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Beside the Dying Fire

Everyone watched as Mike and Eleven approached one another. Saying their names and going into a hug.

"Is that..." Max asked the boys, they nodded. 

Mike pulled away. "I never gave up on you." He smiled, crying. "I called you every night. Every night for--"
"353 days." Eleven finished for him. He looked at her in surprise. "I heard." Mike asked why she didn't say anything. Hopper answered, "Because I wouldn't let her." They turned to him. He walked up to her, embracing her as he asked where she'd been.
"You've been hiding her." The boy piped, "You've been hiding her this whole time!" He started nudging Jim harshly. "Hey!" Jim scolded. "Let's talk. Alone." They left into a room. 

El and the other boys hugged. They missed each other. As they pulled away, she saw that Dustin had something different. "Teeth." She pressed her thumb on them. "What?" He asked.
"You have teeth." Dustin smiled and looked at Lucas who smiled too. "Oh. You like these pearls?" He purred, El gave a look. Lucas shook his head at him. Max spoke, "Eleven?" She walked over, introducing herself. "Hey. Um, I'm Max. I've heard a lot about you." She had her hand out to shake. El walked past her. 

Joyce and Eleven hugged. "Hey. Hey, sweetheart." She greeted as the girl cried. She pulled away and went to Rene. The older smiled at her. Embracing each other. "How are you?" Rae asked as she rubbed her hand on El's back. "I'm okay. You?" The younger pulled away, asking. Rene nodded as she wiped her teary eye with the back of her hand, yet giving another smile.
"Can I see him?"

Rae and her mother led Eleven to the room Will stayed at. El knelt by him, Joyce sat as Rae stood by the door with her arms crossed. "He's not doing well." Her mother told El. "I know." She responded. "I saw."
"What else did you see?" She asked.

They were now in the kitchen, looking at the cardboard with red crayon written on it. CLOSE GATE. "You opened this gate before, right?" The woman questioned.
"Yes." The girl said.  "A boy opened it before, older... and the bad men made him close it. He's gone." Joyce asked, "Do you think if we got you back there, that you could close it? Like the boy?"

Back at the lab, more of those demo-dogs entered Hawkins. One roared. 

-

The doorbell rang at the Wheeler house. 

"Ted!" Karen was in the middle of reading a novel, soaking in the bath full of bubbles. "Would you please get that?" Mr. Wheeler was knocked out cold downstairs as the doorbell continued ringing. "Ted!" She shouted. The woman got out of the bathtub, going down the stairs as she tied a robe on. "Hold on, please."

She opened the door to see a way younger man in a leather jacket, red button-up (chest out), and a mullet, Billy. "Oh. Hi." Billy greeted. "Hi." Karen greeted back as she looked down at her revealed cleavage. 
"I, uh, didn't realize Nancy had a sister." She chuckled. "What's so funny?"

"I'm Nancy's mother." 

"No."

Karen chuckled again. "Yes."

"Mrs. Wheeler."

"Um, I'm sorry, and you are?"

The boy introduced himself as he held Karen's hand. "Billy. Billy Hargrove."

"You must be here for Nancy."

"Nancy? No, no, no. Not my type. No, actually." His type was that one green eyed, five seven teen that knows what the hell she's doing to woo the guy that liked her since they were kids (even when she had her V card), instead of him taking it slow. It went backwards. "I am looking for my little sister Max. Goes by Maxine." Karen shook her head. "She's been missing all day, and, uh, to be honest with you, I've been worried sick, you know, so..."