A Girl From Hawkins (Jim Hopper x OC)

002

Oct 29th, 1983

I woke up to the welcoming smell of freshly brewed coffee, drifting through my bedroom. I hadn't had a cup since yesterday morning, I knew I'd get a withdrawal headache if I didn't succumb to a cup soon.

I changed into a pair of comfy track pants and navy blue tee and strolled down the stairs, I could hear Benny down in the kitchen. I started tiptoeing, down the stairs, avoiding the one spot that always creaked when you stepped on it and crept around the corner to the kitchen doorway. He stood, drying plates and humming to a song on the radio.

"Mom always said you were tone deaf." I joked, smiling as he spun around with that 'oh really' expression he always seemed to wear with me.

"So I should cancel my performance at McHale's?" He winked and opened his arms up. "Come here, Kiddo."

I'm not ashamed to say I practically jumped into his arms and embraced the hug I'd been waiting to feel for at least a month. We stood, wrapped up like that for a moment, silent aside from the radio. I'd missed him so much, he was practically part of the furniture when I'd lived here with my Mom.

"When did you get so tall?" He asked with a deep chuckle, stepping back a little and ruffling my already unruly hair.

"Is 5'7 really considered tall?"

"From your side of the family it is." He sniggered, leaning back against the counter.

"Oh funny, funny." I stretched my arms up and notice a lack of giant dog. That's when I noticed, out the window the great lolling mass that is Ripley, swinging around a large rope. It was still kind of dark outside, an overcast day.

"Your dogs an idiot." I scoffed as I helped myself to a big cup of hot coffee. It smelt heavenly. Benny watched the dog with me as she bounded about, enjoying her own company.

"She's just a baby, leave her alone." He smiled though, obviously understanding that I was probably right.

"Where'd you get the name?"

"Come on!" He threw his arms up in the air. "I thought you'd at least get the reference?"

He left it hanging while I tried to work out what the hell he was talking about, he just gave me an expectant look until I shrugged, at a loss.

"Alien! Ellen Ripley, most badass babe of a woman to ever grace the cinema screens." He sighed. "Don't tell me you're not into that kind of stuff anymore?" He even looked a little disappointed. He was of course referring to my love of science. I'd always been fascinated by it all aspects, but many biology. I'd won Hawkins Middle School science fair 3 years in a row, I was some grade A level nerd when I was younger.

"Of course I am." I took a big swig of coffee, enjoying the almost burning sensation as it went down my throat. "But...it came out when Mom started to deteriorate." I bit my lip, staring at the dog again as my mood dropped.

"Shit." He muttered. "I'm sorry kid, I didn't think I..." He paused taking a heavy breath and pouring more coffee into his own cup. There was a long pause, Benny as excellent of a person as he is was still very much a closed off male who struggled to find words to describe his feelings.

"Charlie I..." He took another breath and scowled down at his coffee mug. "I'm sorry I wasn't there, I wanted to be, you've got to know that, I wanted to come out to you and Liz I tried, I really did but I couldn't get anyone to look after the diner and then there was the fire and the insurance company needed me to stay here in case I was the culprit I just..." I gave him time, pushing Benny would never get you anywhere. "I should have pissed everything off to come out to help you, I mean shit, you were what..23? I should have come out, I regret it everyday that I didn't-"

"Hey stop that." I cut him off, stepping up beside him and reaching up to rub his shoulder while he glanced at me from the corner of his eye. "I understand...Mom understood, you can't expect your life to wait for something like this." I looked up at the ceiling to stop the tears before they could fall. "I mean shit, it took 10 years for it to kill her, I know she never expected you to stop everything and hold her hand until the inevitable happened, and I certainly didn't either."

All of sudden he spun towards me and wrapped me in another bear hug. He squeezed my shoulders.

"That doesn't mean you should have gone through it alone." He spoke quietly, letting his hug explain how sorry he was. I knew he meant it, he wasn't one for apologising for things he didn't mean.

"I wasn't alone." I joked, breaking away from his embrace before I started to actually cry. "I had Aunt Wendy with me."

With that he let out a loud booming laugh.

"Aunt Wendy is colder than a mid-winter morning in Alaska, you're not telling me you got any comfort from that old prune." Benny and my Great Aunt Wendy who was 68 and partially deaf, did not get on, at all. Being from opposite sides of the family they'd only met on a few occasions, but every time they did, Wendy would always wonder aloud to anyone close why such a 'redneck hick' was attending our family events.

"Oh no, not at all. Although she did allow me to watch TV past 6pm every now and then. I really think she's warming up in her old age." I rinsed my coffee mug out and spun around, again taking in my familiar old home.

"Not a chance." He grinned and slapped his hands together. "Okay, so what d'you say we get down to the diner, I'll make you breakfast there while you take a look at the place." Even if I wanted to, I couldn't say no, he looked so darn excited at the idea.

"Absolutely! You can load me up with all the carbs you want."

"Good, cause there ain't anything else on the menu."

________________________________

Benny drove us there, asking question after question as we went: How was Pittsburgh, Did I like it there, If I liked the waitressing job I had, and how long it took me to finish my Paramedic studies. It was more of an interview, but I didn't mind, we had a lot of catching up to do. Besides, I was happy to answer his questions as I looked out at my town, so many new faces mixed among the people I'd recognised from all those years ago.

"Shit!" I exclaimed at the sight of the older lady unlocking the doors to the Police Station. "Is that Flo Abernathy?"

"Yeah, she's the station receptionist/ the Chief's PA." He grinned, watching her as we drove past.

"Step up from school receptionist, less babysitting."

"I dunno, Hopper's needs a lot of looking after sometimes." He laughed to himself and lit a cigarette.

"Hopper?" I frowned, not recognising the name for a moment. Then all of a sudden a face popped into my head, how could I forget? Every girl in town seemed to have had a crush on Jim Hopper at some point in their teen life, he was 25 in 1968 and thats when I started to notice boys, namely that boy.

"Jim Hopper's the Chief of police?"

"I know, ridiculous, right?" Benny and Hopper had been friends since they were young, Benny brought him round for dinner one night and I thought I might die of embarrassment when I came down the stairs in my rainbow striped pyjama's to find Jim Hopper, skinny jeans a muscle shirt lounged in my living room, flirting a little with my Mom.

"I never thought he'd end up on that side of the law." The cops were pulled up outside Hoppers house almost as often as his own car back then.

"Didn't you have a crush on him?" He grinned, knowing he was right.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." I could feel my cheeks burning up.

"Oh sure 'Benny, when's your friend coming over again?'" He put on a high pitched voice I assumed was meant to be me. "Or 'Benny, what's his favourite colour?" He fluttered his lashes and looked away dreamily.

"Stop that!" I swatted him on the arm and frowned, trying not to laugh. "I was a kid with a crush, so shoot me."

"It was cute really." He sniggered to himself, I glanced back at the station, now a little speck in the mirror. I wonder what Hopper looked like now.