Hello everyone! So, this is a story that I have been planning for the past month, or so. This is the beginning of a series, that will span the same length as the show. I'm really excited about this story, and the series in general, so I hope you all enjoy it as well! You can follow the main blog on tumblr, eventideseries.

Rating: T for basics; language, mild violence

Pairings: only canon pairings. This series will eventually lead into a Steve x OC pairing

Warnings: mild violence, mentions of blood, guns, smoking, language will be a little more intense (which means quite a few f-bombs)

Chapter One The Perfect Life, Shattered

"You say that I'm paranoid. But I'm pretty sure the world is out to get me"

- Linkin Park

Hawkins, Indiana

November 6th, 1983

….

Nancy placed a finished flashcard down in a pile and blew out a breath. "Okay, that's thirty."

On the opposite end of the bed, Melissa quietly read through her biology journal, barely paying attention to what her cousin was doing. A few hours earlier, Melissa had arrived for their study date. Each of the girls had a big test during the upcoming school week. They wanted to make sure that they were well prepared for them. To help narrow down her studying, Nancy opted for creating flashcards. While Melissa chose to just read through the pages of notes she took during class.

Melissa could only cast a side glance at the growing pile of flashcards. She could already feel her head spinning at the thought of writing out all those flashcards. "You know, just reading your notes will suffice. That way you don't have to sit around, writing those out all night."

Nancy ignored her and picked up a blank flashcard. "This helps me to really focus on the important info. Besides, reading through our notes is just a big info dump, it's just going to make you confused."

That's what everyone says, especially their teachers. Melissa immediately thought back to studying tips that her biology teacher had given them. One, don't wait until the last minute to study. And two, don't over study. That would just jumble everything together, and leave the person confused. Well, she didn't wait until the last minute. She's been studying, on and off, for the past two weeks. As for over studying, she might be guilty of that.

Melissa hummed to herself, then returned her gaze back to her notebook. "As long as I get by in my classes, I'm fine with that." She said as she started to mindlessly chew on her thumbnail. She could feel Nancy's eyes on her, prompting Melissa to turn her head to look at her. "What? I'm still passing everything. You stick to your method, and I'll stay with mine."

"If you want to call it a method, suit yourself," Nancy said, smirking afterward.

Melissa balled up a piece of paper and tossed it at her cousin. Both girls snickered, before falling silent again.

Muffled, excited yells broke the silence. It was coming from the basement, where Mike and his friends have been holed up, playing Dungeons and Dragons.

Nancy gave a small eye roll at the sound they were making, but Melissa merely chuckled. Between the two of them, Melissa was incredibly tolerable of Mike, and the boys. That often meant that Melissa would listen to them babble on about their game, nodding her head, not understanding a word they were saying. But, it was just nice to see them excited about something.

The phone next to Nancy's bed rang, causing both girls to jump in surprise. Nancy leaned over to her nightstand to answer the phone. "Hello?" After a pause, she smiled. "Hey, Barb."

"Hi, Barb!" Melissa called out, her eyes still skimming through her biology notes.

Nancy gave her cousin a light glare, "Mel says hi."

From downstairs, she could still hear the commotion continuing. Something must have happened during the game. Only a few minutes later, footsteps could be heard trotting up the stairs, and from the corner of her eye, she saw Dustin standing in the open doorway.

"Hey," Melissa dropped her journal to look at Dustin, who had a grin plastered on his face. "We're heading out, you guys want the last piece."

Nancy simply ignored him, but Melissa felt a sudden rush go through her.

"Shit," she sat up in bed, bringing her wrist up to look at her watch. She was late. Dammit. "I gotta go, Nancy."

Her cousin turned away from the phone, only for a moment, to say, "close the door on the way out, please."

Melissa pulled her books into her backpack, then slung the bag over her shoulder. "See you tomorrow." She called back at Nancy, who gave her a quick wave as she continued her conversation on the phone. Melissa stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her, and glanced down at the pizza box in Dustin's hand. "I'll take the last piece."

Dustin gladly opened the pizza box, offering the last slice to her. Melissa picked up the piece and nodded her thanks. Then, they both made their way downstairs. Dustin went to discard the empty pizza box, while Melissa was stopped by her Aunt Karen.

"You know it's fifteen past, right?" She informed, one of her eyebrows had cocked up, as she put away leftovers.

Melissa nodded as she shrugged on her coat. "Yeah, I know. There was a lot of studying going on. Lost track of time." She walked around the counter and placed a quick kiss on her Aunt's cheek, and said a quick "goodnight" before making her way to the garage door. When she opened it, Mike was already out there, with his friends, and she caught the tail end of Lucas' sentence.

"He's a real douchebag."

That was incredibly blunt. Taking another bite of her pizza slice, she stepped forward. "Whoah, hey, who are you talking about now?"

Lucas gave Melissa a long look, as the name slipped past his lips. "Steve."

She scrunched up her nose, thought about it for a moment, then said, "Oh, yeah. You're right."

"See!" Dustin exclaimed. "Your cousin even agrees with us."

"Hey, wait a minute, I'm just being bias." She said, in an attempt to defend herself. "Nancy's my cousin, of course, I'm going to be critical of who she dates."

"Then, why don't you talk to her about it?" Lucas asked.

She shrugged her shoulders, "Nancy isn't going to listen. She's gonna do what she wants."

"She used to be cool," Dustin spoke up. "Then, she became a jerk once she started dating Steve."

"Hey," Melissa warned, though she made sure that her voice wasn't harsh. The last thing Melissa wanted to hear was any of them talking about Nancy like that. She saw it from their point of view, and she understood where they were coming from. But, it didn't mean they could just say things like that. "Come on, you guys should start heading home. Don't want your parents to wait any longer."

Dustin and Lucas said quick goodbyes to Mike and Melissa, before riding out of the garage. Will stayed behind for a few more moments, exchanging words with Mike. Something about the game that they were playing, Melissa didn't pay much attention to it. She was too busy fixing the hem of her jacket. Finally, Will said goodbye to both of them and followed Lucas and Dustin down the road.

Melissa stepped forward, finishing up the slice of pizza, watching as the boys disappeared. "So, how was the game?"

Mike quietly shrugged. "It was fine."

"Fine? You sound so unenthusiastic, how was it just fine?" She questioned, and looked down at her cousin. That was surprising. They were always so enthusiastic when it came to their game nights. The fact that it was just 'fine' seemed unusual

"We didn't get to finish it." Mike clarified.

"Oh," she responded. The word was drawn out for effect. Then, she clicked her tongue. "Well, it's okay, you guys can always finish up the game next week."

"But, it took us two weeks to plan for this one, and we couldn't even finish it."

Okay, she could see why he felt the way he did. "Well, is it alright if I make a suggestion?"

Mike waited for her to continue.

"Next time, when you plan your next game day, don't have it on a Sunday." Mike's face fell, his eyes just staring at her. But, Melissa merely laughed. "I'm just saying. If it's on a Saturday, you don't have to worry about school, yeah?"

Mike refrained himself from saying anything. It was hard for him to keep a straight face when he saw her smirking. Of course, Melissa would give him the most obvious suggestion. However, he couldn't say that it was a terrible suggestion because she was right. "We'll make sure to do that next time when we plan."

Melissa regarded him for a moment, then ruffled his hair, which he tried to dodge, but was unsuccessful. "Okay, well, you better go get ready for bed. Your mom is already gonna be on your ass for going fifteen past."

Mike casually nodded his head, almost like what she told him just went in one ear, and out the other. "Yeah, okay."

"No, don't just nod your head, and say okay," Melissa said. "I know you like to talk with Lucas on your radio, but not tonight."

"I know." He replied, this time there was a little more of a fervent tone in his voice.

The light fixture above them flickered. The two of them looked up at the source, watching as it flickered a few more times, before stopping. They stood in place, a little perplexed by what just happened.

"That was kind of weird," Melissa commented.

When she peered down at Mike, he was staring up at her, brows creased. In response, she offered a faint smirk. "Go inside and get ready for bed." Immediately after, she wrapped an arm around Mike, pulling him closer to her and planted a quick kiss on the top of his head. "Love you, bud."

Melissa heard a small mumble that sounded like 'love you, too', which had been his way of repeating the meaningful statement. Before, when he was much younger, Mike was more declarative with it, now it was more reserved. But, she didn't mind it.

"I'll see you tomorrow." She released her hold on him and started down the driveway.

"Night, Mel!" Mike called out, and she gave a quick wave of her hand.

As she walked the few blocks to her home, Melissa could spot Dustin, Lucas, and Will on their bikes, their laughter and yells filled the chilly air. Then, Lucas split from the group, turning down his street. Up ahead, Dustin and Will continued on their bikes. And she was able to get one brief glimpse of them as they disappeared down the street. After another block, Melissa finally arrived home. As she walked up to the front door, she found herself praying that her parents wouldn't rip into her too much about being late.

As she stepped through the door, the sound of paws pattering against the wooden floor greeted her. Around the corner, Harley, their German Shepherd, came barreling down the hallway after her. In a swift motion, Melissa knelt to greet him. "Hey, buddy! How are you?" Her question was only answered with several slobbery kisses. "Good boy."

She stood up and motioned for him to follow. The light in the kitchen was still on, and she could hear someone was moving about. Upon entering, she saw that her father was cleaning up dishes, and putting away leftovers.

With great trepidation, Melissa eased into the kitchen, stuffing her hand into her coat pocket. "Hey, dad."

"Hey, Mel," He kept his attention on the dishes that he was washing. "There's a plate in the kitchen if you're hungry."

He didn't know mad, which was good. "Nah, it's fine." She reached down to scratch Harley's head, "is mom still working?"

"Yeah. She'll be late tonight. Just like you." This time, her father stopped washing dishes to look at his daughter.

Melissa shifted her stance and gave a shrug. "I know, I'm sorry. I was studying and I just lost track of time. I promise it won't happen again."

Again, he wasn't angry. He just smiled, shook his head. Not saying anything else in that moment. On the second floor, footsteps ran across the hallway, followed by the sounds of laughter. Jessica and Sarah.

"Are the girls still not in bed, yet?"

Her father was putting the last dish away and shook his head. "Last time I checked up on them, they were brushing their teeth. That was about ten minutes ago."

"I'll go make sure that they get to bed." Melissa went to leave when her father spoke again.

"Mel, don't be late next time."

She nodded. Relieved that he wasn't going to lecture her tonight.

After giving her father a quick goodnight, she started up the stairs, with Harley trailing closely behind her. Halfway up, the little footsteps continued in the hallway, followed by giggling and hushed voices. By the time she reached the top, she spotted Jessica running into the bathroom.

"Hey, girls," she spoke up, and the giggling instantly stopped.

Melissa stood near the bathroom threshold, peered in, Jessica and Laura were standing in the bathroom together. Jessica was brushing her teeth, while Laura was playing with the toothpaste. "How are you two still up?"

Jessica turned to her sister, toothbrush still in her mouth, and the nine-year-old only shrugged at her sister's question.

Melissa couldn't exactly scold them for this. It was like a nightly ritual between the two youngest girls. And Jessica would always be the one to start it, then Laura would follow suit. "Alright." Melissa stepped into the bathroom and gently took the toothpaste out of Laura's grasp. "It's time for bed."

Melissa placed her hands on Laura's shoulders and peered down at her. "Did you brush your teeth?"

The young girl nodded, quietly.

While ushering the youngest out of the bathroom, Melissa paused behind Jessica and ruffled her hair. "Finish up, and then it's straight to bed."

Jessica hummed out her response.

Melissa allowed herself to be guided into the bedroom by her youngest sister. Jessica and Laura still shared a bedroom. But, ever since their brother Aiden moved out, her parents have been planning on moving Jessica into his old room. The girls were getting older, they're going to need their own space soon.

Melissa helped Laura into the bed and tucked her under the covers. Laura wrapped her arms around Melissa's neck, in a tight hug, which was always her way of saying goodnight to her.

Melissa planted a quick kiss on Laura's forehead. Then moved to Jessica, who had just settled herself into her bed. After tucking her in, she gave her a quick kiss and said goodnight to both of them. She proceeded to turn off the light and closed the door.

Melissa quietly made her way to her bedroom, and gently shut the door behind her. Dropping her bag on the chair, Melissa worked off her coat and hung it up in the closet. After changing into her night clothes, Melissa plopped down on her bed, with her biology journal, determined to study a little more before going to bed. However, within about thirty minutes, her eyelids grew heavy. And soon, she was fast asleep.

At 5:30 in the morning, the house was buzzing with activity.

Melissa made sure that she was up and moving, in order to beat her siblings to the bathroom. She took a quick shower, and then spent the next hour in her room, relaxing on her bed. Trying her best to not fall back asleep. At around seven, Melissa was called down by her mother for breakfast.

The entire family settled in at the table and dug into their breakfast.

About ten minutes into their meal, the phone rang, and Julie, Melissa's mother, got up to answer it. Out of the corner of her eye, Melissa saw that Laura was having trouble pouring syrup on her toast.

"Hey," she reached over and took the bottle from her sister. She noticed that there was already a good amount of syrup on her plate. She eyed her sister, curiously. "Don't you think there's enough syrup on your toast."

Laura eyed her plate and then gave her sister a side-glance. "No."

Melissa could only snicker at her sister's deadpan response, then nodded. "Okay, you can have a little bit more." She said, then proceeded to pour a small amount over her toast. "We don't need you to have a sugar high before going to school."

Laura eyed the bottle carefully, as Melissa poured only a tiny amount. She wasn't too thrilled about it. Melissa made sure to put the bottle well out of Laura's reach.

"Mel,"

Melissa glanced up. Her mother gestured her over, with a phone in one of her hands.

"Your Aunt wants to talk with you.

What? That was weird. It was only on rare occasions when her Aunt called this early in the morning. Despite the initial confusion, Melissa got up from the table and took the phone from her mother. "Hello?"

"Hey, Melissa, I was wondering if I could ask you something?"

Something about the way her voice sounded, it concerned her. And she tried to keep an even tone as she spoke. "Oh, yeah, of course."

"When you were on your way home last night, did you notice anything…strange?"

What kind of question is that? Melissa moved behind the threshold that led to the living room, that way she was out of view from her family. "Um, I don't…what do you mean by strange?"

"You saw the boys on your way home, correct?"

That questioned unnerved her. Did she want to talk about the boys? "Yes, I did." Her hand clutched the phone tighter.

"Did you happen to see anything out of the ordinary?"

"Uh, no. I saw Lucas get to his house, and then Dustin and Will continued on with their bikes. Everything was fine, nothing was out of the ordinary." She could hear a small hum from the other end, but Karen didn't say anything, which was unsettling. "Is there something wrong?"

"Uh, well, Joyce just called me and asked if Will had stayed over last night."

"Will wasn't home this morning?"

"No. But, she said that he probably left early for school."

That had to be it. "Yeah, I mean I know he's done it before. I'm sure that he's fine."

"Well, if you don't mind, can you just keep an eye out for him."

"Yeah, I definitely will."

Melissa placed the phone back down on the receiver. She remained in her spot, facing the phone. Her teeth bit down on her bottom lip. Will wasn't home this morning. This was definitely unusual. In an unguarded moment, Melissa started to doubt herself. Maybe something did happen on the way home, and she just didn't notice it.

On her way back to the table, she ran through everything she saw that night. Dustin, Will, and Lucas were riding their bikes. There was a good amount of distance between her, and the boys, but she could still see everything that was going on. And there was nothing wrong. Nothing was out of the ordinary. She didn't hear anything unsettling. If anything did happen to Will, it must have occurred when he was closer to home, which didn't make her feel any better

She took her seat at the table and sat in silence. She didn't even resume finishing her breakfast.

"Is everything alright?"

Her mother's question brought her back to reality. And she noticed that everyone at the table was staring at her, painfully curious as to why Karen had called this morning, and why she had wanted to speak with Melissa specifically.

"Did you get in trouble?" Jessica asked, with the most mischievous look in her eyes.

"Jessica, honey, eat your breakfast." Their mother stopped her from asking any further questions. The young girl only shrugged her shoulders before continuing her breakfast.

"No, I'm not in trouble." Melissa first addressed her sister's question, then she went on to answer her mother's. "It was about Will. Apparently, Joyce called this morning asking if Will had stayed over at Mike's last night."

The statement made Melissa's parents stare at her with growing concern.

"By putting two and two together, that means Will wasn't there this morning. But, Joyce said that he probably just left early for school."

"But, why did she want to speak to you about it?"

Melissa picked at the food with her fork, losing her appetite. "I saw the boys, on my way home last night. She wanted to know if I noticed anything was off. But, everything was fine."

Melissa's statement, combined with what they knew about Will, it confused everyone at the table. "Well, hopefully, it's not serious." Her mother said.

"I hope so too."

When breakfast was completed, all the plates, except for Melissa's, were empty. She was too busy thinking about Will, hoping that all of this was not as serious as she thought it was.

As Julie was dropping her daughters off at school, she reminded Melissa that on the walk home, to stick together. She could only roll her eyes. She always made sure that her sisters were never out of her sight. Yet, she couldn't blame her mother for this overly cautious attitude. Something about this whole thing wasn't sitting well with her. If Will had left early for school, he would have said something. Either to Joyce, or Jonathan. He wouldn't just bail out of the house without saying anything. That wasn't like him.

When they arrived at school, Melissa made sure to watch and make sure that her sisters entered the middle school. Perks of having the high school and middle school right next to each other. But, it made her feel silly. They were at school, with hundreds of other kids. Nothing was going to happen to them.

She was definitely just over thinking this whole thing. Yeah. That was it.

"Calm down." She told herself as she began the walk into the high school.

The first stop she made was her locker. She needed to switch out books for her first few classes. At this point, this whole thing with Will has stored away to the back of her mind. The upcoming Biology test overtook everything. Suddenly, she felt a small pang of panic. The test was on Friday, and she was in no way ready to take it. It was just nerves. That's all it was. But, she could hear Nancy's voice in her mind.

Cramming in all that info isn't going to help you.

Melissa merely rolled her eyes and shook the thought from her mind. She'll be fine. As long as she spends the next few days studying, she'll pass the test.

"Hey, Mel." Barb greeted as she leaned against the locker, opposite of Melissa.

Pulling out her biology book, Melissa smiled at her friend but noticed something off. Then, she realized. "Where's Nancy?"

Barb perked up an eyebrow and glanced at Melissa over her glasses. "She got a note to meet a particular person in the bathroom."

Melissa's reaction was instantaneous; an eye roll, and the most drawn-out sigh she could conjure. "Isn't that the most romantic thing to get," she added, sarcastically. "Getting a note from a guy to meet him in the bathroom." She finished with a grimace.

"And yet, Nancy just tried to convince me that it's not that serious between them."

"That's such bull," Melissa added, followed by a small laugh. She eyed Barb curiously. "I mean, what do you think about her and Steve being together?"

Barb nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders, but Melissa could tell that she did feel a certain way. "I mean, Steve's the 'it' guy around here. The one that all the girls want to be with."

Oh, he's already hooked up with a few girls. "That doesn't exactly answer my question, Barb."

"Okay, well what do you think?"

"He's not my favorite person," Melissa replied with ease. Almost like she had been waiting anxiously to say how she felt. "Not exactly thrilled that Nancy's hooking up with him. Hell, even my cousin and his friends think Steve is a douchebag."

"Have you tried talking to her about it?"

Melissa closed her locker and leaned against it. "Of course, I did. I was honest with her about what I thought," she paused, thinking back to the conversation she had with Nancy not even a week ago. It didn't end on a positive note, but Nancy was well aware of how her cousin felt about it. "I'm not her mom, you know, I can't force her to do something that she doesn't wanna do. So, I decided, I'm gonna stay out of it, and let Nancy do whatever the hell she wants. And if that means dating Steve, then so be it. I just hope she doesn't become friends with Tommy and Carol."

At the mentioning of their names, Barb elicited a scoff, relieved that Melissa felt the same way. "If she does, we definitely need to intervene."

Then, the bell rang, signaling the beginning of the first period.

….

The first four classes went by at a snail's pace, as it usually did on Mondays. It was difficult to stay awake for a majority of them. When the bell signaled the start of lunch, Melissa hurried out of class and met up with Barb, immediately. Fortunately for both of them, their fourth-period classes were across from each other.

Nancy was late getting to the cafeteria. She was probably meeting up with Steve. Whatever the reason, Melissa and Barb got their food, and sat down at their usual table, carrying on a conversation. Then, it happened. Nancy and Steve sat down at the table with them. It was manageable. She could tolerate him. But, two more people joined the table, and Melissa strained herself from giving the biggest eye roll.

Tommy and Carol. A couple that Steve always hung out with. And they just happen to be two of the most insufferable people at their school. And they were sitting at the table with them.

The two of them didn't notice the change of mood with Melissa, which was good. The less attention they paid her, the happier she was. Instead of joining in on the group talk, Melissa started organizing through her biology notes, deciding to polish up some of the details. She wouldn't have done this regardless. But, the fact that she was trying to avoid talking with certain people at the table, she was willing to do anything that made her look preoccupied.

"Is she seriously studying at the lunch table?"

Melissa continued with marking through her notes but clenched her jaw at the sound of Carol's voice. Don't direct your words towards me. Please.

"Hey, Mel."

This time it was Nancy who was speaking to her. But, she didn't stop. Melissa only gave a faint nod in her cousin's direction. "What?"

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" She quickly turned the page, not breaking her eye contact from the notebook. "I'm polishing up my notes for the test this week."

"You can always study at home. You don't have to do it at lunch." Tommy just had to throw his own two cents into this conversation.

As much as she didn't want to acknowledge them with an answer, Melissa spoke up. "Yeah, well, I want to at least try and get a decent grade, unlike some people who just don't give a shit."

The entire table went quiet. The last part of her sentence was directed right at Tommy and Carol. She knew how they were when it came to school work. They couldn't give two shits about it. Melissa had Carol in math the year before, and she always had an attitude towards the teacher, never took anything seriously. Yet, they made remarks about how they were failing certain subjects.

Melissa just couldn't imagine why.

"Seems like someone has a real stick up their ass."

She could hear them both snickering at the comment that was made. And just by the noise, she could envision the snarky looks on their faces. God, they were such pain in the asses.

In response, Melissa pulled herself together, and focused her gaze on them, using every ounce of her being to keeping a straight face. "No, I don't have a stick up my ass." She started, her voice was calm and leveled. "But, you know, there's a lot going on, starting with two unbearable thorns that are really digging into my side right now."

For a brief moment, the three of them stared at each other. The other occupants were just waiting to see if a full-on verbal altercation would occur. In which Nancy was already geared up to stopping it. But, nothing happened. Tommy and Carol remained quiet, their faces frozen as they regarded Melissa. She was just waiting for them to say something else. But, when Melissa heard a light snort from Barb, she settled back in her chair and returned to her notes.

The rest of lunch was spent with an uncomfortable tension in the air. Tommy and Steve tried to cover it up with their conversations. And Melissa could feel Carol's eyes burning holes into her skull, but she completely blew it off.

When lunch ended, Melissa casually gathered up her belongings. "Do you feel a lot better?" Barb whispered to her.

She answered with a huge grin. Melissa slung on her backpack as she and Barb left the cafeteria together.

By the time school ended, Melissa had nearly forgotten what occurred at lunch. As she walked back to her locker, out of nowhere, she thought about Will. She only hoped that he was actually at school and that he was fine.

"Mel,"

Melissa peered out from behind the locker door and saw Nancy walking towards her. "Hey." She greeted, quickly.

"Are you okay?"

That was a pretty random question. "Yeah," her answer was drawn out, as she gave her cousin a side glance. "Why wouldn't I be okay?"

"It's just, lunch wasn't exactly the most thrilling thing today."

Oh yeah. That whole incident. Just thinking about it made Melissa snort. "I'm fine. Everything's fine."

Nancy's eyes widened as she gave a half shrug. "Yeah, well, apparently Tommy and Carol don't think everything is fine."

Melissa paused to turn to her cousin, "Am I really supposed to care about what those two think of me? Because I really don't."

"No, I'm not saying that. Trust me, I'm not big fans of them either."

Melissa could hear the further implication in Nancy's voice. The unsaid words were asking, why she had to go and give that kind of attitude and say those things. But, there was a whole lot more Melissa could have said, but didn't. She could have gone off on them in some kind of calm, frenzy. But, she didn't, which took great restraint on her part.

She closed her locker, giving Nancy her full attention. Despite the fact that those two deserved it, Melissa felt like she owed Nancy some kind of explanation. "Okay, listen, I can tolerate Steve, and you know he's not my favorite person in the world. But, those two are the most exasperating, and shallow people at this school, and they just happen to be friends with the guy you're dating. So, for you, I can try and be civil with Steve, but Tommy and Carol are not getting one ounce of my consideration. And if they don't like it, then they can sit at another table."

Nancy was always someone who wanted peace. Granted, with her brother Mike, there was always some form of bickering going on. But, when it came to her social circle, peace and harmony were her two favorite things. And while she was surprised at the exchange during lunch, she was telling the truth when she said that she wasn't their biggest fan. In fact, she preferred it if Tommy and Carol weren't always hanging around Steve, but what could she do? That's why she did take some joy in what happened, though she was very good at concealing it. But, she let it show this time. Nancy offered Melissa a cordial smirk and then nodded her head.

They were both on the same page.

Melissa was relieved. She fully expected Nancy to lecture her, and ask her to be civil with them. Thank god, it didn't come to that.

They both split up. Nancy was going to meet Steve, while Melissa had to hurry to the middle school to meet up with her sisters. Before leaving, Nancy made a decree that she would try and call Melissa later that night. It was a light promise.

Exiting the high school, Melissa made the quick trip across the main road to the middle school. It wasn't long until she saw Mike walking his bike, and walking alongside him, were her sisters. Laura seemed to be telling Mike a story, as she was being really animated in her movements, and Mike was listening very intently.

"Hey," Melissa greeted the group once they were close. "How was school?"

"Good." All three of them answered in unison.

"There was a glue fight during class today!" Laura exclaimed, with the most amused look in her eyes as she recounted it.

"A glue fight?" Melissa internally groaned. "Did you get any in your hair?"

"No." Laura patted her head, checking her hand for glue. "I wasn't in it. But, the other kids were."

Melissa blew out a sigh of relief. "Good. I'm proud of you."

Lucas and Dustin appeared next to Mike not long after. That's when she noticed that Will wasn't with them. Her face immediately dropped as she stared at the boys. "Did Will not show up?"

They all hesitated, clearly worried about their friend. "No," Mike answered. "But, the police came earlier. The Chief."

Her brows shot up as she slowly nodded. "What did you tell him?"

"Told him the road that he took to get home."

Mirkwood. Or what it's actually called, the intersection of Cornwallis and Kerley. The boys gave it that name a while back, and now it has been seared into her brain as Mirkwood. People always look at her really funny when she calls it that.

"We want to help them find Will."

Mike's statement made Melissa blink several times. "Uh." She looked at the three boys, seeing that they were actually serious. "That's not happening. The last thing any of us need is for either of you boys to go missing."

"It just got really bad, didn't it?" Dustin asked.

"What do you mean?"

"When the police get involved, that means something serious happened. That means Will really is in trouble, right?"

What was she supposed to say? Confirm the possibility? No. She didn't want to worry the boys, or her sisters, even more. Besides, there is still hope that they will find him. "I'm sure Will is fine. You guys know him better than me, he's smart, he's resourceful. I'm sure he's okay."

None of them supported her claim. While they were hopeful, she could see a shadow of doubt cast over their features. "You guys better start heading home."

The boys nodded as they mounted their bikes, ready to ride off. "Go straight home." She added, but none of the boys answered. That didn't sit well with her. These boys were more than capable of dismissing what she said, and doing the exact opposite.

"Hey," she tried again, putting on her 'mom voice', which they all famously dubbed it as. This time the boys stopped to look at her. "I mean it. Go straight home, don't take any detours, and don't go looking for Will. Got it?"

"Yes." They all answered together.

There was no walk home.

Instead, Melissa's brother picked them up from school.

Their mother had called Chris' work, asking if he could get off early. It wasn't exactly something that his boss wanted to hear, but he granted the privilege. Their mother was just worried. With Will being 'missing', she thought it was better to be safe than sorry. And she didn't feel comfortable with the idea of her three girls walking home. But, Melissa couldn't help but feel annoyed by it all.

It was during the day, everyone was out running errands. Nothing was going to happen to them.

Regardless, she let her mother have this win.

On the way home, they had to stop at the grocery store. Their mother had a late shift tonight, so Melissa and her brother would have to make dinner for the family, which was fine. They had done it several times before.

After they purchased what they needed; beef, tomato sauce, and pasta, they all packed into the car, and headed for home.

The first thing they did when they got home was put the purchased ingredients away. Then, it was time for school work. Melissa and her sisters retreated to their bedrooms to start on it. She made sure to keep her door open, in case her sisters needed help on something, which happened a lot.

Two hours passed. It was time for them to get started on dinner. Their sisters spent about ten minutes watching the television, before they wandered into the kitchen, just itching to help with the cooking. Letting their younger sisters help cook, always resulted in chaos in the kitchen. Most of the time, that chaos meant that there would be food splatters everywhere. Mini food fights were a common thing when it was just the four of them in the house.

Even though it was entertaining, there was always a mess that had to be cleaned up by the end of it. And that was always Melissa's job. While it did annoy her, she'd rather clean it up, then have her parents come home to a disaster of a kitchen.

By the time the food was done, their father arrived home. A little earlier than usual. But, it wasn't uncommon. Melissa served up five plates, which Chris brought to the table. She filled up the last plate, making sure to leave behind a decent portion for her mother. Then, she took her seat at the table.

Dinner was normal. Conversations were simple and short. Laura felt that it was necessary to bring up the glue fight that had happened in class. Something about how one of the kids 'accidentally' got glue on a girl's shirt, and it all went downhill from there. It was a rather entertaining story, especially with how animated Laura gets when she tells stories.

The mood was light and comfortable. That is until her father brought up Will.

He took a drink from his glass, eyeing Melissa next to him. "Have you heard anything about Will, yet?"

"No." She said, using her fork to pick at the noodles. "Mike told me that the Chief went to the school today. He talked with Mike and the other boys."

"What did he say?" Chris asked, wiping his mouth with his napkin.

Melissa tiredly shrugged. "Not much. He told them what street he took to get home. But, as far as I know, there really hasn't been any progress. I mean before, I thought maybe it wasn't that serious. But, now that the police are involved...I guess it is."

It was all so bizarre. Not even twenty-four hours earlier, Will was fine. She saw him, spoke with him, watched as he rode his bike home. Everything was fine. And now, he's missing. How was any of this supposed to make sense?

Melissa glanced over at Jessica and Laura, her tongue pressed against the inside of her cheek. If it could happen to Will, it most definitely could happen to them as well. They all just had to be careful. At least, until they find Will.

"Are they going to find him?" Laura spoke up, her voice sounded so small, worried.

"Of course, they will," Chris answered, very confident with what he said. "They won't stop until they do."

"Are we going to go missing?"

Melissa reached over to brush back Laura's hair. "No, you aren't. Nothing bad is going to happen to you. I promise."

Laura's question did unnerve the others at the table. While the severity of this situation wasn't known, their father felt that he needed to set some ground rules. "Until Will is found, you all stick together when you go out. No one goes anywhere alone, especially when it gets dark."

That was reasonable enough. Although, Melissa didn't think any of them would be going anywhere at night. Especially, the younger girls.

When dinner was complete, Melissa and Chris cleaned up the dishes. She made sure to make a plate for her mother and placed it in the refrigerator. Afterwards, she retreated to her room, with Harley following closely behind. Harley took his place on Melissa's bed, while she sat down at her desk and pulled out her notebook. There were only a few more days left before her test. She wanted to get as much studying done as she could.

About an hour in, her phone rang. She thought about letting it ring. But, she chose to answer it. She got up from her desk, with her notebook, and sat down on her bed. Without taking her eyes off the page, Melissa reached over and answered the phone. "Hello?"

"This is such bullshit."

Melissa was taken back by Nancy's brash statement. "Uh oh." she turned the page, not skipping a beat. "What happened, Nance?"

"I'm practically on house arrest, and Mike told my parents about Steve."

That was a quick info dump for her. "Okay, wait a minute," she pinched the bridge of her nose. "I need you to take a few steps back. First off, why did Mike tell your parents about Steve?"

"Because he got pissed at me."

"Okay," Melissa could have figured out that much. "So, what did you do?"

"I told mom that I wanted to out tonight, but she said no. As long as Will is missing, we're not allowed out after dark. And then I got pissed...and said something that I shouldn't have."

Melissa paused. The tone of Nancy's voice concerned her. She slowly raised her head, until her eyes were focused on Harley, who was sleeping at the foot of her bed. "What did you say?" She asked, her voice dripping with hesitation.

"Basically, that we were under house arrest, all because Will got lost on the way home."

Melissa cringed, scraping her teeth across her bottom lip. Now, she understood why Mike was pissed at her. "That's messed up, Nance."

"Yeah, I know." She sounded apologetic about it. It was a real spur of the moment thing, fueled by annoyance and frustration.

Melissa blew out a tired sigh. "Well, I mean, I get why your mom is like that. My dad just laid down that same rule tonight at dinner." She tapped her pen against the binding of her notebook. "They're just worried that something might happen to us, I mean, we can't really blame them for it."

"I know. It sucks that I can't even go out once it gets dark though. I was just gonna go to Barb's place."

Melissa hesitated, her eyes narrowed in curiosity. "Were you really going to Barb's? Or were you planning on going to hang out with Steve?"

Silence.

But, Melissa merely smiled. "I think I have my answer."

"Okay, fine. Yeah, I was going to hang out with Steve," Nancy stopped herself from continuing the sentence. "It doesn't matter. I can't go anyway, so there's no use in complaining about it."

Melissa settled against her pillows, letting out a content sigh. "So, what are you going to do now?"

"Just study here. Might as well since there's nothing else for me to do."

Cinching her lips to the side, she offered a small alternative. "Do you want me to come over? I can keep you company. And we can help each other study for our big tests."

"Thanks, Mel. But, I think I'll be fine. Besides, parents' orders, right?"

They both laughed quietly.

"I'm gonna go now, a lot of studying to do. I'll see you tomorrow, Mel."

"Night, Nance."

A/N: This was a pretty slow chapter, acting more as a setup than anything else. But, we all know that everything will start to pick up next chapter.