↣ 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘢𝘵 𝘚𝘩𝘦𝘥

The atmosphere was somber and dim as they drove; the sun had fully set, and the moon now illuminated the sky. Bailey recalled a date with Steve at Lovers Lake, where they sat on a picnic blanket, gazing at the moonlight. Exchanging sustenance and affectionate kisses.

Steve positioned the vehicle in front of Reefer Rick's residence.  Bailey exited the vehicle and observed the predominantly dark residence.  If someone was present, they evidently preferred to reside in total darkness. Dustin advanced.  The group followed him while he pressed the doorbell.

Steve oscillates his flashlight, clearly exhibiting discomfort. "Okay. Well, that's settled. I guess he's not here."

Dustin, disregarding him, intensified his pounding while shouting at him. "Eddie! It's Dustin! Look, we just wanna talk okay? No cops, I swear. We just wanna help."

"Shh." Robin remarked while gazing through the windows.

Upon discovering the boat shed, Max alerted the group as they circumnavigated the home.  Bailey found the atmosphere unsettling and remained near Steve.

"Hello?" Robin cried out, gradually opening the door while peering inside. "Is anyone home?"

Bailey entered, surveying the boat shed.  It resembled a typical boat shed.  Bailey perceived a sound and turned to observe Steve holding an oar. He commenced to prod objects with the oar.  Dustin glanced at him.

"What are you doing?" Dustin inquired while observing Steve's actions.

"He might be in here."

"So take the tarp off."

"If you're so brave, you take the tarp off."

Bailey expressed his frustration at their incessant behavior. "Hey, look over here." As Max stood at a table, Bailey approached and observed the food and beer bottles scattered around it. "Someone was here."

"Maybe he heard us." Robin says with a shrug of her shoulders. "Got spooked and ran."

"Don't worry. Steve will get him with his oar." Dustin responded sarcastically.

"I know you think you're being funny, but considering everyone in this room has nearly died a hundred times, personally, I don't find it funny in the slight..." Eddie Munson seized his opportunity to assault and negotiate for his escape.  His hands whitened with trepidation as he clutched a fractured bottle by the handle.  He forced Steve against the wall, pressing the jagged edge to his neck—sufficiently threatening without penetrating the flesh, serving as a cautionary signal for inaction.

"Eddie! Eddie! It's me. It's Dustin." Dustin shouted while flailing his arms as though attempting to restrain a wild beast. "This is Steve. He's not gonna hurt you, right, Steve?"

"Right, yeah." Steve responded.  Gazing through the glass at Eddie. Uncertain about what to observe.

"Steve, why don't you drop the oar?" Dustin instructed. He promptly opened his hand and allowed the oar to fall to the floor. The noise disrupted Eddie's moment of solace, prompting him to tighten his grasp on the bottle for a more intimate contact with Steve's throat.

"He's cool, he's cool," Dustin vociferously summoned attention.  Bailey observed from his position.  Eddie's behavior indicated profound terror; an individual in such a state would not inflict harm on another.

"I'm cool, man. I'm cool," Steve murmured.

Eddie eventually spoke, never averting his gaze from Steve. "What are you doing here?"

"We're looking for you," Dustin started to explain. "Eddie, these are my friends. You know Robin, from band."

"This is my friend Max. The one who never wants to play D&D. This is Bailey, he is a good friend of ours and he was also close with Chrissy."

As Eddie locked eyes with Bailey, a mix of terror and forgiveness was visible in his eyes.  Bailey couldn't bear to despise the boy, who bore no responsibility whatsoever for Chrissy's death.

"We're on your side." Dustin began as he tried to reassure him. "I swear on my mother. Right, guys?"

"Yes. Yes. We swear." Max nodded her head.

"On Dustin's mother."

"Yeah, Dustin's... Dustin's mother."

After a few moment of contemplation, Eddie finally released Steve.  With a sigh of relief, Steve drooped to his knees.  Bailey did not hesitate to rush over to check on him.

After looking down, Eddie appeared as if he had encountered a specter.  Looking down at his feet, he hung his head.  Stooping down, Dustin attempted to console him. "Eddie...We just want to talk."

"You won't believe me." He sniffled out, his fingers were trembling.

"Try us." Max spoke up from her position. Due to the fact that no one would believe them based on what they had seen, everyone was waiting for Eddie to speak so that he could explain everything.  It seemed like this was all Bailey's fault, too.  he should have persisted more in his demand that Chrissy not approach Eddie.  Perhaps she would have survived.  However, he had faith in her and thought she would be alright.

"Her body just, like, lifted up into the air and, uh...And she just, like, hung there. In the air." Bailey recoiled at the thought, unwilling to envision that radiant girl extinguishing her vitality, his fingers gripping the crate upon which he sat. "And her bones... Uh, she... Her bones started to snap. Her eyes, man. It... It was like there was something, like, inside her head, pulling. I... I didn't know what to do, so I...I ran away. I left her there."

Bailey experienced  heartbreak towards Chrissy and Eddie; both were alone in the trailer, unaware of the unfolding events.  Eddie derided his words. "You all think I'm crazy, right?"

"No. We don't think you're crazy." Dustin says as he shook his head.

Eddie swallowed while observing the others surrounding him.  He wiped at his face. "Don't bullshit me, man! I know how this sounds."

"We're not bullshitting you." Max responded softly.

"We believe you." Robin remarked, offering a slight smile in their direction.

"Look, what I'm about to tell you might be a little... difficult to take." Dustin spoke calmly as he tried not to frighten Eddie any further. "You know how people say Hawkins is...cursed? They're not way off."

Eddie did not quite comprehend, nevertheless he inclined forward. "Like ghosts and shit?"

"There are some things worse than ghosts."Max murmured, recalling the moment Billy perished before her, slain by the very monster he had conjured.

Bailey recalled the night they encountered the monster, with Steve striking it using his nail bat.  The scrapyard, the medical facility, the Starcourt shopping center.  He recalled everything.  This was markedly different from their previous experiences, and he found it entirely displeasing.  He was utterly terrified.

"These monsters from this other world......we thought they were gone. But they've come back before. That's why we needed to find you. If they're back again, we need to know."

"That night, did you see anything?" Robin Questioned.

"Dark particles, maybe?" Max inquired.

"It would almost look like dust, swirling dust," Dustin explained.

"No, man, there was nothing you could see or, uh... or touch." Eddie articulated. Reflecting on the moment when Chrissy ascended into the air.  It was solely Chrissy and him, nothing beyond that. " You know, I tried to wake her, man. She couldn't move. It was like she...she was in a trance or something."

"Or under a spell." Dustin shifted slightly, glancing at Eddie, who shared his intention."Vecna's curse."

"Who's Vecna?" Steve inquired.

"An undead creature of great power." Dustin glanced to the side, unable to fully comprehend the situation, yet he had witnessed other phenomena he formerly seemed implausible.

"A spell caster." Eddie persists while gazing at the gathering. "A dark wizard."

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𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿'𝘀 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀

- Here we go, Bailey does blame himself for Chrissy's death which is something that is kind of a main factor in this act.

To all the people that have supported me closely- Tags: @norasnetflix @wrensofvizla @KleeAlise11 @kiesluverr

𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘐 𝘩𝘰𝘱𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘵 𝘶𝘱𝘥𝘢𝘵e