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Chris POV
Fuck. Who the hell was yelling just now?
That voice snapped me out of whatever dream I was in, dragging me back into consciousness in the worst possible way, and I didn't even need to think twice to recognize it.
It had to be Jonathan. Damn him. I was actually enjoying that dream….'the dream about something that i will not share ever'…and just like that, it was gone because he couldn't keep his voice down.
I almost opened my eyes right then, but I stopped myself halfway when I heard another voice in the room.
A woman.
It's not Joyce's. Not anyone I recognized.
"…I'm glad I could help, even if it was only a little."
Her tone was calm, polite even, but that didn't make it any better. If anything, it made me more cautious. I listened carefully as her footsteps moved across the room, followed by the soft sound of the door opening and then closing again, leaving the room in a quiet that felt just a little too heavy.
I didn't move for a few seconds more. I didn't open my eyes and didn't react either until I knew it's safe now.
I had heard stupid Jonathan voice earlier and I assume Will and Joyce are here too, and I trusted them enough not to see them as a threat.
But that woman? No. I didn't know her, and right now, that alone was enough reason not to take any risks. There was always the possibility, small or not, that she came from the Lab. If they had already started looking for me, then waking up at the wrong moment would be the dumbest mistake I could make.
So I waited.
A few minutes passed in silence, the only sound in the room coming from the faint beeping of the machines beside me. I kept counting in my head, letting the time stretch just enough to be sure she was really gone, before finally deciding it was safe.
Only then did I slowly open my eyes.
The first thing I saw was Will, and the moment I confirmed he was fine, alive and maybe a little scratch here and there in his face, the tension in my chest eased without me even realizing it. After that, everything else came into focus: Joyce, Jonathan, and Dustin nearby, all of them watching me in their own way.
Of course Dustin was here.
I could already tell from his expression how worried he'd been, and for a second, I couldn't help the small smile that formed on my face, even as I mentally cursed him. 'Idiot. He probably didn't even go to school, worried about his loving big brother now.'
They started asking questions almost immediately, their attention quickly shifting toward my eyes, and I already knew where this was going. Should I tell them? Should I explain what actually happened to me?
…No.
Not now.
Not when they still couldn't even accept something as simple….no, not simple, there is'nt anything simple with a monster coming out of a damn portal. But, if they couldn't believe that, then telling them about my condition would only make things worse. At best, they'd think I was delusional. At worst, I'd become the problem they needed to fix.
From the way they talked, I could tell Will had already told them about what happened last night. I could see it in the way they looked at him, and more importantly, in the way Joyce looked at me. She didn't believe him but she wasn't dismissing it either. She was waiting, watching me carefully like I was the missing piece that would confirm everything.
And that was the problem.
What would happen if I actually said it?
That a monster attacked us?
Would they believe it if it came from me too, or would that just make things worse?
"…why should I tell you?"
I smirked slightly as I looked at Dustin, answering his question with just enough attitude to annoy him, and judging from the look on his face, it worked perfectly. He frowned immediately, clearly not expecting that kind of response after worrying this much.
Good.
Serves him right.
But then I glanced at Will.
And the expression on his face wiped that amusement away almost instantly.
He was waiting.
Waiting for me to say it.
To confirm that what he saw was real.
I let out a slow breath, my gaze shifting away for a moment as I thought about it again. Maybe telling them wasn't such a bad idea. At the very least, it would make them more cautious. Maybe Joyce would take Will somewhere safer. Maybe they'd leave Hawkins for a while, stay away from whatever the hell was going on here.
…But then what?
If they left…
Who would be next?
Who would get hunted instead?
….Who's miserable child that will Vecna fucked?!
The thought lingered longer than I liked, making my jaw tighten slightly as I forced myself to focus. No, that wasn't even the real issue. The real question was much simpler and much more dangerous.
Would they believe us?
But, looking at Will like this…In the end, I made my decision.
"Alright… I'll tell you."
My voice came out calm, steady, as I looked at all of them, finally ready to say it out loud, but before I could continue, the door suddenly opened.
Jonathan came back into the room with a doctor following right behind him.
"Mr. Henderson," the doctor called as he stepped closer to my bed, his tone calm and professional as if this was just another routine check. "Any headache? Or dizziness?" he asked without wasting time, already scanning my condition with trained eyes.
"I don't have a headache," I replied evenly, keeping my voice steady despite the lingering discomfort crawling through my body. "Just… my whole body is hurting like hell right now." My answer earned a quiet snort from Dustin, followed by a low mutter under his breath that I didn't bother to catch.
The doctor's gaze shifted downward, noticing the fresh stain spreading through the bandages wrapped around my torso. "Your wound is bleeding again," he said, his tone lowering slightly as he examined it more closely. "Did you move too much after waking up? Or did you try to get up on your own?"
I let out a slow breath, not even bothering to deny it, while my mother immediately began apologizing, first to the doctor, then to me, her voice trembling slightly as guilt crept into every word she said. I could only glance at her for a second before looking away, trying to keep calm.
"Don't worry," the doctor continued, waving it off with practiced ease as he gestured toward the nurse standing beside him. "We'll have the bandages changed right away." His eyes returned to me, this time more observant and curious. "Hmm… were you speeding when this happened? These wounds…" he paused briefly, as if choosing the right word, "…they're quite severe. Honestly, this is a gruesome injury." Then, more casually, "What exactly happened?"
The way he asked was almost too normal, like small talk, like he was just filling in a report instead of digging into something deeper, but I could feel it. The subtle pressure behind the question.
I met his gaze and gave him a small, easy smile, letting my tone stay just as casual. "Yeah… guess I just got lucky," I said lightly. "Nothing happened to my head, right, doc?" I added, shifting the focus before he could push further.
He nodded once. "That's the surprising part," he replied. "It's almost a miracle, actually. Why weren't you wearing a helmet? If it's not a miracle, I don't know what else to call it." His eyes lingered on me for a moment longer before he added, almost offhandedly, "You don't think this was some kind of… monster attack, do you?"
The room went quiet.
I saw Will lower his head at that, his shoulders tensing slightly, but he was still listening and waiting. The others were the same, their attention shifting fully toward me, the weight of their expectations pressing in from all sides.
I kept my expression relaxed.
"Honestly, it was really dark out there," I began, as if I was trying to piece the memory together. "I saw something standing in the middle of the road. Big. I thought it was a bear." I let out a small breath, as if the memory itself was still hazy. "I fired a shot just to scare it off… didn't expect there'd be more of them waiting further down the road."
The doctor gave a slow nod, accepting the explanation without much reaction, before turning slightly toward the nurse who was already preparing fresh bandages.
Before I moved, my eyes flickered briefly toward Will.
The look on his face is… shocked. No, like it's being betrayed and stabbed from behind his back.
Joyce and Jonathan noticed it too, their expressions softening with something closer to sadness as they glanced at him, as if silently confirming that whatever he had said earlier… wasn't going to be backed up.
Dustin shifted beside me, clearly wanting to say something, probably something stupid or reckless, but the moment the nurse stepped forward to help me sit up, he held himself back.
Good. I can't respond or attack him either.
Because the moment I moved, the pain hit.
Sharp and burning in my back.
It crawled up my spine the second I tried to sit, forcing me to tighten my jaw just to keep my face from showing it too clearly. My mother quickly moved to support me, helping me sit upright as carefully as she could, but the moment my back was exposed…
I heard it.
A collective gasp more than one this time.
The kind you don't fake.
The kind that comes out when something is worse than you expected.
Yeah… the wound wasn't pretty.
It stung like hell, every inch of it raw and screaming under the open air, but I forced myself to stay still, to keep my breathing even as the nurse carefully began removing the soaked bandages. The second layer came off, and another round of gasps followed, quieter this time but heavier, mixed with the unmistakable sound of someone trying not to cry.
I wasn't sure if it was Will or Dustin.
Didn't really matter.
I also heard my mother's voice, softer now, slightly hoarse like she was holding something back.
"I'll buy you a car later…" she murmured, almost like she was making a promise to herself more than to me. "No more touching that cursed vehicle…"
…Well.
Free car, then.
Not bad.
The nurse continued her work, wrapping my body with fresh bandages, her movements careful but efficient, and once she was done, she helped me lie back down slowly, making sure not to reopen anything again.
"I thought you'd be screaming by now," the doctor commented with a light chuckle, clearly amused by the fact that I stayed quiet the whole time.
I glanced at him, keeping my expression steady. "Men don't cry, doc," I said, putting on a strong face like it was the most natural thing in the world.
From the corner of my eye, I could see Dustin quickly wiping his face, trying and failing but not to make it obvious, while Will wasn't doing much better himself.
The doctor simply smiled at that before giving a small nod. "Alright then," he said. "I'll leave you all to rest. Try not to move too much, and let the wound heal properly this time."
With that, he turned and walked out of the room, the nurse following right behind him, leaving the rest of us in a silence that felt heavier than before.
I let out a slow breath as I looked at all of them, the weight in the room still lingering after what they had just seen. Their faces hadn't recovered yet, they were still tense, still shaken and I could tell my mother was blaming herself for it, the guilt written too clearly in her eyes no matter how much she tried to hide it.
"Don't worry, guys. I'm okay," I said quietly, keeping my tone light, almost dismissive, as if what just happened wasn't a big deal. "Give me a day… maybe two at most, and I'll be back on my feet."
Dustin immediately snorted, though his nose was still running and his eyes were red from earlier. "You can't do that, stupid," he shot back, his voice rough. "What are you, Wolverine?!"
"Wolverine heals instantly, dumbass," I replied without missing a beat, clicking my tongue as I glanced at him.
"…Is that true, Chris?"
Joyce's voice cut through the moment, soft but steady, and when I looked at her, I saw the tension behind it. She was calm on the surface, but her hand gripping Will's shoulder told a different story, tight and protective, almost afraid of what I might say next.
I didn't answer her immediately.
Instead, my gaze shifted slightly, my mind circling back to something else.
"…Who was the woman here earlier?" I asked, my voice lowering just enough to change the tone in the room, making it heavier, more serious than before.
My mother wiped her tears quickly before answering, "It's Connie. She works with the Department of Energy… she's the one who found you and Will."
"…I see."
My eyes narrowed just slightly as I processed that, then I looked toward the room again. "Where was she sitting?" I asked calmly.
They hesitated for a second, confused by the direction I was taking, before Jonathan lifted his hand and pointed toward a chair in the corner of the room.
"There."
"Can you check it?" I said, my gaze locking onto him. "See if there's anything… unusual."
Jonathan frowned, clearly not understanding, but he still walked over without arguing. "Was she always sitting there?" I asked again as Jonathan reached the chair.
"No, she was sitting next to me before," Dustin cut in, pointing toward the chair currently occupied by Will. "What are you even doing?"
"Just check," I said again, ignoring the question entirely.
Will immediately stood up, his movements quick as he checked his own chair, while Jonathan examined the other one carefully, both of them searching for something they didn't even know.
Nothing.
"What's going on, Chris?" Joyce asked, her voice rising slightly as the anxiety started creeping back in. I could see it in her eyes now, she knew something wasn't right.
"It's better if we check everything first," I said, my tone firm this time, leaving no room for argument.
They looked at me like I was being paranoid.
But they still did it.
They checked the chairs again, the bed, the small table beside me, even the TV and the corners of the room, moving things slightly, looking underneath, scanning for anything out of place.
Silence filled the room as they searched.
"Nothing."
Jonathan shook his head.
Will looked at me.
Dustin frowned.
"Nothing," They repeated.
I exhaled quietly, letting the tension in my shoulders ease just a little.
"Good."
My eyes moved across all of them, making sure they were listening.
Then I spoke.
"It's true."
The room stilled instantly.
"It was a monster that attacked us."
The words dropped into the silence like a stone into still water, sending ripples through everyone in the room. I saw the change of emotion spreading across their faces all at once.
All except Will.
He looked… relieved.
Like someone had finally said what he couldn't prove on his own.
"I also have a theory," I continued, my voice steady, controlled, as if I wasn't talking about something completely insane. "The government is involved in this."
That did it.
Their expressions shifted again, this time not just shock, but something deeper. Uncertainty the credibility from my voice, fear if that is really true and shock that I even think about that.
Because now it wasn't just a monster. It was something bigger.
A conspiracy that I created.
And maybe…
Something watching.
I leaned back slightly against the bed, ignoring the dull pain in my back as my gaze sharpened.
"If that woman, Connie, is really from the Department of Energy," I added slowly, "then she wasn't here just to help us."
The room fell completely silent.
And for the first time since I woke up, they weren't just confused anymore.
They were scared if my words struck the full truth.