welcome back, alina!

. ✧ ・゜. +・o ✧

              The flight to Indiana was so early in the morning that the plane took off before the sun had even risen. Alina sat in the window seat beside an old white man who smoked a cigarette every half-hour, watching the sky gradually get lighter. Despite the hour, it was still breathtaking. Although Alina had been on airplanes multiple times throughout her life, the experience had never gotten old. There was something so giddy about being at a height humans weren't meant to reach, skidding the clouds and watching everything on the ground turn to mere specks. And sure, it could be scary to be in what essentially could turn into a metal death trap in the event of an accident, but to Alina, that only added to the experience. For whatever reason, she'd never struggled with heights. She could stand over an open abyss and feel nothing except the wind in her hair and the breath in her chest.

Joyce hadn't been able to see her off to the airport, but she'd made sure to give extra hugs before Alina left. Conveniently, she had no idea of what had happened yesterday—Alina had pulled Will, El, and Jonathan into a blood pact to ensure they wouldn't say a word. It wasn't because she thought her mom would be mad at her—honestly, if Alina told the whole story, she'd probably sympathize—but because she didn't want to deal with that pitying look. Things had been hard for everyone since they'd moved to California, and this would just be another thing to add to Joyce's plate.

But although Joyce hadn't been able to say goodbye at the airport, Will, Jonathan, El and Argyle had. Jonathan's friend didn't seem to mind waking up early to drive them—though Alina did notice that he was already high. Jonathan might have been a little stoned, too, because he ended up zoning out during their own farewell hug. Alina didn't even bother chastising him.

As Alina stared out the window, her entire body pulsed with excitement. There were only two more hours until she would be touching down on Hawkins, which meant that there were only two more hours until she'd see Lucas. He hadn't said that he'd be waiting at the airport, but it was definitely a given. So, he would be there, along with Dolores and Nicole Burton, and Alina would finally, finally, have the reunion she'd been dreaming about.

She couldn't wait.

A stewardess came along to offer her snacks, and Alina took a packet of peanuts and Ginger-Ale gratefully. Eating gave her something to do with her hands, which were as restless as ever. Even with music currently piping through her headphones (a mixtape that Lucas had mailed to her for her birthday—he was so sweet), she couldn't settle down. She needed to get to Hawkins, and she needed to soon.

The song switched to Time After Time by Cyndi Lauper, and Alina grinned, remembering the Snow Ball. That had been the day she and Lucas had officially become a couple. That had been the day when Lucas had finally confessed that he'd liked her all along, the day they'd shared their fruit punch kiss. Closing her eyes, Alina could almost pretend that she was back in that moment, her arms slung around Lucas's neck, swaying to Cyndi Lauper's voice.

Surprisingly, the rest of the flight passed by fairly quickly. Alina kept herself occupied by absorbing herself in each song, reciting why it had value to her and Lucas—Africa by Toto had been playing when they'd had their first date at the Palace Arcade; We Are Not Alone by Karla Devito was from The Breakfast Club, the movie they'd watched right before Alina had moved away; et-cetera. Before she knew it, the plane was rolling down the runway.

Alina tried to wait patiently for the other passengers to file off the plane, even though a large part of her was completely and utterly freaking out. She was here. Maybe not in Hawkins—they didn't have an airport there, so they had to touch down in Indianapolis—but in the state that she'd called her home for so long. And in just a few minutes, she would be coming out of the terminal to greet... to greet... to greet...

To just greet Dolores and Nicole Burton?

Although Gabe's grandmother and half-sister were waiting for her, perched in their seats, Lucas was nowhere to be found. Immediately, a twinge of disappointment went through Alina, but she quickly shrugged it off. She hadn't actually discussed anything with Lucas. Perhaps he simply hadn't gotten the memo. Indianapolis was almost an hour away from Hawkins, after all, and he might not have been able to get that far. Alina would definitely see him when she actually arrived in town. Then, they'd finally have their reunion.

Satisfied, Alina made her way towards Dolores Burton, who hadn't noticed her yet. She had her head buried in a newspaper that was far too close to her face, squinting even with her reading glasses on. The front page said something about a statement made by Ronald Reagan. Alina rolled her eyes.

Nicole, beside her, was fast asleep, a string of drool slipping from her lips. She had grown so much since Alina had last seen her—she was almost three, now! Her curly hair was bunched into two buns on either side of her head, and she wore a pair of baby blue pajamas. She was just as adorable as Alina remembered.

"Hi, Mrs. Burton," she said, finally announcing her presence. Dolores gasped, then looked up from her newspaper. When she met Alina's eyes, a smile grew on her wrinkled face.

"Alina! You're here! Oh, how nice to see you, sweetheart. It's been far too long."

"It's nice to see you, too," Alina replied with a grin. "Thank you so much for letting me stay with you this week. It was very kind of you."

Dolores waved her off. "Alina, you're practically my third grandchild. Of course you were going to stay with us! I've already gotten Gabriel's room set up for you."

"Thank you, Mrs. Burton."

"Bah. Enough with the pleasantries. And enough with the Mrs. Burton's—haven't I always told you to call me Dolores? Mrs. Burton makes me feel like an old lady!"

Alina decided not to point out the obvious. "All right, Dolores."

Dolores smiled and extended a hand. "Help me up?"

Alina helped pull her to her feet, and the old woman bent down in order to heave Nicole into her arms. "Lord, you're getting big, aren't you?" she muttered. "Soon I won't be able to hold you at all!"

"I can do it," Alina offered. She could hold Nicole with one arm and lug her suitcase with the other.

"Oh, aren't you a darling?" Dolores passed her over. "Thank you, Alina."

"Of course," Alina said, snuggling Nicole close to her chest. She smelled like honey and coconut—probably some kind of mixture Dolores was putting into her hair. Her face was relaxed in sleep, her mouth still slightly open. Drool immediately soaked into Alina's shirt, but she didn't mind. It had been too long since she'd held her half-sister in her arms. "By the way, how is Mr. Burton doing?"

Gabe had told her about his grandfather's failing health in the letters the two of them had exchanged. Alina, who certainly knew what it was like to lose a loved one, sympathized. It wasn't fair that the people you held so near and dear to your heart passed on. It wasn't fair that they suffered while you could do nothing about it.

Dolores let out a long sigh. "Not too well, I'm afraid. The doctors project that he only has a year or so left. Maybe less time."

Oh, shit. Gabe certainly hadn't mentioned that in his letters.

"I'm so sorry," Alina said, letting go of her suitcase for a moment in order to put a hand on Dolores's shoulder.

"Yeah, yeah. Trust George to pop his clogs before me. He's always been an early bird."

Alina squeezed her shoulder. "Seriously. I'm really sorry."

"I know, darling. But there's nothing that can be done. Shall we go?"

Before waiting for an answer, Dolores set off, her cane clicking against the floor. Alina didn't exactly have to hustle to follow her, though—Dolores walked at half of Alina's own stride. Meanwhile, Nicole shifted in her arms but didn't stir. It must have been one hell of a dream that she was having.

Nearly dizzy with excitement, Alina walked beside Dolores as they headed for the airport's parking lot. Hawkins was only an hour away. Home was only an hour away.

This was going to be the best spring break ever.

While Alina was busy landing in Indianapolis, Lucas Sinclair was busy doing something else—puking his guts out in the old Benny's Burgers washroom. With his head throbbing like it had just been hit with a hammer, his eyes rimmed with exhaustion, and his gut lurching, he knelt below a picture torn out of a Playboy magazine, suddenly regretting all his life choices. Last night, the idea of getting drunk seemed fun—he'd never done it before, and everyone around him was practically thrusting drinks in his face—but now, he was wishing he'd just gone home. He felt like complete and utter shit. How could people do this regularly?

There was a knock on the door, and Jason's voice floated inside. "You all right in there, Sinclair?"

"I'm good," Lucas groaned.

Jason chuckled. "First hangover feels like you're gonna split in two, but you'll live."

The first? No, Lucas was totally done with alcohol. Totally. He wasn't going to drink ever again.

He flushed the toilet and washed his hands. When he emerged from the bathroom, he took in the basketball team's hideout for the first time in the daylight. Every inch of what had previously been Benny's Burgers had transformed. Beer cans and bottles littered every available surface. A couch and a few mattresses had been dragged inside, along with an old TV. The kitchen had been stocked with a number of snacks, including the dry cereal that Lucas vaguely remembered eating by the handful last night. It was about the only thing he remembered.

Three of his teammates were asleep, sprawled out in various positions. Two more were watching the news, cursing as the connection fizzled out. Lucas rubbed his eyes, trying to wake himself up. He felt like he'd barely slept at all, but the sun was up. Though he didn't know when they'd stopped partying...

"Hey, Jason?" he called out.

Jason, who'd been pouring himself a bowl of cereal, turned. "Yeah?"

"What time is it?"

Hadn't there been something he'd been planning to do this morning? God, if only his head wasn't so fuzzy.

Jason's eyes darted to the clock on the wall. "Uh, nine-thirty," he responded. "Why?"

Shit. Lucas finally remembered.

"Alina!"

Jason took a bite of his cereal and raised his eyebrows. Speaking between crunches, he asked, "Who's Alina?"

"My girlfriend," Lucas responded. "She moved away last year. But she's coming to Hawkins for spring break, and I was going to meet her at the airport, and... shit. I'm such a shitty boyfriend."

He looked down at his clothes and sniffed himself. Immediately, he wrinkled his nose. Ugh. He smelled like booze, cigarette smoke, and sweat. Not exactly the attractive look he'd wanted to greet her with.

"I need to leave," he blurted. Maybe, if he made it home, took a shower, and changed, his plan for the best reunion ever could still go off without a hitch. He just had to be quick about it.

Unfortunately, it seemed that it wasn't meant to be. For, just then, several police cars pulled up to the restaurant, their sirens blaring.

Something was wrong.

Alina sat down on Gabe's bed, testing its weight. It was pretty much the same quality that Alina's bunk bed was back in California—small, a little creaky, with a thin mattress. However, Dolores had obviously gone to an effort to make it nice for her, decorating it with blue sheets and a pale cream comforter. Several pillows had been aligned, leaning against the headboard, and a folded blanket had been placed on the end of the bed. She gave herself a moment to stretch out, popping out the knots in her joints that had formed during the plane ride, before sitting up again.

She'd unpack her suitcase later. For now, she needed to try to contact her friends.

When she padded back into the living room, a delighted scream rang out. A blue blur hurried its way towards her, and before she realized what was happening, two arms had latched around her legs. Nicole. She was finally awake.

"Ally!" Nicole cheered, squeezing Alina's legs so tight she nearly caused her to trip. "You're here!"

As per usual, the nickname twisted something within Alina. Unlike Angela, though, Nicole wasn't being malicious with it—she probably just couldn't pronounce her full name. So, Alina swallowed down her nausea and forced a smile, setting a hand down on Nicole's head.

"There she is!"

Nicole giggled. "I missed you!"

Honestly, Alina was surprised that Nicole even remembered her at all. She hadn't even been two and a half when Alina had gone to California, and weren't two-year-olds meant to have the memories of goldfish?

Alina wasn't complaining, though. Instead, she bent down and scooped her half-sister into her arms. Pressing a kiss to her cheek, she added, "I missed you, too."

"Nicole, sweetie," Dolores called out. "Come over here. It's bath time."

"No!" Nicole protested. "I don't want a bath!"

Alina shifted the girl in her arms. "Aw, why not?" she asked. "Baths are a lot of fun. When I was younger, I used to play pirates in the bath with my dad."

Nicole's eyes grew as wide as dinner plates. "Pirates?"

"Yeah! I was usually the fierce pirate captain, and my dad was the swashbuckling rogue that attempted to reclaim the seas. I always beat him, though."

Nicole probably didn't understand what half of those words meant, but she still clapped her little hands to her face in excitement. "Wow! I wanna try!"

"Then come on, pirate girl! Let's go!"

Nicole giggled again as Alina flipped her upside-down, carrying her towards the bathroom. "I got this one," she said, giving Dolores a smile. "You just sit down. Do you want a cup of tea?"

Dolores's eyes softened. "Aren't you a dear. You're just like Gabriel. But I'm all right. I was thinking of watching my new television program."

"Okay. Have fun, Dolores."

"Thank you, sweetheart."

Alina carried Nicole into the bathroom and deposited her into the tub. There, the little girl proceeded to pretend that she was sailing the seven seas while Alina carefully washed her hair. It was about the same texture as her own, and she knew it required special care—she couldn't just comb it the way she used to do her own. Fortunately, Dolores had a lot of Black hair supplies already, which made the whole process easy.

When bath time was over, Alina re-entered the living room with a clean and dressed Nicole holding her hand. She expected to find Dolores still parked in front of the television, but instead, she was standing at the front door, a frown etched onto her face.

Alina hustled over. "What's wrong?"

"I just turned on the news," Dolores responded, clasping her hands together. "I wanted to see what the weather was like. Instead, I hear news that someone else is dead."

Alina's eyes widened. "Someone died? Who was it?"

"They won't release that to the public yet," Dolores responded. "But they have released one thing. It wasn't just some accident."

Alina swallowed. "Was it..." her voice trailed off.

Dolores turned. Her weathered old eyes met Alina's. "Yes," she said. "There's been a murder in Hawkins."

. ✧ ・゜. +・o ✧

A/N: because i forgot to add this last chapter, here is a meme that definitely doesn't have anything to do with gabe's story at all hahaha

this is gonna be even funnier next chapter hahahaha good luck >:)

'till next time!