19. 17: Connection (Part Three)

Try as they might, they could never send any emotion other than a longing for one another across their bond. Not that they minded-they both were incredibly grateful they had the ability they did, but when they were apart, it was second nature to worry that the other wasn't okay.

With school starting back up again after winter break, it was agreed that El would spend one more semester studying at home in preparation to join her friends at the high school. The idea of being cooped for another five months wasn't thrilling to her, but the party, Mike especially, came out to visit her whenever they had the chance, keeping her loneliness to a minimum. But they too had a responsibility to school and as the link between them grew stronger, it wasn't rare that she would be dutifully sitting at their kitchen table completing her studies and there would be a faint tugging on her thoughts, indicating that Mike was sitting in a classroom, bored out of his mind, wishing that she was there with him. She found it absolutely adorable.

Eventually, it had been a year since Dr. Owens had first given her a limit on how much she could go outside and while she hadn't been completely isolated during that time, she finally got the green light to go wherever she wanted to in town. Of course, the first thing she asked when Hopper told her the news was if this meant she could see Mike more.

Per her request, it was arranged that she could meet the party after school if she finished her own schoolwork for the day. She would hang out with them while they did their homework and then joined them in whatever they felt like doing that day, whether it was a campaign, studying for a huge test or running around in the woods, she just loved spending time with them.

But occasionally, Mike would convince the rest of their friends to just let the two of them have an afternoon together, because they never really could get enough of being around one another. And today was one of those days.

El has decided that the school bell ringing might just be one of her favorite sounds in the world. She stands outside of Hawkins High, counting down the minutes on her watch and when the numbers finally read Two-Four-Five, the familiar tolling sounds across the empty parking lot and her heart leaps for joy. Not even a second later, a flood of kids who have been cooped up all day come rushing through the doors, enjoying their first taste of freedom in seven hours. She uses the bike rack as support as she stands on her tiptoes, craning her neck to find that gorgeous, inky black head of hair she's been waiting all day to see.

He really isn't that hard to spot once he comes out of the building, as he's one of the tallest freshmen in his class. She watches as he breaks off from the crowd and jogs toward her with a grin on his face that matches her own. Dropping his backpack on the ground, he wraps his arms around her when he reaches her and her arms go around his chest. Sighing, she happily rests her head on his shoulder as the rest of the world fades away.

"I missed you," she murmurs in his ear, wanting to be the first one to say it today. "I missed you, too," he replies, pulling back so he can look at her and he squeezes her shoulders. "How was your day?" she asks as they untangle themselves and he launches into a monologue about the lab they had in Biology that day. She smiles contently, giggling in the right places and asking as many questions as she could. For education, of course, and definitely not just to hear him explain something to her.

She's so blissfully wrapped up in this moment that she's completely caught off guard when it happens.

One minute, she's listening intently to Mike's words and the next, they're muffled as she gets the intense feeling that someone's watching her. Someone bad.

She can't explain it, but she just knew. Something in the air shifted and her gut twisted unpleasantly, an unexplainable dread that something was about to happen rushing into her veins.

"Mike," she whispers, putting a hand on his shoulder. "What?" She shushes him as her eyes begin to scan their surroundings. The weird part is, everything looks completely normal. A group of lanky boys is shooting hoops on the cement court, a teacher is smoking in his car, two girls chatter mindlessly as they walk along the sidewalk, nothing is out of place from the typical after-school scene you would expect.

"El?" Mike says again and she rubs her thumb against his shoulder, starting to hope that this is just a false alarm and her instincts are playing tricks on her. She's thisclose to giving up her search and shrugging it off when her gaze lands on a vehicle parked at the far end of the lot that makes her audibly gasp as a stab of fear pierces her gut.

No. Not today.

She had a feeling they'd be coming. She had a feeling they'd hunt her down. But she really didn't think it'd be so soon. And she really, really didn't want it to happen ever.

Her heart rate spikes, but she can only watch in terror as the door of the beige van opens and Dottie steps out, giving her a sickeningly innocent wave.

"Run," she commands breathlessly, grabbing Mike's arm and ignoring the confused look on his face. Together, they sprint away from his bike, down the sidewalk and she leads them back behind the brick wall of the school.

"El, what is going on?" "Do you remember when I found my sister?" "What?" "My sister. Kali? Remember?" Mike had been the first person she had told about her adventure to Chicago and he knew more about it than anyone else. "Yeah, I remember, what about her?"

"She's here. Kali and her gang are here." "Here?" "Here. Right now, I saw their van." "What do they want?" "I don't know!"

He falls against the cool brick wall, running a hand through his hair as he processes this. "I won't let them take you," he says suddenly. "You can't go with them." "Mike, I won't leave you, I never will again. But we need to go, now. I just don't know where..."

"Jane?"

Their conversation halts suddenly and they whirl around at the voice, their hands immediately seeking out the other's.

Kali stands before them.

El doesn't know what to think. She didn't think her reaction to seeing her sister again would be so strong. On one hand, a sour taste rises in her mouth and she feels a mixture of fear and anger bubble in her as she remembers what this person believes in and what she tried to make her do. But, to be fair, she had given her a home for however brief it was and the sisterly love Kali had offered was a warmth she had missed.

However, Mike knew exactly how he felt about this person. "What do you want?" he growls forcefully, taking a step to stand in front of El. "I just want to see my sister," Kali replies, holding out her arms. "Is that too much to ask?" He eyes her skeptically and El sighs, squeezing his hand. She escaped Kali's clutches once and she has full confidence that she can do it again. There's no harm in at least just seeing why her sister is here. "I'll be back," she whispers to Mike and cautiously lets go of his hand to step towards Kali.

Wordlessly, she walks straight into Kali's arms and embraces her tightly. "I missed you, Jane," she hears her whisper in her ear and before she can even think about her words, she replies, "I missed you, too." She knew in the back of her mind she was here for a reason that she wasn't going to like, but for now, she soaks in their embrace, knowing they didn't have long. Her long hair tickles her face when a breeze blows through and she smiles when she realized her sister hadn't changed a bit. A waterfall of purple still cascades down her black hair, her style hasn't strayed from the grungy, rock band vibe she held and she holds her fiercely, just like before.

Reluctantly, El steps back and shoves her hands into her pockets, asking a question she doesn't want the answer to. "Why are you here?" she says, not quite meeting her sister's eyes.

"I found someone," she starts with a sly grin on her face and El's gut twists. "No," she says firmly. "No, I won't help you again." She almost turns around to walk back to Mike, when Kali's hand shoots out and catches her by the arm. "Jane, listen to me.

I found the man who gave you this."

She pushes up her sleeve, exposing the 011 tattoo inked on the inside of her wrist and El is suddenly consumed by the memories of the man who had branded her without a second thought.

She had been about seven when it happened. She remembers Papa guiding her to a room she had never seen before and the thing she'll never forget about that man is his eyes. His beady little eyes held no compassion and never once did he regard her as an actual human. He peered at her over huge, wire-rimmed glasses, his shaggy, blonde hair falling around his face as his gaze landed on her left wrist, starting up the machine sitting next to him wordlessly. Papa plopped her down in a chair next to the man and it's then that she noticed he reeked of cigarette smoke and body odor.

When he pulled out the needle, her first instinct was to run, but Papa held her firmly in the chair, whispering words that were supposed to be comforting, but only heightened her anxiety more. The man's rough hands slammed her wrist down on the table and pinned her to the cold surface, before he brought the needle down on her skin, and then pain, pain, pain...

"Don't forget, he hurt me too, Jane." Kali's voice breaks her out of her flashback and she grabs onto her wrist, steadying herself as she gasps for breath. "He's the only one of them who left us with a physical mark. He's the reason why you have to wear your boyfriend's watch just to cover up your scar. He's the reason why you started with a number for a name. He personally reduced us to nothing but branded cattle."

El's gaze snaps up to meet Kali's and she loses control of her emotions.

"What do you want to do with him?" She asks, her voice dark. Her tattoo is one of the only things left tying her to her past and her anger against it, as well as its creator, is swimming to the surface. Kali smirks. "I was hoping you'd ask that," she says. "He needs to feel the pain we felt." "Mark him too?" El asks with a gasp. She'll feel ashamed later, but that thought sounds...delicious. "Axel has some connections," she tells her smugly. "He'll get what he deserves. I just figured you want to be around to see it, maybe even give us a hand."

It's so tempting. The scar he had given her without remorse cut her deeply and the chance to make it right almost sounded too good to be true.

A small voice on the back of her head comes to life. 'Would it actually make things right?' it says and she bows her head as she contemplates this. Temporarily, the revenge would be so satisfying, but afterwards? 'Does it matter what comes afterwards?' the anger in her whispers and she wants to say no and follow Kali and her gang to wherever they're going...but...

Her mind flashes to Ray, a man who was just trying to do his job. He was a monster, but his humanity had held her back from ending his life. Was it possible the man who had tattooed her was also just trying to provide for his family?

"Jane?"

"No. I...I can't."

"Sure you can. It would take less than a day, we'd have you back by tomorrow morning. We'd make sure your friends weren't suspicious and you'd finally get what you want."

El almost scoffs as she comes to a conclusion. "No. This is what you want. I want to stay here."

Her mind was made up. She didn't want any part in Kali's plan. She would gain nothing but regret from it and besides, her wounds had already been healed enough for her to be content. In one last attempt, her sister grabs her hand and she resists the urge to yank it away. "Jane, you'd be free." El's answer is immediate. "No. You're wrong. Mike already set me free," she declares with a smile and she looks back triumphantly at the freckled boy standing behind her.

Or...who was previously standing behind her.

And is currently nowhere in sight.

Her scream is instantaneous. "Mike?! MIKE?" She's met with a horrible silence and her vision swims as she whirls around to face her sister. The corners of her lips curling up into a smirk confirm her suspicions and her stomach drops dangerously. "What have you done to him?! Where is Mike?!" she yells, swatting Kali's hand away.

"He makes you weak, Jane. That boy is a distraction," she tells her smugly and El's jaw drops. "You're wrong. You're wrong! Where is he?" she demands, the panic taking over her body. "Kali, please, I need him!" Her sister scoffs. "He's just a boy, Jane. A boy that's getting in the way of you correcting your past. You don't need him, not anymore. You could do so many more things without him as a distraction and I could show you, teach you those things. This is your last chance, Jane." "NO!" she screams, tears welling up at the bottom of her eyes at her words. She needed Mike, it was as simple as that and if her sister couldn't see that, fine. She could live with that. She could live with the entire world not seeing that as long as he's by her side. Which he's not, at least not right now. How had she been so stupid as to turn her back to him?

She stares at Kali through narrowed eyes, her gaze shooting daggers at her sister and she stares right back, proud and defiant. There's a hint of sadness under her hard features, but El pays no attention to it, all sympathy for her gone the second she took Mike.

"Where. Is. He," she growls, taking a step towards her. She sighs. "You know, I really thought you would come around, Jane. It was so good to see you again, my sister." And with that, she spins on her heels and starts heading back towards her van. But there was no way in heck she was going to get away that easily.

Before El can comprehend what she's doing, she's sprinting after her sister and when she's close enough, she plants her feet and focuses on Kali, easily freezing her in place with her powers. She tries to be delicate, but her anger makes that difficult as she pins her sister against the brick wall of the school, her feet hovering a few inches off the ground.

"I said, where is MIKE?" she yells, getting as close to Kali as she dares, her arm extended to keep her in place. The evil grin that spreads across her face makes her feel sick to her stomach but she stands her ground. She had done something to him, she just knows it, and she's determined not to let her go until she gives him back.

"Maybe that boy isn't completely worthless, after all," Kali starts with a smirk and El blinks, not sure she even heard her right. "This is the kind of anger you need to take down the bad men and if he's the key to unlock your powers, maybe your beloved Mike isn't a distraction after all. Can't you feel it Jane? You can't control this emotion, this is what you need to channel to avenge your past! Don't take it out on me, take it out on them!"

With a gasp, El's control over her sister breaks as her brain screams at her to realize what she's doing. She barely registers Kali sprinting away from her the second her powers release, as she struggles for air.

She hadn't used her powers out of anger in over a year. Her days of hurting people were over...and now? The only justification she has is Kali's sickening smirk when she begged to know where Mike was.

Mike.

Screw it, she'll think about almost hurting her sister and being tempted to join her later, her boy is still missing. She'll regret her actions at a later time when she has someone to help her process. For now, she drops to her knees and rips her jacket off, checking to make sure there's no one around. Hastily, she ties the fabric around her eyes, letting the sound of birds chirping and the breeze whispering help her fade into the Void.

The first thing she notices when she opens her eyes is something has changed since the last time she's been here. She hasn't had to use this empty plane in over six months and it's hard to miss the fog that's dancing in the corner of her vision.

Her thoughts momentarily off of Mike, she glances up and the cloud follows her movements as it hovers just above her head, shifting slightly with her curiosity. Experimenting with it, she tilts her head side to side and it stays with her, moving left then right. Finally, she reaches her hand up and the second her fingers penetrate the fog, the slightest pressure presses into the back of her brain and she retreats in surprise. Without even meaning to, 'left' passes as a thought through her mind and the cloud darts to the left. 'Right,' she thinks and watches with a grin on her face when it shoots to the right.

So this must be why she was able to reach out to Mike's mind! Her theory is proven true the second Mike's name is whispered through her thoughts. The cloud flies in all directions around her, searching for him in the darkness and when it comes zipping back, Mike appears out of nowhere, laying on the ground before her.

"Mike!" she cries involuntarily, horrified to see that he had been tied up by Kali's gang and was dumped who knows where, his hands and feet bound together, his mouth gagged to prevent him from calling out.

And there's something else. He has a cloud too. For the moment, he's unconscious, rendering it completely still, hovering around his head. The second her heart begins to ache for him, her fog shoots out again, brushing against the very edge of his conscious.

As soon as she makes contact, he jolts awake, his eyes flying open and his body jerks immediately against his restraints. His cloud comes to life, darting this way and that, his distress making it go crazy. When his thoughts land on her, the fog shoots out to her and she feels the familiar tugging in the back of her brain when it makes contact.

She watches in fascination as the cloud encircles her body once it touches her mind, pulling her ever so slightly towards him while he himself continues to struggle on the ground. If she pulls out now, she could find him no problem, using his mind as a guide, but he looks so distraught and helpless that she decides to try something first.

She kneels in the thin film of water beside him and directs her own hazy fog towards his, ever so slowly pushing it closer until the edges meet and fuse together. The second they connect, she's hit with an overwhelming panic and confusion that's not her own and it almost knocks her over. But she doesn't miss the way his body calms down and she fights through his chaotic emotions to push as much peace and reassurance into his thoughts as she can. Slowly, she gets him to relax and as soon as she sees he's okay, she yanks herself out of the Void and pulls the jacket off over her eyes. The daylight is blinding, but she knows exactly where she needs to go.

Her heart pounds as she races across the field and crosses into the woods behind the school. It's tempting to close her eyes and just let his mind guide her through everything, but she really doesn't want to run straight into a tree, so she weaves in and out of them, adjusting her course every so often when the tugging gets stronger.

Finally, finally, she senses he's close and her eyes land on a black mop of hair sticking out from the side of a tree in the distance, her stomach dropping as she races towards him. "Mike!" she cries and he lifts his head as soon as she drops to her knees beside him. Apologies start tumbling out of her the second she starts to untie his hands, tugging at the knots, repeating, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry Mike, I'm sorry I let them get you, I shouldn't have trusted her, I'm sorry," over and over again, until finally he's free. He rips off his gag as soon as he can use his hands and her name is the first word out of his mouth. Her string of apologies stops abruptly when he cradles her face in his hands, tracing her cheekbones with his thumbs. "Hey, it's okay, you don't have to be sorry. You couldn't have known what she was going to do, okay? I'm okay, you're okay, El, everything's okay," he tells her gently, lowering his forehead to rest against hers. Her bottom lip quivers as she bites it, knowing that isn't all she has to be sorry for.

"But, Mike..." she starts in a strangled whisper. "I almost...went with her. I almost said yes. I'm so sorry." She doesn't even need to open her eyes to know his face has gone dark and his fingers tighten their hold ever so slightly. "No..." he finally whispers, his voice fearful. "No, you can't leave me." "I know, I know Mike, I didn't want to leave you either, so I didn't go with her. I'm here," she tenderly reassures him, pulling back to look at him. His eyes are cloudy with disbelief as he mumbles, "Please, please don't let me go." "Never, Mike. Never, do you understand?"

Breathing shallowly, he nods eventually and puts his arms around her to pull her to his chest. She curls up in his lap as he holds her close, both of them fighting off tears as he cradles her on the forest floor, reassuring one another every so often that they were both together and fully intended to stay that way, forever.

"El?" he mumbles after a while. "Mm-hm?" "I...I felt you. I could feel you, stronger than I could before. Before you came and found me, I could've sworn you were in my mind, messing with my emotions. It wasn't bad! But...what was that?"

She smiles slightly, pushing her forehead against the crook of his neck. "I went to find you in the Void," she begins to explain, "and I could...see our minds. They looked like clouds and when I made mine touch yours..." she trails off, glancing up at him. He's looking at her curiously, absentmindedly running his fingers through her hair. "Could you feel my emotions too?" he questions and she nods. "You were confused...and scared," she states plainly, remembering how suddenly his panic had flooded her thoughts. "Mike, I wanted to help you so badly..."

"And you did. I...I wish it could be like that all the time. "Like what?" she asks as she climbs off of him to face him properly, keeping his hands locked in hers. "Like, in that moment, you knew exactly what I was feeling and exactly how to help me. I dunno, I just felt so close to you. It was comforting, you know?"

Yes, she did know. The second their mind...cloud...fog...things had touched, it was like a piece of her that was missing before was filled and she felt complete in a strange way. Even though their emotions combined was extremely chaotic as she tried her best to calm him down, her mind had been at peace, finding immense strength in their bond. In that moment, she could've sworn they were both invincible.

"I could try," she murmurs. "What?" "I want that too. To know your mind, all the time. Then I'd always know how to help you." He grins, skimming his thumbs over the back of her hands. "Gosh, that sounds amazing. You don't know how much I worry about you when we're apart," he tells her and she nods, whispering, "Me too."

"Mike, I'm serious, I could try," she insists. The small smile that graces his face slowly disappears as he realizes she's dead serious. And she is. Screw the consequences, the idea of being that close to him is all she's ever wanted, she realizes. Sure, this decision is sudden and random, but she's never been one to tiptoe around big decisions in life.

"But...what if something goes wrong?" Mike says quietly, worry creasing his brow. "What if..."

He trails off and the expression that appears on his face is one of pure terror and it's heartbreaking. "Mike, what's wrong?" she says forcefully, searching his eyes frantically. The thought that she'd be able to comfort him if their minds were intertwined and she knew what he was feeling inside made it extremely difficult not to rip her jacket off and escape into the Void and figure out how to do it right then and there.

"What if you decide you don't want to be with me anymore? What if..." he chuckles darkly as she's paralyzed with a crushing sadness. "What if you leave me and still have to put up with whatever goes on in my mind?" "Michael Wheeler," she exclaims, her hands flying up to his face. "Don't. You. Dare. Ever think that I'm going to leave you. No, look at me," she says when his mouth opens to retort. "I love you. I love you more than I've ever loved anyone. You saved me and keep saving me everyday. You're all I need and all I'm going to need. I'm so sorry for thinking about leaving with Kali. That. Will. Not. Happen. Gosh, I love you, Mike. Please don't forget that."

By the time she's done pouring her heart out, their foreheads have fallen together once again and she's grasping his face tenderly, biting her lip when his single tear graces the top of her thumb.

"Eleven..." His voice is a raw whisper and before either of them knows it, they're kissing, softly, tenderly, wonderfully.

When they part for breath, their hands never leave each other as he murmurs, "Do it. I don't care, I love you more than you can imagine. Just please don't hurt yourself. Please stop if it gets to be too much." She nods her head firmly, before replying, "Get me to stop if it hurts you, okay? I...I don't know if your mind can handle this..." "There's only one way to find out," he says with a small smile.

Oh gosh. She could hurt him. She's instantly ashamed that that thought never occurred to her, that she hadn't even considered his safety. "But...but...what if you..." she starts to stammer, realizing just how many things could go wrong. He could suffer some sort of brain damage, she could take away all his individual thoughts, she could cause him immense physical pain, this could be an absolute disaster. What were they thinking?

"Hey, no more 'What if's?' okay? I'm tired of 'What if's'. I want to go through with this and if you don't because you're afraid I'll get hurt...I dunno, this would just be so amazing and our lives would be so much better. I don't want you to worry about me, I'm more worried about you," he tells her and she sighs. "Okay. No more worrying."

El rises to her knees to take off her jacket off once again and settles herself back down in front of him. "Ready?" "Ready." "I love you." "I love you too."

Slipping into the Void was extremely weird this time. One second, Mike is in front of her, grasping her hands firmly and giving her an encouraging smile in broad daylight and the next, he's in the exact same position, only their surroundings have been stripped away and they're encased by darkness. She watches from an omnipotent point of view as he watches her physical body curiously, having no idea she's standing at his side in the Void.

Their minds are still clearly visible to her and she's so close to him, she accidentally brushes up against his cloud, sending a jolt through her body as well as reminding her why she was here.

Exhaling, she steps in front of him. Admittedly, she has no idea how she's supposed to do this or what the outcome of her actions will be, but in the end, she just goes with what feels right.

'Forward,' she thinks, and her misty mind inches closer to Mike's, dancing and swirling through the air until it makes contact with his. A smile spreads over her face as his curiosity whispers in the back of her thoughts, colorfully tinged with his worry for her. His breath hitches, but he seems to be doing okay, although she begins to send constant reassuring messages across their bond, watching his face closely.

She decides to push a little further past just the edge and the pressure on her brain increases just slightly, his emotions becoming the tiniest bit stronger in her head. Pushing a little harder yields almost the same result as she gives them time to both get used to the sudden intrusion on their minds.

It's only when his mind is almost halfway encompassed by hers that the sensations start. At first, it's just a fleeting memory, what he had for lunch yesterday. The image of it appears first, followed by the taste of his sandwich, smothered by the sound of their friends laughing. Experiencing it distantly, she can feel his contentment, his comfort in being surrounded by his friends and it makes her smile. Without meaning to, her fog dances forward and she's hit with another, this one displaying the test they had gotten back at the beginning of the week. The sensation of the paper in his hands tingles on hers and she can faintly see the big red "C+" at the top of the page. His shame is sudden and overwhelming as she watches this moment through his eyes, realizing it's beginning to blur because of his tears.

He hadn't told her about that.

Another involuntary lurch forward into his mind and she's starting to get concerned. Distantly, a memory of him playing with Holly is swirling at the edges of her thoughts, but she's more focused on the physical scene before her. Mike's still on his knees, his eyelids shut tightly as his eyes dart underneath them. She can only assume he's receiving a handful of her own memories and is thankful the one right now is making him grin. Turning her attention back to their minds, she makes the observation that at the very center of everything, three white, glowing tendrils have stretched from her cloud to his and vice versa to wrap around their respective counterparts.

Three tendrils. Three memories. And by the looks of it, there's no turning back.

And of course, being the reckless person she is, El decides to go full speed ahead and moves quickly to get almost her entire mind to the halfway point where the memories are fusing.

The intensity of thousands of his emotions and memories transferring to her all at once is beyond overwhelming and she falls to her knees as she feels everything. His past joy, frustration, pride, fearfulness, contentment, grief, bravery, boredom, love, hate, it all overflows into her conscious at once as her brain processes what different emotions feel like in Mike's mind. She's on the ground, tears streaming down her face, regretting not going slower as she bites her lip to keep from crying out. It's too much, too much, and acting on instinct, she tries to rip her mind away from his, only to find that it won't budge.

What's done is done. Their link is becoming permanent whether they like it or not.

She manages to open her eyes for the briefest of seconds to see that her boy has also fallen to the ground, his hands clutching at his head as he receives all her past emotions. His body is trembling in the worst way and she screams his name, begging whatever higher force may be out there to help him survive this. His current state of extreme discomfort and confusion is at the heart of her mind, a constant reminder of what she's doing to him, as well as what life will be like once this is over.

If she can actually convince herself to finish this. A good hundred stragglers are still floating at the edges of their two clouds and for now, she just wants to rest, the raw emotions still flooding all of her senses.

So wait she does. In agony, she rests her cheek against the watery ground of the Void and does everything in her power to focus on the sensations that make her happy. Because despite just how much is flying around in her brain, she can still hear his laughter, she can still see his smile, his love for life. And that's what she holds onto as their world spins out of control.

Finally, finally, it slows to the point where she can lift her head, which feels like it weighs a thousand pounds. Emotions are still being registered, but it's been reduced to a faint hum, allowing her to examine Mike, who also has lifted his head.

His skin is the most pale she's ever seen it, which is saying something and he looks like he's been through hell and back. But, despite all that, he still manages to tell her, "El, I'm okay. If you can hear me, take care of yourself, but you can keep going. You shouldn't worry about me, I promise."

"I love you," she calls out and proceeds to use the last of her strength to force the final tendrils together. This time wasn't nearly as painful as the first, but she still found herself squeezing her eyes shut as the river of emotions continues.

The last memory that flashes before her fills her with so much joy, the ache from the last hour disappears like that. She relishes in it, soaking in every detail there is, because it also is one of her happiest memories.

Their first kiss. She hears his racing heart as he stares into her eyes, feeling his words slip out of his grasp. All sound has faded away, save for his pulse pounding in his ears as he darts forward and their lips meet. Happiness and love explodes inside of him as she remembers happening in her and she knows she's grinning ear to ear as the last of that beloved moment in time fades out.

Then comes the light. A blindingly white light shoots through the Void, knocking her out of it by its sheer power and she's back in her actual body, her mind feeling like it's on fire. She's quickly losing the fight to stay awake as she feels her body crumple, and then she's falling, falling, falling. Her body hits the ground and the last thing she remembers is Mike's exhaustion pounding in the back of her thoughts, along with the sight of a single stream of blood dripping from his nose as he lays unconscious on the ground. Her vision fades to black and their minds rest, for a powerful thing was done today.

Mike and Eleven were Connected.