I think I haven't expressed myself enough about this: Dustin being the only one who manages to calm Eddie. This sequence makes it quite clear that Eddie trusts Dustin and viceversa.
Also, can we see Steve's face in the background? 👀👀👀👀
FIRST, DUSTIN BEING THE ONLY ONE THAT EDDIE LISTENS TO, WHY DOES HE DO IT? BECAUSE HE TRUSTS HIM, THERE IS NOTHING MORE. THE WAY DUSTIN PUTS HIS HAND BETWEEN THEM AND THE OTHERS TO KEEP THEM FROM INTERVENING IS ANYTHING BUT SUBTLE, HE IS SAYING: I GOT THIS, I'LL FIX IT, HE IS NOT AFRAID, BUT HAS A FIERY DESIRE FOR EDDIE TO BE CERTAIN THAT HE BELIEVES HIM AND WANTS TO HELP HIM.
AND SECONDLY, STEVE'S LOOK, IN THE BACKGROUND, ANALYZING THE WHOLE SITUATION, AND THAT'S WHEN HE DEFINITELY UNDERSTANDS HOW MUCH EDDIE MEANS TO DUSTIN AND VICE VERSA.
I LOVE THAT THERE WERE SEVERAL SHOTS WHERE STEVE SEES THEM FROM AFAR AND THAT HELPS MY HC THAT HE BECOMES JEALOUS MORE THAN EVER BECAUSE OF THAT INTIMACY IN THE FRIENDSHIP THAT DUSTIN AND EDDIE HAVE.
ALL THOSE EYES FULL OF FURY THAT DUSTIN AND STEVE THREW AT EACH OTHER IN S5, IT WAS PURE LOVE IN DISGUISE. I DON'T KNOW HOW THE OTHERS PUT UP WITH IT FOR SO LONG, I WOULD HAVE LOCKED THEM IN THE ARMORY UNTIL THEY SORTED IT OUT OR HAD SEX. WHATEVER WAS MORE COMFORTABLE FOR THEM.
(ignore the chinese subtitles—couldn't find a screenshot to save my life)
And then he was fully ready to lose his teeth so Mike wouldn't jump off a damn cliff? And Mike did anyway?
And then he said THIS in S2, unprompted?
And then in S3 he came home from camp and no one responded to his radio, and his mom said maybe they forgot and he started to believe her?
And then it turned out it wasn't actually a lapse of memory, they were just lying to give him a surprise welcome party? But then they ditched him anyway at the end of the day, because they thought he was lying about his camp girlfriend? A thought implanted by MAX, Lucas's girlfriend that Dustin said Lucas wanted to replace him in the Party, and that everyone went along with. Mike wasn't even there because he was too busy focusing on spending time with El.
And how Will asked Mike where Dustin was, and Mike couldn't answer? And Will said "See? You don't know, and you don't even care, and obviously he doesn't either and I don't blame him"?
Dustin is always willing to believe that he is the least important friend to his friends. Always the one people will miss the least, care the least. And sometimes the show even proved him right.
For once, I just wanted him to say it out loud. I wanted him to actually distance himself from the Party, and focus on Steve or Erica or Robin or maybe the Hellfire group. And when anyone from the Party confronted him on why he was being so distanced, he just said "why do you care? No one ever cares about what I'm doing anyway. I'm just focusing on people who do."
Just in case people are wondering, Steve's beamer would have cost over 30k in season 1, the very year the car came out. That means a 17yo ended up with a car that today with inflation would be 80k+ (and more likely to be well over that seeing how higher end bmws in 2026 are over 100k)
I think you can easily cross off the idea that Steve bought it himself, and the idea it was a gift is far more likely. I'd wonder if it was a sweet sixteen kind of gift, or even not his car at all, maybe his father's secondary car (though I don't find that likely, seems to be very much Steve's car.)
But to me the idea of it being a gift is interesting, because while Steve clearly likes his car, it's a luxury vehicle afterall and had a lot of new tech in it for the time, the one picture Steve had on his bedroom wall was more of a classic muscle car. So, while I can't say I have any actual evidence for this, it brings up the mental image of parents who cared enough to buy him a very very nice car as a gift... but it wasn't actually the car he wanted. It's a car that makes them look better, as a status symbol.
If someone had told sixteen-year-old Steve that he’d be attending the wedding of Jonathan Byers’ younger brother and one of the freshman benchwarmers on the basketball team, Steve would have told them they were insane. If that person had gone on to say that he’d be attending said wedding with one of the best friends of Jonathan Byers’ younger brother as his boyfriend, he would have called the police to tell them a patient had escaped from Pennhurst.
And yet, that is exactly what Steve is doing. He’s currently squirming in a rickety chair on the sweeping lawn of a fancy summer villa for the wedding of Will Byers and Chance Lawson. Sweat trickles down his back under his suit from the hot afternoon sun watching the wedding party stand and melt as they wait for the grooms to come down the aisle. Mike and Lucas are standing opposite two basketball players Steve had never been that close with while Andy fucking Harper is currently either glaring or making eyes at Dustin.
Steve has never thought murder sounded as compelling as it did right now.
It’s his own fault too, Steve muses as he watches Dustin lean over and whisper something in Lucas’ ear, making him snicker behind his hand. Steve could have been up there, but he’d turned down Chance’s bizarre invitation to be one of his groomsmen despite barely having one conversation together off the court. He’d done so in a fit of loyalty to Dustin, refusing to be seen standing up with the basketball team that had made Dustin’s life a living hell in high school.
And now, that inspired bit of loyalty is coming back to bite him in his ass. His sweaty, sweaty ass that is slowly going numb on this shit chair. Steve tries to recall the happy memory of Dustin’s eyes widening and then growing dark, completely turned on at the idea that Steve felt so strongly about rejecting his high school basketball team. Dustin had spent all afternoon showing Steve just how grateful he was for that little display.
Steve suddenly catches an elbow in the ribs.
“Hey, lighten up would you? You look like you’re at a funeral right now.” Robin hisses at him.
“Oh, sorry I’m not looking delighted that Dustin’s high school bully is looking at him like a piece of meat, Robin! It’s not exactly my idea of a good time!” Steve hisses back.
“Oh please, Dustin can handle himself. Cool it on the macho cave-man protective bullshit.”
“I haven’t even done anything!” Steve insists in a hysterical whisper, ignoring the way he’d been fantasizing about knocking that expression off Andy’s stupid face a second earlier.
Robin snorts in disbelief, but doesn’t have a chance to retort because the quartet starts playing “Pomp and Circumstance” and everyone rises and turns to the back of the house where the grooms are going to emerge to walk down the aisle. Chance walks down first, hair coiffed even higher than Steve’s. Well…that made sense, Steve grumpily tries to reason to himself. He had been out sweating in the humidity for almost two hours at this point. Steve had taken some amusement in watching Dustin’s own hair fight the constraints of his shellacked styling, curls growing wilder and wilder with every passing minute.
It’s Will’s turn to walk down the aisle, arm in arm with Joyce and Jonathan. He’s already crying. Good grief, Steve thinks ungenerously. Crying over Chance? Really? The guy had been nice enough as a freshman, though he was as dull as dishwater. But Steve had long since abandoned any goodwill toward him after Dustin told him he’d been part of the group that had jumped him at Eddie’s grave right before their final crawl.
Steve looks back up to the front. He can just make out from this distance the ugly scars on Andy’s face, somewhat faded in the intervening years, but still visible. Evidence of Dustin’s prismatic spray attack. Steve smiles grimly to himself.
The smile slides off his face when Andy bite his lip as he rakes his eyes up and down Dustin’s form, lip curling lecherously. The hair on the back of Steve’s neck stands up. He remembers something similar in the way that Billy Hargrove used to look at Steve like that in the locker room showers.
one thing about Dustin I find very interesting is that the experience with Mews DIDN'T make him more cautious. if anything, Dustin starts the series the most cautious he ever is and gets gradually more and more reckless in the pursuit of his own curiosity. and while I'm sure he regrets what happened to Mews, it doesn't really make him stop and think twice about getting into danger.
and I like how Tales is handling that, because he's diving into the HIC the same way he dives right into trying to crack a secret Russian code in s3. it's adventure. it's a brain puzzle. it's a curiosity voyage.
it's something that makes him special and unique and gives him a chance to show off how smart he is so he doesn't have to go back to "being a regular kid again."
and I think that fits in so well with the idea that Dustin has insecurities -- that he thinks he's easily replaceable or forgettable or is second best or not the friend someone would choose first. because the adventures made Dustin one of the most important people in the room, and he grabs hold of that and clings HARD. until it becomes a weakness.
I feel like there's so much potential with Steve and Dustin as a future pair-- like a few years post-canon, when they are both in their twenties. They're canonically best friends who basically pledge a death pact together, and then literally go on road tripping adventures after the story ends. It's really sweet!
Welcome to the First Annual Summer Break Dusteve Prompt Fest!
After watching our favorite idiots to lovers couple canonically riding off into the sunset together in a second hand camper, the Dusteve community is inviting you to celebrate the romance between Steve Harrington and Dustin Henderson with a prompt fest to generate new fanworks!
Starting Monday, April 20, 2026, we'll be collecting prompts both here and at our AO3 Collection Page for claiming by anyone who wants to join in and create a fic, podfic, art, or other fanwork for our little ship that could!
Read on for information about schedule, how to submit a prompt, how to claim, rules, and answers to any other questions you may have!
And follow us here for featured prompts, and ways to connect with the wider Dusteve community! <3
Timeline
Sign-ups/Prompt Submission Opens: April 20, 2026
Claiming Begins: May 11, 2026
Submissions Due: June 26, 2026
Reveals: July 1, 2026
FAQ
What is a prompt fest?
A writing/art challenge centered around a certain theme. Our theme is Dusteve: Steve Harrington/Dustin Henderson in a romantic pairing! We'll be accepting prompts, or idea starters, both here and on the Dusteve Prompt Fest Tumblr, and then creators can claim them during the claiming period (see below for the full timeline), and upload them to the collection. The idea is to generate submit prompts in the hopes of generating new stories and art for the fandom that might not otherwise happen!
What are the requirements?
Works must be 1000 words long minimum, but there's no maximum. It must be romantic Dusteve, either use a stated prompt or use an creator's own prompt, and be officially posted to the collection. For more information check the rules or reach out to one of the mods!
Is this anonymous?
Yes and no. All works will be anonymous until the reveal date where the authors will then be revealed, though we're not against talking about and promoting your work beforehand! Mostly we want people to feel like they can post anon if they want, so if you'd like to remain unrevealed, please reach out to a mod.
Do I have to submit a prompt in order to participate?
In order to officially sign up through AO3 and have your username listed on the main page, you will need to submit a prompt. It does not have to be the prompt you want to write -- don't we all have a ton of ideas that are collecting dust in our brains? This is the place to put those! HOWEVER, you can still participate without signing up or submitting a prompt by simply claiming a prompt from the collection's main page when claiming is live!
What if I want to anonymously submit a prompt?
You can do that through the ask box on our tumblr!
How do I claim a prompt?
Go to the "Challenges" tab in the collection and click "Claim" on a prompt.
What if I want to create something not listed?
If you're not inspired by any of the listed prompts please claim the author's choice prompt. You can then write whatever you like as long as it fits the theme.
Rules
The main rule is that Dusteve (the romantic pairing of Steve Harrington and Dustin Henderson) must be the main focus of your fic! Any tropes or themes that include our boys are great! But be aware that some prompts may ask for specifics.
Must be 18+ to participate due to potentially explicit content.
Minimum word count is 1000 words, no maximum. Multi-chapter/WIP’s are allowed as long as the first chapter is finished.
Artists are welcome to claim, with no word minimum.
Please tag responsibly. Use Archive Warnings if needed and rate appropriately.
Please pick one of the prompts, or the author's choice if you have an idea of your own! Prompts will be limited to two claims per prompt, except author's choice which is unlimited. If you need any help please reach out to one of the mods.
Please start with one claim - feel free to come back for more after you’ve submitted your original selection. But please keep to a maximum of five prompts per person.
If, for any reason, you can’t fulfill your claim, you can drop it without notifying any of the mods. If you can fulfill your claim but need an extension, please reach out to us.
Works must be original and never before released.
NO use of AI will be permitted - this goes for writing and art!
If you would like to join anonymously for whatever reason please reach out to mods and we will assist you.
"Can we talk about it?" Dustin asked, running fingers up Steve's side. "I don't think it's weird..."
Steve grimaced, rolling over onto his back away from him. "It's weird. You were a kid, I don't want to think about it. That's a hard no, Henderson."
Dustin rolled his eyes and just scooted closer, until he could prop his chin up on Steve's shoulder. He knew Steve's hard no's were actually squishy when he used puppy dog eyes on him. "Please? I know you didn't think about me like that back then, and it's not like I'm kid now. It's just...kind of a fantasy for me. Plus, I was 14, not that young. I'd watched plenty of porn by then, Steve. I'm pretty sure you were actually having sex by that age too."
Steve's face twisted, like me couldn't deny it but really, really wanted to. "But-"
"I'm not asking for you to picture me at the age your were when you worked there, I'm just asking you to...put out the outfit." Dustin suggested, walking his fingers across Steve's chest. "Please? It's so hot, Steve. I need to see you in the scoops uniform again."
Steve looked like he was starting to waver, which was all the encouragement Dustin needed to keep poking and proding.
"Come on, please, baby?" Dustin pressed a kiss to his skin. "Feed me something creamy and sweet?"
Steve gave him a little half hearted shove, "you're so gross. Fine."
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