There's No Place Like Hawkins//Stranger Things. SH

TWENTY FOUR

***

"'Trust me'?" Joyce repeated the doctor's words to Hopper as they walked through the carpark behind the kids, Cat walking with her arm thrown over Will's shoulder. "Are you kidding me?"

"Yeah, I know. And I doubt Cat's gonna trust him, ever. You know how she is nowadays. But, you know, university gives out a degree, this guy's got it. And look, that post-traumatic stuff he's talking about, that stuff is real." Hopper placed a hand on Joyce's back in comfort. "He's gonna be okay. All right?"

The two adults walked in silence for a few seconds before Hopper spoke again to fill the silence. "How's Bob the Brain?"

"Don't call him that."

"Sorry. Old habit."

"He's good. We're good." Joyce told him, walking slightly ahead to reach her car where Cat was hugging Will goodbye and the two were exchanging 'See you laters'.

"Good. I'm happy for you. Really. Hey..." He trailed off as Joyce unlocked her car door. She turned to him. "Things get worse, you call me first. You call me."

"Okay." Joyce nodded as she threw her cigarette onto the ground. She pulled Cat into a quick hug, the two uttering goodbyes to each other before Joyce climbed into her little green car. Cat waved at the two Byers as they drove away before climbing into Hopper's Chief of Police van.

***

Cat walked alongside Nancy and Steve as they approached the old house of Barbara Holland. Cat couldn't help but feel horrifically guilty about Barb's disappearance and death. Her faced paled as she thought about how she could have done more to help save Barb. The 'for sale' sign out on the front yard didn't help much either.

"You okay?" Steve whispered to her.

"Yeah..." Cat nodded, not convincing Steve that she was fine. "Just tired, that's all. You know what it's like after Will's hospital visits."

Steve nodded, not convinced that his best friend was okay. "Okay. Ready?" He asked both Nancy and Catherine as they approached the front door.

"Yeah." Nancy said.

"Yeah, no." Cat answered.

Steve let out a sigh. "Okay. It's gonna be okay, Cat." He grabbed her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. Cat felt butterflies erupt in her stomach but immediately pushed them away, knowing that it wasn't the time. Steve let go a second later and pushed the doorbell.

***

"I'm so sorry I didn't get to cook." Marsha, Mrs. Holland, apologised as they sat around the dining table eating KFC, which Cat was finding very difficult to stomach. "I was gonna make that baked ziti you guys like so much, but I just forgot about the time, and before you know it, 'Oh, my God, it's five o'clock'."

"It's fine." Nancy smiled at her. "It's great." The three teens nodded.

"Right. I love KFC." Steve agreed as he took a bite of chicken. Cat only nodded, eating tiny pieces of the food.

"So, I noticed a 'for sale' sign out in your yard." Nancy mentioned to the Holland's.

Cat nodded. "Yeah. Is that the neighbours', or..." She trailed off.

The two adults shared a look. "You wanna tell them?" Marsha asked her husband.

"Go ahead."

Mrs. Holland turned to the three teens. "We hired a man named Murray Bauman. Have either of you heard of him?"