CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT:
NANCY DREW

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   THEY GOT TO the house quickly with Nancy going ten over the speed limit the entire way there. Liz practically tore the backseat apart, gripping it with her nails with each sharp turn or pothole Nancy hit. Liz loved Nancy but she was a terrible driver or at least when she was in a hurry she was. Before the engine was even turned off, everyone was scrambling out of the car but nobody faster than Liz who honestly thought she might hurl due to Nancy's aggressive driving.

   Nancy and Jonathan led the group up to the front door where they rang the doorbell. Nancy waited a few seconds before ringing it again. When it was clear nobody was home, Nancy and Jonathan turned to Eleven who was right behind them. She moved her head swiftly, opening the door for everyone with ease. Even after seeing her do that several hundred times, Liz still had to admit it was cool.

   The group filed into the house, Nancy and Jonathan leading, "Tom? Heather?"

   "Jesus, it's freezing," Max complained as they moved deeper into the house. She instinctively moved closer to Liz for warmth. Soon, the goosebumps on Liz's arm weren't caused by the cold but instead by the cute redhead huddling close to her.

   They made their way into the living room when a disgusting and very strong smell hit their senses. Nancy turned to the kids, "Do you guys smell that?" They moved towards the kitchen where the smell was even stronger due to the many bottles of chemicals out on the counters, practically empty but still smelly. "Oh, God. More chemicals."

   "Do you think they're guzzling this shit?" Jonathan asked, picking up one of the cans.

   "Yeah, either that or they went on one hell of a cleaning spree."

   "But last year, Will didn't eat chemicals," Max pointed out, looking to Will. "Did you?"

   "No," Will shook his head. "This is something new."

   "Mister Clarke. Fifth grade. Posit," Mike started, looking at his friends and trying to help them remember. "What happens when you mix the chemicals together?"

   Liz nods, along with Lucas and Will, "You create a new substance."

   "What if they're making something?"

   "In themselves," Max asked. "I mean, come on, if you drink this crap, it'll kill you."

   Lucas nods, "Yeah, if you're human."

   Nancy started to move out of the kitchen and towards the dining room. Everyone followed her and another smell hit their noses. Liz knew it was the food on the table that still hadn't been cleaned up from two nights ago. That wasn't the surprising part, though. The part that shocked Liz was the giant wine stain on the table and the wine bottle on the floor. Nancy leaned down, observing a stain on the carpet, "Blood. Yesterday, Tom had a bandage on his forehead."

   Nancy grabbed the wine bottle and picked it up. On one side was a bloodstain on the label, "He was attacked." They walked around more, seeing a crumpled rug beside a doorway which had another bloodstain by it. Nancy opened it up, seeing another doorway that looked like it led to the garage. Nancy opened the door, the creaking making it seem even more ominous.

   Inside the garage was an old rope laying on the ground. Jonathan picked it up, "They must have tied them. They must have taken them somewhere."

   "Misses Driscoll," Nancy stated. "She kept saying 'I have to go back'. What if it's the flaying, it's taking place somewhere else? There must be a place where this all started, right? A source."

   "Somewhere he didn't want me to see," Eleven agreed.

   "If we can find the source, then maybe we can stop him," Nancy suggested. "Or at least stop it from spreading or doing whatever the hell he's doing with those chemicals."

   "How do we find it?"

   "Misses Driscoll," Will answered. "If she wants to go back so badly, why don't we let her?"

   Nancy and Jonathan locked eyes before Nancy nodded, "Let's go."

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   By the time they got to the hospital, the sun had set upon Hawkins, making the whole situation even more creepy. Nancy's driving was even worse, so bad in fact that Liz had actually puked this time. She had to scream at Nancy to pull over where Liz puked on the side of the road as Max held back her hair and rubbed her back. Once they finally made their way to the hospital, they all rushed in where their plan was to go directly to Misses Driscoll's room. Nancy eyed the nurse at the front desk as they tried to rush past her. She was on the phone, so it almost worked but she caught them right before they could pass her, "Whoa, whoa, excuse me! Where do you think you're going?"

   Nancy awkwardly turned around with a smile, "Oh... um, I was just going to go visit my grandma again. And—And this... this is my family."

   They all awkwardly smiled at the lady who's eyes narrowed at Lucas, the only person of color among the group. He just smiled, "Extended."

   "I don't care who they are," The nurse sassed. "You know the rule. Two visitors at a time."

   "Yeah, but —"

   "Two!"

   Nancy rolled her eyes and turned to the kids, "Alright, you guys go wait in the waiting room. Jonathan and I will go find Misses Driscoll."

   The group nodded and made their way to the waiting room while Nancy and Jonathan headed to the elevator. Lucas and Mike immediately made their way to the vending machines which had a variety of snacks. Will had just found a chair to reside in. Liz, Max, and El went off to the table with magazines, searching through the pile to find something good that would make time go by faster. Liz found an issue of Vogue which she immediately snatched. She plopped herself down on one of the waiting room chairs and opened up the magazine. Max sat down next to her, leaning over to look at the magazine as well. They had looked at approximately two pages before hearing Mike yell out, "Oh, come on, you piece of shit!"

   Mike had started to abuse the machine but was quickly stopped by Eleven who simply nodded her head, making over half the snacks fall to the bottom. She wiped the blood from her nose and went back to her magazine as Mike awkwardly thanked her.

   Liz and Max started giggling at the two boys and shaking their heads at them. Liz went back to the magazine, flipping the page just as Max started to shake her, "Liz, Liz, don't look now, but 3 o'clock!" Liz looked up, not seeing anything besides a bunch of people in the waiting room. "I said don't look! But, since you already did, do you see him?"

   "See who?" Liz questioned, confused as to who Max was talking about.

   "That guy who looks exactly like River Pheonix! The one in the gray hoodie!" Max explains. Liz spots the boy. Max was right, he did look a lot like the child actor. He also couldn't seem to keep his eyes off Liz. "He's totally checking you out. You should go talk to him."

   Liz shakes her head, "I rather talk to you."

   Max gives her a look of disbelief and sighs, "Liz, with an attitude like that, you are never going to get a boyfriend. I mean, that guy clearly thinks you're cute and you're just not going to go talk to him?"

   Liz bites her lip, not understanding how she was supposed to say that nobody in the world seemed interesting to her besides the redhead sitting next to her, especially any boy in the world, "Max, we've talked about this. I don't really want a boyfriend."

   "You will, eventually," Max chuckles.

   Liz felt herself start to grow impatient. She had been hearing that her whole life. Everyone had always told her that, sure, you might not want a boyfriend right now, but you will eventually. The truth was, Liz never wants a boyfriend. She wanted nothing more than a girlfriend, specifically, Max Mayfield, "Why can't you just leave it alone?"

   Max's expression falls, "What?"

   Liz shakes her head before throwing the magazine down and storming off to the bathroom. She was starting to think that maybe she'll just have to get a boyfriend one day to shut people up. Her friend group was already starting to date. It was only her and Will without anyone. Liz had already had boys asking her out but she said no to every single one of them. She hated that she couldn't be with a girl without consequences. She was terrified that she would have to hide who she is forever.

   "Are you okay?" Max's voice echoed in the bathroom.

   Liz sighed, feeling herself calm down by just the girl's voice, something she equally loved and hated. Liz was standing by one of the sinks, staring at herself in the mirror, "No. No, Max. Why are you so obsessed with getting me a boyfriend? I clearly don't want one so stop trying to make it happen!"

   Max walked over to the girl slowly, not wanting to upset her, "Hey, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'll stop." Liz took a breath. "I didn't realize it made you this upset."

    Liz frowned. She wasn't upset with Max. Liz Harrington was upset with the world and all the shitty people in it, "It doesn't — I'm sorry, I just..." Liz started to tear up at the overwhelming feeling of having to hide forever. She wanted nothing more than to be with the girl standing beside her. Hell, she might even love her, who knows? "You said I can tell you anything and you won't judge. Was that true?"

   "Yes, of course it is," Max nodded. "You can tell me anything.

   Liz took a deep breath as her heart started to race. It was now or never. "I... Um... I don't want a boyfriend. It's not because I'm young and think boys are gross, it's because I... I much rather... I — I don't see myself with a boy. I don't see myself marrying a boy." Liz paused, feeling a gigantic weight lift off her shoulders by just saying those words out loud to Max. "I see myself marrying a girl. I... I like girls. I'm a... lesbian. I'm gay."

   "Really?"

   Liz nods, almost on the verge of tears. She was scared to look at Max, not wanting to see a disappointed expression, "Yeah."

   Liz closed her eyes as a tear fell. She felt Max wrap her arms around Liz and squeeze tight. Liz let out a small gasp, not expecting that gesture. Liz hugged Max back as Max started to speak, "Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me." The two girls let go of each other. "Does anyone else know?"

   Liz wipes her tears and nods, "Yeah. Steve and Dustin know."

   Max smiles, "That's really good. Obviously, you don't have to tell everyone until you're ready but I know they'll react the same way as me."

   Liz smiles, feeling happier than she had felt in a while. The two girls stood in the bathroom in silence for a minute before Max spoke up again, "Can I tell you something?" Liz nodded and Max smiled back as she spoke. "I like girls, too." Liz's eyes widened. She was shocked, not expecting that from Max at all. "Girls and boys, actually. Boys are cute, but girls are very cute as well."

   Liz didn't know how to react. The girl she had been crushing on for months was basically telling Liz had she had a chance. Liz had originally thought that her and Max would never happen because Max liked boys, but here she was, saying that she also liked girls, "I actually broke up with Lucas because I like this girl..."

   Liz's expression fell but she forced a fake smile for Max. Liz knew it was too good to be true. A girl like Max Mayfield would never like a girl like Liz Harrington, "You — You like someone?"

   Max smiles, "Yeah. She's our age and she's probably — no, definitely the most beautiful girl I've ever met, inside and out. She's kind, smart, funny, and a total goofball at times." Liz found her smiling dropping the more Max talked about the girl she liked. "She's a brunette and she's got beautiful blue eyes. She's an inch taller than me, which she used to always mention to tease me. Honestly, she's my best friend and I want nothing more than to make her my girlfriend. How do I do that? Should I make the first move?"

   Liz hesitated. All the things Max was saying about the girl she liked reminded Liz so much of herself. And the way Max was looking at her, a smirk placed upon her face. Liz smiled, "Yeah, I think you should make the first move. I mean, this girl could be nervous to do it herself."

   Max smirked, taking a step closer to Liz. Both girls were clearly blushing, their cheeks turning redder than ever before. Liz felt like she was going to pass out because of how bad the butterflies in her stomach were. Max stared into Liz's eyes before her eyes trailed down to Liz's lips. Max started to lean in and Liz was practically shaking from how excited she was. Max was millimeters away from Liz but stopped once the lights started to flicker. The fluorescent lights above them started to buzz and flicker.

   "That can't be good," Liz whispered.

   Liz and Max took one last look at each other before rushing out of the bathroom where the group was doing the same thing they were. Their eyes were focused on the lights above them as they huddled around each other. As Liz and Max headed over to them, Will placed his hand on his neck as his eyes widened, "He's here."

   The group immediately started heading towards the elevator. The nurse tried to stop them again but they ignored her, knowing something bad was going down. They quickly decided the elevator would take too long so they headed to the stairs. They kept climbing the stairs until they started to hear what sounded like growling and screeching. They entered the hallway and sprinted down to the door where Jonathan was trying to get in. Eleven flicked her head up, making the door slam open. What they saw made goosebumps arise on their bodies and chills run down their spine.

   "Jesus!"

   "What the fuck!"

   The monster quickly started to charge for them and as it did, Liz grabbed Max's forearm instinctively. Eleven quickly reacted, throwing the beast at the wall to the left of her then to the wall to the right of her as Nancy cowered in the corner. She threw the monster again at the ceiling, making all the ceiling tiles rain down onto the floor. She then slammed it to the ground.

   The monster snarled at them once more, starting to move towards them. Eleven let out a scream before pushing her arms forward, sending the creature soaring out of the window. The group, besides Jonathan and Nancy, ran away from the room as quickly as they could and made their way down to the main floor of the hospital. They ran out the main doors, spotting the monster turning itself into liquid and making it's way into the storm drain, leaving only a few bones behind.

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[ 2597 WORDS ]

it's been a min but
i missed my girls!!