[ if steve had any awareness in this moment, he would probably make a more meaningful connection here. about the communication, about the pool, about barb, about will byers and joyce and how often this keeps happening, how awful this is. but at the moment, truthfully, this connection has jerked him out of whatever middle ground state he'd been in. there's something for him to do. there is something to be done.
two taps - they know each other. relief floods him again, almost pushing him to his feet (again), but instead steve just sort of slaps his knees. ] Okay! I can't believe this is working. Uh- [ okay, okay, god he wishes henderson were here. or nancy, or even robin. they'd have such better ideas when it comes to all this. but they aren't here, and he can't risk...what? he can't risk leaving? how long did will survive down there? wouldn't they be okay? ]
Are you- are you safe? [ because he should ask that, right? if whoever it is he's talking to isn't safe, they should move. he knows what the upside can look like, knows that if they're talking outside by his pool now, there will be a mirror version of it down there too. should they move inside? should he just...go and get his shit and go back into the upside down to get them? he doesn't know what he's supposed to be doing, but he knows he has to do something.
a thought strikes him not quite across the face, but the feeling is pretty close, his eyes going a bit wide. ]
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two taps - they know each other. relief floods him again, almost pushing him to his feet (again), but instead steve just sort of slaps his knees. ] Okay! I can't believe this is working. Uh- [ okay, okay, god he wishes henderson were here. or nancy, or even robin. they'd have such better ideas when it comes to all this. but they aren't here, and he can't risk...what? he can't risk leaving? how long did will survive down there? wouldn't they be okay? ]
Are you- are you safe? [ because he should ask that, right? if whoever it is he's talking to isn't safe, they should move. he knows what the upside can look like, knows that if they're talking outside by his pool now, there will be a mirror version of it down there too. should they move inside? should he just...go and get his shit and go back into the upside down to get them? he doesn't know what he's supposed to be doing, but he knows he has to do something.
a thought strikes him not quite across the face, but the feeling is pretty close, his eyes going a bit wide. ]
Eleven? Is that you?