Chapter 2

Knock knock… knock… knock knock knock. Hopper's fist continued to hover in front of the cabin door after tapping out the morse code password, just in case he would have to hit the door a few more times. He wasn't anticipating the locks to click open on his first attempt. His daughter was rather stubborn when frustrated with him, and tonight it would be safe to assume that was the case. Just as he was about to knock again, he heard the sliding of the latches on the other side of the door.

Hopper gently pushed the door open and stepped inside. He had been working hard on his parenting skills over the past year. They had gotten awfully rusty after his first family had tragically fallen apart, followed by just about every other aspect of his life. However, he felt that the pieces might finally be starting to come back together for him. Despite everything he had dealt with in recent years, he was starting to glimpse a light at the end of the tunnel. He just hoped his eyes weren't fooling him this time. If they weren't; if he was reading the signs right, then it was quite possible that El (Or Jane, as she would come to be known as) could be officially introduced to the world very, very soon. He had been withholding his plans from the girl as to not break her heart in case things didn't turn out. But if everything went as he hoped, she could be out before the week was. While he was carefully optimistic about the future for both him and his newly adopted little girl, he still had to deal with the task at hand. He had made a mistake, and he needed to fix it.

Hopper approached the girl's closed bedroom door, looking at the colorful sign that she had created the previous winter. The sign, which was taped crookedly on the blue wooden door, displayed the name 'Jane' in sloppy, red and purple handwriting. Blue butterflies were sketched around the lettering, and snowman stickers were placed sporadically around the border of the thin, grainy paper. The art skills resembled those of a kidnergardener, but the drawing never failed to warm the chief's heart, despite his hardened demeanor. Hopper lifted his hand above the small sign and gently tapped on the door with the back of his knuckle.

"El?" He quietly called. No response.

"Look… Some stuff came up late at work today… I'm, uh… I'm sorry. Sorry I wasn't able to signal you, kid. Can you let me in? I can read you another chapter of Alice in Wonderland, if you want." Hopper waited, but the other side of the door still offered nothing but silence. Maybe she's asleep, he thought. She didn't normally go to bed before ten. Suddenly he heard the unlocking of the door from the other side. He quietly turned the knob and pushed. The door creaked noisily as it slowly opened. Leaning inside, he found the room dimly lit, with only the small lamp in the corner illuminating the motionless lump underneath the blankets. Hopper thumped over to the nightstand and picked up the book before taking a seat at the side of the bed.

"You doing okay, kid?" There was a gentleness in his deep voice.

The bulge in the sheets shifted slightly.

"I, ah, I'm sorry I'm late again. This won't become a regular thing again, I promise," Hopper said.

"When can I come out?" A small voice snuck out from under the covers.

"Come out…?" Hopper said, sounding confused. "Out of the blankets? You can come out whenever you want. I'd like to see you…"

"No. Out… Where people are. Where friends are."

"Oh, out out," Hopper rubbed his eyes. Of course that's what she meant. He was too tired to think straight.

"Look, kid… I know it's hard being here alone all the time. But you need to believe me when I say it, this really is almost over. I'm not going to break my promise. You hear?"

A soft whimper came from the sheets.

Hopper thought about telling her right then and there that he was planning on letting her visit her friends sometime that week; that the talk in the town regarding government conspiracies had cooled off, and that he had come up with an elaborate story to explain their adoptive relationship. He stared at the book in his hands as he debated with himself. He had been holding off on telling her for weeks, planning to surprise her on the day of. But why, exactly? As precautious as he was, he had to admit there weren't any signs that anyone out there would still be after her. After all, the lab that had once held her captive had been shut down, left to rot behind a barbed wire fence. And as far as he knew (and he knew a lot after scouring every source he could possibly find), that psychotic scumbag, Dr. Brenner, was dead. He lifted his gaze back up to the covers where his daughter was hiding. He couldn't keep her in the dark anymore. Besides, he owed her something after coming home late.

"El… There's uh, there's something I've been meaning to tell you for awhile, now." Hopper scooted his chair slightly closer to the bed. "You listening to me, El?"

The top of the lump shifted back and forth, which Hopper took as a nod.

"Kid, could you come out from there and get some air? I don't want to keep talking to a pile of blankets." He instructed.

El pulled the blankets down just far enough for her eyes and nose to poke out. Freed from her hot, stuffy cave, she took a deep breath of the cool, fresh air. She turned her head slightly towards Hopper, who noticed her tear-stained eyes.

"So, I've been considering how safe it might be for you to spend some time outside the cabin, maybe visit your friends," Hopper started.

Instantly, El's eyes widened. She pulled the blanket down to reveal the rest of her face as she stared at her father with anticipation.

"Now listen, El. Before I let you out into the world there's a lot of things we need to talk about and go over, alright?"

El nodded vigorously, her excitement clearly building as her arms found their way out to wipe her eyes.

"Now what I'm about to say isn't a promise, alright? It's not a promise, but if all goes well and I'm not too busy… Maybe we can get you together with your pals this Wednesday."

El immediately leaped from the bed and looked at the calendar on her wall. "Wednesday." She frantically found the weekday and traced it down three rows with her finger, to the first Wednesday that she hadn't placed an 'X' over. "Wednesday, thirteen?" She turned back to Hopper, her finger still shakily hovering over the date on the calendar.

Hopper hadn't seen his daughter this excited since he had let Mike stop in last Christmas Eve. Her eyes, which she had wiped moments earlier, were once again soaked as she stared at him in blissful shock. "That's right, kid," said Hopper. "November 13th."

Hopper nearly fell off his chair as he was immediately wrapped in the girl's arms, holding him as tightly as she could. The man put his own arms around his daughter, hugging her into a warm, fatherly embrace as she leaned her head on his shoulder, tears of joy streaming down her cheeks. Hopper closed his eyes, rubbing El's shoulder comfortingly.

"Thank you," was all that El could manage to squeak out in her shaky, choked up voice.

The two of them stayed there for several minutes, locked in each other's arms. El's wait was finally over, and for Hopper, the light at the end of the tunnel was blinding.

"Bye, guys!" Will waved at his friends before opening the door of his brother's car.

"Catch you later!" Dustin called back while Lucas waved from his bike and Max set her skateboard on the pavement.

"How's it going, bud?" Jonathan greeted his younger brother as he climbed into the passenger's seat.

"It was good. I almost beat Lucas's high score on Ms. Pacman. He's held it for almost a year! Not even Max can beat it. I think he just got lucky."

"Sounds pretty competitive!" Jonathan grinned.

"What did you do tonight?" Will said, watching his friends as the car drove past them. The three of them waved again, and Will waved back.

"Well, Nancy and I grabbed some dinner. Then we we checked out that new bowling place that just opened up."

"Bowling?" Will chuckled. "Since when do you bowl?"

"I know, I know. But Nancy convinced me to try something new. And you know, it was actually pretty fun!" Jonathan paused. "Well, when I wasn't throwing the ball into the gutters, that is."

Will shrugged. "Yeah, I guess…" He knew that it was only normal for his older brother to have a girlfriend. Jonathan was still hanging out with him often, but it still felt weird hearing about this other aspect of his brother's life that he wasn't a part of. Especially since they had always been so close, sharing everything with one another. Nancy was okay, he supposed. At least it was someone that he knew. He could always talk to Mike about it, seeing as they were in the same boat, just on opposite ends. Then again, with El coming back soon, who knew what would become of his other best friend.

A few minutes later, the two of them reached their home. Jonathan's car rolled to a stop next to their mother's Pinto, and the brothers exited the car and began heading towards the house. Just as they were stepping onto the porch, the door was opened for them.

"Hey, guys!" Joyce greeted them with a tired smile. She still wore her work uniform, having arrived home just minutes earlier.

"Hey Mom," They said in unison, each giving their mother a quick, one-armed hug as they came through the door.

"Did you have fun at the arcade?" Joyce questioned her younger son.

"Yeah, it was fun! Thanks for letting me go," said Will.

"Oh, no problem, honey!" His mother smiled nervously. Joyce was always hesitant to let her son go out, even if he was with friends. Her protectiveness was understandable when considering that in the past two years alone, her son had not only been kidnapped and dragged into another plane of existence, but possessed by an evil, unknown entity from the aforementioned alternate dimension. It was quite the miracle that she still had him after all that had happened, and she couldn't help but try to hold on as tightly as she could.

Will, on the other hand, was trying his best to forget about the horrors that had plagued him in recent years, as difficult as it was. He didn't recall very much from the time when he had been possessed by the Mind Flayer. After all, the interdimensional hivemind had overtaken most of his brain, resulting in any memories made at the time to leave him as the Mind Flayer had. The beginning of last November, in Will's mind, was just bits and pieces of random, blurry information. Even so, Will still frequently had nightmares of the cold, desolate place they called the Upside Down. Though this time, he was certain they were nothing more than just bad dreams.

"What about you, Jonathan? How was your… date with Miss Wheeler? Joyce tilted her head and narrowed her eyes at him, playfully.

"Uh, it… it was great…" Jonathan said, his face reddening. He still felt awkward talking to his mom about his relationship with Nancy, and her goofy antics didn't help.

"How was work?" He asked, trying to change the subject.

"Oh, you know. Tiring." Joyce shrugged.

Jonathan nodded sympathetically. His mother had worked for Melvald's General Store for almost 12 years. He did his best to help her, whether that be working extra hours himself, or helping around the house. He knew how difficult it was for her, trying to support the family with the small paychecks she earned as a retail clerk. She was always stressed or anxious, and recent events hadn't made it any easier. It wasn't just what Will had gone through, either. Ever since Bob's tragic passing, she had been slightly distant and withdrawn. It didn't have a huge affect on her productivity; it was more of a constant, subtle yet noticeable sadness in her eyes.

"I think I'm gonna go to bed now, boys," said Joyce, yawning.

"All right, Mom. Goodnight," said Will.

"Have a good night."

Both sons gave her one more hug before she retreated to her room, still wearing her work vest.

"I don't want you to tell anyone about this yet, you hear? Let's keep this between you and me. It's just one more day." Hopper's words echoed in El's head as she tossed and turned in her bed. She looked at the clock again. One, three, seven. She knew that if she stayed up all night, Wednesday would take longer. But how could she fall asleep? Her mind was too excited; too eager for that day to even consider settling down to rest. Whenever she would close her eyes, she would begin to think about her friends again. Dustin, Lucas, Will… And Mike. Her heart fluttered in her chest as she smiled at the idea of being able to see her favorite friend again. Even with his monthly visits, she still missed him the most, and it wasn't even close.

El rolled over in her bed again to face the calendar. She had circled the '13' box in every color of marker she could find. This was too much for her. The anticipation was unbearable. She had to see him again. Now. She needed to.

El climbed out of her bed and and quietly creeped through the dark bedroom, towards her door. Carefully turning the knob, she pushed it open as slowly as she could. Suddenly, a loud creak brought her progress to an abrupt stop. She knew this door well. If it opened any further, she would risk waking her father. Luckily, she was just small enough to fit through the narrow crack she had made. Pressing her back to the wall and standing on her tiptoes, she slipped through the doorway and into the living room.

After a snore from her dad confirmed that he was sleeping, she carefully padded into the kitchen. With her father sleeping on the couch, she obviously couldn't use the TV to aid her telepathic connection, so the radio would have to do. El carefully lifted the black box off of the countertop and began to silently make her way back into her bedroom.

Once she had safely slipped back through the door, she set the radio on her nightstand. After plugging it in and turning the dials until it put out a quiet static, she grabbed her blindfold. Won't tell him, she told herself as she tied the strip of cloth around her face. Just visiting him.

El focused hard. She pictured Mike as she allowed the quiet, crackling hum of the radio to flood her mind, drowning any and all competing sensory input, until she no longer felt the bed she was sitting on, or the chilling floorboards underneath her feet, or the cool night air seeping in through the cabin's wooden walls. It wasn't until she felt nothing at all, as if floating in an infinite void, that she opened her eyes. And there he was.

In the midst of the blackness, Mike's bed stood alone, soft ripples emanating from each of its four legs. As El approached it, she noticed that Mike seemed disturbed and uneasy, his eyes clenched tightly shut. Suddenly, the boy's eyes opened as she reached his bedside. El drew back, slightly startled as she wasn't expecting him to still be awake. Glancing down, she noticed his walkie talkie lying on the floor. Her heart began to pound. Would she have an opportunity to talk to Mike? As she reached for the device, her dad's words played in her mind again, echoing through the darkness. Let's keep this between you and me. It's just one more day.

El looked back up at her troubled friend. He needs me. She reached down and rested her fingers on the handheld radio.

"Mike?"

The boy's eyelids, which had been shut again, shot open instantly. He leaned over the side of his bed and snatched the walkie talkie off of the floor.

"El?" His voice had come out louder than he had expected, causing a high-pitched crack. He clasped his hand over his mouth as he looked around, red embarrassment flooding his cheeks. "S-sorry. Uh, how's it going, El?"

"Good!" El smiled at Mike, forgetting that he couldn't see her. El wanted desperately to tell him what her father had told her. She wanted to tell him everything; tell him what she was looking forward to, and plan what they would do when they would see each other again. She sat in silence for a moment, using her dad's instructions to fight back the urge.

"Did anything cool happen today?" Mike asked, lying back in his bed with his walkie talkie.

"Wednesday, thirteen," The words leaped from her mouth as she lost her grip on them. Now it was El whose hand was clasped over her mouth.

"...What?" Mike asked, confused.

El could hardly believe herself. Had she even lasted a minute? She sighed as she looked back up at the boy sitting on his bed. Seeing his perplexed expression, she decided that it was only right for her to explain. It's okay, she thought. Mike won't tell. She remembered one of the first things that Mike had ever taught her, back when she was still living in the blanket fort that he had made for her. Friends tell each other things, he had said. Things that parents don't know.

"Dad said I can come visit," said El. "On Wednesday, thirteen."

"Wait, WHAT?!" Mike's voice cracked again, but he didn't notice this time.

El grinned widely as she watched Mike's reaction. She could still hardly believe it herself, and seeing his excitement made her want to press her lips against his, like they had done at the Snowball, and at the school that one night, and on Christmas Eve when her dad wasn't looking. She stood up, wishing desperately that her abilities allowed her to overcome the physical barrier between them. She knew that if she tried to touch him, her efforts would just pass through him, and she might lose her connection. So she painstakingly fought back the urge, having to settle for just watching and listening.

"El!" Mike nearly shouted for joy, but he, too, had to hold back, as his mom would kill him if she found him awake at this hour on a school night. "El, wow. That's amazing!"

El nodded, her eyes once again flooded with happy tears. "I know!" She chirped, remembering that Mike couldn't see her. Then she recalled what her dad had told her. "Don't tell anyone," she said. "Not even friends."

"I won't, El." Mike shook his head. "This is between you and me."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

Thanks so much to everyone who followed chapter 1, and especially to those that gave a review! I'm hoping to be able to update this consistently. However, the new semester starts this week for me, so I'm not sure how often I'll be able to write, but I'll try my best! Make sure to keep letting me know how I'm doing; I'm still new to this fanfiction thing :P See you in the next one!