#elmax ficlet

[stranger-stardustt]

Elmax cuddling headcanons?

ok so I wanted to answer this in two ways. Above the cut is going to be just my hc’s for this. under the cut will be a short little ficlet about them!!!

Headcanons:

El is the one to initiate the cuddling in the beginning due to her nightmares. Max let her because ‘ohmygod cute girl’ lmao. So at their sleepovers they always end up cuddling, even before they are together. After a while though, Max is the one to hop into bed and settle into El’s arms.

little spoon!El big spoon!Max UNLESS Max has a rough day in which El will then hold her in her lap instead.

Max lets El place her head in her lap and she runs her fingers through the other girls hair.

El sleeps fully on top of Max like a blanket sometimes. Max likes it.

After the incident in s4, they can’t cuddle like normal so El lays by Max’s side, not holding her but like just being there with her when she’s in pain.

ok fic time under the cut!!!

Max was half asleep when she kissed Eleven for the first time. The other girl was spending the night, and the two of them had wrapped themselves up in blankets to protect from the harsh colds of winter. El was pressed to Max’s side, chin tucked neatly into her shoulder.

“I’m tired,” El muttered, her breath warm against Max’s skin. “Can you turn the light off?”

Humming, Max reached over toward the lamp and turned it off. Darkness filled the room, nothing but the glow of the moon through the window illuminating the space. It was nice; the peace and quiet calming for once.

El shifted, looking up at Max. “Comfortable?” she asked, and Max nodded.

And then it happened. It was subconscious, Max unaware of what she was doing. She craned her neck down just a little, pressing a soft kiss to El’s lips. “Good night,” she whispered.

It took a few moments for either of them to realize what had happened.

“Shit.” Max sat up, flicking the light on as El fell onto the pillow with a thump. “I’m so sorry-”

“Shhh,” El hushed her, smiling. Her eyes were crinkled, nose scrunched up. “I liked it. Go back to bed now.”

Max went wide eyed. “Oh,” she mumbled, blushing. She turned the light back off, settling down awkwardly. El pulled her closer, grunting when she felt how stiff the other girl was.

“I promise,” she said, stroking Max’s hair. “It is fine. Now, sleep.”

Finally relaxing, Max stared up at the ceiling. The pounding of her heart had not ceased, but she lied still.

Eventually, she fell asleep, El cuddled into her side.

[jaegerisim]

I wanna create Elmax week. If anyone wants to do this w me, pls dm me.

[givehimthemedicine]

when you come home // elmax ficlet

wip wednesday excerpt from I Miss The Apocalypse (that's the sequel to Do Not Cry)

context: post 4. Max is awake, healing but blind. El hasn't lost her powers but is sort of long-term drained from overuse of her powers fighting Vecna and helping Max.

"Almost five," El sighs.

Max can't see the clock, but she had already felt the time somehow, even through the stupor of painkillers and sedatives.

Five o'clock marks the end of hospital visiting hours, and she wishes it would never come. Night is a scary time to have to spend alone. She doesn't want to say that out loud, because El already feels terrible enough about having to leave her.

"Tell me again," Max asks. Just a little girl wanting the bedtime story she knows by heart.

A tube is dripping calm into her arm, and the world is ending. She's not embarrassed.

She hears El smile and shift closer.

A hand settles above her forehead and begins to stroke softly at the hair there. That soothes her and makes her sleepy, El has learned.

"When you come home... the first thing we will do is get right into my bed," El says in her gentlest voice, and Max's eyes slide shut. "With piles of blankets. No casts or tubes... only soft. I'll wrap you up and keep you warm, and you can listen to my heart. And we will sleep so good. As long as we want."

Max smiles faintly, a teardrop crawling down one temple. It sounds so nice. It will probably never happen.

That growing hell-portal outside will be eating the entire town any time now. El knows so, and is just doing her a kindness in the meantime. Allowing it is Max's kindness to El, and to herself.

"Once we're home.. I'll always be there while you fall asleep, and I'll never let you wake up alone. I'll take good care of you and we'll get strong again, together. It will be like one big sleepover that never has to stop."

Max hums a placid note in return, drifting. Hoping to drift straight into the wonderful pipe dream El is whispering to her.

"Happy dreams, Max. I love you." El departs with a small kiss to the side of her head. She's been doing that, these days, in trade for the hugs she can't give her.

"Inovyoutoo," Max murmurs.

Never in her whole life has she heard or said those words as many times as she has lately, and it's not just because of the drugs.

Everyone's suddenly very open and tender with everyone, these days. Saying how they feel. There's no reason not to anymore.

In a way, the end of the world is kinda nice.

[angelbymadonna]

Oh, she could not be serious.

She had to be fucking kidding.

Because there's no way in hell that El was really sitting on that stupid chair with the stupid parasol in a red crewneck sweatshirt and a one-piece swimsuit.

And there was no way even El's rebellious spirit went that far.

Max paid no mind to anyone else on the beach as she stomped down the sand to the lifeguard post.

"A minute, El?" She asked, trying not to sound annoyed.

El turned, presumably looking at Max through the dark sunglasses on her nose. She gestured to another lifeguard to take her place and hopped down, grabbing her flip-flops.

The other lifeguard, a sandy blonde in a matching one-piece, have Max a suspicious once-over, but Max couldn't care less what anyone thought at that moment. She grabbed El's arm and marched her up behind some cabin. El took off her shades, letting them hang on her neck by the elastic strap attached to the ends. She held Max's elbows and pulled her closer.

"Hi, Max." She was grinning, sounding smug, fixating on Max's lips rather than eyes. Did she have to make it so hard to be mad?

"What were you thinking!? A lifeguard? What happens when some ass needs saving and you have to jump in the water, huh?" Max said through her teeth.

Finally, El's eyes flitted to Max's, her hands slipping down to grasp her fingers. Her smile fell. "You're mad at me?" She asked.

But honestly, Max couldn't be. She was too afraid that El would end up having to choose between exposing their world and letting someone drown. And hurt that El didn't consult her. "Just.. answer the question, El."

"I do not think that will happen. I just wanted to work, like we were talking about."

"It's too dangerous! Work somewhere else."

"Okay. But I like it out here. With the water."

Max's resolve was crumbling by the second, what with El's earnest words and her pink-painted thumb tracing Max's hip above her trunks.

"Ugh, fine. Stay."

She was *definitely* going to have to save El from some type of situation. Either that or El had to learn some goddamn subtlety. This girl had practically introduced herself to Will as "Max's mermaid girlfriend" and that was not the last of her incidents.

A smile crept into El's face. She moved her arms to drape on Max's shoulders and leaned in for a kiss.

[andiwriteordie]

Congrats on the followers, you absolutely deserve them!!

If you would want to, can you write some sibling willel fluff? (I’m sorry it’s not a very specific prompt😭) they’re just,,,so siblings

Hope you are having a good day!

ahhh thank you so so much!!! also WILLEL YES!!! here's a little modern au with high school willel, byler, and elmax for you! :)

—

boys and boys and girls and girls 

So, here’s a piece of advice for you:

Don’t go on a double date with your brother.

Especially if the person your brother is dating happens to be your ex-boyfriend.

Also especially if the person you are dating happens to be your brother’s date’s “worst frenemy” (their words, not El’s.) 

…

Really, El did not think that date through, and it’s a really, really good thing that the four of them have known each other and have been best friends since middle school. She can’t imagine going on a date with a girl as pretty as Max and having it be as chaotic as this one had been. Though, honestly, El doesn’t know why she expected anything different. 

First of all, Max has always been unafraid to tell people off—especially if they are rude, like the stupid man who was standing in front of them at the restaurant. So, her fight with him came as no surprise at all to El.

(Also, it was kind of hot, but that’s a whole other story.)

Second of all, Mike has absolutely zero filter and the world’s worst resting bitch face. So, when the poor waitress messes up Will’s order and Mike damn near bites her face off, El really, really can’t say she’s surprised.

(God, she’s glad she’s not the one who has to deal with him anymore. She has no idea how she put up with him for over a year. Thirteen year old El was very stupid and suffering from a very bad case of comp het.)

Anyways, despite the fact that Max and Mike get into fights with people at the restaurant and then some arguments with each other, the rest of the double date goes really well. Max and El kick both the boys’ asses at mini golf, and hey, El gets a few kisses from her girlfriend to celebrate. It’s a win-win situation, honestly. 

It is a little bit awkward when Mike drops both Will and El off, though. He’d volunteered to drive tonight since the rest of them have to battle their families for cars, and so, Mike gets the fun job of dropping his boyfriend and El off first and then dropping Max off before he actually gets home. 

So, uh… that’s how El ends up standing outside on her family’s porch, kissing her girlfriend and trying her damnedest to ignore the fact that her brother is kissing his boyfriend in the car a few feet away.

(She’s never doing a double date with Will and Mike again. Never in a million years.)

Eventually, El decides to be the responsible one, and she (very reluctantly) sends her girlfriend away, watching in amusement as Max scares the shit out of Will by knocking on his window. Will looks a little bit exasperated, but he gets out of the car with very minimal arguing.

Mike, on the other hand, starts bickering with Max the moment she gets into his car, and even as the two of them drive away, El can hear the two of them bitching at each other.

… 

Hopefully, they won’t kill each other before Max gets home. That would be very unfortunate.

“So,” Will says slowly, once Mike’s car has disappeared from view.

El raises an eyebrow, turning to look at her older brother. “So…”

“That… sure was something,” Will remarks. He’s fighting a smile and beating around the bush—typical Will behavior. 

“You mean it was a trainwreck,” El deadpans, and Will just snorts. “We are never doing that again.”

“Oh, thank God.” Will breathes a sigh of relief, and he walks over to their family’s little porch swing, all but collapsing onto it. “El, you know I love you and Max, and obviously, I love Mike, but… tonight was—”

“The worst possible thing that we could’ve done?” El finishes.

“Yes!” Will moans, holding his head in his hands. “Have you ever realized we’re practically dating the same person? Like… same person, different fonts, El. I know this whole little rivalry of theirs is just for show, but Jesus, I really thought Mike was gonna end up pushing Max into the water at the mini golf place!”

El giggles, and she takes a seat next to her brother, leaning her head on his shoulder. “Max would have killed him if he did that,” she points out. “And I would have taken a video and laughed.”

Will lifts his head, making a face at her. “Dude, you’ve got to stop threatening to kill my boyfriend.”

“I’ll stop when your boyfriend stops being an idiot!” El retorts, and Will just makes another face at her.

“Don’t be rude,” he scolds, poking her side lightly. “I swear to God, Max is such a bad influence on you. It was bad enough when you were just friends, but now that you’re dating, it’s even worse.”

Once again, El just laughs. “Sometimes, relationships bring out the best in you,” she says wisely, “but other times, they bring out the worst in you. I am happy my girlfriend brings out the worst in me. It’s kind of fun being evil, especially when it gets you and Mike riled up.”

An exasperated little sigh escapes Will’s lips, and he leans his head on top of El’s own. After a few moments of quiet, he mutters, “You’ve really taken this ‘youngest child’ thing to heart, haven’t you?”

“Yep!” El says cheerfully. “It’s a lot of fun. I can see why you enjoyed being the youngest for so long. Sorry you got demoted to middle child.”

Will sticks his tongue out at her. “I hate you,” he deadpans.

“I love you too, Will,” she says, before standing and offering her brother a hand. “Now, come on. I’m in the mood to watch the Reputation Stadium Tour again, and you’re going to watch it with me.”

Her brother just laughs as El pulls him back into their house. There’s a fond, loving smile on his face, and despite their disastrous double date and how their partners are both sort of insane, El wouldn’t change a single thing.

And when Will squeezes her hand and whispers back, “Love you too,” El gets the feeling her brother feels the same way. 

[lithiumcreepblog]

elmax week day 1: Summer Days

There’s something magical about summer. Being enveloped by the warmth of the sun, Helios shining down on us. El has never looked more beautiful, radiant and glistening under a thousand rays. There’s a brilliance in her eyes as she toppled over and rolled into me down the hill, her laughter bringing about warmth that could rival the sun’s. The days felt long, with a syrupy quality like molasses, but I remember everything. I remember the chemical smell of sunscreen, the shapes that the clouds took under our gaze, the feeling of her hand in mine as we cycled down an unfamiliar path. The flowers were in full bloom, but all I could see was her. And as she reached out to touch a petal of a lone daisy, it was almost as if the flower responded to her touch, and she’s just that magnetic. We ran wide-eyed down the fields stretching as far as the eye could see. The feeling of the freshly cut grass underneath my bare feet, I want to stay in it forever. I remember the clink of the ice cubes in our lemonade– too tart for my liking but I didn’t mind. I can still feel the ghost of her touch along my spine as I lay there on the checkered blanket that’s far too expensive for what it was. But now it’s almost the end of summer and all the ice cream has melted and the bubbles have burst and the ferris wheel has stopped, but she’s still here. She’s here in my embrace, and it’s better than any long walk on the beach that has our toes curling against the sand. El sighs as the sun sinks below the horizon like clockwork and paints the sky pink and orange in front of us. A parting gift of breathtaking wonder. I place a soft kiss on her head, playing with her hair, sending ripples of the last light of the day through the strands, “So… I’m guessing summer’s your favorite season, huh?”. And her sweet giggles are enough to emulate the feeling of the warm breeze in your hair for the next year, until the evenings are filled with a chorus of crickets chirping once again.

[mikhardwheat]

Byler, (modern?) au where Will and Mike are not friends, but each other's hallway crushes

Dustin: remember that guy?

Will: what guy?

Dustin: the one you like? from the Math class?

Dustin: the one you draw in your sketchbook all the ti-

Will: okay, stop, I get it

Will: so?

Dustin: he applied to join the DnD club

Will: did he now?

Dustin: this dude is a nerd, I'm telling you

Dustin: also, his friend? Lucas from the basketball team? The hottest person to ever walk on the Earth??

Dustin: he applied too, at the same time!

Will: fascinating.

Dustin: do you think his girlfriend will apply too?

El, appearing out of nowhere: apply where?

Dustin: jeez, El, where did you come from

Will: summoned by the mention of a redhead

El: it wasn't-

El: why did you even bring her up

Dustin: Lucas and that one dude Will is hopelessly in love with are going to play DnD this Saturday with us

Will: since when I'm "hopelessly in love"?

El: oh, the one who's portrait he painted the other day?

Dustin: portrait?

Dustin: dude, you're down bad

Dustin: was it big?

El, nodding: half my size

Dustin: damn.

El: isn't his name Mike?

Mike: whose name is Mike?

El: the guy Will has a crush on

Dustin:

Will:

Mike:

El: oh, hi

Dustin: yikes

Mike: hi?..

Mike: sorry to interrupt, I wanted to ask if there's a dress-code for the campaign

Dustin, confused: dress-code?..

Will: he's asking if we're playing in costumes

Dustin: ah

Dustin: no, not this week

Dustin: but we do that sometimes, mostly during the holidays

El, pointing at her watch: we're running late

Dustin: are we?

El: yes, we have Chemistry together, it's in 2 minutes

Dustin:

Dustin: fuck

Dustin, to them both: bye guys!

Dustin, to Will: see ya later!

They quickly walk away.

Mike: so...

Mike: um...

Will: is Max going too?

Mike: what?

Will: your friend's girlfriend? is she joining the campaign too?

Mike: hell no.

Mike: why?

Will: El was dreaming about holding hands with her since the last Summer break

Mike: and you are telling me that because..?

Will: fair exchange

Mike: I'm not sure I follow

Will: my crush on you?

Mike: "Mike" is a pretty common name, why would I-

Will: I know you overhead more than the last sentence, come on

Will: I saw you standing there and waiting for the right time to say something

Just to be clear: Will noticed Mike when he replied "did he now?" to Dustin.

[swanqueenelmaxshadowhunters]

*aged up elmax*

Max: If you had to, what would you give up food or sex?

Robin: Sex.

Nancy: Seriously? Wow.

Robin: I'm sorry, I thought she was asking if I preferred food or sex, babe.

El, giggling: uh-oh

Max: Nancy , what about you? What would you give up sex or food?

Nancy, trying hard to ignore Robin's puppy eyes: Food.

Max: What about you, El?

El: I would never give up on you.

Dustin: that doesn't really answer the question.

Lucas: it totally does, dude.

Max, ignoring Dustin and Lucas arguing: Okay, how about sex or dinosaurs?

Dustin: Oh my God it’s like the movie Sophie’s Choice.

Max: What about you Steve? What would you give up sex or food?

Steve: Oh... um... I don’t know, it’s too hard.

Dustin: No, you gotta pick one.

Steve: Um, food... no, sex... no, food... sex... food. Ugh! I don’t know! I want both! I- I want hot people on bread!

[booksandpaperss]

A Look Inside Max Mayfield’s “last word” letters to the party: El

…

Hey El,

Gosh, it’s been so long since I’ve written those two words. Too long, really.

How are you? Are you.. are you doing okay? I know that’s a silly question considering the shitty circumstances of this letter but I hope you are, you deserve every good thing that happens to you. Even if that was me… leaving. Or, pulling away, I guess.

This vecna asshole better leave you alone. Tell him he better not mess with you. It doesn’t matter that I probably won’t be here soon, he better leave you alone. I’ll make sure he does. Somehow.

Shit, I’m so fucking sorry for not writing to you. I miss you so much, you have no idea. And now you’re not even going to see this until after… well. I’m not stupid, I know you miss me too, or… at least that you care, even though I tried to convince myself you didn’t. I got your letters, I read all of them. You’re too good for me El, way more than you even know. I know we technically haven’t known each other for that long but, you’re the best friend I’ve ever had. I feel like I’ve known you my whole life. I really wish I did, honestly. My life is better with you in it… it still is.

Lucas and Dustin and Steve, they’re all set on saving me, but this vecna guy… he’s really strong. He’s like you, with powers, but like, way less awesome of a person. I don’t think I’m going to make it. Is it selfish of me to wish you weren’t in California? Just so I could see you before I.. go? I’m glad you’re safe though. I just miss you, is all.

I have a bit of a confession. Multiple confessions, technically. And since this is like… my dramatic last words or whatever I should probably tell you. You’re my best friend, so if anyone should know, it’s you.

I’ve never really felt totally in with the party, you know? It was nothing they did, they’re great, really, even Mike. Don’t tell him I said this but I kinda get why you like him, under all his shit, sometimes he’s kinda sweet. Seriously please don’t tell him I said that, if I actually manage to live he’d never let me hear the end of it. Not that… well if you’re reading this that means I wouldn’t really, well. Be here.

Anyway, I got off topic, it’s so easy to do with you though and I wish we could talk more, and I miss you so much and I but anyway my point was, Mike and Lucas and Dustin and Will, they’ve all known each other for so long. They’re all so close and I’m just… I’m just here yknow? I’m just me.

But then I met you. Like, really met you. And I don’t mean when I just vaguely heard about you from Lucas and Dustin who talked about you like you were some otherworldly mystical sorcerer, and then saw you once right before you had to go off again to close a massive supernatural gate. I mean when I met you. And really… you were “just you” too. Just like me.

And El, you is so much. I don’t mean your powers, I just mean you, who you are. You got me, in a way no one else has, not even Lucas sometimes and that’s what and you didnt even have to say it, you just understood. We’re both outsiders, even with the party sometimes, but… never with each other.

El, you’re so fucking special to me. I hope you know that. Please know that. You’re more than your powers, than what you can do for other people, you’re just… so amazing, and supportive, and kind, and beautiful just as you.

Although, I guess if you’re reading this that means I’m not here so… you deserve to know. I think you’re beautiful, El. This is going to sound so cheesy but I really think you’re so beautiful, inside and out. Even when I’m not here, you can’t let anyone make you think otherwise okay? I know you won’t, you’re strong, without anyone else.

I wish I could say more but if I let this keep going I’ll be here all day, and I won’t get to our other friends letters, and then of course Mike would whine to you and Will about it, so I gotta save you guys from that. You’re just… I feel safe with you. Talking with you. Even if you’re not really here.

I’m sorry El. I’m so, so sorry. I’ll try to fight him okay? I wouldn’t forgive myself if I didn’t, because you don’t deserve this shitty letter as my last words to you. You don’t deserve any of this. Or me. I’m sorry.

Love,

Max

[lumaxramblings]

Trans max overhears Lucas and El talking about him so they can practice using their boyfriend's pronouns <3

max has never been a morning person.

this has been established many times, and it's basically a party rule at this point. don't wake max up before 10 if you want to keep your knees.

but of course, there are times that he wakes up before ten himself, then it's only him to blame, and unfortunately, he can't swipe his own knees.

this is one such morning.

he blinks up at the ceiling, vision blurry before it refines a little, and then groans and covers his eyes. he takes them off briefly to look at the time, then groans again, but louder.

8:37.

who the fuck wakes up at eight thirty-seven?

him, apparently, because he hates himself.

he almost commits himself to sleeping again, out of spite of his brain, even though whenever he wakes up usually there's no going back (unless lucas and el are with him and he's really, really tired).

but that's when the smell wafts into this room.

bacon.

god, he fucking loves bacon.

so he lets out a huff and rolls out of bed (not literally, as then everyone in steve's house would come running to see if he's okay and he hates being swarmed at all, but especially in the mornings), and plants his own two socked feet on the floor.

he pushes himself up, grabs a pullover hoodie despite feeling a little warm, and pulls it over his head, grinning at how it hides his form.

he walks through the hall and down the stairs, and leans against the doorway before going in. it's instinctive, leftover from when he had two angry asshole around the house, and it was like stepping around a minefield, never quite sure if you were doing the right thing, and knowing the consequences would be dire, and so you had to know who was in a room before entering it. he doesn't mean to do it, not when he knows how safe the others are, but he can't help it.

"when do you think he will be up?"

max pauses, blinks. that's... that's lucas. his boyfriend.

"i think he'll be up in a bit."

max blinks again. and that's el, his girlfriend.

are they... are they talking about him—?

"nice. i can't wait to talk to him about..." lucas audibly pauses. "anything, really. i like him."

"i like him too."

max covers his mouth to stop himself smiling so wide, feeling his heart thumping traitorously, so loudly that he feels lucas and el will be alerted to his presence.

"yeah!" lucas says, audibly smiling. "i think she—fuck, no—he's doing better. shit."

"it was just a mistake." el tells him. "a... slip-down."

"slip-up, el."

"same thing."

lucas chuckles. "i guess i just better try until i get the pronoun thing down, right?"

"yeah." el nods. "did you see his face when we used he with him yesterday? he was so happy."

"he smiled so wide! god, i want to see him smile like that again."

your wish is my command, max thinks, feeling dizzy, almost lightheaded at their words. but lightheaded in a good way, if that makes sense. either way, he feels like if he hears more of them talking about him like this, he'll explode. he swings himself around the doorframe.

el and lucas sit there, at the table, staring at him for a moment like deer in headlights, and max faintly registers steve at the stove, humming and grinning over at him like he knows what he just overheard.

the two get up, chair legs scraping against the floor, and max goes in to hug el, who hugs him tightly back, giggling a little, and max chuckles into the hug, giggling himself, before departing for a second to hug lucas.

"hey, handsome." lucas says, and plants a kiss in his hair, and max's heart leaps out of his chest. "sleep well?"

"slept shit." max informs him happily, hiding his head in his boyfriend's shirt so they don't see how hard he's blushing. "but it's better now i'm with you two."

"aw, my love.<3"

max splutters and lucas laughs. el's loved using that nickname ever since she saw some guy on tv tell it to his girlfriend, and now she never stops, and it never fails to cause max's brain to short circuit.

whenever he's around them, he feels something, foreign and unique, and he just... can't put his name on it.

el giggles and steps forwards to also hug him, and they stay like that for a few seconds, before steve speaks up.

"hey, dipshits," steve says. "you gonna eat your bacon or just let it go cold?"

lucas makes a face and el rolls her eyes (she learnt that from the many, many times max has rolled his eyes around mike) and max flips him off, but can't stop himself smiling when steve ruffles his short hair.

when he sits down at the table, he realizes what the feeling he has around them is.

he feels so, so loved.

[stranger-stardustt]

Who would the first to say "I love you" between El and Max?

Max falls first, El says it first. Yes, i’m writing it. Enjoy!

———

Max had never understood the concept of teenage love. She watched her friends go through it, falling headfirst for some boy or girl that they probably wouldn’t even remember in 20 years. It was stupid to her, the idea of wasting your time on someone like that.

And then Max herself fell in love. And she realized that she never actually despised the idea of it; she was just scared.

Scared wasn’t a thing Max felt often. Not anymore. Not since her family fell apart, and definitely not since everything that happened with the Upside Down.

But El scared her. El, with her pretty brown hair and her quick witted mind and her innocent eyes that had been through so much pain. El, with her laugh and her smile and everything else about her that made Max’s heart beat in her chest.

El, who made her feel alive. El, who she was in love with.

In the end, it was El who said it first.

The two girls were in bed, lazily watching television, hands intertwined. El had her cheek pressed to Max’s chest, nuzzled into her so close she would probably feel Max’s rapidly beating heart.

And then she just said it.

“I love you.”

It took Max a moment to comprehend what was just uttered aloud. She turned red, the thumping of heart ringing in her ears.

“You- what?” she muttered.

El sat up. “I love you,” she repeated, eyes locking with Max’s. “Hopper says I should tell you. I am in love with you.”

Max’s throat went dry. “Oh,” she croaked, frozen.

“Are you okay?” El was staring at her, pupils big and wide. “Should I not have said that?”

“No!” Max rushed to say, desperately trying to keep El from taking it back. She took a deep, heavy breath. “I love you too.”

A smile broke out across El’s lips. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.” Max confirmed.

And then they went back to cuddling.

And Max was in love. And for once, she was happy to be scared.

[jaegerisim]

Ficlets

Evil! Will flirting with Mike

Coming soon: Elmax pool party fic!

Coming soon: Morally ambiguous Will flirting with stoic rich Mike

[givehimthemedicine]

summer // elmax ficlet

Your first summer is the best one ever. The world has just gotten bigger, and there is so much new.

Before, there had never been such a time as summer, or not-summer either. All there was before was the same air whooshing out of the same vents in the same white tile rooms. The same day every day, always.

The cabin had been cold too, in the winter, but a real kind of cold. Now in the summer it gets warm enough inside that your skin feels sticky. Even if neither is pleasant, it is fun, because it is real.

There are windows you could see outside from if you opened the shades (don't), so it is just one step away from being outside, which is like just one step away from being free, almost.

You are in the real world now. There is dirt and fire and television and your hair is getting long and you think maybe you feel human. You love it.

.

Your second summer, you make your first friend who is a girl.

Max is smarter than everybody and good at everything and her hair glows orange in the sun.

She lets you sleep in her bed and helps you walk in heels and shows you new ways to dress and new treats to eat. You have never laughed so much in your life.

This summer, you learn that you are allowed to have your own favorite color, and that you can be the person a shirt is the size of, and that really, actually, you can do whatever you want.

Your world gets bigger again, and there is so much new it almost makes you dizzy to try to think about it all. You are seriously considering feeling like you are a real person.

The two of you have lots of fun - until you don't - but if you just count the good part, your second summer is the best one ever.

.

Your third summer, Max wakes up.

They say she can only come home if she has round the clock care, and you say you you you please please you.

Now it is you letting her sleep in your bed, and you helping her walk, fastening her buttons, feeding her her meals.

She seems ashamed to ask you for too much. You don't know how to make her believe that you wish she would ask you for more. That there is nothing you would not do for her. You would trade her your own arms and legs and eyes if you could.

Sometimes she puts her head on your shoulder, or holds your hand just to make sure you are there, and it makes you so happy your heart beats wrong.

One night, when she thinks you are asleep, she tells you that she loves you. You have never been happier, or more sure that you must be somebody.

Your world has just gotten smaller, and there is so much new.

Max is alive, and awake, and safe, and here, and she loves you. Your third summer is the best one ever.

[angelbymadonna]

Elmax Week Fanfic Day Two- Rink-O-Mania Fix-It

While I would not put Max in Cali in canon, and if she did go I do NOT think this is how it would realistically play out, I wanna pretend that they can just be ALL HAPPY AND GAY okayyyyy??

After getting up at some ungodly dark hour and being awake and jostled around for seven hours straight in the house(last minute packing), car, airport, and plane(starting at dawn), Max had finally arrived. Leave it to Owens to buy a plane ticket. The rest of her friends were still in Hawkins for break, they'd have other opportunities to visit.

At the gate, wearing a characteristic light blue flannel and lime scrunchie, waving wildly, was El. Her hair was long enough to tie up properly, and she'd grown in the last year. Max had seen the pictures of course, that El had sent along with her long letters, and it wasn't like Max hadn't grown too, but it wasn't another thing to finally see her in person.

What hadn't changed was El's ability to act as a beacon of happiness, completely focused on her mood, if a tad oblivious of the people around her. The effect was definitely contagious. Max felt her lips curl into a smile past what they should've been able in her tired state, and vaguely felt bags slipping from her hands as she pushed through the forms of people she barely noticed and ran straight towards El. Max hugged El as tightly as if she'd never see her again, burying her face into El's neck, committing to memory the floral smell of perfume (peony) and the soft feeling of well-worn flannel. A tad dramatic, maybe, but in all fairness, it had been months since the two had seen eachother and would be months before the opportunity arose again.

-----

Sitting together on El's bed, it was all too easy to fall into their old routine. Max could probably recite the details of El's life front to back after so many letters. Actually the same could be said the other way around too. El had a way of making everything Max said or wrote feel important, so she wrote it all. El could tell you the time, day, and place of Max and Lucas's breakup, for example, just as well as if she were there. It was only fair, since Max actually was there when El broke up with Mike.

Actually, even though it took place months before El even left, the topic was coming up again. El's breakup, that is. "The more I think about it, the more I realize I might feel better if I was not his girlfriend. If I didn't say yes."

Max didn't say anything to respond to that. she stayed where she was, leaning on El's shoulder with El leaning in her head. braiding and unbraiding the frayed tails of El's string bracelet. Taking a second to process until she had to just ask. "What do you mean?"

And Max found herself holding her breath while awaiting an answer. She felt an almost anxious anticipation, or something similar she couldn't quite explain. The topic of boyfriends was like that for her with El. She'd never say it aloud, but there was definitely a reason. Max was staying right in her comfortable place at El's side and would never be venturing out into the terrifying possibility of- anything else, thank you very much. Sure, the closeness to the point of nearly not being able to tell where she began and her friend ended was a little guilt-wracking in its own right, and nerve-wracking when others were present, but who was she to rob El of that company?

"I realized that Mike wanted different than what I wanted. I cannot have that with him. But there is a different person who can."

"Who you could have that relationship with?"

"Yes."

Maybe Max had forgotten to control herself after so long away, riding the high of just getting to see El. Whatever the reason, Max's feelings got away from her, and like a dog that got off its leash, hope ran around her ribcage and left firey pawmarks on every spot. Max looked up at the other girl's face, searching for the answer to the equally burning question before it would even leave her lips and set in motion the uncontrollable blaze of change.

"Who?"

But El was just as frozen, looking past Max's eyes, through them to her mind, it seemed. The best indication that time hadn't frozen was El's breathing beneath Max. The rise and fall of her chest, directly by Max's now that she had turned around, and the air between them.

"I hope you know," El started.

Max would've waited it out. She would've waited however long it took to hear the words. But El was the one waiting for Max to finish her sentence when her gaze flitted down from Max's eyes to her lips in indication.

-----

Max enjoyed her spring break. She enjoyed pinning up countless polaroids, ones El had taken of her goofing around because "Beautiful, like art.". She enjoyed skating down the street with El and sharing an ice cream cone with El and watching movies with El and yeah, okay, kissing El. Max enjoyed having a girlfriend. She enjoyed not keeping things from her.

Maybe change was okay sometimes, even if it was scary.

[parkitaco]

realize, out of time

prequel ficlet #3 to swear that it was something, requested by @amaragf

Max Mayfield is big on independence. 

Maybe that’s something that comes from not ever having enough of it, always living in Billy’s shadow, always controlled and afraid. But Billy’s dead, and Max’s stepdad has long since fucked off somewhere she doesn’t know or care about, and her mom is basically a shell of a person, so lately she’s had more independence than usual. She’s good with it. It’s how she’s meant to be, she’s pretty sure - alone but not lonely, strong and steady. Maybe that’s a little bit of a dysfunctional mindset to have at sixteen years old, and probably something she should work on in therapy, but therapy is expensive and couldn’t possibly cover half the shit Max has seen, so maybe not. 

The point is; Max is fine with being alone. 

She’s fine when she breaks up with Lucas for the millionth and final time, needing space after Vecna to process her coma and the consequent trauma. They all needed room to process, honestly, probably still do, and Max happens to be of the mindset that this is more easily achieved without the stress of a relationship adding to the pressure.

Again- maybe a thought process that should be observed by a mental health professional. But whatever.

She’s fine when she spends her days holed up in her room, hiding out from her sullen, barely-present mother and focusing instead on music and books and learning new skating tricks. She’s fine when she lays awake at night, staring at the ceiling and wondering what time it is. She’s long since dismantled the clock that used to sit on her bedside table. The obnoxious ticking was getting to her, even without the compounded trauma to add to it.

Anyway. Max Mayfield is a strong, independent woman who doesn’t need anyone, is the bottom line, and she’s more than happy to tell everyone around her that.

That being said, she is allowed to want people around, probably, sometimes, even if she’s absolutely fine on her own. She’s allowed to enjoy hanging out with her friends, in the months after Vecna when she slowly regains her mobility and then her sense of humor and then something resembling happiness. She’s allowed to attend movie nights and trips to the lake with her friends and not hate it, and she’s allowed to let a little bit of warmth seep into her stone heart when she cracks jokes with them and allows them to hug her and takes notice of the way El’s shoulder-length hair looks in the sun.

She’s been allowing a little too much, lately. 

For example, that last part about El - it’s become a bit of a problem, actually, in the last couple months. Max has been noticing lots of things about her, more things than is probably normal for a best friend to notice. El is happier, lately, has been ever since she broke up with Mike almost six months ago, much more light and carefree. Their friend group as a whole has been increasingly happy, lately, everything sliding into place like dominoes and setting up what seems to be a bright future. El and Mike’s breakup, Will and Mike’s- well, whatever Will and Mike are now, Lucas’s basketball and Dustin’s increasingly impressive science grades, it all lines up ridiculously well. Max is almost hopeful. 

But- El. She’s always stood out to Max, always been special. Maybe that just comes from being the only girls in their friend group of six, or maybe it’s just because El is El, all superpowered and gorgeous and sweet. But these days, Max’s heart has been going a little haywire whenever El spares a glance her way.

Max isn’t stupid. She knows what shit like that means, and even if she didn’t she’d have Lucas to compare it to- sweet, perfect Lucas, who is still one of her best friends but who doesn’t inspire that same spark in her anymore, but definitely did once. Max knows what a crush looks like, and if she dares to be honest with herself, she can admit that she as a pretty fucking big one on El Hopper.

Being from California, Max knows probably more than most Hawkins residents do about- well, about what it means to be a girl who likes girls. She knows words that most people here probably don’t, words like bisexuality that most of the population of Hawkins probably couldn’t even pronounce.

That doesn’t mean it doesn’t still scare her, a little.

Which is how she finds herself sprawled out on the grass behind the school building on a random Tuesday with none other than Lucas Sinclair, skipping third period in favor of pointing out deformed clouds and saying “that one looks like you” in a lovingly cruel manner. It was one of their favorite pastimes when they were dating, one that Max has been insistent that they hold onto, even if getting perfect pretty boy Lucas Sinclair to skip class on a regular basis is vaguely like pulling teeth.

“Lucas,” she says now, fingertips tracing through the air, following a cloud pattern that looks a bit like a spaceship, “Have you, like, tried to ask anyone out since we broke up?”

Lucas tilts his head to face her, raising a questioning eyebrow as grass brushes against his cheek. “Um. No, why do you ask?” he says, a little suspiciously, like he’s expecting her to get jealous or upset or shut down like she sometimes does when she doesn’t know how to process.

Instead, Max just frowns. “Why not?”

“I don’t know,” Lucas laughs, evidently satisfied that she’s not going to bite his head off as he goes back to looking at the clouds. “Haven’t really been interested.” 

There’s a beat of silence while Max considers this, fingers still winding absently through the cool, early spring air. It makes sense, it does - she’s always wondered how any of them will be able to form healthy relationships from people outside their friend group from now on, knowing what they know. How is she supposed to hide something like that from someone she shares everything else with, some hypothetical person fifteen years in the future that she’d already be sharing a home and a life with- assuming she’s not alone, because she’s independent and all that, and would be fine if she were. She’s legally bound to keep quiet about the Upside Down, although admittedly Lucas had also been legally bound, back when Max first joined the Party, and had gone ahead and told her anyway, and Max does plenty of other illegal stuff anyway. Why should this be any different?

Then:

“Max,” Lucas says, and she’s not looking at him but she can just hear the smug smile in his voice, “Do you have something you want to tell me?”

Max huffs out a breath, feigning indignance. “No,” she lies, but it’s not even verging on convincing, and she can sense his eye roll. “I was just- okay, if I tell you something, you have to promise not to be weird, okay?”

Lucas hums noncommittally. “Depends on what you mean by weird.”

“Annoying,” Max amends, tilting her head to shoot him a look, “Dumb. Idiotic. Freaked out.”

“Okay, got it,” Lucas laughs, meeting her gaze with a wry smile, “I won’t be any of those things.”

Despite herself, Max relaxes a little. Lucas is good and kind, she knows this much. He’s not judgy, and he takes most things in stride, even if he doesn’t fully understand them. And he’s perfectly accepting of Mike and Will and their nauseating relationship, so this shouldn't be any different.

But, a little voice in the back of her head reminds her, chiding and grating, you dated him. And you like girls and boys. That’s definitely weirder. You’re a freak, for sure.

Max scowls, batting away the obnoxious little voice that reminds her a little too much of Henry Creel, and focuses on Lucas. “Okay, just so we’re clear, I definitely liked being your girlfriend,” she says, and Lucas’s lips twitch in vague amusement, “And I liked you for sure, I don’t want you to think that I didn’t, but- I think I might like someone else, now, and- it’s a little bit complicated.”

“Okay,” Lucas says simply, rolling with the punches like he always does, and Max takes another shaky breath, vaguely reassured. “I kind of figured, but- thanks for clarifying.”

Max scowls. “Shut up,” she says, no bite to it, and then, “It’s- I like a girl, though, is the thing.”

It gives her the tiniest satisfaction when Lucas’s eyes widen, like he’s gotten the shock properly, the reaction Max expected. “Oh,” he says slowly, “I- okay.”

Max blinks. “Okay?”

He nods slowly, face brushing through the grass beside her. “Yeah, of course.”

“It’s not weird that I- that I like both?” Max asks, and hates the way her voice cracks on the question, like she’s a scared little second grader or something. She’s never liked feeling weak. 

Lucas looks contemplative, like he’s thinking about more than just her question, and he seems a little flustered as he turns back to face the sky, one arm slung over his stomach. “Uh, no,” he says in a high voice, embarrassed, which makes no sense because if anything Max is the one who should be embarrassed right now. “No, I don’t think so.”

Despite his sudden shift in demeanor, Max finds this a bit comforting, and she rolls back onto her back, matching Lucas’s pose beside her. “It’s been kind of freaking me out,” she admits in a low voice, glaring at a low-hanging nimbus cloud like it’s responsible for all her problems. “Because, like, I sort of knew, but it’s really been hard to ignore lately, and I’m worried I’ll, like, make her uncomfortable or something.” El gets uncomfortable easily, although Max usually strives to not be the one to make her feel that way. She gets confused, and then frustrated over being confused, and in her more vulnerable moments she’ll ask Max to help her, to hold her and reassure her and help her understand.

Max would never admit it, because it’s a little creepy and a little embarrassing and probably makes her a slightly terrible person, but she kind of loves those moments. She likes being the person El turns to for comfort. It feels like a privilege, given who she is and who El is and the way they work together.

“I’m sure you’re not making her uncomfortable,” Lucas says, his voice evened out of that weird state but still a little shaky, like he’s thinking about something else.

“Really?” Max asks skeptically, raising an eyebrow at him. “I’m not the most socially adept person ever, Lucas.”

He huffs a laugh. “Well, I wasn't gonna say it. But- I don’t know, you say what you’re thinking. It’s comforting. And if you care this much, you’re probably doing something right.”

Well, Max supposes, it’s not like El has run away screaming yet. Maybe he has a point. “Yeah, I guess.”

There’s a beat of silence, and then; “So, El, huh?”

“Lucas!” Max splutters, rolling over onto her side and whacking his arm. “Shut up!”

He cackles, easily dodging her fist as it comes for his shoulder again. “Sorry, it’s just- the options were sort of limited, so- lucky guess.”

“You’re an asshole,” Max growls, settling back into the grass and glaring at him, the side of her face pressed into the cool dirt. 

“I hadn’t even gotten to the making fun of you part yet,” Lucas says gleefully, and Max promptly rips out a handful of grass to throw in his face. He just laughs harder, brushing dirt out of his eyes, and says, “I mean, no judgment, but I thought one of your general goals in life was to be as little like Mike Wheeler as possible.”

Max groans, shoving her face more firmly into the ground and inhaling the sweet scent of freshly mowed grass. “To be fair,” she says, voice muffled by the pebbles brushing against her lips, “He didn’t actually like her, so it doesn’t count.”

“Fair enough,” Lucas muses, but he still sounds unbearably smug about the whole thing, so Max throws more grass at him for good measure. “I- okay, okay, stop!”

Max huffs and rolls onto her back, crossing her arms over her chest. “Asshole,” she mutters again, but the corner of her mouth is tugging into a reluctant smile anyway, and she can tell Lucas notices when he nudges her arm and shoots her a smug grin.

“Are you going to tell her?” he asks quietly, evidently back to being supportive, and Max takes a deep breath as she works through her answer.

“No,” she settles on, even if the thought of keeping a secret from El kind of kills her. “No, she doesn’t need a relationship right now, she needs something reliable. I don’t want to confuse her.”

Lucas hums, fingers brushing through the grass beside her as he faces the clouds. “You know, you’re, like, weirdly mature about relationships sometimes,” he says thoughtfully, and Max glances at him, unsure if it’s a compliment or an insult or something else entirely. “You broke up with me to give yourself space, which was pretty self-aware, I thought, and now you’re keeping this from El to preserve her feelings, and it’s just- I mean, it’s sort of admirable,” he admits, and Max’s chest warms, oddly pleased, “But- I don’t know. You might be intellectualizing this one a little too much.”

The warm feeling dissipates almost instantly, and Max sends him her best eye roll. “Thanks, Mr. Love Expert,” she says sarcastically, “I’d hate to see what happens when you give solicited advice.”

“I’m just saying!” Lucas protests, and Max’s fingers twitch, resisting the urge to throw more grass in his face, “It’s admirable, but it’s also definitely a bit of a coping mechanism.”

“Lucas,” Max huffs, irritated with how right he is, and he laughs, holding up his hands in surrender.

“Sorry, sorry. I’ll stop.”

Max glowers, folding her arms more tightly over her chest and staring at a particularly fluffy cloud like she can- pop it, or something, just from sheer willpower. Would El be able to do that? She should ask. It would be pretty cool, but then, Max finds most things El does to be ranging from pretty cool to absolutely fucking incredible. Even disregarding her powers.

God, Max is so whipped. This is a disaster.

“Hey,” Lucas says, pulling her from her spiraling teen angst, and she meets his eyes again, watching his hesitant smile as he links his pinky through hers. “I- um. Me too, by the way.”

Max blinks at him. “You like El?”

“Wh- no,” Lucas says, laughing a little, “No, I, uh. I like both too, I’m pretty sure.” He ducks his head, shy, and Max stares at him with wide eyes, a giddy laugh bubbling up from somewhere in her ribcage.

“No shit, really?” she says, half-laughing, and Lucas nods, smiling a little. 

“Yeah,” he admits, “I mean- oh God, do not tell Mike this or he might hate me forever, but I’m pretty sure I liked Will, back when we were kids. I’d always get all giggly and nervous around him.”

Max’s eyes widen gleefully, and she reaches over to whack him on the arm again. “Shut up, that’s the funniest fucking thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Hey, I didn’t know it was a crush until recently!” Lucas defends, blushing and flustered, and Max’s glee only increases. “He was a cute kid.”

“You liked Byers,” Max teases, just because she can, and Lucas glares at her.

“Okay,” he says, “I only told you that because I was trying to make you feel better, don’t make me regret it-”

“Oh, you’re definitely going to regret it, Sinclair, this is the best thing I’ve ever-”

“You are the worst, I can’t believe I used to date you-”

“You love me so bad,” Max counters, grinning and flopping back into the cool, crisp grass, and they continue on like that, their banter getting lost in the spring air.

Max, again, feels something resembling hopeful.

[ashessartt]

I can’t stop thinking about this very specific scene that my brain has crafted so I thought I’d share. Elumax brainrot is real.

Max tapped her fingers against her thigh, rhythmically timed to the beat of “Running Up That Hill” playing softly in the speaker to her left. She sighed and leaned back, falling onto the soft pillows rested behind her back. This was the first day she was alone in her hospital room, only a few weeks after she had been awoken. After she had been saved. It had been 6 months since she fell under, since she- well. She didn’t need to think about that now. Not when she was alone; not when she couldn’t call for any help. 

She had always had someone with her since she woke up- at least one person. The nurses visited her pretty frequently the first week that she had come to, but the visits had ceased after she had proved herself stable. Sometimes Robin and Nancy or Robin and Steve would come in, come to check on her. Sometimes Dustin stopped by, with a new movie he smuggled from Steve’s work. Sometimes Mike and Will came by, if not just to give her some new tapes (Will had a really good taste in music- Mike did not). Sometimes Erica would drop by, either to just keep Max company or ask her if she needed something. She would always give Max the usually sass that made the younger girl Erica, but Max loved it when she stopped by. Erica had become like family to her. They all had. But the best days were the ones when the whole party would come. They would play some games, watch some movies, or just relish in the fact that they were all together again- all alive. On those days, Max felt normal again.

But most days, it was just Lucas and El. And Max could not be more thankful for the two of them. 

Lucas- he had read to her everyday when she was under. He brought her candy and movies and books- anything she asked for. He held her hand when she was scared. He reassured her that she wasn’t alone- that he was there for her. Max had fallen for him harder than she ever thought she could.

El- she had saved Max’s life. El quite literally restarted her heart. El had brought her consciousness back from the brink. She also had strung decorations up in Max’s room, brought flowers every other week, and found Max a new pair of sunglasses to wear when she was finally released from the hospital. El also got herself and Lucas a matching pair too. How could Max not fall in love?

Max tilted her head to the left, feeling the breeze of the fan also on her bedside table. Robin had brought it when Max said that the room’s circulation was shitty. She pulled the quilted blanket she had on top of the hospital sheets closer to her face; the blanket Erica brought that Mrs. Sinclair made for her. She closed her eyes and thought about how grateful she was, and how she relished the different loves she had. She smiled to herself. 

She thought of El and Lucas. Her mind often wondered to them- she couldn’t help it. She loved them. She had given up on hiding it. Why hide from something so beautiful? She prayed to whatever was out there, that they would be okay. That whatever it was would protect them. 

They had gone out today- all of them. To go into the Upside Down. To go and try to find more information on the situation. They thought it was safe; they thought it was better now then never. Max begged them to stay- or to sneak her out of this godforsaken room- but they had refused. El had to go, and Lucas wanted to keep her safe. 

“I’ve already lost you,” Lucas told her softly, holding her hand in both of his, “I can’t lose El too.”

“I can’t lose either of you.” Max replied, her voice wavering.

“I will take care of both of us, Max.” El put her hand on Max’s shoulder reassuringly, a tang of humor in her voice.

Silence.

“You both better come back in one piece,” Max said, tears threatening to roll out of her eye, “or I’ll go down there and kill Vecna myself.”

“We’ll be fine, Max.” Lucas said sweetly, pulling Max’s hand up and placed a kiss between her knuckles.

El kissed Max’s other temple. “I’ll make sure of it.”

Max could hear the smile in her voice. She pulled El’s head to hers and rested their foreheads together. Then, she turned and planted a kiss on Lucas’s cheek. 

Max felt the tears fill up in her eyes. God, she hoped they were okay. They had to be. She really couldn’t imagine what she would do without them.

There was a tap at the door. Max threw her head around fast enough to give herself whiplash. She’d be lying if she said that the sudden noise hadn’t scare her; she was so deep in thought she hadn’t even notice that the her song had ended. 

“Who is it?” Max spoke, loud enough so that whoever was at the door could hear her. There was no response, only the sound of the door opening. Then the rush of feet, moving quickly. 

“Max!” Lucas and El squealed in unison. Max smiled at the source of the commotion- she knew it was them. Ever since she lost her vision, she had committed their sounds to memory. The way the two of them walked, the way they moved, the way they breathed- it had all been committed to Max’s mind. It was one of the few things that kept her sane in this suffocating room.

They had run up to her- to their usual spots, Lucas on her left and El on her right- wrapping their arms around her, squeezing her to death as they always did. Yeah, these are MY people, Max thought to herself. She smiled into their shoulders.

They pulled back, if just enough to let Max breathe. Lucas grabbed her right hand with his left and put his other hand on her cheek. Max leaned into his touch as Lucas leaned down and planted a kiss on her forehead. She smiled back at him, then turned to El, who had grabbed Max’s right hand with both of hers. They bumped their noses together- a ritual they had started before the Byers’ had moved away. El giggled, and Max couldn’t help but smile. El’s giggle could brighten up any room- no matter what. Max leaned forward and caught El with a kiss- sweet and soft. 

El shifted her hand to the side of Max’s thigh, as she leaned into the kiss. Lucas saw this as an opportunity and pulled El’s arm, making her fall onto Max’s lap. She let out a huff as she landed, making Max and Lucas snicker at her plight. El re-oriented herself on the bed, pulling Lucas down ontop of Max. He crashed into Max’s chest, knocking the wind out of her. They all laughed as they re-positioned themselves into their natural spots- Lucas on Max’s left shoulder, El curled up under Max’s left arm, El and Lucas holding hands across Max’s stomach. It was nice, their weight was comforting.

“I love you two.” Max spoke softly, only loud enough for her partners to hear.

“We love you, too, Max.” They spoke together, sweet and soft.

“We always will.” Lucas muttered, as he buried his neck further into the crook of Max’s neck.

“Mhm. Forever.” El whispered, squeezing Max tighter. 

Max took a deep breath and smiled as she nuzzled her nose into Lucas’s hair. She quickly thanked something- anything- for putting these two together on this Earth with her. This is what life was for.