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Robin was packed and ready to leave Hawkins. Even though she was going to miss Steve, they had plans to meet up twice a year in case things with Nancy and Jonathan fell through. She was ready to leave her mom and go back to her friends at Smith College, but something felt wrong. There were still things she wanted to resolve, and one of them was right in front of her.
Even though Hawkins was a small town, Robin wasn’t expecting to see Vickie. They broke up before Robin left for college because the relationship got overwhelming. After everything that happened in November, Robin thought their relationship was going to improve. They had experienced things that most people couldn’t imagine and survived them.
Robin was excited to talk about the upside down with someone who understood it, but Vickie shut down every time Robin mentioned it. She tried to be patient and understand that the upside down had added nothing but stress and grief to Vickie’s life, but months went by and the feeling never went away.
Eventually, Robin stopped trying. She couldn’t talk with Vickie about the crazy world they lived in, so she just stopped talking.
The day Robin got her first college acceptance letter was the day her and Vickie broke up. It wasn’t emotional or dramatic, because their relationship had ended long before that day.
Seeing Vickie in town caught Robin off guard, but Robin knew she had a chance to make things right with Vickie, and she didn’t want to miss that opportunity.
“Hey Vick,” Robin said, not knowing if Vickie could even hear her.
“What are you doing here?” Vickie asked, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk. “I thought you moved to Massachusetts."
“I’m actually about to head back.” Robin said, gesturing to a pile of luggage in the trunk. “I was just here for the summer.”
“I’m glad you’re still here. I wanted to talk to you, about everything.”
“Are you referring to the world almost getting destroyed, or the way our relationship blew up?” Robin asked. There was no anger in her voice, just genuine curiosity.
“I wanted to talk about how things ended between us,” Vickie said, stepping off the sidewalk and over to Robin.
“I’ve been wanting to talk too. I didn’t mean to end things so abruptly,” Robin started. “I just, I felt overwhelmed. All I wanted to talk about was our friends, and the upside down, and all the crazy shit we saw. But every time I wanted to talk, you shut me down. And then, you got really overprotective. Every time I talked about college you got defensive, like you couldn’t stand the thought of me leaving. It’s not that I don’t love Hawkins, but I wanted to think about the future and it just felt like you were stuck in the past.”
“I didn’t want to shut you out, but everything I knew about the world changed overnight and I wasn’t ready to talk about it. It was the only thing you ever wanted to talk about, which I totally understood, but I knew that wasn’t the life I wanted.”
“Why didn’t you just say that?”
“Because you and your friends had gone through so much, and it felt like the wrong time to break up with you.”
“Maybe talking about things would have made our relationship stronger. Maybe we could have found some kind of balance,” Robin said.
“Do you really think that's what would’ve happened?” Vickie asked.
“I don’t know, but we could have tried.”
“Maybe,” Vickie said, “but it made more sense for you to move on and explore the world. If we stayed together, you would have one more connection to Hawkins, and that was the last thing you needed.”
“That should have been my decision.”
“You’re right, but I honestly wouldn’t change anything about our relationship,” Vickie said. “We had an amazing time, and I’m never going to forget all the incredible things we did together.”
“Are you referring to the time we saved the world, or the epic makeout sessions?” Robin asked. Even though their relationship hadn’t been perfect, thinking about it still made her happy.
“Definently the makeout sessions,” Vickie said, laughing while she thought about all the times they almost got caught.
“What are you doing now?” Robin asked. Talking about the past made her remember all the good times in Hawkins, which is the last thing she needed when she was about to leave.
“I’m still working at the hospital, and I just started seeing someone.”
“Whose the lucky lady?” Robin asked.
“Tammy Thompson. I’m not sure if you remember her.” Vickie said. Robin could tell she was happy with her life, and with her new relationship.
“I remember Tammy. She had a massive crush on Steve when we were in high school.”
“She has mentioned that. She still thinks he’s cute, but she prefers redheads now.” Vickie said before looking at her watch.
“I should get on the road,” Robin said. She had gotten so lost in their conversation that she forgot about the 16 hour drive ahead of her. “Say hi to Tammy for me.”
“I will. Say hi to Steve for me.”
“Will do.” Robin said, opening the car door.
Robin had spent the summer wondering if she would run into Vickie. She had been dreading that conversation, worrying about whether they could effectively communicate anymore.
Now that it was over, Robin felt like a weight had been taken off her shoulders. Vickie was happy, and they were finally back on good terms.
She started the car, finally feeling ready for her trip back to Smith.