Freckles & Curls | MILEVEN AU

song - Forever by Lewis Capaldi 

~"Darling, nobody said that it would last forever
That doesn't mean we didn't try to get there
I never said that we would die together
That doesn't mean it was a lie"~

He practically skipped to the cabin, feeling something entirely new. It was a feeling that made his pulse quicken as if it wanted time itself to speed up so that he could be near her, a feeling that made him short of breath as if he could only feel peaceful enough for his lungs to function when in her presence. The feeling made him scared and on edge, as if it could be stolen away from him at any moment, as if he was scared that he would somehow mess it all up. But at the same time it gave him goosebumps, a warm feeling buzzing around his heart like a protective shield from the darkness in the world - the best thing that he had ever felt. All of his life, Mike had somehow felt like he could do better, that he could be better for those around him - like if he could just be smarter...if he could take of everybody more...if he could stop talking as much...if...But she somehow made him feel like he was enough - like he didn't need to change. Even if his hair would always get messy and frizzy when he ran his hands through it, even if he would always be slightly awkward with the height that he hadn't quite grown into, even though he didn't always know how to say the right thing - she loved him. It was something that terrified him yet set his heart on fire at the same time. 

He knocked on the cabin, fidgeting nervously as he waited for her to answer the door. It would be seconds until her sweet voice would call out 'I'm almost ready', making him bite his lip so that he wouldn't keep grinning like an idiot, only moments away from him seeing the wind caress her soft curls in a way that made them even prettier. Ever since had met her, he had been angry at the concept of time. It was a constant losing battle - his heart wanting time to speed up one minute so that he could see her, but for the minutes to tick by slower so that he would have more time with her - so that they were always frozen in their little bubble. 

His eyebrows furrowed when her father opened the door, raising an eyebrow at him as if he wasn't expecting the teenage boy. "What do you want?"

"I'm here to see El..." Mike looked behind him with a strange expression, "I mean...no offense uh-chief, but I wasn't coming for a chat."

Hopper's face hardened. "Kid, what are you talking about?"

Mike took it slower, "Uh...she told me to meet her here after work. She didn't tell you that I was coming? She told me just an hour ago that-"

"Jane isn't here."

He looked down at his calculator watch. "But it's 6:32-"

"S-She never came home. I thought that she was w-with you."

It was the shake in the man's voice that set him off, Mike's own face draining of color until he was almost as white as a sheet. It was as if time had finally answered his wish - freezing completely in the most inconvenient moment. The sounds rushed past his ears in a different blur as if he was underwater, waiting for someone to pull him back up from the surface, his hand still frozen midair as if he didn't have the strength to lower it. Hopper thought that the boy did not hear him, but the wrist had started shaking slightly, Mike's face pale and filled with terror. It took a moment before he could finally speak, the words coming out in a rushed stutter as if he could not formulate a proper thought. 

"B-But...s-she said that-"

The chief regained his composure quicker, grabbing his hat off the hook alongside his coat, shoving it on his head roughly. He pushed past the teenager, moving with quick strides until he heard the boy's voice behind him. "H-Hey! Where the hell are you going?"