madmax

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SCARLETT SINCLAIR'S day consisted of watching movies, eating popcorn and laying in her bed. This particular Sunday had been especially boring for the girl, considering Ben was out of town, Steve was on a date with Nancy and Jonathan was doing god knows what. It left her with no one to hang out with. Even Lucas and the three others were out and about, enjoying their time at the arcade.

It left her with Erica. She loved Erica, but Erica's attitude came straight from Scarlett, with a little bit of flare. Although the attitude was her own, Scarlett couldn't help but grow aggravated whenever Erica made a comment to her.

Nevertheless, she had said 'screw it' and approached Erica's room, knocking on the door. And, just moments later they were sprawled out on her rug, playing with Barbies. Erica insisted Scarlett would be Ken, while she herself was Barbie. She had made her rules of play very strict, "Listen, if you wanna play, you gotta listen up. No touching my Barbie, no touching Ken's hair, no changing his clothes, and definitely no Barbie makeout sessions." Erica listed the rules off her fingers, shrugging afterwards. "There are plenty more, I just don't feel like explaining them."

"Okay.. what?" Scarlett shook her head, furrowing her brows as she listened to Erica's book of rules for her Barbie playtime. "Do you even know what making out is? You definitely have your Barbie's make out, I don't even doubt it."

"I'm nine, not four, nerd." Erica sassed, shaking the barbie in Scarlett's face.

"You sure act like it, bonehead." Scarlett said sarcastically, flipping them younger girl off before Erica stuck her tongue out at her.

A loud slam of the front door was heard, followed by Mrs. Sinclair scolding the angry boy. Lucas apologized and stormed into Erica's room, who had the door open.

Scarlett sat up, looking at the younger boy with a confused expression, "What's wrong?"

"This is unbelievable!" Lucas began, seeming as if he were about to rip the hair off his head. "You know that weirdo Keith? At the arcade?"

"Yeah?" She said slowly, already not liking where his story was going.

"He wants a date with either you or Nancy. For information!" Lucas yelled, Erica was quick to shush him.

"Lucas, please tell me you said no." Scarlett stood up, raising her voice as she approached him. She hoped to god he said no to Keith.

"Of course I said no, who do you think I am? Like Mike said, I'm not prostituting my cousin!" Lucas threw his hands up in the air, having them land on her shoulders and shaking her. "I mean, if it was Nancy, then sure. It's for a good cause. But you? No way! No. Way. He also has a weird rash."

"I'm sure he does." Scarlett shook her head, wrapping her arm around her cousin. "You know, prostituting Nancy might not be a good idea, her big scary boyfriend might come after you." She mocked Steve, throwing fake punches at Lucas' chest with sound effects.

"Yeah, well, what's he gonna do? Fight me?" Lucas joked, raising his arms up as if he were surrendering. "I think I could take him. I mean, Jonathan could." He shrugged, flexing his arms.

Scarlett laughed, pushing his arm down, "Yeah? You think you could rock big ol' Steve's shit?" She grinned, watching him nod vigorously. "Alright big man. How was the arcade? I mean, other than Kevin or whatever."

"You will never believe what we saw there," Lucas began, widening his eyes. "Someone named Madmax took our high score on Dig Dug! It was a crazy high score, I didn't even know it was humanly possible to score that high!"

"No." Scarlett gasped in shock, her eyes wide open. The boys had spent so much time and money at Dig Dug and finally got the high score, and they held it for so long, when suddenly a name they had never even heard of before had taken their spot on top.

It wouldn't be lining before they discovered who Madmax really was, and it didn't take much searching either, Madmax had been right under their noses.

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The parking lot at Hawkins Highschool had been bustling all morning. People gathered in their groups before the first bell rang, chatting and gossiping with one another. Steve and Nancy sat in Steve's car, discussing the boys college application letter, while Ben and Scarlett stood across the lot, leaning against a tree while staring at the closed car.

"They never hang out with us anymore!" Scarlett complained to her best friend, pointing an open palm towards the car. "Only with each other."

"Well, they are dating." Ben reasoned, folding her arms across his chest after snuffing out his cigarette on the ground. "But hey, at least you have me!"

"Thank god I have you, or I would probably be six feet under right now." Scarlett laughed, shoving the boy's shoulder playfully. They didn't fail to gag as they witnessed Steve and Nancy share a very passionate kiss.

A loud car engine revving pulled the two from their conversation, drawing their attention from Harrington's car to the direction the sound was coming from.

A Chevrolet Camaro sped into the parking lot, parking directly next to the tree the two friends stood at. The car had a California plate, which Scarlett thought was odd, considering she hadn't yet heard of anyone from California moving to Hawkins. News travels fast around Hawkins.

The driver door swung open, a denim clad boy stepping out with a dramatic flare. The thick blonde mullet on his head topped off his look. On the passenger side, a small red head girl angrily left the car, dropping her skateboard down and skating away towards the middle school without a simple glance back.

The older boy glanced back at the ginger, shaking his head in disappointment before walking the the direction of the school, stealing a quick glance at Scarlett.

Scarlett held her laugh until he walked by, letting it out as soon as he was out of sight. "Oh you've got to be kidding me." She points at the strange boy, strutting away. "Is that a joke?"

"I don't think he's joking." Ben shakes his head slowly, laughing along with the girl.

"So California fashion is definitely... something." Scarlett said, dragging Ben towards the school with her.

The new juniors had entered their hallway, Tina standing at the entrance and handing the two invites to her Halloween party. Then, they continued through the halls, finding their lockers with no problem. Just like last year, Ben had been two lockers down from her, leaving Scarlett to wonder who had the locker next to her, as hers was on the end. Currently, no one occupied the locker, and she wondered when someone would.

Her eyes were trained on the invite in her heads, reading it as she put her unneeded books in her locker. "Come and get sheet faced." A voice spoke up from beside her. She looked up from the orange sheet of paper, her eyes met by those of the California boy from the parking lot. Just her luck. "You going?" He asked her, leaning up against the locker.

"No." She said simply, clearing her throat and turning away from him, organizing her books again.

"Why not?" He continued trying to converse with her.

"Because it looks stupid."

She didn't dislike parties, she just wanted to stop talking to Mr. Mullet.

"I didn't catch your name." He tilted his head, keeping his eyes glued to the girl who hadn't looked at him.

"Scarlett."

"Billy. Billy Hargrove." He smirked when he noticed her finally look at him. "Come tonight, you might have fun."

"Alright, California boy." She forced a smile, her tone laced with fake enthusiasm as she sighed, walking away as his eyes bored into the back of her head. She shook it off, turning the corner to the other side of the Junior hallway. She felt a sort of pang of jealousy, as from a distance, she watched Steve happily spin Nancy around and share a kiss with him.

She sent Jonathan a look as she noticed the small bit of hurt on his face. He walked up to her, placing a hand on the top of her head and shoving her playfully. She laughed, "Nice to see you too, Jonathan."

He noticed the folded orange paper in her pocket, "You going to that?"

"I don't know. A bunch of assholes in costumes will be there, I don't have a costume." Scarlett shrugged, putting thought into her decision. "Are you?"

"Probably not. Nancy wants me to go, but I don't think she'd even notice if I didn't." Jonathan shakes his head, looking down at his feet as they walked side by side.

"Aw, Jonathan. She'll notice. Trust me." Scarlett reassured him, ruffling his hair. It was clear the boy had feelings for Nancy Wheeler. Romantic ones, at that. He didn't have the courage to act on his feelings, for he was afraid of what she would say to him. So he pushed his feelings away, a little piece of him still hoping she felt the same.

The rest of the day passed by especially slow. Classes seemed to drag on for what felt like hours, and lunch could seem to come any slower. The girl was starving, so once she arrived in the cafeteria and found an open table, she didn't hesitate to pull the bagel out of her bag and begin eating it.

"Holy shit." Ben sat down with an exasperated sigh. "That Billy dude is a grade A asshole. He's been here for less than a day and is already trying to get under my skin."

"So don't let him, then." Scarlett suggested with a shrug, continuing to chow down on her bagel. "He's pretty annoying. And can't take a hint." She added.

"I'm in gym class, and he's all like- 'oh, so you're the famous Benjamin Clemson. Pleasure to finally meet Hawkins notorious troublemaker. Keg king, right? Not for long.'" Ben re-enacted the scene from the gym, using exaggerated hand motions.

"O-okay- It's time to calm down. Take it down a notch. Just.. don't let him win, alright?" Scarlett placed a hand on his shoulder, causing him to look at her and nod.

"He just pisses me off. That's all. I'm not gonna fight him or anything, it's a waste of energy." Ben says, taking a bite of the bread on the school lunch tray. "Y'know what? I might as well go get sheet faced at Tina's party." He joked, mocking her flyer.

"Maybe getting sheet faced is just what we need." Scarlett laughed, slumping onto the table but quickly picking her head up as she didn't know what had been on that table.

The rest of the day continued, class after class. Scarlett waited impatiently for the final bell to ring, and when it finally did she dashed out of the classroom as quickly as she could. She stopped in her tracks as soon as she saw a certain boy next to her locker, rummaging through his own. She groaned and trudged over, quickly putting in the combination as she paid no attention to the boy who's eyes were glued to her.

"Couldn't stay away, could ya?" Billy shot her a certified asshole smirk as he slipped a toothpick into his mouth.

"Get your head out of the gutter, this is my locker." Scarlett glared at him, motioning to the open compartment in front of her. "I gotta go, I have plans."

"A date?" He called after her, causing her to stop in her tracks. She mentally groaned, why did this boy care so much?

"No. Plans." She said dully, not even turning around to face him before walking out of the school and to the Byers boy, getting in his car.

Billy Hargrove watched as Scarlett walked out of the building, shaking his head. She was the only girl in Hawkins High who had not yet fallen to their knees for him, and it intrigued him. He wanted to learn more about her.

"Long day?" Jonathan asked, noticing the girls expression. She nodded, running a hand through her curly hair. "Me too." Jonathan said, driving out of the parking lot and away from the school.

﹌﹌﹌

"Hey Joyce, hey Bob!" Scarlett waved to the couple in the kitchen, Bob redirecting his camera towards the teen. "What is that?" Scarlett asked, motioning towards the camera in his hands.

"The future." Bob and Joyce said in unison, Joyce asking Bob to go get a bowl for the popcorn.

"Hm. The future is bright." Scarlett shrugged. "Where's Will?" She wanted to talk to Will as she felt like she hadn't in a while, she always loved catching up with him.

"Oh, he should be in his room!" Joyce pointed to the hallway. "Do me a favor, after you're done send him out to the kitchen?"

She nodded, "Of course." Scarlett waved to Jonathan, intending he stay out in the kitchen, to which he did. She knocked on his door, "Will?"

"Come in." He said through the door.

"Hey, big guy." Scarlett waved, taking a seat at the end of his bed. She peered over at what he was drawing, "Whatcha doin?"

He gave her no answer, he just continued scribbling on his paper. Reading upside down, she read 'Zombie Boy' on his paper. "Who's zombie boy?"

"Me." Will put down his pencil, looking at the girl.

"Yeah? Someone call you that?" She asks him, pointing at the name on the paper.

"Can I tell you something?" Will says after taking a deep breath.

"Yeah, sure. Anything."

"You're the only one that doesn't treat me different. Unlike everyone else does. Everyone else treats me like there's something wrong with me. Mom, Dustin, Lucas, Jonathan, everyone. They all treat me like I'm gonna break. Like I'm a baby. Like I can't handle things on my own." Will explained, passion to his tone. "It doesn't help. It just makes me feel like more of a freak."

"Well, you are a freak." Scarlett said, surprising the boy and causing him to look up at her with wide eyes. "But why should you care? Being a freak means that your different, not normal and basic like the rest. They're all nobodies, they follow schedules and do boring shit. At least you have fun, and you don't have to worry about what everyone else thinks of you." The girl continues.

"And let's be honest, I'd choose Zombie Boy over those lame mouth-breathers any day." Scarlett laughed, causing Will to laugh along with her, sending her a teary eyed smile. Scarlett pulled him in for a hug just as Bob stepped into his room, picking up the VHS tapes from the dresser.

Bob grinned, "Mr. Mom! Woo!" He cheered, leaving the two alone again.

They shared a look, bursting into laughter once again. "You think he likes Mr. Mom?" Scarlett joked.

"Eh, maybe."

The two walked into the living room to join them for the movie, Scarlett sitting next to Jonathan's chair on the ground. The movie was long, and actually quite boring, but Joyce and Bob seemed to be getting a kick out of it. Scarlett yawned, fighting back the comforting slumber wanting to consume her, keeping her droopy eyes open. The phone ringing awoke the girl, everyone turning to face it out of instinct.

Bob placed a comforting hand on Joyce's leg, "Hey! It's okay. Let it go." He whispered. "It's probably just a crank call."

The phone kept ringing, every ring seeming louder and louder, but they all tried their best to ignore it, and eventually it stopped.

After the movie, Jonathan drove Scarlett home. Lucas sat in the living room, anxiously awaiting his cousin's arrival. As soon as she stepped in the door, he turned on detective mode. He folded his hands together in front of him, "And where have you been all night?"

"Um, the Byers house?" Scarlett answered, confused as to why he was questioning her.

"And what were you doing there?" He asked once again, leaning forward in the armchair.

"Watching a movie-"

"We were also watching a movie here. Did you forget?" Lucas interrupted her.

Her heart dropped to her stomach, "Lucas, shit. I am so so sorry- I just lost track of time and Joyce asked me to stay and.. I'm sorry." It was true, she did forget. And she felt disappointed in herself for forgetting one simple thing for the family that had done so much for her. "I promise I won't forget again. Swear, on my life." The Sinclair's meant so much to her, they adopted her as their own before their own kids were born, and she would do anything for them.

"Good." Lucas nodded, leaning back in his chair again. "On another note, we found out who Madmax was."

"Ooh! Tell me all about him." Scarlett took a seat on the couch across from Lucas, propping her head on her hand.

"Well, he is actually a her!" Lucas began. "Her real names Maxine, but everyone at her old school called her Max. She's a ginger." Lucas grinned. "She also came from California."

His last sentence caused the smile on Scarlett's face to be wiped clean off, "California?" She queried. She knew what that meant, and exactly who she was talking about. The angry little redhead girl in California boys car was his sister.

Lucas noticed his cousin's expression drop, "Yeah, California. What do you have against California?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, um." He pressed his lips together in a line, motioning to his face with a finger moving around it in a circular motion.

Scarlett realized he noticed, "Oh, I just had an unpleasant run in with her brother at school." She rubbed the back of her neck.

"Yeah, he doesn't seem like a pleasant person.. or whatever." Lucas shrugged. "They were arguing at the arcade."

"You talked to her?"

Lucas looked away, "Um, technically no." He could feel his cousins glare of disbelief burning into the side of his head as they sat in silence for a moment.

She noticed the binoculars he still had hanging from his neck and put two and two together, "Please don't tell me you spied on her."

"It wasn't really spying!" Lucas defended, looking back at her.

"Oh my god. You so spied on her!" Scarlett exclaimed with wide eyes, pointing at the binoculars around his neck. "You're so creepy, you know that?" She laughed.

"Dustin was there too!"

"Yeah? You're both creepy." Scarlett continued laughing, getting a kick out of his stupidity. "And stalkers."

The two cousins talked and laughed for another hour, completely unaware that Will Byers currently stood in the Upside Down watching in horror as the red lightning streaked across the dark cloudy sky, revealing a new creature, one bigger than all before, looking to take over the world as it is.

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kicking off season two💁‍♀️

also don't be fooled billy is still a certified asshole😜