Chapter 27: 27. Blood
Day 1
Everything was going great. The Party was all together, laughing and harassing one another as they ran around the arcade beating high scores, consuming as much junk food as they could and convincing themselves that blowing a month's allowance on games was worth it.
And it was. It was Thanksgiving break and sophomore year had already hit the teens hard. So what better way to get rid of the mounting stress and assignments than spending an entire day at their home away from home? El even got to join them, smiling and encouraging her friends through their virtual battles and competitions, only letting go of Mike's hand when it was his turn to play a round or two.
Life was good...until a certain something decided to sneak up on the young telekinetic of the group.
She's standing when it happens, Mike's arm slung around her shoulder as they cheer Dustin on at the skee ball machine. One minute, she's smiling, watching the game excitedly and the next, her lower body feels like someone is repeatedly driving a very sharp knife into her insides. She whimpers instantly and her hand rests against her abdomen, wincing as it gets worst. Against her will, her body deflates a little and she curls into Mike for support, who looks down in alarm, taking in her pained expression.
"El, what's wrong?" "It hurts," she whispers. "What hurts?" She says nothing, only glances down to where her hand has started massaging. "It hurts..." he repeats, glancing at her hand in confusion...until it hits him and his cheeks immediately flush red. "Oh! Oh, that...um...okay, okay...do you, um, want to go sit down?" he stammers out, clearly still not entirely comfortable with the situation. Despite the pain growing worse with every passing second, she glances at Dustin, who's clearly in the zone and is using his friends' support as fuel, not wanting to throw off his groove. Mike seems to read her mind. "Don't worry about it, he isn't doing that good anyway," he says, poking fun at his friend who is now swearing profanely at the game, as if it's responsible for letting the ball roll into the wrong hole. She manages a smile, before her face contorts back into a grimace and she nods her head, letting Mike lead her to one of the nearby tables.
He takes her hand as they plop down on the bench and finds himself having no idea what to say. It's not like this is his first rodeo—this month will mark the fourth time she's had to deal with her period, but each one has been different and he's just hoping that the things that have worked in the past will work again. They haven't been as extreme as he's heard they can be, but you never know...
As for El, she has the strange urge to cry as she realizes she has most likely ruined the day for not only Mike, but the rest of her friends as they start to notice they're down two members. When she hears Mike ask if she wants to go home, that breaks what little control she has and she lets go of his hands to curl up and bury her face behind her knees, letting her spontaneous tears fall softly.
She doesn't usually cry this easily, but something about being a burden today combined with Mike's concerned tone just gets to her and she can't help her reaction.
"Hey, hey, it's okay, El, everything's okay," he's in the middle of saying as he goes to wrap his arms around her and hold her tight. She sniffs as she apologizes over and over again for ruining today and he just shakes his head, gently stroking her arm to help calm her down.
By now, the Party has started to gather around her, shooting Mike questioning looks. He just shrugs helplessly and returns his attention to the sniffling girl beside him. "I'll take you home, okay?" he tells her quietly, knowing that she just needs to rest and take it easy for the next couple of days. It's going to be quite the roller coaster of emotions for her, but he's ready for it, ready to endure anything she throws at him.
"Okay," she mumbles, sniffling as she reluctantly lets him help her to her feet. "I'm sorry guys," she says quietly, addressing their friends as her bottom lip begins to tremble again. "No, El, it's fine, don't worry about it," Will reassures her as everyone else shakes their heads, giving her the peace of mind that she hadn't ruined the day. She gives them the tiniest smile as Mike takes her hand, mouthing a "Thank you" to the rest of the party and leads her outside where his bike awaits.
Her hands have a tight grip on his jacket as he pedals towards the cabin and he winces every time she whimpers behind him, a result of what her body's going through. He's still a teenage boy, so the topic leaves him feeling a little squeamish but far overriding that is his concern for El and her comfort. To make it worse, there's virtually nothing he can do to stop it. He's not completely powerless and can do things to help her survive, but her pain is inevitable, something he hates.
She's slow to get off the bike when he finally pulls up to her home and he can see from her face that she really just needs to go sleep and be left alone for a while. He kisses her once to make her smile and when that one succeeds, he presses his lips to hers once again, more firmly this time, in an effort to give her comfort and reassurance that it was going to be okay. Her posture more relaxed than it has been all day, she pecks him on the cheek in farewell and saunters up the steps, disappearing into the cabin.
Day 2
She's quiet on Friday. She's always quiet, but she usually has this poise that shows she's alert and intrigued by the world around her. Today, however, her friends can barely hold her attention for long enough to at least get a weak smile out of her.
He's guessing she didn't sleep well last night, most likely kept awake because of cramps. And it must've gotten worse this morning—she's distant and her face scrunches up in pain more times than he'd like to admit. The day seems to drag on forever, every minute he has to watch her silently struggle makes it worse and since they share a grand total of one class together (World History has been made ten times better thanks to their desks being next to each other and everything), he can only check up on her during lunch and seventh period. But, he'll take what he can get and he quietly offers his support to her multiple times. It's not like she's dying or anything, he just knows that she'd rather be anywhere but somewhere public and having to focus is not ideal for her right now. Through the occasional glance, hand squeeze and a few subtly exchanged notes, she lets him know she's okay and that she just needs to get through today.
They're going to see each other tomorrow anyways—Hopper was going to a conference in Indianapolis and had reluctantly agreed to drop El off at Mike's for the day. He's been looking forward to it all week and while their original plans were now skewed to accommodate her needs, he couldn't wait to spoil her and take care of her for an entire day. A small part of him wants to smother her in affection today, but he holds back, knowing they'll have plenty of time for that tomorrow.
When the school day finally ends, she hugs him for a long time before they part and he breathes her in, relishing the feeling of her in his arms after a day of stifled contact. "How're you feeling now?" he asks her when she steps back and his heart sinks when she shrugs. "Weird," she replies, her brow quirking in a way that shows him she isn't quite sure what she means by that either. "Like, good weird or bad weird?" he asks inquisitively, his hand absentmindedly fumbling for hers and skimming his thumb along her knuckles as she contemplates this. "Maybe not weird...just...different," she finally settles on and he nods. "You seemed like you were...far away today, if that makes sense." "I feel far away," she mumbles, glancing down at their feet. After a moment, however, she smiles and shakes her head, as if to ease the worry that's probably coming off him in waves. "But, it's probably just...this," she says lightheartedly, gesturing to the area around her stomach and he turns all shades of red, quickly diverting his eyes back up to hers. "Y-yeah, probably," he stammers, giving her a shy, reassuring smile in return.
A car horn startles them both and Mike whips his head around to see the chief's cruiser parked in the pick-up lane. "See you tomorrow?" he hears El say and there's no mistaking the hopeful, excited tone to her words. "Yeah, of course!" he replies, turning back to face her and her beaming smile. "Just come around back to the basement when you get there, okay? And it's okay if you aren't feeling good, we can just be lazy and watch movies all day if you want to," he tells her, grasping her hand as they start walking towards the parking lot. She smirks, replying, "We were gonna do that anyway," and he laughs. "You're right, I think I need to come up with more things for us to do." Shaking her head, she stops by the curb. "No, I like movies, because then we can cuddle and you get to explain things to me," she tells him and his stomach flips. "Yeah...yeah, that too," he replies, knowing the grin on his face is probably sickly sweet, but he could care less.
He kisses her forehead tenderly, before letting her climb into the front seat of Hopper's truck. "See you tomorrow, Mike," she calls from the open window and he waves as they start to drive off.
"See you tomorrow, El."
Day 3
Everything was set. Blankets were piled up on his basement couch, stacks of VHS tapes were balancing on top of the TV, all the snacks they could ever want were scattered throughout the room, the fort has been expanded upon in case she wanted to go in there, he was ready. Today was going to be about her, whether she liked it or not.
He paces around the basement, glancing at the clock every two seconds as he awaits her arrival. He's positive he has everything she'd need, but he double checks anyway, wanting everything to be perfect. He can't empathize with her, but he sure is heck is good at sympathizing and that's what he intends to do.
A timid knock on the door jolts him out of his thoughts and he takes a breath, glancing around the room one last time. Satisfied, he opens the door and smiles when he sees her standing there, a drawstring bag thrown over her shoulder.
"Hi," he says and opens his arms to embrace her. Worry shoots across her face and she takes a step back, shaking her head frantically.
Um...okay?
"Are you okay?" The question is out of his mouth before he has time to think and it occurs to him that he should've at least invited her in first, helped her get comfortable, but something's not right and he's determined to find out what it is. Slowly, hesitantly, she shakes her head and glances down at the ground.
He sighs sympathetically and opens the door a little wider. "Do you want to come in?" he asks, his voice a lot more tender now that he knows something is wrong. Mentally, he adds, 'so I can figure out how to help you,' as she crosses the threshold and stands there timidly. Shutting the door, he goes to take her hand almost subconsciously, but again, she moves her hand out of his reach, folding her arms in front of her body.
"What's wrong, El?" She doesn't meet his eyes and shuffles her feet as he waits patiently. "Everything hurts," she finally admits quietly. "And I feel gross and I look gross and I hate this."
"El..." he starts, wanting to hold her so badly, but she again flinches away. "No...no, don't touch me," she tells him, her voice barely above a whisper and it breaks his heart in two when he sees the hint of self-loathing that's creeping into her eyes. "What can I do to help you?" he asks in the softest tone he can. "I've got food, we can watch a movie, we can read something, whatever you want!" He hopes her face will light up at at least one of the options he presents, but she only swallows and keeps averting his gaze.
"I think..." she mumbles after a pause. "I think I just want to be alone." And with that, she turns and dashes up the stairs, shutting the door behind her.
Okay...that just happened.
He won't pretend like that didn't sting and he feels a frustration rising in him that he quickly suppresses. Her...condition doesn't mean everything she does is okay, but it gives her a little leeway. She's still figuring it out just as much as he is.
But he still is a clingy boyfriend (they just made it official a few weeks ago. One of the best days of his life) and she might want to be alone, and he respects that, but he's determined to help her one way or another.
He honors her request and shuffles around the basement for a little bit, wracking his brain for the best way to approach her. He assumes it's with Eggos, but he just wants to make sure he's not forgetting something, something that would turn her whole demeanor around that he just can't think of right now.
Nope, it's Eggos. They always work. The day they don't is the day the human race dies.
After waiting just a few more minutes, he makes his way to the kitchen, popping a couple of the waffles into the toaster and sitting on the counter, all the while glancing at the stairway just in case she decides to come down. He knows she's up in his room, it's the only other space in the house where she feels comfortable. He's thanking the heavens that he'd cleaned his room recently when the toaster clicks and the waffles spring up. Quickly putting them on a plate and decorating them with powdered sugar, he climbs the stairs to the upper level, being careful not to trip. He exhales when he reaches his closed door. 'Here goes nothing,' he thinks and raps softly on the wood. "El?"
Faintly, he hears her sigh, before she replies, "Yes?" Assuming that means he's allowed to enter, he opens the door slowly and peers into the room. She's curled up in his bed, laying on her stomach with the covers pulled up to her chin and he can't help but smile at how cute she looks.
"I brought you food," he tells her softly, chuckling when her hand shoots out from underneath his blanket. He hands her a waffle before setting the plate down and sitting down in front of the bed. She devours it in seconds, licking her lips to get the sugar off when she's done, looking content as she snuggles back under the covers. "Thank you," she murmurs, offering him a small smile, which he returns. She sighs and shuts her eyes lazily, the corners of her mouth still turned up in contentment.
He's glad her favorite food had made her happier, but he can't shake the feeling that he can do more. Besides, he still hasn't had actual physical contact with her yet today and he decides to give it one more shot, not wanting her to think that he's neglecting her.
Although he's hesitant at first, he still reaches out and goes to slip his fingers into her hair, but without even opening her eyes she mumbles, "No, it's greasy." "El, I don't care, it's-" Her eyes open then and her tone softens to something more apologetic and pleading. "Mike, please no." Sighing, he nods. She's self-conscious, he gets it, he supposes he wouldn't want her touching his hair if it was gross beyond his control either.
His hand moves down to her back and he starts rubbing it gently through the blankets. Almost immediately, she relaxes and he secretly congratulates himself for finally finding a way to help her. "Is this okay?" he asks, just to make sure and he blows out a breath in relief when she nods.
He loses track of how long he kneels beside the bed, but he could care less, continuing to trace gentle patterns along her back as he watches her slowly sink into slumber. The peaceful look on her face makes his heart squeeze and his eyes dance along her pretty features, taking her in as his hand on her back lulls her to sleep.
His arm will eventually get tired and, as much as he hates to, he takes a break when he's absolutely positive she's completely asleep. He'll sit dutifully by her bedside, scribbling out an essay until she awakes with a yawn. She'll try to get up, but he insists she stays in bed where she's comfortable and she'll comply with a playful roll of her eyes when he bashfully admits he wants to take care of her. He entertains her for the rest of the day by teaching her the concepts in his homework and telling her stories that make her giggle. All the while, he'll constantly be checking up on her, feeding her whatever she wants and scrambling to find a pain medication when her cramps return with a vengeance.
He's sad when Hopper finally comes back that evening, but his heart soars when she lets him kiss her goodbye. She thanks him for getting her through the day and he quickly replies by telling her he'd be more than willing to do that every day of the year if he had to. With a final squeeze of her hand, he bids her goodnight and smiles as he watches her drive off with Hopper into the night.
Day 4
He's thrilled when he finds her jacket in his room the next day. Maybe "thrilled" was a bit of an overreaction, but this means he gets to see her again today, check up on how she's doing, make sure she's not miserable.
After reassuring his mom for the millionth time that he'd finished all his homework for the weekend yesterday, he phones the cabin, knowing Hopper hates it when he shows up unannounced.
Needless to say, the chief is not ecstatic to be hearing his voice at seven on a Sunday morning and it takes a great deal of earnest pleading to convince him that his daughter had indeed left her jacket at the Wheeler house yesterday and that his only intention was to return it and leave.
That is, if El lets him leave so soon. But that sentiment goes unspoken between them and with a rough exhale, Hopper begrudgingly gives him an all day pass to the cabin and Mike almost (almost) flat out squeals when he hears the news.
He's never ridden to the cabin so fast. The autumn wind bites viciously at his cheeks and his fingers feel like they're about to fall off, but none of that matters, because something had occurred to him as he pedaled towards the woods. Hopper only rarely lets him be at the cabin all day and it's either when a) he'll be there all day to supervise them or b) El really, really needs him.
He chooses to ignore the first one and his heart races at the thought of it being the second reason. Day four never is painful for her, so he's not too worried about her wellbeing, which means that she's probably been begging her adoptive dad to let him come over. Whatever her needs, she wants him there and that alone makes him pedal even faster as his smile grows.
He races up the steps when he finally arrives, ditching his bike under the porch and pauses to catch his breath when he realizes he's panting. It takes a few seconds to pull his composure together, but when he's finally presentable, he raises his fist to knock on the door...
Only for it to swing wide open as soon as his hand gets close.
His girl stands in the entryway, still clad in her pajamas, but she looks much more resilient than yesterday, as he hoped she would. She's smiling, actually smiling and before he can get a word out, she closes the space between them, throwing herself into his arms.
"Hey El," he chuckles as she buries her face in his chest and sighs happily. "Hello," she replies brightly, nestling farther into his embrace. They stay there like that for a while, his body protecting her from the chill of the morning air as they soak in this moment. This is what he had so dearly missed yesterday.
As if she had heard his thoughts, she pulls back and sheepishly meets his eye. "I'm sorry I was...um..." She can't find the word for how she was acting and frankly, he doesn't blame her because he can't either. Instead, he nods in understanding when she falls silent, causing her to smile up at him in relief and she leans in to peck his cheek before murmuring. "Can I make it up to you today?"
He's pretty sure his heart explodes when her cheeks go pink and she glances at him shyly. Speechless, he nods enthusiastically, more than willing to spend the day by her side, both literally and figuratively.
He only has half a mind to ask "Where's Hopper?" as he follows El into the cabin. "Hi kid," he hears a deep voice respond and he flinches, his eyes whipping to the kitchen table, where the chief sits casually, a stack of paperwork spread out before him.
Mike's heart sinks. He's not...he's not going to be here all day is he? How is he supposed to cuddle the heck out of his girlfriend with the chief of police staring him down? His intentions with her are completely innocent and he's proven himself to Hopper before, so why has he suddenly decided he needs to supervise their day?
El also must be thinking the same thing, because a quick glance at her shows she's engaged in a silent glaring standoff with him. She tugs Mike closer to her side, lifting her chin defiantly and Hopper finally cracks. "Relax, I already put the TV in your room. You two can spend the day in there—" They're already halfway across the living room when he holds up his hand. "IF..." he declares and they pause, tightening their grip on each other's hand and turning back towards him. "If the door remains open and you come out every once and awhile so I know you haven't run off through the window. Clear?"
"Yes sir," Mike mumbles and El just beams at him. "Thank you!" she tells him and with that, she tugs him into her room.
"You're cold," is the first thing she says when they cross the threshold and she closes the door just enough so that there's a sliver between her room and the rest of the cabin. He shrugs as he kicks off his shoes. "It's not that bad, really," he tells her, watching as she walks to her bed and pulls back the covers. He sees her go to say something else, worry for him creasing her brow, but right now isn't about him. "How are you feeling today?" he asks before she can speak, happy to see that her demeanor has at least lightened up. "Better now that you're here," she replies with a soft smile that melts his heart.
He watches as she climbs into her bed, scooting over to make room for him and he doesn't hesitate when she pats the mattress beside her. After placing her jacket on her dresser, he happily slides under the covers and when he turns on his side to face her, she instantly presses herself closer to him, throwing an arm around his waist and her forehead rests against his chest. Eager to hold her, he wraps his arm around her shoulders, drawing her closer and slides his other hand under the pillow.
They're silent for a little while, blissfully content as they let their thoughts slow and their hearts swell with the presence of one another. Her small fingers on his back draw tiny circles along his jacket and he takes this opportunity to play with her curls like he couldn't yesterday. From what he can see of her face, she looks calm, restful, more than she has been the past few days and it's a relief to see her slowly turning back to normal. He feels so complete, being this close to her and he hates that they can't just do this forever. But he'll gladly take whatever he can get, storing this peaceful moment away for when life spirals out of control.
Eventually, she raises her head and quietly asks if he wants to watch something, to which he assures her that he'll do whatever she wants to, causing her to smile lovingly at him. Without a word, she telekinetically grabs the remote from on top of the television and they rearrange themselves so they can both see the screen, El curled up to Mike's side, her head under his chin as he envelopes her in his arms, the covers still draped across their legs.
She gasps when she stumbles upon a channel playing Grease and while it's not Mike's favorite movie, it could be worse and he's more than happy to listen to her hum along to the songs (which she's known for a few months, thanks to Max) as she follows the plot with interest.
The rest of the day consists of mostly that—flipping through channels, finding something that sparks their interest, giving them an excuse to stay cuddled up to one another and when they can't find anything good, they talk about whatever comes to mind, murmuring secrets back and forth as they laze about.
When they started to get hungry, they meandered into the kitchen to find something for lunch, which consisted of Mike finding a couple boxes of Mac and cheese in the cupboards and attempting to cook it with El basically koala-bearing him. Two burnt fingers, several profuse apologies and a countless amount of reassurances later, they found themselves seated facing each other on her bed, Mike's hand now wrapped excessively in a bandage.
"I'm really sorry," she says for the thousandth time and he shakes his head to reassure her as she continues. "I just feel like I always need to be close to you today, it's weird." "It's fine El, really. It's probably your hormones acting up, I understand," he tells her gently, taking it as an accomplishment when he's able to say 'hormones' without blushing.
"Not that I don't always want to be close to you," she adds, smiling up at him, "but today is just...more." "At least I know what to expect for when this happens again," he tells her and is alarmed when her eyes go wide and she stops mid-chew. "El?" She swallows her bite before quietly saying, "I forgot this happens every month," and he nods.
Her cycles before this have never played with her emotions as much as they did this time around, so it was certainly an experience for both teens involved. "What if it just gets worse from here?" she asks in a very tiny voice, suddenly looking very worried for what's to come. He just shrugs and tenderly takes her hand. "Then we'll go through it together." She smiles when his eyes tell her he means it.
And he does. He's completely willing to brave whatever she might throw at him when her body goes through something that's completely natural every month. Besides, it wasn't all that bad and he loves her so much that even if her emotions were always all over the place, he would never stop being hers and hers alone, he concludes as she pushes aside their dishes and reaches for him, asking for his arms to comfort and protect her once more.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone