Author's note: And so it ends.

I'd like to take this space to thank everyone who'd been with me, specially those who came a little over an year ago willing to read a nice, light fic with '1985' and stayed for this year long crusade that this series became. I'm so glad you took the time to read my fics and leave reviews, that means so, so much to me! You guys are incredible, and I hold you all dear.

I'd like to leave 2 special thanks before we get to the epilogue. Jenna (littlecajunlady88), my beta reader, thank you for actually watching ST when I told you you'd like it. I don't know if I would be able to write this without your support and insight, you're awesome! And Mari (loveisourresistance)! You guys, I've been friends with Mari for almost a decade, and we'd been apart for a while before 1985 brought us together again. What a weird way for things to happen, huh? And she's been a lovely, faithful supporter, with casual 'you know what I've been missing? your fic' messages on whatsapp and instagram heh. I love you both, ladies, you rock!

Season 2 is really, really close now, and soon this fic will be obsolete. But I'm glad to have y'all's support through the writing process that this trilogy took, and I certainly hope to write more ST fics sometime in the future, after I binge s02 a couple of times (let's face it, it's totally gonna happen).

Thank you, guys! A thousand thank yous! You are all the real MVPs.

Please, leave a review. And I hope I'll see you soon!

SPRING

"When shadows and demons are chasing, there's no way that our hearts will be breaking
'cause all we have is love."

Sabrina Carpenter – All We Have is Love

EPILOGUE

May, 1987

Nancy was still taking down the photos from her side of the room when her roommate, the goody two-shoes nurse student that silently side-eyed Nancy's borderline erotic pictures and worrisome nightmares for the past couple of years, finished packing her things. She put her suitcase down loudly and hugged her fluffy pillow with both hands as she looked at Nancy.

"I guess I'll see you next fall, then?" she said and Nancy turned around to look at her.

She was holding the framed poster that Will had made for the story Mike wrote for her, a patched and pierced one piece almost her size. Looking closely you could see where the sheets of paper had been put together with tape and glue, a detailed and careful work bursting with color.

Whatever had happened in Will's brain last winter made him resurge better than he'd ever been. Kid had real talent.

"I don't think so," Nancy said looking at her roommate. The girl frowned at her. "I'm… transferring to Boston."

"You are?" she exclaimed surprised.

"Yeah," Nancy nodded. "Pre-med."

"What?" the girl asked slowly. "But the archeology program…"

Nancy smiled.

"You know, my brother said the same thing when I told him," she said putting the frame on her bed. Her father would come pick her up any moment, and she still had quite a lot of packing to do, but it wouldn't hurt to spend a few minutes explaining herself. "But I found what I was looking for and got what I needed. My work here is done."

Her roommate said nothing, just staring at Nancy with raised eyebrows. Maybe she should start thinking of the girl as "ex-roommate" now, since she was definitely transferring to the school she'd dreamed of since she was a kid.

"You're… weird," the roommate said and Nancy chuckled.

"Thanks!"

"I think I might kind of miss you," she said and looked over Nancy's shoulder to the photo that was still on the wall. "Even though you do some things I don't agree with."

Nancy looked at the photo too, still in love, still missing that spring with her men. It was different now, hard to be apart after everything they'd been through, but they still loved each other, separation, trauma and all.

"Isn't that how friendships work, though?"

"Friendship?" her roommate echoed surprised.

To be honest, Nancy didn't know why she sounded so surprised; that girl had been putting up with her especially for the past semester, after she came back from-

A shudder went through Nancy's spine. Sometimes, she still could smell the blood. Behind her eyelids she still could see Nicholas Heron's headless body, and the pieces of Brennan's brain sticking on the golf club that she later found out was her father's. Hopper had kicked the body back into the abyss that now adorned Hawkins' Axis, but-

It still was in the back of her mouth, the acrid taste of dread, printed down her throat the smell of burning flesh. Her fireproof jacked had helped a lot, protecting her as best as it could from Barb's flames, and by now the rosy skin of her forearm was brand new, as if it hadn't been severed at all, the back of her hand being the only part that scared and even so just faintly.

Her situation was so much less physically traumatizing than Dustin's, whose injury had him have his whole shoulder blade replaced by a titanium plaque. From all she knew, he was still in recovery, lucky to be hurt on his bad arm and still being able to write just fine.

Nancy could barely hold a pen for weeks, and when her body began to respond, her brain started to freeze. She'd wake up gasping for breath, screaming, crying. She'd wake up beaten, broken, burned. She'd wake up to a wet bed, unable to move, sick to her stomach. She'd bolt out of bed and throw up on the floor, and she'd be burning hot, and everything was dust and ashes and a rough blanket on her shoulders.

Three years in this life of monsters, for the first time she knew it was over. For the first time she remained shit scared.

And through it all, her roommate stayed with her, that rare breed Catholic from Utah who wanted to work for the Red Cross somewhere in Africa or Middle East. She shook Nancy out of nightmares, nursed her back to health, helped her clean up any messes she made, found Nancy's classmates and asked for their notes when Nancy couldn't leave the bed. She bought a bedside lamp and kept it on every night, and she read the story Mike had written out loud when she noticed that Nancy was getting paranoid again, marveling at the great panel created by Will when a scene portrayed there was being narrated and not a single time she asked questions.

"Yes," Nancy said and she quickly looked around. By the lamp was a pile of used notebooks and she picked the one on top, found herself a black marker and wrote down on the back of the cover her phone and address. "Here, give me a call before the summer is over, I'll let you know how to find me once I know where I'll be in Boston. Let's keep in touch, right?"

The roommate smiled as she accepted the notebook and nodded. Her name was Molly, and Nancy remembered being fond of her without even knowing her when she moved to Maine because it was like "Holly", but with Mike's "M".

"Sure," Molly said. "Maybe we'll work together someday, if you're going to be a M.D."

Nancy shrugged playfully.

"I don't know, you'll be saving lives in Asia or something and I like it here in the States."

"Who knows?" the roommate replied. "We still have a long way until we reach our future, right?"

A large, knowing smile spread on Molly's face and Nancy mirrored it. That was a line from Mike's story, something that they both shared now, and it felt nice. It felt so nice.

There was a rapid knock on the door and they both looked out to see a grey-haired couple looking at them. Molly's parents.

"Hi, Nance," the mother greeted warmly and Nancy waved. "Are you set, kiddo?"

"Yes, Mom," Molly said and her father helped taking her things out.

They said their goodbyes, parting on a better note than it had happened the previous spring. And Nancy still had a lot of packing to do.

About a thousand miles from there, under a hot, unforgiving sun, Hawkins High's sophomore class was having a baseball rematch against the seniors. In all honesty, it wasn't exactly a "rematch", seeing that it involved no reward of store discounts or tickets to games, but the rivalry between those classes was off the charts, and any game they had against each other gathered a crowd in the bleachers.

Biting his lower lip nervously, Mike constantly checked his watch and looked in the direction of the gymnasium, where the locker rooms were and where Will had disappeared to.

"Stop that," El warned him, putting a hand on his anxious leg and he sighed frustrated.

"I can't believe he's doing that to me again," Mike complained and Dustin shook his head.

"Guess you should learn how to say no to him, then," he said and Mike stared at him.

"Can you say no to Will?" he asked.

"Yes," Dustin guaranteed at the same time everyone said, "No!"

"I don't know why you have to be such a whiny bitch about it, Mike," Lucas said on Mike's other side. "You just need three strikes to be out. It's easier to miss than to hit."

"That's true," Jennifer pointed out.

"That's not the point," Mike complained. "The point is he said 'Hey, can you hold my place in the line for me?', and he absolutely has to be back by the time it's his turn so I don't have to play."

"STRIKE OUT!" Ms. Franco, who was doubling as a referee, shouted and Mike shuddered.

"Gee, Mike, stop being a baby about it, it's just baseball," El said waving him off and he looked at her as if she'd just betrayed him. "Look, you want to be out of the field as fast as possible, you keep your eyes on the ball and swing that bat."

"Mike, you're up!" Savannah informed. Whenever they had anything sporty going on, she'd take charge because she was the boss. Against his will, Mike got up and got himself a helmet and a bat. "Do you know where the fuck Will is?"

He shook his head no.

"Don't even talk to me about him," he whined dragging his feet to the base.

"MIKE!" El called, standing next to Savannah. He looked at her. "Eye on the ball!"

Annoyed out of his mind, Mike just sighed and took a stand. He waited, eye on the ball; the pitcher was Pat Curry, El's sort-of-ex, and he didn't like Mike very much, though they never ever talked. When he pitched, the ball came with a lot of effect, so Mike had to time his swing with precision. He didn't breathe, just let his arms do the movement, and for a split second he was in the dark hitting a dirt wall to get to his girlfriend, but it lasted just that – a second – and he was back in the field hitting the ball in whatever way he could and praying it'd go somewhere.

Mike's eyes widened when he realized that the ball was actually going a long way, having seniors running around like drunk insects to try and catch it, and with utter confusion he realized that the ball went beyond the fence when he was pretty sure he hit it all wrong.

"HOME RUN!" someone screamed and Mike looked back, saw El hiding her laugh behind her hand. That explained a lot.

"Do I really have to go all around the field?" he asked Ms. Franco and she nodded. Dropping the bat on the ground and getting the awkward run base after base went Mike Wheeler.

"I can't believe he actually managed to hit that, Pat is a mean pitcher," Savannah said impressed and El did her best to look composed. "He must be a natural."

El chuckled and shook her head.

"Nah, it's just luck," she guaranteed with a serious nod, the two of them watching him go around the field to complete the score. "Savannah, do you know what a nymphomaniac is?" she asked randomly. Savannah turned to her frowning.

"Someone addicted to sex," she said, her tone of voice suggesting that she wasn't sure it was a question that she actually wanted her answer. El nodded. "Why do you ask?"

"'Cause I think my brother is that," she said with a casual shrug. "I'm worried about him."

"Will?"

"Yeah."

"Is that what he's doing now? How do you know?"

"Twinsie stuff," El said waving her hand as if it was nothing. "And I know things. Anyway, I think he's addicted to sex and it concerns me. No addiction is good, you know?"

Savannah was frowning at El, her face a mix of concern and confusion, and she carefully stepped away. Mike joined El just as Savannah started putting some distance and he looked confused from one girl to the other.

"You guys," Savannah said slowly. "Are really weird."

"What's going on?" Mike asked and El shrugged.

"I talked a little too much, I guess. People get unsettled by that."

"They definitely do," Mike said with a nod and put an arm around her shoulders. "Thanks for the home run, babe."

"What are you talking about, that was all you," she said looking up at him and smirking. He shook his head.

"Shut up and take my gratitude, you freak."

"I don't accept gratitude from you in words," El said.

"You don't?" She shook her head no.

"Just in kisses."

"Just in kisses, huh?" he echoed and she nodded, so he used is free hand to hold her face and kissed her mouth.

"EW!" someone, probably Lucas, exclaimed at the same time someone else threw an empty cup at them, and another person said, "Gross! Get a room!"

But in the background, what some heard was Preston Telles wondering where Jessy Stoker had gone to, because she'd be the third batter in the next inning.

As a matter of fact, Jessy Stoker was a little busy… and a little breathless. The cold wall of the boys' locker room against her back did nothing to ease the heat all over her body, the line of kisses Will Byers left on her jaw and neck burned her skin and she eagerly dug her short nails on his shoulders, her ankles crossed behind his back. If he wasn't holding her hips so firmly, she would most certainly not have the strength to stay up.

Holy shit, she thought gasping for air, and maybe she even said it out loud, because Will let out a chuckle before he kissed her again. There was something about his kisses that was sloppy, messy and absolutely mesmerizing. She was, to say the least, on cloud nine.

Her feet hit the floor, first one and then the other, and Will's hands went up from her ass to the small of her back, their chests pressed together as they caught their breaths. She had taken off his shirt, revealing a few scars on his chest and stomach, and a tattoo above his heart with four short words.

I will go on.

From all she knew, there had been a cancer in his stomach, and maybe even in his head, because his once long hair was now just long enough for her to tangle her fingers in it. He'd been out of school for over a month, and during the Social Studies Fair held in December, the school even paid him some sort of homage, as if he already was dead. Ava Taylor had to present their project alone in tears and Jessy suspected she only got second place because of all the sentimentality.

"Now, that was fun," Will said kissing the corner of her mouth. He discarded the condom and they put their clothes back in place. Jessy smiled at him, her back still against the wall.

"You know, Ava Taylor was right," she said fixing her top. He raised an eyebrow at her. "I thought she was exaggerating, but no."

"You guys talk about me?" he asked with some surprise and she smirked. "What did she say?"

"She said you know how to fuck."

Will laughed, zipping up his jeans. Damn, he was cute.

"Thanks," he said honestly and she laughed too.

"Well, I'm heading back. I'm sure Mike aged a few years just by having to play for like, one inning."

Jessy gasped then. The game! She was supposed to batting!

"You coming?" he asked and she nodded.

"Go ahead, I'll be right there."

Without asking twice, Will headed back to the field. The crowd was surprisingly cheery for just an inter-class game, but he guessed that his class did have some A class players, mostly among the girls. If Savannah and Lexi didn't make it to a national team in their sports, Will would lose his faith in the American dream.

Lucas was pitching and one of the big guys from the football team was the batter. He might have been one of the guys trying to get Brad Miller to beat him up, which was a useless attempt. The kind of hitting Brad Miller wanted with Will was different. Lucas threw the ball and there was collective gasp from the crowd as Hulk tried to hit, because the bat escaped from his hand, flying in Will's direction.

Casually, Will reached up and caught the bat with his right hand, even giving it a flip before looking at Hulk unimpressed.

"You call yourself an athlete?" he said provocatively. Hulk strutted in his direction, but before he'd get too close, Will pushed the bat against his chest, keeping a safe distance.

"You think you're so funny, Byers, Imma-"

"What?" Will teased looking at him in the eye, still pushing the bat against the other guy. "What're you gonna do? Beat me? Because you can't even hold a baseball bat? Think fast." He tossed the bat at Hulk, who failed to catch it, letting it fall dangerously close to his foot. "Pathetic."

Hulk lunged at him, but Ms. Franco already was by their side, breaking the fight before it even started. Will didn't even flinch.

"I'm gonna break your pretty face, Byers!" Hulk threated.

"You can try," Will replied. Hulk was about his height, but twice as large. It didn't mean Will feared him, though. When you faced death three times and fought a couple of monsters since you were twelve, it was hard to fear people. Angry high school boys had nothing on him.

"Hulk, can it," Ms. Franco said firmly, pushing the boy away and then she glared at Will. "And you're not helping."

"What! I'm a saint!" he joked, and she shook her head. Hulk got his bat from the ground and strutted back to the base, because he still had a couple of tries before being out.

"Explain to me again why we can't count on you for the baseball team?" she asked, as if it really broke her heart.

"Because I fucking hate it," he told her.

The only reason why he even knew how to play baseball was because of Lonnie, and that wasn't even a good enough reason anymore, hadn't been for a long time. Ms. Franco sighed saddened and shook her head.

"Go take a seat, William," she said already going back to the field.

Will turned around to join his friends, and he was grossed out to see his sister all snuggled with Mike.

"Gross," he said making a face at her and sat between her and Jennifer. El gave him the tongue.

"You're gross," she replied elbowing him. "Where were you?"

"Around," Will said vaguely, his eyes on the field. Lexi was a catcher for this inning.

"I can't believe you didn't even flinch when Hulk came at you," Jen said impressed and Will shrugged.

"What you have to understand, Jen, is that no one has balls like me," he said, his line of thought interrupted by "ugh"s and "oh, my God"s. He caught Savannah staring at him, and when their eyes crossed, she smiled, quickly turning away. "Also, you don't grow up with Lonnie as a father without learning to punch back and shoot things. Why is Savannah being weird?"

El said nothing and he looked at her.

"Hopper," he said and she smiled.

"I might have mentioned your nymphomania to her."

"What?"

"She was a bit unsettled at first, but I guess she's coming around."

"El, I'm not-"

"You should stop with the denial, dude," Dustin said. "Everyone knows."

"Seriously, you're something out of a French movie," Mike affirmed. Will shook his head.

"That's not a bother, that's cool," he said.

"OUT!" Ms. Franco called and Hulk went back to the bench angrily snorting, Jessy Stoker passed by him to position at the base. Will smirked.

"Jessy Stoker?" El exclaimed. Will put his hand on her face, trying to shut her up with little to no success. "Seriously?"

"What's the problem?" he asked. She had put her hand on his face too, pushing him away.

Dustin, Jennifer and Mike shook their heads tiredly. Before, Will and El only had this supernatural, eerie bond. Of course they grew to feel like family, them being so similar in so many ways, but they never had the chance to act like actual siblings. Ever since January, that had changed, and it was for the better.

"She's hot!" Will argued.

"She's a bitch! Get off!"

"You get off!"

"Jesus," Jennifer sighed, their bickering muffled by their friends' giggles. "I'm glad I'm an only child."

"I'm glad all my brothers are so much older than me that I'm practically an only child," Dustin agreed. He was holding Jennifer's hand, their fingers laced together.

Jessy Stoker hit the ball so bad it ended up going backwards and hitting El, making the twins stop their argument.

"HEY!" El exclaimed getting up and Mike held her arm, made her sit down again.

"Calm down, Edge Lord," he said. "It wasn't on purpose."

El pouted and crossed her arms. Will didn't like how revealing her top was, so he started taking off his shirt.

"Jesus, Ellie, decency," he said.

She frowned at him.

"Don't come at me with decency talk when you're finding excuses to strip!" El exclaimed. "Put your shirt back on!"

Mike lowered his head, covering his face with his hands as he tried to hide his laugh, but it didn't help that they were interrupted by the neighbor bench.

"Why are you trying to cover him, Hopper?" Polly asked, and when they looked over, there was a group of girls looking at their bench. "He's got too much layers going on. Take it off, Will!"

"Yeah, take it off!" someone shouted from the bleachers, starting a new chant.

"TAKE! IT! OFF! TAKE! IT! OFF!" some people shouted. Mike's stomach was beginning to hurt from so much laughter. El made a face.

"Gross," she said disgusted. Will looked at her with a smirk, his shirt half opened.

"What can I do?" he said innocently. "I'm fucking hot."

El rolled her eyes and leaned back shaking her head. Will buttoned up his shirt again, getting a disappointed "ah" in return, and sat back down between El and Jennifer. They still had powers and were just beginning to recover from the trauma, but life was simple again. Finally.

Will elbowed El and she elbowed him back, and then she laid her head on his shoulder, her hand on Mike's. After Jessy was out, it'd be their turn at the base, but until then, Lucas was having fun as the pitcher, Lexi as his faithful right hand when the ball went in her direction.

At last, there wasn't a dangerous threat hovering above their heads, just a baseball game to end the school year.

Things were good.