Chapter Text
Trigger Warning: Slight mention of homophobia and self harm! And some cursing
El Jane loved many hobbies, but one of her favorites was reading, which transported her into different worlds. Now, don't get it twisted: El Jane's love for reading did not naturally translate into her academics, or even into English class, as much of the material proved difficult, particularly the classics. In fact, she only excelled passably thanks to her twin brother Will, who was an academic weapon. However, El Jane did enjoy the romance genre of literature, as it provided much easier access to the material and, quite frankly, more fascinating stories than a frog becoming immortal without much of a choice.
Plus, she had a secret, well, El Jane had many secrets, but living with all boys and men (her father Hopper, her older brother Jonathan, and her twin brother Will), she felt a bit embarrassed being a hopeless romantic. She knew it wasn't a big deal, and she knew that while Hopper could be overprotective, she knew her brothers would not tease her relentlessly about it. However, there was also more to the secret of being a hopeless romantic that she hoped Will would never discover, but she found solace in handling the weight of the secret through reading romance and occasionally romance-fantasy books. It provided great escapism, but also a therapy-like session of understanding her feelings—the feelings she had that she wasn't supposed to have.
"The forbidden kiss. We knew that it was wrong, that he was betrothed to another. But if this wasn't what he wanted, then why did he come to the field of desire? It was fated that we should meet like this," El Jane read out loud, wistfully, as she had considered taking Will's advice, and found reading the material out loud made stories more digestible and comprehensible. However, because she sometimes felt embarrassed about what she would read aloud, she would often do so only in the privacy of her room.
Moreover, it allowed for the words on the page to dance off their two dimensions and create a beautiful world.
In this world, El Jane was a nothing, a mere peasant. She was dressed plainly in white and brown clothing, and her hair was a long curly brown mess. On the other side of the field of roses, there was an ethereal boy draped in the royal colors. His skin was white as snow, and his hair was black as ebony. He had the most beautiful cheekbones and freckles, like stars on his cheeks. His cheeks were pink, and his eyes dazzled in the sunlight. As they were closing the distance between them, El Jane thought they would be close to kissing when suddenly-
The world fell apart as her book was taken away from her hands. To her violent surprise, it was her older brother Jonathan, who looked amused, analyzing the book's cover, which featured a muscular man with his shirt unbuttoned and a girl with her dress falling off her shoulders.
El Jane could feel a strong burn fill her cheeks. The last thing she wanted was her older brother to tease her about being a pervert and enjoying bodice rippers.
"Hey!" she snapped squeakily, as she grabbed the book from his hands.
"Are we hanging out or what? You've said for the past hour that you were almost done, and yet I still see you flipping pages, giggling, and kicking your feet." he rolled his eyes, spinning in her purple plush office chair. Besides Argyle, his twin siblings, and his girlfriend Nancy, Jonathan didn't have too many people to hang out with to fill the boredom he constantly felt when he had loads of free time, besides shooting/procrastinating on his film and working at the local newspaper. Boredom naturally came with a gap year, El Jane liked to believe.
"I just want to finish this chapter, I promise," El Jane giggled as she patted his messy brown hair. Before they could continue their little negotiation, the piercing sound of dishes breaking shattered any further discussion.
As expected, her fellow twin Will materialized at El Jane's door and looked to his siblings imploringly.
"Should we go down and help him?" El Jane wondered. Knowing that Hopper would never ask for help, she also knew how much he struggled in the kitchen, which was why the diner at Benny's Burgers was their favorite spot to frequent, and, if it was a special occasion, Enzo's, like when Will got accepted into NYU. However, she knew that recently Hopper had been hoping to embody more of their deceased mom's energy, ever since Will was going away to university, which meant a lot of food they would all play around with and pretend to eat, and then sneakily dump it out in the trash. If they had a dog, they would have fed it, but that was a topic that while all the siblings agreed with, their father was staunchly against.
"He wants to do it himself, but please come help me set the table," Will sighed as he pulled both of his siblings out of El Jane's room and into the kitchen. The smell was already very similar to a burning campfire, and so all three were nervous to take a bite already. However, knowing that Hopper, while seemingly tough with a height of about 6 feet and 3 inches, and all beef and muscle physically, being the Chief of Police, deep down, he was sensitive and was actually a big softie.
"I hate when Dad makes food, it always tastes like butt," Jonathan grumbled under his breath, as the trio descended the stairs.
"Regardless, whatever Dad puts in front of you, take a bite and say, "Mm, just like Mom's," okay?" Will smacked Jonathan's head good-naturedly, and El Jane couldn't help but giggle. It was always so funny to see Will act like an older brother, even when Jonathan was the older one, but ever since Will skipped senior year and got into NYU early, he seemed to embody an older aura about him. Jonathan also wanted to go to NYU, just like Will, but, being a film perfectionist, he wanted to finish a perfect film and add it to his portfolio before he applied to NYU. Plus, though he didn't want to admit it, he didn't mind staying close to home, as Nancy was also taking a gap year as head writer of their local journal, before she applied to Emerson. On top of that, even though he knew Boston and New York City was not that far of a distance, and they could always Amtrak to see each other every weekend, the real underlying reason was that ever since Will was going straight to NYU, Jonathan worried about El Jane and how she would fair alone, as she had always been socially awkward, and struggled in school. He knew they had their neighbor and Will's boyfriend, Mike Wheeler, to look after her, but Jonathan felt no one could do a better job of keeping their sister company than he.
"You and El Jane were still eating smushed peas when Mom died," sighed, before a knock at the door intercepted their conversation.
Opening the door, Mike kissed Will lightly on the cheek, and on the steps, El Jane leaned on the railing, looking wistfully.
"Hey. Hey! I'm not too late, am I? I was trying to meditate, but I ended up falling asleep. Smells good, Hopper!" Mike smiled clearly in a good mood, as he always seemed to be.
This was Mike Wheeler, the boy next door, the same Mike Wheeler that she had guiltily imagined reading her romance novel. Her twin brother Will's Mike Wheeler.
Surprisingly, even though Will was smart enough to skip senior year, which technically was supposed to be the best years of high school, and go to a university all the way in NYC, El Jane noticed Mike seemed to take it better than she expected. In fact, instead of being whiny and bitchy about it, he helped out Will, packing much of his belongings gleefully, discussing and outlining the best hot spots of the city, and even writing him a book of letters for the whole fall semester they would be apart. This surprised most people including El Jane because it was no secret that Mike was the more clingy one in the couple, but it was refreshing to see him so supportive of her brother.
That's why she liked him so much, Mike was an angel, he was perfect for her brother. He was perfect, period.
"Hey, Mike," she squeaked.
"El Jane," Mike smiled good-naturedly, ruffling her brown, messy hair. He always liked how affectionate he was.
"So, uh... What are you cooking?" Mike eyed the burnt roast beef nervously, to which Hopper glared at him with daggers, as he struggled to cut through the meat. Now, Hopper didn't hate Mike, but his overprotectiveness didn't only extend to El Jane (though El Jane had yet to date). It expanded to all partners, including Mike Wheeler. Nancy easily earned Hopper's approval after bonding at the shooting range. Nancy proved to be a better shot than anyone in all of Hawkins. Mike had yet to earn Hopper's approval, as he disapproved of how much Mike and Will would spend behind closed doors. Also, he hated how there was no filter on Mike, who sometimes seemed to regard adults like his peers.
And well commenting on Hopper's cooking, Will winced, that was a point off in Hopper's book.
"If you just rock this back and forth... It's supposed to fall off the bone." Hopper grumbled as he attempted to saw through the charred meat. "Hey, Mike, come hang on to this while I saw, would ya?" he said, looking to Mike, who nervously did his best to hold the meat down.
Realizing this could be messy in more than one way, Will decided to intervene.
"Electric knives in the kitchen, it'll have that ready in two seconds....looks great, Dad, I'll be back." Will smiled gently, which had the effect of naturally relaxing Hopper. Hopper had a soft spot for all his children, but since Will was leaving for university out of state, he seemed to feel his fondness grow even more. Sometimes, he wondered if Will just said the right words, Hopper would be moved to tears.
"I can't believe we're not going to see him until Thanksgiving," Jonathan grumbled as Will walked away with the charred meat, and the sound of the electric knife filled the kitchen and dining room.
"Christmas, actually, New York City is too far to come back for Thanksgiving," Hopper sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair.
"Wait, are you kidding? We're not gonna see him till Christmas!" El Jane felt more upset knowing she wouldn't see her other half till the end of the year. It was just way too long. El Jane and Will have almost never been separated since birth. They've even been in the same class and the same school since the beginning of time. However, not only would this be the first time they would be separated, but also the first time they would be separated for this far and for this long. El Jane found the idea incredibly uncomfortable, and she was envious of Will and how he didn't seem as bothered by their upcoming separation as she was.
"Look on the bright side, Will won't be taking the car every day, you can practice your driving." Hopper ruffled El Jane's hair, which caused the knot in her stomach to grow even more.
"I forgot I have to drive with El Jane now," Jonathan grumbled teasingly, to which El Jane stared daggers at him. It wasn't her fault anyway. If he really wanted to drive, he should have worked to get his driver's license instead of accepting rides from Will, Argyle, and Nancy. While he was technically older and should have gotten his license, his perfectionist tendencies got to him again, and upon first fail, he refused to take the driver's test again. Plus, he assured his family that having a driver's license in New York City would be impractical.
This left El Jane, unfortunately, as the only legal driver. Technically, if they really needed a ride, they could always pitch a ride with Hopper, but it would be terribly inconvenient to be at school an hour early and also hours late due to his shift schedule. Moreover, no high school or young adult would willingly want to be driven in a cop car, even if the cop car was their own father's.
"Feel free to take the bus," she hissed at Jonathan, who clutched his chest pretending El Jane's words pierced his heart.
"I can give you a ride. I'm not disappearing, I'm next door," Mike decided to come to the rescue, thankfully, which left El Jane blushing, as she stared at her plate like it was the most interesting plate in the world.
"Or I can drive, and if we get pulled over, we'll switch places real quick," Jonathan teased El Jane, who decided to take a page out of Will's book and smacked his shoulder.
"Top-notch idea, Jonathan," Hopper joined in the tease and offered a high five to Jonathan.
"What'd I miss?" Will looked at the family, amused, as he dropped the previously charred roast beef; it now looked halfway appetizing, now that it was seared and cut expertly by Will. Will knew he had the artist's touch, and it seemed to even translate in culinary presentation, as the family admired the new and improved meal.
"We were talking about what a bad driver El Jane is." Jonathan patted El Jane's back lightly, and this time, El Jane rolled her eyes, not wanting to be the center of attention of this jest anymore.
"Yeah, we were, but we were also talking about airplanes, which speaking of... I have a surprise for you." Mike looked lovingly at his boyfriend and pulled out a set of plane tickets that had been hidden in his pocket.
While El Jane looked at Mike admiringly, Will, on the other hand, looked like he had taken a bite of the roast beef prematurely, which was the reaction El Jane hadn't expected from Will at all, especially given that they had seemed to be on good terms and seemed to be in the perfect relationship.
"Oh..." Will bit the inside of his cheek, staring at the tickets, far from elated.
"You couldn't come home for Thanksgiving, so I figured I'd bring it home to you. It's a plane ticket, I'm coming to New York City." Mike grabbed a hold of Will's hand, hoping for a better reaction, though now Will's eyes seemed far away.
"Look at Mike stepping up!" Hopper, for the first time, looked to have finally approved Mike after all these years. However, El Jane couldn't help but mentally note this was probably the worst timing of all.
"You... You already paid for this?" Will furrowed his eyebrows as Mike's joyous demeanor looked to be crashing.
"Yeah, I had a Google alert set for flights as soon as you decided you wanted to go to school there. Why?" Mike was now puzzled as to why his boyfriend wasn't jumping for joy. In the past few months, he knew that Will was moving away for university, and their relationship seemed good, maybe even better than it had ever been, but now suddenly it seemed as if the floor was giving way from under him.
"Mm... Just like Mom's," Jonathan tried to break the tension, but clearly the charred roast beef was not the only sickening thing in the atmosphere.
After the extremely silent dinner, which was missing the couple Will and Mike, El Jane snuck off and decided to write in her diary. As she was alone, and just like reading, Will had assured her that reading what she wrote out loud would help. And so she was reading her passage as if she had read the story, and just like that, her own story and history began to unfold on the blank pages.
"I guess I should tell you a little bit about Mike. He and Will have been together for the past two years, but before Will, he was my first boyfriend. Well, space between the words... boy who was a friend. I could talk to him about anything. We really understood one another."
With that passage recorded, a flashback of their middle school days came to life. The two younger versions of El Jane and Mike were sitting at the bleachers, eating Eggos, chocolate chip cookies, slurping on some Cokes and other sodas, and throwing out random hypotheticals.
"Okay, would you rather only drink water for the rest of your life, or drink whatever you want, but it has to have a drop of pee in it?" El Jane decided it would be a funny one.
"Clear or yellow?" Mike furrowed his eyebrows, as if El Jane had asked him the most serious question. She liked how Mike made her feel smart and important.
"It has to be a little yellow." El Jane returned his seriousness, to which Mike cringed slightly in disgust, imagining it. Then he folded his hands and decided.
"I mean, pee. Definitely pee. I can't give up Mountain Dew." Mike giggled as he picked up his Mountain Dew to take a swig of it.
"Yeah, definitely. Pee's the only answer." El Jane nodded, happy that Mike and she were on the same wavelength.
El Jane bit the end of the pen, a bad habit Will would chastise her for, but she couldn't help it. Whenever she was in deep thought or slightly stressed, biting the end of a pen or pencil always gave her comfort.
"We didn't stop being friends when Mike and Will got together, it was just different," El Jane sighed, feeling both sad and guilty about what happened next. She liked Mike and loved her twin brother, Will.
But a lot did change. And she wasn't sure if everything that changed was for the better.
"Water. Definitely water", Will eyed the Mountain Dew of Mike nervously, as he chugged from his own water bottle.
"Yeah, me too. Definitely," Mike hastily agreed, as he teased Will to share some of his own water.
El Jane continued to write, feeling the ache of the unrequited crush take over, as another flashback took place. This time, they were sitting in the dark of a theater. All the couples around were making out, clearly not paying attention to the bad horror movie that was playing. El Jane noted that Will and Mike were holding hands, but they seemed intently focused on the horror movie, which El Jane knew was straight bullshit, given that they had high standards for movies in general, and this movie was far from passable.
"They didn't want me to feel left out, so they invited me everywhere... even on dates. They tried to make it as normal as possible, but...I still felt like a third wheel," El Jane sighed, before progressing onto the next paragraph, writing a defense to her feelings. She knew no one would read her diary, but she still felt a strong urge to explain that she wouldn't betray her twin brother; he was her other half, after all.
"It's not that I wanted to steal my brother's boyfriend or anything. I was super happy for Will. He deserves a great guy like Mike. And so I wrote him a letter. I wasn't going to send the letter; it was just for me to understand how I was feeling. But really, I guess it was mainly about how sometimes I imagined what it would've been like if I'd realized how I felt about him sooner." Jane finished her entry, slammed her purple leather notebook shut, and locked it before looking out her window to watch Mike and Will, who seemed to be still arguing.
This broke her heart to see her two favorite people go at it. It was also an odd scene to watch as, for the longest time, Will and Mike seemed to be the perfect couple, who rarely fought unless it was petty arguments over DND, but for the first time in two years of dating and almost five years of friendship, everything seemed to be going up in flames.
While El Jane could not hear it all, she could hear decent snippets of conversation, and while it was very little, it sounded all very bad.
"You're making me look like the bad guy," Will cried out, to which Mike yelled, his voice almost breaking.
" You know how hard that was? You shouldn't have it in front of them!"
Deciding she didn't want to hear anymore, El Jane pulled out her purple heart box, which contained five letters, each with a different address stamped.
These letters were her most secret possessions. There are five total:
Steve Harrington from the basketball team, Dustin from seventh grade, Lucas from Homecoming, Nancy Wheeler from Model UN, and Mike.
Yes, El Jane liked both boys and girls, and all of them were automatically off-limits.
Every girl growing up would have a crush on Steven Harrington, even though he was Jonathan's age. He had perfect hair, a dazzling smile, and always knew the right words to stay. But being a lot older than El Jane, and also still hopelessly in love with Nancy, which Jonathan frequently grumbled about now and then, that crush was more of a background crush that lasted for about all of middle school, and nothing more than that.
Dustin, besides Mike, had been her strongest crush and strongest contender, initially, anyway. He, Lucas, Mike, Will, all were a part of the same Dungeons and Dragons party, all from elementary school, all up until high school. She was the only girl in the friend group, which she was frequently used to, but she felt really out of place, especially when they played DND. She didn't like DND much, even when Mike constantly tried to make irritating metaphors, and Will tried his best to make her Mage role understandable to her. But she thought there were too many rules and too much writing that made it all too confusing.
However, Dustin was always so kind and patient, and would take his time with her, explaining DND until she was proficient enough to join their campaigns. Plus, Dustin, always had the coolest comics that he would let her borrow, and he had the best snacks. Yes, she loved Mike's Eggos waffles, but Dustin offered a wealth of sweet treats with chocolate pudding, 3 Musketeers, Kit Kat, Recess, and much more. He also hung out with her one-on-one the most, especially when Mike and Will started getting close, a year or two before they did date, and El was starting to feel left out by Mike. They even did date-like activities despite being friends, like seeing movies together and going to the arcade, hanging out at the mall to look at all the new clothes, and getting lots of free ice cream from Scoops Ahoy, where Steve worked.
Plus, when Will began spending more time hanging out with Mike, another plus was that Dustin, being the most academically driven of all the party, liked to tutor El Jane in the subjects she struggled with (which were all), particularly Math. He would make the funniest stories so she could learn how to do the basic equations, and sometimes, when she was in an especially good mood, she would touch his newly grown teeth, which would cause him to blush, which would give her butterflies.
However, it all changed once they got into high school, which, after Mike, was her second real heartbreak. Dustin got taken under Steve's wing after Dustin had been there for Steve during his heartbreak and breakup with Nancy, and feeling obligated to pay back the favor, Steve turned Dustin into a mini version of himself. Dustin became popular with all the tips Steve gave him, and he also began training with Steve at the gym. And soon his fat turned into muscle, and he learned how to properly take care of the curls that El Jane loved so much. And while Dustin was cute to El Jane, he became the first year's hottest boy. While Steve was a basketball player, Dustin used his new physique to forge his own path and became the best wrestler on the team. Eventually, the party stopped hanging out together, as Dustin was now a popular wrestler, and was dating the bitchy but super popular and pretty Stacey Albright, who had previously rejected him at the middle school Snow Ball Dance. Lucas was now on the basketball team, while Mike and Will began dating, leaving El Jane all alone.
When Mike and Will started dating, she wrote a letter to Mike. When Dustin started dating Stacey, she wrote a letter to Dustin.
She knew there was no point in any of them knowing, so she stashed the letters in her box.
Then it was her first homecoming party, and while she didn't want to go, Will and Mike insisted it would be fun, and, not wanting to disappoint them, she forced herself into her black dress, tried her best with her makeup, and ended up hating almost the whole night.
Everyone in the first year seemed to have a date except her, and so this dance in particular felt like a humiliation ritual. She could swear Angela, Stacey's bitchy best friend, and her goons were giggling at her, as she clung to the wall.
There was no more party, there was no more Dustin, and so El was on the verge of tears at the Homecoming Party, as she was hanging back at the wall, wishing that she could be there dancing with Dustin, instead of Stacey. If she had the courage earlier to ask him out, maybe just maybe it could have been her. But it was too late, and she would now have to sit in that regret for the rest of high school.
However, to her surprise, basketball player and former friend Lucas held out his hand to her. Maybe it was out of pity, or maybe because Lucas was just always the true heart of the team, though Will claimed it was Mike, she and Lucas danced that homecoming night away, and for that night, and maybe the rest of Freshman year, she had a crush on Lucas.
She wrote him a letter to understand her feelings, but over time, they faded. She would always be thankful for his kind gesture at Homecoming.
And last was the only girl on her list, and, ironically, like Mike, was also dating a brother of hers, but was currently dating Jonathan. Nancy Wheeler had been her first crush ever, before Mike, Dustin, Steve, and Lucas. Nancy, of course, was as old as Jonathan, but when the Wheelers first moved next door to El Jane's family, she remembered seeing the most beautiful girl in the world; later, she found out that the most beautiful girl in the world was Nancy Wheeler.
That was, after all, how she and Mike got so close. Mike had asked Will to be his friend during kindergarten recess, but Mike ended up becoming friends with El Jane because she would find every excuse to gossip and hang out with Nancy, who was not only beautiful but also extremely kind. Even though she and Jonathan got along, she would never leave out El Jane and taught her how to do her hair, makeup, and even pick out her clothes. Eventually, with time, she began to see Nancy from a strong crush and infatuation to an older sister.
That's where all the letters started. She wrote to Nancy, Steve, Dustin, Mike, and Lucas. She wrote a letter when she had a crush so intense she didn't know what else to do. Rereading her letters reminded her how powerful her emotions could be, how all-consuming. And Will would say she was a bit dramatic, but she thought drama could be fun.
However, before she could read her letters any further, as she was caught reading Dustin's letter she heard footsteps rapidly coming up the stairs toward her room. Hastily, she shoved the letter into her purple heart box and shoved it under her bed.
"What are you doing?" Will sniffled as he entered the room, his bloodshot eyes and his nose seemed stuffed.
"Nothing," El Jane tried to play off, as she bounced on her bed.
The drama could be fun, she thought to herself. Just as long as nobody else knew about it.
"Your room's a mess," Will sniffed as he flung himself on the bed despondently.
"Are you okay?" El Jane asked, feeling her heartstrings pull, as Will had tears streaming down his face.
"Yeah....Well... I don't know, I just broke up with Mike," Will cried softly.
"You did what?" El Jane couldn't help but be astounded, "Why?"
"I don't know, I just always thought I should never go to college with a boyfriend," Will simply replied, though his eyes seemed glossy with pain.
Will didn't actually believe that; in fact, he loved Mike more than anything. However, he knew, as perfect as their relationship was, that Mike was taking daily bullying and harassment from Troy and James, and while Mike claimed it didn't affect him, he knew Mike cried every day after school from all the slurs and attacks, all because they were two boys who loved each other. Will knew Mike loved him more than anything, but Will couldn't help but feel guilty and partly responsible for Mike's bullying. Yes, Will was getting bullied too, but most were wary of targeting Will, given his father being chief of police, and Will was in NYU now, far away from these bigots and bullies. However, he knew Mike's bullying would only increase, so he felt it was only right to break it off with Mike to protect him.
Well, Will hoped it was the right decision; he knew he just wanted Mike to be safe, as Hawkins was never truly welcoming to outsiders, and the last thing he wanted was for Mike to feel the urge to jump into Lovers Lake. Will knew Mike had almost done it when he was first coming to terms with his own sexuality, and if he and Dustin hadn't stopped him back in the eighth grade, Mike would be dead.
Yes, he knew the breakup was harsh, but at least college would be a good excuse to do it. And truly, Will hoped this would get Mike off the hook for being bullied, especially now that he would be miles away from protecting his lover.
"But you love him." El Jane furrowed her eyebrows. She knew college meant a lot to Will, but possibly more than it did to Mike? There was no way she knew Will had a crush on Mike ever since he talked to him on the playground swing set.
"I know," Will whispered.
"So, do you think you might change your mind?" El Jane nuzzled her head on Will's shoulder to comfort him.
Silence, comfortable silence, remained between the two. Then Will finally decided to break the silence.
"When I was packing for college, I had Dad make a box of things to take to Goodwill. I think you should do it too. I made you a box," Will patted El Jane's head warmly.
"I don't really think there's anything I can part with at the moment." El Jane looked at her books and clothes, all of which she loved so dearly, she felt like a little dragon who enjoyed hoarding all her treasures.
Will took her hands and looked at her, now more serious and very older brother-like, despite them being only a few minutes apart.
"El Jane, I'm leaving tomorrow. That means being good and preparing for your own journey after high school. No more gorging on Eggos before dinner and a clean room." Will lectured, to which El Jane rolled her eyes and teased
"Can we go back to talking about how you're sad?"
The next day, after El Jane begrudgingly worked to put together a box for Goodwill, as she chucked the box into the trunk, she noted that Mike was mopping by his trash can, watching Will, who looked very attentive in making sure all the boxes fit properly into the moving van, along with his suitcases.
El Jane used to think about what Will would say, Will the Wise, Mike would call him lovingly, and El Jane couldn't agree more, as he always had wise sayings and proverbs to repeat.
One that particularly stuck to her today was this:
"When something is no longer useful, you either donate it, recycle it, or throw it away," he smiled the first time he and she packed boxes for Goodwill when El Jane and he were starting middle school.
It was always a household tradition to donate boxes to Goodwill with every life transition, given the small space in the house they had. After all, Hopper was a single parent on a Chief of Police's Salary. Will was lucky to have scholarships and work at the local Pizza joint, and took out some loans to attend NYU. Jonathan and El Jane would probably have to do the same, which is why El Jane considered the local community college, given how cheap it was and how bad her grades were.
But she always knew that Will liked to find the silver lining in all situations, including donating much-loved belongings.
She always knew Will felt that way about objects, but... she didn't think she could feel that about a person. Especially Mike.
As they arrived at the airport, the family seemed to arrive at the Gate just in the nick of time, leaving them 30 minutes before departure. Will was eager to get on the plane after the overwhelming breakup, and with the excitement of being at NYU, a much more accepting place where he could focus on his love and passion for art. However, he would first have to escape the crutches of Hopper and his family.
"Come here," Hopper gruffly cried, as he hugged Will tightly before adding, "Hey, you need a magazine. We'll be right back," dragging Jonathan away, leaving the twins alone together.
"You gonna be okay?" Will asked, eyeing his sister, who was crying just as much as Hopper.
"Did you have to pick the furthest college you could think of? Who am I supposed to eat lunch with?" she whined, knowing that at least when Will was here, and even dating Mike, she had people to sit with. Yes, she recently made a new friend with Max, who moved into Hawkins from California, but Max also liked skipping lunch to ride her skateboard.
Now, Will and Mike weren't dating, and Will was in a different school. Again, she would feel alone, hearing the bullies' harsh jeers and gaze.
"I think you should look at this as an opportunity to branch out, make new friends." Will did his best to reassure his sister, who looked even more hopeless now.
"No!" She did her best to raise her voice, even though she wasn't one to.
"You never know what could happen." Will did his best to sound optimistic, but El Jane protested.
"That's what I'm afraid of," she huffed.
"If you need me, I'm a Skype call away," Will smiled, to which El Jane folded her arms, upset.
"Until you start going to pubs and eating one-dollar hot dogs with your New York friends, and forget about us," she joked half heartedly, but even with the joke, the dread of the first week of school without her other half was weighing upon her.
"I can promise you I will never, ever... eat one dollar hot dogs," Will teased, ruffling El Jane's curly brown hair.
"We couldn't decide, so we got you all of them." Jonathan and Hopper returned together, dropping a stack of various magazines.
"That's Road & Track, it doesn't sound that interesting, but if you stick with it... Come here." Hopper tried to choke out before hugging Will again, to which Will couldn't help but sigh and give the big man one last hug.
"Alright, I gotta go." Will giggled good-naturedly, releasing himself from the bear, and leaving hastily with his luggage.
"Okay," Hopper grinned, as Will started racing towards the gate's entrance before he could be entrapped into another hug from his very loving family. He would make up for lost time, but right now, New York awaited.
"Think he'll turn around?" Jonathan asks El Jane, who sighed, knowing oh too well.
"No, that's not Will." El Jane responded sadly, really wishing he could.
To keep the family from being full of sadness in Will's absence, Jonathan decided to broach the subject.
"Can we have a dog now?" Jonathan did his best to beg Hopper, who then furrowed his eyebrows in all seriousness.
"No, but that's a nice try," Hopper laughed dryly.