For Those Who Believe In Mike's Theory:
El liked to travel now. Her thirst for knowledge, to see as much of the world as possible after being deprived of so much as a child, was what motivated her. When she had first left Hawkins, she hadn't really known what to do with herself. But then she had remembered what Mike had told her. That they would go to a place far away with waterfalls. So that was what she did first, found herself a place with waterfalls.
It had been a bewitching view but El knew it wouldn't sustain her in the long run. This led her to deciding that she would spend her days moving. It meant she would be able to see as much as possible, learn more than she ever had in the lab, and establish friendships across the globe. The only place she stayed away from was Hawkins, not daring to go anywhere close to Indiana. The people she met were interesting, though none of them could ever compare to her friends from back home, and they made life enjoyable.
She used many names on her travels. Sometimes she was El, sometimes she was Jane, and sometimes she was a new name entirely, rotating through a list with every new location she would visit. As the years went by, she found herself missing some things that Hawkins brought her. Aside from her friends, there were other things she hadn't been able to replace. Nothing had tasted quite as good as that first burger she had eaten after escaping from the lab. No clothes had been as comfortable as the outfits she had tried on in the Starcourt Mall with Max. Nothing had smelt as wonderful as the trees that had surrounded her and Hopper's cabin.
So after spending a large handful of years travelling continental Europe, El decided to venture back to the country that had been her home when she was young. She still planned to stay far away from Hawkins, knowing it was too dangerous to get close to it. So she wouldn't go to Indiana, but maybe one of the surrounding states instead.
It was in west Illinois at a train station when Eleven was made to regret her trip.
She was staring down at her socks. Over the years, El had developed the habit of acquiring items that reminded her of things from her old life. She had a blanket that sported the same plaid pattern as Hopper's shirts. A camo scrunchie that looked exactly like Lucas's bandanna. A very small teddy bear that strikingly looked like Dustin. And a pair of socks with the same yellow and black markings as the shirt she had bought back in the summer when she thought she had lost her powers.
The station had been very quiet as she waited for her train, only the sound of the gentle breeze disturbing the silence. But then movement across the platform caught her attention as someone else arrived to wait for a train. She looked up, making eye contact with the person opposite her on the other platform. Disbelief took a hold of her as her gaze landed on someone from so long ago.
No matter the time that has passed, fifteen, twenty, fifty years, a hundred, that was a face that Eleven would never forget. A face so beautiful to her it was ingrained on her soul forever. The flaming red hair, the bright eyes, the constellation of freckles. It was the face of the girl who she had shared her brief moment of girlhood with, the face of the person who taught her what it was to be a teenage girl. Her best friend.
A soft gasp escaped El's throat, as she tried to keep her expression neutral. As easily as she recognised the face of Max Mayfield, she wasn't quite sure it would be reciprocated. El had changed a lot in the years since her time in Hawkins. Her cheeks had lost some of their fullness, escaping with her youth, her big brown eyes had somehow gotten even bigger, and she had made her way through as many different hairstyles as possible.
But her desire to stay anonymous was wasted. It was clear on Max's face, as she froze on the opposite platform, that she recognised her childhood friend immediately. But Max was stuck, she didn't know what she was supposed to do. El was officially, according to all records, dead. Her and the rest of the party had always harboured the hope that she was still alive, and living somewhere free, but as she had grown older that hope had diminished a little. So now, seeing her friend alive and well, was a shock. Should she smile? Should she wave? Should she just do nothing?
Luckily, she didn't have to think too hard on it. For once, El seemed to be the more confident one in their friendship. The years had taught her well. One hand was raised in a small wave, a watery smile on her face, and then Max was mirroring her. The two women, suddenly reduced to the summer of 1985 when they first formed a tight bond during sleepovers and trips to the mall, sat waving at each other over the tracks of the train station.
A sharp pain stabbed through El's chest, her hand dropping back into her lap. It was the ache of grief. She still missed her friends but it had gotten easier over the years. Now seeing one of them reminded her of what she had left behind. Yes, she didn't have a choice. It was necessary to keep all of them, including her, safe. But that didn't make it hurt any less.
She had to get out of here. No matter the fuzzy feeling in her head being caused by Max's warm smile, no matter the flutter of butterflies in her stomach at the sight of Max's azure stare. She had to leave before it became too painful to move.
Her prayers were answered by the approaching sound of a train coming into the station. But Max suddenly looked panicked. The years she'd pined for the connection she'd had with El flashed through her mind. They had both needed each other back in Hawkins, their call for female friendship tying them together. Max had never had that again, never been able to find somebody who could quite understand her. She had Lucas. She was still friends with the others. Dustin, Will, Mike, even Steve. But her connection with El had been different. Had been special. And now she was losing it, losing her, all over again.
But there was no time to do anything. The train flew into the station, stopping between the two platforms and cutting El out of Max's view. She shot up out of her seat, to see if she could spot her friend getting on the train. But it was no use. Thirty seconds later, when the train left the station, Max's worries were confirmed. Eleven was gone. And she would never see her again.
A/N: Eleven and Max's friendship is very important to me which is why I chose for the fic to revolve around them.
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