When Ariana arrived home, her mom was on the couch, watching TV.

"Hey, hon, how was the movie?" she asked, her voice filled with warmth. However, Ariana didn't reply.

Her throat felt sore, and her eyes were red from crying. Her mom noticed her distress and promptly stood up.

"What's wrong?" she asked, concern spread across her face.

Unable to hold back her emotions any longer, Ariana broke down right there. She wrapped her arms around her mother and cried into her shirt.

"What happened?" her mother asked, her worry for her daughter growing by the second.

"It...it was Steve," Ariana managed to say as she sat down with her mom on the couch. "What did Steve do?" her mother questioned.

"I...I was just a bet," Ariana confessed, her voice quivering with pain.

Her mom embraced her tightly, offering comfort and solace. "I just can't believe he would do that. I thought he was different," she murmured.

"I'm so sorry this happened to you," her mother said, her voice filled with empathy.

"I think I'm going to take a nap and try to clear my head," Ariana said, wiping away her tears.

"Do you want me to give him a piece of my mind?" her mother offered humorously.

Ariana managed a laugh. "No, it's okay," she replied, standing up.

"Honey?" Ariana turned around to face her mother.

"He lost a wonderful girl, the best he'll ever find. He doesn't deserve you," her mother assured her with a warm smile.

"Thanks, Mom," Ariana said, appreciating her mother's support, before heading to her room to find some solace.

____

The following morning, Ariana entered the kitchen and reached for a cereal box, intending to make breakfast.

However, upon opening the fridge, she realized she was out of milk. "Oh, shit," she muttered to herself. "Hey, Mom, I'm going to run to the store!" she called out.

"Okay, honey!" her mom's voice echoed from another room.

Ariana hopped into her car and drove to the store, but as she approached, she noticed a significant police presence and a crowd of people gathered around the storefront. She parked by the roadside then got out of her car and approached the store.

An officer stopped her in her tracks. "Sorry, you can't come in here," the officer said. "What happened?" Ariana asked.

"Some guy reported seeing a girl with a shaved head grab some Eggos and leave without paying. We're still trying to figure out what happened to the windows," the officer explained.

Suddenly, it struck Ariana: The girl from Mike's basement. She walked away from the officer, her gaze shifting towards the nearby woods. She couldn't help but think the girl might have gone in there. She could be lost or injured, and Ariana felt obligated to check.

She began walking toward the woods, determined to find the missing girl. After a short while, she spotted her, sitting on a log and eating Eggo waffles.

Ariana sat down beside her, surprised to see her. "Hey, are you okay?" Ariana asked gently.

The girl nodded. "You remember me, right? From Mike's basement. I'm Dustin's sister." The girl nodded in recognition.

"I'm Ariana. What's your name?" She asked. The girl pulled down her sleeve, revealing a tattoo that read "011."

"Eleven," she said. Ariana mirrored her action, exposing a tattoo on her wrist that read "002."

"You're...like me," Eleven said. "I never knew what it meant. I always thought I was born with it," Ariana admitted.

"Do...do you have powers?" Eleven asked. Ariana nodded. "

Telekinesis?" Once again, Ariana nodded.

"You're... from the lab," Eleven added.

They decided to take a walk through the woods, discussing their powers along the way. Ariana revealed that she had been born in a lab but that her mother had won a lawsuit to keep her. The doctors had wanted to use her as a weapon, but her mom had fought back fiercely.

"You know, this kinda makes us like sisters," Ariana mused.

Eleven smiled and replied, "Sisters."

"So why are you here in the woods? I thought you were with Mike," Ariana asked.

"We had a fight," Eleven admitted. "Are you okay? Do you want me to take you back?" Ariana offered.

"No...he's angry," Eleven explained.

Suddenly, they heard Mike and Dustin's voices nearby. "That sounds like the guys," Ariana said.

She and Eleven quickly made their way to the source of the commotion, finding Mike standing perilously close to the cliff's edge with two boys menacingly surrounding him, one of them holding a knife to Dustin's throat.

Ariana moved to intervene, but Eleven stopped her. "I have an idea," Eleven whispered.

Without warning, Mike jumped from the edge, causing Eleven to close her eyes in concentration. Miraculously, Mike floated back up to the ground with Eleven's telekinetic powers. She glanced at Ariana, and they both nodded resolutely before approaching the boys.

The boys turned their attention to the approaching girls. Dustin's face lit up when he saw Ariana. In an instant, Ariana employed her telekinesis to send one of the boys crashing to the ground.

Then, with a swift motion, she twisted her head and snapped the other boy's arm, breaking it. Dustin and Mike were both taken aback, a mix of confusion and joy washing over them.

"She broke my arm! My arm!" the injured boy cried out.

"Yeah, and there's plenty more where that came from," Ariana warned as she approached the boy and grabbed his shirt collar.

"You ever touch my brother or one of his friends again, I'll break more than your arm." With that, she forcefully threw him to the ground, and the two boys hastily scrambled to their feet before fleeing.

"That's right! You better run! She's my sister, and she's crazy! If you come back here, she'll kill you! Do you hear me? She'll kill you, you sons of bitches!" Dustin yelled after them. Ariana extended a hand to help Mike up, and Dustin turned to her, baffled.

"Okay, what the hell?!" Dustin exclaimed, clearly taken aback.

"Surprise?" Ariana shrugged.

"You have powers. Superpowers. Just like Eleven," Mike explained.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Dustin asked, still in shock.

"I don't know, I was scared," Ariana admitted.

"I have a superhero as a sister!" Dustin exclaimed, his excitement evident.

"I'm not a superhero," Ariana insisted.

"You just broke a kid's arm with your mind, Ariana!" Dustin exclaimed.

Suddenly, Eleven collapsed and fell to the ground. "El, are you okay?" Mike asked with concern.

"El?" he repeated as he tried to rouse her. She opened her eyes and began to cry. "Mike...I'm sorry," she sobbed.

"Sorry? What are you sorry for?" Mike asked.

"The gate...I opened it. I'm the monster," Eleven confessed, her voice trembling.

"No. No, El, you're not the monster. You saved me. Do you understand? You saved me," Mike reassured her before embracing Eleven tightly.

Ariana, still somewhat confused by the recent events, asked, "Wait, I'm confused. What gate?"

Dustin chimed in, "You have so much to catch up on," and then joined the group hug with Ariana.

"I'm still so confused about how you have powers," Dustin admitted, looking up at Ariana.

She chuckled and ruffled his hair. "I'll explain later," she promised.

The group made their way back to Mike's house, where Ariana listened intently as Dustin recounted the strange events involving Will and the upside-down. Although she was initially confused, Mike's explanations cleared things up.

Upon their return to Mike's house, they entered through the basement door to avoid being seen with Eleven. However, Ariana couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching them.

END OF CHAPTER