was the first one to light up one of the fireworks before throwing it at the monster, "Flay this you ugly piece of shit!"

The firework exploded, sending colorful sparks all over the food court. The Mind Flayer turned towards Lucas and roared just as Lucas sent a firework barreling into the monster's mouth. It screeched in pain as everyone took turns in throwing a firework at the creature, the explosions sounding like bombs in the enclosed mall as sparks flew everywhere.

As Billy and the Mind Flayer were distracted by the fireworks, Eleven tried to escape from Billy. He quickly grabbed her and dragged her back over to the Mind Flayer, hovering above her as he started to choke her. Liz continued to light and throw fireworks as Eleven started to talk to Billy. She reached into the basket once again but felt no fireworks. Liz stared at the empty basket and cursed to herself as Will shouted, "We're out!"

"Dammit!" Lucas cursed.

Once the last of the sparks had stopped and the smoke settled, making the entire room smell like a fireworks stand, the Mind Flayer stood up. Liz watched as it turned to Billy and Eleven. She watched in surprise as Billy stood up and almost shielded Eleven. The Mind Flayer roared at Billy as Eleven started crawling away once more. The Mind Flayer opened its mouth and a long arm shot out of it, heading straight for Eleven but Billy held out his hands and stopped it, "No!"

Billy screamed as he held back the Mind Flayer. The Mind Flayer was must stronger than him and it used one of its other arms to grab Billy on the lower left side of his abdomen. He screamed in pain just as another one of the arms grabbed onto him on his right side. More arms grabbed onto Billy's body, stabbing him with each razor-sharp tooth. Liz watched with wide eyes at the scene as the monster lowered Billy to his knees and plunged one final arm deep into Billy's chest.

"Billy!" Max screamed out. Liz turned her attention to Max who had been watching the whole scene and the look on her face was one Liz knew she would never forget.

Finally, the Mind Flayer squirmed and yelled in pain before collapsing to the ground, dead. Liz sighed in relief, knowing Hopper and Joyce had closed the gate. Mike ran to Eleven, clutching her as she cried. Liz ran down the escalator as Max slowly walked over to Billy. Max stared in disbelief at her step-brother who was barely still alive as Liz made her way over to Max. Max knelt down beside Billy and placed her hands on his shoulders, shaking him as he struggled to breathe, "Billy, get up. Please. Billy, please, please get up!"

"I'm sorry," Billy uttered.

Max shook her head, "Billy..."

Liz kneeled down beside Max as Billy took his last breath, his body falling still. Max shook her head, "Billy, wake up. Billy, get up. Please, Billy..." Max gasped, her eyes wide as she realized her brother was dead, "Billy! Billy!"

Liz placed a hand on Max's shoulder as a tear fell down Liz's cheek. Billy was a horrible person but Max had just lost her brother and she needed someone to be there for her. Max turned to Liz as she sobbed and practically fell into Liz's arms. Liz stroked her hair and whispered into her ear, "It's okay. It's okay. You're okay."

Eleven joined Liz and wrapped her arms around Max who was sobbing uncontrollably. Liz cried as Max practically lost her breath due to crying so hard. Liz couldn't do much for Max besides hold her as she cried and that's what she did. Elizabeth Harrington held Max Mayfield as tight as she could and tried as best as she could to soothe her as the smoke cleared and a new day began, hoping and praying this was their last fight.





















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[ 3005 WORDS ]

the next chapter will be the
last chapter. i'm so sad & yet
so happy & proud of myself !!

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