"It was here. Right here." Max swore as she shined her light at the end of the hallway.

"A grandfather clock?" Nancy spoke up in questioning.

"It was so real." Max's voice cracked, Rocky leaned off the wall. "And then, when I got closer, suddenly I just...I woke up."

"It was like she was in a trance or something." Dustin said honestly. Rocky shut his eyes, apart of him was saying he knew what it was, but just didn't want to say it out loud. "Exactly what Eddie said happened to Chrissy."

There it was.

"Dustin, please." Rocky held a hand up to him as he walked closer to Max to wrap an arm around her, both of hers locked around his waist, tighter then usual.

"That's not even the bad part." Max made eye contact with Dustin.

"Fred and Chrissy, they both came to Miss Kelley for help." Max confirmed as they looked down at the files again. Despite moving locations, Max's positioned with Rocky hadn't changed. "They both were having headaches, bad headaches that wouldn't go away. And then...then the nightmares. Trouble sleeping. They'd wake up in a cold sweat. And then they started seeing things. Bad things. From their past. And these visions, they just...they kept on getting worse and worse, until eventually...everything ended."

Rocky moved his hand to wipe Max's teary eyes, his arm tightening around her for the best form of comfort.

"Vecna's curse." Robin looked up.

"Chrissy's headaches started a week ago." Max pointed out. "Fred's six days ago. I've been having them for five days."

Rocky's heart was already in his stomach, yet it managed to drop even lower when she said it. He didn't know what to say, how to react. Maybe it was selfish, but he kept trying to think about what he'd do next. He hadn't seen Max much since the move, but they spoke every single night. He didn't want to let their connection go, especially not when he wasn't even sure what type of connection it was. He couldn't.

"I don't know how long I have. All I know is that, for Fred and Chrissy, they both died less than 24 hours after their first vision." Max tried to keep it together as her voice cracked and more tears escaped her eyes. "And I just saw that goddam clock, so.. looks like i'm gonna die tomorrow."

Rocky opened his mouth, cut off by the sound of the door opening. He went to check it out, Max's arms tightened around his waist. Steve notice, making eye contact with Rocky with a small nod before walking to grasp the lamp. The remaining others followed.

"Hey." Rocky spoke up when it was just the two of them, he pulled Max's arms off him as he leaned on her level some, holding her arms. "I know this is the worst time to say anything like this, and it's likely just bullshit, and you know it. But, we've delt with stuff like this before. Stuff we figured out quickly, or at least enough time to keep people safe. You're gonna be okay, all right? We're gonna get through this and when we do...maybe me and you, the two of us, can share a cherry coke or something."

Max laughed as she wiped her eyes. "Is that your lame excuse of a date?"

"What if I added cheese fries?" he offered.

Max sniffled, she looked younger when she cried. Rocky gave her a small smile as Max nodded. "That's better."

"So, let's get through this shit so it can happen, right?" he nodded, reaching forward to wipe her tears again. "You're okay."

"It's me!" Lucas' yelling made them both jump, looking to the door. The pair shared a look before hurrying out of the office to see Steve nearly attack Lucas with the lamp.

"Lucas?" Nancy gapped as she shined her light onto him.

"It's me." Lucas exhaled, leaning on his knees to catch his breath.

"What the hell happened to you?" Rocky gapped at his state.

"I'm sorry." Lucas panted. "Sorry, sorry, guys. I was biking for eight miles."

"Eight miles?" Rocky gapped. "And you're still standing? Maybe he's got the curse."

"Rocky!" Nancy and Dustin scolded him on sync.

"Give me a second. Shit." Lucas clutched his chest. "We've got a code red."

"What?" Steve gapped.

"Dustin." Lucas pushed past Steve to grasp his shoulders. "I've been with Jason, Patrick, and Andy, and they've gone totally off the rails. They're trying to capture Eddie, and they think you know where he is. You're in terrible danger."

"Well, we have Laugh and Love." Robin nodded toward Rocky.

"Sure do." he agreed.

"All right. Yeah, that definitely sucks, but we've got bigger problems than Jason now." Dustin stared at Lucas, an unease look in his eye.

They stayed the night in the Wheelers basement. Rocky came down the stairs after a shower, his hair still slightly dripping. He cracked a grin at the boys passed out on the couch, knowing Nancy and Robin took her room. He made sure Max's back was turned before throwing a blanket over Lucas and Dustin on the couch, then Steve on the chair. He rolled his eyes. "Dick head."

Max looked back at the sound of his voice. "You scared me."

"Sorry." he walked her way as she hid a piece of paper. "What are you doing?"

"Just...doodling." she lied with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Come with me." he waved her over, Max followed with a sigh. They ended up on the stupid futon Rocky stayed on during the nights Will was missing and he figured El knew something after Mike, Dustin, and Lucas found her in the woods. Max curled up next to him, exhaling as she laid on his shoulder.

"I'm scared." she admitted, now that it was just the two of them.

"Don't be." he reassured her. "I'm not gonna let anything take you. Not tomorrow, not ever."

Max squeezed her eyes. "But what if you can't help it?"

"I'll find a way to." he promised her, hesitating before turning to kiss her forehead. "I promise."

"Okay, be honest. Uh, do you guys understand any of this?" Steve looked up from the paper the four boys were studying.

"Not at freaking all." Rocky huffed as he propped his feet up, already sitting oddly weird in the chair.

"No." Lucas agreed.

"Pretty straightforward." Dustin shrugged.

"Oh, straightforward, really?" Steve gapped at him.

"You're a joke." Rocky rolled his eyes. "This doesn't make sense to you!"

"What's confusing to you?" Dustin shrugged to the pair of older boys. "So far, everyone Vecna has cursed has died, except for this old Victor Creel dude Nancy found. He's the only known survivor. If anyone knows how to beat this curse, it's him."

"We don't actually know if he was cursed, though." Rocky rolled out of the chair after not being able to get comfortable. "Let's maybe not get everyone's hopes up yet."

"We don't even know. How can Vecna have existed back in the '50s? It doesn't make sense." Steve spoke up along side Rockys words.

"Far as we know, Eleven didn't create the Upside Down." Dustin shrugged his shoulders.

"No way." Rocky shook his head. "Has anyone been able to get ahold of her?"

"No one's answered at your house." Lucas shook his head, Rocky tried not to worry.

"The Upside Down has probably been around for thousands of years. Millions." Dustin shrugged. "I wouldn't be surprised if it predates the dinosaurs."

"Oh shit?" Rocky looked his way with raised eyebrows. "You think that's where they went?"

"Dinosaurs? What are we-" Steve stressed over the two.

"Okay." Lucas cut him off. "But if a gate didn't exist in the '50s, how did Vecna get through?"

"And how now?" Steve nodded.

"And why now?" Lucas bounced off his words.

"And why then." the Harrington boy placed his hands on his hips. "Just pops out of the 50s, kills one family, and he's like, 'I'm good.' And poof, he just disappears. Just...gone? Only to return thirty years later to start killing some random teens? No, I don't buy it."

"Steve shockingly has a point." Rocky agreed with him as he looked to Dustin. "You have an answer for that? Considering it's all 'straightforward' for you?"

"Straightforward my ass. Honestly, Henderson, a little humility now and then, it wouldn't hurt you." Steve rolled his eyes at Dustin as he sat down.

"Sorry."he sighed, glancing toward Max near the stairs. "Any idea what she's writing?"

Rocky watched her. "She puts them away every time I walk to her."

"Did she sleep?" Dustin asked him.

"Not at all." he pointed out, because he didn't sleep either.

"I mean, would you?" Lucas gave a knowing look. Rocky looked over at the sight of Nancy and Robin hurrying down the stairs.

"Okay, so we have a plan." Nancy and Robin shared a girlish, happy smile.

"Thanks to Nancy's newspaper minions we are now rock-star psychology students at the University of Norte Dame." Robin held up two files, Rocky took one while Dustin got the other.

"I'm now Ruth." Nancy smiled.

"And i'm now Rose." Robin pointed out.

"R names, huh?" Rocky flashed them both a smirk. "They are the best, aren't they?"

"So true." Robin motioned between the two of them.

"Nice GPA." Dustin smiled toward Nancy.

"Thanks." Nancy gushed. "So we called Pennhurst Asylum, told them we'd like to speak with Victor Creel for a thesis we're co-writing on paranoid schizophrenics-"

"To which they said no." Robin cut her off with a nod.

"But we landed a three o'clock with the director." Nancy went on with their thought out plan.

"Now all we have to do is charm him and convince him to let us talk to Victor." Robin nodded, as if it was casual.

"And then maybe we can rid Max of this curse." Nancy looked toward the redhead.

"Yeah, let's definitely go with this plan." Rocky took a breath with a nod of his head, adjusting his sitting position.

"Yeah, about that. We're been doing our Victor Creel homework, and, uh...we got some questions." Steve held up the papers they all had.

"Lots of questions." Lucas had to agree.

"So do we. Hopefully, Victor has the answers." Nancy looked around the small group.

"Wait-Wait-Wait a second. Uh..where's mine?" Steve laughed as he held the files.

Rocky squeezed the bridge of his nose. "Steve, it's getting embarrassing."

"I can feel you staring at me." Max spoke with her back turned to the four.

"What?"

"Huh?"

"Did you need something?"

They all kept their eyes off her as she walked over, standing infront of the couch. "You can look at me now."

Rocky turned his head to look up at her, flashing a smile. Max held an envelope out to him first. "That's for you."

Rocky took it. "What is this?"

"For you. For you. And for you." Max handed the other three out before three more. "And give these to Mike, El, and Will. If you ever hear from them again."

Rocky went to open his up.

"Don't open them now!" Max yelled as he froze suddenly.

"Don't...okay." Dustin cleared his throat as he dropped his into his lap. "What is this about?"

"It's, um...it's a fail-safe." Max cleared her throat slightly. "For after. If things don't work out."

"Woah, Max. Things are gonna work out." Lucas shook his head at her.

"No!" Max rose her voice in his direction. "No, I don't need you to reassure me and tell me it's all gonna work out. Because people have been telling me that my entire life and it's almost never true. It's never true. And I mean, of course this asshole curses me. Should've seen that one coming."

Rocky frowned, but he knew she was over it. He couldn't say it was gonna get better, because maybe it wasn't. Either way, she was convinced it wasn't. Max tore her eyes away from Rocky's as she focused on the walkie Nancy and Robin were suppose to talk to them from. "If we go to East Hawkins, will this still reach Pennhurst?"

"Of course." Dustin nodded.

"Wait, why are we talking about East Hawkins?" Steve frowned his eyebrows as Max hurried up the sitars, Rocky close behind her. "No, no, no!"

"Max." Rocky followed Max out of the car when they got to the cemetery.

"Rocky, please, not now." she tried to wave him off.

"Max, wait." he caught her arm so she'd face him. "What happened at the trailer? I can tell something is wrong."

She didn't want to talk about whatever happened when she was suppose to be leaving letters for her mom
, dad, and grandparents. Rocky didn't push her, but he was getting worried. "I know you're not the emotional type, and you've got your mean, intimidating thing going on. But right now, you can tell me anything. You can tell me you want to leave Hawkins and float in the ocean, and i'd do it. You just have to talk to me."

"I don't want to talk. I want to do this." she stared at him with a letter in hand. "Stay in the car."

Read your letter, she wanted to say.

Rocky frowned as she walked off, leaving him near the car. Steve got out first to stand with him. "Are the two of you, like, a thing?"

"No." Rocky continued to watch her go. "I came to Hawkins to figure out if we would have been, if I stayed. Not to loose her."

Steve looked over. "Nancy and Robin are smart, like, genius smart. They're gonna figure it out."

"I can't loose her." Rocky shook his head as his eyes watered slightly. "Not after everything that happened. I mean, I don't even know what's going on with us, if she likes me, if I like her. I wanna know, if she dies, I won't know."

Steve held his shoulder. "She's gonna be all right. But, for the record, you guys have the electricity."

Rocky was silent a second, looking over at Steve's hand on his shoulder. They both cleared their throats and took wide steps away from each other.

A few minutes of silent passed before Steve shook his head. "All right, that's enough."

"Steve, just give her some time." Lucas spoke in annoyance.

"I have, okay? I'm calling it. She wants to get a lawyer, she can." Steve walked backwards before heading to Max.

"Dude." Rocky jogged to catch up with him. "We're at a graveyard. Do you not realize what this means? She's trying to talk to Billy."

"I get that, but we gotta go." Steve shook his head. "Being out in public is a bad idea."

"Okay, but what's t-" he stared, stopping suddenly. Steve stopped too,
looking back at him. Rockys heart dropped. "Max!"

He ran to her full speed, being able to spot something was wrong from a mile away. He fell down next to her, shaking her shoulder. "Max. Max. Hey, hey, California. Come on, it's okay. It's okay, come on."

"Guys!" Steve yelled to the boys in the car quickly.

"Don't do this." Rocky held her face in panic, fear, but most of all pain. "Max, it's Rocky. Come back, okay? Please. Please!"

"Rocky!" Dustin ran over. "What happened!"

"I don't know, she was just like this!" he yelled back as he leaned in close to Max again to try and see any movement in her eyes. "Max, please. Please don't leave me. You're okay, you're okay."

"You gotta get outta there!" Lucas called to her.

"Max!" Dustin shouted loudly.

"Max, come on!" Steve yelled, facing Dustin. "Call Robin and Nancy! Call Robin and Nancy!"

Rocky leaned his head on her shoulder as he started to cry, because no matter how hard he was trying, she wasn't waking up. "Please come back, Max. I still need you."

"Max!" Lucas shook her when Rocky pulled back. "I don't know what to do."

"Max, please!" Rocky grabbed her one more time. "You're still here, I promise. You're still here."

"Rocky!" Dustin ran over with Max's bag. "What's her favorite song?"

"What!" Steve yelled.

"It's the music. It's what brought Victor back." Dustin dumped the cassette tapes on the ground. "What's her favorite song?"

"It's, ugh, S-the Kate Bush one! Running up that Hill!" he yelled.

"Which one is it?" Steve ranted as they all looked around the tapes. "Which one is it?"

"I got it! I got it!" Lucas pulled it out quickly, passing it to Rocky as he got it into her walkman.

Dustin placed the headphones on her ears. "Now!"

As Rocky hit play, Max's body began to levitate. He froze a moment, staring up as she got higher. "Max! Max!"

"Max, get out of there!" Lucas yelled.

"Max!" Rocky yelled. "We have to get her down!"

"Come here, i'll hoist you up!" Steve kneeled down with his hands locked on his knees. Rocky went to step in his hands before Max's body fell, he moved forward to try and catch her, only resulting in both of them falling it the ground.

Max cried out as she sat up some, looking down at Rocky. He sat up so she could too, wrapping his arms around her tightly as she leaned into him. They both cried as he rocked her slightly. "You scared me to death. I thought you were gone."

"I'm not gone." she gripped into his body tightly as his head shoved into the side of hers. "I'm still here."

•

kylie speaks

you still not sure if you
like her or not, rocky ?