#crissy cunningham

[goldberrg]

my atlantis

summery : — Remember, you and I argued that you would never cry because of a girl? — you smiled radiantly, tears welled up at the corners of your eyes. — So you lost, Munson. You owe me one wish.

TW's – selfharm, death.

You always saw him among the others. His radiant smile, expressing mock playfulness, his long thin fingers with many rings, dark, constantly tangled curly hair and a confident look that makes you freeze in silent admiration. Eddie Munson was your point.

They met at one of the regular parties back in high school, when you wore uncomfortable metal braces and endured constant ridicule from others, and Eddie was just starting his way as a guitarist of a musical group. It was a holiday in honor of Halloween, arranged by the school administration, which means it is absolutely mandatory for every student, regardless of desire.

That day, for the sake of decency, you drew yourself barely noticeable vampire fangs with your mother's makeup and chose a blood-scarlet dress, not wanting to be a black sheep at the party. It took you a long time to gather your strength, because you were well aware that someone would definitely cling to her and start bullying you.

Your fears were indeed confirmed when a red-haired, obese classmate Alex approached you with a leisurely gait, baring his teeth in anticipation of an interesting spectacle. You involuntarily shuddered and forcefully squeezed a plastic cup with some bright soda, your gaze in panic ran around the room full of teenagers having fun in suits.

— What, Y\N, looking for someone who would fall for someone like you? I'll give you some good advice. — Alex painfully poked the girl in the forehead with his finger. — Look for the son of the driver, he will definitely like your rails in his teeth! A group of teenagers nearby burst out laughing, thereby giving the joker self-confidence. Alex lifted his chin in a fit of pride, grinning smugly.

Just be patient, Y\N. You know, it's worth waiting a little, and they'll leave, the main thing is just to ignore, that's for sure.

— Are you jealous because only your mom is pecking at you? — there was a decisive voice with a note of irony from somewhere behind. — Don't worry, she definitely won't give up on you.

You turned around so abruptly that your dark hair slightly brushed the face of your intercessor, who was leaning against the doorway in a relaxed manner. In front of her stood a short-haired guy, dressed absolutely not according to the dress code of the party. His dark brown eyes looked at Alex with a clear threat, glinting unkindly.

The red-haired classmate instantly disappeared along with his company, muttering something in order to leave the last word in this skirmish. To catch up with him, the stranger shouted a couple of sophisticated curses, causing you to barely smile.

Getting unexpected help was damn nice.

— I'm Eddie Munson. — the guy said, turning to face the rescued you. He extended a calloused palm in a friendly way, awkwardly chuckling. — I saw you in the school choir, you sing very well.

You were sure that you did not know the interlocutor and hardly noticed him at school, which caused you a pressing sense of guilt and discomfort. Nevertheless, the brown-haired you immediately shook the cold hand of a new acquaintance, now smiling like a Cheshire cat.

— Y\N.

***

You spent the rest of your high school years in the company of the noisy and energetic, but so real Eddie. After the Halloween party, you pondered for a long time whether a new acquaintance would want to continue communicating, but Munson instantly decided everything for you when, without a drop of doubt, he took a seat next to you in the school cafeteria.

— The schedule today is just disgusting, what normal person wants to sit for two whole chemistry lessons in May, have the teachers finished at school. — Munson said quickly, but very expressively, putting the tray next to the discouraged you.

— A little more, and I myself will split into atoms.

You, being in a strong shock, only slowly batted her eyelashes, mentally asking. "What have you forgotten in this place for obvious outsiders?" To tell the truth, the people around had quite similar expressions of emotions. Munson clicked his tongue irritably, looking around the room with a heavy gaze. As if under his influence, the onlookers reluctantly returned to their original business, resuming conversations.

— Do you want to join our music group? We have a vocalist, but only a guy. With a female voice, the songs will sound, well, cooler or something. It's going to be great. — Eddie was just glowing with enthusiasm, even his hands were shaking with excitement. Noticing that Mary was clearly doubtful, the guy quickly added. — If you dont like it, tell me right away, I'll buy you something delicious as compensation.

You laughed loudly, not understanding how not to succumb.

***

Along with the start of high school, it was time for new responsibilities and new challenges. You had been a member of a musical group for a long time, genuinely enjoying it. During all this time, you managed to visit countless contests and talent shows with new friends, of course, not only to see his charming smile.

Eddie Munson became the most dazzlingly beautiful part of your life. During the spring exams, he still looked ready for everything and set up only for the best outcome. With an incalculable number of witty jokes in reserve, he whispered something hilarious and gently hugged you by your thin shoulders, without realizing that this gave him the strength to move on. His embrace was warm and soothing, even the smell of cigarettes, which you were always complaining about, tickled your nose pleasantly.

— Tomorrow will be better, you'll do your best. —Eddie assured hoarsely, and you were ready to believe him without hesitation, nodding absently and squeezing the edge of a battered jeans.

When he started dealing drugs, you thought it was a bad joke. He thought too correctly, treated life too honestly to push stupid schoolchildren nonsense. It was definitely some kind of misunderstanding between you and him.

It turned out that there was too much misunderstanding in your head.

— There are problems with money in the family. — Eddie said firmly and dryly, as if he had memorized a phrase, without looking up at you. — Uncle works hard, but this is not enough, and they pay little at regular work. I need money.

You raised your eyebrows in disbelief, biting your lip hard. Even the sharp pain did not sober you up, only caused unbidden tears. You quickly wiped them off with the sleeve of the jacket, making sure that Eddie didn't see it. When you cried, he became frighteningly unpredictable.

— I'll borrow as much as I want, let's just finish this, mhm? — your voice sounded too plaintive, forcing Eddie to look at her anxiously. — I'll ask to borrow from my parents, they can give quite a lot. I can also get a job, and on weekends I can sing in some eateries. We can solve this problem, Eddie, we're..

— In a big fucking debt, honey. — he smiled bitterly, gently ruffled your hair. — I'm already a grown boy, respect my decisions.

Without waiting for an answer, Eddie impulsively hugged you — his girlfriend, burying his nose in the top of your head. You could only silently swallow salty tears and listen to the rapid beating of his heart. You should have confessed — more than anything in the world, you were afraid of losing him forever.

***

The closer the end of school life was, the more strangely your friends looked at you, as if expecting something. You often stayed overnight in Eddie's trailer, relentlessly falling asleep over a pile of textbooks and notebooks scattered everywhere. All attempts to pull the guy up on the most problematic subjects ended the same way — you woke up covered with a prickly, but very warm blanket, and met the same studying gaze of dark brown eyes. The smell of freshly brewed coffee was in the air, and Eddie, in order to overcome the obvious awkwardness, began to make fun of the your sleepy appearance, comparing you to a lost kitten. You blushed, feeling the heat rush to your cheeks, and indignantly threw pillows to Munson's infectious laughter. If it were possible, you would have settled in the trailer forever.

— When will you confess to him already? — Dustin casually throws a very sensitive topic into the dialogue after a joint game of the Hellfire Club. He is standing with you on the street and is clearly in no hurry to get home, patiently waiting.

You turn your head in panic, trying to make sure that the rest of the club members have already scattered in different directions, especially Eddie Munson. You sigh raggedly, runs your hand through the hair and looks skeptically at the boy. For some reason, the absurd thought occurs to you that Henderson looks older than you.

— When he confesses to me. — you tries to avoid a direct answer and crosses her arms over her chest. — Remind me how many girls you confessed to, the great Hawkins psychologist.

Dustin snorts disapprovingly, shifting his gaze to his friend. You were wearing his jacket, his rings, and even, damn it, his shoes.

— And you remind me when your legs have grown so much that you now wear men's shoes. — the boy retorts, watching with pleasure how your always pale face turns red. — Keep in mind, you are dear to me, but such a miracle of nature needs to be studied in the laboratory.

— Shut up. — you groan exhausted, covering your face with hands. — I wouldn't have reached home in my shoes, Eddie himself offered his shoes. Henderson guffaws hysterically, asking through laughter— And what, Eddie, like, will he come in heals?

Exactly. He doesn't carry a change of shoes with him, like a decent schoolboy.

***

— You're a jerk. — you said maliciously, the next day seeing Munson sitting in the dining room as if nothing had happened. — If you decide to do something so thoughtless and stupid again, I'll kill you with your own shoes.

Eddie watched you swearing with an ill-concealed smile, leaning his head on his hand. When you had finished slandering, he flicked you lightly on the nose and turned to the food.

— It's all right, actually, a friend dropped me off in a car, I didn't walk barefoot — the guy stammered, as if catching himself in a lie. — Well, I didn't walk most of the way. A third, probably.

You said nothing and rolled your eyes indignantly, catching Dustin's boring gaze on you. He theatrically played with his eyebrows, looking first at you, then at Eddie, which caused you to show him the middle finger and go to eat somewhere else.

But then Chrissy Cunningham came into our lives. A sunny, cheerful girl who was the personification of innocence. You sincerely considered her a younger sister, too soft-hearted for a school where other children are so mercilessly bullied. When Chrissy started coming to the band's concerts, staying at club meetings and zealously trying to understand the meaning of D&D, you found it cute. Finally, you will have those who will support you in any endeavors.

And a few weeks later, Eddie Munson proudly announced to the entire dining room that he was dating Chrissy Cunningham.

Sunny Girl playfully took everything you ever had.

You decided to choose a favorite tactic since high school — she decided to endure and smile. The sedatives were tasteless, tasted unbearable bitterness and caused only nausea. If you could laugh, you would have burst out laughing at the fact that all the Hawkins pharmacists now know you by name and by sight, like an old good friend. While Lucas and Mike exchanged worried glances, and Dustin tried to hide the pills away unnoticed, you buried yourself deeper into the ground. You were drowning in pain, and even sitting in the bathroom up to your elbows in blood, it seemed to you that everything that was happening was unreal. As if tomorrow you would wake up again, covered with a prickly blanket, and Eddie would grumble that you were too dependent on coffee.

You really didn't want to go to the party. You knew who would be there and knew that seeing them once again would be a sophisticated torture, a new kind of masochism. But Dustin begged you to come all week, even during one of the attempts he managed to cry. You enthusiastically praised his acting skills, but did not promise anything. You didn't know how to pretend, and it was useless in front of Eddie — he read your emotions like a book.

Listening to the pathetic attempts of insults from a classmate, you mentally made a note never to follow Dustin Henderson's lead again in your life.

After an impressive number of nervous breakdowns this month, you were ready to swear that you were going to get angry and break his nose.

— I've endured Munson's company for so long, and he chose a prettier female? — the guy drawled, pretending to be pitiful, shaking his head.

— One more word, asshole, and I'll tell the head teacher about who really throws vulgar letters to the girls in the lockers. — you made a mocking grimace and pushed a classmate in the chest, freeing up a place for yourself to pass.

What was said was a real bluff, but you still hit the mark — you understood from the very beginning who was the sickest pervert in their school. Fleetingly looking up in the direction where the company of their club was standing, you raised your eyebrows in surprise. Eddie wasn't there anymore.

***

Can you imagine, some hero of our school kicked that freak who was climbing up to the girls at the party! — Dustin exclaimed enthusiastically in a conversation with you, almost jumping up from an overabundance of emotions — His nose is broken and, it seems, something else, but this idiot doesn't even remember who it was!

You let out a laugh, covering your mouth with the hand. You were rather amused not by the fact that your yesterday's abuser got what he deserved, but by how elated Dustin looked. His eyes shone with genuine joy, as if he was the one who dealt with your classmate. Gently patting the boy on the head, you lifted the corners of your lips, but your sickly look did not disappear, judging by how hard Henderson squeezed your hand.

— You should tell him. — Dustin said slowly, trying to gauge your reaction. — Your silence is too expensive, it can't go on like this.

You raised your head to the sky, barely restraining the urge to burst into shameful tears. You missed the old days so much, the late-night conversations and warm hugs, his voice, which gave off a strange but attractive hoarseness in the early morning, his virtuoso guitar playing and the same virtuoso jokes in the most difficult times. But your respected Eddie's choice, even if it wasn't you.

— At first I thought he was just not interested in a relationship with anyone. — you laughed hysterically, causing Dustin to shiver through his body. — And now it turned out that he was just interested in Chrissy. She's good, they're both incredibly lucky. I was just imagining things in my head, and then I believed it myself. Idiot.

***

— Something's going on with you. — Munson muttered, asserting rather than asking, tentatively touching your haggard cheek with his hand. — Have you been crying? I can make coffee.

You jerked as if from a blow, forcing Eddie to immediately remove his palm and look at his best friend in complete incomprehension. Frankly speaking, now your words about intensive preparation for exams seemed to the guy the most obvious lie in the world.

How could he believe you? You had never been able to lie plausibly.

— Just tell me the name of the person who upset you. You can only use the first syllable, I'll just deal with all the similar ones. Just don't be silent, I'm asking you, let's solve this together and discuss it.

Eddie's words hurt and unexpectedly pricked the heart, recalling the fiery speech of you after you learned about his new job related to the sale of substances. Munson's concern tormented the soul, because it was connected only with warm feelings for a friend.

— I fell in love. — you confessed with tragic anguish in your voice, gritting her teeth. — If you were in my place, you would cry too.

You can't tell him. It cannot spoil those precious relationships that have been scrupulously built over so many years. Can't interfere with his happiness, his future. It would be cruel and heartless towards the most native part of her broken soul.

— I'll bet I'll never cry because of some girl. You're wasting your energy and strength on unnecessary thoughts about some jerk, just forget it. — despite the joking tone, it was clear how much the guy was worried. — Let's have a coffee with you, and I also found a cool cassette with an interesting movie. Faster, faster, faster.

Eddie deftly picked up his friend in his arms, spun around the trailer and, not paying the slightest attention to your protests, threw you right on the wide sofa, throwing pillows. You laughed, leaning your head back on the soft blanket and with an expression of hopeless love watched Munson leave.

— I bet! — she shouted, sniffing and jumping under the blanket. — One day you will cry because you can't be with a cool girl, absolutely everyone goes through this stage.

The answer to you were a playful laugh from the kitchen.

***

And then Chrissy Cunningham died. A charming girl with deep blue eyes, who quickly became the soul of the whole company, was declared dead, and Eddie became the first suspect. Most of the school were very willing to believe in his guilt, without even trying to reflect. How convenient it is when you can legitimately justify your hatred, isn't it. You were barely deterred by Dustin from your attempts to lash out at every schoolboy who spread rumors with sadistic pleasure, throwing more and more accusations towards Munson. You would tear them all apart and never regret it.

Eddie looked terribly broken, and at the slightest glance at him, you already wanted to cry. His confused, faded eyes looked through you, somewhere far away, as if on that fateful day. He didn't talk much, avoided eye contact, and he wasn't joking at all. With all his appearance, the guy showed that it was better not to ask him about anything. You weren't going to.

— I believe you. — you said firmly, sitting down next to your friend. — Whatever you say, I know it's true, and I'm on your side anyway. If the police need my testimony, then no problem, you won't be charged for something you didn't do. I won't let you.

Eddie didn't say anything, although you didn't expect an answer, in silence he put his head on your shoulder and closed his eyes. Now it became much more difficult to stay in the usual position, but you persevered, despite the discomfort. If this is what you can do for him, then you are ready to sit like this all night, weightlessly touching his curly hair with your palm.

After learning about the true cause of Chrissy's death the next day, you thought that she was overexcited and delusional hallucinations began. But not believing in the existence of Vecna was equivalent to not believing all your friends who looked frighteningly serious. To come to terms with the fact that it is necessary to save the city, you were helped by several doses of sedatives and a good slap to herself in front of the bathroom mirror. Risking your life was scary to the point of trembling at the knees, but you would not forgive yourself if children started fighting instead of you.

***

— If there is a need to choose me or him, you choose him. — you narrowed your eyes threateningly, turning to Dustin. — If Eddie starts being a hero, you take him in your arms and run as fast as you can. Without. Looking back.

A couple of minutes ago, the conversation between Munson and you did not end very well — they did not want to take you into the team, so you screamed and defended her position during the entire dialogue with Eddie. You didn't even know what was more offensive — the fact that everyone approved Dustin's candidacy without any problems, or the fact that the rest were able to convince the adamant guy.

In any case, you trusted Henderson. The boy has a mind and definitely will not climb his chest into the embrasure for any reason, doubts of this type were only about Munson, who recently frightened the girl with his behavior. You did not put pressure on the guy and did not ask for details — he described Chrissy's death in a few words, and they were enough to imagine the degree of horror of any person in his place.

There was no question of a confession of feelings after the incident. You were disgusted at the thought that you would thereby try to replace Cunningham. You had never been such a bright girl.

— I've known Eddie for a very long time, so I can say with confidence that he's much more selfless than you think. — there was a silence, and Dustin shook his head thoughtfully. — Just don't let him be stupid, I'll deal with the rest. I have the keys to the trailer, we will close and not let him run to the feat.

Henderson agreed, ignoring the bad feeling in his chest. — You'll owe me something delicious.

***

The flying toothy creatures were the most disgusting thing you have ever seen. They made nauseating sounds, cutting the ear, and were barely perceptible because of their speed. After Eddie successfully attracted the attention of these monsters, you gently pushed Dustin in the shoulder, forcing him to distract from his thoughts.

— Too early. — the boy waved off, not even deigning to look at his friend. — We're running in thirty seconds. Stay where you are.

You ignored Henderson's commanding tone, already knowing what kind of beating you would give him after. You felt like an adult, of course. You would have been happy to believe it if the commander-in-chief of their company hadn't had his knees shaking while he counted down the remaining time.

— Let's go! — Dustin shouted, turning to Eddie, who had already managed to react and start escaping. — Faster, faster!

You swung your homemade spear with force and pierced through one of the monsters aiming at the boy's back. Deliberately slowing down a little to see the others, you noticed how Eddie also slowed down. Our gazes met, and Munson narrowed his eyes disapprovingly, grabbing you by the palm, and then pushing you forward. Dustin could have sworn that his wayward friends had just mentally exchanged something very secret. You could tell by the eyes.

— I'll run after you and Dustin, it's not up for discussion.

Well.. it's started.

***

Demonic creatures almost in a matter of seconds bit into the surface of their shelter, trying to get inside. It took you a lot of willpower to fight the growing panic — the creatures would burst in from second to second.

— Dustin, come on up! — Eddie took the initiative, constantly shifting his gaze from the entrance to the trailer to his friends. — Y\N, you're next.

You knew Munson's emotions too well for his behavior not to arouse suspicion in you. He was thinking about something feverishly, and you didn't like it.

— Now it's my turn to be the last. — you replied coldly, swallowing nervously. Dustin, upstairs, frowned at the bridge of his nose in utter incomprehension.

Eddie grimaced with displeasure, shuddering all over from the sharp impact of the monsters on the roof. He gently grabbed you by the shoulders and leaned slightly towards you, matching your height. His dark brown eyes looked so pleading for the first time.

— Please. Please, for the first and last time.

And she gave in.

Having barely climbed the rope, if the rags tied together can be called that, you caught your breath hard, putting your hand to the chest. Henderson breathed a sigh of relief, feeling joy because of the successful resolution of the conflict. And then he screamed.

Damn Eddie Munson cut the rope and threw back the mattress, depriving himself and his friends of the opportunity to go to another world. Only here you didn't calculate a little what an enraged you is capable of.

— He's fucked up. — you whispered, convulsively building a tall structure of chairs, pillows and other objects at hand. — Jump after me, I'll lay you a mattress on the other side. Everything is as agreed yesterday.

The boy nodded eagerly. And you were ready to give him a bonus for the fact that he never asked stupid questions.

It was very painful to land, but there was no time left to feel sorry for yourself. Eddie did not have time to leave the trailer, bending down for his previously discarded weapon. Probably, he did not expect the appearance of friends, because when you fell, who completely knocked off your knees, Munson cursed loudly, rushing to you.

— Dustin! — you took advantage of the guy's hitch and deftly pushed the mattress into place, hoping that Henderson managed to climb onto a pile of chairs. And so it happened — the boy fell next to you a second later, and then clung tightly to Munson.

— Are you crazy?! — Dustin shouted, deafening absolutely everyone present. — Where did you climb, you idiot, I knew it, I knew it!

The trailer swayed, already yielding strongly to the pressure of the bats, who did not stop scratching their claws on the roof. You pursed your lips and looked at the two people you loved, blood began to pound deafeningly in your temples. You had come to this feeling long before today, it was just a good moment to admit it.

The last thing you saw before you ran out of the house and locked the front door was his brown eyes.

***

You didn't remember exactly how you ended up on Eddie's lap. It seems that he moved you to him from the damp ground, unintentionally dropping cold tears on the pale face of you. They gave at least a little of the desired coolness — You felt as if your body was burning with fire.

— Remember, you and I bet that you would never cry because of a girl. — you smiled radiantly, tears stood out at the corners of your eyes, — So you lost, Munson. You owe me one wish.

Eddie couldn't smile back at you. With shaking hands, he held the bleeding wound on your stomach tightly, as if it could really help somehow. Your body was wounded through and through.

— I agree, I agree, just let you make me a wish tomorrow. — Munson obediently nodded, his hoarse voice trembled treacherously. — Let me make coffee tomorrow, and you make a wish, we haven't watched the movie yet.

Mary shook her head slightly reproachfully, touching the guy's wet cheek with a barely moving hand. Eddie immediately clung to her palm, blissfully closing his eyes and exhaling raggedly.

— No, I'll make my wish now. — you gently objected, noticing how Manson frowned in disbelief, hope was still burning in his eyes. — You should meet a good one in the future, such as Chrissy, who can make you happy. You have to give her love and never, ever leave her alone, because without you she will be unbearable. I must not regret anything and continue to play the guitar. You haven't forgotten that our band is playing next Friday, have you?

Your breathing became very rapid, as you had to spend a lot of energy on such a large number of words. You smiled bitterly when a thick veil suddenly covered her eyes. Everything was obvious.

— I've already met a girl, I don't need another one. — Eddie protested in despair, but only a hoarse voice escaped from his throat. He realized that Carter hadn't looked him in the eye for a long time, and this realization finally finished him off—Chrissy asked me to meet her for show, because her ex couldn't calm down in any way.

You open your mouth in confusion, feeling a familiar metallic taste on your tongue. The tears had long since ended, so you could only shudder soundlessly in the arms of a loved one, rocking you from side to side, as if lulling you to sleep.

— She will laugh when I tell her what I have lost in my life. — the attempt to smile again ended with a cough with blood, Munson bent over you even more, gently stroking her face with his palm.

— No, you won't tell her. — he clenched his teeth tightly, stubbornly unwilling to give in. — You must be the first to congratulate me on graduating from the damn school, you said so yourself. I'm a jerk and I'm a coward because I was terrified of your rejection, and then you started to get tired of studying for exams, and I thought it would be selfish to burden you with something else. Let's go to the movies this weekend, huh?

You felt a terrible drowsiness, which was almost impossible to fight. It rolled in waves, confusing absolutely all thoughts and making it difficult to concentrate. The only thing you regretted was that you had lost the opportunity to see Eddie one last time before succumbing to the desire to fall asleep.

— Kiss me. — you whispered with your lips, subconsciously feeling the rapid approach of something inexplicable.

His lips were soft, but really icy. You squeezed your eyes shut with boundless pleasure, feeling Eddie's palms on your face. Gentle touches again and again awakened that sweet thrill in the chest that always arose in his presence.

— I'm happy. — you said on an exhale, without opening your eyes. — Because I'm in the arms of my first and last love.

Eddie Munson will never fulfill your wish.

[paintbynumberseven]

The Vecna Club

[devondespresso]

realizing they probably didn't make eddies death bad so they could revive him but because for sone reason they think making deaths really stupid and nonsensical in-universe is the same as a death being sad and gut-punching because they did the same god damn thing to bob

like. bobs death was supposed to make us sad and feel like he was taken from us unfairly because thats the impact it has on joyce. but to do that they decided he should make it through the entire god-damned lab unscathed so he can stand there gawking at joyce like a dumbass just waiting around to get attacked by a demodog. he stands there with the only thing between him and the dogs is one flimsy ass door and he just loiters around taking his sweet time, living it up as a sitting duck.

want people to feel like a character was taken from them suddenly and unfairly? make the death smart. make something happen from the environment or the timing or something completely out if their control that fucking sucks but you know theres no way out. characters making stupid choices for the sole purpose of making the scripted thing happen is the worst possible option.

and its not like they don't know how to write good deaths. barb and chrissys deaths (as much as i miss my girls) were well written. i felt their absence and i missed them with the characters in universe but i never felt like their deaths were cheap. and i still desperately wish chrissy lived because i love her but i still appreciate her death scene because it was really well handled.

[siblingskissing]

Buckingham Inspired Stimboard!

Feel free to request!

(also before anyone accuses me of saying robin is bisexual because of the colors- I actually headcanon them both as lesbians (though I do also like bisexual Chrissy), I just like these colors)

[darkphoenix180]

I can't believe we're already on the final round! I hope everyone that voted on these polls enjoyed voting on them every week. Let me know if you'd like me to do more of these polls or if you'd like me to do another ST poll. If you do please comment what show or movie you'd like me to do next.

[whataboutthefish]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Stranger Things (TV 2016) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Chrissy Cunningham/Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson Characters: Chrissy Cunningham, Steve Harrington, Eddie Munson Additional Tags: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Omegaverse, Omega Steve Harrington, Alpha Chrissy Cunningham, Alpha Eddie Munson, Speed Dating, Chrissy/Steve established relationship, Vaginal Sex, Face-Sitting, Knotting Summary:

“Did I fuck up?” Steve asked, his voice tight and on the brink of tears.

“Oh god no, Stevie. You were perfect, you were listening to your omega. Letting me know what you needed. These past days,” she paused to push Steve up, sitting on her lap so she could look him in the eyes. “I’ve been trying to think how I could make it happen for you. Had to search inside of myself to make sure it was right for both of us, but I shouldn’t have left you hanging like this.” she leaned in and kissed Steve on the cheek.

“What did I ask for?” Steve felt small and vulnerable, nervous to even ask but he knew he had to.

“You kept begging for a knot,” she stated simply.

[sp0o0kylights]

Part One

The drive's short one. 

Steve gets out of his car, opening the passenger door for Chrissy and escorting her up to the house, quietly envisioning what Jason would look like if a real monster got him.

What would he say, staring down the crazy, five-starred head, filled with teeth and drool? Would he turn back? Or run?

(Steve swears he doesn't take great pleasure in imagining Carver getting eaten, but he'll admit to taking a little.)  

"Chrissy do you have any idea--oh." Mrs. Cunningham startles, grasping her robe at the front as she spots Steve standing next to her daughter.  

"Hi Miss Cunningham." He says.

"Hello." She says suspiciously. "And who are you?"

"I'm Steve Harrington, ma'am." He watches as her mother straightens immediately at his name, and sinks right into the ol' Harrington charm, knowing instantly it will work. "I know you were expecting Jason, but I'm afraid he wasn't able to drive Chrissy home." 

"Oh, Steve! It's so late I almost didn't recognize you." She titters, suspicion gone. "Your mother and I are on the same charity board." 

Of course they were.

"I thought you were dating that nice Nancy girl." She says with a squint that mimics Chrissy's, because even in the midst of a crisis he can't escape the gossip that is Hawkins upper echelon. 

"Nance is waiting in the car." Steve lies smoothly. "I just wanted to make sure Chrissy got home safe." 

"What happened?" Chrissy's father appears, ushering them both in while blatantly peering around them, eyes sweeping the street before closing the door.

Steve recognizes the move. He's checking for nosy neighbors. 

"Jason and I broke up." Chrissy admits.

"What?" 

"We..." She falters in front of her parents. 

"What happened to Jason?" Her father asks, tuning back in once they're safely away from peering eyes.

"I'm afraid Jason and some of his friends brought beer to the party." Steve steps in to explain.  

"Oh Chrissy, it's a high school party. That's no reason to break up with him." Her mother fusses, face flushing in embarrassment. Her eyes dart from her daughter to Steve and back, and Steve knows he needs to start damage control. 

If he plays it right he can burn Jason while he's at it. 

"He was horrible, mom. Just awful." Chrissy says, but Steve can tell she's shrinking under her mothers gaze. 

"He drank quite a lot, Miss Cunningham." With a theatrical wince, Steve turns to face Chrissy's dad, lowers his voice and says "I'm going to have to talk to Coach about it." 

He gets the intended response, which is a raised eyebrow. "That bad, huh?" 

Steve nods once, painting a pained smile on his face. "He made a real fool of himself tonight, Sir. The basketball team has a reputation to uphold." 

"Oh." Mrs. Cunningham says, hand fluttering in front of her face. "I never would have thought…"

"He's normally a good guy. I don't know what got into him." Steve has them both eating out of the palm of his hand, attention neatly off Chrissy and onto the story he's feeding them. 

Its worth it to see her shoulders relax. 

"I couldn't let him take Chrissy home in the state he was in Sir, and he got very…" 

Steve pauses. 

Fills his voice with tempered disappointment, channeling his dad. "Belligerent. Said some nasty things."  

"Really?" Mr. Cunningham says, with a low whistle, and Steve knows by his tone alone that he's bought in.

Hook, line, sinker.

Steve nods once. "I have to get back to my girlfriend, but Chrissy'" He turns earnestly here, to let her know he's not faking this next bit. "Let me know if Jason bothers you at school. I'll set him straight again if I have to." 

"Thank you Steve." Mr. Cunningham says, as Chrissy's mom hustles her daughter towards the kitchen. 

Steve shakes his hand, then waves at Crissy as she calls her own thank you over her shoulder, before disappearing out the door and back to his car.

The same one where Nancy very much isn't. 

That's a problem for tomorrow Steve.

xXx

Tomorrow Steve gets into an argument with Nancy. 

She can't recall that Jonathan took her home, or that he's bullshit, their whole relationship, bullshit--

But she also can't tell him she loves him.

So Steve snaps at her. Storms off.

 Play’s more basketball.

It takes less than two hours for him to get mopey and another three for him to spiral into deciding he was wrong somehow.

That's what his mom said all the time anyway, wasn't it? The man's always wrong Steven, and he's the man here so…

He gets flowers, chocolates, and fucking waylaid (by Dustin Henderson with his Grow a Monster) and things go sideways from there.

 Train tracks and a junkyard and demodogs make time speed up. An encounter with Billy and a dinner plate causes Steve's recollection of the evening to be fuzzy. 

He just knows that in the middle of dodging death, he has the realization that Nance wants to break up with him.

That he should let her. 

Even if it hurts, even if he doesn't want to. 

She wants to be let go.

So Steve does. He respects her, and when he has a moment after its all over, he tells her to go with Jonathan.

(At least he permanently gets the squirts out if this. Or at least everyone but Mike.

Even if most of them are shitheads and one of them's Hargrove's step sister.

It's--something.

But when Dustin keeps pestering him, demanding Steve drive him all over Hawkins and then drags him to the movies, well.

It might be the best something Steve's had in his life so far. )

xXx

"Oh shit. Is that from Caver?" Eddie asks, popping up near Steve's car like the clown in a jack in the box. 

"Carver can't hit for shit. This was Hargrove." Steve replies, attempting an eyeroll before remembering that his entire face is a bruise. 

One, giant, never ending bruise. 

"I guess his step sister gave him the slip to come hang out with these kids I watch sometimes. I didn't know she wasn't supposed to be there." Steve shrugs, because it's the technical truth. 

If you turn it sideways and squint anyway. 

"Asshole tried to threaten the kid Max is into by slamming him into a wall and screaming shit, so I stepped in, and--" He waves at his face. 

The same one he's already getting looks for. 

"I was winning." Steve sighs theatrically. "He broke a plate over my head."

The story seemed to freeze Eddie but he recovers with a quick shake of his head. 

"You poor thing." He tuts. "Let me guess--you were more worried about the hair than the wound?" 

Eddie's hands flutter like he's going to touch Steve's head but he seems to contain himself at the last minute.

The hospital threatened to buzz it for stitches." Steve says darkly, playing into the bit. 

(He had not gone to a hospital. 

None of them had.)  

"What would our King be without his crown of hair?" Eddie laments, in a falsetto that was half insult half oddly sincere. It was jarring in that it was hard to get a read on, but the more Steve was around the guy the less it seemed malicious and the more it came off  as just….goofy.

Eddie Munson, Steve decided, was not a freak.

 He was a dorky little weirdo, just like all the other kids Steve now hung out with. 

Just older, and with slightly better hair. 

"Hey Eddie." Another boy calls out, approaching cautiously. 

He's got a leather jacket on, and if Steve thinks hard enough he can sort of conjure up a memory of the guy at Eddie's lunch table, throwing a piece of bread at a pale sophomore decked out in plaid. "You good man?" 

"Yeah Jeff, just checkin' in on the Hair here." Eddie sticks a thumb towards Steve, who raises his hand and waves. 

The falsetto comes back, somehow higher as the older boy swoons over Steves arm. "Soothing his poor soul after that brute Hargrove almost killed him." 

"Has anyone ever told you you're a lot like Bugs Bunny?" Steve asks, the thought leaving his mouth the instant he had it.

(He doesn't care, it's a legitimate question.) 

It has the effect of making Munson look downright chuffed. "I have actually, but only by my Uncle." 

"Why are you checking in?" Jeff interrupts, before seeming to realize he said it out loud. " Ah, I mean--"

"Oh he didn't tell you?" Steve says, as casually as he can muster. "Eddie claimed me and Chrissy at a party last weekend." 

See Munson? Two people could play the weird bit game. 

They've attracted more of Eddie's friends now, two more boys in leather jackets edging closer like frightened deer. 

(One of which is the aforementioned younger man Jeff threw bread at, and Steve vaguely thinks the guy's name starts with a g.) 

"Apparently we're his minions now." Steve tells Jeff in a rather put upon manner. 

"It was just you, the fair maiden chose otherwise." Eddie counters dismissively, voice dropping down low. 

Steve snorts. Hums a sarcastic; "Like you'd let us choose." 

Eddie finally abandons whatever voice that was supposed to be (a villain, Steve thinks, and wonders if it hurts Eddies throat to drop from a false high to a deep low that quickly.)  to say:

 "Mock me all you like, Harrington, but you can't deny the bit worked." 

Steve automatically went for another eye roll, and gets a flash of pain for it. "Who said I was mocking you, you dork? Just stating facts." 

Yet again, Eddie reacts weird to the comment. He looks almost bashful for a second, before he recovers, tugging his hair in front of his face as he plays with it.

The bell rings once in warning, and Steve makes a face towards the doors. 

"I gotta go, Mrs Clicks out to fail me. See you around, Eddie. Jeff." The way his eyes are bruised up he can't quite make out the face Jeff makes at that, but Steve's pretty sure the guys mouth was open. 

"She's a nasty one, my minion, best stay on your toes around her." Eddie calls, and Steve waves a hand in the air to show he heard. 

"What just happened?" Jeff asks, far too loudly for how close Steve still is. 

It makes him chuckle a bit, even as one of the other guys says something in a far quieter voice that has Munson squawking and flapping his arms like a bird. 

The winding little feelings in his chest squeeze his heart, and Steve shakes his head, refusing to be fond of Eddie Munson. 

xXx

College rejection letters come in, one after the another.

Steve could have made it into a few schools he's certain, except he hadn't really applied to any.

Not that any college other than Penn Hurst mattered. His dad wanted him to be a legacy, come hell or high water.

Steve's punishment was hand picked by his parents, and he gets the sailor outfit his new minimum wage job requires is supposed to be a part of it--that his dad made him apply because it was the most embarrassing thing he could think to subject Steve too-- but honestly? 

It's not that bad. 

Not even with Robin, the manager he met yesterday, and who positively, completely and totally, hates Steve’s guts.  

He figures he has time to win her over. 

All the time in the world, now that demons aren't trying to eat his, or any of the kid's, faces. He can focus on the small things. Build himself back up.

Figure out the person he wants to be, now that he's no longer King Steve. 

It’s the thought that kept him from attending any graduation parties. To go felt like backsliding into old habits. 

‘If the kids--if it comes back again--’ 

Getting drunk at night in a random house seemed almost irresponsible.

Particularly not with people Steve has history with, without anyone he really cares about being present. Certainly not Nance and Jonathan, who he wishes he didn’t know are at some end-of-year game night one of Nancy’s friends is hosting. 

(Steve can’t think about that for a number of reasons. 

When he does--because of course he does-- he makes sure to focus on the weirdness that is Jonathan Byers being someone he cares about, instead of the fact he can’t seem to kill his love for Nancy. 

Or that he's horrifically jealous of their relationship. 

That the best sleep he had ever had was between them, two nights after the lab, when they crammed themselves into Jonathan's bed because they all couldn't quite believe it was over.

That night had been so incredibly weird, but grouping together felt safer. Smarter.

Better.

Not in a way Steve wants to put into words. 

Not in a way he wants to confront at all.) 

His parents hadn’t been able to make it home to watch him walk at his graduation--his father landing a last minute meeting with some important person or other. 

Faked apologies were given, money transferred, and Steve, not wanting to sit in his too-huge house, had meandered to Family Video. 

Tried to forget his father’s cold voice in the background of his mother’s call, loudly announcing he’d have made it a priority to see Steve graduate-- if he’d gotten into Penn Hurst. 

Steve just shakes his head. Pushes those thoughts into the back of his head, into the same place all his other weird thoughts live.

The glare he gets from the tall, pimple-ridden guy working the rental counter was expected.

Chrissy Cunningham, was not. 

"I thought you’d be at one of the parties.” He tells her, when he turns down the romance aisle and finds her staring blankly at a shelf. 

She startles, before recognition flits over her face and a warm smile is directed his way. 

“I'm honestly not a fan of parties." She confides in him, hand clutching a tape in her hands."Not those kinds, anyway.” 

"More slumber parties, less keg stands your speed?" Steve guessed, blatantly turning his head sideways in order to read the title.

She awards him with a wider smile. "Exactly." 

"Chrissy Cunningham. Are you renting Jaws?" He teases, leaning in just a touch.

She flushes, but turns and squares up to him. Steve's delighted to see it. 

"Why yes I am. I'll do you one better and even admit it's one of my favorite movies." 

Steve grins at her, and sees the way she lights up on response, eyes bright. 

This is the Chrissy that Carver had tried to kill. The strength and pure fun that radiates off her enhances the beauty she has to something almost otherworldly. 

Steve has seen enough beauty in his life to recognize when it will stay. That Chrissy wil one day be 80 years old, with gray hair and knit sweaters, and she'll still be able to light up a room. 

"Like sharks killing people that much huh?” He teases. And it’s easy, slipping into this part of himself around her. The part he’s been trying to get back. 

The confidence that he walked with, before monsters crawled out of the ground, and Nancy put a hole in his heart.

"I'll let you in on a secret. ." Chrissy leans in, dropping her voice low enough that Steve has to lean in a bit too to hear. "My favorite character is the shark." 

Steve playfully gapes at her, and for the first  time in a long time, feels like things will be okay. 

He’ll be okay.

He won’t be King Steve. He’s not Nancy's Boyfriend Steve either--but someone else. Himself.

A Steve who exists outside of Hawkins High, outside his family name. 

He likes it.

"I told you that was his car. Steve!" A too familiar voice calls and Steve can't mask the despair that hits him as he turns to his (now least) favorite shithead, whose storming through Family Video’s doors. 

"Dustin." He identifies, with an edge to his voice he can only pray Chrissy doesn't pick up on. "Other brats. What are you doing?" 

Mike stands stubbornly at Dustin's right, Lucas nervous at his left. 

Will Byers is situated next to Mike but Steve's not as familiar with him, and has no idea how to interpret the kid. 

If he had to guess based on the face he’s being sent, Will’s more nervous then the rest--but equally determined. 

(This does not make Steve feel better. It in fact, somewhat convinces them they’ve run headfirst back into trouble.) 

"Well we were going to go to Lucas’s, but now, we're bumming a ride from you!" 

"I'm busy." He says flatly. 

"Ste~eeeve!" 

"I didn't know you had a brother." Chrissy says, hand covering her mouth. 

Looking back at her, Steve's pretty sure she's trying to physically hold back laughter. 

If one could shoot lasers with their eyes, Steve would be nailing Dustin for ruining--whatever it was that was happening here. 

"He's a rescue" Steve says flatly. "It’s not working out though. We're planning on returning him to the shelter.” 

"Wow Steve." Dustin returns, offended. "First of all, if anyone's rescuing anyone I rescued you, or did you suddenly forget that you show up to family dinner every Thursday at my house like a sad orpha--mmpphh!" 

‘Mmpphh’ because Steve had taken several long strides across the store to smack his hand over Dustin's mouth. 

"Sorry Chrissy, it would appear the asshole children I am paid to babysit escaped whoever is supposed to be watching them." He shakes Dustins head, in lue of strangling him. “Hit me up later we’ll discuss the shark’s best kills.” 

“Will do.” Chrissy says, as Steve begins the process of shoving his four smaller friends out the door. “Drive safe!” 

“No you don’t, and you’re gonna prove it by swinging through McDonalds for us.” Dustin sing-songs, swinging himself into the passenger side of the Beemer. 

“You assholes owe me, big time.” Steve hisses, as Lucas and Mike instantly begin making kissy faces the second they’re out into the parking lot. "I had plans tonight!"

“Do you have McDonalds money?” Steve asks, only to immediately wince at himself because fuck did he just sound like a soccer mom. 

“I have money I took out of my mom’s wallet.” Mike says as he settles into the car with his friends.

“Fine.” Steve sighs in defeat, starting the car. 

He determinedly does not ask if the idiots walked here, because there is a suspicious lack of bicycles, if only because he hit his mom quota for the day and Steve refuses to say anything else that might edge out his cool persona.

The one he swears he still has.

Supposedly. 

("Does my mom really pay you to watch me?" Dustin asks a while later, when the other brats are distracted. His voice is painfully honest, and softer than it normally is. 

"In food, yes." Steve says, because he’s not that much of an asshole--and maybe, because Dustin is truly his only friend right now.

Steve honestly looks forward to those Thursday dinners, helping Ma Henderson and having her fuss over him in a way his parents never had. 

In a way no one ever had. 

Dustin lands a solid kick to his ankle, making Steve curse. "That's not payment you ass!"

"Ow, God Dustin--" 

"Just admit you're my actual friend, you dick!" 

"Language! I swear your mom stole you from wolves, you animal--" Steve swatted at him. 

Maybe, possibly later, he will go on to admit that yes, Dustin is his friend. 

He will even agree to making up a stupid handshake for it. 

It involves lightsabers and gore at least, which Steve insists is very cool.)

[shushmal]

just in case ya'll forgot, i love you eddie munson. i love you steve harrington. i love you robin buckley. i love you fandom-created wayne munson and corroded coffin boys. i love you buckleys that are specific to my headcannons. i love you sinclair family. i love you max mayfield. i love you dustin henderson. i love you robin buckley. i love you jonathan byers. i love you joyce byers. jim hopper, you're on thin ice. i love you eleven. i love you eddie munson. i love you crissy cunningham. i love you argyle. i love you nancy wheeler, specifically as portrayed in the show and rarely in fan-works. i love you will byers. i love you season 1-2 mike wheeler. season 3-4 mike wheeler, you are on thin ice but im sorry what they did to you my homie. i love you lucas sinclair specifically. i love you erica sinclair also specifically. i love you steve harrington!!!!!!!!

[asexualasshat]

Fandom: Stranger Things (TV 2016)

Relationships: Robin Buckley & Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley/Chrissy Cunningham

Characters: Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley Chrissy Cunningham, Eddie Munson Mentioned

Additional Tags: Platonic Stobin, Post Season 3, Hurt/Comfort, Platonic Soulmates Robin Buckley & Steve Harrington, Platonic Soulmates, canon typical violence mentioned, first chapter is platonic stobin, takes place 2 days after starcourt, Chapter 1 is Canon Compliant, chapter two is buckingham, takes place shortly after season four, except Eddie and Chrissy are alive and mostly fairly well, First Kiss, Lesbian Robin Buckley, Bisexual Chrissy Cunningham, Eddie and Steve are implied to be close but we don't get into it, Getting Together, Buckingham - Freeform, Robin has a crush on Chrissy, Crissy has a crush on Robin, Fluff, it's mostly fluff with mentions of the awful things they've each been through, healing together Jason Carver Being an Asshole, Past Jason Carver/Chrissy Cunningham

Summary

Saving the world is the easy part. Recovering after? Feeling safe again? That's when it gets tricky.

Excerpt:

“Steve was right, your window is really easy to get it through.”

Robin startled, barely stopping herself from falling off the bed. The second she righted herself, she rushed towards the window to help Chrissy the rest of the way in. “You climbed up here with a broken arm?” she whispered, shock not disappearing in the low volume.

“Sort of. Steve helped boost me.” Chrissy said, gesturing out the window

“Steve boosted-” she stumbled over to look outside. Steve stood right by her tree, waving up as soon as he spotted her. She shot him an incredulous look. He only whisper-shouted back that he loved her before scampering off.

[mvltixcc]

Girls Like Girls - Robin Buckley X Cheerleader!Reader

Summary: Robin has a crush on the new girl in town. Y/N is also a new member of the cheer squad, which means Robin sees her all the time at games and other school events. Unfortunately, Robin is put in a tough situation. She's scared to talk to her because the cheerleaders have a reputation of being mean girls and she fears that Y/N may not feel the same. Little does Robin know that Y/N does not appear as she seems. Y/N becomes best friends with Eddie, which seems unlikely at the surface due to different social circles. This leads to rumors of course and word spreads like wildfire here at Hawkins, which then makes Robin's feelings even more confusing. After hanging out with Steve and the gang, Robin starts to see a different side to Y/N. Will they end up together or will they just remain friends?

Word Count: 4.4k

Pinterest board for inspiration

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Things had been a little peaceful at school since the night of prom. Chrissy and everyone else involved in the paint prank got suspended for some time. Eddie was the happiest about this as the ones that were suspended picked on him more than anyone. When they were finally able to come back, they had to issue an apology to you and Robin, anyone that was hit with the paint, and the janitors as well. Their parents also had to pay for the banners to be replaced as some were splattered with paint. Everyone dreaded the day they were coming back to school. No one knew how things were going to be once they came back. Would things go back to the way things were? Would things change for the better? No one knows and that thought alone scared a lot of people. 

You knew that people could be cruel just for the fun of it or because they could be. But for Chrissy, you knew it was deep rooted. You never excused her behavior because she still treated people horribly and you always stuck up for those she picked on. Chrissy picked on people because she wanted others to feel just as miserable as she was at home. You knew of this secret, but never told a soul. While you were on the cheer squad, everyone thought you were like her and the other girls that followed in her footsteps. But the difference between the two of you, is that you would have never stooped to the level that Chrissy did by using a secret against her. While she should be punished for her awful behavior to others, it wouldn’t be by your hands. Her karma would come and that day came sooner rather than later.

A few weeks had passed before the big day that no one looked forward to. You and Robin had walked into school and were immediately met by Principal Higgins. 

“Good morning to you both, I need you to follow me into my office please.” He said sternly. You and Robin followed hesitantly. 

“Here we are.” Higgins said as he held open his office door. “Please take a seat.” You entered and saw Chrissy sitting there. You sat down and Robin followed.

“I think you both know why I’ve called you in here.” He stated looking at the three of you sitting before him. You all nod in response. “The floor is yours Ms. Cunningham.”

Chrissy let out a sigh. “I’m sorry for potentially harming you and trying to ruin your prom night by dumping a bucket of paint on you Carrie style. It was immature of me to do and it will never happen again.”

“Now that wasn’t so hard was it?” Higgins asked.

“Is that all you needed us for?” You asked. You didn’t want to hear anything from Chrissy and Robin sure as hell didn’t care either.

“Uh yes, that’s all.” He said taken a back.

“Okay then, well we better get to class. Our exams are coming up and I don’t wanna miss anything.” You say standing up. Robin followed after you as well as Chrissy. “Hey, I’ll meet you there.” You told Robin, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

“What are you-” Robin began to ask but then soon caught on as she saw Crissy at her locker. “I’ll see you in class, just be careful.” Robin gave your hand a gentle squeeze. You nodded and parted ways.

“Cunningham, wait up.” You said making your way over to the girl.

“What do you need?” She asked softly.

“I need you to do me a favor.” You stated. She nodded for you to continue. “Chrissy, I know you have shit going on in your life, but it’s no excuse to treat people the way that you do. Maybe this will teach you to be kinder to people. Now, I want you and your friends to also apologize to Eddie for they way you’ve treated him and leave him alone for good.”

“Yeah I can do that. I’m sorry once again.” She said with sincerity in her voice.

“Oh and one last thing.” You said, moving closer so that only she could hear you. “Stay the hell away from my girlfriend or else we’re gonna have some serious problems.” She nods to you and you make your way to class.

“Everything okay?” Robin asked as you walked into class. 

“It should be now.” You say giving her a small smile.

“What does that even mean?” She asked with concern. 

“Good morning class! Today we will be doing more study packs to prepare you for your final exam! This time you can pair up in a group, just make sure you are actually studying this time!! The final exams are a big portion of your grades!” The teacher stated. 

“Yeah Eds!” You joked to him. 

“Hey!” He laughed. 

You, Robin, and Eddie grouped up and started to work on the packet for the rest of class.

“Hold on, why the hell does Greg have so many damn apples?” Eddie asked jokingly. 

“Really Munson, THAT'S what you’re worried about?! Not even finding the root of X to find out how many apples he ate?” Robin laughed.

“Oh I‘m sorry, are you telling me that if someone had THIS many apples you wouldn’t question it?!” He replied.

“No you goof, maybe they really like apples. Did you ever think about that hmm?” Robin teased back. The two of them continued to banter back and forth the rest of the period.

“So are we still on for Hellfire tonight?” Dustin asked Eddie. 

“Of cour-” Eddie started to say.

“No!” You interrupted. “You have to study Edward!” 

Eddie let out a large groan. “Can’t I just wing the test like I do every year?” 

“Look how far that got you dude.” Jeff said.

“Ugh fine, I’ll study.” Eddie sighed. 

“Perfect! It’ll be you, Nancy, Robin, and myself. We’ll meet at my place after school. Just make sure you bring your books this time. Oh, and snacks too!” You say. 

“Yeah yeah yeah, I’ll bring the snacks. Don’t I always?” Eddie joked. The rest of you continued to eat your lunch until the bell rang. 

Normally you would have gym right now, but since it was still a mess from the paint they granted everyone a free period. You went to the quiet little spot that Eddie showed you when the two of you became friends. It was in the woods just outside of the school grounds and it had a little picnic table. How it got there you still aren't sure. You knew Eddie used it for his deals, but you used it to be by yourself and clear your head. Before you made your way there, you stopped by your car to grab your Walkman and your headphones. You laid on the seat just listening to your music and staring up at the trees, just thinking and enjoying the nature around you. Those thoughts were soon interrupted by a thud. 

“There you are, peach!” Eddie exclaimed as he stood above you. 

You turned off your music and began to sit up. “Here I am!” You giggled. 

“What are you doing out here all by yourself?” He questioned as he sat next to you.

You moved closer to him and set your head on his shoulder. “Just thinking.”

“Thinking about?” He asked.

“Life and how crazy it’s been.” You chuckled.

You both sat together like this until your watch alarm went off. “Well we better go, don’t wanna be late for class.” You stated standing up from your seat.

“Yeah I guess you're right.” Eddie said following you back to the school.

 For the next month, You, Robin, Nancy, and yes even Eddie studied your asses off everyday after school until it was time to take the final exams. 

“Y/N, what if I fail again?” Eddie would often ask you. To say he was nervous about taking the exams would be an understatement. 

“You won’t fail them Eds, you can do this! I know that all of this is really scary, but you’ve been doing well with the practice tests that Nancy printed up for us. I believe in you.” You always tried to reassure him. Despite what people thought of Eddie, he was actually really smart when he set his mind to it.

“I’m just scared I’ll fail again.” He said with a frown.

“Eddie, I’ll be here to support you no matter what. I’m always here for you.” You said giving him a smile to cheer him up.

Once it was finally test week, you all decided that once all the exams were done and you had gotten your grades back, you’d have a big get together of some kind. You would still have your usual traditions with Robin which helped the both of you relax during this time as well. The four of you were confident you would pass, well Eddie not as much, but he was still confident nonetheless. 

“How do you feel, Eddie?” Nancy asked as Eddie approached your group. You all had just finished the last exam.

“Relieved to be done with it.” Eddie said as he let out a sigh.

You were sitting on the hood of your car with your arms wrapped around Robin. “Well what do we do now?” You asked.

“I guess we just relax and wait to get our grades.” Nancy shrugged her shoulders. 

You wouldn’t find out about your grades until next Friday when they sent the results in the mail. Just another week, that wouldn’t kill you right? Well maybe not you, but for Eddie it would eat him alive. All he wanted to do was walk across the stage with his best friends and make those he cared for proud of him. He wanted to feel accomplished, he wanted to show those that doubted him that he COULD do it. 

“Well why don't we meet up on Friday and we can look at our grades together?” You asked. Everyone nodded and agreed to the plan. 

“Well on that note, I’m off to take my girlfriend to lunch! I’ll see you guys on Friday!” You stated hopping off the hood and jumping in the car with Robin. 

“Where are we going for lunch?” Robin asked as you drove.

“Mm I was thinking maybe I could pick up a pizza and we could just hang at my place, how does that sound?” You asked, grabbing her hand gently. 

“That sounds perfect to me.” She said, squeezing your hand and flashing you a smile.

“I do have to make a quick stop before I grab the food though.” You had pulled into the parking lot of the video store. 

“What are we doing here?” Robin questioned.

“You’ll see, stay here beautiful I’ll be right back.” You say giving her a quick kiss. Robin sat and waited in the car upon your return. 

You arrived after a few minutes with a brown bag in your hand. “Alright, you ready to eat?” You asked starting the car again. Robin, still confused as ever, just stared at the item in your lap. You noticed her looking puzzled at your lap and handed her the bag. "Take a look. It’s a gift for Steve.” 

Robin looked in the bag and let out a snort. “Oh he’s gonna hate you for this.”

It was finally the next Friday and you were on the way to the Wheeler’s residence with Robin to open the letters that held your grades. You pulled in the driveway to see Eddie had already arrived. You parked the car and the pair of you made your way to the door. Nancy was already standing there waiting for you both. “Come on, let’s go!” She exclaimed.

“Well someones impatient.” Robin remarked. 

“You haven’t seen Eddie for the past 10 minutes, he’s been pacing back and forth waiting. He’s kind of a mess right now!” Nancy continued as she led the two of you to the basement where Eddie was in fact pacing.

“Oh thank god, let’s get this over with!” Eddie said.

You all stood in a small circle and opened your letters at the same time. It was silent for what felt like forever, even though it was probably just a few seconds. 

“Yes!” Nancy cheered, she had obviously passed.

“Oh thank god!” Robin sighed in relief. She had passed as well.

You had also passed the exams. Now all that was left was Eddie’s results. He just stood there with a blank expression on his face which worried you. “Eds, what is it?” You asked him.

“I- I um.” He spoke softly.

“Well did you pass or what?” Nancy asked. 

“I passed.” Eddie said in disbelief. 

Nancy and Robin looked at him with wide eyes while you pulled him in for a hug. “I knew you could do it, Eds, I’m so beyond proud of you!” You hugged him so tight. 

He hugged you back. You could hear him sniffle and shake a bit. All he ever wanted was to make someone proud of him and feel like he did something good. And the fact that it was coming from his best friend made him feel special. You both pulled away from one another and you wiped away his tears.

“Congrats Munson!” Robin praised, giving him a high five.

“I guess this calls for a celebration!” Nancy exclaimed. 

There was a big party planned at Steve’s house later that night. After all the hard months that you all had put into studying, you all deserved this. Music was going, people were laughing, the energy was good. Everything was perfect. “Oh I almost forgot something, I’ll be right back.” You announced. You made your way to your car and grabbed the gift you had gotten Steve last week. You made your way back to the party and everyone looked at you with a puzzled expression. 

“What the hell is that?” Sam asked.

“It’s for Steve, go ahead and open it!” You say handing him the bag.

“Aww you shouldn’t have, that’s so sweet of-” He smiled as he opened his gift, that smile soon faded. “Alright, I take it back. Screw you Y/N!” He joked.

“What is it?!” Everyone asked with anticipation.

Steve pulled it out of the bag to show everyone, Eddie let out a snort and his drink shot out of his nose. It was a copy of Carrie on VHS. 

“Now why the hell would you get me this Y/N?!” Steve asked jokingly of course.

“What? You said you had never seen it before!” You laughed. Eddie couldn’t stop laughing, he found it truly hilarious. 

While everyone was inside, you pulled Robin outside to have a moment alone with her. You sat at the edge of the pool, the very same spot that you two had confessed your feelings for one another. “Hey pretty lady.” You say, giving her a small kiss on her nose. 

“Hi there, beautiful.” She giggled. “You having a good time tonight?” She asked.

“I’m having an even better time now that I get to sit here with you.” You laid your head on her shoulder. You both had your feet in the pool and just sat and talked.

Robin started to go on about a movie that she had seen the other day and you couldn’t help but just stare at her and smile. She looked beautiful with the moonlight beaming on her. You were thinking about her cute freckles and how you could kiss them for hours on end, how her eyes sparkled when she was talking about the things she was passionate about, and how when she wears her hair up like she was tonight, there was always hair in front of her face and you’d have to move it out of the way for her. She was just perfect to you and was everything you had ever dreamed of. 

She noticed you staring at her and stopped talking about the movie. “What? Oh god, is there something on my face?” She asked frantically, wiping her face. 

You moved her hands out of her face and just held them in yours. “No no, there’s nothing on your face my love.” You giggled. “I just- I just love you so so much. More than anything in this world. You’re my everything Robin.” 

“I love you too, so damn much.” She smiled and kissed your forehead. You both sat there in silence, just enjoying each other’s company in the cool night.

“And with that, congratulations class of ‘86!” Principal Higgins announced. You and the rest of your classmates threw your caps in the air in celebration. The auditorium was roaring with cheers and clapping from all the loved ones that had attended. Everyone had piled out into the parking lot and soon you met with your grandparents.

“We’re so proud of you darling!” Said your nana as she gave you a hug and a kiss, your papa following soon after. You thanked them and looked around for your friends and Robin.

 “And there he is!” Your nana exclaimed as Eddie and his uncle Wayne approached you. She pulled him in for a big hug. Your grandparents loved Eddie as if he was a part of your family. 

“We’re so proud of you Eddie!” Eddie could barely talk, he was fighting back tears all day. He just nodded in response, they knew what a big day this was for not just you, but for Eddie as well. Wayne had the biggest smile on his face all day. He loved and adored Eddie as if he were his son. He couldn’t be more proud of him. 

Before you and Eddie met up with the rest of your friends to celebrate your achievements, you pulled him aside to have a moment with him. 

“Eddie, I’m so beyond proud of you and how far you’ve come. You deserve great things in life, truly you do and I hope you know that. I’m so incredibly grateful to have met you and to have you as not only my best friend, but as someone that I consider family. You mean so much to me, I love you so much Eds.” You say to him. 

He couldn’t hold his tears back anymore. He began to sob and you pulled him in for a hug. You don’t know where you’d be without Eddie. Yes, Robin was your girlfriend, but Eddie was your person. Just like Steve was to Robin. 

“Okay, I think I'm good now.” Eddie said, pulling away from the hug. You handed him a tissue to wipe his eyes and blow his nose.. He didn’t want people to see him be vulnerable, that was a private moment for him and only a few people got to see him like this. You were one of them. Eddie trusted you more than anyone and he knew that you would never judge him or pick on him for the way that he was. He gained his composure and you both made your way to the rest of your friends to continue the celebration.

You and Robin sat in your usual spot in the field at the park having a picnic. It was her turn to pack the lunch and whenever it was her turn, she ALWAYS made sure to pack your favorites. You both had finished eating and were currently laying your head on Robin’s stomach while painting her nails. You giggled to yourself as you saw the tanlines where her rings were. 

“Can I tell you something?” She asked.

“Of course you can my love!” You say looking up at her. 

“I uh, this is gonna sound so stupid. Promise me you won't laugh at me okay?” She said with nervousness.

“I would never laugh at you baby.” You reassured her.

“Well before all of this-” She said, waving her hands around, indicating that she meant everything before you. “I used to think- oh god, I used to think that you were mean and scary.” 

You sat up from your spot and looked at her. “Me?”

She looked down, like she was embarrassed. “Yeah…”

“Now why would you think that you goose?” You chuckled.

“You said you wouldn’t laugh!” She chuckled a bit.

“I’m not laughing at you, I promise! You’re just silly is all! Was it because I was a cheerleader?” You asked.

Robin nodded.

“Well am I still mean and scary now?” You ask as you tickle her. You both fell over and you continued to tickle her. 

“I surrender! I surrender!” She laughed. You both chuckled together for a bit before just laying there. You moved a piece of hair out of her face and pulled her in for a kiss. Robin smiled into the kiss, she was truly happy. The kiss lasted for a bit longer until Robin pulled away. “I have something for you.” She said softly to you. She sat up and pulled a gift she had packed out of the basket. 

“For me?” You ask sitting up. She handed you the gift and you kindly took it from her. You opened it and gasped at what was revealed. “No way!! You didn’t!” You exclaimed quickly unwrapping the rest of the present. Robin giggled. She had gotten you the entire Lord of the Rings book collection, including The Hobbit. 

“This is perfect, thank you my sweet angel!” You thanked and gave her another kiss. 

“You’re very welcome, I wanted to get you something special for graduation. I know you’ve been wanting to read all the books and now you don’t have to borrow Eddie’s beat up copies anymore.” She chuckled. It was true, Eddie’s copies had been through the ringer, he’s read them so much.

“I may have also gotten you a gift.” You say turning to your bag and grabbing a box with a bow on it. 

“What is it?” She asked with a confused look on her face.

“Well open it and find out silly!” You chuckled.

She opened the box and her face lit up. “You remembered!” She said with awe. 

“Of course I did, I was there when it broke, remember silly?” You had gotten her a new chain since her last one broke while at a cookout at Eddie’s. 

“Thank you baby, I love it!” She thanked.

“Here let me help.” You had her turn around so you could help her put it on. “There, it’s perfect.” You say as she turns back to face you. You both stayed there for a while before it was time to meet everyone at the new ice cream shop. 

“What took you guys so long?” Sam asked as she pulled you in for a hug. 

“Yeah?! What were you two doing hmm?” Eddie teased. 

“Okay calm down, we were at the park!” Robin laughed.

You all stood in line and waited to order your ice cream. There was a good amount of people there already waiting or eating their frozen treat. “Is this place even any good?” You asked. 

“Yes!” The younger ones exclaimed in unison.

“How do you know? I thought this place was brand new?” You questioned.

“It was actually a shop in the mall before it had burned down.” Steve stated. You nodded your head to show you understood. “You know-”

“Oh hey would you look at that, we’re up next!” Robin interrupted. You looked at her with suspicion. 

Once everyone had their ice cream, you found a table and sat down. “Hey guys-” Dustin started as he motioned toward Steve and Robin. “Do you remember when you used to work at Scoops Ahoy?” 

You almost spit out your ice cream. “I’m sorry, what?!” You exclaimed.

“That’s what I was trying to say earlier before SOMEBODY interrupted me!” Steve stated looking to Robin. 

“Is this true?” You asked, turning to your girlfriend, who had embarrassment written all over her face. 

“Oh yeah! They had to wear uniforms and everything, the same as the ones they’re wearing I’m pretty sure!” Lucas said as he pointed to the workers behind the counter.

“Oh please tell me you still have that uniform!” You gasp and say to Robin.

“I may or may not still have it…” She said softly to you. “But what I DO have are photos of King Steve in his uniform!” Robin chuckled.

“Oh now that I absolutely HAVE to see!” Eddie proclaimed. 

The entire group started laughing. You all were joking around with each other and having a good time. You lay into Robin as you all watch the sunset. You couldn’t help but start to think about the year you’ve had. Moving to Hawkins, meeting Eddie and the rest of the Hellfire gang, all the drama with Chrissy, and most importantly, meeting and falling in love with Robin. You began to get emotional just thinking about everything. 

“Hey, you okay? What’s the matter love bug?” Robin asked as she noticed you getting teary eyed. She pulled you closer to her to comfort you.

You sniffled and shook your head. “Nothing’s wrong, everything is just- perfect. You’re perfect.” You say interlocking your fingers with hers. You never wanted this moment to end. There you were with the people you cared about more than anything. Life felt amazing, despite the ups and downs you faced this year. You wouldn’t have changed a thing.

“I love you so much.” Robin said, giving you a gentle kiss on your forehead. 

You looked up at her and smiled. “I love you too.”

The End ♡

[astrangerworldandaloverofthings]

Nationals Disaster

Cp. 1 of the "Olympic Hopeful" Series

Warnings: sports injury, light cursing

Pairings: (Eventual) FigureSkater! Steve Harrington x Y/n x HockeyPlayer! Eddie Munson

Summary: An incident at Nationals costs Y/n more than the gold medal, but thankfully someone familiar is in her hometown.

Inspo Credits: Spinning Out (Netflix), being a figure skater myself, Stranger Things.

Word count: 2.7k

AN: This is the first chapter of the "Olympic Hopeful" series. It's a bit of a slow burn, so no romance yet. Find the rest of the chapters here:

Masterlist / Cp. 1 /

After they lost at sectionals, Crissy Cunningham, Steve’s pairs partner for the last 3 years left for what she called “better opportunities”. Which left Steve Harrington without a partner as he and his coach sit in the bleachers at Nationals, watching instead of competing. 

“You’re gonna find a new partner, honey. Chrissy wasn’t a good match anyway. She never did good twizzles.” His coach leans over to say, a handful of popcorn already in her mouth. Steve only sighs, not willing to talk about it right now. Thankfully, the zamboni just got off the ice and the next warm up group skates out, distracting them both. A bunch of names nobody seems to care about get announced, then the team favored to win gold skates out. 

With her beautiful hair in a perfect pressed bun, their outfits jeweled to high heavens, the blue color perfectly complementing her skin… It’s none other than Y/n Harker and her partner Maxim Rotschev. 

Steve can’t help but imagine he was her partner instead. Just as he’s imagining he was the one on the ice practicing lifts with her, his coach leans over, reminding him why they’re here. “You see Yelena McCarschik over there?”

Steve begrudgingly takes his eyes off of Y/n and Maxim to look at the blonde girl in the purple dress his coach is not-so-subtly pointing at. He doesn’t even need to give his coach a half-hearted response before she continues. 

“I heard from her coach that she’s not going to be skating with Michael again next year. You should talk to her, she has all her triples.” Right. And just like that he’s brought back to earth, remembering he has to find a new partner for next season. “Yeah, I’ll talk to her.” Steve sighs, turning his attention back to Y/n and Maxim. He watches them set up for a jump pass, watching as they do side-by-side triple flip double toe combos before skating over to their coach. 

Steve’s coach pats him on the back as she catches him watching the pair. “They’re going to the Olympics this year, honey. No use dreaming of partnering with her.” As she says that, Steve can’t help but feel a crushing sting in his chest when he realizes he’ll never get that.

He can’t think about anything else besides the burning disappointment in his chest, this unrelenting emotional pain that he holds down as to not cry in the middle of the stands. He fully dissociates thinking about the pain until his coach nudges his side when the warm-ups are over and the first team is skating out to their starting position, and it’s none other than Y/n and Maxim. 

And as their program starts, he gets the same crushing feeling. But this time Steve shakes it off in order to enjoy watching the skating. When he recognizes their music is from the ballet of Romeo and Juliet, it stabs another burning pain into his heart. He doesn’t know immediately why that song makes it sting so much worse, he just knows it hurts. 

Their perfect level four twizzles don’t make the burning pain go away either. Even if he did manage to find a partner for next year, how is he ever going to beat their precision timing. Perfectly in-synch triples. He watches their set up, and he knows the throw triple twist is coming. He closes his eyes for just a second, imagining he’s the one getting to throw her in the air. Then the room fills with gasps, the music cuts off, and his eyes shoot open. 

He dropped her. Or rather, Maxim Rotschev had dropped Y/n Harker.

“Shit.” The word leaves his mouth as him and the rest of the crowd surge to their feet. “She’s not getting up. Why is she not getting up?!” The paramedics rush out onto the ice and he sees the tears streaming down her face. Steve doesn’t know why he’s moving, but suddenly he’s running down the stairs of the stands, making it all the way to the door to get off the ice with his competitor pass still on, before security stops him. 

Tears are streaming down her face as the paramedics carry her out on the stretcher. Again, Steve has no idea what gives him the confidence to yell to her over the noise, “Are you okay?”

She looks up, searching for the source of the sound and locking eyes with him. She looks angry as she snaps back “My arm’s broken, you think I’m fucking okay?!” 

He can’t help but laugh at the stupidity of his own question, taking a few more steps alongside the paramedics carrying her out. “Do you know this guy?” One of them whispers pointedly at her. She turns her head back to him. “No. Who the hell are you?” 

Steve smiles, his regular charm returning to him. “I’m Steve Harrington. Huge fan. I’m actually also a pairs skater…. We competed against each other at sectionals?” 

“Look, I clearly can’t sign an autograph right now. So do me a favor and get out of the way.” She groans, holding up her clearly broken arm. 

With that, the medics push past him taking her to the ambulance. It’s another minute later when Steve feels a hand on his shoulder. At first assuming it’s security, he cautiously turns around to find his coach, her glasses pulled off. “Well this just got interesting.”

…..

It’s a week later when Eddie was wiping down the tables at Benny’s. The small tv in the corner flashes sports news and Eddie glances up when he sees skating clips playing. The headline “Nationals Tragedy” flashes across the bottom of the screen as the clip of Y/n Harker being dropped by Maxim Rotschev plays. Benny audibly winces as he watches the clip. 

“Aren’t you glad they give you pads for Hockey, boy?” Benny asks. Eddie looks back at Benny through the window opening to the kitchen, having not realized he was also watching. 

“Yeah. And they don’t even throw me in the air.” Eddie concurs, turning back to wiping down the tables. 

….

Y/n sits on her living room couch, surrounded by packed bags. Her mother, pulling the phone cord with her into the living room, calls out to her “Poppi and Omi said they’ll be here in 20 minutes! They had to stop one more time for gas.” 

Y/n groans, waving her mom off. She instead turns back to the magazine in her hand, where she should have been on the cover winning gold, instead she’s on page 5 in an article titled “Nationals Tragedy.” 

Her mom finishes the phone call in the kitchen before coming back in a few minutes later. “I think a break will be good for you. You know, you’ve been so focused on skating for so long. You’ll finally get a chance to live a normal life.” 

Another groan leaves Y/n’s lips, rolling her eyes.  “I’ve been so focused on skating because I actually had a chance at the Olympics this year. And now I have a broken arm and no partner.” 

Her mother tuts disapprovingly, “And it was so rude of Maxim to abandon you in your time of need.” 

“It’s all part of the contract, mom. He has every right to leave if I can't compete.” Y/n grumbles, she would have crossed her arms, but the tight cast stops her from moving her right arm in that way. 

Her mother chooses to keep the peace by changing topics. “Do you have everything you’ll need to stay with Omi and Poppi for the next few months?” Her eyes skeptically scanning the packed bags surrounding her daughter. “They live six hours away, so it won’t exactly be easy for me to bring anything you forgot down to you.” Her mom adds.

“I’m fine, mom. Really. I’m sure I got it all.”  She sighs, laying back in to the couch. She hears the distinct tutting of her mom’s lips as her mother adds another bag to the pile. 

“If you’ve got everything, why was your skating bag still in the closet?” Her mother practically sings.

“Mom, I can’t skate for another 4 weeks. And even then what’s the point?” She holds up her arm that’s wrapped in a cast for emphasis.

“And in 4 weeks when you can, who knows? Maybe you’ll be over this attitude by then and want to skate for fun. And you’ll give your ol’ mom a call about how thankful you are I sent your skates down with you.” Her mom theorizes, adding her skating bag to the pile regardless. 

…

Six hours in the car with her grandparents later and they pull past the “Welcome to Hawkins Indiana” Sign. Y/n sighs, leaning on her good arm as she looks out the window. 

“It’s been a long time since you visited. I’m sure everything looks different.” Her Grandma, or as they call her, Omi, notes. 

“It’s only been like four years, Omi. It’s really not that different. Honestly It’s like this town never changes.” Her grandparents groan at her response. 

“I’m sure plenty has changed.” Her Poppi adds. “I mean you almost never bring your skates when you visit, so I’m sure you haven’t been to the rink here in over… well ten years…” Her grandfather ponders with uncertainty about the timeline.

“It’s not like that matters now.” She snaps gruffly at the cruel reminder of her injury.

They all sit in a stiff silence as her grandparents hear the bitter spite in her tone, the air growing thick with tension, so much so that Poppi rolls the windows down. 

When they pull in to the driveway, Y/n slings a single bag over her good shoulder, knowing she can’t lift much of anything with her other arm in a cast. As her grandparents realize that, like it or not, she won’t be much help with unloading the car, they decide to send her off. Her grandfather slips her a twenty dollar bill as he takes the bag off her shoulder.

“Looks like you need some cheering up, Kid. Why don’t you walk over to the mall and get yourself a milkshake.” Usually she would protest that she needs to stick to her diet for training. But with the olympics out the window and a return to training weeks, if not months, away…. A milkshake sounds really good.

“Are you sure?” She gives a small curious smile, looking between her grandparents and their rather full volkswagon. Her grandfather doesn’t miss the look on her face of wanting to help, patting her on the shoulder.

“Sorry honey, you’re not lifting even if you want to. Go get some ice cream. You still know how to get there?”

She chuckles and nods, a real smile crossing her face as she trots down the driveway. “Yeah. I’ll be back in an hour!”

…

When she walks into the Scoops Ahoy! At 7pm on a Tuesday, the customer base is a sorry sight. Only one set of preteens sitting in a corner booth sharing a boat shaped sunday. She sighs, walking up to the counter and rings the bell to get the worker’s attention.  

A boy with a familiar face walks out of the back room, but she can’t quite place where she knows him from. Her lack of recognition usually wouldn’t be a problem, but when the guy in his sailor uniform and paper hat walks out, he instantly breaks into a large smile and points two finger guns at her, like you would to a friend you haven’t seen in a long while.

“Oh my god, Y/n Harker! It’s good to see you. What brings you to Hawkins?” The guy starts, her eyes narrowing as she tries to place his face. 

“I’m sorry, do I know you?” She says as kindly as she can, a phase she’s had to get used to with her success in the skating community. Clearly though, that answer was not satisfactory for this ice cream shop associate as he stifles a frown and goes a bit red in the cheeks.

“I’m Steve Harrington? We competed against each other at Sectionals? Then I…”

Before he can finish a look of recognition crosses her face. “Oh my god! You’re the guy from nationals! That rushed the bleachers when I fell?” But this only makes him blush more.

“Yeah…. Yeah, that was me. How are you doing by the way?” He bashfully answers.

She nods, holding up her arm cast. “Broke my arm. But thankfully nothing more serious than that.” 

Steve winces at the thought, picking up the ice cream scooper and absent mindedly spinning it between his fingers. “How long is that going to keep you off the ice?” His question instantly making her smile fall. “At least 6 weeks.” Steve gestures to the ice cream, silently asking which flavor to start scooping while they keep talking. She points to the chocolate, and he starts pulling scoops into a cup as he speaks. 

“So no olympics then?” Which only elicits a sad nod from her. He tries to perk her back up, seeing the sadness in her eyes. “Well there’s always next season. You’ll have your 6 week break, then when you get back on the ice I’m sure you’ll be as good as ever.”

She drags her feet as they walk over to the register. “Doesn’t matter, I don’t have a partner to go back to anyway.” The cash register drawer slides open the same way Steve’s jaw does. A dry bitter “What?!” leaving his agape lips. 

She sighs, having already gotten similar reactions from her friends back home. “Yeah, he won’t be able to take someone else to the Olympics, but if he finds someone fast enough he can use our rank to still go to Worlds or the Grand Prix with a different partner.” She explains, giving a sad half smile at the reality of her situation. 

Steve scoffs, closing the cash register drawer as quickly as he had opened it, handing her the scooped ice cream without taking the cash from her hand. “This one’s on the house.” 

She blushes, timidly retracting her hand with a cash and licking the top of the ice cream cone. “Are you sure?” 

Steve breaks out in a wide smile, leaning over on his elbows on the counter. “Positive. It’s not every day we get a celebrity in Hawkins.” His answer eliciting a small chuckle from her.

“I’m not sure I quite count as a celebrity… but thanks.” She knows now would be the natural point in the conversation to turn and walk out, but her feet don’t move. Steve seems to notice the hesitation to leave too, gesturing towards one of the many unoccupied booths. 

“If you had the time…. I would love to pick your brain about Pairs skating stuff?” He offers up his company, taking an experimental step to come around the counter. She bites her lip, considering this for a minute, before nodding with a small “yeah.” 

“Are you sure they don’t need you behind the counter?” She asks as they slide into the booth. He looks at her skeptically, giving the whole store a once over. “To serve what customers?” 

He smiles as this gets a small laugh out of her. “Alright, fair enough. What burning questions did you want to pick my brain about?” 

Neither of them even notice when over an hour has passed, her ice cream cone fully devoured, and they’re the only one’s left in the mall, let alone the store. Finally, feeling comfortable enough with her now, Steve asks the question that’s really been on his mind this whole time. 

“What does the road forward look like for you? Are you gonna skate solo? Find a new partner?” She looks a bit downtrodden from the question but answers honestly.

“I don’t know. My mom thinks this might be the perfect time to retreat into an early retirement from professional skating….”

“No! You can’t do that. Not over one broken arm…” 

“I don’t know how to give up on skating, especially when I was so close to the dream. But I don’t know how to move on without being the face of ‘Nationals Tragedy’ either.” 

“Well…. If there’s ever a town for starting over…. Hawkins is next to none.” 

[morganski-19]

I Don't Know Which Way's Home

Chapter 17: Repair

ao3 link, Part 1, Part 16

March 1986

The news has been replaying the same story all day. It should be shocking, sort of is, but Julie’s kind of numb to it at this point. Each year, like clockwork, something big happens. Something this small town hasn’t faced in decades. A kid missing, turned up dead, just to be found alive again. A government laboratory had a gas leak that caused the death of many more people. The mall catches on fire causing a mass casualty. Now this.

She was awoken by sirens this morning. Ruined what was supposed to be a day where she slept till noon. It was spring break; she was allowed to be lazy. But instead, the spring break was wrapped up by police tape. The cause of a whole new type of stress.

Beloved student of Hawkins High School, Crissy Cunningham, found dead in the Munson’s trailer. Eddie Munson, the prime suspect, still at large. The body, found by Wayne Munson, a hard-working man of the community, is disfigured beyond belief. The police don’t have enough evidence to make a statement. But are advising the public to be aware and alert the police of any suspicious behavior.

Julie doesn’t know Eddie that well. They’ve only been neighbors, acquaintances. Sure, he drove her to school a few times. Made sure that she got there safely and was an ear when she needed to rant. But that didn’t make them friends. That didn’t make them close.

It didn’t take an idiot to see that Eddie wasn’t as big as scary as he was chalked up to see. Unfortunately, this town was full of idiots. Ready to point their fingers to the person the papers blame. Since they were already so influenced that metal music was from the devil and all dungeons and dragon’s players were Satan worshippers. It only took one headline for them to believe that. What’s stopping them from believing it now?

The evidence is damning. Wayne worked last night so it can’t be him. Multiple witnesses saw Chrissy leave with Eddie after the game last night. He is a known drug dealer, which most people would say is a step away from murder. His van was heard by the entire trailer park at both their entrance and his exit.

But there was one thing that Julie’s not sure anyone really heard. His screams.

Trailer parks are a hive for nosy neighbors fueled by the powers of thin walls. Lots of open air for noise to travel. It was nice outside last night, so Julie sat out on their little porch with a book. Peacefully reading.

Until Eddie pulled up with music blaring out the windows. Slamming on the breaks before he crashes straight into his own trailer. Right before the queen herself gets out of the car and walks right through his front door.

Julie says she’s better than gossip, but this she just had to know. Had to witness. Two people who never interact, going into an empty trailer. A recipe for disaster.

And disaster it was. Not long after, Julie can hear some yelling from the trailer. Something about waking up. Chrissy not being able to hear Eddie. It just increasing in volume until it devolves into a terrified scream. Then Eddie runs out of his trailer, gets into his van, and speeds away.

Julie doesn’t know a lot about how murderers act, but she can guess they don’t normally scream while killing their victims. That’s a pretty obvious sign that something’s wrong. But the police just brush her off when she tells them. The arrest has already written itself.

. . .

Present Day, April 1987

It’s been almost two full weeks since Steve and Julie moved into the new house, and Steve still feels off about it all. About taking the next step in the case. Passing the point of no return.

Steve doesn’t know what to do. It’s like he’s being backing into a corner. On the one hand, he could drop this and make himself a fool to his parents, to his friends, probably a good bit of the town. Or he can go through with it just to drag up his baggage all over again. Feel like shit all over again.

He doesn’t know what to do.

Then there’s all the other stuff. The looming piles of bills in his future, the fact that they still don’t have a couch. That Steve still doesn’t have a proper mattress. And the fridge is getting kind of empty, so he needs to go shopping soon.

These are new worries for him. Making a strict budget and making sure it’s enforced. Saying no to the kids when they want something, forcing Robin and Eddie to pay their share of the meals when they go out. Even though it was really always him ensuring he was alright paying the bill. Making small stacks of coupons and waiting deals to show up in the paper. It’s a lot.

Steve’s never been poor before. Not to say that he is now. Well, he kind of is. He has a good bit of debt because of this loan and lost a large chunk, most, of his savings to buying this house and the initial furniture. Paychecks are split between bills, food, Julie, savings, and then him. He’s the last on his list of priorities.

It’s all bringing up more issues, as if it already wasn’t enough. He’s always been the friend that picks up everyone’s tab. Pays for the check, the parties, the supplies, the fancy gifts. It’s all been from his money. His dad’s money. Which he doesn’t have anymore.

He knows it’s stupid to think that the friends he has now would care about that. Just because his old friends definitely would have. But these guys, they care more about the money. About the name. What Steve can give them.

Sometimes, it just doesn’t feel like it.

Steve’s always been a giver. It felt wrong to keep what he had just to himself. He never took, just gave. What would he be when there was nothing left to give?

Julie shuts the door just a hair away from a slam when she gets home. Giving her bedroom door a harsher treatment. It squeaks all the way shut. He’s been meaning to fix that, hasn’t gotten around to it yet.

She’s been like this ever since they moved. Her demeanor shifting almost immediately. At first, he chalked it up to the stress, having a new place that didn’t feel right. The change uncomfortably itching beneath the skin.

But after a week went by and it was the same thing every day, he knew something was up.

He walks over to her door, knocking lightly.

“What,” Julie yells through the door.

Steve’s taken aback. “How was school?” he asks calmly. 

She whips the door open. “Fine,” she huffs. “That all?”

“You ok?” he asks as if the question didn’t answer itself already.

“Yeah,” Julie rolls her eyes. “I’m fine.”

Steve crosses his arms. “You sure? Cause to me it seems like you’re upset about something. You know you can talk to me about this stuff.”

“Whatever.” Julie slams the door in his face.

It takes all Steve has to not rip the door open and give a whole lecture on how rude that was. To restrain himself from stepping into old shoes. To react differently than his father would have. Come back when the moment dies down and the anger stops bubbling. To be better. To be him.

Whatever he is at the moment.   

. . .

Julie tears another piece of paper out of her notebook. Crumpling it in her hands and throwing it across the room, watching it miss the trashcan. Landing next to the other balls of paper. Each one being more wrong than the last.

She should be doing homework. There’s an essay due for her English class in a few days and she hasn’t gotten around to writing it. Too busy with the move, then the adjusting. Now this. The same thoughts over and over again in her mind. All of them screaming that this can’t be happening right now.

Every time Julie thinks she can have any sort of break, another thing comes along just to punch her down again. Her mom died, then she moved, then she moved again, then she started getting better but that’s this whole other thing, then she gets kicked out, moves again. Now she has a crush on one of her best friends. What a great fucking life this is.

Julie tugs at the roots of her hair, pushing her fingers under the tightness of her braid. Hoping if she squeezes long enough, the unwanted thoughts will just leave. She’ll be able to think of a theme in the Catcher in the Rye that speaks to her enough to get five pages out of. Be able to write enough in her stupid notebook that makes sense. Get her grades back to where they were before and her life back together again.

Falling apart is a tune run dry and Julie’s tired of playing it. All she wants to do is go back to being normal. Like she was a year ago. Happy, kinda pissed at the world in different ways, but happy. Where there was something that didn’t quite make sense with the way she felt about girls, but it was easy to brush it all off. And her mom came home smelling like syrup and bacon grease instead of alcohol. Her knew sobriety chip kept proudly in the pocket of her apron. Constantly reminding her what the tips really needed to be spent on.

Life was good. It was normal. It was everything. Julie misses everything.

She misses the way the house always smelled a little stale and like mildew. The flowery candle her mom burned doing nothing to cover it up. She misses the way she would trip on the pile of shoes by the door. And how the singular hook on the wall would always drop her coat so much she started to throw it over a chair. How the kitchen would always be a little bit messy, and there would be dishes in the sink and pots on the stove. The couch that had it’s built in divot made by someone else with cushions that were squished beyond compare. Doors that fell off hinges every year or so and the sounds of the radio flowing through the walls.

All of it aches in her heart the more she moves on. The more she grows away from the place she called home. Having to keep retracing it all in her mind so she won’t forget it. Hold her mom’s sweatshirt close to her nose and pray to smell her cheap perfume again. But all that’s there is Julie. All there is left is Julie.

Julie is the only thing left of her mom other than the picture sitting on her desk. Which sucks for so many reasons she can’t find the words to explain. Mainly because looking in the mirror gets harder. Each time looking a little less like herself than the day before. Not quite knowing who she is anymore.

Reflections almost heighten to the imperfections on Julie’s face. The darkness underneath her eyes, the red dots forming on her chin and forehead. The fakeness of her smile, the way it can’t seem to reach her eyes quite right. Growing into a face that lost its childhood. Fighting to keep all she can of what’s left.

Growing up was always going to be hard. Slowly seeing herself morph away from childhood dreams and expectations. Having them crushed by the cruel realities of the world. Having memories trapped in confines of the mind that can’t seem to be open again. Becoming someone is hard in a normal life, let alone one with as many hurdles as Julie’s.

Julie can’t even begin to fathom what she would say to herself half a year ago, five years ago. How could she crush that little girl’s dreams right before her eyes. Witnessing the pain from the outside rather than the in. Tell her that there would be no princess wedding, or even one at all. That her mom wouldn’t even be there if she could. Gone far too soon. She left Julie far too soon.

Childhood isn’t missed until it’s stripped away. Until it can never return. For what its worst, Julie’s mom made sure she had it for as long as possible. Before the inevitable kicked in and took it away for her.

Now Julie’s filled with hate again. At herself. At Steve for trying. At him for not being who she wants on the other side of the door. A constant reminder that this good thing could only come once her mom was gone. Finally, a house, but without the mother to make it a home.

It’s not fair to blame him, she knows that. Can hear the upcoming words of her therapist as she relays this all to him in the next session. How she’s placing Steve in a box that he was never meant to fill. Just because the emptiness was too crushing to face in whole.

Giving up on the homework, Julie lies on her bed. The new mattress smell still seeping through the covers. She takes her Walkman and presses play on whatever’s in there. Noise blasting through her ears, loud enough to hopefully cover these thoughts. She grabs a pillow, wanting to squeeze something close to her chest. All of her childhood stuffed animals gone with the first move. Another piece of her that is forever lost.

The tears start to form, and Julie lets them fall.

. . .

The next day doesn’t seem to be any better. She insists on biking to school today. Doesn’t really make it a choice as she hoes straight from her room to the door. Without saying as much as a goodbye.

Steve doesn’t push. Thinks it would be best after the outburst yesterday.

The last time Julie acted like this was her mom’s birthday. Where she was hurting so bad that she decided to hit at the closest target. If that’s what she needs to do again, he’d be happy to take it all. Hold some of the hurt so she didn’t have too anymore. Distract him from his own hurt at the moment.

It’s so bad that she forgets her lunch on the counter. Even though it would probably have ended in the garbage. Like how last night’s dinner landed right into a container to be revisited later. Still sitting in the fridge when Steve went to make breakfast this morning.

He’s not quite sure the last time she’s eaten more than half her plate. Too busy with his own stuff to notice her dip back in her progress. Kicking himself that he didn’t see it all sooner. That it took for her slamming a door in his face to understand how bad it had really gotten. Not like he could have stopped it. But it might have helped.

“That conversation you had with Julie while me and Eddie were out getting the pizza,” Steve says while explaining the situation to Robin. “Was that about her mom? About the move?”

Robin takes a second to think. Physically stopping and starting her movements a few times before speaking. “No, it was about something else.”

Something else. Steve didn’t know about a something else. “Was it because of me?”

“No, no. It was just something really private that she wanted to talk to me about. I would tell you but it’s really not my place to.”

Steve ignores the alarm bell ringing in his head. She’ll tell him about it, whatever it is, when she’s ready. “But you would if you thought it had anything to do with the way she’s acting.”

Robin shrugs. “It depends. If I thought, it would help. But honestly,” she takes a deep breath. “I think telling you about it might make it a million times worse.”

“Make what a million times worse?” Eddie asks after walking in. Sliding into his designated spot at Steve’s side and placing a kiss to the side of his head.

Robin rolls her eyes. “You guys can’t be this happy while Nancy’s away at school.”

“Oh boohoo.” Eddie sticks out his tongue.

“I thought you had work today?” Steve asks Eddie.

He shrugs. “I’m sick.”

“You’re going to be jobless if you keep calling out for no damn reason,” Robin chastises.

“Well clearly, I was needed elsewhere because there is a situation that needs dealing with. Make what worse? By a million times?”

Robin rolls her eyes again, gesturing Steve to fill Eddie in on the situation.

“Julie’s hitting a low point again, she slammed a door in my face yesterday.”

“Do you think it’s about her mom?” Eddie gets a soda out of the fridge and sits on the countertop.

It could be. One of the first things Julie said when she saw the house was how it reminded her or her mom. How a place like this was all her mom ever wanted for the two of them. That had to drag up some feelings. Especially since they were now living here.

Steve shrugs. “It could be. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was.”

But there was something else. Either the thing she talked about with Robin or him pushing yesterday. Something going on in school. Anything.

There were so many places to mess up. For Steve to fuck up something that didn’t just involve him. He’s bad at dealing with things. Pretending his problems don’t exist so he doesn’t have to think about them. Or lashing out just to feel more powerful than them.

Steve just didn’t want Julie to feel like she had to keep it in. That she had to keep the war in her mind because no one cared enough to listen. Or that she would burden him just for talking to him about it. He wanted her to be better than himself. Maybe that was too high of an expectation to have.

“Just talk to her about it,” Robin says softly. “She’s always come around to telling you how she feels. She just needed to blow off a little steam, that’s all.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

Maybe was a lot of things right now. None of them made Steve feel any better.

“Hey,” Eddie kicks Steve gently. “What’s really going on? Other than the Julie thing?”

“It’d be easier to say what isn’t going on than what is?” Steve pulls out one of the metal folding chairs from their makeshift kitchen/dining table and sits down. It squeaks under his weight, proving his point for him. “Maybe I bit off more than I can chew.”

Robin pulls out the chair next to him. “You did what you had to. It just happened to be very overwhelming.”

“I’m not talking about that. Well, I am but not really. It’s just,” Steve takes a deep breath. “This case. If I’m still going through with it. It’s just adding more to the pile and I’m now realizing I didn’t really think it through as much as I should’ve.”

“What do you mean,” Eddie interrupts. “You seemed liked you thought it over a lot, actually. Had evidence all laid out, contacted people, got witness statements. People to testify. Had multiple people who know their shit tell you that this was a good case. You checked off all the boxes.”

“Yeah, sure. But I don’t think I’d realized at the time that I might be going to court twice in a short amount of time.”

Steve asked Sarah a few weeks ago what it would take to make him the permanent guardian for Julie. Maybe even adopting her. If that’s what she wanted, he hasn’t brought that specifically up yet. Sarah mentioned something about permanent guardianship, since Julie’s only a year away from becoming an adult.

But no matter what, it probably leads to presenting his case before a judge. Having them make the final decision. With all the things that have happened in the past few weeks, and Sarah pulling some strings she shouldn’t have, the risk of relocation raised a bit. Making this permanent would get rid of the risk. Neither of them would have to worry about this anymore.

“Wait, twice,” Robin questions.

“Yeah, once for this case against my parents, twice to get permanent custody of Julie.”

“Is that something you guys have talked about?”

Steve shrugs. “A bit. She definitely wants to stay with me long term, and I said I’d start asking about the options. I just haven’t talked to her about which one she would prefer, since she’s got less than a year before she turns eighteen. Most of them involve at least going in front of a judge to prove that I have the means to care for her until she’s an adult.”

“And if this case falls through, it might look bad on you,” Eddie connects the dots.

“Exactly. And I’ll have to pay all the legal fees out of my own pocket where I would have gotten that back from the money I won.”

Then there was the reason for doing this all in the first place, getting them to understand what they did to him. How he was affected because of their neglect. Would they even listen? Would this change anything? Would this all just become another story to tell their friends?

They would go around telling their friends how much of a disappointment he is. How he is ungrateful of everything they’ve done for him. How he wouldn’t even be here without them. As if that makes up for the fact that they were never around.

Creating someone doesn’t immediately garner respect. It still has to be earned. Each time he was left, his respect, his love for his parents shrunk. Now all that is left is a sliver so small, yet it still feels like a mountain. Still crushing him.

He doesn’t want to be crushed by it anymore.

Steve gets up, goes to his room and pulls out all of the evidence he’s built. The entire case against his parents laid in a binder. Copies of bank and credit card statements. Highlighted lines of hotel stays and flights books. Lined up with dates that Steve could recall they missed. Birthdays and holidays lost. Memories begged to be made. Years gone.

Statements of the many nannies that he had. Each confirming their own payments, the lengths of their stays. Empty cards filled with not even the signature of their names. Cursive congratulations and happy birthdays printed instead. Hospital records that show his own signature on the discharge form. Mrs. Henderson’s name on the contact form since his parents couldn’t care to show up.

It was enough, it had to be.

He brings it out to the kitchen, laying it all out on the table. Asking Robin and Eddie to go through it. Tell him if they think it would be enough.

Witnesses, one of them asks. Steve could think of a few. One of the nannies had offered when he asked. She would still do it. Hopper said he would not only be a character witness, but also get the records for that one house party he broke up where Steve was caught underage drinking. How he had to drive him home, his parents nowhere to be seen. Nancy probably would too. She could tell the courts how she knew his parents were never home, even if he was seventeen.

It is enough.

Eddie grabs Steve’s hand. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”

Robin grabs his other hand. “If this would be too much, no one would blame you for walking away.”

Here in this small kitchen with old cabinets with squeaky hinges and tile that he absolutely hates. In a house that he bought on his own, for the family that he made, it’s finally starting to feel like a home.

The walls were never what made it empty. The unopened rooms and unused furniture. It was the energy that never flowed through the doors that made it devoid of all life. Sucking what it could from the person in it to make up for the loss. Now, as people come and go, as Steve and Julie live here, the house feels full.

With these people by his side that showed up by surprise. Chose him for whatever reason that he might never understand. But circumstances led them to each other, and they don’t leave. Even when he tried. Gave them the opportunity to. Yet, they stayed. Every. Single. Time. They helped him learn what home should feel like.

Steve is enough. He always was.

“I want to do this,” Steve says without a doubt in his voice. “Even if they still won’t believe it, or be pissed at me for the rest of their life. I want to show up to the court with rows of people behind me, while their side is empty. Show them the real thing they lost was me.”

. . .

When Julie gets home, she goes right to her room. Ignoring the happy mood Steve is in. Ignores the fact that she saw Eddie’s van drive down the street as she was biking home from school. Ignores the slight rumbles in her stomach and the ache in her legs. Lets her body fall limp onto her bed after her bag slips off her shoulder. Filled with work that won’t get done. Marked with a big red “F” when she turns them in blank.

Just adding on to how Julie is already feeling.

What would her mom say to her? Her daughter’s grade dipping. Another new home. Not eating. Slamming doors in the face of the one person who was beside her during all of this.

Liking girls.

She would pull some of her mom wisdom out of her ass for some of it. Not really helping or making much sense, but it worked out in the end. Julie always ended up figuring out something. Got better after some time and picked herself up again. Kept moving.

Time just keeps moving. It’s endless and doesn’t stop. Forcing all to move along with it. Whether they want to or not. Even when life gets in the way and forces them to stop. To become stuck. Julie feels stuck again. Did for a long time. It was easy to become stuck when there was security blanketed around her.

Julie doesn’t really feel like time moved as fast as it did. How it was six months, almost seven since her mom died. And Julie still feels like it was yesterday sometimes. Especially right now. Transported back to the day the police officers knocked on her door. Took her away. When she was frozen, but kept moving. Had to keep moving.

She doesn’t have to keep moving anymore. There’s no goal anymore. No checkmark in her progress or hurdle she has to jump over. Just a pile of tasks that are too overwhelming to acknowledge or unpack. So she lets them pile up. They aren’t important right now.

Julie winces when she tugs off a scab on her thumb. Starting the bleeding all over again. With a deep breath, she forces herself off the bed and to the bathroom. Digging for the first aid kit under the sink for another band aid. Ignoring her reflection in the mirror. The greasy strands of hair pulled back into a French braid. The dark circles around her eyes. That person isn’t her anymore.

Julie isn’t Julie right now. She’s something else. Unrecognizable. To herself. To her mom. To anyone.

“Hey, Julie,” Steve says before she can escape back to her room.

She takes another deep breath, ready to push him away again. Not ready for a talk. “What?” she asks, too tired to even sound pissed.

Steve holds out the phone. “Phone for you.”

Julie presses her lips together, taking the phone and holding it closer to her ear. Curling around herself. “Hello.”

“Julie, it is me, El.”

Great. “Hey, El. What’s up?” Julie tries to feign excitement. Terrified at the brief flutter of her heart that spawned by the sound of El’s voice.

“I realized I never got around to asking you this at lunch, but are you free next Friday?”

“Uh, I think so. I’ll have to double check.” No, she won’t. She doesn’t have anything going on, just wants to seem like she does.

“Would you like to come over for a sleepover? I know we just kind of had one, but I want a better one. And then Max can be there too.”

Julie doesn’t want a sleepover. Well, she does, but not one with Max. Because it would be Max and El on the bed. Because why would they make the girl in the wheelchair with chronic pain sleep on the air mattress on the floor. That’s rude and stupid. And it’s El’s room, so she would also be in the bed.

Meaning that Julie would be alone on the floor while her two friends share a bed. Which normally wouldn’t be a problem. Normally she wouldn’t care. But now she does. Because she knows what it’s like to sleep in the same bed as El and the midnight talks that are kind of really serious but also really nice. The nervousness that creeps under her skin every time El’s eyes meet hers. The pounding of her heart as she tries to get a singular word out.

But she can’t say no. Can’t see the disappointment in El’s face or hear it in her voice. Would rather be there, suffering in silence, than miss out on time with her friends. Which she would enjoy for a majority of it, and could kind of need right now.

“Sure,” Julie says. “If I’m free and everything.”

She wishes she sounded more excited, but she can’t.

“Yay. Let me know as soon as possible if you are free. I will see you at school tomorrow.”

Julie’s slight smile drops. “Yeah, tomorrow. Talk to you later.”

The phone clicks onto the receiver as tears start to spring to Julie’s eyes. For reasons she doesn’t really know why but feels deep inside her chest. A pain she’s never felt. Crushing. Terrifying. A tear rolls down her cheek as she runs to her room, wiping it away quickly so Steve doesn’t see.

But he sees.

“Hey, are you ok?” he asks as Julie crosses into her bedroom.

“Just leave me alone,” she yells with a sob, slamming her door. Right in his worried face.

She can’t even make it to her bed before she falls. Slamming her back into the door and pulling her knees close to her chest. Wet patches forming on her knees. Breathing in stutter breaths just to let them out as broken sobs. Trying to pull herself together. Trying to keep it quiet. Knowing Steve is right behind the door, wondering what he can do.

What Julie’s feeling can’t be fixed. No matter what she tries. No matter how hard she tries. She can’t be normal anymore.

A slip of paper gets slid under the door next to her. After the sobs start to slow and Julie can see things again. She picks it up, unfolding it.

When you’re ready to talk about it, I’m here.

All it does is start Julie’s sobs again. How could she have been so lucky to have someone so understanding waiting for her outside the door? When her life went to shit. When things just keep going to shit. He’s still there. Even when she slams doors in his face and uprooted his entire life.

Without even blinking, he’s still there.

“Steve,” she says to her empty room when the tears slow. Hoping he can hear.

“Yeah,” the answer comes from the other side of the door.

Julie lets out a wet laugh. “When you said you were waiting, I didn’t think it’d be right outside the door.”

“Well, technically, it’s right next to your door. Only since I slid the note, though. I gave you space for a bit.”

Her knees fall to the ground, hands falling in her lap. Resuming the picking of her unbandaged thumb. “I appreciate that.”

A beat of silence. “You’re talking to me again. Does that mean you want to talk about it?”

“Maybe, I’m not sure.” She takes a shaky breath. “I’m not sure how to talk about it.”

“That’s ok. Do you want to wait to talk about it, see if you can find the words later?”

Her head gently bangs against the door. Mind racing to find the words. To say something so he can find the solution for her and the pain can go away. But it all leads to a question so unfathomable that she can’t even bear to ask it. Gets mad at herself for even thinking about it.

She does though. Over and over again. Her mind finding answers she doesn’t like. Doesn’t want to believe were a possibility. Truth is, she will never have an answer to that question. No matter how hard she searches for one. The one person who can give it isn’t here anymore. Leaving an uncertainty that would weigh over her head forever.

“I’m sorry,” Julie says instead. Apologizing for the things she can instead of searching for what she can’t. “For slamming the door in your face.”

“You can slam the door in my face as many times as you need to. Just as long as you agree to talk to me about it, when you’re ready to. I may not always follow my own rules, but it’s better to talk about things before they start to build up.”

Julie wipes away the stray tear rolling down her cheek. Moving to pick at the strands of her jeans so she doesn’t need another band aid. “I think this has been building up for a while now. I just didn’t know it was there.”

There’s silence across the door for a minute or two.

“You know what I kind of really want right now, chocolate chip cookies,” Steve says suddenly.

It’s so random that is makes Julie laugh. “What?”

“Yeah, you know, freshly made, warm chocolate chip cookies. Doesn’t that sound nice?”

Julie smiles. “That actually does sound kind of nice.”

“Great. I’m going to go make some, you can join me if you want.”

She does kind of want to. After taking a deep breath, Julie picks herself off the floor. Wincing at the soreness of her legs from sitting on rough carpet for so long. Opens the door and heads to the kitchen. Steve is pulling out one of the many cookbooks he stole from his parents and turning to a recipe. Starting to grab the different ingredients.

He smiles when Julie searches their cabinets, searching for the mixing bowl they also stole from his parents. Probably thinking he’s had some sort of victory over this. Maybe he has. She’s out of the room, and probably about to eat something. It’s a small victory for the both of them.

The oven takes an eternity to preheat. Leaving the rolled-out cookies on the stovetop. Some of them mysteriously gone missing. Well, not mysteriously, she had a few more than she should. But so did Steve, so it was fine.

When the cookies are finally baked, Steve waits a few minutes before placing some on a plate and bringing them over to the blanket pile that is still acting as a couch. But instead, some of the chairs hold up the blankets, making a small fort.

It reminds her of the ones her mom and her made during thunderstorms. When the trailer would shake with each boom, but not the fort. With soft pillows and flashlight shadow puppet stories. Falling asleep when the thunder was far enough away that it became calming. Paired with the patter of rain on the roof. They were always safe in the fort.

Julie was safe in the fort.

She breaks the cookie in her hand, the warm chocolate smearing across her fingertips. Melting in her mouth as soon as they hit. Giving her the energy to say what she needs to say. What she wants to say.

“You know it was El that called, right.” Julie breaks the cookie again. “Well, of course you know. You’re the one who gave me the phone.”

Steve sits straighter, giving Julie his full attention. “Yeah, I know.”

“She was asking if I was free next Friday, for a sleepover.” Her heart starts racing as the words still stay unsaid. Trapped in her throat, even though she knows he wouldn’t care about them.

“That sounds fun. Did you want to go?”

Julie continues to stare at her hands, unable to look up. “Yeah, I do. It’s just. It’s harder now. Because I think, no, I know that I.” She takes a deep breath. She can do this. “I have a crush. On El.”

Steve takes a second to respond. Keeping the moment tense. Julie can only hear the sound of her own heart beating.

“That would make it harder,” he finally says.

“Yeah,” Julie chokes as the tears start to form again. “Yeah, it really does.”

Steve moves the plate of cookies out from in between them before scooting closer. Reaching out to place a hand on Julie’s shoulder. “Hey, it’s ok.”

“No, it’s not,” Julie stops him before he can try to comfort her. “I hate that I’m like this. It’s terrifying. I don’t want like this to be but I am. And I’m going to screw everything up.”

She pulls her legs up to her chest again, the tears retracing their tracks down her cheeks. Even when she thought the wells had dried, it keeps flowing.

“I know exactly how you feel,” Steve exhales. “I felt the same way when I figured out I liked guys. So much so, that I pushed it down and forgot it for years. Kept pretending that this part of me wasn’t a part of me. Hated myself for it. Pushed that hatred outward toward people who didn’t deserve it. Just because I was so angry with myself that I couldn’t be normal.”

Julie clenches her eyes shut, trying to force the tears to stop flowing. Wanting this hurt to stop.

“There were a lot of factors that made me want to hide who I was, I think. My parents, mostly. My reputation. I was the kid that threw parties and had all the nicknames. Hawkins High School’s poster boy. A Harrington. Any wrong move and I was done for. I didn’t need that wrong move to be dangerous.”

She pulls herself more inward. Wondering if she becomes small enough, the problems will just go away. No longer hunting the prey hiding in the bushes.

“It took a lot for me to realize that I wasn’t-. That I wasn’t broken.” Steve takes a deep breath, clears his throat. “That this part of me was normal. Is normal. Just doesn’t always feel like it in a small town. It took meeting other people like me to realize that this was something I could be and still be happy. And believe me, there’s so much happiness waiting for you.”

“Doesn’t feel like it,” Julie mutters into her knees. “It feels like everything keeps breaking apart over and over again.”

“Yeah, yeah it does.”

Julie lifts her head up, finally turning to look at Steve. “I just don’t want to mess up one of the first friendships I’ve had in years because I can’t stop acting weird around her. I can hate myself all I want, I can’t make her hate me too.”

Steve takes a deep breath, turning himself so he’s facing Julie completely. “And you won’t. El is one of the most loving and forgiving people I have ever met. Well, when she cares about someone. She can be pretty brutal to the people who she doesn’t like, but that’s not the point. El cares about you, she won’t judge you for this.”

“I can get not judging me for the liking girls bit. But liking her?” Julie doesn’t know how that could ever work out in her favor.

“Ok, so this next part doesn’t directly apply to your problem. And I’m not sure if any of this is even helping, but it just feels like it needs to be said and I know he won’t care if I share this for him.” He takes another breath. “But Eddie and I were kind of going through this same problem with each other. Only difference is I knew he was gay, and he didn’t know I was.”

“And the only difference between that situation and this one is that yours was a success story,” Julie says before he can continue. Shocking him. “You two aren’t as good as hiding it as you think you are. I picked it up a while ago.”

Steve snorts. “Yeah, kinda figured. I’m more just trying to say that this thing you’re going through isn’t unique. Hell, half of the people in our group have had that feeling some way or another. And we’re still friends. You’re going to be just fine, trust me.”

Just fine doesn’t exactly sound like anything she wants to be. She’s been just fine for months. It’s kind of shitty. Not feeling like anything important, knowing she should be feeling more but can’t. Moving without really moving through life. Just going from one day to the next, them all blending together. Right up until fine becomes a lie again.

Until something unearths itself in the mind and can no longer be ignored. Brings all of its own problems and piles on top of all the others. Dragging up old baggage with it, only adding to the problem.

Leaving Julie with one more question she’s too afraid to ask.

So much in her life has changed. So much is different now. She’s a new person, one her mom wouldn’t recognize. Overwhelmed by grief. Brought into this large group of people, a giant family. Surrounded by people who are like her. Who show her that this is a life she could have. If she just put enough trust in herself.

If she put enough trust in her mom. And stopped wondering if she would still love Julie the same knowing that she will never marry a man. An answer Julie will never actually get.

Steve reaches out and pulls Julie into a hug. Comforts her the way a brother can, but it doesn’t bring the same comfort that Julie craves.

It’s things like this that makes Julie’s heart ache the most. How she will go through these big life events and never hear the same words of comfort again. Never have her mother’s weight sit on the foot of her bed, telling her it will all be ok. That no matter what, she will always love Julie. Never will stop as long as she lives. And even then, the love will transcend death and continue for infinity.

Nothing can stop infinity. Julie hopes that means nothing will stop her mother’s love either. Even this.

“Sorry for taking your coming out moment away from you,” Julie says after she calmed down. “I know you were waiting to tell me about it.”

Steve shrugs it off. “That’s ok. I was really dragging my feet with telling you, I’ve been ready for a while now, just didn’t know how to bring it up.”

“For what it’s worth, it kind of helped. Made me feel a little better knowing that I’m not alone in this.”

“You’re not alone in anything, Julie. No matter what, there will be people behind you. Whether that’s me, your friends, anyone else lucky enough to meet you.”

She rolls her eyes. “Yeah, whatever. Thanks, though.”

“It’s what I’m here for.”

. . .

The notice from the courthouse comes a week later. Alerting Steve that it’s time to approve the court date. One’s been selected for him, but can be pushed back if he needs it to. But it’s there. It’s real. This is actually happening.

He goes over the evidence again, confirms with Hopper that he can actually witness. Get the files all ready on his end. Then contacts his old nanny and gets talked into coming over for brunch. To catch up and see how he’s doing. Make sure she is what he needs for this case. Which she is. She was the longest one he ever had and was extremely meticulous. Most likely still has her pay stubs after all these years.

The last person he has to call is Nancy. Who doesn’t even know that he’s moved yet. Or that his parents are home.

It’s been a while since he’s called her, obviously, and he’s been avoiding it. Not wanting an earful of her again. But he needs to know when she’s back and if she’ll testify for him. She he dials her number.

“Nancy speaking.”

“Hey, Nance, it’s Steve. I have some things to catch you up on.”

She sighs. “Oh, I know. Robin refused to tell me anything about whatever’s going on. I think it was to force you to call me.”

“Yeah probably.”

After a long conversation and a lecture from Nancy on the importance of phone calls, she agrees to testify on his behalf. As both a character witness and also to back up some of the evidence he has.

Everything’s starting to get put together. Now all there is to do is wait.

Tag list(let me know if you want to be added or removed): @homoerotictangerine, @mugloversonly, @thesuninyaface, @imyelenasexual, @anaibis,

@ilovecupcakesandtea, @brainsteddielyrotted, @jackiemonroe5512, @eddie-munsons-missing-nipple, @goodolefashionedloverboi,

@cinnamon-mushroomabomination, @lolawonsstuff, @writingandmushroomdragons, @stevesbipanic, @sierra-violet,

@steddie-as-they-go, @dauntlessdiva, @mousedetective, @the-daydreamer-in-the-corner, @zombiethingy,

@connected-dots-st-reblogger, @that-agender-from-pluto, @allyricas, @cheddartreets, @devondespresso,

@crypticcorvidinacottage, @queenie-ofthe-void @chronicpainstevetruther, @melonmochi

[hairstevington]

i can't tune you out (part 2)

Eddie Munson x Steve Harrington, Robin Buckley x Chrissy Cunningham

Summary: Eddie and Steve do not like each other, but the fans still want them together. Eddie explores other options, Steve explores the dark side, and Robin experiences gay panic.

(part 1, link to Ao3)

Word Count: 3K

Warnings: Rockstar!Eddie/Musician!Steve, modern day au, enemies to lovers, they are VERY in their enemies era, they are both assholes, BUT IT'S BUCKINGHAM TIME, codependent Stobin as usual.

A/N: I am having SO MUCH FUN writing this, and I can't wait for you to see some of the future scenes I've planned :) This chapter is a bit of set-up, but I'll get the next one out soon I promise!

“Great job, Eddie!” Carla said on the phone. “People are really talking now. And did you see your follower count? It’s -”

“I don’t want anything to do with that guy,” Eddie interrupted. 

He’d made his decision. His life was comfortable, and he could find success some other way. Or, if he didn’t, he’d make peace with that, too. The idea of Eddie having to basically beg on his knees for attention from a total dickwad like Steve Harrington in hopes that it would boost his career filled him with a kind of rage and self-hatred that he thought he’d left back at Hawkins High. 

There was no way. No fucking way.

“Y-you -” Carla stuttered in surprise. “Why not? What happened?”

“He’s an asshole is what happened,” Eddie huffed. “Look, I appreciate what you did, and I gave it a shot, and I’m saying no. We’re dropping it.”

She didn’t press any further. She knew better than that. 

After the call ended, Eddie reflected on the previous night. Other than the Steve stuff, he actually really enjoyed himself. He thought about Chrissy, then got curious. He pulled out his phone to look her up, then realized that he didn’t know her last name.

Oh god. 

Chrissy knew Steve, which meant they probably followed each other. Eddie was at least glad people weren’t notified when he looked them up on Instagram. He started with the HARVEST account.

Yup. The page was all kinds of weird. 

HARVEST was following 0 people. Meanwhile, his follower count was in the millions. There were only a few posts, and none of them made a lot of sense. Maybe they were references to songs or something. Eddie wouldn’t know. 

Eddie clicked on the followers and his eyes widened. A LOT of verified people were following him, even some that Eddie himself followed and would kill to interact with. He went to the search bar and typed - crissy - seeing a long line of potential women that would take Eddie a bit to get through. He sighed, then clicked off HARVEST’s profile and instead searched the name he hated to his core - Steve Harrington.

Oh joy. Steve’s profile still had more followers than Eddie. It was far more manageable though, and at least the posts were normal. Steve at the beach with Robin. Steve playing piano at a show. Steve raising his glass at a bar. Robin in the HARVEST getup.

Jesus. They really were close. Why weren’t people shipping them instead? Was it too obvious or something? He read some comments to double check. A few people assumed they were together, but most knew that Robin was a lesbian. That tracked. 

He scrolled until the posts became less focused on Robin and more focused on another woman. And God, Steve was totally in love with her. The way he looked at her was far different than the way he looked at Robin. It was like this other woman - Nancy, it seemed like her name was - had been his entire world. 

Huh. Apparently, it was heartbreak season for Stevie-boy. 

Eddie scrolled back up to the top and clicked on the followers again, this time seeing the ratio between followers and following to be way more balanced. He typed in crissy again. One profile, not her. He tried chrissy next. 

Bingo!

She was the first result, and her bright blonde hair in the profile picture confirmed it. Chrissy Cunningham. Actress, model. 23 years old. 

Waaaaay too fucking famous and successful for Eddie to just reach out. The pictures on her profile were all from photoshoots and sponsorships. He followed her, obviously, immediately backpedaled to Steve’s profile, and then clicked on Robin’s out of curiosity. 

Aww, she was cute. Much more approachable. She had even posted a photo from the previous night of her with Steve. It was a good photo. From a distance, Steve seemed like a chill guy.

But, Eddie knew better than that.

He closed out Instagram and did his best to forget about the whole thing.

-

“Steve.”

It started as a whisper. 

“Steve.”

Still a whisper, now accompanied with a poke in the shoulder. 

“Steeeeeve.”

Okay, he was being shaken now. Steve stirred with a groan. 

“What.”

“I need you to wake up.”

“I’m awake,” Steve said. His eyes were still closed, and he had an urge to pull the covers over his head. “But I feel like shit.”

“Yeah, you feel like shit,” Robin replied. “I think you drank more of those cocktails than anyone else at the bar. Congratulations.”

Steve exhaled sharply from his nose. Almost a laugh, but not quite. 

“Why’re you waking me up, Robs?” He was too nauseous to turn around and face her, and he was also pretty sure her reason for waking him up was going to be something stupid. When he was less hungover, he humored her, but this particular morning he mostly just wanted to throw up. 

“Chrissy Cunningham liked my post.” 

Steve almost opened his eyes for that one. 

“Oh, shit.”

It was no secret that Robin had been in love with Chrissy from afar for a while now. When Steve and Chrissy first became acquaintances, Robin had begged him to introduce her. Unfortunately, Steve and Chrissy weren’t close enough to hang out, and were doomed to only run into each other at parties and events. Last night the girls met for the first time, technically, even though they’d said nothing other than introductions. 

“Oh my god,” Robin said. “She commented.”

Steve’s eyes snapped open. Now he was invested.

“What did she say??”

“She said - holy shit, she - oh my GOD Steve! What the fuck!”

This was big for Robin. Steve knew this was big. He risked the flip of his stomach to roll over and take her phone so he could look at the comment with his own eyes. 

chrissycunningham: yessss this jumpsuit! I love!!😍 

“Oh, wow,” Steve said, impressed. “Damn, Robs. Chrissy got one look at you and fell in love.”

“She loves the jumpsuit, Steve,” Robin insisted.

“Yeah, sure. The jumpsuit,” Steve dismissed with a smirk. 

“Don’t you dare do this to me,” Robin warned. “Do we even know if she likes girls? She literally ran off with Jason Carver last night.”

“So?” Steve mumbled. A notification popped up on Robin’s phone that made him chuckle. “All I’m saying is, you’re hot, she’s hot, and she just followed you, so I wouldn’t rule out her being interested.”

“Shut up,” Robin said. Steve grinned and handed the phone back to her. She looked at it, stunned. “Shut up. Shut up! What? No way. What? Holy shit!”

“Robin, please,” Steve whined. “My head. It hurts.”

“FUCK YOUR HEAD, CHRISSY CUNNINGHAM JUST FOLLOWED ME!”

It took a while for Robin to calm down. He told her to reply to the comment, then listened as she rattled off possible responses from the kitchen, where she was assembling something like breakfast for their hangovers. She returned with toast, water, and aspirin for the both of them. 

“Thanks,” Steve said as he grabbed one of the plates. She got back under the covers and joined him in eating, still contemplating the whole Chrissy situation. 

Steve and Robin didn’t share a bed all the time when she stayed over, but recently she chose it over the couch because she found out Steve had sex with Nancy on that couch, and it grossed her out. Steve tried to explain that he and Nancy had also had sex in the bed, but Robin said it was different because of the sheets. Fair enough. It was a King size bed (obviously, fit for the King himself), so there was plenty of room. 

Steve was still kind of pissed that Nancy had told her about the couch thing, though. He knew that girls talked, and Robin and Nancy had gotten pretty close over the years, but still. At least Steve won Robin in the breakup (not that there was ever any doubt in his mind). 

Robin responded with something simple. Chrissy liked the response. There was more squealing. 

God, help him. 

-

Here was the thing about Eddie Munson. He was always at a 10. 

Whether he was angry or annoyed or happy or enthusiastic or whatever, he felt it at max capacity. He didn’t really know how to let things go, either - try as he might. Actually, he didn’t try that hard. He still held a grudge with his fifth grade teacher because she refused to give him credit for a drawing he did of his family.

He drew a bunch of random shit. Dragons. Princesses. A talking dog. She told him he didn’t do the assignment, but what the hell was he supposed to draw? His dad behind bars? 

Anyway, he never forgave Miss Kendall for that. And he never would. 

Yeah, Eddie was dramatic. Obviously. But it’s what made him so captivating, and what had gotten him all the things he loved. He wasn’t evil, he was just passionate. When he loved something, he loved it with his entire soul.

Same for when he hated something. Couldn’t help it. Even if he wanted to let it go, he couldn’t. The rage fueled him. It fueled his work. His music. His career. His everything. Without anger, without that passion, without something to hate, he couldn’t do what he loved.

So, no. He couldn’t just stop thinking about stupid Steve Harrington. Even though the whole thing was stupid and Eddie didn’t need it. He didn’t. He didn’t, okay?!

Fuck. 

-

Unlike Steve, Robin, and Eddie, Chrissy Cunningham had stayed out all night. She danced with Jason for a while, made her rounds at the bar, then at 2am when last call hit, Jason approached her again. She enjoyed his company enough to leave with him, but not enough to accept his invitation to stay overnight. 

Well, technically they did spend the night together, considering they roamed the city for a while and then got to his apartment at 4am. Then, the sun was rising, and he was telling her to stay, and she said she lied and said she had a photoshoot to get to. 

This happened kind of often with men. 

It wasn’t that she didn’t like these guys, she just had no interest in dating them. She’d always been that way. She’d dated a few guys before, but something about it just felt off. Like, she even believed she loved one of them, but she couldn’t imagine a future with him. So, she figured maybe she just wasn’t meant for relationships, and she’d accepted that. She didn’t mind, actually, because her favorite part of all of it was the beginning. 

The attraction. The chase. The build-up. The desire and eventual release. Everything that came after that she was just not into as much. 

She got home, took a shower, crawled into her own bed, and scrolled Instagram. Sometimes, it was hard for her to see all the pictures of her fellow models, because she couldn’t help but compare her own body to theirs. She almost closed the app, but then for whatever reason she started thinking about Eddie, and she wondered if her matchmaking helped the guy out in any way. 

But, she just knew the first name. Eddie. And he was a musician, apparently. Not much to go off on, there. 

Out of curiosity, she went to Steve’s profile, then searched his photos and his tagged photos in case there were any of him and Eddie. 

Nope. But there WAS one of Steve and Robin. Aww. 

She would have been at a dead end, but then she got a notification that Eddie followed her, soooo....that made things a whole lot easier.

Now, she knew Eddie's last name - Munson, of Corroded Coffin fame. Once she figured that out, she realized she had read something on Twitter about him and Steve being together. Hmm.

She wasn’t sure why any of this was appealing to her, she just needed something to occupy her mind until she fell asleep.

Her eyes were heavy and she was nearly delirious from staying up all night. That's probably why she did one final thing before passing out.

-

Chrissy sent you a message: soooo what’s going on with you and Steve?? 👀

Uhhh. What the fuck?

Never in a million years did Eddie think Chrissy would give him the time of day ever again. Their interaction the night before had been circumstantial, and he figured she’d forget about him the moment she was whisked away by the hot blonde. 

He stared at the message for quite some time, unsure how to respond. “Absolutely nothing” was the first potential response that came to mind. It was the honest truth, but a boring one. Eddie hated Steve, but he liked Chrissy, and maybe befriending her could boost his career in the same way befriending Steve would. It was worth a shot, right?

Okay, so now he had to be strategic. He thought about it for most of the day before getting back to her.

Eddie: Kind of a long story. Next party I’ll tell you all about it 🙂

Now, Eddie just hoped Chrissy would take the bait. He waited another hour or so, then checked his phone immediately when she responded.

Chrissy: Why wait? I’m nosy and I could use a drink.

Oh HELL yeah. Things were about to get very, very interesting. 

He agreed to the time and place, then got ready and brainstormed what he would tell Chrissy, if anything. If she wanted gossip, he sure had it, but he wasn’t certain he should be sharing everything. He was going to hold his cards to his chest and keep things vague, for now. 

In 24 hours, he’d gone from low-level fame to mid-level fame and was grabbing a drink with a high-level fame model. 

Take that, Harrington. 

-

“What the hell?” Steve shouted to Robin once he saw the Instagram story. “She’s out with Eddie tonight. Like, at a bar.”

“Chrissy?” Robin asked with wide eyes. 

She hadn’t left Steve’s apartment yet. They’d taken the entire day off to groan about their hangovers and micro-analyze every interaction Robin and Chrissy had thus far. 

“No, the other chick we’ve been talking about all day,” Steve replied. 

“Okay, what did we say about referring to women as ‘chicks,’ Steve?” Robin reminded him, pulling out her phone.

She jumped to Instagram to see what Steve was referring to. In the boomerang, Chrissy was clinking glasses with a man whose face was cut off. Even though it was obviously Eddie, Chrissy tagged him - as if the long brown hair and ringed hands could belong to anyone else. 

“Do you think that they’re, like -?” Steve asked. “You know?”

“What? No!” Robin shouted back instantly. “I mean - no! Like, because she - I mean, I’m pretty sure Eddie’s gay, right?”

“Is he?” Steve asked, nonplussed. There had been a rumor back in high school, but Steve never cared too much about people’s sexualities. 

“Steve, come on. This is juicy information,” Robin insisted. 

“I dunno if it is,” he replied with a shrug. 

“You seriously don’t care at all?” Robin wondered, dubiously. 

“What are you implying? After last night, I mean -”

“Yeah, but I know you,” Robin dismissed. “You’re the one who pointed Chrissy’s story out in the first place.”

“Because you’re into her, Robin!” Steve shouted. “It has nothing to do with Eddie. Nothing, I swear. It’s just -” He sighed, heavy, pondering whether or not he should just come out and say it. It was only Robin, after all. “Fine, okay. It’s a Nancy thing.”

“Ah,” Robin said with a nod. “I had a feeling.”

“No you didn’t.”

“Yes I did!” she insisted. “Anyway, you’re upset about Nancy moving on. That’s totally normal.”

“Yeah, and I -” God, why is this so hard? “I just want - I want to -”

“You want her to feel the way you’re feeling, so you’re thinking about capitalizing on the Eddie thing even though you don’t like him because then at least you can pretend you’re in a perfect relationship that other people love and you can drive your ex crazy.”

Oh. Oh, wow. Yeah, he should just tell Robin things more often.

“Am I…am I a bad person?” Steve asked. After hearing it out loud, it kind of sounded really horrible.

“No,” Robin answered. “I mean, it’s not great, but I think a lot of people have those thoughts.”

“But do they act on them?” Steve wondered. 

“Um.” Robin cocked her head in confusion. “You’re actually thinking about doing this, Harrington?” He shrugged. 

“I don’t know, maybe,” he answered truthfully. “It’s not just Nancy. My album - I mean, for whatever reason, people are going crazy over Eddie and I, and I really want this album to succeed, Robs.”

“I get that,” Robin said empathetically. “Especially about your career. I know how much this album means to you.”

“But?”

“But,” she continued. “Look, I’m team Steve forever and always, but Nance was my friend too at one point. And I just - I mean, she’s allowed to date Jonathan and be happy, just like you.” 

Ah, there it was. That was the difference. Nancy was happy. 

Steve knew Robin had a point. He didn’t want to be the jealous ex boyfriend. He didn’t want to feel anything for Nancy at all, but he did. Maybe he needed to just start dating someone else again. The problem was, he didn’t have a lot of time to build actual relationships. He was always super busy, and it tended not to mesh well with anything other than hook-ups. Steve was kind of done with the whole hook-up thing. 

If Eddie and Steve had gotten along at all, this would have been a no brainer. Why not fake date the hot musician, right? But they didn’t get along, so now Steve had to like…think. And he had to consider other people’s feelings. And he had to pay attention to things people said about him online. He had to be a good person. He had to do the right thing.

Or….

“Robin, how down would you be to do something a little crazy?” he asked. 

“What are you thinking?”

“The bar they’re at is down the road. Wanna go?”

Look, nobody’s perfect.

(part 3)

---------------------------------------

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[ragewithinthestorm]

closed for @rebelliousfamily

Scarlet was enjoying living in Hawkins, it was nice to be in a small town away from the media, able to live her own life, it also seemed that no one here realised who she was which was an added bonus, she was able to create her own identity without being defined by her fathers' position or the kidnapping. She had moved into the house next to the Cunningham's, of course she didn't speak with the parents, they didn't seem fond of her or her large dog, but she had exchanged passing words with Chrissy when their paths crossed.

It was four in the morning and Scarlet was heading out to take Chip on his morning walk when she smelled smoke. Instinctively she looked around, turning her head and seeing smoke coming from next door. "Fuck, Chip stay," she instructed her saint bernard as she dropped his leash on the grass and ran over. She knew the parents were away but Chrissy wasn't, she was fairly familiar with the routines of the residents in the morning and she knew Chrissy didn't get up this early and she had seen her go in the night before. "Hey!" She yelled as she picked up a handful of gravel and launched it at the bedroom window, Chip began to bark, "Chrissy!" She yelled until she saw movement at the window, confirmation.

Black eyes watched as flames licked at the kitchen window, she had to get Chrissy out. Thankfully her yelling had woke another neighbour who had stuck their head out of the window, she yelled at them to call the fire brigade as she tried to figure out what to do. She ran back inside, returning a few moments later with a throw and turned the hose on, soaking herself and the throw before running back to Chrissy's house. She grabbed a rock and launched it through one of the windows, flames roared out and as soon as they dropped down she climbed through and ran to Crissy's room. She wrapped the wet throw around her and lead her down to the broken window and got her outside, practically carrying her out the window, it helped that Chrissy was light and Scarlet was strong.

She got her over to her house before sitting on the grass, Chip ran over to them and started licking Scarlet's arms. "Are you okay?" Scarlet asked her through coughs.

[xgnormalereaderworks]

fandoms and characters I'll write for;

Hazbin hotel

Lucifer Morningstar

Angel Dust

Alastor (platonically only, he's aroace)

Helluva boss

Stolas

Blitzø

Millie & Moxxie (poly)

Studio Ghibli

Howl Pendragon

Stranger Things

Steve Harrington

Billy Hargrove

Eddie Munson

Jason Carver

Crissy Cunningham

Nancy Wheeler

Robin Buckley (platonically, she's a lesbian)

Dorohedoro

Kaiman

Nikaido

Noi

Shin