Chapter Text
Jane stood still, the heavy eye contact weighing her down with thick tension keeping her limbs locked in place, when she had first read the name she couldn't help but think 'surely not' but when she raised her gaze from the cup and saw those familiar blue eyes looking right back at her with what she could only assume was a mirror of her own expression, she knew this was no coincidence. She cleared her throat and tried to keep her voice steady, hoping her coworker had not noticed the hesitation, as she read the name on the cup. "Dustin?" The sound of his name seemed to snap him out of his daze, he walked over to grab the drink; she held it slightly too long, causing his hand to brush against hers for a brief moment, a confirmation to them both that the other was real. He looked different since the last time she saw him, with his hair cut short and bits of metal in his face (Piercings? She could vaguely remember her sister explaining the concept to her, when the world was still brand new), and yet the familiar sight of a hat sat on his head, unruly curls practically bursting out from underneath.
"El...?" He muttered quietly in astonishment before reeling back and biting his lip, a small nervous cough escaping him. "Sorry- you look like... someone."
"Jane," She replied, cautious not to be heard by anyone other than Dustin; Jane Hopper was not the name she used here, it had hurt her to scrub it all away, almost as if she were trying to forget her mama and her dad. But no matter how hard she tried, she could not find it in herself to truly remove herself from her name, even if every use of it would bring her closer to being discovered. "I like Jane more." She clarified. Dustin's eyes widened, tears already spilling over, his mouth opening and closing a few times with no sound to be heard, before finally pushing his voice out.
"Jane." He nodded and let out a heavy breath, taking a moment before having a sudden outburst. "Shit! How are you...!? We saw you d-" Jane flicked her wrist slightly, Dustin's mouth forcefully snapped shut, he panicked for a moment before making eye contact with Jane again, she could practically see all the thoughts buzzing around behind his eyes. She eventually released her grasp and gave a quick glance to her coworker, trying to silently communicate that this was not a good place to announce her 'death', Dustin took the hint and remained quiet. They stayed in that silent stalemate for a while before Dustin grabbed a napkin and asked her for a pen, which she provided, he wrote something down in a hurry and handed it back to her, he didn't let her get a word in before he gave a rushed farewell (tipping her some pocket change) and rushed out of the shop, nearly tripping on his way out. Jane looked down at the napkin, which had an address written down, Dustin's address? That thought made a small spark of excitement flare up in her chest, filling up the space usually occupied by the grief and guilt that sat heavy every time she thought ofher friends in Hawkins, who all thought she was dead; almost all, there was now one person that knew where she was, knew that was alive... no, that was not good. This chance encounter could set everything back! She would have run away. Again. There was no way she could fake her death a second time; they would prepare for it. She would just have to avoid Dustin, call in sick, and hide in her house until he left (if he was going to leave at all). She scrunched up the napkin, but she couldn't find it within herself to throw it away, her hand hovered over the bin for a long time before she let her arm drop to the side; her chest was aching again, her eyes watering. She opened the napkin back up, observing every detail of the hurried writing, half of it just barely legible thanks to the ink bleeding through the thin material.
It was a small house, not very appealing to the eyes, but she stared at it anyway; she scrutinised every detail, every crack in the paint and each crevice with spiders tucked away, anything to delay knocking on that door. She knew she could just walk away and never look back, avoid this entire street like an illness, but something about that idea scared her worse than facing the friend she had left behind, she gathered all her confidence in one sharp breath and gave a quick knock, not letting the air back out of her lungs until that door opened. And it did, the hinges creaked as Dustin poked his head out, the two stood silently for a long time before Dustin took a small step towards her. Without warning, Jane felt herself embraced in a painfully tight hug, being pulled indoors as if this were a kidnapping. Dustin buried his face against her shoulder and began to cry, trying to tell her how much they all missed her, but he could hardly get a word out through his tears. "Sorry, 'm sorry" He babbled on, finally pulling away. "That must have been really uncomfortable," he commented as he stepped around her to close the door, she took a moment to appreciate the warmth of his house before shaking her head.
"I miss you too," She offers him a smile, but he doesn't return it.
"Why?" He speaks in a mumble, obviously struggling to push words past the lump in his throat. "Mike was destroyed; it was even worse than the last time he lost you, the last time we lost you."
"They would hunt me down," Jane states, wanting him to understand that it was her only option, she wishes she had not left things the way she did but she knew there was no other way. "They would make more of me; I had to make them believe that I was gone." The pair are once again left in silence. Jane is worried that he will try to argue; she remembers he used to do that a lot. He had admitted to her once that he liked seeing people like Steve or Mike get red in the face over such minor things. She waited with building dread, scared for his response, but Dustin didn't argue; he seemed angry for only a moment before he gave her a nod, looking truly defeated.
"I'm glad you're alive," He murmered at last, beginning to lead her into a small but cozy livingroom and gesturing for her to take a seat. "I made some waffle mix" It takes her to moment to realise that he was giving an offer and not just making small talk.
"That sounds good. Thank you."