Gone

   The party was now back in Mikes basement, the boys surrounding the round table, while Eleven was on the couch messing with Mike's super comm.

They were gonna find Will today.

"We'll tell our parents, or brother," Mike said raising his hand up to Dylan."that we have Av club today, that'll give us a few hours for operation Mirkwood." Mike explained.

"Wait, wait, do we really think this weirdo knows where Will is?" Lucas asked still not convinced Eleven was the best tour guide, for the where's William Byers trip.

"We have to make an attempt at every possibility Lucas." Dylan said sitting on the arm of the couch.

"Just trust us on this, okay?" Mike said

"Okay." Lucas replied still not convinced

"Did you get the supplies?" Mike asked Dustin and Lucas.

"Yeah!" Lucas replied setting his backpack on the table and pulling out each item.

"Binoculars from nam, army knife also from nam. Hammer, camouflage bandana, and a wrist rocket." Lucas finished

"You're gonna take out a demogorgen with a slingshot?" Dustin questioned with an unimpressed look on his face

"First of all it's a wrist rocket." Lucas said turning to Dustin, "second of all the Demogorgen isn't real it's made up. Now If there is something out there I'm gonna shoot it in the eye, and blind it." Lucas finished pulling the wrist rocket back and releasing it.

"Okay, um Dustin what did you bring?" Dylan asked picking his thumb.

"Alright." Dustin exclaimed dumping all his supplies on the table.

"So, we got Nutty Bars, Bazooka, Pez, Smarties, Pringles, Nilla Wafers, apples, bananas, and trail mix." Dustin said proudly

"Seriously?!" Lucas asked "This is all junk!" Mike exclaimed

"It's not All junk, Dustin packed some fruit!" Dylan said sarcastically. "Thank you Dylan!" Dustin said not picking up his sarcasm.

"I was being sarcastic." Dylan said picking up the apple and eating it, Dustin's face dropping in the process.

"We need energy for our travels, stamina, and besides who needs weapons when we have her!" Dustin argues gesturing towards Eleven.

"She shut one door!" Lucas argued back

"With her mind! Are you kidding?! That's insane! Imagine all the other things she could do!" He said walking over to a toy spaceship and brought it to her trying to make her lift it up by command.

Dylan took the spaceship away from Dustin. "She's not a dog Dustin." He scolded.

"Boys!" Mrs wheeler yelled down the stairs of the basement,"Time for school!"

Lucas and Dustin picked up their bags and ran up the stairs, Dylan grabbed his bag and walked up the stairs before stopping in the middle waiting for Mike.

He saw Mike talking to Eleven and Dylan couldn't help but feel a bit jealous, why was he jealous? Mike was just helping another friend.Right?

He then met up with Mike and they both went up the stairs and off to school.

_______________________________

The four boys were outside the school during break by the baseball field, looking for a rock for Lucas's wrist rocket.

"How about this one?" Mike asked

"Too big." Dustin replied

"That's what she said." Dylan said chuckling, which was met with three unimpressed looks.

"Do you think Eleven was born with her powers like the X-men or do you think she required them like green lantern?" Dustin asked.

"Well I mean I'm sure she was born with them, like m-," Dylan stopped himself before he could blow his cover."MINE!" Dylan said saving himself "from MY understanding of comics and science, I'm sure she was just born with them." He cleared his throat, "um Lucas what do you think." He said shifting the spotlight away from him.

"I think no matter how she got her powers, she's still a weirdo." Lucas exclaimed

Dylan looked away again hurt by his friend's words.

"Why does it matter, the X-men were weirdos." Mike argued.

Dylan smiled at this statement

"If you love her, why don't you marry her?" Lucas tauntingly spoke.

"What are you talking about?" Mike asked

"Yea?" Dylan uncomfortably questioned

"Mike looks at her all like hi! El! El! El! I love you so much! Would you marry me?!" Lucas said in a cheeky voice getting down on one knee .

"Shut up Lucas." Mike tiredly says pulling his arms away from Lucas.

"Yea, shut up Lucas!" Troy exclaimed James following him. Dylan immediately stepped a little bit in front of all his friend in a protective stance.

"What are you losers doing back here?" Troy asked taunting them.

"Probably looking for their missing friend!" James said.

"That's not funny he could be in serious danger!" Dustin spoke up.

"Hate to break it to you toothless, but he's not in danger, he's dead. That's what my dad says. He was probably killed by some other queer." Troy and James laughed at this.

"Come just ignore them." Mike told the boys, trying to move past Troy, when he stuck his foot out tripping Mike.

Dylan immediately rushed to his aid picking him up, and looking at the cut on Mike's chin. Dylan's blood boiled he started to walk over to the laughing Troy and James before Mike grabbed his hand.

"It's not worth getting in trouble for, I'm fine." Mike said calmly to Dylan who didn't take his eyes off of the bullies.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Dylan asked turning his gaze to Mike.

"Yea." Mike said slightly smiling at Dylan before wiping blood off his chin.

"I wish he'd go missing." Lucas said darkly, Dylan agreeing with him.

Dustin then separated from the group, and picked up a rock. "Hey how about this one?" Dustin asked handing Lucas the rock

"Oh yea, this one's the monster killer!" Lucas said a goofy smile on all of their faces.

"Let's get you cleaned up Mike." Dylan said the two going to the bathroom.

Dylan wet a paper towel and gently wiped the dirt off the Mikes chin, he then grabbed an alcohol wipe from his bag.

"This is gonna burn." Dylan said to Mike

"What-AH! Geez" Mike exclaimed

Dylan chuckled a bit before putting the bandaid he had on Mikes chin. Mike slightly peeked in Dylan bag.

"Why do you keep peppermint oil with you?" Mike asked.

Dylan glanced down at his bag and saw the oil. "Oh!, um well you know how I'm really afraid of bats?" Dylan asked

"Yea?" Mike questioned

"Well bats hate peppermint oil!" Dylan explained  with a smile, "so I usually put it by my window."

"Heh cool." Mike said looking at Dylan, the two in an awkward silence before Mike ended it.

"Thank you, Dylan." Mike said

Dylan looked up at Mike, his face getting red "Uh-huh yea of course!" Dylan awkwardly said.

"Let go back to Dustin and Lucas." Mike said wrapping his arm around Dylan.

_______________________________

When school ended, the boys all jump on their bikes and road to the power lines to meet up with El when they got there El sat behind Mikes bike and the look for Will began.

The group followed El for hours and it became dark, Dylan was tired but he kept on going for the sake of Will.

"Here." El then stopped in her tracks, Dylan was grateful before realizes they were at Wills house.

"Yeah, this is where Will lives" Mike said confused stretched across his face.

"Hiding." She responded

"No, this is where he lives. He's missing from here, do you understand?" Mike asked

"What are we doing here?" Lucas asked his patience running low.

"She said Will's hiding here?" Dylan said, not so sure of himself.

"Um, no!" Lucas yelled

"I swear if we walked all the way out here for nothing!" Dustin complained

"That's exactly what we did! I told you she didn't know what the hell she was talking about!" He shouted in anger

"El, why did you bring us here?" Mike asked El calmly but the girl couldn't explain she only stumbled with her words.

"Mike, don't waste your time with her!" Lucas told Mike

"What do you want to do then?" Mike yelled at Lucas back, which caused the boys to get into an argument, Dylan was about to intervene when he saw police cars zoom by and he heard sirens.

Dylan alerted the group and they all went on their bikes and followed the authorities to the

________________________________QUARRY

They all hid their bikes behind a Fire truck and leaned behind the truck to see what was happening.

They saw firefighters lifting something out of the water.

Dylan begged for it not be Wills body, but once they lifted it up and he saw Wills vest.

Guilt, that's all he felt.

"It can't be will." Mike said to himself

"It's will, it's really will." Lucas sadly explained

"Mike." El softly said

  "What!" Mike shouted at her "you were supposed to help us find him alive, you said he was alive! Why did you lie? What's wrong with you? What's wrong with you!" Mike yelled his eyes tearing up.

He then ran to his bike

"Mike, come on don't do this man." Lucas exclaimed

Mike ignored him before turning, his eyes meeting Dylan's broken ones he then rode away.

After a bit Dylan couldn't stand the sight of Will he grabbed his bike and rode to his house.

He arrived at his front door and opened it to see Steve on the couch.

"Hey how was Av club?" Steve asked him before noticing Dylan's stance and how he was looking down, "is something wrong?" Steve asked concerned

He got up off the couch and walked to his younger brother, Dylan then fell on the floor his knees and hands catching him, Steve immediately ran to him and held him close

"It was my fault!" "My fault!" Dylan kept repeating tears down his face, his eyes and nose red

"Hey, hey! What's going on? What's your fault?" Steve asked him cupping his face.

"Wills gone, they found him- I-in the quarry, I should have gone with him, he wouldn't have fell, I could've s-s-saved him but I was inconsiderate! Stupid!" Dylan rambled

Steve pondered Dylan words before it clicked, he didn't know what to say so he just held him until he calmed down enough for Steve to get him in his room.

  Steve got him tucked in before walking to his door he saw his brother so hurt and it killed him but he decided to leave him alone for a while. leaving the door slightly open to his comfort.

Dylan laid there, thoughts rushing through his mind.

He jumped up and grabbed a sweater to put on, he then looked at his shoes, the converse that Will drew on, he grabbed his other pair, the orange converse, the guilt still weighing on him. He then grabbed his bag and opened his window, once he was in the clear he jumped on his bike and rode to the place he felt the safest.

The WheelersHe sneakily put his bike behind a bush and walked up to basement door, he knocked on it once and the door opened, he came face to face with Mike, he was gonna explain why he was here before Mike tackled him in a hug.

_________________________________

The two boys were sitting on Mikes couch, leaning against each other. Looking at the drawings Will had made for them.

Mike looked at Dylan's shoes and saw he was wearing his orange converse, Dylan didn't like the color orange

"Hey Dylan?" Mike asked

"Hm?" Dylan responded

"Why are you wearing your orange converse? I thought you hated them." Mike looked at Dylan in confusion. Dylan didn't look back

"It was my fault.............I should've rode my bike with him...I'm so stupid!" Dylan couldn't stop the tears falling down his face.

"No, no Dylan Wills death was an accident, none of this is your fault.......it never is." Mike said pulling Dylan into a hug resting his head on his shoulder.

Dylan was still not convinced, but the warmth of Mike made him feel safe, like nothing could hurt him, he never wanted it to end. The feeling of cold air when they separated left Dylan with fear again

The two just sat on the couch their hands intertwined, in a comfortable silence the world around them unnoticed.

Their silence was cut short with Mike scolding Eleven for messing with the super comm.

"Will you quit that!" Mike yelled, which was ignored by Eleven

"I thought we were friends! But friends don't lie to each other, you made me think Will was okay-" Mike kept yelling

"Mike it's not her fault-" Dylan tried to reason with him

"No! Lucas was right" Mike kept yelling not listening to Dylan

Dylan just tuned them out, until he heard a familiar voice on the super comm.

*But you got to let me know, should I stay or should I g-*

Dylan and Mike shot up from the couch

"Was that-?" Mike looked at Dylan and El

"Will." Dylan then looked at Eleven who nodded