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Chapter Text

It had been nearly one year since his secret had been revealed. Nearly one year since El had walked through the door of the Byers’ house and recognized him. Nearly one year since he sat down and had a very, very uncomfortable conversation with everyone. Nearly one year since he took his watch off and revealed the 007 tattooed on his wrist. Nearly one year since he moved into Hopper’s cabin with him and El. Nearly one year since he found his family. 

And yet there he stood in an ice cream shop at the mall. The rugrats had just come by for Steve to let them in through the back so that they could see the movie playing. Dustin was unfortunately still at summer camp, but the rest of the knuckleheads were always happy to see him. He gained massive cool points once they deemed him a ‘superhero’. Even Wheeler was genuinely excited to see Steve, and that was saying something. 

He, unfortunately, saw that some of that kindness was because they watched him cry in the Byers’s living room over the fact that he was a number for the first fourteen years of his life. It was always awkward watching someone cry, and when said someone was crying over the fact that they were tortured and experimented on for fourteen years, the pity was unavoidable. 

Even when they seemed happy and excited to see him, Steve felt the pity radiating from deep within their subconscious. He was not even sure that they realized it. But he did. He always did. 

Which was why Robin Buckley was like a breath of fresh air. Because she did not have a goddamn clue about his past, so when he felt the annoyance and resentment float off her, he could not help but smile. Because it sure as hell beat the pity. 

Steve flinched when the sliding window opened with a thud. Unexpected movements and noises still bothered him. Robin stuck her head in the window. 

“Hey, dingus. Your break’s over.” 

Steve nodded and picked up his hat, then made his way back to the front counter. None other than Erica Sinclair was standing at the counter, ringing the bell. Steve grabbed his scooper and stepped in front of her. 

“What can I get you?” He plastered on his customer service smile, which he had quickly mastered, and looked at her. 

Erica listed off her order, along with the fifteen different toppings she wanted, but all Steve could focus on was the confidence coming from her. It was so overpowering, but not in a cocky way – she knew her worth and she was not going to let anyone question it. Steve was pretty sure she was going to be president one day. Well, either that or in prison. There was no in-between. 

Robin watched Steve work the counter, and all she could do was shake her head. When she first got the news that she would be working with Steve Harrington – arrogant, lazy, douchebag,

Steve Harrington, she was rightfully pissed. However, once she started working with the guy, she quickly realized that out of all the words people used to describe the king of Hawkins High, they forgot a pretty important one. Steve was weird like really fucking weird. The social skills of a potato, looks like he's on a different planet most of the time, weird.  

But more importantly, she also realized that he was nice. Like genuinely, really fucking nice. He constantly checked in with her to ensure she was okay and asked for her opinion before doing anything that could even slightly affect her. Not to mention his kids. She still did not completely understand his whole relationship with a group of middle schoolers, and how that came to be. But she was sure about one thing – he absolutely adored them. 

She finally asked one night when they were cleaning up, “So, are all of your friends children?” 

“What?” Steve looked up from wiping the countertop. 

“I’m just curious as to why you’re friends with a bunch of middle schoolers.” 

“They’re my sisters’ friends,” he said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. 

Robin raised her eyebrows, “Come again.” 

“My sister. They’re her friends,” again, he said it like she should know that. 

Still stunned, Robin could not help the words that tumbled out of her mouth, “Since when do you have a sister?” 

“Uhh, since she was born?”

Robin rolled her eyes. He really is a dumbass sometimes, she thought. “I’ve never heard anyone mention her before.” 

Steve rubbed the back of his neck, “She just recently came back into my life.”

Robin was beyond confused, “What?” 

“We got separated when we were kids, but she just got adopted, so we crossed paths.” 

Robin was still entirely confused – her mouth hung open as she tried to figure it out. 

Steve sighed, realizing he had to spell it out as the cloud of confusion surrounded her, “I got adopted first, and we got separated, but now we’re together again.” 

Robin’s mouth still hung open. She could not believe what she was hearing, “Wait, you were adopted?” 

Steve frowned because now he was confused. That had been the cover story all along. He figured everyone knew – it was common knowledge. 

“Yeah. . .” 

Robin continued to stare at him, trying to process that bombshell of information. “When?” 

Steve looked down at the countertop, then quietly said, “Like four years ago.” 

Robin’s jaw dropped even further, How could I not know this? It’s only been four years? Her previous mental image of Steve Harrington was slowly breaking away. “Where were you before that?” 

Steve tried to get rid of the sudden bitter taste in his mouth as gray sweatpants, white walls, and a shaved head flashed through his mind. He looked up and gave her a tight-lipped smile, “A group home.” 

Thankfully, Robin took the bite in his answer as a cue not to press it anymore. They finished cleaning in silence. 

. . . 

The next day was even more eventful. A small, curly-haired child came in asking for Steve, and then Steve ran out of the back room, jumping up and down as if he had just won the lottery. They did a bizarre secret handshake, then Steve announced he was taking his break and followed the kid over to a table. Robin simply shook her head, not even surprised that yet another child came in claiming to be Harrington’s best friend. Even after the whole ‘sister’ revelation, it still did not make complete sense. She watched them from a distance while she tended to the customers.

Dustin was practically bursting with excitement as he told Steve about his new girlfriend from camp, Suzie. Through a mouthful of ice cream, he said, “Think Phoebe Cates, but hotter.” Steve nodded along, despite not believing it for a second. Dustin eagerly pointed his spoon at Steve, “Oh, do the thing!” 

Steve shook his head immediately, knowing what Dustin was talking about, “No.’

“Steveee, come on! Don’t you want to see my girlfriend? This is a big moment for me!” 

Steve sighed because he couldn’t really say no, and then he closed his eyes. Dustin watched him excitedly. Steve focused on the name Suzie as he sifted through Dustin’s brain. It took a minute, but finally, he was able to put a face to the name. He smirked at the nervousness in Dustin’s chest as Suzie asked him to work on a project with her.  She had brown hair, big glasses, looked pretty nerdy, and she was definitely not hotter than Phoebe Cates – however, she looked absolutely perfect for Dustin. Steve smiled as he opened his eyes. He wiped the blood away from his nose with a napkin and then looked at Dustin. Dustin was staring at him with a big toothless smile, “Well?” 

Steve laughed, “I think you found a keeper.” 

“See! I told you! Hotter than Phoebe Cates.” 

Steve awkwardly smiled at him, and then Dustin whispered, “There’s something even more serious I need to tell you about.” That wiped the smile right off of Steve’s face. He leaned in nervously. Dustin whispered, “I intercepted a secret Russian communication.” 

Steve leaned back with his mouth wide open, “Dude-” 

“I think they might be plotting something. So if you do your thing and figure it out, we can report it and be true American heroes.” 

Steve raised an eyebrow, “You really think it is going to be that easy?” 

“Uhh, yeah. You’re a superhero.” He said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. 

Steve shushed him, “Will you be quiet! I’m not a superhero.”

Dustin simply raised his eyebrows, “Steve, you have superpowers. I’m pretty sure that makes you a superhero.” 

Steve sighed and sat back in the chair. He thought for a moment, then stood up and motioned for Dustin to follow him to the back room. Robin stopped them at the doorway, “Hey, Dingus, do you ever plan on working today?” 

Steve cringed, “Five more minutes?” 

Robin rolled her eyes and waved her hand.

 “Thanks, Robin, I owe you.” 

Dustin followed Steve into the back room and shut the door behind them. They both sat down at the table. Dustin pulled his tape recorder out of his backpack and set it on the table. He looked up at Steve, “I taped the whole message I intercepted; we just need to translate it. Are you ready?” 

Steve nodded, “Yeah, hit play.” Steve closed his eyes and concentrated. Russian filled the room. Steve followed the message – the voice – entered the brain it was coming from. He found a man sitting at a desk covered in buttons, wearing some sort of Russian uniform. He sat repeating the message over and over. 

Steve opened his eyes, “It’s some Russian guy in a uniform in a control room.” 

Dustin looked at him like he was dumb, “Steve. I could have figured that out. What’s he saying?” 

Steve sighed and closed his eyes again, “Start the tape over.” 

Dustin rewound the tape and then stared at Steve. Blood was dripping out of his nose. Steve concentrated. He once again entered the man’s brain. The words, focus on the words. Steve’s face scrunched up in concentration— the words. Focus. 

His head began to ache, and the scene started to blur. He sighed, defeated, “I can’t find it.” 

“Come on! Try harder!”

Steve’s eyes shot open, and the breath got knocked out of his lungs. 

“Again, Seven. Try harder!” 

Electricity painfully flowed through his body. 

He cried out in pain, “Papa, please!” 

Papa shook his head, “You will try until you get it. You are not trying hard enough, and you must learn that there are consequences to your actions. Now try again!” 

Steve took a shuddering breath as he attempted to separate himself from the flashback. He closed his eyes and willed his heart rate to slow down, but he could still feel the electricity dance across his skin. He willed himself to redirect his mind, remind himself that he was free. 

He focused on his memory of seeing the sun rise for the first time – his astonishment at the sky’s ability to change colors. The first time he felt the sun on his skin – surrounded by a warmth that he didn’t know existed. Feeling the grass between his toes, and the way it tickled his skin. The sound the trees made when the wind gently rustled their leaves. 

“What the hell are you doing?” Dusin’s voice abruptly brought him back to the present. 

“Nothing,” Steve muttered after a moment, heart rate thankfully back to normal, “Play it again.”

They both jumped when the door opened, and Robin walked in, looking exasperated, “Your five minutes are up.” 

She paused when she spotted him, then motioned towards her nose, “Steve, you uh, you have a nosebleed.” 

Steve wiped his nose with the back of his hand and stood up. He followed Robin out of the room and returned to his spot behind the counter, waiting for the next customer to arrive. 

He could feel Robin watching him as curiosity floated around her. He tried to ignore it. 

Steve just couldn’t shake those words. They were back inside his head, and he couldn’t get them to leave. 

“Now Seven!” 

He shook his head and sobbed, “I can’t, Papa! I can’t!” 

A rabbit sat on the table in front of him. 

“Yes, you can. Try harder. Now kill it!” 

A nightstick connected with his arm, and he cried out in pain. 

“Now Seven!”

“Steve?” 

A hand touched his arm, and he flinched violently . Enough that Robin held her hand up in front of her where he could see it. He looked at her with wide eyes, fear evident in them. 

“Are you okay?” She asked nervously. 

It took Steve a moment to fully realize where he was and what was happening. But eventually, he nodded his head. 

‘Okay. . .” Robin said, even though she didn’t believe him.

Robin continued to watch him as he worked. He almost resembled a scared animal, the way his shoulders were drawn near his ears, hunched in on himself. Fifteen minutes later, that far-away look returned to his face, and his eyes looked hollow. 

Before she could call his name, he flinched hard and took a shaky breath. He looked up, and they made eye contact. 

Steve swallowed hard, “I- I think I need to go home. I don’t- I need to go home.”

Robin simply nodded, too shocked to do much of anything else. She watched from afar, growing more and more concerned as the seconds ticked by. Steve’s hands were shaking as he collected his things. 

She couldn’t help but compare him to her grandfather after he returned from the war. He had episodes sometimes, when things reminded him of his time serving. Shellshock , her mother had told her. 

Robin watched Steve leave Scoops Ahoy and disappear into the crowd of people. She had questions, and she was going to get answers. 

Steve questioned whether or not he should be driving approximately ten minutes into the drive. He was still having flashbacks, and that made it kind of difficult to focus on the road. Thankfully, he made it to the cabin safely. He slowly got out of his car and walked up to the cabin. El looked at him, confused when he walked through the door. She looked down at her watch, “You are very early.” 

Steve nodded, “I don’t feel well, so I left early.”

He didn’t wait for her answer. He simply walked into his bedroom and closed the door.

One hour. One hour to fall apart, and then I’ll be okay again.

 He all but collapsed onto his bed. As soon as his head hit the pillow, he broke. Finally alone with nobody there to judge him. Tears filled his eyes.

Try harder!

It echoed in his head in Papa’s voice. Steve covered his ears and cried. 

                                                    You’re not trying hard enough

                        You’re not trying hard enough

          You must learn to listen

       Try again, Seven                                                  You’ve been bad

          You’ve been bad

There are consequences to your actions

You’re not trying hard enough         You’ve been bad

  No, Seven

You’ve been bad You’re not trying hard enough

Try again Try harder

                    You’ve been bad 

You’re not trying hard enough

                                 Now, Seven                                      

                                                 You’ve been bad

Steve pulled his knees up to his chest and began to cry. He tried to release all the emotions he had never been allowed to feel. He cried until his head ached. Until he could feel it in his chest, and it hurt to breathe. Eventually, he willed himself to get up and change his clothes. He pulled his watch off and dropped it onto his desk, then pulled on a pair of flannel pajama pants and a soft t-shirt. He still couldn’t bring himself to wear sweatpants. He grimaced when he looked at himself in the mirror. His face was flushed and splotchy, and his eyes were slightly swollen. He walked back over to his bed and flopped down on his stomach. 

He had not meant to doze off, but he opened his eyes later to the sound of knocking at his door. He turned his head towards the door and watched Hopper walk into the room. He walked over to Steve and sat down on the end of the bed, “Hey, kid. . . El said you’re not feeling well.” 

Steve sighed, “I’m just tired.” 

Hopper ran his hand over Steve’s shoulder, “She said you came home early from work.” 

Steve groaned and pushed his face into his pillow. He could feel that his eyes were still swollen. Hopper patted his back, and comfort engulfed him, “I can’t fix it unless you tell me what’s wrong.” 

Steve laid there in silence for a few minutes, not wanting to talk about it. Eventually, he rolled onto his side and looked at Hopper, “It’s dumb.” 

Hopper gave him a pointed look, “It can’t be that dumb if it’s got you this worked up.”

Steve sighed, then looked down at the floor and paused for a moment. “Dustin said something today that he used to say and it just messed with my head and I started having flashbacks and now I feel like shit.” 

Hopper nodded in understanding; it was familiar territory. He had helped with it before. With a serious face, he said, “I can take him to jail; scare him a little bit for you.”

Thankfully, Steve laughed. Hopper smiled, happy that he was able to get his kid to forget about the bad even just for a moment. 

He moved his hand back to Steve’s back, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Steve adamantly shook his head. He didn’t even want to think about it anymore, let alone talk about it. Thankfully, Hopper respected that. Hopper dramatically yawned and stretched, then said, “Well, it sure has been a long day. I don’t really feel like cooking. . . Whataya say we go to Benny’s?” 

Steve couldn’t help but smile. He didn’t even have to use his abilities to know that that was not true; that Hopper had only suggested it because Steve was upset, and Benny’s was his favorite place to eat. It was little things like that that made Steve understand what it meant to be loved, what it meant to have a family. 

Steve nodded his head. Hopper patted his back one last time as he stood up, “Alright. Why don’t you get dressed, and I’ll go tell your sister.” Hopper closed the door gently behind him, and Steve finally sat up. He ran a hand through his hair, then picked up his clothes from earlier off of the floor. He quickly got changed, put his watch back on, fixed his hair, and then walked out of his bedroom. 

Hopper and El were standing near the door, waiting for him. Hopper smiled kindly, “Ready to go?” Steve nodded.

The drive to Benny’s was reasonably short. It only took them about ten minutes to arrive. The three of them walked in together and then sat down in a booth. El sat down first, and then Steve sat down next to her. Hopper sat down across from them and was quick to start up a conversation with Benny. 

El grabbed Steve’s hand under the table, and he instinctively flinched, then looked away, embarrassed. She simply squeezed his hand. I’m here.  

Not long after, they placed their orders, and Benny walked back into the kitchen. 

Hopper looked across the table at his two kids. Steve still looked like he had been crying earlier, but he was at least smiling as El told him some elaborate story. As of recently, she had been hanging out with Max and learning all about pop culture. Hopper was just happy that she finally had a girl her age to talk to. 

The food arrived quickly, and none of them said much while they ate. All three of them got a bacon cheeseburger with fries, but Steve and El also each got a strawberry milkshake. Steve dipped his fries in his milkshake, so El did too. She copied many of the things he did. Steve sometimes found it annoying, but Hopper thought it was endearing. 

When they got back to the cabin later that night, Hopper stopped Steve before he walked into his bedroom. He held his arms out and pulled Steve into a hug, “I know talking isn’t really your thing, but I’m here if you need me, okay?” 

Steve relaxed into the embrace, “I know. Thank you.” 

Hopper brought one hand up to rest on the back of Steve’s head, “Anytime, kid.” 

. . .

The next day, Steve returned to work like nothing had happened. Robin had half-expected him to call off, so when he walked into the shop with a smile on his face and asked her how her morning had gone, she didn’t know what to think. 

About an hour into their shift, Steve’s curly-haired child friend walked into the shop and immediately headed towards the back room. 

Robin took a step towards the sliding window, fully intending to listen in on their conversation this time.

Steve looked up when the door opened, and he smiled when Dustin walked into the room. Dustin sat down at the table and pulled a book out of his backpack. He set it down on the table. “I got this last night just in case we need it.” 

Steve looked down at the book. It was an English-Russian dictionary. Steve slapped a hand on his forehead and looked up at Dustin, “ Dude, you know I can’t read.” 

Dustin rolled his eyes, “Yes. I’m aware, Steve . But maybe if I translate the message, then you can do the thing and find it because it will be in English.” 

Steve nodded his head, “Yeah, that might- that might work.”

Robin stood at the window, completely flabbergasted. They were apparently attempting to translate some sort of message, in a way that made it seem essential to stay a secret. 

Over the course of the next fifteen minutes, Robin tended to the customers and eavesdropped on Steve’s conversation. Steve was way past the time of his allowed break, but Robin was so caught up in trying to figure out what the hell they were doing to care. She rolled her eyes when she heard the child friend loudly yell, “When was the last time you translated Russian, Steve? I’m learning as I go! It’s hard.” 

Alright. That’s enough. Robin walked into the back room, catching them both off guard. “It’s your turn to work.”

Steve looked at her awkwardly, “Can I have like five more minutes? Please.” 

“Why? You and your strange child friend clearly aren’t making any progress. Besides, how do you know these Russians are up to no good anyway?” 

They both stared at her, dumbfounded. Dustin turned to Steve, “You told her about the Russians?” 

Steve shook his head adamantly, “I didn’t tell her about the Russians-”

“Hey! You didn’t have to. You are both extremely loud. Now. It is your turn to go sling ice cream, and my turn to translate.” 

Steve shook his head, “Robin, I don’t know-”

She simply raised her eyebrows and pointed at the door. 

Steve stood up and raised his hands, “Okay. . . “ 

“Steve!” Dustin said betrayed. Steve shrugged, I don’t know what you want me to do. He left the room. 

Robin looked at Dustin expectantly. He glared at her and reluctantly pressed play on the recording. 

After about twenty minutes of them listening to the recording and attempting to translate it, Steve walked into the room. “How’s it going?” 

“I’m making progress. It’s just hard to hear some of it over the music.” 

Steve’s mouth fell open. I’m an idiot. How did I not think of that?

He cleared his throat, “Why don’t you take a break; you know, reset your ears, and then come back in a little bit.” He said it nonchalantly, but they both looked at him weirdly. 

Robin eventually stood up, offensiveness radiating off her, “Alright. I’ll leave you two alone then.” 

Steve backtracked, trying to figure out what he said to offend her, but eventually shook his head, frustrated when he couldn’t figure it out. 

Dustin waited until she left the room to speak, “Okay, what the hell! She was actually making progress. Maybe you forgot— you can’t read, Steve.” 

“Yeah, I know. Just shut up and hit play.” 

Dustin held his hands up, “What? Can you magically speak Russian now?” 

“Dustin,” Steve said, irritated, “Yesterday we were so worried about figuring out what he’s saying that I didn’t even think about the music.”

Dustin’s eyes widened in understanding, “But you can find where the music is coming from, shit okay.”

Steve closed his eyes, and Dustin hit play. Steve concentrated and focused on the music. He found a man nearby with it stuck in his head. He entered the man’s mind and started digging for the memory. He found a horse, a plastic horse. A child was sitting on it. Steve concentrated and zoomed out on the scene. Confusion filled his head as he realized it was a mall. The pieces did not click into place until he saw Erica Sinclair enter the scene. She was yelling at a man, “If you have something to say about me, then come and say it to my face, you dumb bastard!” The man looked appalled as he walked away. Steve was too shocked to laugh. 

He opened his eyes and slouched back in the chair. 

“Well? Did you find it?” Dustin asked eagerly. 

Steve wiped the blood away from his nose and held his head in his hands. This is bad. This is really bad.

“Steve, what did you see?” 

Steve sighed and sat up; he looked at Dustin, “The message isn’t coming from Russia.”

“What?” 

Steve once again held his head in his hands, “It’s coming from here.” 

Dustin was confused, “But you said you saw a Russian soldier in a control room?”

Steve nodded with his hands. Dustin slouched back in his chair, “Shit.”

“Yeah, shit.” 

Steve sighed and stood up, “I’m getting Robin. We really need to know what that message says.” 

Steve walked into the front and found Robin. She took one look at his face and asked, “What’s wrong?”

He shook his head, “Nothing.” 

Robin crossed her arms, “I’m not stupid. What did you figure out?” 

Steve ran a hand over his face, “I recognized the music.”

“Okay. . . And?”

Steve took a deep breath, “It’s coming from here. From that horse ride near the entrance.”

Robin’s eyebrows moved together in confusion, “Maybe they have the same one in Russia-”

“Robin. It’s the Indiana Flyer.”

“Shit.” 

Steve nodded, “Yeah, so we need you to translate. If there really is a Russian Army in Hawkins, we have to figure out what they’re doing here.”

Chapter Text

By the end of the following day, Robin had successfully translated the message. She sat across the table from Steve and Dustin in the back room. 

“The week is long. The silver cat feeds when blue meets yellow in the west. A trip to China sounds nice if you tread lightly.” 

They both stared at her until she spoke again, “So obviously it’s some sort of secret code that’s going to take a super genius to crack, so you guys have fun with that. I’m going to people watch.” 

Dustin looked at Steve as soon as she left the room, “Do you think you can find it?”

Steve nodded, “It’s gotta be in somebody’s head, right?”

He closed his eyes and concentrated. The week is long. The silver cat feeds when blue meets yellow in the west. A trip to China sounds nice if you tread lightly. He was so close, he could feel it. But it wasn’t enough. 

He opened his eyes, “Can you turn the light off? I can’t focus.”

Dustin quickly jumped up and flipped the light switch. Steve closed his eyes again. The week is long. The silver cat feeds when blue meets yellow in the west. A trip to China sounds nice if you tread lightly. He found a man outside carrying packages to deliver at the mall. Steve focused on the man’s memories and sifted through his brain. The Chinese restaurant. The shoe store. The clock: 8:45.

Steve took a deep breath. The clock’s hands are blue and yellow. When blue meets yellow in the west, 8:45. The Chinese restaurant; A trip to China sounds nice—the shoe store; If you tread lightly. Steve searched further in the man’s brain. The silver cat feeds, The silver cat feeds. Packages, Steve realized. The package is delivered to the Chinese restaurant and the shoe store at 8:45 p.m. The week is long. The silver cat feeds when blue meets yellow in the west. A trip to China sounds nice if you tread lightly. 

Steve opened his eyes, “I got it.” 

Suddenly, the door opened and Robin walked in, “Hey, I forgot- Why are you sitting in the dark?” She flipped the light switch on and looked at them. She looked at Steve, confused, “Uh, your nose is bleeding again.” 

Steve said, “Allergies,” at the same time that Dustin said, “He fell.” Steve turned and kicked him under the table. 

Robin widened her eyes dramatically, “Okaayyy. Well, you still owe me from yesterday, so it’s your turn to work.”  

And before he could stop himself, Dustin blurted out, “Steve cracked the code!” 

Steve turned to look at him and sighed, “Dude.”

But Robin stared in disbelief, astonishment surrounded her, “ You cracked the code? You.”

Steve looked at her, offended, “What is that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing, nothing. So what is it then?” 

Steve looked at her apprehensively, then eventually said, “There’s a shipment that comes in as packages labeled for the Chinese restaurant and the shoe store, at 8:45, but it’s really going to the Russians.” 

Robin nodded, “Okay. And you figured that out, how?” She shook her head, “Actually, you know what, it doesn’t matter. The real question is, how do we stop them?” 

Steve and Dustin both looked at her like she had two heads. She shrugged, “What? I’m too invested in this to walk away now.” 

Steve ran a hand through his hair, “Okay fine. . . Tonight. We wait for the shipment to come in and then find out what’s in it.” 

Robin raised an eyebrow, “You really think we can just mosey on in and take a package?”

Steve gestured down at his outfit, “Uhh, yeah. We say we didn’t get a shipment and came looking for it. Boom. Easy.” 

“Alright Dingus, but when your genius plan doesn’t work I’ll be there to say I told you so.” 

And as it turns out, Steve’s plan didn’t work. They ended up on the roof of the building in the rain , watching the trucks get unloaded while giant men with guns stood guard. Robin leaned over towards him, “I told you so.”

Steve threw his hand up, “How was I supposed to know they’d have guns?” 

Robin merely shrugged. 

Steve shook his head, “There’s gotta be another way into that room.” 

Dustin said, “Okay, well, can we figure it out tomorrow when we’re not sitting in the rain?” 

Reluctantly, Steve nodded, “Yeah, let’s go.” 

They snuck off the roof and walked towards the parking lot. Dustin followed Steve in the direction of his car, but Robin stopped at the bike rack. 

Steve held his hands up, “Whoa, whoa, hold on. You rode your bike here?”

Robin nodded like he was dumb, jealousy fell onto her shoulders, “Yeah, Dingus. I don’t have a car.”

Steve shook his head, “No, I’m not letting you ride home in the rain, come on, I’ll give you a ride.”

“I can’t just leave my bike here. How am I supposed to get to work tomorrow?”

“It will probably fit in my trunk.” 

Robin sighed, then reluctantly followed them through the parking lot, wheeling her bike beside her. Her bike did not fit in the trunk of Steve’s car. Well, it did for the most part, but he could not get it closed. Steve waved it off, “It’s fine. It’s not going to fall out.” 

Then, the three of them got into the car and pulled away from the mall. Robin rode shotgun after Steve kicked Dustin to the back seat, and Dustin was less than pleased. Robin lived pretty close to the mall, so it wasn’t a super long drive, but Steve would have thought Dustin hadn’t talked in hours from the way he wouldn’t shut up after they dropped Robin off.

“You totally like her!” 

Steve rolled his eyes, “Dude, stop.”

“Why else would you offer to drive her home?”

“Gee, I don’t know. Maybe the fact that it’s raining.”

Dustin just shook his head and smiled like he knew that wasn’t the truth. 

Steve ran a hand through his hair, “Jesus Christ.”

“Just admit it.”

“Dustin, I don’t like her. End of story.” 

“You should make a move. You know, tell her how you feel. That’s what I did with Suzie. ” He wiggled his eyebrows.

Steve laughed dramatically, “Yeah, that’s a lie. She asked you out, dickhead.” 

Dustin’s eyes widened, and his head shot towards Steve, “Steve! Don’t look through my head without my permission!”

“What do you mean without your permission? You told me to like two days ago!” 

Dustin threw his head back and groaned, because yes, that did happen. He grumbled, “Well, you can still ask Robin out.” 

Steve sighed, “I’m not looking for a relationship right now. . . besides, Robin’s actually pretty irritated at me most of the time.” 

“Yeah, but are you sure? Girls are weird.” Dustin asked as Steve pulled up in front of his house. Steve simply put his car in park, then turned towards Dustin and gave him a pointed look. 

Dustin slammed his hand down in realization, “Goddamn superpowers!” He got out of the car and slammed the door. 

Steve held his hand up in disbelief, “ Good bye!” He shook his head and pulled away from the house. 

. . . 

The next day, Steve walked into Scoops Ahoy to find Robin very excited. “Oh, Dingus! You’re here. Guess what I got this morning?”

He shook his head, confused. Robin grabbed his hand and dragged him into the back room. 

“Look!” 

Sitting on the table was a map that someone had drawn all over with a red marker.

“Okay?” 

Robin rolled her eyes, “ This is the full blueprint of the mall, and this,” she pointed at the red marker, “Is our way into that room.” 

Steve looked up at her with wide eyes, “Where did you get this?”

She shrugged, “It’s crazy what twenty bucks will get you. . . The only problem is, it isn’t a hallway. It’s the air vent.” 

Steve sighed, but Robin looked hopeful, “So I’m hoping that one of your children will fit.” 

Steve looked up at the vent and shook his head, “No, they’re too old. There’s no way they’ll fit in there.” 

“Shit, do you know any younger kids who would be able to do it?” 

Steve shook his head, then paused when it dawned on him, “Actually, yeah. I know exactly who can do it.”

When Dustin walked into the back room of Scoops Ahoy that day, he definitely did not expect to see Erica Sinclair standing with her arms crossed. He looked at Steve, confused, “What’s Lucas’s sister doing here?”

“Robin came up with this genius plan to get into that room, but we need someone small enough to fit in the air vent.” 

Dustin looked appalled, “I can fit!” 

Steve shook his head, “No, you can’t.”

“Yes, I can. No collar bones, remember.” 

“Dustin, just trust me on this. You can’t fit.” 

They all turned to face Erica. She raised an eyebrow, “I don’t know why you’re all looking at me. We’ve still got a problem.”

Robin asked, “Are you claustrophobic?”

“I don’t have phobias.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

Erica put her hand on her hip, “I still haven’t heard what’s in this for Erica.” 

“Jesus Christ,” Steve turned around and pretended to look at the blueprints. He closed his eyes and sifted through Erica’s mind. What does she want? After a few seconds, he found it. Bingo. He opened his eyes, wiped the blood away from his nose, and then turned around. 

“Tell you what, you do this for us and you’ve got free ice cream for life.” 

Erica nodded her head, “Now we’re talking.” 

They waited until the store closed that night to execute the next part of the plan. They all stood in the back room of Scoops and went over the plan. Erica wore a helmet with flashlights taped to the sides and a My Little Pony backpack that held a radio. 

Robin tested to make sure the radios were on the same channel, “Okay. We’ll be in contact with you the whole time. Remember, get in the room, open the door, and you can have all the ice cream you can dream of.” 

Erica turned around, “Yes, I’m aware of the plan.” 

“Okay. We’ll be on the roof, waiting for you to open the door.”

They waited until Erica made it into the air vent and started crawling before they made their way outside. They nervously waited on the roof. It took about five minutes to crawl through the vents. Finally, she spoke through the radio, “Alright, I am at the room.”

Robin quickly asked, “Do you see any guards?” 

“Negative.”

“Any booby traps?”

“If I could see them, they’d be pretty shit traps.” 

Robin rolled her eyes. Exactly twelve seconds later, the door opened. Erica walked out and yelled, “Free ice cream for life.” 

Robin, Steve, and Dustin quickly made their way off the roof and over to Erica. Steve walked past her into the room, “Alright, let’s get this box open and get out of here.” 

They followed Steve into the room and all crowded around the box. He picked up a box cutter and cut the tape right down the middle. They all jumped at a sudden noise; the door was closing. Erica shrugged, “It must be on a timer.” 

Steve tried to brush off the fear that filled him. He felt uneasy, trapped. He opened the box fully and was met with some sort of metal case. They all looked at each other nervously. Steve pulled on one of the handles and pulled out a canister of a green glowing liquid, “What the hell is that?”

They all jumped at another sudden noise. A second door had come down over the first. Steve turned to Dustin, panicking, “Dustin, open the door.” 

Dustin turned around and began frantically pushing the buttons. It’s not working. It’s not working! 

Steve felt his breath start to quicken, “Push the button.”

“I am pushing the button!” 

Steve took a shaky breath. This isn’t happening. It can’t. It can’t. The floor suddenly shifted. 

Robin spoke from behind him, “Is it just me, or did the room move?”

No no no no no no no no no no

And then they were falling. Steve closed his eyes. This isn’t real. This isn’t happening. The boxes fell on him when they finally hit the bottom. It only added to the feeling of being tapped. He shoved the boxes off of him. Robin hesitantly asked, “Is everyone okay?”

Steve was not okay. He could not breathe. He was trapped. He stood up on shaky legs and started pressing all the buttons on the control panel. 

Robin stood up behind him, “That’s not going to work.” She pointed at the key card scanner, “It’s an electronic lock – without a key card, it won’t work.” 

Steve shook his head frantically, “No, no, that’s not true. Erica got it to open, and she doesn’t have a key card!”

“Maybe it doesn’t need one to open up there, I don’t know.” 

Steve shook his head faster, “It has to open, it has to!” 

His breathing was coming out loud and fast. I’m trapped. I’m trapped in here. I can’t get out. 

Suddenly, he was back at the lab. Guards dragged him down the hallway while he screamed, “Papa, please!” 

He had been training with his brothers and sisters in a large room. Papa told him to look in Two’s head and find something to hurt him. He refused. The guards harshly threw him into his room. His head collided with the tile floor and echoed sickeningly. 

Papa appeared in the doorway, “You’ve been bad, Seven. You may come out when you learn how to do as I say.” 

He slammed the door closed and locked it. 

Seven fell to his knees and sobbed, “I’m sorry, Papa!” 

“Steve, it’s not going to open.” 

Steve continued to press the button, only for it to do nothing. He had started to full-on hyperventilate. He walked over to the door and started hitting it with his fists. 

“No, no.” He could not breathe. The oxygen would not enter his lungs. Steve slid down the wall in the corner of the room when his legs gave out. This isn’t happening.

Seven had been locked in his room for two entire weeks. He had been given only a small cup of water every other day to keep him alive. But he felt dead. He had not seen another person in three hundred thirty-six hours. He spent the first few days pounding on the door and crying. He was pretty sure he had broken one of his hands. The room had something surrounding it that blocked his abilities, so he was not even able to enter the minds of his siblings in an attempt to keep his sanity. Near the end, he had started to hallucinate, so he was no longer alone. He laid on the floor of the room, completely silent, too weak to do anything else. He thought he was going to die in there. 

Dustin looked over when he heard Steve’s frantic breathing, “Son of a bitch!” 

Dustin ran over to him and knelt on the floor. He took Steve’s face in his hands in an attempt to make eye contact, “Steve, look at me. You’re okay. We’re all here, you’re not alone. We’re gonna get out of here, I promise. Just calm down.” 

Steve covered his ears and closed his eyes. He continued to loudly hyperventilate. I’m back at the lab, trapped. Was I bad? I didn’t even do anything, why am I being punished? How long is he going to leave me in here? I need to get out. I have to get out. I have to.

“Steve, look at me!” He opened his eyes to find somebody right in front of his face, “You need to calm down; It’s gonna be okay.” Dustin saw no recognition in Steve’s eyes, and that terrified him. 

Robin stood behind Dustin, frazzled, “What’s wrong with him?”

Erica answered before Dustin could, “That man clearly has phobias.” 

“You’ve been bad, Seven. You must learn how to listen.” 

The guards beat him with nightsticks, and Seven sobbed, “I’ll be good, Papa. Please, I’ll be good!” 

Papa leaned down towards him, “Your actions have consequences. You’ve been bad, Seven. I don’t want to do this, but you’ve given me no choice.” 

The door slammed shut, and he was left alone. 

He cried out, “Papa! Papa!” 

It echoed in his head for the remainder of the night while he sobbed. You’ve been bad, Seven. Now you must be punished. You’ve been bad, Seven. Now you must be punished. You’ve been bad, Seven. Now you must be punished. You’ve been bad, Seven.

“God dammit,” Dustin shook Steve’s head until he made eye contact, “For the love of god, Steve, tell me you understand what’s going on!” 

Steve looked at Dustin with nothing but fear in his eyes; he looked absolutely terrified. A few tears dripped down his cheeks.

Steve hesitantly whispered, “. . . was I bad?” 

“Steve,” Dustin said sadly. 

Steve continued to stare at Dustin with wide, terrified eyes as he panicked. Robin felt her heart break. She had started to speculate that Steve had been abused as a child, and that one sentence confirmed it for her. As much as she did not want it to be true, it was the only thing that made sense with his weird behavior and shellshock-like tendencies. Not to mention the fact that he was adopted a mere four years ago, it all made sense now. It was the first time Robin sighed sadly upon figuring out the answer to one of her questions. 

Dustin shook his head repeatedly while trying to keep eye contact, “No. No, Steve. You’re good. I promise. Just focus on me, okay? Focus on my voice. It’s Dustin, remember? I’m your best friend. And Robin’s here,” Dustin moved his head, so Steve could see behind him, “You work with her at the mall. We’re at the mall right now. We were looking for a box, remember?” 

But Steve just stared at him wordlessly. It was too much. It was all too much. His mind slowly floated away, and he could not stop it. He felt nothing . 

N

O

T

H

I

N

G

“Steve?” Dustin asked worriedly. Steve continued to stare at him, through him. “Shit!” 

Robin looked at him frantically, “What?” 

Dustin sighed, “He dissociated.” 

“What?”

Dustin gently let go of Steve’s head and stood up, “It’s happened before. He’ll snap out of it in a few hours. . . hopefully.” 

Robin nervously looked at Steve, “But what does that mean? What’s wrong with him?” 

Dustin started pressing the buttons again and groaned when it did nothing. He turned around to face Robin, “He shut down. It’s a trauma response. Think of it like sleeping with his eyes open, except he’s not dreaming, or thinking, or anything, he’s just. . . there.” 

Erica looked between the two of them, “I don’t know what the hell that was. But I for one don’t feel like being stuck in here all night, so you two better put your heads together and start thinking about how we can get out of this shithole.” She pointed at Steve, “Because clearly he isn’t gonna be any help, and the faster I get out of here, the better.” 

Robin was the one who broke the news, “There is literally no way to get out of here without that key card. We’re stuck here until someone comes to pick up the packages.” 

Erica groaned, then turned around to start looking through the boxes for something useful. Dustin sat down near Steve, and Robin sat down next to Dustin. They both looked over at Steve, who was still staring lifelessly. 

Robin nudged Dustin, “He’s going to be okay, right?” 

Dustin looked over at Steve, then nodded, “He just needs some time to reset.” 

Robin was silent for a moment before her filter broke and she blurted out, “His parents hurt him, didn’t they?”

To say Dustin was shocked would be an understatement. He looked at her with an open mouth because he had no idea what the hell he was supposed to say to that without betraying Steve.

Robin clarified, “His real parents. They abused him, didn’t they?”

Dustin still didn’t know what he was supposed to say –  he couldn’t exactly just not answer, so he just nodded slowly. 

Robin looked over at Steve sadly, “. . . what did they do to him?”

Dustin knew he had to give her something, otherwise she would just continue to ask questions that he knew he could not answer. 

Hesitantly, he said, “He got locked in his room a lot as a kid.” 

Robin sighed. She figured as much, “For how long?”

Dustin shook his head sadly and looked at Steve. He whispered, “Too long.” 

“Hey! Look at this!” Erica yelled, which made both of them jump. She was pointing at the ceiling. Dustin squinted his eyes. There was a square of material that looked ever so slightly different from the rest. 

“Is that-” 

Robin stood up, “A door.”

“Yeah, while you nerds sat there uselessly, I actually accomplished something.”

“Okay, was that really necessary?” Dustin scowled. 

Erica raised an eyebrow, “It’s true, isn’t it? Tell me, did you find a way out?”

Robin paused, “Wait! How are we going to get Steve up there?” 

“Natural selection.” 

“Erica!” Dustin yelled, “We are not leaving Steve behind.” 

She glanced over at Steve and raised an eyebrow. Yeah, because he’s such a loss.

Robin kneeled down, “Erica, get on my shoulders. Let’s try to push the door open.” 

Erica climbed onto Robin’s shoulders, and then Dustin stood behind them to help hold up some of the weight. Robin stood under the door, and Erica pushed against it. Luckily, it opened with minimal force. “Okay, try to pull yourself up. See what’s up there.” Erica struggled for a moment to pull herself up through the door, but once she finally made it up, the silence was deafening. 

Robin hesitated, “Well?”

Erica put her head back through the door so they could see her. “Do you want the bad news or the worse news?”

“Oh Jesus Christ,” Dustin threw his hands up. 

“The bad news is that we’re about a mile underground and there’s no way out of here. The worse news is that I’m going to die down here with you nerds.” 

Robin rolled her eyes, but Dustin turned around, offended. 

“As much as I’d love to get away from you two, are you going to help me down from here or not?” 

Erica lowered herself down from the ceiling as much as she could, then Dustin and Robin grabbed her legs and lowered her down to the floor. 

Dustin turned to Robin, “Now what?”

She shrugged, “We wait until someone opens that door.” 

Dustin sighed, it’s going to be a long night, then walked over to where Steve was sitting. He held onto Steve’s shoulders and gently lowered him to the ground, so he was lying down, “There you go, buddy. Go to sleep.”

Robin and Erica also both laid down, each finding something to use as a pillow.

Dustin laid down next to Steve and closed his eyes. Please, whatever God Suzie said is out there, we have to get out of here alive.

Chapter Text

They woke up in the morning to the sound of people talking. Dustin sat up, confused. The voices were steadily getting louder, “Shit! Shit Shit. Get up! They’re coming!” 

Dustin ran over to Steve, “Please be normal, please be normal, please be normal.” He shook Steve’s shoulders, “Steve, wake up!”

Steve opened his eyes and sluggishly pushed Dustin’s hands away, “Stop.”

“Oh, thank god. Robin! Erica! Get up!” 

Robin jumped up, “Should we hide?”

Erica looked at her like she was stupid, “We’re stuck in a square room. Where the hell are we supposed to hide?”

Dustin turned back to Steve, “Okay, don’t freak out. We’re still in the room, but the door’s going to open in like ten seconds.”

Panic settled across Steve’s face, but he managed to stand up and watch the door defensively. 

Nervously, Robin asked, “What do we do?”

Dustin adjusted his hat, “We fight.”

The door slowly opened, and they were met with two Russian soldiers on the other side. They immediately pulled out their weapons and started yelling in Russian. One of the men had a long pole with a taser on the end of it. He pointed it towards them. 

Dustin’s eyes widened, “Steve, do something!” 

They all watched in shock as the soldier holding the taser turned and fell into the other man, badly tasing him and then himself once he fell on top of him. 

They stared with their jaws dropped. Steve discreetly wiped the blood from his nose and took a step forward. “That moron! He didn’t even know how to use that thing.”

Dustin smiled gratefully at him, but Robin and Erica still stared in shock. Steve walked towards the man and grabbed the keycard attached to his shirt. He held it up, “Let’s get the hell out of here and find Hopper.” 

Steve walked back into the elevator, scanned the card, and then pressed the up arrow. The door slowly closed, the floor shifted, and then they were going up. 

Robin covered her head with her hands, “Holy shit! We’re still alive!” 

Steve squared his shoulders, “Get ready to run. There might be guards up there.”

They all held their breath in anticipation as the elevator stopped and the door slowly opened. There weren’t any guards, but there was a suspicious-looking truck a couple of hundred feet away with large men hanging off the sides. It started to drive towards them. 

“Shit, let’s go!” 

They all started sprinting towards the direction of the mall’s entrance. The truck sped up and followed them. Dustin started to scream a string of curses that would definitely disappoint his mother. We’re not gonna make it. 

Steve focused on the truck. He concentrated on its movement, and he pulled backward. He held it with all of his energy until the truck stopped. They were nearly at the mall’s entrance. The men jumped off the truck and began chasing them. Steve focused on them. Concentrated on stopping their movement. It was a lot. Too much.

He was starting to get dizzy by the time they made it inside. The four of them ran through the mall towards the pay phones because they needed to call Hopper as soon as possible. Steve finally let go when they arrived at the food court. He wiped the blood away from his nose; it was coming out of both nostrils. The four of them were still running through the mall when Steve all but collapsed into a chair. 

“I just- I just need to sit for a minute.” He was absolutely drained. 

Dustin was the first one to turn around, and when he saw Steve, he panicked, “Shit!” He ran over to where Steve was sitting, “How long were you-” He quickly cut himself off when he remembered Robin and Erica were still there. 

“Son of a bitch! Okay, uhh, Robin, you stay with Steve. We’re going to go call Hopper.” 

Robin sat down next to Steve and watched him warily as Dustin and Erica ran off towards the payphones. Steve looked sick. “What happened? You were fine like two minutes ago.” Steve just shook his head. He was so tired. 

“Okay, uhh, let’s go sit in the bathroom in case you puke. It’s probably not a good idea to draw any unnecessary attention to ourselves.” Steve simply nodded his head and let Robin throw his arm over her shoulder. She guided Steve into the women’s bathroom, which was thankfully empty. He walked into a stall and sat down against the wall. Robin followed him into the stall and sat down across from him, not wanting to leave him alone. 

She stared at him in silence for a moment, then nervously asked, “Are you going to puke?”

He shook his head, “I don’t think so.” He looked down at his lap to hide the smile on his face when he realized that he felt a new emotion radiate off her, one that he had never felt her feel before. Concern. She was concerned about him – genuinely concerned. 

Robin chuckled nervously, “This is definitely not something I ever thought I’d be doing, sitting on the floor in the bathroom with you . . . You know, I was really pissed when I first found out I was working with you. You used to be a real asshole.” 

Steve looked up at her hopefully at the use of past tense. “Do you still think I’m an asshole?”

She smiled and shook her head, “No. I don’t think you’re an asshole. . . You’re not anything like I thought you’d be. I like you, Steve. I really like you.” 

Steve smiled, “I wish we had been friends in high school. Maybe then I wouldn’t have been such a douchebag.”

“You wouldn’t have been caught dead talking to me. That would have been social suicide, and you know it. Besides, your asshole friends would have never allowed it.” Steve sat quietly. He didn’t know what to say. 

Robin laughed sadly, “. . . Do you remember Ms. Click’s sophomore history class?”

Steve nodded, confused. 

“You sat in front of me for an entire year and never once even acknowledged my existence. And yet I was obsessed with you. Do you even remember me from the class?”

Steve’s eyebrows moved together in confusion and sadness, “Robin, what-” 

“You showed up late every single day. You didn’t give a damn about the class or anyone in it and yet,” Robin paused, suddenly looking very conflicted like she didn’t know whether or not she should continue. Eventually, she took a small breath and then looked at Steve, “She couldn’t take her eyes off of you.” 

“What?”

“Tammy Thompson. She couldn’t take her eyes off you. . . I wanted her to look at me .”

Steve was beyond confused, “Is that. . . not allowed?”

Robin stared at him in disbelief, “What?”

Steve still did not understand the problem. Robin had a thing for Tammy Thompson. Why is that bad? Steve shook his head, “I just- I don’t understand what the problem is.” 

Robin suddenly looked very angry, “You know what, Steve? Fuck you!”

She moved to stand up, and Steve grabbed her hand, “No wait! Robin, please! Don’t be mad at me, I’m just confused.” He suddenly had all of his energy back. Or maybe it’s adrenaline. 

She attempted to shake his hand off of her, “Yeah, you would be! I don’t know why I thought you’d understand. You really are just an asshole.” Steve kept his grip. 

“Please, Robin. I didn’t mean to make you angry. I’m just so confused. You liked Tammy Thompson, so what? Why is that bad?” Steve was starting to panic. He was so afraid that he was about to lose Robin as a friend. All because he was a fucking moron.

Robin froze. She took in the genuine confusion and panic on Steve’s face. He’s not joking. She stopped trying to push him away and instead stared at him in complete disbelief, “What do you mean ‘why is that bad?’ do you live under a rock?” 

Steve groaned in frustration, “No, I lived in a lab and I’m still trying to figure everything out!” 

Robin once again froze, “What?” 

Steve let out another frustrated noise, “Tommy H told me a lot of bullshit and I’m still trying to figure out how much of it was wrong.” 

Robin shook her head, “No, go back. What do you mean you lived in a lab?”

Steve froze, “What? I didn’t say that.”

Robin looked worried, “You just did, like five seconds ago.” 

Steve held his face in his hands. This is not how I wanted this to go. 

“Steve?” 

He looked up at Robin’s worried face. The only emotions coming from her were concern and fear. Steve took a deep breath. It’s going to be okay.

“Yeah, I lived in a lab, so what? We’re talking about you right now, and, based on your reaction, what I’m assuming is a big moment for you. We can talk about my problems later.”

Robin looked terrified, “Steve. You are way more important than some stupid crush I had.”

Steve held his head in his hands. Robin hesitantly asked, “Steve?”

Well, shit. I can’t exactly talk my way out of this one. 

He took a deep breath and looked up, “. . . You know Hawkins lab, right?” He waited for her to nod. Steve sighed, “I’ve never actually had to explain the whole thing to anybody. I don’t really know where to start.” Robin took his hand comfortingly. 

“There were twenty of us; my siblings. I didn’t know any different at that point. We’d wake up, test, train, practice, and then go to bed. I thought it was normal.” 

Robin felt her heart in her throat. 

“I was number seven.” He paused for a moment, really debating his choices, then slowly pulled his watch off of his wrist and held his arm out towards her. For once in her life, Robin was speechless. There tattooed on his wrist was a very neat 007. Steve rested his hands in his lap. 

“I was a number for the first fourteen years of my life. They treated me like an object. I wasn’t even seen as a person until I escaped.” Steve’s voice cracked, and Robin’s eyes filled with tears. 

“I was a lab experiment. They didn’t let me have anything. I never had real clothes. I never had hair; they kept our heads buzzed. Hell, I never even had shoes.” Steve looked both sad and angry, and Robin wanted to hug him so badly.

Suddenly, the words were pouring out of him. He couldn’t stop even if he wanted to. 

“They were making us into weapons; training us how to kill. If you refused, you were beaten; if you did it again, you were tortured.”

Tears started to well up in his eyes, “They locked me in my room for two weeks because I wouldn’t kill a fucking rabbit! I thought I was gonna die! I broke my hand trying to get the door to open, and they never showed mercy.” 

“I can’t even count how many times they beat me and locked me in there. . . I’ve got so many goddamn triggers sometimes it feels like I’m still there. And I’m still so afraid that they’re going to find me and make me go back.” It was the first time he ever admitted that out loud. He was no longer able to hold back the tears. 

Robin couldn’t take it anymore. She pulled him into the tightest hug she could manage. “I’m so sorry.”

It was so much worse than what she had thought. Abusive parents seemed like nothing compared to what he had just told her. She couldn’t even imagine it.

Steve cried so hard, and it felt so good. Robin held him the whole time and never let go. She felt his body tremor beneath her fingertips and every shaky breath that he inhaled. His tears collected on her shoulder, making her shirt stick to her skin uncomfortably. But she didn’t let go because she knew he needed it. Some tears escaped her eyes as well, and she quickly wiped them away. Finally, after nearly ten minutes, Steve pulled back.

He wiped his face, “I’m sorry.”

Robin stared in shock, “Don’t you dare apologize.” She was so angry at all of the hurt he had wrongfully experienced. “What those psychos did to you was not your fault! And you’re allowed to be upset, you should be! So you don’t you dare apologize for crying.” 

Steve smiled through the tears. At that moment, he decided he loved her; that she was a real friend. 

She harshly wiped her face, “What did they want with you? You were just a kid.”

Steve looked up and made eye contact. There's no turning back now. “We have abilities. . . That’s the whole reason we were there. He’d make us train and then fight each other to decide who was the strongest, and figure out who was the best weapon. He made us into monsters.”

Robin wiped away her tears, confused, “What?”

“We all had telekinesis, but our main abilities were different.” 

“What, like powers?” Steve nodded.

Robin was too afraid to ask if he was joking, so instead she asked, “What’s yours?”

“I can find things in people’s heads; in their memories. And feel their emotions in the subconscious – find things even they don’t know.” Robin sat stunned, still trying to figure out if he was being serious. 

“You asked me how I figured out the code.”

Robin froze, “Steve.” 

He looked up and made eye contact, “I found it in a deliveryman’s head.” 

Robin slowly shook her head. It was not possible. There was no way. No one could do that. 

Steve brought her attention back to him, “Think of something that makes you happy. A memory; one that you want me to see.” 

She thought about the day he tripped while walking into class. He dropped his breakfast on the floor and messed up his hair. She was so happy to see him get laughed at for once in his life. 

She watched him close his eyes and concentrate, and then he opened them. He smirked at her, “That wasn’t a very happy memory for me . I was pretty embarrassed, actually.” 

All of the air left her lungs. He’s telling the truth. Robin forced out, “Yeah, well you were an asshole then.” 

She looked up just in time to see his nose start bleeding, “Your nose-” She froze. How many goddamn times had she caught his nose bleeding that week? 

Steve wiped it away with the back of his hand, “Yeah, it happens when I do that.” 

He wiped his hand on his shorts and hesitantly looked up at her, “I’m sorry I was such an asshole back then. . . And I’m sorry about earlier.”

Robin went to protest, but Steve kept talking, “Tommy H was the first kid I met when I got out, and at that point, I only knew like twenty words and how to obey. He decided we were friends. He called all the shots, and I believed everything that he told me. Obviously, now I know that it was a bunch of bullshit but back then I didn’t have a damn clue how the world worked. I had no education and no one to follow the example of other than Tommy. I’m still learning, obviously, and I’m still trying to catch up on those fourteen years of life experience that I missed.” 

“I’m not mad at you, Steve. But for the record about earlier, the world doesn’t like gay people.”

He looked at her, confused, “Hopper said that it’s okay?” 

“Well, of course it’s okay . Not everybody sees that, though. Wait, why were you talking about that with Hopper?”

Steve looked at her weirdly, “We do Friday night morality lessons.” 

“What?”

“Well, clearly they’re not helping-”

“No. Why Hopper?”

“I mean, I live with him. He’s kind of like my dad now.” 

Robin opened her mouth in understanding, “Oh.” 

Steve nodded, “Yeah. . . Maybe I should do lessons with you, instead. Hopper’s not a very good teacher.” He smiled. “What do you say? Think you can teach me how to read?”

Robin stopped smiling, “Wait, you actually can’t read?” 

Steve shook his head, “They don’t exactly teach you how to read in high school.”

“I heard Dustin say that a few days ago, but I just assumed- wait. How did you graduate?” She asked, completely bewildered. “I had a class with you. I saw you take tests and pass.”  

Steve cringed, “Okay, don’t be mad.” 

Robin raised an eyebrow. 

“So, like in Click’s class, I didn’t know you, but I knew you were smart. You passed everything by a lot. So like, when we took tests. . . I just maybe, hypothetically, accidentally, found the answers in your head and matched the bubbles on my paper.” 

Robin’s mouth hung open, but she smiled. That was such a ridiculously Steve answer that it was impossible not to find it funny. She started to laugh, and Steve quickly joined her. 

They laughed so hard they couldn’t breathe. And Steve smiled when he felt just how happy Robin truly was in that moment, even more so because he was the reason that she was so happy. He was finally able to make someone feel something other than pain. 

Once they started to calm down, Steve said, “I’m sorry I one-upped your secret.” 

Robin just shook her head, “Shut up, Dingus.” 

She pulled him into another hug. Steve closed his eyes and relaxed. Robin rested her chin on his shoulder, “Thank you for trusting me.” 

When they pulled away from the hug, Steve had a stupid look on his face. Robin braced herself for whatever the hell was about to come out of his mouth. 

“So. . . Tammy Thompson.” 

Robin covered her face with her hands. 

They both jumped when someone came barreling in through the door. Steve, ready to fight, relaxed when he realized it was just Dustin. 

“Okay, what the hell? I came back to the table you were at, and you were gone.” 

Robin stood up, “We didn’t want to cause a scene in case he threw up all over the place.” 

Steve stood up, then bent down to pick up his watch off the floor. 

Dustin’s eyes widened, “Steve,” he said urgently. 

Steve felt the panic start to come from Dustin, so he quickly said, “She knows. I told her.” 

Dustin’s mouth hung open. 

Steve rolled his eyes, “Why are you so surprised? Literally everyone else knows.” 

That made Robin turn to him, confused. He waved his hand, “Not everyone . But like all my kids, Hopper, Joyce, Nancy, and Jonathan. Everyone that matters .” Robin nodded. 

Steve turned to Dustin, “Wait. Where’s Erica?” 

Dustin rolled his eyes dramatically, “She ditched us for her uncle’s party. But Hopper’s on his way with Joyce and Murray.”

“Who the hell is Murray?”

“I have no idea.” 

“Alright. Let’s go find the rest of the knuckleheads.” 

Dustin nodded, then paused, “Wait, Steve. Maybe you should eat something first. You looked completely drained earlier.” 

Robin stepped in before he could protest, “Yeah, I’m starving. Let’s all go get something to eat while we wait for everyone else to get here.” 

Reluctantly, Steve agreed, and then the three of them headed towards the direction of the food court. 

Chapter Text

Dustin, Robin, and Steve ended up sitting at a table in the food court while they ate corn dogs and French fries. Steve was on his third corndog, so unbelievably hungry, when he felt an uneasiness start to radiate off of Robin. She was glancing around the room, intently. 

“What’s wrong?” 

Robin turned towards him, “What?”

“You feel weird, like kinda stressed.” 

She made an odd expression, “It’s going to take me a while to get used to that.” She glanced back around the room, then quietly said, “I feel like someone is watching us.” 

All three of them began to scan their surroundings, looking for anything out of the ordinary; anything that did not belong. It was Dustin who ended up spotting the ‘someone’. 

“Shit!”

Steve followed Dustin’s gaze across the room. There was a man wearing all black, hair slicked back, standing just a little too still, a little too suspiciously. He looked dangerous. 

“Shit,” Steve agreed. 

Robin looked at him nervously, “Do you think he’s one of the Russians?”

Steve immediately closed his eyes and concentrated. He started to sift through the man’s head. Every memory he found involved someone speaking Russian. Steve opened his eyes and stood up all in one motion. He wiped the blood away from his nose, “Yep. Yep, we should go.” 

Robin and Dustin quickly followed him. Dustin asked, “Where the hell are we going?”

Steve shook his head, “We need to get out of the mall.”

They walked into Scoops Ahoy, which never opened for the day because management apparently had not realized that Steve and Robin had not arrived for their shifts. They walked into the back hallway that employees used. They only made it another few steps before they abruptly stopped. At the end of the hallway, there was a large man wearing all black, holding a giant gun. 

“Son of a bitch!” Dustin yelled.

Steve turned around to run the other way just in time to see the butt of a gun hurdling towards his face. And then nothing.  

The next time Steve opened his eyes, his head was pounding. Dustin’s voice also filled the room at an uncomfortable volume. 

“Can you please shut up,” he mumbled. 

“Oh, Dingus! Thank god!” 

Steve felt something pull against his chest. He opened his eyes fully and lifted his head up. His hands were bound together, as were his legs, and a thick band was wrapped around his chest. Craning his neck to either side confirmed his suspicions that the three of them were all tied to chairs and to each other back to back.

“Oh, Jesus Christ. What happened?”

Robin started to nervously ramble, “One of the Russians knocked you out with a gun when we were trying to leave and then they dragged us all back to that elevator we were stuck in and then they brought us to this room and tied us up and they left and they haven’t been back since.”

“How long was I out?”

“An hour or two. I’m not sure. It feels like we’ve been here forever.”

Steve scrunched his face up, quickly realizing that the left side of his face was swollen and that was why he could only kind of see out of his left eye. Alarm bells rang in his head, and he desperately tried to turn and look at his friends, “They didn’t hurt you, did they?!” 

“No, no, we’re okay.” 

Steve sighed a breath of relief, then looked down sadly. He was still wearing his fucking Scoops uniform. Obviously, that was how the guards had managed to find them among the hundreds of people at the mall. It was kind of hard to miss. We should have been more careful when we ran out of that elevator. 

Steve turned his head as much as he could toward Dustin, “What exactly did you tell Hopper?”

“I told him about the Russians and the elevator.” 

“No, everything. What did you tell him?”

“I don’t know, Steve! I told him about the Russians and the secret base—the elevator, how we got stuck in it. I told him how you freaked out and dissociated. I told him everything that happened. He was more hell-bent on asking how you were doing than listening to my goddamn code red about the Russians.” 

“Okay, okay, but you told him about the elevator and the base under the mall?”

“Yes.”

“Okay. Then, we’re going to be fine. He knows about the base. And when he can’t find us, he’ll at least have an idea where to look. We’re going to be okay.” Steve wanted Hopper to come and fix everything so badly. 

They all harshly flinched when the door slammed open. Two men walked into the room, both wearing Russian uniforms. They closed the door behind them, and one of the men stood guard in front of it. The other man walked up to them and in a thick Russian accent said, “You’re ready to talk now, yes?” 

He walked around the three of them a few times, and then crouched down in front of Steve’s face, “Who do you work for?”

Steve swallowed hard, “Scoops Ahoy.” 

The man laughed loudly, then looked at Steve again, “Who do you work for?” 

Steve frantically looked between him and the man at the door, “Scoops Ahoy. You know, the ice cream place at the mall.” 

The man raised his fist and punched the side of Steve’s head forcefully. Dustin and Robin started to scream in shock, but Steve’s ear rang, “Ahh, what the hell?”

The man grabbed a handful of Steve’s hair and forced his head back, “Who do you work for?”

Steve groaned pitifully, “I told you. I work at Scoops Ahoy!” 

The man punched Steve’s stomach and then moved to stand in front of Robin, “What are you doing here?” She spat directly in his face. He slowly wiped it off, then leaned forward, “Lucky for you, I do not hit woman, not so lucky for your friends.”

Steve frantically began to yell, desperate to bring the attention back to him and the hell away from Dustin, “We didn’t get a shipment! We didn’t get a shipment, so we went looking for it, but then-then the room turned into an elevator and we got stuck!” 

The man thankfully walked back over to Steve, but he shook his head. “More lies. Who. Do. You. Work for?”

“I already told you! I work at Scoops Ahoy.” 

Steve was once again punched in the side of his face. The Russian leaned down next to Steve’s ear, “Perhaps I get something to make you talk.”

He turned to the other man, said something in Russian, and then they both left the room. 

Robin hesitantly asked, “Are you okay, Dingus?”

Steve laughed sadly and spat blood onto the floor. Dustin looked at him appalled, “Why didn’t you use your powers and knock them out?”

Steve closed his eyes, “The last thing I need right now is them finding out about me. Then we’ll never get out of here.” 

Their time alone was short-lived because a few minutes later, the two Russians reentered the room. This time, the guard held one of the long tasers. The man from before walked back over to Steve, “Let’s try this again, yes? Who do you work for?” 

“I’m telling you I work at Scoops Ahoy! Look at my outfit! You think I just wear this?!” 

The man simply shook his head, then said something to the guard in Russian. Steve’s breath caught in his throat as the man was handed the taser. He turned around and headed towards Steve.

“Whoa, whoa, hey, no, no, no, no, ahhhhhhhhh!” The taser was held against his stomach. 

“Who do you work for?!” 

“I fucking told you! Scoops Ahoy!”

The taser was pressed against his skin again. He screamed out in pain. “Stop!”

The electricity pierced past his skin and vibrated his bones. It felt hot and cold at the same time, making him start to feel woozy. He could vaguely hear Robin and Dusin behind him, pleading for the man to stop. 

“Maybe I need to keep this here for you to talk.” The taser was pressed against his neck, and Steve screamed out in agony. 

He had not been tased in years. His mind fled back to that last precise moment. 

“Now, Seven, you are going to try again.” 

He was supposed to find which of his siblings had escaped from their room and injured some of the guards. He was supposed to look through each of their heads until he found the memory. He was supposed to tell Papa who it was. But he refused. He knew what Papa would do to them when he found out. 

Seven shook his head, and his chin wobbled. He could not do that to his sibling. 

Papa looked angry, “Do you remember what happened last time you were bad and refused to listen?” 

He remembered. He absolutely remembered. Two weeks in his room alone, starving, hurt, abandoned. 

“Now you are going to look in your brother’s and sister’s heads and tell me who did this.” 

Seven started to cry. He shook his head weakly, “No.”

Papa looked beyond angry. He motioned to the guards, and then Seven was screaming. A metal pole was held against his body. Electricity flowed throughout his bones. 

“You are being bad, Seven. There are consequences to your actions.” 

The pole was removed, and Papa repeated, “Try again, Seven.”

Seven shook his head as the tears dripped down his cheeks. The pole returned, stronger this time. Seven screamed in pain, “Papa, please!” 

Papa simply shook his head, “It hurts me to have to do this, but you must learn to listen.”

The intensity increased, electricity so high, so unbearable, Seven fell weakly to the floor. 

Steve hadn’t truly been tortured in over four years. So as the Russian held the taser against his skin, something must have disconnected in his brain, because he said the one word he vowed to never speak again. The one that haunted him. The one that triggered him beyond belief. The one that made him want to die. 

As the electricity flowed throughout his body, Steve yelled out desperately, “Papa, please!” 

Dustin frantically tried to pull his hands out of the restraints the moment he heard that word leave Steve’s lips because he knew . “Goddamn it! There was a code! I picked up the signal on my cerebro!” 

The taser was pulled away from Steve. Dustin sighed heavily in relief. That was until the taser was pointed at him. 

“What code?”

Dustin froze. All he could do was stare at the taser and listen to Steve’s heaving breaths that just would not stop. Robin started yelling from behind him, “The week is long, the silver cat feeds when blue meets yellow in the west!” 

The man suddenly looked angry, “What do you know?!”

Robin looked at him smugly, “We know all about your little operation here.”

The man pointed the taser back at Steve, “You tell me what you know or I tase your friend again!”

But the moment the taser buzzed back to life, Steve lashed out like a wounded animal. It was obvious he was still in fight-or-flight mode, still not entirely aware of where he was and what was happening. Steve screamed, and the man flew back into the wall. The concrete crumbled in a way that Robin did not know was even possible, and blood slowly seeped out of the man’s head. Similarly, the guard was dead before he could even react. Robin was not entirely sure what happened to him, but from the unnatural way he laid on the floor, she could only assume his neck had been snapped. 

There was a split second in the back of her mind where Steve scared her, where she was afraid of him. But she quickly reminded herself that he was scared and panicking, and reacted to the threat as the victim who had been tortured his entire life. And the thought left just as quickly as it had entered. 

It was utterly silent for a moment aside from Steve’s heaving breaths. 

Dustin whispered, “Steve?”

Steve slowly turned his head towards him. His face was a mess between the blood and the swelling. His eyes were red, his left almost completely swollen shit, but the most concerning thing was the crazed, yet terrified, look that they held. 

“Are you okay?” Dustin whispered

And for a moment, Steve simply stared, still breathing heavily. But eventually, he deflated; crumbled even. 

Barley audibly, Steve whispered, “I killed them.” 

Robin felt awful. She wanted to hug him so badly, but was still restrained in the chair. She felt terrible as she gently said, “Steve? Can you get us out of these restraints?” 

He weakly nodded, then focused on the rope around his wrists until it snapped. He did the same with the one around his legs, then pulled the band wrapped across his chest over his head. From there, he untied Robin and Dustin. 

Once they were all free from the restrictions, Steve wiped his nose and shakily said, “Let’s go.” 

“Steve?”

He turned around to see Robin standing with her arms open. He all but fell into them. She tightly squeezed his body and pressed her face into his neck. Dustin wrapped his arms around both of them, and the three of them stood there silently. 

“I’m sorry,” Steve said quietly. 

Robin shook her head, arms still wrapped around him, “There’s nothing to be sorry for.”

“I killed them.”

Robin pulled back from the hug and put her hands on either side of Steve’s head, “You saved us. Okay? You saved us.”

Steve slowly nodded. 

Robin brushed his hair away from his face and gently smiled, “Okay. Let’s go find the others.” 

Dustin grabbed a keycard off the guard’s body, and then the three of them quietly left the room. Steve was still visibly upset with himself, and not totally focused, so Robin led the way. They only made it about a quarter of the way down the hallway before a guard walked into their view. 

“Shit!” Robin grabbed Steve’s hand and dragged him into the closest room. Dustin followed quickly behind. He closed the door behind them. 

“What the hell is that?” Robin sounded scared. 

Dustin turned around, panicked, and then he sighed. Because there, in all of its glory, was a gate. There was some sort of machine shooting what appeared to be a laser towards it, undoubtedly keeping it out. But it was a gate.

“Oh, son of a bitch!” As if the Russians aren’t enough. 

Robin turned to look at him, confused and nervous, but Steve just blankly stared at the gate. Dustin shook his head, “We have to get out of here and find Hopper, now!” 

“Dustin! What is that?”

“It is very, very bad. Now let’s go! Come on , Steve! Get a move on!” 

He stuck his head into the hallway to make sure the coast was clear, then motioned for Steve and Robin to follow him. They made it out of the room, and Dustin smiled in relief. “Look!” And by some miracle, one of the transportation carts was left about fifty feet away. 

They ran towards it, and somehow out of the three of them, Dustin was the one who ended up in the driver's seat. However, it ended up being a good thing because just as they started driving down the long hallway, some of the guards noticed and began to chase them. The sight of a threat managed to pull Steve out of his mini funk, and he did not even hesitate to use his abilities when it meant protecting his friends. 

He pulled back on the guard’s movement, which slowed them down and lowered their threat. Steve made sure he was as gentle as he could be because he refused to kill anyone else that day. 

They made it to the elevator with no other hiccups, but Steve did not let go until the door was closed and they were going up. He wiped his nose on the back of his hand, then leaned over and placed his hands on his knees so he could catch his breath. 

Robin looked at him warily, “Are you okay?”

Steve nodded once, “Fine.”

Dustin turned to face them, “What do we do if there are guards up there?”

Steve stood up straight, “I’ll handle it, just run,” he glanced down at his watch, “The mall should be closed. We’ll take cover inside. Hopper should be here by now.” 

Dustin nodded and took a deep breath. We’ve got this. 

The elevator came to a stop, and the door slowly opened. Steve was prepared to fight, so he was utterly shocked by the lack of guards. There was not a person in sight. He recovered quickly, “Okay, let’s go. Move fast and stay quiet.” 

He motioned for Dustin and Robin to start running, and then he quickly followed behind, staying alert for anyone who could be hiding. Once they made it to the mall entrance, Steve quickly unlocked the door, not even bothering to wipe his nose; his face was already stained to hell from the number of times he had just been punched in the face. He ushered his friends inside, then closed the door behind them.

They quietly began walking through the mall, looking for Hopper and Joyce. They quickly discovered that Hopper was not there yet, but,

“El!”

Steve ran towards his sister. She was lying on the floor surrounded by Mike, Will, Lucas, Max, Nancy, and Jonathan. She was in pain. 

“El! What’s wrong? What happened?”

“Steve.” She looked relieved to see him.  

Nancy looked terrified when she saw him, “What happened to your face?”

Steve only shook his head and looked at El’s leg. There was a bloody knife about a foot away, and Jonathan’s hands were covered in blood. Jonathan knelt down next to him, “There’s something in there. I tried to get it out but-“

Steve looked up and met El’s eyes. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. Steve squeezed back, understanding the silent request. 

“I can get it out.” Steve turned to look at Jonathan, who gave him a solid nod and then stood up. 

Steve turned back to El, “Ready?”

She squeezed his hand and nodded. Steve took a deep breath, then hovered his hand over her leg and pulled. Whatever was in there had burrowed deep into her muscle. He pulled again, trying to free it. El screamed and squeezed his hand harshly. Steve pulled harder. 

I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry 

The glass from the window behind them shattered, and everyone who was surrounding them shielded their heads from the falling shards. Steve gave one last pull and finally got it out of his sister's leg. He held it in the air for a moment to see what it was, then chucked it onto the floor a few feet away. Some sort of Upside Down slug. It was still alive. Jonathan ran over and stomped on it a few times until it stopped moving. 

Steve gathered El into his arms and held her from the floor, “Are you okay?”

She nodded against his shoulder. “Steve,” she suddenly pulled back with a painful expression on her face. She gently reached up and cupped his cheek. He sighed, he knew what that look in her eyes meant – she knew. 

Steve took a shaky breath, “I’m okay.” 

Her eyes welled up with tears, and she shook her head, “I saw you. You were hurt-“

He didn’t want her to see any of what happened. He was supposed to be strong. She wasn’t supposed to see him so weak. Everything that had happened in the past twenty-four hours filled his head. 

Being locked in the elevator. In his room. Two weeks without mercy. You’ve been bad, Seven. Try harder!—a taser held to his skin. I’m sorry! Papa, please! Blood against concrete. Two men dead. Gone. 

You’ve been bad, Seven.

He pulled her into another hug. He was shaking. He was falling apart.

The sound of a door slamming shut startled them both. Everyone around them jumped into action, grabbing their weapons and standing defensively. 

Three figures walked into the room. And then time stopped. 

“Dad!” 

Steve jumped up from the floor and dragged El with him, because like hell was he going to leave her behind. And then he was running. Feet carried him across the room before he could even process it. And when Hopper's arms finally wrapped around him, and he finally felt safe , he sobbed.

Hopper had one arm around Steve and the other around El, as they both fell apart. He tried to look for injuries, but both of his kids clung to him. “It’s okay. It’s okay. I’m here.” 

Steve didn’t give a damn what anybody else thought; he was past the point of caring. He pressed his face against Hopper’s chest and continued to cry. My dad is here, I don’t have to be the strong one anymore. 

Hopper kissed the tops of both of their heads, “I’ve got you. It’s okay.” 

Steve squeezed him tighter. He refused to let go. He was finally safe. 

“ Kid ,” Hopper sounded slightly choked up. “It’s okay. I’m not going anywhere.” 

The pain in El’s leg began to catch up to her, and she started to fall down on the floor. Hopper was quick to catch her, then carry her over to a bench, while Steve continued to cling to him. 

Hopper got them situated on a bench, and Steve kept his face pressed against his chest. He could vaguely hear Dustin yell, “Who the hell are you?” mixed in with the background noise. Then a response of, “Murray Bauman.” Steve closed his eyes. I want to go home. Dustin continued to yell in the background, this time about the gate; Murray responded, slightly irritated that they already knew about the gate. Steve wondered if he closed his eyes hard enough, if everything would go away. I want to go home . 

Hopper inspected El’s leg while he kept an arm protectively around Steve’s shoulders. Steve could not stop crying. I want to go home. 

Steve opened his eyes when he heard someone approaching them. It was Joyce. She reached an arm out towards El, “Come here, honey. Let me get your leg wrapped for you.” 

El stood up and allowed Joyce to wrap an arm around her waist, leading her over to the makeshift first aid station they had set up. As soon as El was safely with Joyce, Hopper wrapped his other arm around Steve. He still had not stopped crying. It was like a flip had been switched, and there was no way to turn it off. I want to go home. 

Hopper ran one of his hands up and down Steve’s back. “What can I do, kid? What do you need?”

Steve simply shook his head against Hopper's chest. I want to go home . Hopper sighed, “Come on, sit up for a second.” He gently guided Steve to sit up. And when he finally saw the state of his kid's face, his eyes stung. 

“Steve,” he said sadly. 

His left eye was almost completely swollen shut now. Between the swelling, blood, and tears, he looked like a mess. As gently as he could, Hopper brushed some of the tears away. 

“Henderson told me about what happened in the elevator. . . Do you want to talk about it?”

Steve mutely shook his head. Hopper looked at him sadly, “Can we at least talk about what happened to your face? Please? Are you okay?”

Steve sniffled, “We got taken by the Russians to the base under the mall. He hit me a lot. He tased me. . . And I killed him.” And then Steve was crying again. I need to go home.

Hopper quickly pulled Steve back into a hug while trying to hide the shock on his face. If he knew that, he wouldn’t have asked. He would later find out from Henderson that Steve was mid-flashback when he lashed out. That he was trying to protect them and himself. That he begged for Papa to stop while he was being tortured. That he wasn’t in his right mind. But for the time being, Hopper slowly rocked him back and forth while quietly reassuring him, “It’s not your fault. It’s okay. You did a good job, kid. It’s okay. I’ve got you.” 

El came back to sit with them once she got her leg cleaned up. Hopper wrapped one of his arms around her while still keeping the other protectively around Steve. They sat like that for a while, while Steve attempted to calm down. 

Eventually, Murray walked over to them, “I hate to be the one to break up this touching family reunion, but we are on a time schedule, Jim.” 

Hopper glared at him. “So what’s the plan?” 

Chapter Text

Joyce, Murray, Jim, and Steve stood around a table, staring at a hand-drawn map. Well, Joyce, Murray, and Jim stood around the table, and Steve was still clinging to Hopper’s arm. 

Murray spoke very theatrically, Steve quickly learned. He waved his arms around as he gestured to the map, “This is what Alexei called the hub. From there, we proceed down this hallway, and the control room is located right there. Easy.”

“Where’s the gate?” Hopper asked

Murray pointed next to the control room, “Now I’m not sure about the exact scale, but I’m estimating it should be somewhere around fifty feet.” 

Robin awkwardly walked up to the table, “Umm, hi. I’m Robin – I work with Steve. Um, we were trapped down there earlier, and that hallway is actually a couple of miles long.”

Murray stared at her for a moment, then clapped his hands together, “Well, that’s just great.”

Robin quickly added, “They have these little carts, though, so you might not have to walk. But they also have giant guns and tasers, so you should probably bring your own weapons. And I don’t know how good you are at fighting, but we barely made it out, and that was only because-” Robin’s rambling was cut off by Murray holding a hand up to silence her. He then pulled a gun off of his belt and held it out to Joyce. 

Hopper immediately shook his head, “No. Not happening.” 

Murray sighed, “Jim, this is a three-person job.” 

“I’ll go,” Steve said, finally standing up. He had thankfully reached the point where he did not feel like the world was falling apart anymore. 

“Absolutely not,” Hopper said, sternly shaking his head. 

“I can protect you.”

“Kid, I said no.” 

“But I’ve already been down there! I can show you where the control room is.”

Hopper laughed sarcastically, “And look what happened!” He gestured at Steve’s face. “You’re not going back down there. End of discussion.” 

Steve said, frustrated, “I’m not letting you go down there without me!”

Hopper raised an eyebrow, “You’re not letting me ? That’s not how this works, kid. I’m the parent; I make the decisions!” 

“I can’t lose you!”

“Steve,” Hopper said gently.

Steve whispered, “I need you. And El does too.” 

Hopper sighed, “Kid, that is exactly why I can’t let you go down there.”

They were interrupted by Murray walking directly in between them, “Jim, this is ridiculous. As lovely as a woman as Joyce is, the kid has superpowers . He’s a much more valuable team member. Stop wasting time.” 

Hopper rolled his eyes, then glanced back at Steve’s swollen face. Beneath all the blood, there was a look of determination that said he was not going to take no for an answer. 

Murray directed their attention back to the map, “Once we get down there, I am going to take this course through the air vents to disarm the machine remotely while you and the kid go to the control room. There are two keys that have to be turned at precisely the same time to destroy the machine.”

Hopper nodded, “Alright. We leave in five minutes.”

Murray’s jaw fell open, and he held his arms up dramatically, “What do you not understand about time-sensitive ?”

Hopper raised an eyebrow challengingly, “Five minutes.” He placed his hand on Steve’s shoulder and guided him towards the kids, “Let’s find your sister.”

A few minutes later, El, Hopper, and Steve sat side by side. Hopper had an arm around each of his kids.

“I’m so proud of you guys. I know for a fact that I would not have been able to handle all this shit when I was your age.” 

He turned towards El, “. . .Your brother and I are going down there to destroy the machine, so you stay safe while we’re gone – protect your friends.” Under his breath, he mumbled, “Even Mike, as much as I hate the little bastard.” 

Steve smirked, knowing how much Hopper wanted to strangle Mike on a daily basis. 

He turned toward Steve, “And if anything happens while we’re down there, you get yourself out.” 

The smirk got wiped right off of Steve’s face, and he shook his head, “Hop-”

Hopper repeated himself, “If anything happens, you get yourself out and you find your sister. I need both of you to be safe.” 

Hopper kissed both of their heads, “When we get out of here tonight, we’ll pick up Benny’s, make eggo extravaganzas, whatever you want. I promise.”

Hopper’s voice was level, and he spoke with confidence, but Steve could feel that even he was afraid that it might not work out. 

The feeling of fear intensified even more once Steve, Hopper, and Murray stepped into the elevator. Steve tried to ignore it, but it was powerful. 

Both Hopper and Murray held guns and kept them pointed at the elevator doors as they went down. Hopper didn’t let Steve carry one, but even if he had, Steve didn’t exactly need it. After all, as he learned earlier, he could kill someone easily with just his mind.

Hopper shoved Steve behind him as soon as the elevator stopped moving. They all stood frozen with anticipation as the doors opened. They were met with silence. Murray lowered his gun first; there was no one there. However, conveniently, the cart that The Scoops Troop used to escape with was still sitting right outside the elevator. Hopper was the first to step out of the elevator. He scanned all directions to make sure there were not any threats, then lowered his gun. 

“Let’s move.”

The three of them climbed onto the cart, Murray in the driver’s seat, and then started moving. They only drove down the hallway for a few minutes before they reached the air vent Murray was going to climb through. He pulled a radio out of his bag to communicate with Dustin since they left the map on the surface, and he would be their guide. 

Murray spoke into the radio, “We made it.” 

“You have to use your callsign and say ‘over’ when you’re done talking.” Dustin’s muffled voice said from the radio.

Murray sighed dramatically, “This is Bald Eagle. Over.”

“I’m sorry, can you repeat that?”

“Bald Eagle! This is Bald Eagle! Over.”

“It’s good to hear your voice, Bald Eagle. This is Scoops Troop reporting from the surface. Do you copy?”

Murray looked over at Hopper with a look of annoyance on his face before he responded, “ Yes , I copy.”

“Roger that, Bald Eagle. What’s your 20? Over.”

Murray sighed, “We’ve reached the vent. I will contact you when I need you. And until then, silence.” 

It was silent for a moment, and then Dustin’s irritated voice filled the air, “You have to say ‘over’ when you’re done talking. This is Scoops Troop, going radio silent 10-10 over.” 

Murray simply took a deep breath and then put the radio back into his backpack. “I hate children.” 

Hopper gave him an encouraging nod, “Good luck.”

Murray gave a tight-lipped smile in return, then climbed into the vent.

Hopper and Steve got back onto the cart and continued down the long hallway. Hopper glanced over at Steve, “You doing alright, kid?” 

Steve nodded. “. . . Are you?”

Hopper hesitated, “Yeah.” 

Steve could feel how nervous Hopper actually was, but he didn’t say anything. Hopper once again glanced over at Steve, then quickly looked away. He cleared his throat, “Just remember what I said earlier. If anything goes wrong, you get yourself out and you get your sister.” 

Steve shook his head, “I’m not leaving without you.”

“Steve, it’s not your job to protect me. I’m going to do my damn best to make sure we both get out of here, but please just promise me that you’ll put yourself first. If anything-”

Steve cut him off, “I’m not leaving without you!” 

Before Hopper could protest, Steve’s radio went off. 

Murray’s voice came with static, “I’ve reached another junction.” 

Dustin’s voice quickly followed, “This is Scoops Troop. Is that you, Bald Eagle? Over.”

“Who else would it be?!” Murray responded, drawn out and irritated. 

“I don’t know. You didn’t use a callsign. And you’re still not saying ‘over’ over!” 

“This is Bald Eagle. I’ve reached another goddamn junction. Over!”

“Is this the fourth junction? Over.”

“Yes.”

“Fly right, Bald Eagle. Fly right. Over.” 

Murray shook his head, “Roger that, flying right.” He mumbled to himself, “Little shit.”

Hopper and Steve made it to the end of the hallway. It was eerily empty. There was not a Russian in sight. Steve climbed off of the cart, “The control room is right over there.” Hopper, of course, led the way, but they arrived at the control room without any problems. However, once they made it inside, they were met with a man sitting in front of the control panel. 

Hopper side-stepped in front of Steve, blocking him from view, and shot the man without hesitation, killing him instantly. 

Steve’s ears rang.

He couldn’t hear anything other than blood pumping through his body. He was underwater. He stared at the back of Hopper’s head with wide eyes. Hopper turned around, and they made eye contact. He placed his hand on the side of Steve’s head,

“Hey. Just look at me. Breathe.” Steve took a shaky breath. 

“Just focus on me, okay? We’re fine.” 

Steve silently nodded his head, still waiting for his heart rate to slow. Hopper took the radio from him. 

“Murray, we made it to the safe. What’s the code?” 

Before Murray could respond, Dustin’s voice loudly exclaimed, “We have callsigns for a reason! Over!”

“Jesus Christ,” Hopper mumbled. “Bald Eagle, this is Xavier Institute. Give me the code. Over.” 

“The key has been disabled. The code is 6-6-2-6-0-8-0-0-4.”

Hopper walked over to the safe and punched in the number. The safe beeped. “It didn’t work. Give it to me again.”

“6-6-2-6-0-8-0-0-4.”

Hopper once again punched in the numbers. Nothing. “Dammit.” 

Steve walked over, his ears had finally stopped ringing, “Let me try.” 

6-6-2-6-0-8-0-0-4

It didn’t work.

“Son of a bitch,” Hopper mumbled. He picked up the radio, “Your goddamn code is wrong.”

Murray sounded frazzled when he responded, “What? Are you sure?”

“I’m sure.”

Murray sighed, “The code is a number, a very famous number: Planck’s constant. I thought I knew it.”

Steve grabbed the radio out of Hopper’s hands, “Dustin, do you know Planck’s constant? Over.” 

Dustin responded, “Not by heart. And how many times do I have to tell you people to use your goddamn callsigns?!”

“Dammit!” Hopper turned to Steve, “Can you find it?”

Steve looked at him with wide eyes, “I don’t- I don’t know who would know it.”

Hopper placed a hand on Steve’s shoulder, “Take a breath. Think. A friend, a neighbor, a teacher-”

Steve nodded, “Mr. Clarke! Dustin’s old teacher. He’s gotta know it.” 

“Good, good. What do you need?”

“It needs to be dark.” 

Hopper quickly spun around the room looking for a light switch. There were none. Then his eyes fell on Steve. He pulled the little tie off of Steve’s neck and moved to hold it over Steve’s eyes, “Will this work?”

“Yeah.” Hopper securely tied it around the back of Steve’s head. He then momentarily shut off the radio so it would be quiet. 

Steve sat down on the floor and concentrated. It took him a minute to find Mr. Clarke and another minute to sift through his memories. 

“I found it.” 

Hopper quickly walked over to the safe, “I’m ready.”

“6-6-2-6-0-7-0-0-4.”

Hopper punched in the numbers. The safe beeped. It opened. Hopper sighed in relief, “It worked.” He quickly grabbed the keys and then the radio. 

He turned it back on and then held down the transmit button, saying, “We got the keys.” 

Murray responded, “Oh, thank god. Remember, you must turn the keys at precisely the same time, then run like hell.” 

Steve stood up and wiped his nose. He took one of the keys from Hopper. Hopper nodded, “On three.” 

They placed both of the keys into the slots. 

“One. 

Two.

Three”

They turned the keys. 

The machine opening the gate stopped.

They did it. 

And then the sirens started blaring. 

“Shit.”

Red lights flashed throughout the room in sequence with the sirens. 

“Why is the gate not closing?” 

Hopper turned around to find Steve staring at the gate. And no, it wasn’t closing. “God dammit.”

“I can close it.” 

“Kid-” 

“I can do it. We don’t really have much of a choice.”

Hopper reluctantly nodded because Steve was right. It had to be closed. “Okay, okay. Close it. I’ll keep watch.” 

Steve reached his hand out towards the gate, and he pulled. 

Hopper stood facing the door, gun up. 

Less than a minute later, Russians began to barge in, and Hopper did not hesitate to pull the trigger. He shot them without mercy, his parental instincts leaving nothing on his mind other than ‘protect Steve’.

Steve lifted his other arm out towards the gate and tried to close it faster. Blood had started falling out of both of his nostrils.

Hopper continued to shoot each person who tried to enter the room. The bang of each shot echoed throughout the small room. Bullet shells flew in every direction. They were winning. And then the gun stopped shooting. He did not even have to look to know that he was out of ammo. “Shit!”

Without even thinking, Hopper started to use the gun to knock out the Russians with blunt force as they attempted to enter the room. He hit each one of them as hard as he could with the gun. But there were too many. Hopper quickly found himself surrounded. He could not hold back the grunt that left his mouth when one of the Russians decked him right in the face. 

That caught the attention of Steve. “Shit!” 

With one arm still reaching towards the gate, Steve held the other out towards the Russians. He quickly shoved them away from Hopper. More and more people continued to run into the room. After Steve killed those men earlier in the day, he promised himself that he would never do it again. But with each man he shoved away, two more pushed back. I don’t have a choice. They’re going to kill Hopper. 

A scream left Steve’s mouth as he pushed harder towards both the gate and the men. He pushed harder than he ever had before in his life. He watched as the men slowly stilled. 

He pushed . 

He screamed .

And all of their skulls collapsed inward, crushing their brains and killing them instantly. Steve panted. He could feel blood dripping out of his ears, but he didn’t stop. The gate was almost closed. 

Hopper looked around at all of the dead men, mouth wide open in shock. 

Steve continued to pull. His vision started to go a little blurry, and the ringing returned to his ears. He was so close . Just as the gate closed completely, someone else walked into the room.

And Steve collapsed. 

Silence.

“-id!”           

“ -eve!” 

“-teve!”

“Steve!”

Steve’s eyes shot open. Hopper was standing over him. And somehow, Murray was also in the room? 

“Kid.” Hopper gently hit the side of his face a few times. They locked eyes. Hopper sighed in relief, “You okay?” 

Steve felt like he could close his eyes and fall asleep forever right there on the floor. He was so tired. I’m ready to go home now. 

“Mmhhhhhmmm.” 

“Hey, no,” Hopper gently hit his cheek again, “Open your eyes. You gotta stay awake.” 

When Steve opened his eyes, Murray was also leaning over him. 

Murray glanced over at Hopper, “What happened to him?”

“He’s drained.” 

“I mean the whole,” Murray gestured to his face. Hopper gently swiped his thumb under Steve’s eye. When he pulled it away, it was coated in red. 

Oh. 

Steve started to drift back out of conscience. 

Distantly, he heard Murray say, “Jim, we’ve got to go.”

And then Steve felt strong arms gently pick him up and rest him over a shoulder. Steve stopped fighting to stay awake. He let himself slowly drift away. He was so tired. I know Hopper will protect me.