Song – It's my Party by Lesley Gore
CHAPTER SEVEN
Lee's POV
As I walked back to my car I heard Jonathan call my name. "Marilee!"he said, as I turned around I saw him walking toward me. "Hey um I was just on my way to the uh thing"I said.
"Uh yeah I'm not going"he said, "I don't blame you, honestly I didn't want to come"I said fiddling with my keys. "Not because I don't care about Will or you it's actually quite the opposite"I said. His face lit up a bit and a small smile grew on his face, mine too.
"What you said to Hopper, about Will being alive, did you mean it?"he asked. Great so the whole town thinks I'm borderline crazy and depressed. "Look Its like he told me, It wasn't real it was just my minds way of coping with what happened" I gestured with my hand to my head as lied. I don't want Johnny mixed up in this and getting hurt.
"We both know that's not true"he said getting a bit frustrated. "Me, The Cops and half the town were in the woods looking for both of you at night and during the day, if you were just lost in the woods we would have found you or some trace of one of you but we didn't, because you were somewhere else, weren't you?"he said.
"I don't know where we were"I said truthfully, "I just know that he's all alone there and that's my fault and I'm going to do everything in my power to get him back"I said. "me and Nancy are meeting in the woods later to shoot do you want to come?"he asked.
"Wheeler? You replaced me already"I said jokingly, he chuckled and replied "you know uh her friend Barbra?"he asked. "Yeah, she's nice"I said "why?"I ask "that thing that took you and Will took her too and when Nancy went back to look for her she saw it"He answered.
He noticed I looked sad, "I uh don't- I'm gonna stay with Mike and the boys they need me more than you do"I said, "Marilee"Johnny said as I got in my car, "we haven't been able to really talk since Hopper found you at the lake"he said as I started the car.
I sighed "there's nothing to talk about"I said, "you can't hold everything in all the time, you'll explode"he said sounding concerned "I'll pore my heart out after Will is home safe"I said before driving off to the Wheelers.
I parked next to Mr. wheelers car and got out and walked to the back door which El opened for me. After I sat down Mike explained to me and El what Mr. Clarke had told them. "It would take a lot of energy to build a gate like this."Mike said after sticking a pencil through the piece of paper that was in his hand.
"That's got to be what happened, otherwise how'd Will get there, right?"mike said looking at El, "right"el said looking surprised. "What we want to know is do you know where the gate is?"Lucas asked as I noticed Dustin looking at a compass confused.
El shook her head no and Lucas asked "than how do you know about the Upside Down." El looked down and didn't answer and mike looked at Lucas shrugging his shoulders. We all then looked at Dustin who was walking back and forth and in circles.
"Dustin. What are you doing? Dustin!"Mike said as Dustin continued to walk in a circle, "Dustin!"Lucas said "Dustin!?"Mike and Lucas both said which finally caught his attention.
"I need to see your compasses"Dustin said, "what?"Mike asked confused "your compasses! All of your compasses right now!"he said. Lucas ran home to get his and mike ran up stairs to get his, I went out to my truck and got mine out of my glove compartment.
As I closed my car door I saw Lucas running back with a hand full of Compasses. We walked back inside and set all our compasses on the table, "what's exciting about this?"mike asked as Dustin pointed them all the same direction.
"Well, there all facing north right?"he asked as I realized what he was talking about, "whoa"I said looking closely at all of them. "Right!"Dustin said excitedly, "what?"Lucas asked. "Well, that's not true North"he answered. "What do you mean?"Mike asked as I looked closely at my compass.
"I mean exactly what I said, That's not true North"Dustin said in an obvious tone, Mike and Lucas looked at each other confused. "Guys"I said not knowing how these smart kids hadn't figured it out yet. "Are you both Seriously this dense?"Dustin asked.
Lucas shrugged his shoulders, "The sun rises in the east and sets in the west right?"he said in an obvious tone while pointing in both directions. Mike nodded "which means that is true north"Dustin said pointing North.
"So what your saying is the compasses are broken?"mike asked, Dustin sighed and I giggled at how passionate and knowledgeable he is about compasses.
"Do you even understand how a compass works?"he asked. "Do you see a battery pack on this"he asked holding one up and shaking it in his hand.
"No"Mike answered, "no you don't because it doesn't need one, The needles naturally drawn to the earths magnetic North Pole"he explained. "So what's wrong with them"Lucas asked, "well, that's what I couldn't figure out. but then I remembered"Dustin said.
"You can change the direction of a compass with a magnet, if there's the presence of a more powerful magnetic field, the needle deflects to that power" he explained. I could see the boys finally figuring it out, "And then I remembered what Mr.Clarke said the gate would have so much power-"Dustin said.
"It could disrupt the electromagnetic's field"Mike said, "exactly"Dustin said. "Meaning if we follow the compasses north..."Lucas said "they should lead us to the gate"Dustin said.
I smiled, "I'll be right back"I said before running back outside to my car and getting my revolver which my uncle said was only for emergencies. I put it in my jacket inside pocket and grabbed my baseball bat from the bed of my truck.
The kids walked up to me and Dustin handed me my compass, "lead the way"I said to Dustin, he smiled and stared walking.
*
"How much further?"Lucas asked, "I don't know. These only tell directions, not distance"Dustin replied as I looked behind us at Mike and El. I smiled as I saw them walking together, I then looked down at my compass.
"You really need to learn more about compasses"Dustin said, "I'm just saying, how do we know when we get to the gate"Lucas said. "Uh, I think a portal to another dimension is going to be pretty obvious"Dustin said making me smile from amusement.
"Do you think she's acting weird?"Lucas asked looking back at El. "You're asking if the weirdo is acting weird?"Dustin said. I looked back at El to see her talking to mike about something. "I mean, weirder than normal"Lucas said looking back again, "I don't know who cares"Dustin said as we continued walking.
After about twenty more minutes of walking we reached a car junk yard which only had a few cars and a bus. "Oh no"Dustin said stopping and looking ahead. "'oh no'?"Lucas asked "what's 'oh no'?"i asked confused.
"We're headed back home"Dustin said, "what?"mike asked "are you sure?"Lucas asks. "Yeah I'm sure, setting sun right there we looped right back round"Dustin answered pointing to the sun. Mike, Lucas and I tired around and looked at the sun, "and your just realizing this now!?"Lucas asked frustratedly.
I sighed in frustration, "why is this all on me?"Dustin asked looking at Lucas. "Because your the compass genius!"Lucas exclaimed. "What do yours say?"Dustin asked, I looked down at my compass and mike and Lucas did the same.
"North"the three of us said all at once, "this makes no damn sense"Dustin said looking around. "Maybe the gate moved"Mike said, "no, I don't think it's the gate. I think it's something screwing with the compasses"Dustin said. "Maybe it's something here"Mike said as Lucas and I turn to look at El, "no it has to be like a super magnet"Dustin said as I noticed blood on mikes jacket which el was wearing.
"It's not a magnet. She's been acting weirder than normal If she can slam doors with her mind than she can definitely screw up a compass"Lucas said angrily.
"Why would she do that?"Mike asked, "mike, she has been acting different since we left the house"I say "she's just tired"mike said quickly, "no, she's trying to sabotage our mission to save Will, because she's a traitor"Lucas said angrily.
"Lucas what are you doing?"mike asked as Lucas made his way up to el and mike followed him standing protectively next to Eleven. "You did it, didn't you?"Lucas asked her as I walked up and stood behind Lucas. "You don't want us to reach the gate you don't want us to find Will"he accused.
"Lucas come on, seriously, just leave her alone!"mike said, I looked at Dustin and he at me and could tell something was going to happen. "Admit it"Lucas said, "no"el said quietly, "admit it!!"Lucas yelled making el and I jump.
"Lucas!"I said raising my voice as he grabbed her wrist and saw the blood. "Fresh blood, I knew it"Lucas said."Lucas come on!"mike said raising his voice. "I saw her wiping her nose on the tracks! She was using her powers"Lucas said trying to convince mike of his theory.
"Bull! That's old blood, right El?"mike said looking at El. "Right El?"mike asked hoping he was right. "It's...not...safe"eleven said crying, she's not a traitor she's just trying to keep us safe. Mike looked at her in disbelief.
"What did I tell you! She's been playing us since the beginning!"Lucas said angrily "that's not true she helped us find Will and Marilee!"Mike said. "Find will?"Lucas asked sounding very done with this whole discussion.
"Find Will!? Where is he? Huh? I don't see him and last I checked Marilee's uncle found her!"Lucas said looking around and gesturing to me. "Yeah, you know what I mean"mike said, "no, I actually don't. Just think about it Mike, she could have just told us where the Upside Down was right away, but she didn't! She just made us run around like headless chickens!"Lucas said angrily.
"Lucas!"I said as Dustin walked forward, "all right calm down"he said. "No!"Lucas said slapping his arm away, "she used us, all of us, she helped just enough to get what she wants, food and a bed, she's like a stray dog"Lucas said. "Lucas stop!"I said, "screw you, Lucas!"mike said, "mike you're not helping"I say. "No! Screw you, Mike, your blind...blind because you like that a girl our age is not grossed out by you!"Lucas yelled.
"Guys! Are you even listening to me!?"I said loudly. "Wake up man! Wake the hell up!"Lucas yelled, mike looked like he was about to murder someone. "She knows where Will is, and now she's just letting him die in the Upside Down"Lucas said his face growing sad. "Shut up!"Mike yelled "for all we know, it's her fault!"Lucas said. "Shut up!"mike yelled "stop it!"I yelled. "We're looking for some stupid monster..but did you ever stop to think maybe she's the monster"Lucas said lightly pushing Mike.
"I said shut up!"mike said pushing Lucas to the ground, I looked at them in surprise "stop!"I yell at them as they continue to fight. "Knock it off you idiots!"Dustin said. "Stop it! Stop it! Stop!!"El yelled right before Lucas was about to punch Mike. I ran to try and stop them when suddenly Lucas flew through the air and landed on the ground and slid back until he hit a car door and all my anger vanished.
"Lucas!"I yell as the three of us run to him, he wasn't awake. "Lucas! Lucas are you all right!?"Mike said trying to wake him up. "Come on! Lucas! please!"I yell tapping him trying to get him to wake up. "Lucas!"Dustin said, tears filled my eyes, my breathing turned into hyperventilating. "Why would you do that!?"mike yelled at El who was crying.
I felt as if I couldn't breath, my hands were shaking and I was crying. "Marilee!"Dustin said turning to me, "no no no, look at me, everything's going to be okay! Calm down try to breath in and out"Dustin said try to calm me down while still trying to wake Lucas up and while mike yelled at El. I breathed in and out and closed my eyes as I started panicking, "Lucas come on!"mike said, "Lucas"I heard mike say relieved. I opened my eyes to see Lucas getting up. I sighed in relief and continued to breath in and out, calming myself.
"Lucas how many fingers am I holding up? How many fingers?"Dustin said holding up three fingers, "let me see your head"mike said. "Get off me!"he said pushing them away.
"Just...Lucas, let me see"mike said concerned. "Get off me"Lucas said getting up and walking away, "Lucas"mike and I said getting up and trying to go after him before Dustin pulled us back. "Just let him go"Dustin said as we watched him walk away, "man, let him go"Dustin said and we turned around "where's El?"Mike asked. I turned to see she was nowhere to be seen.
"El!"mike yelled, we continued to yell for her until sundown when I walked Dustin and Mike back home. When we got back to the wheelers it was dark, Dustin grabbed his bike and road home. Mike turned and looked at me as I got in my truck, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you have a panic attack"he said as I turned the engine over till it started.
"It's fine. I'm just worried about Will, Lucas was right about one thing, Will is dying there and there's not a thing I can do about it."I said before driving off towards home.