#and then turned into more of a what if billy and steve met up as adults

[kitkathatesu]

𝙇𝙪𝙘𝙠𝙮 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙋𝙩. 2

This is a little longer than the first part<3

𝙋𝘼𝙄𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂: Billy Hargrove, Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington x Fem!reader

𝙒𝘼𝙍𝙉𝙄𝙉𝙂: ❗️SMUT❗️❕MDNI❕Use of drugs/alcohol, mean!Billy, dom!Billy, sub!reader, 3some without penetration (besides Billy of course), cucking, p in v, fingering (f receiving), degradation+praise, spanking, some overstim (f receiving), overall filth

𝙎𝙐𝙈𝙈𝘼𝙍𝙔: It seems as though you never learn your lesson, so Billy decides to invite Steve and Eddie over himself this time. Completely unannounced to you, they show up for what Billy referred to as a “get together.” But little did you know that Billy’s plans included far more than just a sack of green and a couple 6 packs to share with your “friends.”

☾ ✪ ༄ ✯ ༆ ✯ ༄ ✪ ☽

It’s about 4:00 in the afternoon, you’re lying on the couch with a magazine between your fingers. Soft rays of sunshine peaking through the blinds in Billy’s living room while Cherry Bomb plays through the radio perched on an end table across from you. A box fan sat on the floor a couple inches away, swirling around the thick summer heat and smell of beer that seems to always be sitting stale in the air.

It has been almost an hour since he’d left saying he had some “business” to take care of, which isn’t necessarily weird of him considering all of the shit he gets himself into. But you decide to brush it off flipping through the pages, skimming over an article about how men are naturally more jealous than women.

“Hah, sounds like someone I know.” You scoff. Rolling your body over the side of the couch to make your way into the kitchen. You go to reach for the landline on the wall, but you’re immediately met with arms wrapped tightly around you from behind. The smell of cigarettes engulfing you as a sloppy kiss is pressed to the side of your face. Making you scream loud enough for the whole town of Hawkins to hear.

“BILLY what the fuck?! I didn’t even hear you come in.”

You know there’s a grin plastered on his stupid face. So you turn to scold him, but he’s just staring at you. The emotion behind his eyes is scarce, but his body language is screaming frustration.

“I’ve got a surprise for you.” He mutters. A spark of excitement running through you but anxiety following not to far behind.

“Oh yeah? What kind of surprise huh? The sexy kind?” You smirk, wrapping your hand around the back of his neck. Coursing your fingertips through the bottom of his curls, gently pulling him in towards you for a kiss but he pulls back almost instantly. Causing you to scowl at him.

“Not so fast little girl. I’ve gotta get things going before I change my mind.”

“What do you mean? You’ve been gone for an hour, didn’t tell me where you were going-“

Billy chuckles. Cutting you off as he tips your chin up with his thumb and index finger. His gaze never leaving yours as he holds you there, your face melting into his touch.

You know he’s about to be a smartass.

“I don’t have to tell you where I’m going princess. As a matter’a fact, why don’t you give one of your friends a call? Seems like you’d rather talk to them than have fun with me anyway.”

“You’re such a baby”, you utter to yourself.

But you’ve gotta admit since last months escapade you have talked to them a lot more than you had before.. It’s like you’re connected more now than you ever were. Comfortable on a level you never knew you could reach.

You feel guilty in a sense too. Dirty that you’d let them see you in such a vulnerable state. And the fact that Billy was toying with you purposely for his own pleasure and using them as a prop to get himself off makes your stomach cave in on itself.

“Well for your information, I was about to before you scared the absolute shit out of me.” You spew with a sarcastic tone.

He just laughs and places one hand on his hip and the other on the bar next to the sink. Leaning his body weight against it.

“Is that so? Won’t you go ahead and do that then. Let’s see if they answer since you’re so sure they even wanna fucking talk to you.”

His eyes lit up with a bitter stare as a fist balls up at his side, his jaw clenching, probably dying to throw some more shit your way. Typical Billy.

Your first thought was to rip him a new one for the unexpected attitude, but you stay quiet. Trying not to crack a sarcastic smile as his voice drips with the exact thing you’d read about in that article just earlier. 𝙅𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙮.

“Oh Billy, you and me both know they’d 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 to.” You purr out to him, the words flowing out of your mouth with zero remorse.

But deep down you knew you’d be eating those words at some point today. His eyes like daggers as they seem to pierce right through you.

Billy finally breaks the silence between you. Lunging forward with his hands now tightly wrapped around your waist ripping a gasp from you. His fingernails digging into the skin there as a wicked grin plays across his lips.

“We all know why too.” He pauses, his tone much darker and cold.

“You’re a needy little whore. A set of holes begging to be used by anyone who’ll throw some cock your way.”

You stand there unmoving. Trying to look anywhere but his face as your body seethes with anger, every word bouncing off your skull like a punch to the face.

Billy’s demeanor begins to change. His smile softens and he loosens his hold as he tilts his head to the side, catching a glimpse of that anger you’re trying your damndest to hold in but can’t hide worth a shit.

“Come on doll, don’t get all worked up on me now. Y’know I’m just playing with you.”

“Playing or not, you can shove that surprise right up your ass Hargrove.”

Billy mocks you with a fake pout. A loud cackle echoing out into the room after your measly attempt to lash back at him.

“Well it’s a good goddamn thing your 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙨𝙚 will be on its way soon then huh?” He sneers, giving you a quick pat on your ass before leaning down to meet the shell of your ear.

“Ya’better cool off while you can sweetheart, you’re gonna need it.”

His words cause a chill to run down your spine. You squirm where you stand as he pulls back to face you, his features so pretty and lust like. It’s so fucking frustrating. You can’t stay mad at him. No matter how bad you’d like to smack that smirk right off of his face, the urge to ride it suppresses all others.

“Now I gotta go pick up a couple things alright? Might take me awhile, so uh.. Don’t wait up.” He winks at you, quickly making his way towards the back door where he’d snuck in earlier.

“But Billy- Wait a fucking minute, you just got back??” You yelp, rushing after him as he makes it halfway outside onto the patio.

“And? I said I’ll be back, so do me a favor and put some lipstick on those pretty lips of yours. Might take some of the ugly off of em.”

You roll your eyes at him as he walks around the side of the house, arms crossed over your stomach. A long sigh dragging out of your mouth as you stomp back into the kitchen. The sound of his Camaro roaring down the street making your brain rattle.

“Fucking asshole” you blurt out into the empty room.

He always has to have the last word, and what’s annoying is you let him. There’s never a day or night where you fully lash out at him. Even when he’s the biggest douche bag in the world. Is it because you love him? Well duh, but goddamn do you hate him sometimes too.

So you stand there, back against the wall facing the landline in front of you. The words you’d spat out earlier playing back through your mind.

“𝙊𝙝 𝘽𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙮, 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙗𝙤𝙩𝙝 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮'𝙙 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙤." Because you know they would. They call you anytime they get the chance.

And that’s all it took for you to grab the phone and dial Eddie’s number. It rings and rings, the cord wrapped around your free hand while the other holds the speaker tightly to your ear.

𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂, 𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂, 𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂

(𝙒𝙚'𝙧𝙚 𝙨𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙫𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙨 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙖𝙫𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚, 𝙩𝙧𝙮 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚𝙧)

You hang up. Confused and a bit nervous you ponder on the things Eddie usually has going on throughout the week but it’s Friday. After band practice he is usually free for the rest of the day, unless he has a customer or two looking to buy some flower. But even then if you call he makes time regardless of who’s around. So maybe something came up.

“Okay well, let’s try Steve. His shift at Scoops is well over by now.” You sigh, bringing the phone back up to your ear for the second time. Clutching it in your hand patiently waiting for his voice to pick up on the other end.

𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂, 𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂, 𝙍𝙄𝙉𝙂

“𝙃𝙚𝙮, 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙎𝙩𝙚𝙫𝙚. 𝙎𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙄 𝙙𝙞𝙙𝙣'𝙩 𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙡𝙡, 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙚 𝙖 𝙢𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄'𝙡𝙡 𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙩𝙤 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣.”

(𝘼𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙣𝙚, 𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙢𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙖𝙜𝙚. 𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙛𝙞𝙣𝙞𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙜 𝙪𝙥 𝙤𝙧 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙤𝙥𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨)

𝘽𝙀𝙀𝙋//: “Hey Stevie, it’s me. Just wanted to see what you were up to today, hit me back when you can. I’ll talk to you later.”

You place the phone back on its jack. 10x more confused now and a little sad that neither of them answered when you know they’re hardly busy around this time. Maybe Billy was right, could you be annoying them with how much you’ve been calling? How long you talk. Are you being too clingy?? What’s the deal?

Your brain is going 1,000 miles an hour trying to pick through what could be wrong if anything. Hoping that whatever it is you’re not the problem and that it’s all in your head. But most of all that Billy isn’t right. Cause one thing for sure, his ego never fails to get in the way of his judgment. And if there’s one thing you can do is rub it in his face later.

☾ ✪ ༄ ✯ ༆ ✯ ༄ ✪ ☽

By the time you stopped worrying yourself half to death, you’d decided to put on a movie and kick back till Billy got home. Legs propped up on the arm of the couch, hands clutching a small bowl of popcorn. Watching intently as things start to get a little tense, fixated on the screen until you hear a loud knock at the door.

“What the fuck?” You ask yourself out loud but under your breath.

Your heart starting to pound in your chest because you know Billy would just barge on in. So who the fuck could this be?

You sit the popcorn down and slowly tippy toe towards the door, trying to get a good look at whoever this could be through the peep hole. But all you can make out is that it’s a man which causes a surge of adrenaline to wash over you.

“Who is it?!” You shout. Their voice is muffled but weirdly familiar.

“It’s me pretty girl, open up will ya? Kinda chilly out here and this flower isn’t going to smoke itself.” Eddie coos out to you, that deep seated giggle ringing in your ears as he stands outside the door with his hands in his pockets when you sling the door open to greet him.

“I- Oh my God hi!” You squeak out, a mousy shyness engulfing you as those doe eyes stare back into your own.

“I had no idea you were coming, I thought you’d be at band practice with the boys?”

“Eh, I got an hour or two of kicking ass in, might as well spend the rest of my evening with my favorite twerp.” He smiles brightly as you step aside to let him in, immediately shedding himself of his denim jacket. Not wasting another second standing, he throws himself onto the sofa. Motioning for you to sit down.

You anxiously take the seat next to him but you’re sure to keep a couple inches between you. Sucking in a sharp breath as you gather the courage to start a conversation.

“So, what made you decide to visit? I was sure you’d be busy.”

Eddie glances over at you tray already in hand with a joint in the making. Twisting it between his fingers, cocking an eyebrow at your question as he licks the top of the paper sealing it in. Holding it between his fingers.

“You telling me California didn’t tell you I was coming?” He chuckles, placing the joint between his lips. Lighting it and quickly taking a drag before handing it to you.

“…WHAT??”

You almost stop breathing when it hits you. Causing you to drop the joint in the floor, you chase after it with hurried hands hoping the cherry doesn’t burn the carpet.

“Billy invited you?.. Seriously? Come on, don’t fuck with me Ed boy.” You scoff. Nudging him with your shoulder.

“I’m not shitting you-“ Is all Eddie manages to choke out before another knock at the door startles you both.

“Now who the fuck is this?!” You jump up strutting your way back over to the door, swinging it open to reveal Steve standing there with a 12 pack of beer.

“Hey legs, how goes it? I hope you don’t mind, I brought some refreshments.” He grins, showing the carton of Budweiser off to you with a small shake. Causing the glass bottles to rattle against each other.

“I- Steve, what exactly are you doing here?” You ask. Your voice a bit shaky as you glance over to Eddie then back to the tall, lanky, bouncy haired boy standing in front of you. The one who seems to always be searching for something when he looks at you.

He grins to himself, pausing for a moment as he notices Eddie sprawled out on the couch behind you.

“Did I come at a bad time or what?” Steve asks, peaking over your shoulder waving to Eddie.

You quickly usher him in by his wrist closing the door behind you. Your brain scrambling to try and find an explanation behind this, you make your way into the living room. Plopping down on the sofa, letting out a long sigh as Steve takes the empty seat on the other side of you.

A lump forms in your throat as both boys now sit on either side of you. Their colognes clashing in your chest as you breathe them in, totally different but diffusing so perfectly.

“What’s got you so worked up pretty?” Steve asks with a hint of hesitation in his voice. Leaning his elbows into his knees as he tries to meet your eyes, Eddie doing the same on the opposite side of you but with a light graze of his fingertips across the top of your thigh.

“C’mon, no sense in trying to hide sweetheart. Can’t be getting shy on us now. Yeah?” Eddie’s warm smile gleams in your peripherals causing a rush of heat to creep onto your cheeks.

Your body reacting to them so much already that it’s making your stomach ache. Knotting itself up as Steve takes a beer from the carton and cracks it open, Eddie doing the same as they start to ramble back and forth behind you. Making you that much more nervous as a familiar rumble of a vehicle comes screeching up the road all at the same time.

You go still, part of you subconsciously hoping that it’s all in your head till you hear a door slam from outside.

Scurrying up off the sofa you grab the boys by their forearms, both of their weight working against you as you try to pull them up off of the cushions, their beer spilling out onto the floor in the midst of your panic. Knowing Billy will be walking through that door any second ready to swing on the first person he sees.

“It was good seeing you both. But y’all have GOT to go. Billy is going to fucking FREAK if he comes in here and sees you both without him even knowing-“

The front door flings open and smacks the wall beside it causing you to drop Eddie and Steve back onto the sofa. Your eyes growing wide as you quickly look over to see Billy standing across from you with a smirk plastered on his face. His tongue darting out to wet his lips.

Eddie and Steve seeming to have the same response as you, the whole room goes dead silent. Anxiety building as Billy continues to stare, after what feels like a lifetime you take a couple step towards him with your arms held out. Immediately consoling him as if you’d committed some sort of crime.

“Listen, before you get upset just listen-“

“Listen to what?” Billy belts out. That same crooked smile still hanging on his lips as he closes in on you, his leather covered arms draping around your waist.

Your back now turned to them, the uncertainty of what’s going to happen next causes your body to vibrate with a sea of emotions. You swallow the lump in your throat that’s formed again to sputter out a response.

“I- I had no idea they were coming. I thought you had some sort of business to take care of, so I just sat around and watched a movie. They showed up out of nowhere. Please don’t be ma-.” He cuts you off with a gentle caress to the your cheek. Causing your eyebrows to furrow in confusion.

“Baby, I’m not mad. Hell not even a little bit.”

“But you- What? What do you mean?” You turn your head slightly to catch a glimpse of the boys, but your head is jerked back by your cheeks now being squished together in a pout.

“Come on, don’t be stupid.” Billy sneers pulling your face closer to his own. His breath coated in what smells like bourbon and the obvious cigarette, you can’t help but wonder what he’d really been up to tonight.

“I’m not being fucking stupid, I don’t know what’s going on.”

Your voice cracks in your throat as your lungs fill up to the brim with fire. Jaw tightening at the anticipation, trying not to explode in heap of anger and disarray as Billy stands there with that same smug expression.

“Are you going to explain what the fuck is happening?? Or are you going to stand there with that stupid look on your face.” You shout at him, the occasional rush of adrenaline zapping your insides as you try to hold yourself together.

His hand drops from your cheeks to your hand, his thumb gently gliding over your knuckles as he brings it up to his mouth pressing a gentle kiss there.

“Sweet, naive, little thing.” Billy taunts, guiding you against his chest with his hands now resting on your hips, breath hot against the side of your face. His lips closing in on the shell of your ear, you can’t help but bite your lip.

“Ah.. I thought for sure you woulda’ caught on by now. This is all for you.”

Your eyes widen, a shiver runs down your spine, and you quickly pull back from him. Turning to Steve and then to Eddie, searching their faces for any answer you could but their expressions were just as empty as your own.

“All for me?? What exactly do you mean by that? I- You know what? This is just too fucking much, I don’t understand..”

Steve speaks up as you stand there muttering to yourself. Trying his best to make things a little more comfortable for you before it gets anymore out of hand than it already has.

“Well actually, we were told- Or Ed’s was told that we were invited to come hang for a bit. Billy called me early this morning and don’t get me wrong I was surprised he even knew my number, but I guess I figured it was your idea.”

He runs a nervous hand through his hair as Eddie chimes in.

“See! That’s what I tried to choke out earlier when I’d first got here and rolled that spliff, but you were far from listening so.. I thought you were messing around.”

You pace back and forth. Hands planted on top of your head, heart pounding in your chest. Practically drowning in your own pool of apprehensions.

Billy still stands in front of you. An eyebrow cocked upwards, his tongue tracing the sides of his mouth. Your eyes meeting his amongst the chaos transpiring within you, and the look behind them scares you. They’re almost black, pupils blown out, eager to eat you up.

He looks like a man starved of all emotion other than some twisted up desire. And with every neuron firing against their will begging you not to let what you know to be true get the best of you, your body is pleading for you to invite it in.

“So-“ Billy clears his throat. Placing both hands on your shoulders, ultimately pulling you out of your daze as he turns you around to face the boys who are anxiously sitting on the sofa across from you. All you can do is stare at them.

“Since I’d assume you’ve all caught the gist of things by now, whatd’ya say we play a game?Really get this party started.”

“Sure, I like games.” Steve concurs.

“Eh I guess, but- Ow!” Eddie answered with a bit of hesitation till he felt the sting of Steve’s elbow digging into his rib cage.

“Fuck it, let’s do it.” He agreed, an awkward smirk poking at the corner of his mouth.

Billy grips his fingers into your shoulders giving them a rub before lowering his face down into the crease of your neck. Placing a couple sloppy kisses there, each one leaving the smell of whiskey and want behind.

Eddie chuckles nervously. Beer in hand, looking around at everyone in the room before taking a sip. Trying to tear through the thickening tension swirling around the room.

“So uh, what kind of game you got in mind?”

You stand still. Almost afraid to breathe as Billy’s hands begin trailing down your arms, his calloused fingers gripping into your skin ever so slightly. That almost predatory grin pricking at the corner of his lips as he finally answers.

“What’a bout truth or dare?”

You suck in a breath. Trying to prepare yourself for what this little game of his is leading up to. Your knees trembling at the thought. This time you know it’ll be worse, much much worse.

Steve chuckles to himself. Beer bottle clutched lazily in his hand with his back leaned against the couch. His brown eyes lightly draping down your body as you stand there with that doe in headlights look on your face stiff as a board in Billy’s arms.

“I won’t attest to that. M’pretty good at it myself, like taking risks.” Cockiness laced in his voice Eddie flashes a smirk. Billy’s jaw simultaneously clenches, catching onto the familiar challenge Steve’s brought between them before. 𝙔𝙤𝙪.

“Alright Harrington, since you’re so quick to suck your own dick let’s kick it up a notch yeah?”

Steve nods, tipping his head back finishing off his beer. Eddie staying quiet except for the shit eating grin plastered on his face exhuming just how amused he is with the way Steve has Billy questioning himself. His “authority”, his dominance. Like a couple dogs over a bitch in heat. Can’t say he don’t blame them.

“Same shit really. But anytime you’re dared to do something or answer a question and you fail to do so, you ditch a piece of clothing.”

You’re done for as Eddie and Steve look to each other sharing a sickening snicker, causing your whole body to feel like it’s caught fire and your belly to churn. What the fuck have you gotten yourself into? I mean why is he so fond of this idea out of nowhere? It doesn’t make sense.

“So I don’t even get a say so? Great, this is total bullsh- FUCK!” You grasp at your throat as Billy’s hand is now wrapped completely around it closing off your airway.

A dark chuckle rumbling in his chest as his breath fans against your neck, his face practically smashed to the side of your head. Holding you flush against him, his thumb and pointer finger dancing over your pulse points.

“What was that baby?” He says with a long inhale and exhale, a growl reverberating through your bones as he grazes his teeth against your earlobe. His grip tightening around your windpipe pushing a pathetic whimper out of your lungs.

“Awh, that’s right. You can’t breathe.” He moves you side to side roughly, your head swaying back and forth like a bobble head on a shelf.

Fuck- You’re already submitting. At least your body is with the heat between your legs spreading like wildfire, your pussy already clenching around nothing.

“B-Billy please.” You stutter between broken breaths, your hand desperately trying to break you free from his grasp but there’s no chance you’re slipping out of this one. Not without a mark or two that is.

His hand rips itself away from your throat and he peers at Steve then Eddie over your shoulder. Motioning them over with a nod.

“Wait- What?” Eddie scoffed. Steve stares at Billy bewildered before he nudges his elbow into the brunettes ribs once more. “Just get up dumb ass.”

Oh my God. No no no. “Wait a second!” You stammered, your legs wobbly and weak as both boys saunter over to you. Billy’s body still flush against yours from behind.

“Shhh baby. This is what you wanted right?” He drawled, your back arching into his chest as the air around you thickens and you feel like you could suffocate. Maybe you are, maybe you will.

Steve stands to your left and Eddie to your right. Their eyes glued to you like they’re starving to see more, ready to rip you to shreds. Billy revels in the way your body trembles against him, his teeth sinking into his bottom lip with anticipation as he slides his fingertips underneath your shirt. Grazing your navel.

“Truth or dare?” Billy chuckled.

“Truth-“ You gulped. Jaw tightening and chest heaving with each breath. “Is it true you’d let me fuck you in front of them?” You try to speak but a whine is pulled out of you as Billy’s hand dips into your underwear. Running his middle finger through your folds, collecting the slick that’s soaked your panties and is sticky against the back of his hand as he continues to tease you. “Thought so.” He divulged.

“Holy fuck..” Steve sighed, his mouth parting slightly as he watches your face contort with pleasure. Eddie giggles nervously with his head cocked to the side, studying the way your nipples glide against the thin fabric of your shirt with each movement. Mouth watering at the thought of them between his teeth.

“Yes.” You mewl, your head loling back hitting Billy’s chest with a thud. Your heavy eyes flutter shut as he drags his fingertips upwards rubbing slow circles into your clit. “You gonna let them watch? Get a real good look at how desperate you are for my cock?”

“Uh huh.” You purr. Mind hazy with lust as all the worries you had before melt away into nothing but mush behind your eyes as they roll back. “Oh fuck- Billy!”

“Fuck no.” He spits. Hissing through gritted teeth as he pulls his hand out of your panties. Your mouth opens to plead with him and your lips are immediately met by his fingers shoved between them.

The taste of you heavy on your tongue as he forces them into the back of your throat. Eliciting a gag from you. “You don’t get to even think about cumming unless I say so. Got that?” His face is stern but his pupils are blown so wide that you can barely see the baby blue behind them.

You nod in response. Eddie hums to himself, his chocolate brown eyes boring into you. A lust drunken smile creeps onto your face.

“Billy man.. I gotta tell ya, you’re fuckin’ lucky. Babe like that? Hard to come by.” Steve’s eyes widen and he almost chokes in embarrassment. “Come on Munson, don’t make it weird.” It’s fucking weird already. Might as well enjoy it.

“If ya haven’t noticed.. It’s already a bit freaky.” Eddie snickered, nose crinkling up with a shit eating grin. Steve rolled his eyes only to tilt his head to get a better look at you, your face flushed and pretty chest rising and falling rapidly with what he can only assume is building desperation.

“Y/N?” Steve asked with raised eyebrows, lips parted slightly. “Can.. I touch you?” Billy scoffed and before you could react to either of them Billy’s fist curls into the fabric of Steve’s sweater, dragging him to stumble directly in front of you with eyes so wide that you can see how long his lashes are tickling his eyebrows. “Who the fuck are you to ask her? Ain’t ya gonna ask me? I’m the reason you’re here, remember?” Billy barked through gritted teeth.

Steve placed his hands up with a chuckle and shaky breath, unable to move now as Billy stayed practically nose to nose with him. You’re now sandwiched between them, legs wobbly and heart pounding wildly at the closeness. “Hey.. Hey guys?” You asked meekly, both men towering over you with their eyes locked.

“Can I touch her?” Steve asked smugly, cocking his head when he spoke. Hands still held up high and Eddie frozen where he stands, eyebrows raised and a sweaty palm holding his mouth shut so that he doesn’t bust out laughing. “I don’t know Harrington, ya gonna be able to without cumming in your pants?”

You chuckle at that and they both stop and stare dead at you. Well fuck. “What the fuck are you laughing at?” Billy’s eyes squinted down at your expression, Steve scoffed and his dimples were prominent as he smiled smugly. “Think she thought that was funny.”

“Fuck you.” Billy spat at him, only to turn his attention back to you. “Ya want him to touch you?” He asked gruffly, his tongue prodding at the inside of his cheek waiting to see how you react. You swallow harshly and you look up at him through heavy lashes, glancing over at Steve who stood just inches away. “Yes.”

“Then it’s settled gentlemen. Let the man touch her for God’s sake.” Eddie contended, “Might as well get to it. Right? Ladies obviously dyin’ for something. Look at her face.” You shot Munson a glare between the two of them but your face softened when Steve’s fingers reached out and grasped your chin, titling your gaze to him.

“He’s right ya know, could tell how needy you were for us the first time this happened.” Billy rolled his eyes and snaked an arm around your waist, his bulge hard against the thin fabric of your pajama bottoms.

“Ain’t that a bitch huh?” He murmured hotly into your ear, nudging his nose along the shell of it with a growl. “I’m not the only one who can tell you’re desperate Y/N, should be ashamed of yourself really.” You couldn’t take much more of this back and forth bullshit. If this was happening, it was happening now.

You swayed your hips gently, Billy’s cock twitching at the friction when you spoke. “M’tired of waiting. Someone better do something or y’all can fuck each other for all I care.” They all snickered at that and your shorts were ripped down your thighs in a matter of seconds. Billy’s boot thudding against your ankle spreading your legs, Steve’s big hand still holding your face gently between thumb and forefinger. “Only one fucking you is me sweetheart, they’ll be lucky to get a handful of your tits let alone buried inside you.”

Your eyes widened when your cunt is exposed to the air around you, Billy’s fingers easily ripping through the lace of your panties. “Now be a good girl and let me hear ya beg for it”, Billy drawled. Your stomach coiling up into a knot when you felt the head of his cock poking at your entrance, your slick making it no challenge for him to slide in but he refrains.

“Billy- I.. I-“ You stutter and Steve pushes your lips into a pout, inching his face towards yours with a wicked smirk. “Nuh uh, look at me. Tell me how bad you wanna be stuffed full.” Oh, holy fuck. His words make you mewl and your back arch, the tip of Billy’s length barely slipping between your folds when you do so.

Billy’s hands grab your hips roughly to keep you upright, though it’s not like you’d fall with Steve practically caging you in. Forcing you to stare at him as your cunt drools for him, Eddie, and Billy all at the same time. It’s filthy. “Oh Steve!” You moan, brows pinching together and your mouth falling slack when Billy pushes all the way inside you. You don’t even notice Eddie is closer now, his eyes glued to where you and Billy are connected.

“Goddamn, she looks tight.” Eddie rasped, licking his lips like a man starved. He bent down and wrapped his ring clad fingers around your inner thigh, admiring the glistening sheen that’s coated your pussy as Billy thrusts in and out of you at a steady pace. “Best pussy I’ve ever had.” Billy groaned, his fingers digging hard into the plush of your love handles.

God you’re ruined. You’ll never recover from the rush of this, never be able to touch yourself to anything else at night. How could you when the pad of Eddie’s thumb now rubs soft circles into your clit, Billy’s balls deep inside you, and Steve holds your blissed out face in his hand while he etches this moment into his brain forever. His cock throbbing painfully in his jeans, the need to kiss you almost overbearing but he wanted to watch you writhe as much as Billy did.

After all, you’ve tortured him for years now. Never giving him a chance nor acknowledging his advances, though you’d always noticed them. Why should you get to have all the fun? Especially now. “What’sa matter pretty girl? Can’t talk?” Steve cooed, Eddie hummed in response as he traced over your clit agonizingly slow. Collecting your slick that’s seeping out of your pussy that’s stretched around Billy’s cock.

“Oh- Oh fuck, please please please.” You babbled, Billy chuckles darkly at the pathetic sounds that emanate out of your mouth with a sadistic smile. Overstimulation starting to settle in the pit of your stomach. Your cunt aching and clenching around him with each push, pull, and drag of the men’s hands on you. “You can talk, well that’s good. Not completely cock drunk yet, but you’re almost there, aren’t you baby?”

“Y-Yes, ah!” You hiss, a new sensation sending chills ripping up your spine when Billy’s hand comes down harshly against the plush of your ass. All rosy and red, flushed just like your cheeks as you keep your eyes on Steve. You can tell he wants you, wants to take Billy’s place or shove his cock down your throat with the way his lip curls up and his pupils are blown wide. “Fuckin’ slut, I can feel you clenching around me. Shit- Ah yeah, you gonna cum? Huh?”

Billy’s voice is gravelly and bellowing behind you, his hips now pistoning into your already sensitive slit as he bends over your back. His lips pressed to the shell of your ear, cock buried deeper than before hitting that sweet spot with each slap of your ass rippling back against him. “Yeah man, she’s gettin’ real fuckin’ wet down here. She’s leaking onto the floor.” Eddie almost salivating at the way your pussy takes a cock so well, swollen clit throbbing beneath his thumb. “Be a good girl yeah? Cum for me.”

Billy growled at that, his eyes darkening as he glared at Steve over your shoulder. “Shut up Harrington, only one she’ll be cumming for is me. On my cock, not yours.” He chuckled breathlessly, his voice bordering on a whine as he came closer and closer to the edge. And he revels in the way he can tell you’re getting closer too, but only he can feel your pretty cunt pulsing around him. He had to remind them that this would be the closest they’ll ever get to the real thing.

“I’m- M’gonna cuuuumm!” You squeal, every word emphasized by the almost painful orgasm that sends your vision into a haze. It doesn’t come in waves, it feels like it’s never going to stop. Your eyes roll back, mouth cocks open, and your pussy spasms uncontrollably along with your whole body. They were using you.

“That’s right bitch, fuck me back.” You didn’t even realize your hips were grinding his cock in and out of your soaked cunt, Eddie’s thumb replaced by his middle and ring finger milking out every last drop of slick that he could from you as you rode out your high. Steve never once letting go of your cheeks, keeping your fucked out face right in view so that he could cum to the thought of it later. “So fucking sexy like this Y/N, you should see yourself.” And if you could see yourself you’d realize just how nasty you are.

“Shit, baby just like that-“ Billy croned, his head tipping back with a drawn out groan. “Pussy’s gonna make me cum.” Your ears perk up at that and a wicked grin plays at your lips, wanting nothing more than to be filled full while Steve and Eddie withered away to nothing more than a bunch of gooners. “Cocks so good Billy- Want you to fuck me full.”

“Hear that boys?” Billy laughed boisterously, chest rising and falling rapidly with a fucked out smile on his face. “She wants my cum, she fuckin’ needs it. Ain’t that right doll?” His hips snapped up into you hard, slamming against your cervix making you jolt and cry out. “Ah, ahh yes! Fuck yes, please.”

“Here you go baby, nice and fuckin’ deep.” Billy hissed, his thrusts becoming sloppy and unrhythmic when he paints yours insides pearly white with his cum. Hots spurts spilling into you and seeping out around his cock, Eddie’s mouth dropped open in an O almost tempted to taste but he knows better. “Look at you, taking it so well.” Steve spat sickeningly sweet, the smell of booze on his breath making you fawn as you watched hunger burn behind those lovestruck eyes.

But you’re knocked smooth out of your hazy little world and brought back when Billy pulls out and leaves a mixture of your cum and his dripping on the floor beneath you. Eddie pushing himself up off of his knees and Steve stepping away about an inch or two, their arms crossed over their stomachs and cocks hard and on display in their jeans. Billy wipes himself clean with the bottom of his shirt, typical Billy and doesn’t say much else. Just finds the nearest lighter and pulls a cigarette out of a box of Marlboro’s, letting it hang loosely from his lips as he lit it and took a long drag.

“Hope you boys got your fill, I know I did.”

[robthegoodfellow]

Step 9

pre-Harringrove, references to addiction/recovery, references to AIDS epidemic, 90s earworms

originally published in @strangerthingscharityzine | read on ao3

.

Steve didn’t know what he’d been expecting until the bells above the diner door let out a merry jingle—and there he was.

Apparently his subconscious had imagined someone gaunt, haggard. A shaky mess. Not that he’d sounded like that on the phone, despite the obvious nerves.

I’m looking for Steve Harrington? Dunno if he lives here anymore. The voice was gruff in a way that enticed, so he’d said this is Steve, and the ensuing silence was broken by a cough. Oh—uh, hi. This is… Billy Hargrove. From high school?

Sense memory knocked him flat—Hargrove taunting him at practice, pressed against him, tongue wagging; crouched above, pummeling; on his knees, clinging to consciousness, the Mind Flayer melted mush. 

Hargrove stumbled through a semi-rehearsed spiel. How he was in recovery, had reached the step of compiling the people he’d done wrong. How he wanted to make amends—could do it over the phone or in person or not at all, which he’d understand.

I’m back in Hawkins, but I can drive—and Steve had interrupted that he was in Hawkins, too. Did not say he’d been back a couple months, ever since Nance said they needed to talk.

It was a little pathetic, how eager Steve had been to meet up with a guy he hadn’t thought of in over a decade, because the only friends nearby were his and Nancy’s friends in Indianapolis.

So they’d made plans, and here they were: Steve, a soon-to-be divorcé working a soulless job at the family business, who at least had his hair, health, a measure of wealth; and Billy, not even slightly a woebegone waste case—scanning the booths with piercing baby blues, hair shorn on the sides, tawny curls piled on top. His ears glittered with metal hoops and studs, and that skin was bronze as Steve remembered. New tattoos twined his arms, disappeared under the white tank hanging loose from his shoulders, tucked into tight jeans.

He’d gained some weight—stood solid. Thick. It suited him.

Spotted, Steve raised an awkward hand, pursed awkward lips, and when Billy scooted in opposite, the exchanged hellos were—yep—awkward.

Unsure of the protocol for amends, Steve tried small talk—learned Billy lived with Max, who was caring for her ailing mother. His dad was still in the wind, vanished post-flaying while Billy was comatose.

Far as Steve knew, Billy had likewise vanished after a spell in the ICU. Rumors he’d been abducted by the government, but most figured he’d run off. Done the reasonable thing and put Hawkins behind him.

Turned out it was both. In exchange for his silence plus months in a secret lab, they’d set him up in the city of his choosing—and he’d chosen home. San Diego.

“Got an apartment, started community college…” Billy shrugged. “Over-indulged in the club scene. Couldn’t keep a job, couldn’t sleep. Tipped some bad dominoes. Hurt some good people.”

He’d been sober about a year, fully committed to the whole body-is-my-temple mentality. Been using music and exercise as his outlet whenever he itched.

“Went from bar hopping to gym bunny?” Steve suggested, and Billy flicked an assessing glance, wondering if the pun was deliberate.

It was. Steve’s mouth twitched, and Billy huffed a laugh. “Least I’m not eating rabbit food,” he said, nodding at Steve’s very sad salad.

“Hey, it’s tough diving into singlehood at our age,” he protested. “Gotta whip myself into shape.”

Billy guessed it—divorce?—and winced, commiserating. 

“How about you?” No ring, he noted. “Seeing anyone?”

“Ah—nope,” Billy replied, with a self-deprecating snort. “Not the marrying kind.”

And that… wasn’t quite what Steve asked. “Not the dating kind, either?”

Billy grimaced, conducted a short debate with the middle distance, and cleared his throat. “How about I say what I came to say and then we can… keep chatting. If you want.”

Steve pushed his plate aside, hands folded like it was a contract negotiation. “Okay.”

Deep inhale, and Billy mirrored him. “All right. So—I’ve been working backwards through people I’ve hurt, and you’re part of the last group. From when I was still a kid, technically, but old enough to do real damage. And… whether or not I need to… I want to. Like, it feels good to… purge, I guess.”

Beating Steve’s head in—that’s what he wanted to apologize for. He could have inflicted some lasting traumatic injury, hoped he hadn’t—you didn’t, Steve assured him, I’ve always been this confused—and had since developed other ways to cope with and express his anger.

“Like what?” he asked, curious. Billy blinked, lost track of his mental cue cards.

“Like—meditation,” he said, and Steve pictured him cross-legged on the beach at sunset, centering his chakra. “And journaling. And…” He scrunched his nose, flushed. “Uh—crochet.”

“Is that… when you hit balls through little hoops?”

“That’s croquet. Crochet is like—” Billy huffed, dragging hands down his cheeks. “It’s like knitting, okay? Will you let me just…?” 

Steve waved for him to continue, mimed zipping his lips. Covered his mouth at the thought of Billy knitting blankets of rage. This was serious, he scolded himself. Knock it off.

But… teasing Billy was fun. Gave him a strange thrill. Like when they used to spar at school. Banter.

Taking a deep breath, Billy found where he’d left off. “Right. Anger management. But I’ve also been re-examining my—motivations. Because for awhile, I told myself you deserved it, that I was protecting Max from shady dudes who’d lured her to the woods—”

Well, that’s fair, Steve thought, his perspective on that night radically shifting. Optics not great.

“—But I didn’t give a shit about Max,” Billy confessed. “I was just mad she got me in trouble with my dad and ruined my date… mad you lied to me about her being there, and that she’d ignored me about Sinclair, and… mad I was in Bumfuck Nowhere. So—I’m grateful you grabbed me off the kid. I’ve already made amends with him. And with Max. And I’m sorry I beat you so bad. Sorry I took it out on you.”

Steve hadn’t even remembered some of those details until Billy blew off the dust—one of those weird moments where you realize a hazy event was crystalline for someone else. Vivid and weighted with meaning.

“It’s fine, man,” Steve said, simple and easy, and Billy nodded, a fine tremor up and down. “Water under the bridge. I’m glad you’re—”

“I’m a fag,” Billy said, blunt. The eyes that rose to meet him were flat. Slate blue. “S'why I’m not the marrying kind.” A short, fractured laugh, devoid of humor. “And don’t think you’d call it dating, what I was doing. Russian roulette, more like. I should be dead several times over by now. Dunno how I’m not.”

Steve swallowed hard, couldn’t wipe the dumb shock—and the blue slate buckled, about to crack. So he revised his sentence from before. “I’m glad you’re not.” Managed a weak smile, heartfelt. “I’m glad you’re not dead.”

Billy ducked, but Steve caught the flash of wet. Slate in the rain. “I don’t have it,” he muttered, single sniff. “In case you’re wondering.”

And Steve meant to say I’m glad, a broken record but a sincere one, only the thing gnawing at him since the separation hijacked his mouth. “Nancy thinks I’m in love with this guy at work. This guy who’s a man.”

Billy’s head swung up, thrown off course for maybe the fourth time since he’d entered the cafe, and Steve facepalmed.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “That’s not why we’re here. I keep dive bombing your… amending. Amendment?”

That might have broken Billy—the poor dude slumped forward, brow on the table.

“I really am sorry,” Steve repeated, earnest. “And I’m glad you’re okay. That’s what I meant to say—that I’m glad you’re okay.”

A long sigh, and Billy propped his chin on folded wrists. “Are you in love with this guy who’s a man?”

“No,” Steve said, heating as it dawned on him that Guy Who’s a Man bore a striking resemblance to Man Sitting Opposite. “It’s more—crippling lust.” 

“Did you cheat?”

“No!” Then, dialing his tone from offended to firm: “I don’t do that.”

“Okay.” Billy straightened, thinking. “I’m not the best person to be anyone’s gay sensei, but I’m gonna give you my number in case you need to talk about this shit. And you better be careful. Be safe if you decide to… dip your toes in the water.”

Through the wall-mounted speakers, Jewel wondered one last time who would save their souls if they wouldn't save their own, the track winding to a close, and Steve had opened his mouth to ask Do you think we could have done that, way back then? Dipped our toes in the water? when Billy scrambled upright, nope, nope, nope under the faint strains of the next tune.

“Gotta go—this song’s gonna wreck my sobriety.” Finger guns, backpedaling. “You pay up. I’ll wait outside.”

Steve cocked an ear, bemused, listening hard all the way to the register. Plucky melody, a crooning boyish falsetto, incomprehensible—then finally, impassioned: Can you tell me who will still care?

The chorus kicked in as he walked out, and Steve caught on—laughed at the sky.

Mmm bop, ba duba dop Ba du bop, ba duba dop Ba du bop, ba duba dop Ba du—

He sang along, full chested: “Yea-ee-yea-ah!”

Billy groaned, slipping him seven scribbled digits with the air of already regretting his decisions.

“Thanks,” Steve said, genuine, running his thumb across the numbers. “Maybe I’ll see you around?”

“Yeah.” Billy swiped his curls. Unwilling smile. “Maybe.”

💛.🎶.💛

[stevie-petey]

episode two: trick or treat, freak

 “Why do you only ever care about me when I’m some kicked fucking puppy?” Steve’s words are vicious, and you flinch at his tone. “You know that’s not true,” “It’s not?” He scoffs at you. “Then explain what happened this summer.” “I…” You can’t.  Steve sees your reluctance to say anything and lets out a harsh laugh. “Yeah, whatever. Some real fucking friend you were.”

Summary: you and nancy have a bonding session in the library (kinda hot tbh), billy gives jonathan and steve a common cause to unite on: Protect Y/N, you're a chauffeur to a very sad steve harrington, and dustin uses will's trauma to his advantage.

Rating: general, slight cursing

Warnings: fem!reader, use of y/n, slight sexual harassment (billy corners reader and is gross), cursing, alcohol

Words: 7.9k

Before you swing in: hello ! new chapter, we've arrived at halloween !! i finally get to have a fun authors note comment: i crashed my car lol. i'm fine tho and i hope yall enjoy and like what ive done and changed a bit with this episode. i had fun coming up with costume ideas for the reader, i think the character fits her well :) and before i go: i start school next week, so updates will def be coming a bit slower after this. anyways, happy reading !

-

The Henderson house is pure chaos morning of Halloween. 

Dustin is running around the house, screaming about how his costume has to be absolutely perfect and that if you don’t hurry up with the jack-o-lantern pancakes then he’s going to just leave without eating breakfast. Meanwhile your mother is running after him, straightening his suit and tidying his hair. 

“The pancakes are almost done, my god.” You flip the last pancake, but in your rush the jack-o-lantern’s smile turns into more of a grimace, but hey, food is food. You quickly set Dustin’s plate down on the table and practically shove him into the seat. 

“Eat.”

“But my proton blaster–”

“Is on the steps, I’ll grab it. Eat, I want pictures with you.” You kiss the top of your brother’s head and then run over to grab his costume’s prop. 

“I’m thirteen now, I don’t need my sister doting on me–” Dustin complains, but then his eyes land on the mini Reese’s Pieces you’ve decorated his pancakes with and quickly changes his tone. “Oh! Candies! Yummy!”

You laugh at him and bring his backpack over. The Ghostbusters matching costume idea that boys have planned for today makes you want to just sweep them all into your arms and kiss their tiny little faces. They may be getting older with crushes and angsty feelings, but they’re still the same nerdy little boys you met when you were twelve. 

Dustin wolfs down his pancakes and your mom prepares her camera. You woke up earlier than usual this morning specifically so that you could make Dustin’s annual Halloween pancakes and then take pictures of him with his costume on. As soon as he’s done eating, you and your mom whisk him towards the fireplace for pictures. 

“Oh, I want to see those pearls!” Your mother squeals as she takes a million pictures of Dustin. When he smiles, she loses her mind. “Yeah! Lovely, I love it!”

You’re just as ecstatic as your mom. “Who you gonna call Dustin?”

“Ghostbusters!” He sings along, holding up his proton blaster with an even wider smile on his face. 

It’s a happy morning. 

Dustin puts on a show as he poses for your mom, and you even join in for some. Sure, you aren’t in costume, but who knows how many more mornings like these you have left? Dustin is getting older, all the boys are, so you plan on cherishing these mornings for as long as possible. 

You and Dustin are giggling as you now stand back to back, him holding his blaster and you holding up finger guns, and your mom is taking multiple final pictures when Jonathan arrives. He knocks on the door before letting himself in. When he sees you and Dustin posing, he starts loudly belting the Ghostbusters song. 

“God, bee. At least let my coffee kick in before you subject me to your horrible singing.” You playfully groan, grabbing your own backpack and pancakes to eat on the road. 

Jonathan ignores your teasing and ruffles Dustin’s hair. “Nice costume, bud.”

Dustin, seemingly still holding a grudge against the guy after your conversation from last night, slaps his hand away and glares at him. “Don’t mess up the hair.”

Your brother proceeds to stare Jonathan down, gives him an “I’m watching you” gesture, and then walks out the front door without any further words. You, Jonathan, and your mom all stand in the living room in varying states of emotions. You’re trying not to laugh at your brother’s antics, your mom is happily looking at the photos she took, and Jonathan is standing there in complete confusion. 

“What was that about?” He asks you, slightly hurt by Dustin’s rebuff. 

“Shhh,” you hand him a plate of pancakes and then walk towards the front door. “Let’s get to school, bee.”

– 

At school, the mullet guy from yesterday finds you at your locker as soon as Jonathan has walked away. The two of you had been running behind schedule, so you’d told Jonathan to head to first period so at least he’d be on time while you tried to find your history textbook. 

As you’re digging through your locker, the mullet guy stalks up behind you. 

“I never got your name,” he says with a breathy voice, standing way too close behind you. 

You straighten your back, but don’t turn around. You know that if you do, the guy will only get a kick out of having your face close to his. “You never asked.”

“So there’s some sass to you underneath all that sweetness.” His breath hits the back of your neck and you shiver, but in a way that makes you feel dirty and unclean. 

“What do you want?” You ask the guy, your fingers wrapping around the textbook that you’ve finally found. If needed, you’re sure it’ll make a handy weapon. It’s only you and the guy in the hallway. Everyone else has holed up in class and you’re now regretting sending Jonathan away. You feel trapped, vulnerable, and you hate it. 

Mullet man chuckles deeply, his voice reverberating against your back. “Nothing yet. Just thought I’d introduce myself to such a pretty face.” 

You don’t say anything, your fingers only tighten around your textbook. If he gets any closer, you’ll swing. 

Though you can’t see him, you can feel his eyes flicker to your textbook and he lets out another cruel laugh. “Loosen up, sweetheart, I won’t hurt ya.” You don’t move, and he seems to get another kick out of this. “My name is Billy. Remember that for me, alright?”

Finally Billy steps away from you and you slowly release all the tension that’s built up within you. You still don’t turn around, he hasn’t left yet, but your hands are shaking a bit and you feel unsteady. 

“Would you do me a favor, Billy?” Your voice is steady, there’s no trace of the fear within you.

“I’m listening,” Billy is practically purring and you want to gag at how much his cockiness oozes around you. 

You turn, now finally facing him, and slam your textbook against Billy’s chest. “Learn some fucking personal space.” 

Billy’s only reaction is a smile, which only makes you more uncomfortable, but you refuse to show him this. Instead, you square your shoulders and walk towards your first class. You’ve dealt with assholes in the past; you’ve known Steve Harrington since you were twelve. But Billy is different. 

You’re not sure if you want to find out just how different he is from Steve. 

– 

Another small highlight of your school year so far has been your study sessions in the library with Nancy resuming. The two of you had drifted apart this summer, you just rarely ever saw the girl in between your hectic work schedule and her dates with Steve, but from the first day of junior she’s helped you with your math equations and you’ve helped her with her english essays. 

It’s a good trade off and you’ve enjoyed spending time with the girl. Unlike last year, Jonathan doesn’t join anymore. He can’t be too close with her now that she’s back with Steve. So, it’s just you and her for an hour every day during study hall. It’s nice, if you’re being honest.

Today though there’s something off with Nancy. 

She’s been tapping her pencil on the table for the last few minutes. Right before you can politely ask her to stop, the tip of the pencil snaps in half. She sighs. “Shit,” 

“There’s a sharpener over by the window,” you point towards the general direction. “Sharpen your pencil before these equations officially end my life.”

Nancy laughs, excusing herself and walks over to the sharpener. 

You focus back on your homework, the equations swimming around in your brain. It’s not that you’re necessarily bad at math, but you’re no whiz at it either. You get lost in the practice problems, erasing and re-erasing frequently, and you don’t realize just how long Nancy has been gone until she returns. She sits down, and you’re about to make a horrible joke about how stupid it is to find x, when you notice how shaken Nancy looks. 

“Woah, hey.” You set your pencil down and turn your attention to Nancy. “Are you okay? You look upset.” 

Nancy looks towards one of the library’s private study rooms and you see Steve’s retreating figure. You gather that something’s happened between them, but it confuses you because they’ve been nothing but lovey dovey ever since they got back together. What could possibly cause strife between them? 

“C’mon, you can talk to me. I’m known for my fantastic advice.” You probe again, and this time Nancy lets out a soft chuckle. 

“It’s… complicated.” 

“Take all the time you need. I’ve been stuck on question five for like, twenty minutes now. Any distractions are welcomed.” 

Now Nancy lets out a genuine laugh and you find yourself laughing as well. The storminess behind her eyes from earlier has lessened, she looks more relaxed now. Once she’s done laughing, she takes a deep breath and starts from the beginning. “Steve and I have been having dinner with Barb’s parents.”

When Barb’s name leaves Nancy’s lips, you feel your stomach twist with guilt. Had you known this would be about Barb, you wouldn’t have pestered Nancy so much into speaking. You know how much she misses her best friend still, no one blames her. 

“Well that sounds nice,” you try to comfort. “I’m sure they appreciate your company.”

Nancy bites her lip and looks away from you. “They wouldn’t if they knew Steve and I killed Barb.”

Shock washes over you. “Can I ask for some context?”

“Steve and I… When I forced Barb to come to his stupid party with me, we–we left her alone that night. By the pool…” Nancy’s voice cracks, and you grab her hand to encourage her to keep going. “We went upstairs to have sex, and Barb–she didn’t want me to leave her alone but I–I did and–”

You remember the photos Jonathan took last year, specifically the one where Barb had been sitting all by herself along the pool’s edge. Behind her had been a shadowy figure, a monster you soon would learn was from an alternate dimension with an intent to kill. 

“You think Barb died because you left her alone to go have sex with Steve.” You finish for Nancy, her tears rendering her unable to say more. 

She nods, looking away again as more tears stream down her face. You feel horrible for her, knowing first hand just how cruelly guilt can eat away at someone. Jonathan doesn’t know this, but you still think you’re the reason Will disappeared last year. You were the one who left him alone that night. If you had been there, if you had dropped him off at the Byers’ doorstep, you’re sure that he would’ve never ended up facing the horrors that he did. 

As for Nancy, you understand everything she’s feeling and more. It isn’t fair how one simple choice, one moment of selfishness, can lead to such tragedy and pain. 

Cautiously, you ask Nancy a question. “Does Steve know about the guilt you feel?” 

“He knows, but he doesn’t understand.” Nancy’s voice laces with grief and bitterness. “He found me by the pencil sharpener. There was this girl, she looked so much like Barb and I just… I zoned out. I was stuck there, thinking about her, when he found me.” 

“Did he notice you were upset?”

“Of course he noticed. He’s Steve, I could shed a single tear and he’d be all over me like I’m some baby.” Nancy scoffs, which makes you frown. You’re not sure what’s so wrong with that, having someone so attuned to your emotions because they love you that deeply. 

You push aside your thoughts, however. “What happened, then?”

“We went into a study room and I snapped.” Nancy’s close to tears again. “I just… I want to tell Barb’s parents what really happened. They’re selling their house, Y/N. They’re selling their own home to afford this private detective who promised them he’d find out what happened to her. What–what kind of person would I be if I let my best friend’s parents go bankrupt for being worried about their only child?”

“Nancy…”

“And Steve, he just… He told me it was a bad idea, that–that our families could get hurt and all that bullshit, but what am I supposed to do? I’m trying to figure something out, to fix this, and Steve just wants to go to some stupid party and pretend everything is okay?” Nancy is almost shouting now, and you nervously look around to make sure you're not disturbing anyone. It’s still a library, after all.

Nancy takes a few seconds to collect herself, to steady her breathing and control her anger. You let her take all the time she needs, and when she seems calm enough, you speak. “I understand where you’re coming from and why you’re upset. What happened to Barb is despicable, but… Well, I also agree with Steve.” 

“Y/N–”

“No, okay. Listen for a second,” you pause, trying to figure out exactly how to say what you’re thinking. “I think Steve means well, he doesn’t have a malicious bone in that silly body. The Halloween party can be a good thing for you if you let it, a way to destress. You have to move on, you have to allow yourself to move on.”

Nancy tries to argue some more but you continue. “I understand your guilt better than anyone else, I was the one who lost Will that night. But we all signed those contracts, Nancy. If we told anyone what really happened to Barb… It wouldn’t be fair to everyone who gets hurt, all our family members, because we broke a legal oath. You understand that, right?”

“I understand, but it’s not fucking fair.” Nancy’s eyes have a determination in them that startles you. You’ve always known that she was fierce, but seeing the edge in her eyes almost scares you. She’s angry, more than you’ve ever seen her before. 

You sigh. “I know, I wish I could do more, but…”

Nancy nods, understanding that there’s not much else you guys can do. You hate to let her down like this, you know she needs to hear something else, to feel supported, but you don’t know what else to tell her. 

Steve’s right in his own way, and so is Nancy. 

“Can you at least come to the party tonight?” Nancy softly pleads. “It’s just, I’ll feel more comfortable with you there, like I’m less crazy… I mean, that is if you even want to come and–”

“Of course I’ll come, Nance.” You don’t even hesitate to promise her this, nor do you realize that you’ve just called her “Nance”. It slipped from your tongue naturally, as if solidifying your friendship with the girl. You hate parties and loud crowds, but if Nancy needs you there by her side, to hold her hand and remind her of how brave she is, then you’ll happily do so. 

Nancy sinks into her seat, relieved. “Thank you, I owe you one.”

“I’ll hold you to that, you know.”

Nancy throws a piece of paper at you and you dodge it, throwing your pencil at her in retaliation. The two of you break out into a fit of giggles until the librarian eventually snaps at you guys and reminds you to be quiet. 

You reluctantly get back to work, and as you’re writing down more complex equations, you notice that there’s still a far off look in Nancy’s eyes. You know that she’s still thinking about Barb, the guilt eating away at her, and you know that the topic is far from settled.

–  

Halloween is in full swing the second Jonathan drops you off at home from school. There’s already kids milling around up and down your block in an assortment of costumes, all squealing with joy as they collect their candy. 

“Meet you in two hours?” You ask Jonathan as you unbuckle your seatbelt. 

“Yeah, but remember that I’m not wearing a costume.”

“C’mon, bee! It’s Halloween, where’s your holiday spirit?”

Jonathan groans. “Nag at me all you want, I’m not dressing up. I will, however, offer to be your arm candy.” 

“That’s the spirit!” You kiss Jonathan’s cheek and run out of the car and straight into your house. You have two hours to wrap up goodie bags for the neighborhood kids and then get dressed in your costume. It’ll be a tight schedule, but luckily you’re off of work tonight. 

It takes you about an hour to assort all your gift bags, separating the boys’ bags from the local kids’ bags, and before you know it you’ve successfully hand packaged goodie bags for an entire army. Once you’re done, you run to your room and throw on your costume. The dress slips over your head and settles gently over you.

You stand in front of your mirror and smile. 

It’s perfect. 

You’re going as Princess Buttercup tonight for Halloween. You read the Princess Bride around the end of summer and quickly fell in love with Buttercup. You’re not sure if you fell in love with the character because you read the book right after pushing Steve away, or because you saw yourself in Buttercup, but you came to adore her. 

Buttercup may have been a bit ditzy, but she loved with everything within her, and with such a passion, that you couldn’t help but admire her. It was her love for others that ultimately drove the story further, and you think there’s something beautiful about that. 

The red dress fits perfectly around you and you grab the gold chain that will serve as your belt. Once you’ve secured it around yourself, you place Buttercup’s golden circlet around your head. The costume had been pricier than you would’ve preferred, but as you stand in front of the mirror, you truly do feel like a princess. 

Your bee necklace, a wonderful gift from Jonathan, catches light from your window and you smile, bringing your fingers up to the pendant. It’s the only jewelry you need.

“Y/N! Are you almost done? Will radioed that they’d be here soon.” Dustin pounds on your door. 

You fling the door open. “I’m done, I just need to put on some makeup.”

Your brother makes a face as he walks into your room and plops himself down onto the beanbag. “You own makeup?”

“Yes, dear brother. I’d wear it more often if I had the time, but between herding you around and my school assignments, I can’t.” You dig through your makeup bag, opting for just mascara and a shimmery pearl eyeshadow. You’ll put on your lipstick in the car to save some time. 

“This doesn’t have anything to do with Jonathan, does it?”

You roll your eyes at Dustin. “No, believe it or not I can choose to do things without the influence of others.”

“Hmm, alright. Hurry up though, Mike had this awesome plan to hit up every house with the big candy bars and–”

“Dustin!” You throw a pillow at the boy, shutting him up. “Shush so I can focus.”

He grumbles but remains silent, now watching as you put your makeup on. It’s been a while since you’ve last worn any, so you’re slower than usual. Just as you’re finishing up your mascara, a car honks outside. 

Dustin runs out the room and you quickly grab your lipstick and follow after him. You’re wearing your mother’s mary janes again and they pinch your feet as you run, but whatever. You feel pretty tonight, you’re somebody else for now, a princess free from any burdens and stress. 

Jonathan is standing outside his car, waiting for you, and when you see him you practically fling yourself in his arms. “You dressed as Westley!”

He spins you around a bit, his plastic sword hitting against his leg. “You wanted me to wear a costume, right?”

You nod, inspecting his costume with glee. He looks amazing, dressed in Westley’s iconic all black attire, his sword by his side, and a mask tied loosely around his neck. To anyone else, Jonathan would look like a regular guy with an affinity for black, but to you, he was dressed as your knight in shining armor. 

He’s the Westley to your Princess Buttercup. 

Jonathan kisses your knuckles. “Well then, as you wish.”

His words are smooth velvet against your skin, they warm you as the late October air encases you. As you wish, words that became their own I love you within the book. A promise, similar to the one Jonathan made you last year in the passenger seat of his car, pinkies intertwined. 

Something stirs within you, seeing Jonathan’s proud smirk on his face because he’s once again managed to surprise you, and the feeling is sickly sweet like syrup. It runs through you slowly, covering every inch of you, and you bask in it.

For now, he’s still yours. 

“Can we go now? You guys are gross.” Dustin calls from the car, annoyed. 

You and Jonathan spring apart in embarrassment. He laughs, rubs the back of his neck, and tells you, “You look beautiful, Y/N.”

“Why thank you,” you curtsy. “You look rather dashing yourself, good sir.”

“I wasn’t kidding. You look… you’re beautiful.” The sincerity in Jonathan’s voice cuts through you, it cuts through everything between you, and you can only smile. 

“Thanks, bee.” You try to keep your voice playful, light and airy as always. “Now, open my door like the brave hero you’re dressed as.” 

Jonathan opens your door with a bow, causing you to laugh. You’re sitting in the backseat with Dustin, Will is in the passenger seat, and once you’ve buckled up, Will spins around in his seat to talk to you as Jonathan starts the car.

“Do you think it’s lame that you and Jonathan trick-or-treat with us?

You blink. “What did I miss?”

“I think it’s kinda lame,” Dustin voices next to you, but he lets out a pained squeak after you’ve elbowed his ribs. 

Jonathan turns onto the main road and scoffs at the boys. “You think we’re lame?”

“No, but…” Will sinks into his seat, and you watch as he begins to fiddle with the strap of his bag. He’s nervous. “It’s not like Nancy’s coming to watch over Mike, you know?”

Jonathan’s silent, and you catch his eye in the rear view mirror. You know what he’s thinking: Will has been having even more problems in school, he’s sick of being babied, and yet here you guys are, babying him. 

You sigh. “Look, Will. We like trick-or-treating with you guys, we don’t go are your babysitters. We go because it’s fun and I get to enjoy free candy as a sixteen year old.” 

Will looks out the window and doesn’t acknowledge what you’ve said. You sigh again, knowing that nothing will appease him. He’s only allowed you to see a small portion of how much he’s struggled this year, but you can see his foundations crumbling. 

How is he expected to adapt if you and everyone around him refuse to let him do so?

You catch Jonathan’s eye again in the rear view mirror and he seems to be thinking the same thing. 

Mike and Lucas run out the Wheeler’s house as soon as you guys park in the driveway. Dustin immediately bolts out the door to greet them, obviously uncomfortable with all the tension, leaving you and Jonathan with Will.

Jonathan looks at you one last time and you nod your head in encouragement. He has to do this, he has to let Will grow on his own. 

“Hey, listen.” Jonathan says, stopping Will from leaving. “If I let you go on your own, you promise to stay in the neighborhood?”

Will’s face lights up. “Yeah! Yeah, totally.”

“And be back at Mike’s by 9:00.”

“9:30?”

You reach over and pat Will’s back. “Now you’re pushin’ it, buddy.”

“What Y/N said. Be back by 9:00.” Jonathan instructs, but there’s a fond smile on his face. “Deal?”

“Deal!”

The brothers shake on it and you watch them with a smile. Jonathan hands Will one of Bob’s cameras and makes a poor Dracula joke and you love these boys so much. You wave goodbye to Will as he quickly gets out of the car and runs over to his friends. There’s a new skip in his step, he’s happier than you’ve seen him in a while.

“Alright,” you crawl over the passenger seat and plop yourself in rather ungracefully. “I’d say that went well.”

“We made the right choice, right?”

“I hope so.”

Jonathan sighs and watches the kids, who have now started hitting each other with their candy bags. You flip down the windscreen and use the small mirror in it to apply your lipstick. When Jonathan sees what you’re doing, he does a double take.

“Wait, are you putting on lipstick?”

“Mhm,” you knit your brows together, focused. “We’re going to a party.”

“We are?”

“Nancy begged me to come, and we just left the boys to go trick-or-treating on their own, so what else are we supposed to do tonight?”

“Nancy begged you to come–”

You finish your lipstick and flick Jonathan’s nose to shut him up. “Stop asking so many questions and just start the car, doofus.”

– 

The Halloween party is in full swing by the time you and Jonathan arrive. There’s a bunch of drunk teens in an array of costumes, ranging from classic heroes to dumb movie references, and the music is so loud you could hear it while you were still five blocks away. 

Jonathan parks the car and looks around wearily. “Are we really doing this?”

“Unfortunately I hate disappointing people, so yeah. We are.”

“One day your people pleasing needs will get you in trouble.”

“I will stab you with your plastic sword.”

“So sweet to me,” Jonathan quips, which you roll your eyes at. 

As you’re walking to the front door, you hear a crowd chanting Billy’s name. You freeze, knowing it could only be that awful mullet guy from earlier, and quickly shove Jonathan inside the house. 

“Who’s Billy?” He asks, confused.

You shake your head. “Don’t worry about it, let’s try to find Nancy–”

“Nice costume.” A girl dressed in goth attire interrupts you, her eyes only on Jonathan. 

Oh great. Another girl interested in Jonathan. 

Jonathan looks between you and the girl. “Huh?” 

“Nice costume. Going as a goth with a sword?”

“Actually,” you step in front of Jonathan now, forcing the girl to acknowledge your presence. “We’re matching. He’s Westley, I’m Princess Buttercup. Do you like it?”

The goth girl rolls her eyes. “Yeah, totally.” She steps past you and faces Jonathan again. “I’m Samantha.”

Jonathan is again looking between you and the girl, this time with even more fear and confusion on his face, and you almost want to laugh at him in pity. He’s never had a girl so blatantly hit on him, it’s almost hilarious if you ignore the fact that you’re in love with him. 

You leave Jonathan to handle the situation himself, scanning the room for Nancy. When you finally spot her, your heart sinks. She’s dancing with Steve, who looks fucking criminally good in his costume. You’re not sure who he’s dressed as, but he puts his Raybans in his mouth and smirks at Nancy and suddenly you understand why so many girls whisper in the halls about his lips. 

Nancy looks even better, her white blouse accentuating her beauty even more. She’s dancing with her arms around Steve and now you suddenly really want a drink. Seems like they’ve made up, then. 

Right as you’re about to pull Jonathan away from that Samantha girl and call it quits for the night, defeated and pride wounded, you see Steve and Nancy begin to argue over by the punchbowl.

Shit. 

You head towards them, shoving past hoards of people who seem to refuse to move. Nancy sees you approaching and only seems to become more upset. Her movement is unsteady, her eyes droopy and glossed over, and even before you walk up to her you know she’s heavily drunk. She’s in a tug of war with Steve and a cup. It’s clear he’s trying to cut off her alcohol intake.

“Hey, Nancy is everything okay–” Your words are cut off as punch splashes all over her white blouse.

Everyone around the couple gasps, and you wince at all the attention. Everyone stares between you, Steve, and Nancy. You quickly find some napkins and begin blotting at her blouse, trying to get as much of the punch out of it, but she drunkenly bats you away. 

“Don’t need help,” she slurs, but you shush her. 

“I got it, why don’t we go get some water?”

Steve steps in front of you now, aware of the fact that everyone is still staring, and says his first words to you in months. “She’s my girlfriend, I’ll take care of her. Just… just go, Y/N.” 

He dismisses you with a wave and you feel hurt wash over you. He hadn’t even spared you a single glance, he just treated you like some annoying fly in his way. You watch, defeated, as Steve guides Nancy to a room and you’re left alone at a party you hadn’t even wanted to go to in the first place. 

How fun. 

You crumble up one of the napkins in your hand and will away your anger. You don’t deserve to feel angry at Steve’s actions, you’re the one who was so dismissive of him in the first place. He’s just following along, doing what you’ve forced him to do. 

As you’re lost in thought, Billy corners you in the kitchen.

“We meet again, sweetheart.” His breath reeks of alcohol and you cringe, the smell burning your nose. 

“Didn’t I tell you to learn some goddamn personal space?” 

Billy laughs dryly, stepping forward every time you take a step back. Too late, you realize what he’s doing. Before you can stop it, he has your back pressed against a nearby wall. “Now where’s the fun in that?”

You look around, but everyone who had been in the kitchen earlier seems to have left or are far too drunk to realize what’s happening. Billy is peering over you and every part of you wants to run away, to cower. You’ve never been able to handle aggressive men well, no matter how much of a front you put on around Lonnie, you always trembled when he was near. 

Billy is no different, and he sees your unease. “Aw, is the princess nervous?”

“I’m surprised Max taught you what a princess looks like.”

At the mention of Max’s name, Billy’s cocky grin slips. Confusion masks his face now, making him appear more human than obnoxiously handsome. “So you know my little sister?”

You try to shove past him, but Billy plants his feet down and places both arms against the wall, trapping you. He’s surrounded you, he wants a reaction out of you. Taking a deep breath, you force yourself to steady your heartbeat and appear indifferent. 

“I have my ways,” you shrug, but your heartbeat still pounds rapidly. 

Billy raises an eyebrow. “Pretty and intelligent. Why, look at you. I’m impressed, and yet I still don’t know your name.”

You try again to move, but Billy leans his head down and brings his lips to your ear to whisper, “I’ll beg for it, if you want me to.”

“Get off–” He’s too close. He’s too fucking close and his lips against your ear makes you want to throw up, you don’t like this and you feel so fucking pathetic being cornered by such an egotistical asshole. 

“Tell me your name, and I’ll go.” There’s a smile in Billy’s voice, you can hear it without even having to look, and it enrages you. You fucking hate men like him. 

“Just get the fuck off of me–” You’ve closed your eyes now as you shove harshly against his chest.

Suddenly there’s a thud, a loud “oomph”, and a collective gasp from onlookers at the party. Your hands meet the air, there’s now no one there to push against. Slowly, open your eyes. There, standing in front of you, is Steve holding a very angry Jonathan back while Billy is on the ground.

Jonathan yanks his arm free from Steve and stands over Billy, who is laying on the ground with yet another unnerving smile on his face. Your friend shakes his fist out, which you now see is red, Billy’s face showcases a matching mark. “She told you to get off of her.” 

A silence falls over the crowd.

Billy slowly stands up, wipes himself off, and then takes a bow. “Not bad, loner boy.”

Jonathan tries to step closer to him, but Steve grabs his shirt and shakes his head. “He’s not worth it, man.” 

“And what do you know about worth, Harrington?” Billy chuckles, now practically in Steve’s face. “Where’s that little girlfriend of yours? You should go ask her what she thinks you’re worth.” 

Steve’s face hardens, but you can see dried tears in his eyes. Seeing him about to crumble, you step between the boys. “Enough.”

They look at you, but you ignore them and then wave to the crowd of people still watching. “Show’s over! Go back to drinking away your sorry fucking lives.”

Jonathan pulls you close to him. “Bug, are you okay? Did he hurt you? We need to go home, I’ll bake you brownies and we can just–”

Jonathan’s concerned rambling is enough to make you smile, albeit faintly. “I’m fine, bee.”

Billy observes the interaction, he notices how Steve’s eyes flicker between your interlocked hands with Jonathan and the way your hair frames your pretty face. He sees it all, and he understands exactly what’s happening here. 

“Oh, Harrington.” Billy can’t wait to see what happens next. “You’re fucked.”

Steve watches as Billy leaves, confused by his words but too tired to think much of them. He’s had the worst fucking night of his life. His girlfriend just told him she doesn’t love him, then he came outside to see Billy pressing himself against you like some fucking creep. He hadn’t even gotten to help you, Jonathan had beaten him to it. All Steve could do was hold the guy back afterwards. 

Now Jonathan is holding your hands and whispering comforting words to you and you’re dressed in Steve’s favorite color, your lips an even prettier red, you’re wearing a goddamn tiara on your head like the princess you truly are, and Steve’s had just about enough of tonight. 

“I’m glad you’re okay, Y/N.” Steve tells you tiredly. He then turns to Jonathan. “Uh, Nance and I sorta… Can you just, give her a ride home? She doesn’t…”

Steve’s words catch in his throat and you grab his hand before you can stop yourself. “He’ll take her, won’t you, Jonathan?”

Jonathan stumbles over his words. “Sure, uh. Yeah, I can do that… What about you, though?”

You think about your conversation with Nancy earlier, how she seemed so upset with Steve, and how not even ten minutes ago they’d been fighting over by the punchbowl. There’s a hurt between them, one you think may be too big to patch up with just one conversation, but Jonathan doesn’t know all of this. 

“I’ll drive Steve home.”

Both boys stare at you like you’re insane, and honestly? You can’t blame them. 

You haven’t spoken to Steve in months, and Jonathan knows this better than anyone. 

“Y/N,” Steve lowers his voice. “I haven’t had anything to drink, there’s no need–”

“Too bad. I’m taking you home. Jonathan, go find Nancy and make sure she gets back okay.”

Jonathan and Steve try to argue, but you yank Steve’s hand and make him come with you. It’s long past time the two of you had a talk, anyways.

– 

When you exit the house, the weight of everything that’s just happened catches up to you. Your skin still feels raw, Billy’s presence lingering on you. Steve’s hand is warm in yours, but he isn’t holding on the way you secretly hoped he would. Jonathan’s confused and concerned eyes remain in the back of your mind, the image of him standing alone in the party makes you feel guilty. 

But you have to do this. You’re tired of being a coward.

Steve is silent as he guides you to his car. He’s parked pretty far, which you hadn’t been expecting. “What, do you not get a special parking spot as King Steve?”

He ignores your attempt at a joke and instead drops your hand. 

Okay. You deserved that. 

When you get to his car, Steve throws you the keys and silently gets into the passenger seat. You inhale, willing this to end well, and get in the driver’s seat. You start the car and the engine warms your fingertips. 

You start to drive. 

Steve is looking out the window, and you’ve never seen him appear so small. He’s closed into himself, his shoulders are hunched and his carefree smile from earlier is gone. 

“Not to make this awkward, but I kinda don’t know where you live.” You break the silence.

“Make a left up here.”

“Do you want to talk about what happened tonight–”

“Why do you only ever care about me when I’m some kicked fucking puppy?”

Steve’s words are vicious, and you flinch at his tone. “You know that’s not true,”

“It’s not?” He scoffs at you. “Then explain what happened this summer.”

“I…” You can’t. 

Steve sees your reluctance to say anything and lets out a harsh laugh. “Yeah, whatever. Some real fucking friend you were.”

You take a shaky breath. You knew this would be hard, but it still hurts more than you thought it would’ve. While you can’t tell Steve everything, you can offer him a half truth. It’s all you can afford, and it isn’t nearly half of what he deserves, but it’s all you can do. “I got scared.”

Your confession causes Steve to turn to you. “Scared?”

“Yeah, scared.”

“Gee, Y/N. That really explains a ton.”

You’re losing him again, so you offer him more. “I’m sorry, Steve. I really am. It’s just… I got scared, I’ve never been good at letting people in. I know it doesn’t excuse my actions, and you didn’t deserve any of it, but you just… You scared me.”

Steve is silent again, only mumbling a quiet, “Turn right after this light.”

“Look,” you push down your fear, you need him to hear you. “You came crashing into my life in such a violent way, and it became the best goddamn thing that happened to me. There you were, spending every day at my job just to talk to me. You asked me questions about myself and noticed things no one else had before and I just… I couldn’t do it.”

You look over at Steve and soften your voice, putting every ounce of your guilt and sincerity into your words. “I missed you.”

“Missed?” There’s something in Steve’s voice that you can’t quite decipher, it’s almost too delicate to examine. 

“Miss. I miss you,” you correct, and it takes everything within you not to confess more. To tell him you miss how his eyes turn a warm toffee in the late afternoon light, that you miss his obsession with his mom’s banana bread and that you have a recipe at home that you never got to make for him. You almost tell him that even though you pulled yourself away, you can’t seem to separate him from you. He’s everywhere. 

But what you can’t tell Steve, what would break you if he ever found out, is that you’ve come to love how he’s everywhere.

Steve is silent, and you swallow down your tears. It wasn’t enough, but at least you tried. 

As you turn into his driveway, Steve finally speaks. “All my life, all I’ve ever wanted was for people to like me.”

“Steve…”

“And every time I think someone finally likes me, I’m wrong. They leave me. I mean, you left me without a fucking word, Nancy lied about loving me, and my bullshit friends at school have replaced me with Billy.” 

Nancy lied about loving him?

Steve looks down at his hands, his eyelashes are wet with fresh tears. “I don’t know what I keep doing wrong.” 

You throw yourself across the car’s console and wrap yourself around the boy. “You’ve done nothing wrong.”

Steve places one arm around you, then slowly he places his other, and for the first time in months you’re finally back in his arms. He’s surrounded in you again, and he never, ever wants to let you go. 

“You won’t leave me again?”

Steve asks this so softly, as if too scared to bring the words into the light and risk them scaring you away. You tighten your arms around him and bury your nose into his neck, his cologne making your brain dizzy. “Never. 

And it’s enough for now. 

The pieces settle between you and Steve. Something clicks into place and you know that he feels it, too. He tightens his own arms around you, draws small circles against your back, and you stay like that for what feels like hours. 

Eventually the two of you break apart and head into his house. He offers you something warm to drink, but you decline. It’s late, you should be heading home soon. You ask Steve where his phone is and then call Jonathan, telling him to come get you from Steve’s.

Jonathan doesn’t ask any questions, his own voice sounding off on the phone. You know that tomorrow you’ll have to explain to him what happened with Steve, and he’ll have to explain what’s happened with Nancy. But tonight, you both settle on ignoring the topic for now. 

Steve waits with you downstairs for Jonathan. 

“If we’re going to be friends again, then I demand my nickname.” 

You look up at the boy and laugh. “What if I told you I still haven’t figured it out yet?”

“Can you at least give me a hint?” Steve bats his eyelashes at you and you shove him away with another laugh.

“Hm,” you think for a moment, reveling in the simplicity between you two again. “It’s lovely. That’s all I can say.”

Steve makes a face. “Lovely? That’s all I get?”

“Mhm.” You poke his face. “For now, please just trust that I’ll stay.”

Steve looks away for a moment, and you admire his lovely side profile, before he finally seems to settle on his thoughts. “Fine, but I expect some type of baked good every day from here on out.”

“Deal.” You raise your pinky and offer it to Steve, who smiles and shakes his head, but wraps his own pinky around yours.

Steve’s eyes are still red, from exhaustion and heartbreak, and yours are probably no better. You know there’s so much the two of you have to face tomorrow morning, to talk about and deal with. Nancy, Jonathan, Billy. But for now, Steve’s pinky is around yours and you couldn’t ask for a better end to your night. 

It’s a start.

It’s all you could’ve asked for. 

Jonathan arrives later and waits in the car, seeming to sense that you want some privacy as you say goodbye to Steve. 

“That’s my ride.” You nudge him. “Oh, don’t think I forgot about the Nancy thing. We’ll talk about that tomorrow.”

“What–”

“We’re friends again and I nag all my friends about their emotions. You were spared last year, but this year? Buckle up, buddy.”

Steve lets out a tired laugh. “Do I have to sign another contract?”

“Nah, you just have to trust me.”

“I do.” He says, no ounce of hesitation. 

You squeeze his hand. “Then that’s all I need. Goodnight, Steve. Get some rest.”

Steve nods and watches as you walk towards Jonathan’s car. He stays outside for a while, long after the car has faded in the distance. The cold air makes him shiver, but after everything that’s happened tonight, he welcomes it. His mind is spinning, he’s not sure if he feels more heartbreak or relief, but he decides he doesn’t care. 

For now, he’s content. 

Now that he has you in his life again, no matter what happens between him and Nancy, he knows he’ll get through it with you holding his hand. 

– 

The drive home is quiet. Both you and Jonathan seem to be lost in your own thoughts. When you get to your house, you simply tell your friend, “Tomorrow. We’ll talk about it all tomorrow,”

Jonathan nods, his eyes as tired as yours. “Tomorrow.”

You walk inside your house and notice all the lights off. You’re home later than you originally planned, your mom must be asleep already. You kick off your shoes and sigh tiredly. Tonight has exhausted you. 

However, you feel bad about skipping out on the boys, so you walk towards Dustin’s room and quietly knock on the door to apologize. After a few knocks, Dustin cracks his door open. “Yes?”

“Hey, just wanted to ask how tonight…” You notice Dustin’s stance, how he seems to almost be trying to block your view of something. “Is everything alright?”

Your brother quickly repositions himself. “Fine! Nothin’ to see here!”

He’s definitely acting suspicious. 

“Open the door, show me what’s inside.”

You go to shove your way in, but Dustin scrambles and ends up shouting, “Will had another episode tonight!

“What?” You freeze. 

Dustin lets out a breath of relief. He knew using Will’s episode would be a good distraction from what he has in his room. “Will, he had another episode. He’s fine, though… Just thought you should know.”

“Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?”

“Actually,” Dustin lets out a yawn. “I’m kinda tired. Ya know, trick-or-treating is hard work. Can we just call it a night and talk about it tomorrow?”

“I mean, I guess?” Your list of things you need to talk about tomorrow keeps growing. 

“Sweet! Goodnight, Y/N!” And with that, Dustin slams his door in your face. He presses his back pressed against his door as he steadies his heartbeat. That was close, too close. After a couple seconds, he walks over to his turtle’s tank and greets Dart again. “Sorry buddy, had to get Y/N away. She’d freak if she found out about you.”

Dart lets out a small screech in response. 

“Wonder how long I can keep this from her.”

Meanwhile, you stand in the hall for a moment, completely bewildered as to what’s just happened. It feels like you missed a few important details. There’s something happening, but you have no idea what.

You go to your room and make a plan. Tomorrow, you’ll order a code blue with Dustin and demand information. For now, all you can do is get ready for bed and hope that whatever he’s hiding, it isn’t as monumental as El had been. 

Tonight, you go to bed thinking of Nancy and Steve, worried about them both.

-

⌑ series masterlist

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[weird-an]

Billy doesn't remember how he got here. He stares at Harrington's big ass house, perfectly cut rose bushes and freshly mowed lawn.

It's nearly midnight. His arm throbs, each one of Neil's finger leaving a violet shadow behind. Why did he come here?

Harrington and him only met two times, shared hungry kisses and touches no one can ever know about. The vague sense of relief, of not being alone, made Billy ache a little less for that moment.

He's probably looking for that. To ease the pain, because Harrington is better than an advil.

Ridiculous. He should go, lick his wounds somewhere else. Harrington is a rich brat, once he sees the ugly truth behind Billy's smiles he's gonna toss him away.

The door opens. Billy halfway expects the stern looking man he has seen on a photo in the hallway to yell at him, to chase him away.

"Billy?"

But it's just Steve. Steve whose face turns from confused to something softer, something warm, something Billy wants to curl up in if he only was allowed to.

"What's goin' on?" Steve steps aside. Billy can't move. He doesn't belong here, because this place is golden and bright and shines on all his scars.

"Come in," Steve says.

Billy knows that he must have walked, because suddenly he's sitting on the couch and Steve puts a blanket around him.

"What are you doin'?" Billy asks. He's staring at some weird ass marble sculpture of an otter and it all doesn't make sense.

"You're hurt." Steve chews on his bottom lip, somehow unsure. They've already crossed a line tonight, Billy knows that. "How can I help?"

"I don't need help," Billy says and it's not even a lie. Neil gets angry, Billy hides, that's just how it goes. He wants to get away, but he's never going to make it. He knows it. Neil knows it, too.

Steve tilts his head. The otter stares at Billy.

"Hot chocolate," Steve declares.

"I'm not a kid," Billy snorts. He's a son, but he's not a child. Never allowed to be.

Steve ignores him. The otter seems to laugh at Billy when he listens Steve rummage in the kitchen.

There's a hot cup getting pushed into his hand. There's a gigantic pile of marshmallows on top of it. Billy looks from the chocolate to Steve, to the otter and back.

"Do you want more marshmallows?" Steve asks - he sounds nervous. He sips from his cup and Billy watches him lick away the stain of chocolate from his lips.

"It's fine," Billy says. The chocolate tastes rich and sweet and there's tears in his eyes, tears he has cried before when he was a kid and still had a mom.

"Thanks," he manages, hoping Steve doesn't see him cry like a little bitch - or so his dad would say.

"Anytime." It sounds like a promise.

Billy can't feel Neil's hand on his arm. He only feels warm.

[starboye]

pairing: steve harrington x male reader

request: SO THE IDEA IS STEVE’S LIKE SUPER STRAIGHT RIGHT??? It’s not like he spends half the time he’s with robin staring at the reader (and his ass) nooo way no. But then then Steve spots the reader at the pool, flirting it up with Billy (pre assimilation ofc). Steve gets jealous and drags the guy he’s TOOOOTALLY not gay for out of the sweltering summer sun (cough cough sweat kink) and claims him in the locker room. Bonus breeding kink: Steve says he’s gonna get the reader nice and knocked up so he can’t go being a slut to other guys 😇😇😇

warnings: smut, cursing, breeding, obsessive!steve, degradation

steve harrington, a man you once knew as the douchebag who slept with every girl in school but you now know as robin's best friend from work, you both met one time when robin invited you to hand out with them, you didn't know steve was gonna tag along so it was a pleasant surprise when you got there to see him chatting it up with robin.

and from there all thee of you hung out more frequently but it always felt steve wanted more than just a friendship with you, when he first met you his eyes were glued to your body the entire day, you could feel them piercing every part of your body with his gaze but you shrugged it off not knowing that you had now created something in him that he never knew was there.

I mean there's no way steve could be gay for you right? like he's fucked a bunch of girls and openly boasted about how many girls he's dated but there's something about the way he eyes you whenever you're around another guy that just sets off alarms in your mind, but there's no point in thinking of that now when you're out at the public pool flirting with the hottest guy in town, billy hargrove.

you and him were exchanging very... shall we say seductive looks, you giving him a very revealing look at your ass when you bent over to drink from the water fountain and him rubbing and groping his hardened bulge as you walked by, now you two were engaged in a very sexy conversation, you both flirting very hard with eachother as he played with the whistle that dawned his mouth and you biting your lip lightly as to not kiss him in front of everyone.

but the was soon going to be ruined as steve walked out of the locker rooms after putting on his swim trunks before seeing you openly flirting with the fuck boy that was billy, he could feel his core heating up and he didn't know why but he wanted to get you as far away from the man as possible and for some reason he acted on it, immediately walking over to you and pulling you aside as you pestered him with questions.

he drags you back to the locker room and into the showers, finding and empty on and pulling you into it and pushing your back against the wall "what the fuck was that" you ask "what did you do to me" steve questions as his hands find their way to your waist, you jump in shock as his face gets closer to yours "what're you doing" you ask feeling your stomach get butterflies "why do I like you so much" steve questions to himself as he finally leans in and kisses you.

the kiss gets deeper and deeper till your hands are wrapped in his hair and he's holding you up by the thighs against the wall "I like you so much for some reason... I don't know why" steve says messily kissing you "shut up and fuck me" you breathlessly moan, hearing this steve let's you down and turns you around to have your ass on his crotch, he turns on the shower to let the water masks the sounds of your moans that are soon to cum.

he pulls down his pants letting his dick flop out, it may look slightly flaccid now but as soon as he pulls your shorts down he pops the quickest boner of his life, he runs his finger along your hole, it feels loose for some reason "care to tell me why it's so loose back here" steve asks pushing his fingers in your hole slowly "did you plan on getting fucked today" he asks with disbelief in his voice "shut up thats not the point" you say.

"such a slut for men" steve smirks as he lines himself up with your hole, he slides in without any resistance from your stretched out ass "feels just like a real pussy" steve groans as he slowly slides in and out of you "then treat it like a real pussy and go faster" you say "I should dump my load into you, get you all nice and big like youre pregnant with my cum so no other guy with talk to you" steve says as his thrusts into you turn into pounds, the sound of wet skin slapping fill the showers.

you could hear people walking by whispering about you getting fucked "steve hurry up, people are starting to realize" you ask getting shy "let them watch, then they would know I own you now" steve chuckles as his hand snakes it's way down to your dick and strokes it erratically wanting to hear your moans "fuck" you lowly say thrusting your hips into his fist "so fucking tight" steve mutters under his breath, pulling back your ass with his free hand to see your hole swallow him up "keep taking it just like that baby alllll the way in" steve groans throwing his head back while his hips move on their own.

"please cum in me" you beg backing your ass onto his dick and your dick into his hand as he tightens his fist making you cum without a thought behind those eyes "ngh" you moan as you chest heaves in and out trying to catch your breath "don't give out on me now" steve says grabbing your hips and matching them with his fast pace "take my load" steve grunts cumming in you, continuing to thrust into you, churning the cum into your loose hole "now who do you belong too" steve asks turning you around to face him "you" you shyly say "that's right now put your clothes back on" steve orders as he pulls his shorts back up and you do the same before making your way out of the locker room.

billy looking at you with concern but steve giving him a look back, a look that says "he's mine" you both walked over to where robin was sitting "what took you too so long, i was starting to think you got kidnapped" robin jokes "nothing just bro things" steve jokes nudging your shoulder, unbeknownst to robin you had steves hot load dripping out your hole and sliding down your leg, but yeah you and him were just doing some 'bro' things.

taglist: @mailmango @spermeboy @ghostking4m

[thissortofsorcery]

This is my contribution to the @harringrove-relay-race!! It's been so much fun so far, and I'm so excited to share my piece!

Thank you so much to @kuroubojin for passing the baton to me 💕

--

Billy thought that finally getting King Steve into bed would be different. 

Well, he didn’t think he’d actually get King Steve into bed, in the first place. But as much as Billy hates to admit it, now that he has, he’s feeling a little out of his depth.

In the many, many times he thought about what sex with Harrington would be like, he’d pictured something a little more… Wild. He thought fucking Harrington would be like a fight, biting and clawing and pushing to see who’s gonna come out on top. He thought he’d have to wrestle King Steve down and show him who the real king was, and it would be rough and hot and loud. Impersonal, though. Billy likes to get off fast and easy, after all. There’s no reason to draw it out or to linger after. 

But. But. 

Harrington caught him off guard. Billy never expected the teasing and the pigtail-pulling to pay off in the first place. He didn’t think he’d actually see Harrington’s fire turned on him, giving as good as he got, every barb out of Billy’s mouth being met with burning words and an upturned nose. It only egged Billy on more. 

It came to a point where Billy couldn’t put his eyes on Harrington without his whole body responding, heart thrumming and veins singing with adrenaline, palms sweaty at the sight of an answering smirk. 

And now, well. 

Running into each other at the quarry turned into a shared case of beer and a cigarette, turned into this. 

Billy pinned down on the backseat of Harrington’s damn BMW, leather seats sticking to his sweaty back. Billy doesn’t know how long they’ve been kissing; all he knows is that he lost his shirt somewhere in the middle, and his jeans are open and rucked down to his hips. Harrington’s skin is hot, feverish under Billy’s fingertips, soft skin covering firm, defined muscles that roll with every movement of Harrington’s hips. 

Billy’s never cared much about kissing, but he can’t get enough of Harrington’s mouth. It’s obvious that he likes it, having latched onto Billy’s lips however long ago and not relented since. Billy’s not complaining. Harrington finds places in Billy’s mouth that he never thought could feel this good, takes over every one of his senses easy as breathing. He’s a tall wave bowling Billy over, taking up all the space in his head and chest and lungs, and it’s all he can do to hold on. 

There’s no fighting while they fuck, no raucous and derisive laughter, taking potshots at each other like they have something to lose. 

It’s good. 

Billy was sure it would be, but… It’s like nothing he’s felt before. Harrington is everywhere; the scent of his hair products in Billy’s lungs, the taste of his sweat on Billy’s tongue, his body a heavy weight on top of Billy’s. His name on Billy’s lips, a litany of Steve, Steve, Steve that Billy barely registers is coming from him. 

Harrington’s mouth never leaves his skin, not for a second, the maddening slide of his tongue leaving a line of fire wherever it goes. Harrington’s breath is hot on his neck. 

Billy can’t figure out why it feels so overwhelming, why this feels so different from anyone else he’s fucked before. After a while, he stops trying to. 

By the end, Billy doesn’t know which way is up, if it’s been minutes or hours. He can barely hear himself breathe over the thundering of his pulse in his ears. He forgets that he’s not supposed to drag this out, that he’s not supposed to linger, too busy riding the aftershocks of the pleasure Harrington brought out on his body. 

He’s struck dumb. Or fucked stupid, more like. 

This is nothing like he thought it was going to go. It was supposed to be about getting off, but Harrington turned it around on him. 

The backseat is cramped, and Billy’s skin is uncomfortably sticky against the warm leather, but his body sings when Harrington rearranges them so Billy’s lying on top, on his stomach, and with his nose tucked into Harrington’s neck. 

“C’mere,” is all Harrington says. Then he drapes his dumb members only jacket over Billy’s back. “I know how cold you get.”

Billy thinks he might be able to fall asleep like this. He’s not even itching for a cigarette. 

“You good?” Harrington says, and Billy grins against his chest. Harrington’s chest hair tickles his lips. 

“You gotta ask?” Billy laughs, a soft, light thing. He didn’t know he was capable of making a sound like that. 

Billy still can’t feel his toes, but he’s not gonna tell him that. 

“Dunno,” Harrington mumbles. There’s a note of uncertainty to his voice now, a dip in his confidence that Billy wasn’t expecting, not now.

Billy lifts his head to rest his chin on Harrington’s chest. He’s staring at the darkened car ceiling, but his hand is tight on Billy’s hip. 

“Could be better,” Billy says, and Harrington’s eyes jump to him, a touch too wide. Billy’s smirk grows. “The beer’s outside.”

Harrington bursts out laughing, pale throat stretched and gleaming in what little light spills into the car.

“If I go out and get it you’re gonna freeze to death,” he says, one hand coming up to Billy’s face. The tips of his fingers stroke lightly over his forehead, almost imperceptible, and push a stray curl away from Billy’s eyes. 

It hits him then, why everything feels so different from his other fucks. He barely has two brain cells left to rub together, caught in Harrington’s warm gaze, and it’s been niggling at him this whole time. How is it that Harrington can make Billy’s brain just shut off. 

“Wouldn’t want that,” Billy mumbles distractedly.

“No.” Harrington’s smile goes soft around the edges, and his fingers stroke Billy’s cheek. “I wouldn’t.”

Harrington’s looking at him like he’s precious. Like something he wants to keep. 

Billy’s retort gets lost on the way to his mouth.

“I’m good,” is what he ends up saying. Harrington smiles. 

He is good, Billy thinks. Right here, under Harrington’s jacket, legs tangled together, the chill of the night shut away for now. 

He’s better than he’s been in a while. 

--

Thank you for reading my piece!

Please look forward to the next one, done by the the lovely @billysblueeyes!!!! Go go go!!

[werepuppy-steve]

Between discovering the Russian bunker under Starcourt, discovering their plans to get into the Upside Down, being caught by said Russians and tortured, after making sure Dustin and Erica got out of there, Steve was confident that this was an isolated incident.

Hopper had assured them that El had closed the gate at Hawkins Lab, saw it with his own eyes. So maybe if they (he, Robin, Dustin, and Erica) dealt with this one on their own, it wouldn’t be so bad. There were no monsters this time, at least.

Steve had naive hope that the others wouldn’t have to get involved.

But as the four of them are chased through the mall by a big guy with a gun, Steve and Robin still coming down from a truth serum high, his hope turns into dread.

Because a show car is suddenly flung from the floor and into the group of Russians that have them cornered behind a counter in the food court, and there’s only one person he knows with the ability to do that.

They all slowly peer over the counter, and sure enough, El is standing at the forefront, her hand extended in front of her and her nose bleeding. The other kids plus Nancy, Jonathan, and Eddie are with her. Steve’s stomach drops and the nauseating feeling from earlier is back, but it’s not from the drugs this time.

Eddie makes a beeline toward him and Robin while Dustin greets the others with enthusiasm, Erica a little starstruck over El.

“What the hell happened?” Eddie demands, eyes flitting frantically all over Steve’s face and taking in the worst of the damage. Steve knows he must look like shit– he can’t see that great out of his left eye and that whole side of his face has gone numb.

Billy bashing his face in last year has nothing on the pain he’s feeling now.

“It’s a long story,” Steve says as he leans heavily into Eddie’s space. Eddie’s hands land on his shoulders and he holds him gently, like he’s afraid of hurting him even more. “I’ll tell you after this is all over.”

“Steve–”

“Teddy.” Steve pulls back and looks him in the eye, as well as he can. He must have not puked everything out of his system like Robin thought because he still feels a little giddy when he reaches up and taps Eddie on the nose. “Later. I promise.”

There’s really no time to say anything else because Robin and Erica need to be brought up to speed about everything and he and Dustin need to be caught up on what’s happening now, and when they are, Steve desperately wishes that it was just the Russians they had to deal with.

Help comes in the form of Hopper, Ms. Byers, and a balding man that Steve’s never met. While they’re all squabbling and trying to come up with a half baked plan, Eddie finds a first aid kit in one of the kitchens and makes Steve sit on a counter so he can try to patch him up. They don’t speak, but Steve grips Eddie’s unoccupied hand while Eddie stands close between his legs.

There isn’t much time between then and everybody splitting off into groups. Scoops Troop plus Eddie all pile into the TODFTHR (“You sure you’re her daddy, sweetheart?” Eddie teases with a smirk and Steve’s glad the bruising hides his blush.)

Everything gets a little fuzzy after they leave the kids at Weathertop. When he’s asked later, he’ll say he remembers hearing that song from that one movie, but he’s not sure if it actually happened. He’s so hyped up on adrenaline, it’s probably the only thing keeping him conscious.

Steve doesn’t remember making the decision to t-bone Billy’s car, but he does remember the horrific scene inside the mall; the Mindflayer screeching and its tentacle-like appendages swinging this way and that. He remembers pelting it with explosives to distract it from attacking El. He looks down and his stomach lurches when he sees the monster go straight through Billy’s chest.

He hears Eddie let out a strangled curse beside him and Steve has to ignore the bile rising in his throat. He knows there’s been casualties; Barb in ‘83, Ms. Byers’ boyfriend last year, however many people the Mindflayer had killed this year.

This is the first death he’s ever seen in person.

He’s still reeling from it when Owens and the military swarm the building once the monster is finally defeated. They’re all pulled in separate directions for medical attention and questioning. Steve feels downright miserable, sitting in the back of an ambulance with Robin, a shock blanket over his shoulders. He squeezes her hand and gives her a small smile.

“I’m sorry you got dragged into this,” he says.

Robin takes a shaky breath. “Yeah. I’m still trying to wrap my head around all of it. I think for once in my life, I’m speechless.”

Eddie finds them after he’s been looked over and Steve opens his arms to pull him in for a hug, wrapping both of them in the blanket. Eddie presses a kiss to his forehead and Steve sags against him. They take a moment to breathe each other in, basking in the fact that they’re both alive.

“They want to take us to the hospital,” Steve says. “They’re pretty sure I have a concussion but they want to run tests to make sure there isn’t any other damage.” He nods to Robin. “And they wanna keep us under 24 hour observation 'cause of the drugs.”

“Jesus Christ,” Eddie breathes, eyes sliding shut.

Steve frowns and uses the corner of the blanket to brush against Eddie’s cheek comfortingly. “I’m sorry,” he apologizes with a grimace. “This probably wasn’t how you were expecting to spend your birthday.”

Eddie turns his head and kisses his fingers. “No, baby,” he says. “Absolutely nothin’ for you to be sorry about. Had me and Wayne worried sick when you didn’t come home last night, though. I was close to callin’ Hopper when Lucas started screaming code red over the radio.”

Steve doesn’t want to think about how that probably worried them even more. “Your present’s in my car,” he says instead. “You can’t have it until I’m discharged, though. I wanna see your face when you open it.”

Eddie raises an eyebrow. “That just makes me even more curious, sweetheart.”

He pinches Steve’s side playfully, but gently. Steve stifles a giggle and leans into him more, very aware of how Robin’s watching them like a hawk.

“No peeking,” Steve warns, pointing a finger in Eddie’s face. “It’s a surprise.”

Eddie only nips at his finger. Steve doesn’t even blink. Sighing, Eddie releases his finger and marks a cross over his heart. “I promise I won’t do any snooping.”

Steve pats his cheek. “Anyone ever tell you you’re a shit liar, Munson?”

They break into giggles, their heads bent forward, and Eddie would’ve leaned in for a kiss if it weren’t for Robin clearing her throat rather loudly. Steve curls into Eddie’s front, Eddie’s arm going around his shoulders. God, he’d give anything to be at home and asleep in their bed.

“I’m still very confused about this whole thing,” Robin says, waving a hand in their direction. “I just fought a monster from a whole other dimension, but this is probably the biggest shocker of my life.”

“Strange things follow this group around like a shadow,” Eddie says, like it’s the most casual thing in the world. And for him, it is. “You better get used to it, Buckley, 'cause you’re one of us now.”

written and originally posted for @flowercrowngods birthday 🤍 dio is an absolute treasure and a great friend to have and is my #1 gseb stan. happy belated birthday!!! 💙

🥐☕💕 buy me a coffee?

[ash5monster01]

An Innocent Man

Chapter Nine - The Longest Time 🎶

Pairing: Steve Harrington x FemReader

Warnings: fluff, implied smut, mentions of pregnancy, language, super cheesy & lovesick

Summary: Celebrating your wedding Anniversary Steve relishes in the feeling that he will always love you and he never thought he’d get to be so lucky.

word count: 2.1k

Eight ←→ Ten

Masterlist

Spring 1992

But I've gone this far, and it's more than I hoped for

The backyard is dark, the only light coming from the pool and the fairy lights you had put up for the occasion. The party had quieted down, only a few friends and family still hanging around. As Steve sways you around the backyard to Innocent Man by Billy Joel, your chin rests on his shoulder, eyes cast on Dustin who sleeps in the lawn furniture with your daughter in his arms. You’re certain there is nothing more perfect than this moment.

“Do you ever think about how long it’s been since the day we met?” Steve mutters into your hair softly, it raises the hair on your arms, your hold tightening against him.

“It’s only been seven years Steve” you remind him and he chuckles lightly, pulling back to look into your eyes. There’s so much love and you realize there is something more perfect than this moment. Or someone.

“That doesn’t matter, I’ve loved you for the longest time I’ve ever loved anyone. If you said goodbye to me tonight there would still be things left unsaid, love left to be given” and your heart clenches at the sentiment, your love outpouring for him in a new way you never found possible.

“Good thing that would never happen” you tell him in a low whisper, eyes glancing at his lips because if you didn’t kiss him soon you might not survive the rest of the night. Yet as always the boy has so much more to say.

“I’m serious, I don’t think there’s anything left for me but loving you. I’m so inspired by you. Just when I thought my innocence was gone you found me and now I’m the happiest I’ve ever been, more happy then I ever thought I’d be” he rants and you smile, happy tears rimming your eyes. What a big sap.

“Happy anniversary to you too Steve” you tell him, arms coming to wrap around his neck, fingers tangling in his hair. Steve smiles, tightening his grip around your waist. Your guests are long forgotten, the two year wedding anniversary finally becoming about just you two.

“Happy anniversary, now let’s make it a lifetime” he tells you, finally ducking close where you can capture his lips with your own. You kiss him like he’s your only source of oxygen and you hadn’t had a chance to breathe for hours.

“I think the greatest miracle of all is how I needed you and you needed me too” you tell him, thinking about that first day in the record shop. How you had went in search of company, a loneliness buried deep within you that you thought music could cure, and instead Steve did.

“You know I had second thoughts at the start?” Steve admits and your eyes widen as you gasp at him, a bit surprised by this comment.

“Second thoughts?” you question and he laughs, shaking his head as he realizes you have taken it the wrong way.

“I’d just been so hurt before, I had to make sure I held onto my heart. Yet you felt so right and we had gone so far, it ended up being more than I hoped for. So I took my chances and now I know what kind of woman you are” he explains himself and you gaze up at him lovingly, wishing you could go back and tell the younger version of you both how good this would turn out.

“And what kind of woman am I?” you inquire and Steve smiles, squeezing lovingly at your waist.

“Wonderful, romantic, kind, sexy…” he whispers the last part in your ear and your skin crawls, the desire for the party to be over and be up with him in your shared bedroom becoming more and more desperate.

“Nice to know I still got it, even after a baby” you tell him and he grins at you, lustful eyes examining every inch of your face and chest.

“No matter how many babies we have you’ll still be sexy to me baby, you’re more than I could have ever hoped for” Steve tells you earnestly and you giggle, leaning forward and pressing a soft kiss to his collarbone.

“Well that’s good to hear” you tell him and Steve furrows his eyebrows together, a suspicious look on his face as he tries to determine the underlying meaning to that sentence.

“Is that supposed to mean something?” he asks and you give the most unconvincing face as you shrug, unable to suppress the wide grin that tugs at the corners of your lips.

“I’m just saying, I may have missed my period” you tell him and his mouth is opening in shock, surprise and excitement filling him all in one go.

“Oh my God you’re serious?” he says, shaking you lightly and you laugh, gripping onto his shoulders to keep balance.

“I haven’t checked, but I’m pretty certain. Especially since you haven’t left me alone since the doctor gave the go ahead” you tell him, an accusing tone that holds no resentment. Before you can even respond Steves arms are wrapping around you and spinning you around.

“Baby, oh my God” he cheers as some of your lingering friends glance at the two of you with confused eyes.

“Shh, be quiet. I don’t want to announce it until I know for sure” you tell him as he sets you back down but it’s far to late, the smile on his face is permanent and the hand he puts on your stomach is the most suspicious of all.

“Okay, but please can we check tonight?” he asks like a little kid, mind already on the pregnancy tests he knows are in the medicine cabinet of the bathroom in your bedroom upstairs. You chuckle before nodding your head.

“Yes we can check” and he’s spinning you around again, just as happy and eager. Yet the moment ends when the soft cries of your daughter reaches your ears. Both of you turn to find Dustin waking up and panic filling his face as he realizes he doesn’t know what to do.

“Shit” he mutters, starting to bounce her in his arms. You giggle as Steve rushes over and saves his young friend from panicking.

“Thanks for watching her Dustin” you tell him as Steve steps inside the house in search of a bottle. Dustin smiles and rubs the sleep from his eyes, the lateness of the night catching up to him.

“Of course, I better get going though. I told Susie I’d call before bed” he mutters, eyes opening to look at you and you smile and rub a hand a long his shoulder.

“Night Dustin, drive safe. I’ll tell Steve you left” you tell him and he nods as he stands to collect his things.

“That’s our cue too, thanks so much for having us” Nancy walks over, wrapping you in her arms and you smile widely against her.

“Of course, anytime” you tell her, waving to Johnathon who stands behind her with his hands shoved in his pockets.

Just like that everyone shuffles out, leaving the backyard from a fun family function when not so long ago it used to be loud music and alcohol. Either way you didn’t really mind, this home and your lives had been evolving for a long time, becoming better and better with each day. After cleaning up a few things you step inside the back door just as Steve descends the stairs, a soft smile on his face as he spots you.

“I got her to go back down” he tells you quietly and you smile, pulling him close to press a soft kiss on his lips.

“Thank you” you tell him and he smiles as he pushes some hair behind your ears, holding you close and keeping your face on display for him.

“Could I convince you to take the pregnancy test now?” he asks quietly and you snort, shaking your head softly at his eagerness.

“Fine, and to think I was about to get laid” you joke and Steve laughs loudly, it bellowing out of him and filling the home. Thank goodness your daughter was a heavy sleeper, just like him.

“Who says you still won’t after?” he asks, following you to the staircase, shamelessly watching the sway of your hips as you climb the stairs. You roll your eyes but continue on your trek anyway to your sahred bedroom. Steve sits on the edge of the bed as you disappear inside the bathroom and dig one of the spare tests out of the medicine cabinet. He can barely sit still as he waits for you to finish, eager to know if he was about to be one step closer to his family of six. You only guranteed him three. Either way he was happy to have another baby in the house.

"Alright we have to wait five minutes and then you"ll have your answer" you tell him as you step out the bathroom and he smiles wide as you approach him. It's no surprise he helps guide you onto his lap, legs straddling either side of him as you draw him close for another kiss.

Steve happily complies, mouth finding your own as he shoves the cardigan off your shoulders and starts tugging at the hem of your shirt. You giggle as he pulls that off as well, breaking your lips from his own as he drags it between you. Five minutes felt like nothing as you both sit here making out like you were teenagers again. You in your bra and Steve's hands wandering anywhere he can get away with. It was moments like these that reminded you how much you really loved him.

"I think it's been more than five minutes" Steve says with a soft laugh, hands gripping your arms as he breaks himself away from you. His excitement outweighing his lust and you roll your eyes as you crawl from his lap anyway and head towards the bathroom to grab the test. His leg bounces fastly as you disappear inside and he can't seem to contain his excitment. In this moment he was praying harder than he ever has.

When you return from the bathroom your expression is unreadable. He watches how you hold the test delicatley in your hands and saunter towards him. When he's positive he can no longer take it, you flip the test his way, a smile cracking wide across your face the same time he sees the prominent two lines in the center of the test. He's off the bed in seconds, cheering as he wraps his arms around you, and spins you in a hug. The test is confirmation enough and pretty soon he'd have another baby boy or girl to love.

"We're having another baby!" he cries out, happy tears pooling in his eyes and you kiss him deeply, loving that you found a man who loved you and this little life you had so much.

"We're having another baby" you confirm and he smiles somehow even wider as you both land on the bed and he hugs you close. He intends to hug you for the longest time, never wanting to let go. Nothing could top this moment, well at least until the baby came.

"I can't believe Laura is going to be a big sister, she'll be two by the time this one arrives" Steve says, his hand cupping your stomach that wasn't even close to showing yet but you let him anyway, loving how happy this made him. Thankful you were the one who could make him this happy. Give him that perfect white picket fence dream that he once felt embarassed to have.

"Two years seems wild but she will be the best big sister, I just know it" you agree, voice a hushed whisper as you duck close to your husband. He smirks, knowing exactly what you were getting at as you nudge your nose against his own.

"Mhmm, I'm gonna love you for the longest time" is all he says before pressing his lips against your own. The hand that was on your stomach slides to your hip and this time Steve hovers above you. Kissing you in a way to convey how much he loves you and how thankful he is for this moment and all the ones before it, even more so for the ones that would come. You don’t answer him with nothing other than a kiss, already dreaming of the next time you get to tell him you're pregant.

Maybe he'll get six after all.

Taglist: @slvtforstve @keerygal @goosy-goose @livsters @blckburd @loveshotzz @ohwauwdoritos @superblysubpar @southereads @amataadriana @violet2022 @mxrcjqckspnchqsc @madaboutjoe @thunderstomp-and-tequila @justdamnpeachy @micheledawn1975 @fangfatale @kingstevesgf @notlilyyyy @eddiesguitarskills @palmtreesx3 @momospeaches47 @pbs-theundeadmaggot @xuimhao @lianna75 @lvjmel @sadbitchfangirl @halflifejess @starkleila @ellharrington @avobabe87 @newyorkangelbaby

Comment if you want to be added to the taglist :))

[intothedysphoria]

Max didn’t actually seem to dislike her brother that much.

From what Steve had seen the first week they’d moved, all the arguing and long frosty silences and all out fights, Billy would still sneak a note into her pocket every day of school. He’d argue with her classmates, teachers, even the cops if they ever gave her shit.

Billy had dropped her off at the Christmas dance, ruffling her hair a little before noticing Steve. All Steve really got was a grunt of acknowledgment. Which he supposed was better than a punch in the face.

Whenever Mike would make comments about Billy being insane or evil, Max would practically push him off his chair. Steve, not fancying a thirteen year olds left hook decided to put the subject of Billy off the table.

There was only a small amount of facts about Billy Hargrove that Steve knew to be accurate. He was about half a year younger than Steve, the only person he’d really bonded with was Eddie Munson and his dad was a real piece of work. As bad as Lonnie Byers, from what Steve had heard from Max.

Steves parents were Italian-Glaswegian and despite the fact that he bitched about them constantly, Steve loved his parents to bits. His nonna, his granny, his seven billion cousins, all of them were the friendliest people on earth.

The only person James had really disliked had been Lonnie. Until Neil. When his dad had a bad feeling about someone, he was always right.

Steve had been given a mission to befriend Billy. “That wee bairn isn’t being treated right”, that’s what his dad had said. So Steve, laden with spaghetti bolognaise and tablet, knocked on The Hargrove’s door when he knew Neil wasn’t home.

Billy answered, obviously post workout and stared wide eyed at the food. Looking closer at his tank top, Steve could see a pin of the Irish flag settled above his chest.

Steve, not known for his eloquence, mumbled that the food was for Billy and fled for the car. Anything to get out of an awkward conversation.

There were two washed Tupperware containers tucked under Steve’s gym locker the following Monday, accompanied by a note with surprisingly neat handwriting.

“My thanks to the Harringtons. Max loved the tablet.

Uilliam Hargrove”

Steve made a mental note of the way Billy spelled his first name. He had cousins in County Cork and had met a fair few Uilliam’s in his time. Evidently, Neil was the culprit for the anglicised spelling.

Steve’s granny was ecstatic that her cooking had been appreciated and invited him over for dinner pretty much immediately. Steve found himself delivering that message too. This time however, he didn’t run for the car.

Billy studied him, considering, then said he’d be delighted to join. His voice was both surprisingly polite and formed vowels in a manner that was unmistakably West Belfast.

He was charming. Utterly charming. Not the put on way Steve had seen him talk to Karen Wheeler (good god that woman was creepy) but in a way that seemed to just come naturally. Steves house was a blending of Scottish and Italian and Jewish and Irish and Polish and Billy genuinely seemed to love it all.

James sat them together at the table. Probably in an attempt to play Cupid, the meddling old man. Billy used it as an excuse seemingly to scandalise Steve. He was no prude but the way Billy slipped in innuendo after innuendo had Steves face burning.

Dinner turned into staying the night. Steve on an air mattress and Billy on Steve’s bed. Neil wouldn’t notice if he wasn’t there. He probably wouldn’t even notice if Billy disappeared forever.

Steve had never felt himself feeling such a burning sadness for someone and reached out so that they were clutching hands. Billy didn’t shove him away or call him a homo. Instead he clutched Steve’s hand even tighter.

The closer Billy and Steve got and the more Billy slept the night at the Harringtons, the more Billy’s relationship with Neil deteriorated. It got to the point where Billy was showing up with cracked ribs and broken toes, sometimes with Max hovering nervously behind him. Hell, they’d officially started dating with blood spurting out of Billy’s nose.

Until one day when Billy showed up looking the worst Steve had ever seen him. Max was having to support him in standing upright. He was clutching a note in his fist.

“Keep him.”

Out of everyone Steve had expected to go and give Neil a piece of their mind, it hadn’t been his granny. So while Steve was holding Billy’s hand, kissing him and being a bit useless, Maureen had apparently punched Neil Hargrove in the nose.

Funnily enough, Neil never really returned after that. He was somewhere in Alabama. Or Florida. Steve hadn’t bothered to learn where. All he knew was that Billy was a lot happier without him.

They could finally kiss in public. Go on sort of dates. Book nights of passion in sketchy motels.

Know that Max was ok and safe.

And never have his parents involved in his love life again.

For @shieldofiron and @dragonflylady77

Scottish Steve inspired by @ratbastardbilly

[ganjas-shit]

Oh, You’re Breaking My Heart

Warnings: sexual thoughts, angst, mentions of ptsd, Neil Hargrove, mentions of loneliness and isolation.

Pairings: main pairing Billy x reader, some slight Steve x reader

Summary: Your longing for an exciting romance finally comes true when Billy Hargrove becomes your next-door neighbor. But is love everything you thought it would be?

Authors note: hi everyone! I’m most likely going to be turning this into a series (don’t know how long yet) but I’m so very excited because this has been sitting in my drafts for about a year already and I’ve finally decided to just finish it. There will be eventual smut for this soooooooooooo yea tee hee anyways hope you guys like it! Btw the timeline I’m using is not the same as the one in the show.

Chapter 1: Sea of Stars, Chapter 2: You’re gonna to be okay.

☆˖°☾ ⋆˚☆˖°☾ ⋆˚☆˖°☾ ⋆˚☆˖°☾ ⋆˚☆˖°☾ ⋆˚☆˖°☾ ⋆˚☆˖°☾ ⋆˚☆˖°☾ ⋆˚☆˖°☾ ⋆˚

Love was something you deeply craved, something you longed for. As ridiculous as it sounds, you thought about it almost every day.

Having that one partner in crime; someone you can be reckless, wild, and free with. Someone who makes you forget about reality; someone who would do anything for you. Someone who knows the deepest, darkest parts of you.

For a while it became something you obsessed over.

Intimate, passionate, crazy love—blamed for the constant loneliness you felt. Your obsession with fictional romance failed to alleviate it. No amount of reading or watching could fill the cavity in your heart, that horrible feeling of emptiness in your chest.

Then Billy Hargrove became your next-door neighbor.

It all happened so fast.

Your belly erupted with a swarm of butterflies the moment his ocean-blue eyes met yours, as if the world paused just for that brief moment.

His dirty blonde curls and tan skin ignited something deep inside you. Soon enough, the emptiness in your chest was replaced by the fierce pounding of your heart.

Pretty boys came with a lot of attention, though, meaning Billy Hargrove came with a lot of attention.

Every girl threw themselves at him the moment he set foot in Hawkins High. And who could blame them? With a face like his, he was downright gorgeous. If you had the courage, you'd throw yourself at him too.

But for now, simply admiring him from a distance would suffice.

You took pride in that though. Who else can say they had a perfect view of Billy Hargrove almost every night through their window?

You spent countless nights watching him smoke cigarettes outside on the hood of his Camaro, admiring the way the moonlight hit his face as he was in deep thought about God knows what.

It was pretty hard not to look at Billy other than those nights through your window though...

In Mrs. Clarke's biology class, you'd often catch yourself staring at him. He'd sense your gaze and once smirked back at you, letting you know he felt your eyes on him.

And God, he would never forget the look on your face—wide-eyed and embarrassed as hell.

He thought it was the funniest thing in the world and he found it quite entertaining.

He found you quite entertaining.

Billy was so accustomed to girls throwing themselves at him; it was something he had gotten used to since he hit puberty. And although he enjoyed all the flirtatious looks and comments girls threw at him, he eventually grew bored of it.

However, you and Billy shared a common craving. Whether it was for love, excitement, intimacy, or entertainment, both of you yearned for something more.

.

“Shit guys, we totally forgot to hang up banners in the gym for tomorrow's basketball game!” You screamed like a madwoman startling the entire student council.

With just two minutes left until dismissal, exhaustion hung heavy in the air. The entire week had been a relentless blur of preparation for the school's first basketball game of the season and its accompanying activities. By this point, everyone, including you, was over it.

As the bell rang, everyone dashed out of the classroom as if their lives depended on it. They gave you apologetic looks, patted your shoulder, and mumbled every excuse imaginable to avoid putting up those banners in the school gym.

“So fuck me huh?!” you yelled after them, throwing both your arms up in frustration before dropping them in defeat.

As head of the student council, you couldn't afford to procrastinate. The principal had emphasized that those banners had to be up and ready for tomorrow's game, or there would be consequences. That prick didn't intimidate you in the slightest, but, you had a reputation to maintain, and everything had to be flawless.

You huffed and grumbled as you entered the gym, your arms hugging a variety of large banners needing to be hung up. Your frustration completely blinded you to the sight of the gym full of shirtless basketball players.

Suddenly, a basketball collided with your shoulder at full speed, knocking the banners out of your arms.

The gym erupted in laughter.

“This isn't the student council club you do know that right kooks?” Tommy H. yelled from the court, laughing, trying so hard to impress his dickhead teammates.

Kooks.

They had given you that nickname after the scene you caused at Tina's Halloween party last year. It's the reason you no longer associate yourself with that crowd.

You remember it like it was yesterday.

You arrived at Tina's party with Tommy and Carol by your side, just one week after your harrowing experience of getting stuck in the Upside Down. It probably wasn't the wisest decision to be out, and you knew it. You had been home, cutting class, and ignoring their calls, and they had noticed a change in you. You were easily irritable and on edge. Carol even made a snide comment about how you'd probably been hanging out with Munson, snorting too much Special K.

According to them, you were a real drag to be around. So, they dragged you out of the house, urging you to let loose and forget about whatever it was you were dealing with. And so you did. You drank until you couldn't feel anymore, indulging in anything and everything that was being passed around.

Carol was never truly your friend; she was someone you grew up with and were kind of forced to know. She never really cared for you, so it was no surprise when you overheard her snickering with a few girls from the cheer squad.

They all eyed you up and down as you drunkenly swayed to the music.

“Wonder what hell she's been living; she's out of fucking control,” Carol remarked, smacking her gum as she laughed with the girls next to her, rolling her eyes at you.

Your ears perked up at her words, and they echoed in your head on a relentless loop, amplified by the effects of alcohol and marijuana.

Hell. Hell. Hell.

Images from that fateful night flooded your mind—the frantic sprint through the woods, the desperate attempt to escape the unknown terror pursuing you. You ran until your lungs burned and your legs gave out, only to find yourself in a place that resembled home but felt like a nightmare. It was as though you had fallen into a pit and landed in a realm you could only describe as hell. Darkness enveloped everything, the air thick with swirling black particles, and a monstrous creature hunted you down as if you were its final prey.

Tears welled up at the memory, and you couldn't hold back any longer. You had been bottling up your emotions, feeling isolated because what you had experienced sounded utterly unbelievable.

You charged at Carol and shoved her into the wall, causing picture frames of Tina's seemingly perfect family to crash to the floor.

Like the breaking picture frames, the smiles masking their true essence shattered that night, much like your own exterior, revealing the turmoil within.

You started to laugh manically, tears spilling out of your eyes.

“Oh, Carol, you haven't seen hell,” you chuckled, leaning in to whisper in her ear. “It's right beneath this town, and it's anything but pretty. It's downright awful.”

Carol was frightened tears threatening to spill from her eyes, she felt powerless in this position.

“Hey! What the hell is your problem, Y/L/N? Get off of her!”Tommy yelled, rushing towards you and Carol, pulling you away from her.

You pushed him back. “Don't you dare put your fucking hands on me!” you yelled, your words laced with venom. He backed away, refocusing his attention on Carol, attempting to comfort her throbbing head.

The images flashed in your head: your screams, the Demogorgon, the overwhelming sense of isolation. You turned to face the party, and all eyes were on you as the music came to a sudden stop.

“How can you all just sit here and party,”you sobbed, your voice growing louder, more terrifying with each word. Nobody dared to approach you or even attempt to calm you down. It was clear you were experiencing a psychotic break.

You hadn't spoken to Steve in months, ever since he started distancing himself from you, Tommy, and Carol. But you couldn't forget the moment when he threw you over his shoulder, with Nancy by his side, and dragged you out of that party.

That night, you cried until you fell asleep, finding comfort in the presence of Nancy Wheeler and your old friend Steve Harrington. When you woke up the next day, you found yourself in Nancy's bed, bombarded with all sorts of questions. You ended up sharing the horrifying experiences you had down there, and for the first time in a long while, you didn't feel alone. Now, you were stuck with a new nickname and a family bonded by the traumas of the Upside Down.

You laughed at the memory but the anger you felt in the moment snapped you back to reality.

The basketball rolled to the side, catching your attention. With all eyes on you, including Billy's intrigued gaze, you felt an itch for release. Without a second thought, you picked up the ball and with one swift motion, threw it at full speed. It struck the side of Tommy's head, catching him completely by surprise as he was too preoccupied trying to make his teammates laugh.

“You do realize there's a basketball game tomorrow, right?” You questioned voice dripping with sarcasm. “Maybe you should practice your passes a little more, you fucking prick!” you shot back, mimicking his tone with a hint of venom.

The laughter in the gym was quickly replaced by a chorus of “oooh's,” and Tommy was visibly seething with anger, clutching the side of his head where the basketball had struck him.

“You're so lucky you're a girl, freak!” Tommy yelled, pointing his finger at you in frustration.

You smiled and flipped him the bird.

Your reaction sparked something in Billy's gut, a mix of amusement and something else. He couldn't help but burst into laughter, though you might not have noticed being too preoccupied with picking the banners up.

Before he even realized it, Billy found himself inexplicably drawn towards you, as if some invisible force was guiding his steps.

Like his legs had minds of their own.

“That was quite a throw,” a deep, angelic voice sounded from behind you. Shit, you had totally forgotten he was here.

“Those throws are especially reserved for dickheads,” you retorted without turning around, your face turning as red as a tomato.

Billy's chuckle caught you off guard, something you never thought you'd hear up close. As you started to walk off to finish what you came here for, you heard him clear his throat, stopping you in your tracks.

“Aren't you forgetting something?” he questioned, giving you no choice but to turn around and see what he was referring to.

And god all mighty

There he was, shirtless. His tan skin glistened with sweat, revealing defined abs and muscular arms. Geez, you could've passed out right then and there.

He wore a proud smirk, revealing a perfect set of teeth as he held out the tape you needed for the banners. You almost drooled at the sight of him, feeling your core heat up and your cheeks flush.

“Oh, uh—thanks” you nervously said, quickly grabbing the tape from his hand. Surprisingly, you still maintained eye contact. God, he loved the effect he had on you.

“You need any help with those?” he chuckled once again. That's twice now; one more and you might just jump on him.

“Don’t you have to get ready for tomorrow’s game?” You asked timidly.

Jesus, why did you care?

“They can’t overwork their star player sweetheart.” He winked, once again flashing his pearly whites

You died and went to heaven at this point.

Sweetheart? That wink?

Your mouth hung open and he left you speechless, like a crazed fan girl. You started to wonder how he’d look at you if you were on your knees taking all of him.

How he’d talk to you..

“Look at you taking all of me sweetheart.”

God you really needed to get your shit together.

“Come on sweetheart don’t leave me hanging,” he said as he waved his hand in your face, trying to bring you back to reality.

He really needed to stop calling you that.

“Um, yeah, I guess I could use a little help,” you said, swallowing harshly. Your gaze shifted from the banners in your hands to his lips.

You really hated how flustered you got around him but a small part of you loved these new feelings.

“Great.” he responded with a cheeky grin.

You found yourself not being much help; he took charge and handled the banner hanging almost entirely by himself. He insisted on doing it, claiming it was the gentlemanly thing to do.

Tommy looked over at the two of you, confused. Billy Hargrove being a gentleman, to the psycho? Hell must've frozen over, he thought.

With Billy taking on the work, you had no choice but to stand there, looking all pretty, as you ripped pieces of tape with your mouth and passed them to him. You guided him on how to position the banners into place.

You couldn't help but notice the way his back muscles flexed when he reached up to position the banner, sending a flutter through your stomach.

You’d never been this close to him.

It also didn’t help that he brushed his fingers against yours every time he went to grab a piece of tape from you. And with him on the stool, towering above you, looking down at you, there was plenty of room for imagination for you both.

You were convinced he was trying to fucking kill you. Was he aware of the effect he had on you?

Every touch from him sent every single nerve in your body into a frenzy.

And those were just your fingers; you could only imagine what would happen if his fingers touched the spot you longed for him the most.

In the past few weeks, Billy had noticed that he was always running into you one way or another. So, he decided he might as well make it fun.

You were different from the girls he usually pursued, and he liked that. It made things all the more exciting. Billy had learned a few things about you: you were timid but had a backbone, responsible (an assumption he made because you were the student council president), and not too worried about your appearance, which didn't really matter because you were already breathtakingly beautiful.

“LADIES, HUDDLE UP! HARGROVE, GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE!” Coach Williams's voice rang out, snapping both you and Billy out of your thoughts.

Billy climbed off the step stool and leaned in towards your ear, catching you completely by surprise. He whispered, "Glad I can be of help, sweetheart. If you need help with anything else, I'm only one house away." With a smirk, he pulled back and left to return to his team captain duties.

The hot of this breath made your body shiver.

The look on your face was embarrassing, with your cheeks hot and your mouth slightly hanging open. Billy would never forget it; in fact, the mere sight of your mouth hanging open made him twitch in his pants as his imagination ran wild once again.

Your thoughts wouldn't allow you peace of mind as you finished tidying up the banners into place. Lost in thought, you hadn't even noticed that everyone had already left the gym, leaving you alone in the empty space.

The sound of the door gym doors opening startled you, snapping you back to reality.

You smiled at the sight of the tall brunette.

“Ah if it isn’t King Steve” you say teasingly, “or should I say EX King Steve who has been dethroned by the new California hottie.” You tease poking at his face

“Ha. Ha. Ha.” Steve replied dryly swatting your fingers away, taking fake offense to your comment.

Steve could care less about his so called “throne” he had new priorities, which consisted of ooking after you and his newfound family of children.

“Very funny y/n,” he said sarcastically.

Steve couldn't help but wonder if you and Billy had been hanging out. He had noticed how fond you had grown of him ever since he stepped into town. Lately, he had observed a change in your demeanor, how excited you were to get home, and how your face lit up at the sound of Billy's name. Steve could practically feel the butterflies radiating off of you.

“Hanging around is pushing it, Steve. We're just neighbors,” you reply, with a slight blush on your face that doesn’t go unnoticed by Steve.

“Yeah, I don't blush when someone mentions Agatha, my next-door neighbor,” he scoffs, shivering at the thought of his creepy stalker neighbor.

You roll your eyes at him, though it's quickly replaced with a smirk. “Well, Billy isn't a creepy stalker,”you say, though you wouldn't mind if he was. “Plus, he's kinda hot,”you finish, nudging his shoulder as you two make your way out of the gym.

“Yeah, gross,” Steve dramatically gags, though he also cringes at the slight twinge of jealousy he keeps feeling in his stomach.

You and Steve never hooked up. However, you two did develop some weird feelings for each other, but it was probably because you were so close to dying together.

You frown at the memory you thought was going to be the last.

Vines from the Upside Down began to wrap around your neck and body. Steve was right next to you, suffering the same fate. He looked at you, his heart breaking at the fear in your eyes. Trying to bring you some comfort, he gathered as much strength as he could and reached his hand out for yours, interlocking them together.

Thankfully, Eddie and Dustin saved you and everyone who thought it would be a bright idea to fight off Vecna. Ever since that day, though, Steve has been attached to your hip, making sure you get home safely after school and always ensuring you aren't alone.

Sometimes he'd find himself gazing at your lips or absentmindedly brushing away strands of hair that danced across your face on a windy day.

Steve didn’t know where you two stood. Neither of you had made a move, and he was too afraid to make one and face rejection.

You weren't sure how you felt about Steve, but you knew how you felt about Billy, and that feeling was becoming increasingly difficult to brush off.

“Coach still benching you for tomorrow's game?” you ask, changing the subject immediately. You regret it the moment you see the disappointment on Steve's face.

Basketball was his first love and ever since Billy got to town he’s slowly been losing the love he once held for the game.

He ran a hand through his messy head of hair and sighed.

“Yeah, thanks to your boy toy over there,” Steve says, glaring at the blonde who was a car away from Steve's. You wrap your arms around him as you two reach his burgundy BMW.

“You're a great player, Steve,” you state matter of factly, squeezing him a little tighter. “I think everything that's been going on—the Upside Down, us fighting interdimensional monsters, and almost dying—has taken a toll on you.” You reassure him and then let go to look into his eyes.

“It's normal to have a little setback; it's understandable. Plus, you've saved the world multiple times!” you said, slapping his chest lightly. “That beats being a starter on the stupid Hawkins High basketball team any day.”You finished, smiling at him.

Steve’s eyes softened at your words and smiled.

Christ, this is exactly why his feelings were a mess for you.

Steve brought you in for a tight hug because words couldn’t express how grateful he was for you.

From the next car down, Billy observed the two of you and couldn't shake the thought: had you and Harrington ever been a thing? The idea unsettled him because Billy Hargrove didn’t want to share you.

.

Steve dropped you off at home, as he usually did. He would usually stay for a bit and keep you company, but tonight he promised Dustin he’d take him to Mike’s for their D&D campaign.

You walked into the house, which was eerily quiet and empty, as it always was. Switching on the kitchen light, you noticed a note attached to the fridge.

Be back in the morning. Love you. -Dad

You sighed as a your traced your finger up down the note.

Your father traveled for work most of the time as a tech service representative for a variety of chemical companies. He'd often be gone for days, sometimes even weeks, so being alone was something you had grown accustomed to.

Your relationship with your father was also very complicated. You would even say it was nonexistent, given that he was always gone, and when he was around, he'd sleep the days away.

You pretended like it didn’t bother you but deep down it was something that made the cavity in your heart unbearable.

You weren't completely alone, though. Steve and you bonded over your shared loneliness, as both of his parents were also always away on business trips, calling only once a week, if he was lucky.

He'd often spend the night at your place, or you'd spend the night at his, rewatching ‘The Breakfast Club’ or ‘Sixteen Candles,’ his personal favorite, although he wouldn't admit that to anyone.

The bond between you two wasn't solely fueled by loneliness; fear played a significant role as well. It was the fear of that night—the night your friends almost died—that kept you together.

You felt goosebumps travel throughout your body at the thought of it. You instantly shook it off and decided to wash your feelings away with a warm, hot shower. You dreaded the night to come because of the insomnia you developed this past year of living in this small town. But thankfully, you had a couple of your favorite romance novels on deck to keep you occupied throughout the night.

You slipped into one of Eddie’s well-worn Metallica tees, its length reaching down to your knees. It was a keepsake from the day you and the gang had spent the night at his trailer, after an exciting evening of sneaking into the Hawkins community pool.

It was one of your favorite memories you’ve made in this shit town.

After slipping on the tee, you put on some black laced panties you pulled from you drawer.

You glanced over to your window, partially covered by your curtains, and wondered what the dirty blonde was up to. Curious, you walked over and took a peek, wondering where he was because he was usually out at this time, either smoking a cigarette or sitting in his car, or doing both at once.

Like clockwork, he slammed his front door, grabbing the red lighter he always kept in his back pocket and reaching it to the cigarette hanging out of his pink lips.

He cupped the cigarette out of habit and lit it, inhaling the silent killer.

He then hopped onto the hood of his car and reclined, still smoking the cigarette as he gazed at the starlit sky, lost in deep thought.

You wanted to join him, eager to learn more about the California boy, even if he didn't show interest in you. Something inside you just needed to know who Billy Hargrove was.

You also wanted to try to settle the intense feelings coursing through your body.

You stared at him for what felt like a lifetime, admiring his chiseled jawline, how his pretty blue eyes looked in the moonlight, and the rhythmic pattern of his inhaling and exhaling cigarette smoke.

Fuck you cigarette.

You envied his cigarettes.

You wanted to be inhaled and exhaled like that, and you didn’t even care if you were disregarded like them when he was done.

Billy felt your gaze through the window, and as he smirked, you couldn't help but notice. Despite being caught, you couldn't suppress a smile of your own.

Billy sat up and looked directly into your window. Your face grew flustered as you two made eye contact, but you held it, unable to look away.

You pushed yourself to do something you found so uncomfortable and you ignored the negative thoughts running through your head.

Billy tossed his cigarette to the ground and he was about to pick up a new one.

That being you.

You quickly threw on some discarded sweats from the floor and made your way to the front door. As you wrapped your hand around the doorknob, you hesitated for a minute. Nervousness gripped you, but you were determined to make things different this year. You wanted to push yourself beyond your comfort zone. No longer content with just fantasizing about romance, you wanted to live it, even if it meant risking a broken heart in the process. After all, at least you'd have a story to tell.

The cool night breeze kissed your face, sending shivers down your spine as you stepped out of your door. Closing it behind you, you were wrapped in darkness, illuminated only by the soft glow of the streetlights. Your heart raced as you descended off the few steps of your front porch.

As you turned the corner, you were met with Billy Hargrove's infuriating smirk. It would've been irritating if you didn't harbor this crush for him. With determination, you walked in front of his car, mere inches away from where he sat. Your heart threatened to beat out of your chest.

“Hi,” you spoke up slightly out of breath. Billy knew it was nervousness that caused you to sound that way.

You think back to the conversation you had earlier in the day.

“If you ever need help with anything, I’m only one house away.”

You wanted something. You knew what you wanted, and you knew what he meant by it, but you didn’t want to jump his bones immediately. You wanted to get to know him, and maybe that was foolish of you given his reputation, but you didn’t care.

“Hi, Y/N,” Billy greeted with a chuckle, his eyes roaming over your figure. He noticed your shirt and furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

“You listen to Metallica?” Billy questioned, his gaze shifting to Eddie's worn-out black tee. "Oh, this?" you said, grabbing onto the thin material of your shirt. “No, it's a friend's. He let me borrow it,” you partially explained, letting out a shaky laugh.

“Hmm, didn't peg Harrington for a metal kinda guy” Billy remarked, assumingely, lighting yet another cigarette.

"You think Steve's my only male friend?" you asked, raising an eyebrow. "You have more than one?" Billy questioned back, the movement of lighting his cigarette coming to a short pause, his eyes widening momentarily. Billy could take Harrington, but any other male suitors would be a problem for him.“Is that a problem, Hargrove?” you questioned, once again amused by his reaction. Was he jealous?

He laughed and took a drag from his cigarette. He looked so beautiful like this, the view from your window couldn’t compare to the view you had right now. Despite the chill outside, you felt a warmth spreading through you.

“Not that I can’t compete with Harrington and?” He asked waiting for you to provide the name of said friend.

Compete?

“Eddie,” you said filling in the blank for him. “Ah, Munson, the freak,” he chuckled, taking yet another drag from his cigarette.

“You do know you’re talking to right? You remark, raising an eyebrow at him hinting that you fell into the same category as Eddie.

“Never said I had a problem with ‘freaks’,” he said smiling, as he looked down at your lips before meeting your gaze. “If I’m being honest they’re my favorite types of people.” He added licking his lips.

You gulped as his intense gaze met yours. He was undeniably gorgeous. The ache between your legs begged for relief, and you couldn’t help but wonder if he noticed, especially when he then said ,

“Come sit,” making space for you on the hood of his car. You obliged, sitting on the cool surface, crossing your legs, relieving some type of pressure. “You smoke?” he asked, handing you the lit cigarette. You took the cigarette, his warm fingers slightly touching your cold ones.

“Nope, but there's a first time for everything, right?” you smiled, taking a drag of the cigarette. The sensation immediately made you almost cough out a lung and you hadn’t even inhaled it completely. Billy laughed once again and slid his hand onto your back, lightly patting it attempting to ease your coughing fit.

You handed the cigarette back to him and laughed, the coughing fit dying down. “Yeah, first and last time doing that. God, that is nothing like weed,” you remarked.

Billy removed his hand from your back, and you couldn't help but groan slightly at the loss of touch. He looked at you with an amused smile. "I could only imagine how you reacted to hitting a joint for the first time," he said with a grin.

“Oh, trust me, it was nothing like that. I almost died just now,”you said as you wiped the tears that formed in your eyes from coughing.

You leaned back on his car like he did on countless nights and looked up at the starlit sky. Billy did the same after putting out his cigarette.

"The only good thing about this shit town is how pretty the sky looks at night," you said. He looked up at the sky and thought the same. There were so many stars, each one representing hope.

"And the rain," he added, which surprised you. “But you're from California, it’s all sun over there!” You exclaimed, giggling a bit.

“Yeah, I know,” he smiled at your excitement. “It hardly rains over there, but I loved it when it did,” he said, reminiscing about his life in California.

“I liked sitting in my car and listening to the rain; it brought me some sort of peace of mind out there. Especially here, it's stronger and louder, drowns out the thoughts,” he added, tapping his head in a playful manner.

You smiled at his explanation.

“It makes me feel like a kid again,” you added, your voice soft with nostalgia. "Running around, no jacket, laughing, feeling the water down your face and drenching your clothes. Sometimes I sit outside and look up at the sky, enjoying the way it feels on my face," you said, still smiling at the sky above.

Billy turned his head to look at you now, and you were oblivious to it for the first time. He felt his heart skip a beat at your explanation and the way you smiled at the sky full of stars. From that moment on, Billy was determined to know more about you.

You two continued talking, giggling, sneaking glances at each other, but it all came to a halt when you both heard a loud slam from the door of his house. A man in his mid-40s descended down the stairs of Billy’s front porch and made his way towards you both. Billy straightened up immediately at the sight of this man.

“It’s late,” the man spat, keeping his eyes on Billy, completely ignoring your presence. “Get inside; you need to take Maxine and yourself to school tomorrow.”

“Hi, sir,”you timidly intervened. “I'm Y/N. I live next door. I'm sorry for keeping Billy out so late. We were just talking about class, and I lost track of time.” You finished

Billy looked at you in shock as if you said something out of turn.

He looked you up and down with a deadpanned look before giving you a tight-lipped smile and nodded. Then, he gave Billy a warning glance before leaving. Odd. You thought.

You noticed the shift in Billy’s demeanor he was noticeably uncomfortable and even seemed scared. Billy took a deep breath after his father left and ran a hand over his face, visibly tense.

“You okay?” You carefully asked not wanting to overstep any boundaries.

“Yeah, I will be,”he exhaled, mustering up a small smile. “Thank you for tonight. I'll see you around, Y/N.” With that, he left. You waited until he made it inside and you returned home yourself.

As you stepped into the house, the loneliness of it consumed you once again. But you disregarded it, shaking it off, because a bigger part of you felt content and happy.

.

Billy grew accustomed to loneliness; sometimes, he even preferred it. But when he saw how present his friends' parents were in their lives, the loneliness spread and often consumed him. His mother was gone, her whereabouts unknown, leaving him abandoned and stuck with his monstrous father. He had the shell of a parental figure, but in reality, his father was a bully, a coward. This left Billy feeling trapped and hopeless, like a prisoner in his own home, with no one to relate to, no one to vent to, nothing.

When Billy made it inside his house he had already prepared himself for the worst. His father was seated on the sofa waiting for him to come in.

“I'm sorry, sir, I lost track of—“ Neil raised his hand to stop him from explaining, and like a trained soldier, Billy shut his mouth immediately. Neil stood up, making his way towards him. Billy flinched as Neil raised his hand, and to Billy’s surprise, he patted his shoulder. Billy furrowed his brows in confusion; he hated his father's touch. “Nice girl,” Neil remarked before walking past him and heading to his room.

What the fuck?

Anger coursed through Billy’s veins, his heart beating furiously in his chest. Why you? What the hell was so special about you that had Neil Hargrove's fatherly approval? Billy scoffed. He didn’t care if he'd get beatings for what he had planned or about your feelings at the moment, but he was going to royally piss his father off. Fuck his approval. He didn’t want it nor did he care for or it.

Billy disregarded his strong feelings for you and decided to be the dick he knew himself to be.

Tags:

[onmyyan]

Kiss the goat part 2

Part one

Sometime after your brief yet terrifying phone call, Casey Beckham and her boyfriend Steve are brutally slain in her suburban home, and you know exactly who's responsible.

It's hard to sleep that night, hard to do much of anything but lie listlessly in your bed, eyes wide, hand clutching the small, sharp knife you'd come into this world with, like a safety blanket.

 Your mind felt all too busy for rest,  you knew this was just the beginning, and despite how insane things were about to become, you were determined to make it to the end. No matter what.

The circus that the campus had turned into the following morning was intense, to say the least. Where there weren't reporter vans there were police cruisers. You couldn't take a step without having to dodge a camera or microphone being shoved in your face.

With every inch closer to what felt like a school-shaped coffin, an uncomfortable little chill shot up your ankle, as before you left this morning, you tucked the small switchblade into your right boot, after last night you weren't willing to take any chances, this was the first time a movie had gone off script on you and it made you this..nervous kind of excited, the kind you felt in your tummy all day and night, where you didn't know what was coming next, but you couldn't wait for it.

Although any positive emotions coming from this thought vanished as you were abruptly called to the principal's office, which would have been fine had it not prompted a very particular look from Stu. The very psycho you were trying to avoid. It was a bit surreal to think only a few hours before he was stringing his ex-girlfriend up like a set of Christmas lights.

Being pulled into the office first for questioning wasn't helping your goal of anonymity, the police made a point of asking more than once if you'd liked to hunt, and where exactly you'd been all night, thank god for Randy you thought, Happy with the alibi he'd inadvertently given you by hanging out yesterday.

You don't tell the police any more information than they ask, keeping your answers short and sweet as you wanted out of there fast, the principal was overtly friendly and it wasn't his fault as he's written as a red herring, but he still creeped you out. 

Lunch rolled around and a part of you wanted to just ditch it all and run in the opposite direction, but you knew better. So you swallow your fear and count your steps as you head towards the fountain.

Making your way to the spot said alibi had begged you to meet him at, you caught wind of the conversation and knew then and there you were in the thick of it.

Randy waved you over to sit beside him excitedly, your sudden appearance barely affected the group's conversation.

"They ask if you like to hunt?" Stu's voice carried over the sounds of the water rushing from the fountain, his eyes flicker to you, a twitch in his smile as you sit beside Randy with a silent wave.

"Why would they ask if you liked to hunt?" Tatum asked twirling the lollipop in her hand, her eyes met yours before returning to the group, and she sent you a grin before toying with Stu's hair, said man sent you his own smile, unlike her's, his sent a chill down to your tummy.

"Because they were gutted," Randy said much too cheerfully, no wonder they suspect his ass.

"Thank you, Randy," Billy spoke from his relaxed position, his dark brown gaze flickering over to the mysterious newcomer Randy had attached himself to like a leech. You made a point not to meet his eye. Instead, you tried to act as naturally as possible.

But his gaze lingers.

"They didn't ask me if I liked to hunt." The pretty blonde spoke, almost offended by the notion. 

"Cause there's no way a girl could have killed em'," Stu says matter of factly, his grin completely unsubtle.

"That is so sexist- The killer could easily be female. Basic Instinct." Tatum replies.

"That was an ice pick, not exactly the same thing." Randy chimes in, again much too cheerful given the context.

"Yeah, Casey and Steve were completely hollowed out. Fact is it takes a man to do something like that." Stu says, its fascinating to you no one catches on to that psychotic look in his eye.

"Or a man's mentality." His girlfriend replied mockingly.

"How do you- how could someone do that to another person?" Sidney questioned more to herself than anyone. 

"You take a knife, and you slit em' from groin to sternum," Stu says almost gleefully, his blue eyes flicker to you for a moment, and it makes your stomach do a flip. Like he was waiting for a reaction.

"Hey, it's called tact you fuck rag," Billy says his eyes full of a silent warning to Stu: shut the hell up. It made you smile a bit to yourself, how on earth these two idiots managed to make it to the end of the original movie without being caught amazed you.

"Hey, Stu didn't you used to date, Casey?" Sydney asks almost accusingly.

"Yeah for like two seconds."

"Before she dumped him for Steve." Randy taunted him close to Stu's face. "I thought you dumped her for me?" Tatum says with a pout.

"I did he's full of shit." Stu sneers with a glare, his grin almost like a warning to Randy.

"Are the police aware you used to date the victim?" He taunts Stu and you can't help but chuckle to yourself.

"What you think I killed her?"

"It would certainly boost your boring life."

"He was with me." Tatum said wrapping his arm around her front almost protectively, "Yeah was that before he sliced and diced?" Randy teased popping a peanut into his mouth,

"Fuck you nutcase where were you last night?" Tatum glared at Randy prompting him to smirk, "With (Y/n), my alibi's solid Blondie." Randy said proudly. This caused a very interesting reaction as Stu tightened his grip on Tatum, and Billy began staring holes into Randy.

"I didn't kill anybody." Stu says dismissively as he looks between the faces of the group.

"Nobody said you did." Billy bit out, his words holding a certain level of warning. "Aw, thanks buddy." 

"You're so suspicious." Randy rolls his eyes at Stu, and the blonde man sends him a sharp look.

"Yeah well, what about her?" Stu throws his head towards you, his grin strained. 

"What about me." You respond meeting his stare head-on, your brow raised at his odd accusation, it almost made you laugh.

"Well, he has a point." Billy sits up, demanding your eyes meet his own, his stare is like a shark, unmoving, unwavering. "And what would that point be." You ask, unfazed by the heat they tried directing on you. 

"New girl comes to town, bodies start dropping- kinda' interesting right?" He watched you from his seat at the fountain, the dark look he gave went unnoticed by the rest of the group, goading you for a reaction. He was testing you, for what you didn't know, but you held his burning gaze, your smirk taunting him.

"Well sure, if you have no imagination that makes total sense."

Something in the way you spoke held everyone's attention, especially the two violent men who were currently looking at you like a starved dog looked at a hunk of raw, bloodied meat.

"Isn't it much scarier to think about how you all probably know him? That you've been sitting next to him for years?" A small grin twitched at your lips, they shifted uncomfortably hanging off of every word, this glimmer in Billy's dark eyes had a fire burning in your belly, sure antagonizing a sadistic murderer was probably a bad idea, but you couldn't help yourself.

"Then again, what do I know." The bell gave your sentence an ominous ring as they all said with your words, Randy pulled you along, which left you unaware of the dangerous looks you were getting.

[famwhy]

Right Way Up (01)

Stranger Things

Yandere! Steve Harrington X F!Reader, Yandere! Eddie Munson X F!Reader, Yandere! Billy Hargrove X F!Reader

Synopsis: You always hated when your favourite characters died in shows or movies; always longed to have the opportunity to save them. So when you're transported into one of your favourite shows of all time, what else are you supposed to do besides save your beloved characters?

Warnings: Threat/violence, Gore, Mentions of sexual content (implicit), Death, Manipulation, Depictions of toxic relationships, Drugs and alcohol abuse

prev part. masterlist. next part.

01. bring unto me persistence

enter: eddie "the freak" munson

"EASY, boy, easy."

You took a step back.

It took a step forward.

"How about we talk about this, hm?" It kept going. "Maybe you want a treat, yeah? Do you want a treat?"

A growl and yet another step towards you.

It would pounce any moment now, you were sure of it. It was already baring its teeth at you, no doubt looking to sink them into your flesh and make you its next meal. 

The thought was enough to cause you to jerk in your spot and shudder.

Unfortunately for you, that jerk was also enough for the beast to pounce and—before you even knew it; could even blink and register what was happening—a sharp pang shot through your arm.

You hissed.

It got you.

Dozens of its teeth were latched onto your skin, digging in enough to draw blood and create a stream of crimson that ran down your arm, coating the limb in a sticky, warm substance that blew your eyes wide upon sight. 

"Fuck."

Molten lava rushed straight to your brain and set your nerves ablaze, panic settling in much faster than sensibility could. All you could think about was getting this goddamn thing off of you.

You thrashed your arm about, swinging it around like a maniac as the beast stubbornly clung on. Each second it stayed on, was another second your nerves heightened and your heart convulsed.

It was becoming too much. You had to get. it. off.

Before you even knew it, your other fist launched into its side—an action that was more instinct than anything; the need to survive pumping you with higher levels of adrenaline than you were used to, but boy were you glad it did, because—to your utter surprise—the beast's body flung through the air and landed across the yard within seconds.

Your arm was free.

You wasted no time—one foot propelling the other: and you were gone, rushing to the open shed as the wind became your enemy, turning into sharp, cutting blades against your skin; desperate to hinder you in your quest to get to safety.

With the harsh pounding of your own heart against your ears, you almost couldn't hear the steps that followed after your own. But they were there. And they were right on you.

"Stupid dog! Ugh!"

The shed was right there. Just a few feet away. You could make it. You would make it.

There was no way you were making it into the Stranger Things world and dying before meeting any more of your favourite characters.

"Not today, fucker!"

With a sudden burst of confidence, your speed amplified and your foot launched forward in a bigger leap than you had ever performed in your life. The snapping of a jaw entered your eardrums not long after and sent another shudder down your spine. You just narrowly avoided a missing leg, no doubt. If you didn't hurry up, a missing limb would be the least of your worries.

Luckily for you, the shed was now only mere centimetres away.

Your fingers stretched out, winding around the door as you pushed through, slamming it shut as soon as all your limbs were on the other side, and throwing your body up against it with all you had.

Safe. You were—

The thought was cut off by a slam against your back, one that caused you to jerk forward with a wince. But, as soon as your behind was met with the empty air, you pushed straight back against the door.

Another slam. Another jerk. Another push. Again and again and again.

It was relentless, pounding on the door like a wild animal and leaving you no time to rest—which was really starting to take its toll on your health, by the way. Your ribs literally felt like they were closing in on your lungs as your panting grew shorter and sharper and—

Holy crap. You were shaking. And bleeding—oh god, so much blood.

The floor slowly seeped from chestnut to maroon to crimson the closer it got to your trembling form—a puddle formed around your ankles; one that was quickly expanding as the clock ticked by.

"This isn't real. This isn't real. This isn't real—"

But it was. And it hurt so much.

The banging continued.

"Fuck off!"

God, you felt like pulling at the roots of your hair and crying your eyes out.

Calm down, Y/N. Stand your ground and cover your wound. Do you want to end up bleeding to death? No: the answer was no.

And so—with eyes squeezed shut so tight, your lids almost melded together—you let out a shaky breath and redirected your uninjured hand to the bottom of your shirt. It creased as your fingers wound around it, clenching while you mentally prepared yourself for what you were about to do.

Would it be painful? Yes. Was it necessary for your survival? Absolutely. You just wished that you didn't have to face off against a creature with such vicious attack patterns while this injured.

"Here goes nothing."

In one fell swoop, you rid your upper body of the feeling of cotton against your skin.

Searing, white, hot pain exploded against your side and you winced, gritting your teeth against each other with a hiss. Your arm felt like it was on fire; smothered in flames that were further kindled the longer you stared at the indents on your skin.

Why did it grow so much more painful when you looked at it?

You resorted to turning your attention away from the wound—opting to, instead, place it on your shirt; if only to keep the pain at bay. 

Come on, Y/N. You got this. Just a little more.

With a deep intake of breath, you clenched your hand into a fist, scrunching up the school shirt before you draped it over the wound, watching as it grew soggy, icky, and oh-so-disgusting—yeah, you were never using that shirt again.

One more suck of air between your teeth came along with a pull from your uninjured hand and, suddenly, the harsh, red stream that flowed out of you was put to a rather painful halt. You winced.

Hopefully, it wouldn't grow infected.

Now that your wound was wrapped up, you could focus on getting that little shit away from you.

Okay, so there were quite a few things in this shed that you could use as a weapon. Though, your options were limited to those you could reach (for obvious reasons) so that ruled out the huge—and tremendously tempting—chainsaw at the back.

Speed. Mobility. Strength. You had to take it all into account if you wanted to make it out of this situation alive. That meant you had to pick out a weapon that was heavy enough to cause damage but not enough so that you would be incapable of wielding it.

Your eyes scanned the room and the shining metal of a razor-sharp saw stared back at you, closer to where you were than the aforementioned variant of the weapon—but also much heavier looking than said tool.

No. Not that.

Another rather long, weirdly-shaped weapon was caught by your peripheral and your head whipped to the right, gaze falling on the chipped wood of the wall that hung behind the object your eyes picked out. Metal knob on its back to help adjust its clamp, teeth that were sharp enough to be able to give it a sturdy grip, long handle made to allow a clean twist with as little effort as possible.

Perfect.

Your hand reached out and the tip of your fingers met with the ice-cold surface of the material that made up the wrench. Then, with a little push, its new home was your warm grasp.

A slam.

Your chest heaved up and down.

Deep breaths, Y/N. Calm yourself, still your heart, and beat the crap out of that little monster.

And so you waited. You waited until you had the pattern of slams against the wooden door memorised. You waited until the jerks against your sore back weakened in their strength. You waited until the perfect opportune moment presented itself at your fingertips—

—and you seized it right when it did.

The door swung open and your wrench struck at the thing's side within mere moments of each other; a rush of pure adrenaline filtering out the searing sting of your wounded arm. It howled in pain, but this time—you were the relentless one.

Strike after strike. Hit after hit. You pounded it with your weapon and it roared, screeching in pain; in agony you hoped was so deep, it wouldn't dare think of approaching you again.

One particular strike sent it across the yard once more—though it was quick to get back up and, upon getting up, it stayed still, pointed head facing your blood-coated form instead of pouncing like it had before.

What was it doing?

Your heart lurched in your throat and your head pounded against your skull, making it feel like your eyes were about to fall out from the sheer amount of willpower you were exuding. 

Your stance was defensive, hands wound tightly around the wrench held over your head as your knuckles began to lose colour. But if anyone looked closer, they'd notice the way your hands lightly shook, unable to stay steady for even just a few seconds; the way your nostrils flared as you tried your damndest to ignore the flames that scorched your arm with pure agony; the way your breaths left your mouth at crooked, uneven intervals.

You were scared. 

Rightfully so. You could die here. This pain, this fear; it was all real. It wasn't some dream you could wake up from—you knew that now.

You were in danger: actual, real, terrifying danger.

And it was all because of some dog.

Your eyes stayed trained on the lanky beast, fingers readjusting themselves around your weapon as you planted your feet and tensed your muscles, preparing yourself for another bout. 

It stayed still, and if it had eyes, you were sure they would be narrowed into slits at you.

For a while, nothing happened. It was just you and that monster, the world practically fading away around you; dissipating into irrelevance as all you could do was focus on your potential killer before you.

Then—it ran. But, surprisingly, not towards you—no, it ran away from you.

Why did it—?

"Y/N? The hell's taking so—?"

Ah, so that was why.

You turned, gaze finally landing on another, actual human being rather than a stupid demodog.

It was the same guy who sent you to the shed in the first place, stood there with his mouth slightly hung open and his greasy, H/C strands falling over his face awkwardly.

You assumed you had to look at least a little bit worse for wear for him to have cut himself off as soon as his eyes landed on your form, huh?

"Shit, why are your eyes red?"

Ah, so you were crying.

Your eyes shut, head tilting down before, suddenly, your shivering form was seized in a grip so warm and tight and secure, you couldn't help but loosen the tension you didn't even know was still in your shoulders.

The man cursed harshly before he addressed you—in a tone much softer than any you heard him use before—"hey, hey, it's okay..."

The soothing circles he began to rub against your back were the final straw and you blew up. A stream of salty water ran straight down your cheeks—soaking up the already-soggy shirt strapped to his chest in your fear and sorrow. 

The scent of sweat and BO entered your nostrils but in that moment, you couldn't bring yourself to care. It felt comforting, almost; like you could let loose and you would have the constant reassurance of his presence being there; of him hearing you; that he was listening.

But you knew—you knew you couldn't tell him anything.

The tears grew harsher.

"Hey... what happened..?" 

You shook your head.

"Alright, that's fine, we don't have to talk about it. Let's get inside and properly wrap up this wound, yeah?"

A sniffle and a little nod.

He slowly began walking towards the house and your nails dug into his shirt, holding onto it like it was your last lifeline; like you would die if you were to let go. And honestly, you really believed you would.

Soon, you were hit with a wave of warmth, and it made you realise just how cold it was outside. The chattering of your teeth became so much more prominent—you almost couldn't believe you didn't notice it before.

Your sudden pattern of noticing things didn't end there either—the awful throb of your arm made sure of that.

"Hurts..." you whimpered.

His head tilted down, the corners of his eyes loosening up. "Shit."

Then, another voice pierced through the room.

"The hell's the door open for? It's—"

The man holding you averted his eyes and you found yourself trailing his gaze, hues landing on yet another sweaty guy with knuckles wrapped up similarly to the way yours were. 

"What happened?"

"Go get a first aid kit, idiot," hissed the one holding you.

Then, the exposed skin of your thighs was placed upon another bit of soft and plush material but, unlike earlier on, you couldn't bring yourself to bounce on it. The pain in your arm was too prevalent; too distracting.

"Bite this—" the fibres of a soft cloth met your lips, "—it'll help with the sting.

"Oh and, put down the wrench, will ya?" 

You didn't even notice you were still holding it.

Your teeth clamped down on the material and the sudden absence of metal in your hands made you feel empty and vulnerable. You were rendered defenceless—if that thing decided to attack again, you would be screwed.

Had it not been for the sudden breeze that flew over your previously-covered arm, you were sure you would have spiralled into a pit of negative thoughts that would chew your body up and spit your mangled corpse back out. Instead, however, you were unfortunately reminded of the potentially infected injury you harbored.

"Damn, that's a nasty wound," pointed out one of the two men.

"You're not exactly helping here, Curt." The other, the one patching you up, lightly scolded.

Curt merely ignored him. "Was it an animal attack?"

You sensed the questioning pairs of eyes that landed on your face and nodded, awarding them with at least some level of a response.

"Maybe we should go to the hospital and get it checked out?"

The hospital? You didn't have time for that.

"No. I don't need to go to the hospital." 

"You sure? This is pretty—"

"I don't need to go to the hospital."

They both shared a glance (with something you couldn't quite make out swirling in their hues) before their eyes wandered back to your seated form. You felt small under their gaze; weak like some sort of wounded puppy. It was awful. How was a wounded puppy meant to survive the world of Stranger Things?

"Alright, let's patch you up first, then we can talk."

The unnamed man tossed your ruined shirt over to Curt, who caught it effortlessly, before taking out a bottle from a first aid kit. Soon, the clear lid popped open and you could feel your eyes prick with more tears, watching as a stream flowed out; one that dripped straight onto the dried-up, red indents on your skin.

Your teeth sank into the cloth as the raging flames in your arm grew, rising to an unbearable agony that had you screaming through the material in your mouth. It muffled your ear-shattering screeches; kept you quiet and unable to voice your displeasure—just like how you couldn't—

"Agh! Watch it!" 

"Sorry." He gave you a small smile you could only describe as apologetic before going back to wrapping your arm in bandages, ignoring the spat-out cloth on your lap.

"Y/N." Your eyes wandered over to the only one standing in the room. "We need to get this checked out, what if the animal had rabies or something? It could be serious."

"It's not. I'm fine."

The one closest to you scoffed. "'Fine' my ass. You screamed into that cloth."

You narrowed your eyes. "I don't need to get a check up."

"Fine—" he gave you a pointed look, "—but! You have to take at least a few days off. You are not going to school this injured. Not on my fucking watch."

Not going to school? In your world, that would've made you throw your arms up in nothing but pure joy and excitement—maybe even dance around singing like a maniac. In this world, however, it was less than ideal. You still had to figure out where exactly you stood with Steve and many other characters here—school was your gateway to that.

"But—"

"No buts, missy. I'm your older brother, what I say goes."

Maybe a few days to properly process your situation would do you good. This whole... thing was still so insane to you. Now that you were actually sat down and not fighting a weird hybrid between a beast and a dog, it only grew to seem ten times more perplexing. You couldn't wrap your head around it.

Though, there was one thing you were certain of: this wasn't a dream. A dream had no way of emulating what you just went through. No. fucking. way.

"Hey." 

You blinked, turning to see Curt stood by a yellow box attached to the wall with a rather curly wire protruding from the bottom.

"What's Harrington's number again?"

Your mind drew a blank. "I don't know."

He rose a brow. "Don't you have it memorised or something?"

"Uh,"—shit—"I can't remember..."

He gave you a look that, in your delusional mind, seemed a little bit like suspicion but was probably just a weird look that wouldn't lead to anything... right?

"Oookay," he drawled out.

"Why?"

"He picks you up, doesn't he?" He said it like it was the most obvious thing ever—which, granted, it would be if you were actually from this world. "We gotta tell him you won't be going to school for a bit."

"Hang on," the eldest brother (you still hadn't caught the name of) piped up, "I've got it here."

"Well? What're you waiting for? Say it."

He recited the number from the book in his hands and you watched with fascination as Curt punched it in before taking the curved shape hanging off the box and pressing it to his ear.

"This Harrington?"

A pause.

"It's Curt, just calling to let ya know that Y/N won't be coming in to school for a couple o' days so you don't need to worry about picking her up."

Another pause and cue Curt's face scrunching up a little in annoyance.

"Dude, calm down, she's—"

He cut himself off before clicking his tongue and pulling the phone away from his ear, saying—"you talk to him,"—and handing it off to the elder.

"Steve, hey, it's Cain—"

So that was his name.

"—Y/N's fine, she just isn't feeling too well so I'm having her stay home for a bit."

Yet another pause had you anxiously playing with your bottom lip, biting down on it with scrunched brows as your nails dug into your skirt, creasing the fabric in your anticipation.

Several moments passed by with Cain not saying a word into the phone—it lasted so long, in fact, you were wondering whether or not the call had ended and he was just standing there for the sake of it. You were proved wrong, however, when he started making his way over to your seated form and extended the yellow device towards you, mouthing 'he wants to talk to you'.

Your fingers curled around the metal. "Hello?"

"Y/N?!" The voice of Steve Harrington came out booming from the other side, concern laced so prominently in his tone, you could almost see his face contorted in it. "Are you okay?! What happened?!"

His worry was kinda cute.

"I'm fine, Steve." A small bubble of laughter left your lips. "Just a bit sick, that's all."

"Are you sure?"

"Mhm."

"Hold on, I'm coming over right now."

"Woah, woah, woah. No need for that. I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" The tone of his voice took you back to when you were gazing into his eyes at the school; the intensity and care still clearly ingrained in your mind; still leaving you with a warm feeling coating your stomach.

"Yes, Stevie, I'm sure."

A few moments of silence passed before—

"Stevie?" You froze. "That's..."

"Uh, forget I—"

"Cute."

"Huh?"

"It's cute, pretty girl," his voice practically cooed from the other line.

And his words—oh, his words—you were practically swooning in your spot from the nickname, hands making their way up to curl the phone line between your fingers with a growing smile situating itself on your face.

No. Bad Y/N. Don't get distracted. He's got a girl, remember?

You cleared your throat. "Anyway, um, I'm fine, okay Steve? I'll uh, see you sometime soon."

"...okay."

"Bye."

"See ya."

You practically threw the phone over to Curt—who still stood by the box—fumbling around on the couch as you sat up straight before taking a look around the room to distract yourself from... whatever that was.

Cain had left, probably not for long seeing as he seemed like the responsible big brother type, so it was just you and Curt. 

A TV sat before you, one blocky and heavy with an incredibly small screen and antennas sticking out the top. In the corner, a cylinder hung from the ceiling, parts of its material sunken into and chipped away at; looking to be quite beat up. A bright pair of large gloves sat next to it, tempting you to put them on and have a go at the hanging bag.

"Here—" you blinked, looking down. A shirt was tossed onto your lap, interrupting your little observation session, "—wear this. You've been shivering for a while now."

The rest of the day passed by with both males doing their best to stay by your side and keep you company; from always making sure at least one of them was with you, to both of them sitting beside you to watch a movie at night—it was nice. The attention was certainly something you weren't used to but—it was nice.

It stayed that way for the next few days; the doting, the concern, the care—you were smothered in it, so much so, you found yourself unable to breathe sometimes. To top it all off, Steve made sure to call three or four times a day to check up on you; each time insisting he come visit and each time being rejected.

It was all overwhelming, to say the least. But, it did provide you with enough time to gather your thoughts and decipher where exactly you stood in this world.

For starters, you had two older brothers (obviously). It was kinda surreal, to be honest. You used to be an only child so to go from being in constant solitude to having two older, doting siblings was... strange. 

Another thing, you were Steve Harrington's childhood best friend. It was safe to assume that with how he seemed to worry and fret over your health and sometimes—dare you say it—even put you before his own girlfriend. Your... brothers also seemed quite familiar with him and how he always seemed to take you to and fro school.

That led onto your next point, you were a new character. You were pretty sure Steve never had a female best friend he knew since childhood—especially not one close enough to him where he would disregard Nancy completely when they were in the room. So, this wasn't a scenario where you replaced a character—instead, the world seemed to have changed in order to fit you into it.

Unfortunately, those three conclusions were the best you could do with the little knowledge you had at your disposal while on house-arrest.

Fortunately, your house-arrest was officially over.

"Remember—"

"I know, I know." You rolled your eyes. "Stay out of fights and no practice for the next few days."

"I mean it, Y/N!"

You continued towards the building. "I know!"

As soon as you walked in, all eyes were on you—and that's when you came to your next conclusion. You were popular.

It was simple math, really—captain of the cheerleaders? friends with King Steve? presence and absence turning heads?—there was no other explanation.

"Y/N!"—speaking of King Steve—"you're back!"

Your lips parted, a greeting forming at the very tip of your tongue when—instead of an actual, coherent sentence—a squeak escaped your mouth.

Strong, sturdy arms had wrapped themselves around your form, engulfing you in a hug that poured out such intense emotions—it had you struggling to breathe (well, that and the fact that he was squeezing you really tight).

Speaking of squeezing you really tight—

"Ack! Steve!" You winced.

He immediately drew back, brows scrunched up the same way they had on the first day you arrived here—when he gazed at you with that fierce, tender look of care and worry all mixed into one. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah." Your voice came out strained and boy did you regret it.

He definitely could tell something was up and with another squeeze on your arms from him, you feared to have confirmed his theory when you winced.

"Yeah?" His lips pulled down as he spoke blandly, not falling for your bullshit for a second. Then, he began to slowly reach for the sleeve of your bright jacket until—

"I'm fine, Steve!"

His eyes widened as you quickly yanked yourself away from his grasp. Then, brown brows furrowed and this time, you could tell it wasn't from concern—no—but rather; hurt.

Your heart constricted. "I'm sorry. I just— I've gotta get to class."

The crowd parted for you as you sped away from your best friend, ignoring his frantic calls for you to come back; to listen and talk to him—but how could you? How could you talk to him when he wouldn't be able to understand?

You had a valid reason for running away—or at least, you thought you did. If you told him what happened—let him know of the demodog attack too early—who knew what would happen to the plot? Something unpredictable, something life-threatening. You couldn't tell him. Better to be safe than sorry.

Stop. Quit dwelling on it. You have class, remember?

Now... where the hell was your class? Better yet, what class did you even have at the moment?

You probably should've planned this out better.

Did you even have a—?

"Woah, woah, woah, sorry. Didn't mean to bump into you."

You blinked, eyes widening a fraction more than usual as you gazed on in partial disbelief.

There, stood before you, was a guy in a sleeveless denim jacket; both of his hands raised up in a typical 'surrender' motion. His hair was long and wild; frizzy and curly. It was like a Lion's mane—a rather iconic Lion's mane, one you definitely recognised.

Holy shit.

It was Eddie Munson.

@bdudette, @tanyaherondale, @killerqueenfan

[rigginsstreet]

Steve should have cheated on Nancy with Billy

I mean when would he have had the time Nancy broke up with him like 2 minutes after he met Billy lmao

BUT

I do love a sloppy steve moment so imagine with me if you will:

Steve is happy in love with his girlfriend. Life is going great as far as he’s concerned. He’s at a Halloween party all dressed up dancing the night away with his girl. What could be better than this

He ends up in the kitchen at one point to get him and Nancy some more lunch. He’s still got a bounce in his step, grinning from ear to ear. Maybe he can convince Nancy to neck in the car later before she has to go home or he can sneak into her room… whichever

But then the new guy is suddenly at his shoulder, probably waiting for his turn at the punch. Steve’s all “oh hey man here you go” and makes to leave but billy starts his whole king Steve thing except this time without any venom. He’s being super flirty about it and Steve “never met a homosexual” Harrington is super confused and absolutely not picking up what Billy’s putting down so he leaves the exchange bewildered but also kinda horny for some reason… he’s probably just drunk. Whatever

Cut to Steve in the bathroom taking a piss when billy stumbles in all “oh oops my bad” like genuinely didn’t know anyone was in here but once he sees it’s Steve he goes from 😳 to 😏

Gets ESPECIALLY excited when he sees Steve’s dick is still hanging out and wooo boy that thing is impressive.

And Steve’s all awkward fumbling trying to get out like “oh yeah it’s fine I’ll just go lol” but then billy starts flirting with him again, starts talking about what a nice looking dick he has cuz billys just drunk enough to be a little too forward for his own good and Steve’s never had another guy talk about his dick outside of like locker room banter and it’s this sweaty shirtless guy with nice tits - wait what who said that - and Steve won’t lie he’s kinda getting hard about it…

So anyway cut to billy on his knees giving Steve a blowie in the bathroom that rocks Steve’s world and awakens him to some homosexual desires he previously did not have and billy sends him out back to his girlfriend and calls it’s a night

And the rest of the night Steve is thinking about billy and his mouth. Thinks about it when he’s fucking Nancy in the back of his beemer. Thinks about it the next day at school when they’re meant to be studying in the library. DEFINITELY thinks about it during basketball practice when hargroves rubbing all over him in those tight little shorts and like

Steve is NOT gay. Has never been gay. Him dragging Billy into the equipment closet after practice is just like…a fluke. An experiment to see if his drunk mind is still possessing his sober one.

But after a week of messy hook ups in janitors closets and under bleachers and the quarry on a Saturday morning steve doesn’t think he can keep blaming being drunk anymore…

[munsonthings86]

Heyy are you still taking requests??

If so can I please have a Steve Harrington x Sinclair!reader blubber or one shot please. The idea is that this takes place like around season three (or just awhile after Steve and Nancy’s breakup) and Steve and Reader have been getting closer because of all of the events that were going on in the show. And reader realizes that she has been falling for him but the problem is that she’s close friends with Nancy but feels weird for liking her ex. But like Nancy pretty much hints to her that it’s fine and whatever.

Love you work thank you 🫶🏾💜

hi love! thank you for the request & sorry abt the wait! but i hope you enjoy! <3

wc: 3.7k

What is one supposed to do when they just so happen to fall for their ex-girlfriend's best friend? It was a daunting question that rattled around Steve's mind with harsh clangs, making him toss and turn in bed when he tried to sleep. The poor thing even resorted to counting sheep when the only thing he could see behind his closed eyes was your pretty face that made him so pitifully nervous.

Liking you was troubling. It was divine and dreadful all at once.

The divine. Steve could easily recall the first time he met you like it was his favorite scene of his favorite movie.

Billy's 1979 Camaro made a loud screech when he drove up to the Byers' home unwelcomed. He brought mayhem as he searched for Max, unhesitat to torment your little brother Lucas in the process. You were fearless when giving Billy a piece of your mind, calling him all kinds of inglorious names and jabbing your finger at him when he sneered at you with that Hargrove smirk you despised.

Though you were undoubtedly no damsel in distress, clearly knowing how to stand your ground, Steve had unfaltering determination as he went to defend you and your sibling. He threw the first punch at him, knowing that Billy wasn't the kind of person that responded well to empty threats.

Unfortunately, that was his last lucid memory from that night.

Steve would (reluctantly) admit that he didn't end that brawl unscathed, but his heart certainly grew a couple sizes for you when you tended to his wounds soon after. Gentle with his cuts and bruises, you'd shyly smile and mumble little apologies when he'd hiss and flinch.

Steve had already known of you and seen you around school, sure, but this was his first time truly in your presence.

There was something so calming and warm about it.

But one thing that Steve wanted etched on his mind forever, was the Snowball of '84.

The blue glittery dress you wore adorned your figure perfectly, hair framing the beautiful picture of your face. You were there as a volunteer, chaperoning the middle schoolers but Lucas but in particular, as you grew fiercely protective over him after uncovering the deep secrets of Hawkins.

Steve was practically drooling as he gazed at you from his car, no longer able to focus on whatever it was Dustin had been rambling about. Handing out cups of punch to kids in line, your smile was bright and glittering while you shared a conversation. With Nancy.

The dreadful. It was your relationship with her that spared you of Steve's magnetic charm. Other than his newfound shyness, of course.

Nancy and you were two peas in a pod, rarely ever being seen without the other, especially when Lucas and Mike became friends. The two of you were always on study dates, had each other on speed dial, and even had friendship bracelets with the other's initials donned on your wrists. She was more than a best friend to you. More like a sister, you thought.

But Steve couldn't help himself from lingering a bit after he would drive Lucas home from whatever nerdy activity he needed a ride back from. The tenderhearted boy was beautifully uncreative in his efforts to get your attention, as he used any and every tactic imaginable.

He'd ask you about the book you were nose-deep in, though he knew damn well the title would soon be forgotten once the conversation was over. He'd tell you about his favorite shows and movies when he caught you in the living room struggling to find something to watch. He even offered to teach how to drive when you casually mentioned something about getting your license.

Soon enough, shy waves and awkward small talk turned into late nights listening to Fleetwood Mac and intense game nights of Monopoly and Scrabble.

Steve didn't win at Scrabble too often. He kept trying to play words that simply just didn't exist.

It was June of 1985 and school had been out for the past couple weeks. Scoops Ahoy, a new ice cream joint that Erica was adamant to drag you to at least three times a week, became your new favorite place when you saw Steve behind the counter.

"Nice outfit, Harrington," you giggled, and though he knew you weren't really making fun of him, Steve blushed away, eyes shifty. You often left a little tip in the jar when you'd leave, thanking Steve for his hospitality and influx of free ice cream samples.

Today was different, though. Steve was unable to ignore the disappointment that overwhelmed him when your little sister had shown up without you. He nodded his head at her as she neared the counter, "Where's your sister?"

Erica cocked an eyebrow, hand dropping down onto her hip. "I'm sorry, do I look like her keeper? I'm just here for my usual, sailor man." Steve fixed his gaze on the blue and white clock on the wall that's arms pointed to read 12:17. Usually you were here to collect your fair share of free dessert too, but it was nearly rush hour and your favorite flavor was running low.

"Well no, but she's your keeper and I'm just a little curious, is all," he corrected, spooning a hearty serving of peanut butter chocolate swirl onto a cone. She tapped her foot impatiently, waving her hand to suggest that she wanted a second helping. If you want information, it comes with a price. His eyes were squinted at her before he rolled them, giving in to her wishes.

"Here, that's all you're getting. Now spill."

Her smile was wide when she took the cone from Steve's hand, finally satisfied. "You really need to work on your customer service skills," she pointed, a look of disapproval weighing on her face when she turned to look at Steve.

"She's at home. I think. I don't know, I haven't been there in a few hours. She could be in another country for all I know," she paused to take an obnoxious lick, "Pleasure doing business with ya', sailor man!"

Steve watched as she skipped back to her busy swarm of friends whose cackles and squeals could be heard from worlds away. He looked down at the array of ice cream in front of him, frowning at the puny supply of your favorite. Grabbing a to-go cup from under the counter, Steve garnered as much as he could of the dessert, some of it spilling over when he covered it with a plastic lid.

Robin peered over his shoulder as he scribbled something on it with a permanent marker, though she wasn't able to decipher Steve's dodgy handwriting.

"I'm going on break, cover the front for me," Steve announced, making his way out of the parlor. His stride was hasty and confident.

In the distance, he could hear the smirk in Robin's voice, "Tell her I said hi!"

﹏𓊝﹏

2550 Maple Street. Steve rolled slowly past the creaky mailbox that read 'The Sinclair's', careful not to drive over the yellow tulips by the driveway that your mother spent all spring gardening. They were coming along really nicely.

Every once in a while, Steve would ask to help her with all the weeding and trimming and other maintenance that she often called a headache. Never in a million years did Steve think he'd be so avid for a girl and her family's approval that he'd become a part time florist, but here he was.

Surveying himself in the rearview mirror, Steve plucked off the silly sailor hat that crowned his head with a huff before aimlessly tossing it, getting it as far from his self-proclaimed best feature as possible. His fingers busily shoveled through his thick tresses, searching for the perfect marriage of tousled and tamed.

To say Steve was a bit on edge was a terrible understatement. The feeling of his stomach pulling into a tight knot at the mere thought of you was something so foreign to him. He hadn't felt this way in such a long time, especially not since he'd been with Nancy. It was refreshing but damn stressful.

But you were well worth the stress and queasy stomachs.

Steve hurriedly dusted himself off, wishing he had enough time to drive to his house to change into a less ridiculous outfit. He just wanted to look his best for you.

Approaching your dark green painted abode, mumbled words of encouragement poured out of Steve's lips. He spoke with his hands and made little faces, and he had no doubt that he looked like a crazy person to your neighbors that walked by.

His fist somewhat stalled when he raised it to the wooden door, his little pep talk had only done so much to boost his confidence. But it was too late to turn back now, he thought. He left three knocks to the door anyway, figuring that he already made it this far.

With his gaze set on his shifty feet that stood on the tawny welcome mat, his heart felt sharp against his ribs when the door abruptly swung open. "Steve?"

He looked up with wide eyes only to find your younger brother, eyebrows pulled together. He had the landline clutched close to his chest, seemingly on the phone with someone.

"Sinclair! Just the person I was looking for," he watched as Lucas' fingers twisted at the lock of the gold door knob idly. The cozy smell of breakfast wafted towards Steve. "Sort of," Steve added, shrugging.

"What's goin' on?" Lucas blinked at him in anticipation.

"Nothing much. Just lookin' for your sister," he said, tapping his finger on the bowl in his hand. He squinted at the sky, peeved, cursing the searing heat of the sun. That ice cream was melting like an ice cube in a desert. And his sweaty palms surely weren't helping its case.

Lucas scanned the yard, finding that Erica's bike was missing. From what he could remember, he heard her yapping something about hanging out at the mall, however many hours ago.

"She's probably at Starcourt terrorizing the world like usual, you might wanna look there," he pointed with his thumb. Steve could hear an irked voice spouting from the phone, wondering where Lucas had gone. Max, he assumed.

He chuckled, leaning against the door frame, "Yeah, you’re not wrong." Though Erica didn't particularly struggle to ruffle up people's feathers, Steve was actually growing to find the charm in her temperament. He even caught himself fighting to cage his laugh at her snarky comments more often than not. Hanging around her so much will do that to you.

"But your older sister, I mean. She here?"

Lucas gestured upstairs to your room, stepping aside to make way for Steve. Mumbling a thanks, he abandoned his sneakers by the door, per your mother's usual request, and trekked up the staircase— butterflies reckless in his stomach.

You tried your hardest to maintain your composure as you listened to the slow thuds of approaching footsteps. It didn't take Sherlock Holmes to know it was Steve. Not only could you pick out his voice in a crowd of countless people, but from your window, you spied his parked maroon BMW in the driveway. It was hopeless to try biting back the smile that crept up when you heard he was there to see you.

The bedroom door wasn't closed but Steve knocked anyway, calling out for you in a soft tone. Heat rushed to your chest and ears at the sound of your name falling from his pink, plush lips that you so badly wanted to kiss.

It was romantic thoughts like those of Steve that spread guilt through you like venom, knowing that he was Nancy's ex after all. It had been your shoulder that she cried on when her relationship with him ended, and you easily felt like the worst friend imaginable when you found yourself falling for him.

You managed to keep your bond with him strictly platonic, but boy was it difficult.

"Steve?" He smiled when you peered around the door, features posing a coy smile of your own. His hand shyly waved at you while the other stayed tucked behind his back, "Hey, you." He shuffled into your room, appreciating the way your shaggy rug felt delicate and feathery on his aching feet that he'd been standing on for too many hours.

Your bed squeaked when he sat in the space next to your abundance of stuffed animals that Steve liked to call the "wardens" of your bed. It was so adorable to him how gingerly you took care of them– even murmuring a little apology when you bumped into one by accident.

He let out a soft laugh when he glanced at you, mindful to not stare at you, though that's all he really wanted to do, "You still in your pjs?"

Nothing but tight shorts hidden beneath a baggy band shirt draped your body. While Steve thought you looked utterly perfect, you suddenly felt awfully naked.

Shaking off the fuzzy warmth that rushed over you, you scoffed, crossing playfully defensive arms over your chest. “You should be the last person talking about outfits," your eyes scanned his tall, slender frame.

Steve's jaw fell open, theatrically appalled at your quip.

“Oh, don't act like you don't love me in this outfit, princess,” he smirked. The nickname made your nerves all fiery and tingly. "I see the way you stare at my legs when I'm in these shorts. My eyes are up here, FYI."

With your head falling back, an echoing giggle escaped you. It's a laugh so pretty and sugary, it could sweeten even the most sour lemon.

Steve couldn't ward off the reddening of his cheeks.

"In your dreams, Harrington," you replied, plopping yourself in the chair by your vanity. You distracted yourself from Steve's teasing with tidying the clutter that obscured the desk. The nerves you felt would only further ignite if you kept looking into his warm eyes.

"Well, despite the minor insult to my uniform, which I'm not gonna take personally," he beamed, finally revealing what he had hidden behind his back, "I got somethin' for ya." His teeth trapped his bottom lip in its constraints, eyes wide with anticipation as you inspected your little present.

The cup was wet with condensation and leaking melted ice cream but underneath it all read, "something sweet for a sweet girl :)".

And just like the ice cream, you melted.

"Steveee," you gushed, licking off the dessert that dripped onto your fingers that were growing frigid. "You came over just to bring me ice cream?" The smile you wore was glittering and well worth the effort.

Steve was all mumbly and shy when he responded, "Well, I know it's your favorite and that was the last of it, so," he shrugged before he could give himself the chance to ramble.

You wrestled the urge to swoon. How could one person be so adorable? And why did that one person have to be your friend's ex?

"Well, that's very kind, Stevie. Thanks," you beamed.

"'S no problem," he shrugged with a shy smile, taking a glimpse of his watch.

He had a mere twelve minutes to get back to work on time. "Shit, I gotta get back before Robin kills me, but I'll see you soon, okay?"

"Later, Steve."

Rising from your bed, he made his way to your door. His footsteps were slow and hesitant, as he seemed to have something on his mind. You were following behind him when he spun around suddenly, your bodies nearly colliding. "Actually, there's somethin' I wanted to ask you," his eyes were squeezed shut while he pointed as he spoke.

His face was flushed and his feet tapped at the wooden floor rapidly. You don't recall ever seeing Steve so nervous. "Yeah?"

"There's some house party tonight that I was, uh, thinking about going to. I was, you know, hoping that maybe, you'd wanna go with me? Like a date?"

Your mouth was open but sentences, words, really any sound at all, failed to come out. The boy you'd been crushing on for weeks that felt more like years, had finally asked you out. And you had no choice but to say no.

Your silence was deafening. "Or maybe we could go to that carnival? I could win you another warden for your bed," he laughed.

"I'd really like that, Steve, honestly, but–"

"Nancy," he finished, eyes diverting to his feet. His fluffy brunette hair blocked your view of his face. It wasn't fun seeing Steve who you're so used to joking with look so down.

"I could, maybe, talk to her?" Your tone was quiet, but hopeful.

"Are you sure? I don't wanna come in between you guys."

"Don't worry about that, her and I will be fine," your smile was confident but deep down you weren't as optimistic as you let on. Nancy and you made a promise to each other to never let anything like secrets or dumb boys ruin your relationship. But, here you were. "Now, go, your break is almost up."

"Okay," he grinned, "I'll see you tonight?"

Nodding, you waved him goodbye, watching him retreat downstairs. Your back leaned against your door when you closed it, before you looked over at your soupy ice cream, defeated.

How could you choose between your best friend and the boy you were crushing on? It shouldn't even be a question, really. The guilt was already gnawing at you mercilessly.

﹏𓊝﹏

The cards you held were sticky on your clammy palms. The echoes of your talk with Steve just a few hours prior were intrusive and blaring. Taking a sip of whatever was in your red solo cup, you tried to drown out the roaring voices of the people at the party, along with the thumping music that numbed your ears.

Your leg was impatient and desperate as it shook up and down, doing its best to repel the anxiety that bit at you. It certainly didn't help that Nancy was sitting right next to you, oblivious to the stolen glances and sneaky smiles you and Steve were exchanging all night.

Rubbing your stomach that felt queasy and pulled into a knot, you hadn't noticed that it was your turn to play. You weren't entirely sure you even remembered the name of the game you found yourself in.

"Hey, are you alright?" Nancy's hand fell onto your thigh, running a comforting thumb across your skin. Her blue doe eyes searched your face, though she's known you long enough to already know that you were far from 'alright'.

"Yeah, why?" Your lips were pulled into a tight smile, trying and inevitably failing to give your best impression of a genuine grin. And of course, Nancy sees the way you aren't seeing her. When you mindlessly played a random card, your eyes were fidgety and unfocused– a clear sign that you were frenzied.

"Cause you look like you're about to throw up," her eyebrows were pulled together in concern as she continued to probe, "Seriously, what's wrong?"

A dreary sigh escaped you as you cursed yourself for not being as discreet as you hoped to be. You should've know that someone you considered your sister would be able to see right through you like glass.

"It's just," you hesitated. It was now or never. "Just-"

"Steve?" Her voice lowered when she said his name, noticing the way your face shifted and became an odd mixture of relieved and confused. Your head snapped in her direction, finally meeting her gaze for the first time that night, it felt like.

The thrashing of your heart almost made your chest ache, as you appeared to be caught in some kind of lie. You didn't tell a lie, really, but you certainly didn't feel like a noble friend.

Studying her face, you scoured to find any hint that she was about to start tearing into you, calling you every wretched name in the book. Honestly, you wouldn't blame her if she did. But there was a subtle smirk on her face. A stark difference in the expression you imagined she'd be wearing upon finding out about your little puppy crush on Steve.

"How'd you know?"

"I mean, it's no secret you guys have been hanging out lately," she laughed a bit, taking your hand in hers, "and I see the way you look at him. It's the same way I used to look at him."

Words completely escaped you. Your eyes and mouth were agape, in awe of Nancy's poise. It was one of the things about her that you deeply admired. "Nancy..."

She squeezed your hand, shaking her head, "No, it's okay. I was the one who broke up with him," she glanced over to where he stood in the kitchen, downing his drink before disappearing into the backyard. "Besides, I'm with Johnathan now and I'm happy."

You exchanged smiles as your nerves became the calmest they'd been in hours. "If Steve makes you happy, I'm not gonna get in your way. He's a great guy and I think you guys would be really good for each other."

Throwing yourself into her for a hug, you practically crushed her as words of gratitude spilled out of you. It was unbelievable how lucky you were to have someone like her. "You're the best, Nance." She shrugged as if it was nothing, a bright look on her face.

"Now go get him, I'll watch your drink."

Ignoring the protests from the others who were still in the game as you walked away, you dodged dancing and mingling party guests.

The backyard was a lot less crowded, thankfully, allowing you to easily spot Steve sitting in a hammock, tapping his fingers on a freshly opened beer bottle.

He wore light blue jeans and a yellow crew neck sweater, looking as good as ever. You couldn't believe that he was going to be completely and openly yours.

"Hey, Harrington," you basically skipped over to him, slipping into the space next to him. Your legs touched and you don't feel any guilt or urge to move away from him. It was so refreshing. "So, how 'bout that date?"

The smile Steve wore was well worth the stress and queasy stomachs.

💌 1 new message from jojo: finally on summer break!! my inbox is open as always! feel free to pop in for a chat <3

[hellfire--cult]

Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader {Dark fic}

wc: 4.5k

+18 MDNI kissing, pining, gore, mur*der, blood, vom*it, weapons, knives, guns, axes, traps, fear of getting kill*ed, panic attacks, sex mention, creepyness in all of its glory - Do not read if you are not comfortable with one of the above.

Plot: You and your friends go to Steve Harrington's summer home. Your goal is to make Eddie stop seeing you as a friend, but it seems the night has other plans for the both of you.

A/N: read end of the chapter for my comment.

please reblog thank you.

DON'T LEAVE ME

It was all decided by Steve. 

They would all go to his summer house, which was on the nearest edge of Lake Jordan to his actual home. It was just a 30 minute drive from his backyard to that other house that had a dock of its own and a speedboat for two. 

Robin, Nancy, Chrissy, Eddie, Steve, Billy and you. You were the newest one in the group, having moved to Hawkins by yourself to escape an abusive mother. You were quiet, but outgoing if engaged properly. 

There were times where you felt out of loop from the group as they told stories to one another, stories you never participated in, but there was one person in this group that always made you feel welcome, and explained to you in extreme detail everything about those stories. 

Eddie Munson.

He was always on the lookout for you, being charming, and always ready to grab your hand if you needed help. He had this goofy side you found endearing, beautiful even, and then his harsh persona. The other quality Eddie has. A protector. A guardian, of some sort. So protective of all of you.

You were instantly in love with him. How could you not? Robin and Chrissy have been teasing you about it since you met him, telling you that your eyes were in the shape of hearts. But you knew that Eddie didn’t look at you in the same way you looked at him.

You were hoping that this trip would change that. 

“Okay, so, there’s four rooms, so let’s split up, I’ll take the main room, obviously, Eddie and Billy?” Said men nodded to each other after a roll of their eyes towards Steve’s commands. 

“Why do you get the master bedroom?” Eddie asked him with a mocking tone and Steve just scoffed at him with a smirk to the face.

“I am the owner of this house Munson.” Steve then looked at all the girls and just waited until you all looked at one another.

“Robin can go with Chrissy.” Nancy immediately answered and you turned to see Robin’s face turn into a deep red, and you stifled a giggle in your throat. Chrissy played it better and looked away so that no one could see her face.

“Then it’s settled.” Steve smiled as he opened the door to his house and you all stepped into the living room, amazed by how spotless it all was. The Harrington’s probably hire a maid for both houses, or two maids. He really is a show off. 

You looked at Nancy and she was with a smile on her face as she looked around. She didn’t seem phased that Jonathan couldn’t come, and you would have to be dumb to not notice it. She is sleeping with Steve, cheating on Jonathan. You shared a knowing look with Eddie, who only sighed at the situation.

You both didn’t like what they were doing, but Eddie even more so because Jonathan is a friend of his. His best friend is Steve though, so even if he hurts him to hide this from Jonathan, Steve comes first. 

“Damn Harrington. Way to show it off.” Billy finally talked as he put his bag on the floor. You licked your lips as you stared at all the pictures on the wall, until you felt someone stand right next to you.

“You’ve been awfully quiet.” You jumped up as you turned your head to look at a dimpled smile that was directed your way, making you flush all over from nervousness as you heard your heartbeat right in your eardrum.

“I-I… It’s the first time after many years that I… spent a weekend with friends…” Was your short reply, to which Eddie hummed. He put his arm around your shoulders, surprising you completely with a gasp as he pulled you to his side.

“Well! I’m gonna make it a memorable one! We’re gonna sing around the bonfire, singing Kumbaya, and if we are feeling feisty… Burnt marshmallows.” He wiggled his eyebrows at you and you couldn't help but giggle at him. He would always do this for you, loosening up your nerves before you explode.

“That sounds thrilling.” You replied to him which only made his grin even wider.

“You have no idea.” 

“Do yall think people get murdered here?” Everyone immediately spat whatever they were drinking, and looked at the culprit of the question. Robin looked up from her can to see you all staring at her and she shrugged her shoulders, “What?”

“I don’t think it’s the appropriate question to ask in the middle of the woods Robin…” Nancy reprimanded her friend as Chrissy sighed, taking a long sip of her beer.

“It’s the perfect place for killing though.” Billy was the one that talked now and Steve slapped him on the arm, making Billy glare at him. Eddie, though, saw everyone’s faces and continued with a smile on his own.

“A long lake too… maybe very, very, very deep. Just one heavy stone on their body and poof.” You shivered at his words because he sounded just way too casual about it. Billy laughed at his friend as Nancy just stared wide eyed at both men while Steve pinched his eyelids with his index finger and thumb. 

“You’re both insufferable.” Steve said as he took a hit from his joint and you were feeling uneasy now. You pressed your side against Eddie’s to be able to whisper into his ear. 

“There… There are no killers around… right?” Eddie looked at you with a regretful expression on his face as he whispered back.

“Oh sweetheart, no, I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean to scare you…” He frowned in worry and you nodded at him in understanding but still biting on your thumb in fear. Nancy is most likely going to leave you alone tonight to sleep with Steve. You really don’t understand why they keep it secret when all the group knows about the two of them.

“Alright…” Is all you mustered to say. You were fidgety and Eddie could see it in the way you played with your fingers. You jumped when you felt his hand wrap around both of yours, and then sneaked in between to be able to hold one of them.

Your heart was thumping in your chest, and you looked down in case he could see any indication that you were growing flustered and nervous because of his touch. You were afraid he could see your real feelings for him with just one look to your face.

Your eyes dared to look up, only to see him looking towards Chrissy’s way, making your heart just fall right down to your stomach. Robin told you that Eddie had confessed to Chrissy last year, but she had rejected him. They both took some time off from each other but then remained friends after the feelings were supposedly gone.

You really didn’t know if Eddie’s feelings were completely gone. You were certain he would never look at you the way he looks at Chrissy, and maybe he is also hurting because Robin and Chrissy now have feelings for one another, even if they are oblivious about it.

“Okay kitties, if you’re going to bed, remember to shut your windows.” Billy joked and everyone else, including you, groaned as he stood up with a smirk on his face and walked inside the house.

You were making coffee the next day as Robin whined about not having been able to sleep for a long while.

“They just tried to keep quiet and failed so much. I could hear Nancy go ‘Harder Steve!’ every second!” She sighed and took a sip of the mug you just gave her as you kept making more for everyone else in the home. You did hear the moans as well, but then they abruptly stopped. 

“Well, at least they got tired at some point.” You replied to her with an understanding frown and a smile to your lips as she kept sipping on her caffeine. You heard footsteps coming down followed by some giggling and you felt your stomach flip as you saw Eddie and Chrissy laughing with each other as they walked downstairs.

You are never going to be able to compete against her. There really was no use in trying to do so when Eddie looked at her like that. You were never going to win, not when Chrissy is right next to him.

“I smell coffee.” Eddie grinned as he walked over to the counter, grabbing onto one of the mugs you filled and you stopped him from taking it to his lips. You felt your body heat up as well as your cheeks as you pointed onto the red mug.

“That’s– That’s yours… I put milk in it…” You looked back down to the coffee pot and you turned to put it back into the machine. Was it too weird you knew how he takes his coffee? It is, isn’t it? He is not saying anything. You shouldn’t have stopped him–

“Wow, thank you darling…” Eddie smiled towards the back of your head as he grabbed onto the red mug as Chrissy sat next to Robin, giving her a kiss on the cheek. That made your hopes rise up again as you watched them. Maybe they’re together now? But Eddie– You don’t dare to look at Eddie’s face, just in case you see a face that shows pain, jealousy…

“Are the other three not up yet?” You heard Chrissy ask, making you turn around and tilt your head in confusion. You look up at the clock and see it was already 11 AM and you had all planned to go to the lake today at an early hour. 

“I’ll go wake them up! I will fucking yell into the room to get them back for yesterday!” Robin yelled excitedly, making you giggle along Chrissy as you saw her jump up from her seat and rush upstairs. 

“She is such a dork.” Chrissy blushed as she took a sip of her own mug and Eddie nodded at that and took a sip of his. You took a deep breath onto your own coffee, taking a long chug of it after a sleepless night as well, and you almost choked when there was a guttural scream coming from upstairs.

The three of you slammed the mugs onto the counters and looked at each other as Eddie was the first one to run up the stairs towards where Robin was. Steve’s room. Chrissy and you followed right behind, fear striking your whole body as you finally reached the scene.

On the bed, Nancy’s naked body laid on top of Steve’s, but there was an ax cutting through Nancy’s neck, all the way down onto Steve’s neck, decapitating the both of them in one single swing. The blood was sipping into the mattress and it had saturated so much that it started to drip onto the floor. 

Your eyes filled with tears as you slammed a hand over your mouth and that’s when you felt the gag coming to your throat. You couldn’t keep it in and you rushed out of the room in order to be able to throw up the contents in your stomach onto one corner of the hallway. 

Robin was sobbing loudly as she grabbed onto her hair while Eddie ran his hand through his. Chrissy was frozen and was feeling nauseous at the gorey scene, fear and uneasiness filled the group and Eddie ran out of the room to go check on you.

Your hand was against the wall as you balanced yourself, still bending your body forward as you gagged once more. He put a hand on your back and you snapped your head to look at him in fear. His breathing was heavy as he looked into your eyes and you knew that he was just as scared as you were. 

He raised his head up as if remembering something, and then he turned in a frantic motion and almost fell on the hallway as he rushed towards his room. He started cursing into the air as he paced back and forth, his hands running through his hair. You heard him and followed him as Chrissy and Robin followed behind you in order to not be left behind with the rotting corpses of your two friends.

“B-Billy… He wasn’t here at night! I woke up to go to the bathroom, and I thought he was out having a smoke, and I woke up today– And he is still gone!” He yelled at all of you and you shakily grabbed onto Eddie’s hand, looking up at him.

“D-Do we– look for him?” Eddie looked down at you and then back at Robin and Chrissy who were still holding onto each other as Robin bawled her eyes out, screams coming out of her lungs. 

“W-What if he was the one who did all this?” Chrissy asked and Eddie and you snapped your heads towards her. It might be a possibility, but what if it isn’t and Billy is suffering somewhere in the woods all by himself?

“We have to look for him, we can’t leave without him– We– We don’t know if it was him!” Eddie stated and Robin nodded at that, wiping her tears away. Even if filled with fear, she wants to avenge her friends, try to save one of them, and then go to the police so they find the murderer.

“Let’s look for Billy. We need weapons.” 

And that’s how you found yourself holding onto a gun, while Eddie had a machete, and Robin and Chrissy had hunting knives. These were all found in one of the rooms inside of the house, probably for Steve’s father and his hunting trips. 

You all walked out of the house and looked forward into the woods. You shared a look with Eddie and he gave you an encouraging nod. You turned your head to look forward and saw Chrissy and Robin already walking ahead, making you gasp slightly in fear of being left behind.

“I’m here. Don’t worry… I’m not gonna let you walk alone.” You looked back at Eddie as he grabbed onto your hand, and you could feel how sweaty he was. He wasn’t going to admit how scared he was, how frightening everything was, and how he cannot even grieve for his friends that were murdered a few hours ago. 

You both walked a few meters away from Robin and Chrissy, who were yelling for Billy. Chrissy turned her head to see something moving in a bush, and she rushed towards it only for something to snap on her calves, as if she had cut a string of some sort, walking right through it. 

Robin’s eyes widened as she screamed Chrissy’s name, when from the top of another tree, a sharp thick branch, like a spear, came falling down like a pendulum thanks to a rope. Chrissy turned her body, only to be pierced by the branch right on her sternum and sent her flying, slamming her body against another tree, nailing her to the bark of it as her feet dangled in the air.

You screamed at the sight and Eddie followed right after as the two of you saw what had just happened to your friend who was coughing blood while her body trembled in shock. Robin ran towards her, wanting to get to her body, only for you to see her disappear with a scream and then it stopped. 

Eddie was stunned as the blood drained from his body, and he used his machete in front of him to swipe around as he guided you both towards the scene. You looked at Chrissy’s still body now against the tree, slamming your hand against your mouth as tears filled your eyes, only to then be stopped by Eddie’s hand as he looked down. You wished you didn’t look down like he did.

There was a hole. A trap. And Robin fell right into it, and at the bottom were many knives  that stuck out from under the dirt, sharp points up. One in particular had pierced her neck, killing her instantly. A sob escaped your lips as you grabbed onto Eddie’s arm, making him look at you.

Your eyes widened when you saw the tears coming down his eyes and you noticed just how frightened he really was. The need to scream and run away was apparent in his features and you just wanted to hug him, even if you were shaking as well from the whole ordeal. Someone had to think straight in the situation–

“Eddie– Eddie– Listen to me…” You licked your lips as you held onto his face with both hands, and you looked around the woods with a desperate look and then back at him, “Here’s what we’re going to do… We’re gonna go back to the house, we’re gonna call the cops, and we will wait there– I– I don’t know if the woods have more traps or not Eddie–” 

You were trying to hold the sobs in and Eddie felt like dying right then and there. There might be traps in the woods, so now, they are stuck in the house. Stuck in a house that has two rotting corpses on the second floor. And the worst part of it all… Billy was still missing.

“God– Fucking damnit, lets go…” He managed to choke out his words and the both of you returned to the home, and immediately rushed into the office room, where you both knew there was no place for hiding in case the murderer had come inside the home when you two were out in the woods.

The second you two locked the office door, you rushed towards the phone only to find it disconnected, no tone on the other side of the tube. You felt tears burning your eyes as you slammed the phone down, hands running through your hair in frustration and fear. You looked at Eddie with a dejected look on your face and he sighed as he took a seat on the floor.

Gladly there was a water dispenser inside the room and some plastic cups. Eddie let you serve the water as his eyes were distant, stuck to the ground as he hugged his knees while sitting against the wall. Of all the things that could have happened, losing his friends in such a way was not something he expected. 

He just wanted to have fun this weekend, smoke a joint, have a few beers, and now his life is in danger because there is a murderer outside of the house, or worse, inside. You turned around as you sat down next to him, handing him the cup of water. 

“I just… I just wanted to have fun– How did it end up like this?” Eddie asked out of nowhere and you looked at him and then back at the water in your hand. 

“I– I have so much I want to do… So much I haven’t done.” You managed to mumble out of your lips and Eddie turned to look at you. 

“Like what?”

“My first kiss…” You can’t even flush in embarrassment now. You don’t have time to have the delight of feeling embarrassed about that fact of your 20 year old life. “I know– I just… I am not a very outgoing person… so…”

Eddie was stunned at your confession. He always thought you were pretty, so he can’t really imagine you not getting a kiss in some part of your life. Regardless, he nodded in understanding at you, and scanned your face for a while.

“Shit, I was going to say I never tried Arabian food, but yours is way more important than that.” He made you snort out a giggle and he took a sip of his water. He scooted closer to you as nervousness filled him, but there’s really nothing left to lose now. “I can give you your first kiss if you want.” 

Your eyes widened at that, head turning to look at him and he was surprised to see the excitement and the sparkle in your eyes as if you were looking at him with complete adoration– And you were.

“You would… do that for me?” 

“Of course. Just close your eyes sweetheart.” Your heart was jumping out of your chest as you closed your eyes, anticipating his touch. He noticed how right you were, which made his heart skip a beat as his cheeks flushed red. He leaned down towards your face, and you gasped slightly when you felt his lips flush with yours.

It was a very minuscule movement of lips because he didn’t want to overwhelm you. He didn’t want to go forward any more than that, so he pulled away and opened his eyes to scan your face. You looked dazed as you slowly opened your eyes as well, looking into his. A smile broke on your face as you got hold of his hand that was pressed onto the floor for support.

“Thank you Eddie.” He smiled back at you and then sighed.

“You don’t happen to have Kebab or Shawarma in your pocket, right?” You laughed at that and he joined soon after, only to feel his eyelids start to feel heavy. He knew sleepiness was going to catch him soon, and by how you pressed your head on his shoulder, he knew it was getting to you as well.

And he couldn’t help himself when he closed his eyes, drifting completely away as darkness consumed him. He dreamed he was back in his trailer, sharing a coffee with Wayne in the morning light before he went to work. All was good, all was fine. Maybe the trip was the dream and he was in his trailer, on his bed, strumming his guitar and tuning it.

But dreams sometimes are cut short.

“Eddie…”

“Eddie…”

“EDDIE!”

He jolted awake, and he turned to see you standing, gun pointing at the door. He saw you shaking as you kept guard on it and that’s when Eddie heard it. Footsteps. Very heavy footsteps. They were coming closer, and closer and he quickly stood up, getting hold of his machete as he pointed it at the door. 

His hand was sweaty, and his lips were trembling in fear, very much like yours. You were filled with dread, wondering if you could come out alive from this. Wondering if everything was going to be okay. You looked to the side and saw Eddie was starting to sweat, and you knew he was about to have a panic attack. 

You turned to him, and grabbed his wrist, that was holding the machete and you raised it up in order to stabilize him. He was breathing heavily as he looked at you. The person behind the door stopped walking and the both of you kept staring at one another.

“What… What if he has a gun?” He whispered to you and you kept grabbing onto his wrist when you still felt him shake. You were afraid he would accidentally swing it towards your face but you kept him in place as best as you could while your other hand held the gun.

“I have one too… Just– focus Eddie–” The door suddenly slammed open by an immense force that the two of you didn’t think was possible. Your heads turned to see the person that came in, as he panted, huffed, and his eyes screamed anger, murder.

Billy.

His blue irises went wide and he raised his hand to reveal a kitchen knife. He instantly went for Eddie, charging at him with a yell, and Eddie couldn’t react fast enough as his eyes widened. He was shocked at the revelation that his friend was the culprit of everything.

Eddie might not have had a quick reaction. But you did. You immediately pointed the gun at Billy, and shot him right in the chest as you let out a whimper through your lips at the sound. Billy stumbled back as he looked up at you, a frown displayed in his face as he touched the wound that was now leaking blood all over his white tank top. 

Your hand was shaking as you still pointed it at your friend. Tears started running down your face as you saw him take another step forward towards the both of you, and you pressed the trigger again, this time the bullet going through his stomach. He coughed blood out of his mouth and that’s when he tried to talk, to say something, but only a groan came out before he slumped to the floor. A last breath could be heard, and then it was all over.

You were breathing heavily, walking towards the body and crouching to touch his pulse. The gravity of your actions settled in and you dropped the gun to the floor, jumping back up as you took many steps back. Eddie was still staring down at his dead friend, and then his eyes turned to look at you. A wave of relief washed over him as he pulled you into a tight hug, his weapon also dropping onto the floor.

“We’re safe– You saved us…” He couldn’t contain the tears any longer, feeling a wave of relief washing over him as he held onto you. He started sobbing onto your shoulder as you wrapped your arms around him, your own tears staining his shirt.

“I– I– I killed him– I killed someone–” You were huffing, trying to get air into your throat and lungs and Eddie only pressed his body against yours even closer.

“I’ll be here… I’ll be here for you– Just, please don’t leave me… Don’t go away, please–” He was afraid for you. He doesn’t know how the two of you would handle the trauma you just went through, but he knew that he doesn’t want to go through it all by himself. He needs you with him. 

“I promise… If you promise me you won’t leave me as well…” You sniffed against his shoulder, calming down from the events and you felt him nod very quickly.

“I promise.”

You two were now in the back of a police car as the men looked all over the home, and the ambulances started taking each body one by one.

“Why do you think Billy did it?” You asked Eddie who was holding your hand tightly in his.

“I… I have no clue…” 

“I’m glad you’re here with me Eddie…” You said to him as your grip tightened around him. He looked over at you, scooting closer as his head rested atop of yours. 

“We should start checking our bucket lists together…” He tried to make the mood less somber and you let out a scoff, but a smile was drawn to your lips, your finger intertwining with his.

“Even if they take forever to tick?” You asked him and he nodded.

“Yes…”

Your smile... turned into a creepy wide grin, showing all of your teeth.

You finally made Eddie’s feelings change, making this trip a success.

But you will never tell him the truth.

You won’t ever tell him that it was you the one who sneaked into Steve and Nancy having sex and slamming the ax over their necks.

You won’t ever tell him it was you the one who set the traps in the woods at night after murdering your other two friends.

You won’t ever tell him that you also slipped some of the smashed sleeping pill into the water, just enough for him to doze off.

You won’t ever tell him that you had drugged Billy and locked him in the basement with a note that said ‘It was me - Eddie’.

That’s why Billy had charged after him that night… and you won’t ever tell Eddie that when you went to take Billy’s pulse, you had snaked the note out of his back pocket, to then eat it up without him noticing as the police questioned him.

You won’t ever tell him it was you.

Not even when you both got married. Not even when you had your first child. 

The trip will always remain a success.

All according to plan.

a/n: oh yeah, yandere!reader, killer!reader, but I wasn't going to put that at the top because ofc, the plot twist would have been revealed too early.

I hope you liked this creepy little thing I wrote, woohoo, happy halloween I guess

[worth-the-chaos]

Adventures in Babysitting - Steve Harrington x female!reader - Chapter 2

Chapter Summary: With the events of last fall in the past, you attempt to move on, still working on your academics and babysitting Dustin. You and Steve have drifted since your encounter with the otherworldly, but he begins to make more active efforts to talk to you, making sure you have an invite to Tina’s big Halloween party.

Content Warning: swearing, stancy, reference to upside down stuff, billy being an ass, college application stress, drinking, anxiety and trauma

Word Count: 6.3k

Author’s Note: Again, I’m trying to follow a lot of the plot lines of the series for this x reader, so a lot of it is probably a bit familiar! This part follows the reader’s involvement through Halloween, when things begin to turn sour again.

Series Masterlist | Part 1 | Next Part

***

You took a deep breath as you looked at your reflection in the bathroom mirror. Half-dressed for the day, your eyes couldn’t help but focus on the scars that littered your upper arm, remembering when they used to be deep gashes.

It had been about a year since you stood in the Byers’ house fighting for your life against the horrifying entity from what the kids elected to call the Upside Down. Though your physical wounds had healed, the emotional ones still lingered. Every once in a while, fear invaded your consciousness as you thought back to the flashing lights and the low growl resonating through the small family room. Sometimes when you closed your eyes, you could still see the rows and rows of razor sharp teeth, inching closer and closer to your face.

It was paralyzing, but you shoved those thoughts and feelings aside as you threw a long sleeve shirt on, covering the physical evidence of your fight against the supernatural. Stop thinking about that, you reminded yourself, it’s all over now.

The walk to Hawkins High wasn’t terribly long, though you did still wish you were fortunate enough to afford a vehicle of your own. Once you finally reached the parking lot, a car honk drew you from your thoughts and you were met with the familiar face of the one and only Steve Harrington as he smiled and waved from the driver’s seat. Sat next to him was Nancy Wheeler. Steve’s talk with her in the hospital evidently had been successful because they’d been back together since then, coming up on their first anniversary. You found it difficult to be happy for the couple, but you pushed the jealousy down in your chest and did a small wave back, a half smile on your face. Nancy didn’t respond with the same enthusiasm as Steve, her smile not quite reaching her eyes.

The window suddenly rolled down and Steve called out, “Hey y/n! I’ll see you in study hall! I have a question for you!”

“Okay…? See you then, I guess,” you responded, a bit surprised. Since last year, Steve had rethought his life choices. He wasn’t the same douchebag he’d been when he broke Jonathan’s camera and called Nancy a slut. He dropped Tommy H and Carol, started focusing a bit more on school, and was generally a lot nicer than he used to be. However, despite the way you both risked your lives together, blindsided by the paranormal darkness lurking in Hawkins, you both kind of fell out of touch.

He had Nancy and you had…well, you had your studies. And your babysitting gig. One year strong babysitting the Henderson kid, and only one apocalyptic encounter. Needless to say, you were doing pretty damn good.

Suddenly, the sound of tires screeching on the pavement drew the focus of the three of you away from the semi-awkward encounter, watching as a car with California plates peeled into the parking lot. A boy you didn’t recognize stepped out of the car, flicking his cigarette behind him. A young girl emerged from the passenger seat, turning and making her way down the hill in the direction of Hawkins Middle.

You scoffed, being the impeccable babysitter that you were. Was this guy really too lazy to drop his kid sister off at her school that was less than a block away?

He swung his car door shut and paused, looking you up and down before sending a wink and smirk your direction and turning to make his way into the high school. Your hands gripped your backpack straps a little tighter, feeling like an object to be used or consumed under his gaze. You didn’t have a good feeling about this boy, and something told you that Hawkins High had found its replacement for the King Steve that disappeared when Harrington wisened up last year.

“Who is that guy?” You suddenly heard Steve’s voice ask, annoyance painted on his face. He wasn’t too thrilled with the way he had looked at you. Steve knew the type of guy he was; the type that wouldn’t take no for an answer, and in that moment despite the countless girls drooling over his dumbass mullet, he had zeroed in on you.

“Must be new,” you responded, forcing a smile in an attempt to demonstrate that the mystery boy’s actions hadn’t fazed you. You fought an otherworldly entity; surely you could handle some asshole jock. In a way, you already had, and look how that turned out.

“The two of you should steer clear of him. He’s bad news,” Steve warned. Nancy and you didn’t argue, nodding before you took off to enter the building so you wouldn’t be late for first period.

By the time you were on your way to third period study hall, you had already spent the morning contemplating what Steve could possibly have to ask you. It was your junior year, his senior, and while you were taking it for the extra study time, he was taking it to avoid coursework from one more class, largely using it as a time to take a school sanctioned nap. As such, normally you didn’t interact much during the one hour break from boring lectures and busy work.

“Hey,” Steve whispered as he slid into the chair next to you, a stark juxtaposition to the way he slammed his textbooks on the desk, causing you to jump.

“What? Not taking your spot in the back corner so you can sleep without Mrs. Reed giving you shit?” You asked, staring up at him innocently.

“Actually, I was thinking I could get us out of here for the hour.”

“And how do you suppose that’s going to happen?”

“I’ll put on the old Harrington charm…just watch,” he smirked as he stood up, grabbing you by the elbow to drag you to the teacher’s desk. Mrs. Reed was not the type of person to mess with. She wore her hair up in a slicked back bun that meant business, wearing a scowl like it was an accessory. You seriously doubted the “Harrington charm” was going to do shit to get you out of that classroom.

She glared at the boy through her thin wire glasses, clearly not in the mood for his shenanigans. “Is there a problem?” She droned out, her expression fixing further into annoyance, if that was even possible.

“Actually, Mrs. Reed, I’m afraid there is,” he started, “you see, y/n here was just telling me about how she has this big presentation in her fourth hour class, and she was really hoping for an opportunity to practice. Is there any possible way you’d be so gracious as to let us utilize one of the study rooms in the library? I mean, we can’t go letting Hawkins’ star pupil do anything less than ace this thing, am I right?”

He shook you by your shoulders a bit at the end, and even though the compliment was nothing more than a lie, you still flushed under the praise. It wasn’t everyday that you got complimented in front of your entire study hall class by the most popular student in the school.

“Is that so, y/n?” She turned to you.

“You know me and my nerves, Mrs. Reed; I could really use the help. And besides, Steve is probably about the most rowdy audience I could possibly have, so presenting after this will be a piece of cake,” you pasted a smile on your face. You felt bad lying to her; she’d been a pretty decent English teacher your sophomore year.

“Fine. Don’t worry about coming back before the end of the hour. I know I can trust you to keep Harrington in line,” she answered, glaring at Steve before turning back to the work on her desk, done with the bullshit of high school students; the good ones and the bad ones alike.

You both quickly thanked her before Steve grabbed both of your backpacks and you headed out the door.

“Okay, if I’m going to be completely honest, I was about 85% sure that wasn’t going to work. Mrs. Reed fucking hates me…like a lot,” Steve breathed out as he tossed you your bag, his cocky facade finally dissipating as he continued down the hall.

“This better be a good fucking question, Steve,” you grumbled, not happy about the lie he forced you into, “what am I supposed to do if she asks me about my presentation? What am I supposed to do if she talks to Mr. Hayes?”

“Woah, woah, woah, cool your jets,” he rolled his eyes, “Mrs. Reed is probably a year or two away from retirement and barely even cares about the shit she’s teaching, so I think you’re going to be fine.”

You entered the library, quickly moving to one of the study rooms. You tossed your bag on the floor, already tired from the day and not fully emotionally prepared to spend an hour one on one with Steve.

“Alright, what’s the deal?” You asked as you sat in one of the chairs, crossing your arms as your face fixed into a glare.

“Well, first of all, here,” he shoved an obnoxiously orange flyer at you. You grabbed it a bit aggressively, still not super happy with the boy in front of you. He had a dorky-ass grin on his face though, and it almost broke the cold exterior you were trying to keep up….almost.

“‘Tina’s Halloween Bash, come and get sheet faced,’ are you kidding me? This is what we’re skipping study hall for? Dude, I have an AP chem test this week that I really needed to study for,” you whined, shoving the flyer back at him.

“No, of course this isn’t the reason we’re skipping. I may be dumb, but I’m not an idiot,” he said as he shoved the flyer back at you, “It’s just…I know you never go out, a-and—and it’s Halloween! You can’t stay in on Halloween! Plus, Nancy and I are going to be there, so it’ll be fun, I swear it.”

He leaned across the table, the elbow of his right arm settling right in the middle as he reached his hand towards you. Your focus shifted to his extended pinky. You looked at him incredulously as he waggled it a few times, looking at you with his big brown puppy dog eyes. This boy was going to be the death of you, but you wrapped your small pinky around his anyway.

“I’ll consider it. That’s the best you’re getting.”

“You know what, I’ll take it. Which brings me to my next topic, and pretty much the entire reason for this in the first place, which is that Nancy thinks my application essay sucks and I really need some fucking help,” Steve leaned back while he ran his hands down his face.

You felt a pang in your heart because you knew how stressful this all probably was for the boy. You’d been smart and planned accordingly, so getting into colleges wasn’t the part that was stressing you out; it was the finances that did. Steve on the other hand had screwed around for two and a half years and now somehow needed to manage turning things around enough so that he had even a fighting chance.

“Just give it to me,” you sighed and he quickly handed over the essay he had written.

Steve watched your eyes scan the page as you read the words that he had spent the last week writing. He was a bit embarrassed, to say the least; he had taken one English class with you last semester and knew that he didn’t even write half as well as you did. Hell, Nancy didn’t even come close and her writing was really, really good.

“You…you compared winning a basketball game to your grandfather fighting in the war?” You asked incredulously.

“…yeah?”

“Steve.”

“I know, I know! It’s bad, but that’s why I need your help! I was gonna have Nancy help me but we have this thing tonight and I can’t miss it and—“

You cut him off. “Steve, stop talking. I can help you…but I think you’re going to have to rewrite this whole thing.”

Steve hung his head and buried his face in his hands. Of course I’m gonna have to rewrite the damn thing because it can never just be fucking easy. He felt your hands pull on his wrist and he looked up, finding you staring at him sweetly. A bit pitying, but it was still sweet. With that, some of his anger subsided and he took a deep breath.

“You just need to find something more meaningful to you. I mean, I can tell your heart really isn’t in this. Besides, sometimes the best essays are about the things you’ve lost, not the things you’ve won.”

Steve thought about this. He lived a pretty privileged life. He didn’t want for anything, his future was pretty much set so long as he took the job at his dad’s company, he had the girl, the car, the hair, etc. Sure, his parents kind of really, really sucked but that was small potatoes compared to all of the things he had easy. It was hard to think of something he really, truly lost.

He almost had lost you.

His thoughts flashed to the demogorgon, the way his heart stopped and instinct took over as he had swung the bat with all his might to get the damn thing away from you. He pushed the thought away and suddenly he wasn’t interested in working on this essay anymore.

“You know what? You’re right. I’m gonna need some time to brainstorm some things to write about, but in the meantime, how about we focus on that AP chem test, huh? I mean, there’s no way you don’t have color-coded flash cards and all that jazz”

“Steve, you really don’t have to. I’m sure you have a lot better things to do than to help me cram for some dumb test.”

“Hey, first of all, if it’s important to you, it’s not dumb. Secondly, I might be a shit learner, but I’m a pretty damn good quizzer, so hand ‘em over,” he motioned for you to hand him your index cards as you sheepishly pulled them out of your backpack in their color-coded glory.

“How could I have possibly known?” He feigned surprise.

“Shut up, Harrington.”

***

When all was said and done, you felt moderately better about your AP chem test. Steve wasn’t lying when he said he was a good quizzer; by now, you had every word on every one of those damn cards memorized. During your walk to the Henderson household, you pulled the bright orange flyer out of your pocket. You couldn’t help but smile thinking back to Steve inviting you. He wanted you to be there.

“Y/n!” Dustin drew you out of your thoughts as you quickly shoved the flyer back into your back pocket. The middle school and the high school let out at the same time. He wasn’t far behind you, sat atop his bike as he hopped off and walked with it next to him so he could talk to you.

“You can ride your bike home. I seriously doubt you can get into any serious sort of trouble in the five minutes it takes me to catch up,” you reminded him, though you weren’t entirely sure that was true; in fact, the boy was such a problem sometimes that you considered upping your rate to charge his mom for hazard pay.

“First off, I think you underestimate how much faster I can get home on my bike than you can on foot. Secondly, what was that you just put in your pocket?”

“It-It’s nothing,” you said maybe a little too quickly as your face heated up.

“Bullshit. Spill.”

You sighed. “It’s just some stupid flyer for a big Halloween party. Nothing that concerns you, unless you somehow age several years in the next few days and are suddenly eligible to attend,” you joked, sarcasm lacing your tone as you tried to gather your bearings and act more casual. He didn’t need to know that, to you, it was more than just some Halloween party; it was a Halloween party that Steve Harrington had invited you to.

“You don’t go to parties though,” Dustin was quick to remind you. He was right. Sure, early on in high school you’d been invited to a few, but after you continued to decline, people stopped reaching out.

“Well…there’s a first time for everything, isn’t there?” you muttered.

“Are you gonna dress up?”

“I don’t know.”

“Who invited you?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“Was it a guy?”

“No!”

“So it was a guy!” Dustin exclaimed. You rolled your eyes and jogged ahead, trying to put some distance between you and the incessant questioning of the boy you had the great misfortune of babysitting.

“Your silence is incriminating!” He shouted after you, unable to run very gracefully while attempting to guide a bike around.

You shook your head and sighed. Could babysitting Henderson ever be easy?

***

You walked towards Tina’s house feeling more than just stupid. You didn’t even know Tina super well outside of her always bumming notes off of you when she missed fifth period French. After your conversation with Dustin, you began considering the many elements of a Halloween party that had slipped your mind when you pinky promised Steve you’d go. You hadn’t thought about a costume because, frankly, you hadn’t initially been planning on doing anything for Halloween; it was just going to be another Wednesday for you.

As such, you had decided not to dress up, instead opting to pick apart your closet to find clothes that would maybe scream “party,” settling on your favorite pair of jeans, a low cut black tank top, and a denim jacket. So, yeah, you weren’t in costume, but at least your tits had kind of showed up to the party, so you decided that was good enough.

The mess of bodies dancing at different levels of sobriety made it difficult to navigate the front lawn and you hoped with all your might that Steve and Nancy were already there. You got closer to the front door when you heard the headache inducing sounds of high school testosterone as a bunch of the douchebags from Hawkins High hyped up Mr. California for doing an absurdly long keg stand.

Gee. Great.

As you reached to grasp the doorknob to let yourself into the party, a hand from behind you slammed the door back shut just as soon as you had opened it. You were met eye to eye with the mullet headed, leather jacket wearing douchebag himself. Something was off about this boy (besides the fact that he was unbelievably hammered), and you thought back to Steve’s warning to stay away.

“Hey,” he slurred as he looked you up and down, his eyes pausing longer than they should’ve when they reached your chest. You felt small under his hungry gaze, but you refused to allow yourself to visibly shrink so you straightened your posture and forced your chin up as you looked him in the eye.

“Excuse you,” you muttered as you tried to pull on the door handle again. Obviously it didn’t budge, and he laughed at your attempt. You scowled as you met his eyes again. “What’s your deal, man?”

“The name’s Billy. Billy Hargrove,” he shot you a smirk that screamed trouble as he extended his hand towards you, offering up a handshake.

What a total ass. Fortunately though, he was cocky enough to think that striking up a conversation would cause you to stay, removing his hand from the door, so you took the opportunity to maneuver past him, opening the door and slipping inside.

“Frankly, I don’t give a shit,” you added before slamming the door in his face. You saw the look of shock flash across his features before he disappeared from view and you couldn’t help but feel good about it. The feeling quickly dissipated though as you attempted to weave around the living room, nearly tripping as you made your way into the kitchen where you met Nancy.

“What’s in this?” She was asking a guy in a toga. You recognized him from your second period class, but you didn’t know his name.

“Pure fuel! Pure fuel! Whoo!” He shouted back at her, and you realized you were perfectly fine not getting to know him.

“Well, with that ringing endorsement, we’d be dumb not to have a little, right?” You chuckled and Nancy spun around at the sound of your voice.

“Y/n, you made it,” she said, smile not really touching her eyes, “Steve wasn’t sure you were going to show.” Both of you dipped red solo cups into the questionable mixture, filling them up with the red mix of booze and punch.

“Yep, here I am. In the flesh,” you laughed again, trying to dispel the awkward energy. Something about her seemed off; normally she would be much more friendly. You hoped that you hadn’t done anything to upset her. “Nancy, is everything okay?” You asked quietly as you gently grabbed her wrist.

“I’m fine,” she replied as her jaw set and her tone told you not to push the question. You let go of her wrist and nodded, letting her know that you were going to let it go for now. Her body relaxed and you lifted up your cup toward her.

“Cheers?” You asked with a half smile on your face. This earned you a small smile from the girl as she brought her cup up to tap yours. You smiled and both of you brought your cups to your lips, you taking a small sip while she threw her head back and downed the whole glass.

“Hey! Woah, woah, woah, take it easy! Nance!” Steve was suddenly beside you, reaching across you to try and grab the cup out of her hand.

“We’re just being stupid teenagers for the night. Wasn’t that the deal?” She glared at him before downing more punch, wiping away the bit that spilled onto her face, and shoving her way into the crowd to dance.

Steve’s expression fell a bit as he watched her leave, but his focus shifted to you. “Sorry about that. She’s just…in a bit of a mood today,” he apologized and shook his head, “but I’m so glad you’re here! I mean, I was pretty sure you were gonna bail on me considering I know for a fact that you were invited to some of my house parties last year and you didn’t show.”

“How dare I, right?” You rolled your eyes and chuckled. It’s true. You had been invited to his parties, especially after your encounter with the demogorgon had brought the two of you together in a weird but irreversible way. You would always have that experience, but you weren’t interested in changing for him. Besides, he was never the one to personally extend the invitation, instead you heard about it from someone else every time.

“You aren’t in costume.”

“Way to point out the obvious,” you retorted, finishing your first cup of punch. Steve shot you a look, clearly not trusting that you knew your limits with alcohol. “You’re joking, right?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, it seems a bit hypocritical for the king of parties himself to be judgmental about someone else’s drinking habits.”

“Well, it’s exactly that. I don’t get the impression that you have drinking habits, and if it’s your first time drinking, you should watch yourself, you know? Can’t fault me for looking out for a friend,” he added and you bristled a bit at that last word. Friend.

“Y/n, what?” He asked, noticing your reaction. You sighed before responding, not really sure how this conversation was going to go.

“So…we’re friends now?” You asked, but it was more of a statement than a question.

Steve was taken aback, clearly confused by your confusion. “What do you mean? Of course we’re friends! Y/n, we went through so much together last year, I mean, did you really think I was just gonna drop you like all that shit didn’t matter?”

“You kind of did. It’s not like we hang out or really talk or anything remotely close to what friends would do. We’re just two people who know each other a little bit better than we did. I wouldn’t necessarily call that ‘being friends’,” you responded, putting air quotes around the final words. You hoped that your statement didn’t hurt him. It was the truth though. Your shoulders tensed as you awaited his response.

“You know what? You’re right y/n, and I’m sorry. I should’ve done more to keep in touch, and I’m not going to make any excuses. So let’s just start over, okay?” He asked, his big brown eyes staring into yours.

Your breath hitched in your throat, and you nodded, not trusting that your voice wouldn’t fail you.

“Alright, perfect,” he smiled, and suddenly he extended his hand towards you, “hey, I’m Steve. I don’t know you but you seem pretty tough, and like you might have some killer fighting instincts, so I thought we could be friends.”

You laughed. Like really laughed, and Steve was beaming. You wiped away a tear that slipped from your eye as you took a breath to regain your composure. It was all so absurd and perfect and so incredibly Steve that you couldn’t help but accept his offer. You willed your palms not to sweat as you grabbed his hand and shook it, “Well, I’m y/n, and yeah, you’re right; I do have some pretty kick-ass instincts, but I can’t promise it will keep you out of trouble.”

“That’s okay because I’ve got some pretty kick-ass moves myself, so I think we’ve got it covered,” he added, smiling at you. He let go of your hand before saying “well, Nancy’s probably halfway to being shit faced, so we should probably go party it up with her while her memory’s still intact.”

You nodded as you turned to exit the kitchen, Steve placing a hand on your back as he guided you through the mess of people dancing to get to Nancy. It was fun to let loose and dance, and you wondered why you hadn’t let yourself party like this before. It felt freeing, and you felt the slight buzz from the drinks that you’d had as you let your body move to the music that was almost too loud to hear yourself think.

Suddenly, you felt hands around your waist, and you instantly sobered up, remembering a big part of why you didn’t like parties: asshole guys who were just looking for a quick hook up.

“Hey!” You shouted as you turned around, eyes met with the same piercing blue ones from earlier.

“Woah, no need to get all angry, baby. I gotta say it’s pretty hot though,” Billy chuckled as he moved his hands to grab at your waist again. You maneuvered away from his grasp, swatting his hands away.

“Can’t you tell I’m not fucking interested,” you replied.

“Baby, come on—“

You cut him off, “I’m not your fucking baby.”

“No need to be a bitch about it, come on. Can’t have a little fun?”

“She said she’s not interested, dude. Leave her alone,” Steve spoke up, having realized the position you were in. He moved to stand between the two of you, pulling you by the wrist behind him. Nancy was pretty wasted but aware enough to act, as she took your hand and pulled you farther away, weaving through the crowd to create some distance.

“Sorry, I wasn’t aware that you had two girlfriends, Harrington. I mean, I’m shocked you even have the one to begin with,” Billy retorted, taking a step towards Steve.

Steve stood his ground, knowing it wasn’t worth it to get heated over Billy’s comments. Billy just wanted to get a rise out of him and Steve wasn’t going to let him have the satisfaction.

“I’m just looking out for a girl that needs help. If you’re not going to listen to her maybe you’ll listen to a guy, okay? So walk away.”

“Whatever, Harrington,” Billy replied as he shoved Steve in the shoulder and turned around to walk away. Tommy H was hot on his heels, a mindless dummy and fair weather fan to whoever he deemed to be top dog at any given moment.

“Y/n, are you alright?” Steve caught up with you and Nancy.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Ugh, I just hate assholes, like come on!” You exclaimed, hugging your arms around yourself in an attempt to be self-soothing.

Steve opened his mouth to apologize when he realized Nancy was going back to the punch bowl. He quickly pivoted, following her into the kitchen. “Nancy, no, you’ve had enough, okay?” He said as he tried to grab the cup out of her hand again like he had earlier.

“Screw you,” she slurred, pulling her hand out of his reach and dunking her cup in the bowl.

“No, Nancy, I’m serious! Stop…Nance, put it down,” he warned, grabbing at the cup again. Nancy continued to protest, and Steve continued to fight it until he lost his grip on the cup and its bright red contents went spilling onto Nancy’s pristine white shirt. An audible gasp rang out through the party as those in the near vicinity stopped their dancing to gawk at Hawkins’ power couple’s power struggle.

“What the hell?” Nancy whispered as she stormed out of the room, and Steve pushed past you to follow, yelling after her. And just like that, you were alone. Without Steve and Nancy’s presence to calm you down, you felt your anxiety rise in your throat. You scanned the crowd, trying to find anyone that you knew moderately well enough to crash their group, and when you found no one, you cursed yourself for being such a loner. That was until your eyes met Jonathan Byers’, dressed equally un-festively, and you sighed a huge sigh of relief.

“Jonathan!” You shouted over the music, making your way over to him. Clearly he had seen what just transpired between Nancy and Steve, eyes darting back to focus on the hallway they’d disappeared down.

“Hey, y/n. What just happened?”

“Nancy’s pretty wasted and Steve was trying to cut her off and he spilled her drink on her. They’re probably in the bathroom trying to clean it up, though I doubt it’ll do any good. That punch is definitely going to stain.”

You didn’t know Jonathan super well, but you resonated with him. Both of you were more inclined to keep to yourselves, but via absurd and inter-dimensional means, ended up intertwined in the lives of your high school’s most popular couple. You saw the way he looked at Nancy when they talked, and it wasn’t dissimilar to how you looked at Steve; wanting for something that you couldn’t have but settling for what you did.

The two of you found a quiet corner and continued to make small talk, catching up on each other’s lives since you didn’t talk much. Jonathan told you about how Will was struggling, still visiting Hawkins’ Lab for appointments in an attempt to sort out his PTSD.

“The doctor says it’s some anniversary effect, and how since we’re coming up on a year, he’s just more on edge than usual. He’s been having these episodes though.”

“Episodes?”

“Yeah, they’re kind of like these waking nightmares I guess. He’s still scared out of his mind, y/n,” Jonathan explained, and you saw the pain in his expression. Your heart ached and you felt a lump in your throat as you thought about the way the poor kid was struggling. You wished you could just make it all go away, that you could erase it ever happening in the first place.

“And you trust this guy? The doctor I mean?” You asked hesitantly.

“He seems like a good guy. Sometimes it doesn’t feel like he’s being completely transparent. I guess I’m on edge too. It just seems like everyone’s bracing for something else to happen,” Jonathan added, and you felt the tension in your shoulders as he said it.

Suddenly, Steve stormed through the family room, Nancy noticeably absent. He quickly maneuvered through the crowd, reaching the front door and slamming it shut behind him.

You looked at Jonathan. “Divide and conquer?” You asked, knowing that the two of you were going to have to pick up the pieces of whatever had happened between the two of them. Jonathan quickly nodded, as you dropped your prior conversation. “Okay, I don’t have a car and Nancy’s not in a state to walk home, so you take care of her and I’ll handle Steve,” you added as you started walking backwards to make your way towards the door.

“Are you sure? He seems pretty mad.”

“I’ve handled worse!” You shouted back as you turned and swiftly made it out the door. Your eyes scanned the front lawn, still littered with people, but they quickly found the brown mop of hair that you had become familiar with just as he was reaching his car.

“Steve!” You shouted, but he ignored you, fumbling with his keys as he tried to unlock the door. By the time he finally managed to get it unlocked and opened, you had grabbed the side of the door so he couldn’t close it and drive off.

“Y/n, just leave me alone, okay? I’m seriously not in the mood,” he warned, his head hung as he tried desperately to avoid eye contact with you. His voice wavered a bit and you could tell by his body language that he was pretty upset.

“No, I’m not going to leave you alone; you shouldn’t be alone right now.”

“Then get in the car because I’m not fucking staying here,” he sighed and you hesitated before moving around to the passenger seat.

“What happened?” You gently asked as he began to pull away from Tina’s house, the night that you had all been anticipating clearly ending in disaster.

“Oh, you know, just Nancy saying that our relationship is pretty much complete and utter bullshit which is what every guy wants to hear from the woman that he loves,” he replied. His announcement of his love for Nancy stung, but you pushed it aside; this wasn’t about your feelings.

“What do you mean? What’s going on? You guys always seem so happy together,” you were honestly pretty shocked. They were the perfect couple; the kind of people who would end up high school sweethearts and the talk of every high school reunion. It couldn’t possibly all be bullshit.

“The Hollands are selling their house to pay some private investigator to find Barb.”

Oh.

Your stomach dropped and suddenly your body seemed to remember the alcohol you had consumed.

“Steve, stop the car.”

“Woah, woah, woah, what’s going on? Are you—“

You cut him off, shouting “just stop the damn car! Now!” The car screeched to a halt as he slammed his foot on the brake pedal. You quickly opened the door, retching onto the desolate backroad that you were currently on. Steve rubbed big circles across your back as your stomach emptied its contents. When you were done, you shut the door, tears running down your face.

“I’m so sorry, Steve. Sometimes I just forget about all of it; push it all away because I’m not ready to handle it and I just think about what it was like to be face to face with th-that—that thing and I can’t imagine what Barb’s final moments were like and I just—“ your sobs cut you off, unable to speak through your horror in contemplating Barb’s death.

“Hey, hey, you’re okay y/n. I’m right here,” Steve reminded you, pulling you into a hug as you buried your face in his neck. He held onto you until you were able to calm down and you pulled away from him.

“I’m sorry. I monopolized your turn being the one in crisis,” you let out a weak laugh, wiping the remaining tears from your eyes as you sniffled.

“No, honestly that was helpful. I think I get where Nancy’s coming from a little better now. Maybe she didn’t really mean all that shit about us, you know?” He rationalized.

“Yeah, maybe,” you replied, your voice small.

“Hey, don’t disappear on me now. We’re handling this crisis together and we’re putting it behind us, okay? So what’s going on?”

“It’s just…I was almost her,” you whispered, looking in horror at Steve.

“What?”

“I was almost Barb. If you hadn’t shown up—“

“Y/n, don’t think like that. You can’t think like that. It’s going to eat away at you. You’re here. I’m here. And we’re okay,” it seemed like he was trying to convince himself just as much as he was trying to convince you. You nodded, not entirely persuaded but ready to be done with the conversation. “Alright, where to?”

“Just mine, you know,” you said quietly, embarrassed that Steve was going to see your house. It was dinky compared to the Harrington residence. You knew he wouldn’t care, but you couldn’t help but feel inferior.

“Sure thing,” he replied as he put the car in drive, as you both attempted to put the evening’s sourness behind you. You chatted and caught up on all of the normal things you’d missed as you’d drifted apart this past year and by the time he reached your house, you felt a little bit better about things.

If only the two of you knew about the danger that was still lurking right under your feet.

***

a/n: I hoped y’all liked this chapter! I’m so excited to continue this story as we unpack all of the upside down nonsense of season 2! I’m new to this whole writing fanfic thing, so if you really liked it, I would be forever grateful if you would be so kind as to reblog it! It really helps it get to other people!