What do you think? I think you're an idiot. (Dustin Henderson x Reader)

17: The long walk.

Y/n's pov

"I mean, you have to admit. As a feat of engineering alone, this is impressive." Dustin said from beside me.

The hallway was cold and dark, the only source of light being the chilly and blinding white light that ran all the way down the hall. Pipes and vents trailed along the wall to who knows where, making for an even bigger mystery as to where we were.

We'd been walking for at least an hour, and my legs had started to get sore.

"What are you talking about?" Steve asked, looking to Dustin.

The hallway was just wide enough for us all to walk side by side, Erica in the middle, Robin and Steve on one side, Dustin and I on the other.

"It's a total fire hazard. There's no stairs, there's no exit, there's just an elevator that drops you halfway to hell." Steve stated.

"They're commies." Erica said, looking past Robin to Steve. "You don't pay people, they cut corners."

Steve looked at her weirdly with furrowed eyebrows, silently questioning this ten year old's comment.

"To be fair to our Russian comrades, I don't think this tunnel was designed for walking." I said thoughtfully, looking down at the subtle rubber tire marks on the polished floors.

"Yeah. Think about it," Robin continued. "They developed the perfect system for transporting that cargo."

"It all comes into the mall like any old delivery." I said. "And then they load it up onto those trucks and nobody's the wiser."

"You think they built this whole mall just so they could transport that green poison?" Steve wondered.

"I very seriously doubt it's something as boring as poison." I deadpanned.

"It's gotta be much more valuable, like Promethium or something." Dustin pointed out.

"What the hell is Promethium?" Steve asked.

"It's what Victor Stone's dad used to make Cyborg's bionic and cybernetic components." Robin said, referring to the DC comic.

"You're all so nerdy, it makes me physically ill." Erica said with a retch of disgust.

"No, no, no." Steve protested. "No, don't lump me in with them. I'm not a nerd, all right?"

"Why so sensitive, Harrington?" Robin asked.

"Afraid of losing cool points to a ten year old child?" I asked.

"No, I'm just saying I don't know Jack shit about Prometheus." Steve said incorrectly.

"Clearly not." I rolled my eyes.

"What?" Steve asked.

"It's Promethium." Dustin corrected.

"Prometheus is a mythological Greek figure." I explained.

"God, you too, y/n?" Steve asked at my apparent 'Over the top knowledge' as he had called it before.

"You should know." I said.

"All I'm saying is, it's probably being used to make something." Dustin continued his topic of speech from earlier.

"Or power something." Robin added.

"Like a nuclear weapon or something?" I suggested.

"Totally." Robin confirmed.

"Walking towards a nuclear weapon." Steve scoffed. "That's great. That'd be great."

"But if they're building something," Robin continued, ignoring Steve. "Why here? I mean, Hawkins. Seriously, of all places."

I slightly tensed at Robin's words. If she knew how eventful this town secretly was, I think she'd think differently.

"At the very best, we're a toilet stop on your way to Disneyland, but maybe that's it. Maybe it's our very..." as Robin continued on, Dustin, Steve and I glanced at each other warily before subtly slowing to a stop behind the still walking Erica and Robin.

"You think the Russians know?" Steve asked quietly as we all stood huddled closely together, not wanting the other two to over hear.

"About-" Steve cut himself off.

"They could." I said quickly, biting my lip anxiously.

"So it's connected?" Steve asked after a moment.

"Maybe." Dustin replied in nervousness.

"How?" I asked, worried.

"I don't know, but it's..." Dustin trailed off.

"Possible." The three of us finished, a mixture of anxiety and nervousness with a tinge of worry muddled upon our faces.

"Son of a bitch." I muttered, closing my eyes and shaking my head.

"I'm sorry," Robin suddenly called from where her and Erica stood a few meters away from us. "If there something you three would like to share with the class?"

Shit.

"Uh, n-" Just as I was about to come up with an explanation, static over took Dustin's supercom that was stationed in Erica's backpack, followed by the muffled sound of a Russian man speaking.

"Walkie." The three of us said in unison, running over to Erica and Robin as Erica put down her backpack as she fished the radio out of her My Little Pony bag.

Erica handed me the walkie and I pulled up the antenna and turned the volume up as we all crouched around it, listening with intent.

As the man spoke, Robin began saying the familiar phrases along with the man.

"It's the code." I said in realization.

"Wherever that broadcast is coming
from-" Dustin started.

"It's close." Robin finished for him. "And if there's one thing we know about that signal-"

"-It can reach the surface." I finished.

Robin nodded.

"Let's go." She said.

Word count: 844