✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*🐝 *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧
HOPPER FLIPPED THE BREAD IN THE PAN, SIGHING DEEPLY AS IT SIZZLED TO LIFE. Beside him stood Audrey, leaning over his shoulder, admiring his cooking in awe. The two had gotten into a routine of taking turns cooking all the meals, and sometimes made a competition out of it - which Audrey won of course.
"If I'm being completely honest, I would've never guessed you could cook anything other than boxed macaroni and cheese." She joked, patting his back encouragingly.
Hopped glared at her, and Audrey laughed heartily. Soon, her expression turned quite serious, and almost confused, looking at something just beyond his head. Hopper furrowed his brows and began turning around, only to get jump scared by a certain young girl dressed in a long white sheet.
"Oh, Jesus." He startled, moving backward abruptly. Almost angling himself behind Audrey, leaving her to protect him.
"Some cop." Audrey rolled her eyes and smiled, pulling the getup off of her now adopted younger sister. "Nice one, El."
"Ghost." Eleven said slight smile prevalent on her face as well.
"Yeah I see that." Hopper replied, completely deadpan as he regained his composure.
"Halloween." She added, following his lead to the kitchen counter.
"Sure is. But now it's breakfast, okay?" Hopper picked up the plates and moved them over to the table. "Come on, let's eat."
"They wouldn't see me."
"Who wouldn't see you?" Audrey lowered her head, recognizing the destination of this conversation. She lowered herself into her designated seat, and sunk deep into it, kicking herself. The night before, Audrey had introduced trick-or-treating to Eleven, hoping to give her some sort of connection to something other than the four walls she had been confined to for so long. All she did, however, was get her hopes up and that made Audrey feel guilty for planting the idea in the first place.
"The bad men."
"What are you talking about?"
"Trick or Treat."
"You want to go trick-or-treating?"
Eleven nodded.
"I could take her." Audrey offered in a shy voice, pushing her food around on the plate.
"You know the rules." He spoke sternly. As much as he knew she wanted to leave the house, it was far too dangerous. Who knows what could go wrong in just one night.
"Yes, but-"
"Yeah, so you know the answer."
"No, but they wouldn't see me." Eleven relentlessly argued, desperate to finally get away for an evening.
"No. Hey. I don't care." There was no way he was changing his mind.
"But they wouldn't see me..."
"I don't care, all right?" Hopper raised his voice significantly, frustrated with her persistence. "You go out there, ghost or not, it's a risk. We don't take risks. All right? they're stupid, and..." He looked at both of the girls expectantly. Audrey tried to suppress her sigh, as she crossed her arms and spoke in unison with the younger girl.
"We're not stupid."
"Exactly." He finalized. "Now sit down and eat. Food's getting cold."
El finally gave up hope and slouched in her seat, refusing to touch the meal that had been prepared. It almost felt as if the air was sucked out of the room, along with all sense of fun. The silence lingered, and each of them shifted uncomfortably.
