Goodbye

The Byers home, filled with love rather than money, was becoming what it once was, as boxes were taken out from large to small into a U-haul truck.

"Turn around.....look at what you see~"

Max and Lucas were sitting next to each other in the living room where the coffee table used to be, boxes of items in the Byers home around them. Their voices seep into a jagged harmony.

"In her face. The mirror of your dreams~"

The Byers were moving to Lenora Hills, California. Which was about 1858 miles apart from Hawkins, Indiana.

"Rhymes that keep their secrets, will unfold behind the cloud~"

"Wait did we get that verse right? It's "unfold behind the clouds?" Max teasingly asked looking at the boy who had an apparent look of annoyance on his face as he put oven mitts in a box.

"Yeah, but you're butchering it, so could you please stop?" Dustin said pursing his lips.

"So then join in, Dusty-bun." Lucas blew a mocking kiss.

"Yeah, come on, Dusty-bun, why don't you join us?" Max said, copying Lucas's tone of voice.

Dylan took out the forks in the drawers below the kitchen counter, placing them into a small compartment located in a medium-sized box. He bent over holding his ribs that used to be broken. His form of action became a habit after doing it for six weeks while it healed.

He overheard the argument in the dining room that reached the living room between Dustin, Lucas, and Max. He couldn't help but smile a little even if the feeling of emptiness still resided within him. Nothing was as humorous anymore, he never felt like using jokes or sarcasm, everything just felt like a chore. Eating, Sleeping...the list goes on.

He wondered why he felt this way as Max looked perfectly fine. Her bright smile matching her boyfriend's. The past week he had caught himself comparing his emotions to the ones around him, Max especially. The girl lost her brother, well step-brother, but someone a part of her family nonetheless, but she was just able to find a better outlook on things, Dylan wished he had the capability of that.

Ever since the incident at the mall happened Dylan had been a bit closed off. He had little conversations with his friends but other than that, he kept to himself. He wasn't even talking to his brother as much. Or even Mike.

He felt Mike's presence behind him as the boy sorted out books. Every clink of silverware and thud of covers caused the awkward tension in the room to grow thicker.

The yearning to turn around and say something was on both of their minds, yet neither of them did. Mike was still convinced Dylan was upset with him and Dylan just couldn't look at the boy without feeling shameful.

Dylan reached his hands to the very top of the cabinet not being able to reach a salt shaker. He would use his telekinesis if he could, but after he woke up in the hospital he seemed to have lost it like Eleven. He still had his other abilities but they didn't help very much in this moment. He saw a hand reach next to his as they grabbed the salt shaker. Bringing it to Dylan's attention.

"Here." Mike smiled as he faced Dylan his eyes uplifted and hopeful.

Dylan quickly adverted his gaze as soon as he met Mikes. Taking the shaker fast."Thank you." Before he moved past Mike to open a bottom cabinet as he kneeled down facing away from him.

Mike frowned as Dylan walked away, he didn't know what was wrong. Dylan kept shutting him away, shutting almost everyone away. He knew what happened to Cindy, and he knows she meant a lot to Dylan. This was a time of grief. He lost his girlfriend and now his sister and his best friend were moving away.

But Mike felt a little annoyed as Will was also his best friend and he was also losing his girlfriend a little. But Mike knew deep down he felt this way because he was losing Dylan too.

Dylan dug through the cabinets to see a pack of Camels. Unopened with a red line streaking across the top. He recognized these, they were the same kind of cigarettes Cindy used. He squeezed the pack as if it would blow away before standing up and placing it in his back pocket. Joyce wouldn't mind. _________________________________

"You guys are so funny, you should be on Carson." Dustin sarcastically stated

"Can't we just hear your rendition?" Max asked

"No." Dustin replied

"Please, just one verse!" Max begged

"No! No way! It's reserved for Suzie's ears and Suzie's ears alone." Dustin argued

Lucas and Max just blankly looked at each other, before smiling and continuing the rest of the song. As Dustin flipped them off.

Dylan chuckled under his breath as he walked over to Dustin holding the box full of utensils"Here Dustin, can you place these in the big box by the corner when you're done with this one?" Dylan smiled. 

"Yeah, of course," Dustin replied putting his middle finger down, his tone quickly changing as he smiled at Dylan. "Dylan, are you okay?"

Dylan was surprised by the question as he paused for a moment."Uh, yeah. Why?"

"You just seem quieter." Dustin said his voice lowering.

"Just a... sad day." Dylan shrugged as he walked away.

It truly was a sad day for Dylan, that was no excuse. The Byers were leaving, his best friend was leaving for California, and they were taking his sister with them. He held no grudge over the topic as it made sense. Eleven would be with a better family in a better town, in a better state. And able to finally go to school to get an education, away from all this shit. She would be safe.

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Dylan brought boxes into the truck, mostly the heavy ones he didn't want anyone else carrying, in fear they could hurt themselves. He loaded the last one from the kitchen. As Joyce patted his shoulder

"Dylan..Honey, there's one more box in Will's room could you get that one?" Joyce asked.The woman had her hair tied back as the static made all of her baby hairs fall out and spread like a mess. Her clothes were wrinkled, and she had heavy eye bags. She looked similar to when Will was "dead." Dylan knew she was grieving too.

"Of course." Dylan politely smiled as he walked back into the house. Seeing the empty hallways and looking at the marks on the walls caused by all the framed photos of the family. Dylan knew he would miss this place

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She held the teddy bear in one hand and lifted the other to hold Mike's cheeks. She looked up at him fondly

"Mike...I love you too." El kissed him.

Mike's eyes stayed open in shock. His eyebrows slightly slanted. He didn't kiss her back. He didn't know why. This kiss felt different..... it felt real. The words he had said in Hopper's cabin before, felt true, but did he mean it? Mean it that way? Thoughts were spiraling through his head.

He looked towards the entrance to see Dylan who walked into the room, pausing in shock. Mike turned his head away from Eleven "Dylan!" Mike said in surprise, his tone similar to relief. As his stomach dropped.

"Sorry, I just came to get the last box," Dylan replied. As he walked to the corner picking up a small cardboard box. "You can continue." He said awkwardly keeping his gaze set on Eleven.

Eleven giggled at her brother as he quickly left the room. She caressed Mike's face once more before turning away. Her cheeks pink and warm.

Dylan's face kept replaying in Mike's mind. The way his eyes widened and his face dropped. He didn't like the idea of how he and Dylan acted around each other now.Mike pondered Dylan's smile and his laugh. His ears started to hear Elevens words in Dylan's tone. Feel Dylan's touch.

His stomach flipped and his ears grew red, as his face contorted with disgust. Why would he think that? Dylan was his best friend, his boy, best friend. He quickly shook his head before running out of the room to catch up with Eleven, leaving his thoughts behind.

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The last box was packed and sealed away in the U-haul moving truck. As the cars started, and the people who made this empty house a home were outside.

Dylan met with Will who was sobbing profusely The boy latched onto Dylan, Will's hands grasped the back of Dylan's long-sleeved shirt leaving his lower back exposed. as he felt the boy's tears fall down his face. "I'm going to miss you,Will."

"I—I-I'm going T-o-." Will heaved as his tears made his voice incoherent. "It's alright...I get it." Dylan said as he held Will's shoulder. "Listen. Never let anyone in California push you around Will.  You're one of the strongest people I know, keep drawing......because when I see you again....I...I need you to decorate my shoes." Dylan's voice cracked at the end as tears flooded his eyes.

Will nodded as he hugged him once again. Wiping away his tears, before separating to hug Lucas.

Dylan's eyes turned glossy, he remembered his moments with Will like they were yesterday. Their friendship was pure joy to Dylan. He was genuine when he said Will was like his brother. Memories they made together that he would always hold dear to his heart and hope to make more one day.

He turned over to his right to see Eleven walking towards him, tears streaming down her face. Dylan thought about when he saw her in the woods for the first time, remembering her in Mike's basement. Back when they were both young.He felt at that moment how much he would miss them. As his tears fled from his eyes. His arms engulfing Eleven.

The girl cried into his shoulder before pulling back holding his face in her hands. His warm tears falling down her arms. She looked over at her wrist to see the black hair tie that Dylan gave her that she never took off.

"Here." Eleven cried as she slipped the tie off her wrist.

Dylan stopped the girl."Keep it. Just keep on practicing braiding your hair, and your schoolwork, because you're a smart girl El and you'll fit in perfectly at your new school, don't let anyone tell you differently and if they do....never lose your will to fight."

Eleven smiled sadly as she looked at her brother again. He always seemed to know exactly what she needed to hear. She was going to miss him.

"I love you El, never forget that." Dylan said sweetly embracing her again.

El rested her chin on Dylan's shoulder"I love you too."

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Dylan watched as Joyce got into the U-haul truck with El in the passenger seat while Jonathan took the car, Will next to him. The four drove away. The cloud of dirt under the wheels flew creating a fog that covered their trail, the Byers were gone.

Dylan stood in between Dustin and Lucas. Max clinging on to Lucas's arm while Mike and Nancy were to the far right. The six watched as the cars got smaller and smaller, each not muttering a word as they all then separated to their car and bikes.

Dylan held the front end of his bike, seeing how old it had gotten and how it got smaller every day. He needed to get a new one. He knew this one was going to be hard to let go of, seeing every dent and scrap that came from riding all over Hawkins with the party.

The metal seeping through the black paint, The seat peeling. Even though the Harringtons had enough money to replenish every item of Dylan's, he never wanted to. Everything he had,  held moments that no money could buy away from him.

Even the orange Converse he wore on his feet he still couldn't give away even if he hated them.

Dylan sat on his bike, folding the brakes. And riding away with Max to his left and Lucas to his right. Every bump down the road and swerve to the right, made him remember the nights of riding with Will to his house after DnD games, and the night he should've ridden with him.

He turned to the left getting goodbyes from the group as he made his way down his neighborhood. Passing by the houses, as it all became a blur.

Dylan parked his bike outside of the garage. As he walked over to the back of his house, unlocking the back glass doors. And walking inside to his carpet floors.

He remembered letting Cindy inside through the sliding doors. The girl running to his room to sit on his bed.Dylan felt the softness of his blankets as he sat down. Leaning against his wall.

He moved around feeling an object in his denim pocket. The hardcover rubbing against the texture of his jeans, he reached behind grabbing it to remember the pack of Camels he stole from Joyce's cabinet.

He felt a little embarrassed by his actions, but there's not much he can do now except open them. As the plastic crinkle against the carton was peeled off. Dylan could already taste them.

He always hated cigarettes. The smell, the taste, yet at this moment he's never craved them more. He opened the packet seeing the rolls of cigarettes lined up neatly against each other, the orange filter sticking up at the top.

Dylan grabbed one of them in the far right corner with his right hand, holding the cigarette between his index finger and middle finger knuckles like Cindy used to do.

He stood up from his bed rather quickly as he opened his bedroom window. Kneeling against his wall as he perched his elbows and chest against the window sill.

He opened his palm and faced it towards the blue sky. He took the white part of the cigarette seeing the tobacco leaves inside. He pressed it against his palm. Heating his hand as hot as he could until he felt a burning sensation where the cigarette was.

The burn felt good along with the smell that came afterwards. The smoke that left from the end of the cigarette was small but satisfying.

Dylan looked at the cigarette for a moment, like he trying to fight his urges. If Steve saw him smoking he would kill Dylan. But what Steve didn't know wouldn't hurt him.

Just a taste....a feeling of Cindy next to him to help stop these aching nerves of guilt that ran down his spine. Every night he felt it get worse and worse. He needed it to stop.

He placed it in between his sandy pink lips. Inhaling the cig as a small crinkling noise filled the air. The slight taste of citrus hit the tip of his tongue before that familiar bitter smoke infected his throat, as he pulled the cigarette away choking as a cloud of white exited his mouth after every cough.

It was as disgusting as always to Dylan, the fumes causing his throat to burn, and his eyes to water. He took a couple of deep breaths only smelling the burning of the cigarette before placing it between his lips again.

He continued until he got to his third cigarette. The sky's color changed as more time passed. It became easier after every breath, his tastebuds absorbing the bitter taste into a rather sour one, a more pleasing one. Dylan felt his shoulders relax as the fogginess of his mind cleared up.

He burned the buds against the side of his house not caring about the black mark it left. He closed his window, closing the pack of cigarettes and hiding them in his drawer as he took his orange Converse off and threw them onto the floor.

He sat back down on his bed, letting his socks touch the floor as his body laid flat on his bed. He covered his face with his hands. Still smelling the smoke on his fingers and tasting it between his lips.

Dylan had been through loss before in his life. More lost than a boy his age should go through. As he wanted to do nothing more but tear away at his skin and scream at the top of his lungs, he was a danger, a danger to his friends. To his family. Like an Addict to Cigarettes. Dylan wanted comfort, wanted someone to make him feel like everything was okay. But he knew he couldn't allow himself to have that, the fear of losing someone again was far too great to ignore. He knew he couldn't let himself have the chance of happiness knowing whoever he talked to could potentially get hurt. Dylan wanted the choice to be alone, rather than succumbing to the world's attempts to isolate him.

He was making that choice.