Chapter Text
September 2nd, 1976
Will and Jane Byers had never been much good at making friends. This caused them to be inseparable. Wherever Jane goes, Will goes. Whatever Will does, Jane does. Will had always loved art, when Jane got into it, they would spend hours in Will’s room drawing or coloring. Their father hated that Will was an artist. He said it was too feminine. Thankfully, their mom, Joyce, got a divorce with him a few months ago. He moved an hour away from them in Indianapolis. Will was glad he left Hawkins, but he was traumatized from his fathers abuse.
Today was their first day of kindergarten at Hawkins Elementary. “Will, Jane, It’s time to get up!” Joyce shouted. When Joyce opened Jane’s bedroom door, she was already dressed in a cute pink and purple dress, a smile appearing on her face.
“Will you brush my hair, mama?” Jane asked politely. Joyce smiled sweetly at her, feeling her eyes tear up a bit. Her babies were going to school for the first time.
“Of course, baby. Let me go wake up your brother.” Joyce replied, and returned to the hallway to go to her son’s bedroom. She softly knocked on the door twice. “Will, it’s time to get up.” Joyce called. She was about to knock again when the door opened. A small figure with a bowl-shaped haircut appeared at the door. Will was still in his pajamas, seemingly just woken up. His clothes for the first day of school lay out on his dresser, waiting for him. Truthfully, Joyce was scared for Will to start school. Even though he had his sister, Will didn’t talk much at all. He only said a few words to people he trusted, and when he did, he’d talk quietly. Joyce hadn’t ever heard Will speak above a whisper, and she was worried he would get bullied.
“Will, can you get yourself dressed?” Joyce looked down at the boy who was rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he nodded, turning to close the door and get dressed. Joyce huffed a sigh, and turned to go to her oldest son, Jonathan’s, room. She knocked on Jonathan’s door, expecting him to be awake. He opened the door a couple seconds later.
“Good morning.” Jonathan greeted her. He was already dressed, but unlike Jane, he was most definitely not energetic.
“Good morning Jonathan, are you all ready for school?” Joyce asked. He nodded, grabbing his backpack.
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All three of Joyce’s children stood at the front porch, ready to hop in their mom’s car. “My babies,” Joyce said quietly, “They’re all grown up.” She smiled.
Jonathan rolled his eyes with a smile. “Okay, mom. Can we go to school?” Jonathan asked in embarrassment.
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They arrived at the elementary school, Jonathan going off to the fifth grade wing. Will and Jane stood outside, having polar opposite expressions on their faces. Jane seemed excited, thrilled at this new experience. Will, on the other hand, had anxiety written all over his face. This was not surprising for Joyce, just upsetting.
“Okay. You two stay by each other and don’t get in trouble, okay? I love you so much.” Joyce said kindly, looking down at the pair.
“I love you too, mama!” Jane exclaimed. She then grabbed Will’s hand and led them to their classroom.
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Jane couldn’t be more excited for kindergarten! Her mom had told her it would be a chance to make new friends. Not that she needed them. After all, she had her brother. Even though she had never heard him speak before, she’s spent most of her life right by his side. Hopefully one day he would talk, and they could be ‘proper’ friends like their dad used to say. Jane didn’t care about proper, though. They had each other and that’s all that mattered.
Jane took Will’s hand and dragged him to their classroom that Joyce directed them to. Their teacher, who Jane learned was called Ms. Grennings, asked Jane and Will to introduce themselves.
“What’s your name, dear? I’m Ms. Grennings, I’ll be your teacher for this year.” She said with a warm smile.
“I’m Jane! I’m five years old and this is my older brother, Will! He’s also five. He’s my best-est friend and I’m his best-est friend.” Jane replied enthusiastically. Jane looked back at her brother who looked scared out of his mind and hiding behind her. “My mom says that he is shy. He also doesn’t talk to people but it’s okay!”
Ms. Grennings showed a sympathetic smile towards Will. “Well then, let’s find your assigned seats.” She said cheerfully. Jane kept hold of Will’s hand, leading them to their seats that had their names on it.
Thankfully, they were seated right next to each other. Jane wasn’t prepared to have to make new friends. Their teacher was talking about how she was checking “attendance.” Jane started to zone out until she heard slightly heavier breathing right next to her. She turned to see her brother, who was clearly panicking. She made eye contact with Will and grabbed his hand below the desk.
She squeezed his hand lightly and smiled at him. He returned an unsure smile.
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Will was not excited for kindergarten. His mom said it was a chance to meet new friends. Friends? He didn’t need friends. After all, he had his sister. He’s never spoken to her before but it was better that way. They had each other and that’s all that mattered.
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By lunch, Will was feeling a bit less nervous. Jane was by his side the whole day and reminded him that they could almost go home. Will couldn’t wait to go home though. He and Jane could probably color while they listened to Jonathan’s mix tapes.
Will grabbed his lunchbox from his cubby, so did Jane. She walked beside him, never taking her eye off him. Will saw a taller figure walking up to them.
“Hey you!” The voice boomed. He walked towards Will, towering over him. Will could sense that he wasn’t safe. Jane, however, was oblivious to this.
“His name is Will! And I’m Jane! Did the teacher say your name was Troy or something?” Jane asked with interest, hoping she could make a new friend.
“Yeah my name’s Troy, what about it?” Troy scoffed. Will was trying to hide himself more and more behind Jane, his father’s words taking over in his head.
“Well me and my brother were looking to find new friends! He doesn’t talk but he’s still a good friend! Maybe you could be our friend?” Jane asked, still oblivious to Troy’s intent.
Troy laughed. “Of course your brothers mute. You’re both freaks. You’ll never find friends with those ugly clothes.” Troy huffed a laugh and walked away. Tears were rolling down Will’s cheeks. If friends were gonna be like this, he didn’t want any friends at all. Jane’s head was down, visibly sad, but wasn’t crying.
“It’s okay Will. We have each other.” Jane said with a sad smile. “Later we can draw in your room. We have each other and that’s all we need.” She held Will’s two hands in hers. Will nodded but tears were still rolling down his cheeks. A more mature voice interrupted them. “Alright kiddos! It’s time for recess!” Ms. Grennings announced. Jane looked at her teacher then back at Will.
“You go follow Ms. Grennings, I’ll be right outside. I just need to use the bathroom.” Jane reassured him. He nodded slowly and went to follow his teacher outside.