Kitty was sleeping like a baby. Eleven really made her relax, and for the first time, since she had been hit by Mike's car, and broken her little fingers, she was peaceful.
Mike was proud to see his girlfriend so motherly. This took him to a place that he had never thought so clearly. Maybe she could do this to their children one day. And he wanted it too. But most of all, he loved seeing how worried she was about life. Yes, she was ignoring and despising him, but it was very cute to see a little animal sleeping in her tummy. Kitty went up and down according to the girl's breath and Mike found it adorable. For the first time, he felt bad for the raccoon.
Mike was not a monster, but he was scared. He twisted his wrist the moment he turned the wheel sharply to dodge the beast and still had a paw. He was angry that despite the nervousness he had gone through and the size of the curve he had made, which, by the way, would have dropped by a few millimeters from a ravine, the poor thing had still hit. Maybe if he had stayed straight, she would have ducked and Mike would have managed to get through without hurting anyone. With that, his and Eleven's prank had been revealed and because El was so innocent, the blame would be more on him. Hopper hated him before, now then ... He had almost died twice that day: once in the accident and once in Hopper's hands.
Now that everything was over and the Chief was working, he was able to visit El and be calmer. So, he was able to think about everything and feel sorry for the pet.
Kitty was scared. Her foot had been crushed by a car tire, she had been taken out of her natural environment, he could not get around properly ... Perhaps her nervousness had been greater. And the most impressive thing was to realize that despite having killed so many people, Eleven still managed to be so careful.
He sighed in awe and the girl looked at him.
"What is it?"
"You two are just… adorable!"
She laughed sarcastically.
"Don't think I'll be okay with you! Don't think compliments will do that."
Mike rolled his eyes. Eleven managed to be innocent and smart at the same time. Just as she had no idea what it was really like to date, but knew how to control her man very well. She wasn't going to make it easier.
"El, I'm sorry for Kitty. She's just a helpless raccoon, but you know it was an accident! I mean, of course I was distracted on the road, but how could I not be after what happened between us! Like, you're wonderful," she smiled, "and I could only think about it. I'm sorry, but I don't think it's just that," because he knew her very well. "You're too worried."
Eleven sighed, stroking Kitty's back. She was in such peace. Eleven wished it were the only traumatic thing she had ever really suffered.
"I just don't like to see helpless animals suffering..."
"The... "Mike was going to ask, but soon realized what she meant. Dr. Brenner had made her mistreat animals as laboratory experiments. Not to mention that she had killed a lot of animals to eat and survive. It was why most of El's diet was vegan. And the worst: she thought it was also her fault, because Mike was on that road because of her. At least she opened up easily. It made him happy.
He put his hand on top of hers and said:
"You are not to blame for anything El. Neither this nor that," he said for the accident and Brenner's torture, respectively. "And you're being great for Kitty. Don't worry."
Eleven smirked and stood up holding the raccoon in her arms. She put her on a makeshift bed she had built for her in the corner of the room and went back to bed.
"I just wish there was no harm in the world. That I could do something so that nothing bad would happen..."
It had been a while since he had seen Eleven so unsure.
Mike came over and put his arms around her shoulder, caressing her. Eleven fit into the embrace, leaning against him and relaxing.
"You are wonderful, El." He kissed her head quickly. "None of this is your fault and the little you do every day makes a big difference. You'll find a way to feel better about it. Some way to help more..."
And she really did. Eleven was still deciding what to do in college, but she knew it would have something to do with helping others. She just didn't know where to start and exactly which area: animals or humans?
The important thing was that she felt calm with Mike at her side. She knew she would find her way, one that included him too.
El knew very well that Mike wasn't to blame. But thought that if they hadn't done that, maybe the raccoon would be safe. She really thought she would never hurt anyone like that again. What if it was a punishment for lying like that?
No! Wasn't that. Eleven shook her head at herself. She wasn't going to blame the wonderful sex they had. Of course, they lied, they didn't do the right thing, but she would never regret it.
El decided to get it out of her head.
"How's your hand?" she asked remembering that Mike also hadn't left unharmed.
"OK. It wasn't so serious and I'm being careful, to get better soon. I'm glad we're on vacation!" He laughed referring to the fact that he was right-handed and had just twisted his right hand. It would be difficult to write if they were having class.
He came a little closer to her ear and whispered:
"Unfortunately, there's something I can't do... I'm going to need help..."
Eleven waited for him to say exactly what, but as it was taking a while, she turned her face slightly to find Mike with a clear smile. Finally, she understood what he meant. He needed a right hand. She was getting smart.
At that moment, with that thought, Eleven squeezed her thighs, remembering what they had done. She sure wanted to repeat. Was she mad? With whom? She no longer remembered; she only saw Mike at that moment.
He broke the space between the two by sealing his lips on hers that she willingly responded to.
When they realized, Mike was already lying on top of his girlfriend.
"Does your dad come back for dinner?" Mike asked breathlessly wanting to be sure. He was in the mood, but not enough to risk his life.
"Yeah." It meant they had time, so he attacked Eleven's mouth again, surprising her. He had been gentler the night before... both times, but in that moment, more confident as he was, he was only thinking of stop missing her as he was for a little over 12 hours.
Eleven put her hands under Mike's shirt and ran her nails down his back.
"Joyce won't mind, right?" he asked as he passed the kisses down to her neck.
"No..." El replied focused on what Mike was doing.
The reality was that she hadn't even processed the question properly. Their luck was that Joyce really wanted to leave them alone.
El opened a crack in her eyes, not knowing what to do to control those sensations when she saw Kitty sleeping in the corner.
"Mike... Mike," she tried to say, but each time he went lower. "K-kitty..."
Mike took half a second to understand. Then he realized that El didn't want the raccoon to see that, even though she wouldn't understand a thing.
"We won't make any noise... I promise," he whispered, opening Eleven's pants, who forgot everything for a while.
Max was about to freak out about that situation. For about one hour, Dustin was sitting on the couch, propping his elbows on his thighs, hands together holding his head, not saying a word.
Max was sitting in the armchair across from him, stamping her feet in anxiety, waiting for him to say something, but he was still the same.
Here's what happened an hour before...:
* Flashback On *
"Dustin, I thought Lucas told you... I lost my virginity to him!"
"Oh, okay," Dustin said naturally and turned his attention back to his plate.
Max found his reaction weird, since he was sure she hadn't done anything like that with Lucas, but relaxed. Really why would it be taboo? They dated for a long time. They hit the right age and had sex. Unfortunately, it didn't work.
They stayed for a few more minutes eating in silence, only the sound of cutlery hitting the dishes could be heard. Max didn't like that silence, but she had had a very good time with Dustin. She didn't want to spoil it, so she was waiting for a good time to talk.
Max was startled by the crash that Dustin's hands made as they hit the table sharply.
"What?!" he screamed. "Did you and Lucas have sex?!"
Dustin wanted so badly to it not be true, that he understood the information minutes before in various ways, except the correct one. It crossed his mind that it could have been another guy, or that she was joking, or that it was in the obvious or... the ridiculous excuses were over and he woke up, finally understanding the information, which caused him to hit the table hard.
'Yes, Dustin," Max replied quietly, more than necessary to see if he followed and stopped screaming. "When we were dating..."
"What?! I don't believe that!"
He got up, walked over to the couch and sat there in the same position for minutes. Max at first tried to talk to him, but decided to give him space and washed all the dishes afterwards and put them away. However, after an hour she became concerned and sat down in front of him to put pressure. Maybe then he would talk to her.
* Flashback Off *
Max knelt on the floor, right in front of him and stroked his arm.
"Dustin, please talk to me. You're scaring me," she said with water in her eyes. The night had been so good. It wouldn't end because of that, right?
Dustin looked up and stared at her. He took a deep breath and said:
"It's just that I don't believe it!"
"Dustin, we are in the late 80's," Max replied in desperation. "What is the problem with having more than one man? I loved him and thought I was going to keep him. I didn't mean it..."
"That's not it, Max..." he interrupted, standing up. "Although I loved you and wanted to be your one and only..." Max's heart accelerated with the statement, "I understand that you were with Lucas before and respect it, even if it was someone else, but I don't understand why you lied to me!"
"I didn't lie, Dustin" I just never told. You never asked..." She stood up. "Like, I only spoke to El, because I was a bit insecure, but she barely understood what I meant. Lucas and I were fighting a lot. It was in a moment of anger. We were yelling at each other and ended up hooking up." Max took Dustin's arms trying to comfort him, hoping he would soften a little. "When it was over, we realized everything that happened and broke up. I was frustrated for many days, but I didn't want him to know, so I always held my head high and then I moved. I literally had sex twice in my life and with two wonderful guys..." Dustin lowered his eyes, losing the part where she said he was wonderful and focusing on the part where maybe Max still had feelings for Lucas. She took his face in her hands. "I ... I'm in love with you, Dusty! You are the only one that matters to me. What happened to Lucas is that important?"
Dustin sighed and pulled away from her. How would he explain?
He sat on the couch again, feeling defeated.
"I fell in love with you the first time I saw you, Mad Max," he confessed. "I was so connected to other unimportant things that Lucas arrived first and I let you escape... There wasn't a day that I didn't regret it." Her eyes filled with water as she remembered the times she suffered for love. They were very difficult. "I had prepared to know that you had done something like this. After all, it was natural, you were dating ... But after Lucas focused on Lily and you left, and he told us that he had done it with her, we immediately thought it was the first time, because he would have mentioned it, right?" Dustin snorted. "At least I understand why you didn't tell. It wasn't so good... I was just all this time believing that you had done nothing, so it was a shock. Sleep with the girl my friend slept with. It was weird already knowing that you guys had already dated, but now... No problem doing it, I just wish it had been with another guy."
Max was holding back tears. She had always blamed herself for choosing Lucas and not knowing how to deal with Dustin. Of course, she had to follow her heart, and despite having fought a lot with her ex, they had many good moments too, for example, he had been the first to understand her. But she had been so embarrassed, because Dustin liked her, that she avoided him a lot. She hadn't been his friend. She was so young and didn't know how to deal with it.
"Forgive me, Dustin. Please!" Max couldn't hold on any longer and buried her face in her hands.
Dustin immediately got up and hugged her. He never wanted to make her suffer. He was just in shock. For a long time, he thought the truth was different. He just needed time to process.
"There's no need to apologize, Max! I love you, anyway. I just didn't expect it. What matters is that yesterday was good!"
She hugged him back and relaxed with his words. They stayed like that for a long time. She had always suffered a lot from seeing Dustin hurt and not knowing how to cope. She even felt guilty for choosing Lucas, but it felt right at the time. Max couldn't blame herself. She was practically a child. What mattered was that they were together and she wanted only him.
Dustin was fine. Of course, he wanted to be as experienced as she was, out of pride and fear of doing something wrong, but he realized it wasn't all of that. It was just weird that he and Lucas had already explored that magical place he had dreamed of, if you know what I mean. But they were going to get over it. Max wanted him now.
But hey, what about Lily in this thing? Did she know?
