steve harrington but it's that jeff winger moment from community. if u have seen community, u will know... my first stobin-centric piece <3 tw for parental neglect and a prior act of self-harm. this is absolutely on the steve harrington has bad parents train <3
“Steven, this is ridiculous.”
Robin freezes in place. Her hand hovers over the remote she's just placed back down, her limbs locking up one by one at the sound of the voice at the door.
It is not a familiar voice. She knows who it is all the same.
She fights not to move, knowing the couch springs, old and rusted, threaten to reveal her hiding place, even if it is her house. Robin is very much allowed to be here. Expected, even.
But Steve? Steve is not.
It’s why there’s one Christine Harrington on the dingy porch steps.
It’s an unwelcome surprise — even after all the fuss of the 4th of July, a thousand police sirens, endless NDAs, and too much blood on his uniform, Steve’s parents hadn’t shown.
Out of town, Steve had said, his bashed in face making it impossible to read his expression. His eyes were haunted and misty but Robin couldn’t tell if it was from the horror of the night or… a loneliness far older.
So Robin had done the fussing. Had dragged him home with her, shooed away her rightfully nosy parents, and mended him up on her bathroom counter.
Steve had been silent, a little wide-eyed as she worked on each cut, each bruise — but with her gentle touch, he had been helpless to do anything but melt beneath it.
He’d called her Robbie for the first time that night. They’d fallen asleep with their hands intertwined, her arm hanging off the bed to reach out to him on her bedroom floor.
Robin still hasn’t met Steve’s parents, even though it’s been more than a couple months since that night.
She’s been to his house countless times too. She knows where the spare key is, if she ever loses her own copy, that is. Knows which stair squeaks on the way up to the second floor and how the lock on the downstairs bathroom gets jammed too easily.
She’s eaten the best grilled cheese of her life in their kitchen, sitting on the counter.
She’s laughed so hard she’s cried on their couch, getting the throw pillows wet with her happy tears.
She’s still never met Steve’s parents. Til right now.
Christine Harrington has her arms wrapped tight around her frame and Robin has no doubt that on her face is a frown that could make babies cry.
She can’t see her face though. Can only just see a glimpse of her tense body from where she sits. Steve blocks part of her view, his own tense frame in the doorway.
He’d answered the door instead of Robin only because he had the foresight to glance at the front window after the first rap at the door. It was late. Robin’s parents certainly wouldn’t knock at their own home and neither of them were expecting visitors.
The expensive car in the drive, a sore thumb along Robin’s street, had given away the identity of just who was knocking so late in the evening. So, Steve had opened it.
“Mom—”
“I mean utterly ridiculous.” Steve gets cut off without second thought, Christine continuing on as if she hasn’t heard him at all.
“Did you expect us to spend all evening chasing you around? Figuring out where you were tonight from the Carlton’s across the road?”
She’s got this snippy tone that Robin’s heard a thousand times from teachers. Patronising. Too cold for it to seem like a genuinely concerned parent.
“The Carlton’s?” Steve echoes, a bit meek. His shoulders have rolled forward, sinking down a bit and Robin can see his tight grip on the door. Still, she stays frozen, rooted to the couch.
“Yes, Steven.” Christine says his full name again, all bite. “Imagine the shame your father and I felt hearing that. Hearing who you had been associating with.”
“Don’t say that.” Steve grits out immediately, anger bleeding into his tone.
The muscles in his back ripple as he forces his shoulders back, as if he had remembered how to stand up straight at the mention of his friend.
Robin aches; at the reminder of the stark differences of their upbringings and at Steve’s unquestionable loyalty. She finally unfreezes, sitting up a little straighter and leaning forward more— ready to spring up from her seat.
She’s not sure what for exactly. She sorta really wants to go slam the door on Steve’s mom’s face and go back to being bundled up on the couch with him. The urge is strong enough to make her fingers twitch.
“Why are you here, Mom?”
There’s a strain to Steve’s question, even though he doesn’t falter in appearance. Robin can’t see his face either though. She hopes it’s got the bitchiest expression Steve can muster.
“Don’t be smart, Steven.” Christine reprimands coldly. “I know that we may have taken a larger absence than intended but that’s not any excuse to parade yourself around with the strays of this town.”
Strays. Robin feels the word pelt into her and burn into her skin, sinking all the way down. It feels like cold water has tipped down the back of her neck. An unwelcome pit forms in her stomach.
She had known, of course, the reputation of a family like the Harrington's. She hadn’t quite known the extent they would go to protect it. Policing your child's friends over a matter of image is absurd.
Somehow, Robin can see how Steve grows even tenser at his mom’s words— hackles raising like that on a dog. His knuckles turn white. But before he speaks, Christine is barreling on like she hasn’t just slandered every one of Steve’s new friends.
“And to leave the house in such a state?”
Robin hears her sigh heavily, as though this really is the biggest problem in her life — which she can’t fathom in the slightest.
There was nothing wrong with Steve’s house. No mess beyond the usual evidence that someone, you know, lived there.
“Mom, I—” Steve starts again.
“Well, I’m sure you have your reasons. You always do.” She says it so pointedly, like Steve was known for peddling lies to weasel his way out of trouble.
It’s so un-Steve it makes Robin blink hard, wondering if she had heard right.
Steve was honest. He owned his mistakes and he took things on the chin. It was something she had liked most about him in the beginning.
Back when it was all snark and Robin told herself she was never going to be his friend, in this universe or anything other. That even then, reluctant co-worker and nothing more, Steve was honest and decent to her always.
“Now, come on now.” Christine Harrington huffs out her demand. “Your father is waiting in the car and there no use winding him up more than you already have.”
Robin’s stomach turns at her words. It had been a topic of discussion between them, one night weeks ago, lips loosened by the dark. I feel like a dog to them, Steve had admitted quietly, his breath against her pillow and his warmth under her sheets. Like they just leave alone most of the time but expect me to perk up and come running the moment they call. I hate it.
“I’m not coming with you.”
The words stammer on their way out like he had forced them out— and Robin wants to sing she’s so proud of her best friend.
“Excuse me?”
“I’m not coming with you.” Steve repeats himself, the words a little firmer this time. “I’m… I’m spending the night here, with my friend Robin.”
He trails off, the words weaker, losing steam. Robin rises to her feet, the tell-tale squeak of the couch springs letting Steve know she was still here. Still right behind him.
It makes him stand a little straighter.
“I— I’ll come home in the morning.”
Christine Harrington makes a little scoffing noise, a high pitched faux laugh as if Steve’s said something amusing.
“Tell me when did I raise such an ungrateful brat?” She muses meanly and Robin doesn’t miss the way Steve flinches lightly. “We give you free rein of the house, apt time by yourself, and yet when we request you to spend a single evening with us—”
“You’re not asking, you’re demanding.” Steve cuts in, his voice more heated now.
“Oh hush, Steven. You act as if we’re so awful.”
It’s all dismissal. Everything, every word, a dismissal.
“I just can’t win with you, can I?” Christine sighs again, disappointment dripping from the sound. “Either we’re not here enough or we’re here but you can’t find time to have dinner with your family. Which is it, Steven?”
In the doorway, Steve begins to bristle. Robin really, really wants to slam the door now — if only to stop this conversation that seems to keep cutting deeper and deeper into her best friend.
She steps closer to him, moving as silently as she can, and makes sure to stay out of sight as she places a hand gently on the small of his back.
He’s shaking, she realises.
Her heart twists painfully in her chest.
Then, deathly calm, Steve says, “Did you know in 7th grade, I lied and I told everyone in my class that I got appendicitis?”
Robin blinks at the change in subject, the strangeness of Steve’s comment. She does remember that, vaguely. A boy in the year above— it had been a wildfire rumour that had turned out to be true.
Or so she thought. Staring hard at the planes of Steve’s back, the pit in her stomach yawns with an anticipation of devastation. Her hand on his back curls up a bit.
“You and Dad were gone for the whole month to Washington. It was the first time you had ever gone for that long and you didn’t even tell me until the day before you left.”
“Steven—”
“I just wanted someone to worry about me.” He steamrolls on, tone too casual for the story he was telling. “And it worked."
A beat.
"But then Cassie Lange asked about the scar.”
Robin’s hand on Steve's back twists up tighter. She feels like she knows what’s coming— but wishes it to be not true.
She doesn’t want to think of Steve, little twelve year old Steve, doing all that he can for a scrap of attention he was supposed to be getting from his parents.
“And rather than admit I’d lied…” The words come out too tight. “I went and found your sewing scissors and I made one.”
There’s this icy bite to Steve’s voice, his shoulders tensed back up. Christine still hasn’t said anything.
“I hurt like a bitch but it was worth it. I got a card from every single person in my class.”
“You wanna see the scar?” He asks— then he’s moving, his hand rucking up his sweater and shirt and exposing the skin of his stomach. Christine makes a noise like a muffled gasp. Robin feels a bit sick. Steve drops his shirt.
“And I kept all of those cards I got —all 17 of them stashed them under my bed in a box that I still have til this day.” He exhales through his nose. “Because it was proof that, at some point, somebody actually gave a shit about me. Because you didn’t. You didn’t then and you don’t get to now.”
His words hang in the air. There’s a long stretch of silence where Steve stares down the woman on the porch— someone closer to a stranger than a friend.
“So, I will see you at home, tomorrow.”
And then he slams the door to Robin’s house shut with a finality that shakes the air. Robin tenses up at the loud noise. Steve doesn't move, just stays staring at the closed door.
Behind them both, one of the noisy pipes in the house makes a loud noise. It sounds worse than usual as it breaks the silence.
Outside, Robin hears the click of heels on the pavement as they quieten, moving further away.
The pit in her stomach tightens immeasurably, a faint bile taste in her mouth. She finally remembers to smooth out her hand, pressing it flat against Steven’s back— another reminder that she was there.
If he wanted to talk or he didn’t, she was there.
Suddenly Steve sighs, an exhale so large that he shrinks down a couple inches, his shoulders dropping. It sounds exhausted.
He finally turns away from the door, to Robin, and she can only hope her face conveys every ounce of love, of support, she feels within her chest.
“Steve…” She breathes softly.
He wasn’t crying but just the sound of his name, spoken so delicately, seems to inspire tears. Robin catches the tremble of his lip and moves without thought— throwing both her arms around his neck and wrestling him into a hug.
Steve goes easy, his arms snaking around her middle and holding her back so tightly it nearly makes her squeak. She doesn’t though— just lets him bury his face in her neck, taking these big shuddering breaths, these half-formed sobs that break her heart clean in half.
She doesn’t know how long they stand there. Car engines drone as they pass by the street. The streetlights seem to get brighter. Steve presses himself so close to her, as close as he can, and Robin hugs back just as tight. She gives him all the time he needs.
She wonders if there’s an indent of him on her when he finally pulls back — a Steve Harrington shaped outline imprinted on her soul. It feels like there is.
If she could trace it, she thinks, it would be whatever shape love takes.
“Thanks Robbie.” He croaks out. He’s started scrubbing furiously at his face and she can see the wet sheen of tears as he wipes them away.
Robin doesn’t move far, just unwinds her arms a bit and lets them fall back to her sides. There’s an ache between her brows from how long she’s been frowning in concern. Steve looks more disheveled than usual, his usually perfect hair looking flatter — but he looks lighter too, somehow.
“No need to thank me, dingus.” She says, voice soft. She faux punches his chest and then regrets it when his lips don’t even twitch upward. It’s weird to see Steve all undone.
Robin thinks back to that conversation and the callousness of Steve’s mom. Her uncaring tone, the use of his full name like an insult.
She thinks of what Steve had said.
“I’m sorry you felt—” The words get stuck in her throat which grows thicker as she thinks about it. About a self-made scar on Steve’s abdomen, made by a twelve year old boy who just wanted someone to worry.
“—That you felt like you had to do something like that to yourself. I’m sorry no one noticed what you really needed.”
Steve nods slowly, his eyes glazed with a far away look as he stares somewhere over Robin’s shoulder. He gives this little shrug, a little huff through his nose.
“It’s okay.” He says, voice a bit distant. “I mean, it’s not but… even if I hadn’t meant to tell you, I’m glad someone knows now.”
It takes another second before he finally seems to shake himself from his thoughts, turning to properly look at Robin. His eyes are red-rimmed and the tip of his nose is pink. Tell tale signs of tears.
“I’ve never told anyone that before.”
Robin swallows thickly and it takes effort to choke down the urge to cry.
“Well,” She starts. It comes out too high pitched and tight and she clears her throat. “Thank you for telling me.
Some kind of smile plays on Steve’s lips, as if he can tell that she’s fighting off her sniffling and it’s sorta funny to him. It is, a little.
Because instead of being embarrassed or feeling pitied, he feels… delightfully surprised to have her care so much. To be so upset on his behalf.
“Oh, c’mon Robbie,” He gives her that same faux-punch in the shoulder she did earlier and it actually succeeds in making her lips pull up at the edges. “None of that.”
“You’re such a dingus.” Robin says. It comes out a bit wobbly still. Sue her— she doesn’t have Steve’s insane ability to bounce from one emotion to another in a single second.
Steve grins. He wanders back to the couch and flops down onto it. Robin follows and when she sits down, it’s a fraction closer to him this time. He gives one last scrub of his face, wiping the last of his tears away.
She nudges him with her thigh. She has to check just one more time.
“You alright?”
Steve smiles, crooked in that way that lets her know it’s completely sincere. He reaches forward and presses unmute on the remote, the film they’re watching starting up again with a buzz.
Steve presses his thigh back against Robin’s and in the dim lighting of her living room, his eyes glitter with an emotion that threatens to make her want to cry once more.
“Course.” He says. “I got someone checking up on me now,”
Another pointed nudge of his thigh against hers. “I’m better than ever.”
367 notes
·
View notes
Blake 'only child' Belladonna suddenly finds herself with three new siblings
In my previous post, I talked about some headcanons I have fer the ship Snowleopard regarding how the parents would interact with the kids. Now, it's time to unleash some ideas I got fer how Blake and the Schneeblings would interact if their parents dated in a super healthy bi4bi4bi pilfish polycule, or as I like to call it, Bellaschneebling headcanon time >:)))
-First and foremost, poly pilfs = endless potential fer never before seen Winter and Blake shenanigans
-Can y'all imagine Winter acting 'weird' towards Blake- appearing outta nowhere to give advice like 'your form would be better if you did xyz' or randomly giving Blake water bottles throughout the day or glaring at strangers and being super tensed and serious when they're out in town together in an otherwise chill walk to meet up with the others- and when Blake goes to Weiss outta concern and explaining the situation Weiss is like, "Oh! Oh my dust! Blake, do you know what this means???"
"If I did, I wouldn't be asking you for help right now."
"Blake, my sister officially sees you as her own younger sibling!"
"Are, are you sure?"
"I'm positive! Winter is not the most conventional when it comes to showing it, but she really does care in her own way. When she gives you criticism, it's because she knows you can do better and she wants you to the best you can possibly be. The water thing is something she used to do for Whitley and I growing up, I've always believed it because she picked it up from Klein that making sure people stay hydrated is a form of love. The glaring thing is probably because people were staring at your ears, I know I do it all the time."
"...Excuse I think I need to lie down and cry a little."
-No because fer real it's so funny to think that the once snobbish Schneeblings are all ready to throw absolute h a n d s fer their new Faunus sister like, "Oh, you're a racist prick? Whitley, please call a paramedic because-" *gets into summoning form where Arma Gigas launches Winter at the asshole*
-Meanwhile instead of calling for medical staff to clean up the bloodbath that's about to ensue Whitley's just typing away on his scroll doxxing the shit outta the racist asshole's worst secrets and wow Blake feels so loved right now, like, kinda concerned, but very loved right now
-Anyways, it's funny to joke about Winter scolding Blake when she learns about her terrorist past, but overall after her growth in V8 I think she'd be more like, "While I still don't approve most of the stunts you pulled as a vigilante child, stealing from the hyper-exploiting SDC is... fairly understandable."
-After clearing the air about Blake's past, we get Winter being lowkey protective of Blake bc MANNN does that Eldest Daughter Older Sister Instinct ™ go crazyyyy sometimes like this shit does not discriminate. Winter sees a new younger sibling figure and BAM she's already taking the young Belladonna heir under her wing
-Blake has no idea how to handle having an older sibling figure looking out fer her because she grew up as an independent only child who could only count on herself. To make matters worse it's the eldest Schnee she was never personally close to now, uh, giving her almost backhanded compliments as advice fer fixing her form, suddenly popping up asking Blake if she's ate yet, small lectures on the importance of a balanced diet and how important it is that she takes care of herself, etc etc
-In the end, Blake can tell Weiss was right and these random interactions from Winter come from a genuine place of care and she's honestly super honored to be accepted as a younger sibling to the stern woman
-At one point, Winter asks Blake to spar with her because she wants to study her newest sibling's fighting style up close and personal and therefore assess any weaknesses she should strengthen. At first Winter's like "Oh she's mainly a sword user I'm an expert on swords alright I have a foundation on how to fight her" but then Blake switches over to chain scythe gun mode with her cleaver sheather in the other hand (see black trailer) and suddenly all that goes OUT THE WINDOW OKAY DANG
-I personally headcannon that Winter never really got to see Blake go all out in her fighting, and since Blake really wants to impress her new older sister she pulls out her best moves and tricks and Winter is really impressed!!! She still beats Blake bc she's a master huntsman with tonnnss of experience (not to mention maiden powers giving her boosted strength and endurance) but man she has never fought someone like her new sister before!! She's so!!! Versatile!! Especially with those dust infused clones that kept her guessing
-Winter doesn't outright say it but Blake can tell she's proud of her new sibling from that prideful glint in her eyes and wow okay is this how Ruby feels everytime Yang praises her because this feeling is GREAT
-Speaking of Yang, she teases Blake relentlessly at her becoming Winter's new target of Eldest Sister Protectiveness™ and Ruby joins in like, "Get used to it, Blake, trust me I'm the expert younger sibling here."
"Hey!!! I'm not as weird about it as Winter is!!"
"Uhhh huhh- WHA YANG AKFMAKFKQK!!"
-As Winter and Blake watch the Xiao Long-Rose sisters wrestle on the ground, the eldest Schnee daughter turns to her newest sibling and says, "While I accept you as my family, I don't believe our dynamic will ever reach that... level."
"Oh, agreed."
-Yang and Blake both being sisters to Weiss through relationships because I am a filthy, filthy Whiterose shipper. When the parents first told the gang that they were dating, Yang was like, "HAH! Sorry Blake, but imagine being a sister to the ice queen herself!" to which Blake just replied, "Uh, Yang..." and tosses a pointing thumb over to where Ruby is hugging and comforting a confused as all fuck Weiss with forehead kisses and everything and Yang is just like, "Damn, you got me there."
-(Weiss did come around to adoring the Pilfadonnas pretty quickly but she was just so confused and shocked at first like weiss.exe isn't working like my girl bluescreened so hard so just give her a minute to process please and thank you)
-What I'm saying is can we get Yang antagonizing Weiss on TWO (2!) separate fronts? "Hey you're dating my baby sister" shovel talk type shenanigans only turn around with such a shiteating grin that only "Hey I'm dating your sister and there's nothing you can do about it" bullshit can pull? Please? Suffering Weiss™ forever and ever
-But know what's better than Suffering Weiss™? Suffering Weiss™ AND Suffering Winter™ babbbyyy :DDD!!
-I really need Robyn teasing the utter shit outta Winter at how quickly she got attached to Blake in an Older Sister Must Protect™ way shortly after learning of her mother's relationship with Blake's parents. Why, you may ask? Because I am also filthy, filthy Schneewood Forest trash who is going to insert my Schneewood Forest Reconnecting Exes AU into any Winter related thing I can
-To add to the Suffering Schneeisters Agenda™, we're going to move on to the Whitley and Blake potential in my Snowleopard rotted brain
-At first, Whitley is 'testing' Blake to see if she's worthy as a sister (he's actually just being a little shit and already knows of Blake's many merits) and Weiss is telling him to knock it off because bro is borderline ANTAGONIZING her to see what he can get away with
-But then it's like oh damn are those ninja moves are actually cool as fuck okay yeah she's defo waayyy cooler than his other sibs and next thing you know Whitley is very publicly announcing Blake as his new favorite sister by far just to mess with Weiss and Winter and see their reaction
-They know he's just being a little shit and they roll their eyes and say, "I'm glad you're finally warming up to Blake as a sister" but like, deep down they're grumbling, "I could do those cool ninja flips too.. probably..."
-Just like how her token only child ass isn't used to the protective care of an older sibling, Blake isn't used to the lowkey hero worship that comes with a younger sibling looking up to her. It's a strange feeling at first, and takes a bit to get used to, but in no way bad. Whitley tries to act all above it all at first, but Blake easily catches the way his eyes sparkle when she recounts her White Fang adventures to him and finds herself rather fond of the younger boy since he's finally letting go of his old snobbish ways and shaping into a good kid. Yang is just so proud of her girlfriend and says, "Yeah, it's quite a bit of pressure to live up to their expectations of you, but that feeling of wanting to try for them anyways never really goes away."
-Once Whitley lets himself relax around Blake he actually comes up with epic prank ideas involving her clone semblance and oh my god bro they're absolute menaces together because let the kids be KIDS your honor
-Suffering Weiss™ is at an all time high especially when Yang joins in on the fun because she'll never miss out on an opportunity to flex her title as the CEO of Suffering Weiss™ Instigation
-Suffering shenanigans aside I think Blake would be a really good influence fer Whitley. He'd be super open to Blake's suggestions/guidance on how to use the SDC resources he's now in control of and together they can work on ways to help better the Faunus who have been exploited by the SDC fer so long
-Family bonding where Blake makes and pours some tea fer the Schneeblings, and she nonchalantly mentions how this tea recipe is the one she grew up with and often shared with her family and how some of her happiest childhood memories are laced with the warmth of this special tea and casually says, "I'm just so happy that I can make new memories with my new family- are you guys okay?!"
-No the Schneeblings aren't all in various state of Big Emotions right now whattttt (Weiss has tears in her eyes and a shaky smile, Winter is turned away staring at a random wall with her jaw visibly clenched, Whitley is trembling a little tryna process all of this because for so long he was alone and isolated)
-We all been knew that Weiss would not hesitate to kill fer Blake but it took Winter and Whitley like .2 seconds to throw themselves onto that same train once they really got to know her, making Blake Belladonna prolly one of the most protected people in all of Remnant (she's got all three of the Schneeblings and everything that the SDC can provide, her badass parents with all of Menagerie at their beck and call, the rest of her friends who are formidable warriors like Xiao Long-Rose sisters, JNR, Qrow, etc etc etc)
-In conclusion, the Bellaschneeblings have my whole entire heart and I hope y'all love 'em too, I'll prolly post more headcanons of 'em when I can :DD!!
101 notes
·
View notes