JANUARY
"So, it's actually a period piece. I haven't done one in quite a while, but I think the time is well suited. It's early nineteenth hundreds focused in Chicago. To put it one way, it's a mafia themed piece, so let's hope it doesn't stir up any bad press for me or make any enemies. One of the gentlemen that was in the facility with me said he used to run with one of the Chicago crime families and that although they'd been underground for years, they've been running operations since the city was established. I want to take a twist on the city's life during the Great Depression and make it not based about the stock market crash, but instead a monster that's been buried in Lake Michigan that been woken up. The mafia gets broken apart because several want to continue crime given the city's distress while others want to keep the monster from rising out of the lake and evaporating everything in the southern hemisphere."
Leaned between the front seats of Elena's station wagon with an intrigued grin, Tatum said, "Very Lovecraft of you. I like it. It sounds fab, Dad."
"I've already got a hundred pages written. I'll let you read it if you like."
Speeding towards Hawkins and chasing the sunset, the Rivers, reunited after two months, hadn't stopped talking since they'd gotten Jordan out of the rehab facility and into the car, spanning nearly four hours as they hit the border of Roane County.
Whether it was about school, Christmas break, Tatum's driving classes, the first snow fall of the season or the interesting people Jordan had met in rehab, it had been covered. Elena had gone on for nearly an hour about the changes happening at the middle school as well as how rambunctious the snow had made all of the kids during recess. Two students had even managed to throw snowballs at one another during class.
"How does it end?" Tatum asked.
Jordan hummed slightly. "I'm still figuring that bit out. I have several ideas, but I want to make sure it's the right one. It needs to be good."
"It'll be good no matter how you write it, love," Elena assuring, reaching over to squeeze his hand lightly.
"I'm quite proud of it so far," he sheepishly admitted. "I have a feeling as soon as it's published, I'll have Hollywood barking after me for it. I'd want to wait, though. It would need much better graphics than films have these days to do it justice."
Tatum grinned, sliding back into her seat as they passed the city limits sign. "You'd have to do an author cameo. One of the mobsters, maybe."
"That would be pretty cool." Jordan leaned over, pressing his forehead to the window. "I almost forgot what Hawkins looked like when the snow dusted. It was always a bitch to walk to school in, but it's pretty."
"Jordan."
"Oh, come off it. She's heard worse." Jordan glanced to the backseat. "I imagine she's said worse."
Tatum only shrugged, offering a soft 'eh' as her father grinned.
"It'll be cold for the next couple of months, but it shouldn't snow much more. We never got snow past the first week of February when I was a kid. There was one year, though, when it had stopped snowing in January and then dropped an entire foot on Easter. It made no sense whatsoever."
Elena groaned. "Let's pray that doesn't happen. I can't imagine the kind of havoc the kids will wreak on the school." She wheeled into the driveway, letting out a satisfied sigh as she turned off the engine. "Home sweet home, darling."
"It's good to be home." Jordan gave out a long stretch as he stepped out the station wagon, nearly ready bend over backwards. "Help me with my bags, hun?"
Elena hung back to pop the trunk of the car, sending a missed grin in Tatum's direction as the teen wandered up to the front door and unlocked it swiftly. "Move the cars before she notices," she whispered to Jordan, handing over a set of keys she'd been hiding in her purse all weekend.
Tatum wedged the front door open with her shoulder, only to be met with a chorus of yelling.
"Surprise!"
Nearly screaming herself, Tatum's hand clutched for her heart before she started to laugh, met with Steve, Jonathan, Nancy and the legends that were Hawkins Middle AV.
"Happy Birthday!"
Decorations were strewn about the house, a large sign reading 'Happy Birthday Tatum' hung above the entryway of the living room and balloons littering the floor of every room on the first level of the house.
"You guys!" Tatum gushed, almost immediately enveloped in a hug from Nancy. "You shouldn't have."
"You can't turn eighteen without a party, Tate," Steve replied, a line forming to hug the birthday girl. "Although it isn't up to par with our normal parties, but we can make up for that when there aren't parentals." He glanced behind him. "And small children."
"I heard that," Elena said as she slipped through the front door. "And I'll pretend I didn't."
Steve smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, Mrs. Rivers."
"Stop hogging her air space, dude," Dustin said as he pushed Steve aside, giving Tatum a big hug. "Happy Birthday, T."
Tatum happily made her way through the line of hugs, reaching Mike last. "Hop wouldn't let El come?" she quietly asked.
Mike shook his head as he pulled apart from the hug. "He didn't want to risk it with your dad being back. Not yet."
"Alright," Steve announced. "The pool is heated, so Tate, go get a swimsuit on."
Tatum's brows furrowed, glancing back to Elena. "It would've had to been started this morning. We haven't been here for two days."
"I gave Steve a key," Elena replied as the crowd dispersed, the others splitting off to change. "He set the whole thing up." She winked in her daughter's direction before waving a finger toward the stairs. "Go change. Have some fun with your friends."
Tatum motioned to the door. "Is Dad not coming in?"
"He got stopped up by a neighbor, that's all. He'll be in soon."
With Nancy already changing in her bathroom, Tatum rifled for the blue suit she'd bought during her first week living in Hawkins while she waited.
A holler from down below signaled that someone had already jumped in the pool, and it was most definitely not as warm as they had been expecting.
"Hey Tate?"
Grabbing her bikini top from the drawer, Tatum looked up to Nancy as she hesitantly walked out of the bathroom, a t-shirt thrown over her two-piece. "Yeah?"
"You're not still seeing Billy, are you?"
Tatum's brows lifted in surprise. "What?"
"Billy. Are you still seeing him?"
"No. God, no," she replied. "Why would you ask that?"
Nancy motioned a thumb over her shoulder toward the bathroom. "His earring's in your jewelry dish. The dagger on that you used to wear last year."
"Oh, no, I just never gave it back to him."
"But he was wearing it in December. I remember seeing it again after you two split up."
"To be fair, there was nothing to really split up," Tatum defended. "We were never really together."
"Only in the most intimate way."
"I don't need the speech. I'm just saying that it wasn't that serious. I just never wanted to take the time to give it back to him. He must've bought a replacement or something."
Nancy bit her bottom lip in thought. "You would tell me, wouldn't you? If you were?"
"Nance, come on. You know I would."
"Okay," she said with a soft nod. "Want me to wait for you?"
"It's alright," Tatum assured as she swapped spots with the brunette, heading into the bathroom. "I'll be down in a minute."
Nancy offered a soft smile. "Alright. Happy Birthday."
Barely able to get out a 'thank you' as she shut the bathroom door, Tatum let out a sigh, resting her forehead on the cool wood as the perpetual hate for herself grew.
||
"Does everyone have cocoa?"
With the living room fireplace alight and clustered with kids wrapped in blankets and as many layers as possible, everyone gave an agreeing chime as the last mugs of hot cocoa were given to Tatum and Jonathan.
"Cheers, Elena."
"Happy to do it, love." Elena kissed Tatum's cheek, avoiding her sopping wet hair. "Once you're all warmed up, we'll pop outside for a surprise."
Tatum's brows furrowed, but Elena was quick to slip out of the room.
"My back still hurts," Mike groaned, leaned over his cocoa to warm his face.
"I would imagine so," said Tatum with a grin. "I haven't seen a wipe out on a flip so bad before. Back flop city."
"I'm pretty sure the whole neighborhood heard you hit the water," Steve chuckled between sips. "It's probably still red."
Mike scrunched his nose in Steve's direction, grumbling to himself.
"You'll have to try again until you get it, though."
Mike scoffed at Tatum. "There's no way in hell I'm trying that again. I was stupid for letting you convince me to try in the first place. You make it look so easy."
"That's because Tatum's a badass," Max chimed in, sitting unusually close to Lucas.
Will rolled his eyes with a soft smile. "We all know that."
"It'll be better if you learn it here instead of making a fool of yourself at the community pool this summer," said Tatum. "If you get it here, then you can impress everyone there. Maybe the upperclassmen will even leave you alone when you start high school in the fall."
Lucas clicked his tongue aggressively. "It costs too much to get in there. We need that money for the arcade."
"Good thing you'll get in for free all summer."
The middle schoolers' eyes widened, staring at the birthday girl in awe.
"What?"
"You guys are looking at Hawkins Pool's Head Lifeguard for the summer of eighty-five, so if you guys want to be pool rats, I've got your back. As long as you let me push you into the pool whenever I'm between rotations."
"How did you manage to snag head guard?" Nancy asked over the lip of her mug. "I know Heather from school was gunning for that spot."
Tatum shrugged lightly. "I have more experience than her, and I'm certified to train other people to be lifeguards, so they're having me do that in May before the season starts. We'll have at least three new guards that need to be trained."
Mike laughed excitedly. "This summer is going to be awesome. The pool, the arcade and the mall that's about to open? We'll never be bored."
"You guys should seriously consider coming to camp with me," Dustin offered. "It's so cool and you get to build stuff all summer."
Max scoffed. "Nerd camp? With no skateboards? No way."
"You could build a rocket powered skateboard if you wanted to."
"That would take away the whole art of skating."
"You lot are impossible," Tatum said with a sigh. "And do you really have to be gone for an entire month, Dust? Poor Stevo will just die without you."
Steve blabbered in defense, although he internally admitted that she was probably right. "I'll be working, so it won't be that big of a deal."
"Oh yeah?" Lucas asked with a raised brow. "Where?"
Steve's mouth opened slightly, eyes absently panning the room. "I'm still working on that. I'm guessing the fancy new mall is going to have a bunch of places with openings."
"That sounds like a great summer job, Steve."
All eyes turned to the newest figure in the room, Jordan looming just shy of the entryway with his head nearly scraping the banner hanging above him.
"Sorry to interrupt, but I thought now might be a good time to give Tatum her birthday present from her stepmom and I."
And while the rest of the room 'ooo'd with curiosity, Steve looked rather smug.
Jordan waved a hand for Tatum to join him. "Close your eyes," he said as he reached her. "I mean it."
"This is ridiculous, Dad," said Tatum with a laugh, only for Jordan to cover her eyes himself, beginning to walk her to the door.
The others shuffled in behind as Tatum was guided onto the porch, Elena holding the door open.
"Now, it'll be about a couple weeks before it's useful, but I imagine you'll appreciate looking it at."
Tatum's brows furrowed, bristling against her father's hands as her own were stuck out in front of her to keep her from hitting anything. "Huh?"
The crowd behind her hummed with excitement, whispers of coolness and beauty not going unnoticed.
"Happy Birthday, Tate," Jordan said, lifting his hands from her eyes.
"Oh, my God!" Tatum took a step down the porch stairs, nearly stumbling as a hand covered her mouth.
A sleek, black Jeep Wrangler sat in the spot the Mustang had taken up for so long, lacking the dusting of snow all the other cars in the neighborhood had gotten in the last few hours.
Jordan retrieved a set of keys from his pocket, holding them out to her. "It's a 1982 CJ7. A hardtop for while it's cold, and everything can come off in the summer, if you like."
Tatum couldn't help but laugh as she walked to the car, running her hands along the hood in amazement. "She's beautiful. And she's mine?"
"As long as you take care of her."
Tatum hugged the keys to her chest as she turned back to the slew of loved ones. "Of course. Of course, I will."
"Steve," Jordan turned back to the teen closest to his right. "Since you've been teaching her how to drive, take her out for a spin tomorrow, would you?"
"You got it, Mr. Rivers. Hopefully she won't wreck it on her first try."
"Maybe on the second or third," Jordan replied with a grin, stepping past the others back into the house.
"Oh my God, you totally have to drive us around in that!" Max exclaimed, running a circle around the vehicle. "This is my favorite car. They have tons of these in California. They're the best for the beach. Surfboards stick right out the back and don't ruin the seats."
Tatum grinned. "I can't imagine I'll need to put a surfboard in here anytime soon, but I imagine I could cram all you brats in here," she mused, hands resting on her hips. "This is amazing. I cannot believe it."
"Guys, it's freezing," Will said from the porch, blanket still wrapped around his shoulders.
Tatum waved a finger over her head. "Inside. Move it or lose it."
Will never liked to be cold anymore, and nobody blamed him.
The group hauled it back inside, practically gunning for the fireplace and warm blankets.
"How are you going to decide what to take to school?" Mike asked, pulling his blanket up above his head and wearing it like a nun to block out the cold. "The bike or the Jeep?"
Tatum pulled her knees up to her chest, sharing a couch cushion with Nancy. "I guess I'll have to pick based on how I'm feeling." Her grin grew wide. "I can't wait to drive it."
"Just don't crash it before you can give us a ride," Will said with a smile.
"Hey!" Tatum squawked. "I'm quite a good driver, thank you."
All eyes turned to Steve.
He shrugged lightly. "She's not that bad." He looked to Tatum with an innocent grin. "But you're shit at parking. That's a fact."
Tatum grumbled. "Yeah, that's true."
"We'll keep working on it. You still have a couple weeks before your test," Steve assured.
"Let's hope your instructor is nice, or at least doesn't pay attention if you mess anything up," offered Jonathan kindly. "Mine was a nightmare. I didn't signal when construction forced a merge and she nearly didn't pass me."
"Tate will just pull the badass card and get away with it," Dustin said confidently. "Or the accent will sway them into passing you. That usually works."
The night rolled on with endless laughter, Tatum's arrival into the adult world filled with those she cared most dearly for, albeit missing one of her favorites. There was nothing she could've asked for to make the any better, but there was one thing that could make her feel worse.
Giving everyone hugs goodnight as they set out in two clusters to be taken home, Tatum found herself waving from the front door until both cars disappeared down the street and into the night.
"I'm glad you have good friends, T," Jordan said, glasses low on his nose as he surfaced in the foyer with an empty mug in hand. "That's important."
"They're important." Tatum took a last look out the door before swinging it shut, locking up for the evening.
"Elena and I are headed to bed." Jordan kissed his daughter on the forehead, squeezing her shoulder. "Happy Birthday."
"Thanks, Dad. I'm glad you're home."
"Me too, sweetheart."
Tatum sighed softly to herself as Jordan headed up the stairs, busying herself with folding all of the blankets strewn about the living room next to the quiet fireplace. Stacking the blankets, some of which she hadn't even seen until Elena brought them into existence, she carried them to the hall closet and safely tucked them away.
And when she returned to the living room to collect mugs, a knock on the back door sounded.
Tatum's brows furrowed, passing the couches entirely and slipping out the living room to the slim hallway that led to the pool.
Standing on the other side of the glass was someone she should have expected, but hadn't.
Billy grinned, leather jacket zipped tight against the cold with a small blue box in hand.
Tatum unlocked the door, hesitantly opening it. "It's a bit cold, isn't it?"
"Oh, it's not so bad," he said with a soft shrug. "I thought I should at least give you this." He offered out the small box, a silver bow tied on top. "Eighteen's pretty special. So are you."
"You're sweet for coming all this way."
"I won't stay long. I know your parents are home." Billy motioned past her. "I saw the Jeep in the driveway. Is that yours?"
Tatum couldn't help but smile. "It is. She's stunning."
"Are you still pretending you can't park so Steve feels better about giving you lessons before the test?"
She gave a light shrug. "He likes the company. He's good to talk to. You managed to turn most of his friends against him, so he doesn't have many people to hang out with."
Billy's looked away briefly before nodding. "I didn't make them do anything, Tate. Steve already had issues with Tommy, anyway. And I don't want this to be about him, or about last year. I just wanted to give you your birthday present, that's all. I didn't want to bother you until the others left so you can keep up appearances." He offered out the box yet again, practically forcing it into her hands. "Open it."
"Nancy found your earring in my room earlier today."
Billy's brow arched. "Did you tell her?"
Tatum laughed to herself, shaking her head. "Did I tell her? No, I didn't tell her, Billy. How can I?"
"Yeah, well, open your present, then."
Tatum pulled the protruding string of the bow, letting it fall away before popping off the lid.
A pristine zippo lighter donning the Union Jack sat inside, glimmering under the patio lights.
"Do you like it?"
She grinned lightly, biting her lip in an attempt to contain it. "I love it."
"Look at the back," he said.
Tatum lifted the cold metal from the box, flipping the lighter over in her hand. "All hail the Queen," she said aloud, running a finger along the inscription engraved on the back. She flicked it open, a flame burning bright. "Thank you."
"I'm glad you like it. I've been waiting weeks to give it to you." He ran a hand through his hair absently. "It's like I'm getting better with secrets every day. Having a big one helps, I guess."
"Yeah, well, it wouldn't have to be a secret if you hadn't been a grade A asshole," she noted, snapping the lighter shut. "But here we are. My dad was very dissatisfied when I told him we weren't seeing each other anymore. He quite liked you."
"He's home, isn't he?"
Tatum nodded lightly. "We brought him back today. He's been working on a new book."
"Will he hide the manuscript the next time he goes out of town?" Billy asked.
Ah, yes. The lie fabricated to explain away tearing through her father's office to unearth whatever she could manage.
"I reckon he won't be going out of town for a while, but he said I could read it soon," she replied with a miniscule smile. "From what he's told me, it sounds quite good."
"You'll have to tell me about it. I finished reading The Pasos Paradox last night and I loved it. I couldn't believe how it ended." He cleared his throat. "Well, I don't want to keep you up. I'll see you at school tomorrow."
Tatum grabbed his collar as he leaned in to kiss her on the cheek, meeting his gaze as their noses brushed. "Do you want to come in for a coffee?"
Billy's brows furrowed. "But what about your parents?"
"They're in for the night."
"Only if you want me to," he said. "It's still your birthday for another two hours."
And again, like he always was, Billy was pulled into the Rivers residence without fail.