Sarah turned to focus on the wall before her, envisioning herself at the Lab as a child while she studied one of the painted floral patterns. Despite her determination, she was quite surprised when it actually worked. An empty white hallway stretched out before her, welcoming her back inside the prison that had contained her for so long.

As Sarah lifted her leg to step through, she glanced back at Diane, who was watching her quietly and carefully, not making a move. This made Sarah hesitate and her foot slowly fell back to the floor. She didn't know whether her mother allowing her to go was a good sign or a bad sign. Surely she knew what was in store for her.

Plucking up her courage once more, Sarah lifted her leg again, but before she disappeared through the portal, she imparted one last farewell to Diane: "Good-bye, mom."

If everything worked as Sarah hoped, she wouldn't be seeing her again.

Once the portal had snapped shut behind Sarah, she found herself at a momentary loss of what to do. She hadn't quite planned beyond the portal, which she was still surprised had worked since so many of her other portals had not. Being back in the Lab also inspired a small amount of fear in her, even though she was past this part of her life and she knew what was to become of the Lab and Dr. Brenner.

The sound of voices coming from the end of the hallway snapped Sarah into action and she quickly pressed her back against the wall, her hands fumbling behind her for the first door knob they could find. When they finally latched onto one, she twisted it open and slipped inside, her eyes watching the hallway for the incoming threat. She shut the door just in time for two Lab personnel to round the corner.

"Good, they finally sent someone."

Sarah was jolted by the unexpected voice and spun on her heel to meet the source: a heavy-set woman with her graying hair tied up in a hair net and a smear of different colors across the front of her once white apron. Sarah had accidentally let herself into the kitchen.

The woman studied Sarah for a moment before saying, "Do you work here? I don't think I've seen you before..."

"I'm the new intern," Sarah answered quickly, plastering a fake smile onto her face.

The woman's stare lingered a moment longer before she shrugged and shoved a tray of unidentifiable food into Sarah's arms. "I need you to take that to Subject One," the woman explained. "Joey was supposed to do it but he's helping Dr. Brenner with Subject Two. Do you know the way?"

Sarah was momentarily set back by the request, but a wave of confidence washed over her as she answered with a determined smile, "By heart."

Sarah set off down the hallways of the Lab, weary for any noises that indicated that she'd be crossing paths with another person. The tray in her hands helped her to blend in, but she still had an uneasy fear that someone may recognize her. Not as an intruder, but as a prisoner.

However, her determination cut through some of the fear. Everything was going better than she could have imagined. She'd grab her younger self and then find James and get the two out of there. She'd return her younger self to Hopper, and...well, she wasn't quite sure what she'd do with James given that his family had voluntarily handed him over to the Lab, but she'd figure out something.

As Sarah approached her old room, an overwhelming sense of déjà vu overcame her, blurring her vision and making her dizzy. It only got stronger when she opened the door and locked eyes with her younger self, who was eagerly waiting on the other side for her meal.

Her younger self stared at her inquisitively and Sarah felt the need to say something to fill the silence. "They needed Joey elsewhere," she explained, saying the first thing that came to mind. As she said it, a strange taste filled her mouth and the déjà vu became even stronger.

"Joey," her younger self repeated, trying out the name on her tongue.

As she said this, the reason for the déjà vu suddenly hit Sarah like a bag of bricks and she froze to her spot. She remembered this moment. She remembered the strange woman who came to deliver her food right before...

Two sets of footsteps echoed down the hall and Sarah instinctively turned to look, but she already knew who it was.

A guard accompanied a small boy with dark, curly hair and a constellation of freckles across his cheeks down the hallway. "Come along, number Seven," the guard said.

Sarah could feel her heart racing as she glanced between young James and her younger self. From an outsider's perspective, the interaction didn't seem so monumental, but Sarah knew that those few seconds were incredibly important; it was the moment that James and her first saw each other, the moment that spurred it all. And she had been the one to make it happen.

Another thought then struck Sarah. This has all happened before. She thought that her coming here was something new in the timeline, a change that would impact the future, but she was wrong. If she had done this before, then that meant that her life would continue on its same exact course; James and her would escape to the Upside Down and James would become the Mind Flayer. She would be reunited and separated from her friends and family once more.

This revelation nearly toppled Sarah over as it left her with a new realization: she couldn't do this. Despite how badly she wanted to change things, to make her life better, her mother had been right. The future wasn't hers to change.

If she were to rescue her younger self and James then, it would prevent James from becoming the Mind Flayer, but the Upside Down would still exist. She'd seen its toxicity first-hand, how it seeped into other dimensions and slowly destroyed them. It'd continue to find its way, with or without James. She couldn't allow more to die simply for her own selfishness.

Sarah slammed the door shut on her younger self, catching the glimpse of fear that shone in her eyes before she completely disappeared. Once it was closed, Sarah rested her forehead on the door, squeezing her eyes shut as she mouthed a silent apology to her younger self. One day, she'd understand.

"Hey, you, girl!" a voice called to Sarah from down the hall, startling her from her thoughts. She immediately felt an icy chill work its way from the top of her spine to the bottom as she turned to face the familiar voice.

Sarah took a deep breath and attempted to steady her racing heart as she responded, "Yes, Dr. Brenner?"

"How do I look?" Sarah asked sheepishly as she stepped out into the living room to present her new dress to Hopper, Joyce, and Eleven. She had completed the outfit with a new black leather jacket and black ankle-high Doc Martens boots.

"Oh honey, you look gorgeous," Joyce beamed, clasping her hands together beneath her chin.

"I...uh...I...um..." Hopper stammered, unable to form words as he stared wide-eyed at his daughter. "How old are you again?"

"I'm thirty-one," Sarah chuckled with a roll of her eyes. "Old enough to wear what I want."

Hopper quietly grumbled to himself when he realized that she was right.

"So pretty," Eleven said, her eyes glued to her sister as a wide smile spread across her face.

"You still don't think it's too much for just catching up with a friend?" Sarah asked, glancing down at her dress as she anxiously pulled at the bottom hem.

Eleven immediately shook her head no. "You look perfect."

Sarah gave Eleven a smile when her eyes caught the time and noticed that it was nearing seven o'clock.

"Well, I'd better be on my way," Sarah announced with a clap of her hands. She glanced towards Hopper, trying to read his face. She felt bad that she was once more ditching her family after just getting back, but this was something she felt that she needed to do. "Maybe when I get back we could watch some Westerns?"

"Sure thing, kid," Hopper answered with a smile.

"I'll make Eggos!" Eleven exclaimed, her eyes lighting up.

Sarah's eyes passed from Joyce to Eleven to Hopper one more time before she turned to open a portal to Enzo's and slipped through.

Once Sarah was on the other side and the portal had snapped shut, she felt her heart start to beat faster as she glanced around the parking lot in search of Steve. Her arms instinctively crossed over her stomach and she bounced from foot-to-foot, trying to calm the racing thoughts in her mind. What if Steve didn't show up? What if the whole thing was a disaster? What if James made another impromptu appearance?

Sarah didn't have time to contemplate the answers to these questions when a shout from the entrance of Enzo's caught Sarah's attention.

"Hey!" Steve called to Sarah, waving her over. "I've already gotten us a table!"

Sarah took a deep breath and pressed a smile across her face as she crossed the parking lot to meet Steve.

"Whoa," Steve gasped as Sarah approached him, struck by her appearance. "You look--uh, you look really nice."

"Thanks," Sarah answered quietly, her cheeks quickly burning bright pink. "So do you."

Steve was almost as dressed up as she was, with dark gray dress pants, a navy dress shirt with the top few buttons popped, and shiny leather dress shoes. A slight scent of cologne wafted in the air and Sarah found it hard to keep her composure.

"Shall we go inside?" Steve asked, allowing Sarah to take the lead as they wound through the restaurant towards their table.

Sarah removed her jacket and draped it across the back of her chair, revealing more of her emerald dress, and Steve tried his hardest not to stare.

"So," Sarah began, cutting through the awkward tension enveloping their table. "You took over your dad's business, that's exciting!"

"Oh yeah," Steve responded, trying his hardest to force a smile. "The old man finally wore me down. And I also wanted to stay in Hawkins, you know, just in case..." Steve's throat suddenly became very scratchy and he stopped to cough into his fist.

Steve didn't have to finish the sentence for Sarah to understand what he was going to say and she felt a momentary smile flash across her face. So he did try to wait for her...

"How was your lunch with Quinn?" Steve asked, quickly changing the topic.

Sarah was caught off guard by the question and had to take a moment to compose herself before replying. She had to keep her confidence up or else James would pounce on the opportunity to join them. "It was good," she answered, trying her hardest not to let her voice waver. "Quinn seems very nice."

"Yeah, she's pretty great," Steve replied with a bright smile. "I think you two would really get along. She reminds me of you, in a lot of ways."

Sarah forced a smile in response as she tried to think of what to say next, but Steve beat her to the punch.

"So how did you and Carl meet?"

"Who?" Sarah asked, her eyebrows furrowing as she attempted to decipher what he was talking about.

"Carl Houseman..." Steve answered slowly. "The guy you were telling me about..."

Sarah's face turned beet red as she recalled the conversation she had had with Steve the previous day and the fake boyfriend she had invented.

"Oh, um, we met in the Diagonal," Sarah attempted to respond casually after clearing her throat.

"Oh cool! What kind of powers does he have?"

"He can...fly," Sarah stammered as she scrambled for an answer. "...and shoot lasers out of his eyes..."

"Like Superman?" Steve asked with an arched brow.

Sarah's face flushed again and she fought the urge to smack her forehead once Steve made the connection that her brain had obviously missed. Thanks to her time growing up in the Lab, she was terrible at lying and she hadn't gotten any better as she'd aged. "Yes," she said as confidently as she could once her cheeks had stopped burning. "Exactly like Superman."

"This is almost more painful than the time you literally destroyed me," James' voice groaned in Sarah's mind and she immediately flinched as her eyes darted around the restaurant for him. She couldn't see him yet, but it would only be a matter of time if she didn't get a grip on her confidence soon.

Thankfully, the waiter arrived at the table to take their orders, ending the train-wreck of a conversation that Steve and Sarah had been having and providing Sarah an opportunity to get rid of James.

"Wine please," Sarah informed the waiter. It was time for Plan B: liquid courage. "Any wine."

"What she said," Steve agreed.

An awkward silence ensued between Steve and Sarah until the waiter came back with a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon and poured it into two glasses.

Sarah immediately raised the glass to her lips and let the dark red liquid trickle down her throat, downing nearly half the glass in one gulp. Steve watched the spectacle with raised brows but he didn't say anything as he slowly sipped at his own glass. After a while, the wine kicked in and loosened up the conversation a little.

"How does it feel being back after all this time?" Steve asked.

"Really, really good," Sarah answered with a relieved smile. "I just wish I could have come back much sooner."

"Well, you missed the launch of the Hubble Telescope, the end of the Cold War, and the release of the World Wide Web, but other than that, Hawkins has been pretty boring," Steve replied and then paused. "Actually, there was the incident where Murray Bauman set off the fire alarms at Starcourt Mall because he believed that there were evil Russians operating underground."

"Evil Russians?" Sarah laughed.

"Yeah, it ended up being nothing, of course," Steve said. "But your dad got pretty pissed."

"Oh, I'm sure," Sarah responded as she attempted to envision the event and Hopper's reaction.

From there, the conversation steered towards old memories of Hawkins and what had happened to the other townsfolk in the last ten years.

"I don't think you ever met him, but Billy Hargrove, Max's older brother, moved back to California immediately after high school," Steve explained. "Lucas's younger sister, Erica, is currently interning for some politician in Washington D.C., and Keith, that guy from the arcade...well, he's still there."

"What about the Lab?" Sarah's curiosity drove her to ask.

"Oh yeah, you're going to like this," Steve answered with a smile. "It sat empty for a while, but the city finally demolished it a couple years ago and turned it into a park."

Sarah felt her eyes light up and her lips part into a smile upon hearing the news. She reached for her glass of wine and lifted it up before her. "To a better Hawkins," Sarah cheered as she clanked her glass against Steve's.

"To a better Hawkins," Steve repeated.

As the night progressed, Sarah felt things return to normal between her and Steve; just like old times. They joked and drank until it was almost ten o-clock, getting caught up in all manners of conversation. While Steve stopped after one glass, Sarah drank another two, giving her quite the buzz. But James never reappeared, so she considered it to be a successful night.

That is, until they were leaving Enzo's, when Sarah tripped on the curb and fell into Steve, nearly taking him down with her.

"Sorry," Sarah blushed as Steve helped her back to her feet, bringing their mouths quite close to each other and freezing everything around them. They remained like this, feeling the other's warm breath against their face, until Steve finally pulled back and everything began moving again.

"Here, let me give you a ride home," Steve said, clearing his throat as he began to steer Sarah towards his car. "I don't really understand how your powers work but I'm pretty sure that you shouldn't drink and portal."

Steve opened the passenger door for Sarah and was about to help her in when a loud noise stopped them both cold. A thunderous roar echoed behind Enzo's, sending shivers down Sarah's spine and sobering her up instantly. It was a noise that she hadn't heard in a long time, but it was all too familiar to her.

"Holy shit, is that..." Steve began to ask when Sarah cut him off with the answer.

A blue light began to glow around Sarah's hands as she said, "A demogorgon."

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