#oblivious steve harrington

[hairmetal666]

Eddie thought inviting Steve to the Grammys would be fine, cool, no big deal. And it should be, but Steve is walking out of the suite's bedroom wearing a burgundy tuxedo that fits him like a fucking glove. His shirt is unbuttoned just enough to let chest hair peak out, and Eddie thinks he might faint.

He's always been attracted to Steve, of course, but never let it go further than that. Like, sure, Steve was hot as fuck, and sure he was the best guy Eddie had ever met, and sometimes, yeah, he did have to force away thoughts of Steve when he jerked off, and in other circumstances he'd totally be head over heels. Just, Steve is straight, the straightest, a fucking arrow.

Eddie tears his eyes from Steve's body. "You look great, man." He slaps Steve's back. Keeping it cool; keeping it so cool.

"Psh," Steve says. "Have you looked in a mirror? Oh my god." His eyes are saucer wide as they travel down Eddie's body.

"Is it too much?" Eddie crosses his arms over his bare chest.

"Are you kidding? You're--fuck, man. You look good as hell."

He's wearing a silky burgundy shirt, open to show off the necklaces around his throat, his tattoos, the silver in his nipples. His pants are leather, tight, sitting low on his hips and putting the cut of his pelvic bone on full display. They have a lace-up closure that comes dangerously close to showing pube.

Heat rushes to his face at the compliment. "It's--you know. Hazard of the job."

"Yeah, hazard, sure. Guess it's a hard life having hot dudes literally throwing themselves at you."

Eddie barks out a laugh. "That's a vast exaggeration."

"Is it?"

He blushes harder. "You're my date tonight, Steve."

"My point exactly."

His manager and publicist usher them out the door before he can ask what the hell that meant.

---

The ride is giddy and playful, Steve popping champagne to celebrate Eddie's nomination for Song of the Year, even though there's no chance in hell he wins.

Steve is happy. His face is bright with joy, eyes shining, laugh loud and infectious. He's gorgeous, knows it, will be an absolute menace on the red carpet. He's been with Eddie to parties and stuff before, doesn't have any anxiety in front of the camera and isn't obsessed with musicians like Eddie is, unafraid to meet them.

Or so Eddie thought.

Because now they're standing at the edge of the red carpet, Steve very nearly trembling next to him.

"Harrington?"

"That's--That's Madonna." Steve points to her. "We're not even ten feet away from Madonna." He gulps. "Eddie. Madonna."

Steve has met famous people before with Eddie. Ozzy, briefly, Janet Jackson, Dave Grohl, James Hetfield, and he'd always been fine. Barely batted an eye. But get him within reaching distance of Madonna and he falls apart.

Eddie doesn't think about it, grabs Steve's hand, twines their fingers together. "Okay?"

The smile Steve throws him, grateful and a little embarrassed, stabs straight through his heart. He calms as they make it up the carpet, but he doesn't drop Eddie's hand, even when they pause for pictures. In fact, he leans into it, drapes his arm around Eddie's shoulders, or around his waist, seeming to thrive the closer they are. Eddie feels this dangerous pull to indulge in it, to let himself believe it means something, and he doesn't quite have it in him to turn it off.

By the time they reach their seats, Steve is relaxed back to his normal charming and handsome self, doesn't bat an eye as Eddie introduces him around.

The show passes quickly with all the performances and Steve whispering jokes in his ear. It's the best time he's ever had at an award show, like he should have been bringing Steve along this whole time. He's so distracted that he's not really ready when Paula Abdul comes out to announce Song of the Year.

His name is read off as a nominee and Steve grabs his hand, squeezes tight. Eddie's heart flips in his chest. He's not paying attention when Paula opens the envelope, too focused on Steve's strong hand holding his. He hears her say, "And the Grammy goes to--" and everything goes fuzzy.

Steve is saying, "oh my god, oh my god, Eddie. Get up, get up."

And his fucking song is playing and everyone is cheering, a couple people slap his back, and oh shit, oh shit, he fucking won. He stands, Steve with him. He thinks they're going to hug, that's what you do in these situations, but Steve is kissing him. Not on the cheek and not a quick peck, but lip-to-lip, soft and sweet.

Steve just kissed him and he has to get on stage and give a speech. He has no idea what he says because Steve just kissed him. On the lips. On purpose. His ears are ringing and words tumble out of his mouth, thinks he says, "couldn't have done it without you, Stevie," before tripping over his feet to get backstage.

Interviews, photographs, congratulations all help him settle. He's still buzzing with the win, but aware enough now to think the kiss had to be an accident. They've been friends for nearly a decade and Steve never seemed interested in men generally or Eddie specifically.

It takes a while to finish up the backstage business, but when he makes it to his seat, Steve just beams at him. He doesn't mention the kiss, which makes Eddie think he's overreacting. It wasn't a big deal. Sure, he could still feel Steve's lips, warm and soft, against his own, but it didn't mean anything. He's just too in his big gay feelings to be objective.

They don't get a chance to really talk until they're back in the limo and on their way to the after-party.

"You won," Steve says.

"I won." Eddie smiles. "Crazy."

"You deserved it."

He shrugs. "I don't know about that."

"Doesn't matter. You did." Steve fidgets with the cuff of his jacket. "About earlier, um. The kiss. I--"

Eddie feels his face heating, heart kicking up. It was nothing, he knows, and Steve shouldn't have to-- "It was an accident. It's okay. I know you don't--it was the heat of the moment and--I know you're not--you don't--"

Steve blinks a lot, emotions flashing across his face faster than Eddie can categorize.

"What if I do?" Steve asks. His voice is too soft, eyes locked on the cuff link he's fiddling with.

"You--what?"

"What if I did mean it?"

"You're straight."

Steve goes pink. "I'm really not."

"Steve?" He shrieks. "Since when?"

"Um. Since you invited me to this?"

"What the fuck?" Eddie shoves him. "What the fuck, man?"

"I know, I know!" Steve pulls his hand through his hair. "You invited me and I freaked out and I didn't know why, and Robin made the saddest little face at me. Said, 'oh, dingus, you didn't know?' How the fuck was I supposed to know!"

"I think you wanting to fuck me should've been a pretty good indication!"

"I thought that happened to everyone!"

"It doesn't!"

"That's what Robin said!"

They're both yelling.

"Jesus christ. Jesus christ," Eddie keeps repeating.

"Look, I get it if you don't want me too, dude. I know that's not how it works, but I've been pretty crazy about you without realizing it for a while now, so--"

He doesn't mean to, he really doesn't, but he laughs. Like, super loud. Like a donkey bray.

"Okay, can the driver let me out? Like, can I go? I can't--"

"Wait, wait, sweetheart." Steve's gotten up, like he's about to knock on the partition, but Eddie grabs his wrist. "Of course I want you back, you idiot, oh my god."

"Oh." Steve's ears are pink. "Oh. Well. That's good."

Eddie huffs. "Just good? I won a Grammy and the guy I've been pining over for years wants me back. I'm having the night of my life."

"Shut-up." Steve's smile is so big, his eyes so bright.

He raises an eyebrow. "Make me," he says in his lowest register, but he's truly not prepared for it when Steve clambers over to him and lowers himself to straddle Eddie's hips.

"Holy shit," Eddie whispers. "Holy shit, Steve."

He give a wry little smile, eyes locked on Eddie's mouth. "Baby, can I kiss you?"

"Yes." Eddie clears his throat. "Yes, please, do that. Yeah."

Only, he doesn't. He's straddling Eddie, they're so close their breath mingles, and Steve's eyes flicker between Eddie's mouth and his eyes, lips so close to touching but not.

"C'mon, asshole," Eddie says.

"I knew you'd be a brat." He whispers. He wraps his hands into Eddie's hair. "Been dying to do this."

And then they're kissing. They're kissing and it steals all of Eddie's breath and his thoughts, and it's new but it's also like they've been kissing forever, like their lips and tongue know each other, like coming home.

He whines, high-pitched and breathy, and Steve laughs, kisses him deeper, moves closer, and Eddie feels how hard Steve is, the persistent pulse of him. And shit Eddie's close, on the brink just from this, from nothing, oh my god.

Steve's hands drift down Eddie's torso, mapping his chest and his stomach, coming to rest at the laces of his pants. "These have been driving me insane," Steve breaks the kiss to say. "Been thinking about undoing them all night."

"Fuck, sweetheart, you can't say shit like that," Eddie groans.

"Why not?"

"Because--because," Eddie sputters but then Steve's lips are on his neck and he's rolling his hips for friction.

Steve's fingers find the laces again, trace against them. Eddie's legs fall open, arching into the touch. "We're going to be so late," he murmurs as Steve's fingers get to work.

[rambamthxman]

Eddie.

You're thinking out loud, Eddie.

Eddie.

Eddie please💀

-Robin

[stevieschrodinger]

It's just biology, is all. Steve's an Alpha, Eddie's the only Omega in their little found family pack.

Steve picks up on Eddie's cycle; he can't help that either. He can pick the date Eddie's heat will begin about a fortnight before it happens. Again, he can't help that, he just knows, it's instinct.

Just like how he knows Eddie goes off carbs completely and becomes a demon for cheese and protein. Like he knows Eddie won't eat the pizza they order for movie night, so he picks up fancy meats and cheeses and a fruit platter thing from the deli and then labels it as Eddie's before everyone comes over.

He knows he does dumb stuff too, knows it's instinct and he operates on auto pilot. Knows that Eddie accepts it all unthinkingly too.

He catches Nancy smiling at him at the table and is baffled by that until he looks down and realises he's taking Eddie's favourite bits off his own plate and moving them to his.

He catches Dustin sniggering at him and shaking his head, it's all done amusement, but Steve has to genuinely stare at his own lounge for a good two minutes before he realises what he's done. He's set up for nerd game night as usual but...oh, yeah, there's like five blankets piled onto the chair when Eddie sits. Right.

Steve moves them to the back of the couch considering Eddie won't even be able to sit with them there...and then brings one back, the softest one, and leaves it draped over the back just in case.

It's all just instinct. Eddie will spend a few days alone in his nest, just like always.

[cringevalue]

pov: jonathan, argyle, steve, and eddie are all in a polyamorous relationship and steve is oblivious

———

steve: don’t you think it’s weird that they’re inviting us to go on vacation with them? to a sex resort?

eddie: not really

steve: people don’t typically have friends tag along when they take their partners to a sex resort

eddie: right

steve: so it’s weird

eddie: i mean, yeah, it would be weird, if it wasn’t for the fact that we’re not their friends

steve: what do you mean

eddie:

eddie: do you seriously think we’re just friends with them?

steve: …yeah?

eddie: steve, how many people make out with their friends while they’re both in separate relationships?

steve:

eddie: how many people suck their friends’ dicks while they’re both in separate relationships?

steve:

eddie: how many people let their friends tie them up completely naked and fuck them while their partners are watching?

steve:

eddie: steve, you let argyle put a joint up your ass to try and get you high, and then told him you’d be a good little boy for him if he also stuck a joint up my ass

steve: yeah but that’s jonathan and argyle

eddie: i don’t think i’m following

steve: anyone would sleep with jonathan and argyle, in or out of a relationship. and they’d sleep with anyone too.

eddie:

eddie: jonathan asked for your permission to kiss a girl at the club last week

eddie: i’m pretty sure you guys are dating

steve: ….

steve: so do we accept the invitation?

eddie: hell yes we do

[1-8oo-wtfbro]

head not empty head full, full of woof woof werewolf eddie and oblivious human steve. eddie’s instincts going haywire around steve, and feeling ultra possessive and protective of him that Robin (also a werewolf???) gets second hand embarrassment from it.

like, maybe steve knows ab werewolves bc of Robin, so therefore he tries to be helpful to eddie too! but he doesn’t get why eddie always seems uncomfortable or unhappy with the same things that robin loves :( (eddie is restraining himself from jumping this thoughtful boys BONES)

[hawkinsbnbg]

Eddie, staring at Steve playing basketball from afar: Look at his stupid hair. And also that stupid shorts, I think–

Gareth: No you think nothing.

Eddie: I haven't finished yet!

Gareth: But we all know what's going to come out in the end.

Jeff: What is it?

Gareth: Just watch.

Steve: *takes off his shirt*

Eddie: *wipes the blood that trickles from his nose*

Jeff: ... I see what you mean.

[sputniks-taboo-thoughts]

I will be posting this on ao3 once I make an account :3

Crushes are a pretty common thing in teenagers, especially ones on older people. It was seen in the way Dustin always grinned at Nancy, or how Lucas went through a phase of following Jonathan around like his life depended on it. It was just a part of growing up, so everyone knew what would happen when Steve Harrington joined their mismatched group.

Some would think the first one to get a crush would be Dustin, since he was the one who spent the most time with Steve, but surprisingly, it was actually Mike.

It made sense though. 

He’d see Steve stare at Nancy with big, round eyes full of love, or spot him climbing through her window. Mike was only a teenage boy, he couldn’t help but appreciate how well those jeans looked on him. 

Soon, he’d get a fluttery feeling in his stomach whenever Steve came over for dinner. Mike found himself hoping he’d catch a glimpse of the older boy, even if it was just to sit on the stairs and watch him play dolls with Holly while waiting for Nancy to come down.

When Mike identified these feelings, the ones that made him feel terribly giddy, he pushed them down. He twisted and molded them into something else. He forced himself to hate Steve’s pretty face, forced himself to eavesdrop on him flirting with Nancy just so that he could mentally sew the idea of Steve with his sister, intertwining the two so that it would be easier to forget about his feelings.

It didn’t really work, but soon enough Mike didn’t have time to try and dislike Steve because he was too busy worrying about Will and hiding a superpowered girl in his basement.

Max’s crush on Steve had been quite brief. Sure, she liked looking at him, but the only time she’d actually wanted him was when he’d protected them from the Demodogs. She’d stopped liking him once she held hands with Lucas, but God, that man sure looked good with that baseball bat.

Dustin was the next to fall for Steve.

Unlike Mike, who only really liked him for his looks, Dustin was wooed (his own choice of wording) by Steve’s heart. The older boy had not only told him his secret hair care routine, but also came over to help.

Dustin couldn’t help but grin at his new friend when he saw him, and his heart would skip a beat when Steve beamed back at him. He knew it wasn’t for the reasons he wanted, but it was easy to pretend that Steve was picking him up for a date, and not just to drive him to a middle school dance.

Getting rejected by the girls made no sense. Steve was so good with the ladies, his advice had to work! Then he’d danced with Nancy, and all Dustin could think about was how excited he was to tell Steve that he’d figured it out. Clearly, the universe had messed up their stats and given Dustin all the intelligence, so to be fair, his charisma points had been given to Steve!

“Huh?” The teen had replied when informed of this discovery.

“See what I mean? Dude,” Dustin gleefully exclaimed, twirling the phone cord around his finger, “We’re such a good team! You’ve got the beauty, and I’ve got the brains!”

A laugh echoed in his ears, and Dustin almost melted. This wasn’t Steve’s normal laugh, a deep chuckle suited to a high school boy. No, this was the laugh he only used around Dustin. A quick giggle, always sounding as if it had slipped out accidentally. 

It made him feel all giddy inside, knowing that he was the only one who heard this laugh, because Dustin was his new best friend, even though he’d pushed and squirmed his way into Steve’s life.

“No way, man! You’ve got plenty of ca…isma?” Steve answered hesitantly.

Yet another thing that proved Steve was incredible. Despite not really understanding, he was still agreeing and supporting him. Gosh, Dustin would normally get peeved at someone for not knowing such a basic word, especially one he’d said just moments before, but when Steve did it, he found it sorta cute.

“Charisma.” 

“Yeah, that! You’ve got loads of it. Just wait until you hit high school, buddy. People will be going, ‘Steve Harrington who? We only know Dustin Henderson, the handsome scientist.’, mkay?”

The line rang with laughter. Only one person was delusional enough to think he’d go from toothless nerd to replacing King Steve, and it definitely wasn’t Dustin.

Eleven didn’t really spend much time with Steve. She knew he was nice, because he’d protected her friends. She also knew that he used to not be nice, because the few times she had heard Mike grumble about him over the radio, it was mostly about his stupid hair and empty brain. She still wasn’t sure what that meant, because she didn’t know brains were supposed to be full.

The first time Eleven had seen him not beaten up was when Max brought her to the mall. As they walked up to Scoops Ahoy, her new friend rambled all about Steve. Like usual, she had a very different opinion to Mike.

“Steve works here, I’m pretty sure. He’s not that bad. Super dumb, but as long as his mouth is closed, he’s okay.”

Eleven thought this wasn't very nice to say but she didn’t want to argue with Max, not while they were having such fun.

As they walked up to the counter, she pondered Mike’s words. Steve’s hair didn’t look stupid, it was pretty. It looked squished because of his hat, but she imagined it was big, like the women on TV.

“Are you supposed to be here?” The teen asked as he served them, taking in her new clothes with a raised eyebrow.

Eleven and Max simply giggled, grabbed their cones, and ran off.

“Told you! He’s hot until he opens up his mouth.” Max laughed, their arms locked around each other.

“Hot?” Eleven asked, tilting her head.

“Yeah. Good looking.” She answered, nodding her head confidently. “Some people say it's bad to find others hot when you’re dating someone, but I think that's dumb. As long as you’re just looking, it’s fine.”

That made sense to Eleven, so she nodded her head. She told her new friend that he reminded her of the women on TV, which made Max laugh. She didn’t understand why it was funny, but she laughed too. She liked laughing. She liked Max’s laugh too. She wondered if she’d like Steve’s laugh too.

“Hah! You’re right, El! Steve’s just like your soap operas,” Max said, taking another lick of her ice cream to stop it from dripping on her hand before continuing, “Even though that uniform is lame, it makes his legs look so good.”

Eleven perked up. She knew what to say here!

“Like yours!” She announced proudly, nodding her head again. 

Her friend blinked, her face scrunching to display an emotion that Eleven couldn’t quite understand but she recognised from whenever she tested a new pet name on Mike, before it smoothed out and Max grinned at her.

“Sure, El. Yours too.” 

“Thank you,” Eleven hummed as they walked towards the exit of the mall, “I am glad we are friends now, Max.”

While the girls had left the ice cream shop as soon as they’d gotten their ice cream, Will had sat down and wallowed for hours. Apparently the despair on his face was so obvious that someone came up and sat across the table from him.

“Baby Byers? Whatcha doing here alone?” 

Will choked on a spoonful of ice cream in surprise, and flushed when Steve reached over and patted him on the back. He couldn’t help but admire how the older boy's arm flexed, or the way his shorts rode up from him stretching over the table.

“T-thanks.” Will squeaked once he stopped choking, fiddling with his spoon.

Steve gave him a big grin in return, shrugging in a classic No-Problemo gesture. He settled back in his seat and lifted his shirt to wipe the sweat off his forehead, before letting out a hum as he pulled it back down, not hearing the small whimper from the boy across from him.

“So, you wanna tell me why you’re alone?” Steve asked, failing to hide the concern in his voice.

Will groaned, wanting to bang his head on the table. As much as he wanted to push his grievances on Steve, he knew the teen wouldn’t understand how much it sucked to have his friends go girl-crazy. When he quietly muttered as much, Steve winced sympathetically.

“Yeah, I can’t say I know how that feels. Tommy didn’t really change much when he asked out Carol. If anything, he made sure to include me. The three of us hung out way more after they got together.” 

Will blinked at these words and squinted at Steve. He didn’t know the older boy very well, but it was like every time they spoke, he gained more evidence that Steve’s old friends weren’t just friends. He tried not to get his hopes up though. 

“But hey, if it makes you feel better, I’m sure it’ll blow over! Sometimes guys just get really stupid when they first start dating. Once they realise how shitty they’re being, they’ll go back to normal,” Steve comforted before pausing and biting his bottom lip nervously, “Fuck, I probably shouldn’t swear around you. Shit, I swore again! Wait… Fuck! Oh my god-!”

A laugh bubbled out of Will’s throat at the sight of the older boy covering his hands with his mouth. He didn’t mind swearing, god knows he and his friends did it all the time, but Steve’s alarm was pretty funny. For once, he didn’t mind being treated with kid gloves, because he could tell Steve was trying his best.

Lucas hadn’t always liked Steve. There had been a point in time where he’d thought of him the same way he thought of polar bears. He knew they were real, but they weren’t in his orbit, and weren’t interesting enough for him to want them to be.

But, over time, Lucas began to respect him. He envied Steve’s strength, the way he effortlessly put himself in front of danger for others, even his confidence. Lucas wanted to be able to protect his loved ones, just like him, so he decided to ask Steve to help him practice basketball.

When Lucas saw Steve at the park, he almost gasped. He already knew Steve was objectively hot, but seeing the older boy in those devious green shorts really made him question his sexuality.

“Lucas! You made it!” Steve cheered, running over and holding his hand up.

While silently high fiving him, Lucas took him in some more. Not only was he wearing shorts so short that they should be illegal, but he was also wearing a tank top, so his muscular arms were on show.

Steve noticed the boy's eyes on him, and grinned as he flexed his biceps.

“You’ll have to put in loads of work to get your own pair of these bad boys, dude.” 

“Oh, yeah, I know,” Lucas cleared his throat, averting his eyes as he explained, “So, uh, my dad already taught me how to play, so I just need you to practice with me.”

Steve nodded eagerly, and Lucas sent thanks to the universe for making it so his blush didn’t show as obviously as it did on white people. If it did, he knew he’d be as red as a tomato, and that was embarrassing.

They began to play, occasionally pausing so Steve could give him tips or praise his form. It felt good to run around and throw the ball. He’d always been more athletic than his friends, Will got out of breath pretty easily, Dustin just didn’t care, and Mike had the grace of a newborn giraffe, but he’d never actually considered how fun it could be. He was used to doing the bare minimum and laughing at his friend’s groans.

Lucas loved Max. Even though they were broken up right now, his heart belonged to her. He’d never dream of being with someone else, despite it not being like it would be cheating.

That said, Lucas couldn’t deny that he couldn’t take his eyes off Steve’s ass, which was practically bursting out of his shorts. It was obvious they were old, probably from when he was still in school, but God, they looked good on him.

“You’re pretty good at this, man. Way better than I was at your age.” Steve complimented as they stopped for a water break, patting Lucas on the back.

“Really?” Lucas could feel his cheeks heat up, knowing he sounded like an utter dork as he added, “Cool!”

Steve didn’t seem to notice how he was acting, and just beamed at him as they went back to playing.

It had been a year since they defeated Vecna, and although both their physical and mental scars had doubled, everyone was happy. 

Well, except for Max.

“The worst thing about being blind is that I can’t enjoy Steve in his swimsuit.” She announced mournfully.

The entire party, who were at Steve’s for a pool party, squawked loudly.

“Dude, what?”

“Hey! What if he heard you?”

“Max!”

“I’m not even going to say anything-” Robin, who had just opened the back door, immediately walked back into the house.

El laughed at their reactions as she kept braiding her friend’s hair.

“What? He’s hot. Lucas agrees with me!” Max defended, crossing her arms.

The boy in question gasped, his head shooting up.

“I told you that in confidence!”

“I would throw you under the bus for literally any reason,” she scoffed, “Don’t act like that’s surprising.”

All the boys were grumbling and looking away, as if that would hide their flushed cheeks.

“He was popular for a reason,” Dustin piped up, tilting his head, “So, it’s not weird for us to point out how he looks, right?”

Lucas nodded rapidly, pointing at his friend as he said,

“Exactly! I-it’s not like we like-like him!”

He ignored Max’s laugh at how childish his wording was.

“Why would any of us like Steve like that?” Mike croaked, sounding suspiciously strangled.

Will hesitated, biting his lip as he glanced around. He’d come out a couple weeks ago, and everyone had taken it pretty well, even Mike. It was funny to see him try to be an ally.

“I mean… He is pretty nice. It’s not like it’s crazy to think someone would like him.” He said shyly, stirring his lemonade with his straw and pointedly avoiding anyones eyes.

Mike backtracked almost immediately, the way he had been doing recently to try and make up for what he’d said a couple years ago.

“N-no! It’s, uh, cool. I meant, like… Well, I guess it makes a little bit of sense.” Mike stammered.

Dustin beamed, happy to praise his friend now that he knew the others would be fine with it. Of course, he did that all the time, so it didn’t really matter.

“Steve’s awesome! I think he’s like the exception to everyone's sexuality.”

“What does that even mean?” Max asked with a raised eyebrow.

El nodded in agreement with Dustin, and she explained it by saying,

“Steve is a boy-girl. Handsome and pretty. For everyone. Like Eggos!”

Everyone paused to consider this and nodded, even Max. El and Dustin were right. Steve was everyones type, it seemed.

They kept talking about him for a while, but they quickly shut up when the boy in question stepped outside, wearing his choice of swimwear: a red speedo.

“You brats all okay? Anyone need some water or another coat of sunscreen?” He asked.

Steve scoffed when they shook their heads and put his hands on hips, raising a brow.

“Liars. Look at how red you all are! Sunburn is no joke, guys! Just asks Robin!”

The kids glanced at each other before bursting into laughter, leaving Steve utterly confused.

[angelynmoon]

I think oblivious Steve would be funnier. Like at the end of a show while Steve is waiting for Eddie a group of kids comes up to him to ask where he got his clothes and Steve is confused because they are dressed like Eddie, head to toe black with ripped jeans but Steve's also excited because everyone makes fun of his style, you know, so he tells them.

When they show up at the next concert in his clothes, his first thought is not that they want to get into Eddie's pants, no, it's more along the lines of 'oh dear, I'm stealing Eddie's fans'.

And in the background you can see everyone just face palming when Steve asks them how he can break it to Eddie gently.

It doesn't once occur to him that he's never done anything 'fan worthy' besides being Eddie's boyfriend/husband.

@maya-custodios-dionach

Sorry, got too long to comment after you

[vamp-eyre]

Just posted my first ever Steddie oneshot !

Summary: “When Dustin is unable to get into the Upside Down during the final battle, it's decided Steve will stay with Eddie in the trailer. When things start to go south, Steve finds himself stuck in quite a precarious and unfortunate place with him. Or is it really that unfortunate?”

[steddielations]

Eddie stumbles into his queer awakening because he starts obsessing over why none of the girls Steve hooks up with actually want to date him. Eddie doesn’t even know what "perfect boyfriend material" is, but he knows it’s Steve.

Steve is confident but not full of himself like Eddie once thought. He’s romance novel level protective. Girls love that shit right? And he surprisingly has a goofy side, a sassy one too, and it’s all wrapped in charm that makes it work.

Sometimes Eddie even feels like Steve is flirting with him… Smiling at him when he comes to the video store, leaning over the counter close to him, looking at his lips even when he’s not talking. 

It flusters Eddie, makes his heart beat funny and puts a strange warmth in his stomach. The way he imagines any girl in Steve’s beamer feels when he kisses her while some radio love song plays, but Eddie assumes Steve has that effect on everyone. Right? Eddie doesn’t get a lot of attention like that, he can never tell when he has a crush or he’s just happy a girl gave him a look that wasn’t annoyed.

Then once, Eddie’s renting a movie and Steve asks to join him later, but he frames it like he’s asking Eddie on a date, giving Eddie that look that makes his stomach flutter and Eddie just can’t take it anymore.

Eddie blurts out, “I don’t get it, man. How do you not have a girlfriend? You’d be so easy to fall in love with. Hell, I feel like you've made me fall halfway in love with you already. If I was a girl, I’d date the shit out of you.”

It hits him all at once as soon as it leaves his mouth. 

Oh.

Part 2

[unkreativstermensch]

It’s Eddie’s first time in Steve’s car which Steve should have known meant Eddie was gonna snoop. But Steve doesn’t mind, it’s not like he has any secrets stashed away here anyway (couldn’t even if he wanted to, not with how often Henderson’s sitting right where Eddie is) and Eddie’s one of his best friends (which, yeah…still a little weird sometimes, if he’s being honest. But somewhere in the past couple months Steve&Robin turned into Steve&Robin & Eddie and Steve’s not complaining. Eddie’s great). So he just happily hums along to Everybody Wants To Rule The World playing from the radio and lets Eddie do his thing. And Eddie’s enjoying it. He’s rummaging through the glove compartment, making judgmental or approving sounds, commenting on tapes (”ugh, this one’s a crime“) and the gum one of the gremlins probably left there (”gross, Steve, watermelon flavor, are you serious?“). And then, "Dude…seriously?“ His tone’s so blunt and unimpressed that Steve frowns and throws him a glance. And oh, okay. Eddie’s holding up a condom in its shiny silver wrapping. Steve huffs out a breath, smirks and directs his eyes back at the road. "What, you’ve never had sex in a car?“ he asks. "I’ve never had sex, period,“ Eddie replies and- just- What? Steve blinks. "What?“ Eddie chuckles and there’s a slight self deprecating tone to it. "I’ve never had sex,“ he repeats. And then it sounds like he’s frowning when he adds, "what, does that really surprise you?“ "I mean…yeah,“ Steve says. "Obviously.“ "Obviously?" Eddie scoffs. "Steve, I’m Eddie 'The Freak' Munson. I’m a social outcast, play nerd games and have spent most of my time in a sweaty garage with my honestly not very good band. What about that makes you think I’m getting laid?“ "No, I just- I mean…“ Steve shrugs. "I mean you’re, like, objectively attractive, Eddie. You’re charming, you’re smart, witty…plus you have that whole…metalhead aesthetic thing going on,“ he waves his right hand in Eddie’s general direction, "I’m sure girls are into that.“ He shrugs again. "Hell, I’d have sex with you if I was a girl. So yeah. I'm surprised. I thought you were hooking up, like, all the time." Eddie doesn’t say anything for a moment. "Jesus Christ,“ he then whispers. Steve throws him another glance. "What?“ "Nothing, just- oh my god, Steve, there’s so much to unpack here.“

[hairmetal666]

They start kissing on stage as a joke.

The night before the first time, they're at an afterparty, pounding shots, and Eddie is reading aloud a piece that just came out in Rolling Stone. "'One of the most noteworthy parts of Munson and Harrington's unlikely pairing is their chemistry on stage. It's like these two men--one on his way to being the latest metal god, the other an indie rock wunderkind--are two parts of one musical whole. Their singing, their playing, even their bodies twine and flow with assuredness; where one goes, the other follows without question. They share a single brain-cell and that cell is music'."

Steve giggles, pours some more Grey Goose into the glass. "If they say that now, could you imagine what would happen if we, like, kissed on stage or something."

"What the fuck, Harrington?" Eddie splutters, having just thrown a drink back.

"I don't know, other bands do it!"

Eddie snorts. "I'm cutting you off." He reaches for the bottle and the suggestion is forgotten for wrestling over the liquor.

Steve barely remembers it in the morning. Doesn't think about it at all as he gets ready to go out on stage.

They're playing one of the instrumental breakdowns when it happens. They're leaning into each other, Eddie smiling over his shoulder at him, their eyes locked, bodies moving together. "You wanna?" Eddie mouths at him.

Steve nods before the question actually registers and by then Eddie's warm, soft mouth is against his and he just-- completely forgets what he's doing. His hands still on the guitar strings, and he melts a little, going completely boneless when Eddie grips the back of his head, pulls him deeper into the kiss. t's over almost as quickly as it started, Eddie pulling away and swirling to the mic to start the next verse.

The kiss sinks into Steve's bones, and that's before it becomes a regular feature of their performances. After that night, they're never at the same time during the show, all initiated by Eddie, all over before he can catch his breath; each one chaste and surrounded by people but somehow more intimate than any make out.

He and Eddie, they're friends, bandmates, collaborators. They've known each other since they first started out, forging an immediate connection with they stumbled upon each other hiding out in the garden at some industry bigwig's party. And as much as he loved his friend, never once in that time had Steve considered wanting Eddie.

But now, now he falls asleep with the ghost of Eddie on his lips, goes into each show with a thrum of anticipation, catches himself thinking how beautiful his friend is when he's all rumpled and disheveled from a night in the tour bus bunks.

They've always been easy with physical affection, but once the kissing starts they're constantly in each other's space, idly playing with hair, laying across laps, heads on shoulders, twisting together on the tour bus couch. Steve is ruined with every touch, every moment; he can't get enough.

The first time Eddie uses tongue destroys every last piece of Steve's composure. They've added a new song to the setlist, a remixed version of Eddie's hit "Prince Charming". It's hard, heavy, sexy, one of Steve's favorites. And in the middle of it, right in the middle, Eddie shoves him against a low platform, kisses him like he's trying to own him, tongues twining eager and wet and full of sinful promise. It's like that every show after, Eddie kissing him deep and thorough, like he's trying to lick up every drop of Steve.

He is, unquestionably, fucked. Unquestionably falling. Can't properly fathom how he'd gotten himself here, desperate for Eddie's kiss, as performative as it may be.

They're packing up equipment after a show. Eddie's hair is piled in a messy bun and Steve is trying not to blatantly stare at the curve of his neck, the stray curls against his pale skin. Eddie's gesturing at something, says, "Can you grab those cords, swee--Steve?" He hands them over without thought, notices that Eddie's face is shining red. He's called away to deal with packing the guitars, forgets all about it, but at their next show, Eddie doesn't kiss him.

They don't talk about it.

Eddie doesn't try to kiss him again.

A week after Eddie stops the kiss, they have a night off between shows. He needs to get out of his head, goes out with Robin. He gets back fairly early, but all the lights are off in the bus. It makes him panic in a way it shouldn't; they've always done their own things. Still, he rushes on board, flips on the lights, his absurd heart beating too hard.

Eddie is curled up on the couch, face pressed to the pillows and covered with his hands. The panic kicks up a notch.

"Eddie?" He steps closer, slowly reaching out to grip Eddie's shoulder.

He jerks upright, earbuds slipping free, phone sliding down his hip. "Steve?"

His face is wet, tears actively slipping free from his eyes as Steve watches.

"What happened? Are you hurt?" His hands flutter around Eddie's arms and face, searching for bruises or wounds.

"I'm fine, Harrington," he chokes out. "Though you were out with Robin?"

"Yeah, I was, but Chrissy called. You know how useless she gets. But that doesn't--you--you're crying. What's wrong?"

Eddie's smile is a wobbly little thing, refusing to stick on his face. "Oh, you know, the usual. Fell for the wrong guy."

Steve forces down the gut churning hurt at hearing that Eddie's in love with someone, intent on comforting his friend. He tries to slip his arm around Eddie's shoulders, but Eddie shrugs him off. It jostles Eddie's phone again, slipping it toward Steve and activating the screen. He has a split second where he's looking at the cover of his own first album, before Eddie's snatching it out of reach, scrambling up from the couch.

"I'm fine." He swipes his sleeve over his face. "It's nothing."

And Steve is putting it all together, the being in love and listening to Steve's music, the kissing and how it ended.--

"Eddie." He sounds all wrong, choked and garbled.

Eddie doesn't turn around, is stuffing his feet into his boots. "I'm--I gotta go clear my head."

He walks towards the door and Steve just--"I've been obsessed with you since the first kiss," he says. Eddie stops, hand curled against the door. "We've been friends all this time and I didn't--I never realized. And then we kissed and--it's all I've been able to think about."

Eddie turns then, facing him, expression unreadable."Steve, what are you--"

"I love you. I'm in love with you." It comes out fast, all jumbled, but he can't stand Eddie leaving, not now.

"You--?" Eddie blinks, bites his lip. "That's not possible."

Steve smiles, can't help it. "It is, though. Turns out, I can't get enough."

Their eyes lock; neither speaks. Steve's heart pounds so hard it might spring free of his chest. Eddie moves first, crosses the small distance between them to pull Steve into his arms.

It's not a kiss, but Steve buries his face against Eddie's neck, breathing him in, feeling the echo to the pound of his own heart. "How long?" Steve asks.

Eddie's soft laugh vibrates through him. "Since I saw you walking in that garden and thought, 'jesus christ, Prince Charming is real'."

Steve pulls away to stare at Eddie in disbelief. "But that's--your--the song?"

"They're kinda all about you, Stevie. But that one most of all." Eddie whispers. His eyes glisten.

"Fuck, Eddie." He doesn't mean to whine, but he's not in control of his voice anymore. "I'm sorry I didn't--" He shakes his head. "I'm all yours, Ed. Whatever you want."

Eddie's thumb catches against Steve's bottom lips, eyes transfixed on his mouth. "Everything, sweetheart. I want it all."

[lukas-dusk]

Eddie : I think Steve is dropping hint that he wants me to propose?

Robin : What kind of hints?

Eddie : He keep showing me his wedding Pinterest board.

Eddie : And randomly tells me his ring size.

Robin : That isn't a hint.

Robin : Thats called a kick in the ass.

[asbealthgn]

wrote this goofy thing as an expansion of this post

It’s very surprising when the door to Eddie’s trailer opens and Eddie is standing there with flowers.

It’s even more surprising when he says, “Happy one month!” with a big grin.

Steve looks back and forth between Eddie and the flowers—wildflowers by the look of them, probably picked around the edges of the trailer park. “Uh, one month of what?”

Eddie gives him an uncertain smile like he’s not sure if Steve’s being serious or not. “Of our relationship,” he says, the last syllable tilting up almost like a question.

Huh. Kind of weird, but at the start of summer Steve and Robin had an ice cream party to celebrate the year anniversary of when they started at Scoops together. So it’s not like this is completely unheard of. Except—

“You and I have been friends for longer than a month,” Steve says, “It’s been like—” he tries to count the months since spring break in his head “—at least four? Unless you don’t count when you were unconscious in the hospital, but that was only a couple weeks, so—”

“I mean one month of our relationship,” Eddie says, putting emphasis on the word. And now his eyebrows are drawn together. Face concerned. And Steve is clearly missing something here.

Did something significant happen a month ago? Some moment where they moved from friends to best friends or something? It was probably about a month or so ago the first time Steve spent the night at Eddie’s trailer, but that wasn’t a huge deal. Steve has spent the night at the Byers’ house before and it’s not like he and Jonathan are breaking out the balloons to commemorate it. 

Steve feels guilty, because clearly there’s something that Eddie thinks he should know that he doesn’t. He doesn’t like this nervous look on Eddie’s face. Steve tries to think like Nancy, tries to put the clues together. But he’s not Nancy. So he’s lost. 

“I’m sorry, dude,” Steve says, “I don’t get what you mean.”

Eddie deflates.

“I know we haven’t necessarily defined it.” His voice is wavering, eyes getting watery. Shit shit shit, what did Steve do? This is so completely out of nowhere and Steve doesn’t know how to fix it. “But I didn’t realize it was actually that insignificant to you.”

Steve shoots his arm out to stop Eddie from closing the door on him. He needs to figure out what’s going on so he can make it right, and that’s not gonna happen if Eddie shuts him out. “Eds, seriously, you’re gonna have to fill me in,” he says, “‘Cause I honestly don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”

“Seriously?” Eddie asks, anger over taking the sadness in his voice, “You’re gonna act like you don’t know?”

“I don’t!” Steve nearly shouts, desperate. “Please, man, I’m not trying to piss you off here. Whatever it is, I wanna make it right. You just have to tell me what you mean.”

“You and I,” Eddie says. Looking at him like it should be obvious. When it’s so, so not. It makes Steve want to scream. “We’re—I thought we were together.”

“Together? Like…together how?”

Steve doesn’t think he’s ever seen Eddie look this pissed off. “Use your goddamned brain, Harrington,” he spits, “Like together.”

Oh. Okay. That’s…something. It’s not that Steve would necessarily be opposed, or even that he hasn’t thought of it. It’s just not true. They’re not together. And he’s not sure why Eddie thinks they are. Yeah, they’re close, but it’s not like they’re closer than Steve and Robin. It’s not like they’re closer than Steve was to Tommy back in the day. He and Eddie haven’t done anything that feels outside the realm of friendship to him. And he definitely didn’t realize that Eddie saw it any differently.

“Um,” Steve says, aware that he’s standing like an idiot on Eddie’s doorstep and needs to answer. “Why?”

“Oh my God,” Eddie says, making as if to close the door again. Steve barely catches it in time. It makes Eddie glare at him. “There’s no way you’re being serious,” he says.

Keeping one hand on the door, Steve throws up the other one in a gesture he stole from Robin. “I really am,” he says, “You know what the kids say. I’m an idiot. You really have to lay things out for me.”

That at least makes Eddie soften a few degrees. “You’re not an idiot, Steve,” he says, “You’re just—oblivious, apparently.”

“Yeah, that too.”

Eddie sighs. “Just come in. We can talk about it.” He steps back and lets Steve come inside. The flowers are still clutched in Eddie’s hand, starting to wilt. Eddie sets them on the table before joining Steve on the couch. 

“A month ago is when you stayed over for the first time,” Eddie says. Steve nods. “And you kissed me.” Steve nods again. Eddie lifts his eyebrows significantly. “You’re not seeing the connection?”

Steve shrugs. “I mean, I guess there’s other ways you could construe that,” he says, “But I thought it was, like, a friend kiss. A goodnight kiss.”

“A friend kiss,” Eddie says flatly. “You kiss a lot of your friends?”

“Sure,” Steve says, “Well, Robin prefers forehead kisses and Jonathan’s more of a hug guy, but I used to kiss Tommy and Carol all the time.”

Disbelief is the main emotion on Eddie’s face. And a whole lot of other ones that Steve can’t quite parse out. “So—everything we’ve done,” Eddie says, slowly, like he’s trying to come to terms with it. “It’s all just…been normal friend shit to you?”

Steve thinks back over the last month, trying to think if anything stands out in his head as non-platonic. Maybe there’s been a time or two when he was kissing Eddie or cuddling up to him in bed or sitting on his lap during D&D where Steve’s felt a sort of stirring deep in his belly. But he figured that was one-sided. His body’s reaction to whatever was happening and not a manifestation of, like, feelings or something. After all, the same thing used to happen with Tommy when they’d do similar stuff. And clearly they were just friends.

After a full twenty seconds of Steve not answering, Eddie drops his head in his hands. “Holy shit,” he mutters. Then he lifts his head. “This—you—the other day. You slept over. We made out. You—you took my fucking shirt off, Steve.”

Yeah, that did happen. And Steve doesn’t have a great explanation for it. “I don’t know,” he says, “It was the heat of the moment or whatever.”

“The heat of the moment,” Eddie repeats, and Steve can’t tell if he’s on the verge of tears or the verge of laughing. Eddie puts his arm on the back of the couch and leans toward Steve. “Can you honestly say that you’re not attracted to me at all?”

Annoyingly, Steve can feel his face start to heat. “I never said that,” he mutters.

For the first time, Eddie looks triumphant. “So you are attracted to me?”

“Yeah, man,” Steve says, squirming uncomfortably. Of course he’s attracted to Eddie. What’s not to be attracted to? He’s smart, funny, hot, good with the kids, good on the guitar, good at kissing. Helped save the world. “You’re, like, it for me. I definitely think about you that way. I just didn’t think you thought about me that way.”

Eddie laughs, the sound containing more disbelief than humor, but still overall a good thing. “I can’t believe the guy who’s been sharing my bed for the past month didn’t think I was into him.”

“Hey, you’re not the only person whose bed I’ve shared.” Shit, that was a bad way to put it. “Platonically.”

Shaking his head, Eddie laughs again. “Clearly, your idea of platonic does not line up with mine,” he says. “But you mean it? You’re into me?”

“Yeah, Eds,” Steve says, “I’m into you.”

“So, does that mean you’d want to be my boyfriend?”

“Apparently I already have been for the past month,” Steve says, grinning.

Eddie grins back. “Doesn’t count if you didn’t know.”

“Then we can count from today,” Steve says, “Starting now, I’m your boyfriend.”

He hasn’t finished saying the last word before Eddie is surging forward and taking Steve’s face in his hands. He shifts onto Steve’s lap, kissing him deeply. 

And it doesn’t feel platonic at all.

[qprstobin]

The fact people act like Steve wouldn't notice if a guy/Eddie was flirting with him at all, when part of the hilarity behind the big boy flirtation scene is that Steve CLEARLY knows something about the comment is off lol. That's why he looks so baffled. Steve can be oblivious about other things but come on Casanova over there is going to notice when someone is flirting with him even if it is a guy

[juiceicicles]

Eddie having a crush on Steve in high school and Corroded Coffin finding it pathetic is funny, but I raise you:

Eddie having a crush on Steve in high school and Corroded Coffin thinking Eddie just hates him

He gets red in the face whenever Steve is around? He’s just mad at him

Eddie stutters his way through an awkward conversation with Steve when he picks the kids up from hellfire? He’s trying his best to not say anything mean

Eddie declares he’s going to pass out and/or vomit after Steve leaves? Wow he must’ve really hated interacting with them

Maybe one day one of them figures it out and the rest of the boys start teasing him. Eddie never knows peace again

Maybe they never find out and when Eddie and Steve become friends/start dating they become increasingly confused

Maybe they don’t even notice their developing relationship until Eddie tells them he’s got a date with Steve so can we maybe pack up band practice a little faster and all the boys freak out because “we thought you hated him?!”