#post st5

In this band Mike writes a lot of the songs - all about unrequited love and yearning but whenever asked about who it is he gets defensive. Will's jealous because he thinks it's about Jane but they were all about him.

Every. Single. One.

Ted suffers cardiac arrest in the hospital, so he was dead for about five minutes before being revived.

Being dead for five minutes has consequences, but not the expected ones. In return, Ted can now see ghosts. At first, he doesn't notice. When he wakes up from his coma, he assumes the medication is to blame for him hallucinating Bob.

Except it's not. Bob has been wandering around like a ghost since his death.

It takes Ted a while to finally realize that Bob isn't a damn hallucination.

Things only get worse when Dustin Henderson comes to his house, and Ted sees the ghost of Alan's son floating next to the boy.

And don't even get me started on the little girl and the teenager who follow Hopper.

At first, only Bob knows that Ted can see him, but Eddie soon realizes it too.

Clinically dead for 5 minutes and 34 seconds.

There was no one there to ask if he was ok, check him, be there. Matter of fact it was only long after the whole thing that he found out that he’d been in a coma for nearly a month before he woke up.

Part of him will always feel shitty that none of his family was there when he did wake up. Well not totally true.

Bob was.

He looked worried and relieved in a way that was so quintessentially Bob-like, before he smiled and reached out to ruffle Ted’s unkempt hair. “There you are. Thought we were gonna gain you there for a second buddy.” Which made no sense to Ted at all. But also this was a hallucination, and he was probably high as a kite on drugs right now.

Because Bob has been dead for almost four years now, and for some reason he looks just like he did the night before he died.

He thought Bob would disappear after he was off the meds, (and even though he knew it was a hallucination he still talked to Bob about everything and nothing. It’s not like he had many visitors) but the day after he was off all of it and ready to go home Bob was still there, leaning against the wall with that mischievous grin, “are you done doubting your senses Mr. Logical?”

Ted had a nervous breakdown in the bathroom after that, and it took him the rest of the day to fully recover from what was his apparent lot in life now.

According to Bob, he’s gifted. He has always had a sense about him but the dying and being brought back thing gave him an ability that most didn’t have.

He could see the in between.

Suddenly Barb showing up with Nancy made so much sense. She doesn’t talk a whole lot but she does follow her every step.

He doesn’t like it a whole lot- especially not after he stepped out of his room for the first time and saw that many ghosts wandering around. Bob said hospitals are full of undead souls, and Ted was pretty sure it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out why- but he does come to terms with it.

It’s unnerving, but in a weird way kind of wholesome to see who sticks around and who dips for the afterlife. Bob was given the opportunity to, but he said he wanted to see his family grow old before he does and then he’ll cross the bridge. Ted’s not used to people willingly sticking out something just to be with him.

It’s a pact between the step-brothers. Ted won’t say he can see them (out of fear of being thrown into penthurst) and Bob doesn’t spill to the spirits that they have a private audience of one who can see them at all times. And it works out fine for the most part.

That is until Dustin comes to their home for a game night, scrambling in last minute yelling about this test he had to study for in order to get into the valedictorian league, and one of the spirits runs in after him, “Henderson wait up man!” He laughed as he took off after him, a whisp of his long curly hair and that damn laugh that sounded so familiar to the clairvoyant man.

“Was that-“ “Al’s kid? Oh yeah. Ever since he died he’s followed Dustin around.” Bob explained leaning against the kitchen counter watching Ted peel potatoes, well he was now he’s frozen staring at the basement door listening to the four boys, Max, and Eddie Munson run their dnd game. “He got a fast pass to the pearly gates and chose to wait until Dustin and Steve can join him. Good kid, obnoxious as hell but he is Alan’s kid so.” Ted huffed softly, finding it hard to look away from the basement door when- “TED!”

His head snapped in the direction of Karen’s voice, before he pushed the thoughts aside and blinked, “what?” She rolled her eyes and threw her hands in the air, “honestly you’re more spacey now than you’ve ever been. I need to pick up the meat I’ll be back.” And with that she left, leaving the man and his ghost brother in her wake. “Honestly man, you put up with that way better than I could.” Bob joked before throwing a towel at Ted’s head to get his head back in the game.

Fun fact, ghost have the ability to move shit, go figure.

He starts to get used to seeing Eddie around, hearing his voice and watching him follow the kids like a lost puppy. Poor kid, he was just trying to help and got killed. And for a time he figures that’s all he’s going to have to deal with in close contact besides Bob.

False.

Karen invited Jim and the Byers to dinner one night (by the way didn’t Jim die? Is he seeing a ghost Jim? Are they all seeing a ghost Jim?) and when the older man walks in he watches two girls follow him in. One’s little with blond pigtails and the other is about Mikes age with brown soft curls.

They’re sweet. They laugh and play together while Joyce and Jim talk to Karen about god knows what and he watches them, slightly transfixed by how young they both are before they hear the boys thundering you the stairs yelling about how Mike screwed them over in their game. The girl with the brown hair looked up instantly, her eyes on the group with a huge smile before she pointed to them and said something to the little girl, whatever she said was good considering how the little girl laughed.

“Can you see them?” He looked up, his eyes locked in with Eddies who looked somewhat scared and a whole lot hopeful, Ted didn’t answer, not verbally with all these people who would ask questions, but he did give a small curt nod.

Eddies face lit up like a kid on Christmas.

“Earth to Wheeler, are you listening?” Ted spun around and blinked, just then realizing that he was being spoken to as Karen sighed and rolled her eyes. “Sorry I- did you say something?” Jim huffed a laugh before shaking his head, “I think you did a little more damage to that head of yours than they said.” Ted hummed, but didn’t offer anything more to the conversation as the other three talked about Christmas plans.

But all he could do was try not to look up at the array of people who were unseen in the room by everyone but himself.