It's Done
El Hopper was no longer Mike Wheeler's girlfriend.
"We can still be friends."
Mike was positive about two things after he read those words. He could not just be friends with her. That would hurt way too much. And he loved El. Simple as that. He was going to have to live with it. He would not run to her pleading for forgiveness for something he might have done. It was obvious she no longer had any romantic feelings for him. Part of it was his fault he guessed, he and his friends had given El, who'd been unsure of herself for a long time, a lot of confidence and independence. That was not a bad thing. Mike was young, he knew he'd get over it eventually.
The rest of his life would suck in the meantime.
Mike ripped up the letter, nothing he could read in it was going to make him feel any better. He was sad, he was numb. Now he knew what hat meant. And he didn't like it one bit.
He had almost entered the lunch room, when he saw the Party table, everyone was sitting at it, including El. They were all laughing, including El.
She looked over smiled and waved him over. She saw the look on his face. Her smile disappeared instantly and she looked away.
Mike backed out of the room. No way he was going to be able to sit with them. He would never give the Party an ultimatum that it was either him or El. That wasn't fair to the Party or to El.
Mike went outside and ate his lunch on a bench. In the winter he'd find a quiet corner in the school somewhere to do that.
If dirt had been nutritious he might have eaten that. It would have tasted a lot better.
El Hopper was no longer Mike Wheeler's girlfriend.
They had kissed yesterday after school. There was no hesitation on El's part. They had held hands all the way home. Everything was normal. At some point overnight it had all gone to shit. El must have decided that maybe she could do better than Mike. Mike's self esteem took a bit of a hit when he realized that was probably the truth.
Clearly, if she still wanted to be friends, she bore no ill will towards him. Mike was sure that girl's just didn't get it. Any guy who said he could still be friends with an ex-girlfriend was fooling himself, They'd only be doing it on the close to impossible chance that the girl would see they really belonged together and then go back out with him. It was a fantasy. Mike had never heard of it actually happening.
When a girl said you could still be friends, they didn't want you to feel bad that they hated you, because in reality they didn't, they were simply not romantically interested in you anymore. Mike understood that. He didn't like it, but he understood it.
He was finished his lunch and had put the garbage in the can beside him, when a girl he didn't know sat down on the bench beside him. She seemed a little shy, but looked very determined.
"I hear El Hopper dumped you."
"Wow, good news travels fast" He tried to sound as sarcastic as possible.
"I'm available."
"That's nice, I'll let the rest of the guys in the school know." He got up and left her sitting on the bench.
A few minutes later, Mike felt bad that he'd been rude. In one way it was nice to know that if he wanted to maybe there was another girl that was interested in. He didn't know her name, and to be truthful he never really looked at her, so he didn't think he could pick her out in a classroom if he had to. Just as well, Mike thought, he was pretty sure she was going to be bad mouthing him from now on. It was way too soon for him anyway. Give it a year or three.
He had to walk by the lunchroom to get to his locker and he heard a commotion, it sounded like there had been a fight. He took a quick peek in and noticed the same girl sitting on the floor, with El standing over her looking very angry. El's nose was bleeding, and she was eating a chocolate bar.
Mike shrugged. Not really his problem anymore. He was concerned that it looked like she'd just had an episode but she must have recovered quickly. The Party was there with her anyway.
He was going to have to spend the rest of the school year without El. He was never going look into her pretty eyes anymore. Never hold her hand again. Never kiss her again.
Because. El Hopper. Was. No. Longer. Mike Wheeler's. Girlfriend.
And who was he kidding? It wasn't going to be for the rest of the school year. It was going to be the rest of his time in Hawkins Middle. And then high school.
And then the rest of his life.
It was starting dawn on Mike now. It was really over between him and El. He would never know why. That was the way things were in middle school. You had a girlfriend and then you didn't.
He couldn't think of one example where a guy had dumped a girl. It always seemed to be the other way around. The logical part of Mike's mind figured it was because girls at that time in school matured faster than boys did. Knowing that was probably a big factor didn't make it hurt any less.
It was entirely possible El and outgrown Mike. He didn't meet her needs intellectually or emotionally anymore. That hurt a little bit more.
When the day was over he was at the bike rack, and Lucas and max, holding hands came up to him.
"That's not cool, man." Lucas said.
"What isn't?" Mike said dully.
"You not hanging out with us now."
"It's only been one day, I think I have a good excuse, I got some bad news today."
"We know, Mike, El doesn't hate you. You know that right?" Max said.
"Yeah, but she doesn't lo… like me either."
"Well, no, not that way. Not anymore."
Not anymore.
Mike burst into tears. Got on his bike quickly and peddled away furiously.
Not anymore.
El Hopper was no longer Mike Wheeler's girlfriend.
It's done.