It had been 4 days since the "fire" of starcourt mall, 4 days since Mia got out of bed for something other than using the bathroom. I wasn't looking good, especially with Hopper and Billy's funerals coming up fast, Eddie had a feeling she would want to go to both, and he was getting more and more worried for her, but he was showing it in all the wrong ways...
He had tired using El to get her to get out of bed, but Mia just told her to go away too, he tried Robin, but she got the same reply— but Robin was persistent, forcing herself to stay at eddies and try to get her best friend out of bed... but her efforts were redundant. and Eddie, he really didn't want to disturb Stiles now they knew he had a baby, so he went to his other last resort, Harrington. For the last four days he had been worried, worried since his girlfriend came out in Steve's jacket, his brain practically malfunctioning at the thought of what the two might be doing with each other, and he knew he'd be damn right pissed off if he came over and she got out of bed just like that... but he needed to try.
So the second he got home from work and noticed she was still just laying there silently, Robin sat In the living room, her previous hope no longer sparkling for her best friend. he grabbed the landline and dialled Steve's number Robin had just mumbled out to him, he let it ring for a bit before it was hastily picked up,
"Hello?"
"Yeah hi, it's Eddie... I- uh... I need your help..." he groaned, hating the situation already,
"Is Mia okay?"
"What else would I need your help for, of course she's not ok! Man she just just won't get out of bed,"
"Dude it's been 4 days..." Steve sighed,
"Yeah I'm aware. Could you just come over... she might react with more than just 'leave me alone' to you"
"What you want me to come now?"
"Jesus I wouldn't be calling other wise. I've tried Buckley, I've tried El... I don't want to bother Stiles! So your my last resort Harrington... please, I want her better"
He could practically hear Steve's eyes roll "only for her, alright?"
"Yeah. Knew you'd say that..." Eddie hung up, resting the phone back on the hook as went out to the porch to wait.
#
Eddie had waited 20 minutes for Steve's burgundy BMW to roll up, him and his hair stepping out and rushing towards the trailer, slowing his steps as he caught sight of the curly haired boy, seeming to be on his 5th cigarette. They only had to to make eye contact before Eddie stomped out and walked ahead of Steve leading him to his bedroom, letting him do what he thought was right.
So Steve walked in and sat, criss cross facing her on the bed, his hand falling to her shoulder as Eddie studied his every move from the door,
"Hey.... You wanna get up?" He spoke softy "I'll make you a sandwich? Or- or I could go home, get my sneakers, we could go for a run at the track. Do you want to go for a run... like you used to with stiles? Go get some fresh air? What do you say?" He leant slightly over her and gently pulled the sheet down, getting a look at her swollen, still beat up face, and he sighed,
"No.... Go away Steve..."
"okay. Okay." He softly backed away and pulled the sheet back over her, clambering off the bed and ushering Robin and Eddie away from the door as he walked past them, making sure they shut it before he spoke again, "how long did you say she's been like that?"
"Since the morning after the fire..." Eddie replied, slightly annoyed that she spoke to him,
"And she hasn't gotten out of bed?"
"No... no, only to use the bathroom. But other than that... she's just been sleeping, I can't get her up without having to carry her. I-I tried!"
"Yeah so did I," Robin nodded with him,
"And what about before? What was she like?"
"Well sad! Her dad and ex best friend just died, but she was more Mia... it's like something snapped in her. It was so weird... Grief wouldn't make her act like that!"
"We've got to get ahold of Stiles. He should know." Steve rubbed his hands up and down his face, forgetting about his injuries before he pressed down on them, making him whine,
"Know what? What's-whats wrong with her?"
"Uh, depression, I think." Steve nodded,
"Well yeah she's depressed, of course she is— but... but we all get fucking depressed. I mean how the fuck could we not, living in this shitty town?"
"it's not just that kind of depressed, okay? Look, I could be wrong— like this could be a long shot, but it could be Bipolar Disease, like her mom." He explained, making Eddie face scrunch up,
"Bi... bi... bi... what? What the fuck is that?" He furrowed,
"It's manic depression, Eddie," Robin sighed,
"It's like, high highs followed by low lows— or the other way around, but it happens over and over again. I think... just to be safe we should get her an appointment at the clinic, and see what they say. But we need to tell stiles,"
Eddie shook his head, his hands practically trembling as he spoke "no, no, look. She... she's low. We cheer her up!"
"And we've been trying that," Robin said,
"Yeah it's not like that. She might have to be hospitalised" Steve lowered his voice slightly, not wanting her to hear through the thin walls,
"What do you mean hos... like a psych ward?" The look on Steve face answered his question making him point a finger "no fucking way! No fucking way! She's staying here." He pushed past the two, standing with his back towards them in the living room,
"Eddie, she could end up suicidal."
"Then we hide the knifes until she perks up. I can... I can take care of her. Okay, let me take care of her until she's better." He practically yelled at Steve, not completely understanding,
"It... it can be weeks. It's mood swings, okay? It's almost impossible to handle—"
"Don't fucking tell me what's impossible! We're taking care of her here. You, me, Stiles, Buckley, us. She's fucking family." He snapped, pushing past them again to grab a beer from the fridge, something to try and calm him down,
"I gotta go, okay?" Steve sighed "but um, I'll call stiles and I'll let him know what's going on. So he might turn up." He let Eddie know as he walked himself and Robin towards the door,
"She's not going to some fucking nut house, you hear me? She stays here. She's staying with me." He called after them as he rest against the counter, eyeing the two. Steve shot him a look, and shugged, getting out of the trailer before Eddie drank too much.
Once alone, he didn't know what to do, deep down he wanted to run into the bedroom and grab her, make her get up, make her better, but he knew it didn't work like that, and now he had an idea of what was wrong with her he felt bad, like all the stuff he had said, pillows he had thrown at her— by the sounds of things she can't help it...
#
Steve didn't bother calling Stiles, he knew he'd get no where, so once he'd dropped Robin home, he sped down the streets of Hawkins, all the way to the motel on the way in. Thankfully the blue jeep was parked outside number 9. He was there. Steve didn't even park properly as he turned into the lot, leaving it where he wanted then running to the door, knocking over and over,
"Yeah I know you've got a kid sleeping!" Steve spoke instantly, the stern look ok Stiles face scaring him,
"What do you want Harrington?"
"It's Mia." As the words flew from his mouth stiles stepped out, shutting the door on his sleeping baby and girlfriend,
"She okay?"
"Um.... Yeah well Eddie called me today, said she's been acting weird, not getting out of bed, that shit so I went over just now.... Stiles it's exactly like your mom.... The way she's acting..."
"What-what you think she's Bipolar?"
"Hopefully not.... But the signs are there"
"And she's not getting out of bed? Have you tried getting her up?"
"I tried, Eddie said he's had to carry her to go shower the other day. She only gets up to use the bathroom. Doesn't seem like she's eating either"
Stiles smothered his face with his hands, nodding "right... shit, okay, Um thanks for coming to tell me. You go home man, I should probably head over there, I think I have some of Moms lithium left over from last year, give her some of that just to perk her up before the funerals... um.... Yeah thanks man"
"Don't worry about it," Steve quickly waved and took off back to his badly parked car and drove to the speed limit home.
The second the BMW turned down the street stiles turned back into the room, Tiffany sat looking at him sternly made him sigh,
"Listen, I got to go see what's up with Mia... you'll be fine for a few hours right?"
"As long as you don't completely disappear on us again," she shot, her head turning to look at their peacefully sleeping son,
"I got trapped in a burning down mall!!" Stiles defended himself, the lie becoming natural,
"Yeah okay,"
"You know I don't know why you don't believe me," he groaned, sliding his shoes on, "because if it was all a lie, we went into a lot of fucking effort," he rolled his eyes and went to his suitcase, digging around for an old package that had his moms pills in before he grabbed the room key and car keys, speeding out to his jeep and driving down to the trailer park.
"Stressed?" Stiles slightly chuckled as he parked right next to Eddies beat up van, getting out with a huff,
"You can tell?" Eddie shot back,
"People who aren't stressed don't have an astray filled with new buts... and three empty beers next to them." He shrugged, "she still—"
"Yeah, I can't watch someone try to get her up again. It's the room at the end of the hall, there's stickers and stuff stuck to the door,"
"Okay," stiles nodded, letting himself into the trailer grabbing a box of honey comb cereal, taking it with him into Eddies room. He didn't really look around, afraid to see something he wasn't supposed to, "hey,"
"Go away," she mumbled, speaking for the first time that day,
"Yeah no, you can piss off. Come on... sit up" he sat on the bed, facing her, just like Steve did "Mia, sit up. You know Eddie is really worried, he's out there smoking and drinking thinking it's his fau—"
"Stop." She shook her head "your trying to blackmail me like we used to do with Monica. I'm not her. I'm just... sad..." she broke her one sentence reply, but still did move,
"Well get up then. Come on" she went silent again, and still didn't move "Mia. I get it your fucking sad, I'm sad, I miss dad, El misses dad, okay? But neither of us are fucking around just laying in bed not fucking moving"
"I can't help it..."
"... you know we gotta get you some help right?"
"Cause Steve has made everyone think I'm bipolar?" She sighed as she turned, still lying down she looked up at him "I promise I'm not.... Please don't make me go away..."
Stiles shushed her and drew the hair back from her face "no one is going to make you go anywhere... if... you start trying."
"I'm too sad to try..."
"You have to... try for dad., yeah? It would break his heart to see you like this..." he cleared his throat, "here come on, sit up, eat some of these" he passed her the box as she carefully lift herself up "you hurting?"
"My sides and my face... my arm is kinda just... there..." she admitted as she started stuffing her face,
"Do you want me to go grab Eddie?"
She shook her head, "can it just be you and me for now?"
"Yeah. Of course... do you want to talk about something?" He asked,
"... no..."
"Okay..."
The two siblings sat, eating honey comb cereal in silence for quite a while until he brought a conversation up,
"I got some of moms lithium if you need it, but if you feel like you don't I'll take it back..."
"Maybe leave them..."
"Yeah but I'm not leaving them for you and him to take. They are if you feel like Monica."
"Take them with you... I'll get Eddie to call if I need them"
He nodded "okay. Do you think you'll be better now? If I go home? I gotta help Tif with Liam"
"I'll be ok"
He leant over and ruffled her hair, walking away from her "if I get another guy at my door telling me you won't get out of bed, I'll cry"
Mia giggled slightly "okay...." And watched him walk out the door, she kept looking as she saw Eddie trample back into the room, starring down at her as he got to the door, "I'm sorry..."
"Shhh" he shook his head and got changed into his pyjamas, "it's ok...." He yawned, crawling next to her, pulling her down so she laid on his chest, comfort over coming them as they fell asleep...