maskormenacelogs | [Closed-ish] But the children believe in friends

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[Closed-ish] But the children believe in friends

WHO: Eleven and Max Mayfield (possibly other Strangerhaus #6 members if they want to ask them about it later?)
WHERE: De Chima #6
WHEN: April 4th
WHAT: So Eleven is hitting puberty and things happen when you hit puberty...
WARNINGS: Girl stuff. We're talking menstrual cycles and other adulting.

[Eleven had Bev to help her decide what sort of feminine hygiene products to get from the store. There was no one else who she'd trusted to help her. Her household is all boys (for the most part; she wasn't too keen on talking to Max about it) and she was exceptionally certain Steve wouldn't feel comfortable helping her out on this front. So she went by herself with only the knowledge that she'd need something like this in the near future. She almost wishes Hopper was here, but she's not sure she'd feel comfortable from advice from him either.

With no idea where to start, Bev had helped her decide on a combo pack of maxi pads. Surely there'd be something she'd need in there somewhere.

A bit embarrassed about the topic, she enters the house and shuts the door behind her, hoping none of the boys are around to ask what she has in her grocery bag.]

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[Max is sitting at the kitchen table, several cookbooks spread out in front of and around her. Her head's propped up on one hand as she flips through them, looking for ideas for things that would be relatively simple to make, but also good and semi-healthy. She heaves a sigh as she stares at the recipe she's found for lasagna. It looks amazing, but...a lot more complicated than spaghetti.

She hears the front door open and close and she leans back in her chair to see who's come in, relaxing when she spots Eleven, carrying a grocery bag.]

Hey.

[Eleven freezes in place. Her face flushes bright red as she holds her grocery bag to her chest defensively. She's finding this whole thing to be much more embarrassing than she anticipated.]

Hi.

[She tries to will herself to shuffle to her room, but something is keeping her from moving. The embarrassment is real but so is the desire to ask for Max's input. Eleven honestly has no idea what to do with her new stash and has burning questions she needs answered. With all the boys easily ruled out, Max is her best bet.

But still...]

[Max feels like they've made some progress. They talk occasionally, can be friendly even if they don't quite feel like they're friends yet. It's better than it was at first, and she accepts it for what it is. Sometimes things take time, and she keeps trying to remind herself of that.

But between Eleven's defense posture and the way her face turns red, Max knows something's definitely up. She gazes at her uncertainly, dropping her eyes to look at the bag she's clutching like she's guarding a million bucks (or maybe the world's last ever box of eggos).]

Are you okay?

[Eleven is not okay. She is very much confused and conflicted. How much does she tell her roommate? Will Max judge her? Is she going about this completely wrong?

She remembers what Bev told her. She needs to get this figured out as soon as possible. If she's starting to have cramps, she'll "start her flow" sometime soon and needs to be prepared. How soon is "soon?"

Her worry trumps her embarrassment at this point. It takes her a few moments, but she is finally able to spit out what her problem is.]

I bought pads.

[Okay that's...not at all what she was expecting, but she manages not to look as caught off guard as she feels.]

Oh. [She glances around quickly to make sure none of the boys are within earshot. She might be fine with torturing them with oversharing about that stuff, but not when El's looking as vulnerable and lost as she's looking at the moment.]

Did you - get your period?

[Eleven shrugs sheepishly. She still has hardly a clue what to expect. Something about "changes" and bleeding, and that is what the pads are for. She doesn't know what it all means and she's terrified.]

I don't know. I have pain but no bleeding.

[No nosebleeds, no anything. She tries to hold back tears. She feels more emotional than usual and not being able to convey it well is starting to take its toll.]

[Oh god. Eleven looks like she's two seconds away from crying and Max isn't great with emotions in general -- ask anyone in her family. But she's obviously the only one here in the house who's going to be able to help with this since everyone else is blissfully unaware of what it's like to be a girl having her first period. Or about to anyway.

She rises to her feet, leaving all the books scattered on the table.]

Let me grab us a couple things. Why don't you go up to my room? I'll meet you there in five minutes.

[Max gives her the best encouraging smile that she can muster.]

[Eleven returns the smile weakly and does as suggested, turning and heading up to Max's room. Her heart feels like it's going to burst out of her chest. She can feel her pulse in her ears and fingers. She appreciate's Max's concern, but she wonders if her urgency is a sign that this whole situation is worse than she thinks.

Once she's inside, she hesitates. Sitting on the bed would help her relax a little, but she doesn't want to intrude and make herself at home in Max's personal space.

So she stands, still clenching her bag, right inside the doorway.]

[It's less urgency that Max is feeling and more sympathy. She fixes each of them a mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows on top, grabs the bottle of Midol out of the bathroom medicine cabinet and makes her way down the hall to her bedroom. She pauses when she sees Eleven standing awkwardly just inside the room. She sets both mugs of hot chocolate down before moving to close the door.]

You can sit if you want. [She gestures toward the bed before moving to pick up the mugs once more, settling on the bed herself and folding her legs in front of her as she sits up against the headboard.]

I made us hot chocolate. It always helps me feel a little better.

[Eleven walks to the bed and sits herself down gingerly. She releases her grip on her bag with one hand and takes the mug from Max. The hot chocolate is still a little hot, so she sips it slowly and smiles weakly.]

Thank you.

[If Max is going to explain her need for these pads, Eleven is probably going to need to set them down. She does so, placing it on the bed close to Max. She's still incredibly nervous and doesn't know where to start when it comes to asking questions.]

You're welcome.

[Max takes a sip, too, and then sets it down on her nightstand carefully, debating how to start this conversation.]

Okay so...first of all just know there's nothing wrong with you, all right? This is totally normal for girls our age. It happens to all of us.

[She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear.]

So you said you had pain? Um, is it in your stomach area? Like...kind of a feeling like someone's squeezing your insides really tight, but not all the time?

[Eleven exhales slowly. With the way things are hurting, she was starting to wonder if she was dying somehow.]

Yes.

['Yes' to everything. But how to describe it...?]

Sometimes it hurts and sometimes it doesn't hurt. I want it all to stop.

[Her tears begin to spill over and streak down her face. Maybe there's something Max can do to speed things along and Eleven won't need the pads anymore. Or maybe she can stop it from happening again in the future.]

Yeah. Okay so those are what we call cramps. They suck. [She picks up the bottle of Midol and passes it over to her.] These are lifesavers. Take a couple of them and a lot of your pain's going to go away when they kick in.

[Oh god, she's crying. Max scoots closer to her, reaching out and laying a hand on her arm.]

Hey, it's gonna be okay. It's not fun, but I promise you're going to be okay.

[She takes a deep breath.]

This is all so eventually one day if you want, you'll be able to have a baby. Way in the future when you're graduated from high school and maybe even college and you and Mike are happily married.

[Eleven takes the bottle and holds it in her lap, fiddling with the lid restlessly. Medication. It makes her choke. She's not sure which course of action would be best at this point: take the obnoxious pill or try and wait out the pain.]

Thank you.

[She cringes at the imagery of having a baby but immediately lightens up at the thought of being with Mike through adulthood. She's in pain, but she can't hide a meek grin and profuse blushing. The expression almost instantly vanishes with a wince, though. As much as she'd like to think more about Mike, her body has decided it has more pressing matters at hand.]

It will be over soon, right?

Of course.

[Max tucks some hair behind her ear, watching her for a moment, grinning when Eleven does at the mention of her and Mike being married. She'd thought that might brighten her up a little.]

Uh, well. It's...usually only a few days a month? But...it's every month.

[Back to the sucky part: reality.]

[Eleven swallows hard.]

Days?

[She turns back to her bag of pads. Is that why they come with so many in a pack? Is she going to need them all in such a short amount of time? She still has so many questions...]

What do I need those for?

Well that's...the gross part. So when your period actually starts, you bleed. [She grimaces.] The pads sit in your underwear to absorb the blood so you don't bleed on your clothes.

[She takes a sip of her hot chocolate.]

It's gonna look like a lot but it's really not? It's a little different for everyone. Some girls' periods last a week, some only a couple days. Hopefully you'll be one of the lucky ones that only has to deal with it a couple days.

[Eleven cringes. She's suddenly lost her appetite for...... fluids... and rests her mug on her lap.]

I need to wear them when I bleed? Why will I bleed if I'm not dying?

[She can't help but cringe when Eleven does and she searches for words to try and explain, words that will make sense and not confuse her more.]

So basically...when you get about our age and if you're not pregnant, you bleed because your body's trying to get rid of stuff it doesn't need. In this case it's like, this really thin lining inside your uterus? Which is where a baby would be if you were pregnant.

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[Closed-ish] But the children believe in friends

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