“Woah,” was all your pretty brunette girlfriend could manage to say. You nodded, eyes completely focused on her, rather than the bustling city surrounding you.
It was El’s first time in the city, well...second, if you counted her little escapade to Chicago when she was still tucked away from the world.
This time she was experiencing New York City, and the two of you had just exited the subway. “It’s so...big,” She marveled, eyes shining with interest. “Isn’t it?!” You laughed, making sure to keep a tight grip on her hand. She was more than capable of many things, but knowing her childhood, it was better safe than sorry. You didn’t want to send her any panic attacks from getting lost in the big apple.
El’s lips broke into a toothy grin, and you were yet reminded of how despite her limited socialization and exposure to diversity, she really did love the big cities, full of all sorts of people. “Where can we go first?” She asked, practically breathless from the scenery. “Let’s just walk around,” you suggested. “Take in the city a bit,” you raised an eyebrow, questioning if she wanted to do that as well.
She smiled, nodding and intertwined her fingers in yours. The two of you walked down the block in Manhattan, both staring in wonder at the skyscrapers reaching up towards the clouds. It was the perfect day, sunny, with blue sky, and fluffy cumulus clouds. You couldn’t wait to walk around Central Park with her.
You were so consumed in your thoughts that it caught you off guard when El suddenly stopped walking. “You okay?” You asked, concerned. “Yeah…” she said slowly, and took a few steps toward a nearby display case. You smirked, suddenly getting it and wondering why you hadn’t thought about how enthralled she would be with the giant glass windows full of commercial-ness.
She touched a finger carefully to the clear pane, peering curiously at the mannequins inside. They were wearing stunning outfits. “Pretty,” El breathed, and you admired her cute expression. “Yeah. You would be really pretty in one of them,” you mused. “I would?” Her eyes lit up. You nodded, “For sure.”
“Can we...go inside?” She tapped the glass, obviously wanting to get closer to the exquisite fabric. “Well,” you explained, “We couldn’t go in there. That’s just for show. But we can go into the store. And, hey, maybe you could try one of the outfits on? I bet you would look so cute in that one…” you pointed at the light blue denim overalls that were layered over a red, orange and navy paisley sweater. The mustard colored beret finished out the look. She turned to you, beaming, “Okay!” You relinked your hands with hers and pulled her around the block, towards the entrance of the storefront. You were met with a revolving door, and she gave you a curious look, signaling that she was not familiar with the type of entrance. “Alright,” you gathered your thoughts. “This...is a revolving door.”
Her eyes were wide, hanging onto your every word. “Basically you walk in, while it’s spinning, and you uh, just come out on the other side.” El looked at the door nervously, but nodded. “Want me to go first?” You offered. “No…” she said. “I can do it.” You squeezed her shoulder, and pointed at the door, “All yours, babe.”
She slowly walked up to the large spinning contraption, and shot a tentative glance back to you. You gave her an encouraging thumbs-up. She entered the moving door, and immediately turned back to face you, hand on the glass. Creeeaaaaak. The revolving door came to a stop, trapping her inside, and a panicked look crossed her face.
“Y/n?” She said worriedly, looking around. “El,” you responded carefully, looking around, confused. “They must have stopped the door. Um, I don’t know why…” “Y/n…” she said again, fear in her eyes, as she looked down at her hand, pressed against the glass separating you two. “It’s okay, babe. You’re going to be okay,” your eyes frantically darted around, searching for someone, something to help. She started to cry, and you could almost intuitively guess that she was having some form of a ptsd attack. Fucking Brenner, you thought. You stared sadly at the tearful girl in front of you, your girl, and despised the fact that anyone could, would ever hurt her. She was such a beam of sunshine, so optimistic. And now here she was, crying in the middle of new york city, all because some stupid revolving door shut down, and it reminded her of something that asshole Brenner did.
You yanked on the handle, trying to pull the door free, and it didn’t move an inch.
Eleven didn’t say anything, but you could see her lips silently mouthing your name. You put your hand up to hers, and smiled at her.
“You’re going to be okay,” you repeated.
And she was, because not even a moment after you said that, the contraption jerked back to life, and El was spun right back out to you.
She collapsed into your arms, body shaking with a sob, and you wrapped her into the best hug you could possibly give her.
“See?” You whispered. “What’d I say?”
She pulled back, tear stained cheeks shining, “Y/n...it was just like...just like the bath.” She hiccuped, “the glass, between us.” She buried her head into your shoulder.
You didn’t know what she meant by the bath, but you thought it was better to not ask. Right now she just needed love and assurance that she was safe.
“I’m sorry baby,” you said softly, “But you’re okay now. You’re here with me. In new york!”
She smiled, wiping her face off on her sleeves.
“What do you say we go try on some clothes? We’ll find a store that has a normal door!”
She laughed, “Okay, y/n. Thank you…”
You looped your hand back into hers, and set off down the sidewalk.
