Mentions: 𝔗𝔥𝔢 𝔅𝔞𝔫𝔦𝔰𝔥𝔢𝔡

Getting away from Hawkins did seem like a logical step for him. Dustin Henderson graduated high school with his friends in 1989 at the rebuilt Hawkins High School. He had tested high enough on his SATs that he qualified to go to MIT. Getting a free ride to MIT was something he could’ve only dreamed of as he’d gotten older. He totally made it without having to get Suzie to fix any grades like she did ten years ago. He thrived among the other genius kids at MIT in the 1990s even getting hip deep into the blossoming nerd culture that included something called anime. Graduation was in 1994. He looked in the audience at his graduation to see if anyone was there from back home. Not only did he see his mom, but he saw a few other friendly faces that included Eddie Munson. He was happy his mom had made the trip out, but he worried about her. She was still back in Hawkins right in the middle of everything. She was getting older and he was too far away to actually help her with anything.

Dustin did miss all his friends and Suzie when he was at MIT. He had never forgotten the cheerleader or any of what had happened back in 1986 with Vecna. All that horror was why he tried to keep away from his hometown. He had all the trauma to last ten lifetimes. Upon graduation, Dustin did compromise somewhat and accepted a position as an engineer at General Electric in Cincinnati. He’d even bought a house in a quiet suburb of Cincinnati called Evendale. He enjoyed the silence and the unassuming nature of the neighborhood. It reminded him of Hawkins back in the early days. Starting over was something he’d never imagined in a million years. Being an adult was so different. All the horrors of Hawkins were behind him, or so he thought.

His mother often called him to just check up on him and tell him how proud she was of him. Dustin, living in Evendale and working for General Electric, was now a standard for two years. Claudia Henderson was once a helicopter parent, but sending Dustin to MIT for 4 years caused her to change her parenting skills and trust that Dustin was a grown man now. On her last call, Dustin had expected it to be one of those typical shooting the breeze calls, when he was unfortunately surprised. His mother mentioned the kids again that had been murdered ten years ago. This started to worry him. His instinct told him that now was a good time to take vacation and head back to Hawkins.

Hawkins, IN

The little red 1996 Ford Taurus pulled into the childhood home of Dustin Henderson. After the supposed Earthquake in 1986 and the final defeat of Vecna at their hands, the Henderson home was repaired by a contractor that had taken a fancy to Claudia. Dustin didn’t blame her for dating while he was in college. She had to be alone. Loneliness was a bitch. He knew that first hand. Claudia happily greeted her son with a tight squeeze and a smattering of kisses. Dustin chuckled and sat his bag down inside the living room. “Here I thought something was wrong Mom.”

Claudia sighed before finally letting her son free from her embrace. “Let’s get your bag in your old room Dustin. It’s still there.” She started to reach for Dustin’s bag. He had planned on spending at least a week with his Mom and looking up any of his friends who were still in Hawkins, maybe even see if Suzie had moved out her on a permanent basis since she was an adult now too.

Judging by how quickly she changed the subject, Dustin lowered his gaze. “Mom… What’s going on?” He asked in a low voice. His stomach started churning. There was definitely something wrong now. She was hiding it from him.

Claudia parked herself down in her favorite chair. Gray streaks were threatening to overtake her entire soft flowing brown curls. Dustin’s own curls were a mirror image of his mother’s. “Rumors Dusty. That’s all. Something about monsters running around in the woods. It’s nothing really… Then the death of the cheerleader from Hawkins High.”

Dustin’s heart leapt from his chest. “MOM! What the HELL? Why didn’t you tell me???” Dustin started to pace back and forth. “Are the others here? Have you seen them?” By the others he meant his friends and Eddie especially.

“Eddie comes by to check on me often.” Claudia mentioned passively.

Dustin reached for the telephone that sat on the table next to his mother’s chair. He started to dial a number. Stuffing the phone under his ear, he pulled out his wallet. “Yes, when is the next bus to Cincinnati? Yeah. got it. I need one in the name of Claudia Henderson.” He pulled out his credit card and began reciting numbers. “Thank you.”

“What in the world, Dusty?!” She demanded of her son. “You just got here and you’re sending me to your house?” Claudia inhaled sharply. “Don’t we get to spend some time together?”

“Your bus leaves at 7 tonight Mom. That gives you time to pack and for us to have a meal. But after that, I need you as far away from here as possible. I can’t have you anywhere near this mess again, alright?” Dustin’s expression was pleading. He hung up the phone from the Greyhound bus company and began to dial another number of a friend back in Evendale that would take her to his house. “Please Mom. You’ll like Evendale. It’s a lot like Hawkins, but SAFER.”

Claudia saw the expression on the face of her son and it broke her heart. “Only if you promise me that you’re going to be safe this time, okay?” The last time this happened, an earthquake ended up tearing apart the town. She didn’t want to live through that again. Dustin had just finished the arrangements with his friend Don who was an older engineer at GE. Don and his wife Ruby would take care of Dustin’s mom once she got there and look after her. It made Dustin feel so much more relaxed by the time he hung up the phone. “Of course I will Mom. I won’t let anything happen to me. I’ll just feel better if you’re far away from here.” The knots in his stomach told him that this was about to get really bad.

Anyone driving by the Henderson house would see the brand new Ford Taurus outside the house with Ohio plates on it. Anyone who lived in Hawkins recently would know that Dustin was living just outside Cincinnati. That and before Dustin arrived, he knew that his mother would have likely called a bunch of people to tell them that he was coming home for a visit.
 

"Never Change Dustin Henderson. Promise Me."