The Overcomer, Stranger Things

Hopper's cabin

Eleven and Gwen exchanged a wary glance as Hopper lead them into what looked like a prehistoric, discarded cabin. The shed was hidden from prying eyes, or any eyes for that matter, tucked away in the farthest corner of the woods. Gwen had always thought it would be cool to go off the grid. Not anymore. The girl tuned back into the one-sided conversation when Hopper started talking. 

"My grandad used to live here," Hopper said, as he hit his shoe on the doorframe to get the snow out. The girls followed suit as he continued, "Now it's just used for storage." 

Gwen looked around curiously at the piles of old boxes stacked around the room. There were tarps thrown haphazardly around the room: on the windows, on the furniture, on the boxes. This place has been empty for a very long time. The girl shuddered when she spotted several cobwebs decorating the ancient cabin. Why did Hopper bring her here? She wanted to go home. Hopper seemed to read the girl's mind as he started gabbing again. 

"You both are going to be staying here for a while. Those bad men are still looking for you. No one can know that you are here. It's the only way to keep you guys safe."

Gwen sucked in a breath. That's not what she wanted to hear. The youngest ran a shaky hand through her tangled hair, while El voiced her thoughts immediately. 

"I want to see Mike."

Hopper huffed as he ran a hand over his face in frustration. He literally just said no one can know. Before he could respond, Gwen piped up.

"Does my mom know about this? When can I see her?"

The chief of police gave Gwen a sympathetic look before answering her question. She wasn't going to like this. 

"No, Joyce doesn't know. And it's best that she doesn't. I know that she's your mom. And El, I know that Mike is your...humph...friend...boy...ahem...person, but this cannot get out because you both are in danger. And if you go home the target on your back will also become a target on your family's backs. Right now we need to let this whole Hawkins Lab and Brenner business blow over, and then we will worry about getting you home."

Silence filled the cabin as El and Gwen mulled over his words. They couldn't tell anyone? They couldn't see anyone? They could be putting their friends and family in danger just by associating with them? They had targets on their backs? They had to stay here? In this clunky cabin in the woods? Gwen's eyes widened as she came to a realization. 

"Oh my gosh!" the Byers girl exclaimed as she clapped her hands together, slightly startling the other two. 

"This is like Sleeping Beauty! Well... except instead of three fairy godmothers we have a Hopper. Wait! Where's my prince?"

At Gwen's last question, Hopper's amused expression turned into a stern one. A prince? Is she serious? Does she realize she's only 7?

"No princes. No boys. End of story," Hopper stated as he crossed his arms. 

El nodded along, also being extremely protective of the Byers girl. What the older girl hadn't realized was that these rules also applied to her. Hopper turned to El. 

"These rules apply to you, too. No boys until you're 30." At this sentence, El's eyes nearly bulged out of her head. 

"But Mike is a boy!" 

~:~

El and Gwen watched curiously as Hopper flipped through a pile of old music records. The older of the two leaned towards Gwen.

"Why is he smiling at the black frisbees?" 

Gwen turned to the former science experiment with a bewildered look. Black frisbee?