43. Fight

A/N: WARNING-this chapter deals with topics of abuse. I would advise you not to keep reading if that disturbs you in any way.

And don't panic, it's not Mike and El that are fighting.

That all being said, I hope you enjoy!

Brian McIntosh was nice enough. He respected his teachers, did what was asked of him and rarely stepped out of line. Yet, the girls in school fawned over him like he was a celebrity and El just didn't understand it, not that she had any desire to. He was cute and all, but they could do so much better. Not as good as the boy she'd found, of course.

So when Brian started taking a liking to her, she really didn't understand.

She tried to think nothing of it, but suddenly, he was walking her to her classes, smiling at her during the Biology class they shared and hanging around her locker

Mike had noticed and was less than thrilled. She'd caught him glaring at Brian on more than one occasion and she wasn't oblivious to how he always kept a hand on her in some way. Not that she minded—he was allowed to touch her as much as he wanted, unlike a certain individual who had now made a habit of walking abnormally close to her.

Her friends had been urging her to confront him but she had no idea what to confront him about. It wasn't definite that he was hitting on her and there was a possibility that he just wanted to be friends. El knew a thing or two about loneliness and she'd seen him hanging out with other people on occasion, but maybe he was just looking for someone new.

Or maybe she was too nice for her own good like Max kept telling her she was.

Sure, Brian's actions were starting to make her uncomfortable, but she knew how to look after herself. If he crossed a line, she'd make sure he regretted it. Until then, he was her friend and she did her best to make it clear that that's all he could ever be. Some people, however, made it very clear that they wanted Brian as more than a friend.

El had never been a fan of Shannon Warner. She'd never heard the girl say something that wasn't borderline passive-aggressive or blatantly mean. She didn't talk to her unless their Bio class demanded it and even then, their short discussions left her feeling uncomfortable. Ignoring her seemed to be the best way to avoid her attention, so El was more confused than anything when Shannon called out her name after class was dismissed.

She glances up to find her weaving her way across the classroom, her heeled boots clicking on the tile as she makes her way towards her and El eyes her warily, her smug expression making her stomach clench.

"Just so you know," the girl says, her hip popped and her hands on the desk in front of her. "Brian could do a lot better than you. So I suggest you stay away from him, okay? You're distracting him."

She can't help it. She rolls her eyes.

"He's just a friend. I already have a boyfriend and it's not him. I'm not interested," she explains calmly and pushes past her before she can say anything else.

She can feel Shannon's furious gaze digging into her head behind her, but she's been in this school long enough to know she's not worth it.

Interdimensional monsters haven't been able to take her down. Shannon is going to have to do a lot more than talk to her to be intimidating.

She forgets about the incident within the next day or so and continues walking to class with Brian when one of her friends isn't there, because, as it turns out, she was right.

The kid doesn't have as many friends as everyone thinks he does. It's always been his tendency to jump from group to group. "Cover more ground," as he explained to her one day before class started. He'd never been good at building connections that go deeper than a casual conversation and would find a new group once one got too bland.

El listens politely, but she can't resist asking why he hasn't left their friendship yet.

"Because you aren't boring. And, well...you know."

He smiles knowingly at her and she eyes him cautiously because yes, she does know and she cannot stand the way he's looking at her. And she really cannot stand it when he places his hand over hers where it rests on the table.

"Don't touch me," she hisses before she can think about it, yanking her hand from his grasp. "I'm not single, you know that." She puts as much venom into her voice as she can and his eyebrows raise, scooting away from her a little. He goes to say something, but their teacher calls to them from the front, thank God.

"Brian, that is not your assigned seat. Quit bugging El and move back up here," he tells him and El breathes a sigh of relief as Brian trudges back up to his desk.

Mike's not going to like this.

"Do all guys just want a relationship?" she asks him that night as they plow through their schoolwork together. His face is curious as he glances up at her and shrugs.

"Pretty much. Or at least a girl to mess around with," he replies, wrinkling his nose in disgust. "Why?"

She bites her lip, glancing back down at her textbook. He sighs a moment later and she knows he figured it out.

"What did Brian do?"

"Not much. But he said he liked being around me and—um—" She scrambles for the word. "He said something without saying it."

"Oh, implied?"

"Yeah, implied. He implied that he'd want to be—more than friends."

Mike's eyes are frantic when she looks back up at him.

"And—and you said no, right?"

"Mike," she says with a chuckle before closing her textbook and crawling over to him. She presses her lips to his softly and she feels him relax as his hand weaves into her hair to pull her closer.

"Of course I said no," she whispers as she pulls back and plops down in front of him. "You were right, I shouldn't have trusted him."

Mike shrugs, reaching out to tuck a few stray hairs behind her ear. "You did what you thought was right. I'm sorry I didn't approve of him more, I know you just wanted to make a friend."

She smiles and leans into his touch as he cups her jaw, brushing his thumb along her cheek. "It's okay. Can we just forget about him?"

Mike grins. "Consider him forgotten."

They don't mention his name for the rest of the evening and, as far as they were concerned, Brian no longer existed.

Brian, however, had not forgotten about El.

She's not sure how the Party got roped into going to the football game. Something about Lucas's friend finally making the team and Lucas insisting they all come to support him—she wasn't really paying attention. Regardless, she supposes there are worse ways she could be spending a Friday night than watching a bunch of guys tackle each other as she huddles closer Mike for warmth. Lucas and Max are the only ones who know anything about the sport and she's glad at least some of them know when to cheer.

A little after halftime, she finds that she has to go to the bathroom and Mike offers to go with her, but she shakes her head, squeezing his shoulder as she makes her way past him to the end of the bleacher. She worms her way down through the students until she's out in the parking lot and she's about to make the short walk to the school when someone calls out her name behind her.

"El, hey! Wait up!"

She turns to see Brian jogging after her and she groans quietly.

"Hi Brian," she says as politely as she can.

"Hey," he says when he catches up with her. "So, I've been thinking a lot about what I did and I think I went about this in the wrong way."

Huh. Maybe she could still give him a chance.

She crosses her arms defiantly. "Go on," she urges.

"Well, I don't think I made my intentions clear," he continues, taking a step towards her and she glares at him.

"My answer is no," she tells him strongly and, much to her dismay, he chuckles.

"Your answer was no. But I thought you'd maybe change your mind after this."

Before she can move, he's darting forward to press a sloppy, wet kiss to her cheek and her stomach churns in revulsion.

Oh hell no.

His mouth is moving closer towards her lips and she shoves him, hard.

"I said do not touch me!" she screams and she wouldn't be surprised if the whole football field heard her. Her vision has gone blurry with her rage, but she manages to slam her foot into his groin and he doubles over, his face contorted in pain and she can't find it in herself to feel bad even a bit.

"Never, ever come near me again."

She leaves him writhing on the asphalt and breaks into a sprint towards the school. Bursting through the doors, she runs into the bathroom and grips the sink edge, panting.

She doesn't want to hate him, but that idiot had violated, not only her personal space but her explicit instruction not to lay a hand on her and she almost gags when she realizes she can still feel his mouth on her skin. Blindly, she grabs a paper towel and wets it, scrubbing at her face until her cheek feels raw. When she can no longer feel the mark of him, she lets her hand drop and the adrenaline starts slowly seeping out of her.

She throws the paper towel away and does her business as she'd intended to do in the first place. She loses track of how long she just sits on the toilet, her face in her hands, replaying what had just happened.

The Party's going to murder him when they find out and Mike is going to be furious. She wishes she could feel bad for the wrath they'll most likely unleash on the guy, but he deserves every second of it. If her own harsh words didn't get through to him, surely the words of five other outraged people would. She just hopes none of them manage to get themselves in trouble.

She sighs as she flushes and exits to wash her hands. She has to tell them eventually—there's no point in lying to them. Maybe just not when they're anywhere close to Brian.

She's plotting how best to go about this as she dries off her hands when the door suddenly swings open, causing her to jump when it hits the wall.

"El Hopper," she hears and she turns to see Shannon of all people with her hands on her hips, her face livid with anger. "I thought I told you to stay away from him. And then you lead him on? And hurt him? Are you for real, Hopper?"

What twisted stupid lies had that jerk told her?

"I did not lead him on. He was—"

"Oh please, you think I'm going to believe you? He told me the whole story. Flirting with him I can maybe forgive, but trying to kiss him?" The girl takes a step closer to her and El takes a step back, stifling a gasp when her back hits the sink.

"That's a low blow, Hopper. What is your little boyfriend going to think when he hears you tried to kiss another guy?"

"Mike's not stupid," she tells her, standing a little taller. "He'll know Brian is lying."

"Or," Shannon continues, taking another step and El shouldn't feel cornered by her but she does. "He'll see you for what you really are. A little flirting whore."

That cuts something deep in her but she's determined not to let it show as she scoffs. Two can play at this game after all.

"Brian doesn't even look at you, so you intimidate the girls he does to get rid of the competition?"

Shannon's eyes widen, then narrow dangerously as she steps even closer to her, nearly towering over her, but El can't stop her next words from flying out.

"Brian doesn't want you. You know why? Because you're a stupid, lying bi—"

She doesn't finish her sentence, because Shannon's hand comes up and slaps hard her across the face.

Mike was bored.

The game hasn't exactly held his interest, but he was at least having fun with his friends until they got bored too. Now he was cold, completely lost as to what was happening in front of him and missing the warmth of his girlfriend.

He frowns and checks his watch.

Fifteen minutes. She's been gone fifteen minutes. Logically, there's no reason to worry about her—the bathroom's close and there's little threat of danger here. She'll be fine.

...right?

His stomach clenches and he grits his teeth as he forces his breathing to remain even. There's no reason to panic, she can handle herself. Maybe she just got caught up talking with someone?

Two more anxious minutes go by and he gives in, feeling like he's about to jump out of his skin.

"Hey, Max?"

"What's up?"

"Could you, um—go check on El? In the bathroom?"

Max scoffs. "What, afraid she fell in?"

"Max, come on. She's been gone too long."

"Mike. She can handle herself." She turns her attention back to the field, leaning over to hear something Dustin is saying and he sighs. The anxious ball in his stomach grows worse and he stands abruptly.

"Where are you going, Wheeler?" Max calls.

"I'm going to check on her myself. Something's wrong," he responds as he starts weaving through students.

"Okay, fine. I'll come with you," he hears Max say and she catches up with him as they make their way out of the bleachers. The parking lot is quiet as they cross it, eerie almost and they pick up the pace, nearly jogging to get to the school.

"Watch, she's gonna be perfectly fine and annoyed that she can't even go to the bathroom without us worrying about her," Max quips when they get to the gym and Mike shakes his head.

"She can be annoyed all she wants, as long as she safe," he replies as they head to the bathrooms. He'll take the consequences, he just wants her to be okay.

The bathroom door is closed when they arrive and Max knocks, pressing her ear to the door.

"Hey, El? It's Max and Mike. Are you in there?"

There's no response and Mike's heart rate spikes, his mouth going dry. She has to be in there, there's no other option. She has to be safe, dear Lord, she has to be safe.

"Wait here," Max mutters and opens the door. Mike goes to protest as she enters the bathroom, but it's barely a second later that she cries out.

"El?!"

He sucks in a breath, fear prickling the edges of his vision and he throws the door open, rushing inside to see the form of his girl huddled in the back corner. She's curled up in a ball, her arms wrapped around her legs, her head pressed between them and her shoulders are shaking. His heart twists in on itself and he's barely breathing as they inch closer. Although he knows she can hear them, she doesn't acknowledge their presence and he can hear her whimpering, the sound piercing daggers through his heart.

She's had episodes before—intense bouts of fear, flashbacks, a few anxiety attacks. This, though. This is different. She hasn't had a problem with shying away from comfort since they were kids and he and Hopper broke down her notion that she didn't deserve it. Now, she hasn't even looked at them, much less reached for him and it's setting warning bells off in his head.

Not wanting to spook her, they slowly kneel before her and he speaks first, every instinct in him screaming to make her better.

"El?"

She shudders and curls even farther into herself and every inch of his heart aches, but he takes a deep breath and pushes forward.

"El, baby, it's just us, you're safe. Can—can you look at me? Please?"

She shakes her head and he glances at Max who looks just as worried as he feels.

"El, can you tell us what happened?" Max asks softly and again, she frantically shakes her head.

Mike gnaws on his lip as he studies her, her actions perplexing him and, on reflex, he stretches a hand out to place it on her arm. Her breath hitches, but she doesn't shy away and he takes that as a victory. He doesn't dare go any farther until she tells him it's okay, but he slowly rubs circles against her skin as they wait. For what, he's not sure, but he knows she needs them to be patient and for her, he has all the time in the world.

Max slowly extends a hand too, resting it on El's arm as well and, much to his surprise, she flinches, leaning away from her touch and Max pulls back as if she'd been burned.

El lets out a muffled sob, her head still tucked in her knees. "I'm sorry Max," she whispers and he has to strain to hear her. He shoots Max a confused look and lifts his hand off her arm as well, but El whimpers out his name and he quickly puts it back.

"El?" Max's voice is quiet. "Would you like me to leave?"

She doesn't say anything, but her silence is enough. Beside him, Max swallows and rises to her feet. He meets her gaze to see she's hurt and he shrugs helplessly, at a loss for words. He knows El hasn't told her everything about the trauma in her past, but he's not sure Max knows that and now is not the time to find out.

"I'll, um—I'll go tell the guys, okay?" Max says and hurries out. Mike turns his attention back to the girl in front of him, a weight lifting now that it's just the two of them and he adjusts his position, sitting criss-cross in front of her.

"El?" he starts timidly, wanting so badly for her to let him in. "You don't have to talk to me, but—but you're starting to scare me a little. Can you please look at me, baby? Just for a second?"

Ever so slowly, she peeks up at him and her eyes are overflowing with pain, so much so that tears begin to clog his throat and he swallows roughly, holding her gaze.

That is until he notices her cheek and he sucks in a breath.

Her face is blotchy from crying, but her right cheek is a deep, angry red, the smallest bit swollen, but it's obvious that this was another person's doing and a voice in his head screams.

Someone hit her.

Someone hit his beautiful, precious El.

Don't they know she's been hit enough?

His fingers start shaking and he fights for control over his breaths because he has to stay calm for her, but damnit, he feels like punching whoever attacked her.

He quickly glances away from her, unaware of the grip he now has on her arm and waits for his vision to stop swimming. Once he has some resemblance of control, he speaks, his voice low and calculated.

"El. Who did this to you?"

She sobs, pulling further still into herself and she furiously shakes her head.

"No," she says and he grits his teeth because she's not going to let him get justice and he knows it, but the anger in him is white-hot, flaming, licking at the edges of his heart.

"Tell me who hurt you."

"No."

"Eleven."

"No."

Control, control, he has to stay under control.

"Why won't you tell me?"

She presses her lips together and shakes her head, her face crumpled and her eyes down on the floor.

Control.

"Look at me."

"No."

"Stop telling me no!"

He yells it, his voice ringing off the tiled floors and she jolts, shock freezing her body before a sob wracks through her, then another and another, until she's curled up in the same ball he found her in. Not a single inch of her isn't trembling and it's sobering enough that all the fight leaves him with a whoosh. The intensity of it pricks his eyes with tears and he's ashamed.

"El." It's a cracked whisper and he scoots closer to her, bending to rest his forehead on her crossed arms, the crown of his head resting gently against hers.

"I didn't mean to yell. I'm sorry." His voice cracks again and he lets the tears run onto his cheeks. "I hate seeing you hurt. I hate it, I—it hurts me in the worst way possible. I want to help you and I'm sorry I got angry, you don't have to forgive me."

She's whimpering, but she's quieted down and he swallows, crying for the pain in her that he's so ready to shoulder himself, the fear that he won't be strong enough and the guilt for directing his fury at her.

"I won't force you to talk," he continues after a moment and she lets out a shuddering breath, relaxing slightly. "But I am right here to help you and I'm not going to leave you, because I love you. Let me help you. Please."

He feels her lift her head and a dash of hope flickers through him. He raises his head to meet her eyes and she bites her lip, her face a mess of pain and trust.

"El," he pleads, his hands resting gently around her ankles, needing to have some connection with her. After a beat, she nods slowly and his shoulders sag in relief at how open her eyes have become. He goes to say something, but the door suddenly opens and they both jump, heads whipping towards the entrance.

Max steps in cautiously and he can see the guys peeking in from around her.

"Um—I've got everyone and Mrs. Byers. We're ready to go if you are," she tells them and Mike turns his attention back to El.

"Do you want to go home?" he asks softly and she nods, her hands unfurling from her knees to reach toward him. He stands to help pull her up and once she's steady on her feet, she holds tight to his hand as they follow Max out of the bathroom. He squeezes her hand twice, letting her know that he's got her and she squeezes back, resting her head against his shoulder.

They make it to the car in relative silence—Max must've warned the rest of them not to pester El with questions, but he can see their concerned glances and can't do much but smiles weakly at them.

El climbs first into the backseat and he follows her, scooting over to make room for Max and Lucas since Dustin and Will are cramming upfront. It's a tight fit and El ends up mostly on his lap, not that either of them mind. They forgo a seat belt and she curls up to him, burying her face in his neck, her hands grasping his shirt and her knees resting on his lap. He didn't know his heart could swell and break at the same time and he wraps an arm around her shoulders to keep her secure against him. As the car starts to move, he presses a hand to her head, only to pull it back in alarm when she tenses.

"El?" he whispers into her hair and she's still for a moment before she leans up to whisper, "It still feels like—". She tapers off and he presses a lingering kiss to her forehead.

She still feels the sting of another's hand on her.

He's going to make someone pay for this.

His thoughts are numb and quiet as Dustin, Lucas and Max are dropped off. It went unspoken that he would be spending the night and as they approach the Byers' house, he nudges the girl in his arms to find her asleep. When they reach the driveway, he whispers her name, slowly coaxing her awake and she murmurs something incoherent before extracting herself from him to let him out of the car. She follows closely behind and he figures out a few logistics with Mrs. Byers—when to take him home in the morning, where to find a sleeping bag and with a warning not to hurt El further, she hugs her step-daughter and bids them both goodnight.

El tugs him to her room quietly and he figures she just wants to go to bed, but as soon as they're safely behind her door, she wraps her arms around his waist and buries her face in his chest. His arms come up to hold her and they stand there for a while until she speaks.

"Mike?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm ready to talk now."

He lets out a breath, before nodding against her hair. She slowly lets go of him and walks back a few steps to plop down on her bed. He follows her, hesitantly sitting down next to her and watches her closely as she fidgets nervously with the blanket, her eyes sad and faraway.

"I don't know where to start," she finally says, not looking up at him.

"That's okay," he replies gently, but her shoulders slump and he rushes to find a better answer. "Um—but maybe I could help you. Can I ask you some questions?"

She glances up at that, looking complacent as she nods and he scoots a little bit closer to her.

"Okay. Can you tell me who hit you?"

She winces and looks away, her arms coming up to wrap around her torso and he's moving before he knows it, his hands landing on her elbows.

"Hey, hey, hey, I'm sorry. I don't know if I can keep sitting here without—without knowing who hurt you. I know you think I'm going to get mad and do something dumb if you tell me, but I won't, I won't. I'm done being mad for today." She gives him a look that shows she knows that's a lie, so he amends his statement. "Mostly. I can't say I won't be furious at whoever hit you, but I won't yell again. I'm, um-really sorry I did that."

She smiles sadly and reaches for his hand, squeezing it in a gesture of forgiveness. After a beat, she speaks.

"Shannon."

"What?"

"Shannon."

He frowns. "Shannon Warner?"

El nods.

"Why did she hit you?"

She blows out a breath and he reaches for her other hand.

"I won't get mad," he tags on.

"Yes, you will."

"Not at you." Never at her.

A soft smile flashes across her face before it falls and she sits up a little straighter.

"Remember Brian?"

Yuck. "Yes."

"He, um—he wasn't done with me."

She proceeds to make her way through the story, barely looking at him. He restrains himself from shouting when she quietly admits that he tried to kiss her—that he did kiss her and resorts to pacing around the room as she quickly reassures him that she took care of the guy. He rakes a hand through his hair as she explains how she'd hidden in the bathroom and he wishes more than anything someone had gone with her.

She explains how Shannon fits into all this once she gets to the part where the girl had burst into the bathroom and Mike rolls his eyes at how petty Shannon's rationale was. They're in high school, would she just grow up?

"And then she threatened to tell you I tried to kiss Brian," El's saying.

"You know I wouldn't have believed her, right?" he interjects and she nods.

"That's what I told her. But, um—then she called me a whore and—"

"She what?"

His outburst startles her and his stomach twists when she looks away from him, her eyes misty.

"El, El I'm sorry. Keep going, I won't say anything." He sits on the edge of the bed, far enough away so he's not suffocating her and close enough that she can reach for him if she wants. She sniffs and nods, avoiding looking at him.

"Then I almost called her another name and—and I didn't, because then she slapped me."

Hearing her admit it is so much worse. He bows his head, breathing through the surge of fury that whips through him. What's done is done and he'll make sure there's hell to pay.

He hears El's breath hitch and he knows she's crying again. The silence is heavy and thick around them as her confession sinks in. When he blinks, a tear rolls down his cheek and he swipes it away hastily. This isn't about him.

Letting out a shuddering breath, he kicks off his shoes and moves so he's behind her, slowly as to not startle her. He wraps his arms around her waist, needing to hold her close, and rests his chin on her shoulder, his heart clenching at the way she's trembling as she leans into him. They sit like that for a while, El's hands mindlessly tracing over his arms as she collects herself.

"Do you, um—do you have any more questions?" she asks after a while, her voice rough and timid.

He nuzzles his face into her neck before letting his curiosity get the better of him.

"Why didn't you fight back?"

She stiffens and the apologies beg to leap out of him, but he holds his ground because he needs to know. She took Brian down just fine. She was a fighter as much as she was a lover, but she evidently hadn't tried to fight Shannon and he wanted to know why.

"They didn't let me fight back in the lab."

"El—"

"Mike. They didn't. When they hit me, it—" Her voice breaks off as she sobs and he holds her as tight as he can, trying to keep all her broken pieces together.

"It meant I had lost. I couldn't—couldn't do anything else, they would only hurt me worse. P-Papa always got called if they hurt me a s-second time and before he told them to take me to the—the dark place—" She shudders violently and he can barely stand it anymore.

"El, you don't have to keep going," he says, raising his head to find her face twisted with pain.

"Before they took me, he'd grab me, h-hard, and tell me how bad I'd been. And I always believed him. I was good if I did only what he told me and bad if—if I tried anything else. Then he'd—"

She whimpers, clutching his arms more tightly and he presses his lips to her temple, once, twice, lending her every bit of strength he has.

"He'd tell me he'd hit me h-himself if I did it again and he'd hit me twice if I told anyone what they did to me. When they threw me in the dark place, all I'd think about is how I could make Papa happy again. I made him happy by not saying anything."

She pauses, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

"They didn't let me fight back, Mike. So I didn't fight Shannon. I had lost."

He doesn't know what to say to that as she slumps against him, tucking her head under his chin.

He knew she was abused, sure, but hearing the stories made him want to yank all the memories out and take them on himself so she never has to be haunted by them again. And yet, he can't do a thing. Not to the bad men, not to Papa and, realistically, not to Shannon or Brian either. He wants to hunt them down and make them pay, but they already did their damage and he wouldn't be helping anything by adding more.

That doesn't mean she can't still bring them to justice.

"El?"

"Mmhm?"

"Please tell me you'll tell a teacher about this on Monday. Or at least someone in the office."

She's quiet and he has his answer.

"El, you have to tell someone. What they did to you—both of them, it's not okay. You won't get in trouble for it and if they don't listen to you, we'll make them listen."

"We?"

"Yeah. Me, Max, Dustin, all of us. You didn't think we'd let you barge in there all alone did you?"

He can feel her smile into his chest before it falls and she sighs.

"What if they don't believe us?"

There's something heavy under her question and he doesn't want to push her, but curiosity gnaws at him.

"You tried telling someone in the lab, didn't you."

She looks up at him, her eyes tired and sad.

"Yes. They didn't believe me."

"Did Papa find out?"

She bites her lip to hold back her sob, but it forces its way out of her and she crumples back into him.

"H-He was really angry when they told him and—and it was the only time I put m-myself in the dark place. It was s-safer than facing him."

An image of a scared little girl crying as she shut herself in darkness flashes through his mind and he doesn't bother blinking away his tears as they come hard and fast. She becomes heavier and heavier against him, her sorrow weighing her down. He moves quickly, scooting back across the bed and bringing her with him until he's resting against the headboard and wraps his arms tightly around her as she sobs quietly. He presses his lips to her hair, letting them linger as he cries with her and lets his argument go, his frustration following its trail. Now wasn't the time to fight back.

"I'm sorry I pushed you."

"No, Mike, you didn't—"

"But I did and I'm sorry. We'll—we'll deal with this later, alright?"

El nods after a beat, snuggling farther into his chest.

"Can we just go to bed?" she whispers.

He wants to say no, to stay up until they've come to a resolution and he feels like he's done enough, but they've run out of options and it's nearing midnight. This isn't over, far from it, but there's little else to be done.

"Promise me you're okay, baby," he pleads. She hesitates and his heart stutters because he doesn't know what he'll do if she isn't.

"I will be," she murmurs.

"What can I do to help?"

"Don't leave. Please, don't leave me."

He can do that.

"And—and don't hurt me."

"Are you kidding? I would never, ever—"

She sits up suddenly, but the smallest smile is gracing her lips, indicating she's not startled.

"I know. That's what you can do to help and you're already doing it."

He huffs out a breath, his indignation fading away and for the first time all night, she giggles softly.

"I just want to sleep," she tells him as her mirth dies down and he nods, whispering a soft, "okay."

They get ready for bed swiftly, not saying much, but always staying close, not wanting to let each other out of their sights. When they crawl under her covers after turning off the lights, he's sleepy and from the way El's eyes droop, she is too. She drapes an arm over his waist as he settles on his back, wrapping his arms around her. He has the thought that he should make sure she's in a better headspace before they fall asleep, but that's the last conscious thought he remembers, because he drifts off to sleep, holding his precious girl close.

In the coming days, after a long talk with the Party to break El out of the mentalities the lab had placed upon her, she'll be pleasantly surprised when she barely gets reprimanded by the school for her harsh words against Shannon. Both Shannon and Brian will be suspended, their stories crumbling under the six opposing ones and the incident will melt into the past as El carries on with her head held high.

For tonight, she rests with the one person she knows will never intentionally hurt her. She'll brave through a hundred injustices if it means she gets to have him at the end of the day and she blissfully falls asleep knowing that no matter what, he will always keep her safe.

A/N: Hi, I'm back :) I feel like I owe you all an apology for how late I was in getting this out. College is sucking almost all my time right now, but no matter how long I take, I want you guys to know that I'm always working on a one-shot and I'll get them out as soon as I can. Thank you all for your continued to support, I can't thank you all enough!