When they all awoke, the ground outside was covered in a thick layer of glistening white snow. A call to Mrs. Wheeler assured them that school was cancelled for the day, leaving them to laze about the house as they wished.

El was the last one asleep, slumped across the couch with as many blankets as they could find piled on top of her. The kids huddled around her, each desperate for her to wake so they could greet her. They'd been in separate cars on the drive home, and as soon as they'd arrived at Steve's house, El and Mike had curled up and fallen asleep.

"I'm hugging her first," Max announced.

Lucas snorted. "Like hell you are," he challenged.

Suddenly, El stirred. She opened her eyes, taking in the view of her four friends crowded around her. She hesitated for a moment, then beamed up at them.

"El," Dustin exclaimed, leaning forward and wrapping his arms around her. Lucas and Max shared an exasperated look, then simply rolled their eyes and sat back.

El inspected Dustin's mouth closely. "Still no teeth," she said mournfully.

Dustin shrugged. "Suzie says I kiss better without them."

Letting out a genuine laugh, El turned from him to Max. She leapt off the couch and wrapped her friend in a giant bear hug. The girls held each other tightly, as if letting go would somehow send them apart again.

They pulled apart, El inspecting Max's wardrobe. She wore a fiery red Thrasher sweatshirt and dark black jeans. Her hair was tied up in a tight bun, her eyes accentuated with sparkling red eye shadow.

"Bitchin," El exclaimed.

Max laughed. "Yeah," she said smugly, "I guess so."

Lucas pushed her aside. "Alright, that's enough." He smiled widely at El, opening his arms. For a brief moment, he was transported back to when he first met her. Distrust, anger, fear. All of that was gone now, replaced with affection and overwhelming relief that she wasn't hurt.

The two embraced tightly. "Missed you," she said.

"Yeah, yeah, I missed you, too," Lucas said. "I'm just glad that you're not still being held captive by the commies."

"Alright, everybody back up," Mike announced waving his arms like a traffic guard. "She needs her personal space, ladies and gents. You guys are overwhelming her."

El rolled her eyes. "I'm fine," she told Mike with a small smile.

"Yeah, piss off," Max said, shoving him in the chest. The two girls giggled as Mike readjusted his shirt and pushed his hair out of his face.

"Not funny, you two. This was the part I missed the least about El living here," he muttered, stepping back to stand between Dustin and Lucas.

"Hey, it's almost noon. What do you dipshits want for lunch?" Steve called from the kitchen. He emerged into the Living Room, dish towel still hung over his shoulder. "I've got pretty much every type of food you can imagine, so don't be shy."

"Spaghetti," Dustin called back. "And Apple Taters."

Steve squinted. "Apple Taters? What the hell are those?"

"Nevermind," Dustin sighed. "My Grandpa Shane used to make them for us at Henderson family reunions. But I guess they're just too sophisticated for you, Steve Harrington."

Scrunching his eyebrows, Steve disappeared back into the kitchen. "I'll get you your apple taters," they heard him muttering. "They'll be the best damn apple taters you ever tasted."

The five kids looked at each other, then let out a loud laugh. For that moment, they forgot all about the monsters, about the Russians. They were just a group of friends on a snow day, making fun of their babysitter.

Then Mike's face dropped. "I wish Will were here," he said. "It doesn't feel right without him."

Lucas put a hand on his shoulder. "I know how you feel."

"Should have invited him to your little thing," Max said with a shrug. "Kind of on you, man."

Mike rolled his eyes. "Yeah, because he would have had so much fun hanging around El and I all day. Not to mention Jonathan and Nancy. We didn't even tell him where we were going so he wouldn't squeal to Joyce."

"He's probably freaking out right now," Dustin said with an incredulous look.

"Wait," El said suddenly, face filled with fear. "What day is it?"

The other kids shared a worried glance. She'd been asleep when the call cancelling school had been made. She had lost all track of time in the prison; she probably thought it was Sunday still.

"It's Monday," Max said, putting a hand on El's shoulder.

"Shit," El exclaimed, walking past her friends to Jonathan, who was talking quietly with Nancy and Robin. She reached up and tugged on his sleeve.

He turned around, brushing a hair out of her face. "Morning, sleepyhead," he said with a smile. "What' up?"

"Joyce," El said simply.

Jonathan's face fell. He rushed towards the phone, picking it up and pressing buttons frantically. But the little machine remained silent, sending both Byers siblings into a panicked frenzy.

"She's going to kill us," Jonathan groaned. "Damn snow knocking out power lines."

El pulled at her hair. For some reason, she felt this was far scarier than anything she'd faced in the Russian compound, the Starcourt Mall, or Hawkins Lab. A worked up Joyce could make anybody scared for their life.

Mike put an arm around her. "It'll be fine," he said. "We'll contact her as soon as the power lines are back up."

Somehow, that didn't reassure her.

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WHOLESOME Byers siblings interaction. I love these two so much. Honestly, I'm kind of enjoying writing the sibling dynamics more than the romantic relationships haha. They're just so adorable! Also, I LOVE these kids. I tried super hard to get the chemistry right between all of them.