Love Story: Volume One

season one: part four

Well, shit. she'd known that the little girl was out of place, but not that out of place. She was from the lab, and to make it worse, she had grown up there. Edwina paled, and Hopper squinted his eyes.

"You okay kid?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine."

He leaned forward. "You know something."

Joyce looked over. "If you know something tell us."

Well, shit. "Eleven...El. She's a new friend Mike, Dustin, and Lucas found. She has... powers. She can move things with her mind. It- It's insane."

Joyce nodded, and leaned back in her chair, happy that her son wasn't currently in what Hopper had so lovingly defined as a prison. "So it definitely isn't Will."

Hopper leaned forward. "Where is this Eleven?"

"Mike's house."

"Okay. Keep an eye on those kids Wilkins."

"But-"

"That's an order. We don't need you skipping school and getting hurt. We don't even know what we're getting into. Just keep an eye on them. Give them rides. Keep tabs."

"Yeah, yeah I get it." She leaned back, and Hopper looked at her expectantly. 

He huffed. "What are you doing?"

"You want me to start now?"

"Yes. Go."

"I-"

"Now."

Edwina looked at Joyce, but Joyce just smiled and turned back to Hopper. Grabbing her stuff, she walked out the door and got in her car. This was bullshit. Babysitting her cousin and his friends would go nowhere. She got out of her car and walked inside. Slamming the front door shut, she walked into Dustin's room and sat on his bed.

He screamed and pulled the covers up under his chin.

"What are you doing?"

It's not like it was one in the morning.

"Shut up. What happened while I was gone?"

Dustin sighed. "The party's falling apart. El was making us off track because she thought it was dangerous, and Lucas started yelling at her. She got scared, Mike defended her, and I tried to break them apart. The fighting got worse, and then El threw Lucas against a bus, and knocked him out. Mike yelled at her, and she ran away." He huffed. "And now Mike and Lucas aren't talking."

Edwina put her hands over her face and into her lap. Laying beside Dustin, she let out a deep sigh.

"This town is never going to be the same again." She shot up with an idea and stared at her cousin. "Here's what you're going to do. Get the party back together, find El, and I'm going to drive you guys around while looking for this gateway. Alright?"

Dustin nodded. "Now go to bed, because we have a lot to do tomorrow."

...

It was 8 when Edwina woke up. She knew Dustin wouldn't need to get ready, but she would. She made herself a coffee, put on makeup, even though she knew she would sweat it off running from monsters, and a fresh outfit. She put on a different pair of mom jeans and a black AC-DC t-shirt with a corduroy jacket. Laying back on her bed, she tried to get one more moment of peace before this disaster of a day started.

"Good morning Winnie. Let's go! We have a team to rebuild."

Edwina groaned. "I get to choose the music twerp."