And now for the second half of the story...
After Mike's dad covertly had El sent away for corrupting his son in his formative years, Mike had gotten progressively more angry and bitter. His friends noticed it, his sisters noticed it, but his father refused to reveal his secret and acted as though Mike was fine and just going through normal teenage drama.
And Mike had tried. He'd tried to find out where she was. He'd talked to Kali, who had no idea of El's whereabouts, having been told along with the other inhabitants of the orphanage that El had simply decided to leave to travel the world. He assumed she would have left at least some forwarding information but there was nothing, no address, no note for him, no goodbye. If he could have at least written her, or gotten a letter from her he thought he'd have been in a much better head space.
He tried also to forget, but that wasn't happening. El would be, Mike feared, forever in his mind; forever that beautiful girl who was such a mixture of confidence and vulnerability.
As time for college neared, Mike pushed the thoughts of El to the back of his mind. He became laser focused on school and getting ready for the next chapter in his life. He'd worked hard the two years since he'd lost her, focusing all of his energy into school with the hopes of silencing his aching heart. He would attend the University of Notre Dame. His grades were excellent and his father was smugly proud. Ted Wheeler hoped that the Catholic school would get Mike back on the right path, as he put it, having no patience for any emotional upheaval Mike might have had in the past.
So his surprise was overwhelming when he turned to see who his biology lab partner would be for the semester and was met with the eyes that still haunted his dreams.
"El?" Mike was a maelstrom of emotions but hurt and anger seemed to be at the forefront. She had never tried to contact him. Mike knew she had never really cared at all.
Mike, El's brain screamed at her. Her whole body tensed upon hearing the familiar voice she had missed so much and she carefully dropped her pen and notepad on the lab table before tilting her head.
She was scared of what she was going to be facing. Her brain didn't have time to register the panic surging through her body because all she could now focus on was the face she had dreamed of for almost two years.
What El noticed first were Mike's onyx eyes. Second was his pale, ivory face with freckles scattered across the bridge of his nose. And then his shoulders - which seemed much broader than the last time she had seen or even touched them.
When their eyes locked again, though, El registered something she hadn't encountered before. His gaze was just as alluring and mesmerizing as she had remembered, but beyond the aspect that left El almost breathless, she could see the anger in Mike's eyes. She let her eyes travel down to his flared nostrils and his parted mouth, and all she could think of was how dare he.
She had spent countless nights crying herself to sleep and wishing Mike would give her a sign, anything. The only time she had dared to visit him in the void, another power she had that usually made her hate herself for being different but could prove useful at times, was when he was in church, talking to the other kids from the orphanage as if nothing had ever happened. She had given up from then on, her melancholy turning to resentment. El became more bitter and angry herself and had walls up that she thought no one could penetrate. She had thought she'd never see Mike again, a thought that made her both sad and terrifically mad, only to see him right next to her now and staring at her as if she was the most disgusting thing in the world. She could feel her blood boiling.
Of course we chose the same school. The Universe hates me.
"Do I know you?" Her brows quirked up as she spoke, her gaze fiery as she refused to break eye contact.
El was determined to make Mike regret every single day in which he had dared to make her think that what they had was love.
She has some nerve, Mike thought as El took her seat. He wasn't sure if he could put up with months of dealing with her. He had his own resentment about how she'd left him.
"No, I'm pretty sure you don't know me so if you'd like to find another seat you are free to do just that." To Mike's dismay though it seemed to be a full lab and there were no other available seats either of them could occupy. He was going to have to just deal with it. At least bio lab was only twice a week, though a three hour class each time. Mike sighed internally.
"Just don't abandon this lab partnership like you abandon other things. I want a good grade. I hate having to depend on other people. They only let you down."
Their eyes locked and for a second it was as if nothing had changed, as if Mike was the same sweet, innocent boy who claimed to love her with all his might. El tried to ignore his mean remarks, yet the anger was bubbling up in her chest as she was thinking that Mike had the audacity to talk about letting other people down when he did the exact same to her.
He had left her with no choice and before El could calm herself down, the mocking words were already flying out of her mouth.
"You want a good grade? I guess your life still depends on what your dad thinks," she let out a bitter scoff and averted her attention to the notebook in front of her, yet still had the nerve to whisper. "Sad."
Mike's eyes narrowed. He had changed a bit since having last seen her, his sweet nature taking on a more sardonic edge as he'd mourned losing her. So when he again spoke he decided to own his words, even though as they spilled from his mouth he almost cringed at how cold they sounded.
"At least I have a dad to care about my grades. I'm not riding some pitiful orphan scholarship because no one wanted to love me."
Fuck. I did not just say that.
El's heart froze for a split second. She could hear her pulse ringing in her ears and could feel the bitter smile forming on her lips.
Before she could think of the risks she was subjecting herself to, her index finger subtly swiped to the right and that was when one of Mike's chair legs snapped, causing a cracking sound along with a loud thud to echo throughout the lab room.
Mike was on the floor right after, his lanky legs sprawled as he winced in pain. El had expected to be more satisfied with her little mind trick. Instead, it just hurt as his painful words still played in the back of her mind like a broken record.
Thankfully enough, they weren't something she hadn't repeated herself over the years. Yet it was still agonizing to hear the boy she had loved so much voicing them out.
"I guess there is a God after all," she forced out a smile in his direction, but it came as a disgusted grimace more than anything.
Mike somehow made it through the rest of the week. The lab on Thursday was again strained and uncomfortable but at least his chair had remained intact. He was still nursing a bruised ankle from that crummy chair he'd had on Tuesday.
Word around school was that there was a freshmen welcoming party that weekend and Mike thought he might as well go. He knew there would be alcohol snuck in and the idea of unwinding sounded good to him.
The party turned out to be just okay. In fact, the only reason he even stayed was that there was alcohol and since he had none at his place he decided to take advantage.
He'd already had a couple of beers and a cocktail some guy he recognized from his literature class assured him was the shit. Mike didn't know if that was necessarily true but he was feeling a pretty good buzz. Then he realized he really needed to pee.
As he approached the bathroom he was met by someone coming from the opposite direction. They reached the bathroom door at the same time.
Just my luck. I should have fucking known. She's going to ruin my life.
"I was here first!" Mike said to El, who looked just as unhappy to see him as he felt about her.
Great. The last person El had wanted to see right now. Or so she kept lying to herself.
"Nuh uh. I was," El mumbled through gritted teeth and held herself back from pushing Mike aside.
Luckily for her, she was small enough to slide right past his body and open the bathroom door before he could get inside. She was only seconds away from finally relieving herself as she pressed her palm flat against the wooden door, only to spot Mike's shoe forcing the door cracked open.
She groaned in frustration and pushed her whole body against the frame, fighting with all her might to prevent Mike from coming in, but he was stronger than her.
And here he was now, all gruff and glancing at her as if she was some lunatic for even daring to think that she could stop him from entering the bathroom.
"I'm trying to pee. Get out," El stated calmly, but her arms were already flailing around as she tried to unzip her romper.
Mike tried desperately to ignore what was happening, to ignore the fact that El was unzipping this thing she was wearing.
"Look, I'll be fast. Come on! I really need to go too." Mike was whining. He was finding it hard to control his emotions.
"Don't even think," she warned with just as much annoyance.
The alcohol she'd already had was making it difficult to coordinate her body movements the way she wanted and she had to choose between asking Mike for help with the back zipper of her black romper and using her powers. She chose the latter, confident enough to know that the blood would not show up. She had managed to control it over the years and Mike was probably too tipsy to put two and two together and think that El's arms weren't supposed to reach so far behind her back.
She rushed to pull her arms out of the short sleeves, but even with her mind hazy, she realized she wasn't wearing a bra so she kept the top of the romper over her chest as she looked at Mike. He didn't seem to budge and El's eyes rolled.
"Just use the sink. It's not like there's anything you haven't seen."
Shifting, she finally pulled the romper down to her knees along with her panties before sitting on the toilet. The fact that she was intoxicated helped with the inhibitions and she didn't even think twice before starting to pee right next to Mike, despite still using her arms to cover her bare breasts.
Mike could hear the trickle of urine as El relieved herself and just for a second his mind flashed back to that night they'd spent at the cabin. He shook away the thoughts. He really needed to go now. Hearing her only made it worse.
He unbuckled his belt and unfastened his jeans. He had switched to boxer briefs some time before college and he was afraid if he didn't hurry the gray fabric would be soaked when he couldn't hold it anymore.
Mike freed his member and tried to start.
"Don't look at me or I can't go," he warned coldly. The fact was that Mike's own eyes kept darting right, seeing El out of his periphery. He tried not to think about how pretty she still was or how he could see what he thought he'd never again see.
Mike finished first but El wasn't far behind. They both wound up trying to wash their hands at the same time.
Standing at the sink, neither of them were speaking. Their hands were both soapy and they were lathering them in the basin when suddenly Mike's nostrils were flooded by a smell that made him feel instantly 16 again. The scent of French vanilla was overwhelming and Mike's breath hitched. Without meaning to his hands brushed against hers.
El was startled, but she did nothing to pull her hand back. She figured it would be a submissive gesture, so she kept her hands under the faucet until Mike was the one who moved first.
And she would have lied if she had said she hadn't taken a glance at his limp member as he relieved himself. She had tried not to be obvious and it had probably worked, because as they finished washing their hands Mike didn't mention it whatsoever.
Once they were done, they both reached for the same towel and El groaned in frustration. A part of her wanted to believe that it was as if their minds worked together, but she knew it was inevitable to do the same things and bump into each other in a space so cramped.
Her back zipper was still undone and despite knowing she could very well use her powers to zip it up, she wanted Mike to do it. She didn't even know if he would accept, but she couldn't help but wonder what it would feel like to have his hands on her again. Mustering an ounce of courage, she glanced at him and prepared her mocking voice.
"Can you fake being nice one last time in your life and help me with the zipper?"
Mike rolled his eyes. The room was indeed a cramped space with the countertop for the sink taking up the majority of the footprint. He faced El, the two on them only inches apart. Looking down at her, Mike was met with the stare she reserved for when she was really pissed, he remembered, but there was also something in her eyes he couldn't quite put his finger on.
"You did this on purpose," Mike accused, thinking to himself how good she smelled and how hot she looked in this little black thing. He was beyond annoyed.
"Don't flatter yourself. I had no idea I'd even see you, let alone have to interact with you. Believe me, this is the last place I want to be right now." El didn't move, talking up to him as he looked down at her. She wasn't sure but she had the horrible thought that both of them had moved even closer. Still, even with Mike so close she could smell his cologne, she stood her ground.
"Why do you have to be so annoying?" Mike asked, though his volume had dropped and his words came out as a whisper. His hands moved to her shoulders to start to try to find her zipper so he could get out of there but as soon as he touched her Mike couldn't help squeezing, instinct taking over, and didn't miss the small sigh that escaped from her mouth. He couldn't miss it; their faces were almost touching.
"I'm annoying?" El murmured, her nose brushing against his as his hands roamed over her bare back. She knew she should make him stop but she was powerless. She had to try to stop this. "You're such a bitch, Mike," but it was too late. Her lip had grazed over his and El couldn't stifle the sound she made.
During the course of their encounter Mike had gotten hard. He was chagrined that she still affected him in such a way. But now they were kissing, hesitant at first, but then with fervor, malice even. Mike forgot about her zipper and pushed the romper to the floor, never stopping the almost violent kiss. He picked her up and sat her on the counter.
"I'm a bitch?" He was taking his dick out, noticing that El wasn't trying to stop him. His hand went to her bare pussy, tears almost stinging his eyes. "Well you're fucking wet. Who's the bitch now?" He moved to her neck, sucking hard, wanting to make sure she remembered this.
El scoffed, apparently unimpressed despite the coiling blood running through her veins.
"Shut the fuck up," she almost growled as her hand found purchase in Mike's hair and she yanked his head upward.
He only seemed to smirk in response and El hadn't expected this positive reaction from him. He was enjoying it, she could see it in his eyes; his pupils fully blown as he inserted one finger inside her pussy. El gasped, her glossy pink lips parting as she let out a blissful moan, but she wasn't ready to let Mike have the upper hand.
She moved her own fingers to his dick and encompassed them around his girth, grinning when she saw the look on Mike's face. His member was burning hot, smooth skin pulsing in El's hand, and she could feel her juices gushing out as he continued to tease his finger in and out of her hole.
It was too much. Mike's fiery touches were making her lose her mind and she refused to give him the satisfaction of being aware of it. She had to come up with something.
"You're just as small as I remembered," she spat as her thumb rubbed over the swollen tip just like Mike had taught her in church years ago.
"Your memory is fucked, El. Just like you're about to be. If I'm so small why are you rubbing me like that? Why are your legs around my waist? Maybe you need to be reminded." Mike pulled her even closer, her ass only supported by the very edge of the counter but her legs were wrapped around him and she was holding herself in place. Mike let his cock brush against her slick lips. She felt every bit as amazing as he remembered.
"It looks big enough to me. Looks like I could split you open. I grew if you couldn't tell. Maybe your memory is hazy." He was pressing his leaky head against her clit.
"Do you want a reminder, El?" Even being annoyed and pissed, Mike couldn't shrug old habits and he still asked.
"Impress me."
El tried to sound bitter, but she had only managed to whimper as her hips pushed forward. Her body was moving of its own accord as she sought the thing she had missed so much and had fantasized about for years.
But Mike had been right. Her memory really was fucked, because she couldn't remember it feeling so exquisite when Mike pushed his cock into her.
She gasped and one of her hands found his shoulder immediately before she gripped it tightly. Either not having sex for almost two years had taken a toll on her or Mike had indeed grown because she could feel every inch of his cock splitting her open as he made his way forward until he was balls deep.
She heaved and tried to catch her breath, her eyes bulging as she gritted her teeth at the almost unfamiliar feeling of being filled up.
"Show me what you've got, Mike. Or do I still have to teach you like I used to?"
Mike wasn't fooled by her bravado. He could still read her tone and her facial expressions and he knew she was bluffing. She was trying with everything she had to not cry out in ecstasy. Mike took it as a challenge.
"Maybe I should teach you." He started thrusting, taking her off the counter and holding her fully. El was impaled on his rock hard dick as he bounced her deeply on it, gripping her ass firmly and moving her how he wanted. Her face was buried in the crook of his neck as her body conformed to his.
"Lesson one: how to take a cock. You're doing pretty good so far. Is it deep enough? Is my small cock going deep enough for you? Is it still fat enough? It feels like it is. You're so fucking tight. You can say what you want but your cunt is sucking my big dick like your life depends on it." Mike pounded her harder. She wasn't doing a great job of holding back her moans and it only encouraged him.
"That's because...I haven't done it...in a while," she struggled to mumble through vicious thrusts and refused to acknowledge that she hadn't in fact had sex since she had been forced to leave Hawkins, and not just in a while.
Mike continued to pound and rock her onto his hard cock, sending his length all the way in until it hit her cervix and made her cry out. Her arms were encircled around his broad shoulders and she kept her head buried in the crook of his neck, unable to move or prevent the brutal fucking. Not that she wanted to.
"What's...lesson two? How to ask God for forgiveness...after you attempt to fuck?"
She carried on with the mean remarks as she tried to find every small opportunity to attack Mike's ego and not let the fact that they were having sex go to this head. She was adamant to show him how she was no longer putty in his big strong hands, but her body refused to comply with her plan.
Mike spun, pressing her against the wall. The leverage was helpful for him and he could control his movements better.
"You're all talk. You'll be thanking God when I'm finished. You know you wanna come on my dick. I can tell."
Mike felt El pull his hair. It hurt so he pounded into her even harder. Their faces shifted and as their lips passed each other they connected. Mike wasn't even sure if it had been El or himself who initiated it.
For the next thirty seconds everything changed. With El pressed against the bathroom wall, her legs around Mike's waist, the kiss deepened and Mike felt the painful grip she had in his locks relax. Her fingers scraped over his scalp gently and she sighed. Mike went from vehemently pounding her to going more slowly, making sure she felt it every time he pushed in but not trying to hurt her. He took on a sudden sensuality that heightened everything and it was like it had been; for just a brief period their bodies loved each other again.
Mike heard El sigh and then hiccup and, fearing that she'd cry or, even worse, he'd cry, resumed the unforgiving banging.
"Lesson two: a good fuck includes coming. You've got to make them come. Do you think you can make me come, El? I'm different now, but so are you. I know I can still get you off though. Question is, can you do it for me?"
"Did you forget, Mike?"
El scoffed, her legs soon disentangling from around his waist as she pushed him away. Her delicate palm pressed over his chest until his calves hit the toilet seat and that was when she forced Mike to sit down, his cock pointed upward as her pussy swallowed it whole in one movement.
She sighed as her ass rested on his sack and she took a moment to enjoy the feeling of having Mike's cock up to the hilt before their eyes locked. Mike seemed just as affected and it gave El the impulse to show him who was in charge.
"Did you forget the way you used to cry my name out as I made you come...over and over again?"
Her hips were dropping over his repeatedly and she soon found a pace, her cunt engulfing Mike's cock with every thrust, each one deeper and faster than the last. Her mouth moved to his ear and she bit his earlobe hard until he winced, before she stopped and whispered in his ear.
"If it weren't for me...you'd still be too scared to even jack off."
She smirked and moved her hand behind her back until she took hold of Mike's balls, stroking them while her pussy continued to bounce on his cock.
"Yeah and then you left. Fuck you. Oh, right. That's what I'm doing." Mike held on to her ass as she bobbed up and down on his cock. He just wanted to get off; he didn't want to think about the past. It only brought with it painful memories.
"I remember you crying my name too. You always did like to straddle me. I guess some things don't change." Mike felt triumphant when he saw the look of embarrassed despair flash across her face. He moved his hand, his thumb playfully tickling her clit as she fucked him. "I remember stuff too. Do you think I don't? Do you think I don't remember exactly how you like to be touched?"
"Of course you do." El tried to keep her voice under control, but it was to no avail when Mike found her clit and teased it. "I'm the only person in this world...who'd let you fuck them."
She let go of his sack only to rest her hands behind her back and onto Mike's thighs, her torso slightly bending backward as she swallowed Mike's cock with her pussy repeatedly.
They moaned in unison, and El caught Mike staring at her breasts as they bounced in front of him while they fucked.
"Like them? Touch-" she mumbled, already finding it hard to use too many words to express herself. Mike's thumb on her clit was gradually bringing her closer to the edge.
She found Mike's free hand and urged him to squeeze her breasts, moaning in pleasure as he did so.
"You won't get to, oh, fuck-" she sobbed when Mike quickened the pace of his circling thumb. "To touch...a girl's breasts...ever. They'd be stupid...to let someone like you."
"Are you saying you're stupid then, El? Because you're just short of begging me to touch them." Mike ran his thumb over her erect nipple before dipping his head to take her breast in his mouth. He felt her cradle his head but he didn't say anything, too caught up in how it felt to have her once again riding his cock. He didn't want to let her know how much he'd missed having her hold him in any way. And the sounds she was making were increasing. Mike knew she was just as close to coming as he was.
With his free hand Mike pushed her down as far as he could on his cock. El was grinding against him, occasionally cursing him but also moaning in pleasure. Mike didn't let up his assault on her clit and he could feel her start to tremble slightly around his dick, her orgasm still building. He released her breast from his mouth, not before biting her nipple a bit, and his lips found hers.
"Fucking take my come," was all he could get out before he was releasing deep into her. He felt her pushing, trying to suction herself to him, all the time trembling more. He hated that he still liked kissing her when he came but it felt so good he let himself do it.
"Oh, fuck...fuck, ah, Mi-"
El didn't want this to be the last thing she said before orgasming, so she stopped before it was too late. All of her words were muffled by Mike's mouth anyway as their tongues almost battled against each other, both of them nipping and biting each other's lips as they came.
That was another thing that El had forgotten over the years - how hard Mike could make her come. Her legs were forced open by his as she thrashed on top of him.
Her pussy milked him dry and yet she still found the strength to stroke his cock with her inner walls a few more times, spreading the creamy liquid all over his length before she shakily stood up after recovering from her orgasm.
A wave of sadness and anger took over her as soon as their bodies disconnected, because all El could feel now was an indescribable emptiness accompanied by a rage. This time, though, it was directed at herself for being so dumb that she allowed herself to get a taste of Mike once again. She shouldn't have and the realization dawned on her only now, in the aftermath.
Almost ashamed, she gathered her clothes from the ground and put them back on, this time refusing to ask Mike for help with the zipper.
I don't need his disgusting hands all over me again, she thought as her eyes refused to meet his.
Still in a bit of a stupor, Mike returned his dick, now sticky with a mixture of both his and El's come, back to his boxers and rearranged his clothes. He felt sad and he didn't know why.
"Don't worry. That won't happen again," Mike offered to El as they stood awkwardly in the tiny bathroom. "Don't think I'm gonna go home and think about this, or about you. This was just a random party hookup. You could have been anyone."
Mike didn't know why he was still saying such hurtful things.
Just get up and leave, mouthbreather. Leave her alone. Don't be a fucking asshole.
"So um, yeah. See you around." Mike didn't even make eye contact as he exited the bathroom. He knew if he did his eyes would linger, and if his eyes lingered then he'd linger and he needed to get out of there before too many memories came flooding back.
Author's Note: Well, at least they're reunited(?). Confusing times ahead. They're both very stubborn and this could have been all explained with a modicum of communication but then what fun would the story be? Thanks for sticking with me. I'll update on Saturday most likely.