Steve Harrington was cursed without a soulmate
He was born with no mark, no letters, every inch of his body was devoid of any indication of his other half identity
His parents took him to several doctors and examinations, to see if maybe there was something preventing the mark to appear, like an allergy of some sort but it was pointless, apparently he belong to the rare 5% of the population who simply wasn’t meant to be with anyone.
It wasn’t common to see unmarked people, but the few studies about them explained their existence as a gray area, nothing wrong biologically, they were as healthy as the marked people however their life span tends to be shorter due to the psychological toll it takes on them to be unpaired and lack of prospects when it comes to forming a family. Investigations were still developing but nothing promising has been found yet, so the experts recommended acceptance and to learn how to be alone.
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When high school started, loneliness mixed with anger turned him into an asshole, he decided it was fine not having a soulmate, he didn’t need one. Steve did everything in his power to make sure people wouldn’t ask him questions, keeping an easy going facade, big parties and charming smiles to fool some girls here and there was enough to keep him satisfied.
Until he fell for for Nancy Wheeler, Her quiet demeanor made it easy to approach her but what kept him around was the determination she had towards her goals, she didn't care about soulmates and when she said she didn’t want to met hers, a glimmer of hope bloomed on his chest.
The first time they made out, it was very obvious she had been looking for his soul mark, eyes tracing his chest, not only with desire but with an immense curiosity,
He thought about telling her beforehand, but communication was never his strongest suit, so he let her connect the dots by herself, so when her silent search was fruitless, he just stared into her eyes with all the honesty he could muster, pleading for her to understand his silence, to not force him to say his truth out loud.
She seemed to get the message and switched positions by straddle him, he kissed her desperately, left hand gripped on her hip, letting her set a pace while he unbuttons her blouse; only to find her letters right below her collarbone.
It was salt on his open wound, a reminder he was taking someone else’s spot. No matter how hard he tried to ignore it or how many times she reassure him it wasn’t important, the truth was he was just a place holder.
Then she met Jonathan Byres and everything went to hell.
Of course, who would actually reject their soulmate?
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With the Upside down mess kept following them around, he couldn’t properly grieve the relationship but oddly enough it gave him the chance to become the kids protector, throwing himself into danger just to keep them safe
So what if he dies along the way?
At least he’d know he was worth something.
That is why he volunteer to get El from the compound, what he didn’t expect, was for her to have company.
“She’s like me” El stated
Before he could ask anything else, a loud noise came from within the installation. They had to leave now, he went on to help you stand but you were faster so he barely got to you.
It was a faint touch, his fingers barely brushed your wrist and you hissed briefly before pulling the sleeve up to show an incandescent set of letters.
A soft gasp escaped him, this was his soulmate, his future looking right back at him
Every heartbreak he went through doesn't matter anymore, cause it lead him to you
