Chapter Four

All things considered, it was a relatively normal morning in the Byers-Hopper household. Eleven and Will had breakfast with their parents and fed their pets. Joyce was anxious about letting Will ride his bike to school in his condition. She was also anxious about letting Eleven ride to school as she had the potential for a similar condition, but Hopper convinced her that it would be ok.

"Remember what we talked about, kid," Hopper said to Will as he and Eleven took off to meet Mike and Julie. "If you feel sick at all, give me a call and I'll come and pick you up. Don't push yourself too hard."

"I remember," said Will. "And thanks… for everything."

"You're welcome," said Hopper as he patted Will's shoulder.

Joyce joined Hopper on the front porch as she watched her children ride their bikes down the street. "He'll be ok, Joyce."

"I know," said Joyce. "But old habits die hard and I can't stop worrying about him."

"We'll know more when we take him to Bloomington in a couple days. It'll all work out, I promise."

"I just want this to be over," said Joyce.

"Me too," said Hopper.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The morning study session helped the party members get through their chemistry test. Several of their classmates seemed extremely nervous during the test. Dave Carter even got up a vomited in a trash can in the back of the room.

Will and Julie were grateful that they had art after chemistry. It was a good way to unwind.

"It's a nice day," said Julie as they headed toward their lockers after class. "How about we have lunch outside? Just the two of us?"

"Sounds good," said Will with a smile. El, Julie and I are having lunch outside. Can you tell the others not to freak out when I don't show up in the cafeteria?

I can tell them, Eleven replied. Having a telepathic link to his sister really came in handy.

Will and Julie picked a spot next to a large oak tree in the courtyard. It was far enough away that they could have a private conversation. Will knew that Julie was upset and trying to hide it. When they finished their sandwiches, Julie patted her leg. "Here, lay down for a minute," she ordered.

"Huh?" asked Will.

"I'm trying to find something good in a crappy situation," said Julie. "And resting for a few minutes will be good for you."

"Well, for the sake of my health, I'll do it," said Will. He leaned forward and kissed Julie before resting his head on her leg. Julie's right hand caressed Will's head as her left hand interlaced her fingers with his. Will closed his eyes and relaxed.

"Who knows," said Julie. "Mom was really worried about you. Maybe she'll let us be alone once in a while when you're over. I swear my parents still think I'm like Tina and Brian. At least they know that you're nothing like any of the people they dated."

"I'm not as innocent as I seem," Will teased. "And you using my condition to get some alone time with me sounds a little like exploitation."

"Do I have your permission to do it?" asked Julie in a mock-serious tone.

"Of course you do," said Will. "In fact, I insist on it."

"Then it's ethical exploitation," said Julie. She and Will both burst out laughing.

"You and the fairy are putting on quite the show, Julie," said Stacy as she and her group approached the couple. "You're not fooling anyone though."

"Go away, Stacy," said Julie through gritted teeth as Will sat up. "I'm not in the mood for your shit today."

"Do you think you can tell me what to do, loser?" asked Stacy. "I think Julie needs a lesson in manners." Two of Stacy's friends grabbed Will and Julie's bags and dumped the contents-mostly art supplies on the ground.

"What the hell is your problem, bitch?" Julie demanded as she jumped to her feet. "What did we ever do to you?" Will began picking up the art supplies and putting them back into the bags. Stacy raised her hand to draw on Julie's face with her pen, but it suddenly exploded and ink leaked all over her arm. Stacy shrieked and ran into the main building followed by her friends.

Julie wiped tears from her face as she helped Will finish putting the supplies in their bags.

Will saw Mike running from the building toward a tree where Eleven was standing. The reason for Stacy's leaky pen suddenly became very clear to him.

"C'mon," he said to Julie as he took her hand after they finished picking up their things. They walked toward the spot where Eleven stood and reached her before Mike. "Why did you do that, El?"

"They were being mean to you," said Eleven. "Stacy is always mean to my friends, she deserved it."

"She's been a jerk since the first grade," said Julie. "But we can deal with it, you don't have to worry."

"She made you cry and she keeps lying about Will," said Eleven as Mike reached the tree.

"There you are, El," said Mike as he caught his breath. "Why did you run off like that?"

"I saw Stacy being mean to Will and Julie again, came to teach her a lesson," said Eleven.

"Wait, were you in my head again?" asked Will.

"Was just doing a quick check," said Eleven. "Didn't listen to your private conversation."

"That's good," said Will. He quickly checked around to make sure no one was listening. "It's great that you care and all, but you can't use your powers for things like this."

"You sound like Dad," said Eleven.

"He's right," said Will. "I don't want you to risk exposing yourself and ending up in some weird prison just because someone's being a jerk to me or one of your other friends."

"What happened?" asked Mike.

"Stacy was being her usual charming self and El made her pen explode," said Julie.

"Oh," said Mike. "Will's right. I mean, what you did sounds pretty cool and all-"

"Mike," Will hissed. "Could you night encourage my sister?"

"Right, sorry," said Mike. "But there are all kinds of bad people still out there. Promise you won't go using your powers like that."

Eleven stubbornly folded her arms over her chest and leaned against the tree.

"I do have a serious heart condition, El," said Will. "If I'm worried about you, it can only make things worse."

"You're playing that card, Will?" asked Mike.

"Yep!"

"Fine, I promise," said Eleven. She wanted to teach anyone who would hurt her brother, her boyfriend or any of her other friends a lesson, but Will was right.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Karen Wheeler and Anne Mason took Joyce out the lunch. It was a decision they'd made when their children had come home upset over the news of Will's condition the night before. Karen talked Ted into giving Joyce a two hour lunch break.

"How's Will holding up?" asked Karen.

"He's trying to be strong," said Joyce. "He doesn't want Jonathan to know because he's afraid it'll distract him from his studies."

"Mike mentioned that and asked us not to tell Nancy," said Karen. "He was really upset when he got home last night."

"So was Julie," said Anne. "She wants to do anything she can to help, and so do I. Will is such a great kid."

"I think that having Mike, Julie and all of Will's other friends around will help a lot," said Joyce. "I just want this to be over and I want Will to have a nice life."

"That's going to happen," said Karen as she squeezed Joyce's hand. "It'll take time, but I believe it will happen for him."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Eleven had a quiet dinner with her parents that evening. She slipped scraps of food to the dogs and cats when (she believed) Joyce and Hopper weren't looking. Will was at work with Mike.

"I have something to tell both of you," Eleven said to Joyce and Hopper.

"What is it, sweetheart?" asked Joyce.

"We can see you feeding those pets of yours," said Hopper with a small smile.

"Oh," said Eleven as she handed a piece of tuna to Leia under the table. "That's not it though." She took a deep breath. "I-I used my powers at school today."

Joyce nearly spilled her glass of milk. "What?" she asked in a concerned voice. "Did anyone see you?" Eleven shook her head. "How exactly did you use your powers?"

"Stacy and her friends were being mean to Will and Julie again, so I made her pen leak," said Eleven. "But Will and Mike made me promise I wouldn't do it anymore. Mike said that Will was playing that card when Will said it could make his condition worse if he had to worry about the bad people finding me."

Hopper buried his face in his hands and shook his head. Eleven felt terrible seeing that. "How many times have we talked about this, kid?" he asked.

"Lots of times," said Eleven. "I'm sorry I broke the don't be stupid rule. I'm just tired of seeing people being mean to Will, Mike and everyone else."

"I know it's hard watching people you care about being treated poorly," said Joyce. "But sometimes we have to do the hardest thing and be the bigger person. You can always stand up to people like Stacy without using your powers."

"Will and Mike stood up to Troy without powers and he hurt them," said Eleven.

"I know," said Joyce. She felt sick to her stomach at the memory. "Stacy isn't a psycho like Troy and it's important to never sink to a bully's level."

"We know it's hard sometimes, El, and we know you want to protect your friends. Just remember, getting back at mean people by risking exposure isn't worth it. The best way to get back at them is to make a good life for yourself, move on and forget them. You and your friends have a bright future. Don't go risking that for some momentary satisfaction of using your powers on some jerk. Understand?" asked Hopper.

"Yes," said Eleven.

"Good. We appreciate you being honest with us about it," said Hopper. "Speaking of using your powers, there's something I'd like to talk to both of you about."

"Is anything wrong?" asked Joyce.

"No, something might be right, actually."

"What is it, Dad?" asked Eleven.

"Will and I had a good talk last night. He told me that you know about Sarah."

"I'm sorry," said Eleven. "I was worried about you, and I made Will help me look. It probably made him sick."

"It's ok, kid," said Hopper. "And you didn't make your brother sick. I'm willing to bet that being trapped in the Upside Down for a week then being possessed by the shadow monster did a lot more to cause his condition more than using those powers of his. His chest what always the first place he felt pain whenever they burned those vines. Anyway, Will said that you might be willing to help Sara get better. You've been through the same thing, and it'll be good for her to talk to someone who can really understand."

"Will's right, Dad. I want to help," said Eleven. Joyce smiled proudly and gave her hand a squeeze.

"Great," said Hopper. "Will has an appointment on Friday. It's in the same hospital where Sarah is staying. Do you feel up to talking to her while your brother is with the doctors?"

"I can do that," said Eleven.

"I know you can. I do have to warn you, it won't be easy. She's been through a lot and she's angry at the world right now."

"I know," said Eleven. "I saw…. Maybe Kali and Jane can help too."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Eleven glanced at Will as they were about the enter the large hospital. They'd been there every month for their check ups and it wasn't Hawkins lab, but he still looked anxious. Dr. Owens had decided to increase Will's visits visits from monthly to bi-weekly when Mr. Clarke discovered his heart condition.

"I can stay with you, Will," Eleven offered. Will shook his head.

"I'll be fine. I don't like these check ups, but I can deal with them. Besides, you're here to help Sara."

"Remember, El, if Sara lashes out, don't take it personal," said Hopper.

"I know," said Eleven. "She's angry at the situation."

"You'll help her, El, I know it," said Will earnestly.

"We'll see you two after the check up," said Joyce to Hopper and Eleven. She gave them both a quick hug.

Hopper put his hand on Will's shoulder. "I want you to tell them about any time you've felt any sort of pain even if it seems insignificant. Your old science teacher only thought to look for the tissue damage because you told them about your shortness of breath last month. That just may have saved your life, Will."

"Ok," said Will.

Joyce put her arm around her youngest child and led him toward the cardiac ward. He was quiet and she didn't push him to talk. Part of Will wished that Jonathan was there with him. He wanted to call his brother and ask him to come home. Another part still didn't want his older brother to know because Jonathan would forget about everything he'd been working his whole life to achieve if he thought that Will needed him.

"You ready for this, kid?" Hopper asked Eleven as she watched her mother and brother disappear down the corridor. She actually felt terrified of meeting Sara. She wanted Will to be there with her, but she wanted him to get better even more. She also wished that Mike could have come to Bloomington with them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Will seemed to shut down as they arrived at the exam room. Joyce noticed that he had the same look on his face that he had before his appointments at Hawkins Lab after his "episodes." Although he was mostly doing better, Will still suffered from PTSD and occasional depression. Once in a while, he still had nightmares. Eleven occasionally had nightmares about her time as a test subject. When the nightmares happened, they had each other. They also had each other when they went in for their monthly exams. It made things just a little better.

That day, the twins were separated. Joyce knew that her children were scared of what they had to do that day and they weren't facing their respective situations together. They were both trying to put on brave faces. Joyce was also aware that Will and Eleven lived in the continual fear that they would somehow end up trapped in the horrific situations of their traumatic experiences. She understood that fear as she still lived in the constant fear of losing one or both of them. Joyce understood why Will didn't want to give up any of his hobbies because he was sick. Hanging out with his friends and being involved in his extra-curricular activities let him know that he was safe and gave him happy moments. Going to labs for exams reminded him of the moments he wanted to forget.

A nurse handed Will a hospital gown to change into. He looked at the garment with loathing, but quietly walked into the changing room.

"This shouldn't take long," Dr. Owens told Joyce. "These appointments are just a precaution. We want to keep checking Eleven and the others as well, just to be safe."

"Hopper thinks that being stuck in the Upside Down for so long and being possessed by the shadow monster caused this. The pain always started in his chest whenever someone burned those vines," said Joyce. "El should be safe, right?

"The doctors seem to agree with Hopper, but we don't want to take any chances. She was in that lab for almost 13 years and Brenner put her through a lot."

"But she seems perfectly healthy," said Joyce desperately. "She has to be ok, she just has to."

"She probably is perfectly healthy. The thing is, we've tracked down several of the test subjects and some of them died as a result of the experiments. We don't want any more of them to die, especially the children who didn't volunteer."

"Some of the children died?" asked Joyce.

"Yes," said Dr. Owens. "I know that your kids aren't exactly fond of coming here, but we don't want to miss anything."

Joyce looked over at Will, who was stepping on a scale as a nurse wrote down the the information on a chart. She followed her son to the exam chair and sat in the seat next to him. Will closed his eyes as the assistants placed the heart monitor wires on his chest.

"Are you alright, baby?" asked Joy as she reached over and messaged Will's shoulder.

"I'm fine, Mom," said Will without opening his eyes.

"Will, what is it?"

Will opened his eyes and looked at his mother. "It's just… this is bringing...everything back so vividly. I'm just trying to focus on happy memories, that's all."

Joyce took Will's left hand in both of hers. "I'm sorry. I wish you didn't have to go through this. I wish none of this had ever happened."

"It's okay, Mom," said Will. "I do have a lot more happy memories than crappy ones, you know. You helped give me a lot of them."

"You have so many more happy memories to come, I promise," said Joyce.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Hopper waited outside in the hallway after Sara asked asked to speak to Eleven alone. He had fears they the two girls who meant the world to him would somehow feel a competition with one another. Diane had thought that Hopper was replacing Sara with Eleven. Losing Sara had certainly motivated Hopper to protect and take care of Eleven, but he'd genuinely grown to love her as his daughter.

XXXXXXXXXX

"They took you when you were born?" asked Sara.

"Yes," said Eleven. "My father-Lonnie- sold me to Papa- Dr. Brenner."

Sara leaned on the table an began tracing vague shapes with her finger. "And your mother never tried to find you?"

"She didn't know about me," said Eleven. "Not until last year."

"How could your mother not know about you?" asked Sara incredulously. "She was pregnant with you for nine months!"

"Seven months. We came early-me and my brother."

"Brother?"

"Yes, my brother Will. My mom didn't know she was having twins and they hurt her so she wouldn't remember having me. Will said she always knew something had happened and Lonnie told her she was crazy."

Sara's face softened a bit. "Your own father sold you?"

"Yes," said Eleven. "He sold my brother too-last year when Papa wanted to use Will."

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't know. Why did Brenner want to use your brother?"

"My brother can open portals and Brenner wanted him to open the gate to the Upside Down again."

"The Upside Down?"

Eleven tried to remember how Mike had explained the Upside Down to everyone. "It's like an evil echo of our world, but everything is dead or toxic."

Sara froze. Her eyes widened and her hands began to tremble.

"Sara? Are you okay?" asked Eleven.

Sara swallowed. "Is everything dark in the Upside Down? Are there particles floating everywhere? Are there storms that are like monsters?"

"Yes," said Eleven. "A shadow monster from the Upside Down possessed my brother two years ago and used him to try to spy on us and get into our world. Have you seen the Upside Down?"

Sara nodded. "I used to have visions of it. They only lasted a few seconds, but I was terrified. One day I was in a park with my parents and everything when dark. There were storms all around me. My parents were gone, but then I heard my father telling me to breath and everything was normal again. They took me to a doctor when I had more episodes and couldn't breathe. The doctors convinced us all that I was sick and dying- and I just woke up in a lab one day… a prisoner. I never had cancer."

"Your mom and dad thought you did," said Eleven. "They thought you were gone-dead."

"They've moved on without me," said Sara angrily as she picked at her hospital bracelet. "My mom has Elizabeth and my dad has you."

"Our dad was always sad because he thought you were dead. He's happy that you're alive and he wants you to have a happy life," said Eleven. "I want to help."

"What about your brother? Is he still alive."

"Yes," said Eleven. "Our Dad adopted him when he married my mom so Lonnie can't hurt him anymore."

"My dad's wife is your mother? Your birth mother?"

Eleven nodded. Hopper had told her that Sara didn't know much about everything in their lives, but she was taken aback by just how little Sara knew. They had only just rescued her from the lab she was in.

"So where's your brother now? Why isn't he here?"

"His heart was damaged by the Upside Down and the Shadow monster," said Eleven.

"Is he going to be alright?" asked Sara.

"I hope so," said Eleven. "He's in this hospital getting a check up right now because he's going to have an operation to get a new heart."

"Can I meet him?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Hey, how'd the check up go?" asked Hopper as he stood up to greet Joyce and Will as they approached him in the hallway.

"It's all as good as it could be all things considered," said Will. "Where's El?"

"Sara wanted to talk to her alone," said Hopper. He looked at the door to the room where Sara and Eleven were having their conversation. Eleven suddenly burst through the door. She spotted her family.

"Will!" she called as she ran over to her brother. "Sara wants to talk to you."

"Me?"

"Yes," said Eleven breathlessly. "I told her about what happened to us. She wants to talk to you."

Hopper and Joyce exchanged a nervous glance.

"You don't have to see her if you're not up to it, Will," said Hopper.

"Why wouldn't I be up to it?" asked Will.

"You know why," said Hopper.

"Sweetie, Sara's been through a lot. She lashes out sometimes," said Joyce.

"I can relate," said Will as he shrugged. "Let's go, El."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Is this your brother?" asked Sara.

"Yes," said Eleven. "This is Will."

"Um, hi Sara," said Will as he held out his hand awkwardly. He noticed the haunted look in Sara's eyes. She gave him an appraising look, then shook his hand. She took a seat at the table and Eleven and Will followed.

Sara began tracing indistinct shapes on the table again. Will glanced at Eleven and she shrugged.

"Your sister told me about the shadow monster," said Sara. "That must have been rough."

"It was," said Will. "But it's over now." He pulled a collectors coin out of his pocket that Julie had given him as a good luck charm. He twirled it over his fingers. "It's over," he repeated to himself. Eleven squeezed his shoulder.

"I saw it too," said Sara. Will gave her a quizzed look. "Not the shadow monster, but the Upside Down, the storm."

"You saw that?" asked Will.

"Yes, when I was visiting Hawkins with my parents. We were in a park and I saw it. My dad was holding me and tickling me. Mom and Dad suddenly vanished. Everything was dark, dead and cold. I just looked around for my parents and there was a storm. Then I heard my dad telling me to breathe…. Then they-whoever they are-made everyone think I was sick and took me."

"Why did they take you?" asked Will. "If you don't mind me asking...What did they make you do?

Sara looked carefully from Will to Eleven. "Well seeing as both of you were used by them too, I don't mind you asking."

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to," said Will.

"Your sister told me a few things about the both of you, I guess it's only fair that you know about me," said Sara as she continued to trace vague shapes on the table. "I'm a psychic."

"A psychic?" asked Eleven.

"It usually happens when I touch something. People give off electric pulses when they're thinking really hard about something. Sometimes I can read minds. The doctors that the MKUltra people sold me to would loan me out to corporations for a little spying on the competition. They taught me how to act like a perfect little lady at fancy parties and everything."

"People give off electric pulses when they're thinking?" asked Will. "And those pulses transfer into objects?"

"It's hard to explain. I don't completely understand it," said Sara. "But metal is a good conductor. I could show you with that coin you've got there."

Will, who had been rolling the coin over his fingers, stopped it between his index and middle finger then held it out to Sara. She took it and closed her eyes to concentrate.

"A girl with dark hair gave this to you. Looks like she's your girlfriend. You hate coming here for check ups because it reminds you of-" Sara suddenly dropped the coin and stared at Will. He reached over, picked up the coin, and put it back in his pocket.

"Yeah," he said sourly. "It reminds me of things I wished never happened. I guess I won't be forgetting about those things anytime soon." Will tapped his chest.

"I sorry that happened to you. To both of you," said Sara as tear pricked her eyes.

"Well, we're sorry about everything that happened to you too," said Will.

"We can help you Sara. We understand. Your dad-Our dad- wants you to have a happy life," said Eleven. Sara made a skeptical grunt.

"Did he ever even tell you anything about me?" she asked.

"Not a lot," said Eleven. "He said you liked space."

"He couldn't have missed me that much, then," said Sara.

"He didn't talk about you because it was painful for him," said Will. "He absolutely missed you, and he's happy that you're alive. He's just worried about you after everything that happened."

"He's probably worried that I'll never be normal," said Sara. "I don't think I ever will."

"So what?" said Will. "Our older brother always says that normal is boring, and he's right!"

"You have an older brother?" asked Sara. "Any other siblings?"

"Yes," said Eleven. "We have a sister now."

Sara rolled her eyes. "You just met me."

"That's not your fault," said Eleven. "Your dad is our dad in every way that matters, so that makes you our sister whether you like it or not and we're going to help you get better and have a happy life."

Sara gave a small laugh that Will and Eleven took as a positive sign. "We'll see about that. Just do me a favor."

"What do you want us to do?" asked Eleven.

"Don't tell anyone what we talked about today...Not even my-our-dad. I'm not ready for them to know yet."

"We'll keep everything between us," said Will. "But he'll understand when you're ready to talk to him."