Chapter 9
The morning after Christmas Joyce, Jonathan, Eleven, and Will were the only people in the Byers-Hopper house. Hopper had dropped off Mike and Julie at their jobs before heading to Indianapolis to pick up Sarah from her mother's house. Nancy was staying with her parents for most of the break. Will had developed a slight fever Christmas afternoon, but aspirin had brought it down. The slight fever seemed to have returned. There was an appointment for Dr. Owens to come to the house with a couple of specialist from Bloomington the next morning to check on Will's healing progress. Joyce had called them about the fever and they had told her that Will wasn't in any immediate danger as long as the aspirin was bring the fever down. Will had no desire to go to the hospital.
"Get some rest, Baby," said Joyce as she gently draped a blanket over Will as he settled into the recliner after taking some aspirin. "We've gotta get you feeling well enough by New Years to have that party party your friends want so bad."
"It's not really a party," said Will. "We'd just be playing Dragon Quest and Mario all night."
"Maybe," said Joyce with a small smile. "But I want you to win and you'll need to save your strength because I don't think Dustin and Max will let you win just because of your recent surgery."
"Good point," said Will as he yawned and closed his eyes. Joyce kissed his forehead. She turned around to see Eleven resting her head on the arm of the sofa.
"Are you feeling alright, Sweetheart?" asked Joyce as her felt Eleven's forehead and cheeks, that thankfully felt normal.
"Don't worry, Mom, I'm just a little drowsy," said Eleven.
"It won't hurt you to get a little rest," said Joyce as she grabbed a blanket and draped it over her daughter. Joyce quickly glanced at Will and noted that he had already drifted off. She kissed Eleven's forehead. "Mike'll be back from work in a few hours, get some sleep."
Eleven nodded and shut her eyes. As much as she tried not to dwell on the past too much, she couldn't help but be reminded of all the time she'd lost with her mother and brothers every time they made a caring gesture or showed affection for her. Joyce had showed affection and kindness to her before even knowing she was her mother. Being a prisoner at Hawkins Lab all those years, being locked in a closet and being raised as a weapon would likely affect her for the rest of her life. Every day she struggled with the fear that she might be locked up by bad people again. The number of people that she cared about increased and that made her fear worse as she didn't want anything bad to happen to them. The thing that really helped was knowing that she was no longer alone.
Joyce took a seat next to Jonathan at the kitchen table. "Let me see your pictures."
"You've seen them twice already," said Jonathan with a chuckle.
"Well, they're really good, I'm so proud of you, and I want to see them again. Mother's prerogative," said Joyce. The phone rang before Jonathan could open his portfolio. Joyce briefly considered just letting the machine get, but didn't want the ringing to wake up Will or Eleven and the call might be important.
"Joyce," said the voice of the person she least wanted to hear from.
"What do you want?" Joyce hissed. It took a lot of effort to keep her voice down.
"Why didn't you tell me about Will's surgery. I had to hear about it from Merv."
"Don't pretend you'd give a damn of you'd known!"
"You're still trying to turn my own son against me."
"Hopper's been more of a father to him than you ever were."
"It's still my blood that flows through his veins," said Lonnie.
"Like that ever mattered to you," said Joyce. Realizing who she was talking to, Jonathan got up from the table and went to his mother's side.
"Look, Joyce, I'm in town. I want to see our son, our sons. I heard Jonathan was in town too."
"My sons," said Joyce through gritted teeth. "And the last time you saw Will, you sold him to a bunch of mad scientists. You're not getting anywhere near him." Joyce would have normally hung up the phone, but knowing that Lonnie was in town and not 90 miles away changed things. She didn't want anything causing stress for Will and really didn't want Lonnie to know about Eleven.
"Mom." Joyce and Jonathan looked over to see Will and Eleven standing in the area between the kitchen and living room. Their dogs and cats were right behind them. Joyce covered the mouth of the phone.
"Will, honey, go back to sleep," said Joyce. She didn't dare risk saying Eleven's name out loud if there was a chance Lonnie could hear her say it.
"It's okay, Mom, I'll talk to him," said Will as he walked over to Joyce and held out his hand for the phone.
"Will, you don't have to do this," said Jonathan.
"I know I don't," said Will. "Trust me, I got this."
"Alright," said Joyce. "But sit down first, please."
"Deal," said Will. He took a seat at the table and Joyce handed him the phone. "What do you want, Lonnie?"
"Will?" asked Lonnie. "Your voice has changed."
"I'm going to be old enough to drive in a couple months," said Will dryly. "Voice changes are normal."
"I just heard you had heart surgery. It's been planned for months. Why didn't anyone tell me?"
Will rolled his eyes. "There have been a lot of baseball and football games since I found out I was going to need the surgery. You've never wanted to be bothered when games are on."
"That's your mother talking."
"Nope, It's me talking. You've barely been around in the last seven years, but even you should be able to tell the difference," said Will.
There was a brief pause. "So, what else has been going on with you?"
"I've been working to save up for a car. Hopper-my father- has been showing me how to change the belt, the oil, the tires, you name it. He's a really good teacher."
"You've never been interested in that kind of stuff," Lonnie scoffed.
"I wasn't interested when the person trying to teach me was constantly calling me an overly sensitive little fag," said Will.
"That's in the past, Will. I'd like to see you."
"We both know that isn't true," said Will lightly. "You're putting on a show for your friends, that's all."
"Will-"
"Here's an idea," said Will. "Since you're already lying to your buddies and pretending to give a crap about me, just lie to them again: leave for a couple hours and just tell them you were visiting me. If you are thinking of coming anywhere near here, just remember my father is the chief of police. You can't look so good in front of your buddies if the guy you used to beat up when he was a kid throws you in jail." Will stood up and hung up the phone.
"I think you enjoyed that," said Jonathan as he guided Will back to the chair.
"I can hide if he comes," said Eleven.
"He won't," said Will.
Joyce grabbed the thermometer from the drawer under the counter. "Let's see if that aspirin's working yet, Baby." Will didn't resist as Joyce put it in his mouth. Eleven giggled.
"What?" asked Will, though it was more of a slight noise as his mouth was holding the thermometer.
"You're the youngest, so you're the baby of the family. You're my baby brother," said Eleven. Will rolled his eyes. "It's true."
After a couple minutes, Joyce took out the thermometer to check it. "Looks like the aspirin worked. How about some lunch?"
"Sure, Mom, thanks," said Will. "I'm only a few hours younger than you, El."
"That still counts, and I'm going to tease you about it," said Eleven.
"Go for it," said Will with a small smile.
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On Saturday morning, Joyce, Hopper and Jonathan were sitting at the kitchen table drinking coffee. Will, Eleven, Mike, Julie, and Sarah were still sleeping. They were expecting the doctors to come from Bloomington that morning, but wanted Will to get as much rest as possible until he completely recovered. He had spent a significant part of the previous evening doing origami for the roller rink New Years Eve decorations. His boss was paying him for the work, but it was still physically demanding in his condition.
"You don't have to worry about Lonnie, he went back to Indianapolis yesterday afternoon," said Hopper.
"I know," said Joyce. "I'm just always afraid he's up to something."
"I think Will was right," said Jonathan. "He was just putting on a show for his friends."
The doorbell rang. Jonathan got up and answered. Nancy was there with Karen and Holly. Karen was carrying a couple of grocery bags. "Hey, Jonathan, I thought I'd make everyone some breakfast."
"You don't have to do that, Mrs. Wheeler," said Jonathan. Nancy gave Jonathan a significant look behind her mother's back.
"It's no trouble at all," said Karen.
"Well, come on in. I'll take those bags for you," said Jonathan. He took the grocery bags and stepped aside for them to come inside.
"Hey, Joyce," said Karen as she entered the kitchen. "I thought I'd make my famous blueberry pancakes for everyone."
"Thanks, Karen," said Joyce. "The kids are all still asleep and the doctors from Bloomington will be here to check on Will soon..."
"That should work out," said Karen. "These are made from scratch, to the prep will take a while anyway." Joyce nodded and grabbed some cooking supplies out of the cupboard.
Karen didn't want to admit it, but she felt a little jealous of Joyce. It was something she never thought she'd feel was Joyce was always considered to be the weird girl when they were in high school. Later, she was considered to be the town crazy woman. The other mothers in the PTA often sneered at Joyce, particularly when she began taking extra shifts after Will went missing for a week. Karen felt it was hypocritical of women who never had to work a day in their lives to judge a single mother, but the kind of judgement Joyce often got from others was one of the reasons Karen thought she'd never envy Joyce.
Up until they were teenagers, the party members hung out in the Wheeler basement more than they hung out anywhere else. When they were 13, Mike began going to to Byers home more and more. It was mostly because that was the only way he could see Eleven, but it started becoming a habit and the Wheeler house was no longer the primary hangout. Then Joyce married Hopper and they got a house that was much closer to everyone else. Mike seemed to be more and more interested in hanging out at Will's house instead of having Will and Eleven come to the Wheeler home.
Joyce had a horrible first marriage, but seemed very happy in her second marriage. Her children seemed to enjoy her company. Karen's own children seemed to prefer Joyce's company. Even Holly was talking very animatedly to Joyce who was asking about first grade. Home cooked meals was what Karen had to offer to everyone and she was going to offer it. Joyce was a decent student when they were in school, but she wasn't fond of home economics class.
Dr. Owens arrived about 20 minutes after the Wheelers. "He's still sleeping," said Joyce. "Sorry about that. I just want him to rest as much as possible."
"That's quite alright," said Dr. Owens. "He should be getting as much rest as possible. Did he have a fever again this morning?"
"99.3," said Joyce.
"The aspirin's been bringing it down though the last couple days?" asked Dr. Owens.
"Temporarily," said Joyce. "It's been coming back in the morning. Should we be worried?"
We'll know for sure after we see him," said Dr. Owens. "He may have a small infection, but antibiotics will probably take care of it from the sound of things."
Joyce led the team of doctors upstairs. She woke up Mike, who was sleeping in a cot near Will's bed. He went out to join Eleven, Julie, and Sarah in the hall. They had all heard the doctors coming up the stairs. Eleven took Mike's hand and rested her head on his shoulder. Joyce stayed with Will in his room while the doctors examined him.
"How are you feeling, Will?" asked Dr. Owens.
"Mostly sore," said Will. "Can I walk down the stairs by myself soon?"
"We still want to be careful with that," said Dr. Owens. "The bones in your chest are healing. If you get dizzy, fall, and grab the railing on the way down, it could undo all the healing. Waiting until the end of January to lift more than a couple pounds may seem like a long time, but it'll be over before you know it. This incision seems to be healing nicely though. Looks like everyone's done a great job changing the dressing."
"What about the fevers?" asked Joyce.
"There are no signs on a serious infection around the incision. Antibiotics should take care of the fevers. We'll check his blood work to be sure," said Dr. Owens as he wrote a prescription and handed the piece of paper to Joyce. He also indicated the blood samples they'd taken from Will.
"Can my friends come over for New Years Eve?" asked Will. "And what about school? When can I go back? I don't want to miss too much."
"As long as you take it easy, it should be fine for your friends to come over for New Years. As for school, you should be back by the end of January at the very latest, but we'll know for sure after you go in for your x-rays next week.
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"We'll be back around 1," said Hopper. "Call the station if you need anything."
"We will," said Jonathan.
"Are you sure you two don't mind chaperoning?" asked Joyce.
"It's fine, Mom. You two deserve a night out."
"Any party we'd go to would have a lot of alcohol anyway," said Nancy. "And that's never been good for me."
Mike, Lucas, Dustin, and Max all arrived around 9:30 when they got off work. Julie, Randy, Cathy, Tim, and Dave all got there around 8.
"Sorry this isn't what you're used to," Will said to Dave, who was one of Dustin and Lucas' baseball teammates and therefore used to hanging out with jocks.
"It's fine," said Dave as he took his turn with Zelda. "I actually like video games, but can't admit it most of the time. Most of the team thinks Link is Zelda."
"Yeah, I got that from the Halloween party," said Will.
"Think your mom will be okay us having decathlon team practices here until you recover?" asked Jennifer.
"Probably," said Will. He glanced at Sarah and Eleven who were sitting quietly off to the side. Sarah still had anxiety about being around people, but she was trying to get over it. She didn't want to live in a hospital anymore.
When Mike came, he handed Will a hand written check from their boss at Roller World. "He says he'll pay you to work on Valentines decorations if you want. More money for the car is always a good thing."
"It's a great thing," said Will.
"Want me to put that in your desk for you, Bud?" asked Jonathan.
"That sounds like a good idea," said Will as he handed the check to his brother.
"Lucas is going to have his driver's license in a couple weeks," said Dustin. "He already has a car."
"If you guys are nice, maybe I'll give you rides," said Lucas. "But you have to be at least as nice as Will."
"That's impossible," said Dustin with a mock whine.
"Nothing's impossible, some things are just really hard," said Lucas.
"I could start being an asshole if that'll make it easier," said Will.
"I think if you're being an asshole to help your friends, it counts as being nice," said Mike.
"Oh, well. I tried. Sorry Dustin," said Will.
"I forgive you. It is New Year's after all," said Dustin. "Since it's 1987, does that mean it's officially the late 80s or is it still the mid-80s?"
"It's still 1986 for a couple more hours," said Lucas.
"It's already 1987 if you go far enough east," said Will. "It's been 1987 for several hours in New Zealand and China."
"Are they always like this?" Sara asked Eleven as she watched Will and his friends in amusement.
"All the time," said Eleven.
"I could get used to this," said Sarah.
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"Go ahead and turn on it on. Let's get that clean oil running through the engine," said Hopper. Will got into the driver's seat and put the key in the ignition. He let the car run for a few minutes.
"Everything's sounding good," said Hopper as Will turned off the engine. "You made a good choice, kid."
Will and Eleven had recently completed driver's ed. Joyce had been anxious about them learning to driver during the winter- and a particularly nasty winter at that- but Hopper had assured her that people who learned to driver in the winter were actually better drivers because they learned safety.
It was the first day of Easter Break. Sara was visiting. Joyce and Eleven decided to take her shopping in Eagleton. Neither Joyce nor Eleven particularly liked "girly" clothes, but Eleven was happy to help Sara with her wardrobe. Hopper had decided to take Will to Indianapolis for an impound auction. He'd been working to save for a car for a little over a year. Will had chosen a blue Toyota Corona and easily won the auction when the other bidders noticed Hopper's conspicuously displayed police badge. He also had a couple of friends on the force who may over may not have given the other bidders stern looks.
Hopper insisted on checking the car over when they got back. He wanted to teach Will how to change the oil and check other things. They had a mechanic check it over before leaving Indianapolis and it was in good condition, but Hopper wanted to spend some bonding with Will. It was important to him to be a good father. He noticed Will grinning.
"What's so funny?" asked Hopper.
Will took off his mechanic suit, folded it and put it on the shelf in the garage. "I was just thinking about how frustrated Lonnie always got when he tried to teach me and Jonathan this stuff. We just weren't interested, you know? If the thought of speaking to him didn't make me want to vomit, I'd probably call him just to rub in the fact that you of all people taught me how to change oil and tires...to rub it in even more than I did at Christmas at least."
"Hopefully you won't have to change a tire for a while," said Hopper. "But if you do get a flat in the next couple months-"
"Don't worry, I'll get help," said Will.
"Hop, come in, Hop," said Flo's voice over Hopper's police radio. Hopper wiped his hands as best as he could on a towel before picking up the radio.
"There's been another break-in at the Star Court Mall Footlocker. The owner's asking for you personally on the case."
"Alright, I'll be there in half an hour," said Hopper. "Sorry, Will." He added as he and Will put the tools back into the tool box.
"It's okay," said Will. "Julie's coming over soon anyway to take the car for a spin."
"Alright," said Hopper. "Just leave a note for your mother or send a telepathic message to your sister and let them know where you're going."
"I'll do that."
Will started polishing the dashboard after Hopper left. "How about a ride, Mister?" Will looked up and saw Julie standing next to her bike.
"How much did you practice that?" asked Will with a grin as he stood up.
"I've been waiting almost two years to say it," said Julie as she tugged playfully on Will's shirt and kissed him. She glanced at the car. "You about ready?"
"Yeah, I just need to wash my hands," Will sniffed his shirt. "And maybe change into something that doesn't stink."
They were greeted by Chester and Buttons when they went into the house. "I'll let the dogs out while you're cleaning up," said Julie. "But hurry. You're going to New York in a couple days and our time together is precious."
Will cleaned himself up, put on some clean clothes and grabbed a couple of blankets. He left a note on the counter for his mother and sisters. "Ready?" he asked Julie as he grabbed a couple of pop cans fro the fridge. He popped the most recent mixtape Jonathan had sent him into the cassette player. He drove to an area in the woods near the quarry. Will looked around nervously and tried to focus on the sunshine and tiny leaves that were beginning to form on the trees.
"Are you alright?" asked Julie as she rubbed his shoulder.
"Yeah, just trying to focus on the things coming to life," said Will.
"We can go somewhere else," said Julie. Will shook his head.
"I'm always going to remember what happened, but I'm not going to let it control me anymore. The Upside Down is gone anyway."
"Yeah, it is," said Julie as she rubbed his leg. She then kicked off her sneakers.
"What are you doing?" asked Will with a laugh,
"Making sure I don't leave footprints on the seat of your new car," said Julie. She pulled off her socks, then playfully rested her bare feet on Will's lap as she took off her jacket.
"I appreciate that," said Will as he caressed Julie's feet while he kicked off his own shoes.
"It's always nice to be appreciated," said Julie as she leaned over and kissed Will's forehead, nose, and finally his lips before crawling into the back seat. Will removed his own socks and jacket before joining her. He threw one of the blankets over the backseat like a tent.
Thirty minutes later Julie was resting her head on Will's chest and tracing his scar with her finger. They had both accepted that it was a habit she'd have for the rest of their relationship. "Are you okay?" Will asked as he caressed her shoulder blade. "I mean, did I-"
"Don't worry, Will. It doesn't hurt anymore," said Julie.
"Are you sure?"
"I'm positive, but it is cute that you care so much," said Julie. She smiled, kissed the incision scar, then Will's lips. Something hit the side of the car and startled them both. The waited a minute then peaked out from under the blanket and breathed a sigh of relief as they saw it was just a squirrel.
"We should probably get dressed," said Will. Julie nodded. Once they had their clothes back on, they decided to sit outside on a tree stump and drink their pop. They then decided to draw on their sketch pads. Will loved early spring. He loved the sights and smells of things coming to life.
"What are you thinking about?" asked Julie.
"I was just thinking how good dirt smells in early spring," said Will.
"Yeah, it really does," said Julie.
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Eleven stared at the New York skyline from the Statue of Liberty. Mike watched the wonder on her face with affection. He could hear Jonathan snapping pictures and capturing the first time his younger siblings were on Ellis Island. Mike looked over to watch Will drawing a rough sketch that he would be filling in with more detail later. Nancy was looking out at the Atlantic Ocean.
It wasn't Mike's first trip to New York. He'd been there on a family vacation years earlier. He was enjoying and appreciating it a lot more now that he was there with Will and Eleven instead of his Wheeler cousins.
"This is pretty incredible, isn't it?" Mike whispered to Eleven as he put his arm around her waist.
Eleven smiled. "It's amazing." She looked at Jonathan. "I want to come here more often and visit you."
"You guys are welcome as often as you're able to get here."
"Mom was really nervous when we were getting on the plane, I could tell," said Eleven.
"I'm just glad she let us come. It was probably really hard for her," said Will.
"She just has to keep reminding herself that you're doing fine and you're going to be alright," said Jonathan.
"Yeah," said Will. "We're going to be great." He gazed out at the city and focused on all the life in it and all the life he had ahead of him. The Byers and Wheeler siblings were blissfully unaware of the man in the crowd quietly observing them.
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And that's the end of this story. I wrote several versions of the final chapter that were crap and settled on this one. Anyway, if you want to see what happens next- by next, I mean ten years later, check out Beyond the Ripple. You can also check out my AU fic that is an alternate version of Season one and MKUltra Ripple called Through the Portal. I'm also fixing some grammar errors and adding extra scenes in MK Ultra Ripple. Trying to finish it all before season threes proves all my theories wrong.