resonance

08

The house was eerily quiet as El used her mind to unlock and open the door.

Carefully, you crept inside, halting at the sight of the group, all frozen at the sight of the girl next to you.

Loudly, you wiped your boots on the worn-looking welcome mat that lay just beyond the front door, breaking the silence. With a nonchalant wave towards your bloody shoes, you looked around tiredly, unable to continue watching the tension-filled gaze the Mike and El were sharing. "Should I take these off or...?"

A choked sound came from Mike, who stepped forward in shock, squinting at her like he couldn't believe she was really there. "El?"

That's all it took for the girl to launch herself into his arms, mumbling quietly in such an intimate way that made you look away.

All at once the other kids fluttered around the pair excitedly, saying how cool her new look was and how badass her fighting had been.

"It's not like I killed most of them or anything," you muttered playfully, smiling when El stuck her tongue out at you.

"Wait," Mike pulled away from the girl, sharply looking at you. "You know her?"

You scowled back.

"She has to," Dustin insisted, gesturing towards the front lawn. "They hugged!"

"I knew it!" Nancy cried, flushing when you simply raised your eyebrow in return.

"Gold stars for all of you," you rolled your eyes, too exhausted to say anything snarkier. You jerked in surprise as Hopper strided over to you, inspecting you at arm's length.

"Never do that again," he mumbled, pulling your shocked form into a hug. He leaned back, unaware of your frozen state, and turned to El, gesturing at her new appearance. "The hell is all this? Where have you been?" he asked with a weary look your way that promised a long talk later, grabbing the girl for a hug as well.

"She went on a... field trip?" you offered.

She nodded from his arms. "To Chicago."

Hopper's eyes bulged.

"It was windy," El supplied unhelpfully.

"What the hell?" Mike yelled at Hopper before the older man had a chance to react properly. "You've been hiding her, all this time?" His face turned bright red, tears of joy quickly warped to anger.

"Hey!" Hopper tried responding to no avail, for the boy had begun hitting him. Letting go of El, he grabbed Mike's arm. "C'mon, let's talk. Alone," Hopper growled, yanking him into Joyce's empty bedroom.

The tension quickly dissolved as El went to the other kids, pointedly ignoring Max's introduction to hug Dustin and Lucas.

You frowned, remembering the fit of jealousy you had witnessed before at the school. You were making a mental note to chastise her privately later when a hand touched your elbow.

"Hey, are you alright?" Steve looked down at you with concern after you jolted uneasily at the touch, gesturing to your leg that the dog had clawed. "Do you need help cleaning that? Not to brag, but I'm kind of a pro at treating monster injuries now," he joked.

You blinked owlishly at him, unable to keep the confusion off of your face. "What?" you finally asked, unsure of the boy's reason for wanting to help you. Earlier in the car, Hopper had instructed him to help, but now? He had no reason to.

His smile wavered as you stood, staring at him like a sleep-deprived, emotionally-stunted idiot. Which, to be fair, you were.

No one is kind to you for free, your mother taunted you from decades in the future. These people don't know you, she would say.They don't know what you've done.