❝ in the seventeen years i've been on this earth, i've never met anyone as f#@!%^g stupid as you. ❞
in which two kids on the opposite sides of the social spectrum find solace in one another during a strange period of time.
ESTELLA COLLINS STAND ALON...
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CHAPTER FORTY; STELLA STAYS IN THE CAR also known as; ( the sauna test)
★☆
WHEN STELLA WOKE UP, SHE WASN'T IN HER HOUSE. She wasn't in her room, or her bed, or her pyjamas. Her knees and hands stung and her head ached, and the first thing she recalled was her argument with Steve. She shot up from where she was sleeping onto to groan in pain, reaching up to cradle her pounding forehead. "What the hell?"
"Stella?" A soft voice caught her attention. Stella blinked a few times in hopes to adjust her vision, her eyes settling on a panelled wall with posters of old movies. Joyce appeared in the doorway, and the teenager furrowed her eyebrows as she yawned. "Hey, honey. How're you feeling?"
"A little sore, but otherwise fine," Stella responded, her voice croaky from lack of use. Joyce smiled sympathetically and took a step inside, sitting on the edge of the bed. "What happened?"
"I found you on the way out of Hawkins Lab," the mother explained, tilting her head. "You were freezing cold and were bleeding, so I took you back to Hopper's cabin for the night. What on earth were you doing out so late?"
Stella posture deflated a little, and she ran her fingers across the bedspread. She had now come to the conclusion that she was in El's room, considering the fact that she doubted Hopper would live in such a place. "Steve and I got into a fight. The last thing I remember was going for a walk. I guess I ended up at the Lab cause I thought that it may have something to do with Dustin's message."
"Dustin's message?" Joyce furrowed her brows in confusion. "What message?"
"He intercepted something on this radio thing he's been building," Stella explained. "He thinks he received intel from a secret Russian organisation."
"Huh," Joyce murmured, and Stella nodded, smiling tiredly. "We can, uh, talk about that later. You said you and Steve got into a fight? What about?"
Stella's eyes flickered down to her hands and she shrugged her shoulders. "College. He doesn't think I should go, but I don't really want to stay here in Hawkins. Part of me knows he's right, but I just feel so trapped here. It's like there's nothing here for me anymore besides the kids and...and him. Sorry, I probably sound so selfish."
"Sometimes you need to be a little selfish," Joyce said softly, reaching over to place her hand on top of Stella's. "I'm thinking of packing up and leaving as well. The last few years have left the boys traumatised; me as well. I get what you mean about wanting to get away. It's hard, but sometimes you have to put yourself first."
"But I can't leave everyone behind," Stella sighed, a tear dropping onto the blanket. Joyce moved forward and opened her arms to embrace the girl. Stella hiccuped as she leaned into the older woman's shoulder, her breathing short and thick. "I don't know what to do."
