Love Is A Battlefield (A Stranger Things/Steve Harrington Fanfiction)

Chapter Forty-Two: I Hate You

Steve lifted me out of the hole and then I grabbed his hand, pulling him up after me. We stood in a group, unsure of what to do next when suddenly the headlights of Billy's car flared, brightening to a painful degree, and we all winced, looking away from it.

It only lasted for a moment before it died down again, and I suspected that Eleven had done it. She had closed the gate, and I was just desperately hoping that she was still alive to relish in her victory. I reached into my backpack, pulling out my radio and pressing the button.

"Dad? Come in, Dad? Do you copy? Did she do it, is she ok?" I asked.

"I copy. We both copy, we're fine. She did it." I let out a sigh of relief, smiling at the others.

"She did it..." I repeated, "She's alive and she did it." They all chuckled and began hugging each other and whooping in excitement. Steve wrapped an arm around my waist.

~~~ONE MONTH LATER~~~

The next month was full of what I can only describe as insanity. Apparently when Nancy and Jonathan had disappeared, they were working with Murray Bauman to expose Hawkins Lab for what it really was, though even that was a modified form of the truth. But it was plenty to get the Lab shut down and come up with a cover story for how the Lab accidentally killed Barb and covered up her death, so her parents could finally get some closure.

Not many people came to the funeral. A few people that knew her from glass, some family members, the entire Wheeler family, along with Steve, Jonathan and I. We all stood around the casket as her parents sobbed, and even though we'd had our differences in the past, I still felt sorry for them.

When Dad and Eleven had gone to the lab, they had stumbled upon Dr. Owens and managed to save his life, and in return, he made all of the arrangements for her to officially and legally become a part of the family, her name change from Eleven to 'Jane Hopper', as was her real name, though I doubted we would start calling her Jane anytime soon. But the fact of the matter was that we were now officially sisters...and that meant that I had certain duties to uphold.

"I'm back!" I announced, running excitedly into the living room with a garment bag in my hand. Dad and Eleven glanced up at me from their spot on the couch, and I held up the bag.

"What is that?" El questioned. I smiled.

"This...is your dress for the Snow Ball tonight."  She looked at Dad with wide eyes and he nodded.

"I think you're due for one night out, don't you?" She smiled, hugging him before getting up and hugging me, taking the garment bag and running into our room to try it on. I took her spot on the couch beside Dad. "Ok, so don't get me wrong, I meant what I said about the whole 'being the parent' thing...but there are still a few things I'm gonna need you to handle." I nodded.

"Don't worry Dad. You take care of the child-care, I'll take care of the girl stuff." He nodded in agreement.

"I like that plan," He said, "However, speaking of childcare..."

"Dad..."

"You're seriously not gonna tell me who gave you two black eyes?!" He asked.  I shook my head.

"No, I'm not, because they've been taken care of, and that is all you need to know. Besides, I'm healed now." He sighed. "And I'm going with you when you take her to the dance tonight, because Steve is driving Dustin so we're gonna hang out."

"And that's another conversation in itself." I sighed again, but nodded in defeat. "Is Steve your boyfriend?"

"Yeah, Dad, Steve's my boyfriend." I confirmed.