Clean cut American kid ~ Stranger things

CHAPTER TWENTY

Author's note: I'm so sorry for being away for so long! Had a lot to do about work and life and everything and thought I would never get to continue this story even though I wanted to, but now I'm stuck at home all alone and thought this would be a great time to get some writing done. Hope you're still interested in my story, and thanks for the support I've gotten this far!

Now comes a little resume since it's been a while.

Sherry Harrington came home from rehab. She discovered that when she got really upset she could break things with her mind and thought she was going insane. Chief Hopper found out and told her about everything that happened in Hawkins while she was in rehab. Eleven, the upside down and Will's disappearance etc. Sherry realises she wasn't in a rehab but in a laboratory. She helps Hopper open a portal to the upside down. He gets stuck there and Sherry finds Joyce for help. Sherry and Joyce along with Will, Mike and Bob goes to Merrill's farm where Hopper is stuck. Mike sees Sherry's tattoo that matches Eleven's and freaks out. Before Sherry gets a chance to explain herself soldiers and scientists from Hawkins laboratory arrives. Sherry is knocked unconscious. She wakes up at Hawkins lab with a cast on her broken arm. She think she's been brought back to her nightmare rehab/lab and tries to run away. She runs into Hopper who comforts her.

*****

Hopper told me it was going to be okay. He lied. My head is pounding. I've been sitting in a cold room with florescent light for eternity. Being interrogated. My face is buried in the table separating me and Hopper from doctor Sam. I'm groaning in pain. Well not actually pain since I've gotten more medication. Some boredom and exhaustion type pain.

"Miss Harrington can you elaborate further?" Sam tries one more time.

"Noo," I groan. "I've told you everything."

"Perhaps we should leave this for now and return to Will's case, which I believe is way more urgent." Hopper taps his foot impatiently.

"Will Byers is taken care of by my best doctors at this time. There's nothing we would contribute with that is more important than getting to the root of your issue." Sam says and turns to me. At least that's what I assume he does because I'm still not looking up from the table.

"My issue.." I chuckle. As if I have a strange rash, or got in a feud. I sit up straight and pull myself together. "But honestly, I have nothing else to tell you." I've elaborated on everything that went on at the rehab that turned out to be a lab, how I pushed Billy and shattered Bradley's doors with my mind. Hopper interposed with how I dug up the portal to the upside down and that was right before Sam and his crew of people arrived at the scene and took over like white man in America.

They told me what happened after I was knocked unconscious for apparently disrupting a sanitation policy. When they found out I had been in the upside down as well and also had to be sanitised they had apologised for knocking me out. I got sanitised before I had my surgery. It was all while I was unconscious. I cringe. Just another friendly reminder that my body doesn't belong to me. I politely declined hearing the step by step of how it had been done. "Politely" as in no cups were shattered and I didn't push anyone over with my mind.

"Fine, let's end this here for now." Sam sigh and pulls his files in order.

Finally. I stand up from my chair and wrap a blanket I've been provided with tighter around me. Doctor Sam heads out quicker and disappears down a hallway in the direction I know Will's at. I follow in the same direction.

"Sherry." Hopper calls gruffly behind me. I ignore him. He repeats my name. I keep going. At last he takes two large strides and block my way. Fucking wall of a man. I stop and glare at him.

"Stop being a selfish brat and look at the big picture here."

Asshole.

"We're all under a threat, and you're whining about a headache. Pull yourself together." He takes a step towards me and tries to look scary. I know him too well for it to work.

"I'm sorry that I'm such an inconvenience for you," I growl and take a step closer so that I'm in his face. "To everyone!"

"It's inconvenient that you can't pull yourself together and act like an adult! You're an adult Sherry!"

"But that's not a shocker to you!" I yell. "I've always been inconvenient to you, haven't I? If you're so sick of me then why can't you just leave me alone? You said it yourself that it would be best for everyone! I wish I was the one infected because then nobody would have to debate wether to burn the vines. The soldiers would be firing away right this second!"

His eyes widen and an emotion flash across his face. I can't decipher it before his arms are wrapped tightly around me. I twist trying to pry out of his hold.

"Let go!"

"Shhh... don't rile yourself up kid." Hopper speaks with a strange voice as he tries to run his hand over my back even though I keep twisting. He breathes deeply, trying to help me catch on. I struggle and he tightens his grip. I feel the strange energy starting to grow inside of me. Oh no. I turn boneless as I realise what is happening.

"There you go." Hopper sighs in relief as I give up in his hold. He fears me. My body is shaking.

"I don't want to be like this." I sniffle.

"I know kid, I know." He strokes my back and we stand like that for a while.

"All those things I said back at Merrill's. I didn't mean them."

I stay quiet before I respond. "But they're true."

Hopper sighs. "I know you think that. That's why I said them. You told me to upset you and I did. I knew what to say because I know what you think. But you're wrong. None of it's true. I don't think any of those things. I care about you kid."

I squeeze my eyes to force out the tears and wipe them away with my hand. Hopper slowly releases his grip on me and holds me at arms length. He studies me.

"Are you okay?"

I nod.

"Whatever is happening now is going to be difficult. But we need you. And you're one of the strongest people I know. You can handle it."

I breath deeply and nod. I don't really have a choice. He nods his head and we start walking again. I decide that I'll just take one thing at a time. When things get difficult I will try to focus on one thing.

"Who were you talking to on the phone before?" I ask after a moment of silent brooding on both of our ends. "In the car."

A tiny sad smile tugs at his mouth when I look up. "I promise to tell you after this. Good enough?"

"Okay." I look at him as we walk.

"What?"

"Another thing I was thinking of. If you view me as an adult, you can't call me kid anymore."

The smile on his face grows.

"I'll always call you kid."