TWO: THE DEMOGORGON

IT HAD BEEN TEN HOURS. Ten hours that Daniel had spent reading through Mike's comic book while he listened to the Dungeons & Dragons campaign the four boys were deeply invested in. He never understood the hype for the game, but he was going to always support his friends' love for it.

"Something is coming," Mike's cool voice got Daniel's attention. He put down the X-Men comic he was reading and began listening to the story, "Something hungry for blood. A shadow grows on the wall behind you, swallowing you in darkness. It is almost here."

"What is it?" Will cut in, his voice excited. Daniel cursed him for interrupting, as he was just as anxious.

"What if it's the Demogorgon?" Dustin asked, sounding nervous. Daniel had absolutely no idea what that was or what it meant, but he did realize that it was clearly nothing good. "Oh Jesus, we're so screwed if it's the Demogorgon."

Although Daniel loved his friends, he really wanted them to stop talking so Mike could stop keeping them guessing as to what creature he was describing. He understood little to nothing about D&D, but he always seemed to get roped into these campaigns whenever the boys participated in one. Mike was so detailed and thorough, it was actually kind of impressive.

"It's not the Demogorgon!" Lucas attempted to reassure, but it did little to calm the boys down.

Mike slammed a piece down onto the board, "An army of Troglodytes charge into the chamber!"

"Troglodytes?" Dustin spoke with a bored disbelief. He was clearly expecting more.

Lucas, on the other hand, was chuckling, "Told ya."

All of the boys started laughing and Daniel felt as though a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. He moved so he was sitting at the table next to Mike, kneeling beside his chair.

Despite the now calm attitude, Mike's expression was solemn as he spoke softly, "Wait a minute." There was just something about the way Mike told the story. He had crafted it himself and his passion behind it was obvious. There was something about the tone of his voice, the way he described things. The way he spoke caught everyone's attention in the room and refused to let it go. Maybe that was just Daniel. He was resting his elbow on the small part of the chair Mike wasn't on and was looking up at the boy with stars in his eyes.

"Hey," Mike broke, looking down at the curly-haired boy, "I thought you didn't care about D&D?"

Daniel rolled his eyes, "Shut up and keep going."

Mike smiled slightly, but in seconds the solemn expression was back, "Did you hear that? That. . . That sound? Boom. . . Boom," he slammed his hand down on the table and yelled, "Boom!" Everyone jumped. "That didn't come from the Troglodytes. No, that. . . That came from something else." All of the boys were leaning in, so incredibly eager to hear what was coming next. Mike slammed a piece down on the table, "The Demogorgon!"

All the boys groaned, but Daniel was smiling. He loved the way Mike told the story. Not to mention the Demogorgon, whatever that was, didn't affect him since he wasn't playing. Part of him kind of wished he was, even though he had no interest in the game. He wanted to have Mike's full attention like the game did, maybe that was why.

"We're in deep shit!" Dustin complained, throwing his hands up. Daniel laughed at all their reactions. He thought it was entertaining to watch all four boys get so worked up over a silly game. Maybe it wasn't so silly, they had spent ten hours on it. Still, it was just a game. It didn't seem that way when he watched the boys play. They took everything seriously as if it had a real effect on their life. Maybe it would. Maybe not in the way of a flesh-eating monster getting them, but in other ways. They would have to wait and see.

"Will, your action!" Mike shouted, the room now loud and rushed instead of waiting in suspense.

Will groaned, "I don't know!"

"Fireball him!" was Lucas's frantic suggestion.

"I'd have to roll a 13 or higher!" the boy complained, his voice cracking as he shouted.

"Too risky. Cast a protection spell!" Dustin suggested. Daniel had absolutely no idea what they were talking about.

"Don't be a pussy," Lucas called out, aggravated, "Fireball him!"

"Cast protection!" Dustin again.

Mike slammed his hands on the table, causing Daniel to jump. "The Demogorgon is tired of your silly human bickering! It stomps towards you. Boom!"

The boys were more frantic than ever. "Fireball him!" Lucas shouted.

"Another stomp. Boom!"

"Cast protection!" Dustin pestered.

Mike was still screaming, "He yells in anger!"

"Fireball!" Will calls and rolls the die. The die falls off the table and all five boys get up to try and look for them.

"Where'd it go?" Lucas asked, scanning the floor. "Where is it?"

"I don't know!" Will spoke frantically. All of the boys, Daniel included, were looking for the die, all anxious to see what the roll was. If it wasn't more than 13, the Demogorgon would get Will.

"Is it a 13?" Dustin asked, yelling as they all looked around.

"I don't know!" Will repeated.

Lucas sighed, "Where is it?"

"Oh, my god!" Dustin yelled. Of course, after ten hours of campaigning, they lose the die. Of course, something like that would happen.

"Mike!" a female voice interrupted the rushed muttering of all the boys. "Mike!" The door to the basement opened, revealed Mike's mom, Karen, "Mike!"

"Mom, we're in the middle of a campaign!"

"You mean the end?" she spoke, a hand on her hip, "Fifteen after."

"Mom, wait! Just twenty more minutes!" he argued as he ran upstairs. The boys continued looking for the fallen die, except Daniel had stopped, figuring it was a lost cause. He heard Lucas tell Will that a seven didn't count since Mike didn't see it. Daniel knew though, the Demogorgon got him. He decided to just leave it alone. He didn't wanna stir things up that he didn't have to. He returned to the couch with his comic book, watching all the boys get ready to leave. He always stayed the night after campaigns. They didn't know when it had started, even on school nights, he stayed. Karen Wheeler loved him, probably because he said "please" and "thank you" and wasn't obsessed with D&D. Either way, he and Mike always stayed up, whispering in the basement so Mike's mom wouldn't hear them.

"Bye, Daniel!" Will called, then Lucas, then Dustin, as they all walked up the stairs with their stuff in hand. Daniel noticed Dustin grab the leftover pizza, probably to walk it up to Nancy, whom he totally had a thing for despite the age difference and the fact that she was Mike's sister. He kind of had a thing for Heather, too, but he didn't see her as often. Heather was kind of a recluse whenever people came over, always locked in her room.

There were a few moments where Daniel was alone in the basement. Not too long after Mike had presumably said goodbye to the other three boys, he trotted down the basement stairs again. "Hey, Danny."

"Hey, Mike," he responded, his eyes not leaving the comic book. He really liked the X-Men. Maybe he felt like he could relate to them. Sometimes he felt like a freak. He didn't know why. He just felt weird sometimes. He always felt weird when he thought of Mike. He thought about him differently than he did his other three friends, but he didn't know what it was. Maybe that was what it was like to have a best friend, but he considered the other three boys to be his best friends, too. He didn't like to dwell on things he didn't understand, though, so he didn't think about it often. He only thought about it when he was looking into Mike's eyes.

"So what'd you think of the campaign?" Mike asked, sitting down on the couch facing Daniel, "It took two weeks to plan."

Daniel chuckled, putting the comic book down. "It was one of your better ones, that's for sure. I like the Demogorgon."

Mike's face scrunched up in confusion, "Why? He's a bad guy."

The boy shrugged as he didn't really have a good explanation, "He's just cool. At least, when he isn't after you. Did Will tell you?"

"What? That it got him? Yeah," Mike nodded, moving in a little closer so they weren't so far apart and they could speak quietly so his mom wouldn't yell at them to go to sleep. "Whatever, I'm all worn out, let's go to sleep."

Daniel agreed, so the two of them got their blankets and went into Mike's fort that sat against the wall. The two of them always slept in there, even though it was a little hard to fit both of them, especially as they both grew taller. Daniel was only about two inches taller than Mike, but it was noticeable at times like now. They didn't care though as they lay down with their blankets and went to sleep within minutes, just their sides touching. This was nothing new to them.

( note! )

this week on: nicole has no idea how tf to end chapters