G O N E |Harringrove|

2 - Bearer of Bad News

The soft click of the door unlocking nearly went unnoticed by the weary, half asleep Steve. Half of him expected it to be Billy, coming back to make good on his promise even though Steve was telling the truth.

His hand reached out, grasping for his nailed bat, emptiness was the only thing he received. Rolling off the couch, Steve stood tall and readied his fists; peeking around the wall, deathly silent.

The right double door swung open, but no one stepped inside. It was almost like a ghost pushed its way in.  Any other person would freak out, but Steve connected the dots fairly easy.

His hands dropped to his sides. "Jane, kid, is that you outside?" He stepped towards the entrance, and surely enough, there stood the quiet girl with blood dripping down her nose.  She looked up at Steve, her eyes wide like saucers. He flicked on a nearby light switch, illuminating the hallway and the outside. Steve found the sight to be slightly unsettling.

"Gone"

Eleven shuddered out the word, her body shaking despite the summer night heat. Her hands were shoved inside the pockets of an over-sized jacket, which was clearly designed for someone two times her size.

Steve folded his arms, shifting his weight onto his left leg. "I'm sorry, what? You need to specify what that means."
The vague words of the girl were ominous and confusing. Eleven was always simple and blunt with words, so sometimes it became a hassle to converse with her. Even Mike had occasional problems with communication between them.

Her eyes shifted from side to side, like they were searching for something. She waddled closer to Steve, and leaned in close.

Steve bent down to account for their height difference. The way they were positioned made the pair resemble a gossiping pair of kids who were sharing secrets.

"All gone. Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, Max, Johnathan, and Nancy" She took a deep breath "Disappeared."

Steve physically recoiled, like he was slapped. The new information hit him hard. "Wh..what do you mean they've disappeared, can you not sense them?" He grabbed her shoulders, concern lacing his voice. There was no way the whole group could  disappear without a trace.

Her hands shook, the corner of her eyes were tearing up. "I-i can't, I'm blocked. I can't, i'm sorry." She looked visibly frustrated by her vocabulary constraints. "I'm sorry, i..im-" Steve pulled her into a fast embrace as she sobbed into his chest. Steve has never been any good with crying people, let alone crying kids, but a deep rooted protective instinct guided his actions.

Fuck, he really was a mom, wasn't he?

"Alright kid, why aren't you with Hopper?" The gruff police officer wasn't listed, but if he was still at the house, he wouldn't have let Eleven wander off.

She sniffled, "He went to look, at Seven three nine." Steve had no idea what the current time was, but 7:39 was probably hours ago.

"Alright kiddo, you wanna clean up and get tissues?" Eleven silently nodded, snot dripping down her nose. She stepped around Steve, walking deeper into the house like she already knew the entire layout of the mansion. Steve leaned outside to grab the door handle, and pulled it in with a soft 'click'.

Steve sighed as he walked into the kitchen to wash off the salty wetness now on his stomach. He mulled over the information received. Eleven not being able to sense someone was a new development. A deep rooted anxiety reared its ugly head and clawed its way up his chest, his breaths increased in pace.

"shit" He cursed quietly and held steady onto the kitchen counter top. Steve forced himself to take in evenly paced breaths. The uprising panic slowly settled back down. He refused to fold in on himself now.

Steve ran a hand through his hair, fixing the misplaced strands. He traveled upstairs, and into his room to throw on the first shirt he could find. By the time he came back down, Eleven was sitting on the couch, looking calmer. Her arms were neatly folded in her lap. The massive house seemed to make her appear even smaller.

"Look kid, you can sleep in my room or one of the guest rooms, I'll stay out here on the couch." The new developments would probably keep Steve up all night.

"No. I want to stay." Steve raised a brow in surprise. "You want to stay?" He echoed her statement. Eleven nodded slowly, looking up at him with the cutest puppy dogs eyes he had ever seen. Fuck, he couldn't say no to that.

He shrugged his shoulders "Alright man, that's on you. Don't come whining to me if I keep you up all night." Eleven grinned for the first time all night. Steve couldn't help himself but smile back at her.