strangerThings oneshots

I am small, and needy

I am small, and needy

kittenCorrosion

As the warm summer days began to fade, El grew more nervous. It had been almost seven months since she had managed to drag herself back from the Upside Down and into Hawkins, and the thing she’d be dreading most was arriving soon.

School.

It hadn’t been something she’d ever thought of, she’d been to that building before, and her experiences were less than pleasant. She’d hidden it at the time, but amount of other kids had put her on edge. Sitting on the bleachers, surrounded, had made her feel like she was lost. If she hadn’t been sitting safely between Mike and Dustin, she might have just screamed and left, unable to handle the amount of stares and whispers. Her powers could do a lot of things, but they couldn’t make her feel less insecure about a room full of people

This whole shitshow had started a month after her return when, upon realizing El could in fact read well and do advanced elementary math, Hop had made her take a competency exam. She excelled, her skill levels well over the averages of kids her age. That lab may have experimented on her like she was a guinea pig, but they had tutored her in academics quite well. Both the chief and Joyce, AND Karen agreed that while it was too late in the school year to start her now, it had been nearing the end of March, she would be more than ready to start that Fall.

Up until that point she’d been alternating living at the Wheeler’s and the Byers’s, perfectly happy to wander the houses, watch TV, and play with various action figures until the boys got home. She especially liked being at the the Wheeler's because Karen would usually take El with her when she picked up Mike, meaning she got to see him sooner than usual. Not that she disliked being at the Byers, in fact that was more her home, but she liked being near Mike more.

Upon her reappearance, Joyce had immediately taken the girl in, having to almost fight Hopper and the Wheelers for it. Hop had given in on the condition that El would get her own room, and before they knew it, a mob of local men and construction workers showed up with power tools, sheetrock, and timber, adding an addition onto the small Byers house within a few days. It was a little shaky when the wind blew and only had one window, but it was hers and she loved it. Hop had spent an entire day wallpapering the room, two walls with soft pink and white stripes, the other he painted a sky blue. The bed had been donated by the Wheelers, and was covered by a floral quilt and pile of stuffed animals. The other furniture had been salvaged and was mismatched, but El loved it. It was so different from the cold beige tiles and white sheets she’d grown up with. Sometimes she would just lay on her bed and stare up at the ceiling, covered with glow-in-the-dark stars and think about how happy she was to be away from there. It helped that every house she stayed at had an unlimited supply of Eggos and friendly faces, happy to see her. She’d already started forgetting the abuse of her past, basking in the affections of her friends and adopted family.

A knock on her door, which was always open a crack, startled her out of her thoughts and she sat up on her bed.
“Come in,” she said softly.

Joyce walked in with a shopping bag and huge smile.
“You’ll never guess what I found at Goodwill!” She practically sang, pulling her purchases out of the bag with an over-exaggerated flourish. She laid out the clothing on the bed for El to inspect, eyes dancing.

El looked at the clothes. There was a bright, magenta puffer jacket with neon stripes, two pairs of jeans, a white sweatshirt with Minnie Mouse on it, and a dress. Her breath sucked in when she saw the dress, and her hands reached out, gently smoothing the baby-pink fabric. Joyce’s grin grew wider.

“Doesn’t it look just like your old one? I was hoping you’d like it,” she said, excitement shining out of every pore. El nodded, bringing the dress to her chest and fiddling with the collar, folding the long sleeves. It did look remarkably like her old dress, well, Nancy’s old dress. The one she had worn the first time Mike told her she was pretty. The one she saved his life in, the one she defeated the Demogorgon in, the one she had worn for three cold months while trapped in the Upside Down. By the time she’d arrived back, it was barely pink, more of moldy brown-green color, one of the sleeves been torn off completely and the collar was shredded and black. Still, she’d cried when Joyce told her they had thrown it out, citing that it was beyond repair. This one wasn’t the exact same, but it was close enough and she brought it up to her cheek, rubbing her face against it fondly.