chapter four:
❛ surf's up ❜

PLEASE DONT BE A GHOST READER!!
COMMENT AND VOTE

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Max stood in Ms. Kelly's office, her voice hoarse from exhaustion as she tried to explain the horrifying pattern she'd pieced together. The dark circles under her eyes made it clear she hadn't slept in days. "Fred and Chrissy... they both came to Ms. Kelley for help," she began, her words halting as Robin pulled the notes on Ms. Kelly's desk closer, scanning the pages for any overlooked clues.

"Headaches," Max continued, "really bad headaches that wouldn't go away. Then the nightmares. Trouble sleeping, waking up drenched in sweat. And after that... they started seeing things. Things from their past. Horrible things. These visions, they just kept getting worse and worse, until eventually..." her voice caught in her throat, "everything ended."

Max took a breath, as though each word was heavier than the last. Robin looked up, the weight of what Max was saying dawning on her. "Vecna's curse," Robin whispered, the realization hitting her like a punch to the gut.

"Chrissy's headaches started a week ago," Max continued, her eyes darting between Robin and Dustin. "Fred's, six days ago. Mine... they started five days ago." Her voice wavered, and the room seemed to freeze. Everyone's eyes widened in silent horror, the reality of Max's situation settling in like a suffocating fog.

Dustin shifted, letting out a shaky breath as his mind raced. "And Scarlett..." Max hesitated, her face hardening as she forced herself to continue. "She's been having them too. Scarlett's been having nightmares—nightmares about Bob and Billy—for seven months. Ever since she moved to Lenora, they've gotten worse. But she hasn't had any visions yet... At least, not that I know of."

Robin's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Seven months? How is she still alive?"

Max shook her head. "I think it's because she's too far away for Vecna to kill her. She's been safe in Lenora. But I just saw that goddamn clock, and Chrissy and Fred died less than 24 hours after their first vision."

Max's words hung in the air, the weight of them suffocating. Dustin's voice broke the silence, his tone trembling. "Scarlett's in danger too..." He swallowed hard, his voice becoming more urgent. "We need to contact her. A letter will take too long to reach her."

The fear was palpable now. They were racing against a clock they couldn't see, and every second they hesitated put Max—and Scarlett—in even greater danger.

Harvey stood outside Will's house, his fingers twitching nervously as he raised his hand to knock. His heart raced as he anxiously waited for someone to answer. When the door creaked open, a tall, slightly scruffy guy with a hardened face stood in the doorway, eyeing Harvey with suspicion.

"Who are you?" the guy asked, crossing his arms over his chest, his voice filled with a mix of irritation and wariness.

Harvey flashed an awkward smile, trying to ease the tension. "I'm Harvey Cruz, Will's friend," he said, lifting his hands slightly in a peace gesture.

The guy squinted at him, clearly not impressed, but after a long pause, he grumbled under his breath and stepped aside, allowing Harvey in. "Whatever. Will's upstairs."

Harvey let out a nervous chuckle, wiping his clammy hands on his jeans before stepping inside. "Thanks, man," he said as he bolted up the stairs, calling out, "Will! Where are you?"

He found Will, Mike, and Jonathan huddled together in Will's room, their faces grim and tense as if they'd been in the middle of a very serious conversation. The air felt thick with unspoken fear, and Harvey's stomach churned.

"You said Scarlett and Jane were taken by the government? What the hell is going on?" Harvey blurted out, walking up to Will with a mixture of confusion and dread.

Will shot up from his seat, grabbing Harvey by the shoulders, his eyes wide with intensity. "Harvey, you need to listen to me. There's something you don't know," Will began, his voice hushed but urgent.

Before Harvey could respond, Mike cut in, his face scrunched in suspicion. "Are you sure he's not a spy?" he asked, his gaze darting between Will and Harvey.

Will shook his head firmly. "He's not a spy, Mike. He's one of us."

Harvey's brow furrowed as confusion set in deeper. "William, what is going on? You're not making any sense."

Taking a deep breath, Will looked Harvey dead in the eye and spoke. "Scarlett and Jane—or as we call her, El—they're not just normal girls. They were raised in a lab, Harvey. El can control things with her mind, and Scarlett... she controls electricity. They're both in serious danger, and so are all of our friends back in Hawkins. We need to find them and save everyone before it's too late."

Harvey blinked, his brain struggling to process the flood of information. "Wait, what? Superpowers? Lab experiments? What the hell have you gotten me into?" he asked, his voice rising in panic.

Before Will could answer, the sound of gunfire erupted from downstairs, shattering the eerie quiet of the house.

"What the hell was that?" Jonathan yelled, his face going pale as the noise intensified. He rushed to the doorway to peek out.

Harvey's pulse quickened, his breath hitching as panic washed over him. "William, what did you get me into?!" he squealed, his voice taking on a high-pitched tone of pure terror.

Jonathan whipped back around, eyes wide with urgency. "We've got to go, now!"

The sound of shattering glass filled the room as bullets tore through the window, sending shards flying across the floor. Harvey yelped, dropping to the ground instinctively. Mike, Will, and Jonathan ducked, their faces etched with fear as the house turned into a war zone.

"Run! Go!" Jonathan shouted over the chaos.

Harvey, shaking uncontrollably, barely managed to push himself up from the floor. "William, I'm going to kill you for this!" he squeaked, his voice cracking from fear. He wasn't even embarrassed about how high-pitched he sounded—he was too focused on staying alive.

Mike was the first to dart out of the room, ducking his head low to avoid the flying bullets. Harvey, Will, and Jonathan followed, keeping their heads down as they sprinted down the hallway, the sound of gunfire echoing around them.

A bullet whizzed past Harvey's head, so close that he felt the air ripple by his ear. He screamed, heart pounding in his chest, barely able to breathe. They scrambled down the stairs, where the guy who had opened the door for Harvey earlier was now standing with a gun in his hand, shouting at them to hurry up.

"Come on, move!" the guy yelled, firing at the soldiers now flooding into the house.

Harvey's panic spiked as he followed the others, his body trembling with fear. "Why is the military here?!" he yelled, his voice rising in hysteria.

"Not the time for questions, Harvey!" Will yelled back, grabbing his hand tightly, dragging him toward the back door. The sounds of gunfire were relentless, filling the air with an overwhelming sense of danger.

The guy who was covering them—whom Harvey had mentally nicknamed Doorguy—kept firing at the soldiers while shouting orders at them. "Follow me! Let's go!" he yelled.

"O-Okay!" Harvey stammered, barely able to get the words out as his body shook with adrenaline. They ducked into the kitchen, but as they reached the back door, it was kicked open, and more soldiers barged in. Doorguy opened fire, taking out several soldiers before they could shoot.

"What the hell is going on?!" Mike shouted, his face twisted with panic.

Doorguy was busy reloading his gun, his hands steady despite the chaos around them. "Just stay here!" he ordered before stepping back out into the line of fire.

Harvey, Will, Mike, and Jonathan crouched behind the kitchen counter, their breaths coming in sharp gasps. Another round of gunfire erupted, and Harvey screamed in fear as a bullet flew past him again, narrowly missing his head. His heart felt like it might explode from the sheer terror.

"I shoot, you run!" Doorguy yelled over the chaos.

Without hesitation, Will pulled Harvey to his feet, and together with Jonathan and Mike, they bolted for the door. But in the frenzy, Doorguy was hit. He stumbled, blood staining his shirt as he collapsed onto the floor.

"Help me!" Harvey cried, running back to grab Doorguy's arms. Jonathan, Will, and Mike grabbed his legs, and together they struggled to drag him outside. They didn't stop until they saw Argyle's van pulling up.

"Stop the car!" Harvey yelled, waving his arms frantically as they approached the van.

Argyle slammed the brakes, eyes wide as Harvey rushed to the back doors, yanking them open. "Get in!" Harvey shouted, helping Will and Jonathan load Doorguy into the back of the van.

Argyle looked on in confusion, his face paling. "Is that real blood, man?" he asked, his voice shaky.

"Drive!" Harvey, Will, Jonathan, and Mike screamed in unison, their panic unmistakable.

"Okay, okay!" Argyle muttered, stepping on the gas. As the van sped off, he glanced in his rearview mirror, his eyes widening in disbelief. "But... oh my God. Why is that guy holding a gun?"

"Drive!" the group screamed again, louder this time, as the sense of danger crept closer.

Argyle didn't need to be told again. He floored the accelerator, and the van lurched forward as they sped away from the house, leaving the chaos behind them. The air in the van was thick with tension, the weight of everything they'd just gone through settling heavily on all of them. Harvey, his hands still shaking, glanced at the bloodied Doorguy, his mind spinning with the realization of how close they had come to dying.

"William... I'm going to kill you for this," Harvey muttered weakly, his voice barely above a whisper as he slumped back in the van, trying to calm his racing heart.

ASH SPEAKS!

i forgot that el wasnt in ep4 so... this chapter is short cause yeah...

im excited to write scarlett remembering and im excited to write harveys storyline with will hehehe