HAWKINS, INDIANA — 1984.

     JIM BURST INTO THE HOUSE, MAKING A beeline for the kitchen table.

He grabbed a pen and a torn envelope, scribbling something down as everyone gathered around him.

"What happened?" Dustin asked.

Hopper focused. "I think he's talking, just not with words."

Pulling the pen back, Hopper had written dots and lines down on the paper. Theresa knew it was Morse code, translating it in her head rather quickly.

"Here," Tess said aloud before Jim could even write the letters down. He looked up at her and then back down, seeing that she was right.

"You know Morse code?" Hopper questioned, Theresa's eyes darting to the side.

"I– uh, yeah." She was embarrassed to admit, but she had once dedicated an entire week of her summer before eighth grade to learning the code.

Steve smirked. "Nerd," he said quietly in a singsong voice, glancing away.

Jim stood up, handing the pen to Theresa. "Somebody grab a walkie-talkie. You're going to stay here and translate."

She nodded, taking a seat.

Jonathan ran to his room and returned a moment later with his radio and a handful of tapes. Tess and the kids all sat at the table while Hopper, Joyce, Jonathan and Mike returned to the shed.

"Alright, everyone's gonna have to shut up so I can focus," Theresa said, bringing a hand to the side of her head. "I need to be able to hear."

They all nodded, waiting for Jim to begin sending them signals. Steve watched in amazement as Theresa began to scribble dots and lines down, translating them into letters.

She licked her lips, moving back and forth at a rapid pace while everyone watched her.

"Close," she muttered, having the letters written down. "That's the first word."

Tess continued to listen and transcribe until there were no more beeps coming through the walkie-talkie, holding the paper up as everyone got behind her to read it.

"Close gate," they all read out loud, wondering what that meant.

Suddenly, the phone began to ring. Dustin ran over, picking it up and slamming it back down. Theresa's eyes widened, looking to the walkie-talkie.

"Shit!" Dustin exclaimed as the phone began ringing again, Nancy running over and grabbing the entire phone, completely ripping it out of the wall and throwing it.

Tess dropped her head with a sigh. "Goddammit. Do you think he heard that?"

"It's just a phone, it could be anywhere," Steve suggested. "Right?"

There was not much time to think when a familiar sound echoed from outside. The screeching of those awful creatures.

"Fuck." Tess stood, sprinting outside to the shed. She burst through the door, seeing an unconscious Will as Hopper and Jonathan untied him.

"What happened?"

"It knows where we are," Jonathan explained. "We've got to hurry."

She ran back inside with him, the paper still clutched tightly in her hand.

"Get away from the windows!" Hopper demanded to the kids who were peering outside, entering the living room.

He turned to the older kids, one gun in each hand.

"Do you know how to use this?" He asked, nodding to Jonathan.

Stammering, Jonathan shook his head. "I-I–"

"I can."

Theresa turned her head to Nancy, raising her eyebrows and almost laughing.

"You? Nancy Wheeler, know how to use a gun?"

Hopper tossed it to her as Nancy glanced at Tess, not replying. Theresa dismissed it, reaching inside her jacket for her own gun. She checked the chamber, seeing that it was fully loaded.

Steve took his place beside her, quietly mumbling, "Be careful."

She halfway rolled her eyes, scoffing. "Right back at you."

Everyone in the room braced themselves as the growling grew louder, Theresa tightening her grip on her revolver. The sounds were moving from side to side it seemed, confusing her and everyone else.

"What the hell are they doing?" she questioned.

Then, with the sound of a snap, it went quiet. She lowered the gun, turning her head to Hopper.

"Did they leave–"

Something came crashing through the window, a blur that landed on the living room floor as everyone screamed and jumped back. Steve grabbed Theresa instinctively, holding onto her.

The figure was not moving, and they could all see that it was a Demogorgon. A dead one, at that.

Tess slightly shook her head. "What– how–"

The door creaked. Everyone whipped around toward it, witnessing the doorknob unlocking by itself. The chain began to move on its own, Theresa's eyes widening.

The door swung open, someone stepping in. Theresa almost did not recognize her at first, having to look harder.

It was Eleven.

Her mouth fell open, Mike moving around Hopper. He slowly started to smile, almost not believing what he was seeing. Eleven stepped closer to him, her eyes welling with tears.

They embraced, hugging tightly for a long time. Theresa still felt Steve's arm around her waist, looking up at him. He realized he was still holding onto her, bringing his arm away and clearing his throat awkwardly.

"Sorry," he muttered.

"Why have you been hiding her?" Mike turned on Jim, angry. "You've been hiding her this whole time!"

He shoved Hopper, who did not react well to that. "Hey!" He grabbed Mike aggressively, staring him down.

"Let's talk. Alone."

Jim pulled Mike, Theresa turning her attention back to Eleven. She looked so different from the last time she had seen her; her hair was longer, and she was dressed like she had just come from a Talking Heads concert.

Lucas and Dustin hugged her first, talking with her while Max attempted to introduce herself. Theresa leaned against the doorway, suddenly taken aback when she felt a pair of arms wrap around her abdomen. Eleven was hugging her now, Tess slowly bringing her arms around to hug her back.

"Hi Tess," El greeted, pulling away.

Theresa was stunned, blinking a few times. She had not been expecting to be greeted so warmly, but she did not mind.

She smiled. "Hi El."

Joyce took Eleven to see Will, while Tess took a seat at the kitchen table. She looked at the piece of paper that had the words 'CLOSE GATE' written on it, frowning in deep thought.

Steve slowly walked into the kitchen, observing her from afar. Theresa seemed to be concentrating, focused.

Finally she looked up, noticing Steve standing there staring at her.

"Why are you staring at me?" she asked, Steve blinking.

He halfway grinned, taking a few steps closer to her. "You know Morse code. By memory."

Tess shook her head with a smile, glancing down.

"Yeah, so?"

Steve pulled out a chair, sitting down beside her. "You, Theresa Sinclair, are a nerd. And you can't even deny it."

Her smile fell slightly, but Tess simply rolled her eyes and dismissed him.

"Whatever. I mean, sure, I like science and math and stuff. But if you ever, and I mean ever, tell a single soul about this..."

Theresa leaned forward, her face inches away from Steve's, staring deeply into his eyes.

"I will ruin your life, and I will murder everyone you love."

She sat back as Steve eyed her, knowing she was joking but at the same time still slightly concerned.

Eleven and Joyce walked into the kitchen just then, looking down at the piece of paper in front of Tess.

"You opened this gate before, right?" Joyce questioned to El, who nodded after a moment.

"Yes."

Joyce thought for a moment. "Do you think that if we got you back there, t-that you could close it?"

Eleven looked at her, not giving a direct answer. She seemed like she knew the answer, but was still unsure at the same time.

Finally, El gave another nod.

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

THE GROUP ALL GATHERED BACK INTO the kitchen, coming up with a plan.

"It's grown a lot," Hopper said, referring to the gate at Hawkins Lab. "And I mean, considering we can ever get in there, that place is crawling with dogs."

"Demodogs," Dustin corrected.

Hopper stared at him. "I'm sorry, what?"

"I said, uh, Demodogs. Like Demogorgon and dogs, like... you put 'em together, it sounds pretty badass–"

"How is this important right now?" Jim interrupted.

"It's not, I'm sorry," Dustin glanced away.

Eleven looked up. "I can do it," she said.

Hopper turned his head to her. "You're not hearing me."

"I'm hearing you," she confidently replied. "I can do it."

"Even if El can, there's still another problem," Mike added in. "If the brain dies, the body dies."

Max furrowed her brows. "I thought that was the whole point."

"It is, but if we're really right about this... I mean, if El closes the gate and kills the Mind Flayer's army..."

"It'll kill Will," Tess spoke, bringing her hand to her chin. They were at another conflict.

Joyce walked into Will's room where he laid, everyone else following. She looked around the room, her mind racing.

"He likes it cold... that's what he kept telling me," Joyce walked to the open window and shut it, turning to the others.

"We keep giving it what it wants."

They all began to catch on. Tess twisted her fingers, thinking.

"Then we need to get it out of him, by... using heat," she said at once.

"And at a place that he doesn't know this time," Mike added. "He can't know."

Hopper already seemed to have a place in mind. Jonathan scooped up Will while Tess went outside to search for heaters or anything that might provide heat.

She shined a flashlight at a pile of basically junk, not hearing someone walking up behind her.

"Need help?"

Theresa jumped a little, startled. She turned, seeing Nancy standing there. Tess clenched her jaw, turning back around.

"Not from you, no."

Nancy pursed her lips, inhaling sharply.

"Why do you hate me so much?"

Tess paused, fighting the urge to roll her eyes. She kept searching through the pile while Nancy walked around to the other side of her.

"It's really none of your business, is it?" the girl muttered bitterly in response, picking up a small space heater and examining it.

Nancy picked at her nails. "It kind of is. I've known you since fifth grade, and I used to think you were actually... cool. You seemed so much smarter than everyone else you would hang around."

Theresa glared up at her, annoyed. "I don't see how this is relevant."

Nancy looked up for a second.

"Because whenever I see you, you always seem like you want to rip my head off. We– we've never even had a full conversation and so I guess what I'm saying is that I don't understand–"

"Because I was jealous of you, Nancy!" Theresa snapped, the Wheeler girl going quiet.

Tess drew in a breath, in disbelief of herself. She could not believe she had just admitted that. Theresa dropped her head, chewing her inner lip.

"You have always been this perfect little princess that everyone fucking adores," Tess continued. "You– you get everyone's attention without even trying and you never even seem to realize it. I never got that privilege, because no one ever takes a black girl seriously. No matter how smart I am, or how pretty people say I am, no matter how hard I try, I can never be like you. Because people aren't looking for someone like me. They picture a 'perfect' girl and see you."

Nancy was dead silent, in shock. She could not believe what she just heard; she almost didn't believe it.

"I'm sorry," Nancy finally breathed out, but Tess shook her head.

"You shouldn't be. You didn't do anything. I– I should be apologizing. I'm sorry for the way I've treated you. I was just... being a bitch because I could."

Nancy met Tess' eyes. "It's okay. But I need to say sorry too. Because I've had the wrong idea about you all along, and I assumed the worst about you just because everyone else did. And I'm sorry for that. You– I can't believe you'd be jealous of me. I-I've always been jealous of you!"

Surprisingly, Theresa let out a small laugh. "What? No."

"I'm serious," Nancy returned. "Who wouldn't want to be you? I mean– you're Theresa Sinclair. Everyone knows your name."

Tess shook her head, not realizing she was smiling so wide.

"It wasn't really worth it in the end, though," she soberly muttered.

Nancy looked at her for a moment, then raised her shoulder. "So... do you think we can be... friends, now?"

Theresa tilted her head. "That's pushing it."

The Wheeler girl began to stutter, "Oh– I, yeah, sorry–"

"I'm just kidding," Tess grinned, chuckling softly. "I guess... it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world."

Nancy smiled warmly, looking down.

Inhaling sharply, Theresa set down the heater and brushed her hands off on her jeans.

"So. Tell me. You and Jonathan..."

Nancy's eyebrows shot upward, her mouth falling open.

"Oh, uh, I– we..."

"Like each other?" Theresa finished, a smirk forming on her face. "Yeah, I picked up on that. But let me warn you. If you break his heart, then our friendship is definitely over. He deserves to be with someone that will actually treat him right."

Nancy nodded vigorously. "Yeah, of course."

She glanced around, drawing in a breath as Theresa picked up the heater and pushed it into Nancy's arms.

"So..." Nancy implored, "you and Steve..."

Tess placed a hand on her hip and exhaled, shaking her head.

"It's complicated."

Nancy gave a nod of understanding, chewing her lip. "I think you guys are meant for each other."

"What, like fate?" Theresa laughed.

The girl gave a shrug. "Maybe. You guys just... go together."

Tess' eyes darted around in avoidance.

"I don't believe in fate," she replied at once, shifting the tone of the conversation. "You should go with Jonathan. Me and Steve can stay here with the kids."

Nancy slowly began to smile, Tess noticing.

"Why are you smiling like that?"

Once more Nancy lightly teased, "You and Steve."

Theresa rolled her eyes. "Alright, alright. Just go. We'll see you guys when you get back."

Jonathan walked over just then, looking between Tess and Nancy.

"Be safe," Theresa advised. "And please get that thing out of Will."

Jonathan gave her a firm nod, looking to Nancy. Tess gave her a knowing look, turning and walking inside. She was greeted by Steve, who had a dish towel over his shoulder and his sleeves pushed up.

"Hey. Where you been?"

"I was looking for a heater, for them to use for Will. And I talked to Nancy."

Steve raised an eyebrow. "...About what?"

Tess pulled her lips in, moving her head to the side.

"Nothing," she shrugged, looking past Steve at the kids in the kitchen. "What's going on in here?"

"Oh," Steve clasped his hands together, "Dustin wants to put the little Demo thingy in the freezer. And I don't think it's gonna fit."

"It'll fit!" Dustin yelled from the kitchen, Steve looking at her and shaking his head.

She halfway smiled, entering the living room where Lucas, Max and Mike were cleaning up. Well, Mike was just pacing.

"Mike, would you just stop already!" Lucas remarked to him.

Mike turned. "You weren't in there, okay, Lucas? That lab is swarming with hundreds of those dogs–"

"Demodogs!" Dustin corrected yet again.

"The chief will take care of her," Lucas reassured.

Max raised her eyebrows, muttering, "Like she needs protection."

"Listen, dude," Steve said, "a coach calls a play in a game, bottom line– you execute it. Alright?"

Theresa looked up at him. "They don't understand sports references."

"First of all, yes we do," Mike replied to her. "And second, we're not even in the game. We're on the bench."

"Ri– so my point is," Steve continued, thinking for a moment but at a loss for words. "Right, yeah, we're on the bench so uh... there's nothing we can do."

Dustin tilted his head. "That's not entirely true... I mean, these Demodogs, they have a hive mind. When they ran away from the bus, they were called away."

"So if we get their attention," Lucas added on, Max finishing, "maybe we can draw them to the lab."

"And clear a path to the gate," Mike stated.

Theresa began to shake her head. "No. No, absolutely not. I'm not letting any of you little shitheads endanger yourselves anymore than you already have tonight. We're going to stay here, clean up for Ms. Byers, and wait–"

"I got it!" Mike completely ignored her, walking into the kitchen. He squatted in front of the fridge as they all followed, pointing at one of Will's drawings. "This is where the chief dug his hole. This is our way into the tunnel, so..."

He stood up, taking the paper with him. "Here, right here." Mike stopped, standing on one of the colorings that decorated the Byers house like a long, twisted vine. "This is like a hub. So you got all the tunnels feeding in here. Maybe if we set this on fire–"

"No!" Theresa and Steve reproached in unison, but they were yet again ignored.

"The Mind Flayer would call away his army."

"They'd all come to stop us!"

Theresa's eyes widened, throwing up her hands. "Can you guys not hear? We said no! N-O. I am not explaining to any of your mothers, especially not my mother, why you little assholes are dead, okay? No objections."

The four kids all stared at her with contempt, knowing they could not argue. Not with Theresa.

Before she could continue, there was a strange sound from outside. It sounded like an engine revving. A very familiar engine.

Theresa and Steve turned to each other with realization, and Max as well. She ran to the window, looking out to see a car haphazardly driving up.

"It's my brother."

notes.
here's a kinda long chapter for y'all bestie baes!! i feel like there's probably gonna be two more chapters for season two, maybe three idk

i'm not ready for this one scene that's coming up soon, it will tear me apart to write i fear...

the snowball dance had me thinking... i've imagined this moment where tess & steve slow dance to 'take my breath away' by berlin and i want to sob. i feel like it could happen in season 4 ;)

speaking of season 4, I'M SO READY TO WRITE FOR IT AKSJDJJDKS. SO MUCH I WANT TO SAY BUT I DON'T WANNA SPOIL ANYTHING

tess & nancy being friends makes me happy :) i love nancy idc what anyone says