#hawkins is a weird fucking freak why his guys would be any more normal

[baby-xemnas]

i don't even think faust is a mink, his eyes lack the soul of a functioning intelligent being. given the nature of his name, i'd wager that faust was just a normal ass cat who sold his soul to the devil to do evil pirate shit. fuck this cat i know he just wants to kill people

YELL LAUGHS

im not opposed to this at all

especially knowing that before mink race was introduced people had headcanons about bepo being a man's brain being put into a bear body and other freaky shit to explain why the fuck law has a bear first mate - which all thankfully got dissuaded cuz i HATE that - HOWEVER that practice existing but with faust is very funny

[nicole-alt-delete]

Part 3 of Black Bandana! Part One | Part Two | Read on Ao3

Steve hesitates, looking confused for a moment before he enters the trailer and shuts the door behind him. He knew Eddie was freaking out a little about this, but he didn't expect him to be so... distant.

He chews on his lip a little, trying to decide where to start, wishing that Eddie would just come and sit on the couch with him instead of leaning against the wall so defensively. It breaks Steve's heart, but he sits down alone anyway.

"There's no mob, Eds," laughing softly, nerves dancing around the edges of it. "I'm not mad or- weirded out, or whatever it is you're worried about. I- I didn't mean to force you into outing yourself, so I'm sorry, but It's fine that you're gay, y'know?"

He wants to say more, and he almost does, but he looks up at the other boy instead, curious about whether or not it's actually helping any.

To his minor relief, he thinks it is.

Eddie is still leaning against the wall, but he's a little more slumped into it, not so tense now. The hands that were so fiercely gripping his sleeves are now crossed more normally, fingers tapping anxiously. The jittery movement was better, because it meant Eddie was thinking, taking him seriously.

Steve watches as those big brown doe eyes of his dart up to meet him in the eyes, scanning him for traces of a lie, internally debating whether or not Steve means it. Whatever he sees must be enough though, because he sighs and pushes himself off the wall, coming closer to lean on the arm of the couch instead.

"Okay, so- hypothetically," Eddie starts, pointedly avoiding eye contact now that he's closer. "If what I said wasn't a total fucking joke- you'd be okay with that? Really?"

Steve smiles softly but looks up at him seriously. He nods, "Of course, Eds."

Eddie Squints.

"Why?"

The question catches Steve off guard. He blinks, and makes that confused little face he makes when something should be obvious.

"What do you mean, 'why?', because you're one of my best friends-" He shakes his head laughing, but his heart skips a beat as he takes a breath, "And, well, you're not the-"

Eddie cuts him off before he can get anywhere close to his confession, a frantic,  "That's not an answer Steve!" and a finger in his face shutting him up quickly so Eddie can  be dramatic for another moment.

"Plenty of best friends don't put up with that shit, I would know- one minute it's 'let's hang out', and the next it's 'I don't want you spending the night anymore'- not to mention everyone knows Robin is your best friend,"

Steve can't help but roll his eyes at the irony that Eddie misses from that statement, but he doesn't stop him, simply watching as he waves his hands around and whines about all the reasons Steve might change his mind about hanging out with him.

Steve just leans back into the couch and lets him talk, until eventually he can't help but crack a smile and laugh at something he says.

Eddie stops and frowns at him, hands paused in mid-air, "What? What about that is funny Harrington?"

Steve laughs softly again and shakes his head, pushing his hair back, "Nothing- just- Eds, we were literally cuddling last week at movie night, I think I missed my chance to be scared of gay shit by now. And- you think you're the only gay in Hawkins? I mean, reasonable, but... not true,"

He shrugs a bit as he says it, like it should be obvious, but Eddie stares at him like he just explained the Upside Down all over again.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

Steve hums for a second, "I mean... I mean what I said. You're not the only gay guy in town. Or- like, not-straight guy? Not-straight anyone- You- you know what I mean, right?"

He's a little flustered about it now, but the red on his cheeks is only confusing Eddie more. He slides down off the arm and sinks into the couch cushion, leaning towards Steve  as if proximity will suddenly help him understand.

"Steven Harrington, are you telling me you know other gays?"

Steve laughs again, nodding.

"Yes- yeah, man- that's what I'm saying. I mean, I guess technically it's only one- or two? depending on how it counts..."

Eddie leans in more which extremely does not help Steve process his thoughts any better. He's squinting at him the way he glares at the kids during DnD, when he's trying to use his dungeon master charisma to trick them into screwing up.

"Steve."

He swallows.

"Yeah?"

A small glance down at Eddie's lips.

"What're you saying here?"

Steve squirms for a second, but he just ends up laughing again.

"...That I... wasn't really wrong for wearing your bandana like that earlier?"

Eddie stares at him blankly for a second before his eyes go wide and his face goes bright red. Steve expects him to clarify, or pounce on him, but Eddie ends up laughing and looking mortified, pulling back and slapping a hand to his face.

"NO- nope, no, god, fuck Stevie- don't say that, oh my god,"

Steve frowns. Eddie's still laughing about it, but Steve feels like he missed a joke, and it honestly kind of hurts.

"What? Eds- that's not funny, I just- I'm serious!"

Eddie laughs again but whines apologetically this time, "No- no, I know you are but- god, you really don't mean that-"

"Yes I do! I like Men!"

He looks a bit surprised to hear Steve say it so plainly, but goddamn if he doesn't look pleased about it after everything. It only makes Steve even more lost as to what Eddie's laughing about.

"I'm sure- I mean- I believe you sweetheart- about that at least, you'd have to be an idiot to lie about- but I mean- the bandana Stevie,  it uh. It doesn't...*just* mean that you're... gay,"

Eddie's still giggling, biting his lip now, his usual goofy self back where it belongs. Steve meanwhile, is beyond confused and wondering how his confession has gone so, so wrong so many times in one day.

"It...doesn't? But you said-"

"I know- yeah, well- you wanted an answer and we were in the middle of Family Video for Christ's sake, I couldn't blurt the whole definition, exactly,"

Steve quirks an eyebrow at him and leans in, filling the space left from when Eddie pulled away. He steals another quick glance at the metal head's lips, entirely too aware of how red they are from having been chewed on all day.

When he looks back up into his eyes it's obvious Eddie's embarrassed to say it, and Steve takes note of the way he's dying to hide behind his hair if not for how close their faces are already.

"So, then? What's it mean, Eds?"

Ayy, finally here with a part 3. Next part will probably get spicy so minors im sorry but you have to leave 🔪

Fun news is that I'm now also posting this on ao3 for all ur bookmarking needs, so please check that out.

Thank you everyone for your support, I'll try to tag as many as I can in the replies but no promises 💜

[strangerthings4theories]

Idk how canon "Runaway Max" is considered, but there's this one bit where Billy says Neil isn't his real father and that's such important information about him, honestly so unecessary for the plot of the book and out of the blue that its just wierd. BUT if you combine Billy having an unknown father with his mother working with Brenner theory it would make so much sense why his family moved to Hawkins out of all places. This is telenovela level of theory but Billy being another of Brenner's child/experiment (biological or not) would also explain his intense relationship with El.

Also while I'm thinking about Billy having a connection with the Rainbow Room/Upside Down: when we have that doppergänger scene Billy shouts at the MF "what do you want?" and it's a wierd thing to say to a monster that has just attacked you and who you've just met. Normal reaction would be to freak out, just like everybody did in season one. It kinda sounded like Billy was somewhat familiar with it? Compare to Will shouting "go away!" at MF in season two when he already knew who MF was.

And I'm just making this up as a go, but maybe Billy was just like El, his mom had him with Brenner and he was meant to be an experiment, but didn't show any powers and that's why his mom left him with Neil while still keeping him under Brenners supervision (and that's why the Hargroves were relocated to Hawkins instead of anywhere else). Cue Billy actually being "force sensitive" all this time, at least in a way that he was aware of the MF. And that's why in the doppergänger scene instead of being freaked out he's asking the Mind Flayer the fuck he wants.

I know the part of the book you're talking about, and I took it as metaphorical. Billy isn't suggesting Neil isn't his actual dad. He's saying Neil isn't capable of being a good dad.

"He's a horrible guy, Max. Haven't you figured that out? You really think a guy like that could be a father? Not to me, and not to you."

And that's very important to the book. Billy's telling us he hates Neil so much that he's sworn him off as a father. He doesn't even call him "Dad" when speaking to Max. I wouldn't say that's out of the blue or unnecessary for the plot!

Of course, we could find out later it has a double meaning (for us as readers - Billy has no idea). That's always possible given Billy's extensive parallels with El, who was raised by a false father.

Personally though, I would be surprised if that twist happened. I'd be even more surprised if they made a big deal out of it. Billy's story is shifting to focus on his mother, and you can only have so many hugely impactful parent-related revelations for one character 😆 If we find out Neil isn't Billy's real father, I'd expect to receive the news as an almost throwaway fact. His mom saying, "Oh, and he's not your real dad," right after we find out she's a villain. And Billy's like, "Well... my entire world's just been destroyed, so... that's fair."

As for the possibility that Brenner is his real dad... well, if we're taking the books as canon, the Brenner and Terry novel explicitly states that Brenner has no biological children. So we have to take that into account too.

Honestly, I don't believe Billy asking the MF "what do you want?" means that much. I didn't find it that weird. He was just attacked, yes, and now he's facing his attacker. He's also in shock. So you could say he's falling back on instinct developed over years of abuse. Why does Neil hurt Billy? Because he's not getting what he wants. ("You were supposed to watch her.") What's the quickest way to make the abuse stop? Find out what Neil wants and give it to him. Billy, imo, is operating by Neil's rules in his scenes with the MF.

So yeah, I do think Billy is being set up to join the ranks of experiments. But I don't believe his reaction to the MF is strong enough evidence for that. It could mean something in the future, but only with a lotttt of other revelations to change our view of it.

[dastardlydandelion]

So...what kind of horror movie would you write featuring the Hargrove/ Mayfield family? (That you haven't written already lol)

oh boy, u may regret asking me this bc i am indecisive af and i can’t pick just one!

two that i'm actually writing are max as (g is for) ghostface killer in the abcs of neil’s death and also the max + tory nichols werewolf movie fic outlined here. also some more misc gorror junk bc i’m a demon and esp horny for susan wearing blood splatter. but more ideas commence below:

horror movie #1: another creature feature! awhile back @lucdarling sent me an ask abt max + billy hiding smth from susan and her like, playing along, pretending she doesn't know, and one of the scenarios that popped in my head was them keeping a baby bat as a pet. max finds it and she’s only like six or seven, and she thinks it’s going to turn into a vampire. so here is that scenario except horror edition: baby bat is actually a vampire type creature. not rly a vampire like, what’s prolly popping into ur head, like an undead human like dracula or smth, but like a bat monster that sucks blood.

billy being a lil older doesn’t actually think the bat is going to turn into a vampire. he makes fun of max for believing this, but he helps her take care of it anyway bc he thinks it’s cool. susan, like in the non-horror version, knows abt the bat but plays dumb bc she’s feeling a lot of guilt abt max’s difficulty adjusting to the blended fam (as of rn tho, neil has yet to reveal his abusive nature. the red flags are not yet red, more of a brownish maroon, and he is on his best behavior almost all the time, showering susan + max with affection and keeping the swears out of his mouth when he scolds billy in front of them) and knows the lil furry baby makes her happy. she tacitly cleans up after the bat whenever the kids miss a spot (bats poop a lot, dude) and distracts neil, deterring him from discovering it whenever he gets close.

baby bat gets rly big rly fast. and the older it gets, the more it starts to look monstrous. it still has bat features but it’s just like, different. its fangs grow suspiciously long, its hooks grow suspiciously long. its feet are elongated. a dorsal ridge emerges from its spine, spikes at first just flesh but soft fur rather like peach fuzz eventually sprouting. billy catches on that smth is strange abt this animal when it's as long as his forearm after two wks and still growing. he nearly shits a brick when the bat is clinging to his sweater one day and he steps in front of a mirror and only his reflection looks back at him— no bat.

max laughs at him all like, “stupid brother, ofc there’s no reflection. nosferatu is a vampire, vampires don’t have reflections.” 😂

susan catches a glimpse of the thing when nosferatu crawls out of the home max built it in her closet the same wk billy realizes it doesn’t have a reflection, and also almost shits a brick. she doesn’t know what it is, but it’s NOT a fucking bat. not a normal one, anyway! cue a comedy scene where she’s chasing it around the house with a butterfly net and it’s always one flap *ba dum tss* ahead of her, flying just out of reach. she suddenly regrets not getting rid of it sooner, scolding herself for ever allowing her daughter to keep a wild animal.

she can’t catch it. max comes home, susan tells her she needs to get rid of it. max cries, flips her the bird, refuses. billy tho…billy has mixed feelings. he loves nosferatu but he’s worried it’s going to get dangerous. he loves his dad and his dad is dangerous too. he’s stressed out enough, always on edge, knowing that one way or the other, neil is going to hurt him again. he’s already waiting for his dad to hurt him, he doesn’t need the added stress of waiting for nosferatu to hurt him too. and while max is 100% nosferatu’s favorite, it likes billy too. billy’s been handling it since it could fit in the palm of his hand, it trusts him much more than it trusts susan and doesn’t know any different when billy takes it out of the closet when max isn’t around.

billy frees nosferatu at an abandoned farm. there are always bats flying out of the old silo adjacent to the dilapidated barn. while he knows nosferatu isn’t a *normal* bat, it’s still bat like enough that he thinks it might make friends and be happy here…

yeah, that doesn’t stick. before long, nosferatu is feasting on that colony. leeches the blood out of a couple bats nightly. the number of bats increases with nosferatu’s size. meanwhile, max mourns her missing friend. she’s sullen af and won’t speak to susan at all. she thinks susan is the one who got rid of nosferatu. billy never fesses up and susan doesn’t contradict max’s assumption bc she wants the step-siblings to get along.

neil, meanwhile, is getting more comfortable. those maroon flags are slowly but surely brightening to scarlet. he starts sabotaging susan’s plans with her friends, trying to keep her around the house more and more, quietly but steadily eroding her relationships with other people. he’s getting more visibly aggressive when he disciplines billy. he curses him out with a virulent venom that dunks susan’s stomach in ice water and scares max so badly, she runs to susan and hides behind her even though she’s still so mad that susan got rid of her beloved baby vampire.

nosferatu’s appetite surpasses what the bat colony can offer. it’s like the size of a ten yr old human child now. fucker’s big. it doesn’t just have fangs on top, but tusks on bottom. it can’t go out in the sunlight anymore, the sun sears its flesh. it misses max a lot and before, it wasn’t strong enough to fly back to her house. but now it is. it’s extremely strong, actually.

so bc it's hungry, nosferatu grabs a snack along the way. some nameless rando, it swoops down and sucks dry. nourished and much happier, nosferatu makes its way back home. patiently waits outside of max’s bedroom in the moonlight, tapping its hook against the window until she wakes up. initially max is a lil startled— nosferatu looks so different, there’s a beat before she recognizes it— him?? yk, ig it’s male, the og nosferatu was a guy. sure, why not, nosferatu is a boy now.

once she realizes who it is, she is so! happy! max opens the window and embraces her friend. she isn’t freaked out by the blood on its fangs. she’s always known nosferatu is a vampire, albeit, she was thinking he’d look more like dracula than this bat-monster-thingy.

nosferatu moves back into max’s closet. it hangs upside-down from her rod by its weird, elongated feet. we get more shots of nosferatu sucking rando ppl dry at night, tho he remains gentle with max. when max drags billy in to show her he came back, nosferatu is less friendly with him. he’s not aggressive with billy, but he is standoffish. nosferatu’s thought process is somewhere between human and animal. he doesn’t quite cognitively understand that billy took him to the farm with the intent of getting rid of him, but he does understand that the last time he clung to billy, billy left him alone and never came back. max puts two and two together, and realizes it was billy who “stole” her friend. she yells at him a lot, he yells back, she then ices him out.

billy acts out bc he’s upset. runs away, thinks he’s going to find his mom…the cops find him first and call neil. neil is rly embarrassed and pissed abt the whole thing. he breaks down and beats billy in front of the mayfields for the first time. nosferatu smells the blood and it’s time for the main event! we love dead!neil, yes, we do.

nosferatu flies out the closet and right into the living room where billy’s bleeding and teary but biting his lip so they don’t actually fall. susan’s covering max’s eyes but so shocked and tbh, FRIGHTENED, she doesn’t move a muscle beyond that. neil’s got the belt raised, preparing to bring it down again, and nosferatu smashes right into him. neil stumbles, turns back to see this freaky monster looking thing. proceeds to whip the belt at nosferatu. tries to fight him off with the belt and it doesn’t accomplish much beyond pissing him off more— nosferatu, like most classic vampire types, has a healing factor!

max rips her mom’s hands off her face in time to see her pet sink its fangs into her stepdad’s throat. nosferatu sucks neil dry. billy’s a little dazed, not quite frightened. susan is just dead ass frozen, too scared to scream, even. nosferatu crawls over to billy and nudges at him, making sure he’s in once piece and forgiving him in the same go. max darts over and that snaps susan out of her stupor, but she isn’t as fast as our blood-sucking bat monster.

nosferatu stretches his wings out and with a truly impressive wingspan, hugs both of the kids. <3

horror movie #2: a haunting! this one opens with a bang. it’s a tragic horror, beware. we’re in hawkins post s3. billy died at starcourt mall. neil’s obvi had a longstanding abusive mindset and abusive behavior, but he rly takes his grief out on susan and max. mostly susan. she does her best to protect max however she can, whether that means shielding her w her body, sending her out of the house, getting neil’s goat to inspire his ire in max’s place, etc. but sue simply isn’t around all the time and when she isn’t, but max is, well. yk.

one day neil comes home early (bc he lost his job for a violent outburst, tbh) and discovers susan packing a suitcase.

sue fights hard. she rly does. but neil is bigger, heavier, crueler, and to boot, he caught her completely unawares. he kills her. and no, no it’s not some accidental thing where neil makes one bad move rage-blind. he strangles her with his belt. she’s clawing at his arms and making these horrible choked, trapped animal noises. thrashes and twists her body with everything she has trying to get him off but he’s so strong, his grip is unrelenting, and she's growing weaker, lightheaded with the lack of oxygen. strangulation can induce incontinence and when susan blacks out, her piss streams to the hardwood— neil hears that as much as he felt the clawing and heard the noises, even now he could stop, but he doesn’t. he just. doesn’t think his wife has the right to leave him, esp not after his son just did.

neil burns the body and the suitcase in the woods while max is at school. max has been spending as much time as she can (and often with sue’s prompting) outside of the house, so it actually takes her about two days to realize her mother isn’t around. neil tells a pretty convincing story about how susan abandoned them, voice saturated with apology and sorrow. he takes her out for a fancy dinner and promises he’s going to be a better father-- that being a better father is the least he can do now that her mother abandoned her and they are alone in their grief.

max doesn’t know what to think. she’s been preoccupied with her own grief and pain. she finds it hard to believe her mother would just leave her to neil’s wrath. she has a lot of hangups with susan and anger toward her for marrying neil and not getting them out sooner, but she’s also old enough to realize there would be risks involved with that. it’s hard to reconcile the memory of her mother just last wk pinning max to the wall to protect her from neil’s blows with her own bod just abruptly taking off without a word in the middle of the night. but hey, maybe that’s why susan left. maybe she got sick of protecting her, maybe the pain got to be too much and she turned tail.

but also…it’s early october now, abt three months after billy’s death but still fairly warm outside. yet neil is wearing long sleeves. neil never used to button his collared shirts all the way up, and yet. every collar is buttoned. also, mom’s car is still here. why would mom leave without her car?

that ceramic pelican she loved so much is still here too, on the mantle in the living room. it doesn’t seem like the kind of thing she would leave behind, she's had it since max was a baby.

max almost wants to believe neil because she’d rather her mother abandoned her than be dead somewhere, rotting in a storage locker or a hole in the ground. under the earth with the worms, just like billy. max has the worst feeling low in the pit of her gut. she thinks she knows the truth. she thinks abt going to hopper and hesitates bc she’s not sure she could handle it if he actually found smth. or what would happen to her if he did, where she would be sent, who she would end up with.

this movie would be more on the ambiguous end of things. an arthouse horror, if u will.

the days turn into wks and neil is crawling in his skin. the viewer isn’t sure if the shadows he’s seeing, always, always susan-shaped shadows, are of a ghostly nature or if he’s just hallucinating out of guilt. but the signs gradually point to the former— that smth paranormal is indeed going on. bc those scratches and bite marks susan left in his skin?

they do not heal. they do not get infected. they do not become necrotic. but they do not heal, either. days turn into wks and the wounds still look fresh, like she just left them moments ago. neil can’t wear light colors anymore because his wounds weep red into the fabric. he isn’t just seeing susan’s shadows either, he’s smelling her.

he washes his sheets and pillowcases a dozen times and the scent of her shampoo, her lotion, it’s like it’s woven into the fibers. he walks into the hallway and chokes on the aroma of susan’s perfume. he wonders if max is screwing with him, if max figured it out and she’s trying to torture him into a confession. one day he stomps off to max's bedroom, furious, adamant on confronting her. he grabs her doorknob, prepared to yank it open and then lets out a yelp, jerking his hand back with a sudden sharp pain.

it feels like a bee sting (which would be esp bad for this fucker in anything i write, bc i headcanon him as being allergic). but there’s no stinger. no injury. nothing. neil is freaked out enough that he backs down.

max, on the other hand, is getting gentler signs. when she turns the radio dial in the camaro, it’s somehow always her mom’s favorite songs that come thru the speakers. when she goes to pull clothes out of her drawers in the morning, she discovers that the things she’d just shoved inside in wrinkled balls are perfectly folded, neat as a pin, exactly like how susan always folded. susan was always fond of cardinals and suddenly max is seeing cardinals, pretty red cardinals, in just abt erry tree and shrub.

neil wakes up one night to his wife’s voice whispering “boo” right in his ear. he throws the covers off and discovers ashes in the bed. he doesn’t smell susan’s shampoo or lotion anymore, he smells the kerosine he’d poured all over her body.

his wounds still won’t heal. whenever he looks in the mirror, he catches a glimpse of susan walking past behind him, peering at him from her peripheral. he whips around, heart hammering, but there’s never any tangible person there.

max is almost certain her mother is dead at this point. neil’s been so bizarrely nice to her lately. she never believed in ghosts but her experiences with the upside-down broadened her perception of reality. she doesn’t know how else to explain the songs, the cardinals, the folded clothes. the way that these days, whenever she does feel fear toward neil, it just fades away. her fear melts like popsicles in the sun, immediately replaced by the sensation of a warm, maternal hug, as if arms she can’t see are trying to reassure her she truly doesn’t need to be afraid of him anymore.

in fact, max feels so unafraid of neil and brave, that one night she calls him out on it. he’s grizzled and unshaven in his recliner, beer in hand. she steps in front of the television he’s vacantly fixated on and folds her arms across her chest.

“you killed my mom, didn’t you?”

quick as a flash, neil leaps to his feet. he brings his arm back like he’s going to strike her and susan’s ceramic pelican on the mantle explodes into shards. the lights flicker, the television program cuts to snow with a static roar. every other knickknack on the mantle rattles and framed photos tumble off the wall.

neil very wisely lowers his hand. he slumps, boneless. he doesn’t say a word. max sees the answer in his eyes. it’s the dead of night and she snatches the camaro keys off the hook, marching out of the house, slamming the door behind her. it’s the dead of night and she doesn’t care. she’s going to blow past every stop sign and pound on the chief’s door until he opens up. and fuck, i just realized if this is post s3 he’s supposed to be in russia. shit. i don’t watch this show, but i know abt russia bc i DID watch the clips of that demogorgon that i rly hope isn’t stuck in captivity!! okay, but let’s pretend that didn’t happen?

it’s an au?? i mean, errything i write is always technically an au anyway, bc when i write stuff susan has an actual personality and billy isn’t *completely* abhorrent. okay, so it’s an au and mr. hopper didn’t blow up and un-blow up in russia. he’s still here. so max drives to his house.

she pounds on the door so hard this guy snaps outta bed, thinking someone’s trying to bust it down. she tells him neil confessed to killing her mom. it isn’t true, exactly, but he didn’t have to. so it’s a helluva grim drive back to cherry lane, this time in the cop car.

but when they go inside, chief prepared to arrest neil, no need. neil’s hanging from the belt he strangled susan with, shirtless for the first time since that night, erry seemingly fresh furrow and bite mark on full display. below his dangling feet is a map, the area he burned susan’s corpse in circled in red marker. did he kill himself or did the ghost do it?

up to u, we soundlessly cut to credits without a concrete answer to that question.

horror movie #3: crossover special! stranger things meets the chilling adventures of sabrina. sequel to that fic i wrote where susan makes out with lilith, queen of hell, and lilith kills neil for her. sue officially joins the church of lilith. bc in this ‘verse the church of lilith actually happens after caos s2 instead of the nonsense that was s3 and the inconceivably godawful migraine-inducing shit-fest that was s4.

killing neil was lilith’s only freebee. susan isn’t a witch, she’s a mortal, so in order to reap the other rewards of worshipping the one and only mother of demons, she has to fornicate with the witches and participate in the sacrifices!!!

this is, uh, well. it’s p much a porno, dude, sorry. 😅

this is just an excuse for susan to have sex with lilith, zelda, marie, hilda, big witch orgies + susan. witches bathing in the blood of their sacrifices, susan so nervous and timid but unable to deny her desire. the witch’s dressing her in their gothic garb.

how does the rest of the fam get it on this?

max joins the church too. she has more age-appropriate conduct with sabrina and the weird sisters, and what have you. just smooches and over-the-clothes groping, and whatnot, even tho the weird sisters, at least, would be interested in going further if given the opportunity.

billy dies in starcourt again, so he gets revived in the cain pit! hilda is the one who goes to him after bc she’s been in the cain pit many a time (i am still BIG side-eyeing zelda for repeatedly murdering her sister since childhood). hilda understands how jarring it can be to come back. suddenly alive!billy is freaking tf out but she brings him inside the mortuary, wraps him up in a big blanket burrito and they have a talk. hilda explains that he’s going to be okay and rubs his back while he tentatively sips the hot chocolate she made.

after billy’s calmed down, she brings max and susan in. max and susan can’t do as much magic as the caos witches— they’re mortals, after all, it’s not in their nature —but they’ve gained some abilities thru being in the church, following the rituals, and being carnally involved with the immortal witches. max happily shows him some of her new magic tricks.

horror movie #4: another crossover with caos. heavily inspired by creepshow episode s2e1, model kid (which i already v blatantly referenced in the last axe snafu update and i’m not ashamed, bc it’s a good series i love v much).

billy picks max up from the byers’ place rly late one night. it’s dark and the weather is bad and okay, yeh, he might be a little high. and a little concussed. he pissed neil off pretty bad the other day and okay, actually he’s defo concussed bc he doesn’t even remember what he did wrong!

needless to say, they take a wrong turn somewhere. they end up in greendale. at first max is pissed. she yells at him a lot! yells so loud hilda can hear them thru the walls of dr. cerberus’s comic shop/diner. she goes outside to see what all the fuss is abt, hilda never rly ignores youth in need. we love hilda, she deserved so much better…i’m getting distracted, okay, back to the story.

hilda ushers them inside. max is like, “ooh, comics? horror junk and comics? nvm, i’m not mad anymore.” she pats billy’s arm and wanders away to go check stuff out! hilda makes billy sit down. caos canon established that she’s psychic, at least when she wants to be. she smells the weed but she also sees his life, his trauma. billy doesn’t remember what he did to piss neil off or the abuse that followed, but hilda sees it clear as day.

he’s rude and cranky w her when she probes a little too much for his liking. hilda gently but firmly reprimands him and gets him a milkshake on this house. then she goes to check on max. she steers max to a v particular section of the shop, the one that sells model kits. now, max isn’t *huge* into model kits BUT they are p neat and she enjoys them well enough. more so when the weather is nasty and she can’t go outside. or when she needs smth to do with her hands (a trait she shares w susan) to distract herself and ease some of the anxiety when she hears her brother being beaten or her mother being shouted at.

max is actually rly impressed by the array of models. vintage ones and newer ones. monsters, slashers, final girls, tiny accessories like knives and bloodied heads. but when she gets to the paint-your-own shelf, her jaw drops to the floor.

there’s one that looks just like neil. unpainted, plain gray vinyl, but undoubtedly her stepdad. the expression on the five inch figurine is one frozen in fear.

“i think that one’s calling to you,” hilda prompts her, with the softest smile.

max blinks away her bewilderment altho she still can’t speak. she turns to hilda and turns her empty pockets inside out. hilda just waves her hand. she tells her it’s on the house. that it wouldn’t be fair if she gave billy smth on the house, but not max.

speaking of billy, when he finishes his milkshake, he’s suddenly totally sober and healed!! no more high buzzing in his blood. no more pounding headache or concussion fogging his mind. he doesn’t feel his bruises anymore, rolls his sleeve up, and realizes they simply aren’t there anymore. like they dissolved off his skin.

albeit it’s muttered under his breath, but billy does thank hilda. then he and max are on their way. max shows him the suspiciously familiar figurine in the box. this night cannot get weirder.

max knows what to do with the model kit. she does. she isn’t sure how she knows, but she does. she grapples with it for a long time. neil’s the closest thing she has to a dad these days. and things aren’t bad all the time, ofc.

sometimes neil gives max a ride when mom and billy aren’t available. sometimes he brings her ice cream entirely unprompted. neil’s the one who picks max up off the sidewalk when she wipes out super bad on her skateboard, carries her inside and then later to the car when her cut doesn’t stop bleeding and she ends up needing stitches.

but most of the time he sucks. she can’t rly be herself around him. he's indifferent to her interest at best, scornful at worst. he would hate all her friends. he scares the shit out of her when he’s angry. he doesn’t have a problem belittling her mother in front of her, tearing susan to shreds and making her out like she’s lower than dirt, the most worthless person on the planet. doesn’t have a problem beating billy in front of her or glaring at her with the promise that she’ll be next if she dares to voice her dissent.

max doesn’t always want to do what she knows she’s meant to do with the model. bc she's kind at heart and bc on the good days, she genuinely does have mixed feelings toward neil. never enough to hope he'll be better, he's proven he won't...but maybe enough to hope he won't get worse, either.

then comes the night neil breaks ribs. bad, like we’re talking, a-sharp-spear-of-broken-rib-punctures-billy’s-lung-and-he’s-coughing-up-blood-bad. that’s a trip to the emergency room. in the days that follow, at her next dnd meeting w the party, max places the fully and attentively painted model of her stepdad on the table. normally her pals would protest her derailing the intended game, but they can sense it, yk, that smth is different.

max takes over as dungeon master to the protest of no one, all other mouths sealed as if bewitched and spellbound. she narrators a scene where the demogorgon devours neil and uses the demogorgon piece and the model for demonstration.

when max returns home, neil is strewn across the house in gory chunks and torn wallpaper curls around massive claw marks.

[harringrovetrashrat]

I have an idea if you're interested in hearing about it!❤ Some pre relationship angst, I think. Basically Steve is driving home late one night in the pouring rain and hits a disassociating Billy with his car and finds himself trying to help because he's a nice guy. Just an idea, though!

This one stumped me a bit!  Whoever is monitoring my google searches is gonna see a lot of ‘what’s it like to get hit by a car?’, ‘hit by car’, ‘pedestrian hit by car’ and maybe think I did a hit and run, but hey whatever.

I edited the prompt a smidge cuz like,, I didn’t want Billy to get like hit hit with the car, but still like, enough that shit happened??  I def messed around a bit, and this ended up more Steve centric than I thought it would, but hey it is what it is.

Anywhoooo, hope you enjoy! (Fic under the cut)

--

Steve was driving aimlessly, unable to sleep.  Again.  Ever since Star Court, almost a year ago now, and honestly since the tunnels, he’d been fucking haunted any time he closed his eyes.  The sounds of the demodogs, the sound of the Flayer, the fucking smell.  He couldn’t escape it.

So now he drove.  Through Hawkins, around Hawkins, outside of Hawkins, as far as he could go.  Steve just drove.  Tonight, he was driving around town, just watching the shadows.  The windows were down, letting the warm, humid summer air in.  He could turn on his A/C, but it was nice feeling the heat.  Especially after--

Something moved in front of his car and he slammed on the breaks.  He jerked to a stop with a gasped what the fuck, but there was an undeniable, though small, thump.  Then there was a louder thump when the shadow slammed something on the hood of the beamer.

Steve felt like he might throw up.

He got out of the car on shaky legs, his stomach rolling, and made his way to the front.  When he saw what the shadow was, Steve was sure he was hallucinating.

Billy Hargrove stood there, unmoving, unblinking, just staring at where he had his hands placed on the hood of Steve’s car.

“Oh my god what?” Steve breathed, rubbing at his eyes.  Billy didn’t respond, just turned his head and looked at Steve, eyes blank.

The last time he had seen Billy was when he helped bring him home from the hospital.  His father hadn’t offered and, apparently, hadn’t told Max and Susan that Billy was going to be released.  So the hospital had called, Max had picked up, and had then called Steve, all anger and tears.  And, well, Billy had saved them.  Had apparently been really quiet and withdrawn and Max was adamant that he was way less of an asshole.  And he had been, but it was because he wasn’t talking.  He’d grumbled a thanks to Steve, had responded to Max with short and abrupt sentences, but other than that, spent his time looking out the window.  It was weird and had made Steve’s stomach twist.

Billy’s hair was longer now than it had been.  Still short, but it was starting to curl around his ears, all soft and cherubic.  He was still thin and hunched over, taking up as little space as he could.  But his eyes--

His eyes looked empty, almost.  Like he was lost inside himself.

“Billy?” Steve tried, nervous to move closer.  Because the Flayer was gone, they knew that, but Billy was being weird.  Once again, he didn’t respond, just kind of stared at Steve.  They stared at each other for a moment before Steve moved slightly closer.  Billy didn’t react.  “Hey are you okay?” He reached out, touching the back of his palm to Billy’s forehead instinctively.

“Sorry,” Billy said, voice shaky and rough, like he didn’t use it a lot.  Or like he had been yelling.  Steve wasn’t sure if there was a better option between the two.

“What?” Steve shook his head.  “I’m the one who hit you with my car-- Shit are you okay?!” He gave Billy a once over, grabbing at him to feel for soft spots.  Billy let him, body slightly limp.  “Does this hurt?” Steve asked, pressing by Billy’s hip.  Billy shook his head.  “This?” Steve tried again, this time by his ribs.  There were no tears in Billy’s clothes, so he wasn’t even sure where he had been hit.

“Can’t feel it,” Billy murmured, voice flat.  Steve looked up, hands wrapped around Billy’s rib cage.

“Like it’s gone numb or…?”

“Can’t feel anything,” was the response.  Steve pulled away, furrowing his brow.  He wasn’t sure what was happening.

“Do you want me to take you to the hospital?” Billy shook his head.  “Home?” Billy made a strange choking sound and shook his head more aggressively.  It was the most he’d responded to Steve the whole time.  Steve bit his lip, not sure what to do.  “The police?” Billy crumpled a little, using the car to keep himself upright.  Instinctively, Steve reached out to help.  “Whoa!  Okay,” he said, voice tight, “No police.  You can’t stay out here, dude.”

“Nowhere else,” Billy replied.  Something uncomfortable tightened in Steve’s chest.

“We’ll go to my place.” The only response he got was a shrug, which was better than nothing, so Steve helped haul Billy, who was still staring blankly ahead and moving limply, into the car.

As he drove, Steve wondered why Billy was out at this time of night.  It was almost 2 now, and Billy was dressed in flannel pajama pants and a ratty old UC Berkeley sweater.  A look for a night in, not wandering the streets.  Steve’s fingers tapped on his thigh as he drove, wanting to ask questions, but not sure that Billy would answer.  He hadn’t stopped staring out the front window, eyes and face blank, like he was there, physically, but far away mentally.  It was so far away from the Billy Steve had known, he was almost like a different person.  A shell of who he was.

When they arrived at his house, Steve helped Billy out of the car.  Billy seemed to have retreated more into himself, which was kind of the opposite of what Steve was going for, so he did what he did best.  He rambled.

“I should have been paying more attention to the road, but I mean, it’s past midnight in Hawkins.  I didn’t think anyone would be out there.” Billy didn’t respond, just followed Steve inside his house.  “Are you sure you don’t want to go to the hospital?  I hit you with my car, man.  I guess it wasn’t hard since you were still upright but, fuck.” Steve gasped a little for air, the weight of the situation starting to crash on him.  “I’m so sorry,” he wheezed, looking into Billy’s eyes.  Something flickered in Billy’s gaze and his eyes narrowed a little in thought.  “I’m sorry I hit you with my car.  Like, twice now, oh my god.”

“It’s,” Billy paused, looking uncertain, “Okay.” Steve gave him an incredulous look.

“It’s not okay.  It’s not.” Billy didn’t respond to that, looking uncomfortable.  Neither of them spoke, just stood awkwardly in the main hall.

“Am I--” Billy said, voice cutting through the silence, “Am I dreaming?” Steve raised a brow.

“Huh?  No?” Billy’s face crumpled a little and he leaned heavily against Steve’s wall, sliding down to the floor.  “Billy?”

“I know I’m dreaming.  None of this is real.” His voice was stronger now, but still shaky.  Panic formed in Steve’s gut.  He wasn’t a doctor, but this didn’t seem normal.  Didn’t seem right.

“Hey, hey,” Steve said, voice soft and gentle.  “This is real.  I’m right here in front of you.” Billy shook his head and clenched his eyes shut.  “I am,” Steve insisted.

“That’s why it’s not real,” Billy said, voice cracking.  “You’re never around anywhere else.” Steve suddenly felt guilty and confused.  It wasn’t like they had been friends before, but it wasn’t like Steve didn’t also owe his life to Billy.  He could have said thank you, at least.  But it was confusing, the way Billy said it.  Like Steve was often around in his dreams.

He tucked that away for later; the night had been exciting enough.

“I never said it, but thank you, Billy.” Blue eyes locked onto his.  “Those kids wouldn’t be alive without you and you,” he let out a sad laugh, “You didn’t get anything for it.” He slid down next to Billy, not looking at him.  “I’m sorry.  I don’t know what I expected after you recovered.  We didn’t exactly part on good terms.  But I should have come to thank you, regardless.” When he looked at Billy, he was squinting at him, confused.  “What?”

“That’s not what you usually say,” he replied.  He blinked once, twice, then rapidly for a moment, almost like waking up.  For what felt like the first time tonight, he focused on Steve.  “Steve?”

“Yeah?”

“Where are we?” Steve furrowed his brow.

“My house.”

“Why?”

“What-- Why?” Steve spluttered.  Billy watched him carefully before flushing and looking away.

“Fuck,” he whispered.

“Billy?” Steve said, tilting his head.

“I sometimes,” he licked his lips, “The doctors call it, dissociating.” He picked at the frayed sleeve of his hoodie.  “I kind of disconnect from reality for a bit,” he said, stating it like he was reading it off a sheet of paper, memorized in word only.  “Usually when I, well, come back, I don’t remember it.” He shifted and winced, hissing in pain.  “Fuck, why does my leg fucking hurt?” Steve flushed and reached for his pants.  “Harrington?” Billy asked, voice creeping up in pitch.  Steve checked his calf and saw the beginnings of a bruise at the bottom of Billy’s knee.

“I hit you with my car.  You didn’t even feel it?” It made sense, but fuck.

“I don’t always feel things when I’m out of it,” Billy replied, voice tight.  Steve gently touched the bruise around his knee and heard Billy exhale sharply through his nose.

“Does that hurt?” Steve looked up, face drawn together with concern, but Billy didn’t look like he was in pain.  Maybe like he was freaking out a bit.

“You hit me with your car?” Billy asked, his voice still tight and stressed.  He was staring at where Steve still had his hand cupped around his knee.  Steve pulled back with a blush.

“Yeah, uh, you kinda came outta the shadows and I didn’t break quite it time.” He rubbed the back of his head.  “Did, uh, did you want me to call the cops now?  You didn’t earlier when I asked, but I mean obviously--”

“No,” Billy replied sadly with a shake of his head.  “I’ve had worse.  I’ll be fine.  I mean,” he chuckled humorlessly, “What are they gonna do?” Steve furrowed his brow, unable to answer.

“Are you sure?”

“Harrington,” Billy said, voice laced with exhaustion.  “No one is gonna care.  I’m still alive,” and wow did he sound unhappy about that, “So what is there to do?”

“I don’t-- I mean--”

“Lemme get outta your hair.” Billy began to stand, wincing when his movements were stiffer than expected.  Steve helped him up, grabbing his elbow, but didn’t move away and didn’t let go.

“You said you had nowhere else to go,” Steve whispered.  Billy paled and licked his lips.  “Stay.” Unsure ice blue eyes locked onto his and it made Steve’s breath hitch.  Neither of them spoke, just staring into each other’s eyes.

It wasn’t the first time Steve had noticed how beautiful Billy was, how handsome, but it was the first time he’d been almost overwhelmed by it.  Taken in by his eyes, the cut of his jaw, the very small smattering of freckles.  Steve realized he missed seeing them fan across Billy’s nose, skin kissed by the sun.

“Okay,” Billy replied, voice hoarse.  “Okay.”

[suffering-and-happy-about-it]

Don't you dare to forget about me (Sriracha, Part 14.)

Description: A problematic college student gets the worst summer job of the ‘83 - Jim Hopper, the Chief of police in your hometown will have you as his secretary since his old lady Flo has two months lasting holiday. It was agreed so Hopper could let you far away from all the trouble.

Part Summary: Nine days and eight days flew by way sooner than you expected. It was time to say goodbye.

A/N: Yeah, I know, I know, you're screaming DON'T YOU (FORGET ABOUT ME) IS 1985. You know what? IT MAY BE, BUT I LIKE SO SHTTHFCK UP AND READ THE DAMN CHAPTER. Also, a bit of good old angst at the end of the chapter, because Hopper is a big attention whore and a man-baby.

Word count: 2.1 K

Tagging: @nemodoren​ @creedslove​

Master list: H E R E

Most of the time, besides packing your stuff and cleaning up the things that remained in your room, you really were alongside Hopper - whether you decided to go on a short weekend hike or slept over at his place during the week, you never really let him go off your sight. When you weren't together, you called him to the office, asking him about total bullshit.

You both knew that the day would come, and it indeed hurt. But Hopper somehow managed to occupy your mind with other things, fucking included.

Once, when he was in a really great mood, you laid down on his bed, snuggling to his side, while he read you a book about detectives. He really loved them and read tons of them, no matter how hard was to believe it. When he didn't surprise you with a reading session, you cooked while dancing around to some songs from your beloved mixtape and one time, he brought a camera they had in the office. Why?

You almost screamed when he opened up the door, taking a picture of you while you were showering. He leaned his shoulder into the doorframe and waved with the Polaroid photo, while you looked at him with pure confusion.

"What do you think you're doing? Jesus, that's weird!" - You continued with your showering, letting Hopper watch you. It was fairly normal to have a conversation while one of you was taking a shower with the other one standing in the doorframe - but you never took a photo of him.

There was no time for talking when you were in the shower together, though. Hopper really made sure that every second's counting and he really proved you that he said what he meant - you were about to remember that summer until the day you die.

"I'm just makin' sure I won't forget any of this." - Jim answered with a naughty smile, looking at the photo, a furrow replacing the smile. - “Hey, would you mind turnin' at me a bit more, I only have half of your boobs here.” - He asked, making you laugh, splashing water at him. But you did turn around, showing him what he wanted to see. 

Jim made a whole album out of your naughty photos and he promised, swore on his Chief position, that he won't ever show any of them to anyone. You believed him - so that was why he took a load of them in the last few days you were staying in Hawkins - you liked most the one when you were taking a swim in the quarry, the sun was shining and you were half-turned at him with a soft smile, while he was smoking on the terrace. He had a photo of you in an unbuttoned shirt sitting on his lap, you biting your lip, he took a photo of your ass in denim shorts when you were leaning forward in the Bloomington grocery shop. 

To say it simply, this man had the camera ready all the time - and when he hadn't got the camera by his side, he was waving a polaroid photo. And every time he looked at the photo with that naughty smile of his, you knew that Aiden was right. No matter how hard you tried to deny everything, you were really falling in love with that tough guy. 

The last day was the most crucial - mom, Aiden and you moved all of the boxes into Aiden's car. It was his until you were leaving for college. That was how the deal sounded like, and your brother was struggling with worse things than his car being taken away. This was also one of the moments when you knew that he won't be rude to you. 

You were leaving two hours earlier, so you could visit Hopper at his cabin before you will ride out of Hawkins for a long time. When you hugged your mom, you felt strangely numb, counting down every minute in your head. It was soon to be over and that terrified you. Those fourteen days, each and every one of them... That was something out of the world. 

You were worried sick for Jim as well. Once you leave, he won't have a shoulder to cry on when his nightmares wake him, he won't have anyone to talk to, it will be just like before you had a chance to show him that the world might not be as bad as he thought the whole time. 

As soon as you leave, you knew that Hopper won't stay clean for too long - he may try for a week or two, he even promised to give you a call from time to time, but when he realizes that you'll be coming back on Halloween that was more than a month away, he will fall into the pit once more. 

With a sigh, you let Aiden hug you as well. 

“No matter how much I hate you, you'll be missed, you ugly witch.” - He whispered to you, lifting you up from the ground. Then he put you back on the ground. - “You're sure that leaving is what you want?”

“I can't let go of such a ridiculous scholarship.” - You hugged him one last time, closing your eyes this time. - “I'll miss you there too, dipshit. Keep out of any trouble, okay?” - You asked, still whispering, feeling as he nodded. You went to hug your dad with a small smile, getting a kiss on the forehead from him. When you put your seatbelts on and started the engine, your mom made you roll down your window. 

“I packed you a lunch. Call me as soon as you get there, okay? Drive safe!” - She waved at you as you left the driveway. You could see her crying, which made you almost cry as well. You straightened up, waiting a bit before you turned the car around and drove to Hoppers, lighting up a cigarette. You were stressed out of your mind and you really did want to cry. 

You were really leaving. And Hawkins wasn't as beautiful as it was on that evening before. You saw Steve playing football with some guys on a football ground outside - he immediately dropped the ball and ran after your car, waving at you, laughing. You honked back and at that moment, you were at the edge of crying. You knew that you're going to miss Steve as well. Jesus. Leaving your home was strange.

Hopper was standing in front of the trail even before you rolled there - you didn't even turn the engine when you saw him, you just got up and ran to him, kissing him as soon as he was in the range. You hadn't wait for anything, dragging him to bed immediately, pushing him down. Neither of you spoke out loud, you just let your bodies do the talking.

It was done thirty minutes after. You sat and started to dress as slow as you could. You knew that trail by your heart, every book he had there, every picture and painting, you remembered every one of them. You almost freaked out when Hopper threw a shirt on your head. 

“What's that for?” - You took it off, looking at it closely. It was his favorite one, a flannel one of blue color with a small pocket on the left side of the chest. He wouldn't ever let himself lose it or destroy it, he loved this shirt. He got it from Sara as a Christmas gift - and now, it was time to give to someone who meant almost everything to him at that time. - “Jim, stop. You'll be sorry later if you give me this shirt.” - You sighed and threw it back, kneeling down to tie your laces. 

“What should I be sorry for?” - Hopper asked, watching you only in his old sweats. He wasn't in a good mood, oh boy, he was everything but in a good mood. He didn't want you to go, it just wasn't fair. Seeing you again two months from that moment? What on Earth has he done to anyone to deserve this?

"Because you'll give me this, but I'll leave nonetheless. What if you figure out that I was only a summer thing? Huh?" - You stood up, fetching him the shirt, putting it directly on his chest. - "You better keep this."

"That's everythin' it was for you? A fuckin' summer thing?" - Hopper repeated after you, clearly not understanding a shit you tried to tell him. You opened up your mouth, looking him in the eyes. 

“Are you trying to play the blaming game with me?” - You asked slowly, walking through the door frame, not even touching him.

“I ain't the one who's leaving, you know?” - Jim asked slowly. Oh, you were about to argue. Great. Just fucking great. At least you wouldn't have to worry about visiting him on Halloween. There won't be anyone to visit. 

“Grow the fuck up. You knew we had the last two weeks, I gave them to you. And I'm happy I did.” - You turned at him in the kitchen, picking up all the things you knocked over when you dragged him to bed while kissing him hungrily. - “Don't make me regret all of this.”

“Why shouldn't you? It was only a summer thing, wasn't it?” - Jim mocked you, following you through the trail. You were both hurting at that moment and this was the way you both chose to lift off the pain off your chests. A heated argument was all you needed.

“I haven't even said that, for fuck's sake!” - You yelled at him for the first time with tears in your eyes. - “I'm sorry I'm ruining your personal bubble, but I will leave today whether you like or not, Jim Hopper. Grow up and be the man!” - You ran out of the trail, closing the door furiously, walking to your started car. Why it was so fucking hard to leave? Why was Hopper making it even harder? It took a moment before you lit up the cigarette with your shaky fingers, but in the end, you stood there, smoked and cried. 

“I knew you'll leave.” - He started off behind your back. You were so caught up in being angry that you hadn't even noticed Jim walking off the trail. He was still playing with the blue flannel shirt. He was mumbling, looking down on the shirt. - “But it didn't make things easier. Not even a bit.” - He finished and for a while, you were just drying off the tears and calming yourself down so your answer him. 

“It really didn't.” - You agreed and let him hug you for a while. When you felt his hands on your hips, you just closed your eyes and threw the lit up cigarette on the ground, closing your eyes as you nuzzled your head into his neck. You were silent, there was only the radio in your car playing quietly.

“You're plannin' on coming back here, don't you?” - Jim asked after a while. You straightened up in his arm, catching his face in your palms, nodding while leaning him down for a kiss. 

“You're not planning on forgetting all of this, don't you?” - You asked back, still smoothing the crook of his neck slowly. With a smile, he shook his head and kissed your forehead while bringing you into an even tighter, longer hug. And when you felt that you really need to go, he covered you in the shirt. 

“Are you sure?” - You asked, putting it on properly. Jim didn't want to talk, to he only nodded. He watched as you sat down behind the steering wheel and doing your seatbelt before closing the door, rolling the window down, letting him lean into it. 

“See ya.” - You whispered before letting him kiss you one last time. Then he nodded, patted the top of your car and watched you leaving while waving at you the whole time. 

And with that, you really were leaving Hawkins for a long, long time.

[peterpparkrr]

(Mike Wheeler x Reader): Dangerous

Request: hey just wondering if you could do an imagine where there’s a new girl in hawkins and the gang find out she has elemental powers but she also has borderline personality disorder so can’t regulate her emotions too well n stuff ?? maybe end with some mike x reader fluff ? thankyou and all good if you’re too busy xxx A/N: I do not have bpd and this is just one interpretation of how a character with bpd might behave. I by no means want to stereotype or misrepresent any mental illness so please take this with a grain of salt. I’ve done a lot of reading and research in an attempt to better understand and write this character but if it’s not accurate or offensive please let me know and I will take it down.

Dad said that Hawkins would be a better place for you to grow up. That a small town meant you would be safer, and that somehow that would make you happier.

What a load of bullshit.

He moved you here because of the Incident. He moved you here because he’s embarrassed and ashamed to have you as a daughter.

You can see it in the way he looks at you like you’re a nuclear bomb that could go off at any moment and destroy his whole life. You’d already done it once.

When you walked into Hawkins Middle School you already knew that this new school, that this whole town was going to be a nightmare. You tried to breathe slowly and not think too much about how everyone was staring at you as you walked through the hallways.

Once you found your locker and started loading your stuff into it you started to hear whispers behind your back. You knew people were talking about you. You were the new girl so you were an easy target for teasing, and you weren’t the first new girl this year, so the kids had plenty of practice.

You were standing up in front of your English class, having been forced by your teacher to introduce yourself when you heard it. Someone hissing schizo from the back of the classroom. Your eyes flickered towards the face that said it, and before you knew it the teacher was reprimanding your classmates while you turned beet red, standing

“I heard she had to leave her old school because she had a breakdown,” you heard a girl behind you in the hallway whisper to her friend.

“My mom said that she threatened to kill herself in front of her classmates and that she’s a danger to us,” You heard a voice hiss as a group of kids pushed past you, shooting glances your way.

“Should we go talk to her?” You heard another voice, across the hallway say to their friends as you stood at you locker packing up your things for the day.

“Can you stop talking about me behind my back?” You snapped as you turned around to confront the group of kids in your class.

“S-sorry, we were just-just gonna ask if you maybe wanted to go to the arcade with us this weekend?” A nervous-looking boy with a mop of curly hair asked you.

“Is this some kind of joke?” You ask suspiciously.

The boy glanced around at the rest of the group before turning back to you, “No?”

“No. They’re just being weird.” A redheaded girl says as she moves forward and puts her hand out, “I’m Max.”

“And these idiots are Lucas, Will, Dustin, Mike, and Jane.” She says as she points down the line of kids standing in front of you.

Will perks up at the end, “Oh, but we all call Jane El, it’s a long story.”

“Um…” You mutter awkwardly as you glance around at all of them.

The tall one, Mike clears his throat awkwardly, “So this weekend, are you free?”

You glance at him before realizing they’re being genuine, “I guess,” You tell them with a shrug.

“Cool,” He said with a grin before you turned back to your locker and the girls had to drag the boys away before they started to get creepy and weird.

When you got home from school you made your way into the kitchen to make yourself a snack when your dad peaked his head out of his office.

“How was the first day, kiddo?” He asked as he grabbed a slice of your apple and bit down on it before you could object.

“It was okay,” You tell him with a shrug as you focus on scooping some peanut butter out of the container and onto your plate, “I uh… I’m going to the arcade with some friends tomorrow,” You tell him.

“Really? That’s-that’s great sweetie,” You dad replies with a slightly stunned smile before you can see his overprotective dad brain kick in again, “Are you sure about this?”

You give him an annoyed look before going back to your snack.

“I just mean, do you think it’s a good idea?” Your dad clarified as he looked down at you in that overly concerned way that you hated so much.

“I want to be normal dad, why can’t you just let me be happy?” You ask him with a hmph before stalking up to your room in indignation.

The next evening you left the house with little more than a nod at your father as he reminded you to be back before curfew.

When you got the arcade it was already packed with kids your age but you quickly found ‘the party’ and were pushed in to have a turn. Everyone watched and cheered amicably for you the first couple of levels before some nearby games opened up at most of the group moved to the new game.

You were so in the zone that you didn’t notice everyone had stepped away until Mike suddenly appeared right next to you and stared at the screen in awe.

“No way! How’d you get to level 56? I thought it was impossible!” He exclaimed.

“Guess I’m just a genius,” You replied smugly as you deftly moved the controls around.

“Guys! Come look at this, (Y/N)’s amazing!” Mike called over to Max and Lucas as you continued to play.

Everything was going great until some of the more aggressive boys in your class sauntered in.

“Oh look, the geek squad found another freak to join their ranks. Careful guys, she might kill you if you piss her off,” One of them jeered.

“Shut up,” You muttered lowly as you balled your fists up tightly.

“Oh, are you going to do something about it? Are you going to hurt me?” He continued to taunt.

You tried to remain calm, you really did. You started to do the breathing exercises you’d been taught but the voice laughing at you just kept cutting through. You tried to hold it back, it’s had barely been a week here in Hawkins, yet here you were.

The power washed over you like a tsunami. It felt like you were drowning, but like those boys were too. It felt like justice. It wasn’t until you heard a scream that you realized what you’d done and that you were able to focus forward and realized your burst of energy had blown the water pipes in the building. All the games were sparking and everyone was drenched in water as people scattered out the exits.

The boys who had been taunting you scrambled to their feet before fleeing the building. You turned to look and saw the group of kids who’d taken you in staring back at you with stunned expressions. They could have become real friends, but you’d fucked it all up.

Before anyone could say anything you bolted out of the building and into the cool spring air.

You found refuge in an unlit corner of the now abandoned parking lot.

You were so lost in thought that you didn’t even realize that they’d found you until they were right in front of your face.

“There you are, (Y/N), we were so worried, are you okay?” Max asks as she reaches to squeeze your shoulder in comfort.

“You guys aren’t scared of me?” You ask as you look up at the group, “You should leave me alone, I’m dangerous.”

“Honestly, after all the crazy shit we’ve seen in the past year, this is not that surprising,” Dustin quips before Lucas hits him in the gut.

Will rolls his eyes, “What he means to say, is that we have some idea of what you’re going through. Especially El.”

You turn to El, confused as to how this seemingly perfect girl could have any idea what you’re going through.

“I have powers too,” She tells you shyly before she closes her eyes and sticks her hand out. Within moments the rocks and pebbles around you guys slowly begin to levitate in the air. They then drop back to the ground as she opens her eyes, “See, you’re not the only freak.”

Lucas nods, “(Y/N), we’re not going to let anything happen to you. You’re one of us now, you’re part of the party. If anything, your powers just cement that.”

“Uh, wow,” You stutter out, “Thanks guys, I don’t really know what to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything,” El says with a shrug, “But we should all probably get home before our parents get too worried. Mike can bike you home, right Mike?”

“Of course,” He says with a nod as the rest of the group heads towards their bikes and starts heading home.

“I’m sorry about… all of this,” You tell Mike awkwardly as you trail behind, “You can just head home, I’ll be fine.”

Mike shoots you a look of indignation, “(Y/N), I want to take you home. I want to know you’re okay,” He tells you, “I just want you to know that you can trust us. That you can trust me.”

“You’re really great Mike, El’s really lucky.”

“(Y/N)-” Mike says before he realizes why you’re saying that, “El and I aren’t dating. We kissed. A few times. But that was well over a year ago, we’re just best friends.”

“Oh,” You mutter.

“And I’d really like to kiss you now if that’s alright,” Mike adds somewhat timidly.

“That’s more than alright,” You muttered at your toes before looking up at Mike and realizing how hard you’ve already fallen for this boy before you realize that he’s leaning closer and your lips press against his.

Maybe Hawkins won’t be so bad after all.

[hunnywrites]

Sixteen Candles: Part Five - The End

Summary: It’s the day that Vivian has been looking forward to nearly her entire life: her sixteenth birthday. But between her sister’s wedding overshadowing her big day, and praying that her crush Billy Hargrove will finally notice her things aren’t going too well for her. If she can just survive the under the sea dance at her school and avoid the really weird and creepy Tommy H her night might be salvageable. Maybe.

Pairing: Billy Hargrove/OFC

A/N: Here it is! The final chapter! I’m gonna miss Vivian. And Carol was honestly a lot of fun to write. Maybe one day if you guys want I can write more for Billy and Vivian. Enjoy the ending!

It was the day that Vivian and her family had been dreading. Sarah’s wedding day. One would imagine that a girl’s wedding day was one of the happiest days of her life. You would never have guessed that with Sarah. The entire household had been woken up around five in the morning by the sound of a near blood curdling scream coming from the bathroom that Carol and Vivian shared. Vivian sat up on the couch abruptly, blinking wildly and looking around to make sense of what was happening. Slowly lights around the house started to flick on as her family got out of bed.

“Are you fucking kidding me?!” Sarah screeched upstairs. 

Vivian hurried upstairs, where her parents, grandparents and Carol were all crowded outside of the bathroom door with concerned looks (technically Carol looked more annoyed than concerned). 

“Sarah, language. Is everything alright? Please let me in. You’re scaring us,” their mother said calmly. There was a long silence before the lock clicked and Sarah poked her head out of the door. There were mascara streaks under her eyes from her tears. “Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”

“I got my fucking period!” she wailed. Carol broke out into a loud cackle as their father shuffled awkwardly in the hallway.

“I’m gonna...I think I’m gonna go start breakfast…” he mumbled. Vivian’s grandparents quickly followed after them. Sarah opened the door wider and burst into a loud fit of sobs. Vivian let out a loud and annoyed sigh. And here she thought Sarah was freaking out about something important. 

“Sounds like the honeymoon is gonna be a blast, huh Sarah?” Carol teased. 

Their mother let out a small huff and turned to glare at Carol. “Carol, please. You’re not helping. Sarah, I know that this is...inconvenient, but it’s not the end of the world. This is just a tiny speed bump, okay? We’ll handle everything and it’s all going to be perfect.”

“Yeah, until it comes to the wedding night,” Carol snorted. “God, imagine you’re walking down the aisle and you’ve got a huge stain on your ass and you have no idea?” she laughed. Vivian bit down on her bottom lip and let out a cough to cover her laughter. If it had been anyone else she probably wouldn’t have found it so funny. But this was a little like karma kicking Sarah in the ass for being such a pain. 

“Carol, Vivian, go downstairs now or you’ll stay home and miss your sister’s wedding.” their mother warned, pointing a finger at the stairs.

“...Is that supposed to be a threat?” Vivian asked genuinely. Carol laughed loudly beside her. Their mother glared at them, and the two sister’s retreated downstairs and to the kitchen where their dad was getting a head start on cooking pancakes. 

He cast a nervous glance at them over the top of his glasses. “...Has the screaming stopped?” 

“Momentarily.” Vivian sighed. She couldn’t wait for Sarah to go back to Florida. The sun wasn’t even up yet. And things wouldn’t get any better. Between the stress and the cramps, Vivian was sure that Sarah was going to make this the wedding day from hell.

Eventually her mom came downstairs. She leaned against the doorway and let out a heavy sigh. “Okay. She’s going to take some muscle relaxers, I’m going to make her some tea, and we’re all going to try and make it through today in one piece,” she was saying it more to herself than to the family. Vivian and her mother made eye contact, and her face softened. “Oh, Vivian…” she walked over to her youngest daughter and wrapped her up in a tight hug. “Your birthday. I’m so sorry we forgot your birthday.” 

“Mom, it’s fine...really…” she said, wincing at how hard her mother was squeezing her. 

“It’s not fine. It was your sixteenth birthday. We’re gonna make it up to you, okay? Whatever you want.”

Her dad let out a snort. “Good luck. She’s already trying to work me for a car.” 

Carol was watching the exchange with a wicked grin. “God, how embarrassing. Your entire family forgetting your birthday. Imagine being that forgettable.” 

Their mother fixed a stern look at Carol. “Young lady, if you let out one more nasty comment today so help me…” Carol only rolled her eyes. Their mother turned back to Vivian, taking her face in her hands and smiling sweetly down at her. “How about some chocolate chip pancakes, hmm? That’s a start, right?”

Vivian smiled and nodded. She felt so awkward now. She had wanted her family to feel guilty for forgetting her birthday. Now that they did she felt weird about it. Like it was too much attention. Hopefully it would wear off. She could definitely get used to all the sucking up. “Definitely.”

---

If Billy didn’t have work it was rare that he’d wake up before noon on a weekend. Neil hated it. Billy didn’t really care. Susan usually saved him a plate of whatever she cooked up for breakfast in the oven. She was always trying to be his friend. Always trying to be the good guy. He hated it. 

He was still laying in bed, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He could hear Max and her friends out in the living room. Which meant Neil and Susan had to be out for the day. Billy rolled out of bed and shuffled down the hall. They were all there. All six of them. Great. “Don’t you nerds have anything better to do than hang around here?” he asked.

“I could ask you the same thing,” Max said. “Aren’t you supposed to be cool or something? Why are you stuck at home on a saturday?” 

Dustin grinned. “I bet it’s ‘cause his girlfriend dumped him.”

“She didn’t dum- where did you even hear that shit anyways?” Billy snapped.

Dustin only shrugged. “Steve told me.” 

“Is she who you were calling all night?” Max asked perking up. Each of the kids snapped towards Billy’s direction. They were annoying, sure, but he hadn’t taken them for gossips. “Because if you were, you’re an idiot. I hate Cheryl.” she scrunched up her nose as if her name gave her a bad taste in her mouth. 

“No. I was...do you ever mind your own business?” he asked with a huff. The six kids only stared up at him, waiting for him to spill the beans. Billy rolled his eyes. “I was calling Vivian. She’s Carol’s sister.”

“She’s getting married!” Lucas said, as if he had realized something no one else had. 

Billy sneered down at him. “Married? The hell do you mean she’s getting married? She’s sixteen.” 

Lucas and Mike shared a look. “...I’m pretty sure you can get married if your parents say it’s okay. Like with a permission slip or something.” Mike suggested. 

“...I don’t think that’s how it works, Mike.” Will said with a sympathetic smile. 

Max rolled her eyes. “It’s not Vivian that’s getting married. It’s her sister, idiots. That totally can’t be legal.” 

Billy looked at each of them, blinking wildly. He set his hands on his hips. “Can some explain what the hell is going on? How the hell do you know so much about Vivian?”

“We gave her and Robin a ride home from the movies last night,” Dustin explained. “She said that her sister Sarah’s getting married today and her family forgot her birthday. Pretty shitty if you ask me.”

“...Is there a point to anything you’re telling me?” Billy asked.

Mike shot him an irritated look. “We’re trying to tell you that if you’ve been calling Vivian, and she hasn’t been answering, you can probably just find out wherever it is her sister’s getting married and see her person.” 

Billy didn’t think there were enough words in the english language to explain how annoyed he was that a group of 13 year olds had figured out how to get him to Vivian when he couldn’t do it himself. 

“You can’t wear that though.” Dustin said, nodding to the shorts and shirt Billy had worn to bed. 

“...Yeah. Thanks for the tip.” Billy said dryly. 

“Even if he changes, who says she’ll even want to go out with him? Vivian’s too good for you.” Lucas said.

Billy scowled down at him. “Too good for me? You were with her for like, what? Half an hour last night? How would you even know?” 

“It was long enough to know she’s too good for you.” Lucas affirmed. The others nodded along with him in agreement. Billy only spun around on his heels, stomping back to his bedroom to change. He hated when Max’s friends were over. They were either finding little clever ways to insult him or begging him for rides around town. 

He quickly changed, or as quickly as Billy could change, and headed back out to the living room. He snatched up his keys. “This good enough for you little weirdos?” he asked, spreading his arms out. The kids were surveying his outfit carefully.

“...You got anything in blue, maybe?” Dustin asked.

Billy rolled his eyes. “It was a rhetorical question, Henderson. I’ll be back later, Max. Try not to set anything on fire.” and with that he was out of the house and sauntering out to his car. It wouldn’t be all that hard to find Vivian, would it? Maybe if he was fast he could catch them at their house before they left for the wedding. If not, Hawkins was a small town. She couldn’t have gone that far. 

He felt a little pathetic. Following a girl around like this. He supposed it might look romantic or something to Vivian though, wouldn’t it? Maybe she’d be impressed. Billy sure hoped so. There wasn’t really any way this weekend could get any shittier.

---

Vivian was honestly surprised Sarah wasn’t dead. A few hours after the family had all finished breakfast, Vivian’s mother had gone upstairs to check on Sarah. It turned out that Sarah had nearly tripled the normal dose of muscle relaxers she was supposed to take and could barely stand up on her own. “Sarah, what were you thinking?! On today of all days!” their mother scolded her, trying to help sit her upright in her bed.

“I was thinking that my uterus was trying to claw its way out of my vagina, mom.” she spat. Vivian and Carol were crowded in Sarah’s doorway, watching on in amusement. Sarah’s eyes were all glossy and they couldn’t seem to focus on any one thing. Her voice was slurred to the point where Vivian couldn’t believe she could understand anything her sister was saying. And she wouldn’t stop swaying back and forth. Carol of course thought it was hilarious. 

“Jeez, Sarah. I always had my suspicions that you didn’t actually like Kevin but this is a new low even for you. Drugging yourself to get through your wedding?” she taunted. 

“Yeah? Yeah? Well...shut up, Carol. At least I’m getting married,” she pointed an unsteady finger in her sister’s direction. “Like that stupid...dumb Tommy boy is gonna wanna marry you after he finds out that’s not your real nose!” 

Carol let out a gasp, instinctively covering her nose. Vivian burst into a fit of laughter beside her. “I had a deviated septum, you cow!” Carol cried.

“Enough! Both of you! Carol, I’ve had enough of you. You’re staying home! I can’t have you harassing your sister while she’s like this. Not if you don’t want me strangling either of you in the middle of the church! And Vivian, please stop laughing.” 

Vivian pressed her lips together tightly and cleared her throat. “Sorry, mom…” 

Carol flipped her hair over her shoulder and sneered at Sarah. “Fine by me. Like I’d want to go to that tacky ass wedding anyways.”

“Uh...can I stay home too? I mean, you guys did forget my birthday after all…” Vivian asked, looking between her mom and Carol. 

“You’re going to the wedding, Vivian. Now will you please go and get dressed while I try and get your sister out of bed?” she gave Sarah’s arm a firm tug and she was up and out of bed on wobbly feet. “Can one of you help me?” 

“Why should I? I’m not in the wedding anymore.” Carol snapped, turning dramatically and stomping down the hall. Vivian let out a soft sigh and went to Sarah’s other side, throwing her arm around her and helping their mom guide Sarah out of her room. 

Sarah looked over at Vivian with squinted eyes. “You know,” she began with a loud huff. “You’ve always been my favorite sister,” she confessed. Vivian couldn’t really help but smile. That was probably one of the nicest things Sarah had ever said to her. “I mean, even though you dress like total shit. But that’s like...a phase, right? Because I remember like, I used to wear bell bottoms all the time, you know? But then I realized they were totally out so I haven’t worn them in years. That’s what’ll happen to that horrible jacket you’re always wearing. Hey mom, don’t you think Vivian looks like a total lesbo-”

“Sarah!” their mother yelled. “Don’t call your sister...that. Let her wear what she wants to wear. Vivian, ignore her. She’s not making any sense.” 

“Don’t worry. I’m just gonna pretend she stopped after telling me I’m her favorite sister...I mean, it’s just me and Carol so there’s not much contest, but still.” she mumbled. 

“Carol,” Sarah scoffed. “I’m glad she’s not coming to the wedding. You know, her and Tommy totally did it in your bed while you and dad were on that cruise. And I never told anyone because I am like the best sister.”

Vivian wondered if maybe she had somehow died and gone to hell. 

---

There was only one car parked in Vivian’s driveway. That didn’t really help Billy much. He parked his Camaro at the curb and quickly made his way up the walkway to the front door. He rang the doorbell three times, his leg bouncing with nervous energy as he waited for someone to answer. 

Eventually Carol did. “...What are you doing here?” she asked, sneering at Billy. 

He didn’t answer her. “Is Vivian here? Can I talk to her?”

“She’s at the church with the rest of my family. My mother actually grounded me from going. Can you imagine? It’s their loss. I’m the only one that looks good in those disgusting bridesmaids dresses Sarah picked out.” she said with a flip of her hair.

Billy rolled his eyes. “Carol, I really don’t give a shit. I’m kinda on a time crunch here.”

Carol narrowed her eyes at Billy, as if she had finally heard what he was saying. “Wait, what do you want with Vivian anyways? What, are you trying to get back at Cheryl for dumping your ass or something?”

“She didn’t dump me. We were never dating,” he said through his teeth. “Why’s it your business anyways?”

“Because I’m gonna have to hear Cheryl bitch about it when she sees the two of you together,” she scoffed. “Besides, you’ll totally get bored with Vivian anyways. She’s a total loser.”

“Carol, can you just shut it and give me the address to this damn church?”

Carol rolled her eyes dramatically and let out an annoyed groan before disappearing inside. Eventually she came back with a folded piece of paper. “Here you go, Romeo. Enjoy your blue balls.” she said with a tired sigh.

Billy didn’t say anything. He snatched the paper from her and headed back to the Camaro. He slid into the driver’s seat, muttering angrily to himself. The church thankfully wasn’t too far. He could make it in time. He just needed to make a stop at Bradley’s Big Buy first. “I’ll show her Romeo.” he mumbled, stomping down on the gas.

---

Vivian looked at herself in the mirror and sighed. The poofy, purple dress that Sarah had picked out for her to wear was simply hideous. She expected something a little more bearable with all Sarah’s talk of the latest trends in fashion. Then again, maybe the latest trends were just ugly. 

Sarah wasn’t really fairing any better than she had been that morning. Their mother had tried to get her to drink some coffee in hopes it might dull the effects of the muscle relaxers, but now Sarah was jittery on top of loopy. There was no way she would be able to make it down the aisle alone much less in one piece. At least this might make things a little more entertaining. 

Vivian’s parents decided it was best not to tell Kevin about Sarah’s...situation. The last thing they needed was for him to start nervously hovering around and stressing Sarah out even more. Vivian thought it was sort of sweet. She definitely didn’t see whatever it was that Kevin saw in her sister, but she was a little envious. Vivian found her mind wandering to thoughts of Billy and she sighed. At least he’s not here to see me in this stupid dress, she thought with a grumble. 

“You alright, Vivian?” her dad asked from beside her.

“Huh? Oh, yeah. I’m just tired,” she lied. “Is the ceremony starting soon or what?” 

Her mother was using all of her strength to try and pull a half conscious Sarah out of her seat. “As soon as I get your sister up on her feet.” she said with a grunt. Her dad hurried over to help. Sarah finally stood up, her head lolling over to the side as she let out a sniff.

“Daddy,” she began. “This is so sad. I’m getting married and I’m not gonna live with you guys anymore.” she cried.

Their father smiled thinly and patted his oldest daughter on the arm. “You don’t live with us now, sweetheart...let’s just go hand you over to Kevin, hmm?”

“Oh, Richard,” his wife scolded. “Now isn’t the time for jokes. Vivian, when it’s time for you to walk down the aisle, don’t waste any time, okay? We need this to be over as soon as possible. Or at least before your sister passes out.” 

“You don’t have to worry about me.” Vivian said with a salute. 

All things considered, the wedding hadn’t gone too badly. At least, aside from Sarah falling half way down the aisle, taking her father and a good amount of the decorations with her, and nearly yelling “Oh my god, what is that fat cow doing here?” as they passed by Kevin’s mother. Vivian was almost sad Carol hadn’t been there. She would have loved it. 

Their mother had stood next to Sarah during the ceremony, her arms held out wide and ready to catch Sarah in case she fell. Kevin looked slightly terrified, which was to be expected. Once Sarah and Kevin were officially married, their father had to help Kevin practically drag Sarah down the aisle and out to the limo.

The guests all stood on the steps of the church, waving goodbye to the newly married couple. Vivian’s mother let out a loud sigh next to her. “Thank god that’s over.”

Vivian’s father wrapped his arm around her shoulders “Vivian, sweet pea, I’ll buy you a car if you promise you’ll elope.” 

“Richard.” Her mother scolded. “Don’t listen to him. He’s kidding. Aren’t you, Richard?” But Vivian wasn’t really paying attention. The wedding guests had started to disperse, on their way to the reception. A familiar blue Camaro was parked across the street. Vivian felt her heart pounding in her chest as her eyes met with Billy’s. There was no way this was actually happening. 

“...Isn’t that Carol’s friend?” she heard her mother ask. Vivian ignored her. Billy gave Vivian a lopsided grin before awkwardly waving. 

Vivian turned to her dad, looking up at him with big, pleading eyes. He smiled and waved her away. “Go. Your sister won’t remember her reception anyways.” He joked. Vivian hugged her dad tightly, picking up the skirt of her hideous purple dress and hurried across the street to meet Billy.

“Hi…” she said quietly. “Um...Carol isn’t here.” 

“I know. I went to your house to see you and she told me you’d be here,” his grin had turned into a smirk. Vivian felt her cheeks burn at his confession. 

“You wanted to see me?” 

“Yeah,” Billy rubbed at the back of his neck. “I’ve been trying to get a hold of you since last night. I called, but your grandparents kept answering…” 

Vivian shut her eyes tightly and let out a groan. “Oh god,” she mumbled. “I am so totally sorry.”

Billy let out a soft laugh and shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I was kinda thinking maybe we could go do something? Celebrate your birthday? I got a cake with your name on it.” He jabbed a thumb at his car. Vivian could see a small, white cake covered in sprinkles with her name scrawled across in pink icing. 

“You got me a cake?” She asked with wide eyes. You’re worth it, honey. The right guy will see it. Her father’s words from the night before were playing over and over in her head. 

“Yeah. I mean, you said your family forgot so-“

Vivian reached up on her toes, taking Billy’s face into her hands and kissed him. Her stomach wouldn’t stop doing flips. She almost felt dizzy when she felt Billy’s hands rest firmly on her hips. 

She was sure her face was beet red when she finally pulled away. She turned around, feeling a wave of embarrassment wash over her when she saw her parents still standing there on the church steps, pretending not to look. Great. That’s what every girl dreams of; her parents watching her first kiss. 

Billy only smirked down at her. “...You wanna get out of here?” He asked with a chuckle. 

Vivian nodded enthusiastically. “Please.” Billy opened the passenger’s side door for her. Her heart was hammering in her chest again as he slid into the driver’s seat next to her. 

Billy took her in with an amused smirk, Vivian looking over at him with a shy smile. “...Dig the dress.” He teased. 

Thanks, wanna rip it off with your teeth? Vivian cleared her throat, shaking the thought away. “Just shut up and drive, Hargrove.” She muttered, biting her lip to keep herself from smiling. 

“Whatever you say, Birthday Girl.” 

Vivian decided to take back everything she had said for the past two days. All of her complaints and sassy comments. Riding in the Camaro next to Billy, loudly listening to Tank, Vivian decides this was her best birthday yet. 

[forhelvede]

Where the Storm Meets the Ground Ch. 6

In which I try my hand at cutesy stuff.

Chapter 6- The Promise

The drive to the hospital took forever. Or at least, that’s how it felt to Laurie. She held onto Alexei’s hands as tightly as she could without breaking it and found comfort in the knowledge that he was still holding onto her, still looking into her eyes as he fought to stay awake.

Joyce sped through the parking lot and pulling to a screeching stop in front of the emergency room door. Murray pushed opened the car door and ran to find a doctor while Jim helped Laurie carefully get Alexei out of the backseat.

They helped the hurt man up to the door where they were met by a nurse with a stretcher. Jim grabs Alexei’s legs as the man sits on the stretcher. Jim swings his legs up on the stretcher and backs off as the nurse and another doctor start to push it inside. Laurie turns to the trio.

“You three go. I’ll stay with Alexei,” Laurie ordered.

“Lore, Murray should stay,” Jim argued.

Laurie shook her head. “I’m FBI. I can translate and I’ll keep an eye on him and make sure no more Russians come for him. He told Murray everything you need to know, so Murray goes with you. Now go! You don’t have time for this!” she yelled. She gave Jim a quick hug and then headed off into the hospital after Alexei.

She caught up with the nurse and doctor, who had already cut off Alexei’s shirt and were starting to put an IV in. “I’m Special Agent Laurie Miller. He doesn’t speak English,” she explained as they tried to talk to Alexei and ask him what happened. Laurie pulled out her badge to show them. “I’m with the FBI. This man is.... he’s my partner. He was shot twice in the heart, but was wearing a vest.”

The Doctor nodded. “Tell him we’ll take care of him. We’re going to have to take him into surgery to stop the bleeding.”

Laurie leaned over Alexei’s face. “You’re going to be okay. Just be calm. I’ll see you when you get out. I’ll be here,” she whispered, gently caressing his forehead again.

“Promise?” he asked, staring up at her weakly.

“I Promise, Alyosha.” She kissed his forehead and then stepped back, tears pricking her eyes as they wheeled him away to take him to surgery.

Laurie quietly followed a nurse to the waiting room. She took a seat and began impatiently waiting. She worried about Alexei and she worried about Jim. What if the trio weren’t able to get into the bunker? What if they did need her help?

Unable to sit still, Laurie stood and began to pace around the waiting room, wringing her hands together. She was normally a fairly calm person. She had been in a shootout before and kept her cool.

So why was she so freaked out about Alexei? She barely knew the guy.

And yet she was here, pacing a hospital waiting room, terrified she might never see the young Russian man again.

Taking a deep breath, Laurie sat down again and putting her heads between her knees, she took several more deep breaths and let them out. After a few minutes of this, she felt calmer. Her heart beat slowed back to normal and head became clear again.

Jim could be trusted. Murray…probably in this case was going to do what he had to. Everything was going to be okay. And Alexei was going to live.

He was. He had to.

Laurie suddenly realized she hadn’t called in to her boss all day. Dreading it, but knowing it had to be done, she headed for a payphone and dialed her boss back in St. Louis. Adam James was a bitch of a human being, but who in his position wasn’t? Laurie didn’t know a single department head in the FBI that was nice.

“Do you fucking know what time it is?” he cussed once she identified herself.

“I’m very aware, sir. But I haven’t called in…”

“No, you fucking haven’t. You better have a fucking good reason why.”

“It’s been a very quick series of events and lots of driving.” Laurie took a deep breath and began explaining, starting with arriving at Murray’s and finding Alexei and getting all the way up to Alexei getting shot. She left out some of the weird stuff regarding another dimension. Adam, to his credit, listened quietly to the entire story.

“And you promised him he could be a citizen if he helped?”

“I promised him I’d help him defect if he helped, which he did.”

“Sounds like he got himself shot to me.”

An uncomfortable feeling grew in Laurie’s gut. She gulped nervously. “If he hadn’t given Chief Hopper the information, they wouldn’t have even known there was a secret Russian bunker underneath the fucking mall in Hawkins!” Laurie knew getting angry wouldn’t help, but God damn if she wasn’t going to fight for Alexei. He had helped.

“Don’t you fucking yell at me, Miller. You’re on thin fucking ice.”

Gritting her teeth and grimacing as much as she could without causing herself physical pain, Laurie held the phone away from her face and silently grumbled at the pay phone. She took a deep breath and then brought the phone back to her ear. “Sorry, sir. What I mean, is that Dr. Alexei has provided us with priceless information that has led to uncovering a dangerous Russian mission here on U.S. soil.”

“And is the fucking Hawkins Police Department the only law enforcement involved in this?” he questioned.

“No, sir.” Laurie grimaced again, knowing what was coming next. “The Department of Energy is also involved?”

“The Department of-…are you fucking kidding me? You disturbed me at eleven o’clock on fucking Fourth of July to tell me that the fucking Department of Energy and Hawkins fucking Police Department are fucking uncovering a goddamn Russian plot to infiltrate and destroy our country?”

Well, when you say it that way…, Laurie thought. “Um, I suppose so, sir. The FBI was also involved, too, you know…because of me. But yes…the Department of Energy.” She went quiet as her boss began screaming nonsense on the other end of the phone.

She was definitely not getting a promotion.

“Who-the fuck- at the Department of Energy is involved in this shit show, exactly? Or do you not know that?”

“That would be Dr. Sam Owens, sir.”

Adam breathed heavily, and quite angrily, into the phone. “I want you back in St. Louis first thing in the morning and I want that Russian deported. Call the Indy office now and let them know.”

“Sir!” Laurie protested.

“This is bullshit, Miller. None of this sounds legitimate. You are being played. Congratulations.” He went quiet for a moment as the anger and embarrassment began to fill Laurie. “I thought you were a better agent than this.”

A dial tone quickly followed his insult. Laurie stood there for a moment with the phone still at her ear, the familiar horrible feeling of sadness that was welling up in her chest. With a sob, Laurie slammed the phone back on the receiver and went back to where she was sitting.

This was why she hadn’t called anyone earlier. There was no way that the FBI would believe any of this was happening and they wouldn’t have acted soon enough.

If she didn’t go back to St. Louis in the morning, if she didn’t contact the Indianapolis FBI to tell them to get Alexei deported, she would most certainly not get the promotion and she very well might get fired. If she tried to wait to get information from this Dr. Owens, to get proof, she would likely still get in trouble at work.

What was she supposed to do? The FBI had been her life for fourteen years. What would she do if she lost her job or got demoted? A few more years and she could retire.

But Alexei…

If she had the FBI deport him, Alexei was certainly dead. The Russian government had already tried to kill him once. He needed to be protected.

He needed to stay.

“FUCK!” Laurie yelled, standing up from the seat to scream down at the floor.

“Excuse me!” A receptionist snapped at Laurie. “This is a quiet place!”

She threw her hands up at the woman and sat back down, putting her head in her hands. This was an impossible situation. Potentially lose her job (or worse. What if Adam accused her of working with the Russians?) or get Alexei killed.

What a choice.

Laurie crossed her arms and leaned her head back, squeezing her eyes shut. Before she knew it, she had nodded off, waking suddenly when someone lightly touched her arm. Laurie startled, grabbing the arm of the person who had touched her.

“Sorry,” she apologized when she realized it was just the doctor.

He frowned, but nodded. “Your friend is out of surgery and he’s doing well. Part of his sternum broke off with the force of the bullets and embedded into this heart, causing the internal bleeding you saw. Luckily, it wasn’t in there too far and we were able to remove the broken bone pieces, stop the bleeding, and seal it all up. We’ll want to keep him for a few days, but he should be okay.”

Laurie let out a breath that she didn’t realize she was holding. “Thank you. Can I see him?”

The Doctor nodded and gestured for her to follow him. Laurie walked down the white hospital halls, her mind still trying to come out with a way she could keep Alexei in the country and keep her job.

They finally came to the room that Alexei was in and Laurie stood in the doorway, taking a few deep breaths. There was no reason she had to tell Alexei anything right now.

The Russian was still unconscious, unsurprisingly. Laurie walked up to the side of the bed and took his hand in her own, squeezing gently. She stared down at his face. He looked different without his glasses. He was still handsome, for sure, but the boyish charm was missing. There was some more mature about him without the glasses. Something harder now.

She didn’t like it.

Laurie found his glasses on the side table and quickly put them on.

There. That was Alexei.

With her free hand, Laurie reached up and ran her hands through his hair. After watching him for a minute, she reluctantly pulled her hands away from him. She grabbed the nearby chair and pulled it right up to the bed. Grabbing his hand once again, Laurie then laid her head on the bed next to his arm, closed her eyes, and drifted off again.

Her dreams were not good.

She dreamt that Alexei had never put on the vest and that she had found him, after wandering a packed fair for what felt like hours, bleeding on the ground, everyone just wandering around him, ignoring him. And no matter how hard she fought through the crowd, she could never get to Alexei. Never touch him.

Never save him.

Once again, Laurie jerked awake. She checked all of Alexei’s machines, making sure he was still alive and breathing, before she sighed in relief. He was okay.

She stood up again, unable to stop herself, and leaned over Alexei to kiss his forehead, tears welling up in her eyes.

How could she possibly choose her job over him? She had only known him for a day and yet the idea of being selfish and saving her job made her feel like a traitor.

“Why do you cry, lyubimaya?” a croaky voice asked. She felt a weak hand touch her head and Laurie gasped as she moved back from Alexei’s face.

“Alyosha!” she called out, tears now spilling down her cheeks. “You’re awake!” She pressed soft kisses all over his forehead and cheeks.

“I am fine?” he said. Laurie wasn’t entirely sure it was a question or a statement.

“The Doctor said your sternum was broken and some pieces went into your heart, so there was bleeding, but it’s okay now! You’re going to be fine,” she said, lowering her voice as she realized she was almost yelling into the poor man’s face.

Alexei smiled up at her, though slightly weakly, which made her smile even bigger. “You stayed.” He ran a finger down the side of her face.

“I promised,” she whispered as she leaned down over him, their noses touching, lips just inches apart. “I promised.”

[restlessmelodrama]

Say I Never Mattered Chapter 3 *:･ﾟ✧

Steve Harrington x Y/N Henderson (Slowburn)

Warnings: mention of domestic abuse, swearing

Chapter 1  / Chapter 2 / Chapter 3 / Chapter 4 / Chapter 5 /

Chapter 6 / Chapter 7 / Chapter 8

Playlist

A/N: In this unnecessarily long chapter, you get to know how Steve and Y/N met, also about their relationship and the relationship between Steve and Dustin and some other characters. You also hear about Andrew Henderson and let me tell you he’s a fucking ASS.

Writing this was really challenging and I’m excited to share this with you. Again thank you for the love on the other two Chapters! I really appreciate it and I hope you like this one too.

Also, I’m so sorry that this turned into a Slow Burn. XD 

Disclaimer: English is not my native language, so I’m sorry in advance for any grammatical or spelling errors.

Steve woke up nearly three hours after you, head hurting like a bitch.

He was laying in his bed, still wearing the clothes he had worn yesterday.

When he moved he also noticed, that he apparently had left one of his shoes on. The other Nike Classic Cortez was on the floor next to a half-emptied Vodka bottle. He closed his eyes again, in regret. He wished yesterday didn’t happen. He had thought that Vodka would help him to forget and make it easier to blame his actions on the alcohol but everything was still engraved in his memory. Steve Harrington didn’t drink often and when he did it normally was beer. His alcohol tolerance accordingly wasn’t very high and he really felt that on this particular day. He sat up, the room was spinning and he immediately hated himself for making yet another stupid decision.

“Vodka doesn’t help with your problems add that to the list, Harrington“, he muttered to himself.

The infamous list he was mumbling about had been the outcome of a prank he had pulled in Middle School. He had color dyed the schools swimming pool pink and Mr. Clark caught him. Tommy, one of his former friends had dared him to do it as a joke. Nicole, Carol’s red-haired appendage laughed it off and told Tommy that Steve was too much of a “Pussy“ to do it anyway.

Carol and Tommy had been dating and supposedly fucking since seventh grade while Steve, contrary to popular belief, hadn’t even kissed a girl in grade eight.

He obviously was trying to change that, going for Nicole. So when he heard her call him a “Pussy”, he had tried to proof her wrong and win her over.

Mr. Clark had gone easy on him. He hadn’t even told the principal how the pool had ended up with a slight pink tint.

“Steve, this is the third time I caught you trying to vandalize school property. This month.“, Mr. Clark had ascertained rather annoyed.

Steve had just shrugged his shoulders and had looked at his teacher like nothing in the world mattered to him but that was just an act he put on. He had a title to maintain and, if anyone found out that “the Steve Harrington” was losing his shit over a teacher finding out he was misbehaving, they certainly would call him everything in the book but “King Steve“ or anything remotely positive.

But the reason behind him freaking out internally wasn’t that he was afraid of getting sent to detention for the rest of the year. No, he was way past that point. The last time he had been sent to the principal’s office, he was told that over the next action against the school ordinance from his side, they had no other choice but suspending him.

Mr. Clark had just recapped exactly that, to the now also visibly becoming anxious Middle Schooler.

Scott Clark had then debated loudly what he should do to the rebellious kid. When Steve thought back his teacher had obviously done that to scare him shitless, which was quite funny to him now.

...

“Steve, I believe you’re a smart kid. But I wasn’t born yesterday, either. You clearly put on this act because you are frantically trying to be popular. And I guess it’s working out for you but It it really doesn’t suit you and I think you could do better like I said you’re smart and good at sports and I think you do deserve another chance.“, Mr. Clark had said, when he was done scolding Steve, still giving him a warning look though.

“Thank you so much, Mr. Clark. I promise I’ll be better.“, he blurted out so fast, he stumbled over his words.

“Oh no, Harrington, I won’t let it go that easily. I still have to punish you in some way.“, he added after Steve had apologized.

He then was silent for a few seconds, probably thinking about the lightest punishment he could get away with if anyone would have found out about this situation and questioned his methods.

“I think it would be a great idea to knock you out of the skies by making you admit and list the things you did wrong. Why you did them and if they had a positive or a negative impact on your life. Sometimes seeing one’s actions and their results laid out on the table helps to notice, which percentage are actually good things and which percentage are… well, in your case: pure stupidity. Also, we definitely need more people in the organization team for the Snowball, so I’m counting you in, Mr. Popular.“, Mr. Clark had told him sounding very pleased and a slightly gleeful with his selected punishment.

Steve was then let go and allowed to join his friends for lunch. Of course, he told them what had happened, leaving out the few rather embarrassing details.

“… and then he was like, but you still need to write this list and help to organize the snowball“, Steve impersonated Mr. Clark, in true Middle School manner.

Everything they thought was funny back then, sounded so stupid and childish now. 

“A list ?“, Nicole squealed.

“I don’t know. I guess some kind of Fuck-Up-List. It was really weird.“, Steve answered, furrowing his brows.

No further explanation was needed to make the Middle Schoolers erupt into laughter.

And that was how the Fuck-Up-List was born. It was really dumb, but it became sort of a running gag in the grade. People were betting on what was on it and making their own lists.

Steve’s list was even published in the yearbook when grade nine was over and they were transferring to High School and the principal couldn’t do shit anymore.

But Steve as funny as he had fought it was, actually started taking it seriously and was still adding stuff to the list when he was a senior in High School. It had helped him a couple of times in his life.

...

And about the Nicole thing, after that, she wanted Steve or preferably King Steve more than ever.

But he had a change of heart.

He met you.

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

You were the new kid in Hawkins and your teachers thought it would be a good idea to involve you in the preparations for the “Snowball”, so you could get to know the other students better. You agreed to join the team, trying to overact the fact that you hadn’t signed up for any extracurriculars yet and weren’t planning to do so either.

The team was small. It consisted of Barbara Holland her friend Ally and a guy named Reed who was just there because he swapped his two weeks of detention for throwing an empty Coke Can at Mr. Mundy, in for helping to plan the event. Although the meetings were pretty boring, you still went. You really liked Barb and her friend Nancy she sometimes brought along, Ally wasn’t that bad either and Reed… well, Reed was just a dick. But you knew his type. You had moved to Hawkins from New York. Living in Queens for the majority of your life, you knew a shit tone of people, because there were so many. A lot of them acted exactly like Reed, it felt like you copied and pasted a New Yorker, you knew to Hawkins. When you had moved here you were shocked at how small the population and the town in general were. You knew pretty much everyone at least by their names at the end of ninth grade. It was a huge change for you and it was really strange at first. You had left your friends and your accustomed surroundings behind because your parents had decided they needed a fresh start in a new town. This time together. It was doomed to fail, but you and your brother had as always no say in it.

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

It was another irritatingly boring session, this time in the gym where the Snowball would take place in a few weeks. Ally was going on about some cheap, color changing fairy lights that she really wanted to incorporate in the decor as a centerpiece when the gym door opened. A boy in a black shirt and tight jeans came walking in. He had wild brown hair and brown eyes. He looked as bored and as unmotivated as you were.

“Basketball practice was canceled today, Harrington!“, Ally bitched at the boy.

You and Reed rolled your eyes and sighed in unison.

“Yeah, I know that… I’m here to help with the Snowball thing, I guess.“, he said kind of reluctant.

“Oh, thank god, man. I thought I had to die of boredom in this hell of glitter and fairy lights.“, the copy and paste New Yorker said relieved.

“Jesus! No need to get religious up in here, this committee looks scary enough.“, your new member chuckled.

The joke was really bad, but you still had to laugh. He came closer to the group. “Reed, Ally, Barbara“, he bowed down, smiling,“It’s a pleasure to join you.“

Ally gave him a death stare, but he ignored it and looked over at you, his eyes getting wider, he snapped his fingers and then pointed at you. “Oh, my! A new face in Hawkins, I’m actually shocked. No one moved here since…Well, since I was born, I guess.“, he laughed.

“Weird, because that statement doesn’t shock me at all.“, you said with an ironic tone in your voice.

He smiled and stretched his hand out to shake yours.

“I’m Steve Harrington.“

“Y/N Henderson“, you replied shaking his hand.

“It’s nice to meet you Y/N!”, he said looking directly into your, Y/E/C eyes, a gentle smile on his lips.

If you had known back then that Steve was convinced from that moment on, that your eyes were the most beautiful ones he had seen and would ever see, melting at the thought of getting to stare into them for hours, your relationship might have gone in a completely different direction.

But that was how it all started. Your friendship, everything you were going to go through together in the future and lots of unspoken and maybe some undefined feelings.

“Quit flirting you two! We got some shit to do!“, Ally yelled after she had eyed your interaction.

Steve just laughed but your cheeks flushed bright red. You weren’t sure why but that had never happened around anyone else. Not like that. In the few following weeks, you noticed quickly that everything was a little bit different between you and Steve Harrington.

*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Steve stood up from his bed.

He felt his stomach turn and he rushed to the bathroom.

Also barely making it to the sink.

Also throwing up.

But obviously for a completely different reason than you had.

He as well, was sitting on his bathroom floor for a while. The room was a mess. He shouldn’t have left his own party early but he couldn’t have stayed after what had happened. It was like a switch had flipped to pure chaos, not only in him, also in everyone else that had attended his party. After his little speach people went nuts. There was a lamp in the bathtub, someone had punched in the mirror, there were wet clothes in his shower, a bottle of beer was shattered on the floor and someone had written a famous Billy Joel lyric on the door with what he assumed was lipstick.

“She can kill with a smile, she can wound with her eyes.

And she only reveals what she wants you to see.

She hides like a child.“

When he read it he thought about you. How you looked at him last night. Your eyes said everything, you didn’t. It was like you had stabbed him in the heart and when you had turned around guilt trickled over him and he felt the worst he ever had. He knew he deserved it, though. He had screwed up big time.

He hadn’t been able to endure this feeling and he knew he had to leave this house. He was emotionally weak at the moment, which had triggered the situation he had gotten himself in, in the first place.

He had pushed through the masses to his front door, throwing the black blazer he had been wearing earlier over his shoulder and just left. The same black blazer he had worn when Nancy Wheeler told him, she didn’t love him, a few weeks prior on the night of Halloween. He thought that he couldn’t ever feel more pain than in the moment those words had left her lips, but he proofed himself wrong. He felt so horrible about what he had done. The only thing that had been able to calm him down was this fucking bottle of Vodka, he had woken up next to. He felt sick again at the thought.

“Uhh“, he groaned, rubbing his hands over his face and cringing at himself, “I’m such an asshole!“, he mumbled.

...

Meanwhile, Billy Hargrove had arrived at the Harrington Residence, Tommy H. following close behind him. He was the one who told Billy who had taken his keys.

“So she gave them your little sister… who then gave them to your old man?“ Tommy said dumbfounded.

Billy turned around and aggressively shoved his pointer finger in Tommy’s face, “She’s not my fucking sister!“

Tommy just started squinting at Billy’s finger. He really wasn’t the brightest.

Billy looked at him confusion in his features before he quickly dropped his finger.

“It doesn’t matter how it happened anyway! The problem here is that the bitch took my keys. She disrespected me and my property and now I’m gonna have to take something from her. That’s just how this works.“ Billy said with a sadistic smile on his lips.

“But Dude, you were pretty wasted last night. You would probably have crashed your car if she didn’t take them. Shouldn’t you… I don’t know… like, thank her?“ Tommy interposed. Probably the smartest thing that had ever left Tommy’s lips but Billy did not share that opinion.

“Don’t be stupid Tommy!“, Billy said growing angrier.

He had just put the key in the lock of his Camaro when the front door of the house opened and a sick looking Steve Harrington rushed out. He furrowed his brows at Billy and Tommy but didn’t give them much more attention.

“Hey, Harrington!“, Billy yelled,“You seem to really have a knack for scaring women away, don’t you?“

Steve had already passed them and was about to get in his car when Billy’s yelling reached him. Everyone had seen, what had happened between the two of you last night and everyone knew what happened between Steve and Nancy four weeks ago. Billy was obviously trying to tear that wound open again but failed.

Steve didn’t even bother to turn around, he just flipped the two clowns off and responded with a simple, “Just eat it, Hargrove!“, before getting into his BMW and driving off.

...

Steve was late. Before the unpleasant interaction with Billy, he had dragged himself into the kitchen, stumbling over the aftermath of his party, to take some Advil. He had remembered that he agreed to pick Dustin up from the Byers place at 1:30 pm. He had almost forgotten that you had asked him yesterday, saying something about your car being in the shop. Of course, he had agreed. He really liked your brother, they were basically attached at the hip since the end of October. You weren’t exactly sure why, but you were glad that Dustin finally had a male influence in his life. Your father was never there to talk to him about this “Teenage Boy Stuff“ and he certainly was not a good role model.

Steve arrived at the Byers house five minutes late, Dustin already waiting for him outside, looking sulky.

“You’re late!“, the boy declared when he got into the expensive car.

“Yeah, I’m sorry. I was cleaning up at home and forgot to check the time.“, Steve lied.

The boy didn’t make any more remarks, turning his head to look outside. Steve was staring at the back of his signature baseball cap and understood the sign, starting the car with a sigh.

It was really quiet for minutes and Steve’s was growing more and more nervous with every mile he came closer to your house. He was thinking about you and how he could make anything he had said last night better. His emotional weakness was showing once again when he turned on the radio trying to drown his thoughts in the music. He was bopping his head around to the sound of “Beat it”  by Micheal Jackson while Dustin was watching the pageant for while, soon deciding enough was enough and switching off the radio, looking at the completely surprised teenager in the driver’s seat. 

“So, are you gonna tell me what you did to my sister last night? Or do I have to cope with this-“, he stopped to point at Steve motioning his hand around in a circle before finishing his sentence, “-for the next ten minutes.“

Steve’s mouth fell open, his eyes were wandering around between the curly haired boy and the road. He ran one hand through his hair, “I didn’t do… I-I“,  he bit his lip and let it slip out from in between his gritted teeth again. He sighed. “I’m an asshole“, he said, this time not to himself, but to the boy next to him who was patiently awaiting his answer. And so Steve laid his entire heart out in front of your brother. He told him everything. From what happened last night to the undefined feelings he had, had towards you since Middle School.

“Dude!“, Dustin yelled, “You’re a fucking idiot!“

“Yeah... Believe me, I know!“, Steve stated.

“I don’t know how you want to fix this but you better think of something in light speed“, Dustin said as they were pulling onto your driveway.

Steve stopped the car and started fiddling with his hands while staring outside with an empty gaze. Dustin looked at him shaking his head since Steve didn’t move an inch. He opened the car door and walked towards your house. When Dustin was on the porch, Steve finally snapped out of it. “Wait!“, he screamed, now fiddling with his seat belt.

He had just reached the door and was standing next to Dustin when you opened

“Hey, Dusty“, you said in a soft tone. Dustin just shook his head and walked past you. You did not ask what was going on, thinking it probably had something to do with the boy in front of you.

So you were just standing there, leaning against the door frame and crossing your arms over your chest. You furrowed your brows and looked at the gatecrasher reproachfully.

You were wearing a huge hoodie and a pair of baggy jeans. Your Y/H/C hair was still wet since you had showered about five times, feeling like you had to wash Billy’s touch off somehow.

Steve ignored your expression and asked, “Can we talk?“

You took in a deep breath and were about to shake your head and shut the door in his face, but your escape plan was interrupted.

“For fuck’s sake, just go talk to him Y/N!“, a determined voice said, behind you.

You glared at your brother who was holding his hands up, like you were about to shoot him and then turned around to stare at Steve, in the same way, expecting him to piss off. But he didn’t.

“Can I come in?“ he asked, uncertain of how you would react.

The two of you had been best friends for almost five years and yet Steve hadn’t been in your house once. He had often picked you up, but he had never set foot over your doorstep and you weren’t ready to change that, especially now. You didn’t know if he really meant what he had said and if that meant your friendship was over. You didn’t let your best friend, your favorite person in the entire world gain an insight on your home life, so you surely wouldn’t let in a boy who had just torn your mental stability into shreds.

“No“, you said sternly.

Steve at that point thought it was over, that he would never get to talk to you again. But to his relief, you added sighing, “Wait here. I’ll be out in five.“

The door slammed shut. Steve’s head fell back, his eyes closed, head now tilted towards the sky he felt relief rush through his body. He was given a chance to explain himself and he was going to use it.

“Harrington.“, a calm, familiar voice spoke up from behind him.

He turned around to face the man who was slowly walking up the stairs.

“Um, hey.“, he greeted him, confused to why he was there.

...

Insight a fight had broken loose.

“… because you need to give him a chance to explain himself. Why are you so angry?“, your brother whispered in a harsh tone.

“I’m angry because it is my choice when I want to talk to him about what happened and not yours. You don’t need to be involved in every mess in my life!“, you whispered back, also harshly.

“I’m not involved in any of your messes“, your brother now hissed. You turned around trying to shush him with just a look, but that only made him yell louder, “You don’t tell me anything! I don’t know where the hell our mother is and why she left and I also don’t know what dad is doing, that you’re so fucking frightened of him!” He had screamed the last part of his sentence.

You stood there shocked. You were missing words. Steve definitely must have heard that, standing outside and you weren’t able to cope with your brother confronting you right now.

There was a sudden knock on the front door and the noise seemed to have reactivated your Broca’s area.

“We’ll talk later“, you told your brother who was now staring at you angrily and grabbed your scarf before opening the door

“Steve, I told you I would be out in fi-“, you stopped mid-sentence when you looked up and your eyes didn’t meet Steve.

“Hopper?“, Dustin asked as confused as you looked.

Hopper smiled at Dustin and looked back at you.

“I found your car.“, he said.

Your heart dropped. You felt jangly and loose inside.

You nodded, remembering that you had informed him that Andrew Henderson had left with your black Ford Escort. He had come by your workplace, the Radio Shack claiming he’d forgotten his jacket in your car when he had made you drive him to the bar the night before. You did not trust him and wouldn’t give him your keys at first, till he threatened to make a scene in the shop and get you fired. So you gave in since you needed to keep your job and you knew he could get you fired in seconds. A few minutes later, you saw your car driving south. And you knew he was gone again. In his opinion, you were overreacting when it came to him disappearing. That it was a little dramatic to call Hopper to come look for him after he had been missing for three months.

And he had really let you feel just how angry he was, when he had returned from god knows where because his daughter had embarrassed him in front of the chief and made it look like he was a bad father. Your ribs and back hurt for weeks after this incident.

So this time you had sent Jim Hopper to just find your car which apparently had been successful.

“Woah, Woah, Woah!, Steve said baffled, “You told me your car was in the shop.“

“You think you and your brother could come with? We should talk.“, Hopper said completely ignoring Steve.

You gulped but nodded in agreement. You turned around to look at your brother. Dustin looked back at you with a worried expression. You rubbed his shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile. “Can you go get your jacket and my Walkman?“

“Yeah, okay…“, he said still not sounding convinced, but turning to get it.

You stepped outside and pulled the door shut behind you. Dustin was still insight searching for your walkman. Hopper interpreted you distracting your brother right and told you, “I also found your dad.“

“Okay“, you breathed out, cutting him off before he could say more in front of Steve.

The door behind you opened again and your little brother stepped outside holding your walkman in one hand and his baseball cap in the other. You smiled at him and brought an arm around his shoulders, leading him towards the police car past an upset Steve Harrington.

“Y/N! What is going on?“ Steve said following you to the car.

“We’ll talk tomorrow Steve. Please, just go home.“, you interrupted him pleadingly.

“Y/N, I-���, he stammered, but you shut the passenger door and turned away from him.

When he realized you couldn’t hear him anymore, he stopped talking and just stood there, as he watched Hopper’s Chevrolet K5 Blazer pull out of the driveway, wondering what the hell was going on. ✧

Tag-List: @onelovewonderwoman @harringtonwife @apologeticallyy

@purecreativityforme  @uncle-jjezzy

[coyoteweird]

How Hopper Adopts Mike Wheeler: Part Three

Hey guys! This is 3/? The “How Hopper Adopts Mike Wheeler” Series written with my love @lgbtchee

Warnings: homophobia, mentions of depression and self-harm, assault, hospital visit, blood, use of slurs, extremely mild sexual content

With that out of the way, enjoy! This was our favorite one to write so far! 

Also, there will be an announcement at the end so make sure to stick around!

After Hopper found out about Mike hurting himself, he realises that the boy was depressed. After the talk they had about it, Hopper was sure about it.

He was going to try to get Mike to a therapist or something, because he very obviously needed it. Hopper made it a point to check on Mike’s arms every once in awhile. Just making sure that he was okay. Hopper sat at work everyday worrying that Mike would do something and he wouldn’t be there to help.  

Mike fought with him the first few time, he didn’t want Hopper to look all the time. But he eventually got the idea that Hopper actually cared and just wanted him to be okay. That Hopper wouldn’t be angry or yell, he just wanted to help. Mike stopped fighting him.

The first back at school after it happened, it was a struggle to get Mike to go. He begged Hopper to let him stay, just wanting to lay in bed all day. But Hopper had to make him get to school. Mike didn’t exactly want to go. He knew that the party would notice, and he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t afraid that Eleven would tell them.

“El, you-you can’t tell anyone okay? Promise you won’t tell?” Mike said on the way to the school

“You have to promise.” El nodded, looking at him as they walked.

“I promise, Mike.”

Mike breathed a sigh of relief, shoulders sagging in relief. A small smile made its way onto his face and he looked El in the eyes from the side.

“Thanks, El. Love you.” Mike says, and El flashes him a knowing smile.

“Aw! Look, here comes our two favorite love birds!” Lucas yells from his spot by the bike rack, where the party meets everyday before first period.

“Shut up, Lucas!” Mike snaps in response, a grimace on his face once again.

El frowns, upset that the first smile Mike’s had in a while is gone so soon.

“C’mon, leave them alone.” Will says, throwing a sheepish smile at the pair.

“You’re just jealous you’re only romance lasted about five seconds. No offense, Max.” Dustin says with a smirk.

Lucas punches Dustin’s shoulder, but there’s a small blush on his face.

“Trust me, none taken. We’re way better friends than a couple. Weirdest month of my life.” Max says, throwing her arm over Lucas’ shoulders.

Mike and El simply lock eyes, seeming to have a conversation with no words as the party makes there way inside. Sometimes, when El and Mike aren’t paying attention, the party debates if Mike and El are just really good at reading each other, or if they can actually talk to each other in their minds. Jury’s still out on that one.

“Guys, come on! We’re gonna be late if you guys don’t hurry up.”

The party made their way to the freshman locker hallway, rushing to dump half their books into their lockers to lighten their backpacks and go over last night's homework. They were all walking while discussing that day’s quiz in geometry, when suddenly, they all stopped.

Standing at Mike’s locker like nothing was different, was Matt Jackson. The Matthew Freaking Jackson. Matt Jackson was a junior at Hawkins High. He was the captain of their swim team and lead in all the school’s drama productions. All the guys wanted to be his friend and all the girls wanted to be his girlfriend. To say he was popular was an understatement. And there he was, leaning against Mike’s locker, in his letterman jacket, looking like the coolest guy in Hawkins.

“Guys, what the hell? Why did you just stop short?” Mike asks, clearly annoyed.

“Mike, why in the world is Matt Jackson standing at your locker?” Lucas asks in awe.

Mike looks away from his friends to what they were staring at. As soon as he saw Matt, a huge smile broke out on his face. Without so much as a second glance, Mike threw a quick “see you later” to his friends and ran over to his locker.

“Matt!” Mike exclaimed, a huge smile on his face.

“Hey, Mike! What’s up, man. How was your weekend? Go to any crazy bangers?” Matt asks, knowing full well that Mike spent his weekend holed up in Hoppers cabin, listening to mixtapes and writing D&D campaigns.

“Oh yeah, a huge rager. Some sophomore fell through the roof and the cops had to break up a fight between three guys and a hitchhiker. Shoulda been there, Matt!” Mike responds back with a smile.

They did that. They make up these elebort stories of each other’s weekends that they both know aren’t true. It was there thing and Mike wouldn’t trade it for anything.

“You’ll have to invite me next time! You know I’d never get in without you!” Matt responds, his eyes sparkling.

“You know, I really need help with my health project. I can’t figure out this unit at all. Do you think you can help me? I have fifth period free…” Mike says, him and Matt lock eyes.

“I think I can help you with that. Anatomy can be really confusing. Speaking of health, we should head over there now. Don’t want to miss my favorite class of the day.” Matt says, throwing a wink at Mike that thankfully, no one else sees.

Matt’s good like that, he knows how to make people see what he wants them to, and not see what he wants to keep hidden. Mike wishes he could do that.

Behind them, Max, Lucas, Will, and Dustin all stand stunned. El simply opened her locker and placed her books neatly inside.

“Am I the only one seeing this?” Dustin asks.

“Matt Jackson. Is talking to our Mike Wheeler. In the middle of the hallway. Like it’s completely normal.” Lucas responds.

“I am so lost.” Max adds.

“Since when did they even know each other, nevermind talk?” Will asks.

“They’ve been friends since the beginning of the year. Didn’t you know?” El asks, nonchalantly.

“Uh, No! We didn’t know that! Six months! They’ve been friends for six damn months and neither of you decided to say anything?” Lucas responds, exasperated.

“They had to do a project together for Health class in September. Now they do all their projects together. Sometimes he comes to the cabin and they work on homework before Hopper gets home.” El says.

The Party is shocked. Matt Jackson is actually friends with not just a freshman, but one of the biggest losers in the freshman year? Sure, they love Mike, he’s their paladin for christ’s sake. But in regards to the social food chain at Hawkins High, the party was as low as it gets. Sure, El was a bit higher up then them with her being one of the best flyers on the varsity cheerleading squad, but her refusing to leave the party behind meant that even she was low on the totem pole.

“I just can’t believe that neither of you told us! This is such a conspiracy!” Dustin yelled, eliciting groans from all Party members.

“Dude, enough with the damn conspiracies already!” Lucas yelled.

“Just because you refuse to see the truth-”

“Not everything is the damn Kennedy Assassination!” Max added.

“Oh, come on Sheepeople! Open your eyes!” Dustin yelled back, causing everyone to groan again.

“That’s it. I’m going to class before I seriously have a brain aneurysm.” Lucas says, throwing his hands up and walking away.   

“Whatever!” Dustin called after Lucas.

Max then turned to El, a curious look on her face.

“Is it just me or were they flirting?” Max asked.

“What?” Dustin asked, completely lost.

“Mike’s your boyfriend isn’t he?” she asked El.

“Yeah! They’re just friends, Max.”

Just then the bell rang, cutting the conversation off.  

“See you guys later.” El said, making her way to her class, Max walking with her.

“You and Mike aren’t together anymore, are you?” Max asked, looking over at El.

El bit her lip, looking over and nodding a little.

“How did you know?” she asked, confused.

“I could tell. You two don’t act the same around each other. It’s definitely more platonic than anything. Plus Matt? There’s something between the two of them, that’s obvious.”

“Is it that obvious?” el said.

“Well, to me it is, I don’t think so to the boys. They can be a bit dense sometimes for nerds. But matt? I think there’s something weird going on with that situation.” max said, smiling

“Let’s just hurry and get to class so we aren’t late” El says, not wanting to continue the conversation.

By the time they got to class, Mike and Matt had already been sitting in theirs. Throughout the class, Mike would glance over at Matt and smile. Matt caught him a few times, smiling back as they worked on their project.

Mike had to admit, he really liked matt, they’d had a thing for about a month. Just before Mike came out to his parents. Matt had no idea about him hurting himself, sure the two of them had kissed before, but it never got further-mike was fifteen for fucks sakes. It wasn’t like he even wanted to do anything like that. But Mike couldn’t help but feel that something was wrong. Matt was a junior, Mike only a freshman. Everyone knew his reputation with the girls at Hawkins, he had experience. But he hasn’t even mentioned that kind of thing to Mike.  

Mike must’ve spaced out, getting too far in his head, pressing his fingernails into his palms. Just as class was nearing its end, Matt turned to mike, snapping him out of his head.

“Hey, Mike? How about you meet me behind the arcade today after school, if that’s alright?” Matt asks, smiling.

Today was the day that they would rat out mike to the whole school, which would end up being the whole town. He tried not to show his nerves to the younger boy.

Mike, oblivious to what was planned, smiled and nodded

“Yeah! Yeah definitely” He said as the bell rang

“See ya later, Mikey.” Matt said, standing up and leaving the classroom.

Mike stood there with the biggest smile on his face that he’s had in forever, completely oblivious.

--------------------------

Mike thought he was going to go crazy watching the clock. It would feel like ten minutes and went by. But when he would look at the clock, less than three had actually had passed. But, after what felt like an eternity, the bell rang and Mike could finally leave.

Mike sprang out of his seat in his freshman english class and sprinted to his locker, not caring about knocking into other students. He dumped all his books into his backpack, not bothering to organize them. He shut his locker while simultaneously jamming his arm into the sleeve of Hopper’s old jean jacket from when he was in high school. He didn’t realize the rest of the party made there way to their lockers until they called out to him.

“Jesus, Mike, what’s with the rush?” Max asks, exchanging her books.

“What, you got a date?” Lucas asks in a joking tone.

“No, I don’t think so.” El responds calmly.

“Gotta work on a project with Matt! See you guys later!” Mike yelled as he ran past the party.

“Sometimes he can be so weird…” Lucas says, shaking his head.

Dustin and Max nod their heads, but El and Will watch Mike run through the hall. Both thinking similar things, but keeping them to themselves.

Mike didn’t have his bike anymore, being left at his house a month ago. So, he had to walk to the arcade from the high school. It wasn’t that bad a walk, only a mile and a half. The walk to the cabin was even worse, but usually Steve gave everyone a ride during his break. Best part was that it was in his new police cruiser (even though it was technically shared).

Mike busied himself on the walk over by thinking about Matt. He smiled at the memory of the first time they talked.

Mike had been the only freshman in his health class, since it was open to kids from all grades. He hadn’t talk to anybody, and when the teacher told them to find partners, he’d been totally lost. But then, Matt pulled his desk over and offered to be his partner. Matt had been so nice and funny and actually talked to Mike. Matt asked about his classes and his friends and how was his freshman year.

Over the next five months, Mike developed a huge crush on Matt. He didn’t treat Mike like some annoying freshman or little kid. He was kind and helpful. They’d been studying for a test the first time they kissed. Mike remembered being so excited as the kiss was happening. But as soon as Matt pulled away, a lazy smile plastered on his face, Mike cried. When Mike was kicked out, Matt had held him. When Mike got so stressed out he felt like he couldn’t breathe, Matt rubbed his back and told him stupid jokes.

Sure, they’d only been a “thing” for a month now, but Mike was starting to think he might just love Matt. He was thinking maybe he should tell Matt that. Matt was always the one to make the first move, to push them a little farther. Maybe, it should be Mike’s turn. Valentine’s Day was only a week away and he was planning to get him something nice. He couldn’t really afford much, but he had some birthday and christmas money saved up and thought he could get Matt something to show him how much he appreciated him.

When he entered the alley, Mike didn’t see Matt, which was odd. Matt had a car, so he should’ve gotten there first. Mike walked a bit deeper into the alley, before he realized it was too dark back there for him to see, even though they still had a couple hours of daylight left.

“Matt? Matt, are you there?” Mike calls, trying not to be too loud that someone walking down the street could here. It wasn’t a popular block, but they could never be too careful.

“Matt?” Mike called again, and spun around quickly when he heard a metal can knock over.

There at the opening to the alley, was Matt. Next to him, a trash can filled with half-eaten, greasy arcade food was spilled over on its side.

“Geez, Matty, you scared the crap out of me.” Mike said, bending over and clutching his chest in an attempt to even his breathing.

“Sorry, Mikey, I just wanted to surprise you.” Matt said with a sheepish look on his face.

“It’s alright, I’m just glad you’re here.” Mike says with a smile, leaning against the cold brick wall of the Palisades Arcade.

The signature lazy smile that Matt constantly wore around Mike was back. Matt walts over to where Mike was, holding Mike’s cheek in one hand, the other leaning against the wall. Instead of kissing Mike right away, he just looked at him. He stared at Mike’s cold cheeks as if any second, Mike would fade away. Mike’s face screwed up in confusion.

“What’s wrong? Is there something on my face?” Mike asked, but before he could pull away, Mat kissed him softly.

“Nothing’s wrong. Can’t I just look at you?” Matt responded, but his face still held this weird emotion that Mike couldn’t quite decipher.

“Why would you want to?” Mike asks.

“Because, you’re cute.” Matt responds, but his voice is off. Mike writes it off as nerves due to being in public.

“I think I might love you.” Mike says and Matt looks like a fish out of water.

“Mike, I-I…” Matt starts, but instead cuts himself off and simply kisses Mike.

Matt kisses Mike with heat and passion and fury and Mike can just feel all the words that Mike can’t say. The kiss, it’s obvious that Matt is saying “I love you too”, even if he can’t with his words.

They keep kissing each other, the kiss full of heat and passion. Matt kisses Mike hard, and in the back of Mike’s mind, he’s sure that his lips will bruise. Matt’s hand travels from Mike’s cheek to his hair, burying his fingers in Mike’s curls. Matt pulls on his hair, causing Mike to moan. Matt uses this as an opportunity to push his tongue in and lick into Mike’s mouth. Mike’s own arms are wound around Matt’s neck, pulling him impossibly closer. Matt’s other hand travels down Mike’s waist, and Matt pulls them roughly towards him. But Mike doesn’t think much of it, they’d made out before and Mike trusts him. Mike does, however, reacts much differently when Matt shoves his hands under Mike’s jeans.

Mike pulls away, trying to pull Matt’s hang away.

“Matt! What are yo-” Mike starts, but Matt’s lips are on his in a second.

“Sh, baby, you like it right?” Matt asks and Mike flushes a dark red.

Mike didn’t know how to respond. Sure, it felt good, but they’d never done anything like that before and he didn’t really think he was ready for that just yet. He was only fifteen and they’d only been together a short amount of time, and they were in public for god’s sake.

Mike tries to pull away again.

“Matt, I don’t th-” Mike tries to say but Matt silences him with a kiss again, squeezing him harder.

“Sh, baby.” Matt says and kisses Mike again.

Mike starts to panic. He doesn’t really know what to do. He doesn’t know how to tell Matt he’s not ready and to stop. He’s embarrassed and just realizing how alone he is in the darkening alley, and he doesn’t know what to do.

Before Mike could even think of what to do, a bright flash went off to his right. Mike pulls away again and whips his head around. It’s dark and he can’t see well all the way to the from of the alley. Suddenly, Matt drops him like he was scalding hot and backs up. It’s then that Mike hears the laughter. Loud, angry laughter assaults his ears. Not just the laughter of one person, but a whole group of people.

Suddenly ten people step towards them and Mike can feel his heart stop. There in front of him, were six boys from the Boy’s Varsity Swim Team and four of their girlfriends. They were all standing there, laughing viciously at him as if he were an attraction at a roadside freak show.

“It’s-It’s not what it looks like!” Mike exclaims, causing them all to laugh harder, like he’d told the best joke they’d ever heard.

“Sure, Wheeler. Try to deny it!” One of the boys, Mike thinks he’s a senior named Chris, mocks.

“Really, we were-”

“Face it, Freak, we saw everything! You can’t hide that you were getting hard to making out with a guy like some fag!” A blonde girl named Amanda, who used to be friends with Nancy in middle school, spat.

“No! You do-”

“No, you don’t know! You think this was all some freak accident? You think you actually managed to grab the most popular guy in Hawkins? That he’d go homo for you? Are you that stupid?” Another junior named Danny, who was also in his health class, yelled.

Mike could feel the tears welling in his eyes, but he refused to cry. This was his worst nightmare come true. Not only did someone catch them, but the entire thing is blowing up in his face.

“I don’t understand!” Mike pleaded, voice tight from unshed tears.

“Try to get it through you’re sick little brain. We saw how in love you were with Matt. We knew you were a fag. We just had to prove it. So Matt got all close to you and you fell for it like a complete idiot. We dared him to make you show yourself, and now we get to show everyone what a sick freak you are! This picture is getting copied and posted all over the school tomorrow, fag.” Amanda yelled, a sick smile on her features.

“M-Matt?” Mike pleaded, hoping the group was lying.

Mike turned away from the group to look at Matt. The boy he loves; thought he loved. Matt wasn’t looking at Mike, but at the group slowly surrounding Mike. He had a sickening smirk on his face. Mike felt all the air get knocked out of his lungs. His heart shattered on the spot. This can’t be happening. This can’t be happening.

“Little fairy practically threw himself at me!” Matt exclaimed, earning another round of cackles.

“Please, you-you can’t show anyone that picture!” Mike begged frantically.

He can’t even imagine the other kids at school seeing a picture of himself with another boy, lips locking and a hand shoved down his pants. His life will be over. Everyone in Hawkins will know his secret, know who he is. Oh god, his friends! Max, Will, Lucas, El,  and Dustin will all know. Even Steve will know! All his teachers, all the adults of Hawkins will know. Everyone will know.

“Oh no, hundreds of copies of this bad boy will make their way to every kid at Hawkins High. We have to warn them that a sick fag is walking around, spreading his AIDs everywhere.” Another boy Mike doesn’t know the name of says.

Mike knows that he’s crying now. He didn’t have the energy to try and stop the tears. He was terrified. He didn’t know what to do or how to fix this. He didn’t know if he could.

“Before we go, fag, I think we should teach you a lesson. Show you what happens to homos in Hawkins.” One of the boys say, but Mike can’t see who.

“What?” Mike scrambles up off the group.

“Guys, you do-“ Matt starts but is cut off by Chris.

“What, he infect you too, Matt?” Chris asks and Matt freezes.

“No way, man, I’m not a fag!” Matt yells

“Prove it! Let’s give him a lesson he’ll never forget.” Chris screams at Matt, who still looks conflicted.

Mike feels a drop of hope light up inside his chest. Maybe Matt felt it to. Maybe all those times they’d been together, they’d just been Matt-and-Mike.

“Please, Matt.” Mike pleads, tears dripping off his chin.

“Shut up!” Matt yells, finally snapping.

Matt stalks over to Mike, and he can feel the last bit of hope in his chest fizzle out as Matt’s fist winds back and harshly meets the same cheek he’d been holding moments ago. To Mike, it seemed like a lifetime ago.

Before Mike could recover, Matt is gripping him by the collar of Hopper’s jacket, and punching him again. This time, Mike can feel his nose crack and blood start to gush down his face.

As if they had been shocked back to life, the six other boys decided to join in on the fun. Mike can’t see where the four girls went, but he think he hears one of them say they can’t stand blood.

Two of the boys disappear with the girls, claiming they were gonna keep watch for any nosey arcade workers or annoying kids. The other four boys and Matt then jump on Mike.

He can’t keep track of who was doing what. He tried to fight back, he did. But his dad had never been in a fight in his life, and never taught him how to even throw a punch. He managed to land a punch or kick here or there but it was no match for five older guys with experience.

Mike was getting punched in the face by one guy, kicked in the stomach by two others, kicked in the head by another guy, and being stomped on by the last. The entire time, the group was screaming insults and slurs at him.

Mike just took it and cried. His body hurt so badly, he could barely keep his eyes open. His vision was spotted by black and he knew he was going to pass out. But he fought to stay awake, knowing that if he fell asleep he might not wake up. The ground beneath was wet and sticky, but he can’t remember how it got that.

Mike’s body is in so much pain, he can’t actually differentiate it all. All his mind can think is “pain pain pain pain” and he can’t tell if his hand is broken or if his face is bleeding. He has no idea what his injuries are like. He cries out in pain with each hit, his body reacts, but he can’t actually figure out what’s happening. It’s like the connection between his mind and his body was severed and now he’s just floating on a cloud of hurt.

After what feels like more than a lifetime, but the actual time Mike can’t figure out, the flurry of hits and kicks and stomps slowed to a stopped. Mike hadn’t noticed he’d closed his eyes. He didn’t try to open them, everything hurt too damn much for him to even think about moving. Mike hears footsteps running away, but it’s a voice that shocks him the most.

“Sorry it had to be this way, Mikey.” Matt says, and Mike just wails harder.

He doesn’t remember much after that point because he finally lost consciousness due to the pain.

---------------------

“Guys he has to be around here somewhere, he can’t have just disappeared.” Will said.

“There’s something up with whatever that was with Matt. I don’t trust it.” He continued.

“You don’t trust anything when it comes to people being nice to us. But you’re right, it seems...weird” Lucas added

“He could be dead in an alley somewhere...” He mumbles, Max smacks his arm.

“Alley! Maybe he’s in the alley behind the arcade? We saw a few people over that way earlier” Dustin said apprehensively.

“What if something bad happened?” El added, looking at the others. Everyone went quiet then, until they got to the alley way.

“I think i see someone down there!” Will said, running down the alley, the others tentatively following him.

“Mike?” will said, his voice borderline hysterical.

He rushed closer to him, almost immediately pulling Mike to him. He was covered in blood, he wasn’t moving and he was so much paler than he normally was. If will didn’t see and feel the very slight rise and fall of his chest he would think he was dead.

“Mike? Mike, oh my god, what happened? Wake up!” Will yelled, El dropping down in front of them as well, both of them holding on to him trying to get him to wake up.

Max, Dustin and Lucas were off to the side, frozen, they didn’t know what the fuck to do.

“I-I’m going to go get Hopper, he’ll know how to help.” El said, standing up and taking off towards the police station.

Will was still trying to get Mike to open his eyes, trying to stop wherever the bleeding was coming from in the process.

“What the fuck could’ve happened?” Dustin said, the rest of them dropping down next to Will, finally snapping out of it.

None of them had any idea what to do, they’d never had to deal with anything this bad before.

“I think-I think I have an idea.” Max said, even she herself was hysterical at this point.

“Mike and Matt, they had a thing, I knew something was going to happen with this.” She said

“Wait, what?” Lucas said

“I thought him and El were together?” Max shook her head.

“Not for awhile, I asked El about it. Mike and Matt have had a thing since before Mike’s parents kicked him out because he’s Bi.”

“Well we knew that part, but holy shit.” Dustin said.

“They’re good at faking it then-”

“Stop! We have something more important than who he’s with going out with!” Will said, and everyone stopped

All of them were crying by this point, trying to get Mike to wake up. Give them any sign he was alive. Just when they were losing hope, Mike started moving, slowly opening his eyes.

“W-What?” Mike mumbled.

He had no idea what was happening, or who was holding him.

“N-No! No! Get away from me! Don’t touch me!” He started screaming.

Will tried to calm him down, holding him tight to his chest, brushing his curly hair back

“Mike, Mike, it’s okay, it’s me, it’s Will! We aren’t gonna hurt you, calm down!” Will said, over and over, trying to calm him down.

Mike finally calmed down, but he was sobbing and clinging onto Will, breathing heavily. Will held him as close as possible. Lucas, Dustin and Max surrounding them, all trying to help in someway.

-----------------------------

El was running as fast as she possibly could, straight into the station. She went right past everyone. Past Flo yelling a “you can’t go back there!”, straight into Hopper’s office. Hopper looked up as soon as the door opened to El screaming. She was covered in blood that wasn’t her own, leading hopper to think that someone was dead.

“El, what the hell happened” He asked, standing up

“I-It’s Mike! He’s hurt, r-real real bad!”  She managed out through her crying.

Hopper’s eyes widened.

“Did someone else hurt him? Or-Or did he do it himself?” Hopper asked, adding the last part quietly.

El shook her head, “Someone else. His h-head and he’s just hurt we have to go.” el said, pulling on Hopper’s hand.

“Where are we even going?” Hopper asked, getting in the car and swiftly pulling out of the lot. He was panicking himself

“A-Alley. Behind the arcade.” El said

“Hurry, he’s really really hurt.” She said, trying to get Hopper to go faster.

“I’m going as fast as I can!” He shouted, he didn’t mean to shout, but he was just trying to get to mike as fast as he could

“Is anyone there with him?”

“Lucas, Max, Dustin, and Will stayed there with him.” El said, she still hadn’t managed to stop crying.

When they got there, El was out of the car before it was even stopped. Hopper followed soon after, not even shutting the door.

“Mike!” Hopper said, going down the alley to where they were.

Mike was still clinging to Will, still sobbing into his neck.

“What happened?” Hopper barked, kneeling next to Mike.

“W-We don’t know! We just found him like this back here! We knew something was wrong. We knew it! But we didn’t know it was like this!” Lucas yells, trying to hide the tears falling down his face.

“Where is he bleeding?” Hopper asks, pulling off his uniform jacket and balling it up.

“I-I think it’s from his head! It’s all over the place!” Will yells and Hopper can see the blood staining his front.

“Okay, Dustin and Lucas, go to the station and go right to Steve tell him to call an ambulance to the arcade. Then tell him the send all the officers here!”

“B-But M-“ Dustin starts, both clearly not wanting to leave their friends side.

“Go! I’ve got him!” Hopper yells.

“Mike, kid, talk to me!” Hopper yells to the sobbing but dozing kid.

Mike was exhausted and scared and hurt. All he wants to do is go to sleep. He clutches onto Will, letting his eyes slip shit until a familiar booming voice makes him open them again.

“Mike! Kid, you can’t go to sleep! Talk. To. Me.” Hopper barks, and Mike slowly opens his eyes.

“Hopper?” Mike asks, unsure if he’s dreaming.

“Yeah, it’s me kid. You’re okay now. I got you.” Hopper says, and Mike starts sobbing again.

“I didn’t see them! They weren’t supposed to be there. I didn’t see them!” Mike sobs out, making Hopper furrow his brows.

“Who, Mike? Who didn’t you see?” Hopper asked.

“I didn’t see them! I didn’t see them. I didn’t see them!” Mike was hysterical.

“Who is he talking about?” Hopper asks Will but Will just shakes his head.

“I don’t know! He just keeps saying that he didn’t see them. I don’t know!” Will was getting frantic, Hopper took a deep breath.

These kids may have gone through some heavy shit he would have never even thought of at there age, but they were still kids. He was the only adult in the situation.

“Okay, that’s okay, Will. Take a deep breath.” Hopper said firmly and Will followed suit.

“Mike, it’s okay. We’re gonna find who did this. Now keep your eyes open, okay. Help is coming soon.” Hopper said, quickly glancing to the alley opening in search of officers or paramedics or something.

“I’m so tired, Hop. It hurts.” Mike can barely keep his swollen eyes open.

Hopper could hardly stand the sight of Mike. His injuries were so graphic and looked so out of place on someone so young. Most of his face was swollen and purple and bloody. But he couldn’t think about that. Because if he thought about that, than he’d get angry. An Angry Hopper would be of no use right now. That’s for later.

“No! Mike stay awake! You’re so close.” Hopper begged as Mike’s eyes slipped closed again.

Mike didn't open his eyes, and Hopper felt something ugly swell in his chest. Before he could think of what to do, Will reacted.

“Mike, wake up!” Will screamed before slapping Mike across the face, hard.

It worked and Mike’s eyes opened again.

“Will?”

“I’m right here, Mike. I’m right here.” Will responded, trying to keep himself from getting hysterical.

“Where the hell are they?” Hopper growled.

“Max, you need to go to the opening of the alley so they can find us. Flag them down if you have to.” Hopper orders but Max looks conflicted.

“I-I-“ But Hopper stops her.

“Max, he needs help. This is how you help him. Go!” Hopper orders and this time she sprints to the street.

“Is he gonna die?” El asks quietly, and Hopper and Will’s heads snap to her.

They almost forgot she was standing there. She had fat tears rolling down her face, mixing with the blood. She looked terrified. She’d never seen something like this. Never seen someone she loved hurt so badly.

“No! You hear me? He’s not going to die!” Hopper yelled but El kept crying.

“I taste… I taste metal.” Mike says in a dazed expression.

“There’s blood in your mouth.” El responds.

“I love roses. They’re so pretty. Do you smell them too?” Mike asks, looking out of focus at the dark sky ahead of him.

“What is he talking about? Will asks, confused.

“I don’t know…” Hopper responds, just as confused.

“I feel fuzzy…” Mike says slowly before his eyes roll back into his head.

“Shit!” Hopper yells, just realizing what this was.

Hopper pulls Mike out of Will’s grip and onto his side just as his muscles start to jerk and tense.

“What is happening?” Will screams.

“He’s having a seizure. Back up or you can hurt him!” Hopper yells.

Will, Hopper, and El all held their breath, waiting for the seizure to end. After a few minutes it did, his breathing slowly evened out.

“Is it over…?” Will asked after a few minutes, his voice quiet.

“Yeah, yeah I think so.” Hopper mumbled, moving towards him carefully. It took a few minutes but Mike came to eventually, still struggling to keep his eyes open.

“Hey, hey, Mike you have to keep your eyes open okay?” Hopper said.

“The ambulance will be here soon.”

“I’m sleepy though, Hop” Mike said, his voice heavy, his eyes drooping, almost completely closing

“I know kid, but you have to keep them open, okay?” Mike just hummed in response.

Just then the ambulance pulled up, 4 different EMTs coming down the alleyway, taking Mike to be loaded into the ambulance.

Steve wasn’t far behind, rushing down the alley as well.

“What the hell happened?” he said, obviously out of breath.

“I have no idea, but we’re going to figure it out. But you stay with the kids, I’m going in the ambulance with Mike.”

“But hop-” Steve started, only to be cut off by Hopper.

“No buts, stay here and make sure the kid are okay, take them back to my cabin. I’ll call there in case anything happens.” Hopper said, Steve sighed but nodded

“Yeah, alright, should I tell Nancy?”

Hopper thought about that one for a second before nodding, “Yes. Now get the kids, i’ll go with Mike.”

With that, he was off and in the ambulance, speeding off to the hospital.

“Is Mike going to be okay?” Will asked.

“He was having a seizure! What if he’s not okay?! Steve what do we do?” Will said, hysterical, and steve could tell by looking at the others they thought the same thing.

“Will calm down. Mike’s a tough kid, he’ll be alright. Now do you have any idea who could’ve done this?” Steve asked.

All 5 of the kids looked at each other before nodding, “Matt Jackson, we knew something was up with them, it seemed wrong. That’s the only thing that we can think of its-” Steve cut Dustin off.

“Okay, we’ll deal with him too. For now we’re going to head back to Hopper’s cabin and wait for anything from Hopper alright?”

“But Steve-” Lucas started.

“No, we aren’t going after him right now. If we do it won’t help any, we have to be more worried about Mike right now.” steve said “Now, go get in the car so we can get to the cabin.”

The ride back was silent, none of them saying a word. What would they say? What could they say? They’ve never been in this situation. Mike was their paladin, the dungeon master, their leader. Now he was in an ambulance fighting for his life.

Lucas didn’t know what to do. This was Mike, one of his best friends. The first kid to ever stick up for him when Troy called him “midnight”. The first kid to really be his friend. Mike was always the one he could complain about his annoying sister. He was the one who Lucas could ask any question, no matter how embarrassing or shameful or stupid. What would he do?

Dustin couldn’t even think of what to think. His mind was blank. All he could see was that sick image of Mike out cold in a puddle of his own blood. His face all splotchy with purple and swollen. The fingers of his left hand was twisted at odd angles and bloody. His breathing was short and raspy. When they found Mike, Dustin really thought that he was dead. It was like when Will’s “body” was pulled out of the Quarry, except this time it wasn’t a secret government cover-up. It was real. When Lucas and himself ran to the station to get Steve, it felt like he was running in slow-mo. He���d run up to Steve frantic, screaming about the alley behind the arcade.

Will was just stuck. Mike was one of his best friends, his first friend. From the day Mike asked Will to be his friend, they were so close. Seeing Mike like that, so pale, more so than he usually is, terrified Will. Mike was barely breathing properly, his head busted, his blood pooling underneath him. He had to see Mike have a seizure. The boy he’s had a crush on since he knew what the word meant. He prayed to every god, or whatever higher power, that Mike would be okay. That he would live. He didn’t know what he would do without him.

Max wasn’t quite sure what to think. She’d only known Mike about 2 years. She wasn’t as close to him as Will, Dustin and Lucas were. But hell, she was still terrified, Mike had become a good friend to her. Sure, he had been rude in the beginning, but he’d apologized. Him, and the rest of the party, were there for her with her asshole, abusive brother. It seemed like he was always there for all of them, he kept everyone on track, made sure everyone was okay. But it had her thinking that maybe they didn’t do the same thing.

Blood. So much blood. He was covered in blood. El had seen blood before. She’s seen her own blood before. She’s seen the blood of the bad men. But seeing Mike’s blood, all over him, all over Will, all over the alley floor, all over her. Sure, she’d seen him bleed when he fell off his bike last month after he hit a pothole and scraped his knee. She’d seen him bleed when he fell down the stairs to the basement of his house and his elbow was bleeding. She’d seen him bleed when Troy threw a volleyball at his head in gym class and broke his nose. But that. All that blood. He was shaking. He looked like Will did when he was possessed. Hopper called it a seizure. She’s never seen someone she loved so hurt, not even Mama. It was terrifying.

Steve could feel the tension, like a dark cloud hanging over all of them. He had only seen the kid for a second, but it was still so hard for him. Nevermind the kids. He sighed, he still had to tell Nancy. As soon as they got in the cabin, Steve was on the phone calling Nancy. It rang and rang until it went to voicemail.

“C’mon Nance, answer the fucking phone...” he mumbled, dialing again.

She answered on the second try. Steve sighed with relief.

“Hello, this is Nancy.”

“Thank god!” Steve responded, thanking God that he didn’t have to leave this to an answering machine.

“Steve? What’s up? Shouldn’t you be at work?” Nancy asks, confused.

“I was, but this isn’t really a leisure call.” Steve starts but Nancy cuts him off.

“Is everything okay? Did something happen at work?” Nancy asks, voice flooded with worry and Steve almosts smiles.

“Well, yes. But not to me, Nancy.” Steve says, and there’s a pause.

“Did something happen to Mike? Is he okay?” She asks; Steve can hear the panic in her voice.

“Yeah, we’re not quite sure what happened yet. But, he’s been hurt, Nancy. Something to do with Matt Jackson, you know him?” Steve responds, wishing he could be saying anything else.

“Jesus, how bad is it? Is he there? Where’s Hopper?” She asked all at once, scared to hear the answer.

“Uh, no, he’s not here. He was taken to the hospital in an ambulance. We don’t really know how bad it is yet. Hopper is gonna call when he knows more.” Steve explained, barely able to get the words out.

“What,” Nancy whispered. “Please tell me this is some sick joke. Please tell me he’s okay.” Her voice was heavy, like she was holding back tears.

“I-I’m so sorry, Nance, I wish I knew more. I wish I could do more.” Steve says,

“The kids and I are down at Hopper’s cabin, do you want me to come get you when Hopper calls?”

Nancy didn’t say anything for a minute. Steve would have thought she’d hung up if it wasn’t for her shaky breathing.

“Yes, please. Joyce and Jonathan are still at work.”

“I’ll head over to the Byers’ as soon as Hopper calls.”

“Thanks, Steve.” With that, she hung up.

“Steve, can I call my mom?” Will asks quietly, startling Steve.

The kids have never been this quiet. They were always laughing and bickering and just loud. Now the only sounds they were making were sniffles and sobs. It was extremely unsettling and Steve wished he could make them smile or laugh at at least send them into some nerd lecture about how “Leia totally could have replaced Luke as the new hope for the resistance, Steve! How did my sister even date you!”. Steve winces at the memory. Too soon.

Behind him, Will dials the number for Melville's Store, where his mom was working till closing. It rang twice before his mom answers.

“Melville’s, Joyce speaking, how can I help you?” Joyce responds in a fake cheery voice she only uses in the store.

“M-Mom?” Will responds, his terrified tone breaking Joyce’s heart.

“Will? Baby, is that you?” Joyce says, and she’s reminded so much of two years ago.

“Mom, something bad happened.” Will starts sobbing into the phone, startling Joyce.

“What’s wrong? Are you okay?” Joyce is trying to stay calm, but ever instinct in her is telling her to run to Will.

“No. No, I’m not hurt. It’s Mike, Mom.” Will responds in between sobs.

“Okay baby, take some deep breaths. Tell me what happened.”

“W-We went looking for Mike. He was working on a project with some older kid, but it was arcade night. He never misses arcade night,”

“We went looking for him. W-We found him behind the arcade. Mom, there was so much blood! He was bleeding and crying and he-he had a seizure! Now he’s in the hospital and I don’t know what to do!” Will is sobbing again, clutching the phone like a lifeline.

Joyce lets out a shocked gasp. She doesn’t understand how this could happen. She didn’t even fully understand what happened.

“Baby, I’m coming to get you right now. Where ar-” Joyce started, already putting on her coat but Will stops her.

“No, it’s okay. We’re with Steve at the cabin. Can-Can you just meet us at the hospital when you can?” Will asks, watching Lucas start to examine the cabin.

“Okay. I can do that. As soon as I can lock up, I’ll be there. You hold in tight, Will.” Joyce says, reluctant to leave him alone.

“Okay, Mom. Love you.”

“Love you too. I’ll see you so soon.” Joyce says and Will hangs up.

“El, what the hell is this?” Lucas says, face darkening with anger, holding up Mike’s partially filled duffle bag.

El looks up, widening her eyes, Will, Dustin and Max turning to see what was happening.

“Isn’t that Mike duffle bag?” Will asked, confused.

“El what the fuck?” Dustin asked.

“I um, well about that, its a long, complicated story.” she said, biting at her lip nervously.

“Mike has been living here! What else could there be! Does Hopper even know?” Lucas said, raising his voice.

“Whoa Lucas, chill out! It’s something Mike or Hopper will have to tell you. It has nothing to do with El.” Steve said

“You know too?! Why are we the only ones who don’t know!” Lucas said, right as the phone started ringing. Steve picked it up immediately.

“Hopper?”

“Yeah, yeah it’s me kid. Is everyone okay over there?” He asked

“Yeah, we’re fine, Lucas is flipping out because he found Mike’s duffle, and he doesn’t know why. He thought El had something to do with it.” Steve explained. Hopper let out a sigh

“Alright, put the kid on the phone.”

Steve handed Lucas the phone, the latter hesitantly holding it up to his ear.

“H-Hello?” he said, nervous.

“Look, kid, El had nothing to do with Mike staying there. He’s been staying about a month.” Lucas cut him off

“A month? What the f-”

“Let me finish. Anyway, he’s been staying there a month. He came out as Bi to his parents and they kicked him out. I’m guessing that’s also why this happened… the kid’s depressed Lucas. That’s probably why he didn’t tell you anything about it. While we’re here I’m going to try if i can get him help or something.” Lucas was at a loss, one of his best friends was kicked out of his house for something so stupid.

“You can go ahead and tell the others, give Steve the phone back so I can tell him what’s going on with Mike.” Hopper said, without saying another word, Lucas handed Steve back the phone.

“What happened Lucas?” will asked frowning

“Mike uh, Mike got kicked out of his house. He’s been staying here for a month. He told his parents he’s bi and they kicked him out. Hopper said that’s probably why this happened too. That he probably didn’t tell us because he’s, uh, Mike’s depressed is what Hopper said.” Lucas said, rushing everything out.

“He said that he’s gonna try and get him to get help.”

“That-that explains a lot” will said, biting his lip

“What do you mean?” Lucas asked

“Well, the way he acts, kinda uninterested a lot of the time? How we haven’t been to Mikes, well I guess it’s not his house anymore, for a month? It makes more sense now” Will says, a look of guilt all over his face.

“Depressed… He’s really… He’s really depressed?” Lucas asks, but his tone tells them he already knows the answer. No one responds.

“I mean, he’s always been sensitive and emotional, but depressed. That’s just so big…” Lucas continues, cracking his knuckles.

“He’s like a... ghost?” El adds, trying to find the right word.

“What do you mean?” Max asks, confused.

“He’s not the same. He’s been a sad for a long time. But, it’s been different. He sleeps a lot. He’ll come home and just sleep till the next day. He won’t even eat most days. He walks around silent, like he’s somewhere else up here.” El taps her temple.

“Jesus, he should have told us.” Dustin says, visibly hurt.

“He doesn’t want to bother us. He hates not being in control, he’s too stubborn. He’s the leader, if he can’t take care of himself, he think he can’t lead us.” Will replies.

“This isn’t the presidency, we’re his friends. He can always come to us!” Dustin barks back.

“That’s enough!” Steve yells, startling the kids.

“Get your things, we’re going to the hospital. We need to get Nancy so hurry your asses up!” Steve orders and the kids spring into action rather than continue this discussion.

Steve let out a long sigh, pinching his nose. He’d just finished talking to Hopper and got most of the story on how Mike was. It was worse than it seemed at the scene. The scene, Jesus, that was a term he used for random crimes that they investigated, not for his friends. But this was a crime. Mike didn’t get beaten to a bloody pulp by the trash cans in the alley. Someone did this to him.

The ride to the Byers’ house was quiet. None of the kids knew what to say. None of them had a way with words, to make the hopeless seem full of hope. That was always Mike’s thing. So they all just sat in silence, stewing in their own thoughts and memories.

When they pulled up to the Byers’ house, Steve just honked and waited for Nancy to come out. He’d go out to get her, but he didn’t think leaving the kids in the running car by themselves was a good idea. Last time they had access and a party member was in trouble, they had a fourteen year old drive at eighty miles per hour.

Nancy ran out from the house and jumped into the passenger seat. Her normally perfectly set curly hair was disheveled on her left side, most likely from pulling it. Her face was red and splotchy around her eyes, but her face was set into a harsh glare. If you didn’t see the red around her eyes, you’d just think she was pissed off. Her hands were clasped tightly in her lap, her knuckles were white.

Sometimes, it was easy for the party to forget that Mike and Nancy were siblings. Yeah, they sure as hell bickered like siblings, but they had completely different personalities. Mike was open with his emotions, if he was angry or sad or hurt, it was written all over him the second he felt it. He was a lot like his mom like that. Nancy, on the other hand, was much more like their father. She was closed off with her emotions, didn’t let anyone see them unless she didn’t have a choice. If something was said that really hurt them, Mike wouldn’t hesitate to cry right then and there. Nancy would wear a nasty glare until she could be alone to cry.

But, they were also the same. They were both stubborn to the point where you thought your head was going to explode. They both would do literally anything for who they loved, even if it meant risking their lives. They won’t stop until they know the truth. They love so fiercely and so genuinely that it was practically blind. They both were lefties. They both tug on their hair when they’re stressed. They both crinkle their noses when they smiled, like really smiled. They both snorted when they laughed. They both picked at their cuticles. They can both wiggle their ears. They both know every word to Blackbird by The Beatles because it was their mom’s favorite. Sometimes it was easy for the party to see that Nancy and Mike were siblings.

No one said anything the entire twenty minute ride to the hospital. Not even a hello to Nancy, nothing. But, as soon as they stepped foot into the ER waiting room and saw Hopper sitting in one of the cheap plastic chairs, they all erupted into conversation and questions.

“He’s going to be okay right? He’s not, he’s not gonna..you know, right?”

“When can we go in and see him?”

“What room is he in?”

“Why the fuck didn't you tell us he was depressed before?”

Hopper sighed, “Alright! that’s enough!” he said, everyone shut up immediately.

“Now, they said we can’t go in just yet. But, you all need to calm the hell down, for his sake.” He continued

“He doesn’t need you all bickering, he just needs you to be there for him. All of you.”

No one knew what to say at first, until El spoke up, “but is he gonna be okay?” She asked softly.

“Yeah, and are they really gonna help him?”

“Yeah, he’s going to be okay, just sore for a while, his hands broken too. They said they would send someone up to talk to him before he leaves,”

“The doctors are going to give him a more in-depth examination and update us with his condition. They said he should be fine though. It could have been way worse.” Hopper says, his voice softer than ever.

No one needed to say what was left out. “It could have been worse was a nicer way” of saying he could have died.

“How long until we can see him?” Nancy asks.

“The doctors will let us know… whenever they finish. Steve we need to talk.” Hopper says, motioning for the two to walk over to the nurse’s station.

The party doesn’t really know what to do, so they sit in the uncomfortable chairs in silence. Dustin’s leg was shaking up and down. Lucas was opening and closing his left fist, Max clutching his right hand tightly. Will lightly scratched his fingernail on the chair’s arm over and over. El twirled one of her wild curls with her index finger. Nancy wrung her hands tightly, her knuckles white and fingers red from the force. They all watched as Hopper and Steve talked in hush voice a few feet away. They were trying to be subtle, but they all knew that the pair was talking about the investigation. The still couldn’t wrap their minds around that. They’ve never faced something like this. This wasn’t a demogorgon or bad men. This was caused by someone they’ve grown up with, someone they’ve known their entire lives.

“Will?” A voice yells from the door and the they all jump.

“Nancy!” Another voice yells.

Joyce and Jonathan Byers come running through the doors to the waiting room. They had their jackets half on and looked as if they ran all the way from Melville’s.

“Mom!” Will yelled jumping up and into the arms of his mom.

“Jonathan.” Nancy breathes out like a sign of relief and practically falls into his arms.

“What happened?” Joyce asks, looking at Hopper who made his way over.

“He was jumped by someone. We’re looking into it.” Hopper answers, giving Joyce a look screaming we’ll talk about it later.  

“Family of Michael Wheeler?” A doctor with long blonde hair calls, the entire party jumps.

“Us! We’re with Mike!” Lucas yells, and everyone scrambles over towards the doctor.

The doctor was obviously thrown off guard, but kept a calm face. She looked back to Mike’s chart clutched in her hands and turned towards Hopper.

“Hello, everyone, my name is Dr. Anne Carter. I’m the head doctor for Michael’s case. Chief Hopper, you brought Michael in via ambulance, correct?” The doctor asks and Hopper nods.

“Very good, you brought him just in time. His injuries aren’t too serious. He mainly has a multitude of contusions and abrasions covering his face and body.” The Dr. Carter starts but is cut off.

“What are those?” El asks, lost.

“They’re just big words that mean cuts and bruises, sweetie.” The Dr. Carter smiles before continuing.

“But, he did have some serious injuries. His right hand, four fingers, and wrist were fractured. We had to give him x-rays and set his arm for a cast. We’re going to have to keep a close eye on it; if it doesn’t set properly, we’ll have to set it surgically with pins. But we hope to avoid it.” The doctor continues.

“Surgery?” Joyce asks.

“It’s a possibility, but we’re hoping that a normal cast will do the trick. Broken bones, especially small ones, are tricky. But, we don’t feel that the strain of surgery is necessary right now.” She responds, Joyce nods.

“Now, after examining his chest, we realized that he has three broken ribs on his left side. We wrapped his ribs, so those will heal as long as Michael rests for a while.”

“What about the seizure? What was that? Will it happen again?” Hopper asks.

“Yes, the seizure was more scary than serious. Patients who lose an certain amount of blood can start to seize, but we have started a series of blood transfusions that have stopped the seizures. The seizures didn’t cause any permanent damage to his brain because of their length.” Hopper nods, he doesn’t fully understand but if she says it’s fine than he trusts her.

“Most of the bleeding, as I’m sure you were aware of, came from the head lac, aka the cut on his head. After a CAT scan, we were sure that he did not have a brain bleed, which is very good news. Typically, head trauma like that from a beating of this magnitude can cause a bleed, but Michael is extremely lucky. However, he did suffer a minor skull fracture.” Dr. Carter is cut off again, this time by Nancy.

“A skull fracture? Is he okay? Is there any brain damage?” Nancy shot the questions at Dr. Carter, but she handled them calmly.

“Yes, he did suffer a small, very minor skull fracture on the right side of his two inches behind the temple. No, there was no brain damage on the CAT scan and his flexes and vital are all normal. You’d be surprised how many skull fractures aren’t serious. Again, we’ve wrapped Michael’s head to compress the fractures and stop the bleeding. The best treatment is for Michael to rest. At the most, he’ll have a minor concussion from the force of the blows to his head.” Nancy gulps but stays quiet.

“We also had to give him a few stitches on his right cheek and left temple, as well as set his broken nose. All in all, his injuries are minor compared to what could have been. We had to place him under sedation for the pain and to help with the healing process. It’s called a medically induced coma, but after a few hours we will ween him off of the medicine and replace it with only morphine. He’ll be awake in a few hours,”

“I am very sorry that this has happened. You all seem to care very much about him. He’ll need all your support during his recovery.” The doctor finishes; everyone in the party was holding back tears.

“When can we see him?” Nancy asks, her normally strong voice feble.

“We’re going to let him rest for a few hours. But as soon as we start to pull him out of the coma, you can start to see him. Talking to him will actually help him wake up faster. Normally we have strict visiting hours and number of people allowed in the room at a time, but since the is a police investigation, the rules can be bent.” The doctor says, giving Hopper a look.

“Thank you so much, Dr. Carter.” Joyce responds.

“Only for the investigation of course.” She replies with a wink.

“We also noticed the cuts on his forearms, they look to be self inflicted. Do any of you know about that?”

Everyone froze, until hopper broke the silence “i know about it yes. I’ve been the one that wrapped his arms since it happened” Hopper said, the doctor nodded

“From that we’ve had to call in a psychiatrist. Which hopper already suggested at first. We will probably end up having him on an medication, depending on what the psychiatrist says” The doctor said.

When the doctor leaves, everyone sits back in their seats. All emotionally drained from talking with the doctor. Mike was hurt. Really hurt. They’d seen it with their own eyes, but to hear it listed off like that made it seem so much worse. Sure, the doctor said they looked worse than they were, but that didn’t make them feel any better. Once again, they sat in utter silence, waiting for the doctor to come back and let them see Mike, none of them brought up the part about the self-inflicted cuts on his arms, saving that conversation for later.

“Mike hates hospitals.” Nancy breaks the silence, startling everyone.  

“Why?” El asks, and Nancy chuckles.

“Has Mike ever told you how he broke his leg when he was seven?” Nancy asks, a small smile gracing her face.

“He told us he fell walking down the stairs.” Dustin answers, making Nancy laugh more.

“Oh no, he didn’t just fall down the stairs, he jumped down the stairs.” Nancy said in between giggles. The others started laughing too.

“Why did he jump?” El asks, still confused.

“Okay, so when Mike was seven, he was really into Superman. Like, he had posters and a cape and an action figure and everything. All he talked about was Superman. Well, me being the nine year old sister that I was, decided it would be funny to convince him that mom and dad found him in a corn field in a spaceship. I thought it would be so funny if he thought he was actually Superman.” Nancy was laughing hard now at the memory.

“How did he believe that!” Lucas exclaims.

“It took two weeks of convincing and Ted’s absent parenting to get him to believe me. Then, one day, he decides to test if he has powers. Since Superman can fly, he decided it would be a great idea to spring down the entire hallway and jump from the top step to ‘force his powers to awaken’ as he put it. Instead, he fell down the stairs and broke his leg.” Everyone was laughing at that point.

“What a nerd!” Max says in between giggles.

“Mom was so mad when she found out why. She made me stay home with him after school every day to keep him company since he couldn’t leave the house. We spent most of the time pushing her buttons.” Nancy take a deep breath, her stomach hurt from laughing.

“Oh, I have a good one!” Dustin exclaims.

“We did this science experiment in 5th grade for the science fair, we made one of those big paper mache volcanoes. Mike had no idea how much baking soda to put into it to make it so it didn’t get everywhere.” Dustin started

“I told him to add way too much when it came to our turn to show the judges. It got everywhere, all over us and the judges and pretty much everyone in a 7 foot radius. Mike was so scared at first, he thought we would get in trouble so he just kept apologizing over and over. In the end we actually ended up with 1st place. His face was the best part though, he was so shocked he thought it was actually not explode,” Dustin said “it was hilarious.”

“I remember that one! When he came home and had it all over him Mom freaked, she thought it was blood!” Nancy said, laughing so hard she starts to snort.

“Okay, but I definitely have the best one!” Max says, already laughing.

“I doubt that!” Lucas says, teasing her.

“Okay, so once Mike, El, and I stopped having this weird frenemy thing and started to be friends, El got into the skateboarding. She thought it was so cool. So I was teaching her and she took to it so quickly. She was a natural! Well, Mike wanted to try it to so they could do it together!” Max says before she has to stop because she’s laughing too hard.

“Oh my god, I remember that! Best week of my life!” Lucas yells, howling with laughter.

“No he didn’t! Mike is the most uncoordinated and unathletic kid in Hawkins!” Nancy yells, wiping tears from her eyes.

“I know! He did so badly. He couldn’t get a single foot on the board without falling. But he was so damn stubborn and get insisting that ‘any day now, I’ll get it’ and finally, after a week, he was able to roll down the sidewalk. Just as he feels like he knows what he’s doing, the board shoots out from under him and pulls a full Charlie Brown!”

“Oh my god, he was so pissed for like, a week after that!” Will says, smiling at the memory.

“Do you remember when he tried to plan Will’s surprise fifteenth birthday party?” Lucas says and everyone bursts into laughter.

“Oh my god, he thought it was the best idea ever, until he accidentally got 5000 cupcakes! How did he even do that!” Dustin laughed

“But you have to admit! At least he tried, I thought it was cute.” will said

“Oh hush, you think everything he does is cute!” Max said, winking at him.

“And when he tried to do the magic tricks? He tried doing card tricks and got it wrong every time!”

Everyone laughed, even as the doctor told them they could finally see him, right up until they got to the door and saw mike.

His entire face was black and blue, he had stitches everywhere, his head wrapped in one bandage, they could see the bandages wrapped around his ribs as well. He was hooked up to so many machines, if he wasn’t so beat up, they would have thought he was just sleeping peacefully.

It was Hopper who sat next to the bed first, all of them tried to be quiet, so they didn’t disturb him. But it seemed Mike felt the presence in the room, his eyes slowly started to open.

“Hey kid… don’t move around too much alright? Three of your ribs are broken.” Hopper started, not sure what to say. Mike just mumbled out a response.

After a few minutes he was finally fully awake, no one said anything until.

“How do you feel?” Nancy asked quietly, Mike just shrugged a little.

“I don’t really know.” Before anyone can say anything else, there’s a knock on the door.

The doctor opened the door, another doctor looking person standing with her as well.

“I hate to say this but everyone needs to leave the room so Michael can talk to the psychiatrist.” the doctor said, mike immediately got nervous, not exactly wanting to be alone.

But everyone left the room anyways, standing just outside the room.

“What do you think they’re gonna say?” Jonathan said, asking Hopper

“They’re probably going to put him on an medication. I told them what happened with the cuts on his arms and with how Mike is right now, I don’t think he’s going to lie about anything.” He said

“What exactly did happen?” nancy asked, probably not wanting to know the answer.

“I didn't find out until a few weeks after he started staying with me. He's been doing it for awhile, a few weeks before Ted kicked him out.”

“I should have been there for him…” Nancy says, sniffling but no tears falling.

“Nance…” Steve starts but she cuts him off.

“No, ever since this all started… mom and dad haven’t been the same. Two years of shit from them. Ted’s completely checked out, unless something threatens the Wheeler family ‘image’ of the perfect suburban red blooded republican family. Mom’s got her face too deep in a bottle of chardonnay and buried in cheesy romance novels to see that everything’s all fucked up. And I did the same damn thing. I hated it there so I checked out and left him to find for himself. I never should of left.” Nancy says, wringing her hands so tightly, Will was scared she’d break a fingernail.

“Your parents shit marriage and crappy home aren’t your fault. You’re still a kid too, Nancy. That doesn’t fall on you.” Hopper says, firmly.

“Mike’s always had problems… Even before all this started. Something happened when we first met El. I still can’t go back to the Quarry.” Dustin replies solemnly.

El wipes tears away, remembering exactly what Dustin was talking about.

“The Quarry?” Max asks, Lucas gives her a sharp nod.

“He said he just panicked, that he didn't want me to get hurt. But his face…” Dustin says, looking off in the distance, in the memory.

“What happened?” Steve asks, gripping Dustin’s shoulder.

“Mike and I went looking for El. She and Lucas got into a fight and she ran off after Mike yelled at her. Instead of finding El, Troy and James found us. We tried to run, but I’m an even worse runner than Mike. Troy had a knife, said he’s cut out all my teeth.” Everyone except Lucas and El gasp.

“That little shit.” Steve says and Dustin continues.

“He said the only way he’d leave my teeth alone was if… was if Mike jumped. From the top of the Quarry.” Dustin gulped.

“But if you jump, it’ll-” Jonathan starts but Dustin cuts him off.

“I know, Mike knew that. But he just walked to the edge. He said he just panicked. But he looked so calm. He didn’t even hesitate, he stood at the edge for a second before he just dropped. I thought he died!” Dustin exclaimed, frantic.

“Dustin, he’s okay.” Will says but Dustin keeps going.

“He looked back at me before he jumped! I could see it on his face! He was just fine with dying! He looked at me like it was goodbye! I thought he died until I went to the edge and saw that El caught him just in time!” Dustin says, fat tears rolling down his cheeks.

“Dustin!” Steve yells, grabbing both of Dustin’s shoulders.

Dustin’s eyes snap from a far-off look to Steve. Steve almost feels relieved but knows it’s not done yet.

“Mike lived okay? He was okay then, he’s okay now, and he’s getting help. That won’t happen again. Okay, bud.” Steve says calmly, and Dustin nods before grabbing Steve by the waist and burying his face in Steve’s jacket.

“Okay, bud. It’s okay.” Steve rubs his back, and the group falls into silence.

The psychiatrist stays in Mike’s room for almost an hour. As the minutes stretched on, the group got more and more restless. But they kept quiet, knowing that Mike needed this. It didn’t make it any easier. They just wanted to see him, see that he was okay. Just when they felt like they were going to explode, the door opened and the psychiatrist stepped out. Hopper and Nancy were up in seconds. The rest kept their distance to respect Mike’s privacy. He’d come to them with whatever happens.

“How’d it go?” Hopper asks, not entirely sure how to go about this.

“Well, he was hesitant to talk at first. That’s always expected for a first time assessment. After a few minutes of prodding, he seemed to open up a bit. That’s a good sign. It means he’s open to really getting help.” The psychiatrist answered.

“What’s the next step? What’s the plan?” Nancy asks.

“Well, while talking to him, I’ve determined he fits all the criteria in the DSM-III for Major Depressive Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder.” The psychiatrist answers slowly.

To Nancy and Hopper, it feels like a punch in the gut.

“What does that mean? What can we do?” Hopper asks

“Well with the depression part, it’s a little obvious in the way of how he acts and from what he told me.” The psychiatrist said

“What exactly did he tell you?” Nancy asked

“I’m afraid i can’t disclose that unless anything he say threatens the life of himself or anyone else. With the anxiety it’s likely to get worse after this, with the way his injuries are, he probably will be very jumpy and might have flashbacks at times. It's called PTSD, you just have to be careful not to trigger it. Knowing how to do that is something you’ll have to learn.” The psychiatrist says

“The most you can do is just be there for him and help him through it. Check on his arms and any other places he could harm himself occasionally.”

“Will he be on any medication? And does he have to go to therapy?” Hopper asked

“It would be a smart decision, this is a prescription for 50 milligrams of prozac, the dosage should help with both the anxiety and depression.” The psychiatrist said, handing Hopper the piece of paper.

“Therapy would also do him well, for now I’d just say once every two weeks, so two weeks from now would be the next time.”

“That’s all? Isn’t there more we can do?” Nancy asks, clearly not satisfied with that answer.

“I’m afraid mental health care isn’t as simple as physical health. When you break a bone, you set it and after 6 weeks of wearing a cast, you’re as good as new. When you have depression, you can take medication and go to therapy. It can work great. It can work one week and not work the next. It can take a while to figure out the right method of treatment for every case. No two cases are the same so no two kinds of treatment are the same. The medication and the therapy are long term treatments, they don’t work right away but in time, the result will be positive. For now, all you can do is support him.” The psychiatrists replies.  

Hopper and Nancy sighed; Nancy wishes depression was like the flu. You can treat the flu and in a few days, it’s all gone. You can’t take some tylenol and cure depression.

“Now, he was asking for Hop? He’s a little hesitant to take medication and wants to talk it over with Hop? I’m not too sure who that is. He’s on some heavy painkillers so not everything he says will make sense. I really urge you to try and get him started on medication as soon as possible, even better if he can start tomorrow morning. It takes two weeks for the medication to build up in your system and start to work.”

“I’m Hop, give me a minute to talk to him?” Hopper asks and walks into the room.

Mike was quiet, sitting fairly still in bed, his head turned towards the window. He jumped when Hopper opened the door, but once he saw who it was, he faced the window again.

“I just talked to the psychiatrist.” Hopper says but Mike still doesn’t look up.

“I know, he told me he’d talk to you. He wants me to take meds.” Mike says quietly.

“He told me that. He also told me that you were nervous about them.” Hopper responds.

“Will they really help? I mean, I know he said they will, but I don’t want to end up like some zombie…” Mike says.

“Mike, these meds, they will help you. They won’t make you a zombie. It’s your choice, but I think it’s worth a shot. And listen, if they don’t make you feel good or you want to stop, then we’ll talk to the doctors and stop. You just have to talk to me.” Hopper says, sitting in the seat next to Mike’s bed.

“Okay... Okay, if you promise.”

“Promise what, kid?” Hopper asks, knowing full well the weight of the word promise in this group.

“Promise that if I want to stop, I can. Promise that I won’t be a zombie. Just promise.” Mike asks, looking at Hopper.

“Hey, kid, I promise.” Hopper replies firmly and Mike seems satisfied with that answer.

Mike turns back to the window, staring at the passing clouds. Hopper guesses the conversation is over.

“I’m gonna go talk to the psychiatrist. Nancy really wants to talk to you, it alright that I send her in?” Hopper asks and Mike only replies with a quiet sure.

After Hopper leaves, the room is quiet again. The only thing he can hear is the steady beeping of the heart monitor and the dripping of the I.V. Mike was always a fan of quiet. He didn’t think people appreciated it enough. Dustin and Lucas and Max, they were always filling the silences. They’d play music or talk or bicker just to fill silences, not because they actually cared if Luke Skywalker or Superman would win in a fight. Mike doesn’t jump when Nancy opens the door, just continues to stare out the window.

“Mike, I’m so sorry.” Nancy says, sitting in the plastic seat.

Mike didn’t expect that. A lecture on his stupidity, maybe even a screaming match. He wasn’t expecting her to sound so sad. His head turned to look at her.

“Why are you sorry? Nancy, you didn’t do anything.” Mike responded, confused.

“You’re right! I didn’t do anything. I’m your big sister. I’m supposed to protect you. And what did I do? I ran away. I left you in that house while I went to play house with my boyfriend.” Nancy says, a sob escaping her lips and startling Mike.

Mike has never really seen Nancy cry. Sure, when they were smaller and she scraped her knee and once when she was 12 and the boy she liked called her a toad. But he’s never really seen her cry. It was heart wrenching.

“Nancy, don’t punish yourself for leaving. I’m not there anymore. It’s okay. I’m glad you’re out and happy, Nancy, you deserve it. Besides, it’s not like you left the state. You’re still in Hawkins.” Mike says with a small smile.

“I know. But, I haven’t been there for you. You’ve gone through so much and I wasn’t there. That’s on me. I’m so sorry, Mike. I’m so, so sorry.” Nancy says, unable to hold back from crying.

Mike feels tears forming in his own eyes, but he doesn’t want to cry. He is tired of crying.

“Nancy…” Mike says, holding out his good hand for her to grab.

She clutches onto it tightly, as if he would slip away at any second. It kind of hurts his hand, but he squeezes back just as hard. God, he missed his sister.

“I missed you.” Mike says quietly.

“I missed you too. When you get out, we’ll go get some ice cream, maybe see a movie? You can even pick which one. Just the two of us.” Nancy says, rubbing the back of his hand with her thumb.

“That sounds like fun, Nancy.” Mike smiles.

He really loves his sister.

They sit in silence for a few minutes. Just absorbing each other’s presence and the heavy calm that fills the air. But, Nancy isn’t the only one who wants to see Mike. It isn’t fair for her to hog him.

“Hey, I’m gonna step out for a while. Let your friends get to see you. But I’ll be just outside.” Nancy says, gripping his hand a little harder like she doesn’t want to go.

Mike just nodded, making himself let go of her hand.

“Okay,” He said quietly. “I love you Nance.” He added, just before she walked out the door.

“I love you too Mike,” she said, smiling back at him before walking out.

Dustin came right in after Nancy left, sitting in the chair next to the bed. Neither of them spoke for a few minutes, until Dustin spoke up.

“You should’ve told us Mike.” He said, finally looking up.

“You don’t have to just, hide everything like that… I should’ve known something was going on when-”

“When what?” Mike asked, suddenly panicked, trying to figure out if he had slipped up at some point.

“When we were looking for El, and we were at the Quarry and Troy and James found us.” Dustin started.

“When I just jumped off the cliff?” Mike said softly.

“Yeah, I thought you really died Mike, before El got you back up.” Dustin said.

“You just, you looked like you didnt care if you died.” Dustin said, looking at him.

“Dustin I told you I just-”

“You didn’t just panic Mike. When you looked back at me right before you did it, you looked like you didn’t value your life in the slightest. It was like you were saying goodbye.” Dustin said quietly.

“Is that how long this has been going on? Since then? With you being depressed and stuff?”

Mike didn’t know how to answer that.

“I-I mean, a while before that. Even before Will disappeared. I wasn’t ever, fully okay, ya know? I only felt okay really around you guys, other than that, i was really numb and things like that by myself.” Mike said.

“Well, you need to come to us okay? You can’t just keep that shit in, or something-something worse might happen.” He said, looking up at Mike.

“Promise you’ll tell us things? When you feel like that? Please?” Mike nodded slowly.

“I promise Dustin.” Mike said quietly.

The two of them talked a little more before Dustin left the room, Mike knew he had to keep his promise, he never broke a promise. Next to walk in the room was Lucas.

Lucas sat down quietly in the chair next to Mike. Neither boy said anything, neither really knew what to say. Lucas sat staring at his hands. Mike stared at the sky out the window. Lucas was the one to break the silence with by clearing his throat.

“I’ll kill him. If you want me to.” Lucas says with so much strength you wouldn’t have guessed he was so silent moments before.

“Lucas, you just can’t go and kill him.” Mike responds, confused.

“Yes, I can! You know that Hopper, El, and your sister would help me! I could use the wrist rocket or Steve’s bat!” Lucas responds, Mike furrows his brows.

“Lucas…”

“No, Mike, look at what he did! He thinks this is okay! What, cause your different? How is that fair? Eye for an eye. He tries to kill you so I’ll kill him.” Lucas yells, startling Mike.

“Lucas, please.” Mike pleads, obviously upset for making his friend so upset.

“No, he’s not getting away with this! He didn’t see you like that, covered in your blood while trying to rack my brain on what to do. You can’t do that. You can’t disappear on us because no one’s as good as you at leading a bunch of weirdos.” Lucas says, and Mike laughs a little.

“I don’t plan on going anywhere.” Mike ignores how that settles in his stomach weird.

“I was really scared, Mike. You’re one of my best friends. I’d go crazy without you. How else will I handle Dustin? Will’s too nice to tell us to shut up, Max eggs us on, and El finds is amusing. The party needs you.” Lucas confesses, and once it’s all out there, he deflates.  

“I’m sorry, Lucas. But I;m okay. I’ll always be around to break you and Dustin up.” Mike responds and Lucas chickles while wiping at his eyes.

If Mike notices the tears falling out of Lucas’ eyes, well he doesn’t say anything. After a few minutes of enjoying each other’s company and promises to visit later, Lucas leaves the room.  

Mike took a moment to just rub his eyes a little, just before Max came in the room. It felt a little weird, her seeing him that way. Even after they’d been friends for a couple years now. It felt surreal to Mike, everything that happened started just 3 years ago, but it felt like yesterday. Neither of the kids talked for a second, and maybe Mike kinda hated that everyone seemed to be walking on eggshells around him.

“Are you okay?” Max asked finally, looking up at Mike.

“I mean, considering all this, are you okay?” Mike thought about it for a second.

“Uh, yeah, yeah I think so...” He said, biting at his lip.

“You know, you and Will would be a cute couple.” She said, smiling.

“What? I-uh I have no idea what you mean!” He said, trying to hide that he was blushing.

“Oh please, Mike, since I’ve met you I can tell you have feelings for him. No normal person who’s just friends with someone would do all you have for him. He’ll you’ve risked your life.” She said.

“Yeah well, that kinda comes with going in and out of just, not wanting to be anymore...” Mike said, Max looked up at him.

“Can you elaborate on that a little? Also, I want to tell you, the thing you’ve been doing? Hurting yourself? It doesn’t help anything, yeah maybe it makes you feel anything but numb for a few seconds but in the long run, it just leaves scars and bad memories. Trust me”

Mike frowned and looked at her, “What do you mean?” He asked, going into his normal mode, worried about everyone else first.

“Like I said, just trust me on this, okay?” Mike just nodded slowly.

“Uh, yeah, okay.”

“If you need anything Mike, and you don’t want to talk to any of them, you can talk to me, alright?” Max says, Mike just nods.

“You know, the way everyone’s telling me that, it’s like, I tried to kill myself or something, ya know? Like I didn’t get my ass kicked with three broken ribs, a broken hand, a fucking fractured skull. It just feels weird.” Mike said, laughing a little.

“I think it mostly started that way when Lucas found your duffle at Hopper’s, that’s how it got here I think...” Max said.

Mike nodded, “Yeah, probably...”

The two fell into a silence after that. Max got up to leave, with one last reminder that she was here if he needed anything, she left the room.

The next person to talk in the room surprised him. A few minutes after Max left, Joyce walked in. Mike tried to sit up straighter.

“Hi, Mike, how are you feeling, honey?” Joyce asks, gingerly sitting in the chair next to him.

“I’m doing alright, Ms. Byers. Thank you.” Mike answers politely.

“Mike, we've talked about this. We’ve been through too much to go through formalities, just call me Joyce.” She replies with a smile, Mike blushes.

“Oh sorry, uh, Joyce.”

“Are you sure you’re feeling alright? I know they gave you medicine, but are you sure it’s enough? Are you comfortable? I can ask for more pillows or blankets if you need.” She fretted, chewing on her fingernail to keep from fiddling with the bedding.

It made Mike’s heart both swell and ache. Joyce had been so kind to him these past few years. She had gone way beyond the role of just his friend's mom and treated him like her own. But her fretting was exactly like his mom had done anytime he had been sick or injured. As much as he pushed it away, he missed his mom.

“No, I’m alright, the medicine they said the medicine they have me should kick in soon. I don’t really feel the pain, just a little fuzzy.” Mike said, not meaning to go into detail.

“That’s good, I’m glad you’re feeling better. Have you talked to Hopper… about what happened?” Joyce asks slowly.

“A little… I didn’t really get a lot of time to…” Mike said, attempting to shift in bed but wincing in pain.

“I know it’s hard, to talk about what someone’s done to you. But, after awhile, it’s helpful.” Joyce says, sparking Mike’s interest.

“Yeah?” Mike asks, the unasked “how do you know?” understood.

“I’m sure Will’s talked about it before, but my husband, Lonnie, he wasn’t a good guy. But I had my own issues with anxiety, so I stayed with him anyway. It took a lot to kick him out and talk to Hopper.” Joyce replies, smoothing out Mike’s blanket.

“How’d you do it?”

“Will and Jonathan, I did it for them. They didn’t deserve that. But, I did it for myself, too. I started seeing a therapist and with the help of meds, it got better. You learn you deserve good things.” Joyce says, a small smile on her face.

“Is it… is it scary?” Mike asks hesitantly.

“At first, yeah it is. You talk about things you don’t want to think about and it’s a big change. But, eventually the things get easier to talk to and you get used to the change. You have everyone to support you, that helps.” Joyce’s smile is warm and genuine, entirely different than the forced smiles his Mom usually wears.

“Thanks, Joyce. For everything.” Mike says with a small smile of his own.

“Oh nonsense, at this point you’re practically my own.” Joyce says, pushing a tuft of hair over the bandage, away from his forehead.

Mike smiled a little at that, after Joyce walked out, Jonathan walked in next, surprising Mike again.

“Hey, are you doing okay?” Jonathan asked, sitting in the same seat everyone else had, Mike just nodded.

“Yeah, I can’t really feel anything so yeah I’m alright.” He said, Jonathan nodded.

“You know, Will really cares about you, he was terrified that you might die. We all care about you really. Me and mom left work to come make sure you were okay.”

Mike frowned at that, “You didn’t need to do that, it’s not really a big deal.” he said quietly.

“It is a big deal. You could’ve easily died, if the ambulance didn’t come when it did. You had a seizure, they had to give you blood transfusions and all that. It is a big deal.” Jonathan said, looking at him.

“Quit saying that things that happen aren’t a big deal Mike. Everyone here, all of us, care about you. My mom practically thinks of you as her son at this point, and I think of you as my little brother. All of us care, and we’re going to be here for you, alright?”

Mike bit his lip and nodded slowly, he’d never seen Jonathan act caring towards him, but he knew he meant it. So Mike nodded.

“Okay.” He said quietly.

Soon after, Jonathan left the room, El coming in right at that moment.

“El.” Mike breathes out, already fighting back tears.

El rushes into the seat and grips Mike’s hand for dear life. Tears falling down her chin.

“Mike.” El responds, her tone making Mike’s heartbreak.

“Mouthbreather. Where is he?” El asks, a look in her eyes Mike’s only seen a handful of times.

“El, no, it’s not worth exposing yourself.” Mike pleads but that only makes El’s jaw set.

“No. He is a bad man, he’s your bad man. It’s not fair he can hurt you and I can’t protect you.” El responds, tear betraying her angry glare.

“El, I’m okay. You don’t need to do that.”

“I’m supposed to protect you! You’re my forever person! What are they called? In the books and on the tv?” El asks.

“Soulmate?”

“Yes! Soulmate! You’re my soulmate! So I have to protect you.” El states, wiping away at tears.

“But El, you’re supposed to be soulmates with someone you’re in a relationship with…”

“Why? We love each other. You know me better than anyone. We have the connection! That’s what makes a soulmate, right?” El reasons.

“Okay, then we’re soulmates. But you can’t always protect me, El. It’s not your fault.”

“I’m the only one who knew. I should have said something. I failed.” El says, all the fire leaving her eyes.

“El, that wasn’t your job. I should have protected myself. That’s on me, El. I shouldn’t have forced you in that position, put that pressure on you. I’m sorry.” Mike says, he goes to chew on his lip but winces when he feels the cuts and decides against it.

“Promise you’ll be careful. Promise you’ll protect yourself.”

Mike hesitates.

“I promise, El.” El smiles, her eyes finally dry.

“Love you, Mike.” El says, softly.

“Love you too, El.” Mike says, smiling back.

El left the room a little while after that, Will coming into the room after. He carefully walked over to the bed, sitting up on the bed in front of Mike.

“Hey Mikey” He said softly.

“Are you okay?” Mike nodded slowly, biting down on his lip.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m okay.”

“You don’t need to lie to me Mike, just tell me the truth?” Will said, reaching out to grab his hand.

Mike took a deep breath, “I’m just, I’m scared. I thought… I thought I could trust him, but i g-guess not.” Mike said softly.

“I only dated him to try and get over someone else I like. He was sweet and kind and just… nice. I even grew to really like him. But, still, it didn’t work...” Mike said softly, looking up at Will.

Will felt his heart speed up, “Who’s the other person?” Will asked, squeezing Mike’s hand.

Mike hesitated, looking away from Will’s eyes. His gut was tight with a knot. He hadn’t really meant to say that. But he did, and he can’t take it back. Sure, Will is too nice and would drop it if he asked. But, Mike thought he was going to die. He’d kept too many things unsaid to die in an Alley like that.

Mike took a deep breath before looking right into Will’s eyes “It’s... It’s you.” He said

“You’re the other person i like”

Will didn’t say anything for awhile, just stared at Mike, and Mike started to panic.

“Fuck I’m sorry. I know I probably made this awkward and you probably dont like me and you probably don’t want to-” Mike was cut off by Will pressing his lips to his.

Will’s hands came up to cup Mike’s face. When he Will pulled away, a few seconds later, he leaned his forehead against Mike’s.

“Is that answer enough for you?” Will said softly, Mike nodded.

“That’s good.” Will said, leaning forward to kiss Mike’s nose.

“But we should take this slow okay? You shouldn’t just, jump right into a relationship right after this happens. Okay?” Will said, he loved the hell out of Mike, but he didn’t want to make anything worse for him.

Mike frowned a little but he nodded in response.

“Hey, don’t do that. It won’t be good to jump into the relationship right after something this traumatic happens. Okay? It doesn’t mean we’ll forget this happened. We’re just not jumping into something so soon. I promise.” Will said.

Mike nodded, as much as he wanted to be with Will. He agreed that it wouldn’t be good for him to jump into the relationship yet.

Two weeks later, Mike could finally leave the Hospital. Neither Will nor Hopper left the hospital once. Joyce tried to get Will to leave the first night, but Will didn’t want Mike to be alone, Joyce understood what he was saying, and let him stay there.

Mike was mostly healed by the time he could leave, he still had the cast and had to keep his ribs wrapped, but overall was looking and feeling a million times better. Will and Mike were waiting in Mike’s room while Hopper talked to the doctor’s and got his prescription from the pharmacy.

The pair hadn’t talked about what they were, and they hadn’t kissed since. But, you could feel it, a shift in their relationship. Mike thought it would scare him, but it felt natural. Like it had been happening all along and he’s only noticing now.

Mike was so grateful for Will, when he wasn’t in school, he was with Mike. Will had stayed home from school a few day, but the school was asking questions that Joyce couldn’t answer, so he went back. But he stayed the night, every night. Mike got anxious staying there at night. Hopper and El came after work and practice, but Will had a way of Mike feeling completely at ease, even when they were younger.

“What are you thinking about?” Will asks softly.

They were sitting next to each other on the edge of the hospital bed. They were just almost touching shoulders. Their hands were just brushing fingers. Mike thought about grabbing Will’s hand, but choose to answer him instead.

“You.” Mike answers, looking at Will.

A light pink paints Will’s cheekbones and Will smiles. Mike smiles back, and Will intertwines their hands.

“You’re so cheesy sometimes.” Will teases but the smile never leaves his face.

Mike feels heat rise on his cheeks, which only makes Will smile more.

“Is that such a bad thing?” Mike asks, looking away from Will’s face.

Will laughs quietly, lifting his hand to cup Mike’s right cheek softly. His thumb rubs Mike’s cheekbones slowly. Mike melts, leaning his face into Will’s hand.

“No, not at all. I love it.” Will says, and leans in.

The kiss is soft, and slow, and lasts less than a minute. But Mike thinks it’s the best kiss he’s ever had.

Mike realises then, that this is what love is. It’s not all heavy make out session, its not having to hide, it’s definitely not getting hurt. It was this. It was soft kisses, holding hands, sitting so close to each other your shoulder brush just slightly.

Mike then grabbed Will’s other hand, the one that wasn’t cupping his face. Their foreheads leaned against the other. Mike realised he hasn’t smiled this much. Will was so happy that Mike was smiling, he loved it, Mike looked younger somehow when he did. He looked softer, especially when he slept.

Neither of them needed to talk about what they were now, they already knew. Sure, people would question it, but they way they acted around each other now, the way Will was so careful with Mike, anyone could tell they were more than friends at this moment.

Then Mike thought about how he had to go back to school tomorrow, he would have to see Matt, he would have to be surrounded by so many people. Everyone knew now. Will noticed how Mike got anxious at that moment.

“What’s wrong, Mikey?” Will said softly, squeezing his hand.

“I’m anxious, about tomorrow...” Mike said softly.

“I have to go back to school tomorrow. Will, everyone knows. What’s gonna happen? What if-” Will cut mike off, kissing his nose softly.

“Hey, calm down. I’ll be there, the whole time okay? I’ll be there holding your hand the whole time. Nothing will happen. I’ll protect you. I swear to it. I promise.” will said.

Mike nodded, letting himself calm down. “Thank you” he said softly, and god did will want to hug him in that moment, but he couldn’t, he didn’t want to hurt Mike’s ribs.

“We’re gonna get through this Mike. You know I’ve always got your back.” Will says, caressing Mike’s cheek again.

Will think he could do that for the rest of his life and be perfectly content.

“Okay, I can handle that.” Mike smiles again, and Will can’t help but smile back.

Just then, the door opens suddenly. Mike jumps back and away from Will, facing paling. Hopper looks in, catches the look on Mike’s face, and a look of guilt flashes across his face. He forgot to knock on the door, again. But Mike just swallowed amd took a deep breath.

“Ready guys?” Hopper asks and Mike nods eagerly.

He was so over being in the hospital. He mostly slept the first week, but it got real boring real fast, except for one hour walking the floor when Will got there, he spent all day im bed.

The walk to the car was quiet. Hopper was on Mike’s right side, a hand grasping his shoulder. Will was on Mike’s left, fingers intertwined with his good hand. The pair sat in the back of the cruiser. The radio was playing some song that Mike didn’t know, but Will was nodding along so it couldn’t be bad. Mike yawned, his eyes already growing heavy. After two weeks of almost never leaving bed, the walk through the hospital and to the car was exhausting.

Will felt Mike leaning his head onto his shoulder and smiled. Purple Rain was playing on the radio so Will nodded along. He looked down at Mike and felt his heart ache. Mike was already asleep, His long eyelashes brushed the top of his cheekbones, his mouth was open slightly, a small amount of drool pooled on his shoulder. He looked absolutely beautiful to Will.

Will didn’t really know what tomorrow would be like. Hell, he didn’t really know what the future would be like. But if they were together, Will didn’t think it could be so bad.

There we go! I know that was an emotional rollar coaster, me and @lgbtchee literally cried writing this! 

Time for the big announcement! The next few updates will not really be angsty! We will be giving Mike a break for once and have lots of fluffy byeler and that growing relationship for the next parts! 

We really hope you enjoyed reading this! 

Taglist: @theliteraltrash  @shqipshqip  @kanewsies  @birdy-boy-uris  @lvsrs  @thescaryflower  @neiboltupsidedown  @lo5ver  @missingstanleyuris  @kaspbrakseggo   @gnope 

(if it has a line, the url wasn;t working, sorry!) 

[atlafan]

After the Snow Ball: Part One

a/n: This will be a 3 part fic about what happens after the end of Stranger Things Season Two. I’m gonna say this is PG/PG-13, and this is Steve x Nancy. 

The 1984 Snow Ball had come to an end at Hawkins Middle School. Dustin thanked Nancy for the many songs they shared together, and went to meet up with the guys. Nancy walked over to Jonathan, who was packing away his equipment.

“That was really nice of you.” He says.

“What? Oh, Dustin, yeah I felt so bad. Girls can be really mean.”

“I forgot to tell you, I can’t give you a ride home. Will and I drove here with our mom. She said there was no point in bringing two cars.”

“That’s okay, I think our mom is picking Mike up, I’ll go home with them.”

“Can I call you later?”

“Of course.”

Nancy walks outside with Jonathan. They say goodbye. She sees Will race over to him and Joyce, and they drive away. Out of the corner of her eye she sees Steve smoking a cigarette outside his car. She walks over to him.

“Do you always hang out outside middle school dances?” She says, teasing him a little.

“No, I happen to be someone’s ride.”

“Right, Dustin told me you drove him here, even gave him some girl advice.”

“Did it work? Did he get to dance with Max?”

“No...I think her and Lucas are sort of a thing.”

“Oh. Well, did he at least get to dance with a different girl?”

“Actually, I ended up dancing with him.”

“I thought you were there to serve punch.”

“I was, but...I just felt so bad. He went up to a couple different groups of girls, and they didn’t even give the poor kid the time of day. So I went over to him, and we danced together, pretty much for the rest of the night.”

“That was really nice of you. I bet a bunch of girls will fall for him now that they saw Nancy Wheeler dancing with him.”

“Not to toot my own horn, but the reason he hasn’t come out yet is because a few girls came up to him after, some even apologized.”

“Good, I’m glad it all worked out.”

“You know, he pretty much talked about you the whole time.”

“Oh really?”

“Yup. He talked about how brave you were last month, and is just so thankful you were there. And he really appreciates you taking him under your wing.” “Yeah it’s almost like having a little brother, it’s pretty cool.”

There’s an awkward silence between them.

“Steve I know we haven’t talked much, and we didn’t really talk about what happened between us-”

“What’s there to talk about? You don’t feel the way about me, that I feel...felt about you. Maybe you did once, but clearly it didn’t last long.”

“Steve-”

“I don’t really wanna do this right now.”

“Hey Steve!”

Dustin, Lucas, and Mike all walk up to the car. Mike gives Nancy a funny look, and rolls his eyes.

“What was that face for?”

“Nothing. You’re just making your rounds tonight I see.”

“Shut up.”

“Steve can you give the rest of the guys a ride home too?” Dustin asks.

“Wait, Mike, I thought mom was coming.”

“Nope, she said find a ride, and since the Byers all drove together, and Hopper took Eleven..I mean Jane, right home, we’re sort of out of options.”

“Alright, everybody climb in.” Says Steve.

Nancy sits in the front seat, and the boys sit in the back. Steve drops off Dustin first, then Lucas, and lastly Nancy and Mike. Mike opens the door, but Nancy waits.

“Mike, if mom asks, tell her I’ll be in in a few minutes.”

“Why so you two can kiss and makeup?”

“Mike!”

He gets out and slams the door shut.

“Sorry, he’s just bummed because he doesn’t know when he’s going to be able to see Jane next.”

“Understandable. I have some friends to see, so what do you want?”

“I thought we could talk for a few minutes.”

“Nancy, you can’t always get what you want okay? I don’t want to have this conversation. You want to be with Jonathan, why is that so hard for you to accept? In fact, I don’t know if you ever even really liked me or just the concept.”

“What?”

“You heard me. You liked the idea of being with the popular guy.” “That’s not true. I really did have feelings for you, and if Barb and Will hadn’t gone missing, if that whole mess hadn’t happened I probably wouldn’t have talked to Jonathan, and you and I would have been on our merry way. But a lot of shit happened Steve, and you wanted to pretend like none of it did.”

“We were pretty much told by the government to act that way. I was scared. And you know what? For a while there over the summer, everything did feel normal. We can be friends or whatever, but don’t sit there and pretend like you feel bad. You broke my heart and had nothing to say about it.”

“I’m sorry, but there were more important things happening, and I have time to make you feel better.”

“That’s your excuse for everything now.”

“Look, what you did last month was incredible. You could have easily told Dustin to fuck off, but you didn’t. And for you to be there for all of them so I could go help with Will, was so brave-”

“Do you wanna know how Dustin asked me to help? He didn’t just come over Nancy, I was at your house!”

“My house? Why?”

“I went over to apologize. Me! Apologize to you! I actually wanted to try to work things out. But he had been there too and told me you weren’t home. He even threw the flowers I got on the ground.”

“You brought me flowers?”

“Yeah. I felt really bad. I don’t know if I pressured you into saying something you weren’t ready for or what.”

“Things did get a little overwhelming. Sometimes I do just want to be a normal teenager, but you were starting to make some serious life decisions, it was freaking me out.”

“I’m graduating, it would be weird if I wasn’t making big choices, and it would be even more weird if I didn’t include my girlfriend.”

“I don’t want you to stay in Hawkins for me. I want you to go off and do amazing things. I certainly don’t want to stay here. What would happen when I go to college? Do you seriously look at me and think ‘This girl is my forever’?”

“I used to.”

Nancy looked down, and took a deep breath.

“You weren’t a shitty boyfriend.”

“What?”

“Last month, you called yourself a shitty boyfriend. You weren’t. You were a great boyfriend. We were just coping with the trauma differently because different things happened to us. And maybe I did feel closer to Jonathan at the time because we were going through it together. We were solving the mystery together. Do you want to come upstairs and talk more? It’s starting to get cold...and late.”

“If you think I’m gonna take one step in your room, you’re crazy.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m gonna look at your bed and wonder who else has been in there with you, or actually I know who, and I don’t want to think about it.”

“He hasn’t been in my bed...not like that anyways.”

“Who do you want to be with?”

“I look at him and feel one way, and I look at you and feel another. It’s complicated.”

“Well let me help you out. You want to be with him, not me. Good night, and get out.”

“Steve, if I didn’t care why would I be sitting with you here, right now.”

“Because you’re trying to make amends. I don’t even know if I could be with you again, after you made me feel so shitty. Why would you even want to be with me? Jonathan is your savior, not me. I mean, what is keeping you so attached to me?”

“I don’t know, you were my first Steve, that’s hard to let go of.”

“Have you slept with him?”

“Excuse me?”

“Have you slept with him?”

“I don’t see how that’s any of your business. You slept with other girls before we did anything, and I never asked you about it.”

“I want to know.”

“We...ugh, we’ve made out...kissed...touched.”

“When?”

“Steve.”

“I want to put the time lines together.”

“A month ago. We slept together a month ago.”

“So while I was out helping the boys, you were getting off, that’s great Nancy.”

“It wasn’t like that. We got a hotel room one night with two beds and everything, we didn’t do anything. I felt like I would have been betraying you or something. Then when we got to that detective’s place, he let us spend the night, and it just sort of happened. There was a lot of tension, and I just needed a distraction from everything.”

“Well, he couldn’t have been any good if you’re still looking to me.”

“It’s not that it wasn’t good, it was just his first time, and I think once the intensity of us kissing died down, we both just got nervous.”

“What about now?”

“He needs some time, we both do. A lot happened. He was traumatized watching that thing come out of Will. So, we’re cooling it.”

“So you’re turning to me?”

“No, not necessarily.”

“Is that what happened last year? Is that why you waited so long to make things official with me? Because you were waiting for him to make a move?”

“Steve-”

“Great! So I’ve been nothing but a second choice this whole time.”

“It’s wasn’t like that.”

“If you say that one more time I’m gonna lose my shit.”

“Sorry.”

“If he had wanted to be with you and had made a move then-”

“Don’t go there. Don’t start asking what if’s.”

“It’s been really hard getting over you. I’ve never felt this way about a girl before, and to you it was nothing.”

“It wasn’t nothing. Why do we need to be in love? Why does it have to be that serious?”

“Oh, so you want me to treat you like every other girl I’ve been with? You want me to sneak over on weekends, fuck you, and not talk to you when I see you at school?”

“Of course not. Just because I don’t want something serious, doesn’t mean I want something casual.”

“What do you want?”

“I don’t know.”

“Or better yet who?”

“I...don’t know.”

“You need to figure it out, because I am done feeling like this. I don’t deserve it. I need to get going.”

“Okay...I’m glad we finally talk-”

“Please, just leave.”

Nancy got out, and as she turned around to close the door, she saw the tears in Steve’s eyes. As he drove away, she finally realized just how badly she had hurt him.

When Nancy walked inside her house, she saw her mom and dad watching TV together. That was the first time she had seen them doing something together in a long time. Her mother had a lot of time on her hands now that her little sister had started kindergarten. Mrs. Wheeler had started doing her hair differently, and had become increasingly more annoyed with her husband. Nancy could see this. If her mother was so unhappy, why stay? Sure, no one wants to go through the headache of a divorce, but once it’s over, you get your life back.

Nancy took a shower, and threw some PJ’s on. She walked by Mike’s room and saw that he was reading. She stood in the doorway.

“Exciting night huh?” She said sarcastically.

“Yup.” Mike says putting his book down. “What do you want?”

“Nothing. What are you reading?”

“Just something for school. My English teacher wants us to practically read this whole thing by the time we get back from break.”

“What book?”

“The Grapes of Wrath…”

“Gross.”

“Yeah, it’s not fun.”

“Speaking of fun, it looked like you had a good time tonight.”

“It was pretty lame until Jane got there.”

“You really like her don’t you?”

“She’s special.”

“Can I ask you something?” Nancy walks in, and sits on the bed with her brother.

“Sure.”

“While she was gone, you never looked another girl, you never found yourself interested in anyone else?”

“What? No. Who else could compare to her? Besides, I was too busy trying to find her.”

“Right.”

“What were you and Steve talking about? Are you guys gonna get back together?”

“Do you think we should? How do you feel about him?”

“I don’t know...it was pretty cool that he jumped in to help us. He was like a bodyguard. Do you like someone else?”

“You mean like Jonathan?”

“Bingo.”

“That’s what I need to figure out.” Nancy gets up and starts pacing. “I feel one way about Steve and one way about Jonathan. I mean, Jonathan and I have this mental connection. We’ve been through all of this together, solving everything together. But I guess I never would have spoken more than a couple of words to him if all this hadn’t happened.”

“This whole situation is probably the only thing you two have in common.”

“Well, it started out like that. But we work really well together, and we get along so great.”

“Okay, so if you have the mental connection with him, what do you have with Steve?”

“Oh god, this is so weird to talk about with you.”

“Nancy, I think we’re all past the point of things getting weird.”

“Alright. Well, with Steve it’s a physical thing.”

“Haven’t you gotten ‘physical’ with the both of them?”

“How would you know that?”

“Sound travels, these walls are pretty thin. So you like being with Steve in that sense more than Jonathan?”

“Don’t get me wrong, when Jonathan and I finally kissed, it was electric. But it fizzled, and even though what we did helped break a lot of tension, I couldn’t help but think of Steve.”

“Look, if you want my honest opinion…”

“Please.”

“Steve is a stand up guy. I thought he was a jerk, but he completely changed his way of life because of you. Last year, after fighting with Jonathan, he went to his house to apologize. Then he started to get his grades up, and actually started studying with you. And it wasn’t just to impress you, he genuinely started to care. He kisses the ground you walk on. He would do anything for you, including watching me and my friends, and telling you to go be with another guy. He basically let you go because he loves you and wants you to be happy. I know you don’t want to get stuck in Hawkins, and maybe you think if you stay with Steve that’s gonna happen, but if you push him to go to college and not just work for his dad, and you go off to college, you guys could get out of here. And who knows, maybe you two will break up when he goes to college. That’s months away.”

“Have you been talking to him about this?!”

“No, but Dustin told us he’s hurting pretty bad. You really fucked him up. Why tell someone you love them when you don’t mean it?”

“I did mean it. Everything just got hard. He wanted to pretend like nothing happened…”

“Nancy, we all coped differently. I guess you need to look inside yourself, and decide who makes you happy. Don’t worry about love, worry about happiness. Whose face do you look forward to seeing every morning?”

“When did my little brother become such a romantic?”

“Since I found out the girl I really like is alive and well, and I barely get visitation with her.”

Nancy gave Mike a hug, and left his room for her own. As she got into bed, she thought about what Mike said. Who was the boy that truly made her feel happy?

The next morning, Nancy awoke feeling unrested. She tossed and turned all night with different thoughts running through her head. Her decision had been made, but who would she break the news to first? The groan she let out was loud, and she pounded on her bed for a few seconds. She finally made herself get out of bed, take a shower, and get dressed.

Bundled up in her winter clothes, Nancy began her walk to end everything once and for all.