It was Tuesday night, and Mike was finally in Hawkins. He and Stephen had stayed the night at some hotels the past few days, but the rest was nonstop driving. He smiled as they turned down the street where Nancy's house was.

"You know, I'm really gonna miss you working in my store.. and company." Stephen said. Mike laughed a bit as he turned to look at him.

"Hey, you'll find someone new." Mike responded. Stephen nodded.

"Visit sometime, okay?" He said. Mike nodded.

"Sure." He responded. Stephen held up his fist, and Mike fist-bumped it in return. They both laughed as Stephen stopped in front of Nancy's house.

"This the place?" He asked. Mike nodded before quickly getting out of the car. He ran up the driveway and to the door before knocking. A few seconds later, Nancy was opening it. She smiled as she saw Mike before pulling him in for a tight hug.

"God, I missed you so much!" Mike said. Nancy nodded into his shoulder before pulling away.

"You got your stuff?" Nancy asked. Mike nodded toward the car where Stephen was getting boxes out of the back.

"That's Stephen." Mike replied. Nancy nodded.

"Looks just how you described him." She said before turning back to Mike and pulling him in for another hug. He hugged back before they both pulled away with smiles. "I missed you a lot."

"Me too." Mike said. Nancy's eyes widened a bit.

"Oh yeah! Your car's in the garage. Will returned it the day after he used it." Nancy responded. Mike nodded as he looked down a bit before looking back up at Nancy.

"Thanks." He started. Nancy nodded with a slight smile. Mike smiled back before looking toward Stephen's pickup truck. "I'm gonna go help him." Nancy nodded.

"I'll help too." She said. They went to the car, Mike grabbing boxes as Nancy introduced herself to Stephen and thanked him. Soon they were putting the boxes in what was going to be Mike's room. And then soon enough they were walking Stephen to his car. "Are you sure you don't want to stay for coffee or something?"

"Nah." Stephen replied before sighing slightly. "I need to hit the road." Nancy nodded.

"Bye, Stephen.. and thanks for everything." Mike said. Stephen smiled slightly before pulling Mike in for a hug.

"Bye, kid. Good luck." Stephen started. Mike smiled as he pulled away from the hug before watching Stephen get into his truck. "Update me when you can, okay?" Mike nodded.

"Got it." Mike responded. Stephen gave a slight nod before starting his car and waving before driving off. Nancy put a hand on Mike's shoulder with a sigh.

"Let's get you inside." She said. Mike nodded as they smiled at each other before heading into Nancy's house. It was smaller compared to the Wheeler household, but also pretty big for being only one story. Mike looked around as they went inside, following Nancy as they headed to the kitchen. It was different than the last time he had seen it, and he definitely saw more of Nancy's style along with slight influences from Robin. He smiled to himself, feeling more at home than ever. Nancy poured them coffee as Mike sat down at the table. "Oh yeah, I talked with the principal. He said since you were already registered you can start school as soon as you want, you just have to visit him first to get a schedule set up."

"Really?" Mike asked. Nancy nodded as she put some sugar and creamer into the coffee.

"I got you some stuff you might need... it's on your desk." Nancy started as she put a mug in front of Mike before sitting across from him with her mug placed in front of her. Mike smiled.

"Of course I don't mind.. but you didn't have to." Mike responded before taking a sip of his coffee. Nancy shrugged.

"You're my brother. And if you're gonna live here for a while, I want to look after you." Nancy said. Mike nodded before frowning.

"Thanks, by the way. I know this is.. not ideal." Mike responded. Nancy sighed.

"It's fine, Mike. Especially after what dad did to you." Nancy said. Mike looked down a bit, a loud silence filling the room.

"Have you... talked to them at all?" Mike asked after a few seconds. Nancy shook her head.

"Not since Steve beat dad up after we heard what happened." Nancy replied. Mike's eyes widened a bit.

"Steve.. what?!" Mike asked. Nancy laughed a bit.

"You didn't hear about it? I didn't tell you?" Nancy responded. Mike smiled a bit, confusion still lingering on his face.

"No?" He said.

"It was really intense.. and kind of awesome honestly. It was like something straight out of a movie." Nancy started as Mike listened intently. "Me, Jonathan, Robin, and your friends had to follow him in my van, Hopper showed up a few seconds later, he had to arrest him.. it was.. something."

"Wow. I.. missed a lot." Mike responded. Nancy nodded before sighing.

"Yeah but.. that was the last time I've spoken a word to them though." Nancy said. Mike nodded with a frown.

"Is Holly okay?" Mike asked. Nancy nodded.

"From what I've heard yeah." Nancy replied, "Erica babysits her now.. but not for free like I used to." Mike nodded before sighing.

"Sometimes... I wonder what would've happened if I never said anything. You know?" Mike responded. Nancy sighed as she reached across the table, placing her hand on top of Mike's.

"Well.. you did, and it was incredibly brave." Nancy said. Mike looked up at her with a slight smile. Nancy smiled back before Mike sighed.

"Hey uh..weird question, but.. could you cut my hair? Like just trim it a little bit?" Mike asked. Nancy laughed a bit.

"Yeah, it is getting kind of long.. isn't it?" Nancy responded. They both laughed a bit before taking sips of their coffees.

"I was thinking maybe... Thursday for school? So I can unpack and stuff." Mike said. Nancy nodded.

"Sounds like a plan." Nancy responded before her eyes widened. "Oh! I forgot! I made spaghetti, you're probably hungry, right?" Mike nodded.

"Yeah." He said. Nancy nodded as she got up.

"I'll go get you some." Nancy responded as she headed toward the fridge. Mike watched her before he smiled to himself, feeling at home.

•••

Will sat on the couch, flipping through different channels before the front door opened.

"Bye, Max!" El said with a wave as she closed the door before turning to Will.

"How was school?" Will asked. El shrugged as she sat on the couch next to him, putting her bag on the couch next to her before leaning back as she looked at the ceiling.

"Boring. As usual. I can't believe it's only Wednesday." El replied. Will laughed a bit.

"Hopefully it becomes less boring.. more exciting." Will responded. El nodded.

"Speaking of more exciting, Dustin is having a party on Friday." El said. Will looked at her.

"Really? Why?" He asked. El shrugged.

"His mom is gonna be out of the house." She replied before a slight smile appeared on her face. "Anyways... I was wondering if you'd.. maybe want to come?" Will sighed.

"I don't know.." He responded with a frown.

"Come on, it'll be fun!" El said.

"I'm just.. not really in the mood to party." Will responded. El sighed.

"At least drive me there." El said.

"So.. you can eventually just drag me into the party anyways?" Will asked with a knowing look. El smiled with a nod.

"Exactly." El replied. Will laughed a bit before sighing.

"Fine. But I'm only driving you. Okay?" Will asked.

"And pick me up before curfew as well?" El responded. Will nodded.

"Got it." Will replied. El nodded before they both looked at the TV.

"Did you... hear from Mike again?" El asked suddenly. Will sighed before shaking his head.

"Nope." He replied. El nodded before sighing as she looked at Will again.

"You okay?" El asked. Will looked at her before nodding.

"I.. think so. Yeah." Will replied, just staring at the TV again with a blank expression. El just frowned before looking at the TV again.

"Okay. Well, that's good." El said, obviously not really believing him. Will looked at her before just looking back at the TV in silence. Deep down he wasn't okay, and he knew that. He hadn't felt whole for months, and now that he had ended things he felt that more than ever. He knew it was the best thing for him to do in that moment, he knew that more than anything. But deep down be wished things had been different. He looked at El again.

"Uh... I'm probably not gonna go to school tomorrow.. or Friday." Will started, El turning her attention to him. "I just figured if I'm allowed to have a break then I might as well take it.. you know?" El nodded with a slight smile.

"Yeah, you deserve it." El started, "Also you had no homework today, I checked."

"Thanks." Will responded with a slight smile. El nodded again.

"No problem." El said as she got up. "I'm gonna go get changed, and then maybe we can watch a movie or something. Sound good?" Will nodded.

"Got it." Will responded with a slight smile before watching as El went upstairs. He then frowned, crossing his arms against himself as he looked down.

•••

Mike felt nothing but anxiety pulse through him as he pulled into the parking lot of Hawkins High School. He tapped his steering wheel nervously, starting to regret this a lot. But it was now or never. He needed to say a lot of apologies, and he needed to say them soon. He sat there for a few seconds before he saw two familiar faces getting out of a car. Lucas and Darren. This was a perfect opportunity. He always went to Lucas for advice, and more than anyone he needed to talk to him, and Darren was also pretty good at advice. He took a deep breath as he grabbed his bag and got out of his car, locking his door and putting his keys in his pocket before he stood there for a few seconds, not knowing what to do next, but he didn't have to do anything. They stopped when they noticed him, Lucas's eyes widening as the two just stared at him. They looked at him in disbelief for a few seconds before Mike just waved with an awkward smile, and that's when a wide smile formed on Lucas's face.

"Holy shit!" He said as he ran up to Mike, pulling him in for a tight hug. Mike hugged back with a smile.

"Hi, Lucas." Mike responded as Lucas pulled away from him, continuing to look at him in disbelief. Lucas lightly punched his arm.

"Dude, you like.. disappeared for months! But now you're here!" Lucas said excitedly. Mike sighed.

"Yeah... sorry about that." Mike responded. Lucas nodded with a slight laugh before pulling him into another hug and pulling away again. He looked at Darren, who was still staring in disbelief and put an arm around him.

"Oh yeah, this is my boyfriend by the way. You two have met." Lucas said a bit quieter with a wide smile as Mike's eyes widened and Darren lightly elbowed him with a look of slight embarrassment.

"Seriously?" Mike said with a slight smile. Darren nodded.

"Long story." Darren responded before sighing with a slight smile as Lucas pulled him closer. Mike smiled.

"That's.. incredible actually. For how long?" Mike asked.

"About four months and counting." Lucas replied.

"Wow.. did El and Max ever..?" Mike asked.

"Yup." Darren replied. Mike smiled before looking down a bit with a sigh.

"I.. really missed a lot." Mike said. Lucas sighed as he put his hand on Mike's shoulder.

"Don't worry, you'll catch up." Lucas started before frowning. "We missed you.. all of us. Like a lot."

"Likewise." Mike responded. The three smiled before Lucas pulled them both into a group hug. After a few seconds they pulled away, and Lucas smiled widely.

"Come on, Dustin's usually the first at our spot. He's gonna lose his shit when he sees you!" Lucas said as he returned his arm around Darren.

"In a good way or a bad way?" Mike asked as Lucas grabbed his arm and began pulling him to what Mike assumed was their spot.

"We'll see." Lucas replied with a slight smile. They all laughed a bit before Mike just smiled to himself. Soon they were turning a corner to a spot behind the school, and sure enough, Dustin was there, leaning on the wall and reading what looked like a history book.

"Look who we found!" Darren said. Dustin looked up from his book before his eyes widened as he dropped his book in typical dramatized Dustin fashion.

"Oh.. my God.." He started as a slight smile formed on his face. "Oh my God!" He repeated as he walked up to Mike and pulled him in for a hug. Mike smiled as he hugged back before Dustin pulled away, a look of shock on his face. "Is this.. real?" Mike nodded.

"Yeah.. I think I'm real." Mike responded. Dustin laughed loudly as he pulled Mike in for another hug.

"It's like my son's come home from war." Dustin whispered dramatically. Mike looked at Lucas and Darren in confusion, who looked just as confused. He turned back to Dustin as he pulled away.

"Thanks?" He responded.

"Where are you living now? How.. is this possible?" Dustin asked.

"I'm living with my sister now." Mike replied.

"Nance? Seriously?" Dustin asked. Mike nodded before sighing.

"Yeah.. I figured you guys heard about the whole thing with my... dad." Mike replied.

"Yeah.. we did." Lucas said. Dustin nodded.

"And we were there when Steve beat him up.. you heard about that right?" Dustin asked. Mike smiled a bit.

"Yeah, I did." Mike replied. Dustin laughed a bit before sighing.

"Wow.. it's been.. so long." Dustin said. Mike nodded with a slight frown.

"And I'm really sorry it has been... seriously I should've kept in touch." Mike responded. Dustin nodded.

"Yeah.. it did kind of suck not hearing from you. But you're okay, that's all that matters." Dustin said. Mike nodded before sighing as he leaned on the wall next to Lucas and Darren.

"Is Will okay? I heard about him getting.. beaten up." Mike asked. Dustin shrugged.

"We haven't seen him since Monday, and he only came that day to take a test. But from what El's said, he's fine." Dustin replied. Mike nodded, crossing his arms against himself.

"Mike?" He suddenly heard El's voice say. He turned to see El standing next to Max as they both just stared at him.

"..Hi." He said awkwardly as El began to walk up to him.

"You're back?" Max asked. Mike just sighed before nodding.

"Who are you living with? How have you been?" El asked as she pulled him in for a hug.

"Nancy. And I'm okay." Mike responded as he pulled away. El continued to stare at him in shock for a few seconds.

"Why'd you.. come back?" El asked.

"Yeah, we thought you weren't going to." Max added. Mike shrugged.

"I guess I had.. sort of a wake-up call.. plus I missed everyone a lot." Mike started before sighing. "I'm really sorry for not contacting anyone for a while by the way." El sighed.

"It's okay.. we were all worried about you. All of us." El said.

"For a while, I thought you died to be honest." Max added jokingly. Mike laughed a bit.

"Great to see you too, Max." Mike responded.

"When did you get here?" El asked.

"Tuesday night." Mike replied. El nodded a bit.

"And.. you're already going to school again?" El asked with a slight laugh.

"Yup." Mike responded. Everyone laughed a bit.

"Impulsive." El started with a sigh, "It's really great to see you, Mike. Seriously." Mike smiled.

"It's great to see.. all of you." Mike started before looking at his watch with a sigh. "But.. I really need to get my schedule."

"I'll walk you.. we need to talk." El responded, her expression getting a bit more serious. Mike nodded, noticing the change in tone but expecting it.

"Hey, you should sit with us at lunch." Max said suddenly.

"Yeah, totally." Dustin added. Mike nodded.

"I'll be sure to." Mike responded before following El from behind the school as they made their way to the front entrance.

"Mike, I heard about.. the break-up." El said. Mike looked at her as he put his hands in his pockets, looking down a bit.

"Yeah.. I figured you did." Mike responded. El sighed.

"You get why he.. did it though. Don't you?" El asked. Mike nodded.

"Of course, I mean.. I hurt him." Mike replied. El nodded a bit before sighing.

"Yeah.. but that's not what I wanted to talk about.." El started before turning to Mike, stopping him. "There was a time.. I think about two months after you left.. where he just shut down. It wasn't your fault really.. he was being constantly harassed at work, he got barely any sleep because of work and school, and.. I don't know it just all weighed down on him."

"Shut down?" Mike asked, concern in his tone.

"He didn't talk to anyone for a month, Mike. When he was off of work he was constantly in his room.. and I'm pretty sure he skipped most meals." El started as Mike just listened. "And when I finally got him to talk to me.. he broke down. I'll never forget that."

"Is he.. doing okay now?" Mike asked. El frowned a bit.

"He got better after that.. he talked to people more and seemed a tiny bit happier. But he still is sort of cut off and he just.. isn't really himself anymore. After he got beat up and that coworker got fired he's been a bit happier, but I can still tell he's not okay." El replied as she crossed her arms against herself. "What I'm getting at here is... I feel like he genuinely doesn't like himself anymore." Mike frowned a bit as El sighed.

"Look.. I really didn't intend to hurt him. He is.. the most important person in the world to me." Mike said. El nodded.

"I know that, and I can tell you really care about him, but that's why I'm telling you this." El started, "He's going to see you soon.. eventually.. and I think more than anything you both need to talk.. like a lot." Mike sighed.

"What if he doesn't want to talk to me?" Mike asked.

"Then you give him time, okay?" El responded. Mike nodded.

"Thanks, El." Mike said as they continued to walk. El nodded.

"Are you okay?" El started, "I mean.. what happened with your dad was.. rough." Mike sighed.

"Not really.. I'm kind of scared to be here actually." Mike responded. El nodded.

"Yeah, that's understandable." El started, "I'm always here if you need to talk, you know?" Mike nodded.

"Yeah, I know. And thanks." Mike started before slightly smiling as he began to change the subject. "Oh yeah, you and Max?" He watched as blush crept to her cheeks.

"Oh, you heard?" She asked with a hint of embarrassment.

"Yup. How'd that work out?" Mike asked. El smiled.

"She sang me 'Songbird'." El replied. Mike's eyes widened a bit.

"By Fleetwood Mac?" Mike asked. El nodded.

"Yes. It was.. romantic." El replied with a soft smile. Mike smiled back.

"That's.. awesome!" Mike responded. They both laughed a bit as they entered the building.

•••

Will sat at the dinner table with his family, picking at his food as he, his mom, and Hopper all talked about various things. But El was being way quieter than usual, and that worried Will. Usually, she would be the most talkative out of anyone, especially after a full day of school. It was weird. Will sighed as he turned to her.

"So.. how was school today?" Will asked. El looked at him.

"It was okay.. why do you ask?" El responded.

"Well.. you've been super quiet since you got home." Will replied.

"Yeah, usually you talk more. What's up, sweetie?" Joyce asked. El sighed as she looked at Joyce and then back at Will.

"Um.. Mike is back. He came to school today." El replied. Will froze a bit.

"Really? When did he come back?" Hopper