Jim Hopper
El came home early after the basketball game, which gave me the opportunity to have the conversation Joyce had been bugging me about for the past week. But first, I wanted to know why she was home so early.
"How was the game?"
"Good. We didn't win, but Lucas got to play some."
"You guys didn't want to hang out after?"
"They all got invited to a party with the basketball team afterwards."
"And they didn't invite you? That's not very nice."
El shrugged. "Lucas said the other kids on the basketball team wouldn't want me there because I'm the police chief's daughter, and they're going to be drinking beer and smoking pot."
"Pot?"
"It's this funny plant that Will and Jonathan smoke sometimes, and hit makes them happy and giggly, but Will says you wouldn't like it."
"Yeah, he's right about that."
"Mike said he'd ditch the party and hang out here if I wanted, but you said I wasn't supposed to see him alone."
"Yeah, I might have been a little hasty about that. Ms. Maldonado talked to me, says it was Max who talked to you about birth control and not Mike."
"Mm-hmm."
"We also talked about…girls' issues, and she said it might make your period more regular if you were. So, uh, I've made an appointment with a doctor and Ms. Maldonado is going to go in with you for the exam and they can prescribe you birth control. Which does not mean you should just go out and have sex. You need to wait until you're really sure you love Mike, or someone else" preferably someone else, far in the future, "and he's not going to take advantage of you or hurt you."
"I understand."
"Has Mike ever tried to talk you into having sex? Or doing anything you didn't want to?"
"No. When I ask him if we can have sex, he always says he's not sure he's ready yet and tries to change the subject. Sometimes I worry that he doesn't think I'm pretty."
Maybe I was underestimating Mike. "It is a big step."
"But boyfriends and girlfriends are supposed to be having sex, aren't they?"
"I know the movies and TV make it seem that way, but that's really not the most important part of being in a relationship. A lot of guys want to have sex so they pretend they love the girl and then dump her as soon as they get what they're after. To be honest, the reason I was so upset when you asked about birth control is that I was afraid that was going to happen to you." I was deviating from the script a bit, but when we wrote the script we were expecting a very different situation with El. "And even if you do go on birth control, there would be a chance you could get pregnant."
"I know. We talked about that in school. Well, not birth control, but about sperm and eggs."
"Well, at least they're teaching you something."
"That means Mama had to have sex to get pregnant with me," now we were way off script, "and the man she had sex with is my father."
"Yeah."
"Do you think he knows about me?"
"I think it's time I show you something." I went down to the basement and retrieved one of the files Sam had given me. The first page was a large color photograph of a kid in a soldier's uniform, only a few years older than El and Mike. She had his eyes. "Your father's name was Andrew Rich. It looks like he met your mother in college, but he was drafted into the Army. He died in Vietnam."
"Oh." A single tear began working it's way down El's cheek.
"Sam said they read all the letters your Mama sent him. There are copies of them in this file if you want to read them. She never mentioned being pregnant in any of them, so we don't think he knew he was going to be a father before he died. I'm sure if he'd lived and known about you, he would have come and found you."
We made the appointment for the following Tuesday after school, and I went through about half a pack of cigarettes while Joyce went in there with El. She emerged what felt like hours later, wide-eyed and nervous.
"How was it?" I asked.
"It was a little scary," El admitted, "but Ms. Joyce was there to protect me."
"She was a trooper," Joyce assured me.
I checked my watch. It was already past five, so I decided to go over to Joyce's for dinner, with a trip to Scoops Ahoy for dessert to reward her bravery. El and I split a 'USS Butterscotch' while the boys, who were well trained in ordering off the cheap end of the menu, each got a single scoop – butter pecan for Jonathan and strawberry for Will. When El got up to go to the bathroom, I had a chance to talk to the boys.
"So, uh…next time you see Mike, tell him he's not forbidden from seeing El any longer. I, uh, may have been too quick to judge him."
"Thanks," Will replied.
"Hopefully, that'll cheer him up."
"He's been down?"
"I don't think it's because of El," Will assured me, "well, not entirely. He gets moody sometimes."
I'd been on the receiving end of his moodiness once, and did not envy Karen and Ted.
"Look, I know I overreacted, but El's my little girl. You'll understand when you're older."
"Uh-huh." Jonathan didn't sound convinced.
"And I think I've been pretty tolerant about the booze and weed."
Will swallowed nervously. "She told you about that."
"Her exact words were 'funny plants.' I don't think she was trying to tattle, she doesn't seem to know that shit's illegal. I mean, it's not exactly my highest priority, but it still isn't a good look for the police chief's daughter, so maybe leave it until she's not around from now on."
Jonathan and Will both looked down shamefacedly at their ice cream – not a position either of them were used to being in. "Yeah. Will do."