#erica’s writing again

[morganbritton132]

I don’t think anybody has ever explained the Upside Down to Steve so he came up with his own explanations for what happens and then spreads that misinformation around to the new members of The Party.

Like, turns out Eddie didn’t die and Steve’s just like, “Yeah, that happens. Will died and came back. Hopper…Dustin’s cat. Only seems to work with guys though. The girls never come back.”

Robin, who knows this too, “The Upside Down is sexist.”

“Yeah, exactly.”

[clumsiestgiantess]

At long last, chapter 27 of The Other-world Universe; a first date!

all chapters listed here

[Love in all Shapes and Sizes]

Finally!  Real breakfast!  I held Erica gently in one hand while I prepared everything with the other.  She snuggled between two of my fingers and waited patiently.  The weather was getting colder every day as fall became winter, and her body was rather chilly to the touch.  Erica shivered, trying to press deeper against my palm for warmth.  I absentmindedly closed her in a loose fist to warm her up.

Left alone with my more rational thoughts for a moment, I became lost in a storm of ideas and thoughts that had been previously overshadowed by.. other things.  Between the unknown whereabouts of the scientists, Erica’s injury, and everything that happened between us last night and this morning, I was feeling a bit anxious — overwhelmed, maybe — like when you have a little too much caffeine in your system.  

Should I go try to help other areas with my barriers?  There have to be so many more places — hidden or otherwise — that need protection from the people from the portals.  If I stay here, who knows how many more people will be captured.  But if I leave, what if they attack the Cavern City and I don’t even know?  

Can Erica even handle another fight if something happens?  The nurses didn’t let her see me because of this exact reason!  I’m just going to drag her into more fights!  As helpful as she is.. I can’t let her get hurt…  But that’s what got us arguing before; I refused to let her fight.  What am I supposed to do?  If I protect her by keeping her out of it, she can’t protect me, but if she tries to protect me-  I- I just need to get better at keeping her safe, even during a fight.

Waiting outside the Cavern City to hear if Erica had survived her injuries had been the most gut-wrenching, stomach-twisting, makes-you-want-to-vomit-and-cry-in-fear moment of my life.  I hated every second of anticipation, and hated even more so the thought that she would die because of what I’d done.

Deep in thought, I begin anxiously fidgeting with whatever I had available on hand — which just so happened to be Erica.  Tiny joints rolled smoothly between my fingertips; miniscule limbs bent naturally at my touch.  My nerves calmed with every inadvertent movement.  

I have to try to fight alongside Erica — help other places.  Keeping only this one safe leaves so many more people at risk, and a lot more opportunities for the portal people to steal other-worldians.  But.. I’m going to need more help than just her.  Not necessarily on the battlefield — that’s my job — but with everything else.

I’d long finished preparing my meal and had begun to eat as I tried to plan.  By the time I recognized that I was messing with Erica’s little body, the only thing I could see of her was her hand, sticking out between the knuckles of my middle and pointer fingers.  I’d been rubbing it between them, completely unaware.

Quickly, I opened my fist and looked down at Erica, who seemed half asleep.  “I didn’t even realize I was messing with you!” I gasped, slightly surprised.  “You didn’t say anything.  But you look.. actually really comfortable.”  Erica nodded, “It felt like a good massage,” she remarked, stretching out lazily over my palm.  “You know, I’m really starting to enjoy being held more and more.”  

I chuckled, “Well, I’m going to have to put you down now.  But you can sit on my lap if you’d like.”  She looked at me slightly disappointedly, so I gave her one good squish — breaking her saddened look into a smile — then gently slid her off onto my thigh.  After handing her a tiny plate of food, I continued eating my breakfast.  She slid up my leg, nestling herself against my body before eating.

Erica kept smiling brightly through every bite of her meal, making me curious.  She never smiled that much, ever.  Normally she had a pensive, almost annoyed look on at all times.  "What's got you so smiley?  I think you've smiled more in the last few minutes than you have over the last month."  Erica shrugged, "To be fair, the last month's been kinda rough."  "True."  "I guess I'm just happy to get my past off my chest, you know?  And that even with you knowing everything, you still love me.  Like, love me love me.  I.. guess I felt like I had to hide it from you.  I didn't want you to realize that I- I kinda suck."

"You do not," I told her sternly, causing her to look up at me in surprise.  "Are you sure?" Erica asked sarcastically, raising an eyebrow.  "Ok, maybe you do."  "Hey!  What the hell!?"  I shook my head, "We both kinda suck, so it doesn't matter."  She laughed, nearly choking on her mouthful of food.  "Yeah, that's good."  

I waited for Erica to finish her meal; I'd gotten a head start while I held her.  Once she swallowed the last bite, she glanced over at the mountains and the city in the distance.  "So.. I guess we're going right back to the city, huh?" she asked me, sounding rather disappointed.  Shrugging, I took her plate and mine and placed them back inside the box, where they would disappear.  "I guess so.  Did you have anything else in mind?"  Erica sat for a minute in thought.  "I don't know…  I wanted to spend some time with you since I haven't seen you in a while, but I don't know what we could do."

"Hmm.. I could take you somewhere in my world, like to the movies or something."  Erica stood excitedly, nearly falling off of me.  “You mean like a date?  In your apocalypse-free world?!”  I nodded, “I’ve been wanting to do something more normal with you for a while, but with all the…”  “The fighting and hurting and shit,” Erica finished.  “Yeah.  We just haven’t had the time.”  

“Then we’ll make time.  If the giants’ camp is gone, then you can take a break from patrolling, right?”  “Yeah, but Mr. Stoll isn’t going to like-”  “Screw him.  He’s the one who told you to fight in the first place, isn’t he?  You did your job; just take the day off.  You deserve it!”  “Alright, alright.  Let’s go to my world.  I’ll give you a list of the movies that are out and you can pick one.”  I held out my hand and Erica happily climbed into it.  A moment later, we appeared in my own world.  Erica yelped and I flinched in surprise.  Every time she crossed over, electric currents seemed to cut through her like they had when I first came.  It must have something to do with the fact that she didn’t come here ‘properly’ through a portal, or by the lightning strike.

“Oww!” Erica grumbled, rubbing her hands over her arms.  “Is that going to happen every time I come here?”  I shrugged, “I don’t know, but I might be able to create something to help you with it.”  Setting Erica down on the floor in front of me, I grabbed some remaining craft supplies.  Using some thin tubing, I created a small, rudimentary necklace.  However, halfway through building it, I realized it would be useless.

“Wait, this will just be a piece of plastic in my world,” I realized aloud, “It won’t help you.  It has to work in both worlds.”  “Just bring it to my world first,” Erica instructed.  “It’ll turn real there.  Then, once it turns, bring it back.  It’s just one extra step.”  “Do you think it will stay that way, even being brought back here?”  She stared at me blankly for a second, then rolled her eyes.  “Alexis, our weapons aren’t falling into a pile of bricks, are they?”  

My eyes widened in realization.  Hesitantly, I reached back and pulled out my gun right in the middle of the basement.  I gawked at it, sitting heavily in my hands — metallic and very real.  I have my gun in my own world?!  This.. changes things.  It feels like cheating, somehow; I.. shouldn’t have this here.  It was a stupid kind of realization that my gun was in fact real, but the truth that even in my own world I carried the weapon I needed to defend myself — it made the fighting seem so much more real as well.  Even escaping to this place couldn’t completely hide the fact that horrible things had happened.  Are happening.

Erica laughed lightly, “Did you really just notice that?”  “Yeah,” I replied in shock as I slid my gun away, “I- I didn’t expect them to carry over.  I assumed that they would go back to being bricks here because that’s what they are in this world.  Or I guess.. what they were.”  She shrugged, “I guess once they’re made, they stay like that no matter what.”

I smacked my forehead in dumb realization.  “Oh, I’ve been so stupid!  I brought the food box back and forth between worlds and it stayed real too!”  With some confusing logistics out of the way, I took the small band and gave it its ability to protect Erica from those strange sparks of pain.  I vanished with the new creation in my hand, going over to the other-world to allow it to become a real necklace.

As soon as it materialized, I came back to my world.  Once I was sure it still looked real, I knelt down and guided Erica closer with a finger at her back.  “Turn around,” I told her softly, holding out her new created object.  With a little grin, she spun around and brushed her short hair away from her neck.  As delicately as I could, I slid the piece of jewelry around her and tried fruitlessly to clip the tiny chain.  She laughed and patted my fingers, taking it from me and clipping it herself.  “It’s alright,” she assured me, “I can do it just fine.”

Her breath caught as my fingers drifted up — two against the back of her head, one brushing up against her cheek.  “There you go, as long as you wear that, you’ll be alright."  Erica twined it between her fingers and studied the small silver links.  “Thank you.”  Soon after, she slid closer to me impatiently.  "Alright, now that that's taken care of, what movies do you have to offer me?"

After reading, then re-reading, the list of titles and synopses, Erica picked some fantasy, love story, monster movie.  Getting seats together wasn't all that hard; though there were two of us, we only really needed one seat.  Erica happily volunteered to sit on my shoulder instead of a seat that was the width of a house to her.  

Slipping her into my pocket, I waited until no one was in the room upstairs, grabbed my keys, and snuck out the door.  I waited until the theater lights dimmed to let Erica out again.  Even with the room almost entirely dark, I was still hesitant to bring her out.  If anyone saw her… well, who knows what might happen.  Carefully, I picked her up between two delicate fingers — her chest pressed between my thumb and pointer finger.  Holding her like that, I could feel her tiny heartbeat skitter against the pad of my thumb.  

“Are you alright?” I whispered.  “I’m fine,” Erica replied quietly.  Between the noise of the previews and her little voice, I had to strain my hearing to understand her.  Placing her atop my shoulder, the familiar sensation of her body sliding close to my neck tickled my skin.  Now that she was close to my ear, I could hear her tiny giggle as I nudged her closer.  My smile spread from ear to ear.  There was something so comforting about doing nice, normal things for a change.  

The moviegoing experience went surprisingly well.  Everyone was too preoccupied with the movie to spot Erica sitting beside me in the dark.  At one point, she’d laughed at a part that no one else found funny, and her voice rang out surprisingly loud through the otherwise silent theater.  I swallowed nervously; Erica went rigid beside me.  However, the people around us must’ve assumed that I’d made the noise, because no one so much as glanced at me.  Who would assume that the tiny laugh actually belonged to a tiny person, anyways?

After the movie ended, I pulled the hood of my sweatshirt over my head to keep Erica hidden instead of shoving her back in my pocket.  “How was the movie?” I asked once I got in the car, no longer in plain sight.  “Honestly better than I thought it would be,” she responded, “I thought it would be more cliche than that.”  We drove in silence until Erica let out a long sigh.  

“What’s wrong?”  She was quiet for a moment, “I just wish.. I wish we could live normally.  I want to go see your apartment; I want to go out to eat or go to a mall or.. I don’t know.. just walk around with you, at the same height.”  “I know what you mean,” I agreed solemnly, coming to a stop at a red light.  “I want that too.  I’ve tried making countless different items to change the size of things, but they’ve only worked on other items, like food and stuff.  Never myself.”  Erica fidgeted with the collar of my shirt.  “I’ve.. never even properly held your hand.”

“At least we do have each other,” I offered hesitantly.  I felt Erica nodding vigorously beside me, “Yeah, of course!  I like you being this height because I can sit up here and I get to be held.  I guess what I really want is impossible,” she realized, “You can’t be this size and mine at the same time.  But if I had to choose…”  The car became silent again as she thought.  “Honestly, I think I just want things to be normal for once — level the playing field with everything the same size, both you and those nasty portal people.  What about you?”  “I- I don’t know,” I mumbled, “Both have their pros and cons.”  

When I got home, my family was nowhere to be found.  Only Scruffy, Liam's puppy, was left in the house.  A note was taped to the closed basement door.  Everyone was out at the zoo; Dad must’ve left me this note rather than coming downstairs to bother me.  It was a good thing he did.  If he went to the basement to talk to me, I wouldn’t have been there.  

“Well,” I announced, plucking Erica off my shoulder and settling her on the palm of my hand.  “It looks like we have the house to ourselves.”  Scruffy barked and I pet him with my free hand.  "To ourselves and you," I amended.  Erica looked warily down at the eager puppy as though he would jump up and snatch her in his jaws at any moment.  I suppose it would be scary, seeing even a smaller dog at her size.  I nestled a finger beside Erica to assure her that I'd keep her safe, then let Scruffy outside into the backyard where he busied himself with hunting down squirrels that had already scattered too far from his reach.

By then, it was an hour or so past noon and I was getting hungry.  I brought Erica over to the kitchen counter and set her down.  “I’m going to make a grilled cheese for myself, do you want some?”  She didn’t even respond.  Erica was mesmerized by the sheer amount of oversized objects around her.  She wandered around the counter in silent awe.  I shrugged and grabbed some butter and cheese from the fridge.  At the sound of the stove clicking to life, Erica whirled around in shock.  “Wait, I’m sorry, what’s going on?”

I smiled, “I’m making lunch, did you want some, or are you going to wait for something more normal-sized?”  “I’ll have some,” she replied distractedly.  “What are you looking at?” I asked, noticing her pensive, wandering gaze.  “Everything,” she replied.  “The coffee machine is interesting, isn’t it?” I asked sarcastically as she stepped up to it.  Erica laughed, peering into the water tank, hands pressed to the slightly hazy plastic.  “It’s just insane.  I can’t believe there’s a whole other world that’s exactly like mine, but gigantic.  I mean, look at this thing!” she exclaimed, moving on to the sink that was further down the counter.  “This is a sink!”  

I held an arm over my mouth like I was coughing in a poor attempt to hide my amusement.  Erica waved a dismissive hand at me as if to cast away my charmed expression.  “You don’t get it.  This is a swimming pool sized sink.  I don’t even feel like my normal height.  It’s like I’ve been shrunk!”  I continued making lunch while Erica ogled over every little thing.  I didn’t bother telling her that I kind of did get what she was saying.  When I first came to the other-world, I’d been baffled by everything just like she was here.  I’d also had the same strange feeling that I wasn’t my normal height, but rather that I’d grown to some monstrous size.

“Lunch is ready!” I called once the grilled cheeses were done.  I’d tried making a small one for Erica, but it was still about half her height.  Any smaller and it would’ve burned.  I carried the plates over to the connected bar.  It was raised from the counter by five inches or so — just over Erica’s head.  I sat on one of the bar stools, watching smugly as her hands, then head, appeared over the edge of the counter as she struggled to climb up.  She narrowed her eyes at me.  

“Are you just gonna sit there, or are you gonna help me up?”  Reaching down to the counter's surface, I balled up a fist below Erica's dangling feet, using the top of it to hoist her up to the bar's level.  She marched over to her plate with the tiny grilled cheese and bit into it, nodding in satisfaction. 

I loved spending quality time with Erica, and I hoped that I would get a lot more.  However, if I ever wanted some form of 'normal' life with her, we had to sort out the problems in the other-world first.  It was so easy to forget about them here, but I knew we couldn’t just leave.  Though it seems we've saved the Cavern City from capture, there are plenty more places beyond the mountains with people who might not be so lucky to have a giant nearby to help out.

"I've been thinking," I began, turning to Erica.  "You know the plan I had a while ago?  The one where we'd travel around to other places and offer assistance?"  She thought for a moment, then nodded slowly.  "Yeah, the one Ivan disagreed with for some reason."  "Mhm.  He thought the barriers should be tested before I distribute them.  Well, they've been tested.  I trapped a bunch of those military people inside one and they couldn't get out, which also means they won't be able to get in."  I told her, remembering the person who’d accidentally shot themself trying to get through.

"I think it's time we put that plan into action.  The city is safe, the portals and tents have been moved away from there, and they have protection from the barrier."  "And I'm sure there's a lot of other people who could use protection like that," Erica chimed in, "There's no way that the giants we took out are the only ones in my world.  Between you and me, I think we can put a stop to all this."  "Don't forget Ivan, he's part of this too.  I would be dead several times over by now if it weren't for him letting me have intangibility," I reminded her.  “I’ve been thinking.. he should come with us.”

Erica and Ivan have conflicting viewpoints on virtually everything.  Hitting the road with those two in tow would be quite the venture.  However, he was the perfect person to bring along for some much-needed help.  Erica made a face at the mention of him tagging along, but it wasn't the look of anger or disgust she generally gave at the thought of someone encroaching on our time together.  Instead, it was a look of bemusement.  

"Well, that'll be interesting," she remarked lightheartedly.  "As annoying as he is — disagreeing with literally everything I say — Ivan's a pretty good guy.  Do you think we should give him a weapon?  Nothing too major, obviously, because he doesn't like fighting.  But I still think he needs one.  He has to be out on the battlefield to keep up your powers, right?  What if a giant figured that out and went for him?  He'd be defenseless!"  

This was something I'd been wondering too.  While Erica was stuck in physical therapy, I'd asked him what he would do if he were caught in a more serious battle, like the one Erica had gotten hurt in.  He told me he had a pocketknife for emergencies that he could use, but I reminded him that the tiny blade wouldn't really deter someone my size.  Sure, it might hurt them — it might even get close to impaling someone's finger — but in the grand scheme of things, the wound would only make a 'giant' angry.

"You're right," I realized, "I was thinking of leaving him beneath a barrier, but if I need him to move to another place in an emergency, he should have a weapon handy.  I'll make something for him before we go on our grand adventure.  Hopefully he'll never have to use it, but who knows?  It might just save his life."  "And he'll have me to thank for it, because I'm the one who thought it up."  I smiled, shaking my head amusedly.  We were both finished with our meals, so I cleaned everything up.  Erica stood to help, but realized she couldn't do much and sat back down.

"So, were we going to tell Ivan the news?" I asked, letting Scruffy back in.  Erica gave the dog an uncertain glance, then turned away and ignored him.  “Not today.  Today we're staying over here.  Tomorrow we can start planning our trip to save the world."  "What were you thinking of doing the rest of the day?" I asked, curious.  "I don't know..  When is your family coming back?"  "The note said they'd be back at three," I told her, re-reading it just to be sure.

"Show me around," Erica said decisively, "This is where you grew up, right?  I've told you so much about my past, maybe you can show me some of yours?"  Holding out a hand to her, I let Erica climb up and lifted her to my shoulder.  With her settled comfortably, I strolled through the whole house, telling her about all the different memories I had in each room.

"I lost my first tooth right there," I said, motioning to the foyer, "It took twenty minutes to find it because it fell out of my hand and into the carpet, and I was bawling the entire time.”  "Oh, and this is where 'the museum' used to be, but now it's just an extra place to store stuff."  " 'The museum'?" Erica asked, mimicking my air quotes.  "Yeah.  It's where my mom used to store all the heirlooms and valuables.  Me and my brother were never allowed to touch them or even go in this room, so we called it 'the museum'.  I remember there was an old wood-carved table and a china cabinet full of crystal glasses.  As you can see, it's just junk now."  

The room was mostly filled with boxes, all the old delicate things were long gone.  Erica was unusually quiet for a minute.  "You don't talk about your mom often.  And.. I've seen your dad, your brother is down the hall from you, but your mom.. isn't… here," she said, slowing down after realizing that something was off.  I took a breath, letting it out with a heavy sigh.  "My mom left when I was young, about eleven.  My brother, Liam, was only four."  

"Why-?" Erica cut herself off immediately, "Sorry, you don't have to answer that."  "No, it's alright," I assured her.  "I didn't understand why when she left either, but she was cheating on my dad.  Like, not just going out with another guy.  She had a whole other life with someone else.  I remember begging her to stay, but now I understand why my father wanted her gone."  "He…  He kicked her out?  In front of you?"  "He told her to leave.  She did.  There was a big fight, lots of smashing things and cursing.  It was pretty hard to miss."

Erica shifted on my shoulder, leaning forward to try and catch my expression.  "I'm sorry I asked," she said quietly.  "You don't have to apologize; it happened a long time ago,” I told her, trying to feign nonchalance.  “Also, I asked you to tell me much worse."  Shaking off the blurry, angry memories, I continued my tour of the house, trying to convince Erica that it didn't bother me anymore.  

Honestly, I could care less about my mother.  She made her choice, however horrible it was.  My last memories of her still spook me, though.  She was so nice to us, and kind to everyone; it had been a horrible, eye-opening shock for eleven-year-old me to witness her vengeful side when my father got back at her for what she’d done.  And how awful it felt to be quickly cast aside for something better by someone you loved and trusted.

 I just wish I could have the things I need to know from someone — genuine answers to important questions — before they enter my life.  Will they care about my thoughts?  Why don't they like me?  Are they going to leave when things go south?  Life would be so much easier if people didn't have to find the answers to things like that through trial and error.  If only you could look at a person and know.  This person cares about you, they want you here.  This person's faking it for the attention, they'll blame all the bad things on you.  If only you could just… know.

Towards the end of my fun little house tour, I heard the sound of keys jingling in the door and rushed off to my room.  I had to pretend I was feeling sick again.  Erica gripped my shirt tightly while I raced down the hall and quickly closed my bedroom door.  I snatched her off my shoulder and slid into bed.  Opening my hand slightly, I whispered a quick apology.  She lay on her back, slightly curled up to protect herself.  Her eyes were wide with frightened confusion.  

Footsteps plunked down the hallway towards my room, barely giving me any time to reassure Erica.  In a flash, I slid my hand beneath the covers, resting it face down in the center of my chest.  "We're back from the zoo!" Dad announced, stepping through the door without a moment to spare.  "How are you feeling, Alexis?"  "Better," I answered, distracted.  I hadn’t seen Erica look that scared in a while.  Even after the fight where she got injured, she seemed more upset than scared.  "Really?" my father replied.  "Yeah, the nap in the basement helped a lot."

I could barely focus as he started listing a few ways to keep myself on the mend.  Erica had slid out from between my fingers and pressed herself into me.  I could feel her heart pumping wildly in her chest.  Slowly, I unfurled my hand and eased my thumb over her, carefully rubbing comforting circles into her back.  After ten minutes or so, Erica's heartbeat slowed to a more normal rhythm, following my own.  Her little hand reached up to pat my finger, silently thanking me for helping her calm down.

Liam had come into my room to tell me about the zoo, so I knew I'd be there for a while.  He loves explaining everything he loves in almost agonizing detail.  It’s charming most times, but not when I’m dying to speak to my secret tiny girlfriend.

About a half-hour into his retelling of the trip, it started getting hot beneath the blanket after trapping all my nervous body heat beneath it.  Erica squirmed out from my fingers and lay down sprawled over my chest, trying to cool off at least a little bit.  Using my fingers to keep the blanket off her, I kept trying to cut my brother off and tell him that I'd heard enough, but he never took a break.  Finally, after fifty minutes — yes, I timed it with the clock on my desk — Liam ran out of things to tell me.  I reminded him to close the door on his way out.

Erica and I were alone at last.  I threw off my covers and found her panting for breath.  "I am so sorry," I immediately apologized, lifting her off my chest.  Sweat marks stained my shirt where she'd been sitting.  "Here, let me just.." my speech trailed off as I sat up.  Lifting her between two fingers, I placed Erica on my bedside table and rushed to turn on the ceiling fan.  I pulled the cord three times for maximum speed, then turned and locked my bedroom door.  

Grabbing a water bottle off my desk, I unscrewed the cap and poured a bit of water into it, placing it next to Erica on the table.  I stepped into my walk-in closet and pulled on a fresh shirt while she guzzled down her drink.  "Let's.. never do that again," Erica suggested, out of breath.  "How long did your brother fucking talk for?  Two hours!?  I felt like I was melting!"  “I know, I’m sorry.  I couldn’t let you out because he was sitting right there,” I said, gesturing at the edge of my bed.  

Erica spent a while laying on my bedside table, taking in the coolness of its surface and the whirring air of the fan above her.  I sat on my bed while she lay down with her eyes closed.  Soon, I was called away for dinner.  “Just stay hidden somewhere while I’m gone ok?  I’ll bring some food back for you.”  Erica raised a hand and gave me a thumbs up, still lying on her back.  Nodding, I stepped out of the room.  When I returned, I expected her to still be lying on the table.  However, it looked like she’d actually listened to me and hid.  

“Erica,” I called quietly, locking the door behind me, “You can come out, I’m back with dinner.”  A small figure stepped out from behind a pile of books on the table.  She hugged herself tightly as she took a few shaking steps into the open.  “It’s too c- cold in here now,” she told me, pointing to the fan still whirring at full blast.  “Oh!  Here, I’ll turn it off.”  I put the plate I was holding on my desk and yanked the fan cord again to stop it.  Holding out my upturned hand, I took Erica across the room to my desk to eat.  Her skin was cold to the touch, but not so much that she was freezing.  Nevertheless, Erica pulled a few of my fingers closer to warm up.  

After her meal, I pulled out a stack of board games and let her pick one.  Most of them needed a die or a spinner, both of which Erica wouldn’t be able to use very well.  In the end we thought it would be funny to try and play Battleship.  It took Erica a while to get all her pieces in order since I couldn’t help her.  However, according to Erica, the oversized pieces were what made the game more fun.  She had to use a piece of paper to keep tabs on where she’d guessed because she couldn’t actually reach the top board, but she didn’t mind.  She still had her fun with the pieces on the flat board that she could get to.

I ended up winning, which convinced her that I’d cheated somehow.  Her accusations were all in good fun, of course.  The game had lasted so long that it was dark outside by the end.  While I readied myself for bed, I thought over what kind of weapon I could give Ivan.  Shower thoughts, as well as Ivan’s pocketknife idea, helped me figure out what to make.  I’d give him some sort of knife that would immediately paralyze anything that was stabbed, regardless of how big it was.  The details could be decided later, though.  Right now I’m going to sleep.

This time, I walked in and caught a glimpse of Erica’s little form dash behind my laptop to hide.  I stepped over to my desk and sighed, “Erica, I saw you run away.”  Reaching over the top of my laptop, I closed it, leaving her in the open again.  “I don’t like having to hide all the time,” she grumbled, stepping onto its surface.  “You living here never would’ve worked out,” I agreed, “I’m glad you convinced me not to go through with that.”  Erica nodded vigorously and came over to sit on my forearm, which rested on the desk.  

“Thanks for listening to me,” she said, lying back on my arm like it was a couch.  “About that, and everything else.  I liked hanging out with you today.  Even though we can’t do things normally, I enjoy having some downtime from.. everything.”  I smiled down at her and she reached up to me with a tiny hand.  Slowly lowering my face, I waited until I felt Erica’s touch; her fingers softly brushed the tip of my nose.  

Easing myself upwards, I kept a hand on her side to keep her from falling as I turned off the lights and lay down.  Erica slid off my arm and stood on my chest.  Gently guiding her forward with a few fingers, I pressed a kiss onto her lips.  It slowly spread over her entire face as she leaned into it, returning the gesture.  The tiny press of her lips on mine was almost ticklish, and I could barely feel them, but they were still pleasant to feel all the same.

When Erica stepped back to catch her breath, I turned over on my side, catching her as the surface she stood on tilted beneath her.  I brought her to my pillow, beside my face.  Little divots dotted its surface as she stepped across it and rested her arms over the bridge of my nose.  She gazed into my eyes, hers widening slightly in amazement.  I could only imagine what an iris might look like that close up.  

Erica watched me in awe for a while, and I, her.  It was rare that I got to see her face so close since she had to be practically pressed up against me to do so.  Finally, Erica stepped back and got onto her knees.  She carefully slid down the side of the pillow, beyond my view.  I felt her inch beneath my chin, curling up right beside my throat before stretching out down the length of it with a long happy sigh.  Her arm reached over and pet my neck affectionately.  

“You’re so warm,” Erica whispered, snuggling closer.  “It’s so cozy sleeping with someone the size of a building.”  I chuckled, the movement of my throat shaking her slightly.  Everything grew silent after that, and my eyes began to fall closed.  Every once and a while I could feel Erica turning over beneath my chin, startling me slightly awake again.  Just as I began to drift off, I heard another small whisper.

“You know how I said I wanted to be your size earlier?”  “Mhm,” I replied sleepily.  “I changed my mind.  I love us the way we are.”  A warm smile slowly spread over my face.  Reaching up to where Erica lay, I threaded a few fingers around her body, nearly bursting with exhilaration as she pulled herself into them.  “I love us this way, too.”

[dwaekkiiracha]

the new skzlog has my mind R E E L I N G like??? binnie would be so N I C E to drive with!!! (a/n: little bit o’ smut under the cut, minors DNI)

• you’d def be a passenger princess

• he’d bug you nonstop to hold your hand or thigh or just beg to touch you bc the center console sucks

• he’d get you anything you wanted at a drive thru, and he’d get what he wanted. along with a second of what you got

• FEEDING HIM BC HE ASKED YOU SO NICELY AND YOU DONT WANNA DIE BC HES OPENING A BURGER

• leaning back to take a nap with your head facing him, your hand on his arm, his on your leg

• him sneaking glances at you while you sleep, trying not to accidentally turn the wheel and hit the rumble strips on the shoulder and wake you

• him making sure you see the cute animals or pretty foliage you pass by

• “look y/n!! cows!!!”

•quick kisses at stop signs and longer kisses at stop lights

• switching drivers if it’s a long trip

•him getting a blanket and your dwaekii from the back seat to snuggle up

• him whining until you finally put your hand on his thigh like god intended

• GIRL GROUP SING A LONGS!!!!

• him trying to do all the choreo while sitting d o w n

• snapping pictures of you driving and sending them to the boys

• “nice to finally have someone ELSE drive 😌”

• seungmin replies first

• “oh good, now we don’t have to watch the news to see if you drove off the road”

• he gets all pouty and you reassure him that he’s a great driver… after laughing so hard you almost drive off the road

• stopping at a gas station to refuel, he pumps the gas and you get snacks

• he stretches after getting out and his shirt rides up j u s t enough to get a glance at his tummy

•he notices and smirks

• “like what you see hunny?”

• i’d be so flustered it’s not even funny

• switching drivers again bc he forces you

• you’re watching him drive and the way his arm is positioned makes you drool

• you finally say fuck it and start palming him over his pants, watching his erection grow

• he’s trying to talk you out of it, saying that he needs to focus but the sounds he makes in between tell you otherwise

• you slowly pull his cock out and lean over to start sucking, seeing how well he can pay attention to the road

• he takes the hand that isn’t on the steering wheel and places it on your head to gently guide you, moaning as you take him deeper

• doesn’t take him long bc your mouth feels like heaven and the traffic is starting to get worse lol

• you sit back up after wiping your mouth and stretch a bit, wincing from the pain on your left side

• “damn binnie, you were right. that console does suck”

hi i’m in my delulu era and now i’m gonna go cry bc i know i’ll never have this except in my dreams pls enjoy bye

[arobats]

i get how spn is a show about how family is hell and it's horror and all the horrific psychological effects and we as a fandom (specifically talking about samgirls (gn)) love exploring all that yummy trauma

but also im sad and tired and want to think about sam getting actually good things like a support system or maybe dean just getting a real moment of self reflection and making a real attempt at changing their relationship for the better or maybe sam getting to escape hunting or getting to really embrace and explore his psychic abilities or preventing apocalypse 1.0 (or at least an alternative ending where he doesn't end up jumping into the cage)

so basically

[gnomey22]

Canon evidence for EriBo (Failtopia)

"EriBo is a bad ship because it will never be canon!"

Counterpoint: Daniel Failboat is obviously fine with the ship, and there is quite a lot of canon material pointing towards the possibility of it. Such as...

Erica is the only member of the party to find out that Bo is a ghost before S2E18, and she finds out through Bo's own admission.

Among the piles upon piles of compliments and exclamations Erica responds with, is "You're wonderful! How have we never talked before?" I think that first part is a lot to say to someone you only just talked to, considering this very scene shows how Erica uses the word 'wonderful', and the whole line is talking up Bo herself, rather than the mere fact that she's a ghost.

Bo's big development in S2E18 involves Daniel Failboat going into her character menu and altering her Mii itself, giving her a smile. This is something he also considered doing just after the garden scene with Erica, because it clearly meant that much for Bo. He even went into the menu before clicking off of it, so it wasn't just a passing thought.

Erica specifically says "I love it!" in response to Bo's development, which is certainly a strong word to use, especially for someone as usually cold as her.

The very first time Erica sees Bo get hurt in her new form, she immediately rushes to her side to comfort her, before immediately killing every single enemy they were faced with in one attack. Daniel Failboat's platonic explanation for this is, quite frankly, bullshit, and it's never brought up again, so I'd say there isn't one.

Erica and Bo have one of the more insane in-game-relationship-level-to-canon-relationship-level ratio in the entire series, only making it to Level 6 within the game, but canonically, they're most likely on a similar level as Erica and Chi. In case you couldn't tell, that means a noticeably higher number.

My reasoning for that previous statement relates to the party organisation for the final fight against Lee. That being, everyone being sorted onto the same team as someone they're strongly connected to. Shrimp fights alongside her found family, Lee has to fight against all of his worst nightmares, and Erica fights alongside the people she actually likes, that being Chi and Bo. All of these reasons technically go both ways, such as Shrimp being Orion and Bill's found family, and Lee being half the party's worst nightmare. Meaning that Erica was Bo's ideal teammate for the final fight.

I cannot stress enough how many times Daniel Failboat has interacted with EriBo fanart. He's obviously seen a lot of it, he's liked a lot of it, and he's featured a lot of it on his stream countdowns. If he had an issue with the ship, most of what I just said would probably not be the case, or he would've said something about it.

This isn't to say that ships have to have canon evidence to be good, because that obviously isn't true, I just think that using a cringe argument against a ship it literally doesn't work against is stupid, such as saying "EriBo sucks, it can't be canon!" when not only does that not affect the quality of the ship, but they clearly haven't paid enough attention to canon.

[ladyimaginarium]

Clem sits on her knees, preparing the syringe filled with testosterone as golden eyes flicker up to look at the most loveliest pair of blue eyes as Marlon's fingers caress her cheek and she leans into his hand, thumb brushing against her lips, and he gives her a nod. Her fingers intertwine with his and she softly kisses his knuckles and the back of his hand, before injecting the syringe into his inner thigh, feeling him slightly wince underneath her fingers. Thank God for Diana's basic medical training. Ejecting once finished and wiping any possible chance of infection off with a wipe, she rises up and kisses him as his hands cup her cheeks. They didn't even need to say anything. He gently picks her up by her waist after she discards the supplies in the trash, and he gently twirls them both around as she wraps her legs around his waist while Radiohead's acoustic variant of High and Dry play in the background of her bedroom until he lets them fall back on her bed, a surprised squeal escaping her lips. "Marlon, don't play wi' me like that." she pouts afterward, eliciting a chuckle from the taller man. "I like it, though." A moment of silence, before he's reminded."Oh yeah. We gotta see David for another round of service dog training." he murmurs into her ear as he lights a cigarette for the morning, hand tracing down her back in gentle circles, exhaling the smoke away from her face. Clem's lips press at his pulse, box braids surrounding her like a halo, "Yeah, but we need to eat brunch first tho'." she whispers back. Marlon puts his cigarette in the ashtray before he looks up at her. "A BNE, huh. Bacon and eggs. Fuckin' delicious."

Clem chuckles in agreement, nodding, "Yeah, I know that's right."

Erica's fingers slowly trace the back of Yang's hand as he rests in his hospital bed, barely awake. His skin is warm, she thinks, like the sun. One of his eyes wink open to look at her in the light of the winter dawn filtering through the window and illuminating her hair, her eyes. Yang cracks a soft smile, a breathy chuckle escaping him even despite the pain. "You look like shit... but hey, at least I'm holy... heh, get it..." he teases, his larger, warmer hand clasps around her own. Erica's breath hitches, lip trembling before her head dips, shaking her head, "You fool." He's always doing this, trying to make her laugh, even after all these years. Yang's been like this for as long as she can possibly remember, which was very little, but he never once hesitated to do so. His thumb rubs the back of her hand.

"I'm sorry." he murmurs, dropping the lighthearted act, both half lidded eyes looking up to meet her own as his gaze shifts all the way down her body. She always looked so beautiful, even now, all these years later, despite everything.

The albino woman slowly shook her head, "Stop..." she whispered, trailing off, her voice threatening to crack. None of this had ever been his fault. "If I had ever known or suspected..." Yang's tone is filled with the rage of a thousand suns, causing Erica's heart to skip a beat, "Delico and I would've fucking ended him."

The Twilight woman believed him with all her heart, but that didn't mean she wanted him to beat himself up over something he couldn't possibly control. "I'm alright," she lies through a blueberry lipstick smile in the hopes of comforting him, but that only makes him angrier. "Please don't do this shit to me, Erica." he's gentle, but firm, "no one in your position would ever be fucking fine."

"I just want you to be okay, please don't get angry." her voice is soft, hushed after a moment of silence as Yang complies squeezing her hand in support with a long sigh.

[meangirlstobin]

this is why lucas on the line is so important…i wish it followed canon a bit better bc the fact that jeff is also black and he’s in hellfire never comes up and i feel like lucas’ concerns about feeling ostracised for being a nerdy black boy would have some more weight if he like. knew another nerdy black boy

yes!!! i’m so glad lucas on the line exists but it sucks that bc its additional material it won’t be read widely. also, i guess writing canon adjacent stuff is tough, i wonder how much of the season is finished when they start writing?

but it’s so true about jeff though, it feels like a missed opportunity. in the show, the hellfire club members, aside from eddie obv, were never intended to be that important narratively, so jeff could’ve been anyone, but him being black should’ve meant something more to lucas in the narrative of the book. jeff could’ve been another point of comparison for lucas. someone with similar experience he could relate to but not completely understand.

i do think more people should read lucas on the line bc it addresses what the show skims over but this could’ve been really interesting!!!

[rucow]

i need to make a master post of my interpretation of the phantom,,, i've been thinking of a logical backstory for her and i think i got it but it's sad and painful and it makes me feel bad even just to think about it :^( either way i rly want to write down my hcs of her one of these days 👉👈

[libraryofgage]

I hope you don't mind but I wrote a little something lol

Also please ignore typos hfjkds

---

Eddie is driving, of course. He'd drive everyone crazy with his fidgeting if he didn't. He's still fidgeting a little, his fingers tapping the wheel along to the music in his head instead of what's playing on the radio. His left leg is bouncing, barely brushing the bottom of the wheel. His teeth are digging into his bottom lip, the copper-taste of blood creeping into his mouth.

He should have noticed sooner. He should have realized what was happening long before....well...

Before Dustin's frantic phone call and Robin's shaking video call and the group chat that had been collecting dust for the past three years (last used to plan a virtual birthday party for Steve that eventually fell through because of life, which leaves a bad taste in Eddie's mouth even now).

And now he can't stop thinking about it, about his text chat with Steve being untouched for three months. He wasn't even the one who sent the last message. That had been Steve, congratulating him on another tour and asking how the newest album was coming along. Eddie had meant to answer, but he got distracted and it slipped his mind and and and

And nothing. How many times did he see a funny animal and think of texting Steve about it? How many times did he almost send Steve a meme? How many times did he find himself working on that damn album, staring down the lyrics of the title track of an album dedicated to Steve in his heart (like he didn't always dedicate them to Steve and Wayne in his heart anyway), thinking about Steve and his hazel eyes and sunny smile and those two freckles on his cheek?

And now? Now Steve has been radio silent for a month, not even talking to Robin or Dustin for four weeks.

And that's a problem.

"He could be dead," Erica says from the last row of the van, her voice clipped and cold as Eddie's hands tighten on the wheel.

"Don't say that," Dustin hisses.

"We're all thinking it, and if we don't talk about it now, we won't know what to do if it's true."

She's right, of course. Erica is always right, especially when it really hurts. Eddie forces himself to take a deep breath as they pass the sign welcoming them to Hawkins. The sun is slipping below the treetops now, casting shadows and orange light across the road as Eddie forces his foot off the gas pedal so they don't get pulled over.

When Eddie left Hawkins, he never looked back. He chased after a future that nearly escaped him with such single-minded focus that he barely remembers the drive out of his hometown. But he does remember that it didn't look like this.

Hawkins always had a few farms and homes on the outskirts, people who wanted to be surrounded by forest or make a living on pumpkins. When Eddie left, those houses had been lived in; bikes were haphazardly left strewn across lawns, fields of crops were carefully tended, people sat on porches with sweating glasses of lemonade and iced tea in their hands, and lights streamed out from the windows.

Now, those houses and fields are in an unbelievable state of disrepair. Some have smashed windows, the fields of crops are dug up and wildly overgrown, and every single house is dark. If he weren't so sure this was his dimension, Eddie would wonder if they'd somehow driven into the Upside Down when they crossed the town line.

"Uh, that's weird, right?" Dustin asks, nose practically plastered to the window as the town passes by.

Every building is dark. The sun hasn't even properly set, but the streets are empty and the town is dead. It's eerie, sends shivers down Eddie's back, makes his hair stand on end. His jaw clenches, his grip on the wheel tightens, and he tries his damnedest to not imagine the worst case scenario.

He doesn't have to hold off for long as he turns down a residential street. Before his brain can force images of demogorgons attacking Steve to the forefront, an actual demogorgon rushes from behind a house ahead of them, petal-mouth flared wide and teeth on display as its roar forces something Eddie had once buried to flare to life.

Amid the screams from the back and Robin suddenly grabbing the wheel and jerking it to the side so avoid the demogorgon, Eddie somehow remembers to slam his foot on the brakes. The tires squeal painfully, the car drifting sharply and perfectly angling them to face the demogorgon head-on.

Eddie's throat is straining, and he doesn't know why until he realizes he's also screaming. His heart is pounding against his ribs, and his brain has started chugging into over drive. How is he going to get the kids out? How is he going to get Robin out? Who's going to tell his bandmates and his agent that he fucking died the one time he visited Hawkins?

And then he notices a figure (a boy, achingly familiar) sprinting out from behind another house, sliding between the car and the demogorgon, bat raised and swinging with ease. It catches the demogorgon in the stomach, tearing through skin and muscle and sending it sliding back a few precious inches. A shot rings out a second later, the demogorgon's head jerking back. A second shot follows, and the demogorgon's head explods, viscera and a few teeth splashing across the windshield.

The boy with the bat, wipes away some of the gore, turns to another house, and waves a hand. Eddie is already rolling down the window, getting it open just in time to hear the other shout, "Thanks, Ms. Dithers! I'll see you on Sunday for book club!"

Eddie follows the direction of the wave to see an older woman in the upstairs window of a house. Her hair is gray, her glasses are huge, she's wearing a nightgown, and she's reloading a shotgun as she smiles. "Don't mention it, Steve, dear. You'd better bring those Savannah bars again, or I won't be letting you in the door!" she calls back, waving kindly at Steve.

With one more wave, Steve turns to the car. He locks eyes with Eddie first, and Eddie gets the joy of seeing them light up, Steve's whole demeanor suddenly shifting into something bright and happy as he hurries over to the open window. "Hey, guys!" he says, "What brought you down? How come you didn't call ahead? I'd've told you about the curfew."

He leans on the door like it's easy, like he isn't a breath of fresh air Eddie didn't even know he needed. He smiles just as easily, and Eddie is breathless. He definitely couldn't speak for the fucking life of him.

"You didn't answer your fucking phone, dingus!" Robin shouts, barely managing to get her seatbelt off before she's launching herself out of the car. She jumps the hood in a moment of unprecedented grace and crashes into Steve's arms.

She spurs everyone into action, like she made them realize Steve is real and alive. The car shakes as everyone else piles out, surrounding Steve and pushing until he's forced to take a step back before he trips. Despite that, Steve looks...overjoyed.

Eddie tries to be a little calmer as he exits the car, desperately hoping his hands aren't shaking like he thinks they are. He can feel himself on a precipice of something. He's teetering over the edge of a cliff he can't name; or, well, a cliff he doesn't want to name.

And then Steve meets his eyes again, and Eddie is lost in hazel. He's doomed by freckles and sun-kissed skin and a smile that's just for him. He's trapped by warm hands pulling him into a hug, the subtle smell of hairspray, the inescapable stream of Steve, Steve, Steve coursing through his brain.

How the fuck is Eddie supposed to walk away again after this?

okay but a like post-series fic i want that's like: steve harrington being the only man left in hawkins fighting monsters

and not like a 'everyone died, last man standing' way but just. they beat it back, the story ends, nice little tie-up and neatly concluded, eleven loses her powers because their world is completely cut from the other. and life goes on. eddie (yes, eddie lives au don't fight me) goes off with his band, robin-nancy-jargyle off to separate cities for college. the kids go to high school, graduate high school, and scatter across the country. joyce and hop buy a beach house far-far-far away from goddamn hawkins indiana.

steve though. steve stays. he does it too without comment, takes all their calls telling him all these amazing things. the years pass. the calls are fewer and far between. he's mostly in contact with only dustin and robin. except robin's out of country doing some crazy temp job in some remote country, she never catches him at home right now so just leaves him messages. and it takes a couple of weeks for dustin to realize he hasn't gotten steve on the phone.

frantically he calls around "have you heard from steve???" except the most people talk to steve anymore is like phone calls during holidays and holy shit what could have happened??

and what if it's back?

cue everyone who can in that moment, rushing back. eddie hopping on a flight from fucking london direct to indianapolis somehow, heart in his throat. he manages to meet hopper in the airport and they pick up max and dustin at the bus station.

they get to hawkins that is even more different that what they left. a smaller town, a town that shuts down completely when the sun sets. it's creepy and deserted.

except for the fucking upside down monsters of course.

and they're in their stupid little rental in front of this demogorgon and they're screaming but then the thing just goes splat on the concrete and steve fucking harrington is blinking owlishly at them.

"Oh, hey guys!" he calls jogging up to the driver's side window. "Wow, what brought you back down this way? You should have told me, I would have told you about the curfew!"

turns out steve just forgot to pay his phone bill that month, didn't even realize he was missing calls and he's been fighting monsters the entire time because actually they WEREN'T cut off from the upside down at all and he's just been casually fighting monsters for the remaining hawkins residence—the whole town knows now and steve's the guy you call when you have a monster problem

sidebar: WAYNE still lives in hawkins, and he and steve are best friends, eddie munson you are gonna LOSE YOUR MIND

[stevie-petey]

episode nine: the piggyback

“It’s always been you,” Steve whispers, lips pressed above your brow. “The six kids. The family I’ve always wanted. Traveling the countryside. My dream, it’s always had you in it.” You laugh, breathless and in love. “I know, honey.” Sickly sweet warmth cascades through you. Your lips find Steve’s, you kiss the smile off his face. He lets you. “I’ve always known it was going to be the two of us.”

Summary: operation save hawkins is a go. youre eagle one, steve is currently doing that, eddie is youd be lying if you said you havent thought about it, nancy is it happened once in a dream, robin is if you had to pick a girl, and dustin is eagle two. what could possibly go wrong ? spoiler alert: everything. literally everything goes wrong. might as well break a few promises while youre at it. for the plot. but at least its over, right? .... right?

Rating: general, some swearing, violence

Warnings: fem!reader, use of y/n, cursing, weapons, blood, death and gore, injuries, lowkey suicidal thoughts

Words: 8.5k (we broke tradition where the last chapter is the longest but tbh this is probs for the best)

Before you swing in: oh my god this is the end. i am. very very emotional rn. this story is my baby and i dont know what im going to do now that its done. i cant even write an in between chapter because we still dont have season 5 content :((( im gonna miss writing this story, and i will absolutely go crazy waiting for season 5 so i can write again. these next few months will be ROUGH but !!!! thank you guys so so so much for reading. all your comments/reblogs/kudos/likes have meant the world to me. im truly the luckiest girl ever :') for now, and for the final time... enjoy !

–

It’s pitch black outside. All around you is darkness. The sun is long gone, its golden warmth no longer present, retreating into the treeline as if afraid of what the night will bring. 

You’re afraid, too.

Everyone stands around Nancy. The group is quiet as you await whatever she has to say. When she turns to face you, her voice is leveled, calm, but her hands shake. 

She’s afraid, too.

“Okay,” Nancy exhales deeply. “I wanna run through it one more time.” She looks at Robin, prompting her to recite everything back. “Phase one?”

“We meet Erica at the playground.” Robin responds. “She’ll signal Max and Lucas when we’re ready.”

“Phase two.”

You step forward. “Max and I will bait Vecna. When he goes after one of us, he’ll go into his trance. If he chooses Max, we’ll go onto phase three together.”

“And…” Nancy swallows, looking away. “And if he chooses you?”

It’s Steve who steps forward this time. He stands tall, brave, but his voice shakes. “Then I’ll stay with her, walkman ready, while you and Robin go on your own.”

You grab his hand, squeezing it. He squeezes back. 

“Speaking of phase three.” Dustin clears his throat, weary eyes never leaving you. “Me and Eddie wil draw the bats away.”

“Carefully,” you look pointedly at your brother. “Right?”

He rolls his eyes at you while Nancy continues speaking. “Okay, phase four.”

“We head into Vecna’s newly bat-free lair and…” Robin holds up a molotov cocktail. The liquid sloshes around. The scent of gasoline still stings your nose from when you helped her pour it into the bottles earlier. “Flambe.” 

“Nobody moves onto the next phase until we’ve all copied. Nobody deviates from the plan, no matter what.” Nancy reiterates, looking around the RV. Her eyes linger on you, cautious, almost doubtful. She trusts you. She knows she trusts you. But she also knows your heart and the lengths you’ll go to save others. 

Nancy has always admired your selflessness, but she’s also always seen it as your greatest strength and weakness. A coin, two sides. Now, tonight, she has to hope that you’ll follow the plan. Even if it means leaving Max behind if she’s the one Vecna chooses.

Your eyes harden when you realize what Nancy is thinking. Without saying anything, you nod at her. The jut of your chin tells her that you’ll be fine. That she needs to trust you. 

Eddie’s trailer is only a few yards away, but the walk to it feels like decades. Steve guides and Nancy is close behind him. You stay back, walking beside Dustin. Your shoulders brush. His presence grounds you, reassures you that you will make it through the night. 

Dustin, sensing your fear, reaches for your hand. He extends his warmth to you, silently promising you that he will always be here. There isn’t anything left to say.

Steve opens Eddie’s door, turning the lights on and tossing his backpack to the ground. He eyes the rope that connects the trailer to the Upside Down, getting ready for the part of the plan that you honestly really hate.

“Be careful, please.” You urge him, uncomfortable that he has to be the first one to return to the hell that is the Upside Down. It makes sense, he’s the only one able to climb the rope up, but still. You’ve had shit luck these last few days.

“I’m always careful, angel.” Steve winks at you, rolling his sleeves up. “Here goes nothing.”

He climbs up quickly, years of being an athlete being put to use. Everyone watches anxiously. However, when Steve crosses through the gate and lands with a cheesy flip, you and Robin share a disgusted look. 

“What, does he want us to applaud?” She scoffs.

You shake your head. “Somethings I think he has an imaginary audience in his head.”

“Do you think they ever boo him?” “Not like we do.”

Nancy covers her mouth, muffling her laugh, and Robin snorts. You smile at the two of them, momentarily forgetting what’s to come.

“Alright,” Steve shouts up, tossing down Eddie’s old mattress. “Let’s go.”

You take a deep breath, steadying your nerves. Wiping your hands on your jeans, you place them on the rope and prepare for the inevitable torture that this will be. You’re pretty sure you’re bleeding again. 

“A little help?” You ask the others, motioning towards your injured leg and shoulder. “Sorta out of commission.”

Eddie grips your waist while Robin and Nancy gently hike your legs up. Together the three of them are able to carry you almost all the way up. Breathing through your nose, you grit your teeth and climb the rest of the way, wincing every few seconds. The pain is unbearable.

You really hope you don’t sound as pathetic as you look.

When you land on the mattress, small, black dots litter your vision. “I think I’m gonna throw up.”

Steve is already bending down, helping you up with ease. “And ruin Munson’s tidy home?”

Woozy from pain, you bat Steve away and wait for the others to join. Nancy comes next, then Robin, then Eddie and Dustin. Weapons get tossed down. Bodies land on the mattress with finalizing thuds. 

Outside, it’s just as cold as you remember it. Eddie and Dustin stay in front of the trailer. This is as far as they’re going. They aren’t leaving.

Roughly you pull at your brother. His body lands against yours, but the kiss your press to his forehead is gentle. You haven’t done this since he was a kid. Dustin flings his arms around you, nearly knocking all the air from your lungs. He squeezes you tight, as terrified as you are, and you feel tears in your eyes.

“We’ll come home,” your whisper is hoarse, rough and desperate. You bury your face in his mess of curls and kiss his head again. “The house won’t be empty.”

Dustin sniffles, too weak to hide his tears. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” Your throat burns. How can you possibly leave him? 

Vision blurry with tears, Eddie manages to catch your attention as you cling onto your brother. The teen nods, lifting his pinky in the air to wave it at you, reminding you of his promise to you. He’ll protect Dustin. He swore it.

Reluctantly, you pull away from Dustin and wipe your face. “Please don’t die. Who knows what Mews’ ghost would do to you?” Dustin laughs wetly, wiping his own face as well. The thought of your childhood cat haunting his grave is enough to lessen the sting of letting you go. 

“If things here start to go south, I mean, at all, you abort.” Steve breaks the remorseful silence. He doesn’t want anyone getting hurt. He doesn’t want you losing anyone else. “Draw the attention of the bats, keep ‘em busy for a minute or two. We’ll take care of Vecna. Don’t try to be a hero or anything.”

His tone is harsh, but you know Steve means well. You also don’t want Dustin and Eddie anywhere near danger. As long as they stick to the plan, they’ll be fine. They have the quickest escape route and the most amount of protection.

“What Steve is trying to say is that you two better climb back through the gate the moment anything bad happens.” You look at the two boys. They stare at you, grim faced. “I mean it, okay? Go through the gate, don’t try anything else.”

“We’re the decoys, we get it.” Dustin rolls his eyes. “Don’t worry. You and Steve can be the heroes.”

“Look at us,” Eddie nudges your brother’s shoulder. “We’re not heroes.”

Your stomach twists. You hate how Dustin views his and Eddie’s position. They aren’t just decoys, they’re heroes in your eyes. They’re facing an army of bats all on their own, but you don’t dare say this out loud, afraid to encourage them. 

“Just…” your mouth is dry. “Just be safe, alright?”

“We will.” Eddie swallows. Then he pauses, his gaze darkens slightly. Looking back at you, he breathes out, “And make him pay.”

You and Steve look at each other. So much of Eddie’s life has been ruined by Vecna. Even if you all make it out of here alive, killing Vecna, there’s no guarantee that Hawkins will accept him back into the town. You understand the anger that resides within Eddie. The desire to kill the very thing that has destroyed everything he loves. 

You bite your lip. You’ve never made a promise you haven’t been able to keep. But this time you’re facing something bigger than anything you could’ve ever imagined. All this time you’ve tried convincing yourself that you’ll win. That everything will work out.

But you remember last summer. 

The mall. The fire and the deaths. Hopper. Billy. The power Vecna seems to hold, his claws that have sunk into you and Max. His threat to Nancy. The danger that Hawkins is in, up above where your mother sleeps peacefully. Unaware of what you’re sacrificing for her.

This is more than anything you’ve ever dealt with before. But a promise built on an unsteady foundation is all you can give Eddie. 

“Well will,” you echo his earlier promise.

Eddie smiles at you. The one you’ve grown to like, even find charming. Slanted and mischievous. The glint in his eyes never dimmed, even after everything. Through it all, he remained kind.

This is how you’ll always remember him.

– 

The further you walk away from Eddie and Dustin, the harder you have to force yourself to keep going. Your body is heavy, the weight slowing you down, pleading with you to go back. None of this feels right.

Steve’s hand on the small of your back is the only thing keeping your heart from collapsing. Robin’s smile helps, too. 

“You’d think this place gets less creepy the second time around.” She says, stepping over a root. “But I’m still pretty damn creeped out.”

“It isn’t the most pleasant place.” You agree. 

Robin steps over another root, looking back at you as she does so. “At least I’m here to protect you, Y/N. Pretty brave, don’t you think?” “Hey,” Steve warns. “Watch it.”

You knock your shoulder against his and smile apologetically at Robin. “Like always, I think you’re the bravest.”

She smiles proudly, throwing her fist in the air in excitement. However, after stepping over a root for what feels like the tenth time, her heart starts to pound. Looking around, all the trees suddenly look the same. Have you been here before?

“Not to alarm anyone, but I swear we’ve seen this tree before.”

“That’s impossible.” Nancy dimisses.

You agree. “We’re in the woods. All we’re going to see are trees.”

Robin tries to calm herself down, but ultimately fails. There are so many components to the plan, so many ways it can go wrong. “I mean, that would suck, right? Veca destroys the world because we got lost in the woods.”

“We aren’t lost–” You try to reason with her, but Robin is already running away in a panic. You scream at her, terrified of losing her. “Robin!”

“I’ll be back!”

You start to stumble after her. “Why does everyone want to separate?” You huff out, nearly tripping. “There’s safety in numbers! Come back!”

Nancy, seeing your fear for your friend and horrible coordination skills, steps in front of you. “I’ll go after her. You stay here with Steve.”

And then she’s gone, disappearing into the mass of branches alongside Robin. 

“They’ll be fine,” Steve reassures you, grabbing your hand. “They’re tough, even if Robin may lose her mind sometimes when she’s distressed.”

“I think we’re all slowly losing our minds.” You laugh, bitter.

Steve tightens his hand around yours. The two of you walk in silence for a while. The thunder above you serves as a reminder of where you are. The darkness is a threat. But you’re here, together. That’s all that Steve cares about in the end.

“Did you really mean what you said? Back at the cemetery?” He asks, clearing his throat in unease. The question has been on his mind ever since he heard your pleas for Vecna to take you instead of Max. 

He thinks of how adamant you’ve been to protect her. How you’re only here with him right now because Max wouldn’t let you blindly walk towards your death. 

The question strikes deep guilt within you, yet an exhaustion follows. You’re ashamed of how desperately you pleaded to die. Steve and Dustin had to hear you beg for your death. Lucas, too. 

You’re ashamed. Yet you wouldn’t take it back.

“I did.” You finally say. “I wanted him to take me.”

Steve already knew you’d say this. He’d been expecting anger to follow, to be furious with you for sacrificing yourself knowing he’d be left to pick up the pieces. 

But seeing the way you set your jaw and stare ahead, seeing the resolve that masks your face, the acceptance of your decisions, Steve can’t bring himself to be angry. Not at you. 

This is who you are.

“I won’t let anything happen to you.” Steve promises you again. He will always promise this to you. Over and over again, he will die saying these words to you. “I-I can’t lose you. I refuse to lose you.”

Your eyes remain downcast. 

“I know that this is how you love,” he grabs your jacket, begging you to look at him. “I know that I can’t let you lose the ones you love. Dustin, Max, Robin, Lucas, or El or Mike or Nancy. Hell, even Jonathan. I won’t let you lose them, but I won’t lose you, either.”

He understands, then. The selflessness within you and its selfish ways. Yet he doesn’t shy away or hiss at its venom. Steve opens his hands and allows the selfishness to stay there, warming it with his skin. 

You kiss him. Surprising both him and you, yet you melt together. Steve circles his arms around your waist, pulls you flush against him, and in the cynicism that surrounds you, there is still love. 

“Thank you,” you breathe against his lips. He’s wonderful. He loves you wholly, without any faults. Your kindness and its destructive ways; he accepts it all. “Thank you for understanding.”

And this, you believe, is the most selfless act a person can do. Steve’s understanding of why you need to do this, to sacrifice your life for Max’s, even if it means he risks losing you. 

“I should be the one thanking you,” Steve kisses you again, softer this time. Slower. 

You pull back, confused. “Why?” He pulls you in again. “I mean, I don’t know if you know this, but I was a pretty huge asshole back then.” You laugh softly, and Steve knows he’s exactly where he’s meant to be. “You saw this good in me that I didn’t know existed. Right off the bat you saw through me, expecting more from me than anyone else ever did. I wouldn’t be who I am now without you. ”

“Steve…”

“And I’m sorry for thinking you didn’t see a future with me.” He continues, unable to stop now. This is everything he’s wanted to tell you ever since you allowed him into your life. “I know it’s stupid now, apologizing for our fight a week ago after the hell we’ve been through since then, but…”

He can’t believe he almost let something as small as a misalignment of where you’ll be a year from now jeopardize what you have. There is a string that attaches Steve to you, it brought you to him and tied your heart to his. 

“I meant what I said, Y/N.” Steve’s forehead presses against yours. “I’d wait forever if it means I can have forever with you.”

His eyes shine down at you, brown and warm. The honey you fell in love with when he pretended not to know your name, all to get you to laugh. 

“When your head went under the water, that night at Lover’s Lake, I thought you were dead.” Your voice shakes, remembering the fear that choked you. “For those thirty seconds, I thought you were dead, and it almost killed me.”

It was then that you realized how truly you can’t lose Steve. You’ve always known this, but to have his soul ripped from yours so suddenly, so permanently, there are no words to express the agony that poisoned you. 

Losing him would be the one thing you’d never recover from.  

“I don’t ever want to live through those thirty seconds again,” you’re crying. Steve is, too. He wipes a tear that falls, strokes your cheek, and you can’t bear the thought of a world without his touch. “I want forever with you, too. We’ll figure it out, but I’m not losing you. You have to be in my life, in whatever capacity. Whether you’re in a small, cramped apartment with me in New York or in Hawkins, waiting for me to come home.”

Your breath hitches. To think that a childish argument almost separated him from you. 

“As long as we come home to one another, it doesn’t matter.” 

Steve is quiet after you’ve said all this, and for a moment you’re scared you’ve said too much. Revealed too much of yourself, convinced him he’s gotten it all wrong, but then he cradles your face. His hands are soft, tender, the weight of them familiar against your skin. 

He kisses your forehead, and you exhale the last of your uncertainty. All that is left within your lungs is love. 

“It’s always been you,” Steve whispers, lips pressed above your brow. “The six kids. The family I’ve always wanted. Traveling the countryside. My dream, it’s always had you in it.”

You laugh, breathless and in love. “I know, honey.” Sickly sweet warmth cascades through you. Your lips find Steve’s, you kiss the smile off his face. He lets you. “I’ve always known it was going to be the two of us.”

Steve smiles, wide and bashful, and you know that this is where you’re meant to be, too.

“Hey, guys!” Robin breaks through the treeline, running back with Nancy right behind her. “Awesome news!”

“We aren’t lost.” Nancy cuts to the chase. “We think the Creel house is up ahead.”

“Well, what are we waiting for?” You step out of Steve’s arms, though your hand remains intertwined with his. “Let’s go face imminent doom.”

Nancy huffs out a laugh and Robin winces, though Steve squeezes your hand and is the first one to start walking. Together, the five of you descend deeper into the woods.

Unsurprisingly, the Creel house is even more terrifying in the Upside Down. Bats surround it, their screeches stinging your ears. Lightning flashes a deep, blood red and the thunder that follows causes your heart to drop.

You stand at the crest of the hill. There’s a light below you, its glow pure in the abandoned park where it resides. The same park that you told Erica to hide in as she waited for Max and Lucas to take their place. The light flashes.

It’s time for phase two.

– 

“Max is moving into phase two: distracting Vecna. Y/N, get ready.” Erica’s voice carries into the Upside Down.

Nancy, Robin, and Steve all turn to you. Grief and longing taint their faces. Your walkman hangs from Steve’s hand. He grips it tightly. Tension coats the air, nearly suffocating you; you can’t run anymore. 

No one says anything as you carefully lower yourself to the ground. It’s cold beneath you. Hard, unforgiving. You cross your legs, ignoring the deep ache of your wounds as you do so. You close your eyes. The storm is coming. 

“Take the bait, you son of a bitch.” You hear Nancy whisper. 

You or Max.

Take me, you silently beg. Take. Me. 

Silence settles over the group. Everyone waits with bated breath. No one knows who Vecna will choose. 

Steve stands nervously behind you, his hand on your walkman at all times. 

Just take me. Kill me instead of her. If you’ve watched me for so long, then just get it over with. Don’t make this easy, don’t be such a fucking coward.

The words echo in your head. Taunting Vecna, hoping their malice will be what saves Max. That he’ll choose you in the end, give you what you want. You’ll do whatever, say whatever you need, if it means Max will come home. 

Something pricks your skin. An uncomfortable, electric sensation coats your entire body. 

Vecna. 

For a moment you think he’s listened. You can feel his presence, the weight of him shadows in your mind. He’s here, he’s spared you mercy after prolonged cruelty. He’s chosen you and Max will survive. Her blue eyes will remain bright, her body alive.

Then it all comes crashing down.

“He chose Max. I repeat, he chose Max.” Erica says, voice cutting through the delusions you allowed yourself to get lost in.

Your ears are ringing. Somewhere in your body there is still oxygen that has not escaped you, but you cannot find it. He chose her. 

Robin radios Dustin and Eddie, you think she’s instructing them to move onto phase three, but her words are jumbled in your mind and you can’t hear anything besides the screaming in your head. 

He chose her.

“Y/N,” someone roughly grabs your shoulder. “Y/N, look at me.”

Nancy. She’s in front of you, kneeled down. She grabs your arms, her grip vicious. Her mouth moves. She’s saying something, the way her chest heaves makes you think she’s yelling.

Is she yelling at you?

“Y/N!” The ringing doesn’t subside, but you manage to look at Nancy. “We need to go!”

She’s right. You need to leave. There isn’t time to remember how to breathe. You know this. Somewhere in the distance there’s music. Guitar rifts through the wind, Eddie’s melody enrages the bats that swarm the Creel house. They’re gone in seconds, flying towards the sound, and you need to stick to the plan. 

Your head moves shakily, managing a small nod, and Nancy yanks you up with Steve’s help. She looks at Robin, and suddenly her and Steve grab your arms and force you to walk alongside Nancy. They aren’t aggressive as they do so, nor are they cruel. But you can’t afford to shut down. Not now.

Max won’t survive if you do. There’s no time to hesitate. No turning back.

You hope she finds the light.

Lightning flashes all around you, illuminating the Creel house as you stand before it. Steve opens the door first. The vines that cover the ground writhe at the disturbance. He shines his flashlight, his heart drops when he realizes just how infested the house is.

“Shit,” he breathes out. The floor is virtually impossible to walk across. “That’s not good.”

Then, because he has no other option, Steve starts jumping to any safe spot he can land on. He looks ridiculous as he does so, but for once you aren’t focused on that. Instead, you stare down at your injured leg and wince.

“Great,” your thigh is currently more blood than flesh. Jumping on it is quite literally the last thing you should be doing. “This is gonna hurt.”

“At least you have good balance?” Robin offers, though she doesn’t believe what she’s saying either. 

Nancy grabs your hand, then Robin’s. She looks at the two of you and smiles, trying her best to look reassuring. “It’s okay. You guys got this.”

The first jump hurts, setting the remaining nerves in your upper thigh on fire, but you can’t afford to scream or collapse. You have to remind yourself that the vines are interconnected. One wrong step, one miscalculated fall, and they’ll wrap viciously around you. 

It’s a slow, tedious process trying to get to the attic. The stairs are the hardest part. The vines twist with every step, slithering across the walls. Steve does his best to help you, offering you his hand for support, but you both hold your breath every time your foot slips. 

When you make it to the attic door, everyone readies their weapons. In one hand are your knives, in the other a molotov cocktail. Steve spins you around, digging into the backpack for an ax while Nancy grabs her gun. 

Your foot lifts, about to step forward, before the ground beneath you shakes violently. The entire house trembles, and Steve barely has enough time to catch everyone as all of you struggle not to fall. 

“Are you fucking kidding me?” You sneer, holding desperately onto Steve. This is all some sick, cruel joke. A poorly timed rupture in your rapture.

But then the house stills. Everything is quiet. You, Nancy, Steve, and Robin stare at one another, panting. Nobody moves. There’s a clarity in the air, a false sense of security. 

That’s when the first vine latches onto Robin. 

It folds around her ankle before tearing her away from you. She screams, so do you, and her body is thrown against the wall as more vines encase her limbs. They move fast, snake like, and everything unravels after that. 

“Steve! Y/N!” She screeches, terrified. “Nancy!” 

You’re at her side in a second, stabbing at the vines. Your knuckles are white as you grip your knives, your biceps strain. You aren’t letting them take Robin from you. “Hold on!”

Your teeth grit together in exertion, sawing as fast as you can. Steve and Nancy are on the other side, throwing their axes as hard furiously into the vines. But nothing works, they’re too thick, and you don’t realize that one of the vines has wrapped around your arm until it’s too late.

“Y/N!” Steve screams when your body gets lifted into the air. You try to fight it, to pry your arm away, but your legs give out and soon a second vine wraps around your other arm. Then a third, a fourth and a fifth. 

In seconds you’re pressed against the wall. 

“Steve!” Screams are ripped from your throat, you try to call out, to beg for your life, but the more you move, the tighter the vines constrict.

Steve calls after you, ramming into the wall as he tries to cut you loose. “I got you! I–”

The ax he’s holding gets yanked back by a vine. He’s launched into the air, body landing harshly next to yours several feet up the wall. He screams again, but his voice dies when a vine cuts off his breathing and chokes him.

Another vine coils around your throat and suddenly you can’t breathe. Your airway constricts. Sobbing, you try to reach out to Steve. You’re inches apart, his fingers are so close to yours that you can feel their warmth, but you can’t reach him

All you want to do is hold him. 

Nancy falls to the ground, the last victim. She gets thrown to the opposite wall, it all happens so fast that she doesn’t even have time to scream. 

Your vision blurs. You close your eyes.

This is how you’ll die. 

Far away from your home. No one will find your body down here. Dustin will come looking for you and he’ll face the same fate. He will die trying to find you. Vecna will destroy everything you’ve ever loved.

Your lungs burn, fighting for breath that they cannot get. Blood rushes to your head. You take your last breath. The sound of it echoes in your ears. 

Everything goes black. 

Your mother will be worried about you. 

I’m sorry.

– 

There’s a body beneath yours. 

It groans, gasping for air, but your vision is dark and you can’t see anything. Pain erupts in your wrist. You try to move it, but the sting makes you nauseous. 

There’s coughing all around you, but you’re too weak to suck the air back in. Everyone cowers for breath. The vines rescind, unwrapping themselves from your skin. There’s a body beneath you, and a gentle hand cups your cheek, you know it’s Steve.

“Breathe, angel.” His voice cracks, wounded. It hurts to speak, but he needs you to breathe. “Y/N, you have to breathe.”

Everything is numb. Your lungs are empty; you can’t remember how to fill them. Steve coaxes your lips open, blows air in your face, does whatever he can think of to get you to breathe, before finally, miraculously, you inhale sharply and begin coughing. 

“Are you alright?” Steve asks you softly, rubbing your back as you cough. “It’s okay. Take your time.”

Your throat is raw. It takes everything within you to speak, but you want to. You need to. There’s only one thing you want to say. “We have to make him pay.”

The anger is back, and Steve’s jaw sets. Vecna has hurt you. He’s hurt everyone you love. He’s chosen Max for his final death and your fury threatens to devour the sanity you have left. You’re tired of his shitty mind games.

It’s like what you promised Eddie: you have to make Vecna pay for what he’s done to you all.

“I don’t believe in a higher power,” Robin rasps, breaking you from your thoughts. “Or divine intervention. But that was a miracle.”

Nancy cocks her gun, already walking towards the attic door. “Then we better not waste it.”

“Phase four.” Steve says, steadying himself against you. 

“Flambe.” Robin finishes. 

You flick your knives out. “Let’s finish this.”

– 

Vecna’s body hangs in the attic, thick, gruesome vines attach him to every crevice. He’s unmoving, eyes closed, and seeing his body up close makes you want to gag. He’s a terrible, vile creature. 

But Dustin had been right: Vecna is in the same trance-like state that El goes into when she uses her powers. 

Without being told to, Robin sets down her bag. All the molotov cocktails are inside. Everyone grabs one, silent. Almost as if you’re all too afraid to break the spell he’s under. You only get one shot at this. 

Steve has the lighter. You hold the first cocktail up, and he looks at you, eyes shining. He asks you if you’re ready, if this is what you really want, and you nod. At your signal, Steve throws the cocktail into the air.

The bottle shatters against Vecna’s body. The flames engulf him, the impact of the blast so powerful that it knocks you and everyone else back. There’s an awful scream as Vecna’s vines begin to snap from the sudden heat.

Your screams mix with his, throwing another cocktail with every ounce of strength you have left in you. You’re bruised and bloodied and exhausted, but you think of Max. You think of Billy and Hopper. Eddie and how his life will never be the same again. You think of Chrissy, Patrick and Fred. All the innocent lives that have been lost for a cause that you despise. 

This is for them. For Hawkins. For your home.

The last of the vines die withering away, and Vecna’s body falls to the ground. He stands, body on fire, and stalks towards you. His eyes are only on you. 

Robin lights the final cocktail and the force of it sends Vecna stumbling back. It’s enough to break through his chest, and he’s weak. Weaker than you’ve ever seen him. 

“Shoot him, Nancy!” You cry, ready for this all to end. 

And she does.

The first blast pierces Vecna’s skin. The second, third, and fourth diminish him to ruined pieces. With every shot, Nancy steps forward, drawing him out, and you’re right behind her. Vecna releases a deep, furious roar. The sound of it sinks into your bones, but you no longer fear him. 

He isn���t worth your fear. 

Nancy raises her gun again. She deals the final blow, sending Vecna through the old, rotted wood of the house into the dark night. He falls, screaming, before everything is quiet. 

The roar of the fire that surrounds you is the only sound. You all stand in the attic, numb. None of it feels real. All that’s left of Vecna is a hole in the house, his body far below, sprawled on the concrete outside. 

“Did we…?” You’re afraid to jinx it, to somehow bring him back. But this has to be it. There isn’t any other way for this to end.

Nancy doesn’t say anything. Instead, she turns around, running back down the stairs. No one has to ask why she does this; you all know. There has to be a body. There must be tangible proof that you’ve won.

Everyone runs outside.

Vecna’s body is gone. 

The only indication that he’d been there is an outline of flames that molt the grass below it. But there is no body.

“No,” you run down the steps, kicking through the grass as you look around. You’re frantic, sprawling on the ground as if you’ll find him buried beneath the ash. “No, where is he?”

You killed him. He was on fire. Nancy put more than five bullets in him. He fell from the attic, a height that alone should’ve killed him. Where the fuck is he? You did everything right. Followed every step of the goddamn plan.

“This doesn’t make any sense.” Something is wrong, you just don’t know what. Steve and the others join you. They’re quiet, fearing what you’re refusing to even consider. Four deaths. That had been all Vecna needed. But you killed him. “None of this makes sense, unless… Unless he–”

No. 

A bell chimes. 

The sound sends you to the ground. Your knees give out, collapsing under the weight of it all. “No!” Your scream is loud, guttural. Tearing from your chest as it tears out your vocal chords. There’s blood in your mouth and you want it to choke you. 

It’s Max. 

He got her. He killed her. 

All of a sudden there are arms around you. Someone carries you back up the stairs, back into the house that has taken everything from you. Steve holds you to his chest as he, Nancy, and Robin stare at the grandfather clock before them. 

It’s alive.

“Four chimes,” Nancy’s voice can barely be heard above your crying. “Max…”

The realization settles upon all of you. You’re in hysterics, no one can calm you down. You’re crying so hard that you can’t breathe, but you don’t want to breathe anymore. 

Grief pours from you in cruel, bitter waves. All you do is cry, barely even registering the earthquake that follows your devastating loss. 

Steve has to set down your crying figure in order to stabilize Robin and Nancy. You curl into yourself on the ground, making yourself as small as possible. There is too much. It’s all too much. Your head digs into the floor beneath you, cutting you, and your tears mix with the blood. 

Over and over again the clock chimes. Like laughter. His laughter. 

He won. 

Steve holds onto the stairs as the earthquake worsens. He has to crawl over to you; you’re rocking back and forth on the ground, your cries heard even above the cracking of the earth. His hand wraps around your weeping body and he won’t let you go. Steve tries to shield you from fallen debris, the world is falling apart, but you don’t move.

You don’t care anymore. 

It’s always your fault in the end. You lose everyone eventually; you get them killed. You can never save them. You will never be able to save them.

She’s gone. 

Max is gone. 

– 

The days pass. You’ll come to remember them in fragments. 

Returning to Eddie’s trailer and finding Dustin crying over his dead body. Prying him away, your tears mixing with your brother’s when you have to tell him that something has happened to Max.

Finding Hawkins in flames. Seeing the deep gashes in the town you grew up in. Stumbling to the Creel house, racing side by side with the ambulances for everyone within the once quiet town, and collapsing again when you find no one there. 

Going home. Your mother’s arms breaking you. 

Steve. How he never left your side throughout it all. Holding Dustin’s hand, unable to stop crying. 

Visiting Max in the hospital the day after. The stench of sterilizer and surgical tools. Seeing her lifeless body still alive. The countless other bodies in the building that died due to your failure. 

When the news broadcasters announce Hawkins to be cursed. The burden that you can’t tell them that they’re right. The guilt seeing your baby brother’s limp. Another scar he will carry with him forever. 

All the hurt in the town. The pain. 

The collapse of your home; they’re calling it an earthquake. 

It all comes to you in flashes. 

Hawkins high school gets converted into a donation center for everyone dishoused. Visiting it is your idea. You can’t bear the thought of spending any more time inside your home knowing there are hundreds of others who no longer have a place to call home. 

“Anything else?” You place your old comics into one of the boxes you’re donating. 

Dustin shakes his head. “That’s the last of it.”

He hasn’t left your side in days. He still keeps your walkman on him, though neither of you know if it’s important anymore. Dustin is afraid that you’ll never put the headphones on again, even if it could save your life. 

You tape the boxes up, carefully writing down their contents on one of the flaps. Your fingers are scabbed. Your wrist is stiff, locking up if you move it too suddenly. 

Books.

Bedding. 

Clothing.

Anything you can offer, you’d give it all to Hawkins if you could.

Steve picks you up. He helps you put the boxes in the back of his car, gentle with you as always. “You guys ready?”

You nod weakly, and Steve kisses your forehead, careful of the cuts that litter it. He helps you into the car. Turns on your favorite songs. Tries to distract you from the wreckage that encases Hawkins as he drives; you keep your head down. You can’t look at any of it. 

Nancy is waiting in her driveway with Robin, a pile of their own boxes at their feet. They greet you kindly, warmly, with an air of fear that you’ll break, and you’re too tired to pretend. 

“I found some more of your old stuff in the attic,” Mrs. Wheeler walks out of the garage, smiling despite the circumstances. “I think it’s lovely you’re doing this, Y/N.”

“We all just want to help,” you politely respond, staying near Steve’s side. 

Nancy picks up one of the stuffed animals in the box and pouts, seeing her old favorite toy. You’re about to tease her, try to laugh, when a pizza delivery van speeds down the block. 

“Someone order a pizza?” Mrs. Wheeler asks.

“Not that I recall.” You mumble, confused as your eyes follow the car. Every business in Hawkins is shut down right now. It doesn’t make sense for there to be a pizza delivery.

It parks in front of the Wheeler’s, and when you see who steps out, you drop the box you’re holding and run towards them. 

Will and El throw themselves around you, hugging you tightly. Dustin joins, and holding them again, having them here with you, makes everything okay for a moment. Your kids are okay, they’re safe. 

“Are you okay?” El asks you, pulling away slightly. Her eyebrows knit in concern when she notices the cuts on your face and how red your eyes are. “Did he get you?”

Somehow you aren’t surprised that she knows about Vecna. 

“I’m okay, sweetie.” Her hair is buzzed. Already you miss the long strands she once had. You don’t know what she’s been through this last week, but you hope, more than anything, that she hasn’t lost her kindness. “I-I’m okay.”

Your voice catches at the end, and immediately El understands that something else happened.

“We were worried about you,” Will doesn’t let you go. “When El told us what was happening, Jonathan almost lost his mind.”

Jonathan.

Hearing his name makes you remember everything. Instinctively your eyes find him. They always do. Jonathan has Nancy in his arms, but when he senses your eyes on him, he looks up at you. He will always be able to find you. Your heart stops, looking into his once familiar brown eyes.

Jonathan rushes towards you, as he always does, and his arms around you feel like home. 

“Bug,” he breathes against your neck, holding onto you tighter than he ever has before.

You melt when the nickname drips from Jonathan’s lips. It’s been so long since someone has called you that. It’s been even longer since you’ve held Jonathan like this. 

“God, what happened to you?” His eyes roam your body, catching on your bandaged shoulder and thigh. The cuts on your cheek. You try to ease his concern, grabbing his hands, but Jonathan starts to ramble. “We-we tried to get back to Hawkins as soon as we could. The second El told me you were in danger I–”

He inhales shakily, presses his face deeper into your neck. “All I could do to stay sane was think of your voice. Of our last phone call.”

You bury your face into Jonathan’s messy hair. You’re crying, but for what, you don’t know. His scent is bittersweet. His arms are reminiscent of what was once. You’ve missed him, but nothing will ever be the same again.

“I need to see her.” El’s raised voice causes you to let go of Jonathan. She’s standing in front of Dustin, arms crossed, and you know he’s told her the truth. “Take me to Max.”

“What’s wrong with Max?” Mike slings an arm over your shoulders, putting all his body weight against you in greeting. “Miss me, Henderson?”

You move his arm down, forcing him into a hug. You want to remember these next few seconds. The remnants of his childhood before it comes crashing down on him. “I did, Wheeler.”

Mike hugs you back, but when he sees the distress on El’s face, he lets you go and walks towards her. “What? What’s going on?”

Dustin is the one who breaks the news. Shamefully, you know it should’ve been you, but you haven’t been able to say Max’s name in days. There’s too much guilt, remorse, resentment that it hadn’t been you. 

It’s a mess of tears and panic when Dustin tells them. Will covers his mouth, holding back tears, while El storms inside the pizza delivery van as Mike demands that Jonathan take him and everyone else to see Max. They don’t believe any of it. El told them that she saved Max. 

“Are you coming, Y/N?” Jonathan holds his keys up. Everyone else, including Nancy, are already inside. A boy your age, you think his name is Argyle, waves at you from the passenger seat. 

So much has changed. Unable to form the right words, you shake your head at Jonathan. Yet even after months apart, he understands your unspoken words. You can’t see Max again. Not yet. It’s too soon, too much for you to bear.

Seeing her limp body once was enough. 

“We’ll be back,” Jonathan hugs you one last time, pressing a kiss to your hairline as he lets you go. “I promise.”

Steve steps forward then, wrapping an arm around your waist as he stands next to you. The two teens lock eyes, Steve gives Jonathan a cool, steely look. He remembers what you’ve told him. He remembers Jonathan’s words to you before everything collapsed. 

Sensing his anger, you squeeze Steve’s arm. Not here, you beg him. Not now.

Exhaling slowly, Steve offers you his hand. You take it, allowing him to walk you back to his car as the others leave.

– 

The donation center is packed. There are so many people inside, sitting on makeshift cots and pinning missing posters of their loved ones to a bulletin board. Nurses tend to the injured. Mothers cradle their children. The sight makes you ache. All these people, displaced by what they believe to be an earthquake.

You set the boxes down at the main dropoff table, and though the kind employee praises you for how organized the boxes are, you can’t help feeling that you should be doing more. 

In the hundreds of injured and grieving people you’ve seen, you’ve only noticed a handful of workers. 

“Is there any way we can help?” You ask the woman, looking around with a frown.

“Truly anything.” Robin says. “We just… we want to help.”

The woman seems surprised, and you wonder how rare it is for kindness to still be in a town that has known nothing but turmoil these last few years. 

You and Steve get placed sorting clothing while Robin is assigned to the food station. Dustin passes out cups of water for everyone. It isn’t much, but the work is meaningful and it eases the tension in your chest. 

“So…” Steve folds a t-shirt. “Can I ask about Jonathan yet?”

Picking up tattered jeans, you place them in the trash pile. “Might as well.”

“How do we feel about his sudden arrival? I mean, the giant pizza statue on the van was a little dramatic for me.”

He’s trying to keep the conversation light, which you appreciate him for, but you also know that Steve is doing this because he’s worried about you. And, you know, he’s unnerved seeing Jonathan. There’s still a lot left unsaid between you. 

���It’s… a lot.” You admit, struggling to find the right words to convey how you feel. “I’m relieved he’s okay, and I really am happy to see him again, but I… I understand, you know. If you’re upset.”

Steve scrunches his face. “I’m not upset, just… I don’t know. Annoyed with the guy.”

“So you’re upset.”

“Okay, no–”

“Is that Vickie with Robin?” You unintentionally cut Steve off, too surprised by the fact that mere feet away from you is Robin and Vickie making sandwiches together. And they’re laughing. “Are they talking together?”

Steve whips his head around, disbelieving, but lets out a low whistle when he sees Robin making easy conversation with Vickie. “Well I’ll be damned. Who knew our girl had it in her?”

The Jonathan talk lays forgotten as you and Steve admire your friend. You share a secret smile, remembering your own first awkward, bantering conversations together. There is so much pain in this town, and yet you watch as love still blossoms within it.

Across the room, you see Dustin talking to an older man. They’re deep in discussion and you notice your brother’s shaking shoulders. He’s crying. The older man is, too. You narrow your eyes, unsure if you should approach, but when Dustin hands the man Eddie’s old guitar pick, you realize who it is. 

“I’ll be back.” You kiss Steve’s cheek, excusing yourself. 

He tries to ask where you’re going, but you’re already gone. Your brother needs you right now.

Walking over, you stand to the side and allow Dustin and Eddie’s uncle some privacy. While there are so many things you want to say to the man, like how kind his nephew had been, how brilliant his mind was and how you’ll never forget the smile that never left his face, this is for Dustin and Dustin only. 

Eddie was his dearest friend. There is no greater loss than that.

Whatever Mr. Munson tells Dustin will be good for him; it will be the closure you can’t give him yourself. 

An arm wraps around you. You lean into the touch, knowing who it is without even having to look. You rest your head on Steve’s shoulder, exhausted, but content with the warmth he offers you. The two of you keep an eye on Dustin, ready to catch him in case he falls. 

Eventually Mr. Munson leaves, and you take his place next to Dustin. The second you sit down, the boy cries into your shoulder. Tears soak your shirt and your brother’s frail body shakes. “I-I had to tell him that Eddie died a hero.”

“I know,” your head falls against his.

“They’ll never know what he did for this town.” Sobs wrack Dustin’s body. “It isn’t-it isn’t fair.”

You rub his back, brush his hair out of his face. “None of it is fair, Dust.”

He cries even harder and you try to shield him from the world with your body. You try to block out the grief, the bitterness that follows death. How empty it can leave you. An emptiness that can swallow a person whole. 

You won’t let it happen to Dustin. 

“We’re gonna get through this together, alright? You and me, just like it’s always been. I promise–” Your words catch in your throat, tears forming in your own eyes. There’s so much you want to promise your brother, to swear that will come true, but you’re just as hurt and lost as he is. 

“I promise,” you make the words come out. “That everything will be okay. We’ll-we’ll be together, heal and do whatever we can to make everything okay. I-I’ll never leave you, you hear me? I won’t leave you again.”

Though Dustin still cries, his breathing slows. 

“Together. We’ll face this together.” As you talk, you notice a crowd of people swarming by the windows. They’re looking at something, staring and gasping. Your voice grows weak, anxious that something bad is about to happen. “It’ll… it’ll all work out.”

Dustin notices the crowd, too. He looks to you for answers, but you’re silent. You don’t know what’s happening. There’s a murmur in the crowd, hushed, urgent. It sets your skin on edge. Even more people get up now, some are even running outside, and every nerve in your body is screaming at you to run. 

Suddenly the room darkens, as if a giant cloud has covered the sky. Your stomach twists, and you get up, following after the crowd. Bodies shove each other, people blindly walk through the haze of whispers and uncertainty. 

When you step outside, all you see is ash.

The ash falls like snowflakes, beautiful and pure. There’s a softness to it, something delicate in the ruin it leaves. Dustin knocks against you, staring up into the sky with the same dread that you feel. The crowd is murmuring with glee, whispering excitedly about what they believe to be snow; but they’re wrong.

You’ve always won in the end. 

You’ve come to believe this to be a fact. You once told Steve that you believed you used up all your luck. Saving Will, closing the gate over and over again. The penance was the deaths from this summer for the greedy way you abused luck.

Steve had reminded you that there was still good leftover in the bad. That there will always be softness in the destruction, a reason for hope. That you will always find a way out, that luck and love were two sides of the same coin.

You’ve always won in the end. 

Yet, lost in the swarm of people, you watch as the sky begins to fall and Hawkins descends into the Upside Down. 

You no longer believe it.

[END OF SEASON FOUR]

-

⌑ series masterlist

⌑ if youd like to buy me a coffee ☕︎

⌑ thank you for reading ! feel free to like, comment, reblog, or send in an ask so we can chat <3

[catherinnn]

Ok, I have a cute/silly fic request:

Can I get a story where everyone in Hellfire club knows that the reader and Eddie have feelings for each other, so they each come up their own plans to get them together (whether or not Erica is included in this I'll leave up to you). It seems as though each of their plans fail, until they see reader and Eddie out on a date together. They all get so excited that they were successful that the reader and Eddie don't have the heart to tell them they've actually been dating for a while and wanted to wait before telling them. So they just let them believe it was all them.

The Plan Totally Worked!

a/n: Thank you for requesting again babe, i hope you enjoy this! I'm catching up with requests now that have more free time, so if anyone has any, please feel free to write me!

words: 1k

masterlist

“Guess who?” you felt two hands cover your eyes as you were at your locker. 

Behind you stands Eddie smirking with a confused Dustin by his side. They were discussing which Lord of the Rings book is their favorite and why, when Eddie ran up to you as soon as he saw you, forgetting all about their topic. 

“It’s easy to guess when you’re the one wearing a billion rings” you tease him. He moves his hands as you turn around.

“I forgot you were so smart” he says, rolling his eyes playfully.

“Hey boys” you greet them.

“Hi sweetheart, you look very pretty today” Eddie gives you the cutest grin. 

“Hi” Dustin greets you, still pondering about the change of demeanor Eddie suddenly had when he saw you. 

“Yeah, obviously he likes her,” Lucas says. “you actually never noticed how flirty and playful he gets when he sees her?”  

“Yeah, I mean they do flirt constantly. But they’re still just friends, aren’t they?” Dustin thinks.

“Yeah, I think so” Mike agrees.

“Do you think she likes him too?” Dustin asks.

“She wouldn’t flirt back as much as she does if she didn’t. I say she does” Lucas says as if he’s a relationship expert, which makes Mike roll his eyes.

“Why do we even care?” he asks.

“They’re our friends, and obviously they are too chicken to make a move! We have to help them!” Dustin says, feeling very motivated.

They begin brainstorming a series of plans to get the two of you together.

Like the secret date: 

Dustin invited you to meet him at an ice cream shop, he said the rest of the group were coming as well. He also asked you to dress up nice which sounded very random. 

Funny enough, none of the guys could make it, only Eddie, who was just as confused as you. Either way, you ordered your ice creams and sat at a table together. 

The three boys were watching from the other side of the window of the place, giving each other high fives since the plan seemed to work. That’s when they see Steve and Robin also entering the ice cream shop and joining you two, ruining your ‘date’. 

What the boys didn’t know is that since Dustin had told you they were all coming, you also took the liberty to invite Steve and Robin, thinking that you’ll have a nice afternoon all together. 

Since that didn’t seem to work, they had to move to plan B:

“Wayne’s birthday is coming up, isn’t it?” Dustin asks Eddie in the middle of lunch.

“Yeah, it is. How did you know?” 

“I just remembered you mentioned it… Do you know what to get him?” Dustin acts.

“Like a gift? I was thinking maybe a new hat or another mug” Eddie shrugs.

“Oh come on, that is so bad!” Dustin says and Eddie frowns. “You could do something more meaningful, like bake him a cake!” 

When Dustin says that you choke on your drink. “Sorry, I just imagined Eddie baking” you say laughing.

“Yeah, I don’t know what caused the impression that I could ever bake a cake for someone, but it is far from the reality” Eddie tells Dustin.

“Well, why don’t you help him? You like baking, don’t you?” Dustin asks you.

“Yeah, sometimes” you say.

“That’s perfect! And it’s a much better gift!” Dustin sells it.

“It would be a nicer gift than just another hat” you agree.

“You’ll help me? Because I’m lost if I have to do it alone” Eddie asks you.

“Of course I’ll help, I’ll come over to your after school” you say and Eddie nods.

Dustin thinks this is it, there is no way that this didn’t work. He can imagine you telling Eddie how to do everything and then helping him because he’s just not doing it right. Maybe Eddie gets playful and starts teasing you, putting flour on your face and then a battle starts where you end up all messy. Maybe the giggles stop and you realize you’re very close together and then you can’t hide it anymore and you finally kiss. 

So, just imagine his surprise when the next day, he doesn’t see you two kissing by your locker when he gets to school. Instead, he finds you two chatting as casual as ever.

“So… how did the baking go?” he asks.

“Really good, she bossed me around all afternoon but we ended up with a decent cake. Wayne loved it” Eddie says. 

“Oh, that easy?” Dustin asks, surprised.

“Well, when you have a professional chef helping, it’s easy enough” Eddie teases you.

“Oh shut up, he was surprisingly good too. Maybe it was the motivation he had to then eat the cake” you say. 

“It was amazing” Eddie nods.

“That’s good news” Dustin says, still disappointed. “Hey, I was gonna say… you look really nice today” he tells you.

“Aw, thanks-”

“Doesn’t she look nice, Eddie?” Dustin pushes him.

“Uh, yeah. Well, she always does” he says, confused.

“Dude, leave it alone. If it didn’t happen already after all those tries, it’s not gonna happen” Lucas tells Dustin. The two of them are on their bikes, on their way to Mike’s. “Hey, isn’t that Eddie’s van?” He sees it parked in front of a restaurant. 

“Oh, yeah, it is! Is he in this place? It seems fancy!” 

When they peek in the window they find the two of you cuddled up. You seemed to be chatting and giggling until you kissed. 

“Wow! It worked! The plan totally worked!” Dustin cheers.

“Holy shit man! It totally did!”

If they only knew what was actually happening inside the restaurant:

“Happy anniversary, princess” Eddie smiles at you.

“Happy anniversary, baby. I can’t believe it’s been a year already!” you say pleased.

"So... you two have anything you would like to share?" Dustin asks you on Monday at lunch.

“The best year of my life” he flirts before kissing you, he really gets all mushy and corny when you’re alone. You decided to not be those kinds of couples that make out or cuddle in front of all their friends, avoiding PDA as much as you could to not make anyone uncomfortable.

"Umm... no?" you say, confused.

"We can tell us, we saw you two lovebirds!" Lucas chimes in.

"Saw us where?" Eddie asks, just as confused.

"On your date last Friday!"

"Oh yeah, we had dinner" Eddie smiles.

"My plan totally worked!" Dustin says.

"Hey! I helped too!" Lucas complains.

"What plan?" you two go back to confusion.

"You really never noticed? I set you two up! I noticed how much you like each other over these last few months and took control since you were never gonna!" he explains smugly.

"What do you- Ouch!" Eddie starts but you pinch him so he stops.

"You set us up?! That's why you were acting so weird?" you smile when you realize what he was trying to do.

"You're welcome" Dustin throws himself flowers.

"Well, we owe it to you, kid" Eddie says sarcastically.

"What are you on about? They've been dating for a year!" Gareth burstes his bubble.

"Wait what?!"

[morganbritton132]

we haven’t heard much about the shared calendar in a while, any new events (other than scheduled sex) added recently?

(Sorry, I saw this ask when you sent it and have wanted to respond to it but for some reason, it is so much harder to sit down and write a response to an ask than it is to just word vomit a post for the AU.)

A few things have happened with the shared calendar.

1. Steve forgot to put that he had plans with his teacher friend group on the calendar and The Party planned something for the same time. It was no big deal but everybody gave him shit about it because that’s what he does when someone forgets to update the calendar.

2. Dustin figured out how to insert a picture into a scheduled event so now he’ll block out time on Saturday and it’s just a google image of a frog. This pisses Steve off to no end. It is hilarious.

3. Steve had to use his personal computer for something he was doing in class so his entire third period saw an event notification that just said ‘PLEASE GOD, SOMEONE LOOK AT YHE GROUP CHAT - E’

4. El lives in a van and travels a lot. She sells the things she makes at craft fairs all over the country but for the most part, she doesn’t have plans so she doesn’t use the calendar much (she posts pictures in the GC to let people know what she’s up to). But every now and again, she put something on the calendar.

A week from now, she’s scheduled ‘DEATH.’

They later found out, she just need to be in Death Valley for a festival and informed her that she absolutely cannot shorten that.

5. Erica doesn’t participate in the group calendar the same way the others do because she thinks that’s a security risk, but she will schedule when she has free time. This is solely to appease Steve.

6. Lucas was putting in that him and Max were going to a baby shower for one of the ER nurses two weeks from now but a code came into the emergency room so he just hit submit with the event description ‘Lumax Baby.’ There were several missed calls when he checked his phone an hour later.

7. Their FBI agent has access to their shared calendar and sometimes when one of them is particularly annoying, they will delete something off the calendar. They are aware that this is petty.

[steddieas-shegoes]

Mama Munson made Eddie’s Halloween costumes from scratch every year. She said it was because it looked cooler, but as he got older, he realized it was because she used scraps and cheap fabrics to make them and that’s all they could afford.

But his costumes were always great. Every year was better than the last.

When he got too old for trick or treating, she used Halloween night to teach him how to sew.

“For that jacket you wanna wear so bad, baby.”

It took a lot of effort, and a little bit of help for the thicker patches, but he managed to finish it in a few weeks.

That year for Christmas, he made her and Wayne battle jackets with their favorite bands and singers.

It became the thing he gave to important people.

Shortly after Vecna, when he was stuck in bed for nearly a month healing, he had his mom run to the store in Indy and start grabbing patches. Wayne found denim jackets from the donation store, surprised anything was left at all with how much people needed right now.

Eddie made all the kids jackets, even Max, who would probably think it was stupid in the same way she thought Lucas holding her hand was stupid (not at all).

He made Robin one, with a hidden rainbow flag patch on the inside pocket.

Nancy got one, even Argyle and Jonathan got one.

Steve didn’t.

Eddie didn’t know how to make it a friendly gesture, how to not make it look like he was screaming from the rooftops that he’d fallen hard for the guy who almost single-handedly saved his life. He was certain that giving him the jacket he made would be the end of the daily visits, the joking around, the fun.

“Baby, you think he don’t know?”

Eddie’s mama was trying not to laugh when he unloaded on her while he stitched the last patch to the front.

“He visits you every day, sometimes for hours, sometimes has to be dragged out by nurses, and ya think he don’t know?”

As usual, she had a point.

So Eddie was brave, gave Steve the jacket the next day when he stopped by.

Steve was silent as he took in every patch and pin, even the section of glitter glue Erica had insisted he add. Eddie played with his bare fingers, wishing now more than ever that he had his rings back.

Finally, Steve looked up, watery smile pointed right at Eddie.

“I love it. And you.”

Mama Munson slapped the back of his head gently later while Steve slept in the chair by his bed.

“I told ya so!” Her whisper was enough to make Steve shift around, his grip on Eddie’s hand tightening momentarily. “May have lost a nipple, but got yourself a boyfriend. That’s the Munson way.”

“What the hell do you mean?”

“Oh, Wayne never told you about losing his nipple in ‘Nam? Flirted with the medic and blamed it on blood loss, but wouldn’t ya know? The medic was a little light in his loafers, too!”

Eddie rolled his eyes.

“Wayne didn’t lose a nipple. You’re makin’ shit up again.”

“I ain’t never lied to ya! You ask Wayne tomorrow. There’s a reason he don’t ever go shirtless at the lake.”

And sure enough, the next day, Wayne lifted his shirt and showed Eddie where he had nothing but a scar where his nipple should be.

“So what about the medic?”

“Oh! Grant.” Wayne smiled. “We still write to each other sometimes. He’s married, got a few kids.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. We wouldn’t have worked anyway. He lives in Maine. Can’t imagine dealin’ with moose.”

Mama Munson just raised her brows from her chair and smirked.

When Steve came by after his shift, he was wearing his jacket and the biggest smile Eddie’s ever seen.

“Anything new?”

“Nothin’ really. Just found out I’ve got a lot more in common with Wayne than I thought.”

[salemoleander]

lost in the dark (Hunger AU) webweave

Created as a tribute to the absolutely incredible fic @definitelynotshouting is writing, up to the current plot beat!

// Sources under readmore //

What is a webweave? Previous art: Third Life | Void Falling | Attempt 33 | Martyn | Limited Life | Nightingale Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | singing songs to the secrets behind my eye | A Hundred Things We Had Not Dreamed Of | solving counting sheep

Pt. 1: Flutter / Valerie Hammond ◆ Sanssouci Palace + The Black Ice Cream Song edit / @mountainqoats ◆ Excerpt from The Average Fourth Grader is a Better Poet Than You (And Me Too) / Hannah Gamble via @blackberryjambaby ◆ of course i bite textpost / @valtsv ◆ Lie Down / Ellen Jenkins ◆ 27 / Daniil Kharms trans. Matvei Yankelevich ◆ Embrace my Soul / Sergio Borga ◆ Color Changing Magic Potion / DirksenCraft ◆ Fragile Bird / @cocoabats ◆ Holding Onto Black Metal / Debra Baxter ◆ Excerpt from III. The Child / Quinn Newell via @voicedwords ◆ Crawler Pot / Rose Schmits ◆ Metamorph / Gunnel Watkins ◆ Untitled eye / Henrik Aa Uldalen ◆ tumblr guide for chad twitter users (real) / @arahir ◆ the best way to solve problems tweet / @wolfpupy

Pt. 2: Reoccurring Nightmare comic / @deep-dark-fears ◆ Knotted Serpentine / Hannah Russell ◆ Garden + Blues in Dallas edit / @mountainqoats ◆ The Watching Moth / Cady Shaye Poorman ◆ NOCTURNAL Series 11 of 20 / Santiago Caruso ◆ Watching Moth / Cady Shaye Poorman ◆ Afterglow / Pei Wang ◆ Sun in an Empty Room + The Young Thousands edit / @mountainqoats ◆ Study for "Mathematics," "The Sciences" / Kenyon Cox ◆ Hard to Swallow / Debra Baxter ◆ Molly Brodak / Molly Brodak via @kafk-a ◆ 02112022, S.T. / @ryebreadgf ◆ Woman with Red Hood / Alice Pike Barney ◆ Come On, Motherfucker, You Survived! / @selfhealingmoments ◆ Excerpt from The Blind Assassin / Margaret Atwood via @flowerytale ◆ Heirloom II / Cindy Rizza

Pt. 3: Excerpt from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock / T.S. Eliot ◆ i love you. i can't tell you / @/tturing (OP altered, original contents linked) ◆ Hope is the Thing - Sunset Flight / Erica Wagner ◆ Poppies + Nova Scotia edit / @mountainqoats ◆ Untitled (open/end) / Debra Baxter ◆ Excerpt from Alive at the End of the World / Saeed Jones via @geryone ◆ Weeping (Lamentacia) / Dezider Toth via @amare-habeo ◆ NOCTURNAL Series 7 of 20 / Santiago Caruso ◆ Fridge Funerary Epitaph / @catilinas ◆ Untitled (Trail of eyes) / @julialepetit ◆ Stained Glass Hellebore, California Poppy, + Poppy / Jessica Saunders ◆ 世界の声が聞こえるとき (When the voice of the world is heard) / Tomohiro Inaba ◆ Still from Don't make me do this again gif / @cibastion ◆ Excerpt from So I Locked Myself Inside a Star for Twenty Years / Jeremy Radin ◆ Excerpt from Invisible Monsters / Chuck Palahniuk via @quotespile ◆ Potion Bottles / Edited from Panel 1 Source

[sundrop-writes]

Protective

Isaac Lahey x Fem!Reader

Summary:

During his first full moon, Isaac needs to think of something to ground him - to keep his newfound powers from getting out of control. Derek suggests that he use anger, and he knows that Scott grounds himself with his love for Allison.

Isaac finds something in between - thinking of the anger he feels when you get hurt.

Isaac Lahey x Fem!Reader. Pining Best Friends. Hurt and Comfort. Set during Season 2, Episode 9.

Word Count: 2,300

Teen Wolf Masterlist | AO3 Link

Full list of warnings and author's notes below the cut.

Warnings: canon level violence - mentions of Isaac, Erica, and Boyd having to be chained up on the full moon (to avoid hurting themselves and others), mentions of Isaac's abusive father (somewhat graphic descriptions of the abuse that Isaac experienced); Isaac has a self deprecating inner monologue because of the psychological effects of his father's abuse; mentions of Isaac being injured by his father's abuse; the reader also has an abusive father and it's a point on which they related and bonded (and how they became such close friends); at one point the reader describes her abuse as being 'not as bad' as Isaac's abuse (but that is psychological trauma speaking); mentions of the reader experiencing physical and emotional abuse; reader is described as 'pretty girl' at one point in the fic (again, this is very self indulgent); Isaac has a crush on the reader but has never voiced it (it's implied that the reader feels the same way); Isaac and the reader exchange friendly physical affection; emotional angst - Isaac feels powerless for not being able to stop the reader's abuse; I think that's it for this short fic? The themes are on the darker side, but it comes from a personal place for me.

A/N: If you've been following me for any amount of time, then you know I have a thing for sad, abused characters. If you have read my Ellie fic 'My Heart Is The Worst Kind of Weapon' - then you would know why. Isaac is the kind of character I immediately connect to for deeply personal reasons, so watching the entirety of Teen Wolf through for the first time, I couldn't resist writing a fic about him. There will likely be more to come about him, but for now - here is this deeply self indulgent moment inspired by Season 2, Episode 9. If you don't relate to this, I hope you can enjoy it as a distant whumpy fiction, and if you can relate to it - I hope that Isaac can bring you some comfort like he has for me. Much love, happy reading.

...

While the chains rattled against the abandoned subway car and Isaac tried to ignore Erica’s groans of pain from having several large bolts bored into her head, he couldn’t help the question that was rattling around inside of him. 

“How do you do it?” Isaac asked Derek as he arranged the chains around his limbs. He was trying to push down the sickly familiarity of it - being restrained. He was trying to tell himself that it actually was for his own good this time, not just a sick punishment given to him by a powerless, unhinged old man. “How do you keep it under control?” 

“You have to find an anchor.” Derek told him, firm, determined. 

It was nice to focus on the conversation instead of the anxiety rising in his chest, so Isaac pressed on. 

“An anchor?” He questioned, unsure what Derek meant. “Like what?” 

“Yeah. Something else for you to focus on. For me it's anger.” Derek paused. “But it's not like that for everyone.” 

It was immediately obvious to Isaac who Derek was speaking of. 

“Scott.” 

He had Allison. It was some dreamy romantic bullshit - using his love for his girlfriend to keep from wolfing out. But apparently, it worked well for him. 

Derek gave a subtle nod. 

Isaac didn’t have anything like that. He didn’t have some cheesy romance to fall back onto. He didn’t have someone declaring a love for him so openly - because he wasn’t worth loving. Even with his father gone, the world had made it very clear that he was just a piece of shit stuck to the bottom of someone’s shoe - a problem being passed around that nobody could seem to solve. 

“It just has to be something strong enough to keep your mind present. A strong feeling you can hold onto. Anger, love, resentment, regret, rage. Just find something that works for you.” 

Isaac nodded, and Derek went to check that Erica and Boyd were secure as the moonlight came to its full brightness. 

… 

It got Isaac thinking about you. 

You were probably the one person in his life who didn’t think he was a problem. The one person in his life who loved him, even if you didn’t say it out loud. 

He had felt all of those things - anger, love, resentment, regret, rage - the last time he had been with you. When he had been sitting in your bathroom, perched on the closed toilet seat lid after an argument with his father. Naturally, the argument had ended with Isaac having a black eye, and a large cut on his cheek from his father's ring colliding with his face. 

You were the only person he ever went to. No matter how bad things got, you were the only person he ever told. You were the only person who ever understood. Isaac had found out the hard way that your own father was much the same as his. On the first day of freshman year, he had seen you wearing a sweater when it had been a balmy, sunny day, and he had volunteered to be lab partners with you - partially to get closer to a pretty girl and partially because a gnawing feeling was going off in his stomach. 

Even back then - even when he was scrawny and powerless, his instinct to protect you had still been so strong. Even if all he could offer you was a shoulder to cry on and the chocolate bar out of his lunch, he looked at you and he felt the world turning on the simple hope that he could make your day just a bit better. Because he knew, even without words, by the tiredness in your eyes - that you suffered like he did. And he wanted so badly to make it better. 

When the two of you were doing an introductory experiment of baking soda and vinegar to cause the classic foaming volcanic reaction, the rubber gloves you had been wearing caused your sleeve to ride up, revealing a menacing purple bruise on your wrist. Isaac spotted it instantly, and when you locked eyes with him, he held nothing but deep understanding there - not shock or even pity. Nothing but deep understanding and warmth. 

He held your hand under the table for the rest of class, and you had never wanted to pull away. You felt a unique kind of mourning when the bell rang and you had to part ways. 

At lunch that day, you found him under the bleachers by the lacrosse field. Without so much as a word, only a cursory glance around to make sure that nobody else was watching, he pulled up his shirt, revealing an array of horrifying bruises to you - some purplish, some green, some faded yellow - all collected from different points throughout the summer. The time when he had been trapped at home with his father, having nowhere else to go as the man got more aggravated with his presence. 

You ran a gentle touch along the wounds - the most gentle touch he had been greeted with since his mother's death, something that easily brought him to tears. And from that moment on, the two of you had a silent understanding. You spent the rest of the lunch hour exchanging ‘war stories’ and laughing with a tainted dark humor about your separate twisted patriarchs. And the next time he was bloodied and bruised, he texted you to meet him under the bleachers in that same spot, and you didn’t hesitate to rush out of bed at three in the morning to get to him. 

It became a sacred place for the two of you to escape to when you needed it. 

The two of you became a sacred comfort to each other - knowing that there was little escape in telling the police or a guidance counselor, because you had nowhere else to go. 

Today, when Isaac called you, you found your house luckily empty. Your mother and your father were away visiting relatives in another state, so when Isaac told you that he needed you, you texted him the all clear to come over to your house for a reprieve. He was lucky to be able to spend the night somewhere else - to get to sleep in your bed, cuddled up close to you for comfort, without fear. 

He tried not to wince with pain as you dabbed disinfectant on the large cut across his cheek. He hated seeing you flinch with empathy every time his expression wavered even slightly. He could handle the pain. He could be better than this. 

“Isaac.” You sighed his name pitifully, clearly on the edge of tears. 

Both of you knew the thoughts that were pulsing thickly through your head, even without you having to speak them. 

Isaac didn’t deserve this. You wanted to hurt his father in return. You wished you could take away his pain, you wanted to help him escape from it. 

It was a ‘wishful thinking’ conversation that the two of you had dozens of times before. It always ended with you both more upset than when it started, so you swallowed up those thoughts now. But Isaac knew them too well, written across your face and swollen on your lips like the tears brimming your pretty eyes. 

You put down the cotton ball you had been using and turned your back to him, poorly hiding your crying as you stiffly wiped off your cheeks. 

“What do you want me to say?” He replied, hating that this whole thing had to upset you. “You know how it is.” 

To an extent, you didn't. Your father was a screamer. He yelled loud enough to shake the walls, but he rarely escalated to physical violence. You found that you were lucky if you escaped a fight with death threats and tears rather than having hands laid on you. Isaac came to school with fresh bruises every other week - you had to feel that he was worse off than you were. 

“We should just go.” You said, feeling bold in your suggestion. It felt obvious - escaping. “We should just run away. Get the hell away from all this.” 

You whipped back around, still feeling a terrible twinge of pain and sadness inside you at the bruising across his face, the fact that his cheek was definitely swelling up now. 

Isaac frowned. It was a nice dream, and he hated to be the one to dash right through it. 

“You know we can't do that.” Isaac sighed. Ever the realist. Of course. “Where the hell would we even go? With what money? No offense, but the couple hundred dollars you have saved up from babysitting isn't gonna get us anywhere.” 

“It's over fifteen-hundred.” You told him honestly. 

It was a nest egg that you had been sitting on since middle school, hoping to escape your father and never look back. When you met Isaac, you had another thing anchoring you to Beacon Hills, keeping you from buying the bus ticket you had always wanted. 

“But you're right. That'll get us - what? A couple of nights at a motel?” You let out a harsh, dry laugh. Trying to relieve some of the tension. “Well… we could go on a vacation? Escape for a few days?” You suggested, sounding hopeful. 

The idea of spending time alone with Isaac - a getaway where the two of you could pretend none of it was happening, even for a few days - it sounded like paradise. 

Isaac’s mind went to a dream-like vision - having you alone in a hotel room. A bed just for the two of you. Even just getting the chance to sleep peacefully with you, cuddle you, it sounded like a dream. 

He had to pull himself back before his mind went to places a friend shouldn’t stray. 

“A last hurrah before my dad kills me for running away on him.” Isaac sighed. 

The consequences of it would be inevitable. The two of you would have to come back home eventually. He knew that your father would likely feel much the same. He would never forgive himself if you ended up bruised and battered because of something he had encouraged you to do. 

You let out a sob then - the thought of Isaac dying by his father's hands had been all too real to you at times. A horror you imagined in your mind over and over again, especially after times he had come to you with half his torso nearly bruised black and he had been unable to move properly for days. His father was a monster, and you didn’t doubt that he would be capable of murder. 

Isaac rushed to stand up, and pulled you into a hug. His warmth, his arms surrounding you tightly - it was the only place you ever felt safe. You eagerly gripped him back, missing the wince he let out when you squeezed a bit too hard over one of his bruised ribs. But no - he would never fault you for holding onto him too tightly. 

Holding you like this - he felt like he had the world in his arms. Something tight in his chest, telling him that if anything ever happened to you, he would become the same kind of monster that his father was. But in the same way any threat to you made him boil over with rage - you made him gentle. You made him soft and loving. You were the only person in the world who made him feel okay to weep. 

He kissed the top of your head, not a stranger to comforting you with affection even though the two of you remained strictly as ‘friends’. As much as he yearned for more - you were a life vest while he was drowning and he wouldn't risk fucking that up just to kiss you and call you his girlfriend. He wouldn't throw any messy feelings into the mix. 

“It'll be okay.” He told you. 

Coming from his lips, you had to believe it. 

“Thank you, Isaac.” You sniffled. And then, something hit you. “You came over here for my help, and now you’re comforting me.” You let out another dry chuckle, clearly resisting the urge to scold yourself. 

“This is helping.” He told you, hugging you tighter. “This always helps.” He said the last part quieter, a dropped whisper that you could barely hear. 

It was a truth he was afraid to confront just yet. 

… 

But in the present, it was a truth that was helping him more than anything. 

Isaac hadn't spoken to you since he had gotten the Bite. He had been terrified of hurting you somehow. The last thing he ever wanted was to become the thing that you feared. It would have been his worst nightmare to be the one to make you cower in a corner and cry rather than to be the one giving you comfort from it. 

As the moon came to a full wane overhead, and the mighty rage and power pulsed through his veins, Isaac thought of you. He thought of using that power to tear apart anybody who had ever hurt you - to finally free you from those tears. He thought of giving you the same relief he had felt when his father died. He thought of his love for you, even if it was a silent love that he had never gotten the chance to voice. 

“I see you found your anchor.” Derek remarked to Isaac later, after he had gotten Erica and Boyd back in their chains, tightening Isaac’s binds once again, if only as a precaution. 

“I did.” 

Derek looked at him with intrigue, as if waiting for him to explain. 

“Well, you said that you use anger. And Scott uses love.” Isaac told him. “I guess that mine is… some combination of both.” 

“Protectiveness.” Derek explained. “That's what wolves call it.”

...

A/N: This is a oneshot, and I wrote this to be a closed off story/its own little moment inspired by the show. This is a complete story, however, if there is enough interest, I might turn this concept into a longer oneshot and expand on the idea. It would not be me writing a 'part 2' of this, it would be me using this concept and writing a longer oneshot. I do have a personal vested interest in writing about powerful characters defeating abusers, but currently I don't have the time to turn this into something longer, so this is all I wrote. Please do not harass me about making this longer or posting something more, and if you're going to leave a comment asking for a continuation, please also tell me what you liked about this current story. Though I have something else in mind, I do consider this to be a completed story on its own.

[silentstyx]

okay saw that you also write for ethan morgan and could you. write a siren!reader thats like SUPER into him and he finds it unnerving (hes not used to girls Actually liking him) and he agrees to go on a date w her?? you can choose where!

"Bright like blue" ~ Ethan Morgan x Siren! Reader

tw! siren

erm idk which episode had the siren i cant find it 😖 i was gonna rewatch it but nvm ig, anyways ik what sirens are so i'll js thug it out. Also this guy is such a geek that he fs does dates at his house and gets his family to leave the house. he's also broke. i hate this.

(backstory: friends w sarah/erica they knew you were a siren, told the group thats how everyone knows)

Ethan kept his distance from her, to the best of his abilities at least. The thought of her luring someone out and killing them just by using her voice was.... frightening to say the least.

Yet, every time she flashed him the smile he remembered the kind of person she was. That she wouldn't make random men fall in love with her and then lure them out to sea and drown them! Right?

He knew you liked him, Sarah told him awhile ago. He didn't know what to do though, a girl hasn't ever liked him before. He's never even been on a date. I mean he's never really been too interested in dating until last year! Except he would be lying if he said you weren't attractive, I mean you're one of the prettiest people he's seen. Like ever.

"Hey, Ethan wait up" You called for him.

You were going to the same class together, he already knew that. It scared him, but he knew. Why was he so terrified of you? He knew you wouldn't actually kill him, but every once in a while he'll catch a glimpse of a scale or gill thats usually well hidden and it freaks him out.

"you wanna walk to class with-" He cut you off before you could finish your sentence.

"Do you wanna go on a date?" He asks looking at you, "wi-with me! i mean... do you want to go on a date with me..."

The last part of that was less of a question and more of anxiety and muttering. Yet, you could only smile at him and his dorky self.

"yeah sure" you respond, contently.

He was confused, why was he more anxious about this than you? You're the one that likes him! He doesn't even know if he likes you! Ok, he does like you a little bit... but why aren't you freaking out? Jesus just answer her!

"okay, uhm uh do you wanna just meet me at my house then..?" He was trying to play cool but there was clear anxiety in his voice. His stutter with every other word.

"yeah, sounds cool. So... do you wanna walk to class together or what?" You say, almost teasingly. With that same smile you always give him. God, you're pretty.

He just nods his head and you guys walk and talk with each other to class. You were doing the majority of talking, but you were so funny and so interesting. He hadn't ever talked to you for this long before. Once you reached the class your shared giggles died down.

After sitting through the hour long class he was thinking about what to wear, he had a good idea of what it would be. In the halls you went with Sarah and Erica while he went with Benny and Rory. You both just happened to be talking about the same thing though.

You came over an hour after school ended, there were no cars in the drive way. It looked as if no one was home, except the lights were on. You knocked on the door.

He answered wearing his and blue collar shirt with his formal pants. He looked at your somewhat formal (dress/suit/etc) attire.

"You look great" he says with a nervous smile.

"Thanks," you say with a genuine voice, "you look... geeky"

You both chuckle and he invites you in, offering his hand to you. You grab his hand and he gets a vision of water and a dock and a song.

You being a siren this freaks him out and he lets go of you instantly. While you just look at him confused, why did he drop your hand so fast? He had finally just stopped acting weird around you, kind of. Is he going to start again?

He leads you to the dining room where he set up candles and music, with food that looks surprisingly edible.

The room looked nice but, you had to poke fun.

"Everything looks great, but." Your voice trailed off at the end, teasing him.

He looked at you nervously, "but?"

"Take off the sweater vest. It's killing the mood." You say, playfully making fun of him. Lightly laughing.

He just rolled his eyes, taking off the vest and throwing it somewhere behind the two of you.

You two were talking and laughing the whole night, besides eating the enormous amounts of food that the two of you happened to finish somehow?

"Hey, I wanna show you something c'mon!" You say excitedly, standing up while wiping your face.

He looked at you confused, was this the thing in his vision? What were you showing him? He got up slowly, following you out.

You finally both arrived, hand-in-hand, walking to a somewhat abandoned dock. It didn't look old and dangerous but there were no boats or any signs of recent human life. You leave him and go to the edge of the dock, sticking your feet over. Humming some olden siren tune.

Same song as in his vision, thus making him panic. He stays off the deck completely, scared of what you might do. You turn around, suggesting him to come over as you scoot over. Making room for him. Kicking your feet in the water. He walks over, slowly, to sit with you. He takes off his shoes and socks and puts his feet in the water. Kicking with your feet in the water.

Maybe some visions aren't bad.