#Robin would bump everywhere

[judaluffy]

Nancy entering Steve's house for the first time after they broke up (post s4) and she takes one step in before she gapes.

"Steve?"

"Yes?" Steve says not noticing the gobsmacked expression on Nancy's face.

"Why is your house baby proofed?"

Steve frowns, takes a look around, sees all the silicone corners, makes an 'ah' sound and then very casually says, "that's for Robin."

[sp0o0kylights]

Steve and Gareth as cousins warm up, part two! 

First part is HERE. 

Next part is HERE. 

Reminder: Someone on Twitter proposed Steve and Gareth as cousins whose family had a major falling out, and then someone else brought it up recently and long story short no idea who to credit the idea too bc you can’t search for SHIT on Twitter but it's theirs not mine.

Warnings: Steve and Robin Get (canon-S3) Drugged. 

"I'm just saying the other theater is cheaper." Eddie said around the straw jammed in his mouth. 

He carried the largest bucket of popcorn Starcourt’s movie theater offered, alongside the two boxes of candy he'd also demanded Gareth buy him. 

"Easier to sneak into, you mean." Gareth corrected, with his significantly smaller bag of popcorn. His, he planned to share with Jeff, Grant having snuck in his own food. 

Gareth himself would have snuck in the cheaper (and far larger) snacks, but Eddie had thrown a fit about going to the mall to see a new movie instead of Hawkin’s far older theater. 

Of course, the older theater also had several disadvantages, key of which was terrible seating, and so, Gareth had bribed him with whatever treats he wanted. 

His wallet took a hit but fuck it, at least they got to actually see the screen. 

Not that they even made it into the fucking theater, because someone chose that moment to crash into Eddie. 

Popcorn kernels and soda flew everywhere, with Eddie only avoiding it landing on him and Gareth both by years of dealing with this exact bullshit in school. Of course, the mall wasn’t school, and neither of them had their guard up. 

"What the hell man--" Eddie spat, immediately on the defense, as they both turned to see what jackass wanted to cause problems this time. 

Except Gareth had recognized the person who bumped him. 

"Steve?" Gareth asked, causing  his cousin to totter around and face him. He was in his Scoops Ahoy uniform, which remained to be absolutely ridiculous, but that hadn't been what had drawn Gareth's attention. 

No, that would be the absolute wrecked face staring at him with a doped up grin. 

All thoughts of the movie immediately faded away. 

"What happened to your face!?" Gareth demanded, immediately stepping up into his cousin's space, eyes darting over the damage. 

Recent black eye, split lip, blood splatter all down one side of his neck, nevermind his clothes… 

"Robs!" Steve called over his shoulder instead of answering, body moving as if he was walking on a wildly rocking boat and not solid ground. "Come 'ere!" 

He beamed, which had the horrific effect of resplitting his lips. "Meet Gareth, my baby cousin!" 

"I am two years younger than you." Gareth argued on automatic. He didn’t look to see how Eddie took this little piece of info--he’d figure out what he’d say later, when Steve wasn’t covered in blood. 

It did not stop Robin from reaching out to pinch his cheeks. 

She too, Gareth realized, was clearly high on something, both of them giggling and weaving on their feet. 

At least Robin didn’t appear to be hurt--or at least, not hurt as badly as Steve. 

"What the hell did you two take?" Gareth demanded, looking between them as he quickly put his popcorn back off to the side. 

"We didn't take anything, dad." Steve said bossily, rolling his eyes. He spoke in a voice so unlike himself that Gareth knew his own face was doing something crazy. 

Not that he could stop it because what the hell. 

"What my patriotic friend here means is that we don't know." Robin added, smacking a hand onto Steve’s shoulder. 

(The entire sentence was slurred and sounded like she'd shoved candy in her mouth before she started talking.) 

"You don't know?!” Gareth asked, taking in the way Steve flinched when Robin touched him. Added a mental note to check his cousin's shoulder too. “How do you not know?" 

Gareth wasn't panicking, he wasn't, except he absolutely fucking was. Steve's dad was going to kill him, disown him, and throw the body out of his house--in that exact order. 

Gareth’s parents wouldn’t take him in, not unless his mom felt she could use it to one up her sister in some way which meant that Gareth was going to have to sneak Steve in and out of the house like he was some--some puppy Gareth was trying to keep and--

"Did someone give you two something?" Eddie asked, interrupting Gareth’s spiraling. 

"Give is a very strong word." Steve said with a snicker. 

Robin nodded so much she looked like a bobble head. She leaned in, nearly falling into Gareth in the process. “In fact it’s not the word I’d use at all! I’d use…” She trailed off, screwing her eyes up in thought. 

“Made us?” Steve suggested as Gareth finally gave in to his instincts and reached out to steady his cousin. “Forced us?” 

“Socked it to us!” Robin added with a weird amount of glee, and the two of them once again collapsed into giggles.

Literally, forcing Gareth to try and steady them both. 

Which meant Eddie was right--they’d been drugged. It made perfect sense-- Steve wasn’t the kind to experiment with drugs beyond weed. Had in fact, given a very long lecture about how he’d make Gareth go on runs with him if he ever found out Eddie had given him anything stronger than weed. 

There was no way he’d change now, and especially not around a jobsite. Particularly one as busy as the mall. 

"You can't tell anybody." Robin continued, eyes so wide they were more white than pupils. "But we got truth serumed!" 

As if that made any fucking sense. 

Gareth turned a half frantic, half disbelieving look to Eddie--whose own face scared him almost as badly as Steve's did. 

He was hiding it, and doing a good job of doing so, but Eddie was the one person Gareth knew better than Steve. 

Right now? Eddie Munson was furious. 

Not mad, or upset, or even as pissed as he had been the time Tommy Hagan had thrown his drug box in the river. 

He was enraged. 

"Hey." He said, and the only thing more shocking than realizing Eddie was this mad was hearing him talk in a calming, almost playful voice. "Sounds like you two sailors had a pretty rough time. Why don't we go to the bathroom and get you both cleaned up? I bet you'll feel a little better." 

It was clearly the right move, because both of them looked downright delighted. 

"He thinks we're sailors!" Steve said, cupping a hand around his mouth and leaning to talk in Robin’s ear as if he was whispering. (He wasn’t.) 

Robin’s grin grew impossibly wider, before Eddie stepped forward to help Gareth half guide half herd the two into the nearest bathroom. 

"I know you." Robin said, squinting dramatically as Eddie opened the door with his regular flair, bellowing for anyone in the place to get out. 

It was Steve's turn to nod enthusiastically. "That's Eddie, Robbie." He said.

"I'm honored King Steve knows such a humble peasant's name." Eddie bowed as Gareth finally got both Steve and Robin into the bathroom, trying to get them to sit on the floor before they fell on their asses. 

Which just made a hurt expression appear on Steve's face. "’Course I do. You have really pretty hair." 

It had the effect of making Eddie look like he’d been punched and Gareth had to quickly turn his bark of laughter into a cough. 

"I bet it's soft.” Steve continued, as he pressed his back against the tiled wall and slowly slid down to the floor. “Gare, is it soft?" 

"It's very soft." Gareth agreed, trying to wet a paper towel with shaking hands. Finally he gave up entirely, ripping the plaid sweater he had tied around his waist and shoving one of the sleeves into the sink. 

“Oh my god.” Robin said abruptly, sitting up from her own slouched spot on the floor as if she’d suddenly been stricken sober. “It’s him! He’s your type!” 

“What’s my type?” Steve turned to her, as Eddie leaned his back against the door to the bathroom, blocking anyone else from entering. 

“It’s like--like Nancy! But boy Nancy.” Robin seemed to think this made a ton of sense, and given Steve’s immediate groan maybe it did to him, but Gareth was too freaked out to even begin to process what the hell they were on about.

Probably nothing, given they’d been drugged. 

Eddie seemed to pick up on his general anxiety and poor attempts at shoving down his own freakout, because he gently called out Gareth’s name. 

“I think it’s wet enough.” He added with a raised eyebrow. His eyes drifted purposefully to the sink and with a curse, Gareth snapped shut the water off. 

His hands were still shaking. 

“Give it to me.” Eddie said gently, moving to take the shirt from Gareth’s hands. “Here, swap me Gare, and guard the door.” 

Gareth did, as Eddie knelt down to take Steve’s chin in one hand, and carefully began dapping his wounded face with the wet sleeve. 

“May I ask what battles you two sailors have been involved in?” He said, continuing to sound like playful, fun Eddie and not like he was about to murder half the town (which, Gareth could tell by body language alone, is what Eddie actually felt like) “Did you happen to catch a glimpse of the villains who did this?"

“Robin melted into Steve, rubbing her face in his shoulder. “You wouldn’t believe us.” 

Eddie smiled his most charming smile, a full blown rouge grin he played up as he continued to wipe and dab at Steve’s wounds. “You’d be surprised at what I believe in, my fair lady.” 

Steve tried to talk, but ended up hissing as he ran into Eddie’s fingers. 

“Russians.” He managed to get out, when Eddie quickly took the sleeve away so he could talk. “We got kidnapped by fucking Russians. Also we kinda saw some shit and they’re after us. Possibly you now if they saw you with us.” 

There was the briefest of pause as Steve and Robin stared at Eddie, as Eddie stared back. 

Then Steve and Robin as one started howling with laughter, so hard that Robin’s head ended up in Steve’s lap with Steve’s own head resting on hers. 

Eddie turned to give Gareth a pinched look. “Russians.” He said, still calm despite it all. “Right.” 

Which had to be the fucking drugs speaking. 

Gareth just took a deep breath as Eddie managed to gently prod Steve back into putting his chin in his hand, shaking his head ever so slightly. 

He didn’t know who he was going to actually have to murder, but at least Eddie looked to be on board with acting as his backup. 

[rainydayathogwarts]

Caught - Billy x Byers!reader, mom!Joyce x reader

Byers!Reader wc: ~1.4k Summary: reader sneaks out to meet her boyfriend Billy but bumps into someone unfortunate on her way out. More focused on the reader x mom!Joyce than reader x Billy. Just to make things clear also, it's a loving mother/daughter moment nothing gross or weird.

You almost grinned, tiptoeing to your window in the dark room, purse in hand, careful not to trip over any of the clothes haphazardly thrown on the floor. You winced as you opened the window, careful not to make any sound as you pushed yourself up on your arms, throwing your legs over the ledge. You landed on the opposite side on the wall with a crunch of the leaves under your feet, quickly making your way up the street.

You had gotten used to this routine. Usually, if either you or Jonathan had plans, you'd both go, telling your mom you'd stick together when you actually snuck off to see Billy and Nancy. The plan was foolproof. You both understood each other and would head back home together, ensuring your mom that you were safe. But every now and then when Jonathan didn't have plans, you had to find your own way to go see Billy.

With everything that had happened the past two years in the Byers household, the last thing your mother was going to do was let you go out - especially alone. Especially to meet the boyfriend she didn't know you had. You spotted Billy's car a couple of houses down, waiting to drive you away when you froze, eyes widening.

Staring right back at you was Jim Hopper, the chief of police in Hawkins, Indiana. Standing behind him were Nancy, Steve, Robin and of course, Eleven, who were making their way to your house, inevitably for another meeting.

Hopper took the cigarette out of his mouth, throwing it on the floor and stepping on it, his eyebrows raised and you physically cringed, tugging your low cut top up your chest. He definitely knew what you were up to, especially in that short blue skirt you wore, specifically to give Billy easy access. Your eyes wandered behind him, looking back at the other teenagers who all looked equally as confused as each other, with the exception of Nancy who grinned widely at you.

The silence was deafening.

The sound of the front door opening averted Hopper's gaze back which gave you the perfect opportunity to run back to the side of the house, where your mom wouldn't see you. "We saw you guys standing out here, what are you doing?" You heard your mom say, and prayed Mr. Hopper would keep your secret, just this once.

You didn't hear his answer, the door closing behind them. You had two options, you decided; either you could sneak back in and leave Billy hanging, or you could make a run for it. You sighed, looking through your window one last time before sprinting up to Billy's car down the street so that your mom wouldn't see you leaving.

You slammed his car door behind you, lowering yourself in the passenger seat as you caught your breath, whisper-yelling "Go, Billy, go!" He chuckled, having seen the entire exchange and stated calmly "Well that was a close one wasn't it?" When you were far enough from your house, you straightened up, leaning over the controls to press a glossy kiss to Billy's cheek. He put a hand on your thigh, heading in the direction of the forest, where he parked and you both headed straight into his back seat.

It was an entanglement of sweaty bodies and humidity, causing Billy to reach behind your head to open the window, the awkward position causing you to whine at him. He pounded into you, your skirt bunched up at your waist, your top laying on the floor as he mouthed at your tits, leaving hickeys everywhere he could. Your nails scratched at his back, causing Billy to hiss as he quickened his pace, getting you both closer to the edge. It was blissful, both of you giggling and exchanging wet kisses when you were done, catching each other up on your day, oblivious to what was awaiting you at home.

It was only when you were standing in front of the house with the curtains open, making direct eye-contact with an angry looking Joyce Byers that it suddenly hit you that if the others were here for a meeting, they probably would have needed you too.

You picture it in your head, your mom opening the door to your room, her heart dropping when she sees you're not in bed. Hopper wincing when she yells your name, reassuring her that you're fine, you're not alone. You just headed out. You can imagine her livid during the meeting, worried yet furious because all this time she wanted you to be safe, you'd been betraying her trust to meet a silly boy. Jonathan feeling guilty, but he doesn't want to throw himself under the bus just so that she can be angry at the both of you. It's not his fault that you got caught and he didn't.

You see heads turning to look at you through the window, wanting to see what's busying Joyce's gaze and you put your head down, walking towards the front door. You push your key into the keyhole, twisting it once, twice, and you hear the door unlock each time. Your other hand comes up to rest on the doorknob, and you hit your head on the door, taking a deep breath. You pull your key out with a groan, pushing the door open, avoiding your mom's gaze to the best of your ability.

"Y/N Byers. Look at me right now." The room is absolutely silent at the tone of your mother's voice and you look up with a sigh, seeing Jonathan's eyes widen. He starts shaking his head at you from behind where your mother is now standing, walking towards you. You swallow once, knowing that there's something wrong - more wrong than just sneaking out, but you can't wrap your finger about it, and Jonathan certainly wasn't helping you guess.

It's only when Joyce's hand comes up, brushing a strand of hair behind your shoulder that you realise, jerking away from your mother as you rush to your bathroom to desperately cover your hickeys, knowing fully well that she's already gotten a good look at them. There's three aggressive knocks at the door "Y/N I've already seen, come out now."

Embarrassment tugs at your chest and tears start to prick your eyes, but you forcefully wipe them away. You put your makeup brush down, looking up at your half covered hickeys. You still had three on the opposite side of your neck that were on full display and one was half covered by your top, leaving the rest to the imagination. When you open the door, Joyce is sitting on your bed, and she pats the spot next to her. You trodded over to her, keeping enough space between you as you let her talk, keeping your head down.

"Now under regular circumstances, I'd be happy for you and ask who this young man is, but I'm really disappointed Y/N. I thought we had a deal." You sigh, picking at your nails, knowing that if you said something, it would come out louder and angrier than you'd meant it to be. "Is this the same boy who snuck in last month?" You furrow your eyebrows, finally looking at her. Despite everything, you laugh whole-heartedly. "That was probably Nancy, mom. She basically lives here."

You watch as her jaw drops. "Nancy as in Nancy in my living room Nancy?" You nod "Her and Jonathan are-?" She doesn't finish her sentence, sitting there silently instead. "Do I need to have a talk with you and your brother about using protection with boyfriends and girlfriends?" She asks genuinely, frowning slightly. "No mom! God no!" You yell, shaking your head. "So... You're using protection with this guy?" "Billy." You confirm, nodding at her. "-Because at least Jonathan could decide to not be involved, but you would have to carry it." Your face flushes red and your hand comes up to scratch the side of your head, hiding your face from her.

"If I show you a photo of Billy, will you please stop asking me humiliating questions?" You ask, already getting off the bed to retrieve a box of polaroids. You open the box and gasp, desperately trying to cover the photo of you and Billy making out on the top of the pile, accidentally pushing it away from you and sending all the polaroids flying. Joyce laughs, shaking her head as she mutters something about you embarrassing yourself.

You lean down, pulling some wholesome photos from the floor and handing them over to your mom, who observes them closely. She hums, going through them, and finally says "But even if you didn't use protection...You two would have beautiful babies."

[baby-bearie]

the back of  your knees

(not my gif all credit to owner)

eddie munson x reader

a/n: god damn i have revived from writing retirement for eddie munson. wow. also taglist is updated w/ stranger things and criminal minds options if you’re interested, and if you would no longer like to be tagged you can message me or send an ask. thanks!

warnings: lots of physical touch, reader is mentioned to have longer hair, or at least until ears. just like, pure love and fluff too, which is really unusual for me. 

summary: eddie for the life of him cannot figure out how to keep himself away from you. after a slip up reveals that eddie’s constant touches are a little more than friendly, he’s forced to ramble about how much he loves you and the back of your knees. 

tags: 

@sunflowermotel @maraseavey @tinylatina01 @obx-direction-sos  @voguesir @morgansmoreid @yunhosleftpinky @adoreyou976

The first time he’d touched you after he realized he was in love, Eddie made a deal with himself. 

It was nothing heavy, just a hand smoothed against your side as he walked. You tease him for how diagonal he walks, always bumping into things, but he likes to joke that you just mess up his gravitational field. A fleeting moment, with seemingly no effect on you, but Eddie’s brain froze. The back of his hand felt like someone was sticking pins in it. He couldn’t focus on what you were telling him, something Robin had said to you last week? 

He nodded along, surprised he was calm enough to, considering his brain was moving quicker than it ever had. And he thought he needed to memorize it. He wasn’t drowning your voice out on purpose, but god, shut up and let him think. He tried to remember the moment, the feel of your skin, the curve of your side. And he thought about it for hours, cementing it there in the nerves of his hand and the front of his mind. 

And in his bed that night, he made a deal that if he could memorize that one touch for the rest of his life, keep it somewhere safe and feel it all over again, then he wouldn’t need to tell you that he was in love with the way you rolled your eyes at his tapes in the car, or the smile you gave him when he begrudgingly plays one of yours. He would live happily with a tiny piece of you for himself. 

But Eddie has a horrible memory. And when he wakes up the next morning, he’s half-dressed when he realizes the memory isn’t the same anymore. It’s too fuzzy, too far away. He huffs and pulls his shirt down over his head. And when you pick him up bright and early the next day, Max tucked away in the backseat of your car, he is staring at your hand the entire time. He knows it’s a little odd, and he catches you giving him a couple of weird looks, but he’s trying desperately to call the memory back to him. And maybe it’s a tad odd when he knocks your car keys off the dash out of desperation, waiting for you to reach for them before he lunges his hand out, too. It ‘accidentally’ clashes with yours and Eddie grins a little. 

“What are you smiling at, clumsy? Stop throwing my stuff everywhere.” You scowl. 

Giddy with the thrill of your touch, he continues causing small accidents as an excuse to touch you. He claims that your arm has a scratch on it so he can lift your wrist to graze his fingers over the skin before he gingerly sets it down, grinning as he tells you it must’ve been a shadow. He throws small paper balls in your hair as he sits behind you in class so that he can tell you he needs to pull them out and fiddle with your hair later. Eventually, when he realizes you haven’t caught on, he moves onto just straight up touching you. 

It happens so smoothly that you don’t even realize it. A hand slipped on your arm when you mutter about the breeze. His legs tucked halfway under yours as a movie plays in Robin’s basement. Fingers dancing across your back when you fall asleep while he’s driving you home. 

And it becomes so normal, so casual, that soon enough it’s just always there. His life before that first touch and after blur together, and he can’t really remember a time when he didn’t know the feel of your skin. When you sit next to him his hand just slips onto your knee. His fingers get caught in the ends of your hair in class. You take no notice, just Eddie being Eddie.

You don’t think twice about it until Mike asks whether your parents know you and Eddie are dating. 

“What are you talking about?” You mutter, thinking you didn’t hear him right.

“You and Eddie. Do your parents know?” He repeats himself, brows crowding together.

“Know what?” 

“You and Eddie are dating?”

“No, we’re not.” You shake your head in confusion.

“Yeah, you are.”

“No.”

“Yes?”

“Mike, why would you think I’m dating Eddie?”

“I mean, you guys are like on top of each other all the time. It’s so coupley.”

“We are not!”

“Y/n, yesterday, he was like, brushing your hair.”

“So, what?” You scoff.

“I don’t know, Y/n. Eddie is touchy but he’s not that touchy.”

You sit there in silence with Mike’s revelation, too confused to ask more questions. Mike isn’t done, though.

“You’re really not dating?”

“Shut up, Mike.” 

That night, Eddie is supposed to come over and study. At least, he’s supposed to come over and keep you company while you study. You do your best to pour over your Western Civ notes but you feel Eddie’s fingers sift through your hair, softly rubbing a piece between his fingers and his thumb. It continues for a few minutes and you are suddenly unable to focus on your notes no matter how much you try. You feel how close he is sitting behind you on the floor of your bedroom. Is he always this close? Have you just never noticed? Why is he so close? 

You feel every nerve in your skin light up as his fingers leave your hair to flit down the nape of your neck, tracing an invisible line to your shoulder blades. You abruptly turn around and stare at him. 

“What?” Eddie laughs, “Why are you looking at me like that?” 

“Eddie,” You try, lips pressed into a thin line. “Shit,” He whines. “What’d I do this time?” 

“Nothing, Eddie. I just wanted to ask you something.” You mumble. 

“Oh,” He shuffles even closer to you, hand reassuringly grabbing your elbow. “Yeah, sure, what’s up?” 

“Why are you, you know, why do you,” You try. “Why have you been really close recently?” 

Eddie’s face scrunches up. “Really close? Haven’t we been friends for a while? I didn’t see you that much this week, did I?” 

“Not like that, no.” You interrupt him to rephrase. “Not emotionally, Eddie, physically. Like, physically close.” 

His eyes widen, and he scoots a little far back from you. “Oh, Y/n, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable or anything like that, swear it, I can stay multiple feet away.” “No, Eddie, just listen,” You try to intervene, but he’s on his feet. “Never meant to upset you, really. If I had known,” “Eddie!” “Do you want me to go? I can go,” “Eddie, shut up and listen!” 

He presses his mouth into a thin line and sits back down, a good three feet away from you. 

“All I asked was why? Is something going on? Can I help you with whatever this is?” 

Eddie’s tongue peeks out from between his lips in thought. He curses himself for breaking his deal. He couldn’t keep it to himself, became greedy and wanted more than one touch from you, and this was his punishment. He had to tell you he was in love with you.

God knows he could never lie to you. “Do you want me to stop?” He whispers. Stalling. He’s stalling. 

Your brow raises. “Never said that, no. C’mon, Eddie, what is going on? It’s me, just spit it out!” “That is exactly the issue, Y/l/n. It’s you.” He groans and shoves the heels of his palms into his eyes. 

“What the fuck did I do?” “Nothing! It’s just you, and it’s you, and my brain short-circuits around you, and this isn’t going to make any sense, but, God, Y/n, I love the back of your knees.” 

“What?” “They’re so nice. And soft. All of you is always so nice and soft and good and I really like your knees and your shoulder blades and your forehead. I know I’m just naming body parts, but I didn’t really plan this out, I kind of wish I had.” He rambles. 

“Ok, slow down, let’s-” “And I know I should be able to keep it to myself but, Y/n, that goes out the window whenever you’re near me, I have to be close to you, this shit sounds so weird, but I love all of you so much and being able to feel you is like a lifeline. And I don’t care if it’s your face, or your stomach, or your feet, or your knees, but I love it all. S’like- listen, I don’t know what I’m talkin’ about anymore, but s’like this- knowing that you’re around, and you’re real, makes me feel so much better every single day. I don’t get it, Y/n, I don’t, but I love you, and I really, really, really hope that made sense.” 

He finishes his ramble with wide eyes and red cheeks and his hands are gesticulating wildly. 

“You have never, ever, made sense to me, Munson.” You mumble breathlessly, scrambling over to where Eddie is cross-legged on the floor of your room to kiss him. His hands hover over you for a moment and you have to blindly fumble for them, and press them to your face before he kisses you back. 

You pull away, out of breath. “I really love your hair and your arms. I’m in love with you, too.” 

He leans forward in record time to kiss you again, grinning like a madman. Which he guesses he is, at least around you. 

You sit back on your heels in front of him, and he reaches a hand out towards you but pauses before he pushes your hair behind your ear, hand experimentally continuing down your cheek, the line of your jaw, before he folds it back into his lap. 

“Wait, so I’m, like, supposed to touch you now?” 

“Shut up and kiss me again, Eddie.” 

[helios-writings]

Anything, Anything, Anything

Sanji x gn! Reader

WC: 1.5k

Warnings: mild spice (just making out)

Sanji isn’t your soulmate, but that doesn’t stop you from being in love with him.

The man you’re in love with isn’t your soulmate, you know that for a certain fact. You met your soulmate when you were eight years old, a passing face in a busy port town. “Sorry, didn’t mean to bump into you,” etched on your side forever and said by someone you don’t know, someone you don’t love.

Sanji doesn’t know you’re in love with him, but you know he hasn’t found his soulmate yet, even if he really wants to. He’s an old fashioned romance type, even if he denies it. You don’t know where his soulmark is, have never asked because it’s painful to think about.

The crew asks about your soulmate, and you answer, saying you never saw them again after the five minutes you’d met, but you didn’t mind, because you wanted to find love on your own, not because some writing on your ribcage told you who you should love.

“Are you sure you’ll never meet them again?” Robin asks, hand on her cheek as she listens to everyone talk intently.

You shrug. “Big world out there Robin, with an even bigger ocean. But, I don’t care if I meet them again. If it happens it happens.”

She nods in understanding, but doesn’t ask anything else.

“I don’t get what the big deal is,” Luffy remarks, “I’ve never had a soulmark. But if I did, my soulmate would have to wait until I was king of the pirates to meet me!”

You roll your eyes at your captain’s enthusiasm, but you admire him. He never seems bothered at the fact that he doesn’t have a soulmate, Zoro the same way. Usopp and Sanji seem to lament not finding their soulmates yet, but they shove that worry aside to follow Luffy everywhere he takes them.

And then, you make port in a small town, known for their unique cuisine, which Sanji is, of course, ecstatic for.

He splits off from the group almost immediately and you fight the urge to tail and scold him. He’s a grown man, if he gets into a fight he can defend himself.

You instead go off with Nami and Usopp, who want to check out the shops. You don’t feel like being alone today.

You spend a few moments looking at a few odds and ends but not really interested in anything. Eventually, you leave the pair behind and walk through town, greeting the occupants with a grin.

And then Sanji runs into you, quite literally. He knocks you on your ass and then helps you up.

“Geez, Sanji, you’re white as a ghost.” You tease, dusting yourself off.

“Sorry,” he says, “I just….I’m out of it.”

“What happened? You were practically bouncing off the walls a few hours ago.”

“I met my soulmate.” The cook sounds scared, not at all like the lovestruck fool you know he can be.

Your heart drops. “Oh. That’s great, Sanji. I’m happy for you.”

Awkward silence passes before you tell him you need to go and you bolt towards the Sunny as fast as you can go. You say a quick greeting to those who stayed on the ship and then bury yourself under the covers on your bunk. You don’t come out until long after everyone is asleep.

You creep into the kitchen, looking for a snack and something to drink when the light brightens the room. You freeze, piece of bread midway to your open mouth.

“Oh,” Sanji says, “it’s just you.”

“Just me.” You repeat.

“I thought it was Luffy. He likes to sneak in here sometimes.”

“I know. Sometimes I help him.”

“You what?”

“Kidding.”

You sit on the counter, sandwich and water next to you. It’s silent between the two of you as you finish your meal.

“Are you okay?” He asks as you rinse out your glass.

“Peachy.” You respond.

“Don’t lie.”

You sit back on the counter. “Doing as well as I can be.”

“”I’m in love with you.” He says, like he’s telling you about the weather.

“No you’re not.” You say, a little dumbly.

He laughs in disbelief. “I am.”

“You have a soulmate.”

“I told them I didn’t want them. That I had someone else.”

“But- I don’t….I don’t understand. You always went on about meeting them, how could you just cast them aside?”

“I thought that if I pretended I wanted to meet my soulmate bad enough, I’d eventually believe it, that I’d forget about you. But it didn’t work.”

Sanji’s hands are on your shoulders, bringing you close, trying to bring you even closer. His eyes are wide, almost desperate as he stares at you, like he’s trying to get you to believe him through looks alone. His voice is strained as he speaks.

“I’d do anything for you. Anything.”

You let out a soft gasp at his words, almost unable to believe them. “I just-are you sure, Sanji? You met your soulmate, for fuck’s sake. What if you don’t know if this is what you want?” What if you don’t want me, remains unspoken.

“I know what I want,” he tells you, firm, “because it’s right here in my hands.”

You know the tears fall when he wipes a thumb across your face, and then he’s pulling you into a desperate kiss, your arms locked around his shoulders. He’s kissing down your neck and whispering to you: “anything, anything, anything.”

Before you can even think, he’s made his way back up to your lips, and presses against them again, whimpering slightly, like he’s wanted nothing but this for ages.

The two of you pull away and he presses his forehead to yours. His cheeks are flushed, pale skin tinged a light pink. “I love you, I love you.” He whispers, almost imperceptible, almost as if he’s scared you’ll change your mind.

You repeat the words to him, in that same delicate tone, the same soft whisper and he kisses up your arm as you do so, face still flushed.

His blazer comes off, the tie, the shirt. Your shirt. You see his soulmark, etched upon his ribs just like yours, and you run your fingers over it. He doesn’t stop you, though he shivers in response to the touch.

“I can almost pretend they match.” You whisper, mostly to yourself.

“I thought you didn’t believe in stuff like that.” He says, a kiss is placed on your bare shoulder.

“With you I do. I want to be bound to you by fate, Sanji.”

Sanji places his hand on your ribcage in turn. “I’d change it if I could, I’d leave my handprint right here, I’d leave my words etched upon your skin.”

You smile a little. “Do you remember what you said to me when we first met?”

“I asked if you were lost. Even then, I’d hoped you were my soulmate. Even when you didn’t say the words.”

“I don’t even know what it says.” You admit, looking down at the elegant scroll of writing on his side.

He lifts your chin up to meet his eyes. “That doesn’t matter anymore, I’ll get the biggest and ugliest tattoo in the world to cover it up, and then we’ll never think about it again.”

You laugh, albeit a little wetly, but your head swirls with emotions. A few hours ago you thought he didn’t love you back, that he didn’t even think about you. You almost fear that you’re in a dream.

“I love you.” He says again, like he’s testing out the words, but his eyes are still desperate, like you don’t believe him.

“I love you too.”

Reality hits you then and you let out another tear strained laugh. “You chose me over your soulmate.”

“As far as fate is concerned, you’re the only one I need.”

He kisses you again, pulling you close, the skin to skin contact a foreign but welcome sensation and the shiver that it causes leaves goosebumps in its wake.

The door to the kitchen opens and the both of you freeze. You and Nami make eye contact.

“I’m going back to bed.” She announces, and the door swings shut once again.

You and Sanji laugh, his head is on your shoulder as he lets out a silent wheeze.

“No more making out in the kitchen.” You tell him, still laughing.

“Then you definitely aren’t allowed in here anymore.”

You flush but playfully elbow him in the ribs. “Maybe you shouldn’t be allowed in the kitchen.”

Sanji kisses your cheek and hands you your shirt. “We’ll hash out the details later.”

You’re loath to leave him, for some reason. But you shake the feeling off as leftover insecurity and kiss him gently, wishing him a good night. He keeps looking behind him as he walks to the bunk room.

You sigh dreamily as you sweep the deck and can’t help but think the stars look a little brighter that night.

[imfinereallyy]

cw: drugs, morally grey characters

The bathroom doesn’t give the kind of quiet Steve needs right now.

What should have he expected in a club on Friday night?

Fuck, think Harrington. What would Robin do?

She probably wouldn’t have gotten caught in the first place, that’s what. God she is going to kill him if he doesn’t check in later.

Steve takes a deep breath, trying to get comfortable on his spot on the toilet. His jeans are going to be disgusting later.

The bass thumped loudly throughout the bathroom. The walls shook as the music makes its way in as the door swings open with each patron rushing in out.

He is never going to get the kind of privacy he needs to get out of this.

The red glow of the lights seems more fitting for a place for people to fuck in rather than take a piss, but Steve supposes that maybe it’s the point.

Coming to blank, the point was to either get fucked or get fucked up.

Running his hands through his hair, Steve went over his options.

1. He has a knife in his boot. Steve isn’t afraid of the consequences of killing a man, his soul lost the right to be saved a long time ago. But he doesn’t feel too good about killing someone at random. Death should have a point if it is coming from the hands of a man. He’ll leave the pointless deaths up to a god he doesn’t believe in.

2. He can try and make a break for it. He only has a sea of partiers to get through, at least half of them on coke or molly. And make it to the parking lot without getting caught by security, and then find a way to get home.

Fuck.

3. Dump the drugs, flush them down the toilet. Worry about money later.

Considering the guy after him is a fucking FBI agent, and Steve would love nothing more to get rid of a glorified cop, he doesn’t feel like putting his face on the top of FBI’s most wanted list.

Flushing it is.

Steve takes the baggies of coke out of his pockets. Sure, he won’t go away for long if the agent caught him with it, but it will give the bureau an opportunity to try and get him to talk, and Steve despite popular belief isn’t fucking stupid. He isn’t going to talk.

Even if he wants to, Steve is sure that his head would have a pretty little bullet hole in it before he even steps into court for arraignment.

No matter who his father is. Maybe especially cause so.

Steve can feel the sweat start to pool at the bottom of his shirt. He hasn’t taken anything tonight, maybe he should thank that mythical god he doesn’t believe in for that one. But Steve’s stress is going up with the temperature of the room.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

Steve stands and kicks up the rim of the toliet, he can’t afford to miss.

His head starts to pound with the base.

Bump. Bump. Bump. Slam.

The world crashes with noise. Steve has no time before his stall door is thrown open. Steve forgot to lock the fucking door.

Steve throws his hands up, baggies still in his hands, sweat dripping down his back. Chest heaving up and down, Steve is frozen at the sight in front of him.

It’s not the FBI, which is good.

It’s not his boss, which is better.

But in front of him, is one of the most beautiful men he has ever seen. A dark shadow lit up but the red lights. Long, curly black hair falls upon a red silk shirt. Tattoos, rings, piercings…everywhere. Big brown eyes staring directly at Steve.

Gorgeous…

Unfortunately he’s not only one of the most beautiful men out there….

“Hey there princess.”

…but also the most dangerous..

“I believe you have something that interests me.” The man all but growls.

Eddie fucking Munson.

Steve finds the courage to speak, “Yea, what’s that?”

A wicked grin spreads across his lips, “A ticket in.”

Steve’s worried he might have to make a deal with the devil.

🪩🫧🍸 🔪🥂🫧✧˖°

[nobody-is-here01]

...whitebeard luufy being in the east blue for like 3 days and coming back with Zoro.

Ace, Sabo and Luffy were playing hide and seek, Luffy hid in a barrel, but unfortunately the barrel got bumped into the ocean.

Avida and her crew found the barrel, Luffy breaks out, meets Koby and they both get a ship and bounce

Luffy tells Koby about his family, (Koby doesn't know he's a whitebeard, neither did Alvida), Koby tells Luffy he wants to be a marine, Luffy tells him "go for it"

They reach the island Zoro was on and helped him out.

And on his way back home they helped Ussop and Nami

When he got back he got scolded and everyone welcomed a new brother

All in all Luffy was kept under much stricter watch, still didn't work because Zoro would literally follow Luffy everywhere same with Robin, so if Luffy was missing so was Zoro and Robin.

[whataboutthefish]

While you were sleeping

Omegaverse, Steddie, mpreg

Words 900

Also on Ao3

Whirring noise… click

Dear Eddie,

Where do I start? Dustin has given me this tape recorder so I can keep a diary of sorts for you. I guess we have some pretty big news to share. 

We’re pregnant.

So I found out today. I’ve been feeling a bit shit, tired and achy and Robin and her big mouth joked that I could be pregnant. I think the way all the color left my face concerned her a little, so she held my hand and we did the test. 

I don't want you to miss out on a single moment so here I am probably 6 weeks pregnant, taking a polaroid in profile to show you with this recording.

Any bump you see is more to do with the box of twinkies I stress ate this morning than the tiny bundle of cells making themselves at home in my womb. 

I’m so scared, Eddie, I know you’ll wake up soon and laugh; we’ve been to hell, fought demons and survived, what’s scary about one little pup. 

Please wake up soon. 

~~~~

Nine Weeks

Morning sickness is the worst, especially at 3pm. Why do they even call it morning sickness? It's stupid and I hate it. I can’t stand the smell of tobacco, Hopper stopped by the hospital and I vomited on his shoes.

Oh yeah Hopper’s alive, he’s different, you can tell he’s been through it. 8 months is a long time to rot in a Russian jail. You don’t need to beat him by the way, we’d be happy to see you open those eyes any day. 

It doesn’t feel real yet, the seedling is still just a bean, and besides the nausea and back ache I don’t feel any different. 

I miss you.

~~~~~

Twelve Weeks

Doctor asked if we wanted to know the sex, I said no. I don’t want to find out without you, I want you there when we first meet our seedling. You can almost see the bump now, Robin says I’m just getting fat, maybe she’s right. 

I love the way my body is changing, I’m going soft everywhere, not just my stomach, my chest, my face everything is getting soft. Nancy says I have the pregnancy glow, and my hair is the healthiest it’s ever looked. I guess pregnancy looks good on me. 

Wake up soon, Eds, I don’t want you to miss this. 

~~~~~

Sixteen Weeks 

I had to get elastic waisted pants. You better not laugh when you hear this because this is all your fault! 

Robin is going to birthing classes with me, I'm pretty sure half the group think we are a couple. I’m not in a rush to change their minds, the sad looks are getting to me. When you tell someone your partner is in hospital and you don’t know when they will come home, well, people look at you with pity and a sense of panic in their eyes. Seems people are uncomfortable with the prospect of death, and me an unmated omega, the shame.

No, I think I'll just be the turkey baster lesbian couple instead for now. 

~~~~

Twenty Two Weeks 

Felt her kick today, at first I thought it was just gas but then she really got going, it’s like butterflies in your stomach. I know we decided to keep the sex a surprise but I just have a feeling. Dustin did some old wives tale trick with a pendulum and agrees with me, god knows where he dug that bit of information from. 

We are past the point of fitting into elastic waists and I am officially in maternity wear. I am not happy about this. The clothes are obscenely cutesy, with a wide variety of moo moos and oversized sweaters to choose from. 

I’m afraid your hellfire shirt is now completely stretched out and no longer yours. I’m not giving it back. 

~~~~

Twenty Five Weeks

Robin is on at me about picking a name, at least a short list, but I can’t. Seedling will suffice for now, you’ll wake up soon and we can argue about all the silly names you’ll choose. I’ve already vetoed Frodo so you can forget about that suggestion.

The nurses helped me lay beside you today. I was so tired and seedling was very active, they helped me lay your hand over my stomach and she played with you for over an hour. I would have been mad, she was really going for my kidneys but I swear I saw your eyes open, just for a moment. The doctors think I'm over tired, seeing things that aren’t there, but I know you’re still in there. 

You just have to follow my voice, just follow my voice and come back to us.

~~~~

Twenty Eight Weeks

Seedlings' favorite time of day is when we are with you, she can’t seem to sit still when she’s with her daddy. I don’t know what you’ll want to be called when she arrives, but I’ve decided on Oma. I know it’s old fashioned but it feels right. 

We are so close now, my back aches and my ankles are swollen and all I want is for you to hold me in your arms and tell me it’s all going to be alright. 

We might stay a little longer tonight, seedling wants to feel you close and so do I.

Eddie? 

Oh my god, Eddie…

Nurse, come quick he’s opened his eyes… 

[harringtonswriting]

Okay what abt “just to clarify: me holding your hand doesn’t, like, mean anything, by the way. not in that way, at least. unless you want it to mean something. i don’t mind. that’s cool.” with Robin. This one has big robin vibes with the rambling omg

omg bestie this prompt was SO cute and yes it definitely has big robin vibes !!! i loved it so much and i hope you do too!! it's my first time writing for robin and it was so, so fun !!!

...

You hadn’t expected the mall to be this busy.

You could tell Robin hadn’t, either, from the grimace on her face as yet another person bumps into the two of you. Realistically, though, when she’d suggested heading to Indianapolis on a Friday afternoon, you probably should have known this would be the case. But you could never say no to Robin, and when she’d mentioned wanting to visit the big bookstore there because it would definitely have a better selection than the small one in Hawkins, you almost immediately told her you’d go with her.

The smile on her face was absolutely worth it, though, even if Eddie did tease you about it for the entire week leading up to your excursion. You’d do anything to see her smile, like really smile, where her mouth turns almost perfectly, prettily heart-shaped and her freckled cheeks squish up under her beautiful, bright blue eyes and you can’t help but smile too. So that’s why you’re here, on a terribly busy Friday afternoon, trying to weave through the crowds together while Robin tells you about the fact that old man Linley was in there for the third time this month to rent Sorority Sluts.

“And he thinks if he puts E.T. on top of it we’re not gonna notice! Like, come on, it’s already super obvious with the beads in the doorway to the back room,” she tells you, and you laugh at the image. You can see her and Steve now, sharing one of those looks you’ve seen them shoot at each other, where they don’t need words to communicate, as one of them rings through the older man and his… questionable choices. “Steve says that’s, like, one of the worse ones back there too. Which I then proceeded to call him a pervert for because, like, has he seen all of them? And knows how good they are? Like, how good can those movies actually be?”

That’s not something you’ve ever really considered, and you’re not sure you want to know. The two of you continue walking through the bottom floor, eyes looking out for the bookstore Robin wants to visit. You weren’t exactly sure where it was, but she’d said she knows where it is and was supposed to be leading the way. The two of you were going there first, and then you’d wander around for a bit before getting something to eat. But you could honestly listen to her talk all day, seeing how animated she gets and the way she moves her hands around to express her ideas and to really emphasize what she’s saying. It was one of the things you love about her–not that you’d mention that. Sure, she confided in you that she likes girls, but that doesn’t mean she likes you. You could (and would) dream that you’d be so lucky, but being able to be her friend and spend time with her was more than enough.

You’re drawn out of your reverie when yet another person pushes between the two of you, their shoulder knocking into yours, as you pass by a record store next to a little clothing boutique. You sigh, waiting for them to pass before turning to smile apologetically at Robin.

That’s when you feel something warm and soft grab your hand, and when you look down, you can see the familiar chipped purple nail polish and silver rings that normally adorn Robin’s hand. Your eyes move up a little further, and you see the yellow friendship bracelet you’d made her, one that matches the green one on your own wrist. Then you move your eyes higher and see Robin’s cheeks are flushed a very pretty pink, and her eyes are looking everywhere but at your face, and you feel your own cheeks get warm.

“I just don’t want you to get lost, you know? How much would it suck to finally make it to the bookstore and you’re not there because some rude jag off doesn’t know how to say excuse me?” she says, her voice higher pitched than normal as her words come tumbling out of her mouth. She tugs you forward by your intertwined hands, starting to walk and pull you along with her. You let her, a little surprised but not hating the way her hand feels in yours. “Just to clarify: me holding your hand doesn’t, like, mean anything, by the way. Not in that way, at least. Unless you want it to mean something. I don’t mind. That's cool.” The words keep coming, though these ones aren’t exactly what you’re expecting. Robin’s always been a talker, and maybe she didn’t mean for you to be paying complete attention to her this time, but you are and did she just say she doesn’t mind if holding your hand means something? Maybe you didn’t hear that right over the noise in the mall. But maybe… Well, if you heard right then you want to make sure she means what you think she means. What you want her to mean. 

“What if I want it to mean something?” you interject, and you tumble into Robin’s side as she stops walking immediately. She doesn’t let go of your hand, though, even as you apologize. Her blue eyes are wide, her lashes stark and black against her face, as she stares at you with her mouth slightly open. It’s the first time you’ve stunned her into silence, and you relish it for a few seconds before she starts speaking again.

“Do you want it to mean something? I mean, you know, I would be okay with that. More than okay! If you mean it. Steve’s been saying I should probably tell you how I feel but I also don’t want to scare off one of the only girl friends that I have because, like, we are just friends and we also live in a small town and people are seriously not cool there. Aside from you! And Nancy, she’s pretty cool, but she’s with Jonathan and I’m not even into her, I swear!” She’s gesturing again, but she hasn’t let go of your hand; in fact, her grip has only gotten tighter and she’s using your hand to gesticulate with her own.

People keep pushing around the two of you, but you don’t move out of the way for them this time. You feel warmth bloom in your chest, under your ribcage as your heart pounds, because Robin is absolutely adorable when she’s flustered. You could listen to her talk for hours, even about Nancy Wheeler, who you’re kind of glad to hear Robin doesn’t have a crush on. That eases a knot in your stomach you don’t like to think about. But is Robin actually saying she likes you? Like, likes you likes you? You think so. And… wow, okay, you were very glad you offered to drive Robin to Indianapolis. “Also, like, I didn’t mean girlfriend, unless you want me to mean girlfriend, as in not just a friend, but I don’t want to weird you out.”

She seems to be drifting off in her trains of thought, so you squeeze her hand where it’s still gripping yours, and it stops her mid sentence. “Robin,” you say, and her eyes meet your own. Her eyebrows are furrowed and her nose is scrunched, and in the sunlight coming through the mall’s skylights her freckles stand out like tiny kisses along the bridge of her nose and the soft planes of her cheeks, and you’ve never thought she looked prettier. “Yeah, I want it to mean something. I do.”

There’s that smile you love, back on her face and this time her tongue is sticking out just slightly from between her teeth. She pulls you in just a bit closer, before you start out again to head to the bookstore with her hand never leaving yours.

And if you spend a little too long hidden between bookshelves in the back, quiet giggles and the smell of paper lingering around you, well, that’s just fine with you.

[navstuffs]

The Lutenist and the Assassin

Pairing: Ac2!Ezio x GNMusician!Reader

Summary: Ezio hates all lute players, except for one named Petirosso.

Warnings: FLUFF, non-canon compliance, reader's nickname is pettirosso which means robin (yeap, the bird), lutenist!reader, swearing, no physical description/gender of reader, no y/n, mutual!pining, translations at the end (and as always if you see any mistake, please let me know)

Author's Notes: hiiii! in celebration of my birthday and ezio's coming soon (yeah, we both cancer), i have decided to let out some fanfics for him i had in my drafts for a while. this idea came to me on a whim, cause imagine how funny would be if he had fallen in love with a good luter player lol anyway, enjoy your reading! @cerezzzita here it is friend!!

my ezio's masterlist

Ezio Auditore is on top of the buildings of Piazza San Marcos, observing the Pazzalo Ducale. He had been studying the best way to infiltrate the palace for a while. When he finally comes down to Piazza San Marcos, he notices a small circle in the middle of the Piazza and the distant sound of a melody.

Ezio is immediately taken by surprise. All the musicians he had heard so far were horrible, to say the least, and no one liked them, especially him. Curious, he makes his way into the small group.

In the middle, a beautiful minstrel plays a sad song. You don't sing, too focused on playing the lute, and ultimately lost in your world. Ezio watches, astonished, as the rest of the others. You have a certain melancholy in how you played, Ezio presumes for a lost love.

You continue playing for around twenty minutes, and the circles gets bigger. Ezio observes you, amazed, as your fingers pluck the strings with mastery. You probably have been playing for years. It is captivating to watch, and Ezio doesn't know how long he has been standing there, too concentrated on you.

When you finish, most people applaud, waking Ezio from his trance. You glance around, surprised by how many people you attracted. You thank them, bowing. Some are dressed in very fancy clothes. You start collecting the florins, your bag filling up when a hooded man with white robes walks toward you and gives you some coins. You bow respectfully.

"Grazie mille, Signore." 

"Never had I thought I would hear someone who can actually play in this town," Ezio says, and you smile, feeling your cheeks heat up.

"Grazie for your kind words, but I still have much to improve, Signore."

"And still so modest."

You glance at the man before you, remembering his face from the posters across Venezia. Fifty thousand florins on this man, dead or live. You analyze him, from his boots to his fancy robes, and you stop by his charming smile, a scar on his lip. 

"Mi chiamo Ezio. I tu?"

"I don't know if I should be giving my name to a searched man with his face all over posters in town," You answer, and Ezio's smile widens.

"That would be wise of you."

"But you can call me Pettirosso."

"A fitting name," Ezio answers, a flirtatious smile in your direction.

-x-

The next time you meet Ezio again is late at night. A large group is watching you, which is not unusual now. Your popularity had grown exponentially. The talk in Venezia is where the Pettirosso would be playing next or if you were ever going to sing. 

You look everywhere as you are playing, especially if a certain white robe-hooded man will appear. It had been a few weeks since you met him, and Ezio had vanished in the middle of the people before you could say goodbye.

After five songs, you finished for the night, receiving a lot of claps. You bow down respectfully; some people have now started giving you small bags of money. After saying goodnight, you decided to go straight to your rented place. You always tried to make different ways to ensure no one followed you.

Two streets down from your place, you feel someone bump into you. The man seems to apologize and rapidly moves away. When you take your hand into your waist, your whole money is gone. You scream "Thief!" and run after him. People move out of your way as you yell behind the man so he can stop. He realizes he is being followed and runs into a dark alley, and you follow behind him. 

It is a dead alley. You look left and right, and the thief has disappeared. You hear a noise up your head and looking up, you notice the thief on top of the roof. He seems to wave before he disappears.

"Cazzo!" You exclaim, hitting a wall nearby. You were too focused on your music to notice him while playing earlier. Now that you started saving, so you can get a better lute.

You hear a struggle atop the building, a man's voice pleading for his life and fast steps away from you. You look up, trying to observe anything, when a white mass falls behind you. You scream, jumping away, your back against the wall. It is Ezio. And he is holding all your money.

"I believe this is all yours, Petirosso." Ezio has a playful smile on his lips. You gulp, looking from where he had fallen, wondering why he didn't break his legs.

Strangely, you feel no reason to be scared as you walk up to grab the money from his hands, your hands touching. He doesn't look like the scary Assassino everyone in town makes him.

"Grazie, Messere."

Ezioo mutters "It was nothing", as you hide the bag inside your shirt this time. You feel Ezio's eye linger when your skin is exposed, but he doesn't say anything.

"He has been observing you for a while. That thief. I made sure he won't bother you anymore."

"Oh? How do you know that?"

Ezio seems to have been caught. He seems to ponder for a moment before he says slowly.

"I have been listening to you play. It is not hard to miss, since you are the best one in this city. I noticed him a couple of nights and followed him to ensure he didn't go after you. I think tonight was the night he decided to strike."

"Oh."

Ezio has been listening to you play. That's why sometimes you see an extra bag of money near your things after you gather the money from the public. But a sudden thought occurs to you.

"Have you been following me?"

"No! I just followed the thief, that is all. That hasn't been the first one as well," Ezio admits. 

Not the first one? Merda. You bite your lips, bad thoughts crossing your mind. It may be time to leave Venezia. Maybe Rome? You hear Ezio clear his throat, and you hold into the strap of your lute.

"Messere Auditore, I am in debt with you. I thank you so much for what you did. Anything you need, you can ask."

"Anything?" Ezio's tone of voice and stare almost make you regret your proposal. Almost.

"Si. Anything. I am a lutenist of my word." You sustain his stare, holding into the strap of your lute. Maybe, you shouldn't have said.

"Be my Petirosso."

"...che?"

"Come to Monteriggioni. I will ensure your safety and pay you to sing." 

You stop, checking if Ezio is being serious or not. Monteriggioni? You have heard being a small village. Getting paid to sing? It sounds like a dream, but you shake your head, thanking him.

"Grazie, but I don't think I am ready to settle just yet."

Ezio seems to nod in understanding. 

"I could make sure no one follows you. No one would steal from you if they heard you are under my protection."

"And how much would that cost me exactly?"

Ezio opens a smile before he answers.

"Solo il suono della tua voce, Petirrosso."

You think for a moment before you pull your hand to Ezio, and he gives you a bright smile, shaking it back.

-x-

You don't immediately start singing, and Ezio doesn't pressure you to which you are grateful. You notice his presence more now, for some reason, squatting down on rooftops, staring right at you. He doesn't come to talk to you when you end it, which you understand since he is a wanted man, but you can feel him following you as you get home. It makes you anxious, which, in consequence, causes you to mess up some notes in your lute. People don't notice, but you do. 

And you promised Ezio you would sing, which you don't think you can. Although you call yourself Pettirosso, you aren't the best of singers. You even attempted in the past, opening your mouth as people gasped, surprised, but no sound came out of your throat, so you ended your show earlier. You never thought you could, your voice sounding too lousy to your ears.

But you promised, and a promise is a promise. And deep down, you want to please Ezio.

You decide to resume slowly, not in public, obviously. It is a rainy afternoon, your window is open, and you have the lute in your hands. You can hear the conversations downstairs, and you close your eyes imagining yourself surrounded by people, Ezio in front of them, his eyes burning into your skin, waiting.

Your voice comes out barely a whisper at first to follow the sound of your instrument, and slowly but surely, you start getting confident, singing a little louder. Imagining how proud and stunned Ezio would look as you finally sing.

Out of your line of vision, on top of your window, Ezio has his eyes closed. He has been listening to you secretly for a while, but when your voice starts coming out in tune with your lute, Ezio flushes his eyes open as if he can hear it better.

He gets up from his squatting position, his heart beating fast against his chest as you continue. Ezio has heard the "Voice of Angel" before, but now he clearly knows what it means. A chill goes down his body as Ezio understands nothing else can sound as angelical in this world except you.

You seem to stop after a while, the sound of your lute dying down, and he wants nothing more than to go down there and hold your face in his hands and simply kiss you.

But he has to wait. He can't risk his Pettirosso to fly away. When you close your window, Ezio whispers to the night.

"Buona notte, Pettirrosso."

"Grazie mille, Signore."  = Thank you very much, Sir.

Mi chiamo Ezio. I tu? = My name is Ezio. Yours?

Cazzo= Fuck

"Solo il suono della tua voce, Petirrosso." = Just the sound of your voice, Robin.

"Buona notte, Pettirrosso." = Goodnight, Robin.

[erin-bo-berin]

Singlemom!reader ‘verse idea: how are the Reader and Nancy around each other? I like to think there would be some friction at first not only because of Steve but also because they are different paths in life but then they grow to respect each other.

Since I imagine this universe taking place at the same time/ages of everyone as season 4, we’re gonna pretend the Stancy things never happened this season as Steve’s already with the reader. But I imagine the first meeting was probably very awkward giving their history. A little blurb coming your way!

(Also I know this gif is weird with this and looks way more intimate than it should be for this fic but I’m sorry I love chest hair Joe so much lord have MERCY I GOTTA STAY FOCUSED)

Never in a million years would you have thought that one of the auntie’s to your child would be your boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend.

Of course, your relationship with Nancy Wheeler hadn’t always been so smooth sailing.

It wasn’t bad, but the relationship hadn’t been necessarily good either.

The first time you’d met her, you were on edge. Things didn’t come out the way they should’ve have due to your nerves and there had been plenty of tension. Perhaps, it was mostly on your part, but you’d felt pretty inferior to the beautiful petite brunette.

In most cases, partners’ exes were out of the picture, but Steve was still really good friends with his ex-girlfriend. It made you self-conscious. Not in a jealous way, though. You trusted Steve. You just felt plain and messy next to the done up Nancy.

You were in sweats and had your hair tied up, bags under your eyes from sleepless nights with a baby. Nancy was always put together, perky and off to college in the fall to pursue her dreams of being a journalist.

So, that being your mindset, you two didn’t exactly hit it off.

Steve had told you about their tumultuous history and quite confusing break up, leading to some unresolved feelings though that was before you’d met him. Still, your confidence in yourself seemed to take a hit around her.

She seemed curt, straight to the point and didn’t bother talking to you much other and instead spent most of the time talking to Steve. Your slight bitterness might’ve shown a bit.

All in all to say, it was awkward and embarrassing. You were very embarrassed to admit how your self esteem had plummeted because of her.

Future interactions were slightly better, but you were exactly the best of friends.

Turns out, all you needed was a little bit of your daughter’s help.

It had been an occasion where everyone decided to hang out at the Wheeler’s house. Kids and teens were spread out everywhere. Some of the boys were playing D&D downstairs, Max, Steve and Robin were playing videos games in the living room, you reading a book while they played. El and Nancy were in the kitchen, Nancy helping her mom bake cookies and El playing with your little girl.

You heard the crying before you heard your name being called.

You were immediately in the kitchen, seeing your little girl in Mrs. Wheeler’s arms.

“I’m afraid she had a little fall when she was toddling around the kitchen. Just a little bump, I think it scared her more than anything. I’m sure she’ll be fine.”

You smiled and thanked her, taking the fussing infant into your arms.

“El, would you like to help me deliver these cookies to the boys downstairs?” Mrs. Wheeler asked, picking up two plates of fresh baked cookies, handing one to El.

They both headed down the stairs to the basement and you turned to head back to the living room with your daughter, when Nancy stopped you.

“Y/N? Can I talk to you for a moment?”

You turned back, seeing her twisting her hands in nervousness and found it odd. It’s not exactly like you’d had many conversations with her and none of them long at that.

“Please, sit,” she said, motioning to a chair across the table from where she’d just taken a seat.

You sat down, positioning the baby in your lap so she could still lay her head on her shoulder. She was due for a nap and knew she would be going down at any minute.

“I just wanted to apologize if I’ve made you uncomfortable or anything,” Nancy started.

“No, you—” you began to protest.

“No, no. I wasn’t exactly the friendliest when we first met and I’m sorry about that. I can’t imagine how awkward it would be to meet your boyfriend’s ex and realize they’re a permanent part of their life.”

“It was a little…surprising,” you admitted warily.

“Steve and I are just friends though. You have nothing to worry about, okay? We dated a long time ago. But still, that doesn’t give me a right to treat you badly. It’s nothing against you either, I promise. It’s just, Steve means a lot to me.”

“I imagine,” you nodded.

“I’m as protective of him as any friend would be. I just want the best for him and was afraid he’d get hurt,” she shakes her head as if trying to stop her rambling, “I can’t apologize enough, Y/N. Even if we’re not friends, I want us to get along.”

“Don’t worry, I wouldn’t dream of hurting him. We’re lucky to have him,” you nodded to your now sleeping angel on your shoulder, “But, I agree. I’d like to get along too.”

It was as if a truce was settled that day.

You two never had any ill intentioned feelings towards one another, you were just two very different people on two very different paths in life.

But over time, you did manage to become friends. After all, she did become an honorary auntie.

[rhaenyyras]

another snippet from my steddie wip coming soon (where Eddie takes care of Steve’s wounds before the battle against Vecna) 🦇🖤

"Cool. You ready to do this, Harrington?"

"I don't know, man." Steve eyes him off. "You're a little too enthusiastic about it."

"About what? Getting your shirt off?" Eddie scoffs back a laugh. Almost rolls his eyes. "Oh, right. It's obviously been a lifelong dream of mine. You caught me."

Steve laughs, surprised Eddie's attempt to lighten the mood works. That he laughs and actually means it. Eddie beams, seems pleased to see Steve smiling. He quickly slides off his leather jacket and hangs it up on the door. Rolls up the sleeves of his Hellfire shirt and reveals the tattoos beneath.

He says something Steve doesn't catch. For some reason, watching Eddie shed his black leather jacket is a lot. Has Steve on the verge of spiraling. Eddie and his almost too tight Hellfire shirt, sticking to him in all the right places. His pale arms, the dark tattoos scattered across his skin.

Steve suddenly feels warm, realizes slowly he hasn't heard a word Eddie has said in the last few minutes.

"Earth to Harrington. You still with me?"

Waves a hand in front of Steve's face again. His voice gentler this time, still nervous though. Steve quickly regains focus.

"Yeah, sorry, I'm fine." Steve reassures him. "Just thinking again."

"Is that so? Penny for your thoughts?"

Steve almost laughs, not sure Eddie would want that. To hear Steve's thoughts, know all the ways he's been thinking about him. Steve hasn't really been into guys before, not like this. Sure, he's talked about it with Robin a lot. And of course, there have been guys that he's noticed. Felt something for, shared moments with, even if it was only fleeting.

But this thing with Eddie, it's different because it's Eddie. And the worst thing is, he knows nothing can happen. It's the wrong place and time for Steve to be having these feelings. What, with the possible end of Hawkins, Vecna plotting to kill them, and Eddie still being wanted for murder. Eddie's life is already super complicated right now, the last thing Steve wants to do is mess it up even more.

So he decides to bottle it all up and focus on just getting through this without making things worse.

"You know, just thinking about..Stuff."

Well done, idiot! Steve's brain all but shouts at him.

Eddie thins a smile and doesn't say anything for a minute. Then he reaches out and playfully bumps his shoe against Steve's knee. He jostles a little in his seat and laughs, surprised.

"What did I tell you, dude?" Eddie sighs, but a smile cracks through his whole serious facade. "You're gonna hurt that pretty head if you keep thinking so much."

Steve rolls his eyes. Gets the feeling he's going to do that a lot around Eddie. He smiles too though, and watches Eddie step closer.

"Good one, man."

"I know." he smiles, then asks, "Need a hand?"

Doesn't elaborate further. Just eyes Steve off, his gaze dropping to his camo t-shirt. Oh, right. That. They should get started, didn't exactly squeeze into the RV's bathroom just to chat. Steve could probably use the help getting the shirt off, with the aching bat bites and awful road rash that stings and feels like it's fucking everywhere.

He almost asks Eddie for help. Eddie almost offers it. But then suddenly, for no clear reason, Steve shakes his head and waves Eddie's offer to help away. As if he's totally fine and he's got this when they both know he doesn't.

Edddie shrugs and casually walks over to the bench, waits for Steve to be ready. He decides to just get it over with. Hooks his fingers underneath the hem of his shirt and drags it up over his head. It doesn't go easily, hurts a lot. Steve's shirt sticks painfully to his skin, to all the gnarly grazes there. He waits a minute then tries again, hissing out a wince when he finally pulls the damn t-shirt off.

Steve grits his teeth and makes himself ignore it. The waves of pain that follow, the way Eddie's concerned gaze snaps towards him in the mirror.

He balls the camo tee up in his hands, lines it up with Eddie's head, takes the shot. Score! The crumpled t-shirt hits Eddie directly in the face. He spins around, surprised but grinning wildly. He seems to consider throwing it back at Steve but decides against it, for now anyway.

"Nice catch." Steve grins.

Eddie rolls his eyes and hangs the shirt up with their jackets. Steve definitely doesn't start to think about how his clothes will smell like Eddie later. Doesn't let himself think about what that might smell like.

(cigarettes, and sweat, and dirt, and Eddie)

"Alright, Harrington. Let's get this party started."

[spiderking-of-queens]

Chapter Twenty: The Lonely Hearts Club

Summary: You and Steve hang out alone for the first time in a while, and your friendship becomes a little more… complicated. (Steve Harrington x Fem!Reader, 7.7k words)

Warnings: Things get kinda ~spicy~ towards the end but nothing too crazy lol. Bit of angst also.

A/N: This is the last chapter for ST3! Onto season 4 next - which means a lot more of Eddie, and a lot more angst 😈 also, here’s the link to the Tears for Fears album they listen to in this chapter, in case you wanna play it while you read!

Tags: @dessxoxsworld @blackbirddaredevil23

Masterlist

August 23rd, 1985

“Oh my god, Steve. How many times are you going to play this stupid record?!” Robin whined from the passenger seat of Steve’s car. 

For the thousandth time that summer, Steve had snuck his Tears for Fears cassette into the stereo and pressed play. It came out months ago, but he was still obsessed with it. Plus he enjoyed pissing you and Robin off. 

“Hey, if you don’t like my music selections, then you can find your own ride, okay?!” He yelled back defensively, cranking the music up louder as an act of protest. 

You were sitting in the back, shaking your head at them with a smirk as you took a sip of the soda you had just gotten from the drive-thru. The three of you were bored that night, and couldn’t think of anything better to do besides getting fast food for dinner and going for a nighttime drive. 

“Thank god I’m almost home,” Robin groaned with an eye roll.

“Yeah, you’re welcome by the way. You know, for driving you literally everywhere,” He grumbled.

“Oh, come on. We all know you love it,” She said as she unbuckled her seatbelt. “What would you even do without us?” 

He didn’t respond to this because he knew she was right and he hated it. She smirked at him knowingly and got out after he put the car in park, slamming the door behind her. 

“Hey! Take it easy!” He rolled down the window and yelled at her. She waved her hand back at him dismissively.

“Yeah, yeah. Bye, Stevie! Bye, Y/N! See you tomorrow!”

“Bye, Robin!” You called back as she skipped up to her house. Then Steve raised his head to look at you in his rearview.

“You coming up?” He asked, patting the passenger seat. You nodded after taking another sip of your drink, then climbed up and ungracefully wriggled your way into the seat beside him instead of opting to get out of the car and back in. You accidentally bumped his elbow and apologized as he rubbed it.

“Ow! Geez, watch it. You spill that in here, you’re paying to clean my car.”

“God, you’re obsessed,” You complained, taking the lid off to show him that you had finished the rest of it so he wouldn’t have to worry anymore.

“How many times do I have to remind you two that without this car we’d all be stranded with no transportation? It’s a miracle my parents even let me drive it still.”

“Okay, I’m sorry! I’ll be careful.”

“Thank you. That’s all I ask.”

He put the car in drive and pulled back out onto the road towards your house. The two of you sat in comfortable silence for a while before Everybody Wants to Rule the World started playing, and you closed your eyes with a contented hum.

“Don’t tell Robin, but no matter how many times you play this song, I’m never gonna get sick of it,” You admitted. 

“I knew it,” He chuckled at you. “How can anybody not love it?”

“In all fairness to her, I think she did like it before you played it about a billion times.”

He scoffed at this, shaking his head dismissively before reluctantly agreeing that you were right. 

“Okay, fine. But you don’t mind?”

“No,” You said, your eyes still closed happily. “I don’t mind.”

It was the perfect song for a perfect summer night spent with friends. You wished that autumn would never have to come. You could ride around town with Steve and Robin doing absolutely nothing for the rest of your life.

You rolled down the window and stuck your head out, letting the wind blow your hair around your face. Then you twisted in your seat so that your face was pointed towards the sky, and you looked up at the stars. They were remarkably still as the rest of the world sped around you. It made you dizzy, but you couldn’t help yourself. It was too pretty. 

You thought you heard Steve’s voice but couldn’t make it out over the wind in your ears, so you pulled yourself back in and tried to smooth out your unruly hair.

“Did you say something?” You asked him. He smiled at you, shaking his head in amusement. 

“I said, if you keep sticking your head out the window like that, it’s probably gonna get sliced off by a tree branch or something.”

“Wow, very nice,” You chuckled. “Thanks for that. I was just trying to see the sky.”

“Predictable is preventable. The stars are really pretty tonight, though. I know a good stargazing spot. We should go sometime.”

You paused for a second, unsure of what to say. 

That sounded… romantic.

“Uh, you know, with Robin, too,” He quickly added. 

Was Steve Harrington suddenly bashful? You couldn’t contain the smile that began to spread on your face. It sounded kind of nice, actually. Peaceful. 

“We could go now, if you want to. I wouldn’t mind a little stargazing tonight.”

He hesitated to respond, suddenly seeming reluctant to go. 

“Actually… I don’t know. We probably shouldn’t. It’s private property. We could get caught.”

“That’s okay,” You shrugged. “Sounds like a fun adventure to me.”

He looked slightly surprised to hear this, but also pleased. He hadn’t expected you to be okay with breaking the law. It did make you nervous, but you also really wanted a chance to catch up with him, just the two of you. You thought it might be nice to get some one-on-one time to get him to talk about how he was doing with everything that had happened. 

“Well, alright then,” He agreed. “But before I turn around I feel like I should warn you, the place I’m thinking of is Sattler’s Quarry.”

You scrunched up your face at him.

“Sattler’s Quarry? Like, where they pulled Will’s fake body out of the lake? You think it’s pretty there?”

“Uh, yup,” He laughed. “That’s the place. I started hanging out there way before all the government cover-up shit happened. Still wanna go?”

You paused to think about it, then nodded. You couldn’t help your curiosity. 

“Alright then,” He sighed, then put on his turn signal to turn around. “Let’s go.”

When you pulled up about ten minutes later and Steve turned off his headlights, you understood immediately why he liked to go there. It was insanely scenic.

“You wanna get out and look?” He asked you. You shook your head and leaned back into your seat. 

“Nah. I… I wanna listen to the music,” You admitted reluctantly, knowing full well how pleased with himself he would be after hearing it. You snuck a peek at him out of the corner of your eyes and he had a smirk on his face, just as you had expected. 

“Don’t say it,” You warned him.

He put his hands up defensively. 

“Wasn’t gonna.”

You both got comfortable, and you let out a satisfied sigh. 

“You were right. This view is insane.”

“Told you,” He chuckled. “Pretty enough to paint. Or draw.”

“Hm. Yeah. Don’t remind me. I’ve been a terrible artist lately. Just haven’t been inspired.”

“Well, I’m sure you’ll find something soon.”

You nodded, but you weren’t so sure. The truth was that what you had experienced in July had left you blocked off. You needed to be able to daydream to make art, and with a reality as insane and terrifying as yours, you were finding it hard to escape it.

“Speaking of which…” Steve said, interrupting your thoughts. “I really wish I could have seen your stuff at the senior art exhibition.”

You snapped your head towards him in shock. You weren’t expecting that. 

“I… didn’t know you knew about that,” You said quietly. 

“Yeah, no thanks to you,” He teased. “Why didn’t you invite me?”

“I don’t know… I didn’t think you’d be interested.”

He furrowed his eyebrows at you.

“Why would you think that?”

“I wasn’t sure how close we were. I didn’t wanna be weird.”

“Inviting me to see your art, which you’re planning on making a living off of someday, would have been weird?”

“No, it’s not that. It’s…” You trailed off, rubbing your eyebrow anxiously. You didn’t want to tell him the truth, but there was no better explanation you could give him. You inhaled a deep breath and let it out slowly as you prepared yourself to be vulnerable with him. 

“Steve, if you had said you were busy, it would have absolutely crushed me. That’s why. You were my only friend at the time. At least, my only friend my age. It was a lot of pressure.”

He lowered his eyes, trying to comprehend this. 

“Oh… I didn’t realize. But, for the record… even if I did have plans… I would have cancelled them to be there.”

You lowered your head in shame. You felt like a jerk.

“I’m sorry. I should have invited you. I was just a coward.”

He could sense that you felt guilty, and immediately changed his demeanor to make you feel better about it, giving you a smile. 

“It’s okay. I’ll get another chance someday, when you become a big shot artist in New York.”

“Yeah. Right,” You scoffed, shaking your head. “I don’t think I’m ever getting out of this town now.”

“Why?” He asked, shocked by this admission. The last time you talked about it, you were still feeling confident about getting out of Hawkins. But that was before the gate reopened. 

“Steve, how can I leave after everything we’ve been through? What if it happens again?”

He hesitated, then shook his head at you.

“Maybe that’s exactly why you should leave,” He murmured. 

“If it was just me, I would. But I can’t leave you guys.”

A strange look came over his face when you said this. You were having trouble figuring out what it meant. Maybe he was feeling the same way, but didn’t want to admit it to you. 

“Well… that’s really selfless of you. But we’d be okay. You don’t have to worry about us. You should do what you need to do.”

You let your head fall back against the headrest of your seat in frustration. As you stared at the night sky reflecting in the water, you felt every emotion you had been holding in all summer bubbling up to the surface. Maybe now was a good time to confess, while it was just you, Steve, and the stars. 

“Can I tell you something?” You whispered. 

“Of course.”

You heard the squeak of his leather seat as he turned his body to face you. 

“On the Fourth of July, when I ran into you guys at the theater…” You trailed off, then willed yourself to look over at him. He laid his head against his headrest, too, watching you patiently as you gained the courage to continue. “I… I was trying to get away. I watched that disgusting monster almost eat Nancy at the hospital the night before, and it scared the shit out of me. I used work as an excuse to try to get out of fighting it. I don’t ever wanna be that person again. If I go to New York, I’m worried it’ll just be the same thing. That I’ll be running from my parents and this town and my stupid problems. And I don’t want to run away anymore. From anything.”

He let out a deep sigh when you finished speaking, as if he felt every word with his whole chest. 

“You shouldn’t be so hard on yourself,” He murmured. “You stayed and fought when we needed you. That’s what matters.”

You studied his expression. You could tell that he really did understand the way you were feeling by the way he was looking at you, and you wanted to know more. 

“Do you… do you ever have nightmares? About the monsters?” You asked him. He snorted and turned his body back to face the windshield again, staring out at the quarry as he spoke to you. 

“Oh yeah. Are you kidding? All the time. Demogorgons, mind flayers, evil Russian soldiers. You name it… I’ve woken up in a cold sweat over it.”

He said this lightheartedly, but you knew the weight of it was heavier than he was letting on.

“I can’t believe you were drugged and tortured by Russians.”

“Believe it. I still get headaches from the shiner those bastards gave me.”

“I’m sorry,” You said with a wince. 

“It’s okay. Dustin told you I got a good shot in first though, right? That I knocked one of them out? Because I need that to be on record.”

“Yes, don’t worry. He was very proud.”

“Good.”

Dustin had excitedly gone over the entire ordeal of how Steve knocked out a Russian guard and won a fight for the first time in his life, but you remembered seeing Steve’s face from across the room. He had a look of pure exhaustion that you had never seen before. It still haunted you. No matter how much he tried to play it off like it was a fun adventure, what he had been through took a heavy toll on him. Physically and emotionally. 

“Seriously though. I’m sorry you had to go through that, Steve,” You said quietly, knowing instantly that he wouldn’t accept it. 

“Eh,” He brushed it off, as predicted. “Guess I should have listened to you, right? Shouldn’t have meddled in their business.”

You sat up in your chair, shaking your head profusely. 

“No way. If you hadn’t, we wouldn’t have beaten the Mind Flayer.”

He smirked at you. 

“So you’re saying that I should never listen to you ever again?”

You rolled your eyes and fell back against your seat, crossing your arms indignantly. 

“Okay, don’t push it, Harrington.”

You both smiled at each other, and then his fell when something new seemed to cross his mind. You braced yourself. 

“How have you been doing with everything though? With Hopper and…Billy?”

Ah. The inevitable question. You clenched your teeth as you tried to think of the least concerning way to answer it. 

“It’s been hard,” You admitted. “I mean, the worst part is watching Joyce go through that pain again. I could tell how much they cared about each other, every time he visited her at the general store. She’s been through so much shit. I think she wants to move away, which I completely understand, but I worry about what that will do to Will. And El, too, Jesus. That poor girl. It’s just so unfair. Hopper was a really good man.”

“He was,” Steve chimed in with a sigh, nodding patiently as he waited for you to continue your rant.  

“And Billy… I mean, you know how I felt about him. And I know how you feel about him, too. But I never wanted him die. Especially like that. Especially in front of Max. I know she hated him, too, but… she grew up with him. And seeing that at her age… she’s been really brave but I know it’s messing her up inside.”

“Yeah,” He agreed. “I mean, I wanted to kill him myself for what he did to us last year. But that was just…brutal.”

“I know. I just wanna be there for Max the best I can. I haven’t been able to get her to talk about it, but maybe that’s what she needs. I don’t know.”

Steve stayed quiet as you finally trailed off, watching you, and you turned your head to try to see what he was thinking. 

“What?” You asked him when you couldn’t figure him out. 

“It’s really kind of you to be so worried about everybody else right now. Not that I’m surprised.”

“Well… of, of course.” You stammered. “I mean, I’m sure it’s much harder on them than it is on me.”

“But I asked how you were doing. I know you had a hard time when we first found out about the Russians. I just wanna make sure you’re okay now. You said it messed Max up seeing Billy die, but what about you? It couldn’t have been easy for you either, seeing that up close.”

You blinked at him. He was figuring you out, and you didn’t like it. The original plan was to get him to open up to you, and there you were, pouring your guts out to him. You had said far too much. 

“I’m… okay. And you?” 

“Okay,” He echoed with a nod. It was clear from your deflection back onto him that you didn’t want to talk about yourself anymore, so he changed the subject instead of fighting you further on it. “You know, I probably wouldn’t have befriended Robin if we hadn’t been subjected to torture together,” He said. 

You snorted, unable to stop yourself. 

“Wow, did you just turn something negative into a positive? Are you ill?”

“Ha ha,” He said dryly. 

“I’m sorry. You’re right. That’s a good way to look at it.”

“That’s the way I feel about you, too, you know,” He added, looking you in the eye. It made your cheeks flush. “I’m glad you stumbled into the junkyard that night and almost got eaten by demodogs with all of us, even though I’m sure you regret it by now.”

“I don’t,” You said quickly. “How could I? We wouldn’t be sitting here right now if I hadn’t shown up that night. I wouldn’t have gotten to know all of you. And what a shitty life that would be.”

You smiled at each other, and then he let out a chuckle. 

“Wow. You’re insane.”

“I know,” You nodded, a pleased smile on your face. “But so are you.”

There was a quiet moment where the two of you stared at each other, then Steve’s attention was captured by the next song starting up on his car stereo. He let out a little gasp of excitement and his hand reached for the volume knob.

“Fuck, this is a good one,” He mumbled, and you laughed at him. He started bobbing his head, and then suddenly began belting out the lyrics to Head Over Heels so loudly that it made you jump. Your eyes widened as you watched him, his face all scrunched up as he sang passionately, but very, very badly.

“See, insane! Told you!” You shouted at him and pushed on his shoulder, trying to get him to quiet down. He took the hint and stopped singing, grinning at you. 

“I can’t help it. It’s too perfect. This song is like… my life story,” He chuckled self-deprecatingly. 

“Yeah, rejected twice in one year? That is pretty harsh,” You teased him with a laugh, then immediately squeezed your lips shut, eyes wide as you realized that you weren’t supposed to know about the second time with Robin. He eyed you and you knew that the jig was already up, but you avoided eye contact with him anyways.

“Y/N?”

“Hm?” You said, feigning innocence. 

“Did Robin tell you about our conversation in the bathroom?” He asked, an eyebrow raised. You scratched the back of your neck uncomfortably. 

“Uh…yeah. She may have mentioned something about that,” You admitted sheepishly. 

“I knew it. She told you I confessed my love for her, like an idiot? That I actually thought she was into me?”

“Maybe…” You tried to hold back a laugh, and he folded his arms on top of the steering wheel and let his head fall into them in embarrassment. “I’m sorry! I’m not laughing at you, I just feel bad.”

“Please. I bet you guys had a real good laugh about it. Typical Harrington, right? Completely oblivious,” He mumbled into his arms.

“No, Steve, it wasn’t like that! I swear. She only told me because I was asking her if there was anything going on between the two of you.”

“Well, obviously there’s not,” He grumbled. 

“Obviously,” You repeated with a snort.

He raised his head and squinted skeptically at this response. 

“Did she mention… anything else? Any, uh… reasons why we don’t have anything romantic between us?”

“You mean because she’s gay?”

His eyes widened at you before your mouth turned up in a smile. Then he let out a breath of relief and relaxed back into his seat. This was one secret he was overjoyed that you now knew about, and that you were as accepting of as he was. 

“She told you.”

You nodded with the smile still on your face, sharing in his happiness.

“Good. I’m glad.”

“Me too. I’m happy she had you to confide in, though, before I knew. You’re a really good friend, Steve. To both of us.”

He hadn’t been expecting you to say that. He scratched his head and turned away from you bashfully. 

“Eh. Well… I try my best.”

You grinned at his embarrassment, then it faded when you thought about how he might actually be feeling behind the humor. 

“Are you…do you actually want to be with her though? I mean, those feelings don’t just go away when you find out you don’t have a chance.”

You hoped it wasn’t obvious to him that you were speaking from experience. It didn’t take him very long to decide on an answer.

“No. I think I was just hearing Dustin’s stupid voice in the back of my head telling me we were perfect for each other.”

“Ha!” You chortled. “He said that? Guess I’m not surprised. He is kind of obsessed with her.”

“Yeah. You know… he said the same thing about you when we first started hanging out again.”

Your eyebrows raised. No matter how many times people talked about you and Steve like this, it never failed to surprise you.

“Really?”

“Yeah. The night we all watched Star Wars together and you got up to get popcorn from the kitchen, he leaned over to me and whispered, ‘Now’s your chance. Make a move. Just pretend we’re not here.’”

“What?!” You snorted loudly.

“It’s true, I swear.”

“Well, what did you say?”

“What do you think I said? I said, ‘Absolutely not, weirdo.’ Like I would ever try to make a move on someone while hanging out with a bunch of thirteen-year-olds.” 

“Oh my god, that kid is nuts,” You snickered. 

“I know. He brought it up again another time and I just told him that you had a thing for someone else to shut him up for good. Don’t worry, though, I refused to go into the specifics.”

You processed this, then took a second to contemplate whether or not you should share what Robin had said about the two of you as well. You eventually decided that it was safe. 

“Robin actually said something to me, too, when I was asking her about you two. While you guys were in the restroom and you were trying to confess your feelings for her, she thought you were talking about me instead of her at first.”

His eyes widened, confirming your suspicions that Robin had failed to share that with him.

“Really? That’s… weird. What did you say to that?”

“That it was ridiculous,” You shrugged. He nodded back at you, suspiciously quiet. He was probably trying to remember what he said that would make her think that. 

“Interesting.”

You cleared your throat, interrupting the uncomfortable silence.

“Come to think of it, Max and Nancy also assumed we were dating,” You giggled. 

“Jesus,” He said, throwing his hands up in the air melodramatically. “Can’t a guy and girl just be friends?”

“Apparently not,” You laughed. “But, I mean, everybody at school thought we were a couple, too. It’s nothing new.”

“Yeah, but, none of those other people actually knew us, so their opinions don’t matter.”

You tilted your head at him.

“So you think we should be listening to our friends? Is that what you’re saying?” You teased.

“I, I mean… theoretically,” He stammered nervously.

“Theoretically?”

“Yeah. Theoretically, their opinions are the only ones we should focus on. For any number of…things.”

“Uh huh. Right,” You chuckled, amused by how flustered he was. 

He had a strange look on his face again, and you almost prodded him to speak before he beat you to it. 

“Did Nancy… did she seem jealous?” He asked tentatively. 

You blinked at him in surprise. You weren’t expecting that question.

“Uh… I don’t think so. She said she would be okay with it if we were together. Why? Do you want her to be jealous?”

“I don’t know… maybe,” He confessed quietly.

“I think she was mostly just worried that you hated her.”

His eyes widened in shock.

“What? That’s crazy.”

“I know. Don’t worry, I set her straight.”

“Oh. Thanks.”

He went quiet again after a small sigh, once again thinking about something that you were dying to know about. You figured you may as well jump right to the chase with the tough questions.

“Do you… think you still love her? I know it was really hard for you, getting over her.”

His face scrunched up as he stared out his windshield, agitated that you were making him think about her again. 

“…No. I don’t think I do anymore. What about Eddie? You still in love with him?”

You narrowed your eyes at him. This was an expert deflection on his part. 

“Oh, great. You remembered that, huh?” You groaned, avoiding answering the question. If he could dance around the truth, you could, too. 

“Of course I remember,” He scoffed. “I actually forgot to tell you, I saw him at the mall back in July. So if you still want my help getting that date with him, I’m available. God knows I don’t have anything else going on.”

You sighed with exasperation, closing your eyes and letting your head fall back against the seat again. 

“About that… I didn’t wanna tell you because I was kind of embarrassed, but he showed up with a date while I was working at the theater, and it was incredibly awkward. So that’s a no go.”

“Shit,” He said with a pitying grimace. “I’m sorry, Y/N.”

“It’s okay. It wasn’t meant to be, I guess,” You shrugged.

“God, we’re hopeless, aren’t we?”

“The Lonely Hearts Club,” You muttered without thinking, remembering how Robin had described the three of you when she spent the night earlier that month. 

“The what?” He asked you, an eyebrow raised curiously. With all the time the three of you spent together, you had forgotten that he wasn’t actually there for that conversation. 

“Uh… it’s just something Robin said a while ago. That we’re like The Lonely Hearts Club. Just three lost causes keeping each other company.”

“Huh,” He chuckled. “Yeah, I guess she’s right.”

You both fell quiet, and then he interrupted it with another laugh as he rubbed his bottom lip with his thumb, as if he had come to some kind of ridiculous realization.

“What?” You asked him.

“Nothing. Just… honestly, it’d probably be easier if we really did just date like everybody expects us to.”

You stared at him as he continued to laugh at the idea of this. 

“Don’t worry, I’m just joking. I know you’d never be into me,” He added dismissively.

You kept staring at him, and your cheeks began to burn red as you remembered a past version of yourself that was, in fact, very into him. Now it was his turn to try to figure out what was on your mind.

“What?” 

You thought about changing the subject, but apparently this was already a night of confessions, so you rolled with it. What was one more deep, dark secret anyways?

“Do you remember when you asked why Carol would think I wanted you to ask me out in the eighth grade?”

“Yeah?”

“It’s because I had a massive crush on you the entire time we were friends and she knew it.”

He didn’t react. He just looked like a deer in headlights. You squirmed in your seat anxiously at his unwavering gaze.

“You’re joking,” He finally said with a completely straight face.

“No. I swear, I thought you knew until you asked me that. It was so obvious. Plus, I assumed Carol would have told you.”

“I, I mean… she did,” He stuttered, “The summer after seventh grade. But I just assumed she was being an asshole. Making fun of me.”

“Well, she was. But it was also true.”

“Holy shit.”

He straightened up against the back of his seat, staring into space with his mouth agape. You hadn’t expected this reaction. You assumed he would just tease you. Then you realized that he had said he thought that Carol was making fun of him, not you.

“Wait, why would Carol be making fun of you?”

He closed his eyes and swallowed nervously, then turned his head towards you. 

“Uh… because… I sort of had a massive crush on you, too. I didn’t tell anybody, but I just assumed she figured it out. I actually kind of thought that was why you stopped wanting to hang out with me. Because you found out, too, and got freaked out.”

Now your mouth was hanging open, absolutely stupefied. 

“Okay, now you’re joking,” You protested, convinced that he was truly messing with you.

“I’m not. I swear to god,” He said with a stunned laugh.

“Holy shit.”

“Yeah. Holy shit.”

You stared at each other again, and then you turned away to lean back against your seat, looking up at the stars as you contemplated this. You wondered how different life would have been if you had both been honest with each other about your feelings. 

“I wonder what would have happened if we found out sooner,” Steve said, as if he read your mind. 

You snapped your head back towards him, slightly taken aback that he had the courage to say this aloud. His eyes were studying your face, and you swore he was looking right at your lips. You realized suddenly that with all your talk about your friends trying to push the two of you together, he never made it clear that he disagreed with them. You didn’t know how to feel anymore. 

“Me too,” You said quietly, unable to resist eyeing his mouth as well. The wounds he had sustained from the Russian soldiers left a little scar across his bottom lip, and you had the sudden urge to reach out and stroke it. To comfort him in a way you hadn’t thought to before. 

“You know…” He said, interrupting your thoughts and bringing your attention back to reality. “When we were at that graduation party and I offered to kiss you…I wasn’t really joking. I actually always imagined I’d be your first kiss.”

At first, you were too stunned to even react to this. If it wasn’t clear before, it certainly was now: he wanted to kiss you. The cassette began to play its outro - a slow, hauntingly beautiful tune - and in that moment of pure insanity, you felt like you owed it to your younger self to see it through. 

Honestly, it just felt really good to be wanted. And Steve really wanted you. That was pretty clear when you lurched forward quickly and pecked him awkwardly on the lips, eyes wide as you pulled away and realized what you’d done, and he pulled you back in to keep it going. 

All of your anxious thoughts melted away the longer his lips were against yours. He was safe, and familiar, and a really, really good kisser. It felt like you were thirteen again, getting a fresh start. All of your insecurities from the past five years didn’t seem to matter suddenly. Nothing did. Not the Upside Down, not the fact that your friendship would be forever changed, not even Eddie. You were completely swept away. 

It surprised both of you how quickly you attempted to take control. You struggled to position yourself in his lap in the driver’s seat, banging your knee on the steering wheel and muttering an agitated, “Ow.” 

“Careful, Bruiser,” He teased, laughing at you before moving his seat back in a swift motion that made you gasp and fall into him. “Better?” He helped you to steady yourself, swiping a strand of your hair behind your ear. 

He was looking into your eyes as if the question he really wanted to ask was, ‘is this okay?’ You responded by leaning down to kiss him again. Your brain was screaming at you to stop, but every single glance and touch from him made you want to keep going. 

You were fully straddling his waist now, your thighs wrapped tightly around him. His hands traveled from your hips to your back, ghosting the hem of your top respectfully, and you reached to push them up the back of it. His fingertips brushing over your bare skin gave you goosebumps. 

You couldn’t believe that you had waited this long to kiss someone like this. It felt so good that you never wanted it to stop. 

You arched your back more, pressing harder into him and making him let out a noise that sent a tingle up your spine. His hands slid down your backside to your thighs and up to your waist again, then he rested his forehead against yours before pulling away again to look up at you, his fingertips fidgeting with the button of your shorts. You could tell that he was looking for permission to take things a step further. You pondered it for a minute as you looked down at him. His pupils were huge with lust, but the expression on his face was surprisingly tender. Trying to resist wasn’t an option. You could practically feel yourself melting into him already. You wanted to feel more. Needed to after all the time you’d spent waiting for something exactly like this to happen. You nodded to let him know that it was okay, putting your hand over his as he worked to undo your button. Then at the same moment you bent down for another soft kiss, you heard a loud clacking noise against the window. You both jumped and shouted in fear, then pulled away from each other in shock to see a bright light shining through the glass. You tried to block it from blinding you with your hand, and Steve moved his body in front of yours to shield you as you separated yourself from him. 

You could only make out the reflection off of the rims of a pair of glasses. It was officer Callahan. 

“Fuck,” Steve muttered under his breath. “Alright, let’s go kids! Out of the car,” Callahan yelled, tapping the window again. 

You looked at Steve with a panicked expression as you made yourself decent.

“It’s okay, just let me handle it,” He reassured you.

He opened the car door and helped you out. Callahan rolled his eyes when he saw Steve.

“Harrington? You again? Really? How many times have I told you to stay away from here? It’s private property and it’s dangerous.”

“I’m sorry, sir. We just came here for the view, honest.”

“Right. Is that what you and the other girls I’ve caught you in your car with were doing, too? Enjoying the view?”

You raised your eyebrows. He had brought other girls here?

You glared at Steve as he looked back at you with shame. He opened his mouth to speak, but you interrupted him.

“It was my idea, officer. He warned me we could get in trouble but I convinced him to come anyways.”

“You really expect me to believe that?” He scoffed.

“Don’t get me wrong, he’s an idiot. But it really was my idea this time. I swear.” 

Callahan hesitated, putting his hands on his hips.

“Alright, fine. But this is the final warning. I mean it this time, Harrington. You too…” He trailed off when he realized he had no idea who you were. 

“Y/N Y/L/N.”

“Right. Whatever. I catch you here again and you’re spending a night in lock-up. Now get out of here.”

Callahan got back into his car and Steve turned to you to try to talk again. You held up your hand to silence him.

“Save it,” You snapped, and walked to the passenger side of the car. “Take me home. Now.”

You were both quiet for a long time on the way to your house. You felt Steve looking at you, but you kept your eyes on the trees passing by. 

You couldn’t stop thinking about his lips on yours, his hands on your bare skin under your shirt, and what would have happened if you hadn’t been interrupted. You closed your eyes to try to silence your brain. “You didn’t have to tell him it was your idea,” Steve finally said. “But thanks.”

You didn’t reply.

“Y/N… I think we need to talk about what happened.”

You rolled your eyes and turned towards him.

“Okay. Let’s talk. When was the last time you brought a girl there?”

“Y/N…”

“Steve.”

He sighed, gripping the steering wheel tightly to brace himself for an argument.

“After prom,” He admitted through clenched teeth.

You remembered how you sat home alone on your prom night. You were suddenly filled with rage at the thought of him in the back of his car with another girl while you cried yourself to sleep that night. And so, so stupid that you didn’t think anything of the spot in the first place. Of course he brought girls there. Was he planning this as soon as he suggested going there? Did he even really care about you, or was he just using you? Was that story about him having a crush on you even true? You felt like you couldn’t trust him anymore. 

“I can’t believe I fell for that shit,” You muttered angrily.

“What shit?” He asked defensively. 

“‘Oh, you know, Robin and Dustin think we would be soooo good together. Isn’t that so stupid? How wrong are they?’ You used reverse psychology on me so I would want to make out with you, just because you’re… you’re… horny!”

“Oh my god, please. Thats not even true!”

“So you weren’t just horny?”

“Please stop saying horny! And no! That’s not what happened. I mean, I don’t really know what happened. But I certainly didn’t have some, some master plan to get in your pants.”

“Ugh, gross, don’t say it like that…” You mumbled, hiding your face in your hands. He literally had tried to get in your pants. 

“Well, that’s what you were thinking, right?”

You turned and rested your forehead against the cool window. 

“God, I’m so stupid,” You whispered.

“You’re not stupid,” He said quickly, trying to keep your from spiraling inward. “I’m stupid, remember? This was my fault.”

You turned to him and shook your head at his attempt to be the martyr. 

“That was my first kiss, Steve. My first…everything.”

“Not… everything…” He tried to joke. You glared at him to let him know that none of this was a laughing matter. 

“You know what I mean,” You snapped. 

“I know. I’m sorry, okay?”

You pressed your fingertips into the bridge of your nose as if you were silently praying, begging for god to beam you up and out of that car as soon as possible. 

“Can we just…pretend it didn’t happen?” You squeaked, your voice cracking. 

He stiffened, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed and set his jaw. 

“If that’s what you want.”

You rolled your eyes at him impatiently.

“Well, what do you want?”

“I… I don’t know.”

“Exactly. You don’t know,” You huffed, throwing your hands up. “You need to figure out your shit, Harrington.”

“Well, obviously, I’m trying to…”

“You wanna know what I think?”

“I think you’ve been making it perfectly clear what you think already…”

“I think you can’t tell the difference between platonic love and romantic love,” You interrupted his grumbling. "Just because I’m a girl and you care about me, that doesn’t mean you’re attracted to me.”

He narrowed his eyes at the road, refusing to look directly at you. 

“I think I know when I’m attracted to somebody. That’s never been a problem for me. Attraction is not the issue here.”

“Oh, really? Because a month ago you thought you were falling in love with Robin. Robin!”

“Okay, well that was just a fluke.”

“So, what? Are you attracted to me then? Or was this a fluke, too?”

He paused from this rapid fire back and forth to run a hand through his hair as he thought about it, then propped his elbow up against his window and rested his hand against his cheek while he steered with one hand. It was clear that he was exhausted, but you weren’t ready to let up yet. 

“I don’t know…” He admitted exasperatedly. “I mean, yeah. Obviously. I guess. I must be. I kissed you back, didn’t I?”

“Goddammit, Steve,” You hissed through clenched teeth. 

“I’m sorry, I’m trying my best to be honest!” He raised his voice at you, lifting his head out of his hand so he could gesture with it in frustration. 

“Well can you try a little harder, please? Because I’m seriously confused here and you’re really pissing me off.”

He snapped his head around to look at you for the first time since you’d started your argument, his expression hardening with aggravation that he couldn’t hold back anymore. 

“You’re confused?! You’re the one that kissed me first!” He yelled. 

“Oh, spare me!” You spat back. “As if your eyes weren’t begging me to, and you didn’t just try to shove your hands down my-”

“You know what, fine,” He interrupted you loudly, waving a hand in the air to silence you. “I told you it was my fault. I’m a douchebag! I’m sorry. I don’t wanna talk about this anymore.”

After a long pause, when you began to feel your anger simmer down, you took a deep breath and made sure your voice was at a lower, less ferocious volume when you spoke again. 

“Steve.”

He rolled his eyes, but couldn’t resist responding in an equally quieter but more frazzled tone. 

“What?”

“I’m sorry. It’s not your fault.”

“Well, it’s not your fault, either,” He shrugged, his eyes glued to the road. 

“I know. Look, we’re not thirteen anymore. You don’t actually like me, Steve. Maybe you did when we were kids, but we’re different people now. We’re friends. You’re just lonely, and trying to cope with what happened.”

He scoffed at this explanation of his side of things, then tried to play it off like he didn’t. 

“Okay, well, what about you? Why did you kiss me then?”

“For the same reasons. It was a good distraction, and you made me feel safe for a minute. And also because… I can’t have who I really want.”

He fell silent, the only sound in the car the soft hum of the engine and his fingers tapping anxiously against his steering wheel. Then he sighed deeply. 

“You really want to just forget about this then?”

He looked over at you, and you nodded slowly. 

“Yeah. I think I do. Don’t you?”

He gave you a small half smile, then returned his gaze to the road. 

“Sure I do.”

“Good.”

You crossed your arms over your torso and relaxed back into your seat, watching out the window for the rest of the ride. The stars really were pretty. Too bad the two of you didn’t really do any actual stargazing. 

When he pulled up to your house and put the car in park, you hesitated before unbuckling your seatbelt, waiting for him to speak. But he stayed quiet, eyes lowered as you gathered your things. You sighed as you opened the car door and got out, making sure to pay close attention to how gently you closed the door so he wouldn’t have another reason to be angry with you. You began to walk away when you heard him roll down the window. 

“Hey!” He called, and you spun around to face him. 

“Yeah?”

“I’ll… see you tomorrow?”

He was straining to meet your eye line as you stood over him in front of the window, his brown eyes big like a sad puppy. 

“Yeah, Steve. I’ll see you tomorrow,” You assured him with a forced smile, then gave him a little wave before leaving him to walk up to your house. 

You snuck a peek at him through the crack in your door before you closed it behind you. His head was hung low as he clutched the steering wheel with both of his hands tightly, then when he composed himself he started his car up again and drove off. You shut the door and let your forehead fall against it. 

‘See you tomorrow.’

You both knew the words were a lie as soon as they left your lips, but it felt better to pretend. As much as you may try to forget, you knew it wouldn’t work. 

You had just had your first kiss (and then some) with Steve Harrington. Not Eddie, like you’d been planning since you were fourteen. Steve. Your best friend, Steve. How were you supposed to forget that? How were you supposed to hang out with him again like nothing had happened? You couldn’t. Even if you kept it between the two of you… and Officer Callahan. 

Jesus Christ. 

Your summer escapades with Steve and Robin may have already been coming to an end, but the events that transpired that night were the final nail in the coffin. The summertime bliss was officially gone.

You banged your forehead against the door a little too hard, then muttered, “Ouch,” as you rubbed it with your hand and trudged up the stairs to your bedroom. Maybe it wasn’t possible in the long run, but for the night, you would have to do your best to pretend that nothing happened so you could try to get some sleep for once. 

[rossmccallsqueen]

HC - Relaxing with Robin (Robin Buckley x Fem!Reader)

I got this really cute idea with a bit of comedy at the end, pls enjoy 💕

Robin had just (quite literally) railed you into next Tuesday, so the two of you were just laying there together

You didn’t want to move from the couch for hours, all you wanted to do was have Robin run her fingers through your hair

Your head rested on robins boobs, and you felt her kiss the top of your head while her fingers ran through your hair again

You looked up at her, sticking your lips out for a kiss which she happily obliged

“You good babe?” She asked, laughing a little bit since you were still trying to catch your breath from the fun you’d had 👀

“I’m amazing. The only thing that would make this better is pizza”

“Say less” she kissed the top of your head once more and leaned over to the side table for the phone

You pulled the blanket you had on the couch over the two of you because the fan you had on was making you a little cold

You could tell Robin was also cold because her nipples were definitely standing at attention 😂

Robins boobs were your favorite pillow tbh, you often told her they felt like clouds

Even as she ordered your usual from the pizza place, she continued to scratch your back with her free hand

There was nothing you loved more then feeling her skin against yours and being as close to her as you could

She always said she liked laying on your tummy more, she worshiped every single one of your curves whenever she could

Her hand traced patterns on your thighs, and she grabbed one with her hand and shook it a little. You giggled when she smacked it

She just wanted to remind you that you were beautiful, even while she was ordering pizza

After she was finished she kissed everywhere she could find, paying special attention to the bigger parts of your body

“I never want this moment to end” you told her

“We have the rest of our lives for moments like this” 🥹

She turned the tv back to the movie you were watching and you settled back into the couch together patiently waiting for your food

You couldn’t imagine anything better than being naked on the couch with your woman while you ate pizza. That was truly heaven when you thought about it

You let her play with your hair some more when you thought you heard a knock on the door

Before you could ask who it was (it was way too soon for it to be the pizza) Steve opened the door and walked right into your apartment, sitting down on the chair next to the couch

He was already going on about his date he had that night that had gone wrong, not even noticing that you and Robin were in fact naked on the couch

“And then she took food off my plate! Without asking! I mean you gotta ask. Wait I’m being rude how are you guys?” And then he looked over wide eyed

“STEVE!!!!” You both yelled, pulling the blanket up so he couldn’t see anything, then realizing you only had one blanket

“OH MY GOD IM SO SORRY YOURE NAKED IM SORRY” he stood up from his chair and turned around while he covered his eyes

Honestly you were still in shock

“Oh jeez guys I’m sorry Robin, Y/N I promise I didn’t look at your boobies”

“STEVE!”

“What?”

“Do you think you’d mind going into the kitchen and turning around while we go uh… get ourselves presentable?”

“Absolutely my friends I’ll get us some drinks alright? Alright”

“Alright Steve you do that” 😂

You watched him blindly walk towards the kitchen, bumping into the counter and the kitchen table on the way

Quickly the two of you got up, wrapped the blanket around the two of you, and did your best to make it to your room

When you got there you couldn’t stop laughing, you wish you could have gotten a picture of Steve’s face when he realized what he’d done

Once you had on clothes you heard Steve yell “I got the drinks guys! Next movie is about to start!” Robin laughed, things were never boring with Steve around

“I bet you regret giving him a key now don’t you?” You asked, almost laughing. Robin did too while nodding, and kissed you before the two of you once again braved the living room to hear about Steve’s date

Stranger things taglist: @barnesplots @warmommy @vintagemol @tvserie-s-world @sugartin @beautifulrunwaymodelwombat

Let me know if you’d like to be added to my stranger things taglist or any of my other lists!

Masterlist Masterpost

[girl-next-door-writes]

Let Your Heart Be Light

Characters: Steve Harrington x Reader

Summary: Steve is trying his best to impress his new friend, the trouble is that he has competition.

Word Count: 1515 words

Prompt: #20: Cookie decorating competition

A/N: The fantastic @chromium-siren slipped this prompt in for the delightful Mr Harrington and I am happy to write it.

This was not a big deal, not at all. It wasn’t like Steve had spent yesterday cleaning the house and making sure everywhere looked sufficiently festive or anything. And even if he had, it wasn’t like it was purely because you were coming over. Everyone was coming over for a day of cookie decorating and Christmas movies and general holiday season fun, so it wasn’t like this was a date or anything. Steve had been very clear about that, and then spent the next couple of days kicking himself for making such a big deal so now you probably thought he wasn’t interested in you like that.

The house smelled of freshly baked cookies, which were now cooling on various racks on the kitchen table. He was so glad Mrs Henderson had helped him out with that little task, all he had to do was pop them in the oven as instructed, then he had hovered there, staring through the tinted glass, not wanting to even blink for fear they would burn in an instant.

“Hey doofus, this place looks like Christmas threw up!” Robin called as she let herself in, smirking at the decorations.

“In a good way? Or in a ‘seriously I should rip them all down and start from scratch’ way?” he asked nervously, appearing in the kitchen doorway wearing a dark red apron with tiny white reindeer cross-stitched into it.

“Like it matters.” Robin retorted before bursting into laughter at the sight of him. “Wow, you’re in full on mom mode.”

“He’s always in mom mode.” Dustin wandered in with Lucas and Mike, holding up a bag filled with cookie decorating paraphernalia. “Mom says to just send back what we don’t use, but we have to wash stuff first.”

“No problem. I’ve already washed the trays from earlier. Your mom is pretty cool, Henderson.”

“She your role model? Will I come in here one day and find you dressed up like her? That would be quite Psycho of you.”

“Hey guys, look who I bumped into on the driveway.” Nancy beamed as she entered the house with Will and you following close behind.

“Oh, hey!” Steve said a little too loud to be natural, running his hand through his hair before he realised he still had some flour on it. “Shit.”

“Look at that, Steve’s a Christmas badger!” Mike smirked.

“Or maybe he’s going for silver fox.” Lucas added.

“You guys pick on him like it’s a sport.” Max huffed as she arrived with Elle, the last of the group to arrive, arms filled with interestingly wrapped gifts. “I’m gonna throw these under the tree for later.”

“Now everyone’s here, we can officially begin. I’ve got the kitchen set up.” Steve nodded to the kitchen and slowly people made their way past him.

You stopped for a moment to say hi. His heart practically stopped when you reached up and lightly dusted the flour out of his hair before following Nancy towards the table.

“She touched your hair! She touched your hair, and you didn’t explode! You must really like her.” Robin teased.

“Shut up.” He hissed, glancing over to make sure you hadn’t heard the interaction, his eyes widening as he heard Elle say,

“Oh, Nancy dated Steve.” He quickly moved over to stand beside you, eager to change the subject and get the competition rolling.

“Okay, listen up. We each get four cookies: a tree, a Santa, a star and whatever the hell that other one is.”

“I think it’s supposed to be an angel.”

“Okay, so an angel. Whoever decorates their cookies the best will get the prize.” Steve grinned as the promise of a prize caused the kids to go a little wild.

“Hey, hey. See you’ve started without me.” A familiar voice called out and Steve’s heart sank a little.

“Hi Eddie. Thought you couldn’t make it.” He gave his friend a tight smile. It wasn’t that he wanted to exclude Eddie, just that he didn’t want the tattooed metal legend to waltz in and steal your attention away.

“Well, someone’s got to make sure your cookie decorating thing isn’t entirely lame. Speaking of, what the fuck is this music?”

“It’s festive.” Steve rolled his eyes and folded his arms over his chest.

“It’s bullshit.” Eddie grinned, tilting his head with curiosity when he spotted you. “Hi, I’m Eddie. Looks like there’s not enough cookies to go round, mind if I share with you?”

“No, Ed, tha-“ Steve began to protest but his words were lost in the din.

“Sure. No problem. You can do the angel and Santa? Or are we making him Satan?” You had asked with that easy smile that usually made Steve’s heart skip, only now it was aimed at Eddie and Steve’s shoulders slumped. Right. If he was going to pull this back, then he was going to have to wow you with his cookie decorating skills. He wasn’t just gonna roll over and let Eddie steal you away. Rolling up his sleeves, Steve moved to stand beside Robin, ignoring her pitying looks and grabbing the green icing. These were going to be the best decorated cookies he had ever made.

An hour later, the kitchen looked as if a class of kindergarteners had been let loose with icing in there. Steve wasn’t sure how the hell there was a marshmallow stuck to the ceiling, but he had his suspicions it had something to do with Mike. His attention had flitted between his cookies and whatever you and Eddie were up to. Each time you had giggled had felt like someone turning a knife deep in Steve’s chest, and each time he had refocused on his icing skills.

The finished products were now lined up on the counter, ready and waiting for judgement. Not that it was going to be especially difficult given the car crash of entries.

“Okay, so first up we have Wills.” Steve’s brow furrowed as he tried to find a nice way to say that the star cookie looked like baby vomit, and the marshmallow eyes for the angel were truly terrifying. “Good job, buddy.”

“Mine next!” Dustin proudly pointed to his cookies, one of which already had a bite taken out of it.

“Yeah, dipshit, you’re disqualified for eating your cookies.” Steve looked at him pointedly as the curly-haired boy began to protest.

One by one the entries were whittled down until there were three left: Nancy’s perfectly piped cookies, Steve’s surprisingly delicately decorated offerings and yours and Eddie’s ‘alternative’ cookies. As much as Steve wanted to hate them, he had to admit the Angel of Death was pretty bitchin. Maybe Eddie was a better match for you, and he should just admit he had no chance with you.

“So that’s three for Nancy, three for Steve and three for team metal Christmas.” Robin chuckled, “only two of us left to vote, who do you think deserves the win?” She turned to you and Steve had already resigned himself to the loss.

“I like Steve’s.” His head shot up in surprise as he looked at you. That was definitely not what he had been expecting. “They’re traditional and delicate, decorated with a light touch. All of them are colourful and I really wanna steal that tree one.”

“I’d say that seals it then. Dingus, you win. So, what was the prize?” Robin looked at her friend expectantly, but he was still too busy staring at you. “Earth to Steve?”

“Huh? Oh, erm, selection box under the tree.” He murmured a little distractedly.

“We can eat these now, right?” Dustin asked, already picking up his cookies and drifting towards the lounge.

The group all wandered through to start the movie marathon, picking up their snacks as they went, but Steve was rooted to the spot.

“You want some help cleaning all this up? I’ve already seen The Santa Claus like a billion times.” You offered and he swallowed hard, trying to remember how to form words when you were looking directly at him.

“You don’t have to. I’m sure Eddie will have saved a spot for you.” As much as it pained him to say it, he wanted to let you know that it was okay if you were interested in his friend.

“You know, I think Eddie might have a bit of a thing for you. I’ve just spent the last hour hearing about how amazing you are, how brave and smart and how much you care about this random bunch of kids. If he’s saved anyone a spot then I’m fairly sure it’ll be for you.”

“What?” Steve huffed out a laugh before realising you were serious. “Oh, no! No, no, no. Eddie and me are just friends.”

“Platonic with a capital P?”

“Yeah, exactly.”

“Like Robin?”

“Like Robin.”

“And Nancy?”

“Definitely. Just friends.”

“Okay. Good to know.” You gave him an enigmatic smile and turned to begin clearing up. Steve had no clue what had just happened between the two of you, but he was fairly sure he was back in with a chance.

[lipstickmarks]

Chrissy Cunningham Cinematic Universe

"I love chrissy cunningham. I want her back in st. in fact, I want her own tv show. animated and live action. both with 5 seasons & 3 spin offs. and then a whole movie. actually I want a chrissy cunningham cinematic universe. and a whole book series just about her. and videogames." - @/goddes_rabbit on Twitter

Okay I saw this tweet and I have both ADHD and nowhere to be until 11 am so I give you this! *sparkles and fairy dust*

Chrissy in ST: She doesn't die because she is simply too babygirl for that. She is Vecna's first horseman of the apocalypse but when the party defeats him at the end of Season 4, she’s returned to normal. She goes about her life as a cheerleader but moves in with Eddie and Wayne and becomes a core part of the group. Her, Eddie, Nancy, Robin, and Steve become besties.

Chrissy's own TV Show: This would essentially be Stranger Things but from her perspective. There's also one season that's entirely flashbacks to Vecna from her perspective and being in the UD with her Vecna peeps. The main plot points would be:

-Fallout from being Vecna'd (bullying, PTSD, revoking her "it girl" status)

-Found family with Eddie and Wayne (and the rest of the party)

-Her parents trying to get her back after she moves in with Eddie and Wayne

-Her helping the party with any lingering supernatural happenings in Hawkins.

-Chrissy healing from all the shit she's gone through and finding light and happiness.

(There's also a subplot about Chrissy being really good at science and kind of a nerd about it too and when they inevitably bring Mr. Clark back, the two of them become odd besties. He remembers her as one of his best students. He ends up becoming someone she can go to for help and advice outside of her circle of friends.)

Chrissy's Animated TV Show: I immediately went to a Winx Club/Sabrina the Teenage Witch style show about her middle school years! It would be animated and geared toward younger kids so the subject matter is super light. Fashion, cheerleading for the sake of cheerleading, sleepovers, magazines, lip gloss, and her chance encounter with Eddie at the talent show.

Spin-off #1: The Adventures of Baby Chrissy. Chrissy as a baby (a la Baby Looney Tunes and Rugrats) and all the shenanigans she gets into. Featuring cameos by baby Eddie, baby Steve, baby Nancy, and baby Robin). cutecutecute.

Spin-off #2: Chrissy's Big Scare. (Post-Vecna). This would be a mini-series, kind of like the ones that come on during commercial breaks. In it, Chrissy tries to watch a different scary movie every week as a sort of aversion therapy to help her cope with being Vecna'd. She does it when Eddie and Wayne are gone because she wants to be able to be brave without them there to comfort her. It would just be her reactions to everything: laughing at cheesy dialogue, spilling popcorn when she gets jump scared, hiding under the blanket, getting invested into the plot, (and yes, calling Eddie if it gets too scary).

Spin-off #3: Chrissy's Haunted Cheer Camp. (Pre-Vecna). Chrissy and her friends go to a yearly cheer camp but (surprise, surprise) it's haunted. Every summer is one season and every summer, something crazy scary happens. Personal items keep disappearing, things that go bump in the night, one of the girls gets possessed. The last season features the craziest story (and it occurs the summer before Will gets taken).

One of their counselors even goes missing for the majority of the summer but she's not as conventionally "pretty" as the rest of them so no one cares except Chrissy. She Nancy Drew's her way into some answers and they end up finding the girl at the end of the summer. And here's the chilling part: she walks out of the lake with no memory of what happened.

Movie: Chrissy Around the World. The summer before senior year, Chrissy was supposed to go to church camp but she was feeling extra rebellious and used her dad's credit card to go on a worldwide vacation. Paris, African Safari, everywhere. (Think Megan in the "Drake and Josh" movie or Kevin in "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York"). She ends her vacation in New York and falls in love with it and decides that's where she wants to move when she moves out of Hawkins the following year. It features a very satisfying 2000s-esque shopping spree, hotel trashing, and a cameo by taylor swift (ask me if i give a fuck about continuity).

Chrissy Cinematic Universe:

Movie about Chrissy’s life pre-vecna

Movie about Chrissy’s time in the UD

Movie about Chrissy in the 90s living in New York with Eddie

Lore about her brother and his life

Movies about her and Eddie's kids and then, their lives as adults

Movies about her GRANDKIDS and their lives

(Chrissy is the Padme Amidala of the Munson family.)

Fuck it, Chrissy across the multiverse. IDC. She's a superhero in one of them. Chrissy defeats Thanos. Chrissy is a time traveler. Chrissy is the 15th Doctor. Chrissy made Bigfoot up. Chrissy is Jack the Ripper. Chrissy is DB Cooper.

Book Series: Sweet Baby Chrissy. Basically the art style of tinker bell pixie hollow books and it’s geared toward kids so it’s mundane things about her. Chrissy’s Bad Hair Day. Chrissy’s Sleepover. Chrissy's Broken Leg. Chrissy Bakes a Pie. Chrissy and Steve having a babysitting job together. Chrissy going to see christmas lights with the gang. 

Video Games:

Cheer For Your Life - complete the cheer routine or else Vecna gets you.

Chrissy’s Closet - Get Chrissy dressed for different events before the timer runs out (pep rally, date with Eddie, etc)

Chrissy Cunningham Upside Down - a scary quarry type game where Chrissy navigates getting out of the upside down. She has to hunt down objects that will help her ("Uptown Girl" cassette, her pom-poms, picture of her brother, etc.) and you don’t know who’s friend or foe so you have to fight some of your friends if they've been Vecna'd.

Chrissy Wake Up - (guitar hero basically) hit all the notes of "Master of Puppets" to wake Chrissy Up.

Surfer Girl Pizza - Chrissy helps Argyle with a huge order of pizzas (pizza making game)

The Hideout - (scavenger hunt/quest game) help Corroded Coffin get ready for their show at the hideout by locating eddie’s guitar, fixing gareth’s drumsticks and helping the boys find their lucky pins etc. 

Bad Girl - help Chrissy sneak out to meet Eddie without waking up her parents or brother.