Still, he thought that the longer they stayed out of their homes, the worse the outcome would be when they finally did return.
There was still things at home to deal with, and all he had wanted was a bit of a distraction. El helped him with finding that much needed distraction, and he was so grateful for her, his best friend.
His best friend that he was totally in love with.
"We could go to Benny," El suggested, bringing Mike out of his trailing thoughts.
Mike scrunched his face a bit. "Um, probably not."
"Why not? Benny likes us. He might help us out."
He shook his head, pulling himself away from her slightly but not much. "He's not going to give us any free food, El."
She frowned to herself at the loss of contact, discreetly moving herself closer. "Maybe not free, but maybe we could work for it. Remember, he likes us?"
"He likes you, not me."
"He likes you, too, Mike. How do you not remember? You got there."
"Oh, I remember, El."
Many years ago on one particular stormy night, El had lost herself outdoors on the way back home. She had spent the day at the Wheeler's with Mike, Lucas, Dustin and Will in the basement. Sometime in the afternoon, she was to return back home, and so she had set off after bidding farewell to the boys.
However, as she began on her walk, the darkening clouds above were causing her to grow nervous with each step she took. Soon enough, the pouring rain began to fall all around her, and it was all very nerve wracking for her after what had happened with her mother.
She had burst into tears, scared as she tried to make her way towards a familiar street. And instead, she found herself at Benny's Diner, where she wasted no time in pushing through the entrance door and taking refuge from the storm. El remembered how there was hardly anyone inside, just two older men who were chatting away with Benny as he swept. So, a small girl of ten years old drenched and crying at the door caught their attention right away.
He gave her strawberry ice cream to calm her down, trying to talk with her to find out where she lived or where her parents were. Meanwhile, her father had gone over to the Wheeler's in search of her, quickly growing worried when he realized she wasn't overstaying her time there.
It had sent Mike into a panic, as well. Lucas and Will had tried to calm his worries, but Dustin only encouraged him to go out and search for her. So while it continued pouring outside, Mike had pulled on a jacket and took off on his bike down the street, leaving behind his friends to cover for him at home.
El still doesn't know how he found her, or if it was just by chance that he had walked into Benny's. But he found her.
He found her still damp, with a thin sweater clung to her skin and a yellow dry work uniform t-shirt wrapped around her like a blanket, hair clung to her face, but tears no longer streaming freely. And the joy on her face when she saw him had him nearly passing out with how utterly relieved he was.
Benny had always held a special soft spot for the girl since she had been stuck with him for a few hours. Hopper was grateful for him having taken good care of his daughter in that short time, and though he never said it, he was glad Mike had found her there. He was the one who informed Benny to call him.
chapter thirteen.
Start from the beginning
