#yes lonnie was awful but will has always had mike jon n joyce in his corner n they overcompensated bc of it

[bylertruther]

with the way that some of you talk about will you'd expect every other scene of his to be a suicide attempt, for there to be scenes of him talking about lonnie negatively or at-fucking-all, for there to be scenes where we can see this supposed disgust or hatred for his sexuality, for him to have been the one that said "what did you think really? that we were never going to get girlfriends and stay in my basement playing games for the rest of our lives?" and "it's not my fault you don't like girls!" and "we're friends! we're. friends.", for him to have been the one to make fun of mike's campaign, for him to have been the one to ditch his interests to be Cool and Grown, for him to be the one with the family that doesn't give a rat's ass about him, for him to be the one in a relationship with someone he doesn't love because he doesn't want to face the truth, for him to be the one that can't ever talk about his feelings or let himself feel them, for him to be the one avoiding love, for him to be the one that went through a depression and grief arc, for him to be the one that is shown to not be okay even when there's no supernatural fuckshit going on, for him to be the one isolating himself from his loved ones, and so on and so forth cutting this post short now even tho i could 100% go on and keep rattling off the Actually depressing shit tht you guys keep stealing from other characters on this show and trying to pin on him. but anyway ....

[tozierswheelers]

being the middle byers child [headcanon]

Requested: By some of y’all who seemed to like the ‘being the middle wheeler child’ headcanons!

Pairings: Jonathan Byers x reader (platonic), Will Byers x reader (platonic), faint Steve Harrington x reader (if you squint)

this is so long i’m so sorry :((( season two continues below the cut!!

you were Lonnie and Joyce’s second child, born a year after Jonathan

as horrible as it sounds, you were always Lonnie’s favorite

you were tough and much more driven than Jonathan was, never complaining when you guys went hunting.

when Will was born, you just knew that you would do anything to protect your little brother.

when Lonnie left, you realized just how much of a dick he was

you were the one who helped Joyce get through the divorce.

as you got older, Joyce quickly realized that you were incredibly intelligent

this led to you skipping a few grades in school

although you were a year younger than Jonathan, you were a year above him in school

(this meant that you were in the same grade as Steve)

((spoilers! y’all were best friends))

around Tommy and Carol however, Steve pretended not to know you

so you decided that you just wouldn’t pay him any attention.

next thing you know, Steve is dating Nancy Wheeler and both you and Jonathan are heartbroken

Jonathan has always liked Nancy, so he was upset.

but you and Steve…

you guys were close

and i mean close

you did e v e r y t h i n g together.

he was your best friend who never teased you for being an ‘overachiever’ 

he didn’t care that you were two years younger than him. 

y’all were best friends.

platonic soulmates if you will.

you began spending a lot of time with Will, seeing as how Jonathan was always out working or taking pictures of stuff.

the night that Will disappeared, you were taking a walk in the park

when you got home, you were slightly suspicious but shrugged it off, thinking Will had stayed the night at Mike’s.

you realized you were wrong the next morning

Joyce had never yelled at you before

but this time she did, upset with you for not being at home the night before

you immediately make your way towards the Wheeler residence, seeing Nancy’s shocked face when she opens the door

“(Y/N)? What are you doing he-”

“I need to talk with Mike. Now.”

You’re directed towards the basement, where you see Mike upset, tears in his eyes.

“(Y/N) I just heard about Will.”

“I know you plan on going out to look for him Mike.”

Mike makes an offended face, mouth agape.

“(Y/N)! Why would you ever think such a thing?”

“Cut the crap Wheeler. I know you guys are going to look. Count me in.”

Mike smiles and tells you to keep Will’s walkie close by.

the night they go out to look for Will, you get separated pretty quickly.

one minute, Dustin was next to you

next thing you know, you’re surrounded by nothing but darkness.

you hear the boys calling out for you and Will and run towards their voices

you run into Eleven instead ((oops))

you and Mike convince the others to trust El and take her back to Mike’s house.

the middle schoolers promise to take care of El, so you hesitantly leave.

the next day, you try to go back but Steve intercepts you when you try to leave the school.

“hey Byers, I know this isn’t the best time but do you wanna hang out tonight? my house?”

you snort and walk away, leaving Steve to sigh and kick a locker in frustration. 

eventually, you feel guilty and make your way towards Steve’s home…

…where you immediately regret your decision.

Steve is only paying attention to Nancy and Tommy & Carol are making snide remarks towards you. 

you sit awkwardly next to Barb, exchanging pained glances and desperate smiles. 

you stay outside when Barb gets hurt, only approaching the door when you hear arguing.

you meet Steve’s gaze and when he smiles in an apologetic way, you simply shake your head, turning to follow Barb.

you freeze in shock however, when you notice a large figure behind the sulking redhead

you open your mouth to warn Barb but in the blink of an eye, both the redhead and the mysterious figure are gone. 

you can’t help but feel the uneasy due to what you saw

it isn’t until you’re walking through the woods, halfway home, that you realize what was bothering you so much

the mysterious figure didn’t have a face.

you run the rest of the way home.

the next day, you overhear Nancy asking about Barb

concerned, you both team up and decide to locate the redhead

you patiently wait by Nancy’s side when she calls the Holland household, cringing at her poorly executed excuses.

when you both arrive to the parking lot, you’re thoroughly confused

you sort of agree with Steve: Jon’s stealthy pictures are kind of creepy.

but he’s your brother

the moment when Steve has Jonathan’s camera in his hands is tense.

((you’re holding your breath))

and when he lets it drop, all hell breaks loose.

as Jonathan scrambles to save his camera and Tommy and Carol rip up his pictures, you stomp up to Steve

a regret-filled look crossed his face and he opens his mouth ((to apologize but you don’t know that))

he never speaks because you punch him in the face.

you definitely split his lip and you can’t help but grin as you notice the bruise quickly forming on his cheek. 

everyone. is. shook.

I mean, you two were best friends. two peas in a pod. 

but your family was super important to you.

you hear that Will’s body was found later that day and against your better judgement, you make your way to Steve’s house.

Steve opens the door with a scowl but once he hears the words “Will”, “body” and “dead”, he wraps you up in his arms.

you cry your eyes out and eventually, you both fall asleep.

you leave bright and early the next morning, making your way to the Wheeler residence

where Mike tells you that Will is still alive.

you don’t believe him but once you hear what El did, you’re convinced.

you spend the rest of the time with The Party, ready to get your little brother back. 

you’re the one that breaks up the fight in the junkyard and follows Eleven after scolding the boys.

once convincing El to go back, you rush to find Troy and James at the quarry.

enraged, you’re the one that scares the boys off while El saves Mike.

eventually, you escape the government agents and meet up with Hopper, Nancy, and your mom and brother.

Joyce is relieved that you’re alright but upset that you’re wrapped up in everything. 

you force Joyce and Hopper to let you go with them to the lab. 

((they’re pretty intimidated by your tone that they agree))

you and Hopper are the ones to perform CPR on Will.

as soon as he wakes up, you wrap him in your arms and lead the way out of the Upside Down.

when he wakes up in the hospital, you’re the first to greet him, wrapping him up in a hug and kissing his forehead.

“you loser. never scare us like that again.”

Will smiles weakly.

“I didn’t mean to.”

almost a year later and you’re super concerned.

Will had ((luckily)) confided in you about the visions he’s been having about the Upside Down. 

that + college apps = lots of stress.

you start spending lots of time at the arcade to wind down, meeting Maxine Mayfield 

you quickly grow close to the little red-haired girl ((does anyone get this reference?))

Max, in return, looks up to you, admiring your intelligence and humor.

when you hear that she beat Dustin’s high score in Dig Dug, you know that things are going to get interesting.

the boys soon come up to you when school starts, knowing that you spend a lot of time at the arcade.

they beg you to find out who “MADMAX” is, feeling offended when they find out that you know who it is and you haven’t told them.

eventually, your life starts to feel normal

the only thing bothering you is Billy Hargrove, who keeps bothering you to go on a date with him. 

((you refuse each time))

(((Max has told you all about the things he’s done)))

on Halloween, you volunteer to stay with The Party, telling Jonathan to go enjoy Tina’s party.

when Max joins you, she immediately hugs you.

“(Y/N)!!”

“Max!”

The Party looks at you in shock and betrayal.

“you already knew her?!”

“yes Dustin. calm down.”

you and Mike find Will after his episode and manage to calm him down

eventually, you also get caught up in the Dart fiasco. 

when Will has his vision out on the field, you and Joyce freak out, trying to get him to snap out of it.

you’re pretty freaked out at will’s new actions.

you know that the shadow monster has inhabited a part of him. 

when you try to take a nap, you hear Dustin calling for help on the walkie-talkie, which you never gave back to Will.

you respond to Dustin’s cries, and he tells you to meet at the Wheeler’s residence.

before you can tell him that Mike is there with you, he disconnects.

sighing tiredly, you make your way to Mike’s house, leaving a quick note for Joyce and Bob.

you’re surprised to see Steve with Dustin when you get there.

you haven’t talked to Steve in a long time.

the last time was when you punched him in the face.

((lies, it was when you went to his house crying over Will))

you all stand there awkwardly before you break the silence.

“wait. Steve, you know about the Upside Down?”

“yeah, I helped Nancy and your brother fight against it.”

Dustin rolls his eyes before dragging you to his house…

…where you find Dart gone. 

you and Steve can’t help but exchange exasperated glances at Dustin’s actions.

“why did you keep that thing?!”

“I thought it was a pollywog!”

you decide to set up a trap in the junkyard.

when Max arrives, you scold Dustin and Lucas for dragging her into the situation.

when the demodogs arrive, you follow after Steve, holding nothin but a metal pole.

Steve is low-key worried for your safety.

((that worry quickly disappears when you save his life 10 two times))

the kids are all in awe because damn you can fight.

“that’s how I fend off your brother,” you wink at Max, causing her to cackle.

you all eventually regroup at the lab and quickly move to your home.

you lead Will’s interrogation, knowing that he’ll try harder to communicate with you.

you eventually get the message and you all rush inside when the phone rings. 

when Eleven steps through the door, all badass, you’re the second person to hug her, after Mike.

you stay with Steve and the kids as everyone else goes to do their thing. 

when Billy arrives, you’re the one who gets him off of Lucas.

you punch him first, and when Billy goes to swing back, Steve stops him. 

“didn’t anyone teach you not to hit girls?”

you’re super proud when Max finally stands up to Billy. 

you let Max drive while you tend to Steve’s wounds and when he starts freaking out, you manage to calm him down. 

after torching the tunnels, you push Mike out of the way

you get caught by the vines instead of him.

you don’t cry out for help, but Mike does.

by the time Steve arrives, you’re already hacking at the vines with a pocketknife that Jonathan had once given you “for protection”

Steve and the kids are impressed once again. 

you make sure all the kids get out of the tunnel first.

when you hear the demodogs approaching, you and Steve embrace each other tightly.

you each apologize for being horrible friends to one another.

when you emerge from the tunnel, you hug him once more.

“I really am sorry Steve. you’re the best friend I’ve ever had.”

“nothing like a near death experience to bring us back together, huh (Y/N). just kidding. you’re my bestest friend too.”

you snort at his words but hug him tighter anyways. 

a month later and everything finally is back to normal.

you and Will are inseparable, along with Jonathan.

you mourn Bob with your mom for a while.

you actually really like him, he cared about both your mom and her children.

you and Joyce both drop off Will and Jonathan at the Snow Ball.

while Joyce goes out to smoke, you stay in the car, listening to music before you see Steve arrive.

you casually jump into his car while he’s giving Dustin advice.

“remember act like you don’t care.”

“that’s shit advice Steve. just be yourself Dusty.”

you kiss Dustin’s cheek before he enters the school.

you turn to Steve, a mischievous smirk on your face.

“hey Steve. wanna go to the dance with me?”

Steve rolls his eyes and sighs before smiling widely.

“let’s do this Byers.”

you and Steve sit on the bleachers together and watch Nancy dance with Dustin.

eventually, The Party, Nancy, and Jonathan all sit at a table and watch you and Steve as you laugh and joke around.

Dustin is the first to speak.

“okay, I know that they’re best friends and all that shit but you can’t look at them and tell me that they’re not gonna end up together at some point. I mean, look at them! they’re practically soulmates!”

the rest of The Party and Nancy nod in agreement.

except Will

him and Jonathan punch Dustin in unison.

“hey! what was that for? you guys know i’m right. Byers and Harrington will end up together.”

Will and Jonathan begrudgingly nod in agreement after a few minutes. 

up in the bleachers, you gently nudge Steve before tilting your head towards your friends.

following your gaze, Steve snorts and wraps his arm around you pulling you into a hug and laughing.

you lean into his embrace.

for the first time in over a year, you’re relaxed.

you’re not thinking about the Upside Down, or college.

as far as you know, your brother is completely safe, El is alive, the Gate is closed, and you’ve fixed your friendship with Steve.

yeah, life couldn’t be better.

Tags: @delicrieux, @broken-pieces, @toekeery, @stanleyurisalive, @tapetayloe, @thekidsofneibolt