Disclaimer: I don't own Stranger Things or any of the characters in this story.


Chapter 7: Heaven

El awoke the next morning feeling very refreshed, the events of the middle of the night all but forgotten. Looking at the clock on her bedside table, she saw that it was just after 8:30 in the morning. She hopped out of bed and quickly pulled on a striped t-shirt and denim shorts. If Mike was excited like she was, he'd probably be over shortly.

She ran a brush through her hair, gave it one last tousle for good measure, then skipped over to the bathroom to brush her teeth. She'd be damned if Mike caught her with morning breath. Once she deemed herself passable, she walked out to the kitchen, where she found Hopper fiddling with the microwave.

"Hey kid," he greeted. "Seems as though we lost power at some point last night. The clocks on the stove and the microwave were flashing when I walked out here." Hopper studied El curiously. "You're up kind of early aren't you?"

El shrugged. "Not really. Mike said he'd be by this morning."

Hopper let out a huff. It was time to have that talk about PDAs. "Yeah about that, I wanted to talk to you real quick. Could you have a seat?"

"Sure," she replied apprehensively after a pause.

"You're not in any trouble…" Hopper began. "It's just, well, it's about last night."

"My date?"

"Yeah. I mean, what happened after your date."

"Okay…?"

Shit. This was harder than Hopper thought it was going to be. Might as well just come out with it.

"Kid, I'm really concerned about…"

RIIIIIIIIIIIIING

"Damn it," Hopper exclaimed, smacking his hand on the top of the microwave. He pointed at El. "Hold that thought." Picking up the ringing phone harshly, he barked, "Yeah?"

El watched Hopper's face change as he listened to whoever was on the other line. Whatever was happening had to be of some seriousness, as his facial expression changed from annoyance to concern. "Slow down, Flo. What? Okay, but what about Powell or Callahan? Can't they take care of it?" He scrubbed his face with his hand in frustration. "Fine. I'll be there soon." With that, he hung up.

"What's wrong," asked EL.

"What's the point of having other officers if they can't do their god damn jobs," Hopper complained. "I'm sorry, El. I've got to head into work a little early. Larry Howard didn't come home last night, and his wife is at the station worried sick." He shook his head. "But I know Larry, and I know that he probably just had a few too many."

"A few too many what?"

"Drinks, El. Beer, liquor, that sort of thing. He's probably sleeping it off in his car somewhere."

Hopper grabbed his hat off the hook next to the door and moved to walk outside. However, he remembered that his teenage daughter was not going to be alone while he was at work. He looked back at El, a warning on his face.

"I had better not come home to see you and Wheeler connected at the face…got it?"

El's cheeks reddened. "Got it."

"Good. Please be safe today. And DO NOT answer the door unless you hear the secret knock."

"Only Mike and Max know the secret knock," El said with a frown.

"Then there'd better not be anyone over except for Mike and Max." Hopper took one more look around the cabin then opened the door to a startled Mike, who had his hand raised in a fist, ready to knock. "…And speak of the devil…" He gave one last pointed glance at El, grunted a greeting at Mike, then walked out to his car.

Once again, Mike had brought his guitar and a backpack full of comics, games, snacks, cassette tapes of music, and a couple of movies. He made no apology for wanting to be prepared.

Mike had barely made it into the cabin with his things, when El rushed over and wrapped her arms around his waist. She inhaled the clean scent of his shirt. "I missed you," she whispered.

"I missed you, too," he murmured, swaying them back and forth. As musicians sometimes do, he began to hum a quiet melody. But it quickly turned louder and sillier. It WAS Mike Wheeler, after all.

"Baby you're all that I want, when you're lyin' here in my arms…"

As he sang, he grabbed El's arms and flung them out, making her laugh. "I'm findin' it hard to be believe we're in heav-asfdskasfdskasfdsk," he finished the verse, sticking his tongue out and making a rude noise.

El's mouth popped open, causing Mike to chuckle mischievously. "What, you don't like it," he teased.

She crossed her arms over her chest and raised her eyebrows at him. "You can't do that to Bryan Adams," she retorted.

"So you HAVE been listening," he replied, excitedly. "I knew you'd love that tape. It's so good!"

"Yes, it is! Why did you make a fart noise during the song?"

Mike held his hands out in front of himself, like a surrender. "Okay, okay. I'm sorry. It was just a joke. Let me make it up to you."

"How?"

His eyes turned serious as he stepped towards El, cupping her cheek with his hand. "I have an idea," he whispered just before he closed the gap between the two of them.

El sighed into the kiss, reaching up to grip his shoulder with one hand and thread her fingers through his hair with the other. While they were kissing, she felt Mike's bottom lip between hers. She took the initiative and tried something new – sucking on it lightly. He opened his eyes in shock before humming dreamily and pulling El closer.

By the time they finally pulled away from each other, the two infatuated teenagers were breathing heavily and their cheeks were pink. "Good morning," gasped a smiling El.

"Good morning back," replied Mike. He suddenly went rigid with a thought. "Hey, is Hopper going to be gone a while?"

"I think so. The station needed him in early."

"I hope everything's okay." After a beat, he continued with a glint in his eyes, "So we'll be alone, then?"

El bit her lip and nodded, but just as the two of them began to move in again, her stomach growled loudly. Mike chuckled. "Breakfast time?"

"Eggos," El asked in return.

"Sure. Why don't you toast them, and I'll get my guitar set up?"

El wanted to squeal – two of her favorite things…Eggos and music.

She eagerly opened the freezer and grabbed the box of Eggos. As she placed a couple of them in the toaster, she could hear Mike tuning his guitar. He spent a minute warming up, and then he quickly transitioned into the opening chords of "Run to You."

"She says her love for me could never die. But that'd change if she ever found out about you and I…"

El couldn't hold the squeal in this time, abandoning the Eggos and joining Mike in the living room as he played.

…"When it gets too much, I need to feel your touch. I'm gonna run to you. I'm gonna run to you. When the feeling's right, I'm gonna run all night. I'm gonna run to you."

Mike was absolutely mesmerizing. Before El could stop herself, she scooted closer to him on the sofa and gently grabbed hold of his guitar. Mike stopped playing, surprised by her actions, but seemingly knowing what she was after as he assisted her in putting it on the floor.

They met in the middle then, their lips crashing together. It was neither slow nor sweet, but a result of the pent-up passion they were both feeling. Mike had never met anyone as beautiful and strong as El, and El had never met anyone as cute or sweet as Mike.

The humidity creeping in from the cracked open windows made the air heavy in the small space, fueling their emotions. Mike wasn't sure what possessed him to try this, but during their next kiss, he let the tip of his tongue touch El's bottom lip. She gasped and went to try the same with him, but since he was also aiming to do it again, their tongues ended up brushing each other.

El let out a moan and pulled Mike forcefully towards her, falling backwards against the cushions in the process and taking him with her. Mike wasn't prepared for that in the slightest, and happened to fall directly between her legs. He yelped as the bulge in his shorts bumped against El's hip.

El's eyes opened in surprise at the noise. "Are you okay," she asked. The last thing she wanted was for him to be hurt.

Mike was trembling, and trying to get ahold of himself. Maybe she hadn't felt him poke her thigh? "Uh, yeah. I'm fine. More than fine, really." he muttered ruefully.

"Good. Um…" she strained to look in the kitchen and saw that the Eggos were ready. "Looks like the food's done. Do you want to eat?"

"Yeah, I just need to use the bathroom first." Mike needed to take care of the situation in his shorts ASAP.

"Okay," El whispered, leaning up for one more kiss. Mike kissed her back, but was careful to not put too much weight on her…lest she get poked by him again.

Once Mike got up and went into the bathroom, El took the Eggos out of the toaster. She smiled giddily to herself as she thought about the kisses they shared. It was strange…when Mike fell between her legs, she'd felt something unlike anything she knew. It was almost like a swooping feeling in her stomach, and an ache in a place that was unfamiliar to her. She wasn't really sure what to make of it, but she knew she wanted it to happen again.

El put the plates with Eggos on the kitchen table just as Mike came out of the bathroom. He looked a bit disheveled. His already fluffy hair looked even more out-of-sorts than usual, and his shirt was untucked. There was a strange brightness in his eyes that accompanied the blush on his cheeks.

"Are you alright," El asked.

"Yep, totally fine," he responded a little too quickly.

She wasn't super convinced that was true. After a beat, she asked, "Are you sure? You just seem a little…different."

"I…" Mike began. He let out a long exhale and scrubbed his face with his hand. He decided to be honest…without sounding like a pig. "I had to take care of myself."

El frowned. "Did you throw up?"

"NO! Not like that. Just, like," he gestured to his mid-section, "Take care of myself."

She was still confused. "Did you have a stomach ache? Did you have diarrhea?"

"OH MY GOD, NO," Mike practically yelled, making El shrink back. "Shit, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I just don't know how to explain. Maybe Max would be a better person to talk to about this sort of thing."

"Okay," El acquiesced, making a note to remind herself later. "You sure you're alright?"

"I'm positive." Mike leaned in and gave her a sweet kiss. He was off the hook…for now, anyway.


A few miles away, Max was just finishing her breakfast. She was alone, which was how she liked it. Her stepdad Neil had been an asshole to begin with, but he'd gotten worse since Billy died. Her mom just continued to simply exist, which was quite sad. Susan was so much better off without Neil, but it was impossible to convince her of that.

Max took a last bite of her Cookie Crisp cereal, then dumped her bowl in the sink. She was eager to go see El and see how her date went with Mike.

She hopped down the front porch steps and grabbed her bike off the walkway. Hawkins wasn't exactly a hotbed of crime, as she was able to just leave the bike out front like that. But just as she straddled the bike and was about to pedal off, a movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention.

Behind the large tree trunk across the street, someone was watching her.

It took Max a moment to realize just who it was. But no, she had to be hallucinating. There was no possible way. He was dead and gone. She saw him in that casket with her own two eyes. Yet somehow, here he was. A slimmer, gaunter version of what she remembered. But still the same person nonetheless.

She took small steps towards him, as if in a trance. The only sounds she heard were the tick-tick of her bike as she rolled it, and her own pulse in her ears. His name fell from her lips in a strangled whisper.

"Billy."

But just as she stepped into the street, a car horn broke her out of her trance. Max stumbled backwards into the grass, just as the car sped by. After she got her bearings, she frantically looked across the street again, to no avail. He was gone.

Max shook violently, the adrenaline catching up with her. Her stomach heaved, and she vomited the cereal back up, clawing at the grass with her fingers. She didn't care who saw.

After her stomach was empty, she curled up in the fetal position, sobbing and rocking back and forth. This had all been in her imagination. It had to be. There was simply no other explanation for it. Max was probably just missing Billy, and she was tricking herself into thinking that someone else looked like him.

There was absolutely no way he could be back…right?


I hope everyone's having a great holiday season! I wanted to get a chapter out before Christmas, as I'll be out of town for a couple weeks.

What are your thoughts on the chapter? Please leave me a review! Thank you so much for reading.