#someone talk about tasm!peter and steve in my inbox immediately

[djokeery]

The first time Steve Harrington meets Peter Parker, he doesn’t even realize it.

It’s just two plastic bags being handed to him, filled with burgers and fries from Benny’s Diner—a woman named Tiffany runs it now, but she kept the name as an homage to the cook that died for being kind (not that anyone knows that’s how and why he died, but you know)—on a Friday night, the atmosphere in the building a bit more hectic than usual. Steve's so busy flipping through song options on the jukebox in the corner, debating between Queen or The Romantics, that he almost misses the waiter saying “Order for Harrington? Harrington to go? Four cheeseburgers, four fries? Harrington?”, but he catches it above the noise on the last rendition of his name. He walks up to the counter, takes his food without looking up, and goes. These days, everyone knows who he is. He doesn’t have to prove anything. He's the kid who used to rule Hawkins high that tried to apply at the police station after graduation and got denied.

(Something about his past record with graffiti and starting fights and generally being a pain in the ass because “people like you don’t change their habits, just their ways”, whatever that means—earlier that conversation, when Powell had told him Hopper had put in a good word for him, but that it wasn’t enough to convince the board, mostly because Hopper was dead gone, Steve had to choke back a laugh. Of course. The one person looking out for him, the one person who believed and confirmed he was a better dude than before, and it didn’t matter. Never being good enough, the story of Steve's life.) 

But he doesn’t dwell on that because he paid ahead, his head is starting to pound, he’s got a few dipshits—and Robin—waiting on him back at his house, and he’s positive today’s the day Dustin will break the computer in his dad’s (incredibly off-limits, supposed to be locked at all times) office if he doesn’t return within the twenty minute window he set.

Life—and the D&D campaigns he’s forced to participate in against his will—goes on, with or without him feeling sorry for himself.