Christine Wheeler walked towards the tent that was pitched in the corner of the cemetery, her heartbeat accelerating as she felt the incessant urge to just go home. Christine was not someone who took death very well, the mere thought of someone close to her dying scared the life out of her. Her most rational fear that she could place was something so inevitable and common that it couldn't even be considered a fear, more like an existential dread.

Attached to her was Steve Harrington, the boy not a big fan of funerals either, remembering his grandfathers where he saw his dad cry for the first time, one of his first shows of vulnerability. But Steve would do anything for Christine, and he cared about Max. There was no body, the family deciding to have the procession at the gravesite where they would show his headstone. There was something so unsettling about a funeral without a body, paying respects to someone who wasn't even present.

Christine took the dreaded step into Max Mayfields eye line, the red headed girls face changing from sad to somewhat relieved. Something about bearing the weight of this loss on her own was quite hard to picture for her. Christine gave her a soft smile, her hand lifting the slightest bit to give her a wave. Max gave her a small one back, managing a smile on her lips that had been forced into a frown all day. Christine made her way over to the girl with Steve, the boy giving Max an apologetic look as she saw him too. She still felt thankful that they were there, none of the rest of the group had showed up. The only people that had showed up were Max and her mom, and Billy's dad, the preacher, and now Christine and Steve. Billy wasn't a big figure in the town like the men from the newspaper or Jim Hopper, he didn't mean much to many, and no one knew what he did for the town in his final moments. Nobody knew about his sacrifice, his attempt to make what he had been forced to do...right. Max hadn't expected anyone to show up, Lucas , Mike, Will, El, and Dustin hated Billy. Why would they come to his funeral?

"Max I-" Before Christine could fully speak the speaker clicked on with music, somber and chilling music that really set the mood. Max gave Christine her own apologetic smile, turning away from her and towards the preacher who was beginning to speak. Christine stood to her side, Steve wrapping his arm around her shoulders to show that he was there. He felt a hint of disappointment in him at the fact that no one else had showed up, none of the other kids. It hurt even him, so he couldn't imagine how Max was feeling right now.

Throughout the service Steve kept his eyes glued to the ground, only lifting them every few minutes to look at Max and Christine. Max was holding a stoic look, something like anger hidden behind her eyes, resentment. And Christine was unreadable, the girls eyes stuck on the headstone that read William Hargrove.

Max felt a tear come to her eye during the prayer, a sniffle breaking loose from her cold and detached demeanor. This was Billy, he was not a good person, but he was her brother, and the guilt inside of her was eating her alive. She had wanted this, she had dreamed of this for a long time, so why was there no satisfaction?

Christine heard the sniffle, her eyes opening at the sound. She saw the single tear drop down Max's face, the younger girl too quick to wipe it away. Christine caught her hand on the way down, knitting their fingers together and giving them a squeeze. Max looked up at the girl who had reclosed her eyes, the younger girl not feeling quite so alone for the first time all week. She looked past Christine to Steve, who was there, who had actually showed up, a man who hated Billy with his entirety. She knew that he wasn't there for Billy but that he was there for Max, and for the second time in days she didn't feel so alone again. Maybe nobody else would show up, maybe no one else would care because Max's problems were easily lost to the great big drama of everything else that goes on but it was a relief to know that at least  somebody would care. At least somebody cared.

"Amen." Christine lifted her head, her eyes downcast and dark as she looked at the ground in front of her. She turned her head to look at Steve,  the boy already looking down at her with a saddened and sympathetic look. He gestured with his head towards something behind her, the girl quickly turning to look at whatever it was. Behind her Billy's parents were thanking the preacher, Max standing uncomfortably to the side, her eyes stuck on Christine. She pushed out from under Steve's arm, taking a few steps towards Max and  quickly speaking in fear of not being able to say anything.

"Max I'm not going to say sorry and everything you know I am and I'm sure you're tired of hearing it. But I just-" Christine was cut off by Max hugging her, the girl wincing in pain but keeping it quiet so as not to ruin the sentiment, her arms lifting to hug her back, her hand going to her head as she painfully smiled.

"Thank you. For showing up." Max said, pulling back from the hug and looking at Christine with thankful eyes. Christine nodded, giving her a tight smile as they let go of each other, her words fighting out.

"Of course I showed up. I didn't want you to go through this alone." Max felt a few tears gather in her eyes, the girl nodding slightly as she listened to her friend. "Max you don't have to be afraid to cry. Nobody blames you."

Her words hit the younger right in the heart, her stomach dropping into a pit as she said it. Christine was right in some aspects, nobody blamed her...but Max blamed herself. She blamed herself for all of it, for the endless night she spent telling the universe that maybe it wouldn't be so terrible if something bad happened to Billy. But the hole in her chest was not so easily filled now, and all she felt was emptiness slowly growing in her.

"I know. I'm...I'm alright. It's just...hard." Max admitted, pushing her guilt and numbness away and trying to be normal. All she wanted was to be less sad, less guilty, and more herself again. She just wanted things to be normal again.

"But you'd tell me if you weren't? Alright, I mean?" Christine asked, searching Max's face for an honest answer. For a moment the younger girl wanted to reach out and tell Christine she was definitely not okay, she wanted to confide in someone that acting so strong was so very hard. She thought Christine would be a good option but then she thought that locking that emotion away and just agreeing would hurt much less, so she just nodded, looking down at the ground and then back up at the girl.

"Yeah I'm good. I will let you know if anything changes." Max lied on both parts. She was not good and she would not tell Christine. This was something she had to handle alone. Christine gave her a look of concern, her lips drawn into a upside down smile as she grabbed her shoulder. "Uh you should probably head out. We're just going back to my house after this."

Christine didn't really enjoy the dismissal but she wasn't going to argue, the girl nodding slightly at Max's wishes. She felt Steve's chest hit the back of her shoulder, the boy looking down at Max with a sympathetic face as he spoke.

"Beautiful service. Tell us if you need anything kid. I'm just a phone call away alright?" Steve said, a ghost of a smile on the younger girls face as she gave him a nod. Steve grabbed at Christines arm, pulling her back form the girl who was turning to retreat to her parents. Max and Christine looked back at the same time, their eyes meeting with a look of understanding before they both headed towards their respective destinations. The walk back to the car felt miles away, Christine realizing it was over before she had even realized it, and some of the tension in her body releasing. Steve helped her into the car, the boy turning it on and sitting in the air for a moment. He sat his head back against the headrest, letting out a deep sigh before looking over at Christine. She was staring down at her lap, her hands stuck together in it as she thought about Max. Steve reached over the center console, grabbing Christines hand and pulling it across the middle. He pressed it to his chest and then to his lips, Christines stomach dropping at this motion as she looked over at him finally. He dropped their hands into the middle, Christines eyebrows furrowing at the gesture that meant everything to her and more.

"See. That wasn't as bad as you  thought it was going to be was it?" Steve said, making a point. It hadn't been as bad as she had expected, but something about the setting, something about the meaning made her heart heavy. Christine nodded to herself, looking back out at the grave yard and feeling an intense pressure behind her eyes.

Just as the tears pricked her eyes she heard the low rumble of thunder, her emotional drought breaking and the tears dropping from her eyes. Steve was quick to pull her into his arms, her sobs making him both confused and pained. She gripped his shirt, Steve smoothing down her hair as she cried, something she needed to let out. She cried for Billy, for Max, for the innocent people in the town who died, for Hopper. She cried for the knowledge she possessed that she had to keep a secret, the answers to burning questions the victims families had. She cried for the trauma she had endured over  the past few years, the endless nights of fearing for her safety and having nightmares, the countless hours of praying for her friends and that they would make it out alive, that they would be okay  and that everything would be alright when she went to bed at night. It was something long overdue, and it was finally released.