"Don't worry about your little friend." The man said, his eyes flicking over to each one in turn. "He's just fine."
"What did you do to him? Where is he?" El exclaimed, her hands in fists. But the man was unfazed.
"He's out of Nineteen's mind, safe in the real world. Like I said, he's just fine."
The man stepped forward, his hands held up in surrender. El stepped further back, no doubt preparing for an attack.
"I'm not here to hurt you. I just wanted to talk. Don't you trust me, Eleven?"
El shook her head. "I don't know you."
"Ah. I see you suffered the same fate I did. But it's no matter. You'll soon remember."
Robin held Steve as he trembled, her face set in a scowl. "You hurt him! Who are you? What do you want?"
"You can call me One, like Papa did all of those years ago." The man, One, said, revealing his wrist to them, which was imprinted with a similar tattoo they all had. "And I wanted to give you all an opportunity that you simply can't refuse."
"So, you torture Steve in his own mind to get to us? Are you serious right now?" Robin yelled, but Steve's shaky hand rested on her shoulder. She looked over at him, expecting to see the fearful expression he had for the past…who knew how long? Yet he looked determined, brave, and his steadfast gaze made the words on her lips fall silent.
He weakly got to his feet, using Robin to help him balance, and focused his gaze on One.
"Just tell us what you want and let us out of here." He said firmly, and One smiled.
"There's the courage I saw in you all that time ago. I'm pleased to call you my brother, Nineteen."
Steve took in a deep breath at the words. "So, you're Brenner's experiment? Funny, I'm not a fan of the guy."
"Neither am I. He has spent years looking for me, but he won't succeed. But that doesn't matter. Martin Brenner will be of no problem to us…not ever again." His hands soon came to rest beside his body, showing that he wasn't going to hurt them, as if he wanted them to trust him, but Robin could tell that none of them did. And why would they? He hurt Steve. He hurt Steve more than anything else had in a long time, maybe even in forever.
"Back off, bozo. Let us go and never hurt us again." Robin said sternly, but One laughed, smiling at her fondly.
"Twenty, you and I both know that you're too curious as to who I am for me to leave so soon. And, you're probably wondering why you can't read me, aren't you?"
Robin's eyes widened at the realization that he was right. She could still feel his mind, an ever present pressure that wouldn't leave her, but she didn't know what he was thinking. She couldn't read him.
"I'll be clear with you three, my siblings, my…accomplices." He said, his eyes flicking over each of them but then remaining on El, "I'm here to restore balance, to break the cycle that every weak man and woman and child is stuck in. Hawkins will fall, and then, the rest of the world. And, you can either help me destroy it, or fall along with it."
"No." El said firmly. "We won't join you. Hawkins won't fall. You will."
"You seem so confident, El, sort of like you don't remember that this was all for you. All because of you."
"Leave her alone!" Steve yelled, rushing forward, his hands closed tightly into fists, but One stepped easily out of the way, thrusting his own hand out and stopping Steve in his tracks.
Robin screamed as Steve's body became stiff, his feet dangling off of the ground as One held him in the air with his powers. Steve's limbs were unmoving, and he began gasping for breath, struggling to break out of the hold, but it proved to be useless.
"I'll let you all think about your decision. You will know when I expect the answer. And, I look forward to changing the world with all of you."
El thrust out her own hand, screaming, and a bright light shone in all of their eyes, like lightning, blinding them to the world around them. Then the light was gone, andRobin gasped awake, panting, with tears streaming down her face as she observed her surroundings. A bathroom. She was back in the Byer's bathroom.
El sat up in the tub, water spilling over the edges as El screamed, Hopper rushing forward to comfort her. The young girl's head fell against Hopper's chest, her nose gushing dark blood onto her clothes, her eyes hooded with too much exhaustion. Robin could feel blood on her own skin, seeping from her nose, but it wasn't her biggest concern right now.
She needed to find Steve. She needed to make sure that he was okay.
"Dustin!" She heard from the other room, a strained, desperate voice that she instantly recognised. She stumbled to her feet, pushing away Mike's offer for help, and quickly made her way to the living room. She managed to breathe a sigh of relief as she saw Dustin holding Steve in a firm grasp, the boy looking perfectly fine despite whatever had happened in Steve's mind.
Steve sobbed into Dustin's shoulder, and Robin wasn't sure if it was because of fear or relief. But it didn't matter. She needed to help him.
"Steve!" She cried, forcing her way into the hug, and she could feel his strong hand find her shoulder, reassuring her that he was there.
"Rob, I…I thought…"
"We're all okay. El's okay. I'm okay."
"And I got a bad headache, but I'm okay, too." Dustin said, tears forming in his own eyes at Steve's distress.
"I thought…I thought we were as good as dead. I thought I was going to die alone." He whimpered, his breath hitching, and Dustin shushed him.
"I know, buddy, but you're alive. You're here. You didn't die, we didn't die, we're all fine."
"Does he want water or something?" Someone asked from outside of their hug, and Dustin broke away, shaking his head desperately. Steve began crying even harder at the words, and Robin didn't even wonder why. Dustin reached over to him, and Steve grasped his hand with as much strength as he could. Dustin understood exactly what Steve needed, and returned to the hug. Steve tucked his head into Robin's neck, and she let him. Robin gently rocked him as conversations began developing around them, trying to send him as much comfort as she could, both with her powers and without.
She didn't really know what happened while they were in Steve's mind, or if One was a danger or not, but she knew that, right now, Steve needed time to recover, and needed the presence of the people that loved him to help him. So that was the only thing she focused on. She drowned out all of the emotions, thoughts, and words of the others, making sure that Steve would feel better, if only for the here and now.
Steve tried not to dwell on that night too much. He knew that it was probably the weakest that he had ever been, a sobbing mess that needed hours upon hours of comforting, and he hated it. He was supposed to be the strong one, especially with his powers, but he wasn't. He let his bad memories, and whatever One was doing to him, affect him, break him down to his core when he should've been stronger. He hated remembering the weakness, the vulnerability, the dependence he had on Robin and Dustin, who both shouldn't have had to help him like they did.
Robin told him not to beat himself up about it. What happened to him, according to her and nearly everyone else, was natural, a reasonable response to what happened to him. He was allowed to be afraid, allowed to be weak, and scared. Steve didn't feel the same way.
He just wished that his stupid powers would've made the fear go away.
Despite his wish to forget, Steve still remembered what happened during and after his agony as clear as day. Robin and Dustin, once everyone had gotten settled once again, told everyone what they saw, what they experienced, what Steve experienced. El, who was just as terrified and tired as Steve was, chimed in with her own thoughts eventually, too, but was weaker than she should've been.
As soon as everyone learned that Steve had drowned and nearly died because of it he was ambushed by hugs and a bunch of "it's okays". He remembered feeling loved, but wishing that they didn't have to see him so weak. Joyce had gotten him a cup of tea, which didn't terrify him as much as the thought of drinking water, and Hopper had told him that Steve, without a doubt, had post-traumatic stress disorder. That, no matter what One did, Steve still had trauma from the experience, and that one day he would probably have to get professional help.
Naturally, Steve disagreed. Hopper had let it slide, but Steve didn't know how long that grace period would last. Everyone was just super worried about One, who he was, what his plans were, and if he was even someone to be worried about El, Robin, and Steve all knew that he was powerful, especially if he really was one of Brenner's experiments, but other than that they knew next to nothing about him.
They all mutually decided that there was nothing that they could do without risking the lives of Steve, Robin, and El, so now they were all stuck waiting for something to happen, trying to get back to a normal way of life.
Had it really been a month since that night? Steve glanced at the calendar hanging in Family Video. Yes. Yes, it had. It didn't feel like it at all.
"Earth to Dingus? Have you rewound those movies yet?" Robin asked from beside him, gently pushing his shoulder, and he blinked, turning to her with a confused look.
"Sorry?"
She held up a recently returned movie from the pile on the counter. "Movies? You know, our job? A job I so graciously helped you get?"
Steve shook his head with a smile, taking the tape from her gently and putting it into the machine.
"Right, right, this amazing job that gives me a hundred dollars a shift."
Robin scoffed. "You wish. At least we can suffer together, right?"
Steve nodded. "Yeah. Of course."
She leaned onto the counter, observing him carefully. "Are you okay? You seem really distant."
"I just can't stop thinking about what happened. What might happen." Steve said with a sigh, making sure that there were no customers around, and Robin sighed with him.
"It's scary but there's nothing that we can really do. You know what he did to you, he made you relive your worst, most traumatic moment, and nearly killed El because of exhaustion."
"He didn't do that to her." Steve explained softly, trying to believe his words himself. "She was overworked long before she entered my mind with you and Dustin, I may add, which would've put a huge strain on her powers."
"Nonetheless, he's a threat, and he seems to be the strongest in a non-physical environment."
"We don't know that, Robs. We know nothing about him. And I'm sick and tired of waiting for him to do something, for us to figure out more."
"I am too." She said, "Believe me, I am. But I don't want to see El so weak and scared again. I don't want to see you suffer like you did. I don't want you to relive drowning, being in that stupid cage, ever again. I don't want to see Dustin and Max and all of the kids worried about if their babysitter would live or die. I don't want to see One nearly kill you again. I can't do that again, Steve! There's only so much fear I can stop, I can handle, I can hold, before it all collapses in on me!"
Steve didn't say a word as he wrapped Robin in his arms, the young woman so close to tears, and he held her for as long as she needed, rocking her gently as she fell into him.
"I know. And I'm sorry." He said softly, but he could feel her shake her head against him.
"No. You don't get to apologize. You don't get to apologize for getting hurt, for being afraid. Just don't, please."
"Okay, I won't."
"Promise?" Her voice was sad and heartbroken, and all Steve wanted to do was make her sadness go away.
"Promise."
She took a deep breath and pulled away from him, wiping a stray tear from her cheek.
Steve put his hands on her shoulders, squeezing them gently. "You're so strong, Robin Buckley. Don't ever forget it. None of us could hold the weight you do, or stay strong despite everything you feel or what you've been through. You're amazing."
She let out a soft laugh. "You aren't so bad yourself, Dingus. But thanks."
Steve pulled away from her as the bell above the door rang, signaling a customer entering the store, and Robin gave him a small smile before grabbing movies to put back onto the shelf. Steve stayed at the counter and watched as Eddie Munson made his way to the counter after quickly making his selection of a movie. Steve tried not to groan.
This was bad. This was really bad.
Steve knew that Eddie was a good guy. He took the kids under his wing as soon as they stepped into the high school, and played Dungeons and Dragons with them. Steve could tell that he was helping Will gain his confidence, and was a good friend to all of them. He was happy that Eddie was able to help them out, especially as Steve couldn't be there 24/7, and he did trust the kids with him. However, after Steve no doubt treated him harshly in his own high school years, and the fact that Dustin told him off in front of Eddie, he didn't know how the metalhead would act around him now. Eddie probably hated him.
Steve just hoped that this would be a short encounter that they would both forget about in an hour.
"Hey, Harrington. I thought I heard about you working here." Eddie said, flashing a smile, and Steve tried to smile back. He leaned on the counter, shrugging as Eddie put down the movie, one that Dustin had told Steve about not long ago.
"Yeah, I figured I should probably make some money. Just this?"
Eddie nodded. "Yup. So, no college for you? You're not going to go work at your dear old dad's business?"
Steve tried to keep him composure, especially at the mention of his dad. "No college or business deal with my dad, Munson. Do you really think that I would want to work in an office? And, besides, I want to spend a bit more time recovering, I guess."
Steve knew that bringing up his situation, a situation that had been the gossip of the town ever since he and Robin had returned, was risky, but he would do anything to get him to stop talking about his dad.
Eddie didn't seem to understand what Steve meant, though. Steve didn't really know why.
"Situation?" Eddie asked, and Steve sighed, gesturing to his head.
"When I vanished after Starcourt? Amnesia, being gone for over six months?"
Eddie's mouth opened in understanding. "Oh, that. I'm honestly surprised that I forgot. That's super metal, by the way."
"What?"
"Getting lost, losing your memories because of injury. Metal. It sounds like a cool backstory or something."
Steve scoffed. "My life isn't a superhero story, Munson. It sucked."
"Right. Like Steve 'The Hair' Harrington isn't a superhero. Like all of the girls weren't running after him in high school. Like he wasn't above everyone else."
"I'm not that guy anymore. I'm just a recent graduate that needs to make a living. Anything else I can help you with?" Steve asked, his tone turning cold at the reminder of his old self. Eddie seemed to step back at that, but then shook his head.
"No, actually wait, one more thing."
"What?"
"You and Henderson made up, right? The kid can't stop singing your praises now."
"We're good now."
"Good." Eddie looked around nervously, before leaning closer, his voice now a whisper. "What were you lying to him about?"
"Why do you care?"
Eddie held up his hands in defense. "Just curious, big boy. I'm not trying to disturb the King's happiness."
"Fine." Steve said, rolling his eyes. The lie rolled off his tongue effortlessly, as if it was natural. "My parents…they got a divorce. I don't know if you know much about Dustin's parents, but…I just didn't want to bring up bad memories for him. So I kept it from him."
Eddie nodded, understanding filling his eyes. "I'm sorry to hear that, man. It sucks. And, I probably would've lied to Henderson, too, the kid doesn't need any reminders of that. Sometimes we do have to keep secrets."
"But not the big ones." Steve said softly and Eddie glanced at him suspiciously, taking the movie once he had tossed some coins onto the counter.
"Well, I'll see you later, Harrington. Thanks for the movie."
Steve watched in silence as he left, taking a deep breath. He didn't know why the conversation set him so on edge. Was it because he was treated like King Steve, someone who was so far in his past he didn't even seem real anymore? Was it the mention of his father, who blamed him for going missing, who didn't even want to see his only son? Was it the fact that Steve still felt guilty for lying to Dustin, even though they all felt that it was necessary? Was it something to do with Eddie and how horribly Steve had treated him in high school?
"Well, Dingus, I didn't take you to be such a good liar." Robin said, walking up to him, and Steve shrugged, pushing away his thoughts.
"Well, what can I say? It's not like I could've done anything else. And, I think Eddie Munson would be the last person to learn that I had powers."
Robin crossed her arms. "He's not such a bad guy. You two could be good friends, I know it."
"For us to be friends, he would have to learn about everything, and that could lead to his death. I'm not willing to take that risk. Besides," Steve put the coins into the till as he spoke. "I'm happy with the friends I have now."
Robin laughed, and Steve smiled, glancing at the clock, hoping that it would magically be time to go home. But his heart sank into his stomach at the sight, and he turned away, busying himself with tidying the pens discarded on the counter.
1:19. It was just a number, a time on the clock, but reminded him about what he was, and what could be coming. It filled him with fear, and a deep feeling that something was wrong. He glanced outside to see Eddie's van pull away from the curb, and the feeling got stronger.
But there was nothing that he could do.