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cocastyle · 4 years

Text

The In-Between Chapter 8

Stranger Things x It Crossover

with some Bill Denbrough x reader

Word Count - 14,120

Warning - just a lot of emotions😭💗also, I put one of the It Chapter 2 scenes in here for Richie so here’s the warning for that!!

A/N- so this is THE LONGEST chapter I have written for this series but it’s 100% necessary for the series. this chapter is going to show a small but very important memory of Y/N with each of the characters, each one showcasing just a little bit of how much Y/N means to them which will help show you all how much her situation affects them. since there are so many characters and flashbacks that means this chapter is super long so I apologize in advance if you think it’s too long, but I just couldn’t split it up, you know? also, I changed a scene from It Chapter 2 and basically had it happen when Y/N was around to fit the storyline, so just pretend like it happened after they defeated It in the first movie, okay? anyways, I really hope you guys like this chapter! we still have plenty of more until the end! also, all flashbacks will be in italics!

if you would like to be added to the tag list, let me know!

T H E I N - B E T W E E N

Intro The Losers’ Club The Party Prologue 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Epilogue

Steve Harrington stared at the little girl in front of him, a small frown etched onto his face as he did so. It was only him and the little girl in the room, both of their parents out in the hallway conversing while Steve got left to watch the young girl and 'bond with her' as his parents had put it.

He didn't know what to think as he stared at the girl who was currently sleeping in the crib wrapped up in a small blanket. He didn't particularly like her at the moment even though she was only a baby, still unable to talk or annoy him like a regular person his age could.

No, she was five years younger than him and had only been born the week before. His parents were just really close parents with hers, so the moment his parents got the call about Y/N L/N being born, they were pulling him towards the car so that they could go visit.

Steve wouldn't admit it, but he was kind of jealous. He just didn't get how Y/N was so special and why his parents were gushing over her when they hardly paid attention to him half of the time.

"What makes you so special?" Steve softly asked as he leaned against the edge of the crib, his fist pushing against his cheek and causing his skin to scrunch up as he stared at her. He brushed his hair back with his hand and scrunched his nose up as Y/N started to move. The baby then let out a small yawn and Steve froze. Okay, so that was kind of cute.

Steve quickly shook his head, his mop of hair moving with him as he did so. He wouldn't allow himself to have those thoughts. He wouldn't let himself break when he was trying everything in his power not to like the girl that had stolen the attention of his parents away from him.

A small coo had him looking back down at the girl and his breath hitched slightly at the sight of big e/c eyes staring up at him. A huge grin appeared on her face as she looked up at him, her arm moving in a jerking motion as she squirmed. "I won't lie. You are kind of adorable," Steve muttered as he looked down at the girl. She let out a small coo and the corners of Steve's lips turned up ever so slightly.

He noticed that her blanket was staring to fall off and reached in to fix it, the small action causing Y/N to reach out and grab onto his thumb with her tiny hand. Steve instantly froze, his eyes flickering over to lock on the baby who was staring at him with wide eyes and a toothless grin. Steve's heart melted in that moment and he gently moved her arm up and down by moving his thumb that she was still latched onto. "I guess you're not that bad," Steve whispered.

As if understanding what he had said, Y/N let out a small laugh that made him smile as a giddy feeling filled the five year old's body. And it was in that moment, with the little girl staring up at him, that he realized the responsibility that he had now bestowed upon himself.

Steve lovingly rubbed the soft skin of Y/N's tiny hand before whispering, "I'm Steve. You don't have a brother right now, but. . .but I can be that for you if you want? I'll love you with all my heart and take care of you. And don't worry, I'll protect you, okay? I'll always protect you."

- - -

Lucas let out a small sigh as he looked around his first grade classroom, watching as the kids all went to sit by their friends, making sure to avoid his table entirely. He didn't know what he did that was so wrong, but no one ever seemed to want to talk to him or even sit at the same table as him.

Staring at his empty table, Lucas let out a sigh before reaching for the crayons and beginning to work on his drawing. He didn't even realize someone had walked up to his table before a small voice asked, "Can I sit here?"

Lucas almost fell out of his seat from the sudden noise and looked up with wide eyes to see a young girl standing there. She gave him a small smile and it was only then that he remembered she had asked him a question.

"Uh. . .sure. Yeah," Lucas smiled, happy that someone actually wanted to sit with him. He watched as she sat down, but his eyebrows furrowed in confusion once he saw her pull back the other chair as if someone were going to sit down.

The girl noticed his stare and slapped her forehead. "Silly me. I'm Y/N and this is my friend Frank," she said with a giggle. She then glanced at the empty seat before leaning closer to Lucas and whispering, "He's a bit shy." Lucas snickered and Y/N winked at him before pulling away and grabbing a green crayon. She began coloring and started to tell Lucas her whole life story it seemed like.

Lucas didn't mind. He actually enjoyed the girl's company, finding her quite funny and entertaining with the way she moved her hands around as she spoke. It was only when she was in the middle of telling Lucas a story about the time she broke her arm because Frank told her to try and stick a landing by jumping off a tree that her crayon broke and she fell silent.

"Shit."

The two froze at that and Lucas looked up at the girl who seemed a bit surprised that she had uttered that word. Her eyes locked with Lucas' and the two sat there for a moment before they burst into laughter, huge grins on their faces.

"I like you!" Lucas exclaimed as he pointed his crayon in her direction. He gave her a big grin before tilting his head and asking, "Want to be best friends?" Y/N returned the smile before saying, "Sure! I was getting kind of bored of Frank anyways. He likes to eat too much candy and I don't need that or the cavities in my life." She then picked up a red crayon before glancing over at the empty seat and shrugging her shoulders. “Sorry, Frank."

- - -

Dustin skipped out of school with a grin on his face as he headed towards his bike. It was the second week of second grade and Dustin loved it so far. He didn't have many friends except for a boy named Lucas, but he had slowly started becoming friends with two other boys named Mike and Will. He didn't care about not having many friends. He was just happy with life and that was all that mattered.

In that moment, Dustin was most excited about getting home to show his mother the small painting he had made for her today. It was two stick figures, one being him and one being his mother, with a small blob that he had determined was his cat Mews. He was no Picasso, but his mother wouldn't care. The fact that it was coming from him was all that mattered.

Dustin could see his bike by now and his grin widened just a little as he stopped skipping and went to run towards it. However, just when he went to step forward, the force of two hands shoving him in the back had him tumbling to the ground.

His hands scrapped against the ground as he tried to catch himself and he let out a small hiss of pain as he stilled on the ground. "Ouch," Dustin muttered, pulling himself up slightly so that he could turn and see who had just pushed him.

He let out a mental groan at the sight of Troy Walsh and his friend James Dante, the two school bullies in his grade. "Better watch where you're going, Toothless. You don't want to lose more teeth, do ya?" Troy cackled, James snickering from his side.

Dustin tried to get up, but James just shoved the boy down. Dustin let out a defeated sigh and looked up at the boys from under his hat. "I've told you before. I have cleidocranial dysplasia," he muttered, his shoulders slumping slightly as he was being bullied for a condition he couldn't control.

"Those are some big words. You sure you know what they mean?" James laughed. “You sure you do?" Dustin retorted earning glares from the boys before Troy sent a kick to his side. Dustin groaned and held onto his side while the two bullies glared at him.

"A little birdie told me you have a pretty gross trick you can do with your arm. We want you to show us, freak," Troy demanded. Dustin went to shake his head, but James kicked him hard enough to have him falling back again. "Show us!" James exclaimed.

Dustin looked up at the boys shyly before moving his arms in a weird way so that they popped. Troy and James both winced before Troy muttered, "That was disgusting. Do it again." "I don't want to," Dustin told them as he fixed the way his arms looked. Not that it hurt doing it, but the movement could feel uncomfortable at times.

"You really are a freak, aren't you?" Troy laughed before sending another kick at the boy's side. Dustin groaned and hugged his body close to himself as the boys continued to taunt and kick him. All he wanted was to go home, but the fact that he had no friends meant that he had no one who would stand up for him. So all he could do was wait until the boys were done having their fun.

"Hey, assholes!" a voice exclaimed making the kicking stop for a second as all three boys turned to see a girl in a yellow dress with her hair tied back with a yellow bow standing there with a glare on her face.

Dustin recognized her almost immediately. He had seen her hanging around Lucas quite often. The girl was Y/N L/N and her and Lucas had been best friends since the previous year. He had always wanted to try and talk to her, but she was never around Lucas when he was there and the idea of talking to a girl scared him from talking to her when she was around Lucas.

By now the kids that were outside waiting on their parents to pick them up had turned their attention over to the group and the girl who had just openly cussed in front of everyone. Some children were snickering while others were wide eyed, but no one made a move to stop them.

"I'm sorry. Were you talking to us?" Troy asked, turning his attention away from Dustin to look at Y/N in disbelief. "Well you're the only assholes here, so who else would I be talking to?" Y/N questioned. Troy and James both went to say something, but Y/N didn't even give them the time of day as she said, "Leave the boy alone."

"Who? Toothless over here?" James asked as he kicked Dustin for good measure. "No, I don't think we will," Troy told her. "Why? Because your life sucks so badly and you're so insecure that you have to make up for it by bullying others?" Y/N retorted, earning small snickers from the kids while Troy and James glared at her with red faces.

"Insecure? What makes you think we're insecure? If anything, you should be. I mean, with a rat face like yours who wouldn't be?" Troy laughed, James joining in, but Y/N only stared at them blankly, not fazed by them at all. The fact that she didn't react made the boys' laughter die down and a silence fell among the front schoolyard.

"Your words don't bother me, Walsh. Yours either, Dante. Want to know why? Cause why the hell would I listen to the two of you when you can't even take any of the quizzes in class without cheating off of others. And guess what? You still manage to fail! So why would the words of two dumbasses such as yourselves bother me?" Y/N asked, her eyebrows raised as she awaited an answer.

The laughter was getting louder by now and and Troy and James were both red faced. "I don't need to explain why you're insecure because I know you both know exactly what I'm talking about. Or do you want me to tell everyone right now just how much a pussy you two really are?" Y/N asked as she took a few steps closer to the boys.

To Dustin's surprise, they stepped back. "You bitch," James muttered. "No, you are the bitch," Y/N whispered in a dark tone. "So why don't you two stop being bitches and head home. Your mothers will be waiting for you."

Troy and James glared at the girl, but began to walk away. "You're going to pay for this, L/N!" Troy yelled after her. Y/N just rolled her eyes and flicked the boys off before turning away and looking to Dustin who was still on the ground. "You okay?" she asked as she walked over to the boy.

"Y-Yeah, I'm okay," Dustin said as he stared up at the girl in shock. Y/N smiled and held a hand out for the boy to take. He quickly grabbed on and she helped him into his feet before the two smiled at each other. “That was amazing," Dustin told her. "Thank you."

"Don't let them bother you. Troy and James are idiots," Y/N said. She stared at the boy for a moment before saying, "I think I've seen you with Lucas before. Lucas is like my best friend."

"Yeah, we've hung out a couple of times," Dustin told her before he held a hand out. "I'm Dustin by the way. Dustin Henderson." Y/N smiled and took his hand before shaking it. "Y/N," she said, "Y/N L/N." And that was the beginning of their friendship.

- - -

"Y/N can do it!" Wheeler exclaimed causing Y/N to blink out of her thoughts she had been having to see Wheeler, Dustin, and Lucas all staring at her. “What?" Y/N asked confused seeing as she hadn't listened to a word the boys were saying. She was too busy thinking about Will who had been missing for a couple of days now. She was really worried about him, so she had found herself drifting off into space more and more often because of how much she missed him.

"You're a girl," Dustin said causing Y/N to blink. "Wow. Nice going, Sherlock. How long did it take for you to figure that out?" Y/N asked sarcastically earning a snort from Lucas who high fived her while Dustin looked unamused.

"What we are getting at is that because you are a girl, you can help get El ready and like do her makeup and stuff," Wheeler explained. Y/N hesitated and let her eyes flicker over to the girl who had literally appeared out of no where.

Eleven was the girl the group had met in the woods the other night. She had been wearing ratty clothes, had all of her hair shaved off, and didn't seem to know many words since all of her responses were only a couple words long. Y/N still didn't entirely know the girl, but Eleven seemed nice enough and Y/N actually liked her. The fact that Eleven seemed to know how to help Will also made her more accepting of her as well.

"Okay, I'm going to pretend like you didn't just assume I know how to use makeup because I'm a girl. But I probably do know more than you three, so you guys figure out an outfit while I go do El's makeup," Y/N sighed. The boys nodded and Y/N was quick to turn and take Eleven's hand before gently pulling her towards Nancy Wheeler's bedroom where she knew she would be able to find makeup of some kind.

It took a few minutes, but the two girls were eventually sitting on Nancy's bed while Y/N did Eleven's makeup. Eleven was a shy girl and didn't like to say much, so Y/N just softly hummed as she worked, pretending not to notice the way Eleven looked at her and smiling softly when Eleven tried humming the song back.

"And done!" Y/N exclaimed once she had finished up, closing the lipstick as she leaned back to look at the girl. Y/N grinned before putting the makeup down and pulling Eleven off the bed, a small laugh escaping her lips as she brought the girl over to the mirror.

Eleven froze at the sight of herself before she hesitantly reached up and poked at her face. She was silent for a minute before whispering, "Pretty?" Y/N smiled and whispered, "You're pretty with or without the makeup, El."

Eleven smiled at that and Y/N returned it as she wrapped an arm around the girl's neck and hugged her, the two looking at their reflections. Eleven was silent again as her eyes flickered between her own reflection and Y/N's. Y/N could tell she wanted to ask something, so she didn't move as she waited for Eleven to speak.

"Friends?" Eleven finally asked, her eyes flickering to look at Y/N's through the mirror as if she were afraid to ask the question in fear of Y/N saying no. Y/N smiled and whispered, "Even better. We're best friends." Eleven smiled, obviously liking the sound of that. She found herself wrapping an arm around Y/N and hugging her just like Y/N was doing before whispering back in confirmation, "Best friends."

- - -

Playing D&D with only two people was quite hard and Y/N and Will didn't realize that until one afternoon when everyone else was busy. It didn't seem to bother either of them though since it only made the game that much more fun to figure out and Will really needed that at the moment.

It had been a couple of weeks since he had returned from the Upside Down and things hadn't been the same since before he had disappeared. Wheeler was depressed because of losing Eleven, so he had been kind of off the radar, wanting nothing more than to be alone. As for Lucas and Dustin, they talked to Will like they were walking on egg shells, so Will didn't hang out with them as much at the moment.

But Y/N was different. She knew how hard it was for Will to adjust after an experience like that, especially seeing as he couldn't even sleep without waking up screaming due to nightmares. Y/N knew Will would talk to her eventually, so she just decided to treat him like normal, joking and laughing around with him like the events that had taken place never happened. It helped both of them seeing as Y/N was also affected by the loss of Eleven.

Y/N treated Will like a normal human being and it was so comforting that he had been spending most of his days by her side, the two hanging out outside of school whenever the others couldn't and just enjoying being kids.

That's how they ended up where they were right now— in Will's living room playing D&D while Jonathan listened to music in his room. Lucas had had a doctor's appointment that day, Dustin had been grounded for accidentally setting his cat's tail on fire, and Wheeler had gone home, so Y/N had brought it upon herself to entertain Will by playing D&D.

Y/N was dressed up as a magician while Will was dressed up as a wizard and the two would break character every so often to chuckle at their outfits. Besides Will, Y/N was probably the second most enthusiastic about the game and she often took over the role of narrator when Wheeler didn't want to.

This was probably one of Will's favorite days with Y/N and he didn't know why. They were just playing a game, but maybe that's exactly why it was. There was no special treatment, no walking on egg shells. It was just the two of them, two best friends being the kids that they were.

Will watched Y/N silently, his mind racing as he tried to figure out how he had gained such a great friend like Y/N. As if sensing his stare, the girl glanced over at him, her hat tilting slightly as she did. She quickly fixed her hat and gave her friend an amused look as she raised her eyebrows. "What?" she asked, the corners of her lips turning up into a smile.

"I just. . ." Will hesitated and Y/N furrowed her eyebrows. Will smiled softly before whispering, "Thank you, Y/N." He didn't have to explain what he was thanking her for. It was for her treating him normally, for playing D&D with him, for just being his friend.

Y/N was silent for a minute as she just stared at her friend, her heart warming slightly as she realized just how much she had missed him while he was gone. She smiled, "No problem, Will the Wise. Now choose your action!"

Will let out a loud laugh and neither of the kids noticed Jonathan who was watching from the doorway, happy to see his brother finally acting like himself for once. Will glanced at his friend and gave her a sly look as he picked up the dice. "Fireball."

- - -

"Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?" Y/N muttered in frustration as she flipped through the pile of records she had in the box in front of her. Letting out a groan once she had hit the back of the box, Y/N turned her body to look at Wheeler who was standing on the other end of the store.

"Wheeler, tell me some good news please!" Y/N called out, but the frown on Wheeler's face was enough of a response. "Shit," the twelve year old muttered as she hurried over to one of the boxes she had checked when they first arrived at the record shop. It was the morning before the Party's monthly karaoke night at Y/N's house and Y/N needed to get the latest Bruce Springsteen record to be able to use. Her and Wheeler always sang a song together and they were determined to sing Born in the U.S.A. However, they couldn't do that until they found the record first.

"We've checked everywhere, L/N. I don't think they have it," Wheeler said as he came to a stop beside the girl. "But how? It's still such a new album!" Y/N complained. "Exactly. They probably sold out," Wheeler told her.

"May I help you two?" a small voice asked causing the two to turn and see a young woman who looked to be in her mid-twenties standing at the end of the aisle. "Oh, yes!" Y/N exclaimed as she hurried over to the woman. "We're looking for the new Bruce Springsteen record but can't seem to find it."

"Oh, you two are fans of Bruce? I think we sold our last record earlier this morning," the woman told them causing Wheeler and Y/N to frown. "But I think we might have a few stragglers in the back if you two want to come and check." The twelve year olds' eyes lit up and Y/N gripped onto Wheeler's arm as the two jumped up and down in excitement. "Yes, please!" they both exclaimed.

The woman chuckled before gesturing to follow her. She brought them to the back where there were a few boxes of records laying in storage. "You two are free to look through the boxes if you would like. I'll be out front once you two are done," the woman told them before she began to walk away. "Thank you!" the two kids yelled after her before they looked to the boxes. They glanced at each other before practically breaking into a run.

The two were looking through the boxes within seconds and it took a few minutes before Wheeler cried out triumphantly, "I found it!" Y/N's eyes lit up and she turned to see Wheeler holding the record up in the air. She squealed before running over to the boy and hugging him in excitement. "We hit the jackpot! Hurry! Let's go buy this so we can try it out!" Y/N said.

Wheeler nodded and the two went up to the front to pay for the record. It took about twenty minutes for them to buy the record and bike all the way to Y/N's house, but it was totally worth it once they heard the familiar beat of Born in the U.S.A filling the air.

"Born down in a dead man's town. The first kick I took was when I hit the ground," Y/N sang as she pointed to Wheeler, one hand up as if she were holding a microphone. Wheeler mimicked her actions and squeezed his eyes shut as he sang along to the music with as much passion as he could, "End up like a dog that's been beat too much. 'Til you spend half your life just covering up."

The two kids grinned before singing out, "Born in the U.S.A. I was born in the U.S.A!" The two kids danced crazily around the room with their eyes shut, neither of them realizing how close they had gotten before they tripped over each other's feet and went tumbling to the ground. Y/N and Wheeler opened their eyes and the moment their eyes locked, they burst into a round of childish laughter.

This is what it was like whenever the two were together. Their friendship could be a bit odd at times, but it was about as strong as her friendship with Lucas. They were best friends and partners in crime. But even more importantly, they were karaoke partners and that night when they sang along to their favorite song would just be another win on their long list of karaoke accomplishments.

So with their laughter filling the air and five more hours until the others were supposed to come over for karaoke night, the two kids got up and spun around the room, singing their favorite song and enjoying the moment they had together.

"I was born in the U.S.A. Born in the U.S.A."

- - -

"You sure this is going to work?" Max whispered as she stared at the place in front of her. Y/N glanced over at her friend and chuckled before nudging her. "Of course it will," she told her. "Besides, you're with me. They love me."

Max rolled her eyes at her friend's ego and Y/N chuckled before linking her arm with her friend, the two walking into Scoops Ahoy side by side. "Harrington!" Y/N cried out before said boy came running out of the back room.

His eyes searched frantically before he saw Y/N standing there with Max by her side at the counter. "You little shit," he breathed out. "You can't just come running in here yelling for me like that. I thought something was wrong."

"But something is wrong," Y/N told him, the boy raising an eyebrow in amusement as a response. "I'm hungry." Steve rolled his eyes, but let out a small chuckle. "You've got a problematic life I see," he joked making Max chuckle while Y/N reached across the counter to lightly punch the boy's arm. "What would you two like?"

"Can we try one of everything and then decide what we want?" Y/N asked as she put an innocent smile on her face. Steve looked at her unamused. "I know what you're trying to do-" he began, but Y/N leaned on the counter and gave him her best pleading face as she batted her eyelashes. "Please, Stevie. Please," she said.

Steve was silent for a minute before a voice behind him said, "You're screwed." The group turned to see Robin standing with a whiteboard that had Y/N's name written on one side and Steve's on the other. "I know you, Harrington, and Y/N just pulled the puppy dog eyes on you. She's going to win this round once again," Robin said as she went ahead and drew another tally mark under Y/N's name, adding it to the collection of tally marks already there.

"No one asked you. Put that thing away!" Steve exclaimed in annoyance. Robin chuckled and held her hands up in surrender before pushing the board aside. Steve rolled his eyes before turning back to Y/N and Max who were both now giving him their best puppy eyes. He let out a sigh. "Fine. I'll get you two your samples. Now go ahead and sit down," he told them.

Y/N grinned before leaning across the counter to kiss Steve's cheek. "Thanks, Steve. Love you!" she exclaimed as she turned and dragged Max away to go find a seat. "Love you too, squirt," Steve chuckled before going to get the samples for the girls.

"Holy shit. I can't believe that worked," Max muttered as the two slid into a booth. "It's Steve. He's a sucker when it comes to me," Y/N laughed. "I love him so much."

"I wish Billy was like that. Steve isn't even your real brother," Max pouted. "He might as well be," Y/N muttered. "I'm sorry about, Billy. I think he's just going through some things right now. But in the end, he's always going to love you." Max smiled softly at that and gave Y/N a thankful nod.

"I wish Eleven was here," Y/N said, trying to change the subject. "The three of us hanging out together? Think of all the mischief we could get into!" Max chuckled, "Yeah, but's she's too busy sucking faces with Mike." The two grimaced at the thought before letting out loud laughs.

"You know, I'm glad you moved here," Y/N suddenly said, the comment making Max freeze before she looked to her friend with a smile. "I don't know. I mean, I love the boys and everything, but it's nice having some friends that are girls as well." Max smiled softly, thankful that Y/N had said that especially since she had been doubting herself in the friend group recently. "Thanks, Y/N. It's a pleasure to be able to save you from the boys," Max jokingly said.

The two girls chuckled and were in the middle of laughing when Steve set their samples down before them. Their eyes instantly lit up and Steve pointed a finger at them. "Just this time, okay?" he said. "Yes, sir!" the two girls said before they mock saluted him, thus causing another round of laughter. Steve rolled his eyes with a smile on his face before he ruffled Y/N's hair and went back to working.

Max and Y/N both glanced at each other before looking to the samples before them. There were so many that they knew they wouldn't be hungry when they were done. Y/N smirked before looking up at the red head.

"First once to get a brain freeze loses."

"Oh you're so on."

- - -

"Dammit," Mike Hanlon muttered as he stared at the bags that had fallen from his bike and onto the sidewalk. Luckily nothing had spilled, but he was going to be late to meet up with his friends if he didn't get all of his shit together.

With a frown on his face, Mike set his bike up against a building before bending down to pick up the packages he had to deliver later. His grandfather had been in a good mood and allowed him to meet up with his friends before delivering the packages, so Mike could not mess this up.

Today was the day he was supposed to be meeting the girl who had become close to the Losers. From what the others had told him, she had just moved from Indiana and seemed to be pretty amazing. He hadn't had the chance to meet her yet because he was homeschooled and work had kept him busy, but he was finally getting to meet the girl today and Mike was honestly quite nervous. He wondered what she would be like especially since each of the Losers has described her in different ways.

Stan had called her a great listener while Eddie called her a kind and understanding person. Beverly had described her as the coolest chick one would ever meet and Ben had talked about how she had great taste in music. Then there was Richie who, in true Richie fashion, had called her a babe much to Bill's annoyance. And finally Bill, who was obviously crushing on the girl, had just gushed about how great of a person she was before realizing he was getting carried away and becoming embarrassed. Mike knew he was going to like the girl just from the way his friends described her, but whether she liked him or not was the nerve racking part.

Lost in his thoughts, Mike didn't even seem to realize someone was helping him pick up the packages until his head smacked into theirs. Both of them let out a groan before Mike looked up to see a girl staring at him. She gave him a small sheepish smile before saying, "Sorry, are you okay?" "No need to apologize. It was my fault," Mike quickly rushed out as he stood up, the girl following suit. The two stood there awkwardly for a moment and Mike blinked before turning and trying to put the packages back into the basket on his bike.

Noticing the struggle, the young girl who looked to be around his age chuckled and said, "Here. Let me help." Before Mike could say anything, she had reached out and taken the packages from Mike. In a matter of seconds she had the packages in the basket and was tying them in place with some string that he had tried to use, but failed to use properly.

Once she was done, the packages were so secure Mike knew they wouldn't fall. He looked to the girl surprised and she smiled before saying, "I was the newspaper girl back in my old town, so I kind of learned how to tie the huge pile of newspapers onto my bike pretty well." "Well, thanks," Mike told her, smiling softly as he did. "It's no problem really," she said. "I'm sorry, but I've got to go. I'm supposed to be meeting someone in a couple of minutes."

"Funnily enough, me too. Hopefully I see you around?" Mike suggested. The girl smiled and gave him a short nod before hopping onto her bike and pedaling away. It wasn't until she was gone that Mike realized he never got her name. Mike shrugged it off and checked his watch before muttering, "Shit." He was going to be late at this rate.

Mike quickly hoped into his home before pedaling across town and towards the quarry. Thankfully he made it with a minute to spare. However, the Losers were already there so he knew Richie was going to give him crap for not being there early.

The boy put his bike stand up before getting off his bike and running over to the cliff where the Losers were all standing there talking to someone that he couldn't quite see. It was when the others noticed him and stepped out of the way that Mike's eyes widened in disbelief.

He watched as the girl who had helped him earlier walked out, a small chuckle escaping her lips as she tilted her head at him. "Hello again. I'm guessing you're Mike, right?" she asked, the boy nodding in response. "Nice to meet you, Mike. I'm Y/N."

- - -

Richie and Y/N hadn't always been as close as they were. In fact, Richie had been a little skeptical about the girl at first, although it didn't quite show since he never allowed his true feelings to be on display for everyone to see.

So when he had invited the Losers to come to the arcade with him and Y/N had been the only one free, Richie had honestly debated on just not showing up. However, Richie wasn't that type of person and knew he would feel guilty about it for the next six months if he didn't show, so Richie made a point to go to the arcade and had even gotten there early to make sure he wasn't late when Y/N showed up.

While he waited, Richie found himself playing Streetfighter with a boy who he didn't know the name of. He didn't know how long they were playing, but both boys were laughing and kept sneaking glances at each other as they played. Richie had only felt this way around one other person, but he was still coming to terms with it, so he pushed it aside.

It was only when the game was over and the boy went to walk away that Richie realized he didn't want to boy to leave and began to panic. "Um. . ." Richie quickly grabbed a quarter and held it up for the boy to see. "How about we play again? Play some more, you know?"

The boy was silent for a minute before he glanced over his shoulder at the sound of some kid whimpering. He caught sight of Henry Bowers before turning back to Richie who, not wanting to make the boy uncomfortable, quickly added, "Only if you want to."

"Dude, why are you being weird?" the boy said making Richie furrow his eyebrows confused. "I'm not your fucking boyfriend." Richie's eyes widened. "Woah, I-I didn't-" Richie began to say, but he was cut off by Bowers appearing behind the boy with the rest of his gang.

At that moment, Y/N came rushing into the arcade looking a little frazzled. She checked her watch and muttered, "Shit." She was a couple of minutes late and she really hoped Richie was still here. She bolted into the arcade, but paused once she saw that everyone was standing still as they watched Bowers yell at Richie.

"You trying to bone my little cousin?" Bowers asked, Richie's face growing red as he stood there frozen in place not knowing what to think or what was happening. "Get the fuck out of here, faggot! Fucking move!"

Before Y/N could so much as react, Richie was running out of the arcade, the tears obviously blurring his vision as he stumbled outside. Y/N stared after her friend before hearing laughter in the air. She turned and her eyes instantly locked on Bowers who was laughing like he had just done the funniest thing in the world. She didn't know what she was doing, but she was blinded by rage and before she knew it Bowers was on the floor and she was on top of him, her fists punching him repeatedly as she screamed at him and cussed him out for what he had done to Richie.

As she did a double fist dance on Bowers' face, Richie sat outside on a bench in the park across the street from the arcade, his face in his hands as he cried. He didn't even care if anyone saw him at the moment, the idea of holding back his emotions only making him cry harder.

"Fucking Bowers!" Richie yelled out as he brought his hands up to his hair and pulled. "Fuck!" He was sobbing at this point, everything hurting so much that he didn't notice anything that was happening around him. He didn't even notice Y/N standing before him before she whispered, "Richie?"

Richie hesitated at that before he quickly wiped his tears away and looked up at the girl, her eyes already looking at him with so much concern that it made his heart ache. No one had ever looked that worried over him. He didn't know what it felt like to have someone care about him that much to be worried for him the way she was. Although hiding his emotions made it hard for anyone to ever worry about him. Anyone except for Eddie.

"Richie, are you okay?" Y/N whispered, her eyes pleading with him to tell her what was going on. She had called him Richie, not Tozier, Richie realized. For some reason, that alone was enough to make him break down a little more and he looked back down. "Of course I'm okay," Richie tried to reply in his usual upbeat tone, but him having to wipe away his own tears took away the effect.

Y/N was silent for a moment before she sat down next to the boy. Richie stared at the ground, not wanting to look her in the eyes. Y/N remained silent a little longer before she placed a hand on his shoulder and whispered again, "Richie, are you okay?" Richie broke at that, the sobs returning while Y/N quickly wrapped her arms around him causing the boy to turn and hug her back just as tight. She let him stay like that as long as he needed before the boy eventually pulled away, his eyes landing on her hands which were caked with blood.

"Well shit, what happened to you?" Richie asked with a small laugh as he wiped away his tears. “I beat the shit out of Bowers, that's what happened," Y/N explained, finally allowing Richie to connect the dots and realize that she had seen everything that had happened in the arcade.

For some reason, he found himself chuckling at that and turning his head so that he could look at her. He stared at her for a moment before suddenly blurting out, "I'm gay." Y/N glanced at the boy and Richie blushed before looking away and whispering, "Fuck. That wasn't how I wanted to say that. Fuck, Richie, you fucking loser. Holy shit, I can't believe I just- Fuck!"

Richie let out a sigh before looking at his hands. "I know you saw what happened in the arcade with Bowers, but I didn't even do anything. I didn't even know that was his cousin for starters. We were just playing Streetfighter and I asked if he wanted to play again and he started making fun of me before Bowers appeared and then you know the rest," Richie went on.

Richie was red faced by now. He had never opened up to someone like this before especially not to Eddie who he knew would never know about any of this. So telling Y/N was a big deal for him and he suddenly felt weird about having told her, the fear of rejection looming over him as he sat there. He was embarrassed.

Y/N was silent for longer than Richie would've liked, but she eventually reached out and took his hand before giving it a small squeeze and whispering, "Rich?" The boy was hesitant but let his eyes flicker over to her, the small smile she gave him making him relax a little bit. "It's okay if you're gay or straight or bi. Who you like isn't what defines you. You're still the same person. And I'm going to love you no matter what because you're still Richie 'Trashmouth' Tozier," Y/N assured him.

Richie was silent for a moment as he stared at the girl in disbelief. His eyes began to well with tears and it took him a moment longer to reach out and hug the girl, the weight from finally telling someone and being accepted for who he really was being lifted off his shoulders. Y/N hugged the boy back and, once again, allowed him to hug her for as long as he needed. It was only when he pulled away that she stood up and held a hand out to him.

"Come on. I brought a bag full of quarters and I intend on using them," she told him, a small smile on her face as she stared at the boy. "What about Bowers?" Richie asked, trying not to seem like he was afraid of coming face to face with the boy once again.

"We can handle him," Y/N assured him. "Besides, he's got a shit punch anyways." Richie let out a small snort at that before reaching out and taking the girl's hand. She smiled and pulled him up onto his feet before they began to walk away from the bench.

And with that, the two went back to the arcade hand in hand, both of them happy that they now had a new best friend by their side.

- - -

Birds were Stan's favorite animals. They always had been since he was five years old and he was gifted a book on birds for his birthday. Since that day he had used that very book every Saturday, the day he would sit outside or camp out in the woods to just look at the birds and see which ones he could find.

Stan tended to go bird-watching by himself, the other Losers not particularly liking the activity. Each of them had come with him once before, but it didn't take much for Stan to notice how bored they were before he would sigh and let them leave. They always felt somewhat guilty for it—minus Richie who made some crude joke before leaving— but Stan always assured them it was okay and they would go, leaving Stan behind to bird-watch by himself once again.

But things changed one Saturday morning when Y/N decided she wanted to see what Stan spent his time doing when the others weren't around. Stan was afraid to show her seeing as she was one of his newest friends and he didn't want to scare her away.

He quite liked Y/N actually and the two had become almost as close as he was with all the other Losers. Y/N tried to divide her time up equally with everyone, but it wasn't much of a surprise that she spent just a little more time with Bill than the others. So when Y/N had asked Stan to let her tag along, the boy had been both surprised and nervous. For some reason, he really didn't want Y/N to be bored and make fun of him like the others.

To his surprise, Y/N did the exact opposite. They had been bird-watching for an hour now and Y/N hadn't lost the small sparkle in her eyes or the smile on her face as she desperately searched for the birds among the trees. Every so often she would nudge the boy and ask him what bird the one she was pointing at was and he would whisper facts to her while they stared at the bird ahead. It was the first time someone was genuinely interested and the fact warmed Stan's heart.

"Stanley," Y/N whispered before she nudged him gently, instantly knocking him out of his thoughts. "Stanley. Stanley. Stanley. Stan. Stan the Man." Stan chuckled softly before whispering back, "Yes?" Y/N glanced at the boy before pointing towards a small bird that was blue with a light yellow belly and a black stripe across its head that led away from the beak. "What's that one?" she asked softly in an attempt to not scare the bird away.

Stan turned his attention to the bird and narrowed his eyes slightly before whispering, "That bird is called a nuthatch. You know they can walk up and down a tree? They are really smart too. Some of them even use a piece of bark to help pry open other pieces of bark so that they can look for insects." "Woah," Y/N breathed out. "That's so cool."

Stan chuckled and whispered out a few more facts about the bird while they watched it walk up the tree. Eventually the bird flew away and Y/N made that same face where her lips opened up as a huge grin broke out on her face, her sparkling eyes following the bird until it had disappeared before she leaned back with a small content sigh escaping her lips.

Y/N had never realized how calming and intriguing bird-watching could be. Her life was always moving fast, so getting the chance to sit down and enjoy the world instead of running from its horrors was something she couldn't thank Stan enough for.

"Stanley?" Y/N whispered, the name falling from her lips with ease. Stan had told her plenty of times that she could call him Stan, but she still called him by his first name most of the time. He wouldn't admit it, but he secretly liked the fact that she did. "Yeah?" Stan asked, his eyes flickering over to look at her before he looked back out at the different birds that were flying around.

"Thanks for bringing me along."

Stan kind of froze at that before turning his head so that he could get a good look at her. Y/N was staring at the birds with a warm smile on her face, the sunrise hitting her face so that it glowed. Not that he would ever think of her in that way, but for a second he could see why Bill liked her so much.

"Thanks for coming with me," Stan told her, the girl sending a small smile in his direction before reaching out and squeezing his hand gently. And with that, the two turned their attention back to the birds.

Their friendship became ten times stronger that day and from then on they spent every Saturday morning in Stan's backyard watching the birds and taking a break from life.

- - -

The soft rustling of pages as he and Y/N flipped the pages of their books was all Ben could hear that Friday evening. They were in the library doing research on Hawkins since Ben found all of the events Y/N had described to be almost as interesting as Derry.

It had all started when she first told them about her life in Hawkins during the first day of school. She hadn't opened up about some of the more serious stuff until the group had become close and Ben hadn't been able to stop himself from raising his eyebrows and muttering, "Hawkins, Indiana? Well I guess I know the next place I'm going to research."

That's how the two had ended up in the library a week later, no one in the group except for the two of them wanting to go research the place. They had spent probably the last two hours in the place just flipping through different books, but nothing had popped out.

Y/N was currently reading a Russian book which Ben had questioned about, but she hadn't given him an explanation, only smiling and opening the book before beginning to read. Ben on the other hand was reading a book about Hawkins itself and hadn't found anything out of the ordinary which made the town that much more of a mystery.

Ben was just about to flip the page again when a soft humming suddenly filled his ears, the tune making him freeze as he recognized it almost instantly. His eyes flickered up to Y/N who had started to move her lips as she quietly whispered to a Kids on the Block song, one that Ben was very familiar with.

"First time was a great time. Second time was a blast. Third time I fell in love. Now I hope it lasts," Y/N whispered, not one hundred percent realizing what she was doing. Ben was quick to whisper the next lines which made the girl look up at him in shock, "I can see it in your walk. Tell 'em when you talk. See it in everything you do. Even in your thoughts.” The two grinned before whispering together, "You got the right stuff, baby. Love the way you turn me on. You got the right stuff, baby. You're the reason why I sing this song."

They didn't realize their voices were raising, each of them getting more excited about the fact that someone they knew was a huge Kids on the Block fan like them. For Y/N, the only other person she could sing with had been Wheeler, but for Ben, he had never had anyone.

"All that I needed was you. Oh girl, you're so right. And all that I wanted was you," they sang. "You made all-" Y/N said before she pointed to the boy with a grin. "My dreams come true," Ben finished. "The right stuff." "The right stuff," Y/N nodded with a small laugh. The two went to sing the next part of the song when they were suddenly hushed by the librarian. Y/N and Ben froze before turning to see that everyone in the library was looking at them and that the librarian was even glaring at them.

The two went red faced and gave the group apologetic smiles before looking back down at their books. They waited a second before glancing up at each other and chuckling softly. "The right stuff," Ben whispered making Y/N grin so big that Ben couldn't help but smile back. She nodded before reaching out and fist bumping the boy. “The right stuff."

- - -

"What are we doing here?" Beverly asked confused as she glanced over at Y/N who was smiling and practically bouncing up and down on her feet. Beverly looked at the clothing store in front of her before looking to Y/N again and raising an eyebrow.

"Back in Hawkins, two of my closest friends were Eleven and Max. We would have these girl days where we would hang out at the mall and try on clothes and just have fun. I know you haven't been in the best mood this week," Y/N began. Beverly went to deny it, but Y/N just smiled and said, "And don't deny it because Ben already told me. Anyways, I wanted to cheer you up by having a girls day and since Derry doesn't have a mall, this is the next best option."

Beverly was silent for a minute as she tried to process what Y/N was saying. Finally she let you a small sigh and gave the girl a weak smile. "Okay, but only for an hour or two," Beverly said making Y/N squeal in excitement before grabbing her arm and pulling the red head into the store. “Trust me, Bev. By the time an hour is up you're never going to want to leave," Y/N said.

"Okay," Beverly said, obviously not believing her. However, Beverly realized just how wrong she was once the two were reaching the end of their second hour of shopping. They weren't even buying anything, only trying on clothes and looking at themselves in the mirror. But somehow Y/N had made it fun.

Y/N had them both try on ridiculous outfits and they would spend forever looking the mirror at themselves as they laughed to the point where workers had to come up and ask if they were okay. Y/N had even brought a Polaroid so that they could take pictures to remember all the fun they were having and she made Beverly pretend as if she were walking down a runway while Y/N took pictures of her, the two girls bursting into giggling fits every couple of minutes.

By the time the two hours was up, Beverly never wanted to leave and the fact only made her mood dampen. Y/N noticed the sudden change in demeanor and frowned as she watched Beverly reluctantly putting the clothes away.

"Hey," Y/N whispered as she came to Beverly's side and placed a hand on the red head's shoulder. "Are you okay? What's wrong?" Beverly was silent for a minute before giving the girl a small smile. "Nothing," she assured her despite them both knowing she was lying.

"No, Bev. Come on. You don't need to lie. You can tell me anything. I promise I won't judge," Y/N said. "Was it all the pictures? I'm sorry. I should've asked before I-" “No, it wasn't the pictures," Beverly assured her. "I'm glad we have the memories."

Y/N smiled and Beverly returned it before looking down at her hands sadly. "I'm just a little sad it had to end is all," Beverly explained. "I never really had friends up until I met the boys, so I've never had a girl friend to hang out with. I guess I just didn't realize what I was missing and I'm afraid for it to end. I'm sorry. It probably sounds stupid."

"No, Beverly. It's not stupid," Y/N said. "I know how you feel. Until I met Eleven and Max, my four best friends were all guys. I hadn't even realized what having another girl around would be like and I was so afraid of losing Eleven and Max because I enjoyed getting away from the boys and spending time with them. I promise you this won't be the last girl day, okay? I can only handle Richie's trashmouth for so long."

Beverly chuckled softly before looking at her friend and smiling at her. "Thanks, Y/N," she whispered. Y/N smiled back and pulled Beverly in for a hug, the gesture making Beverly freeze for a moment before she fell into Y/N's embrace and hugged her back.

"Thanks for hanging out with me today," Y/N told her. "But the fun doesn't have to end here." Beverly pulled away to look at the girl and Y/N smirked. "Ice cream?" Beverly chuckled and shook her head at her friend before saying, "I thought you'd never ask."

- - -

All Eddie could hear was his own erratic breathing as he desperately tried to reach for his inhaler which was in his fanny pack. The only problem was that his fanny pack had been torn off of him by Henry Bowers and was lying on the concrete a few feet away and Bowers wouldn't let him near it long enough for him to grab his inhaler. His chest was on fire, his throat closing off more and more every second as it felt like someone was literally sitting on his lungs. He was growing more and more panicked, so his breathing continued to get worse and worse as tears filled his eyes.

This seemed to make Henry laugh harder and that made him start shoving and kicking Eddie harder than before. Eddie mentally cursed himself for having been walking alone. He had stayed after school to have a talk with his teacher and told the others to go ahead on to the quarry where he said he would meet them. Richie had been a little reluctant to go, but had left with the other Losers, leaving Eddie by himself. Eddie thought he would've been safe from Bowers, but it seemed as if Bowers had been waiting for him because the moment he stepped out of school, Bowers was there waiting.

Another kick to the side made Eddie's wheeze grow louder. He was biting his lip as he attempted not to cry, but his asthma was bothering him to the point where he could barely function and he knew if he didn't get to his inhaler soon he would end up having a full blown asthma attack.

As if sensing his prayers, the kicking and punching stopped, allowing Eddie to crawl over to his fanny pack and grab his inhaler. He quickly took a hit before holding his breath, allowing the medicine to fill his lungs and bring him some relief. He repeated the step once more, the medicine instantly making him feel better and allowing the beating of own heart in his ears to disappear.

Eddie put the inhaler in his fanny pack before putting it back around his waist and turning to see what had happened to Bowers. To his surprise, Y/N was standing there with a bloody fist while Bowers laid on the ground holding his face. He didn't even have time to think about why Y/N was still at school before Bowers was yelling out in anger.

"You bitch! I'm going to beat the shit out of you!" Bowers yelled as he pushed himself up and went to lunge for her, but Y/N was so mad that she merely swung back before sending her fist right into Bowers nose. A loud cracking nose filled the air and Eddie winced as he looked at Bowers who had fallen onto the ground with his nose turned at a weird angle. Eddie then quickly looked to Y/N and he paled at the sight of wrist bent in the wrong direction.

"Shit," he heard her whisper before she turned and looked to the boy. Her eyes widened at the sight of Eddie and she quickly ran over to him. "Eddie, are you okay?" "I'm. . .I'm fine. Your wrist though," Eddie muttered, his face paling more as he saw the injury up close. A groan had them both looking to see Bowers starting to get up off the ground.

Y/N was quick to think and grabbed Eddie's hand with her good one before pulling him up off his feet and dragging him away from the school as the two bolted away. They didn't stop running until they knew Bowers was far behind them and even then, Eddie had to be the one to stop the girl, his eyes still trained on her wrist.

They were both breathing heavily as Eddie gently reached out and went to move Y/N's wrist. She instantly winced and Eddie began to breath frantically as he started to panic. “It's broken. Shit, it has to be broken. We have to get help. We have to get you to the hospital. Do you know where the closest hospital is? Actually I think it's a few streets down. We should probably go before your wrist gets any worse. Shit, this is my fault! Why would you do that, Y/N?" Eddie rambled.

"Eds," she said causing the boy to quiet down and look at her. She was the only one that was ever allowed to call him that, so Eddie wasn't even fazed by the nickname. "First of all, I'm going to be fine, so calm down. Second of all, it was one hundred percent worth it. Bowers was being an asshole and I wasn't about to let him continue to treat you like that. Are you okay?" Before Eddie could think properly, the girl had reached up and brushed the hair out of his eyes, a gesture that made him blush because he had seen mothers do that to their own kids but he had never been on the receiving end of that kind of touch.

"I'm. . .I'm fine. My inhaler helped," Eddie explained. "But we shouldn't be worrying about me. You're the one with a broken hand." Y/N just shrugged before letting out a small chuckle and saying in excitement, "But, Eds, did you see his nose? That thing's got to be broken as well!" Eddie looked at the girl in disbelief, silently wondering how she was able to remain so calm when her hand was literally broken. Then again, Y/N L/N always had been one to surprise him.

Smiling lovingly at the girl who was not only his best friend but like a sister as well, the boy gently took her good hand before tugging her forward. "Come on, my knight in shining armor. Let's get you to the hospital and get that wrist checked out," Eddie said, feeling a little more calm now thanks to Y/N who he knew had purposefully been cracking jokes and acting like everything was okay just to keep him calm. Y/N didn't fight him that time and the two made their way to the hospital. Y/N walked out that day with Eddie by her side and a bright white cast on that day with one signature already on it. Eds.

- - -

"A shower cap?"

Stan blinked in surprise before nodding his head. "Yeah, it's supposed to help keep the spiders out of your hair," he explained as he held the shower cap out for his friend. He had made a special trip out to the pharmacy to get her one, so he really hoped she would just take it, even if she didn't use it. Y/N smiled at the boy before taking the shower cap from him, the boy instantly relaxing in response. "Thanks, Stanley," she said before she put the shower cap on and looked to the others. They were all busy either talking or doing something else, so no one was looking at her except for Stan and Bill, the later smiling at her in an almost dreamy sort of way as he too wore his shower cap.

Bill chuckled softly at the sight of her and Y/N glanced at him before making a small face causing the two to burst into a round of laughter that had the other Losers looking at them and shaking their heads at how oblivious the two teens were. The Losers all looked away, leaving Bill, Y/N, and Stan the only ones paying attention once again.

"How did I look?" she questioned, directing it more towards Bill which Stan quickly realized. Stan smirked before walking way, neither of the teens noticing because of the fact that they were too caught up with each other. "B-B-Beautiful as always," Bill whispered, a blush dusting his cheeks at his own words. Y/N instantly blushed before smiling thankfully at Bill and leaning back in the hammock she had been lying in. She had to fight Richie and Eddie for it, but Eddie gave in almost instantly because he loved making the girl happy so it had been mostly her fighting Richie over the hammock before he had eventually caved and let her have it.

Now that she had the shower cap on, Y/N was busying herself with reading a Spider-Man comic while the others all goofed off, Bill secretly sneaking glances at her every so often. It had been one of the days they spent at the quarry which meant the evening was spent in their clubhouse that Ben had built under ground, thus leading to the spider problem. However, it was already getting quite late, so the Losers were slowly beginning to leave one by one. Y/N was too lost in her comic to really notice, but that didn't stop her from calling out a goodbye every so often. As for Bill, his eyes hadn't left the girl since she put the shower cap on, the sight being just too adorable for him to look away.

Stan and Ben were the last ones to leave the clubhouse that night and they rolled their eyes at the sight of Bill staring at their best friend, his feelings so obvious that they wondered if Y/N was really as smart as she claimed to be. "Night guys," Stan called out before he began to climb up the ladder, Ben quickly following. "Bye, Ben! Bye, Stan!" Y/N called out, momentarily looking up to smile at the boys before she was back to reading her comic.

"B-B-bye, guys," Bill said as he waved at the two. They just smirked at him and waved back before disappearing into the night, not noticing the look of confusion on Bill's face as they did so. Bill didn't think too much about the smirks his friends had sent him before he let his eyes flicker back over to Y/N who was looking up from the comic and at the empty clubhouse. "Woah. When did everyone leave?" she muttered in confusion.

"A w-w-while ago," Bill chuckled as he titled his head at the girl. "M-M-Maybe if you weren't t-t-too busy reading you would've n-n-noticed." Y/N gasped in fake shock before saying, "Let me tell you, Bill Denbrough. Peter Parker is nothing to joke about." Bill chuckled and she couldn't stop herself from smiling at the sight of the beautiful boy before she waved him over.

Bill was quick to walk over to her and she smiled before holding the comic out. "Peter Parker is above his time, Bill. He's smart, sarcastic, funny, and a freaking superhero! He genuinely cares about people and he is always-" Y/N began to ramble on about the superhero, but her words fell on deaf ears as Bill just stared at her in amazement.

His eyes flickered over her face and the way her eyelashes fluttered against her cheek or the way her e/c eyes would flicker between him and the comic as she excitedly talked about the superhero she loved so much. It was like he was trying to memorize every inch of her face which maybe he was. He never wanted to forget this moment, even if nothing significant was happening. Y/N just looked so beautiful, shower cap and all, and Bill couldn't stop himself from not wanting to remember every little detail of this moment. The smell of wood in the air mixing with the strawberry scent of Y/N's shampoo that swirled through the air because of how close they were. The creaking of wood and the sound of the night filling the air around them. Then there was him and Y/N, Bill kneeling down beside the hammock with one hand against his cheek while the other was holding onto Y/N's hand, something neither had noticed yet.

A small smile appeared on Bill's face as he watched the girl and she paused for a moment before staring at him with an unreadable expression. Finally, she returned the smile before grabbing onto his arm and tugging him slightly as she whispered, "Come here." Bill's face reddened a little, but he still managed to pull himself into the hammock, Y/N instantly snuggling up against him as his arm wrapped around her waist.

Y/N seemed to be unfazed by the new step of their relationship, the two having never cuddled before, let alone been this close unless it was just to hug. Instead, she was already reading the comic out loud, adding her own little comments here and there to make Bill laugh, knowing that each laugh made him rest his face against the side of hers momentarily before he pulled away to look at the comic.

Or at least she thought he was looking at the comic. But in reality, his eyes were on her. Just like they always were and like they always would be. For to him, there was no better way to spend his evening than admiring the girl that had stolen his heart since the first day he met her almost two years ago.

- - -

The basement was unusually quiet that night as the Party and the Losers all sat in Y/N's basement trying to comprehend the events that had taken place only an hour before. None of them were able to come to terms with what had happened and no one even knew what to say. The silence was one they could all feel, each of them distantly hearing Y/N's laugh or one of her sarcastic and witty comments. It was haunting almost and the group could feel themselves breaking more and more with each second that passed.

Everyone was affected by what had happened to Y/N, but they all knew Bill was affected in a deeper way than they were. While their love for Y/N was merely a platonic, more family type of love, what Bill felt for the girl was the opposite. He cared about her so much that the group could practically feel their hearts aching for him, especially when they saw him sitting blankly in the corner with a tear stained face, red eyes, and his jacket clutched in his shaking hands.

"What are we going to do?" Eddie finally whispered as he wiped at the tears on his face. All he could think about was his friend, the girl who had stood up for him and who had promised to not let anything happen to him. Eddie could only think about how he should've promised that to her as well. He should've insisted on going with her, making sure that the girl was safe and by his side. Then maybe what happened wouldn't have happened.

"We're getting her back," Steve said, all eyes falling on him as he tried to act like he was fine despite the tears that kept falling from his eyes. The tears were collecting on his chin, threatening to fall down, and Steve was quick to wipe them away with a sniff. "That's what we're fucking going to do."

"Oh, really? And how do you plan on doing that, Einstein?" Richie asked bitterly, his emotions being out of whack making him lash out. Steve narrowed his eyes at the boy. "Watch it, Trashmouth. At least I intend on saving Y/N," he replied.

Richie shot up from his spot, his red eyes focused on Steve as he glared at him. "What's that supposed to mean? You think I don't want to save her?" Richie asked. "Wouldn't be surprised," Wheeler muttered, making Richie turn his gaze on the boy. "Of course you have something to say. You always do, don't you?" Richie shot back.

Wheeler stood up from his spot, ignoring Eleven as she tried to grab him and pull him back down. "Mike," Eleven whispered, but the boy shook his head. "No, El. I'm done with this asshole," Wheeler said as he walked over to Richie. Richie was raising an eyebrow at the boy and they both crossed their arms as Wheeler came to a stop in front of him.

"Steve was right. He's actually trying to do someone to help Y/N while you're just sitting there pouting. Y/N needs our fucking help, but you can't get over yourself enough to realize it. So why don't you just shut the hell up for once, go sit back down with your little friends, and let us handle the situation," Wheeler said.

Richie scoffed in disbelief. "I'm sorry. I don't seem to remember when I asked for your opinion? Y/N's just as much my friend as she is yours and you have to be batshit crazy to believe that I don't want to go save her," Richie shot back. "Well I didn't exactly see you rushing to save her when she was trapped behind the gate," Wheeler told him. "Oh, you mean the gate that your girlfriend shut? The gate that, because it was shut, allowed for Y/N to get trapped in the fucking Upside Down? That gate?" Richie asked as he jabbed Wheeler in the chest.

"Touch me again. No, better yet. Disrespect my girl again. See what fucking happens," Wheeler growled. "Mike," Eleven sighed as she got up from her spot. She knew Y/N wouldn't want them arguing like this and it seemed that Eddie realized this too. "Guys. Calm down. We really don't need to-" Eddie began as he walked forward and began to pull Richie away, Eleven doing the same to Wheeler. However, that was when Wheeler delivered the final blow, "You don't deserve, Y/N. None of you losers do."

Eddie froze at that, his hand that was on Richie's arm immediately dropping. He turned his face to look at Wheeler and gave him an unamused look before saying, "You fucking asshole!" Eddie was about to lunge at Wheeler, but Beverly and Ben quickly pulled him back. However, the Party seemed to notice Eddie's small advance and they were all up in a flash and by Wheeler's side, the Losers doing the same for Richie and Eddie. None of them knew how it happened, but before they knew it, the once silent room was filled with arguing as both side took shots at the other.

"Y/N's life has been one hundred times better since she left Hawkins! You ever wonder why she never comes back to visit?"

"I thought the move was the worst thing to ever happen to her, but after meeting you guys I see I stand corrected!"

"Say that shit again. I dare you!"

"Y/N would leave you all in a heartbeat to come back to Hawkins and she wouldn't even look back!"

"You motherfuckers!"

It all became a blur after that, everyone from each side yelling and shoving each other as their pent up emotions poured out of them. They were all hurt and upset about Y/N and this was all they could think of doing at the moment to relieve some of the pain.

As for Bill, he was still sitting in the corner by himself. It was only when the fighting seemed to register in his brain that the boy looked up, a look of complete disbelief on his face as he clutched the jacket harder and stood up from his spot. "Hey!" Bill yelled, but the groups were too red faced and into the fight for them to notice his yelling. Bill huffed in frustration before shoving his way to the middle of the group. He pushed the sides away from each other before yelling at the top of his lungs, "Sit the fuck down!" Hearing those words coming out of the stuttering boy who had been sitting quietly in the corner had them all freeze, each of them realizing what had just happened. Reluctantly, the two groups went to sit back down, but not before glaring at the other side.

Bill scoffed as he stared at the groups and shook his head as tears filled his eyes. "A-A-Are you fucking k-k-kidding me?" he asked, finally getting all eyes to turn on him as he looked at them in disbelief. "We have a life at st-st-stake and you all are bickering like a bunch of f-f-four year o-o-olds!" Bill exclaimed, his eyes looking at the groups in disbelief. "Pull yourselves t-t-together and get up off your asses. We've got a f-f-friend to save!" Everyone's anger seemed to dissolve slightly as they watched the boy, looks of guilt flashing across some of their faces.

Bill shook his head and looked down at the ground as he tried to calm himself down. When he looked back up and began to speak, his voice was clear and strong, not a single piece of evidence of his stutter falling from his lips causing everyone to realize just how serious he was being.

"I know each of you is hurting. I know. Y/N meant a lot to all of us. But you all have to realize just who is in this room because every person in this room plays a major role in Y/N's life," Bill said. He glanced at the Party and gestured towards them. "You guys grew up with her. You helped shape her into the person she was and gave her some of the best experiences of her life. You showed her what friendship was and what family means. She knows what she does today because of you."

Bill then gestured towards the Losers and himself. "We're the ones who have helped her through a tough part of her life. We've protected her with our own lives and have loved her unconditionally. She's been one of our own since day one and she will be until the day she dies," he told them. Bill sighed before saying, "Look, we all care about her and she cares about each of us. We're her friends. We're her family. No one can tell any of us any different."

"That's why we're all upset because not only are we scared of losing her, but we are scared of her forgetting about us in any way. But I promise you that it's not happening for either side. She's always going to be a member of the Party and she's always going to be a part of the Losers' Club. She's like the in-between, the perfect mix of each group. She won't forget her past and she won't forget her present," Bill said as he pointed to each of the groups.

"Y/N has always put our needs in front of her own, but right now, we're going to have to put her above everything else. Each of you is going to have to push aside your differences, your egos, your selfishness, and your attitudes if you want to get Y/N back. Because the only way to get our girl back is if we work together," Bill told them, his eyes flickering over the guilty expressions of the groups as they realized Bill was right about everything he had said.

"How are we going to do that?" Richie asked softly. "Cause I'm with you, Bill. I'm just. . .I don't want to screw up and lose her. We're going to have to make sure everything is perfect and right now the major thing in our way is finding a way to get back to her."

"That's w-w-where the first part of my p-p-plan comes into play," Bill told him. He then turned to look at Eleven who was looking to the ground. As if sending his stare, the girl glanced up. "Eleven, is th-th-there any way you th-th-think you could open the g-g-gate? I meant if you were able to cl-cl-close it, shouldn't you be able t-t-to either make one or o-o-open it?"

"You want her to make a portal that goes to the Upside Down?" Wheeler asked, his tone a little hard as he became protective of his girlfriend. "I can do it," Eleven said with a nod causing Wheeler to look to her. Eleven sighed and glanced at her boyfriend. "Y/N is our friend, Mike. Don't tell me you wouldn't try anything to get back the girl who you've been friends with since the second grade." Wheeler looked down, his expression softening at Eleven's words. Eleven put a hand to the boy's cheek before whispering, "I owe it to her to try." Wheeler nodded slightly and Eleven smiled before letting her eyes flicker over to Bill. Bill gave the girl a small nod in thanks which Eleven quickly returned.

"Bill is right," Beverly called out from where she was sitting beside Ben and Stan. Everyone looked to her and she glanced up from her hands before letting her eyes flicker around the room. "Both groups have to work together. It's the only way we are going to win this thing. It's the only way we are going to get Y/N back."

Bill nodded in agreement before allowing his eyes to flicker over each of the people in the room. His gaze stopped on Steve who was looking at the boy with an unreadable expression on his face. But then Steve was giving him a small nod of approval and thanks and Bill couldn't help but smile as a small wave of relief washed over him.

"All th-th-those in favor of t-t-teaming up to save Y/N?" Bill questioned as he looked around the room. Everyone's hands shot up into the air almost instantly and Bill smiled softly before looking down at the jacket in his hands. He then looked back up and gave the group a nod.

"Let's g-g-go save our g-g-girl then, shall we?"

* * *

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cocastyle · 5 years

Text

The In-Between Chapter 7

Stranger Things x It Crossover

with some Bill Denbrough x reader

Word Count - 7,547

Warning - none

A/N - super long chapter because there is a lot in this one! anyways, I hope you all like it :)

if you would like to be added to the tag list, let me know!

T H E I N - B E T W E E N

Intro The Losers’ Club The Party Prologue 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Epilogue

“Well, fuck. This house looks like a shit show just waiting to happen," Lucas muttered as he looked at the old house before them. He glanced at Y/N who was by his side currently snapping twigs in half before lightly nudging her with his elbow. She glanced his way and he pointed at the house. "Please tell me this isn't the place."

"Wish I could, Lucas," Y/N sighed. She then patted the boy's shoulder. "Don't worry. It looks scarier on the inside."

She then began to walk away while Lucas blinked in shock before yelling out, "You do know that doesn't help, right?"

Y/N just looked at him from over her shoulder and gave him a sly smile before walking over to the back of Steve's car where Steve, Wheeler, Stan and Bill were currently unloading the weapons and supplies. "You guys need any help?" Y/N offered.

Bill set the rope he had in his grasp on the ground before looking to Y/N with a small smile. "N-N-No, we're good. There's only a f-f-few more things left and th-th-then we should be good to g-g-go," Bill told her.

Y/N smiled back at him and Wheeler glanced between the two before chuckling softly as he got a small flashback of him and Eleven back when they hadn't admitted their feelings for each other yet.

"Denbrough," Steve called out causing the boy to look away from Y/N and over to the older boy who had his hands on his hips. "You gonna help or you gonna stare at Y/N all day?"

Bill instantly blushed and glanced at Y/N who let out a small laugh, her cheeks dusted a light pink. She gave him a wink before turning around to leave him to finish his job, for once not minding the small protective part of Steve that was coming out.

Y/N glanced around at her friends, smiling to herself at the sight of Lucas and Eleven talking to Beverly and Ben while Max, Will and Dustin talked with Richie. She liked that they were finally trying to get along for once.

The puff of an inhaler had her snapping out of her thoughts and she turned to see Eddie standing off to the side with an inhaler in hand and his focus on the Well House. He looked paler than usual and it didn't take Y/N long to notice the small shake of his hands as he gripped onto his inhaler like his life depended on it.

Y/N frowned and slowly walked over to her friend before placing a hand on his shoulder. Eddie instantly jumped and turned to her with wide eyes, but he relaxed almost as quickly once he realized who it was.

"Oh, hey, Y/N," Eddie greeted, his breathing still a little erratic.

"Hey, Eddie. You okay?" she asked, tilting her head slightly as she gave the boy a confused look.

"Uh. . .not really. I mean. . .I don't know about this, Y/N. My asthma can't take all this stress," Eddie admitted as he let out a breathy chuckle.

Y/N could tell the boy was scared, so she didn't hesitate to reach for his hand and give it a small squeeze. "Hey, you're going to be just fine, okay? You've got me, the rest of the Losers, and the whole Party here to help. It's not like you're going in there alone," she assured him. "Besides, you know I wouldn't let anything happen to you."

Eddie was silent for a moment before nodding. "I know," he whispered as he sent her a small smile. He let his inhaler return to its spot in his fanny pack before giving Y/N's hand a light squeeze. The girl smiled at him before Wheeler announcing that they were done had everyone turning to look at them.

The groups were silent as they stared at the supplies on the ground before them. No one made a move to grab something, so Dustin let out a sigh as he took his hat off and ran his hand through his hair before returning his hat to its rightful spot.

"Only half of us are going in, right?" Dustin asked and Y/N nodded in response. "So how are we going to do this? Draw from a hat?"

"We could always measure our wangs! I'll for sure wi-" Richie began, but the Losers were quick to exclaim, "Beep beep, Richie!"

"Why do I have to look like him?" Wheeler whispered as he lightly shook his head.

"We're going to draw sticks actually," Y/N said as she held out a handful of sticks she had broke when they first arrived. She glanced to Dustin and gestured towards his hat. "May I?" Dustin nodded and quickly took his hat off before handing it to the girl. Y/N smiled in thanks before placing the sticks inside and holding it out. "Okay, everyone grab a stick. The eight shortest sticks are the ones who have to go in."

One by one, the Losers and the Party all grabbed a stick from the hat. It wasn't until everyone had grabbed a stick that they slowly opened their hands, a little over half of the group letting out groans while the others let out sighs of relief.

In the end, Richie, Steve, Wheeler, Eleven, Y/N, Dustin, Bill and Eddie were the ones who got the short sticks.

"I would've won," Y/N heard Richie mutter as he pouted, but she just ignored him and went over to the pile of supplies and weapons with Eleven right on her heels and no complaints coming out of either of their mouths.

Y/N picked up a crowbar, some rope, and a flashlight while Eleven picked up a flashlight and some rope before they turned to the boys.

"Come on, princesses. We don't have all day."

- - -

"I love you, Y/N. I really do, but I'm so happy that I don't have to go in there," Stan muttered from his best friend's side as the two stared ahead at the pulsing goo portal before them.

Y/N grimaced at the colors coming from the portal before saying, "I love you too, Stan the Man, and I really don't blame you either."

"So we doing this or what?" Steve asked as he held his bat up against his shoulder. "The longer we stand here, the more we're just going to psych ourselves out."

"True," Y/N sighed before she began to pull Bill's jacket off. Said boy instantly looked over at her and gave her a confused look. She just smiled softly and said, "I don't want to get it messed up."

Bill smiled at that before taking it from her and setting it on top of a wooden chair that was bent to one side because of a missing leg. "It'll be th-th-there for you w-w-when you get b-b-back," Bill told her, the two smiling warmly at each other before looking to the portal in front of them.

"Okay, let's do this," Y/N muttered shakily. Bill glanced over at the nervous girl before reaching out and grabbing ahold of her hand, their fingers intertwining almost instantly. Y/N looked to Bill who gave her a small smile and a nod. She quickly returned it before the two began to walk towards the portal.

"Be careful!" Beverly called out before nervously biting her lips, worry coursing through her veins.

"Stick together!" Ben reminded them.

"And don't wander off alone!" Lucas added, Max nodding her head in agreement.

The people staying back continued to tell them to be careful and such as Y/N and Bill walked through the portal side by side. The two stumbled into the Upside Down almost instantly and Bill was quick to put his hands out and steady the girl, Y/N gripping onto his arms automatically before the two looked up and locked eyes.

Bill blushed as he stared at the girl and Y/N just sent him a small smile that made his heart start beating faster and his breath hitch in his throat.

"What the fuck? You've been in here for like ten seconds and are already making heart eyes at each other?" Richie asked in disgust as he pushed his way through the portal.

"Shut up, Tozier," Y/N grumbled as her and Bill pulled away from each other.

"Make me, L/N," Richie shot back before mockingly puckering up his lips. Y/N let out a laugh and shoved the boy away while Richie chuckled and Bill frowned.

One by one, Wheeler, Steve, Dustin, and Eleven came through the portal. It took a moment longer for Eddie to come through and he instantly grimaced at the sight of decay all around him before taking out his inhaler.

"I think I'm going to throw up," Eddie muttered. Y/N chuckled and nudged him before giving him a small reassuring smile. Eddie relaxed a little, but he was still pale as he looked at the room around him.

To Y/N's surprise, everyone then looked to her. The girl blinked in response and her eyes flickered over to Steve who gave her a small nod that told her to go ahead. She smiled ever so slightly before nodding her head towards the staircase. "Turn your flashlights on and come this way," she told them.

The group all nodded and turned their flashlights on before following the girl up the stairs and out of the house. Once they were outside, Y/N pulled out her map before opening it up and looking at the divided sections.

"Okay, since we don't know if Mike is still in the same spot Eleven last saw him in, it’s best if we check as many areas as possible. We split the map up into four sections so I say we pair off and then go from there," Y/N explained.

Bill's eyes lit up and he looked at Y/N before opening his mouth to speak, but Eleven beat him to it and exclaimed, "I call Y/N!"

Bill instantly frowned while Eleven linked arms with the girl. Y/N offered Bill a small smile and his frown instantly turned into a smile, not being able to keep a straight face when she smiled at him like that.

"I'll go with Bill," Steve offered, his eyes flickering between Y/N and Bill. Y/N let out a small sigh of relief, something about knowing that the older boy would be by Bill's side calming her almost instantly. As for Bill, he couldn't help but tense, already knowing what was about to happen.

"Okay then. I guess that means it will be me and Eddie and then Richie and Mike?" Dustin suggested. Everyone nodded except for Richie and Wheeler who looked at their friends with their mouths hanging open.

"What? Don't put me with his ugly ass!" Richie complained as he exasperatedly waved his arms around.

"Did he just call me ugly?" Wheeler asked, his face scrunched up in confusion and annoyance. "We have the same face! He does know we have the same face, right?"

The two boys began to bicker before the group's eyes and Y/N rolled her eyes before saying, "Tozier! Wheeler!"

The boys instantly stopped and looked to the girl. "Seriously? We have someone who needs us and you two are busy bickering? Save it for later, okay?" Y/N told them.

Richie and Wheeler frowned but nodded their heads. "Fine. We'll take the section that's on the far left of the map," Richie explained before he began to walk off. He glanced over his shoulder before yelling, "Come on, dipshit!"

Wheeler rolled his eyes and gave Y/N, Eleven, and Dustin an 'are you serious' look, but when none of them made a move to switch with him he pouted and hurried after the boy.

"So I guess they've got the far left section. Eleven and I will take the section with the quarry since she might be able to locate Mike when we get there," Y/N explained. "You guys split up the last two and then we'll meet back in our world, okay?"

The groups nodded and Y/N gave them all a small nod before saying, "Good luck." She then looked to Eleven and the two nodded at each other before beginning to walk off.

Y/N had taken no more than three steps before Bill was suddenly reaching out and grabbing onto her wrist. The girl turned around to see Bill looking at her worriedly. "B-B-Be careful, okay?" he whispered, his eyes flickering over her face as he stared at her in concern.

"I will," she assured him as she gave his hand a small squeeze.

"P-P-Promise?" Bill found himself whispering, almost afraid that he was going to actually lose her.

Y/N stepped up on her tip toes and kissed the boy’s cheek, Bill's face instantly turning red while Y/N smiled at him. "Promise," she whispered. "You be careful too, okay?"

Bill nodded and whispered, "Promise."

Y/N smiled softly at the boy before reluctantly pulling herself away. She glanced at the others boys where Eddie was currently smirking at her and said, "You guys be careful too. I don't know what I would do if any of you got hurt."

"We will. Now go," Steve told her as he smiled and waved her off.

The girl saluted him making the boys chuckle before Y/N ran after Eleven and the two disappeared into their section.

It was time to find Mike.

- - -

Eddie was silent as he walked through the Upside Down. He hugged himself and stared at the things around him in disgust, not wanting anything to touch him in fear that it might give him some disease or something.

Deciding he couldn't stare at everything or it would only freak him out, Eddie let his gaze fall on Dustin who was walking beside him. He hadn't gotten the chance to talk to Dustin since the boy had gotten here, but from what he remembered, Dustin was the reason Y/N's friends had all come here in the first place.

"So how long have you known Y/N?" Dustin asked, drawing Eddie out of his thoughts.

"Uh. . .two years now I guess. I met her at lunch on her first day of school after she moved," Eddie explained. Knowing that he probably had to keep the conversation going Eddie asked, "What about you?"

"Oh," Dustin chuckled a little at the memory before smiling and glancing at Eddie. "We met back in second grade. She was already friends with Lucas, so I knew who she was, but I didn't become friends with her until that year. There was this kid named Troy who liked to bully me because I have cleidocranial dysplasia and Y/N saw him making fun of me one day and called him in asshole before embarrassing him in front of the whole grade at recess. We became best friends after that."

Eddie chuckled and became a little less tense. "That sounds like Y/N alright. She once punched our school bully Henry Bowers in the face after he almost made me have an asthma attack. He threatened to beat the shit out of her for standing up for me, but she merely punched him square in the nose before grabbing my hand and running away. She ended up breaking her hand, but she said it was worth it because Henry had a broken nose and bruised face for the longest time," Eddie laughed.

Dustin let out a small laugh before shaking his head. "She gets herself into a lot of trouble doing things like that, but you got to love her," Dustin sighed, a distant look on his face.

Eddie let his eyes flicker over the boy's face before he frowned a little bit, the sudden realization of how much Dustin and his friends must miss having Y/N around hitting him hard. They had been best friends before she moved. He couldn't even imagine what it would be like if Y/N left them now.

"You know, she talks about you guys a lot and how much she misses you," Eddie said. "She loves you all a hell of a lot."

Dustin smiled softly at that before looking up at the boy. "Same goes for you. She talks so highly of you guys and how thankful she is for getting to be in your group. We used to have conversations before she left about how afraid she was of not fitting in. So the rest of the Party and I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for her," Dustin told him.

Eddie stared at Dustin in surprise before letting a smile break across his face. "We're lucky to have her," Eddie answered truthfully.

A small silence fell among the two again, but this one was more of a comfortable silence than anything. It wasn't until they reached a small forest looking area that one of them spoke up again.

"Ew. Ew. Ew. Ew," Eddie muttered as he stepped over all the decay covered objects around him. It was to the point where the landscape around him was so destroyed and disgusting one couldn't even tell what the objects actually were and the smell was enough to make Eddie gag.

"It could be worse," Dustin pointed out making Eddie look at him confused.

"How could this place be any worse?" Eddie asked in disbelief.

"Well," Dustin began as he walked through the woods like it was nothing, "for starters, I've seen these plants where it will literally shoot out dust and some kind of like gross mist at people. I got that shit in my mouth once and it was disgusting let me tell you."

Eddie looked at the boy in horror, flashbacks of when It had changed into a leper and thrown up on him going through his head. The thought of one of those plant things doing what had happened to Dustin to him made him feel light heated.

"You haven't even seen the Mind Flayer," Dustin told him.

"Mind Flayer?" Eddie asked confused.

"Yeah, it's like the boss of the Upside down. It's gross and can like shoot parts of itself into people. It happened to El once and she had to literally rip the thing out of her leg with her powers. There was so much blood and. . .woah, are you okay?" Dustin asked as he looked to the pale Eddie.

"Y-Y-Yeah, I'm fine," Eddie said as he shakily reached into his fanny pack before taking a hit off his inhaler.

Dustin give the boy a skeptical look. "You sure?" he asked. Eddie nodded and Dustin sent him a small smile. "Good. Let's keep going."

Dustin then began to walk ahead and Eddie stood there for a minute before taking another hit off his inhaler and hurrying after the boy, silently wondering how things were going with the other groups right about now.

- - -

"Why did I have to get stuck with you?" Richie complained for what had to be the hundredth time since the pair had left the others. "You look like you wouldn't be able to tell a difference between a demogorgon and your own mom."

Wheeler glared at the boy, the fact that he was glaring at someone who looked exactly like himself still creeping him out. "You done yet? Cause you've been complaining ever since we left," Wheeler said.

"Your mom complains every time she leaves me, but you don't see me telling her to be quiet," Richie shot back.

Wheeler shook his head and looked away with a scoff. "How did you and Y/N even become friends?" Wheeler muttered, the tone in his voice making Richie freeze and look to the boy in pure hatred.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Richie asked, his teeth gritted together as he instantly became defensive.

Wheeler looked surprised that Richie had heard him, but didn't back down as he stopped walking and turned to look at the boy. "The person she describes versus the person standing before me are two totally different people," Wheeler explained.

Richie furrowed his eyebrows, his anger slightly starting to disappear and instead being replaced by confusion. "What do you mean the person she describes?" he asked.

"I know it's hard to believe, but Y/N actually thinks highly of you, Tozier," Wheeler said. "She won't shut up about the whole lot of you, but I remember some of the things she's said about you. How you probably care the most out of the group even if you won't show it or how you will spend days at the arcade with her just to make her smile. How you are one of the funniest people she has ever met and how you aren't afraid to get serious and help her out if she really needs it."

"Why would she say that about me?" Richie asked, cutting Wheeler off in his explanation because of how confused he was.

"You're one of her best friends, man. You helped her through a tough transition in her life when she had to move to Derry. Your jokes, if that's what you would like to call them, and the little arguments you all have helped get her mind off of all the hard things going on in her life. She was so damn excited for us to meet one day and even went on and on about how she thought you and I could be friends. But since we met I haven't seen the boy she's talked about and we sure as hell aren't even close to being friends."

Richie's face had gone blank, the confusion and anger completely gone. Instead his face seemed to morph into a look of guilt as he looked down at his shoes.

Y/N had really said all those things about him and he had been an asshole since the Party arrived just because he was a little insecure?

Wheeler stared at Richie for a moment before asking with crossed arms, "So what the hell have you done to deserve someone like her in your life?"

An ear ringing silence filled the air at that point and Wheeler stared at Richie expectantly for a moment. It was only when Richie didn't respond that Wheeler rolled his eyes and began to walk off again.

It took a minute before Richie was by his side again and that was when the boy found himself whispering almost sadly, "I don't know."

Wheeler glanced over at the boy, letting his eyes flicker over to the utter lost look on his face as if Richie honestly couldn't figure out why he had been lucky enough to have Y/N as once of his best friends.

There was only silence after that, the only sound being the crunching of leaves beneath their feet.

- - -

Bill gulped as he glanced at Steve who walked in front of him with his bat swinging gently from side to side. He watched as the older boy ran a hand through his hair before looking around. He glanced back at Bill and the boy was quick to look away, not wanting Steve to know that he had been staring at him.

Bill just couldn't comprehend why Steve had wanted to be paired up with him. He knew it couldn't be good by the way Steve had looked at him almost angrily when he had chose him, but Steve hadn't said a word since they left so Bill wasn't entirely sure what was going on.

"What do you want, Denbrough? Or are you going to keep staring at me and pretending like you aren't?" Steve called out, turning his eyes towards the boy for only a second before looking back in front of him.

Bill felt his cheeks warm up from having been caught before he asked, "W-W-Why did you want t-t-to be partners with m-m-me?"

"Cause we need to have a talk," Steve told him with a small shrug before going silent once again. Bill stared at the boy before giving him a look that asked if he was actually going to say anything.

Steve pretended not to notice him before he sighed and said, "Y/N's like my little sister, you know that?" Bill nodded in response and Steve mimicked him by nodding as well before saying, "Good, so you'll understand why I'm about to give you the while protective brother talk."

Bill blinked in surprised before looking at Steve with a shocked face. Protective brother talk? But why? Had Steve heard about the way he had treated Y/N the past day? He thought they had made up, so why was Steve wanting to give him a protective brother talk of it wasn't for that reason?

"Y/N's a great girl, but you already know that, right? She's so kind and caring and anyone would be lucky to have her. She's one of the best people I know and she's still just a kid," Steve said. "What I'm getting at is that Y/N is pretty special, okay? I know you know that just from the way you look at her like she's the only girl that matters. And Denbrough. . .you better not fuck up with her or you can bet that I'll be on your ass in a heartbeat."

"I wouldn't dare hurt her," Bill replied almost instantly, the shock about Steve giving him the protective brother talk because he thought the two were in a relationship still not having hit him yet. When it did, he looked down before whispering, "Plus there's no need to worry. She doesn't feel the same."

Steve blinked in surprise from how dumb Bill was before turning and putting a hand to Bill's chest. "Woah, woah, woah. Aren't you supposed to be somewhat smart or something?" Steve questioned. "You've got to be a complete dumbass to believe the shit that just came out of your mouth."

"You think Y/N doesn't like you?" Steve asked in disbelief. "Denbrough, I haven't seen her even so much as glance in someone's direction with half the love she looks at you with. You're crazy if you think she doesn't care about you."

Bill looked to Steve in surprise before asking, "B-B-But what if I m-m-mess up? W-W-What if she's doesn't l-l-like me after I t-t-tell her how I f-f-feel?"

Steve stared at the boy for a second and was reminded of himself back in high school when he was debating on telling Nancy Wheeler how he felt or back when he had liked Robin Buckley.

He let out a sigh before reaching out and placing a hand on Bill's shoulder. "Listen, Denbrough. You can't have that type of attitude or nothing is ever going to happen," Steve told him. "From what Y/N's told me, you're a pretty great kid. You won't mess it up and even if you did, I'm pretty sure Y/N would find it adorable anyways. All she's going to care about is the fact that the boy she cares about likes her back."

Bill was silent for a minute and Steve could practically see the cogs moving in the young boy's head as he came to terms with the fact that Y/N might actually like him back and that he should probably tell her how he felt as well.

Finally, Bill glanced up at Steve and sent a small smile on his direction. "Th-Th-Thanks, Steve," he whispered.

Steve shrugged as if it were no big deal before beginning to walk away. "Anytime, kiddo. And remember. Break her heart and I-"

"-break my face."

- - -

"I swear this place looks a lot nicer in our world," Y/N muttered as she stared at the Upside Down's version of the quarry in disbelief. Instead of the usual water she was used to seeing, she was met with liquid so black that it couldn't be anything good. And the smell that came with it? Absolutely nothing like the smell of fresh water, a summer breeze, and the trees that came with the actual quarry.

"I believe you," Eleven said as she grimaced at the sight before her. The two girls shuddered before backing away from the cliff, neither wanting to fall in accidentally.

"So where did you see Mike when you talked to him?" Y/N asked as she turned to her friend.

Eleven glanced around before looking down at the black liquid once again. "He was in a cave," she explained. "One down there perhaps?"

Y/N nodded as glanced over at the cliff one last time before looking to the rope she had attached to her belt. An idea instantly sprung into her head and within a matter of minutes she had tied the rope around her waist before giving the other end to Eleven.

"You hold this, okay? I need you to lower me down and then, when I get down there, I'll look for Mike and see if I can find him," Y/N told her.

Eleven nodded and the two girls went to the edge of the cliff before Y/N bent down on the ground and slowly began to crawl over the edge. It took a minute for her to find a groove for her foot, but she eventually did and climbing down from there wasn't too hard.

Y/N continued to climb down until she spotted a small opening a little to the right. She began crawling in that direction before she was finally able to land her feet in the ground. The young girl let out a small sigh of relief before flattening our her shirt and looking up.

The cave itself was dark on the inside so Y/N couldn’t quite see what was inside. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end, and she gently gripped onto the rope in case she would have to tug lightly and have Eleven pull her up quickly.

"Mike?" Y/N called out, her voice just above a whisper in case whatever in the dark was not her friend.

There was a long moment of silence before she heard a small shuffling sound and then a, "Y/N?"

Out from the shadows stepped out a hesitant Mike and Y/N almost cried in relief at the sight of him. "Is that really you?" Mike whispered in disbelief, afraid that it might be Pennywise trying to trick him.

"No, it's me," she assured him, tears falling from her eyes as she smiled at her friend. "If I was It I don't think I would have a rope tied around my waist with one of my friends attached to the other end."

Mike gave her a confused look, but shook it off once he realized the girl standing in front of him was in fact one of his best friends. He didn't even hesitate before rushing forward, his arms wrapping around the girl as he let out a small laugh of relief.

Y/N stumbled back at the sudden force, but hugged Mike back just as tightly, the two both starting to cry at the fact that Mike was finally going to be safe.

"Holy shit," Y/N cried as he hugged the boy. "Don't you fucking do that to us again, you hear? Or next time I'll leave you in the Upside Down for good!"

Mike chuckled and pulled away before glancing out at the black 'water' in front of them. "I don't plan on it," he assured her. "Did you say the Upside Down? Like as in the place you've told us about before?"

"Yeah," Y/N sighed. "I thought we had closed the gate, but I guess we didn't. I don't know how you ended up here, but you must've gone through one of the portals that the demogorgons use."

"Demogorgons? Those alien looking creatures you've talked about? I only saw. . ." Mike trailed off as his face paled. "I only saw It."

"Yeah, I saw It too," Y/N told him. "But I think It is somehow connected to the Upside Down at the moment. Like connected so much to the point where they both seem to be working together."

"So it's like Pennywise meets the movie Aliens?" Mike asked, the girl nodding in response. "Well, that's just great."

Y/N chuckled before hugging the boy once again. "It's okay. We're going to get you out of here and then close the fucking gate, okay?" she said.

"That sounds great," Mike admitted as he let out a small laugh. "But who's we?"

"Well, all the Losers of course, but my friends from Hawkins all came down to help as well," Y/N explained.

"They did?" Mike asked in surprise.

"Yeah, in fact, one of them, her name is Eleven, is up above holding the other end of the rope," Y/N told him right as she felt a light tug on her waist coming from the rope. As if seeming to remember where they were, Y/N suddenly got back on task and said, "We should probably get going. We've been in the Upside Down for a while with no contact with It or the demogorgons, so I'm not quite sure how much longer we are going to have that luck for."

"Don't have to tell me twice," Mike said as the two walked to the edge of the cave. Y/N and Mike latched onto each other before Y/N lightly tugged on the rope. They were being pulled up only seconds later and Y/N was able to catch a glimpse of Eleven using her powers to pull them up before they were put onto the ground.

Eleven's face was suddenly hovering right above Y/N's and she gave the girl a concerned look. "You okay?" Eleven asked, worry on her face.

"I'm okay," Y/N assured her. "Great actually." The girl then sat up before gesturing towards Mike who was pushing himself up onto a sitting position. "This is Mike Hanlon. Mike, this is my friend Eleven Hopper."

Mike nodded over at Eleven in greeting. "Nice to meet you. Thanks for coming to save me," he breathed out.

Eleven just smiled in response, but her smile instantly disappeared as a howling sound filled the air.

"What was that?" Mike asked in a panic, his eyes searching frantically all around them.

"We need to go," Eleven said as she quickly helped Y/N to her feet. Y/N nodded in agreement and went to help Mike up, not noticing Eleven who had turned to see Will standing a little ways away from them with a blank look on his face.

"Will?" Eleven called out confused.

Y/N furrowed her eyebrows and turned, a gasp escaping her lips as she dropped Mike back on the ground and ran over to Eleven. "El, that's not Will," Y/N said as she grabbed her friend and began to pull her away from the creature who looked a lot like her friend.

"What-? But that's literally Will standing right in front of us?" Eleven said confused. "Unless you have a friend that looks like Will?"

"Not a friend," Y/N muttered.

"Not a friend?" 'Will' asked, tilting his head slightly as he smiled wickedly at the girl. "Oh, Y/N. That hurts my feelings."

Y/N pushed Eleven behind her and glared at the boy in front of her. "You're not Will. You're not my friend," she insisted.

The 'Will' took a step forward. "But we've been through so much together, Y/N. How would we not be friends? Would being best friends forever be better? Cause we could make it forever," 'Will' assured her.

"Get Mike," Y/N whispered as she shoved Eleven back towards her friend. Eleven nodded and went to go help the boy up while Y/N continued to stare at 'Will.'

"Sorry, buddy. I've got enough friends as it is," Y/N called out, taking another step back while 'Will' took a step forward.

"I'm sure you could use one more," 'Will' laughed. "We can all float! Wouldn't that be fun? We can all float! We can all float! We can all float!"

The 'Will' began to scream at them causing the three to stumble back slightly in surprise. But the part that really began to freak them out was when 'Will's' mouth opened up and cockroaches began to crawl out by the dozen. The cockroaches quickly covered the boy's entire body while 'Will' continued to yell, "We can all float!"

The howling sound was heard again only this time closer and 'Will' covered in cockroaches stopped screaming so that he could smile at the two. "Want to play a game?" he asked.

Y/N shook her head, but she had barely even started to before figures began to step out of the woods. "Shit, run!" Y/N yelled once she saw the demogorgons and demodogs that were filing in behind 'Will.'

Eleven and Mike didn't have to be told twice and before they could even register what was going on, the three friends were running away and back in the direction of the house, the demogorgons, demodogs, and 'Will' following after them.

They ran for what felt like hours and it wasn't until they were coming up on the edge of the woods that Y/N looked back to see that 'Will' has transformed back into Pennywise, the clown grinning at the girl and waving to her.

Eleven and Mike were ahead of the girl, so they pushed themselves through the last of the woods before catching sight of the Well House as well as Richie, Wheeler, Steve, Bill, Dustin, and Eddie who were all bolting towards the house with demogorgons on their tails.

"Hurry!" Mike yelled as he could hear the sound of the demodogs and demogorgons getting closer. He could even hear the sound of Pennywise laughing behind them which only made him pull Eleven along faster, the two running towards the door and running in behind the others.

The group was quick to run down to the basement and everyone began to shove each other through the portal until they had all fallen through and hit the floor. It was as soon as Eleven came flying through the portal as the last person that they all began to scream, "Close it! Close the gate!"

Everyone's panicked screams was all that could be heard as Eleven held up a hand and began to close the gate. An ear piercing scream escaped her lips as they all watched the gate close before them as if someone was stitching it together piece by piece.

It was when the final piece seemed to stitch tighter, officially sealing off the Upside Down from the real world that the group all felt back in relief, everyone collapsing to the ground.

Eddie was the first to notice Mike was there and he let out a chuckle before saying, "Mikey." Mike grinned back at the boy and the two embraced before the other Losers quickly went over to their friend as well, hugging the boy and jokingly threatening him to never do that shit again.

When Bill had finished hugging Mike, he smiled before turning to look at Y/N. However, he froze when he couldn't find her.

"Y/N?" he called out, the confusion in his voice making everyone freeze before they looked around as well.

Yet Y/N was no where to be seen.

Bill felt his heart start beating faster, a feeling of utter panic washing over him as he realized something was wrong. Something was really wrong.

"W-W-Where's Y/N?" Bill asked, his eyes flickering around the group in a panic before he stopped on Eleven who he knew had been partners with her.

Eleven paled as she looked around the group. "She was. . .she was. . ." Eleven couldn't even finish the sentence as a feeling of guilt and dread washed over her.

"She was right there with us," Mike elaborated, his voice just above a whisper.

"Did no one see if she got through?" Will asked, his eyes wide as he felt himself begin to panic. He knew what it was like to be trapped inside the Upside Down and if Y/N was trapped. . .

A hand slamming onto the portal was enough to answer the group's questions and they all turned to see two hands banging on the other side of the closed portal. "Guys!" Y/N yelled.

"Guys! No! Please!" Y/N cried out as she banged on the portal, panic settling in her bones.

"Y/N!" Bill yelled out as he ran to the sealed portal, his hands banging against the portal too before he began to try and claw at it with his fingers.

"Bill! Bill! Help me, Bill! Please!" Y/N cried, the sound of her sobs being enough to make his heart rate spike as he realized he had to do anything and everything to get the girl out of there.

"Y/N!" he cried out before he looked to Eleven in a panic. "G-G-Get her out of there! G-G-Get her out!" He probably looked like a freak yelling at Eleven like that with a red face and tears filling his eyes, but he didn't care. The girl he was pretty much in love with was trapped on the other side of the portal with It and the whole Upside Down.

Eleven held her hand up and tried her best to open the gate, but nothing seemed to be working. She screamed as she tried her hardest, but blood was spilling from her nose and before she knew it, she was falling backwards and Wheeler had to catch her. Eleven hadn't quiet passed out yet, but she was so weak she couldn't do anything else and the realization made her start crying.

Bill realized what was happening and picked up one of the axes they had been using as a weapon. He began to hack at the portal, but all the axe seemed to do was bounce off of the thing until it got to the point where Bill was hitting the portal so hard that the axe broke.

"They're coming!" Y/N suddenly cried out as she tried to claw her way out of the Upside Down, but it was no use. "They're coming! Guys! Please!" She was full on sobbing by now, her words coming out in hiccups due to how frightened she was.

"Shit! Shit! Shit!" Steve muttered as he ran forward and used his own weapon to try and get through the portal. The others, all except Eleven, were quick to join in as they all beat at the portal only for there not to even be a dent or scratch to be seen.

"Y/N! H-H-Hang in there! We're g-g-going to get you out!" Bill yelled back. "We're g-g-going to-"

His own yells got cut off when Y/N was suddenly ripped away from the portal, a blood curdling scream filling the air as she suddenly disappeared.

"Y/N!" everyone yelled, but her scream disappeared and she never returned back to the portal.

A silence filled the air after that and it was like each of them could feel the silence in their own body. Everyone was pale, their bodies shaking as they tried to fathom what us just happened.

Bill seemed to be the worst out of them all and he stumbled slightly pass everyone until he stopped by the wooden chair that had his jacket still lying there waiting for the girl. The boy stared at it with tears in his eyes before gently picking up the jacket and holding it close to his body.

A sob left his mouth and everyone's eyes turned to him, their own emotions finally breaking through at the sound of Bill's cries.

Bill fell to his knees, his hands clinging onto the jacket so tight that his knuckles were white. He was sobbing, his whole body shaking with each sob that one could just tell how much this situation hurt him. They could just tell how much Y/N meant to him.

It was in that moment, where Bill cried out for the girl he was desperately in love with and the girl who was best friends with every single person in that room. . .it was that moment that each of them slowly began to break down, Steve being the first one after Bill and going over and hugging the boy as he cried out for the girl who was his little sister. It was in that moment that they fully realized what had just happened.

Y/N L/N was stuck in the Upside Down and something or someone had gotten to her before they could.

* * *

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