little things; stranger things littlespace oneshots

♡ 17 - always ♡

cg!max
little!eleven (1-2)
request from SunnySide_Daycare😄😄

"El? El? Hello? Pick up!" Max said into the phone as it rang.
"Come on, El. I gotta know if I'm sleeping over because I really don't feel like biking back for my stuff.." Max groaned.
"Keep that shit down, Maxine. Your voice makes my head wanna explode." Billy spat from the room next door, over his loudly playing stereo.
Max only scoffed, having learnt long ago not to entertain Billy's venom.
"Alright, whatever. I'm getting out of here." Max decided. She put on her backpack and her headphones, heading out of the front door. She hopped onto her bike and rode off, Billy's loud music fading into the distance. Meanwhile, El hadn't heard the phone ring, much less remembered that Max was meant to be at her house soon. She was rather occupied with something different.

Eleven sat at the carpet floor of her bedroom, a cat plushie between her arms and a light pink pacifier in her mouth. She was absorbed in the strawberry shortcake cartoon that played on the television, giggling softly every once in awhile.
Max pulled her headphones around her neck as she pulled into El's house, setting her bike down onto the pavement. She walked towards the front door, gently knocking a couple times. Max waited, but no one appeared.

She knocked again, this time harder.
"Hello? El?" Max said through the door.
Still, no response. Trying her luck with the door, she pressed the handle, finding that the door was left unlocked.
"Odd.." Max thought, making her way in and shutting the door behind her.
"Eleven? Are you there?" she asked suspiciously, looking around the house.
"El? Hello?" Max asked again, peering around the corner.
There, she saw a door slightly ajar to a room which emitted a soft light and the faint sound of music. Max cautiously made her way to the door, unsure of what she might find.

Max stood at the door frame and pushed the door open slightly.
"El! Why haven't you been answering.. my.." she trailed off, noticing the pacifier and childish entertainment. El was startled by Max's sudden appearance. She jolted suddenly, slamming the door shut with invisible force in a panic. She fell back on the floor, breathing heavy in the silence, though she couldn't rest for long as Max interrupted her.
"What's going on?" Max's muffled voice came through the door, the doorknob rattling from the outside.
"What is this? El, are you okay?" Max questioned again. It was sweet how Max put El's well-being before the rest of the situation.

El, who was still panicked, didn't respond. In the moment of panic she had shut down and was too fearful to respond. A moment of silence lingered.
"Okay.. well, I'll be outside when you're ready to talk." Max's voice cut through the silence. She sat down against the wall beside the door, waiting patiently. With the time she had to herself, she thought about what she saw. She figured that El was an age regressor, she'd seen it every so often with her brother, Billy. It didn't seem like such a big deal to her, but she guessed she could see why El would've kept it a secret. And after ten minutes or so, Max began to think that El wouldn't be leaving. But to her surprise, the door opened softly. Max looked up to see El, who looked slightly afraid and as if she'd been crying. It was a painful sight to see.

Max immediately stood up, wrapping her in a hug and running her fingers through El's hair. El stood there for a moment before bursting into tears, leaning into Max's shoulder. Max felt bad seeing her in such a state, and couldn't help feeling like it was somewhat her own fault. She wanted to fix this. Max pulled out of the hug and El let out a small whine, missing Max's warm embrace.
"Aww, it's okay. I promise I'm not going anywhere." Max reassured her, sitting her down on the bed.

Max grabbed her plushie and handed it back to her, as well as the pacifier. She held the paci to El's lips, who accepted it timidly.
"m' sowwy.." El cried softly through the pacifier.
"El, it's fine, really. You don't need to be sorry or feel bad." Max replied sympathetically.
"You're still my best friend."
"Promise?" El asked, leaning onto Max as they lay against the bed.
"Always." Max replied, smiling.
El smiled back, her eyes beginning to close as she drifted to sleep. And Max, as the good friend that she is, lay there beside her.

- 768 words
a bit shorter than usual :( sorry!
hope it was ok tho <3 thank you so much for the req!
getting to the other requests too ofc tysm guys :)