#eddie's parents are awful

[stagefoureddiediaz]

Eddie’s arc gonna be so so so good this season

The Chris stuff is going to hurt so bad and break me but healing is coming for them both and I’m expecting a Chris-tmas episode reunion of father and son

[lilpomelito]

girldads Steve and Eddie. their oldest looooves sports and she's crazy good at soccer (making auntie Robin proud). everyone would assume Steve would be her biggest fan (and he is!) but it's actually Eddie the one who's getting into loud arguments and even fights with all the other soccer moms. yes Jennifer your brat just kicked my baby on fucking purpose she has to get a red card this is so unfair and Steve has to drag him away to stop him from strangling another kid's parent. their girl loves the drama, she's kind of a queen bee who lives for her dad's crazy sense of theatrics.

and then their youngest wants to learn music and she starts with guitar because that's what's at home and Eddie is so proud of how quickly his baby is learning, then Steve teaches her what he remembers from his piano lessons. but she wants more, so she asks robin for trumpet lessons. but that's not enough she seems to be some kind of music savant and plays the violin next, and then the drums when she convinces Garreth to teach her. then she begs for oboe lessons. she's a little rascal stealing instruments from the school's music classroom. and you'll find Steve loudly arguing with the principal when she gets caught again, no I won't stop her, yes she has ten instruments at home but she wants to learn more, what kind of institution is determined to stagnate a kid's learning development? and Eddie has to rescue them both before his husband gets their child expelled from the expensive fancy school for gifted kids

[anarmel]

Eddie’s parental figures in my d&d au

[esswantspez]

Steve talking Italian headcanon that got out of hand

Steve used to have a housekeeper that was around far more than his parents and she didn’t speak very good English, but Steve was lonely and longed for a connection so he attempted to teach her all the English that little Stevie knew and for every word he taught her in English she’d teach him the same in Italian. Steve is fluent in Italian, no thanks to his parents, but because he wanted someone to talk to. And Robin finds out sometime after the whole Vecna debacle after hearing him speak with the former housekeeper over the phone (he likes to keep in touch with her and it’s a great opportunity to practice his Italian). Robin, already fluent in said language, is thrilled by this revelation. Flash forward a bit and whenever the two of them wanna talk about something private they can do it in front of other people and they love it. The first time the others catch them talking there are jaws dropping, because everyone knew Robin was smart as fuck and that she knows like five languages, but for whatever reason everyone had just assumed that Steve knew English - and that was it. They ask him about the story, but he tells them it’s a secret and they think he’s just trying to act mysterious and be cool, but Robin knows. And really, the reason he doesn’t immediately want to admit the real reason to the others isn’t because he’s ashamed or wants to tease them (even if it comes across like that), it’s because he doesn’t want them to pity him.

Eddie noticed whenever Steve looked down, of course he did. As much as he tried to hide it, his mask always fell the moment he thought no one was looking. Robin obviously wasn’t that blind and she’d get right to the point before Eddie could. And that’s how he’d found out several heartbreaking facts about Steve. Though he didn’t catch all of their conversation, since they were talking pretty quietly, he could make out enough words to understand that Steve’s parents were home and that they… didn’t treat him well. He heard Robin mention bruises, how she offered Steve to stay the night at hers and he’d declined because “it’d only get worse”.

As soon as Steve’s parents left again he was back to his own self. Did this mean his parents were usually not home? Or had something changed recently? Eddie didn’t know how to approach the subject, especially because he wasn’t supposed to know. This was something Steve had told Robin, and only Robin. Except he overheard. More like eavesdropped, but that’s besides the point. He mulls over what to do, but is completely caught off guard when one day he catches them talking about him. Intrigued, he tries not to let it show that he’s listening. Steve is recalling their conversation from earlier, telling Robin about how close they were standing and that all he wanted to do was grab him and… kiss him? No, he must’ve misunderstood. Robin snorts as a retort and tells him to relax, and make a fucking move. Steve states he’s tried! (What the fuck???) But that maybe Eddie’s just not into boys like that. Eddie hums at the mention of his name, purely out of spite and to see their reactions. To his amusement Steve’s cheeks taint pink while Robin just shrugs and states that it was nothing.

Eddie knows that Robin is a lesbian, and she knows that he’s gay - they had that conversation ages ago. But Steve??? Liking him back? For real? Not just teasing him by flirting back… the simple constant contact between him and Eddie… He feels stupid. For just assuming that Steve was straight and for not believing Robin the million times she’d said that Steve was “safe”.

He waits a few more days, not quite knowing what to do, but then they all hang out again. And Steve is rambling to Robin, and Eddie’s not really listening all that much, too many thoughts swirling around in his head. But then he realizes that Robin’s just sighing and telling Steve to stop and shut up, to “not think like that” and he realizes that Steve’s just talking down on himself about all sorts of things. Not being enough, being stupid and a burden, and- Eddie, just like Robin, has enough and tells Steve to shut the fuck up and not to talk like that about himself!

And everyone freezes. Robin and Steve stare at him wide eyed and there’s a dark pink creeping up Steve’s neck.

“H- what?” Steve gets out.

“Don’t say that,” Eddie answers simply and Robin replies by asking how long he’s known Italian, to which he just responds, “a while”.

They gape at him, Steve looking down at the table, as if embarrassed.

“It was supposed to be a surprise…” Eddie mumbles.

Steve nods and leaves the table. Robin and Eddie sigh in unison as the rest of the group looks at each other in utter confusion.

[morganski-19]

I Don't Know Which Way's Home

Chapter 10: Neglect

ao3 link, Part 1, Part 9

cw: brief discussions about food/appetites, discussions of child abuse (if it wasn't obvious from the chapter title)

December 1983

“Did you hear?” Mary whispers into Julie’s ear as they walk down the hall. “There’s a rumor going around that a girl is seen walking around the woods over by Denfield.”

“It’s just another ghost story,” Julie dismisses as she gets to her locker, switching out her textbooks.

“Well, duh.” Mary emphasizes. “I was just telling you because you live right by those woods. You might see her.”

Julie turns to her best friend with a blank expression. “I don’t believe in ghost stories. Especially ones that are made up by middle schoolers. You know they’re just messing with people. Probably to get poor kids to a place where no adults could see to throw rocks at them or something.”

Mary sighs and leans against the lockers. “You’re right. But like, let me know if you see any ghosts or something.”

“Yeah sure,” Julie says sarcastically, not believing the latest rumor. Ever since that kid came back from the dead, it’s a constant thing. Apparently, there were a few other unexplained disappearances and deaths during the same week. It all started a giant conspiracy that something was wrong with Hawkins. Something bad.

Obviously, there was something sort of wrong. A kid did go missing, and a few other people died. This is a small town, things like this just don’t happen. At least not often. But when they pulled that kids body out of the lake and then he showed up in person, alive, a few days later. That made this more unique than the run of the mill kidnapping or murder. It made it a ghost story.

Julie felt bad for the kid, she saw him getting picked on just for being alive. Not his fault that he got kidnapped, or that the sick fuck who did it decided to fake his death. He didn’t deserve to be branded just because he lived. But something was off with Hawkins, and everyone knew it. Or they were fine living in their own delusions that this small town is just like every other one in America. Perfect, conservative, and peaceful. Even if it was anything but.

When Julie gets home, she stares at the woods through her bedroom window, rolling her eyes when she thinks for a second that maybe she should go in and see what the rumor was about. It’s stupid really. It’s all just fake. She’s not gullible like that.

But then just as she turns away, there’s a small flash of something moving in the woods. Against her better judgment, she believes in the rumor mill just a little bit. The figure comes back, just a little beyond the tree line. What looks like a girl Julie’s age, wearing a ratty old dress and a coat too big for her.

Eyes catch Julie’s through the window and the girl runs away. Looking all too real to be ghost. Juile grabs her coat from the front door as she runs around the trailer, right to the tree line to see if she can find the girl.

“Hello,” she yells into the woods. “Is someone there?”

She feels stupid, of course there wasn’t anyone there. The echo of her own call being the only response signifying that. But for a second it all seemed so real. She didn’t seem like a ghost.

Something was wrong with Hawkins, and Julie knew that. Maybe one day she’ll figure it all out.

. . .

Present Day, December 1986

Steve pulls himself awake, drenched in a cold sweat and heart pounding. Lungs heaving with quick, short breaths as his body stays in its panic. Eyes darting around the room to find something, anything to show him that it was fake. That it wasn’t real.

The nightmare still wrapped around his chest, right where the scars litter his torso, making his breaths feel constricted. Making his body feel tense. There’s nothing here to loosen it. Nothing to break him free. Nothing to show him that this isn’t real.

Phone. Steve can use the phone. That works wherever he is, here or there. It might not work well, but it will work just enough. He grabs it as the tears still fall down his face. Dialing the only number that he can think of. The only one that might break him out of his spell.

Because he just needs to know their alive. That he did save them in this universe, instead of leaving them to die. That they were still here.

The phone rings for what feels like an eternity. Only echoing the anxiety running through his veins. Each second without someone on the other line only proving to him that they are really dead.

“Hello,” Eddie’s groggy voice comes through the line.

“Eddie,” Steve says with breaks in his voice. Any other words getting stuck in his throat.

There is rustling over the line before Eddie talks again. “I’m coming over. When I hang up, call Robin so you have someone to talk to, ok. You remember her number?”

“Yeah, yeah. I know her number.” It’s a stupid question to ask in any other circumstance. But reality is shifting an uncertain right now, numbers aren’t the most important to think about.

“Good. I’ll be there in ten. I’m here Steve, I’m alive, you’re alive.”

Steve takes a few long, heavy breaths. “You’re alive,” he chokes. “I’m alive.”

“There you go, sweetheart. I’ll see you soon.”

The line goes dead, and Steve’s heart can’t help but pick up again. He stares at the numbers on the phone, typing in each digit of Robin’s number carefully. When the line rings again, he’s stuck in the same loop of waiting. The same damn loop of waiting.

“Buckley house,” Robin’s says half asleep.

“Rob,” is all Steve can get out again.

“Steve.” Her voice awakens with concern. “How bad is it, do I need to come over?”

Steve shakes his head, feeling how tense his muscles still are. “No, no. Eddie’s coming over. Said to call you while I waited for him.”

“Well don’t give him the credit, I made the system. How bad?” she asks again.

“There’s nothing here to tell me this isn’t real.” His eyes shoot around the room again, finding nothing that reminds him of his home.

“Shit,” Robin whispers. “I thought this might happen. But it’s ok. It’s not real, Steve. Your mind is playing tricks on you. You’re in real Hawkins, in your bedroom. Julie’s right across the hall, and Eddie’s on his way. And I’m right here. Not physically, but that doesn’t matter. Do you understand?”

Her words slowly work their way into his head. Not enough to fully calm him down, but something to start slowing down the beating of his heart. “Yes.”

“Ok, good. Do you want me to keep talking?”

“Yes.”

Robin fills the silence of his room, his house, with a bunch of mundane nonsense. Mixed in with affirmations that he’s ok. But anything to get his mind away from where it is. To break the cycle of thoughts that keep replaying in his mind. Slowly his breath starts to calm, but his guard it still up. He doesn’t know what can pop out and get him in the dark. Doesn’t know what dangers are still there.

He hears the front doorknob rattle before it opens and shuts. Hears the soft footsteps up the stairs. The shadow of Eddie as he enters Steve’s room and closes the door behind him. Steve crumbles into him as he sits on the bed, letting Eddie take over.

Eddie carefully takes the phone from Steve’s hands, pulling away his fingers from where they’re holding it in a death grip. “Hey, Rob. I’m here now. Yeah, I got him. I’ll call you when he falls back asleep. Yeah, talk to you soon. Thank you, bye.” He awkwardly reaches over Steve to hang the phone back on the receiver.

Pulling Steve so he’s resting on Eddie’s chest, right over his heartbeat, he starts the routine. Calming words, naming what’s in the room that’s different. Repeating over and over again that he’s alive. That Steve’s alive. How they’re safe in right side up Hawkins, not the upside down. Slowly but surely bringing Steve back from his nightmares, back from his fears. Grounding him in reality.

The tightness in his chest slowly relieves and the beating of his heart slows to match Eddie’s. With every breath Eddie takes, Steve takes one, holding it as Eddie holds it until exhaling. Focusing on the sensations in Eddie running his fingers through Steve’s hair, rubbing a hand in circles on his back. His mind slows, and everything finally relaxes.

“Thank you,” Steve finally says.

Edde presses a kiss to the top of his head. “Anytime. Do you want to talk about it?”

“It wasn’t even that it was bad. It was normal. There was just nothing to bring me out of it.” Normally he could see the plaid on his walls, trace the lines with his eyes around the room to see the differences. To see that there weren’t vines. But they were gone.

The plaid was gone.

Steve sits up again, the panic he was just relieved from finding its way back under his skin. Eyes darting around the room to the plain walls, everything changed. He changed it. Steve changed it. Without permission. Just because he wanted to.

“Steve, what’s wrong?”

What are his parents going to do when they come home to see this? What punishment is he going to face? What can he still face? He’s an adult now, not a child. There’s not much that they can do. But that didn’t matter. It never mattered.

“The walls. I changed the walls.”

Maybe they’ll ship him off to some college that they paid his way into. Maybe they’ll force him to work for his dad’s company.

Maybe they’ll finally kick him out.

“Yeah, we painted them two weeks ago.”

He can’t afford to get kicked out. Not now. Not when Julie depends on him, depends on him for having this house. He can’t lose her too. Not when he’s done so much to keep her in his life. In his home. What is going to happen to her if he no longer has a home for her to live in?

“I wasn’t supposed to change them. Not without permission.”

His heartbeat pounds in his ears again. Mind reversing back into the memories of his childhood. Hearing how the drawings were ripped off the walls. Shame gaping a hole in his chest, remembering his mother’s scolding. Fear bubbling underneath his skin that was long forgotten or learned to ignore.

A warm hand envelopes his, Steve almost flinching away. But it warms his cool hands, slowly bringing him out of his head. Slowly, his eyes blink awake, and his body relaxes. The adrenaline retreats and his ears stop ringing. He can hear again.

“Steve, you’re ok. Nothing’s going to happen to you,” Eddie’s voice registers. The soft tones calming Steve more and more.

The room widens from where it was closing around him. His breath deepens. In and out. In and out. His eyes close, centering himself again.

“Not while I’m here, while Robin’s here. We’re not going to let them hurt you again.”

Steve’s eyes flicker open, looking around and naming what he sees. The curtain. The desk. The picture frame on the desk. The open closet door. The dresser. The shirt hanging out of the dresser. The walls. The walls that he painted. The walls that he now loved.

Squeezing Eddie’s hand, he turns away from where he was looking, finding the comfort in Eddie’s eyes. Feeling so lucky that he can look into them and feel this way. To feel this loved. How sad he was in a time where no one ever looked at him like this. How lonely he was then, and how full he feels now.

Eddie takes his free hand and runs it along the side of Steve’s neck, thumb tracing his jawline. Leaning in to press their foreheads together, taking a deep breath that Steve mirrors. Steve’s hand finds Eddie’s side, fingers playing with the hem of his shirt. They sit there for a long time as the moon light streams in through the open curtain. All that was once wrong feeling right again.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Eddie whispers into the silence.

Steve takes a deep breath, running the hem of Eddie’s shirt between his fingers. “There was a day when I was in elementary school. I don’t remember what grade exactly, but I had brought home an art project that I loved. I wanted to hang it in my bedroom, so I got the tape and did it myself. My parents were actually home then, and my mom came into my room. She saw the picture, and ripped it off the wall, ruining it. Only things she approved were supposed to decorate the house.”

Eddie presses his lips into a thin line, no doubt keeping a million thoughts he really wants to say in his head. Steve would let him though. He was never able to truly say what his parents were like, not really. Typical asshole parent talk was normal for teenagers, but this was a different level that was almost unspoken. It was kept a secret, but Steve didn’t like secrets anymore.

But instead of saying anything, Eddie pulls Steve into a hug, cradling his head against his chest. Holding him in a way that no one ever did, Steve letting himself just melt into it.

“I hate your parents,” Eddie says with a kiss to the top of Steve’s head.

“I hate them too,” he whispers into Eddie’s chest. “I hate them so much.”

. . .

Julie walks over to her lunch table, seeing Max and Jane returned to their spots. They’ve been eating with the boys the last few days, and it was pretty clear the reason was because of her. She yelled at them after all. Well, not physically yelled, but definitely snapped. She was mean,  meant to be mean.

It was out of a place of hurt, she knew. Last week was rough, to say the least, and that day especially. Everything around her felt like an attack, when really it was just her looking for things to fire at. And so, she shot at the only two friends she’s had since the ninth grade.

Now it was her time to apologize.

“Hey,” she said while placing her lunch down on the table. Pulling out food, stomach grumbling at its contents. Actually hungry for once, wanting to eat.

“Hi,” Jane said with a smile, but she always did that.

Max nods in her direction, but says nothing, going back to eating her food. Julie takes a bite of her sandwich, letting the silence ruminate around them. Uncomfortable silence. One that means there’s something that’s been left unsaid.

After a few minutes, she’s done replaying what she wants to say in her head. Can’t help but feel like it’s not enough, but it’s something. Julie’s done a lot of something in the past few months, nothing ever feeling real or right enough. Life feeling just a little less full than it once was, because it was true. But as she finishes a normal sized sandwich for the first time in weeks, and still feels hungry enough to eat a small bag of chips and an apple, something might just be right enough.

Right enough to take a few steps forward before taking a step back again. Progress was progress, but it wasn’t linear. At least according to the pamphlet that she was given in the first few days of her mother’s death. Then, nothing felt like it could have gotten better. That the first big hill of progress could never be reached. And while she still doesn’t think that it has, there are little bumps along her path that shouldn’t go unnoticed. Days where the world feels lighter, and the sun in a little brighter.

But before she can even say anything to make up for the lows of last week, Max starts talking.

“Look, I’m sorry for bringing up your mom a few days ago. You’ve gone through a lot, and it wasn’t really our place to, so I’m sorry. We can forget about it and just go back to normal.”

Julie is taken aback, taking a second to think of a response and scrapping whatever she was preparing before. “I was actually going to apologize for snapping at you.”

“You were going to apologize to us for that,” Max says, appalled.

“I mean, yeah,” Julie shrugs. “You guys were just trying to help, you didn’t deserve me being mean just because I was having a bad day.”

Max sits back in her wheelchair, crossing her arms and looking at Julie with her clouded eyes. She opens her mouth to say something, but Jane cuts her off.

“I do not think you need to apologize to us. When I thought my dad had died, it was a lot. And I was angry. Max was angry when Billy died, too. We understand. We are just sorry that we brought it up at a bad time.” She stares at the cookie in her hands, breaking it apart in small pieces as she talks.

“I didn’t know that your dad died,” Julie says softly, not quite sure what else to say.

Jane presses her lips together. “He didn’t really die, I just thought he did. You know Chief Hopper, how he disappeared for almost a year, and everyone thought he was dead. He is my father.”

“I’m sorry, that must have sucked.”

“When Billy died, it was different,” Max says quietly. “He made my life a living hell. I wasn’t sad that he died, really, I was sad that he died while we still hated each other. I wondered what it would have been like if we had become friend, real siblings. He saved my life that night of the fire, and I couldn’t help but feel guilty that I didn’t try to save him back.”

A tear rolls down her cheek, Max quickly brushing it away. Jane grabs Max’s hand and gives it a squeeze. Two friends who have gone through more loss that Julie realizes. Pain that mirrored hers in a way. Pain that she understood, like they understood hers. And while Max lost a brother that she hated, and Jane got her father back, that didn’t diminish the grief that they felt.

“What I’m trying to say,” Max continues, “is that we know what you’re going through. Like actually know. Even if it is different. So, while we’re not going to force you to, you can talk to us about this.”

Maybe Julie did want to start talking about it. More, at least. With someone other than Steve, even though that helped a lot. Talk with people who knew what it was like to lose family, to lose people they loved. Julie finally felt ready to talk about it.

“My mom died in the beginning of October. Car crash. I was in foster care until three weeks ago when I moved in with Steve.”

While the pain is still there, still pinches at her heart like it always does, a sort of relief is paired with it. Like someone else knows, someone else that Julie trusts. Another person she doesn’t have to fake it around. The weight on her chest lifts just gently, giving her some relief.

“I am sorry,” Jane says.

“Me too.”

“I think the worst part about it is that I don’t even know what caused it. She was sober, and it was October so there wasn’t any ice. The police think there was something in the road that caused her to swerve. And a part of me doesn’t want to know, but the rest of me does.”

Jane reaches across the table and places her hand on top of Julie’s. Comforting her with a gentle look. “I know.”

For the first time, Julie isn’t angry at someone saying that they know. She isn’t angry, and she isn’t crying. She let people in because she wanted to, because they would know.

And it felt good.

. . .

Steve is sitting in the manager’s office making the next round of schedules. Fitting everyone in, scheduling people for more days than he should normally because they still haven’t filled his old position yet. It’s just been sitting idle with no one to take it.

He thought about asking if Julie wanted it, she had said that she wanted to get a part time job sometime in the future. But she’s going through enough right now to get a job on top of it. And she doesn’t need one right now, he still has access to his dad’s card so as long as it’s not something super suspicious, it’s fine. That’s the thing though, eventually he won’t have access to it.

And while he always knew that and has been saving up for that day for a while, it’s still burning a hole in his mind. Especially now. Especially when he has to care for someone other than himself. If it were just himself, he could move into a shitty one-bedroom apartment no problem and be fine. But with Julie, he needs at least two rooms and a nice enough place to keep his custody.

That’s not a bad thing, not for him. He’d do anything to keep custody of Julie, that much he knows. It will just take a little bit more work. And a large chunk of money that he has saved.

Robin knocks on his door, letting herself in. “You’re going to hate me.”

“I can’t change your shifts again just because you’re my friend,” he grumbles without looking up from the desk.

“I prefer the term platonic soul mate, for one,” Robin crosses her arms. “And two, why?”

Steve sighs, turning the chair to look at her. “Because it’s deliberate favoritism and I could get fired for it. I can’t lose this job, Rob, you know that.”

“Fine. Oh, wait hold on.” Robin runs into the employee lounge and comes back with a sheet of paper. “I do actually have to change my availability. I got my class schedule from the community college yesterday.”

Steve takes it and places it in his to do pile. “Thanks.”

The phone on his desk rings.

“Family Video, Steve speaking.”

“Hey, it’s Julie. Nothing bad, I swear. I was just wondering if I could go over to Max’s after school.”

Steve smiles a little to himself. “Yeah, yeah that’s fine. Eddie should have room in his van to take you, I can call him if you want though.”

“Max is on the phone with him now. We’re good.”

“Good, call me when you want me to pick you up, ok.”

“Ok, thanks.”

“It’s no problem, I’m glad you guys are getting along. I’ll see you later then, ok. Bye.” Steve turns to Robin with a proud face.

“Julie, I’m guessing.”

He nods. “She’s going over to Max’s house after school.”

Robin’s face lights up. “Oh my god, that’s great. I knew they were like school friends but not like friend friends.”

“Me either. I’m glad though. It’s good for her to talk to more people her age.”

“You’re one to talk,” Robin picks up a folder and hits him gently on the head with it. “When I met you all of your friends were middle schoolers. But she’s doing better?”

“Better’s a good word for it.”

Truth was, she is doing better. Last week was rough, but she took the weekend to take care of herself. Talked to him more about it, which he liked. He even saw her doing some work on the kitchen table instead in her room. Which isn’t a lot, but she wasn’t closing herself in one place anymore.

It was starting to feel like her home too. Because it was, he knew that. But she was starting to believe it, let it be her home. Her things started to scatter themselves around the house. Her shoes at the front door, hair ties across all the surfaces, her cassettes on the table. Textbooks and regular books, a small pile of VHS tapes in front of the tv. Everything made it her home, their home.

Home finally started to feel like Steve thought it should always supposed to feel like. Like there was a family that lived within the walls, a warm energy pulling you in instead of a cold void. Love actually being there. He started to like going home at the end of the day, because he knew he wouldn’t be alone anymore.

“There’s still going to be days that are hard, next week probably, but she started talking to me about it, so that’s good.”

Robin smiles. “Good.”

She pushes off the desk and heads back out to the store, leaving Steve to get back to his work.

. . .

“Sorry my house is a bit of a mess, we’re still getting used to living here,” Max says as she rolls into her small house. “We can go to my room, it’s down the hall.”

There is a lit lamp right in front of the turn for the hallway, Max stopping right past it before turning and heading down the hall. She turns into her room, another lamp next to the doorway. Julie follows her, Jane next to her.

“I can still see light, that’s why there’s so many lamps. It can sometimes be really annoying, but it helps me move around the house without help.” Max explains.

Jane walks over to Max’s bed, holding out her hand for Max to grab, stabilizing her as she lifts herself out of the chair and onto her bed.

“You can put your stuff down anywhere,” Max says after situating herself on her bed. Jane places her bag at the foot of the bed, Jane placing hers next to it. She sits down next to Jane on the bed, just waiting.

It’s been a while since she’s hung out with friends before. Mary had moved away in the ninth grade, and while they tried to keep in touch, it didn’t work. Different time zones suck when it comes to trying to keep friends, and letters are nice, but not like the real thing. And there was never really anyone after that. So, Julie doesn’t really know what to say.

“So,” Jane starts, shifting herself to lean against the wall. “How is living with Steve?”

“Pretty good. Different then what I’m used to, but not bad.”

“That’s good,” she smiles.

“Which one of the guest rooms did you take,” Max asks.

Julie laughs. “What used to be the pink flower room. But we painted over it a few weeks ago. It was so gross.”

Max widens her eyes and moves her head to look at El, having the same expression, Jane reaches over and squeezes Max’s hand. “Yeah, I remember is being pretty gross when I stayed over there a few times. He let you paint over the wallpaper?”

“Yeah,” Julie nods. “We painted his room too.”

“His room too?” Max questions, taking a second to think to herself. “And he was ok with it?”

Ok wouldn’t be the right word. Grew to like the idea is more of what really happened. Or at least what she thought.

“Not at first, but then he was.”

She knew that it had to do with the way his parents were about the house. How controlling they were over what it was decorated with. But she didn’t think they knew. He didn’t seem to share it with people other than Robin and Eddie, and just now starting to with her. She assumed that he wouldn’t share that with the kids. With how reluctant he was about sharing it with her, it would make sense.

In the time she got to know Steve, she noticed a pattern. Taking care of other people before taking care of himself. Letting her paint her room and only deciding to paint his when Julie said something. Taking Robin’s shift even though he has a headache. Always making her food before his. Having odd hours at work to pick up or drop people off at school.

While there was nothing wrong with some of those things, it made her think how long he would go to make other people happy. Especially with his parents. Their expectations of him were unrealistic, unattainable. At least from she knew. How long has he killed himself to appease someone who didn’t care? How much longer would he have done it if she didn’t come along and block the path he was so used to walking on?

Jane reaches over and grabs Max’s hand, drawing a shape on her hand. Talking to her without speaking, like Steve and Robin sometimes do with their eyes. Max making a facial expression that Julie can’t read, but Jane can. Max takes a deep breath, leaning back on her headboard.

“We’re not supposed to tell you this, because it’s not our place to tell you. And we’re still not going to say a lot, but it feels wrong for you to not know,” Max starts.

Jane nods along, agree with Max. “We want you to know something about Steve that he would not tell you. He does not want you to worry about it.”

“We said we know Steve because he used to look after us sometimes, and that’s true, but it’s a bit more complicated. You know the fire, and the earthquake that happened in the past two years.”

Julie nods her head, not quite sure where this conversation is going. “Yeah.”

Max takes another breath before continuing. “We can’t tell you everything, but the short of it is that we were all there those days. At the mall during the fire, and right where the earthquake started. And because of that, we all get pretty bad nightmares.”

“Especially Steve,” Jane adds. “I remember before I moved to California, I was scared that a new home would affect my nightmares. Make them worse. He told me what helps him when he has a bad nightmare. He said it was the plaid wallpaper, it reminds him that he is at home, and not wherever his brain told him he was.”

Julie’s mouth opens to speak, but the words get caught in her throat. She remembers a few nights ago, she woke up in the middle of the night and heard someone come through the house. Robin and Eddie had keys, she knew that, so she peaked out her door to see who it was, finding Eddie going into Steve’s room. It was weird, but the two of them were acting weird when Julie was around anyway. She thought it was because of that, not because of this.

Was Steve panicking across the hall from her and she didn’t even notice. Did he think this would happen when she suggested he paint his room too? Did he go along with it just because she said to, or did he really want it?

She thought she was helping him. Helping him break the reigns of control his parents trained him into. But she actually just ended up hurting him in the end. And he didn’t even say anything.

“It’s not your fault you didn’t know,” Max says, somehow reading Julie’s mind. “He would never had told you this. There’s so much he doesn’t even tell us. Especially about his parents.”

“Bad people,” Jane whispers.

Max nods. “Yeah, they’re dick heads. But he’ll never say it outright. He’ll say that their shit, and that his dad’s an asshole, but just like any other kid. It’s when he slips up and tells you something bad that you really see how his parents really are.”

“He’s told me,” Julie says quietly. “A few times, never a lot. Just that his parents were never around, and he was never allowed to change his room. That he doesn’t see his parents as family anymore.”

It’s heartbreaking when she says it out loud. Realizing then how similar they really are. Two kids that lost their parents. Her through death, and his by choice. Somehow his feels sadder than hers, because he had to make the choice to not view them as family anymore. Julie didn’t choose to lose her mom, Steve chose to lose his parents. Never really having them in the first place.

“That’s more than he ever told us,” Max says, some unrecognizable feeling lacing her words. “Not even Dustin and they’re the closest out of all of us. The kids anyway.”

“We are glad that he has someone around all the time now. That house was empty. Cold”

Julie knows what she means, feeling the emptiness crowd around her when Steve isn’t home. How something so large can feel claustrophobic when there’s no sign of life there.

“I am too,” Julie says.

When she and Steve were first getting to know each other, she remembers feeling helpless that she needed someone she barely even knew. She had nothing, and he was the only thing that she had left. It started to feel like Steve needed her too, that she was giving him something that he always wanted.

Now she knows that the feeling was true. Steve needed her as much as she needed him. A family because theirs wasn’t around anymore. The sad fact of both of their existences. And it’s heartbreaking.

. . .

“You want to come over for dinner?” Steve asks as his and Robin’s shift ends.

“Sure.”

The drive is silent, Steve’s thoughts mulling about in his mind. He’s been thinking for the past few days, about everything. About his parents, and his childhood. The list of wrongdoings in the folder Sarah gave him sitting on his desk. Resting open, with a pile of paperwork next to them. The question of what he’s going to do pressing down on his chest.

“Steve,” Robin breaks him out of his thoughts. “Are you ok?”

Steve takes a deep breath, feeling anything but ok. “Can you ask me that again in a few minutes?”

Out of the corner of his eye he can see her face fill with concern. She reaches out and grabs his arm, comforting him in a way that so few people can. Filling the void of his childhood where touch was foreign, only making him want to break down right here and now.

“Of course.”

When his house appears past the bend, clouds start to fill him mind. Fill his eyes. As he pulls up the driveway, he can feel the dread weigh down him limbs. The knowledge of what he wants to share already weighing on him.

Robin rushes to his side, lacing her fingers with his and taking on some of the weight. The first person that ever made him feel like family only proving more why he has to do this. Why the dam needs to finally break.

Silently, he leads her up to his room, pointing to the files on his desk before sitting on the ground. Knees propped up and elbows resting on them, back leaning on his bed. Watching as Robin’s eyes bug out as she reads, flipping through lists of evidence, and all the paperwork to prove it. Everything he never had the ability to say all in once place, telling him that he could fight and win.

He could tell the world that he was neglected as a child, he just needs someone to hold his hand during the process.

“Steve,” Robin softly says, breaking the silence of the room. “There was so much more than I knew.”

All he can do is nod his head, drawing his knees closer to his chest and wrapping his arms around them.

No one ever held his hand when he was young except when he was learning to walk. After that, it was too much. The nannies were told to never let it happen, and his parents never did either.

There was a day he went on some errands with his mom. A large dog was walking towards them, and as a kid there’s nothing scarier that a large dog. Especially when they are never around any pets. So, Steve reached up and tried to grab his mom’s hand, but he was swatted away. He was left to face the dog alone.

Left to face the world alone.

Until the kids, and until Robin. Until Nancy and him became better friends, and Eddie came along. Until Hopper started checking in more and Joyce and Claudia invited him over for dinners. Until Julie showed up on his doorstep and gave him a chance to build the family he was deprived of as a kid.

Steve was truly alone until the age of eighteen, when he was what the world considers an adult. But right now, he’s still the child that cried when his parents left the day before his tenth birthday. The kid that cried and no one came to scare away the monsters under his bed. The kid that is still here waiting for them to come home.

Robin sits next to him, pressing her side close to him, letting him know that he’s not alone. He’s not alone anymore. She says nothing, waiting for him to speak. For the words to get dislodged from his throat where they’ve been trapped for years. Waiting to be spoken into reality.

“The last inspection I had with Julie’s social worker, Sarah,” Steve starts, choking on his words. Vision blurry. “She said that with what she knew, I could sue my parents for neglect and probably win.”

“She got all of that from one conversation with you?” Robin’s voice is soft, but heavy. Comforting in a way without taking away from the conversation.

He shakes his head. “The first page is what she had, the rest is what I added.”

“And all of those other papers?”

“Evidence of paying nannies, their trips, hotel stays. Everything to show that they weren’t here.”

Robin leans her head on his shoulder, wrapping one of her arms around his. “Have you decided what you want to do?”

“Can’t you just make it for me,” Steve breaks.

Her eyes fill with tears, blinking them away so she can be the strong one instead of him. But the heartbreak is visible on her face. The same heartbreak that has been living in his chest for years.

How could the people who created him make him feel like this? How could the people who were supposed to love him leave him all alone?

“As much as I want to, I can’t. If it were up to me, your parents would be dead in a ditch, and I’d steal you away and lock you in a room so I could love you like they never could forever. But this, this has to come from you Steve.”

Of course it did. He knew it did. But it shouldn’t even had been a question in the first place. Parents were supposed to love their kids. What did he do to make them not love him?

Before a few months ago, he would have let this go. Just went about his life knowing that he was never going to talk to his parents again and move on. It would hurt, but no more than it did before. Now, it’s like the hurt has so many more layers, and it’s all because of Julie.

Julie showed him, in a way, how easy it was to stay. How easy it was to try. Steve might not be her parent, but he’s taking care of her like one. Providing her a home, with food, with safety. Basic necessities but it’s so much more. A shoulder to lean on when she cries, conversations after school, saying goodnight before going to sleep. Laughs, and smiles. Bad days and good days. He’s here, and so is she. And it’s so fucking goddamn easy.

He couldn’t imagine having a life where he looked her in the face and decided that it would be a good idea to leave for two years. To say any of the things that his parents said to him. Because she’s not a disappointment, or a failure. He’s proud of her for just existing, and it wasn’t hard.

Why was it so hard for his parents to love him? To be proud of him for just existing. It wasn’t easy. Steve’s faced death in the face four times now, and each time left him battered and bruised more than any person should. Scars litter his body and mind, but he’s alive. But just because he didn’t get into college, because he works a retail nine to five, he’s a disappointment. He’s a failure just because he’s Steve.

Not Steven Harrington, Richard Harrington’s son. Just Steve.

Steve was finally enough for himself, so why wasn’t it enough for them?

“It hit me the other day, when I was talking to Julie about her mom. She’s the age I was when my parents officially left for good.” He swallows a lump in his throat, trying to just get these words out. Tears escaping from his eyes and rolling down his cheeks. “I look at her and think that I could never leave her. That I would always want to be a part of her life. How could my parents look at me then and think that they didn’t want to be around me anymore?”

He takes a shaky breath. “I was just a kid,” he cries. “How do you leave a kid like that?”

Robin lets out a shaky exhale, tears forming in her eyes fast than she can blink them away. Crying for Steve in a way that he could never really cry for himself. Having the same questions that he is now, and coming up with the same blank answers. There’s no excuse, and he knows it.

“I’m so sorry,” is all she can say through her tears. “I’m so sorry that you had to go through this.”

When he opens his mouth, all that escapes is a heavy sob. Robin pulls him into a hug, holding him as he breaks. Crying for his childhood that never happened, and for the teenage years that were lost. For the adult that is mourning the time that never was. For the experiences that never happened. The love that was never there.

The family that wasn’t provided and he had to build himself.

The nights where he cried out for someone that never came.

The times where he reached out and was just pushed away.

The bruises he had to nurse himself because he had no one to come home to.

The hospital stays where no one sat at his bedside.

The parties that he threw for attention that was never given, only to make him emptier in the end.

The broken feeling that came to him night after night, questioning why no body wanted him.

Steve cries over everything.

Time moves at a pace that he can’t figure out. He feels stuck in a loop or rushed through an afternoon at the same time. When the pool of his tears finally empties, and his throat and mouth is dry, he just sits there in Robin’s embrace. And she lets him. Comforting him in a way that he always wanted to be, the thought only setting him spiraling again.

But throughout it all, she holds him. Rubs a hand up and down his back while the other arm holds him steady in place. Keeping him upright when all he wants to do is crumble. If he does, she’ll be there to pick back up his pieces and reassemble them. Keep him together as he falls apart.

This is what familial love is supposed to be like. This is what he’s always wanted. And what he wants to give to other people someday. What he hopes he already is.

“I want to do it,” he finally says. “I want them to know how much they hurt me.”

“We’ll bring them hell.”

We’ll, because Steve isn’t alone anymore. He doesn’t have to traverse life by himself anymore. Not even this. It might be his fight, but not one he fights alone. Not anymore, and not ever again.

. . .

Julie enters the house, Jane’s brother dropping her off, so she didn’t have to call Steve to pick her up. She doesn’t know what to do about the conversation she had with Max and Jane earlier, or if there is anything that she should. All she does know is that Steve might be hurting in his own way, and she wanted to be there for him as much as he is for her.

She finds him in the kitchen, putting away some food into the fridge.

“Hey,” he says, a bit shocked. “Wasn’t expecting you. How was Max’s?”

“Yeah sorry, Jane’s brother Jonathan gave me a ride home, I forgot to call to tell you. But good, it was nice.”

Steve smiles. “Good, that’s good. I’m glad you’re getting to know them. They’re good kids.”

“Yeah.” She’s trying think of what to say without bringing it up. Doesn’t want to start a whole thing, but it feels wrong to say nothing. Especially with what she knows.

“Did you eat, there’s some leftovers from what I made for dinner. I can heat them up for you, if you want.”

“Thank you,” Julie says, the words feeling right in her mouth. “Not for the food, but for everything. I know that this hasn’t been easy for you either. So, thank you.”

Steve looks at her with a soft expression on his face. As if those words meant something more to him than just a simple thank you. “You’re welcome,” he says. “I’d do it again if I had to.”

Julie smiles, walking up to give him a hug. Home finally feeling like a home again. Two siblings, that might have just met a few months ago but it didn’t feel like that anymore. They were family. Real family.

Part 11

Tag list(let me know if you want to be added or removed): @homoerotictangerine, @mugloversonly, @thesuninyaface, @imyelenasexual, @anaibis, @ilovecupcakesandtea, @brainsteddielyrotted, @jackiemonroe5512, @eddie-munsons-missing-nipple, @goodolefashionedloverboi, @cinnamon-mushroomabomination, @lolawonsstuff, @writingandmushroomdragons, @stevesbipanic, @sierra-violet, @steddie-as-they-go, @dauntlessdiva, @mousedetective, @the-daydreamer-in-the-corner, @zombiethingy, @connected-dots-st-reblogger, @that-agender-from-pluto, @allyricas, @cheddartreets, @devondespresso, @crypticcorvidinacottage, @queenie-ofthe-void @chronicpainstevetruther, @cheddartreets, @theupsidedownrealestateagent, @acidbubblegummie, @sirsnacksalot, @l0st-strawberry, @helpimstuckposting, @strawberry-starss, @freddykicksasses, @italianwhore1, @i-threw-my-name-out-the-window, @rageagainsttheapathy, @nuggies4life, @ape31, @whimsicalwitchm, @chrissycunninghamfanblog, @michellegilligan, @hippielittlemetalhead, @bridget-malfoy-stilinski-hale, @jaytriesstuff, @confused-stripes, @faeb1tch42069, @marklee-blackmore, @hel-spawn, @genderless-spoon, @mamafaithful, @estrellami-1, @starryeyedpoet17 @i-amthepizzaman, @lilpomelito @melonmochi

[sarcastic-nerd]

Buck: What are you gonna do about it?

Eddie: Love you anyway

[apdreadful]

Even though I understand that the actor moved, and there weren’t a lot of places they could drive this story, I really think this storyline with Christopher being such a little asshole is a dud.

I struggle A LOT with believing that after everything Eddie has done. That Chris would abandon him when clearly Eddie is suffering. And that he would be this shitty to his dad.

Yes I get he’s a teenager, I am raising one right now, so I know what they’re like in all their glory and destruction. . And I understand that Eddie made some bad choices. But Christopher and Eddie were tight tight.

I just don’t see him treating his father this way..for this long.

[lazer-meme]

coffee talk by broadside is so steddie after the events of s4 being practically together (but not officially together because they haven’t gotten their shit together yet) because they cope and heal together

like look at some of the lyrics

it’s exactly the vibe of them spending nights together to help with nightmares and them getting high together yk

[t4tstarvingdog]

read the most flummoxing fic

[wheremermaidsdwell]

worried i've made mrs cunningham TOO awful in What you Want i originally eased off her in the beginning of the fic where chrissy is like sneaking around since there wasn't a reason for her to be particularlly cruel but now she knows chrissy is dating eddie and I DON'T KNOW HOW TO MAKE HER NOT THE LITERAL WORST

also 99k. wanna hit 100k today so i hit it before year end

[semperama]

The thing that really gets me about "I think it might have been better for him if I was the one who got shot," is like........yeah??? I mean, obviously it would be better for a child if their parent was spared????? That's just a given, why are we even talking about it.

Like, Buck is actually totally and completely rational in saying, "I don't matter as much as you do, because you're Chris's dad." He's not being stupid in that moment. He's stating something that should be obvious. To Eddie. To the audience. To everyone.

But then the reaction Eddie has is soooooooo "what the actual fuck are you talking about" that you realize, oh, that's not how the narrative wants you to see it at all. Eddie reacts the exact same way you'd expect him to react if it was Shannon sitting there saying it would be better if it was her. He reacts the exact same way you'd expect him to react if he and Buck were married and Buck has adopted Chris years ago. He reacts like they are both equally important figures in Chris's life, and it's wrong to argue about who should survive.

Buck takes this very understandable survivor's guilt to Eddie like, "I feel awful that you can't be there for your son, and he's stuck with me instead," and in a moment where most single parents would simply be freaking out about how close they came to leaving their child an orphan, Eddie's response is instead, "Excuse you? That's our son. And he needs you too."

HELLO?? WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE? GET THEM OUT ALREADY.

[sidekick-hero]

“Hey, have you seen Harrington? Guy’s totally wasted. Can't even stand. Tried to get up, fell down like a goddamn turtle. Garrison's over there throwing chips at him. It’s hysterical, you gotta check this out, man.”

The upside to being the guy everyone calls ‘the Freak’—the guy no one wants to talk to unless they’re looking to buy—is that Eddie can disappear whenever he wants. And tonight, he’s been in full stealth mode, almost ghost-like in the way he drifts through the shadows of this overcrowded house party. When he’s not standing on lunch tables at school, giving speeches, or taunting the assholes who think they run the place, Eddie finds that people tend to forget he’s even there.

Which makes it real easy to hear all kinds of things he probably shouldn’t. Not that Carver's announcement is any kind of secret, not with the way he’s broadcasting it to the entire room. Ever since Harrington lost his King Steve status, the rest of the jock squad has been scrambling to claw their way to the top. It’s desperate. Pathetic, really, if you ask him. But no one’s ever asking Eddie for his opinion.

He should get out of here. Most of his stash is gone, and it’s getting late. There’s leftover mac and cheese in the fridge with his name on it, and if he bolts now, he might just catch the midnight rerun of The Thing.

Eddie tries to ignore the mental image of Harrington—Steve, Steve—sprawled out on that grimy carpet, covered in crumbs and dirt, drenched in stale beer. He must feel defenseless. The kind of defenseless that Eddie knows too well, the kind that gets you laughed at, or worse. But just because Harrington buys a dime bag off him every week doesn’t mean they’re friends. Even if they’ve had a few surprisingly not-awful conversations. Even if Steve’s actually kind of funny for a rich kid, for a jock.

There’s no reason for Eddie to care about what’s happening to Steve Harrington, just like Steve never cared about him.

So why the hell are his feet carrying him toward the living room instead of the back door? Why is he elbowing people out of the way, pushing through the circle of gawkers around Steve? Why are his hands grabbing Steve by the shoulders, hauling him up, and dragging him out before anyone even knows what’s happening?

And why, for the love of God, is he driving to his trailer with Steve snoring in the passenger seat, instead of dumping the guy at his parents' mansion and going home?

Eddie wishes he knew. But his body’s on autopilot, and he’s watching it all happen like he's outside himself, like he’s not the one doing it.

The trailer park is quiet, too quiet for a Saturday night, but that’s January for you—cold as a witch's tit, and getting colder. The van’s heater barely works, and Eddie can see both their breaths fogging up the air, little puffs of steam in the dark.

Eddie cuts the engine, and the sudden silence fills the van like a held breath. Steve shifts in the seat, muttering something incoherent, his head lolling against the window. For a split second, Eddie considers just leaving him here. Would serve him right, honestly. Let King Steve wake up alone, freezing his ass off in a busted van in a trailer park at the edge of town. But then Steve lets out a soft groan, and Eddie can’t help but roll his eyes.

"You're a real piece of work, Harrington," he mutters under his breath, pushing open the driver's side door.

The cold air hits him like a slap, biting through his jacket and sending a shiver down his spine. He makes his way around to the passenger side, yanking open the door and catching Steve before he can tumble out. The guy's heavier than he looks—dead weight, limp as a rag doll. Eddie grunts, struggling for a grip, and finally manages to sling one of Steve's arms over his shoulder.

"Okay, big boy, up you go," Eddie mutters, half-dragging, half-carrying Steve toward the trailer. Steve's head drops forward, his hair brushing Eddie’s cheek, and he smells like a mix of beer, Steve's usual cologne, and something else—something clean, like laundry detergent or fresh air. It's weirdly comforting, and Eddie has to shake himself out of it.

Inside, the trailer is dim, lit only by the glow of the old TV Eddie left on. He kicks the door shut behind them, maneuvering Steve over to the sagging couch. Steve flops down with a heavy thud, eyes still closed, mouth slightly open. For a second, Eddie just stands there, looking at him, wondering what the hell he’s doing.

Why didn’t he just leave him there at the party? Why did he care?

Maybe it's because Steve looks different like this. Not the smug, popular guy who used to strut down the halls like he owned the place. Not the guy who had everything and then lost it all. Just... some kid, really. Some scared, drunk kid who probably doesn’t know where he fits anymore.

“Alright, Sleeping Beauty,” Eddie mutters, leaning down to untie Steve’s sneakers. “Let’s get you comfortable before you choke on your own puke.”

As he pulls off one shoe, then the other, Steve stirs, his eyelids fluttering. For a moment, his gaze is unfocused, hazy, but then his eyes lock onto Eddie’s, and there’s a flicker of recognition.

“Munson?” Steve’s voice is low, rough from whatever he’s been drinking. “What the hell…?”

“Yeah, it’s me, genius,” Eddie says, trying to sound annoyed but failing to hide the faint smile tugging at his lips. “You got yourself in a bit of a mess tonight, Harrington.”

Steve blinks, slowly piecing things together. “Why’d you bring me here?”

Eddie shrugs, feigning nonchalance. “Seemed like the right thing to do, I guess.”

Steve snorts, like he doesn’t quite believe him. “Right. The Freak playing Good Samaritan. What’s the punchline?”

Eddie’s smile fades. It inexplicably hurts to hear Steve call him that. “There’s no punchline, man. Not everything’s a joke.”

Steve stares at him, as if searching for something in Eddie’s face, something to latch onto. Finally, he just nods, leaning back against the couch, eyes half-closed again. “Thanks,” he mumbles, almost too quiet to hear. “I guess.”

Eddie feels something strange twist in his chest. “Don’t mention it,” he says, a little too quickly, like he’s trying to convince himself as much as Steve. He turns away, grabbing an old blanket from a nearby chair and tossing it over Steve. “You sleep it off. I’ll be in my room.”

But even as he walks away, he can't shake the feeling that something’s shifted tonight, some invisible line crossed. Maybe it’s nothing. Maybe in the morning, Steve will wake up, make a snarky comment, and it’ll all go back to the way it was.

Or maybe, just maybe, it won’t.

[steddiebrainrotramble]

Steve had always been the one left behind. First his parents who as soon as they deemed him capable at ten, had left for longer and longer. They hadn’t been home in almost two years at this point. It had been about two months since they had defeated Vecna.

Then it had been Nancy, calling him bullshit. He believed it now, knew that anything he loved was just that. Bullshit.

Robin had shown him true friendship though. That maybe some of his love was okay, if it was platonic. That was his platonic soulmate, his best friend. He loved her deeply. But he knew she’d move on eventually too. Go to college, find a girlfriend. She wouldn’t need him for long.

And Eddie. Steve knew he was destined for great things. You don’t survive dying and having your heart restarted without some kind of stubbornness. And Steve knew the songs he wrote and his voice. It would only be so long before he got out of this god awful town and onto a stage where people loved him. Because Steve knew what his love did, it pushed people towards better things. Away from him.

He’d begun to really like Eddie. The hangouts, getting high. He was his bi awakening. His first kiss with a man. The person he wished he could love but knew he’d loose so he’d save himself the hurt.

Until the day Eddie showed up at his door, looking hopeful. Excited. And Steve knew this was it. He was leaving him for good.

“We got a record deal! An actual record deal.” Eddie jumped up and wrapped his arms around Steve, spinning him in the doorway. “We’re going to L.A. Steve.”

Steve hugged him back tightly, trying to keep the tears from his voice. “That’s great! I’m really proud of you!”

Eddie pulled away, staring at him intently. “You’re coming too. Can’t do it without you.” He whispered, taking his hand. “Please say you’ll come with me?”

“You can have the world. Why would you want me there?” Steve asked, voice rough from the tears he tried to hide.

“Because I can’t have the world without my sunshine.” Eddie said like it was the simplest thing in the world.

He couldn’t hide the tears anymore.

Steve yanked Eddie close again, burying his tear soaked face in his neck as he cried. Maybe, just maybe, he wasn’t bullshit after all.

[freaksun]

Hi if you are taking requests I’m in a super soft mood.

Would you do something with Eddie not being used to affection? Super touch starved. And when he and reader start dating he is tense when you first show that your love language is physical touch? And slowly. Not to scare him you try to show and convince him he deserves nothing but kindness and loving touches?

hi honey!! always taking requests, i just take forever to answer them haha :)

your boyfriend, eddie munson, had a hard childhood - that was clear.

for one, he grew up with his uncle wayne instead of two parents. you’ve met mr munson, and he’s a truly sweet man, but you’re pretty sure he didn’t plan on raising a child.

he told you his mom died and his dad is gone but not much else and you don’t want to pry. you figure he’ll tell you on his own time and that’s good enough for you. mostly, you just want him to know he’s safe with you.

the only part that bothers you is that his past trauma has convinced him he isn’t worthy of soft touches and patience and your everlasting devotion. you have to fix this, you decide.

you noticed pretty early into the relationship that he’s timid around physical intimacy - not necessarily sex, more the sweet and loving caresses you offer him daily - since every time you mold yourself to his back in bed he suddenly has to ‘get to work’.

at first it really hurt your feelings. he could have sex with you (with minimal nervousness) but he couldn’t cuddle you??

but then the heartbreaking realization set in that he just cant let you show that you love him. cant let you be tender with the parts of him you know have been crushed by people meant to protect him.

so, you start small.

eddie gets all worked up sometimes talking about things he loves, so you wait for him to get all excited and distracted and then you start gently twirling his hair between your fingers while he goes on and on.

eventually it evolves to you running your hands through his hair, lightly massaging his head while he unknowingly unravels in front of you. you rake your nails over his scalp, scratching his stress away.

you can tell how much he appreciates such a small gesture by the way he sinks into your touch, a warm smile on his sleepy face.

he starts to expect it, much to your delight. whenever he realizes he’s getting super into a discussion he cozies up to you, laying his head in your lap usually by slumping onto you and forcing you to lay down so you can be his teddy bear.

you’re extremely proud of this progress, even moreso when he sleepily turns one evening, smushing his face against your thigh and sighing contently. you don’t stop petting his hair until you feel his breathing slow against the inside of your leg.

you figure it was a combination of you talking instead of him, and the long awful day he apparently had at work. either way, you thank the stars and make sure not to wake him. it grows your ego substantially knowing your voice guided him to a peaceful sleep.

the next morning you wake up with him still wrapped around your waist, cheek smushed into your tummy. you’re both still in your clothes, eddie in his dirty work overalls cause he couldn’t wait to cuddle you, and neither of you expected him to fall asleep. you pet his head softly - its practically instinctive whenever you see him, especially snoring softly like this

he stirs when you rake your nails across his back gently, drawing swirls and patterns on him while he’s still too sleepy to protest. his eyes meet yours, his hair adorably disheveled. he looks incredibly disoriented and confused and all you can do is smile at your puppy of a boyfriend.

“..did we fall asleep like this?” his voice comes out all gravelly how you love, its always like that in the morning, you’ve come to find out.

“yes” you giggile, fixing a stray curl. “you fell asleep like this, honey.”

he blushes and gets nervous as usual, you’re familiar with his patterns, but he doesn’t move - not yet.

you take advantage of that fact, lifting his chin so he’s forced to look at you again. this time when you look into his wide eyes, you sense guilt.

“eddie, i liked it.” you smile, moving to rub his cheek, your thumb swiping gently just below his eye. “is there some reason you think i wouldn’t? o-or did you not like it?” he panics when your smile falters, lips twitching in hesitation.

“No!” he yelps a little too loud, awkward in that sitcom way he’s always been. charming, you think.

“O-of course i liked it, baby..” his eyes flick between obeying and keeping eye contact and staring down to avoid you.

“you’re so warm.. ‘n soft..” his eyes meet yours again and theres a sincerety and vulnerability you’ve never seen. close, maybe, but this is new.

“yeah?” you coo, coaxing him further into this soft space you’ve unlocked for him.

he nods, a coy smile forming. “I like touching you, y/n. i-i always want to i-im just..” you rub his cheek. “cautious. i guess. ‘m scared.” he looks up at you again, wide eyes beaming in a way that makes you think his pupils are just holes peering into the sparkling of his heart. its clear he’s opening himself to you in a way no one’s seen before. maybe other than his mom. its an honour you refuse to waste.

“what are you scared of ed?” not once do you stop softly petting him , his cheeks, his hair, his neck, a thumb across his lip.

“I just.. i dunno. you’re so soft, so sweet and kind and i-“ he falters, and you immediately hug him to you, rubbing his back. “its ok, honey. take your time, im here.” he sighs, his hands grasping you for comfort.

“i dont wanna break you. or lose you..” he admits, maybe for the first time to himself at all. your heart breaks. obviously you could assume with what you know about his past but the details and results never stop hurting. you wish you could’ve saved him, could’ve saved his mother and given him a better father. or just taken him far, far away.

now, all you can do is hold him. one hand in his hair, one rubbing his back and you kiss the top of his head.

“im not going anywhere.” you promise, your lips still pressed in his hair.

“gonna stay and cuddle you forever, teddy” your hand sneaks under his shirt and rubs his back, up and down the soft skin. its vulnerable in a literal and figurative way you cant fully process in the moment but later you’ll cry over how poetic and sentimental it is.

you feel him sink into you, letting his weight crush you a little. his voice rumbles where hes hiding his face, a small “promise?” muffled by your chest.

you frown, wishing he never had to feel this way.

“I promise, eddie. m’yours” you can feel him smile, giddy and childish in this state.

“and you’re mine” you giggle as he rubs his face into you like a cat displaying affection.

[lexirosewrites]

Wealthy omega Steve going on an arranged date each week to the same restaurant because his parents want him to find a mate.

Alpha Eddie who busks in the parking lot for tips and always offers him a cigarette and a shoulder to cry on after it doesn’t work out.

It takes them a while.

“Another one? That’s the third date this week, pretty boy. You going for a record or something?” Eddie asks, already holding his half-finished cigarette out for Steve to take.

He does. It’s his only reward for doing all of this.

Well, that and Eddie.

Eddie makes this easier.

Steve takes a long draw from it, craving the burn of nicotine more than he cares to admit to himself.

He craves Eddie’s company too, but that’s between him and the cigarette.

“Yeah, my parents are working overtime it seems. They’re bound and determined to have me mated off before spring.”

Steve laughs.

Eddie doesn’t.

“They sound awful.”

They are. Their insistence on old-fashioned values and treating their omega son like a burden to be rid of is proof enough.

“They mean well,” he says. “I think.”

Eddie hums thoughtfully. It’s clear that he disagrees.

Steve passes the cigarette back.

The alpha snubs it out on the sidewalk they’re sitting on instead.

“How long are you gonna keep doing this for?”

“Well, as long as it takes to find someone who’s interested, I guess. There’s not an exact timeline or any—”

Eddie startles Steve when he cuts him off with a growl.

He doesn’t look mad, but his forehead creases, deep frown, and sour scent speaks of irritation.

“Not what I meant.”

Oh.

“I don’t know, Eddie. They’re my parents… and it’s not like I’ve got anyone else knocking down my door.”

Even his dates aren’t interested once they’ve met him in person.

Steve always looks good on paper. He’s attractive and from an upstanding family, a decent investment at first glance.

But then he opens his mouth. That’s where their interest always ends.

Sometime between shaking hands and dessert, their eyes get bored and they start checking their watch more. They don’t bother to hide that they’re running out the clock, eager to be away from Steve.

He thought it would hurt less after a while, but it doesn’t.

“How many times are we gonna do this, Stevie?“

And now even Eddie is bored with him. It makes sense. They’ve been meeting up for months and Steve isn’t worth much for stimulating conversation.

It had to end eventually.

“I’m sorry. I— I didn’t realize I was bothering you. I can leave you to your gigging, man. Let me just—”

Steve reaches for his wallet, pulling out a thick wad of bills to shove in Eddie’s guitar case as an apology for taking up his precious time.

Compensation for the therapy.

“Hey, no— that’s not what I meant, baby. I just— ugh, why is this so hard to say?” Eddie groans, grabbing at his own hair in frustration.

Steve hasn’t the faintest idea what’s ailing Eddie. The guy is normally chill 100% of the time. It’s why Steve goes to him for comfort. He’s hard to shake.

“Sorry?” he tries.

“No, I’m sorry! I just can’t sit here for yet another evening and pretend like there are more fish in the sea for you or whatever,” Eddie explains frantically, his eyes begging Steve to understand.

Ouch. Okay. Point made.

Steve is unlovable, got it.

He stands, brushing off his slacks so his shaking hands aren’t as noticeable.

Keep cool. Breathe.

“Understood. I won’t bother you anymore then. I can park across the street next time too. Good luck with everything, Eddie. I’m sure your band will get signed soon, you’re a talented musician.”

Eddie shoots to his feet, almost tripping over his own lanky limbs in the process.

He grabs the sleeve of Steve’s dress shirt, stopping him from leaving.

“Don’t go on anymore dates.”

Jesus.

“Yeah, I got it the first time, thanks. I’m undesirable. Can you stop repeating it?”

Eddie looks like he’s been slapped, but he doesn’t say anything back. The bluntness must have caught him off guard.

Steve sighs, attempting to pull free from the alpha’s grip.

He almost manages it.

But then Eddie snaps back to reality and his eyes go wide for just a split moment before he kisses Steve right on the lips.

It’s unexpected to say the least.

It’s also probably the best kiss of his entire life. Too bad it’s from someone who just told him to quit dating because nobody will ever want to court him.

They finally break apart and Steve sways.

“Eddie… what in the actual hell are you—?”

“I love you! I love you— I’ve been in love with you for months, but you insist on going on all these dates with alphas who have no taste and they keep breaking your heart and leaving me to pick up the pieces, but I don’t want to keep handing them back. I want to keep you, Steve. I want to be the only alpha you go on dates with.”

Steve stops trying to run away.

Instead, he yanks at the collar of Eddie’s shirt, tugging him into another, longer kiss.

This is love, huh? Makes sense.

His lips are warm and so is his heart. Patched up once more and encased in a body other than his own

No more arranged dates.

“That was a ‘yes,’ in case it didn’t translate.”

Eddie’s face is flushed and his happy smile is infectious.

“I don’t have the kind of money your usual dates have, but I had this really cute guy way overtip me earlier. Can I buy you dinner, pretty boy?”

It’s the first of many.

[steddiealltheway]

"You're dead, Harrington!"

Steve sprints off down the hall, making a sharp left turn in hopes of losing him. He looks around at the doors, eyes settling on the drama room. Yeah, no one would guess that he would go in there.

He runs and easily pulls the door open, softly closing it behind him, leaning against the door to listen for Billy.

"You can't run from me!" he yells, somewhere outside in the hallway.

Shit.

Steve backs up a bit until he runs into something, and suddenly there's a hand covering his mouth with rings digging into his cheek while a bit of silver glints in his eyes. "Don't freak out, Harrington. I'm here to help. Hide behind the red curtain."

The guy lets him go, and Steve whips around taking in the guy everyone calls "The Freak." He just raises his eyebrows at him, so Steve takes the hint and darts behind the red curtains behind a throne of some kind.

There's a slight creaking, then Steve hears the door swing open and slam against the wall.

"Billy Hargrove. I didn't know you were interested in theatre," the freak says smugly. Eddie? That's his name, right?

"I'm not," Billy grits out. "I'm looking for Harrington. Seen him anywhere, freak?"

"Why would he be in here?"

Steve hears heavy footsteps as he walks closer to the curtain. "That's not what I asked," Billy says darkly.

"Well, I answered, didn't I?" Eddie replies, voice low with an undertone of danger. Shit, Steve didn't know he had it in him. "If you're so dense, then let me clarify. I haven't seen him. Now get lost or you'll never find him before lunch is over."

There's a pause, and Steve is certain that a fight is about to break out. Only, nothing really happens until Billy says, "One day you're going to pay for that, freak."

"Looking forward to it," Eddie says sarcastically.

A few seconds later and the door closes. There's a click that sounds like the lock turning which has Steve peeking out of the curtain.

"You can come out now."

Steve steps outside the curtain slowly, making sure this isn't some sort of sick joke. But he doesn't think Billy is that much of a planner, he's too impulsive.

When he doesn't spot him, Steve says, "Thanks. It's Eddie, right?"

The other boy looks surprised and even gets a small smile on his face. "Yeah."

"I'm Steve," he introduces himself, sticking out his hand and everything.

He gets a scoff and a, "Yeah, I know," in response, but Eddie still takes his hand and shakes it.

"I like your rings," Steve says genuinely. They're cool really. He wishes he would wear something like that without his parents and teammates getting onto him about it.

"Thanks," Eddie says, pulling a bit of his hair in front of his hair. It's cute really, almost like he's flustered.

Huh. He'll unpack that thought later.

"How did you get Billy to back off like that? I've never seen anyone do that." He can't help but be in a bit of awe about the whole thing.

Eddie chuckles. "I supply his weed. He knows better than to hurt me."

"Mabe I should start selling him weed then."

Eddie laughs loudly, showing off his dimples. Steve can't help but smile back.

"Hey," Eddie says, making his way to the throne and sitting back. "What did you do to get him that riled up anyways?"

Steve groans and takes a seat at the table in front of Eddie. "I know his little sister, Max. I just asked him how she was doing, and he freaked out. I think he misunderstood my tone."

Eddie laughs again, and Steve starts to believe that maybe the whole thing was worth it to see the boy's smile.

A silence settles between them, but Steve doesn't mind. It gives him a chance to look at him more.

It must fluster Eddie again because he ducks his head down and shakes his head.

"What?" Steve can't help but ask.

Eddie looks back at him. "Nothing, I just can't believe that Steve Harrington is sitting at my D and D table."

D&D... "Oh, that's like Dungeons and Dragons, right?"

Eddie's jaw drops. "You know what Dungeons and Dragons is?"

Steve shrugs. "My friend plays it, but he's in middle school, so you wouldn't know him. But hey, that's where the demogorgan thing comes from, right?"

Eddie continues to stare at him in disbelief mumbling something under his breath like He's friends with middle schoolers, and he knows what a demogorgan is. What the hell? Am I dreaming? He shakes his head and says clearly, "Yeah, yeah, that's where the Demogorgan comes from."

Another silence settles between them, and Steve doesn't know why he says it but he asks, "So, do you have a girlfriend?"

Once again, it looks like Eddie is about to have a meltdown, but Steve stands his ground. He's curious really.

Eddie shifts in his seat a bit uncomfortably before quietly asking, "Haven't you heard the rumors?"

Steve leans back in his seat and scratches his face absentmindedly. He's heard about "The Freak" before, but he didn't really pay much attention. He knows he sells weed. He failed senior year once or twice, he forgot how many times people said. And he once heard that he's a...

Oh.

"So, do you have a boyfriend then?"

Eddie freezes, fear evident all over his tense body.

"It's fine if you do," Steve assures him.

Eddie runs both his hands over his face and questions out loud, "Am I dreaming?"

"Do you dream about me often?" Steve flirts, leaning forward on the table. He can't help it, he likes how affected Eddie is by him.

Eddie looks at him for a solid fifteen seconds, tongue running over his top lip and brows furrowed in deep thought. He relaxes against his chair with a sigh. "You're not at all what people say you are."

Steve shrugs, uncomfortable that the topic has turned to be about him. "I try not to be."

"It's a good thing," Eddie says.

Steve smiles. He didn't know how much he needed to hear that.

The bell rings, and Steve feels a pang of disappointment.

"Hey," Eddie says as he stands up alongside Steve. He reaches into his black metal lunchbox and pulls out a sandwich in a little bag and a banana. He tears the sandwich in half and offers it to Steve along with the banana. "It isn't much, but I doubt you ate lunch. Have to keep all our star players in shape, right?" he asks with a wink.

Steve wishes he could stay longer to see him relax more. He takes them both, unpeeling the banana quickly while asking, "Is that weed in there?"

"Among other things."

Steve laughs and takes a large bite of the banana that has Eddie looking away, turning a light shade of red. Now he really wishes he could stay longer.

He finishes his bite and says, "Hey, it was really nice to meet you by the way."

"You too," Eddie says with a soft smile, finally looking back at him.

The warning bell rings.

Steve sighs. "I'll see you around, and hey, pass on a word to the next D and D leader about Dustin Henderson, will you?"

"Will do," Eddie says, and Steve's glad that it sounds like a promise.

He heads to the door and unlocks it quickly, pausing to rush back and press a soft kiss on Eddie's cheek. "Thank you again," he says before rushing out of the room with his heart pounding and a blush spreading over his face.

He can't help but think that he should thank Billy for being such an asshole.