#stancy is bad for both nancy AND steve

[the-fire-might-be-shooting-at-us]

I don't get what's so hard to understand about "Don't talk about Nancy or Steve or NancySteve you don't have the proper clearance" like how many times must I say it!!!

[miwiromantics]

ST ships and parallels - PART 3

this post is to point out similar parallels and their differences between the canon ships in the show, especially in favor of byler and jancy. this is a pro byler/jancy and anti-mileven/stancy post so if you ship the later dni or read at your own risk

this post includes: - byler/stancy parallel ✔️ - stancy/mileven parallels ✔️ - jancy/mileven parallels✔️ - byler/mileven parallels✔️ - byler/ jancy + canon ships parallels✔️

part 1. part 2.

Byler/Mileven parallels:

3. Conflicting

'life started that day' vs 'best thing i've ever done'

season 4 Mike conflicting himself in season 2 in his monologue scene. Mike tells El that his life started the day they found her in the woods while in season 2, he tells Will that asking him to be his friend was the best thing he'd ever done.

also Mike stating that his life started the day Will's turned upside down in front of him also hurts.

most of the ga take this as it is without understanding that this specific line his brings up a lot of conflict. It asks the question 'which scene is Mike lying in,' because both of this cannot be true at the same time.

as a byler i can say that the second scene is shot in a much more genuine way. there is no music in the background and no other shots at any character while the first scene has blaring music and shots at both jonathan, max and will.

4. Mike

there isn't much to expand on in these scenes but it is still very telling. both will and el are looking out the window, crying and mike is in both shots but he only looks at one of them.

personally, i feel as if this is a take on how well mike is at emotionally reading them just like i expanded on in point 3. even if no words are said, Mike still looks at Will. he still looks for Will.

even in the first scene, the camera pans over to Mike glancing at Will instead of his own girlfriend who was just publicly humiliated. i feel like this more of shows mike is more concerned about his relationship with will after their fight than about el.

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Byler/jancy (+ canon ships) parallels:

now this is the very obvious parallels used by many bylers to prove that they are endgame. most of these i have gotten from this post by @kittykat940. i won't post all their points, pls go through their original post.

1. Car talk

this car talks that usually happens between canon ships, usually when they have their heart - to - heart conversations.

2. Lies

alright, most obvious jancy/byler parallel is that both jonathan and will lies to nancy/mike regarding to steve/el. jonathan lies to nancy saying that steve is the one that told him to take nancy back home during the night of the party while will lies to mike saying that el is the one that commissioned the painting.

3. more parallels (because i can't name stuff)

4. Lumax/Byler parallels

5. Jopper/Byler

6. Byler/Rovickie

these two clips between will and robin is very important. they are both openly queer characters being portrayed in between their love interest and opposing ship. in the first scene, will is blurred out as the audience is meant to focus on mike and el reuniting but still notice that will somehow plays a big part in this. in the second scene, robin is seen more clearly to show her feelings towards what is happening between vickie and her boyfriend. in this scene, the audience is meant to feel bad for robin and root for her love. and we know for a fact, that both robin and vickie will be canon couple in season 5.

same with will and mike perhaps??

both vickie and mike looking at robin/will.

and in the end scene, both of these couples are seen together at the end of the season.

alright... that's all i got. i have linked the first two parts above and pls look at all the original posts.

[maccakgae]

"but, tumblr user willielli, does this post of yours mean you believe any ship will be endgame as long as one of the characters is in love?" absolutely not, my lovely imaginary opponent! just being in love doesn't save a character from ending up on a losing side of a love triangle, au contraire, stranger things has a character exactly like that. and, as you might've guessed, it is no one other than steve harrington himself!

so buckle up, ladies and germs, we're doing an impromptu will&steve comparison/analysis! hopeless loverboys, fear me, i've come to dig in your guts-

just to preface, please note that i'm perfectly neutral on steve, which means i have not spent too much time thinking about his character, so i might be wayyyyy off here, but: i firmly believe that steve's endgame is going to be staying single & better for it, maybe finding someone in the epilogue. so, in other words... steve's endgame is exactly what some people on reddit envision for will, lmfao.

yeah, both steve and will are in love with their respective wheelers, both have dreams of happily ever after, but this is about where the similarities end. they are opposites when it comes to narrative ideas and character arcs, which is why their outcomes will be different.

first off, this point has been beaten half to death, but i'll repeat it anyway: stancy goes against the main message of stranger things, while byler supports it. in the jancy vs stancy love triangle, steve represents conformity: nancy choosing steve means leading a life terrifyingly similar to one of her parents, safe, but also miserable. this theme was first introduced in s1 with the jancy gun shooting practice scene, then amplified by murray in s2, and in s4 they repeated it via steve and his six nuggets talk. it's enticing, this image of happy and peaceful life, and while nancy is interested, she isn't won over by it in the end. steve represents an easy way out, but it also goes against what nancy, a very ambitious and driven woman, actually wants in life.

byler, on the other hand, is a queer relationship in the 80s, meaning it's the definition of non-conformity. the other, conforming option for mike (the center of this love triangle) is mil*ven, a relationship that was explicitly shown to be ridden with lies and play pretend. both of them are unable to be their true selves when with each other, both of them act like they are enjoying things they actually don't and are ignoring things they actually love. the biggest evidence here is mike's relationship with d&d in s3 and s4: he acts like he's too grown to be interested in the game while el is in the picture, then doing an 180 and joining the hellfire club the moment she's out. being with el is an obstacle to doing what he actually wants, just like it was for nancy with steve. will, on the other hand, shares mike's interests and encourages him to partake in them, be unashamedly himself.

the second aspect to this is how steve and will's character arcs (the romance parts of them, anyway) are actually total opposites. their starting points are mirrored: steve starts off in an established romantic relationship with nancy, confident and secure that nancy wants him; will is convinced that he will never fall in love — a romantic relationship is simply not an option for a gay kid like him. steve is proven to be incorrect, of course, when nancy doesn't get what she needs from him and breaks up with him, giving his head the biggest thump of his life and kickstarting his arc/development/redemption. the purpose of steve's love for nancy is for it to end up rejected, serving as an inciting incident that changed the trajectory of where steve's character was headed, allowing him to escape bad influence and grow from a douchey jock to the compassionate and open-minded person he is now. his arc is still not over, though, as steve is yet to find his worth, purpose and confidence, the lack of which manifests in his romantic failures, but i have a feeling he's not going to find that through nancy. just as for nancy this relationship means going against who she is, for steve it would mean a regression.

when it comes to will, his conviction is going to be challenged as well, since it's very obviously the Lie — stranger things is not a show that will reinforce a queer kid's belief that he will never be loved romantically. will's love for mike isn't tied to negative aspects of his character (unlike steve's, as his jealousy for nancy turned him into into a jerk and a bigot), as will was shown to be self-sacrificing, loving and supportive of both mike and el, unwilling to hurt them despite all the pain he's going through. moreover, the van scene is him giving up his love, conceding defeat without fighting, which comes as both an outcome and a reinforcement of the wrongful belief that romantic love is an impossibility for him. him ending up rejected would not be the cause of some character growth — there is no lesson to be drawn from a heartbreak for him. it's not giving a thump on his head to make him go in the right direction, it's headshotting a corpse.

now, will's position going into s5 was set up by the writers 100% intentionally. they chose to write themselves into this corner in which mike reciprocating is the only logical outcome, because it's a combination of several deliberate writing decisions. they didn't have to write will expressing that he will never fall in love, his struggle with his queerness could've come in a different form. they didn't have to write him have feelings for mike and mike only, it could've been anyone, existing character or new. they didn't have to write him in love, it could've been an infatuation or a childhood crush. they didn't have to write mil*ven lie to each other about who they truly are, they could've had a strong connection and understanding. they didn't have to write will giving up his love for mike and el's (dubious) benefit, he could've fought and gotten mean with it.

they could've written him being worse for loving mike, but they chose not to.

the writers gave both will and steve love triangles, and both of them are in the position of hopelessly in love third party as of s4, but their arcs are not parallels. both characters are in love, but love serves opposite purposes for them — for steve it's something to overcome and grow from, for will it's something to embrace and allow himself to have.

[rocknrollsalad]

rating: gen cw: Steve Harrington has bad parents, holiday celebrations, period typical homophobia, show typical trauma tags: it's the 90s y'all, older steddie, established steddie, stancy is mentioned, reclaiming holidays word count: 728

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written for @steddieholidaydrabbles prompt "stocking" and the @steddiemas prompt "surprise"

Christmas had never been Steve’s favorite holiday. He was more of a Thanksgiving guy. A big meal, friends and family, and a little bit of football? It was exactly how Steve would describe the perfect day.

Not to mention Thanksgiving was more relaxed than Christmas. There was a certain pressure around Christmas time that Steve swears he’d call one of his earliest memories. Life had moved on a long, long way from trying to eat the lights on the tree but the pressure to be well-behaved and happy was the same.

However, finding his own little community did help some. Not that any of them were any more Christmas people than Steve. Chrissy was the closest, she liked to entertain so any excuse. Nancy and Jonathan had a kid now so they had to celebrate but other than that, they were all fine to let the day come and go. It was an obligation best spent with friends who were suffering the same way.

This year was a little different. For the first time in Steve’s life, he had his own place to celebrate. Not an apartment he and Eddie shared with Robin and Chrissy, not his family home that he was allowed to stay in, this was his. And Eddie’s. Mostly his though.

A modest little home just outside suburbia with a lawn and a two-car garage, Steve loved the place. He’d spent the last nine months fixing all the things that needed repaired and updated which only made him love it more. This was where he was going to spend the rest of his life.

It was that ownership, that security of something for forever, that had him buying a Christmas tree a little early this year. Not out of obligation but because there was a perfect spot in the living room for it. Right in front of the window yet not in the way. It wouldn't take up the only communal space and no one would tell him how to decorate it, so why not?

They gave it a few simple decorations and a new string of lights, Steve wasn’t going crazy here. He still didn’t care about Christmas, but this symbolized so much more. Something that became more and more obvious with each new bit of seasonal decor that found it's way up. What really cinched it was the stockings, though. Something about really said "Christmas" to Steve.

One for him and one for Eddie. Their stockings hung in their home as they would be for the rest of their lives. It probably shouldn’t have made Steve as emotional as it did. He couldn’t stop looking at them. All that they’d fought to be alive, everything they went through, made this feel like a luxury. One Steve couldn’t believe he’d earned.

But he had. There were scars, nightmares, and weekly trips to the therapist to prove it. Whether he’d ever feel like they were safe or that he could fully let his guard down, time would still tell, but Steve was starting to feel worthy of more than just existing.

And there was one more thing this picture-perfect life needed.

It wasn’t exactly possible but times had changed enough that Steve and Eddie could live together and even if it raised a few eyebrows, people kept quiet. It wasn’t enough but it was something. Still, Steve knew. He knew there wasn’t anyone else on this planet for him and the only reason he wasn’t married to Eddie was because it wasn’t legal.

So with a bit of scrambling and all the romantic creativity in his body, Steve bought a ring and wrote a little speech. He sat on both for almost a week without saying anything so that he could pull off the surprise a moment like this was worth.

When Christmas morning rolled around, Steve’s stocking was overflowing with trinkets, candies, and other little goodies but Eddie’s sat looking practically empty. Steve rooted around through his and tried to not watch a very disappointed man dig down to the toe of his monogrammed stocking, chasing the only thing in it.

By the time he’d succeeded, Steve had ditched his candy and was waiting on one knee. This was the last thing he needed to make this the life he’d always dreamt of and maybe the first step in making Christmas something truly magical.

[craziertogether]

stancy & mileven

GOOD LORD THIS IS A LONG ONE. but i hope you guys enjoy it)

so i often think about stancy and mileven in the grand scheme of the show & fandom. if someone ships mileven it’s almost a guarantee that they will ship stancy too. i’m gonna be honest this usually tells me 1-2 major things about the person, you’re too young and have a very immature outlook on love OR you’re used to face value & toxic love/infatuation.

stancy is THE most perfect portrayal of the first “popular” / “bad boy” boyfriend a teenage girl most often gets. i say this from experience, like nancy i was a “good girl” that became infatuated with my first boyfriend, a trouble maker/womanizer but a good time. that is what stancy represents, a good time but nothing permanent or even endgame just the guy who makes her feel special. it kills me how much i relate to nancy but it also kills me more to think about how people are romanticizing stancy because of season 4. we just watched the rest of the show with our eyes closed huh? yes he was very sweet coming back to help clean up the movie theatre and IG the season 4 confession about his dreams with her were “cute”. but i’m sorry to say this like its not the most obvious thing ever but, you do NOT have to love someone because they love you. love is not enough to keep a relationship together. and unfortunate all steve has for her is that same high school idealistic view of nancy that made him fall for her. steve did not understand nancy, nor her goals her passions. that specific scene in s4 when jonathan listed off how hardworking and determined she was and how he couldn’t come between her and her goals. he showed what she REALLY needed, someone who understood her and knew that he couldn’t get in the way of that. steve and nancy are what people who don’t understand how mature relationships are. they’re not codependent (like steve + nancy). they’re not fully based around lust (like steve + nancy). they’re not based all on the goals of one person (like steve describing his insane dream of marriage and kids asap). (PS showing steve with like 10 other girls away from nancy and then bringing back his “i actually always wanted nancy all along in s4 was LAME and just a way to show the audience imo that those ships are also SUPERFICIAL AS HELL. the audience saw right through it, that nancy and jonathan were better for each other, it might’ve revived some stancy shippers to hear the “i love her still” about nancy. but guys COME ON. you’re telling me the GA somewhat saw through that fake revival of feelings but not through mileven and mike’s confession? i cannot today.) anyways i wanna say that if jancy not endgame, that’s insane first off, but second nancy can be alone and independent but to put her back with steve would be like the worst possible outcome. just like mileven.

as for mileven, it’s the same thing. as i stated before i was a mileven lover, but i was also 10/11 and i wasn’t aware that queer relationships could happen. if we take out the byler aspect of why mileven is doomed. we completely overlook the fact that they are the young version of stancy. the love at first sight lie, something that i know many girls can probably relate to, my elementary boyfriend seemed like my husband. i was conditioned to think heteronormative thoughts, that i had to absolutely marry a man and i had to be someone’s perfect wife. that’s why mileven fans think it’s the perfect outcome for mileven wedding and naming kids after the members of the group that may die. it’s not just childish but it comes from a lack of understanding complex relationships and from the conditioning of staying in a toxic relationship. mileven shows how empty and unreliable both mike and el are for each other, outside of mike being unable to say “i love you” to el, mike can’t stop idolizing her for ONE sole part of her identity (ahem steve + nancy w/ her being the good girl that’s a virgin) & el can’t stop idolizing mike for her idea of love (ahem nancy to steve when she grew up seeing her parents, thinking she can stay with him even after she felt her connection to jonathan and choosing to be with him because it was comfortable and it was easy, it’s what was expected of her by steve’s friends). both mileven and stancy represent what it means to be confined to heteronormative and social norms, they prevent you from becoming who you’re meant to be/ be with.

it’s crazy to me too because we see how many people LOVE nancy with a gun and think she literally is so badass and showed off incredible skill throughout the seasons and yet fail to see that the MAJORITY of those scenes are with jonathan?? (like will and mike they bring out the absolute best in the other). they know the other better than anyone else, even when they fight, they fight and it’s real, it’s raw. they fight through honesty and they fight because they love the other and they KNOW that they can take it. with jonathan calling out nancy in season 3, we see how he's calling her out for being immature for not being able to see that he is poor and he struggles and he needed that job, she fought with him bc it felt like he was coming from a place of ignorance and not addressing her mistreatment. they’re both incredibly honest even if it hurts the other one. versus her fight with steve, she can’t even honestly say the words “i love you”, so instead she stays silent. (HMM I WONDER WHO THAT SOUNDS LIKE…. mike queeler). but also when jancy is together they’re TOGETHER. they have heart to hearts, strong ones. they have MATCHING SCARS GUYS. even thousands of miles apart, they describe the other like the light of their life, they call out the TRAITS that make the other so wonderful (unlike steve who literally js thinks of nancy as his first love and who’s pretty). jonathon believed nancy and goes on a literal psychotic bender to find murray and get justice for barb, versus steve who remind me again, says they should try to be “normal” and party? yeah sounds a lot like another person trying to be normal. direct parallels blow me away btw, the GA has to be choosing to act blind on purpose. but yeah, let’s switch to mileven then byler. every major fight between mileven has been because mike lied or felt lied to. he felt lied to by el when she said that will was alive, he lies to her in s3 about his grandma and acts like he can’t completely understand her species (queer coding to the MAX) and in season 4 hes once again lying to her and SHE is also lying to him. dare i say, they’re not fighting with the OTHER, they’re fighting to keep their facade up.

and now let’s look at byler (my beloved)!!! 1) the first relationship established in the show is byler, like it or not, that moment of intimacy “it was a 7”, soulmate behavior. 2) complete and TOTAL trust from both of them. it’s interesting that will only tries to tell two people in the show that hes still alive. joyce his MOTHER, and MIKE with his walkie talkie. not jonathan who has a radio system? not dustin? not lucas? not hopper? the police? no. he chooses his mom and mike, interesting. 3) he hides his struggles from his friends and his family, everyone treats him like hes weak like hes different but not mike? why not mike? i mean he spends the most time with mike and yet, you’re telling me mike never once maybe slipped over his words and said something insensitive, no instead he “makes him feel better for being different”. 4) now onto the actual fights, bc this is really long. when will and mike fight, it’s raw and real, it hurts the audience to see will hurting because he’s been through so much trauma, and yet, mike hurts him anyways, but will CANNOT stay away. one moment i think we forget to mention is in s2, when mike gets angry about max, mike takes a jab at will. “did you agree to this?” “you should’ve told ME first.” will literally looks SO defeated & hurt. why mike? why does will need to tell you? you’re the leader? you own will? no. it’s bc will wasn’t honest to him, will didn’t come to mike about a big decision. also yeah a little gay bc why are you mad about a girl. but okay. and the season 3, yes the rain fight is back. i won’t dissect it any more but i will say, mike’s cruelness towards will was so unwarranted. but will’s willingness to say what no one else was willing to was yet another example of how deep their relationship is. calling mike out for being a shit friend, that’s will being what mike asked of him (season 2 halloween & honesty), and yet mike’s become too afraid of revealing his own feelings, but he’s still somewhat honest to will. he’s projecting his feelings to will, he’s TELLING ON HIMSELF here. and yes we know he regrets it runs back. but the fight is what matters it’s them still being real and honest to the other even if they don’t realize it just yet. season 4 is just another extension of the season 3 fight, but this time, they’re both projecting/accusing and yet insanely they’re both still being honest. will’s accusing mike of yet again abandoning him while deflecting his fault for not calling and mike’s projecting his homosexual thoughts into will, and yet again hes still being fully transparent to will, he calls out will’s bad behavior & WILL’S lack of effort too. all of this to say, we can see as the audience, queer or not, it’s practically crystal clear that stancy & mileven are parallels and only exist to show the audience immature, unreal love. while byler & jancy actually show the hardships of true love. romantic or not, they show how love is meant to be. it’s mean to be hard it’s meant to be painful, it’s meant to make you doubt, take a step back and remember that nothing is perfect but that it can always be worked through. byler & jancy make ALL parties involved better/uplift the other while stancy & mileven do the opposite they lead to lying, they lead to trying to uphold the “perfect” couple image and forgetting to make the other better because they’re too busy trying to make themselves look good. these ships are selfish and don’t put the other person’s needs into perspective. CRAZY btw that stancy (platonic) & elmike are WONDERFUL. they showcase the care they have for the other and how deep their relationship can actually become when they’re faced with life or death. one example is how mike reacted in season 3 when billy was coming after el and he found his courage to hit billy (mileven was broken up) but in season 4 despite being together and all love dove, in a serious moment, mike just can’t do anything to help el, she needed him and yet he couldn’t deliver romantically but he could platonically! reminding her to fight vs the i love you’s (duffers were crazy for this.

basically, stancy & mileven CANNOT be endgame and byler and jancy don’t have to be endgame bc the wheelers might enter an independent era. however, they cannot return to the people that have done nothing for their character development except show the audience how much better off they are without them. also if you think about it this is literally applicable to all endgame ships, jopper, duzie, lumax, & rovickie. nobody doubts jopper, why? because bob was adorable but they were low-key superficial, hopper understood joyce and was willing to believe “crazy joyce”. and even their fights in season 3, so interesting that we see this olive branch that exists between them from joyce even after they spend the ENTIRE season arguing. lumax, endgame from the jump, dustin was superficially fascinated with max bc she was a girl that had boy-ish interests he didn’t even know her, he didn’t try like lucas really did, you could say he didn’t have the chance, but it’s just too clear that lucas saw her as an equal, dustin saw her as an ideal figure (HMMM) & rovickie + stobin , teaches the audience that queer people deserve love and acceptance, exactly what they’ve been denied over and over. and dustin and suzie, insane that dustin had to teach steve that social norms don’t matter, that he should pursue the person who understand him best. suzie is gorgeous to dustin and she’s a brainiac that is now dustin’s equal. dustin has his disability but it doesn’t change at all how suzie sees him, she sees him for his perfections. jonathan is the outcast with mrs. perfect, two people who don’t “make sense” and yet fit together better than any popular jock for nancy. and byler, don’t get me started AGAIN, no one understands will like mike does, and no one makes mike feel better than will does. these ships don’t have to make sense to the outside world, just to the other.

[the-case-book-of-fanfiction]

Bob Seger

Ship: Steve Harrington x fem!reader

Summary: Is there a handbook for what to do when your crush walks into your store to buy a gift for his girlfriend? There should be!

Word Count: 5,432 words

Warnings: Stancy, Steve being deeply in love and then getting his heart broken, brief mention of Steve's asshole dad, pining reader, hurt/comfort, Tommy & Carol, language, innuendo

Note: Inspired in part by Steve's rendition of Old Time Rock & Roll.

☟ Continue below the fold ☟

Nancy hadn't been herself, not since Barb disappeared, and her mood had only been getting worse every day. Steve could feel her retreating into herself, hiding from the world and from herself and from him. He could feel Tommy and Carol getting progressively more frustrated with her (and with him for putting up with it) with every passing day.

And it's not like Steve blamed Nancy. Her best friend had gone missing while Nancy hung out with people Barb wasn't the biggest fan of. And, to rub salt in an open wound, Nancy had been having sex with Steve while Barb disappeared.

Steve felt a little guilty, to say the least. He'd had the thought of If I hadn't wanted to sleep with Nancy so bad, she would have gone home with Barb and they'd both be safe. But after a while, he wasn't so sure about that. The longer he thought about it, the more he became convinced that if Nancy had gone with Barb, they both would have gone missing.

Whether it was through his own guilt or because he wanted to make Nancy feel better, he wasn't quite sure, Steve found himself driving to the record store just off Main Street after school got out. He'd blocked out the noise of Tommy and Carol bickering, Tommy in the passenger seat and Carol leaning forward from the back seat, too busy trying to remember which bands had played from the radio the night he was studying at Nancy's house, and whether or not Nancy had actually liked them. He didn't want to screw up his little surprise by getting her music she wouldn't listen to—or a vinyl she already owned. Maybe he should have discreetly snooped through her pile of records before he'd made up his mind to do this...

Tommy sharply elbowed Steve in the ribs. Before Steve could snap at him, he said, "You're overthinking this, man. She's either gonna pretend to love it and not actually care, or she's just gonna not care."

Behind them, Carol giggled. It sounded far more sinister than it should have.

Steve glared at him for a second before he made the turn into the store's parking lot. "You're no help, you realize that?" He parked the car and turned to the two of them. "You're gonna stay here and wait, got it? And don't do anything stupid, I'll make you clean the back seat this time."

Carol grinned. "What if it's the passenger seat?"

"Or the driver's," Tommy added, leaning back to kiss Carol, before Steve could snap that the passenger's seat was Nancy's seat. Steve felt his throat constrict.

"Do not get it on in my fucking car," he warned, "or I'm never driving you anywhere ever again."

He got out, slamming the door behind him, and sent a warning glare back over his shoulder. Tommy flipped him off through the windshield. Beside Steve, an elderly woman gasped in offense and Steve winced.

"Sorry about him," he muttered, but the woman was already scurrying off into her own vehicle. Steve sighed and pushed open the front door to the record shop.

A little bell above the door chimed once as he swung the door open, and then again as it closed behind him. Steve had only been in the store a handful of times, but he loved it more and more with every visit. The walls were plastered in old vinyls, displayed so that the name of each band was readable. No vinyl was the same color, some of them blue, some red, some multicolor, but all of them were different. A small gold plaque designated the oldest vinyl the store had on the walls, which was a reddish Vocalion from 1922 and was positioned directly above the door.

Rows and rows of alphabetized vinyls spread throughout the store, which was bigger than it looked from the storefront. In the lefthand corner nearest the door, a cashier's desk was set up, though there was no employee behind it. A plastic sign read I'm in the back! I'll be back soon!

Steve headed for the aisles of vinyls, then recognized what was playing over the speakers—Bob Seger's Night Moves.

Humming as he flipped through the stacks, Steve didn't notice the door to the back open, or you walk out of it and back to your desk.

"Mmm, sweet summertime, summertime," Steve sang, keeping his voice low, still embarrassed by his voice, an instinct his father made sure he would never shake.

But you heard it, even with the volume of the radio. You looked up from the desk, gaze scanning the rows. You spotted the back of Steve's head and recognized him immediately. That hair was unmistakable.

Heat burned in your belly. Suddenly, you really wished your coworker hadn't gone home just ten minutes earlier, complaining of nausea. If she'd just stuck around a few more minutes...you wouldn't have to face your long-time crush who was absolutely not available, happily dating Nancy Wheeler and unlikely to leave her any time soon.

You resisted the urge to hide your face in your hands. Sure, you'd liked him since middle school, long before he'd become part of the popular crowd and back when his hair was still a mess that hid his eyes from the world, and yes, you had two classes with him, but it's not like he'd know who you were, right? You'd keep relative anonymity and he would remain none the wiser of your long-standing admiration of him.

But then the song changed to The Fire Down Below and Steve was shimmying where he stood, singing the line "Here comes hot Nancy, she's steppin' right on time" with the hugest grin on his face.

You sighed. The school, your best friends, the entire senior year was right—Steve Harrington was down bad for Nancy Wheeler.

The tiniest bit of hope that he might one day notice you was dashed every time you heard that loving croon of his voice every time he sang Nancy's name.

This is why we don't get our hopes up, you told yourself, echoing a sentiment your best friend had drilled into you ever since Steve became the ladies' man that made him so popular in high school. Not that it erased the previous middle school years of drooling over Steve, back before anyone else had really considered him attractive.

You watched as Steve meticulously went through every record in the store, clearly searching for something specific. You normally would have gotten up and approached a customer taking this long, but it was Steve. You knew the instant you got up from your stool, your legs would give out underneath you. And if that didn't happen, you'd walk into a shelf on your way over to him. And if that didn't happen either, you'd start stuttering the moment you tried to talk to him. And if that didn't happen, you'd turn bright red and combust on the spot when he either asked for your help or turned you away.

Too stuck in your head, you didn't even realize the record had stopped playing until you heard Steve's singing stop. A pang went through you at the sound of silence—Steve's voice was almost more soothing than the music itself.

You turned around and dug through your pile of vinyls the store let you play until you found another Bob Seger—the album he'd released last year. Steve had been singing Bob Seger, and you desperately wanted him to keep singing.

You cleaned off the record before placing the needle down. A few bars into Even Now, you turned back around and squeaked, jumping in surprise.

Steve was standing at your desk, a pleasant but awkward smile on his face.

"Uh...hi," he said. "Sorry if I scared you."

You blinked at him and cleared your throat, hoping your voice didn't come out squeaky. "It's...it's fine. Can I help you with something?"

"Uh, please, I'm looking for—" He snapped his fingers. "You're in my chemistry class, aren't you?" You nodded, meekly adding that you were also in English together, and he beamed. "I knew I recognized you from somewhere!"

"Yeah, uh... Hi, Steve," you said. "You said you were looking for...?"

Steve shook himself out. "Oh, yeah, um... I'm trying to find a record for Nancy, my girlfriend, because I want to cheer her up after...everything. I'm sure you've heard about it."

The tiredness in his voice surprised you. But you nodded without bringing it up. "I have. How's she holding up?"

Steve sighed. "Not...fantastically. That's why I'm doing this, I want to get her something to take her mind off things."

You raised your brows. "So you decided on a record?"

Steve shrugged, his cheeks turning a soft shade of pink. "I thought it would be something we could dance to, and that that might make her feel better."

Your heart squeezed. How are you so sweet? "Alright, makes sense. What does she like to listen to usually?"

Steve shut his eyes as if thinking for a moment, then said, "She likes ABBA and Michael Jackson, she has a Fleetwood Mac tape but only ever listens to Rhiannon, but she sings under her breath every time Journey comes on the radio, doesn't matter what song it is. She's got Madonna, Bowie, Blondie, and The Beatles already as tapes and vinyls, so I don't want to get her those."

You blinked at him. "You really do pay attention to everything, don't you?"

Steve smiled shyly. "I...I guess so, when it comes to Nancy."

You left the back of the desk, hoping you weren't visibly shaking too much. "Let's go find you a Journey vinyl, okay? They just released a new album a few months ago, I'm pretty sure we've got it on vinyl..."

Steve followed you to the J section and the two of you started flipping through, both of you softly singing along to Love's The Last To Know as you did.

Halfway through the song and completely through the Js section, you interrupted the song with a gasp.

"I know where it is! Wait here," you told him, and hurried into the back room. You dug through the most recently delivered box of records until you saw the familiar blue album cover of Frontiers, letting out a victory cry as you grabbed it.

Steve was leaning on the shelf, still singing "We lost our way and our love's the last to know" so mournfully you wondered what heartbreak he'd been through before.

"I got it!" you said, grinning and holding the record aloft.

Steve beamed. "Thanks! I really appreciate it. I know I was kind of...out of my depth for a bit there."

You shrugged. "Eh, that's nothing. I've had people come in here demanding records we don't carry from bands that only just released music." You rolled your eyes. "'No, sir, we don't carry Metallica, and even if we did, the album came out last week, so we wouldn't have it yet anyway!'"

Steve snorted with laughter, handing you cash to pay for the vinyl. "Let me guess, it was the Munson kid."

"The Munson kid," you confirmed.

"Thanks again," Steve said, though he didn't seem inclined to head out the door.

"Any time," you said, instantly regretting the words because if you saw Steve at your workplace more than this, you were going to have a heart attack, but you paired the words with a kind smile anyway.

"See you in class tomorrow," he said, stepping out the door and waving goodbye. You watched him go, putting the record in the back seat, snapping at Tommy and Carol in his car, and pulling out of the parking lot.

You let go a tense, nervous breath. The pain in your chest eased. Well, at least Steve knew of you now. And even if his dedication to Nancy was unfailing, at least you might get to talk to him now, even if it only worsened the ache in your heart.

~❊~

Steve skipped third block.

The entire school seemed to be talking about why—or at least, his entire gym class, who had told a story about Billy Hargrove getting in his face the entire basketball game, and then Nancy dragging him out of the class to "talk" about something. At first, everyone had assumed they were banging in the locker rooms, until somebody reminded them Nancy hadn't been in first block, and she never skipped, and that Steve usually drove her to school—but he hadn't missed first block. Then when he'd come back, upset and angry, from his talk with Nancy, people started to put a story together.

You weren't sure you wanted to believe the story, or the many versions of the story, that were floating around you chemistry class. It didn't line up with what you knew of Steve, or what you knew of his relationship with Nancy, most of which you heard straight from him.

But then again...

You shook yourself out of your head, your gaze straying back toward Steve's empty seat. You sighed, pulling your notebook toward you and copying down the notes on the board as neat as you could—undoubtedly you'd need to give them to Steve when he decided to come back to class.

But when your best friend came into the class, handing your teacher a doctor's note, her wide eyes already told you Steve wasn't coming back today.

She sat down beside you, hissing your name. You looked at her. "What? What's wrong?"

"Is there a reason I just saw Steve Harrington crying in his car?" she whispered to you.

Your eyes went huge. Whatever had happened between him and Nancy, it wasn't good. "Keep your voice down and don't tell anyone else about that," you said.

She flipped her notebook to a blank page and started writing. "You better fill me in on everything I missed today," she said.

"Obviously, but only once I know exactly what happened," you said. "Which means only once Steve tells me what happened. However long that takes."

~❊~

It became painfully clear that Steve didn't want to talk—to anyone. He snapped at anyone who tried to bring it up with him, and his mood was waspish. The situation was made worse by the rumors spread by Tommy and Carol—that Nancy had only been with Steve for his money and the sex; that she left because Steve wasn't good enough for her; that she was cheating on him with Jonathan.

You knew that the jibes about Jonathan hit Steve a little too close to home. The same rumor had circulated last year when Will and Barb went missing, but this time, you were almost positive they were true.

Nancy was entirely unbothered by the whole thing. Seeing her prance around with Jonathan, not caring that doing so was hurting Steve more than anything, made your blood boil.

On your way to the record store for another one of your slow closing shifts, a week after Steve skipped chem class, you saw the two of them walking together along the sidewalk. You rolled your eyes at them. You had once thought Nancy to be the luckiest girl in the world: smart, pretty, and dating the hottest man Hawkins had to offer. Now you were certain she was the most careless, throwing it all away for a mediocre man.

Steve's car was in the store's parking lot when you arrived. You parked next to him, looking over to find him in the driver's seat, staring into his lap.

You got out and knocked on his window. "Steve? You okay?" He looked up, sporting red-rimmed eyes. You could hear Bob Seger's Comin' Home playing quietly on his radio. "Oh, Steve..."

Steve got out of his car. Voice quiet and rough, he asked, "Can I hang out for a while?"

"Yeah," you said. "Whatever you need."

His lip trembled. "A...a hug?" His voice as meek and barely there. But you heard it and the request made your heart break. You enveloped him in a tight hug, letting him soften into your hold. You remained that way until Steve decided he was done, not caring how many of your classmates walked by, staring in wonder at Steve clinging to you, new gossip already burning on their tongues.

~❊~

A good day meant boppier music at the record store as soon as you started your shift and shoved your coworker from the mid-afternoon shift out the door. So you swapped out all the mellow music in the stack of records beside your record player with music with a good beat that you could dance to while you restocked and reshelved.

Not even half an hour into your shift, the Naked Eyes record spun into Always Something There To Remind Me. You turned up the volume as high as you could without destroying the speakers and being chewed out by your managers, singing along and dancing by yourself while you worked.

"Well, how can I forget you, girl? When there is always something there to remind me!" You finished stacking your records in the aisle and turned back for a new pile. "Always something there to remind me. I was born to love her, and I'll never be free, you'll always be a part of— Steve!" You careened into his chest, grateful you weren't holding anything, because it all would have dropped to the floor. Steve's arms looped around you, stopping you from falling. "Don't sneak up on me, you scared me!"

"The doorbell rung!"

"Well, I didn't hear it!" You finally looked up at him, heart beating wildly out of your chest at the feeling of his chest against yours, his arms around your waist. You realized he looked downright miserable. "What happened?"

He sighed. "Remember how I said I was gonna try and patch things up with Nance?"

"Yeah..."

Steve's lower lip started to tremble. "It...it didn't go well."

Your heart dropped to your feet. "Oh, Steve, I'm...I'm so sorry."

He sniffled. "It's, uh, it's over. She...she doesn't love me, has never loved me, I'm still bullshit, and she's been sleeping with Jonathan. So..." He heaved a heavy sigh. "It's over. Completely, totally, officially over."

"Steve," you whispered. "I'm so sorry, honey. Is there anything I can do?"

He smiled, lips trembling and eyes watering. "Change the song?" The words came out with a little hiccup and a laugh.

You realized what the song was about. "Oh! Yeah, sure, right—sorry. It's such an upbeat song in the actual music, I didn't even think about the words!" You untangled yourself from his arms to change the record. "What are you in the mood for?"

"Nothing romantic, please," he said, sitting down on your stool. "And, after you're done..."

You looked at him, sensing his hesitation. "Yeah?"

"Can I have another hug?"

You smiled at him, looping your arms around his back where he sat. He fell into you, burying his head in your shirt. "Of course, Steve."

You held onto Steve as tightly as he held onto you, praying he wouldn't notice the fast beat of your heart while he wallowed in his grief. It was a strange feeling, for Steve to be hiding from the world, form Nancy, from his broken heart in your arms, all while you harbored a horribly deep crush on him and a secret, guilty delight that it was over with Nancy.

"I just..." Steve huffed, clearly trying his best not to sob into your shirt. "I don't know where I went wrong. I don't know why I wasn't good enough."

Without really meaning to, you put your hand in Steve's hair. "Does there need to be a reason? Some people just aren't meant for each other, Steve."

Steve looked up at you with his red rimmed eyes, tears on his lash line. He hesitated a moment and then said, "If I tell you something...promise me you won't just...laugh at me."

Your heart broke for him. How many times had he told Tommy or Carol or, what the hell, even Nancy something, only to be laughed at, for him to ask that of you? "Of course I won't laugh at you, Steve." You squeezed his shoulder. "Why would I laugh at you?"

He didn't answer your question. "I know it sounds...ridiculous, but...I just—" He sighed. "I thought Nancy was the one. I've never been happier with a girl before, and she was honest, she was smart, she was determined, she had goals, she was nothing like the girls I was with before, and she made me feel alive! I thought for sure that I was... That I was maybe gonna spend the rest of my life with her."

You bit your lip. "There was no maybe about it, was there, Steve?"

He sighed, letting his head fall back into you. You muffled your grunt as he hid his face in your stomach, his arms sliding up your back and hold you closer to him. "No," he mumbled into the fabric of your shirt.

You smoothed your hand through his perfect hair and kissed the top of his head. You froze, hearing his tiny intake of breath. "Oh, I'm...I'm sorry, that was kind of...automatic, I guess?"

Steve peeked up at you and tugged you closer to his body until your feet hit the legs of your stool he was perched on. "It's okay. Um... Can you...keep doing that? With my hair?" Pink tinged his skin. "If you don't mind."

"I don't mind," you whispered, rubbing your fingers across his scalp. He sighed, pushing into your touch. Heat bloomed across your body.

"Sorry," he whispered. "I know this is...weird. But, um, Nancy never... Never really touched me or— Or held me or anything, so..."

"You don't have to explain yourself," you whispered. "Not to me, not to anyone. Okay?"

"Okay," he agreed, slowly relaxing in your arms.

"I've got you, Steve," you assured him. "I've got you."

~❊~

Before he'd even pulled into the parking lot, Steve was mentally apologizing to you. You'd told him time and time again when he visited you while you were working that you enjoyed your slow closing shifts. It meant there was no one to bother you while you were in the middle of a restock, making you forget where you were; it meant there was no one to complain about the music you played, so you could listen to whatever you wanted; it meant your final hour was spent just closing up shop instead of shooing customers out the door—except for Steve, who had become a regular and always stayed until you left, sometimes to give you a ride home and other times just to have a friend around.

But today, he wasn't coming alone. His car was full to bursting with young children: Dustin, Max, Lucas, Mike, and Will, all of whom he'd been tasked with picking up from their after school activities for the day. He had tried to get them to go home quickly, but his attempts to rush them out of his car had led them to discover that he was seeing a girl, which they all took the wrong way, of course.

Sort of.

Now that Steve was prowling the world alone again, he'd realized his initial estimation of you—pretty, smiley, shy with new people but confident with your friends—was right, but it was a muted reality compared to how you really were. It was like he'd been looking at you with sunglasses covering his eyes this whole time. Now that those glasses were gone, the record shop girl had become more than just his best friend.

And he was really hoping the kids were not about to point that out.

As per usual, you were playing Bob Seger when Steve pushed the door open. He'd yet to figure out if you played Bob Seger so much when he came to visit because you loved Bob Seger, or if you had (correctly) pinned Steve as a fan.

(Not that Steve had ever told anyone he was a fan; he let them think the only reason he even knew about his music was because of Carol's obsession with Risky Business.)

You weren't at your desk like Steve had expected; you were carrying a huge stack of records in your arms, shelving them as you walked along the rows, singing along to Sunspot Baby without a care in the world.

"Sunspot baby," you sang. "She sure had a real good time."

"I looked in Miami, I looked in Negril," Steve joined in. You turned with a grin, heading back to your desk. "The closest I came was a month old bill."

You noticed the kids as you put down your stack. "You brought company today, I see."

Steve gave you a look while the kids were still behind him. You stifled a giggle. "Uh, yeah, these are the kids. Dustin Henderson, Lucas Sinclair, Max Mayfield, Will Byers, and Mike Wheeler."

Dustin walked straight up to your desk. "So you're the girl Steve talks about all the time?"

"All the time, huh?" you said, smiling in a way that suggested you were sure Dustin was exaggerating.

"Every time we see him," Mike groaned. You stared at the younger Wheeler in surprise.

"Oh, really? Is that so, Steve?" you teased.

He rolled his eyes, unable to stop his blush. "Sorry to interrupt your quiet shift. They wanted to stop in and grab some records."

"No we didn't—we just wanted to meet you," Lucas said. Steve's calm expression became painfully forced.

The young redhead snorted. "Speak for yourself." She looked up at you expectantly. "Do you have any David Bowie?"

You grinned. "I like you, you have good taste. Back side of the first row."

Max grinned and dragged Lucas with her.

You looked back at Steve. "Do you have enough room in your car for one more?"

"Need a ride when you leave?"

You nodded.

"Yeah, I've got room. I'll just make the kids rearrange."

You laughed. "You don't have to do that," you insisted.

Steve leaned across the counter. "Don't worry about it—I want to. I'd feel terrible if I left you to get home on your own."

You smiled at him, noticing Dustin nudging Mike and Will and pointing in your direction out of the corner of your eye.

~❊~

Somehow, the kids' presence lightened up the rest of your shift. Time passed quickly with them there, adventuring through the store and asking you question after question about the vinyls lining the walls.

You waved off Steve as he tried to get the kids to leave you alone. "They're fine, Steve. It's okay. You wanna help me get everything packed up? I've gotta lock up soon."

"Oh, yeah, sure." Steve took the vinyl off the record player and slipped it back into its case. He glanced over his shoulder and called to the kids, "Hey, guys! We're gonna head out soon."

You ran through your closing tasks as quickly as you could, anxious to head home for the night.

"Alright, everybody out. Got everything?" you asked, ushering the kids to the door and taking out the key. You set the alarm system for the building and locked the door behind you.

Steve put a hand on your back. Warmth bloomed through you from where he touched you. "You're all ready to go?"

You nodded, not trusting yourself to speak.

The kids opened the doors of Steve's car, jumping in quickly. Dustin made his way to the passenger's seat. Steve stopped him, gently shoving him toward the back seat with everyone else.

"Hey—move it, Henderson, she's got the passenger's seat."

You stared at Steve. "No, no, it's okay, he can—"

Steve shook his head, holding open the door for you. "Come on, it's fine, just..." He gestured into the car. The kids whispered and giggled at him. He sent them a glare and Dustin's annoyed face shifted into a gleeful smirk.

You got in the front seat, unaware of the glances being exchanged in the back or the glare Steve was giving them.

"Seat belts!" Steve said as he got into the driver's seat. You giggled at him as the kids groaned. You caught the way his face lit up when he looked at you, and butterflies tickled your insides.

Once the kids had listened and all were buckled, Steve pulled out of the parking lot and started his way through Hawkins, dropping them off one-by-one: Will first, on the outskirts of town, his mother waiting at the door; Max, who was relieved the Camaro wasn't in the driveway; Dustin next, his new cat sitting on the front step; Lucas, who was immediately met with his snarky young sister; Mike last, Nancy already at the door��saying goodbye to Jonathan.

You glanced at Steve. "You alright?"

Steve looked at you, releasing a deep sigh. "I'm okay," he said. "I...I'm doing better now."

"Good," you said. "You deserve it."

Steve gave you a curious look before he said, "Let's get you home, right?"

"Right."

And if Steve drove slower the whole way back to yours compared to driving the kids home, you weren't going to say anything.

When he got back to your house, Steve pulled into the driveway and sighed. "Well. Home sweet home," he said.

You looked at Steve with a smile. "Thanks for the ride home." You picked up the bag you had put on the ground. You got out, then stopped yourself before you could close the door. You crouched to look at him in the car. "Hey, Steve?"

"Yeah?" Was it just your imagination, or did he sound nervous?

You took a deep breath. Now or never.

"I talk about you all the time, too."

For a moment, Steve processed your words. Then his eyes went wide. Hope bloomed on his slack-jawed face. "You..." He bit his lip, holding back a smile. "You mean that you..."

"Yes, Steve," you said, voice quiet. "Always have. Just ask my friends—they'll give away my secrets just as quickly as Dustin gave away yours." You drummed your fingers against the roof of his car. "Do with that what you will. It's up to you if...you want to even acknowledge it or not." You closed his door and started for your front door.

A door squeaked and then slammed shut moments later; running steps approached you.

"Wait!"

You turned as Steve's hand fell on your shoulder, pulling you close to him. He yanked your body close to his, his arms sliding around you, his hands gripping your shoulder blades. For a split second, you reveled in his hug, noticing the difference in it, relishing in the love in his arms instead of the misery.

Those few seconds became nothing as Steve pulled back. You gave a sound of protest, quickly squashed by Steve's lips.

Your heart had stopped beating, but was simultaneously pounding. You moved on instinct, looping your arms around his shoulders, yanking him down to you. Never once did your lips part from his as the two of you grappled to hold each other in the best way possible.

Thunder boomed overhead. You gasped, pulling apart.

"Was it supposed to storm?" you asked.

"I didn't think so," Steve said.

You kissed him again. Steve smiled into the kiss.

"You should get home before it pours," you whispered against his lips. But neither of you made any move to let go of each other.

Steve adjusted so that his head was against yours, his mouth at your temple. "See you tomorrow in class, then?"

You hummed. "Yeah. Tomorrow."

Steve pressed a kiss to your forehead. "I don't wanna leave."

You looked up at the sky, watching the already-grey skies grow darker as storm clouds rolled in. "We're going to get soaked if we stay out here, Steve."

Steve squeezed you tightly. "Tomorrow, then." He kissed your forehead again. "I'll see you tomorrow...sweetheart."

You beamed at the nickname while Steve blushed while he gave you the moniker.

"And to think," you whispered. "You'd known me all this time, but this? This happened all because you stopped in my store one day."

Steve hugged you tight to his chest. "I wish I'd noticed you before, sweetheart, really I do."

You kissed him. "Well, you've noticed me now." Light rain started, dusting Steve's hair until it sparkled. "Now go, before that pretty hair of yours gets ruined."

He grinned, brushing his hand through it. "I knew you liked my hair."

"Always have." You pressed a gentle kiss to his lips. "Always will."

☞ ❊ ☜

Stranger Things // Steve Harrington

part 2? lmk!

Taglist: {comment and let me know if you'd like to be added to the S.H. taglist!} @ohatropa@nix-rose@live-the-fangirl-life

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

I can't wait until season 5 comes out and proves everyone wrong about Stancy, they can be together and make it work. I'm so tired of people saying that "Nancy doesn't need a man." Of course, she doesn't. It's all about what Nancy wants, it's all about letting go of her trauma and realizing that it wasn't her fault Barb died. This is Nancy finally healing and letting her feelings for Steve all the way in. This is about Nancy finally not letting people tell her how she should feel about Steve, that she's not trying to be anyone else and that she won't be in a miserable relationship like her parents. But that doesn't mean she can't also choose Jonathan as well. Honestly, whatever choice she makes. . .it's her choice and with or without a man, nothing's going to hold her back. I do hope she chooses both of them because that's also a choice she shouldn't have to feel bad about either especially if Steve and Jonathan chose each other, too.

[carolperkinsexgirlfriend]

Hi, I'm Koko <3 This is a Stranger Things dump blog. Certified Steve girl, with a soft spot for Robin, Eddie, Nancy, and Carol as well.

You can find me on ao3 at theheartofthekoko and my main Tumblr under the same name!

Feel free to shoot me fic requests! Sometimes, it's nice to have something new to work on when the project of the day isn't hitting it.

Fanfic Masterlist:

In progress:

Aro4Aro Stancy Break-Up AU - Or: Steve Harrington and Nancy Wheeler are both aromantic. Neither realize this. Poor Jonathan Byers ends up in the middle.

Parts - 1, 2, 3,

Platonic Stobin Mind-Reading AU - Or: the Russian truth serum has some unexpected side-effects. Steve and Robin cope with the fallout.

Parts - 1, 2,

A Ghost Story (name pending) - Or: Steve Harrington dies in the battle of Starcourt, leaving Robin to pick up the pieces of her life alone. Across town, Eddie Munson makes a new incorporeal friend.

Parts - 1,

Complete:

can you see the stars in your dreams (and do they have a lot to say about me) - Steve has a crush on Eddie Munson, he does an admirable job making it everyone else's problem. Or: a secret admirer au.

Parts - 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, the letters.

it's the next best thing - Or: Steve and Eddie have phone sex. They both have a lot of feelings about it.

Parts - 1, 2, 3.

A Litany for Survival (Steddie Upside-Down AU) - Or: Steve and Eddie get pulled into the Upside-Down and have to become reluctant allies. For survival.

Parts - 1 - 124.

Steddie Upside-Down AU Oneshots:

open your mouth for me, sugar - Eddie gives Steve a blowjob.

Cause You Had Nothing Better to Do - Carol & Barb have a sleepover.

Happy, Safe, and Warm - Steve asks Carol to prom. Eddie asks Barb.

let's take a chance and fly away somewhere alone - a look at Barb, Nancy, And Jonathan as the new monster-hunting trio.

Oneshots:

Fine Line - El's having troubles adjusting now that the Upside-Down is gone. She talks to Steve about it.

Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)  - Max calls El.

You, Me & Jeff Makes Three - Gareth interrupts Steve and Eddie mid make-out session.

Oh, you kissed me just to kiss me - Steve and Robin get engaged.

and when I crawl out in the morning - Steve fucks up & calls Robin for help.

white wedding, silk shedding - Carol and Barb have sex; it’s only one of their wedding days.

but I could stay right here in this house with you forever - Steve's toothbrush is getting old. Eddie helps.

to make a lot of money and feel dead inside - Steve leaves Eddie.

wanna make her really jealous, wanna make her feel bad - Jeff pines for Chrissy.

Gifsets Masterlist:

Ashes, ensemble cast

[stonathandreamer]

The Anti Jancy and Anti Stancy people tend to shit on either Steve (Anti Stancys) or Jonathan (Anti Jancys) and claim that their 'poor little Nancy who has done no wrong' deserves better irritate me.

When will people realise that the actual issue in both those relationships was Nancy, her infidelity, and her behaviour? Nancy is the biggest emotional (S4) and actual (S2) cheater in the whole show. Both Steve and Jonathan deserve better than HER, not the other way around.

I'm glad you are big brained in shipping Stonathan (which should be a more popular ship) and in critiquing Nancy, which I am always here for. Keep doing what you are doing!

Anon, I don't know who you are, but I love you hahaha!

Jokes aside, I second everything you said. All three of them made mistakes, yes, but while Steve and Jonathan apologize and show genuine remorse for their wrongdoings, she doesn’t. She never does.

She didn't apologize to Steve for calling him "bullshit" and their relationship "bullshit." She didn't apologize to Jonathan for making him lose his job or mocking him by comparing him to Oliver Twist. To make matters worse, her mistakes are completely swept under the rug, and in the next season, you have Steve simping for her all over again like a loser, and Jonathan acting like he can't go on with his life without her. 🙄

I can write a whole book on how much of a bad girlfriend she is to both of them, but I prefer to ignore her existence and pretend she's not real, and thankfully, everyone I know who likes her acknowledge her flaws.

You know, I wish Mike would casually tell Jonathan she called Will "stupid" when the Demogorgon took him.

"Yo, Jonathan, just so you know, she threw a hissy fit and called Will my 'stupid little friend who got lost' when he disappeared." *Gets up and leave while Jonathan glares at her, fuming.* 🤌🏻🤌🏻🤌🏻

Stonathan is the only answer to that ridiculous love triangle. Gay is always the answer! And funny enough, one of the first Stonathan fics I read included a lot of N*ncy bashing. It was gorgeous!

And hey, spread the word, this is a n*ncy-free blog where we love Steve, Jonathan, and Stonathan like the good characters they are and the perfect relationship they could have together! ❤️

[breezeoddity]

We all know that the Duffers loved Dawson's creek and probably took some references, so here we are. I'm currently watching Dawson's creek and I didn't see someone pointing it out (If you did, show me to me please, send it to me Rachel).

At the end of the first season we see Dawson and Joey kiss. They're happy they finally did it, they are finally expressed their attraction to each other and at first it seems they'll be fine. Dawson couldn't be a normal person with Jen then maybe with his childhood best friend (That is one thing that combine Byler and Joey and Dawson, when we actually compare Joey and Dawson with Stancy/Mileven). But no, he's just a douchebag. Guess who was supposed to be a douchebag at the end of the day?? Steve Harrington, who escaped his bad guy fate all thanks to Joe Keery.

AND ALSO THIS. Scenes look so similar, even checkered curtains in both rooms!!!

At the same time in this episode Jen's grandfather died.

Nancy and Steve on the second episode of season 1 having a sex scenes while our dearest Barbara fighting for her life on the upside down. Both scenes are about an expression of love linked to death and guilt.

Next episode in the second season of Dawson's creek we have a little kiss scene at school with Dawson and Joey just like with Steve and Nancy in episode 3. But then there is a Jen with news about her grandfather's death and there is a Barb missing at school. Dawson and Joey feeling guilty because of their confession of love or whatever after Dawson rejecting Jen when she lost an important person in her life. Joey also feels like she can't be happy with Dawson because his ex or a girl who was nice to her all this time going through the death of a relative. And then there's Nancy, who worries about Barb and feels guilty for leaving her alone by choosing Steve.

Both of these ships aren't endgame. They're the examples of the first love that doesn't last long not only because of the external circumstances that they cannot overcome due to the fading relationship, but also because people have nothing in common in a couple. Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Yes, milkven, I'm looking at you.

But it's worth always remembering that Jonathan or Pacey or Will may appear after the failure in the context of true romantic love in the life of everyone who wants it.

I can talk all day about parallels between stancy/milkven/Joey and Dawson and jancy/byler/jacey. And I will talk about them there more!!!

[soniclion92]

Hiii!! I've seen a lot of people ship stancy lately (even my close family) and tbh i think thats because Steve is good and "hot"? And they just go and ignore Jonathan, Jonathan is so dear to mee and i think ppl just overlook him. What are your thoughts of all this stancy/jancy thing? (I personally think jancy is clearly endgame)

Yeah you hit the nail on the head lmfao most stncies from what I've seen only ship it because they like Steve and want him to end up with the one he's been chasing after the whole show without any regard for what Nancy actually wants (which isn't Steve). Which, if it were to be endgame it'd be a huge disservice to both characters considering them breaking up was an important part in BOTH of their developments. It pushed steve to stop being a jerk and helped Nancy find someone who she can actually be herself with and won't trap her in a future she doesn't want. This is why i really don't think they're going to be endgame. I think stncy being teased in s4 again was partly to ramp up ship drama in anticipation for the last season and to pave the way for steve finally moving on.

I fully believe jancy are going to be endgame because narratively it makes the most sense. They're probably going to go through a temporary break up but im sure they're ending the show together as long as the Duffers don't decide to be horrible and kill one or both of them. Like Nancy's motivation in s4 was making sure Vecna didn't make it to California and Jonathan was literally staring at a photo of Nancy and planning to drive for days just to get back to hawkins, they're literally states away and still only thinking abt each other and gushing abt each other to their friends abt how cool the other is which tells me all i need to know. They're physically tethered to each other through their matching scars and they practically married each other in Jonathan's room in the s3 finale i just... jancy just have more chemistry than stncy could ever dream of and the show makes it blantantly obvious. I refuse to believe they spent the majority of the show building this beautiful relationship just to waste it on another relationship that they've already painted to be BAD from just the way Steve treats Nancy to the way they are a direct parallel to Karen and Ted, a relationship that is LOVELESS and is only still together because of Nancy Mike and Holly.

[imsogonesposts]

melly melly melly. i saw ur jonathan post (i love jonathan byers too dw hes not my fav char but i adore i adore) and i need ur stance on jancy vs stancy vs nancy being single?

in my humble humble opinion i think stancy needs to die. steve is one of my fav chars bc i rlly rlly like his character development so far but i think the entire point of steve & nancy both growing up from who they were in season one includes growing out of each other.

like they had bad traits and qualities and being w each other lowkey enabled those bad traits and if they make stancy end game i'm gonna strangle the duffer brothers

w jancy i was very much iffy on them at first but i def started warming up to them EXCEPT i feel like jonathan is a little too much of a loverboy? like if jancy becomes endgame AFTER some communication between him and nancy that wld be fire but as of rn if nothing changes i also hope they find their own paths

i'd love to hear ur own opinions on all three paths for nancy and also your personal thoughts on jancy and how the relationship affects nancy AND jonathan

i think stancy should never happen so me and steve can be together forever 🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷

okay for realsies answer– i think nancy should be single for a bit, but if I had a gun to my head, and i had to pick jancy or stancy, I'd pick jancy.

i think stancy wouldn't work because, for one, they want different things in the long run. steve wants a big family (six kids), he wants what nancy shows disdain for in the first season. in the first season her and jonathan are talking and she says smth along the lines that she's pretty sure her parents dont love each other and only got together to have the "perfect nuclear family." along with that, nancy seems like the type of person to focus on their career more than anything, so i highly doubt she'd want to give Steve six kids, want to go on the summer beach house trips, etc like steve wants.

i also dont really think they like each other like that in s4, and its more that they miss having someone to be with, so they're going back to something more familiar. jonathan is in california and it's obvious him and nancy are having some communication issues, so when things are tough and there's no jonathan around, she goes to someone more familiar, steve. its not like she can go to her family, as they can't know about the upside-down, and mike is in california so she can't go to him, and besides fred (who died), we dont really see Nancy having very many friends after barb. the only people she really has now, are mike's friends, and steve. one of the main reasons her and jonathan got together in the first place is cause they were kinda trauma-bonded, but now that hes not here to do that with her, she's relying on steve. she needs some kind of support with all the scariness in the world, and if it cant be jonathan due to him not being here, than i guess its gonna have to be steve.

with steve, we know he wants a girlfriend, he wants someone to spend all his time with. we also know every girl he goes on a date with has something wrong with her (otherwise he probably would have gone on more than one date), hes in a very odd place in his life, and that he very obviously still has some feelings for nancy. i think that, kinda like nancy, he just wants something familiar in between all the chaos that is hawkins. nancy has done a lot for him, she helped give him the push he needed to become a better person, she probably showed him that he wanted something more in a relationship than just sex, she showed him the people he thought were his friends, were just assholes. again, steve is in a weird place in his life, he's 19 (i think) still trapped in his small home town with no clear idea of what he's going to do with his life. all the people his age are likely already in college working on their future and he's... working at a video store. his current friends (dustin and robin) are likely worrying about college by now (robin being a senior and probably getting her acceptance letters right about now, and dustin being dustin probably already knows he wants to go to mit or some other sciencey college) and steve's dad won't even let him work at the family business yet. i think part of steve thinks that if he were to get with nancy again, she could help turn his life around like she did back then. i think part of the reason he still likes her is 1. she changed him for the better once, maybe she can do it again and 2. maybe he just wants closure. he was cheated on, and while in s2 he acknowledges he wasnt the best boyfriend out there, part of him probably still wonders what could he have possibly done to make the girl he loved so much, the girl he thought he would get married to and have a big family with, cheat on him and call their entire relationship bullshit. (plus im sure dustin and eddie telling steve he should get with nancy isn't helping)

also also i just dont think you should give cheaters a second chance relationship wise, which is a very strong reason i dont like stancy LMAO

now with jancy, i do think they could work, they just need to communicate more. like i said earlier, in s4 its very obvious they're having communication issues (jonathan not telling nancy about his college stuff, nancy canceling last minute on the trip to california, probably more i cant think of rn) and they both know that they're having some type of problem in their relationship (nancy tells fred and jonathan tells argyle), but neither of them are really doing anything about it to help fix that problem. though they're together for maybe five minutes in s4, they dont once talk about their problems except jonathan asking "are we good?" and nancy saying "yeah." i get that a lot is happening right now (max is in the hospital, eddie's dead, there was a huge earthquake, etc etc) but i still think she should have said something more than just yeah.

overall, i think they should just let my girl be single for once😔 i dont think either relationship does anyone any good. with stancy, i really just think that if it didnt work then, it wouldnt work now, and even if barb was still alive, i think steve and nancy would've broken up eventually. i dont think she and steve work together as much as steve wants them to. and with jancy, I think they should go on their own paths for a bit. jonathan should go to nyu or the college in california he was talking about, and nancy should go to wherever the hell she wants. maybe in the future, when their lives are more normal and they've matured a bit, they can work things out, but right now, i think taking a pause/breaking up would benefit them both.

also i really dont know if nancy knows how to be in a relationship😭 like in s2, she tells jonathan she waited for him before getting back with steve, and jonathan says she waited i think two or three months (someone correct me if im wrong). and like girl... thats not waiting😭 bro thought his brother died and that his mother was going insane, and now hes just trying to get his life back to normal, of course hes gonna need more than three months 😭😭😭

what i really want to happen, is after the upside down is defeated once and for all, jancy takes a break, go to different colleges and recconect later in life, and steve and robin move out of hawkins (probably to a big city since those are usually more accepting of gay people) and they each get to a girlfriend there.

also, side note, if they kill of jonathan or steve cause they're sacrificing themself for nancy, and then nancy chooses the one thats alive (ive seen a lot of people say smth along those lines), then im going to raid the duffer brother's house and vandalize it.

[mrs-steve-harrington]

another! for the wip title ask game: 27. Basketball fic SPORTS BALL

Ughhh this fic. THIS FIC!

This is the one that was initially inspired by our conversation about your fave in a xover with Steve. Moving to Hawkins and idk joining the basketball team maybe?? I can't remember all the details, esp bc this went off in a completely different direction.

Stancy fic, post-graduation. Nancy has joined the school paper and her assignment is covering the basketball game. She's very surprised to find out that one of the players is Steve. He kept it sort of on the down low that he got into any school but esp this particular one because he knew it was where Nancy wanted to go, so he applied secretly figuring he'd never get in and hand wavy he made it (probably his name helped idk, don't get hung up on details!).

And I don't actually know where my outline for this is, if I even actually have one, or if I just stream of consciousness'ed it in @cammerel's DMs. But it'd be a whole get together with Nancy's feelings for Steve being rekindled and really seeing him as, like, not an idiot and I... can't remember specifics but god, I want this fic to exist SO FUCKING BAD but that means I have to WRITE IT and I could never get further than this first SCENE!!!

(lol omg I typed in the title to grab a snippet and literally have it open in a tab... in my hope that I would someday write more... and I haven't yet ;_;)

The team burst through the doors a minute later, some with jackets sporting [[their [jerseys / jackets] all sporting]] the Emerson Lions across the front. Nancy noted down the way the crowd cheered at the arrival of its team, a familiar sense of pride overtaking her in the moment. She may not care much for sports in general, but the atmosphere of a live game was infectious. Nancy made sure to note it all down; the excitement from the crowd, both on their side and the opposite team's; the sound of sneakers against the [laminated flooring]; the general [excitement] that overtook the entire gymnasium. She paid close attention to the numbers on the back of each player. Their jerseys, much like the Tigers back in Hawkins, didn't display the players' names so she needed to keep an extra watchful eye on which player was attached to which number. Readers [[would want to know who stood out]] cared about the players who stood out. The ones who scored the most, from the furthest or right up against the wire and won them the game— or if they lost, the ones who couldn't keep the ball in their hands, or whose shots bounced off the rim and back to the other team. As the players prepared to get in position, taking off their jackets and shaking out their limbs or shoving each other good-naturedly, Nancy's eyes were drawn to one in particular. Number 23 stood with his back to her, one hand on his hip while he pressed the other in a closed fist against the teammate at his side. Something about the way he held himself felt familiar, but she couldn't quite place why at first. She wondered if she'd seen him on campus, but part of her was sure that she'd remember shoulders like that. Those arms, too.  Her cheeks warmed when Nancy realized exactly who those arms reminded her of. She hadn't seen him since last summer, and even then only in brief glimpses around town before he always seemed to head in some other direction than towards her. It still hurt, remembering the look on his face when he caught sight of her, even if she couldn't blame him for being upset. If she'd known then, before then even, how things would turn out, Nancy would have reacted differently to his confession in the Upside Down. She would have reacted at all rather than standing frozen in place and staring, too stunned to speak. But she hadn't known. That Jonathan was lying about getting accepted into Emerson; that he was lying about wanting to go to school together, build a future together, the future they'd been planning since before he moved— the future she'd thought they were both looking forward to after his mom had forced him to move so far away.  Nancy also hadn't known how much she would miss Steve. They were in each other's orbit for all of a few days, but it was enough to remind her how different her life felt when he was there. The relief she'd felt when she saw his BMW pull up after she reported Fred missing echoed in her mind long after Vecna was defeated and life went back to normal. Sometimes she would remember waking up from Vecna's twisted vision of the future, the sound of Steve's panicked shouts in her ears, the feeling of his arms holding her close, and wonder how she could not have realized how she still felt about him. It was too late to do anything about those feelings now, Nancy reminded herself as she refocused her attention back to the task at hand. The crowd was restless; the kind of restlessness that preceded the start of the game. Nancy let herself soak it all in— the anticipation, the excitement. While she didn't have strong feelings about basketball as a whole, she couldn't deny the desire to see her school's team come out on top. Not only out of a sense of pride for the university she had chosen, but also because she wanted her assignment to result in reporting good news.

Look at all those brackets!! Because I was so excited to write I didn't let myself get bogged down by details I didn't know!!! And yet!!!!! This is all there is to show for it!!!!! (plus a few earlier paragraphs setting the scene) COME ON BRAIN LET ME WRITE THIS SO I CAN READ IT!!!!

[stranger-marauders]

unbreakable

six: the party

chapter summary: Kate decides to take a different approach to navigating Steve’s party. Steve worries about Kate, but he wants to be with Nancy more.

chapter warnings: language, alcohol use/intoxication, mentions of an alcoholic parent, steve is a bad friend, stancy

word count: 4.8k

series masterlist | masterlist

STEVE HAD ALREADY ensured Kate’s presence at the party later that night by bringing her straight to his house after school.

Of course, there was nothing unusual about her being inside of his home. Kate had stayed at his house more times than she could possibly count on Tuesday nights alone, never mind if one considered the other days in the week. Normally on party nights, though, she didn’t like to stay if she could help it. Something about sleeping in a room across the hall where her best friend was getting his weekly lay wasn’t comforting.

For now, they both sat at his dining room table, trying their hardest to finish their homework. Steve had turned on the radio to play in the background, the newer songs playing more often than the older ones. When he had stood up to turn the volume knob up slightly on the radio to hear “If Anyone Falls,” Kate knew he was kissing her ass. It didn’t take much brainpower for her to figure out he was trying to better her mood through the power of Stevie Nicks.

It wasn’t her fault that things were awkward. The tension that hung in the air was just the same as all of the other evenings spent together before his parties: they’d both already begun anticipating the outcome of the night.

“Is there something you’d like to say?” Kate finally asked, not looking up from her math homework.

Steve immediately began fumbling over his words. “Oh, I, uh… No. No, no, you’re great. Perfect, even.”

“Hm,” she hummed softly, still focused. “You know, I still don’t understand why I have to be here.”

“Because you’re my best friend,” Steve replied. 

She only glared at him in response. 

“Oh, come on, don’t look at me like that.” He paused whenever Kate rolled her eyes. “Look, it’ll be fun just like it always is, okay? Promise.”

“Fun, my ass,” Kate mumbled under her breath, focusing even more on her homework.

��It will be, okay? Also, I definitely need your support. I can’t do this shit without you, you know that. It’s not the same.”

She sighed almost inaudibly, shaking her head slightly without looking up from her work.

“I know you love me,” Steve said, watching her carefully for her reaction. When she didn’t reply, looking completely unfazed, he cleared his throat. “Hey, I, uh… I–I almost forgot. My mom restocked the liquor cabinet if you want anything. I know it’s—”

“Sure, I could totally do a shot right now.”

His head quickly snapped back in her direction. “A shot?”

Yeah, preferably nine millimeter. “Calculus sucks, Steve.”

Steve put his hands up in surrender. “Look, I–I’m not doubting that, seriously, I just—” He stopped to look at his watch. “It’s not even five o’clock yet, Kathy.”

“All the more reason to do it,” she replied, her eyebrow quirking upward slightly. Whenever his worried expression didn’t change, however, Kate sighed, shaking her head once. “Look, just open the riesling and we’ll call it even.”

His stomach churned at the thought of giving her a glass of wine, even if it was just wine. Kate had never been much more than a social drinker, and he’d never been given an exact reason why. Steve could only assume part of it was because of her father’s alcoholic tendencies. He thought that maybe part of it was because she liked watching him make a fool out of himself when he was drunk himself (because he absolutely made a fool out of himself, even if he didn’t want to admit it). Steve had never gained the courage to ask directly because he didn’t want to bother her about it, even if he thought it would take some of the anxiety away. Nonetheless, he always asked her if she wanted something while they were at his house, just in case she ever decided to drink with him alone.

Steve, however, hadn’t been prepared for the change in answer tonight. “You sure nothing’s wrong?”

She groaned, rolling her eyes. “Oh my God, I’m fine. I just need a break, you know? Thought you’d be thrilled at the sound of that, honestly.”

He shrugged in return—her answer hadn’t made him feel any better. “Fine. Riesling it is.”

“And none of that sliver of a glass shit, we’re denting it.”

Steve snorted before leaving the room and shutting the door behind him. The thought of drinking a noticeable amount of wine with her before the party began slightly disturbed him, but he didn’t want to make waves. For the first time in a long time, Kate was willing to let loose in more ways than one, and he wasn’t going to question it. Not yet. None of it, however, stopped him from worrying about her.

Kate, on the other hand, knew that if she tried hard enough, she could finally fall numb to the pain that Steve Harrington caused her on nights like this one: the same pain she couldn’t even begin to explain, even if she tried.

She didn’t think it was a problem. She’d watched her entire life as people drank away their problems. Besides, she didn’t think she would have any fun if she didn’t drink. Quite frankly, she wasn’t in the mood for any of Steve’s typical behavior, and she certainly didn’t think she was ready to deal with Tommy or Carol, either. 

That was why the alcohol went down rather quickly. Out of wines, she certainly liked riesling more than most, mostly because it didn’t taste like alcohol, but she didn’t like it enough to go through three cups of it before Tommy and Carol arrived.

By the time Nancy and Barbara had arrived at the Harrington residence that evening, Kate hadn’t had too much to drink, at least not in her opinion. Steve, however, had grown increasingly worried.

He could barely recognize the girl that sat in front of him now. There was something unsettling about the way she was currently, something about her sprawled out on the couch with a beer can in her hand that made him tick. That was his Kathy, not Tommy’s nor Carol’s, even though the way she was sharing the couch with her currently proved otherwise. She didn’t seem anything like herself, and that was something that completely horrified him.

Even though Steve was concerned, he still didn’t do anything to stop her.

As the alcohol slowly invaded her bloodstream, Kate felt the buzz within her. The buzz that only told her more, more. She didn’t dare refuse, but she obeyed as she let the alcohol burn in her system like fuel. She finally understood why her father was an alcoholic: for once, he was finally able to feel something. For all those years, she never quite understood the fire that ignited once it entered your system. Now, though, she understood it, and she wasn’t afraid of it in the slightest.

Whenever the doorbell rang, Kate looked at Steve, watching him for his reaction. Her eyes traced over him as he smiled for half a second, almost like for a moment he thought that Nancy wasn’t actually going to come, and he ran his hand through his hair as he went to open it for her. 

Carol groaned. “I really don’t understand what he sees in this one.”

“Me neither,” Kate said softly, finishing what was left of her can of beer. “I want another one.”

The redhead turned to her, giving her a confused look. “Another one? Seriously?”

She shrugged. “What? It’s not like I’m drunk or anything.”

“Yeah, you also haven’t stood up since you stopped drinking the wine.”

Tommy chuckled from across the room, sitting in one of the big comfy chairs with a beer in his hand. “Yeah, Harrington’s been your beer bitch all night.”

Kate leaned her head back over the armrest, her vision moving a tick behind. She giggled at the sensation. “I’m not that fucked up. My eyes are just a little… slow.”

“Slow?”

Before she could answer the question, her attention was snagged by Steve, as well as Nancy and her friend’s newfound presence in the living room. Kate almost rolled her eyes instinctively—what type of person took their best friend to a hookup? She very quickly, however, remembered her place in this situation as the other party’s best friend who had been brought to a hookup.

“All right, you guys wanna go out back?” Steve asked, looking at Nancy, then Kate. It was almost like he was looking for their approval.

“Let’s go, Harrington,” Tommy said, not needing another hint. “I’ve been waiting for this all day.”

Whenever Kate stood up off the couch, she realized how heavy her head felt, and she became self-aware of how much she’d actually had to drink, even if she couldn’t remember exactly what she’d consumed. When she regained her balance, taking a few careful steps to ensure she was fine, she knew that this was the most drunk she’d ever been. That didn’t, however, stop her from grabbing another beer whenever she went outside.

It also didn’t stop her from drinking two or three more. She couldn’t remember how many she’d had now, but it had been enough where time seemed to be whizzing by and simultaneously not moving at all. Kate tried not to pay too much attention to the group as a whole, mostly because she didn’t want to think about any of it. Currently, Tommy was trying to throw Carol into the pool, and Steve was attempting to flirt with Nancy. On occasion, Barbara talked to her, tried to make the situation better for the two of them, but Kate could hardly stand any of it. 

In hindsight, she didn’t know why she thought drinking would somehow better the situation. She should have known that her tolerance for bullshit was greatly lowered whenever she started drinking, and she especially should have known that it would diminish to even lower standards if she got this drunk. Of course, Kate hadn’t prepared for that. She hadn’t even thought to prepare for that. 

Something else she hadn’t thought to prepare for was how much she’d feel. Kate hadn’t truly realized how much she’d cared about all the girls he fucked around with until she’d gotten so drunk, until he’d flirted with Nancy right in front of her. It wasn’t fair. None of it was fair. How was a person supposed to feel whenever their best friend was flirting with someone else in front of them? It was absolute bullshit, especially when she loved him—

Oh.

Kate tried to push it out of her mind. She didn’t want to think about what all of that meant. Right now wasn’t the time for that. Her brain was fuzzy, and that was without the emotional turmoil going on inside of it currently. No, this was a tomorrow issue. That was if she remembered that she’d even had the thoughts in the first place.

“You okay?”

The two words halted Kate’s thoughts like they were a brick wall, making her turn to the source: Barbara. “Hm?”

“I said, ‘are you okay?’” Barbara asked again. “You look like you’re in your head, or something.”

Kate hesitated, nodding. “Y–Yeah.”

Barbara pulled her chair closer to her, watching the rest of the group that Kate seemed to be fixating on, though possibly not on purpose. “Some party, huh?”

“Yeah,” Kate said, slurring her words. “I just got… dragged along. You know? Just like I, uh… Just like I normally do.”

She shook her head. “How do you do it?”

“Do what?”

“This,” Barb said, gesturing out to the people in front of her. “All the time. I don’t get it.”

Kate shrugged. “I don’t know. You… You get used to them. After a while.”

“I just…” She hesitated to go on. “You’re just so different from the rest of them. Tommy and Carol and Steve, I mean. How are you even friends with them?”

She shrugged again. “I’m not, really. Just friends with Steve.”

“Like that’s much better.”

Kate chuckled in response. “You know, they’re tolerable whenever you’re around them all the time. Steve is… He’s been a good friend, for the most part.”

Barb shook her head. “If he was a good friend to you, you wouldn’t be here right now.”

“Couldn’t you say the same thing about Nancy?” Kate asked. “She obviously dragged you here, too.”

She sighed softly. “Yeah, but Nancy… She doesn’t do anything like this normally, you know? This seems… a little too normal for you to be here all the time.”

Kate sighed, taking another sip of her beer. “What can I say? He needs me.”

Barbara turned back to watch Nancy interact with Steve once again. “I think you care too much about him. Much more than he deserves, anyway.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah,” she replied, turning back to look at the blonde. “You deserve more than that, Kate. A lot more.”

She shrugged carelessly, taking another sip of beer as she watched Steve carefully. God, she hated him. She hated his stupid hair, his stupid crush on Nancy Wheeler, the stupid cigarette that sat tucked behind his ear, the stupid flask he had in his hand. She hated herself for every decision she’d ever made that led up to her sitting outside at Steve’s house in the dark in November, freezing her ass off while she drank shitty beer just to feel something.

She quickly became distracted again when Steve had finally stood from his chair again, throwing the cigarette he’d been smoking to the ground. She watched him carefully as he pulled a pocketknife from his pocket and cut a hole into the bottom of his beer to shotgun what was left of it, just to pull the cigarette from behind his ear to smoke it once he’d thrown the can to the ground.

Of course, Nancy had been watching, too.

“Is that supposed to impress me?” she asked, obviously not as impressed as Steve would have hoped.

“You’re not?” he asked, the cigarette still hanging out of his mouth.

“You are a cliché. You do realize that?”

“Okay, party girl. Why don’t you just, uh, show us how it’s done, then?” he said, finally lighting the cigarette that still sat between his teeth.

“Okay.”

Kate found herself shocked beyond belief. She couldn’t believe that Nancy was falling for Steve’s tricks, not even a good one of his, and she could only watch in silence. Of course, Barbara was also watching her friend in utter disappointment.

Up until now, Barbara had always been under the impression that Nancy would have never done anything like this. Her best friend had never exactly been boy-crazed or anything of the sort, which was why the scene unfolding in front of her confused her even more. She didn’t seem like Nancy at all.

As she watched Nancy and Steve now, Kate mulled over Barbara’s words in her head. She couldn’t stop thinking about what she had said, the first thought that had come into her head right after she’d spoken, because that couldn’t be it. She’d never thought about Steve like that, not really, and as she watched him now, it certainly didn’t help. Now wasn’t the time for it. It’s not like she wanted to think about him that way, but the more she tried to push the thoughts away, the more she couldn’t. Despite everything within her screaming “no” to her, more than ever before, Kate wished the girl that Steve was trying so hard to impress was her.

Kate had been brought back to reality whenever Nancy’s shotgunned beer can clattered to the ground.

“Why don’t you give it a try, Katie?” Tommy asked, taking a puff of his cigarette.

She almost didn’t understand what he was saying. “What?”

Steve shook his head, putting his arm out. “No. Absolutely not.”

Kate, however, didn’t seem to care what he thought. “No, I–I can do it.”

“No. You’re not doing it.”

“But—”

“No, okay? Don’t be stupid, you’re not—”

“Steeeevie.”

Steve quickly averted his gaze as he swallowed the lump in his throat, scratching at the neckline of his shirt. He hadn’t heard her call him Stevie since she’d first moved to Hawkins. After he’d quickly composed himself, his face still slightly pink, he looked back at her. “Kathy, please just stop. You’d never do anything like this if you weren’t so—”

“She can do it if she wants to, Stevie,” Tommy said, holding another beer can out to her.

“Yeah, I wanna try it, too. Stop telling me what to do,” she said, taking the can out of Tommy’s hand. 

“Kathy—”

Carol scoffed, cutting him off. “She’s not eight years old, Steve, she’s fine.”

Steve hesitated to speak again, his face taut. When Nancy hesitantly handed her the pocketknife, he sighed, running a hand through his hair absent-mindedly. He’d been so caught up in Kate and what she was doing that he hadn’t even noticed how Nancy was looking at him. Even Barbara had given him a glance and noticed his worried stature.

For the first time in a long time, Steve was nervous.

He didn’t know what it was that was making him nervous. It wasn’t like she hadn’t drank before, but he couldn’t ever think of a time when she’d ever drank that much. Steve thought maybe it was the way she’d been acting before the party, the carefree attitude she’d taken on that he’d almost willingly accepted just a few hours ago. He didn’t know what to think, but right now, all he could think about was her. 

The apparent tipsiness of his stature didn’t help. He wasn’t as drunk as Kate, sure, but he certainly wished he was less intoxicated than he currently was. His leg bounced slightly as he played with the neckline of his shirt, scratching the back of his neck. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from her, even if he wanted to. Steve, however, knew he couldn’t. Something in the back of his mind was screaming, begging for him to do something to stop her, but he couldn’t do that either.

All he could do was watch.

“Chug! Chug! Chug!”

Kate chugged the beer quickly. She had little control over her actions now, and once she was finished with it, she almost dropped to the ground with her beer can, it clanking on the concrete, but she caught herself. If she wouldn’t have, Steve had made himself ready to catch her instead. He only stared at her now as she was praised by Tommy and Carol, which was something he never thought he would see.

It wasn’t a secret that Kate and Tommy had had their differences over the years. Tommy hadn’t even given her a chance whenever she’d moved back to Hawkins, and that was something Steve had never been able to understand. Kate hadn’t done anything wrong yet, but it certainly didn’t help over the years that she hadn’t ever gone out of her way to be kind to him or Carol, for that matter. 

It wasn’t like Carol had been kind to her, either. While to her face she treated her fine, Steve couldn’t even begin to remember how many times he’d heard her say something about her whenever she wasn’t there. Maybe it was about her lack of makeup, how her hair was just a little too frizzy, her figure, or maybe the way she dressed—Steve had seemingly heard it all. 

That was why he couldn’t believe the scene he was watching in front of him: he never thought he’d see Tommy and Carol actually be kind to her.

Nancy looked at her best friend. “Barb, you wanna try?”

“What? No,” she answered quickly, turning to Nancy. “No, I don’t want to. Thanks.”

“Come on.”

Steve, even if he knew that she didn’t want to shotgun a beer, saw it as an opportunity to take the attention off of Kate. He didn’t want to know what else Tommy would convince her to do. “Come on. Yeah.”

Barbara lowered her voice as she turned to her friend. “Nance. I don’t want to.”

“It’s fun! Just give it a—”

“Nance…”

“Just… Just give it a shot.”

Seemingly tired of defending herself, Barbara finally stood up from her lawn chair. “Okay.”

Barbara had only agreed to do it so that right after she’d shotgunned her beer, she could disappear from the spotlight and take her place in the shadows once again. At that moment, she wondered why she hadn’t left hours ago, why she hadn’t made Nancy go without her, or even better, why she hadn’t made the both of them just go home. Suddenly, she remembered: she was only there so Nancy could be with Steve.

Barbara, however, had noticed something she would never tell her best friend, not unless Nancy asked her. While she had never truly talked to Steve Harrington or Kate Hopper before that day, before that night, really, she had noticed in just a few hours how the two cared for one another. Now she understood why everyone at school thought that they were secretly together. Barbara had no idea why Nancy would even try to pursue him: it was more than obvious that Steve Harrington cared about Kate Hopper more than anything else in the entire world, and that was more than any girl, Tommy and Carol, even, and nothing could take that away from him, no matter what.

That was when Barbara realized that Steve didn’t even know that he was in love with his best friend.

When Barbara took the knife from Kate’s hand, Steve took another drag on his cigarette.

“So, you just…” Barbara trailed off when she cut herself on the knife, the can rolling swiftly out of her hand.

“Gnarly,” Tommy said, snickering.

“Are you okay?” Nancy asked, worry lacing her voice and etching her face.

“Yeah.”

Whenever she looked down at her hand, however, Nancy thought otherwise. “Barb, you’re bleeding.”

“I’m fine,” she said bitterly. Without another word, she looked at Steve. “Where’s your bathroom?”

Steve jumped up quickly, his own intoxication level showing slightly whenever he stumbled as he stood. “Oh, it’s… it’s, uh, down past the kitchen, to–to the left.”

As she walked away, Steve sighed. In a way, he felt guilty for the thought, but he was simply glad that it hadn’t been Kate who cut her hand open. When he looked at his best friend, he almost hadn’t noticed that she, currently, was taking her sweater off. 

“Kathy.”

“What?” she asked somewhat whiny once she’d gotten her sweater over her head. “Tommy said I wouldn’t do it!”

When Steve quickly shot a look of anger in his direction, Tommy shrugged, a smirk on his face. “Look, I didn’t think she would actually do it.”

Steve sighed, trying to get her attention. He gulped whenever her sweater was thrown onto the ground, leaving her only in a black bra and her jeans. He knew he’d seen her in less before, but that wasn’t something he wanted to think about. Not whenever she still looked that pretty without a sweater on. Not the girl, nor the time for anything like that.

“Kathy. Stop it.”

Even with Steve calling her name, she only seemed to ignore him. It wasn’t too long before Tommy dared her to take off her jeans too and Carol slapped him in response. At that point, Steve thought he could have killed him, but now he was too focused on the fact that she was trying to take her pants off.

“Kathy—”

“No, Stevie, it’s fine. It’s a… It’s a pool party anyway, right?” she slurred, fumbling with the button on her jeans. “Can’t swim in… in your clothes.”

Just before Kate could undo the button on her jeans, Steve panicked and pushed her into the pool. Tommy followed quickly behind him, shoving Carol in first. Steve even got to push Nancy in before he front-flipped into the pool after her.

Whenever she’d hit the water, Kate had almost frozen to death. When she finally emerged from the water, she shivered as she took in what was happening around her. It all seemed like a blur as Tommy and Carol made out, as Nancy chased Steve, who had taken one of her shoes. Now she could only hope that she wouldn’t turn into an ice cube. As she looked out into the trees behind Steve’s backyard, she could have sworn she saw something, someone, but she quickly forgot about it. She could barely register anything to begin with.

It hadn’t been too long before Steve had carried Kate out of the pool, wrapping a towel around her.

“Tha… Thank you,” she slurred, still shivering from the cold.

He sighed, letting go of her arms and looking away from her. “You’re so drunk.”

She scoffed seemingly overdramatically. “No, I’m not! I’m not drunk! I’m just cold.” She giggled—he couldn’t remember the last time he’d heard her giggle like that before tonight. “I’m going to steal a sweatshirt from you, Stevie.”

Steve thought he was about to tear at the seams. “O–Okay.”

Before Kate skipped away, she bopped his nose lightly with a quiet “boop.” She didn’t even acknowledge the rest of the group before she happily made her way up the stairs to Steve’s room.

Now wasn’t the time to lose it. Even if Kate was driving him absolutely insane at the moment, he couldn’t lose it. It wouldn’t be fair to Nancy. It already wasn’t fair to her that he was stuck having to take care of his drunk best friend, but he couldn’t do anything to fix that. All he could do now was put her to bed and hope that he still had a chance with Nancy.

“She’s wasted,” Tommy said, almost snickering. It was like he couldn’t believe it. “I mean, can you believe it? Hopper, this wasted? I don’t think I’ve ever seen her pick up more than three drinks in a night, never mind this.”

Steve couldn’t even begin to formulate a response before Carol spoke on the matter.

“You know, I never thought she’d break out of her shell. Not with Daddy being police chief and all—”

“Don’t talk about her that way,” Steve said sharply, cutting Carol off before she could say anything else about her. “She’s just… She’s just drunk. She probably won’t even remember any of this tomorrow.”

“Aw,” Carol responded. “Is Stevie worried about his little Katie?”

Steve didn’t know whether it was the amount of stress he was currently feeling or if it was the amount of alcohol he’d ingested that night, but, for once, he dropped the façade and spoke his mind. “Yeah, I am.”

Whenever no one responded to him, Tommy cleared his throat awkwardly. “Well,” he started, quickly trying to change the subject, “I hear his mom’s room has a fireplace.”

“Are you kidding?”

Of course, Tommy and Carol both ignored him. “Oh yeah?”

Steve shouted louder at them as they walked toward his mother’s room. “Okay, well, you know, you are cleaning the sheets.”

Whenever the couple had closed the door to the room, closing them off from the rest of the house, Steve turned to Nancy. “You all right?”

“Yeah.” Nancy gave him a tight-lipped smile, almost sympathetic. She might not have known him for long, but he could see the stress he was currently under, even if he tried to act like he didn’t care about anyone.

“Yeah, come on. Let’s get you some dry clothes. We can go check on her, too.”

“We should probably do that anyway, right? With her being that drunk?”

He shrugged, scratching the back of his neck as they began to walk up the staircase. “Probably.”

Before Nancy could make it all the way up the stairs, however, someone called for her. “Nance!”

She turned around to find Barbara, waiting for her at the bottom of the staircase. “Nancy. Where are you going?”

“Nowhere,” she replied innocently, almost as if she didn’t know what was about to happen. “Just… upstairs. To change. I… fell in the pool.” She stopped to chuckle at herself, but when Barbara didn’t laugh, she continued on. “Why don’t you go ahead and go home? I’ll just… I’ll get a ride or something.”

“Nance…”

“Barb. I’m fine.”

However, Barbara definitely didn’t think it was fine. “This isn’t you.”

As she spoke, Nancy didn’t know if she was reassuring her best friend or reassuring herself. “I’m fine. Just… go ahead and go home, okay?”

Without another word, Nancy walked up the rest of the stairs to meet Steve in his room.

next chapter

[kennahjune]

Some Platonic Stancy + Mike for The Heart

Nancy Wheeler, who cuts her hair short for the first time in 1984 and keeps the short hair going for the next three years until Ted Wheeler makes some bitchy comment on women with shirt hair.

Nancy, not usually the one to people please, ignores the comment. She and Mike both get them often from Ted, shit about Mikes hair being long and hers being short. So she ignores them.

Until their mom joins in with the comments, however subtle they may be.

So, Nancy starts growing her hair out. Mike, however, goes about his life with his hair. He’s never home long enough to really care about the comments— always at the cabin or with the Party somewhere.

Enter the year 1988, and Nancy has successfully grown her hair well below her shoulders. It’s pretty. She gets compliments on her curls and beautiful brown color all the time.

But she hates it.

She fucking hates it.

Three years of having her hair shirt had gotten her used to having it off of her neck. And now that it’s so long, well…

Nancy Wheeler has never had a problem with sensory issues. That was more Mike’s thing— always having to cut the tags off his clothes and downright refusing to eat certain foods— but her hair on her neck makes her want to vomit.

And sure— she can simply put it up, keep it in a high bun and off her neck.

But just the knowledge of it being there makes her sweat. Makes her want to itch the skin off of her neck.

She feels bad for making fun of Mikes hate for tags.

Now, enter year 1989 pursued by Steve Harrington, fresh out of cosmetology school.

Steve had been doing his own hair since he was little and sat with his mom and grandpa at the vanity in their dressing room (because of course the Harrington’s have a dressing room). He’d sit and watch as his mom curled her hair— or straightened, depending on her mood. He’d sit in his grandpa’s lap as he showed little Steve all the different products and tools, letting Steve chip in and help style his hair.

It was a passion handed down from Steve’s moms side, the love for hair. And he planned on finally doing something with it— even if it wasn’t exactly what his parents wanted. (Though they learned to live with it— he did start his own hair salon, after all.)

Now, where does Steve play into this scene?

Well— it starts on a Tuesday afternoon in late July.

Steve Harrington had been cleaning the house while listening to his dads old records on the dingy record player in the living room. The knocking was barely heard over the volume, even with how frantic it was. The only reason Steve— who had lost most of his hearing in his left ear— heard the knocking was because whoever it was nearly knocked a picture off the wall.

So he opened the door to Mike and Nancy Wheeler on his front porch.

Mike looked almost bored, but he gave Steve a smile and a ‘hello’ before dragging his sister in by the arm.

Nancy looked worse-for-wear; her eyes seemed sunken and the eye-bags were darker than he’d seen them in years. He hoped it wasn’t new nightmares.

“Come on in, I guess,” Steve grumbled while Mike made himself comfortable in the living room. He wasn’t actually mad, just playing into a running bit he’d had going on with the mini Wheeler for nearly two years now.

“Watch it, Harrington.” Mike pointed at him. “You’ll loose a paying customer.” But the kid was smiling wide.

Steve scoffed. “‘Paying customer’ my ass, Wheeler! You barge into my home, make me trim your hair, call me an asshole and leave!” Steve himself was grinning wide.

Mike waved him off but Steve heard the giggle he failed to hide.

Nancy stood awkwardly on the living room carpet in the button up she’d stolen from Robin, white tank top, and cut-off jean shorts. She’d been taking a bit of fashion tips from Eddie recently. She found she liked the denim a lot more than skirts in the summer.

Steve finally gave her his attention.

“Hey Nance! What’s up?”

Nancy felt herself relax with the easy smile Steve gave her. She cleared her throat.

“Um— well, Mike said you trim his hair for him every once in a while and I know you just finished school and everything so—“

“You want a haircut?” he cut off her ramble. He and her both have picked up the rambling habit from Robin. “It’s about time, Wheeler. The long hairs cute and all but… so… not you, oddly enough.” He stood with his hip cocked and a thoughtful hand on his chin supported by the arm wrapped around his middle.

Nancy sighed roughly through her mouth and dragged a hand down her face.

“Oh my god, you don’t even know! I can’t stand having it so long— it’s so itchy and scratchy and annoying and not to mention high maintenance! Like yeah it looks good but seriously what is the point other than pain?”

Steve snickered and Mike threw his shoe at her to get her to stop.

“Come on you two, the dressing rooms upstairs.”

In the dressing room, Mike was sat at the vanity first. Steve had gotten Nancy a glass of water and told her to sit on the couch at the back wall and relax.

She tried her best, sipping the water and enjoying the view of the woods in the backyard from the window next to her (even if those woods held darker memories than they should).

She examined the room closely while Steve scolded Mike for using Ted’s shampoo/conditioner (because of course the bastard uses a two-in-one) while Mike pleaded he was desperate after running out of his own stuff.

The floor was tiled for easy clean up, the only carpet being the one under the couch Nancy sat on. The couch was plush leather, the cool touch a welcomed change from the July heat. The walls were a baby pink so light it almost looks white, covered in well-placed posters and photos and even stickers that were stuck on.

The vanity and the couch weren’t the only furniture in the room; a coffee table in front of the couch, a small two-drawer dresser next to the vanity, and nice, tall dresser back by the door. There were plants on the windowsill, flowers in pots on the dressers.

The windowsill was one of those fancy ones that Nancy liked so much; the ones that were like seats with drawers/cabinets underneath. The seat was decorated in an abundance of pillows and blankets.

It was a cozy room, and Nancy found herself zoning out and finally being able to ignore the invading bun on the back of her head. She tuned out the boys’ bickering and just stared at the window. Not through it. Not in it. At it. Examining each speck of dust on the glass and staring her reflection in the eyes.

Until a hair fell loose from bun and tickled her neck. And she almost threw her water at Mike who had sat next to her in her haste to get it off.

“Hey, hey! Nance!” Steve grabbed the water and Mike placed his hands around her neck, effectively stilling her and calming her.

“Hey, yeah, over here.”

Nancy looked at Steve. She kind of wanted to throw up.

“How about we finally get ride of all that length, yeah?”

She’d never heard a better question in her life.

Nancy told Steve to do whatever the hell he thought needed to be done. Steve told her he’d go to just above the shoulders and she agreed.

Mike took a spot on the windowsill, reaching into the cabinet underneath and grabbing a very worn book. Nancy hadn’t realized how much Mike came over to Steve’s before.

“Mike you’re seriously reading that again?” Nancy heard Steve ask. Watching him in the mirror, she saw him never look away from her hair once as Mike replied with a bitchy,

“It’s a good book! I thought you liked The Outsiders!”

Nancy snorted. Of course it was The Outsiders. Nancy remembered watching it with Mike, Will, Dustin and Lucas in the basement of their house when it first came out in March of ‘83.

“I didn’t know you liked The Outsiders, Steve,” she remarked. Nancy saw a red blush ride to his cheek in the mirror.

“It’s a good movie,” he muttered defensively.

Mike snickered. “Yeah— he watched it for the plot. The plot meaning shirtless Darry and half-naked Soda—“

Nancy thought Steve was going to chop her ear off and with how fast he turned around to yell at Mike.

Nancy herself sat cackling in the chair, watching Steve get defensive over his junior year fictional crushes.

.

When all was said and done, Steve gave Nancy a new shirt from the closet in the dressing room (that she failed to notice earlier). It was a simple yellow dress shirt. Steve said it was one of his moms. She was sent to shower and told to use the shampoo and conditioner on the third shelf in the bathroom.

When she had finished and walked back downstairs to meet the boys, Mike had already changed from his simple t-shirt to a black tank top with a dark blue buttoned flannel. Everyone kept clothes at Steve’s except Nancy, it seemed.

She made her way to Steve and sat her old shirts on the couch. With her hands free she pulled Steve into a bone-crushing hug. Steve was quick to reciprocate, wrapping his arms tightly around her waist.

“Thanks so much,”Nancy whispered into his ear. “This helped me so so much, Steve.”

“Anytime, Nance. You know that.”

And she did.

When Nancy and Mike left the Harrington house with a wave to Steve and a promise of letting him know what everyone thought, Nancy had never felt lighter— both physically and mentally.

.

That night, Nancy slept like she hadn’t in years.

Her hair wasn’t to bad on her neck with the new length. It wasn’t making it itchy or scratching at her cheeks wrong.

She didn’t have to have her mom braid it before bed to keep it away, ultimately ending up with a headache the next day because she could never sleep with her hair up.

No. When Nancy Wheeler went to bed, she woke up feeling refreshed and energized. No rash on her neck from scratching at it in her sleep.

When Steve heard about this later that same day, he pulled her into a hug and promised he’d cut her hair as much as she needed him to.

Nancy felt much better than she had in years.

And if she got Mike that sparkly, purple D-20 he’d been eyeing in the shop? Well— consider it a thank you.

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

Seen

A Stancy fanfiction

It had taken Steve a while to figure out why he didn't like that conversation with Dustin. Well, about ten minutes. It was longer than necessary. It wasn't just about him being jealous that Dustin talked so much about Eddie or that Steve didn't want to participate in Hellfire because he wasn't sure he would be good at it. Them looking for another member for their club tonight meant that Dustin and Mike weren't going to show up for Lucas, which didn't make any sense to him considering what they all went through. By the end of his shift, Steve was furious. He ended up turning Brenda down. . .gently, though, and driving off to the school.

"Do they understand how important this is to Lucas?" Steve asked with a sigh. "Basketball is just as important as D&D. . .do they get that? No! Because sports are bad because of a few assholes. Hang out with Eddie. He's so cool. . .he gets us, unlike you, Steve. You're just a dumb jock and now you're turning Lucas into a dumb jock. . .no, this isn't about me!"

He stormed into the school and was walking angrily towards the drama room when he saw Nancy coming from the opposite direction. She looked just as angry as he was. They paused for a moment, staring at each other before meeting in the middle.

"What are you doing here?" Nancy and Steve asked in unison.

"Uh, Dustin called me to ask if I wanted to join Hellfire tonight," Steve said.

"Mike asked me if I wanted to join Hellfire tonight," Nancy said.

"Man, as smart as they are, our brothers are just as dumb," Steve said, and Nancy snorted. "It took me a minute to realize that it meant they weren't going to bother showing up for Lucas tonight."

"They can postpone, Lucas can't," Nancy said.

"Exactly, so I say we team up and go in there together like a united front, really make them piss their pants," Steve said.

"You make us sound like divorced parents," Nancy said in amusement.

"Aren't we?" Steve asked, and Nancy laughed. "Nance, we're supposed to be angry."

"Right."

They both squared their shoulders, put on their game faces, and stormed through the double doors. They slammed open, banging loudly against the walls. Steve felt a moment of satisfaction when he heard them all scream. They moved to the middle of the room where everyone was sitting around the table, including Erica. Eddie Munson was sitting on a throne. Of course. Steve sent Erica a disappointed look before focusing back on the others. Mike and Dustin had the decency to look scared shitless.

"Oh my god!" Dustin screamed. "They're both together and they both look pissed. We're dead!"

"Relax, Henderson, what are Nancy Wheeler and the fallen king of Hawkins High going to do?" Eddie asked.

"He doesn't know," Dustin hissed to Mike.

"No, he's right," Mike rolled his eyes. "They're not going to hurt us."

"Is that what you think?" Nancy asked. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"We're playing Dungeon & Dragons like we do every Friday," Mike rolled his eyes.

"Lucas's game is tonight, why aren't you there supporting him?" Steve asked, his hands on his hips. "I thought your friendship meant something."

"Clearly, our friendship doesn't mean anything to him considering that Lucas went to the Dark Side," Mike said. "He's the one betraying us."

"That's really hypocritical of you, considering that you promised Will before he left for California that you guys wouldn't join another party," Nancy said. "And yet, here you are, in another party."

"You promised Will that we wouldn't join another party?!" Dustin asked. "Will asked us not to join another party?"

"Yeah, so, you promised Steve that you wouldn't leave him for someone else and you left him for Jonathan. How long was it after you ended things with Steve that you jumped into bed with Jonathan?" Mike asked.

Mike regretted it as soon as he said it. Everyone in the room gasped as guilt flooded Mike's face. Steve was hurt and furious that he had brought that up, but then he remembered that he was a traumatized teenager being cornered by his older sister and his sister's ex-boyfriend, who was also his babysitter. Steve took a breath, but Nancy was angrier than he had ever seen her. Her nostrils flared wide.

"Mike. Run. Run as fast as you can," Dustin whispered, looking afraid for Mike's life.

Mike slowly stood up and backed away. Nancy dove for him and he took off, running around the table, shrieking loudly. She was pretty fast for someone so short but even with Mike's long legs, she managed to catch up to him. She kicked him in the back of the leg, sending him to the ground, and pressed her foot into his back. She turned to Dustin and Erica.

"This is important to Lucas. He asked you all to be there and you rejected him. Liking basketball isn't a terrible thing. You are judging him just like those assholes out there are judging you for liking D&D," Nancy said furiously.

"Do you know how scared he was to tell you that he liked basketball?" Steve asked. "He was completely terrified because he didn't think that you would understand, and he turned out to be right. He might not have joined for the right reasons, but not wanting to be bullied anymore is perfectly understandable. Sometimes you just want it to stop . . . but him playing basketball isn't just about that. He knows what's going to happen when the others find out that he also likes D&D, and he wants you guys there as backup when it does happen. He was also afraid that you would replace him with someone else and look what you did. . .you replaced him with his sister!"

"How do you know all that?" Dustin asked softly.

"Because I was the one who's been with him when he wanted someone to practice with. I was the one who listened to his fears of losing his best friends in the entire world because he discovered his love of basketball. He wanted to be able to enjoy both games, but it turns out, the people who are supposed to be the most understanding turns out to be bullying jackasses just like those assholes out there!" Steve yelled at them. "It's not the end of the world if you postpone it for one fucking night!"

Steve didn't realize how much he would regret those words later on but the rest of it, he didn't regret. He would never regret fighting for Lucas Sinclair or any of those damn kids.

"I'm innocent in all of this," Erica said. "I was coerced."

"Erica!" Steve scolded. "Look, I know you don't like basketball, but it's not the enemy here, just like D&D isn't. Lucas just needs to know that you've got his back when he needs it. That's all he's asking for, and I don't think it's too much to ask. Man, all Lucas is trying to do is figure shit out. I'm not saying that you have to like basketball or anything, but just let Lucas know that you still love him. He's family, right? That's more important than popularity or deciding which game is better."

"Yeah," Dustin and Mike said.

It was in that moment that Steve realized that Nancy was staring at him. He locked eyes with her and smiled. It was the first real interaction that he's had with Nancy since the breakup. It was the first time in a long time that he's seen her look at him like that. He felt that familiar tug in his stomach and the familiar fluttering of his heart. He finally realized what those people he had gone out with were missing: they weren't Nancy Wheeler. No one would ever come close. That future he had dreamed of once upon a time that had held Nancy Wheeler was now back again and this time, it wasn't going to be driven to the back of his mind especially since he knew that Nancy cared about these kids as much as he did.

"Steve's right, it's just one night," Nancy said. "His friends and his sister should be there to cheer him on."

"Even though he's just on the bench and I'm going to California tomorrow for spring break?" Mike asked.

"Nothing's going to happen between now and then to stop you from picking it back up when you get back," Nancy said.

"Was Sinclair really afraid of us?" Eddie asked Steve.

Steve looked up at him, looking into his expressive brown eyes and sighed.

"Yeah," Steve said.

Eddie rubbed his forehead and looked down as he thought about it, clearly thinking about everything that they had said.

"This is supposed to be a place for kids like him to come to when they don't have anywhere else to go. . .when they're scared. . .I don't want them to ever be afraid of me judging them," Eddie said. "I was trying so hard not to let those assholes put me into a box that I put Lucas into a box! Jesus H Christ. . .it's just one night, right?"

"Don't want him to only conform to D&D, right?" Steve asked.

"I'm older, I'm in charge, I should be the one setting good examples for the little sheep," Eddie sighed. "I should be the one to make it easier for him to be able to enjoy both games. Because it's not the game, just the assholes in them?"

"Right," Steve said with a snort. "There's an asshole in every group."

"I'm sorry," Mike said and paused. "Can you get your foot out of my back now?"

Nancy snorted and took her foot off his back.

"It was a shitty thing that you said, Michael," Nancy said as he sat up.

"I'm sorry, okay. . .I was trying to hold onto the things that reminded me of Will and El. I just didn't want anyone to take that away from me, and I didn't just want it to disappear," Mike said. "I just miss them, and I shouldn't have brought up your past like that, especially knowing how guilty you feel."

"You're still an asshole," Nancy said with a sigh. "And I miss Jonathan, too, even though we broke up."

"You and Jonathan broke up?" Steve asked.

"Yes," Nancy said, smiling as he struggled to not look so happy.

"Sorry," Steve said.

"Are you, though?" She asked in amusement.

"No," he blushed.

Nancy and Steve locked eyes again. She smirked before turning to Mike.

"You're still grounded," Nancy said.

"Bullshit! You don't have the power to ground me! You're not my father - I mean my mother!" Mike exclaimed.

"Mom and Dad gave me the power when I turned eighteen," Nancy replied.

"I don't believe it," Mike scowled.

"You heard your father, Michael," Steve said with a smirk.

"Oh, so I guess that makes you my mommy," Mike scowled.

"Could you, I don't know, be less of a teenager?" Steve asked, and Mike rolled his eyes. "You know, if you keep doing that, eventually, your eyes are going to get stuck that way."

"Let's go," Nancy said, pointing towards the door and snapping her finger. "All of you."

Erica rolled her eyes before stomping out the door. Dustin looked extremely guilty before following after her with Mike behind him. Dustin paused on his way out the door.

"We didn't mean to hurt Lucas. We were just trying not to lose what we loved to do," Dustin said. "We didn't want to become something that we aren't, and we thought that Lucas was doing that."

"He is doing that, but a way of like getting him not to do that is to have someone like you guys to remember what's truly important," Steve said. "All of you needed to remember that."

He poked Dustin in the chest, right where his heart was located.

"And Eddie, he just - " Dustin started.

"He knows what it's like to feel different," Steve said.

"Yeah," Dustin said.

"Well, newsflash, Henderson," Steve said. "Everyone feels different even people like me. There's no such thing as normal, just people who pretend that they are. We're all freaks, and I am okay with being one myself. More than okay, actually."

Steve smiled proudly, and Dustin copied the grin. Dustin walked ahead with Mike and Erica as the maneuvered down the hallway towards the gym.

"So," Eddie's voice popped up beside him. "What makes Steve Harrington a freak?"

"Oh, you have to be a higher level to unlock that information," Steve grinned and then laughed at Eddie's surprised face. "I do know some things."

"Okay, so how high are we talking about?" Eddie asked. "And does Nancy know?"

"Oh. . .very high. Nancy doesn't know that she knows," Steve said with a shrug.

"What?" Nancy asked, and he leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Oh! That makes so much sense!"

The rest of Hellfire was trailing behind them. Steve smiled over his shoulder at Jeff, who winked at him.

"I'm sorry, do you know Jeff?" Eddie asked.

"Maybe I do, maybe I don't," Steve said.

"You know, I really wanted to hate you," Eddie said, scowling.

"I told you that he might not be that bad," Jeff said.

"Yeah, but you didn't tell me that you knew from experience," Eddie said to Jeff before turning back to Steve. "Anyway! What you did back there. . .you clearly did for those kids. . .you care about them a lot, especially Dustin. He talks about you all of the time."

"He does?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, the butthead worships you," Eddie said. "It's kind of annoying, really."

"He worships you, too, you know," Steve grinned.

"Yeah. . .not that I care what the little shrimp thinks," Eddie said, blushing. "I was super jealous as hell, by the way."

He leaned into Steve’s space, testing his boundaries. Steve laughed and pushed Eddie away.

"Yeah, I was jealous of you, too," Steve said. "Dustin's been like my brother since he kidnapped me a couple of years ago."

"He kidnapped you?" Eddie asked.

"Well, he was standing there looking at me, desperately needing my help. With those damn eyes of his. . .what was I supposed to do? Say no?" Steve scoffed. "I never had a brother before until I met Dustin and his friends. Or knew what it felt like. Always kind of wanted one. I'm glad I found one in Dustin."

"Yeah, me too, man," Eddie said softy.

"That's really very sweet," Nancy said. "But hey, if anyone wants a brother, you two can have mine."

"Oh, man, I thought you were going to kill the little shit for what he said," Eddie grinned.

"If she had her gun with her, she probably would have," Steve said.

"Nancy Wheeler has a gun?" Eddie asked in surprise.

"More than one," Nancy said proudly.

"Yeah, she almost shot me with one of them," Steve laughed.

"And you almost deserved it," Nancy said, and he grinned.

"Yeah, well," Steve said softly.

"Man, I don't know what happened between you two, but if I were you two, I wouldn't waste a single moment. . .life is hard and fucking short. Never know how much time you've got left," Eddie said. "The way you two barged in there together. . .unambiguous sign of true love, I swear."

"Is Eddie Munson a romantic?" Nancy asked teasingly.

"Maybe. . . But don't you dare tell anyone," Eddie said. "I'm also a sucker for second chances."

They were almost to the gym doors when someone popped out of the nearby bathroom. It was Chrissy Cunningham.

"Oh, hey Steve, Nancy, it's good to see you two together again," Chrissy smiled, and then her eyes landed on Eddie, causing her grin to widen. "Eddie! Are you going to the game?!"

"Looks like it," Eddie said.

"Oh, that's great! I hoped you'd come somehow," Chrissy said.

"You did?" Eddie asked, bewildered. "Are you okay? You look like you've been crying."

"Oh, well, I just broke up with Jason. Best decision that I ever made. I decided that I deserved better," Chrissy replied.

"I wasn't going to say anything, but you totally do," Eddie said.

Chrissy smiled, blushing. She reached up suddenly, cupping his cheek with her hand. Eddie sucked in a breath as she wiped her thumb under his eye. She pulled back and held out her thumb to his lips.

"You had an eyelash, make a wish," Chrissy said.

Eddie stared at her.

"Uh, I wish for - "

"No, silly, you can't say your wish outloud!" Chrissy giggled.

"Oh, right, of course," he laughed and rolled his eyes before blowing on her thumb. "There!"

"Do you think it's going to come true?" Chrissy asked.

"I certainly hope so," he said.

"I'll see you in there?" Chrissy asked.

"Yeah, definitely," Eddie said.

Chrissy smiled and bounced into the gym. Steve watched as Eddie stared after her, pulling his hair in front of his face. He grinned.

"Well, that was the cutest thing that I have ever witnessed," Steve said.

"Agreed," Nancy said.

"I have no thoughts in my brain. What's my name again?" He asked. "Where the hell am I?"

Steve laughed, clapped him on the back, and led him inside with the kids. He led him towards the bleachers and pushed him up the steps. Eddie and the rest of Hellfire sat at the top of the bleachers. Steve moved to follow them when he was suddenly yanked back by Nancy.

"Sit with me?" She asked softly and hopefully, her blue eyes wide.

"Yeah," he said.

His eyes caught Robin's in the bleachers not far from their seats. She raised her hands up, looking confused. She pointed at Hellfire and then at Nancy.

"What the hell?" She asked inside his head.

"I'll tell you later," Steve replied back.

"What were you off doing when you had me blocked?" Robin asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

They had been telepathically linked since Starcourt, not that anyone knew that, but Steve figured that since there might be something starting with Nancy, he should probably tell her that he's got another woman inside of his head.

"I swear, it almost looks like you two are communicating in your heads," Nancy snorted.

"That's because we are," Steve winced.

"What?" Nancy asked in surprise.

"Starcourt," he whispered.

"I guess we have a lot to catch up on," Nancy said.

"Yeah, we do," Steve said.

Suddenly, they were joined by Fred Benson, Nancy's friend on the paper.

"Steve Harrington. I didn't think I was ever going to meet you. You're right, Nancy, he is cute," Fred said.

"You talk to Fred about me?" Steve asked.

"Maybe," she blushed.

"Oh, she won't shut about you. How cute you are, what a great boyfriend you were back then, how she should have told you that, and so many other mistakes that she wishes she could take back, so on and so on. . .," Fred said.

"Fred!" Nancy exclaimed, and she paused. "He's right, though. There's so many things that I wish I could have done differently."

"You're here now, Nance, and that's water under the bridge," Steve said. "I forgave you a long time ago."

"She also won't stop talking about your hazel eyes and your cute butt," Fred said, rolling his eyes with a grin.

"Fred!" She scolded and then sighed. "He's right. You do have a cute butt. Oh! The game is starting."

Steve and Nancy shared a look when Lucas came out. The minute he saw his friends sitting in the bleachers, his face split in the widest grin. A moment later, Hellfire called out Lucas's name, and he laughed in delight. Yeah, Nancy and Steve did well. It was well worth the wait when they finally sent Lucas in, and he ended up scoring them the winning shot. He could hear the entire gym screaming for Lucas, but more importantly, he could hear Hellfire screaming louder. Steve had cheered proudly with Nancy, who pulled him into a tight hug as they both beamed brightly. Nancy pulled her head back, her arms still wrapped tightly around him, and smiled. She closed the gap between them and kissed him deeply. Steve smiled into the kiss, a euphoria filling him as Nancy's lips moved against his. He enjoyed the familiar feeling of her lips, the way she felt in his arms again. He had kissed her many times before, but this felt different from all the others. This one felt more final.

"Holy shit! I enjoyed that a lot more than I thought I would!" Eddie exclaimed. "Basketball is still not my thing but. . .I don't hate it."

They had all spilled out into the parking lot and were now waiting for Lucas and Robin.

"It wasn't the worst thing I've ever seen," Gareth agreed, rolling his eyes.

"Lucas was great," Jeff grinned.

"I have to admit that Sinclair has skills," Eddie said and then sighed. "All the shit I gave Uncle Wayne about liking basketball, I just know he's going to want me to watch one with him now. Although, he would have given me a swift kick if he knew what an asshole I was."

Steve smiled down at Nancy, who had her cheek pressed against his arm as she watched Lucas come out with his team. He was enveloped into his parents' arms first, and then he moved on to them.

"I had hoped you would come, but I didn't think you would," Lucas said to Dustin and Lucas.

"We're sorry for not being supportive before," Mike said. "And we're sorry for not taking you seriously."

"Yeah, you're way more important than any game," Dustin said.

"And even though you like basketball now, we still love you," Mike said.

Steve could tell that it was exactly what Lucas needed to hear. He smiled, tears in his eyes.

"Our bond goes deeper than friendship, Lucas. We're family," Dustin said. "If basketball is just as important to you as D&D then we'll be there to cheer you on."

"Just don't forget who you are. Okay?" Mike asked. "Promise?"

"Promise," Lucas said.

Mike and Dustin hugged Lucas tightly. Yeah, that's all he needed to know, was that they'd still be best friends even if their interests diverged. Mike and Dustin just needed to know that the important parts of Lucas Sinclair would still be there. It was a nice moment between the three of them, a moment that Jason Carver just had to ruin.

"Hey, Sinclair! Are these freaks bothering you?" Jason asked.

Dustin, Mike, and Lucas broke the hug. Jason and a couple of other basketball players were standing behind them.

"These freaks are my friends," Lucas scowled.

"You don't have to cover for them, man," Andy said.

"If they're bothering you, we can deal with them," Chase said.

"No," Lucas said, standing in front of them. "They are my friends, and they have been for a long time. I didn't tell you because I was afraid of how you'd react. I'm in Hellfire, too."

Nancy, Steve, and Eddie moved to stand beside the kids. Jason stared daggers at Lucas.

"You lied to us, Sinclair. You betrayed us. You're going to burn for this," Jason said. "I'll make sure that you're off the team."

"Except that's the coach's decision, Carver," Stege said. "Not yours."

"What the hell happened to you, Harrington?" Jason asked. "You used to be one of us."

"Well, I finally decided to grow a brain. It looks like you never have. You still look as dumb as the day I met you. I bet your mommy still writes your name in your underwear just so you won't forget it," Steve said. "I was never one of you."

Jason looked like he swallowed a lemon. He cheeks were also flushed in humiliation.

"I'll make your life hell on the team, Sinclair. You're going to want to quit," Jason said.

Nancy stepped forward with a tape recorder and played back everything that he said.

"People would just love to find out that the captain of the basketball team is sabotaging his own teammates," Nancy said.

"Stay out of this, Wheeler, you don't know who you're messing with," Jason said.

"No, it's you who doesn't know who you're messing with," Nancy said, staring him directly in the eyes. "Don't fuck with our kids."

"You know, I thought you were a good guy, someone else like Steve that I could look up to, but I see who you are now, what they say about you. You're nothing more than a psychopathic bully who only cares about himself," Lucas said. "You can't even admit when you're wrong. D&D is just a game, just like basketball. I happen to enjoy both, and I realize now that no matter what I do that there's always going to be someone who is going to disagree with what I do in life but I'm not going to stop living it because of narrow-minded mouth breathers like who can't accept that not everyone wants to be like you."

Just as Jason took a step closer to Lucas, Chrissy appeared.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"Chrissy, babe, you don't need to see this," Jason said. "I was just about to help Lucas out of a sticky situation."

"It looks like you were about to punch him," Chrissy said with narrowed eyes.

"You've read the situation wrong, babe," Jason said.

"Did you get amnesia?" Chrissy asked. "Did you forget that I dumped your ass?"

"We had a fight, that's all. You had a bad day. I get it," Jason said.

"A bad day? Try bad several months," Chrissy scoffed.

Jason grabbed her arm, and everyone immediately moved to stop him. It was Chrissy who saved herself. She raised her knee and slammed it into his groin. Jason let go and collapsed onto the ground. Andy and Chase glared at Chrissy. After a minute, Jason struggled to get back up. He glared at Lucas.

"One day, you're going to find yourself alone, without your friends, and you're not going to be so brave then," Jason said.

"Did you forget that I have a tape recorder, dumbass?" Nancy asked. "I'm still recording you."

Jason scowled and winced as he tried not to let it show that Chrissy had really hurt him. He turned his eyes onto Eddie, glaring furiously.

"This is all your fault. You manipulate people and you use. . . You use your powers to control them to make them do what you want. Chrissy never would have done that," Jason told Eddie.

"Maybe Chrissy just got tired of your bullshit. Man, if I can make people do what I want, then why the hell am I still a third year senior?" Eddie asked, scowling. "If I am oh, so, powerful then why the fuck am I not swimming in gold?"

Jason opened his mouth, closed it, and opened it again before closing it once more. He looked like a gaping fish. Steve couldn't help but laugh at that. Eddie had gotten on that one. Sue and Charles approached quickly.

"What's going on here?" Sue asked.

"You're lucky mommy and daddy showed up," Andy spat at Lucas. "You and your meddling friends."

Andy, Chase, and Jason walked away as the Sinclairs moved to stand beside Lucas.

"It's too bad we don't have a dumb dog," Steve snorted.

"What are you talking about, Stevie? We've got our Scooby right here," Eddie grinned, clapping his hands on Dustin's shoulders and cackled when Steve high fived him.

"I changed my mind," Dustin scowled. "I don't want you two getting along."

"Does that mean that I'm Velma or Daphne?" Nancy asked Steve.

"I'm clearly Daphne," Steve scoffed. "I pull off purple better than you do."

"You take that back, Steve Harrington," Nancy laughed.

They all fell into a deep and serious discussion about Scooby-Doo, which was something they found they all had in common. It was that moment that Robin had finally showed up. She looked around in confusion.

"What I'd miss?" Robin asked.

"Well," Steve said in her head. "You'd know if you hadn't blocked me."

"Fuck you," Robin said. "I was talking to Vickie, and I lost track of time."

Steve smiled and felt Nancy snuggle into his side, her arm wrapping around his waist. Lucas was happily replaying the game with Dustin and Mike as they questioned him about basketball. Chrissy had slid her arm through Eddie's and was chatting him up. Eddie looked at Steve in panic and Steve sent him an encouraging wink, laughing at his plight. He didn't expect it to end up like this, but he found that he was looking forward to his new friendship with Eddie. Well, he hoped they were friends now.

"I wish we could all go out and continue this because this was fun, but I have to get Mike home. It's past his bedtime," Nancy said.

"Nancy!" Mike yelled.

"Yeah, I'm letting Eddie take me back to his place," Chrissy said.

"You going to put him to bed?" Nancy asked in amusement. "Tuck him in?"

"Like she's going to want - ," Eddie started to say.

"If he lets me," Chrissy grinned and he hollered.

"Yeah, yeah!" Eddie said. "Uh, Sinclair, I'm sorry about everything. I'll muster up a better apology later, but you know, I'm suddenly feeling tired."

"Nah, man, I get it," Lucas laughed.

Eddie took off towards his van but skidded to a stop when he realized that Chrissy hadn't followed. She ran and threw herself onto his back. He shrieked in surprise, but then he hooked his arms under her legs and continued to run towards his van, making engine noises as he did so. Chrissy's giggles could be heard throughout the parking lot. Steve smiled. People weren't all that different. The only thing was that their interests diverged, but the one thing that they all had in common was that they wanted to be seen and to be accepted. As Steve kissed Nancy goodbye, he couldn't help but be excited about what tomorrow would bring for them all.