The familiar clatter of dishes was what woke Jenny up, well, that and the fact her dad had the radio up pretty damn loud. She didn't mind though, she quite enjoyed mornings. She let herself lie in bed for a while longer, listening to the muffled songs. The list of things she had to do today was pretty minimal but it would be rather boring; school, essay writing and study. Pretty simple, really. At sixteen, life was pretty easy… but mundane.

Jenny's life in Hawkins was one that wasn't very interesting and it wasn't very fun. It was the same routine over and over, constantly cycling through the same events one after the other. She'd wake up, shower, have breakfast, go to school, come home, do homework, eat dinner and go to bed. It was the same routine over and over. Even weekends were mundane. She'd stay at home, read, do more homework, watch TV, spend time with her father. Once every few weeks, her father would take her out for dinner and they'd see a movie. Life was boring. Jenny wasn't complaining, her life as boring as it was, was her life. She'd gotten used to the normalcy of it all. Would she rather a peaceful, calm yet boring life or a chaotic, busy yet fun life? She would pick the former. Little did she know that in a couple of days the choice would no longer be hers...

She got up, went in a quick shower, and got ready. Her bag was already packed, a habit her mom had gotten her into years ago was to always pack the night before, and neatly tucked by the end of her bed. She picked it up and walked out of her bedroom. The trailer that she lived in with her father was dingy and small and probably wouldn't be classed as much of a home to other people but Jenny loved it. She loved how remote it was; no neighbours, no nuisances. Jenny was like her father; they pretty much hated anyone who wasn't their own kin and even then sometimes they still hated them. Well, credit to Jenny, she was nicer than her father but not by much. Her lack of appropriate social skills and blunt honesty was something that turned a lot of people off of her. Oh well, Jenny didn't mind the loneliness, it added to the mundane lifestyle she'd grown so accustomed to.

The first thing that hit her was the smell of coffee and then the fact her dad was swaying around the kitchen, rather goofily, as he made pancakes.

"Are you dancing?" Jenny grinned, dropping her bag. It was rare to see such a sight. Jim Hopper was rarely in this good of a mood in the mornings especially. It was nice to witness; a reminder of what he father had been like before they lost Sara. He was still the same man but he was sad now; always sad. Jenny hated that. She wished she could've helped him heal but she knew that would never happen, the whole family was splintered and broken; they could never be fixed.

He stopped dancing to look at her and Jenny almost wished she'd not said anything, she missed him being happy, "Are you judging your old man's dancing?"

"Oh, I definitely am. Stick to being the Chief of Police, don't take dancing as a career."

Hopper laughed, "I'll keep that one in mind." He placed a plate of pancakes, with syrup drizzled over them generously on top, on the table, "I slaved over those."

Jenny rolled her eyes as she sat at the small table, "You buy a pre-made mixture. All you do is try to not burn them."

He gave a snort of laughter as he pulled his lighter out of his pocket, "I'll drive you to school today before work, might need to leave a little earlier though."

She plucked the cigarette out of his hands and shook her head, "We had a deal, remember? No smoking before ten in the morning."

He rolled her eyes, "Eat your pancakes, kid."

As Jenny ate her pancakes, her mind wandered to years ago when her dad had tried to make pancakes from scratch. Sara had wanted them and their dad was going to give that little girl everything she wanted… Well, he would have given her it all but… shit happens. Jenny smiled fondly as she recalled the blackened pancakes and having to stand out in the garden in her pyjamas with Sara laughing as their dad tried to air out the house from the smoke.

Hopper broke her out of her thoughts, "Ready?"

Jenny pushed those thoughts away and finished off her pancakes before grabbing her bag and setting out the door with her father behind.

They didn't speak much as they drove to school. The town was quiet, like it usually was. Hawkins was a quiet town. Not much happened here. Jenny liked the town. Sure, there wasn't lots to do when you didn't have a lot of friends but it was nice. It was safe.

Hopper tapped the steering wheel along to the music that played on the radio, "Your mom loved this song," he murmured, "used to make me dance to it all the time." Jenny smiled slightly as she imagined it. She hadn't seen her mom in almost a year. She lived a few hours away and… it was just different. Her parents had split a few months after Sara passed. It was just too hard. Jenny understood why it was hard for her mom. After her parents divorced, Jenny moved back to Hawkins with her dad, her mom never tried to make her stay. With her dad, it was easier to talk or to not talk about things. He was funny, he took her out, he helped her study; sure, he wasn't perfect but he tried. Her mom was just constantly reminded of Sara and Jenny didn't blame her for being upset. She was sure her dad felt the same way but hid it better. Jenny was five years older than Sara and they had looked so similar. Sara was seven when she died, Jenny was twelve at the time. It was horrible, even four years later it was just as horrible. Her mom couldn't look at Jenny without seeing her dead daughter. Sometimes Jenny would catch her own reflection and it would remind her of Sara. She knew her dad felt the same, too, but just didn't show it. It was harder for her mom, she supposed.

Hopper slowed down and pulled up just outside Hawkins High School, "Got everything?" Jenny nodded as she picked her bag up from her feet, "I'm working late tonight, kid. You okay to catch a ride with a friend?"

"Sure," she smiled before saying goodbye and hopping out the car. She'd be walking home tonight. You see, Jenny Hopper didn't have many friends, or any friends at all for that matter. She was a 'loner'. She never really minded, it kept her out of trouble at least. It wasn't that she was horrible or anything of the sort. It was the fact that her father was the Chief of Police. She supposed kids didn't like hanging around her in fear she'd tattle on their late night escapades. Well, that and the fact she had a very blunt and stubborn nature. She was her father's daughter, as the saying goes.

Jenny liked school, well she liked learning. The annoying jocks that went there, she could do without. No one really took notice of her in school, she wasn't really liked but she wasn't disliked either. Jenny was just… there. It wasn't a bad thing that she wasn't popular or widely known in school, it meant bullies never bothered to target her. She was lonely but she was used to that by now.

She went to her locker to put get her chemistry books when Nancy Wheeler and Barb, two girls she knew of but had never really spoken to, walked over to Nancy's locker which was a few down from Jenny's. They were talking excitedly about something. Jenny caught the gist of it; Nancy and Steve Harrington – or 'King Steve' as his idiot friends called him – were kind of a thing. Jenny didn't care, not that it was any of her business in the first place, but she wasn't into gossip or fawning over the latest 'it' couple. She liked to keep to herself but it was lonely. That's what having a sister was good for, a forever friend, but she didn't even have that anymore.

Jenny turned to walk away when someone called her name. Nancy stood behind her, "You dropped your notebook," she smiled as she picked it up and offered it back to Jenny.

Jenny smiled, surprised, "Thanks." She took it off the pretty brunette and went to walk away when Nancy stopped her again.

"Are you ready for Kamisky's test on Wednesday?" Nancy asked her.

Jenny was surprised Nancy even realised they were in the same class, "Uh, kinda?" She shrugged, "I mean, I've studied but his tests are pretty impossible. The stuff that will be in the test probably won't even be stuff we've covered in class."

With a nod, Nancy said, "That's what I said. I better go," she smiled secretly, palming a sheet of paper in her hand, "But maybe we could study together or share notes or something later?" Nancy had already bode farewell and turned away before Jenny could even answer. She was sure she offered out of politeness, maybe even pity, she and Nancy weren't friends; hell, that was the longest conversation they'd had! But still, Jenny thought it was nice of her to offer, even if the offer was that of pity.

School passed pretty quickly. She had English and then Biology, both subjects she enjoyed and was good at, and then a study period just before lunch. Jenny sat in the library, scanning through her chemistry notes, she wanted to get at least a B- on Kaminsky's test and even that would be hard.

A bag dropped in front of her and she looked up to see Nancy, "Can I sit here?" Jenny nodded, a little too shocked to speak, "I brought my chem notes, too, in case you want to have a look over."

"You really were genuine about studying together?" The question came out of her mouth before she'd even thought about how lame it sounded.

Nancy frowned but quickly hid her confusion with a smile, "Yeah… I know that we don't really talk much-" at all, "-but I thought it would be good if we helped each other out for this test. Do you have the notes from last Wednesday? I wasn't in and haven't had a chance to copy anyone's yet."

Jenny nodded and turned her notebook to Wednesday's lesson, "It might be a little messy, you know how fast he writes on the board." Nancy gave a small laugh before she began to copy the notes.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, Nancy writing and Jenny thinking. She didn't know what to say. She wasn't sure what she was supposed to say. She never thought this sort of situation would happen and she'd never really had friends to talk to. Jenny was nervous, she realised, as silly as it was this was uncharted territory for her. After Sara passed, Jenny closed herself off to new experiences, new friendships and even romances (not that there had been even a chance for a possible romance). It had been her defence mechanism, again learned from her dad, that she had to withdraw all emotion almost completely. She pushed her friends she'd had then away and… she'd never found a way to really break those barriers down.

"Thanks for studying with me," Jenny said quietly, looking down at the book in front of her, "It's nice of you."

Nancy smiled at the now suddenly very shy girl, "You seem really nice, Jenny… Why have we never spoken before?"

Jenny looked up and shrugged, "I guess no one wants to be friends with the Chief of Police's daughter. People think that I'll tell my dad about what they do in their private life and it must scare people off… Or maybe I'm just a very unlikeable person."

Nancy laughed, "I happen to think you're a really nice person. And, hey, if you ever need someone to study with or hang with, I'm here."

Jenny smiled and thanked the pretty brunette, "That means a lot, Nancy. Thank you." She doubted the authenticity of the offer but she appreciated it; it was, after all, the first time anyone really had spoken to her in school aside from group projects.

Nancy handed her notes back, "Do you have any idea how to do question seven on the mock test he gave us? I've been trying all week and I just can't."

The rest of the day went by as normal. Nothing unusual happened. She got a B on her History essay which was great considering she'd pulled it together in an hour and she got given a mountain of math homework but nothing else. She never really spoke to anyone after her study period with Nancy but she didn't mind. She enjoyed the silence and time to herself. But, it was rather nice to talk to Nancy. Jenny found herself thinking about it a lot during the rest of the day. She'd forgotten what having friends felt like. She hoped that maybe they'd do that more often. It was nice to talk to someone her own age; it was nice to talk to a girl her own age. Trying to talk to her dad about stuff sometimes could be pretty awkward especially after getting her period. She shuddered at the thought of that horrendous conversation.

"Well, uh, this, uh, thing happens when a girl is, uh, ready to be, erm, fertile-"

"Jesus Christ, dad! I know what a period is! I just need pads!"

Yikes.

When school was over, Jenny was surprised to see her dad's police wagon sitting outside. She walked over and climbed into the car, "I thought you were working."

"I am," Hopper sighed, "I've been at the middle school talking to some kids and thought I'd swing by and get you."

"Anything serious?"

Hopper shrugged, "Missing kid case; Byers."

"As in Jonathan Byers?"

He nodded, "His younger brother. Their mom was in the office this morning, real worried. Says something must've happened to him, he'd never run away. She thinks something terrible has happened."

"And what do you think?"

Hopper shrugged, "I don't know yet. You know this is a small town, nothing bad ever happens here... After I drop you off home, I'm going out with a couple of the guys, see if we see anything and go from there… You know Jonathan?"

Jenny shook her head, "Not personally, no. Just seen him about here and there. Quiet boy."

They pulled up outside of their house, "Don't wait up for me tonight, kid. God knows when I'll be home. You okay for dinner?"

She nodded and said goodbye before getting out the car and watching her dad drive away. He didn't seem too worried about the missing person's case, probably because nothing like that ever happened in Hawkins, but there was a niggling thought at the back of Jenny's mind that said that things would change round here and maybe not for the better.

She pushed the thoughts away and went inside. It would be another TV dinner for her tonight, purely because she couldn't be bothered cooking, plus she wasn't very good at it. She never thought about the missing boy again that night, it wasn't that she didn't care but it was because she had so much going on in her head today. She couldn't stress out or think about too many things otherwise it would send her into a frenzy.

Jenny began to wind down. She had her dinner, did some of her essay and relaxed. She kept thinking about Nancy Wheeler. It made her nervous that she'd started talking to her and had seemingly offered to be her friend but simultaneously, it excited her. A large part of her hoped that Nancy was genuine about the offer, Jenny wouldn't admit it but she wanted a friend, she wanted a friend so badly. It was new and Jenny hadn't experienced anything new in years. Honestly, she'd missed having friends. She wouldn't admit it but it was hard being a 'loner', it was comfortable but that didn't mean it was fun or easy.

When she went to bed that night, she slept soundly, she had no idea about the dark things that lurked in the shadows of Hawkins, Indiana, but she would find out soon enough. Soon, she'd been wishing for that mundane life of hers would come back.