I'LL TRY NOT TO
MISS YOU TOO MUCH !

☀︎

ELEVEN'S ARRIVAL HAD PUT THE GROUP AT EASE. It had felt that for the first time things were starting to look up. She was a key member of the group that they all know that they had needed to survive this. She had proven herself with the demogorgon last year when she had saved the boys, and she was determined to prove herself once again.

Making her way around the group, Eleven had said her hello's to all her friends she had missed. It was an unexpected reunion that she needed to remind herself why she had spent so many days in Hopper's cabin. When she had stood before Alex, she had instantly been engulfed into a hug. Returning the favor, she had held on just as tight, wishing to never let go again.

Through tough times, Eleven had made sure to keep an eye on all her friends and that had included Alex Henderson. Watching her through the void, she had made her check-in's to see how she had been holding up. She had seen the struggle and the desperation for help that Alex had gone through. She saw the way that it had taken too long for her to finally put her trust back into the group. Now to see her free from the Mind Flayer and finally at ease, Eleven had managed a smile as she pulled out of Alex's arms. "You're okay," she said softly. It wasn't a question because she all ready knew.

Alex had given a small nod, but Eleven's attention had been focused on another person. Looking to her right, Alex had saw as Steve and Eleven stared at one another— Steve confused on who the young girl had been and Eleven with a glare that Alex was glad she was not on the receiving end of.

"Boy," El said plainly, poking Steve hard in the chest.

Alex rested her hand on Steve's arm as she tried to manage a laugh. "El, this is Steve. He's friend. And Steve, this is Eleven, the girl from Hawkin's Lab I told you about."

"Hi," Steve said awkwardly, but Eleven had turned away in response as she headed to Will's room. Alex gave a small pout as she looked over to Steve, "She must not like you."

"She poked me," he frowned as he rubbed his chest.

"Be glad that's all she did. She could've killed you if she wanted to."

Steve looked over to Alex plainly. As excited as everyone was for Eleven to return, he was not sure how to feel if she didn't seem to like him already. The stories enough were good enough for him to want to stay clear of her when she was mad.

『••☀︎••』

THE GROUP HAD GATHERED IN THE KITCHEN TO DISCUSS WHAT COULD BE THEIR NEXT PLAN. Though defeating this thing seemed like a losing battle, they weren't ready to quit just yet. With Eleven back and Will needing their help, it was going to take a lot more to get the odd group in Hawkins to slow down.

Steve had settled in the spot beside Alex as they had watched Hopper make his way around the kitchen— his attention focused on the drawings of the tunnels against the wall. "It's not like it was before. It's grown— a lot. And, I mean, that's considering we can get in there. The place is crawling with those dogs."

"Demo-dogs," Dustin said. He knew it may have been the wrong time to throw out his own ideas again, but he couldn't help himself. It made it easier to give these monsters names.

Leaning against the sink, Hopper turned to him in annoyance. "I'm sorry, what?"

Growing shy, Dustin gave a small shrug. "I said, uh, demo-dogs. Like demogorgon and dogs. Like, you put them together, it sounds pretty badass..."

Interrupting him, Hopper had spoken loudly. "How is this important right now?"

Turning away, Dustin looked down at the table with a frown. "It's not. I'm sorry." Reaching out, Alex had placed her hand on his back in a comforting manner. She had known better than to speak out against Hopper when he had already been frustrated enough, but she did like the idea of calling them demo-dogs.

Moving on with the topic of conversation, Eleven lifted her head up. "I can do it," she offered. She was more than confident in her abilities now and she knew how much it meant to the team to have her there in the first place.

"You're not hearing me," he responded gently.

"I'm hearing you. I can do it."

Speaking up, Mike had stepped in to share his own thoughts on the manner. "Even if El can, there's still another problem. If the brain dies, the body dies. If we're really right about this... I mean, if El closes the gate and kills the Mind Flayer's army..."

"Wills a part of that army," Lucas finished for him quietly.

"Closing the gate will kill him," Mike confirmed. All eyes had turned over to Joyce, knowing how much that would mean to her. It was her son that had been put in a difficult situation and she had already lost so much as is. However, there was one person who had scrunched up his face and looked at the group rather than Joyce. "What about Alex then? I'm not letting my sister die."

Lifting himself up from the counter, Hopper had given himself a better view of Alex as he had looked her over curiously. "That depends. Is it still in her?"

Alex wasn't sure what to say. She had made it very clear to the group that it was no longer in her but no one really seemed too convinced about it. Even when they didn't say it, she could tell by the worried looks given to her that there still was a concern.

"It isn't in her," Joyce spoke up, taking the group by surprise. She had been quiet after losing Bob and now starting to lose Will. "She can stand the heat, she didn't call him or his army," she explained. If anyone was going to be able to convince the rest of the group that Alex was completely back to normal, it was Joyce Byers. There were some lingering stares at Alex, anticipating her to act out, until they took Joyce's word and everyone nodded their heads.

"Either way. It's something we'd have to risk," Alex said. It hadn't matter if she had died in the process, she was willing to do that for all of them. If it had still been in her, then there was no way to get it out and she would only be a danger to them all.

"Nope. If it involves killing either you or Will, we won't do it," Hopper protested.

"Look, I don't think he's latched to me anymore, but even if there is a little part and that part is the thing that kills me then so be it. It's either I die or you all do. And if I am cured then look at the bright side, we can cure Will too."

"But how?" Lucas questioned, looking around at everyone.

Taking a step back from the group, a thought had came to Joyce. She had been quietly running ideas through her head as everyone else had brainstormed. She needed something to save Will and after what she had heard of the story in the junkyard, she thought she had come up with something— she just needed to test it.

Everyone had looked over as Joyce had turned around and started to make her way back to Will's room. Following after, the group had curiously waited for her to say what had been on her mind. And as she now stood at Will's bed, she had watched him before her eyes traveled over to the window. "He likes it cold. That's what Will and Alex kept saying." Making her way over, she slammed the window shut as she looked to everyone surrounding. "We keep giving it what it wants."

As the heat began to find its way back into the room, Alex had felt a moment of sympathy for both Will and the Mind Flayer. The heat was unbearable and she knew exactly how that pain had felt. But when that guilt had washed away, she looked over to Joyce, now understanding. "We were only making it stronger. It's never going to die if we keep giving it everything he wants."

Standing beside her, Nancy had furrowed her brows as she had ran over the idea as well. "If this is a virus, and Will's the host, then..."

"Then we need to make the host uninhabitable," Jonathan finished as he looked down at his brother,

"So if he likes it cold," Nancy continued on.

"We need to burn it out of him," Joyce finished for her. The idea of hurting her son had been unbearable. She loved her kids more than anything in this world and the fight to protect them had never seemed to stop for a moment. This sacrifice was everything Joyce knew needed to be done in order to have him back. She'd take the nightmares of hurting him just to know that when it was all over, he'd be able to live and live without a nightmare standing over him.

"We have to do it somewhere he doesn't know this time. Somewhere far away," Mike spoke up. Right away, Hopper had given a small sigh as he had known the perfect place. It was the very same cabin that had held Eleven for many days to watch her friends and watch TV.

Soon enough, the group had chosen to split up in order to make tonight a success. Everyone had scrambled to wish one another good luck and gather all that they needed to head out for their own journeys. Joyce, Jonathan and Nancy were taking Will to Hopper's cabin to burn the Mind Flayer out of him while Hopper and Eleven had headed to Hawkins Lab to end this thing with the Mind Flayer and lock him away for good. The rest had been told to stay at the Byers house which didn't sit right with most of them given they had wanted a fight just the same.

Stepping out onto the porch with Joyce, Alex had given her a hug before she could leave. "You do what it takes to save him," she whispered as Joyce held on tighter. Alex had felt as Joyce gave a nod, but no words had followed. She understood that it was going to take everything in Joyce to do what she had to for the sake of her son— all she could be thankful for was that she wasn't doing it alone.

As Joyce had pulled away, she didn't offer Alex a goodbye. She knew better than anyone that they would all find one another again and everyone would be safe. It's what she had to hope for. It's what was getting her through this part.

As Joyce made her way to the car, Alex had followed after but only to wish her best friend good luck. A lot of the focus had been on Joyce, and she knew Jonathan had needed just the same amount of comfort. It was his little brother and he had meant the world to him. Clapping her hand down onto his back, she caught his attention and gave him a reassuring smile. "I'll see you when you get back. I'll try not to miss you too much."

He scoffed through a smile before flinging his arms around her and forcing her into his arms. He didn't want to admit it, but finally having someone to hold on to had taken away the worry and the stress for a moment. "Be safe," he whispered.

"Not a chance," she laughed, pulling away. "I got Mike, Dustin and Lucas all together. I'll be dead before any demodog or Mind Flayer decide to kill me."

"Then this is goodbye forever."

"It was really nice knowing you, Jonathan Byers. Thanks for all the pictures, pancakes, and..." Her voice had trailed off as she had been unable to find another word beginning with the letter p. However, it did manage to make Jonathan laugh in response, and there was nothing better she could ask for.

"Really? Can't think of another word?"

Alex sent him a small glare but her smile couldn't help but grow as he looked at her. Reaching out, she popped open the front door of his car for him. "Stay safe, okay? I honestly don't know what I'd do without you. I can't lose my best friend."

"You'd never lose me," he said quietly. Just before getting into his car, he had made sure to give Alex one last hug before taking off. He needed it in order to survive what was to come and what he'd be forced to witness.

Pulling away, he flashed her one last smile before he had gotten into his car. With a single honk, he had waved to her as he pulled out of the driveway. Returning the wave goodbye, she stood there until both Hopper and Jonathan's cars were nowhere in sight.

Alex had let a soft sigh escape her lips. The cloud of air that followed due to the cold air surrounding her had appeared. Wrapping her arms around herself, she had been thankful it was cold to her. It felt natural. Even if she swore she thought she'd hear a random whisper in the wind, she knew that for now, she was normal.

Turning in, she had headed back into the Byers house and as she shut the door behind her, she was greeted with a strange quietness from a usually rowdy group. The three of Lucas, Max and Mike had been in the living room with Mike quiet, listening as the other two chattered. However, there was the faintest sound of an argument coming from the kitchen.

With her arms wrapped around herself, she had headed towards the noise to find Dustin and Steve bickering. Holding onto the demo-dog that had been wrapped in a blanket, Steve had shut his mouth as he met Alex's eyes. Dustin had held the fridge door open as he casually crossed his arms. "Hey, Alex."

Her eyes had shifted between the two suspiciously. "What the hell are you two doing?"

Dropping the act, Dustin had dropped his arm down as he motioned towards the demo-dog. "We're preserving a ground-breaking scientific discovery." Ushering Steve over, he had motioned for him to try to get it in once again.

Giving in to Dustin's plan, Steve made his way back towards the fridge as he had given it another go to get it in. "I'm telling you, man, it won't fit."

Putting on a horrified look, Alex dropped her arms down to her side in disbelief. "Steve, that's our child."

"This thing is- it's not our kid," he struggled to say until Dustin slammed the fridge door shut on the dead monster. Standing back, Steve had placed his hands on his hips while she had let out a small laugh. "I'm kidding, but it does look a little bit like you." When he had only shaken his head, she was hurt to not get his usual response of being just as rude back. "You good, Harrington?"

"Just..." sighing, he had grabbed a rag off the counter as he cleaned his hands off. His eyes had traveled as Dustin disappeared and had yelled at Mike for not using the proper term of demo-dog before he looked back to Alex. "After all this, what the hell is gonna happen?"

"Everything goes back to how it was."

"And us?" He questioned curiously. "I can't go back to not chasing after you and your brother all day and night. I sure as hell can't go back to Nancy. I don't want to spend time with Tommy..."

"We'll still be friends," she chuckled as she gave a punch to his arm. "Seriously, Steve, after all this, I'm pretty sure I won't leave your side. All of this has scared the hell out of me and you've been there through it all. I mean, we proved we're a great team and sort of confessed our undying love for one another."

"You said it wasn't in a romantic way," he corrected softly.

She had given a shrug as she gave a small smile. "Well, what exactly is romantic about all this anyways, right? Besides, I think I may have just gotten out of a very serious and very toxic relationship with a giant monster so, I think I need some time alone."

Unable to hold back a smile, he took his turn to lightly punch her arm. "Right. Plus, you had a kid too."

"Okay, now you can shut up," she laughed with a roll of her eyes. All of this had felt that it was over— being able to joke about all this and find ways to laugh when everything was close to either ending or going to destroy this world. Yet that peace had been interrupted with the same boys that had searched desperately for some chaos to get themselves in to.

Sighing, the two had headed back to their babysitting duties. As the boys had bickered with one another on what should be done and what they really should be doing, Steve had held up his hands as they had entered the room. "Listen, a coach calls a play in the game, bottom line, you execute it."

Annoyed, Mike had fought back, "Okay, first of all, this isn't some stupid sports game. And second, we're not even in the game. We're on the bench."

"So my point is..." Steve stuttered out, but even he couldn't fight back on his words. They weren't even a part of the plan and we're told to stay back. After everything, they didn't get to be included. Looking to Alex for help, she had only returned back a shrug. Nodding his head along, Steve looked around at the kids all staring at him. "Right, yeah, we're on the bench, so, uh, there's nothing we can do."

"That's not entirely true," Dustin said hopefully. His mind had been racing on plans since they had been told they were not involved because he was always the person to want to fight— especially for his friends, and also right beside them. "The demo-dogs have a hive mind. They all got called away before so, if we can get their attention, maybe we can draw them from the lab."

Shaking his head, Steve had listened as everyone started to agree with Dustin. "Yeah, then we all die," he called over them.

"That's one point of view," Alex said under her breath.

"No, that's not a point of view, Alex. That's a fact," Steve said to her. The least he expected was some back up by the only other older person in the group.

What Alex had taken notice of was Mike's concerned look as he watched her. Normally if she had caught him staring, he would blush before turning to anyone else and jump into conversation. This time was different. Instead, a plan had began to race through his mind as she had been the one to give it to him. "I got it," he breathed out.

Thinking quick, he had shoved between Alex and Steve to get into the kitchen. He had followed a tunnel until he had reached the fridge. Pointing to it, he gave a few nods. "This is where the chief dug his hole. This is one way into the tunnel." Breaking through the group, he had continued down the tunnel until he had headed into the living room with everyone falling behind. "Here. This is the hub."

"All the tunnels feed to there," Alex thought out loud. When she had begun to see the brilliance of Mike's plan, she had felt her smile growing. "The hub is perfect."

"Exactly and if we set this on fire..."

Mike's words were cut off as Steve had jumped into their conversation. The last thing he had wanted was for more danger. It seemed that they had dealt with more than enough just in the Byers house alone. "Oh, yeah, that's a no," he called out, but they had all resorted back to plotting their plan. "Alex, this is crazy!"

"But fire, Steve!" Alex complained over all the noise of the children shouting at once.

"Hey, hey, hey," he spoke quickly with his hands on his hips. "This is not happening. I promised I'd keep you shitheads safe, and that's exactly what I plan on doing. We're staying here. On the bench. And we're waiting for the starting team to do their job. Does everybody understand?" Getting no response, he whipped the rag off his shoulder in anger, pointing at everyone, "I said does everybody understand that?"

"But it was a cool idea," Alex pouted.

"I need a yes," Steve demanded, looking at all the kids and Alex. Even if he had gotten what he wanted, he was sure they all would have gone behind his back anyways, but it would make him feel a little better.

"How about instead of a yes we get some gasoline and—"

"Just say yes, Alex. One word," Steve said, over her plans. Not giving him what he wanted, she had kept her mouth shut because she knew she would only break her word.

"Alex is the cool parent," Lucas grumbled. Before Steve could fight back on that, an engine revving outside caught everyones attention.