𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥 𝐞𝐲𝐞𝐬, 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑣𝑒 ℎ𝑎𝑟𝑟𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑡𝑜𝑛

12 | heroes of hawkins

Chapter Twelve
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Heroes of Hawkins

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              Olivia sat in an ambulance with a blanket wrapped over her shoulders. Steve sat next to her on her right side, while Olivia held an ice pack to his black eye. Paramedics were scattered throughout the parking lot, tending to everyone's aid. Olivia was lucky enough that she only had a gash on her head, considering all they've been through the last 48 hours.

            But everything was finally over.

            Will sat next to her on her left side as he anxiously waited for his mom to come out of the mall. Olivia put a comforting hand over his to help him stop worrying. But she was beginning to worry as well the longer they waited when their was no sign of Joyce or Hopper.

            "Hey," Olivia said tenderly, pulling Will into a hug. "You're mom is one of the strongest people I know. She's going to make it out, okay?"

            "But what if-" Before Will could finish his sentence, his shoulders relaxed and he perked his head up when he saw her. Olivia smiled widely. Joyce, who was wearing a Russian guard uniform, was frantically searching around. Will got up and sprinted towards her. Joyce's eyes sparkled with relief at seeing her son and knowing that he was okay. Joyce sent a grateful smile to Olivia, and she nodded in response with a smile.

            Just behind Joyce and Will, Olivia grinned from ear to ear when she noticed Dustin, who looked like he was searching for someone. "Dustin!" Olivia called. Even through the sirens and the crowded parking lot, Dustin seemed to hear her. Olivia shifted her gaze back to Steve and he gave her a nod. Olivia and Dustin ran towards each other, pushing through everyone, and embraced each other in a long hug.

            "I was so worried," Dustin mumbled. "You dropped your walkie when I was trying to contact you. I almost thought-"

            "You can't get rid of me that easy, Dusty," Olivia laughed, trying to light up the mood. "But I'm just glad you and Erica were on the field where it was safe."

            Olivia's smile disappeared when she spotted El looking around for Hopper. Olivia glanced over at Joyce, and her tears were streaming down her face. Joyce didn't need to say anything because her face said it all. Olivia ran over to El and knelt beside her before she could fall on the ground. Olivia held El in her arms and the two grieved over Hopper, not being able to accept that he was really gone.

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            Claudia Henderson loved her two children more than anything in the world. They were her everything. When she saw on the news that night that StarCourt burned down, she instantly became worried because that's where her daughter worked. She could feel the tears glistening in her eyes as she kept glancing back at the front door of the Henderson Household, waiting for her children to come home safely. Claudia stayed up all night waiting and waiting until it started nearing early morning. Having had enough of sitting around and doing nothing, she fetched her coat and her keys. Just as she was about to open the door and walk out to her keys, her children finally arrived back home with Steve and they immediately embraced her in a hug.

            "I-I saw what happened on the news," Claudia choked. "I was so worried about my babies. Livy, are you okay? Oh honey, you have a gash on your head! And Dusty-"

            "We're fine, mom," Olivia assured her, and hugged her tighter. She hadn't realized how much she missed her mother's warm embrace, even if she was only gone for two days. And how much she missed her home

            "I love you," Claudia breathed. "I love you guys so much. I don't know what I would do with out you."

            "We love you too mom," Dustin said with a warm smile.

            Marie— the new kitten Claudia adopted after Mews— purred and curled up by Olivia's feet. Olivia picked her up and she nudged her head in Olivia's shoulder, as if she knew Olivia was heartbroken and needed that comfort. Olivia smiled, but Steve could sense the sadness that was in her eyes and pulled her into a hug. She lost the one person in her life who she saw as a father figure. And he died so that he could save them. She knew it wasn't her fault, but it felt like it was.

            But she didn't just loose Hopper, she lost Billy too. She may have not liked Billy before, but watching him die before her very own eyes was heartbreaking. She couldn't imagine all the pain that Billy went through with being controlled by The Mind Flayer. He never deserved what he went through and he never deserved to die.

            Olivia leaned her head closer into Steve's shoulder and sobbed quietly, wishing that none of what happened was real. That perhaps this had all been a nightmare she'd finally wake up from. But she had to face the facts that this was reality.