After Hopper and Eleven returned to the Byer's home on the night the gate was closed and Will was set free, it had taken nearly three hours for her to wake up from the depleted coma into which she had fallen. Her face was drained of color and there were dark circles under her eyes. Her lips were pale and dry and she was cold to the touch. She and Will, who had also passed out from exhaustion, were laid together side by side on a pallet made from fluffy quilts and just about every pillow the Byer's owned.

Mike hovered and waited and worried while Mrs. Byers and Hopper tended to them both, wiping the blood from Eleven's face and ears and sponging Will's overheated brow. Will was eventually placed in a cooling bath and put to bed, leaving Eleven to rest on the cloud of blankets and pillows. When she finally came around, the tension in the house finally dissipated. Mike hugged her tight, heedless of who was watching, though by then most of the others had left.

Steve had offered to drive Dustin, Max, and Lucas back home, and considering what time it was, not a moment too soon. They were all likely in deep shit. Nancy had stayed with Mike, refusing to let him out of her sight.

Once she was rested enough to get up and move around, Hopper gave Mike a few minutes alone with Eleven on the front porch, although still within his sight through the window. Mike held her hand and told her all the things he'd wanted to say during the year she'd been missing, complimenting her new look and hair, and rambling happy nonsense at her.

Eleven just listened and smiled for most of it, though toward the end she apologized for never answering when he tried to reach her. He told her it didn't matter anymore. That was the truth. All he wanted was some sign that she was okay. Now that he had that, nothing else was important. All the anger that had weighed on him for the past year had evaporated.

Well, most of it. Mike had been hoping that now El was back officially, that he'd be able to see her more, but Hopper had crushed that hope pretty heartlessly. Eleven was still unsafe. People were still looking for her. Before going their separate ways, Hopper had told Mike that he'd have to be patient. At the time Mike accepted it with a scowl of contempt, but Mike knew what "be patient" meant. It was code for it'll probably never happen, but I'm going to let you twist in the wind to keep you quiet.

It didn't matter. Hopper wasn't the boss of him. He'd see El soon and there wasn't anything the Chief could do to stop him.


In the months that had followed the closing of the gate, many compromises had been reached. Hopper had told Eleven of the certificate that he had been given by Owens and what it meant: legally, she was now his daughter. They would have to concoct a story that would be believable before she could be permitted to interact with anyone outside of the people who knew of her. It also meant another year of isolation.

This time, however, there were some concessions. Since the cabin was only about an hour's walk from Hopper's trailer beside the lake, she was allowed to go to and from it as she wished. This gave her some fresh air and time outside, something she had been desperate for last year. When the year was up, he would begin introducing her around town in subtle ways, like taking her on quick trips to the store, having her tag along when he stopped into work on an off day, having her run errands with him. Slowly get people used to seeing her. People would talk at first; they always do, but eventually it would be normal to see her out and about, and people would move on to newer gossip.

For Eleven's part, she would refrain from using her abilities unless absolutely necessary. No more opening locks with her mind, no more psychic tantrums, no more changing channels without touching the TV. And absolutely no channeling people through the TV or radio or anything else.

Eleven objected strongly to this at first. The idea of not being able to see or talk to Mike, or any of her friends, for another entire year was unthinkable. But that was when Hopper offered up his best bargaining chip: the trailer had a working phone.

He couldn't be sure that all those shadowy government types weren't still listening to their conversations, but he had taken the place apart a second time looking for bugs and wiretaps. The military presence had left Hawkins, but that didn't mean they were done with the town, especially if they still had a vested interest in Eleven. He was hoping all that has transpired in the past two years, specifically the immense loss of life and billions of dollars they'd lost in research and settlements paid out to the victims families, was enough of a deterrent to keep them at bay.

Eleven was overjoyed and gladly accepted the deal. She'd have accepted even if it meant swearing off her favorite food for the rest of her life. Not only would she still be able to hear Mike's voice, but now she'd be able to answer him. It's what she had wanted all year. For this, she could be patient. For Mike, she could wait.


Two weeks had gone by since the incident at the lab. Will had been absent from school since getting rid of the Mind Flayer's virus, having been weakened to near death by the removal process. Dustin, Lucas, and Mike had all taken turns riding out to give Will his make up work before being sealed up in their own houses. While their parents didn't know they were directly involved, they did know that the military installation on the edge of town had been "shut down" due to a massive security breach during a time when their children hadn't been home, and it had made them all a bit paranoid.

If it wasn't infuriating, they might have laughed at the irony. Despite their parents not having any idea they had even been to the facility, they still managed to get grounded because of it.

Mike sat alone in the basement of his house, starting on the history paper that had come due two days ago, when the phone rang. He didn't pay attention to it; it was likely for Nancy. It was usually for Nancy. His pencil has been poised over the empty page for nearly 30 seconds when he heard his mom at the top of the stairs.

"Mike! Phone for you!" She called.

"Who is it?!" He called back.

"I don't know," She said loudly in a sing-songy type of voice. "But it's a girl."

That made Mike's head snap back and his brow furrow. Why was Max calling him? She was literally the only girl at school who spoke to him. He didn't even know she had his number. Lucas probably gave it to her.

He sighed and stomped up the stairs to the kitchen, finding his mother standing by the island with one hand on her hip and the other holding out the phone, her eyebrow cocked and a smug smirk on her face.

Mike made a face of his own, and it wasn't nearly so pleasant. "God, Mom, for once in your life, be cool," Mike said flatly.

"Hey, I'm cool," She said, tossing him the cordless and walking off.

Mike rolled his eyes and steeled himself for a moment before raising the phone to his ear.

"Hello?" He said curtly, aggravation seeping into his voice.

There was silence over the line, but he could hear someone breathing.

"Hello?" He said again, more brusquely. "Look, I've got homework to do, so either say something or stop wasting my time."

As he was about to hang up the phone, on the other end came a voice that nearly whispered, softly and cautiously, "Mike?"

All the short hairs on his body stood on end and the breath was sucked out of his chest, as though he'd been electrified.

"El?"

Nancy, who had been doing her trig homework at the dining table, looked up in surprise. Frowning, Mike dodged her gaze and flew back down the stairs to the basement for some privacy.

"El, is that you?" Mike asked.

"Yes," Eleven replied. "Sorry." She said mournfully.

"What? Why are you sorry?"

"You sound mad."

"Oh. I'm not mad at you," He said, disconcerted.

"Oh."

There was a moment of rather awkward silence.

"It's nice to hear your voice," He said, attempting to sound more light and casual. "How'd you get away this, anyway? You break into someone's house or something?"

She breathed a short laugh. "Hopper let me," She replied. "But I don't have long. Five minutes a week, he said."

"Five minutes, that's garbage," Mike said emphatically. "That's not enough time for anything."

Eleven fell silent. Mike was worried she thought him angry at her again, so he changed the subject. "What did you do today?"

"Walked in the woods," She said. "It was nice out today, not too cold. Hopper only just let me start going on walks. To the lake and back. What did you do today?"

"School," He replied. "Our parents have us all on lockdown until the mess with the lab is cleaned up. We can't even go to each others' houses. Like, Lucas is right next door, and I can't even go over there. I have to use the supercomm just to ask him a question about homework. It's bullshit." He flopped down on the couch and ruffled his hair in frustration. Then immediately felt guilty. "I shouldn't be complaining, it's not as bad as being stuck in a cabin by yourself for a year."

"It wasn't so bad," Eleven said. "I had TV and books, and I could hear your voice every day. That made it better."

Mike smiled softly. "I wasn't even sure you were still alive. I thought I saw you that night after you disappeared at school, but I wasn't sure. It seemed important to keep trying to find you. There were even times I thought I could feel you, like if I reached out, I could touch you. Like you were right there, and I just couldn't see you. I thought I was going crazy, so I didn't tell anyone I was doing it. I didn't want them to think I was nuts." He paused. "It was you I saw outside of the window, wasn't it?"

"Yes," Eleven said. "But I didn't want to put you or your family in danger, so I ran."

"Where did you go?" Mike asked. "Were you already staying with the Chief?"

"No," Eleven said. "I lived in the woods for a while."

Mike frowned. "You lived in the woods? In the middle of winter?" His heart dropped, thinking of her out in the freezing snow alone, wearing only a dress and a thin button-up shirt to keep her warm. "Where did you sleep, what did you eat?"

"Rabbits and squirrels, mostly," She said. "And there was a dead hollow tree I'd sleep in. It kept the snow out."

She said this casually, as though making conversation, but the thought of it made him feel sick. Cold fingers of shame crept up his spine. "Oh, god, El, I'm so sorry."

"Why?"

"I should have gone to look for you. I should have helped you. I knew it was you when I saw you at the window, I should have sacked up and gone to find you."

"'Sacked up'?" She repeated slowly.

"I shouldn't have left you out there to freeze," Mike replied, angry now at himself.

"It's not your fault," She said softly. "I wasn't out there long. Hopper found me eventually. I think he figured out I wasn't dead, because he started leaving food in a box on the hiking trail. After the third time, I waited for him to come back. And then… then he took me home."

"You mean the cabin?" Mike asked.

"Yes," She replied. "There was only one bedroom, but he let me have it. He slept on the floor until we got a couch. Now he sleeps on that."

"That's nice of him," Mike said with only a slight trace of sarcasm. It actually was pretty nice of the chief to give her the only room.

She took a breath to say something, but Mike heard a sound like someone knocking on a door.

"Time's up," El said sadly.

"You'll call again, won't you?" Mike asked.

"Yes," She said. "Every week. Five minutes. I promise."

"Okay," Mike said. "Goodbye El. Talk to you soon."

"You too. Bye Mike." There was a click and then a dial tone.

Mike gripped the phone in his hands and slowly slouched backwards onto the sofa, his eyes squeezed together in elation. The relief he felt was like floating. He wouldn't have to wait another year. He'd get to hear her voice every week. Maybe if he was lucky and didn't screw up, he could go out to the cabin to see her, if the Chief permitted.

Opening his eyes, he saw his homework lying on the table in front of him. He tossed the phone aside and picked up the books, applying all his energy to the task. Now was not the time to screw around. He had a goal, something to focus on. Time to get to work.


Eleven opened the trailer door to find Hopper sitting on the bottom step, lighting a cigarette.

"Good talk?" He mumbled around the cigarette.

Eleven nodded, closing the door behind her. "I thought he was mad at me, but he wasn't."

"Why'd you think he was mad?"

"He sounded mad when he answered."

"Ah. Mighta' had a bad day. Happens."

"Yeah," Eleven replied.

Hopper heaved a sigh and looked off into the distance. "So, you know the deal, yeah?" Hopper said, exhaling smoke through his nostrils. "This is a reward for the gate. For helpin' the kid and settin' things right. But it's also a risk. You know that."

"I know," she said quietly.

"So you're gonna be good, then, maybe?" He asked her, glancing at her sideways with a shrewd expression. "No more wanderin' off, no more skippin' town, no more takin' big risks, no more bein' stupid. Because this," He motioned at the trailer. "This can go away. I don't want to do that to ya, kid, but if you suddenly decide to go rogue on me like you did a few weeks ago, I won't really have much choice, will I? There're only so many risks a person can get away with." Hopper flicked the cigarette for emphasis.

Eleven didn't answer. Hopper still didn't know about Chicago and she wasn't sure she should ever tell him. He had had a hard enough time trying to wrap his brain around the fact that she had hitchhiked with a truck driver, and that had only been three towns over.

"You hearin' me, kid?" Hopper asked.

"I'm hearing you," She replied. "No more being stupid."

"Okay," He said.

"Okay."

They both fell silent for a while and watched the sun set over the water. It wasn't awkward and neither of them were in any hurry to be anywhere else. Despite the chilly evening, the breeze coming off the lake was warm. The insects buzzed a song that perfectly harmonized with the rustling of the dead leaves littering the ground as the wind tossed them here and there. Eleven rested her head against Hopper's arm and sighed.

It was after dark when Eleven's growling stomach prompted them to head back to the cabin. As Hopper started the truck and Eleven fastened her seatbelt, he cast another sideways glance at her, determining that some risks were definitely worth the reward.

He flicked on his headlights and turned the wheel toward home.


Time passed.

Eleven was obedient to a fault. She was able to call Mike every week, but on different nights and times, so it wouldn't be predictable. The week of the Snow Ball, Hopper had enlisted Joyce's help in purchasing clothes and accessories for the dance, and Joyce showed Eleven how to style her hair and put on the makeup. Hopper learned that Will was back at school and seemed to be doing well. No more episodes.

Things were quieting down, becoming calmer. Eleven seemed happy, or rather, happier than she had been the previous year. She still felt isolated and hated hiding, but "soon" finally had a date attached to it, and that was good enough.

Maybe this would work out after all.

One night, Hopper was woken from a dead sleep to a frantic call over his police radio.

"Hopper! Hopper, I need you to answer right now!"

Hopper grunted in his sleep and rolled over. The door to Eleven's room opened and she peered out, bleary-eyed and her hair ruffled.

"Hopper, I'm serious, we got an emergency at Hawkin's Lab. Pick up, dammit!"

Hopper jolted awake and to his feet. Eleven's big, wide eyes met his as he stumbled for his radio.

"Yeah, this is the Chief, what's going on at the lab? Did it walk off or something?"

"Or something, Chief. The whole damn thing is on fire."