Jamie sat there on the porch with her mouth slightly agape.
"I swear that's no-", Jamie started before her father started yelling.
"WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS, JAMIE?", he yelled as he picked the colored condom packs off of the ground. "ARE YOU OUT HERE HAVING SEX?!", he continued to scream at the top of his lungs.
Jamie sat there speechless as she stared at the items in her father's hand. "I didn't put those in th-", Jamie stumbled in her speech before being interrupted by watching her father unbuckle his belt and stripping it from his pants in one pull.
"Then you wanna tell me how the FUCK they got in there?!"
Jamie sat there and quickly thought back to earlier when Joyce gave her the purse. "She said she wanted me to be safe", Jamie mumbled as she kept thinking out loud.
"What?", Hopper said annoyed as he made a face.
"I think Joyce put them in there...", she said louder.
"Joyce"
"Yeah", Jamie said as she shrugged.
"Well let's go ask her", Hopper said smartly as he grabbed Jamie's belongings and followed behind her in to the house.
"JOOOYCE", Hopper said as he threw everything in his hands onto the couch and headed towards the back. He forcefully threw their bedroom door open to find El and Joyce in bed watching soaps.
"Jeez", Joyce replied as she jumped a little.
"Sit", he said as he lightly pushed Jamie towards the bed.
"Out", he continued as he made eye contact with El who quickly scurried out of the room as she briefly made eye contact with her older sister.
Hopper held the doorknob and leaned into the door closing it with his weight and looked at Joyce as he huffed.
"You wanna tell your step mom the shit you just told me", Hopper said more of a command rather than a question.
Joyce looked at Hopper who had his belt wrapped around his hand, and then at Jamie who sat with her shoulders slumped.
"When we were coming inside I tripped and dropped my bag and condoms fell out but I said that maybe you put them in there because I don't know how else they would've gotten there. Me and Steve didn't even do anything..."
Joyce put her head in her hands and laughed causing a nasty look from Hopper.
"Um, Joyce you wanna tell me what's so funny?", Hopper asked with no amusement in his voice as he folded his lips inward.
"Oh, Hop you're such a dad!", she said as she gently rubbed Jamie's shoulder. "I did put those in there. Not saying that she was going to use them, but whatever she decides to do, at least she'll be smart and use protection or at the very least have them."
"She's only 16 Joyce for God's sake! Did your mom even have the talk with you?", he said as he looked at Jamie hoping she still had an ounce of sexual innocence.
"No, but me and Joyce talked about sex and babies and other women stuff."
"Yes", Joyce jumped in. "And I gave her condoms to be safe. Three to be exact".
Hopper sighed slightly in relief as he remembered the two condoms on the couch and the one in his pocket. He went over to Jamie, apologized, and kissed her forehead.
"Sorry, kid. It's just that I haven't been around like I should've been when you were growing up so I didn't have the chance to scare off all the little boys."
As the three laughed, their attention shifted to the hallway as the doorbell rang. Hopper looked at his wristwatch as he went to the front door and peeked out the window.
"the hell is this", he mumbled before opening the door halfway and looking at the two people who stood there dressed in suits.
"Jim Hopper?", the man stated as he tipped his hat.
"Can I help you?"
"Yes, we're here from Child Protective Services. May we come in please?", the woman asked as the two briefly flashed their ID cards.
"You're not the people from earlier. And it's 8:45. PM", Hopper said with emphasis as he still stood in the doorway.
"Yes, we're overseeing this case now. May we speak with your daughter Jamie please?", the gentleman continued.
Hopper stood there staring at the pair for half a minute before stepping back and letting them inside.
"Jai!", he called as his eyes never left the two strangers now standing in the Hopper-Byers living room.
Jamie stood in the hallway near Joyce's door where only her father had a clear shot of her. Hopper nodded his head towards the living room, and tried to give Jamie a hint as to what was going on.
"Come here. Some people would like to talk to you".
Jamie slowly crept in the living room and stood in the threshold where the hallway and living room met. Jamie stared at the two people and from a glimpse, she knew that they weren't any of the few people who came by the house earlier. These people gave her the same uneasy feeling they gave her father.
"Hi....", Jamie said somewhat timidly.
"Hi Jamie", the woman spoke with a friendly smile. "My name is Teresa Dolan, and this is my partner Mark Harris. We wanted to talk to you. Is that okay?", she asked as she maintained her distance but kept her friendly demeanor.
Jamie looked at her father and took a seat beside him on the couch. "Okay", she said as she shrugged her shoulders. Hopper folded his arms across his chest as he continued to stare at the pair standing across from him.
Teresa folded her lips inward before speaking. "We have to talk to you in private... for confidentiality reasons", she added the last part as Hopper gave them a ugly look and Jamie flashed a look of concern once she saw her father's reaction.
"We can sit and chat on the couch if that makes you more comfortable. Your father will wait in another room", Mark said.
The look in Jamie's eyes pleaded for her father not to leave. Hopper leaned forward and used both his fists to boost himself off the couch as he mumbled under his breath.
"No nose bleeds, alright", he said as he walked to the bedroom and started at Jamie. "None", he mouthed as he closed the door.
Teresa sat next to Jamie on the couch while Mark sat on the arm of the opposite end.
"So Jamie, you're a bit older and much more mature than the normal children I deal with, so I'm gonna cut to the chase. I've heard that you've been having some issues with your parents regarding abuse. Do you feel comfortable talking about that?", Teresa asked sympathetically.
"Um... sure?", Jamie responded.
"Okay, while we talk, Mark is just going to be jotting down a few things so don't pay him any mind. You can start wherever you like", Teresa continued once she received a nod from Jamie.
"Um... my mom's boyfriend used to hit me which left a lot of bruises. My mom knew, but she didn't do anything. She never did...", Jamie said taking a deep breath and keeping her emotions in check.
"So your father never abused you? Showed any signs of neglect or put you in danger?", Teresa asked as Mark wrote.
"No. He never hurt me or anything. Ever.", Jamie said sternly as she looked Teresa in the eye while Mark paused from writing to look up at them.
"Okay. I want to ask you a few random questions Jamie. They may seem odd, but I need you to answer them honestly and to the best of your ability, alright?", Teresa asked as she fidgeted with her ear.
"Have you noticed an increase in nose bleeds when you are in emotional distress?"
Jamie paused as her stomach dropped. "No nose bleeds", she told herself as she replayed her father's words in her head before speaking out loud.
"No.... no nose bleeds" , Jamie said slowly with her pitch slightly higher.
"Has something ever happened in coincidence that you made you think that you could've done it with your mind? Like you have... telekinetic abilities?"
Jamie froze after this question. She looked over her shoulder towards her parents bedroom and saw no one. She looked back at Mark, then at Teresa who Jamie swore could see right through her pretty white lies.
"You don't have to worry about your dad, honey. We wont say a thing. We just need to know so that we can keep you safe. Have you been having these things happen to you?" , Teresa said as Jamie's intense, deep breaths became more noticeable.
Jamie looked over her shoulder again and fought the urge to start fidgeting her fingers. Mark flipped a page in his clipboard and cleared his throat. "It says here that you used to see a Dr. Martin Brenner. Are you still seing him?"
Jamie started nervously tapping her foot as she rubbed her knee. She shook her head as she watched the lights hold a steady beam. Teresa looked at Jamie, then at Mark who in which the two made eye contact and gave a simple nod.
"Alright Jamie, I think I've asked enough questions. Would you mind go getting your father for me?", Teresa said as she got up from the couch.
Jamie quickly got up and nervously knocked on the door. Hopper quickly opened the door as Joyce stood on the side of him. The look on Jamie's face told Hopper and Joyce that she was on the verge of a panic attack. Joyce wrapped her arm around Jamie as Hopper went into the living room.
"Calm down, honey. Okay? What were they asking?", Joyce said as held Jamie.
"At first they were asking about my mom and David but then they started asking me about my nose bleeds and if I could do things with my mind", Jamie spat out quickly in a panic.
"Calm down, it's okay. What did you tell them?"
"I didn't tell them anything. What's wrong with me? Is something bad going to happen to me?", Jamie said as she continuously wiped her eyes.
Joyce held Jamie's head against her chest, even though the two were nearly the same height. Yelling coming from the living room caused Jamie and Joyce to leave the room to make sure Hopper didn't flip the house upside down.
"Jim we need you to calm down! We're only doing our job!", Teresa attempted to shout over Hopper's over powering voice.
"BULL FUCKING SHIT! THIS MAKES NO FUCKING SENSE!", Hopper yelled with his eyes and face two different shades of red.
"Sir, you can not tackle and pull out a gun on someone in public!", Mark said with his voice slightly elevated.
Jamie quickly turned to Joyce in a panic and whispered. "I didn't tell them about that!"
"Shh, it's okay sweetie", Joyce said as she stood there with her arms wrapped around Jamie.
Hopper turned and punched the wall causing a small dent to form in the drywall. Teresa made her way over to Jamie and grabbed her arm pulling her away from Joyce.
"Where do you think you're going with her?!", Joyce asked as she attempted to pull Jamie back.
"We're taking her into our custody because we've determined that she's in an unstable household at the moment. You can talk to the judge on Tuesday", Mark said as he grabbed his clipboard, left a sheet of paper, and headed towards the front door.
"Ouch! No! Let me go! Dad!", Jamie said as she attempted to pull away from Teresa's grasp with tears falling down her face.
"You're hurting her!", Hopper said as the lights briefly flickered when he made his way towards his daughter. Mark stood between Hopper and Teresa. "Don't do anything you don't want the judge to know about", Mark said as he stared Hopper into his eyes.
Hopper and Mark stood in each others faces for a minute as both men stood holding their ground. Hopper finally backed off after realizing that some things just wouldn't fly under the radar being the chief of police. He stood there as Jamie called out to him.
"Daddy!", Jamie mumbled as she saw the look of helplessness in her father's eyes. Jamie cried as she walked outside to an all black car with tinted windows while Teresa held the door open for her.
As Jamie turned around and saw her parents standing in the doorway, she turned to face the two who finally got in the front seat. As Mark fixed the rearview mirror, he and Jamie made eye contact with each other. From the look in his eyes, Jamie could almost tell immediately that something was up. She watched as he mumbled something into his wrist while Teresa held her ear.
They weren't driving long before Jamie finally looked up as they pulled into a gas station.
As Mark drove up to the pump, Teresa rolled her eyes.
"Fucking idiot. Can't even remember to get gas", she mumbled as she turned around and looked at Jamie.
"You want something out of here?", she asked unbucking her seatbelt.
"Reeses... but they have one without peanut butter. I want that one because I'm allergic.", Jamie said after she thought for a moment.
"Great. Fucking food allergies", Teresa whispered as she got of the car and went inside.
Jamie looked out the window and saw Mark still in line waiting to pay as Teresa looked for her reeses. Jamie quietly opened the car door and crouched down as she rushed across multiple pumps to an older lady who had just finished pumping her gas.
"Excuse me, Ma'am! Can you help me please?! These people in there, they took my from my dad but I don't think they are who they say they are", Jamie quickly said in a panic as she turned and saw that Mark was next in line.
"Please, can you help me?!", Jamie pleaded.
The lady looked around and saw two people dressed in suits in the gas station. The lady then looked back to Jamie who was on the verge of tears and sighed.
"Come on, sweetie. Get in and stay down", the lady said as she went around to the driver's side and got in. Jamie sat crouched down in the back seat panting as she suddenly heard Mark's voice.
"Where the fuck is she?!", he said as he looked into the back seat while putting the nozzle in the gas tank. He turned to Teresa who was leaving out of the gas station with a handful of different candies.
"You took her in there with you?", he shouted across the pumps which caused Teresa to hurridly rush over as the older lady sped off with Jamie hiding in the back seat.
"Here. Call your parents", the older lady said as she passed her phone to Jamie.
Jamie quickly dialed her dad's number and put the phone to her ear as the older lady slowly came to a stop.
"Make sure your seatbelt is on honey. Just got pulled over. Everything's gonna be alright", she said reassuringly.
"Hello?", Hopper answered immediately.
"Dad", Jamie sniffled as she wiped her eyes.
"Jamie! Where are you?!"
"I'm in the car with a lady from the gas station. She's trying to help me but we're pulled over", Jamie said managing not to freak out feeling like a convict.
"Jamie, the people that took you are not with CPS. I need you to look around and tell me where you are. I'm going to come find you, okay? But I need for you to remain calm. No nose bleeds, remember?", Hopper said as he frantically threw on his uniform, grabbed his jacket, and went to grab his gun.
"I don't know! All I see is trees and a mailbox that says He-", Jamie stopped as she watched someone approach the driver's and passenger side of the vehicle. Jamie shielded her eyes as a light shone in from the driver's side as the officer asked the lady to step out of the car.
"Hello? HELLO!", Hopper frantically shouted from the other end as Jamie tried to turn the volume down with the phone under her lap. Jamie watched as the lady was escorted to the back of the car. When the officer raised his arm to her head, her body suddenly went limp and dropped to the ground.
"Dad! They killed her!", Jamie leaned forward and cried into phone as she started to feel her heart beat a thousand miles a minute.
"Jamie, who's mailbox did you see? What was the name, baby?"
Jamie looked up and saw a dark figure making their way to her side of the door. Jamie slid to the middle seat as she turned the phone off and slid it into her bra. Once the door was pulled open, Jamie kicked Mark in the face who reached in and attempted to grab her. As Teresa threw open the driver's side rear door, Jamie climbed out, hopped over Mark, and ran towards the woods.
Jamie could hear yelling and rapid foot steps behind her. As Jamie zig zagged through the trees, she felt an intense burn in her chest and rib cage which caused her to slow down and hide behind a tree. Jamie heard twigs breaking under approaching foot steps and tried to muffle her loud breaths as she struggled for air.
Jamie watched as a body ran past her, but quickly turned around as they slid on leaves and sticks in order to make their way back to her.
"Jamie!", Steve said as he dropped to his knees and sat her up right. "Come on! They're coming! We gotta go!"
Jamie frantically shook her head as she continued weasing and clenched her chest. Steve frantically looked at her in confusion before realizing what was happening.
"Oh, shit! Your inhaler! Where is it?!", he panicked.
Jamie didn't respond as she wrapped an arm around Steve's neck and held onto his shirt for dear life.
"Fuck! Come on!", Steve yelled at himself as he frantically searched Jamie's empty pockets and set her down gently as he started searching through the dirt around them.
Jamie laid there on her back as her eyes grew heavy and she struggled to keep them open. Once they opened, she saw Steve shove her inhaler in her mouth as two figures stood over them before they finally closed.