Chapter Text
“So, what’s the deal with her?...”
“How should I know?”
Nancy scoffed. She leaned against the sink, watching her little brother glare at the dishwasher, trying to find a place for the caked lasagna dish. The sleeve of his blue button-up barely reached his wrist; he seemed to be growing lankier by the second.
“You’re the one dating her sister.”
“El doesn’t tell me everything.”
“Please! El’s sweet, but she could stub her toe and the next second she’s calling you about it.”
Mike rolled his eyes. He’d finally found a spot for the glass dish, trying to wedge it behind the row of dirty plates. Rather unsuccessfully too, if the groan from the dishwasher rack was anything to go by.
“I dunno! She like, used to live in Chicago, she used to be with El..” he glanced sharply behind him, making sure no parents were nearby “..before, in that place, and she used to like...getintoshit...”
Nancy straightened up, trying to ignore the warm tug in her stomach “Get into what?..”
“Like, dangerous stuff, alright?” Mike hissed, eyes wide to tell her that this was not the ideal conversation to have in the middle of the kitchen “Like..stuff with the lab, El said – tried to..get revenge, on those assholes who used to hurt El and her...”
Nancy could feel her heart hammering in her throat. She had to know more about that. The warm, electric tug of intrigue grew – she needed to know more about that. Then Mike’s rushed, demanding tone broke her bubble.
“But you can’t say anything alright?! El made me swear not to go around blabbing for safety, you can’t –”
“Relax, I know.” Nancy assure him, leaning back again and raising an eyebrow at Mike now shoving the dish against the rack “You’re gunna break that thing you know.”
“You do it then!!”
“Hey, I already helped in making the meal.” Nancy grinned “I don’t have to do any of this shit.”
Mike grumbled some words he probably shouldn’t know under his breath, wrenching the dish out again to start over. Nancy left him to it, head flicking over to the doorway of the kitchen – where their guests had exited out a mere twenty minutes ago, including the new name that was tacked onto dark leather and a quiet voice.
She’d come with Jonathan to pick up El and Will after sharing another dinner at the Wheeler house – but, through her mom’s gentle ushering, got pulled in to atleast have some cake with them. They’d only stayed about half an hour before Jonathan told Karen thank you for dessert, but they really oughta go before his mom starts wondering where they were. And they left without Nancy getting to ask one single question.
Mike had told her how El had apparently acquired a sister – another stolen child with a tattooed number on their arm. Interesting enough – but nothing could’ve prepared her for the body that walked in beside her ex-boyfriend.
Now the moment of catching those powerful, stoic brown eyes in hers wouldn’t leave her.
“...Do you know if she..” Nancy shuffled uneasily, gaze lingering like it would make Kali reappear in the doorway, letting the faint scent of cigarettes and low voice drawing out Nancy Wheeler surround her “you know..”
“What?”
“If she, like, dates?...”
The wrenching of the dishwasher stopped. Nancy spun her head over again and found herself faced with the most affronted expression.
“...Again, how would I know that?!”
“Well maybe it might’ve come up, I dunno!”
“How?!”
“Just – well –”
“Why do you need to know? Now that you’re done dating Will’s older sibling, you’re gunna date El’s too??”
Nancy felt her cheeks flame up. She swiftly kicked Mike in the shin, dodging to avoid the shove she got in return.
“Honestly if you care so much Nancy, why don’t you ask her?!”
“Because – well – I-I – huff, here, jus-just give me that stupid dish!”
“Do my eyes deceive me?”
Both heads whipped around. Karen Wheeler had breezed into the kitchen at that moment, giving the teens a teasing smile.
“Is it my children actually working together?”
“We’re about done Mom.” Nancy smiled back, easily sliding the lasagna dish behind the dishes and into the grooves. She heard Mike grumble under his breath again, snatching the pile of used forks.
“Well don’t let me interrupt this moment. I’m just about to put Holly down, but first, I found this while I was taking off the table cloth and wondered if either of you knew what it could be..”
That sentence was concerning enough for the siblings who were already trying to keep the last two years of secrets from under their parents noses – but in the end, what their mother held up instead, was not any evidence of death-defying, government-rule-breaking adventures, and instead, a single fingerless leather glove.
Nancy did gasp however, because she knew exactly what it was.
“Any ideas? I couldn’t figure out who’s it was, and your father didn’t recognize it.”
“I dunno.” Mike shrugged “It’s not mine.”
“You’re sure it doesn’t belong to either of your friends?”
“Neither El or Will would wear that. Maybe it belonged to one of the others, to Jonathan or something..”
“Hm. Well, I guess it’s not that big of a deal – I have to head into downtown tomorrow anyone, I’ll stop in and ask Joyce if –”
“No wait!”
That’d been far too loud, making both Mike and Karen’s heads whip over. Nancy quickly retracted, clearing her throat.
“I-I mean, I can just do it mom, it’s no big deal. I think Mike’s right, it’s probably Jonathan’s – I can give them a call.”
“Oh. Well thanks hun.” Karen smiled back at how helpful her children are being tonight, handing the glove over to her daughter “I have to go wrangle that toddler now – but I can handle putting away the leftovers if you two can just get the rest of the dishes into the machine.”
“Sure thing!” Nancy chimes sweetly, letting her mom walk off and up the stairs. Once she was out of ear shot, Mike rolled his eyes and groaned.
“God, you are so weird – Oh I can call over there and talk to El’s sister Mom! It’s no big deal at all!” He’d pitched his voice as high as he could, something resembling a cartoon character, mumbling as he tried to fit the salad tongs that were jammed in the top rack. Nancy rolled her eyes right back, too busy running her fingers in between the black leather to look at him.
“You can’t give me shit – you kept the girl you liked for a week in the basement.”
“Whatever – just don’t have a whole break-up situation this time alright? I wanna be able to go to El and Will’s place without it being weird...”
Nancy snatched the hood of his navy jacket and yanked it over, getting a yelp and a swear in response. She snorted, lips pulling up – and then curled the glove up in her hand, done with this conversation.
“Try not to break the dishwasher by putting in a dish backwards dorkus.”
Mike muttered something else but Nancy was already gone, physically and metaphorically. She slipped out of the kitchen and hopped up onto the stairs. She cradled the glove in her hands; it was slightly worn around the cuff with the leather chipping off, and, Nancy spotted, just a bare dot of purple nail polish along the side that must’ve missed the pinky nail. She bit into her lip, barely able to hide her smile.
She was already awaiting the moment she’ll hold up the teal receiver to her ear and get to hear the soft, low answer of Nancy Wheeler.. come out of it.
-
“You’re exaggerating Byers.”
“I swear, it’s all true.”
“She did all that?”
“She did.” Jonathan briefly flicked his eyes from the road to Kali, giving a smile “I was there, saw it with my own eyes. She slit her palm, and shot that thing right in the chest. You can even ask Steve about it.”
“What? And talk to Harrington willingly?”
“He’s not so bad..” Jonathan chuckled, a certain warmth to his voice. Kali hummed to herself.
The darkly lit pine trees of the late night zoomed past them along the road, a quiet night. David Bowie was lamenting a melody over the radio and behind the seat of the older teens, you could hear the muffled conversation of Will and El – the two facing each other, hands extended in this overly complicated handshake game one has been trying to show the other for three days now, Will’s patient voice and El’s furrowed brow.
“You’re really telling me, Nancy Wheeler took a gun into her own hand to fight a demon, and led a crusade to get penance from the men responsible for her friend’s death?”
“She also called them assholes to their faces.”
Kali snorted. Jonathan flicked another smile at her, thumb toggling the turn signal.
“What’s so hard to believe about that?”
Kali tried to come up with a reply. Her mind re-run tapes of what happened tonight. The Wheeler’s looked as typical of a cul-de-sac family of three as you could, a disinterested father reading his paper in an armchair and a mom with a perfected smile offering them plates at the table. Kali followed Jonathan’s lead the whole time, gave simple nods to Mrs. Wheeler’s polite inquiries and eyed Mr. Wheeler right back as he started squinting at her. A toddler at the feet of her parents and that whiny Wheeler boy her sister’s enraptured with weaving in and out, it hadn’t been anything Kali didn’t expect.
Except, for Nancy Wheeler.
The thing about the stories Jonathan told, was that from Nancy’s outer shell, it appeared that they couldn’t be true. A soft white sweater and simple blue jeans, a classic girl-next-door. Politely smiling when her mom asked her to help get the home-made cake from the fridge, carefully wiping Holly off when she’s smushed half the chocolate icing onto her cheek without even being asked. Offered easy conversation add-ons at the table while never saying more then needed.
Perfectly sweet. Perfectly poised. A smiling pride for her parents, and a helpful sister to her siblings, and nothing more.
The only moment where the facade dropped, was when Kali stepped in beside Jonathan. He stopped their friendly back-and-forth to introduce her and Kali watched, baby blue eyes sharply widen as they soaked in hers.
And Kali knows, there’s something there.
Something else belonging to Nancy Wheeler that wasn’t sweet-girl-softness played up for her family. Something sharp. Something with fight. She could simply sense it, broiling just under the surface.
Something that, according to Jonathan, went after the necks of the same men she did.
“I don’t know..” She finally answered “I suppose it’s difficult with first impressions..”
“Well, I mean..are either of us the ones to judge when it comes to first impressions?”
Kali scoffed again, hearing his quiet laugh alongside. She knew there was a reason why she liked the oldest Byers boy. A fellow lone weirdo knows another when they see one. She could still hear the quiet murmur of the backseat, Will’s gentle voice speaking ‘here, El, your hand goes like this..’ while he grasps her wrists, trying to get her to mimic him.
“...There’s something there.” Kali mused, thoughts drifting back to baby blue “Something sparking and made of pointed teeth, that she doesn’t want outsiders to see under the veneer of ‘sweet n’ sisterly eldest daughter’ she’s putting up for her family. Something, that aligns more of the stories you’ve told me, then what was being put on tonight. But, I guess I’m wondering what made her stamp it out tonight..”
“I can’t help but notice that you sound disappointed..”
“Relax Byers – trust me when I say, I’m not holding onto ideas of Nancy Wheeler..”
“She’s not so bad you know.” He jibbed, wheel sliding through his hands as he takes the turn on Alma St. “A lot of that, it’s..it’s a protective layer, to throw off her parents, ‘cause if they had any idea of what’s been going on..–”
“Maybe then, her father could actually be bothered to get out of his armchair..”
That earned Kali a chuckle, making her smile slight.
“Eh, her mom’s not so bad at least. I can always invite Nance to hang out you know, if you want..”
“And why would I want?”
His smile was easy, but Kali could see, the underlining of it “I dunno, I think you guys might find some stuff in common..”
“I know you and her were together. I would never..–”
“Don’t even.” He gently cut her off “That’s all got it’s part in the past; I liked Nancy then, and I like her as a friend now. But I think you guys could get along..”
“Which version would I be getting? The plain-clothes and good-girl aura or the one you spun stories of?”
“I mean, play your cards, you’ll get to find out the best version of her – especially if you offer to help sharpen her shooting skills..”
Kali’s eyes nearly rolled into the back of her head, hearing another chuckle. She straightened herself up in the old sagging seat, now the one raising her brow.
“And what is this Byers, some kind of match-making service? Should I call Harrington over next?”
“Who’s doing match-making?”
The voice suddenly bobbed to the surface from behind the teens. El was leaning into the front seat, Will perched at her shoulder behind her.
“Nobody.”
“For Kali.” Jonathan grinned back. El let out an overly dramatic gasp, as she was prone to do. She snatched Will in his striped t-shirt by the shoulder, giving a shove and an excited ‘told you!!’ Kali furrowed, trying to turn her head to get a look at her little sister.
“Told him what?”
El grabbed onto Kali’s head cushion, yanking herself forward so her breath was ghosting over her sister’s ear with a smile stretching around to her ears.
“Like Nancy Wheeler.”
Jonathan started laughing again. Kali switched to a glare, pushing her palm against El’s forehead to force her back onto the seat with a surprised squeak. Will couldn’t help smiling either.
“Alright alright, guys, we’re about five minutes away from the house..”
“So be sure to have your payment for your ride ready. Five dollar bills only.” Kali quipped. Behind her, El leaned down to the carpeted car floor, grabbing an old KitKat wrapper, slithering her arm around to chuck it at Kali. As the brothers began to laugh, Kali quickly snatched around the seat, yanking El’s headband off – triumphant until El tried to reach for it back, Will’s leaning into the chaos too to help, car filled with chaotic bickering.
“Alright, children!” Jonathan gave his best fake-stern impression “Knock it off or I can turn this car right around and none of you will get to see Disneyland!”
“I’m pretty sure it’s only little kids who go to Disneyland.” Will poked at his brother.
“I wanna go to Disneyland.” El immediately responded.
The front-seat fell into chuckles, the car growing quiet again. El tugged at Will’s sleeve, falling into their own conversation again, Kali picking up those DnD phrases fading in and out. El was still a new learner. Neither her nor Jonathan said anything, enjoying the stillness for a while.
“Oh, shit.”
“What?”
“Your glove – I just noticed.”
K ali followed Jonathan’s gaze down to her left hand resting on her knee – the one sans the leather glove that matched her other hand.
“Oh. Yeah.” She feigns her tone, trying to seem nonchalant “Guess I must’ve left it behind when I slipped it off.”
“I can call the Wheeler house when we get home, if you want.” He offered in genuine “Make sure someone sees it..”
Kali, gazing out the window, let out the faintest smile to herself. She flexed her bare hand, thinking of the missing glove as it sat innocently on the seat of the dining chair – and how Nancy Wheeler’s gaze stayed glued to the back of her head as she walked out the door with her new family.
“It’s alright.” She mused, voice drifting off “I have a feeling it’ll show up...”