Stranger Things: Doomsday

***Subaru71077: For those who have already read this chapter, I've added nearly a thousand new words. Enjoy the read!

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'...I fucked up.'

Steve quickly thought of an excuse to undermine the growing doubt he was feeling from Jonathan and Nancy. "Eleven, huh? Then it is her..."

Nancy's eyes widened in surprise. "You know her?"

"Ye—not exactly. A friend of mine told me a few days ago that he ran into a girl with a shaved head in the woods. She was asking for food and called herself Eleven," Steve replied naturally. "No one believed him. I mean, a girl with a number for a name? It sounded like someone tripping after a smoke. But, I don't know, it stuck with me for some reason."

"That was her! Eleven does have a shaved head. My brother and his friends found her in the woods earlier this week and hid her in our basement," Nancy said.

"Hmm... they hid her from the government guys?"

"Exactly. But they found out and raided my house. Luckily, the kids realized in time and ran. Later, we met up with them and went to the middle school. From there, you already know: Eleven used her powers to locate Will, and..." Her voice faltered, and sadness overwhelmed every other feeling in Nancy before she shook her head and continued, "Chief Hopper and Jonathan's mom went after Will in the Upside Down. Meanwhile, Jonathan and I went after the monster, and the kids stayed at the school, safe."

'Safe? I doubt it,' Steve thought, but kept his expression neutral. "So, that's everything?"

"Yeah, I think so," Nancy said, though she seemed to be mentally reviewing everything she'd just said.

Steve nodded. "Okay… give me a second to process all that."

"Of course. To be honest, I haven't fully processed all of this myself. It's… a lot." she said sympathetically, but Steve was no longer listening, lost in thought.

'Let's see...' Steve spun the coin faster between his fingers. 'Some experiment went wrong and a portal to another world opened. A monster came out and the soldiers couldn't contain it, causing chaos in the Lab. Eleven took the opportunity to escape. The monster also escaped and started hunting. (This thing can open portals.) It took Will and Barbara. Mike found Eleven— No, something's missing.' Steve looked out the window, piecing together what he knew. 'Hmm... Eleven went into Benny's Burgers looking for food. The lab found out and went after her, but she managed to escape.'

'They killed Benny to leave no witnesses and faked his death. Then Mike found Eleven. He hid her, but the lab found out and went after her at his house, which explains what I saw earlier. Eleven and the kids escaped just in time.' He paused before continuing, 'Nancy found out in the middle of all this that Barbara was taken by the monster and teamed up with Jonathan. Same thing with his mom and the cop. They all met up, shared what each of them knew, and went to the school. There, Eleven used her powers to find Will and Barbara (possibly dead). Then, they split up.'

Steve stopped spinning the coin. 'I guess this must be the big picture of the situation...' He lowered his gaze, fixing it on his left wrist, just below the watch. 'A situation very different from what I thought it would be. There are too many people involved for the lab to just 'erase' them without causing repercussions. Maybe I don't even have to run — I just need to play the right cards... But what do I do about Eleven?'

'She's not my problem.'

'Too risky.'

'She can handle herself, like I did—'

Steve swallowed hard and cut off that line of thinking. 'No, no, that's wrong. Why wouldn't I help her?' A wave of guilt flooded him, mixed with something deeper he couldn't name. 'I can get her out of that hell. She's my little sister... theoretically.'

He stopped the entire train of thought when red and blue lights started flashing in front of them.

Steve looked out the window, alarmed, as Jonathan slowed the car. The front of the school was swarmed with police cruisers, ambulances, and fire trucks — probably every emergency vehicle in Hawkins. Stretchers were being carried out of the building, each one covered by a blanket hiding bulky shapes. 'Holy shit. This is a massacre,' Steve thought, heart pounding in fear over what might've happened to the kids.

"Oh my God," Nancy murmured, stunned, one hand gripping Steve's arm tightly as she leaned forward for a better view. "What… what happened here?- Mike! Can anyone see him?!"

"N-no," Jonathan replied, his voice shaking. He stopped the car behind a police barricade. Two officers Steve didn't recognize quickly approached, their eyes locked on them with sharp suspicion.

'These guys definitely know what's going on here,' Steve thought, his mind working quickly to come up with an excuse that could get them the kids' location without revealing they were in any way involved.

THUD!

The sound of the car door slamming made him turn his head, just in time to see Nancy running toward the school. 'Alright, change of plans.' Steve jumped out of the car, with Jonathan right behind him.

Nancy had already been intercepted by one of the officers, who was holding her by the arms as she struggled furiously. "Let me through!" she screamed, her voice full of desperation. "My brother's in there! I need to find him!"

"Calm down! No one's allowed in, this is a crime scene!" the officer holding her exclaimed. "Go back to your car now!"

Steve ran up to the two of them and touched Nancy's back. But as soon as his fingers made contact, all the desperation and fear he felt from her tripled in strength, overwhelming him.

It was suffocating — His throat tightened, as if an invisible hand were crushing it, and the air he pulled in through his nose felt insufficient, thin. Steve's vision blurred at the edges, the world narrowing into a dark, tight tunnel. His legs weakened, threatening to give out, as cold sweat ran down his spine. 'No… no… get a grip!' He was losing control. At the worst possible moment!

Steve quickly closed his eyes and "grabbed" those feelings. They were too strong to suppress, and there weren't any other emotions in Nancy that he could use to fight them off. So Steve did the only thing possible. He "held" them, keeping them from running "wild."

It was exactly the same process he had been doing with himself ever since he got his memories back. It wasn't a solution — the fear and desperation would still be there — but at least they wouldn't be so out of control that they'd make Nancy act on impulse.

"Huh," Nancy let out a shaky breath and stopped struggling against the officer. Steve took the opportunity to pull her close, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and holding her firmly against his chest.

"Sorry for her behavior, sir," Steve said, forcing his voice to sound calm and respectful. "It's just... we got a desperate call from our brothers asking us to come get them here."

"I can't give information about minors, or an active crime scene," the officer said. "You need to leave the area. Now."

Nancy opened her mouth to protest, but Steve was quicker. "Of course, sir, we understand. But as citizens, we have the right to know what happened to our family members. We just want to know if they're okay, please." He spoke with a voice full of emotion.

The officer hesitated, his eyes narrowing as he studied Steve—particularly the bruises and scratches marking his face.

Steve didn't let the man's suspicion grow and focused his powers on channeling the empathy he felt. "P-please, sir. I know you're just doing your job. But we're desperate here. We need to know they're okay."

The officer seemed to wrestle with himself for a few seconds before letting out a long sigh, the weight of the night visible on his shoulders. "They were taken to Hawkins Memorial Hospital. That's all I can say."

"Thank you, sir. T-thank you so much." Steve turned and quickly walked back to the car, pulling a stunned Nancy with him. Jonathan followed right behind.

When they arrived, he opened the back door and helped Nancy get in, but stopped before following her. 'It's gonna feel weird with both of us in the back now.' Steve shut the door and got into the passenger seat. 'The last thing I need is to keep feeling this guy's gross jealousy the whole way.'

He was tired and completely worn out—so much so that his resistance to other people's emotions had weakened to the point that both Jonathan's and Nancy's feelings were already affecting him. "This is my limit. If I use my powers again in the next few hours, I'll lose control over my own emotions." Raising his hand to his right ear, Steve felt blood starting to come out. 'Perfect. This one I can't just push back like I do when it comes out of my nose.'

Jonathan got into the car, casting a penetrating glance at Steve, but remained silent and started the engine. The roar of the motor broke the silence as he sped toward the hospital. Steve could also feel the weight of Nancy's gaze as she repositioned herself between the front seats. "How did you do that?" she asked, unable to hold back her curiosity any longer. Or maybe she just wanted to distract herself.

"Do what?"

"Lie like that. The emotion in your voice... it all sounded so real."

"Oh... uh, I don't know?" Apparently, his life had revolved around lies from the very beginning, so manipulating someone was as easy as breathing—even when his memories were blocked. He had lost count of how many times he fooled the police whenever they showed up at a party involving alcohol. Just one of the reasons they call him King Steve. "I guess I'm good at improvising when it's necessary."

Jonathan, who had been driving in silence until then, made a dry remark: "Or maybe you're just a good liar."

'Better than taking pictures of girls undressing, isn't it?' Steve almost replied, but he was too exhausted for that. "Maybe... maybe..." The car rolled on in silence for a few more minutes until they spotted the hospital.

Jonathan pulled into the parking lot and stopped in a spot right in front of the entrance. Nancy didn't even wait for him to turn off the engine and was already out of the car, running toward the hospital.

'Well, I guess this is the moment of truth.' Getting out of the car, Steve stared at the entrance for three long seconds before following her.

Maybe it was a residual memory from Seven, but Steve had always hated hospitals. The sterile smell of disinfectant, the cold white walls, the doctors and nurses in their lab coats — all of it made him shudder. He avoided those places like the plague. And now, knowing the hospital could be crawling with lab agents, that place had undoubtedly become Steve's second most hated.

'Speaking of Seven... I'm going to have to deal with those memories at some point,' he thought, eyes fixed on the white coat of a doctor hurrying past. 'It's not going to be pleasant.' Just then, Jonathan rushed past him, joining Nancy, who was arguing frantically with a receptionist.

Steve arrived just in time to hear the woman behind the counter say, "I'm sorry, but I can't help you."

"How come?! I'm just asking you to tell me where the kids who came from Hawkins Middle School were sent!" Nancy practically shouted, attracting curious glances around the lobby.

"Look, I'm really sorry, but I truly can't give out information about that incident," the receptionist repeated, visibly uncomfortable.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Nancy shot back, her face turning red with frustration.

Steve could feel Nancy's emotions spiraling into chaos again. But this time, there was nothing he could do to help. Luckily, a hoarse voice drew the attention of all three.

"Hey!" From across the lobby, Chief Hopper was approaching with firm steps.

"Hopper!" Jonathan ran toward the man, hope mixing with fear. "D-Did you find him?"

"Yes, we found him," Hopper replied, giving a slight smile as he placed a hand on Jonathan's shoulder. "The doctors are examining him now, but they already said he's fine. We managed to save him."

"Thank God..." Jonathan murmured, covering his face with his hands. His shoulders were shaking, and from the wave of relief and happiness emanating from him, Steve was sure he was crying with joy.

"And my brother?!" Nancy asked as soon as they reached the two. "Is Mike okay?"

"Yes, the kids are all fine," Hopper assured her, before his gaze fell on Steve. He frowned. "Harrington? What the hell happened to your face?—No, what are you doing here?!"

"Uh, I kind of got involved in all this," Steve said, suddenly aware that he was, to everyone, the person least connected to what was going on. 'That's actually kind of great.'

"Got involved?!" Hopper shot a hard look at Jonathan and Nancy.

"He knows," Nancy confirmed. "Everything."

"Right..." Hopper ran a hand down his face, exasperated. "Come with me." He gestured for them to follow. The four of them walked through the hospital corridors until they reached a small waiting room already crowded with people.

"Nancy!" a woman ran up to them as soon as they entered and wrapped Nancy in a tight hug. "Where have you been?!"

'Must be her mom,' Steve concluded, feeling panic rise in Nancy. She opened her mouth to answer, but no words came out. Nancy clearly hadn't prepared any excuse for her parents. 'Well, I've got this,' Steve stepped forward and flashed his best smile. "She was with me. We came as soon as we found out."

"And you are?" the woman asks, narrowing her eyes. And from the distrust she exudes, Steve is sure he didn't start off on the right foot.

"Steven Harrington. Pleasure to meet you." He extended his hand but received only a cold, assessing look. '...how much did Nancy tell her about me?'

"What were you two doing? And what happened to your face?"

'Is every damn person going to point out the bruises on my face?!' Steve slowly lowered his hand, keeping the smile as he felt another spike of panic from Nancy because of the woman's questions. "We were with Jonathan, trying to distract him from all of this. As for my face, well, I took a fall off my bike. I went over some dry leaves, slipped, and hit my face on a root. Wasn't exactly my lucky day."

The woman's stern gaze softened slightly. "Is that so?" She turned her eyes to Nancy, a silent question hanging in the air. Nancy nodded quickly, confirming the story. "I see… Thank you for taking care of my daughter, Steve." She finally extended her hand. "I'm Karen Wheeler, Nancy's mother. I apologize for not being more welcoming earlier. We're all very tense because of what happened."

'How much does this woman know?'

"I understand, Mrs. Wheeler." Steve shook her hand, relieved she believed him. "Well, I won't keep you any longer." He stepped away from the two, even though he could feel Nancy wanted to say something. 'This isn't the time or place for our long and inevitable conversation.'

Steve took advantage of the "private" moment to carefully scan each person in the room. There were three boys and a man, but only one of them was awake—Nancy's brother, Mike, the same kid who had caught him trying to climb into their house to see his sister in the middle of the night a few days ago.

'Embarrassing.'

But more importantly, no sign of Eleven. 'Ok. I certainly didn't expect it to be this easy.' Weighing his options, Steve decided that waiting for Hopper outside the room would be the best course of action. 'He must know what happened to her.'

Steve stepped out, feeling the weight of Nancy's gaze on his back. Outside, the hospital hallway was eerily quiet, except for the distant hum of machines and the muffled murmurs coming from other rooms. Steve leaned against the wall, the cold tile against his back helping to calm his restless mind. 'This is going to be a long night…'

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Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters, images or songs featured in this fic. Additionally, I do not claim ownership of any products or properties mentioned in this novel. This work is entirely fanfic.