CINEMA ( steve harrington! )

006

cinema——
a trail of blood

006

"You never said what I was saying." Nancy said. Kenra watched her footsteps mindlessly as she followed the Wheeler girl and Jonathan through the woods.

"What?" Jonathan turned to her confused. Kenra too was confused but she didn't really feel like getting involved in their conversation. "Yesterday." Nancy clarified. "You said I was saying something and that's why you took my picture."

"Oh, uh..I don't know." Jonathan shrugged. "My guess, I saw this girl, you know, trying to be someone else. But for that moment...it was like you were alone or you thought you were, and, you know, you could just be yourself."

Kenra walked faster to catch up with them when she realized they'd walked farther ahead of her. "That is such bullshit." Nancy said.

Jonathan stopped walking and Kenra slowed as she started to pay attention to the discussion. "What?"

"I am not trying to be someone else." Nancy turned back around. "Just because I'm dating Steve and you don't like him—"

Jonathan scoffed. "You know what, forget it. I just thought it was a good picture." He walked away and Kenra rushed to catch up with him, she was not in the mood to pick sides on this argument and she was slowly starting to feel really uncomfortable being in the middle of it.

"He's actually a good guy." Nancy said loudly as she started following them.

"Okay." Jonathan shrugged.

"Yesterday, with the camera...he's not like that at all." Nancy said. Kenra tilted her head. With what camera? "He was just being protective." Nancy finished.

"Yeah," Jonathan nodded. "That's one word for it."

"Oh and I guess what you did was okay?" Nancy asked.

"No, I..I never said that." Jonathan shook his head.

"He had every right to be pissed—"

"Okay, alright does that mean I have to like him." Jonathan came to another abrupt stop.

"No." Nancy said.

"Listen, don't take everything so personally, okay? I don't like most people. He's in the vast majority." Jonathan said before starting to walk away again.

"You know, I was actually starting to think that you were okay." Nancy scoffed lightly.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "Yeah, I was thinking 'Jonathan Byers, maybe he's not the pretentious creep everyone says he is.'" Kenra's eyes widened at the rather low blow.

"Well, I was just starting to think you were okay. I was thinking, 'Nancy Wheeler, she's not just another suburban girl who thinks she's rebelling by doing exactly what every other suburban girl does..until that phase passes and they marry some boring one-time jock, who now works sales, and they live out a perfectly boring little life at the end of the cul-de-sac. Exactly like their parents, who they thought were so depressing, but now, hey, they get it.'" Jonathan finished his rant and walked off into the woods.

Kenra stood still as she watched him walk away and soon after a scoff, Nancy followed. Kenra remained frozen for a moment before she walked quickly to catch up with them. She was starting to regret coming into these woods.

▾

The remaining venture through the woods was rather silent after Jonathan and Nancy's argument. It was dark out now and they each had their flashlights on and in their hands. Kenra was ironically already getting upset with the thin bangs she'd cut a few weeks ago to the point she was huffing and trying to blow them out of her face. She finally settled on pushing to the sides instead.

Nancy stopped walking suddenly when she heard something. Jonathan turned around to look at her. "What, are you tired?" He asked.

"Shut up." Nancy muttered. "I heard something." They all stopped and looked around for a moment until Kenra heard the quiet whimper run through the trees. They followed the sounds until they stopped in front of a dying deer.

Kenra pouted her bottom lip out as she looked down at the injured animal. She squatted down to take a closer look. "It's been hit by a car." She observed.

"We can't just leave it." Nancy said. She remembered the gun Jonathan had let her hold onto this whole time and slowly lifted it up. She held up the gun but Kenra looked at her and could tell she wouldn't be able to kill the deer.

"I'll do it." Jonathan said. He slowly took the gun and they all stood up straight and took a few steps back. He raised the gun and cocked it causing it to make a light clicking noise, just as he had almost built up enough courage to shoot the deer some pulled the animals under the ground and they all jumped back with small screams.

"Oh, my God." Kenra held her hand over her heart as she panted. "What was that?"

Nancy flashed her flashlight around and started walking and following a short trail of blood. "Where'd it go?"

"I don't know." Jonathan muttered. "Do you see any more blood?"

"Mhm." Kenra responded. "No." Just a few moments later she was flashing her own flashlight around still and looking at the ground. The next thing Kenra knew she was alone, in the middle of the woods. Her heart started pounding in her chest even more than it already had been. She was freaking out and absolutely terrified.

"Jonathan?" She yelled shakily. "Nancy?" Kenra called again. She took slow steps so she could hear any of their calls. She didn't understand how they all got separated in a matter of seconds. "Jonathan!"

Kenra looked all around her for any form of moving figure. She bumped into a warm body and jumped back with a yelp. "God, Kenra, there you are." Jonathan said. She let out a breath when she saw him, very relieved. "Have you seen Nancy?" Kenra shook her head.

They kept shouting out her name in hopes of finding her. Kenra stopped when she heard something. She heard Nancy's voice calling for her and Jonathan. Kenra froze and grabbed the boy's arm to stop him. "I hear something." Nancy's voice sounded muffled, like she was there but not. Kenra couldn't explain it.

"Nancy?" Kenra screamed. "We're right here, Nancy!" She looked around. When she waved her flashlight around the light reflected on a hole in a tree nearby. Kenra ran over to it and fell to the floor in front of it. Jonathan followed right behind her. The hole was covered in a sticky goop and when Kenra reached out to touch it she immediately realized what it was.

Her fingers were covered in the same slime her whole body had been coated in after she was attacked the other night. Kenra pulled back slowly and gulped. Nancy was in danger if whatever that thing that tried to choke her was in there with her. Since Kenra seemed to not be planning on doing anything Jonathan started calling for Nancy.

They both jumped back when a hand broke through the disgusting wall of slime. "Jonathan? Kenra?" Nancy begged as she wiggled her hand. They both jumped to help pull her out.

Nancy fell on top of Jonathan once they finally pulled her out. Kenra wasn't paying attention to the strange hug and to bonding experience next to her but rather the slowly closing hole in the tree Nancy had just come out of. She tilted her head as she tried to put together what the hell just happened.