Nothing existed to Winnie in that moment. Sitting on the coffee table with her head in her hands, she struggled to make out to the Police Chief's words through the ringing in her ears.

"Our working theory is that Will crashed his bike, found his way to the quarry and. . . fell in. Maybe the earth gave way," Her father told Joyce who stared off into space. "Joyce?" He tried to get her attention, "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

The woman shook her head, "Whoever you found, that's not my boy. It's not Will."

"Joyce—"

"No, you don't understand. I talked to him a half hour ago!"

Winnie picked up her head after hearing the woman's words. She furrowed her brow in confusion while feeling the lump in her throat grow bigger.

Joyce went over to a cupboard in the wall, opening it and pulling out a hand full of Christmas lights. "He talked to me with these," she explained.

"He talked to you?" Hopper asked.

"Uh huh. One blink for yes, two for no. And then I- I made this," She gestured to the alphabet on the wall, "so that he could talk to me. Cause he- he was hiding. . .  from that- that thing."

"The thing that came out of the wall. The thing that chased you?"

"Yeah."

Jonathan sighed, reaching over to his mother, "Mom, stop this, please."

"No, it's after him! He's in danger! We- we have to find him!"

The chief tried to calm her down, "You think it was some kind of animal, you said?"

"Uh, no it was- it was almost human, but it wasn't. It had these long arms, and it didn't have a face," Joyce cried and Jonathan left the room, holding back his own tears.

But Winnie stayed there. Joyce's description sounded way too familiar. It sounded exactly like what her and Nancy had seen in the woods earlier that day.

She stared at the woman wide-eyed, "It didn't have a face?"

She was met with the wave of her father's hand. A wave that she could tell meant something along the lines of don't encourage this. The gesture bothered her as she thought back to their argument the previous day, but she understood  his reasoning, which annoyed her even more. If Joyce had seen what she had, maybe the other things were true.

Like Will being alive.

The thought was fleeting, and Winnie quietly stepped away. She started walking to her own room but paused in front of Jonathan's. Taking a deep breath, she knocked gently on his door.

"Go away," the boy called out.

"It's just me, Jonathan," She replied.

There was a brief silence.

"Winnie, I. . . I really just need to be by myself right now, okay?"

"Oh- Okay."

The blonde girl lingered in the hallway, feeling helpless. The rejection of Jonathan's comfort in that moment left her with a sense of emptiness. Deja vu. She had no where to go. Jonathan pushed her away, Joyce was not in the right headspace, and her father. . .

Bam.

The slam of the front door.

As Winnie's emotions started to grow, she knew she needed someone. Anyone. And without giving it too much though, she walked towards the door and out of the house, taking a chance. She stood on the porch in front of the closed door watched the silhouette of her father through his windshield. He froze in place, then opened the car door, looking at her hesitantly.

Taking a slow step forward, then another, her father followed suit. They met in the middle. A brief exchange of looks, as if asking permission, and then the breakdown. Winnie choked, a gasp escaping her lips. Hot tears finally spilled. And large, warm arms engulfed her.

Winnie wrapped her arms around her father, sobs racking her body.

"I can't do it," she cried.

"I know, I know," he whispered into her hair

"I can't, not again."

"I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry."

With a messy sniff, the girl looked up at him. "Please don't leave me alone this time," she begged.

A look of guilt adorned the man's face. He shook his head, "I won't. I promise."

And they hugged again.

It may not have been healthy to push aside everything they had argued about the night before. but Winnie couldn't bring herself to think about it. Her reaching out to him was not a sign of forgiveness, but it might've been a chance. A chance for Jim Hopper to right his wrongs and be a father again, and he'd be damned if he didn't take it.

_________

Arriving at the same trailer she had stormed out of just yesterday, Winnie scanned the room. She had gone home with her father, deciding that she would be more comfortable there, away from the tension in the Byers household.

Walking inside, it only took a short moment for the girl to notice what was different.

She turned to the man, "You cleaned up."

"I, um, I threw the trash away. . . did the dishes," He brushed it off.

Winnie hummed, "It's still something."

Hopper took his large coat off and threw it on the couch, then hung his hat up on a hook. He rubbed his hands together, warming them up. Clearing his throat, he spoke to his daughter.

"So. . . tomorrow the morgue needs Joyce to sign off confirming that . . . you know. . . it's Will. I'm gonna be going with her and Jonathan. Are you, uh. . . do you think you're gonna come?"

Winnie sighed, "Um. . . I don't know."

The chief nodded slowly.

"I just. . . I don't think I would be able to, uh, handle that. I don't know, maybe I'll come."

"No, no, no, don't come if you don't feel ready. You can. . . stay here as long as you like. I don't have much food, but I can stop at the store tomorrow."

"It's fine, I'll stop after school."

Her father froze, "You're going to school?"

"Um, yeah. I think I need to keep myself busy so that I don't. . . lose myself. I just think it'll be a distraction."

"You don't think it's too soon for distractions?"

Winnie shrugged, "It's better than wallowing in it."

They exchanged good nights, and Winnie went back to her old bedroom. The same room she had had a nightmare in the day before. Exhaling shakily, she crawled into bed, still fully clothed. Sleep engulfed her quickly as the exhaustion from the day took over. And as she braced herself for nightmares, she soon relaxed as none came. In fact, that night, Winnie didn't dream at all.

__________________

She awoke to the smell of sausage wafting through the air. She heard sizzling coming from the kitchen. Getting up, she walked out of her room and took in the odd sight in front of her.

"You're cooking?" Winnie asked her father.

He turned to her quickly, looking startled by her voice. Clearing his throat, he said, "I figured you could use a full meal this morning."

Nodding, she moved to sit on one of the bar stools at the counter. She rested her chin in her hand as she waited for the food to be done.

As he scraped the sausages and eggs onto a plate, Hopper sighed. "Are you sure you don't want to come?" He asked.

Winnie took the plate from him, sending a tight lipped smile. "I really don't think I could handle that right now," she explained, "besides, ever since Will went missing, I've started to remember my place. I feel like I'm intruding on them. Like a burden, something else they have to deal with. I think it's best if I give the Byers some space."

While that was true, Winnie also needed to go to school today because she needed to talk to Nancy Wheeler. The blonde girl's mind had been lingering on what she heard Joyce say the night before. The man with no face. She had to tell Nancy. They had to keep digging. And maybe, if it led to something, she could tell her dad without being immediately shut down.

Hopper nodded sadly. After they finished their plates, he quickly got dressed and left for the morgue. Before he left, letting her know about the spare bike under the porch.

Since the only reason Winnie wanted to go to school was to see the Wheeler girl, she took her time getting ready. She took a long hot shower, though the hot part was debatable considering how quickly it turned cold. She took her time choosing an outfit that was comfy, yet presentable. Not sad grieving girl but also not preppy school girl.

She even took the time to wash the dishes and make her bed. By the time she left the trailer, it was almost 10 am. The sharp November breeze kept her from overheating as she pedaled quickly down the streets.

________

Finally arriving at Hawkins High, she dropped the bike near the doors, not bothering to lock it up in the rack. She entered the building where the hallways were mostly empty due to classes going on.

Winnie made her way through each hall, checking in all the doors and even on the gym, looking for Nancy. It wasn't until she heard some voices talking in the Cafeteria that she found the girl. Catching a glimpse inside, she saw Nancy with her mom along with Deputies Powell and Callahan, apparently being questioned.

She continued to watch for a short moment before Mrs. Wheeler turned her head to the doorway. Winnie ducked out of the way. Peeking back in for a second, she checked if the woman was still looking. She wasn't, but Winnie wasn't sure if she had seen her or, so she left just in case.

Waiting until they were finished, Winnie tried to follow behind so that she could talk to Nancy. But as they got towards the car, Mrs. Wheeler began yelling at her daughter.

"You lied to the police!"

"No I didn't!" Nancy defended herself.

"How naive do you think I am? What you and Steve just talked?!"

Nancy stopped walking, snapping her head at her mother. "We slept together! Is that what you wanna know?! It doesn't matter!" She then turned, refusing to get into her mom's car.

"Yes, it does matter!"

"No! It has nothing to do with Barb, and she's missing and something terrible happened to her, and I know it! I know it! And no one is listening to me!"

Mrs. Wheeler reached for her daughter, "I'm listening—"

"No! You're not!" And Nancy yanked her arm away, marching back to the building.

As she got close to the main doors, she froze, noticing Winnie behind one of the columns.

The blonde girl tensed, wrapping her dad's flannel coat even tighter. She cleared her throat, but her voice still sounded unused. "Hey. . ." She croaked.

Nancy exhaled, "Did you hear everything?"

Winnie nodded, "So I'm guessing. . . it didn't go well with the Powell and Callahan?"

"Hm?"

"The deputies." Winnie clarified.

"Oh, um. . . no not really."

A frigid silence passed between them, both trying to find ways to fill it.

"I'm sorry—" They told each other in unison, sighing upon the realization.

"I'm sorry about Will," Nancy said.

"Me too. . ."

"I've gotta say though. . . I'm surprised you're here. I would've thought you'd wanna take some time off. I know Jonathan is."

Winnie let out a heavy breath, "Yeah um. . . I just didn't want to wallow in it. . . Not yet at least. I spent too much time like that with Sarah and I just- I'm trying to do things differently. . . healthier maybe."

There was a beat. Then another. Nancy had a look in her eyes, one of hesitation and pity before she finally opened her mouth to speak.

"Who's Sarah?" She asked.

A small lump formed in Winnie's throat which she easily swallowed down after having so much practice. "She was my sister. . . She uh. . . She's dead now though. Has been for a while."

"I'm so sorry, I didn't know."

Winnie shrugged off her apology, "How could you of? It's okay."

"Do you wanna skip class and come back to my house?" Nancy offered.

"With your mom there?"

"Uh, good point."

Another quiet moment passed. Winnie thought over what she was about to offer, going back and forth. Finally, she made a decision.

"We could go back to my house."

"With the Byers?"

"No. . . my house. My trailer."

"Oh," Nancy realized, "Um, yeah sure."

Winnie nodded, "Ok. . . cool."

"I can drive," The brunette said, and the two walked towards the car. "You're gonna have to direct me though."

Then they drove through the quiet backroads of Hawkins, to the place Winnie had just left. Her house. She'd called it that. It felt weird, yet somewhat relieving at the same time. But she wasn't able to fully consider what her words meant, because all she could think about was Will.

She knew Will. He was safe. He was smart. He knew his way around. No way in hell he died by falling into the quarry. And if he did, then it was not an accident.

The car hummed, no music played. Both girls sat quietly, thinking about their lost loved ones. Neither knowing they had been taken by the same thing.

——
(word count: 2215)

kinda hate this.

sorry it's been so long. I've been struggling. senior year sucks ass. i hate college apps.

leave suggestions for how you want the story to go :)

much love,
chloe <3