#eddie/nancy is worse than stancy

[steddilly]

Just saw a TikTok edit for Eddie/Nancy and it’s the first time I’ve ever gagged at the thought of two characters together. Full offence if you ship Eddie and Nancy, I will shame you for your poor taste.

[queenie-ofthe-void]

A follow-up to my Hanahaki Platonic Stobin drabble

Platonic Stobin, Steddie, past Stancy || rating: T || wc: 2.7k || tags: dialogue heavy, VERY excessive use of italics, fluff and flirting and humor, no beta

~~~

His sides are ripped to shreds, insides only kept inside because of the torn, dirty scrap of sweater Nancy wrapped around him. Steve’s been downplaying it as much as possible, mostly to keep Munson calm, but Robin knows better.

What’s wrong with your back?

Steve sighs, trying to mute his thoughts into a scramble like they’ve practiced so well over the past nine months, but the scorching pain on his shoulder blades, feet, and arms makes it rather difficult.

Don’t you dare ignore me Steve Harrington.

She glares back at him from her spot next to Nancy. They’ve been walking for miles, every rock and crack in the ground digging into his feet with every step. Munson’s next him, going on about something like bats, or metal music. Steve’s not sure, he’s having a hell of a time focusing.

But the guy crowds into Steve’s space, dipping in and out of orbit like he can’t help being as close as possible. Eddie keeps looking at him. Steve’s never been great with eye contact, but can’t help it when Eddie starts saying things like “the kid worships you, dude” and “insists on the matter, in fact.”

Told you the kid loves you even though he has another older adult male friend.

Steve can practically hear her giggling, but she’s just balancing her out-loud conversation with their mind-reading conversation. She’s better at it than he is, talking to two people at once. Hell, sometimes Steve has a hard enough time keeping track of just one conversation.

Their new super powers had been a learning curve, to say the least. It’d taken them months to learn how to tune each other out when needed, which was more often than not. Working Family Video shed a new light on how absolutely down-bad horny Steve was for almost every mildly attractive woman who walked through the front door. Including Joyce Byers, to Robin’s horror.

Steve was cursed with Robin’s almost near-constant thoughts about her newest crush, Vickie. He’s never met her before, doesn’t remember her from school, but could describe what she looks like down to the small, rust colored freckle on the corner of her left eye, just below the lash line. 

But even with the extensive learning curve, they discovered some severe consequences of their powers almost immediately. 

The first day Robin came over, bloodied and crying, with him no better off, Steve was so shaky he’d dropped a mug, slicing his hand as he scooped up the pieces. She rushed over, said she heard his pain more than felt it, like loud static. 

So, no sharing physical sensations, just mind-reading. Which is great for me, considering how slutty you are. She’d laughed when he lightly knocked her on the shoulder, but she’d thought it with such fondness that he couldn’t be mad if he tried.

The worst of their situation came to light when Robin’s parents called her home, said a weekend away after Star Court was more than enough. So she’d left him alone in that big, empty house, suffering from a severe concussion and dizzy spells.

Which only grew worse the longer they were apart.

Steve didn’t have anywhere to go, now jobless with the mall gone, and none of the kids came to visit. So he’d holed himself up in his room. The headaches grew worse, handfuls of pills doing nothing to help.

By the fifth day, he was vomiting again, shaking and crying, head throbbing, nose bleeding into the toilet bowl all over again when there was a knock on the door. The knock might as well have been inside his skull, but he couldn’t move, could barely see past the haze clouding his periphery like it had after his fight with Billy. He cried as the knocking grew louder, more persistent, until it finally stopped.

He slumped forward, pressed his head into the cool porcelain. Lifting his hand to flush, he noticed a small, vibrant white petal floating amidst the red and black water, all of which, presumably, came out of him.

–can’t find it. Must be… rock. The mat?

Robin?

There was a click, then the sound of his front door opening. Slow, heavy footsteps up the stairs.

Dingus where the hell are you? Not in the bedroom… Please, Steve, I need help.

That got his attention, but as he’d gone to move, the bathroom door opened to a bloodstained Robin, eyes rimmed red, hair a mess, pale and gaunt like a ghost. She dropped to the ground next to him, practically draped herself over his back. And just like before, the pain receded so violently he vomited one last time. A full, yet slightly crumpled, flower floated amidst the yuck inside the toilet. 

It was a daisy.

“Daisies are my favorite,” Robin whispered. She held out her hand to him, dirty and covered in the same green stains as the ones on her shirt, and handed him a very small, miniature sunflower. “So I’m guessing–”

My favorite.

Eventually they’d figured out what works and what doesn’t. Talking on the phone everyday never helped, back to throwing up flowers after only a week. He’d started to pull the daisies out to dry, which Robin said was gross. She took them home with her anyways. 

But he’d borrowed Robin a sweatshirt that she took home with her, and by the fourth day, she was in better shape than he was, only a slight headache instead of Steve’s encroaching migraine. So they started exchanging clothes and quickly learned it wasn’t necessarily their clothes or possessions, but their scents. 

You smell kind of like sunflowers

“Robin, sunflowers don’t have a smell.”

She was face first in his pillow, day seventeen after a two-week family vacation to Key West, returning his comforter, and a myriad of t-shirts. They’d both gotten migraines, but no vomit-soaked flowers or bloody noses. So it was an improvement, overall.

I know they don’t. It’s more like, I don’t know, sunshine. Or fresh grass. A warm rain… like summer.

He’d jumped on her then, smothered her into his mattress until she was tickling him to get off her.

“What do I smell like?” she’d asked, casual but not quite casual enough. He smiled.

Like daisies. An open field full of wildflowers. A new song, or driving with the windows down. 

She smiled back at him, wide and genuine, packed full of love. And he knew, in that moment, he was happy to spend the rest of his life with her.

“Harrington,” Eddie cuts through his reminiscing. The guy looks like he’s trying not to be annoyed, which makes sense considering he’s attempting to be nice and Steve’s completely zoned out. 

Do you have another concussion? Is it rabies?

He sighs, quiet enough that hopefully Eddie doesn’t assume it’s aimed at him. No, Robs. Just a normal dingus-where-did-you-go zone out. Relax.

She shoots him another glare over her shoulder, but ultimately lets it go.

“Harrington, you still with us?” Eddie laughs it off like a joke, but his eyes are wide, and he’s pressing in close again.

He’s warm, and without thinking, Steve finds himself leaning towards him, too– like magnets.

What magnets?

Never mind, Robs, shut up.

“Yeah Munson, I’m still here.” Steve chuckles, and Eddie relaxes a tad. “Can’t get rid of me that easy. I’ve dealt with worse.”

“Worse than an under-water tentacle monster dragging you through hell on your bare-back and almost choking you to death?”

When Eddie puts it like that, Steve really does have to think about it. “What about throwing fireworks at a giant, mind-controlling flesh monster and getting tortured under Star Court by Russian spies who shot me and Robin up with mystery drugs?”

DINGUS! If we haven’t told the Party about our super powers you can’t tell a goddamn stranger like Munson!

Eddie’s eyes are wide and dark again. He chuckles a little too loud, almost deranged. “Yeah, you know what, Harrington, that might be worse.”

They continue to walk in silence. Well, Steve’s silent. He lets Eddie ramble, talking about Dustin, something called a Munson doctrine. He calls Steve a ‘good dude’ at which Steve hopes the sky is dark enough to hide his embarrassed flush.

Eddie says something about the girls jumping in to save him, but he leans in again when he says it, and all Steve can think about is how close he is, the light brush of Eddie’s knuckles against the back of his hand–

What…?

– and the comfort that settles over Steve when he catches Eddie smiling at him. They stop in unison, Eddie leans in close to whisper like it’s a secret.

“But Wheeler, right there, she didn’t waste a second. Not one second. She just dove right in.”

Eddie’s barely shorter than him, just enough that he looks up at Steve through his dark lashes, big, brown, puppy-dog eyes hooked onto his own. He knows guys can be handsome, but he thinks Eddie might be more pretty than handsome.

I’m sorry? What the fuck is happening back there!

“Now, I don’t know what happened between you two,” Eddie says, low and slow. His voice full of honey that soaks into Steve’s brain, the actual words lost in the overwhelming sweetness of everything that is Eddie. “But if I were you, I would get her back. ‘Cause that was as unambiguous a sign of true love as these cynical eyes have ever seen.”

Steve can’t stop staring at his lips. They’re so pink and fluffy and biteable, so he leans in, like instinct tells him. Eddie looks surprised, but brushes his finger tips against Steve’s own. He whispers, “Steve…?” like it’s more revelation than question. Eddie’s so close that Steve just–

“Are you fucking kidding me, Steven?” Robin shouts, incredulous and much too loud. Eddie flinches away from him, hides behind his hair like a turtle shrinking back into its shell. Steve’s shoulders droop in disappointment.

Disappointment? Wait. Did I almost just kiss–

“Eddie Munson?” Robin finishes his not-out-loud sentence.

“Buckley?” Eddie asks, nervous as the girl marches towards them, her eyes locked on Steve.

“Yes, Dingus!” Robin completely ignores Eddie’s response in favor of barreling up to Steve, finger so close to his face he goes cross-eyed. “Yes, you were, and oh my god I can’t believe you!”

Robs, I’m kind of freaking out right now. Can you please relax?

“You’re freaking out?” she shouts. Nancy shushes her, but it goes unnoticed. “I’m freaking out! After all this time, after Tammy fucking Thompson, this is happening right now? With– with– ” Robin wildly gestures to Munson. “Goddamn, Steve, you reek of sunflowers right now, oh my god! Just like when Joyce came into the store.”

It’s as dark as it always is, but a flash of red lighting illuminates the red painted across Eddie’s cheeks as he bites on his lip, looking nervous yet almost bashful as he pulls another larger strand of hair across his face.

“Sunflowers? What’s happening right now,” he whispers to Nancy, who shrugs. She answers with a casual, “I’m not sure, they do this a lot.”

“That’s not fair!” Steve quietly shouts back at her. “What’s wrong with–” he glances at Eddie, who flushes again. He’s so pale I bet he’s red down to his…

“Shut up, shut up, shut up!” Robin throws her hands over her ears and pinches her eyes closed.

Steve forces a smile to cover his gay panic. Shit, am I gay?

“No!” Robin slaps both her hands on either side of his head, mushing his cheeks together. “You’re not g–” she mushes her mouth shut, catching her slip-up just before it tumbled out of her. “And that’s not what that kind of panic means, so don’t call it that.”

“Panic?” Eddie asks, stepping towards them. His eyes are trained on Steve, flashing down to his lips, then back up to catch his gaze. Steve sees something like hope buried beneath Eddie’s tough guy demeanor. “But I thought–” he glances at Nancy before quickly looking away.

Robin rolls her eyes at him, and Eddie backs off a bit. Except his look doesn’t go unnoticed.

“Me?” Nancy asks. “What about me?”

Robin, don’t–

But it’s too late, because at that question, everyone turns to look at Steve.

Over the past few months, Steve’s started growing out his hair. It’s not really in style, but he’s seen a few guys with long hair, and they looked really good. Right now, he wishes it was long enough so he could hide behind it like Eddie. But, then again, he’d also tried growing a mustache, since Freddy Mercury had amazing style– Steve’s always like Queen.

Except my mustache never looked as good as his, so I bet long hair wouldn’t either. Maybe the short hair helps highlight it, like his cheekbones.

Jesus Christ, you’re so obvious. I can crack Russian spy code phrases enough to break into an underground military base but apparently I can’t spot a bisexual within five feet of me.

Steve sighs, dragging his hands down his face at Robin’s inside-mind rambling. Nancy, however, takes it to mean something much different. “Oh, Steve, no.” Her voice is pitying and too nice and it reminds him painfully of the last few months of their relationship. Like she’s talking to a child. “Steve, I’m so sorry, but– I still love Jonathan.”

“I know, Nance, that’s not–”

“Are you kidding me, Wheeler?” Eddie screeches. Steve really doesn’t understand how they’re so lucky that they haven’t been hunted down and eaten by now. 

Eddie’s thrown his hands up in the air, all theatrics as he gawks at her. She backs off, surprised, but quickly recovers and squints her eyes at him, crossing her arms as he continues to ramble. 

“After everything that’s happened? Steve ripping off his sweater, jumping out of the boat and beating a bat to death, then biting its head off, all while soaking wet. I mean, the way he spit that blood out.” Nancy cringes, and yeah, Steve feels the same way, can still taste the black sludge in his nightmares. 

Now that’s gay panic.

I thought that’s not what that means, Rob

Ugh, I regret teaching you things.

Eddie’s still on a roll. “He was so… I mean,” Eddie throws his arms out towards Steve, showing him off like he’s a prized cow, “look at him, Wheeler! And you’re picking Byers?”

To Steve’s surprise, the glowering ferocity in Nancy’s face morphs into a coy smile, eyebrows raised in question to an answer she’s already figured out. Because that’s how Nancy Wheeler, journalist extraordinaire, gets her story. She reads people.

Before Eddie well and truly freaks out at the turn in Nancy’s demeanor, she winks at Steve out of the corner of her eye. “Risky Business?” She giggles and rolls her eyes. 

Then, in a mortifying turn of events, Nancy pulls a strand of her curly hair in front of her face, forces her eyes open, doe-eyed and dark brown, looking up at him through her lashes, then darts her gaze to Eddie. 

Ha! You have a type! Wait, how did Nancy clock you faster than–

“Okay!” It bursts from Steve’s chest, loud enough it shocks the rest of them. They stand quiet, listening to the mundane noises around them, and breathe a sigh of relief at the resounding silence. “This has been fun, really, but why don’t we all just keep going so we can get the hell out of here and go find my– I mean our– no, the little shits.”

This is why they call you mom.

“I’m not a goddamn mom, Robin, how many damn times do I have to tell you guys that?”

“If you’re mommy, does that mean I’m daddy?” The words slip through Eddie’s mouth and, unfortunately, bury themselves into Steve’s brain. Now Steve’s not sure who’s blush is hotter, his or Eddie’s. He’d guess maybe Eddie’s, judging by the way the man grabs Nancy’s arm and hauls her away at a half sprint. 

She laughs at him, lighthearted, and slings her arm through his as they walk side by side. Steve watches as she leans her head towards Eddie’s whispering something into his ear that finally has the man’s shoulder’s relaxing. He bumps his shoulder against hers, and she returns the gesture.

Robin turns to look at Steve, really look, with sad, concerned eyes and a twist to her mouth.

I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have freaked out like that. It just caught me off guard I guess.

Steve places a light kiss on her dirty forehead. She smiles, grabs his hand in hers, and squeezes once.

“I love you too, Rob.”

[kennahjune]

Some Platonic Stancy + Mike for The Heart

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

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

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

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

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

But she hates it.

She fucking hates it.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Now, where does Steve play into this scene?

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Steve finally gave her his attention.

“Hey Nance! What’s up?”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

“Hey, yeah, over here.”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

.

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

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

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

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

“Anytime, Nance. You know that.”

And she did.

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

.

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

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

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

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

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

Nancy felt much better than she had in years.

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

[lupin-et-rose]

2 am

Stancy-> (eventual) Steve Harrington x AFAB!Reader

Summary: In the middle of the night, you get a call from Nancy Wheeler, who hasn't spoken to you since she started dating your old flame, Steve Harrington. "I-I don't love him. What do I do?"

Warnings: Takes place in an AU timeline from the end of S1. Childhood Friends-to-Strangers-to-Friends-to-Lovers (aka SLOW BURN). Beware mild cursing, mentions of bullying, emotional infidelity and miscommunication.

Based on my Taylor Swift Bingo Card--Lyrics: "The lingering question kept me up, 2 a.m. who do you love?" (Also inspired by 2 am/Breathe by Anna Nalick).

You're not the sweet and soft kind of person, you know. Sometimes you wish you were. Lying awake thinking about how things would've been different if you could only bite your tongue and smile your way through life. Nance is good at that, you remember. Barb was, too... But that doesn't mean it's easy for everyone. You wince at the thought.

Remembering Barb always came with a pang in the chest. You were there at Harrington's party when she disappeared. Nancy roped you both in, and before you knew it, Barb was hurt, Tommy and Carol were soaked, and Nancy had vanished upstairs to suck face with the one and only Steve Harrington.

God, you just wanted to spit out the name with every ounce of vitriol you could.

Barb disappeared--likely died--on his watch, and he didn't even care. Not that Nancy was much better. Went on this wild goose chase with Johnathan Byers that ended with two busted faces and her name on a marquee.

Seeing the three of them at school; Johnny's hand in a cast, Steve with a black eye and Nancy without a scratch to show for it- made you so irrationally angry. You couldn't believe a girl as bright as Nancy could ever let such stupid shit stand. No matter what anybody says about him, Johnathan deserves better than a busted hand for pining after Nancy Wheeler.

And Steve--Nancy knew how you felt about Steve. The thought of someone smiling with a crossed finger behind their back is enough to have you snarling to yourself.

To make matters worse, she still stayed with that fucker! Steve 'The Hair' Harrington. King of Hawkins High. The bastard who broke your Johnathan's camera, let his friends shit all over Eddie Munson and still had the nerve to pretend like you didn't exist. --And didn't that just make you want to puke?

But of course, Nancy didn't speak to you after Steve's party. After the marquee incident, neither did Johnathan. Leaving you...friendless.

So instead you lie there, spread eagle on your bed, staring up at a water-stained ceiling--thinking. Always a dangerous pass-time. A sarcastic pompadour of a voice quips in the back of your mind. You shake your head and shut it down. Shut up, jerk. You haven't spoken to him in years. You don't think about the brick wall behind the gym. You don't think about his slanted writing. Or the gnaw marks on his pencils. You don't still think about him like that. You don't.

Brrrrr~ing!

The sharp trill of the phone has you jolting up in bed. Wait, what the fuck?

2 am, and she calls me cause I'm still awake, "Can you help me unravel my latest mistake? I don't love him. Winter just wasn't my season."

Yea, we walk through the doors so accusing, their eyes--like they have any right at all to criticize. Hypocrites, you're all here for the very same reason...

Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable and life's like an hourglass glued to the table. "No one can find the rewind button, girl," So cradle your head in your hands--

and breathe....just breathe.

Breathe, just breathe...

***

And may he turn 21 on the base at Fort Bliss. "Just a day," he said down to the flask in his fist. Ain't been sober since maybe October of last year.

You can tell he's been down here in Town for a while. But my god it's so beautiful when the boy smiles. I wanna hold him, but maybe I'll just sing about it.

Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable and life's like an hourglass glued to the table. "No one can find the rewind button, boys," So cradle your head in your hands--

and breathe....just breathe.

Breathe, just breathe...

***

"There's a light at each end of this tunnel," you shout. Cause you're just as far in as you'll ever be out. And these mistakes you make, you'll just make them again. If you only try turning around--

2am

And I'm still awake, writing a song. If I get it all down on paper, it's no longer inside me, threatening the life it belongs to. And I feel like I'm naked in front of a crowd. Cause these words are my diary screaming out loud, I know you'll use them however you want to.

Cause you can't jump the track, we're like cars on a cable and life's like an hourglass glued to the table. "No one can find the rewind button, now," So sing it if you understand--

and breathe....just breathe.

Breathe, just breathe...

[scripted-downfall]

thoughts on steve harrington ?

My thoughts on Steve are also complicated, and it's a bit of a journey; thus, this might end up being a bit long. (Actually, who am I kidding? All of my ask answers are long... but I'll try to keep it brief-ish.)

Short answer: I, personally, like him, though I can understand why people don't.

Long answer: My journey into the Stranger Things fandom has been a long and complicated one. I watched seasons 1 and 2 with my family when they first came out. Then, we lapsed and didn't watch the show again. Then, season 4 came out and @typicalopposite lured me in with an argument that essentially boiled down to "they introduced a new character named Eddie and he's just like you; watch the show! For me??? (cue digital puppy-dog eyes)", so I rewatched seasons 1 and 2, then watched seasons 3 and 4 for the first time. (It was a mistake, and vol. 2 is responsible for my emotional trauma and therapy bills.)

On the second rewatch, though, I was kinda surprised to see how much I liked Steve. I'm certainly not trying to say he didn't have problems in s1 --- he did, and there might be some qualifications for some (just saying, that photography thing was creepy, and I feel like an AITA post about that situation would come back inconclusive; neither was innocent, and both took it too far), but there are definitely some things that were uncalled for --- but my far-younger self had stored him as being far worse than he was when I rewatched. (Again: not saying he was perfect; just saying that he was far more respectful of Nancy's need to study than I remembered him being, and he had his turn away from being a jerk earlier in the show than I'd thought.)

His storyline is definitely one of evolution --- getting better than his season 1 self --- and I can certainly see why people still don't like him. My thoughts about him in s1 are a mixed-bag, but I definitely had started to like him in season 2. s3!Steve and on? Love his character so much. (The storyline with him, Dustin, Robin, and Erica? Pure cinematic gold.)

In terms of romance... that's complicated. I honestly don't want him to just get shoehorned into a romance that doesn't fit. Purveyors of my blog probably know that I do ship Steddie --- I want Eddie to come back even beyond any shipping matters, but I do think they work in a way that very few other romances that might be set up could --- and I think that, even with their limited screentime, this was set up decently well. However, if Steddie doesn't happen... a) I very much, 100% don't want to see him back with Nancy. And b) sticking him in some random romance would be a crying shame, and a reversal of the canon dialogue, since he'd been talking about how unfulfilling his random hook-ups had been previously. I've many times said that he and Robin are platonic soulmates, and they're awesome together --- I'm specifying platonic here because apparently people ship them together as a romantic couple??? They belong together, but not romantically --- and he's already got his whole found family thing going; I think this is a far better ending than either a random, undeveloped romance or a return to Stancy.

I hope that answers the ask well; I tried to make it thorough, but I might have missed something, so feel free to reach out with any questions! All the best, and thanks for the ask!

[outerspacebisexual]

A Place in this World - Steve Harrington

Book B - Part Four

Summary: You and Steve Harrington are together, and while he reflects on his love for you, you're trying not to get killed.

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Reader

Word count: 3.1k

Warnings: swearing, angst, fluff, canon-level violence and gore

a/n: i do not accept nancy slander. i do, however, encourage stancy slander

Masterlist

It turned out that Spaghetti-Os were quite possibly the most delicious food in the world after not eating for nearly 24 hours.

You and Eddie had shared the second last can this morning, going halves while awaiting any other kind of food to be delivered by Nancy and the others tomorrow. Eddie wasn’t exaggerating last night, Rick really had nothing in his kitchen. You had even resorted to checking through his bedroom for any kind of food that he’d left behind.

So, half a can of weirdly mushy Spaghetti-Os it was.

You had somehow slept worse last night than you had in the days prior. Between worrying about you and Eddie getting caught, your boyfriend being separated from you, and Max being cursed, sleep was becoming a foreign concept to you.

You couldn’t even remember the last time you had gotten a good night’s sleep. As you laid there on the floor of the boatshed, wrapped in a blanket, you couldn’t help your mind wandering to Steve, and the last night that you had spent with him before all this shit got turned upside down.

You couldn’t help looking at Steve as he drove. One hand on the steering wheel, one hand on your thigh. It was like something out of a movie. You were both still in your work vests, after a spur of the moment decision to go to the lookout to see the stars after you finished work. You had to be up early for an opening shift with Keith tomorrow morning, but Steve had the day off, which was probably why he wasn’t fazed about the time of night.

He glanced over at you, and you smiled at him. “What?” he asked.

“Nothing,” you said. “What am I not allowed to look at you?”

“No, you can. But you had a weird look on your face.”

You scoffed. “Oh, sorry for wanting to look at my boyfriend. I’ll be sure to tone it down next time.”

He shook his head and laughed. You turned away from him, watching the still night fly by as Steve drove, the only sound coming from the radio. You didn’t even realise you had started humming along to it until Steve squeezed your leg and said, “Do you know this?”

You turned to him, confused. “What?”

He took his hand from your leg to turn the music up. “This song. You know it?”

You furrowed your eyebrows at his excited expression. He was practically vibrating in his seat. “Of course. It’s Everybody Wants To Rule The World. You listen to it all the time, so why wouldn’t I know it?”

Steve’s smile got even bigger. “I didn’t know you liked Tears for Fears. I didn’t think you liked this kind of music.”

You gave him a look. “They’re not exactly my taste, but I don’t hate them.”

“So, why do you listen to it?”

“Because I like you, and they’re one of your favourites,” you said, as if it was obvious.

Steve didn’t say anything for a long moment, and his eyes glanced between you and the road, as if he was trying to gauge you.

“Steve?”

You saw him swallow, and his smile turned soft. “You know I like them?”

The way he said it made something pain in your chest. “You’re my boyfriend, baby. Of course I know that.”

There was something so gentle in his gaze as he looked back at you, something that made your heart go into overdrive. He shook himself out of it when he almost missed the turn to the lookout. “Maybe there’s hope yet to convert you to popular music,” he teased, but you heard the hidden words that he didn’t say. The gratefulness that you loved him enough to know what he liked.

You laughed. “Over my dead body, Harrington.”

You two had ended up falling asleep in his car that night, and you were totally late to your shift, almost jumping out of your skin when you woke up and it was mid-morning. You had started slapping Steve awake as you grabbed his wrist to check the time on his watch. He hadn’t been at all worried about you being late, he had just laughed while you tried desperately to fix yourself up in the rear-view mirror.

You had gotten a chewing out from Keith about that.

That night seemed so far away from where you were now. You would have never guessed that you and Eddie would be wanted for murder in less than a week after that night.

You glanced over at Eddie, who was laser focused on throwing tiny rocks into an empty can. He was already down 3-1 to you.

You honestly weren’t even sure what rules you were playing by; you just knew that you were winning.

He missed two, the rocks scattering along the concrete floor, but nailed three. He sent you a look as if to say, I win, and you just scoffed. “I’m still winning.”

“I don’t know what planet you’re living on, but I just overtook you.”

“What? No way. That only counts as one point,” you argued.

“It does not,” he said, getting up to collect the rocks he’d lost. “That’s three points.”

You threw a rock at him, hitting him on the side of his cheek.

He shot you a look. “Quit being a sore loser.”

“Quit cheating.”

He took his seat back down across from you. “I know that Harrington is clouding your mind constantly, but you should at least be able to see that you’re wrong here.”

You knew he was teasing you, but you threw another rock at him just because. “Leave Steve alone.”

“I didn’t say anything bad,” he said, throwing a rock at you. You were too slow to react, and it hit you in the neck.

“But you were thinking it.”

“Can you blame me? I still don’t like him.”

You turned away from him and back to the can, letting rocks fly. “I don’t know why. He hasn’t done anything to you.”

Eddie shot you a look as if to say Really?

You rolled your eyes. “He has actually changed, you know. Do you seriously think I’d be with him if he hadn’t?”

“I don’t know. You were pretty obsessed with him when he was a dick.”

You frowned. What a low blow.

Yeah, he had you there. But that had been before the cafeteria incident, back when you were just friends who had drifted apart due to differing interest. You supposed that you had always been intertwined with Steve in one way or another.

You knew that Eddie was just looking out for you. You two had already hashed out your feelings about you getting closer with Steve, and Eddie had promised not to bring it up again. At least, not in the way he had months ago. That had been one of your worst and longest fights, but it had led you to getting with Steve, so you guessed it had been a blessing of sorts.

“Yeah, well,” you said. “Either way, he’s changed.”

Eddie smirked, knowing he had you beat. He didn’t say anything though, he just continued tossing rocks with that obnoxious look on his face.

The two of you froze, however, when gravel crunched outside, and car doors slammed, followed by multiple pairs of footsteps.

You and Eddie stared wide-eyed at each other.

It couldn’t be the party with Steve. Nancy had said they wouldn’t be there until tomorrow.

“Fuck,” you whispered as you peered through the window and spotted Jason, Andy, and Patrick, with a tyre iron, wrench, and baseball bat. “Did I shut the door?” you whisper-shouted at Eddie.

“How the hell would I know if you shut the door?” he whispered back, reaching for the walkie talkie.

You watched them walk up the front door, biting you lip as you realised you left it open.

Eddie called for help, but your hopes died when no one answered.

You shared a look with Eddie. You were on your own.

+

“Hey, uh, Henderson? Could you maybe clarify what kind of clues we’re supposed to be looking for here?” Steve said as he swung his flashlight around aimlessly.

“The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes,” Dustin replied in a terrible British accent. When Steve didn’t respond, he continued, “Sherlock Holmes?”

Steve shook his head. He had no idea what the hell the kid was on about.

Dustin scoffed. “Just another reason why I like your girlfriend better than you.”

Steve scrunched his face. “OK, first of all, ouch. And secondly, just because she knows every little nerdy thing that goes on in your mind doesn’t make her better than me.”

He knew that it wasn’t true. You were better than him, in every way that mattered. It was one of the reasons that he loved you so much. He tried not to think about you being back at Reefer Rick’s alone.

He knew that technically, you were with Eddie, but that didn’t count for anything as far as Steve cared.

Dustin didn’t bother to reply. He just left Steve in the room by himself, going off to search God knows where, leaving Steve to search.

Steve could practically feel the spiders still crawling on him as he backed out of the room and slammed the door shut.

“Don’t go in there,” he said to Nancy, who tried to get him to stop moving and pulled the webs out of his hair.

“If there’s a spider in there, you’re never going to find it until it lays eggs and all the little babies spill out,” Robin teased as she walked past.

“What is wrong with you. Robin, seriously,” Steve said, brushing at the back of his hair. “She’s got problems.”

“Tell me about it,” Nancy replied, making sure the last of the cobwebs were gone.

“It’s cool you two are friends now,” Steve added, and he meant it. It was weirdly comforting to have all the people in his life getting closer. “Maybe after we find Vecna, kill him, and save the world and stuff, maybe we can all go out or something. You know? Me, Robin, you, Jonathan, and Y/N.”

“Uh, yeah sure,” Nancy said. “How is everything going with the two of you? You know, with all this…stuff going on?”

Steve couldn’t quite detect the tone behind her words. He turned to her. “What do you mean?”

Nancy shook her head. “I was just…being nosy, sorry.”

“No,” Steve interjected. “Uh, yeah, it’s going about as well as you’d expect. Y/N’s freaking out. I’m freaking out because she’s freaking out. Then she’s freaking out because I’m freaking out about her freaking out. And we just keep going in circles.”

Nancy nodded. “Ah.”

“But other than that, it’s yeah, good. She’s, like, way better than me in every way possible, and she’s honestly totally out of my league.” Steve hadn’t even realised he had started to ramble until he caught Nancy’s smile. “What?”

“Nothing. You just sound really happy.”

Steve paused.

He was happy. Happier than he had been in a long time. You coming back into his life had been a long and tedious process, but he would have taken as much time as you needed. He would have done whatever you wanted as long as you spent even just one hour with him.

He had been happy with Nancy, for sure. They had had their good times while they had been together, when he had loved her and she hadn’t loved him.

That was the difference between the two of you.

Because while Steve gave Nancy everything, he didn’t get any of it back. She had taken his love, even when she knew she didn’t love him back.

But you…You showed him everyday just how much you loved him.

It showed in the tiny details you remembered about him. In the way that your eyes lit up when he entered a room. In the way you wanted to be around him all the time because you knew how lonely he was in his big house. In the way you would walk all the way to work just to bring him lunch, just because you wanted to see him and make sure he was eating.

He loved you, even if he had been too scared to say the words yet. Because for him, love had never been unconditional. His parents’ love depended on his grades, and his job, and his friends. Nancy’s love had only been there when she wanted to pretend it was.

Your love was constant, unwavering, even in the face of everything you were going through.

Nancy might have been his first, but you were forever.

And he was determined to tell you that.

+

You swore that your heart had never beat so hard for so long.

You and Eddie had sat in mostly silence for hours, praying with every bone in your body that Jason didn’t think to look in the boatshed.

Eddie had been trying to reach Dustin with the walkie, but the little shit hadn’t been answering. You knew for a fact that he never went anywhere without it. So, whatever the reason was that he was ignoring you, it had better have been a fucking good one.

Your biggest fears were confirmed when Eddie swore and jumped into the boat. “Jason is coming. He’s coming to the boatshed.”

He pulled you in, and you started paddling with the oar as quietly as you could while Eddie fussed with the motor. As soon as you were far enough, he could start it and you two would be out of there.

You cringed every time the water splashed a little too loud.

“Holy shit. Hey, freaks! Where do you think you’re going.”

You and Eddie spun, eyes catching Jason and Patrick on the water’s edge.

“Shit,” Eddie said, and tried desperately to start the motor.

“Pull it, Eddie!”

“I’m fucking trying! Come on,” he said to the motor, “you piece of shit!”

You kept paddling with all your might, but you weren’t going anywhere with Eddie moving around so much. “They’re getting in the water!” you told him. “Hurry up!”

The engine only spluttered, and Eddie leaned down, frantic as he said, “Come on, you gotta help me out here man.”

But the engine didn’t start, it only continued to cough and splutter as Jason and Patrick closed in.

“Goddamn it!” he yelled and spun around to you. “Fucking paddle!”

You were paddling as fast as you could, and you wished that you had grabbed the other oar that Steve had taken from the boat. Two was always better than one. Especially when you had two jocks after you that you were fairly sure were going to kill you.

Eddie suddenly ripped the paddle from your hands and spun around with it, waving it at Jason. “Hey! Stay back, man!”

You could barely hear over the blood rushing in your ears. You were going to die.

You vaguely heard Jason and Eddie shouting, but you were too busy leaning over the boat, using your hands in a desperate attempt to keep you guys moving. You had to keep moving. You had to get away.

Suddenly, there was a huge splash, and you turned just in time to see Patrick’s body floating mid-air, his head pulled back, and his arms and legs spread out by his sides.

Eddie stepped back to try and get away, but he tripped, going straight overboard.

You could only watch on in horror as Patrick’s arms and legs started to snap, followed by his jaw and other bones. The cracks echoed across the empty water and bile rose in your throat as his eyes were pulled into the back of his skull with a dreadful squelch.

And then he was falling, hitting the water as dead weight.

You could hardly breathe. You could hardly think about anything other than the sickening crunch of bones.

But then, something grabbed the side of the boat. You shrieked, spinning, only to find Eddie struggling to get back in.

You quickly pulled him up and into the boat. He grabbed the paddle from where it had dropped and started paddling. He had a newfound strength as he managed to get the boat away from where Jason was screaming and towards the other side of the lake.

“Where do we go?” he asked, and there was a waver in his voice. This was the second time, you realised. This was the second time that he had witnessed Vecna killing someone. You had been right the other day. It was so much worse than you could have imagined.

“I don’t know,” you said, trying to work out where you could go that would be safe.

“Well hurry up and work it out!”

“Let me think!” you yelled, putting your head in your hands.

You couldn’t go into town. You had nowhere else to go that was safe. That wouldn’t put other people in danger. The only option was the woods. You would have to hide out there and try and work out a way to contact Steve and the others. It dawned on you then.

“Skull Rock,” you said, looking up.

Eddie kept paddling, even as he looked back at you. “What?”

“We go to Skull Rock. It’s secluded enough, and no one would think to look there.”

Eddie was puffing by the time you reached the shoreline. You both pulled the boat up onto land, enough that it was hidden from the water.

“Do you know how to get there?” Eddie asked, abandoning the oar in the boat.

You nodded. “I think so. It should be not far from here.”

Pushing aside branches and shrubs, you tried your best to find your way in the dark. Everything looked different without the light, and your heart was still thrumming in your ears as you tried to make sense of your surroundings.

“How do you know about this place?”

“Steve and I come here sometimes,” you answered. You really didn’t want to say any more than that.

Eddie obviously got the hint and dropped it.

You hoped that Steve was safe. You hoped that Max was alright. You hoped that the others weren’t in any danger. Well, any more danger than you had left them in.

It didn’t take you long to find Skull Rock, and when you got to it, you collapsed against it.

Eddie did the same beside you.

You wanted to say something, but your tongue felt cemented into your mouth. Eddie didn’t say anything either. So, you let the silence stretch, praying to any gods that might be out there that you wouldn’t be found.

[veryberryjelly]

5,4,3,1

pairing ; poly!stancy x reader [ modern au ]

prompt -  Imagine Person A having to go to the grocery store to pick up some food, even though they have never gone by themselves. They end up having an anxiety attack in the bathroom, but instead of dealing with it themselves, they call one of their partners who helps ground them while the other sets out to pick them up

wc ; 1.3k

@liableperfections​

——————

While you had tried your best to get out of going to the grocery store alone, there was no getting out of it today. Both nancy and steve were at work and there was no food in the kitchen that was actually able to be cooked without poisoning all three of you.

It was only a short walk to the grocery store that was located in town, most of the walk was spent fiddling with a random piece of paper in your jacket pocket that wasn’t even really your jacket pocket. It was just the first one you grabbed from the hooks by the door and it happened to be nancy’s.

You slowed down as you approached the large grocery store at the side of the road, taking a moment to just take a breath before you walked into the store.

Maybe coming at the busiest time for them wasn't the best idea, but because you’d never been alone before, you didn’t really know when the busiest time was. There were a lot of people and it caused your chest to feel a thousand times tighter than usual.

You tried your best to push that feeling down and just get the grocery shopping done before your boyfriend or girlfriend arrived back at home.

You got around to the bread before it got too much. It wasn’t just out of nowhere though. You had found a calm part of the store to start in but eventually you had to go around the entire store for all of your groceries.

While you were in the bread aisle, someone had grabbed the last loaf of bread that you needed, and you just lost it. It had been building since you walked into the store, but that was the last thing that caused your breathing to speed up and your eyes to well with panicked tears.

You abandoned your half filled cart in the aisle and sped through the store to get to the bathroom, not wanting to draw attention to yourself by having an attack in the middle of the store.

You found an empty stall in the bathroom, locking the door and sitting yourself down on the closed toilet, trying your best to calm your breathing.

It wasn't’ working

Every shallow breath you took made you panic about running out of oxygen because you couldn’t breathe properly.

You feared you may pass out in the bathroom at the grocery store.

With a shaking hand, you pulled your cell phone from your back pocket, a familiar photo lighting up in your face.

Your lockscreen was a photo of you, nancy and steve that robin hda actually taken and sent to you after you’d gone home. The photo was of both you and nancy asleep on either side of steve after a day out with everyone, where you all went back to eddie’s trailer to relax afterwards. You three had been too exhausted to even keep your eyes open which was how robin had even taken the photo in the first place.

The photo usually brought feelings of warmth but right now it only made you feel worse. You couldn’t even go to the grocery store without having an anxiety attack.

Shakily, you typed in your password and went straight to your phone app to call nancy, knowing she would know how to help you calm down and just sort yourself out.

While the phone rang in your ear, you just tried to calm yourself down enough to talk to nancy.

“ hey, sugar. Where are you? Me and steve just got home, we thought you’d be here “ you can hear her moving through the house through the phone, probably going up to change out of her work clothes.

It took a minute before you could even say anything. Not only were you panicking about where you were , but now you were just annoyed with yourself that you hadn’t been able to get back before either of them got home like you had originally wanted.

Taking a shaky breath, you spoke up, knowing you wouldn't be able to get help if you couldn't even tell nancy where you were.

“Uhm… i’m at the g-grocery store…”

There was a short silence on the phone before you heard nancy’s voice again.

“ okay, do you want one of us to come and get you ?”

You assumed she had heard the waiver of your voice and put two and two together. You had never been great in public places, especially when you were alone.

Without really thinking about it, you just nodded without realising she couldn't see you.

With a shaky intake of breath, you replied.

“yes, please” you sounded weak and you truly hated it.

You heard a few mumbled words on the other end of the line along with a metal jangling that you assumed to be keys.

“ okay, y/n, steve’s coming to get you, alright? I’m gonna stay on the phone until he gets there, okay?”

“ mhmm “ was all you could mutter.

Your shaking had gone down since you’d been on the phone to nancy but your breathing was still rather jagged.

“ ok, i want you to tell me five things you can see right now, can you do that?”

“ uhm, my phone, my converse, the stall door, an empty toilet roll and my bag “

“ alright, now four things you can feel”

“ the toilet lid on my legs, my hair on the back of my neck, the phone in my hand and uh, my shoes against my ankles”

“ three things you can hear “

“ the sink running, the hand dryer and the door keeps squeaking. “

“ two things you can smell “

“ i don’t really want to think about what i can smell in here “ you answered with a soft laugh and nancy was relieved that you were calming down at least a little.

“ okay, we’ll skip that one. Just tell me one thing you can taste”

“ the noodles i had for lunch “

“ you had noodles for lunch? Like from a packet?” she questioned, now just wanting to keep you a little calm until steve arrived. Which shouldn't be too long as you lived quite close to the store. That's why you had been able to walk to the store when you first arrived.

“ yeah, it’s all we had. “

“ so you went shopping ?”

“ i wanted to do it so neither of you had to after going to work. “

Nancy’s reply was lost in the phone when you heard steve’s voice echo through the bathroom.

“ y/n? You in here ?”

“ in here “ you called, standing from the floor anyway, now feeling a bit better after nancy calmed you down on the phone.

You unlocked the door from the inside and found steve standing just inside the door, presumably not wanting to just wander into the womens bathroom.

“ hey, you okay?” he questioned as you approached him., his arms instantly lifting to pull you into his chest.

You nodded softly, enjoying the grounding feeling of his arms around you.

“ let’s get you back home then “ he said softly and you didnt say anything, just nodded again and unwrapped your arms from around steve.

He threaded his fingers through yours and led you out of the store.

Only once you’d driven away did you realise you still had nothing at home for dinner.

“ wait, what are we supposed to do for dinner. I didn’t get the groceries and we don’t have anything at home.”

Steve calmly reached over teh centre console and took your hand in his once again, his thumb rubbing over the back of your hand as he spoke.

“ it’s okay, baby. Nance ordered some takeout so we don’t need any groceries until tomorrow. “

[saveme-storybrooke-potc]

Things in Stranger Things that IDGAF about (don't take this too seriously)

Will and anything to do with him

Robyn who got progressively annoying in season 4 because all her character became was "oh I don't like Steve like THAT" and "I talk too much"

that stupid song that "saves" Max, that song got so progressively annoying that just hearing the music makes me want to erase it from existence

Max in general got worse after season 3

Robyn's love interest, because who told Anne Sherly that she should time travel to the future?

Johnathan and his so obvious future crackhead storyline

Mike

I love that Mexican but why the f**k did I have to watch him convince Eleven and Mike that Pineapple on pizza was good? why would we waste that BS on a 2-and-a-half-hour episode?

Nancy's boring love life

Alexi's death was more of a joke than sad

The cast - unless it's Winona and David

the same f**king monster that turns to goo

Eleven's school bullies, because it's literally BS if you're trying to convince me that that b*tch didn't go down 10 grades

Brenner

Vecna's past

the fact that every girl is drooling over Eddie and Vecna's actors when they don't really have much

trying to convince me that Max is glad that Billy is dead when she withdrew from everyone after it

Will, did I mention Will?

the fandom, because they can't take opinions and throw temper tantrums if you say the acting is stiff (it really is)

Byler shippers, Mileven shippers, Jancy shippers, Stancy, and any other ship that isn't Jopper

The fandom, that sucks

[sourstiless]

They didn't kill Steve but they sure have him the ugliest fucking writing. NO ONE FUCKING CARES OR WANTS STANCY NO ONE. he's literally their most beloved character and the biggest reasons for that are his relationships with Robin and Dustin and they gave us NOTHING. Like what they fuck are they doing, she's going to choose Jonathan why are they doing this to him she treated him SO HORRIBLY. He deserves to get an actual character arc like they don't explore any of his trauma or pain fuck them truly

yeah i was super disappointed with steve’s writing in volume 2. he just kinda stood and looked pretty for most of it, and after seeing volume 1, and seeing him in previous seasons doing a lot of really cool shit, it was kind of a bummer to watch him do virtually nothing of significance. that goes for all three of them, robin, nancy and steve. i expected more. i think him wanting a family is super cute, and it could’ve worked if they used that as a stepping stone to show that he is moving on. like, him talking about growing and crawling forward slowly, and that growth being him finally getting over her or acknowledging that she still has a boyfriend and didn’t want to ruin that, but they didn’t do that. and i just didn’t like it at the expense of all his other relationships. robin and steve are really close, and aside from that one talk they had together while making molotov cocktails, we got virtually nothing from them. i expected steve and dustin have a much more heartfelt goodbye too, but he just kinda…left ??? no real hug, nothing. it was so anticlimactic.

and i also hated how they brought eddie in, who had basically the same relationship as steve with dustin, just to kill him off for a town that doesn’t deserve him. i feel like it was such a cop out so they didn’t actually have to kill steve off, which is almost worse than killing steve off. as much as i don’t want main characters to die, the cast is getting way too big, and it’s starting to become way too predictable in terms of character survival. the stakes have never been high enough for main characters where i actually felt like i was losing them. eddie’s death was treated like he was unimportant. dustin was the only character who seems to care, and it just felt so lazy. did i cry ?? absolutely but now that i’ve had time to think about it, i just feel kind of disappointed.

[shreya11111]

To make it worse:

Joyce moves on from Will's death within second because Joyce has another son (Jonathan) after all so she moves on (As this plot point makes sense according to some Melvin's logic)

But also Vecna isnt the one that kills Will, it's El who does it because she has no other choice to left according to some Melvin's theories and logic, that's what the writers decide to pull.

Jonathan dies mid season and Stancy is endgame. Nancy realizes that Steve is hotter and better than Jonathan after all and despite that the series has spent all those time to show that Stancy aint working and aint compitable, they decide to make them and endgame couple.

Melvin marriage happens and they have 3 sons that they name them after Jonathan, Will and Eddie.

None of the lose plot points in the show ever explained. The way Will disappeared and the way it played out? Never explained. Why the UD looks like 6th of November? Never explained. How Will managed to survive the UD for a week, despite being just a 12 years old without (seemingly) having any powers or equipment to protect himself? Why the Demogorgon didn't kill him instantly and instead just decided to let him go for a week, why Will was found at the center of the gates aka library with a tube inside him? Never explained. All the other important plot points get ignored as well.

Max wakes up but forgets about everyone and everything else that happened on the show, she doesnt remember anyone. And her memories never come back. She's left to ''live a normal life''.

idm why some milkvans think that – joyce would never move on from will’s death that fast. it doesn’t matter that she has another son because losing either would equally hurt the same. plus, just look at how worried and distraught she was when will went missing in season 1. so, i don’t think that’s plausible at all.

making el kill will for no reason wouldn’t make sense and would be extremely difficult to watch. these two are siblings who love each other very dearly…it’s just horrible to even think that the writers would want that to happen.

i don’t think st*ncy could ever work, i’m sorry, but even if jonathan were to die it still wouldn’t work. like you said, they’re just incompatible and don’t work as a couple.

please eddie wheeler, will wheeler AND jonathan wheeler??? jeez-

again, one of the things i would hate the most (mostly bc i just find it personally frustrating). glossing over all those points and not giving any concrete answers would be so infuriating.

that’s one i’ve never heard before- i don’t rly like that. max mot remembering anyone or anything that happened would suck, though i suppose it would be nice for her not to remember any of the trauma?? idk😭

[cha-lii]

okay, i enjoyed v.2 but these were the issues i had:

nancy and steve ARE NOT MEANT TO BE. they outgrew each other in s1 - if you can even call it outgrowing, frankly i never liked them together. nancy helped steve grow but they do not suit each other romantically. the way v.2 tried to force them was so obvious, poorly done and kinda pathetic. and very much unnecessary

will should have come out to jonathan. i neither expected nor really wanted him to come out to mike because that would have felt too ooc - it would have been far too huge a step for will to take for something so terrifying. but that scene with jonathan was the perfect opportunity and it was wasted. the scene in the van with will's monologue didn't bother me as much as it bothers everyone else, but i guess i was blinded by noah schnapp's spectacular acting or something. i think it was actually a pretty realistic and in character thing for will to do to use his own experience in that way - he's selfless, and maybe this felt like a safe way to express his own feelings for mike without risking exposure or denial.

eddie's death was so pointless. like, there was no reason whatsoever for him to turn back and "buy more time", and from what we could see his injuries were barely any worse than steve's were. also stranger things' habit of introducing then killing favourite characters should have ended after s2, it's just boring, tiresome, lazy and stupid at this point. what a waste. even more of a waste considering literally no one mentions eddie again apart from dustin and eddie's uncle?? not a single person?

the attack on erica doesn't sit right with me. it just doesn't. whether it's because it's portraying white on black violence or because she's a CHILD or a mixture of both... it was just unsettling. lucas' fight at least had some plot relevance and there was a reason for it, but that guy literally had no reason to tackle a kid and threaten to break her arm, like??

nancy, steve and robin were being strangled for like, half the episode. would it really have been so hard to leave that til the last stretch? because the way it was done made it feel a bit dumb, way too long a time for them to survive and just an overall waste of their big "final battle"

jonathan and nancy felt so stunted. i partially blame the forced stancy moments now hanging over them like a cloud but also why would they make jonathan keep lying?? like, again, would have been the perfect moment for some truthfulness but it was squandered.

i honestly found the el storyline this whole season so boring. like, there was absolutely zero development - she regressed and now she's basically back where she started. nothing else seemed to change.

tf happened to murray, yuri and hottie (can't remember his name)???

[pappydaddy]

Ohh totally the writers regressed Steve's entire development to be solely Nancy's love interest again. His other relationships suffered so much, especially the one with Dustin. He seemed so angry with being paired up with him it was so ooc. Like it's actually criminal that we got a Eddie and Dustin hug before Steve and Dustin, like wth.

Even his relationship with Robin was watered down to push for Stancy. I still stand by the fact that Robin should have been the one who jumped in first to save Steve, but then Eddie wouldn't have given his true love speech to Steve later. And Robin actually pushing Nancy to persue Steve, while being Steve's bestie and probably knowing how fucked up he was after the breakup. The writers don't see heaven for this I'm afraid. Robin needs to talk some sense into him, like please.

I'm so mad at the writers, I hope they look through fan reactions and see that 80% of the fandom doesn't want this kinda shit. Plus it's so fucking unfair to both characters. Steve got rejected twice there at the end and he was clearly hurt, if he takes her back after all the shit Nancy put him through (cheating, calling him bs and making him insecure about his intelligence) what kinda message is this for his character? Like does he really feel so insecure about himself, so worthless that he doesn't think he deserves better??? Or worse if the writers kill him off for Nancy I'm gonna commit a crime if they do that.

And Nancy deserves an arc that isn't centered around guys, let her be single and move away to persue her dream career. Nancy won't ever be the perfect woman for Steve to carry his 6 kids, she said herself in season one. I fucking hate how they ended s4 with setting up Nancy cheating on Jonathan in s5 like she did with Steve in s2. Plus most likely not even facing any repercussions for her behavior because the show excuses any mistake so idk she gets a fee pass for anything really. I tried to like her but after s2 I just can't bring myself, the only scenes where I truly started to appreciate her more were the ones with Robin tbh.

My dream dynamics or hope for s5. Steve and Robin plus party all together fighting evil monsters. We deserve Steve and El interactions, Steve comforting Dustin and Lucas. Plus for once let him actually display feelings, I want to see him grieve Max and feeling guilty for not being the protector like he thought he was. Plus the arc I hoped for s4, realizing he doesn't need romantic love, he already has a family rn and that friendships can make you just as happy. Like I really thought for vol2 he would finally move on and come to that realization but instead we got a love confession.

Nancy and Jonathan can do their investigation shit, stay far away from the group like they always do every season and talk about their feelings like mature adults they claim to be. Like the Duffers talked about s1 pairings definitely Jancy was together for 80% of the time despite Nancy dating Steve so please just go back to that lol.

Sorry this was kinda long, but every time I see Stancy content or discussions I get once again so angry at like everything. We could have so much better but nope.

Obx anon

oh my gosh! it's great to see you again obx anon! how have you been lovely?

i agree with you full-heartedly! i loved nancy in season one and (a little less bc of the steve situation) in season 2, but in season 3 i liked her again because her storylines were something other than conflicted feelings for a boy. in season one, the writers were laying the seeds for nancy and jonathan (even tho they had jonathan take pictures of her???) so they had her dating steve as a way for her to break free of the good girl in the suburbs mentality. this is seen with her losing her virginity, going to the party, shotgunning, etc. they used the relationship with steve to give her character depth and create a change within her.

then in season 2 she ruined steve which allowed for steve's character growth. this growth had the kids involved with it. steve went from king steve to momma steve and that was because of the kids. even in season 3 when he only had dustin and erica with him, he was still momma steve. then he started chucking fireworks at the mind flayer and he was momma steve saving el because he had the kids.

there was no momma steve content in season 4. it was annoyed and borderline king steve content. i hated that scene where he tried to go with nancy and he was visibly annoyed that he had to go with dustin. like i was excited for some steve and dustin content - i look forward to steve and dustin content. on top of that, there was no robin and steve.

everything with steve was so ooc in season 4. i also hate how it seems like they are trying to make the viewers hate nancy. she doesn't seem to be someone who it whishy-washy, yet, every other season she is unsure of her relationship.

but, i did read natalia agreed that robin and nancy would be a good pair and that it would be cool to see that relationship. i feel like that would also explain why nancy seems to jump between steve and jonathan. she seems to be drawn to any guy that is showing any form of affection/romantic interest to her regardless of her relationship status. so, maybe (and i am just brainstorming here), what if she doesn't have romantic feelings towards steve or jonathan? what if she feels like because they like her and she is a girl and they are boys, she should like them and date them?

but, back to canon. i was also upset that there seemed to be no resolution in the two-day jump of any of this. nancy can break up with jonathan if she wants, but steve and her better stay friends. there was also no steve/dustin dynamic. or steve/robin dynamic other than steve seeing her talking to vickie. but i think seeing this shift proves how nancy and steve wouldn't work. (a) they want two completely different things in life like you pointed out and (b) they bring out the worst in each other.

tik tok seems to love stancy and i've had to hit not interested so many times bc it keeps showing me stancy content and i hate it. i feel much better on tumblr where there are so many people who agree with me about this. also, i saw someone on here say that hopefully steve admitting he saw nancy having his six-kids for the longest time was steve's way of saying 'i am finally getting over you and moving on and being happy'. but we really won't know until season 5 comes out (which i hope isn't long from now).

and don't worry lovely! i hate stancy so much too. it fills me with rage that people cannot seem to realize how bad they are for each other. i am also mad that they ruined steve's character (slightly) in this season and i hope they don't ruin it further.

[clarkegriffins]

why are so many tumblrinas acting like stancy killed their dog? their are so many worse ships to get this pressed over. The 4th season isn't even over yet. we don't have the full vision. also calling it forced and acting like the romantic feelings came out of nowhere and it's forced when stancy dated for like an entire year, and jancy and jopper both constantly needed people telling them that they were in love.

ok i’ll say it: it’s because tumblr is a place where most people go to��fetishize mlm ships without being judged JSKDFGNDJKSGNDKGNDKGN no bc it’s only on this goddamn site that stancy is overhated, bc on twitter is like 50/50, on ig they’re huge, on tiktok too, on youtube too, it's only here that people have problems with them, i guess stancy is ruining the two seconds interaction eddie and steve had :/ i think its only normal for j4ncys hating on stancy that much bc u know they’re in the middle of their ship but the rest of them????? nancy was ALWAYS part of steve’s character, if u haven't been paying attention than its not our fault, also they had unfinished business, nancy needs to talk about her trauma with barb and realize that it was one of the main reasons why she and steve broke up, and just like u said: the 4th season isnt even over yet, we dont know what’s gonna happen, people are being annoying for no reason

[yikesharringrove]

YES! OH👏MY👏GOD👏 YES! DOUG JONES WOULD'VE BEEN PERFECT FOR VECNA! HOLY FUCK! Also, if stancy happens, i will goddamn riot! & honestly, the ONLY REASON I'm ok with them telling Eddie so quickly is that I'm hoping they all feel guilty as fuck for not doing more for Billy & are trying to compensate.

THATS BECAUSE THERES NO PROSTHETIC CHARACTER THAT DOUG JONES CANT DO

I genuinely think stancy would be worse than Steve straight up dying. Like I said, moving on from one another showed a lot of growth for both characters and going back to one another regresses all of that. Steve is not what Nancy wants and Nancy is not what Steve wants. It’s sooo fucking dumb.

And that’s gonna be what I headcanon. I mean, obviously max is SUPER guilty, Vecna wouldn’t have targeted her otherwise, it just stings that billy literally died scared, thinking he was alone and that everyone hated him and the one fucking time someone shows him kindness and recognizes his humanity, he regained control of himself. Like, duffers, I’m sorry that y’all created a character that was too complex for your clumsy writing skills.

[hawkinsindiana]

I feel or rather hope Steve won't die in s5 because of Dustin, it would be extremely cruel of the writers to take away his other big brother figure, especially after grieving Eddie, the Duffers wouldn't do it to Dustin. Plus his death would overshadow basically the rest of the show (like how Eddie overshadowed Max's in s4 only worse), and he's not a main main character. The story was always about Will and El and if some of the older teens has to die, Jonathan is more likely than Steve because he's Wills favorite person.

I also don't think he ends up with Nancy, she was about to reject him again in the woods and it would be such a bad ending for his character. Nancy admitted she always wanted Jonathan instead of Steve in s2, it would be a disservice to Steve's and Nancy's character if Stancy is endgame.

Now I feel like we can still get a Robin and Steve ending, yes we might never get a spin off show but him ending with Robin leaving Hawkins with her to live life after realizing he doesn't need romantic love to be fulfilled would be the best ending. We can still establish this arc in s5 with Robin talking some sense into him. Yes he is all about romance and relationships because I feel like he genuinely doesn't feel loved and he thinks romance can fix it.

this sounds great but honestly i have no idea what the duffers could be concocting for him atm so…. i feel it’s best not to get our hopes up yanno. i do agree tho and hadn’t thought that killing eddie then steve would be disastrous for dustin so maybe…. maybe he’ll be alive and part five can end how i’m picturing it

[xek-xek]

I actually need to complain about this so I can go about my day so in case the readmore doesn't work stranger things s4 vol 2 spoilers

Like the Eddie stuff just kinda sucks they killed my new favorite boy and it wasn't even narratively satisfying which I guess I should have expected from this fucking show.

But honestly worse than that I cannot believe how fucking played we were with Steve this season like God forbid he gets his own character arc he's just Nancy Wheeler's accessory but they also have the gall to not even actually do stancy he's in the same place he was at the end of season 2 they actually moved backwards with him what the ACTUAL FUCK????

Steve is such a fun, refreshing and loveable character when he's around anyone other than Nancy so of course the duffers practically handcuff him to her even though we all know she's not leaving johnathan's revenge of the nerds ass.

Like I was being dramatic before but I honestly don't know if I can still watch this show if it's going to be such a monumental waste of time.

The character writing has been mediocre from the get go but season 4 is honestly just sad and I'm not interested in repeatedly being this disappointed.

Like I can't even enjoy the vecna stuff or the exploration of the upside down because they throw away characters like tissues.

Season 5 has a major uphill battle.