Chapter Text
Billy’s pounding on the metal sauna door was relentless, his shouts and cries even harsher. The kids all stepped away as he continued letting all his anger out. Now, all they had to do was wait and hope that the Mind Flayer left his body.
If it wasn’t confirmed before — which, technically, it hadn’t been — then Will was for sure confident that the Flayer was controlling the guy. His neck wouldn’t stop its chill tingles and twangs, which felt like he was being prodded by dozens of angry needles. He had to force himself not to hold his hand to it and just waited and watched with everyone else. He just wanted it all to be over.
”Let me out! Let me out.” Billy’s voice suddenly turned down in volume. His eyes never left Max’s. “You kids…you think this is funny? You kids think this is some kind of sick prank, huh?”
Billy spat on the glass and made Will flinch.
“You little shits think this is funny? What is this? Open the door. Open the door! Open the door! Open the goddamn door!”
Suddenly, Billy let out an ear-piercing scream, and fell away from the window. Will sped forward to look at the thermostat.
”We’re at 220.”
He looked back at them, wordlessly asking if he should do anything. El shook her head, while Max gave him conflicted, but inevitably understanding and stubborn eyes.
He knew he needed to step away. If he didn’t want to die, that would be best for him. However, the painful sobs and whimpers coming from the door kept his feet planted where they were.
He remembered that feeling; the feeling of being trapped and alone, scared of the cold that’s rushing through your body and taking over your ability to control yourself. He remembered crying and trying to fight back, breaking through enough to break down, and then get pulled back and locked away again. He understood what Billy was going through better than anyone, and as big of an ass as that guy was, nobody should ever get to go through what he had gone through.
“It’s not my fault. It’s not my fault. It’s not my fault. It’s not my fault, Max! I promise you, it’s not my fault!”
Will looked back at Max, who’s eyes were wide as they stared at the door. She seemed tempted to move, but her foot stayed frozen in midair.
He decided to move for her, and cautiously peered through the small window in the door.
Steam surrounded the crying lifeguard as he clutched his knees and held them to his chest. The boy was screaming and begging and pleading, and Will knew immediately that this was the real Billy speaking, not the Mind Flayer. It’s almost done, they might be close to getting it out.
”What’s not your fault, Billy?” Will asked.
”I’ve don’t things…really bad things,” Billy tearfully admitted. “I didn’t mean to, he made me do it!”
Will swallowed. This was all just too deja-vu for him. It was like going back through the same ordeal, only through a different perspective. Instead of feeling the pain, he saw it. He watched it with a painful sense of helplessness.
Was this why the doctors had almost just killed him? They couldn’t understand how to help?
He understood that, really. But that’s not the approach he wanted to take with Billy.
Quietly, he spoke, “I know. I-I know what you’re going through, Billy. It’s like…like a big shadow, isn’t it? A big shadow that’s holding you like a puppet and trapping you in your own mind?”
Billy nodded with a meek whimper.
”Is it cold?”
Another nod.
“Y-Yes. So, so cold.”
”I remember what it felt like, Billy. I couldn’t control what he did, I felt weak and out of place in my own head. He made me do terrible things, too. If…If it weren’t for him using me as-as a sort of spy, I…a lot of people wouldn’t have died. My step-father to be wouldn’t have died.”
Will put his hand up to the foggy glass.
“It’s scary. It’s really, really scary. And I’m so sorry you have to go through this. But we’re all here to help you, okay? We’ll help you fight it. Max, me, Lucas, Mike, El — we’ll all help you fight it, okay? We’re gonna get that thing out and it’ll all be okay.”
“H-How do you know?”
”Billy, because-“
Will didn’t even realize the tingling had left until he suddenly felt a blizzard of chills cross the back of his neck. That could only mean one thing, a very bad thing.
”He’s activated,” he whispered. “I can feel him.”
He heard Mike gasp.
”Will, get away from the door!”
He barely managed to step to the side before a storm of glass fell outward where he was standing, and Billy’s fist emerged from the broken window.
”Let me out! Let me out, you son of a bitch!”
Billy’s fist pounded on the door and his head poked through. Will fell back and stared in horrendous fear as he relentlessly shook against the metal.
”Let me out! I’ll fucking gut you!”
Billy reached down to break the chain sealing the door of the sauna closed. Lucas acted quickly, though, and flung a rock at his head with his slingshot. Billy fell back into the room as Will was pulled back into the group.
The lights above their heads flickered and screamed, and suddenly Billy started flinging himself into the door, shoving it with all his might and stretching the chain to its weakest. El moved her arms out to shield her friends back.
”He can’t get out, can he?”
”No way. There’s no way!”
The pounding and slamming continued, until finally, the chain gave in, and the door was knocked off its hinges with a bang. Billy came rolling out, smoothly back onto his feet, while all the kids tripped backwards away from him.
Heavy breathing. A brief stare down between El and Billy. Then said girl was throwing him back into a brick wall with a dumbbell at his neck. The lights were now violent at this point as El screamed. Will noticed the familiar inky veins crawling up the inside of Billy’s flesh and just about threw up.
El kept pushing, and pushing, and pushing, but Billy eventually found his strength again and threw the weight back. The girl ducked just as it flew over her head, and was soon trapped in Billy’s grip.
Will watched in horror as she was lifted into the air by her throat, and the hand around it squeezed.
El was begging and sobbing.
All Will could do was watch and hyperventilate.
She was going to die. She was going to die, and he wasn’t trying to-
Mike disappeared from his side and was suddenly sending Billy to the ground with a metal pole.
”Go to hell, you piece of shit!”
El was now almost completely unconscious. So when Mike’s failed attempt at hitting Billy again got him backed into a wall, about to be killed, Will made a spontaneous decision.
”Wait!”
Billy stopped. He turned. Will stood in front of Lucas and Max, swallowing the urge to back out of what he was doing.
”Billy, listen to me. I know you’re in there, and I know you don’t want to do this, right?”
The infected blonde didn’t react. He just kept staring at Will as if expecting him to continue. So he did, cautiously.
”You don’t want anyone else to get hurt, or…or die. I understand, because I did it either. I still don’t. I know you feel weak, and cold, and tired, and like you aren’t in control, but it’s your body, Billy! It’s yours, and you can’t let anyone or anything else take that away from you.”
Will caught a glimpse of Billy’s hands twitch, sparking a small bout of hope in him.
”You’re so much stronger than he is, and you have to fight and win. Don’t let him take what’s yours — your body, your life, the people you care about…”
Will was still trying to decide whether or not Billy actually cared about anyone, but he kept going anyways.
”…don’t let him take it all away! It’s your life, Billy, not his!”
For a moment, the room was silent. The lights kept flashing, but they’d changed to do so slower. Will briefly exchanged a glance with Mike and saw that his friend was looking at him like he was stupid. If anything, this encouraged Will.
”It’s not my fault you don’t like girls!”
He was yet to apologize to Will for that argument.
Will heard El groan, but didn’t get to look at her as Billy chose that moment to lunge at HIM.
A hand was wrapped around his throat in an instant and he was shoved up against a wall, gasping for air.
”Will!”
Billy snarled at him. Slowly, a wicked smirk curled onto his lips.
”I never had a life, anyways. No point in turning back, right?”
Will couldn’t breath. He couldn’t breath!
”He wants you back. Want to see your benefactor in person?”
He didn’t get to even react.
His head was slammed backward, and darkness engulfed him.
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”Will!”
Lucas had pulled Max away just before they could get rammed over. Mike screamed for his friend as he saw him slammed against the brick wall behind him.
El was groaning, and Mike was given a limited time decision.
As much as he loved El, his decision was made for him as soon as he saw Billy knock Will unconscious and sling him over his back.
”No,” he shouted. He picked his pole back up and made a run for Billy, but was once again stopped when his weapon was grabbed. Billy turned to give him a final grin, before swinging and sending Mike flying back.
His body slammed into Max and Lucas’, all of them landing next to their awakening but clearly weak superpowered friend.
When Mike looked up again, there was a gaping hole in the brick wall.
Billy was gone.
He’d taken Will.
Will was gone.