Disclaimer: I do not own Stranger Things.
Hopper didn't like letting Eleven out of the house. "It's too dangerous," he'd tell her after she'd been pleading to go see the boys. But, as time went on, Hopper loosened his grip. At first, he let her go to the Wheelers', then the Snow Ball, later a few random visits with small groups of two people, and now, eight months later, she had her first opportunity to see the entire gang.
Hopper walked her to the door, almost falling behind El's excited strides. She rapped on the door with so much enthusiasm that her knuckles were red. Joyce greeted them.
There wasn't much time for small talk, in the Chief's words.
"You know the rules," Hopper said, stopping at the door.
El nodded her head in confirmation, "Don't be stupid,"
"Atta girl," Hopper said with a smile. He gave a limp wave before leaving.
"The boys are out back, El," Joyce said, but Eleven had seen part of Dustin's afro and was already heading that way.
"Be careful!" Joyce added as the girl closed the door behind her.
Eleven scanned over the backyard. There was Dustin...Will...Lucas...but no Mike.
"Where did he go?" She asked. She didn't have to clarify who "he" was; the others knew.
"He's out front with -"
Max.
The two had stepped into the backyard before Lucas could finish his sentence. Eleven could have sworn her heart stopped beating the moment she saw them.
Max was laughing.
Mike was laughing.
They were with each other, and neither of them were paying much attention, so Eleven turned around quickly before either of them saw her.
"Where are you going?" Dustin called after El as she opened the door.
"Bathroom," El said shortly, closing the door behind her quickly.
She heard Mike's voice, and then footsteps, seconds later. Right after she had slammed the bathroom door with her mind, someone knocked on the door hurriedly.
"El?"
It was Mike. Eleven ignored him, although she wasn't exactly sure why.
"Are you okay?" He asked. He moved to open the door, but he had hardly opened it an inch before it shut so quickly he jumped. He took that as a no, "Please let me in,"
Eleven remained silent, staring at the tiles on the bathroom floor.
"Please, El,"
Eleven stayed perched on the rim of the tub, but gave in all the same. The lock turned slowly, and Mike stepped in as El wiped the blood off her nose and a tear off her cheek. He moved to sit by her so quickly that he rivaled the Flash.
"What's wrong?" He asked. He stared at her as she pointedly looked away.
Eleven didn't know what she was supposed to say. She hadn't thought it through that far. So, she said just one word and hoped that he understood: "Max,"
"Max?" Mike asked. He was confused. What did Max have to do with anything?
"Yes," Eleven said, "She's with you...a lot,"
Mike realized then why Eleven was upset; she was jealous of Max.
"Are you -are you jealous of Max?" He asked, watching El more intently. She still refused to meet his gaze. He tried to ease her mind, "El, I won't lie to you. Max and I have grown a little closer in the past year. I didn't mean for it to happen; it just did,"
El winced when she heard this. She didn't want to hear the rest of it. She wanted to run.
She wanted to get away.
So why didn't she?
Mike kept talking, "But El, you're my best friend. Adding a zoomer to the party won't change that. You're still our mage,"
El didn't like the mood of this conversation. It made her stomach twist up in knots.
"Do you kiss her?" Eleven asked bluntly, still avoiding his eyes. Her voice was barely above a whisper. Mike's lips belonged on hers, not Max's.
Mike paled, "No, El. I haven't even thought about kissing her. She's just a friend. She's not like you -"
Eleven snapped her head up and stared at Mike with wide eyes. Mike hadn't meant to say that (even thought it was true). All the same, he had already started digging. He might as well finish the trench.
"She's not like you, El," He repeated, "Not even close. You're amazing, and pretty, and I think about kissing you, not her,"
As the silence grew, the space between their lips diminished. It was a quick, sweet kiss, but it made Eleven's heart (and Mike's, too, though he'd never admit it) flutter just like any other kiss would. Their faces were still so close even after they parted that they could feel the other's breaths.
"We should go," Mike said, "They'll be worried,"
"Okay," Eleven said.
They stood from the rim of the tub and walked back outside. The rest of the guys -and Max- were messing with the chain on Will's bike.
"Everything good now?" Lucas asked.
"Yeah," Mike told him.
"We were thinking about riding down the backroads," Dustin said, "You in?"
A moment later, El was about to hop on the back of Mike's bike when she stopped. Max was beside them, making her skateboard snap up. with her heel, "Your shoes," El said. Max looked at her, surprised that she had spoken to her, "I like them,"
"Thanks," Max said, giving Eleven a small smile.
Eleven then climbed on the bike with Mike. He turned and looked at her over the shoulder. He smiled at her, as if to say 'good job' or 'I'm proud of you'. Eleven returned his grin -she was proud of herself, too...except it was entirely possible that some of her pride came from the fact that Mike thought about kissing her.
I'm really not super proud of this...I'm gonna put it in the quality fluffy trash bin.