Summer was almost over and it was close to the end of July. Before they knew it Mike and El would be starting highschool. There was still one thing the Wheelers had planned for the summer.
"We are going on a vacation to the beach and an amusement park. We are driving all the way to Florida." Mrs.Wheeler announced.
"Really! I'm gonna ride all the roller coasters. I'm also gonna take in all the amazing marine biology." Mike stated.
El replied, "Oh Mike you are such a nerd, but I love you anyway."
"Eleven your parents are also coming. Nancy and Hope will be there too, because Jonathan is going on a business trip. It will be like a bonding trip for everyone. We are all sharing a big condo which is like a house." Mr. Wheeler explained.
"Yay. My first family vacation!" El said.
Mrs.Wheeler replied, "We are actually leaving tomorrow so make sure to pack after dinner. Don't forget swimsuits."
"We won't mom. I can't wait this is going to be so much fun." Mike stated.
The next morning they woke up extremely early it was still dark. Eleven found out that it was actually three in the morning and they were leaving at four. Nancy and Hope took up the room in the Wheelers car, so Mike and Eleven rode with Hop and Terry. Eleven fell asleep on Mike's shoulder and Hopper shot Mike a look of disapproval and warning. Eleven awoke with three hours left to go in the car. Mike decided to teach El to play Plinko since they were bored.
"Hey El do you wanna play Plinko?" Mike asked.
"What's Plinko?" El asked.
Mike explained, "It's a game where you look outside your window and when you see a yellow car you say Plinko. Each time you get a point. The person to get to five first wins. Yellow cars are kinda rare, so the game might be hard."
"Okay Mike. That sounds fun." El said.
The game lasted an hour and a half. Mike lost with only one point. Eleven seemed to always know before a yellow car came. Mike assumed she was using her powers, but he didn't care she was having fun. Mike won at I spy, because he always picked the tiniest and hardest things to guess. El tended to pick things that stood out, so Mike guessed easily. They arrived at the condo and ran in to check it out.
The condo had three rooms with queen beds, a room with a twin bed and a crib, two bathrooms, a kitchen, dining room, and a living room. It was huge and had a balcony attached to one of the queen rooms that Eleven liked. The adults allowed Eleven to have the room with the balcony, because Nancy was taking the small room that had a crib for Hope. The Wheelers took a queen bed to share with Holly. That left Terry, Hop, and Mike. Terry had to sleep with an adult in case she had any medical issues. Although, Terry had came out of her trance there were still complications. That meant Mike would have to share with Eleven and Hopper was not happy about that.
"I'm watching you Michael Wheeler. If I hear any funny business myself or from Eleven then you better hope you can out run me." Hopper stated.
Mike gulped and said, "Don't worry sir I would never push her into anything or take advantage of her. I consider myself lucky that the sweetest girl there is loves me."
"Good keep it that way. She is a very special girl who deserves a guy like you who treats her like a princess. However, I don't want her to do anything she'd regret before getting married even with a guy like you." Hopper explained.
Mike replied, "Don't worry Hop. I promise I'll take good care of her."
Mike decided not to mention the past to Hopper if he wanted a future. Mike climbed into bed with El after they got pizza. It was late and they had driven all day.
"Eleven I think Hopper seriously hates me." Mike stated.
El replied, "Don't be silly Mike he thinks your a great kid. I just think he's protective, because he hasn't been around my whole life. He want me to know he's her to keep me safe from now on."
"Are you sure Eleven?" Mike asked.
El replied, "Yes Mike. He told me once that I should hang on to you cause you're a good guy unlike most. He's right obviously."
"Thank El. I love you. Goodnight princess." Mike said.
El asked, "Umm...princess...I like it...but where did you get that from."
"From someone who gave me some good advice once. You are my princess and you should always feel like one around me." Mike explained.
"Oh well. Goodnight and I love you my prince." El said grasping Mike's hand.
Eleven and Mike fell asleep hand in hand. They were awoken by Holly who jumped on their bed in her swimsuit saying it was time to go to the beach. They both changed into their swimsuit and had some eggos that Mrs.Wheeler brought from home. Their condo was on the beach, so all they had to do was walk outside. Holly came running up to Eleven when they walked out wanting her to jump waves with her. Holly took her hand and pulled Eleven all the way to the waves.
El and Holly jumped waves hand in hand. Eleven thought Holly was adorable and she loved playing with little ones. Mike was so happy to see El bonding with his younger sister, because she had previously mainly hung out with Nancy. Mike sat in the sand until El and Holly were done jumping waves. Mike and El walked down to an ice cream truck and bought two popsicles. They ate their popsicles at the edge of the ocean water far down the beach from the others.
"The water is so beautiful Mike." El stated.
"Not really." Mike replied.
El asked, How can you say that Mike it's gorgeous."
"Well, I see you everyday and comparing you to this water is an obvious choice. You are a thousand times a better view than any ocean." Mike replied.
El replied, "That's sweet Mike, but come on you have to admit this is quite a view."
"It is but so are you." Mike said.
El replied, "I give up. I was never gonna be able to change your mind was I?"
"Nope never." Mike assured her.
El agreed to walk with Mike down under the dock, because he thought a lot of cool fish would be there. There were a ton of small fish swimming around there feet. The fish tickled El's feet and she began to walk backwards until she ran into one of the posts holding up the dock. El was leaning on one of the posts as Mike was examining fish. He such a science nerd she thought and laughed to herself. Mike walked over to his girlfriend who was still leaning against a post bored and kissed her. She kissed him back. They kept kissing until Mike turned his head and spotted a fish.
"Woah that's a rare species!" Mike said.
El replied, "Oh Mike only you would think of that at a time like this."
"Hey, it's cool though. It isn't normally sen in such shallow water." Mike said.
"Come on Mike let's get back to the others before Hop has a heart attack." El said pulling Mike back toward the condo still laughing at his nerdiness.
Mike and Eleven helped Holly build a sandcastle. They both had to calm her down, because the waves demolished it which made her upset. Eleven still wasn't the strongest swimmer, so Hop gave her a piggy back ride out deeper to get a better view of the deep sea. Mike swam out with them to see the view. El and Holly kept trying to catch the small fish in the shallow water, so Mike went and got them all a net from the bait store on the beach. All three of them tried to catch fish, but only one was caught by Holly. Overall, the beach was amazing despite the sunburn that came with the strong rays.
Sharing a bed each night gave Mike and Eleven ample time for conversation. It was their favorite part of vacation where they talked about deep stuff.
"I'm wide awake Mike. Can we talk?" El asked.
"Sure El. Talk to me about anything. Ask me a random question and I'll answer. " Mike replied.
El asked, "What's your most embarrassing moment?"
"Well in seventh grade I ran into the class, because I was late from AV club. I apologized for being late, but I had a huge voice crack and everyone laughed. What about you?" Mike asked.
"Ummm….probably when Nancy told all the boys that I had become a woman or when I bled through on my first day of school. That was horrible." Eleven said.
"Yeah that was pretty rough I bet. Do you have any good childhood memories with papa? You don't have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable." Mike asked.
El replied, "One Christmas he gave me a teddy bear and chocolate. We sang a Christmas carol, but after we sang he put me in the tank again. Do you have a childhood memory that stands out for you?"
"Ummm...My whole family once went to the city and stayed in a hotel. We played games, watched movies, drank hot chocolate, and spent time together. It was one of my dad's business trips. We all got along and Nancy and I got along for once. What is your favorite quality about me?" Mike asked.
El replied, "Probably that you always put your friends first and you stay loyal to them no matter what."
"That's sweet Eleven. You know my favorite thing about you is your bravery and how you are never scared to stand up to something scary. Also, how sweet you are to everyone especially children. You will make a phenomenal mother one day. Hopefully, it will be to my son or daughter." Mike stated.
"Love you Mike. You are so sweet. Goodnight my prince." El said.
"Goodnight and love you my beautiful princess." Mike replied.
The next morning they woke up and headed to the kitchen for breakfast. Nancy had ran to the store to make everyone eggs, bacon, and eggos. Mike and Eleven gobbled their food down quickly hoping to discover what the day had in store.
"Hop what are the plans for today?" El asked.
"Well Eleven we are going to Disney World for the day." Hopper answered.
"Awesome. That's sounds great!!" El exclaimed.
Terry replied, "I've Always wanted to go there!!"
"I can't wait to ride all the roller coasters!!" Mike stated.
"Roller coaster?" El asked.
Mike replied, "It's this ride that's fast and goes up and down and upside down. It's really fun. I bet you will like them."
"Sounds fun." El said.
Everyone finished breakfast and hopped in the cars. They drove into the city from their beach condo. Finally, they arrived at the park ready to ride rides.