Cosmic Optimist [1] {STEVE HARRINGTON}

five.

Chapter 5: What Would Madonna Do?

After Operation: Close Encounters of Lizard Kind, Tali's school day went on as it normally would. Passing through her classes in a tired daze. Talking to people she didn't know well enough to be friends, but enough of that they weren't just acquaintances. She didn't talk to Steve or see him, their schedules never once clashing. That was Thursday, Friday she muddled through the day the exactly the same way.

As the final school bell rang, Tali walked up to her locker to grab her school bag. Other students gather around the white lockers. She sees groups of girls' crowd around each other discussing weekend plans. Grabbing her bag and slamming her locker she makes her way toward the bike rack. Everyone seemed to be talking enthusiastically about the weekend, while the Henderson girl on the other hand had no plans, but to watch TV on the couch with her cat.

Once at home, Tali changed into her comfortable purple track pants and old Indiana sweatshirt. A floral kimono draped across her shoulders as well to fit the look of leisure. In her head however, she was none of that. She paced around her dark messy room, Joan Jett playing loudly in her stereo. This would have caused complaints by her mother and Dustin, but they weren't home yet and Tali was free to do what she likes.

Tali contemplated the idea of calling Steve Harrington aloud as she paced. "I mean we're not friends so he's probably going to say no, so why even call him... But he could say yes... and I mean it's just to hang out it's not a big deal". She had the idea on her bike ride home, overall, it seemed like a terrible idea on her part. Since them hanging out could be misinterpreted as something else. Steve was with Nancy and she wasn't trying to ruin that, she just genuinely liked talking to him.

Groaning at the nerves bundled up in her stomach, she flopped down on her bed. Posters of musicians covering her purple walls. She sits up glancing at the Madonna poster across from her, "Madonna would call..." Grabbing her green phone from her nightstand she made her decision, "Fuck it".

She dials in the number for the Harrington house she found in the phone book. With each ring Tali gets more and more nervous. After six anxious rings someone picks up, "Hello," an older female voice answers the phone.

"Hi, uh, is Steve Harrington there? I'm a-a friend of his," Tali stutters. I'm not really his friend though, I'm just romanticizing the one time we hung out together, she thinks.

"I'm sorry he's not home yet, I can tell him you called. What's your name?" Steve's mom, Tali guesses, asks her causing her to freeze because obviously Steve isn't home. He's popular and has friends, he was just being nice to her the other night and that didn't make them friends.

"Um, Madonna?" she blurts in a moment of panic and hangs up the phone. Fuck, that was bad, she thinks. She flops back down resting her head on her pillow. She turns over face down and groans, "I'm such a loser," she mumbles.

All Tali could think about is that she's at home by herself on a Friday afternoon, when she should be out with friends. But she doesn't like anyone enough to be friends with at school and they all think she's weird. The chiming of the phone interrupts her uncharacteristically pessimistic thoughts. She juggles whether or not to answer for a minute, what if Steve figures out it was her and called her back? What if he yells at her and calls her a stalker? All these seemed like very logical answers to the brunette. She mustered up all her courage and picked up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Tali?" A husky voiced asked, "It's Billy,"

"Oh hey, Billy," the Henderson girl actually hadn't spoken to Billy since the party. She hasn't actively avoided him or anything, she just figured he wouldn't ever talk to her again after ditching her at Tina's party.

"Listen, I wanted to apologize for leaving you at the party," Billy explained. "I was hoping you let me make it up to you..."

Tali thought this must have been a sign from the universe. There she was moping about her lonely life and Billy Hargrove decides to call and ask her out. "How exactly will you make it up to me?"

"Let me take you out... promise it'll be the best night of your life," she could practically hear the smirk in his tone.

He was overly confident, charming, and rude, but Tali was done sitting at home, her life was too boring. She always figured life would be more exciting once she graduated and moves out of Hawkins. But she's done waiting, she's going to make her life exciting. "Okay, yeah," she answered confidently.

"I'll pick you up at 8."

"Maybe actually be here at 8, if it's going to be the best night of my life," She sassed.

Billy chuckled over the phone, "I'll be there on time... See you later".

"See you," she said hanging up. She got up to get ready when she heard a clatter coming from her brother's room. She turned off her stereo and called out, "Dustin?"

She slowly peered out her bedroom door toward the door up the hall. The house was eerily quiet since silencing her music. She moved to stand in the middle of the hallway in a fighting stance. She could hear the old house creak and settle. A strangled yowling and hiss echo from Dustin's room, "Mews," she calls out.

Tali steps cautiously toward her brother's room. Slowly pushing the door open and stepping in searching for Mews. "Kitty," she calls, making kissing noises. Another hiss fills the room as she spots the glass shards on the floor from the broken terrarium. She then hears a sloshing noise coming from the corner of the room. As she slowly nears the orange chair that sits against the wall, she peers over it.

Her face falls completely, and she's rendered silent. A familiar green and yellow spotted creature gorging away at her precious orange cat whose paws try and push away the creature. She could hear the front door open and Dustin shout that he's home.

Tali remained frozen in her place.

The monster seemed to sense her presence as it turns around. It's mouth dripping covered in blood. Despite the lack of eyes, it seemed to stare right into her. As it screeched, the flaps surrounding its face opened up to reveal its mouth whose teeth were point sharp. Tali didn't know what else to do but run out Dustin's door and hurriedly close it shut. She leaned back on the breath heavy and uneven.

"Dustin!" She belted.

Tali was promised the best night of her life, but with the looks of how it was going it wasn't going to be good, but definitely the most interesting.

━━☆AUTHOR'S NOTE

This feels short but I'm planning the chapters and it works out better this way.
I can't believe I wrote the line "She dials in the number for the Harrington house she found in the phone book." Like imagine finding someone number through a phone book, those were the days...
Also my chapter titles keep getting better and better like Operation: Close Encounters of Lizard Kind and now What Would Madonna Do? wow. This chapter title is low key inspired by the glee episode where it's like all about Madonna. I just started watching Glee, so.
Anyway, Tali is gonna get sucked into the stranger things world quick, I'm excited.