— 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐁𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬 —

I MADE it to school the next day, early. I only made it early because a phone call woke me from my slumber.

"Hello, this is the Hopper residence."

"Hi, (Y/N)? It's Joyce, Will's mom."

"Oh, hi Ms. Byers, what's going on?"

"I was wondering if you know where Will is? Jonathan said you went to see him yesterday."

"I went to the Wheeler's yesterday, but the last time I saw Will he was biking home with Dustin and Lucas."

"Oh, okay. I'm sure he probably just went to school early this morning. Thank you sweetie."

"It's alright. Keep me posted."

"I will, honey, bye-bye."

I walked through the school doors and spotted Nancy and another girl talking by the lockers. Nancy also saw me and waved me over.

"(Y/N)! You're early!" Nancy says.

I sigh.

"Yeah, it's a miracle."

Nancy chuckles.

"Well, this is my friend, Barb. Barb, this is (Y/N)."

I shook Barb's hand, which I think she was a bit startled by and smiled at her.

"Nice to meet you." I say.

She smiles back.

"Nancy was just telling me how in love her and Steve Harrington are." Barb says with a smile.

Nancy put up a finger and shook her head.

"No, no, I did not say that. We just shared a few moments, that's it."

Barb continues.

"Okay, miss, we just made out a couple times. Jesus, you're gonna be so cool now it's ridiculous—"

"No, I'm not!" Nancy cuts her off.

"You're so in denial Nance," I say, "Being popular is one of the perks of dating the King of Hawkins High."

Nancy shakes her head at my response.

"You better still hang out with me, that's all I'm saying," Barb says, "If you become friends with Carol and Tommy H—"

"Gross." Nancy cuts off Barb. "And I'm telling you, this was just a one-time..."

Barb and I both give Nancy a look.

"...two-time thing, alright?"

Nancy opens her locker and a folded note falls out. She opens the note and we look over her shoulder to read it.

Meet me. Bathroom. — Steve

Nancy looks up at me and Barb.

"You were saying?" Barb and I say at the same time.

Nancy walks away with a grin on her face and I notice Jonathan leaning up against my locker.

"Hey, Barb, I'll see you later?"

She smiles at me.

"Yeah, for sure."

I smile and walk away towards my locker. I tap Jonathan's shoulder and he turns around, a worried expression plastered on his face.

"Hey, you're here early." He says.

I chuckle.

"Everyone seems to be surprised by that today." I say.

Jonathan smiles for a second but then drops his smile again.

"Have you found Will yet?" I ask.

Jonathan sighs slightly and shakes his head. I place my hand on his arm and rub it soothingly.

"Don't worry Jon, I'm sure he's fine. Nothing bad ever happens in Hawkins."

He looks up at me with discouraged eyes.

"Thanks, (Y/N)."

I smile at him and drop my hand from his arm. Then, Tommy H and Carol pass by us.

"Get a room, freaks!" They say as they walk by.

The bell rings and I grab my books and walk with Jonathan to his first class and then to mine. In the middle of my third period class, the Principal knocks on the door and enters the room.

"Sorry to interrupt, but may I borrow (Y/N) Hopper?"

My eyes go wide and I stay still for a second, until the Principal beckons me with their hand to join them. When we reach the Principal's office, I see Nancy sitting inside, as well as my father and one of his deputies.

"Take a seat, (Y/N)." My Dad says.

I sit down in the chair and I look at Nancy with confusion. She responds by shaking her head, also confused.

"Um, what's going on?" I speak up.

Hopper clears his throat.

"You both were some of the last people to have seen Will Byers." He says.

I put my hands in my lap and pick at my nails.

"When was the last time you saw him?" He asks.

Nancy begins.

"I saw him when he left the basement to go home, that was it."

Hopper writes on his notepad. He then points his pen at me.

"You, go."

"I called you to pick me up, then I went outside to talk to Will." I say.

He writes more on his notepad.

"What were you talking about?" He asks.

"He... he drew me a picture."

"A picture?"

"Yeah, like a... like a portrait. I just wanted to thank him."

"Okay, then what."

"Then, he got on his bike and rode off with Dustin and Lucas. That was the last time I saw him."

He finished writing on his notepad and then spoke.

"Alright, is there anything else you ladies want to tell us before we send you back to class?"

We both shook our heads and then he dismissed us. Nancy started walking back to class, but I turned around and went back towards the office, where my dad was already walking towards the school doors. He noticed me coming back and he stopped and left his deputy to talk with the principal, making his way towards me.

"Hey, Will is gonna be okay, right? Like, nothing bad happened to him?" I ask

He sighed and looked down at me.

"I'm sure he's gonna be okay, (Y/N). He's probably just playing hooky."

I nodded my head.

"Okay," I say, "He seemed normal last night. Nothing was off about him at all. No red-flags."

Hopper nodded and then patted my shoulder.

"Alright, head back to class now."

I nodded and headed back to class.

The rest of the school day seems to fly by after that. All I can think about is Will, hoping he's safe. Jonathan left school early, I'm assuming to help look for Will, so I walked over to Dustin's house after school. I walk up the steps and knock on the door. Dustin answers, his face telling me everything I need to know.

"Hey, Dustin. How're you holding up, bud?" I ask.

Dustin says nothing, he steps forward and wraps his arms around my torso. I bend down and hug him back, squeezing as tight as I could.

"Okay, (Y/N), I need air."

I let him go and chuckle.

"Sorry." I say.

He lets me inside and we sat in his room. We talked about Will a bit, as well as other things to try and lighten the mood. Dustin's mom finally came home after a few hours. We chatted a bit and she invited me to stay for dinner. I agreed and I helped her prepare the food. After dinner, Dustin hurried off to his room. I helped Ms. Henderson clean the dishes and then was startled by Dustin pulling on the sleeve of my sweater.

"(Y/N), I need your help." He says.

I turned around and looked at him with concern.

"What's going on?" I ask.

"It's for Will."

Dustin leads me to the garage, without his mother knowing, and hands me an extra bike. We bike for what feels like forever, until we meet up with Mike and Lucas. We keep biking with them down Mirkwood road, as the kids call it, when Mike stops.

"Why are we stopping?" Lucas asks.

I follow Mike's gaze to the woods, where the trees are wrapped in yellow police tape. Suddenly, a rumble begins to emerge through the sky and water droplets start to fall.

"You guys feel that?" Dustin asks.

The rain starts coming down harder, soaking us.

"Hey guys, maybe we should head back!" I suggest, earning no response from the three boys.

Mike reaches into his backpack and hands Dustin a walkie. Mike and Lucas then start to head into the woods. I start to follow behind them while Dustin stays back.

"Dustin, come on!" I yell to him.

He quickly follows us into the woods.

We walk deep into the woods, the only light being the one emitted from our flashlights. We all call out for Will, earning no response in return.

Dustin speaks up.

"Guys, I really think we should turn back."

"Seriously, Dustin, if you want to be a baby, just go home already." Lucas says.

"I'm just being realistic, Lucas."

"No, you're being a sissy."

"Guys," I interject, "I agree with Dustin. Your parents are going to kill me if they find out I let you all come out here."

"You ever think Will went missing because, you know, he ran into someone bad? And now we're going to the place where he was last seen, and we don't even have weapons or anything." Dustin adds.

"Dustin, shut up." Mike says.

"I'm just sayin', does that seem smart to you?"

"Shut up!" Mike repeats.

In the silence, a rustling noise emerges in the trees. Mike slowly swings his flashlight around the area, while I pull the boys closer to me. A small figure then darts behind us and we all turn around, Mike shining his flashlight.

There, in the middle of the woods, a small girl with a buzz cut and a Benny's t-shirt.

We take the girl back to Mike's house and she sits on the couch in the basement while the boys interrogate her.

"Is there a number we can call?" For your parents?"

"Where's your hair? Do you have cancer?"

"Did you run away?"

"Are you in some kind of trouble?"

"Is that blood?"

The girl slaps Lucas' hand away as he tries to reach for her. I stand up from a chair I'm sitting in.

"Boys, calm down! You're obviously freaking her out with your million questions a minute."

"She's freaking me out!" Lucas says.

"I bet she's deaf..." Dustin claps his hands in front of her face and the girl flinches.

I grab Dustin and pull him back.

"...not deaf."

"Okay, seriously guys, that's enough. She's just scared and probably cold." I say.

Mike then immediately goes to the laundry room. He brings back a sweatshirt and joggers. The girl cautiously accepts the clothing and then proceeds to try and take her clothes off in front of the boys, which sends them into a screaming fit.

"Okay, let's go to the bathroom." I say.

I walk the girl over to the bathroom and she looks up at me.

"You can go ahead and change in here, for privacy." I go to shut the door, but she stops me.

"You don't want me to close the door?" I ask.

"No." The girl, finally, speaks.

"Okay, well, I'm just going to leave the door open," I say while pulling the door shut, leaving a three-inch opening, "Like this. Is that okay?"

"Yes."

I walk back to the boys who are conversing at the stairs. They begin arguing and theorizing about where the girl came from. Lucas seems the most peeved about bringing the girl back to Mike's basement.

"I think we should tell your Mom." Dustin states.

"Woah, woah, woah, no. Absolutely not." I say.

"Yeah, that's crazy." Mike says.

"I agree with Dustin." Lucas adds.

"Guys, you were not supposed to be out tonight, remember?" I say, "If we tell Mike's Mom, she will tell Dustin's Mom and Lucas' Mom and then I lose my job and never see you guys again."

"(Y/N)'s right. Then our houses become like Alcatraz and we never find Will." Mike says.

Mike laid out a plan. The girl would stay there for the night, then in the morning she would ring the doorbell and Mike's Mom would find her and know what to do. The boys then set up a fort for the girl to sleep in for the night and Mike tries his best to make her feel comfortable.

Dustin, Lucas and I then walk up the stairs and start to head home. I bike with the both of them to Lucas' house, and then Dustin to his.

"Hey, Dustin, can I borrow the bike?" I ask.

"Sure, (Y/N), just keep it. It's an extra anyways."

I smile at Dustin and wave bye as he walks into his house.

I start biking home through the slight drizzle and see that my dad's truck isn't there. He must've stayed out later to help look for Will. I make my way inside and to my room. I strip from my rain soaked clothes and settle for some comfier ones. As I lay down on my bed, ready to pass out, the phone rings. I groan and get up, making my way to the living room.

"Hello, Hopper residence."

"Hi, uh, is (Y/N) there?"

"This is her."

"Oh, hah, hey (Y/N), it's Steve Harrington."

"Um, hi?"

"Hi."

There's silence on the line for a few seconds, before I speak up.

"So, was there something you needed?"

Steve chuckles through the phone.

"Well uh, yea, actually, kind of," Steve pauses then clears his throat before speaking, "I could really use some 'girl advice'."

I laugh.

"Girl advice? You came to me for girl advice?" I laugh again, "I'm the least girly-girl out there, Steve. You'd probably have better luck with Carol Perkins."

Steve sighs.

"Well see, I would, but Carol has had a boyfriend since seventh grade. I need someone who can't score a guy's advice."

"Ouch, that hurt."

Steve laughs.

"Well, what did you need advice for?"

"Uh, well," Steve sighs into the phone, "Actually, I'd feel much better talking about this in person."

I'm taken aback for a second. Steve Harrington wanted to have a conversation with me, in person?

"Oh, of course. Well, we can talk tomorrow at school?"

Steve sighs again.

"Actually, I was thinking tonight. Maybe I could come over to your place?"

Steve Harrington wanted to have a conversation with me, tonight?

"Wow, that's very bold, Harrington. Especially with the Chief's daughter," I chuckle into the phone, "Aren't you afraid you're gonna get shot if my dad sees you here?"

"Well... I wasn't afraid before," he says, "But now I am."

I laugh.

"Still, I'm willing to risk it."

Shit, am I actually going to do this right now?

"Alright, I live right by Lover's Lake, are you familiar?"

Steve chuckled.

"Familiar? I made Lover's Lake popular, honey."

My heart sped up again. This is the second time this has happened and it has only happened around Steve. It has to be a coincidence.

"Okay, see you soon."

I placed the phone back on the wall and ran to my room. I quickly combed my hair out and put on a sweater and blue Levi's. I don't know why I was trying to look somewhat decent, it was just Steve the douchebag Harrington. Also, he is with Nancy, so this is a completely friendly meeting. After about 20 minutes I hear a few taps on my window. I walk over and see Steve standing outside. He sends me a wave and then I open the window.

"Hey." He says.

"Hi."

We are silent for a few seconds, just looking into each others eyes.

"Can I come in?"

"You know," I chuckle, "You can use the front door."

"What about your dad?"

I shake my head.

"He's not home yet." I say.

Steve sighs.

"Well, I actually need to practice my window-entering ninja skills." He says.

I laugh and move to the side so that Steve can jump up and into my window. He jumps up and pushes his stomach over the windowsill, then somersaults over the bar, sending him down on his butt on the floor. He gives a small ow and I extend my hand for him to grab and help him stand up off of the floor. His hand immediately goes to his butt to rub the pain out.

"You okay?" I ask.

"You know, Hopper, you totally could've helped me jump that window."

I raise my hands up.

"You said you wanted to test your skills, I didn't want to interfere!"

Steve laughs.

"Yeah well that window was like black-belt level of testing my skills."

We both laugh together.

"Maybe the front door would be a better option, next time." I say.

"Note taken."

I walk over to my bed and take a seat, one knee up, the other leg crossed. I grab my leg and rest my head on my knee as Steve walks around my room, looking at my pictures and posters. He looks on my dresser and picks up one particular picture in a frame, the one that Will drew for me.

"Woah, this is pretty sick," Steve says, walking back to me and holding the picture near my face, "Looks just like you."

I smile and grab the picture from his hands.

"Will Byers drew it for me."

Steve sat on the end of my bed, legs hanging off the edge, but facing me.

"Jonathan's brother, the one that's missing?" He asks.

"Yeah." I say as I look at the picture once more, then set it on my bedside table.

"You're, uh, you're pretty close with those kids, aren't you?" Steve asks, looking directly in at eyes.

"They're good kids." I say.

Steve nods.

I sigh and bring my legs into a crisscross position.

"Alright, enough sap. What did you want to talk to me about?" I ask.

"Oh yeah, that," Steve says, "It's about Nancy."

I nod at him, encouraging him to say more.

"Okay, (Y/N), but you seriously can't say anything to her. Promise."

"My lips are sealed." I make a motion as if I was sealing my lips.

Steve then holds his pinky finger out towards me.

"Pinky promise."

I chuckle at him.

"Seriously?" I ask.

"You can't break a pinky promise, it's sacred."

I look at him for a second before I stick my pinky out and our fingers lock. Just the slight touch of our skin meeting sends my body into shock. The long material of my sweater covers the goosebumps appearing over my arms from me swooning over Steve.

I pull our fingers apart quickly and he begins to speak.

"I'm really into Nance, like, really into her, but I can't tell if she feels the same way about me."

"Uh oh, Harrington. Are you falling in love?"

Steve chuckles.

"No, I mean, I don't know. Every time I see her I feel my heart is going to explode, is that love?"

My heart pounds and bursts at the thought of him being in love with Nancy.

"Shit, I don't know. You are talking to the girl who can't score a guy, remember."

"I was just kidding, (Y/N), I'm sure you could score any guy you wanted to."

I laugh.

"Definitely not. Especially with Tommy H and Carol going around calling me a freak," I chuckle and sit back on my bed, "No one wants to date a freak."

Steve lays back on my bed.

"You'd be surprised." He says.

"Only freaks want to date freaks." I say.

Steve looks over at me and chuckles.

"There's someone for everyone!" He says.

I flip him off and he laughs.

"I'm kidding though, and seriously, don't listen to Tommy and Carol, they just spew bullshit." He says.

"What if it's not bullshit though?"

Steve sits up and scoots towards me. He puts a hand on my knee and looks me in the eyes.

"It is bullshit." He says.

Our faces were merely inches apart, when I pulled back and leaned up against my headboard. He took his hand off my knee and sat back a bit.

"Nancy does like you, by the way. She's probably just being extra cautious because she thinks you just want to have sex and then dump her."

"Why does everybody think that low of me?" He asks.

I look at Steve with my head tilted down slightly, giving him a disapproving stare.

"Do I have to answer that question?" I say.

He stands up and starts making his way to my door.

"Please, don't." He says.

I smile and get up to walk him out, when I hear the front door opening. Quickly, I run over and lock my bedroom door and push Steve towards the window.

"Shit! Hurry!" I whisper.

Steve hurriedly throws himself over the windowsill and jumps down on the grass, sticking the landing.

"Thanks for the talk, (Y/N). I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, I'll see you." I