how many times had the world ended & began again in the morning for him ... for them ? it would be easy to feel cocky, but something settled in the pit of his stomach. something that left him . . . rattled. the light at the end of this had not yet revealed itself to him & he wishes he could just whisk them all away from this. his daughter, his sons, ( they were his ! were they not ? bound not by blood but something greater. ) & his ... girlfriend ? sounded too childish, but not yet his wife even if he'd been hers for longer than he could remember. words bring a soft smile to his lips ━ doesn't even remember when the moniker began to slide off his tongue, it just felt right.  ❛ i hope we have a long long time left, ❜ he murmurs. he's never felt owed by the universe until the last few years, has always thought he was being punished for the things he did in his younger years, in the military, for the way he was an ass when he blew back into hawkins. he's more than repented by now hasn't he ? has paid back the universe with blood, sweat, & tears ... you are allowed to have them.  ❛ yeah, sweetheart, we are. ❜ hopper nods, presses lips to joyce's temple. he could get used to this. he hopes he gets the chance to.

they  deserved  something  soft,  didn’t  they?  after  all  of  the  torment,  the  grief  and  loss  and  despair,  they  deserved  their  early  mornings  in  the  quiet  of  their  little  town,  kids  asleep  inside,  the  world  paused  for  reprieve.  they  deserved  it  and  yet  it  feels  so  fragile,  so  fleeting  .  .  .  that  at  any  moment  this  would  all be  torn  out  of  their  clutched,  white - raged  fists  and  gone  forever  and  if  she  dwelled  on  the  idea  for  too  long  that  familiar  pang  of  anxiety  would  constrict  her  chest,  squeeze  her  lungs  until  there  was  no  more  air.  it  was  easy  (  too  easy  )  to  get  wrapped  up  in  the  fear  that  they  remained  in,  had  consumed  her  mere  weeks  ago  -  three  kids  in  a  whole  new  world,  meant  to  be  a  fresh  start  -  but  it  had  dulled  his  first  night  back,  in  their  boarded  up  home  where  they  slept  intertwined behind curtains.  the  first  night  she  felt  secure  enough  to sleep  without  one  eye  open,  one  ear  listening  for  the  next  threat’s  knock  on  their  door. safety  and  security  pieced  into  their  small  gestures  -  arms  wrapped  around  her  now,  a  hand  held  in  the  silence.  it’d  all  be  okay.  had  to  be  okay. 

quotes that broke me starters

takes the offered cup, raises it to his lips & lets hot liquid coat his throat, lets it settle in his stomach ━ maybe it'll knock the chill that had eight months to bury deep in his bones out of him finally. one arm lies firmly across joyce's abdomen, hand gently holding a hip. ( he would attach her to his if he could. too afraid if he lets her go for too long, he would wake up back in his cell. )  ❛ ah, they're teenagers, they deserve it. ❜ his voice is soft, lips pressed to her ear, like his words were a secret for only her to know. as if she didn't know if anyone deserved a little bit of peace it was their kids. it was early still anyway ... let them not worry about carrying the world on their shoulders for a little while longer. he used to step out here on hard nights with el, when the dynamic was still new & they were both angry at different things, but taking it out on each other. he'd look to the sky for reassurance, for a sign that he was doing the right thing, for a sign from ... well, sometimes he can't even bring himself to think about her. too afraid to reopen wounds he so carefully sewed back up.  ❛ i like to come out here to think, ❜ he finally answers her question, one more sip from her mug before passing it back. with both arms holding her now he sways her gently, watches as the sun begins to peek out at them from between the trees.

even  in  the  midst  of  their  world  of  ruin  he  pulls  a  grin  across tired  features  so  effortlessly  that  a  soft  laugh  spills  from  it  at  the  tickle  of  his  mustache  against  her  ear.  right  he  was,  their  kids  hadn’t  seen  true  rest  in  years  (  she  wondered  how  much  of  their  tossing  and  turning  was  due  to  her  failure  as  a  mother  -  her  eldest  working  nights  for  the  sake  of  rent,  the  youngest  lost  in  another  world  for  days  on  end,  their  daughter  with  the  fate  of  the  world  on  her  shoulders  )  “  mm  -  coffee  &  contemplation?  ”  funny  how  they  found  these  moments  still  to  enjoy  what  most  of  the  world  found  to  be  their  normal  morning  routine.  coffee  mug  is  placed  on  the  deck  railing,  turning  then  to  face  him  and  match  the  hold  he  has  on  her,  arms  wrapped  around  his  torso  (  he’s  gaining  his  weight  back,  feels  fuller  than  before.  hoped  it  was  as  healing  for  him  as  it  had  been  for  her  to  see  the  change.  )  “  never  considered  you  a  thinking  man  .  .  .  ”  it’s  a  tease  if  there  ever  was  one,  the  point  of  her  elbow  nudging  him  gently  in  the  side.  but  the  shift  is  felt,  a  seriousness  in  his  tone  that  tugs  on  overworked  heartstrings.  the  sentiment  is  shared  even  if  unsung.  speaking  it  into  existence,  the  idea  that  there  could  (  would!  )  be  life  after  all  of  this,  it  felt  like  jinxing  it  -  their  luck  bound  to  run  out  at  some  point. 

it was peaceful out here ... don't worry the irony hasn't left him. their quiet little town was being ripped apart by something he wasn't sure they would be able to beat this time, but it was peaceful out here. tucked away in the woods his cabin barely fit for two had been forced to accommodate a family of five & as he flicks ash off the back porch he thinks about the four other people who were currently sleeping under his roof ━ how if by some miracle ( because god help them, they needed one ) they get out of this, he'll buy the biggest house he's ever laid eyes on ... maybe in hawkins, maybe not, he didn't care he just wanted all of them to be together. he's lost in a daydream, one that involves the stereotypical normal family with the white picket fence & everything. he'll watch the kids pile out of the house for school in the mornings, make sure they have a big backyard & maybe a dog to run around in it. he was so far gone in his imaginary life he didn't even hear @conyislnd slip out behind him & jumps slightly when her voice reaches his ears. he laughs under his breath at both his reaction & question. would it be crazy to admit he thinks he slept a little better back in russia ? flicking his cigarette off the porch, he opens his arm & allows joyce to slip into the warmth of the flannel that surrounded him as he drops a kiss to the top of her head.

mornings  were  looking  different  with  their  return  to  hawkins  but  there  was  familiarity  found  in  whatever  messed  up  routine  they  had  become  accustomed  to  -  she  had  gotten  real  good  at  pretending  as  though  the  shift  of  his  weight  leaving  the  bed  didn’t  disturb  her  slumber  .  .  .  truth  was  that  she  hadn’t  slept  soundly  since  her  boy  went  missing,  far  too  aware  now  of  what  goes bump  in  the  night.  joyce  trailed  out  of  bed  not  too  far  behind  him,  the  chill  of  a  spring  morning  just  deep  enough  to  tick  on  the  heat  before  a  lap  around  the  bedrooms  -  she  had  become  a  pro  at  not  waking  any  of  them  while  still making  sure  they  were  tucked  into  their  beds.  a  cup  of  coffee  brewed  and  she’s  slipping  outside  with  ease  and  bare  -  feet,  the  breathy  laugh  at  his  reaction  cooling  off  a  long  sip  from  her  mug.  “  i  should  have  known  better  than  to  ask,  hm?  ”  warmth  found  quickly  in  the  arm  he  offered,  frame  tucked  easily  into  his  button  down  as  she  offers  up  the  mug  still steaming  in  her  hands.  moments  like  these,  the  good ones,  they  almost  made  her  forget  just  what  laid  outside  their  neck  of  the  woods.  a  whole  town  destroyed,  friends  lost,  but  he had  been found,  returned home  with  her  - she  would  lose  this  family  a  second  time.  vecna  would  have  to  pry  them  from  her  cold,  dead  hands. 

hozier lyrics, unreal unearth edition

𝑫𝑬𝑨𝑻𝑯 𝑶𝑭 𝑨𝑵 𝑶𝑷𝑻𝑰𝑴𝑰𝑺𝑻 .    (   lyric starters  originating  from  the  works  of  grandson .   mature  &  dark  themes  are  present ,   tread  with  caution .   )