Trying Again

Somewhere Else

Time Unknown

"I want to warn you, Jane, that this is still going to be tough," George said with concern. "Don't be discouraged if it takes a few tries to get there."

"I know," she said, a determined smile on her face. "I'll give it my all. And if it's not enough, I'll rest and try again."

"A smart plan," he complimented with a smile.

"And you'll stay with me, until I make it?" she asked.

"Of course, I'll be right here until you make it home. I promise." he comforted.

She threw her arms around him then, planting a quick kiss on his soft, wrinkled cheek. "Thank you."

"Think nothing of it, Miss Jane. Now, off with you, can't keep Mike waiting," he teased.

Settling gently into the grass, she closed her eyes and calmed her breathing. She thought of the people she wanted to be back with, and everything they meant to her. She thought of Daddy and the long road they had walked together becoming a family. She thought of Lucas who had taught her the importance of honesty with friends and hadn't hesitated to call her out when she was hiding something important. She thought of Dustin who had, without second thought to his own safety, scooped up her barely conscious body and whisked her to safety as they ran from the demogorgon when it attacked the school. She thought of Will, the boy she could talk freely with about the experience of surviving the Upside-Down; together they had helped each other heal and move past that terrible place. She thought of Mrs. Byers, who lovingly allowed herself to be called mother, and had lived up to the name in every way. She thought of Mama, who had sacrificed everything to try to rescue her little girl. She thought of Nancy and Jonathan, who had helped to destroy the prison she had been raised in. She thought of Max, the girl who taught her all about jealousy, and whom she now counted as one of her best friends.

She held onto all these people as she found the light once more, and began to draw herself toward it. She quickly added George to her list of important people. The companion who had guided her through this strange and mystical place and who helped her to discover where her strength truly lay. She focused her whole being on the light and could feel it growing brighter, beginning to surround her. She pulled hard at it, calling forward her biggest strength.

She thought of Mike and tried to recall every amazing moment they had shared, the good and the bad. Finding her in the rain. Bringing her home. Promising to keep her safe. The way he looked at her when she walked into the SnowBall, as though the rest of the world had ceased to exist. The kiss they shared. Every comforting embrace as she fell apart. Every time he helped put her back together again, better than before. Infinite patience. She pulled hard at the light, the world feeling so close.

She could feel her grip begin to falter and she pushed harder still, refusing to let go. She was so close. Her hand instinctively shot to her wrist, her fingers twisting into the hair tie. Daddy's blue band. Sara's band. Daddy always said the band gave him strength, when he didn't think he had enough of his own. He had given it to her for when she needed help being strong. She hadn't thought about it before, but in that moment, she added Sara to the people she loved. She had never met the girl, but Daddy had loved her with all his heart, and that meant she loved her too. She owed it to Sara to take care of their Daddy since she couldn't.

She focused once more on their faces. Daddy. Sara. Mike. She pulled herself desperately toward them, the light surrounding her, filling her. Suddenly she felt like she was falling again. She clung desperately to the light as she felt the world go black around her.

Hawkins, IN

June 20, 1986

Eleven's eyes flickered open and darted around the room. Her head felt heavy and her arms still didn't want to move, but everything felt real. For a brief moment, she started to panic, thinking she was back in the lab. The harsh light on bright white walls and the faint scent of cleaners felt uncomfortably familiar. But then she spotted the colorful cards, taped high on the wall where she could easily see them.

She was suddenly aware of fingers intertwined with her own on her left hand. Not knowing what else to do, she gave them a squeeze.

"El?" She would know his voice anywhere.

A moment later, Mike's face came into her field of view. His beautiful eyes were a wash of grief and concern, joy and astonishment and above all, undying love.

"El!" he said again, tears of relief building in the corners of his eyes. Reaching with his free hand, never taking his eyes off her's, he shook Hopper's shoulder. "Hopper, get up. She's awake."

Mike reached to the call button at the head of her bed and clicked it furiously, summoning a nurse from the station down the hall. A small smile spread across Eleven's face, overjoyed at seeing Mike and knowing she was home. She went to say his name but found there was something in the way, something hard and smooth running into the corner of her mouth and down her throat. She raised her free hand in panic, trying to feel for what it was, her eyes wide with alarm. Mike reached for her free hand, taking it in his own.

"Shh, it's okay," he soothed. "It's just a plastic tube. It's been helping you breath. The doctors will come and take it out now that you're awake."

She calmed down then; Mike had told her everything was okay, so she knew it was. Hopper's face appeared in her field of view then.

"Jane!? Jesus you scared me," he said, eyes filling with tears of his own. He leaned down to kiss her forehead, a hand on her shoulder.

She did her best attempt to smile, though the movement caused the tape holding her breathing tube in place to tug uncomfortably at her skin. Looking back and forth between Hopper and Mike, her own tears of relief beginning to fall, she reached her right hand over to find one of Hopper's. For a quiet minute, she held their hands, grateful to be home. All three shed fresh tears as the last week washed over them.

All too soon, the room was a flurry of activity as doctors and nurses poured in to assess her condition. Mike and Hopper were shuffled back into the corner of the room, assuring Eleven they weren't going anywhere. The hospital staff had originally tried to send them down to the waiting room but it quickly became obvious it would require armed security to drag Hopper out of the room, so they agreed the two could stay, provided they stayed in the corner and let the doctors do their job.

After making an initial assessment that she was fully awake and alert, had active reflexes and appropriate responses to light and sound, the doctors agreed to remove the breathing tube. They offered to let her hold someone's hand while they worked and she immediately stretched out an arm toward Mike. Sitting by her side, Mike held tight to her hand as the doctor gently slid the tube back up out of her throat. Eleven fought back a gagging nausea at the unfamiliar feeling of the tube coming up, squeezing tightly to Mike's hand and hoping she didn't break his fingers in the process. Hopper watched from across the room as the scene unfolded. The dread of seeing her on the ventilator was replaced with a wash of relief watching it being removed. He kept reminding himself that if the doctors were removing the tube, it meant she was through the worst of the danger.

With the tube out, the doctor set about checking for vocal damage.

"Can you say something for me?" he asked. "Just one word is fine."

Looking at the boy gently holding her hand in his own, she croaked out "Mike," her throat scratchy and raw.

"Good. Very good. You're throat will probably be scratchy for a few days and it will hurt to talk or swallow. Just take it easy and things should heal up just fine." he reassured. "Alright, I think that is all for now. I'll leave you to rest for a bit. One of the nurses will be back in a while to have you try a little water and see if you can keep that down alright. Guys, you take good care of her," he teased, looking at Mike and Hopper.

The next two days passed in a bit of a blur for the trio. Eleven said very little as her throat continued to heal. After being unconscious for a full week, she found her energy severely lacking, waking for around an hour at a stretch and then napping again. Hopper and Mike rarely left her side, and as before, were never gone at the same time. Nurses and doctors were in and out regularly, checking on her progress. Slowly but surely she worked her way up from sips of water to bites of jello. At one point an offer of ice cream was extended, to help sooth her raw throat but Hopper expertly steered the offer around to a small dish of pudding instead, much to her relief. Sunday morning she successfully kept down some scrambled eggs and a few bites of toast.

By early Sunday afternoon, the hospital agreed to release her to go home. The doctors were hesitant, their concern primarily revolving around the fact that they still had no idea what had put her under in the first place. However, every test they ran came back clean and they reluctantly signed the forms to turn her over into Hopper's care. Per hospital policy, she was required to be brought down to the entrance in a wheelchair so one was brought up to her room. Hopper helped get her settled into the chair before going down to the nurses station to sign the final release paperwork. She sat, watching Mike finish packing up the last of her cards and gifts and getting things ready to go home. Hearing her happily humming, he looked over and was surprised to see her rolling the chair slowly back and forth, though her hands were folded neatly in her lap. Quickly glancing at the door, he looked back at her, grinning.

"Very cute El," he teased, "You know Hopper will have a heart attack if he catches you doing that here."

"Sorry," she smiled, letting the chair roll to a stop once more. "Happy."

Coming over and kneeling next to her, he placed a gentle hand around the back of her neck and softly kissed her. "I'm so glad you're okay. I love you, El."

She nuzzled her cheek against his hand and smiled. "Love. Too."

Hopper came back then and eyed the two of them suspiciously and shook his head with a laugh. "Alright you two. What do you say we go home?"

Eleven smiled up at him and nodded, "Home."