A/N: Happy New Year! I hope your 2020 is off to a better start than mine. That being said, thank you all so much for being patient with me and for your supportive words when I told you what happened. Truth be told, I am still not doing well, but I need to get back into the swing of things. Luckily, I had started this chapter before everything happened in my personal life, so I was able to get it finished for you without needing an additional week. It's a little on the short side, and I hope it doesn't seem choppy, as I started and stopped many times while struggling with motivation. I hope this is enough to tie you over before shit really hits the fan soon ; )
Strangerthingslover13: I'm so glad you liked it. I don't know exactly how many more chapters there will be. I'm thinking probably between 25-30 total, but that could adjust. I have a lot of content left to cover, so it really just depends on where it feels right to stop each chapter. We're no where near the end though!
Guest: All very true.
Guest: We'll see how Brad reacts soon.
Shrike176: I'm glad you liked the chapter. Trouble for Mike may certainly be on the horizon.
Guest: That is interesting. Though who could blame her, given Max's advice?
UnoPeso22: I'm so glad you enjoyed the Mileven moment. And I agree, El is not beyond redemption by any means. Also, thank you for your support and understanding.
Guest: Thank you! I'm glad the trigger warning was helpful. And there is still a lot to cover!
Guest: Yes, Abby and Nancy are certain to be like night and day!
OdoMango: Thank you! A Mike and Brad confrontation would be interesting, wouldn't it? As a sidenote, I appreciate your support, and I cannot wait for chapter 27 of What Comes After! (Any Mileven fans who aren't reading this yet, go check it out!)
Alisea: We certainly saw a lot of who both Brad and Mike really are. Also, thank you for your support about my friend and being so understanding. I hope this chapter is enjoyable, even though it's not very long (I like long chapters too!).
Niko: I agree, while Mike lying to Lindsey wasn't great, him being there for El was. And yes, this definitely complicates things!
JayneFawn: I agree, it is becoming more and more apparent the longer they are apart that they are missing a part of themselves. I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter!
Guest: A very important distinction.
Guest: Welcome aboard! Great theories. Stick around to see if you're right!
NoDownSide: Agreed, way too soon for Mike to tell El he still loves her. They both have a lot of realizations to make before that could happen!
Guest: Thank you!
Guest: Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Gth. 44: I see what you're saying about the show, sadly. I can see Mike caring more for Eleven than she does for him. Hopefully the Duffers come through for us in season 4!
Phieillydinyia: I'm glad you enjoyed the Mileven scene!
39CluesStrangerThingsFan-Star: Definitely a rough scene to write and read!
Song-wei: Don't worry, I am definitely not going with an easy fix! We have a lot of story left, and whether you interpret it as "redemption" or "restoration," it's safe to say there is a lot of changes, realizations, apologies, and even more mistakes, that our characters will be making. I'm glad you're enjoying it!
Simon Samovar: Don't worry, I have no intention of taking the easy way out with a conveniently neat ending. As UnoPeso22 said, it is going to get ugly and emotional. I also like your thinking of "the story can now truly begin." I hope you like what happens next!
Exploding Helmets: Thank you. No bond is quite like Mileven's.
Guest: Yes, we got a lot of information in the previous chapter. Mike lying to Lindsey will certainly be addressed! As will how both Mike and El feel about what happened.
WriterAtHeart14: Thank you so much! And it's okay if it both broke your heart AND made you feel better… it was a pretty long chapter haha
Guest: You all definitely deserved a solid Mileven moment. I'm glad you liked the chapter!
Guest: Abby and Robin's visit certainly won't be without conflict.
Guest: We are seeing El start to come to terms with how she really feels. More on that soon!
Guest: Mike is a sweetheart and will always be there for El. El is definitely learning a lot from her experiences, which will be expanded upon in time!
Guest: Yes, El ignored some pretty good advice from Will a few chapters ago. Let's see if she takes it now!
Guest: I promise you two things- It won't be that simple. And I will not find a way to pin everything on Mike. El's mistakes are hers and Mike's mistakes are his.
Reader: Thank you for acknowledging that El is truly suffering the consequences of her choices. I agree, Mike and El have a beautiful bond, and so much still needs addressed between them.
Stranger Records: Thank you for understanding.
LabAlley: Thank you. A lot of people have mentioned feeling similar ways (apprehensive about Mileven being broken up), but I'm so glad you are enjoying it!
Disclaimer: I do not own Stranger Things or any of its original characters.
0-0-0
The next morning, El wandered slowly down the hallway to find Will sitting on the couch watching tv. When he heard her come in, he looked up and patted the couch cushion next to him, inviting her to have a seat.
"Good morning," he greeted. El offered a small smile in return as she sat next to him and pulled the throw blanket from the back of the couch to wrap herself in.
"I won't ask about anything that happened last night, but are you okay?" Will asked.
El smiled at the genuine concern her adoptive brother was showing for her. He had run to her side immediately and tried to check on her, and when he realized he wouldn't be able to do anything for her himself, he had known exactly what to do.
"Yes, I'll be okay," El replied softly. "And thank you for taking care of me. I know getting Mike to come over for me probably wasn't the easiest thing."
"It actually didn't take a lot of convincing," Will said. "When he heard that you were in trouble and needed him, he pretty much came right over."
El pulled the blanket closer to her body and felt her heart warm at Will's words. Mike hadn't put up a fight. Even with a new girlfriend and two months apart, he was still willing to drop whatever he was doing to come be with El when she needed him.
"Breakfast is ready!" Joyce called from the kitchen.
El and Will joined their mom in the kitchen, and El sat in front of her plate of scrambled eggs and sausage links. The pleasant aroma filled her nostrils, and she felt her stomach growl, but even though she was physically hungry, she mentally felt like she couldn't eat. Her mind kept replaying the events from last night. She could still feel Brad's weight on top of her, his slimy tongue on her neck, and his rough hands pawing at her while she swatted him away. The memory made her sick to her stomach.
"So, tell me about your night. Will, how was your date? Will this Jessica be coming around?" Joyce gushed, her smile widening as Will's cheeks blushed.
"My night was fine. We grabbed some dinner, saw the movie, and then I came home. Nothing spectacular, but I had a good time," Will replied.
"That's great, honey. I hope to see her around," Joyce beamed before turning her attention to El. "And how was your day? Did you have a good time with Brad?"
"We, um…" El trailed off.
She felt him on top of her again. I know you've been wanting this… You practically asked me for it. His words echoed in her mind. El could even smell the mixture of his shampoo and cologne, and she felt a wave of nausea sweep over her body.
"Excuse me," she mumbled just above a whisper before standing from the table and hurrying down the hall.
"Eleven?" Joyce called after her, her eyes widened in concern. She turned back to Will. "What's wrong with her?"
"Well, let's just say I don't think we'll be seeing Brad around anymore," Will said vaguely.
"No, let's say more than that. What the hell happened?" Joyce asked worriedly.
"I don't know, Mom," Will sighed. "When I got home last night, I heard a bunch of screaming from El's room. Before I knew it, Brad stormed by and left, and El was curled up sobbing on her bed. She wouldn't talk to me or let me touch her… It was terrifying. I mean, eventually Mike was able to calm her down-"
"Mike was here, too?" Joyce asked, scrunching her forehead.
"I didn't know what else to do, so I called him, and he came over. He went into her room and left a few hours later," Will explained. "That's all I know. I told El I didn't expect her to tell me anything, and I haven't talked to Mike yet."
"I wish you would've called me at work," Joyce stated. "I would've come home-"
"Mom, I don't think there's anything you could've done," Will interrupted. Joyce nodded, knowing he was right.
"I'm going to go see if she's okay," Joyce said after a few minutes had passed since El excused herself.
Joyce walked down the hall and tapped on El's bedroom door. El didn't respond, but Joyce heard the soft sound of sniffing, so she pushed the door open to see El sitting on the edge of her bed, dabbing her eyes with a tissue.
"El, sweetie, do you want to talk about what happened?" Joyce offered gently as she closed the door behind her.
El sniffled again and tossed the tissue into the trashcan next to her desk. Joyce crossed the room and sat next to El on the edge of her bed, waiting patiently for her to speak.
"We, um… w-we had a n-nice afternoon," El began shakily. "But th-then, he asked to g-go to m-my room."
"Take your time, sweetie," Joyce encouraged her, rubbing El's shoulder.
"He tried to… have sex with me. I told him I d-didn't want to… but he s-said he knew I wanted it," El continued. "He s-said I was asking for it."
El felt Joyce's grip tighten on her shoulder.
"I used my powers to knock him off me," El explained, and she felt Joyce's grip loosen as she breathed a small sigh of relief. "He screamed at me, and then he left."
"Oh, El, are you okay?" Joyce asked gently, pulling her into a tight hug.
"I don't know," El whimpered, leaning her head on Joyce's shoulder. "I can't stop thinking about it… like, w-what if… my powers had never come back? I wouldn't have been able to stop him… How many other girls are going to be in danger because they don't have the power to stop him like I do?"
"Honey, you can't think about the 'what-ifs'. You'll drive yourself crazy. You just have to be thankful that you do have the gift of your powers so you were able to protect yourself from a much worse situation," Joyce said, softly stroking El's hair.
"And then I think… I think about what he said… that I was asking for it," El said softly, tears rimming her eyes again. "Was I? D-did I do something that m-made him think-"
"No, El, no you didn't," Joyce said firmly. "It doesn't matter what you two did yesterday or if you were flirting with him or anything else. What matters is that you told him to stop, and he didn't. That is not your fault."
El nodded her head against Joyce's shoulder, and the two of them sat in silence for a few minutes, Joyce holding El tightly and stroking her hair.
"Mike came over," El added quietly. "Will called him."
Joyce nodded. Of course, Will had already told her that part, but she wanted to hear from Eleven's perspective.
"Was he able to make you feel better?" Joyce asked, and El nodded again.
"He always does," she squeaked, just above a whisper, as more tears started to fall. "H-he just told me that I didn't deserve what Brad did… and that Brad can go to hell."
"Well, he's right. You didn't deserve that, but you're going to get through this," Joyce said. "You are such a strong young woman, and you have a huge support system. I'll do anything I can do to help you, El."
"I think I'll be okay…" El said softly.
She didn't want to think about the nightmares that could come. Mike had always helped her through those in the past, and she had been proud of not having one in a whole year.
"It's just… he's in my English class. I th-think about s-seeing him at school and-" El's voice broke. "How am I supposed to see him every day? And feel his eyes on the back of my head in class?"
"I'll call the school first thing in the morning," Joyce said quickly. "I'll explain to them that you need transferred into a different English class, and that you won't be in school this week."
"Wait, what?" El looked up at Joyce, furrowing her brow.
"It's the last week before Thanksgiving break, anyway. You won't be missing much, and I'll have it arranged for your homework to be sent home daily with Will," Joyce explained. "I'll explain the situation to the school, using as little detail as possible, and it will give them the whole week to make arrangements so that when you go back to school after Thanksgiving break, you won't have to worry about having class with Brad."
"You would really do that for me?" El asked softly.
"Of course, honey," Joyce replied, her heart clenching at the gratitude in El's eyes. "What you went through is a big deal, and I want you to have time to fully recover before you have to worry about school."
El couldn't help but smile. Joyce had taken on the role of her mother after Hopper had passed away, but this was the first time that El truly felt the weight of the love that Joyce had for her. She almost started to cry again when she thought about how seriously Joyce was taking protecting her, but she simply wrapped her arms around the woman and hugged her tightly, thanking her silently.
While El was filling Joyce in on what had happened the previous night, Mike was battling his own thoughts around what to tell Lindsey. He had promised he would call her today, and he knew she was going to ask about last night. Of course she would ask; why wouldn't she? Mike knew he could make something up and say that Will wanted his help on something for school or that he wanted to plan a D&D campaign like old times since they hadn't played in well over a year. After all, was Lindsey really going to check Mike's story with Will?
No, he couldn't do that. Lying about it would only make things worse. Mike knew he would just have to tell Lindsey the truth about why he had to go to Will's house last night. It was for El. She was not going to like that.
Mike had been pacing back and forth in the basement, and he decided it was time to rip the band-aid off and call Lindsey. He took a deep breath, picked up the phone, and dialed her number. After a couple rings, Lindsey's mother answered the phone, and a moment later, Lindsey's voice greeted him.
"Hello?" she asked.
"Good morning," Mike replied.
"Hey! Is everything okay? Is Will okay?" Lindsey asked, her voice thick with concern.
"Yeah," Mike said quickly. "Yeah, everything's fine. Everyone is okay."
Lindsey was silent on the other end of the line. Mike closed his eyes; she definitely realized he said 'everyone' instead of just saying Will's name.
"So, what did Will need your help with so late?" she asked curiously.
"He… needed my help with… El," Mike replied slowly. He waited for any response, but none came. "But I swear I went over there for him too. He's my best friend, and he was so panicky on the phone. He didn't know what to do. I had to help him."
"Mike," Lindsey said firmly, interrupting his hundred-miles-per-minute rambling. "I'm going to ask you this one time. When I was leaving last night, and I asked you if it was really Will or El who you were going to see, and you told me it was Will, did you know then that you were really going for El?"
"Yes," Mike replied reluctantly. "But I can explain-"
"Goodbye, Mike," Lindsey said swiftly before hanging up the phone.
Mike held the phone in his hand, gaping at it while the dial tone buzzed through. He slammed it back onto the wall with a frustrated groan and leaned his forehead against it, closing his eyes. That wasn't how it was supposed to go. He knew Lindsey wasn't going to be happy about it, but he had thought she would at least let him explain. He thought she would at least hear him out.
Now what was he supposed to do? He could hop in his car and drive to her house, hope that she lets him explain, and ask her to forgive him. Or he could give her time to cool down and talk to her at school tomorrow. Mike opted for the latter. After all, he had some things to figure out before talking to Lindsey.
Mike laid down on the couch, resting his head on the arm of the couch, and closed his eyes. He was back in El's room, holding her while she buried her face in his chest and clung to his shirt. He could feel her soft skin and smell her floral shampoo. Seeing El looking so hurt and devastated had nearly killed him, and all he wanted to do was make her pain go away. Her pain that had been caused by another guy.
He couldn't believe the nerve of that bastard. When Mike thought about Brad forcing himself onto El, he clenched his fists until his fingernails nearly drew blood on his palms. How could El have chosen that guy? The pain that still lingered from their breakup started to seep into Mike's heart again. The heartbreak and bitterness and confusion that Mike knew he never fully processed… The pain that he was able to suppress and forget about, especially when he was with Lindsey.
Mike knew he had to make things right with Lindsey. She was the only thing that had gotten him through his breakup with El, and she was the only thing keeping Mike from succumbing to the dark hole that he knew he would fall victim to. The one he fell in to when El disappeared for 353 days. The one he would have fallen in to when El dumped him three years ago, had his mind not been focused on defeating the Mind Flayer instead. The one that always seemed to be waiting for him when he was separated from El, unless he was able to remain distracted enough.
Not that Lindsey was a distraction, of course. Mike knew that he liked her, and he surely thought he could have a future with her. She just so happened to have come into his life at the perfect time to support him through El breaking his heart.
The next morning, Mike got to school early so he could wait by Lindsey's locker for her to arrive. He saw her walking toward him, and he noticed the second she spotted him, as her face went from instantly shocked to a look of annoyance. She didn't look like she wanted to kill him, which Mike took as a good sign.
"What are you doing here?" Lindsey asked when she reached her locker. She opened it to put her backpack inside and grab her books for her first class.
"I just really want to talk to you. Please let me explain what happened Saturday night," Mike pleaded.
"I have class," Lindsey protested, shutting her locker door.
"I know. So do I. Just, five minutes. Please," Mike asked again.
Lindsey sighed and cocked her head to the left, studying his face and deciding that he did look genuine. With another sigh, she relented and took Mike's hand, pulling him around the corner into an empty classroom.
"Five minutes," Lindsey repeated, signaling for him to begin his explanation.
"Okay, so, Will called me, and he was totally freaking out," Mike began. "He was saying he didn't know what to do and he needed my help. I asked him what was wrong, and he told me it was El."
"So you knew from the very beginning that this was all about El," Lindsey stated, crossing her arms over her chest.
"It was… it was about Brad. Will said she was sobbing alone in her room and wouldn't talk to anybody-"
"So you agreed to go console your ex-girlfriend who was crying over another guy?" Lindsey clarified in disbelief.
"Linds… he tried to take advantage of her, okay? That's what she told me when I got there," Mike said softly. "That he forced himself on her, and she kept saying no, but he just wouldn't stop until she was able to shove him off of herself. Then, I guess he got really shitty with her, called her a tease, and stormed out. She was really shaken up about the whole thing."
Lindsey's expression softened a bit, and Mike could see sympathy in her eyes. He knew that if he could just tell her what happened, Lindsey of all people should be able to understand what El just went through with Brad.
"Still, it's not your job to fix her problems anymore. You can't just leave your girlfriend every time your ex is upset. Will or Max or someone else is going to have to be the person who gets her through things," Lindsey said, and Mike nodded.
"You still referred to yourself as my girlfriend… so that's a good sign," Mike smiled. He looked down at the floor when he saw how taken aback Lindsey looked at his comment.
"Mike, did you think I was going to break up with you over this?" Lindsey asked gently, and Mike shrugged.
"I don't know. I mean, I guess I did kind of lie to you," he pointed out, reluctantly admitting that what he said in the driveway was a lie, despite the technicality he had used to justify it at the time.
"Yeah, and I'm not happy about that. But I'm not just going to up and leave you over your first mistake. I was just mad, but I was going to talk to you when I calmed down," Lindsey explained softly. She took a step closer to him, and when he raised his eyes to meet hers, Lindsey saw how surprised he was at how forgiving she was being about his lie. "She really did a number on you, didn't she?"
"It's not that," Mike shook his head. "I am really sorry for lying to you. I shouldn't have, and I won't anymore. And I know I should've thought about you before going to help El… it was just… instinct for me."
Lindsey tensed at the admission that being there for El was instinct for him, and Mike instantly found himself kicking himself once again.
"Just because she was part of my life for so long," he quickly added. "But… she's not now. And I know that. I promise, you have nothing to worry about… She doesn't want me."
"Do you want her?" Lindsey asked slowly.
Mike looked into her deep brown eyes and felt guilt consume him. He heard El's voice asking him to stay the night with her, and he remembered how strongly he felt that he wanted to. He didn't allow himself to think about what his answer would have been if El had asked him again. He wasn't sure if he was strong enough to say no again. But Lindsey certainly didn't need to know that. She had just graciously forgiven his lie, and the last thing Mike wanted to do was make Lindsey feel insecure about El.
"I want you," he answered simply and leaned down to place a soft kiss on Lindsey's lips.
Lindsey smiled against Mike's lips and wrapped her arms around his neck. When they pulled back from the kiss, Lindsey rested her head on Mike's chest and sighed as he hugged her against him.
Anyone passing by would simply see a happy, peaceful couple. But the first real shadow of doubt had formed between Mike and Lindsey. Lindsey laid against him, trying to believe that she had nothing to worry about, and trying to ignore the bitterness she felt toward El and the suspicion that Mike was still holding something back from her. Mike held Lindsey and kissed the top of her head, trying his hardest to suppress anything having to do with El and convince himself that he could really be everything Lindsey deserved. After all, things with El were over.
0-0-0
A/N: One last thing, THANK YOU for getting this story to 300 reviews! (It was at 300 before I posted my little note in there). This is by far my story with the most traffic (yes, I read the stats here and there), and I thank you for that. I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I will be back with a lengthier one next time. Leave me a review and let me know what you think!