Mileven One Shots

Do You Remember? (Early Spring 1986)

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There was a tight knot that had long lived within El's heart. Through all the pain and suffering she endured in her lonesome state at the lab, she never once imagined she would suffer something far worse.

The loss of her father catastrophically changed the remaining soft tissue of her heart. Hopper was much more than her protector as he represented a key piece of what gave her teenage life stability. It didn't feel like she could recover from the grief that followed in her father's wake, but here she was now, plucked from the only place; and person, she had ever known as her home.

Finding herself hours away from Mike was far worse than she could have ever imagined. All of the independent work she had put in to feeling like her own person had vanished the second she was removed from the town of Hawkins.

It had been a several agonizing months since the Byers had relocated and there was limited peace. Will was beginning to thrive at school and Joyce was experiencing a comfortable transition at work. However, when it came to El, she often remained isolated and silent. It was like she was a shell; existing without a necessary soul. She wasn't sure she could even experience true feeling anymore as she transformed into someone she had only met briefly. It wasn't something she expected; to see herself turn into a younger version of Terry Ives, but here she was, catatonically stoic.

Still, it was as though El and Mike had an elastic thread stitched into their hearts, forever bounding them to feel the other's emotions.

"I know something is wrong," Mike paced in front of his sister, pulling at his hair anxiously as he exclaimed, "I don't know how to explain it, but there's something really wrong."

Nancy was still reeling from the separation she endured from her partner, but she and Jonathan were able to cope more successfully than the younger couple. It was like watching fish out of water with the two of them; almost like they were each other's element of survival.

"Why don't you give her a call? I'm sure she's fine, Mike," Nancy attempted to assure, but deep down, she knew something wasn't right. The look that her brother was sporting truly spoke for itself. Something was out of tune, and it was threatening to shatter their young beating hearts.

Giving into his older sister's advice, Mike picked up the phone in the basement and dialed the number he had memorized over the past several months. As the phone proceeded to ring, his anxiety only began to heighten. A moment of temporary relief was applied when the phone finally picked up; however, it wasn't the voice he was yearning to hear.

"Hello? El, is that you?" Jonathan rapidly answered.

With fear prickling at his spine, Mike questioned, "Jonathan? Is everything okay? Where is El?"

Suddenly, it was like the older boy had forgotten how to speak. Jonathan didn't want to be the one to reveal the series of recent occurrences to Mike, but as Joyce slammed the front door open, she began to loudly speak out the truth.

"She hasn't been home since her outburst earlier and I'm starting to get worried. Will tried looking for her, but he can't find her either. It's going to get dark out in a few hours. She shouldn't be out there alone."

Before Jonathan could respond to his mother, Mike; who had been listening intently from the other side of the line, bellowed out, "E-El's missing?!"

A deep sigh escaped Jonathan's lips as he muttered, "I-I don't know," he closed his eyes tightly as he was forced to confess, "El's been quiet lately. She's refused meals and stays hidden in her room." A teary smile came to Jonathan's face as he stated, "luckily her and I have been able to rely on each other. The move has been hard on El; leaving the cabin, Hopper, and you.. it's just too much. So earlier, when mom tried to get her to talk to her, it didn't go well. She was upset and took off, but I'll find her. Okay?"