𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐝𝐲 ⟿ s. harrington

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐰𝐨

Turning over to her with furrowed brows in concern, Nancy gave a sharp nod. "Got it."

Robin, however, didn't feel the she was being understood clearly and tried to continue to explain herself even if it meant pushing a conversation with Nancy who didn't seem so interested. "Okay, but don't rely on Alex to say anything first either. She doesn't mind the rambling. In fact, she appreciates it."

Nancy flashed her a sarcastic smile. "Does she really?"

Stunned for a moment, Robin left her hands out in confusion, stuck in silence. Coming back out to her rescue, Alex held out the key for them to see, hoping that this was enough to be the reason they could all come together as a team. Snatching the key from her hand, Nancy let out a laugh of excitement. "You're the best, Alex," she beamed, heading off towards the basement on her own. Looking over to Robin, Alex shot her a look of concern. "What happened while I was gone?"

Raising her hands up in just as much wonder, Robin gave a worried smile. "She hates me."

"That's not possible," Alex pouted. Linking her arm with Robin, she pulled her close, resting her head on her shoulder as they followed after Nancy. "You're the best person I know."

Robin tried to smile, wishing such a simple compliment could be enough to be glad she came with the two. Now she felt she was only in the way, bothering them with her need to ramble and coming between the two. Yet Alex stuck by her because there was no one else she wanted to be there with besides Robin. When it came to her, she never acted as if she only wanted Alex around for her own needs, but because she valued their friendship. Doing it without her seemed unreasonable and not worth it. However, it was only the beginning of the day and she had to keep her head held high and find a way for Nancy Wheeler to see she wasn't so bad after all.

While the girls headed straight to the basement archives, Dustin and Steve watched eagerly from the car as Max stood at Ms. Kelley's door so early into spring break. Looking back at them, Max grew anxious with the thought of facing the counselor she tended to avoid to escape facing how she felt. Now she stood at her front step hoping that they created enough of a relationship that Ms. Kelley would be willing to give her some answers about Chrissy and Fred.

Bringing her fist to the door, she knocked loudly, wishing that Alex could be standing beside her. Somehow it would have been easier to have someone with her that was close to Ms. Kelley. Now her relationship with Ms. Kelley was stronger than her relationship with Alex, which said quite a lot. It was enough to feel as if she was falling apart.

Opening the door, Ms. Kelley was startled to find Max Mayfield on her doorstep. It often took a lot of convincing to get her to pay a visit in her office, yet here she stood. Welcoming her into her home, Ms. Kelley stepped aside, curious to what led Max all the way there. Resisting the urge to look back at Dustin and Steve, Max swallowed her nerves and stepped inside to face the difficult part of finding the answers they needed.

Watching as the door shut behind her, Steve relaxed in his seat, "Okay, she's in."

"I'm missing collar bones, not eyes," Dustin mumbled under his breath. A silence hung in the air for a moment as he built the strength to talk to Steve. They discussed practically everything but there was one subject he tended to avoid. Talking about Alex always had Steve on edge and often ended with Dustin feeling worse for asking. What he needed most was for someone to be there for him to share his feelings about their fractured sibling relationship. Something so strong fell apart so quickly and he ended up having to bottle up his feelings.

Dustin hated Alex for leaving him but he couldn't blame her for doing what she felt was best for herself. Steve was supposed to always be there and when they broke up, he feared it would result in choosing sides, something he didn't want to do. But when Alex shut herself off, it was clear that choosing sides would never be an issue, she already made that decision for them. Steve got each and every one of them, even if he didn't want anyone choosing sides.