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What is “friend?”
Is she serious? Um, a friend…
Is someone that you'd do anything for.
You lend them your cool stuff, like comic books and trading cards.
And they never break a promise.
It was hot.
So hot, that the group of Eleven, Lucas, Will and Mike were all gathered in Mike’s basement; Mike on the couch, a pillow on his lap with El’s head resting on it. Lucas and Will sat on the floor in front of the rotating fan. Dustin, their absent friend, was away at science camp, returning tomorrow.
“Should we go and get ice cream?” Lucas suggested.
“I don’t want to go outside,” Will said.
“We might have some popsicles upstairs,” Mike said. Glancing down at the girl in his lap, he asked, “What do you think, El?”
She shrugged. “I’m not hungry.”
It had been an uneventful summer, for the most part. Dustin had been off at camp for the past two weeks, Will was taking an art class at the library, and Lucas had started doing a paper route.
Except for a week in July when Mike had gone off to Ohio to visit family (and Eleven had begged Hopper to let her go-which he hadn’t), it had been an uneventful summer for Mike and Eleven. There were a lot of lazy days like this one, enjoying each other’s company with and without their other friends present, and just enjoying being boyfriend and girlfriend.
“When does Dustin get back?” Mike asked.
“Tomorrow,” Lucas reminded.
“No, I know that, I mean, like, what time does he come back? In the morning, the afternoon…”
“The afternoon,” Lucas said. “You gonna get those popsicles?”
Mike started to rise, but felt himself unable to. El looked at him with pouty lips, a spot of blood under her nose. “I’m comfortable ,” she said.
Lucas rolled his eyes. “Oh my gosh.”
“Just a few more minutes, then,” Mike said, using his sleeve to wipe away El’s blood.
“Maybe we could all go and get ice cream tomorrow,” Will suggested, sighing in joy as the fan turned his way, blowing his hair up behind his ears. After it rotated, he continued, “You know, as like a welcome back for Dustin.”
“I could use some ice cream right now,” Lucas said as the fan landed in his direction.
“I have tutoring,” El said quietly.
“What?” Lucas asked.
“I have tutoring tomorrow,” she said, a little louder.
Although Eleven was set to start school with the boys soon, she still did tutoring a few times a week; now with Joyce Byers.
“Crap, and I have to babysit Holly,” Mike said.
“Well, what time will you guys be done?” Lucas asked.
“Noon,” El said.
Mike shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Dustin doesn’t get back until, like, four or something, his dad said. So we should be okay.” Lucas looked behind him at Mike. “Popsicles?”
Mike looked down at El. She sighed, and sat up, allowing Mike to stand. “Be right back,” he said over his shoulder as he climbed the stairs.
Coming back with the box, he tossed an orange one to Will, a red one to Lucas, a pink one to El, and kept the last one, grape, for himself.
They group eventually settled on watching Dune while they sucked on their popsicles. When the film finished, they decided it was time to call it a day.
The kids stepped outside, and Lucas, Will, and Eleven picked up their bikes. Eleven walked hers back to Mike.
Their lengthy goodbyes were becoming a thing of ridicule with the other boys, as the two would spend so many minutes whispering to each other, holding hands and making their friends roll their eyes.
“Just kiss already!” Lucas called from the street. Will, riding in circles around Lucas, laughed.
“Shut up,” Mike called back, taking El’s hand. “I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”
She smiled at him, and nodded her head.
She brought herself closer, and the two shared a kiss.
“Bye,” she whispered.
“Bye,” he said back, blushing.
“Oh my gosh, are you guys done yet?” Lucas called.
This time Mike rolled his eyes. Eleven gave Mike one more kiss, just to make Lucas madder.
The three then biked home, Mike watching them go.
***
The next day, after his mother returned from her appointment and he was free from babysitting Holly, Mike biked next door to Lucas’ house. Together, they biked a few houses down to the Henderson home. Will had given his blessing for the boys to visit Dustin without him, as he and El would catch up with them later in the day.
Upon arriving, Lucas rang the bell as the two boys waited anxiously for their friend. When Dustin opened the door, however, they could immediately tell something was off.
“Hey, guys,” Dustin said, stepping outside and closing the front door behind him. Dustin, like the other boys, had had a small growth spurt during summer break; his voice had also begun to drop down an octave. Unlike the other boys, he had lost a few pounds and his teeth had finally come in, as well. These reasons alone (along with science camp) should’ve been enough to have Dustin smiling his signature grin all around Hawkins.
But today he seemed upset. He was avoiding his friends’ eyes as he looked at his feet. Mike could’ve sworn his hair had lost a few curls in sadness.
“Uh...what’s wrong?” Lucas asked.
“Nothing,” Dustin said, shaking his head.
“You lose your hat?” Mike asked.
“No,” Dustin, suddenly realizing he didn’t have his hat on his head. “Hold on.” He went back into the house, leaving Mike and Lucas outside.
Glancing at Lucas, Mike asked, “What do you think’s wrong with him?”
Lucas shrugged. “Beats me.”
They then heard Dustin’s steps as he galloped down his stairs, emerging from the house.
“What do you guys want to do?” Dustin asked. Then, mentally counting his friends, he asked, “Where’s Will and Eleven?”
“Will’s got his art class, and El’s being tutored,” Mike answered.
“Oh.” Dustin shrugged his shoulders as the boys walked towards the bikes. “So. What do you want to do?”
“Dustin?” Lucas asked, stopping in his tracks. “Seriously, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Dustin said, picking up his bike.
Mike and Lucas exchanged glances. They, too, picked up their bikes as the trio discussed where to go.
***
A few blocks away, Joyce and Eleven had finished their tutoring. Although Eleven was eager to meet up with her friends, Joyce had been able to talk her into joining her on an errand. Eleven loved the boys (especially one in particular) but it was nice to spend time with Joyce and Nancy, to get some girl time. So the two had gotten into Joyce’s Pinto and headed into town.
“Where are we going?” Eleven asked as they arrived in a neighborhood she was unfamiliar with.
“There was a woman who came to the store yesterday,” Joyce said as she drove slowly down the street, eyes scanning the numbers on houses. “She’d said she just moved in with her kids, and she seemed overwhelmed. I wanted to see if I could help.”
“Overwhelmed?”
Joyce glanced at Eleven, and smiled. “She had a lot of things to do. Ah. Here she is.”
They parked in front of a small green and brown house. Joyce pulled something from the backseat (she’d called it a “welcome basket”) and the two climbed out of the car. Eleven thought the house looked nicer than Joyce’s, but not as nice as Mike or Lucas’. As they climbed out, she noticed the woman in the driveway that was going through the back of a car, in search of something.
“Hello,” Joyce called as the two got closer. The woman spun around, a look of surprise on her face. It softened when she saw who it was.
“Hi! Joy, right?” She pushed some of her red hair behind an ear.
Joyce smiled. “Joyce. I wanted to check on you, see how things were going.”
“That’s so sweet of you, thanks,” the woman said, walking over and taking the basket from Joyce. Glancing at Eleven, she said, “Hello.”
“Hi,” El said quietly.
“This is El,” Joyce said. “She’s a friend of my son’s.”
The woman nodded. “Nice to meet you. I actually have a daughter who’s about your age, she’s…”
There was a rumble as a car swerved around the corner, the sudden noise making Eleven jump. The three women turned as a black Camaro roared down the street, rock music blasting, and parked in front of the house. Joyce and Eleven looked taken aback; the woman just rolled her eyes.
The doors of the car opened, and two people got out: a boy, that looked to be the same age as Jonathan and Nancy; and a girl, with hair just as red as her mother’s.
“Dammit, Billy,” the woman said. “What’ve I asked you about blaring your music, and driving around like a maniac?”
The boy just grinned, as he popped open his trunk. “I got the groceries.”
“Well, take them inside, then,” the woman said. Turning to her daughter, she said, “Max, help him.”
The girl, Max, glanced at Eleven, and the two appeared to size each other up. Looking away after a moment, Max took a bag of groceries from the trunk and walked with her brother into the house.
***
Blocks away, Dustin, Lucas, and Mike ended up parked outside of the Hawkins Library, as they awaited Will to finish his art class.
The ride over had been filled with talks about what Dustin had missed during his time away, as well as some of the things Dustin had done while at camp.
To Mike and Lucas, something still felt off with their friend. Science camp was one of Dustin’s favorite things, and each year he’d gone he’d returned with amazing stories. But today when he’d told them about some of the activities he’d done, he wasn’t as excited as he usually was.
Parking their bikes, the boys sat on a bench across from the library; Dustin in the middle, Mike and Lucas at his sides. The three boys sat in silence for a moment, until Lucas decided enough was enough.
“Spill it, Dustin,” he said.
“Huh?” Dustin asked, glancing up.
“What’s going on with you?”
“Nothing,” Dustin said, looking back across the street.
“Seriously, Dustin?” Mike asked.
“What?” Dustin said, shrugging his shoulders.
“You’ve been acting all...depressed since we saw you,” Lucas said.
“No I haven’t!”
“Yeah, you have,” Mike said.
“What is it, did you meet a girl or something at camp?” Lucas asked.
“No,” Dustin said, looking at the ground.
“Did you wet the bed again, like last year?” Mike asked, barely able to hold back a chuckle.
“ No ,” Dustin said, his face turning pink.
“Then what is it?” Lucas demanded.
Sighing, Dustin leaned forward, his arms on his legs. “My dad got a job offer. It’s in Indianapolis.”
“Oh,” Mike said. “So you might…”
“Be moving, yeah,” Dustin said, looking down at his feet.
“That sucks,” Lucas said. Across the street, the library doors opened, and Will came out. Seeing his three friends immediately, he smiled and began heading their way.
“Do you know for sure, or…” Lucas asked.
“Not yet,” Dustin responded, shaking his head. “He’s going in for another interview this weekend. They told me on the drive back from camp.”
“Hey, guys,” Will said, walking his bike over to them. Seeing the somber mood his friends were in, he frowned, and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Sighing, Dustin told him.
***
At the new woman’s house, everyone had gone inside. Eleven watched at the table as the family put the groceries away. Eventually finishing, the mother (Rachel) and Joyce sat at the table, Joyce telling her little facts about the town. Billy had wandered away down the hallway, likely to his room, while the girl, Max, had gone outside.
Noticing Eleven sitting alone, Joyce told her to go out and talk to Max. Eleven nervously got up and went outside.
When she got out in front of the house, she didn’t see Max at first. But after a moment, she heard wheels scraping the asphalt, and over some tall hedges in front of the house, saw red hair come rolling down the sidewalk.
Eleven watched as Max rode something into the driveway, and jumped off, glancing at El.
“What’s that?” Eleven asked, looking at what Max had jumped off of; it appeared to be a board with wheels on it.
Max looked down at it, then looked at El with a look of disbelief. “Really? It’s a skateboard.”
“Skateboard?” Eleven asked, trying out the word. “Cool.”
“Yeah,” Max said, picking up her skateboard and walking over to El. “I’m Max.”
“I’m El,” she responded, smiling shyly.
Max nodded. “So are there, like, other kids in this town, or what?”
El nodded happily. “My friends.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yes. Will, Dustin, Lucas, and Mike.”
Max nodded again. “What do you guys do for fun?”
El thought a moment, then answered with “We go to the Palace…”
Max raised an eyebrow. “What’s that?”
“An….” she couldn’t remember the word, “An arbade.”
“Uh...do you mean an arcade?”
El nodded again.
“That’s cool.”
“And they like to play Dungeons and Dragons.”
“Wow, really? That’s actually..I’ve never played that.” Max noticed that El had her eyes on the skateboard. “You wanna try?”
“Um…” El said, getting nervous, “Sure.”
“It’s easy, you’ll see,” Max said, putting the board onto the ground. “You just twist your body in the way you want to go.” Hopping on, Max maneuvered her way down the driveway, turning herself back when she got to the end, then pushing herself back to El. Getting off, she nodded at the board. “You try.”
Eleven hesitantly put one foot on, then another, then felt her heart jump as she slowly slid down the driveway. She twisted to get it to turn, but nothing happened, and she just rolled into the street.
Max was laughing as she made her way to her, causing El to blush. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” Max said when she got to the street. “It’s just...you looked so funny.”
Feeling embarrassed, El got off the board, and began walking back towards the house.
“Hey, hey,” Max said, stepping in front of Eleven. “I’m sorry. I won’t laugh at you again.”
“Promise?” Eleven asked, her cheeks still red.
“Yeah, sure,” Max said. “I promise.” Holding up her board, she asked, “Try again? I’ll help you this time.”
Although she was reluctant, Eleven nodded, and the two walked back up the driveway.
***
The boys, meanwhile, had rode their bikes to Mike’s home as they waited for Eleven to join the group. The mood was dour as the boys sat in the Wheeler’s living room, the TV playing but none of them really paying attention to what was on. Mike sat in the Lay-Z Boy, with the other boys sitting on the couch.
“When is El supposed to be getting here?” Lucas asked as a Coca-Cola commercial played.
Mike shrugged. “I dunno. I thought she’d be done by now.” The group was supposed to get ice cream.
“Your parents never said anything about moving before?” Will asked Dustin.
Shaking his head, Dustin said “They did, but my dad never said it was in Indianapolis.” Taking off his hat, he said, “I’m gonna have to start at a new school, meet new people….”
“Maybe he won’t get the job,” Mike offered, hopefully.
“I don’t know, my dad’s pretty smart,” Dustin said. Standing up, he left the room to use the bathroom.
“Guys, what’re we going to do?” Lucas asked Mike and Will.
“There’s nothing we can do,” Mike said. “It’s not like we can stop them from moving.”
“Well, then, let’s do something nice for him,” Will suggested.
“We don’t even know if he’s going or not,” Lucas said.
They heard a knock at the door, and Mike jumped up, going to answer it. He came back a moment later, El by his side just as Dustin re-entered the room. El and Dustin hugged, and the group prepared to go get ice cream.
Minutes later, after getting their cones, the group sat at a table under a tree.
Mike, sitting next to El, went to hold her hand under the table, but his hand brushed her leg, making contact with something. Glancing under the table, he was surprised to see a scab on her knee.
“El, what happened?” The other boys looked up, confused.
Eleven looked at what he was referencing, and smiled. “I learned how to skate cord.”
Lucas raised an eyebrow. “Do you mean, skateboard ?”
She nodded happily.
“Where?” Will asked.
So Eleven told them about going with Joyce to meet the family that’d just moved to Hawkins, and how the girl, Max, had spent some time teaching El to skateboard.
“That’s cool,” Mike said when she finished.
“I told her she can come over some time,” El added. “I want her to meet you,” she said to everyone.
As she said this, she noticed Dustin lower his head as he took a bite from his mint chocolate chip. Looking at the other boys, she saw the melancholy looks on their faces, too.
“Mike?” she asked.
Sighing, he said, “Dustin may be moving to another city.”
Her eyes widened. “Why?”
“My dad, he may be getting a job in Indianapolis,” Dustin told her.
“But you can’t move,” she pleaded. “I don’t want you to.”
“ None of us do, El,” Mike told her.
“But if his dad gets the job, then he gets the job,” Lucas said, glumly.
El sighed sadly.
***
After eating, the group rode home, with plans to meet the next day. Mike rode Eleven home.
“I don’t want Dustin to leave,” she told Mike.
“I don’t either,” he said, “But we can’t really do anything about it. We’re just going to have to see what happens.”
She nodded, and the two rode on. When they arrived at Hopper’s trailer, Mike walked Eleven to the door.
“ You won’t ever move, will you?” she asked him.
Taking her hand in his, he said, “Of course not, El. And if my parents ever tried to move us, I’d take you with me.”
She smiled, then leaned close and the two shared a kiss.
“I love you,” she whispered as they pulled apart.
Smiling, he responded, “I love you, too, El. I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?”
She nodded, and was about to go inside, when she turned back around.
“El?” Mike asked.
“When Joyce and I went to see Max’s family, Joyce took a care package. Maybe we could make one for Dustin? About things in Hawkins?”
Mike smiled, his eyes widening. “El, that’s a great idea! I’ll tell the guys.”
She grinned, kissed his cheek, and went inside.
Mike rushed home, eager to tell Lucas and Will.
***
The next day, Eleven invited Max to go with she and Mike to pick up some things for Dustin. Eleven rode her bike to Max’s home; Max rode her skateboard next to Eleven while the two headed downtown to meet Mike.
El told her of Dustin’s predicament, and what they were trying to do.
“That’s cool,” Max said.
El smiled. She liked Max. It was nice having another girl as a friend (is that what they were?), especially one who was close to her own age. She also liked that Max didn’t seem like some of the girls Mike had told her about at school; mean and catty.
On the ride downtown, Eleven told Max more information about her friends. Max could tell, the way that Eleven talked about one boy in particular, that there was something going on between the two of them. Eleven didn’t tell her everything ; Hopper had warned her about telling too much.
“Your dad is the chief of police?” Max asked as they neared downtown. “That is so awesome!”
“Uh, thanks?” El responded.
“You could get away with anything!”
El shrugged her shoulders.
When they finally arrived at the Sears downtown, the two girls saw Mike waiting outside for them.
“That’s Mike?” Max whispered with a grin on her face.
“Yes,” El said, smiling.
“He’s kind of cute, does he have a girlfriend?”
Eleven immediately stopped pedaling, and looked seriously at Max. “No.”
“He doesn’t? Well, then…”
“No,” Eleven repeated. “Mike is...mine. My boyfriend.”
Max chuckled, not thinking El would take it so seriously. “I’m just kidding, El. I know.”
Eleven relaxed a little bit. “You knew?”
“ Please . The way you talk about him, it’s so obvious. C’mon.”
The two continued their ride to Sears. El introduced Mike to Max, and the three kids entered the store.
“Why’d you guys stop?” Mike asked.
Taking his hand, El whispered, “I’ll tell you later.”
The trio walked around the store until they found the perfect thing for Dustin.
***
Two days later, it was business as usual for Dustin. He woke up, got dressed, and ate breakfast with his parents. The only thing different about today was that his father would find out if he got the job in Indianapolis.
“Things will be fine, Dustin,” his dad told him on his way out. “No matters what happens.”
Sighing, Dustin got his favorite hat and decided to bike over to Mike’s, to see what the group would be doing today.
But when he knocked on the door, Mrs. Wheeler told him he just missed Mike.
“Well, do you know where he is?” Dustin asked.
“I think he went to see Lucas,” she said.
Nodding, Dustin went a little ways down to the Sinclair’s home, but he didn’t see their bikes out front. Nevertheless, he knocked on the door. Mrs. Sinclair said the same thing as Mrs. Wheeler, that Lucas had just left with Mike. When Dustin asked where they’d gone, Mrs. Sinclair shrugged her shoulders, saying she didn’t know.
He debated going over to Chief Hopper’s, thinking maybe they had gone over there to see El; but Hopper wasn’t a big fan of having the kids over, so that seemed less than likely. So he biked to the Byers. When he arrived, it was the same thing; no Will, and no El being tutored. In fact, no one was home.
Dejected, he biked home, figuring he’d just play some video games until his dad came home with the news.
When he arrived home, however, he was surprised to see Lucas, Eleven, Will, and Mike sitting out front.
“Where were you?” Lucas asked as Dustin climbed off his bike.
“Where were you ?” Dustin asked. “I went to all of your houses, and you weren’t there.”
“We were here, waiting for you,” Mike said as the group stood up.
“Did you find out anything, yet?” Will asked.
Dustin shook his head.
“Well...we don’t want you to move,” Mike said, “But if you do, we got something for you, to help you remember us.” Mike nodded at Lucas, who brought a basket from behind his back.
“What’s that?” Dustin asked, walking closer and curiously looking at the basket.
“It’s a care package,” Eleven said. “About us.”
“And about Hawkins,” Mike said.
Smiling his signature smile, Dustin took the basket from Lucas and examined its contents. Inside were drawings from Will, Lucas’ wrist rocket, Nilla Wafers from El, and a new compass from Mike. There were also numerous photos of the group.
“You guys, seriously?!” Dustin said in excitement. He could feel himself begin to tear up, but did his best to keep them at bay.
“We just wanted to get you something,” Lucas said.
“We love you,” Eleven said.
“And we’d do anything for you,” Mike said.
Failing his battle with his happy tears, Dustin wrapped the group in a hug.
***
Later that day, Dustin’s father came home and informed the family they weren’t moving after all. When Mr. Henderson told his boss about the job offer, his boss doubled his salary to keep him at the company.
Dustin was beyond ecstatic, as were the boys and El. They spent that weekend celebrating in their favorite way, with nonstop video games, movies, and of course, a D&D campaign.
A few days later, Eleven brought Max over to meet the rest of the boys. Eleven could tell right away that both Lucas and Dustin were smitten with her. Max blended into the group as if she’d been there all along.
With school starting soon, the group spent as much time together as possible, enjoying one another and happy that Dustin would be with them for the long haul. Although they’d been unhappy when they thought he was moving, they had to admit it brought them closer as a group. And they promised that no matter whatever happened, they would always be friends.