summary: after billy's death, you're wracked with grief and survivor's guilt that pulls you away from steve and the gang. then, a particularly harrowing nightmare has you calling him in the dead of night, and he helps you put a few things back together
warnings: mentions of death and da, survivor's guilt, depression
your dad had gone crazy with grief, screaming and yelling and punching anything that got close before finally up and leaving you, max, and susan. without your dad around, susan was forced to downsize you all to a trailer, and you felt emotionally stranded. not only did you lose the biggest part of yourself, but you lost your father too.
that was when the nightmares started.
at first, they were just replays of what had happened, billy's blood and screams and the sheer, painful grief in his eyes just before he died haunting you in your sleep.
but, then they changed.
it turned into flashbacks of your childhood with him; every time he'd protected you from your dad, when you bought that damn blue camaro, the roadtrip to indiana with max in the backseat, surfing with your mom, giving him girl advice that he always ignored.
these were worse than watching him die again and again.
they were reminders that you should've died too.
it happened every night like clockwork - you would wake up, chest heaving and stirring unsettlingly, and go for the phone. steve's number had been memorized for a while, and you knew he would pick up. when you were having the first nightmares, you'd called almost every time, and he always picked up.
but, you hadn't called him in weeks. everyone assumed you were getting better, that you were healing because you stopped talking about it. you stopped needing help in the middle of the night, or stiffening when someone mentioned something that hit a little too close to home, or forcing max to let you drive her to school so you knew she was safe.
you had also stopped coming to said hangouts, even when steve and robin asked you specifically. you never stopped by the wheelers' anymore to see nancy, and you hadn't come to help steve move into his new studio apartment just before the kids started school again.
it was bothering steve, but every time he showed up at the trailer park to see you, you wouldn't answer the door. after a minute, susan would answer, smiling sadly and saying you weren't feeling well.
he knew it was bullshit, but he didn't know how to call you on it without potentially hurting you or making you push him away. and he wasn't willing to risk that.
you wanted to reach out, you wanted to see him, but you couldn't manage it. he deserved something whole - and that wasn't you. he was moving on, getting an apartment, working full time, getting his life together.
and you were stuck in the summer, mourning a brother who had hurt, abused, and protected you more than any single person ever had.
except for that last one. steve was getting up there very quick.
your nightmares of billy continued for weeks, alternating between his death and your life, until tonight.
tonight was different.
it seemed like it would be a rehash of his death again. it started the same - standing in the mall covered in your own blood as the mindflayer stared down at you menacingly. billy was holding el, dragging her to be eaten before he would inevitably have a change of heart and be killed for it.
except that didn't happen.
instead, he was pushed off of her with a shocking strength, hitting the floor hard and passing out on impact.
and standing there was steve.
he wasn't in his scoops ahoy outfit, and he wasn't covered in blood yet. he wore his usual uniform of levis and a jacket, bat in hand as he stared down the mindflayer. he mumbled something, shooting a glance to billy on the floor, but you couldn't hear anything but your pounding heartbeat.
"steve!" you cried, trying to run forward, but your feet were frozen in place. your breath picked up, eyes widening as you tried to move again but failed. "steve!"
he didn't turn to you, instead beginning his fight against the fleshy creature with a swing at a tentacle. it recoiled, sending two more at him that he hit with all his might. he was doing good at first, but the thing has more arms than steve, and he was quickly becoming overwhelmed.
and you just stood in horror.
you were crying, sobbing, screaming as it picked him up the same way that it had billy, sucking the life from him as blood seeped into his clothing. finally, he tossed a look back at you, not scared or surprised, just smiling gently, resolved in this decision, and then it was over.
a stab through the chest, dropped on the floor, your feet released.
you started to run to him, but the dream cut short, and instead you were sitting up, sweat beading on your forehead as you took heavy, weighted breaths.
instantly, you wanted to see steve. you wanted to stand up and cross to the phone and dial his number and have him pick you up so your breathing would go back to normal and your heart would stop whacking your ribs so harshly.
but, almost as soon as the desire came, it fled. you couldn't see him. you couldn't weigh him down like that.
max was already awake across from you, meeting your eyes with a knowing look and pausing her walkman. she smiled thinly, pulling one headphone off her ear. "yeah. me too."
as you scooted back against the wall, trying to get your bearings again, you didn't ask her if she wanted to talk about it. she didn't. you knew that because you didn't want to either.
you wiped a hand over your face, sighing. "all i want is one decent night of sleep."
"that's too much to ask for," she answered, smiling thinly before placing her headphones back on and starting kate bush up once more. she settled back into bed, her head on the pillow as she stared at the wall.
you stayed sitting up, taking slow breaths and wiping the sweat off your face and neck before max sat up again awfully suddenly.
you met her eyes with a raised brow. "what?"
she moved one headphone off her ears, and you could hear her song playing lowly through the small speakers. "i think you should call steve."
instantly, you were shaking your head, heart pounding at the thought of hearing his voice or seeing his face after just dreaming his gruesome death. "i don't need to call steve."
"you don't need to, but i think you should," she answered. "he helped you before."
it was ironic that she was telling you to get help when she hadn't been telling her friends about her own nightmares and trauma. she barely saw them anymore, and hardly spoke to even lucas, who was trying vehemently to help her.
but, maybe it was that that made you consider what she was telling you now.
"that doesn't mean he can help now," you told her quietly, looking away.
"if you don't, i will," she said, raising her brows. "you're messed up, y/n. and i'm messed up too, i know that, but he was your twin. that's different. that's worse. you need help, and i think steve might be the only person able to help you."
again, you were surprised by her honesty and the reason to her advice. but, it was the threat of her calling him herself that had you standing.
"he probably won't even pick up," you told her as you walked the four steps to the miniature living room.
she snorted. "i doubt that. i'll see you tomorrow."
she didn't give you a chance to answer before she pulled her headphones on completely and pushed the volume up, turning over on her side and facing away from you. you let out a breath, rolling your eyes slightly before grabbing the phone and dialing the familiar number.
it only rang twice before steve's voice, groggy and half-asleep still, came through the receiver. "y/n?"
your heart jumped, and you had to swallow your shock before answering, "how did you know?"
he snorted through the phone. "who else would be calling at 2am?" he paused. "are you okay?"
you smiled slightly, letting out a trembling breath as the vision of steve dying to the mindflayer flashed in your mind's eye again. "no," you answered thinly. you let out a breath, and added, softer, "no, i don't think so."
"i'll be there in 5."
his response was instant, certain, and he hung up a moment later. you breathed out sharply, nodding to yourself and stepping back to your bed to grab a jacket and shoes. it wasn't uncommon for him to pick you up before, it was almost routine, actually, but it had been a while.
he was there quicker than you expected, almost hitting the 5 minute mark exactly and pulling up to your trailer in his beamer. you stepped outside before he could turn the car off, making sure to stay quiet so you wouldn't wake susan.
he stepped out of the car, eyes on you as you wrapped your jacket tighter around you and offered him a thin smile.
he looked a little wrecked - hair a mess, clothes disheveled, brows knitted in concern as his bright eyes landed on you. he didn't say anything at first, just walked up to you and wrapped you snugly in his arms. he rested his cheek on your head as you relaxed into him, letting out a few steadying breaths as you clung to his sweatshirt.
"hey," you said quietly.
he was warm, familiar. the way he held you helped steady you and your shaky breathing, one hand running over your back soothingly as he pressed a quick greeting kiss to the top of your head.
"hey, sweetheart," he murmured, squeezing you gently before pulling back to meet your eyes. "do you want to go somewhere?"
you'd confided early on that you hated the trailer park, and it wasn't hard to guess that you hated falling apart while max and susan were in the same 20 feet as you.
you nodded, chest finally opening enough to breathe. "yes, please."
"alright," he hummed, holding your hand as he led you to the passenger side of the beamer. he helped you in and shut your door for you before hopping in himself and starting off. he didn't touch you at first, but squeezed your hand tight when you took his just to calm yourself down. "where do you want to go?"
"anywhere," you breathed out, shaking your head. "i don't care. just not here."
he tossed you a sideways glance, brows knitted slightly as he ran his thumb over the back of your hand. "my place?"
your heart warmed slightly and you nodded. you'd been there exactly twice, and both times had ended up with you watching tv on his bed (it was a studio after all) with hot chocolates in your hands. "yeah."
"okay," he agreed, nodding and getting there quickly.
you didn't talk on the drive, just let the music play quietly over the thrum of the car as you tried to gather your thoughts. you realized silently that he probably was able to notice the tear tracks still staining your cheeks, and glanced out the window to try and discreetly wipe them away.
he watched you out of the corner of his eye, but he didn't comment, instead just squeezing your hand gently.
when you got to his studio, he sat you on his bed and moved ten steps away to the kitchen. "want a drink?"
you shook your head, smiling thinly. "i'm okay, thanks."
he paused, shutting the fridge and returning to you with careful steps. he sat next to you, far enough to be respectful and close enough to be intimate.
"okay," he hummed quietly. he watched you for another few moments as he took your hand again, running his thumb over your knuckles. finally, he just asked, "was it a nightmare?"
you met his eyes quickly, nodding slowly. you swallowed harshly, seeing him covered in blood at the mercy of the mindflayer again. "yeah."
"billy?" he guessed with a small knit of his brows.
holding eye contact was obnoxiously difficult, especially as you shook your head slowly and admitted, "no."
he paused, but he didn't ask, just knitted his brows.
you took another heavy breath. "it was you." his eyes widened and then it all came flooding out. "it's been billy for months, right? his death, his life, every reason he should still be here and if he's not, then why i should be gone with him because he never deserved to go out alone-" steve's eyes widened further, brows knitting tightly. "and then all of a sudden, tonight, it was you. you in billy's place, you saving el and him and dying instead, and i just..." your breaths were shaking, your hands trembling even as steve clung to them. "i'm sorry for distancing. i miss you. the idea of not having you, watching you die - it was almost worse than seeing billy die in real life."
he held your eyes for several long moments before pulling you into his arms, keeping you flush against him until you were basically in his lap. he ran a hand over your hair as he began his response, voice low and soothing and overall insistent as he said, "i'm here. i'm here, i'm real, you have me, baby."
tears slipped down your cheeks as you hugged him back, arms tight around his shoulders. the nickname just made everything worse, your breath staggering as he just ran a hand over your back.
"i'm here," he said again quietly, pressing a kiss to your shoulder. "i'm here." he took a heavy breath before murmuring, "and i hate that you feel like this. that you feel so guilty over everything all the time."
you choked back a sob at how accurately he'd pinned you, clinging to him as you pressed your face into his neck.
his mouth was at your ear now, soft and gentle as he said, "don't apologize for anything. don't punish yourself for being sad. do not punish yourself for still living. just let yourself grieve, sweetheart."
"he was my brother," you whispered into him.
"i know," he answered quietly, adjusting you in his arms so he could hold you more properly. "i know he was everything to you."
there was a 'but' coming, you could feel it. your father had once told you that everything said before 'but' didn't matter, that it was all excused away with the following words. you hated that word.
and steve didn't say it. he said 'and'.
"and," he started slowly, "his death doesn't mean that you deserve to die too. you lost your everything that night, i know. just don't let the people who love you lose their everything too. more grief won't fix what happened."
you were openly crying now, head resting on his shoulder with tears streaming down your cheeks as he just held you tighter. you shook your head, taking a deep breath. "i'm no one's everything. my other half, the person i entered life with is dead. it feels like..." you took a heavy breath. "it feels like half of me died with him. it feels like my purpose is gone."
"i know," he said gently. "and i need you to know that there are so many other people who love and adore you." he pulled back, hand on your cheek as he tried at a small, comforting smile, wiping away your tears with his thumb. you shied away a bit, but he held you in place, insisting quietly, "i love and adore you. yeah?" he pressed a soft kiss to your forehead before meeting your eyes again. "and if you died because billy died? i would be a wreck."
"how? why?" the questions came quicker than your thoughts did, eyes widening slightly as he hardly even considered them. you followed up with a harder statement, "i'm broken, steve. i'm missing half of me, i'm-"
"i don't need you to be okay," he told you quietly, tucking your hair behind your ear. "i just need you to stay."
you didn't say anything for the rest of the night, just hugging him tightly as he talked you down quietly, reminding you that he was here and you were steady.
you stayed the night, wrapped in his arms securely with your face pressed in his chest, his breathing steadying your own, and it was the first dreamless sleep you'd had in months.
over the next chaotic year, steve asked you again to stay, to do things with him, to be with him, to move in with him, and you agreed to every one. you still cried, mourned, grieved, woke up in your own sweat and tears, and freaked the hell out while fighting supernatural monsters, but that didn't matter to him.
@nobody00sthings , @multifandombliss , @neymaruposts , @head-sole-blog <- everyone who asked for a pt 2 :)
this kind of broke my heart to write, and to all of you who may be feeling some of the same things she is, whether it's grief, loss, depression, anxiety, or just pure sadness, i want you to know that you're worth it and it is always always better to stay
well, not terrible, per say, but definitely exhausting.
doubles at the diner were never your favorite thing, especially not when everyone seemed to be in a perpetual bad mood. that always led to rude comments, never ending messes, and 50 cent tips. it was great.
the sky had been dark for a few hours by the time you got home, steve's car in the driveway giving you a bit of relief as you parked. the air was crisp even with the zip-up you'd stolen from steve covering your arms, but it was a nice change from the heat of the kitchen.
you walked into the house, kicking off your shoes and stripping off your jacket with a heavy sigh. you shut the door and hung up your keys, calling out a quick, "i'm home!"
steve emerged immediately, coming down the stairs with a smile and wrapping his arms around your middle immediately.
"hey, sweetheart," he cooed softly, pressing his lips to yours in a quick greeting. "how was work?"
you relaxed with his arms around you, hands coming to rest on his biceps as you leaned into him. "exhausting."
he frowned, brows knitting slightly. "i'm sorry. have you eaten?"
"yeah, i ate on break," you said, smiling thinly. "right now, i just want to lay on the couch and watch a stupid movie that i don't care about so i won't feel guilty about falling asleep."
he matched your smile, resting his forehead against yours as he squeezed your waist. "i think we can manage that." he kissed you again before pulling away and guiding you towards the stairs. "go change, take a shower, get comfy, and i'll get the movie up."
you smiled and nodded, jogging up the stairs as steve walked off towards the living room.
it wasn't fifteen minutes later that you were back, changed into sweats and a sweatshirt that definitely belonged to your fiance. your hair was damp still, but you didn't care, and you knew steve would never comment on it - even if it was cold and annoying when you inevitably ended up sprawled on top of him in the blankets.
you smiled as the movie started up, steve still crouched in front of the tv holding the vhs case. "close encounters?"
he turned to you, a smile immediately coming to his lips as his eyes met yours. he shrugged, offering you a simple nod. "i think this one's okay to fall asleep to."
"i've seen it a million times, so definitely, yeah," you answered, collapsing on the couch with a sigh.
he was next to you in a second, hands coming gently to your sides. "here, just... come here."
he dragged you off the couch, your brows knitted as you let out a confused laugh, and then you were on the floor. "trust me." he turned, legs on either side of you as his fingers came to your shoulders. then, he began kneading, gently at first and then putting more force into it when he realized quite how tense you were.
"oh my..." you breathed out, eyes shutting as you instantly relaxed, leaning back against him contentedly. "you're a blessing, steve harrington."
you couldn't see it, but he smiled gently, leaning down to press a kiss to the top of your head. "you're my favorite person," he answered simply. "tell me where it's the worst."
"up my neck," you said, eyes squeezing shut as he worked up to your hairline, thumbs pressing intently into your skin. your breath caught on a particular spot and he paused briefly.
"too much?" he asked.
"no, no," you said, shaking your head even as your eyes stayed shut and breath remained a little short. "it's good. it's painful, but it's good."
he stayed still for a few moments before finally beginning again, wincing when you did and letting his touch go lighter as his fingers moved up to your scalp. a content sigh slipped from your lips, eyelids drooping as your shoulders slumped, leaning back into him.
he smiled to himself, working on your shoulders again and running his thumb along the base of your neck, a spot that always bothered you but was hard to work out yourself. you stayed slumped against him, eyes closed as you started to drift a little bit.
the pain of lifting a million trays and pouring never-ending cups of coffee slowly was worked away with steve's touch, firm and warm and exactly what you'd needed in order to relax for the night.
and then you remembered.
"the lasagna," you murmured, blinking back to a wake state as you glanced back at steve. "we need to take the lasagna to susan."
max's mom had been really struggling since max had entered the coma. you and steve had felt partially responsible, and had made it a weekly ritual to drop by and visit with her, bringing either a meal or dessert with you, even when she insisted you didn't need to.
you'd told her you'd run it on your lunch break, but you'd forgotten it in the freezer and had missed it.
steve smiled, turning you forward again and pressing a kiss to the side of your head. with his lips still at your ear, he told you quiet, "i already took it to her. it's all good."
you nodding, exhaustion hiding your gratitude. "and the brownies?"
"dropped them by the wheelers'," he hummed, kissing your head again before sitting back and continuing his massage.
those two answers were almost as relaxing as his magic touch, easing your stresses completely off your shoulders as he rubbed the knots out of them. you let out a sigh, patting his leg next to you as you metled under his fingers. "have i told you that i love you recently?"
"every day," he answered with a light laugh.
"i should say it more," you said then, voice slipping as sleep fought to take over. "you're perfect. i love you, stevie."
"yeah, i love you too, baby," he answered quietly, hands running over your arms and squeezing gently.
you fell asleep not five minutes later, and steve was perfectly content shutting off the movie and lifting you into his arms, making the trek up the stairs and into your room routinely. he set you into bed, pressing a kiss to the side of your head and murmuring a gentle, "i love you more than you know," before going to take out his contacts and get ready for bed.
you hummed softly, waking for a few moments to turn over on the mattress and reach for him - only to find a cold, empty pillow. "steve!" you groaned.
he smiled, glancing at you from the bathroom. "just a second, sweetheart."
you huffed, collapsing back on your pillow as sleep overtook you again.
when he made it back, he let out a breathy laugh, slipping in beside you and wrapping you in his arms. you melted in his touch, snuggling into his chest contentedly as his hands ran over your back, rubbing gently at the knots he felt there too.
"we'll have to give you a massage tomorrow," he murmured even though he knew you weren't cognizant, pressing a kiss to your head and settling in for bed.
there was a smile on your lips when he closed his eyes, entirely content in the way steve had effectively cured your exhaustion - turns out all a girl needs is a shoulder rub and some sleep to fix her day.
the first day that you came down the stairs in bright pink leggings, a turquoise bodysuit, and purple leg warmers to bring it all together, steve actually choked.
cereal almost went spilling all over the counter as he swallowed, an amused grin on his lips as he looked at you with slightly knitted brows. "what do you have on there, sweetheart?"
"i told you," you said, pulling your hair up into a ponytail. "karen and i are going to jazzercise."
"no, no, i remember that," he said, dropping his spoon back into the bowl. "i just don't remember you ever owning any of... this."
you hesitated, tying your scrunchie in your hair before your arms fell to your sides. you glanced down at your outfit, nose scrunching. "you don't like it? i just bought it the other day with karen. we match."
he breathed out a laugh, shaking his head as he rounded the island to take your hands gently in his. he pulled your arms out to the side, eyes scanning over your figure as he whistle lowly.
"i mean, you look hot, babe, i can't lie," he told you, stepping forward with a gently smile as his hands dropped yours to rest on your hips instead. "the colors are just surprisingly is all. and the style. it's all a bit... momish."
"everyone wears this to jazzercise," you defended with a frown.
"you never have," he pointed out. "you go all the time, and you've never worn any of this."
"yes, but the rest of the moms do, so i wanted to feel like a part of the club," you answered, squeezing his biceps.
it was true. karen and all of her interesting mom friends all wore bright colors and bodysuits and fuzzy leg warmers and scrunchies when you went to workout. karen insisted it boosted morale, while the other women just said it helped motivate them since they already felt hot.
you felt silly currently, but you were sure you'd get comfortable soon.
steve just grinned at you lopsidedly, head tilting as he waited for you to realize exactly what you'd just said, and the implications of it. except you didn't.
you just frowned deeper. "what?"
"the moms wear that stuff, babe," he said, laughing gently. "you're dressing like a mom."
you rolled your eyes, huffing and pushing out of his hold as he just laughed harder. outside, a car honked, and you moved out of the kitchen towards the door. "karen's here, so i'm going to jazzercise. i'll be home in an hour."
"have fun, baby!" he called, waving. "you look great!"
you flipped him off as you left the house, steve almost doubling over as he continued cackling to himself about your incessant need to become "one" of the moms at age 21.
around lunch time, the phone started ringing loudly. steve shifted in his chair, going to set his book down to grab it, but you waved him off, squeezing his shoulder as you passed him. "i got it."
you grabbed the bright yellow phone from its place on the wall, asking into it: "hello?"
"hey, hun!"
you smiled, shifting on your feet as steve watched you with knitted brows to see who it was. "oh, hey mrs byers! what's up?"
"i'm just calling to make sure jonathan dropped by those vinyls you asked for. he said he was going to, but never followed up."
"oh, yeah, he brought them by. thank you, by the way. i tried to get robin and steve to let me borrow them from the station, but they insisted it was against company policy to bring vinyls home," you answered, smiling as you met steve's eyes.
he frowned, mouthing silently, "it is."
you waved him off, turning so you wouldn't have to face him as joyce answered.
"oh, of course! i'm not getting any use out of them now, so i'm glad you are." you could always hear joyce's expressions when she talked, it was one of your favorite quirks, and currently, her soft, motherly smile was seeping into her tone.
"no, i love them," you hummed, laughing lightly then. "though, i don't think steve does. since getting the record player, i've been playing everything a bit too loud."
steve watched you, smiling gently and shaking his head.
"he'll just have to learn to get through it, especially when you two get married," joyce answered, her voice way too endearing for just little old you.
"he's figuring that out about now," you told her, a slight tease in your tone as you winked at your fiance. "when are you wanting them back?"
her response was that instant kind, too reassuring and kind for your taste, but so quick that you knew she was being genuine. "oh, don't you worry about that. i don't need them back, hun. we're with the wheelers right now, and even when we get into our own place, i'm not sure the next time i'll actually use them. you keep them."
"oh, are you sure?" you asked, brows knitting.
"i'm sure that you enjoy them more than i ever did," she answered. "you have fun with them, okay?"
"yeah, yeah i will. thank you mrs byers," you said into the phone.
"i've said it a million times, just call me joyce!" she told you with a light laugh.
you smiled gently. "yeah, you have said that, hm? alright, well thanks a lot joyce. i really appreciate it."
"i really appreciate what you and steve are doing for will and the kids. if these records help get you through that chaos, then i'm happy to donate."
you laughed. "well, thanks again."
"oh, of course, hun. are you still wanting to come watch el's training tomorrow?"
"if you and hop don't mind, then yeah," you hummed.
"of course not. we'll see you tomorrow," she answered.
"see you tomorrow," you said. "uh huh. bye now."
steve smiled over at you, watching you hang up the phone and then walk back into the living room slowly. his hand caught yours, dragging you into his lap and tilting his head up at you. "i don't get mad about your vinyls."
"no, but you're not the biggest fan of the volume," you answered with a teasing smile, settling against his chest naturally.
"you can be a bit dramatic with it at times," he admitted with a shrug. "but, hey. i like the beatles."
"exactly," you said, laughing lightly and snuggling into him further. "i'm grateful joyce let me use 'em."
he smiled, kissing your temple. "me too, if you'll believe it."
the kids were over for dinner that night, and you were back in your normal clothes, cooking up a chili recipe you hadn't tried until today. they were playing games in the living room as steve helped you, setting out sour cream and cheese and fritos onto the counter as you finished at the stove.
"call the kids for dinner, please," you told him as you bent to grab the pan of cornbread from the oven.
he nodded, taking the extra second to smack your behind before moving to the entryway and yelling, "kids! dinner!"
a light blush creeped up your neck as you set the pan on the stove next to the chili, raising your brows at steve as he just shot you a grin.
"what?" he asked innocently.
you rolled your eyes, laughing lightly. "you're ridiculous, harrington."
"you're beautiful, future harrington," he answered as he sauntered up to you with a small smile. his hand came to your neck, thumb stroking your jaw as he pulled you into a deep kiss you were all too happy to return.
pounding footsteps down the hallway had you pushing him away, but he held you in place with a hand on your hip, smirking into it as all sounds stopped. and then, of course, inevitably:
"gross!"
"i'm sure you don't think that when suzie is around," steve answered, not even shooting dustin a glance as he just smiled down at you.
the teenager rolled his eyes. "no, but i do think it when you two are. move, you're blocking the food."
steve backed away to the opposite counter, pulling you with him and kissing you quickly one more time. "be nice to us, henderson, or you're not allowed back."
"you're bluffing," dustin called as he scooped his chili.
"he's not, you just haven't done anything bad enough yet. i got banned for a week one time when i made fun of the chicken noodle soup she made," lucas said, rolling his eyes as he dumped way too much cheese into his bowl.
you turned to face the teens, brows raised slightly as steve tugged you back into his front, arms over your shoulders and hooked in front of your chest.
"yeah," he said dumbly. "you don't get to make fun of my future wife - especially not when eating the food she made for you."
"it was missing the chicken!" lucas exclaimed, brows raised practically to his hairline.
"and you're missing the point!" steve answered, shaking his head. "you don't get to talk to her like that in front of me. never."
mike seemed to approve of that philosophy, nodding and raising his thumb to steve as he passed with his bowl of chili, el behind him with her constant small smile and will rolling his eyes at his friends' behaviors.
dustin was fighting the cornbread, trying to get it out of the pan without breaking it and failing. finally, he just dropped the three pieces into his bowl and huffed, shooting steve a glance before heading towards the kitchen. "okay, mom."
"i'm serious," steve insisted, shaking his head.
"oh, we know," lucas said with a sigh, bumping your shoulder as he passed you to get to the dining room.
you exchanged an amused look with steve before grabbing your own bowls and serving yourselves. it was only half a minute of silence before dustin's voice unsettled it once again.
"hold on!" he called, which only made your smile widen more. "my mom said you came over the other day! why?"
"why do you ask, dustin?" you answered as you stirred your chili to cool it down, waiting for steve as he piled toppings into his bowl.
"this is her chili, isn't it?"
you laughed as you walked into the dining room, setting your bowl next to lucas' as steve rounded to sit next to you at the head. "yes, it is. i'm impressed that you noticed."
"no one else i know puts whiskey in theirs," he answered dryly, nodding behind you to where the bottle of bourbon was still peeking out underneath the cabinets on the bar.
"there's alcohol in this?" will asked, a little too excited for your taste and you just scrunched your nose.
"it cooks out," you told him. you looked back to dustin. "we cooked it the other day, and i really liked it, so she sent me home with the recipe for me and steve to try."
he hummed uninterestedly, pushing the chili around in his bowl. "i know you made it the other day. i'm now having chili twice in one week."
that earned a swift kick beneath the table from steve. "second warning, and then your key is getting taken."
"i was just saying that it's a little annoying having your friend and your mom share recipes in the same week because then i-"
"dude, seriously?" lucas sighed, head dropping in his hands as steve went, "last warning."
"you're being ridiculous-!"
"key," steve said, holding his hand out. dustin didn't move, staring dully at him as steve nodded to him with raised brows. "now. i'll get it from you somehow, henderson, just make it easy for yourself."
you sat to the side, eating your chili quietly and appreciating the way steve stood up for you while also feeling a little awkward about dustin not being allowed over.
the boy sighed, shoving his hand in his pocket before dropping the silver key in steve's palm. "a week?"
"a week," he answered with a nod. "don't complain about her cooking. ever."
"it's like my mom's-"
"dustin, man," mike said this time, sighing heavily. "just save yourself the trouble."
he finally shut up, slumping in his seat and shooting you a short glare. steve just smiled into his chili, squeezing your knee and murmuring, "i like it, sweetheart, thank you."
it was 1am. all the kids had gone home for the day (dustin for the rest of the week), and steve was half asleep on the couch. you sat in the kitchen, sewing machine plugged into the wall as you worked on the small quilt squares you'd promised sue you'd finish before this saturday for a bed cover you were helping her with for erica.
her birthday was next week, and all she wanted was a bright blue comforter she'd seen in one very specific episode of cheers. unfortunately, this quarantine made it a little hard to find something like that, so you were making due with what you had.
your fingers were tired and your back hurt from sitting in the same position for so long, the sound of the needle bouncing making your ears bleed by now, but you were determined to finish this last square.
steve wandered into the room then, yawning and running a hand through his hair as he narrowed his eyes to see what you were doing.
he sighed. "erica's quilt?"
you nodded, sliding the fabric underneath the needle. "i'm almost done, and then i'll be up."
"i'll wait for you," he told you quietly, standing behind you and leaning against the back of your seat. his breath was hot on your neck as he murmured, "you should make us a quilt."
"i have," you answered simply, holding up the square and checking the stitch.
"that one's in the boys' room," he sighed, shaking his head. he dropped his lips to press a gentle kiss to your shoulder. "i want one for us. i think they're sweet."
you paused, turning with a small smile to tilt your head at him. "you think they're sweet?"
"yeah," he hummed, shrugging. "you know, sentimental and all. like, you made this for us, with your own two hands. quilts are the kind of things that get passed along. our kids could use your quilts."
"our kids do use our quilts," you teased, and he laughed.
"i don't mean the boys," he told you.
you smiled softly, nodding. "alright, then. i'll make us a quilt. what color do you want?"
"whatever color you want to make," he answered, smiling as he leaned to press a gentle kiss to your lips. he pulled back a fraction, eyes flicking to the square in your hands. "you done?"
"yeah, i'm done," you said softly, smiling as he moved to start putting your sewing things away. he moved quicker than you would've, finishing by pulling the square from your hands to toss it in the pile. he paused a moment, thumb running over the smooth fabric before he finally dropped it away.
then, he pulled you up from the chair, grip tight around you as he swung you into his arms. you yelped, laughing as he knocked the lightswitch with his shoulder and then moved to the stairs. "do not drop me, harrington."
"i would never drop you, future harrington," he answered, fingers squeezing whatever part of you they were on. "not ever."
today was crazy, but i managed to get one out so yay! i loved exploring this little part of her with the moms, i can totally imagine this making steve so proud and excited to just wife her up already
hope you loved it! i'm catching up on requests in the next few days, but if you have an idea, feel free to send it!
after everything happened, you were the one to drive lucas to the hospital.
it was all the way across town from where you all lived and you insisted that he couldn't ride his bike alone, especially with him returning so late at night. so, with a thankful smile from sue and big gulps from 7/11, you and lucas would sign in at the visitor's desk and start your long shifts at max's side.
no matter what, you were the one lucas would ask for a ride. if you worked, he would bike over himself, even when you insisted that steve or nancy wouldn't mind taking him.
he didn't care. if it wasn't with you, he just went alone.
as time went on, school started again, and reality set in that she would be stuck in this coma for who knew how long, he finally started living a life outside of the hospital. still, there were at least 3 times a week that you would leave out of the blue, pressing a kiss to steve's temple and murmuring, "lucas," before heading to pick the boy up and sitting with him or at the least dropping him off when you had other things to do.
once, he'd requested that you fix her hair for her since he didn't know how, so you did, him holding her up for you as you quickly brushed and braided her hair back flat so she'd stay comfortable and as presentable as you would've wanted to be if you were in a coma.
but, then you spent that night sitting on your living room floor in front of lucas trying to coach him how to braid. according to sue, he'd always refused a lesson and said boys didn't need to know how to braid.
but, now that max was involved, he listened carefully.
"so you can fix it for her yourself next time," you'd said with a small smile, steve standing at his side and coaching him through the simple plait.
steve came with you more than half the time, and there were times between shifts or when he was home alone that he went by himself. some days, he'd pick up lucas without asking, just honking and telling him to get in the car.
"what?" lucas would ask, coming to the passenger window with a frown.
"let's go see your girlfriend," steve would always answer, and lucas always got in.
lucas brought music for her, that continuous loop of running up that hill playing anytime he was there. sometimes he tried new songs, showing her his favorite new album or a song el thought she would like. he'd sit in the chair, holding her hand and mumbling the words as he just watched her breathe, silently thankful for even just that.
steve brought books for her. he wasn't a huge reader, but when he was younger he discovered stephen king novels - which he'd learned last summer that max loved just as much as he did. they'd bonded over them before she went under, and when he was in the room alone, he would read them to her aloud, making his own random commentary like she would be able to respond.
you brought stories for her, filling her in on all the gossip between the couples in your groups, and everything you heard from the boys about the kids in her school. robin came out to the boys after vecna's attack, and she didn't know max well enough to visit her much in the hospital, so you got permission to fill her in on that as well. you imagined she would find the chaos that was robin and vickie's relationship very amusing.
so, when you first announced to the kids you were engaged, you quietly pulled lucas aside and told him, "we should tell max."
he softened, breath catching for a moment before he nodded too many times. "yeah. yeah, we should."
you went the next afternoon after your shift, steve promising to meet you there when he finished up at the wsqk. lucas hopped in your car with his backpack, a new tape and some snacks inside as you made your way to the nearest 7/11.
"remember the rules," you hummed as he filled up his big gulp cup. "don't tell the-"
"others unless i want to stop getting drinks, yes, i know," he said, rolling his eyes as he sipped at the top of his soda before turning to slap a lid on it.
you smiled fondly, putting a lid on yours and then grabbing another. "exactly." you began filling this cup with ice and classic coke before moving to the cherry slurpee and putting a dollop in.
lucas made a face, scrunching his nose. "steve still does that?"
"you think he'd stop?" you snorted, sipping the top so it wouldn't overflow before grabbing a lid and popping a straw in. "it's his churpee coke, he could never let it go."
"so stupid," he laughed, but the smile on his lips told you otherwise.
"it's just steve," you answered, grabbing both drinks and heading to the cash register.
he filled you in on the latest school drama on your drive over, talking about dustin's increasing angst and desire for chaos when he intentionally ticks off the jocks and wears his hellfire tshirt. you weren't surprised, you never were.
eddie's death had hit him hard. in so many ways, you didn't blame him for acting out how he did.
but, when you saw the way it was affecting his friends, affecting lucas and steve especially, you just wished he'd listen and let you all help. still, he was dustin, and he was a stubborn little rat who hadn't ever listened to you a day in his life. it was part of his charm, to be honest.
"he'll be okay," you assured lucas, shooting him a smile as he sipped on his coke and avoiding your eyes. you'd said this same thing too many times for it to mean what it once did, but it was almost muscle memory at this point. "we're still here," you reminded then, not just talking about dustin anymore.
the girls at the hospital knew you both now, waving you off with smiles and kind hello's. you knew the route like the back of your hand, walking quickly to the elevator and then to max's room where you took your normal seats on either side of her bed.
you set steve and your drinks on the sidetable, scooting up to max's side and instinctually reaching to fix her hair. you brushed it from her face, lucas staring solemnly forward as he clung to her hand.
you hummed as you adjusted her braid behind her. "this braid looks good."
"thanks," he answered quietly, smiling thinly.
you tucked stray hairs behind her ears, fingers gentle against her skin as you took in the paler hue to her already fair skin. it got worse every time you were here, like the life was slowly being drained from her on the inside and turning her cold, blue, and frail.
it broke your heart.
you sat down, sipping absentmindedly on your soda as lucas turned her music on low. "we have some serious gossip for you today, max. you're gonna be over the moon so excited. we just gotta wait for stevie to get here."
"do we have to?" lucas complained, which just earned a small smile from you.
"it'll only be a couple minutes," you answered, glancing quickly to the clock. "he got off fifteen minutes ago, so he'll be here anytime now. tell her about lydia stevens and bradley jacobsen in your gym class. she'll freak about that."
he sighed. "that's not as exciting."
"no," you agreed fondly. "but, it fills time."
and so he filled the time, muttering about bradley's idiot self trying to convince lydia to go out with him by using her best friend, which just caused all the more drama.
you sat back with a content smile, sipping on your soda and waiting patiently for your fiance to arrive.
it wasn't five minutes until steve walked in, a bit out of breath, stephen king book hidden behind his back like he was embarrassed to be seen with it, and a smile on his lips as lucas looked up at him quickly. steve moved to the chair next to you, pressing a short kiss to your lips in greeting and dropping his book onto the table next to you.
"hey, sweetheart," he murmured, then kissing your forehead as he reached past you for his slushee coke before finally sitting. "hey, max. lucas."
"hi steve," lucas said, smiling small as the older boy took a long drink from his big gulp cup. he leaned back in his seat, nodding to his girlfriend. "we were waiting for you to tell her."
steve sat up quickly, brows raising as he pulled the straw from his mouth. "what? you were? you haven't told her yet?"
"yes," you laughed lightly, tilting your head at your fiance. "you needed to be here too."
he hummed, smiling gently and nodding. his eyes fell to the comatose girl's face, scanning her freckles and taking in the thin look to her skin. he frowned at the sight. "if she can hear us, maybe it'll get her so excited she'll get some color back into her," he murmured, brows knitting slightly. "is this normal? i think i should talk to the-"
"steve," you said, shaking your head. "let's just talk to her, yeah? we can chat with the nurses later if you feel the need."
"right, yeah," he breathed out, nodding once. he let out a heavy breath, tearing his eyes away from her frail figure to glance between you and lucas. "okay. who's gonna tell her?"
"you should tell her," lucas told you, meeting your eyes. "she likes hearing you talk."
you smiled gently, glancing between him and her. "yeah, i'll tell her. okay." you sat up, squeezing max's hand between both of yours and smiling a bit wider. "alright max, i'm just gonna come out and say it because i don't know how else we would tell you, but steve proposed to me, and i said yes. we're engaged, and when you wake up, and all of this shit goes away, we're going to get married."
lucas' breath stuttered as he watched max's eyelids flicker, steve freezing next to you as you all paused.
several moments passed before any of you moved again, you finally letting out a breath to continue. you squeezed her hand twice, childishly hoping for a response. "you and robin and el and nancy are going to be my bridesmaids, okay? you can pick whatever color dress you want, but i've been thinking blue, so if you happen to want blue that would be great. you look so pretty in blue. we'll have so much fun."
"half the town will be there, but you know that the only people we really care about being there is you guys," steve chimed in, leaning forward with his forearms on his knees. "we need you to make sure everyone's energies stay high and the boys keep dancing."
"i'm an amazing dancer," lucas said with a grin.
"oh, you're awful," you laughed, shaking your head. "but, your enthusiasm makes up for it. maybe it'll be you getting max to dance instead."
he hummed, shaking his head. "nah. her and el will be going crazy on that dance floor, even if you play that shitty country music."
"hey!" you said, even as you smiled widely. "i like my country music."
"yeah, you're the only one, babe," steve said, shaking his head before letting out a light laugh.
you rolled your eyes, turning max's hand in your hand. "max can appreciate it. even if it isn't her favorite." you pulled her fingers over your left hand, tracing them along your ring. "this is my ring. i don't know if you can really tell from just feeling it, but it's really pretty. steve and murray did a good job getting a pretty one."
"i'm good at what i do," steve said, leaning back in the chair dramatically as lucas rolled his eyes.
"better not have to do it a second time," he told the older boy.
"he won't," you answered, glancing between them with a small smile before turning your attention back to max. "except for the wedding band part. but, i have to get him a band too, you know, so all the girls know that he's completely, officially, legally off the market. i'm gonna need your opinion on it before i buy it though, you have a better sense of jewelry than me."
"you don't want my opinion?" lucas asked, frowning in faux offense. "i'm your favorite."
you raised a finger to your lips, smiling as you shook your head. "stop saying that or everyone's gonna figure out it's true. except for max. you guys are tied." he fist pumped the air and you giggled. "i'll need your help too, but i also want you helping steve with my band. it has to be stylish."
"oh, i can do style," he told you, nodding and grinning wide enough for you and steve to laugh hard.
you spent the rest of the afternoon in that hospital room, sitting around her bed and sipping your sodas as you talked about what you're going to do when she wakes up, all the wedding planning that needs to be done then, how to make your reception the biggest party hawkins has seen in a decade.
steve kept his arm around you, and lucas continually held max's hand, while you just kept gabbing away about anything and everything that came to mind. as strange as it sounded, this was one of the only spaces you felt comfortable enough to do that - if you did it with everyone else around, you'd just get made fun of. steve and lucas and max (of course) just listened. and you listened to them.
lucas was half-asleep as steve read a chapter from his book, your legs tossed over his lap as you smiled gently and listened close. he'd never read aloud with you and lucas in the room, and with lucas' less than exciting reaction, you figured he wasn't likely to again.
but, you liked the smoothness of his voice and the calm in his expression. every so often, he would snort at something written to be scary, and mutter, "that's stupid, i know you think so too," before going back to the story.
and even though he was running his free hand up and down your shin slowly, squeezing your knee every so often, you knew he wasn't talking to you when he said things like that.
it made you smile.
lucas asked you to help him sit her up so he could rebraid her hair, and you were happy to do so, holding her by the shoulders as he carefully undid and redid the same simple braid she'd been in for a year.
when he tied it off, he let out a breath, helping you lay her back down comfortably. "there," he murmured quietly, tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear before bending to press a gentle kiss to the top of her head.
you exchanged a tragic look with steve, squeezing his hand as he let out a low, deep sigh. lucas sat back in his seat, holding max's hand tightly and keeping his eyes on her intently.
when the sun went down and visiting hours closed, you and lucas got back in your car. you eyed his backpack, starting your galaxie up.
"you bring stuff to stay the night?" you hummed, pulling out of the parking lot and noting steve in his beamer following you. "or do we have to stop by your place."
lucas smiled sheepishly, eyes on his bag as he realized he'd gotten caught. "no, i have it."
you looked to him with a smile. "good."
he dropped his things in the spare bedroom, mumbling something about having split custody with dustin before heading back downstairs to crash with you on the couch.
steve picked up some chinese takeout on the way back, you and lucas chilling in the living room with the breakfast club playing on the tv, a tape robin had left last time she was over.
steve dispersed the food accordingly, and you didn't even blink at the way he remembered both your orders without needing to ask. it was steve. of course he remembered.
he settled in next to you as you ate, watching the movie with mild commentary from lucas about how unrealistic their high school life was, to which steve answered that his high school life was also incredibly unrealistic.
"except it's real," lucas deadpanned, knitting his brows. "i'm real. i exist. emilio estevez isn't real."
"emilio is, andrew isn't," you corrected quickly.
he just rolled his eyes, waving you away.
soon enough, the takeout boxes had been tossed on the coffee table, the tape had been switched to alien, and you were tucked into steve's side. lucas watched the way steve's fingers traced gently down your arm, stopping at your hand and twisting your ring absentmindedly.
you watched him as he snuggled into the couch corner, pulling the blanket he'd claimed as his own up to his shoulders, and turning back to the movie.
you imagined a time when max would be here, taking up space as her own, pulling lucas close and staying close as the four of you watched whatever cheesy movie was chosen then.
you'd be married, and they'd be older, maybe seniors, maybe even close to graduation.
steve pressed a kiss to your temple as if he could tell what you were thinking, and murmured a quiet, "she'll be up soon."
you looked back to him, brows knitting slightly as you asked gently, "how do you know?"
"i have a feeling," he told you before pulling you closer and nodding back to the movie.
you settled in, comfortable and snug and content with having your two favorite boys on either end of the couch. all you were missing was your girl.
this was simultaneously my most favorite and most tragic fic to write. i love reader and lucas, and steve and max, but it's just so sad. thanks for going through this with me guys haha
you didn't tell anyone that steve proposed, just sat and waited for any one of them to figure it out themselves.
dustin was the only one who knew he was going to do it soon, having been the one to sneak the ring back into his car a couple days before your date.
but, he didn't know when, and he certainly wasn't staring at your ring finger every day trying to figure it out.
the kids were playing dungeons and dragons downstairs, out of your hair while still in your house, and you were just hanging out with the olders in the living room, lounging while offering robin a casual, daily therapy session.
steve was half-laying on you as robin droned on about her situationship with vickie, repeating things you’d heard a million times. you tried to be a supportive friend, nodding along like you could relate. but, you couldn’t. steve was perfect, and you were marrying him.
not that they noticed or assumed.
“she doesn’t trust me,” robin sighed, running a hand through her hair as she shifted in the armchair, practically sitting on it sideways now from how much she’d moved around. “she’s being a little overbearing. and i get it - i spend a lot of time here, with you guys, and with the kids. but, i make time for her!”
“you’re always with her,” nancy said, knitting her brows in confusion.
jonathan and steve were entirely uninterested, both just slumped against their girls and staring at the ceiling or wall with peanut butter boppers in their hands. every so often, jonathan would silently mouth something to steve and they would snicker together, earning swift smacks from their girls before you went back to venting with robin.
“and if you’re not it’s for good reason,” you added with a hum, adjusting as steve laid himself completely over your lap and huffed like a child, tired of this conversation that he’d already heard at work a million times. “she knows she’s always invited over here too.”
“i told her that, but i think she’s intimidated to be honest,” robin sighed, flopping even more dramatically into her chair as her hand covered her face. “which is dumb.”
you exchanged a look with nancy, brows knitted.
“why?” she asked.
“well, not so much you two,” robin answered, waving to her and jonathan as your face screwed up in confusion and slight offense. her hand moved to gesture to you and steve. “you two.”
steve frowned. “what? why?”
“because!” she said like it was obvious, gesturing up and down to where he was comfortably laid across your lap, you fingers carding gently through his hair. “you’re you. steve the hair harrington and the badass woman who turned him into a domestic mush.”
you almost wanted to smile at that, but you were still hung up on vickie not wanting to come over. “we don’t make her feel welcome? robin, invite her over and-“
“no,” she said quickly, shaking her head. “no chance. if she sees how perfect your home life is too, she’ll be on my ass even more.”
steve smirked, exchanging a sly look with jonathan and mumbling, “i thought you liked that.”
all three of you girls glared at him, you smacking him across the back of his head as he just chuckled, squeezing your knee.
“we’re not perfect,” you told her, shaking your head. “for example, steve makes stupid comments and i’m forced to hit him and take away his dessert privileges.”
“hey!” he objected instantly, to which you just laughed and winked at him. he calmed, settling into your thighs again with a smug smile.
“see?” robin sighed dramatically. “perfect.”
you shook your head again. “we’re not perfect. even you guys have seen some of our arguments.”
jonathan laughed. “oh, yeah. like when steve got mad at you for going into his nightstand because you almost found-“
nancy smacked a hand over his mouth, robin's eyes widening as jonathan quickly shut up. they all watched you and steve, steve just turning his face into your thighs to conceal his amused smile and you feigning ignorance.
you knitted your brows as you tucked your left hand underneath steve's shoulder as casually as possible, looking to nancy and jonathan.
"i almost found what?" you egged, nodding once. "what did i almost find, jon?"
"nothing, really," nancy said for him, smiling encouragingly. "he was just going to joke about playboys, and i know you wouldn't think it was funny."
"right," you hummed, obviously unconvinced. "he was thinking about playboys."
robin cut in, her voice too anxious and eager as she laughed awkwardly, "of course he was. he's a guy. hell, even i think about playboys."
you nodded, looking to robin with a slight uncomfortable grimace. "what an interesting thing to say."
"no, i just mean-"
"he wasn't thinking of anything in particular?" you said before she could spiral, raising your brows at jonathan, who was struggling for a coverup. steve pushed himself up then, sitting at your side and taking your hand in his.
they were all at a loss, looking at steve apologetically before you raised your left hand.
"nothing like this?" you asked, grinning as steve let out a light laugh.
the gasps you got were your most favorite sound ever, nancy immediately standing up to take a look at it. you giggled, holding it out to her as robin stared at steve with wide eyes.
"you did it?" she asked in awe. "you asked her?"
"she said yes?" jonathan asked next, laughing as steve flipped him off.
"i said yes," you hummed, accepting a hug as nancy offered it.
"oh, i'm so excited for you guys!" she exclaimed as she returned to jonathan's side. "when are you thinking the wedding will be?"
you smiled, settling into steve's side as he tugged you back to lean into the cushions. "preferably after we're finished with this whole military quarantine," he said with a roll of his eyes.
"but, then your parents will come back," robin pointed out, brows knitting. "are you going to live with your parents as a married couple?"
"the basement is big enough," nancy said, shrugging.
admittedly, it was very normal for young married couples to live in their parents' basements until they had enough money for their own places. but, given that you and steve had basically been doing exactly for the entire extent of the quarantine, that didn't really apply.
"no, we'll find a place of our own," you told them. "some place that's really ours."
robin glanced around the room, a small, sad frown tugging at her lips. "this place is yours. i couldn't imagine this place not being yours."
"then, don't," steve said dryly, shrugging. "we have no idea how long we'll be stuck here, and then afterwards, we have no idea where we'll all end up. just let it be good now."
well, if you could frame a quote from steve, that would be it.
you glanced at him, a small smile forming on your lips as you nodded.
"yeah," you agreed. "just let it be good now. i like that."
the five of you sat in that thought for a few moments, gentle smiles on your lips as steve tugged you in to place a kiss on the top of your head.
and then, of course, that simple bliss was ruined by the children you all loved and somewhat adored.
"guys!"
lucas and dustin came running up the stairs, their footsteps loud and heavy as mike, will, and el trailed behind them at a much more normal pace. lucas sped into the room first.
"how hard would it be to convince you to order us pizza?" he asked, eyes finding yours on instinct before he suddenly faltered. he knitted his brows, looking around the room. "why does it feel like we just walked into something?"
"yeah," dustin agreed, nose scrunching as he looked at steve. "are you getting emotional? what's happening?"
"nothing," you chirped, sitting forward with a small smile. "i'll buy you guys pizza if you can answer me one question."
lucas grinned, glad the awkward tension was dissolved and excited at the pizza challenge. "ask it."
"what's different about me today?" you asked, smiling knowingly as you folded your hands in front of you, ring glittering in the sunlight streaming through the window.
they all stepped forward, brows knitting as they looked you over. you met el's eyes as she spotted the ring, a slow smile pulling at her lips as she opted to let the others figure it out first. the same happened to will as he moved to sit with nancy and jonathan, grinning to himself.
the first verbal sign you got wasn't half as enthusiastic as you would've expected. dustin gasped harshly, a low groan slipping out next as his eyes flicked between you and steve. mike's eyes widened as he realized where dustin's head was. "i swear, if you're pregnant-"
"oh my word, henderson," you sighed, head falling in your hands.
"we should just stop trying to surprise you with things," steve said with a frown. "stop assuming she's pregnant."
"stop putting things out there in a way that we can assume she's pregnant!" the boy answered.
steve went to rebuttal, but lucas' gasp cut him off.
he shot forward, pointing at you and grinning widely. "look!" he grabbed your hand, forcing you to pull your head up, and showed it to the other boys. "they're engaged!" he looked to you. "you said yes!"
dustin lit up, his eyes on steve. "you did it! you asked! she said yes!"
"you're engaged!" lucas yelled again as you nodded, laughing. he crouched to hug you and you smiled gently, squeezing him back as his arms wound tight around your middle. he murmured into your shoulder, eyes shut and voice a little tight, yet soft, "i'm so happy for you. this is, like, the only good thing to happen in a long time."
you ran a hand over his back, squeezing him gently. "thank you, lucas."
dustin and steve were doing their dumb little handshake, which you were actually glad to see since they hadn't done it in a long time, as you stood to give him a more full hug. when you released him, will and el came to you in an instant, mike joining purely because he didn't know what else to do.
"we're all very happy for you guys," robin said, smiling as she watched the boys tackle steve in a hug.
nancy patted jonathan's arm with a knowing smile, el fawning over your ring and murmuring, "i've never seen something so pretty. how did he get it?"
"murray, i guess," you said. "he did good, huh?"
"it looks great on her, hm?" steve said as he broke out of the boys' grasps, reaching for your hand with a grin. he held it up, showcasing the ring as you and el giggled, robin laughing in her chair. "my fiancé looks drop dead gorgeous in her ring."
a bright flash had you turning to jonathan, nancy sitting on the arm of the couch next to him with a bright smile as he pulled his camera back down. he shrugged. "it's a nice moment."
"aw, jonny's sentimental!" you cooed, giggling as he rolled his eyes.
"not a chance," he said.
"he always has been," will told you with a grin, jonathan smacking him in return.
lucas came to your side again, his smile too wide for your little heart to handle. "erica is gonna be so mad she wasn't here for this." he paused, smile softening into something half sad and half hopeful. "max is gonna be so excited when she hears..."
instantly, the room went solemn, the mention of your friend weighing heavy.
you wrapped your arm around lucas, hugging him with a small smile. "she's gonna love it. and when we get married, she'll be a bridesmaid," you glanced to el, nancy, and robin, "same with you three," you looked back to lucas with that fond smile, "and she'll look so pretty in her dress, and we'll all have the best time. yeah?"
he nodded, looking to you with a hard, quivering smile as he breathed out an agreement. "yeah."
"yeah, alright," you said, squeezing him once more before stepping towards the hallway. you glanced back at all of them. "now, you did answer my question correctly, so what kind of pizza do you want?"
they all lit up as lucas hung back with steve, calling out which toppings they want and following you to the phone in an effort to convince you to buy sodas too.
steve glanced sideways at the boy, offering him a gentle smile and a clap on the shoulder. "she'll wake up soon," he promised quietly. "and then in a couple years i can show you where i got that ring."
"was it expensive?" lucas asked with a grimace.
steve snorted. "you think we can afford expensive? she'd be pissed at me if i bought her an expensive ring than getting a smaller one that's just as pretty. no, we'll find you a good one for a good price. i've got you."
that thought seemed to brighten his mood a bit and he nodded. "i'll take you up on that. in a couple years, of course."
"well, yeah," steve said, scoffing. "we would never let you get married in high school. that's stupid." lucas laughed, agreeing before he let steve push him towards the kitchen so they could input their opinions on pizza. "c'mon, kid."
hehe more reader and lucas content coming soon bc you guys noticed i have a favorite and since steve gets dustin you get lucas ok YAY thanks for reading!!
steve kissed you awake with a cup of too-hot coffee on the nighstand and you cuddled until your alarm finally went off. you took a shower while he did his hair and put in his contacts.
except he didn't. he skipped that step today for some reason.
not that you minded, walking into the kitchen and brightening when you saw his cute face with his frames still on. you paused, instantly wondering what that was about. "no contacts today?"
"nah," he said, giving you a quick, dismissive kiss as he packed his lunch. "you still good to go to dinner tonight?"
"yeah, i'm looking forward to it," you answered, leaning against the counter as you watched him finish with his sandwich.
he'd been a little corny when he asked you out earlier this week, offering you a single rose and pressing a kiss to the side of your head before throwing out the idea of going to dinner at enzo's.
"good," he said, shooting you a smile that just seemed sweeter with the glasses on. "it's been a while since we've been out just the two of us."
"i agree," you hummed, accepting another quick kiss before he headed out the door to get to the station before 7.
"turn on the radio on your drive!" he called as he pulled the door shut behind you. "love you!"
"love you!" you said, giggling to yourself as he shut the door securely behind him.
when you did exactly that, tuning in and listening to robin's surprisingly smooth radio voice, you were surprised to hear her addressing you specifically.
"this next song goes out to the lovely girl who has reluctantly agreed to be with my sound guy for the next who knows how long. love and appreciate you, bestie, you're great."
your friend clicked off, and then steve's chosen song began playing.
forever and ever, amen by randy travis started playing through your speakers, earning a happily surprised laugh from you. he'd released it earlier in the year and you'd quickly fallen in love, but steve wasn't much of a country guy himself. you thought he'd elected to forget about it, but evidently not.
"you precious man," you mumbled to yourself, smiling too brightly for what you assumed was a normal thursday morning. you hummed along to it, head bobbing from side to side before you started your day with a half-day shift at the diner.
when steve got home, he was smiling small, gripping a small bouquet of peonies a little too tight in one hand as he pushed the door open with the other.
"hey, sweetheart!" he called, locking it behind him and quickly checking the living room and kitchen.
"up here, stevie!"
his smile grew when your voice carried through, jogging up the stairs a little faster than usual and making his way down the hall.
he pushed the door open a crack, peeking in before letting himself in fully. he held the flowers behind his back as he moved to the bathroom, leaning against the doorframe to watch as you fixed your hair. "hey beautiful."
you smiled at him through the mirror, asking, "how was your day?"
"fine," he hummed, shrugging lamely. "better now that i'm back."
"well, go get changed so we can head to dinner," you told him, nodding him away.
he let out a light laugh, head dropping before he looked back up at you, eyes soft as he pulled the flowers out from behind him. "i wanted to give these to you first."
you gasped as you took in the colors - bright pinks and yellows and oranges, a sunset in florals. you accepted them with a wide smile, taking a quick sniff before stepping up to steve. "you're too sweet."
"just want you to know how much i love you," he told you quietly, his smile disappearing only when you rose to your tiptoes and pressed a kiss to his lips.
"well, i love you too," you answered. "i'm gonna put these in a vase, you go change. okay?"
"yes ma'am," he hummed, kissing you again before pulling back. "you look beautiful, by the way."
and you did.
hair done all nice, dressed up just enough that just the sight of you made steve want to cancel dinner and skip to dessert.
you breathed out a laugh, squeezing his hand before stepping out the door. "you said that already."
"i mean it," he answered. "a thousand times over."
"you're sweet," you told him with a gentle smile, finally turning to head down the stairs. "be quick! i'm hungry."
"got it!" he called with a laugh, a little greedy as he watched you descend the stairs.
once you were gone, he moved to tug open the bottom drawer of the dresser, fishing out a very specific red polo that he'd been saving for tonight specifically. he changed into a pair of dark jeans, slipping the shirt over his head and running to the bathroom to fix his hair quickly.
looking himself over, his eyes paused on the glasses. he adjusted them, letting out a deep sigh.
"only because you like them," he muttered, shaking his head before leaving the room and heading down the stairs. "you ready, baby?"
you appeared out of thin air, taking his arm with a nod. "lead the way, cowboy."
he raised a brow, confused for a few seconds before a slow blush creeped up his neck. "you liked the song, then?"
"loved it," you told him, pressing a quick kiss to his lips. you gave him a once over, smile growing. "and i love all of this too. you're very handsome, honey. is that a new shirt?"
he shrugged, glancing down as though he was just noticing. "maybe."
you hummed, pulling at the hem. "well, i like it. it makes your arms look delectable." you squeezed his biceps with a teasing laugh before pushing him towards the door, flicking the lights off. "let's go."
"so eager, aren't you?" he teased, heart still pounding at your little compliment. he grabbed his keys off the wall as you walked out the door, locking it behind you before letting you drag him to the car.
"of course i am," you hummed, smiling gratefully as he pulled your door open for you. when you were sat, you looked back up at him, working on your seatbelt. "a couple hours with you all to myself? i'd do anything for that."
"well, luckily for us i managed to convince the kids to go anywhere else for tonight," he told you, stepping around the door to give you a slow kiss. "we're all alone."
you raised a curious brow. "how did you manage that?"
"i have my ways," he hummed, kissing you again before moving and shutting your door for you.
he was grateful you couldn't feel his pulse quickening as you held his hand on the way to dinner, or throughout dinner, or that, if you did notice, you didn't mention it. that would've made it all much worse.
conversation was light, but it certainly wasn't easy, his mind continually flicking back to the little red box that still sat in the center console of his beamer, exactly where he'd instructed dustin to put. he'd brought it back over the night before, sneaking it in without a word before coming inside to raid your freezer and crash in the spare bedroom.
there had been blood on his cheek that steve elected not to ask about, a little too used to his school troubles at this point and the attitude that accompanied them. he couldn't have henderson getting in his head, not only 24 hours before he had to do the single most terrifying thing he'd ever done in his entire life.
and that was considering all the supernatural shit he's had to fight as of the last few years.
he'd meant to grab it from the middle console before you went inside, but there was no way for him to do that in a way that you wouldn't notice, so now he was just stuck in this repetitive, frustrating cycle of trying to figure out how to finish out the night properly.
everything else had gone perfectly, he'd just decided to be an idiot minutes before he was supposed to pop the most important question of his life to the most important person in his life.
and now he could hardly keep up conversation without sounding like said idiot.
luckily for him, you were good at filling the space, all too happy to explain to him all the things nancy had been telling you about when the kids weren't around. you weren't normally one to gossip (that was a lie, it was one of your favorite things to do), but you just couldn't comprehend some of the things she was saying.
"her and jonathan, you know, i really do still think they're endgame," you said on the drive home, finally bringing the conversation full circle as steve focused on his breathing. his arm rested heavily on the center console, your hand covering his on the gear shift as you continued on. "she just... she's really independent. and jonathan gets that, i think it's just hard for him sometimes. but, that's just my opinion."
your eyes turned to steve, searching and wondering as a smile pulled at your lips.
he hummed in answer, nodding mindlessly. "yeah, no, that's... that's a good point, though."
you let out a bit of a laugh, squeezing his hand as he pulled into your driveway, his heartrate picking up a concerning amount. he turned off the car, headlights shutting off and leaving you in darkness as you both unbuckled.
you were still smiling as you reached for the handle, only pausing to check again, "we have the night to ourselves?"
he let out a breath, nodding and shooting you a small smile. "i made sure of it. but, uh, before we can relax and wind down and do whatever else, there's one last thing i'm very desperate to do."
you raised your brows, a curious smile on your lips that made you look ridiculously enticing. you dropped your hand from the handle, turning to face him a bit better. "something you're desperate to do?" you echoed.
"yes, and just-" he let out a breathy laugh, cupping your jaw gently and bringing your lips to his. you smiled into it for how short it lasted, the boy pulling away after just a few moments, thumb running over your cheek as he asked you quietly, "look away for me, will you?"
your brows raised again, your laugh a little bit surprised as you just watched him. "look away? what are you gonna do, strip?"
"what? no!" he shook his head quickly, glasses bouncing a bit on his face and earning another laugh before he dropped his hand from your cheek and huffed, "no, just... look away."
you rolled your eyes, smiling good-naturedly before turning away and placing your hand over your eyes. "okay," you agreed.
"thank you," he breathed out. he pulled his center console open, quickly spotting the thin red box in question and pulling it out. the little piece of metal inside smacked against the box, making a dull clacking noise that he silently cursed as he shoved it in his pocket.
he didn't say anything next, just shut the center console and got out of the car, rounding the front quickly to pull your door open for you. he smiled as you looked up at him with a teasing smile, shrugging a quick, "thank you."
he held your hand as he led you up the few steps to the door, quickly unlocking it and letting you in before shutting it behind himself, locking it once more. he let out a shaky breath as you continued into the house, wandering into the kitchen and flicking on the lights.
his hand found the box in his pocket, following you in as you perched yourself on the counter with a small smile, the peonies he'd bought you sitting beside you in a pretty yellow vase.
"so," you hummed, taking his hand as he slowly made his way up to you and intertwining your fingers. "what's this thing that you're so desperate to do?"
he nodded, forcing a nervous smile as he glanced down at his pocket, squeezing your hand tight. "right, uh-" he paused, letting out a sharp breath before raising his eyes to yours again. quickly, before he could talk himself out of it, he set the box on the counter next to you. "i got you something."
you looked down at it, brows knitting slightly.
it was an elegant box, definitely, the red too deep and the gold edges too shiny to be cheap. but, it was flat like a macy's bracelet case, and yet too small to be for a bracelet. a pair of earrings, you thought.
you smiled and reached for it, but he pulled away quickly, fingers folding over the edges as he shook his head.
"no," he said quickly, letting out a breathless laugh before he squared himself again. "just, uh, just watch for now."
you were entirely lost, but it was still sweet seeing how nervous he was for whatever reason. you smiled gently, nodding. "okay. watch what?"
"um," he said, biting the inside of his lip before setting the box on the counter again and grabbing your hips. quickly, he lifted you down, setting you on your feet as you yelped slightly, deciding, "you should be here. yeah." he smiled slightly as he looked down at you, squeezing your hips and then stepping back. "perfect."
you let out a light laugh, watching him curiously. "okay... now what?"
"now," he said, heart racing still as he reached for the box again. he grabbed the top, fingers trembling as he lifted the lid off and almost dropped it, shooting you a nervous smile when he caught it and placed it underneath the bottom.
you couldn't see inside just because of his height, holding it a little too high for you, which you automatically assumed was purposeful.
earrings, you told yourself again. definitely earrings.
but instead, with gentle fingers against the foam padding of the box, steve grabbed out a small, dainty, but sparkling diamond ring, watching your expression as he offered a really hopeful smile.
your breath caught, eyes widening as he set the box to the side and very slowly dropped to one knee, the tile biting cold even through his jeans.
"i was going to do this at enzo's, but i didn't know how to get it out of the car," he said, laughing a bit as he held the ring in front of him. his eyes stayed locked on your face, his breathing slowing slightly as your lips tugged into a smile. "but, i figure it doesn't matter where i ask, just that i do, right?"
you couldn't say a word, too shocked and too excited to do anything but stare into his perfect hazel eyes.
"look," he said softly, breathing out a gentle laugh through his nose. "i'm just going to keep it simple. i'm in love with you. i've been in love with you for years. you're the only thing that gets me up in the mornings, the only thing able to get me sleeping peacefully at night. you're the most perfect, most stable thing i have in my life, and my biggest fear is losing you. and my biggest dream..." he took a deep breath, smile softening hopefully. "is to be your husband. i want this to be forever."
you let out a shaky breath, smile wide as you held his eyes.
"so..." he trailed off, a beat passing before he finally asked, "will you marry me?"
your answer was instant, immediate, you didn't even have to think about it. you just smiled, nodding and telling him a sure, "yes. yes, of course i will."
he laughed loudly, standing quickly and wrapping you in his arms as he lifted you in a hug. he spun you slightly before setting you back on your feet and taking your face in one hand, lips capturing yours in an emotional, smiley kiss.
"here," he said as he pulled away, grabbing your left hand and raising the ring to it. he slid it onto the proper finger, a grin lighting up his expression as he murmured, "it fits."
"of course it fits," you laughed, hugging him tightly again. you let out a disbelieving breath, mumbling into his ear, "i'm going to be your wife, steve harrington."
"oh, i know," he breathed out, pressing a kiss to your shoulder. "i get to be your husband."
"we're getting married," you said next. you pulled back, meeting his eyes with a soft look. "i love you so much."
he smiled. "i love you more, if you'll believe it."
"somehow, i think i do," you laughed gently. "we're getting married, stevie. this is a dream come true." your smile turned teasing when you said next, "i knew there was a reason you chose to wore your glasses today."
he laughed, pulling you closer by your waist. "had to do everything i could to trick you into saying yes."
"you didn't trick me," you said, rolling your eyes. "i can't be tricked. but, you do look a little extra husband-y when you wear them, i will say that."
he grinned, leaning down to kiss you gently. "sweetheart, that was the goal."
when he broke away, he pulled you slowly with him as he walked backwards to the other end of the kitchen where your boombox sat on the bar, a stack of your daily rotation tapes sitting next to it. you smiled curiously as he placed a bright white one in, one you didn't recognize, and pressed play.
"you're sure you meant to propose at enzo's?" you teased as the player tried to find the end of the tape. "this seems pretty planned out now."
"oh no," he chuckled, adjusting your hands to wrap a little more snugly on his neck as his found your waist, pulling you closer. "no, definitely meant it to be a bit fancier. but, a kitchen proposal fits us a bit better, i think."
and as forever and ever, amen began to play, you just breathed out the happiest laugh. "it's perfect. you're perfect."
he hummed, resting his forehead against yours as he gently swayed you to the music. "we're perfect. forever and ever."
at first, it hadn't been different enough for you to care much. billy had been angry for half your life, none of what he was doing was exactly new. just a little harsher. louder. deadlier.
but now, seeing it, registering it for what it was? it almost crippled you.
you didn't understand fully what mike and lucas tried to explain to you as the mindflayer's control, trying to push it off as billy's choice but it wasn't. it was something in his head, messing with his mind, pushing his body to dangerous places just for this psychotic, supernatural creature to use hawkins residents to create a body for itself.
as this information set in, you became increasingly grateful that billy was not one of these melted, malformed bodies squelched together to create the beast you were actively trying now to kill.
until he walked into the room, angry and grunting and dragging el with him to feed her to the beast.
"no, no, no!" you yelled, eyes wide as the boys and nancy all began throwing fireworks at the massive, disgusting beast. "what the hell is he doing here?"
"throw the damn explosives!" lucas yelled, shoving one in your hand as el tried to fight against billy.
you grunted, obeying and lighting the small package up before chucking it at the mindflayer as hard as you could.
and as soon as it hit the thing?
billy dropped.
he writhed on the floor as you all barraged the mindflayer's flesh with fireworks, the inital sting knocking him down before he manage to work through it. after fighting himself up, trying to resist the pain that filled him at the mindflayer's own pain, he had el by the shoulders, holding her to the floor as dark veins spread across his skin.
it looked scarily like the first time he'd gotten angry with max, minus the supernatural aspects to his current strength, and you were racing towards the staircase in an instant.
"we're almost out!" steve shouted to dustin through the walkie-talkie as he looked to the boxes of fireworks. then, his eyes caught on your figure as you soared down the stairs to be at base level, moving quicker than anyone could've expected. "shit."
you could hear steve behind you, yelling at you to stop and following you quickly down the stairs, but you couldn't stop. all you could see was billy, on the floor, holding el as those furious black veins slowly disappeared. she was saying something to him, his eyes going glassy before they flicked to meet your matching ones.
"billy, stop!" you cried, stalling only when the mindflayer turned its attention to you. lucas hit it with another firework and it roared, looking away and allowing you to move once again. you swallowed harshly, walking slower towards the two and saying softer, "when this is over, you'll be normal again. okay? you'll be alright, we just have to stop this thing. let her go."
you approached him slowly, your name being called behind you as you simply held a hand up and slowed your steps.
he glanced between you and el, his features softening and his skin clearing even through the sweat and blood. his breath trembled as el continued, her voice soft and tears covering her cheeks.
you could finally start to hear what she was telling him, quiet murmurs about the beach and a beautiful woman with a long dress and a blue and red flower, surfing and sand and you.
you could see it too.
long, sunny days in california, before the divorce, before the abuse, before max even entered your lives. you were young and excitable, always at the beach with your angel of a mother who had taught you both how to surf at young ages. it was all you ever did, and you always did it together as she watched with a wide, encouraging smile.
everything had seemed so simple then. so easy.
his eyes met yours, two halves to the same whole, the only constant you had ever known, and el sobbed out,
"you were happy."
she raised a hand to his cheek as tears slipped down his cheeks, his breaths going from violent to soft as he regained his breath and his person.
he stood, stepping in front of el slowly as she pushed herself backwards in fear, the mindflayer turning to face them both. your heart raced, lunging forward as it reached for eleven with a tentacle of an arm -
but, billy was quicker.
when he lunged in front of her, it wasn't violent. it was precise, protective. it was the same way he used to get you behind him when your father's voice grew too loud.
he caught the arm, pushing it back with bared teeth and loud grunts. "no!" he yelled, crying out as he fought against it, boots scraping against the tile to keep himself in place.
you screamed, breath catching and heart seizing as you lunged forward like you could be of any help from such a distance. "billy!"
max and mike emerged in that moment, mike running to pull el away as max stood there with wide, red eyes. they flicked from billy to you to billy again, her breath catching and trembling all at once.
four more tentacle-like arms shot out, and you moved with them, all five racing to billy as you yelled out.
but, they were actually able to reach him.
you were grabbed by two strong arms from behind, wrenched backwards as billy was slowly lifted in the air, blood seeping from his torso as the tentacles cut into his skin, the boy grunting as he resisted.
"no!" you screamed, voice trembling with a pain that would be more expected from billy than you. you fought against steve even as he clung to you with all the strength he had left, groaning as you dug your nails into his arms. "no, let me go! let me go!"
you grunted, trying to find some purchase on the tile but realizing all too quickly that steve was much stronger than you. you shouted out, slamming your foot into the floor in an attempt to keep him from dragging you backwards but failing spectacularly.
"you can't help him!" he answered, his hold only tightening as he pulled you back.
you cried out, a choking sob slipping from your lips as he pulled you flush against his chest, arms securing your arms to your sides as he continued to walk backwards. something in you broke as his forehead dropped to your shoulder, his next words gentler.
"you can't help him, baby," he breathed out quietly. "i'm sorry."
it was almost worse, hearing him say it kinder. it carried that sense of truth that pissed you off, the kind that made you understand how ridiculous it looked for you to try to get involved when it would inevitably lead to your death.
you hated that steve was right, and you hated that you wanted to run to billy anyways.
you still tried to pull away like he was dragging you towards your death instead of away, but they could have been the same thing from what you could tell. your vision was blurry, and yet the focus was the same - the limp body of your best friend held up by fleshy tentacles that were literally draining the life from him.
his tank top grew red with his own, thick blood, and you let out a choking sob at the sight, steve's eyes softening even as his grip on you tightened.
your voice broke as you pleaded violently, "let me go!"
max was watching you instead of billy, her hands trembling and breath shaking as you tried to tear yourself away from steve. he was doing his best to keep you away, but the shear force you were applying against his already-sore body was almost impressive.
to you it was just desperation.
pure desperation that had you swinging and screaming and crying, hitting steve like you didn't even realize that it was him behind you, just that someone was holding you back when you needed to run forward.
but, even beyond desperation, it was instinct.
this wasn't new to you, billy getting stuck in some sort of adrenaline-inducing fight that had him broken and bleeding. max was convinced that he put himself in these situations on purpose, but you'd long since known that they just happened upon him instead.
you'd learned at a young age that if billy didn't hit first, he'd get hit harder. and you'd learned at that same age that when he inevitably ran, you'd always run with him.
that was the difference between you and max.
that was the difference between a little sister and a twin.
she ran from billy, while you ran toward him.
that was your job, your born instinct, your duty to always run to billy and he to you.
but, you couldn't now. you had two bloodied arms holding you in place even as you screamed and clawed and pushed him away.
up above, lucas was screaming into his walkie-talkie for joyce to shut the gate, but you couldn't hardly hear him. your bloodshot eyes were on your brother.
billy's life had always been filled with pain. you'd experienced it all along with him until you didn't. until he started keeping you from it. your whole life, billy had been both your shield against the danger and your access to it, never a knight, but forever a force to be reckoned with.
and you couldn't reach him. he was bleeding, dying, screaming, and you couldn't reach him.
you screamed his name, screamed it until your throat felt raw and your voice broke and it didn't even sound like you anymore. just over and over again like it was the only thing you could think to do, you screamed his name.
billy looked back at you, his eyes glossed over, mouth covered in blood and somehow he still had that same stupid smirk that always made you want to hit him. it was softer now, bottom lip trembling as tears made tracks through the blood.
his gaze met steve's then, a silent appreciation in his stare as he noted the grip in which the harrington boy held you. steve met it, intimidated almost, silently promising even more.
"let me go, steve!" you cried again, pushing against his arms.
in that moment, steve saw him as more than just the asshole from gym class.
"he's my brother!"
he's your twin brother.
the monster moved, everyone's breaths catching as another tentacle emerged.
your eyes were wide, too wide, every emotion reading on your face as pure instinct fueled your next moves.
you jabbed an elbow into steve's stomach, the boy's breath catching with a grunt and his grip loosening just enough for you to go flying forward.
but, you were too far. somehow, steve had managed to drag you far enough back in your squirming and pushing that you weren't anywhere near as close as you needed to be to be of any use. so, you ran faster, even as steve yelled and followed.
billy had turned back tot he beast and began screaming loudly, a final act of defiance against the thing that had stolen his autonomy from him in mind and body. it was a very billy thing to do. it almost made you want to smile.
and then the mindflayer stabbed an arm through his chest.
max screamed behind you, but you couldn't hear it.
everything went silent. everything went numb.
a quiet buzzing filled your ears, your arms falling to your sides as you froze. all you could do was watch, breath completely gone and limbs limp, heart barely pumping enough to keep you alive.
the mindflayer screamed, seizing and crashing to the ground as billy did, the gate obviously shut now.
realization crashed against you like a wave of ocean water, and you collapsed at his side, hands on his shoulders as you tried to meet his sullen eyes, yours wide and desperate and terrified.
"billy please," you begged, voice trembling and eyes filling with tears.
you patted his cheek like it would wake him from his blood loss induced trance, his eyes flickering and blinking too slowly in an attempt to see you.
you'd been here once before, when he wiped out at the skatepark when you were 12. he'd been trying to teach you, and instead he ended up on the concrete. but, he'd managed a smile, then. he wasn't smiling now.
"billy stay awake, please, people will be here soon. please, billy. seriously, billy, please." your voice was higher than normal, breaths shaking as you brushed his curls out of his face.
you shook your head, lip quivering as you said again. "billy, you can't, please," you cried quietly, shaking your head again and again. "you can't leave me. i can't lose you, billy, please." his breaths shook even more than yours, and your voice broke as you whimpered, "you're my brother. i can't lose you."
finally, his eyes flickered to you, unfocused. after another murmur of his name, they settled, and he knew exactly who you were, even now, even with blood in his eyes and life slipping from his fingers.
max was standing over your shoulder, her hands over her mouth as she stared down at him in shock. his eyes met hers for just a moment, enough to blink and twitch a simple nod, a silent reassurance that he saw her.
blood spilled from his lips, circling around his neck and sticking to his hair as he reached a limp hand to your cheek, eyes returning to your matching ones. you held it there, letting out a sob as he tried at a thin smile. he glanced between you both. "i'm sorry," he whispered, grip faltering as a breath slipped from his lips.
"no, no, no, no," you sobbed, patting his cheek before you choked, faltering as a desperate cry slipped by your lips. his eyes went blank, baby blues dull in a way they'd never been before, and you dropped your head to his shoulder, crying out, "no."
you sucked in a trembling breath, hands shaking as you placed his hand back at his side and turned to comfort your sobbing sister behind you, but lucas was already there, having raced down the stairs to be by her side. he hugged her close, his brows knitted in concern and shock as he ran a hand over her back.
"it's okay," he whispered to her. "it's okay."
but, it wasn't okay. it never would be.
it all hit you at once when you looked back at billy's limp form. soul-wracking gasps nearly split your throat as you fell back, hand coming to your mouth in shock and disbelief. his blood covered your clothes, your hands, and now your face, and you pushed yourself backwards across the wet tile.
"steve," you managed to whimper out, still not able to tear your eyes away from your brother.
he was there in an instant, dropping to his knees in front of you and pulling your attention to him as he tugged you securely into his chest.
his arms wrapped tightly around you, one hand smoothing over your hair as he kept your eyes off the body, face tucked into his stained uniform shirt. "i've got you," he told you quietly, pressing his lips to the top of your head. "i have you, sweetheart."
you clung to him like he was the only tether to life you had left, which was half true. it was odd, it wasn't grief that swept you first - it was confusion.
billy was the only constant you'd ever had in your life. you'd come into the world together, you'd faced the world together. somehow, through everything you'd been through, everything that he'd done to you, he still managed to be the only person to ever understand you to the fullest extent.
and he was gone.
that connection, that understanding, that innate, instinctual love that you'd never had to live without was gone. ripped away from you by a creature from the supernatural.
murdered right before your eyes.
you couldn't meet steve's eyes as the agents and soldiers from dr owens' lab came in to clear everything out and make it look like something it wasn't. make your brother's death look like an accident instead of a sacrifice.
he carried you to the ambulance, holding your hand and talking you through it as one of the emt's made sure that you were okay enough to go home. when they declared you alright to leave, he tried to get you to meet his eyes, but you just couldn't.
still, you wouldn't let go of his hand.
"let's get you home," he told you softly. "i'm going to find max, and we're gonna get you home, okay?"
you shook your head, biting the inside of your lip as tears welled in your eyes.
billy was supposed to be at home. he stayed in the room next to yours, with his stupid music playing all the time, those dumb swimsuit posters on his walls, dozens of colognes and hairsprays on his desk for all the dates he filled his weekends with, a dumb model of his own car sitting next to them.
the real thing was wrecked. it was on the other side of the parking lot, still sitting there from when steve rammed into it in a successful attempt at saving nancy and the kids.
you silently wondered if there would be a way to fix it. it was half your car anyways, you helped him pay for it.
half of most everything of billy's was yours anyways.
"okay," steve said slowly, squeezing your hand and waiting for you to meet his eyes again. you didn't, staring down at your swinging feet as he let out a heavy breath. "will you wait here for a second?"
that's when your eyes shot to his, brows knitting as you sat straighter. "steve-"
"you can come with me," he told you quickly, looking you over quickly as though something had hurt you in the two seconds he glanced away. "or i will be right back. i'm just going to talk to the kids."
you looked over his shoulder to see max still clinging to lucas, el rubbing her arm as mike stood next to them not knowing what to do. you met steve's eyes with a thin breath. "be quick."
he smiled small and nodded, pressing a kiss to your temple before jogging over to them.
you sat alone for a total of two minutes, counting each breath with a swing of your foot and trying to keep yourself from bursting into a fit of tears.
every time you blinked, you saw him bleeding out on the floor. every time you opened your eyes the outline of him stood beside your sister.
it was a losing game.
steve came back to you with the kids trailing behind him, his keys spinning around his finger as he offered you a small smile. "we're going to my house," he told you quietly. "i just need you to call your stepmom when we get there to let her know about max staying over." he dropped his volume, voice soft as his fingers ran gently over your knuckles. "she doesn't want to go home either."
you met max's eyes, hopping off the back of the ambulance and taking steve's hand in yours. she clung to lucas the way you clung to steve, the boys grounding you and holding you steady as you tried to deal with losing the single steadiest, most aggressive force in your life.
"you want to go to steve's?" you checked quietly, making a silent vow to go wherever she did, and pleading that she chose to go to steve's.
she gave you a nod, swallowing her grief to murmur, "lucas is coming too. and el."
you let out a trembling breath, glancing to steve who offered you a gentle smile. "okay, then."
the kids led the way, steve holding you up as you walked across the parking lot to his car. it was almost odd, seeing something as normal as steve harrington's beamer when the last 48 hours had been spent in russian bunkers and fighting supernatural monsters, but it was a relief to you.
as the kids climbed into the backseat, steve walked with you to your side. he grabbed the handle, keeping it closed for a moment as he met your eyes. "promise to tell me what you need," he told you softly. "i've got you, okay? promise to tell me."
your breath fell short again, staggering and catching in your throat as you tried to regain it. when you did you nodded, swallowing harshly and managing a thin murmur of, "i promise."
he nodded, his smile small and reassuring. "okay."
he pressed a kiss to your head before pulling your door open and helping you in.
your eyes found the radio instantly, muscle memory telling you to reach for an ac/dc tape, but there wasn't one. wrong car. wrong person.
steve got in, starting up the car with another sure look your direction before slowly leaving the lot. he held your hand over the gearshift on the way to his house, and you clung to his fingers as tightly as he'd clung to you back in the mall.
the same way he held onto you to keep you from death then, you were holding onto him to save you from death now. at least, what felt like death.
he pressed a kiss to your knuckles, never once telling you it was going to be okay or alright or that you were fine. steve wasn't a liar. in his words and actions, all he ever did was prove that he was here.
and that might've been the real thing that kept you breathing.
okay, i actually spent so long on this trying to get it exactly right, and it's not but i still like it. i kind of struggled balancing billy grief with steve comfort, so i hope you like it and this is what you hoped for!
to address one of your questions in the request, i think if billy had a twin she would just mourn him. i imagine she's spent her whole life coming up with excuses for him because that's just normal for her, that's like instinct for her, her way of protecting him, whereas max didn't have as much motivation to excuse his actions and that led to her inner resentment. his twin likely does have some of that resentment, but has shoved it so deep down in trying to help him that she refuses to let it surface
the house isn't empty installment! can be read alone
requested! okay, i'm getting to all your requests and i have the proposal piece written 😏 but i'm trying to piece them out as to what should be before/after your engagement. AGAIN if you have ideas shoot them my way! y'all know by now that i try to get stuff out quick haha
unfortunately, being the sound guy at a radio station means that steve works basically every day.
well, unless robin is deathly ill. then, he's allowed to stay home too.
but, that meant that you got the house to yourself a lot. your shifts were shorter than his and not as regular, meaning that there were usually at least 1 or 2 days a week that you had the whole day to yourself.
today was one of those days.
the kids were in school, nancy and jonathan were off doing whatever they did (you hadn't a clue), and steve and robin were at the station. you were free from social engagement until at least 3 o'clok, and you were living it up.
the sun was bright, the sky had a light dusting of cloud cover, and the season was dipping into that late summer coolness that was just enough to make you feel refreshed.
you stayed in bed until 10am, made yourself a nice little brunch, and then started on some household projects you'd been putting off for a while. you threw some laundry in the wash that steve would inevitably fold later, cleaned the living room carpets, swept and mopped the kitchen - all the things you hated to do when you'd already worked a shift at the diner.
but, today, with your boombox blaring cyndi lauper, you were extremely content just having that on your schedule.
eventually, you made your way up the stairs, set on deep cleaning your room. you'd told el a few weeks prior that you were going through your clothes and she could have some, and you'd still had yet to do that.
you brought the boombox with you, setting it on the dresser and turning it way further up than it should've been - not that you cared. you just smiled and sang along, very loud and very off-key, but very passionate nonetheless.
you pulled the drawers open as you sung along to 'girls just wanna have fun', grinning to yourself and beginning to go through your tops.
robin was sick.
deathly sick.
or, at least, that's what she said when she got to work that morning.
"i'm going to die, steve," she complained as she dropped into her chair, moaning and groaning with a hand covering her eyes.
"then, why are we here?" he asked, knitting his brows. "we can just set it on mix and be done for the morning."
she shook her head. "no, my listeners expect things of me. i'm a media personality now."
he snorted, rolling his eyes. "okay, whatever. you better get some personality back because you're on in five."
she managed to make it to lunch before she tapped out, voice too strained from congestion and head pounding. steve offered her some meds and then took her home, setting the afternoon mix on even though he knew it would turn off before people got off work. whatever, they could find a different station.
"i'm sure your girl will be happy you're home for once," robin said as she leaned against the window, eyes squeezed shut. "probably hates this job."
"nah, i think she likes some time to herself," steve hummed, shrugging. "gets to sleep in and do whatever she wants for a day."
she groaned dramatically, slumping into her seat deeper as she clung to the seatbelt. "i wish."
"you're the one who came up with this radio idea," he pointed out, shooting her a raise of his brows.
"yeah, yeah, shut up," she mumbled, waving him away.
when they got to her place, he just watched her go inside, shoulders slumped as she dragged her feet like a zombie. she didn't even wave when she got to the door like she normally did, just stepped inside and slammed it shut behind her.
steve rolled his eyes, starting the 5 minute drive to your place a little too excited to see you.
when he pulled in, he was surprised to see the curtains to the living room open, showcasing the fresh lines of the powercleaner and fluffed pillows on the couch.
he smiled to himself. you must've been productive today.
when he stepped inside, he realized just how productive you were, though.
he could hear the washer running, noticed how clean the kitchen was, and the music playing loudly from your room was clear evidence that you were now focused on that task.
"baby?" he called, sure you wouldn't be able to hear him. "i'm home!"
he tossed his keys onto the hook before jogging up the stairs with a gentle smile. he was quick making it to your shared room, knocking twice before pushing the door open. "sweetheart?"
his heart wasn't prepared for the cuteness the open door revealed to him.
you, on the bed with a hairbrush in your hand, fallen on your knees as you sung way too loudly into it and reached forward like there was a camera on you filming for mtv.
and what was playing?
just separate ways by journey. of course.
"someday love will find you!" you sang as you climbed back to your feet. "true love won't desert you! you know i still love you!"
you took in a heavy breath, eyes finally focusing on the door and steve as you calmed down from the song's climax.
you screamed, clutching the hairbrush to your chest as you tried to regain your breath.
"how long have you been standing there?" you asked, obviously mortified as you slowly stepped off the bed.
steve was just grinning, leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed over his chest. "long enough. did i do something wrong?"
you knitted your brows. "what?"
"you just..." he let out a breath, still smiling as he shook his head. "you were really feeling that song. did i mess up or something? i promise i'm not deserting you."
"no, i-" you couldn't come up with an answer, warmth flooding your cheeks as you finally just ducked your head and moved to set your brush back in the bathroom. "why are you here?"
he laughed loudly. "wow, you really are mad at me, aren't you?"
"oh, shut up," you answered, rolling your eyes as you walked back into the room. "you're just supposed to be at work. did something happen?"
"robin is sick," he hummed, smiling as he walked up to you and wrapped his arms snugly around your middle. "which means i get to spend the rest of the day with you." he shot a look to the boombox, smirk growing. "and journey, apparently."
you blushed more, dropping your head to his chest as you let out a groan. "you're not letting this go, are you?"
"no, i want to hear more," he told you, laughing lightly before kissing the side of your head. he squeezed your waist. "come on, baby. sing for me."
"no," you mumbled against his shirt.
"please?" he said, squeezing your waist again. "just one more song."
"not a chance, harrington," you told him, pulling back with a shake of your head.
he grinned, lowering his face to be just a breath away from yours. "i'll sing with you."
"help me clean and then we can sing together, then," you told him cheekily, knowing exactly how much he likely hated seeing the piles of your clothes all over the floor.
he groaned, dropping his head on your shoulder. "this is what i get for coming home early?"
"this is what you get for teasing me about my singing," you answered, poking him in the chest and letting out a light laugh.
"i wasn't teasing you," he answered, meeting your eyes again. "i actually loved it. i love you."
you smiled small, heart warming. "i love you too."
he dipped to kiss you smoothly, hand coming to the back of your head to keep you in place as he shifted just that much more into your space. you melted into him, hands coming to his shoulders as you rose to your tiptoes and pulled him tighter.
he broke with a heavy breath, forehead resting against yours as he breathed out, "i'm gonna marry you."
you kissed him again, smiling through it before answering, "i'm looking forward to it."
you enjoyed it for the most part, and steve enjoyed helping in the ways that he could - you know, anything not involving a stove since he had a knack for burning everything he touched.
but, at some point, you realized that he was also terrible at chopping things.
for example, when it came to tomatoes, he always held it awkwardly, cutting it in half first and then doing the normal criss-crossing cuts. but, inevitably, every time he would realize that they were too big because he hadn't continued cutting it widthwise other than that first half cut, he would take each piece and cut it individually to get it to the smaller size you requested.
"can i show you an easier way?" you asked one day, unable to contain your amused smile as he struggled with the first tomato.
he sighed, nodding and stepping back from the cutting board. "please. they're slippery."
"okay, well, first step, then," you said, laughing gently as you tore a paper towel from the roll on the counter. "pat them dry."
he scoffed at himself, mumbling about why he didn't think of that and helping you wipe the other two tomatoes dry. once that was complete, you picked up the knife and set the first tomato on its side.
"we're gonna cut off the ends first," you instructed, doing exactly that and then setting it upright on one of the flat sides. "and you're going to cut the little cross sections into it this way."
he knitted his brows as he watched you cut a checkerboard into the other end, nearly going all the way down to the other end, but not quite. "okay."
"then, we turn it on its side again," you said as you did it. "and cut off the size of pieces we need now that the rest of the sides are preshaped."
you chopped off a few rows of tomato cubes, smiling up at him quickly. "see? easy - shit!"
you dropped the knife, pulling your left hand away quickly and examining it. a thin trail of blood spilled down your ring finger, a smooth slice along the pad the culprit.
steve was on you instantly.
he grabbed your wrist gently, prying your hand towards him and clicking his tongue at the sight. "how did you manage that?"
he dragged you quickly to the sink, immediately turning it on to room temperature and running your finger beneath it. he checked your expression for any sign of pain, asking, "are you good?" you nodded, and he let go of your wrist, stepping forward to press a kiss to your forehead. "stay here. i'll be right back."
he hurried off as you held your finger under the faucet, content with the way the stream was slowly turning clear again. evidently, it wasn't a deep cut, but it still stung.
when he returned, you were already patting it dry with a paper towel, shooting him a small smile as he set the first aid kit on the island counter. he clicked his tongue, inspecting your hand quickly before turning you slowly and murmuring, "come here."
he lifted you quickly, setting you on the counter in front of him and popping the kit open.
"of course i cut myself while doing the tomatoes," you said, laughing gently at your own mess. "the tomato juice made it hurt like hell."
"yeah, they're acidic," he mumbled, taking your hand and frowning at your cut. he kissed it gently, glancing up at you and saying, "i'm sorry it hurts."
"it's fine," you shrugged. "really. just need a bandaid is all."
"no, i think i should wipe it with antiseptic," he said, shaking his head as he dug out the prepackaged wipes. "you said it yourself - tomato juice got in there."
you laughed lightly, shaking your head. "yeah, but it's all gone now. we ran it under water for like five minutes."
"it wasn't five minutes," he told you astutely, sighing as he dug around in the bag. "but, i don't think we have the wipes anyway, so i guess you win." he grabbed out a small bandaid, unwrapping it quickly and winding it around your finger as he told you, "i'll finish with the vegetables. even if it takes me twice as long."
"it's a good method," you defended lamely. "you should try it. it would help you."
"you cut yourself," he told you dumbly.
"well, everyone cuts themselves. it's fine," you said with a shrug.
he balled the wrappers in his hand and tossed them into the trash before shutting the first aid kit and putting it under the sink with a mumble about, "probably needing to keep it here."
then, he turned back to you, hands on your thighs as he stepped between your legs and gave you a small, still concerned smile.
"you okay?" he asked gently.
you held up your ring finger wrapped in a tan bandaid with an amused smile. "a'okay, babe."
"good," he said, taking your hand and kissing your finger again. "don't do that again. especially not to this finger."
"no?" you teased, tilting your head. "why not?"
"because i need this one intact," he told you, not elaborating further as he just pulled you in for a kiss.
the house isn't empty installment! can be read alone
requested!
summary: your slightly crazy stepmon invites you and steve out for dinner, and while it starts a little sideways, steve has a talent at making things go his way
your dad adored him, called him the son he never had (which your brother definitely took offense to), and was very open about how appreciative he felt to him for taking care of you.
“he’s a provider,” your dad tells you on any given day as soon as your boyfriend got brought up. “he’ll give you a good life someday.”
to which you always respond, “he already is.”
but, your stepmom? she was hesitant.
she insisted that you needed someone stronger, more intense, more exciting, even. there were many nights that you'd been preached to about how decisiveness and sternness in a man was one of the most attractive things, and how jealousy was actually just a natural, endearing sort of protectiveness.
her opinions confused you since your dad was a perfectly normal, healthy guy, and definitely made you wonder at the nature of her relationships before him.
so, when she was the one to suggest a dinner for the four of you, you were a bit surprised.
“why?” steve hummed as he got dressed, searching for that blue sweater that your dad always complimented. “she loves me. well, enough.”
“she’s just… odd,” you said, struggling for the best way to put it as you worked on your makeup. you swiped some gloss over your lips before explaining, “i don’t think she knew what a good relationship looked like before my dad. and sometimes i think she still doesn’t realize exactly why it’s good.” you turned, watching him through the open bathroom door. “do you know what she told me when i said we were moving in together?”
he pulled his sweater over his head. “what?”
“she winked and said it was good for the sex,” you deadpanned before scoffing. “my dad was right there! poor man looked like he saw a ghost.”
steve frowned, brows knitted tight as he fixed the bottom of his top. “we hadn’t even had sex yet.”
“i know! she just… jumps to conclusions,” you said, sighing and exiting the bathroom to grab the outfit you’d set out earlier. you dressed quickly, continuing, “and she’s critical. of both of us. says we aren’t expressive enough, which is so weird because the kids say we express too much.”
“does she mean pda or, like, talking?” he asked, spritzing some cologne on his neck and patting it onto his wrists.
“i don’t know,” you said, shaking your head as you adjusting your clothes in the mirror. “maybe she wants to discuss it with us at dinner, maybe that’s why she invited us out. sounds like her.”
he laughed, shaking his head as he came up behind you. his hands rested on your hips as he looked at you through the mirror, smiling gently and resting his chin on your shoulder. "well, you look drop dead gorgeous, so at least she can't comment on that."
"you know she will," you hummed, leaning back into him with a slow-growing smile. "but, thank you."
she did comment on it. it was the first thing she commented on, actually.
"oh, honey, you look stunning!" she chirped, wrapping her arms around you in that awkwardly snug way that had you worrying your makeup would smudge onto her dress. she pulled back quickly, smiling at you excitedly and whispering, "i'm sure looking this good does something to your boy here. or has it faded a bit since moving in together?"
you could feel the heat creeping up your neck already, silently amazed at how easy it was for her to cross right into that uncomfortably personal territory before you even sat down.
"nope," you said shortly, breathing out a laugh. "hasn't faded."
she slapped your arm lightly, grinning. "oh, good for you."
you smiled way too sweetly before turning to greet your father who was still complimenting steve on the cashmere sweater you were sure he'd seen a million times before.
"hi, dad," you said as he tugged you into a quick hug.
"hello, sweetie, how are you?" he asked, pulling back with a gentle smile.
"i'm good, thanks," you answered.
"good, good," he said before waving you and steve to the table they'd already been seated at. "go on, have a seat."
your stepmom watched steve as he pulled your chair out and then tucked it beneath you, smiling thinly and mumbling dryly, "so sweet."
you avoided her judging eyes, instead turning to your dad as steve sat next to you. "how have you guys been?"
you took steve's hand on top of the table, making a bit of a show of it as your stepmom stared you and your hands down as if the gaze would magically break you apart. obviously, it didn't.
"oh, we've been well," your dad answered with a nod. "yeah, business is doing pretty well over at the hardware store, so we've been able to treat ourselves to more date nights like these."
"that's fun-" you started, only to be cut off by your stepmother.
"what do you do again, steve?" she asked quickly, tilting her head at the boy.
"i'm over at the squawk right now as the sound manager," he answered, smiling.
"oh, the sound manager," she said, laughing. "sounds exciting."
"he has a good time," you told her. "he works with our friend robin. you remember robin, right?"
she gasped, nodding. "the band girl with the red hair."
you exchanged knitted brows with steve, your dad letting out an amused sigh as you said, "well, not red hair, but yeah. robin."
that's when the waiter walked up, a polite smile on his lips as he glanced between you all.
"can i get you guys started with some drinks?" the man asked, eyes on you first.
"just a water is fine," you said.
"same with me," steve agreed, smiling politely.
your dad knitted his brows, glancing at the both of you. "you're welcome to get drinks. it's on us."
"oh, let them be polite, darling," your stepmom said, waving him off and turning to the waiter with that overly sweet smile you'd learned from her. "i'll have a bellini."
"yes ma'am," the waiter answered, scribbling it down before looking to your father. she seemed all too happy to be called that as he asked, "and for you, sir?"
he glanced at the menu once before sighing and saying, "a coke is fine."
"right away," the waiter said before walking away.
your stepmom watched him go, clicking her tongue before turning back to you all. "do you know who he reminds me of?"
"who, dear?" your dad asked, letting out a thin sigh as he rested his arms on the table.
her eyes found yours, the corner of her mouth lifting. "little frankie talbot."
steve stiffened and your heart nearly stopped, your dad's eyes widening as he glanced from her to you and steve.
of course she would find a way to mention your first boyfriend from sophomore year - a kid on steve's basketball team who had a serious possession issue and was a little crazy.
she just rested her chin on her hand, smiling at you all like she didn't realize what she was doing. "doesn't he just seem like frankie? those cute freckles and those strong shoulders..."
"no, i don't see it," you answered, voice clipped even as you tried at a smile. "don't think about frankie these days. it's been a long time since i have."
"yeah, you guys broke up, what, 5 years ago?" steve hummed, glancing sideways at you. "i mean, sophomore year was a good long while ago."
"yep," you said, smiling at him and squeezing his hand. "best decision ever to end that relationship. wasn't too long before we got together, hm?"
your stepmom's gaze narrowed a bit. "i liked frank-"
"so, you work with robin buckley?" your dad cut in with an anxious smile. "she's a sweet girl."
before steve could answer, your stepmom did. "oh, i'm sure she is," she agreed dryly, nodding as her eyes locked on steve once more. "and, you know, i'm sure it's a fine job for now."
for now.
you sighed internally, and it was like steve could tell, squeezing your hand imperceptibly as he nodded. "it is. i enjoy it enough and it pays the bills, you know."
the waiter returned with your drinks, dispersing them and quickly taking your orders. once again, your dad said to order whatever you wanted, and again, you and steve ordered one of the cheaper things on the menu while your stepmom got a seafood platter.
once the waiter was gone with your orders, her eyes flicked right back to steve.
"so, you guys are comfortable then?" she checked, glancing between you both for a surer understanding.
"yes," you answered quickly, nodding. "yes, very comfortable."
that didn't seem to be the answer she was hoping for, humming dryly as she reached for her drink, your dad smiling contentedly at the both of you. when an uncomfortable silence filled the space, you finally just let out a breath and asked, "is there something wrong?"
"no, of course not," she hummed. "comfortable is good. i just worry when comfort turns to complacency."
her finger dotted the air like she was connecting some grand idea together for the rest of you to be amazed by, but she only seemed dumber as she shot you that grin that had you squeezing steve's hand again, lowering it to your lap so they wouldn't notice the straining in your knuckles.
the conversations of other tables filled the awkwardness a little better, ice clinking in your glass as you took a sip of your water.
"complacency?" steve echoed, brows knitting slightly. he breathed out a laugh, glancing once to your obviously embarrassed dad before saying, "i don't think i understand what you mean by that."
"it's just when two young individuals get comfortable, there's a higher chance of getting stuck," she explained, waving her glass in the air.
you wondered for a moment if she'd felt stuck before she met your dad. you wondered if that's why she took every chance to spice up her life now, even if that was just with a cocktail or expensive dinner or by tormenting her stepdaughter's boyfriend.
steve, ever the charmer, just breathed out another laugh, shrugging. "i wouldn't call us stuck, ma'am. we're content doing what we do and don't feel the need to rush anything."
"yes, you're a very thoughtful young man," your dad chimed in with a reassuring smile.
your stepmom laughed again. "as long as thoughtfulness doesn't turn into boredom."
"it doesn't," you answered shortly, brows raising to her in slight warning. the table stilled, steve letting out a thin breath before you sat up and cleared your throat. you tried at a small smile before excusing yourself. "i'm going to use the bathroom before our food gets here."
you felt bad for leaving steve with your parents, but you trusted that he could hold his own as you slipped into the cool bathroom. you stood in the mirror, hands finding the counter as you tried to level your breath.
you'd always struggled with your stepmom, but while once you thought she had good intentions, she just seemed out to get steve now. and for why? he was significantly better than anyone else in this town, certainly better than frankie talbot or your brother's newest fling.
but, she was a big part of your life too. so, you'd finish this dinner, play nice, and get it done with.
you just needed a minute or two more before then.
meanwhile, steve was, in fact, holding his own.
in a way you certainly never would have guessed.
"while i have you two alone," he started, letting out a breathy laugh as he leaned a bit closer. he met your dad's eyes first, glancing once at your stepmom before beginning again. "while she's gone-"
"yes?" she cut in, raising a brow. she obviously wasn't willing to put on a show when you weren't alone.
your dad sighed. "honey, let him speak."
steve met her gaze with a stern one of his own. he was a polite boy, he prided himself on it. but, he'd been raised to consider disrespect, even if it was from someone of importance, was intolerable.
so, he looked away from her, meeting your dad's eyes again and ignoring the way she scoffed. he took a steadying breath, straightening his shoulders. "i'm just going to be honest, sir. i love your daughter more than words can explain and i've bought a ring. i'm going to propose to her, and i would appreciate more than anything to go into it with your blessing because i respect you and your opinion, and i know that it matters to her just as much."
your dad's expression turned soft, a gentle smile on his lips as he nodded slowly. "of course, steve. of course you have my blessing. i'd be honored to be able to call you my son."
and that hit steve way too hard in the heart, his prepared words catching in his throat as he blinked back the surprise.
your stepmother watched the exchange with a bit of wonder in her eyes. the decisiveness in his voice when he requested your father's blessing impressed her, and yet it was the awe in his eyes at your father's answer that struck her most.
"thank you," steve finally managed, smiling small.
several beats passed, the boy trying to come up with the next proper sentence before your stepmom piped in.
"i know you didn't ask me," she said slowly, lips pursed. "but, i think you two are good together. even if i think you're too domestic for being only 21, she seems happy. and that's what matters."
his brows raised in surprise before a slow smile tugged at his lips. "thank you. that's good to hear."
you came back a few minutes later, breath regained and a sweet smile slapped back on your lips as steve helped you back into your seat. your food had arrived, which was a relief to see, and the energy at the table seemed lighter than when you'd left.
"what did you guys talk about while i was gone?" you hummed as you cut into your meal.
"just how much we love you," steve answered, smiling as you chuckled and rolled your eyes. "i'm serious."
you shook your head, cheeks growing hot as he pressed a kiss to the side of your head, left hand resting on your knee comfortably. "you're ridiculous."
"he's sweet," your stepmom corrected, her smile a little less fake than before. "he loves you, and so do we."
you stared at her for a second, surprised that she would ever admit that much in steve's favor before you just breathed out a surprised sort of laugh. "oh. well, i love you guys too." you knitted your brows, glancing around the table as steve squeezed your knee. "what did you guys actually talk about?"
they all chuckled, your dad diving into something about porch lights and the family business as you exchanged a look with steve. he just shrugged, smiling before turning back to his food.
you never were told exactly what they talked about, but whatever it was, it turned your stepmom nice for a night, and to you, that was a miracle.
still, you weren't accepting an invitation from her for a while.
even if you could say now that your parents did like steve.
lucas was the one in charge of decorating the cake.
and that should have been warning enough.
you were distracted, busy running about the house with various decorations, blowing up old balloons and stringing together an old felt birthday banner that you'd used when you were a kid. you hung it over the entrance to the kitchen, standing precariously on a chair as el held it steady for you.
"do you always do this for steve?" she asked, looking up at you as you placed the third piece of masking tape on the left string of the banner, praying silently it would hold this time.
you hummed, shrugging. "i try to make it special every year, but the last couple we've just kept to ourselves. he doesn't usually like parties, actually, but i think 21 is a big enough deal to throw one now."
"king steve doesn't like parties?" mike snorted as he passed underneath you into the kitchen with a bag of cake decorations, tossing it onto the counter as lucas grinned, clapping his hands together.
"he's not king steve," you answered, rolling your eyes as you taped the right side again. "he's just steve. and just steve doesn't enjoy the crazy as much as you'd think."
"he hangs out with us," will teased with a laugh.
"that's about as crazy as he's willing to get nowadays," you told him with a soft smile.
he laughed, glancing down at the letters lucas was drawing onto the frosted vanilla cake. his eyes widened, and he went, "lucas-"
"shut up," the other boy whispered quickly, smacking his arm. "it's great."
slowly, you stepped down from the chair, narrowing your eyes at the pair. leaning over the edge of the counter, mike and dustin seemed all too amused, grinning as erica just rolled her eyes.
"what are you writing?" you asked, lifting the chair and walking it back to the other side of the bar. as you placed it down, you let out a sharp breath. "lucas sinclair, i swear if you're writing happy fucking birthday like you said you would-"
"i'm not," he said, waving the thought away like you were ridiculous for even thinking such a thing. "i would never curse in frosting, it's sacrilegious."
you exchanged a look with el, lips pursed slightly before you turned towards the living room with your eyes locked on the presents you'd wrapped earlier in the day. since birthday wrapping paper wasn’t exactly on the city’s necessary supplies list, will had come up with the brilliant idea to just paint brown craft paper, and he’d left the first layer to dry.
she helped you carry the small stack into the kitchen, organizing them on the counter as the boys snickered behind you.
"so, if i go and take a look at the cake, i won't be pissed?" you hummed, tossing lucas a look over your shoulder. when he faltered, you sighed heavily. "seriously? lucas, he gets off of work in an hour, please fix it."
"no, it's funny," he insisted with a laugh.
you rolled your eyes, turning and crossing the kitchen quickly.
"well, maybe not funny to you," he said, eyes widening as he stepped back and pulled the cake with him.
"lucas charles sinclair!" you yelled, grabbing the cake plate from him and pulling it as quickly towards you as you could without knocking it off.
all the kids held their breaths as they watched you, a slow smirk pulling at mike and dustin's lips even as lucas and will remained stressed.
your mouth dropped open in shock as your eyes dropped on the lettering.
happy birthday to the best dick in town
"lucas, what the hell?" you yelled, pushing it back towards him with a frown. "wipe that off! that's so crude. why would you even say that?"
"robin talks a lot," was his lame excuse as he reached for the cake again.
"and how would she know?" you asked, knitting your brows.
he failed to conceal his smirk, keeping his eyes on the cake. "apparently, you guys can get pretty loud."
you faltered, cheeks immediately going warm as you tried to think of a time that robin had ever been in remotely the same location when you were - and then it dawned on you. your eyes flicked back to lucas. "if this is about that stupid bedframe again, nothing happened! we were moving a bedframe-"
the boys were just giggling, even dustin who had been in a bad mood as of recent, all exchanging looks as your cheeks grew hotter.
"redo it sinclair," you ordered, pointing a finger at him. "before steve gets home."
it was then that robin and nancy came storming through the door, eyes wide and hands flailing.
“he’s coming back!” robin exclaimed, bolting into the kitchen with nancy quick behind her. “we finished early and he really wanted to surprise everyone with pizza for tonight so he left and-“
“i’m sorry,” erica cut her off, holding a hand up with her mouth dropped open slightly. “he wanted to surprise us? it’s his birthday!”
you sighed. “told you. he isn’t king steve anymore. instead of worrying about what presents we got him, now he’s worried about making sure you idiots eat.” you turned your gaze to robin. “when did he leave the squawk?”
“like, 15 minutes ago,” she said nervously, hands clasping in front of her.
shit.
“what do you need?” nancy asked. “we already called joyce and hopper, so they’re just bringing drinks.”
“oh good,” you sighed, running a hand through your hair. they were supposed to bring pizza and drinks, but evidently you did not need the pizza anymore thanks to your do-gooder boyfriend. “um, there are balloons in the living room. can you guys get them blown up and dispersed?”
“on it,” she said quickly, robin and el following her to do just that.
“dustin, mike, erica, you’re on streamers,” you told them, pointing to each kid. “will, i need you to finish painting on the wrapping paper.”
“it’s not dry yet-“
“i do not care,” you said, waving your hand in the air. “just get it done, please. he’s going to be ripping it anyways, so, all you need to do is make sure it looks nicer than just brown.”
“ouch.”
“shut up, lucas,” you sighed, hand coming to your forehead as him and mike giggled at his dumb joke. “redo the cake. now.”
“geez, bossy much?” the boy teased.
you frowned, death-staring him until he straightened up, nodding as he cleared his throat.
“yes ma’am.”
trying to avoid getting shot that same look, mike, erica, and dustin rounded the island and grabbed your streamers off the counter along with some tape.
as they passed beneath it, your banner fell on one side, earning a soft cry from you. “seriously?”
you dragged your chair back to it, masking tape in hand as you furiously shoved the string against the wall and repeatedly put tape over it.
and then tires squealed against the driveway. your eyes widened.
“oh my-“
the door busted open. “surprise!”
you turned, all breath stolen before your eyes landed on a way too excited jonathan byers, grinning like he knew exactly what stress he caused with two gallons of ice cream in his hands.
“you’re my least favorite byers,” you told him surely, shaking your head as joyce and hopper followed him in with a few cases of soda.
“you don’t mean that,” he answered, slipping by you to get into the kitchen.
you just rolled your eyes before shooting a smile at joyce and hopper. “hey guys, thanks for coming.”
“think you got enough tape there?” hop teased, raising his brows to the half-inch-thick stack of tape that was holding up the small string of your banner.
you sighed, stepping off the chair and smiling thinly as you out it back under the bar top. “hopefully this time.”
joyce gave you a quick hug as he put the sodas on the counter, pausing as he looked over lucas’ work. “what do you need help with?” she asked.
“hey, kid, have you seen this?” hopper called, brows knitting as he pointed at the cake.
you ignored him for two seconds in favor of answering his girlfriend. “everyone is working on what needs to be done. if you want to help the kids with their streamer spacing, i’m sure it’s absolutely terrible, so you’re welcome to do that.” you looked back to hopper. “i saw it before and hopefully he’s changing it now.”
“it’s so much prettier,” lucas assured, grinning as he nodded to the blue and yellow piping he’d done around the edges.
you couldn’t see the top to know if he’d erased his previous phrase, but the sides did look nice.
you sighed, rolling your eyes. “whatever.”
jonathan walked over to where will was sat with his paint markers, drawing little happy birthday’s over the previous designs he’d done earlier.
“that looks great, bud,” he said, smiling at the boy.
“it’s smudging,” will answered with a frown, shooting you a glance before you just sighed dramatically.
“will, seriously-“
“he’s coming!”
your eyes widened, heartbeat quickening as you exchanged looks with the adults in the room.
indeed, his car pulled into the driveway, lights flicking off as he pushed the door open.
“hide!” you yelled quickly, everyone following you into the living room and ducking behind the couch or loveseat - dustin even finding a place behind the television set.
lucas pulled erica into place next to him with a sharp look, robin almost falling on nancy as she tried to hide. jonathan’s breathing was pissing you off as he crouched next to you, all eyes on the door as steve finagled with the key.
it jingled in the lock for a few moments, his quiet grunts of keeping the pizzas in one hand and unlocking the door with the other making you smirk softly. finally, he got it open with a dramatic sigh, calling, “guys?” he took a few steps in, setting his keys on the hook as he glanced down the entryway. “i have pizza!”
you made eye contact with each of the kids, holding up three fingers.
“guys?”
two fingers.
he stepped towards the living room, brows knitted. “i know you’re here, i saw the bikes-“
one finger.
“surprise!” everyone except for robin exclaimed, your friend yelling, “happy birthday!” instead and earning an awfully judgmental look from erica in return.
you tossed her an amused smile before stepping out from behind the couch, grinning at your boyfriend. “happy birthday, handsome.”
his mouth was dropped open, brows raised before he breathed out a light laugh. “you remembered.”
it was a very simple, heartbreaking statement that had all the kids frowning.
“well duh,” dustin said.
“you’re 21, that’s a very exciting birthday,” erica added. “i’m jealous.”
lucas scrunched his nose. “you’re 12.”
“i know, like i said, i’m jealous,” she answered with a shrug.
“let me take these from you,” you said, grabbing the pizzas from him with a soft smile. reluctantly, he handed them over, and as he pressed a gentle, thankful kiss to your temple, you whispered, “we love you.”
his smile softened and he turned back to the group as you walked to the kitchen, setting the pizzas next to the sodas joyce had brought and smiling at the praise and love and teasing your boyfriend was now receiving. mike said something about being a “real adult” now, and lucas called him “too old to still be hanging out with teenagers,” which only made you chuckle.
you pulled all the boxes open, smile widening when you noticed he’d grabbed your favorite.
and then, all at once, the children were at your sides, stealing paper plates from the cabinet and snatching slices up like they were going to disappear if they weren’t grabbed at once.
steve found his way to your side, leaning against the counter and accepting a handful of happy birthday’s from the adults before they slipped away to the living room.
“thanks steve!” will called through a full mouth as he followed dustin into the living room. steve chuckled, nodding as his arm slipped around your waist casually.
“yeah, thanks steve,” el said with a smile, erica pushing her out of the kitchen to join the rest of them.
you both watched for a few moments, gentle smiles on your lips as he pulled you into his side.
“so,” he hummed, shooting you a smile as he squeezed your waist. “we doing games or a movie…? what has my party planner girlfriend signed me up for?”
you smiled, turning into his hold and putting your hands on his chest as he adjusted to be closer. "star wars movie marathon," you answered. and then you dropped your tone, whispering excitedly, “i bought the tapes.”
his eyes widened. “seriously?”
“well, you rent them enough that i thought we should just own them,” you said with a giggle, only laughing harder as he wrapped you in a massive hug. you hugged him tightly around the shoulders in return, pressing a kiss to his neck and murmuring, “happy birthday, baby. there’s more presents to come, don’t worry.”
“oh, i’m not worried,” he hummed, squeezing your middle before pulling away to meet your eyes with a gentle smile. “today is already perfect. thank you.”
“of course,” you answered, shrugging like it was easy for you. but, for him, it definitely was. “come on, let’s get some pizza.”
you dragged him to the island, rounding it to grab you both plates as his eyes caught on lucas’ cake. he grinned. “this is a great cake, sweetheart.”
you came to his side, almost holding your breath in anticipation as your eyes fell on the top, praying silently that he’d changed it.
of course, he hadn’t.
with new frosting balloons and aggressive piping around the borders surrounding it, the cake still read:
happy birthday to the best dick in town
this time with hearts on either side of the text.
you sighed as he chuckled, wrapping an arm around your middle. “i’m going to assume you didn’t write this.”
“it was lucas,” you told him. “and, i mean, he’s not wrong. it’s just a bit vulgar for a birthday cake.”
he laughed lightly, pressing a kiss to the side of your head. “i like it. i’m happy to prove its accuracy when they’re all gone to show my appreciation if you’re interested.”
you smiled, heat creeping up your neck as you turned in his arms. “what is with you and spoiling your birthday? bringing pizza to your surprise party, stealing one of my gifts…”
“oh?” he asked, smirking. “you already had that in mind?”
“of course i did,” you answered, smiling as you pulled him down for a kiss. “it wouldn’t be a good birthday without it.”
Just out of curiosity, do you have a limit for how many requests we can make? I don’t want to overwhelm you or get annoying lol
Lots of love ❤️
i've gotten several requests in the last 12 hours and i love all of them!! keep them coming! as long as y'all don't care about how quick i'm getting them out (usually i'm able to get them out relatively fast though) send as many as you'd like!! i appreciate having ideas to run off of, it really helps. i have no limit haha i appreciate you all!!
no one had to work today, which literally never happened, so of course they were all in your living room with a heap of board games and snacks they'd brought themselves, back to the future playing in the background as mike and lucas argued about mike cheating at monopoly and dustin, erica, steve, and jonathan passed around a bop it! way too nervously. nancy, el, and robin sat back against the couch, watching the movie as they waited to continue monopoly.
you'd run upstairs to put a couple things away, wanting to get the house cleaned up the best you could before an early morning shift tomorrow.
a few minutes later, steve wandered into the room, not bothering to shut the door even as he tugged his shirt over his head.
you looked up with an amused smile, raising your brows teasingly. "i mean, if you're not worried about them hearing, i'm not opposed."
he laughed, shaking his head as he tossed his damp shirt into the hamper, followed quickly by his jeans before he made his way to your dresser for a new set.
"in the chaos that is bop it," he started with a sigh, pulling out a simple gray tshirt and shoving the drawer shut, moving to grab a new pair of levis. "mike knocked his coke off the coffee table and straight into me."
"did it get on the carpet?" you asked, brows knitting as you glanced at him. you dropped the car magazine karen had sent over for him into his nightstand drawer, watching it fall on top of the few boxes and knickknacks he kept inside.
he buttoned his jeans, letting out a laugh as he shook his head. "of course that's your first question. no, all it got on was me."
you smiled, shutting his drawer and crossing to him as he turned to face you finally, hands coming to squeeze his arms. "i'm sorry that mike spilled his coke on you."
"it's okay," he sighed dramatically before chuckling and leaning down to kiss you gently. you leaned into it, smiling slight as his hands found your hips and squeezed a little too eagerly. when he pulled back, grinning, he glanced over your shoulder at his side table and noticed the top drawer was slightly open still. instantly, his smile dropped and his brows knitted. "did you go in my nightstand?"
you hummed in question as you looked over to it, nodding. "yeah. karen sent over that car magazine we were talking about with mike, so i just threw it in there for you to look at when you have time."
he let out a thin breath, eyes glued to the drawer as he nodded slowly. "okay, yeah. just, uh, next time you can leave it on top. don't put it in the drawer."
"what?" you asked, knitting your brows as he stepped away from you and pulled the drawer completely open. you stayed facing the wall for a moment, staring at it like it would have an answer to his weird request, and missing his movements behind you.
he pulled the magazine out, glancing at you quickly before grabbing a thin, cheap ring box and shoving it in his front pocket. you turned as he shoved the drawer closed, dropping the magazine on the top of the small desk with his glasses and chapstick.
you raised a brow as he turned back to you, his breath a little quick for your liking and asked, "why?"
"i just don't like keeping things in that drawer," he said quickly, shrugging with a lame smile. "and the things i do keep in there... maybe you shouldn't look in there. i mean, i hardly do, so you don't really need to be in there."
you snorted, a small smile pulling at your lips. "what? do you have playboys in there or something?"
he didn't. you knew that and he knew that, the drawer only littered with little boxes and lame trinkets that you hadn't cared to question. trinkets that you weren't sure needed to be hidden from you.
"no, just things," he said. he fumbled for a better answer, the disbelief on your face stressing him out even more. he shoved his hands in his pockets, fingers curling around the small box in an attempt to conceal it better. "personal things."
evidently, that wasn't the right answer.
you faltered, brows knitting slightly.
your mind was running too quick for your liking, going through the few things you'd caught sight of when you'd opened the drawer and struggling to come up with why they would be so personal.
and why he felt like he needed to hide them from you.
everything seemed normal, nothing peculiar, but that didn't mean that there was no hidden meaning or history behind them. things he didn't want to share.
you thought you shared everything.
"personal," you repeated slowly, nodding even though you didn't understand. your tone was a little ironic and very disbelieving as you abandoned the basket of clothes you'd come here to put away and moved towards the door. "right, of course."
steve's eyes widened and he followed you quickly down the hall. "woah! sweetheart, what just happened?"
"i don't know, it's personal," you answered, biting the inside of your lip as you hastily padded down the hall and towards the stairs.
a deep furrow drove itself between his brows as he grabbed your arm, "wait," but you just pulled away and started down the stairs. "baby-"
"it's fine," you said, waving him off. "i won't go in your nightstand. even if i've been in it a million times before-"
his eyes widened even more, speed picking up as he followed you. his feet hit the hardwood as you turned sharply towards the kitchen, voice raising slightly as he ran a hand through his hair. "wait, how many times? how recently?"
in the living room, the bop it game had ended abruptly in dustin's hands, his eyes following steve as he rounded the corner towards the kitchen.
"seriously?" erica exclaimed, hands falling to her sides as she stared at the flashing game.
jonathan followed dustin's gaze, sighing as he caught the tail end of steve's words. "just leave them be."
dustin's brows knitted and he dropped the game onto the carpet, standing and moving to the entryway to peek in on your little argument.
you were staring at steve incredulously, eyes wide and brows raised as you faced him from across the island. "how many times?" you repeated. "i don't know, steve, why does it matter? it's a nightstand drawer. i throw your things in there when you leave them on the counters, i'm not snooping."
"no, i know you're not snooping," he sighed, shaking his head. "it's just - if something needs to go in there from now on, just leave it on the top. please."
this made no sense to you.
there was plenty of space in the drawer, he always threw random things in it, and from what you'd seen, it didn't seem to be hiding some terrible thing. what had changed?
you frowned. "why?"
"why?" he echoed, brows raising. he breathed out a laugh, glancing away as the box in his pocket just grew heavier. he knew it wasn't nearly as big as normal ring boxes, that's what happened when the military put your town on lockdown, but with how much he could feel it against his thigh, he was shocked you hadn't noticed it by now. "can't you just trust me? just don't go in there."
you raised your brows at the accusation. "i trust you, steve, i just don't understand what about that damn drawer has changed in the last week."
well, it wasn't a week. it'd actually been sitting there for several weeks, untouched by steve and evidently unnoticed by you, but he wasn't willing to take that risk he'd apparently been taking every day again.
he sighed, shaking his head. his voice raised in frustration. "nothing's changed, okay?" he caught himself, blowing out a breath and lowering his tone again as he tried not to yell. "i just want that drawer shut."
neither of you noticed, but the entire party had gone silent in the living room. all they could hear was marty mcfly on the television, and you asking a loud, "why?"
when steve got frustrated, he yelled. they'd all heard their fair share of babysitter steve freaking out on them in the midst of a fight or a game or even just dinner. but, they'd never heard him even raise his voice at you.
he raised his voice. much louder than before.
his laugh that came before it was dry, disbelieving, and then he shouted.
"stop asking why! damn it, just keep the drawer shut!"
the entire house went still, breaths catching as steve's voice echoed in the quiet.
he was breathing a little too heavily, shoulders dropping in immediate regret as he realized what he'd just said.
well, more the way in which he'd said it.
"oh," robin muttered quietly, her eyes finding dustin's immediately. his widened dramatically, knuckles going white as he gripped the doorway. "oh no."
"what's happening?" el whispered, brows knitting in concern as she glanced between robin and nancy.
nancy didn't seem too affected, sure that in the next minute they would hear an apology, steve would give you a kiss, and all would go back to normal. so she just shrugged, looking back to the tv screen. "they're fighting."
"um, they don't do that," erica pointed out, looking around the room. "i mean, i know i'm not here all the time like you dorks are, but i've never seen them fight."
"we've only seen it like once," will told her, brows knitting as he pushed onto his knees to see past dustin into the kitchen where you were staring at steve with intensely raised brows and hands crossed over your chest. the boy winced, looking away.
lucas went to stand by dustin, concern evident in his furrowed brows as he nodded, agreeing with will. "and that was just because steve forgot to pick up ranch. it was over in two seconds."
mike snorted. "you remember that?"
"it was memorable," lucas defended lamely.
"this one will be too," dustin muttered, his frown deepening as he turned back to watch the chaos in the kitchen.
you let out a dry, incredulous laugh. "i thought you didn't like yelling, steve."
well, damn.
he ran a hand through his hair, faltering even as frustration continued to burn in his chest. he shook his head, sighing heavily. "i - i don't. i'm sorry, just... stay out of the drawer."
"because it's personal?" you said then, raising your brows again even as your voice evened out.
he nodded, sighing again. "yes. exactly."
your lips pulled into a thin line, eyes dashing away as you tried to level yourself. "i didn't realize we were pulling away now."
robin and dustin looked at each other again, eyes widening, and nancy finally looked away from the movie, her breath catching in surprise. "oh, shit."
steve was at a loss, his eyes wide and his hand twitching towards the box in his pocket. he reached his other hand towards you, voice even more strained and nervous than it had been before, "sweetheart-"
"no, it's fine, steve," you said quickly, shaking your head and rounding the island to pass him.
he didn't let you, hand catching your upper arm and holding you in place. he glanced over your head, spotting dustin and letting out an exhausted, frustrated sigh. "just wait here," he told you breathlessly, shaking his head.
you rolled your eyes, letting out a deep sigh. "i'm not going to raid your nightstand."
"no, shit," he sighed, shaking his head again and stepping in front of you. "that's not what i - no. raid the damn thing, i don't care. i got upset for no reason, and i see that now. give me one second, okay?"
"why?" you asked, still frustrated.
his eyes flicked past you and he nodded down to the living room where lucas and dustin were still standing in the entryway and the rest of the gang was still listening with wide eyes.
instantly, your cheeks went hot and you faltered, glancing away as your chest tightened. "shit."
he pressed a quick kiss to your forehead before stepping away. "i'm just gonna clear this up real fast, okay?"
"yeah," you breathed out, all too happy to step back until you were in the corner of the kitchen, out of sight from the party as steve rushed towards them.
he smacked dustin and lucas in the backs of their heads, pushing them back into the living room. "you ever hear about privacy?"
"you were being a little loud for that," mike pointed out, which only earned him a well-deserved glare from steve.
he turned back to dustin, shoving his hand in his pocket and dropping his voice to be almost imperceptible. "you don't lose this, alright?"
dustin's eyes widened, but he accepted the box as steve dropped it into his hand. "where do you want me to put it?"
the rest of the group, minus robin, stared at the box with knitted brows. it wasn't velvet or square or massive - just a thin red box with a large SH scrawled in metallic sharpie on the bottom.
lucas frowned, "what is that?"
he got ignored, steve still anxious and intense as he kept his eyes on dustin. the boy put it quickly into his vest pocket, zipping it shut for safe measure.
"put it in the center console of my car," he answered, running a hand through his hair. "but, only when i tell you to, which will probably be right before i do it. got that? can't have it ruining my relationship in the meantime."
"meantime?" erica echoed. "what the hell are you-?"
robin smacked a hand over her mouth, smiling lamely at steve as he shot them both an incredibly frustrated look, eyes wide and very pissed.
"go back to your games, okay?" he said, voice now at a normal volume as he backed out of the room. "we'll be back in a second and i want all of you to be normal."
will nodded quickly. "yeah, of course."
"sure," el agreed with a slow nod, still confused, but willing to comply.
jonathan and nancy just shot him a thin, supportive smile as he nodded, turning and leaving back to the kitchen.
immediately, they all turned to robin and dustin, brows raised in question.
steve pretended not to hear the violent whispers as he walked away.
you watched him with wide eyes, arms tight around your stomach as he walked back up to you. "did they hear that whole thing?"
he breathed out a light laugh, nodding as his arms wrapped cautiously around your middle. when you didn't push him back, he stepped closer, pulling you towards him just slightly. "yeah, they did," he answered quietly. then, he pressed a kiss to your forehead. "so, how about we just forget it and go back in there like nothing happened? it's alright."
you wanted to do that, you did, but his secrecy still bothered you.
"is it?" you asked gently, looking up at him with a slight knit in your brows. "steve... i don't like that you're pushing me away."
he furrowed his brows, shaking his head quickly. "i'm not pushing you away. this wasn't me pushing you away, okay? i could never. i'm, like, physically unable to do that."
you cracked a small, disbelieving smile, and he knew he had to come up with a better answer quick. he sighed, pulling you into his chest and resting his cheek on the top of your head. relief filled him when you didn't pull away, but instead wrapped your arms around his torso.
he wouldn't be able to give you a fake excuse if he had to look you in the eye.
"it's a control thing," he told you quietly. "there are very few things that i have that are mine anymore - and that's nothing against you at all. i much prefer that all of this is ours, seriously. i like having things be ours instead of just mine. mine is lonely."
he was starting to make some sort of sense to you, and maybe that was because a bit of truth was slipping into his overarching lie.
"but?" you asked, voice a mumble against his shirt.
he sighed. "but," he continued. "the things that are still just mine... i guess i'm a bit protective of them. like my nightstand, i guess. my car. my bat would probably fall into that category too."
"your bat?" you echoed with a laugh, pulling back to meet his eyes.
he shrugged, a smile finally settling on his lips as the tension eased between you both. "yeah, my bat. that's like my baby." you laughed again and he just pulled you that much closer, pressing a kiss to the top of your head. "i'm sorry for freaking out like that. if it helps, you're also one of my things that i get protective over."
you snorted, squeezing his middle gently. "that helps." you paused, letting out a thin sigh. "i'm sorry for being a brat too. i guess i just got scared you didn't trust me. felt like you were pulling away."
he shook his head, running a hand over the back of your head and squeezing your waist with the other.
"never," he promised. "you and me? this is a forever sort of deal, whether you like it or not."
"just don't go into your nightstand," you joked lamely, peeking up at him with a small smile.
he shrugged, shaking his head. "nah. you can go into my nightstand. i'll stop being a freak." his smile grew slightly. "just don't steal my bat."
you laughed. "that's the dealbreaker?"
"that's it," he said, shaking his head again as he grinned at you. "you touch that bat, you're dead meat."
"oh, i'd like to see you try," you teased. "but, if i go into your nightstand?"
he shrugged. "it'll be fine. like you said, you're in there all the time anyways."
"i'll try to leave it alone," you promised, giving him a compromise that technically wasn't even needed anymore. his heart melted slightly, his hands running over your sides as his smile softening lovingly. you hummed. "maybe."
"maybe," he echoed, laughing as he kissed your forehead again. he tugged you into another hug, eyes catching on four eavesdropping fifteen year olds by the doorway as your arms went snug around his waist again. he glared, waving them away before telling you, "i love you."
you huffed a quiet laugh, "yeah, i love you too, harrington."
as dustin turned away, shooting everyone left in the living room a thumbs up, steve's eyes caught on the outline of his ringbox in his vest. his smile softened even more, hand running over your back as he imagined a day not too far off where he'd be able to echo the same thing back to you. word for word.
after another minute of just holding one another, he pulled you into the living room.
"how embarrassing of us," you mumbled quietly as you stepped out of the kitchen.
"it'll be fine," he promised with a teasing smile, dragging you the rest of the way to the living room.
they all looked up at you, bright, knowing smiles on their lips as robin chirped, "welcome back. finished cleaning?"
right. the basket of clean clothes upstairs that you'd abandoned in favor of arguing with your boyfriend.
"no," you admitted, letting go of steve's hand to fall on the couch next to her. "but, it's our day off. can i join monopoly, or should i wait until the next round?"
"mike is cheating anyways, so it doesn't really matter," lucas said, earning an instant objection and a smack to the arm.
noise filled the room again as the bop it! began to be passed in a circle, michael j fox screaming in the tv, and el secretly stealing her boyfriend's monopoly money as he argued with lucas.
you tossed steve a smile as he breathed out a laugh, accepting the bop it! and passing it quickly to jonathan, erica shrieking for them to move faster.
robin tapped your arm, nodding to the board with a smile. "your turn."
you nodded, glancing away and reaching for the dice as steve watched you, silently thankful that you hadn't noticed the box in dustin's vest quite yet.
dustin's stupid creation had stopped working, the radio waves messing up thanks to some new project of the military's that you'd gotten too close to, and you'd lost hopper. luckily, he made it back just in time, but not before everyone (dustin) freaked out.
at steve.
"you drove too close!" the boy shouted, shaking his head. "you weren't listening to me!"
"i was listening to you, henderson!" steve answered, hands in the air as he backed away with a scoff. "i drove through backyards listening to you! it's your job to deal with the tech, it's my job to drive. your little creation messed up. just own it."
"it only messed up because you drove-"
"where hopper was! i was doing my job," he cut dustin off, shaking his head.
dustin glared, lips tugging down and brows knitting harshly. "terribly! like usual."
steve just stared at him for a few seconds before dropping his head, laughing dryly to himself. "i just - i can't."
you sighed, stepping towards him. "steve-"
"i can't," he said again, shaking his head and walking away without another glance at his best friend. he pushed open the doors to the wsqk with too much force, the sound echoing through the radio station as everyone watched him leave.
the tension was thick, eyes on dustin and you as the sound of steve's beamer starting increased anticipation. you pushed off the couch, heading towards the doors.
but, you stopped at dustin, resting a hand on his arm and telling him to, "go easy on him. he's trying."
the boy pulled his arm from your grip, shaking his head. "not hard enough."
you wanted to hit him, you really did, but it wouldn't have been productive and definitely would've made the situation worse, so you managed to keep your hands to yourself. instead, you just frowned sadly, the disappointment evident in your expression to the point that everyone else shrunk back for him. "rethink that," you advised before finally turning and heading out the doors.
steve was standing at the front of the humming car waiting for you, lips pulled into a thin line even as he moved to get your door. even when pissed off, he was a gentleman.
"thank you," you said before he shut it for you, moving back to his side and immediately pulling out of the parking lot.
the tires screeched loudly, and then he took off, going way faster down that dirt road than the beamer was made for. but, if you'd learned one thing about that car in the last four years, it was that it could handle anything - even a steve harrington meltdown.
you just watched him for the first few minutes, the air thick with unspoken frustrations that he was too hesitant to express. every so often, his lips would twitch like he was going to explode with words, but he never did, just kept his eyes on the road.
at some point, his hand ended up on your thigh, gripping it tightly as if searching for proof that at least you were there, at least you stayed, at least you thought he was worth sticking around for, at least you believed he wasn't a screw up.
you took his hand in yours, squeezing it gently and only letting go when he needed to shift gears.
the car stayed silent the whole way home - no radio, no talking, nothing at all. just deep thoughts and heavy breaths.
when he finally pulled into the garage and turned off the car, the door shutting behind you, he spoke.
"i don't like yelling."
a furrow formed between your brow as you turned to him, not expecting that in the slightest. "what do you mean?"
"i don't like yelling," he told you again, eyes straight forward as he stared at an old metal ford sign hung on the wall. "when i get mad, i yell. when i get really mad, i want to hit something, or scream, or both. i don't like it."
you hummed, nodding slowly. he glanced at you, trying to gauge your reaction before you finally admitted, "i don't like crying." he didn't say anything, gaze narrowing in slight confusion before you continued. "when i get angry, i cry. you've seen it. i don't like it because it's embarrassing, and it shows too much of what i'm feeling at a moment when i want nothing less." your eyes found his, hand resting on top of his on the gear shift. "why don't you like that you want to yell?"
"it's bad," he said instantly, brows knitting. "it hurts people. my dad... he yells. a lot. i don't want to be like that."
you smiled gently. "you don't want to hurt people."
"of course not," he breathed out, shaking his head. his hand tightened over yours. "it just - it keeps happening anyways."
your first instinct was to tell him how he's never hurt you, and how his anger and frustration has actually helped protect you and the kids more times than you could really count at this point.
but, that didn't feel like the right thing to say.
so, instead you suggested, "do you want to go inside?"
he let out a heavy sigh and nodded. "yeah."
you both climbed out of the car, the weight of the failed crawl settling on your shoulders as he held the mandoor open for you, following you into the house and up the stairs.
"i think," you said almost casually as you went up, steve watching you carefully from behind. "that your instinct to yell is a combination of things."
he snorted. "what things?"
"well, you want to protect people," you told him, pushing into your bedroom with a sigh. "so, when danger comes you yell to get attention and protect."
"that's not this-"
"i know, just let me finish," you said, shooting him a smile as he shut the door behind himself. you sat on the end of the bed, kicking off your shoes and letting out a breath. "the other reason is just the need to vent. you have a lot of emotion, a lot of thoughts, and they're all fighting to come out at once. it's why i cry. maybe it's why you yell."
"i'd rather cry," he muttered, slipping his shoes off and walking up to you. "yelling hurts."
so he's said.
you smiled small, shrugging. "it doesn't have to."
he frowned. "what does that mean?"
"it means that you don't want to yell to hurt," you said, taking his hands and setting them on your thighs so your fingers could wander his arms. "so your yelling doesn't have to hurt. it can just be... a shout. shouts and yells are different."
"how?" he mumbled, your touch up and down his biceps helping to soothe him slightly.
"well," you hummed, squeezing his arms. "next time you're angry with something and i notice, i'll give you a little nod, and you can yell as much as you'd like."
he sighed, shaking his head. "sweetheart-"
"not at me," you chuckled, smiling up at him. "i'm not giving you permission to scream at me for no reason. just to vent. loudly."
"loudly," he echoed, playing with the thought for a few moments. and then he sighed again. "no. i don't like it. i don't want to scare you."
"i've heard you yell before, steve," you said with a gentle smile. "and it's never scared me away. what would scare me more is you bottling it all up until it actually does become a problem. so if you need to yell? yell! get it all out." you breathed out a laugh. "hell, if you need to hit something, go to the batting cages and hit baseballs. or grab a couch cushion and punch that. all i ask is you don't punch a wall or something and break your hand."
gently, he laughed at the thought, shaking his head. "i won't break my hand."
"good," you said, squeezing his biceps. "we all need a way to let our frustrations out. for me, i just cry and cry and cry, and you let me. maybe it would help you to just... yell, for once. you know, in a safe environment where no one will get offended or anything."
he nodded, mulling over your offer.
"and i can be here, or i can leave," you continued, giving him a small smile. "i can pretend not to hear you as you freak out in the garage and yell your little heart out instead of blowing up at dustin. if that's better."
"i'll consider it," he told you, still a little hesitant at the idea of you being a willing audience to a freak out.
you nodded. "alright. that's something." you stood, pushing off the bed and coming almost flush to him as you hands moved up his arms to wrap around his shoulders. "is there anything i can do for you now?"
he sighed, winding his arms around your waist and tugging you completely into him as his face came to rest in the crook of your neck. "i'm selfish."
"you're not," you answered quietly, running a hand through his hair. "you're hurt, and you're pissed, rightfully so. i'm mad for you."
he chuckled into your skin, sending goosebumps across your back. "thanks, babe."
"he'll come to his senses," you told him. "he's just... in a phase right now. he's getting pissy and being a brat, and it's hard to handle. but, he loves you. when all of this is over, he'll remember that."
"and when's it going to be over?" he sighed, grip tightening just slightly on your middle.
that was the million dollar question, wasn't it?
for over a year now, you'd all been stuck in this perpetual hell of military confinement and upside down confusion. steve, always the babysitter, had ended up tending to everyone else's stresses while being forced to learn how to be a self-sufficient adult, even when the world was actively ending.
he was exhausted.
"i don't know," you mumbled, pressing a kiss to the side of his head. "but, we're doing good as we are anyways. even if it lasts forever, we'll figure it out. we always do. and you know... he's just a kid. he doesn't see it all yet. there's always hope."
he didn't answer, just clung to you even tighter for a long minute.
just as the tension from earlier began to dissipate, he pulled back, dark eyes meeting yours with hesitancy. "i'm selfish," he said again, slower this time.
and you, of course, knew what he was getting at.
you smiled small, hands slipping down to his chest as you gave him a sure nod. "it's okay to be selfish sometimes."
his hand found your cheek quickly, dragging you into a breathless kiss as he pushed you back onto the mattress, free hand warm and firm on your waist, slipping beneath your tshirt for contact.
of course, there was a way to get frustration out that you hadn't mentioned.
HELPPP I’m trying to find a Steve fic where Steve’s parents are in Florida while the government has Hawkins locked and yn moves in with him at his house and the page refreshed and I didn’t liked sooome1 help thanks
