Sunflower Girl [1]

The Upside Down

My head leaned against Steve's shoulder, my foot tapped nervously on the linoleum floor.

We immediately drove to the hospital and met Joyce and Hopper there.

They informed us that Will was doing well and that he'd be well treated by doctors and nurses.

The younger Byers was now unconscious laying in a hospital bed with Jonathan and Joyce by his side.

I looked up from my shoes and my eyes landed on Mike, who was looking...numb.
I figured it was because of Eleven.

When Dustin, Lucas and he arrived at the hospital without Eleven, Dustin explained to me what happened.

Mike liked her, it was pretty obvious, and now she was probably gone.

I sighed and got up from my chair to sit down next to the raven-haired boy.

I softly nudged his shoulder. "Hey, hun."

"Hey, Sunny.",Mike mumbled.

I took his hand in mine. "I'm sorry about El. I know you liked her, Mike. I can't believe she's gone but I know for sure that she wouldn't want you to be sad."

"She sacrificed herself for us, Sunny.",Mike muttered sadly. "She saved us and now...now she's gone."

Mike started to sob.
Karen turned her head to us and looked worried at her son.

I quickly pulled him into a hug and gently stroke his hair.

"You're gonna be alright, Mike. I promise that to you. I'm always gonna be there for you if you need me. Eleven sacrificed herself so that you could live.",I mumbled softly.

The boy just nodded while holding me tight.

'Thank you',Karen mouthed to me when my eyes met her's.
I nodded my head.

Mike and I stayed in this position until Jonathan came into the waiting room and announced to us that Will was awake.

I woke up Dustin and Lucas and together we quickly went into Will's room.

"Byers!",Mike yelled with a huge grin on his face.

I laughed.

The boys stormed to his bed and hugged him tightly.

"Be careful.",Joyce warned with a smile. "Be careful with him."

"You won't believe what happened when you were gone, man.",Lucas exclaimed happily.

"It was mental."

"You had a funeral.",Lucas told Will.

"Jennifer Hayes was crying.",Dustin added.

"And Troy peed himself."

"What?",Will asked amazed still sounding a bit weak.

"In front of the whole school!"

I chuckled and carefully approached Will's bed.

"EMMA!",Will called my name happily.

I pulled him carefully into a hug. "I missed you, Will. Big time."

"I missed you too.",he mumbled.

I let go of him and gently cupped his face. "Please, never, ever do this again. I'm gonna give you a ride home everyday if I have to but please just don't disappear again, okay?"

He nodded. "I won't."

I looked at the boy when he suddenly started coughing heavily.

"You okay?",Mike asked worried.

"It got me.",Will said. "The Demogorgan."

"We know.",Mike answered. "It's okay. It's dead. We made a new friend. She stopped it. She saved us. But she's gone now."
The Wheeler sighed.

"Her name's Eleven.",Dustin added.

"Like the number?",Will asked.

"Well, we call her 'El' for short.",Lucas shrugged.

"She's basically a wizard.",Dustin exclaimed.

"She has superpowers.",Lucas whispered.

"More like a Yoda."

I decided to leave the boys alone.

When I reached the door, Will stopped me for a sec.

"Where are you going, Emma?",he asked a bit panicked.

I smiled at him. "I'm just gonna go outside, get some fresh air, give you and the boys some time for yourselves. You can call me anytime, honey. I won't leave until you're asleep."

He nodded a bit more relieved now and gave the boys his attention again.

I met Hopper outside. He was leaning against the wall and smoked a cigarette.

I approached him and pulled him into a tight hug.

"I'm so tired, Hops.",I mumbled into his jacket.

"I know, Emma but Will's here and we never have to deal with that shit again. You can rest now. You did good, kid. You did good."

I sniffed a bit. "Do you think El's gone?"

Hopper sighed. "No. I don't think she is."

I let go of him. "Do you think what I think?"

"I don't want you to get dragged into this shit, Emma.",Hopper said.

I raised an eyebrow. "Are you serious? I won't let you do it alone. Besides, what if you really find her? She's probably totally frightened. She'll need some she knows."

"You're right.",the man mumbled.

I grinned. "I'm always right."

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