#Tina watches Monster High

[acoldsovereign]

"I have an adult male specimen* to DESTROY in a very, public manner!"

[carolperkinsexgirlfriend]

Steddie Upside-Down AU Part 59

Part 1 Part 58

“Please, Steve!” Nancy’s wheedling voice drifts to Eddie as he rounds the corner. “Jonathan already said no because he’s trick-or-treating, so it’s just going to be me and Barb.”

Steve’s leaning against his locker, frowning down at Nancy. It’s reminiscent of the year before, when the pair were circling each other like monkeys in heat, only it’s knocked on its head. Maybe even…upside down. Eddie chuckles, sidling up to lean against Steve by the lockers, knocking their shoulders together. A united front in the face of a determined Nancy Wheeler.

“Are you saying Barb’s not enough for you, Miss Wheeler?” Eddie asks, faux shocked. He puts a hand to his chest, swooning into Steve’s side just to make him laugh.

Nancy rolls her eyes. “Obviously not.” She’s clearly exasperated by Eddie’s presence. Somehow, almost a year of being friend’s-once-removed hasn’t warmed either of them up. Although, if all the interdimensional ass-kicking couldn’t do it, why would anything else? “It’s just–” she trails off, looking down at the books she has clasped daintily to her chest.

Eddie can almost feel Steve thawing beside him. God damn it. “Just what?” he asks softly.

Nancy peeks up at him from beneath her eyelashes. She doesn’t even look at Eddie. What a conniving little twerp. “Neither of us have been to a party since, well–” she stalls, tucking a curl behind her ear. “You know.” She whispers the last bit, looking around like she expects the men in suits to burst out of the walls because she mentioned a party from last year.

Steve stiffens next to him. Eddie takes a surreptitious step closer, glaring down at Nancy. Not that she has the decency to even notice. “None of us have gone to a party since, Wheeler,” he hisses.

Steve elbows him in the ribs. Like he’s the problem in this scenario. Eddie backs down, slumping down into the lockers and crossing his arms with a loud huff. Time to let Mommy and Daddy figure it out. Eddie grimaces, disgusted by his own thoughts.

Steve sighs, rubbing his face vigorously with his hands. “One hour,” he says, muffled through his palms.

“Seriously?” Eddie demands.

“Yes!” Nancy says, raising her hand in a tiny fist pump that would’ve been endearing on literally anyone else. “I’ll see you there!” She’s beaming as she turns around, walking away with a new bounce in her step.

“Where are we going?” Eddie demands.

Steve lowers his palms, sliding them down his skin, slowly revealing each tantalizing bit of his perfect face. “Were you invited?” Steve asks, turning and walking away.

“Dude, I know where you sleep!” He does not shout out in the halls of Hawkins High in bumfuck Indiana that where he sleeps is with Eddie in his bed. He has some self-preservation left.

Steve laughs, elbowing him in the ribs again. Same spot, too, the asshole. “Tina’s Halloween party?”

“Are you serious?” When Steve nods, he continues. “Ugh, Stevie, you’ve gotta stop letting Wheeler shoehorn you into these things. She’s the worst!” Eddie whines, drawing out the vowels in ‘worst’ past recognition.

“She’s not that bad,” Steve says, but he’s smiling. “You’re just her like–what’s it called? That stuff that always trips up Superman. Dustin mentioned it?”

He looks over at Eddie, a cute look of puzzlement on his face. Eddie wants to boop his nose, so he does, watching as Steve goes cross-eyed trying to follow the movement. “You mean Kryptonite?”

Steve snaps his fingers, smiling dorkily. “That’s it!”

Eddie’s heart flops pitifully in his ribcage. What a fucking nerd, dear god. “Okay, but do we have to go to a stupid party because Nancy Wheeler of all people wants us to?”

Steve shrugs, still smiling as they walk down the emptying corridors. “Last time we got kidnapped by a monster from a hell dimension, so really, Munson.” Steve claps his arm around Eddie’s shoulders, rubbing his hair like he’s one of the bastard children. “Things can only go up from here!”

Eddie can’t help the way he almost shrieks with laughter, almost bringing Steve down with the way he goes boneless. “You’re a total jinx!”

“Maybe, but you love me!”

Steve Harrington says it nonchalantly, like he’s not currently holding him up off the cold linoleum. Eddie’s heart does an unfortunate splitter splatter splat at Steve’s feet. Because fuck. He does.

Part 60

Taglist: @deany-baby @estrellami-1 @altocumulustranslucidus @evillittleguy @carlprocastinator1000 @1-8oo-wtfbro @hallucinatedjosten @goodolefashionedloverboi @newtstabber @lunabyrd @cinnamon-mushroomabomination @manda-panda-monium @disrespectedgoatman @finntheehumaneater @ive-been-bamboozled @harringrieve @grimmfitzz @is-emily-real @dontstealmycake @angeldreamsoffanfic @a-couchpotato @5ammi90 @mac-attack19 @genderless-spoon @kas-eddie-munson @louismeds @imhereforthelolzdontyellatme @pansexuality-activated @ellietheasexylibrarian @nebulainajar @mightbeasleep @neonfruitbowl @beth--b @silenzioperso @best-selling-show @v3lv3tf0x @bookworm0690 @paintsplatteredandimperfect

[afewproblems]

Season Two Halloween AU Part Ten (Final Part)

Part One, Part Two, Part Three, Part Four, Part Five, Part Six Part Seven Part Eight Part Nine

Synopsis: What if Eddie had been at Tina's Halloween Party in Season Two? Featuring Steve!Whump, Stancy Breakup, and Eddie just trying to keep up with all these new revelations about who King-Steve actually is...

Thank you to Jess @strangersteddierthings for your encouragement and kind words, and to all of you that have been following along with this story. Thank you for your patience, I hope you enjoy the final installment!

***

It doesn't take much to get Dustin on board, especially given the little shits ego.

Nancy and Eddie manage to catch him outside during lunch period the following day, next to the bike racks. With Hawkins Middle just a block away from the highschool, it's easy to make their way over.

"Called it, I totally called it," Dustin preens with a wide grin, Eddie holds back the urge to roll his eyes.

Nancy levels Dustin with an unimpressed glare as she crosses her arms.

"It's not too late, we could make this work without him," Nancy says dryly, and Eddie has to bite his cheek to keep from laughing at the way Dustin's mouth drops open as he looks between Nancy and Eddie with a stricken expression.

"No, wait!" Dustin says, his voice pitched high with panic, "I want to help!" 

"Steve is a good guy, he helped my mom with the groceries last week because she had to work late," the kid continues, his voice softer now.

"I can tell he's sad, when he thinks you aren't looking at him, mom had the same thing after my dad left". 

Dustin looks up at Eddie now, a wary suspicion in his eyes, "he's been like that since the last time I covered for you," he throws long exaggerated finger quotes around the word, 'covered' as he openly glares at Eddie.

"What did you say to him before the tunnels?" Dustin demands fiercely, and even Nancy turns to look at Eddie with a questioning tilt to her head.

Frustration courses through his chest now, hot and bubbling, he has to take a deep breath to keep from yelling. 

As if Eddie hasn't been asking himself that very question, as if he hasn't been turning that moment over and over in his mind, trying to find the moment, the words, responsible for Steve's distance.

"Dustin," Nancy says sharply, "this is not the time--"

"What are you talking about," Dustin turns to Nancy, gesturing at Eddie who bristles, "we're making a plan and that should include what not to say this time."

"This was a stupid idea," Eddie bites out, turning on his heel, his ears are warm under his hair and he can feel the angry flush slowly make its way down his neck, he takes three steps before a hand catches his elbow, halting his path.

"Okay Dustin knock it off," Nancy says quietly, her head on a swivel, watching for any lunchtime stragglers lingering around them or teachers on supervision. 

Satisfied that no one seems to be watching their conversation, she turns back to Eddie and squeezes his elbow one last time before letting her hand drop away, "and you, calm down, we're all here because we want the same thing".

"Well, some of us more than others," Dustin pipes up, wiggling his eyebrows at Eddie who wants to sink into the concrete. 

"Dustin," Nancy bites out between her teeth, "Mike said the Snowball is in two days, think you could get Steve to take you?"

Dustin scrunches his nose as he looks at Nancy, "are you kidding," he scoffs, "all I have to do is tell my mom Steve offered to take me and she'll call him to thank him, he'll have no choice but to agree like it was his idea". 

Nancy blinks once at Dustin and Eddie can't help but stare at the little monster's face as he grins up at the two of them. It's honestly a good plan given what Eddie knows of Steve, and even Nancy begins to nod slowly.

"Okay, then your job," Nancy turns to Eddie now, "is to surprise him here when he arrives at the dance, Dustin's right".

Nancy doesn't look at the little twerp as she says it but nearly rolls her eyes at the triumphant laugh that bursts forth from the kid.

"An ambush is probably the best way to catch him, and Eddie," Nancy turns to fully face him and reaches out to squeeze his arm with small hands, "just…be gentle with Steve, as much as you can".

"Are we all clear on the plan then?" She asks, taking a step back towards the sidewalk path leading back to the school. 

"Yes mom," Eddie huffs, shooting Dustin a matching grin as Nancy sighs loudly.

"Just be here for seven," she says tightly before turning in her heel and stalking off towards the highschool.

"She's pretty intense hey?" Eddie says, turning back to the kid, he trails off at the scowl Dustin gives him in response.

"Nance is cool and has a gun, I wouldn't mess with her and I wouldn't mess with Steve if I were you," Dustin scoffs, taking a step closer.

Eddie swallows roughly at the sudden proximity, looking around the school yard for any stragglers making their way back to class. 

"Keep your voice down you little shit," he hisses, reaching out to pull Dustin farther away from the bike rack and the double front doors. He tries not to let the news of Nancy's weapon cache fluster him but Dustin must see something in Eddie's expression if the sudden smug grin is anything to go by.

"I'm just saying, you're new to the party and we protect each other, so if you're just looking to mess with him--"

"Jesus Christ," Eddie hisses, bringing his hands up to his eyes. He presses his fingers in until his vision explodes in a kaleidoscope of stars and counts to five, breathing deeply through his nose.

"I'm only going to say this one more time, so tell your little party because I ain't doing another shovel talk from someone whose voice hasn't even dropped".

Eddie ignores the squawk Dustin makes as he lowers his hands, "I just want to talk to Steve and see where this goes, I am not getting my hopes up that this is all gonna be 'Happily Ever After' or some shit, and you shouldn't either".

Eddie watches as Dustin frowns skeptically and has to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from rolling his eyes.

"But I swear, I'm not messing with him, okay?" 

Dustin stares at Eddie for what feels like an age, saying nothing. His gaze is anything but warm, it feels like he's being analyzed and he wishes that Nancy were still here to absorb some of the strange attention the kid has focused on him.

Eddie is about to tell him to forget it, to storm off back to the highschool when Dustin finally utters a simple, "okay". 

It throws Eddie off for a moment, he stands in the patchy November worn grass, shivering in the harsh wind, mouth opening and closing in surprise.

"That's it?" He asks faintly, watching as Dustin swings his backpack off his shoulder and unzips it. He reaches in and pulls out a bright yellow walkie talkie and holds it out to Eddie expectantly.

"The party frequency is 467.5625," Dustin says as Eddie takes the device. 

He looks from the walkie in his hands to Dustin and scoffs, "you expect me to remem--"

"Channel eight then, Jesus," the kid huffs out, "don't make me take it back, this is a big deal Munson, you're one of us now". 

Eddie holds back a smile but it's a near thing. 

It feels strange, the warmth in his chest at the words. It shouldn’t feel as big as it does, but the heavy walkie in his hands feels like acceptance, something Eddie has always insisted that he never needed. He had Wayne, he had Hellfire, and Corroded Coffin, what did it matter if the other teens gave him a wide berth in the halls, or if teachers assumed the worst of him without evidence. 

But as Eddie taps the walkie onto the palm of his left hand, that feeling of warmth grows until it travels up his throat into a sudden lump that chokes his words. 

Fuck. 

Eddie blinks away the burning sting in his eyes once, twice, before lowering himself into a bow to hide the moisture he knows is just a split second from becoming a very evident problem. 

Dustin steps back in surprise as Eddie coughs to hide the waver in his voice.

"I uh, humbly accept your invitation and will endeavor to assist with all future quests, even upon pain of death or dismemberment oh noble bard".

Eddie lets a small laugh loose as he stands back up to his full height, grinning at the delighted giggle Dustin makes, even as the kid loudly insists that he's actually an Artificer, duh.

"Could've fooled me with that inspired speech dude," Eddie shakes his head and begins making his way back towards the highschool, letting gravity take him down the small hill towards the trees with heavy steps. He feels lighter now than he has in a while.

Absolutely nothing could go wrong.

"Wait!"

The sound of quick steps and crunching dead leaves announces Dustin before Eddie can even turn to face Hawkins Middle.

He skids to a stop at the bottom of the hill, breathing heavily with a wild grin on his small face.

"I know we have a plan already, but I think I have an even better idea," he breathes out, nearly vibrating in excitement.

"Better than Wheelers?" Eddie says, raising his eyebrow and slowly crossing his arms over his chest, careful not to drop the walkie in the grass.

"It's genius," Dustin insists, "trust me".

***

It was not genius.

It is in fact the stupidest thing that Eddie has ever done.

Including the time he skipped school to climb the tallest tree in Mirkwood on a dare and ended up breaking his collarbone after falling ten feet.

But, Eddie supposes, this is exactly what happens when one listens to a thirteen year old.

Maybe this was how all urban legends started, as unsolicited advice from snarky little pre-teens with more confidence than common sense.

All of a sudden, you end up stowed away in the back of a car trying your damnedest to keep quiet so as not to tip off the driver.

Who you happen to be eavesdropping on. Again.

Fourth time's the charm after all.

Eddie tries to stay as still as he can, crouched down in the back of Steve's Beemer. How the hell did those Urban Legend serial killers make this seem so easy, Eddie thinks as they manage to hit yet another pothole, jostling his position behind Dustin's seat. Eddie's heart beat feels incredibly loud in his ears as he holds his breath between his teeth.

He wonders belatedly just what Hopper would do if he drove past them now and tries to swallow the sudden anxiety that clings to his throat.

"Remember," Steve interrupts Eddie's thoughts with his insistent tone, "you don't care, you're as cool as a cucumber, you let everything roll off your back," Steve says as the sound of the turn signal begins, the rhythmic tick tock keeping pace with his words.

"Like a duck?" Dustin asks from the passenger seat and Eddie has to fight to keep the snort that threatens to break free from his nose.

"Uh, I guess, just, look," Steve sighs as they slow down for a light if the red glow is any indication, "you don't want to come on too strong, what happens when you come on too strong?"

"It blows up in your face," Dustin says quietly as Steve speaks in unison with him, slapping the steering wheel once with the flat of his palm, making Eddie flinch in the back. 

God. Is that what Steve thinks he did?

"Exactly, Henderson, you got it! So what are you?"

"Cool as a cucumber," Dustin repeats, this time with more conviction in his voice and Eddie hopes the kid is a better actor than he thought because that is not the lesson he wants him taking away from this evening.

"Because you don't care," Steve says again, tapping the steering wheel with each word for emphasis and Eddie can hear the grin in his voice as he shifts in the driver's seat. 

"I don't care," Dustin repeats again, though in a much colder voice than before, and suddenly Eddie knows if Dustin could see him now, he'd be staring daggers at him.

Eddie rolls his eyes, he's not going to take the blame for every single word and feeling coming out of Steve's mouth and it isn't fair of Dustin to heap all of it on Eddie.

"You look like a million bucks, go get em tiger," Steve says gently as the car comes to a gentle halt. There's a fondness in his voice that Eddie hasn't heard before. 

He's never had a sibling either, but Eddie imagines that this is exactly how it would feel, witnessing their firsts, cheering them on as they head into the unknown. Being their protector from the things that go bump in the night, even if that thing was as small as a first heartbreak. 

God. King Steve just had to be a secret sweetheart didn't he?

Not that it was really much of a secret, Eddie thinks as Dustin opens the passenger door and hops out of the car--

Oh shit. 

Oh shit.

He had been so engrossed in the conversation he'd been eavesdropping on, yet again, that Eddie had forgotten to sneak out.

He had even kept the back passenger door open, ever so slightly, to avoid the sound of it alerting Steve when he made his escape at the same time as Dustin. Then all they had to do was line up their doors closing at the exact same time and Steve would be none the wiser.

Oh God, he really did it, Eddie really listened to a thirteen year old and expected the plan to work.

And what's worse, he's the one that had fucked it up and now, he's trapped.

Eddie takes a deep breath through his nose and releases it as slowly as he can through his mouth. It feels as though an elephant is seated on his chest and his lungs can't quite keep up with the weight as his ribcage slowly begins to cave in. 

He has to get out, he has to run, he has to get out, he can't be caught in here, he can't ruin this again.

He starts at a sudden tapping on the window and holds his breath as Steve leans over from the driver's side towards his passenger door.

"Dustin?" Steve huffs as he moves back into place, his arm stops to rest on the passenger door just above Eddie's legs hidden in the darkness of the back seat.

"Steve! I, uh, forgot something, in the back," Dustin's voice is slightly strangled as he stumbles through the explanation for his sudden reappearance, "uh, my backpack!"s in days with their plan in place.

"Okay," Steve says slowly, drawing out the second syllable as he drops his hand from the passenger seat, "let me look--"

"No!" Dustin barks out, leaning further into the vehicle, from the new angle Eddie can see the panic on his young face. 

"Dustin? What--" Steve huffs as the kid climbs back into the front seat, grabbing Steve's arms and forcing him to continue facing forward.

And perhaps it's the absolute ridiculousness of the situation that makes Eddie laugh, the look on Dustin's face, or the confusion in Steve's voice, but he can't help but contain the loud snort that bursts forth from the back seat. 

Shit.

Eddie's heart drops into the floor of the vehicle beneath him as Steve and Dustin both freeze. 

It's like time stands still for an eternity, though snow begins to slowly fall outside the Beemer and the far off buzzing of music and laughter continues to emanate from the school gymnasium. 

Eddie moves first, lifting his hands to cover his face as he slowly sits up. He presses his fingers harshly into his eyes until a kaleidoscope of stars and fireworks appear in the darkness, before lifting them slightly to move into his hair and pulling at the roots. Eddie keeps his eyes closed as he hears a sharp intake of breath and movement from the driver's seat. 

"Eds? Dustin, what is going on, what are you doing here?" Steve says, his voice growing louder with each word until Eddie opens his eyes. 

Steve is staring at him, his large hazel eyes are wide and his brows have pinched in the middle, cutting creases across his forehead. He looks at Dustin before turning back to Eddie again, the frown on his face slowly morphing into a sneer. 

"Figures," Steve breathes out before turning to Dustin once more, "you two planned this?"

Dustin has the decency to at least wince at the accusation, "it's not like that--"

"Just," Steve cuts the kid off, the word harsh, almost a snarl before Steve deflates, sinking back into the driver's seat and letting his head drop back onto the headrest. 

He breathes out long and slow through his nose before continuing in a much softer, tired voice, "go to the dance Henderson". 

Dustin opens his mouth to rail against the dismissal, to stop whatever train of thought has run through Steve's mind, but Eddie beats him to it.

"Dustin," Eddie sighs, dropping his hands away from his hair to his lap, "let me take my lumps man, go".

Dustin makes a noise that seems to be a cross between a curse and a growl, his expression venomous, before he steps back and closes the passenger door with a loud metalic bang.

Eddie vaguely remembers Dustin and Nancy's threat and the guns she supposedly owns and suppresses a shudder. 

One problem at a time.

Eddie hauls himself into the back seat and groans at the rush of pins and needles dotting along his arms as he moves into a normal position once more. He rubs his hands along his arms and legs, wincing at how loud he is in the absolute silence of the car.

Steve isn't looking at him, his face pressed in between his hands at 11 and 1 on the steering wheel. 

"So," Steve mutters after a beat, startling Eddie as he sits back up from the wheel, "you were listening to me. Spying. Again." 

"Steve," Eddie starts, only for the other man to continue on as though he hasn't heard him.

"The only thing I can't figure out is why?"

Steve turns in his seat to look at Eddie, his face carefully blank now but for the slight downward pull at the left corner of his mouth. The bruises from Billy's recent beatings have faded to a sallow yellow and even the collection of cuts from the shattered ashtray have begun to scab over. 

The sight makes Eddie ache.

"Did Tommy put you up to this?" Steve interrupts Eddie's thoughts, his stare unwavering.

"What?" Eddie whispers, horrified, "what are you talking about?"

"You, you keep," Steve's voice rises slightly, a hysterical edge begins to creep in as his breathing quickens, "inserting yourself into my shit, you--I told you that I," Steve swallows heavily and blinks, his hazel eyes shine in the glow of the streetlight.

"Tommy is the only one who knows about me, so--so whatever he's got you doing," Steve sucks in another short breath, it's wet at the edges and Eddie feels his chest tighten as Steve's voice wavers.

"Steve--"

"You know what," Steve hisses as he reaches down to tug the keys out of the ignition, his breathing still slightly erratic, "just don't".

Eddie watches, frozen, as Steve wrenches the driver's door open and throws himself out of the vehicle, slamming the door shut behind him.

Eddie sits in silent shock for a moment, as though his limbs have filled up with sand, holding him in place, before he manages to scramble towards his own door.

"Steve!" He shouts, wincing as he slams the car door behind him, prompting several kids and parents walking into the middle school behind them to look in curiosity.

He catches a glimpse of a maroon sweater darting into the trees. 

Gotcha. 

Eddie hurries after him, cursing Dustin's insistence that, 'with this plan you won't need a coat, there's no waiting outside at all!'

He tamps down the hot feeling of irritation creeping up his chest and into his throat. It's a ridiculous night, first spent crouched into the back of a car and now traipsing through the woods to what? 

Chase after someone who clearly wants nothing to do with him? Who has been purposefully avoiding him since that night in the tunnels. 

Nancy and Dustin had it wrong, this was stupid. 

What was he thinking going along with their batshit plan --not that Nancy deserved credit for the car thing, that was all Henderson. 

Eddie pushes a branch out of his path and steps over a snow covered log, cursing the fact that he can feel the chill creeping into his toes through the thin canvas of his converse sneakers. The shoes also have little traction in the fresh snow that seems to be coming down even harder now as the night goes on.

As if to prove a point Eddie slips on a wet patch of leaves and swears at the sudden pain in his back as he struggles to keep upright.

He's breathing hard, puffs of frozen breath billow out and away from him in the cool night air

'Be gentle with him,' Nancy had said, as if she knew this would happen. As if she knew Steve would run the first chance he could and Eddie would follow.

He shakes his head and takes a deep breath, letting it in and out, allowing the frustration and anger from the last few days flow out with each breath.

"Steve," Eddie shouts as he finally catches a glimpse of maroon and tawny hair through the thicket, "just stop, man!"

Steve halts, halfway over a fallen log, but doesn't turn around.

Eddie ducks under another branch and into the small break in the trees that Steve is in. He can see the way the other man's shoulders rise and fall rapidly in the meager moonlight but whether from panic or exertion, Eddie can't tell.

"Steve," Eddie says as he takes another wary step forward, as though approaching a wild animal.

"You promised we'd talk," Eddie tries to swallow around the sudden lump in his throat, "was that a lie?" 

Steve says nothing still, though he turns his face just enough that Eddie can make out his profile in the low light.

Eddie sighs heavily, sliding a shaking hand through his hair, "what would Tommy want with the town freak anyway, he'd be more likely to put sugar in my gas tank than talk to me about anything, Steve".

"So," Eddie breathes out slowly, feeling his heart rate begin to climb as he prepares to take the leap, "rewind a bit, and catch me up on just what is going on in that head of yours sweetheart".

He sees the moment the words register in the way Steve stiffens, the way he slowly turns towards Eddie, his face pale and his eyes wide.

"You…you've called me that before, in the car," Steve says slowly, in fits and starts, "I thought it was a dream". 

Eddie takes another step closer, watches as Steve traces his movement with wary eyes.

"I think that was the most scared I have ever been in my life Steve, I thought you were dead, and it made me realize something," he swallows heavily, it feels like glass all the way down. 

"I was an idiot," Eddie whispers, his breath floats away in the cold November air as he shivers, "and didn't understand what you were trying to tell me at the Byers".

Steve winces slightly and nods, he opens his mouth to say something but Eddie beats him to it.

"IthinkyourNonnawasontosomethingSteve," the words tumble out in a long nearly unintelligible string, "I want to be in your life, whatever that means, however you'll have me," his lungs stutter slightly as Eddie takes a deep steadying breath.

Steve's head tilts slightly to the left as he regards Eddie with a infuriating black expression, his eyes searching Eddie's own.

"As friends?" Steve says slowly. There's a leading note to his voice that Eddie tries not to wince at.

He can't quite help the way his shoulders drop at the words though. Of course, of course he'd been right the first time. Steve was straight and, despite his better judgment, Eddie had gone ahead and gotten his hopes up for nothing.

"If that's what you want," Eddie agrees, forcing a wane smile that doesn't meet his eyes.

Steve's expression betrays nothing still as he moves through the thicket in two steps, his gaze never wavering from Eddie's own as he crosses his arms over his chest, still guarded despite how close they are.

"And if I wanted something else?" Steve speaks softly now, the words travel in between them through gentle puffs of frozen breath.

They're nearly the same height, Eddie might be a half inch taller or so, but from this close it doesn't matter. 

Eddie can see the flecks of green in his eyes, the collection of freckles and moles across his nose and cheeks; if Steve is an Autumnal King in a sunset, he's absolutely otherworldly in the moonlight. The pale snow falling around them almost makes it seem like he's glowing.

"Glowing huh?" 

Fuck.

Steve's face splits into a soft smile, his eyes crinkle at the corners, pulling at the yellow bruised skin. He breathes out something resembling a laugh through his nose as he says, "well, you're not so bad yourself Munson".

Eddie takes another step closer, his heart racing at a mile a minute, "s'that right?" he asks, lifting his hands to grip at Steve's arms.

He lets his ungloved hands run up and down, reveling at how soft and warm the sweater Steve's wearing is before settling at his elbow.

Steve's eyes slowly trace over Eddie's face, before his expression morphs into the determined one that Eddie recognizes from that horrible night in the tunnels.

"I'm sorry," Steve swallows roughly before clearing his throat. He takes a deep breath and shakes his head as Eddie opens his mouth to speak, "please, just let me explain first, and then you can," he bites at the inside of his cheek as his hazel eyes move beyond Eddie's gaze into the trees. 

"You can, make your decision or whatever".

Eddie hesitates for just a moment, squeezing Steve's arms once more before he lets go. 

Steve gives Eddie a tight smile, before closing his eyes, "I've known Tommy since we were like six, sandbox kids right?"

"Our dads were friends, they worked together, so it just made sense, and we were close, we did everything together," Steve opens his eyes but doesn’t look at Eddie, "Tommy knows a lot about me, stuff I've never told anyone, not even Nance".

Steve sighs, kicking roughly at a cluster of leaves and snow on the ground, "not that she hasn't figured a bunch of it out, she's smart like that". 

"I remember talking about girls for the first time when we were Dustin's age, Tommy had a crush on Linda Holloway, he liked her red hair," Steve smiles faintly, but it quickly disappears as he finally meets Eddie's eyes once more, "and I didn't think anything of it at the time, I just thought we were sharing who we thought was cute so I--"

He stops speaking, his breath stutters for a moment as he shakes his head once and curls his arms even more tightly around himself.

"Steve--" Eddie tries, reaching out once again with one hand before he curls his fingers away as though afraid to touch him. 

Eddie wants to tell Steve that he doesn't need to continue, that he understands, but Steve has regained his voice, soft and unwavering.

"I told him about Mary McKinney, she let me borrow her pencil whenever I needed it and always wore her hair in braids," Steve licks his lips, his eyes flitting between Eddie now and the ground, "and, about Brian Donovan, he was on our little league team and he had the best dimples I'd ever seen".

Steve's lips twist into a shy smile this time as he looks at Eddie, "maybe second best now".

Heat rises in Eddie's cheeks, his heart thrums in his chest and he can't stop the pleased grin from taking over his face at the words. 

God, he's so fucked.

Steve continues on, if he notices Eddie's blush in the low twilight he doesn't mention it.

"Tommy said that was weird to think of boys like that, the same way I thought about Mary, and not to talk about it again. That didn't stop him from bringing it up after that," Steve sighs heavily now, "I couldn't so much as make eye contact with another guy at school without Tommy telling me off". 

Anger ignites in Eddie's chest, spreading up his throat and curling around his hands which suddenly long to meet Tommy Hagans stupid face. 

He'd never cared for the guy. Too far up his own ass over the years with a mean streak a mile wide. Add to that a penchant for making other kids' lives absolutely miserable and you have a recipe for a douchebag that Eddie based nearly half of the Munson Doctrine on. 

The other half, well, that had also been influenced by Steve, but if Eddie was being honest, he had no clue who the real Steve Harrington was. 

No one did. 

Hopefully, in time, Eddie could change that. 

"I'm sorry for not trusting you," Steve whispers, his face tipped down to the ground, "I think I've had his voice in my head for so long that I couldn't stop myself from listening to it".

"You want to know the worst part?" Steve asks quietly, he scoffs, not bothering to wait for Eddie to reply, "he acted like he was doing me a fucking favour, like he was protecting me". 

He shakes his head, lifting a hand to pinch the bridge of his nose as his voice wavers suddenly, "maybe he was, in his own way--"

"Nope," Eddie barks out, startling them both with the sudden volume filling the trees, "that rat was trying to save his own skin by trying to control you, you owe Tommy nothing". 

Steve looks at Eddie with wide shocked eyes. He's standing so still that Eddie wonders if he's stopped breathing.

"Maybe he thought he was doing you a favour," Eddie laughs, it's a cold bitter thing that hangs low amongst the tree roots and plant litter, "and in public sure, I get it, but honestly if he could only be friends with this version of you, then he wasn't really ever your friend, Steve". 

"If someone doesn't like you just as you are, then they aren't worth it".

Steve is still staring, he hasn't blinked the entire time that Eddie has been speaking…it's a little unnerving.

"So," Steve asks, hesitantly, halting Eddie's train of thought, "what about you?" 

He's even closer now and, when the hell did that happen.

"Me?" Eddie says faintly, his eyes drop once to Steve's lips, they're slightly chapped but have never looked so God Damn kissable.

Eddie takes a deep breath, and smiles softly as he lifts his hands to grip Steve's elbows once again, squeezing gently before sliding them down to take his hands. 

They're large and warm in his own, callused along the palms from where the nail bat had sat in his hands. Eddie lets his thumbs run along his knuckles, lingering on the healing scabs from his fight with Billy.

"You weren't what I was expecting," Eddie says, watching as Steve's head tilts again at the nonsequiteur, "especially after the party when I tried to give you back your sunglasses".

"You care, about the kids --even when they are being self destructive little shits, about Nancy even though she broke your heart," he traces his thumbs over the tops of Steves hands when his fingers twitch, "and you care about me, enough to put yourself out there even though you had no idea if I felt the same". 

"You are brave, crazy brave to the point where I'm a little worried about why you're so quick to just throw yourself in front of danger, but," Eddie shakes his head as Steve bristles this time, ducking his face away from Eddie's watchful eyes, "we'll unpack that another day". 

He takes a deep breath and slowly lets go of one of Steve's hands, shaking as he reaches up to cup Steve's jaw, tipping his face up until his eyes are level with Eddie's once more.

Steve's hazel eyes trace over Eddie's face, wide and glassy in the moonlight. They are close enough that Eddie can feel the shallow puffs of air against his lips as Steve's breathing quickens.

"Did the doctor say anything about your face," Eddie asks, gesturing at his own with his one free hand, "recovery time?"

Steve shakes his head with a confused frown.

"Good," Eddie takes a deep breath, allowing a wide lecherous grin to bloom, "because I like you, Steve Harrington, exactly as you are, and I'm going to kiss you," he lifts his other hand now to cup the other side of Steve's face, "but I only make it hurt if you want me to, big boy".

Eddie freezes as the words he just said register. 

Oh Fuck.

Who pulls out Big Boy like five seconds after confessing their feelings? 

Eddie groans lowly and shuts his eyes for a beat, only opening them at the tentative sound of Steve's voice.

"Eds," Steve laughs, his face flushed a deep scarlet, giving Eddie a sly smile of his own, "that was really bad, like really bad".

Eddie sighs, embarrassment beginning to curl, hot and heavy, in his chest as he removes his hands from Steve's face, "I know…"

He startles at the feeling of warm fingers wrapping around his own, drawing his hands back to where they had been on Steve's face, "it's a good thing I like you, so you can get more practice".

"Yeah?" Eddie whispers, his voice hoarse as though he can scarcely breathe. He watches as Steve smiles, counting the crinkles at the edges of his eyes and the way his scarlet flush has faded to a soft pink.

He wants to freeze this moment, burn it into his memory so he'll never forget the soft happiness in Steve's eyes.

"Yeah, Eds," Steve breathes against his lips as their noses brush, "exactly as you are".

Eddie's not sure which of them moves first, it's only the faint brush of chapped lips against his own that sets off an unhinged chorus of, 'Kisskissingkisswhatthefuckyou'rekissingSteveHarrington'.

Eddie's fingers tighten against Steve's face before his hands begin to move on their own, one along his jaw until it has wrapped around the back of his head, burying his fingers in thick soft hair. His other hand shifts slightly lower, his thumb presses into Steve's jaw until his head tips back. 

The noise Steve makes against his lips as Eddie moves him sends a thrill down his spine. He feels two hands slide up his chest, over his shoulders, and around his neck as Steve presses himself even closer. Eddie's fingers tighten in Steve's hair, almost involuntarily, as the pulse under his thumb climbs even higher. Eddie hums contentedly and smiles into the kiss.

It's…God.

Kissing Steve is everything he's ever wanted. He tastes like peppermint, like the candy canes Dustin had brought Steve as a thank you for the ride to the dance, and Eddie can't help but wonder if the little shit had done so with this in mind? 

No, nope. Definitely not thinking about that right now.

He tugs his mind away from the thought and opens his lips more to brush against Steve's with purpose, pulling a sweet moan from the other as he nips at his bottom lip.

He pulls back begrudgingly after another moment, relishing the heat, the softness of Steve pressed against him. They're still standing in the middle of the ravine just a few steps from the middle school and it would probably be best to continue this sort of thing in private. 

Eddie shifts away just enough to run the tip of his nose down Steve's own, his heart fit to burst at the soft sigh Steve releases at the touch. His eyes are closed, but from the new blush that has spread from Steve's cheeks, to his ears and all the way down his neck, as well as the soft grin that pulls at his lips, Eddie can tell the feeling is mutual.

Eddie wonders just how many different shades of pink he could make Steve turn? 

A thought for another day, Eddie thinks with a mischievous smirk, brushing his thumb along the crest of Steve's cheek. 

"We should probably get back sweetheart," Eddie murmurs as he reluctantly removes his hands from Steve's face, "I can think of somewhere warmer we can go to talk". 

Steve nods with a snort, knocking his shoulder into Eddie, "talk huh?" 

"Is that not what the kids call it these days?"

Eddie drapes his arm around Steve's neck, tugging the other man closer. He comes all too willingly with a pleased grin stretched across his face.

"Besides," Eddie hums as they begin to make their way back the way they came, "my Uncle Wayne's been asking about when he can meet you --well after he weaseled it out of me, what was making me mope so much these last few weeks, he's already making Thanksgiving plans--"

They jerk to a halt, half slipping in the leaves and snow, he turns to Steve to meet his wide fearful eyes.

"You--your uncle knows, about me, about you?" Steve asks, the words stopping and starting as he speaks. 

Eddie reaches out only for Steve to take a step back into the trees, "why would you tell him--"

"He doesn't know about you specifically, Steve, I would never do that," Eddie insists, he keeps his voice level now with how close they are to the school again, he can hear the sounds of teens yelling and laughing in the short distance.

"Okay, but he, he doesn't care about…"

Steve trails off, his teeth closing down on his bottom lip and though chewing on what he wants to ask.

Your uncle doesn't care about you being gay, being different?

Eddie sighs, resisting the urge to lift his hands and press his fingers into his eyes, "Uncle Wayne took me in a few years ago when my parents kicked me out for that so, no, it's pretty safe to say he doesn't".

"Oh," Steve says faintly. His arms come up around his chest as he begins to hunch in on himself yet again.

Well shit. 

Now, Eddie isn't a hundred percent certain, but based on things that Steve has said, the warning that Nancy gave him, and what happened at the hospital, he knows that the Harrington house hasn't been the happy home he had assumed it to be.

And now, given the stricken look on Steve's face and the pinch in his gut, the doubts are fading even further away. 

Eddie takes a deep breath, stepping onto the tightrope between them, he'll have to be careful about how he plays this, or Steve could bolt again. He's seen Steve run track at school, he knows the other man could easily outrun him.

Best not to give him a reason to.

"You know, not all parents, um, deserve to be parents sweetheart," Eddie says slowly, carefully, watching Steve's face as he speaks, "especially if they're never around".

He feels the rope between them wobble as he takes a step closer, holding out his hand.

"Especially if they don't love us for who we are Stevie," Eddie whispers, watching as Steve looks away sharply, his shoulders tense.

Eddie takes another deep breath before taking the leap, hoping that his feet will meet the ground beneath them.

"Wayne isn't like that, he's safe, and he wants to meet the person I've been mooning over for weeks now, if you're up for it". 

Steve swallows once, twice, his jaw moves as though grinding what he wants to say between his teeth, his nose begins to redden as his eyes grow damp at the edges.

"Yeah," he manages to choke out, his voice cracks down the center as he draws one hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose, "maybe not, right, right now but --fuck, I'm sorry, I don't know why this keeps happening".

Eddie takes the last step and pulls Steve into his arms again; he stiffens at first before finally relaxing, almost boneless, against Eddie's chest. He feels Steve release a long hitching breath and squeezes him gently, rubbing his cheek against the slight stubble on Steve's own.

"Probably because it's been a really hard couple of weeks sweetheart," Eddie pulls back enough to look into Steve's eyes, they're red rimmed now and his lashes have begun to clump together, but even like this Steve still looks beautiful.

"Yeah," Steve says, he sniffs, wincing at the sound of his stuffy nose, "I think I could use a proper…talk, and a rest, if you're still up for it?"

Eddie feels a smile pulling at his lips as incandescent happiness glows in his chest. He pulls Steve closer once more, relishing the feeling of being able to hold Steve again, without the scent of blood and terror in the air. 

"Lead the way then sweetheart," Eddie says softly, knowing he'll follow Steve wherever he goes. There's a lot more for them to talk about, but for now, he'll be there for Steve as his person, for as long as he can. 

Forever if he can swing it. 

Tag List:

@eriquin @luvinthefreaks @cinnamon-mushroomabomination @goodolefashionedloverboi @ellietheasexylibrarian @bambibiest @sadboislovebeans @howincrediblysapphicofyou @coleys-a-nerd @whycantiuseunderscore @airconditioning123 @xxfiction-is-my-realityxx @corrodedbisexual @starman-jpg @ilovecupcakesandtea @yoriposts @clumsiluni @pelinelin @phantomcat94 @lololol-1234 @anaibis @steveshairspray @hellfireone @eddielives1986 @sunswathe  @tentativeghost @robin-not-batman @estrellami-1 @manda-panda-monium @tinyplanet95 @perseus-notjackson @queenie-ofthe-void @rainbowsaw @sp0o0kylights @littlebluejane @hi-im-eff  @phantypurple @just-ladyme @thoroughlycollected @justrandomfandomstm @swimmingbirdrunningrock @finntheehumaneater @dynamic-powerm@nightmareglitter @genderless-spoon @zaddipax @thebiblesays @pyrohonk @emly03 @geekymagicalpotato @sidebarre @lemon-astra @cipounette @discreetapple @starlitlakes @saphhicwitchbitch @marvel-ous-m @lingeringmirth @honorarybrit81 @bookbinderbitch @finntheehumaneater  @lololol-1234 @eddie-munsons-missing-nipple @monsterloverforhire @gaydrieeen @starlight-archer @homosexual-having-tea @devondespresso @rennnnon @my-hyperfixations-hell-blog @carlprocastinator1000 @0o-queendean-o0 @emly03 @paintsplatteredandimperfect @louismeds @fruitmix

@lizzicleromance @fairy-princette @eddiethehunted

And a few people I think may be intersted!

@steddierthings @steddie-there @stevesbipanic @henderdads @bramble-berries @flowercrowngods

[luxy-the-art-blog]

soooooo, I may have watched a video about descendants right after watching a 2 hour turbo documentary, and made this.

Her name is Tina "candy", daughter of "king candy" (aka turbo) and she is a freak :). She inherits her dad's jealousy and manipulation, even sharing in making a fake identity. She is really bad at it though, and her nice face only comes out when she's lying.

Also she's more inspired by monster high dolls so I gave her a little pet cy-bug in a jar as an accessory. I also gave her a big bug form cuz I thought it was fun.

I have never seen anything related to descendents outside of that video and I never will (both videos I'm linking below cuz their cool)

[dragonflylady77]

Mr Steve and the Monster Hunter

Hope you're ready for this chapter... @bigbangharringrove

Chapter 1 Chapter 2

On Ao3

Steve has questions and Billy has feelings

Chapter 3 - It's a code red

“Whose car is this, Daddy?” Livi asks, pulling him towards the front door.

“I have no idea, princess,” Billy replies. He wonders for a moment if it may be Steve but dismisses the idea. There is little chance he’ll hear from Steve, too much bad blood, even if it was a long time ago. Some things don’t change, no matter how much you might want them to.

They walk in and Livi drops her bag in the foyer before following the noise from the TV in the lounge. Billy follows at a slower pace, stopping in his tracks when he hears Livi’s voice.

“Mommy, where is Mama? And why is Mr Steve at our house?”

He’s here…

Robin’s reply is lost as Billy’s blood is suddenly rushing in his ears and the tips of his fingers tingle. He feels his power rise like a slow wave and he makes himself focus on taking deep breaths but it’s too late. He hears El’s voice in his head, checking in, because she felt it too.

Billy

Hey, El

Are you in danger

No, I'm okay, I’m with the girls

Then why… Oh

Billy feels her pause and he knows she knows.

Yeah… Steve’s here

Good luck

Yeah, thanks

Billy breaks the mental connection a few seconds before Livi comes running up to him. He picks her up, grateful for her little arms wrapping around his neck, providing him with a few extra minutes before he has to face Steve again. He can see Robin’s smirk from here but since he’s the one who decided to tell her and Heather about his long lasting unrequited crush, on a drunken night many moons ago, he needs to get over himself. 

“Daddy! It was Mr Steve’s car. He’s on the couch with Mommy. Mama is having a nap. Mommy said I could go and tell her about our day.”

“Great idea, princess. You go cuddle up with Mama.”

“I love you, Daddy,” Olivia says, giving him a kiss on the cheek. “Thank you for taking me to the zoo today. I had the best day.”

Billy grins. “Did Mommy tell you to say that?”

Olivia rolls her eyes and, boy, does she look like Heather when she does. “No.”

“Okay. I had a lot of fun too. I love you.”

He lets her down after one more kiss and cuddle and watches her run towards her moms’ room, calling out to her and putting a finger across his mouth to remind her to be quiet when she puts her hand on the door.

He turns towards the living room to find Steve in the doorway staring at him. Suddenly he’s back at Tina’s house, the night of her Halloween party, after winning the dumb keg stand, Tommy Hagan dragging him into the house to show him off to King Steve, who clearly didn’t give a fuck about any of it. 

He stares back at Steve because he can’t help himself, the big brown eyes fixed on him calling to him like a siren in the fog. There’s something in them that wasn’t there before and Billy fleetingly wonders if he will ever get a chance to find out. 

He’s always been gone for Steve, since the first time he saw him in the parking lot of Hawkins High on his first day, and he’s tired of pretending he’s not. But at the same time, nothing good will come of this, Steve is not interested anyway. He’s just curious because Billy came back from the dead.

Billy dispels the memories gripping him with a shake of his head and walks over to Steve. He stops far enough that he won’t be tempted to touch Steve, but close enough to smell Steve’s aftershave.

“Hey there, pretty boy. Twice in two days. A guy might start to get ideas,” he says, with a trace of his old bravado. There’s always been something about Steve that keeps him on edge. To his relief, Steve smiles. It’s small and tentative, a lifting of the corner of his kissable lips, but it’s there and Billy takes comfort in that.

“Maybe he should,” comes Steve’s reply and Billy feels it like a punch in the gut.

He’s trying to figure out what to reply—his brain trying to process this new development and his dick yelling at him to drag Steve to his room and shove his tongue down the other man’s throat—when Robin comes out of the kitchen, drying her hands on a dish towel.

“Hey, B. How did today go?”

Billy smiles and reaches into his pocket. “Great. You know how much she loves the zoo. Thanks for the use of your car, as always. Here’s your keys.” 

She takes the keys off him with a knowing grin. “She really does. What did she con you into buying her this time?”

Billy chuckles, aware of Steve’s gaze on him still. “Another stuffed otter for her collection, since apparently someone suggested she name them following the letters of the alphabet and she’s up to J…”

“Yeah, that wasn’t me, my friend. What did she call this one? Jasper? Juniper? Jeremiah?”

“Jehoshaphat?” Steve throws in with a grin, and Robin and Billy turn to look at him.

“Nice one, dingus.”

“Nah,” Billy replies, “Jane, after her auntie Janie.” His eyes linger on Steve and his fingers start to tingle again. He forces himself to take deep breaths to push back. This is not the time.

“Awww. You should bring her next time.” Robin walks back into the kitchen and Billy follows her. The keys jingle when she dumps them in a bowl by the toaster and he gets himself a glass of water, before leaning against the counter. Steve lingers in the doorway again, leaning on it with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Rob, you know very well that bringing her means bringing the other two, they’re pretty much joined at the hip.”

“Yeah, at the hip…” Robin snickers and Billy smirks. 

“What, um, who are you talking about?” Steve asks, stepping into the kitchen and Billy shares a glance with Robin, who shrugs before putting the dish towel down by the sink.

“Up to you what you are willing to share, B. I trust him. On this note, I’ll leave you guys to it, I need to go put my kid to bed.” She pets Billy on the shoulder as she walks past him then gives Steve a quick hug before she leaves the room.

Then it’s just the two of them and Billy peels off the counter to sit at the table with his glass. He takes a sip of water and waits for Steve to say something. Mostly because he isn’t sure where to start, or how much Steve wants to hear. 

“So…” Steve says, grabbing a chair and sitting across from Billy at the square Formica table.

“So,” Billy repeats, sure Steve will have questions because how could he not. He keeps his eyes on the glass in front of him, the power humming quietly in the back of his mind and in the tip of his fingers.

“I saw you die, Billy,” Steve whispers, and Billy looks up at him then. His brown eyes look haunted and Billy hurts from it. He feels the water in his glass starting to heat up and he forces himself to tamp the surge down. He doesn’t need El reaching out again.

“You saw me fall,” he says softly, like it explains anything. “Doc Owens said I would have died if they hadn’t reached me when they did. I spent six months in hospital, had to learn to walk again because I was in a coma for weeks.”

“The website says you were in the Marines?”

Billy lets out a short laugh. “Yeah, that’s part of the cover story they came up with. I mean, I tried but… let’s just say that I have issues with authority figures that want me to call them Sir while I follow their orders blindly.”

“Oh. What about the rest of your bio?”

“I did some intensive training once I left the hospital, then Owens recruited me and we set up HellGrove. I’m sure Robin filled you in on the details.”

“A little, yes but I was wond—”

Billy

El’s voice in his head masks whatever Steve was saying and Billy focuses on her.

What’s up?

Code Red

“Fuck.” Bill stands up immediately, rubbing both hands over his face. Not now! 

“Billy, what? Were you even listening to me?”

Billy looks down at Steve. He sighs. “I am very, very sorry about this, pretty boy, but I have to go.”

“Go? Go where? Robin said you’re staying in the guest room?”

El? Gimme five

Okay, Will and Lucas on standby

Thanks

“Billy? What the fuck is going on? You said you’d answer my questions and now you’re leaving?”

“I know, and I am sorry.” Billy leaves the kitchen and walks to the guest room, a pissed-off Steve hot on his heels. 

“Hargrove!” 

Billy grabs his duffle bag and puts it on the bed. Fuck, fuck, fuck! The universe is really taking the piss. The one time he finally gets to sit down with Steve to have that talk he’s been dreaming about…

“Rob!” he calls out as he pulls out his go bag. Steve is pacing between the door and the window and Billy doesn’t have time to deal with it. Not when El called a code red. FUCK!

“Yeah?” Robin appears in the doorway, and Livi comes up beside her in her unicorn pajamas.

“Are you okay, Daddy?” she asks and Billy smiles before walking over to them. He crouches down to Livi’s level and kisses his daughter on the cheek. The timing fucking sucks. 

“I’m sorry, princess, Daddy has to go fight the monsters. Auntie Janie called and she needs help. I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay? I promise.”

“She called? How did she call? Hello?” Steve says from somewhere behind him but Billy ignores him. There is no time.

“It’s okay, Daddy. I understand. I love you. Be careful, okay?”

“I will. And I love you too.” Billy gets up and walks back to the bed where he unzips his go bag.

“How bad?” Robin asks as Billy sheds his jacket and the button-down shirt he was wearing to change into the mission-sanctioned black tee with the HellGrove logo on the chest. He hears a gasp in the corner and figures it’s Steve, probably reacting to the scars covering his body. 

“Code red.”

“Oh. Yeah, okay. Olivia, come on, sweetie, time for bed. We’ll let Daddy get ready.” Robin picks up the little girl and turns to Billy. “B, no portals inside the house. I’m serious. You singed the carpet last time, and this is a rental!”

Billy turns around and rolls his eyes. “Oh my god, that was one time, Robin!” 

“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Steve, lock the front door behind you when you leave. Good night.” She waves at them before retreating down the hallway with Livi.

“Portals?” Steve asks, standing in front of Billy. 

His hair is a mess and he looks more confused than pissed off now, so fucking kissable it hurts.

Billy sits on the bed to swap his Chuck Taylors for steel-capped boots that match his all black outfit, then he puts on his leather jacket and zips it up before looking at Steve. “I wish I had time to sit down and explain, pretty boy, but I have to go.”

“Yeah, no, I get that. You and Robin have made that pretty fucking clear. What I don’t get is how you found out about this code red bullshit and how exactly this Auntie Janie called you. I’m assuming you mean Eleven?”

“Come on, pretty boy, surely you’re able to add two and two together and get to four. Yes, of course I mean El. She and I have… a connection. It started that night at Starcourt, when she pulled me out of his control. I also ended up with some extra abilities, leftover perks, I guess.”

“What?”

“Don’t worry too much about it. I’ll be out of your hair in a minute and you can go back to your life.” Billy knows he’s out of time and out of luck. He wanted a sign from the universe and he got one. He doubts he’ll get this chance with Steve again. With a sigh, he picks up his backpack and hoists it on his back. “And apparently I have to go outside to preserve the fucking carpet.”

“Fuck this, I’m coming with you.” Steve moves in front of the door, and Billy is of half a mind to open the portal in the bedroom just to see the look on his face.

“Steve, I’m not taking you into the Upside Down. It’s way too dangerous. You're… you’re my kid’s teacher, for fuck’s sake!” He can’t risk it, can’t risk Steve, even if he never has a chance with him. He won’t be able to deal if something bad happens to Steve. Also he’ll never hear the end of it if Max finds out.

“I killed demogorgons with a baseball bat full of nails before you even knew what the fucking Upside Down was, Hargrove.” The steel in Steve’s voice hits something inside Billy’s chest. There’s that fire everyone was talking about that he’d missed. It makes his power hum in approval.

"Okay, fine.” He looks Steve up and down. “But you can’t go dressed like that, you’ll get us killed.”

Chapter 4

[theladybarnes]

DON’T YOU WANT ME, BABY? : CHAPTER ONE

“Do you wanna be normal? Do you wanna be just like everyone else? Being a freak is the best. I’m a freak!”

▸ summary: tomorrow is halloween, but your scare comes early this year ▸ characters: dustin henderson, steve harrington, jonathan byers & special guest ▸ word count: 4.1k ▸ warnings: none ▸ series masterlist

“Are you sure you can talk to him?”

 “Tina! I can do it.”

 “Because I totally understand if you don’t wanna talk to him. He’s kinda a freak.”

 You stood in the now empty hallway of Hawkins High School. The bell that ended the school day had rung an hour ago, leaving behind a few faculty members, and a couple of students that either had clubs or projects. 

 “He’s just a guy.”

 Tina raised a brow at you, gum smacking in her mouth as she became wary of your confidence. “He’s literally in a metal band. Aren’t you at least a little worried he might be a creep?” The noisy chewing seemed honestly worse than meeting up with the school’s local drug dealer, but you held back that comment to give your friend a smile.

 “Tina, we want the party to be good. If this guy can bring in the good stuff, I can handle a quick meeting in the woods.”

 “Fine,” she sighed, waving you off. “You’ll call me tonight and let me know how it goes?”

 “Definitely.” Turning your wrist over, you adjust the gold watch on your wrist, noting the time. “He should be there by now. I’ll see you tomorrow!” The two of you waved off again, blowing an air kiss to each other before parting ways.

 The walk to the clearing was thankfully more quiet. You honestly could use more peace like this. 

 After these past few months, you couldn’t wait for winter vacations to begin. The new year had been pretty weird to start. After all, how does one go back to normalcy after fighting off a monster with her friends?

 Correction, her friend and two ex friends. But that was all in the past. At least that’s what you’d remind yourself. 

 Jonathan couldn’t help but bring it up once in a while, mostly when he had his own fears of that night that came haunting back. But you were quick to bring him back to earth, reminding him that the world was going to move on regardless if he was ready to get over it or not. 

 Even if you felt the same way sometimes. 

 Cool air met your person once you exited the doors of the school. The parking lot was nearly void of cars as you walked past them towards the woods. To be fair to Tina, this whole meetup was a bit worrisome. Mostly because up until this point you hadn’t even come across Eddie Munson.

 Drugs weren’t really your thing and ever since the previous year, you don’t really drink that much anymore. Especially after Barb went missing. Drinking seemed to lead to bad nights and you didn’t want to come across one any time soon. Despite the fact that you were about to meet up with a guy who could hopefully help supply both of those.

 You barely took a step past the thicket when a voice spoke out to you.

 “I wouldn’t expect even the most popular student to understand that other people have lives. But I would have figured that you had some sort of punctuality.”

 The sight of the dealer was something you had been curious about since Tina asked if you could speak with him that morning. She described him as a greasy, long haired, freak with bad taste, but it was surprisingly more normal than what you were led to believe.

 He had his back to you, giving you a visual of that long rocker hair. The bottom of his jeans and boots were scuffed as well, possibly from walking in through the woods. You couldn’t quite figure out why someone who looked like any other rocker had such a small notoriety. 

 “You think I’m the most popular student?” you grinned, fluffing up your hair a bit.

 The answer caused him to turn around swiftly, giving you a confused look before he chuckled. Stepping away from the tree he had been leaning on to meet you in the middle.

 You stepped down the pathway, moving over towards Eddie. Slowly letting your eyes wander over his features now that he fully faced you. The hairstyle wasn’t really your thing, but the eyes. The dark brown eyes seemed to be piercing through you.

 “What do I owe the pleasure of this meeting?” he asked, extending a hand out to you towards the wooden lunch table. You swatted away some dirt from the bench before sitting down, watching he chose to simply plop down across from you. 

 “Well, you read the note. I’m interested in making a deal with you.”

 “Right,” he nodded, putting a black metal lunch box on the table. “What exactly were you interested in buying?”

 You frowned at that, shaking your head for a second as you glanced over at the metal lunch box. “Whoever said anything about buying?” Returning to his gaze, you smirked a little bit. “I wouldn’t be so dumb as to be caught buying anything on school grounds.”

 He shyly reached over for the box, hiding at his side before he laced his hands together on the table. The glint of his rings shined with the setting sun, his adorned fingers making you distracted.

 “If you weren’t here to buy, why bother with all this?” he waved. 

 “To put it simply, I need you.”

 Astonishment flashed over his face before he cleared his throat to return back to his former composer. “Can’t say I’ve ever heard that from a Hawkins girl before.”

 “Well I'm not exactly from Hawkins, aren’t I?”

 He shook his head, slightly amused again. “No, you’re not, Princess.”

 The name nearly threw you off. It was said in a neutral tone that had you questioning if you liked it or not.

 “Back to the point,” you clapped, resting your hands on the table. “Tina’s hosting a Halloween party this year. Her parents are out of town for the week and she’s gonna make sure it’s a party no one forgets.”

 “And you want to personally extend me an invitation?” he asked sardonically. 

 “Yes!”

 The downfall of entering a school without knowing it’s on going social cliques, were moments like this. Where you were left not knowing previous vendettas, rivalries, or in this case, Eddie Munson’s social pariah status.

 “..Really?”

 “Well, an invite with a bit of a purpose.” 

 He crossed his arms over, looking at you curiously. “I’m guessing you’re inviting me to come over and give out, what? Freebies? All for the pleasure of being able to attend?”

 “I won’t lie, that was Tina’s original plan. But I’m a woman of business and can’t see myself screwing you over like that.”

 “How thoughtful of you, Princess.” he sighed. 

 Ignoring his jab, you lean in close enough to rest your chin on the palm of your hand. Hopefully giving him a more friendly disposition. “You come to the party, sell to whoever you want for whatever price you want. All we ask is that the hosts get freebies, and that you get us a keg.”

 He scoffed slightly, leaning in to the same as he returned a more forced smile. “I suppose I’ll have to pay for that too?”

 You popped your hand up from your pocket, holding a crisp twenty dollar bill between your fingers. “On us. Just want anything that gets people drunk enough. If you find a deal you can keep the change for yourself.”

 Eddie seemed slightly taken as his dark eyes looked at your hand. “I suppose you’d call that a tip?” 

 “Sure, if that convinces you to do it.” 

 Gently, he reached out to take the bill from your fingers, brushing your hand slightly with his calloused fingers. Possibly rough from having been playing guitar for some time.  “I’ll do it.” he murmured, having gotten closer while you were distracted by his hands yet again today. His brown eyes looked bigger than ever as he leaned in. 

 “Perfect!” you smiled, “I promise you’ll have a great time.”

 He chuckled a bit, eyes narrowing at you slightly. “You’re different. You know that?”

 “What do you mean?”

 The tip of his tongue flickered over his lips briefly before he shrugged at you. “I just pegged you to be exactly like your friends.”

 “And just how are my friends exactly?”

 “Bitches.” he said simply, making you coil back a bit. “All they do is make this school an uncomfortable place to attend.”

 “Some of them don’t make the place terrible, you know.” Leaning back you crossed your arms against your chest. “We go to school just like everyone else.”

 “Yeah, you go to school. But you also call people names, throw exclusive parties, take reign over certain lunch tables, and let’s not mention what happens during gym class.”

 “Hey, in case you haven’t noticed. I don’t do any of that.”

 “I never said you did.” He chuckled. “But your friends sure love to do that. In fact, I think they thrive on it.”

 You stared at him hard for a moment, trying to see just where he was trying to make this conversation go. For a second he seemed sort of into you. Now it seemed like he had come to some sort of realization.

 “This conversation seems very pointed.” you shrugged, not wanting to parley in a debate about high school ethics. “It’s getting late and I really should get going.”

 Eddie didn’t say anything after that, but he did watch you get up and dust your pants off. Letting his gaze linger on you far more comfortably than you’d like. You turned back to him one last time, raising a brow as you pointed over to the lunch box at his side. “So, Halloween, see you there?”

 He gave a small smile, patting the box with his hands so it gave off a slight clinking noise. 

 “Wouldn’t miss it.”

  You let out a content sigh as you stepped out of the steamy shower. The hot water had thankfully washed away most of the day’s stress and left you feeling rejuvenated. Not to mention it helped get off some of the woodsy smell that hit at your hair when you had to leave from your encounter with Eddie.

 It was safe to say the meeting left you a bit perplexed. 

 While you were happy with some of the aspects of your life, you didn’t like the way a stranger like Eddie saw you. For the most part, you had been hopeful that breaking off your friendships with people like Tommy and Carol would have made things different. But he seemed to see you just the same.

 Thankfully, regardless of the unreasonable wariness he had towards you, he agreed to come to the party anyway. Making you and Tina happy later on when you called her. It was really her party, not something you cared to have credit for, but you did want to help out in some way.

 It was nice to have a friend that did normal things. And what was more normal than a high school halloween party?

 Stepping out of the bathroom, you tugged your bathrobe against your body tightly as you quickly dashed down the hall towards your room. A shiver running down your spine made you excited to just jump into your warm pajamas and work on finishing up your nails for tomorrow. 

 Though Tina begged you to match up with her in dressing up as one of the many looks of Madonna, you opted out for dressing up as something a little bit spicier.

 Especially since your dear friends gifted you with a new set of clothes after your birthday had passed, you couldn’t help but pick out some of the dresses they found for you.

 “God, I know she has a treasure trove somewhere.”

 Frowning at the mysterious voice in your room, you quickly push your way inside to find Dustin going through your dresser. Flinging various pieces of clothing behind him as he tried to find something that you sure he probably wasn’t supposed to have. 

 “What the hell are you doing in my room?” you asked, voice booming as you rushed inside to stop him from making an even bigger mess. 

 “I need quarters! It’s an emergency!”

 “Then call the police! Stop going through my stuff, shithead!”

 Slapping him away from the furniture, you try and push him towards the door, holding tightly to your robe. “Look at all this mess. Now I have to clean up everything.” you whined, moving to grab some pieces of fabric that laid by your feet. 

 “Please! I just need a dollar, tops. Anything. I can’t show up empty handed.”

 You gave him the stink eye, urging him to continue his way out as you picked up around the place. “I’m glad to know you’re capable of asking for things considering I just caught you in here attempting to steal from me.” 

 “I’m desperate.” 

 “Should have thought to ask before you came in with your thieving hands.” you frowned, looking down at the boy now. He rolled his eyes, obviously already annoyed with your lack of cooperation before he focused in on your face. Something of a smirk formed on his face suddenly. 

 “You wouldn’t happen to be in such a crabby mood because of that pimple growing on your chin, right?”

 The gasp fell past your lips before you could compose yourself. You raised a hand up to cover your chin from his judging eyes. “Aunt Claudia! Dustin’s being a pervert!” you yelled, needing to get him away from your sight. The younger boy gasped, pointing an accusatory finger at you while his Mother came down the hall.

 “DUSTIN HENDERSON! You give that girl privacy this instant!” Her hand instantly reached over to grab hold of his ear, dragging him out of the threshold while he sputtered out curses. “Sorry, sweetie. He’ll get out of your hair now.” 

 The last thing you see as you close the door is Dustin’s middle finger aimed at you as he’s dragged away. 

You woke up the following morning with a little pep in your step. Tomorrow night was the Halloween party, meaning today would be the day Tina passed out invites. You had suggested she send it off as a word of mouth party, having done it that way back home, but she simply brushed the tip off, wanting to filter the crowd that would be attending.

 Which clearly meant, no losers.

 It didn’t feel good at the time, but you convinced yourself it was at least a way to keep in crowd control. 

 But that didn’t stop you from giving a few people from your other classes her address anyway. The party would not be ruined if a nice kid like Robin Buckley from homeroom got an invite. 

 The morning air was crisp, making you take a big inhale as you rode your bike into the school’s parking lot. Most kids had begun to arrive and you were thankful to be early for once. That gave you more time to try and convince Jonathan in on the festivities the next day.

 You rode past Tina, Vicki and Carol on the way in. The other two gave you a friendly wave while Carol pretended to spot something on the hem of her shirt. Thankfully the fight from before seemed to leave the two of you at an awkward stand off whenever the two friendships seemed to collide. 

 The hill began to slope downward, causing your bike to go a lot faster than you planned. It wasn’t until the sound of a honk came in that you found out you almost collided with the car that had just turned in.

 Embarrassment hit your senses as you nearly fell over on your bike. Thank God you had Jonathan recently fix it up or else you would have ruined the paint job on the burgundy car before you.

 “Whoa, didn’t see you coming there, trouble.” 

 Shit.

 Out of the car window poked out Steve Harrington. Giving you the pleasure of seeing not only his gargantuan head of hair, but beautiful ember brown eyes that looked at you with such worry. 

 It made you sick.

 “I’m not surprised.” you scowled, fixing up your footing on the pedals. “Probably had all that hair on your face.” you shrugged, not really bothering to look him in the eye. “Next time check your mirrors for others and not just for your face.”

 “That’s not what happened.” he sighed, already feeling you cut the conversation short like you always do. You stole a quick glance inside, noticing a very just as worried Nancy Wheeler. “Nevermind, I can see you were distracted by something else.”

 He tried to call out to you, shaking his head quickly, but you simply rode past him. Not really up for the debate.

 This was really how most interactions were with these two nowadays. Despite it being months since your fight with Steve, you still could never shake off the animosity that you had towards him. Even if he did gift you back the jacket you loved months later. 

 The feelings you had towards him were too strong. Too hurt. Never again would let yourself be caught up in the mess that was Steve Harrington. Even if that meant throwing in Nancy along with your avoiding. Really, had she chosen not to get back with him, you could possibly make a friendship with her. But the idea that she’d trust someone again that easily didn’t sit right with you.

 Not to mention the idea of them being cute and cuddly made you want to hurl.

 “It’s about time you showed up. I figured you’d come around late again.” hollered Jonathan as he waited for you at the bike stands. He had shown earlier to make use of the photography class’s dark room and said he’d meet you out front.

 “My Mom does say that while I’m always running late, I’m at least consistent.” you smirked, parking your bike into a slot. The boy extended his hand out for your bike lock, doing you the favor while you adjusted your scrunched up clothes from the ride.

 “I saw you talking to Steve. What happened there?”

 The two of you looked over towards the parking lot, noticing that the two lovebirds were still sitting inside as they looked down at something together. “You mean when I was almost publicly executed?” 

 Jonathan rolled his eyes, brushing his hands off from dirt as he waited for you to join him into the school. “I think that’s the longest interaction you’ve had with him this month.” 

 “It was barely a minute, Jonathan.” 

 “Had your heart racing though.” 

 It was unfair how easily Jonathan had figured out your harbored feelings towards Steve. Something he picked up on from just a photo really. Thankfully he wasn’t one to spread gossip. 

 “I feel you’re only pushing the notion that I like him because you want to have the excuse to keep your crush on Nancy.” you huffed, handing over your bag for him to hold. You quickly carded your fingers through your hair, while walking over towards the front entrance of the school.

 More kids would be coming in closer to the first morning bell, meaning you two should beat the crowds. 

 “You already know what I think of Nancy. I’m just glad to be her friend.”

 He stopped you from walking towards the door, giving you the lecturing face he usually saved for whenever he wanted to give Will a pep talk. Just mentioning her name should have let you know the conversation would lead back to this. 

 “It wouldn’t hurt to try and talk to her again either.”

 “Jonathan, trust me. If I didn’t feel so awkward about it all or hated her boyfriend, then I would.”

 “So ignore, Harrington.” The sound of a loud car rumbling in the distance made the two of you pause, trying to crank your heads in the direction of whoever was causing such noise pollution. For a second you thought you recognized the car but zipped by too fast for you to really notice.

 “I’m just saying I have just as much reason to hate on him but I’m over it.”

 Sighing, you gave him a small glare. “Jonathan..You know why I can’t do that.” It was only a little while ago that you actually told Jonathan everything that happened. It naturally brought back some dislike he held towards Steve again, but he was ready to make peace and move on from that day. Signs of the horrible pacifist that lived inside your friend.

 Thankfully, he seemed to notice how uncomfortable the memory was and instead gave you a smile. Patting your arm awkwardly. “Alright, if it bothers you so much I’ll drop the subject.”

 “Good, because this year is going to be great. No monsters, no shitty friends, and definitely no more boys!”

 “HEY, HENDERSON!”

 The sound of a familiar voice yelling your name from across the lot causes everyone around you to freeze. At first you thought it was in your head. But this time the voice calls out your full name and you’re suddenly struck frozen with fear.

 Jonathan turned around to notice who had done the yelling before he worriedly glanced at you. “Hey, I think that guy’s calling you.” he said softly, poking at your arm. Slowly, you turned on your heel to confirm your worst nightmare.

 Sauntering across the lot was none other than Billy Hargrove. The man that you vowed never to speak with or see again. He was supposed to be back home in California. Miles away from you and your new life. 

 You could even remember asking him to leave you alone the day you left for Indiana. The way he angrily picked up the bouquet of roses you chucked at his head. It was a parting gift and you thought that would be the last time you’d have to ever face him again. 

 What a joke.

 “Babydoll.” he cooed, moving to pull you into his arms. The thick smell of his Aramis cologne flooded your senses and you felt like you were back to being this lonely Freshman that hung on his every word. “I knew I’d recognize that ass anywhere.” he smirked before he gripped the bottom of your chin, tilting your head up to look at him. 

 Before you or anyone else can react to the whole thing, he’s pressed his lips against yours. Almost possessively claiming you in front of everyone. It’s how he always used to greet you in front of your friends. But instead of feeling like a special prize, it made you feel used and dirty.

 It turned even worse when you tried to pull yourself away from him, earning a small pout from the boy as he tightened his hold. “Miss me?” he grinned, showing off his bright smile. Back home it used to make you weak in the knees. Now it reminded you of a killer shark’s grin.

 On top of the close proximity of your ex, all around you the students gawked and murmured to each other. The worst being the worried looks of Steve and Nancy from the parking lot. For once in your damn life you did not want this attention on you.

 “Let me go.” you said growled.

 “Oh, but babydoll, we’re back in the same school again.” His blue eyes wandered over your body, making you feel practically naked with how his gaze was. “I think we deserve a second chance. Don’t ya think?”

 “I think you should get bent.”

 Pushing away from his hold finally, you take a step back. Not giving him the chance to try and pull you in to speak again. Jonathan stepped closer towards you, helping give enough distance between you and Billy. Hooking your arm through his, you drag him away from the scene and into the school. Dashing past everyone that could ask questions.

 “Should we talk about what just happened?”

 “No, we shouldn’t.” 

 Students began to part ways for the two of you as you sped down the hall. Wanting to avoid being under your angry gaze or being hit with your fast steps. Emotions swirled inside you, making your mind go completely frazzled.

 “Are you going to be okay?” Jonathan asked, turning you down the hall to your homeroom. The area was thankfully with less students, giving your racing heart a minute to calm down. But really, you didn’t have an answer for him. Not when too many other questions flooded your mind.

 Why was Billy in Hawkins, Indiana of all places? How did he manage to be here for less than a minute and completely turn your new world upside down? And most importantly, how the hell were you going to get him to leave you alone?

A/N: Bit of a rocky start but I’m so excited to get this story back on! Do we all hate billy or is it just me?”

[emilija04acer]

Cartoons and Anime from My Childhood (part 1)

Born in 2004 in Serbia, I cherish the memories of a time when cable TV was a luxury that only became available to us when I was about 12 years old. Most of my cherished shows were watched at my grandma’s place. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane with this list!

This is part one; I'm not certain how many I will create, but I'll begin with some that have significantly influenced me. They are listed alphabetically, and most are anime.

(I included a short description of each show)

Of course please share your favorite cartoons!

>>>

“Angel Friends”: Angels-in-training, Guardian Angels and Demons. First Angel x Demon ship that I sailed.

“Angelina Ballerina”: A dancing mouse with big dreams and a passion for ballet.

“Atomic Betty”: Intergalactic adventures with Betty, the space-faring superhero.

“Avatar: The Last Airbender”: “Water. Earth. Fire. Air.” A beautifully crafted world, elemental bending, and Aang’s quest to restore balance—this 2D gem blended adventure, humor, and wisdom.

“Barbie Movies”: Every Barbie movie—magical adventures from princesses to explorers.

“The Secret World of Benjamin Bear" Heartwarming adventures with this lovable stuffed bear.

“Bibi Blocksberg”: A young witch named Bibi and her magical escapades. Also Bibi and Tina.

“Bratz Movies”: Fashion-forward Bratz dolls navigating high school and friendship. That one with Paris traumatised me. ( the bone ageing thing)

“Captain Keroro” (Sgt. Frog): Frog-like alien invaders attempting to conquer Earth.

“Code Lyoko”: Virtual reality, secret codes, and a group of students fighting digital threats.

“DelTora Quest”: Lief, Barda, and Jasmine’s quest to restore the seven gems of the Belt of Deltora. (Barda was one of my first fictional crushes guys… 😭 don’t ask)

“Digimon”: Digital monsters, DigiDestined, and epic battles in the Digital World.

“Dragon Ball Z”: “Kamehameha!” The battles between Goku and his formidable foes kept us on the edge of our seats. The iconic transformations, energy blasts, and the quest for Dragon Balls fueled our imaginations.

“Galactic Football”: Futuristic football matches in outer space—goals, teamwork, and cosmic challenges!

“Holly Hobbie and friends”: The adventures of Holly Hobbie, a creative and kind-hearted girl.

“Mermaid Melody”: The enchanting story of mermaid princesses who use their voices to save the ocean. (Other first crush…)

“Mia and Me”: A girl named Mia discovering a magical world with unicorns and elves.

“My Little Pony (MLP)”: Friendship is magic in Equestria with Twilight Sparkle and her pony pals.

“Naruto”: Believe it! Naruto’s ninja journey, friendships, and determination. Who didn’t watch this?

“Nodi”: The little blue train Noddy and his friends in Toyland. (This and Strawberry Shortcake where my everything at like 6)

“Pokémon”: “Gotta catch 'em all!” Ash Ketchum’s Pokémon journey, Pikachu’s thunderbolts, and Team Rocket’s antics—this show captured our hearts. The Pokémon theme song is forever etched in our minds.

“Postman Pat” (Postman Pete): Delivering mail in the charming village of Greendale.

“Sailor Moon” (Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon): “Moon Prism Power, Make Up!” Magical girls, cosmic battles, and the power of friendship—And of course censorship!

“Strawberry Shortcake (2003)”: The sweet adventures of Strawberry Shortcake and her berry friends in the magical land of Strawberryland. (Logorovanje/ camping episode was my fav

“Tokyo Mew Mew”: Magical girls with animal DNA fighting to protect Earth from alien invaders. (Ren can get it)

And of course as I lived in Vojvodina, “Hungarian Folktales”

Here are some links... Sadly I couldn't include the images that I wanted...

Strawberry Shortcake (2004): Wikipedia, IMDb, MoviefoneWonderful Galaxy of Oz: Wikipedia, IMDb, Oz Wiki

Mermaid Melody: Wikipedia, IMDb, Trakt

Tokyo Mew Mew: IMDb, Wikipedia, IMDb for New Series

Galactic Football: IMDb, Wikipedia, SideReel

Sailor Moon: Wikipedia, IMDb, JustWatch

Winx Club: IMDb, Wikipedia, Netflix

W.I.T.C.H.: Wikipedia

As you see I had great taste! Please share yours!

If you are from Serbia... Do you remember ULTRA?! Half of my nostalgia comes from the ads that were on that channel!

Do you remember this people!?

[aro-absol]

My Aro playlist (the perfect soundtrack for ASAW!)

A while ago I made an aro playlist that I keep adding songs on. It's on an account that I don't feel comfortable sharing but I thought I could tell y'all what songs are on it because aro songs are not easy to find. So here you go.

Note: this playlist is tailored to my personal music taste. It's mostly pop. I know there are more out there (Cavetown) but these are the songs I like to listen to. Besides, you might interpret these songs differently. They were clearly not written to be aromantic songs but they sound pretty aro to me ( but obviously you don't have to agree).

I tried to sort them into categories (at least roughly) so can find songs you relate to better.

I used an alien emoji to mark the songs containing internalized arophobia (in my opinion) if you want to avoid those.

Enjoy!

Being happy about being aro/not feeling romantic attraction:

Never been in love - Will Jay

Curse - Emily Burns

Zero feelings - Zoe Clark

Being somebody's crush but you can't reciprocate:

Sorry - Halsey

I wanna love you but I don't - Ben Platt

I won't - H.E.R.

Crush - Glades

FRIENDS - Marshmello, Anne-Marie

I don't know - Gabe Bondoc

Idle Worship - Paramore

I help you hate me - Sunrise Avenue

Dating someone but turns out dating isn't for you:

Bad liar - Imagine Dragons

Liked you better - Good problem, Boy in space

Turning out pt. ii - AJR

Psychofreak - Camila Cabello, Willow 👽

Someone else - ClockClock

I wasn't made to fall in love - Miko 👽

For when the Romance Repulsion hits:

Crush Culture - Conan Gray

I'm so tired... - Lauv, Troye Sivan

Never Fall in love - Jack Antonoff, MØ

Romance is boring - Los Campesinos!

Love is for losers - The Longshot

Don't fall in love - Danko Jones

This fall - The Duhks

Romantic - Hooverphonic

Being happily single:

Good thing - Zedd, Khelani

Soulmate - Lizzo

No - Meghan Trainor

It's not you it's me - Bea Miller

I don't wanna be in love (dance floor anthem) - Good Charlotte

I just wanna be single - Brika

Me, Myself and I - Blonde, Bryn Christopher

Dating myself - sad alex

Aroallo anthems (sex mentions):

Not a love song - bülow

Leave before you love me - Marshmello, Jonas Brothers

What's love gotta do with that - Tina Turner

Extra Agenda - Claudia Valentina

Thief - Ansel Elgort 👽

Girlfriend - Bea Miller

Animal - Sir Chloe

Best Friend - The Weeknd

Yuck - Charli XCX

Cupioromantic anthems:

Hopeless Romantic - Sam Fischer 👽

People watching - Conan Gray

Love like that - Lauv

Love love love - Of Monsters and men 👽

High Definition - Waterparks

"No it's not romantic":

Despair - Leo.

Not a love song - Austin Moon

Not wanting to fall in love:

I don't wanna fall in love - Addison Grace

I don't need love - Niic

I don't want love - The Antlers

No lover - Jetty Bones

Your friend is dating someone that is bad for them and you're just *facepalms*

Devil doesn't Bargain - Alec Benjamin

Snap out of it - Arctic Monkeys

No Romeo - Dylan

Third Wheel - Zoe Wees

Aro songs I couldn't really sort in any of those categories but are still dope:

Mad at Disney - Salem Ilese

Turning out - AJR

Loveless girl - Pale Waves 👽

I've never written a song about a boy - Eva Westphal

[wayward-lives]

Prompt list

Hey guys! This is all the prompts I had in my writing folder that I never got around to writing anything for. Some of them are just a couple of words or sentences, while others are absolute monsters. If any of you wanna do something based on one of these prompts, go for it! I'd love it if you tagged me or let me know, just so I can read/see where you've gone with it <3

"How about you take me out back and I don't call you tomorrow?" "How about I take you home after and you sneak out when I'm asleep?" // "You make a habit of sneaking around behind buildings?" "Last time I did, I fucked a cute guy. Maybe I'll get lucky again."

Nymph Bucky falls in love with a hiker who walks through his woods

Post WS. Bucky is in SHIELD custody and doesn’t remember Steve, but he remembers Natasha from the Red Room when she was a child

Vet Bucky. Steve is running from New York after the Snap and he hits a dog and brings it into Bucky's clinic

Bucky doesn't do relationships, but Steve keeps seeing him for sex and Bucky falls in love - friends with benefits (what's love got to do with it - Tina Turner)

College AU - Bucky is an international student who's paired with Steve's roommate Sam

Steve and Bucky are close friends, Steve is complaining one night about how annoying hook-up culture is, and Bucky suggests a FWB situation. Bucky's been in love with Steve for years and it's only when they start sleeping together that Steve realises that he feels the same way

Bucky recognises Steve during their fight on the bridge

Bucky and Steve had broken up, but they keep sleeping together whenever they run into each other

Shrunkyclunks: nurse Bucky works at Stark tower

"just friends who have sex sometimes and live together" where Bucky and Steve don't realise they're dating

Winter Soldier Steve/civilian Bucky

Pirate AU - Bucky's dad is a fisherman who takes Bucky out on trips. One day when Bucky's twelve, they're taken by the crew of the HYDRA, run by Captain Pierce. Pierce kills Bucky's father and keeps Bucky as a slave. Several years later the captain from a rival ship (Steve) is captured by Pierce and he and Bucky fall in love

A/B/O post-winter soldier where the mask doesn't come off and the WS is brought into custody at Avengers tower by Natasha, and Steve falls in love with him without knowing he's his long-lost mate

Steve survives the war but Bucky still falls off the train. In the 50's the Winter Soldier has a mission in New York and on his way is spotted by Rebecca Barnes's daughter, who's eight and has been told all about her uncle Buck. The daughter finds it so amazing that this total stranger looks exactly like uncle Buck and pulls him along to meet Rebecca, who has a breakdown and persuades the Winter Soldier to come home with her. The Winter Soldier just kinda goes along with it because nobody's ever been nice to him and this lovely woman has promised him meatloaf and pie and for some reason he knows that he really likes meatloaf and pie. Becca calls up Steve and the Winter Soldier moves in with Steve because Becca can't look after her amnesiac brother on top of two kids and a third on the way

Big Eden Shrinkyclinks AU

I hope it's warm in hell, because darling I hate the cold

My dreams look like you - Steve and Bucky used to be best friends during high school but lost contact when Steve moved away - they meet again at a mutual friend's party when Steve moves back home

Steve and Bucky used to be together and are both masked vigilantes. They have a bit of a rivalry going but the fun kind where they both kinda wanna fuck. Neither of them know who the other is.

Post WS - Steve and Sam move back to NY to be closer to the other avengers. Sam starts noticing someone following him and watching him and he soon realizes it’s Bucky. Sam starts gently trying to get Bucky to interact with him and starts buying him sweet pastries. Soon Bucky becomes more comfortable and lets Sam help him recover as long as Sam doesn’t tell Steve

(NSFW) Steve is a knight who often visits a manor house where a disgraced Lady lives. The Lady was disgraced for her promiscuous and sexual appetites, but she's comfortably set up in the Manor. Steve visits because the Manor's on a path he travels often, and it's one of the only places to rest for the night. The Lady always sends a group of her servants to service her guests, and Steve is used to this by now. Bucky is a new servant who works in the kitchen who's sent to Steve's chambers with food, and he sits by Steve's bed and hand-feeds him as Steve is serviced. Steve never takes his eyes off Bucky. Each time Steve visits after that, they manage to see each other

Bucky chooses to forget Steve and has his memory erased, because it’s too painful for him to be around Steve when he thinks that Steve doesn’t love him. A few years later Steve picks Bucky up in a bar and pretends not to know him

Prompt: My husband thinks that our parents arranged this marriage. We’ve been married for ten years now, and for ten years he has thought this. I’m not sure how to tell him that my parents wanted me to marry his older brother but I fell in love with the younger brother (my husband) so I pretended to be my parents and sent his parents a letter asking for his hand in marriage. And then the wedding invitations were being made, and it was too late for my parents to do anything. And I was very happily married to my Husband, but he courted me for two years after our marriage not knowing that I was already in love with him.

Steve falls for vet nurse and animal lover Bucky despite being allergic to pretty much all household pets and trying to hide it

Shrunkyclunks - a few dates in Steve tells Bucky he's Captain America, but Bucky doesn't believe him and thinks he's delusional. He doesn't tell Steve he doesn't believe him and has a moral crisis about whether or not he should be dating someone with such strong "delusions". Steve just thinks he's hit the jackpot with supportive boyfriends.

Pirate Captain Bucky captures Navy Captain Steve from his ship and holds him for ransom (very homoerotically) (steve is confused and horny)

Steve is a warrior in his village who's come down with a mysterious illness. The townspeople send him to the "evil" witch who lives in the forest to see if he can be healed

Weird a/b/o

Hardly any Queen Omegas, those who are a threat to national security. Bucky is the WS working to murder hydra and Steve is sent to take the same hydra base that the WS targets

[gleekidshooray]

Which Stranger Things Ships I think Glee Characters are rooting for:

Sam- Stancy because he’s all about second chances after high school.

Blaine- He is a Byler stan first and a human second thank you very much.

Santana- We’ve seen she likes non canon wlw ships obviously she loves Ronance.

Quinn- RONANCE. She feels a spiritual connection to Nancy Wheeler for some reason.

Puck- None because he watches for the monsters. (It’s Jopper)

Tina- Lumax!! She sobbed so much during the season 4 finale. (She’s also a Elumax truther she told me herself.)

Artie- He definitely wants Mileven endgame.

Kurt- Byler. He just wants the sad gay boys to be alright </3

Rachel- Huge Mileven fan! A controversial ship for a controversial gal.

Mercedes- Lumax because she thinks they’re the sweetest! (I also think she doesn’t really care about the Jonathan/Nancy/Steve love triangle which really offends Sam)

[t4tboblin]

feeling crazy 🤪 thinking about bb pokemon au. here are bob, linda, tina, gene, and louise's teams, in that order. explanations under the cut :) feedback is welcome id love to hear yalls thoughts

Bob in my head, he never really did any battling or anything, pokemon are just sort of a thing that exists around him. so i tried to reflect that with his "team"

camerupt: his "starter"-basically a gift from his dad when he started the restaurant. its absolutely ancient and lives in the restaurant kitchen; it gets up in the morning and plods over to help heat up the grill and lies there all day, then in the evening gets back up and goes to lie in its bed. too old to go upstairs. same vibe as your 10 year old laptop that you only use for one specific thing but by god are you using it. subsists on grease. bob has offered it other food. it jsut likes grease.

vanillish: aka the ice cream maker. linda suggested they get a working pokemon for the restaurant and this was the result. pokemon make bob nervous a little bit but he was like. the dad who says you cant get a pet and then ends up obsessed with the pet. hes an objectmon lover at heart :') he doesnt really consider it "his pokemon" but hes definitely the closest to being its trainer. it sleeps in the walkin and seems to love it, so.

klefki: object mon. symbolizes his love of object mons. i think maybe his keys got haunted one day and he just went. well. this might as well happen. its very chill

applin: the most "pet-like" of any of bob's mons, applin snuck into their produce one day and instantly won bob over. it sits on his shoulder or on the counter while hes working. also come on. he has to have a food mon on his team.

pidove: bob doesnt HAVE a pidove but theres one that always hangs around near the restaurant and he likes looking at em

tandemaus: Tandemaus

Linda she actually started a Pokemon Journey TM as a kid but ended up going home after getting her first badge. she loved the experience though!

emolga: her starter. likes to perch on bobs head. he likes to complain about it. but shes a cuddly sweetheart so its hard NOT to love her

scrafty: one of the mons linda caught on her journey. frequent accomplice when she was hellraising as a child. surprisingly good at keeping the kids out of trouble now

morpeko: she actually got it from trading her shinx back during her journey ("ha! sucker! those things are a dime a dozen") but the shinx was shiny :') but morpeko is a perfect fit for her (gets mad when it doesnt eat vs "mom has to eat every 15 minutes or she turns into a monster"). first of her pokemon that bob managed to win over

oricorio: a gift from her parents when she was in high school, long after shed come home from her journey. shes never changed its form and may or may not know she can even do that

zigzagoon: she doesnt actually have one, but theres a colony in the alley that she loves watching. theres a few galarian zigzagoon in there too, but in my mind The King is hoenian

tandemaus: Tandemaus

Tina by far the trickiest one for me. she doesnt want to be a trainer, but she does think contests are kinda cool

Munna: her first mon. bob and linda got her to help with her night terrors. also helps her remember good dreams so she can write about them in her diary/eff

Mudbray: i think tina starts volunteering at a pokemon daycare and this is one of the eggs that pops up. the trainer lets her keep it, but it has to live at the daycare ("for now!") because a Horse is not fitting in their apartment

Ponyta: tina's dream partner pokemon is a galarian rapidash. as much as i would love to see her dream come true im not convinced it will. however i can say with confidence that she'll have her very own ponyta one day :)

Hitmontop: reference to her capoeira era (rhyme unintended) also i like the idea of tina getting into martial arts in general

ralts: she wanted to catch a Dance-related pokemon to impress jimmy jr buuuuut she couldnt find a kirlia so. ralts. itll evolve someday! and then be really cool! but she kinda likes how awkward it is. its sweet. no shes not projecting. leave her alone

Drifloon: i like the idea of her zombie-fixation carrying over to ghost types. she found drifloon down by the pier and thinks its cute. bob thinks its definitely killed children before. but its very well behaved so the balloon stays

Gene definitely not a trainer either LOL if anything he wants to do pokemon musicals. all his mons are pretty much just performance partners

Loudred: his first mon, gifted to him as a whismur. bob and linda regret it significantly more now that its. not that. basically a standin for his megaphone

(Shiny) Eevee: aka Ken. he finds him walking home from school one day and hides him in his room for... longer than youd expect. by the time bob and linda found out it was way too late to kick ken out. something something trans-coded trainers having eevees

Spoink: also gets brought in off the street; gene just has a way of befriending stray mons. its a great match for his energy

his other three mons (Squawkabilly, Kricketune, and Chatot) he meets when hes older. i imagine grown-up him would have a whole flock of chatot living outside his apartment. linda hates kricketune though

Louise shes gonna be. the very best. like NO ONE ever was. fairy is the perfect type for her-cute, kinda weird, ridiculously strong

Igglybuff: as a wee one she saw wigglytuff and was obsessed and begged and begged her parents for one. she was significantly less impressed when she saw its first form but thats ok, theyre still buddies. and once her DUMB PARENTS will let her battle, shes gonna evolve that sucker into the wigglytuff of her dreams

Mimikyu: not her first pokemon, but definitely her partner. she finds it creeping around the apartment and demands to keep it. come on its cute creepy and powerful, shes eating that up

Ribombee: she gets him "second hand" and sneaks him into school with her. louise likes that hes a weird bug.

Togepi: a gift from her family on her 10th b-day-or at least the egg is. she watches that thing like a hawk and when it hatches she is DELIGHTED ("this must be what childbirth feels like!" "mm. yeah. pretty much the same.")

Morgrem: she catches this sucker in high school and they get into all kinds of mischief

Tinkatink: come on, shes just a little guy. look at her. louise cant just leave her out in the cold. no of course she isnt going to let her hit rocks at people or whack her parents toes. she'll be a perfect saint, honest.

[acoldsovereign]

"It's not first class . . . but it'll do."

[onemorecupofcoffee]

I posted 1,291 times in 2022

That's 1,291 more posts than 2021!

150 posts created (12%)

1,141 posts reblogged (88%)

Blogs I reblogged the most:

@throwoutyourgoldteeth

@shoelessmuppet

@harriyanna

@transcostanza

@buggachat

I tagged 675 of my posts in 2022

Only 48% of my posts had no tags

#seinfeld - 58 posts

#saves - 29 posts

#jerry seinfeld - 14 posts

#i love them - 13 posts

#only murders in the building - 11 posts

#george costanza - 11 posts

#actually - 10 posts

#miraculous - 10 posts

#omitb - 10 posts

#literally - 10 posts

Longest Tag: 116 characters

#prev i agree but it's really funny to watch the random queer moments in seinfeld and them act like it never happened

My Top Posts in 2022:

#5

idec what y’all are saying about high school musical, teen beach movie is the best disney channel movie of all time. it’s so self aware and absolutely idiotic and it’s the perfect combo of action, suspense, romance, and cheesiness

56 notes - Posted June 5, 2022

#4

the new omitb episode was insane honestly i can’t believe it was 30 min it felt like 15... also i doubt that detective is the murderer, and even if he is there will be a twist, i feel like whoever it is tina fey had something to do with it... also they never resolved fey’s assistant saying she had bodies covered up and shit

60 notes - Posted August 9, 2022

#3

the glass scientists did jekyll and hyde SO much better than the fucking monster high movie. and the monster high movie was made by a giant corporation while the glass scientists has a very small team of people. 

61 notes - Posted October 10, 2022

#2

final only murders final only murders final only murders

warning: huge spoilers for only murders s2 finale!!

so. there is a s3 confirmed and a lil teaser for it in the finale, so glad that’s there like last time.

i feel like the fact that paul rudd’s character died will cause disagreement between charles and oliver, especially bc the creator said s3 will focus on oliver, and that charles is shown to dislike him while oliver thinks he’s perfect for the role.

anyways, back to the main plot. all those fake outs were absolutely wild and i loved each and every one of them. i sort of suspected it bc there is no way cinda could have known poppy was becky and poppy telling the truth. it just didn’t make sense, so when it was revealed cinda didn’t know, it made me suspect poppy a lot more. i also like how the detective that was helping came into play and gave them the final piece of evidence. it was also cool how it tied into the first season as poppy seemingly didn’t like that she never got credit, and that was her trigger in the end.

92 notes - Posted August 24, 2022

My #1 post of 2022

no i’m just like george costanza. i hate myself but am also narcissistic. i think every little thing wrong with me is a serious disease. i lie for no reason other than self-gain. i worry what others think of me but also don’t care.

169 notes - Posted June 22, 2022

Get your Tumblr 2022 Year in Review →

posting this to keep

[alwaysthesitter]

Steve had glanced up from the magazine he had been reading, finding himself utterly bored without his best friend on shift. When they had both gotten the job at Family Video, they had been in it together. However, he also knew that Robin had been in school still, and that meant that unless he was to never pick up shifts for that eight hours of suffering that was high school, he was going to have to work plenty when she wasn’t there. He had gotten used to that, even though he hated it with a burning passion. Keith really needed to hire more people, in Steve’s opinion, but also more people met less hours for him and he wanted to move out of his parent’s house sooner rather than later.

He had been avoiding Keith all afternoon, though that hadn’t been difficult considering the manager of the video store almost never was in the front himself. Keith didn’t like Steve; Steve knew this, but also didn’t blame him. Not only had Steve been a major dick in high school, but he had been dating Nancy Wheeler, who he had later learned that Keith had an infatuation for. So he kept his head down, thankful that he had gotten the job. He had attempted crossword puzzles but was never able to figure out the words. He would sometimes lean against the counters and watch the movies playing on their store televisions, trying to learn more recommendations to give the pretty girls.

A magazine had been today’s distraction, and he closed it and shoved it away as he heard the question, pursing his lips together. “Sick. Pretty sure she would have still come to work anyways, but her parents have been really weird since – “ Everything happened. He couldn’t explain that to this stranger, simply shaking his head. “She needs the break though. I know between work and school and band practice, she’s been dragging herself.” And fighting off a monster unknown to most of the town, but hey, who was counting?

He grabbed the VHS tapes from the other, sliding them across the counter and towards him, not even judging at all anything that Craig was renting, if only because Steve hadn’t seen most of them. He only recognized Top Gun thanks to Nancy’s absolute obsession with Tom Cruise and the poster she had plastered in his room, smiling softly as he picked it up to scan it. “Top Gun, nice choice. You know, people always used to tell me I look just like Tom Cruise.” He was just glad it wasn’t Risky Business – that movie had left a bad taste in his mouth, ever since Tina’s party when him and Nancy had gone as the main characters and he had gotten his emotions thrown into his face. He looked at the system, raising an eyebrow at the name scrolling across the computer desktop several times.

“You’re Craig Tucker, right? Seems like you really like this movie.” He smiled, not being sarcastic or teasing, but genuinely trying to have a conversation, if only because he was bored out of his mind without Robin here. “It’s the only one I’ve seen out of all of these, but don’t tell my boss that.” He laughed, shaking his hair out of his face as he scanned the other ones, raising an eyebrow as he looked at each of them. “This Alien one is really popular lately. I won’t lie, I’m kind of a baby when it comes to horror. You’ll have to come back and tell me if it’s good. Since I’m here basically every single day.”

-> @alwaysthesitter

There wasn't much to do in Hawkins, Indiana; Craig had learned. Other than going to, like– the pool. The weather had hit the point in the season where crisp breezes and waning daylight hours made getting wet outside a difficult endeavor to justify, though. Hitting up the mall used to be a thing, until that closed down, too. His family had lived here just long enough for Craig to figure out that if he didn't force himself into a hobby, he would die of boredom. The fact became especially poignant when he thought about his friends back home. His parents had moved them just after he graduated high school, eliminating a vital opportunity for him to make new friends in Hawkins. He remained a loner, living with his parents and biding his time until his college acceptance letters started to roll in. He hoped that would put an end to his podunk-town-hopping. At least his prospects looked better on this half of the map than all the West Coast schools he had researched.

With a sigh, he threw a jacket around his sharp shoulders and stepped out onto his front porch.

Moments later, the faint tinkling of the welcome bell rang lightly in his ears as he pushed his way past the threshold of the Family Video. Craig had ventured to the store for probably the… third…? week in a row. He walked in without so much as glancing at the surroundings. The tall, lanky youth knew exactly where he was going. He had the path to his destination memorized . His battered, black Chuck Taylor's hurried him along so he could snag the same movie he had been renting over and over again, ever since the VHS hit the shelves. Top Gun. Yeah… The Tom Cruise flick. He understood that, as a ❛red-blooded, American male❜, he should have been hounding after the female lead, ❛Charlie❜. The main love interest. The blonde bombshell. But there was something about Maverick and Goose. Craig liked the planes and other shit, too, but… Anyway. At that point, he probably should have purchased a copy of it for his personal collection. 

But, for the time being– he continued to visit the home video store at the behest of his parents, and little sister. He inadvertently adopted the task of picking the weekly movie selection. Plus, he liked chatting with the brunette girl that worked the front counter every so often. Robin, he remembered her name. They had one thing in common that not a lot of people from either small town he had lived shared. He clung to the unspoken solidarity, even if they only interacted during the brief exchange of a rental transaction. And sometimes– there was this guy, with phenomenal hair. He would be ❛working❜, too. That was always a little incentive to entice Craig's business. Although, Craig never actually interacted with him. By coincidence or avoidance, he wasn't ever sure... He even tended to keep his eyes to ground when the other guy was around, and waited for him to wander away and leave Robin solo at the counter.

Craig stuffed his hands into the front pockets of his jeans and plodded across the worn carpet. He made his way up and down the rows and rows of tapes, searching the New Releases for something the rest of his family would enjoy watching, too. Plus, he needed to diversify his selection a bit. He was sure that if he walked up to the counter with a single copy of Top Gun again, that Robin-girl would bully the hell out of him, affectionately of course. He grabbed a copy of that new, cool-looking, sci-fi horror film, as well. He and Robin could joke about how hot Ellen Ripley was. 

With a faint smile at the thought, he continued his little, mundane excursion. He finally picked out a couple other titles. Ones that his parents and sister might like, too. Then, he made his way to the front of the store. Craig grinned harder to himself while flipping through his selection. Assuming Robin would be behind the counter, he prepared for a bout of witty repartee. He had failed to examine who was on duty today upon his entry. Craig opened his mouth to say something smart-alecky as he looked up. However, his unexpected vision stopped him short. Behind the till was not the face he had grown accustomed to seeing, but instead there stood another man. The other man. The guy that was around his age. The guy with the great hair. Shit. Craig bit his lip; he could get through this. His stomach flipped like a pancake before sinking like a rock in his guts. He looked down at the movies in his hand and never felt more self-conscious about his decisions.

Little Shop of Horrors, for Tricia–his baby sister. Big Trouble in Little China, for his parents. Alien, and once again, Top Gun, for himself. He hoped Sigourney Weaver would still get him a pass.

❝Uh, hey,❞ he said coolly as he placed his movies down on the painted, pressed wood countertop. His fingers rapped across the boxes nervously, before he slid them in, uh, Steve's–according to his nametag–direction. ❝Where's Robin?❞ he asked, attempting to make casual conversation with the Hair Guy.

[steddieficrecs]

Hey! I’m looking for fics where Eddie gets introduced into the story of ST in season 1 (or 2 or 3.. just before 4!) I’ve just gotten caught up with “better by you, better than me” by palmviolet on ao3 and I’m loooving the concept. Thanks!!

Hey, so these kind of fics are my absolute jam and I can’t stop reading them so... here’s a shit ton

hot (sticky, sweet) by ToEdenandBackAgain

"You're abusing company policy,” Steve corrects and Eddie nods, unashamed, and leans forward.

“Fuck The Man, Harrington. Gimme a taste.”

Or: it's the hottest day of the summer so far, and Eddie just wants his due of free samples. Annoying the shit out of Steve Harrington is just a cherry on top.

The Man That I Could Be by ohstars

"Steve Harrington isn't straight. It's been a few weeks since he sat on that bathroom floor at Starcourt with Robin, where she shared her biggest secret with him and unintentionally unlocked an entirely new side of Steve. Since he’s had to come to terms with being open to exploring that side of him, but he's finally acknowledged that he's most likely, definitely, without a doubt into guys."

--

After coming to terms that he may be queer, Steve Harrington does a little exploration on his own and meets the one and only Eddie Munson. Just as things are going well and accepted the fact he's falling for Eddie in their own little bubble, Steve's world is shaken by a tragedy he can't quite talk about. And when the dust settles and he's nearly ready to put the pieces back together, his worlds collide when he realizes his Eddie is the same Eddie playing D&D with the kids. The same Eddie who's now wanted for murder thanks to another upside down monster. How will he save the day when he can barely focus watching his ex mingle with his monster fighting team?

STRIKE TEN. by oaseas

Steve’s striking out. It’s the summer after his graduation, he’s working 9-5 at Scoops Ahoy, and hey, did you hear? He’s striking out. Enter Robin, her ‘you rule/you suck’ board, and a promise to romance the next girl through the door. Except, that’s no girl. That’s Eddie Munson.

Or: One double scoop of pining, please!

“See ya later... sailor!” by JustAPileOfCringe

Eddie wanders the mall and decides he wants Ice Cream. What he didn’t expect to find was former King Steve, all dressed up in a sailor costume with too short shorts slinging ice cream like he was born for it. Huh, weird.

No One Rides For Free by Weird_Witchcraft

“Are you okay Harrington?” Eddie asks gently, “Need me to get anyone?”

“No one to get” replies Steve, so soft Eddie barely catches it. “You think I want anyone seeing me like this?”

Eddie Munson stumbles across Steve Harrington crying next to a bush at Tina's party and makes it his mission to cheer him up.

when they call your name by librarybooks

Jesus. He observes him with abject fascination, like the former king of Hawkins High is a particularly grisly car crash and Eddie is the rubbernecker of the century. Christ.

Or: contrary to Robin’s data, not all summertime mall rats are immune to Steve Harrington. Eddie Munson certainly isn’t.

destiny has brought us oh so close together by deadratz

The first time Eddie finds him, Steve is crying in the school bathroom after his breakup with Nancy. They're not friends, they don't plan to become friends.

Somewhere along the way they become a lot more.

***

Takes place 1984-1986

[theemporium]

[REQUESTS OPEN]

[3.5k] or, in which king steve isn’t as high and mighty as people think he is. (smut)

.

“Woah, slow down there, Harrington.”

The spiked punch burned down his throat, most likely laced with whatever cheap vodka Tina had managed to salvage with her dodgy contacts. But Steve couldn’t bring himself to care. He was young and stupid and in desperate need to numb the feelings in his brain at this stupid Halloween party because it was the next best distraction.

He knew in the morning he would come to regret the drinking and whatever bad decision that followed, but right now all he could think about was that Billy fucking Hargrove was breathing down his neck and people kept whispering about Nancy Wheeler leaving him for Jonathon Byers of all people, and Steve was just tired of it all.

He was Steve Harrington.

King Steve.

And right now, King Steve wanted to get drunk off his ass and enjoy his last Halloween party like any normal senior would.

“Don’t get weak on me now,” he retorted as he threw the red solo cup to the floor, looking at Tommy H over the sunglasses that rested on the tip of his nose. “You’re two drinks behind.”

“Think your drunk ass could beat me at beer pong?” Tommy H teased, a giggling Carol tucked under his arm.

“I can beat you any day any time, dickhead,” Steve flashed him a grin. “I’m King Steve, assholes!” Cheers and whoops of excitement erupted around them, and things felt normal for a few seconds.

And then he saw you.

You weren’t new to Hawkins, but you were new to Steve.

Maybe if he had paid attention, he would see you passing in hallways or realise that you shared a class for a whole year in your junior year—Miss Smith’s calculus class. Maybe if he wasn’t so busy chasing after a girl that never truly loved him back or fighting interdimensional monsters, he would have noticed you earlier.

But he noticed you now.

Tucked away in the corner of the room, red solo cup in your hand as you watched the party around you with curious eyes. He wasn’t totally sure what you were dressed as, but that could be said for half the people in the room right now. All he knew was that he wanted to know more about you, he wanted to know who you were dressed as and why you chose them and what on god’s green fucking earth you wore on your lips to make them look so damn kissable.

He wanted you.

“Hold your horses, big boy,” A voice sounded from his left and he turned to see Carol giving him a wicked grin. “Don’t even try it.”

“Try what?” Steve answered dumbly.

“You’ve got no chance with her,” Carol told him like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Steve scoffed. “You don’t know that.”

“Everyone knows that,” This time it was one of Tina’s lackeys who spoke, he was pretty sure her name was Vicki. “Total lone wolf. People try but nobody gets through.”

“What’s her deal?” he asked, eyes narrowing slightly on you as he listened to the girls beside him. If anything, everything they were saying just made him more intrigued.

Carol shrugged. “Guess nobody around here that interests her.”

“Interesting,” Steve hummed.

“You ain’t got a chance, Harrington, pack it up before you bruise your own ego,” Tommy H spoke up, snickers and giggles breaking out around them.

“Maybe you don’t,” Steve spoke as he finally turned to look at the group around him, something quite like determination and arrogance shining in his eyes. “But she hasn’t met me yet.”

“And if she rejects you?” Tommy H asked.

“Who can resist Steve Harrington?” he answered with a smirk on his lips and something dangerous glimmering in his gaze.

Steve pushed through the crowd—or more accurately, let the crowd part around him—as he made his way towards you. His eyes fixed on you as you bobbed your head to the music pumping through the speakers, unaware of the man approaching you.

It wasn’t until he was a few steps away from you that you finally caught onto his presence, looking up from the red solo cup and giving him an odd look as he stopped right in front of you.

“Can I help you?” you spoke, blunt and direct, and it threw him off for a second.

Steve was used to girls and guys alike fawning over him, worshipping him. And maybe it was a little big-headed to think you would be the same. But he hadn’t expected you to be so unbothered. And he would be lying if he said it didn’t peak his interests more.

“Yeah, you can actually,” Steve flashed you a smile and made himself comfortable on the spot next to you against the wall. “You could tell me your name.”

“Don’t know all the names of your subjects, King Steve?” you raised your brows, and Steve could have sworn he saw your painted lips twitch upwards.

“Didn’t wanna come off as a creep,” he deflected with a shrug. “And maybe I just wanted an excuse to talk to you.”

“Yeah?” you mused, head tilting to one side.

“Yeah,” Steve smiled down at you before his eyes darted down to your outfit, shamelessly looking you up and down. He was clueless and honestly couldn’t care less about the costume, instead focusing on the way the fabric draped over your figure and exposed a little bit of your thigh when you shifted in your spot. “Madonna?”

“Carrie, pre-prom. Didn’t feel like washing fake blood out of my hair tonight,” you corrected as you returned the favour, taking in Steve’s outfit for the first time. Your eyes lingered on the black shirt clung to his torso, the jeans snug against his thighs. “Footloose?”

“Risky Business,” Steve winked.

“Tragic,” you commented as your eyes found his again. “This party might’ve actually been interesting if you showed up in tighty-whities.”

Steve bit back his laugh. “If you wanted to see me in underwear, sweetheart, you can just ask. I promise I’ll put on a good show for you.”

“You are very sure of yourself, Harrington,” you murmured as you took a sip from your cup, watching him over the rim.

“I like to call it self-confidence,” Steve retorted, deciding to bite the bullet as he shuffled closer to you until your arms were brushing.

“Hm, and what do your little friends who have been ogling us for the last fifteen minutes call it?” you asked and watched in amusement as his head snapped over to the group he was hanging around earlier.

Tommy H let out a shrieking wolf whistle, the girls around him laughing and snickering despite the look Steve was giving them. You saw Carol making some kissing faces, followed by some stupidly incoherent crude comment from her boyfriend. And maybe if the sight of Steve blushing didn’t greatly entertain you, you would’ve been a bit pissed off.

“So, what did they offer you?” you asked finally and watched as his head snapped back to look at you.

“Who offer me what?” he asked with his eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

“Your little posse,” you nodded back towards them. “Talk to the loner and bag twenty bucks?”

“I wanted to talk to you myself,” Steve told you, almost looking offended by your comment. “Scout’s honour.”

Your lips twitched. “Were you even a boy scout?”

“Well,” Steve winced a little, scratching the back of his neck. “No, but the sentiment stands.”

“So, what exactly did Steve ‘The Hair’ Harrington want to do with lil ol’ me?” you asked him, tilting your head back to look at him.

“You really like using these nicknames, don’t you?” Steve pointed out.

“It just…intrigues me,” you said with a shrug.

“What does?”

But you simply grinned. “You’re avoiding my question.”

“And you’re avoiding mine,” he retorted just as quickly.

“You really play up this act, don’t you?” you questioned him, eyes narrowing on the man in front of you as though you’d be able to see all his secrets. “It’s cute.”

“You think I’m cute?” Steve teased.

“You clearly have selective hearing too,” you hummed in amusement.

“Well, if it’s any consolation, I think you are really pretty too,” Steve told you with a smile so sweet that it was hard to think for a second.

“Yeah?” you murmured as he stepped closer, leaning against the wall with one shoulder so his body was facing you, almost trapping you in the corner. “I think you say that to a lot of girls, King Steve.”

“And yet I still think you’re the prettiest girl I’ve seen,” His eyes glancing down, watching as you tucked your bottom lip between your teeth. He gulped a little.

“Quite the sweet talker,” you commented.

“I prefer smooth operator,” Steve shrugged.

“Sounds like you’re just drunk and wanting to get your dick wet, Harrington,” you said, knowing full well it was probably the spiked punch getting to his head, making him more arrogant than usual.

“I’m not that drunk—” And yet just as he spoke, he took another step forward—more like stumbled forward—and let his hand knock a little too close to yours. He watched with wide eyes as the contents of your red solo cup spilt all down the front of your dress.

“Holy shit,” Steve muttered in horror, his hands stretched out in front of him like he was reaching for you before thinking better of it. “I’m so sorry, shit. I didn’t mean to—”

But you didn’t yell at him like he expected, and you didn’t swear either. Instead, you laughed.

You laughed and you looked up at him like everything was right in the world, and in all honesty it was hard for him not to laugh back.

“Fitting,” you huffed out between laughs. “Really helped me complete the look, Harrington.”

“What can I say, I’m a stickler for festive rules,” he murmured abashedly. “Jeez, I’m sorry. There’s a bathroom upstairs, meant to be off-limits but I’m sure Tina won’t mind. Maybe we can get the stain out before it’s too bad.”

“Lead the way.”

Not thinking twice about the action, Steve grabbed your hand and was only partially surprised when you intertwined your fingers with his. He led you through the throng of dancing teens and sweaty bodies, tugging you to keep up as you made your way towards the main staircase that led up to a much quieter area.

Walking past a variety of doors before you reached the bathroom, Steve pushed the door open and flicked the lights on. He dropped your hand—much to his own disappointment—and began shuffling through drawers and cupboards to find a hand towel or something else to help get the stain out of your dress.

He didn’t hear the door close behind him or the click of the lock, and what he certainly didn’t expect was to turn around and see you shrugging yourself out of your dress.

“I—woah! Okay, I…uh…I’m still here?” he exclaimed, dropping whatever was in his hands as they clattered to the floor. “Do you…uh…do you want me to give you some privacy or…?”

“What? King Steve has never seen a half-naked girl?” you mused, grinning at his blushing cheeks and stuttering words.

“Well, no, I have…I was just…prepared for them,” he murmured shyly, clearing his throat as he contemplated shuffling out of the bathroom with his hands still over his eyes.

“Doesn’t seem like it,” you sang, placing the ruined dress on the counter top as you turned the tap on. You grabbed one of the towels he dropped earlier, wetting it under the tap with some soap before trying to rub out the stain but it wasn’t going very far. “You know, you’d be a lot more useful if you actually used your hands instead of standing there with them covering your pretty face, Harrington.”

He gulped. “You sure?”

You didn’t hold back your smile. “Yeah, I’m sure.”

Steve tried.

He really, really tried not to stare when he dropped his hands but it was hard not to.

Not when you were standing there, a few feet away from him, in a pair of matching bra and panties, slightly bent over the counter as you furiously tried to rub the stain out of your dress.

Not when your lips were pressed together in a slight pout, eyebrows furrowed in concentration and wide eyes staring hopefully down at your dress.

The sight shouldn’t turn him on as much as it is, but he really cannot help himself.

And then you lifted your head, your gaze catching his through the mirror as you took in his flustered appearance and parted lips. You couldn’t help but smirk, watching as he shamelessly dragged his eyes over your figure, shifting in his spot as though it would do anything to hide the tent in his jeans.

“You okay there?”

Steve’s eyes snapped up as he flashed you a sheepish grin, the bathroom light doing nothing to hide the burning blush on his cheeks.

“Y-Yeah,” he said and nodded his head furiously. “I’m great, fantastic even!”

You spun around so you were facing him, watching him for a few moments before you took small steps towards him. He watched as you stalked towards him like a predator, confident and purposeful steps until you were almost inches away from him.

“You look a little hot,” you murmured, looking up at him with a faux innocent look, and he knew it was utter bullshit but he was putty in your hands by that point. “You sure you’re feeling okay?”

He opened his mouth to reply but the words died in his throat as you raised your hand to gently cup his face, your fingers tracing along his cheekbone. Your touch sent shivers down his spine and your smile was so pretty and you smelt so good, it was hard for him to even focus on words in that moment.

“King Steve…everyone acts like you are at the top of the ladder, the big boss around,” you mused as your fingers danced along his jaw and down his neck, feeling his pulse beat wildly under your touch. “But I think it’s all an act.”

Steve fought to keep his eyes open as your hand travelled along his collar and up the back of his neck, tangling your fingers in the locks of his hair. He didn’t even care that he spent hours on it this morning, not when everything about you felt too good.

“You wanna know what I think?” you asked and Steve nodded lightly, not daring to trust his voice in that moment.

“I think,” you spoke and gave his hair a sharp tug, smiling when you heard the small whine he let out. “King Steve likes to get down on his knees.”

Your name left his lips in a breathless sigh, his hands moving to grip your hips and pull you closer, to feel more of you pressed against him. You didn’t waste any time in pulling his head down, letting his lips meet yours.

The kisses shared were fast and sloppy and they left you breathless. As you staggered back to the counter, the dress long forgotten and the party still wildly active downstairs, you had very little else on your mind except for the way his hands were tracing up and down your sides.

“Don’t get shy on me now, Harrington,” you muttered against his lips as you jumped up on the counter, pulling him to stand between your legs. “Heard you were meant to be a real people pleaser in bed.”

“Fuck,” he hissed through clenched teeth as he gripped your hips, his head ducking down to your neck. “You are a…fucking wet dream brought to life, you know that?”

“Surprisingly enough, that is the first time I have ever been told that,” you sighed, head falling back as you feel his teeth lightly scrape against your pulse point and make your toes curl.

“Well you are,” he groaned against your neck, rolling his hips against yours to show you just how serious he was. “Fuck, you have no idea.”

“Hm,” Your hand travelled between your bodies, cupping him over his jeans and slowly pressing your palm along his shaft. “I think I have a pretty good idea.”

“Shit, please,” he whimpered against your neck.

Your finger worked to undo the button of his jeans and push them down enough until they were pooled at just above his knees, his boxers quickly following. You ran your fingers along his cock, your thumb gently rubbing along the tip as he whined and bucked against your hand.

“You look so good like this,” you whispered, one hand gripping his hair and your lips pressed against his ear. “A shame this bathroom isn’t bigger, bet you would make some pretty noises if I put your cock in my mouth.”

“Shit,” he whimpered and lifted his head, pressing his lips against yours hard.

It didn’t take long for Steve to be moaning into the kiss, your hand leisurely stroking his cock as he gripped your thighs like his own personal stress relief, biting down on your neck to muffle the sounds he was making. You doubted anyone could hear you over the music but you didn’t care, some part of you thrilled at the idea of waking up tomorrow morning to Steve’s marks littered along your neck.

“Need to fuck you,” you murmured between shared kisses, pulling your hand away from his cock despite his whines to wiggle your panties off and letting them fall to the ground.

The moans that left his mouth were broken and pathetic, but Jesus, you loved it. The way he whispered your name like a prayer as he bottomed out in you, his face nuzzled into your neck and his hands gripping your ass as if there was any physical way to have you closer.

“Shit, you’re big,” you whined, knowing very well the comment would go to his head but you couldn’t care in that moment. Not when you felt so full, when he felt so good. “Fuck, give me a moment.”

“Anything you want, baby, anything you want,” he whispered against your neck, pressing soft kisses along your skin that felt so different to the sloppy, passionate kisses you shared before. It made your stomach twist, made you wrap your legs around his hips and tug him closer.

“Fuck me like you hate me, Harrington,” Your warm breath fanning over his lips as you spoke.

And Steve, being the people pleaser he was, had no qualms in listening to your instructions.

Your nails dug into his back, almost desperate to rip that black shirt off his torso and scratch down his back as he pounded into you, hips rutting against yours as he let out desperate little moans and whines of your name mixed with other incoherent profanities.

You loved the way he moaned into your ear, the way he whispered how good you felt and how he could do this over and over again and never fucking complain a day in his life. He tells you how beautiful you are, how he loves the way you pull his hair and the way you nibble on his neck when you don’t want to scream out.

You nuzzled your face into his chest as you reached your high, your orgasm washing over you in a white, hot wave. Your muscles tensing and your body clinging to his, and his name leaving your lips like it was the only word you knew.

Steve was close behind you, a few more thrusts and he knew he couldn’t hold it back anymore. Not when you were whispering filthy promises in his ear, putting more ideas in his head that he knew he would be thinking about in shower with his hand wrapped around his cock and this memory on replay. Not when you nipped his ear, telling him how badly you needed to feel him come inside you.

And maybe Steve expected the moments after to be awkward or tense. For there to be some lingering emotion or even regret from your part as you both shuffled around the small bathroom to look presentable.

But just as you had been doing the rest of the night, you took him by surprise as you fixed up your ruined dress like it was nothing and ruffled your hair to try and hide the last twenty minutes. It was almost pointless but neither of you seemed to care.

Not when you turned to him and flashed him that smile that made his knees weak. Not as you sauntered over and grabbed the lapels of his jacket, pulling his lips down on yours once again. Not as your hand slipped into his front pocket, stepping back with a smug grin on your face and mischief shining in your eyes.

“Meet me at your car in five minutes,” you told him and shook the keys you had swiped from his jeans. “My parents are away all week…got the whole place to myself.”

“Fuck,” Steve breathed out.

“It gets a bit lonely, Harrington, ‘m sure you can keep me entertained.”

He barely had time to reply before you slipped out of the bathroom, his car keys with you and your panties replacing the pocket they were in moments ago.

“A walking wet dream,” he muttered to himself before quickly following you out, not a single care about the party or anything else in his mind other than you.

.