A/N: Rating changed from K to T, for mild language.


Mike felt himself slowly coming around, as if he'd just awoken from a restless sleep. He tried to open his eyes, but was blinded by the sudden light. After a few moments, his vision returned, and he saw his friends and family crowding around him.

"Guys? I... what happened?" He asked, his voice hoarse. He tried to sit up only to be gently pushed back down by his mother.

"Easy Mike. Your father went to get a doctor just stay down until he's here." She said. It wasn't long before Ted returned with the doctor.

"Hello Mike. It's good to see that you're awake." The doctor said, as he pulled a chair next to Mike's bed.

"Water?" Mike croaked out.

"Of course. Miss?" He asked, looking at Nancy. "Could you head to the nurses' station and ask for a pitcher of water, a cup, and a straw?"

"Y-yeah. Just a second." Nancy mumbled before leaving the room.

"Ok Mike, while she's getting you some water, I'm going to run a few tests. Ok?" The doctor asked.

Mike nodded.

"Alright." The doctor said as he pulled a pen light from his pocket. "I'm going to shine this in your eyes to check your pupillary reflex. Ready?"

Mike nodded.

The doctor shone the light in Mike's left eye, and saw the pupil shrink. He then checked the right eye, with the same result. He then asked Mike to touch his thumbs to his fingertips. Just as Mike was finishing this test, Nancy returned with water. She poured the water into the cup, put in the straw, and gave it to Mike. He then began to sip the water, feeling the cold liquid rushing down his dry throat.

"So Mike, how much do you remember about what happened?" The doctor asked.

"I... not much really. All I remember is pain. It felt like my brain was on fire. And then I woke up here." Mike replied, making sure not to include that he'd talked to El.

"And this is the first time this has happened?" The doctor asked.

"Yeah. I've had headaches before, but that was no headache." He replied. "How long have I been out?" He asked.

"It's been five days since you were admitted." The doctor answered.

"So, I missed school starting?" Mike asked, looking over at his friends.

"Yeah, it hasn't been the same without you." Dustin said.

"So... how much longer am I going to be in here?" Mike asked the doctor.

"Well, that's where some bad news comes in. We still aren't sure what happened to you. You've been unconscious, so we haven't been able to safely run tests. Now that you're awake, we'll schedule a CT scan of your head for tomorrow, to check for any injury that may have caused this. The results of the scan will determine how long you remain hospitalized." The doctor explained.

"Oh..." Was all Mike could respond with.

"Well, you've been out for five days, so I'd imagine you're pretty hungry. I'll make sure the staff deliver you a meal." The doctor said.

"Thanks, Dr...?" Mike trailed off.

"Lewis. Carlton Lewis." Dr. Lewis answered, offering his hand.

"Dr. Lewis." Mike said, returning the handshake.

"Well, I'll leave you alone with your friends, and family. You have a nice day Mike." Dr. Lewis said before taking his leave.

Mike watched Dr Lewis as he left. After the door closed he turned his attention to the friends and family by his bedside.

"Guys, I'm so sorry for the way I was acting. All you wanted to do was help, and I pushed you all away." Mike said, hanging his head in shame.

"Mike." Will said putting his hand on Mike's shoulder. "We understand. We knew you'd talk when you were ready, so we just gave you some space."

"Thanks guys, its just... I..." Mike's sentence was interrupted by a growling noise. Will jumped back and started looking around the room in terror. The boys and Nancy kept looking around the room, until they saw Ted, who had a sheepish look on his face.

"Sorry boys, Karen and I skipped lunch today to check on Mike." Ted apologized.

"Why don't you guys go to the cafeteria and get something to eat? Trust me, I don't think I'm going anywhere." Mike said.

"Well, you shouldn't be here by yourself." Karen said.

"We'll stay with him Mrs. Wheeler. We all had lunch at school." Lucas said.

"I'll stay here too." Nancy added.

"Alright then." Karen relented. "Just come get us if anything happens."

"We will." Lucas responded.

Karen and Ted walked out of the room, leaving Nancy and the boys with Mike.

'I have to tell them what happened. I might not be alone with them again for a while.' Mike thought to himself.

"Guys?" Mike said.

"What is it?" Nancy asked.

"I... I know what happened to me." He started, not sure how to explain what happened.

"What? Then why didn't you tell Mom and Dad? Or Dr. Lewis for that matter?" Nancy asked.

"Because it involves El." Mike said.

Everyone looked at Mike with their full attention.

"Will, remember the dream you had? Where you saw El?" Mike asked, receiving a nod from Will.

"Well, the night all this started, I saw her in my dream too, only she talked to me. She told me not to be sad, then reached out for me. I tried to reach back, but there was some kind of shock wave, then I woke up. Like I said, my brain felt like it was on fire. After that, I was in some kind of blackness. I couldn't feel, see or hear anything. It felt like I was there for years, but then El showed up again. She told me that what happened to me was somehow her fault."

"What?! Why would she do this?!" Lucas interrupted.

"Keep your voice down! Nobody else can know about this! Anyway, she didn't mean to do this. She said something about touching my mind. I'm not sure what that meant. We didn't talk for much longer before she just... faded away." Mike paused for a moment, trying to shake the memory.

"After she was gone, I was alone in the darkness again, but a light appeared in the distance. I couldn't get to it at first, it was almost like when you realize you're dreaming, but then can't move. Then all of a sudden I could move again, and when I got closer to the light, I started hearing you guys. Then I touched the light, and woke up here." Mike finished.

"...So... you're ok now?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah, I think so. But I can't tell mom or dad that." Mike answered.

"Then why tell us about this?" Dustin asked.

"Because once I'm out of here, I'm picking up the search for El, and I'll need all of you to help me." Mike explained.

"Mike, we didn't find anything last time. What would have changed now? The gate's gone!" Lucas said.

"You're right, the gate's gone. But what about the box Hopper's been leaving food in? She told me herself that she's getting food from it. That makes me think there's more than one way into the Upside Down. We just have to find it." Mike finished, determination in his eyes.

"So, what exactly is your plan?" Will asked.

"We'll trail Hopper to wherever the box is, then we'll walk the area with our compasses. We know the box is a tear between our world and the Upside Down, so maybe there's another nearby. If it comes down to it, we'll use the box ourselves, to give El something to let her know we're looking for her." Mike said, looking at the others.

"Mike, is this really the best idea?" Nancy asked. "I know you want to find El, but we could be messing with things we can't even begin to understand."

Mike sat in silence for a moment. "Maybe you're right. Maybe this is a horrible idea. Maybe I am in completely over my head! But I'll be damned if I'm going to let her stay in that hell hole if I think there's a chance of a rescue!" Mike said, letting out a deep breath. "I'm doing this. That's that."

Before anyone could say anything, there was a knock at the door.

"Come in." Mike said.

The door opened to reveal a nurse carrying a covered plate.

"Michael Wheeler? Dr. Lewis said that you could use a meal." The nurse set the plate on the bedside table and rolled it in front of Mike. She took off the lid to reveal a plate of grilled chicken tenders, mashed potatoes, and corn.

"Thank you." Mike said.

"No problem sweetie, just let us know if you need anything." The nurse said as she left the room.

"Boys, I think we should go to the cafeteria, give Mike a few minutes of peace." Nancy said.

"Yeah, I could do with a Coke anyway." Dustin said.

"You guys go ahead, I'll still be here when you get back." Mike said, smiling for the first time in weeks.

One by one the group left the room, leaving Mike alone with his meal, and his thoughts.

"We're coming El, just hang on." He said to himself.


Meanwhile, a world away, a little girl sat in the blanket fort that was built for her, by the first person to truly care about her. The same person she had inadvertently hurt. She clutched her knees to her chest as she fought back her tears. She tried to stay brave in the hostile environment, but the guilt of knowing she had hurt Mike ate her from the inside out.

'We're coming El, just hang on.' Said a soft voice.

"Mike?!" Eleven yelled, jumping to her feet. She was met with silence.

"MIKE?!" She screamed louder. Still silence.

El fell back to the ground, feeling her tears returning. This time, she didn't try to stop them.

"Mike..." Was all she could choke out between sobs.


A/N: Merry Christmas ya filthy animals! And a Happy New Year! For real though, I'm taking a break until after the New Year, when everything has calmed down. Until then!