Thank you for keep reading this crazy story. Special thanks to the people how left a comment. I appreciate them.

MaeBlueJay: Thank you for your words. Where is Mike? Mike is in Hawkins. But... perhaps... who knows? ;)

000crazytime: Yeah... they've waited a lot of time. I'm just an evil writer. lol.

I want to thank AnnieRavenclaw707 for beta read this story. I don't have words to say how kind she is :)

CHAPTER 22: NOVEMBER 12TH

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The night had been an authentic roller coaster of emotions, but after the storm, there is always calm. Neither of them had been able to go back to sleep, but this time the cause was quite different than before. Each one was lost in their thoughts, not knowing what their next step would be.

Hopper had made coffee. Keeping himself busy, it helped him to avoid thinking, or saying anything stupid. Lately, it seemed like he was becoming an expert at it. On the other hand, he wanted to avoid the trauma to Joyce of having to go into the kitchen. Everything was very recent, and he knew from experience, that going back to a crime scene, no matter how clean they left it, is not pleasant, much less if it is your own home.

He found Joyce sitting on the sofa in the living room. She was so engrossed that she got frightened when Hopper offered her a cup. "Holy shit, Hop! I'm going to put a rattle on you like a cat! I haven't heard you coming!"

"Well, I'm not particularly silent. And I think you can also see me at a distance." He replied, pointing to his height with pretended pride to downplay the matter. He was trying to hide his growing concern that Joyce would get scared so easily.

She quietly sipped her coffee. Surprisingly it was good, quite good. Or maybe being the first hot drink in hours made it taste better.

"What did you put in this?" Joyce asked after a while.

Hopper gave her a half-smile. "Oh, it's my special formula for morning coffee. I'm not going to reveal my secret that easily."

Joyce raised a brow sarcastically but couldn't help but smile back. That boastful tone, which she hated so much in the past, was now music to her ears. It seemed that night had changed something, something important. Somehow, he had regained his self-confidence, and he was beginning to sound more like the old Hopper she knew, and who somehow she missed.

"I missed this," Hopper stated, surprising Joyce. Were they thinking the same thing?

"What?" She asked a bit concerned.

"Mornings should always be for coffee and contemplation." Yeah. He missed his old, boring life.

Joyce looked down at her cup. "Well, you already have the coffee. I wonder what you will contemplate now."

He chuckled. "Don't be jealous, but the clock on the wall behind you is stealing my contemplative attention."

"Of course. It is difficult to compete with a cheap watch bought on sale."

They both smiled, feeling that they had traveled back in time.

"I guess, that for now, it's the only thing I can offer," Hopper said after a pause.

Joyce looked back at him, confused. "What?"

"The coffee." He replied, smiling, although she could see that his gaze was a mixture of melancholy and doubt. "Who knows if maybe I can offer you a coffee every morning." He stated, trying to test the waters.

Joyce coughed the last sip of her drink. What the hell was that? Did it sound like... commitment? Yes, that statement summed up in that single word.

"Well, only if you don't choke on it." He said, laughing nervously.

Joyce looked at him thoughtfully and set the cup down on the coffee table. "Less than twelve hours ago, you didn't think the same."

"I suppose a lot has happened in less than twelve hours." He pointed out. "Things that make you see life with a little more perspective, I guess,"

Joyce bit her lip. She knew that the only thing that had made him change his mind was knowing that she might have died that night. It was not very clear who had saved who, but she knew that he felt guilty. And that unnerves her.

"Hopper, I don't want you to feel compelled to be here." With me? She added in her mind.

The man narrowed his gaze. "I don't see anybody forcing me into anything."

"You already know what I mean."

"No. I don't know, and that's the problem, Joyce." He responded with a sigh. Why did she always misinterpret him? Was it not clearly stated?

"I don't want you to be with me because you feel sorry for me or because you feel compelled to do so. Culpability doesn't last a lifetime, Hop. The only thing we would achieve is to be unhappy." Seriously? Did you just say lifetime? What's wrong with you, Joyce!

The man looked at her incredulously. His mouth opened to respond, probably some outrage, but it closed again. Finally, he could only ask about the only thing he had on his mind. "Are you standing me up? Again?"

"For heaven's sake. Still with that?" Joyce rolled her eyes. It was as if the last damn four months hadn't existed. On the one hand, she liked to think that Hopper had returned to his old self, but not exactly to the old self who was still mad at her for that nonsense! "I didn't leave you standing up. I had to check what happened to my magnets. And, hey, it turned out to be important!" Definitely, that sounded better in her head.

"Of course," Hopper replied, fussing too dramatically. He couldn't believe that Joyce was still holding onto such a poor pretext. "I always thought that any excuse was good rather than commit to anything. You're afraid of commitment Joyce, that's your damn problem. Last night, you didn't seem to hesitate so much, but of course, there were still no compromises on the table. I'm telling you now, and you're already running away!"

Joyce blinked incredulously at what she was hearing. "Are you talking about commitment? You? Jim Hopper. The same Jim Hopper who has fucked half of Hawkins. They even talk about Marissa, the grouch librarian. Seriously? Well, I'm not one of your conquests of one night. I'm not that easy!" Joyce regretted those words as they came out of her mouth. She had spoken without thinking.

Hopper hadn't been the same since… well, ever since he became a single parent by surprise. To reproach him that, now, was unfair, a very low blow. She was going to apologize, but it was too late. He was a man too easy to provoke.

"Now, I understand. Crystal clear. You never really gave me a chance because that's what you think of me. You think I'm another Loonie." His voice was low but he was spatting all of the words, hurt. It was becoming clear that it didn't matter what he said or did. She would never see him for what he really was.

"I haven't said that." She responded, trying to sound calmer this time. She was not going to be obfuscated again.

"Of course not. So even though I was still there, with you. You were running away because you are looking for someone opposite. I don't know, let me think... Oh, yes, someone who didn't have a damn traffic citation, someone boring but, according to you, trustworthy, someone like…"

"Shut up!" Joyce roared. She had heard enough. "Don't you dare mention Bob! He was a good man. If I didn't go to the stupid date, it was because I hadn't yet recovered from his loss. It was too soon, Hopper. Dammit!"

The man fell silent but held her gaze stoically, even knowing he was in a battle that was not going to win in any way. "Do you think that if I had considered you another Loonie, would I have even let you get close to my children? Do you think I would have let you into my house? You have no idea Hopper, no idea!"

Ok, the hurt was already done. Words were not his virtue, so before pressing her further, he decided to keep quiet and let her vent.

Joyce crossed her arms and tried to sink deeper into the sofa, praying that the soft surface would absorb her so she could disappear from there.

The Hopper from four months ago would have gotten angry, and probably would have lit a cigarette outside the house, putting distance between them. Unfortunately, he had quit smoking, not of his own free will. Nor had he gone through so much to get up for an argument. He waited a reasonable time. Enough to find the right words.

At least, Hopper knew he had a chance to reply because Joyce hadn't moved off the couch. After all, he was good at reading and interpreting gestures. Too many years of police service. She was surely expecting an answer.

"You're right. I'm not a good man."

That was not what Joyce expected to hear. All the anger she had was gone in a moment.

"I have made a lot of mistakes in my life, too many to keep count. But I'm not a bad man either. I'm just a little stupid once in a while. A stupid man who cares about you. If you think this is a one-night conquest, you are wrong." He stopped for a moment. God, it was extremely difficult. A very good friend of his advised him once to talk with the heart. Does he have a heart? If he did, he'd forgot about it.

"I can't erase my past, but I can write my present. I can't pretend to be a reliable man. I am not attentive, and I never remember important dates. But I can tell you something," Joyce didn't know how he had done it, but Hopper was inadvertently sitting next to her.

"I'm a man who would always be by your side. Protecting you. Because that's what I do. What happened tonight has indeed changed my mind, but no, I don't feel sorry for you, Joyce, what I feel is ..." And now he was talking about feelings? Two years ago he would have made them disappear with a bottle of pills. He sighed. "You may think I'm an idiot, but being alone these months... Deep inside, I knew El would be fine. So the only thing that kept me from going crazy, was thinking about our stupid date. I thought of it as a purpose. After all, I couldn't die and leave you standing up in Enzos, you know?" His brows furrowed. "And then I realized why El hated the word 'soon' so much." He smiled sadly, it was as if he was recreating himself in his memories.

Joyce's gaze was fixed on him. Please, Hop, don't you dare to put now your puppy sorry face. No... please, don't!

"I'm not a good man, Joyce, but I can try to be one. If you want."

Joyce couldn't articulate a word. He had just made an authentic heart-to-heart speech by himself. Without help. In a way, she was even proud. And how the hell was he so close?

"Today is November 12th," Joyce stated.

Hopper raised an eyebrow, confused.

"I want you to remember the date." She clarified.

"That means… ?" He began to ask. His face was a real poem. A happy puppy face you might say.

She nodded smiling. "And I also want that damn coffee every morning."

"I hope you don't want to be with me out of interest."

"Hopper ..."

"Uhuh..."

"Shut up."

She gave him a half-smile and before she knew it, his lips were on hers in an untamed kiss that was full of what was still to come, and she welcomed it. At first, he was gentle, exploring her lips slowly. He took his time before making his way lower. Her head fell back when his lips scorched a path down the line of her jaw towards her neck. She couldn't control herself and she felt over the sofa, followed by him. Their breathings were heavy.

"We're destroying our friendship." She admitted.

"To hell with it." He murmured and he brought back his lips back to hers, devouring her.

Joyce had run her hand and was clutching his head and hair, needing more as if her very existence depended on what they were sharing.

"Joyce..." He spoke against her neck. "Come back with me."

She opened her eyes in shock. "Where?"

He pulled away, resting his hands at her waist, looking at her closely. "To Hawkins."

The woman was suddenly horrified. She was about to protest when shouting could be heard outside the house.

"What happened? Are they ok?!" Jonathan screamed as the kids approached the porch.

The locks on the door opened by themselves. The adults jumped to their feet, fast enough to avoid being caught red-handed. Eleven was the first to enter. Scanning the room desperately.

"Hi, Kid." He stated, but her response was a very tight hug.

"You, ok?" The girl asked looking up at him.

"Yeah. Yeah, we're fine."

Eleven looked at him, worried. "You're sweating and you breathe fast. Have you been running?"

"What?!" Eleven was a bad speaker but he could not deny that she paid close attention to everything. "You scared me with the door thing! Kid, It's polite to call before entering!" Hopper looked at the woman in the room, searching for help. "Joyce. We're fine, right?"

Their gaze fixed. He wasn't asking just to reassure the girl. No, of course not! He was looking for a sign that everything was fine between them. She was silent for a few seconds.

"Joyce?" Eleven asked a bit worried, and without pulling away from Hopper.

The woman gave him one last look of 'You're a damn schemer, we'll talk later.' "Yeah, honey. We're fine."

To be continued.

Ok, I want to ask you if you would like to read a Hawkins part of this story. Otherwise, I'm afraid it's comming to an end. vOv You can leave a comment ;)