𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐅𝐎𝐑𝐓𝐘 - here comes the heartbreak

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 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐍 𝐍𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐑 came.

 Scarlet had waited and waited for that searing burn upon her stomach; she assumed the Mind Flayer would rather gleefully repeat his previous actions and strike her right at the very centre. But that hit never struck, there was no poison in her veins as pain came to life, no blood seeping from her gut, no swirling sensation within her mind as she slowly lost consciousness.

 But the chimes grew louder than ever before, and Scarlet could feel the blood trickling from her ears.

 One eye cracked open and there was a slight haze before her, perhaps from the dust of her destruction, the smog left by exploding fireworks, or maybe from the pain within her mind. But even a fogbound horizon couldn't have obscured the person standing in front of her.

 Billy Hargrove.

 The Mind Flayer had been prepared for its attack; a slimy tentacle had burst from its mouth, trailing through the air all in the hopes of latching to Scarlet like a blood-thirsty leech... Only, Eleven had somehow broken through the binds around Billy's mind, and for the first time in a very long time... Billy did something good.

 Only Eleven could know why he'd given up his chase, why Billy had left her alone on the ground while he faced the monster pulling his strings. One might have thought there was a sliver of care for Max that had prompted him, perhaps even his stepmother who, while never standing up to his father, had been nothing but kind...

 No. For while Eleven wished Billy's actions were for Max... Billy did it for his mother. Wherever she was, she had known the best of him. She had known a sweet little boy who liked blue raspberry syrup on his ice cream when he finally pulled away from the salty sea water, surfboard in hand.

 He did it for her, as an apology for leaving behind the boy she had raised and loved.

 Scarlet couldn't bring herself to move as she watched Billy scream out in sheer pain. The limb that had unravelled from the Mind Flayer had struck his side whilst he held another off with his bare hands. Pointed teeth made from bone tore through layers of flesh, drawing both red and black blood from his veins.

 Another struck him, and another and another... his side, his leg, his arms and hands. There was blood everywhere, a puddle already spilling upon the ground. His cries rattled them all, but the Mind Flayer only pushed onwards.

 The last limb unfurled, and with a sickening squelch, it struck him on the chest. It got his heart and that was when Billy Hargrove finally fell silent, a single gasp hardly able to weasel through blood-soaked lips.

 Scarlet whipped her head around, eyes landing upon her sister.

 She's okay. She's okay. Oh my God, she's okay.

 To Scarlet, that was all that mattered.

 So when Billy was pulled into the air, finally looking like the puppet he'd been all this time... Scarlet didn't look. She muttered Eleven's name, imploring the girl to meet her eyes, and when she did, Scarlet swallowed. Tears began to brew, and Eleven was no better off.

 Scarlet never looked away, hoping that Eleven wouldn't watch.

 There was a heavy thud, and when the sound drew Scarlet's attention away from her little sister... all she could see was blood. The Mind Flayer withdrew its limbs, leaving Billy to slump to the ground. His chest was moving, small rasps still managing to claw from his throat... but it wouldn't be long now.

 It was a pitiful sight, really. A boy who had held so much rage and anger, utterly powerless as he lay on the floor, giving in to the injuries he'd sustained. He'd die having done something good... but that didn't quite mean that anybody would ever forget everything he'd done before. One good deed didn't wipe away years of abuse for Max, it didn't erase the scar on Steve's nose or the fear stuck within Lucas' heart.

 Like clockwork, Max bellowed just as Scarlet knew she would. The girl had been frozen to the spot beside Mike, watching on while Billy's flesh had been punctured time and time again; she'd blame herself. She'd say that she could have run to him, that she could have at least tried...

 When her sneakers squeaked and skidded over the ground, when Mike called out for her to stop and stay back... Scarlet finally moved. She was on her feet, and though she rocked in place, her hands managed to catch Maxine just in time. The girl was shaking, tears sliding down her face as her wide blue eyes, rimmed with red stared down at her stepbrother.

 She didn't even look away when the Mind Flayer shrieked once more. All Max could do was hold on tight to the arm keeping her grounded, and slump into Scarlet's body.

 Starcourt shook once more, forced to rattle as the Mind Flayer took a step, and another... it still hadn't quite accomplished its task. It had already had a taste of blood, it had already latched onto the energy that trailed through Scarlet's veins. The Mind Flayer wanted it.

 That was when it crumbled. Just as those razor teeth had parted for a shrill cry, ready to strike for the last time... the Mind Flayer stumbled backwards. It thrashed and cried as it bumped into pillars, sending debris toppling everywhere. It almost struck the railing where Steve and Robin had been watching... Steve had pulled her away just in the nick of time.

 Scarlet could feel that sensation on her neck beginning to fade. The constant chiming within her ringing ears was dying down; they'd done it. Scarlet knew that her father, with help from Joyce and Murray, had closed the gate. It was the only possible conclusion.

 The gate was shut, and the Mind Flayer was dying.

 There was something so very satisfying about the way it shrieked and convulsed as pain simmered over its body. Its grotesque limbs were sailing through the air, causing furth havoc already bestowed on the deteriorating mall. Walls were shattered, columns toppled, glass windows burst and shattered... then it all stopped. Finally, it all just stopped.

 The Mind Flayer picked up its head one last time, and Scarlet felt her body seize. It was facing her. It cared not for Eleven laying on the ground, nor for Will watching with balled fists from high above. It didn't care about them. But it cared enough about Scarlet to face her one last time before it toppled to the ground.

 There was a fire just a ways away; it was likely that one of the fireworks had gone awry — Jonathan never did quite get the hand of aiming properly — and with the last of her strength, Scarlet held out a hand, the other holding Max as close as she could possibly manage.

 The fire rippled as crimson took ahold of its flames, tugging them closer... closer... until it grabbed ahold of the blood on the ground. As though doused in gasoline, the Mind Flayer was encased by flames.

 The beast's skin crackled and parts of it popped. Scarlet spied Will doing his utmost to keep his eyes on the scene, even despite his gurgling stomach. He wanted to watch it die, he wanted to wait until it was nothing but a pile of ashes. All summer he'd felt out of sorts; shivers had spiralled over his skin, and his neck had bristled... he'd thought he had finally started to go crazy.

 Scarlet could feel the billowing heat drying the blood on her face, she could feel it flushing her skin.

 Then, as she stooped her tired eyes to the bundle of red hair slammed against her chest, she heaved a great sigh. Scarlet wouldn't ever feel sorry for what had happened to Billy; abuse, spiteful words and blatant racism were enough to taint her view of him forever, and one heroic act would never change that... but Max needed to say goodbye whilst his heart was still beating.

 Scarlet took the first step, and by God, it hurt. Her legs felt like cracking glass, ready to crumble into a million pieces... but for Max, she kept going. One step, and another, all while keeping herself and Max Mayfield afloat.

 When they were by his side, able to see his face, Max dropped to her knees and sobbed loud enough for all of them to hear. She grabbed his arm, uncaring of the obsidian blood coating her fingertips.

 "Billy?" She whispered.

 He blinked, eyes altogether unseeing. Billy's head toppled to the side, his blood-slick cheek sticking to the ground, "I'm ​​—" He choked, black blood spilling from his mouth, "— Sorry..."

 His final words were scarcely intelligible, a mere rasp of gurgled nonsense... But Max wailed and shook his body as she begged for him to open his eyes, to say something more.

 Billy remained as still as stone as blood continued to seep from his body, pooling together like a lake settled beneath him.

 Scarlet drew closer, sinking to her own knees as she pulled Maxine towards her. The girl sobbed, tears flooding her face as she buried her cheeks within Scarlet's shoulders. Her body was shaking, hiccups leaving her lips... and when Eleven managed to reach them, Max only cried louder.

 Scarlet's hand trailed the length of Max's spine, whilst the other swiftly did the same with Eleven. Her girls were safe; they might have been scarred, bloodied and bruised... but they were finally safe. She glanced upwards, eyes drooping as though she'd fall asleep right then and there.

 Will had slumped into his brother while Jonathan kept a tight hold of Nancy's hand. Dustin and Lucas were already racing for the stairs... and so were Steve and Robin. Scarlet's name echoed from their tongues, and Steve called for the children too...

 Upon hearing her name upon Steve's tongue, Max only crumbled further.

 Why couldn't Billy have been like Steve? Why couldn't he have realised that he could change? Why... Why couldn't he have accepted her as his little sister in the very way that Steve Harrington had?

 Maybe if he had... everything would have been different.

 Doctor Samual Owens was not a face Scarlet thought she'd ever see again. Despite the relatively civil way they'd parted back the year prior, Scarlet had wished to never be in his presence. Now, it wasn't because of the churning of her gut, that she could get past, it was the fact that she knew that Doctor Owens would only ever return to Hawkins if the situation was dire.

 He'd brought swarms of helicopters and people dressed in military garb. There were guns holstered and drawn as they trailed within the mall; the sight alone was enough for Scarlet to flinch. Guns... unlike a certain Wheeler, Scarlet had decided that she rather hated the things.

 The shrill sirens and blaring lights did little to quell the headache at the base of her skull. Everything ached; her arms felt as though they weighed a tonne, and Scarlet could do little more than rest them by her sides. Her legs were like jelly wobbling on a plate. She'd over-exerted herself, but she'd kept the Mind Flayer back... it was a fair enough trade.

 Now she sat silently with a blanket tossed over her shoulders. Steve was by her side, just like always. He'd been checked over; bruises scanned, wounds cleaned... and with a pitying frown, the lady nursing his wounds had told him that with the beating upon his eye, would forever come a slight haze to the left side of his vision.

 It was easily noticeable; lights burst into streams, and there was a slight murk over the horizon... He'd need glasses to read and write, or even to simply drive his car.

 Steve blinked, ignoring the blur. His arm was slung over Scarlet's shoulder, forcing her head to knock against his own. They could hear one another breathing, and feel the puffs of warm air on their cheeks.

 Eleven had laid herself over them, body slumped across both of their laps. She stared up at them, lips clamped together. She blinked, watching her sister stare out and into the twilight; Eleven had always been in absolute awe of her older sister. Scarlet was everything that Eleven wanted to be.

 She was pretty, she was kind and funny, and she was strong. She was a superhero.

 Eleven still couldn't shake the feeling that had buzzed over her blotched skin when she'd seen her sister with a firework in hand, helping to keep her safe. She couldn't banish the terrifying sight of Scarlet standing against the Mind Flayer, keeping it back for minutes with her power... she'd done it all to keep her safe. To keep them all safe.

 Eleven curled her fingers around her sisters, bringing their conjoined hands to her cheek, "You okay?"

 Scarlet's blink was slow, and yet she still managed to craft a tired smile, "I'm okay."

 Eleven nodded, her eyes falling to Steve. Before she could even ask, Steve flicked her nose just like he always did with his sister, "Of course I'm okay. I've got my two superheroes, huh?"

 They were all lying, and each of them knew it... even Eleven. None of them were okay, nothing about what had happened was alright. People had died, again. The Upsidedown had come to haunt them, again. They were scarred and bruised, and all of them would have nightmares for the rest of their days...

 Everyone had come to see them; Lucas and Dustin had gushed and gawked... then they'd sobered, cleared their throats and made sure to see that they were okay. Lucas hadn't even sneered at Steve, so that was a success.

 Robin had been with them... waiting and waiting all the while trying to figure out how she was going to sleep later that night; in the end, Steve had offered his couch to her. After all, he didn't want to be alone either. The invitation had been open to the sisters, but they were waiting for their father. They wanted to go home together.

 Eleven grumbled, her head plonking against Steve's knee, "Where is he?"

 Scarlet didn't answer, her mind having been wondering the very same thing for minutes on end. Jim Hopper certainly knew how to make his daughters wait, that much had already been made clear through late night shifts and spontaneous treks to God knows where... but now of all times?

 Steve was the one to speak. He pushed away his hair, ignoring the sting of a bruise he might have grazed, "I'm sure they'll all be back soon..."

 A further five minutes had passed, and Scarlet could feel her foot beginning to tap against the ground, her fingers beginning to twitch by her side. Hopper, Joyce and Murray still had yet to show. Had they been captured before they could escape? Had something happened? Surely there were all fine, after all, they'd done it. They had closed the gate.

 Steve had seen from the corner of his eyes whenever Scarlet would teeter forwards, gaze darting over the scenery. She scanned every single person, hoping to catch the slightest glimpse of any of the three that had been tasked to close the gate. Hell, Steve thought she'd burst even upon sighting Murray...

 So, with a tired little sigh, Steve patted Eleven's arm, "C'mon, let me up."

 She pouted, nose scrunching up ever so adorably, and Steve had to turn away. Those damned kids knew exactly what to do to get their way.

 Even so, Eleven was the least troublesome of the bunch — except for Will, the absolute angel — and managed to sluggishly topple from their laps. She crossed her arms as he stood, a light glare sparkling within her eyes.

 Steve rose his own to the sky — All of the Hoppers certainly had an attitude. He held out a hand, waiting for Scarlet to grab ahold, and as ever, she didn't disappoint. Steve could see the desperation eating away at the both of them, and sitting tucked away wasn't doing either of them any good.

 Scarlet leaned into the kiss he placed upon her forehead, eyes peering up at him in the way that always made him go utterly pink. He did, as per usual, yet still managed to gather enough of himself to press another to her lips.

 Eleven giggled at the sight, and the sound was enough to alleviate some of the weight upon Scarlet's shoulders.

 "I'm going to check on Max again... I know she's with her mom but..." Steve peered over the bustling crowd, easily spying the fiery red hair of Maxine Mayfield. She had taken a seat in her stepfather's car, tuning out his angered yells and her mother's weeping. Her stare was blank, "But I don't think..."

 Scarlet only smiled, watching the way a little divot appeared between his brows as he kept his gaze on Max. Scarlet had been the one to take her to her parents before having her wounds checked over... Max had hardly been able to let go.

 "Go," Scarlet muttered, ever so gently bumping his side. She scooped up Eleven's hand, "I think we'll go and search for the others."

 "Find me when you do."

 "We will."

 "Hey," Steve spoke before Scarlet and Eleven could turn away, "I meant what I said in there, you know. I love you. Just want you to know that, okay? I know you find it hard to —" He stopped, Scarlet knew what he was alluding to. She found it hard to express her care within words, it made things real... and things that were real could be stolen away, "So don't say it back unless you're ready."

 He walked off right before Scarlet could argue or apologise for her silence. All Steve had ever wanted was for someone to say those words to him and actually mean them... now, knowing that Scarlet was his girlfriend, knowing that she cared about him enough to bite the bullet and let herself do something, have something for herself... suddenly, Steve was alright with those three little words remaining behind closed doors.

 He didn't need the words, because he could see it in her eyes.

 Eleven's head cocked as he watched Steve leave them behind. She couldn't understand it — why her sister wouldn't say it. Eleven had heard those words uttered into her ears more times than she could count, and so had Max and Will... even Hopper had finally heard them freely in the air before he'd left... so why?

 She yanked her sister's hand, "Don't you love him?"

 Scarlet knew this would happen, Eleven didn't particularly know when things were and weren't meant to be brought up. So, with a forged smile, Scarlet carefully crafted her response, "It scares me."

 "Saying I love you?"

 "Mhm. I'm scared that if I say it, then... Then people will leave and take my love with them. I don't want to be left empty."

 "But you tell me."

 "You're different."

 "How?"

 Scarlet avoided the question, "You're also insufferable, you know that?" Her words were huddled with a slight tint of mirth. She didn't truly mean it... even if Eleven did like to stick her cute little nose into other people's business.

 "What's... Insufferable?" The word was mangled, but Eleven grinned after falling silent at a job well done.

 "Doesn't matter... You're different because, well, you're like me... and —" Scarlet surged forwards on her aching legs, trapping Eleven in her arms. The giggles that sprouted hurt her head, yet her heart thudded a little faster, "— You're stuck with me!"

 "Stop it!"

 Her bubbling laughter had drawn the gazes of many; Lucas smiled, pausing in his path towards Max. Mike, Nancy and Jonathan all picked up their heads, and a small grin played on each of their lips.

 But as always, all good things must come to an end.

 Over Eleven's frock of matted and tangled hair, Scarlet spied the very thing they'd been searching for. There, right in front of them, was Joyce Byers hugging the life out of Will. He hadn't a care, and Will only squeezed tighter and tighter... they soon pulled back when Jonathan joined the fray with the makings of tears within his eyes. Their family was back together.

 Scarlet frowned. But hers was not.

 There was no sign of Hopper. No thunderous pounding of his heavy boots as he dove through the crowd, pushing people out of his way just so that he could scoop up his daughters. His voice couldn't be heard; no gruff and grizzly bellow, no sigh of relief as he found them... So where —

 Scarlet blinked, her arms falling utterly slack around her sister.

 Joyce had met her gaze, and while her tears could have easily been chalked down to the fact that her boys were alive and by her side... Scarlet had seen that look before, back when she'd first found herself within dreary little Hawkins.

 It was the same look that had been plastered over Joyce's features when Will was writhing in pain, begging for somebody to help him.

 That one look alone was more than enough for Scarlet to put the pieces of the puzzle together. The reason there was no grizzly call of their names, the reason there was no mountain of a man breaking through the sea of people... was because Hopper wasn't coming back for them.

 Eleven had done her best to decipher the look on Joyce's face before Jonathan had obscured their view... she peered up at Scarlet, doe eyes blinking owlishly. She saw tears sliding from reddened eyes. They sailed down Scarlet's cheeks, rushing towards her chin where they dribbled pathetically to the ground.

 "No," Eleven whispered, breaking Scarlet's heart from two ragged pieces into a million. Eleven choked and spluttered around the lump in her throat. Her legs gave way, and Scarlet just barely caught her in time.

 Scarlet's fingers curled inwards and her knuckles grew a stark white. She tried so hard to contain it all, to be the big sister and comfort the little girl in her arms... but she just couldn't do it. It felt as though someone had reached into her chest and plucked out her heart.

 Jim Hopper had given her a second chance. He'd given her everything that he could. He'd opened his home and his arms to a girl that was all but a stranger to him... just so that she would have somewhere to stay and grow. He had doted on her from the moment he'd agreed to look after her.

 He was everything that so many fathers were not. He didn't have to treat her the way he did, he was never obligated... and yet Jim Hopper, the gruff police chief, had changed for her, for Eleven. He learned to cook, he put the time into learning what his children liked and disliked... he protected them like any father should.

 He treated them like they were Sara.

 Scarlet would never be able to really recall when a harsh sob tore through her throat — the moment she felt every wall she'd built vanish in a plume of smoke. Everybody else had heard it before she did, the looks tossed their way, the unrelenting pity within people's eyes... It was unbearable.

 Tears streamed down her cheeks, scurrying across her flesh only to topple into Eleven's hair. The hold the girls had on one another was bone-shattering.

 Scarlet wanted to scream and watch as her power burst from her body and swallowed the mall whole. She could have done more. Surely she could have done something... She should have stopped him.

 But really, was there anything that could ever stop Jim Hopper?

 Steve had heard their cries, the gutwrenching wail that had burst through the night and tore the solace of freedom into sad little pieces. He'd sat with Max in complete silence, just so that she knew there was somebody with her... and when she'd finally gifted Steve Harrington with a little smile, he moved on.

 He made rounds, moving from Lucas to Will, then to Nancy and Jonathan. That's when he'd heard them. His head whipped up at the sound, eyes narrowing through the twilight as he tried to find them... his heart lurched.

 Jim Hopper's daughters were nothing more than puddles on the ground. Their hands were clawing at one another, afraid to let one another go. Tears were never-ending, and their cries... God their cries. Steve felt his own tears begin to well; he knew well enough what such harrowing cries could mean.

 Thing is, it wasn't just the two of them that had lost him, Steve had too.

 Jim Hopper had shown Steve everything his father had kept from him throughout his life. He finally had somebody looking out for him... and now... But Steve swallowed the lump in his throat, he blinked back the haze.

 He was by their side in mere seconds, scooping both of them into his arms. He muttered incomprehensible things.

 I'm here.

 I'm so sorry.

 What else could he possibly say to them?

 Scarlet couldn't feel her fingers or her toes. Every inch of her had frozen and became completely numb... then, that familiar feeling crept through her gut and scurried up her throat. Scarlet felt her chest seize first, her breathing becoming ragged... then came the spinning before her eyes, the splotches of black... her fingers were shaking, that much she did know.

 A panic attack. It was chewing at her flesh, forcing her skin to quake.

 She couldn't breathe.

 "Scar," Steve breathed out, doing his utmost to pry Scarlet's hands away from her chest as she scrambled for her heart. This was something Jim usually did. He'd take her hands, pull her close to his chest and tell her to listen to his heartbeat. He's smooth her hair and tell her everything was going to be alright, to just listen to his breathing...

 But he wasn't here, was he?

 "Scarlet." He repeated softly. He followed the memory within his head, back when Hopper had pulled her close after battling the Mind Flayer for the very first time. First, Steve cupped her cheeks, smoothing away those tears even despite the fact that more clambered to take their place. He kissed her forehead, waiting for just a moment before pulling away.

 Then, his hand slid from her cheek and to the very back of her skull, a trail of warmth left behind. He pulled her to his chest and he knew for sure that his heart was positively pounding.

 Scarlet sobbed and sobbed and sobbed. She could only just hear Steve, only just make out that suddenly, her cheek was right above his heart. It thudded away, tickling her skin...

 "Breath with me," he muttered, and she did.

 A shaking inhale, a trembling exhale.

 A coarse breath in, a raspy breath out.

 Again and again, they breathed, until Scarlet buried her face ever-closer, "He's gone."

 Steve let his own tears fall then. The reminder, the way she'd said it... he couldn't hold them back, "I know, I know." His hand reached for Eleven who had managed to cling to her sister, "I'm here, okay? I'm not going anywhere."

 Steve knew no amount of soothing words would steal away their pain, nor his own, but what else was there to do? The monster had been slain and the Russians were gone... there was no more justice to be found, no amount of revenge that could further be seized.

 The very man who had reached out with love and protection, was gone in an instant. There was nothing that could ever soothe such heartbreak... they'd lost the person they loved and trusted most.

They had lost their father.

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27-06-2020

edited version: 03/11/2022

:･ﾟ★ pain, baby, pain. this chapter had been written and edited the second the last was posted... i made you wait because I'm mean <3

um... the next chapter is LONG. not like 6k long, or even 7 or 8... no, it's over eleven-thousand words. uh, so prepare ig?

don't forget to let me know what you think; and remember that i now require a particular number of comments and feedback before i consider releasing the next part. please do NOT leave comments telling me to update; they'll be ignored and you'll be muted, much love <3