[Closed] Silence is not the way / we need to talk about it

[experiment011]

WHO: Eleven and Mike Wheeler
WHERE: De Chima #006
WHEN: Let's go with March 22nd.
WHAT: Mike and Eleven. They are in DESPERATE need of a talk.
WARNINGS: rated C for cute. Will update as needed~

[Eleven sits quietly on the couch in the living room. Their TV still isn't fixed, and it's given her time to think about a lot of things. She's loathed Max since she first met her (or seen her from a distance, as it were), but since Eleven's arrived in De Chima, she's had a chance to speak to both Max and Steve about Max and Mike's relationship. Both insist there's nothing going on, but she still refuses to believe it. She was gone for almost a year, after all, and that could easily be enough time for Mike to move on.

He didn't seem like he had when she finally reunited with him in Hawkins, but she still can't shake the feeling that...

She's nervous, but she intends to speak to him about it when she next sees him. She wants to hear it all from him properly.

So there she waits, twiddling her thumbs and biting her lip, waiting to walk through the front door. Or emerge from his room. She's not entirely sure where he is at the moment.]

Comments

[micycle]

[He comes through the front door, porch light streaming in behind him, a shopping bag hanging from one elbow - bread, AA batteries, and dish detergent (after a week of attempting to use hand soap for the same purpose and winding up with soapy food). When he sees Eleven, his face relaxes into a smile, the adoring one he reserves for her.]

Hey! [He immediately heads in her direction, dropping the bag on the coffee table.] What's up?

[experiment011]

[Seeing him walk through the door suddenly makes Eleven very aware of what's about to happen. She could potentially be living out her worst nightmare. Still, not knowing how he feels is eating away at her. She has to know.]

Hello.

[Here comes the tricky part. Putting her feelings into words is always more difficult than it should be.]

I have to ask you a question.

[micycle]

Okay.

[He sits down next to her, brows furrowing. Her words spark concern, and his chest clenches.]

[experiment011]

[She takes a quick breath and exhales slowly. Time to rip the bandaid off.]

Do you like Max?

[micycle]

[He's instantly confused.]

I mean, we're friends, so I guess-

[Then, as if he's just clapped a light on, it all dawns on him - the fight in the kitchen, the two of them always seemingly at odds...

His cheeks flush pink. He's been so stupid.]

But not like that, El. You're the only one I like.

[It's rushed, and a little uncomfortable, but completely heartfelt.]

[experiment011]

[The relief Eleven is feeling is written all over her face in the form of a gigantic smile. It feels so natural to hear, yet for some reason, she hadn't expected to hear it. In hindsight, she's not sure why. Maybe it was because she'd spent so long thinking about how it wasn't true.

He's turned so pink... She tenderly takes his hand and lets out a single laugh. She hasn't felt this joyful since she was finally reunited with him back in Hawkins after that long year of waiting.

How does she convey these feelings? There's too much to say, so she echoes his sentiment.]

You're the only one I like too.

[micycle]

[Mike's face goes even brighter. He fidgets in his seat, restless, but his smile is bright and warm.]

I'm glad.

[He squeezes her hand, looking down at their fingers side by side.]

Before you left, I, um... [It isn't something he likes to talk about, those months here together that she doesn't remember. But this is important.] I was thinking about maybe asking if, uh. If you'd like to be my girlfriend?

[experiment011]

[Eleven's heart races and her face flushes in response to his question. It's like those warm feelings she gets when she watches two characters kiss each other in one of her movies.

It reminds her of the time Mike kissed her in that classroom so long ago.

She doesn't break eye contact when she answers him.]

Yes.

[micycle]

[Mike's entire face flushes, and his chest flutters. Butterflies. He's got butterflies. That's what this astonishing, unbelievable girl does to him.]

Awesome. [No, that sounds lame.] I mean... [Getting lamer.] I've wanted to ask you forever.

[experiment011]

[Her problems with him and Max seem like a distant memory at this point. He's been wanting to ask forever...? It feels as if she's wanted to hear it forever. Now that she has, her heart is so aflutter, it's almost dizzying. How was this boy so impossibly perfect?

She's reaching for words again. When she's honest with herself, she realizes what she's feeling and wants to tell him most.]

I missed you.

[Without thinking, she begins to lean forward. She never got to finish the kiss she offered him before she went to close the gate into the Upside Down, and she's feeling the draw to remedy that tragedy.]

[micycle]

[His face flushes warm and pink, but he doesn't pull away. It's been far too long, and she's his girlfriend now, and he couldn't be happier. With a shy smile, he leans to meet her in the middle.

It's light and tentative, and their noses bump a little, but it still makes his heart feel like it's going to beat right out of his chest. He feels like this is everything his life has been leading him towards. When he pulls back with a soft breath, it's only to rest their foreheads together, looking in her eyes from so close that his sight blurs.]