39. can't catch a break

CAN'T CATCH A BREAK

✧･ﾟ: * "Flashlights," Dustin states as the group all enter a room in the attic. They'd discovered they can track where the Vecna is moving in the upside down through the lights the turn on as he passes them, and as they all circle around the main light in the attic, all their flashlights glow excessively.

"Okay," Steve looks the most freaked out at the moment. "What's happening?"

Nora sees Nancy and Robin just looked confused on the other end of the circle, Lucas vaguely concerned, but all Nora can focus on is the redhead beside her.

Is this safe for her? Vecna is literally right there, and she's possessed by him! It must so easy for him to just-

Max must be able to read Nora's mind because she immediately grabs the panic-filled girl's hand, warming it in contrast to the chill of the flashlight's metal in her other hand. Nora squeezes back in acknowledgement, but neither girls can lift their gaze from the light in front of them.

—

✧･ﾟ: * "Not to be a wimp," Robin starts as she sits in the passenger seat of the car. Nancy's driving, Nora sits in the middle of Lucas and Max in the backseat, and Dustin and Steve are sitting in the trunk with the food and drinks they've acquired for Eddie. "But can I stay in the car for this, 'cause this is gonna totally and royally suck."

"It'll be fine," Nancy shakes her head.

"I just can't stand to see the dull eyes of Eddie's break again. I really, really can't."

"At least he can drink himself into feeling better," Steve lifts the beer bottles to prove a point, him Dustin having already dug into the chip supply they'd gathered.

"That's what my mom does," Max snarks, and Nora shoots her a look.

She isn't really sure where they stand considering she didn't miss the way Max said she loved her when they were in the cemetery, then refused to make eye contact with her after the Annie Cunningham thing, then held her hand a total of three times since they'd discovered where the Vecna holed itself up, and now is back to avoiding all signs of humanity.

"Why don't we just give it a trial run?" Robin excuses Nora from inner crisis. "'Hey, Eddie! Uh, good news first this time: we got you some Dustin-approved junk food and that six-pack you requested. Oh, yeah, and we found Vecna. Bad news is that he's in that other, darker, much scarier dimension that-we-told-you-about-and-the-gate's-closed-so-we-have-no-way-of-getting-to-him-he's-entirely-shut-off-to-us-so-basically-you're-screwed-and-no-I-know-that-you-were-already-screwed-but-now-you're-like-doubly-triply-screwed!'" the older girl blurs her words together at the end in panic.

"Maybe don't put it like that," Lucas puts a reassuring hand out in a condescending manner.

"Yeah, no shit," Nora mumbles, hoping Robin doesn't hear and thinks it's directed towards her; Nora's just still pissed at Lucas.

If he had kept his stupid mouth shut and not talked about that stupid kiss that was so stupid because they were just playing a stupid game-

"'We're one step closer to finding Vecna,'" Nancy says her own rendition of how the conversation should go. "That's what we say. That's what's important."

"See, Robin," Steve's mouth is still full. "Positive spin makes all the difference."

"Uh-huh," Robin replies dryly.

"Oh, shit," Nancy says before Steve can shoot his own snarky remark Nora knows he was waiting for.

The group all lean forward as they turn into the boathouse Eddie was staying in, a new form of tension surrounding them as they see a large group of people standing along the dock.

They all get out as the car stops, running around a news van to avoid the police. They see the sheriff giving a news report talking about a homicide on the lake. He gives more details then expresses it was a senior who went to Hawkins High School.

"Patrick McKinney."

Nora and Lucas share a look. The nosebleeds. They should've known.

The next name the sheriff gives is the one the whole group is dreading - the name of the number one suspect.

"Eddie Munson."

"Dustin, can you hear me?" Dustin's walkie talkie speaks from his bag and he rushes to grab at the recognition of Eddie's voice. "Mini Harrington. Anyone there?"

"Eddie, holy shit," Dustin whispers into the device as they try to hide from the public eye. "Are you okay?"

"Nah, man," Eddie laughs humorlessly. "Pretty goddamn far from okay."

"Where is he?" Nora hits Dustin's shoulder to get him to ask the basic questions.

"Where are you?" He repeats into the walkie talkie.

"Skull rock," Eddie's voice replies. "You know it?"

"Nora?" Nora hears a high pitched voice from behind, slowly turning around as she recognizes it immediately.

The rest of the group carry on the conversations about Eddie and walk towards the car, expecting Nora to follow behind.

"Annie-"

"Oh, my God," the strawberry blonde in front of immediately suffocates her in a hug, and Nora hopes as she pats her back that it's not as awkward as if feels.

"Hey, I heard about your sister-" Nora spills out awkwardly, feeling the burning gaze of the others who are waiting for her by the car.

One thing she did not expect in this moment was for Annie to burst into tears.

The younger Cunningham tightens her grip around the awkward Harrington, sniffling into her hair.

"I'm so sorry," Nora apologizes mostly for striking a nerve rather than the respectful condolences people normally give in these circumstances.

"No, no, I'm fine," Annie pulls away and wipes her tears, the one hand she's left on Nora's waist burning a hole through her letterman jacket in a bad way. "I just need the police to find that psycho, Eddie Munson, y'know?"

Nora isn't sure what to say, so she just nods her head awkwardly, taking a step back so Annie's hand falls from her waist.

"Well, anyway," the girl with now smudged mascara seems to take the hint. "I'll call you later, yeah? I could use a hangout."

"Yeah," Nora doesn't know how to say no. "We'll see each other soon," she smile awkwardly and speed walks away as inconspicuously as possible.

"Totally in love," Lucas murmurs as Nora shoves herself into the middle seat, face burning intensely.

"Her sister just died, Lucas, I couldn't ignore her," Nora feels incredibly defensive, especially as Max's arm burns into her own, but the redhead hasn't said a word.

"That's the Annie girl you always talk about?" Robin turns around in her seat to stare at Nora.

"I don't always talk about her!"

"The one who's jealous of Lucas for making out with you?" Max asks and Nora can hear the offensive tone in her voice.

"Wait, you and Lucas have made out?!" Dustin all but shouts from the trunk. "What? When? Why? How?"

"It was a peck," Nora mumbles, slouching low in her seat as if she could press herself into it far enough that she'd disappear.

She looks up at Lucas for a moment, as if he could offer any assistance, but all he does in grin obnoxiously at her, and it takes everything in Nora not to smack the look off his face.

a/n:

quadrouple? loraxie