#cyndi hawkins

[deecio]

Who has to know? It’s not even their last slice...

Cyndi gets a little stealy when she’s drunk.

[hardboiledleggs]

Hawkins High Prom, 1985

Howdy gang, it's been a minute. This is a quick little oneshot I whipped up for the lovely @imnotokayhru based on this post of theirs. TW for a tiny bit of internalized homophobia and bad teenage dancing lol

The Munson Doctrine does not allow for attending high school prom, especially without a date. Jeff had just begged so hard, and Eddie Munson was, at his core, a weak man. Secretly, he’d been hoping to see what prom was like, and it turned out that it sucked hard. So now he was here, surrounded by crepe paper and sweaty teenagers, and listening to Cyndi Lauper and Blondie.

Jeff’s date, a quiet girl from his biology class, had dragged him onto the dance floor almost an hour ago. Gareth had been too young to go to prom, and Grant had flat-out refused, so now Eddie was stuck here by himself watching the teenage population of Hawkins try to moonwalk. Hello, therapy.

A third glare from the chaperoning Mrs. Click forced Eddie to move from his hiding place near the wrestling mat. He had been slowly revolving around the room, doing his best to keep away from Higgins, but apparently his tactic of standing completely still and looking bored was suspicious to the teachers for some reason.

Just then, Mr. Mundy abandoned his post by the door to the boys’ locker room, yelling “Hands, Hagan! Let me see your hands!” as he went.

Spotting his chance, Eddie dodged a decidedly drunk Tammy Thompson and hurried into the locker room. He breathed out a sigh of relief as the door shut behind him and muffled the DJ.

He checked his watch. Still too early for the damn thing to be over. He debated trying to escape through the vents briefly before realizing that he wouldn’t know which direction to crawl in and might die up there. It would be really funny if his corpse fell out of the ceiling during O’Donnell’s class, though.

Eddie gazed at the lockers for another moment before inspiration struck. Hadn’t he sold to all these asshole jocks one hundred times? Surely, at least one of them kept their stash in their gym locker.

He hurried over to the first locker and pinched his nose, anticipating the smell of sweaty jock straps and unwashed ass to assault him. His senses were pleasantly surprised when the locker betrayed only a faint floral scent that vaguely reminded him of his mom.

Eddie rifled through the contents. Extra socks, a basketball uniform, and a pair of Adidas sat at the bottom. The top shelf had deodorant, hair gel, a tin of moisturizer, and a can of Farrah Fawcett hair spray. Eddie snorted. No weed, just the sports paraphernalia of a very fussy member of the basketball team.

“Uh, hey. That’s my locker you’re stealing from.”

Eddie swore loudly and straightened up, smacking his head against the shelf of the locker. Tears sprang to his eyes and he staggered backward, clutching the top of his head. His would-be thievery victim started to apologize, and that was when Eddie looked up and recognized the very famous head of hair.

“Is it still stealing if I was doing my civic duty and just planning on removing any illegal substances I found during my snooping?” Eddie muttered as he rubbed the spot where a bruise was already forming.

“Unless you became a cop and didn’t tell anyone, I’m pretty sure theft is still theft,” Harrington snorted.

“I’m no pig, Steve-O. Just a guy looking for weed.”

“In that case, let’s try Hagan’s locker,” Harrington said as he crossed to the other side of the locker room. He let out a little “Aha!” of triumph and tossed a bag across the room that Eddie caught with one hand.

He slumped down with his back against Harrington’s locker and stuck his feet out in front of him, trying to ignore the way the tiles looked. Harrington crossed the room, hesitating for only a second before he flopped down next to Eddie, not quite touching, but sitting close enough that it would be easy to pass the joint Eddie was carefully rolling between the two of them.

“I’m assuming you’re planning on sharing?” Harrington quirked an eyebrow at him. He didn’t seem to notice that his very nice black suit was in contact with the biohazard that was the Hawkins High boys’ locker room floor.

“Of course, my liege. I always share the spoils of war with my fellow countrymen,” Eddie quipped. He passed the joint to Steve for the first hit, digging in his pocket for his lighter.

His companion took a deep breath, letting the smoke sit in his lungs before breathing out and passing the joint to Eddie. Eddie tried not to notice the way the wisps of smoke curled from between his lips and took a drag.

“Would’ve thought you would have your own weed for this thing, Munson. Isn’t this kinda your territory?”

Eddie scoffed. “I may be repeating my senior year but I’m not an idiot. Higgins would lose his mind if he caught me dealing at prom.”

Steve threw his head back and laughed. His already-nice face was so much nicer when he laughed. It made him look younger, much less like the haggard boy who sometimes showed up to their shared history class with dark circles under his eyes.

They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes, swapping the joint back and forth. Eddie picked at a hole in the leg of the dress pants Wayne had lent him, wondering why Harrington was being so nice to him and if he could push his luck.

“So, Farrah Fawcett, huh?” he said with a wry grin. Steve’s cheeks flamed with color.

“Hey, I’m swearing you to secrecy here. All of this-” he gestured at his ridiculous poofy hair, “-is only achieved with a very specific routine, okay? This stuff is the real deal.”

“Your secret is safe with me,” Eddie grinned. “Speaking of secrets, why are you hiding in the locker room when you should be out there, in your element?”

Steve frowned. He actually looked uncomfortable.

“Well, my date started dancing with Hargrove when I went to piss, so…” he trailed off. “Guess I figured I’d wait out the dance in here while she had fun. This really isn’t my element anymore, anyway.”

Eddie raised his eyebrows. “How did you pick a girl stupid enough to ditch you, Harrington? Did you ask your cousin or something?”

Steve pressed his lips together, suppressing a smile.

“No, jackass. I think she just thought it would make her look cooler to come with a date and I was available. Whatever, it’s fine, I didn’t even like her that much. She wore this ridiculous dress that pushes her boobs together so hard it looks like they’re going to pop out.”

Eddie cackled at that. He could already feel the contented stupor from the weed seeping into his system.

“If it makes you feel better, I came alone. Or, I guess I came as the third wheel who can’t dance so he got left by the snack table,” he shrugged.

Steve glanced at him out of the corner of his eye.

“What do you mean, you can’t dance?” he asked. “Everyone can dance. You just have to sway around in a circle with your arms around somebody. Have you never slow-danced at a school dance before?”

Eddie shook his head. “C’mon, Harrington. Nobody wants to dance with the freak.”

Steve slapped his knee and stood up abruptly. He held his hand out to Eddie, who stared up at him from the ground.

“Would you like to dance with me?”

Eddie gaped up at him. Harrington actually looked nervous.

“Be serious. You don’t want to dance with me. What, is Hagan hiding in the showers, ready to punch me for agreeing to this like some queer?” Eddie snapped.

Steve’s face fell a bit, but he still grabbed Eddie’s hand and hauled him to his feet.

“I’m not even friends with Tommy Hagan anymore, Munson. Come on, I like this song.”

The intro to George Michael’s Careless Whisper filters through the door to the locker room. Eddie hesitantly wraps his hands around Steve’s neck and shivers when a large pair of hands settle at his waist.

They swayed together slowly. Eddie couldn’t bring himself to look Steve in the eyes, so he busied himself with counting the moles on his neck. George Michael crooned about his guilty feet as they revolved around the locker room.

“See. This isn’t so bad, is it?” Steve whispered into his hair. They had drifted unconsciously closer as they danced, and now they were only a few inches apart.

He pulled back a bit to force Eddie to make eye contact with him. Eddie forced the blush that was fighting to rise to his cheeks back down and smiled.

“I would say it’s the best dance I’ve ever had, but I don’t have anything to compare it to,” he admitted.

“Well, I do, and I agree,” Steve said. “Don’t sell yourself short, you’re a very good dancer.”

Eddie grinned.

“Don’t let me get too cocky, Stevie. I might think you actually like me.”

“And if I said I did?” Steve asked seriously.

“I-I’d tell you that you probably don’t know what you’re talking about,” Eddie stammered.

Their eyes met again. Steve had a worried little crease between his eyebrows that Eddie registered as very cute in the back of his mind. They continued to sway even as Eddie’s hands began to sweat. Steve’s expression cleared suddenly, as if he had made up his mind about something.

“Stop me if this is, I mean, if I’m doing the wrong thing, okay?” he murmured.

He lifted the hand that had been on Eddie’s waist and cupped his cheek. Eddie felt his heart fall out of his chest and settle somewhere near his stomach. Steve’s eyes fluttered shut and he started to lean forward.

Tonight the music seems so loud, I wish that we could lose this crowd.

Eddie’s lips parted in a hastily stifled gasp as Steve Harrington kissed him. His own eyes slid shut as their lips met. Everything melted away: the smell of the locker room, the harshness of the fluorescent overhead lights behind his eyelids, even his own nerves squirming in his stomach. There was nothing but the press of Steve’s soft lips against his own and the pressure of his hand against Eddie’s face.

Far too quickly, Steve pulled back. Eddie stared at him, wide-eyed with shock.

“That was okay, right? That I did that?” Steve asked softly.

“Uh, um, yes yeah definitely. Definitely okay.”

Steve grinned at him. It was so infectious that Eddie couldn’t help smiling back. He was still cradling Eddie’s face gently in his warm hand.

“Then would it be weird if I asked you if you wanted to sneak out of here with me and drive around for a bit? I don’t really feel like going back to prom,” Steve said.

“I’m all yours, big boy,” Eddie replied breathlessly.

Steve twined their fingers together and leaned in to press a chaste kiss to his lips. Then he tugged Eddie toward the door, laughing. It was the most beautiful thing Eddie had ever seen.

~~~

They're so cute I love them so much. After this they drove around Hawkins for hours, singing along to the radio and holding hands and other sappy things. Anywhosies as always let me know if you want to be added to (or removed from) my permanent Steddie tag list where I bother you anytime I write anything about these two boys <3

Steddie tag list

Tag list: @brassreign @inmoonywetrust @kyoxyukiforever @spectrum-spectre @vampireinthesun @awkwardgravity1 @obsessivlyme  @steddieassheg0es @tell-me-a-secret-a-nice-one @sunflowers-and-knives @original-cypher @e0509 @estrellami-1 @scottiedoessknow @sweetwaterangel @novelnovella

[eddiethebanished]

It’s Only Fair

leadsinger!reader

Summary- Eddie’s working as a bouncer at The Hideout on ladies night, watches your band play.

Warnings- I’m not really sure if there are any? Please let me know if there are so I can learn.

Eddie had never seen so many women, especially at The Hideout of all places. By the time he got to work there was a line wrapped around the building.

He had been working at The Hideout as a bouncer for a few weeks, in exchange his band would be able to play more gigs at a reduced fee. But he had yet to work a Wednesday night,

which as it turns out was ladies night. Reduced price on drinks and girl bands gracing the stage.

With a groan Eddie pushed open the door to let the ladies in at 7pm sharp. A few had already been getting rowdy, banging on the door begging for early entry. From then on it was the same monotonous movements. Check ID, take the cover charge, nod his head toward the door signaling admission. Ignoring the giggles and flirtatious batting of eyelashes from some of the patrons, Eddie could tell by the sea of bright neon color dresses he most likely wouldn’t be hearing his preferred type of music tonight.

“Harrington?” Eddie asked, surprised to see the shaggy brown haired boy standing in front of him. “What are you doing here?”

Steve scoffed. “It’s ladies night, Munson. Plus, Robins band is playing tonight and their singer is like a total babe.”

Eddie chuckled and patted steve on the shoulder as he walked through the door. After what felt like eternity of checking IDs, taking the cover charge, and nodding his head towards the entrance, the line ended, save for a few stragglers here and there.

The first band took the stage with big teased hair full of aqua net, they wore matching jazzercise outfits and played the most headache inducing pop music that would even have Cyndi Lauper nauseous. Eddie made his way to the bar in hopes David the bartender could make him something to ease the pain of the night.

“Want your regular, Ed?” David asked while wiping down the bar.

“Sure, better make it a double” he said over the sound of the bands pitchy singer.

“Never worked a ladies night before huh?” Eddie shook his head, David continued “It’s not that bad, sure the music isn’t great but there’s rarely any fights to break up, and I make a killing in tips!” Eddie nodded and slid a five over to David before he was called into a sea of girls ordering shots and half priced cocktails. Eddie took up residence at a table near the door where a bold Steve Harrington was striking out with every girl he flirted with.

The second band who took the stage was just fine, the third band came on late, drunk, and ended with the bassist barfing on the drummers cymbals. After a brief intermission to clean the stage, the lights dimmed. People scrambled from their barstools and dark corners to the middle of the room. Shouts and whoops erupted as the band took the stage.

“This is Robin’s band.” Steve said sitting up in his seat and nudging Eddie. One by one the band members stepped up on stage, Robin with her drumsticks gave a silly wave towards Eddie and Steve, the latter of which shouted out a “Woo!” The bassist arrived next blowing a kiss towards the audience, followed by the guitarist. They each had their own unique style that worked together, it showed cohesiveness without needing matching jazzercise outfits.

When the lead singer got on stage the crowd went wild, eddies eyes widened. Black oversized t-shirt with black shorts you could barely see, fishnets and doc martens. Eddie shifted in his seat to get a better look.

“That’s y/n.” Steve said looking at Eddie with a knowing smirk.

“Alright Hawkins how are we doing tonight?!” You said into the microphone. The crowd responded with cheers and applause as you started your first song. It was a cover of “Love Will Tear Us Apart” by Joy Division. By the end of the first chorus Eddie was enamored.

When the song ended, you grabbed your placid blue fender strat and slipped the strap over your head. Eddie wasn’t enamored- he was in love.

“Watch it, Munson. You’re drooling.” Steve said.

“Shut up, Harrington.” He said flatly.

“This one-” you started while plucking a few strings, “is dedicated to all the shitty guys in Hawkins that broke our hearts!” Jumping into an original song about dancing with the devil and having your girlhood stolen, Eddie realized why all these people were at this shitty bar. They were here to see you.

When your set ended, Steve nodded his head to go over to the stage with him. “Come on, I’ll introduce you to your future wife.” He added a wink and chuckled to himself. Eddie downed the rest of his drink and followed after Steve.

“Hey look, Steve, you really don’t need to-“ He was cut off.

“Oh come on, have some fun.” Steve said walking through the crowd.

“Hey guys!” Robin beamed “What did you think of our set? We’ve been rehearsing like crazy and I really think it paid off!” Robin rambled clutching her drumsticks.

“It was great, Robin-“ Steve began, he put his arm on her shoulder and said in a lower tone “where’s y/n? I think our boy Eddie here might want to meet her.” He grinned.

“Oh! She’s putting her stuff in the van, I’ll go get her!” Before Eddie could object, Robin bounced out of the propped open side door where he could see the band members putting equipment in the trunk. Robin returned shortly arm in arm with the lead singer, the girl of Eddie’s dreams.

“Steve, you know y/n.” Robin said, a grin plastered to her face. Steve nodded his head toward you. “This is our friend Eddie.” Robin said with a gentle push on your back towards where Eddie was standing.

“Hi.” Eddie said, with his signature smile, a little dimple forming on his cheek.

“Hey, I know you, you work here right?” You responded after taking a sip from your water. Eddie opened his mouth to respond when-

“Yeah Eddie is the bouncer, he’s also in this band that plays here Tuesday nights.” Robin answered for Eddie.

“Here, Robin I’ll help you with your drums okay?” Steve said raising his eyebrows and nodding his head towards Eddie. As they walked away Steve turned back and gave Eddie a thumbs up.

“What kind of music do you play?” You asked stepping closer to the curly haired boy.

“Uhh Metal, mostly. I’m also frontman and play guitar.” He responded nervously, shoving his hands in his jacket pockets. You rocked back and forth on your heels and looked up into his dark brown eyes.

“I’ll have to come check you guys out, it’s only fair after you seeing us play.”

“Fair- right I have to warn you though, it’s nothing like tonight,” Eddie started looking around at the crowd still lingering after your set. “We get about five drunk guys at the bar and that’s it.” He chuckled.

“Well I can guarantee there will be one more person at your next show.” You smiled sweetly, Eddie’s eyes couldn’t help dart to your lips, they looked so soft with a lingering shine from the gloss that must have worn off while you were singing. Realizing he was staring for a beat too long he cleared his throat and looked toward the open door. “So do you need help carrying anything out?”

“No, I’m all packed up but thank you.” You responded politely.

“In that case,” Eddie’s voice deepened as he inched closer to you. “can I buy you a drink?”

A blush crept across your cheeks as you nodded silently. He grabbed your hand and led you over to the bar where two stools had just become available.

David walked over to you two slinging a rag over his shoulder. “Hey rockstars, what can I get for you?” You both gave him your drink orders and faced each other on the stools.

“Okay, musician to musician, what did you think of the set?” You asked biting your lip nervously.

“Honestly, I was surprised.” He said, sipping from his beer bottle.

“Surprised we didn’t play covers of Madonna or Bananarama?” You asked while smiling into your drink.

“You could have sang anything and it would have sounded amazing.” He started. “When I came in today I couldn’t believe how many people were lined up to get into The Hideout of all places. But when I saw you up there, it all clicked”

You brushed a piece of hair behind your ear. “Oh stop, they’re here for the half priced drinks, that’s all.” You said self-deprecatingly.

“Hey, all those people stayed after that bassist puked all over the drums.” you both laughed together. “You were a natural up there.” Eddie’s eyes met yours, still with a smile on his face.

“Thank you.” You said while holding his gaze.

“Hey y/n, sorry” Robin bounced up to you both, “My curfew on school nights is 11 and it is now-“ she looked at her watch. “12:30, and you drove so do you think we could…” she trailed off.

“Yes! Shit, Robin, I’m sorry.” You reached for your pocket pulling out a few stray dollar bills, about to place them on the bar. Eddie quickly shook his head.

“Nope, it’s on me. Employee discount.” He said with a wink.

“Aw, thank you, I’ll make sure I buy your drink when I come see your show.” You said putting the money back in the pocket of your shorts while standing up from the barstool.

“Don’t worry about it.” Eddie said with a shrug.

“Come on, fair is fair!” You giggled and leaned close to his ear. “I’ll see you Tuesday.” You whispered softly before Robin pulled you away.

Eddie could get used to working ladies night.

[fromasgardandback]

karaoke at the Hideout

•

masterlist | stranger things summer

friday nights are karaoke night at the Hideout. it was no surprise that the older gang walked into the bar ready to have a fun-filled night

what they didn’t expect was for a biker gang hanging out to be there as well. not only did they feel somewhat uncomfortable with all the harsh stares, but now they have to sing in front of them as well

“I'm not singing sober with all this going on. I’m getting wasted before I even think about walking on that stage.” Nancy shook her head going towards the bar with Robin following

“It can’t be that bad. I mean Eddie sings in front of drunks all the time. Plus we only live once, why not make a memory to share when we’re older?” Y/N suggested smiling at the boys before ordering a drink at the bar

once they were all partway tipsy, Robin was the first to stumble up there and the bikers didn’t seem to mind. Steve followed, then Nancy, Eddie, and finally Y/N ending the troop’s singing

Robin sang “One Way or Another” by Blondie; Steve sang “Club Tropicana” by Wham!; Nancy sang “Girls Just Want To Have Fun” by Cyndi Lauper; Eddie sang “Into The Void” by Black Sabbath, and Y/N sang “Panama” by Van Halen 

the girls at the bar sang along with Robin and Nancy, Steve got a weird look but some smiles from customers passing town, but the real treat was that the bikers sang along with Y/N. apparently, they were heading to a Van Halen concert in Texas and stopped in for a drink and a night stay from Milwaukee

this got some of the burly and tough men to sing a few songs on stage. that was the best part of the night to see people who were looked upon as scary and finding their soft inner personality. they reminded Y/N a lot of Eddie. for Hawkins to blame Eddie for his hard exterior and refusal to learn his soft interior was their loss

this was a night they all were going to remember. Eddie took so many Polaroids, he had to share a few with the others

the night ended in a drunk rendition of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody”, and to everyone’s surprise Eddie knew all the lyrics

[thisisyourdriverspeaking]

Lightening the mood after Miami with another edition of my US number ones posts - the drivers from all series version. Please enjoy 😊😊

Sebastien Loeb (26th February 1974) - Barbara Streisand - The Way We Were

Tony Kanaan (31st December 1974) - Helen Reddy - Angie Baby

Juan Pablo Montoya (20th September 1975) - David Bowie - Fame

Mark Webber (27th August 1976) - Elton John & Kiki Dee - Don't Go Breaking My Heart

Kimi Raikkonen (17th October 1979) - Michael Jackson - Don't Stop Til You Get Enough

Jenson Button (19th January 1980) - Michael Jackson - Rock With You

Felipe Massa (25th April 1981) - Daryl Hall & John Oates - Kiss On My List

Heikki Kovalainen (19th October 1981) - Christopher Cross - Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)

Andre Lotterer (19th November 1981) - Daryl Hall & John Oates - Private Eyes

Pippa Mann (11th August 1983) - The Police - Every Breath You Take

Simon Pagenaud (18th May 1984) - Lionel Richie - Hello

Robert Kubica (7th December 1984) - Wham! - Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go

Nico Rosberg (27th June 1985) - Bryan Adams - Heaven

Jerome D'Ambrosio (27th December 1985) - Lionel Richie - Say You, Say Me

Rahel Frey (23rd February 1986) - Whitney Houston - How Will I Know

Kamui Kobayashi (13th September 1986) - Berlin - Take My Breath Away

Rene Rast (26th October 1986) - Cyndi Lauper - True Colors

James Hinchcliffe (5th December 1986) - Bon Jovi - You Give Love A Bad Name

Oliver Turvey (1st April 1987) - Club Nouveau - Let It Be

Sebastian Vettel (3rd July 1987) - Whitney Houston - I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)

Alexander Sims (15th March 1988) - Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up

Molly Taylor (6th May 1988) - Whitney Houston - Where Do Broken Hearts Go

Simona De Silvestro (1st September 1988) - George Michael - Monkey

Sarah Bovy (15th May 1989) - Bon Jovi - I'll Be There For You

James Calado (13th June 1989) - Bette Midler - Wind Beneath My Wings

Brendon Hartley (10th November 1989) - Roxette - Listen To Your Heart

Earl Bamber (9th July 1990) - New Kids On The Block - Step By Step

Cristina Gutierrez (24th July 1991) - EMF - Unbelievable

Abbie Eaton (2nd January 1992) - Michael Jackson - Black Or White

Timmy Hansen (21st May 1992) - Kris Kross - Jump

Daniel Abt (3rd December 1992) & Alice Powell (26th January 1993) - Whitney Houston - I Will Always Love You

Tatiana Calderon (10th March 1993) - Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle - A Whole New World

Christine GZ (22nd July 1993) - SWV - Weak

Alex Lynn (17th September 1993) & Bubba Wallace (8th October 1993) - Mariah Carey - Dreamlover

Michelle Gatting (31st December 1993) - Mariah Carey - Hero

Naomi Schiff (18th May 1994) - Ace Of Base - The Sign

Jessica Hawkins (16th February 1995) & Luca Ghiotto (24th February 1995) - TLC - Creep

Beitske Visser (10th March 1995) - Madonna - Take A Bow

Nicholas Latifi (29th June 1995) - Bryan Adams - Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?

Jack Aitken (23rd September 1995) - Coolio ft L.V - Gangsta's Paradise

Oliver Askew (12th December 1996) - Toni Braxton - Un-Break My Heart

Louis Deletraz (22nd April 1997) - Puff Daddy ft Mase - Can't Nobody Hold Me Down

Catie Munnings (15th November 1997) - Elton John - Candle In The Wind

Cem Bolukbasi (9th February 1998) - Janet Jackson - Together Again

Jamie Chadwick (20th May 1998) - Next - Too Close

Kevin Hansen (28th May 1998) - Mariah Carey - My All

Mick Schumacher (22nd March 1999) - Cher - Believe

Toni Breidinger (14th July 1999) - Jennifer Lopez - If You Had My Love

Max Fewtrell (29th July 1999) - Will Smith ft Dru Hill & Kool Moe Dee - Wild Wild West

Robert Shwartzman (16th September 1999) - Enrique Iglesias - Bailamos

Bent Viscaal (18th September 1999) - TLC - Unpretty

Felipe Drugovich (23rd May 2000) - Santana ft The Product G&B - Maria Maria

Marta Garcia (9th August 2000) - N'Sync - It's Gonna Be Me

Arthur Leclerc (14th October 2000) - Christina Aguilera - Come On Over Baby (All I Want Is You)

Sophia Florsch (1st December 2000) & Clement Novalak (23rd December 2000) - Destiny's Child - Independent Women Pt 1

Frederik Vesti (13th January 2002) - Nickelback - How You Remind Me

Luke Browning (31st January 2002) & Liam Lawson (11th February 2002) - Usher - U Got It Bad

Olli Caldwell (11th June 2002) - Ashanti - Foolish

Jack Doohan (20th January 2003) - Eminem - Lose Yourself

All added to this playlist

[hellcheeranniversaryweek]

1ST JULY

Decades: 1950s

Hot Spot: Hawkins High 1986 Prom

Song Request: I think we’re alone now - Tiffany

R Rated: Handcuffs

Wild card: Role Reversal

      WIP words: dress, tight, switch

2ND JULY

AU: Rival Families

A Classic Trope: Secret Admirer

Mash Up: Arranged marriage x fairytale

Future: Rockstar’s wife

Wild Card: Tragic Tale

      WIP words: match, against, famous

3RD JULY

Decades: 1960s

AU: Castle AU

Meet Cute: Comic Con 

Song Request: Heaven is a place on Earth - Belinda Carlise

Wild Card: What Goes Bump in the Night

      WIP words: wild, nerd, worth

4TH JULY

Mash Up: Witch x Coffee Shop

Hot Spot: Hawkins High Ten Year Reunion

R rated: Back of Eddie’s Van

Future: First baby

Wild Card: An Interfering Matchmaker

      WIP words: wicked, mattress, reunite

5TH JULY

Decades: 2000s

A classic trope: Only one bed

Song Request: Time after time - Cyndi Lauper

Hot Spot: The Hideout

Wild card: Outsider POV

      WIP words: waiting, pillow, drink

6TH JULY

AU: The Detective and the Thief

Meet Cute: Theater kids/the school play

Mash up: Class project x Miscommunication 

Future: Later in life

Wild Card: Double Date

     WIP words: scene, older, pencil

7TH JULY

Decades: 1990s

AU: Married in Vegas

R Rated: Praise Kink

Hot spot: Vacation

Wild Card: Anniversary

     WIP words: lights, celebrate, good

[heavenlytouches]

Maybe a weird one but can I get Joyce Byers mom teaching u to cook? Thank you

Hi love <3 and noo, don't worry it's not weird! It's really really sweet :) I loove Winona Ryder so let's goo ^^ El <3

Joyce Byers- a pinch of love

⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

GN reader

<3 (SFW)

TW-none

MOM! Joyce Byers

my mommy issues TwT istg

Joyce Byers

The aroma of garlic and sautéed onions fills the air in the Byers’ kitchen, mingling with the famous 80’s tune blaring from the old transistor radio that sits on the countertop.

The soft, syrupy notes of Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time” play a comforting backdrop to the busy scene unfolding in the dimly lit kitchen. You take a moment to lean against the doorframe, watching your mother, Joyce Byers, expertly chop vegetables with a smile that could light up even the darkest of rooms.

“Are you just going to stand there, or are you going to help me make the best lasagna in Hawkins?”

She calls playfully, her voice riddled with laughter and a hint of sarcasm. You can’t help but chuckle to yourself.

"Yes ma'am. Your co-worker is ready for business!"

You say, playfully and smile at your mom, listening to Cyndi filling the kitchen with beautiful positive energy.

This is the kind of moment you live for—just the two of you, no upside-down monsters lurking around, no government experiments to worry about, just a mother and child soaking up the warmth of a shared moment.

You step into the kitchen, your sneakers squeaking against the linoleum flooring. The walls are painted a soothing shade of pale yellow, adorned with sunflowers—Joyce's favorite. The retro appliances hum softly, and you smile, recalling how she often tells stories of their quirky past when she bought each one.

You take your place at the kitchen island, pulling on the apron she handed you—one covered in cartoon cats that always makes you laugh, no matter how many times you wear it.

Joyce gives you a look of approval as she dusts her hands on her apron, the fabric twinkling with bits of flour and an assortment of spices.

“Okay, first things first-”

She says, leaning closer, her eyes twinkling.

“Cooking is like magic, and the kitchen is our world of enchantment. You’ve got to put your heart into every dish.”

With a quick flick of her wrist, she picks up a clove of garlic, handing it to you.

“Can you crush this for me?”

You nod, grabbing a knife and awkwardly trying to replicate what she effortlessly does.

"Am I doing it right?"

You ask as she looks at you, her eyes full of love.

“Don’t smash it like it owes you money.”

She teases, her laughter ringing through the room. It’s infectious, and soon you are both giggling, the tension of the day melting away.

Joyce pulls out a cookbook from a shelf—its spine cracked, pages stained with a bit of sauce and love.

“This is my secret weapon..”

She whispers, as if sharing a grand secret with you.

“The better the recipe, the more you can improvise!”

As you dive deeper into the culinary journey, she shares with you little tidbits about her childhood, her dreams, and how even the most mundane ingredients can bring family together.

You chop, mix, and taste, dodging flour clouds materializing as she playfully throws a pinch at you, exclaiming-

“The more, the merrier!”

Amid the laughter, there’s a moment of seriousness as she lights a cigarette, the smoke curling up like a ghost.

“Never lose your ability to be silly, sweetheart.."

She says thoughtfully, her voice a blend of bravado and vulnerability.

“Life can be tough, but laughter is the best seasoning.”

You nod, absorbed in her words. It’s these little life lessons that cement your bond, making you realize that cooking is more than just about the food—it’s about sharing love through every layer, every flavor.

"You always know how to make me feel better mom."

You add, smiling to her as she takes another drag of her cigarette.

"Also, does Cyndi help while making food?

You smile, Joyce laughing with you. She sees you're just like her.

As the lasagna bubbles away in the oven, Joyce retrieves a couple of glasses from the cupboard, and pours a splash of grape soda for you both—simple pleasures that feel straight out of an adventure movie.

“Did I ever tell you how I used to dance to Prince in the living room while making dinner?”

She asks, her expression mischievous.

“I think I heard that story, like, a hundred times."

You reply with a smile, taking a sip and savoring the sweetness. But you wouldn’t have it any other way.

Each retelling brings you closer to understanding your mom—the woman with a propensity for wild hair and wild dreams.

Before long, the timer dings, and Joyce lifts the lasagna from the oven, its cheesy aroma filling the space like a warm blanket. She turns, her eyes sparkling with pride.

“You ready for the best meal ever?”

You burst out in enthusiastic agreement, your heart swelling. Moments like these turn the chaos of everyday life into treasured memories.

As you sit down to eat, laughter continues to resonate between you, a symphony of flavor and familial bond filling the room.

In this cozy kitchen, surrounded by the essence of the 80’s and the unmistakable warmth of love, you realize that you’re learning more than how to cook; you’re learning about life, connection, and family—one delicious meal at a time.

Yaaaaaay women in my requests!! I loved this one so so much. I hope y'all liked it too. I can write anything for any character babes and don't forget- requests are always open and welcome <33

I love you guys so much

El <3

(all images were made by: El via canva & paint)

[darkdevasofdestruction]

Chapter 2 - Friday the 13th

It was finally Friday; A short day of school, thankfully, for Kat wanted to doll herself up properly. It wasn't every day when she was asked to hangout with someone, and she wanted to make the best out of that experience! She dug into her the drawer with special-occasion dresses and pulled up a princess pink dress that flew gracefully just above the knee; It had a delicate V-cut, which encouraged her to cover her cleavage with a set of rose gold jewellery. Her crimson hair was falling down past her shoulders all the way to her waist, styled softly with a brush and two thin braids pinned to the back in a little rose. Her mother loved to do lots of intricate braids from her gorgeous hair and taught her how to take care of it properly. Every time she'd look in the vanity mirror and play around with her hair, she'd have a bittersweet smile, imagining her mommy behind her, doing her hair as only she knew. Last, she painted soft pink glittery eyeshadow, touched with an elegant black fox eye liner, mascara and rose tinted sparkly lip gloss. She took her purse, slipped her feet in her polished pink shoes with an elegant medium heel, and left the house, sitting on the swing her daddy built for her six years prior when they moved to Hawkins - It had an archway with rose vines wrapped around.

She hummed to herself a Chinese lullaby her dad would sing to her before sleep time and didn't realise when time passed, until Billy's blue Chevrolet '79 Camaro stopped in front of her garden and he honked; The window was down and he wolf-whistled her. "Ey, dollface!" Kat's face visibly lightened up with joy as soon as she heard his voice, the boy noted. She smiled so sweetly and walked step by step like a gracious feline, settling in the passenger seat. That's right - She was his passenger princess. "What a babe! Got all pretty for l'il ol' me?" she nodded her pretty head. "D'aww, what a cutie." he lowered his shades a little, taking a good look at the gorgeous girl in front of him - So, so different than those boring ass bitches at school - All the same, no sense of style or beauty. Cyndi Laupner wannabes gone wrong.

"I don't really have the chance to go out. I want to make every hangout feel special!" his smirk fell for a split second, before returning quickly and slouching over the wheel.

"Lucky me." he hummed before hitting the acceleration pedal. "You're the passenger princess - You choose the music."

"Sweet!" she grinned, immediately fumbling around with the music playlists. "Oh, you've got AC/DC! I love their songs so much!" thus, she put on tracks like TNT, Highway to hell and Dirty deeds done dirt cheap. Who knew that little miss princess strawberry pink liked rock music? Ha! The more you know.

The sun was setting by the time they arrived at the cinema and parked on the grass; The diner was across the street and pretty girls with high ponytails, wearing short skirts and rollerskates were going around serving people with trays in their hands. "Oh, they're so pretty! I love the little apron over the skirt - They look so cool!" Billy leaned over the window, looked the busy bees up and down, and then huffed in agreement.

"They've got nothin' on ya, doll." he reached to get a blanket from the backseat and got out, placing it over the front of the car. "C'mon out, babe."

The girl opened the door and went in front of the car, looking up at Billy. Even with heels, she was so small compared to him. "Should I go order for us?"

"Nah, no way toots, that's a man's job." with one swift move, he placed both of his large hands on her waist - She was so thin and petite, he could almost hold her completely -  And he picked her up in the air with ease; That's why he worked out, after all, to be a strong man. Like a feather, he hoisted her up on the front of the car to sit on the blanket; A hot babe on a hot car - Now all he needs is to hop up there, have a surf board on the roof of the car and go to the beach - Alas, he had to be happy with what he got. "I'll go order. You just get all cute'n'comfy."

"Okay, Billy, thank you! Tell me how much it costs and I'll pay." she waved a perfectly manicured hand at him, leaving him speechless; He lit up a cigarette and puffed the smoke up into air and chuckled.

"The guy's supposed to pay at a date, Betty Boop." with a sexy wink, the young lad turned around with a John Travolta-esque swagger, striding inside the diner.

Minutes passed slow, and Kat was left waiting on the front of the car; She was smiling and looking up into the gorgeous sky, painted in all shades of purple and blood orange, mixing together like cotton candy. The world around was so beautiful, the girl thought to herself - So beautiful and free to admire, just like a Renaissance masterpiece; Perhaps even Da Vinci wouldn't be able to paint such beauty. The people around were all smiles and cheer, hanging around in their cars in couples and groupies, munching on popcorn and sipping bubbly soda and milkshakes. People's happiness always made Kat happy for some reason - Was it the beauty of humanity and life? She wasn't quite sure what it was, but she loved it.

"Kat the Dreamer." Billy's barking voice woke her up from her reverie. She turned her head and smiled at him; She looked so dreamy. "I've got 'em goodies."

"I love dreaming - And daydreaming. It makes everything more beautiful around." she scooted over to allow space for Billy and the tons of food he brought. "My, Billy, this must have cost you a fortune! Please let me at least pay half of this!"

"I've got a better idea." he hopped on the car and leaned over, picking her chin; Their faces were so close, he could feel her breathing on his skin. "Let me steal a little kiss, and we're good."

Though he wanted to get a taste of those sweet lips of hers, to get the answer to his previous question about the lip gloss; He was shocked out of doing anything; In fact, her action stun-locked him out of moving a single muscle.  Katrina's small hands gingerly cupped his rough stubbled cheeks and placed a soft kiss on his forehead. She giggled and wiped away the lip gloss from his forehead. "Forgive me, I left some of my lip gloss on your skin." that damn flawless smile of hers made him go crazy. "Oh, the movie is starting!" she returned to her previous position, shamelessly taking one of the cheeseburgers in her hand in munching on it. "They're very good - You should try 'em!" she took a fry and placed it in his half gaping mouth. "Great combo!"

Billy didn't speak more, he didn't utter a single word, except for leaning back to eat something. Every once in a while, he'd steal a glance at the pretty girl next to him having so much watching a lame ass movie - Who the hell laughs at gore and people getting killed? Weirdo.  He couldn't help but chuckle seeing her being so cheerful; He's had sleepovers and groupie movie marathons; Most girls would screech and hide in fear, seeking so-called protection...Or, rather, attention . Instead, Kat was cheerfully clapping for each murder Jason Voorhees' mum was doing.

Katrina’s innocent giggles during the gory scenes were contagious, and Billy found himself laughing along with her, their laughter mingling with the occasional screams from the other cars. Though he was sure the other guys were hugging their terrified girlfriends who were screaming for attention, Kat was having the fun of her lifetimes - He'd imagined that hopelessly romantic gesture rather differently, but he was in no way complaining.

During the ad in between movies, she grabbed the chocolate milkshake glass - He had made sure there was a single glass but two straws - She was grasping it with both hands and holding it up for them both to enjoy the cold beverage. Billy couldn't help but smirk a little, naughty thoughts going through his head at the imagery - But quickly dismissed them. He couldn't. No way. Not with her. They were so close to one another that his arm was around her body, keeping her hugged into his side. Her hair was so long and soft, like a fire-kissed Rapunzel; and his hand was just in reach to play with an innocent lock, fingering and twirling it idly. He kinda loved playing with her hair like this.

When a particularly steamy scene appeared on the screen, Katrina blushed and looked away, her cheeks turning a delightful shade of pink. Billy noticed and couldn’t help but smirk. “What’s the matter, KitKat? Getting shy on me?” he teased, his voice playful as he reached the back of his fingers to caress her porcelain cheek, placing a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Pretty naked girls on the big screen was the new trend, and oh how those nerds would have paid their whole allowance for three years to see Jamie Lee Curtis' tits. Still, with how natural she's been with him so far, open and genuine, even flirting, he hadn't expected her to get this bashful by seeing a little spicy action.

He'd pay his salary for the rest of his life to see Kat laying down on his bed, and him on top of her.

"I can appreciate a good masterpiece - The Greeks and Romans worshipped nudity as the highest art form - However, I appreciate a little less the vulgarity of a lewd act on screen." Billy couldn't help but laugh; Such pompous fancy words to describe a single thing, that she was a cute little shy virgin hottie. The treasure all guys wanted to find.

"Aren't you such a cutiepie?" the girl immediately looked away, trying to hide the adorable blush on her demure face. "C'mon now, don't look away, pretty girl, I was joking. Nothin' bad with some precious innocence."

"Alright, already, stop teasing me!" even her protesting was soft-spoken. "Michael Myers is my favourite slasher." she tried to change the subject; What a cutie. She was too innocent and nice for her own good, and he was a huge fuck-up with severe daddy and mommy issues and a mean streak of violence and behavioural problems. There was no way in hell he was a good influence on her; By all means, she should be running away in the complete opposite direction of the big bad wolf... And yet, like a little lamb, she's hopping towards him, clueless to the damage he was capable of inflicting on her. Fool.

It was already past midnight by the time the marathon was over, and Billy drove her back home. "You want to sleepover? I can call your parents and tell them you are safe here and they don't need to worry. I've got ice-cream and some leftovers from today's lunch." far too innocent for her own good; A gorgeous girl like her shouldn't carelessly invite people into her home like that. Reckless and silly. Very dangerous with guys their age who only think with the downstairs head.

"Don't worry about me, dollface, I'm a big boy, they don't give a fuck where I am." he waved a dismissive hand. "Now go on. I'll wait until I see you walked inside and locked the door behind you."

"Oh well, if you're sure!" she leaned in, placing a cute little kiss on his cheek. "Thank you for today, Billy. It was the best day of my life. Let's hangout again some day, yeah?" and with a soft giggle, she left the car and went into her home - Not before turning to wave him goodbye again.

"Yeah. Some day." he murmured to himself, turning the engine on to return to his own home. "And now back to that miserable hell hole..."

Too bad, he was sure he'd have enjoyed himself on her couch much more than in the stupid jail he has to call 'home'. This shitty place wasn't 'home'. California was his home. But hanging out with that cute little kitty kat wasn't the worst thing in the world; In fact, he quite enjoyed himself very much. Maybe next time, he'll invite himself over - With her parents' approval of course. Still, she invited him... Did her parents know about him? How weird, he was sure girl-parents were very strict. Well, who knows, maybe foreigners aren't as stuck up as most American parents are. Maybe commies aren't as commie as they seem to be.

But life wasn't only about fun, unfortunately for the teens suffering in the terminal year of highschool; So much to study and revise, so many exams, and all of them such a drag. Regardless, the Biology class had an easy way out to get a good mark - Which was making a project. In pairs. Kat was used to seeing all her classmates pair up together, and she'd either be alone or forced to pair with the other unlucky loser; This time, however, she found an arm slung around her shoulders as Billy pulled her into his side, flashing a dazzling smirk "Ready for an easy A+, doll?" he declared confidently; If only he could see the murderous, envious glares shot towards the red head.

"S-Sure...!" she tried to smile, but nervousness was creeping inside her heart.

The teacher wrote down the pairs, assigning to each of them their project titles, giving them ideas on how to make it successful and get good marks. "Billy and Katrina." the teacher called out their name. "Anatomy and Physiology of the Male and Female Reproductive System." Kat didn't hear Billy's chuckle, making a smug remark, nor the nasty jokes from those around - Her face blanched, and her mind was purely blank and going haywire with panic. "You could make clay anatomical models and make a collage of pictures and drawings."

Some girl threw a balled up paper at the back of her hair, and another threw a paper on her desk for her to read - She didn't. She burnt it with a lighter, not caring whether the teacher saw her and scolded her. She had to change this mess somehow.

Finally, the bell rang and Kat rushed to the teacher and started frantically begging for mercy. "Please please please please please please." she continued, her hands tightly held together, and eyes tearful. "Give me any other project theme that doesn't revolve around something like that!" she continued begging, not knowing, nor caring that Hargrove had trailed behind to see what was her problem. "Please, I can't do it - They'll bully me like crazy - They'll get physical with me -- And... And... I can't openly speak about these things -- I-It's against my culture and religion -- Please, please, change the theme!"

The teacher looked down at the petite girl with tears streaming down her face and shaking with desperation and outright fear. For a quiet and docile person like Kat was, it almost came to a shock to the lady that she would be the target of such ruthless bullying, that it would make her lose composure like that. "Alright, alright, take it easy." the mother-like woman took out a handkerchief to wipe away her tears. "How about something related to genetics?"

"C-Can I write about genetic anomalies - Like sickle cell anemia?" as she tried to regain her composure, Kat came up with a pretty brilliant project theme.

"Sure, that's good. I'll write it down." the teacher immediately cut a few strikes over their original title, and changed it to the actualised title. "Take a few minutes to compose yourself - And run along. You still have a few classes, right?" Kat nodded her head, and with a small bow of gratitude, she scurried out of the classroom, hugging herself.

Normally, a student would go to their locker to change textbooks for their next class - But she stopped doing that a while ago, to avoid unnecessary time in the hallways, where she'd be easy target to their teasing - It had gotten much better over time... But with Billy's arrival and evident friendship, she had "TARGET" written on her forehead, along with a bullseye target practice on her back.

"Hey, dollface, wait up - We have Physics together." even Billy's unexpected voice made her flinch and squeak out in panic - If it wasn't for the distraught look on her face, he'd have thought she was super cute. "Whazzap?"

"U-Uhm..." the girl looked down, shrugging her shoulders. "I was thinking of what genetic abnormalities to write about for the project." she spoke softly.

"Y'know - I kinda liked the other theme." his teasing only made the girl retreat more inwards, looking like a little terrified bunny. "Kidding, kidding - Even I'd rather not waste my time on that." his comment didn't do much to comfort her. "Y'know, if fuck heads are picking on you, just tell me and I'll fuck them up, yeah?"

She shook her head. "Doesn't matter." she deadpanned.

"Hey, y'all, Freaky Kommie Kat's here with her bodyguard!" her body stiffened, before she hung her head and hugged herself tighter.

"I'll run along. See you in class." she whispered, trying to escape - But one guy grabbed the hood of her cardigan and pulled her back roughly - Her textbook and notebook fell to the ground helplessly; The borders of her notebook pages were doodled up with pretty flower frames, and in some places, "BFF" and "Billy Bestie" or "Billy the Bardest Bard to ever Bard", along with some cute smiles and hearts around.

"Ayo, look at this - Little miss genius is in love~!" the group laughed mockingly. "You really think he gives a fuck about you? Know your place, bitch. You're just an easy mark for King Billy - Nothing more." the guy pushed her in the locker.

"We're friends..." her mellow voice made Billy heart sunk - She really cared about him, in a genuine, innocent way. She didn't want to stay around King Billy, nor did she want one night stands or be friends with benefits. She just genuinely enjoyed his presence around her; How pitiful. To think he would be the subject of her daydream, enough to noodle in her notebooks... That's a new one.

"King Billy doesn't need pathetic nerds around him." one of the cheerleaders got in her face, trapping her against the locker. "Pathetic little ugly bitch." unexpectedly to everyone around, Tara grabbed at Kat's clothes, as if trying to undress her. "You've got no tits, no ass - Your hair is ugly, your face is plain - You're nothing but a pathetic bag of skin and bones - And you think you can have my Billy look at you? Stupid little slut! If you want a dick that much, there's plenty around!" before she could grab the closest nerd around the push against the red head, a loud, sharp sound made the corridor go all quiet. Katrina slapped Tara's face so hard that she fell to the ground.

"... You don't get to touch me with some filthy hands of yours - Nor speak to me with that mouth which sucks dick every night. If only you were paid for this, you'd have some worth in this life - But you're not. You're nothing but a disgusting, lowly greedy cum-dumpster slut with no self-respect - Who gets off on popular guys fucking her, than dumping her useless body - Because that's all you're good for; A few minutes of degrading fun." Billy, like the others, was shocked the hear such filthy words coming out of her precious mouth - He was sure she didn't even know words like that! "I'll tell you a secret, Tara - The guys who fuck you don't even know your name." Kat smiled innocently; empty and dripping with poison and condescence. "And you're not invited to Tina's Halloween part this year..." she turned around, ready to leave. "But I am." she retrieved her textbooks, making sure she gets to class before the bell rang. She didn't want detention because of some idiots.

"That -- That was the best laugh I had in years, doll!" Billy slumped in the seat next to her, smirking so proudly. "That's my girl - Teach those fucks a lesson." he leaned in closer to her ear. "I know I did."

Kat shot her gaze to him, her eyes wide and shocked. "What do you mean?! What did you do?!"

"Don't worry your pretty head, tootsie." he fixed her slightly messy hair. "I just don't appreciate sick fucks like them speaking ill of my cute friend."

The tender yet surprised look in her gorgeous eyes said it all; It melted Billy's heart. "Friend?" he didn't say anything, just continued admiring her adorable reactions. "That's nice to hear."

"By the way, tootsie." he cleared his throat. "Tina's party, huh?"

"Oh, yes, Tina - " Kat looked down with a little, bashful smile. "A few days ago she came to me and said - Any friend of Billy is welcome to my party... And I said... Sure." her cheeks were pink.

"D'aww, how cute. You'll be there to cheer on me as I down a whole ass keg of beer." she looked weird at him, but said nothing - Instead, she stifled a laugh and nodded.

"Sure - I'll cheer on you, if you want me to." she kept a few seconds of silence, before she uttered again. "How do people dress on Halloween?"

All the way until the Halloween party, Kat worked on the project - She was creative, sure, but she was also actively studying biology in depth; She had always wanted to become a doctor - A scientist - Like her parents; She let Billy on his maths and physics and basketball and what not. Once Halloween came by, she looked through her wardrobe; She didn't really own any elegant black clothes - Her parents told her black clothes are only for funerals; Her only black clothes were the band Tshirts and some cardigans.  What should she wear, then?

Finally, after a long time, she decided against her best ration, to wear her pink hanfu and pretend to be a flower fairy. Not exactly the scariest creature of the night, but it was as close to fantasy as she could get. Her make up was pink and glittery, still flattering, but a little more evident than her usual choice; And her hair was done in a traditional way, with two rose buns updos, and the long, bottom part flowing past her shoulders gracefully. Though she didn't wear the usual jewellery, her hair accessories were plenty, gold and flowery, just like her earrings, dangling delicately. Should she pretend to be Hua Mulan? The beautiful and valiant Magnolia Flower from the ballads? Should she take her sword too? Maybe those guys will think it's just a prop, surely they wouldn't expect a regular highschool girl to own an ancient heirloom... Or a bazooka. Not that she had one. Yet.

Finally, she awaited Billy on the swing, just like previously; She really loved that swing - She remembers how much her dad worked to build it, and how happy she was when it was finished. Her dad taught her how to hammer nails and build things - But she knows she'll never be as good as he was.

"Yo, sweetcheeks, Halloween's supposed to be all badass and scary, y'know?" Billy honked her from the car. "Hey, Princess Bubblegum, get 'ere." he pranced right in front of her; He was wearing a pair of sexy blue jeans and a black leather jacket.

"Hello, Billy." she smiled serenely, looking up at him. "Have you forgotten your shirt home intentionally?" her smile was faux innocent and teasing.

"Did you know the Romans had abs on their armor? Lorica musculata - Or something like that." he smirked, loving to show off his knowledge in front of her - And not only. "Well, I don't need armor to show off."

"Well, you've been working very hard and consistent to look the way you do - It would be a pity not to show off." she said playfully. "Does Tina have a room for couples to hook up, or should I be afraid of going home on foot?" he couldn't believe the audacity - Such teasing!

"If you didn't know, fairies don't walk - They fly." with ease, he picked her up from the swing, holding her bridal style; Her arms went instinctively around his neck, and they faces were so maddeningly close to each other, he could practically feel her heartbeat going crazy.

"Thank you for telling me; I'll be sure to abuse my fairy princess rights." with insane mischief, Katrina kissed Billy's cheek. 

"You're taking me for a knight in shining armor, huh?" he chuckled, walking her to the car. "I'm a werewolf, baby."

"What's a werewolf?" she asked, genuinely oblivious.

"Like in Michael Jackson's Thriller song." Billy was amused by her lack of knowledge. "A wolf man. Every month, on a night with a full moon, a man turns into a beast and kills everyone in sight."

"Oh, that sounds so cool!" she exclaimed, getting comfortable on the passenger seat, leaning to the side to touch his pretty hair. "But don't they have fluffy ears like wolves do? Or a tail?"

"Eh, maybe - But that's lame - And too much effort." he started the car, going as speedy as always.

Once they arrived at Tina's house, Kat was surprised no one was being mean to her, not even a dirty look or anything; Maybe they were all already drunk out of their minds, or were having so much fun, her presence didn't matter - She loved not being the spotlight of every mean comment; She was actually pretty damn enthusiastic, and very grateful for Tina for inviting her, and for Billy for being by her side. They just gave her a paper cup of punch and let her do whatever she wanted.

As expected, Billy was eventually stolen away, and her punch was spiked with cigarette ash - Always used to get people drunk. Jokes on them, she got her alcohol tolerance from her Russian mother; She could eat cereals with vodka for breakfast with no issue. It was already night, and everyone was having fun; Kat found herself in the kitchen, surrounded by bottles of vodka and chocolate bailey's and had a brilliant idea. To make her favourite shot drink - Sweet and strong.

This little experiment instigated girls to try and, after a while, Kat became their designated barman - A barman who had to participate in a drinking contest and drank most of the girls under the table.

After the 10th shot, Katrina got bored of being a bartender and went out, by the lights on the ground next to the pool; The lights on the bottom of the pool made the water look so pretty and hypnotising. However, he short timelapse was broken by loud roars from the boys nearby. Billy was going to attempt his silly title, so as promised, the girl made her way in front of the crowd for him to see her. "Go, King Billy, go!" she clapped encouragingly. "Hey, Tommy - Why isn't Steve here to witness his own downfall?" her mocking giggle made the guys roar again.

"Atta girl, that's a good idea!" some of the guys in the football team got inside the house, dragging Harrington in the yard.

With a war cry, Billy started drinking down the beer from side the keg, through the hose - He chugged as everyone around him cheered loudly. Kat was actually quite fascinated by his insane actions; He looked messy, dirty, indecent, vulgar, feral, gross... All the attributes that her parents told her to run away from. Stay away from arrogant gigolo like him - He was no good - He will make you suffer, he will make you fall in love then break your heart. Boys like him were never worth it...

And yet, she was completely taken with him; His charm, his beauty, his smarts, his wit, his strength... The easy-going and adventurous life of a bad boy. "King Billy! King Billy!" the people were chanting around loudly as Billy finished the keg victoriously - Yet they cheered even louder when the King hooked his hand on the back of Kat's head and dipped her down in a deep kiss, so passionate and overwhelming that she was sure she suffocated and found herself among the stars of Nirvana.

When he pulled away, he admired his handy work; The twinkle in her eye, the bashfulness of her visage, the fascinating smile of those pink lips of hers - She looked so god damn kissable - And he kissed her again, this time, a little slower, a little gentler; He was drunk as fuck, but the euphoria of his triumph, and the radiant beauty in front of him - He couldn't resist; She was irresistible - A sparkling pink flower twinkling with innocence, with kindness and compassion.

"Beauty and the Beast." he smirked, leaning away from her; He kept his arm around her body as the crowd guided them inside the house, where even more cheered at the announcement of a new, better King. Steve ran by Nancy with his tail between his legs; Humiliated, he wanted to drive her away, get her back home and never show his face again - But Kat had other plans.

"Oh, Billy, that's my friend, Nancy!" she tugged on his sleeve - At the sound of Harrington, he followed in front of the two. The groupie of guys was right behind them.

"Why don't you go play with your friend, pretty girl? I and Harrington have some business to discuss." smiling, Kat glided to Nancy and gently took her hand, guiding her to an empty room.

"Nancy, was Steve bothering you?" the girl asked, petting her friend's hair. "You look so... Sad."

"I'm fine, Kat..." she sighed, looking down. "I just... I can't get over what happened to Barb." she admitted - She was a little tipsy. A little more. "I... I miss her."

"You blame yourself for her disappearance?" Nancy was nodded her head... And rocking back and forth. Was it the first time she drank alcohol?

"Nancy... Let's get home, yeah? I don't trust Steve to take you home." Nancy glared at her friend.

"And I don't trust Hargrove." she stammered over her words. "He's - He's a playboy, Kat, don't trust him! He's... He's... Y'know..." she placed her hands on her face. "He's only interested in what Steve was - Don't give in, even if he hates you!"

Kat's eyes widened, flabbergast at what she was hearing. "But, Nancy - He kissed me." her voice was so sweet and melodic, that even in her drunken state, Wheeler pitied her naivity. "He kissed me - Just now. He's drunk - Dad said men are the most honest when they are drunk."

"Oh, no, Kat, that's not true!" she moaned, shocked at the naivity of her comment. "Guys these age only want to have sex, don't you know?" Kat didn't have the power to answer. "He kissed you 'cause you're pretty and you indulged him with your kindness - Guys like him - When they see a nice girl with no boundaries, like you - They start to push you until you break." Kat's eyebrows furrowed, and she looked away - She didn't want to believe that Billy, of all people, would treat her like that. "Don't get bewitched by him just because he kissed you... That's how Steve charmed me too." she said in a compassionate voice. "It might have been your first kiss... And it was special for you... But it meant nothing to him."

Kat didn't know what to think; She was disappointed, sure, but she wasn't even sure what to believe anymore. She rose her head to look at her friend, and smiled again. If she started overthinking now, she was going to hold onto that trail for many continuous days and nights, to the point she'll drive herself mad; She didn't want that - Not after such a nice night. "Let's get you home, Nancy."

Like a compliant puppy, Nancy held onto Kat's hand and walked with her out of the house. Billy was out there, by the pool, smoking. He seemed a little more sober now. Did he need a small break from all the loudness from inside the house, and the lackeys flattering him? "Hey." Kat offered a soft smile; Billy looked down at her, then at Nancy, then blew the cigarette smoke up into the air. 

"Sup, doll?" he said, keeping his usual bravado. He looked again at Nancy. "Who ran over her pet puppy?"

"She just drank a little too much. She's okay." as if on cue, Nancy started puking. "Maybe she's not okay." Kat immediately rushed to keep the hair out of her face. "I don't think she drank before."

"Huh." the boy huffed, amused. With a quick scan around the yard, he found a discarded Tshirt, which he tosses to his girl. "She's got barf on her chin." Kat quickly helped wipe away the spew from her friend's face.

"There, there. Let's get you home." she patted Nancy's back, helping her straighten up. "Billy, I'm taking Nancy home. Take care on your way home, okay? Call me when you're home, safe and sound."

"Have you forgot what I told you? Fairies don't walk." Billy scoffed - That reply was the only way he could remind her he wouldn't let her go home by herself. He wanted to know her safe - He got her there, and he will return her home too. That was what men did. Respect and responsibility - Or whatever his father kept beating into him.

"I can't tell you to drive my friend home, Billy, that would be rude of me." she smiled, though Billy realised, something was... Off about her. She was fidgety. "Nancy's home is pretty close - I think we can manage." she continued her trail of excuses. "Besides, I wouldn't want her to vomit in your car - It's too pretty for that."

Billy looked Nancy up and down, then groaned, dragging his hand down his face. "Yeah, well - Your friend here's a problem, alright - But ain't like I can let my pretty girl go all alone home. Lousy man I'd be." he dragged from the cigarette away. "You don't trust Harrington with her, d'you?" he smirked in realisation. "All the more reason to make him see her in my car."

"Steve's bullshit." Nancy spit, frustrated. "Our relationship was bullshit." she was getting angrier. "And you are bullshit too!" Billy's face remained unchanged - He didn't give a fuck about the ramblings of a drunk chick; He did care, however, for the offended look on Kat's face. It was priceless to see her getting mad on his behalf.

"Nancy! That was rude!" she scolded her. "You don't talk like this usually - What's gotten into you?" she couldn't believe the bratty way Nancy was behaving; It was so unlike her. Her dad said drunk people are honest. "Nancy - Why don't you like Billy? He never said a single mean thing about you."

The chestnut haired girl looked straight into Kat's eyes; She was kinda scary like that, she realised. "If you think this guy is any different - That he won't forget you exist after he's gotten in your pants - And go fuck with Carol and Tessa and Amy -- At the same time -- Then you're delusional, Kat!" Billy could she how much the pretty fairy was cringing, trying hard to keep composure and not show her disappointment.

"Billy is not like Steve, Nance. Don't project your own shitty relationship on me." it was clear to him she was holding back from saying anything bad. "Come on - You're drunk, you don't know what you're saying. Let's go."

"I'M NOT DRUNK, KAT! I'm looking out for you! Why can't you see?!" she went to Billy, trying - And failing miserably - To push him away. "This... This... Womanizer! He'll break your heart and laugh at you! And if you don't let him have sex with you - He'll make you miserable!" now that, even Billy found offensive. What kind of fuckass with no morals did she think he was? Or, rather - What the hell kind of persona did he make for himself?

"Nancy, shut up. Now." Kat grabbed Nancy's wrist, roughly pulling her away. "I'm taking your home. Now stop being such a brat - You're worse than your brother."

"I don't wanna get in his car! Who knows what he'll do to us?!" it was the last straw for the red head; She grabbed Nancy's face and shouted.

"SHUT THE FUCK UP ALREADY!" Hargrove's heart was leaping, looking down at the pretty girl losing her marbles; Girl was as much of a fairy as he was. He thought she was much better at being collected, though he couldn't blame her, these people were tasting her patience big time. He'd have done much worse, much faster than she reacted. "Good God, you're driving me insane." she had to take a deep breath and step away from her friend. "I'll call Harrington to take you home already." she marched inside the house, leaving Nancy like a lost puppy. "I'm so done with people."

Billy took out a few swaggering steps, getting close to Wheeler; He picked her chin, making her look up at him; She was a pretty girl - No wonder she was Harrington's "Queen" - But from what Kat told him previously, the ex-King didn't treat her quite right. He couldn't blame her for being fucked in the head and spilling her frustrations the first time she got drunk; But he also didn't quite appreciate seeing Kat's only friend giving her doubts like that. He knew, better than anyone, that once the seeds of doubt take root, nothing is ever the same.

"Listen here, puppy girl." she had the look of a defiant puppy on her face; She was hilarious. "I don't appreciate you giving my friend the wrong idea about me." he began leaning in slowly. "And I, also, don't quite appreciate you upsetting her." he whispered in her ear. "She's mine." with one last deep, intimidating look shared between the two, he returned to his own spot.

"You're a liar." she slurred, sure of herself. "Guys like you never change. You've been here a month and you've already fucked half the city." not wrong. "I bet you've got the clap by now." very wrong. Protection was lame, sure as hell it was, but he'd rather bash his skull against the wall then trust a dumb bitch not to get herself pregnant by forgetting, intentionally or not, to take the pill... Or worse; Who knows where those dirty skanks had been - He didn't wanna get AIDS or... Syphilis or whatever. He was sure those sluts didn't even wash themselves with water and soap. "You don't even love her - You kissed her! You wanna claim her! That's what y'all care about - A damn trophy to add to your body count!" he kinda liked seeing her so worked up and freaky. It was hilarious.

"OI, HARGROVE! STEP AWAY FROM MY GIRLFRIEND!" Steve ran full speed at them, dragging Nancy away.

"I'm not your girlfriend anymore, you jerk!" and thus, they began arguing like two idiots. As long as they didn't get violent with each other, it hardly mattered.

Billy dropped the cigarette butt and used the heel of his boot to extinguish it; He dug his hands in his jeans pockets, looking idly for his fairy girl; She exited the house, walking slowly. Was it to preserve her grace? To make sure she doesn't step on her dress? To make sure the accessories in her hair don't fall? Who knows. It didn't matter; She looked as if she was going down the catwalk - And Billy was enjoying the sight.

"Ready to turn in for the night, babe?" he called out to her; She seemed absent-minded; Very deep in thought. Were her friend's words getting to her? "Hey, earth to sugar plum fairy, you with me?" he waved his hand in front of her face once she got near him. "Hello?"

"Er - Sorry. I was just..." she shook her head, took a quick look at Nancy arguing with her ex, then rolled her eyes. "Nevermind. Let's go home."

"A'ight, let's fly." once again, he swept her off her feet; Her smile was still there, but not as radiantly enthusiastic as before. Something was definitely wrong. "Passenger princess gets the music privileges." he said, carefully placing her on the seat.

"Sorry - I've got a bit of a headache." she said, not daring to raise her hand and shuffle through the playlists.

"I've got some softer stuff." he reached to hit a few buttons, before he found 'Still Loving You' by Scorpions. Every once in a while, he'd gaze at her from the corner of his eyes, and see those sad gems of hers, twinkling with tears. She must have been devastated having her only friend bash her like that - Not that he knew what that was like; He didn't have any 'friends' to consider actual friends, nor did he trust or give a fuck about anyone. The song was getting to her. "Had fun today?"

"Yeah... I didn't think I'd enjoy myself as much as I did. It was thanks to you that I felt good today. Thank you, Billy." she sounded quite robotical and mellow, but her words were genuine.

They drove in silence, save for the ballads playing at the time, and finally, he parked in front of her home again. "Do you wanna..." he didn't let her finish sentence.

"Are your parents home?" she looked down, and after a few seconds, she shook her head. "Then you shouldn't invite a guy over." he reached his hand to move a stray strand of hair behind her ear. "It's the second time you invited me over. Do you trust me that much?" she nodded her head, but still said no word. "Do you want something from me, Kat?" he leaned over a little, his voice husky and seductive. She shook her head. "Then why are you asking me over?"

"My mum said it's dangerous outside. Parents worry when their children are out at night. I didn't want you to be in danger." quite the childlike, innocent mindset... Almost like an actual child.

"I'm in a car, babe. My parents don't give a fuck about me. I'll be fine." she said nothing; her hands were held together tightly. "If you say you trust me - Then why don't you tell me why you want me over?"

"Because it's a stupid reason." she whispered with shame. "You'll laugh at me and think I'm pathetic - Because I am."

"I won't laugh." he placed his large, rough hand on her face, guiding it to look at him; She looked... Meek. Embarrassed. It looked as though she was trying hard to open her mouth and speak - But she was voiceless. "I promise."

"I'm afraid." though barely audible, Billy was close enough to hear her.

"What are you afraid of?" he asked tenderly; Those idiots would go as far as you go to her home and harass her - Right? 

"I'm alone." she replied softly. Yeah, a home alone girl has every reason to be terrified, even he knew as much.

"When are your parents coming home?" her expression looked pained, and she shook her head. "Kat - Look at me. What's going on?"

"My parents died six years ago." nobody knew that, not even Nancy. Why she told the truth for once, she didn't know. Did she trust this guy that much? She just met him - Was Nancy right? That kiss stole her mind away?

"Six years ago?" she nodded her head slowly. "Didn't you say you moved here six year ago?" she nodded again. "What happened?"

"Don't you want to come inside?" she asked again, shifting in the seat. "I don't like talking in the car."

"A'ight." he nodded, helping her out of the car. He noticed how fidgety she'd get, twitching at every sound and canvasing the perimeter. Suspect.

The two got inside the house - It was decently big, and looked very comfortable and welcoming. "Make yourself at home. I'll go get changed - Ergh..." she scratched the back of her neck awkwardly. "There's a bathroom here - You can take a shower... And uh... Wait I have to give you clothes to change in, right... Erghm..." she paced around erratically in a circle, before she stopped. "I... Don't have any clothes big enough to fit you." she slapped her hand over her forehead. "I'm sorry!"

Billy couldn't help but laugh; He took off his jacket and threw it on the couch. "You don't know guys much, d'you, cutie?" she looked up at him, clearly confused by his remark. "Just find me a towel and I'll be fine."

Though reticent, she nodded and brought him two towels. "I'll go get ready too - And, uh... I'll make some... Tea? Is that fine with you?" an American drinking tea when he's not sick? That was cute. "Wait, uh... I think I have some... Soda?" she went to the fridge, scouring a little. "Pepsi?"

"S'fine, toots, s'fine." he gestured for her to stop worrying so much about hospitality, and go get ready - Which she finally did.

Once Billy was in the shower, he couldn't help but chuckle - Of course she'd have sweet fragrances everywhere - Hard to smell like a man, in a way that wasn't sweat or cheap aftershave. Lucky for him, he always carried the small bottle of cologne at him, in case he wanted to smell good... And now like a strawberry shortcake.

He never showered at a girl before; He never had an actual, long-term relationship before, not did he want to; He just loved having fun, and then going back home - No reason to stay more than needed. In a way, it would be the first time he'd be sleeping over at a girl's house - And not for lewd reasons. It was kinda funny - No one would believe him; Not that he'd ever tell anyone - Like hell he'd drag her name, when they're surrounded by attention whores and dumb brick-heads.

He messily dried his hair and put back his jeans, puffing the perfume on his bare skin; He went to the kitchen to pour himself a glass of pepsi then went to watch TV while waiting for the girl to come back down; That costume must take taken an eternity to put on - But he knew it would take him very little to remove, he thought smugly. Billy lay down on the couch, zoning out at the mindless TV channel, hoping she'd appear in sight already.

Finally, he heard quiet footsteps approaching - Kat was wearing a band Tshirt so large, it reached barely above her knees; Her long hair was let loose. She sat down on the couch next to him - She was so small compared to him, that she had no problem fitting her legs also. "Are you comfortable, Billy?" her sweet rose perfume was so nice, he remarked as he nodded. He got in a sitting position, his arm leaning over the back seat behind her.

"So you, a lone pretty girl, are afraid of being alone, in a pretty damn rich big house - Because you're parents have been dead for a while, yeah?" she nodded her head. "So what's got you so terrified lately?"

"Nothing." she admitted, hugging her legs to her chest, her chin resting on her knees. "I've been afraid every day since they died."

He frowned, licking his lips. "You were alone - Since you were twelve." she nodded. "No relatives? No child services?" she shook her head.

"Orphanages are awful for kids. I convinced the library to let me work for some money to afford food." she explained simply. "Once I got a little older, I started working other jobs to keep the appearance. I knew kids would pick on me if they saw I was poor." she played nervously with her hair. "I still had a lot of money left over by my parents, but... I didn't want to spend it all." Billy didn't seem to say anything - He continued looking down at the girl, his gorgeous blue eyes not shifting a single second from her. "I lock all doors and windows - But... Y'know. I can't sleep through the night. Every sound make me jolt up, and I have to check the whole place to make sure I didn't have a break in or whatever."

"And you'd feel more at ease with a complete stranger in your house?" he was kinda shocked to see her nodding. "You know what boys our age like to do with girls our age - Right?" he found himself asking, as if she was a child.

"You wouldn't." her trust in him was flattering, if not, quite alarming. Was she blindly trusting of everyone like that?

"How do you know I wouldn't?" he asked, leaning forward. "I kissed you today - Twice - Without as much as asking you." his voice dropped an octave, sounding velvety and seductive. "And I wouldn't mind doing that a third time too." he admitted truthfully. "You've got no idea the things I'd like to do with you - To you." surprisingly, she didn't look bashful, nor did she make that cute, shy face - She felt eye contact through it all. "Why do you think I wouldn't lose control around you, when you're so damn pretty, and dressed like that?"

"Because I trust you."

Her simple answer earned a physical response - Billy grabbed her ankle, dragging her down to lay back on the couch, with him between her legs, towering over her - He was like a werewolf - Beauty and the Beast. "You still trust me, doll?" she nodded her head again; He wasn't sure why, but this sincere trust in him drove him mad; He wanted her to change her mind - But he also didn't. He wanted to see her doubt, her fear, her disappointment - Just like everyone else he drives away. One hand sneaked under her back, hoisting her up, and the other was on the back of her head; His bare chest was flushed against her own, and he whispered in her ear, all husky and sexy. "What about now?"

"I know you're trying to scare me, Billy." his body froze, and he didn't dare lean back to look at her; He knew she'd have that look on her face, that glimmer in her eyes - That kindness that only she could have. He felt her gentle hand on his, caressing him. "Nancy was drunk. I know you wouldn't break my trust." he'd rather die than break her trust.

"You're such a stupid little girl, Kat." he muttered, returning to his seat. "Don't tell that to any other guy." he grumbled under his breath. "I've fucked enough bitches to know self-control." he continued as the girl shifted back in a sitting position. "But others are frustrated loser douchebags who'd jizz in their pants just from looking at you."

"That's why I trust you." she just wouldn't wipe that stupid smile off her face already.

"A'ight - No more Mister Nice Guy." he got up from the couch, and just as easy as before, he picked her up - Only this time, her legs and arms were wrapped around him, and he was carrying her to her bedroom. "Y'know I can't stay over every night, right?" she nodded her head. "... But I guess one proper sleep every few days wouldn't hurt." he could feel her arms tightening around him, a form of saying thanks. "Can you fly, tweetie?"

"Wha--" he threw her on the bed, laughing as she bounced right on the other side, falling on the ground with a painful thud. "Ouch." she whined, crawling back on the bed. "Jerk."

"You're too cute not to torment - That's your fault, not mine." he casually plopped down on the bed, getting comfortable. "You said you wanna sleep, right? Go on - Sleep. I won't leave until you wake up." he smirked, looking at her as she slowly laid down. "But I want lunch."

She had such a cute smile. "Deal." she whispered, her hand gently placed over his own. "Thank you, Billy. Sweet dreams."

He didn't say anything - Instead, he marvelled at the fact that she quite literally fell asleep the second she placed her pretty head on the pillow. Was it her exhaustion? Or simply her feeling safe, for once? It couldn't have been easy, being all alone since she was twelve.  Her chest was going up and down slowly, and even in her sleep, she was smiling.  She looked so frail and small under the blanket, unconsciously gripping onto his hand for dear life. Billy turned to his side, and with his free hand, he removed the hair from her face. She was too nice for her own good - All the more reason why he wanted to bust Harrington's face for getting the brainless crowd pick on her.

That night, Billy wasn't sure if he slept at all, or was in a trance, watching the beautiful girl sleeping next to him - No nightmares, no agitation, no nothing; She was deep in a peaceful, restful sleep, and he was mesmerised by how someone can trust him so much... Feel so safe around him. It didn't make sense to him - Nothing about her made sense to him - Why she was so nice to him, why she smiled so kindly to him. She was an enigma for him... And he was addicted to her like a junkie seeking his vein.

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[touchstoneaf]

So. Writing songlists for pairings/fandoms:

First, thought I'd share my first ever. Mulder and Scully, the X-Files... the first ship to be called a ship, TYVM. May have lost some of the lurve during the reboots... but it'll never leave me entirely. So, going season by season (a few at a time):

S1:

Adflatus: Mark Snow

Dubitatio: Mark Snow

Exoptare Ex Veritas: Mark Snow

Kyrie: Mark Snow

Lamenta: Mark Snow

Otium: Mark Snow

Arsonist's Lullaby: Hozier (M)

Beyond The Sea: Bobby Darin (S)

Motherless Child: Eric Clapton (M)

Star Me Kitten: William S. Burroughs / REM

Pressure: Staind (M)

On The Outside: Sheryl Crow (M)

Waiting For a Girl Like You: Foreigner (M)

White Rabbit: Jefferson Airplane (S)

It Will Come Back: Hozier (M)

S2:

Carmen Amatorium Ex Arcanem: Mark Snow 

Teardrop: Massive Attack (S)

Short Skirt, Long Jacket: Cake (M) 

No One Is to Blame: Howard Jones (S)

My Dark Life: Elvis Costello / Brian Eno (M)

Foreigner’s God: Hozier (M)

Frenzy: Screamin’ Jay Hawkins

Building A Mystery: Sarah McLachlan (S)

Stuck In The Middle with You: The Guess Who (S)

Here I Go Again: Whitesnake (M) 

Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood: The Animals (M)

Reach Out (I’ll Be There): The Four Tops (B)

S3:

Somewhere:  Within Temptation, (S)

Time After Time: Cyndi Lauper (B)

Sundown: Gordon Lightfoot (M)

Crazy Train: Ozzy Ozbourne (S)

Same Old Blues: Eric Clapton (M)

Mad World: Gary Jules (S)

Land Of Confusion: Genesis (M) 

Stuck On You: Lionel Ritchie (M)

It’s Probably Me: Sting / Eric Clapton (M)

Hey Man, Nice Shot: Filter (M)

Trouble Me: Natalie Merchant (S)

Love Song: The Cure (M)

With Or Without You: U2 (S)

Your Love: The Outfield (M)

Deep: Danzig (M)

Down In The Park: The Foo Fighters 

Silence: Delerium / Sarah McLachlan (S)

(TBC)

[huntingingoodwill]

Steve and an alt girlie is my absolute weakness, he goes into the record store and sees her listening to something so he begs Eddie to lend him the record so he can listen to it and then talk to her about it so she starts letting him listen to her own mixtapes and he's sooo pathetic and in love with her but can't muster up the courage to ask her out

ugh anon i love u we’re operating on the same wavelength 🤝

basing this off this music store girl hc i wrote <3

steve goes into the record shop pretending to browse, but the whole time he’s just 👁️👁️ squinting trying to see the title of the record she's playing

she totally commandeers the store’s stereo btw… she's had to chase eddie out from behind the counter the few times he’s dared to hijack it to play his own music

anyway! steve gets eds to distract her so he can memorise the record titles on her section of the employee recommendation shelf… he probably uses a pen to scribble them onto his palm 😭 (eddie’s method of distraction: unwinding steve’s tapes - steve wasn’t too pleased but he knew it was for the greater good - and getting her to fix them with a pencil as eddie chats her up, acting like he has no idea why the tapes are messed up even though he was in steve's car unravelling them fifteen minutes ago)

you are totally right about steve begging eddie to lend him records and he definitely cajoles eddie into going into the store to buy tapes/records for him when he’s feeling especially shy and just can’t face her because he’ll become a blushing mess so he just stands outside in the cold :,)

eddie totally makes steve do his homework or help him with his campaigns in exchange for getting him a record of hers and steve reluctantly does it because he needs his help 😭

i loveeee this hc especially if she was from a bigger city before moving to hawkins? so she was able to have access to more subcultures and is a bit “ahead” , like she’s listening to bands and making references that fly over steve’s head but he’s mentally taking notes and doing everything he possibly can to find out more

he references what he’s learnt to her at random moments bc he wants to impress her 😭😭😭 and she’s so sweet and encouraging about it she’s like yeah!!! and tries to talk to him more about it even though he. fully doesn’t know more than one song. but he’s sweet it’s the thought that counts <3

she and eddie constantly argue about each other's music taste, it’s just fun to bully and clown on each other :,) eddie regularly hangs out at fam video to annoy rob and steve and every once in a while she comes in and goes “required listening” before slamming down a tape and flouncing back to the record store. eds takes one look at it and yells after her that it’s trash and steve immediately snatches it out of his hands and is like “well if you don’t listen to it I will >:(“

he spends his break listening to it in his car, trying to memorise the tracklist and squinting trying to read the tiny lyric booklet

he works up the courage to mention that he “overheard some of the music when eddie was playing it” and she smiles and asks if he wants a mixtape and he has to stop himself from screaming YES

she makes him a mix with a little note that says “for steve :)” and he plays it on repeat in his car forever and tucks the note in his car’s sun visor for safekeeping

she wears a bunch of pins on her uniform with sayings on them like “free ferris”, “jessie’s girl” and “quit looking at my pins” and of course pins from a bunch of the bands she likes

and he buys music mags and reads them to try and learn as much as possible about the bands he sees on the pins she wears

and yeah she’s an alt girlie but his heart is poundinggggg when she shows she likes the more mainstream stuff that he loves

he offers her a ride home and whitney starts playing (i stand by this SO HARD that steve is a WHITNEY HOUSTON STAN he for real thinks i wanna dance with somebody and how will i know was written about him) or cyndi lauper comes on the radio they scoff about how cheesy it is but when the chorus kicks in they’re grabbing onto each other screaming ��HOW WILL I KNOW IF HE REALLY LOVES ME“ or them just belting time after time to each other and laughing and pointing at each other and trying to hit all the high notes :,)

from then on every time steve walks into the record store she puts on the song they sang in the car together over the store's stereo and they just smile at each other and steve pretends his heart isn't about to explode

[antifascistblackmetalnetwork]

Crevasse - Orphans (full EP, 2024)

We are certainly delighted to share here today something that will probably make many of you feel pretty old (in a good way), with the first EP from the Los Angeles based band CREVASSE. Its only member, Noah Hawkins, ensures with this latest work under this artistic name (being active for 2 years now with three singles released prior to this EP) that we are kinda kicked back to the early 90s in this nearly 20 minutes solid musical effort. "Orphans" gets started with a brief acoustic intro, 'Forlorn I', before jumping straight to action in the title song with drums opening to the distortion of the first notes and soon the burst with shrieking and riffs showcasing the classic obscure sound of the first waves of black metal with fitting slower melodic bridges and a twist. Keeping a constant gloomy ambience and atmosphere, completed with more paced down and less frantic parts as in the next song, 'The Dangermond', there can also be a hint to DSBM as more doom-influenced black metal. This encapsulates the core of CREVASSE's sound, but do not miss the two covers in here: next song is another door to the early 90s with a black-metallification of 'Enjoy the Silence', by Depeche Mode. If you, like us, did enjoyed what Feminizer did with Cyndi Lauper's 'Girls just want to have fun', this translation from synth-rock and pop to the piercing chords of black metal will be very much worth of your time, as well as a rendition of the pioneers Darkthrone with a 'Transilvanian Hunger' cover, completely nailing the hypnotic riff job and atmosphere of the original piece. We hope to hear more soon from Noah and CREVASSE with this recent and promising work!

[deecio]

More assorted Cyndi sketches

[hellcheerficdatabase]

alexa, play “she bop” by cyndi lauper

Author: kattyshack

Rating/Warning: Explicit

Chapter Count: 6/6

Description:

“How do you get your jollies, Cunningham, c’mon, I won’t tell.” Eddie swipes a cross over his heart, puts his hands together as though in prayer. “You have my solemn oath as a customer service representative.”

Chrissy folds her arms. She’s making that face like she’s trying not to laugh at him again. “What is that, like the Hippocratic oath?”

“No, dummy,” he says, all fondness, “I’m not a doctor.”

“Hm.” Chrissy’s eyes scan the wall. She bobs her head, her mouth quirking in this smarmy little grin she does sometimes that makes him want to do filthy, filthy things to her (like, you know. Kiss her tenderly, slow dance in the kitchen, put a little heart eyes emoji next to her name in his phone… and, fine, so he’s already done that last one, but you get it). “Doctor of looooove, maybe.”

“Oh, you smartass.”

(Eddie works at Hawkins’ resident—ah—adult boutique, and Chrissy sure does like to window-shop.)

Tags: Alternate universe- no vecna, alternate universe- modern au, mutual crushes, awkward flirting, fluff, matchmaking, love confessions, smut, Virgin!Eddie, he's kinda a simp, no cap, Eddie POV, multiple chapters, status: completed

[arickaandherfictionalothers]

Aricka Munson: the time she gained a little sister

If you asked her, Aricka would tell you she’d always wanted a little sister. Someone she could take shopping and do their hair and watch girly movies with and dance in their room to Cyndi Lauper and Madonna until they couldn’t breathe cause they were laughing too hard. Someone she could do their nails on and take them to pierce their ears and do all these things she saw Nancy Wheeler do with her little sister Holly.

Well. When she was 10, a new family moved to Hawkins, and she befriended both of the kids- a boy named Billy, who she stuck with like glue, and his little stepsister, Max.

Max was a fierce little thing, with her fiery red hair and blue eyes. She didn’t take nonsense from anyone, and she would willingly put you in your place if she thought you were out of line. She loved to skateboard, and her favorite thing to do was play games at the arcade.

The longer Aricka spent time with Billy, the more curious Max was about her. The closer Aricka and Billy got, the closer Max was to actually speaking to her.

And then finally, it got to this point. Aricka was taking Max to the grand opening of the Starcourt Mall to go shopping for new clothes.

Let the sisterly bonding begin…

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Aricka found a parking spot fairly close to the entrance to the mall, and Max hopped out first. “Let’s go-!” She runs around to Aricka’s side and grabs her hand- another new development in their relationship. Billy and Max were slowly adjusting to Aricka’s love of physical touch as affection.

Aricka grinned and grabbed her little backpack-purse before taking Max’s hand and heading into the mall.

It was brightly colored with subtle lighting, which was good because bright lights made Aricka’s head ache. Shops called their attention in all directions, but one in particular caught Max’s - Claire’s, and a bright sign announcing ear piercings. She looks up at Aricka with her wide blue eyes and Aricka already knows that she would be paying for an ear piercing session. “Please-?! I’ve always wanted to. My mom said I’m old enough now, but she never has time.”

“Max, breathe honey, of course I’ll take you,” Aricka says. “I need some new earrings too, it can be fun for both of us.”

Max grins and they head off in that direction.

“Hi!” They were greeted by an overly enthusiastic worker. “Welcome to Claire’s! We have a sale, buy two pairs of earrings get two free, are you interested?”

“We sure are; and my little sis wants her ears pierced,” Aricka says, her hands on Max’s shoulders. She feels the girl tense up then relax at Aricka’s claim of her being Aricka’s sister. “It’s her first time, she’s a little nervous.”

“Well come right on in, nothing to be nervous about!” The lady directed them to a chair. “You just want the one in each ear?” Max nods. “Here, pick out your first pair of earrings, these are our birthstone studs! They match your birth month.”

Max scanned the studs until she found two ruby studs- she was born in July. Aricka mentally noted the month and planned to ask Billy the day, so she could get her a birthday gift. Maybe some new earrings.

“Perfect choice! I’m gonna get everything prepared, you sit tight and wait right here.” Max sits down and looks at Aricka nervously.

“… it doesn’t hurt, does it?” The question was so vulnerable and so worried Aricka stepped closer and held out her hand, letting her grip as tightly as needed.

“A little. Just a pinch. Like getting a shot at the doctor. I’m gonna be right here beside you. If you get scared or worried you squeeze my hand as tightly as you need to be brave.”

“Promise? I’m not gonna be a baby for it-?”

Aricka shakes her head. “I still hold Arthur’s hand when I get vaccinated at the doctors- am I a baby?”

Max shakes her head. “No, Aricka, you’re awesome. Tough. I wish I was like you.”

Aricka blinks at this revelation. Processes momentarily. “Oh kiddo.” Max bites her lip.

“You don’t have to stick around for me and Billy but you do. You give us a place to go when it’s bad. I really like you. Please don’t go anywhere?”

Aricka can’t resist any more and wraps her arms around the fierce little redhead in front of her. Max shyly wraps her arms around Aricka’s middle, face pressed into her shoulder. “I always wanted a big sister. I’m glad it’s you,” she whispered.

Aricka laughs, admittedly a little wetly. “Ditto kiddo. I’ve always wanted a little sister. Glad it’s you, MadMax.”

The lady finally returns and Max let go of Aricka but gripped her hand once again. “Are we ready?” The attendant asks.

Max looks over at Aricka and nods. “I’m ready.”

~~~~~~~~

Billy met them at Scoops Ahoy, two work application forms in his hand. He waves at them and they quickly join him. “Wow; you’re sporting some new jewelry,” he says. “Nice, nice MadMax. Make sure you hide them until they heal.”

“Mom said I was old enough,” the girl says. “Aricka got them for me-! She’s pretty cool. Can she stick around?” Aricka blushes and shakes her head at Billy. The brown-blond boy merely grins.

“I hope she wants to stick around.” Finally it was their turn in line; and they all grinned as they noticed the person at the counter.

“Robin!” They exclaim. The girl grins and says,

“Ahoy there; welcome to Scoops; how can I help you?”

“Two scoops of Superman, cone please.” Aricka says.

“Strawberry, two scoops with chocolate chunks and a cherry on top, in a cone.”

“A scoop of mint flare and pineapple upside down, in a cup please,” Billy says. Aricka and Max playfully tease him for his choice.

“Ewww pineapple and mint?” Aricka says around a laugh.

“Billy-!” Max says with a giggle. He playfully bats back at them and pays for the ice cream, motioning for them to find a booth while he gets the ice cream. He hands the applications to Aricka along with a purple gel pen because he knew it was her favorite color. Max ducked under Aricka’s arm and Aricka squeezes her carefully.

Billy watched them go with a fond expression. Max had only been eight when they moved here, and a lot shyer than she was now. Aricka was a big help in bringing her out of her shell, with her genuine smile and her sincere interest in what Max liked to do. He walked over with the ice cream shortly, setting the tray in the middle so they could reach their desserts.

Aricka grins as she begins eating her frozen treat, watching Max gush about their day shopping together. “We’re not done yet kiddo,” she says. “Thought we could go to that skate shop together, the three of us, you could show us the whole thing.” Max’s eyes light up and she grins.

“I’d love to-!”

“Alright then,” Billy says as he takes a bite of ice cream- okay. So maybe he’d chosen a weirder flavor than he intended. But it still worked nicely together. “Let’s get this party started-!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

@astralshipper @rosieshipper @hyperionshipping @yeehawselfshipping @letsgofoletsgo @tsundere-selfship @callsign-revenge

[autistic-robin]

dysfunctional, angsty el-mike-will fic because i really wanted to write from a byler-aware el’s pov

PART I : EL

The first time she killed the demogorgon, all the way back in ‘83, El thought it was over. The flashing lights sending shadows rippling over Mike’s face, the fear in his eyes as she turned toward the monster, the sound of its screech unfolding around her like Papa calling her name. 

She thought she was gone. But there wasn’t any fear in her, not like there was when she was alone in the lab, not like there was when she hurt Lucas, sent him flying across the junkyard. She was not the monster; she was the sacrifice. She was the protector. Enough, she’d said. No more. She wonders now, three years later in the cold white-walled hospital, how different everything would be if she really had died. Would Max still be alive? Would Mike still be cold to Will? Would Hopper be okay, with just Joyce? She knows it is morbid, but with Max asleep and Mike angry and Will far-away in his head, El feels alone. A small part of her wonders if that is how it was always supposed to be.

She shifts in the waiting room chair, cold leather sticking to her legs. She is waiting for Steve, who is on his way to pick her up. He told her he would be here at four-one-five. Four fifteen. El has been watching the clock on the wall, watching the minute hand tick past three, then four, then five. He is late. 

“Those chairs suck, don’t they?” 

El looks up at the sound of his voice, sees him rushing over to her, looking frazzled. 

|  frazzled: adjective. showing the effects of exhaustion or strain.  | 

“They are not that bad,” El lies, but she still takes Steve’s hand when he offers to help her up. “Where were you?”

He rubs a hand along the back of his neck, apologetic. Guilty. Before Max, El only knew how guilty felt. Now she knows how it looks: shifting eyes, strained smile, weighed-down shoulders. She sees it in Lucas and she sees it in the mirror, every day. 

And now, in Steve.

“Sorry, I was…” he shakes his head, like he’s clearing a thought away. Meets her eyes. “I was helping Little Wheeler with something. He needed some advice.”

El quirks an eyebrow at him. “About Will?”

Steve blanches, blinking a little like he’s Dustin working out a physics problem. “Uh— What do you mean, kiddo?”

He sounds cautious. Careful. El rolls her eyes, feels a small smile tug at her lips. Steve is so oblivious. 

“You really think I haven’t figured it out? I am not stupid. I have seen them together, the way Mike looks at him. I—,”

Steve’s eyes go wide-wide, and El wishes she had Jonathan’s camera. 

“Listen, kid, I swore an oath. Of secrecy.” He shakes his head like he’s clearing a fog. “Doesn’t matter. C’mon, it’s late. I told the others I’d have you back by six today. The Chief’ll kill me if we’re a second later, we both know that.”

He means the cabin. Where El and  Hopper and the rest of the Party have been staying on a “rotational basis,” ever since the rifts opened. That means Mike and Nancy stay over on Mondays and Wednesdays, and Dustin and Lucas stay over on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Weekends are spent at the hospital or Hawkins Middle, volunteering. Hopper and Joyce meet up with Murray to strategize every Sunday night, which means El needs to be picked up from the hospital by someone else— sometimes Jonathan, sometimes Nancy, but mostly Steve. He has a car and the most free time out of all of them with everything that is going on.

El did not know Steve very well before all of this— the apocalypse, the Party is calling it, even though Hopper and Joyce don’t like it when they do. Anyway, whatever it is has changed everything, because now El and Steve are friends. Kind of. 

When they get on the road, Steve pulls a mixtape out of the backpack he carries everywhere. It is a Cyndi Lauper mix that he stole from Robin, and El is not allowed, under any circumstances, to tell her or anyone— Dustin included— that he has it, or her ass is grass. They listen to it every time Steve drives her home. 

“Hurry up, Steve!” El says as he shoves it in the tape-player, and he laughs. The opening synth lines of ‘When You Were Mine’ shake through the car, and Steve rolls down the windows and whoops into the night air, and for a split-second the hot pain lodged behind El’s ribs melts. 

“I know, that you're goin' with another guy; I don't care, 'cause I love you baby that's no lie,” Cyndi croons, and El giggles out the words with her as Steve pitches his voice up comically. He sounds like a dying goose. 

“Steve, eyes on the road!” El shrieks when he closes his eyes to belt the chorus. He snaps to attention, turning the music down against her protests. 

“Sorry, sorry,” he says, laughing. “Got carried away.”

El rolls her eyes, grinning. Things settle down then, the car going quiet and still as the sky darkens outside. Hawkins is pretty at night, El thinks, no matter what Jonathan says. The sky goes all gray-purple, like Will’s watercolors, and sometimes if she’s lucky, the moon follows them home. Tonight, though, it’s hidden behind the clouds— they are looming and dark, worse than the day the gates opened up. 

El turns away from the window.

By the time they make it back to the cabin, the sky is ink-black outside. Nancy’s car is parked on the dirt path a ways away. Steve rolls up beside it and parks just as the front door of the cabin swings open and El’s dad steps out onto the porch.

“You’re late,” Hopper says gruffly to Steve, shading his eyes against their headlights. 

El hops out of the passenger’s seat and bounds across the space between them, pulling him into a one-armed hug. He smells like coffee and pine needles. There is a permanent furrow in his brow. 

“We were listening to music,” El says by way of greeting. “Got carried away.”

Steve runs a hand through his hair, a gesture El has come to understand is a nervous tic. “Sorry, Chief. You know how the kid gets about Cyndi Lauper. Not that I— I don’t listen to that crap, but… anyway. It won’t happen again.”

Hopper raises his eyebrows. Steve smiles sheepishly. El looks between them. 

“What’s for dinner?” she asks. 

Inside, Joyce is making burrito bowls for everyone— canned beans and tomatoes, pre-packaged rice, things they stocked up on the week after everything went off the rails. They scavenged enough to last them a solid five months, at least according to Jonathan. The Byers family knows how to ration; El learned when they first moved to California. Even though Joyce had a nice new job, they were very careful about saving food. Back then, though, the food was less bland. Now it is an endless rotation of canned vegetables, rice, and “non-perishable” fruit in jars. Pantry staples, Will called them when they explored the remnants of the Quick-Mart on this side of town. 

|  remnants: plural noun. a small remaining quantity of something; a surviving trace.  |

Now, El looks around at the remnants of the people of Hawkins: Joyce, handing dinner plates to Will and Mike; Jonathan, pulling out a chair at the table for Nancy; Hopper and Steve, trailing into the kitchen. Robin and Argyle and Murray will be here soon with the rest of the Party— they’ve been volunteering all day. A calm spills over her as she looks at her friends. Her family. The surviving trace. 

“El, hey,” Will says over the chatter, waving her over. He and Mike are seated at the kitchen table across from Jonathan and Nancy. “Mom’s got a plate for you in the kitchen. How was— how are you?”

There. It’s there again, behind her ribs: the ache. Max’s absence is punching a hole through her, and it’s growing every day. 

El swallows. “The hospital was fine. It was the same. Max is still asleep.”

Mike isn’t looking at her. He pushes his rice around his plate, and the fork makes a screeching sound. El’s hands twitch to cover her ears, but she keeps them at her sides. 

“Well, she will soon,” Will says, his voice quiet but firm. El meets his eyes and is surprised at the fire in them. “I promise, we’re going to fix this, El.”

El feels her expression soften. She knows Will is just trying to help, trying to “boost morale” like Hopper wants them to do, but things have never been this bad before, this broken. And it’s all because of her. 

“Will… we don’t know anything for certain anymore,” she says. 

He sighs, blinking fast, and Mike clears his throat and looks up at El for the first time since she got home. 

“Well, would it hurt to at least try for some optimism? Moping around isn’t going to change anything, El.”

His voice is flat. El steps back, feels her power wake up like a cat arching its back. 

Before she can respond, though, Jonathan slams his glass down on the table beside her. “Don’t start, Mike.”

“Why are you pissed at me? I’m just trying to help!” Mike says incredulously, swinging a hand out in outrage. He knocks Will’s glass over, and water floods the table. “Shit!”

“I’ll get the napkins,” Nancy sighs, and Jonathan shakes his head and follows her. El can hear Joyce and Hopper talking in tense whispers in the kitchen, oblivious.

“Jesus, I’m sorry, Will,” Mike is saying, trying to mop up the water on his shirt. Will is sitting rigidly, like if he breathes the wrong way Mike will run from the table. 

“I’m not the one you should be apologizing to,” Will says, his voice tight. Mike recoils like he’s been slapped, dropping his hands from Will’s shirt, and there’s a beat of heavy silence. El stares hard at the water spreading over the placemats on the table. 

“I… El, look at me.”

El meets Mike’s eyes and wishes she hadn’t. He looks the same as he always has, so genuine. Earnest. His face is wide-open with guilt. 

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have…” He breathes in, shakes his head at himself. “I just hate seeing you so defeated. I guess I just got angry about it, for a second. But that was no excuse to lash out. And I’m sorry.”

They broke up three weeks ago in the hospital parking lot. It was anticlimactic. El guesses that for Mike, though, the wound has not scabbed over yet. He is looking at her like she is a broken toy, and it makes something in her snap. 

“I don’t care, Mike,” El tells him, even as his eyes widen in shock and a hot flash of guilt grips her. “I don’t have the time to care about your feelings right now.”

It’s the first true thing she has said to him since they ended things. Her voice is not her own, though. It is heavy and hardened by malice. 

|  malice: noun. the intention or desire to cause harm; ill will. |

Mike’s eyes are wet with frustration. Beside him, Will has tensed up; he is staring at El like she is a bomb that’s about to go off. 

Well, she is not. El is not a weapon, not anymore. If she was, Max would be awake right now.  “Enjoy your dinner. I am going to bed early.”

She turns to leave.

“We didn’t kill her, El,” Mike says in a hard voice, and she stops in her tracks as the full weight of the guilt hits her— Max lying cold and still like a broken doll, Lucas’s shoulders shaking with the grief of it, I’m not ready I’m not ready I’m not ready—

Mike keeps talking. 

“I know you think that’s what happened, but it’s not true. There’s nothing either of us could have done—,” 

“Hey,” Hopper cuts in, heading towards them with a wary expression. Nancy, Jonathan, Joyce, and Steve follow him, identical worried expressions on their faces. “Everybody just needs to take a breath.”

“It’s fine,” Mike tells Hopper, still staring at her. “El. It’s not our fault.”

“But we did kill her, Mike,” El says, because he needs to hear it. The rest of the group has fallen scarily silent, but she doesn’t care— can’t. She needs him to hear her, for once. 

“You distracted me. With a lie. You don’t love me, because you never have.”

Mike opens his mouth to retort, but El rolls her shoulders back and says, “No. Let me finish.”

It’s wrong, she knows it is, but El is tired and wounded and wants Mike to feel it. Wants him to understand; this is their punishment. 

“You have never loved me,” El says, her voice a hard, cutting thing, “because you can’t. No matter how hard you try, you can not do it.”

Mike’s chair scrapes hard against the kitchen floor when he stands. He’s breathing wrong, too short and fast like he’s run a mile. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

El risks a glance at Will. His eyes are wide and confused, glued on Mike. 

“I said take a breath,” Hop presses, holding his hands out like one of the hostage negotiators in El’s old movies. Mike flips him off, even though he’s shaking, and that does it.

El glares at him, and it takes everything in her to tamp down the twist of power in her chest, crackling like a hungry fire. 

“It means exactly what you think it means. Come apologize to me when you are done lying.”

El pushes past a wide-eyed Nancy, ignoring the feeling of Will’s stare boring into her. She heads down the hall to her old room, throwing a hand out to shut the door. It slams satisfyingly, rattling the frame. Her breath is coming in short, ragged pants, Max’s bloody face bright on the backs of her eyelids. The room tilts. 

Someone is knocking on the door, frenzied. “El! El, come on, open the door,” Will pleads. “I’m sorry. We’re sorry.”

“You didn’t—,” El starts, but she can’t breathe right and it comes out shallow. She reaches a hand out and grasps at nothing, sinking down onto her bed. Max in the hospital bed like a broken baby bird, the sound of Lucas’s screams, the whole of Hawkins swallowed up all because she couldn’t concentrate. “You didn’t do anything.”

“El, the door’s locked,” Will says. He sounds like he is crying, El realizes dimly. “Please let me in.” 

El breathes in deep, tries to hold it— Joyce taught her this on the cold bathroom counter their first night in Lenora Hills. She’d had a nightmare. Hopper, torn apart in the mall. In for four, hold for four, out for six. 

In, hold, out. In, hold, out. 

The knocking stops, and El hears Will slide down to sit on the floor outside her room. A beat of quiet stretches before he speaks again.

“I’m not leaving you. Mom and Hopper are talking to Mike. You’re not in trouble, nobody is.”

El lets out a shaky breath. When she opens her eyes, the room is still and quiet. 

“I need to be alone, Will.”

He sighs, a sound she knows too well. 

“Well, I don’t want you to be.”

El gets up and moves towards the door, but instead of opening it, she sits down with her back against it like Will has on the other side. She can hear him sniffling, and a pang of guilt courses through her. 

“I am sorry I ruined the night,” El says quietly. 

“No, no, you didn’t ruin anything,” Will rushes out, sounding painfully sad. “You have nothing to apologize for, okay? We’re all struggling, El. All of us. You’re not alone.”

She sticks a finger under the crack in the door. Will pokes it with his thumb, and El smiles to herself. Back in Lenora Hills, they spent more than one sleepless night in El’s room, coloring with Will’s best set of pastels and “shooting the shit.” She has missed him horribly, ever since the lab. Part of her is hurt that he didn’t feel important enough to talk to her in her trance, but she figures it all happened so fast he didn’t have time to think much about it. 

Nobody did.

“Mike’s trying his best, y’know,” Will says softly. There’s a warmth in his voice that El does not hear often. Some of her hurt loosens, but the image of Max’s glassy eyes flashes in her mind, and she knows she can not forgive him. Not yet. 

“I know,” she says back. “But arguing with me won’t bring her back. He is wasting his time. Our time.”

“El,” Will sighs, at a loss. He has never been able to accept disharmony in their group. 

| disharmony: adjective. a lack of agreement; conflict; division. |

“I will forgive him when we bring Max back,” El says. “But until then, try to get him to give me space. I don’t want to hurt him, Will, but I… can not be around him without doing it.”

“Okay,” Will says. His voice is quiet, scratchy like his throat hurts. “And El?”

“Yes?”

He clears his throat. El pictures him blinking fast, like he does when he’s nervous after he gets called on in class. 

“What did you mean, earlier? When you said… Mike ‘can’t’ love you?”

El sighs. She can not tell Will the truth, as much as she wants to. She heard things in Lenora, bad things about Stacy Ellis and Maria Davenport— that they’d been caught kissing beneath the bleachers and been suspended. That they were ‘sick’ for it. She thinks it must be the same for boys— that love between them is seen as wrong, somehow. El doesn’t understand why, but she knows it’s supposed to be secret if you feel that way. Sometimes, she guesses, lying can protect you.

And as mad as she is at Mike, she has to protect him. She knows Will wouldn’t care— quite the opposite, if her suspicions about them are true— but it would be like… if Will told Mike that El still wets the bed sometimes. Just mean, wrong. Not her place. 

“I was… lashing out,” she says carefully. “I just meant that I am not… the right person for him. I am not who he really wants.”

Will seems to go still. El hears his breath hitch.

“How could you—? El, of course you are,” he says, sounding pained. “What have the last three years meant, then, if you’re not… if you’re not each others’ soulmates?”

“Will,” El says, “I was confused. We both were. Mike has said the same thing to you, hasn’t he?”

A pause. 

“Yeah,” Will sighs, suddenly sounding very tired. “Yeah, but… he was just insecure. You guys will work it out.”

He does not understand. Something deep in El’s chest twists painfully, and she leans her head back against the door.

“Maybe,” El says. “But maybe not.”

She taps on the door, their secret code for when one of them has had a nightmare and cannot sleep in their room alone: short-short-long-short. Will echoes it back to her, and for a moment, everything feels half-normal again.

“I gotta go find him,” Will says. He clears his throat again. “Call me if you need anything, though, okay? I mean it.”

El feels a ghost of a smile float across her face. Her sweet brother. She hopes they make it out of this so she can see him happy. So they can all be happy. Will and El and Max and Lucas and Dustin and Mike, all together where they belong. “Alright. Love you, Will.”

“Love you, too.”

And then the floorboards creak with the sound of Will leaving, and El is alone. 

[valtoon]

I know that if I was just fine living my silly little life listening to Cyndi Lauper and was thrown into fighting interdimensional monsters all of a sudden i'd be pissed

also I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about making myself a hawkins self-insert character immediately after finishing season 1, so I obviously jumped face first into this trend lol