#Dustin Henderson is a little shit

[sabbathbloodysabbeth]

Never Say Die [4]

Part 1 | part 2 | part 3 | you’re here | Part 5

Quick note, the tag list is full. So now the only way that you can get notifications about the next date is if you turn on notifications on my blog. (Which if you are hesitant about this, I don’t spam my board at most I’ll post twice a day so this can be a option for you :) though I’m not sure if there’s any other way or notifying people. If you know a way let me know!

Steve was laying in his bed, blanket pulled off from him as he stares out at the night sky. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, though he made sure to shut his door. The only thing allowed to see him this vulnerable was the full moon outside. As time slowly passes by, he feels like one of those princesses that’s stuck in the castle. He hasn’t been able to do anything yet, Hopper and Joyce were currently in the process of coming up with a backstory as to how he was alive. He misses a lot of things more now that he was home compared to when he was locked in the prison. He misses being able to be seen with Robin. He misses being able to relax in a bed. Though, no matter where he’s been he knows the one consistent thing that’ll always be there for him.

The moon.

The moon that watched him get tortured in his cell, sometimes even left outside in the freezing snow for a night for a punishment. Of course there were nights the moon wasn’t there. Especially the nights when the new moon was taking its turn on the calendar. But even that brought him comfort. In his eyes new beginnings were always over the horizon.

Dink!

It was coming from his window. Before his brain can think he’s already tossed himself on the carpeted floor. Rug burn already catching to his knees as he crawls over. Careful for whatever or whoever to not see him. He was being ridiculous. He was on the second floor. There was no way anyone could see him. His breathing is loud and shaky as he keeps his arms tightly crossed around himself. He knew he could fight, but in that moment he was prepared to hide. Though in reality, if it really was something he couldn’t be getting himself killed right when everyone just got him back. That and if he was laying there bleeding out from whatever was being shot at his window, who was supposed to warn Hopper and Joyce.

Steve really needed to slow his role. Think rationally, right as another small thunk like noise comes from the glass. Closing his eyes he takes the moment to think rationally. He’s heard that noise before. When he used to sneak into girls rooms before everything. The smallest of pebbles he could find would be thrown at their windows to catch their attention. Someone was trying to get his attention. Now he needs to come up with the decision of whether or not this person knows he’s alive or not. If this went wrong the whole town would know he was alive and think he was being kidnapped. After a few more moments, he lets his deductive skills kick in. He felt like Sherlock Holmes.

There was no way someone he didn’t know would be throwing pebbles at his window. It was definitely someone he knows. Why they didn’t just go through the front door was beyond him. Or how they snuck by Hoppers senses.

He moves slowly after the third pebble hits the frame of the window, a bit louder then the others. Carefully placing his hands underneath as he lifts the window open. A silent as possible. He pokes his head out, a small pebble hitting him in the cheek right as he does. Hissing in slight pain as his hand flies up to hold the agitated skin. He glares down, trying to see who it was. But once again his vision wasn’t as good as it used to be. Nor was his hearing. He had taken his hearing aid out, so there was just a slightly muffled blob standing in his lawn.

“Hold on. I can’t see, and I can’t hear you.” Steve whisper yells. Moving and grabbing his hearing aid. Getting it situated before he’s sliding on a shirt, one that used to be to tight on him. Now it was a bit loose, from the slight weight loss from the prison. He was gaining it back with muscle, forcing Hopper to work out with him in their basement. A small corner designated to his small gym and the other side of the basement designated to DnD. “Who is it?” He hisses out. The fuzziness from his ear clearing up. Focusing on the person below instead of the crickets that surrounded them.

“It’s me.” The voice whispers back. Steve can’t help but snort a little, holding back a laugh.

“Well- me. If I could recognize you by voice I would. But I’m not hearing you that well still.”

A small groan is heard before the male, Steve was able to figure that much out. The guys voice was deep and scratchy. As if he spent a lot of time smoking.

“It’s Eddie!” Eddie says a lot louder then before. Steve frowns as he hears the other.

“Oh.” He says dumbly. “What do you want?” Steve asks. Unsure as to why his best friends other best friend was currently outside his window like some secret boyfriend. It was very strange being on the receiving end of this.

“Well- Robin was supposed to be here with me but we were going to kidnap you and take you out for the night. But her parents busted her climbing out the window.” Eddie rambles out quickly. Trying to stay as silent as possible.

Steve raises a eyebrow, something seemed off in the others statement. Though Steve wasn’t going to look to far into it as he puts a finger out telling the other to hold on. He moves to his closet, tossing on a sweater. Moving and sliding on a extra pair of shoes. His regular pair were downstairs. He moves to the window, as silent as possible. Moving to dangle out. Hearing the slight cursing of one Eddie Munson.

“Dude, you could have taken the front door.” Eddie hisses out.

“No I can’t. Hopper is like- superhuman. He can since when the force is off or some shit.” Steve hisses back. Looking down for a second before he’s swing himself over and throwing himself to the shaky pipe that went up the side of the house. Sliding down with ease. Though he wasn’t sure whether or not it would be sturdy enough for his weight to climb back up.

Steve hops down in front of Eddie, wiping his hands off on his pants as he grins jokingly. “Like a ninja.”

Causing the other boy to hold back a snort of laughter. Moving to wave Steve along to follow him. Steve does, creeping next to the house and moving his way down the path. Once or twice, Steve’s hand flies out to catch Eddie from falling on his face. But other then that they eventually make it to the guys van. Where Steve moves hopping up into the passenger side.

Nearly jumping right back out when a group of people yell “surprise!” At him. His hands shake in his lap a bit as he gathers himself. Looking confused as he looks at all of them curiously. No wonder Eddie seemed like he had been lying. Because he was.

“We wanted to surprise you.” El says with a smile. “Know its been a while since you’ve left the house, and we all know you loved swimming so we wanted to take you to the quarry.” She rambles out. Face a bit pink, and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that she was the one that arranged this.

Eddies sitting in the drivers side, key in the ignition with a fond smile. Before his face contorts up and he’s turning around and yelling. “Hey shit face, yeah you Henderson. If you’re eating my last can or Pringle’s I’ll make sure to shove your head up your ass so far that no one’s going to be able to reach that far to pull you out.“ Steve’s head turns back looking at the boy who’s hand was currently stuck in the can of Pringles. Making a oopsie face.

***

It doesn’t take long for them to get to the lake. The kids were already in swim suits and throwing themselves in the water. Eddie is a bit hesitant, and so is Steve who doesn’t want to pull his shirt off. Though there seems to be more of a reason to Eddie who looks at the water a bit haunted. Steve recognizes that look. He looks at malls like that now.

“Hey everything okay?” He asks curiously. Moving to dip his toes in the water. Pants rolled up to his ankles.

“Yeah.. it’s just. When everything went down one of the gates was - well under the lake. Dustin called it water gate.” Eddie laughs a little towards the end. “And well… I’m not the best swimmer but I wasn’t going to force Robin or Nancy to go down there. And shit face Henderson decided he was going to force his way onto the boat. And I got tugged down. “ he explains. He doesn’t seem to really be there. His voice is off somewhere else.

Steve hesitates before he presses a hand on the others shoulder. “You don’t have to go in you know. I’m not.” He says softly.Eddies looking at him confused before Steve clarifies. “My- well my wounds haven’t fully healed. And if I let any of my stitches touch the water then I’m fucked.” He laughs.

Eddie grins as he carefully pulls up his shirt revealing a bandage around his middle. Steve could only imagine what it was hiding. Steve grins as he moves and lifts his own up. He was no longer in the bandage state, his side just had a huge gash. Eddies eyes go wide. He’s about to say something but one of the kids yell at them to join. Both declining, showing their wounds at the same time. Steve doesn’t even process that Eddie’s side was bandages heavily on the same spot as his. Just on the opposite side of his body, closer to Steve with the way he stood.

Silence falls over them again. Neither of them knowing what to say. “You know you’re nothing like how I remember you being.” Eddies voice echos through the night. Staying hushed under the kids screaming.

“Oh- yeah. When you nearly die numerous times you kind of figure that it’s time to stop being a douche.” Steve laughs gently. “And there’s more important things then social heirchy.”

“I- I wished I learned that sooner.” Eddie admits as he looks awkward again.

“What do you mean- you were like. All fuck society norms and shit.” Steve laughs gently.

“Well- doesn’t mean I still wasn’t a twat about jocks and shit.” Eddie chuckles bitterly. “You know I was at the mall the night it caught fire or whatever. I was in the movie theaters. And I seen you. Right before you died. Your face looked like it was smashed into bricks, you were laughing at whatever Doc had said. Then when you stumbled out, obviously not okay. I thought you were fine so I didn’t make a fuss out of it. But I know if you weren’t some Jock from the high-school I would have checked to make sure you were okay. ” Eddie rambles out a bit. “And god did I feel guilty when I seen your name on the list of people who died that night.” Tears are rolling down his face. Steve tries to interject but he doesn’t get a chance to as the other starts to talk again.

“You know Henderson worships the ground you walk dude? “ Eddie tilts his head to look at him. Wide eyed, as he doesn’t hide a single emotion. “And god, I just. I got so jealous that this kid. This amazing kid who reminded me of myself when I was his age. Worshiped someone who used to look down on kids like us. And I was just- an entire asshole. The poor guy was still mourning you and confiding in me about how much of a nice guy you were, and I just sat there listened, and didn’t believe a god damn word he said. Here I thought he was just coming up with stories about a dead kid. And instead I was the asshole that I declared war against in high-school. It was no is fucked up.” Eddie eyes are watering more. Hands shaking as he pulls a cig out, lighting it soon after.

Steve just stands there and listens. That’s really all he could do. He takes a shaky breath as he pauses looking out at the kids in the water. “We are all just kids you know. We aren’t… we aren’t made to to handle all of this shit normally. If there even is a normal. Just know I don’t hold it against you, neither does Dustin. If you ever need to rant more about it I’m here.” Steve smiles sincerely. Watching as Eddie nods dumbly.

“You know, you’re the first one to act like this isn’t all normal. The kids.. god the kids were great when everything was happening. Robin was freaking out but she knew what she was doing. Doing things I can’t even imagine doing. I’m sure you know how it is.” Eddie rambles out.

Steve nods his head in understanding, “trust me… none of us are normal.” He laughs gently. “You’re relatively new, you’ll catch signs of things they do when others don’t.”

“Like how you flinch whenever anyone raises their voice?” Eddie asks curiously.

“Yeah.. yeah exactly that.” Steve answers softly. Letting the silence take over the both of them. Unaware that he had been that obvious.

Oh my god, thank you to everyone who has been supporting me throughout this. Especially for the comments. Those I have found are hard to come by and every single one has been making my day. I haven’t gotten a chance to respond yet, but I love every single one. (So don’t be ashamed to freak out in the comments. The long paragraphs are amazing. I just haven’t gotten a chance to respond) I have never gotten this much support for something I’ve written ever.

Next thing, I would put this on ao3 but I kind of wrote them straight to tumblr and it would take me forever to copy and paste each individual paragraph on there. I’m already putting a lot of time writing the tag list and writing it itself so for now this Is a tumblr exclusive. (Though I know in the future I’m probably going to do a rewrite and include everything that I wanted to, but have been to exhausted to write out)

Like I can’t express how thankful I have been for the support. I’ve gained close to a hundred followers in two days and I love that but it’s crazy to me that that many people liked my work.

Though I will be lurking in the comments tonight, ;) so I’ll probably respond the best I can!

Tag list;

@totallynotagoraphobic @flustratedcas @shunna @spookednsaucy @steddie-as-they-go @estrellami-1 @xxbottlecapx @gregre369 @ellietheasexylibrarian @thing-a-ling @radioactiveartz @bestwifehaver @idkwwhatimmdoiing @goodolefashionedloverboi @bringmethelow @thescribblerdragon @starman-jpg @lilaclilyroses @resident-gay-bitch @wolfscreations @adhdsummer @victor-thee-corvid @happymediummm @decadentworld @sidebarre @foundintheshallows @jamieweasley13 @yellowdevilkitten @catlovesfandoms @gryffindorsareidiots @thephantomhood @vampireinthesun @awkwardgravity1 @itsall-taken @gezell-igg @chaoskiro @daeb820 @liketheocean @croatoan-like-its-hot @malicia62 @thebrazilianatheist @anaibis @evix-syne666 @an-deeznutz @yikes-a-bee @0o-queendean-o0 @alyelf @starlight-archer @weirdandabsurd42 @zerokrox-blog @lolawonsstuff @mightbeasleep @michael-the-angelo

(If you see your user in the tag and it didn’t tag you let me know and we can try figuring it out in the comments)

[hazardworld]

Hey Tumblr friends! One of my Ao3 fics “Dustin’s a Damn Good Ally,” got somewhat popular. However, every time I read it, I can’t help but note all the grammatical/spelling errors, the simplicity of text, and sheer lack of description.

I don’t want to completely change and destroy it though, because even with all its faults, it did make people happy.

Therefore, I’ve decided to preserve it before I edit it. On here, I’ll be posting the ORIGINAL chapter-by-chapter, with a link to the EDITED one on Ao3 (when it goes up).

———

Chapter 1— Confessions by the Dumpsters

Ao3 Link

Originally Posted 1.1.23/Edited 9.1.23

Summary: Dustin's dad sucks, and Will is heartbroken

(Queer author saying queer is used both positive and negative here)

———

On Dustin’s first day of 6th grade, he was called 'toothless.' That was a generic, appearance-based insult, something similar to insults he’d gotten in the past. It didn’t hurt him, he knew it was just a name.

The same people who called him toothless called Will 'a queer.'

Dustin knew what that meant.

When he was 7, his dad had called him 'a queer' and other words he wouldn’t repeat, and he and his mother had quickly left their small Minnesotan town for Hawkins, Indiana.

Dustin knew the effect that word had on people.

So, he kept defending Will. It didn’t matter if will was actually gay or not, the word still hurt, and he made sure the other two in their squadron of 4 knew how bad of an insult it truly was. Mike didn’t really get it.

That school year, he kept Will under close watch, making sure to always have a snack and some tissues on hand, keeping an eye on his emotions and the people around him.

That’s when Dustin noticed something interesting: Will’s body language always showed shyness around Mike, and Dustin would’ve been damned if he didn’t catch the small smiles and pinked cheeks Will got when talking to the other boy.

So maybe Will was queer, after all.

Not that that was a bad thing!

Obviously!

Duh.

But obviously, that insult had merit to it. Merit confirmed the night of the Snow Ball, when Dustin watched as his good friend forlornly watched Mike slow dance with their new friend El, and decided to make his way over, linking his arms with the other 8th grader.

"Dustin? What—"

"Shhhh…" Dustin put a silent finger to his lips, "Wanna head outside and talk for a bit? It’s not like any of us are getting the dates we want," Will’s brow furrowed, obviously confused at Dustin’s specific wording, but he nodded, and Dustin led the way to the back parking lot, where he knew no one would be there to listen.

"So…" Will said after the door closed, "What’s up? Here to complain about…girls?" Dustin smiled warmly, sitting on the concrete steps below, patting down a space next to him. Will sat.

"Will, I want to ask you something, and I need an honest answer, ok? No judgement." Will’s eyes went wide with panic, as if he knew the question Dustin was about to ask. He probably did, if Dustin was gonna be honest.

"I’m—I’m gay," He whispered the term hurriedly, tears starting to form on his cheeks, "if that’s what you’re asking." Dustin grinned.

"I was gonna ask if you like Mike, but sure, yeah, that works too." Suddenly, Will just started sobbing, and Dustin pressed him into a deep hug, not realizing that he was starting to cry softly, too.

"Fuck, Dustin, I like him and he only likes her and it hurts!" Dustin used his hand to rub Will’s back in circles, something Ma did for him whenever he needed a good cry.

"Well, Will, Mike’s kinda a douche, ok? He’s a well-meaning douche, but a douche.” He felt Will nod beside him, and he kept rubbing his back. Suddenly, Will drew away from Dustin, putting his hands on the older preteen’s shoulders.

“So you don’t hate me for being…’a queer’?” Will whispered the term, and off of instinct, Dustin grimaced. This instantly sent the wrong message, as Will backed away quickly, panic streaking across both boys’ faces.

“Shit, Will, oh my god, I didn’t mean that like that!” Will’s face still reeked of fear, but now with the added dose of confusion, “I could never hate you for being queer dude, that’s a dick move!” Dustin watched Will sigh in relief, the confusion still there.

“So then…why’d you make that face?” Dustin sighed, looking down.

“I dunno. Just the way you said that…didn’t hit right for me. Felt like you were hurting yourself. It’s stupid, sorry,” Will grinned, pulling Dustin in for another brief hug.

“Don’t be. It’s cool. Thanks for…being cool with all this.” Dustin grinned, “I haven’t exactly come out to anyone yet, but I think my mom and brother know.” Dustin nodded. He wouldn’t say how or why, but he knew they did, and that they were safe. Really, that’s all that mattered.

“So…enough talking about my shitty love life, how’s yours?” Will grinned, and Dustin rolled his eyes.

“Dude, Steve taught me all his popular jock boy tricks and none of them are working!” Will laughed, “I thought I’d be a chick magnet tonight, but here I am with you talking about unrequited love.” He groaned lightly, pinching his hand to the bridge of his nose, and Will patted him on the back.

"Shitty love lives together, eh?"

They chatted back there until Lucas grabbed them 20 minutes later, saying Steve was there to pick them all up.

Later, Dustin realized he became Will’s crush confidante: he was the only person who explicitly knew, so Will would come to him or walkie him asking for advice, or to rant, or to even just ponder.

It was nice to have that relationship: partner work was almost always Dustin-Lucas and Will-Mike, so it was great getting closer to another member of the party he didn't spend as much time with. Will was kind and thoughtful, and also a real snark when he got into it.

Truly, Dustin thought it was all pretty bitchin'.

———

It is my firm belief Dustin is the first one to clock Will at the Snow Ball, and everyone's better for it.

Also, the kid has absolutely no social cues. This will be a reoccurring theme.

Chapter 2/6

[spirit-meets-the-b0ne]

God I love Dustin Henderson so much man, I know Will is in love with Mike because only a deeply down bad homosexual would be able to say Mike “is the heart” when Dustin is alive and in the party. Dustin is the one constantly mediating in S1 between Mike and Lucas, he’s even insecure of his own newness to the group when he conciliates. Because even though the party are all HIS best friends he is able to rationalize why they might have a hierarchy based on seniority. Mike makes it clear that isn’t the case. It’s partly why Dustin is quicker to accept Eleven and partly why he’s so open to including Max “as the new kid” because that was him once. Dustin’s iconic “she’s our friend and she’s crazy!” Dustin and Lucas having parallel deviations from their code of honor in ST2 and Dustin being (so dramatic ik) literally ready to fall on the sword for his misdoings. Dustin basically involving Steve out of necessity but then cultivating that relationship to make Steve a good friend, Steve who had the shittiest friends in high school and attention for all the wrong reasons. Steve never had a true friend in his life and then some 12 year old basically gave him a crash course. In ST3 when Dustin earnestly challenges Steve’s socially conditioned need to be seen as cool only for Steve to become bffs with a band geek. A band geek who is also a lesbian that Steve would rather be seen as a rizzless hack of a womanizer than out her to anybody, even Dustin. All of Dustin and Steve. Dustin going from calling Steve a douchebag, to Eddie saying the kid worships him and thinks he’s a total badass. Dustin who in ST4 is once again demolishing social norms of high school vs middle school because FUCK, his friend is in middle school! His friend Erica, his comrade Lady Applejack, is a black girl in junior high and he dgaf what anyone thinks about it. ALL OF DUSTIN AND ERICA. Dustin teaching Erica to embrace her inner nerd, to Erica staunchly declaring “I’ve bled with him!” When asked if she knows Dustin. Dustin who is the FIRST person that Max goes to when shit hits the fan in ST4 because god damn dude Dustin is the heart. Dustin’s unwavering support of Eddie even when the evidence is stacked against him, Dustin always believed in Eddie Munson. Dustin is the only one who truly offers Wayne condolences. He is the friend of all friends. Dustin is constantly carrying the party through crisis and discomfort, he’s dedicated, he’s unabashedly caring, and he’s the character that is able to socially move across the board in every direction. I fuckin love this little curly haired drama king because these geeks would be LOST without him!!! If Dustin isn’t the heart; he’s the Central Nervous System, he’s the nucleus, he’s fucking vital to not only the party but every other tertiary character of importance. He’s constantly inspiring and providing direction. He’s a goofball, he’s wise beyond his years, he’s a lover and he’s a fighter, he always has a plan and he always has a bad idea, he’s the voice of reason and the resounding falsetto alarm of things gone wrong, he’s never done anything wrong ever in his life, one time something ate his cat but besides that. He’s my heart of the show damn it!

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

There's also something special about Steve and Eddie both being clueless idiots about their sexuality.

Robin: If you had to pick a guy, who would it be?

Steve: Eddie.

Eddie: Steve.

They both look at each other with wide eyes.

Steve: *scoffs* I was talking about Eddie Van Halen.

Eddie: And I was talking about Steve . . . Uh, Steve . . . *struggles to come up with a famous Steve*

Dustin: *leans forward to whisper in his ear* Harrington.

Eddie: Harrington! Steve Harrington! . . . Damn it, Henderson!

[were-wolverine]

thinking about steve answering the door of eddie’s trailer after staying the night, wearing just boxers and eddie’s hellfire shirt. his hair is a mess and he’s all sleep-soft, there’s definitely a few hickies on his neck, he’s rubbing at his eyes and yawning, and he definitely just woke up.

he opens his eyes to see max’s shocked face right as it turns into a knowing smirk. he groans; she’s going to be absolutely insufferable about this.

steve can hear eddie bumbling around the trailer behind him, and responds to eddie’s yell of who is it? with an eye roll and it’s mayfield!

the noise from inside stops and eddie wanders to the door, peeking over steve’s shoulder with narrowed eyes.

“whaddya want, red?”

max smirk grows when she sees eddie looking similarly rumpled, and she shrugs.

“i was gonna ask for a ride but clearly you two are busy so,” she snickers, “i’ll ask again later.”

with that she turns and walks down the porch steps, leaving them staring after her in confusion.

steve closes the door behind him and leans against it, his hands covering his burning face.

eddie, assuming that steve is panicking about max knowing, tries to reassure him.

“red wont tell anyone until you’re ready, i’ll make sure of it.”

steve looks up incredulously, mind buffering before he realizes what eddie thinks is happening.

“they all already know i like guys,” he waves away eddie’s concern, “it’s not that.”

“what is it then?” eddie asks, lost.

steve blushes and says “that was so fucking awkward! we totally look like we hooked up!”

“well,” eddie argues, “we did.”

steve groans and pushes eddie’s grinning face away.

“you know what i mean asshole.”

***

“you owe me ten dollars,” max crows into the walkie.

dustin screeches "what?!?" right as max holds the walkie away from her ear (it's instinct at this point whenever she radios dustin).

"ten dollars, dustybun!"

"how- when- MAX??" dustin splutters.

max just laughs and turns off the walkie; he'll figure it out eventually

[kingofscoops]

Aimz’ 3.5k Celebration: Top 10 Stranger Things Characters (as voted by my followers)

#5. Dustin Henderson (46 votes)

[ymdslf]

transfem stevie who comes out sometime in the 90s and when she tells dustin his only reaction is: “wait so you and robin can date now?”

[booksandpaperss]

This Stranger Things poll is courtesy of my lovely mutual @buck-yyyy who doesn’t have polls but rlly wanted to ask this question, and honestly they’re so real for that. Also bestie just so u know I giggled typing out that question lmaoo

bonus points if u explain a scenario in the reblogs hehe

[artiststarme]

What If Steve Were To Leave Hawkins? Part 17

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16

Just a few more parts! What happens next, should Steve have a talk with everybody, should there be more Eddie/Steve mush? We shall see! Let me know what you guys think!

And Happy Valentine's Day to everyone!

~*~*~*~

Steve was nervous. It was a new feeling for him and certainly not a welcome one. Apparently, Dustin had walkied the other kids while he was in the bathroom and had arranged a “small get together” with the rest of the Party. Hence the anxiety. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to see the kids. But, he hadn’t seen any of them in the few months since he’d moved away and he was not looking forward to seeing their reactions. Would they be upset and yell at him just like they had yelled at Eddie? Or would they be upset since he’s stealing Eddie and Robin from them too? He didn’t know what to expect from the remaining members of the group which put him on edge. Steve had never liked putting himself in situations where he didn’t know what to expect. 

Regardless of his apprehension, he loaded Eddie, Robin, and Dustin into the Beemer and made his way towards the Hopper-Byers residence. It was woefully apparent to the others that Steve was nervous. He was driving 10 mph under the speed limit and kept raking a hand through the swoop of his hair. At the fourth hair disturbance, Eddie grabbed Steve’s hand in his and settled it on his knee. “Stevie, it’ll be fine. They obviously want to see you if they planned all this. Relax.”

Dustin poked his head between the first two seats and glared menacingly at Steve. “And speed up! You’re moving slower than grandpa and he’s dead! Go!”

Steve heard Robin smack Dustin and pull him back from his position, “My god, Dustin. What the hell? Be respectful of the dead. Wow.”

“Oh, like I’m wrong? He’s going like 20 mph in a 40! Going too slow is just as dangerous as driving too fast, Robin…”

He ignored their squabbling and sped up to match the speed limit. Trying to waste time by driving slowly wasn’t going to help anything. He focused on the feel of Eddie’s hand in his own and let the worry seep out of him. Eddie was right, of course. The kids had to be happy to see him, right? Dustin certainly was. Also, bar Mike and Max, the remaining kids were angels. There was rarely any sass from Will, Lucas, or El. Mike and Max could be heathens and their insults could be biting. Even if they were mad though, they were all still his kids and he would own up to his actions. If anything, they were probably hurt and would need reassurance. Unlike what his parents had done for him, he could provide them with that. 

Immediately when they pulled into the driveway, everyone flooded from the house. Most everyone had smiles on their faces and laughter in their mouths. Lucas, Will, and El ran directly to Steve while Mike and Max walked at a more sedate pace behind their friends. 

When they reached him, Lucas, Will, and El engulfed Steve in a group hug. They were thrilled to see him after losing him so abruptly. They all hugged for a moment and appreciated each other’s presence before they pulled away. 

“It is nice to see you, Steve.” El said. Will nodded at her words and mumbled his own little hello accompanied by an awkward wave. They might not be the closest members of the Party but they both loved each other still and Will was still happy to see another part of his family. 

Lucas clapped Steve on the shoulder and redirected his attention to him, “good to see you Steve. We were worried about you but we’re glad you’re okay.” 

Their relationship was often overlooked when compared to the others but Lucas always looked up to the man that had saved him from the racist bully trying to beat his face in. He had admired Steve since he helped them at the junkyard and took Billy’s plate to the head. And with that admiration came the subtle mimicry. Just like Mike with Eddie, Lucas had tried to share in Steve’s interests by practicing basketball with him and joining the team at school. 

Steve smiled back at them. Mike glared at him from several paces away but his teenage moodiness was easily ignored in the face of Max’s subtle excitement. In true Max fashion, she slugged him in the arm, hard enough to make him wince. “Don’t do that again, dickhead. We thought you got your dumbass killed. Let us know when you’re going somewhere next time.” 

Steve chuckled at her words but did feel somewhat chastened. “Sorry Max.” 

She nodded her head and narrowed her eyes at him before giving him a brief hug, “I’m glad you’re okay.”

He nodded with his chin resting on her head, “me too.”

Hopper and Joyce came outside next, following the kids. Hopper was wearing a hideous Hawaiian shirt with flamingos on it while Joyce was wearing a green flannel two sizes too big. But both looked full of love, and slightly menacing, as they charged at Steve.

Joyce wrapped him in a motherly hug when she reached him and cooed, “Steve! Oh, you’re so thin! Have you been taking care of yourself?”

Steve smiled awkwardly at the open affection he rarely received from parents, “Eddie’s been taking good care of me. Thanks for throwing this together, it's nice to see everybody.”

“Of course, Steve! You’re family.” She said and lightly pinched his cheek. 

Hopper grabbed him next. His face was a mixture of exasperation and parental affection as he hugged him close. Steve was surprised to find tears in his eyes when he pulled away. “What? Hop-”

Hopper placed a hand at the back of his neck and looked Steve straight in the eye. “Don’t do that again. You going off on your own without telling anybody took ten years off my life. You can’t just disappear like that. I expect you to stay in contact with us the entire time, got it? You’re like a son to me, kid. I don’t want to lose you again.”

Steve bit his lip as he struggled to keep his own tears in. He nodded stiltedly and reached out for another hug from Hopper. There was no reluctance from him and the other Party members made their way inside in an effort to give them a moment alone. Steve never considered how his departure from Hawkins might affect his found family. Even when he was settled in the city, he hadn’t thought to reach out to the Chief to let him know he was alright. But now, comfortable and safe in the arms of his father figure, Steve knew that he couldn’t just disappear like he did before. He might be moving but now he knew that the Party loved him and he would always have a place here amongst his family.

~*~*~*~

To the people on the taglist; are you guys still being notified when I post a new part? I think these tags are active but I tried putting them in the comments and it didn’t work. Please let me know! Hope you guys enjoy this part!

Part 18 Part 19 Part 20: Epilogue

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[thisisourlovestory]

I actually want to punch ted wheeler in the face and give Dustin Henderson a cookie

[lookouturocknrollers]

ST text post part 2

Part 1: https://www.tumblr.com/lookouturocknrollers/721529489432199168/first-batch-of-text-posts-let-me-know-what-you

[hardboiledleggs]

You lovely person who asked for a writing prompt? 88, Steddie please?

I spent entirely too long on this, but here you go darling! Prompt #88 of this post, Steddie-style. This one is very Eddie-focused today because I had to watch his last scene again to write it and now I am sad. CW for vomit and blood. As always, comment or message me if you'd like to be added to my permanent Steddie fic tag list :) Enjoy!

~~~

Dustin scrambles up their makeshift rope and out of the Upside Down. Eddie wraps his own hands around the sheets and starts to haul himself up after him, trying to ignore the splintering of the only barrier between himself and the bats behind him. A renewed shrieking bursts from behind the door, and Eddie stops pulling himself upward. Suddenly, he isn’t thinking about himself or Dustin. He’s imagining Steve, bravely and stupidly walking into the house of an interdimensional evil wizard to save all of their friends, trusting Eddie to buy him time.

Dustin is screaming at him, begging him to climb. Eddie closes his eyes, and it’s not Chrissy floating behind his lids anymore, but Steve. Steve, struck blind, each bone snapping like a toothpick, all because Eddie wasn’t able to give him enough time. He looks up at Dustin, registers the panic on his face and in his voice, and lets go of the rope.

“Eddie!” Dustin cries after him, but it’s too late. Eddie has already swung his weapon, destroying their rope and any chance Dustin might have of following him. “Eddie what are you doing?!”

He gazes up at his friend. “I have to help him, Dustin. I’m so sorry!” Swinging his shield over his shoulder, Eddie sprints outside as Dustin howls behind him.

Eddie throws himself onto his rickety bike and peddles frantically, trying to outrun the swarm, outrun his own death. He doesn’t even make it out of the trailer park before they catch him. Gravel bites into his cheek as he’s thrown off the bike, rolling over and over before coming to a breathless stop in the dirt. Scrambling to his feet, Eddie grabs the handlebars again and forces the tires to spin faster. He has to make it to the house.

A conversation he had once had with his uncle worms its way unbidden into his racing thoughts.

“Wayne, I can’t be like you. If you ask out the cute barista at the coffee shop, the worst she can say is no. If I ask out the wrong guy, I’m risking a whole lot more than a broken heart.”

“Life is all about risks, Ed. And I’m pretty sure love is the biggest one. Don’t matter who you love, it’s the lovin’ that can kill you.”

And it would be the loving that killed him this time, as he peddles furiously toward the lair of a monster who could melt his brain without lifting a finger. The bats wail furiously at his back as he flies through the choking air and red lightning flashes through the sky behind him. Eddie’s lungs were burning, worse than any cigarette smoke could cause, and he thinks wistfully that if he lived through all of this bat-shit craziness maybe he would finally try to quit smoking (weed didn’t count).

A lance of searing pain flashes through his arm, and he screams as he sees a bat latch itself onto his forearm. He leans over and bites in a blind panic, shuddering and trying to ignore the spurt of foul blackness that fills his mouth, and tears away the wing of the creature. It flops to the ground and he spits its wing after it, forcing his brain to think about anything other than what he’d just done. Vegetarianism was starting to sound like a preferable lifestyle.

The Creel house looms in the distance. It’s too late now to go back and consider whether this was really the best plan. Eddie braces himself, then leaps from the seat of the bike without bothering to hit the brakes and launches himself up the creaking steps toward the door. The sickening slap of the wings echoes behind him, but he slams the door before they can follow him. The bodies thump dully against the door, the knock of the grim reaper.

“Steve!” he screams up the stairs.

Looking up, Eddie takes in the sight of his friends choking and gasping for air as the hive mind of vines squeezes the life from them. Knowing he has seconds before they realize he’s here, too, Eddie takes the steps three at a time. His mouth opens in a violent scream of rage as he swings his spear, severing the vines holding Steve Harrington aloft. He collapses to the ground, unmoving. Eddie spins, feeling the vines start to wind around his ankles, and slices at Nancy’s restraints before his feet are yanked out from under him.

His chin slams into the wood panels and there is a distinct cracking sound followed by a wave of agony through his skull. He’s hoisted in the air, whirling in a dizzying circle while held up by just one foot. Nancy is coughing violently underneath him, struggling to pull herself to her feet, but Steve still doesn’t move.

There’s a crash, and flames explode against the wall. Screams erupt from all around them as the vines writhe and twist in agony. Eddie plummets from the ceiling and lands on his left arm, yelping as a snap reverberates inside his skull and a throbbing ache begins in his wrist. His head hits the ground right next to Steve, whose eyes are still closed.

Nancy helps Robin to her feet, and they both scrabble along the ground to find their weapons as they hack violently. The vines are still trying to grab them, but the spreading flames were causing havoc among the hive mind. A hysterical thought runs through Eddie’s mind about what a cool mechanic this would be in a campaign, and he thinks he might be starting to lose it just a little bit.

“Stay here, Eddie! Keep him safe, we’re ending this right now,” Robin rasps as she shoulders her pack and the two women sprint towards Vecna. His vision is swimming. Steve’s lifeless face floats across his sight, and he shuts his eyes so he won’t have to see it. There’s a vague sort of pain in his side, but it’s nothing compared to the pain in his heart, knowing that he failed.

A shotgun blast echoes overhead and rattles the bones of the old house. Glass shatters and the damned beasts of this hell dimension shriek and moan and Eddie lays facedown and waits for it all to be over. Took the damn risk and it didn’t change a damn thing. I’m sorry, Steve.

A piteous groan splits the air next to him. Eddie scrambles to his knees, slipping against the suddenly wet floor and crying out when his arm is jostled. He drags himself toward Steve’s prone form, fingers fluttering uselessly against his body.

“Stevie? Can you hear me?”

Steve doesn’t speak. He is still for another few seconds before he abruptly shoots into a sitting position and pukes all over his own shoes. The acrid smell of bile and smoke fills Eddie’s nostrils, but he doesn’t care.

“Okay, just breathe, get it out,” he hums as he rubs slow circles on Steve’s back. The other man’s choked gasps for air are subsiding, his breathing relaxing. His eyes drift sideways to Eddie’s face.

“Hit my head,” Steve mumbles. “Why’re you here? Where’s Dustin?”

“I left him in the trailer park, the real trailer park, not the gross Upside Down one,” Eddie rushes to stem the rising tide of panic on Steve’s face. “I’m so sorry, I know it wasn’t the plan but I just had this feeling so I biked here, but I totally saved your asses so...”

Steve’s brow is furrowed, diverting the blood flowing down his temple. “On fire.”

Eddie turns, cursing as he takes in the flames licking their way up the walls. He wrenches himself to his feet, looking down for the first time to see that he is the reason the floor is wet. A stake of wood is buried in his stomach right above his hip, and his blood drips slowly onto the floor. He doesn’t understand what happened until he sees the ruins of the floorboards he had plummeted toward when the vine released him. His head is spinning again.

Steve manages to stumble to his feet, but immediately pitches sideways and vomits over the railing. Eddie slumps back to the floor as the dizziness overwhelms him again. He hears footsteps above them and Robin and Nancy skid into the hall. They’re both breathing hard, and Nancy has a smudge of some sort of Upside Down goo on her forehead, but Eddie thinks this might be the most attracted he has ever been to a woman.

“We gotta go,” Nancy gasps. “Can you guys walk?”

Eddie’s head lolls weakly. “Better hurry, Wheeler. The fuckin’ house staked me like a vamp or something. Harrington hit his head.”

A look passes between the two girls before Robin steps to Steve, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “If you puke on me, I will never forgive you,” she warns him. Nancy does the same for Eddie, careful not to touch his left arm, which hangs crookedly at his side.

“We have to hurry. Something happened with the vines to make them back off, but I don’t know how long it’ll last. Is the closest gate still the trailer?” Nancy says breathlessly. Eddie nods.

Once they’re out the door, they pause for a moment. The ground is littered with dead bats, some of them still twitching. No one says anything.

“Much as I would love to take credit, that definitely was not me,” Eddie jokes, though it falls a little flat when he hisses in pain.

“Vecna’s gone. He should’ve fallen right here,” Robin despairs. “Why isn’t he here?”

“We’ll figure it out later. Eddie needs a doctor NOW,” Nancy huffs. “Steve, too.”

They keep moving. Steve only pukes twice along the way and is saved from losing Robin as a best friend by hitting Eddie instead. Luckily, all their clothes are pretty much trash at this point, so Eddie chooses to ignore that.

“Why’d you come back, Eddie? Coulda got hurt bad,” Steve grunts.

“Let’s just get back to the real world before we give him the third degree, babe.” Robin glances at Eddie as she says this, something unspoken passing between them, and Eddie knows that she knows.

When they finally make it to the trailer park, Nancy is the first to spot a crumpled figure on the ground.

“Dustin?” Eddie cries. The figure moves, and Dustin lets out the most heart-wrenching sob Eddie has ever heard.

“I thought you died, Eddie! You just left me and I thought those bats ate you and-“ He chokes off with another sob.

“Dustin, can you walk?” Robin calls. He nods and pushes himself up, dragging one leg awkwardly behind him and swiping at his tear-stained face. Guilt collects like a stone in Eddie’s stomach.

Their ragtag group limps to the gate. Nancy and Robin lay the wounded men against the wall, and Dustin crawls toward them and wraps his arms around both of them, causing Eddie to let out a sharp sound of pain as Dustin jostles his injured arm.

“How could you do that to me?” he whimpers into Eddie’s chest. Eddie’s heart cracks in two right there.

“I’m so sorry, Henderson,” he whispers. “I just… had a feeling about these guys. That something was wrong. I couldn’t let you put yourself in the path of evil like that, man. This was my quest.”

Dustin’s smile is watery. Eddie leans forward and presses a kiss to his forehead.

“I won’t do that again, I promise.”

“Yeah, ‘cause we’ll both kick your ass, Munson. Wha’ happened to no hero shit?” Steve slurs.

“Shut it, all of you! Eddie, do you think you can climb this?” Nancy and Robin have constructed a teetering tower of tables and chairs under the gate.

Eddie grimaces. “Guess I’ll have to, huh?”

Nancy scales the pile first, dropping gracefully to the floor and hurrying to shove the mattress back into place. Eddie can feel his eyes slipping closed. The fog is back in his brain, telling him to sleep. Someone shakes his shoulder, and pain rockets through his body.

“Eddie? Eddie, come on, we have to go!”

Eddie knows he’s supposed to know that voice, knows he should care, but the fog is pulling him deeper, and his consciousness swims into the black.

~~~

The first thing Eddie registers when he is awake again is a steady beep. It’s obnoxious, and he wonders if his personal hell is just a bunch of annoying and repetitive sounds playing until he loses his marbles. The very next thing he registers is a warm hand with calloused fingers wrapped around his own.

His eyes drift open. It’s a hospital, of course. Nothing else could look so bland and tasteless. Eddie shifts his head and meets the fervent gaze of Steve Harrington.

“Howdy, big boy,” he croaks. “I guess I must be in heaven after all.”

Steve’s eyes slide shut as if he can’t bear to look at him. “Eddie.”

There is too much emotion there; Eddie shies away from the open rawness of it all instinctively.

“Well, what’d I miss? Is Mayfield doing okay? And Henderson, what about him?” Suddenly, the words are rushing and they won’t stop. Eddie hadn’t realized it, but at some point, he had thrown his lot in with all the rest of them.

“Shhh, they’re all fine, everyone’s fine. Max is recovering, but she’s awake and Lucas is always with her. Dustin broke his ankle, but it’ll heal quickly. Everyone has just been waiting for you to wake up.” Steve smiles softly at him. “I’ve been haunting your bedside for a week. The nurses are sick of me.”

“Oh. What about you? Your head, you were bleeding.”

Steve looks baffled. “I had a concussion and I passed out from loss of oxygen, big deal. That is hardly a new experience for me. You were shish-kabobbed, Eddie! Like, they took out part of your intestine. Do you want to explain why you felt the need to run back by yourself, scaring the shit out of Henderson, by the way, and try to save the day?” If his hands hadn’t been occupied, Eddie is sure they would be on his hips.

“You, I mean, I felt…” Eddie trails off. “There was something wrong, okay? I could feel it. I could feel you. I couldn’t leave you and the ladies alone. Something bad was gonna happen.”

“Something bad did happen, Munson,” Steve murmurs gently. His thumb is rubbing soft circles along Eddie’s knuckles. “You almost died. We were barely able to get you back into the real world.”

Eddie flushes. “Look, I can’t explain it. I knew I had to find you, and it was a risk I was willing to take, so it’s really not any of your business.”

“No, no, that’s where you’re wrong. It is my business, actually, because you said my name when you ran in there like freakin’ Rambo. What gives?”

“Fine,” Eddie huffs and rolls his eyes. “I was worried about you, is that what you want to hear? I was worried you might do something stupid and throw yourself on the sword because that’s the kinda person Henderson always says you are. And I didn’t want to, I mean, I couldn’t live with you being… not here,” he finishes lamely.

Steve’s face is unhelpfully blank. He just stares at him, still rubbing those small circles on Eddie’s fingers with his thumb. Eddie shifts uncomfortably, aware of his many bandages and stitches despite the probable load of painkillers he is stuffed with. Then, Steve’s face clears.

“Okay. If I’m reading this wrong, you have about five seconds to stop me, so say something quickly if I’m making a mistake.” Steve shuts his eyes and leans toward Eddie.

The temperature of the room skyrockets in those few seconds. Eddie has just enough time to wonder if someone was brushing his teeth while he was unconscious before Steve Harrington is kissing him.

It isn’t a rough, desperate kiss like so many Eddie has had before. It is slow and sweet and so full of gentleness, as if Eddie is this fragile, precious thing that Steve has sworn to protect. Eddie’s eyes slide shut and he raises his good arm to Steve’s face and brushes a hand lightly across his cheekbone before settling into his silky hair. Steve pulls away and begins to kiss across his cheeks and jaw, showering him with affection.

“Wanted to do this since you threatened to gut me in that stupid boathouse,” he breathes against Eddie’s skin.

“Should’ve done it, Harrington. Would’ve calmed me down a lot faster, I bet.”

Behind them, someone clears their throat. Steve stumbles backward and smacks against a chair that had been set up next to the bed. Eddie tries to roll away and smashes his nose against the side of his bed. Uncle Wayne just stares at the two of them.

“Well, then.” He hobbles quickly to Eddie’s side. “We’re gonna forget for a second that I just saw alla’that and you’re gonna hug me and promise to never disappear on me like that again. Got that, Eds?”

“Yes, sir,” Eddie whispers. When Wayne hugs him, their tears paint each other’s shoulders with salt and bittersweet joy.

“Now, I’m gonna go out in the hall again and get some coffee, and when I get back you and me are havin’ a chat, Harrington.” Wayne swipes at his eyes before meandering back out into the hall.

Steve grabs Eddie’s hand again as soon as Wayne is out the door as if he can’t bear to not be touching some part of him. Eddie grins at him.

“Oooh, you are in trouble, Stevie. He’s never gotten to threaten any of my boyfriends with death by shotgun if they didn’t treat me right before. He’s gonna be very theatrical about it, I can tell.”

The other man looks a little worried but shakes it off and turns back to Eddie. “I can handle it. Now, I believe we were in the middle of something?”

“You know what, I think we were.” Eddie grabs a handful of that famous Harrington hair and pulls him down to the bed. Their lips meet again, and this kiss only stops when Wayne knocks on the door to the room to loudly announce his entrance. Steve sits back in his chair, still holding Eddie’s hand, with a smile so bright it could rival the sun.

~~~

As always, if I tag you in error or you'd like to be removed from the permanent list, let me know in the comments and I'll take you off no hard feelings!

Permanent Steddie tag list: @brassreign @inmoonywetrust @kyoxyukiforever @spectrum-spectre @vampireinthesun @luna-munson83 @awkwardgravity1 @obsessivlyme @piningapple @steddieassheg0es @gay-stranger-things @tell-me-a-secret-a-nice-one

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

Second Part to Sleepwalking Eddie

Eddie still had his doubts when it came to him sleepwalking. So, Steve did what anyone else would do in his situation. He bought a video camera. Of course, it was right after he bought it that the sleepwalking seemed to stop for a while. Was Eddie fucking with him or was it his kind of luck that this had happened?

Because of the whole sleepwalking naked incident, Steve made sure word got around for everyone to call first before coming over. Eddie had a tendency to take naps after he ate lunch, and it was one of those days. It was also the day when Dustin decided that Steve was just bullshitting them and popped in unannounced. Steve had groaned when he opened his front door to find a grinning Dustin.

"No! You can't come in," Steve hissed. "Eddie is napping."

"So? I promise not to wake him," Dustin said and made his way through the door. "Unless. . .is he really napping, or did you get so annoyed by his presence that you finally killed him? After everything we did to save him. Damn, Steve."

"No, you shithead. I did not kill your precious dungeon master," Steve said, rolling his eyes and closing the door. "I'm gonna call Hop and tell him you broke into my house, though . . . And I actually like having Eddie around, for your information."

"See, I told you that you two would be great friends," Dustin said with his back to him.

Steve rolled his eyes as he mouthed the words with Dustin. He knew he would say something like that. He followed Dustin into the living room and watched him as he flopped onto the couch, propping up his feet onto the coffee table.

"Hey! Feet off the table! God. Were you born in a barn?" Steve asked.

"Boy, wouldn't that just embarrass the hell out of you if that were true?" Dustin asked.

Suddenly, Eddie walked into the room, his eyes closed slightly as he wore nothing but his boxers and one sock.

"Shit," Steve cursed and grabbed Dustin before he went to greet him. "Don't wake him."

"Why?" Dustin asked with wide eyes. "Oh my God! He's cursed, isn't he?"

"What? No. No! Wayne told me you're not supposed to wake a sleepwalker," Steve said.

"Why?"

"I don't know."

Eddie grabbed the blanket and wrapped it completely around Dustin. He pulled him to the couch and sat down. He laid Dustin down in his his arms and began to rock him.

"Steve? Steve?! What is he doing?" Dustin asked.

"I think he's rocking you to sleep, man," Steve replied.

"Baby sleepy, shh," Eddie mumbled.

"No, baby is NOT sleepy," Dustin said and then muttered, "Baby just had a nap. . . Steve! Don't just stand there! Do something!"

"Hold on!" Steve exclaimed and ran off.

When he came back, he had something black and rectangular in his arms.

"What is - Steve, is that - is that a GODDAMN camera?" Dustin asked.

"Eddie doesn't believe that he sleepwalks. I need proof," Steve said. "Can you just give it a few more minutes?"

"Fine," Dustin grumbled. "But you should know this is absolutely humiliating."

"You owe me. One, for showing up without calling and two, for walking in here like you own the place. All without an apology," Steve said.

"Don't use logic against me, Steve," Dustin replied. "Why does he have a country accent? Maybe this is his real accent, and he hides it."

"Maybe," Steve said as he adjusted the camera on his shoulder.

"Baby hungry?!" Eddie asked.

"Steve? STEVE?!"

"Shit!"

Steve stopped him before he could press Dustin against his chest.

"Baby's been fed, remember?" Steve asked Eddie.

"By bats?!" Eddie asked.

"Uh, yeah, he's been fed by bats," Steve replied. "He's also had a nap. Can I hold him?"

Eddie grumbled before pushing Dustin away from him and walking out of the room. Dustin unwrapped himself from the swaddle.

"Well, that was strange," Dustin said.

"Dustin, if you tell anyone about his sleepwalking or joke about us being your parents ever again, I'll show the tape to Max," Steve said.

"You wouldn't!"

"I would."

"Fine."

"Steve?! Why the fuck am I in the kitchen and why do I have partially eaten block of cheese in my hands? I'm lactose!" Eddie called. "And don't say I was sleepwalking again!"

"Magic! It was magic, okay?!" Steve yelled back, rolling his eyes.

"I fucking knew it!"

[voydhund]

chat here look at my headcanons

[demobatman]

"and then she said: whos joe? and guys, you'll Never believe what i replied."

[tjmystic]

And another snippet that will eventually go into my Steddie fics.

(Under the cut for length):

He can’t believe he’s doing this. He cannot believe he’s doing this. This is a new low, even for him, he should just hang up and—

“Henderson residence, Claudia speaking!”

Steve rubs his fist against his eyes. “Heeeeeey, Mrs. Henderson!” he says, drawing on every ounce of charm he has and hoping he doesn’t sound drunk. “It’s—”

“Steve! How are you, sweetie? We missed you at Sunday dinner last week, you know you’re always welcome.”

“Thanks, ma’am. And sorry, I had some, uh… stuff. Come up.” He clears his throat. “Is Dustin around?”

“I think so. Just a moment.” He hears the staticky sound of her hand covering the receiver, but he’s done this before, he’s no stranger to Claudia Henderson’s voice. He manages to yank the phone from his ear just in time for her to scream, “Dusty, phone for you! It’s Steve!”

There’s some vague noise in the background, some slamming and stomping as Dustin probably puts away whatever dork project he’s working on at the moment. Steve usually finds himself smiling about that kind of shit, but not right now. Right now, all he can focus on is the pounding in his head, the way Dustin’s voice gets closer as he tells his mom thanks, the sound of him breathing heavily into the receiver.

That weight over his head gets heavier. He knows that sigh. It’s not the one where Dustin’s irritated and about to bitch about something, it’s the sigh he uses when he’s taking a deep breath because he’s about to launch into some nerd spiel. Which means he’s got two options: wait till the kid finishes, by which time he’ll have totally sobered up and definitely lost his nerve, or bite the freaking bullet.

As always, he does the stupid thing: he bites the freaking bullet.

“Dustin, I need to ask you some questions, and I need you to, like, not ask anything back or read too much into it. Okay?”

“Uh, not okay,” Dustin says, and Jesus Christ, Steve hates how he just chimes right in, like it’s normal for Steve to interrupt him before he can get the first word in. “Also, hi, Steve.”

Fuck, this kid’s attitude. “Hi, Dustin. Now, seriously, can I ask the goddamn question?”

“Technically, you did just ask a question.”

Steve groans and knocks his head into the wall. He should hang up. It’s not too late. He’ll just hang up, unplug the phone, and turn off the walkie so the kid can’t get ahold of him, and then he’ll say he was just drunk and talking out of his ass when Dustin comes over to investigate. It’s not like that last part’s a lie.

But he’s made it this far. And he’s gotta know.

No running, says a voice in his head. One that sounds like a weird combination of Eddie and his own younger self.

It doesn’t help at all. But he opens his mouth anyway.

“Dustin, I’m serious. And I really, really need you to not talk back.”

“‘Talking back’ is kiiiiiind of how a two-way conversation goes, Steve. And I can’t promise anything cause you still haven’t told me what any of this is about.”

“Can you just—pretend that you’re a decent person instead of an annoying little shit for once and try! Please, man! This is important!”

Fist clenched, he waits for the inevitable argument. He’s too tipsy to put up much of a fight, and he knows it. Dustin’s just gonna keep on and on and on like he always does, and Steve’s gonna cave, and then everything’s gonna be weird—

“Alright. What do you need to ask?”

Steve opens his mouth, then shuts it right back. Did… did Dustin just agree? Without arguing? Like, yeah, there was the initial thing, but that’s practically nothing for Dustin. This is… Steve doesn’t know how to… what—?

“Steve?”

Oh. Right. The kid’s still on the line.

He clears his throat, readjusts the phone.

“Yeah. Sorry. Still here. So, uh… you really like Suzie, right?”

“‘Like’ is an understatement, I adore her, I worship the very ground she—”

“Okay, got it. And—and before you met Suzie, you had a crush on Max, right?”

The answering groan is so loud Steve has to rip the phone from his ear again, suddenly reminded of just how much Dustin resembles his mom. “We’ve already gone over this, Steve, we don’t talk about that, it was a momentary lapse of—”

“Just answer the question!”

“Alright, yeah, fine, I had a little crush on Max for, like, a week! Happy now? And stop interrupting me!”

No, actually, he isn’t happy now. He keeps that part to himself, though. If it didn’t feel wildly irresponsible, he’d be throwing back scotch right now. Something about drinking in front of the kid, though, even over the phone, just feels… wrong.

“Yeah, sorry,” he sighs, rubbing at the wrinkle between his eyebrows. “So… so you definitely like girls. But, uh… you, like… you notice guys, right?”

Silence.

Steve swallows. “Not, like—like, all guys. Just, you know, some guys. Like, the ones who are attractive, or whatever.”

More silence.

“In—in movies, and stuff. Like that thing you guys weren’t supposed to see that I rented for you, the, uh—it—St. Elmo’s Fire, that’s the one! You ever just, like, stare at Rob Lowe in that scene where he’s got the saxophone, and the earring, and the—the tight shirt with his arms and—I mean, like—you know—Henderson?”

A door snaps shut. Steve’s stomach does a backflip. Or a front-flip. A stomach flip? Great, even in his head, he’s turning into Robin, it’s not enough that he has to do it out loud, too, this was such a stupid—

“Is this about Will?”

The phone drops from Steve’s hand. He thanks his quick reflexes for being able to catch it before it clatters to the ground. Granted, he fumbles it twice, but still.

Palms shaking, he pushes it back to his ear and hisses, “Will? What does this have to do with Will?”

“Nothing!” Dustin’s voice cracks on the second syllable, a sure tell that he’s lying. “Nothing at all, nope, who said anything about Will?”

“Uh, you did? Why—”

“So Rob Lowe! We were talking about Rob Lowe!”