its so awesome that you can straight up write fanfiction in your head to help yourself fall asleep and it doesnt even have to be good or something anyone would ever want to read. even yourself
As Steve drove down the highway, he pondered his decision once more. Admittedly, leaving Hawkins may have been a bit of a drastic decision. But what other choice did he have? For months after their last encounter with the Upside Down, he waited for anyone to need him or reach out to spend time with him and he was left disappointed every time. Steve knew it would only be a matter of time before they outgrew him. As soon as the kids entered high school and made friends with Eddie âthe Freakâ Munson, he knew he wasnât needed.Â
Why would he be? He didnât know how to play Dungeons and Dweebs and he couldnât help with any of their homework. Looking back, thatâs why Steve had been so jealous of Munson in the first place. He knew he had a lot more in common with the kids and was actually cool. Way cooler than who Steve pretended to be. He knew deep down that he was only kept around to babysit or chauffeur people around town.Â
He wiped an unsteady hand under his eyes to get rid of the watery tears leaking from his eyes. He had no right to be upset when he had seen this coming for so long. After the Upside Down, he had briefly thought that everything would be alright. Once Eddie had his name cleared and had been released from the hospital and when Max had woken up, things seemed to be ok. Steve had checked in on Max and driven her to physical therapy when her mom wasnât around. He had hung out with Eddie on multiple occasions either smoking and listening to music in Eddieâs trailer or having the older teens over to his house for movies and drinks. Steve had thought that they had become friends and was happy to have a friend his age outside of Robin.Â
However, it had only lasted for a few weeks before Eddie started declining his invitations to hang out. Robin became busy with Vickie, Nancy and Jonathon were busy with each other, and the kids all had their own relationships to worry about. Things got lonely again at Steveâs empty house. Everyone stopped reaching out and Steve didnât want to bother anyone.
Even when people were around, Steve was still lonely. Vickie and Eddie visited Robin at work on shifts they shared. If Steve tried to join in on the conversations, he either third-wheeled awkwardly or caused the conversation to shut down completely. It was always easier to hide in the back rewinding tapes or in the aisles organizing films than to try and infringe upon anyone elseâs visits. At Party meetings, Steve usually hung on the outskirts of whatever event was being celebrated. Hardly anyone ever sought him out and anyone that did always accepted his vague excuses to leave without question. Eventually, he stopped going to Party meetings altogether. It was easier to go to bed early than to intrude on the Party that didnât want him there.Â
When the older teens were set to graduate in June, Robin asked Steve if he could organize a graduation party at his house. He of course accepted. He would do anything to make his friends happy. So, he called off of work the day before their graduation to set up his house and organize everything. He went to the actual ceremony and cheered on each of his friends as they walked across the stage. The kids were also in attendance and loudly cheered as Eddie finally accepted his diploma and flipped Principal Higgins the bird before darting off the stage.Â
After their graduation ceremony, Steve drove Robin and Eddie to his house for the party. Before Robinâs friends from the marching band and Eddieâs bandmates from Corroded Coffin arrived, Steve gave them their gifts. He had gotten Robin a new pair of blue converse with a pack of sharpie markers for her to doodle on them with. He gave Eddie a new battle jacket with new pins and patches to replace the one he had borrowed and bled all over in the Upside Down. He gave Nancy a new notebook to use for journalistic purposes and gave Jonathon the newest album from The Smiths. All of his friends smiled and gave him a hug, or a peck on the cheek in Nancyâs case. Eddieâs reaction was the strongest, and most adverse, of them all. When he opened his gift from Steve, he blushed and stammered out a small âthank youâ before abruptly walking away towards Robin.Â
Steve didnât expect anything different from Munson. He realized that he had made him uncomfortable at some point over the two weeks they had been hanging out. He had tried to fix the issue but had come to the conclusion that Eddie was just faking being nice for the rest of the Party. Regardless, Steve didnât hate Eddie even if Eddie hated him. So, he still got him a gift he would hopefully enjoy. After his negative reaction though, Steve wasnât much in the mood to party and went to sit by the pool. At 1 AM when most of the partygoers had gone home, Steve went back inside to tell Robin, Nancy, Jonathan, Eddie, and Vickie that they were welcome to spend the night in any of the guest bedrooms. However, they all declined and went home with Vickie, their designated driver.   Â
Steve was left once again in a house too big for just him with a mess around him. He spent the early hours cleaning up red solo cups and a particularly nasty pile of vomit in the corner of his dining room. When he finally fell asleep, he was awoken by a vicious nightmare and remained awake until it was time to get up for his morning shift at Family Video.Â
Steve worked a double, working his morning and covering for Robinâs afternoon shift, half-asleep and on the verge of a migraine. He didnât receive any calls of gratitude from any of the older teens or any social calls from the kids.Â
His next week and a half passed in a bland routine. He woke up early due to nightmares, worked a shift or two at Family Video, went home, tried to eat a meal or two, then went to sleep before repeating. Things came to a head on a Thursday evening when Steve pulled up to his house after a long shift at Family Video to find his parentâs car in his spot in the driveway.Â
He walked into his house with his head hanging low and a grimace on his face. His father was waiting in the foyer with a scowl set on his grim face. Upon visage of his son, he immediately started his typical barrage of insults and complaints. Why was Steve still working at a dead-end job making minimum wage? Why hadnât Steve tried to apply to any more colleges? Why hasnât Steve dusted the bookshelves or cleaned the curtains? Why was Steve such a failure?Â
When Steve attempted to brush past his father to go to his room, he was slammed into the wall and held there by his fatherâs forearm. His father had told him in no uncertain terms that he wasnât going to have some failure of a son living in his house. Steve listened to his fatherâs insults with his head leaned back against the wall and his eyes glazed over until his father released him and went back into his study.Â
Steve entered his room with tears running down his face. He sat against his locked bedroom door with his face in his hands. What reason did he have to stay there; at home or in Hawkins? His mind immediately went to the kids but he hadnât spoken to any of them since he had refused to let them rent an R-rated movie two days after the grad party he threw. He thought of Robin and Eddie who had been trying to make plans with him. Robin had invited him to watch movies in Eddieâs trailer a few shifts ago but Steve knew it was a fake offer so he declined saying he had plans. Eddie showed up the same shift and extended an offer of pizza and weed for that night but Steve knew it was only made out of pity so he declined and said he wanted to get to bed early. At each of his excuses, they had looked at him in concern but Steve knew they must have only asked him out of courtesy.Â
Steve stood up from the floor with his mind made up. He took his pre-packed bags from under this bed and glanced around his room. There was nothing else he needed to take. His favorite clothes were already in the bags, as were the pictures of him and his friends and his few essential belongings. He waited for a few hours before making his way downstairs with his bags. What Steve did not expect was to pass his mom drinking a glass of wine in the living room. She stood from her spot and wrapped her arms around Steve. He couldnât remember the last time she had hugged him. She told him to stay in touch and stay safe. He nodded wordlessly before he continued his trek to his car.Â
Steve considered leaving a letter with one of the kids or even Joyce before he left. He would have told Robin of his spontaneous plans but she was out of town with her family visiting her ill grandmother in Cincinnati. He decided against bothering anyone and drove past the Leaving Hawkins sign without so much as a backwards glance.Â
He didnât know where he was going or what he would do when he got there but there was a sense of freedom that came with the uncertainty. He set his course north and drove until he saw the sun rising to his right. He stopped at a nearby motel to get some sleep. He was just outside of Chicago and decided to try his luck there for a while. It couldn't be any worse than it had been the last several months in Hawkins.
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20: Epilogue
Sequel to Good People - The fic in wherein Wayne doesn't like Steve and overheard a conversation he shouldn't have. Here's the aftermath of that :3
Part OneđŠPart TwođŠFinal Part
-
Wayne had stayed in his bedroom long after he heard the boys leave. Eddie had knocked on his door to let him know he'd be staying at Steve's and to not expect him back until late tomorrow, a courtesy he'd never shown until after he'd been the victim of a manhunt back in spring. Wayne never asked him to do that but he thinks Eddie picked up on how worried Wayne would get if he were gone for any amount of time.
Eddie's always been good at reading people when he bothers to pay attention to them. Maybe that should have been enough reason for him to give pause to his dislike of the Harrington boy, instead of needing to overhear the boy crying about how he thinks there's something rotten deep within him that only Wayne can sense.
He'd been so sure he knew what kind of person Steve Harrington was. Eddie had been hung up on boys just like him pert-near his whole life, Wayne thinks, and it's never ended differently.
It's a Tuesday night and his friends usually gather at the bar on Friday nights, but Wayne needs to get out of the trailer to think. A beer might help. So, he grabs his keys and heads out.
He's been a regular at this bar since before he was even old enough to drink. Used to come with his pa, may he rest in peace, just to get out of the house. He's been a patron longer than any of the staff have worked there, he realizes.
"Hello Linda," Wayne greets as he takes a seat at the bar instead of at his usual table. He'd done a cursory glace when he came in and confirmed none of his drinking buddies were in before choosing the bar.
"This isn't your usual day," Linda says, leaning a hip on the counter, "but it's always a pleasure to see you."
"I got some thinkin' to do," Wayne replies and Linda nods and moves away, returning soon with a bottle of his usual beer. She picks up the bottle open and removes the cap before setting the drink down in front of him.
"Need a sounding board, hun?" She asks.
Wayne does a quick survey of the bar again but it's pretty quiet so he returns his gave to Linda and says, "if you wouldn't mind too much hearin' about how an old man might have messed up."
Linda laughs. "You aren't even half a decade older than me, so you best not be sprouting that 'old man' nonsense around me, 'cause I am not some old lady."
"Terribly sorry, Linda. I'm just really feelin' like an old fool."
A small frown comes to Linda's face then. "Now what could you have possibly done?"
"Well, I guess I'm tryin' to figure out if I did mess up. Eddie's got a friend and I don't trust 'im. Thought I had good reason not to, but, well, I overheard somethin' I wasn't supposed ta and now I'm not sure."
Linda hums, "hmm, that doesn't sound like you, judging someone unrightly. You are usually a good read about people."
"I'll admit, I haven't bothered to spend enough time with the boy to, uhh, judge him."
"Wayne Munson," Linda scolds, "you best not be telling me you judged that boy because of other people."
Judging by Linda's raising brow line, he thinks his guilt must be clear on his face. "You know Eddie, and how people have treated him. And with what he just went through- I just want 'im safe. Sure, his new friend graduated last year, but he was on the basketball team his whole career. And I'm jus' supposed ta believe this one boy didn't side with the group who started the manhunt?"
"Unless you've got evidence otherwise, yes," Linda says, brows furrowed.
Wayne sighs. "I ain't got proof. I got a lot of people sayin' he's good, actually. But it's the Harrington boy. The same boy Eddie would come home and complain 'bout. Harrington, Hagan, Hargrove, though I shouldn't speak ill of the dead. All them boys treatin' Eddie like he wasn't worth nothin' until they wanted somethin' form him."
Linda's mouth is almost a perfectly straight line with how much she's pursed her lips the more he talks, but she doesn't interrupt and no customer calls for her, so he continues.
"And you know what Richard Harrington was like. I know y'all only shared one school year together, but Janice wasn't any better, and she was your year, wasn't she?" Linda gives him one nod in response. "That boy's a product of them. I- You can't fault me for thinkin' differently."
"So, when do you expect Eddie to end up in prison?"
The question throws Wayne and fills him with anger at the same time. "Now, Linda, I ain't likin' what you are implyin'."
"I ain't implyin' nothing," she says, using the same tone with him that he did with her. "I'm applying your logic. Eddie's a product of his parents, ain't he? Al's in prison, and his mama's long gone, bless her soul. And since Eddie ain't sick, last I heard, he must be following after his daddy."
The anger leaves him then, and all he's left with is shame. "Point made. And if I'm bein' fully honest with ya, I don't even need ya to defend that boy. That thing I overheard. That what's eatin' at me. He called me good people."
Linda softens, shoulders dropping, "you are good people, hun."
"That boy told my Eddie that I'm 'good people', and that his parents are bad ones, and I. I don't know what to do about that."
"He thinks his own parents are bad?"
Wayne nods, "is what he said. Thinks I can somehow sense he's also rotten just by association."
"There's nothing to it, then," Linda says, like they've already talked out the tangled mess that is Wayne's thoughts on Steve Harrington and have reached a conclusion. Well, perhaps Linda already has. She's always been bright, and she's usually right. "You, Wayne Robert Munson, need to apologize to that boy. The guilt and shame's gonna put you into your cups otherwise."
Wayne nods slowly, though he isn't even sure if he agrees or is just acknowledging what she said before he takes a long pull from his bottle before lowering both his arms to rest on the counter as he replies, "You're right as usual, Linda my dear. I just gotta let go of the fact he's Richard Harrington's son and try and see just Steve."
"Damn right. Eddie might be Al's by birth, but you raised him and he turned out alright. Maybe Steve got the same treatment. Had his own Wayne around to raise him right."
There might be a bit of truth to that. He's heard enough talk about Steve Harrington over the years to think that. One of his drinking buddies used to be Jim Hopper. He's heard about the amount of parties he'd had to go shut down at the Harrington's house, with no parents to be seen. (Always Jim's biggest gripe back then. "Where's this kids goddamn parents!?) Wayne always assumed their kid just took advantage every time his parents were gone, but maybe it's the opposite. Maybe they were always gone, and Steve had parties to not be alone in his house.
Linda's right. There is nothing to it. He needs to talk to Steve, properly apologize, and go from there.
"It ain't an easy thing, admittin' you might be wrong," Wayne sighs.
Linda reaches across the counter and places a hand on Wayne's arm just below his wrist. Wayne looks up from where he'd ended up staring at his bottle, making eye contact with her. "If your boy is friends with this boy, it's for a reason. Just give him a chance. You are one of the good ones, but even we can have a lapse in judgment now and then. Doesn't make you bad, makes you human."
"Ain't no one perfect but the good Lord," Wayne says and Linda nods in agreement.
"Alright. I'll leave you to your beer and your thoughts for now, but you best keep me updated on your situation. I wanna know how it goes," Linda retracts her hand and heads down the counter to check on the few other people sitting about nursing drinks.
Wayne sits in his thoughts more than he drinks, so by the time he's done with the beer it's warm but that's fine. He will talk to the Harrington kid, but he wants to talk to Eddie first. He owes his nephew that much, and he does recall Eddie saying something to the effect of 'he'll come around' to Steve, and Wayne wants to tell Eddie he'll try.
Also he doesn't want to just corner the boy after he's been somewhat intimidating intentionally. He's going to get Eddie to ask if Steve'll talk to him.
True to his word, Eddie returns home late the next day. The clock says it's almost 6 when Eddie finally comes through the front door. If he's surprised to see Wayne awake, he doesn't show it. He does work the graveyard shift, and he's got a shift at 10 tonight, usually wakes up two hours before his shift. He'd wanted to make sure he caught Eddie, though, so he's been up since three.
"Eddie, you got a minute?" Wayne says.
"Sure. What's up?" Eddie says as he pulls off his jacket, depositing it on the nearest surface before plopping sideways on the couch so he's facing Wayne.
"I gotta come clean. I overheard some of what you and Steve were talkin' about," Wayne says, because he's a man of his word and he's always been good at doing the hard thing if it also turns out to be the right thing. He's got to be honest with Eddie, so he can be honest with himself. "Heard Harr- Steve talkin' 'bout how he thinks I'm a good person, and his parents aren't."
Eddie's quiet for a moment, blinking owlishly back at him while he thinks. "Oh. Umm. Sorry. I just- I think this is the first time I've heard you say Steve's name."
"Not the part I thought you'd focus on," Wayne huffs a laugh, "but I owe your boy an apology and I was hopin' you could help me make it happen."
"My boy- what is happening," Eddie drops his voice to whisper the question to himself.
"What's happening is I'm doin' the thing I always told you ta do. Taking accountability and fixin' my mistake."
"Oh. Oh!" Eddie narrows his eyes at Wayne, "you've made an ass out of me. All those times I assured Steve you were just being standoffish and you were- what were you doing?"
"Intentionally keepin' the boy at a distance 'cause I thought he was gonna hurt you. I sure as hell ain't been friendly. I been judging him because I knew his parents, thinkin' about how an apple don't fall far from the tree," Wayne stops, giving pause to see if Eddie will speak but he isn't. He's just staring at Wayne like he's a puzzle. "It was brought to my attention that it's mighty unfair to judge someone 'cause of how their parents act."
Eddie's brow furrows and his lips purse. It makes him think of Linda. She'd made the exact same face. "I- Jesus fuck this is weird, but I. I think I'm mad at you. Disappointed."
Eddie doesn't say it with an angry tone, and his face still looks more puzzled than mad, but the sentence feels like a kick to the chest anyway. Eddie and he have never been mad at each other, not in the eight years Eddie's lived here with him. They've been worried and scared for each other that, or mad at someone or something else that they take out on each other, but never mad at each other.
"You've every right to be."
Eddie stands from the couch, paces down the hallway, and Wayne thinks this might be the end of any conversation tonight, but instead Eddie comes storming back up the hall. "So, what, did you take me in expecting me to be my dad!?"
"No. He mighta contributed to your birth, but we both know that man ain't nurtured you a day in his life."
"Yeah, well, Steve's parents didn't raise him either, so all this has been bullshit! You made Steve think he's, he's broken and a bad person! And," Eddie's eyes are wet and he's angry but also about to cry. Wayne hasn't seen him like this in a long time. Not since the day they learned Al was in prison, fifteen years with a chance for parole if he's on his best behavior. Eddie had been so angry, and sad, and hurt by the news. Eddie's like that now, worked up so much he's repeating himself as he hiccups his words out around the lump in this throat, "And, and you made me help him feel that way! Because I didn't take him serious when he said, said you didn't like him! I thought you were being, being a dad, all fake gruff to intimidate the guy I like but it's- you were- FUCK!"
Wayne lets him yell. He deserves it, and Eddie needs it. Eddie's not saying anything untrue. He takes in what Eddie is yelling at him; Steve's parents didn't raise him, and how Wayne's cold shoulder must have added to whatever else Steve has going on in his life.
"I, I h-held him while he b-bawled into my shirt last night! He, he thinks- and you, you didn't even trust me! T-trust my own j-judgment of, of Steve! I, I need- I can't-" Eddie doesn't finish the sentence. He turns on his heel and storms back down the hall, the slamming of his door finalizing this conversation.
To say that Wayne feels terrible is inadequate. He's hurt his boy, and he's hurt his boy's boy, and he's got no one to blame but himself.
Now he's got two apologies to make.
I tried to tag as many people as I could remember that expressed interest in a follow up fic. I am SO sorry if I missed you. Please let me know if you want to be tagged in the final part. I will only be tagging people who ask to be tagged going forward 'cause it's a lot of people to remember and my memory is garbage.
Important safety information about the eclipse on Monday
You *can* remove the eclipse glasses during totality; not before or after.
If you find yourself falling apart instead of falling in love, turn around, bright eyes.
It is no longer considered best practice to cut the beating heart out of a human chest at the top of a pyramid to bring the sun back; nowadays, they just short out a LUCAS device.
If you are imprisoned by an evil bishop, break out, and look for a hawk and a wolf who are in love.
Most critically - No matter what, do not buy any strange and exotic plants which mysteriously appear during the eclipse.
So I've seen a lot of 'Hop actively dislikes and distrusts Steve', 'Hop tolerates Steve because he's useful during UD shenanigans but doesn't like him', and the big swing to 'Hop has adopted Steve as his own and treats him the same/almost the same as he does El'
BUT, I present:
Hop pseudo adopts Steve because when he and Owens were trying to get the Harringtons to make any decisions about their teenager who saw some sketchy shit and may need government testing they legally gave Hop the rights to act in loco parentis and he takes that seriously because he doesn't want another Will Byers and he's pretty sure the Harrington kid has a concussion.
Hop who stays involved just enough in Steve's life season 1-3 that we the audience see Steve is getting attached. But Hop just sees an annoying kid who won't leave him alone when he's trying to deal with a rebellious psychic and her insane little friends and keeps asking stupid questions about highschool romance and teenage rivalry drama. Knows Joyce Byers doesn't like the kid but won't give a lot of reason why but he's mostly learned to trust that woman's judgement about people. Still gets him the job at Scoops when the kid's dad makes a stink about college and tells him if he survives a few months there he'll consider bringing him on the force, makes sense to keep him close and in a position to help should shit hit the fan again.
Hop who doesn't get it when Steve is one of the most relieved when he 'comes back to life' after Joyce and Murray bring him back from Russia. When Steve introduces him as "My Hop," (something he'd taken to calling him just before season 2 shenanigans) to his sarcastic, fidgety little friend like it means something. The girl, Robin, looks between the two of them and gets this sad look on her face for a second before smiling and shaking his hand and saying something about "Dingus has told me all about you".
Hop who complains to Murray one of the times The Party and assorted teens and adults are over at his renovated and expanded cabin (courtesy of Owens and shady government organizations recognizing these people are worth investing in, heavily if omens are to be believed) when the bald annoyance asks about what's up on there. Complains about having annoying teenagers who have nothing better to do but pester him legally put under his supervision cause their parents can't be assed to care and are spoiled little shits who are slightly more bearable versions of said parents cause he can stand toe to toe with one of those monsters they faced and the kids kind of listen to him. Complains about barely being able to breathe cause of regular visits and check-ins like Hop was still responsible for him. Says at least the extra hands are useful around the cabin what with the still healing up and El pacing herself after the showdown with Creel and still trying to find Max and the Byers not quite moved back to Hawkins yet.
Hop who doesn't realize that Steve hears every word cause he had gone looking for the older man when he disappeared for more than a few minutes, when he couldn't see him to make sure he was here and safe and alive. Steve who thought Hop actually had come to care for him in his own gruff way and had confessed to Robin that in a lot of ways the way Hop has taken care of him makes him the closest thing to the father figure he's always wanted but never thought he'd get to have. Steve who hears Murray hum and recollect a visit from Nancy and Jonathan where their romance officially started (he vaguely knows about the visit, didn't realize that's what happened, didn't realize she couldn't be bothered to even do the decent/considerate thing before moving on to something better) because it seemed it was a pattern he was seeing 'people liked Steve, but people didn't love Steve'.
Hop who hears a choked sound like someone taking a claw to the gut and turns to see Harrington. Steve Harrington his bandages just peeking out from the collar of his shirt and the opening of his sleeves. (He never did get the stories behind those, too busy being fussed over and being told about the kids and how they were doing as Harrington played babysitter) Steve Harrington a kid who went through hell and still managed to smile and laugh and stand tall and unyielding looking at him with a blank face his eyes misty and his shoulders starting to curl in on himself before he clears his throat, chokes out that he just wanted to make sure Hop was alright but looks like Murray had everything under control. He'd go now, get out of his hair, let him rest, let him breathe. Steve Harrington who walks away with purpose like a man on a mission and doesn't acknowledge the kids calling out asking if he's alright, make sure he has his walkie talkie on him.
Hop, who realizes maybe he left behind two kids who missed (needed) him. Who wonders who took care of Harrington's paperwork when he was concussed and sedated because he was bleeding out and feverish from infection and Hop was busy at the cabin reveling in the comfort and warmth of his daughter and the woman he loved and her two sons who were fast becoming like his own. Hop, who realizes too late that maybe if he'd given the kid half a chance he could have had 3 sons to sit with him and his daughter and the woman he loved as they basked in surviving another end-of-the-world. Hop who has spent years barely giving a damn about Steve Harrington and realizes that he's no better than the kid's own parents.
You ever think supernatural creatures that consider humans potential prey have that "cat chases a bear up a tree"-thing? Like how bears, being an apex predator, have no concept of something that's sufficiently prey-sized deciding to attack instead of fleeing, and cats have no awareness of the fact that they can die. So every once in a while a cat and a bear come face to face in the wild for the first time. A bear doesn't understand what this creature is that isn't trying to flee, and starts sniffing. A cat doesn't understand what this creature is and decides to slap it. Utterly baffled, the bear decides it's best to get out of here. The cat starts chasing because obviously anything that flees is prey.
Imagine having an Entity in your home that eats creatures like you, but has never caught a human before. It doesn't understand why this prey isn't trying to escape, the human is clearly unnerved by sensing A Presence but still keeps stubbornly sitting on the couch watching TV. The Entity moves a piece of furniture, making an eerie creaking noise, planning to raise terror in its prey as a way of playing with its food. But instead of even turning to look towards the source of the sound, the human just yells into the empty house:
"WHATEVER THE FUCK JUST MADE THAT NOISE HAD BETTER FUCK OFF, OR START PAYING RENT."
The Entiry freezes in place, and decides that whatever is going on, it's not worth the risk to find out. Better leave while it still can.
So usually when an imaginary friend is a real thing in a story, itâs either a demon or a ghost or some supernatural boogeyman that probably wants to eat the kid theyâve befriended (Mama, a couple of the Paranormal Activity movies), or âimaginary friendsâ are just treated as a real thing in the setting, and if a child just thinks hard enough they can manifest a friend into existence (Fosterâs Home for Imaginary Friends, Happy).
And somewhere in the middle is an area where the imaginary friend in question is real and they are supernatural, but they arenât malevolent, and they arenât entirely honest about what they are. Like maybe theyâre a fairy or a god or some kind of boggle from mythology, but they just got caught by a six year old and they donât have time to get into it, so they just go ââŠYes. Iâm your imaginary friend. We havenât met. How do you do.â And then they stick around because they do love this kid, and if youâre a boggle from mythology in the modern day good food is really hard to come by.
And at some level. Thatâs what I think Hobbes is.
The first time Eddie sees Steve, he has to pretend like it's not a big deal how much he actually looks like the lost prince and how breathtakingly beautiful he is.
Steve, on the other hand, is just genuinely annoyed.
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