#‘Will and Mike on the other hand… he wants to play dnd in mikes basement for the rest of his life…’

[chirpsythismorning]

Remember when the ST cast was presented with the fan theory that El and Will were secretly dating, meaning El would have essentially been cheating on Mike. And instead of stating what is believed to be the casual viewers assumption, you know, something along the lines of What? No! El loves Mike so that would never happen, they said What? No! Will loves Mike and he literally wants to play dnd and Nintendo in Mike’s basement for the rest of his life…— Meaning their problem with that theory wasn’t fans considering the possibility of El moving on from Mike, but Will moving on from Mike…

[andvys]

sooo... I saw that your requests are open so maybe something with Henderson!reader who secretly has a crush on Eddie/Steve (you know I love them both so it's your choice here 🤭) and she has a fight with Dustin and this little shrimp (with all the love Dusty-bun) and his big mouth scream in nerves something about said crush and of course Eddie/Steve hears it, happy ending here pretty please 🥹

of course you don't have to write it if you don't like the idea! no pressure here, hope you have an amazing day Andy 🩷

My only angel E.M.

Warnings: slight angst, mentions of unrequited feelings, mutual pining, happy ending of course, mostly fluff

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Fem!Henderson!Reader

Word count: 2.5K

Note: thank you for this request bestie! I loved writing it!

stranger things masterlist

-

You love your brother, you really do but that little shrimp, how Eddie likes to call him, can truly get on your nerves sometimes. You do anything for him, which is probably why he is so insatiable. You always spoiled him, that was probably your first mistake but you love getting him things that he loves so much, whether it’s new comics, books, movies or anything DnD related. A lot of your savings are spent on him, you know it’s not your job to get him all this stuff all the time but he is your little brother and you love seeing that big smile on his face whenever he gets excited about the things you get him. 

You drive him around when Steve is too busy to do it, you cook him lunch and dinner when your mom has no time to do it, you bake things for him and his friends and you let him host movie nights even though you love having the living room to yourself on Friday nights. 

You always say yes to him. 

But not this time. 

“Come on, are you serious?” Dustin exclaims, rolling his eyes at you as he follows you to your locker. 

“Very serious, Dustin!” 

“You can literally do it any other night, y/n!” 

Mike, Will and Lucas are tagging along with him, giving you their best puppy eyes. 

You open your locker, staring into blank space as you take a deep breath before you turn back around to look at the teens. 

“You know what? I’ve been waiting for this night for weeks! Mom is out of town, you were supposed to be at Mike’s place if I remember correctly and I was supposed to have the house to myself!” 

Mike furrows his brows, “why can’t you have your girls night at our place? You can have the basement,” he shrugs. 

“Yeah, the basement is nice!” Will smiles, though he doesn’t look like he wants to be a part of this argument. 

“Yeah, I’m sure Nancy and Robin would be fine with that,” Lucas says, giving you an unsure grin. 

“Exactly!” Dustin rolls his eyes. 

You tilt your head, “why don’t you host your DnD thing in your basement? That’s where you always used to play!” 

Dustin puts his hand on his forehead, “or you can just hang out in your room and we’ll have the living room to ourselves, that way we can all have what we want!”

You laugh, shaking your head in disbelief, “I want the living room, in fact, I want the whole house to myself, for once!” 

Dustin scrunches his face up in confusion, “oh come on, y/n, please!” 

Mike and Lucas nod along, “please, we don’t want any parents around, they aren’t exactly fans of Eddie.” 

Your features soften a little, something that definitely doesn’t go unnoticed by your little brother. 

You sigh, crossing your arms over your chest, you shake your head. You, Nancy and Robin have planned your only girls night for weeks, there is no way that you will let any boys interrupt it. 

“Nope.” 

Dustin’s face grows red, he rolls his eyes and throws his hands up, “son of a bitch,” he mumbles to himself, “is it because of your crush on Eddie? Are you scared that you will embarrass yourself when he’s around the way you always do?”

Your jaw drops and your eyes widen as you look at your brother. 

Mike’s eyes widen as well, he opens his mouth to say something but quickly closes it again when he sees the metalhead behind you, his expression mirroring yours. 

Will looks down, feeling sorry for you. 

Lucas cups his mouth, looking like he’s about to burst into laughter. 

Dustin’s face grows pale, regret flickering in his eyes when he sees the shocked and embarrassed look on your face and the surprised one on Eddie’s. 

“What?!” 

That’s the question you ask yourself, internally. That voice did not belong to you though, this is Eddie’s voice. 

Your blood runs cold and your stomach churns. Closing your eyes, you take a deep breath. Oh, how you wish the ground would just swallow you whole. Your cheeks heat up and embarrassment rushes through you. 

Eddie, whose face is more flustered than ever, steps around you, staring at you with wide eyes, “y/n, is that the truth?” 

You can only imagine what he thinks and what he feels, you spare yourself the embarrassment of being rejected. You don’t look at him, you don’t even bother to answer the question, you slam your locker shut, “host your goddamn campaign, Dustin,” you spit before you walk away without sparing any of them a single look. 

Eddie’s big eyes follow you, watching you walk away with your head hung low. His heart skips a beat, butterflies swirling in his stomach. You have a crush on him? The girl he has been pining for, feels the same? 

“Dustin,” Will mumbles, “how can you embarrass your own sister like that?” He shakes his head. 

“Yeah, dude,” Lucas mumbles.

Mike scratches his head and glances at Eddie who looks awestruck.

“Shit,” Dustin mumbles, closing his eyes. 

Eddie finally turns to look at him, putting his hand on the teen’s shoulder, he looks down at him, “Henderson, is that the truth?” Eddie asks, “your sister has a crush on me– on me?” He points to himself in confusion. 

Mike and Lucas share a look, smirking a little. 

Dustin finally opens his eyes, looking nervously up at his dungeon master, he is unsure of what to say, not wanting to embarrass you any further, he shrugs. 

Lucas sighs, rolling his eyes at his friend, “yes, Eddie. She has a crush on you.” 

Mike nods, “yeah, she was actually talking about you with my sister.” 

Eddie looks at them, “really?” 

Dustin squints his eyes, taking in the excited look on Eddie’s face, “wait,” he mumbles, “do you like my sister?” 

Eddie swallows, cheeks growing red.

“Holy shit!” Dustin exclaims as the three teens start smirking at him but before any of them can say anything else, Eddie turns around and runs off just the way you did, leaving them all giggling. 

-

You and Eddie aren’t the closest friends, that is probably because of your huge crush on him. Dustin isn’t wrong, you do tend to embarrass yourself in front of him. 

Whenever he is around, you turn into a blushing mess, you barely manage to form a sentence when he talks to you, all he ever gets are short responses, shy smiles and little waves. The poor guy probably thinks you hate him but he really just makes you incredibly nervous. 

You always had a crush on him, from the first moment you had laid your eyes on him, you had a special place in your heart for the handsome metalhead, not knowing that he feels just the same. 

You never talked much to him, only when you sat next to each other during class or saw him outside of school but you weren’t brave enough to make the move to become his friend or anything more than that. 

When your brother befriended him and he started coming around, stealing your job of driving him around, he always left you a blushing mess. Eddie was always a flirt, throwing random pickup lines at you, gifting you a flower that he picked from your mother’s garden or someone else’s property, holding doors open for you or carrying your books to classes but you never thought much of it, you thought that he’s like that with every girl. 

He is not. 

You fear that, that is over now, that he is weirded out by your crush on him. Thanks to your brother and his big mouth, your day and the rest of your week is ruined. 

All day, you have been avoiding Eddie, trying your best to avoid eye contact. The thought of being confronted and rejected makes you feel both mortified and heartbroken. 

You successfully manage to get through the day without running into him again. Now, you’re alone in your room, sulking, listening to Tears for Fears and glaring at your diary, the one that Dustin must’ve read, how else would he know of your crush and your hopeless feelings for Eddie? 

A knock on your window pulls you out of your thoughts, startling you a little. You throw the ripped out pages on your bed and turn around, eyes widening when you see Eddie who stands in front of your window with a smile on his face, waving at you shyly.

Your heart begins to race, your eyes widen. Nervously, you make your way towards it, he purses his lips, staring at you in excitement. Sliding the window open, you lick your lips and take a deep breath, “h-hi?” You mumble nervously. 

He is not here to reject you is he? 

Eddie smiles and you just now notice the flowers in his hands.

Surely, a guy who is about to reject you, won’t show up with flowers and a smile on his face, right?

“Hello princess,” he grins, looking giddy as he eyes you. 

You blush at the pet name, breaking eye contact, you look down. 

“Can I come in?” 

You nod and step aside to let him in, you dig your nails into your palms, a nervous habit that you have picked up on, years ago. You look down at yourself, growing incredibly flustered when you realize that you’re only wearing a big shirt and underwear. 

He climbs inside and shuts the window before he turns around to face you, he can’t even fight the smile off his face when he sees how nervous you are, “here, these are for you,” he whispers, holding out the flowers for you. 

Your eyes light up, looking up at him, you notice the excitement in his dark eyes, his plump lips are set in a bright smile. 

You reach for the flowers, your fingertips graze his knuckles as you take the flowers from him, “thank you,” you smile, glancing at the pink and yellow flowers, “those are not from mom’s garden,” you giggle. 

Eddie shakes his head, “no, they’re not,” he smiles, “I picked them out just for you, there’s a huge field of flowers close to Lover’s Lake,” he explains. He licks his lips, looking around the room that he has only passed by whenever he came over to pick up Dustin, “maybe I could take you there…. tomorrow? To Lover’s Lake, I mean.” 

Your heart flutters in your chest, excitement bubbling in your stomach. 

“To do what?” You ask, tilting your head, “isn’t that like a popular makeout spot?” 

His eyes widen and he chuckles, “no, according to all the jocks at school, skull rock is a popular makeout spot,” he says, stepping closer to you, he smiles as he watches you smelling the flowers, “but we could always make Lover’s Lake a new makeout spot, just for us, of course.” 

Your eyes widen even more, your cheeks grow incredibly hot. 

Your reaction makes him smirk, a sense of pride rushing through him for being so ‘smooth’. 

You giggle, forgetting all about the embarrassment and the fear you have felt before.

“Just for us?” 

He steps even closer to you, bringing his hand up, he brushes your hair back, tucking it behind your ear, “I wouldn’t want to take any other girl there, sweetheart,” he says, eyes softening, “but you gotta stop running away from me, I’ve been trying to catch you all day.” 

You draw your brows together and look up at him with big eyes, it makes him weak in the knees. 

“Tell me, is that little shrimp telling the truth?” He asks with big and hopeful eyes. 

You blink, your breathing quickens and you grow nervous all over again. 

“If he is, then I’d be the happiest and luckiest man in the world, princess.” 

Your heart leaps to your throat, you can’t believe it. 

“Really?” You breathe. 

He nods with a large smile on his face. 

“If you haven’t noticed, I’m like really obsessed with you,” he admits, cheeks redder than ever. 

“Wait what?” 

He chuckles, shaking his head as he cups your cheek, “I thought, I made it pretty obvious.” 

Not only does Eddie use every opportunity to talk to you, to spend time with you, he also creates DnD characters based on you, he drives around Hawkins, searching for the perfect flowers for you, he picks up Dustin just so he can see you, even if it’s only for one minute, he does anything to see you and to be with you and he explains all that to you, leaving you standing there with a shocked and awestruck look on your face. 

“I-I thought you do that for every girl,” you admit. 

“Never!” Eddie frowns, “I only want one girl,” he says as he reaches for your hand, bringing it up to his lips, he keeps looking into your eyes as he presses a kiss to your knuckles, “I only want you, sweetheart. So, will you take pity on my cynical heart and do me the honor and go on a date with me?” He asks, dramatically and with a teasing look in his eyes. 

Your giggle makes his soul happy.

Eddie is so crazy about you. He loves your beautiful voice, it always makes his heart flutter. He loves your sweet smile. He loves the way you get so flustered whenever he just looks at you. He loves your perfume. He loves the way you make him feel. The way you have always been so good and sweet to him, the way you always make him smile and happy, even on his worst days.

You're his angel.

“I would love to go on a date with you, Eddie Munson,” you smile. 

“Really?” He exclaims happily. 

“Yes!” 

He fist bumps the air before he scoops you up in his arms and twirls you around, giggling at the squeal that leaves your lips as you wrap your arms around his neck, still holding the flowers in your hands. 

“This is the best day of my life,” he whispers when he places you back on the ground, giving you a toothy grin, he can’t even help himself, leaning closer, he kisses your cheek, “can’t believe that your little brother made it the best day.” 

“You should’ve asked me out before,” you whisper. 

“Sweetheart, I didn’t think you were into me, I feel like I’ve been flirting with you for months!” 

“I didn’t think you were flirting!” 

“Wasn’t I obvious?” 

You shrug, “I thought that you were just a flirt!” 

He scoffs, putting his hands on the small of your back, he pulls you tightly against him, “only for you.” 

You smile at him. Raising your hand, you run your fingers through his hair and push it back, reaching for one of the smaller flowers in your little bouquet, you pick it out and tuck the stem behind his ear. 

Eddie chuckles at your action but his heart flutters when you lean in and kiss his cheek. 

“You’re pretty, Eddie.” 

“Yeah?” He asks, blushing. 

You nod. 

“I think you’re prettier,” he whispers, smiling at you, “you’re the prettiest.” 

“No, that’s you.” 

“No, you!” 

Neither of you notice the hushed whispers outside of your door, too busy and focused on each other.

“Oh, they’re so gross already,” Dustin mumbles with a disgusted look on his face. 

Lucas and Mike giggle. 

“I think, they’re super cute,” Will smiles with a happy look on his face. 

“I think Eddie will come over for something other than the campaign this weekend,” Lucas says, wiggling his brows. 

Dustin groans, shaking his head, “ew!” 

[hnbka]

BYLER and SUBSTITUTING

like this:

Because, I mean, without you, we'd all fall apart. Even me. Especially me. These past few months, I've been so lost without you. It's just, I'm so different from other people, and……when you're…when you're different, sometimes……I feel like a mistake. But you make me feel like I'm not a mistake at all.

which is the most OBVIOUS substitution in byler history because it is clear the audience is meant to pick up on it. it's not subtle. but-- mike does this too.

“It's not my fault I don't like girls. I'm not trying to be a jerk. Okay? But we're not kids anymore. I mean, what did I think, really? That we were never gonna get girlfriends? We were just gonna sit in my basement all day and play games for the rest of our lives?”

the difference is mike is projecting onto will rather than a side speaker. and you might think this isn't supposed to be used as a substitution for himself. but will is not the odd one out here. dustin wanted to play games and he had a girlfriend. like, logically, its two v two because they knew dustin would also want to play dnd. (and i'm not assuming, they say it in the fight.)

another important line here: we're not kids anymore.

okay, michael wheeler, let's look at byler speeches from when you guys were kids.

Do you remember the first day that we met? It was... It was the first day of kindergarten. I knew nobody. I had no friends and... I just felt so alone and so scared, but... I saw you on the swings and you were alone, too. You were just swinging by yourself. And I just walked up to you and... I asked. I asked if you wanted to be my friend. And you said yes. You said yes. It was the best thing I've ever done.

nothing's in red. nothing's crossed out or changed. because mike said exactly what he meant here (hoorah!). back when they were kids when they could actually tell each other their emotions and feelings because it didn't have to masquerade a romantic love. that love was normal to them until it was ostracized through internalized and externalized homophobia.

and what is stranger things at its heart??

a sci-fi show with villains and superpowers and lore YES BUT BEYOND THAT AND INTO THE CHARACTER ARCS

it's a show about kids growing up (and also jopper).

so? so, the change in their substitution says a lot. it says how hard they are hiding their feelings from each other, how it increases as they get older. which leads us back to their true feelings, aka season 2 ish, where they were pretty openly in love, in my opinion. holding hands, comforting each other, making freaking love confessions as seen above.

and juxtapose that with season 4, with all its red and changes in meaning?? we as viewers should understand that nothing the boys say is what they mean. they are hiding!!!

aka byler endgame

[dodger-chan]

Look we all have to write the steddie flirting through DnD scene don't we?

Consider this a Christmas gift if you celebrate and something to do while everything's closed if you don't.

“How touchable are my boobs in this?”

“I think I’m falling in love with Eddie.” Steve replied. He had not meant to say that. He’d been helping Robin pick out clothes for her date with Vickie that night, and the thought had just hit him. Steve tried again. “Your boobs look great. Vickie will definitely want to slip her hands under that shirt.”

“Perfect.” Robin threw herself down on her bed next to Steve. “Let's go back a few seconds. Why do you think you’re falling for Eddie?”

“I stole one of Dustin’s old DnD manuals and I’ve been looking through it to figure out how their nerd game works. I bought my own copy of Sacred Heart. And I'm trying to read The Hobbit for the third time.”

He was forty-eight pages in, the farthest he’d made it yet. He might make it through the whole book this time, now that he’d decided he could skip the songs. 

“Oh, it’s like when you studied for the SATs with Nancy!”

“Even though I’d already taken the exam. Exactly.” Steve sighed. “It’s been going on for weeks. How did I not notice until now?”

“Because you’ve spent most of your life purposefully ignoring it when you liked a guy.” Robin ruffled his hair. “Hey, at least finding him hot isn’t news, right?”

“Yay for small victories, I guess.” Steve fixed the mess Robin had made. “But what do I do about it?”

----------

A part of Steve had wanted to show up in his rattiest t-shirt and jeans, to do his best to blend in with the rest of the club. But it wasn’t like the other guys didn’t know who he was. And Steve wanted to find out if Eddie might like him, not some nerd that looked like him. So Steve wore a polo shirt and his best jeans. The only way he could have looked less like he belonged was if he’d pulled his letterman out from the back of his closet.

“Are you playing with us Harrington?” Eddie asked when Steve sat down at the table.

“Um, is that okay? Bobbie had a thing come up and she asked me to sub in for her.” Robin’s thing had been a second date with Vickie. At his house, so the girls could kiss without worrying about getting caught. Steve needing to spend four hours in the Wheeler basement gave them plenty of alone time, too. “I might need some help with the math, but Robs gave me a character sheet and some basic instructions.”

Eddie and his friends exchanged looks. Steve really hoped they weren’t going to tell him to get lost.

“Steve? You’re playing?” Dustin practically threw himself down the stairs when he saw Steve. “How did we finally convince you? Was it Robin? Where is she?”

“Robin’s busy. I’m her sub. If Munson’s cool with it?”

Faced with Dustin’s pleading eyes, Eddie didn’t stand a chance.

----------

Steve mostly kept quiet at first, observing how Eddie ran the game, what strategies the kids preferred to use. Mostly he let them make the decisions and when they were in combat he hit the biggest enemy with his morningstar until it stopped moving.

It felt kind of familiar, but way less painful.

After a little while, Steve thought he had the hang of it enough to try Robin’s plan.

“Wait a second,” he stopped Mike before they attacked the mysterious cloaked figure. “Isn’t everybody’s health kind of low?”

“We don’t have time to rest and heal, Steve.” Mike was being weirdly patient with him. “The enemy has already seen us.”

“Yeah, but I could try charming him instead of fighting. Robin said her character was supposed to be charming.” She’d had this long explanation about charisma that Steve hadn’t followed but she’d summed it up as flirt with the NPCs. “If I flirt with him, maybe he’ll let us by without a fight.”

“He’s a guy, Steve,” Dustin pointed out. “Robin’s character is also a guy.”

“Gay people exist.” One of the older Hellfire members, Steve thought his name was Gareth, spoke up. He hadn’t expected any of Eddie’s friends to help him out with this. The three of them had their eyes on Eddie.

Eddie wasn’t saying anything.

“He’s seduced at least one girl in every town we’ve passed through,” Lucas explained. “Usually two or three.”

“It’s kind of a running joke,” Will added.

“He could like both.” Steve said it with a casualness he did not feel. “Some people do.”

“Buckley’s not going to be upset you made her character a little gay?” Eddie asked him.

“Nah, she won’t mind.”

“Then roll for seduction.”

Right as he rolled, another of Eddie’s friends - Steve had missed his name during introductions - bumped into the table. The dice fell onto the floor and one rolled under the sofa.

This was apparently a catastrophe.

“We won’t be able to get the die without moving it! We’ll never know what you rolled!” Dustin whined.

“Couldn’t I just roll it again?” This was, for some reason, the worst question he could have asked, as it sparked a lecture on the sacred and inviolable nature of the dice rolls.

“Have him role play it,” Jeff suggested. Eddie shot his friend a dirty look.

Steve briefly wondered if Robin had been talking with the older members of Hellfire, but that didn’t seem likely. They wouldn’t have any reason to help him out. 

“I don’t mind.”

“If that’s what you want.” Eddie shrugged. “Show us you can be as charming as your character.”

“I’m pretty sure I’m exactly as charming as Sir Dingus des Cheveux.” Steve wasn’t sure if he should be flattered or disturbed by how much Robin’s character was based on him. Though it certainly made playing him easier. “Tell me what I see.”

“I already did. Cloaked figure, no obvious weapon.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’d notice if I was looking for a fight. Can I see his hair? His face? His eyes?”

“Um, his hood is up, so no.” Right. Eddie was going to make this difficult.

“Okay so I step forward and I stand, uh, shit. It’s hard to describe.” Steve could be just as difficult. “Can we act it out?”

“Act it out?”

“I mean the NPCs are all you, right? So if you could stand in for this guy?” A lot of flirting was physical and, for Steve, automatic. He didn’t know exactly what he was doing until he was doing it. 

“Do it, Eddie.”

“Yeah.”

“I’ve always wanted to see The Hair at work.”

Eddie’s friends egged him on. Lucas nodded along with them. Dustin had grabbed a blank sheet of paper and seemed prepared to take notes. Will seemed somewhere between uncomfortable and fascinated. Only Mike looked unhappy about it, but that was just how Mike was. 

Date a guy’s sister for a year and not even saving his life could make him smile at you.

Eddie rose from his seat.

“Okay, Harrington. Charm me.”

Steve stepped forward, until he was almost close enough to touch Eddie.

“Hi,” he said, tilting his head to one side. He smiled a slightly goofy smile that he knew invited teasing. “What’s a nice boy like you doing in a dungeon like this?”

Eddie burst out laughing.

“Seriously? That’s what you’re starting with?”

“Is that you or the character laughing?” Steve asked.

“Both.”

“You have a beautiful laugh.” Steve spoke in character. Eddie stopped laughing, surprised. “I bet your face is just as lovely.”

“He pushes his hood back to reveal the face of a drow. The face is not lovely, but scarred. One particularly nasty scar on his right cheek creates the illusion of a smile. He says, You lose.”

“I don't know about that.” Steve stepped a little closer and lifted his hand. “May I?”

Eddie nodded.

Steve pushed Eddie's hair away from his face, lightly brushing Eddie's scars. Taking care that the back of his thumb caressed the most prominent one, the one that tugged down the corner of Eddie's lip and gave his smile a permanent look of irony.

“You have the most expressive eyes I've ever seen,” Steve murmured. Eddie pulled back.

Shit. That wasn't in character. Steve tried again.

“I think I won, but I wouldn’t want to contradict anyone with such enchanting eyes.” He dropped the smile but kept the teasing tone. “What do I lose?”

“Your life,” Eddie replied, but his heart clearly wasn't in it.

“You don't want to kill me.” Steve’s smile widened. He'd won this round as soon as Eddie had laughed. “If you’re having trouble thinking up a forfeit, can I suggest a kiss?”

“Okay, okay,” Eddie said with another laugh. “You have successfully seduced the drow. He does not attack your party, or summon reinforcements. Your one night stand allows for a long rest. Because the drow is a cleric of Loviatar, you only recover half your health.”

“Worth it.” He winked at Eddie before sitting back down at the table. “Sir Dingus had an excellent time. Is there a fantasy version of asking for a guy’s number? In case I have to sub in for Rob again?”

He didn’t want to saddle Robin’s character with a boyfriend when Robin had been using him to flirt with girls, but he didn’t want to leave Eddie with the impression that Steve moved on from people as quickly as Sir Dingus did.

“The life of an adventurer is hardly conducive to long term relationships.” That did not answer Steve’s question. “But, he tells you his name is Ghauntel Kenduis and should he see you again, he will remember yours.”

--------

Dungeons and Dragons was not the worst way to spend an afternoon. The combat was kind of boring, and the bickering over what the party was going to do next made Steve sympathize with the guys who’d stuffed nerds into lockers. 

Okay, DnD was not his thing at all and the only thing he really enjoyed about it was getting to flirt with Eddie.

Steve slid his hand over the scars on Eddie's neck. Slowly, carefully, he brought their lips together for a kiss.

Well, Eddie’s characters, which wasn’t exactly the same thing. And after that first time, he hadn’t had to do nearly as much roleplaying. But it was still fun.

“You kept breaking character,” Eddie commented when the game was finished for the day. 

“What do you mean?” The kids had, unsurprisingly, vanished upstairs as soon as it was time to clean up. A little more surprising was that the rest of Hellfire had also cleared out, leaving Steve and Eddie alone.

“When you would flirt. You kept losing the characters. You’ve never played before, so flirting with me instead of my NPCs would be an easy mistake to make. Or…” Eddie trailed off. “Nah, you’re just bad at the game.”

“I mean, I am. And breaking character wasn’t something I tried to do on purpose.” Steve stepped close to Eddie again. Close enough to reach out and touch him. “But I kept doing it because I wanted to flirt with you.”

“Why?” Eddie asked. “I'm a freak and kind of an asshole a lot of the time. And I’m not exactly a pretty face these days.”

“Well, it turns out that weird and passionate nerds are kinda my type.” And Steve was sick of dating girls who weren't his type. “May I?”

Wordlessly, Eddie nodded.

Again, Steve pushed Eddie's hair back, tucking it behind his ear. Eddie leaned into Steve's touch.

“You really do have the most expressive eyes. I wish you didn't feel like you have to hide them.” 

[bigdumbbambieyes]

Happy Halloween, lovelies!! 🎃 Day 31: Your Choice for @harringrovekinktober what better way to celebrate than with some SFW ghost!Billy fun?

--

It’s Friday night, it’s Halloween, and Steve’s babysitting.

Which, at this point in his life, he should be used to by now – but it still kinda sucks. He cares about the kids, sure, but he’s not crazy about them. He could be hanging out at Robin’s, watching horror movies and binging on candy and talking about girls and whatever, but no. 

Dustin had invited him to the little hangout in Mike’s basement after Trick-or-Treating and, well…the two of them have been distant lately, so. He said yes. Because Dustin was an annoying little shit with a smart mouth, but he was kind of like the younger brother Steve never had. And Steve wanted to enjoy that just a little longer, until either Dustin became totally bored with him or they kids no longer needed him around.

Which were both very depressing thoughts, so. Steve had agreed to go and handed out candy with his parents until eleven o’clock rolled around and he dipped, saying goodnight to the two of them before making his way over to the Wheeler’s.

Nancy had answered the door, gave him an awkward little smile like she always does these days, and he’d made equally awkward small talk before leaving to go and check on the kids downstairs.

“Steve!” Dustin called out with a smile, actually excited to see him, and it made Steve feel warm.

A grin overtaking his face for the first time all evening, Steve returned the smile and happily did their little handshake – ignoring the eye rolls and laughter pointed at them from the other kids scattered about the room.

The entire Party was there, including El, which was nice to see. Steve couldn’t remember the last time he saw her out, especially after…after…

His eyes land on Max, who’s pale and managing a smile from where she’s curled up on the floor with El, the two of them sorting through their candy piles.

For a second, Steve sees flashes of fireworks and hears the distant screams of Billy in his mind, and shakes them away.

“Hey.” He greets her with a small smile and nod, which she returns before her tired eyes fall to where El’s trying to trade her Milky Way for Max’s Reese’s cups.

“You’re just in time!” Dustin says with excitement, his eyes bright as he tugs on Steve’s sleeve, “C’mon!”

“Just in time for what, exactly?” Steve asks with a furrowed brow, following the kid to the table where they all usually play DnD. But, instead of a map and figures scattered across it, there’s an Ouija board, and Steve stops in his tracks. “Where did you find this?” He asks, his tone serious.

“Will and I found it earlier,” Mike pipes up from around his lollipop in his mouth, tucked away in his cheek, “It’s rad, right?”

“Um, no?” Steve baulks, flounders a bit as he motions to the board with his hands, “Do–you–I–” he huffs and runs a hand through his hair, hating to be That Guy but he sighs, “This isn’t a good idea.”

As expected, a chorus of moans and groans follow him as the kids all head to the table, surrounding it, each of them yelling things like ‘don’t be lame, Steve’ or ‘it’s Halloween, it’s the perfect time to try it’ and other equally as stupid.

The only other person who looks weary is Max, her arms crossed over her chest as she eyes the board quietly.

“C’mon, Steve, just once!” Lucas says, “It’s probably not even real. This kinda shit is always just made up.”

“Yeah, my brother tried it once and he said it didn’t work,” Will adds, his brown eyes looking at Steve, pleading quietly, “Please?”

Fuck.

It’s a bad idea. Stupid, really. And while Steve doesn’t believe in ghosts because he’s never come across one, he’s still seen enough creepy shit in his life that he’s not eager to go poking around for more. Especially tonight of all nights. 

And not mention that he’s used one of these before, when he was their age. He still swears the planchette moved on its own and he’d sworn to himself that he’d never touch one of these things again.

Still, though. He can’t…show that he’s even a little spooked, because the kids would never let him live it down.

Blinking out of his thoughts, he sees every pair of eyes on him, quietly waiting for his approval.

Which, in a way, is nice. That these kids respect him enough to wait for his permission. Not that they really need it – they usually do whatever they want, anyway.

Giving in, he sighs, “Yeah, sure, whatever.” And they burst into excitement, which he’s quick to dampen with, “Just once! Once.” And they all agree eagerly.

As they all circle the table, fingertips going to the planchette, Steve feels his stomach knot uneasily. The room is dim already, Dustin having shut off the lights except for the light above the table, and the kids all look at each other as the realization dawns on them that no one knows how to do it.

“You gotta be shitting me.” Steve huffs in amusement, his mouth twitching with a poorly concealed smile.

“You spoke first!” Mike grins triumphantly, “That means you gotta ask a question!”

Steve’s smile drops and his brows furrow, “What? That’s not a rule.”

“It is now.” Dustin smirks, just as smug.

“Ugh, fine, whatever,” Steve huffs, licking his lips as he eyes the board and says, “Hello. Is anyone there?”

A few seconds pass, nothing happens.

Until the planchette slowly moves to ‘Yes’.

The kids all gasp and freak out a little, but Steve’s quick to shush them, “Shut up! Relax, just…chill.”

He wracks his brain for another question, ignores the tingling at the base of his spine as he asks, “Do you know what day it is?”

“The fuck kinda question is tha–” Dustin starts but quickly snaps his mouth shut as the planchette begins to spell out a word.

Just one word: H-A-L-L-O-W-E-E-N.

The kids all giggle and gasp again, clearly entertained and unsure of how authentic it actually is.

“Do you…know my name?” He asks, eyes trained on the board.

S-T-E-V-E.

“Holy shit!”

“No way!”

“Who’s moving it?!”

“Oh, my god, shh!” Steve silences them again, ignoring the chill up his back as he eyes each of the kids, trying to see which one of them is doing it – but they all look innocent.

Looking down at the board again, Steve asks, “What’s your name?”

B.

Steve’s throat closes up.

I.

His eyes go to Max.

L.

Horror slowly dawns on her face, his eyes widening and jaw dropping.

L.

He feels ice cold.

Y.

The room is silent for a moment, until Max gasps quietly, “Billy? Is it really you…?”

The planchette moves to ‘Yes’ and her hand goes to her mouth, her eyes welling with tears as she tries and fails to muffle a sudden sob, El quickly wrapping her up in a hug as the boys all begin to freak out, hand after hand leaving the planchette until Steve’s the only one.

His gut twisting, anger flaring, he looks at the boys and snarls, “Hey! This shit isn’t funny, whoever’s doing it, knock it off–”

The planchette keeps moving under his fingertips and he looks down at it, eyes wide as it spells.

B-O-O.

Snatching his hand away, Steve points an angry finger at the kids as Max cries in El’s arms, “Okay, that’s it! We agreed on once and we did it once–”

“Steve, you can’t–” Dustin tries, but Steve cuts him off.

“–No! Whatever the fuck that was, it’s done! I’m done. I don’t need this…this ghost bullshit ruining my night, okay? You can all have your fun but I’m out!” He looks to El and Max, “C’mon, I’ll take you two home, if you want.”

Max is quick to nod and gather up her things, El following suit, but he doesn’t wait for them – he goes back upstairs, hearing Dustin call, “You have to say goodbye to end it!”

Yeah, sure.

Slamming his car door shut, Steve grips his steering wheel and closes his eyes, tries to even his breathing and calm his racing heart. 

Because what the fuck?

It wasn’t real. It wasn’t. It was just some fucked up prank the boys were doing and it backfired hard.

Although, he does jump when the girls open the doors to his backseat and climb in, but he sighs softly in relief when he realizes it’s just them.

And not Billy Hargrove back from the dead or something.

He looks back at them and at Max, who’s quietly wiping away the tears under her eyes. Quietly, he asks, “You okay?”

She glowers at him a little, obviously not okay, so he nods silently and turns back to start his car.

--

He drops them off and makes sure they’re inside before pulling away and heading back home, turning up his music to drown out the annoying memory of Dustin calling after him in the basement, something about not saying ‘goodbye’ and having to–

The radio buzzes with static and Steve frowns, winces a little as it gets louder, the pop song playing suddenly mixing with something heavier, a sad guitar, the lyrics creeping through the static to sing, “You just left when I begged you to stay, I've not stopped crying since you went away, you went away, you went away–”

He twists the volume all the way down and grips his steering wheel, swallowing thickly around a suddenly dry throat.

It was just…an interference. Signals crossing in the air, that’s all. 

The volume stays at zero all the way home.

--

It’s not like Steve’s scared. He has nothing to be scared of, really. 

Because there’s no reason to be scared! Nothing’s happened! He went to bed that night and woke up in the morning, feeling normal. His parents were their usual selves, too. There was nothing to worry about.

Except, he can’t really explain the way ‘Pretty Boy’ had been written onto his foggy mirror after a shower.

Wiping it away with loud squeaks from his palm, Steve had huffed and ignored the cold chill up his spine again, forcing the memory of Billy against his back in basketball practice away out of his head as he got ready for work.

But, even at work, it didn’t stop – tapes that he’d put up on the shelves ended up on the floor minutes later, knocked over and tumbling to the ground. The computer would freeze up or turn off while he’s using it without explanation. The door would shake a little, as if mustering up the strength to open, or like there was a strong wind outside rattling it, but it would never open. 

Weird, borderline annoying shit like that.

At home, it was no better. Doors randomly slamming, scaring the shit out of him. The TV turning off whenever he was watching it, even with the remote far away from him. Once, when he’d left a notepad and pen out, he came back to find ‘BOO’ written on it.

And it had felt so…smug.

So Billy.

But, he refuses to believe that Billy Hargrove’s haunting him. It’s just not possible.

And besides, why him? Why not Max? Or literally anyone else?

--

He goes back to the Wheeler’s, a week after Halloween, in search of answers.

Mike answers the door and Steve immediately asks him, “Where is it?”

The little shit tilts his head to the side, acting clueless despite the amusement in his eyes, “Where’s what?”

“The fucking board.” Steve huffs, pushing past Mike and heading downstairs to the basement, feeling the kid right on his heels the entire time.

“It’s not down here!” Mike groans, “After you and the girls left, Lucas took it!”

“Took it where?” Steve asks as he looks around the basement, standing at the base of the stairs with Mike behind him, looking over his shoulder.

He swears he sees a shadow in the corner of his eye, so he chases it with his gaze, but it’s gone.

“He took it outside or something, I don’t know,” Mike huffs in annoyance, “We were all kinda freaked out so we agreed to keep it out of the house.”

Turning and looking at Mike, Steve frowns at him, “I fucking told you dumb asses not to do it.”

Mike rolls his eyes with a nod and turns to head back upstairs, “Yeah, yeah, I know!”

“Steve.” A familiar voice breathes into his ear, right behind him.

He freezes and his breath catches, eyes widening as he whips his head around, expecting to see Billy standing there but there’s nothing. There’s just the quiet basement, empty.

“Steve!” Mike calls and Steve rushes up the stairs, hoping the voice stays down there.

--

He finds the board outside the Wheeler’s house, behind the garbage bins. He’s lucky it was missed on collection day.

“Okay,” he huffs, setting it down on his bedroom floor and putting the planchette down on the board, crossing his legs as he sits down in front of it. 

He hesitates, for a moment. And feels stupid. 

But, he has to know.

Carefully, he places his fingertips on the planchette again and clears his throat to say, “Hi, um…Billy. Are…are you there?”

His eyes widen as the planchette immediately pulls to ‘Yes’ and stays there.

“Holy shit,” he breathes, licking his lips nervously, “Okay, um…” He furrows his brow,s “Why are you…following me?”

He refuses to say ‘haunting’.

It takes a moment, but the planchette moves across the board, spelling a simple explanation.

F-U-N.

It makes Steve huff a quiet sound of amusement through his nose, rolling his eyes because it’s just so Billy.

Even in death, Billy’s determination to annoy the hell out of Steve is still there.

Almost affectionately, he mumbles, “Asshole.”

Billy spells out I-K-N-O-W.

Which makes Steve tilt his head a little, wondering. “Are…are you in pain?”

The planchette goes to ‘No’.

That’s a relief Steve hadn’t known he wanted to feel. He feels his shoulders begin to relax, no longer lingering by his ears.

“That’s…good. Max will be happy to hear that.”

The planchette jerks and quickly spells out D-O-N-O-T-T-E-L-L.

Furrowing his brows again, Steve asks, “Why not?”

C-O-M-P-L-I-C-A-T-E-D.

“I think she has a right to know. She’s…honestly, she’s been a mess ever since Starcourt.” Steve frowns and worries his bottom lip, thinking back over the last couple of months and how he’s watched the life drain out of her slowly. “She misses you, Billy.”

Billy goes quiet at that, for a while. Steve doesn’t dare move his hand away.

Finally, after another long moment, Billy spells out B-E-T-T-E-R-O-F-F.

“You don’t know that,” Steve frowns again, nearly scowling now, “I don’t know if you’ve seen her, but she’s not doing great. You really scared her that night, y’know – on Halloween.”

I-K-N-O-W.

“You should apologize.”

S-O-R-R-Y-Y-Y-Y-Y.

So sassy. “Not to me, idiot. To her.”

C-A-N-T.

“Why not?”

N-O-G-O-O-D-B-Y-E.

Dustin’s voice rings in Steve’s ears then, ‘You have to say goodbye to end it’.

“So…” he worries his lower lip between his teeth again, “If…I say ‘bye’ to you, you’ll leave?”

The planchette lands on ‘Yes’.

Steve goes quiet then, thinking.

They never really had any sort of relationship before Billy’s death. They were rivals for a short moment, sure, but even then it wasn’t like Steve was vying to be top dog at school. Billy was always the one to pull on his metaphorical pigtails, always ready to annoy him or get a rise out of him for fun, but even that wasn’t much.

But this little board has suddenly opened up an opportunity that Steve doesn’t want to end so soon.

“Okay,” he breathes, “Well…you’re stuck with me, for now, then. I…I want you to talk to Max, because I think she needs it – I don't even know why you’re attached to me, she was there that night, too…”

N-O-G-O-O-D-B-Y-E.

“Oh, right,” he mumbles, realizing that – unfortunately – Dustin was right. He hadn’t said goodbye to Billy that night, so Billy’s tied to him.

He’s not even sure if that’s how any of this works, but it kinda makes sense.

P-R-E-T-T-Y-B-O-Y.

An unwilling smile tugs on his lips then, feeling as if he can hear Billy’s voice in his head as he thinks of the weird nickname. Because even after all of the pain Billy went through, he’s still…himself. In a way. Maybe without all that pain and misery, now.

With a mumble, Steve says, “Yeah, that’s me. Get used to it.”

A-L-R-E-A-D-Y-A-M.

Steve ignores the flare of warmth in his chest at that and mutters, “Okay, well…since we’re going to hang around for a bit, could you maybe not be a total dick when I’m going about my day?”

The planchette goes to ‘No’, and really, Steve should’ve expected that.

“Later, asshole.” Steve mumbles with a smirk as he pulls his hands away, feeling a little bit like he’s just hung up on Billy, and grins as he watches some papers get shuffled on his desk before his curtains are ruffled, blinding him momentarily as sunlight shines on his face.

He chuckles and holds his hand out in front of his face, shielding himself from the little sunshine assault, and wonders what the fuck he’s gotten himself into.

[hellfiremunsonn]

Stuck With Me. Eddie Munson x Reader.

AN: At the end of each chapter will be a picture of ‘your’ Journal. Photos, and writing of a little bit from each chapter. 

(THIS IS A REUPLOAD ALL CHAPTERS WILL BE RE UPLOADED ONE BY ONE)

I DO NOT ALLOW MY WRITING TO BE REPUBLISHED ANYWHERE OTHER THAN MY OWN BLOG WITHOUT MY CONSENT.

WARNINGS: Mentions of drinking (they're at a bar) Eddie is sweaty

WORDCOUNT: 5k

CHAPTER 3: THE GANGS ALL HERE

It took about fifteen minutes for the house to become a loud mess of young teens and young adults. Passing between the open door to the backyard, people dipping their feet in the pool, some hovering in the kitchen, and of course Steve, watching Robin with his hands on his hips as she manned the grill. He still didn't trust her enough to cook by herself, and you could only reassure him so many times, but still he refuses to fully believe you. 

The gang included, Dustin Henderson, Max Mayfield, Lucas Sinclair, who was dating Max. Mike Wheeler and his sister Nancy Wheeler. Will Byers and his brother Johnathan Byers, who was dating Nancy. But Nancy was also Steves ex but they somehow get along really well?. Jane Hopper, who was will and Jonathans step sister, and she was dating Mike. 

You sat on the edge of the pool next to Max watching Dustin and Mike battle it out with pool noodles. 

"It's crazy to think all of you have grown up together" You comment. 

Max turned to you, a small smile on her lips as she looked at you over the top of her red sunglasses. "Everyone always says that" She laughed. "They're the siblings I never had, and although they are all a huge pain in my ass I'm glad I became friends with them, trauma and all"

"Were you at the mall too? With the fire and all that?" you asked quietly.

"Uh yeah, most of us were actually" She seemed like she wanted to say more but closed her mouth. Forcing a tight lipped smile while she looked at me. 

"That must have been scary, I can only imagine... But you don't have to talk about it, I get it, I'm sorry for prying" Instantly panicking that you might have crossed a line with the small red head but she laughed instead. 

"No don't worry about it, people always ask about it, it's kind of an unbelievable story" 

you nodded, turning your attention back to everyone around the backyard. Mike and Jane were sat close together on one of the lounge chairs, deep in conversations while their hands were intertwined. 

"Hey can I ask you a question?" You said turning back to Max. 

"Yeah of course"

"Who's the guy in the band? The show tomorrow?" your brows furrow, squinting through the sun. 

"Eddie?"

You shrug. "Robin hasn't told me his name, keeps referring to him as 'an old friend' for some reason"

Max snorted. "Eddie Munson, he's the dungeon master for the DnD club all the guys were in at school. Or at least he was before he graduated, that's how we all know him, cause of those nerds" She said gesturing to the boys in the pool. 

"Eddie Munson" You repeated. His named felt smooth on your tongue, a name you get used to saying... It replayed in your mind over and over again like a spell. 

The rest of the night was actually quite peaceful. You all sat around the little campfire and exchanged stories, some good, some cringe, relating to old high school moments, and newer ones from the younger kids. They all seemed so mature for their age. All of them seeming to know more than me, and maybe they had been through more than they let on. But they were all so sweet nonetheless. It was obvious how much they loved and cared for each other.

After the sun had long gone down, we all cramped into the basement to watch a movie, and after almost an hour of back and forth yelling on which movie was better and why you ended up falling asleep about ten minutes into the movie. When you woke up the movie had ended and static played on the tv, lighting up the crowded couch where they all were fast asleep and all tucked around each other. You snuck away to grab your camera and snapped a picture of them, it was too cute for you not to. 

"You're such a creep" Robin whispered to you. Waking up from her spot on the other couch, stretching her arms over her head. 

"They look cute, sue me" you said without looking at her. "I'm going to head up to bed" you said, attempting to speak through your yawn. 

Heading for the stairs you turned back to robin before leaving "Robin?" You said quietly. 

"mhmm?"

"I really like your friends. I can see why you keep them around, I've never seen you so happy"

She blushed, the pink still prominent  enough in the white glow of the tv. "Thanks... They really like you as well, they can't believe I found another cool friend honestly" She looked at them with fondness in her eyes. 

"Goodnight Robby"

You happily tucked yourself into your bed for the week, sinking into the lavish pillows surrounding you. 

You woke up the next morning around nine thirty, stretching out your arms and legs. After a few extra minutes of staring at the ceiling you finally got up and creeped into the bathroom, brushing your teeth and peaking into Robins room to see if she was awake yet. She wasn't.

You grabbed a pair of fuzzy socks and tugged them on before quietly making your way downstairs.

Feeling your shoulders relax when you realized you were probably the only one awake right now.  You take your time snooping around the kitchen until you eventually found everything you needed to make coffee. You laughed to yourself knowing Robin would curse you for using instant coffee instead of 'the real stuff' considering you worked at a coffee shop. But something about instant coffee just hit perfectly in the morning. 

Holding your mug of coffee to your chest you walked over to the large sliding doors to the backyard. Admiring the sun slowly filtering through the trees, bearing down a comfortable warmth before the heat of the afternoon was sure to hit. 

You don't know when, or how long Steve had been in the kitchen but when he placed his own mug down on the counter; the ceramic noise of the cup meeting marble startled you and you flinched slightly, your coffee swirling in your mug threatening to spill more than the few splashes that hit your shirt. 

"Sorry I didn't mean to scare you" Steve chuckled, his voice low and still groggy. from sleep. Hair a mess of a mop on the top of his head, yet it had somehow gained volume. "You're up early" He said while beginning to fix himself a cup of coffee. 

"This is actually pretty late for me, I'm used to getting up so early for work" You pout. "This is the first time I've had more than two days off in a row"

"Really?" Steve said walking over to stand next to you. "How come you work so much?"

"I'm too nice to say no" you sigh, looking down into your coffee cup. 

Taking a sip of his own, he nodded with a silent agreement. "That's like me and those little shits asleep downstairs. The amount of times I've considered moving back here just for them"

"You really are quite the babysitter aren't you? Robin makes jokes about it all the time, but it's different seeing you actually with them" you joke, bumping your shoulder into his.

Quiet footsteps from the basement stairs were heard behind you, both you and Steve turning to see who was creeping up the steps. It was Max with her two braids a little messy, a few strands coming untucked. "Oh thank god someone else is awake" She breathed while walking into the kitchen. 

"I tried to stay down there but it's so boring when none of them are awake, and Dustins snoring was driving me crazy" Rolling her eyes she began searching through Steves cupboards, and drawers. The two of you continue to watch as she shifted around the kitchen, looking for whatever it was she was looking for. After a few minutes, she had laid out a bunch of bowls and other cooking utensils. 

With a huff she leaned with both hands agaisnt the counter and looked up at Steve. "Steve do you have stuff to make pancakes?"

"Obviously" Steve said running a hand through his hair. "Of course I have stuff for pancakes" he scoffed while joining her on the other side of the counter. 

As the smell of pancakes, syrup and bacon, filled the air, more and more of the gang slowly began to filter in and out of the kitchen. Grabbing a serving of pancakes and sitting around the kitchen and outside in the backyard to enjoy the morning warmth before it got too hot. You settled with three pancakes, adding sliced bananas on top and drowned them in syrup. "Max these are incredible" You say after swallowing a sticky mouthful of pancake and banana. 

"Hey she didn't do all of the work!" Steve yelled over the sound of the kitchen sink, elbows deep in soapy water. 

After a day of laying in the sun by the pool, and swimming until your arms hurt it was time to start getting ready for the show tonight. Most of the gang had gone home to get ready which left you alone sat on the floor surrounded by every item of clothing you had brought. You pouted at your choices, none of them seeming to satisfy you. With a groan you leaned back until you were laying on the floor. 

"Somehow I always find you on the floor" Robin said from the door. "What's your dilemma this time" She said coming to join you on the floor 

"I don't know what to wear" you grumbled, throwing an arm over your eyes. 

"Just like, wear something all black, it's a pretty metal band, and a dingy bar so you don't have to try so hard to fit in"

Leaning up onto my elbows you surveyed your options once more. "Do I look like I wear all black?" you say gesturing to the colourful and mismatched pile of clothing. 

Robin rolled her eyes. Leaning forward onto her knees she rummaged through the clothes, mumbling to herself as she went along. 

"Here" She said shoving a full outfit into your hands. "Go put it on" She poked at your sides until you were laughing and helped you up off the floor. Shoving you towards to bathroom to get dressed. 

It was the Metallica shirt that usually you wore exclusively for sleeping. A pair of black shorts, with rainbow striped socks and your converse. It was a simple outfit, and you were kind of annoyed you didn't consider it in the first place. "Perfect!" Robin said jumping up and down while clapping her hands. "You look so cute"

You blush, avoiding her gaze. "You said it was a metal band?"

"Yeah, super metal, very loud, I never know what they're singing half the time, but I'm there to support" She said shrugging, jumping a few times while buttoning up her jeans. 

Going with the theme of black, you did some messy black eyeliner, smudging it out around the edges to give it a more 'alternative' vibe, whatever that meant. but I smudged it out more. You added a lightly tinted lipgloss giving your lips a perfect cherry pink color. 

The hideout was about an hour away from the centre of Hawkins, the bar stationed at the very edge of the town in an almost deserted area with only a few other buildings around it. The neon sign outside of the door flickered, half of it burnt out but still trying  illuminated the large bald man who sat on a stool right next to the door, probably there to card minors, but by the looks of him he probably let most of them in. 

Once inside the bar was exactly what you would picture any old dingy bar to look like. Wonky wooden floors that were abused by the heavy footed men who spilled their drinks after having one too many, or knocking over the tall bar tables in some sort of petty fight they wouldn't remember in fifteen minutes. The lights low, so only the few yellow wall lights filled the room with a faint glow. A couple of red faux leather booths across the left side of the bar, closest to the bathrooms that you could only imagine smelled like that weird portapotty chemical smell. 

You scrunched your nose at the thought. Most of the gang ran over to grab seats in the booths while Robin lead you to the bar. 

"What can I get for you two ladies?" the bar tender asked. He was tall and thick with muscle. Covered in tattoos, and some of them definitely looked gang related, but you didn't let your eyes linger on them very long. 

"Could I get a vodka and coke?" Robin asked, her fingers tapping anxiously against the hardwood of the bar top. 

The bartender nodded and then looked at you. "Just a sprite would be great" I said smiling.  "Also thank you" 

His lips lifted ever so slightly into a small smile as he went about making our drinks. You smile to yourself, feeling accomplished from making the mean tough man smile.

"You're not drinking?" Robin asks with a raised brow, fingers still tapping away as she spoke. 

"I can feel a headache brewing, don't want to make it worse by drinking tonight" it wasn't a lie, you decently did have a headache brewing, tension from the nerves of finally meeting the mystery man named Eddie. If you added alcohol into the mix tonight you'd be in for a rude awakening tomorrow.

Robin hummed, barely paying attention to what you said, her eyes searching every crevice of the bar.

 "Anxious about Vickie?"

Her eyes were wide, and she was so jittery she looked like a chihuahua. "No! Why would I be? Of course I'm not anxious" she said quickly, but folded even quicker. 

"Well yes, a lot actually, she said she would be here, but what if she doesn't show?" She eagerly grabbed her drink the minute the bartender set them down. You give him another small smile before slapping down some cash for the drinks, and a couple into his tip jar.

 "You talked to her on the phone today right?" Robin nodded, sipping her drink. "And she said she was coming, and that she was really excited to see you right?" You asked, repeating her words from earlier. 

"Yeah she did"

"So then she'll be here Robin don't worry about it" you give her shoulder a reassuring squeeze and she smiles, taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly.

"I'm sorry for freaking out about it so much"

"Don't apologize, that's what best friends are for, we sign up to listen to you freak out about the same thing a million times, s'just our job" you shrug.

She rolled her eyes, opening her mouth to say something witty probably but the uproar of the gang behind the two of you made her turn around. "Oh!" She yelled and quickly made her way over to the booths. Confused you follow and watched as she envelopes a tall man with long curly hair in a hug. You assume this was the 'Eddie', Max had told you about yesterday but you could only see the back of him. 

Shyly sliding next to Robin, who now held him at arms length, you were finally able to see him. 

My god was he beautiful. You don't know why Robin didn't tell you; You guess the whole being a lesbian thing it probably didn't even occur to her. His skin looked like porcelain, and his eyes were such chocolate brown you were sure they would make anyone who made eye contact with him melt. He was smiling while Robin babbled to him, words you couldn't even make out because you were so entranced by him. He had dimples, and deep lines that formed when he smiled around his eyes and mouth. His face so full of expression, giving you exactly the response you would want from whatever you told him. When his eyes flickered to yours it felt like time had stopped. He furrowed his brows, just slightly, clearly confused as to who you was, but there was something in his eyes you couldn't quite make out, but it made them sparkle. 

"Oh! Let me finally introduce you two" Robin said turning towards you. Snapping you out of your thoughts you shook your head a little, plastering a smile on my face and reaching your hand out towards him. 

"She's a she?" He said turning to robin. "I thought your roommate was a dude this entire time?" 

"No you dingus, I've talked about her before, and she is very much a she, not a dude. Not my fault you gendered a nickname" She said rolling her eyes and returning to the gang behind you. Everyone clearly already having said their hellos, leaving us to get to know each other a little.

"Sorry about that" you blush.

He smiled at you, bringing his hand forward engulfing yours with his and shook it lightly. He repeated your name, and it sounded like heaven coming from his lips. You correct him, and give him your nick name which you prefer to be called but he ignores it, glancing down at your shirt.

"That's my shirt?" He said letting go of your hand to tug at the hem of the fabric. 

"Huh?" you look down at his hand and then back up at him. 

"This is mine, I thought I lost it, but you of all people have it?" He said raising his eyebrow. 

"Oh Robin gave it to me, she didn't want to throw it out, so I took it" You say shyly, looking down at your feet. "I usually sleep in it, I don't listen to them so I feel bad if I wear it out"

"So you're wearing your pyjamas at a bar?" He teased. 

You bit the inside of your cheek and smiled up at him. "I didn't pick out the outfit alright? I'm a lot more colourful than this" You say waving a hand up and down your body. 

"I can tell" He said with a laugh. "Alright I gotta head to the stage, I hope you enjoy the show, even if you don't listen to stuff like this"

"I'm sure I will, break a leg up there" You say, giving him a small thumbs up. He crossed both his fingers on each hand in return. 

When he made it to the stage you grabbed robin; maybe a little too aggressively as she almost spilled her drink all over the floor. "Why didn't you tell me he looked like that?" you spat, trying not to get the attention of the rest of the group. 

"Huh?"

"Eddie!" you exclaim.

"What about Eddie?"

"Oh my god" You ran a hand over your face. "He looks like a fucking sex god Robin and you let me leave the house looking like this?"

"You look cute!" She argued. 

"Maybe! Not cute enough for him" You say throwing your hands up in the air.

"Wait do you like Eddie?" she asks excitedly

"Well I don't know him, so I can't say yes to that, but his fucking face apparently has a way of making me have feelings that's for sure"

Robin snorted. "Oh my god I can't believe you're crushing on Eddie" 

"Robin I swear to god, if you say anything to anyone I will spill so much lego on the floor of your room you will never be able to walk comfortably ever again"

"I never said I was going to say anything!" She said in defence. "But no, I won't say anything. He for sure thinks you're pretty though" she said into her glass. 

"How would you know that?" you snort

"Because he's staring at you" she said smiling.

A panicked quick glance to your right to see that he in fact, really was staring at you. He seemed lost in thought, his drummer talking to him passionately, his hands flying, all while Eddies eyes stayed locked on you. Blushing, you ended up being the first one to break eye contact, but Eddies eyes didn't stray from you for very long. 

About five minutes later Vickie finally showed up and ran full speed to Robin, hugging her so tightly while burying her head into Robins shoulder. They stood like that for a few minutes before finally breaking apart to give each other a cluster of kisses, laughing the whole time. 

You smiled while you watched them, knowing Robin had nothing to worry about. Vickie is hopelessly in love with that woman. 

More people filtered in and eventually people were standing shoulder to shoulder. Robin and Steve creating a protective amount of space around you, knowing know more about these types of crowds. Feeling very grateful to have them as friends who take such good care of you.

When Eddie emerged from the stage again he had removed his leather jacket. Now only a loose black tank top hung over his broad shoulders. His hair tugged half up into a bun to keep it out of his face. When he spoke into the mic I watched as his lips grazed the metal of it with each word. 

"How ya doing Hawkins?" His voice echoed through the bar. People cheering and clapping at the sound of his voice. 

"It's been a while, but I could never forget my favourite place" Another round of cheers. "Were gunna play a couple of our songs, but we wanna end it with the one that started it all, which is a cover of Metallicas Master of Puppets"

The gang excitedly screamed and clapped, encouraging him. 

"Alright, that being said let's get this show fucking started" He almost growled those last few words before he and the rest of his band started jamming on their instruments. Grabbing your camera out of your bag, you snapped a couple pictures of Eddie. For the memories... Obviously.

They were insane. You couldn't really understand the words, and you could feel your headache grow, but being able to watch each of them individually and how much passion they put into their performance it was worth it. 

Eddie looked like be belonged up there, like he was born to be on a stage, or at least the centre of attention. How could he not be with a face like that. His head bobbing along to the music as his fingers diligently worked up and down the neck of his guitar. His tongue jutting out over his top lip as he concentrated on the chords. His bangs were clinging to his forehead, sweat dripping down his face and onto his chest. The once loose fitting tank top now clung to his damp torso. 

When he finally opened his eyes again he looked right at you but it felt like he was looking through you. It felt like your heart had stopped and time had stood still for the second time tonight. You could see Robin look at you out of the corner of your eye but refused to give her the satisfaction of looking back at her.

When the show finally ended, the entire gang was so hyped up and excited. Apparently Eddie and his band had been traveling a bit around the U.S doing small shows, and people seemed to really enjoy them! 

We were all gathered around an old van at the side of the bar while the band came in and out, putting all their equipment in the back of the van. You scuffed the toe of your shoe off the ground while you waited with the rest of them. Robin and Vickie had been attached at the hip the minute Vickie entered the bar, so you drifted off to the side, afraid of bothering the rest of them. 

When Eddie came out and the gang got loud again, all of them exchanging hugs, and 'welcome homes'. You leaned against the side of the van watching them, Unable to hide the smile seeing them have so much love for their friend. A heart grunt from the door next to you made you turn, one of the band guys struggling to carry something. His hand was slipping and made the weight off so you jogged over quickly to grab the other end of whatever it was that he was carrying. It looked like it was an amp. 

"Thanks!" He smiled and huffed. 

"I couldn't just stand there and watch you struggle" You said while straining to keep your end of the amp up high enough to lift up into the van. He let you shift your end in first, clearly noticing your slight struggle. You dusted off your hands on your shorts once the amp was successfully placed into the van. 

"Thanks again" He said raising his hand up to you for a high five you smacked his hand, leaving the two of you with a stingy palm

"No problem"

"I'm Gareth by the way" he said introducing himself quickly before returning to the inside of the bar.

Going back to leaning against the van you crossed your arms over your chest, rubbing your arms and resting your hands on the tops of your shoulders, fighting off the small chill from the light breeze rolling by. Closing your eyes you leaned your forehead against the cool metal of the van, letting yourself relax into it slightly, the cold temperature soothing the dull ache behind your eyes.

"So how'd you like the show?"

Eddies voice startled your, your eyes snapping open with a small flinch. 

He laughed and gave you a sympathetic smile. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you" He said holding up his hands in defence. 

"It's okay" you laughed. "But I liked it. It was cool seeing you up there, very wild" You said honestly.

"I'm not like that all the time" 

"What a rockstar?"

"Well yeah, I'm just a big nerd, town freak, all that good stuff" He said shrugging with a small smile. 

"Aren't we all?" You asked tilting your head to the side. "Probably why we all get along so well huh?" You nod towards the slowly dispersing group of friends. 

He laughed, shoving his hands deep into his pockets, leaning back onto the balls of his feet, with his shoulders tucked up high near his ears. The loud bang of the doors of the van closing made the both of us jump. 

"Good to go Ed" Gareth said giving him a thumbs up. 

"Thanks man" Eddie said with a salute. He turned back to you quickly. "Where you staying? Steves?"

"Uh yeah" 

"I'll drive you" He said pulling out his keys from his pocket. 

"Oh no that's okay I came with- Wait where did she go" You looked around for Robin, spinning in a full circle. "She left with Vickie didn't she"

"About ten minutes ago, when you were helping Gareth with the amp" 

"The sex better be worth it if she's abandoning me" You say with fake annoyance. 

"Your chariot awakes m'lady" He said while dipping into a bow. 

"Why thank you kind sir" You quip with a terrible fake British accent, accompanied by a clumsy curtsy. Eddie reached for your hand, grabbing it and leading you up to the passenger side of the van which you now realized was his. He opened the door and continued to hold your hand to help me up and into the seat. After closing your door he jogged around the front and quickly got into the drivers seat. 

You clipped in your seatbelt, setting your bag on the floor by your feet. "Is it okay if I cross my legs?" You asked looking towards him. 

"Yeah why wouldn't it be?" He said turning around, one hand placed on the back of your headrest as he reversed out of the parking spot. You could smell him like this, sweat, beer, and some sort of cologne you couldn't decipher. 

"Didn't know if you were one of those car people" You joke while tucking your legs up and crossing them.

"You mean like Steve?" He said glancing at you. 

"Exactly that" 

"This van is probably older than me, it reeks of weed and cigarettes, you could pretty much do anything in here, I don't mind"

"I'll keep that in mind for when I have to pee" You tease. "I'll just pee my pants"

He scrunched his nose. "Okay maybe no pissing on my seats"

"Too late, I make no promises" 

"You're funny. I like it" 

"Oh, uh, thank you" You blush looking down at your hands, suddenly finding the nail polish on them very interesting. 

"So, tell me about yourself"

You groan. "That's like the worst way to get to know someone!"

"How is that the worst way to get to know someone? It's such a simple question!" He argued. 

"Oh it absolutely isn't! It's like the worst question they ask you at job interviews, I never know what they want to hear!"

He laughed loudly and you couldn't help but laugh with him. His head tilting back slightly. "Okay well what do you want me to know about you?"

"Oh fuck that seems even harder... Let me think about that for a moment" You said, and he let you. You sat in silence for a few minutes while you racked your brain for anything you thought was maybe interesting enough about yourself to tell him. 

"I like taking pictures?" You say, catching a side glance at him.

"What do you like to take pictures of?" He asked without a beat, his fingers tapping against the steering wheel.

"Anything really, I journal them often"

"You journal them?"

"Yeah, I tape them into a notebook, with kind of like a diary entry about whatever I wanna write about, and then I'll say something about the pictures and then cover the page with stickers and doodles"

"Are you gunna put the pictures of me in there?"

Your heart squeezed. "Yeah I might" you admit "You gunna be jealous if I don't?"

"My heart would be absolutely crushed princess" He said while taking one hand off of the wheel to clutch at his heart.

Princess. 

A small giggled bubbled in your chest, and a snort escaped amongst the laugh you let out. 

"What a wonderful sound that is" he said with a dreamy sounding sigh.

"What is?"

"Your laugh" he said turning to glance at you. 

[cringengl]

When bylers say that byler makes more sense in terms of the narrative, although there's lots of little proofs throughout all the seasons, it's mainly due to byler's correlation with the themes of the show.

Stranger Things is all about outsiders, freaks, losers and nerds. From s1, the main characters have been the ones that are bullied and are called names and the show wants us to root for them, sympathise with them etc. This is why Nancy chooses Jonathan over Steve, why the Starcourt Mall is destroyed at the end of s3 and why Eddie is constantly affirmed as a good guy.

M*leven endgame wouldn't make sense in terms of the storyline because the relationship between Mike and El is seen as the 'normal' thing to do.

In Mike's eyes, he's supposed to be growing up and not playing DnD in the basement with his friends for the rest of his life. In order to grow up, he needs a girlfriend, which is why he is dating her instead of just being friends. Finn Wolfhard literally says that Mike wants to be "normal".

On the other hand, El clearly wants a normal life, shown not only by her letters to Mike and the dream world she creates within them (as it could be argued that she was just doing that to ease Mike's anxieties) but also by the effort she puts into waving to people at school even when they don't wave back, as well as imitating the movies she watches in Hopper's cabin in s2. This is also why she wants to be in a relationship with Mike instead of just friends, she feels like she needs to have a boyfriend to be normal and doesn't see any issue with dating Mike.

However, as Eddie says, "conformity is killing the kids". El is clearly having a miserable time with school in California, despite doing her best to fit in and Mike is just a "shitty knock off"- the stark contrast to his Hellfire outfit and airport outfit is insane in both colour and style.

The Wheeler family as a whole is learning that conforming to the nuclear family stereotype is not good for any of them, meaning that El will find more peace and power in being single (as well as being able to learn more about the world) and Mike will be able to defy heteronormativity by being with Will, meaning that it's not only Nancy who breaks that Wheeler family cycle (the one that Jonathan goes off about in his rant to Nancy in s1).

Therefore, byler endgame makes much more sense as the show is about the outsiders, and going against the mainstream.

(Which byler would be as it's a gay ship in a show set in the 80s that hasn't been spoon fed to the audience from the start to make it more palatable as well as the fact that making byler canon would also be breaking up a straight ship).

[angelwithnightmares]

19 minutes and 17 seconds of reasons why I love Byler so much.

Songs:

“Hearing” by Sleeping at Last

“Holland” by Novo Amor

“Wait” by M83

“Turning Page” by Sleeping at Last

“Complex” by Katie Gregson-MacLeod

The reasons:

1. Will can’t lie to Mike, not even small white lies

2. Their relationship is in focus right from the very start

3. Mike is always the one in focus when it’s about Will

4. Mike feels like he’s the only one who cares about Will

5. When Will’s fake body was found, Mike’s reaction was in focus

6. Mike never stopped believing that Will was alive

7. Mike recognizes Will’s voice instantly

8. When they first met El in the woods, Mike’s first thought was “That’s not Will”

9. ”And we kissed, as though nothing could fall. And the shame was on the other side.”

10. Mike stood up to the bullies when they made homophobic jokes about Will

11. Mike’s father can’t think of him being with a girl

12. Mike’s mother knows and accepts him

13. Mike saves all of Will’s drawings in a binder

14. He even caresses them

15. When Will came back, Mike laid his head on Will’s chest to hear his heart beating

16. Mike and Will is in their happiest state while playing DnD together

17. Mike is the only one who notices Will going away

18. He is also the one who snaps him out of his trance

19. More than once

20. Mike’s voice is softer towards Will than to any other person, aka “The Will voice”

21. Mike immediately notice changes in Will’s behavior

22. Will always screams for Mike when he’s in danger or lost

23. And when he’s hurt

24. Mike says he’s gonna take Will home

25. and he takes him to his basement

26. Will feels like Mike is the only one who understands him

27. When Will listed all the people who like to “baby” him, he doesn’t mention Mike

28. “Only love makes you that crazy”

29. They said they’d go crazy together

30. Mike wants to be a writer, and Will wants to be a comic-book artist (perfect match)

31. Mike worries about Will and insists to be there for him

32. Mike is always the first person next to Will when something happens to him

33. He also sees himself as Will’s personal protector

34. He never left Will’s side when he was possessed

35. Mike slept in an uncomfortable hospital chair to make sure Will was never alone, even though he was possessed

36. Will still rememberers Mike

37. Mike wants to protect Will and be his shield

38. Mike held Will’s hand to give him comfort

39. The hand that Mike held was the only part of Will’s body that wasn’t possessed that wasn’t possessed was the hand Mike held, and this way Will could communicate with them

40. The thumb touch

41. Mike remembered the first day he met Will in detail, even though they were only 5 years old

42. Mike never smiles in pictures, unless Will is there with him

43. Mike’s reaction to Will dancing with a girl on the Snow Ball

44. Will is the best thing that ever happened to Mike

45. They both blush when they’re at the movies together

46. They’re looking at each other’s lips

47. More than once. Mike even got distracted by it

48. Will says he’s not gonna fall in love

49. But he’s already fallen

50. Will smiles when El breaks up with Mike

51. Mike doesn’t seem heartbroken by the break up

52. When Will is upset with Mike he immediately tries to make everything okay again

53. The projection: ”It’s not my fault you don’t like girls”

54. Will admitted he wanted to spend the rest of his life playing games with Mike

55. Twice. He can’t see a future without Mike

56. Will destroys Castle Byers because of Mike’s hurtful words

57. Mike immediately bikes through Hawkins in the thunder storm to apologize and make things right again with Will

58. Mike walked through the dark forest in the rain calling for Will because he was scared something had happened to him again

59. Will donated his DnD game because the game meant nothing without Mike

60. Will promised he won’t join another party

61. Their shared smile

62. Their heartfelt goodbye

63. Hopper’s speech is heavily Mike-coded

64. When Will left, Mike got depressed and stayed in his basement for weeks

65. “Will is painting a lot for someone he likes, maybe it is a girl?” El writes in a letter to Mike

66. When they meet again it’s suddenly very awkward (from Mike’s side) he also immediately asks about the painting

67. Mike is suddenly acting jealous, “ignoring” Will and they share and avoid awkward eye contact

68. Mike asks El if their friends is gonna be where they’re going, and he reacts when Will says “Angela”, so he tries to make Will jealous by kissing El on the temple

69. And he succeeds

70. Will is angry at El for lying to Mike for months and he thinks Mike deserves better

71. Mike thinks Will has sabotaged the whole day because he barely talks to him, rolling his eyes and moping

72. They both feel hurt for not reaching out more, even though Mike actually tried to call Will a bunch of times according to Dustin

73. “We’re friends, we’re friends”, “We used to be BEST friends”

74. Mike thinks home isn’t the same without Will

75. He also admitted that he felt like he had lost Will

76. SCRIPT: “This intimate moment got shattered-“

77. They always gets interrupted when they’re having a moment

78. Mike gets nervous every time Will is close to him or accidentally touches him

79. The flirting, pining & staring

80. Will wants to confess but is afraid Mike won’t like the truth

81. Mike nods. He.. understand what he means?

82. Mike can’t say or write “I love you” to El

83. Mike feels like they can’t come back from that

84. Will’s painting was for Mike

85. Mike’s face drops when Will said the painting was from El

86. He was actually talking about his own feelings for Mike, and how he sees him, with El’s name as a shield because he wanted to reassure him

87. Mike is Will’s heart, he’s making him feel like he’s not a mistake and that he’s better for being different. He don’t want to lose him

88. Will cries in the van because he’s in love with his best friend and don’t know how to tell him, this was the first time he ever lied to Mike

89. The look on Mike’s face when he spots Will after his reunion with El

90. Will thinks Mike and El is happily and in love (from his PoV)

91. When in reality, they really aren’t

92. Will’s brother knows and accepts him

93. Will reminds Mike that he’s the heart, pushing him into confessing his love to save El

94. She doesn’t believe him, but Will does

95. Mike and El are barely talking after the monologue

96. Will tells Mike about Vecna and Mike reassures him (in the most beautiful light we’ve ever seen in the show)

97. Mike is always by Will’s side for the rest of the last episode, foreshadowing the arc of season 5

98. The last shot of season 4 is them paralleling the other canon couples of the show

99. Will is Mike’s light

100. Mike is Will’s light

101. They are perfect together.

[munsonsreputation]

How You Get The Girl

eddie munson x fem!reader

word count: [3.4K]

warnings: a tiny bit of angst (miscommunication) but the rest is pure fluff and idiots pining over each other! Taylor Swift inspired, but doesn't have guiding lyrics like "I know Places" and "Hey Steven."

summary: you tell eddie you're going on a date--you don't want to go on it, but eddie does a bad job at explaining why he thinks you shouldn't go. he goes to El and Max for some advice, which finally gives him the courage to get his girl.

_

Eddie felt like the biggest embarrassment in all of Hawkins—way worse than the devil worshipper, in his opinion. He honestly didn’t know why he was standing outside the Wheeler compound waiting for anyone to answer the door so he could get some goddamn advice he so desperately needed in trying times like these. 

“Pizza is—Eddie, what’re you doing here?” 

Two red braids swung as Max whipped the door open. Her best friend hiding behind her not knowing who the strange teen with a bush of hair and oversized leather jacket hanging from his shoulders was. 

His hands found its way deeper into his jean pockets, offering the two girls a smile, “Hey red…brunette.” 

Max turned her head behind her, feeling her friend pinch her side softly, not knowing they could trust the man. 

“He’s cool, El. He plays DnD with Mike and the boys—Eddie, this El, Mike’s girlfriend.” She stepped back, allowing her friend to finally be seen by the Dungeon Master, who smiled and pulled his hands out of his pocket to hold out in front of her. 

“I’m Eddie Munson, nice to meet you, El.” 

“Friendly” El thought to herself, nodding her head with a small smile sprawled on her face as she shook his hand gently. 

“What are you doing here?” Max asked once again, wanting to get down to the bottom of the situation, knowing that the boys would’ve told her and El if they were inviting some of the older kids like Eddie, Robin, and Steve to their little hang out. 

He shuffled from foot to foot, peeking further into the home and not seeing the guys in sight, “…I uh, was hoping to speak with the guys—need some girl's advice.” 

A smirk broke out on the red head’s face as El giggled, hiding her blushing cheeks with the palms of her hands, “Girl, advice!? They can’t help you with that, they absolutely suck at girl advice.” 

Eddie swallowed wide eyed and shook his head, “Well, that can’t be entirely true since Mike and Lucas seem to be great boyfriends to you girls.”

“Cause we got them trained—” Max went to respond before El had cut in. 

“Like dogs.” 

Max and Eddie simultaneously let out a laugh at El’s reply. 

“Look, if you want some solid advice that will actually work, then it’s best you talk to us…come on in.” Max and El made way, watching as Eddie sighed, kicking off his shoes and stepping into the home. 

“El, I’m going to tell the boys that the pizza isn’t here and that you and I want to read some magazines up here, alright?” 

“Sounds good.” El spoke, leading Eddie to the couch while he heard Max’s footstep and voice trailing down to the basement to relay her message that sounded convincing to the boys. 

Eddie and El sat beside each other, silence lingering for a few seconds before she finally mustered up the confidence to say something to the stranger she met a few moments ago. 

“Who is the girl?” 

“Huh?” 

“The girl you like…that’s why you want advice, right?” 

“Oh, yeah…um I don’t know if you’ve met her yet, Max has, so I’m sure you’ve heard about her. She’s good friends with Nancy and Robin…you know them, right?” 

“Yes, of course, they’re nice.” 

“Yea, well she lives across the street from Dustin, that’s how we met, actually. I was dropping him off from Hellfire and she was locked out of her house, so Dustin offered to let her stay at his until her parents got home.” Eddie explained as Max eventually joined the pair, taking a seat between the two. 

“We kinda hit it off that night, just introducing ourselves to one another and talking about shit we both like. Then we’d talk in the halls, invite her over to my trailer, she’d invite me to her house and we’d just talk. For hours. About everything and anything.” 

“She’s your girlfriend?” El proposed

 Eddie shook his head, vicious hands held out as if he was pushing that idea away from him, “Nope, no, not exactly.” 

Max rolled her eyes and crossed her arms across her chest “Not yet, anyways.” 

“Why?”

“They’ve been pining for each other for the past six months like idiots.” 

“Pining? What’s that?”

“It’s when two people act like idiots because none of them want to make the first move.” Max hurriedly explained to El, who seemed to understand and nodded, biting on her thumb as if she was thinking long and hard about something. 

Eddie sighed, running a hand over his face as he sat back on the couch, “Well, it turns out the pining could’ve been one sided this entire time since she has a date tonight.” 

“What!” 

“Some guy she ran into at the mall asked her out to see a movie tonight…kinda why I came over here because we got into a little fight.” 

“About what?” 

“The date, obviously.” Max replied, shaking her head at Eddie who pouted guilty, “so what bullshit came out of your mouth that pissed her off?” she inquired, watching as Eddie’s face dropped. 

“Told her why she would even bother going on the date if she knew it wasn’t going to work out.” 

God, the look on the girls’ faces. Absolute terror and disappointment. 

“What the hell possessed you to say that?” was Max’s first response, then came El, “You’re totally in the doghouse.” 

Eddie sighed loudly, dropping his hands dramatically into his lap, “I don’t know, alright! We were in her bedroom and she was just rummaging and rambling about how nervous she was over the date and how she really even like the guy and…and I don’t know, I got jealous—jesus christ, I got jealous.” 

“Y’think,” El and Max both mumbled under their breath, trying to figure out what he could possibly do to make the situation better. 

“What happened after you said that?” El asked, looking up at him as Eddie sulked only deeper into the couch. 

_

Eddie sat on the end of your bed watching as you basically tore every piece of clothing off of the hangers, frantically holding them up to your body, trying to figure out what you were going to wear tonight. 

“I just don’t understand why you’re freaking out.” Eddie murmured, resting his elbows on his knees, continuing to watch you. 

You groaned when the red dress you held up didn’t seem to fit your vision and turned back to Eddie, “I haven’t been on a date since forever, Eddie. And…I don’t know, I just don’t want to mess it all up.” 

“Do—do you even like the guy?” 

You halted all movements, slowly settling down on the floor of your closet sitting crisscrossed as your fingers twirled in your lap. Deep down, you really didn’t want to go on this date. For crying out loud, the guy that you wanted to go on a date with was in the room with you. But…Eddie never made a move on you for you to think that he felt the same. And you were too much of a scaredy cat to make a move on him. The last thing you wanted was to lose a friendship with a guy you saw almost every day. 

“I-I don’t know…I mean, I get this gut feeling that it won’t work out, but I might as well give it a shot, right?” 

The flash of a hopeful smile that you shot towards him should’ve comforted him, but it only made his heart rattle. How could you just settle for any other guy when he was sitting right in front of you. He was someone who cared. 

“Do you really think it’s a good idea to go on the date if you know it’s not going to work out anyways?” 

You furrowed your brows, slightly taken aback, “ok…ouch, Eds.” 

“What? I—I mean you did say it yourself-“

“But that doesn’t mean you get to say it.” You retorted a bit harshly than intended as Eddie’s eyes blurred with trouble and annoyance. 

He watched you get up, throwing down the garments that were on your lap as you stressed, cleaned around your room. Doing anything except meet his eyes because you were quite sure if you could face the rejection of the man you admired. Instead, you kept your eyes focused on the mess that littered your room. 

“Are you mad?” Eddie asked ridiculously as you rolled your eyes, fingers picking up the clutter of jewelry on your vanity and putting them back in their respective spot, completely ignoring his question and hoping your silence would answer his question and it did. 

He exhaled, uttering something under his breath that you couldn’t quite catch, but you could feel him getting closer to you. 

“I didn’t mean it like that…you know that—“

Your fingers let go of the stupid silver studs you couldn’t get the backs on and you turned around harshly with a heavy huff, “Then what did you mean Eddie? Am I not good enough to go on a date on my own accord? Am I not pretty enough for him? Or wait… is it because no guy would ever date me?”

That took him aback. 

“W-what? No! Absolutely not! I never said that.” 

“You don’t need to say it, Eddie.” You whispered sadly, brushing past him and heading back into your closet in order to get that mess of clothes and dresses cleaned up next. 

Eddie sighed, following you without missing a beat, “You know that’s not what I meant, I-I just…don’t you think you should go out with someone who you really like? Someone you like spending time with? Someone who enjoys the things you enjoy?” 

He was trying to best to hint, but it flew over your heated conscious completely, “I don’t exactly have guys lining up on my doorstep.” 

“I’m right here,” is what Eddie was dying to say, but he kept silent, shuffling from foot to foot as he watched you hung up your garments before you finally turned to him. Clutching a dress to your chest. 

“You should leave Eds…I have to get ready and he’ll be here in an hour.” 

_

Max and El groaned, throwing themselves back onto the Wheeler couch as Eddie gave them the full rundown of what had happened. 

“You’re a complete and utter idiot, Eddie!” Max rubbed at her temples as El reflected the same actions. 

Eddie knew he was an idiot. He wasn’t denying it. The fact that he left your home without saying anything was mistake #1 and the next was the fact that he didn’t tell you that he was the one—the only one worthy of you. Any other guy was a no go. 

“Hey is the pizza here?! We’ve been waiting for like—Eddie! What are you doing here, man?!” Dustin and the rest of the boys stormed up the steps of the basement and into the living room. Surprised but happy to see their Dungeon Master. 

“Uh…hey, I’m just um—“

A knock sounded on the door, thankfully stealing everyone’s attention from Eddie’s poor explanation, and Max and El stood up, speaking in unison as they made their way to the door with some cash in hand, “We’re helping Eddie with some girl problems!” 

“Oh, come on!” Eddie huffed, throwing his hands down into his lap at being outed, as the boys crowded around him, attempting to get the insights. 

Will, Dustin, Lucas, and Mike sat crisscrossed on the ground, being shoved out of the way by the girls who held two boxes of pizza’s in their hands. Offering Eddie and themselves a pizza slice, and throwing the box down for the boys to help themselves with. 

“Well, tell us! Maybe we can help!” Dustin suggested, with a mouth full of dough, cheese, and tomato sauce. 

“Yea right…you guys suck at giving advice, especially girl advice.” Max rebutted, as Dustin scowled at her. 

El thought a bit to herself, thinking about the times Mike had made her mad at what things could have cheered her up, “Tell her.” 

They all looked up at her strangely, thinking she would elaborate more, but she simply left it at that. 

Eddie shifted his head sideways, “T-tell her what…exactly?” 

“Everything you want to say to her.” El said, shrugging her shoulder and continuing to eat her pizza. 

“That the stupidest thing I’ve ever—“

Lucas stopped Mike with a slap to the back of the head, “Dude! Shut. Up.” 

“No, El’s right! Eddie, you need to go over there and tell her everything you’ve been dying to say.” Max added, dusting her fingers clean of the crumbs and standing up to pace in front of them. 

“I can’t just show up, she’s got a date in less than an hour—“

“You cannot let her go on that date.” Dustin said passionately, with his hands out. 

Eddie just sighed, hopelessly, “If you like her Eddie, then you need to say something…tell her how you feel!” It was Will’s turn to speak, trying to get his friend to gather the courage to go after his girl. 

“How do you guys know what’s going on if he hasn’t even told us?” Mike asked stupidly as everyone opted to ignore the clueless boy. 

“Tell her you want her for worse or for better!” Max said semi sarcastically, but knowing it was romantic and would swoon Eddie’s crush. 

El hopped up next, excitedly adding to the commentary, “You would wait for her, forever and ever!” 

The younger kids groaned all the while Eddie found it amusing, taking mental notes of what he would say to you. 

“Flowers! You need to get her flowers!” Dustin shot up, running out the front door and picking at Mrs. Wheeler’s flowerbed. 

Mike ran out after him, huffing angrily, “Hey! My mom is gonna kill you!” 

Max and El made their way towards Eddie, each laying a hand on his shoulder, “Dude, just speak from your heart. Tell her how much she means to you. There’s no doubt she feels the same.” 

“You sure?” Eddie looked up at them nervously, and they smiled widely, nodding their heads. 

“Go get her, Eddie.” Will moved, patting his back, giving that final boost of confidence to get up. 

Eddie gave each of them a hug, patting them on their heads, “Thanks you little twerps, if it all goes well we’ll get pizza next weekend.” 

“Here! Don’t forget these!” As Eddie exited the home, there was Dustin, thrusting a messy bunch of flowers into his chest, making the older teen laugh, “Looks like it’s about to rain, so you better hurry.” 

He looked up at the sky and sure enough, the sky was getting a bit darker and clouds were starting to form, but he’d stand in the rain for hours if it meant finally confessing his true feelings for you. 

“Gonna go get my girl, see ya!” Eddie jogged to his van, easily starting it up and turning up the music and driving off. 

The kids watching them in the driveway, “Think we can bike to your place in less than 10 minutes?” Max stared down at her watch before looking up at Dustin who cheekily grinned. 

“Let’s go.” 

_

“You got this Eddie…just say everything you need to tell her.” He spoke to himself quietly, placing his van in park as rain began to tumble down onto his windshield. 

The time on his watch reading 4:55, you were supposed to get picked up for your date at 5. 

Eddie wasted no time, hopping out of his seat, not bothering to shield his head from the rainfall and sole focusing on his feet moving quickly against the pavement and his fist baring down on your front door with three knocks. The air was cold, despite his layers of the denim and leather jacket he always sported. He didn’t know if it was the actual weather or the nerves kicking in as he waited for you to answer, but his teeth clatters against one another, gripping the bouquet tightly. 

“Hey—Eddie! Are you insane?!” 

He didn’t have time to prepare as you opened the door. You stood there in a short black dress, hair fallen in its natural state as a look of worry and confusion crossed your face. Yet you still looked gorgeous to him.

“You can’t go on that date.” He said through the coolness, keeping his eyes on you earnestly as you frowned, remembering why you were angry at him, or at least attempting to be. 

“Why?” 

He took a deep, shaky breath and let it all go, “Because I messed up, alright. Remember when you were tearing me a new one earlier?” 

You chuckled lightly and nodded, arms crossed as you listened to him, “I don’t think you should go on that date, not because you’re not pretty enough—gosh, you’re the prettiest girl I’ve ever laid eyes on. Not ‘cause I don’t think you can’t make your own decisions. And definitely not because you’re not good enough for anyone. But because no one is good enough for you.” 

He could see you swallow, and your body language change as your arms untangled themselves from your chest and laid behind your back instead. Fingers toying with one another, away from his view, but he knew it was something you always did when you were nervous. 

“I’ve been too afraid to tell you what I’ve wanted to for the last six months…I must have lost my damn mind to have left earlier without telling you why.” He started, letting his heart and mouth speak without a care in the world with what his brain was telling him. 

“But I like you, like really, really like you. I’ve liked you for a while now, and I would wait forever and ever if it means getting to spend time with you, more than friends—like romantically…I want you for worse and for better, all that romantic crap.” 

Your eyes softened, and your heart fluttered, a small laugh escaping after hearing the last bit as well as watching him slick his now soaking hair back.

His lips forming new words that you would think about every day, “I have these feelings for you that are so profound, I’m not sure if words would be enough to explain it—but the feeling I get when I’m with you…it’s unexplainable.” 

Eddie wants to be able to tell you the things he feels deep down, but it’s so hard to describe. The feeling and words like treasure locked in a chest for only him to experience. 

“I-I like you too Eddie…to be honest, I was hoping you would have told me this earlier, y’know, in my room and all. When you left, I thought you and I wouldn’t speak anymore, like I messed it up or something. My heart broke a little when you walked out.” 

You stepped forward from your doorway, now getting coated in the drops of water, not caring anymore.

He had to make it up to you. 

“Shit…I’m sorry, I’m so so sorry, babe, I’ll put your heart back together, if you give me the chance I’ll—“ 

God, he was everything you wanted and more. 

You shut him up, pulling him by his leather collar, in towards you and pressing your lips against his, the rain now cascading the two of you in kisses, and your lips moved against one another. His fingers letting go of the damn flowers, letting in fall between the two of you, while one of his hands rested on the back of your head, gently, pulling you closer, and the other arm draping around your back to dip you low. 

A giggle escaped from you, making him smile, the rain dripping onto the you two, but neither of you giving a damn as your lips connected in another heated kiss all before getting interrupted by a car horn beeping. 

Your eyes furrowed, watching the guy who was supposed to take you out on a date, look shocked as he mouthed a “what the hell!” 

“Sorry not sorry.” You shrugged, as Eddie laughed, kissing you again, finger flipping off the dude as he raced away. In this moment in time, it was clear that it was always going to be you two.

When you finally pulled away, you both smiled with how ridiculous you each looked, soaking wet hair, and clothes that were absolutely drenched. Skin cold, but insides warm, full of love and sweetness, “Let’s go inside and warm up, yeah?” 

“Yeah.” You nodded shyly, keeping your eyes on the bright colored flowers that withered from the rain. 

Eddie took your hand, making you forget it all, “C’mon, baby.” 

You walked in first, him next, shutting the door behind the two of you, but not before seeing the kids poorly hiding behind the oak tree that sat on Dustin’s front lawn. 

“That’s how you get the girl!” Max and El shouted, making him chuckle, shaking his head lightly as he waved, 

“Thanks dweebs!” 

They all laughed, watching as Eddie shut the door, leaving everything behind them, “Oh my mom is so gonna be pissed about her flowers!”

“No one cares, Mike!” 

A/N: I know this one is short, but I wanted to keep it sweet and to the point! I really hope you guys like it, and feel free to send me some asks/requests!!! All credits to the lovely, Miss Taylor for the lyrics I referenced as well as inspired this whole piece!!!!

[erikiara80]

3x03 analysis: Byler and other theories

In this episode there are so many things that this is almost a masterpost of everything I talk about here, lol.

I’m gonna start with Will. There’s so much about him, starting with the title of the episode, The case of the missing lifeguard - The vanishing of Will Byers. Not a coincidence, in the episode where the Mind Flayer(Vecna) is officially back

1. Will and dragons

The Will the Wise drawing + dragons at Castle Byers. No surprise there

When we see this, we hear Mike saying his 1x01 line: “Something’s coming...”

But I found something else here, one thing that is connected to three theories! Willel twins, birthdaygate and Will and dragons. I’m gonna talk about dragons first.

So, this is one of the lifeguards El and Max talk to while they’re looking for Heather. The name on the magazing is Rick James. A singer who in 1985 released his 8th album: Glow. I was like, what? This can’t be a coincidence.

So.

Glow. We know that Will’s been associated with lights/electricity since S1. And he’s also associated with dragons.

In the movie The Last Dragon, the Glow is the power that a martial artist develops when they reach the final level of martial arts, known as... the Last Dragon. They’re basically able to concentrate so much mystical energy that their hands start to glow.

In S4, Steve and Robin talk near the poster of that movie at Family Video. So, Will, dragons, and energy that makes your hands glow. Like this?

My theories on Will and dragons: 

Will, dragons and Gozer, a ST-Ghostbuster-DnD parallel important for S5

The Last Dragon and the power of the Glow

2. Byler

Many people have analyzed Will and Mike in this episode, and the rain fight, that mirrors the fight at Rink-o-mania in S4. This is a very important episode, I’d say one of the most important. For many reasons. 

1) The episode starts with Max reassuring El that Mike will come crawling back to her in no time, begging for forgiveness. But not only we immediately see that that’s not the case, and that Mike is complaining with Lucas about girls and showing that he doesn’t even think he did something wrong.

The episode ends with Mike riding in a storm, at night, to beg Will for forgiveness, because he knows that he’s been a total asshole. And he doesn’t care if Joyce or Jonathan can hear him. It’s true and he’s gonna tell everyone that what he did was wrong. (I love that Lucas is there too and wants to apologize. I love their friendship)

2) But all this happens because this is the first time Mike has deeply hurt Will. The shock in Mike’s eyes tells everything. That he’s never seen Will so upset and angry.

And then this. He didn’t want Will to go away. He wanted him to stay with him. He wants to play games with Will in his basement for the rest of his life. And seeing him leave like that under a storm. Hurt. Angry. That must’ve really hurt. 

And if Will hadn’t told him that the Mind Flayer was back. If Mike and Lucas had found him and talked with him, showing him that they were truly sorry and didn’t mean to hurt him, maybe the next day, Will and Mike would’ve spent time together and talked. But in any case, Mike wasn’t ready to understand. Yet. 

Now, let’s talk about Willel.

3. Billy-El-Will parallel 

Here Billy’s eyes, when he’s fully possessed. The color doesn’t change (same for Heather and the other Flayed) Only El and Will’s color eye change. And if El’s eyes change when she’s using her powers, maybe the Mind Flayer was using Will’s in S2. 

I wrote about this here

Billy, El and Will’s eye color

Did Will really cast Fog Cloud in S2 in the tunnels?

4. Willel twins

@chirpsythismorning​​  I don’t know if you noticed this. Third theory the magazine is connected to. El and Max are talking with the lifeguards and there are two interesting details.

One is the Happy Birthday on the poster and the TWO on the magazine. So the birthday of two people? In a scene with El. Interesting.

 Here it’s more clear. 

And the other thing is the date: ‘76. The only two numbers we see. 76, like 1976, this mysterious year they keep mentioning. 

In S1, when this reporter is talking about Will’ “death” and says this:

“...Byers isn't the first person to drown in Sattler's Quarry. You'll recall only seven years ago...” 1983 - 7= 1976

(screenshot by shippingfangirling013)

And in S2, in the article about Terry Ives. I think it’s also the year she said that Brenner stole her baby daughter. Mid-1970s. Not early 70s (1971). But in no timeline El was born in the mid-1970s. She would’ve been seven in S1. So maybe that’s the original timeline, and that means that Terry isn’t El’s mother.

Other possible hints. I love this shot

El and Will’s same reaction

The Happy Birthday cup that we see often throughout the show, since ep 1 (it’s also in the next ep, near Will, when he talks about the Mind Flayer)

This shot with Hopper and Joyce and the pic of a baby between them (not the only time it happens. We also see two babies between them at Malvald’s in 3x01) But there are even bigger and more interesting hints imo in other episodes of S3, and throughout the whole show.

What I like in this ep is how Hopper mentions Sarah. “After Sara I had to get away. I had to get the hell out of that place... Outrun those memories, I guess.”

Always interesting when they mention memories. Especially since we’ve only seen the same memory of Sara for years. And they never explained why Hopper was at the lab when she died.

These are the theories to understand what I’m talking about: the Willel Twins theory and the many reasons we can’t trust what we see: 

chirpsythismorning theory on the parallels between Joyce, Terry and two real victim of MKUltra

Will and Sara Hopper 

Terry and El’s flashback are different

All the signs in 2x07 that make the whole Kali ep sus

Parallels between Kali ep (2x07) and 4x07 (The massacre at the Lab)

There’s so much more, but this post is already so long.

In Part Two I’m gonna talk about the parallel between Will’s kidnapping and El at Heather’s house. The parallel between the Creel House and Heather’s house. The dnd campaign as foreshadowing of S5. The clocks and other things. What an episode!

tagging you, as always : ) @lilitblaukatz​

[aemiron-main]

smthn smthn the vecna imagery of chrissy being trapped in her house smthn smthn mike’s family is similar to Chrissy’s smthn smthn chrissy feels trapped in her house/by her family and is physically trapped in the house in the vecna vision smthn smthn mike feels the same way smthn smthn all of the ‘mike opening doors’ imagery I’ve been analyzing lately smthn smthn smalltown boy smthn smthn mike is going to escape that house/family in a way that Chrissy didn’t 

smthn smthn max was trapped in the creel house yes but the Vibes were different, she was more focused on billy and it wasn’t Her House, whereas chrissy seemed more desperate to get out of the house as soon as she reached the door and didnt try any other doors, max pulled at the boards of the first door and then ran away to other parts of the house and tried multiple doors but chrissy didn’t run after she got to the door she just kept banging on the door and screaming as if she was stuck in that spot. max was trying to find a way out because she doesn’t subconsciously associate the creel house w feeling trapped the same way that chrissy associates her own home with being trapped and feeling hopeless. chrissy freezes at the first door she tries, max doesn’t- but max does freeze more when she opens the door and sees billy because THATS what makes her feel trapped, is HIM, regardless of what house it is. especially since chrissy’s vision STARTS in eddie’s house when she sees her mom in eddie’s  bedroom, but then when she runs away and escapes the room, she finds herself trapped in her own house. 

(not that max is ‘less’ traumatized not at ALL but just that her trauma is tied to something different and different things make them freeze) 

smthn smthn you’d think that Will would feel stuck if he was in a vecna vision of his house eso considering that he was “stuck” there when he disappeared bc he was being pursued by the demogorgon but I actually think he’d be more like max because a.) Will DOES escape his house and run out to the shed even when being pursued and b.) I think that Will would feel trapped by Lonnie rather than the house esp since he has good memories of the house w joyce and joanthan and how like billy makes max feel trapped and freeze, lonnie would make Will feel trapped and freeze.

mike on the other hand I think would feel stuck by his house as a whole- especially the basement and the association with Will and finding out during the rain fight that Will wanted to spend the rest of his life playing dnd in mike’s basement and the guilt about his relationship with will and how he was hinted at having slept in the basment pre s4 based on set details in s4 and how we know that he spent pre-s4 isolated and depressed and playing games in the basement and how the basement went from being a safe space for him to being a depressing one, much like how Chrissy’s house would’ve felt that way to her as she grew up and her tension with her family increased, especially considering her eating disorder and how the dining room likely went from a good place/tied to family and sitting around the dinner table in a positive way into a bad place and tied to family and sitting around the dinner table in a bad way.

but i think that unlike chrissy, mike would escape in the end. 

anyway much to think about 

[jjtheresidentbaby]

Hi! I was wondering if you could do little Lucas Sinclair headcanons whenever you get the chance?

Little Luca Sinclair Headcanons

- Ah I haven’t been writing nearly as much st agere stuff and I miss it so thank you for the request

-

His obvious main caregiver is Max but I think Steve and sometimes Dustin,Mike or Will also work

He definitely prefers Max or Steve since they’re both a tad bit more responsible compared to the others

Steve will play basket ball and run around outside with Lucas whereas Max likes to watch movies with him

He’s a pretty quiet and calm little so there’s no chaos like when Dustin regresses

Not so shockingly, he really likes having El around when he’s regressed

She’ll move things with her mind for her, it’s magic, for real magic!! She is the coolest aside from max

Max only wins because she has a skateboard and kisses Lucass forehead

Having Will around can be pretty fun too, if Lucas feels big enough to not get scared, they’ll talk about dnd

Lucas likes helping Will chose what will happen next in the campaign, Will uses most of the ideas, most, because ‘sorry buddy we can’t have firework canons in the campaign’ no matter how much fun that would’ve been for Will to add

But no matter who he’s around, Lucas wants physical touch

He likes grabbing Steve’s fingers while they walk around the woods, though that only lasts a short while as he prefers to pick up pine-cones and rocks and sticks to take home to Max

He really likes holding hands with Max, or laying with his head on her shoulder, even just throwing his legs atop hers is enough

Max would never complain, and when she goes blind after season 4 it’s nice to have him be so close by, it brings them both comfort

She also likes listening to his rambles when he’s in little-space, they’re pretty mumbled but always filled with random thoughts that she’s sure she’d never heard on normal occasions

Lucas is the tidiest of the group (personal hc) and that does not change when he’s small

He will walk into Mikes room to clean it up and while Mikes getting better now that Wills okay, he’s not up to Lucas’s standards

Or follow Dustin around Steve’s house since he always seem to be dropping crumbs or something

Steve will help Lucas clean things up, he’s pretty use to it living on his own and finds it adorable how little Lucas gets excited about using the spray bottle of cleaner on the windows

Max definitely has videos of the two of them debating what technique to use when wiping a table

Erica finds this all ridiculous, but she likes having her brother regress around her, she’s able to be as protective as she wants without him complaining

And boy is she protective when Lucas is small

You’d think Dustin was trying to throw a book at his head when it was really just a pillow with the way Erica went Off

Lucas admires it, he likes having his sister around more now, and he likes it when she reads to him

It’s mostly books that he’s already read since they use to be his but he still enjoys listening to her while he colors at the counter

It’s a binding moment for both of them (their parents definitely have a video or picture of these interactions)

As much as Lucas loves Dustin, he can sometimes stress out little Lucas since he insists on doing crazy stunts or making messes that he doesn’t properly clean up

He’d rather have Mike around. Lucas and Mike get along quite well aside from how messy Mike is

If Mikes still big he’ll let Lucas play on the video games down in the basement

But if they’re both regressed chances are they’re napping together, Max and Will gush over it every time

Mikes usually the one being leaned on while Lucas flops himself over Mikes chest, they’re a mess of tangled limbs by the time anyone figures out that they’re asleep in the basement

The party has started a wall of Polaroids on the wall just of Mike and Lucas laying on top of each other

Mikes about the only person Lucas will abandon El or Max for, but it’s really only to nap

[scarisd3ad]

Found you [steve harrington x f!reader remake]

Chapter four

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- the vanishing of will byers -

The wheelers were definitely one of the more well off family's of hawkins. So if their oldest daughter refused to babysit her younger siblings, they were able to afford to pay a babysitter. That why I babysjt for them, they pay really good, and holly might be the cutest thing to grace this planet (but mostly because they pay good). I babysat every Sunday and Monday nights because Karen and Ted wheeler went out bowling on Saturday, and both went out with friends on Monday nights. Nancy didn't like babysitting and they didn't want to push her to so I did it. I had already known the family since Mike was a baby so I was probably the only one karen trusted with her two youngests.

I sat at the kitchen table with holly as she colored. Mike and his friends aka the party (they named theirselves I don't ask questions) were downstairs playing dnd. It was around 7:30 so I was about to start getting ready to put holly down at 7:45. "C'mon hol let's get ready for bed" I say. She pouts but subsequently pushes the coloring book, and pack of crayons my way. I stand up and walking around the table, and pick up holly. I walk up stairs with holly on my hip towards her bedroom. Karen had already put out her pjs and was going to bathe her in the morning so I didn't have to worry about that. I set her down as I push open her bedroom door. I spot the new 'big girl bed' set up already. Holly was 2 and her parents had just transitioned her from the old crib to a toddler bed. "You got you're big girl bed?" I asked as I grabbed her hand leading her towards her bed.

She nods shyly, as she grabs her pjs, and follows me towards the bathroom. She can change herself now so I stand by just incase she needs help as she changes. Once she's finished I pick her up and set her on the counter. I grab her toothbrush, and squeeze a bit of toothpaste ontop, before running it under the faucet. I hand it to her and she brushes her teeth as her toothbrush sings the abc's. Once she was done I hand her a cup of water so she could rinse. I rinse the toothbrush of before placing it with the others.

I picked her up, and take her back to her room. She yawns as she leans her head against my shoulder. "You tired?" I asked softly, she nodded before closing her eyes. I lay her down, tuck her in, and press a kiss to her forehead even though she already asleep. As I walk out out of the bedroom I turn the lights off.

I walk back into the kitchen to wash the dishes as I waited for it to be about time mikes bedtime. I can hear the boys shouting from down stairs. His bedtime is 15 minutes after 8 on school nights, and 15 after 9 on weekends. It was Sunday meaning it was a school night.

Once the clock hit 8:15 I walk over to the basement door swinging it open, the boys are all scrambling around looking for something "Mike!" He looked up from the bottom of the stairs "y/n, we're in the middle of a campaign!" He said. "You mean the end? Your mom said Fifteen after" I said pointing at my wrist before walking away. I can still here the boys shouting from down stairs as Mike follows me up.

"Y/n, wait, just 20 more minutes" he pleads as I leaned against the kitchen counter. "It's a school night micheal" I say bring out a full name, which means I'm serious. I don't want to get fired!

"I just put holly to bed. You can finish next weekend" I said as I continue to was the dishes I didn't do. "But that'll ruin the flow!" He argued. "Mike" I say with an eyeroll. "I'm serious, y/n. The campaign took 2 weeks to plan."

"How was I supposed to know it was going to take ten hours?" He asked his voice going quiet. My eyes widened "Mike! Ten hours?! You've been playing for ten hours?" I say absolutely flabbergasted. How can a bunch of 12 year olds sit around and play one game for 10 hours! He rolls his eyes but ends up going down stairs to tell his friends it's time to leave.

I watch as both Lucas, and will come up waving goodbye as the walk towards the door. Then dustin walks up with a box of pizza in hand. "You want this?" He asked. I shake my head "no but I'll go ask Nancy" I said taking the box from him. "I'll see you later bud" i say waving him off to leave.

I take the box up stairs. Nancy's door is semi closed not enough to see through but it was obvious cracked a bit. I push the door open beginning to say "hey nanc-" I see Nancy and Liam making out on her bed "oh my god" I whispered to myself and clamp my eyes shut. Both of their eyes are wide when I open my eyes. "Don't tell anyone y/n" Liam said. Steve didn't deserve this, I had to tell him. I couldn't just not tell him, right? "Y/n?" I blink a bit "yeah! Sure, sure" I say before closing the door and walking back down stairs. I was caught between a rock and a hard place. How am I not supposed to tell Steve, but also I just told Liam I wouldn't tell anyone.

This was just way too much information I learned all at once.

Bringgggg bringggg.

The phone brought me out of my heavy thought. I walk over and pick it up. "Hello?" I say quietly.

"Hey y/n, heard you were sitting for the wheelers and wanted to tell you I finished the project" it's Steve...

"You did?" I asked almost astonished that he did school work.

He laughs "yeah I did don't be surprised."

"How'd you know I was sitting here tonight?" I asked as I lean against the wall.

"Asked Liv, so hows sitting for the wheelers doing ya?" He asked.

I sigh I had to tell him. Just tell him! "Um..Steve I have to tell you something" I whispered.

"Hm?"

"I um saw Nancy and Liam.." I whispered.

He hangs up, the only thing I hear is beeping. Oh my god.

20 minutes later karen and Ted come back. Ted drives me home. He doesn't bother making small talk he just tries to drive as fast as he can (without breaking the law) so he can get back home and watch tv.

I'm was glad to be home, I'm was just ready to pass out.

-

I wake up at 7:30 the next day. A little late but I still had enough time to get ready, and not be late for school.

When I walk out of my bedroom I see my dad passed out on the couch, beers surrounding him, while the tv was playing the news station. Sometimes I wish my dad didn't drink so much, him, and drunk don't pair well together.

I sigh as I hear the phone ringing. I walk over to the phone and pick it up.

"Hello?"

"Hey y/n. I..I know you were babysitting for Karen last night Um do you know if he stayed the night there?" Joyce asks.

I shake my head "no ma'am I watched him leave" I say.

She sighs shakily "oh..oh okay I'm sure he just le..left early for school" she says before hanging up the phone.

I couldn't help but be worried the entire time I was making breakfast, and the drive to school. Will was a good kid, he wouldn't just leave early without telling his mom. I was worried something happened to him last night. I was worried someone took him.

It could've been his father, their father had a track record for doing shit like this. Snatching up one of the kids, taking them up to his house just for shits and giggles. Just to see how worried joyce got. I remember in middle school he took Jonathan one night, I will never forget how Joyce came knocking on our door with will beside her (he was only about 9 at the time) she sobbed in our living room for an hour scared her boy was snatched up by some crazy person.

Dad sat with her rubbing her back trying to convince her that's not what happened, then my dad said "maybe Lonnie has him" Joyce stood up so fast marching out that door leaving Will with us. She came back half an hour later with Jonathan who was just as shaken up as his mother was. They stayed with us that night, and every night for the rest of the week.

I sat in the car with my dad, we were driving down the road to school. "Joyce called earlier" I whispered he hummed "hm what'd she want?" He asked I bounced my leg up and down anxiously. "She cant find will" I say. He shrugs "Lonnie probably took him again" dad muttered as we pull up to my school.

I see Liv, and Liam standing at the front of the school (the both normally wait for Michelle and I). Then I spot Steve's bmw parked next to a tree. He's still in his car. I get out, grab my bag, and walk over to his car. I tap my finger against the glass. He's just depressingly staring at his lap. He jerks his head towards me frightened by my unexpected presence. He smiled wheakly before rolling down the window.

"You alright?" I asked, he shrugged. "I've..I've got the project in the back if that's what you're looking for" he whispered as he took his keys out of the ignition. I shook my head "just wanted to see how you're doing" I say stepping back as he gets out of his car.

"I'm fine why wouldn't I be fine?" He said. I watched as he glared at liam. "I just thought he was my friend you know."

"You going to do anything?" I asked. Steve was the king of hawkins high, known for bullying everyone. I thought he was going to like beat him up or something. "No.." he whispered.

"Harrington?! What the fuck are you doing!" I hear tommy shout from across the parking lot. Steve looks up. Tommy's standing next to his car with one arm wrapped around his girlfriend, Carol.

"See you in 4th?" I nod in response as I watched him walk over to his friends, fixing his posture and putting my on a fake confidence.

I began to walk toward liam, Liv, and now Michelle who stood by the entrance of the school. Liv waves as I walk towards them. "Y/nnn!" Michelle says as i wrap my arms around her hugging her. "Thought you weren't going to come today" she says with a laugh. "I was just talking to Steve" I whispered. Liam looks at me, a look that said "you better not have told him." I pull away from Michelle and give Liam a shy wave. Liam smiles akwardly back. It feels weird, distant, like he's not my friend anymore just a guy I once knew. Liv side eyes both of us. Nancy walks into the school with Barb beside her. Liam stares for a second "Hey I'll catch you guys later" Liam said before following after nancy. "What the hells wrong with you two?" Liv asks as soon as liam walks away.

"Nothing" I said crossing my arms over my chest. "You sure?" Liv asked leaning against the brick wall. "We're fine" I whispered. Liv looks over at Michelle "do they seem fine to you?" Michelle shrugs. "Not my business" she said leaning her head against liv's shoulder. Why'd she care so much? How was I even supposed to tell her I found her brother swapping spit with Steve harringtons girlfriend? "Did you guys fuck?" Liv blurts out. My eyes widen. How could she even think that! I'd never touch her brother in a romantic or sexual way. Even if I did like him because she's my best friend.

"Oh my god, noo! I'd never do that!" I say. She sighs "seriously though you guys are acting weird did you fight?" I shook my head. "No it's nothing alright just drop it..." she nodded hesitantly.

"I'll see you guys later" I said quietly as I walked into the school. First period was biology. honestly not my favorite thing to be doing at 8 o'clock in the morning, but it could be math. I first stop at my locker to pick up my notebook, textbook, and pencil case, before making my way to the other side of the building. It wasn't a big building which I'm extremely greatful for, I could be at the high school I was supposed to go to in New York. The thing was massive.

The door was propped open, and Mr. Reynolds was sitting at his desk, flipping through a stack of papers. Only a few other kids were in the classroom, no one I really talked to but I didn't care to be talking to anyone at 8 in the morning anyways. I found my seat quietly and looked up at the objective on the board.

A couple of popular girls walked in after me, giggling as they found their seats. I open up my notebook and jot down the date since we're only supposed to be doing notes today.

"Hey" I look up to see one of the popular girls in my grade, Anna Wilkinson. I can hear her friends trying to quietly giggle from behind me. "Hey?" My eyebrows furrow together. Why did people decide to bother me this early. She can barely get out a sentence without running back to her freinds giggling.

-

It's now the beginning of fourth period. Steve hadn't walked in yet and I was beginning to think him, and Nancy decided to skip fourth to make out in the bathroom. Then I remembered he's not the happiest with Nancy currently, but he was good at faking so who knows what he's doing.

30 seconds before the bell rang Steve waltz's in with our project. Late as always. He takes a seat next to me greeting his friends along the way.

"You're late" I whispered, "no I had 30 seconds to spare" he says smirking. I roll my eyes. The bell rings. "I talked to nance" he whispered as the teacher explained what was going to happen this class period. "What'd she say?" I asked.

"She said nothing going on between her and Liam" I roll my eyes. "Do you believe her?" He shrugs. He believes her, he'd always believe her. "But you said yourself you had a feeling something was happening?" He shrugs. Steve harrington was so fucking stupid "so you don't believe me?" He shrugs again.

"Y/n?" I look up to see Mrs. Walker holding a slip of paper. Which I assumed was from the front office. "You're fathers here." I nod grabbing my things. "See you tomorrow" I mutter as I walk past Steve and towards the door. I go to my locker first grab my backpack out of there,  put my notebook, and other stuff back. Then I head up to the front office. My dads sitting in a chair all slumpt back. Dad looks up once the door slams shut. "What's wrong?" I asked he has pity in his eyes. "Will's missing" he whispered. I let out a deep breath. It's my fault. I immediately blame myself, I always do. I should've told him to stay and had Ted take him home. I could've done so much.

"Did you check Lonnie's?" I asked. "We're trying but we're going to check the surrounding areas first." I cross my arms over my chest "but he's taken him before he could be there!" I argue. "Calm down, we're looking y/n." I blink back tears as I turn around. "Let's just go" I whisper. I hear the chair creek as he gets up. Dad placed his hand on my back escorting me out of the office. "See you around Deb" dad says waving goodbye to the office worker.

Dad helped me into the car, and took my bag, throwing it into the back. "You'll find him right?" I asked quietly. "We're trying" he says back. He puts the keys into the ignition, letting the car start up. "You're going to find him right?" I repeat a little louder. "I can't promise anything" I sighed letting my face fall against the glass.

Tears ran down my cheeks as dad drove us to the station. I couldn't help but feel like this was my fault. I always blamed myself, when mom left, when Sara died. It was somehow my fault. I always felt like mom wished it was me who died not sara. That's why she left. She didn't care that much for me. She could start over forget about dad and I. I always felt that if it was I to die my parents would still be together. Even though their marriage had been failing far before sara and I. They tried to fix things for us, but obviously it didn't work.

"You're going to stay here while me and the others look for will." I turn towards him astonished that he wouldn't let me help too. "I'm going too" I argued he tried to stand his ground but I continued to argue. "More people equals more ground searched. Let me come too!" He sighs "no I already said no!" He shouts. I roll my eyes and cross my arms "this is so unfair" i muttered as I got out of the car "life's not fair!" He shouts as I'm walking up to the station.

-

Dads out for a couple hours. I swear I fell asleep at least 5 times in dads office chair. It was big and comfy and so hard to stay awake in. I seriously don't know how dad worked in that chair.

He comes and picks me up before dropping me off at home so they can go do more searching. Im still not happy but what else it there to do.

Staying at home by myself in the middle of the woods always had me a little to paranoid. Every noise made me jump, and I always remembered to lock every door and window in the house. No one was getting in here without me letting them in or a key.

I was a little more terrified today that any other. Maybe it was will going missing, maybe it was all the serial killers on the news, but I was jumping at every single random noise I heard. Dad wasn't going to be back late, and I was frantically checking every door and window. I needed someone here, or I needed to leave. And I definitely wasn't leaving at this time of night so I picked up the phone. Who was I going to call? I didn't know. The first number that popped into my head was the stations (obviously couldn't call that so next..) the next one is familiar but I didn't know who it was but I called it cause that's all my brain could remember right then.

One ring, two rings, three rin-

"Hello?" Steve.

"Hey" I whispered back, I'm jittery I can barely keep my hand still.

"Y/n? What's up?" He asked.

"Can you come over...please?" I whispered. I feel like I'm about to cry. I don't know why I'm about to cry but I am.

"Um yeah i...sure I'll be there in a few minutes."

I swear my brain was torturing me. Every time a tree would scratch against a window, or one of those random 'night sounds' happened I'd jump. I forced myself to watch cartoons to try and calm myself down but it didn't really work.

When I heard a knock at the door I knew it was Steve but a voice in the back of my head tried to convince myself it was a monster? Serial killer? I don't even know. The only thing that convinced me it was him was when I heard.

"Y/n? It's me" from the other side of the door.

I slowly got up and unlocked both locks. When I opened the door it wasn't a serial killer, or monster just Steve. Just Steve with a concerned look on his face. "Hey" he says softly, "what's wrong?"

"Just wanted some company" I whispered. He furrowed his eyebrows "why didn't you call..Liv or Michelle?" He asked I shrug "your number was the first to pop up in my head" I respond grabbing his wrist and pulling him inside, and lock the door. I'm shaking as I walk back over to the couch. "Are you sure you're alright?" He asked as he followed me to the couch. I take a deep breath in. I'm being childish, nothings going to get me god dammit. I try convincing myself that but I can't I'm still hearing random knocks and sounds around the house, and outside. "Y/n?" I look up at him brows furrowed "are you sure you're alright?" I shake my head. "I'm scared" I whispered. "Bout what?" He replied. "I'm being stupid I'm sorry" I whispered "you can leave, um my dad should be here soon anyways."

He reaches out grabbing my hand "no, you're obviously not alright I'll stay with you until you're dad gets here."

Somehow I end up with my head rested on Steve's lap watching some of the old cartoons my dad had on vhs. His hand is laid on my arm, he runs his hand up and down the length of my arm every so often.

The sound of the door getting up locked broke us from our concentration on the tv. I prop myself up with my hand looking back at the door.

"Hey I'm ho- what the hell is he doing here?"

Taglist

@kleeixe @teddyylicious @band--psycho @fixtionlover @sbeve-chairington @hellojameshowyadoin @write-from-the-heart @sagejin @burn1ngw00d @leftcloudparadise @untitledarea

[scwheeler]

🩰 ˖ ࣪⊹ — fourth time’s a charm

pairing: mike wheeler x fem!reader

summary: three times you and mike almost kissed and one time you finally did, but the timing couldn’t be worse

warnings: a little angst near the end

age of pairing: 14-15

1. after dnd in his basement

the first time you and mike almost kissed was after a dnd meeting with the rest of the party in the seventh grade. there was loud chatter and definitely a lot of laughing. dustin was the first to leave, saying his mom would kill him if he didn’t feed his cat at exactly nine pm.

he took some snacks home and said he’d call to meet up next week at the same time. the six of you waved bye and continued playing until lucas and max said they had to go. they didn’t give a reason but held hands and quickly walked up the stairs. they probably were going to go on a small date before returning home as they always did which the rest of the group completely supported.

mike still despised max because he felt that she was pulling lucas away from the group but we agreed that mike would do that too if he was dating someone in the group.

next was el and will, hopper and joyce were out on their first date so jonathan was picking them up instead of letting them ride their bikes since he was worried ever since wills disappearance. they promised to call tomorrow and come over to watch the new horror movie and ran up as soon as jonathan honked the car horn.

your parents said they were going to pick you up at ten and the time read 9:34, so you wondered what to do with mike during the thirty minutes of ‘alone time.’ it had never just been mike and you, always another person like will or dustin was the last to leave but that day it just had to be you. you didn’t really mind because you and mike were friends so sure there’d be some awkward tension but maybe some conversion? wrong.

the moment will and el closed the basement door, the silence was unbearable. mike was staring at the dnd board and you just held the dice in your hand. you didn’t know if he wanted to keep playing or to just stop and talk. “um do you want to just leave the game or…?” you asked, looking up to face him.

he looked at you and quickly spoke up, “we can just leave it and watch a movie or something until your parents get here.” you nodded in agreement and got up to join him in walking to the couch. he turned on some movie you forgot the title of and sat on the couch. you made yourself comfortable and opened a bag of chips which mike also did.

about ten minutes of utter silence passed by with the occasional combined laughter when something funny happened. but neither of you ever looked at each other, keeping eyes glued to the screen. you then reached to eat some more popcorn from a bowl mike was holding and your hands touched. you quickly pulled back and muttered a sorry, finally looking into his eyes.

unexpectedly he looked at you too, he smiled and handed you the bowl. “here,” “thanks,” you responded and grabbed some popcorn. it was still awkward though, until the remote accidentally dropped onto the floor and both you reached for it. it had gone right under your feet and when you went to pick it up, he did too. he grabbed it first but then looked up at you.

your faces were so close. you could feel his buttery popcorn breath on your face. you saw his light freckles scattered across his face and just noticed how long his eyelashes were. neither of you blinked once. your lips were so close to his, if you said one word they probably would’ve touched but you didn’t dare to.

he didn’t either, he was thinking the same thing and you could tell when he looked down at your lips and back into your eyes. before anyone could do anything or say anything you heard mike’s mom tell from upstairs, “y/n, your mother’s here!”

you hurriedly pulled away and let him pick up the remote while you grabbed your bag and ran up the stairs. you noticed mike barely moved but didn’t give him another glance and opened the white door to get to the first floor.

your breath was heavy and it felt so light, it didn’t feel hot anymore once you walked out into the cool air. what if you stayed for another minute, would he have kissed you? would he be the first to pull away or make a move? you thought about what would’ve happened but could only imagine since the moment was unfortunately over.

2. during the slow dance at the snow ball

the music was loud, almost blasting into your ears. you sat on the bleachers to the sides of the dance floor which was the middle of the room. you didn’t feel so excited or happy like the rest of the school, you were sat on a bleacher with a cup of weird colored punch sitting beside you.

occasionally you would get up from your seat to get a refill or a small snack but other than that, this was going to be all for the night. or so you thought. as you got up to get another drink, someone was in your way.

it was none other than mike wheeler. “oh hey mike,” you greeted, the lip gloss on your lips clearly showing under the bright lights. “how are you enjoying the dance so far?” he asked and walked with you to the tables where the food was all set up.

“it’s okay i guess, nothing special and the gym smell is kinda getting to me,” you joked and refilled your cup. he lightly laughed at your joke, never taking his eyes off of you smiling. the lights made you look ten times prettier than you already were, making mike’s eyes stay on you. “wanna dance?” he proposed with a hand in front of you to hold.

he looked at him and put down your cup at the table, nodding and agreeing, “sure why not.” you took his hand and he pulled you to the dance floor where max and lucas already were. before the two of you could embarrassingly jam out to whatever pop music playing, the music instantly changed to a slow song. great.

the mood changed. every couple around you guys started holding hands and moving side to side to the music. you stood in the middle of the room with mike still holding your hand. both of you were a little confused and didn’t know what to do next until max and lucas made a little signal of ‘just dance jesus!’ which made you out your hands on his shoulders and his on your waist.

you didn’t know how to dance with a partner and to music like this so you just swayed to the music like the rest of the couples which mike caught onto. he followed and stared at you causing butterflies to develop in your stomach. you felt their little wings brushing against the walls of your stomach.

your cheeks heated up a little and you moved your hands to his neck. you looked away first since you didn’t want him to notice that you blushed. he also looked away once you did but kept moving along with the music. the grip he had on your waist got firmer and he pulled you in a bit, forcing your faces to come close.

him pulling you in made you look at him again, sparkling brown eyes facing yours. you felt as if you were going to faint. you never thought about mike’s looks at all! and here you were staring in awe at his handsome features almost glowing in this fluorescent spotlight. your hands were suddenly clammy and you held them together behind his neck so he didn’t notice how nervous you were at the moment.

when the song was coming to an end, gradually the two of you had gotten closer and closer together. almost foreheads touching, your lips parted. you wanted to say something but not to ruin the moment so you didn’t. instead he parted his lips and mumbled a compliment, “you look really pretty.”

you smiled brightly after his sentence and you could tell he was glad that you were happy. but before he could pull any other moves, the song ended and your friends pulled each of you apart to dance to the upbeat songs. neither of you brought up that small moment the two of you shared later that night, ever again.

3. when the starcourt mall fire ended

billy had been possessed by the mind flayer but it appeared that he had broken out of his trance and he stepped in front of el to save her from being killed by sacrificing his own life. he was stabbed multiple times leading to somewhat of a short death that left max screaming after him when it happened. you closed your eyes at the painful sight of him being murdered in such a cruel way. he was an asshole for sure after tormenting max and the rest of your friends but the death was unbearable to watch.

you especially felt bad for max, as soon as it was safe to get near billy she sat beside him where you heard him mutter an apology. you heard the police approaching and the sirens blared as you exited the mall. you didn’t even know where the rest of your friends were, scattered along the mall.

you were only with el and max so you searched around for everyone, specifically mike. you worried that he was hurt. what if the mind flayer had killed mike? the thought crossed your mind a hundred times until you saw him sitting in one of the ambulances with a blanket. you limped out of the mall since you twisted your mall, running from the russians earlier.

he spotted you, slowly approaching him in your dirty clothes and injuries. he didn’t waste a second running towards you. he came and hurriedly asked if you were okay repeatedly. “i’m fine don’t worry, just a few small injuries,” you reassured him. you pulled the blanket over your shoulders and put his hands on both your shoulders.

for a moment he just looked at you, examining your face for any cuts or bruises. but then pulled you closer and put his arms around you, “i thought you were dead, you scared the living shit out of me y/n!” you closed your eyes tightly and put your arms around his waist. then once you both pulled away from one another there was just a split second where your lips touched. it wasn’t a kiss but it wasn’t a lie that your lips brushed past each other when separating.

you wanted to kiss him and he did too. he leaned in, so close that you felt obligated to stop breathing so you could kiss him. “y/n! mike!” lucas shouted from behind. he ran up and hugged the both of you. clearly cockblocking

the day you left for california

after everything that went on at the starcourt mall, your parents decided to move to california from indiana. joyce sort of adopted el and the byers were moving to california too. you tried to stop your eyes from watering as you put the last box into your car. mike put your backpack into the back seat of your car and closed the door.

the two of you then helped the byers clear out their house. you and will had always been neighbors so your moving trucks were right beside each other and everyone came out to help you guys pack. after everything was all set and ready, the parents said their goodbyes and got into the cars which left the kids. all of you stood in a small circle, wondering who was going to be the first to speak up.

eventually there were hugs and crying all around, max, you, and el hugging and saying to always call and write. lucas, dustin, will, and mike giving their last hugs. you then turned around to see mike. “you know, i’m really going to miss you,” he started, with a folded up note in his hands. he fiddled around with it until handing it to you and whispering, “open it when you get there.” just as he was about to step away you pulled him back towards you and kissed him.

his eyes were wide open in surprise but he didn’t pull away. his lips were soft and had almost a sweet taste to it, like he just ate rocky road ice cream which he probably did. your lips matched his like a puzzle piece creating a nice picture. he gradually closed his eyes and brought you closer, gripping onto your waist as you held his face.

“keep it pg please!” lucas yelled as max made a throw up noise. the two of you finally pulled away with a small laugh at their jokes. a tear rolled down your cheek as you opened your eyes to see his face.

“i promise to call,” mike whispered, stilling tightly holding onto your waist. “and i promise to write,” you responded and embraced him one last time, you held onto him as long as you could but both of you knew it was your time to go.

unfortunately, that was the last time you ever heard or said anything to mike. no calls and no letters, only the one he handed you the day you left. you repeated the words he wrote about a million times by now.

“dear y/n,

by the time you read this, you’ll be all settled in your new home in california. i hope you’re doing well and it’s not too hot there. i know you’ll make a lot of new friends and meet different people but don’t forget about us back in small town hawkins. californians might be cool and all but can they play dnd for four consecutive days? didn’t think so. i miss you already and hope we can meet soon, it’s not such a long plane ride and when break comes back around, i’ll make sure to beg my parents to let me go. also if you find another party down there, i give you my permission to join them, they can never beat us but they can sure try. anyway, i’ll call and write as long as you do the same and don’t be afraid to try new things.

(p.s. please don’t find a boyfriend there, because i like you)

love, mike”

[panandinpain0]

Childhood Crush with Will Byers (Male!Reader)

Part Two

Hi!

I've never written headcanons before but I've read loads, and I wanted to give it a try!

I want to make it clear that this isn't a whole age gap thing between the reader and Will, the reader/you will be the same age as him.

Will Byers x Male!Reader

Warnings: Cursing (literally only 1 time)

Thanks for reading!

--

Keep reading

So you've been apart of the party since season 1 AKA before shit went down

You had always kinda been closer with Will than the other boys

You were the "tough one" of the group, even though Mike, Dustin, and Lucas would never admit it

You had to grow up fast because your parents worked all the time

And you had three younger siblings

(one set of twins and then the youngest, who's a toddler)

But the party not-so-secretly planned the campaign hangouts for when they knew your parents would be home

Or someone else came to watch your siblings

Because you worried a lot over them and would not be able to take your mind off of them the entire hangout

Anyways- I got a bit carried away with backstory there

The reason you were closer with Will was because he got teased a lot and was just generally quieter

Which made you protect him/be the more extroverted one in your friendship with him

When Will went missing you were the first to bring major alarm

When Hopper came to investigate you were clearly panicking but were just trying to figure out where he went or if he was safe

Because you cared a lot about him

He was one of your best friends

Yup, friends.

When Will came back you would barely leave his side

And ever since then you two were basically inseparable

Through all of Will's suffering

Through every following event (*cough* season *cough*)

You were right there.

When Mike and Lucas got girlfriends and Dustin went away for camp, you two took solace in each other like never before

Hanging out literally every free second you had

(You had gotten much more after the twins got old enough to watch the youngest by themselves)

Oh, and you were crushing on each other hard

Like- if the others weren't so immersed in their own cringey problems they would've seen through you two like you were both in a glass closet

Will would vent to you about how the party was split up

And how no one wanted to play DnD anymore

So you encouraged him to press further, see if Mike and Lucas would break out of their girl obsessed shells

Dressed in a cloak and tall hat and holding a stick Will shouted in the basement.

"CALL ME BY MY FULL NAME!"

The other boys were unimpressed but played along

Teasing and snickering at him

You were getting annoyed at their behavior

This poor boy (that you totally didn't have a crush on)

Had gone through so much

And just wanted to play DnD like the old days

But no.

They just had to sit there and basically ignore Will and his efforts

You held your anger back, not wanting to upset Will further

When it got too much for even the sweet quiet boy

Shouting at Mike and ripping off his costume, Will stormed up the stairs and to the garage

You followed closely after

But so did Mike

In the garage the two boys went at it

Saying things they regretted in the heat of the moment

And then that line.

"WELL IT'S NOT MY FAULT YOU DON'T LIKE GIRLS"

Will looked at Mike with betrayal and hurt

But Mike- the stubborn kid- didn't apologize

After basically telling Will and you to grow up, you both pedaled away

And went to Castle Byers.

Will was angry and upset- rightfully so!

You sat with him as he cried in the small fort

Wrapping your arms around him you held him as an effort to comfort him

Rain pouring down around you

Will looked at the drawings hung around him, even his Will the Wise drawing

His shaking hand reached up to tear it down, his intentions clear

Your hand shot up and held his wrist gently, pulling a gasp from his throat

You shook your head and looked at Will with sympathy

"Don't. You know you'll regret it," you whisper to him

"But it's stupid and childish!" Will cried, taunting himself and beating himself further down his hole of hatred

"Why? It's your home."

"Will, look at me."

He did

You gently lifted your hands up and cupped his cheeks, brushing the pads of your thumbs under the bags in his eyes

Most likely caused by the nightmares you wished you could comfort him from

And dried his tears as best you could, leaving him hiccupping as more flowed down

"Will...?"

He looked at you with wide, questioning eyes

"Can I kiss you?"

The question left him speechless but in a moment of pure emotion

All of it having built up inside his chest

He lunged over to you and connected your lips

It was wet with his tears and the rain that had managed to leak in from the cracks in the roof

But it was perfect

You poured every emotion you'd harbored for the boy into that kiss

Every stolen glance

Every yearning in your heart to hold him, to dance with him, to just look into his eyes for hours

Everything felt right.

Will had finally felt whole again

He'd found the thing he seemed to have lost years ago

And as you held his waist

And he cupped your face

Nothing could've been better than that moment.

--

My first attempt at headcanons! I don't think it went very well in the traditional idea of headcannons 😅

I enjoyed it nonetheless!

Let me know how you liked it?

-Author Max <3

[l0ves1ckf0ol]

BETTER

summary :: you calling mike out on his bs & comforting will

genre :: fluff w will

male!reader x will byers (WOMEN DNI)

you didn't know what happened, you were in mike's basement playing dnd with will, mike and lucas. lucas and mike seemed uninterested so you were trying your best to make the campaign more interesting then will got tired, got up to leave and you heard yelling, specifically mike being a douche and you have had enough.

you only arrived to the point of the argument when will stormed off with his bike, knowing damn well you cant bike for shit.

you turn to mike, the urge to punch him thrumming into your irritation. "why the fuck would you do that?" you ask him, trying to contain your anger from your tone. "wh- are you taking his side?" he yells at you, that was what made you click. "shut up wheeler! i know you guys have girlfriends, i know you have priorities but seriously? do you even know what he went through?" you argue practically fuming, mike clearly pissed off by this proceeds to say, "yeah! he went missing for a week in the most scariest place ever, he got possessed by the mind flayer."

you scoff, "he was robbed of a perfectly good and normal childhood because of stupid monsters! he's used to want to play with you guys because he wants to relive his childhood. not just that but our friendship, how it used to be, before el, before he went missing and before you became the most fucked up best friend i have ever fucking seen." you say to him, jabbing your pointer finger on his chest over and over again.

it was only the rain and the silence, he was frozen to the spot. "i'm going after him." you lean back with a sigh, "let me take-" you sent him a glare, he stopped talking. "you have done enough, i'm gonna do will better." you mutter to him, grabbing an umbrella from the hamper and opened it, beginning to head to the byers household first.

you have been to everywhere will would have disappeared to, the arcade, the byers and the records store. but he wasn't there so you went to a place you never have went to ever since he went missing. it was getting dark but, you couldn't just leave will.

you arrived to castle byers, sweating in your armpits and socks wet from rain. you saw the small wooden hut destroyed, will doing the destroying to be exact. he was punding a large stick on to the wooden hut, completely tearing the entrance.

you immediately ran to him and sheltered his figure with the umbrella in your hand. he seemed to have notice, turning around, red nose- face wet, you could tell he had been crying- it wasn't just evident due to the rain. a sight that broke you internally, making you furious at mike once again.

"mike is a jerk." you tell him and he only stays silent for a while then grabbed you by your neck to hug you. "thank you for trying to make the campaign more interesting for them." he whispers, you could only catch a little of it though, it was still pouring. "yeah and i hate the fact that you biked away, you know i can't bike!" you scoff taking his shoulders by your hands and forced him to look at you. "i looked all over for you." you say to him, dead in the eye. he looked to the ground, upset. "i'm sor-" you shush him, "you know the least bit you could do is maybe don't say sorry because it's those losers fault and not yours, and let's go to your place."

you were in the byers household, no one was there except the both of you. jonathan was probably with nancy, but that was al you knew. will was cleaning himself up in his room while you were busy making pb&j sandwhiches for the both of you, barefoot because your wet socks were feeling uncomfortable. he went back with semi-wet hair and sat down on the dining chair as you slid a plate of the sandwhich towards him. he started eating it and you eat up as well, he kept glancing at you- maybe expecting you to say something.

after a few minutes you set down your half eaten sandwich and looked at him, "i know the others have been ignoring you because of... their girlfriends but i want you to know that, i'm really glad that you're alive, i know you're barely perfectly happy right now and i'm just really sorry for everyone's behavior to you recently." you explain nervously, you really didn't want to touch a nerve accidentally. will finished his sandwich and looks at you with a smile, "you're probably the only one that understands me right now." will admits guiltily. "can i give you a hug?" you ask impulsively. once you realized what you asked you widened your eyes and your hands flew up as an expression "i don't know why i said that- it's just sad to see you like this and a few words of assurance won't totally make up for today." will chuckled, "well- you made me a sandwich." he told you. "but i think it would be better if that hug offer is still open." you felt your cheeks flush of how adorable and timid that sounded out of him. you approached him and your arms slips around his shoulder, the both of you not breaking eye contact, and you could feel your heart flutter and air getting knocked out from your lungs. you buried your head on his shoulder, trying to hide the fact that you're practically blushing right now. he reluctantly wrapped his arms around your shoulders as well and snorts. "this is... so awkward." he laughs as you laugh along. "hey, you asked for the hug!"

(this is lowkey so badd)