BITCHIN'.

          “ I want---makeup. “ she announces slowly, sitting in front of the tv and pointing at a covergirl ad. big brown eyes stared at him while she emulated the mascara motion, a blush and lipstick motion following after.

Steve looks up from the comic book he’s flipping through, bored out of his mind. He’s only read through it about half a dozen times already, and there’s nothing good on television. He has no clue why Hopper would hire him to babysit El when she was more than capable of looking after herself, but he’d taken the job because a voice in the back of his head had nagged at him, stated What if you say no and something bad happens?

So, here he is. Not that he minds. El is a good kid, it’s just their isolated setting that’s got him going bonkers and he wonders how on earth El deals with being locked up most of the time. Poor girl.

He gets up, goes to the refrigerator and is disappointed by its meager selection of ingredients. There’s not nearly enough food to whip up anything really, and the sight of frozen dinners in the freezer has him making a face. He closes it.

“Alright, how about we go to the diner and get some burgers and milkshakes?” Steve’s fairly sure he’s not supposed to take El anywhere, but she can’t be expected to starve, can she? Not on his watch.

         dustin always went on how steve was COOL but he played by the rules. so this night was probably going to be just as dull as having her dad around. disappointing. 

       stomach rumbled and knuckles rested against her cheeks, lost in thought while big brown gaze followed his movements. for once--was it too much to ask that something fun happened ? 

         his answer caught her off guard, el having to do a double take to get that right. leave? in the car? excitedly she crawled to her knees to look at him from the couch, arms over the back, gripping to the back of the cushions, “ really? “

    the middle schooler was quick to put on her shoes, rushing outside and lifting a hand to unlock the passenger side herself and sit down buckle clicking shortly after that.

    hopper was on a night shift. a FRIDAY NIGHT all alone. well--it could have been. until he hired a BABYSITTER. though it was a familiar face, el wasn’t too excited. she didn’t want to be BABIED. el could take care of herself. 

        she looks mildly uncomfortable. standing in the shallow in a pastel rainbow one piece, just staring at the shaggy haired lifeguard before her. hopper had paid for her to have a private swimming lesson just before the summer. not that she couldn’t swim--but to ensure she could REALLY swim. or probably a hidden motive. she honestly wasn’t sure. 

           this water was different. it was bright and inviting, the sun reflecting into it. el stared down at her own reflection briefly, wrists turning upward to tap at her face in the water, watching it distort. 

jane stared at the TV, brows furrowed and perplexed at the woman on the television laughing and seeming to be icing sweet treats. they looked...delicious. raising her head, she quickly turns to hopper, a slow finger pointing at the screen.

        T H E   A N N U A L   I N D I A N A   S T A T E   F A I R. AUGUST 12TH, 13TH, 14TH. TICKETS AT THE GATE OR BY MAIL. FAMILY FUN, RIDES, AUCTIONS & MORE! It was almost a year later since the events of october, the girl finally able to come out and enjoy herself. her friends suggesting they all go to the state fair together, something for her to experience. 

         jane held the flyer in her hands while she rode in the passenger side of hopper’s car, eyes watching out the window with a smile on her face. free to do what she wanted now a’days. well, with hopper’s supervision.  ‘state. . . fair ? ’ she repeated back, not grasping the concept. ‘ yeah! see, there’s all these fun rides that sometimes make you feel sick and games--it’s super fun. we should all go.’ the group huddled around and staring at the piece of paper, grinning ear to ear and chuckling. snapping back to reality,  ‘baby jane’ by rod stewart played loudly while the two exchanged smirks. hopper’s latest tease with her any time this song came on.

        they finally arrived, car doors creaking open. half piled in hopper’s car, the other in steve’s. el looked up at the massive flashing lights on hurling metal structures, hundreds of people laughing and screaming and eating, el giving a nervous swallow. her curls were neatly gelled and brushed back tamely, having to really like the style of hair she wore to the snowball, but on a much easier day to day basis. achieving that similar look with a tiny pink clip. and she had gotten to dress better as well. jeans and a cream sweater with shoes that actually fit her. joyce’s help with her wardrobe. to be like a ‘normal’ girl.  it was the little things that made her feel like her life was hers. 

      after school, when the bell finally rings and the students pile out of those doors, mike does his best to make it to the chief’s house on. being LATE is not an option. not when it comes to her. however, occasionally he gets distracted, or lucas pulls him into a conversation with the other members of the party. so, feet pedal as fast as they can to make it to that door as quickly as humanly possible. and, AS USUAL, his bike is dropped carelessly into the grass. making his way up to the door, taking a deep breath, and ringing the bell.

      it’s not a long wait before the door swings open, and he can’t help the smile that spreads onto his lips at the sight of her ( even if it hasn’t been long ). brown eyes bug out in the slightest as he’s yanked into the house. another smile in greeting, and he’s already pulling worksheets and a pencil from his backpack as she buzzes about the room. luckily, today it’s easy work. as long as he isn’t failing his classes, or NOT TURNING IN the assignments, his parents agreed it would be alright for him to come home a little later than usual.

      truly, his focus ISN’T on any assignments, instead ; watching her work. grateful, still that she’s simply there. though, he’s pulled from that reverie at the sound of her voice. “beatles ?” brows raise in question, and it takes A MINUTE. “       oh! no, beetles don’t sing. at least not the insect.” using the tip of his pencil, mike points to the name on the paper, “those beatles are a rock band. they’re a group of guys who make music. my mom listens to them.”

       curious gaze follows his movements, always intrigued on anything that he said. with his expression of his own realization, jane mimicked him, sitting back in her chair. ‘oh.’ sucking in her lip before giving a bright smile. what a weird name for a band. she stared a little too long before scooting herself back toward the table top, pencil pointed toward the paper. ‘  the store is located on the corner of..main street and fifth avenue..’ 

‘ hi--jane ? ‘

             joyce called to the younger girl after her intrusion into their home, surprised by the door suddenly opening. the girl gave her a quick ‘ hi ’ before stomping on a mission to will’s room, backpack in hand. he was there, lights low in the setting sun while he colored on paper, wax hues of blue and green bleeding over the white. 

            she stopped at the open doorway, watching will silently for just a moment. she’d come every week so far. ‘top secret’ stuff, she’d say shortly to anyone who asked. when the boy finally turned around, jane smiled, giving those familiar bright eyes and sitting down on her knees on a colorful circle rug, shutting the door with her mind and beginning to unzip her backpack.  

FLASHBACK // 

             ‘ CLOSE YOUR EYES. ‘ el told him. the only noise being their own breathing. she placed winter earmuffs on him and herself, tying one of hopper’s ties around his eyes, and then her own. there they sat on that same rug, knee to knee, everything around them going black. ‘ will ? ’ she stared at him through the telepathic void, the younger boy looking around her and through her before meeting eyes with her, swallowing heavily. ‘yeah, i see you.’ 

and she gave that same smile. off to a good start.

BACK TO PRESENT DAY // 

            she pulled the same items from her bag, and then another. a bag of homemade cookies hopper and her had made. a treat for them later. for working hard. a chuckle left her looking at them, hands on his shoulders before growing serious again. ‘ today, you must fight me. ’ handing him his earmuffs and tie. it was for the best. so nothing could hurt him ever again. she was the only one that could help him do that. 

A FEW WEEKS EARLIER // 

          an idea she had gotten after playing dungeons and dragons. something mike had said when they were playing.  ‘ we need to train. ‘ jane hid with will behind a trash can at school, brows furrowed. ‘ to make you strong. ‘ a finger lightly toughing his forehead through his bangs, ‘ here. ‘ 

           she was ALWAYS to be home at 3PM and call HOPPER to confirm she was. mike and the others were always talking about their clubs. maybe she could convince him eventually to stay after school to join in. but for now, el, now publicly known as ‘JANE’ was to go home after school and wait til after club activities for mike to come help her with her homework while hopper worked. mike was smarter than hopper, so it was better that way. still, it was nice to be allowed the extra time to hang out with the person she thought the world of.

                                                                       D I N G - d o n g

         the science experiment took not another beat before dashing from her chair in the kitchen to swing open the door as fast as she could, her beloved freckled face friend standing before her. ‘ mike ! ’ she greeted him excitedly and exasperated, taking his arm and pulling him inside. door ‘magically’ shut behind them, jane grabbing the pitcher of juice and two glasses and hastily pouring him and herself a cup to start studying. something new she had picked up on. how to make people comfortable in your own home and being a good host.