Facade-[1]-[Steve Harrington]

Cookies, Eggos, Strawberries and Coconuts.

Song of the Chapter:To Build A Home by The Cinematic Orchestra

Warning: Unedited!!

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For an hour at least, Lennon had been trying to get some sleep. Her fight for slumber remained about as fruitless as the Hopper family pantry. Lennon tossed and turned all night, finding no position comfortable enough to rest her mind. Her eyes drifted to the neon numbers on her alarm clock, reading 11:04. The girl groaned, throwing her head down against her cold pillow and yanking her thick blanket to her chest. During the cold winter months, the internal heating of the trailer had a difficult time battling the cold Indiana nights, leaving the family no choice but to bundle up even inside.

Lennon closed her eyes, trying to force herself to fall asleep. Her hand moved to the necklace she always wore, tugging it out from under the flannel and into her closed fist. She tried focusing on the necklace, about the light memories of her sister. Interrupting her thoughts was a knock on the door. The light knock caused her to sit up in her bed, wondering who it was.

Her dad would have just let himself in with his own set of keys. Or maybe he had forgotten them like the time Lennon had walked home from the middle school, catching her father trying to enter the trailer through the window. At the time, he was leaner but still it was a comical sight to see the grown man with his back end stuck out from the window.

Lennon slid out of her bed, pulling on a pair of athletic shorts from a pile of clean clothes she had yet to put away. Her footsteps were light as she made her way out of her room and towards the front door. Earlier, she had tried cleaning some of the mess in the house but barely made a dent of progress. She reached the door, turning the knob and opening the door. Just outside, stood Eleven, the little girl Lennon met only days before who just so happened to have telekinetic powers. She wore the same jacket Lennon had given her, only with a new tear in the fabric on the sleeve. Her face was caked with dirt and dried blood trickled down from her nose. Overall, she was dirty, looking like she rolled on the ground.

"El?" Lennon spoke softly, knowing the girl was jumpy.

"You said I could come." The small girl muttered, her wide childlike brown eyes boring into Lennon's. Lennon recalled telling the girl that she could stay at her home when Mike had yelled at her. At the time, El denied, but now was taking her up on the offer. Lennon nodded slowly, moving to the side with her hand still on the doorknob, making way for the girl to enter.

"I did, what's wrong?" Lennon questioned El who stepped into her trailer, shutting the door and locking it behind her.

"Bad thing." El said softly, turning to face the blond.

"What? What did Mike do now." Lennon groaned, moving a hand through her messy hair. Usually, she would air-dry her hair before laying on it, and her tossing and turning definitely didn't help. Because of that, it was a thick, wavy, slightly-curly mess that she could barely force her fingers through.

"Not Mike. Me."

"What did you do?" Lennon furrowed her brows in worry, her hand reached for the key attached to the leather string she tied around her neck.

"Hurt Lucas. A friend." She looked to the ground, staring at the small amount of dirt she tracked into the trailer. Lennon's heart sank at her statement.

"What do you mean? Is he okay?" She rushed out. She bent her knees, crouching to look up at El so she didn't feel intimidated. That was the last thing Lennon wanted.

"Fine.  I'm a bad person." El looked from the ground to Lennon's eyes. Her small fingers nervously played with her pink dress in nervousness. She wanted to trust the older blond but her mind still held onto fear.