"I don't know that there would have been a body," Hopper said. "You saw the thing? The energy from it would have obliterated me." And he was okay with that. It wasn't what he wanted, not by a long shot. But it was what had to happen, because that gate needed to be closed, and he had to die to make that happen.
So why was he here? How was he here? It didn't make sense. There was absolutely no reasonable explanation in Hopper's mind except that he was dead. But if Steve wasn't dead...then he was right back to square one, which was essentially not knowing a damn thing.
"That what we're looking for?" Spotting the bar just ahead gave him a reprieve from the circle of never ending thoughts that just kept coming back to it doesn't make sense. He licked his lips, in anticipation of a good, strong drink. Maybe he'd drink until he forgot about all the unanswered questions rolling around in his head.