Chapter 24: Opportunity
Her first full week in Hawkins was relatively uneventful for Mia. Classes were normal if a little boring and most of the students had stopped staring at her because she was new. She was now just another face in the crowd and that's the way she liked and wanted it.
"A few more months," she said to herself. "Then I can finally leave this life behind." It had been her mantra for years now, counting down the days, weeks, months, and years before she could escape, legally change her name, and let her father become a distant memory.
Homelife was okay, except for the window that could not be closed despite everyone's best efforts. It was a bit awkward, spending time with a family she barely knew. Bill usually just watched her from afar and sketched in his room; it was Georgie who made an effort to get to know his adopted cousin. Then again, most kids at that age have no hesitation when meeting new people. The six-year-old asked her to play trucks with him whenever she wasn't busy and she even helped him when practicing his reading. She was patient and prompted him whenever there was a word he struggled with. It was amazing that a kid could make her feel so welcome in a house of strangers.
It's Saturday morning and Mia just wants to go somewhere. Her aunt is playing piano in the foyer, her uncle is out back fixing up the garden, and Bill has already left to find his friends. She wants to explore the town a little bit, and maybe check out the mall she'd seen when her grandparents had driven her into town. She'd only been to malls a handful of times, mostly while in the big cities with her mom, but since they moved so much, it was hard to do anything remotely "normal."
She pulls on her jean jacket and is tying her shoes when Georgie walks up to her.
"Where are you going?" he asks.
"Just into town," she answers.
"Why?"
"I'm not really sure, but I would like to pick out a few things for my room if possible."
"Can I come with you?"
His strong trust in her is surprising, but also comforting.
"I… don't see why not. Make sure you ask your mom though,"
After some begging, Sharon allows her son to go, provided that he holds his cousin's hand when crossing the streets and that Mia brings a few groceries home afterwards. With his jacket on and his allowance money, Georgie Elmer Denbrough follows his cousin as they walk out of the cul-de-sac and towards the downtown area.
"Did you know there's a big radio in our basement here?" the kid asks.
"Really?"
"Uh-huh, I met someone named Dustin on it. He has an even bigger radio. He's friends with Billy."
"You need to be careful with that buddy, you don't know if a bad person is on the other end of the line."
"I know," he smiles. "Mommy and Daddy already told me about Stranger Danger."
"Good, because the last thing any of us want is to lose you to a bad person," she smiles, leaning forward and tickling him under the chin until he's in a fit of giggles. The developing kinship with the youngest Denbrough is another piece of life worth enjoying.
…
"Unlike anything she's been through before," Hopper is telling Joyce about what happened with Eleven.
"It was just a nightmare Jim, all kids have them," she says, trying to reassure him while stocking the shelves of the general store even though it was a slow day. Typical and expected due to the opening of Starcourt across town. Even when Mayor Kline was exposed to working with the Russians and using the mall as a front, you could not convince teenagers to support their local businesses; they wanted whatever was hip and popular, nothing else.
"I know that," he says. "She's had them in the past, especially about the lab, but I've never seen her use her… gift like that before. She snapped her closet door in half."
"She is a powerful girl," Joyce says, brushing off all his worries as his "over-protective dad nature" seemed to be working overtime. She'd felt the same way, especially after Will came back from the Upside Down. Her son had nightmares for months afterwards and still does on the odd occasion. She can recall a few times where he asked to sleep in the same bed as her because of them. She too had her own set of sleepless nights, grieving over Bob and her son's possession by another worldly being. What they'd all been through was far from normal and nightmares were bound to happen due to the trauma. "Plus she's growing into a woman, which can cause stress on the brain as well."
"Don't remind me," he grumbles before looking for materials to try and fix the closet door.
"If you're that worried about it, you need to distract her with other things, like schoolwork."
Again, he groans. On the counter where Joyce was stationed were flyers that she'd forced him to make and hang around town to search for a tutor for Eleven. The woman knew that the girl would have to go to school at some point and Hopper couldn't keep her in his cabin forever. The girl needed a normal life and to be able to make more friends. If she was ever going to function in the world, she'd need to go to school. Of course, the idiot that was the girl's father was dragging his feet and flat out refusing to do so, thinking he could just teach her himself. He'd done it before when she'd spent a year with him back in 1984. But Joyce knew that Hopper was not a superhero; he couldn't balance a job as the chief of police, fatherhood, and being her teacher all at the same time. It was too much and she feared for his health in that sense.
"Joyce, I don't want her exposed like that," he says, using the same argument he always used.
The woman rolls her eyes, knowing that she'd win the argument, she always did. "It's just one person who comes in twice a week for an hour to teach her things, I hardly call that dangerous."
"You don't know who you're going hire,"
Another eye roll. "If you want, I can do a background check for you."
"That's usually the police's job," he mutters.
The bell rings, indicating customers. Joyce looks over and recognizes the freckly face of Georgie, the charming little munchkin who always had so much to say. Instead of his big brother or any of the other kids from before, he's with a young woman she hasn't seen before. Maybe a late refugee from Derry, she hadn't seen this girl around town, and she looked to be about Johnathan's age.
She watches as the two begin to browse inside the store until Hopper brings her back to the conversation.
"I'd much rather have Nancy or Johnathan tutor her," he says.
"I know, but you know those two are saving for college. They have jobs that pay well."
"I would pay well," he argues.
Joyce snorts in amusement and watches as the girl tries to keep up with Georgie while filling a basket with items.
"I would,"
"I know, but again, these kids have colleges to pay for and don't need any more stress right now."
"There's no one else that I would trust to work with her."
"And that's your problem," the clerk says, organizing a few things before going back to the cashier station, expecting the kids to come to the front soon. "You don't trust anyone."
"Would you? Considering…" he trails off, but she knew what he was implying.
After a pause, she looks at him. "I'd trust enough to have someone tutor my daughter to prepare her for school."
"Come on Mia!" Georgie calls out.
Hopper finally looks over at the two customers and recognizes the girl. He'd been informed about the girl's situation with the abusive father and the restraining order against him from the school. The guy was a scumbag plain and simple and when Hopper had procured the asshole's criminal history, it made him sick. He can't imagine the kind of torment this girl has been through, but at least she was safe here. He'd had given his deputies a picture of the father to put in the patrol cars in case they happened upon him in search of his child. The girl looked haunted, even when she was smiling, he'd seen enough victims of domestic abuse know this was only a facade.
Eventually, the two kids come to the register with their belongings.
"Hi Mrs. Byers," Georgie says with a smile.
"Hello there Georgie, and how are you today?"
"I'm great, my mommy is teaching me how to play the piano."
"Oh, that's wonderful, and who is this lady with you?"
"This is my cousin Mia, she just came to town and she's helping me learn to read."
Mia flushes red, wishing her cousin didn't go spreading her name to total strangers. She smiles politely at the woman and nods as Joyce begins to scan their purchases.
"It's nice to meet you, Mia, I hope you will enjoy Hawkins."
"Thank you," she says.
They enter a prolonged silence, except for the beeping of the scanner. Mia takes out her purse and looks through her money. She knew she didn't have a lot of… she had to get a job to make some money. While her mom did send her some occasionally, and she did earn a little from her grandparents by working extra jobs on the farm, the teenager had yet to get and hold a part-time job.
She hands over the cash she has when she notices the flyer next to Joyce. The prospect of a job, even a tutoring job piques her interest.
"Do you mind if I take one?" she asks.
"Sure," the woman says, maintaining eye contact with Hopper the whole time. Her sharp gaze dares him to protest or say anything.
"I'm just looking for a job. Are you hiring here?"
"I'm afraid not at the moment, but if you'd like, I can always give your name and contact information to my boss in case something does come up." The clerk dares not explain the real reason that they weren't hiring was because of a specific location that would most likely be where she'd get hired anyway.
"That would be great, thank you so much," Mia smiles, taking a scrap of paper and writing her name and number down.
"Mrs. Byers, am I your special customer today?" Georgie asks.
Joyce smiles, knowing what he wants. She reaches under the counter and pulls out the jar of sweets. The boy's bright brown eyes light up in delight and excitement as he takes one. She offers one to Mia, but she politely declines.
"Thank you again, Mrs. Byers," the young girl says as she and her cousin head towards the door with their goods.
"It was nice to meet you Mia, bye Georgie."
"Bye," he says as they exit.
"Why did you let her take a flyer?"
"Because somebody has got to get this opportunity rolling for your sake and Jane's," she answers.
Hopper bites his lip, not sure if he wanted a girl with such a troubled past teaching his daughter. He'd done the background check, and he did not like it.
A/N: Here is a new chapter. Please follow and review, it means a lot to me.