Chapter Text
[HOPPER: *confused* You want her to stay with me?
Steve and Hopper stood by each other in his cabin, newly cleaned and refurbished (mostly second-hand and what he owned on his own, of course), watching as Ellie examined every nook and cranny, dragging an amused Robin along for the ride. The girl was wearing new clothes, graciously donated by the various family members of the Party. The coat she wore was Joyce’s, paired with Barb’s old overalls and one of Nancy’s sweaters. Of course, Steve and Robin’s addition was the navy Nikes paired with pink striped socks. With their lack of style, it’s a wonder how those two manage to get dressed in the morning.
STEVE: *suddenly shy, rubbing his neck* Is… is that going to be a problem?
HOPPER: *shaking his head* No, but I can’t imagine why I was your first choice. You’d be better off asking Joyce, or even Buckley’s parents.
The scene cuts to a flashback from Steve’s timeline. It was a birthday party, and considering where it was, it was obviously El’s. Everyone was there, from Party members to parents. Hopper sat in his chair, El sitting crisscross in front of him on the floor. She shook a box, trying to figure out what it was without using her powers while Hopper looked down at her with a soft look on his face.
She squealed in excitement when she opened it, revealing a barbie doll. She immediately showed it to Hopper, to her dad. He gasped at the doll, as though he wasn’t the one who picked it out. She hugged him, squeezing him tight.
Back in the present day, Steve just smiled at the memory.
STEVE: *softly* … No, I don’t think I would’ve been.
A sneeze came from off-screen, drawing the attention of the two men. Ellie had kicked up some dust during her exploration, making her sniff aggressively. Steve glanced at Hopper, seeing a version of that same soft look on Hopper’s face that he remembered. It’s not as soft as it was by the time El was an older teen, but the beginnings were there, and that’s all Steve needed to see to know that this was the best choice he could’ve made for her.
HOPPER: Did she… uh, end up with me in your world?
STEVE: You found her in the woods after everything went down the first time. Everyone thought she was dead so you kept her hidden for a year or so.
HOPPER: *serious* Think I should do that again?
Steve tilted his head, clearly thinking over the best course of action.
STEVE: *slowly* For a while, yeah. Just… don’t be so paranoid about it, I guess. The kids know she’s alive, and as long as you’re careful about it, you don’t have to isolate her so much.
HOPPER: *sucks in air through teeth* That bad, huh?
STEVE: *snorts* Well, she went on a joyride with a trucker to visit her mom and find her sister.]
“That’s every parent’s worst nightmare come to life,” Joyce shivered.
“Wayne, I am so sorry for, like, everything I’ve ever done because that single sentence is instilling levels of fear I have never felt before,” Eddie looked stressed as he spoke, staring at the screen in horror. Wayne just laughed at his nephew’s words and ruffled his hair.
[HOPPER: She has a sister?
STEVE: Sorry, her lab sister: Number Eight. She was the only one who escaped on her own. Lived out in Chicago. Still does, currently. We visited her last weekend. Way too hardcore for my taste, but cool enough, I suppose. Kali’s sort of wanted by the police, so it’ll be a hot minute before they see each other again.
HOPPER: It’s concerning how easily you say that.
STEVE: *shrugging* You know how it is. When you’ve seen enough shit, you stop being surprised by shit.]
“It… concerns me, the nonchalance of Steve and Robin,” Max approached the words carefully, feeling how they rolled off her tongue, “like what the blond metal guy said about it earlier. I don’t know, it just feels strange that when the situation isn’t dire, they just joke around about it like they haven’t watched everyone they love die.”
“Sometimes, that’s the only thing you can do,” Wayne murmured, “no more tears left to cry, no more screams to let out, no more things to hit- you can’t change it, but you can control how much it hurts.”
“Like exposure therapy,” Billy offered the older man, who nodded in agreement.
“Time doesn’t heal all wounds, it just scabs them over. The scars will fade eventually, but if you ain’t scared of ‘em, and treat you ‘em well, you’ll see ‘em less and less.”
[HOPPER: *Amused* Fair enough. How long should I keep her hidden?
STEVE: … Eight months to a year? That seems reasonable to me. Besides, she’s young enough she’ll be practically unrecognizable by then anyways. I’ve got a few people who owe me favors that can hook us up with some fake documents. Still down to be a dad?
Hopper looked over at Ellie, the corners of his lips twitching like a smile was waiting to emerge.
HOPPER: *softly, or as soft as Hopper can be* She’s a sweet kid. Can’t imagine I’ll get sick of her that quickly.
STEVE: *snorts* She’s a lot fiestier than she looks, and if she ends up how she did in my time, she’ll only get worse. I’m glad I wasn’t that close to her while she was going through puberty. *Shivers* A telekinetic teenager and period hormones are a match made in hell.
ELLIE: Steve!
The two men looked over as Ellie ran up to Steve, Robin following close behind with a big toothy grin.
STEVE: *one brow raised* Well that’s a suspicious look if I’ve ever seen one.
ELLIE: *insistently* Open.
She gestured to his hand with hers, both clasped around something between them. Steve clearly knew that something was in her hands, but played along. He opened his hand, allowing for Ellie to place something small in his hand.
As she pulled her little hands away, it revealed a baby mouse. It was a pinkie, being that it barely had any fur. It squeaked quietly, nuzzling into the warmth of his hand. Steve quickly cupped the mouse, afraid it would fall out of his hand.
ELLIE: Birdie said it is a bay-bee. Needs to be pro-teck-ted. Can we pro-teck it?
HOPPER: *confused* Birdie?
ELLIE: *serious* Steve calls Robin ‘Birdie’ because robins are a kind of bird, but only the cool-est people have nicknames, so she is Birdie because she is cool.]
“Child logic, gotta love it,” Jonathan smiled as the little girl spoke, nudging his own brother in turn.
“I’m not that bad!” Will protested, but both Joyce and Jonathan just laughed at the young boy.
“Oh baby,” Joyce gasped between bouts of laughter, “you used to leave food on your plate at the Wheeler’s house because you wanted to make sure their garbage disposal got fed when they did the dishes.”
Clearly Will did not remember this, judging by his bright red cheeks. The rest of the group burst out in laughter at the boy’s embarrassment, making him groan loudly and tuck his face into Dustin’s shoulder, as though hiding himself from them. The boys just patted his back in solidarity. Party members and all that.
[Steve and Hopper shared a look. Hopper just sighed, running a hand down his face.
HOPPER: *exasperated* This is going to be a regular occurrence, isn’t it?
Ellie just smiled at him.
HOPPER: *still exasperated* Don’t tell me I start picking up every stray off the street.
Steve’s face fell at Hopper’s words. Concerned, Ellie put her hand on Steve’s wrist, giving him her usual confused-yet-all-knowing look.
The screen cut back to the flashback from earlier. It stayed on El as she inspected the barbie doll. Suddenly, she looked offscreen at someone. She shouted “Steve, look!” in excitement as the namesake man joined her on the floor, leaning his back against the side of the recliner.
The scene changed to memories of Eleven’s past: being harmed by the scientists, watching them torture others, being trapped in the copper room.
Then to Steve’s: breaking a glass as a child and being screamed at, being dragged by his hair and locked in a pantry with blood streaming down his face as he banged on the door, watching his parents leave him, a small child, home alone for the first time, not realizing they weren’t coming back anytime soon.
STEVE: *quietly* Nah, just the ones that needed it the most.]
“Fuck,” Robin whispered, unable to take her eyes off the screen. That singular word seemed to sum up what everyone was thinking.
Those memories brought back Wayne’s own, reminding him of the day the police brought a shivering boy with a shaved head to his doorstep. He hadn’t spoken to his brother in years, so his surprise when he discovered not only did he have a nephew, he needed a place to live because Al had been charged and sent to prison. Despite the sudden discovery of more family, Wayne knew he loved that boy from the moment he laid eyes on him. Even years later, Wayne could never understand how his brother could lay a hand on Eddie. Despite his supposed “hellish” nature that the rest of the town was so convinced of, Wayne knew Eddie was a kind man, a good man. To see those kids suffer a similar fate, it made his stomach churn. Hell, even looking at that bald little girl made him feel sick.
Jim Hopper’s own father wasn’t the best of men, but all things considering he got off pretty lucky. The man was a hardass on a good day and an alcoholic the rest of the time, but in a town like Hawkins the only adult recreational activities available were hunting, drinking, and/or shouting slurs at minorities. Hopper tried his best to be better than his old man when he married Diane, wanting nothing more than the best for Sarah. And then she fell sick, and all of a sudden he understood why his father took on alcoholism as a personality trait. But knowing that these kids wanted him around, even heavily implying that he became the only true father those two kids knew, well, they seemed like good enough kids. He just hoped that he could be that man for them when he properly meets them for the first time.
If there was one thing that Joyce regretted, it was Lonnie Byers. She’d never regret her boys, oh no, but she definitely regretted staying with that man as long as she did. Lonnie brought in most of the money and they were barely getting by as it was, so she was stuck. She had been trying to save up, so they could have something, but her plans changed the moment she saw Lonnie raise a hand to Jonathan with the intent to hit him. Joyce couldn’t help but see Jonathan in the Harrington boy and Will in Eleven, and if she had anything to say about it, those two were going to get the love they deserved if it was the last thing she did. Will looked so excited at the thought of spending time with Steve and Ellie, and she certainly had enough love for four kids.
I can see it now, Robin realized, why I chose to be friends with him. He loves so freely, so purely, despite everything; I can only hope to earn that love again.