IN AND OUT OF LOVE
Bon Jovi

Childhood fears stem from being exposed to an environment of extreme anxiety, the definition of the said phobia can vary widely. Spiders are often one kids and adults would tell you scares them but for Melissa she is afraid of darkness. The night. She always hated the nighttime and what it brings. She struggled, in the early days of her younger life, at sleeping. It followed her into her adult life, becoming a part of her daily routine in which she would often have to resort to ingesting prescription medication to sleep.

It didn't help her fear of the dark being outside of Hess Farm, the last stop on the road trip she and hopper made in search for the properties owned by starcourt, as miles of dead end roads stretched for the eye could see.

A delivery Van is parked suspiciously, in sight, on the grass as Melissa got out of hoppers wagon. A decently cool breeze whipped in her face, Milly's hand pushes the hair back tying the sweat infuse bits of brown locks in an instant tight ponytail. The farmhouse made her shudder in a sudden rush of unease. She follows behind Jim, who had his pistol aimed at the ajar door, and the hinges on the rusted handles groaned with life opening to an empty living space. Melissa pursed her lips, not liking how unsettled she feels in the vacated house.

Milly made her way to the ceramic mug left on the dusty table. " Seems like this place hasn't had any inhabitants for a long time, Hop." She placed it back on its original place. " It's giving me serious creeps just being here, you know. I don't get it, we've checked every land mark on the map and went around all of the outskirts." She is stopped in her tracks, listening intently, to a low vibrating clamour coming from below. Like an industrial machine is actively running. Putting one foot forward Milly lightly gasps. It is coming from beneath the house. " Listen to that, Hop. Did you hear it? It's coming from right down there. The basement. It sounds like a plane about to take off. I should know that."

Jim, flashlight aimed at a overhead house light diminishing from on and off, grumbled on how they should pay their electrical bill making her use the back of her hand to lightly tap him and Hopper mutters 'Sorry.'

Milly, a tiny bit scared of the eeriness, clung to hoppers shirt jumping back at a rat squeaking away as its paws patter off. " This brings back memories." Jim cracked a tiny grin. She semi-glared at hopper, though her smile remained untouched. " I remember the day will first went missing, before we knew of that place, how you insisted on coming out to the shed at your house. A simple rat scared you so much you basically jumped on me. Like you're doing now, Mils." He chuckled at Milly hitting him with the head of her flashlight. " I think that was the day I started to really get the sense of you really being in Hawkins again. It was real, not a figment my fucked up brain created."

Melissa, finding hoppers confession sweet, had paused to give him a sweet kiss on his cheek to which Hopper's grin became unbelievably wide at the feeling of her lips.

" Much as I am liking a trip down memory lane, Hopper, we have to continue on cause I don't want spend longer in here than necessary." Milly, feeling an air draft on her ankle, crouched on her legs to a single vent duct on a mattress frame. 'Gotcha.' Milly placed a hand on the creaking board, locating the exact spot the thrumming noise is coming out of. Hopper made room for Melissa to open a secret stairway door leading to the basement. " Bingo. Yes, I knew all those spy movies would be useful." Melissa whisper shouted, elated she discovered a hidden basement. " James Bond'll be proud of me."

" Even though i find it adorable you are happy to have found a creepy basement, My love, and all I think you should really shut up right now. Don't want to alert the bad guys potentially to us."

Hopper murmured lowly, switching off the safety on his pistol counting the bullets inside of the chamber. Milly went deeper in the dark lower level of the abandoned house. Distinctly a couple of male voices, speaking Russian she could recognise the volume changes in how the conversation went, is the singular sound Milly heard in the empty dreary room. ' This straight up looks like a James Bond villain lair." She is a nerd, she could thank Will and Jonathan for their interests in the hobbies they have for her knowledge.

Ratchet hammering and clanging on a machine enter Milly's ears once she hears the voices becoming more louder. Hopper directs his gun on the pair of strangers working on an incomplete piece of high-end equipment. Milly tilted her head side-stepping out of Jim's back.

" Hey, Dipshits. Hawkins PD. Hands in the air. Do as you are ask, there won't be any trouble." Hopper says, his eyes follows Milly as she put her hands up to him. " What, Mils? What's..."

" I don't think they speak English, Jim." Milly stated taking in how one of the men, a rather young cute curly dark haired and brown eyed man wearing square reading glasses, stared at hopper. " Привет, меня зовут Милли. Мы здесь, чтобы узнать некоторую информацию о том, что произошло четыре дня назад относительно погасших огней в городе, и мы надеялись, что вы что-нибудь знаете." Milly, her accent changing to Russian, spoke to him hoping at least her pronunciation is still spot on. Her dialect is a little deficient to compare with her English. Hopper, face blown in an eye wide stupefied stare at her switching languages, picked his jaw up tensing it when he hears the Russian nerd reply equally shock.

" Э-э, я не думаю, что мы можем помочь, мисс. Вы должны... вы не должны быть здесь. Тебе нужно уйти. Прямо сейчас." He urges Milly, keeping his hands in sight as Jim glanced at his fiancé and him talking. " Это небезопасно. Слушай, я не знаю об отключении электроэнергии, все, что я знаю, это то, что ты в опасности, находясь здесь, леди. Так что, пожалуйста, уходи."

" Can you speak English, Pal? You are wasting our time! Time we don't have. So please do as your told amend put. Your. Hands. In. The..."

Milly shut Jim down, ramming a hand down on his mouth, shushing him as heavy footsteps thud above. Slam. Slam. Slam. Boots began to hit the floorboards one by one getting closer to where they were. Milly put a finger to her lips, the three men quietened themselves listening in on the approaching boot-made stomping. It is getting closer. Melissa ushered hopper and the men to hide, switching to Russian for a few seconds ordering them to be quiet, hiding her body behind a dark red tool box. Jim had an idea of his own, he pistol whips the gangly grease smelling mechanic. Gagging him with a sheet and bind his hands using his handcuffs.

In the midst of Hopper locking the man up on his own machine, The cute Russian, on instinct to the danger, sought out to hide behind Milly. He felt safe enough to seek protection from her seeing as she knew Russian. He watched with a wide eyed look as The grumpy American guy is stalking up behind a tall, lean, muscular older gentleman holding an automatic weapon in his arms. Milly sensed the strangers intimidating, ominous, energy from her spot as Hopper yells at him to drop his gun. The cute Russian man, frantically shaking his head no, hold Melissa's hand urging her to not go out of the spot they are hiding in. ".. Understand what I am saying, big guy? Drop. The. Weapon."

" Or what? You going to shoot?" Came a thick, monotone, Russian voice full of irony. Melissa could feel her powers surge in her palms as she peered her right eye out to see Jim shoving his gun straight into the centre of the man's skull. Her eyes thrum to life. The Russian man, who is observing Milly's body language, glances and taps her on the shoulder. She angled her ear to listen to hopper and her other one to the other man.

" Это злой, высокомерный, чувак, твой муж? Я вижу кольцо на твоем пальце. Если так, то мне тебя жаль." Milly would have said something sarcastic. It was disproportionate to have replied in such tone, in her opinion, with a psycho and her fiancé a few metres away in a tense show down.

Hopper started to do a count down, to three, pronouncing the numbers in the way it sounded like a threat and when Jim reached three a gun shot is let off. The psycho assassin disarms hopper slapping the gun of his opponents hand. Fighting ensues, fists thrown in every direction as the assassin goes to make a grab for his automatic weapon, and hopper is the one to snatch the guns strap attaching both his arms strangling his neck setting off the gun and Melissa covers her ears at the loud bullets.

Bullets fly in the air and Milly dives for the gun belonging to hopper. Her eyes flicker, which to the Russian hidden behind her sees in the red shining titanium steel on the machine they had moved to, angrily as she arose out of her spot. It took a split second for the assassin to see her standing there, eyes menacingly shining, and it dawns on him at what he is look at. The man's mouth moved in a mumble, uttering a phrase in Russian, and hopper took that chance. Jim, using the distraction Milly caused, snatches his machine gun out of his hold swinging the butt. It connected to the assailants head causing the man to grunt out of surprise.

" You. Leave. My. Fiancé. Alone."

Milly shouts, charging forward throwing her fists out as her eyes glowed pure white, sending pulses of light directed at the assassin. Grigori is sent flying back, his grunts echoing off the interior walls. Her hands form fists, as she walked past Jim, a battle cry leaving her lips while leaping on him and Grigori struggled to fight off one simple little girl. He arises off the floor, blocking the onslaught of punches which had surprising force and were making contact, brushing Milly off by flinging her to a two feet in diameter of distance. She landed on her feet, cartwheeling, her legs anticipating the impact and glared. She growls.

Grigori, taking the dropped gun Milly disperse to fight, points the barrel at Melissa grunting a slew of Russian swear words at each shot when she would disintegrate the bullets. Melissa, the whole time the gun is firing, gets close enough to disarm Grigori. Her fist swings on his face, his grunts fuelling her rage, and kicked him to the opposing wall. He crashes into the concrete frame. The pure strength she has is incredible, Hopper could only think witnessing Milly whip the guys ass. ' But where is it coming from?'

" Come on, Smirnoff. Get up, get up. We're all leaving, right now! Right now! Come on. Milly! Can you translate to your little friend here he needs to move his ass before our psychotic guy wakes up from your ass whooping?"

Hopper's words progressed to a loud shout, roughly as it appeared the assassin recovered immediately. " Let's move now. Go! Go!"

Milly threw up her hand, materialising a force field of pure energy veiling their bodies to escape out of the house. Bolting out to the wagon, adrenaline racing in their blood, Melissa caught hoppers car keys to drive the van.

" Milly, Drive!" Jim yells hauling ass to the back seat holding Smirnoff. Melissa, under pressure, found it a struggle to find the right key for the ignition. " Milly, this's coming from a place of love, honey! But we need to go, you need DRIVE NOW. NOW! Milly DRIVE."

" Don't you dare yell at me, like that, James hopper!" Melissa snaps, flashing her eyes at him in the rear view two way mirror, turning on the cars power and did a U-Turn pressing on the gas pedal for her life. The door to the old Hess farm house broke open, a storm cloud of bullets is open fired on the wagon causing Milly to momentarily lose a second of her focus ducking her head down. " Get down! Get down." Milly called out over the loud bullets as glass is shattered on each side of Jim's wagon.

Ramming into the Hess farm mail box Melissa grunted, at the glass shard in her lap, and she muttered an unapologetic 'Sorry'. Not really an important thing to care about, there was a literal assassination attempt on her. Hopper, convinced the mad man is out of reach and not pursing them, leaned back. Out of breath. Jim looked at Smirnoff then Milly.

" You know I.. didn't mean anything by it, Mils. I'm sorry for yelling at you."

Smirnoff adjusted his glasses.

" I advise that you stay silent for the rest of the night. Jim."

Smirnoff, not needing to know the basics English language to realise the brutish American is in deep trouble, snickers but sharply straightens at Hoppers glare.

" Shut it, Smirnoff."

Melissa leaned her arm on a tree watching Jim tinkering with the steaming wagon engine. He wasn't an expert in the mechanics department but his ego made it seem like he knew his way around a complicated system of its nature. He coughs, violently, at the hazardous fumes that he is exposed to. Milly senses as Alexei, he gave his name as a result of her being kind to him, staring at her with an adorable head tilt.

" Откуда ты знаешь мой язык? Мне не понравилась такая красивая американка, как ты, чтобы знать язык моей страны."

Milly, dropping her arms to let them go limp, mustered the energy to give him a touched grin at his compliment. " Я выучил несколько языков. Мне это нужно для моей работы, я модельер." Alexei eyebrows pinch in surprise. Fashion designer? That made sense to Alexei. A beautiful American girl, like her, knew her way around to a good outfit. " У меня есть вопрос. Речь идет о магнитах." Alexei moved his body on an incline to look at the magnets on Melissa's palms. She demonstrates, to him, their magnetism being lost letting them fall to the browning leaves. " Они потеряли свою магнитную силу. Верно? Я попытался положить их обратно на свой холодильник, и они не прилипали больше секунды. Это меня очень расстраивает. You understand?"

" Da." He nodded his head intently listening to Milly. " Я понимаю. И я тоже понимаю, что рад говорить с тобой в этот момент по-русски. Очень хорошо, что вы так долго держали разговор."

Alexei smiled, happily, at Melissa thankful she knew his mother tongue to actually communicate with him. He liked it. He frowned, bringing the middle part of his glasses to his nose bridge, asking.

" У тебя есть невозможные силы? Как ты получил эти великие способности?."

Melissa hesitated for a minute, weighing each the pros and cons of showing her powers to Alexei, raised her hand. " Я родился с ними."

Milly replies. Alexei, his face in awe; amazed, mumbled 'Ah.' She sighs crossing her arms over her chest. " Milly! Milly, please. You both are giving me a headache! Can you stop, with this back and forth nonsense chit chat? Can I get some help over here?" Hopper snaps and it is obvious to Alexei, sensing the tone change in his frustrated grunting, he is Jealous. " Please. Mils, Baby. Can you help me over here? Now."

" I have you know, Jim Hopper, I am having a nice conversation with Alexei about the whole magnet dilemma we are in."

Melissa quipped getting in Jim's face, her nose flares in indignation at his attitude. He scoffed, clearing off the grime on the tips of his fingers, tactically pressing a firm hand on the bumper of his station wagon.

" While you are getting way too close for comfort, with Smirnoff, to remember he is Russian you might forget to also recall he probably and most likely works for starcourt."

He grunted tossing the car keys, to Melissa, and she catches the set of metallic keys with one of her famous glares set on hopper.

" Try the car. See if it'll start again, why don't you? Or do you need Smirnoff to be with you for that as well?."

" I don't appreciate what you're insinuating, Jim. It sounds like you are saying I like Alexei when in fact I am being civil and getting information for US. 'Cause you don't want to be nice 'bout it and let your inflated ego get to your thick skull!"

Milly, hoisting her body up to the drivers side, pokes her head out above the door. Waiting for hoppers instructions. " Keep it in park, please. Can you do that, Baby?" Jim, voice dripping in sarcasm, stepping away from the smoking and fried engine. Melissa made a mocking face, at Jim, going to restart the engine slumping over the console. ' Who does he think he is to yell at me like that? I will give him something to yell about when we get home.' Starting the engine it splutters, electrical crackling is heard but she takes it as the faulty wiring failing to reignite.

" Jim, it's not working. We've been over this!"

" Try. It. Again."

" Hey. Hey. Stop! Stop!" Alexei urged Melissa, rapidly firing out words catching Milly's ear. It sounded like he was warning her of the engine. To get out. " Он вот-вот взорвется!" Melissa's eyes go wide, exiting the smoking vehicle right on time for it to catch flames and on cue, to Alexei's warning, it explodes. Melissa grunts covering her head as she got a good ten feet. Jim's jaw went right down to the forest floor in shock. Milly, her tolerance already low, swore.

" Motherfucker!"

" Mils, Language."

JASMINE SPEAKS;

Alexei is finally here! I'm happy I finally got to his episode. Melissa is gonna be going through the wringer in these next few chapter, having to deal with a jealous hopper and his antics with his jealousy.

Yes, she knows Russian as it's written here and she knows how to hold a conversation. I used a translator app for the Russian. If the phrasing or grammar is incorrect please let me know in the comments. I am open for some suggestions on how to properly write the wording for them, So I am aware of what to actually write.

What did you think of the Alexei and Milly bits with Jim's jealousy?

Edit:

Below is translations.

Sorry it took until now to add these translations, it didn't click in my head to add these and I feel so bad for not adding them.

START OF TRANSLATIONS

( Hi, my name is Millie. We are here to find out some information about what happened four days ago regarding the fires/ lights that went out in the city, and we were hoping you knew something.)

( Uh, I don't think we can help, miss. You should... you shouldn't be here. You need to leave. Right now.)

( It's not safe. Listen, I don't know about the power outage, all I know is that you're in danger here, lady. So please leave.)

( Is this evil, arrogant, dude, your husband? I see a ring on your finger. If so, I feel sorry for you.)

( How do you know my language? I didn't take such a beautiful American as you to know the language of my country.)

( I learned several languages. I need it for my job, I'm a fashion designer.)

( I have a question. It's about magnets.)

( They lost their magnetic power. Right? I tried to put them back on my fridge, and they didn't stick for more than a second. It upsets me a lot.)

( I understand. And I also understand that I'm glad to talk to you in Russian at this moment. It's very good that you kept the conversation for so long.)

( Do you have impossible powers? How did you get these great abilities?.)

( I was born with them.)

END OF TRANSLATIONS

As you may see these are not the greatest and I am so sorry translations.

I'm using a translator app for these texts.

I apologise for the rough formatting of the texts. I should have added these prior and I didn't think about adding these translations after as I was focused on publishing the chapter. I will add the translations straight after I write them, for the next chapter.

Thank you for your patience.