I'm back, and I thought Saudade was the perfect title to this chapter for me and Allison. My sister reminded me of this word recently and it made me question what I longed for, it didn't take long for me to realise I longed for a return to me, to my creative outlets, for a return to Allison. Gosh I missed her!

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed and liked and followed I saw all of it and it really helped so much. I'll try not to be so all over the place and get these one-shots finished, I bloody loved ST3 and I can't wait to have Robin and Allison in the same scenes.

Floating far away,
But close enough that I perceive the pain,

Do I even try?
Or do I let this beat me,
Do I even try?
Cause I hate the way I treat me,

My Head Wants Me Dead - Bell City Square

It was an awful day to be outside. Allison would consider herself lucky to walk away from today without a cold or hypothermia. It hadn't rained yet, but it was coming, she could feel the crispness of rain in her throat, and the surrounding forest permeated the air with dampness that could only mean one thing. So as excited as she was for her first track meet at Hawkins High School, Allison couldn't say she was to keen on getting struck by lightning or hit over the head with hail. Both definite possibilities with her luck.

"You amped?"

Allison turns from her inspection of the track to the smiling blonde behind her. Melinda had gone above and beyond the last month to help Allison prepare, they trained every day sometimes twice. Allison had barely seen her friends since returning to school from Christmas break. A fact Steve, who still saw her more than anyone, including her Mom, complained about frequently.

"I'm worried about the rain," Allison admitted, pulling the zip of her green track jacket up to her neck. "The last thing I need is to like fall on my face or get struck by lightning." She joked mostly. The pair walked back to the bench the Hawkins team had commandeered near the gym.

"Don't be stupid; you're gonna be so fine. I mean as fine as 2nd place can be," Melinda grinned earning a small shove from her friend. "Sorry, just have to keep you humble, bimbette."

"You did not just call me that you cow," Allison laughs, sitting herself down in the grass to begin her stretches. "Just for that I'm gonna destroy you." Melinda joined her with a cheeky grin, adjusting her white runners before copying Allison's movements.

"I saw the whole motley crew are here to support you. I saw Steve yelling at one of your brothers' friends, the one in the cap."

Allison snorted a laugh, "Dustin." She supplied. "He's a little shit, he and Steve have a big brother, little brother thing going on. It's super cute." She glanced up to the 100-meter finish line, where they had all decided to cheer her on. Watching Jonathan and Nancy all bundled up in winter wear, Nancy's jacket brown while Jonathan wore his denim.

They were both laughing as Dustin and Steve argued, Allison could see the look of complete disbelief on Dustin's face, and the red cheeks of her best friend and she couldn't help but chuckle. Whatever smart or nerdy reference Dustin had made went right over Steve's head, much to the younger teen's annoyance, it had become a regular occurrence with the pair. They had grown close since the incident, Steve still gave the kid woeful advice, and he even drove him to the winter formal where Nancy and Allison both danced with him and his thankfully one-time-only Steve hairstyle. However, a brotherly bond could only get them so far, they were still opposites, and it showed now and again.

"I'm glad Dustin has someone in his life he can talk to like a big brother, he just has his Mom, and I can't imagine a young kid would ever want to talk to his Mom about 'boy stuff.' I think the responsibility has been good for Steve as well, he considers what he says, and he's so much more responsible just in the last few months that I've known him. Plus, he adores that kid as hard as he tries to deny it."

Melinda nods in agreement watching them as well. "I forget that you haven't known him for very long, the Steve I've known my whole life is a world away from this Steve. I used to sit at lunch with him, but I would never talk to him if I could help it, he was the biggest dick I'd ever met." Mel grins as she finishes her stretches and stands, helping Allison up. "I forget sometimes he acts like a real person now." Allison smiled at her friend, Allison herself forgot that everyone here knew a different Steve then she did, she was just glad he had become the kind and brave boy she knew now.

Allison would only be doing 100 meters today much to her frustration; Coach had put his foot down when she tried to argue saying he couldn't handle another phone call from her mother stressing about her health. She didn't push too hard worried he'd take sub her out altogether and she was chomping at the bit to run as fast as she could. They had a cross-country in three weeks, and she refused to miss it, she decided to pick her battles.

There were five schools from close counties in Indiana competing and Melinda had already pointed out the legit contenders. Also taking the time and introducing her to a few of the other runners'. Boys and girls would be running together as this meet was more for fun and practice as the season hadn't yet started again after Spring break. Allison had set herself an achievable goal of making it to the final in the 100, whatever she placed she was going to be happy.

Lining up in the fourth line, Allison cleared her mind and did a few final stretches. Melinda lined up in the fifth position, and they shared a quick look before the first whistle sounded to get into position. She set her feet onto the blocks. Allison felt her back automatically arch, her fingers tingled as they touched the red slightly springy track and she grinned as the second whistle went off. She'd never felt more ready.

The final whistle sounded, and Allison kicked off, feeling herself fly across the track she knew so well. The wind was vicious as it whipped against her bare arms and legs, her long ponytail flying behind her. The chill made her push harder, Steve had her jacket, and she wanted to be back inside it terribly. It was over in 11.37 seconds later. She had beaten Melinda by 0.04 seconds. Daniel shouted and whooped when her name was called over the megaphone as the victor f the 1st heat. Her eyes flicked over to her friends all clapping and grinning like mad for the pair. When her coach finished talking stats, he let her go, and she jogged over with a giant grin. Daniel met her with a hug and shining eyes.

"Alli, you were so fast! You were a blur we couldn't even see you!"

"The Flash would be so proud!" Max exclaimed.

Allison laughed, listening to all the kids talk at once as they replayed the heat from there perspective. "Look at you at a sporting event, Jonathan Byers!? Who would have thought we'd see the day?" Allison joked, feeling her heavy black jacket placed over her shoulders. She smiled gratefully at Steve, he returned it his puppy eyes sparkling with pride.

"Yeah, I guess there really is a first time for everything." He joked while Nancy gave her a giant grin. "Ready for the next one?"

Allison nodded, tucking her cold hands into her sides under the jacket. "So ready, I think Mel and I can make it to the finals."

"There is no way you aren't making it! I wouldn't be surprised if you won the whole thing Ally." Daniel clapped excitedly, Max and Dustin nodded enthusiastically, turning toward each other to recap the entire race and figure out if Allison really was faster than The Flash.

Allison rolled her eyes, turning around and meeting Steve's friendly gaze, her smile falling when his face betrayed his concern. "What?" She asks cautiously, Allison had a pretty good idea where this was going. Steve's 'concerned' face usually meant he was either going to tell her to stop researching something weird because it was making her crazy or he was going to start trying to pick her up and make her stay off her feet. He was worse than her Mom.

"You know its okay if you don't win, right? The fact that you are back competing so well after your accident already makes you a winner." Steve sighs, rubbing his jaw in frustration, "I don't mean to like ruin the mood or anything, sorry." Allison smiles at her friend whose hands slide into the pockets of his favourite jacket while he looks at the ground and red tint sitting on his cheeks.

"I know, and I'm honestly happy just to be running again. I told myself that I'd be happy getting to the finals, but that felt so good I wouldn't care if that's all I got. I know my limits, and I know my body, can you trust me not to push myself too hard?"

Steve sighed, opening his arms and Allison launched herself at him with a grin. "You are an amazing friend most of the time, Steve Harrington." She chuckled, her arms squeezing his neck.

"Wait, most of the time?"

"Yeah, well you have terrible taste in music. You still haven't seen Indiana Jones despite my insistence that it's my favourite movie, you burp in the car with the windows up, I really hate that. You won't let me play Fleetwood whenever I want, you've put a gag order on any conversations about New Coke, the crusade is not over by the way. But, I mean other than that, you really are like the perfect best friend, even when your more Sam than Bugs."

Steve's chuckles rumble through her chest, making her grin stretch. "Well, you are the perfect best friend just as you are." Allison pulls back slightly so she can stare at his face, appalled.

"So you are trying to tell me I have no faults," Allison remarks, pulling back to look at her friend.

"You have faults; they just don't annoy me like mine apparently annoy you," Steve replied, his firmly in place.

"That is a straight-up damn lie. I know my obsession with New Coke drives you crazy." Allison raises an eyebrow challengingly. "I'm obsessive, I pull faces at you when you aren't looking, I really am a smart ass, I sing Madonna like really loudly at every opportunity. You hate Madonna." Allison spoke rapidly, ticking off each thing off on her fingers. Steve's fingers press into her back a little more firmly, and his face turns thoughtful.

"I do, however, I like you. And you have a pretty voice; it makes it bearable."

"I take back everything I said; a perfect best friend wouldn't act so horrifically blind to my faults. Wow has our entire friendship been a lie? I don't know how to overcome this frankly shocking revelation." Allison frowned, resting her hands delicately on Steve's arms. Steve grinned and launched into a long list of things that hypothetically could annoy him about his best friend while Jonathan and Nancy watched on.

"Do you think they realise they are completely in love?" Nancy asked, amused by the unwitting couple. Jonathan huffed a laugh, twining his cold fingers with hers and watching his friend pass Harrington her jacket with a soft sparkle in her blue eyes.

"She doesn't, not yet but it won't be much longer." He replied,

"Before Summer for sure," Nancy replied, nibbling her lip thoughtfully. Jonathan turned to his girlfriend, catching her biting her lip and easing her teeth away with his thumb.

"The first week of July," Jonathan replied with his rare crinkled smile. Nancy cocks an eyebrow and smirks that she thinks that sounds like a bet. "I mean it's a bet if you want to lose Nance." Laughing, Nancy leaned in and pressed her chapped lips to his, not caring that they both in desperate need of a lip balm.

"five dollars says graduation then."

"Hmm, deal."

They seal it with another kiss much to the chagrin of the young teenagers walking back from the concession stand.

"C'mon, stop being gross! Alli is about to race again. She's totally going to win!" Lucas exclaims earning enthusiastic agreements from the other party members.

She didn't win, but she did come 2nd (damn Melinda.) For right now, it felt like she had just won gold at the Olympics, and that was all she needed. Well, until cross country in three weeks.