★☆

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE ; DUSTIN'S PET
also known as;
( the spy; part one )

★☆

"ARE WE SERIOUSLY GOING THROUGH THIS AGAIN?" STELLA MUTTERED, CLEARLY EXHAUSTED. She sat in the passenger seat of Steve Harrington's car with (of all people) Dustin Henderson in the backseat. He had just spent a good hour talking about what had been happening this week in the Indigo Diner parking lot and on the journey to Steve's house to get what they needed, and shortly after they had left, night had fallen. 

Hammer to Fall blasted through the radio as the two teenagers tried to process the entire, insane story the boy behind them had shared. It was mostly silent, as no one really knew what to say. Stella was already feeling her world spinning again, dreading seeing anything supernatural, as she had had more than enough experience with it to last a lifetime. 

Steve, who had been quietly mumbling under his breath, finally burst and glanced up in the rearview mirror. "Wait a sec, kid. How big?"

"First it was like that," Dustin leaned forward again and held up his index fingers, leaving a space the size of a one dollar bill between them. Then, he used his whole hands and widened the gap, causing Stella's stomach to churn a little at the difference in size. "Now he's like this."

Steve's eyes flickered over to Stella for a second, noticing how tense and anxious she was, before sighing softly. "I swear to God, man, it's just some little lizard, okay?"

"It's not a lizard," Dustin groaned, his head rolling back. 

"How do you know?" Steve insisted, and Stella turned around, curiously staring at Dustin. "How do you know if it's not just a lizard?"

"How do I know if it's not?" Dustin repeated, his voice growing in volume, staring at the teenagers with an incredulous expression. "Because his face opened up and he ate my cat."

Steve fell silent and Stella lifted her good hand to her mouth, her eyes wide in shock. She was speechless -- how on earth was she supposed to know what to say to the kid? Sorry a demon you chose to raise like a dog ate your actual pet? 

Steve didn't make an effort to talk after that, and pulled into Dustin's long driveway, switching the car off and running his hands through his hair. He glanced back at Stella, who shifted uncomfortably. He reached over and patted her knee, smiling awkwardly. "You wanna stay in here?"

"I don't want you guys to get hurt," she decided, shaking her head. She glanced back at Dustin, gesturing to the paper bag on the floor. "Dustin, pass me the yellow croquet mallet, would you?"

"Sure," the young boy shrugged, reaching down and picking it up, passing it to the girl, who exhaled softly, before kicking open the door and getting out. "Are you sure you wanna do this, Star?" 

"Nope," the girl breathed, following him to the trunk of the car, where Steve was pulling out the baseball bat impaled with giant nails -- the one he had used the previous year. It brought back painful memories to Stella, so she averted her eyes to Dustin's house, which once looked comforting, but now appeared menacing since she found out what had happened there only the night before. 

Steve picked up a flashlight and shut the trunk door, locking it and sighing deeply. "Okay, kid. Where's the monster?"

"This way," Dustin turned and began walking behind the house, where they came across two doors leading to the underground cellar. Stella hesitantly followed them, but made sure not to stray too far behind in fear of seeing something she didn't want to see. 

Steve took the lead after Dustin gestured to the metal doors, and Stella stepped up beside the curly-haired youngster, her grip on the mallet tight and fearful. She watched as Steve approached the doors, listening carefully. "I don't hear shit."

"He's in there," Dustin stood his ground, and Steve screwed his nose up, before glancing back at the doors and reluctantly banging against the metal with his bat. When there was no answer, he threw his weapon down again and hit the doors much louder, nearly making Stella jump. Steve was clearly growing irritated, and lifted the flashlight so that it shone in Dustin's eyes. "All right, listen, kid. I swear, if this is some sort of Halloween prank, you're dead."

Stella cleared her throat warningly, but went ignored. 

"It's not," Dustin huffed, though when Steve raised his eyebrows, and shrugged. "It's not a prank! Get out of my face."

"You got a key for this thing?" Steve didn't put down the flashlight as he nodded towards the cellar. Dustin made a confirming 'hmph' and dug around in his pockets, clearly prepared, before ducking out of the light and moving towards the doors. Steve pushed him aside, dropping his bat and handing him the torch, before properly unlocking the doors and pausing. He glanced back and met Stella's eyes, and she pursed her lips nervously before nodding. 

Steve forcefully opened the doors, a loud clattering echoing through the area. Stella flinched a little, waiting fro something to happen, though when it didn't she felt her body freeze. Steve picked up his bat again and took the light back from Dustin, shining it down into the concrete cellar in search for whatever Dustin claimed lived in there. "He must be further down. I'll, uh, stay up here just in case he tries to escape."

Steve shot the younger boy a glare, before standing up and slowly beginning to make his way down. Stella rushed forward and poked his arm with her mallet while it was still in sight. He paused, looking back at her concerned face. "Please be careful."

"I'll be fine, Star. Wait up here with the kid," Steve assured her, and she sighed softly, before nodding once and letting him go. She moved back to be next to Dustin, who looked really confused. 

"Do you like Steve?" The boy asked her, his eyebrows knitted together. Stella felt slightly sicker than before. Her head whipped to the side to look at him, completely confused. 

"What?" She asked, her voice raising slightly in pitch. Dustin shrugged, gesturing to the cellar where her friend had disappeared. 

"Do you like Steve?" he repeated, and she scoffed, shaking her head. 

"No way," she responded quickly, causing Dustin to shoot her a disbelieving look. She nudged him with her elbow and face the cellar. "Shut up, this is serious."

"Haven't heard any screams yet, so he must be fine," the boy shot back, and she rolled her eyes, though a soft smile played at her lips. The pair were silenced once they heard the light turn on in the cellar, and both peered down into the small underground room. "Steve?"

"Steve, what's going on down there?" Stella asked, worry seeping through her bones once again. She leaned forward to get a better look, before yelping in fright once Steve appeared around the corner, his flashlight suddenly shining in their faces. "Jesus!"

"Get down here," Steve brushed off what she said, but at the sight of his wide eyes, Stella didn't mind. She and Dustin slowly made their way down the concrete stairs, the warm feeling she should've felt entering the closed off space absent, instead there was a cool breeze hitting her like it was outside. 

Her eyes travelled over to Steve's bat, where something resembling a skin hung over the end, dripping in clear slime, bringing back memories of the Demogorgon and her dreams. She appeared to be far more terrified than Dustin, who groaned loudly. "Oh, shit."

Then, to make matter much worse, Steve turned the flashlight to the wall, showing the other two a giant, gaping hole in the wall. Cinderblocks were crumbled on the ground, and as they drew closer, the trio could see a long, big hole that stretched further than they could see. 

Dustin ran a hand down his face. "Oh, shit!"

★☆

"This is insane," Steve muttered harshly to Stella, who was laying out a dark blue blanket on Dustin's couch, before walking up and the down the room as she tried to figure out what was going on. The two had been directed towards the living room to spend the night, seeing as they planned to go out as early as they could the next morning to find Dustin's pet. It was a strange evening, as even when Mrs Henderson had arrived home, she only began to weep in her son's arms about their cat, before toddling to her bedroom without another word. "How are you so calm?"

"You think I'm calm?" Stella hissed, running a hand through her dark hair as she stared over at him with wide eyes. "No part of me wanted to go through this again, and yet here we are! This is the worst possible situation I could be in right now."

Steve paused for a moment, watching the stressed girl pace back and forth. "Okay, Star, stop. You're gonna wear holes in Dustin's carpet."

"No, Steve, you don't understand!" Stella snapped, though she tried to keep her voice down so that she didn't alert Dustin and cause even more problems. Her breathing grew heavier as the boy grabbed her by the shoulders, causing her to stop abruptly. He stared down at her as she freaked out, clearly not crazy about experiencing hell again. He was surprised to see the genuine fear in her eyes, something like he'd never noticed before. "I-I still don't sleep at night cause I see it's face every time I close my eyes!"

"Wh-" Steve's voice dropped before he could finish the word. His face had fallen visibly, and he held her a little tighter. "Why didn't you talk to me?"

"Because I didn't want you to worry," Stella whispered, tears forming in her eyes. She was finally showing her true colours to the person who thought he knew her inside and out. He couldn't decide whether or not it hurt that she hadn't told him the truth. Stella was incredibly hesitant and her eyes seemed to be looking anywhere but him. "I thought that if I pretended that I was okay...everything would be normal again. I've just been trapped in a box, Steve. I have my good days, and I try to be positive, but sometimes I just can't help being so...broken. And just when I thought I was running the home stretch, everything repeats? How am I supposed to do this all again?"

Steve was in shock. He had no idea what to say, how to comfort her. He held her close, one arm trailing up to cradle her face, wiping a stray tear away from her cheek with his thumb. Stella sniffled and leaned into his hand, closing her eyes for a second. Steve swallowed, before moving in a little closer. "It's gonna be okay."

"What makes you so sure?" Stella responded quietly, opening her eyes again to stare up at him. He sighed, before kissing her forehead ever so softly. 

"Because once we finish this whole deal with Dustin, we're gonna sort this out together," he assured her, resting his chin atop her head and rocking her back and forth. "You're not gonna go through this alone anymore."

Stella's bottom lip trembled as she and Steve stood in the centre of Dustin's living room. She was finally exposing her heart and soul to one of her best friends, and despite the hurt she felt, there was a small part of her that felt safe, protected in his grip. She believed him when he told her he'd be there when she needed him, which only proved how much he had changed over the past year -- both of them had. And as they leaned on each other in the stressful and scary time, she felt something she'd never experienced before. She couldn't put her finger on it, but she felt sick to her stomach and her head was spinning -- though that might have been her worry. Nonetheless, she was grateful for his presence. "Thank you, Steve."

"No problem, Star," he replied lightly, a small, hopeful smile on his face. "My mom always said you've gotta be there for the people you love."

★☆

HEH HEH HEH 

dedicated to rbyjwls !!

tell me what you thought peeps!! once again i'm SORRY they didn't kiss but once again, my boy steve isn't gonna be an ass and take advantage of stella while she's sad oOPS SUE ME

also !! the duffers didn't tell us what happened the night before steve and dusty boi went to drop meat on the traintracks, so nATURALLY i assumed that they had a cute bro sleepover cause they're cute bros

anyway this is a short author's note cause i can't be bothered writing a long one, so i'll catch you all later!!