章節 33: 33. Every Time You Go Away
[A/N: Hey everybody! Thanks for the reviews! I totally don't mind answering questions so please feel free to ask away! To answer a couple:
J: The Demogorgon babies raised in "captivity" would probably be mostly the same as the original. The whole idea is that the lab is trying to replicate the conditions of the Upside Down/the yellow pods in a controlled environment, so it wouldn't die but might be *slightly* different than the ones born in "the wild", so to speak lol Does that make sense?
K: I don't have a Tumblr but I've thought about making one. Should I? lol I go on there once in a while to check up on my fandoms but I don't go frequently and never actually made an account.
Also, side note, I talked to Finn and his friend Josh on Skype last week which was SUPER COOL. I made these Stranger Things Christmas tree ornaments back in December and they loved them ^_^ Both were so, so super nice so that was awesome!
As always, you guys are amazing. Thank you for inspiring me to keep this story going! Motivation has been down a little lately because I'm always so busy but I really appreciate your reviews and encouragement! Please keep letting me know what you think and asking your questions and I'll do my best to deliver :)]
Chapter 33: Every Time You Go Away (by Paul Young)
"If we can solve any problem, then why do we lose so many tears. Oh, and so you go again when the leading man appears…"
. . . . . . . .
El was beyond exhausted by the time they got back to the house and by the next morning, she barely remembered her sleep-deprived ascent of the staircase. Her tired feet had trudged up the steps one by one as the beginnings of a sunrise peeked through the lace curtains of the house, illuminating the space.
She finally woke from a dreamless sleep to the sound of her friends' voices downstairs talking to Becky in the mid-afternoon. El groggily rolled over, slowly registering the familiar pitches and tones that clued her in to Gabby and Trish's presence. She could reasonably assume Emma was with them as well but she was generally a quiet person, especially in comparison to her other two friends.
As El listened, the events of the night before registered in her mind. Will's collapse at the dance, the frantic and guilt-ridden drive to the hospital, the agonizing and emotionally draining wait, the immense relief at finding out that Will survived and that he was going to be okay. Not to mention the emotional peaks and troughs she'd gone through with Mike and her own self-directed anger. After such an exhausting night, she hadn't even bothered to change out of her clothes and her pretty purple dress was crumpled and wrinkled from sleeping in it. She'd shucked off her sweater before crawling into bed and it now lay in a heap on the wood floor next to her shoes.
"Let me see if she's up yet," El could hear Becky say downstairs and with a yawn, El tossed her legs over the side of the bed, slowly pulling herself to sitting. She had a headache from the drastic shift to her sleep schedule and her head swam for a second as she stood up and opened her bedroom door the rest of the way to head downstairs.
"Here she comes, actually," Becky said from the base of the stairs.
"Hey El," Her friends greeted as she plopped down the stairs, the hair on one side of her head sticking up comically.
"How's your friend? Will, right?" Trish asked once El was in front of them. "Your aunt was saying you guys were at the hospital all night,"
"Sorry we couldn't stay," Emma said, almost wincing.
El nodded in understanding. "Will's okay,"
"Sheesh, thank goodness," Gabby exhaled. "We felt so bad for leaving you guys last night,"
"What happened to him?" Trish inquired and El hesitated, unsure of how to answer. She knew it would only be exposing the girls to a difficult, complicated, and potentially dangerous situation if she explained the full extent of Will's condition to them. Thankfully, Trish filled in El's silence. "Did he pass out or something?"
"Uh," El paused. "Yes,"
"Bet you he didn't drink enough water," Gabby hypothesized. "People think just 'cause it's winter, you can't get overheated but packed into a sweaty gym for a dance like that, it's bound to happen,"
El wasn't sure what to say so she offered a small, tired smile.
"Guess we woke you up, huh?" Trish asked, looking El up and down. She had dark circles under her eyes and her gaze was half-lidded with the heaviness of sleep.
"Yes," El replied, yawning. "It's okay,"
"We wanted to see if you wanted to come hang out with us," Gabby explained. "But I guess if you're just waking up you probably wanna get yourself together and stuff?"
El considered this for a second then nodded. "Still sleepy,"
"We get it," Trish nodded. "Don't worry about it. We'll catch up with you later?"
El nodded, smiling. "Later,"
. . . . . . . .
"I can't believe I have your kidney now," Will marveled as he rested in his hospital bed, his brother at on one side and his mother in a wheelchair on the other.
"Yeah," Joyce smiled, simply relieved that her little boy was safe once again. "Pretty crazy, huh?" She grinned playfully.
"Really crazy," Will agreed with a laugh as he reached for the apple juice on the tray by his bed. Lunchtime had long since come and gone and while the food here wasn't any better than the food in the hospital back home, the nurses had insisted he try and eat as much of his lunch as he could handle. He sat the juice box back down on the tray and rested his head against his pillow.
"They caught that thing that was in your stomach," Jonathan said after a minute. "The doctor told me a couple nurses caught it after it came out of your stomach,"
"Is it still alive?" Will asked, his face contorted.
"No, I think they killed it," Jonathan laughed. "They probably put it in a jar or something; do you want me to ask if you can see it?"
"Uh, no thanks," Will shook his head. "I think I've seen enough of those things,"
"I'm just so happy you're safe," Joyce said, picking up Will's hand and holding it between her own. "Don't you ever scare me like that again," She said in a mock-scolding tone.
"I won't," Will responded sincerely, despite his smile. "I promise,"
"Twice in a year is more than enough, don't ya think?" Jonathan teased good-naturedly.
"I know," Will said with a shrug.
"That was really scary," Joyce said, her tone turning more serious. "If anything would have happened to you, I don't know what I would've done,"
"We were all worried you might not make it," Jonathan added solemnly.
"Wow…" Will breathed. "I just figured with everything going on with the bills and fixing the house and everything that happened back in November, I didn't want to upset you guys," Will admitted with a shrug, looking down at his lap. "I thought I could handle it on my own,"
"Sweetheart," Joyce said, reaching up to tilt his face toward her. "You do not need to worry about our bills, first of all. Okay? I'm sorry if I gave you any reason to worry about that. We're gonna be fine but you can't do stuff like that - trying to tackle something so huge by yourself... God, you're just as stubborn as your brother," She shot a smirk at Jonathan who raised his eyebrows and shrugged in response. "Don't worry about worrying me, okay? Tell me if something's going on with you,"
"Yeah, Will," Jonathan chimed in, grinning. "Mom's tougher than she looks,"
"And don't you forget it," She patted Will's hand for emphasis.
. . . . . . . .
Jonathan headed back home to Hawkins alone as it got closer to dinnertime. While Will would be in the hospital for at least another week, Joyce was scheduled to go home the following day. The doctors said she'd need between four and six weeks recovery time but after that, she could resume her normal activities. She'd already called her manager at the store who, despite some hesitation, was willing to grant her the time off with sick pay for two weeks of her recovery time. The rest would be an advance she'd have to make up for later.
Jonathan had the radio tuned to his favorite rock station as he flew down the highway on his way back home. It'd be dark out by the time he made it back to Hawkins but for now, the sky was lit with an array of different shades of pink, orange, purple, and blue. As he traveled the now-familiar route, his mind wandered and he found himself thinking of Nancy.
It was only yesterday that he'd kissed her and the red-hot sting of embarrassment was still fresh. They hadn't seen each other or spoken since which, to be fair, wasn't unusual, but it still gave Jonathan more time to chastise himself for his misinterpretation of her feelings toward them. He felt like a complete idiot, torturing himself as the memory of her rejection played over and over in his head. After that night they took a walk and the way she'd comforted him in the hospital, he'd really begun to believe there might be something there. Then again, he'd gotten the same sneaking suspicion when they'd spent time together preparing to fight the Demogorgon, as Will's friends called it, but once the dust settled, she'd gone back to Steve.
He couldn't be surprised, honestly. Who was he to think someone like Nancy Wheeler would be interested in a guy like him? They were polar opposites. She was perfect - and not in the typical suburban girl kind of way. No, she'd proven that when she fought as his equal alongside the interdimensional monster that had terrorized her and kidnapped his brother. She was beautiful and smart but she was also brave and strong. She could hold her own and he really respected that about her but it was also part of what made it clear to him that she was completely out of his league. What could he offer her anyway? He didn't consider himself particularly good-looking, just average for a guy, and his social ineptitude was a stark contrast to her social butterfly ways. Not only that but his family's financial position did nothing to assuage his lack of confidence. He'd spent his entire life being teased by the kids whose parents had more money. They made fun of his off-brand clothes and called his family trailer trash and eventually, he decided he just didn't like people and if they were going to act like that, he wanted no part in the social dynamics of public school. But Nancy always found a way to pique his interest, even if he kept that interest hidden for most of their lives. Will and Mike had become best friends years ago and as a result, he'd run into Nancy periodically. Just enough to foster a budding crush and nothing more until the events of last November.
She deserved so much more than he could give her and in some part of his mind, he tried to be okay with that. While she'd confided in him before that she didn't want the same cookie-cutter life her parents had, he couldn't completely blame her for going back to Steve. He wasn't actually as bad of a guy as he'd originally thought and it was natural for people to crave and seek stability in their lives. And if there was one thing he hadn't had much of over the course of his own life, it was stability.
. . . . . . . .
You could call it a hunch. He'd been suspicious of Hopper for some time now but the medical director's spotting of the girl in a hospital in Clarksville confirmed there was something amiss. While he couldn't yet prove Hopper's connection to Eleven being seen with Becky Ives, of all people, he was confident that the police chief had played a role in their little reunion. How else could she have escaped undetected? And who else knew that Eleven was the daughter of Terry Ives but the man who'd used his knowledge as a bargaining chip to gain access to their lab.
Brenner remembered the hospital informant who had once worked under him. He'd been reliable and discreet during his time at the lab and for that and this most recent service, Brenner was grateful. Apparently, the now medical director had just returned from a month long series of medical conferences on the East Coast when heard about a curious case in one of the operating rooms. He was on his way to see for himself when he'd passed Eleven in the halls and immediately recognized her from his time at Hawkins Lab. He'd never worked directly with her so she hadn't recognized him, making it easy for him to pass by unnoticed and hurry off to the surveillance room to get the security tape with her on it.
Now was the time to be more careful than ever, however. The lab had received quite a bit of unwelcome attention following the events in November and while the media frenzy had died down and they'd been able to ward off most accusations, they had to be particularly scrupulous in this case. No detail could be overlooked and carelessness would not be accepted. There were still a few things to figure out but first and foremost, getting Eleven back to Hawkins Lab where she belonged was the priority.
. . . . . . . .
Flashback
The researchers at the lab had been hesitant to discontinue Sarah's treatment but the last thing they needed was an angry set of parents bringing attention to their facility because they were being met with opposition to the idea of transferring their terminal daughter's treatment elsewhere. After taking Sarah back to the lab to be evaluated after her episode in the park, the doctors had found that the mets in Sarah's brain had grown and were pressing on more areas, mostly affecting her vision. They'd tried another, more aggressive treatment, but the prognosis remained grim. Disturbed by the sudden deterioration, Diane had insisted they go back home and have her resume care with her previous doctors.
Sarah had lost all of her hair after the final treatment at the lab and she was significantly weaker than she'd been before. The heart monitor beside her bed beeped in time with her pulse and Jim sat in bed next to her reading from her Anne of Green Gables book. Diane sat in a chair on the other side, trying her best to keep composure as her daughter listened to the story.
"'Well, I don't know,' said Matthew," Jim read, his arm wrapped comfortingly around Sarah who stared at the pictures in the book, though she could only make out vague shapes and blurred edges. "'It just makes me feel glad to be alive…it's such an interesting world.'"
"Excuse me," Sarah's doctor tapped on the door-frame to draw their attention. "I'm sorry to interrupt but could I speak with you two for a moment?"
"Of course," Diane said, getting up and moving for the door. Jim kissed the side of Sarah's head and followed his wife out as Sarah clutched her stuffed tiger to her chest.
Taking care to move away from the door so as to be out of Sarah's earshot, her doctor met the couple with a sympathetic expression. "We've received the results of Sarah's scans and I'm afraid there's bad news,"
"Oh god," Diane said, pursing her lips and crossing her arms as she looked up to the ceiling.
"The smaller tumors in Sarah's brain that broke off from the original tumor have grown and the tumor in her abdomen has doubled in size, all of which is consistent with the report sent over from Hawkins Laboratory," The doctor explained.
"What does that mean?" Hopper pressed. "What do we do?"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Hopper, but at this point, the best we can offer Sarah is palliative care," The doctor explained. "Due to the progression of her disease, I'd say she has another month with us, at best,"
Hopper's face blanched. "No, you told us six months before," He said, not realizing he'd begun to raise his voice. "You said she had six months! That still leaves her with another four!"
"I'm very sorry, Mr. Hopper," The doctor's eyebrows stitched together with concern as Hopper ran his hands through his hair. "The tests indicate -"
"Maybe the tests are wrong!" Hopper interrupted, only half-listening at this point as he searched wild-eyed for something to cling to. "Maybe they made a mistake,"
"No, Jim," Diane cut in, her eyes watering. "The only mistake was taking her to that damn laboratory to be experimented on like some kind of lab rat!" She said, her voice equally harsh yet hushed before abruptly heading back into Sarah's room.
As Hopper struggled to process the news, he didn't even process the doctor's statement that he'd be by later to check on them. Instead, he found himself walking down the hall and slipping through a door marked 'Stairs'. He wasn't sure where he was going or why but his feet moved of their own volition. He stopped on the landing, the volatile burning in his chest finally bubbling over and taking his breath away. He grasped the rail and hung his head as hot tear stung his eyes and he clenched his teeth against the pain in his chest. He released his grip on the rail, backing up until his back met the wall and he sunk into it like a comforting embrace. Sliding down to the floor, he collapsed in a heap in the corner and sobbed into his hands. Reality was finally hitting him and the impact felt like the wind being knocked out of him. And what made matters worse, was that he had pushed for Sarah to try the alternative treatment and it had failed. She had less time and it was his fault.
. . . . . . . .
"Every time you go away you take a piece of me with you. Go on and go free, yeah. Maybe you're too close to see…"
每周推薦票狀態
-- 推薦票
榜單 
-- 推薦票