╭                                                                 ╮
━━━━ " 📂  "

𝙄 𝘾 𝙀  𝘾 𝙍 𝙀 𝘼 𝙈  𝙎 𝙐 𝙉 𝘿 𝘼 𝙀

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THE CAT WAS BACK the next morning, except this time it was perched on the small windowsill outside of the only source of natural light in her tiny bedroom, and Laurie opened her eyes to find that almost directly next to her head there was the creature and it meowed when it saw her wake, also causing her to jump out of her skin and bang her head, swearing upon impact.

Eddie's laugh could be heard through the walls as she swore her way into hell itself and she knew he had done the same, sitting up and pressing her thumbs to her temples before reaching out and tapping her fingers against the glass, grinning as the cat bumped it's own head on the glass trying to reach her. "Ha." She whispered, clutching the layered blankets to her knees, cold in the early morning. "Got you back." She added, before pushing the window open halfway and showing her own sign of forgiveness; scratches behind its ear whilst frost bit at her fingertips.

When they felt fully numb, still stained with tobacco and ink. She had to shower that morning - Eddie got it the night before - and could only hope they had enough to keep the water warm for a couple of minutes. She was practised now; she could take a shower, washing her hair and her body, in just over three minutes if she was quick. Her hair would dry when she was eating breakfast and would be ready in no time at all.

Her claim for the bathroom from the previous night proved fruitful; it was empty when she finally willed herself out of bed and she locked the flimsy door behind her, only turning on the shower right when she needed to, waiting twenty or so seconds for it to go from freezing to only mildly cold and getting in, the sting battering on her skin only waking her up further.

She smelt of the last remains of the cheap shampoo and conditioner she had bought from her own coin when she got out, rubbing the towel on her skin to create enough friction to keep warm as she dried off and pulled the tights, leather skirt and whatever band shirt she had taken from the laundry pile before Eddie could take it and hide it somewhere in his tip of a room on. Her hair stayed wrapped in a towel as she haphazardly applied eyeliner and smudged it out with her little finger, mascara brushed on over and as little concealer as she could possibly use dabbed over the scatters of blemishes across her face, mascara doing very little to accentuate her eyelashes at all but applied all the same.

Eddie didn't waste time when she sat down before trying to poke the towel off of her head as she picked out of the many options of cereal they had - really, they seemed to hoard that shit the most amongst all the other clutter in the trailer - but did seem to stop when she asked him, instead adding a scatter of sugar over his cornflakes and chewing on them way too loud.

"Was thinking you could give me another tattoo tonight." He said through his mouthful.

"Yeah, of what?" Laurie replied, thankful she didn't end up sprayed with milk.

"Given that it's very close to Halloween," He began, "Bats. I want bats"

"Mhm, original." Her eyebrows darted upwards. Eddie frowned. "I'm not judging. How many?"

"A few. Like a crowd that looks like they're flying towards you."

"Got it," Laura replied. "I'll sketch up a couple of ideas today, show you them at some point." She took her spoon and used it to pour the milk already in her bowl over the dry cereal poking out of it.

"Really?" Eddie blinked in quite obvious disbelief. "Just like that?"

"No." She grinned and met his eyes. "I'm taking my pick of one of your rings and wearing your Hellfire shirt... today."

He pulled at the t-shirt he was already wearing, looking far too upset for what it was. "I want to wear my Hellfire shirt - you know how long it took me to get that club approved and set up-"

"You set it up last year!" She scoffed. "I want one of the shirts!"

"You don't even play." Eddie's words were enunciated as each passed. "Like, at all."

"I used to though." Her memories proved enough. "Remember - you taught me so you could practise with someone?" It was clear he did remember,  because he frowned and floundered past the images of him sitting across from his sister, rising from his chair and dancing around and using the scary voice that made her laugh.

Eventually, an excuse was found. "You're not a member of the club." He said.

"No tattoos then."

"I'll give you the first one made."

"...Give me?"

"Yeah." He nodded, cereal ignored and holding out his hand.

Laurie grinned, spoon discarded as she reached forward and shook his hand. "Deal. I want that one." She let go of his hand and seized it with the other, sliding off the silver skull and placing it on her own finger, sticking her tongue out as he made a face. She got the finger in return.

"Aren't you two civil this morning?" Wayne interrupted, pushing the front door and wandering through, smoke in hand. Despite the cold, he was only wearing the vest he usually wore under his work shirt and pulling one of the various plaid shirts he had scattered around. "Thanks for the beers, Laur, you're a wonder."

"No worries." She took another spoonful of cereal, repeating what always followed one of Wayne's praises. "Ray lets me take whatever if I mark it down."

"And that man has been a blessing on this family so you'd better not take advantage of him." Her uncle scolded, shaking his head and he fixed himself his breakfast.

"Come on, Wayne, you're talking to Laura here." Eddie threw up a hand. "She's practically the Holy Mother Mary herself in comparison to me."

"Ah yes," Laurie shook her head. "You're just a regular King Herod."

Wayne began making a sandwich on the counter, pointing the knife between them. "I'd say it's a good job you both know enough to reference the Bible, 'cos you'll only be getting into heaven on merit alone."

"We're not bad people though, are we, Wayne?" Laura was definitely discounting some things she had done, and Eddie too, just to get the point across. Eddie made a face. "So it's not like we're not getting in at all." She added, biting her lip nervously. It was perhaps an oversight, seeing as she had quite the little secret of her own that someone as all-knowing as God - or at least the God in Uncle Wayne's world - certainly wouldn't like.

"Now," Wayne interrupted, swinging the butter knife around his fingers like one would a pen. Neither his niece nor nephew flinched at this action. "You might get in, Laur, you're a do-gooder, but m'boy there's no chance for you."

"I might as well be a satanist in God's eyes," Eddie muttered to himself, pouring more cereal into his bowl. Laura's eyebrows rose. "Pray before every meal, laugh at your sister hitting her head, laugh at your sister being left at work, laugh at everyone else for being off their rockers in love with conformity."

"Someone's off their rockers and I don't know if it's them." Laura scoffed, draining her cereal bowl of the last of its milk, not one for any waste. She eyed her brother and his mutterings. "I'm going to get my shirt. Robin's coming over tonight, we're finishing our Halloween costumes together for tomorrow and she needs a new fake."

Eddie looked up, monologue interrupted. "The board's under my bed, camera's with the coke..." He choked. "Er - by the cans of... coca-cola in my box in the closet. The film's in your drawer. Ready to go in ten, please."

"Thanks, Ed." Laura went about removing the towel from her hair, brushing the ends with her fingertips. "And move the coke, idiot." She whispered and swotted his shoulder in passing, hanging the towel up to dry in the bathroom and brushing her teeth.

And it was somewhat of her own personal victory when she pulled the first print of a Hellfire shirt over her head.

✧

"We left this so last minute." Robin Buckley's fingers tightened around the back of the black and white raglan shirt, the very logo she had drawn for her brother the year before on the front and pulled her back, the sound of basketballs in the very near distances the soundtrack for their conversation.

"Yeah, well we leave it until the last minute every year." Laurie replied, pointedly, peering out from behind the corner, eyes chasing over the basketball players practising and hoping that a particular player wouldn't notice. "And last year we looked like pretty good recreations of Rocky Horror characters. You were a fabulous Columbia, despite your hatred of all the sequined things we found."

"I know I was." Robin grinned, clearly remembering the photo pinned up in both of their rooms, tipping her fake bedazzled top hat. "And you were a great Magenta with all the eyeliner and everything. And I agree that, considering it was last minute we looked amazing. But... y'know, maybe sometimes we could plan things ahead of time."

"And what's the fun in that?" Laurie turned towards her before peering out of the corner again. "Okay - we're clear, come on." She beckoned her best friend forward and the two of them ran across the gym floor and hurtled through the blue doors and into the corridor that seperated off into the two sets of changing rooms.

Thankfully, the corridor was entirely empty, and Laurie's plan could go off without a hitch. As Robin suggested, they had left their Halloween costumes that year until way too late - quite literally the day before - and whilst 1983 had seen them going up to Indianapolis with Eddie and managing to make their costumes up of stuff they found in the couple thrift stores they found and the group of people Eddie chose to associate with there (who, were quite the unique group to say the least and they both enjoyed every second), Halloween of 1984 would be spent in Hawkins.

And that morning, after they had witnessed some douche of a guy disrupt everyone's mornings with his loud flashy car, double denim and Californian tan and license plate, they had bumped into Chrissy whats-her-name and her group of cheerleading friends. Then, whilst they sat in History with Mrs Click and Steve Harrington's breakfast bagel dropping crumbs all over the floor, the plan had hatched.

With second period came a free period and the plan could go ahead. Robin and Laura would be going to Tina's Halloween party - which, this year, happened to be open invitation - in the Hawkins' High cheer uniform. With the obvious twist of those wearing it actually being braindead behind the eyes, which was exactly how Robin and Laurie happened to judge them normally.

"So where exactly are you planning on getting these spare uniforms from, exactly?" Robin watched as the girl in the Hellfire shirt, so out of place considering the long term rivarly between popularity and those who didn't care about it at all, scanned the hallways.

"I know about as much as you. In fact, I know less than you." Laura replied. "I haven't gone to a single gym class since being here and you've gone to at least three."

"We have gym together. And we skip it every time but going down to that old park bench where your brother does his deals." Robin hissed, glancing around. "And I might not stop you from doing most things you have the confidence to do but I'll have you know that sneaking around in the locker rooms is making me highly uncomfortable. Highly uncomfortable."

"Do you think they would keep the spares in the changing room or the office?" Laurie completely ignored whatever Robin was mumbling about; her nerves tended to make her ramble more than usual. "Hm... I'm thinking... the office."

She turned on her heel, spinning on the slightly slippy floor and latching onto her friend's arm, dragging her alongside her. "Incredibly uncomfortable." Robin squeaked her repetition out as they came to a stop in front of the office door, glass clear and the insides of the room dark.

"I know, I know." Laurie patted Robin's elbow. "But, you know, we need costumes! And we can't go as Munson Freaks and Things like we did in middle school. I was a freak, you were a thing and looked shockingly like E.T. - did we predict E.T.?"

"No way - and thanks, I love that I looked like E.T. but anyway I'm still bitter that it wasn't Buckley Freaks and Things but I understand now that it doesn't go as well. But I am so extremely-"

"Uncomfortable, Robin, yes, I know."

"And you're about to break into the Coach's office - whilst he's right out there!" She pointed towards the doors they had just come through. "Oh - and would you look at that." Laurie was jiggling the handle. "It's locked - it's locked, so no Halloween for us. What a shame."

"Jokes on you, I actually thought this through." Laurie was lying through her teeth, digging into the depths of her bag and pulling out the set of keys she knew was in there - it contained her house keys and what-not, and certainly not what she was going to tell Robin it was. "Skeleton Key. Eddie made himself one in case he ever got locked out and he needed something from his little DnD lair and I stole it, obviously."

"Obviously." Robin was itching at her wrists now, a telltale sign of her nerves.

"If you're really that upset about it, then you go stand watch," Laura told her, wavering her hand in the general direction of the door, listening to her retreating footsteps before making a point of placing the key into the lock and praying to some God - not Uncle Wayne's God - but someone, that somehow the practice she had done with the Three Musketeers and such had paid off.

She glanced back at Robin, making sure that she was solely interested in guarding the door and not in what Laura was doing before turning her attention down to the lock on the door. She made a show of jamming a random key into the lock before gently pulling it out and instead focused hard - harder than when she tried to make the candy bars fly - and felt that ringing in her ears, the pounding at the back of her head, the tingling in the tips of her fingers. It was only a few moments more than the usual level of focus required to lift things up, but when it almost began to hurt from the amount of energy applied, she tilted her head to the side.

The lock clicked and the pulsing feeling within her stopped. A grin appeared on her face as she turned towards Robin, who was looking a little more comfortable now that they were able to access the office, Laura opening the door. "Well, there we go." The Munson announced to the almost empty corridor, watching as the blue door swung open. "What did I say - I thought this through."

"Yeah, and now your nose is bleeding." Robin pointed out. "Maybe all the lying is getting to you, ever thought about that?"

"Huh." Laurie reached up and swiped her index finger below her nose, pulling it away to find pale skin painted in red. "That's wicked. Do you think I could make it do that tomorrow? Add some realism to it all?"

"It's gross."

"So you're wanting to go as Riff Raff this year?" Laura turned towards Robin as she stopped beside her. "You're pretty much there - bald patch and everything." All she got then was a flick in the forehead before being dragged into the room. "Okay, so I guess we're finding the uniforms now, huh."

"That was the idea, shitbird." Robin retorted, before handing her a tissue. "I would make a wonderful Riff Raff, by the way."

"Of course you would, that's why I said it." Laurie hummed her approval, flicking the switch beside the door and scanning the room. "God I am glad I've never had to be in here for anything... why does it smell of sweat and... something else."

Robin was hopping from foot to foot now, too nervous to stand still. "Who knows, really." She said. "But hey - let's spend all our time finding the source of this weird smell when we could be caught any second and then completely miss out on our Halloween costumes because we really felt the need to be zombie cheerleaders for Halloween this year, and do I have to wear one of the skirts because I really don't want to wear and skirt and I just don't have the legs or the comfortability for it - I'm just not comfortable wearing a skirt!"

She came to a stop as she gasped for air, too lost in her rambles to realise that she had forgotten how to breathe. Laurie was leaning against the coach's desk, arms folded and eyebrows raised. "You think I'm wasting time, huh?" She stood up. "You think I'm wasting time? And no you don't have to wear a skirt they have... they have the guys, don't they? They have the guys that throw them up and hold them up and what have you."

"Haven't been to a pep rally lately, have you?" Robin questioned.

"God no, Eddie lets me hang out with the Hellfires when they happen." Laurie waved her hand, the skull ring on it slipping unseemingly from its place, too big to fit her properly even though she had put it on her index over any other. "However, one upside to your time-wasting, I've managed to find where they keep the uniform."

"Yes?"

"The big cupboard right in front of us, dickface." Laurie pointed it out and it was more than obvious, the two of them jumping forward to pull it open and scan through the shelves covered in folded uniforms of green, marigold orange and cream, embroidered tigers roaring at them everywhere they looked.

It didn't take them long to find their sizes in things - Robin found a pair of sweatpants that were smaller and seemed to make Laura think the cheerleaders wore them under their skirts when it was too cold and Laurie found a skirt in her size, the vests they were a lot easier to locate. There was also a baseball cap Robin deemed acceptable to their costumes and she managed to find a ribbon to tie in Laurie's hair, and, with their bags stuffed with unnecessary stolen clothing, a green sweatpant leg hanging out of Robin's, they left the office.

She was closing the door behind them when they heard footsteps and Robin accidentally dragged the door back with a bang, the two of them standing, caught, by none other than Steve Harrington, who had frozen by the doors to the boys changing room.

"Nothing to see here." Laurie climbed, taking several far too confident steps forward. "Nothing at all."

"Nothing?" Steve's eyes darted down momentarily to the bag on her waist, then to the exposed tattoos from the three-quarter lengths sleeves and the logo on it. "Nothing at all?"

"Nope."  She crossed her arms. "Nothing at all."

"Do you two know how to say anything else? That's the third time I've heard that." Robin jumped in, still itching nervously. "Okay? Okay? Nothing is going on here, at all."

"Is your friend okay?" Steve asked, eyes darting over to her.

"She's nervous," Laurie replied. "We've done nothing wrong." She added instantly after, somewhat snappish. "Nothing at all. Like I said. Nothing."

"Fine. Let's say I believe you." Steve rose his hands and instead of saying anything else he pushed the doors open and disappeared inside the boys' changing room, leaving them be.

Robin didn't say much as the two of them walked down the hallway, emerging into the gym with a lot more at peace with their actions than they had been sneaking in. That silence didn't last very long. "So you and Harrington are on speaking terms now." She rose her eyebrows, the two of them passing the bleachers far too slowly for this original liking.

"He forgot his fake ID last night, I let him buy anyway, I guess he feels like he has to repay me or some shit." Laurie shrugged. "Maybe he's just being nice."

"He's a dickhead, he can't be nice."

"People are capable of change, Robin." Laura came to a stop. "And don't fucking look at me like that, I'm not defending him or whatever you're convinced I'm-" She was interrupted, not by someone talking but instead someone slamming into her side. "Gross - why the hell are you so sweaty?"

She wiped her palms on her shirt and looked up, blinking at the sight of the guy with the flashy car and the incessant need to show off the fact he came from several thousand miles to their west. "Oh shit." Laurie's eyebrows raised. "You're the new kid. How annoying. Nice car though, too flashy though, although I guess it suits you.."

"And I talk too much?" Robin interrupted, and the guy's eyes landed on her instead of copying several others' actions and staring at the variety of tattoos. "Jesus, woman, this is my free period here and if I spend too much time in the gym I break out in hives. Nice meeting you, new guy."

And Laurie's elbows were jutted out at an angle as they passed, jabbing him in the side as they passed, leaving the gym and beginning to make their way back to one of the old classrooms they usually hid out in during their free periods.

Robin broke the silence first, no longer feeling so nervous now they were entirely out of the situation. "Did you think he was good looking?" She asked.

Laurie's nose wrinkled. "I mean kinda. I did see the appeal. He has nice hair... pretty face, nice abs. But seems like a shitty person so it all cancels out." She nodded.

"Yeah, I only got that last bit." Robin replied, looking more than a little disgusted.

"I'm so glad we're not actual cheerleaders."

"My God, me too."

✧

Robin didn't have band practise that night, so it was her who pulled open the back door of Eddie's van and climbed in, leaning between the two front seats and staring at the older boy as he blinked and stuttered and claimed that he didn't remember her being invited back to the trailer that evening. Yet she was and there was nothing Eddie could do about it except complain that the two of them actually start to use their bicycles and not rely on him to drop them back and forth, even if it was winter.

He dumped them at the trailer before driving off again and they sneaked past Wayne as he napped on the couch before his shift that evening, locking themselves in her tiny bedroom, sitting cross-legged with Laurie on the bed and Robin on the floor, pulling out the stolen uniforms that had been sat in the bottom of their bags since that morning.

"We don't have time to wash them, do we?" Robin wrinkled her nose as she held up the sweatpants she was supposed to wear. "This is really gross."

"They wash them on the twenty-fifth of each month. The gym teachers take turns in it. These were washed a couple days ago and I don't think any of them have been worn since then. So stop worrying and start adding the fake blood." Laurie shook the bottle in her hand, in which she had mixed some kind of syrup and out-of-date food colouring with a little bit of water. "We might look braindead just by wearing the uniforms but to look actually dead we need some blood."

"Geez, so you notice everything then." Robin held the bottle up, fist ready to tighten around it. "What about the carpets? Won't this stain them?"

"Oh crap." Laurie was on her feet in seconds, dancing past her best friend before returning with rustling newspaper sheets. "Lift."

They got to work on them moments later, not-so artistically spurting the fake blood concoction onto the cream and green of the uniforms, staining them red. It was the perfect idea for Halloween costumes, just as recognisable as anyone from the latest fixation that was popular around Hawkins - some chick-flick or pop star or creature they were wanting to be. Everyone, everyone, knew what the cheer uniform was. And with the right pallor that came from the lack of sun in the Mid-West and a bit of blood and makeup, they would look like the perfect little zombie cheerleaders and a very specific crowd of high schoolers would appreciate their attempts way more than others.

Wayne woke up when it began to approach sunset, traipsing around the house trying to find his work shirt only for it to be drying out on the line, stumbling through and mentioning something to Laura about not going to sleep too late before leaving for his work at the plant, sandwich and beer in hand to keep him entertained for the later hours when security had quite literally nothing to do.

Robin had just come back from ordering the pizza, only half-heartedly listening to Laura's complaints that they didn't like to deliver to the trailer park, and was watching as her best friend hung their Halloween costumes from the already breaking slatted door of her closet. "I still need a new fake." She spoke up. "You know, seeing as they're all strict on that now."

"Yeah, I mentioned it to Eddie. The template is under his bed, I'll grab the board and find your polaroid so we can match your dates. We do take two for a reason. And you're buying the pizza so I won't charge you."

"You never charge me for this."

"Well, I might start." Laurie huffed. "This is the third one you're asking for - oh, the camera's in the cupboard by your right hand, and be careful please, you know how Eddie gets about people touching his drugs."

"Drugs?" Robin seemed to jump at the words and refused to get the camera as asked.

Instead, Laurie, who had unpinned the polaroid of Robin's other times of taking fakes reached forward and pulled the cupboard door open, pushing past the tin no doubt filled with little baggies to get the polaroid camera and film, sitting on his bed and sliding the plastic casing into the empty slot. "It's just coke, I don't know how you can be such a pansy about it."

"Laurie!" Robin collapsed onto her bed as she watched Laura sit with a gigantic board on her lap, using tape to attach the typed printed information she had saved to adjust the board to her friend's liking. She didn't reply, and there was the beginning of an endless urge for her to begin her rambles. Or... tell someone something that had bitten away at her guts for days. "Laurie," Robin repeated.

"...Robin." She placed down the false name and date in quick succession to each other, admiring her work.

"I'm... gay."

The sound of tape snapping from the dispenser sounded through, Laurie glanced up. "Cool. Doesn't need to go on the ID though. Do you wanna grab some paper and sign as 'Jennifer Alson'."

Robin didn't move, feeling nerves bubble in her gut. "Cool?" She repeated.

Laurie looked up, discarding the fake ID making. "I'm... something. I don't know... My brother's a dealer."

"I know."

"I don't remember anything before I was nine."

"I know."

Laura let out a sigh. "Why do you know all my secrets?" She asked, huffing in annoyance.

Robin grinned, laying back in the covers only propped up by her elbow. "Because I'm way cooler than you." She replied.

"How did you know?" Laura asked, standing up and approaching tentatively, sitting on the bed beside Robin's ankles, shuffling so her knees bent over her best friend's legs.

"Tammy Thompson," Robin replied, watching as, for the first time, Laurie's face contorted in disgust.

"You're kidding right?" She asked, sitting up. The thought of that was perhaps the worst thing she could have heard. "Robin - you're not being serious. Tammy Thompson! I'm fine with you being a lesbian and all that but I draw the line at Tammy Thompson! She wants to go to Nashville! She wants to be a country star! A country star! Not Hollywood, Texas."

Robin shifted in her seat, picking at the chipped nail polish on her thumb and knowing she would have to repaint them later. "Yeah, well, she sings." She replied.

"Like a muppet," Laurie replied pointedly.

"She can sing better than you."

"I'm just a shit singer." Laura waved her hand. "She sounds like a muppet. A hick muppet. Do those exist? I've not watched Sesame Street in years." There was the sound of a knock on the door and she sat up, coughing before assuming a heavy accent. "Well, Heavens to Betsy is that the pizza already?"

"Shut up." Robin kicked in the direction of her calf as she stood up and succeeded, Laurie yelping as she hobbled her way over to the door, reaching for Robin's bag and taking the cash needed as planned.

She reached the front door, hauling it open and smiling at the guy standing there in the shitty uniform. "Hey - thanks for agreeing to deliver." She said, taking the pizzas and reaching behind her, managing to make the counter and pushing the boxes onto the counter with the tips of her fingers. "You usually don't come out at this time... or at all."

"Yeah, well my boss wasn't in today and he's the one who usually stops us." He replied, palm out as Laurie gave him the money. "Enjoy." Laurie nodded as she closed the front door and watched as the poor guy went back to his car.

She didn't bother with plates, instead just grabbing two of the beer cans from the fridge and balancing them on top of the cardboard, beginning to make her way back to the bedroom. And in the new dark of the night, new things could be found. And Laura's eyes landed on a silhouette by the edge of the woods shrouded in a tint of blue.

Maybe her eyes were playing tricks on her because the trailer all around her was still bathed in light and cluttered by actual items that belonged to her, her Uncle and her brother. But there, by the edge of trees was a figure, too large to be any human but stuck in the colours and design of the life in an alternate world.

And also she could do was look away and hope it wouldn't be the same after her and Robin finished the pizza.