A/N: mixing Djo lyrics with Steve Harrington? Yes of course I am. Enjoy.
Despite the doom and gloom everyone tried to keep their spirits up while searching the upside down for Vecna. It was difficult, you all knew it would be, yet there had to be some light in your lives, and not just the contraband visits from Murray either, you needed to make the best of being stuck inside the compound that was now Hawkins. Jonathan had become a surprisingly good influence on Steve recently, and with all his talk of wanting to document what was going on behind the military blockade it had sparked something in Steve and he'd ended up getting a camcorder from Murray to join Jonathan in his little project.
“It’s even a VHS one, not a betamax,” he bragged to Jonathan with a smug smirk when it had arrived.
It was becoming quite the comedy watching the two men going around with their cameras, filming odd things they thought would make for a good memory of the time you were experiencing. The basement where the crawls were planned was the only place that was off limits just in case these tapes fell into enemy hands, but everywhere else was fair game so you had to be careful to avoid being videoed if you didn’t want to be.
“Just when I thought Steve couldn’t get any more insufferable,” Robin sighs as she watches him scuttle past outside the radio station with his camera stuck to his eye.
You smile to yourself as he almost bumps into the steps, “yeah, but it’s kind of cute.”
“You would say that.”
“What do you mean?” you frown back at her.
“I mean you’ve got the hots for him, right?”
“Who told you that?” you question, turning away from the window to face her.
“You did, with that face you make when you see him.”
“What face?” You scoff.
“The one that screams ‘oh Steve, take me in your big strong arms, Steve!’” she grins, placing the back of her hand on her forehead dramatically, “‘Steve, take me into the back room and-’”
“Shut up!” You gasp before she gets too graphic, “Robin! Jesus christ.”
She laughs as your cheeks flush, “I’m sure you’ll be saying that a lot when he bends you over that-”
“Sorry, who’s bending who here?!” Steve interrupts, coming up beside you both in complete silence.
You immediately turn to the window while mouthing the word ‘fuck’ as Robin laughs off the question, “you know you shouldn't be listening to conversations that have nothing to do with you Steve,” she states calmly, “don't you have some more interviews to do for your little AD project with Jonathan?”
“It's not a…” he tuts, “you wouldn’t understand. Anyway, that’s why I’m here, I need to steal (y/n).”
“Oh, I’m sure she is more than happy to be stolen by you.”
You narrow your eyes at her as you turn back to the two of them then smile at Steve, “sure, where do you want me?”
Steve gulps at your question much to Robin’s delight, and he holds his arm out to gesture towards the radio booth where there’d be no outside noise to distract you both. You walk ahead but Steve slips past you as you near the door, making sure he opens it for you like the gentleman he is, then he closes it quietly once you’re both inside.
“So whose idea was it for the interviews?” You question, sitting in one of the chairs and swivelling from side to side to keep your nerves under control.
“Shouldn’t I be the one asking the questions?” Steve chuckles as he sets the camera up on the side and angles it in your direction.
“Well the interview hasn’t officially started so…” you trail off as he leans over the table to take a look at the small screen.
He smiles when he sees you’re in frame then waves so you wave back and his grin widens, “okay, that’s fair. Honestly? It was Jonathan’s. He's the brains, I’m just…” he shrugs, unable to finish his sentence.
“The beauty?” you continue automatically, watching as he gives you a slightly taken aback half smile, “I mean, that's the phrase, right? Beauty and brains.”
“I guess if I only get one then beauty’s pretty good.”
“What do you mean?” You scoff, “you’ve got brains. Don’t pretend like we would have gotten where we are without you. You need to give yourself more credit, Harrington, you’re much more clever than you think.”
Steve blushes at your comments and you smile at his reaction; it was a sight you’d rarely seen before, it was always you blushing around him, and he looks a whole new kind of handsome as the flush of his cheeks blends subtly with his freckles. You avert your eyes for a moment to see Nancy standing outside watching the two of you and you suddenly feel quite self conscious under her gaze, knowing full well that she was very much Steve’s type.
“Ah,” he waves his hand dismissively in front of him, “I don't know about that.”
You look back at Steve with a frown, “I do. I know I certainly wouldn’t be here without you. I’ve lost count of the amount of times you’ve saved my ass.”
“And I’d do it countless more times too.”
The two of you share a look, one that allowed you to accept that there may be the slightest possibility that he felt something for you that was similar to how you felt about him, then he takes a sharp intake of breath as the gaze becomes too intense, “so, we should really get on with the questions,” he says softly.
You nod as he slips off of the side and pulls a small notebook from his back pocket before taking the other chair just next to where the camera is on the table, then he flicks through his pages quickly, somehow appearing quite flustered all of a sudden.
“Everything okay?” you question softly.
“Uh… yeah… just… um… got it,” he stammers, finally landing on a page he seems happy with, “right, yeah, so (y/n) how long have you lived in Hawkins?”
“All my life; Hawkins born and raised.”
“And how does it feel to see what it has become today?”
You sigh heavily, the sadness evident in your breath, “it’s… I don’t know how to put this. I feel like every day I’m grieving. Whether it’s a friend we’ve lost, or a piece of Hawkins that we’ll never get back; there’s just grief at every turn now, and sometimes I don’t know how much more we can all take.”
Steve studies your face as tears well up in your eyes but you continue to smile through them as if they’d magically disappear if you pretended to be happy enough, yet his smile fades as he reads the sadness that hangs on your features quietly. He watches as one single tear falls gently down your cheek and immediately wheels himself over to you to catch it before it falls onto your clothes. His palm caresses your cheek as his thumb catches it just in time, then he smiles that comforting smile of his and you return the expression.
“It’ll be okay,” he reassures, his hand warm on your skin, “I promise it will be okay.”
You nod at his statement and the two of you lock eyes again for a few seconds before you have to avert your gaze for fear of getting lost in his forever.
His hand falls from your face and he clears his throat before backing away again so that he’s out of shot, “are you okay to continue?”
Another nod is your response and he goes to find another question, flicking through the small pages once more.
“What’s on the pages you’re skipping past?” you ask with a questioning frown.
“Uh,” Steve looks up at you then straight back down to the open page, “just, scribbles, nothing important.”
“What kind of scribbles?”
“It’s really nothing,” he half laughs, trying to deflect attention away from it, “anyway… next question is… would you consider staying in Hawkins once the military have moved on?”
“Of course, no question about it, this is my home, no matter what’s happened it's home.”
Steve smiles fondly at your answer, “same,” he nods.
There's a few more questions before the interview concludes but you can’t help thinking of what’s in that little notebook of his, and you’d like to find out what kind of scribbles he was trying to hide.
“So how was it?!” Robin asks once you make your way outside into the warm summer air.
“Fine, yeah. Hey, do you know anything about Steve’s notebook?”
She frowns in confusion, then shakes her head, “that little thing he keeps tucked in his back pocket?”
“Yeah.”
“Only that he never lets it leave his sight. Why, do you think he’s writing ‘I heart (y/n)’ in it over and over?”
“Ha, I wish,” you laugh, “nevermind. I’m going for a walk, see you in a bit.”
Robin opens her mouth to speak but you’re already walking away towards the tower where you like to climb and sit on the first level, just high enough to see into the distance and appreciate the sunset when it comes. Troubling times lay ahead of all of you so it was nice to try and forget it for a while by watching the sun rise and set as it would do whether you were here or not; there was something comforting in seeing it and surviving each day to see it again. You’re so lost in your thoughts that you don’t even hear anyone climbing up and approaching where you’re sitting until they’re directly next to you.
“Hey.”
“Shit,” you gasp, physically reacting to the surprise of them appearing.
“Sorry,” Steve apologises, resting the camera in his hand on the bar you’re leaning on.
“Oh,” you groan, hiding your face as you realise he’s filming, “you don’t need me on that thing any more than you already have I’m sure.”
“Yes I do,” he chuckles, picking it up and pointing it at you to try and get the silhouette of your face against the setting sun, “put your hand down, I can’t see you properly.”
You sigh in reluctance but slowly lower your hand so he can get his shot and he smiles before extending his arm out to you, wiggling his fingers to indicate he wants your hand which you tentatively place in his palm.
“Good, now you can’t hide again,” he grins.
You look down at your hand in his, taking in a sharp breath at the sight of them together, and Steve’s still pointing the camera at you when something catches your eye from down below; Dustin approaching Steve’s pride and joy with a drill.
“Uh… Steve…” you warn, taking your hand from his and pointing down to where Dustin is now climbing onto the bonnet of the beamer.
“Dustin!” He yells angrily, “What the hell?!”
Dustin smiles up at him with a mischievous glint in his eye and climbs further onto the roof.
“No! Don’t you dare!” Steve shouts, placing the camera down next to him with it still pointing in your direction.
He jumps up so quickly to make his descent that the small notebook falls from his pocket and lands open next to the camera, but he's far too distracted to notice this insignificant detail as he clambers down the metal structure and runs full speed over to the car. You laugh as he and Dustin begin to argue then your gaze falls onto the pages that are now laying right next to you, as if they are wanting to be read. Curiosity gets the better of you and you quickly retrieve the notebook, glancing over the page it was already on to see some of the most beautiful little thoughts.
God, how lucky can a simple man be?
I know that’s my future looking right back at me.
That’s my little missus, she’s my number one
My heart in your dreams
Freddie said it right, ‘cause she’s my killer queen
Your breath catches in your throat as you read the words in front of you, your mind immediately thinking of Nancy as you turn the pages. Maybe this is why she was looking at you both earlier, knowing how he felt about her and wanting to make sure you didn’t try to make any moves on him.
Is he gonna love you like I would?
You told me yourself he didn’t love you
Who’s gonna love you like I could?
Your fingers keep flicking through the notebook, landing on various lovelorn notes.
Oh god I wish I could delete ya
‘Cause nothing can compete with ya
Tears pool in your eyes, both at the beautifully articulated yearning sentiment and the fact that it was clearly about someone who wasn’t you.
I'm locked, she’s the key,
I’m a boat that’s sinking, guess who’s the sea?
“Wow,” you breathe, shutting the notebook quickly and placing it down by the camera, “he must really love Nancy,” you sigh.
Dustin’s drilling a hole in the top of the car as you wipe your tears away before you make your way back down onto the solid ground, then you disappear while Steve’s distracted, getting into your own car and driving off without a word to anyone. You needed to be away from everyone, you felt utterly ridiculous that you had even let yourself entertain the idea that he felt something for you when you were staring into one another’s eyes earlier. It was just Steve being the attentive and caring friend he always was, nothing more nothing less.
When Steve finally turns back to where he’d left you he finds nothing but an empty space, only his camera still sitting where it was, and he quickly climbs back up to find his notebook neatly tucked underneath the device as he realises it’s still recording.
“Shit,” he sighs, switching it off and taking a look around from his high viewpoint to see if he could spot you in the fading light.
His eyes silently widen at the thought of you having had a look at those pages he was so intent on hiding, and once he’s back inside the station he takes himself off to review the footage that was recorded while he wasn’t there.
“Have you seen (y/n)?!” He panics, going up to everyone and anyone he could find to ask after hearing what you’d sighed to yourself before disappearing.
“Woah, What's the problem?” Robin frowns, placing a hand on his chest in an attempt to calm him.
“I need to find (y/n), do you know where she is?” He repeats, his eyes darting from left to right as he tries to find you.
“She took her car and left like half an hour ago, why?”
“Did she say where she was going?”
“No, she just left. Steve, what's wrong?”
“Everything! Everything's wrong! She read something, she thinks I wrote it about someone else but it's her, it's all about her, and she needs to know.”
“Okay, it's alright, we'll find her,” she comforts, “don’t worry.”
Robin and Steve jog out to his now modified car and head out onto the road to find some sign of you within Hawkins. They’re still cruising around the streets as dusk falls but there’s been no sign of you at all and Steve is left feeling disheartened as he reluctantly drives them back to the station. Robin exits the car while Steve stays inside, his hands braced on the steering wheel as he desperately tries to think of where you would have gone, then all of a sudden headlights appear behind his vehicle, illuminating the inside of it as he squints into the rearview mirror to see if it’s you. He’s left with disappointment once more as he realises it’s Jonathan, then he gets a tap on the window as he goes to pass Steve’s car.
“Hey, you okay?” Jonathan asks as he sees the crestfallen look upon Steve’s face as he winds the window down.
“Have you seen (y/n)?”
“Yeah, her car was outside the old family video,” he nods, “Nancy went in to find her and told me to head back here to specifically tell you to stay put.”
“What?”
“I’ve learnt not to ask,” Jonathan smiles, “just come and wait inside.”
The long empty Family Video was your secret safe place, although evidently not as secret as you thought it was as the door gently opens, the familiar creak of the hinges startling you in your hiding spot behind the counter.
“(y/n)?” Nancy calls out as she shuts the door carefully.
You pop your head up from behind the counter with a slightly furrowed brow, “how did you find me?”
“Robin,” she smiles, only half of her face illuminated by the street lamp outside, “can I come and sit with you?”
“Of course,” you nod, dipping back down and rolling your eyes as you prepare for the bad news that you were sure to hear next.
You have a torch facing the ceiling which brings some much needed light to the boxed off counter area, and Nancy smiles as she sits cross legged next to you with a sigh, “been a while since I was here,” she reminisces fondly, “back when things hadn’t completely gone to shit.”
You chuckle, “those were the days.”
“So… uh… Steve told me you saw some things in his notebook…” she begins tentatively, watching you carefully to gauge your response.
“You know about them?” you clarify, visibly shocked that he’d be so open about his feelings for her despite having Jonathan there.
“Oh!” she gasps, “sorry, yes, of course I do, he’s not as careful as he should be about that notebook and I stumbled across them a few weeks ago… I mean, I knew who they were about straight away,” she laughs, “but he then spilled everything and that’s why I’m here now.”
You’re more confused than you were before now that she was speaking as if those words weren’t about her, and she can see the bewilderment clearly upon your face as your mouth opens to speak then closes again with a loss for words.
“I’m not doing this in the right order am I?” She sighs, “Steve never makes anything easy, does he? They’re about you, (y/n), all those little thoughts in his mind that have escaped onto those pages are about you.”
She gives you a soft smile as you digest her words slowly, part of you thinking you must have heard her incorrectly, and as the realisation dawns on your face she nods.
“But I thought…” you trail off as she shakes her head from side to side.
“Nope, not about me,” she explains, “it hasn’t been for a very long time. I’ve been seeing how he looks at you for quite a while, it’s why I knew instantly who he was writing about. I’m surprised you didn’t… I even remember when you told Steve how Billy treated you.”
“You told me yourself he didn’t love you, who’s gonna love you like I could?” You whisper, placing your head in your hands as you realise how stupid you’ve been, “oh god.”
“You didn’t want to let yourself believe it, did you?” Nancy asks.
You lift your head to look at her and shake it slowly, “how could I? He’s Steve and I’m… me,” you shrug.
“Well that’s a relief, because he loves you exactly as you are,” she smiles, “I think we should be getting back, don’t you?”
After a nod in agreement the two of you get up off of the floor and head to your car where you drive back in a comfortable silence as you still try and wrap your head around the fact that Steve had harboured these feelings for you for so long. The car’s been parked for a few seconds before Nancy breaks the nervous atmosphere that you’re emitting.
“You good?” she asks, turning to you as you look over at the building.
“Yeah,” you nod, “thanks to you.”
“Well I couldn’t stand seeing you two dancing around one another any longer,” she chuckles, “now go and put him out of his misery.”
You’re quick to jump out of the car and ascend the few steps to the door but stop as your hand reaches the glass to take a deep breath before entering, the air now thankfully cooler now darkness has descended. Robin’s just appearing at the top of the stairs from the basement and without either one of you needing to say a word she points to one of the back rooms, and you give a nod in thanks. You suddenly become aware of your heartbeat as you near the door with a small glass window in it, but when you see him it instantly calms. He’s talking to his camera, doing some sort of diary entry, but he senses someone there and smiles when he turns to see you looking at him. He immediately stands and whips the door open, then there’s a pause of mere seconds before lean up to kiss him. His arms wrap around your body as he steps back and pushes the door shut behind you, then he turns you both around until your back is against the far wall, your lips moving around one another’s in a long awaited desperate kiss.
“Steve,” you breathe deeply, his hands gripping firmly onto your hips as he presses himself against you.
“Mhmm,” he hums as your hands run up underneath his shirt.
“Wait,” you gasp, just as his lips have moved to your neck.
“What? Are you okay?”
“Is the camera still recording?”
He looks over his shoulder to see the red light flashing to indicate that it was indeed still filming, “yep,” he confirms, turning back to you, “want me to turn it off?”
“Do you want to turn it off?”
“Not really,” he grins.
“Then leave it,” you smile, biting your lip lightly as your hands move around to his back.
It had been exactly one month since you'd last been in Hawkins; one whole month without the gang by your side, four entire weeks without having to see Steve's face, and 28 long days of missing it. Your first stop after getting back was obviously the video store to see Robin and have her fill you in on every coming and going that happened since you were away. It was a good half an hour until she got to the juicy stuff, and even longer to tell you what each and everything member of the group was up to.
“Oh! And you’ll never guess what?!” Robin asks excitedly, practically vibrating in front of you as she awaits your response.
“What?” You laugh.
“Steve’s only gone and got himself a girlfriend finally!” She squeals with delight, “can you believe it?!”
Your heart drops so suddenly into your stomach it almost makes you want to throw up when it hits the bottom like a concrete balloon.
“Wow,” you reply after a few seconds, mustering up your best smile that doesn’t quite reach your eyes, “that’s really great.”
Robin reads your face like a book and her expression drops at the sight of your faux happiness, seeing that your entire being was devoid of any emotion apart from disappointment.
“Oh, shit,” she says, her smile fading quickly.
“What?”
“You’re not happy.”
“What do you mean?” You scoff with a questioning frown, “of course I’m happy! I couldn’t be happier that he’s found someone. He deserves it, he’s a great guy and I bet he’s found a great girl.”
Robin narrows her eyes at you, not believing a word that had just come from your mouth, “some people think Shelley’s great I guess.”
“Shelley?” You struggle, tears pricking your eyes as you think of her perfectly petite figure, her neatly curled long blonde hair, and her enviably beautiful face, “wow, yeah, she’s basically perfect, right? They’ll make a really gorgeous couple.”
“Hmm. Well, it depends on your type, I mean I wouldn’t say she’s perfect, but then I prefer redheads,” she blushes, thinking of Vickie.
You chuckle through the sadness, “of course, no one can compare to Vickie,” you wink before a stray tear falls down your cheek without warning. You quickly turn away to wipe your face, but she notices immediately as you bring your hand up even though you’re not facing her.
“Are you okay?” Robin asks, reaching out for your shoulder.
“Of course! I’m just so happy that Steve has found someone,” you lie, turning back around to face her, “it’s great, it’s really great. Anyway, as much as I’d love to stay and chat all things Steve and Shelley, I’ve got to dash. I’m… uh… I’m super late.”
“Oh, uh, okay-”
Robin doesn’t have a chance to finish her sentence as you rush out of the video shop as quickly as your legs will take you, and continue to walk hurriedly down the street to your car where you get in and instantly fold up on yourself as soon as you settle into the driver’s seat. You don’t quite know what to do with yourself as you realise that silent tears are flowing freely down your face onto the sleeves of your hoodie. Shelley was everything you were not, so of course Steve would pick her. You laugh to yourself for thinking there was even a choice in the first place; he’d obviously never seen you how you had seen him if this was the girl he wanted to be with, and to think otherwise would be beyond idiotic.
A short, sharp knocking on your passenger window scares the life out of you, but you make sure to wipe your face before looking up to see Eddie standing there with a deeply concerned look upon his face. You lean over and pop the lock on the passenger door for him to get in and he brings a rush of cold air with him as he does, quickly slamming the door shut once he’s sat down. He rubs his hands together to warm them then blows through a gap between his thumbs before looking over at you, “so why oh why is a lovely lady like you sitting alone in her car crying? Having to return to Hawkins isn't that bad is it?” He asks with a sad frown.
“I’m not crying,” you chuckle, trying your best to come across at least a tiny bit happy, “I just have a stomach ache, that’s all.”
“Right, and your sleeves are wet because…?”
“I spilled a drink.”
“You really have an answer for everything don’t you?”
“Yep,” you grin.m
“Okay, fine, what have you been doing since being back then?” He huffs, changing the subject, “apart from spilling drinks and having a stomach ache of course.”
“Just catching up with Robin, y’know, she knows everything there is to know about what goes on in this town.”
“No Steve?!” he smirks.
“No, no Steve. He has a girlfriend anyway, so he’ll be busy now I imagine.”
Eddie’s eyes widen at this news and he has the same look of realisation that Robin had earlier when she initially told you the news, “oh, shit, she told you.”
“I think it's great,” you carry on, ignoring the same reaction, “I mean Shelley’s practically perfect, so they make a great couple I’m sure.”
“Shelley? As in barbie doll Shelley? I didn't realise it was her.”
You frown in confusion at the doll reference.
“Pretty, but not a lot going on up here y’know?” He explains, tapping the side of his head with his forefinger.
“Don’t be horrible!” You laugh.
“It’s true! I’ll always remember when she thought Canada was in central America.”
“You’re lying!”
“She did, I swear! The entire geography class heard it!”
You shake your head from side to side with a light chuckle, “oh dear.”
“So I can see why Steve’s with her.”
“Huh?”
“Well he can’t have too much going on upstairs if he’s going out with her when you’re single.”
“Shut up,” you blush.
“It’s true. You’re funny, smart, beautiful; you're the whole package, anyone would be lucky to even take you on a date let alone have you as their girlfriend. He’s getting like a quarter of the package at best, and that’s pushing it.”
“Eddie,” you chuckle as you feel a flush of heat creep up your neck.
“I'm serious,” he insists, “you don’t give yourself enough credit. And if Steve can’t see it then it’s completely and utterly his loss.”
“Not that I care, obviously,” you laugh, dabbing at your cheek again.
“Of course you don’t care! Why should you? He’s a massive loser. And ladies like you don’t date losers.”
“True.”
“No, no, no, you need to say it, feel it!”
You let out a nervous chuckle but Eddie nods at you to go ahead, “ladies like me don’t date losers,” you repeat quietly.
“Louder!”
“Ladies like me don’t date losers,” you laugh.
“Now with feeling!”
You take a deep breath in then shout the words, “ladies like me don’t date losers!”
“Yes!!” He encourages, clapping his hands at you enthusiastically, “too fucking right!”
Steve watches as Eddie flings his arms around you in the car, squeezing tight as you embrace him back, and wonders if his plan has completely backfired on him. This certainly wasn’t part of it, he hadn’t factored Eddie into any of it, and now he was regretting not taking more consideration into the planning of this whole situation. He thought it would prompt you into admitting your feelings for him, not send you running into Eddie’s arms instead. He didn't even realise you were back in Hawkins, and to have his first sighting of you in another’s arms was gut wrenching.
“Stevie!” Shelley squeals from across the road, blowing his cover as you and Eddie now spring apart and look out of the windscreen to see where the high pitched noise had come from, following Shelley’s gaze all the way to a flushed Steve who was now staring directly at the both of you in silent horror.
He greets his new girlfriend as any good boyfriend would, kissing her lips softly and wrapping his arms around her petite frame as she squeezes his torso with an excited giggle, and the pit of your stomach feels heavier the longer you keep your eyes fixed in their direction.
“Hey,” Eddie interrupts, pulling your attention back into the car instead of at the scene playing out in front of you.
“Yeah?” you ask once you’ve finally torn your eyes away from ‘Stevie’.
“He's a loser,” he states.
You give Eddie a half hearted smile then nod over to where his dungeons and dragons comrades are walking down to their meeting place, and he gives you another hug before exiting the car. Your hand fumbles with the keys in the ignition then you eventually start the car up, making Steve look up at you once more, and there’s a brief moment where your breath catches in your throat at the look in his eyes but you quickly avert your gaze, put your car into gear and speed off down the road. Steve lets out a sigh, his arms still around his girlfriend, and he watches Eddie greet his gang of misfits with a smile, desperately wanting to run over and ask about you, but he's soon being dragged along to the nearest diner where he would no doubt be paying for whatever Shelley wants.
Dungeons and dragons made the guys hungry, it was no easy task sitting around a table making up stories; it was hard work, it took a lot of brain power, and so sustenance was needed once their session had ended. Eddie walks with the group down to the diner where he intends to leave them, but when he sees that Steve and Shelley are still sitting there he can’t resist joining the others and picking the booth right in front of theirs.
“So what are everyone’s plans tonight then?” Eddie asks once they're all settled into their seats.
They mumble various adaptations of ‘nothing’ as Eddie suspected, then the question is directed at him, and he practically cackles with smugness as he leans over the table and loudly announces that he’s going on a date, much to Steve’s interest. Eddie can see Steve's face becoming more visible from the corner of his eye as he peeks around Shelley’s head, so Eddie puts on his most self assured grin.
“Oh yeah? With who?” Dean asks disbelievingly.
“With the delightful (y/n) of course,” he replies, making eye contact with Steve and forcing him to look away with a frown.
“But she’s like… pretty. How did you manage that?”
“Are you saying pretty girls wouldn’t wanna date me?” Eddie frowns playfully, “how dare you! It’s obviously my natural charm and handsome face that swung it for me. I’m taking her to The Hideout later.”
A glass topples, the sound of liquid splashing onto the floor cutting the silence, “shit!” Steve exclaims, “fuck. Sorry. I’m tired and I’ve got work in the morning baby, can we call it a night?”
“Of course Stevie.”
“I’ll take you home.”
Eddie grins to himself, his work already having the desired effect on Steve, so as soon as the new lovebirds have gone he exits the diner as well and drives over to yours; he had a great plan, he just hadn’t shared it with you yet.
“Get dressed, we’re going out,” Eddie smiles as you open the door in your pyjamas.
“What?”
“We’re going out, come on!” He says, ushering you up the stairs as he kicks the front door shut behind you.
“Where?!”
“The Hideout, where else?”
“Eddie, I’m really not-”
“Just trust me, okay? Please. If tonight goes how I think it’s going to go then I’ll have the answer I need… and you need…”
“What are you talking about?” you ask, your brow furrowed as he now slides items along in your wardrobe looking for something for you to wear.
He pulls out a black dress with lace sleeves, “perfect! Put this on. We're going to catch ourselves a Stevie.”
“Excuse me?”
“I’ve set him a trap and now I’m simply waiting for him to fall into it, and you’re the bait,” he explains with a shrug.
“I highly doubt you’re going to find Steve at the Hideout,” you state, taking the dress from Eddie and gesturing for him to leave the room while you get changed.
He chuckles as you shut the door on him, he knew there was no way Steve would miss an opportunity to see you, and once he knew this then he could come to the very sensible conclusion that Shelley was all part of a plan that was being very badly executed by the infamous ex-basketball player.
The Hideout was a typical local live music venue in that the floors were sticky, the stage was hidden under a cloud of smoke, and it was hot, sweaty, loud, and dark. This was most certainly not the type of establishment that Steve Harrington would visit, and thanks to Eddie's lack of explanation about this plan of his, you had no idea why he'd think that Steve would step foot in this place or even entertain the idea.
“Drink?” Eddie shouts over the music, miming bringing a glass up to his mouth to make sure you knew what he was saying.
You nod and he scuttles off through the crowd to the bar in the corner. There are a few people here you knew through coming to this place semi regularly and you give them a nod and a wave when they spot you through the sea of heads. You liked it here, it was your kind of thing, and everyone was friendly enough even when you dared to venture here alone.
Eddie appears at your side with drinks and you take yours before leaning in close to his ear, “so who's playing tonight?”
He shrugs is response, “fuck knows, but we're not here for the music tonight, we're here for something entirely different.”
You manage to immerse yourself into the music as the night goes on while Eddie periodically turns away from the stage to the door at the back, checking on how his plan was going. His hope wanes the further into the night it gets, and when it’s only an hour from closing time he starts to get a little anxious.
“Come on Eddie!” You grin, taking his hand and leading him into the crowd to get closer to the stage.
Eddie smiles as he sees how much fun you’re having so he lets go of any expectations and allows himself to have as much of a good time as you are without worry. You’re both jumping up and down along to the music when he turns and recognises a tall man at the back, his movements coming to a sudden stop as he sees Steve standing there staring through the throng of people directly at you. Eddie gasps before turning to you to make sure you hadn’t seen him, but he holds his breath as you lean in to let him know you were going to the toilet. Steve ducks, blending into the sea of bodies as you head towards him, admiring how your dress hugged your body as you pass him, and smiling to himself at how happy and carefree you looked dancing with Eddie. He wanted to be the reason you smiled like that, he wanted to be the one dancing with you, his hands on your hips, holding you close to him as if you were one person. He wanted to be the one to take you home tonight, to have you draped across his body all throughout the night, to wake up to your face in the morning and kiss every inch of your skin.
“What the fuck, dude?” Eddie shouts over the music as he now appears at Steve’s side, yanking him violently from his thoughts.
“What?” He frowns back.
“I fucking knew it.”
“Knew what?!”
“That this Shelley stuff is complete bullshit, isn’t it?”
Steve tries his best to look offended but Eddie can see straight through his exterior and he slaps a hand against his forehead as he realises he was unfortunately right about everything. Panic sets in as he knows you’ll be back soon and he ushers Steve out of the room towards the exit, not wanting you to see him and ruin your night, “dude you need to leave. If she sees you…” he shakes his head from side to side.
Steve leaves, albeit reluctantly, but hangs around by the door to see you pass the glass inside, grinning to yourself as you start to dance once near enough to the music and he manages as much of a smile as he can muster while realising the scale of the mistake he's made since you disappeared a month ago.
“I’m sorry your plan didn't work,” you sigh as Eddie drives you home in the early hours.
He frowns at first then corrects himself, “oh, right, sure. But he could have been there, you never know.”
“Ha! Yeah, hiding in the crowd, looking from afar like a lovestruck fool… I highly doubt it, I’m sure he's got better things to do now that he has Shelley.”
Eddie wants to spill Steve’s secret there and then, to tell you that it wasn’t Shelley he wanted, but it wasn’t his secret to tell,so he simply scoffs and focuses on the road ahead as you turn your face to look out of the window to hide the heartbreak written upon it.
The more you connect with the Hawkins regulars again the more pitiful looks you get, and you’re frankly very relieved once you’ve seen everyone for the first time since being back, even if there was one glaringly obvious person you had yet to see one on one. It seemed as though everyone knew your feelings towards Steve even though you’d never publicly admitted such a thing and you scold yourself for apparently being completely obvious about it. You see him from afar the first week, and as you move into the second week of being in this oh so familiar town shit starts to hit the fan as per usual; the whole town now seeing Eddie as a murderer. It wasn’t ideal being as he was also your unofficial Steve bodyguard, making sure the two of you never interacted without others around, and you’re now left feeling very vulnerable as you worry about what’s going to happen to him now that there’s an angry mob forming.
“Who’s babysitting Shelley tonight then?” Robin jokes quietly as the group approach Eddie’s trailer to see if their current working theory is correct.
You turn away and smile to yourself at her slight jibe, and Steve rolls his eyes before giving her a sarcastic grin, “she’s with friends if you must know.”
“Awe, are they having a sleepover?!”
“Shut it,” Steve warns as you look over to Dustin who enters first.
“Shit,” he exclaims as he looks up at the ceiling where Chrissy died to see the familiar pulsating light of a gate to the upside down.
“Great, so he’s opening gates all over Hawkins now,” you sigh, “which means there must be one at the lake too.”
Everyone’s busy looking up at the slithering opening above when suddenly there’s the familiar trill of Steve’s girlfriend from outside, “Stevie! Where are you?”
He immediately looks over to you but you refrain from reacting to the noise as you stare up at the very pressing matter in front of you all. The door handle jiggles and he quickly goes over and steps outside to see her and two friends standing there, “what are you doing here?” He asks, attempting to sound as light hearted as possible.
“We saw your car, silly! What are you doing at the murderer’s trailer?!”
“Nothing,” he lies, “we’re just seeing if Eddie came back.”
“We?”
“Yeah, Robin, Dustin, me…”
Robin looks at you, hearing the lack of your name, and you smile at her as you grab a chair to try and take a look through the gate into the other world, “what are you doing?!” She asks.
“Just having a little look.”
“(y/n), don’t,” Dustin warns.
“What, you think Vecna’s going to be waiting on the other side? I doubt it.”
You clamber up as the chat carries on outside, and in all honesty you’d much rather be in the upside down right now instead of hearing Steve and Shelley’s conversation. You poke your head through, now observing the trailer from the point of view of the ceiling, and take a look around until you’re met with a creature flying at you from the floor with a screech. You push yourself back through but the bat-like thing follows straight after, making the other two gasp, and as Shelley squeals with excitement outside it suddenly goes for the door that Steve is now opening.
“Fuck!” You worry, jumping down from the chair and sliding in front of the opening to the door before it escapes, “ah!” You call out as its teeth latch on to your crossed arms that you thankfully raised just in time in front of your face.
Steve enters to see you wrestling with this thing that’s attached to your arm, whacking it against the floor to try and get it to release its grip as the others panic, but then Shelley pushes her way in once she gets a glimpse of you there as well.
“What’s she doing here?!” She asks angrily, “Stevie?”
“What? It’s…” he stammers as he looks from you to her and back again.
“Fucking thing!” You shout as it finally unclenches its jaw and heads towards Shelley instead, “move!” You warn her, rushing forwards and grabbing its tail.
It turns to you once more, this time with more vengeance after you stopped it from getting what it really wants, and goes for the base of your neck.
“What the fuck is that?!” Shelley screams as Steve grabs onto the body of this thing and tries to dislodge it from your skin, “Stevie! What is it?!”
“Go!” He tells her, “just go!”
She and her friends run away without hesitation before Robin shuts the door so it can’t escape and Steve finally gets it to let go of you by squeezing its head, then it escapes back through the gate, leaving you with two nasty bite wounds.
“Shit,” Steve breathes as he watches the blood soak into your top as it spills from the jagged edges of your skin where it's torn your flesh, “oh my god, (y/n), sit down.”
“I’m fine,” you frown, clearly not.
“Just sit down,” he instructs as Dustin and Robin look on in quiet horror.
“No.”
You take a step towards the door and quickly find yourself in Steve’s arms as he catches you before you hit the floor, then he sits you up in the nearest chair and instructs the other two to get the first aid kit from the car. He looks around the room for something, anything, to hold against your neck to stem the bleeding, then decides to shrug his jacket off, whip his top over his head, and scrunch it up to hold tightly against your wound. His other hand steadies your head the other side, his palm against your jaw as his fingers dip into your hairline, and you watch as his chest rises and falls at a faster pace than usual as he kneels between your legs. You try your best to avert your eyes from the surprisingly dense hair that covers a well proportioned area of his torso, but it’s virtually impossible as he holds your tilted head firm in his strong grip.
“Dude, this really isn’t the time,” Dustin jokes as him and Robin enter again to see Steve knelt before you topless.
“Just get the antiseptic out, Henderson,” he replies, not taking his eyes off of you and your ever paling face.
“You’re awfully quiet (y/n), how are you feeling?” Robin asks, dipping her head down in front of your eyes to see if you were fully there.
“Great,” you reply, giving a double thumbs up, “just great.”
“It wouldn’t have been the worst thing to have that creature go for Shelley y’know,” Dustin comments as he hands Steve a soaked piece of cotton wool, “her voice grates.”
“Doesn’t it?” Robin nods, “like nails down a chalk board.”
“Guys,” you say quietly, “remember her boyfriend is right here.”
“It’s fine,” Steve sighs, “I’m breaking up with her anyway,” he continues, looking you directly in the eye as he says those words, “it’s not working out.”
“Why isn’t it working out Stevie?” Robin asks as you close your eyes while Steve applies the antiseptic that stings like hell.
“Yeah Stevie, what’s wrong?” Dustin teases.
Steve pauses as he looks at the pain etched across your face, “because she’s not (y/n),” he admits.
Your eyes fly open at his candid confession but you keep your gaze rooted to your lap while everyone stays silent.
“Well of course she’s not,” Dustin suddenly says, “she’d never sacrifice herself for someone she doesn’t know.”
“And she’d never call you Stevie,” Robin adds.
You say nothing as you close your eyes again, Steve now pressing a dressing to your skin and carefully wrapping a bandage around your neck to hold it in place without being too tight, “is that okay?” He asks softly once he's pinned it in place, and you nod in response before he starts on your arm, pushing your sleeves up and out of the way.
“We’ll, uh… we’ll go check the walkie…” Robin says, excusing both her and Dustin from the trailer to leave you both alone.
“I meant what I said…”
“We should only talk about this after you’ve done what you feel you need to do,” you state calmly, “you should also cover yourself up.”
He nods before going into Eddie’s bedroom and finding a plain black tee among the many band ones he's never even heard of. By the time he returns you and Robin have left, and the message is very clear; you wouldn’t be seeing him until he's done what he said he would if that was something he really wanted.
It's three days, 72 slightly painful hours, until Steve turns up at Robin’s place where you're been recovering from your bat attack, and Robin kindly makes her excuses to give you two time to talk things over. The wound on your neck was a scabbing mess and it hurt to even open your mouth, but you sit there without a dressing on it to “give it some air” as Robin has suggested. Steve can’t help but stare at it as he sits opposite you on the armchair while you take the couch, but it's more with admiration at your bravery than disgust thankfully.
“So I didn't know how long I should wait but I couldn’t go another day without seeing you,” he says, breaking the silence.
“As long as you didn't do it this morning… Did you do it this morning?”
“No,” he chuckles, “I went straight to hers that night.”
“Oh,” you reply, genuinely shocked at how quickly it happened.
“I couldn’t waste any more time on her… I mean…” he sighs, knowing that made him sound bad, “what I mean is I couldn’t be without you another second. It’s already been too long without you. Eddie was right all along, annoyingly. I thought I was doing well, but it was only because you left for that month, and as soon as I saw you in the car with Eddie… Then you dancing at the Hideout…I-”
You frown, “the Hideout?”
“Yeah, Eddie saw me and practically chucked me out because he knew it would be no good for you to see me there.”
“You actually came that night,” you half laugh.
“Of course I did. As soon as I heard him talking about you being there I had to see you… then that was it, everything came flooding back, and I realised what a stupid fucking mistake I made by trying to cover up a gaping hole in my chest with a band aid.”
“That’s… a lot to take in,” you sigh, your neck hurting as you try and stretch it out.
“Careful,” he gasps, seeing you wince with pain as he slides off of the armchair and quickly arrives at your side on the couch, “let me see.”
He gently places his hands on your shoulders, twisting your body slightly so he could see the damage, then his eyes travel up from the wound to your face as he leans in close, “it's always been you,” he says softly, his breath fanning across your cheek, “since day one, it's been you. I was just too stubborn to admit it, and it shouldn’t have taken you disappearing for a month to force it out of me. Being in this group is risky, we both know that more than anyone, and I just…” he trails off, not knowing how to say what he wanted to.
“Didn’t know if you wanted to take that risk by having feelings for someone in this group?”
A/N: Steve fluff ahead. Also had an alternate ending for this which involved smut, so let me know if you want that to see the light of day.
Steve steps towards you slowly until his body is millimetres from yours then he leans in purposely close to your ear to look over your shoulder at the map you are studying. You can feel his presence instantly, the warmth of his body radiating onto your back, his breath whispering through your hair gently as he pretends to be as invested in the map as you are. His open hand lands on the table next to yours, his thumb perfectly positioned to nestle against your little finger in the most subtle of ways. A flush of heat creeps up your neck and cheeks as he begins to speak to the group as if this was totally normal. He moves to the right, his other hand coming to a rest on your left hip so he doesn't lose his balance, and you immediately look up into Robin's eyes in shock, trying your best not to move your mouth at all so that no one else notices. Robin gazes back with an equally surprised expression then you cast your eyes down the map once more as you imagine Steve's hand swiping everything off the table so he could bend you over on it. Chatter continues amongst the group as they discuss the next crawl but you can barely concentrate on what's being said as Steve's fingers dig into the soft skin of your waist, and when you hear your name your mind goes completely blank.
“I'd rather have (y/n) with me, she knows the equipment almost as well as Dustin so it's worth having her on board,” Steve answers confidently, “are you okay with that?” He continues, looking down at the side of your face.
You turn to meet his deep brown eyes and almost choke on your words as you reply, “I'm okay with that,” you croak.
The smell of his cologne fills your nostrils now that you're facing his way and you close your eyes as you take a deep inhale while turning back down to the table so no one could see. Your teeth sink into your bottom lip in a desperate attempt to stifle a yearning sigh as the strong woody yet cosy scent envelops you, and you clear your throat with a short cough to cover up your current swooning state. The group disperses once your roles have all been agreed then you slip from his touch, albeit reluctantly, and head upstairs to get some air. Robin watches as Steve follows you then runs up the stairs after him.
“Steve!” She calls out as he strides towards the door you’d just exited out of.
“Hmm?” He replies, half turning as his hand lands on the handle.
“Steve, don’t,” she says, shaking her head from side to side.
“I wasn't-”
Robin gives him a look that makes his eyes roll and he lets out a huff as he walks towards her, “just give her some space.”
“I’m trying,” Steve sighs, “I really am, but I’ve fallen for her so hard.”
“I know,” Robin chuckles, “so does everyone else too. But just give her time. You know how she feels but just don’t rush it. She’s still grieving.”
“I know she is,” Steve nods, looking towards your figure in the distance through the smeared glass of the door, “I just want to look after her, I want her with me all the damn time.”
Robin smiles, tears coming to her eyes at how much he felt for you, and how happy she was that you had Steve there, “I’m so glad she’s got you.”
Steve turns to Robin with a soppy smile and hugs her gently, then all of a sudden you rush past the two of them to the bathroom, vomiting loudly once you get to the sink, and Steve instinctively runs in after you once he realises what’s going on.
“What’s wrong? What do you need?” He asks as he gathers your hair back from your face.
“Nothing, nothing, it’s fine. Just give me five minutes, yeah?”
“Are you sure?”
“Mhmm, just wait outside please.”
He tucks your hair into the neckline of the t-shirt you’re wearing so it stays out of the way then walks back outside to where Robin waits nervously.
“Is she okay?!”
“I don’t think so, she’s puking up in there. Something’s up.”
You sit on the floor next to the sink, listening intently to Robin and Steve’s conversation as they both throw out suggestions of what could be the cause of your nausea, and you can’t help but look up at the window and wonder if you could squeeze yourself out of it to avoid walking past them. The truth was, ever since Eddie had gone you’d been getting these migraines out of nowhere every now and again; the doctor said it was stress, grief, anxiety, whatever psychological cause he could think of really. They’d hit you like a bolt of lightning out of nowhere and a lot of the time you end up with your head in a sink or toilet bowl as the pain pulsates around your brain. You wanted nothing more than to have Steve hold your hair back but you didn’t really want him seeing you like this so you managed to hide it most of the time.
“Urgh,” you groan as your stomach gurgles and your head pounds.
You rub your temples slowly as you think back to the moment earlier when Steve had his hand on your hip and his body was pressed against yours; you must admit it did make you feel a little better despite the fact you were currently sitting on the cold floor of a bathroom. It was strange how the whole situation between you and Steve had come about, but it had happened at exactly the time you needed it. You two had always been friends, even from before Eddie came into your life, and there’d always been something there despite the fact you dated other people, it was this invisible tether that led you back to one another every time things ended with someone else. The bond between you was growing stronger by the day in recent months, but then Eddie had come along and swept you off your feet, saying everything that Steve so desperately wanted to yet was too afraid to, and the two of you had shared this whirlwind romance that had been cut short in such a tragic way.
Steve was there for you through it all, the sleepless nights, the uncontrollable sobbing, the utterly all-consuming lows of losing someone you cared deeply for, and he hadn’t even flinched at any of it. All he wanted was to be there throughout everything with you, so every second was a blessing even if you were going through the grief of losing Eddie so soon. It was one night a couple of weeks back that everything had changed for you both, and the two of you now knew exactly where you stood with one another, knowing that you wanted the same thing but you just needed a little more time. Steve was the one who had initiated things, he was watching as you were doing the dishes for him without being asked to and he’d had this overwhelming sense of needing to be close to you so he’d come up behind you and slipped his arms around your waist as if it were the easiest thing in the world to do, then he’d leant in to your neck, taking a deep inhale of your skin, and you’d subtly shifted your weight so that you were resting against his body. It wasn’t fireworks, it didn’t need to be, it was a mundane act that had caused you both to come together naturally, as if it was always meant to be.
You stand up, holding your head as the change in pressure makes it throb, then exit with the most meaningful smile you can muster right now, nodding as you walk past Robin and Steve and back out into the fresh air once more. Robin scuttles after you, telling Steve to stay put for now, and she catches up with you as you take refuge by one of the trees.
“Everything okay?” She asks as she takes a seat next to you.
“Migraine,” you sigh, closing your eyes as you rest your head back against the trunk and feel the cool breeze cross your face, “keep getting them these days.”
“Ouch.”
“Hmm.”
“I had to practically wrangle Steve to stop him from coming out here y’know?” She chuckles, trying to lighten the mood.
You turn to her with a smile, “I don’t think he appreciates how difficult it is for me to stop myself from jumping on him at any given moment,” you admit.
“(Y/n)!” Robin laughs, “oh my god you're as bad as him!”
“I know, I’m really trying not to be.”
“But why?”
“I don't know… It's not even the thought of Eddie that's stopping me anymore, it's more Dustin if anything. I don't know how he’d take it if me and Steve were together properly, especially as I apparently seem to have a thing for the guys who are most important in his life,” you explain with a tut.
“I see what you mean, I think you two need a little heart to heart then…” she pauses as she looks towards the radio station, “and it seems like there’s no time like the present, huh?”
“What?” You panic, following her gaze to see Dustin walking towards you both, “shit.”
“You’ll be fine,” she says, jumping up and dusting herself off, “it’s fine!”
Her and Dustin switch places and now the walking Eddie tribute was on the ground next to you instead.
“Steve said you were sick,” he states quietly, “anything I can help with?”
“Nah, just another migraine.”
“Haven’t the doctors given you anything for those yet?”
“Nope, just gotta keep popping painkillers,” you reply sadly, “how are you anyway?”
“Fine, just fine.”
You roll your head to the side to see his cut and bruised face, “yeah, you look it.”
“Steve’s in love with you, y’know?” He asks, completely changing the subject.
You gulp, your mouth drying instantly, “oh yeah?”
“And you’re clearly in love with him.”
“Is that right?”
“So why aren’t you guys together? And don’t try and deny anything or bullshit me okay (y/n), I can see right through you.”
You chuckle at his words; the young boy you once knew now getting ready to graduate school and finding his own path in life, “oh Dustin. Well in the interest of being honest I’d have to say that at first I was lost in grief for Eddie, and I didn’t want it to seem as if I were wallpapering over a crack in the wall. But now? I’m worried about you to be honest. I don’t want you to see me as some curse on the men in your life, worried if another one is going to die because I’m with them or something.”
He scoffs at your excuse, “that’s ridiculous. I saw how much Eddie grew in confidence when he was with you, and not the shouty, mad at the world kind of confidence, but the belief in himself that he could face things he thought he couldn’t. And Steve? He’s loved you forever, you calm him, you bring peace into his life that he never had from elsewhere. You make him wanna stay home and relax instead of go out and party all the time. I can see the effect you’ve had on the men in my life, and it’s nothing but positive.”
Silent tears roll down your cheeks and Dustin turns to you in the quiet moment with a smile, reaching out and giving you a hug that you didn’t even realise you needed.
“You do realise though that you and Steve will have to stay together forever right?”
You lean away from him with a bemused frown, “why?”
“Because you’re like my second set of parents and I refuse to choose sides if you split up.”
“No pressure then?”
“Oh, none at all,” he grins.
“Oh Dustin, where would I be without you, huh?”
“Probably sitting under this tree alone for a start.”
“Smartass.”
He flashes you his signature cheeky smile and you nudge your shoulder against his playfully before he gets up and holds his hands out to you, “come on, lets get you some water for that migraine.”
The two of you walk arm in arm back to the station where an anxious Steve sits in the glass booth, trying to distract himself from thinking about you, and Dustin can’t help but make a comment as you approach him, “feels like I'm walking you down the aisle.”
“Shut up,” you laugh, quickly placing your hand on your head as it throbs again, “ow.”
“You need a lie down in a dark room,” he advises as you get to the open door of the radio booth, “Steve, would you help (y/n) to find somewhere quiet and dark?”
“Sure, yeah,” he nods, jumping up from his seat as you and Dustin unlink your arms and he disappears, “everything okay?”
“Yeah, yeah, I just get these migraines now, ever since… y’know. They come on so quickly, it’s why I was sick earlier,” you explain as he leads you through to a windowless store room.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I’m actively trying not to put you off of me,” you chuckle as he starts looking around for something for you to sit on, “I can just lay on the floor, it’s fine.”
He pauses his search to frown at you both for the initial comment and the suggestion that you could lay on the floor, “what?! You're crazy, there’s nothing that could put me off of you, and you’re not laying on the floor.”
“Steve, honestly, just let me…” you slide some boxes out of the way, take your jacket off, and get down on the carpeted floor, bundling your jacket up into a ball and using it as a makeshift pillow, much to Steve's horror.
He tuts and rolls his eyes then lays down next to you, propping his head up on his hand as he looks down at your face, “you cannot be comfortable like this, surely.”
“Trust me, it’s more comfortable than you think when your head feels like there’s someone inside it trying to break through your skull and escape,” you sigh, turning onto your side.
“Ouch,” he winces, “yeah, I see your point.”
He watches silently as you curl inwards on yourself, closing your eyes and eventually drifting off to sleep under his attentive gaze. After a while he whispers your name a couple of times to check that you have indeed fallen asleep, and once he receives no answer he starts to spill every single secret he’d kept since he met you.
“You are everything to me,” he says softly, his voice barely above a whisper to make sure that even you could barely hear him if you did wake, “I love you, always have done, always will do. Those six little nuggets I want? I want them with you,” he smiles to himself as he admits that, “I want you to take my last name, I want everyone to be there when we marry,” he pauses once those words have left his mouth and ever so gently moves a stray wisp of hair from your cheek, “you have all of me, always, and I’ll be here through it all. The good, the bad, and everything in between.”
He rolls onto his back with a light sigh and you open one eye to see him staring at the ceiling, one hand on his chest while the other rests above his head, “you’ve got to have the loudest whisper I’ve ever heard,” you murmur, startling him.
His body stiffens and he keeps his eyes firmly fixed on the ceiling above, “how much did you hear?”
“Everything.”
“Everything?”
“Everything,” you nod, reaching out to place your hand on top of his on his chest before closing your eyes again, “don’t worry, I want those six nuggets just as much as you do.”
He turns his head towards you, melting at the sight of your soft smile, and he opens up his fingers so that yours slot between his neatly.
Steve’s morning routine has changed since you've stayed the night. They were always hurried and careless; he used to jump straight out of bed and make his way downstairs for coffee before having a hasty shower and perfecting his hair to prepare for the day. Now, however, he took his time, every movement was filled with purpose, and he always reached across to the other side of the bed to try and relive the fleeting moment he felt you laying there exactly three weeks ago. He took his time looking at his reflection in the mirror, his face not quite the same since your encounter, his smile never quite reaching the corners of eyes now. Everything had changed since that day, and Hawkins had become a bit less bright for him.
Robin had noticed the change immediately since their short but to the point conversation in the back room of Family Video where it was suggested that maybe you two didn’t continue as friends at all if it was going to be so difficult for him after your apparent dismissal of what had happened that night. Steve had found it next to impossible to gauge your feelings with how you’d been avoiding him since that night; any exchanges between you both had been very short lived and rarely went beyond simple pleasantries. It was deeply frustrating for him but you had become an expert at dodging interactions specifically with him.
“Still the same?” Robin asks, noting Steve’s forlorn expression as he empties a box of videos into the clearance bin.
“Still the same,” he confirms.
“Hmm,” she hums, wondering how she can try and fix the problem.
Steve shrugs, “there’s nothing I can do unless she finally decides to stop avoiding me,” he sighs as if knowing what’s going through Robin’s mind.
“I could talk to her.”
“Yeah, but she wasn’t exactly forthcoming with you when it happened was she?”
“No, but I can charm her.”
Steve cocks an eyebrow at her, “oh yeah? And how are you going to do that?”
“I’ll take her out for a nice lunch or something.”
“She likes the burger place two blocks over, her favourite is the cheese burger with crispy onions; never the grilled ones,” he smiles fondly.
“Noted,” Robin nods, “right I’ll organise it then.”
She’s true to her word and straight after work she calls by your house to invite you out for lunch that following Saturday. The promise of a cheeseburger at your favourite place was too good to pass up on and even though you have your suspicions about her motives you can’t help but say yes straight away.
The sun was shining but there was a chill in the air as you drive to the diner and you push the zip of your fleece up over your chin to stay warm once you've parked the car and are making your way over to the place. Robin’s already seated and you head straight for the small booth she’s sitting at, shivering a little as you slide into the seat opposite her.
“Thank goodness it’s warm in here,” you sigh with a smile, “how are you?”
“Robin grins back at you, wanting to ask outright what the deal with Steve is, but manages to resist for a moment, “good, yeah, okay thanks, and you?”
“Yeah, all good thank you. So what prompted this lunch then?” You question, pushing the menu to one side.
“You not gonna look at what you want?”
“I don’t need to, I always get-”
“A cheeseburger with crispy onions, never grilled,” Robin interrupts. You frown, wondering how she knows this, and she laughs at your confusion, “Steve told me.”
“And that's why we're here isn’t it?”
“Am I that transparent?”
“Yep.”
“Dang. Okay, yes, that’s why we’re here. You’ve been avoiding him like the plague after… everything… and I love both of you equally but my god you’re both doing my head in right now.”
“Mhmm,” you hum in agreement, “yeah, it’s been a while since we last spoke properly.”
“We all know how he feels, but how do you feel? If you don’t mind me prying, of course.”
You shrug, unsure of how to approach the answer to this question, “scared,” you reply, “I don’t know what else to say. It's difficult, I’d wanted what happened for so long but then it all became a bit too real.”
Robin nods as she listens intently to what you have to say.
“Steve’s an incredible human being, everyone knows that, and I just don’t want to be the wrong person for him.”
“But why do you think that you would be?”
The waitress comes over to take your orders which gives you an opportunity to compose yourself for the answer to Robin’s difficult question. You stay quiet even though you're now left alone at the table once more and nervously tap at your cutlery as Robin looks at you with a soft smile, trying to encourage the words to leave your mouth.
“You can talk to me, I know that I’m not the best at keeping my mouth shut but I promise that I won’t say a thing to Steve about this conversation,” she reassures, sliding her hand across the table to gently take yours.
You raise your lowered gaze to meet her kind eyes and nod, “I know, I trust you regardless Robin, you know that. I just… It’s…” you let out a sigh and drop your head down as you shake it from side to side, “I’m not good at this,” you mumble, drawing your hand back away from hers.
“It’s okay, we’ve got all day,” she comforts as the drinks land on the table.
You think back to your previous relationship with a slight shudder, remembering how things had ended so badly after a year of being psychologically manipulated by the man you thought you loved and who supposedly loved you back; the fact that no one else could love you well and truly burned into your brain.
“So you remember when things ended with Andy?” You start.
“Urgh, yes,” Robin replies with a roll of her eyes, “disgusting man.”
“Yeah,” you agree, “truly… Well, I didn’t entirely tell you the truth about what happened.”
Robin tilts her head to the side with a slightly questioning furrow of her brow.
“He, uh… he was very good at getting into my head. The reason why I almost disappeared for the entire time I was with him was because he convinced me that no one really wanted to be my friend, no one could love me like he could, and he was all I needed.”
Robin’s eyes widen in horror at your confession and she places both hands over her mouth as it opens in shock.
“And Steve helped me so much when I came out of that relationship, he has no idea just how much his support pulled me out of those thoughts and really dark days, and that night was the first time in as long as I can remember that I felt free and able to let my guard down and just enjoy life… but when he said those lovely things to me and how he loves me, everything came flooding back, and I thought, how? How can you love me when I’m not loveable? And obviously avoiding the entire situation is easier than having this conversation with him. I mean, of course I love him, but how can I expect that love back when I’m not even sure I deserve it?”
The food arrives and you say a quiet thanks to the waitress as Robin sits there still in a state of disbelief, her hands now flat on the table either side of her plate as she processes everything you’d just told her. You start your meal as you wait for the mountain of new information to be digested in her brain, and eventually she lets out a loud sigh.
“I’m so sorry this happened to you,” she then follows quietly, “I can’t believe that you went through all that alone. I knew he was an asshole, but my god if I knew what he’d been doing I would’ve punched him so hard and got you out of there so quick.”
“To be honest, I probably wouldn’t have let you… That’s how deep in my head he was.”
“Oh my god (y/n), I… I don't know what to say,” she says sadly, her mouth turning down as tears fill her eyes.
“No crying!” You chuckle, “because you’ll start me off and I don’t want a soggy cheeseburger.”
“Shit,” she mutters, wiping her eyes with the backs of her hands, “okay, no crying. You do realise though, if he ever steps foot in Family Video I will be throwing a VHS at him?”
“I would very much like to keep the CCTV tape of that if he does come in.”
“Deal,” Robin nods with a smile, finally starting on her own lunch.
The two of you continue your meals in silence then once done Robin reaches out to give your hand a squeeze, “and Steve knows nothing of this?”
“Umm, next to nothing, yeah, I mean I did confide in him about some comments he said but ultimately nothing that was too bad for fear of him doing something.”
“Yeah, if Steve knew even half of what you just told me he would’ve gone after him with the demo hunting bat,” Robin agrees.
“Exactly, and that would’ve only got him in trouble, which is the last thing that I want, so this is why maybe I’m the wrong person for him.”
Robin shakes her head from side to side fervently, “nope, no, nah-uh, I’m not having that. You’re not letting that vile man come between you and Steve. Please remember how free you felt with him that night, and hold on to that feeling because that could be how you feel every day of your life if you let it. Steve is obsessed with you, he loves you exactly how you are, please just talk to him. You don’t have to tell him everything you told me but just let him in to how you’re feeling.”
You sigh, realising that she’s completely and utterly right as always, and nod slowly in agreement to what she’s said.
“Good!” she beams, “then hopefully he won’t be moping around the store anymore.”
You laugh at her comment, “sorry about that. Didn’t realise he’d be moping.”
“Oh it’s relentless! I feel like shaking him by the shoulders and telling him to get a grip!”
The atmosphere has been lifted and the two of you sit there for a while longer just catching up on everything you’d missed out on during the time you’d been with Andy, and it felt like it did before when you were close with everyone. You leave the diner with a smile, a true, meaningful smile that you hadn't experienced for so long, and you boldly head to Family Video straight after to invite Steve to dinner at yours the next day.
“Hey,” he greets with a bemused expression.”
“Hey,” you smile back, “I was wondering if you wanted to come over to mine tomorrow for dinner?”
He flounders, his mouth opening and closing like a fish underwater as he tries to find some sort of reply that doesn't sound desperate, “uh… yeah, sure. Sounds good.”
“Good. Be at mine for 5 yeah?”
“Yep.”
“Cool, see you tomorrow.”
You exit and Steve stands there in shock behind the counter. Whatever you and Robin had talked about must have worked, and he couldn’t be happier. He actually smiles again, this time the happiness reaching his eyes as the lines around his mouth hug his lips once more.
The key to Steve’s heart was simple; KFC. As he said every time he had it; it was finger licking good. Steve was prompt and at exactly 5pm there was a quick knock at your door, and you answer it to see him standing there with a bunch of flowers in hand.
“I, uh… saw these and thought of you,” he says shyly as he pushes them into your hands.
They were beautiful, so you were a little confused as to how he thought of you when he’d seen them but you accept them with a smile and stand to one side to allow him in.
“Thank you,” you say as you shut the door and lead him through to the kitchen, “by the way, I haven’t actually cooked, but I hope you like it…” you open the oven door to show him the bucket of chicken that was keeping warm inside.
“Yes,” he laughs, “oh my god yes.”
“I was hoping you’d like that.”
“It's finger licking good.”
You laugh, knowing he was going to say that, “that it is.”
You plate up the dinner and the two of you sit quietly at the table enjoying being in one another’s company again after what seemed like such a long break from it.
“So Robin’s plan worked then I see,” Steve eventually says, dropping the last bone onto his plate with a satisfied sigh.
“It did,” you nod as you take the plates and place them in the sink, “I… uh… we should talk about that night, do you wanna sit in the lounge?”
“Absolutely,” he says, following you and waiting for you to sit, “where do you want me?”
“Uh, can you sit next to me so I don’t have to look at you? In the nicest way possible I don't think I can face you and say what I’m going to say.”
He does as you ask and you slowly but surely give him the slightly filtered down version of events you’d told Robin the previous day and the reasons for your knee jerk reaction to the night you’d spent with him. Steve reaches out for you but you resist at first, shifting away from him on the couch, but eventually when your walls have truly crumbled and he knows almost everything you let him hold your hand. His grip is so tight that his knuckles turn white but you hold on to him just as much as you finish up your now rather lengthy explanation, and by the time you fall silent the sky outside has darkened so much that you could just about see one another, but Steve could spot the tears rolling down your cheeks as they left glistening trails across your skin.
“I’d better turn a light on, can’t see a thing,” you chuckle lightly as he stays silent.
He reluctantly allows your hand to separate from his as you stand and walk over to the window where you draw the curtains and turn on the lamp in the corner of the room, and when you turn around he’s standing right there in your path.
“Woah.”
He cups your face with his hands, looking between your eyes as you curl your fingers around his wrists gently, “I’m at a loss for words. I’m so sorry that happened, I wish I knew something was wrong, then maybe… maybe I could have done something. I don’t know. I can’t change things, but I can show you how much you are loved every day if you let me. I don’t want to go back to friends, I want to be so much more.”
You can’t help but smile at his compassionate words, a mixture of sheer relief and pure euphoria washing over your body as he lowers his hands to take you into a loving embrace, and you hold him close, knowing that your future was safe with him.
A/N: this is based off of that photo shoot Joe Keery did. You know the one. It popped up on my Instagram feed the other day and it was like seeing it for the first time all over again. It's a work of art. Anyway; Eddie accidentally gets you in trouble with Steve.
“Did Steve tell you about his party yet?” Robin asks as you pass her videos from the box that she stacks neatly on the shelves.
“No he hasn’t actually. Maybe I’m not invited,” you chuckle.
“As if,” Robin scoffs, “you’d be the VIP guest I’m sure.”
“Hmm.”
Robin stops what she’s doing and turns to you with a furrowed brow, “are you two okay?”
You sigh sadly as you put the videos you’d just picked up back into the box again, “I don’t know… I really don’t know.”
You feel tears well up in your eyes and try not to let them spill but Robin can see that your plan isn’t working and quickly wraps her arms around you which forces them out immediately onto her uniform, “I’m sorry,” you apologise, “this is stupid.”
She shakes her head from side to side seriously as she leans back a little so she can see your face, “no no, it’s not stupid. What happened?”
You dry your face with the palms of your hands then take a deep breath, “to be honest there’s nothing I can pinpoint to say something in particular happened y’know? He just seems to be… distancing himself. I just don’t know what to do, I don’t know how to get him back, and I… I love him, Robin, I really do. I’m so scared he’s going to leave me. It’s like I can feel it happening and I’m powerless to stop it.”
You and Steve had been together around six months and everything had been going well, or as well as anything could go in the town of Hawkins, until about a month ago when his whole demeanor had changed towards you almost overnight. Suddenly he was too busy to see you, the visits to one another’s houses decreased dramatically, and the phone calls were practically non-existent now. The only reason you were at Family Video today was because he had the day off and Robin wanted some company; otherwise you’d avoid the place for fear of annoying Steve even more. All you wanted to do was know what was going on inside his head and why he wasn’t talking to you about it; you needed some communication, did he want to end things, or did he want to fix things? It was impossible to know right now, and you were in a constant state of anxiety over it.
“It’s okay,” Robin reassures, “I’ll talk to him, we’ll figure this out yeah?”
“Yeah, sure,” you sniff, “do you want a coffee? I’ll go get one from down the street.”
“Please,” she smiles.
You exit the shop and make the minute walk down the street to the donut shop where you get the drinks and a couple of snacks of course, then on the way back Steve’s car passes by before parking up outside the video shop and you rush in while he fusses about inside the vehicle for a moment.
“He’s outside,” you worry, entering the shop, “shit, I’d better go.”
You drop the drink and donut on the side for Robin then grab your bag and turn to head to the door just as Steve reaches it, “looks like you’re staying,” Robin says quietly as he enters.
“Hey you,” he smiles, going through the motions of hugging you with only one arm and giving you the quickest peck on the cheek as if he was still interested in you, “hey Robin.”
“What are you doing here on your day off?” Robin questions, “and why haven’t you told (y/n) about your party yet?”
He looks between you and Robin, a little shocked at the interrogation he’s just walked into, and you decide to end the awkwardness and leave before you hear something you don’t particularly want to, “I’ve gotta go actually… things to do and… stuff. See you later guys.”
You escape quickly, shoveling your donut into your mouth as soon as you’re out of the way of the shop, and gulping down your coffee as if it would solve all of your problems. You perch on a bench next to the bin after discarding the remnants of your snack then let your head roll back and close your eyes.
“What was that?!” Robin asks.
“What do you mean?” Steve frowns as he roots around behind the counter looking for his wallet.
“You do know that was your girlfriend right? What’s going on?”
Steve shrugs, “I mean, I didn’t think I had to invite my girlfriend because surely she’d be coming anyway, and there’s nothing going on, I just forgot my wallet yesterday.”
“Steve,” Robin says, crossing her arms, “talk to me.”
“There’s nothing to say.”
“So it’s normal that your girlfriend cried on me this morning because she feels like you’re pulling away so much you’re going to leave her?”
“I… er… I didn’t mean to make her feel like that.”
“So why are you being like that then?”
Steve starts to walk towards the door to leave and sees Eddie’s van whizz past then stomps his foot on the ground, “fucks sake!”
Robin takes the opportunity to block the door and Steve gives her a very unimpressed look, “move, Robin.”
“No. We’re talking this out right here right now. I remember what you were like before you got together, you were so nervous about asking her out because you’d liked her for ages and now six months down the line you’re bored? You said yourself she’s not like the other girls you’ve dated, so why are you treating her the same?” she stands defiant as he looks to the handle of the door, and Steve knows he can’t make the exit he wanted to without explaining himself to his best friend.
He gestures over to the counter but Robin nods at him to go first, then once they’ve settled by the till he spills all, “Eddie,” he starts with a roll of his eyes, “not only has he wormed his way in to Dustin’s life but now he’s starting on (y/n).”
Robin does a double take at him in confusion, “Eddie?”
“I heard him a few weeks ago, he was talking to some of his club members about (y/n), how he’s grown to like her…”
“So why aren’t you showing him that she’s with you?”
Steve sighs and rubs his temples, “he said… he said he thinks she feels the same.”
“What the hell? Why aren’t you fighting for her?” Robin asks, stunned that he seems to be giving up.
“Well what if she does like him?”
“Steve!” Robin shouts, “you see this wet patch on my shoulder?” She twists her shirt round so he can see the small damp shape, “that’s (y/n)’s tears. She’s so upset that you’re pulling away from her, she doesn’t understand what she’s done. She loves you Steve, why are you even doubting that?”
“Well what else am I supposed to think when Eddie’s going around saying shit like that? I just want her to be happy, she deserves so much happiness, and if that’s not with me then so be it,” he states.
“But in you distancing yourself from her, you’re pushing her away. I have absolutely no doubt in the fact that she has zero romantic feelings for Eddie. I would ask why you didn’t just talk to her about it, but you’re a guy and of course you wouldn’t want to talk about your emotions,” she huffs, “do yourself a favour and go after her right now to clear this mess up.”
Steve sighs, still unsure, but exits the store and gets into his car. He looks up the street to see Eddie’s van parked up at the side of the road and him sitting next to you on a bench. He watches as Eddie places his arm around your shoulder but you don’t lean in to his embrace, instead you stay sitting upright and Steve hopes he hasn’t fucked things up so badly over a stupid comment he heard. He knew deep down that the right thing to do would be to talk to you about it but there was that little voice of doubt in the back of his mind that told him it might just be true and he didn’t want to hear you say it. He’d always been known as a ladies man but you had this seemingly magical power over him as soon as he laid eyes on you, and it was like a switch had flipped in his brain; all he wanted was to be with you, and whenever he thought about his future you were right there with him every single time. He thinks about what Robin said and gets back out of his car, now heading your way with a purpose.
“(y/n), you coming home?” Steve asks as he approaches from your left hand side.
“Home?” you check as Eddie slips his arm from your shoulders.
“Yeah, home,” he repeats, holding his hand out.
You take it and say your goodbyes to Eddie, then silently walk to Steve’s car with your hands interlinked. It seemed like so long ago that he had last held your hand but you hold your breath as you get into the car, not wanting to ruin this moment. Steve starts the car and drives off in silence to his place, the two of you only exchanging brief glances on the way to his.
“So what are you wearing tonight for the party?” He asks as you both get out of the car and approach the front door.
“I am invited then?” You check.
“Of course,” Steve scoffs, “I didn’t think I needed to invite you. I assumed you’d be here.”
“Good to know.”
You head towards the stairs to see what you had left here that would be appropriate for the party but Steve stops you on the third step as he clears his throat purposefully, “so… uh… I think we should-”
The phone rings and he looks from you to the phone and back again, then you give him a nod to answer whoever’s calling before continuing up the stairs to Steve’s bedroom where you had a small collection of clothes and toiletries tucked away in the corner of his wardrobe. You’re sifting through what little you have to find something that would look half decent at a party when Steve walks in and leans back against the door frame with his arms crossed as he watches your face contort with concentration as you eye up each outfit with care. He smiles to himself at the sight, studying the way your eyes narrowed as possible choices, and widened at the ones that were a definite no.
You look up at him as you come across a white sleeveless cotton dress then hold it up to your body, “what do you think?”
He nods, then steps around you to look through his clothes, “I think… ah! I have a suit to match, perfect.”
“You want to match?”
“Well, we're the hosts, so yeah, we’ve gotta match right? Although I don’t think I have a shirt to go with it.”
You shuffle through a pile of t-shirts of his to find a white top, “you do have a white vest though,” you offer, knowing that the sight of him in that would give you a lot of familiar feelings.
“Perfect,” he smiles.
There’s still a hint of awkwardness in the air as you prepare the house for the incoming guests, and Steve doesn’t quite manage to finish his sentence from earlier which is a little annoying but you go along with things as they are, not wanting to spoil the night. Steve changes first then as you descend the stairs in your relatively simple dress he catches sight of you from the living room and can’t help but stare as you make your way towards him.
“Wow,” he whispers once you’re standing the opposite side of the coffee table, “you look incredible.”
You blush, looking down shyly as you smooth out your dress, then take in the sight of him standing there in the white suit, just the vest underneath the blazer which gives you a tantalising view of the dark hair that covers his chest as it spills over above the scooped neckline, “so do you,” you reply with a gulp.
“Listen, I uh… I’ve been a bit stupid recently and I wanted to-” he’s cut off by the doorbell ringing and he lets out a huff as he heads towards it, but you reach out for his wrist, making him turn to you.
“I love you Steve,” you reassure him.
“I love you too,” he nods as the doorbell rings again and you let him go, “I’m coming!” He calls out.
The two of you needed to say more, things needed to be talked about properly, but for now you had to make do with the mutual reassurance that feelings for one another hadn’t changed, and as the guests enter the house you make sure everyone gets a drink as Steve manages the music. You’re making your way around the room and spot Robin standing with Dustin and Eddie so head over to the familiar huddle and give everyone a hug to greet them.
“How is everything?” Robin asks subtly.
“Well, not totally back to normal, we haven’t really had the chance to talk properly yet.”
“Where’s he disappeared to? No time like the present right?” She suggests, scanning the crowd for him.
“Hmm, you’re right as always, I’m gonna go find him.”
He wouldn’t be hard to miss in his bright white suit, but he seems to have disappeared entirely from the house so you head outside into the garden where it'd just started raining, but again he'd nowhere to be seen. Just as you turn to go back inside Eddie comes jogging up to you with an apologetic look on his face.
“I fear this is my fault,” he admits, “Robin gave me a talking to on the way over here.”
Your brow furrows in confusion, “what do you mean?”
Eddie sighs and avoids meeting your eyes as he starts to explain, “I may have told a couple of people about this girl that I like and that she may like me back… and Steve may have overheard this conversation.”
“Right? And?” You ask, ducking your head a little as the rain comes down harder.
“And… I may have mentioned the name of the lady in question.”
You were a little annoyed now as you stood there in the rain waiting for him to explain, “Eddie! Would you just spit it out?!”
“You!” He shouts back, “it was you I was talking about!”
You put your hands up to your face with a deep sigh and realise now why Steve had been so off with you, but then you feel a little angry at the fact that he must have thought it was true in the first place if he’d been avoiding you all this time, and you storm off further into the garden in a silent rage as Eddie heads back inside with his tail between his legs. You’re taking some shelter from the rain under a tree when you hear your name being called and you look up to see Steve heading your way.
“What are you doing out here?” He asks.
“Why didn’t you talk to me?!” You reply with a frown, “Eddie’s just told me what happened and how you overheard what he said.”
“Well… I… He seemed so sure.”
“What kind of excuse is that? I was the one you should have asked but instead you just pulled away from me like that. Do you even care about me?”
He steps towards you but you’re so angry at both him and Eddie that you step away into the now constant stream of droplets from the sky as they soak the both of you, “of course I care (y/n), you know that.”
“So distancing yourself from me like that was caring, huh?”
The rain intensifies and Steve has to raise his voice to be heard above it, “yes it was! Because all I want is for you to be happy, and if that meant it wasn’t with me then I'd have to accept it.”
He now stands directly in front of you, his hair dripping down onto his suit as you look up at him with your tears being hidden by the rain, “but didn’t you see how much I was hurting when you did that?”
“I… I selfishly didn’t because of my own feelings,” you sigh and look away from him but he grabs onto your cold, damp upper arms and forces your attention back to him, “I’ve been a fool. This is the stupidest thing I’ve ever done in my life, I admit that. I should have just come straight to you and asked you about it instead of shutting down like that. Please forgive me (y/n), please.”
The rain is now falling off of your faces and your clothes are completely saturated as you stand there looking at one another so intently. Steve’s grip on your arms tightens a little and you lift your hands to slide them under his blazer and hold onto his waist. It’s only now that the anger has subsided that you realise how he looked; strands of his wet hair hanging in front of his face, the vest now transparent and showing the full trail of chest hair all the way down to his waistband, his skin glistening in the light from the back door. He can see your eyes scanning his body and he too realises that now he can see the light pink lace of your bra through the dress as the fabric clings to it, the drops of rain that travel from your neck down into the thin gap between your breasts, then he sees the outline of your panties, the cotton leaving nothing to the imagination as it hugs your stomach and thighs tightly. The two of you both take a sharp inhale then your lips crash together in a hungry kiss, the two of you holding onto one another so tight that there’s not even room for water to pass between your bodies.
“I’m so sorry,” he pants once you both come up for air, “I promise to make it up to you starting right now.”
You look at him with a questioning face as you wonder what he means, but you soon get the answer as he pulls you back into the house, through the crowd of people, and straight upstairs.
All this Steve stuff has put me back into my Steve mood and I love that it's because of you. Also the fact you have a cat called Freddie is just iconic and so you 😭
❤️ I'm surprised how much I'm still in my Steve feels right now aha, but I'm glad you're enjoying it! Haha, he is an icon himself too, it really is his house and I'm just living in it. He's got me completely wrapped around his little coffee toe beans.
A/N: in which Steve has a dirty dream and Robin and Eddie make you both confess your feels. Oh, and smut. Enjoy!
Steve stares out of the window, which isn’t totally out of character for him, but Robin can tell that something’s off today with the way he has had to ask her to repeat almost everything she'd said or asked him so far, and the distant look in his eye as he scans the street outside every minute.
“What's wrong with you today?” she asks outright.
“Huh?”
Her eyes roll and she repeats the question once more, “what. Is. Wrong. With. You. Today?” purposely pausing after each word.
“Do you think she's coming in today?” Steve worries as he paces the front windows of Family Video like a caged tiger.
Robin shrugs, knowing exactly who he was talking about, “I have no idea but if you see Eddie then I'm sure she won't be far behind.”
“Hmm,” he hums, taking another look outside before turning towards the aisles.
“They're not together y’know?”
“I know.”
“So why are you being weird today then? I mean, weirder than usual.”
Steve rushes over to the counter and he and Robin lean in so he can whisper, “I had a dream about her.”
“Aww, that's sweet!”
He shakes his head from side to side quickly, “no, no, you didn't understand Robin, I had a dream about her.”
“A… dream?” she frowns, not quite understanding what he was getting at yet.
“Yeah, a…” he takes a brief look around before lowering his voice even more, “a sex dream.”
Robin bursts into laughter, covering her mouth with her hands as she almost hyperventilates at the news, “a sex dream!” she exclaims loudly, “oh my god you had a sex dream about her! What exactly happened? I need to know everything,” she rests her elbows on the counter and places her head in her hands ready for the details.
“I’m not-”
“Come on, just a little snippet please!”
He rolls his eyes but gives in easily, “we were here, she'd walked in and locked the door behind her then took my hand and lead me to the back room where she started kissing my neck and undoing my-”
“Steve she’s here,” Robin gasps, standing upright as she spots Eddie’s van outside.
“Fuck!” he growls, running down one of the aisles, “I’m not here!”
“I think your car being parked outside is a bit of a giveaway that you are,” Robin reminds him.
“Well then I’m busy!” he calls back, slamming the door to the back room shut and trying to calm his breathing.
There was no way he could look you in the eye today, so the best thing to do was to avoid any contact at all as the images of you on your knees in front of him play in a loop inside his head. It was no secret that he fancied you, he was pretty sure everyone but you knew by now, but this was another level and he’d woken from his sleep in a hot, sweaty, aroused mess. He hears the door go out front and holds his breath as he hears your usual cheery hello at Robin.
“Where’s Steve?” you ask as your eyes scan the shop for his familiar face.
“Oh… uh… he’s busy out back with some stock take or something,” Robin replies, waving her hand dismissively.
“Does he need a hand?” Eddie asks, looking at you and winking.
“Uh… maybe actually, there’s quite a lot to go through.”
They both look at you knowingly and you stand there a little confused but give in under their intense stares, “I’ll just… go see him then,” you say, a little unsure at why they’re acting so oddly.
You make your way to the back of the store and tap the door lightly. A few seconds go by with no answer so you tap again a little louder then hear Steve sneeze before he opens it with an awkward smile.
“Hi,” he says, looking anywhere but at your face.
“Hi. Robin said you could use some help.”
“Oh… uh… I think I'm okay actually.”
“Ah. Can I come and hide with you anyway? They're being a bit… weird.”
He purses his lips as he steps to one side allowing you through the threshold then he shuts the door behind you and takes a deep breath before turning to see you bent over a box.
“Fucking hell,” he groans to himself, looking up at the ceiling.
“You alright?” You ask after hearing him muttering to himself.
“Fine. Fine. What are you doing?”
“Oh, sorry, I was just alphabetising this box of videos.”
He sighs and comes over to pick the box up and place it on the table, “might be easier at this height… saves you having to bend over.”
“Thanks,” you nod.
Eddie lets out a very loud ‘ah!’ from outside and you frown at the door in confusion but Steve simply puts his hand over his face and shakes his head in disbelief, knowing that Robin had just told him about his confession earlier.
“A sex dream?!” Eddie almost squeals, “and you’ve just sent (y/n) down there to help him in the very claustrophobic back room? You’re a monster, I love it,” he claps.
“I guarantee it won’t make a difference though, these two are the most stubborn people I’ve ever met.”
“Well, why don’t we help things along?” Eddie suggests.
“And how are we going to do that?”
“Lock them in the back.”
Robin opens her mouth in a silent gasp and nods her head enthusiastically, “we can put a bin across the back exit to block that one too.”
“Right, you do the inside and I’ll do the outside,” Eddie grins mischievously.
The two go about putting their plan into action and Steve immediately knows something’s up when he hears the lock click on the door from the shop. You watch as he twists the knob left and right, then he bangs on the door and calls Robin's name, “this isn’t funny Robin!”
“Don’t worry,” you sigh, “there’s always the emergency exit.”
You walk over to the other door and push the long handle but it bangs against something on the outside and you spot Eddie through the tiny slither of freedom as he runs back around to the front giggling as he goes.
“Okay, what the fuck are they playing at?” you frown, pulling the door back into place, “I knew something was going on when Robin sent me down here.”
“Of course she did,” Steve exhales, sinking down onto the floor as he slides down the door, “of course.”
“Is there something I’m missing here?”
“I think they’re trying to be funny.”
“Hmm,” you hum, sitting down on the floor in front of him with your legs crossed, “well considering neither of us are laughing, they’re not doing a very good job.”
“That’s very true.”
“So…” you trail off, trying to think of conversation to make, “how have you been since I last saw you?”
“You mean, two days ago?” Steve smiles.
You blush, looking away from him briefly as the sight of his smile raises your heart rate slightly, “a lot can happen in two days!” you point out.
“Also true,” Steve nods, thinking about the dream he had about you, “I’ve been good thank you, and how have you been?”
“Yeah, fine, fine.”
The two of you sit there in an awkward silence and just as Steve leans his head back on the door Robin’s voice comes through it, “you two okay in there?”
“We’d be better if you let us out,” Steve replies.
“We’d love to, but you’ve been doing our collective minds in by completely avoiding your feelings for one another, so please sort it out and then we’ll think about releasing you,” she states calmly as you both stare at one another with wide eyes.
You’re the first to look away and jump up, busying yourself with the box of videos once more as you will the heat in your cheeks to stop rising. Steve stays put on the floor, his eyes travelling up your body until they land on your flushed face, and he feels a little better knowing he isn’t the only one who’s been affected like that. Your hands fumble with the plastic cases and the order of the alphabet is long forgotten as you try and dip your head low enough to hide it in the box. It doesn't work so you side step to the small kitchenette where you pull a bottle of water out of the under counter fridge and stand facing the wall as you sip it.
“Can you pass me one please?” Steve asks courageously.
You nod in response and walk towards where Steve is sitting but continue looking up as you hold the bottle out towards his low position on the floor, then make your way to the exit door once more to try and see if you could push hard enough to move the bin out of the way. It's a useless exercise as you realise that Eddie's most probably put the brake on the wheels and you let out a defeated sigh as you shut the door once more. There was no escape, not even from having Steve in your peripheral field of vision thanks to how cosy this room was, and you fight to keep your direct gaze away from him too.
“This is my fault,” Steve announces all of a sudden, almost making you jump.
You take a sip of water before replying, “surely the blame is equal between us both according to them.”
“Well… I'm at fault for this situation then.”
“How so?”
“I, er… I mentioned that I was thinking about you last night, so…” he trails off awkwardly, realising what he just said could be taken either really badly or surprisingly well, and he rubs his face with his hand anxiously.
You watch his hand as it curves from his cheek over his eye and back again before he looks to you with a shy smile, “hmm,” you him, trying your best to keep your composure and not jump on the spot while punching your fists in the air in excitement, “that's… uh… what were you thinking about that made me come to mind?”
Steve jumps up from his seated position and approaches a chair as he tries desperately to think of something that would naturally lead to you, “well,” he begins, clearing his throat and sitting down as you stand against the wall for support, “I was just remembering what you said the other day about… how technology seems to be progressing so rapidly right now, and the film Back to the Future probably won't be so crazy in a few years time.”
He deserves a standing ovation for coming up with that in such a short space of time, and you can see the relief on his face once he's finished talking which you can't help but chuckle at. He shoots you a slightly questioning frown as you now feel comfortable enough to sit down opposite him at the tiny break table, “what's so funny?” He asks.
“That was an oscar worthy performance,” you nod, “I'm honestly very impressed with how you pulled that back from something that I don't doubt was actually quite different.”
“I don't know what you mean,” he scoffs, his eyes darting around the room.
“What really prompted this?” You question, now needing to know the truth as you turn the bottle of water slowly with your fingers, “come on, you can tell me! You obviously told Robin, and I would put money on the fact that she's told Eddie.”
Steve meets your gaze at those words, “yeah, I'm pretty sure I heard his reaction to it earlier.”
You laugh, “well then I definitely need to know if that little screech was him reacting.”
Steve knew you'd make less of a deal out of the news than those two outside did, yet he still hesitates, everything now becoming a little too real, “uh… well-”
“You don't have to if you really don't want to,” you reassure him, seeing the slight change in his face, “I mean, we've been majorly called out this afternoon and it's a lot to process, right? Knowing the person you’ve fallen for actually likes you back is a bit… overwhelming… in my opinion anyway. Especially when you're locked in a room with them.”
Steve chuckles lightly, “yeah, it's a lot. But in the best way,” he smiles, “I just, erm, I don't wanna be rude y’know? Or make you think that I just want… the, uh…” he sighs, unable to put into words what he needs to without giving it away, “jesus, I had a dream about you. Not just a dream, but a dream dream.”
Your furrowed brow suddenly lifts as you join the dots in your head and you really have to fight the urge to audibly whine at the fact it was only a dream and you didn't get to experience it. Life could be so cruel sometimes.
“Oh, I see!” You eventually nod in understanding, “and what was happening in this dream, if you don't mind me asking?”
“Do you really wanna know?” Steve checks.
“Yep,” you nod, trying not to seem too desperate as you lean back on the chair and place your hands in your lap.
He wipes something invisible from the table in front of him and taps it a couple of times before looking up at you then further to the ceiling as he prepares, “we were here, ironically enough, can’t even escape this place when I’m asleep. You, uh, you came in like usual but didn’t say anything then locked the front door and lead me down into this room where you…” he clears his throat and shifts in his seat, his eyes now nervously scanning the room, “you were kissing me, touching me, y’know…”
“Was it good?”
He laughs, “it was fucking amazing, obviously.”
“Oh great, so if anything happens between us then I’ve got to live up to the dream version of me,” you joke, rolling your eyes, “no pressure then.”
“Antyhing you do in real life will top that dream without a doubt. Like, anything,” he replies, finally meeting your gaze, “you could brush your hand against mine and I’d get excited.”
You raise an eyebrow at his confession, and he fears he’s said too much as you rise from your seat and walk around to his side of the table, disappearing behind him briefly before turning to face the back of his head as he sits there now slightly tensed up.
“Steve, relax,” you chuckle, gently placing your hands on his shoulders, “I’m not gonna do anything.”
His shoulders drop then he crosses his arms over his chest as he brings his hands up to take yours, slowly pulling them down over his uniform until they meet and come to a stop on his stomach, “that’s a shame,” he whispers, your head now next to his above his shoulder.
“You’ve got to take me on at least one date first,” you reply quietly, your lips grazing over his ear.
He shivers a little beneath your touch and shifts in his seat once again. You’d dreamt of this for such a long time it was simply natural between the two of you, and you were aching to lower your touch but also determined that he wine and dine you before anything actually happened. He squeezes your hands and takes a deep breath in, trying to calm himself under your caring embrace.
“Only one?” he smiles to himself, “you free now?”
“I am, as it happens.”
“Right then,” he announces as you stand away from him and he rises from the chair to knock on the door, “Robin! Eddie! Let us out, we’re going on a date.”
The door unlocks but Robin doesn’t open it fully as she checks you’re not lying, “oh yeah? Where?”
“Where do you wanna go?” Steve asks, turning to you.
You widen your eyes at being put on the spot so suddenly, “uh… wow, I don’t know.”
“Well Italian’s your favourite, so why don’t we go to the one down the road?”
“The really posh one?”
“Yeah!” Steve grins.
“Okay…” you smile nervously.
Funnily enough it takes more than one date; the mix of Italian food and the excitement of knowing how one another felt finally sparked a never ending conversation that took you from the early afternoon late into the evening. Steve was the gentleman you knew he always was, dropping you to your door and giving you a kiss that left you wanting more. Each date came and went, the two of you quickly falling into the relationship you’d always dreamed of with one another, and the promise of even better things to come always hung in the air.
It was a couple of months since you two had been locked in the back room of Family Video, and both Robin and Eddie were very pleased with themselves after their plan had actually worked. Their support had finally come in quite handy for you, and as you wait around the corner from the store for both of them to leave, your heart beats quicker in your chest than it had since that day. They soon appear from the door and look your way with a knowing nod to signal there were no customers in the shop and the coast was clear for you to carry out your plan. You break into a quick walk to make sure no one else could enter before you then you open the door as casually as you possibly can and are met with Steve’s joyful grin.
“Hey! I wasn’t expecting you today!” he says cheerily as you turn the lock for the front door and change the sign to closed.
His eyes widen as you approach him without saying a word, then you take his hand and he can’t help but let out an excited giggle, “(y/n), is this what I think it is?” He asks.
You turn to him and place your forefinger over your mouth and he bites down on his lower lip excitedly as you both enter the back room and shut the rest of the world out. Once you’re both safely tucked away in private you push him back against the door and your lips meet in a passionate kiss as your hands wander on one another’s bodies, but you know exactly where yours are going as they travel down to Steve’s jeans and make short work of the button and zip. You tear your mouth away from his and drop to your knees in a matter of seconds and Steve’s left standing there with his mouth agape as he watches every move you make, taking his length between your lips and moving your mouth along it. He throws his head back with a bang against the door and you hear a faint “fuck!” from above but you continue what you’re doing, knowing that his mind would soon be taken off the pain. You hum in enjoyment, sending vibrations throughout his entire body as his hips buck into you, and you relish in the sound of his ecstasy filled moans and groans, knowing they were because of you.
“I’m not gonna last,” he warns breathlessly, desperately trying to hold on and savour the moment, “oh shit, I can’t,” he whines, eventually releasing everything he has across your tongue and repeating your name over and over as you take every last drop.
He’d been waiting for this for a very long time and it showed with how quickly he reached his climax; he’s still seeing stars as you subtly wipe your mouth and stand so you can continue to kiss him, and his hands immediately grab onto your backside so he can press you against him. You lean away to catch your breath and notice that his hazel eyes had darkened with lust.
“As good as the dream?” You ask with a knowing smile.
“A million times better,” he pants, “and now it’s your turn. Wanna know what I did to you in the dream?”
“Uh-huh,” you nod.
He brings a hand up and separates two fingers, curling the rest down, then he guides them into your mouth where you happily wet them before he swiftly moves his arm underneath your dress and past your underwear as if he’d done it countless times before. You gasp as he carefully pushes his fingers inside you, then he brings them out, drags them down over your inner lips to your sweet spot, then back again, making sure everything was sufficiently lubricated. Your breathing is heavy as he returns to your core, pumping the digits up and down inside, and he lets out a moan as he witnesses the arousal on your face first hand.
“Steve,” you gasp, your hands tightening on his biceps.
“Yeah?”
“Don’t stop.”
He grins, knowing that what he’s doing is working, then he introduces his thumb, finding the little hardened nub that would surely send you over the edge sooner rather than later, and he can’t help but pant along with you as you shut your eyes and grip onto him for dear life as you feel your muscles start to tense.
“Open your eyes,” he encourages, “look at me (y/n).”
You do as he asks, looking into his expectant brown orbs; he couldn’t wait to see what your face looked like as you came undone around him, and he wanted to hold your gaze as you did. His hand that was still supporting your bum now travels up your back and into your hair gently tugging as his fingers work harder and his thumb draws pleasurable circles, and with one last almighty tense you release with a shuddering breath, moaning loudly as you ride out the orgasm for as long as you can. Steve twitches with excitement before removing his soaked fingers, and the two of you rest your foreheads together as you both begin to calm once more.
“Holy fucking shit,” you laugh once you’ve got your breath back, leaning away from him as you regain the ability to stand unaided.
“Yeah,” Steve agrees, pulling up his clothes from his ankles careful to hold those two fingers away from them.
You go over to the kitchenette and grab a paper towel for him to clean his hand, then he throws it into the bin and runs his fingers through his hair, “you’re so hot when you’re climaxing,” he sighs.
You blush under his intense stare, a smile tugging at his lips as he watches you shy away, then he takes a couple of steps towards you and pulls you into a loving embrace, planting soft kisses along your cheek, jaw, and neck, “I love you so much,” he whispers against your skin.
Your arms wrap around his neck and you close your eyes as a smile makes its way across your face at his words, “I love you too Steve.”
A/N: doesn't completely follow the events of season 5, but just a lot of fluff and stuff for good old Steve. Also a mention of being injured.
The tension was so thick in the air you could choke on it if you weren’t careful, and everyone was on edge. It didn’t help that Dustin was missing in action, for all you knew he could have been taken by the army or attacked by a Demogorgon, and it wasn’t helping the situation as a whole being as Steve and Jonathan now had to work together. It was slowly driving you crazy as the two men bickered and exchanged looks at one another like juveniles. You eventually take off in the direction of the woods, needing to get away from the silly macho competition and also wanting to find Dustin yourself. Jonathan ends up jogging after you and catching you up half way across the field to find out where you’re going.
“Need me to come along?” he offers.
You continue to walk along without turning to him, “no, I'm fine thanks.”
“You sure?”
“I’m sure.”
“(Y/N), where are you going?” Steve then calls out from behind.
You roll your eyes and audibly sigh before turning to face the two men while continuing to walk slowly backwards, “for a walk, okay? I just need a walk on my own withou-” you’re cut off when your heel catches on a large stone and you fall back onto the grass with a thud and a groan.
The guys rush to your side, fussing around you and both of them talking over one another as they ask if you’re okay, and normally you would relish in the attention, but you were so pissed off with both of them you slam your hands down onto the ground and huff, “it’s fine, I’m fine, please just leave me alone.”
“But-” Jonathan starts before you stop him.
“Please,” you implore, “both of you just go back to the station okay? I’m fine, I just want to be left alone right now.”
You watch as both of them stand then slowly make their way back in the direction of the radio tower, then when they’re at a safe distance you stand up, brush yourself off and continue your walk away from the place. The thing that annoyed you most about the whole situation was that you were sure Steve didn’t even see you in more than a friendly way so there was no real reason for him to keep taunting Jonathan by engaging in these immature games they played with one another while trying to get your attention. Jonathan and Nancy had mutually ended things a few months back and a little while after you’d noticed him gravitating towards you more. This was a bit of a problem considering you were annoyingly head over heels for Steve Harrington, and had been for quite some time.
“Fuck,” you mutter, your foot catching on a stray root of a tree as you wander further into the woods of Hawkins.
As the leaves crunch on the ground beneath you, you can’t help but be reminded of all the times you’d meet Eddie at lunch on his dealing bench, and you chuckle to yourself as an image of him wrapping his arms around you and asking if you had a nice trip comes to mind. The two of you had just admitted your feelings for one another and started dating properly when everything went wrong. It was quite sobering having someone you cared so deeply for ripped from your life within a matter of moments, and it wasn’t just Dustin who hadn’t been the same since his death. Luckily you both had Steve, and you two had certainly become closer than ever during this period of the army invading Hawkins, barely leaving one another’s side day and night. It was difficult to accept the feelings you had for Steve being as you’d lost Eddie in such a horrific way, and you had gallantly fought them as much as possible, but in the end you had to succumb to the fact that it was extremely hard not to fall for a man like Steve, especially when he practically insisted on being your personal security guard.
You find yourself at the familiar gates of Hawkins’ cemetery and take a deep breath before entering and heading straight to Eddie’s plot. The first thing you spot is Dustin’s bike then his cap peeking out from behind the headstone. You walk towards him, his body sitting up at the sound of footsteps approaching, then you look down to see his battered and bloody face looking up at you with a sorry smile.
“Oh, Dustin,” you sigh, crouching down in front of him and shaking your head slowly from side to side, “what happened here then?”
“Fell off my bike,” he lies.
“Is that right? Because it really looks like you walked into a fist,” you reply, lifting the peak of his cap so you could see his face properly without shadow falling over it.
He shrugs nonchalantly and turns away from your concerned gaze, “maybe.”
“You love to wind those jocks up don’t you?” you hum, now looking at his ripped hellfire t-shirt, “you have got to stop ruining these though, there’s no way I can print anymore right now with us being locked down inside this town. I’ve only got two left!”
Dustin chuckles, “sorry.”
“Come on,” you exhale as you stand and extend your hand out to him, “let’s get out of here.”
“Where are we going?”
“Anywhere but the station.”
Dustin takes your hand and stands, “those two doing your head in still?”
“More than ever.”
“Have you told Steve you love him yet?”
“Excuse me?”
“It’s a very simple question (Y/N),” Dustin smirks, wincing a little as his lip pains him.
You pick his bike up for him and the two of you begin to walk out of the cemetery and towards the road, “but it’s not really a simple answer is it?”
“Why not?”
“It’s the same reason you’re acting distant towards him,” you state, making him look over at you with a slightly shocked expression at him being caught out like that, “fear. Fear of losing someone special all over again.”
“Well maybe it’s time to get over that fear,” he says, nodding towards a car that’s heading your way from behind you.
You turn to see Steve's beamer coming towards you slowly and turn back to Dustin, “nah, you can go first on this one thanks.”
Steve stops the car to get out and immediately heads towards you both, his eyes scanning you first to make sure you were uninjured, then focusing his attention on Dustin and the cuts and bruises that were scattered over his face, “are you okay?” he asks, looking back at you.
“He walked into a fist,” you answer, taking his bike from him and heading towards the beamer to put it in the trunk.
There’s a whispered discussion between the two and you can only imagine that Steve’s reprimanding Dustin for goading the boys at school with his hellfire t-shirt and the stubbornness he holds for honouring Eddie’s memory despite how he’s remembered by certain people. You get into the back of the car as you wait for them to have their back and forth then they get in, each one huffing as they do, and you know the chat didn’t go as planned for either one of them. The drive back to WSQK is unbearable as Dustin and Steve silently seethe at one another in the front, and when the car comes to a stop the two of them rush out as fast as they can to get away from one another. You sit there for a moment, watching them enter the station, then take the opportunity to lay down on the back seat and have a peaceful moment to yourself for a change.
“Eddie,” you whisper, twirling the ring of his you have on your index finger, “a sign that what I'm feeling is okay would be really great right now,” you continue quietly, trying to shirk the responsibility of your inner turmoil to another realm.
All of a sudden the radio in the car turns on, then not even two seconds later it switches off again, and you sit up with a start, looking out of all of the windows to see if someone was messing with you, yet no one could be seen. You lay back down just as Jonathan exits the building looking for you and you hold your breath as you hear him calling your name before he goes back inside in confusion. Your name is called out once more, this time by the familiar voice of Steve, and he soon appears at the window, looking down at you with a confused grin.
“There you are,” he smiles as he opens the door and gets in next to you, lifting your legs up so he can place them back down on his lap before shutting you both in.
“Do you have any electrical issues with this car?” you wonder as you feel Steve’s hands resting on your shins.
“Uh… no? Why?”
“No reason,” you chuckle, shaking your head.
“So… you wanna explain why you’re hiding in my back seat?”
You cross your arms over your face so he can barely see it, “uh, not really.”
“Is it because Jonathan has a huge crush on you and you’re trying to play it cool?”
His thumbs begin to rub small circles on your jeans and you uncross your arms to look up at him, “it’s because Jonathan has a huge crush on me and I don’t feel the same,” you admit as he stills and you feel his fingertips slightly squeeze your legs.
“Oh.”
“Yeah.”
“Well then,” he announces, tapping your shins, “I have a plan.”
You look at him quizzically and he gives you a wink, “what kind of plan?”
“We’ll pretend to date.”
You laugh, almost wanting to cry in all honesty, then rub your temples in faux contemplation, “sure. Why not?”
He gives you a wide grin as he rubs your legs in glee, “excellent! I mean, let’s be honest, it’s not gonna make much difference between us is it? We’re always together.”
“You’re right,” you nod, Steve now opening the door and sliding out from under your legs before offering you his hand, “we are.”
He helps you out of the car then shuts the door and gently backs you into it with his hands placed firmly on your hips as he looks deep into your eyes, and your breath catches in your throat at how intensely he’s staring at you as if looking into your soul. His mouth opens as if to say something but he stops himself from uttering whatever words were there at the last minute, instead opting to lean in and kiss your cheek. The door to the station sounds and you look over Steve’s shoulder to see the back of Jonathan through the glass, then figure he must have known he was standing there all along.
“Did you see him come out?” you question.
“See who?”
“Jonathan!”
“I had no idea anybody was there,” he replies, enchanting you with his hazel eyes once more.
“We’d better… uh… get inside,” you stutter, your whole body having a hot flush under his unwavering gaze.
You slip from his grasp and take a deep breath as you head towards the door, but Steve soon catches up and snakes an arm around your waist. This wasn’t entirely unusual in itself but after the way he just looked at you your head was in a total spin and every slight touch had you yearning for more all of a sudden. This seemed like a great idea a minute ago, but now you weren’t so sure that it was, and you turn suddenly, making Steve bump into you with a light gasp.
“Haven’t we got better things to do right now than this?” you question, knowing there was another crawl coming up.
Steve flounders a little, his eyes avoiding yours as he tries to think of an appropriate answer to your surprisingly difficult question, “well… uh… it doesn’t mean we can’t continue living our lives does it? It isn’t stopping Jonathan from unashamedly flirting with you every damn day is it?”
You raise your eyebrows at his reply and you nod in agreement with him before he steps around you and opens the door to the station for you to enter first. Everyone’s looking busy when you get inside, the concern etched across their faces as they study maps and fuss about with pieces of paper in an important manner, and it brings home the seriousness of what was happening to you all. Steve peels away from you and heads over to Robin as you head down towards the basement, meeting Jonathan at the bottom of them.
“Hey, where did you disappear to?” he wonders.
“I wanted to go find Dustin.”
“Ah, yeah, he's looking a little worse for wear.”
“Hmm,” you hum in agreement, “he will insist on winding up those boys at school!”
“It'd nice though, isn’t it? That Eddie had such an impact on him? Encouraging him to be his weird self no matter what.”
You smile at his kind words for Eddie, “yeah, it is actually. He was a special guy.”
“To you in particular,” he nods, “how are you doing these days?”
“Uh, y’know, good and bad days,” you reply, your fingers fiddling with the zip on your hoodie nervously, “how are you doing after you and Nancy… y’know…” you trail off.
“Oh, yeah, yeah, fine. It wasn’t meant to be, we seem to be better as friends, so yeah it’s all good.”
“Great, I’m so happy for you,” you smile, the conversation now coming to an awkward end, “I’d better-”
“Do you-”
The two of you speak over one another and you’re becoming a little warm as he takes a step forward, “sorry, I was just gonna ask if you wanted to, uh…”
“Hey babe, there you are!” Steve breathes as he hops down the stairs, “come on, I need your help with something.”
He extends his hand towards you and you slip your fingers across his palm to take it then he leads you upstairs to the radio boothe, shutting you both inside the small glass box in view of everyone. You give him a questioning frown as he flicks through some of the records then he begins to lift a few out, placing them in a pile on the table next to him.
“Right,” he sighs once he’s happy with the selection, “choose one.”
He perches on the table and folds his arms as he awaits your decision. You hesitate for a moment but he nods towards the pile of vinyl and you take a few tentative steps towards him, stopping next to his body and carefully studying the records he’d chosen for you to narrow down. He studies you with care, his eyes darting from your face to your delicate touch as you move the covers around in front of you, then they linger on your lips, watching the subtle movements of them as you judge each choice. He can’t help but smile to himself at the tiny tugs on your mouth that signify you like something, or the way you purse your lips when you’re pondering where the record in front of you sits in the list of favourites. In all honesty all he wanted to do was kiss them over and over again, and how he’d avoided doing that earlier was nothing short of a miracle.
You meet his adoring gaze with a confident smile, “right. Got one.”
He looks down to see two in front of you, “technically that’s two.”
“Ah, yes, but you have to guess which one I've actually chosen,” you challenge.
“Hmm, okay…” he hums, standing from his perched position and placing his hands either side of the two records as he looks between them both before lifting his head to eye you and returning back to the covers, “this one,” he nods, tapping the one on the right while nodding his head, “definitely this one.”
“You sure?”
“Absolutely. This is so you.”
“You think?”
“I know!” he laughs, “you can’t catch me out with this (Y/N), I know you too well.”
You try your best to look mad but it’s no use as Steve picks the record up and slips the vinyl out of the cover before placing it carefully on the player and gently lowering the needle onto it, “dance with me,” he says, offering you both hands.
The song has begun by the time you connect and he brings you in tight to his body as the bridge begins, swaying you both from side to side slowly.
And the night goes by so very slow,
Oh, I hope that it won’t end though,
Alone,
‘Til now, I always got by on my own,
I never really cared until I met you,
And now it chills me to the bone,
How do I get you alone?
How do I get you alone?
You don’t know how long I have wanted,
To touch your lips and hold you tight,
You don’t know how long I have waited,
And I was going to tell you tonight…
It felt as though you two were the only people in the world right now as you close your eyes and rest your head against Steve’s shoulder without even really thinking of what you were doing, then you feel Steve leaning his own head down next to yours, the closeness so natural. A banging on the glass rips you both from the moment and it’s only when you’ve come out of your trance that you realise the song had ended already. Robin stands there gesturing to Steve to come out then she looks at you and waves enthusiastically with a wide grin.
“Stay here,” he instructs, his hands squeezing your upper arms before he plants a kiss on your cheek and exits the room.
You're left in a daze and take a seat in the swivel chair the other side of the room then place your elbows on the desk and hold your head in your hands as you try to process everything that had just happened in the last five minutes. You were confused, overwhelmed, and giddy all at once, but you were trying not to read too much into it due to the nature of this pairing being completely made up. What was even happening right now? There was no time to figure that out as Dustin comes in to grab you for the big meeting downstairs and you hang at the back with him as a plan is discussed for finding Holly and using Derek as bait, then you’re tasked with heading to the house to set a trap for the expected Demogorgon.
The sight of Steve with a chainsaw was not one you ever thought you’d see, but as you watch him turn the thing on with one swift pull of the cord you feel your face flushing warm once more and have to avert your gaze as he looks directly at you. Things after that happen so quickly that it seems like mere minutes before you’re bundled into a car with Steve, Dustin and Jonathan chasing down the now tracked monster as it makes its way through Hawkins to the giant silo by WSQK.
“Floor it,” you find yourself saying as he meets your line of sight in the rearview mirror.
There’s panic as you enter the upside down one more time and everyone’s talking over one another as you try and shout for Steve to slow down being as the visibility in this place was zero, but it all comes to a dramatic end when a wall appears from nowhere and the beamer hits it head on. The four of you exit the vehicle, you holding your head purely from shock more than anything else, and Jonathan’s soon at your side checking you’re okay as Steve follows from the other side of the car.
“(Y/N),” he worries, wrapping his hands around your wrists and bringing them down from your head, “are you hurt?”
You shake your head as Steve lightly pushes Jonathan out of the way, “hey, I've got this.”
“Why do you always get in the way?” he retorts.
“I’m not the one in the way.”
“What do you mean?” Jonathan frowns.
Steve sighs, then gestures between you and him, “we’re together,” he states cooly.
Jonathan’s mouth opens in shock and he takes a step back, “I… I didn’t realise.”
“Yeah, well, we were keeping things quiet until all this resolved,” Steve explains.
Dustin looks at you with wide eyes, “so you did tell him!”
“Shut up,” you hiss.
“Tell who what?” Steve asks, spinning on his feet to face Dustin.
“That she’s got feelings for you.”
“Wait, what?” Steve turns to you and you immediately look away from him.
Dustin’s brow furrows in confusion at Steve’s question, and the four of you are looking between one another trying to figure out what the hell was going on right now.
“Anyway,” you shout, breaking the tension, “now is not the time for this shit. Where’s the walkie?”
Dustin retrieves it from the car and hands it over then you manage to contact Hopper and Eleven who are also stuck in this hellscape and arrange a plan to meet and get out as quickly as possible. You head up the group as you walk in the direction of the church and Dustin jogs up to you to clear up what was going on.
“Care to explain yourself?” he asks as if he were a parent reprimanding their child.
“Not really, no.”
“Why did Steve look so confused when I said that?”
“I said I didn’t want to explain.”
He stops, grabbing your arm and halting you too, “(Y/N), I’m serious, tell me.”
You look to the side to see Steve and Jonathan catching up then begin to walk with Dustin a little bit quicker, “fine,” you whisper, “Jonathan’s been making advances towards me and to put him off Steve suggested we pretend to date. Like the fool I am I agreed to it and now you’ve just told him I have very real feelings for him and I look like a complete dick.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah.”
“So that was pretending earlier when you were in the radio boothe?”
“Yes.”
“As if,” he scoffs.
“It was.”
“You're not fooling me.”
“Seriously, Dustin, it was.”
“Seriously, (Y/N), it was not,” he insists, “don’t tell me you weren’t listening to the song he got you to pick.”
“Of course I was.”
“So what are you not understanding here? Remember how Eddie used to play you a song that said what he was too shy to say? Think on that,” he shakes his head from side to side in disbelief as he carries on ahead while you slow down a little, repeating the lyrics over in your mind and mouthing them as you do. He may have been a stubborn little shit sometimes but Dustin surprised you every now and again with how he could read people so well, and if he was right about this then maybe there was a chance Steve could feel the same.
You keep back once you’re all inside the church as Dustin does his thing and figures out how the wall you’d crashed in to links to where you are and what’s going on then it’s decided that the lab is the next point of interest so you let the guys lead as you follow from behind quietly, pretending that none of this was happening. You hated being in this place at the best of times let alone when you’d been called out in front of everyone for having feelings for Steve, and you wish you weren’t so scared to peel away from the group and find your own way out of there. As if he knew what you were thinking Steve slows his walking pace down so that you naturally catch up to him and the two of you continue the walk side by side silently. After a few moments of nothing, Steve turns to you with a smile, stopping you in your tracks and he takes one of your hands in his. A gunshot rings out just as his mouth opens and he’s quick to pull you along beside him as the four of you begin running towards the lab that’s now within sight.
“Everyone okay?” Steve asks once you’re all inside.
Dustin and Jonathan nod and affirm that they’re fine, but once you stop moving you’re overcome by a pain in your side and you put your hand against your body, thinking it was merely a stitch from having to break into a run so suddenly, “yeah, fine,” you pant, “just got a… uh…” you trail off when you take your hand away to see blood then you lean back against the wall as the real pain begins now the adrenaline starts to wear off.
“(Y/N)!” the three men exclaim at the exact same time, all of them rushing towards you at once.
“Oh shit,” you exhale, “shit. I don’t wanna die here,” you panic, looking to Steve, “don’t let me die here.”
“You’re not dying anywhere,” he assures, “we’re not gonna let that happen okay?”
“Mhmm,” you hum.
“Let’s get her sat down somewhere so I can see the wound, I’ve fixed up Will enough times,” Jonathan offers.
Steve helps you into one of the rooms nearby where they find a chair for you as Dustin keeps a look out outside in case anyone has followed. You lift your hoodie and t-shirt to show the area and Jonathan quickly assesses that the bullet has gone in and out neatly just above your hip.
“We need something to help stop the bleeding,” he announces, looking around the room, “there’s got to be a first aid kit somewhere, right?”
“I don’t know man,” Steve replies, his gaze firmly fixed on you as the colour drains from your face.
Jonathan scuttles out of the room in search of something to wrap around your abdomen as Steve stays by your side, holding onto your hand with a vice like grip. He tucks your hair behind your ear and you give him a weak smile as the blood continues to leak out of your wound, and the pain is only intensifying with each minute that passes.
“Talk to me,” Steve whispers, “(Y/N), talk to me.”
“About what?” you wince.
“Anything.”
“Dustin was right,” you mumble, feeling weaker, “he’s so annoying when he’s right. I’ve been stupid.”
“You? Stupid? Never,” Steve smiles.
“I’ve been scared. Terrified. But this could be one of the last things I say so fuck it,” you take a deep breath as Steve now places his other hand on your lap and looks at your face intently even though your gaze is turned down in exhaustion, “I like you a lot, more than a friend, it’s fine if you don’t feel the same but I’ve been so scared of saying anything because the last time I was close to anyone was Eddie, and we all know how that ended. I can’t handle that happening again, but this time it might me doing the dying so-”
“Would you shut up about dying?!” Steve scolds angrily, “you’re not going to die because I’m not gonna let that happen okay? I can’t let that happen because I need you here with me, I need you (Y/N). I’ve completely and utterly fallen for you. When I think of my future you’re there right by my side.”
“I don’t know if it’s what you just said, or maybe the blood loss, but I feel like I’m going to faint,” you half smile as Steve feels your body relaxing.
“Maybe it’s both?” he suggests, getting you to chuckle just before your eyes close, “oh, okay okay, I’ve got you.”
He stands so he can support your upper body that was now slumped to one side in the chair and sits you up as best he can as your head rests on his stomach. Jonathan thankfully runs back into the room with a couple of rolls of bandages but halts as he sees you’re now unconscious.
“Shit!” he panics, “help me roll her top up so I can put these around her.”
Steve huffs a little as he carefully rolls your top garments up so Jonathan can reach all the way around your middle, and Jonathan rolls his eyes at him, “I honestly didn’t know you were together,” he says as he hugs your waist to pass the bandage around, “I didn't mean to over step.”
“It’s fine,” Steve says, shaking his head, “don’t worry about it. We didn’t want to make a thing of it what with everything that’s going on y’know?”
“It’s good to know that she’s found someone after Eddie,” Jonathan admits, “she deserves to be happy. Okay, I’m not thrilled that it’s you, but what can you do, huh?” he jokes.
“Thanks I guess,” he smirks.
“Guys we need to move,” Dustin announces, “oh jeez, is (Y/N) okay?”
Steve gallantly carries you around the lab as everything plays out, and you slip in and out of consciousness throughout, sometimes fighting the feeling of passing out and sometimes having to give in straight away as the pain echoes through your body each time you wake. The guys can’t stand to hear your pained groans when you are awake and Dustin especially has quite the reaction to seeing you like this; Eddie’s demise at the forefront of his mind the whole time. You’re semi awake during an argument between Steve and Dustin and you try to reach out for them during the fight but fail to move your arm enough from your propped up position against the wall.
“I can’t lose you,” Dustin cries, finally giving into his emotions, “I can’t lose another friend. I’ve lost Eddie, I’ve almost lost (Y/N), I can’t lose you too Steve.”
Your eyes shut once more in relief that Dustin has admitted the truth too, and when you wake next you’re in the familiar surroundings of WSQK, not a trace of the upside down around you thankfully. You go to roll over but call out in pain as your body moves, and all of a sudden Steve appears above you, his brow furrowed in concern as he holds out a bottle of water and some painkillers.
“Can you help me sit up?” you ask, knowing you couldn’t do it by yourself.
He takes your hands and pulls you up as you grit your teeth through the pain, then looks away as he notices tears falling down your cheeks quietly. You sip the water and take the tablets then lift your top to see the blood soaked bandages around your waist.
“Have we got any more?” you question as Steve looks over and sees the worrying amount of red seeping through the white fabric.
Steve rushes out of the room without saying a word then returns moments later with fresh dressings. He takes your hoodie off then lifts your top to take off the used bandage, clean the wound and replace with a new set, but as you try and catch his eye during this time he avoids your gaze, and disappears once you’ve settled back onto the couch. You’re a little confused by the way he was acting considering the conversation you’d had before you passed out, but you close your eyes and drift off as the painkillers begin to get to work. It’s a little over an hour later that you wake up thinking you were back at Steve’s, so you roll to the side but end up falling off the edge of the sofa onto the floor with a thud and a loud groan.
“(Y/N)?!” Steve panics as he bursts through the door to see you face down on the floor, trying to lift yourself up, “what happened?”
“I thought I was at yours in bed,” you grimace, sitting yourself up against the couch, “I am evidently not.”
Steve sits down next to you with a light sigh, “how are you feeling?”
“Emotionally, physically, or mentally?”
“Physically.”
“Well I don’t think I could run a marathon, let’s put it that way.”
Steve smiles, but you notice it doesn’t reach his eyes, “listen, we’ve got to do something tonight. You’ve got to stay here-”
“I’m not staying here.”
“(Y/N), you’ve got to,” he sighs, “it’s too dangerous, there's no way you can-”
“I’m coming with you.”
You do regret those determined words when you’re trying to catch your breath and pretend you’re not in extreme pain once you get to the top of the radio tower, and you have to lean on the side to try and recover while everyone else stares at the impending sky that hits the tower very unceremoniously, making every one of you wobble. Just as you begin to breathe normally once more the rail you’re leaning on gives way and you tumble from the edge of the tower, just barely gripping onto the ledge with your fingertips as pain explodes in your side and you involuntarily scream. The tips of your fingers begin to slip off the edge one by one and you close your eyes as you brace yourself for the fall, but as the last one gives up a strong hand suddenly grabs your wrist to stop you from a grisly end.
“I’ve got you,” Steve exhales, “I’ve got you.”
He pulls you up and Dustin rushes towards you, hugging both you and Steve at the same time, “would you please stop doing that?!” he screeches looking at you.
“Sorry,” you mumble, dropping to your knees to hug yourself as the pain from your wound takes over, “I won’t do it again.”
Steve kneels by your side, “I second what he said,” he whispers, his nose in your hair, “we can go back, we don’t have to carry on.”
“Yes we do,” you mutter, “we have to.”
He helps you to your feet and pulls you into a tight embrace as the others begin to climb up into the world above, “thank you for saving me… again,” you say into his coat.
“Just don’t make me do it again please, my heart can’t take it,” he replies.
“I won’t, I promise.”
It’s the biggest relief, especially for Steve, when the mind flayer has been defeated and vecna has met his end thanks to Joyce. You chuckle to yourself as you see Derek attach himself to Steve, then the girl you’ve just freed takes your hand in thanks, squeezing it tightly before reuniting with her friends. It’s surreal as you take a seat and look around inside the monster knowing that everything was now over; no one else could be taken from you in the way that Eddie was ever again, and an overwhelming sense of relief hits you. Steve appears in front of you with his arms out and you gladly stand and fall into them.
“It’s over,” he sighs happily.
You lean away from one another and Steve’s eyes dart from your eyes to your lips then back again, and he slowly tilts his head down towards yours as his tongue darts across his dry lips before planting them on yours. Your body presses against his as you respond to the kiss in earnest and you can feel him smile into it before you both reluctantly part.
A/N: Loosely based on the song. Mostly pointless Steve fluff... again.
“Oh my gosh, Steve you’re so amazing,” Billy teases, flicking his hair back as if to imitate you, “Steve, you’re so manly.”
“Stop it,” you laugh, giving him a playful shove as you try and direct him away from Scoops, “keep your voice down!”
“Oh, Steve! You’re just so funny and handsome!” he continues, making sure he was loud enough for Steve to hear.
“Stop!” you repeat, forcing a half hearted chuckle to make it appear as if he were amusing you, “come on, let’s get out of here.”
“Am I embarrassing you in front of your boyfriend?” he asks with a smirk as you turn back to face him.
You briefly look over Billy’s shoulder to see Steve watching you carefully, then quickly return your gaze to Billy before he notices, “as a matter of fact, yes, yes you are,” you reply confidently, “so can we please go home before my boyfriend gets jealous?”
He relents now that you’re playing along and pulls you into a hug, but all you can do is look at Steve from Billy’s shoulder and give him a small wave from behind his back. Billy’s grip on you is firm but he can feel that yours isn’t as tight as usual as you continue to look to Steve who willingly meets your stare with longing eyes. He wants to look away as you grip onto your boyfriend but doesn’t want to break the moment between you, always desperate to know that how he feels isn’t entirely one sided. Eventually you look away from Steve as you slip your arms from your lover, and muster up a smile as Billy now studies your face.
“You okay baby?” he asks, gently placing a thumb on your chin as his forefinger curls underneath it so he can tilt your head slightly and watch your expression.
“All good,” you reply, “just tired after work.”
“Of course,” he grins, happy at your answer and seeing no lie upon your face, “we’ll go grab some dinner and get home.”
You give Steve a more obvious wave as you say goodbye for the day, then he watches as Billy slings his arm around your shoulders, almost toppling you off of your feet as he pulls you against his side vigorously. Steve notices you don’t offer an arm back and hopes you keep it for him instead when you return to Scoops in the morning. There was some undeniable connection between the both of you but Billy was a road block on an otherwise straight forward stretch that would take you both to the bright horizon ahead, and there wasn’t a lot that could be done about it right now, so the stolen moments and longing glances were treasured.
“What are we getting?” you ask, trying to lean away from Billy so you could walk properly.
He’s distracted as he nods and smiles to another woman, then turns back to you, “huh? Oh, we can get whatever you fancy sweetheart.”
“Hmm, how about Chinese then?”
“Perfect,” he grins.
“Earth to Steve,” Dustin says, waving his hand in front of the day dreaming sailor.
“Ahoy,” he replies in a monotone voice with a roll of his eyes.
Dustin follows where Steve’s stare had been a moment ago and spots you and Billy walking into Imperial Panda across the mall, “ah. I see.”
“You see what?”
“Oh, nothing, nothing at all.”
“Spit it out Dustin.”
“Let me say one thing; if Billy finds out you’re in big trouble.”
Steve shakes his head from side to side, “if Billy finds out we both are,” he corrects.
Dustin gasps, placing his hand over his mouth and muttering through it, “she’s cheating on-”
“No!” Steve interrupts, “no! Nothing like that… it’s a… mutual feeling kind of thing.”
“Steve,” Dustin warns, his hands now braced on the counter, “be careful.”
He waves his hand dismissively at his friend’s cautionary words but knows that he’s speaking the truth, the two of you had to tread very carefully around Billy despite the fact that nothing had physically happened between you both yet. Steve remembers the first time he knew that his feelings towards you could possibly be mutual like it was yesterday, and he clings to the heady rush of that realisation like a precious gem.
It was a particularly busy day at Scoops; the weekend plus the first signs that spring was on the way meant that everyone suddenly had a taste for ice cream despite the temperature not being as warm as it could have been, and the sun had caused an influx of people at Starcourt. Nobody could quite remember what their go to flavour was either being as it had been so long since the weather had been like this, so almost every single customer was taste testing, which meant you and Steve were picking out sample spoons like it was your full time job.
“How about the peanut butter?”
“Any allergies?” you reply.
“Nope.”
You dive into the sample pot for a spoon just as Steve does and your hands brush against each other as you grab one each, then exchange a nervous smile before returning your attention to the customers in front of you. This continued to happen for most of the morning, your hands finding one another’s in the small tub that housed the throw away cutlery, until eventually the queue finally stopped and you could both breathe a sigh of relief.
“Well that was a mad morning,” you exhale, turning to Steve.
“Pretty crazy,” he nods in agreement.
You study his face, narrowing your eyes at him as you try to guess his ice cream of choice, “let me see…” you trail off, scanning the counter then looking back to him as he stands there in a slightly confused state, “hmm… I think… mint chocolate chip.”
You take spoon and dip it in then offer it to him with an expectant smile. He hesitates at first as he tries not to give himself away too soon but can’t resist the lure of his favourite flavour and soon puts it in his mouth with a nod, “am I that predictable?” he asks, removing the tiny spoon and dripping a small amount of ice cream on his chin.
“You are,” you nod, wiping the droplet with your thumb and licking the remnant off, “plus it’s my favourite too, so it at least wouldn’t have gone to waste if you didn’t like it,” you shrug.
He can’t say a word as he looks from your thumb to your lips then back again, and processes what had just happened. He’s still standing there completely dumbfounded when your actions hit you.
“Oh jeez, I’m sorry, that was weird. Was that weird? I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have… I didn’t mean to… I’m such an idiot,” you babble apologetically.
“What? No, you’re fine, you’re fine, honestly,” Steve chuckles as a blush creeps up his cheeks.
“I’ve just got to… uh…” you trail off as you point to the back and soon disappear behind the door.
Steve follows but stops as he reaches out for the handle, then he hears you scolding yourself quietly.
“May as well have fucking jumped on him,” you sigh, barely above a whisper, “what the fuck? You’re with Billy, you need to stop thinking about Steve fucking Harrington. Be cool. Be cool. Be. Cool.”
“Hey, where did you go?” Dustin frowns.
“Huh?”
“You just zoned out for like five straight minutes.”
“Whatever. Haven’t you got somewhere to be?”
“Nope, not really. I can sit here until you close if I so choose,” Dustin grins.
Steve rolls his eyes and he knows he’s in for a rough couple of hours. The teasing was relentless as Dustin reminded him that Billy was not someone to mess with and Steve is glad when he can shut up shop and send him on his way.
As he lays in bed that night his mind naturally wanders to you; the stolen glances, the brief touches, the lingering scent of your perfume that sent his head spinning whenever he inhaled the air around you. There was absolutely no denying there was something between the two of you, even if it was a forbidden spark that couldn’t be ignited until Billy was out of the picture.
“Morning!” you sing as you approach Steve while he unlocks the door to Scoops.
“Someone’s in a good mood,” he remarks, opening the door for you to enter first
“Why wouldn’t I be?”
“We’re at work!”
“But I work with you…” you reply shyly, your voice quieting on the last two words.
Steve grins widely at your answer but can’t think of what to say back so his hand rubs the back of his neck nervously as you walk off into the store, mortified that you’d admitted what you had so early on in the day. You manage to avoid conversing with Steve for the first few hours of your shift and just as he’s making his way over to where you’re cleaning a table, Billy swoops in and blows his chance of speaking to you out of the water. He wraps his arms around your waist and for a split second you think that it’s Steve’s arms until they tighten and you smell the familiar whiff of cigarette smoke in your nostrils.
“S- Billy,” you correct yourself quickly, placing a hand on his forearm as you continue to wipe the table with the other.
“Harrington, can I steal my girl?” he shouts back at Steve as you turn your head to him as well and shake it from side to side.
“Uh, actually, we’ve got some admin to do right now,” Steve replies, trying to sound as official as possible.
Billy frowns and audibly huffs in annoyance as he lets you go so you can spin around to face him, “sorry,” you pout, “admin calls.”
His smokey breath wafts over your mouth as he grabs onto your jaw and grins, knowing that Steve would be unable to look away as he kissed you hungrily. Once he releases you he disappears out of the door and you’re left pissed off at his actions as you get back to wiping the table, this time with a renewed vigour. Steve watches as you almost wipe the coating of the table off as your arm swipes up and down on it angrily then decides to approach with caution to make sure you’re not actually damaging the furniture.
“Hey.”
You pause but decide not to look up at him yet, “hey.”
“You done assaulting that table?”
A laugh escapes your mouth as you tilt your head down, “yeah, I think I’m done.”
“Wanna go do that admin?”
You nod and Steve goes to the door to turn the sign around to closed as you straighten yourself up and push away from the table, then you follow him into the back where you sit opposite one another at the small break table. Steve eyes your face as you sit there with your gaze turned down towards the floor, thinking of Billy and what had gone on between you both recently. He sits in silence, waiting for you to make the first move with the conversation, as he didn’t want to force you into talking about something you’d rather not, but the silence is deafening.
“Drink?” he offers after a few minutes.
You’re brought back to the room by Steve’s voice and look directly into his hazel eyes, “he’s seeing someone else,” you reply, needing to get this information off your chest.
Steve raises his eyebrows in shock, how could anyone do this to you of all people? You were the perfect partner in his eyes, and Billy must be crazy to even look in someone else’s direction, let alone do anything about it, “I’m sorry to hear that,” he lies, reaching across the table for your hands and giving them a comforting squeeze. He then takes a sharp breath in and lets out a short chuckle as his head falls forward so he’s looking down at the table, “actually… I’m not,” he admits before lifting his head to look directly at you, “I’m not sorry because you deserve so much better.”
You look down at your hands and slot your fingers between his before meeting his gaze once more, “Steve, I-”
“Look, I don’t expect you to break up with him and fall into my arms or anything, and I don’t wanna talk down about him, but I’d never look at anyone else if you were mine. In fact, I haven’t since I’ve known you because you’ve just completely bewitched me.”
Fall into his arms? You wanted to throw yourself across the table at him after he’d said all that, and you have to slip your hands away from his for fear of placing them on your body. Even Billy had never managed to make you feel like this, like you were the only person in the world, and it almost made you feel faint that someone could think of you in such a way.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t-”
“No, it’s fine, I just-”
“I didn’t mean to offend you or-”
“Steve, shut up,” you sigh, “shut up or I’m going to kiss you.”
“That’s not as much of a threat as you think it is y’know,” he smirks.
You stand suddenly and he mirrors your action so that you’re now facing one another with nothing between your bodies apart from the tension in the air, and you have to turn to the counter next to you to make sure you didn’t do anything silly. Your plan is left in tatters as Steve boldly steps towards you, his chest bumping against your arm before coming to a stop millimetres away.
“I don’t want to make you do anything-” you cut him off as you kiss his lips and his arms immediately wrap around your body now you’re turned towards him then he lifts you up onto the counter, your legs wrapping around his waist automatically as his hands grip onto your clothing tightly. His kiss is so different to Billy’s, his lips so much softer, and the hunger more passionate than possessive. You involuntarily moan into Steve’s mouth as your legs tighten around his hips and he responds back by pulling your body to the edge of the worktop for maximum contact between you both.
“I’ve wanted this for so long,” Steve mumbles against your skin as his kisses travel down your neck, “I want all of you, always.”
There’s a banging on the door out front and the two of you jump away from one another with a synced gasp. Steve straightens up his uniform before walking out into the store as you stay sat on the counter in shock at what had just happened, and you fan yourself with your hands, knowing how flushed your cheeks would be. You can hear words being exchanged outside so give a few seconds before facing whoever it was there, and are pleasantly surprised when you spot Dustin, although he doesn’t see you.
“Does (Y/N) know Billy’s out here with another girl?” he questions as you come up behind Steve.
Steve opens his mouth but you reply instead, much to the shock of both guys, “yeah, she does. Is he in the mall with her?”
Dustin’s mouth turns downwards apologetically, “yeah, they were down by the shoe shop like a minute ago.”
“I’ll be right back,” you state, slipping past the two of them and making your way downstairs.
“Is she gonna be okay?” Dustin asks.
“She’ll be fine, we’ll wait here though,” Steve nods, leaning against the door frame.
“Are you okay? You look pretty red in the face. Why was Scoops shut?”
“What’s with all the questions man?” Steve frowns defensively.
Dustin holds his hands up, “jeez, I was just trying to make conversation.”
Steve rolls his eyes and folds his arms then a few moments later there’s raised voices heading in their direction and Dustin pokes his head out from the door to see Billy rushing up to the store with you chasing after him.
“Billy! Stop!” you call out, having to break into a jog to try and reach him, “stop!”
“Nah, I knew something was going on between the both of you,” he seethes, spotting Steve as he comes to a stop right outside.
“Oh, like there’s nothing going on between you and her? I’ve known about you two for ages!”
Billy turns to you, puffing his chest out and purposely bumping against you, making you step back, “is that when you started fucking?” he asks, his eyes wild with rage.
“Nothing’s happened.”
“Sure,” he scoffs, turning his attention to Steve, “got something to say pretty boy?”
“Yeah actually, leave her alone.”
“Aww, what are you gonna do about it if I don’t?” he retorts, grabbing your wrist harshly and lifting your arm up to pull you towards him as you fight against his grip.
“Billy, get off of me.”
“Let’s see what your little boyfriend does about it. How badly do you want her, huh?”
Steve takes a couple of confident steps towards Billy and punches him on the nose, then Billy lets go of your wrist and strikes back with an almighty blow to Steve’s cheek that sends him flying onto the floor. You insert yourself between them just as Billy raises his fist once more then you surprise him with a slap to the face that completely startles him.
“Did you just-?” he laughs.
You narrow your eyes at him, almost daring him to do something to you and he backs away in defeat, “if that’s what you want.”
He turns and leaves as you stand there rooted to the spot acting as a barrier to protect Steve, then once he’s out of sight you turn to see Dustin helping Steve up and to a table in Scoops where he gives him a napkin to dab the blood from his lip.
“I’m so sorry,” you apologise as you rush to Steve’s side, “I didn’t think he’d want to make a scene like that.”
“It’s not your fault,” Steve mumbles through the tissue held up to his face, “I think we’re good here Dustin.”
He looks between the both of you and nods slowly, “right, of course. I’ll leave you in the very capable hands of (Y/N).”
He disappears just as a customer comes in and you do what you’re actually paid for and serve them while Steve sits trying to look more macho than sorry for himself, but it’s not quite working out. His eyes follow you around the store as more paying customers enter and every now and again you catch him looking at you with a smile dancing on his lips. The one thing that’s slightly dulling the pain of his mouth is the thought of you kissing earlier; his fingers twitch as they remember the feel of your body beneath them and he sits upright with a start when his mind wanders to how it felt having your legs wrapped around his waist.
“How are you doing?” you ask, making him jump after being so lost in his thoughts.
“Fine, yeah, good.”
“Want me to take you home and look after you?”
Steve looks at you, his lips slightly parted as he goes to answer but can’t find the words to say, “uh… could you repeat the question please?” he eventually asks, swallowing hard.
You sit down next to him on the bench and turn towards him, “would you like me to take you home and look after you?” you repeat in a whisper.
“Uh-huh,” he nods.
“You trust me driving the beamer?”
“Uh-huh.”
You raise an eyebrow at his response, “you’re thinking about all the ways you want me to look after you aren’t you?”
His eyes widen, realising he wasn’t hiding his feelings as well as he thought he was and worries that Billy might have hit him harder than he first thought, “maybe.”
love love looove that your writing again!! I remember before you used to show photos of your hamsters as well, do you still have any? 🐹
Thank you dear anon ❤️
Aww, yes, my little hamsters! So the last one I had was Luna who passed in July 2023. She came to my new home with me and used to pitter patter around the living room when it was mostly empty! I do have a rescue cat now that I adopted in September 2023 called Freddie (surprise surprise 😂)
Your fingers twitch as you slowly become conscious again, the warmth beneath your fingertips comforting as you slowly blink awake into the light. Your face is already flushed hot and you lift your head from the pillow slightly to breathe some cooler air before sliding your hand off of Steve’s bare chest so you can turn and move the covers off of your naked body. Steve groans as you shuffle out of the bed so you replace the duvet carefully and he settles quickly. You pick your clothes up off of the floor, tip toeing around the room quietly as you gather them under your arm, then you stand up and take in the sight before you.
“Are you cold?” Steve whispers, stretching his arm out and around your shoulders.
“A bit,” you reply quietly, noticing how he hadn’t even let you answer before tucking you into his side for warmth.
“Better?” he asks after a minute or so.
“Much,” you nod, your head now at rest on his shoulder.
Your calm exterior was cracking with each excited beat of your heart echoing from your chest and you were sure Steve could feel how much it was racing too. His hand drifts slowly down from your shoulder to just above the bend of your elbow where he pushes your upper body against him even more.
You lift your face to look up at the under side of his jaw with a slight frown, “are you okay?” you ask.
He turns his head and his eyes meet yours, “I’m…” he cuts himself off as his lips land on yours, giving you a quick kiss before retreating, “sorry, I…”
You lean up to press your lips to his, letting him know there was nothing to be sorry for, and he soon pulls you up onto his lap, your legs either side of his as he places his hands on your backside and presses your hips into his. Steve moans as you begin to roll back and forth over his crotch and your hand weave into his hair as your tongues swirl around one another hungrily. His hands move up and under your t-shirt, unhooking your bra with a practised ease so he can massage your chest, teasing your nipples between his thumb and forefinger.
“Oh, Steve,” you pant as his kisses travel down to your neck.
“Bedroom,” he breathes onto your skin, “now.”
You clamber off of him and he practically jumps up from the couch, wasting no time in taking your hand and pulling you upstairs to his bedroom. You’re quick to discard the clothing from your top half but as you go to undo your jeans Steve’s hands land on yours.
“Let me,” he whispers, every part of your body shivering with anticipation at his words.
He turns you around so you’re standing next to the bed then drops to his knees and carefully undoes the button and fly of your jeans before pulling the fabric down so slowly it almost made you pout until you looked down at Steve’s hazel eyes that were fixed on yours with his mouth slightly agape. His fingers gently guide one ankle up and out of your jeans and underwear, then the other, and you can feel your core tingling as he guides you to sit on the edge of the bed then spreads your legs wide open.
“Steve,” you gasp as his head moves to in between your thighs.
One of his hands moves up your stomach to your chest where he gives you a slight push, and you instantly lay down, allowing him better access. The feel of his tongue lapping at your folds has your body writhing in pleasure on his bed, gasps of ecstasy escaping your mouth as you try to keep as quiet as possible, but eventually your walls tighten and release with an almighty call of his name. Steve moves up your body, his mouth glistening, his lips red, and you pull him down to you, hungry for his kiss and a taste of yourself from him. The two of you shuffle around to try and get on the bed properly, and it’s only when you’re now sat astride him once more that you realise he’d already discarded the rest of his clothes and had already prepared for what was to come.
“You’re so beautiful,” he says in awe as he looks up at you with admiration, “I just love you so much.”
You blush and smile shyly before lowering yourself over him, but even through the throes of passion you analyse his words as they go over and over in your mind. Did he mean that? Did he think you were beautiful? Did he really love you, or was it just his dick doing the talking? You’re suddenly quite confused, but your mind goes completely blank once you’re reaching your climax for the second time that night.
Steve turns over, his arm expecting a warm body to be next to him, specifically your warm body, but all he finds are cold sheets. He’d woken a couple of hours before to see you sleeping peacefully on his chest, and he’d held his breath for fear of disturbing you. It was a sight he’d longed for so long, he wished he’d stayed awake even just a minute longer to soak it all in.
“(Y/N)?” he calls out, hoping you were simply in the bathroom.
He rises from the bed, rubbing his hands over his face and through his hair as the memories of the night before come flooding back. He was head over heels for you but he had no idea what was going on in your mind, and all he wanted to know was if you felt the same. Steve begrudgingly gets ready for work and arrives suitably late to the usual eye roll from Robin.
“Who was it this time?” she asks, “Kathy? Lynne?”
“No.”
“Oh? A new one huh?”
“No.”
“Now let me see… Who could-”
“Robin, don’t,” Steve warns, Robin’s face falling at his serious expression.
“But wait, when did you even have time if you were seeing (Y/N) last ni-” she stops as her thoughts finally catch up to her words, “OH! Shit! It was (Y/N)!”
Steve’s head has dropped but he manages to lift it just enough to look Robin dead in the eyes and shake his head from side to side, “don’t.”
“But this is end game, she’s the one, right?”
“Just-”
“And she’s about to walk in.”
“What?!” Steve gasps, turning to see you crossing the road with Eddie and Dustin, “shit.”
“Isn’t this good?” Robin asks as Steve panics, walking back and forth as he wonders what position to be in when you enter.
“No!”
“Why?” she frowns.
“She was gone by the time I woke up properly,” he whispers as he passes her, striding over to the opposite side of the store and fiddling with some videos on the shelf.
“Well if it isn’t the local dungeon master himself,” Robin smiles as the three of you enter.
You all greet Robin as Steve hangs back, but Dustin soon drags him from the depths of the store to the front counter where you’re all congregated. A brief smile is exchanged between the two of you before you wander off around the aisles as the guys talk amongst themselves, and Robin is soon at your side with a suspiciously warm grin on her face.
“Did you have fun last night?” she asks, “the movie I mean.”
“Yes… Yeah, it was nice.”
“Nice?”
“Yep. Nice.”
“Just… nice?”
“It’s no Back to the Future,” you chuckle.
“Oh! Right, yeah, of course not.”
“Did anything else of note happen at all?” she probes.
You pause for a moment, knowing what she was after, “not that I can think of.”
“Oh,” she says, taken aback by your answer, “right.”
“Hey, Robin, Eddie needs you to find something for him,” Steve calls out from the counter.
She strolls off as Steve now makes his way towards you nervously, but you continue to look at the shelves of video tapes searching for your next watch. Steve hovers nearby, his courage waning the closer he got to you, but you end up almost walking into him as you turn the corner anyway which breaks the tension quickly.
“Oh hey,” you smile.
“You okay?” he asks.
“Yeah, good. And you?”
“Yes, yeah. Are we… good? Like, after last night?”
“Why wouldn’t we be?” you pick a VHS off the shelf to read the back as you await his answer.
“No reason,” he shrugs, realising you didn’t feel the same as he did in the slightest, “no reason at all.”
He walks away slowly while you continue to browse the shelves, his face crestfallen as he thinks about the words he’d let slip the night before. Robin watches as Steve goes straight into the back room and she quickly instructs Eddie to watch the counter as she goes to see what the problem is, finding him with his head in his hands as he sits at the small break table.
“What’s wrong?”
He looks up with a confused frown, “it’s like it never happened. I don’t get it, I bared everything to her last night, everything… and it’s like we’ve never met before.”
“Shit, Steve, I’m sorry,” Robin sighs, taking a seat next to him.
“How can we go back to friends after this?” he questions, running frustrated hands through his hair, “I don’t get it.”
Robin gives a sad shrug, “maybe you don’t,” she suggests.
A/N: Slight mentions of getting beat up by Russians, but do you really work at Scoops if that doesn't happen?
“Harrington,” Billy sighs with contempt.
“Yeah, it’s me, don’t cream your pants,” Steve replies with his hands on his hips.
You look between the two men; one in a sailor hat, matching top and white shorts, and the other in tight jeans, a leather jacket, and a shirt that left very little to the imagination with how many buttons were undone on it.
Billy turns his attention to you, “I didn’t realise it was this Steve you were working with.”
“How many other people named Steve do I know?” you chuckle with a raised eyebrow, making him narrow his eyes at you for showing him up like this, “sorry,” you mutter, looking away from his intense gaze.
Steve frowns as he turns to look at you, wondering why you were saying sorry for asking a simple question.
“I’ll pick you up later,” Billy smiles, placing two fingers under your chin and lifting your head so he could kiss your lips, “have a good day.”
“You too,” you reply, smiling as he backs away slowly before turning around and walking out of Scoops.
“Too early for a sample?” you wonder, walking behind the counter as Steve stands there in slight confusion still.
“Why are you with that meathead?” he asks, bracing himself the other side of the counter.
You laugh as you pop one of the disposable spoons in your mouth with a small amount of vanilla ice cream on it, “if I had a dollar for every time I’ve been asked that…” you trail off.
“You’d be a millionaire?”
“Not quite, but I’d definitely have a decent savings pot.”
He scoffs at your comment, rolling his eyes and pushing himself back to standing upright, then he wanders over to the door and takes a look out into the mall, seeing Billy walking along on the floor below. Steve watches carefully as woman with blonde hair walks towards him and he turns to check her out as she passes him, he then smiles at her when she also takes a look over her shoulder and Steve can’t believe his eyes.
“What’s happening?” you ask, now right beside him.
“What?” he jumps, quickly blocking your view, “nothing. Nothing at all.”
You frown as he ushers you back towards the counter, “so where did we get up to with the Russian stuff?”
You knew Billy well, too well, and you knew how much of a flirt he was with other women, particularly older women, so you wouldn’t have been half as surprised as Steve was if you’d have witnessed that interaction. You had your suspicions that he’d cheated before a couple of times but he’d never admitted such acts, so you took him at his word despite the small voice in the back of your head warning you otherwise. The problem was that he could be so loving when he wanted to be, and you’d seen him at his most vulnerable, so there was a true emotional bond between the two of you even though you’d felt more of a distance forming since moving to Hawkins.
Steve fumbles around underneath the counter to find the board you’d been using to decode the Russian message you heard then as he places it down on the counter you ask him a direct question; “did you see him checking out some girl?”
“What?!” he scoffs, “of course not.”
“I do know.”
“Know what?” Steve questions, avoiding eye contact.
“That Billy has a wandering eye.”
Steve sighs, finally meeting your gaze.
“I know, I know,” you say, “why am I with that meathead? I do get to see a side to him that no one else does… although there has been a rift forming between us recently… I-” you look at Steve’s concerned expression and stop, “anyway, Russians!”
He places a hand on yours gently, “you can talk to me you know.”
You smile up at him and the two of you hold each others gazes for a few seconds until the door opens, “well isn’t this just adorable?” Billy bellows as he enters, forcing you both to look away from one another and snatch your hands back, “oh, don’t stop whatever little thing you’ve got going on on my account, please!”
“Billy,” you sigh, giving him a very unimpressed expression, “come on.”
“I’m messing,” he grins, “I know Harrington wouldn’t stand a chance with my girl.”
Steve gives him a sarcastic smile as you walk around to the front of the counter and link arms with Billy, “what brings you back so soon?” you question, turning him away from Steve.
“My cigs are still in your bag baby, can I get them?”
“Sure thing, one second.”
You go out back to the staff room and rummage through your bag as the two men stand out the front staring one another down. You and Steve had grown fond of one another in your short time working at Scoops, and there was quite an obvious spark between the two of you that most people could see, including Billy. Steve hated knowing that you were with him, he strongly believed that you deserved so much better than that brute, and he wanted to be the one to show you what a loving relationship could look like where you didn’t have to worry about your boyfriend looking at anyone else; Steve’s eyes were firmly fixed on you, and always would be.
“Here you go,” you smile, coming out through the door into the icy atmosphere that wasn’t caused by the ice cream.
“Thanks baby,” he says, taking them and pulling you into him with a jolt as he kisses your lips with a renewed hunger knowing that Steve was watching.
“Calm down,” you chuckle, pushing him away after a couple of seconds.
You hated that he had to show off like this in front of people, but you especially didn’t want him doing this in front of Steve who was just the sweetest man you’d ever met. You’d definitely developed feelings for him recently and it wasn’t easy to hide it. Billy grabs your bum before letting you go and Steve has to look away before he gets caught staring by one of you.
“Later beautiful,” Billy waves as he exits once more.
You immediately turn to Steve with an apologetic face, “sorry about him… I, er-”
“Don’t apologise,” Steve replies quietly with a slight shake of his head, “you don’t ever need to apologise to me.”
“But-”
“Shall we get back to the Russian stuff?” he says, pushing the board towards you, trying to focus your mind elsewhere, “the cats on the boxes are definitely part of it.”
You eye the writing over and over, wondering what it could all mean, “the week is long… the silver cat feeds when blue meets yellow in the west… a trip to China sounds nice if you tread lightly…” you mutter quietly.
Customers enter the shop and you move out of the way as you study the words again while Steve serves with his signature enthusiasm. His ‘ahoy ladies!’ is enough to make you look up from what you were doing to watch as he flips the ice cream scoop up into the air and catches it with ease as it spins around and back down again. A smile naturally spreads across your lips at the sight and once the two girls are sat down with their sweet treat he turns to see you smiling fondly at him.
“What?” he asks with a slightly bemused grin, “have I got ice cream on my face?”
You place the board down on the counter behind you and take a couple of bold steps towards him so that your bodies are almost touching, then study his face carefully, “nope, you’re all good,” you reply softly, studying each freckle on his cheeks carefully.
Steve holds his breath as he feels yours brush over his skin, his last inhale filled with your familiar and comforting scent, and when his eyes land on yours he can feel his heartbeat begin to quicken. He’d do almost anything right now to lean in and gently kiss your lips, but your gaze soon moves from him to something behind and he turns to see what you’d spotted, hoping to god it wasn’t Billy again.
“Tread lightly!” you exclaim, running out from behind the counter and straight to the door, “tread!” you repeat, gesturing to the shoe shop opposite as Steve registers what you’re saying.
His eyes widen at the realisation then he looks to the left of the store and sees the Imperial Panda, nudging you as he points towards it, “a trip to China sounds nice!” he adds.
“Holy shit!” you gasp, “now blue meets yellow in the west…” you mumble, looking west but seeing nothing that corresponds with the words, “blue meets… yellow!” you squeal excitedly as you turn to see the large clock with the blue and yellow hands, “Steve, we’ve got it! Well, kinda… something’s going to happen at 9:45.”
-
The last thing you expected to happen once you’d given Billy the excuse of a stock take was to find yourself hundreds of feet below ground inside Starcourt Mall tied to a chair behind Steve, and yet here you were, the two of you having been kidnapped by Russian military and now being tortured into saying who you were working for. Scoops Ahoy was not the answer they were looking for and Steve was on the harsher end of the beating which made you flinch every time you heard him get hit. Dustin and Erica were trapped down here somewhere as well, so not only did you have the worry of Steve but the worry of the kids as well.
“It’s an ice cream parlour!” you shout, “do you think we’d dress like this otherwise?!”
Something is said between the men in the room then two syringes are pulled out of nowhere and you close your eyes as you brace yourself for whatever was to come next.
“You should tell the truth after this,” one of the men smirks.
They were still not getting the answers they wanted from you both after this truth serum shit they’d injected you both with, but there was nothing else you could say.
“I don’t even like the sea!” Steve whines, “I hate this outfit.”
“It’s true, he hates open water,” you concur, almost drunkenly, “so do I. You just don’t know what’s down there, its-” you’re cut off by a hit to your cheek but all you can do is laugh as the feeling of not being in control of your body makes your head dizzy.
“Don’t hit her!” Steve protests, “hit me!”
“Don’t hit him!” you argue, “he has a nice face.”
“You have a better face,” Steve replies, “she has a better face than me,” he repeats, looking at the fed up men standing in the corner.
“No! No no nono,” you slur, “he has a better face than me. He’s so handsome. Isn’t he handsome?” you ask the man hovering next to you.
Your memory gets hazy from this point but somewhere along the line Dustin and Erica appear, Steve punches a guy, and you find some popcorn. Next thing you know you’re throwing up in the mall toilets with Steve in the cubicle next to you, and your head feels like it’s going to explode.
“How the fuck am I supposed to explain this to Billy?” you laugh, still giddy from the injection.
“I dunno,” Steve chuckles back, “but you definitely shouldn’t go home tonight.”
“I’m so screwed,” you giggle, “so screwed. He’s gonna flip his shit.”
Steve suddenly appears from underneath the next cubicle and he slides himself into yours where he sits up against the opposite wall to you, “oh my god your face,” he gasps, seeing cuts by your lips and bruise forming on your cheek.
“Your face!” you gasp back, seeing how swollen his eye was.
He waves his hand dismissively as if he didn’t matter, then you both lean your heads back on the walls with pained groans.
“So… uh… has Billy ever like… hurt you?” Steve asks.
“Not physically… He might though if he knows I said you’re handsome.”
The two of you then look at one another and can’t help but laugh, “did you hear what I said?” Steve giggles, watching as you shake your head from side to side, “I said that your boyfriend’s a meathead and you should be with me.”
The two of you carry on giggling until you compose yourself enough to reply, “it’s true! I should, I really should,” your hands find each other in the gap between your legs and your fingers interlink, “I fancy you Steve Harrington. Sometimes I think of you when I kiss Billy.”
“I think of kissing you all the time,” Steve chuckles, “like, all the time.”
Your laughter fades as both of you realise the weight of the words just spoken, and suddenly you’re looking at one another with quite serious expressions.
“Those Russians really have some potent drugs, huh?” you eventually say, trying to lift the mood.
“Yeah… That’s the real deal right there,” Steve nods.
All of a sudden the door to the bathroom bursts open and Dustin and Erica stand there with relieved looks on their faces, “finally! Come on, we need to go,” Dustin orders.
Things happen with a slight blur to them but you drop the other two off safely and somehow make it back to Steve’s without crashing the car, then you’re both lying on his living room floor looking up at the ceiling as your heads spin.
“How am I going to explain this to Billy?” you ask aloud.
“We’ll say we got robbed.”
“No, not-”
“I know,” he replies seriously, “I, er… I have no idea.”
“Hi Billy, we got kidnapped by Russians, given truth serum, confessed that we fancy one another, and so I’m breaking up with you.”
“Sounds good to me.”
You laugh then groan with pain as your swollen cheek moves, “ouch,” you pout.
Steve rolls onto his side to take a look at your face, his hand tracing the outline of your good cheek so tenderly that you close your eyes in a bid to feel his touch more, “I’m so sorry you got dragged into this,” he says softly, his heart breaking at the sight of what they’d done to you.
Your eyes open to see his battered and bruised face, one of his eyes almost completely shut now due to the swelling and you sigh sadly, “oh, Steve. We got out of there, that’s all that matters.”
There’s a loud banging on the front door and both of you jump at the sound. You then freeze in place for a few seconds until it happens again along with a shout of your name, “(Y/N)! I know you’re in there!” Billy bellows.
“Fuck,” you whisper.
“I’ll go.”
“No! No, I’ll go. You go and get something frozen to put on your face. I’ve got this.”
Steve gets up first before helping you to your feet and you answer the door just as Billy’s about to hit it once more, “I swear to god if you’re-” he cuts himself off when he sees your bloodied face and immediately places his hands along your jawline carefully, “what the fuck?! Where’s Steve? Who did this?”
“Calm down,” you say, “we got robbed, it was a couple of guys in masks… Steve got the worst of it.”
Billy then looks up to the doorway behind you where Steve stands with a tea towel filled with ice pressed to his eye and his other hand up in a wave.
“Why didn’t you come straight home?” Billy asks, focussing his attention back on you.
“I couldn’t exactly leave Steve like that could I?” you point out, backing your face away from his touch.
As you do, something catches your eye from outside through the window of Billy’s car, and you frown as you try to make out what it is, but your view is suddenly blocked.
“What is it?” Billy asks, “you seeing things?”
“I don’t… Uh, I don’t know…”
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there baby,” he says, his voice softening.
Steve notices what you had out of the front window and he moves towards it as Billy stays focused on you, “did you bring a friend?” he asks, seeing someone duck down in the passenger seat of Billy’s car.
You push Billy to one side to see blonde hair peeking out from just below the door and you then turn back to him with a very unimpressed look upon your face, “so you couldn’t even wait to see if I was in bed with Steve to pick some floozy up?” you question with narrowed eyes, “was it disappointing to see that we’d actually been in a fight instead?”
“Well I didn’t know did I?!” he fires back, “what else was I to think?!”
You scoff at his remark, “maybe you could have thought that not everyone cheats,” you state calmly, “I’ll pick my stuff up in the morning. Right now I need painkillers and sleep.”
He goes to say something but you slowly close the door on him and he retreats to his car without uttering another word.
“Well that was easy,” Steve says.
“Yeah, too easy,” you chuckle, “oh god… my head feels like it’s going to explode. Where’s your painkillers?”
“Bathroom,” he replies, nodding to the stairs, “you go up I’ll bring some water.”
Steve meets you on the landing with the water then you pop two tablets in his free hand before getting two out for yourself then you both swallow them at almost exactly the same time, and laugh with a wince at once another.
“You take my bed, I’ll stay in my parent’s room.”
“Ever the gentleman,” you smile.
“When I wanna be,” he winks, then hisses with pain.
You laugh at his reaction, “maybe leave the flirting until our faces have healed a bit, huh?”
are you taking requests? I see your blog says you used to be a writer but all I'm seeing is hit after hit of great writing and I'm desperate for more
Yeah, I'd be up for a request! Haha, yeah haven't changed that just in case I disappear again. Thank you for the love on the writing though, I was nervous to post again after so long.
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