Her Mixtape (Extended Version), Stranger Things

𝖎𝖎𝖎. Trouble in Paradise

　　Bob handed Rue the polaroid once the picture had finally set in. She grabbed it gingerly, her eyes wide as she stared at herself in the photo. Rue didn't pay any mind to how dirty her pants were with grass stains or how there was mud splotching her purple shirt and shoes—she thought she looked perfect.

And Bob did too.

"Go show it to your mom," He whispered, nudging her side softly. Bob reached for the helmet on Rue's head and pulled it off gently.

　　Rue nodded eagerly and spun on her heels. She glanced around the park shortly before spotting her mom, who looked like a princess, while she read on the bench peacefully.

"Mommy!" Rue yelled, beginning to run through the grass and dandelions. She held the picture tightly, afraid to let it go. "Mommy! Mommy, look!" Rue waved the photo proudly as she neared her mother.

Emilia glanced up from her book, her lips curling into a wide smile as she watched her five-year-old daughter run toward her.

And then, all of a sudden, Rue felt everything hit her.

　　Rue stopped dead in her tracks, panting. She had lost her breath and felt as if she had run around the park three times without stopping. Rue flinched, and her squeezing fingers nearly crumbled the photo in her hands.

It became loud.

　　Really loud. And she could hear the voices of all the kids around her, all the parents and couples. Even the voices of the people across the street. "When should I—?"

　　"Where is—?"

　　"I love that song—"

　　"I wonder if Danny—"

　　Rue panicked and looked around. She could feel her heartbeat in her throat and tears grew in her eyes as she stumbled in her balance. Everything was really, really loud.

　　"I wanna watch this new—"

　　"I have—"

　　"I think—"

　　"What if—?"

　　"What's wrong—?"

　　"I'm in love with Jason—"

　　Everything was hitting Rue all at once, and she felt herself drop to the floor. She felt the wet grass seep into her pants, but she didn't really care. Rue dropped the photo beside her, bringing her hands up to cup her ears, hoping it would help silence all the noise, all the whispers.

A few seconds later, Rue felt overwhelmed, and she felt so many things she's never felt before. Emotions began to pour through her body, and she didn't even know what they were. Some were familiar: happiness, sadness, confusion, fear. And others were new: grief, irritation, adoration, relief.

Rue wanted to cry.

But she couldn't even do that. She couldn't focus on anything that had to do with herself.

　　Her body trembled as she shut her eyes tightly. It was so loud she couldn't hear herself think, all she could hear was the voices, and she could feel all that emotion. The movement of thousands of heartbeats, thousands of thoughts, all of it was in her ears. Her head hurt, her palms became sweaty but she didn't dare to tear them away from her ears. Her head hurt... it hurt. Everything was hurting... she couldn't breathe...