Chapter Text
--- During the destruction of the Upside Down ---
What the hell is she doing Max thinks, unable to take her eyes off of Eleven. She's just... standing there, at the edge of the upside down and this world. Oh god... she's not leaving when the bomb goes off The realization hits her like a truck.
"ELEVEN" She screams. Everyone else runs towards El, the military holding them back. What's holding Max back? Her own immobility. Why can't I just move?! she internally demands. No matter how much she tries, her legs won't move an inch.
A thousand thoughts and fears are circling her mind. Can one of the others reach her in time? Could she move even if she tried? What if tonight is when El dies and Max can't do anything. All the terror clouds every thought like a thunderstorm. Theres so much noise. The soldiers are shouting, the party is screaming Elevens name, but she stays still, waiting for the bomb to go off. Tears start to well in Max's eyes, but she can't even blink. Her stare is fixed on El.
The dry air stinging at her eyes becomes all to much and she shuts her eyes tight. When she opens them, she's not in the MAC-Z anymore.
She's standing upright, on her two legs, in a black void. She can feel the thin layer of water on the floor soak through her shoes. She's in El's mind.
"Max" El says, standing beside her. Max spins around and looks at her, tears beginning to fall down her cheeks.
"El, what the hell are you doing" "Max..." "Why aren't you moving-" "Max!" "You have to move, the bombs going to go off-" "MAX!" Eleven yells. Silence falls in the void. Eleven delicatly takes hold of Max's trembling hand.
"I need you to tell the others"
"What, no, I don't-"
"They need to understand why I'm doing this"
"How do I make them understand, I don't understand! You can't... you can't just sacrifice yourself!"
"This evil, this bloodshed, it doesn't end. Doctor Kay is going to keep trying to replicate Papa's experiment and she'll hurt anyone who tries to stop her." Eleven explains. What scares Max so much is how calm she is. Eleven has thought this through and she's sure of herself.
"So... so we run! We get the hell out of Hawkins. I have an aunt in New Zealand, we can stay with her. She's on the other side of the world, no one would find us there-"
"Max, this is the only way, and you know it"
"No! No it can't be! Dad left, I- I lost my brother, I just... I can't lose a sister as well, okay, I just can't" She begs, melting into El's arms for a hug. Both girls begin to break down, sobbing their eyes out. "I just got you back" she cries, digging her head into El's shoulder. "I just got you back" she whispers. Eleven slowly pulls away and cups her hands around Max's cheeks.
"Max... I'll always be with you. Every time you read a Wonder Woman comic, just imagine I'm right next to you" Max smiles, remembering the sleepover they had in '85. "Whenever you go shopping, just remember how much you helped me become who I am, that day at the mall." She whispers. Gently, she pulls herself forward until their foreheads touch. "I love who I am because of you"
Max can feel a rumble. Not in the void but from the real world. The bomb must have detonated. Max looks up at El, her hands delicately holding onto her shoulders.
"Goodbye, Max" Eleven whispers.
"El..." Max doesnt have time to finish her sentance before she's pulled away rom the void. She snaps back to reality, still in her wheelchair, and she sees... nothing. The library is just a collapsed library, the military and the party stare at nothing. The gate is gone. Eleven is gone.
Eleven is gone.