#They both want Steve and Billy is really possessive… and Eddie too

[plistommy]

505 | Harringrove (+Steddie)

[taintedcigs]

GETAWAY CAR — rockstar!e.m. x f!reader

CHAPTER FIVE: STRUCK A MATCH AND BLEW YOUR MIND

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✦ summary: in which you decide to reveal everything at brunch and chaos ensues. (wc: 8.3k+)

✦ warnings — ANGST!!, like this one is really angsty buckle up! argument </33, yelling, crying, mentions of an ab*sive relationship, it is not detailed by they talk A LOT about it, mentions of bruises, some trauma/making fun of trauma, chrissy being super mean and omfg reader is PETTY, jealousy, pining and slowburn, strong language!, mentions of alc*hol and drg use and a toxic/ab*sive relationship, food!!, steve is silly luv him

✦ pairings — rockstar!eddie munson x fem!reader, past billy hargrove x fem!reader, eddie munson x chrissy cunningham, nancy wheeler x jonathan byers

✦ authors note — ngl this was fun to write LMAO but so hellish to edit JFC IM FINALLY DONE!! a few songs i listened to while i wrote this chapter are; liar by paramore, rwylm by taylors swift, and lover you should've come over by jeff buckley. need to add all those to the playlist asap !! also feel free to chat with me in the asks abt this series (and anything tbh) pls!! and not proof-read pls ignore mistakes!!

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Counting cobblestones was your best distraction from Robin’s loud groans and the noises her dress made as she stretched it further and further. The sun streamed through the both of you, causing you to squeeze your eyes lightly. 

“Would you let my poor dress go?” You warned without turning to her, hand having a harsh grip on the gin bottle you were afraid of dropping. 

“I can’t, it’s itching!” She groaned, harshly scratching her chest. 

“Why’d you even ask to borrow a dress if you hated wearing them so much?” You threw her a look.

"I wanted to look presentable! But now, I think I’d rather wear a trash bag than ever be this uncomfortable again,” she said through gritted teeth, following you to the doorstep. 

You giggled, “But you know what?” you turned to her with a smile, “You look super pretty in that dress, Robs,” you winked teasingly, earning a groan from her as your hand shakily pressed onto the red doorbell, careful not to drop the bottle that was in your grip. 

A few rumbles were overheard before Steve swiftly opened the door, leaning against the doorframe as he gave the two of you a look, both of you in your sundress, while you held the bottle in your hand like a prized possession and Robin was still scratching her neck. “About damn time, I was starting to think you guys forgot where I lived!” He said teasingly, causing you to narrow your gaze. 

“Whatever happened to hello? Hi? I missed you, my bestest friend, Pinky!” You exaggerated dramatically, “Oh and you totally look so much better than that traitor sitting in my living room,” you spat snarkily, perfectly imitating a bitchy Steve. 

“You know about that?” Steve asked, and you were quick to nod. “Oh, thank fucking god! I did not want to be the one to tell you,” he sighed a breath of relief, a gesture you met with a roll of your eyes.

Steve quickly changed his tone to flattery. “Have I told you how much I missed you, sweetheart?” he said with exaggerated sweetness, “Oh, and you look so pretty!” He continued with an amplified smile, “so much better than that traitor sitting in my living room.” He hummed, covering his mouth sideways, so childlike that it had you giggling. 

Amid the banter, Robin, still visibly uncomfortable, impatiently broke in. “Okay, doofus, are you gonna let us in?” She groaned and brushed past the two of you, making her way to the familiar kitchen.

“Hello to you too, Rob!” Steve responded with a chuckle, before closing the door and guiding you both to the cozy kitchen.

Once inside, Steve couldn't help but ask, “So, what have you got there, P?” His eyes locked on the gin bottle in your hand.

With an excited gleam in your eye, you presented it proudly. “A party gift,” you said with a grin, shaking it gently in front of Steve's face before he took it from you.

"For breakfast?" Steve asked with a huff and a raised eyebrow. 

“We’re going to make breakfast martinis!” Robin chimed in excitedly, her eyes lighting up as she grabbed two elegant cocktail glasses she'd found in Steve's well-stocked kitchen. The crystal-clear glasses made a chiming sound when she set them down harshly.

“You guys have a problem,” he joked, leaning against the kitchen counter while he eyed the way you hurriedly searched for something in his fridge.

“Says the guy who used to shotgun five beers like it was nothing,” you scoffed behind the fridge door. A shushed ‘Yes!’ escaped from your lips when you acquired lemons and a bottle of orange juice from the fridge's depths. 

“And that is not how you make a breakfast martini,” he playfully groaned, stealing your ingredients away from you. Your pout was met with a playful eye roll.

“Oh-kay, fancy pants,” Robin mocked, making you snort with her easy banter.

Steve couldn't help but ask, genuine concern etching his brow, “You sure you’re okay?”

You shrugged nonchalantly, but they both eyed your expressions curiously, almost as if you were a ticking time bomb.

“Oh, c'mon, you two!” You brushed it off, trying to shift the focus.

“We’re just worried about you is all,” Robin added, placing a reassuring hand on your shoulder. Her fingertips were warm against your skin, concern washed over her face.

“It’s perfectly normal to not be okay, you know,” Steve reassured you, his voice gentle. “I mean, it must be hard coming back here after everything-”

“Well, I’m fine, Steve,” you replied a bit more sharply than you intended, guilt settling in your stomach quickly. Steve's comforting stance somehow allowed your emotions to spill out more freely.

“It’s-it’s just such a fucking gut punch that he brought her here, you know?” The frustration in your voice was palpable, tone heavy with pain.

“I know, I know,” Steve empathized, both of them stood by your side, hands resting on both of your shoulders, comedically protective. 

“Want me to beat him up?” Steve said with a serious gaze, hands forming into fists as he playfully punched the air. You and Robin erupted in giggles, as Robin elbowed him playfully, “I think she needs someone better at fights to protect her, you know?” She narrowed her gaze.

“Ow!” Steve dramatically gasped, “Rude!” He pouted. “Thank you, my knight in shining armor, but I’ll be fine." You snatched the gin bottle, moving on to the task at hand – preparing the breakfast martinis as you poured the clear liquid into the glass.

“I’m more worried about your health there,” he hummed, pointing toward the generous amount of gin you poured into your glass. 

“Jesus, when did you become such a priss, King Steve?” Robin mocked further before he gave the two of you a look. 

“I don’t like you two together,” he huffed, hand gesturing between the two of you dramatically, “so mean,” he said, tone exaggerated, and slumped playfully, pretending to be defeated.

“Aww, come on, Stevie,” you pouted, “I missed ya,” with a hum, you gave him a quick, affectionate squeeze in a tight hug. Steve responded with a theatrical cough causing you to roll your eyes.

“What have you been up to? I listened to Robin’s work crush, the whole fucking way…” You enunciated dramatically, drawing a teasing reaction from Robin, who exclaimed, “Hey!” in response.

“Can you believe her name is Lily? Lily… that’s so pretty, she’s so pretty… Like a flower. I mean her hair is so soft, I-I mean it seems soft I never like touched it or anything, that would be creepy-” You mimicked Robin and her fast-talking, and she stuck her tongue at you childishly. 

“Is doofusness contagious? I feel like you’ve been standing too close to Steve.” She mocked with a smirk, taking a jab at both of you, but more so Steve as she leaned against the counter cooly. 

“You’re quick with the comebacks today, Rob, jeez!” You praised, turning back to Steve who was disregarding the two of you with a shake of his head.  

Robin winked at you, before snatching the bottle from Steve’s hand to make herself a drink. “So… Stevie, what about you?” You hummed, leaning in with a curious expression.

“How’s work?”

A proud smile spread across Steve's face as he said, “I got a promotion.”

“Oh my god!” You exclaimed, genuine excitement dancing in your eyes. “Steve, that’s amazing!” His frown had your brows furrowed, “why are you not excited?” You pouted.

“You remember Adam?” He huffed, “the guy from accounting?” Your brows quirked up in intrigue, Steve was quick to nod. 

“He turned out to be a douche,” with a scoff, he leaned further on the courter, his muscles flexing with irritation. “What?” You asked with a frown, “but you said it was getting serious?” 

“Yeah, I guess I was wrong, I dunno,” He shrugged, wanting to seem nonchalant but it was obvious he was hurt. 

Your face fell quickly, “well, what about that other girl you met in the grocery store?” You asked hopefully, nudging him slightly. 

“Didn’t even call me back,” Steve huffed, and you couldn't help but pout at his apparent string of bad luck.

“Stevie…”

“I dunno what’s wrong with me,” Steve admitted, his voice laced with self-doubt.

Your heart ached at his insecurity, and you couldn't help but reassure him. “What? Nothing is wrong with you! Are you kidding?”

“These people sound like the problem to me!” You exclaimed, “I mean look at you! A nice boy with a good job, and that hair? So soft!” you giggled, hand ruffling with his perfectly made hair, which he would usually yell at you for, but now he just looked at you with the most puppy dog eyes. “Harrington, you’re the whole goddamn package.” 

“You mean that?” He sounded so insecure, and innocent, that your stomach was quick to drop, knowing that Steve doubted himself like this. 

“Of course!” you reassured with a pat on his back, “fuck both of them! I’ll get you something to drink.” You winked.

“Please let me make it,” Steve replied with a hint of mischief, narrowing his gaze playfully. “In fact, I’ll make both of you a proper drink,” he emphasized.

“Fine, pretty boy.”

“Rob,” he called out to her with a tilt of his head  “Orange liquor, please?”

Robin looked at him with a puzzled look, “am I supposed to know where that is?” 

A tad exasperated, Steve pointed to a spot on the counter. “Right there on the counter, Rob. Jesus, you never let me look cool.”

“Don’t worry pretty boy, you don’t need her to make you look cool.” You winked teasingly, hand gently placed on Steve’s shoulder to give him a reassuring squeeze, causing Robin to snort behind you as you elbowed harshly to shush her. 

Of fucking course, that’s when they decided to come into the kitchen, you could hear Chrissy’s annoying giggles before you saw her, and Eddie’s face dropped the second he saw the two of you. And all you could focus on was how close they were standing next to each other, Chrissy’s shoulder brushing against his.

You felt sick again. 

Eddie cleared his throat, the laughter in the room dying with it. His sour face grew hot because he heard your compliments to Steve, saw the smiles you gave him, and your hand on his arm. 

Insecure thoughts were quick to race through his mind, why was your hand on his arm? And pretty boy? You used to call him that. And him only.

His thoughts should have driven him closer to Chrissy, to make you more jealous, to have that satisfaction, but all it did was leave a bitter taste in his mouth, another lump he couldn’t swallow, and he stepped a bit back away from her unintentionally. 

“Hi!” Chrissy beamed, and your eyes squinted with her voice, the urge to roll your eyes, and confront her right now was strong. 

None of you answered her, it was awkward, pretty fucking awkward that even Robin’s cheshire cat smile didn’t save the room, Eddie speaking up did. 

“You- uh got any water, Harrington?” It was supposed to be a joke, but the way it rolled out of his jealous lips made him sound bitter as if he was pissed at him. 

Steve, taken aback by Eddie's sudden change in attitude, raised an eyebrow and responded, “Yeah?” He pointed toward the refrigerator, offering some bottled water.

Annoyance seeped through you as they stood there, prickling like a knife through your skin, your gaze narrowed as you tried to avoid looking at them, but it was awkward, so fucking awkward. 

Eddie was quick to take a sip from the bottle, the entire room filled with silence as his gaze never faltered on you, “you got any notes for me?” Eddie said cooly, leaning onto the fridge, Chrissy by his side. 

It was aimed at you, and you totally would’ve missed it if every eye in the room didn’t turn to you. You furrowed your brows in confusion, trying to deflect the attention. "Huh?"

Eddie’s demeanor changed at your confusion, almost like his confidence wore off the second he realized you might not have read it. “The note, you said you’d review it?” His voice held emotion, you could hear it, a pang of insecurity along with betrayal, but you didn’t want to talk about this, and you didn’t want to talk about it in front of her.

“No.” You lied through your teeth, swallowing the lump in your throat when you finally looked at him, like really, really looked at him. 

He looked tired, with dark circles surrounding his eyes, hair even messier than usual, his lips cracked, and you could smell the nicotine off of him, even though he was halfway across the room. 

And there was a slight shift in the way he held himself when you told him you didn’t read it, his tongue rolling inside of his cheek in a sour manner before he straightened up. “Typical,” he spat, he didn’t mean to, it was more supposed to be his inner voice, but he couldn’t help himself.  He couldn’t help the way he felt insecure when he saw you standing next to Steve, and he couldn’t help but show how much you not reading the note shattered him.

“Excuse me?” You scoffed, the air in the room getting tense, Steve and Robin pretending to be distracted while continuing to make a drink, Robin’s clumsy clatters serving as a noisy backdrop. 

“What does that mean?” You asked calmly, maybe it wasn’t as calm as you intended it to be, but he really had the nerve to come for you when he didn’t even realize he was the one who was in the wrong. 

“It means that I wouldn’t have expected anything more from you,” he spat out like he was your enemy, and it hurt, it fucking hurt that he saw you as someone that careless as if you didn’t read the entire note the whole night, as if you didn’t fall asleep to Aurora playing in the background. As if he knew anything. 

Your anger flared, and you couldn’t help yourself, “What the actual fuck is your problem?” Your voice raised, and you straightened yourself, taking a step closer to them as both Robin and Steve’s heads snapped toward your direction, wanting to interrupt, but Chrissy got to it first. 

“Okay, I don’t think we should-” Her screeching voice grated your ears.

With that, your attention turned to her, head cocking in a sharp gesture of anger, “stay out of it,” you warned, both Steve and Robin watched you in full force, almost looking like they wanted to cheer you on. 

Chrissy turned to Eddie as if she was asking for him to say something back to you, but Eddie’s gaze remained on you, unable to process anything else. 

She took a step closer, her head slightly tilted to the side, “Oh, come on, take a chill pill, Pinky,” she gave you a smile, it wasn’t warming, it wasn’t genuine, you could see right through her. This was her catty smile. 

And it almost triggered something in you—the way her head tilted, her hand on her hips, the ‘take a chill pill’ line, it was something you recognized all too well. 

The same phrase, that same annoying octave, and the same hand on her hips when she first “accidentally” started the rumor that you had kissed Eddie—granted, it wasn’t a rumor. It was true, you had kissed Eddie while you and Billy were on a break, but you told her that in confidence, and she broke your trust. Yet, like an idiot, you believed her when she said it was an accident, and that someone must have overheard the two of you talking.

Once Billy found out about the rumors, he barely let you breathe, not only did the fights get more amped up and violent, but he also isolated you from your friends, and mostly Eddie. You didn’t put the pieces together that Chrissy caused the rumor until much later.

Then, at Steve’s party, the same smile, and that same phrase, like you hadn’t caught her with Billy in the bathroom minutes ago. 

And now, she was doing it again, you assumed it was on purpose, or at least it all felt like it was on purpose. And it boggled your mind how quickly she made Eddie believe she was a nice person. Because she wasn’t, and even if she was, your friendship was beyond salvageable now. 

You decided to take a step closer to her, Steve and Robin both jumping on their feet, afraid of what might happen. But you had no intention of doing anything, or even saying anything to her. 

Because you had decided your mind. 

If Chrissy wanted to play that game, then so fucking be it. 

When the bell rang once again, Steve was quick to rise, “Must be Nancy and Jonathan!” he announced, voice almost cracking from the tension in the room. He was quick to scurry off, inviting the main couple inside. You turned to Robin swiftly, almost ruining her balance with the way you snatched the drink from her hand, you took a big sip, downing the contents in one go. Then, without acknowledging either of them, you headed inside, leaving behind the simmering tension in the kitchen. 

-

You were all seated, Nancy and Jonathan side by side, next to them Steve and Robin, and on their right, were the rest of the band, followed by Chrissy, Eddie, and you. 

The table itself looked perfect, you could see that Steve went all out for it, adorning the table with an array of breakfast foods. Plates piled high with pastries, fruit, muffins, and of course, Steve’s special pancakes. He never stopped raving about them, and the second he sat down, he grabbed a generous amount of it to his plate. A pot of steaming coffee sat right by the end of the table, along with your gin bottle sitting right next to it, which was what you had been preferring, because everything was fucking awkward.

You were sipping on your drink like it was your lifeline, Steve and Robin watched you with a concerned gaze, whispering back and forth. 

Jeff, Gareth, and the new drummer you hadn’t met before, Nathan were laughing obnoxiously, and you almost felt like it was all aimed at you.

Maybe you were paranoid, but you assumed they wouldn’t be keen on you, knowing that after L.A. all they saw was a mess of Eddie who wrote nothing but sad songs, which all the lyrics seemed to point in your direction.

“How is pre-wedding life going for the love birds?” Eddie hummed seemingly more content than before.

Jonathan and Nancy both let out an exasperated sigh, giggling like kids after they realized how in sync they were, “pretty fuckin’ tiring,” Jonathan replied, taking a mouthful bite from the pastry he had on his plate.

“You guys are still on for tonight, right? I promised the guy at Hideout at least two songs from Corroded Coffin,” he emphasized the band's name mockingly. 

“‘Course, dude, whatever you need,” Eddie gave him a small smile, a wink thrown in for good measure.

Unintentionally, Eddie shifted his gaze towards you, observing the way you seemed to shrink into your seat, fingers nervously tracing the rim of your drink. Chrissy's eyes followed him, her gaze narrowing as she caught onto the subtle shift in his attention. He leaned closer to you, so close that his hand almost brushed against yours that sat on the table.

Eddie opened his pursed lips, about to utter something, but Chrissy couldn’t let that happen.

“This feels weird,” She hummed, “the last time we were all here, this table was for beer pong.” She giggled, and slightly nudged Eddie.

Eddie gave her a tight-lipped smile before his attention was quick to turn back to you, but you ignored his burning gaze.

“Steve that was a sick party,” She exclaimed excitedly, trying to gather Steve’s attention who was busy trying to locate the syrup for his awaiting pancakes. 

Your head almost popped up simultaneously at the mention… the same party. The same fucking party she tried to kiss Billy. The same fucking party she humiliated you with her words. The same party she made fun of…

“Huh?” He asked mindlessly, almost knocking over Robin’s drink with how fast he was looking for the syrup, completely ignoring Chrissy. “Jesus Christ!” He exclaimed, earning furrowed brows from Robin, who just shook her head at him. 

“I forgot the syrup!” He groaned, getting up from his seat. “I’m sure you’ll be fine,” Robin mocked, as Steve threw her a glare before making a hasty retreat to the kitchen with a string of curses leaving his lips, while the rest of the table tried to soak in the awkwardness.

Gareth was quick to chime in though, “oh, yeah!” he quipped, remembering the party. “You went to that party?” Jeff asked with his brows pinched together in confusion. 

“Yeah, Eddie was selling so he brought me along,” he explained, grabbing Eddie by the shoulder with a chuckle. 

“Oh god, that was the same party you beat Billy to a fuckin’ pulp, dude!” His chuckle grew louder, hand on his stomach.

You and Eddie tensed at the mention of it, while you enjoyed Billy finally not being able to get away with his violence, none of that memory was amusing to you in the slightest. And nor was it to Eddie. 

Gareth turned to Chrissy when his laughter finally died off, “Hey, didn’t we play beer pong together?” 

Chrissy's face lit up with a nostalgic giggle, “oh my god, we totally did!” She exclaimed excitedly, but your gaze remained on your empty plate, unable to contain the rage bubbling inside of you. 

"It was so funny," she began, "Gareth kept missing it, but..."

Your patience reached its limit, and you couldn't help but interject. "When was that?" Your voice tinged with an edge, cut through the chatter at the table.

Multiple heads were quick to turn to you, and Chrissy probably had no clue what you were up to.  Maybe this was a low blow, maybe you shouldn’t tell in front of everyone.

“We were pretty drunk, I don’t remember-” She said meekly, but you interrupted, again.

“I was at that party too, but I must have missed that!” You continued, your words sharp and calculated. And feigning a faux sense of intrigue. Maybe it was cruel, but this was the perfect setup, and Chrissy was falling right into your trap. 

Before she could respond, you pressed on, your tone dripping with sarcasm. “oooh! Was that before or after you tried to hook up with my ex-boyfriend?” Your words hung heavy in the air, the whole table quick to fall silent. 

Almost all eyes except Chrissy turned to you, Robin almost choked on the strong drink Steve made for her. Gareth, Jeff, and Nathan all stopped their inner chatter, while Jonathan and Nancy’s eyes widened in unison.

As the tension continued to mount, Jonathan quickly turned to Nancy, leaning towards her, “Should I do something-” He whispered to Nancy, who didn’t dare to move, watching everything unravel before her. 

“Don’t you dare,” she warned, “she deserves this confrontation. And, I am tired of Eddie pestering us about this; he deserves to know.” Nancy shrugged, Jonathan reluctantly raised his hands in agreement, almost like he was surrendering to her reasonings. 

Chrissy stood there, her voice caught in her throat, mouth agape, unable to utter a coherent response. She was frozen, eyes wide with shock, while her fingers nervously fumbled with the napkin on the table, struggling to find the words to defend herself.

You reacted with a bitter, mocking disbelief, shaking your head slowly. “Shit, or was it after you blamed me for what Billy did to me? You know, making fun of my bruises and stuff?”

“What?” Eddie’s face scrunched in disgust, his eyes flickering to Chrissy, who seemed to shrink under the weight of what she did. Jonathan and Nancy watched with their mouth almost hanging open. Robin had a smug smile on her face, she bit her lip in excitement while watching everything unfold. It was like all of them had been waiting for this confrontation. 

Poor Jeff, Gareth, and Nathan just watched with a confused look, not knowing anything about the deep history between the three of you. 

Chrissy stammered, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment, but once again you didn’t let her. “No, no, wait!” You were relentless, sarcasm cutting through your tone as you playfully hit your forehead in a mocking gesture. “I think it was after you made fun of my parents leaving me, what did you say they were?” You mocked a pensive expression, a dangerous glint in your eyes, “Junkies?” Your gaze narrowed, Chrissy’s stammering continued, and she turned to Eddie desperately, while her vision was getting blurry. 

The room had grown oppressively tense, no one dared to speak, Robin, Jonathan, and Nancy all wore disgusted faces, along with the surprise of you laying everything out on the table, literally. Jeff and Gareth silently oofed, even though they didn’t know anything, they knew that what Chrissy did was fucked up. 

Eddie struggled to process it, your words, the realization that Chrissy had done something worse other than trying to hook up with Billy was hard to sink into his skin.  “What the fuck are you talking about?” He repeated, his entire world almost shattering dramatically.

“Oh, didn’t your sweet, sweet Chrissy mention all that?” You weren’t holding back, every bitterness, every ugliness, you were ready to spit it all at him and Chrissy.  

And you wished it would give you satisfaction, you wished it would make you feel better.

But it didn’t. None of it felt good, none of it filled the void inside of you. None of it helped you get over the betrayal that unfolded right between your eyes. 

None of it helped you get over the cruel look Chrissy gave you when she made fun of your traumas, none of it helped you get over the fact that Eddie told you that you ruined his life, and none of it helped the way your lip trembled when you saw the two of them kiss. 

“Okay, I’ve got the syrup!” Steve chimed in, unaware of everything that had just transpired in the room, his brows furrowed when he noticed the tension, every eye on the table turned to him, except for you, Chrissy, and Eddie. 

Chrissy's desperate gaze fixed on Eddie, pleading for some form of understanding or forgiveness, but his gaze remained unwaveringly locked on you, filled with guilt. Your own eyes were cast downward, remaining on your lap, while you tried hard to fight back the tears. 

Because no matter what, Chrissy betrayed your trust, you trusted her enough to tell her what Billy did to you, and instead of getting help, she tried to kiss him, or actually did kiss him, you never found out the truth—both of them told you a different version of the story. 

She made fun of your parents leaving you. She blamed you for the things Billy did. Like it meant nothing to her. Like you meant nothing to her. 

“Did I just interrupt something-” Steve was quickly hushed by Robin, who pulled him to his seat quickly. “Pinky is confronting Chrissy!” 

“What? Now?” He whisper-yelled, putting down the syrup jar on the table, eyeing the tension between the three of you. Robin nodded, “Eddie’s trying to process all of it, and Chrissy looks like she’s about to burst into tears,” she added. 

“He didn’t know?” Steve’s brows furrowed, “Nuh-uh, don’t you remember how P made us all promise not to tell anyone? You know how she is with her personal stuff,” the two of them whispered back and forth, earning a glare from Nancy that shut both of them up. 

Eddie’s expressions were unreadable, mixed with every possible emotion as he drew a deep breath in a feeble attempt to make sense of everything. “W-what exactly happened?” With uncertainty in his eyes, he faced you, he wanted to know everything. But you didn’t dare to look at him, crossing your arms defensively against your chest—you were in no way ready to tell him anything. 

“I-I wanted to apologize to you, and I wanted to..” Chrissy’s voice trembled, she seemed apologetic, eyes glistening with guilt, but it truly meant nothing to you.

“Shit, you really don’t fucking get it, do you?” You couldn’t help but click your tongue in annoyance, hand on your forehead in disbelief. “This isn’t about your stupid apology.” 

“You knew them, Chrissy,” you continued, your voice quivering with raw emotion, “you were there with me when they left, you fucking comforted me when I cried…” All of it felt too raw for you, your chest tightening the more you remembered it all, “and then you used it as a punch line for a stupid joke, to hurt me.” 

You took a deep breath in an attempt to continue, your heart tightening the more you spoke. “You knew what Billy did to me, you saw the bruises, and you acted like none of that mattered when you kissed him!” 

“I d-didn’t—it was a misunderstanding!” She tried to defend herself, but you didn’t care. 

You were quick to get up from your seat, feeling suffocated. “God, i-it really hurt, it did.” you confessed, your voice trembling as you blinked away the tears. “But it doesn’t anymore because you were dead to me the second you uttered those words.” Your lips trembled.

“And you,” with a tone filled with bitterness, you finally turned to Eddie, really looking at him for the first time. His eyes were filled with regret, brows scrunched up together with guilt. Your hand pointed toward him accusingly, “fucking date her for all I care, you two deserve each other.” 

You stormed off to the backyard quickly, not being able to hold back the tears anymore. Eddie got up the second you did, pleading for your name. The room fell silent again, and just as he was about to chase you, Steve was quick to rise to his feet, intervening with a grab of Eddie’s arm. 

“Give her some time,” Steve’s harsh hold on Eddie’s arm had everyone eyeing them.

“Excuse me?” Eddie retorted, his gaze dangerously fiery. 

“She needs some time, Eddie.” 

“Fuck off,” Eddie warned, gaze dropping to the hold that Steve had on him, his anger simmering just below the surface.

“Man, I’m trying to be helpful right now, you’re the last person she wants to fucking see,” Steve spat, gaze narrowing as he looked at him with disgust. 

That was the breaking point for Eddie, he took a step closer, his anger ready to spill over to Steve, which wasn’t fair, but it had been building up the second he saw how close the two of you were. The smiles you threw at him. The compliments. It was stupid and so unlike him, but with everything, he couldn’t afford to lose you, not again.

And it looked like he just did. 

“That’s not any of your fuckin’ business, Harrington-”

Before the situation could escalate further, Jonathan intervened, stepping between the two of them. “Alright, alright!” he gently defused the tension. “Steve, Rob, go see if she’s okay,” He demanded, the two of them looking at him dumbfoundedly, “Go!” he exclaimed, and Robin was quick to rise from her seat, dragging Steve away from Eddie who was still throwing daggers with his looks toward Steve.

“And Eddie, I need to talk to you for a second.” Jonathan caught Eddie’s attention and tugged at his jacket to the side while Nancy quickly excused herself from the awkward table before the three of them huddled in the corner. 

Eddie was quick to shake off the hold Jonathan had on him, his anger still uncontained. “What?” His voice was raised. 

“You need to calm the fuck down,” Jonathan warned. 

“Why didn’t you guys-” He took a deep breath. “How could you guys not fuckin’ tell me?” His voice was desperate. 

“She told us not to!” Nancy added. “God, I’m such a fuckin’ idiot.” He exasperated.

Jonathan agreed with a nod, “That, you are.” Earning a glare from Eddie, he continued, “I’m sorry dude, but it’s true, you shouldn’t have paraded her around in front of Pinky.” 

“How was I supposed to know?!?”

“You weren’t,” Nancy sighed, “but you knew what happened with Billy, and that should’ve been enough, Eddie.”

Eddie shook his head to disagree, his disheveled hair hung over his forehead, barely covering his pained eyes. “If I knew, if I fucking knew for a second that s-she made fun of, shit-” His voice cracked, struggling to find the right words. The vivid recollections of your pain etched lines of hurt across his face. “God, I saw how much her parents leaving crushed her, Nance. I was there, I comforted her.” Nancy could sense the hurt in his voice. 

“Every time she came over to a Munson dinner, every time Wayne told her she was family, every time Wayne did somethin’ for her... I-I could just see how much she appreciated it. Wayne, and me…” 

His voice continued to tremble, and tears welled up in his eyes. “And I saw those goddamn bruises that fucking asshole left, s-she was shaking, Jon- I-I knew how hard it was for her, if I…”  He took a shuddering breath, voice still shaky, and gaze glistening with unshed tears.

His hands moved in agitation, desperate to defend himself and express his guilt. “If I… If I knew for one goddamn second that she made fun of that, I w-would’ve never!” He punctuated his words desperately, hands rubbing against his face in disbelief.

“I know, I know,” Nancy reassured with a soothing voice, both she and Jonathan reached out to rub his back comfortingly. “I think she’s just upset right now, Ed.” Jonathan spoke up.

“I mean can you really blame her? I know you didn’t know anything, but the moment she came back to the town, the first thing she saw was you and Chrissy kissing… it was probably a tough pill for her to swallow.” Nancy mumbled.

Jonathan was quick to add with a soft-spoken plea, “Give her some time, and then you can apologize, okay?” He nodded, trying to take all of the information he acquired in the last five minutes

“I also think you have someone else you need to talk to,” Jonathan whispered, gaze pointing toward Chrissy who had been itching to speak to him, her gaze repeatedly flickering in their direction.

And once Chrissy realized Eddie looking back at her, she was quick to get up from her seat, shoulders slumped as she approached him. She eyed the way Nancy and Jonathan gave Eddie a slight smile and a nudge on his shoulder before they left. 

Her eyes were glossy, face red. “C-can I talk to you?” She stammered.

“Y-yeah,” he conceded, a hint of uncertainty in his voice, not able to help himself when his head turned toward the sliding door, wanting to get a glimpse of you but blocked by the figure of Steve.

“I-I should’ve told you what I did.” Chrissy sighed, swallowing the lump in her throat as she took a deep breath.

“I-I’m sorry. I just…” She recollected her thoughts, “you were like the only one who didn’t know and it just… It felt nice to hang out with someone who didn’t shun me out.”

“Steve, Nancy, Jonathan… even Robin, the second they learned what I said, they didn’t even look me in the face!” Her voice cracked.

“And I know I probably deserved that but that was so long ago and I…” Her gaze fell toward the floor, she felt embarrassed, she should’ve never done that to you, and she did have her reasons, but she also knew none of them would ever justify what she said. 

“I was just miserable and bitter and P-pinky didn’t deserve any of that. I know that but…” Her head snapped up, her tearful eyes locking with Eddie’s, “I really had fun with you these past couple of days and…”

Eddie was quick to interrupt her, shaking his head, “Chrissy…” He sighed, fingers rubbing his temples in an attempt to comfort himself, it was too much, everything was too much.

And he didn’t want to be here, he didn’t want to talk to her, he didn’t want some pep talk from Jonathan and Nancy, he only wanted you.

He wanted to tell you how sorry he was, and how much of an idiot he was. Even though he didn’t know anything. But he should’ve known better. He should have.

And he felt the guilt gnawing at him, consuming him from the inside.

“I really felt like we had something-” Eddie was quick to dismiss her.

“Chrissy, I’m sorry I should have never done this, I-I’m such a fucking coward.”

“W-what?” Chrissy asked, her voice breaking again, tears brimming in her eyes. “I should’ve known,” she sighed, shutting her eyes briefly to avoid the tears.

Eddie let out a confused hum. “I-I mean I kind of did, I saw the way you looked at her, the way your eyes lit up unintentionally whenever someone mentioned her. The smile you had when she talked to you… You were never ever like that with me, not even for a second.”

It took Eddie a few seconds to process that, he knew he should’ve never done anything with Chrissy, he never should’ve tried to defend her to you, he should’ve listened to you. He was an idiot. 

Chrissy was right. It was you. It had always been you. 

“I didn’t- I didn’t fuckin’ mean to but I think like back in my mind, I did all of this to make myself feel better because I knew she might be coming back and I just wanted to make myself feel like I got over her. I-I know that’s incredibly shitty and I’m sorry-” 

“So you just used me?” She spat, feeling like a pawn in a game she did not want to be a part of.

“N-no! That’s not what I tried to do! I just… I just, I’m sorry that it came off that way… I thought I could you know… do this,” he mumbled, pointing toward the space between them.

“I can’t and I never should have tried.”

“What the hell does that even mean?” He could see Chrissy’s hurt turn quickly to anger, and maybe five minutes ago, when he didn’t know what she did to you, he would’ve apologized for being a dick, and for doing something as stupid as this. But he couldn’t be apologetic to her, not anymore.

“I-it means it’s always been her, and it’s always going to be her, Chrissy,” Eddie admitted, something that he should’ve realized a long time ago, and Chrissy wanted to laugh at that.

Of course, it was going to be you, it was always you. 

Billy, and now Eddie. No matter what she did, she could never compete with you. You didn’t even have to do anything and they would devote their whole fucking life to you. 

And it pissed her off, made her bitter. Which wasn’t fair, which didn’t make what she ever did or said okay. But her mind justified it. Fueled her to say those things to you. 

Eddie, struggling to process Chrissy's words, stammered in disbelief, “I can’t even look at you after what she told me. How could you be so cruel?” The way he viewed Chrissy changed in a matter of seconds, disgust overtaking his senses. 

But Chrissy found that amusing. She chuckled bitterly, shaking her head. “Me?” She pointed an accusatory finger at him, “You just admitted that you basically used me. Jesus Christ, you’re an asshole.”

“And I’m really sorry about that,” he said, his voice filled with sincerity, “that isn’t what I intended to-“

Chrissy, still seething with anger and disappointment, didn't give him a chance to finish. “Save it.” She rolled her eyes, hand defensively pointing toward him.

Gareth, Jeff, and Nathan suddenly appeared, intruding awkwardly into the already strained atmosphere between the two of them. Gareth was the first to speak up, attempting to break the tension. He cleared his throat and said, “Uhhh- hey man, we’re gonna take off.”

“You comin’?” Jeff inquired, standing beside Gareth.

 “Uhhh, no? I need to talk to her.” Eddie replied firmly.

“Seriously? You’re still running after her?” Gareth bit back, Jeff tried to elbow him to shut him up but it was no use.

“I’ll see you guys tonight.” He said through gritted teeth, not in the mood to deal with Gareth’s hatred for you.

“Chrissy, you comin’?” Gareth was quick to turn to her, and she nodded quickly, before throwing a harsh look at Eddie.

“Jerk,” she mumbled under her breath, leaving off with them.

“I did deserve that.” Eddie sighed, mumbling to himself before he finally decided to meet all of you in the backyard.

-

You leaned back on your seat, eyes still glossy but you looked happier, a giggle leaving your lips at something Steve said. 

And it hurt Eddie to see that, it hurt because your teary eyes were all because of him, and you were giggling only because of Steve.

It wasn’t like this before, he was the one who always made you happy, he never made you cry, he never uttered horrible words to you like he did yesterday. 

Was it all doomed? 

Did the chance for the two of you pass by and both of you were too much of an idiot to realize it? Did he manage to fuck everything up with just barely two days? 

Your laughter died down the second your gaze met his, breath getting hitched in your throat. He looked guilty, those shaggy bangs falling messily on his forehead, hand stuffed into the back of his black jeans.  Walking over to you with such shyness that your gaze softened, you didn’t want to be like this with him. It was never like this before. 

But it hurt so much that you could feel your chest swell with the pain. His words, Chrissy… you couldn’t pretend like none of it happened anymore. 

“Can we talk?” 

“Dude, I just told you-” Steve was quick to interject, and it brought warmth in your stomach, the feeling nicely seeping into your skin, knowing that your friends truly cared about you, and how much they would do to protect you. 

They had done it with Chrissy, you never asked them to do anything, but the second you told any of them what happened, they didn’t even throw her a second glance when they ran into her ever again in this damned town. 

And it meant so much, knowing that there were people you could count on, a sense of protectiveness and security that your parents never provided for you. But you liked that, you liked having them, an untraditional way of family, but your family regardless. 

“Harrington, will you fuckin’-”

You interrupted both of their stupid dick-measuring competition with a sigh, “It’s okay, Steve,” you murmured, throwing him a smile before squeezing his arm gently. “We do need to talk,” you nodded off toward Eddie, dragging him off to the other side gently, away from all of them.

“Look, fuck- I’m so sorry, okay?” He started, his voice apologetic.

“Eddie, please-”

“No, no, let me talk, please,” he breathed out, desperate, his gaze mirroring yours, fingers brushing on your arms, gentle, pleading. 

“I’m sorry, I’m a fucking idiot, I’m the biggest fucking idiot in the whole world.”

“Y-you never ruined my life, okay? You could never, even if you tried your hardest. Even if you did the worst possible thing to me. I could never see you like that. I could never see the worst of you.”

“I-I shouldn’t have done what I did, I shouldn’t have brought her everywhere, and I shouldn’t have tried to defend her to you.”

“E-eddie, stop” you gulped, interrupting him, “You-you’re confusing the fuck out of me… You tell me I ruined your life, and then I read those stupid notes-”

“You read them?” Eddie’s brows raised in surprise, an idiotic grin curling on his lips.

“Of course I did.” You muttered, avoiding his gaze.

“But you said-” 

“I wanted to piss you off,” you admitted with a meek voice. 

“And what did you think?” He asked, hopeful, still feeling nervous with the way you were so calm, he knew nothing good was gonna come out of this. 

“That I-I can’t do this.” 

“I mean, the song is really great…” You muttered, and you wanted to mention the other note, how much it crushed you and how much you wished it could change anything, but you couldn’t handle it anymore. You couldn’t handle seeing him, you couldn’t handle anything about Eddie. You needed some time apart. 

“And I’m glad you realized you fucked up but I… I’m just so tired,” you sighed, licking your lips to get some sort of encouragement to say the things that you were about to say. 

“I-I can’t do this back and forth with you anymore,” you huffed. 

“I mean just look at us! I’ve been here for almost two days and look how many times we fought and then pretended like nothing happened! T-this isn’t how we used to be,” you bit on your lip, tasting the bitter taste of metallic blood, just so the tears wouldn’t spill. 

“I know…” he muttered, “but why didn’t you just tell me? Then… and even now?”

“I-I was embarrassed,” you muttered shyly. His brows scrunched, embarrassed? why would you be embarrassed for the shitty things she did?

“Why would you be embarrassed?” He asked.

“Because it was true, Eddie,” you blinked away the tears, settling with that uncomfortable feeling.

“What are you talking about, what she did was fuckin’ cruel, and if I knew-”

“N-no, it was true.” You huffed. “Deadbeat parents and an abusive ex-boyfriend… like how cliche could I fucking get?” You wanted to laugh bitterly.

“I-I’m a mess and she’s right… And so were you! It was such a gut punch when you said it to me, but you were right.” Your lip was wobbling, eyes squinted. “I-I ruined your life and-”

“No, don’t fucking say that-”

“But it is true!” You exclaimed with a sad expression, “I ruined your life and I-I should’ve never tried to re-enter it, and I should’ve left you alone.”

“I-I’m sorry, for everything, for LA, I could say that as many times as you need me to…” you sighed. “but I promise you don’t have to worry about me anymore.”

“W-what?” He stuttered, still struggling to process your words.

“I told you Eddie, I don’t want to do this. As we said, we don’t have to talk to each other this weekend, and afterward, I’ll be gone.” 

“You won’t ever hear from me or see me again.” 

“But that is not what I want!” Eddie exclaimed, desperate, he didn’t want to lose you, and he was going to. There was nothing he could do to stop it. 

He already lost you once, and maybe he could blame you for that, but this one. It was all him. 

He tried to reach for your arm, to touch you again, to feel the warmth he felt a night ago like everything would be just as it was five years ago. But you were quick to take a step back away from him. 

“But it’s what I want.” You tried to speak calmly, your cracking voice fast to fail you. 

“W-what about the album cover?” 

With a touch of bitterness in your tone, you retorted, “I’m sure you can find someone much better than me.”

“C’mon, Pinky, you can’t be serious, that’s like a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing-”

“I’d rather be stuck at the record store for the rest of my life,” you muttered bitterly, words cutting through him. You could see how much they were hurting him, but there was no other way, you had to protect your own feelings. 

Staying away from Eddie was the only thing you could do to stop hurting yourself and everyone else. You had already caused enough problems for everyone in the room. 

Eddie's voice turned somber as he uttered, “So, this is it?” A sense of defeat washed over him.

“We’ve been doing it for the past five years, why should it change now?”

Because I want you. 

Because I haven’t been able to do that for the past five years either. 

Because I could never stay away from you. 

Because it has always been you, from the moment we met. 

Because I love you. Always have, always will.

Was what he should’ve said, some grand speech, something to sweep you off your feet, something to change your mind. Anything. So he wouldn’t lose you again, so you could finally realize how much he cared about you, how much he would always care about you.

But nothing came out of his trembling lips, not even a sound.

He stood there, feeling as if time froze around him. Like he was stuck, everything around him moved, but he didn’t, he couldn’t.

He watched you go back to Steve. Steve comfortably threw an arm around your shoulder and let you know that you could stay here with him and that he would drive you to The Hideout tonight.

And it should have been him. Him, who offered to take you to his place. Him, you spent the rest of your day with.

Him, who you ran off to whenever you felt sad or when your heart was broken. He couldn’t accept that he was no longer the one you ran to, but the one who caused all of it. 

✦ final authors note — OKAY. so please let me know if u want flashbacks in the next chapter bc thats what i had in mind but idk how yall feel abt flashbacks but i swear they will reveal A LOT LMAO.

also please interact/reblog/like or give me any feedback to support me ily &lt;3

permanent taglist (lmk if u want to be added): @mandyjo8719 @kellsck @batkin028 @hideoutside @sashaphantomhive @nabiiturner @andvys (ILY.) @siriuslysmoking @plk-18 @emxxblog @babyloutattoo89 @micheledawn1975 @sole-screws @joannamuns9n @trixyvixx @fangirling-4-ever @browneyes528

[just-my-latest-hyperfixation]

Break it first

Written for the @steddieholidaydrabbles, day 2

Prompt: Came back wrong

Rated: M

CW: Mind control/brainwashing; Possessive behavior; Referenced character death; Aftermath of trauma; Aftermath of injury; Kidnapping

Tags: Kas!Eddie Munson; Dark Eddie Munson

Notes: So, I already had a fill for this prompt, but then @house-of-the-moving-image showed me this stunning piece of art and my brain broke like Steve's. We both have a bunch of other fills coming up for this challenge, quite a few of them collabs, and I'm so, so stoked to share!!! ❤️

He still remembers how fragile Steve looked. 

They were in the boat house, Steve and Eddie. The others had gone out for supplies, but Steve had insisted on hanging back. Eddie hadn’t protested, even though the thought made his heart rabbit. 

The second they were alone, Steve let himself slide down the wall and curled into a ball on the floor, face hidden between hunched knees, shaking hands clawing at his own temples. 

“Hey, man!” Eddie jumped in alarm. “You okay?” 

Steve took a while to reply. 

“Fine,” he claimed, but his smile was a tense thing in a too-pale face. “Just headaches. Been getting them a lot. Robin thinks it's 'cause I got knocked around a few times too many." 

Eddie quirked an eyebrow, pulled a strand of hair in front of his face. "That … happen often in your line of business?" 

And Steve told him. 

About fighting monsters with nothing but a nail bat. About Billy Hargrove. About Russian torture chambers and the headaches and the nightmares and the ringing in his right ear that never really went away. He looked so young, so beautiful, so broken. Eddie wanted to scoop him up and put him back together and hold him close so that nothing would ever hurt him again. 

But he didn't. 

Instead, he watched. 

Watched how Steve squared his shoulders and put on a brave face for the kids. Watched as Steve threw himself to the front lines so that others wouldn’t have to. Watched as Steve got choked and torn apart, that golden skin painted in new scars, and told everyone not to worry, he was fine.

Eddie watched and Eddie didn't do a thing. 

Because Eddie was weak. 

Eddie was a coward.

It's a good thing he's dead. 

*

Steve is still the one to throw himself into danger first. That's good. It makes it easy to catch him alone. 

"You still have the scar on your neck …" 

A flick of his wrist and the bats scatter into the clouds. Steve curses, scrambles to his knees, gropes for his fallen weapon- and freezes as he cradles his face in both hands, tilting his head up. 

"... Eddie?" 

"Not quite," he hums, sharp claws carding through soft hair. "I have his body and his memories, that's all. The name's Kas. I've been dying to meet you, sweet thing." 

Those caramel eyes go wide. Steve tenses under his hands, tries to scramble away. That's okay, to be expected. He tightens his grip. Steve gasps as the vines on the ground wrap around his wrists and ankles. 

"What are you-?" 

"Sssh…" he brings their foreheads together, softly, slowly. Lets his mind wiggle inside the boy's, just a sliver at first, so he won't notice. Finds a crack, fine as a hairline, slips inside. Waits. "He was so in love with you, y'know that? It ate him alive, watching you sacrifice yourself over and over again. Seeing you suffer. Being unable to help, being unable to fix it." 

Steve's mind flutters like a frightened bird as he encases it with his, gently, carefully. His arms twitch in their restraints, trying to break free.

He smiles. Always the fighter, his sweet boy.

"Dont worry," he coos. “I’ve got it all figured out now sweetheart. I’ll fix everything, promise." 

"Eddie, wait-" Steve's mind flails. Realizes it's trapped, panicks, tries to break free- 

And he pounces. 

Steve struggles, briefly, but he doesn’t stand the ghost of a chance. He's human, and humans are weak. All it takes is a little pressure, and the tiny crack opens wide, welcoming him in. 

Steve screams.

"I know, sweet thing, I know," he coos, curls himself around the boy's spasming body as he digs in deeper. "It'll only hurt for a moment. You'll feel so much better after."

He sees them now, the scars on that beautiful mind, the traces left by years and years of hurt. Sees how to fix them, sees what Eddie could never have seen. What Eddie was too soft, too cowardly to understand.

Sometimes, to fix something, you need to break it first. 

And he does.

Tears at the cracks of that mind until it comes apart at the seams, shatters the fragments into so many tiny shards, grinds what is left into fine, fine dust. Steve screams and sobs and begs him to stop until his voice breaks. By the time the dust is ready to be molded back into shape, he is silent, bar for the occasional whimper.

He tells the vines to release their hold, cradles the limp body against his chest. He hums softly and kisses the tears from under the boy's unblinking eyes while he completes his work. He takes his time. This needs to be perfect. 

"You with me, darling?" 

Steve hums against the crook of his neck, so softly he nearly misses it. 

When he looks down, those pretty eyes are blinking up at him, wide and wondrous like those of a newborn. 

He chuckles. It's true in a way. 

"Feeling all better?" he asks, claws softly tracing the shell of his boy's right ear. "Ringing should be gone?" 

Steve doesn’t reply, just slips his eyes shut and nuzzles closer, every movement slow and sluggish. 

He coos.

"Aw, sweetheart. You must be exhausted, that was a lot to take." He gently scratches at Steve's scalp, revels in the little sigh it gets him. "Don't worry. From now on, nothing's gonna hurt you ever again. I'll make sure of it." 

Steve stirs a little at the soft press of lips against his forehead. His lids flutter, but they don’t open.

"That's it, honey, you rest. Let's take you home now." 

By the time he has adjusted Steve's weight so that he can stand and start walking, his boy is fast asleep. 

All of my holiday drabbles

[once-upon-an-imagine]

Teenage Dirtbag - Eddie Munson

A/N: well, this keeps on working so far 😂😂😂 here's Eddie's story! and then is full Marauders, James, then Remus, and then Sirius! I hope you guys like it!

Request - lunamadhatter99 asked: I do have a request, my friend! I'm so happy requests are open😍 Anyway: Henderson!Reader x either Steve or Eddie (whoever works better for you), where the reader is very quiet, not necessarily shy, but still. She's targeted by the jocks too because she's the "loser" sister, you know, and maybe one day, one of their pranks went too far and she's very upset about it (maybe is the process a special possession of hers). Every time she gets bullied, Steve/Eddie helps her comfort her, especially because she doesn't want to tell his little brother, who thinks she is friends with them... does it make sense? I don't know, I'm sorry 😂👋

Warnings: mentions of sex; Billy being an asshole (also, this is kinda between s3 and 4 and Billy didn't die so Jason and Andy are his dumb friends I hope this makes sense) reader is kind of mean to Dustin (not really, she's just grumpy and a loner instead of shy, kind of like Kat in 10TIHAY)

Disclaimer: I don’t own Stranger Things :) gif isn’t mine :D  

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

Teenage Dirtbag

'Cause I'm just a teenage dirtbag, baby Yeah, I'm just a teenage dirtbag, baby Listen to Iron Maiden, baby, with me, ooh

“DUSTIN! Hurry up! Steve is gonna be here any second! We’re gonna be late!” you smashed your hand against the bathroom door, yelling for your brother to get ready. You had been feeling anxious all day. Something inside you told you that today might not be a good day and, as much as you tried not to, you took it out on Dustin.

“I’m coming! Geez, calm down!”

You rolled your eyes and walked over to the kitchen to finish your coffee and wash the dishes but you tripped over a bag full of garbage.

“Ugh! Dustin!” you yelled as he walked over to you.

“What? What did I do now?”

“The trash is your chore” you complained, grabbing the bag and handing it to him. “When I say take out the trash, I mean outside of the house. To the trashcan!”

“Maybe you can show me for next time” he laughed.

“Maybe I can give your Nintendo to goodwill” you smirked back, erasing the smirk off his face.

“Fine, sorry” he said, grabbing the bag and going outside.

“Let’s go!” you said as soon as you heard Steve’s car parking on your driveway.

“Wait, where’s lunch?”

“Oh, shit!” you said, grabbing some of the money you left near the door in case Dustin needed to order food. “Here” you said, grabbing $10 for yourself and giving Dustin $5.

“Why do you get $10 and I get $5?” Dustin complained.

“Take out the freaking trash!” you replied, mocking his exact same tone.

“Good morning, Hendersons!” Steve smiled as you got in the front and Dustin got in the back.

“Thanks for the ride, Steve” you said. “Robin still out of town?” you asked, confused to not see her there already.

“Yeah, she’s coming back next week-”

“Why are we even going this early? School doesn’t start for another hour!” Dustin asked on the ride to school. “And why do you always ride shotgun?”

“Because I’m Steve’s favorite Henderson” you smirked. “And Steve has an early shift, so I wasn’t going to make him wait for us” you explained. “Plus, I have to get together with Nancy for something about the school paper” you informed him.

“Well, I could have taken my bike-”

“Just say thank you, Dustin!”

“Thank you” he said, rolling his eyes a little.

“Hey, aren’t those your old friends?” Dustin asked as Steve drove into the parking lot. You looked to where he was pointing to see the basketball players hanging outside the school with some of the cheerleaders.

“No” both you and Steve replied at the same time.

“Are you sure?” Dustin asked, confused. He recognized some of them, although he had noticed you never talked to them anymore.

“I’m sure” you said, rolling your eyes. “Just… stay away from them, okay?”

“Okay” he said, unconvinced. “Um, are we having movie night?” he asked Steve.

“Yeah, my house” he nodded.

“Cool. I think we’re going to Mike’s after school, so I’ll see you there” he told them.

“Okay” you nodded. Dustin started opening his door but you stopped him. “Dusty” you said, making him look confused at you. You rarely called him that anymore. “Nothing… I’ll see you at Steve’s” you told him and he nodded before he got out.

You saw him make his way over to Mike, Will, Lucas, Max, and El and you heard him complain about you and all of them saying how you used to be fun and happy all the time. You let out a sigh of frustration, throwing your head back on the chair.

“You know, you could just… tell him” Steve shrugged.

“I’m good” you told him.

“Dustin’s just worried about you” he insisted. “And to be honest, so am I-”

“Harrington, I know my brother’s your best friend now-”

“That’s not true” he glared at you.

“But you were my friend first and you promised we wouldn’t discuss this with Dustin” you told him.

“I’m just… a little confused, okay? Why did you all of the sudden stop hanging out with them like, what, a year ago?”

“You did too!” you argued.

“Well, yeah, because they’re assholes-”

“Exactly” you told him.

“But, now you’re here alone, because I graduated, I just don’t want you to be alone-”

“I’m fine on my own” you shrugged. “Plus… Eddie’s my friend-”

“Oh, right… Munson. That’s another thing. I know something happened last Halloween, okay? You mysteriously stop hanging out with all of our friends, you started wearing darker clothes, darker makeup and you start hanging around with Eddie, the freak, Munson-”

“I told you to stop calling him that” you glared at him.

“Which you also hide from Dustin-”

“Well, I just don’t want him to think that the only reason he and his friends are in Hellfire is because I asked Eddie to look after them-”

“But you did-”

“Steve, it is too early in the morning to have this discussion” you said, rubbing your temple.

“Fine… I’ll drop it” he said. “For now” he added, making you glare at him a little. “You working today?”

“No, it’s my day off” you informed him.

“Cool, want me to pick you up after work?”

“You sure it’s not too much trouble?”

“Nah, you’re my favorite Henderson after all” he smirked.

“I knew it!” you said, kissing his cheek before you opened the door. “See you later, Stevie” you said.

“Have a good day, kid” he waved at you.

He noticed you walking close to the group of jocks and they yelled something at you but you simply flipped them off and kept walking. Steve felt a bit uneasy about it but decided he would ask you about it when he picked you up. Sooner or later, you had to talk to him.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

“Hey, princess” you felt a small smile, trying to contain the butterflies you felt in your stomach when you heard that voice. You turned around to see Eddie smiling at you.

“Munson, I thought you were standing me up today” you said as he sat at your usual table in the woods, past the bleachers.

“Wouldn’t dream of it, love” he said, sitting in front of you. “What do you got for me today?”

“I forgot to make lunch, so I had to grab something from the vending machine” you said, putting your cigarette out. “So, pretzels, or Reeses Pieces?”

“You just… happened to pick my two favorite things?” he smirked. “If I didn’t know any better, Henderson, I would think you like me” he mocked you.

“Uh-huh, is that a peanut butter and jelly sandwich? And two cokes?” your sked, looking at his bag.

“Grape jelly. Your favorite” he winked at you.

“Huh, if I didn’t know any better, Munson, I would think you like me” you returned the smirk.

“Wanna split it?” he asked and you nodded as you split the three things between the two of you. “So, what are you working on?” he asked, about to grab your sketchbook.

“Nothing!” you quickly said, putting it away before he could get it.

“Oh, that doesn’t sound suspicious��at all” he mocked you. “Come on, show me!”

“It’s just… a work in progress” you told him. “It’s not finished yet” you insisted.

“Fine, be all mysterious” he chuckled. “Hey, did you get new colored pencils?” he asked, grabbing one of them.

“Oh, um… y-yeah” you said nervously. “There was a discount at the store where I work and-”

“Really?” he raised his eyebrow at you. “Or were your old ones… broken?”

“Um… there may have been an… incident-”

“Who?” he asked, his tone turning angry.

“It doesn’t matter, Eddie-”

“Yes, it does! Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Because I don’t want you to get into a fight and not graduate with me this year” you told him, making him laugh just barely. “Look, it’s fine. I really did get a discount and…” you said, looking through your bag. “I got markers too” you smiled brightly at him. “Look!”

You stood from your place and sat down on the table with your feet on the bench next to Eddie. You grabbed his hand and placed it on your knee, which was not an uncommon thing for you to do whenever you drew something on him but he felt his cheeks blushing. You quickly drew a small doodle of the Hellfire symbol using different colors and you smiled when you were done, showing it to him. Eddie rarely get to see that smile on you and he loved it when it happened.

“Holy shit!” he smiled, looking down at his hand. It looked cooler than the one in his shirt.

“Do you like it?” you asked, bashfully.

“I love it, princess! This is amazing!” he said, looking back at you. “You’re amazing” he smiled.

“Um, thanks” you said, looking down at his hand and feeling your cheeks burn. You could not ignore the butterflies in your stomach any longer. You grabbed his hand and stroked your thumb against your new drawing. “Uh, a-actually, what I didn’t want to show you is um… kind of… a surprise…” you admitted, not facing him.

You saw Eddie’s hand untangle from yours and make its way up to your chin, lifting your head gently and making you look into his beautiful, chocolate-brown eyes.

“A surprise?” he asked, smiling brightly. You simply nodded, unable to form any words by the way he was looking at you. “What is it?”

“If I told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise!” you chuckled. “I just want to finish it before I show it to you” you told him.

“Okay, fine” he said, as his hand suddenly found its way back to yours and you started playing with his rings. “But… you promise you’ll show it to me when it’s done?”

“I promise. I mean, it’s kind of… for you” you told him.

“Really?” he asked, and you nodded.

“Yeah, it’s kind of… a thank you” you admitted. “For everything” you added. “Even for my brother and his friends. Thanks for letting them in Hellfire” you told him. “I know they're a bit weird but… I love them and I'm happy they found someone like you” you said.

“My pleasure, princess” he told you. “They’re cool kids” he chuckled. “Especially Dustin” he added. “Although he keeps asking me why I always have different doodles all over me” he chuckled.

“Yeah, he’s pretty smart” you laughed too. “I don’t think it’ll be long before he realizes about us” you said, without really thinking. “I m-mean uh-”

“Us?” Eddie smirked. “And exactly what would he realize?” he asked, getting up and towering a little over you, placing his hands on both your sides. “That we’re friends?” he asked, with the same smirk still plastered on his face.

“Y-yeah, I guess” you said innocently.

“Would he mind?”

“Um- I don’t think so, I just… don’t want him to think that you’re only his friend b-because of me” you explained.

“Oh, he wouldn’t think that” he assured you, as he gently brushed your hair away from your face. “And… what if he thinks there’s something else between us?”

“Is there?” you asked, as you felt him getting closer. And then the bell rang. The stupid bell rang. “Fuck!”

“Ignore that” he pleaded.

“No! We have a Math test” you said, pushing him away and gathering all of your things. “I told you, Eddie, you’re graduating this year, with me. Let’s go!” you threatened him.

“You’re killing me, sweetheart” he said, as you pulled him with you but he was stronger and he pulled you back. “To be continued?” he smirked.

For the first time in what felt like a lifetime, you smiled. It was a different smile, one that you didn’t think you had in you anymore and you could see Eddie noticed it. You leaned in and kissed his cheek.

“To be continued, Munson” you said, before you started pulling him towards the school despite his protests.

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

You were waiting in the parking lot for Steve. As much as you wanted, you were not able to be with Eddie alone the rest of the day. You were hoping to catch him at the end but, as a surprise to no one, he got detention, so here you were.

“Well, if it isn’t my lucky day?”

You cursed under your breath, silently begging for Steve’s car to appear any moment now. But no such luck.

“Hargrove” you sighed. “Oh, if it isn’t Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-dum” you smirked at Jason and Andy, standing with Billy.

“Fancy meeting you here, babe” Billy smirked at you.

“Can’t say the same” you said, trying to walk away but he stepped in front of you. “What do you want, Hargrove?”

“See, I have a question for you” he said. “Andy here, says he saw you coming out of those woods with Eddie fucking Munson” he said, getting closer to you and making you take a step back. “Is that true?”

“I fail to see how that’s any of your business, really” you glared at him.

“Well, for starters, I think Munson can do better” he said, making Andy and Jason laugh.

“Lovely” you rolled your eyes, trying to walk away again but they blocked your way.

“Aw, did I strike a nerve there? Do you have a crush on Munson?” he mocked you.

“Just, leave me alone, Billy-” you said, trying to leave but, you felt your sketchbook being taken from you.

“Oh, what is this?” Jason asked, opening the sketchbook. “Do you write your love letters to that freak here?” he laughed.

“Give that back!” you said, trying to get it back from him.

“Oh, it’s even better than that!” he said, showing your sketches to Billy and Andy who started laughing.

“Give me that!” you said as he tossed it to Billy.

“Looks like you’re a bit obsessed with him, babe” he said, looking at your drawings. “I’m guessing you wouldn’t want anything to happen to this, would you?” he said, tearing a few pages apart.

“Billy, give it back!” you yelled, but he pushed you back, making you fall to the ground, your hands aching when they hit the pavement.

“Whoops, clumsy me” he said, tossing your sketchbook on a nearby water puddle.

“Stop it!” you said, getting up and trying to get to it but Andy pushed you away.

“HEY! WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING!?”

“You want something, freak?” Jason yelled, smirking.

“Oh, speak of the devil” Billy smirked as Eddie approached all of you.

“Get the fuck away from her” he said, making his way over to Billy.

“Why don’t you keep walking and mind your business, freak?”

“You know, I gotta say, even for you, it’s pretty low, three guys against one girl” he smirked, erasing Billy’s.

“You really think it’s worth it? Standing up for that slut-?”

Before Billy could go on, Eddie quickly punched him in the face.

“Eddie!”

“You’re dead, freak!” Jason said, punching Eddie back while Billy got up, laughing.

“Looks, like you got some fire in you, Munson!” he yelled before he punched him too.

“Eddie!” you yelled, trying to get to him but Andy stopped you. “Stop it!”

“You having fun, Munson?” Billy smirked as he landed punches on Eddie before he grabbed him by his jacket. “No one tells me what to do!” he said before he pushed him to the ground again. He then threw himself at Eddie and started landing punch after punch, like a madman. The last time you had seen Billy like this was when he fought Steve and it shook you to your core.

“STOP IT! BILLY, STOP!”

“You really think you traded up, babe?” he smirked, looking at you. “He’s even worse than Harrington!”

“STOP IT, PLEASE!” you said, as tears started welling up in your eyes.

“Aw, you gonna cry, princess?” he said, mocking Eddie’s voice with the last word.

As if your prayers were finally answered, a car reeled in front of you, almost hitting Jason.

“What the fuck, Harrington?” he asked as Steve got out of the car.

“What the fuck is going on here?”

“Come join the party, Harrington” Billy smirked at him, finally letting go of Eddie. “Ready for round two?”

“Yeah, let me just get my friend here” Steve smirked, grabbing his bat out.

“Dude, what the fuck?” Andy said, letting go of you, and slowly walking away with Jason. You quickly ran over to Eddie, pushing Billy aside.

“Ready to go, Hargrove?” Steve said, walking closer to him as he and the other two stepped away.

“You know what? She’s not even fucking worth it” Billy said, throwing one last glare at you. “Let’s just go” he told Jason and Andy as they walked away.

“Eddie! Oh my God, Eddie! Can you hear me?”

“Do I have a concussion or did King Steve Harrington just save my ass?”

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

“Ouch!”

“Sorry, I’m sorry” you apologized, taking the cotton ball away.

You were now in Steve’s kitchen, cleaning Eddie up. You carefully pulled his hair up in a messy bun with your scrunchie so you could see him better. You placed your hand softly on his cheek and your heart broke seeing a big purple bruise printed on his left eye. He looked at you with his huge, deep brown puppy eyes and you had to take a deep breath to not lose it right there because you knew he needed you.

“You okay?” Eddie asked, worriedly.

“M-me? You’re asking if I’m okay? Eddie, Billy and Jason just beat the shit out of you, and you’re asking if I’m okay?”

“First of all, I’d like to think that I handled that with dignity. Secondly, you fell to the ground and that idiot Andy was hurting you” he said, grabbing your hand and tracing his thumb gently on the bruises forming in your arms where Andy grabbed you.

“I’m really sorry, Eddie” you said, coming out in a whisper and tracing your thumb against the now fading drawing you made earlier on his hand. A small tear fell down your cheek and Eddie quickly wiped it away before he cupped your cheek.

“Princess, you have nothing to be sorry for” he assured you.

“Yes, I do! You wouldn’t have gotten hurt if it wasn’t for me” you insisted.

“Hey” he said, pulling you closer to him. “I would do it all over again, love” he smiled at you.

“Hey, man” Steve said, coming into the kitchen and making you and Eddie jump apart. “Uh, sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I got some clean clothes for you” he said offering Eddie a shirt and some sweatpants.

“Thanks, man” Eddie smiled, grabbing the clothes from him. “I’m uh- gonna go change and I’ll get out of your way-”

“We’re having movie night” Steve blurted out of the sudden. “We’re ordering pizza and Dustin, Mike, and the rest are coming over. If you’d like to stay” he offered.

“Oh, I wouldn’t want to intrude, man-”

“You’re not intruding. It’s the least I can do after you got hit for me” you told him.

“You keep bruising my ego, Henderson” he smirked at you. “What are we watching?” Eddie asked, interested.

“Gremlins” you told him.

“Seriously?” he asked, raising his eyebrow at Steve.

“Don’t look at me, man. It was her turn to choose the movie!” he said pointing at you.

“Shut up, you two. Gremlins is an awesome movie!”

“Isn’t that what you call your brother and his friends?” Eddie laughed. “I didn’t know that was your favorite movie, princess” he said. “Well, how can I say no to that masterpiece and pizza, I really can’t” he said, leaving the kitchen.

“So…” Steve started.

“So?”

“Are we going to talk about what happened today or are we just going to pretend nothing happened?”

“What do you want me to say?”

“Well, you can choose between telling me why your sketchbook has smudgy drawings of Eddie” he said, opening your wet, torn, destroyed sketchbook. “Or why Hargrove and his friends were beating the shit out of him in the parking lot” he added.

“Steve, I don’t want to talk about it-”

“Well, tough. Look, we’ve been friends for a very long time now. I told you why I stopped talking to Tommy and Carol and all of our friends but you never told me why you did and somehow Munson knows!” he argued. “I get that you don’t tell Dustin everything because you want to protect him but what is so horrible that you couldn’t tell me?”

“You don’t want to know-”

“Yes, I do! You’re my best friend! You can tell me anything!”

“You’re gonna hate me!”

“What? No! I swear, okay? Nothing you say will make me hate you! We’ve been through enough shit that you should know that already-”

“I slept with Billy!” you blurted out.

“W-what?” Steve asked, hoping he hadn’t heard you right.

“What?” another voice asked, from another side of the kitchen. Dustin.

“Oh, you have to be fucking kidding me!” you said, feeling like you were going to throw up. “What are you doing here?”

“We all just got here, I was looking for you” he said, walking closer to you and Steve. “You slept with Billy Hargrove, what the fuck is wrong with you?”

“Dustin!” Steve warned.

“You know what? I don’t want to deal with this right now” you said, grabbing your damped sketchbook and walking out of the house to Steve’s backyard. Dustin was about to follow you but Steve stopped him.

“Look, I get that you’re upset but you’re not going out there if you’re only going to upset your sister more. She had a hard day-”

“Well, how would I know that, Steve? She doesn’t talk to me!”

“What’s with all the yelling?” Eddie said, coming back into the kitchen.

“Eddie? What are you doing here?” Dustin asked confused. “What the fuck happened to you?”

“Uh- I am…” he looked at Steve, unsure as to what to say.

“Okay, what the fuck is going on? And what are you two and my sister hiding from me?”

“We’re not hiding anything from you. You need to calm down and we can go sort this out, okay?”

“Fine” Dustin said, unconvinced.

“You promise you won’t snap at her like you just did” Steve glared at him a little.

“Okay” he sighed, rolling his eyes. The three of them walked outside to find you sitting on one of Steve’s pool chairs. Steve and Eddie sat next to you and Dustin sat on the edge of the one you were sitting in. “Uh, hey” he said, nervously. “Um-” he continued when both Steve and Eddie glared at him. “I’m sorry I snapped at you earlier” he muttered.

“It’s fine, Dusty” you said, sitting up and hugging your legs to you.

“Look, Dustin and I are just worried about you” Steve continued. “We don’t want to push you or anything, we just… want to know what’s going on with you” he added. You looked up at Eddie and he softly nodded at you. He really wanted to hold your hand but he figured Dustin might freak out about it too.

“Um…” you took a deep breath. “Look, I know that… I’ve kind of been pulling away” you started. “And I’m sorry, it’s just…” you sighed. “It was a stupid mistake and I didn’t want either one of you to hate me” you admitted.

“What- uh, when?” Dustin stuttered. “Um, no, y-you go” he said.

“It just happened once” you informed them.

“At… last year’s Halloween party?” Steve guessed and you nodded.

“Look, I was… really drunk and, dad had just left and… mom was kind of a mess and… I don’t know, I guess I was too” you said, sadly.

“Wait, I was there that night, why didn’t you tell me anything?” Steve asked, confused.

“You had your own shit going on” you reminded him. “With Nancy” you added. “So, after you left I got drunker and… then I don’t know, Billy was just there and… it happened” you sighed. “And after I felt so awful” you told them. “When I came down I ran into Eddie and he saw I was upset” you explained. “He drove me home and… he stayed with me and he made sure I was okay” you smiled. “That’s how we became friends-”

“You two are friends?” Dustin asked. “I knew I recognized your doodles” he said, looking at the metalhead.

“Sorry I didn’t tell you” you told Dustin. “I just… didn’t want to get into the whole thing and… it’s not really the conversation you have with your little brother” you admitted.

“I get that but… we used to talk about everything” Dustin said, sadly. “We were always kind of a team and for the past year it just felt like… you hated me” he said.

“Dusty” you said, sitting closer to him and hugging him. “I could never hate you” you assured him. “I am so sorry I pushed you away, I was just… so embarrassed about what happened and, I kind of wanted to forget the whole thing and I guess that in the midst of it all I just… ended up pushing everyone away” you explained.

“So, what happened today?” Dustin asked, confused.

“Well, I was waiting for Steve to pick me up and Billy and his friends just started being idiots” you told him. “Eddie saw and tried to help me” you continued. “And then Steve got there with his bat and they went away” you told him.

“So, that’s why you tell me to stay away from them? I mean, I always knew Billy was a dick but… all of your friends?”

“Well, yeah. I told Billy that if he ever said a word about what happened to anyone, I’d tell everyone he cried like a bitch and he had a small dick” you said, making the three of them laugh a little. “And then, either I just stopped talking to them or they would stop talking to me and… it wasn’t just Billy, you know? You were right” you said, looking at Steve. “They were all just… assholes” you admitted.

“I could have told you that a long time ago” Eddie chuckled.

“You okay?” Dustin asked you.

“Yeah” you smiled. “I’m sorry… about… everything” you told him. “Both of you” you said, looking at Steve.

“Don’t worry” Dustin smiled at you. “I love you dumb-dumb” he said, putting his fist so you would bump it.

“Love you too, dumb-dumb” you smiled back and bumped his fist. “No more lies” you promised and he nodded, smiling.

“It’s fine” Steve said, getting up and kissing your head. “C’mon little Henderson, let’s go set everything up” Steve said, patting Dustin on his back.

“Wait, why do I have to go?” he complained, still getting up.

“Just be nice to your sister, man, she’s been through a lot” Steve complained.

“What about me? I have been through a lot too!” he said, dramatically as they went inside, leaving you and Eddie alone.

“Hey” you smiled back at Eddie.

“Hi, princess” he said, moving over to take Dustin’s place in front of you. “How are you feeling?”

“Not so bad” you sighed. “I still would have preferred not to discuss my sex life with my little brother but… it is what it is” you chuckled.

“Sorry about your sketchbook, love” he said, looking at it on the floor.

“It’s okay” you sighed, going through the damped pages. “It just… might take me a little longer to finish your surprise now” you said, sadly.

“Wait, is that… is that me?” he asked, feeling his heart flutter.

“It… was supposed to be” you told him. “I mean, your D&D character” you muttered. “I… wanted to um… I was trying to get it right and I thought you m-might like it-”

“It’s perfect, princess” he smiled at you.

“It’s ruined, Eddie” you chuckled.

“Well, then I guess I need to get you another sketchbook, love” he said, grabbing it from you.

“You don’t have to get me one, Eddie” you smiled as he scootched closer to you.

“Jesus, Henderson would you just let me do something nice for you” he smiled, cupping your cheek with his hand.

“You do nothing but nice things for me, Munson” you smiled.

“What can I say? You bring out the best in me, sweetheart” he smiled back.

“Well, in that case, maybe you can do one more nice thing for me” you said, pulling him by his shirt, well, Steve’s shirt and he pulled you gently, brushing his thumb against your cheek.

“Gladly, princess” he said, smiling before he finally connected his lips with yours. He felt you smiling against his lips as you started deepening the kiss before you were rudely interrupted.

“Hey guys, pizza’s here- what the fuck?” you jumped apart when you heard Dustin’s voice again, with Lucas, Will, and Max standing next to him, trying not to laugh. “You two are together? I thought there were no more lies!”

“Would you believe me that this literally just happened, Henderson?” 

The End

*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*

A/N: hope you loves liked it! :D

[a-strange-inkling]

tell me about hellcheer borgias au?

Ooo just recently came up with the title:

In My Blood

It’s been super fun drafting (and rewatching The Borgias too ❤️). The only “sibling energy”Eddie and Chrissy have is Cesare and Lucrezia sibling energy 😆

I’ve had it in my concept folder for a while. Casting has been tricky aside from Eddie and Chrissy… still on the fence about some choices 🤔

For example, Juan was really tough. I originally thought I wanted him to be Steve, but I’m leaning more toward Billy now. There’s just so much more of a tortured antagonist in Billy, but he still has that charm and magnetic energy. He fits the scenes better. There’s also that possession/madness element that parallels Juan’s addiction.

It won’t follow the plot of The Borgias completely, and some of the roles and canon bloodlines will be altered to better blend the characters from both storylines.

However, the devotion and forbidden love of Cesare and Lucrezia is so natural to write for Eddie and Chrissy, it’s very intense and intoxicating. I don’t remember if I posted a snippet on Tumblr, so just in case:

[medusapelagia]

🧟‍♂️ franken-wips 😎

Rules: post 3-6 sentences of your most recent WIP's, with titles, and people can send you asks for more 3-6 sentence snippets! tag as many people as you want or just use this as a reason to add a few new sentences to your projects!

I was tagged by @hbyrde36 and @cranberrymoons! Thank you so much!

Loathed Enemy

“You want me to come with you? Fuck, Billy, that could be a death sentence! Harringtons are not famous for being kind and welcoming.” That’s true, both the Hargroves and the Harringtons got to the top of the social pyramid killing and perpetrating the worst crimes ever, and now they are the most powerful family: wouldn’t be fun if Billy managed to steal the Harringtons' most cherished possession?

The bridge of sighs

“Are you surprised, little human? I don’t really cook, you know? By meal is always ready to be consumed.” The boy’s hand goes instinctively to his neck “That’s right. Warm and sweet just as I like it, but I can’t take too much or you’ll faint, which is annoying, or you’ll die, which is annoying too because I’ll have to find a new blood bag and I hate it.” The boy glares at him “Believe it or not but our agreement is an inconvenience for me as it is for you.

Put me together again

Steve was there, just a few feet from them, and now he is gone. "We have to follow them." Eddie says, trying to escape from Hopper tight grip "We must find out where they are going to take him and…" "Slow down kid. We can't do anything right now. There is another kid we have to protect and I'm too busy to keep everyone safe to save your sorry ass from doing something stupid! So now we will go back home and we will make a plan."

[Steddie BB]

It's a secret but I'm struggling a little so any help it's really appreciated!

[Stranger Things BB]

Another a secret!

[Steddie Summer exchange]

Guess what? Exactly

my no pressure tags @bilan-igg, @finntheehumaneater, @kallisto-k, @spaceofentropy, @rindecisions and whoever would like to join!

[widowed-mistress]

Story Idea

Okay, so I've been seeing so many new stories of Steve Harrington having powers or him being Finney Blake (both ideas that I love, send me more if you have them), so I want to throw some vague plot ideas and see who picks them in intrest or because they already had a similar idea, but just wanted to know if they had an audience for it because I still can't write dialogue. (Me, I'm your audience, write my little book mice)

1. Steve Harrington has self-healing, but because that's just a constant supply of new fast growth cell, he can focus and give himself extra limbs or accessories that way.

Imagen him playing D&D with the boys and dressing him for the part by giving himself elf ears or horns for a tiefling characters. Imagen him giving his arms and legs long ribbons so he can dance beautifully. Imagen the boys other and justified disgust when he cuts of those parts only for them to bleed because at the end of the day, those were extensions of himself.

2. Imagen him being Finnh Blake, but instead of them finding out through some magic video tape or something (as much as I am in love with those fics that exist), they find out because he's talking to himself one morning and they seem him and think he's going crazy, talking to himself. Only, they look up the names and realize these are real people and unravel the tale.

3. Steve but actually he's Steven Universe that was left on Earth at the start of Era 3 when the gems all left to Homeworld to go fix things there manually and Greg wanted to give him a normal life and had him stay there in Hawkins while he made cash as Sadie's manager. They find out because they've trying to convince a new member (Billy or Eddie, maybe both depending on the ships you like), that monsters are real. The kids have been keeping cameras on themselves since the 1st event to capture the events and see Stev subtly using his powers to help out. Maybe Steve using a bubble to protect himself and Dustin in the tunnels?

4. Steve is Finney Blake, but they find out because Gwen comes to visit after they were separated and he spends a full week only focusing on her (understandable, kidnapped then separated from your younger sister when the two of you were abused? I would be making up for lost time too), and everyone gets jealous only to comfront her when Steve isn't there and she spills some of it and then shenanigans and the rest is discovered.

5. Steve as Finney again, I really like this one, but they find out because Ell is using her powers while at a sleepover at Steve's. She ends up taping into his dreams and they all see him on screen talking to his friends as ghost.

6. Steve and Stevn again, but Ell is also a result of experiments infusing human blood stream with a cluster of gem shards. Steven cries because those are dead members of his court in her, and even though it's not her fault, he feels guilty that they're trapped in her. Also I just really like the mental image of a bunch of pebbles calling Steve "pink mom!" And the kids getting possessive

[prettybillycore]

Stranger Things Have Happened in Hawkins || Harringrove x Reader (1/4)

Pairing(s) in this Part:

Billy Hargrove x Winchester!reader x Steve Harrington 

Dean Winchester x Castiel

Minor Gabriel x Rowena

Minor Steve Harrington x Nancy Wheeler

[ Later Installment: Billy Hargrove x Winchester!reader x Steve Harrington x Eddie Munson ]

Universe: crossover supernatural universe x stranger things universe

Summary: Castiel drops the reader into 1984 to protect her from an angel who wants to kill her. she ends up trapped there and in the middle of a (not so) love triangle between her, Steve, and Billy.

Rating: Teen

Word Count: 10k

Warnings: Swearing, People calling Will and Reader “Freaks”, Canon-Typical Violence, Possessive!Billy, Bully!Tommy, Alcohol, Cigarettes

Read it on AO3 (or here on tumblr, below the cut)

Things never seemed to turn out well for you Winchesters. It was like your Unce Dean always said; people around you ended up dying. 

Biologically speaking, you were the child of archangel Gabriel and Rowena MacLeod, but neither of them was really around at this point in your life. You originally traveled the world with your mother, but she made you help her with spells often. She said you were something special and it was important for you to practice witchcraft from a young age. It was tiresome and boring to you. When your father caught wind of what your mother was making you do, he stole you from her. From there on, you were constantly moving. It was a never-ending cycle of picking a place, your dad teaching you to harness your angelic powers, and then your mom finding you. When she figured out where you were, your dad would move you again. They were in love, but you kept them at odds. You did always feel guilty about that when they were both around.

When your father was killed by Lucifer, he left a video for the Winchester brothers. In it, he detailed how to put Lucifer back in his cage and stop the apocalypse. He also begged the brothers to watch out for you and take care of you. To your dad, going to live with your mom was not an option. Sam was skeptical, but Dean welcomed you with open arms. You and he had bonded over his taste in music when your dad first formed an alliance with the brothers. Sam came to care about you a lot too; as did Castiel. For a few years there, it almost felt like you had a whole little family unit. Though nothing lasts for long with the Winchesters.

Dean took you to live with him, Ben, and Lisa while Sam was gone; the only rule was no using magic in the house. You went to school for the first time and used your magic to charm the people around you. You were just a little queen bee and you had way too much fun messing with the school’s bullies. You were the daughter of a “trickster” after all. To get you into school, Dean gave you a fake name; Y/n Winchester. You weren’t really his kid, but he always tried his best to make you feel like you were. It made your heart feel warm. 

That peace was interrupted when Sam appeared at your house without a soul. Dean pulled you from school, and you began hunting again. It was fine by you really; when Sam and Dean left you alone in motels, it gave you a chance to practice your magic. Sam did get his soul back, but everything, of course, happens at a huge cost for the Winchester brothers. Castiel swallowed all the souls in purgatory, became god, went on a murder spree, and then exploded in a lake. Millions of monsters were now free on the planet again. You got Sam back only to lose Cas, and then you got Cas back only to lose him and Dean again to purgatory… As well as Bobby to the spirit realm. The only good thing that came out of the leviathan period of your life was meeting Kevin Tran.

Kevin quickly became your best friend, he was a little bit older than you, but he was the first person close to your age you felt connected to. You saved him from angels, demons, and everyone else who wanted to get close to him due to his prophet abilities. The angels didn’t have a good idea of who you were until then, but you thought your exposure was worth it. No matter what, you didn’t want to lose Kevin. 

While Dean and Cas were running around Purgatory, Sam left you and Kevin to rot. Dean and Cas had always been more like parents to you than Sam, but he still felt like family. You were devastated when he didn’t come to your aid. When Kevin was taken by Crowley, you tried to find Sam. You had been injured badly by a leviathan and couldn’t keep the king of hell away from your best friend. As soon as you were able, you went looking for the younger Winchester. He and Baby were nowhere to be seen. He had left you at the battle with no weapons and no help. Sam Winchester left you behind. You couldn’t find him because of the spell Castiel put on his bones. You were cursing him under your breath as you went on your own hunt for Kevin. 

It took you about a week to find the prophet and when you did find him, he tackled you into a hug. He almost knocked you over. You sat and cried together at your losses, but eventually moved into hiding. You were not about to let Crowley find him again. You spent the next year together, protecting each other like siblings. You hid in churches and kept yourselves alive by hustling people at the pool. Kevin was happy for you to use your powers, but he was not so fond of stealing, so Dean’s tricks at billiards were coming in quite handy. You bargained for alcohol and snacks from townspeople and you kept yourselves out of daylight as much as you could. You left Sam many messages, but he never responded to you or Kevin. You called him completely drunk one night and just screamed into the phone. “I’m done. I’m done, Sam! You’re the fucking worst. We’re basically kids and I don’t know how to handle this alone. I feel like I’m not enough to protect Kevin on my own. God, you suck so much. I hope you are happy, Sam. I hope you’re really fucking happy wherever you are. If we die out here, it’s gonna be your fucking fault! Screw you!”

Dean was mortified when he and Sam listened to that message for the first time together. “That’s my kid, Sam. Gabriel trusted us to help her and you left her and Kevin to completely fend for themselves… for an entire year!”

Nothing Sam could say would make Dean feel better. Dean had just lost Cas. Benny and he had parted ways, he felt alone… and now you were in danger. Hell, he didn’t even know if you were alive. Dean didn’t speak much to Sam until they found you and Kevin in an old church. The only lights were candles and you were both scrambling to write symbols on the walls. When Dean’s voice called out to you, you didn’t believe it. You were sure it was some kind of mind game or trick by Crowley’s demons to get you to relax. The seconds went by and you realized that you could feel Dean’s energy, that it was really him. You ran to him and hugged him tightly. You felt yourself start to cry. Nothing had been stable or seemed certain for so long, this was the first time you felt like life could get a little bit better.

Of course, Crowley had other plans. He appeared and he killed Kevin’s ex-girlfriend as you all escape his clutches. Kevin cried and you glared at the back of Sam’s head. The brothers took Kevin to a friend’s place so he could continue his prophet work. You continued to travel with the Winchesters. You were still angry at Sam and you felt like you were mourning Cas all over again. Things didn’t look up until you all found the bunker. 

Sam and Dean gave you your own room. Cas came back from purgatory and Kevin came to live with you. Things were starting to feel whole again. Things were quiet until the scribe of God came into your lives. Metatron, in your opinion, was the worst angel you had ever met. You were not afraid to tell him that either. Your common disdain for each other would ultimately lead you to the situations of your current life, but you didn’t take the blame for that. He called you an abomination first. He was really not a big fan of kids born of angels and humans, even though your mother was also a magic-user. He tried to convince Castiel to kill you for the spell they were doing. Cas, of course, wasn’t having any of that. Metatron didn’t care about Castiel’s opinion though, and he kept coming after you. He almost killed you once, leaving you with a rather large gash to your lower abdomen. Kevin and Dean were raging. Sam stitched you up calmly. Castiel was staring at you intensely when he came up with the plan.

“I’m going to take you somewhere safe, Y/n. No one will know of your powers or know where to find you. When it’s safe here and Metatron is off your trail, I’ll bring you back. Do you trust me?”

“I trust you with my life, Cas,” you said, standing up. Sam had just finished your stitches and you were a little off-balance. Dean rushed to help you steady yourself.

“Where are you taking her, Cas?” Dean asked. 

Castiel shook his head. “It’s best if no one knows, that way Metatron can’t try to force the information out of you.” He stuck his hand out towards you. “I promise I’ll keep her safe, Dean.” He looked to you. “I promise you’ll be safe. You’ll be able to rest up and heal where Metatron won’t find you.”

You looked away from Cas and leaned into Dean. You wrapped your arms around him tightly; your hug was almost bone-crushing. He returned the favor and hugged you back. “You better come back to this bunker in one piece, Kid.” He patted you on the shoulder as you pulled away from the hug. “If you don’t, I’ll sell my soul and drag you back here, understand?”

“No selling your soul again, I’ll back be soon, I’m sure of it.” You took Castiel’s hand and closed your eyes.

When you opened them, you were in an older house. The walls were creaking sightly and Castiel was in front of you. He sounded completely out of breath, his chest was expanding and contracting vigorously. “Where are we?”

Cas leaned a hand against the wall. “We are in a small town in Indiana in the year 1984. This house belongs to me and if anyone asks, you’re my daughter. You’re Y/n Winchester. The townspeople here are nice, but try to keep to yourself. You shouldn’t be here long enough to have to worry about school or anyone becoming too suspicious.”

You shot him a confused look. “Why do you own a house in 1984? How do you own a house in 1984? Why did–”

But the sound of fluttering wings cut you off. Castiel was gone.

| < ♥️ > |

Eventually, you decided to leave the safety of your temporary home so you could get food and supplies. You had no idea how long you would be here, but you didn’t want to starve to death while waiting for Cas. You really did believe that he would come back for you. While in the shopping process, you met a sweet boy named Jonathan and the chief of police, Jim Hopper. Jonathan offered to give you a tour of the town sometime when you told him you had just moved in and gave you the number for his house phone so you could reach him. He seemed to be genuine, though you were still nervous to trust him. Jim Hopper approached you when he heard you tell Jonathan that you were Castiel’s child. He apparently knew Cas and offered to help carry your groceries back to your new ride. It wasn’t Baby, but it sure as hell could have been. It was a 1967 four-door Chevy Impala. You were really starting to wonder what all of this was for when Hopper slammed the trunk of your car shut. “Your dad give you the car? It looks like it’s in great condition.”

You smiled at the compliment. Dean would be proud. “Yeah, he did. It was his b– partner’s car. You could say it’s a family keepsake at this point. She’s a little older, but everything is in perfect working order. I gave her a little tune-up the other day.”

“Yeah, Cas has told me some about his partner, though I don’t know them. I’ve never seen them around.”

You nodded. You had no idea what Hopper’s stance was on gay couples, and since you had just met him, you weren’t about to find out. “Yeah, ahh… They’re pretty sick at the moment. My dad is visiting them up at a big hospital in Kansas, I was there up until a few days ago, but my dad really wants me to start getting more settled.”

“Sorry to hear that, Kid.” 

The nickname reminded you of Dean and your heart almost exploded. “I’m sure everything will work out okay.”

“Are you staying home by yourself a lot?”

You nodded again. “Yeah. I understand it though, my dad’s got a lot on his plate right now.”

Hopper reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card. “If anything ever happens where you feel unsafe, here’s my contact information. And also, the kid you were talking to a while ago, Jonathan? He’s the son of a good friend of mine. If you need a friend, he’s probably a good one to have.”

You took the card from him and gave him another smile before walking toward the driver’s door. “I appreciate it, Hopper. Thank you!”

“Of course, take care now. Welcome to Hawkins.”

| < ♥️ > |

You lied to Jonathan and said that you were getting settled before registering for school. He seemed to buy your excuse, but he still told you that you should come to a local high school’s Halloween party. You were incredibly hesitant. It was going to be the first time you met anyone outside of Hopper and Jonathan. You knew that you were getting lonely. You never had a big group of friends before, but you did always have a big group of people, of family around you. Having none of them now made you feel stuck and isolated. Cas didn’t give you much direction on what you were supposed to do while you were here and you had already been trapped in 1984 longer than you originally thought you were going to be. 

Jonathan could see the stress in your expression. “You don’t have to, obviously, but I think it could be good for you! I’ll probably be stopping by at some point during the night and I could introduce you to my friend, Nancy.” Ah yes, Nancy.

You could tell that Jonathan had many feelings for Nancy. However, you also knew from Jonathan that Nancy was dating a boy named Steve. Jonathan didn’t seem very fond of this Steve character. Though, you weren’t sure if it was because there was something wrong with him or if it was just because he was dating Nancy. “I’ll think about it, alright? If I do decide to go I’ll wait for you outside. I’m sure there will be enough going on outside to keep me entertained until we find each other.”

He smiled at you. “Alright. I’m good with that. Don’t feel like you have to go if you really don’t want to, though. I can tell you’re not used to parties or like– the social parts of high school.”

You laughed a little bit. The porch steps creaked under you as you moved. “Yeah, I guess you could say that.”

Jonathan shifted his weight and stretched his legs out to a few steps down. You two had chosen to sit on the porch just because the weather was cool and it felt wonderful, but there were no chairs. The steps were a bit uncomfortable, but at the same time, you both didn’t seem to mind. “What? Was that too mean?”

You shook your head. “Oh no, not at all. I just found your wording kinda funny. You’re right. I don’t really get the whole teenage socialization thing because I was pulled from regular school after elementary. Becoming friends with you is the first time I’ve had a friend my age in a long while. My next closest-in-age friend is back in Kansas and he’s a few years older than me. I’m still kinda figuring this sort of stuff out.”

He nodded. “Well, I’m happy we’re friends. You’re a refreshing person to be around. Everyone in this place kinda sucks, other than my family and Nancy.”

“Don’t small towns always kind of suck though?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I guess they do.”

“I like being your friend too, Jonathan. It’s nice to have the company with my family being gone so much.”

“Well, you know if you ever need anything, I’m only a phone call away. You should also totally come over for dinner sometime. My mom and brother would love you.”

The offer made your heart feel warm and fuzzy. “Yeah, I’d like to do that sometime. That sounds really nice.”

He looked at the watch on his wrist. The time it said caused him to let out a long sigh. “Speaking of dinner, I need to head home now if I’m going to make it on time. Sorry.”

He started to stand up and you quickly followed. “No, don’t apologize. You’re good. Tell your family I say hello and I would love to meet them sometime.”

He started to walk down the stairs. You watched him from the top of the porch. “Yeah, I will! Night, Y/n.”

“Night, Jonathan!” 

| < ♥️ > |

Your car felt a lot louder than you had ever perceived it to be as you drove up to the Halloween party. People who were hanging out on the porch and in the yard began to stare in your direction as the engine roared to a halt. No one ever seemed to pay that much attention to Baby when you were riding with Sam and Dean. You thought maybe it was because this was a small town and they had never seen you before. You were wearing a very simple costume made entirely with stuff you found in the house and a few things from the general store. You had on a black leather jacket; it was quite old and oversized, the pair of black jeans you were wearing when you arrived in Hawkins, and general black combat boots. You cropped a Metallica t-shirt (that was obviously meant for Dean) and made a headband with little devil horns on it. You had never been to a high school party before, but you doubted that many of the kids were going to be in full-on cosplay. From what you understood, these parties were more about hanging out and getting wasted. You tried not to let the stares bother you as you exited the car and tossed the keys into your pocket. It appeared that Jonathan wasn’t here yet, but you were hoping that he would be here soon. You let out a deep sigh as you walked more toward the middle of the yard and scanned the crowd for Jonathan. Someone else already had their eyes on you though.

He was tall and muscular. His chest was bare and his mullet was slightly matted to his skin due to sweat. You really were in the 80s, it was like something out of a movie you had seen with Dean. He was walking toward you, waving off his friends; telling them to stay behind by the keg. His pupils were constricting and his smile was a little lopsided. It was a sight you were quite familiar with having lived with the Winchesters; he was drunk out of his mind. “Hey there, Sweetheart. I’ve never seen you around here before.”

His voice was gravelly yet oddly smooth and his words were a lot more put together than you were expecting them to be. You crossed your arms over your chest. “Yeah, that’s because I’m new to Hawkins. Just moved.”

“Really?” He asked. He took the cigarette from his hand and stuck it between his teeth. “What a small world. I just moved here too. A little shithole isn’t it, Hawkins?” 

The smoke smell it your face as he breathed out, even though he tilted his head away from you. It wasn’t an unfamiliar smell. You did your best to ignore it. He’s from a different time; cigarettes were a lot more commonly accepted in 1984. You shrugged in response. “I mean it’s small, but I don’t know. It’s kind of interesting.”

“What do you find interesting about it?”

You smirked a bit. “I don’t know, the people seem pretty interesting to me.” You stuck your hand out toward him. “I’m Y/n. You are?”

He chuckled a bit, but he accepted your hand. He shook it gently. “Billy, Billy Hargrove.” He brought your hand up to his lips and kissed the top of it. “Why don’t you party with me tonight, Y/n?”

You quirked your eyebrow. “Sounds sinister.”

He let go of your hand gently. He raised his arms to his sides. “Nothing sinister, just– you’re the most interesting person I’ve met since being dragged to this hellhole. Maybe we could go for a ride in that sweet ride of yours and get to know each other better.”

You looked behind you for a brief moment at Baby. You smiled at the thought, but shook your head. “You are drunk off your ass, Billy Hargrove. I’d rather not be alone with a drunk guy I just met, you know, for safety… But I’ll tell you what. This weekend let’s do that. I’ll give you my number.” You knew you would actually have to talk to him on the phone if he called you, since there are no cell phones, but you thought you could manage. The house phone worked; you had already talked to Jonathan about it. 

He smiled brightly. “Alright, deal.” He reached into the pocket of his jeans and pulled out a sharpie. He handed it to you and rolled up his jacket sleeve. “All yours, Doll.”

You did have to admit, he was charming as all hell and the idea of him asking you to write your number on his skin was kind of hot. You grabbed his wrist and scrawled your number across his forearm. He started to pull back, but you stopped him. “Can I write one more thing?” 

“Go right ahead, Sweetheart. Whatever makes you happy.”

You laughed a little at the gesture and wrote under his number; if found, please return to Y/n.

“Perfect.”

He laughed and took the marker from you. “What was that for?”

“You seem just like my type, Hargrove and if I’m right, a lot of girls will flirt with you tonight. Just thought it might deter them a little bit.” 

He licked his lips. “So is this drive a date then?”

“If you want it to be, I’m willing to give it a chance.”

“It’s a date then.”

“Fantastic. Call me when you’re sober.”

“Darling–” Billy was cut off by the sound of Jonathan’s voice breaking through the crowd and his hand finding itself on your shoulder. 

“I’ve been looking all over for you.” He was soon standing next to you, his hand stayed firmly in its place. Another guy and a curly-headed girl walked up to you as well. You looked past Billy to see a few of his friends approaching from the keg. Probably all not good developments.

“I’ve been outside. Met this guy, Billy.”

Jonathan sighed. “Yeah, I see that.” He looked to the others for help. “I wanted to introduce you to Steve and Nancy. They are pretty good people. Billy, I’m not so sure about.”

You raised your eyebrows in surprise. “I mean, our conversation went well.”

Steve stepped between you and Billy. “Come on, Hargrove, really? Chasing after the new girl? You have plenty of other people you could go bother.”

“What’s your problem, Harrington? You’ve never met her before. I can’t be nice to her?”

“You’re only nice to people when you want something from them,” Steve slightly snapped. You weren’t surprised, every guy you had fallen for while traveling with the Winchesters was a dick with hands and a pretty smile. 

You quickly freed yourself from Jonathan’s hand and placed yourself between Steve and Billy. You put a hand on both of their chests and gently pushed. “Listen, I appreciate the concern Steve, but we’ve never met and I promise you I can handle myself. If he tries anything I don’t like, I absolutely have the power to kick his ass.” You looked toward Billy. The smug look dropped off his face when he saw your expression. “Genuinely I could see something coming from our conversation, but not if you pick fights with Jonathan or his friends. Sweet talkin’ and a pretty face will only get you so far with me if my friends can’t stand you.”

He took a step back and you dropped your hands to your sides. “Sorry, Doll.”

“We got ourselves a new keg king, Harrington!” Billy’s friends had made their way through the crowd. 

“Yeah! Eat it, Harrington!”

Steve whipped off his sunglasses, which you were now starting to question the purpose of to begin with. Nancy rolled her eyes at the interaction and began walking toward the house. You understood what Jonathan was saying now. She seemed lovely; she was dressed cutely and had a kind demeanor, but she was clearly unhappy in her relationship with Steve. He seemed like a great guy; fun, ex-party boy, and protective. Something in their chemistry was off balance. Even if they were good for each other at one point, they weren’t now. Jonathan’s eyes were trailing after her before he made eye contact with you. “You can go inside Jonathan. I’ll meet you there in a minute.”

“Are you sure?” He asked.

You smiled softly at him. “Yeah, I’m sure. I’ll be in with Steve in a minute.”

He nodded before quickly following in Nancy’s path. “This is ridiculous, Tommy. Grow up for once.”

“You’re the one who abandoned your friends for the princess.”

Steve rolled his eyes. “You guys suck. Alright? You treat no one with respect.”

“You can ask Y/n, I was respectful to her just now,” Billy cut in. He was expecting you to flirt back. 

“Don’t drag me into your pissing contest.” You crossed your arms back over your chest. You watched his face carefully and gave him a stern look. You turned your attention back to Steve and Tommy. “You’re all acting like children. If you really don’t like each other that much, stop interacting. You’re just bringing down your own vibes.” 

Tommy chuckled. “You have no idea what you’re talking about. What, New Girl? Scared of being alone with a bunch of guys without your precious Byers Boy?”

You stepped forward slightly. “Oh? I don’t know what I’m talking about?” You smirked at him. “Your name’s Tommy, right?”

He was eyeing you cautiously, but he played into your conversation. “Yeah, it is.”

“You’re a jock. Not great at school, but that’s okay, right? You have your sport, I’m guessing basketball, but no. ‘Cause, you’re not actually very good at sports either. You end up settling on class clown and you seem to fit that role, though it never gives you the popularity levels that you want, does it? That’s why you were Steve’s friend and I’m guessing disapprove of his relationship with Nancy. You saw Steve as a king, as the most popular guy you knew. Then he started dating Nancy and becoming a better person. You didn’t like that and took every opportunity to make fun of him for his relationship. Eventually, that was the downfall of your friendship and you weren’t sure how to stay relevant. Until…” Your eyes briefly met Billy’s, “Billy Hargrove rolled into town. Now, you cling to him, just like you did Steve because he is everything you see yourself lacking; talent, looks, and a swarm of girls. You are desperate to figure out what makes people like Steve and Billy popular without ever asking yourself what makes you unpopular. I know exactly what you are Tommy; you’re a guy who’s peaking in high school, and even at your peak you’re a shitty person… but like I said; I’m just guessing here.”

The group was all quiet until Billy couldn’t hold in his laughter anymore. Steve also chuckled, though his surprise kept him in check. “Shit, Hagan. She just met you and she nailed your coffin shut–” Billy said through his laughter. 

Tommy didn’t find it so funny though. He rushed you and grabbed the material of your crop top. He grabbed so much of the fabric that your stomach was showing from the edge of your jeans, all the way up to the bottom of your chest. “You bitch! You don’t–” 

Tommy didn’t see what hit him; you almost didn’t either. Steve grabbed your upper arms and yanked you out of Tommy’s grip. At the same time, Billy pulled Tommy by his collar until he was away from you. Billy then threw Tommy to the ground, he hit it with a large, loud thunk. The whole situation caught you off guard. Steve and Billy– boys you just met– were protecting you from someone that you just met? If they hadn’t stepped in, you would have been fine; you were raised by Dean after all. The thought that someone thought you were worth protecting made your heart warm. Billy grabbed Tommy by the collar of his shirt. His back was hovering above the ground, Billy had him trapped. Steve also had you trapped; his grip on your arms didn’t loosen up any. “How do you like being picked up by your shirt? Sucks doesn’t it? Doesn’t it?”

“Y-yeah! It does.” Tommy was frozen. You almost felt bad for him. You called him out hard and when he tried to react he’s attacked by Billy. Almost.

 “You don’t attack people you just met, Hagan. Basic rules, you son of a bitch. Especially not my girl you just met? You disrespect her, you disrespect me? Understand?” You could feel Steve’s anxiety, you placed one of your hands over his. Billy had his eyes focused solely on Tommy. The boy on the ground looked like he saw his life flash before his eyes. 

“What’s gotten into–”

“I said– do you understand?”

The words were low and you could barely hear them over all the party noise. They sent a chill down your spine. “I understand, Hargrove.”

Billy dropped Tommy and stood back up. His gaze turned to you. He didn’t seem incredibly happy with you, even though he had been laughing with you earlier. “Doll, you are incredible at making enemies. You’ve been at this party for what? 15 minutes.”

“What can I say, I have an affinity for putting assholes in their place.” He smirked at that. The tension started to leave his body language. 

“What are you going to do about me then?” 

“I can outdrink you any day.”

He laughed. “I doubt that.”

“I don’t.”

Steve let go of your arms and set one of his hands on your shoulder. “Come on, Y/n. Let’s get back to Jonathan and Nancy.”

You looked between Steve and Billy’s faces. You let out a sigh. You could tell Steve wasn’t going to let you challenge Billy to a drinking contest. It was a sweet gesture, he had no way of knowing that you were an angel and it took many gallons of alcohol to get you drunk. “Fineeee… I’ll see you later, Billy. Thank you, really.”

“Anytime, sweetheart,” he replied with a wink. Steve aimed you toward the house and you left Billy out in the yard to deal with Tommy and the rest of his friends. 

Steve’s attention quickly switched from you to Nancy; who was in the kitchen downing something from a red solo cup. Jonathan was talking to her, clearly worried about her actions. Steve quickly cut through all the people and took the cup from her hand. It wasn’t long until they were arguing. You gestured to Jonathan to step out of the conversation. You both leaned against a nearby wall. “Has Nancy always been a drinker?”

Jonathan shook his head. “No, I’m not sure if she’s ever even had alcohol before.”

“That’s… concerning.”

“Yeah, very.”

You two did not try to hide the fact that you were watching Steve and Nancy’s interaction through the crowd. Jonathan’s attention only turned back to you when the couple went up to the bathroom. The poor boy was definitely in love. “So what happened outside?”

You sighed. “I was a bit of a bitch to Tommy Hagan and he tried to attack me. Billy and Steve stopped him. I could have handled it myself, but the gesture was very sweet.”

Jonathan blinked in surprise. “I’m sorry, did you just say Steve and Billy worked together?”

“Uhhh… Yeah? Surprising?”

“Yeah, that’s a first.” 

“I seem to have a tendency to break things everywhere I go.”

Jonathan furrowed his eyebrows. “What do you mean?”

“Egos, social norms, friendships, and enemies— they all seem to break or fall apart or change dynamics when I come into the picture. I have a destabilizing effect I suppose.”

“Wanna do me a favor and destabilize Nancy and Steve’s relationship.” His tone was full of humor, but you could tell that he was, not in fact, joking. 

“Damn… didn’t take you as the homewrecking type, Jonathan,” you teased. 

“Oh! Sorry, I–”

You waved off his reaction. “Don’t be sorry. You can share how you really feel with me. Besides, I don’t think you need my help with that. They are destabilizing all on their own.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Since I’ve met them, they’ve only been distant or fighting. That doesn’t exactly scream ‘happy couple’ to me. Does it to you?”

He shook his head. “I guess you have a point there.”

| < ♥️ > |

You and Jonathan weren’t at the party together much longer. Nancy and Steve got into a big fight while they were upstairs. You weren’t sure what happened, but you could tell it wasn’t good. The two of them rode together, but Jonathan ended up taking Nancy home. Steve was about to get in his car, but you followed him out of the party. “Harrington!” You called.

He looked up as he was fiddling with his keys as he looked up at you. “Yeah, a friend of Jonathan?” 

“Y/n.”

“Yeah, Y/n?” He asked as you reached the passenger side of his car. 

“Have you had anything to drink?”

He shrugged. “Only a little.”

“A little is still alcohol intake, Harrington. Do you want a ride? I can bring you back in the morning for your car.”

He breathed deeply. You could tell he was thinking about your offer. “Have you had anything?” 

You shook your head. “Not a drop.”

“That’s a big difference from challenging Hargrove to a drinking contest.”

“You stopped me from doing that and the punch inside wasn’t exactly… good looking?”

“Fair enough, thanks for the ride. You’re the impala, right?”

You smiled. “Yeah. How’d you know?”

“Seems very you.”

“I’m honored that you think so highly of me, Harrington.”

“Steve.”

“Steve.”

| < ♥️ > |

The ride was quiet and Steve offered for you to stay the night in the guestroom at his place so that you didn’t have to come back to get him in the morning. You figured that it was unlikely that Castiel was going to come back for you in the next few hours, so you accepted the offer. When you reached the house, Steve walked to the fridge and pulled two bottles of water out. He tossed one to you before flopping onto the couch. His face was planted in the cushions and the water bottle was discarded to the floor. You felt bad for him, you could tell that he was mentally going through it. You sat down on the floor, your back against the couch. “What happened?”

“Huh?” the sound was incredibly muffled, but you understood enough of it to realize that it was a question.

“What happened between you and Nancy tonight? You don’t have to tell me if you’re not comfortable, but I figured that you might want to talk about it.”

He turned so he was facing outward. You looked toward him. His expression was pained and tired. “She said we’re bullshit.”

“What?”

“She was incredibly drunk and she said that I was bullshit. That we were bullshit. We didn’t break up, but I don’t exactly know how to come back from that sort of thing. It hurt so much because I don’t think she’s in love with me in the same way that I’m in love with her. Did she ever love me?”

Your heart broke for him. He seemed so genuinely sad and vulnerable. “Steve, look. I just met you today, but you and Nancy both seem like wonderful people. You seem like a good guy. She seems smart and collected, but what did she say to you? Completely uncalled for and mean. Even if you did something wrong that I don’t know about, Nancy said something really crushing while drunk. I don’t know how she feels, but I can see that you love and care for her. When you’re both sober you can have a conversation about it. If you both think that the relationship is worth working on; fantastic. But if you don’t, if you do end up breaking up, you can take time to heal and then find someone else to love. I can tell by how you’re talking you have a lot of love in your heart, Steve. You deserve someone who returns that.”

He stayed quiet for a moment, but he eventually gave you a response. “You know, for someone who tried to pick a fight with Tommy and flirted with Billy, you actually are pretty smart.”

“Rude!” You teased. “I make great decisions.”

He sat up. A smile was laying softly on his features. “Sure you do…” He got up on his feet and extended his hand to you. “Want me to show you where your room is now? I am exhausted and I’m probably going to head to my room for the night.”

You took his hand and he pulled you to your feet. “Yeah, that sounds like a plan.”

| < ♥️ > |

The morning was uneventful. You took Steve back to his car and then headed home. Once you were in the house, you felt alone. It was the first time you had been alone in a little while and you were feeling it more than you would have expected to. You did your best to shake off the feelings of loneliness and began to make yourself breakfast. You hoped maybe you would hear from someone by phone in the afternoon. You were so used to having the internet at your fingertips, that life felt a little bit boring now that you had been cut off. You decided to use the record player in the corner of the living room. Cas had many of Dean’s favorite bands and you weren’t mad about the choice of music. It gave the home some life that you were missing right about now. 

“There is no escape and that's for sure

This is the end, we won't take any more

Say goodbye to the world you live in

You've always been taking and now you're giving.”

“Seek & Destroy by Metallica,” you smiled to yourself. Dean used to play this on our road trips. For just a moment, you felt like you were home. You were in the back seat of Baby, reading over some ancient lore text. Sam and Dean were lightly arguing in the front about the volume of the song. “You and your mullet rock, come on Dean! At least turn it down a little bit.”

“No way in hell! This song is bitchin’, right Y/n?”

“Yeah, it’s bitchin', Uncle Sam. Get cooler taste in music.”

God, you missed Dean. Hell, at this point you were even missing Sam’s presence. They were familiar and comforting. You also desperately missed Kevin and Cas. You thought the people here in Hawkins were lovely, but this wasn’t home. You cried to yourself, Metallica still blaring in the background. 

| < ♥️ > |

Steve was not having a good day. He was regretting having you take him to get his car. He had a gut feeling that he should stay home, in bed, but he ignored it and went to school from Tina’s place. Billy’s team kicked his team’s ass at basketball, he and Nancy got into another fight, and now he couldn’t even shower in peace. He could feel Billy watching him. He couldn’t tell if Billy was feeling smug or pissed off. Maybe it was a little of both. “Don’t sweat it, Harrington,” He said, “today’s just not your day, man.”

“Yeah,” Tommy cut in, “It’s not your week. You and the princess break up for one day, she’s already running off with the freak’s brother. Though, I heard you went home with that bitch of a new girl. So many the princess doesn’t matter so much anymore?”

Steve was about to tell Tommy off for that last comment, but Billy beat him to it. “Fuck off, Hagan. Remember what I told you about the new girl?”

Tommy shut the water of his shower off and left without saying another word. “Don’t take it too hard, man. Pretty boy like you’s got nothing to worry about. Plenty of bitches in the sea.” Steve shook his head. He was so tired of talking about girl problems. He felt like he was being swallowed by his emotions and hearing Billy talk about you was making it even harder to focus. He felt like you two had bonded in some way over his 2 am breakdown about Nancy. I can tell by how you’re talking you have a lot of love in your heart, Steve. You deserve someone who returns that. You were too sweet for the guys in the town. With every word about You and Nancy coming from jocks’ mouths, he was having a harder time containing his thoughts. “Did you actually go home with, Y/n last night?”

Steve was pulled from his thoughts by the question. “Yeah, she offered me a ride so I didn’t have to drive home drunk.”

“Lucky man you are, Harrington,” he thought aloud. “I would do almost anything to get her attention.”

“What? Why?”

“Why, Harrington? Really? She’s beautiful, she drives a kick-ass car, and did you hear how feisty she is? Hot damn. What I would give for a girl like that.”

“It’s not safe for her to hang around you if you’re gonna keep being friends with Tommy. She has a lot of love in her heart. She deserves someone who returns that. You can’t do that if you’re hanging out with an asshole who calls her a bitch every other sentence.”

“St–”

“I’m still with Nancy right now, nothing happened between Y/n and me last night. She slept in the guestroom at my parents’ place. She and I did a lot of talking though and she is genuinely like Nancy; she’s special and so help me god, Hargrove if I find out you do anything to her I will kick your ass.”

Billy was shocked, but pleased that he had managed to get such a rise out of Steve. He was also secretly pleased to hear that nothing happened between you and Steve last night. He was very open with himself that he was bisexual. He knew he was attracted to both of you, but he thought he could never have Steve, so he set his sights on only you. He might have lost it if Steve got to you first. “Don’t worry, Harrington. I’ll take good care of her and trust me if Tommy ever says anything in front of her again I will kick his ass.”

“I’ll join in on that.”

| < ♥️ > |

“Hey Darlin’,” his voice was smooth like honeysuckle through the phone. “Still willing to go for that drive?”

You knew that you should say yes. You needed the company. Billy seemed nice enough and you had just been sad all day at the house, but you didn’t feel put together enough for a date. What did going on a date mean for you? What if you actually got attached and then Cas came back for you? That would hurt so much more than just friends. You sighed. “I would like to see you, but I don’t know if I feel up to driving.”

“What’s going on, Doll?” He sounded genuinely concerned about your wellbeing. Oh, screw him for being nice.

“Just feeling a bit depressed today. Missin’ my family. My dad’s out of town and he’s gonna be for a while. The house just… still and cold?”

“I’ll come to you then. Maybe having another person there will warm things up? What’s your address?”

You heard him rip some paper and you decided to give in. The company did sound nice after all. You gave him the address and he hung up rather quickly. You heard some shuffling and a man’s voice that you didn’t recognize before the line went dead. You found it concerning, but there was nothing you could do about it. You didn’t know where Billy lived. 

You decided the best thing you could do was get yourself put together. You threw on the jeans you had on earlier, they had been run threw the laundry, and grabbed another one of Dean’s t-shirts from his closet. There were two bedrooms in the house; the bigger one was decorated in a very much Dean style. Castiel had obviously made it that way on purpose. The room was full of warm-toned neutrals and a few neon signs. The closet was stuffed with Dean’s clothes; some were actually his and some were new, but in his style. Castiel had a spare coat, new shoes, and a few other random things in the dresser. It made you wonder what this place was intended for. The other bedroom was clearly meant for Sam. It had piles of unorganized books and flannels scattered across a blue quilt-covered bed. It wasn’t done yet, clearly, but you avoided it anyway since it reminded you of some nasty memories. The room that was meant for you wasn’t technically a bedroom, but Cas had done work to make it feel homey. It was at one point an office, stark white built-in shelves covered one whole wall. Half of that wall Cas had turned into a doorless closet. A few of your things were in the dresser and closet; a pair of shoes, Dean’s old band shirts, a flannel, a few pairs of socks, and the leather jacket you had worn yesterday. Your room wasn’t finished either; when you arrived, there were art supplies and comics all over the bed. The shelving was more than enough room to put that stuff though, so you had it all put away now. It was a small room and it didn’t have a window, but it meant the world to you. Cas left a note on the nightstand explaining where he had hidden money around the house and that there were paint cans in the garage. Everything, design-wise, was up to you. You had painted the biggest wall, but that was all you could bring yourself to do while waiting for rescue. You, again, didn’t want to become too attached. You felt safe from the angels and demons; none of them knew you existed and you kept your power usage to a minimum, but you would trade that safety for a hug from Dean and Cas anytime. You hoped they would come back soon. 

You were so lost in your thoughts you didn’t realize how much time had passed until you heard the doorbell buzzing. You quickly made your way down the hall and peeked through the peephole. It was Billy. The sadness in your body left at the sight of him. He was in a dark red button-down and had a jacket on over top of it. The buttons on the shirt were mostly undone, leaving his chest pretty much exposed, again. For the love of soulmates, Cas, do not show up for the next hour. 

You smiled brightly at him as you opened the door. You could see in his expression that something was bothering him. His eyes were slightly red and his cheeks were flushed. “Are you alright?” 

He seemed genuinely surprised that you were asking him about his feelings. “Rough day.”

“Honestly same. Do you wanna talk about it?”

He shook his head. “No, not that we have time though. My kid step-sister, Max. She’s missing. My father told me I had to find her, but I didn’t want to cancel this because I wanted to spend more time with you, without fucking Hagan. Do you wanna hop in my passenger seat and we’ll go see what we can find?”

Your hunter senses were kicking in, but your angel ones were going haywire. “Do you have a picture of her by chance?”

He reached into his pocket. He had a polaroid. It was a little bit smashed up, but it was of him, a redhead girl, and a mother-aged-looking woman. You clasped your fingers around the part of the picture with the girl on it. Max’s energy was bright, punky, and full of fire energy. Though, the longer you held the photo, the darker the energy became. It was like she was being shrouded in clouds by some kind of monster. It was unlike anything you had experienced hunting with the Winchesters. You felt for her location through your grace and it took you only a moment to see her standing with a few other kids her age and Steve Harrington. You had no idea what was going on, but you could feel the dark energy making its way outside of the picture. The air was becoming heavy and it almost felt demonic. You knew whatever was happening in Hawkins, the kids were going to need your help. “Do you trust me?”

“Huh?” Billy raised an eyebrow. 

“I asked if you trust me. I have an idea where she is, I feel it in my gut.”

“If you’re wrong will we have to waste much time?”

You shook your head. “No, it’s just a few miles from here.” 

He pulled the picture slowly from your grasp and shoved it back in his pocket. “Great. Let’s go check. If she’s not there, we’ll keep looking. Know a brother or sister or something?”

An image of Hopper flashed across your vision. He was carrying a gun and he had a young girl next to him. They were walking down some sort of tunnel. The energy around them felt like you were being choked by hell. “A local dad. He’s got a daughter about Max’s age. Think she could be there. If not, maybe we can get some help. He’s a cop.”

He didn’t look super excited at the mention of a cop, but he turned back toward his car. “Let’s go. If we find her early enough we could still have a real date.”

You smiled. “Let’s do this, Hargrove.”

| < ♥️ > |

You could have predicted nothing about what you would become entangled in. You reached a small, sort of run-down house just on the outskirts of town a few minutes later. You knew that this was actually Jonathan’s place, but you had never been here before. You could feel his soul slightly anchored to the ground. You could feel Max’s energy as you pulled into the driveway. She was nervous; everyone in the house was. You looked toward Billy’s face, you could see it being contorted by anger as Steve walked out of the house. Max’s head was poking out from the window. “Stay in here,” Billy warned. “I’ll deal with Harrington.”

You did not have a good feeling about any of this, but you listened. “Am I dreaming or is that you, Harrington?” He asked Steve before shutting the car door. Their conversation became too muffled for you to understand anything, but Steve did shoot you a few worried looks. You were really processing or responding though. Your thoughts felt incredibly heavy and your skin started to crawl. The darkness was growing and you could no longer sense Hopper’s presence in the nearby tunnel. You were becoming more and more anxious by the minute. Your anxiety peaked when Billy shoved Steve to the ground and kicked him in the stomach. You were frozen for a moment while he walked into the house and shot open the door. The seconds started ticking by and the longer that Max was away from the window the more concern grew. Billy had expressed instability in front of you already. You didn’t want him to get too far. Without thinking, you teleported yourself from the front seat of his car to just behind him inside of the house. One of the kids you didn’t know screamed, but you tuned them all out. Your hand was placed out in front of you and you glued him to his spot. The kid he had been reaching for moved quickly away, not sure what was going to happen next. You were glad he took the opportunity. Billy’s rage was almost pushing past your grip on his soul. You pushed right back. He could move enough to speak. “What the fuck?! Why can’t I move?” He shouted.

“Behind you!” Max replied. 

“Who is that?” The boy who screamed asked.

“No idea–” She responded. 

Billy looked out of the corner of his eye at you. His facial expression held so much pain and confusion. “I– I didn’t want you to do anything you’d regret, you have to stop, Billy. I’ll let go if you stop.”

“What the hell are you doing to me, Y/n?” 

“Billy, breathe–” He inhaled sharply and you could feel his anger calming slightly. You let go of your hold and the kids backed themselves into a corner. He whipped around to face you. “What the hell are you? Are you some kind of freak? Is that why you’re friends with Jonathan?”

You kept close track of his body language. “What? I don’t understand.”

“Jonathan’s brother is some kind of messed up, there are rumors he can do some freaky magic shit, like whatever the hell you just did to me.”

“What’s gotten into you?” You were genuinely confused and hurt. You had been called all kinds of names by people around you your whole life, but no one ever switched up that quickly. Everyone was usually more in shock than angry about whatever you had done to expose yourself as an angel’s kid. “Don’t talk about kids like that and you keep Jonathan’s name out of your mouth too!” You could feel yourself being absorbed by your own anger. “I stopped you from hurting someone, call me a freak if you want, I don’t give a fuck, but like, leave other people, especially kids out of it.”

His face relaxed and his expression became more worried. “The fact that you have tears streaming down your face tells me that you do, in fact, give a fuck.” He stuck his hand out toward you and started to get closer. 

“Don’t fucking come near me!”

“Y/n, you’re freakin’ me out. I’m sorry I said that shit, but you look like you’re gonna explode. Let–”

His hand was only a few centimeters from your arm and you used your powers to push him back a few feet. He didn’t fall, but he almost did. He was scared, you could feel it. He didn’t know what to make of you, but he was trying to figure out how to fix what he said. “What the hell was that?”

Steve was standing behind you in the doorway. “How did you– do any of that?”

Your chest was heaving. “What is going on in this town?”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

“I’ll fill you in later. What is going on in this town? Demons? Angels? Leviathans? Pagan Gods? What is happening?”

“How–”

“The Mind Flayer,” the boy from earlier said.

“The what?”

“The Mind Flayer,” he repeated.

| < ♥️ > |

Steve and Billy took the kids to the tunnels near the pumpkin patch, very reluctantly, to help distract the demodogs from Hopper and Eleven. You told Steve he thought they were in serious danger to call for you and you would come to their aid. If they didn’t need you, you would help the pair at the gate. Dustin gave you a quick explanation of what was happening and you promptly teleported yourself to the lab. The dog-like creatures were desperately clawing at the machine that held up Hopper and Eleven. You banished them all to purgatory while a snap. You could only do small portions of Hawkins at a time because of the limits of your powers, but Hopper and Eleven were safe from the creatures for the time being. The monster Dustin had described as “The Mind Flayer” screamed in anger. You could feel Eleven’s pain as she fought incredibly hard to close the door to the evil dimension. You weren’t sure at first if you could help her, but you stuck your hand out toward the gate anyway. You could feel it falter under your grasp. You got yourself up to the level that Eleven and Hopper were on and continued to help her force the gate shut. Eleven looked at you briefly. “Who are you?”

“I’m a friend.” You closed your hand a little bit more, “I’m here to help you close up the gate. We’re not far–”

“Y/n? How did you get here? How are you doing that?” Hopper asked.

“Just thank me later, Hops. I’ll explain everything when we’re safe, I promise.” You shut your fist all the way and the gate snapped shut. Eleven fell to her knees. You were covered in your own sweat and the bodily fluids of several monsters. You smiled. 

Y/N? ARE YOU OKAY?

It was Steve. You could feel his worry. You nodded to Hopper and set your hands on each of their shoulders. You teleported them both to just outside of his truck. “I have to run and make sure Steve and Billy and the kids are okay. I’ll see you back at Jonathan’s house.”

You didn’t give him a chance to answer before you threw yourself into the pumpkin patch. You appeared next to Steve. He looked a little worse for wear, but he was okay. Your eyes scanned over all the kids. They were all okay. Billy was bloodied. His shirt was ripped and he was bleeding still from a few wounds. He was, however, still standing. Steve’s face lit up as he registered that you were in front of him. “You good?” 

You nodded. “Yeah, yeah I’m good. It’s over.”

He pulled you into a hug. You were completely surprised, but you hugged him back. You could feel tears start to come to your eyes as he started to rock slightly from side to side. It felt safe. “Shit… we did it!”

You gripped the material of his jacket a little bit harder. “Yeah, we did it.”

| < ♥�� > |

To be continued :)

| < ♥️ > |

Tags: @whoringrove @idrkwhatthisisimsorry @urofficial-cyberslut

@strwberryskr @jiminisaslytherin

[beep-beep-robin]

screaming at the idea of a dark academia steddie au (still in the 80s)

- steve being the one that lives in a deteriorating old apartment one winter because his parents cut him off, almost dies from the cold before eddie comes and gets him out of there

- steve being impressed by everything eddie knows bc he‘s used to being around pretentious know-it-alls and eddie isn‘t like that at all

- now listen it isn‘t dark academia without a little murder. sorry not sorry. hear me out - what if billy was in their friend group and they "accidentally" killed him because he‘s an asshole. and eddie gets pulled into it bc he‘s in their course

- said friendgroup obviously contains robin, nancy, steve and now eddie

- steve‘s the one that‘s used to showing off with his material possessions (and girlfriend, aka nancy) because he thinks that‘s all people really want from him, the only people he lets somewhat close being his friends, but only robin truly knows his real self (before eddie comes along)

- for robin i‘m thinking eleanor from do revenge. pretending to be rich so she fits in, but also just fascinated by the actual classes and everything they‘re studying. steve used to help her out with money, that‘s what made his parents cut him off. bonus if she has a huge crush on nancy and she‘s the only one that sees her as an actual person from the beginning whereas the guys just see her as ooh a girl for a while at the start usually (aka camila in tsh)

- jonathan as eddie’s dorm neighbor. he‘s chill and usually has good advice, knows basically everyone on campus but has his own separate group of friends (including argyle)

- nancy as the groups it girl. always dressed to impress, but upset that no one truly wants to get to know her. her and steve are the campus‘ hot couple, everyone knows them, wants to be them. but they have their issues, which come out once eddie‘s in the picture. she likes robin, maybe a little too much.

- eddie as the new student. originally only interested in his studies, because he really doesn’t want anything to distract him - once he’s distracted, it’s over - is immediately intrigued by the group, befriends robin, that‘s his in. get‘s sucked into the whole murder mystery, which forces them all closer. watches steve and nancy‘s relationship crumble, both of them needing support that the other one can‘t give.

- i‘m thinking wild parties in old buildings, dark furniture, secret glances, hungry kisses, denial. oh lord give me the denial. jealousy, rebounds, steve and nancy hooking up again -

- bonus points if eddie lives with steve for a while. and they get closer. steve has nightmares, terrified of the police finding them out, they share a bed? SLOWBURN though. very important

- listen i haven‘t thought about what they‘re studying but if they have a theatre class……. i neED steve to help eddie cover himself in fake blood for a play and just stare for a bit bc oh shit he‘s hot

- nancy gives robin a makeover, robin hates it, but loves spending time with her. robin supports nancy through her downward spiral after the murder and gets her out of it, with the support of eddie and steve.

- think long nights, windowsills, shared cigarettes and deep talks. the terrifying feeling of being known as a murderer to the person you love more than anything mixed with the knowledge that nothing will ever be the same again

[imagines-by-a-typical-fangirl]

Part 04 of 07

Pairing: Billy Hargrove X Reader | platonic!Eddie X Reader

Word count: 1.9 K

<- Previous part (03)

Next part -> (05)

{Stranger Things Masterlist}

{Dacre Montgomery Masterlist}

Summary: You didn't get over Billy's death, isolating yourself from everyone. But when a new monster starts making victims, the party has no other choice but to involve you... And ask you to give shelter to a metalhead.

A/N: Special thanks to my wonderful friend @multific for all her help through this story. I love you, girl!!

×

Hopes and Anchors

Nancy having guns doesn't surprise you. But that's only because you also have two yourself. And so, the small party starts to walk, flashlights on hand, careful and paying attention to the surroundings. Your ears and eyes are open, on high alert to anything out of the ordinary.

Robin leads, keeping the group's pace fast but cautious. Nancy and Steve are just behind her, but with time their pace grows slower, as they start to talk. And, to give them some privacy, you do the same. That's how you pair up with Eddie, and then, both of you stay even further behind the group but make sure they're always in your sight.

“What's up between those two?” Eddie asks after a while.

“They used to date. Then they broke up, now Nancy is with Jonathan but...” Shrugging your shoulders, you step over a particularly large vine. “I don't know, they're not doing very well, it seems. But I... I don't keep up anymore.”

“Can I say something? Something you probably won't like?” Furrowing your eyebrows, you look at him, nodding. “I think, whoever Billy was, he would want you to move on.” That makes you stop, a breath caught in your throat. “I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said anything.”

“No, I...” Shaking your head, you clear your throat. “It's okay. I just don't talk about him since...”

“I don't think that's very healthy.”

“It hurts too much.”

“Wanna tell me about him?” He speaks fast, and you start to walk again. You know what he's doing. Eddie is trying to help, and it warms your heart a little. He's a good person. Which is obvious, or else Dustin wouldn't admire him so much. “I mean, everyone seems to know the guy, but I got to the party a bit too late.” He offers you a small smile.

And you find yourself smiling as well. “I met Billy on his first day at school. I literally ran onto him, so fast we both fell. He was so mad, and I was laughing so hard, I don't even remember why. Something clicked, I think. Because when we got up, we just looked at each other.” The memory brings a bright smile to your lips. “The next day the jerk offered me a ride home. One week after that, the first date. Ever since we were a thing. Girls used to hate me because I stole all of her chances to hook Billy Hargrove, Hawkins' bad boy. And despite not being in an official relationship, we were together.”

“Sounds like you were really into each other.” He says, almost slipping. You giggle and he gives you a fake angry stare.

“We were... But he... He never really said it. And I don't blame him, but...”

“But...”

You stop again, and this time, you don't cry. The pain is deep, still fresh, but maybe you're out of tears. “He said it when he was dying.” It comes out so low you're not sure Eddie heard you. “He died in my arms, sacrificed himself on his last sane moment after the Mind Flayer possessed him. He... He said he loved me... But I didn't have time to say it back.” Saying it after eight months hits you hard, and you fall on your knees, a hand on your stomach as you catch your breath.

“Hey.” Eddie kneels next to you, touching your arm. “He knew. Do you hear me? He knew it, he didn't have to hear it. He knew.”

Covering your face, you take deep breaths, trying to control yourself, get a grip of yourself. “W-what if he didn't? What if he didn't?”

“Did you make him feel loved? Did you ever try to make him feel loved?”

You did. Every single day, your mission was to show Billy he was loved, despite the awful things Neil told him. “Yes.”

“He knew. I promise you, he knew.”

Slowly, you calm yourself, forcing into silence all your racing thoughts and feelings. Taking your hands off your face, you suck in deep breaths, eyes on the forest ground. You're about to get up when something gets your attention. It reflects the dim light of this place, and it has you reaching out in the mud to see what it is, this thing that doesn't seem like it belongs on this dark forest floor.

Your movements are slow and lethargic, as you clean it from tiny dead leaves and mud. But then, you recognize it. A soundless yell escapes your lips as you hold it against your chest, your sight getting blurred as you feel yourself falling.

“(Y/N)!” Eddie's voice reaches out to you, but it sounds distant, miles away. “(Y/N), don't do this to me. (Y/N), what happened?” Arms come to surround you, and then you're being lifted. “Stay with me, okay? Stay with me, (Y/N).” He's starting to get desperate, but you're still lost in your stupor, hand clenched into a fist, holding tightly on to his earing. “Okay, you're okay.” He clears his throat. “She's got a smile that it seems to me, reminds me of childhood memories.” Eddie starts to sing, and you can hear his voice near your ear. “C'mon, stay with me. Where everything was as fresh as the blue bright sky.”

The music goes on for a while, until you slowly climb back to yourself, your eyes opening, and the weight of your discovery crashing over you. “What happened?”

“I don't know. She just fainted.” Eddie replies, and you feel yourself being put down.

“(Y/N)? (Y/N), can you hear me?” Steve asks, and when you look at him, you wrap your arms around his neck.

That's when the crying starts. Messy, painful, desperate. “I found his necklace. I found his necklace. Billy's necklace, I found it, Steve. I found it.” You repeat over and over again.

“Alright. Shh. Let me see it. Hey.” He pulls away, looking down at you. “Let me see it.”

With shaking hands, you show it to him. Steve takes it carefully from your hand. “No way,” Nancy mutters, and you look at her appalled face.

“What does it mean?” You ask them, all of them. “What does it mean? He was wearing it. I remember. He was wearing it.”

“We need to find a way out of here,” Steve says, a hand on your cheek. “When we're safe back in Hawkins, we'll talk about this. Alright? I promise. But right now, we have to move.”

It's not fair. It's just not fair that you can't discuss this now, right freaking now... But you know he's right. And you don't have the brains to think now.

So you just move, with Eddie helping you through the way, as the others also have eyes on you. When you get to Nancy's house, you sit on the couch, still perplexed, still crying like a baby. You hear them talking about something. About the gun not being here, about the Upside Down being stuck somewhere in the past... But you can't follow. Your brain just can't process it now.

You're back in that dark place, unable to move, or think.

At some point, you notice you're lying against Eddie, your head on his shoulder as you deal with some sobbing. Clearing your throat and doing your best to wipe off the many tears rolling down your face, you move away from him. “Sorry... I didn't even notice.”

He looks at you, worry and sadness in his eyes. “It's alright. I don't mind, really. And you really need a shoulder to cry on.” Turning to stare at him, Eddie gives you the saddest smile you've ever seen. “Come, it's alright.”

His kindness makes you cry all over again, and you let yourself snuggle on him, eyes closed. Then, he starts to hum "Sweet Child O' Mine."

•••

Climbing through a gate on the ceiling and then falling was a very unusual experience. You hurt your arm by falling on a bad way, and then, there was the thing with Vecna taking Nancy. You almost lost your mind at the thought of losing Nancy too.

But Vecna only needed to pass on a message. The revelations had your mind spinning around, and you had to leave them to shower and rest. There was a fight when they forced you to get some sleep, with the promise of having a good plan for when you wake up.

You did feel like a baby, even more, when the babysitter himself came to tuck you in the bed. But you understand their worry. And you're thankful.

But what warms your heart, even more, is that, after half an hour of staring at the ceiling, when Eddie comes to check on you at Steve's request, he stays. Eddie sits next to you, singing your song in a low voice. Then, at some point, you grab his hand, just when you're about to close your eyes, and just hold it, as a way to ground you to reality. A scary, painful reality that stole your love from you, but the reality where your friends - your chosen family - live. So you need to stay grounded. And Eddie is pretty much being your anchor now.

You wake up suddenly, a breath caught up in your throat. “Rise and shine,” Eddie says, looking down at you.

“How long have I slept?” You mutter, looking at your joined hands. “Sorry about that.”

“No problem.” He says as you let go of his hand. “You needed it.”

“I did.” There's no reason to deny it. “Do they have a plan?”

“Probably. There was some yelling and arguing.”

“Then they have a plan.” Sitting up, you yawl. “You can shower if you want... There are still some clean clothes you can use, right?” Eddie nods. “I'll speak to them.”

“Can I wash my hair?”

The question and his slightly embarrassed face make you giggle. “If you don't mind your hair smelling like flowers.”

Eddie chuckles, rolling his eyes. “Girls and their flowers.”

As Eddie goes to the bathroom, you make your way to the living room to find what the battle plans are.

And you're not even a little bit surprised to know you'll be going to a gun store named "Warzone", just outside Hawkins. And you're far less surprised by how you intend on going there without risking anyone's car. For the first time, the party will have to do some stealing, but everyone here already committed a crime or two, and as long as it's for the greater good, you don't mind it at all.

And with that, you all prepare for the next day. Car theft, Warzone, Upside Down... And then, killing Vecna once and for all.

They all left without the promised talk about Billy's necklace, which you're wearing now around your neck now. But it's alright... You have plans of your own, that you mean to merge with their own.

×

@ietss @littestatesman @hanahisawizard @aaaaslaaaan @pans-fav-shank @gerim-1995 @what-the-heckin-heck @lady-ragnvindr @slutfor-muson @whiskeypowder @naiswrld @imagineslover88 @carolineesnell @boomhauer @browneyes528 @lem0ns77 @bdudette @thatsamegirl @spicykimchii

[reineyday]

I wanna know about 1 and 2 on that list of wips!

!!! the billy ones!!!

billy has the right to be mad at the party for not even trying to save him

uhh this one is (was?) a wip that im trying to reorganize. i wanted it to be a s4 au where eddie, nance, steve & rob are in the upside down like canon, and find billy there. when billy shows himself to be knowledgeable about the area, what's been going on, and on vecna, both nancy and steve start talking to him like he's automatically gonna help them and then billy's like "uh no fuck you, get out yourselves." and it's shooting himself in the foot bc theyre he didnt even know he could leave till they showed up, but also he's had months and months alone in this hell with the guy who possessed him, and plenty of time to relive the way nancy and steve came at him with their cars and their guns so fuck them. he ends up helping cuz he's bot stupid and wants out but stull yknow. he'll be mad about it. it's still harringrove tho LOL.

my first draft of this accidentally turned into this billy & eddie friendship short fic by mistake (which u commented on! thank u!). actually, answering this really helped me out w figuring out the plot better so double thanks! 🥰

knock knock bitch

IVE BEEN SO EXCITED ABT THIS IDEA RECENTLY LOL it's a crack-taken-seriously fic that starts in max's scene with vecna in "dear billy" where she's up against the wall in that house with vecna's hand up against her face, and before he gets her or she escapes, billy's voice interrupts with a loud "KNOCK KNOCK BITCH," actually knocking on what passes for a door in the upside down creel house door, and then he comes in with a hairspray flamethrower and vecna roars like "not you AGAIN" but billy's already spraying flames at vecna and grabbing max's wrist and running.

she's panicked and confused, and then gets more panicked and confused when billy starts yelling to head over to base three and she's like??? what??? but then notices he's not yelling at her and she looks up to see chrissy cunningham, fred benson and patrick mckinney--the coma kids???--running and keeping pace with her and billy, and they all have their own makeshift weapons (billy's got an axe strapped to his back, chrissy also has a hairspray flamethrower and a bat on her back, patrick's got a crowbar and a broken hockey stick fashioned into some sort of spear, and fred has?? a crossbow????), and they all seem to know where theyre running.

there's more plot about how jason ends up starting his witch hunt against eddie and the living statuses of all of them, but yeah, the premise is that billy's been running around in the upside down being a general asshole to vecna and saving the s4 gate kids and teaching them how to survive, and ive become attached to their weapons and the kinds of conversations they have at night. they work out together to keep their cardio up. billy and patrick have talked about their abusive parents. chrissy's taught them all cheer maneouvers that have helped them get out of tight spots. fred has an archery hobby cuz i think he'd be best at long range considering how he's the only one that's not a jock lol.

max is the one that finally brings in the knowledge of how they might be able to get back to their bodies--theyve been stuck in comas, some of them with a gnarly twisted limb or two, but otherwise fine--and they start questioning how billy's there, and if he has a body in a coma too that no one knows about. 👀 havent figured out what to do about the music element waking them up thing yet tho, since max & the party already know about it at that point, and that would end the coma plot point early... yeah.

thanks for asking!!! and for always replying so kindly to my comments on ao3 lol i know u fielded a whole bunch of them just recently. cheers!!

[jaegerisim]

Unpopular opinion: Billy Hargrove, as a character, is not the monster that many people make him out to be. He’s a complex character and the message behind him is interesting imo.

He had lots of family trauma and likely most of his hatred is learned via how his father treats him and those around him. I’m not saying trauma excuses Billy’s behavior, and at the same time it does offer an explanation. It makes his character more complex and makes his death hit harder.

Billy sacrificed himself to save El and the party. If he had lived, maybe he would have had a redemption arc? But that’s not the message the Duffers wanted. Billy did a lot of shitty things and one big act of heroism isn’t enough to save his character.

Billy doesn’t get a redemption arc.

In stranger things the good guys win. Billy wasn’t a good guy.

But he wasn’t all bad. To me it hurts to think about a 17 year old abused by his father and manipulated/ possessed by vecna who dies by sacrificing himself to save his sister and her friends.

I feel bad for him, even though like Max I’m glad he’s not around to torment her and her friends.

Billy is a good complex bad guy.

I never see people talk about Billy as a character. It’s either people acting like he doesn’t exist or worshipping him. I’m not a Billy or harringrove Stan by any means. Hell no. (Steve deserves better lol like Eddie (steddie <3))

But I wish people talked about Billy as a character more, especially how his character impacts Max and everything.

Hiii nonny! Thank u for submitting this ask!!

Ok well I agree on some parts and I disagree on others.

Billy's character is a complex one and a mirror to Will and Jonathan, his relationship with Max is too.

Billy is Jonathan's mirror in the sense that both grew up with an abusive father and a younger sibling to take care off. Jonathan chose to be a good person and love Will while Billy decided to lash out on Max and abuse her. The similarities with Jonathan end there.

Will's parallels to Billy go way deeper. Other than the obvious name sharing. Both were victims of the mind flayer but, Will was able to fight against it bc he had ppl who loved him. Billy had no one, so he gave up. The thing is, that if Billy had no one, that is his own fucking fault bc he was violent, abusive and an overall piece of shit to absolutely everyone.

His sacrifice isn't his redemption, the fact that he decided to try and fight to save Max and The Party doesn't make him a saint. It only shows that he still has a tiny sense of morality. Also he already knew he was going to die, so he just decided to die attempting to save the others. We shouldn't worship him for this, ok?

And you are right that Billy's character is important, especially to Max's arc. He is important in the way that when he died he passed on to Max an enormous sense of guilt which is why Vecna targets her.

So, really, it's Billy's fault that Max is in a coma. He could have chosen to be good or change, but nah, he chose the easy way out.

In conclusion, Billy is a complex character but that doesn't make him any less of an asshole and I hate him quite a lot. 😊

PD: as an ex steddie shipper who only likes the fanart now, stonathan is waaaayy better 😊😊😊

[mynameishazard]

ST3 AU where Billy lives and becomes like Will....kind of

Okay, so I had this idea and I'm going to try and write it out as truthfully as possible. If anyone has a problem with any part of it, please GENTLY let me know(ie don't be an asshole, I'm not doing it intentionally) and I will change it accordingly. I would really like to keep the idea though, but if it upsets too many people, I'll take it down.

So, Billy lives after ST3 and because Neil decided to swan off or whatever, Steve offers his house for Billy to heal in whenever he gets out of the hospital.

His time in the hospital is long but he's eventually released into Steve's care, because Max and Susan live in a two bedroom trailer at the trailer park, he's trying to be nicer to Max anyways and Susan can't really afford anything better than that, so he stays with Steve.

Everything seems normal until, one night Steve hears screaming coming from Billy's room and runs in with his bat to find Billy curled up in the closet, crying into his knees.

He looks different, somehow, and he's acting childish even for Billy and Steve is trying to calm him down and Billy introduces himself.

"I'm William. What's your name? Why do you have a bat with spikes in it? Are you okay?"

Over the next year, Steve learns-and therefore the entire party learns-that Billy's brain fractured when he was possessed by the mind flayer and he's got multiple personalities. (I know it's Dissociative Identity Disorder but this is also the 80s).

There's Billy, the host personality.

William the eight year old who just wants to spend all his time swimming in Steve's pool. Steve has to constantly reapply his sunscreen so he doesn't get sun poisoning and he has to make sure William doesn't run into danger headfirst.

Pidge is an older woman, as far as Steve can tell. She's his Nan's age and she only comes out when Billy is anxious about something but feels safe enough that he just need to mother someone. She bakes a lot of cookies and is obsessed with the party.

Bill is one smooth motherfucker and he is constantly trying to get into Steve's pants and has very nearly talked Steve into hot, kinky sex before Steve snapped out of the haze he was in and turned him down. For now. After he's talked to Billy about all of this.

They only find out that Billy has powers when Vecna starts attacking people in ST4.

He's already torn up about Chrissy and he's worried sick about Eddie, because in his repeat of his senior year, he'd become friends with both of them and suddenly Chrissy is in the hospital in a coma and Eddie is missing, everyone blaming him for Chrissy's attack.

They find out about Thirteen because Vecna is attacking them and Billy is with Dustin and Eddie. Eddie makes a break to be a hero and Billy drops back into the Upside Down, furious. He's already stressed because Max is being used as bait and now Eddie is doing exactly what Steve told him not to do.

All Eddie knows it that he's being attacked by a flock of demobats and suddenly, they're gone.

He looks up to see Billy standing there, eyes somehow both dead and murderous at the same time and Dustin is flat on his ass, staring up at Billy in horror.

"What...just happened?" Eddie asks Dustin as the three of them make their way back to the trailer and Dustin stutters out.

"I'm not sure exactly. One second Billy was running towards you the next he's standing there with a hand out and the demobats imploded."

"Imploded?"

"I think? It looked like something swallowed them up and they were just gone."

So, yeah. Billy has a superpowered identity called Thirteen whose power is like a black hole.

He has DID. He has superpowers. He bonds with El. He falls in love with Steve(who loves him back.).

(Neil didn't swan off. He showed up to Billy's hospital room and, with only a hiccup of flickering light, vanished into the void when he was met with Thirteen instead of his "weak, crybaby son")

[lovipop2049]

I don't get why Jonathan is hated/overlooked so much honestly. He made one mistake as a 16 year old and the people in this fanbase drag him constantly for it. The characters in Stranger Things themselves literally accepted his apology, Steve even admitting he did some things wrong himself. And honestly, IIRC, I don't think he even did that on purpose. Either way, he literally outright says he shouldn't've taken the pictures and doesn't excuse himself for it at all. He had consequences for his actions, too, his camera, his prized possession, being broken right in front of him and the pictures being ripped up.

The characters in Stranger things, both kids, teens, and the adults, (not all, quite a few characters haven't done anything) have made way worse mistakes or actions but get brushed off either because they're "hot" or something happened to them. Billy, for example. His racist and abusive actions are always excused for him being abused in his childhood. Jonathan was abused too, but people aren't making the same excuses for him either. (Not saying being abused excuses anything, by the way, just making a point, and also I'm not trying to compare them, they went through different things, I'm just talking about how the fans use it as an excuse).

Also, Jonathan is just a sweetheart. He did so much for everyone and constantly gets dragged on, despite how much he went through as a child. He was abused, bullied, and was made an outcast by the school, yet he doesn't even have to try to be kind to nearly everyone he talks to. He was also forced to basically become a parental figure, getting a job and not being able to have a normal childhood because of his abusive deadbeat dad who didn't contribute to the family. He had to take care of Will and even his own mom sometimes. There were only few times he's reached a breaking point, but IMO, it was totally fair. He fought Steve for saying awful things about his family, comparing him to his father, accusing him of 'cheating', and calling him slurs.

Also, I think him being angry with Nancy in season 3 for getting them fired was totally justified. He finally got a good job, but Nancy was pushing him to report on something that wasn't asked to be reported on, and then got them both fired. And no, I'm not blaming Nancy for being angry at the people in the workplace for being sexist and treating her horribly. And in the long run, their boss (I can't remember any of their names for the life of me, sorry.) was controlled by the mind flayer. But I think the thing is, sometimes people don't get you really don't always have options. Nancy is rich, she could get a job anywhere else and even if she doesn't she still has the money and the family to support her (even though her parents aren't great, but...). Jonathan doesn't have that, and like I said, his family is poor and he doesn't have the greatest situation. I don't understand why people get so mad at him for this. If you were in this situation you'd be pissed, too. People always say "Oh if the roles were reversed you'd have a different opinion' blah blah, if Jonathan got Nancy fired you all know damn well you'd be on his ass for that 💀 (I would be criticizing him too, but the point is that nobody would change their mind 'if the roles were reversed'). Also, I'm aware the boss was flayed, but even if he wasn't, she still would've got both of them fired. She impersonated a reporter and misrepresented a company, bothering a woman with mental health issues, and dragged her boyfriend who didn't want any part of it into the situation. I honestly feel like he only helped her because he was afraid she'd get mad.

Also, another thing that pisses me off is how people constantly drag on Jonathan for being high in season 4. Like ok, so what? Eddie was drinking and smoking weed too, people still praise him. Also, I actually like Eddie as a character, but I'm gonna make a quick point. People always say Jonathan wasn't useful in season 4, getting high, but he was the one who came up with the idea to find El and IIRC, he played a major role in helping find Suzie. He was still an amazing brother to Will, giving him a heart-to-heart about how he's still there for him even if they don't talk as much anymore, and telling him it's okay to be who he is and that he still loves him regardless. Eddie, who also smokes and drinks in the season, didn't do much and wasn't really helpful. Finding Watergate? Dustin's idea. Jumping off the boat? Steve's idea. All he really did was tag along in the upside down and messed with Nancy's plan to make himself seem like a hero when the problem could've been entirely avoided and it would've gone way smoother. Also, again, I do like Eddie, but I'm just making a counter-point to people's criticisms towards Jonathan. And Jonathan doesn't have to do anything. The reason they all LEFT Hawkins was to get out of all of that shit and start new lives. But he ended up helping anyways, and in a big way, because we all know that without Eleven everyone would be f*cked.

Jonathan goes through so much and hasn't even gone past his breaking point yet, and I think in season 5 he will. He is justified to let out his anger. He blames himself for Will's disappearance, and he must feel so guilty for leaving Will to go trick or treating without being there for him during his episode. He thought his mom was going insane, he thought his own brother died and it was his fault, he had to face his abusive father, he had to go to his brother's funeral, got shit talked for just existing (because we know Steve just didn't like him at that point and was finding excuses to bully him. It was obvious he wasn't doing anything with Nancy), got severely bullied and abused by people around him, again, had to basically become a parental figure, get a job as soon as possible, find out his brother survived but now he has to watch him closer, etc. He also had to literally self harm and make himself a sacrifice so he could kill the Demogorgon. That's just season one. He is constantly walked on by people around him and overlooked in-universe. Despite all of this, he's still caring towards everyone, he's empathetic and supportive, he tells people they should be themselves and he lets people know he doesn't care about what other people think, that he still loves them. Even to the people who treat him like shit. He still saved Steve's ass after he bullied him for so long.

About the Nancy thing, too, I don't think it's either of their faults (besides the fact Nancy was flirting with Steve...) but I just simply don't see their relationship working out. The Duffers are definitely taking the Stancy route and to be completely honest, I wouldn't mind that, simply because Steve and Nancy have improved as people (I still don't love the ship, but I wouldn't mind if it went that way now opposed to season 1). But they only really clicked because they both have been through similar trauma and had similar experiences. I routed for them at first, guys. I literally screamed when they kissed and probably woke up my whole house, but I loved them. Now, I don't think they'll work.

And I truly hope Jonathan gets treated better in-universe, too. Nobody genuinely seems to care for him. Obviously Joyce is his mother, and Joyce ILY but you're putting way too much pressure on him. I hope he has someone by the end of the show who will be there for him and give him all of the love he deserves, even though I have a creeping feeling that he'll possibly die/get vecna'd by the end.

All in all, I think he's an amazing character and people drag him for the stupidest things on Earth. Sorry for this long rambly post but I just love my boy Jonathan and he's the best teen in this show IMO. He's also the most interesting and diverse.

Have a good day and thank you if you actually read this mess :)

[theysherobinbuckley]

snippet from "flies on the windscreen" my serial killer!Eddie fic that keeps me up at night

(mentions of violence but no graphic descriptions in this section)

The worst thing about interdimensional monsters tearing a gaping hole through Hawkins, Indiana wasn’t the nightmares that kept Eddie up at all hours of the night. It wasn’t the empty new mobile home the government had “gifted” him and Wayne, devoid of all of the things Eddie thought made a house a home. It wasn’t being literally hunted for sport by idiot Bible-thumpers who thought that just because he was trailer trash it meant he was a killer. It wasn’t even nearly fucking dying to save the same people who wanted him dead.

Well, maybe it was a little bit that last thing.

It was that Eddie, Steve, Nancy, Robin, Dustin, all the kids, all of them—they had all given so much (too fucking much) just to save a shitty town that couldn’t understand any of it, any of them. A town that still blamed Eddie for everything that happened. A town that still raised kids like Jason Carver and Billy Hargrove and let them fucking terrorize everyone else who lived in it. A town that still shoved all the undesirables to the side and held up its golden children (athletic, preppy, heterosexual, drugged out only on the weekends like good little boys and girls) like they were gods to be admired.

A town that would never know how close it had come to total annihilation, saved only because a handful of teenagers had deemed it worthy of saving, if only for the simple fact that they lived in it.

Vecna was dead. Chrissy was dead. Not Jason, not Tommy, not anyone who had spat on him and called him a queer, not anyone who had outright threatened Jeff and Lucas and fucking Erica for daring to be Black in Indiana. Chrissy fucking Cunningham.

All that, and nothing had fucking changed.

Except–

Except Eddie wasn’t a fucking coward anymore. When Jason and his idiot goons cornered him in the hallway or in the parking lot of the only place in Hawkins that deigned to hire him after graduation, he stood his ground, fists already clenched, itching for a fight he knew he would lose.

But then Steve had taught him how to throw a punch for real.

Once Eddie knew how to fight back, he couldn’t help himself. He fought with a ferocity he hadn’t known he’d possessed, driven not by the desire to stay alive but by the desire to make someone hurt. Someone had to pay for all the shit that went down that spring, and the government’s hush money just wasn’t cutting it.

Someone needed to bleed for it. And it sure as fuck wasn’t going to be Eddie. Not anymore.

He’d thought for the longest time that maybe, deep down, he really deserved everything he got. But then there was the Upside Down, and he knew he deserved better than that. So maybe he deserved better than Jason Carver, too.

When fall came and Jason and the rest of the graduating class hightailed it out of Hawkins (sans Eddie, who didn’t bother applying anywhere, and Robin, who took community college classes one town over), Eddie was almost… disappointed. It was nice not being hunted for sport, but the loss of a viable outlet for his anger had left Eddie reeling.

To his surprise, he’d come to rely on the feeling of Jason’s fists bruising his skin, of tumbling around on the ground pulling hair and scratching eyes until someone pulled one of them away, both of them bleeding and snarling like animals. He missed it.

Now he had all this fucking pent-up energy, all this electric rage coursing through his body, and it just kept on fucking building, pooling in his fists and in his feet and in his gut, and he had to get it out. He had to get it out or he was gonna fucking explode on somebody who really didn’t deserve it.

So he disappeared every now and then. Took some time for himself, drove up to Indy without telling anyone where he was going. He wandered around town looking to blow off some steam, maybe try to find some new drugs or drink himself into a stupor. Anything to get the lighting to stop crackling around his fingers.

Eddie wasn’t a coward anymore, but he definitely wasn’t brave. He was stupid and reckless and curious. So when he heard a commotion around the back alley of a club he’d been trying to get Corroded Coffin into, he froze. Decided to check it out.

The night was dark and still, streets illuminated by the full moon and flickering street lights. Most of the bars and clubs still teemed with sweaty, horny twenty-somethings desperate to forget themselves for a night. In another world, or maybe just on another night, it could have been Eddie and Steve dancing and drinking and kissing until the early hours of the morning, worried about nothing except the drive home.

Tonight, as Eddie crept silently around the corner, there came a sharp cry that almost moved Eddie to tears right then and there.

Some douchebag had pinned a girl to the wall, one knee between her legs and a hand fisted in her shirt. Eddie couldn’t see his other hand. The girl yelped again, sobbing, pleading.

Now, don’t get it twisted. Eddie would’ve stepped in anyway, even if he hadn’t been looking for a fight. There was no fucking way he’d just watch some guy feel up a girl who definitely wasn’t into it, especially not if she was screaming and crying so loud he could hear it from the street. Not on his fucking life.

It just so happened that tonight was a bad night.

[thetenthdoctorscompanion]

Time for my basically daily ask. (I can't promise they'll slow down due to the break cause if anything I'll be going through withdrawal, so if it takes you a while to get to them no worries). Alright so I'm trying to (hopefully) stay away from spoilers so let's talk character characteristics. We've talked a lot about how Steve and Eddie are both a lil 💅 and possibly in a poly relationship with Chrissy. But what about chrissy? Is she just poly? Or do you think of her as queer too? And if yes, who has she crushed on? And when did she realize? Do the three of them (plus robin) bond over it? And do they help the younger kids (if plural) through their own crises?

Honestly this is something I ask myself every time I sit down to write; it's constantly in flux. I think, most likely, Chrissy is somewhere in the realm of demi- or greysexual. She says in Malignant that Steve is the first person she really had a crush on. While she's attracted to him and—as you joked in your review—is ready to "climb him like a tree," it's not really something that occurs to her otherwise. (That's a little bit of what's happening in her first conversation with Max, where she just straight forgets that sex is something Billy might want.)

If the right person came along, she might be open to dating other genders, but for now there's really only a few people she's thought about in that way: Steve (a given), Billy (who expressed interest in her first), and maybe Harrison Ford. (And, yes, later Eddie, but it will take some time for those feelings to develop and longer for her to acknowledge them.)

I think once the dust settles and everything is clear between Stedsy, Steve, Robin, and Eddie all react to Chrissy's sexuality in different ways.

Steve definitely has a hard time wrapping his head around it. He's such a guy in that way, where he sees a cute person and his mind proceeds to the gutter in an orderly fashion. Because of his insecurities, I think he also gets a little jealous and possessive. Seeing Chrissy talk to hot guys or hot girls makes him nervous, and it just...doesn't compute to him that Chrissy doesn't like most people that way.

Robin's open to it, she's just confused. Her curious brain is studying Chrissy all the time to better understand. They could be watching a movie or walking through the mall and Robin will be like, "What about that guy? Would you sleep with him?" To which Chrissy responds, "Uh, no?" "In a world without Steve, in a hypothetical vacuum with no consequences and his confirmed interest in you, you wouldn't have sex with him? He's hot, right?" "I mean, yeah, he's hot so...maybe?" And Robin's just like, "Fascinating."

Eddie, on the other hand, doesn't find it weird at all. He just feels like he's gotten an award, a medal, a gold fucking star. Most mortals aren't worthy of Christine's fantasies, and he happens to be one of the lucky, lucky few. I don't know that he'd brag about it, but when he's tipsy he would definitely brag about it.

This...got long again, I'm sorry everyone lol.