A/N: Welcome back. This chapter dives further into the drama that has been building. I hope you enjoy it. Please remember to leave me a review. Thanks for reading, as always!
LovelyInLavender: Oh, teenagers are the worst with communication, aren't they? Don't give up hope on Mileven, as they are my favorite thing about ST :-)
FavStarngerthings: I am sorry that you are sadness. I hope you enjoy this chapter, but I will understand if you are more sadness.
Shrike176: Mike is definitely in a rough spot. We'll have to see how he handles it. And that's true, we can't control how we feel. I like your idea about locking Mike and El in a supply closet, but remember, this one is rated T lol. I hope you like this chapter!
Longislandgirl88: You could be on to something with a Mike and El fight in the near future. Thanks for reading, I hope you like this one.
NoDownSide: Lots of miscommunications are coming in to play here. As for Mike being an ass about it, we'll see soon…
Wolfgp: Thank you, I'm glad you've liked all my stories that you've read. Mileven is by far my favorite couple, but Dustin is my favorite individual character in the show. So this story has been particularly fun for me. You're right, it isn't smooth sailing, but I hope you like this chapter.
Betazoid4: An interesting take, and I definitely see your point. I can see both Mike and El's points of view here. I am interested to hear your thoughts after this chapter.
Jbg: You are certainly not too far off in your prediction. I hope you like this chapter, and let me know your thoughts.
SmilingSarahAZ: Yes, our poor babies are hurting and leaving so much unsaid. You're the second reviewer who has suggested locking them in a storage closet lol.
Ejbeckmann: I'm a sucker for angst, I'm sorry! I can't just let people be happy! That being said, TTWAS had a pretty satisfying ending lol. I can safely say this won't be anywhere near the length or emotional roller coaster that TTWAS was. Not to say it won't have its fair share of angst and emotion, though! Also, I'm glad to hear that you're not over TTWAS yet, because when I finish this story, the TTWAS sequel is next. I've been planning it for months, and it is LONG and emotional. Stay tuned ;-)
Disclaimer: I do not own Stranger Things or any of its characters.
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Hey Mike. I really don't know what happened today, but I hope you're okay. You know you can talk to me about anything, and you have nothing to worry about. Like I told you yesterday, and like I'll tell you every day, you are the only person I want to be with. Please don't forget that. Good night, sleep well, and I'll see you tomorrow.
Mike read the text message again the next morning, and then again and again. He had read it as soon as he received it last night when he was laying in bed, but he didn't know what to say, so he didn't respond. What was he supposed to say? That he was okay? He wasn't, and El knew that. She wasn't stupid. Mike supposed at the very least, he could have said good night, and he was sure that by not responding at all he was only pushing El further away, which was not what he wanted.
What Mike wanted was for everything to be how it was a week ago. He and El were happy, and he had really thought that nothing was going to change that. How quickly they had gone from comfortable silences, making plans for after camp, and meeting her best friend to tension, unanswered text messages, and uncertainty. And why? Because of Eric? Because of Mike's stupid subconscious telling him that it is finally happening; El is finally seeing that there is someone better for her? Because of what Dani told him; a claim that has still not been proven?
He read the text again.
You know you can talk to me about anything stuck out to him. He read those words over and over.
Mike had said those words countless times to her. It was one of the first things he had noticed about her in the beginning. El had been so easy to talk to; he had completely opened up to her about his family, his insecurities, and his breakup with Stephanie. He really had thought he could talk to her about anything. But now, it seemed like any time he tried to talk about this – what he was feeling right now – it all went wrong. They ended up at the same location; El reminding him that he needs to trust her. Mike hated upsetting her, so how could he talk to her about what he was feeling? Especially when it didn't seem to be resolving anything.
He swallowed down the lump that had formed in his throat and ran a hand through his hair. How was this falling apart? He had been so confident in this relationship. He loved her; not that he was ever brave enough to tell her… Would telling her now do any good? Would she even believe him after the way he had been acting? Mike felt like he was spiraling, grasping for any idea to salvage what he could feel he was destroying. He picked up his phone and began typing.
Good morning. Sorry, I was asleep last night when you texted me and just read it this morning.
He stopped. What else could he say? Why was talking to El suddenly so hard?
I'm sorry for being so difficult lately. You don't deserve that.
Mike stared at the message for several moments, wondering what else to add. He came up with nothing and sent it as it was.
Good morning. Mike, you don't have to apologize. I just want you to be okay, and I want us to be okay. I feel like you're pushing me away. El texted back.
Mike sighed, feeling even worse now that El confirmed he was making her feel bad, too. He didn't want that.
Meet me before breakfast? I can be there in a half hour. Mike sent her, and El immediately responded to agree.
Mike got out of bed, took a quick shower, and got dressed. He was about to walk out the front door of the cabin when Dustin sat up in his bed.
"Where are you going this early?" he asked.
"To see El," Mike replied. "We're meeting before breakfast to talk."
"Is everything okay with you two? Things have seemed weird," Dustin asked.
Mike let out a sigh and almost answered, but then he looked over at Eric who still appeared to be sleeping. He didn't want to risk Eric hearing anything about he and El having problems.
"Everything is great," Mike said.
Dustin furrowed his brow, and Mike could tell he wasn't convinced. He turned and left the cabin and then texted Dustin that they could talk later when Eric wasn't around.
Mike walked down the path he has walked dozens of times. The closer he got to El's cabin, the more nervous he felt. He wished these nerves were the ones they used to be, caused by excitement of seeing her, knowing how his heart would skip a beat when she came out to meet him. Instead, he knew these nerves were caused by the fear of screwing things up even worse, upsetting her, fighting with her.
Of course, his heart still skipped a beat when she came out to meet him. She was wearing black shorts and a red swing cami that flowed around her hips as she turned to close the door behind her. Her chestnut hair fell in waves over her shoulders, and she had braided the front section back and pinned it on the left side of her head. Even with everything going on in his head, El still took his breath away.
"Hey," Mike said softly, but El did not respond.
Instead, she walked swiftly up to him, placed both hands on the sides of his face, and pressed her lips against his. Mike was taken off guard, but he quickly recovered, placing his hands on her waist and savoring the taste of her sweet kiss. With his eyes closed and El in his arms, in that moment it seemed like everything was okay again.
"Hey," El finally breathed when she had pulled back, leaning her forehead against his.
"You look beautiful today," Mike said, and he smiled when El's cheeks blushed.
"Thank you," she said, her smile reaching her eyes that sparkled.
They didn't talk much. Maybe they should have. Mike had thought that they would talk about what was wrong, what felt off between them, and why he had been pushing her away. But instead, they slipped into the woods and fell into each other. Desperate, hungry kisses and soft moans filled the space around them, and for a moment, everything was okay again.
They never made it to breakfast, and at 9:45am, Mike groaned, knowing they had to get up and leave. He looked down at El whose head was resting on his bare chest, and he could feel each time she exhaled against his skin. Mike gently rubbed his hand up and down the soft skin of her back, resting it on her bare shoulder when he leaned down to kiss the top of her head.
"El," he said gently, and her eyelids began to flutter, her eyelashes tickling his chest as she stirred out of her nap. "We've got to get up."
El reluctantly pushed herself off of him, and she and Mike pulled their clothes back on, having previously remained in only El's panties and Mike's boxers. When they were dressed, and after Mike had brushed the grass and small leaves out of El's hair, they walked hand-in-hand to El and Eric's classroom. Mike softly kissed her goodbye before leaving for his own.
When Mike arrived, he saw Dani was already there, her eyes red and puffy again. She had not done her makeup this morning, which was a first for her, and her blonde hair was tied up into a messy bun on top of her head. Mike remembered that Dani had said she was going to talk to Eric last night, and he assumed it did not go well.
Then it hit him. Dani was going to talk to Eric because she saw him kissing El. Does this mean what Dani thought she saw was true? Maybe it wasn't true, and Dani was just this upset because even though Eric hadn't been kissing El, he still finally came clean about not wanting anything serious with Dani. Mike hoped it was the latter.
"Are you okay?" Mike asked when he reached Dani's side. She sniffled and wiped the tip of her red nose.
"Not now, Mike," she muttered, not looking up at him.
Mike nodded, accepting that it was best not to get her more worked up when they had the students to focus on. He opened up lesson one for the day and started class.
In El and Eric's classroom, Eric greeted El with his normal smile and cheerful "good morning," as if nothing had happened between them the previous day. El nodded cordially, deciding that it was her second-to-last day having to work with him, and she could get through it.
"Dani and I are over," he muttered into her ear as he reached around her to grab the material for lesson one.
"Why do you think that interests me?" El asked just as quietly.
"I'm just following up on our conversation from yesterday," Eric shrugged.
El watched him with narrow eyes as he wandered around the classroom passing out the information to the students. Today, the students were beginning to build their balloon-powered cars, so a lot of the work was independent. That meant that Eric had extra time to try and talk to El at the front of the classroom, which he took advantage of.
"Dani and I were just looking for different things, and it was time to be honest about that," Eric continued when he reached the front of the classroom, as if he and El were having a casual conversation.
"Well, I'm assuming it would've been difficult to keep up your charade after she confronted you with all the awful things you've said about her," El said curtly.
"How do you know what she's heard?" Eric asked, furrowing his brow.
"How do you think? You openly said it in front of all the guys in the cabin. Mike told me how upset Dani was to find out that you were only in it to have sex with her," El explained.
"Well, that may have been what she was upset about at first, but… did Dani not tell you what she saw?" Eric asked, and El narrowed her eyes at him again.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"When Dani confronted me last night, it wasn't about the things she'd heard," Eric began. "I mean, sure, that came up, but it wasn't the main thing on her mind."
El pursed her lips, ready to say that she didn't care what Dani confronted him with because it didn't concern her. Then, Eric continued.
"Apparently, she came here yesterday to meet me for lunch, and she saw us through the window," he said. "She saw us pressed close together, my face near the crook of your neck. She thought I was kissing you."
El's face curled in disgust.
"And did you correct her?" she asked.
"Why would I? Things were ending anyway. Dani can believe what she wants to believe," Eric shrugged.
"But it isn't true," El said. "I don't want her thinking I would do that. Plus, I'm sure she's even more upset, and Mike-"
El stopped abruptly and gasped. Mike. Of course. Dani had told him what she thought she saw. No wonder Mike was acting the way he was last night. She looked at Eric and wanted to slap the smug grin off his face.
"What did you say yesterday? That your situation wouldn't be changing?" he said almost tauntingly.
"What is wrong with you?" El demanded quietly, not wanting the students to overhear. "I thought you were a nice guy. I told people you were a nice guy and that Jason was influencing you to act like a jerk."
"Hey, I'm not Jason," Eric said innocently.
"No, you're worse," El spat. "At least Jason was open about how much of a douchebag he was."
Eric opened his mouth to retort, but they were interrupted when one of the students in the second row asked for help connecting two of the parts of his car. El was the first to break the glare that she and Eric were sharing, and she went to help the student.
El was seething for the rest of the morning classes. She wanted to tell Eric off, slap him across that smug face of his, run to Mike and tell him what really happened and beg him to believe her. But she couldn't do any of those things. So, El did her best to keep calm and help the students through the pigeon dissection, making a point to not even look at Eric while he instructed from the front of the classroom.
On the other side of the camp, Mike and Dani were wrapping up lesson two. Once the students were dismissed, it was just the two of them. Before she even started speaking, Dani's face started to turn red as her eyes welled up with tears again.
"What happened?" Mike asked as sympathetically as he could with his heart pounding in his chest.
"You're not going to like this," Dani said softly.
Mike's stomach sank. He pulled out the chair next to Dani and sat down, waiting for her to continue. She let out a shaky breath and sniffled.
"I confronted Eric last night like I said I was going to. I asked him how stupid he thought I was, how long he planned on leading me on. He tried to play it off at first like he didn't know what I was talking about," Dani shook her head and sniffled again. "Then I told him I saw him and El when I went to meet him for lunch. I told him I saw him pressed up against her, kissing her neck… He didn't deny it, Mike. He said 'I'm sorry you had to see that.'"
Mike felt like the wind was knocked right out of him.
"Then he told me that he likes me, but h-he's n-not looking for… anything s-serious right n-now," Dani continued, the tears beginning to spill down her cheeks. "And I – I asked h-him how he could d-do that… How he could t-tell me how m-much he liked me and s-say he would v-visit me in Illinois when camp was over…"
Mike thought of all the times he and El have talked about him visiting her in Chicago, double-dating with Brandon, their Christmas plans. He thought of the times they talked about El visiting Hawkins. He was going to introduce her to his friends, to his parents and sisters.
"How he c-could be so sweet to me, and th-then talk about fucking me and telling J-Jason he could have a t-turn with me. It's d-disgusting," Dani spat. "I feel dirty, I feel… used."
Mike still felt as if he were in a daze, but he heard the pain dripping from Dani's words as she broke down next to him. Emotionlessly, he draped an arm over her shoulders and let her rest her head on his shoulder.
"You shouldn't feel that way. It's not your fault," Mike said gently. "Eric's a jerk. He's – he's such an asshole… He doesn't deserve you, and you don't deserve to be treated like that."
"I just don't know what I did wrong," Dani cried into his shoulder.
"You didn't do anything wrong," Mike assured her. "Guys like him… it doesn't matter how nice or smart or pretty you are. He doesn't care about you as a person, just as another conquest."
Dani lifted her head from Mike's shoulder and looked up at him, pleading with her eyes.
"D-do you really think that? That I'm… smart? Pretty?" she asked meekly, sniffling through her tears.
Mike looked into her swollen eyes and felt his heart break for her. All Dani wanted was for someone to want her for who she was. But Mike felt like it was more than a want. It was a craving. Almost like Dani craved the validation. Mike wondered what happened to her to wreck her self-esteem, and he wondered how many jackasses like Eric have taken advantage of her in the past.
"Well, yeah, you are," Mike finally replied. "And someday you will find someone who appreciates that about you, not someone who will just move on to the next girl he sees."
Bitterness seeped into Mike's tone, and he looked down at the floor. His arm was still around Dani's shoulders, and he felt her scoot closer to him and reach forward for his other hand.
"Mike, you don't deserve what El did to you either," Dani said. "Eric and El… they're in this together. He didn't care about my feelings, and she didn't care about yours."
Mike wanted to tell Dani she was wrong. He wanted to say that there was still a misunderstanding, somehow, and that what Dani saw and Eric confirmed wasn't true. But how could he believe that? How much of a fool could he be? So he just nodded.
"Yeah, I… I guess you're right," he said just above a whisper, still looking down at the floor.
"I'm sorry… I really did think El was a nice girl," Dani said gently.
"So did I," Mike chuckled.
"Mike?" Dani said timidly.
"Hmm?" Mike asked, looking over at her.
Dani was biting her bottom lip, and as soon as Mike's eyes met hers, she leaned in and kissed him before Mike could react. When Dani pulled back, Mike's eyes were frozen open in shock. Dani opened her mouth to speak, but she was interrupted by the third person in the room that neither Dani nor Mike realized had entered.
"What's going on?" El demanded from the doorway.
Mike immediately stood and turned to see her standing in the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest, and her fiery eyes glaring at him and Dani from above her pursed lips.
"E-El! It's not what it looks like. Sh-she kissed me," Mike insisted, forgetting momentarily about El's betrayal he had just learned about.
"From where I'm standing, it didn't exactly look like you tried to stop her," El said, stepping fully into the classroom.
"And from where I was standing yesterday, it didn't look like you were exactly pushing Eric away either," Dani shot back, standing next to Mike.
"Is that what this is about? You don't even know what you're talking about, Dani," El stated. "Eric and I never kissed."
"I told him what I saw, and he said it was true," Dani argued.
"He's lying to you! Because he's a lying piece of shit, and he doesn't care who he hurts!" El exclaimed and then turned toward Mike. "That's what I came here to tell you. I know what you must've heard, and it's not true."
Mike was looking at her, but it was like he was looking through her. He turned to face Dani.
"Could you give us some time alone to talk?" he asked.
It looked like Dani was about to protest, but she looked back and forth between Mike and El and eventually left the classroom.
"Mike, I know what Dani thinks she saw, but let me explain," El began when they were alone.
"You want to explain now? I gave you so many chances to explain yesterday after it happened," Mike said.
"I know, but… But I didn't know Dani saw anything-"
"So what Dani saw is true?" Mike interrupted.
"No! Would you just listen for a minute?" El pleaded. "Eric came on to me yesterday. He did. He came toward me, and I backed up until I was up against the table. I physically couldn't go any further, Mike. He put his hands down on the table, casing me in. But I promise you, I told him to stop. I told him that I'm with you, and that I'm happy with you, and that I don't want him."
"Why did Dani say she saw him kissing you?" Mike asked.
"Because he leaned down to whisper into my ear," El replied. "He wasn't kissing me, Mike. And then I pushed him away and told him no again. That's the whole story, everything that happened. You've got to believe me."
"Why didn't you tell me any of this yesterday?" Mike asked. "It happened at the start of break. You didn't say anything during lunch, and you didn't say anything after classes, and I gave you so many opportunities."
"If you seriously thought there was any truth to what Dani thought she saw, why didn't you just ask me about it?" El retorted.
"Because, El, I wanted to see if you would tell me that something had happened," Mike exclaimed. "I asked how your day was, if anything unusual happened. Shit, I even asked about Eric, and you told me nothing happened. You said he was being nice and friendly-"
"And I told you that he started to get too friendly, and I told him no and moved on," El interjected. "I told you that, Mike. I didn't go into every little detail about it because I didn't want to make you worry even more-"
"Well clearly, I wasn't wrong to be worried, was I?" Mike asked. "I knew he was going to try something."
"And when he did, I rejected him," El emphasized each word.
"Then you lied to me and told me nothing happened," Mike said.
"No, I chose to be vague about it and just tell you that he started to get too friendly, so I told him no. I did that for your benefit, Mike," El said defensively.
"My benefit? How is any of this for my benefit?" Mike demanded.
"Because I didn't want to feed into your insecurities," El blurted out. "Because you're so damn concerned that I'm going to leave you for the first guy who looks my way, and I didn't want to give you any more reasons to think that way."
"Well I'm sorry that the shit that I'm insecure about in my own life is such a burden to you," Mike said.
"It's not a burden, Mike. You can always talk to me-"
"Whenever I tried to talk to you about this, you turned it into an issue of trust," Mike exclaimed. "You think the fact that I'm worried about Eric making a move on you means that I don't trust you."
"No, I think the fact that you don't trust me means that you don't trust me," El spat.
"I did trust you, El," Mike stated. "I trusted you more than I've ever trusted anyone. And then you hid something from me the day after having a big conversation about how I need to trust you. So what am I supposed to think, El? Hell, for all I know, you could be lying to me right now."
"What are you talking about?" El asked.
"How do I know Eric didn't tell you that he found out Dani saw you guys making out yesterday, so you put two and two together and figured out that Dani told me too. So you rushed over here with this bullshit story about how Dani saw him whisper in your ear and thought it was a kiss," Mike said.
"Don't be crazy," El said.
"Don't call me crazy, El. I wasn't crazy when this happened to me before, and I'm not crazy now," Mike insisted.
"Mike, I'm sorry about what happened to you before, but I didn't do that. I have been nothing but honest with you until yesterday," El said. "Yesterday, I hid some details from you, and I'm sorry. I thought I was doing it to protect you, and if I had known this would happen, I would have told you everything from the beginning. I promise."
"It doesn't matter anymore, El," Mike said. "What matters now is whether I can trust you not to keep things from me."
El was silent. She stepped closer toward him and noticed that he wouldn't look her in the eye.
"When we leave here and you go back to Chicago, you'll be, like, four hours away from me," Mike said much more calmly.
"Trusting each other will be all that we've got," El said softly.
"I know," Mike said. "And I'm sorry."
El felt her stomach drop to the floor.
"Sorry for what?" she asked.
He still wouldn't meet her eyes.
"I'm sorry that I just can't trust that no guy in Chicago would hit on you… or that you wouldn't hide things from me… or that you wouldn't fall for one of them," Mike said slowly.
"W-what are you saying?" El asked, her lip quivering as her heart rose into her throat.
"I'm saying that," Mike paused and swallowed hard before forcing himself to continue. "I'm saying that this long-distance… it would be too hard."
"You don't mean that," El said softly. "You don't mean that. You were going to visit me on weekends and Christmas. I was going to come to Hawkins. We were going to text and facetime and – you don't mean that."
"Yes I do," Mike said just above a whisper.
El's breaths came out in short, rapid succession as she tried to stop her world from spinning. How could these words be coming out of the same mouth that had kissed her all over just hours ago?
"If you mean it," El said, her voice shaking. "Then look at me. Look me in the eye and tell me, Mike."
He slowly looked up to meet her gaze, and El felt numb all over. The light in his eyes was gone. Where there was usually adoration when he looked at her, now there was nothing. His eyes were dark and cold.
"It's best to end things now before we get too attached… It was only a matter of time," Mike said, not breaking their eye contact.
El felt a sharp pain in her lungs, and she gasped in and squeezed her eyes shut tight. When she opened them, Mike was still looking at her. She opened her mouth to speak, but the lump in her throat wouldn't let any words come out. Not wanting to cry here, she shook her head and turned away from him and walked out of the classroom.
When she was gone, Mike sat back down and rested his head in his hands, letting his walls come back down enough to release some of the pain he was holding in. He closed his eyes as tears started to fall, but all he could see was El's face as he told her they were through, that he was ending things before they became too attached. He knew it was too good to be true all along.
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A/N: Well, here we had the big fight that some of you predicted. Mike is clearly hurting and pushing El away to avoid more pain and his insecurities driving himself crazy while she's in Chicago. And don't worry, the fact that Dani kissed Mike isn't something that I'm going to just gloss over. I do hope you guys liked this chapter, even if you aren't happy with me for causing more Mileven conflict. I am going out of town this weekend, so don't expect another chapter until Monday at the earliest, but probably Tuesday if I'm being realistic. I wish I could've left you guys on a happier note, but please remember to leave me a review and let me know your thoughts!