#eventual lumax

[angeldreamsoffanfic]

An excerpt from my upcoming fic where Steve and Max are thrown into an alternate universe after their untimely death, and they get to be the siblings they both deserve <3

-

Steve Harrington is quiet as he took a slow sip of his hot cocoa, the rich kind made with milk instead of water, topped with whipped cream and sprinkled with marshmallows. The sky above him is darkened, storm clouds rolling in quick, and Steve can’t bring himself to move from his spot on his back porch.

Even if he knows that he’ll definitely get drenched when the rain actually starts.

The back door squeaks open and Steve tilts his head slightly, catching sight of Max stepping out onto the porch herself. Her red hair is still held in the two French braids he had managed, just a bit more mused by sleep. Max tugged on the collar of his sweater she was wearing, the bright red one that Steve knows everyone likes to “borrow”, and she slides onto the step next to him.

Steve is completely silent as he passes the cup to Max instead.

Max is completely silent as she takes a sip, before she passes it back.

“I never really understood why you acted the way you did, if I’m being honest.” Max admits softly, her brows furrowed almost taut as she cast a look toward the swimming pool. It’s empty now, but it won’t be for long. Steve knows this, knows that the closer it gets to Will disappearing— that his father will tell him to call someone to start filling it again. “I thought maybe you were just a mother hen, but…”

“But?” Steve repeats, turning his head to catch Max’s eyes. Her blue eyes are almost watery with tears, and Steve diverted his eyes as one of her hands came up to wipe them haphazardly away.

“You did it so we could just be kids.”

Steve is silent, and instead chose to pass the mug back toward Max- who took it and cupped it in between her palms. Steve shifts so he can face Max, and pauses to prop himself comfortably against the pillar of his back porch.

“I grew up like this,” Steve explains softly, his own brow furrowed as he waved a hand around him. “I just… all of you were so young when it first all started, and if I could give you a little peace…”

“Who gives you peace?” Max asks with wide eyes, and Steve smiles as he cast her a look with slightly raised brows. Max’s eyes immediately widen, and Steve lets out a soft sigh of a laugh at the incredulous look that immediately spread over Max’s face. “Me?”

“You,” Steve nodded with a small smile, especially as Max takes another sip of the cocoa- whipped cream just above her upper lip before she licks it away. “And Robin, the rest of the brat pack too.”

“Really?” Max’s voice is soft, even as she raps one of her fingers against the mug. “But me first?”

Steve shrugs, even as the sky overhead lets out a rumble. Max extends the mug back toward Steve, and he takes another sip before he sent Max a small smile.

“I’ve always wanted a sister, y’know?”

Max allows herself to let out the softest giggle she’s ever heard, even if she’ll vehemently deny it if Steve ever attempted to bring it up. Max smiles, tilts her head back to face the sky, watching as the rain starts to fall.

“I’ve always wanted an actual brother.”

[gayofthefae]

Jopper: You can find love again after being divorced.

Duzie: Love isn’t about social status and the validation of having a partner but rather things like common interests and love of each other’s company.

Stobin: Your “true love” doesn’t have to be a romantic one and you can be entirely fulfilled by a best friend.

Jancy: Love and family does not need to be the focus of your life. You can have those things while still being career driven and oriented.

ElMike: Romantic and platonic love are not hierarchal. Sometimes one relationship is closer and better as friends than as lovers. (similar to Stobin but rather than exchanging a friend for a romantic partner, shifting the nature of one relationship)

Lumax: A loving and supporting relationship is more important than the social disapproval that may come with it. (similar to Duzie but with higher stakes of racist consequences rather than just a lack of societal approval, an active disapproval)

Byler: Queer people are just as deserving of love and romance and do not need to settle for platonic relationships if they want more.

[strangerwheelerthings]

The funniest thing about Hawkins Gang's future kids is that all their parents are going to have the strangest quirks and truama responses, and the kids are gonna have no idea how weird it all is until they're in like college or something. Think about it, the gang all remain close friends. Their children are close as a result, and there's enough of them that they have many examples of similar behaviors throughout their entire environment.

[thefabelmans2022]

i kinda think of the canon stranger things ships only lucas and max would actually stay together after high school.

[pendinganchor]

i’m starting a fic for elumax that starts in lucas’s pov with him being dramatic because max dumped him a few months ago and he’s realized he isn’t getting her back this time. and this is the first line.

“The temperature was finally rising— the last remnants of winter, and the events that happened, melting away with the promise of spring.”

he’s so fucking dramatic and i love him for that.

[misterfibbly]

If Mileven is supposedly endgame, then why do we get ZERO moments from them together this season?

There are absolutely no scenes of them together, just them alone, having a moment or being couple-y in a way that doesn’t have either of them faking or lying to each other.

The first thing we see with both of them is El writing a letter to Mike, telling him about her life in Lenora, lying to him about it (what a great way to start off the season!! /s). Okay, but let’s give El the benefit of the doubt, maybe she’ll tell Mike as soon as they see each other, right?

Wrong.

Now, let’s get back to my original point about how they don’t have any scenes alone.

There’s a couple of scenes where we get them greeting each other, kissing (notice how Mike’s wearing sunglasses. Who’s to say he doesn’t have his eyes open under those? It certainly wouldn’t be the first time).

Also I’m not sure if it’s just me who sees this, but why does it seem like they’re trying to be as far away from each other as possible during that kiss?? Like lean into it a little if you really want it to seem like you like each other.

Oh look! We immediately see Jonathan in Will in the background (and Argyle in some frames) in a scene that’s supposedly a romantic reunion between Mike and El.

Mike is literally being DRAGGED right now, if he’s the one who got out of the car first, shouldn’t he be walking a bit more in the front? Oh and, of course, Will is in this scene too.

Will standing next to them as El lies to Mike about her friends. Will trailing behind them as they skate. Will eating with them. Will, Will, Will.

But wait — there actually is one scene where Mike and El are alone.

The fight! The only scene with just them, and the only scene where they show strong emotions for each other. Except it’s just El being angry at Mike, which she has every right to be, and she’s sad too. Mike seems distressed but he’s not nearly as upset as she is, and he’s showing absolutely no remorse either.

Even in the “love confession” scene, Will right there, and he’s the one who tells Mike to say “I love you” earlier in the van, Mike didn’t come to this conclusion himself, something he would have done if he really meant it and wanted to say it.

How the other couples are different

Jopper - Joyce spent the whole season looking for Hopper, Hopper spent the whole season missing Joyce and hoping she’s okay. Their reunion had emotional music playing they hugged for a long time and they kissed eventually too. The look in their eyes alone showed how much they care about each other.

Lumax - even though they were broken up for basically the whole season, they never stopped caring for each other and being there for each other. Lucas made sure Max was okay and continued to protect her. Max started to let Lucas back into her life and expressed that she needs him.

Even Jancy - they were separated for the whole season but we still got some lighthearted moments between them. They ranted to their friends about each other, and their meeting at the end was genuine and full of love.

Meanwhile, Byler…

They fought, too.

But they quickly made up.

I would add more pictures if I could, but my point is, Byler spent the whole season rebuilding their relationship. Mileven spent the whole season ignoring their issues. Byler had multiple heart to hearts, they continued to listen and understand each other, they worked together “as a team”.

[spicybylerpolls]

All of the teenage relationships are sexualised from the get-go. Stancy's introduction was all about the trope where bad boy Steve just wants to try getting good girl Nancy into bed. Jancy is also immediately sexualised when Jonathan takes the spicy photos of Nancy. And Steve and Robin make booby jokes before Vickie is even introduced. Meanwhile for Stobin, we only really got Steve thinking that he and Robin would be a cute couple but no sexual innuendos whatsoever, hinting that the relationship will not happen because there is no sexual attraction there.

It is initially a bit different for Mileven/Lumax/Byler because they are actually kids at the start of the show. But Season 3 makes such a big fuss about them not being kids anymore and it is coincidentally also the time some of the characters start to make innuendos themselves. Which also means that who they liked as kids is not necessarily who they are eventually attracted to as teenagers.

In comparison to the other teenage relationships, Mileven seems to be a relationship free of any sexual implications. In Season 3 Hopper wants the door certainly not open because he is afraid of them kissing - however, Mike and El never overtly express a desire for sex, neither with each other nor for other people. Milevens like to say "Oh, this means that Mike and El only have eyes for each other" although the sexual implications are completely absent from their relationship.

Of course you could argue that the characters may be demi/ace, but I think especially in Mike's case it is made clear that he is not acespec but a repressed queer (with the Season 4 Episode 1 montage as biggest proof). Some people also insisted (and still insist) that Will is ace too because they are subconsciously so afraid to see any sort of queer attraction on screen. (As a person on the acespec myself, I really long for the day where asexuality is finally done justice on screen. But Stranger Things is clearly a show where they actively contrast lack of sexual attraction and actual sexual attraction with each other. Unfortunately, 99% of media does not include intentionally-accurate representation of asexuality, so right now Stranger Things is not under the obligation to be the show that is suddenly an exception)

This is all so true! People try to argue that Mike and El "making out all the time" is evidence that they have interest in sexual exploration, but A) the show very clearly draws our attention to the fact that he takes his hands off her when they're making out, B) Mike doesn't express sexual interest in the Phoebe Cates, the hot girl of the day, like his friends, C) the show draws our attention to how unnatural it is by having Hopper comment on it, and D) this doesn't progress or increase in any way. In fact, it decreases. In S4, they have one fairly awkward kiss and never show any signs of desire for each other. Instead, the emphasis is on Mike not being able to say ILY to her.

For a ship that's allegedly the main ship, this is all pretty unusual. When was the last time you saw a ship with teenage characters who "only have eyes for each other" yet never show even the slightest sign that they want to explore the physical side of things, even if only 2nd base? It's like Mike got to 1st base and immediately wanted to abort mission and backtrack and never do anything straight again.

Some Milkvans will say it's because Mike is a gentleman, but... come on. Lucas is a gentleman with Max, and the show goes out of its way to emphasize his sexual desire multiple times. Dustin and his girlfriend aren't even in the same state, and she's a devout Mormon, and still there's no doubt that Dustin would round all the bases multiple times in a heartbeat if he got the chance.

Meanwhile, everything between Mike and El looks like a weird, unnatural performance. And they don't even kiss in the desert!

Especially considering the fact that Mike and Will, who are allegedly just platonic friends, do show signs of physical desire. This is what they're like JUST touching arms ever so slightly. Get a room.

[thefirstlioveyou]

i think the one of the many reasons why mike’s monologue to will in s2 is more believable/genuine than the one to el in s4 is because he doesn’t paint out meeting will as something meant to be, or love at first sight, or destiny.

we would never really know who wrote the tweet where the st writers say they do not believe in love at first sight, it could’ve been anyone since apparently sometimes it’s not even the writers tweeting, if im correct? but, it’s still important to include anyway because the writing shows it still.

mike explicitly admits to will that meeting el was not destiny or fate, but pure dumb luck. in other words, there was no higher power driving them to be together no matter where they were in the world. it was just by chance. he then goes on to say that he only brought her in the house because she just needed someone, not that he magically fell in love - which is what he later contradicts by saying that he had immediately loved her in that moment. he lied. in s1, his first words when he sees el for the first time are quite literally, “it’s not will.” he initially planned to send her to an asylum after finding will.

that, plus the writer account saying they do not believe in love at first sight, shows that mike’s monologue to el in s4 is a load of bs.

mike’s monologue to will in s2 does the exact opposite, which is why it’s more believable.

not only does he not have to say ‘i love you’ to say ‘i love you,’ but in this scene, he does not give the universe credit for meeting will. there was no ‘destiny’ involved; he just happened to see will just as alone as he was and they bonded over it. mike emphasizes that it was his concious choice to approach and ask will to be his friend. he quite literally ends the monologue by saying, “it was the best thing i’ve ever done.” he gives himself the credit.

it was the best thing he ever done because of the life he’s lived with will. he did not know in that moment he met will that it was going to be best thing he’d ever done, he didn’t know how much he’d love him, he didn’t know the chaos that’d eventually come. all he knew was that he finally had a friend, and that’s what makes it so genuine and pure. the love grew naturally.

there was no love at first sight, because the writers do not believe in that, nor does the writing itself. jopper was not love at first sight, their love took time. lumax was something that both didn’t expect. jancy was something both didn’t expect either, one already being in a relationship and simply sharing her condolences and the other a rejected loner with set opinions on others.

the only one that didn’t follow this formula was mike and eleven. mike didn’t consider el in a romantic way at all until lucas told him that he should “just marry her already.” (ep2 or 3, i forgot). it was reallyyy early on. there was nothing natural compared to the others. mike felt he had to just because she is a girl and his friends said so.

i mean look at the face he makes right before he even kisses her the first time (after comparing her to family):

el sees mike as her caretaker in s1. mike is the first to provide any real care and shelter. but, she’s traumatized. she clings and follows on to the first person to show her real care. i don’t even think she saw him in a romantic way either until he kissed her. because she sees him as a caretaker, she follows through with it like she has to. now i do think there was some sort of eventual romantic feelings for mike on el’s side later in the series, but it’s not a healthy type. it’s a very skewed perspective due to trauma.

the only other relationship that does follow the same formula is mike and will.

they are endgame.

gootbye 🫶

[lumism]

byler & lumax would have seperate groupchat together because el and dustin don't want to see the flirting except it's actually just will and lucas sending each other pics of cute cats and being like "us" and eventually max and mike start to respond by sending photos of just. the weirdest animal creatures on this earth and then also captioning those with "omg it's max" "wow mike you look great"

[seashoresprite]

Elmax, for the ship ask game?

cute / adorable / perfect

ELMAX. Let me talk about a great enemies-to-besties relationship. And they are not escaping the fruity allegations. I think the show will definitely go the Lumax route, so I don't think romantically anything will happen for these two, BUT! They are right on the EDGE of it. I mean, watch these "completely platonic" friends interact:

I definitely support the Lumax bi4bi theory. Max is a little fruity, I think, though I don't expect the show to explore that. For me, jury's still out for El. I think she needs time to truly discern where she falls on that spectrum.

But I love them so much. And if what I've read about the upcoming season is true, we're getting some great Lumax and Elmax moments. Their eventual reunion once they find Max (wherever her consciousness is) is going to bring on the waterworks for me. I just know it.

[delphispoeticals]

THE SUMMER OF ‘89 MASTERLIST

dancer!steve harrington x fem!reader

blurb: you decided to go off on a whim and spend the summer with your cousins at some bougie resort in the hamptons called Herring & Co. known for their phenomenal smoked red herring dish and their beautiful new york coastal sights. thinking that you were going to be surrounded by a bunch pretentious assholes, you kept your excitement to your yourself. but, on this expense-free-trip your expectations are exceeded rather than met with the undercover raunchy nightlife and the people you meet along this month-long trip. but that’s not all… when the partner of the resorts hunkiest dance instructor makes a dramatic fall, your trip begins to get a whole lot more interesting.

warning: +18 minors dni — vulgar language, dirty dancing relations, bumping n grinding, sexual tension, eventual smut, steve being patrick swayze level sexy, slight classism, tommy h, lumax, and erica sinclair’s mouth.

note: i watched dirty dancing and my mind went to immediate WORK. it’s not going to be exactly like dirty dancing but it’s heavily inspired. HEAVILY!

now playing… Johnny’s Mambo

COMING SOON!

001. Bodies, Bodies, Bodies (Bumpin’ and Grindin’)

002. —

003. —

(and more)

[brionysea]

Question for you: How do you think a one-on-one convo between madwheeler pre-s4 would go from Mike's pov?--like how do you think he would treat/talk with Max, who's isolating herself/depressed? Because I've seen a lot of fics with that premise, but it always seems to be them only talking about their relationships (whether it be Byler or Mileven in Mike's case, or Lumax with Max. Which I don't have an issue with, it's just not always the main focus I want on Madwheeler), but rather how Mike perceives Max post s-4. Sorry if this is rambly and doesn't make sense, I'm struggling with getting in Mike's head, and you're obviously very good at interpreting his character.

answer for you: according to the one (1) season 4 episode where max and mike were both in hawkins, the dynamics with max and the party pre-s4 seem to be as follows:

lucas chases after her at school and tries to get her to talk about her feelings and/or go to his basketball games. she's not into it, but she listens to the games on the radio at home anyway

dustin chases after her at school and tries to get her to hang out with the group (hellfire) (max doesn't seem to like eddie) (it's a d&d group - a game she had no interest in before she lost all capability to care about the things she previously enjoyed). she's not into it, makes fun of him for missing her sarcasm, and skates away

and mike, instead of doing any of that and making her feel cornered (or worse, pitied) when high school is already bad enough, leaves her the hell alone.

some people (non-madwheeler understanders) would think that means that mike just doesn't care or their friendship isn't Like That. those people would be incorrect. bothering each other and cheering each other up while they're in the Mental Health Trenches is what max and mike do. just look at the skateboard scene

madwheeler always have their Friendship Moments when no one else is around. the gym scene, the conversation in the byers kitchen, when mike called max's house and nobody else could hear both sides, when max radioed mike at the sauna, watching el get a coke can out of the bin together, after they both got knocked out by billy. it's a very private friendship, so playing into the "there's more here than meets the eye" concept and having them possibly share things with each other that they otherwise wouldn't share with anyone makes a lot of cohesive sense - even if it's just in a "distracts you from The Horrors until you blurt it out in a fit of annoyance" way, like what happened when max first heard about el from mike

people just think it's all fighting because that's all they see, but even that is always in an attempt to make each other better. and it always works eventually (although if we're being technical, the dynamic is max trying to make mike better, while mike tries to keep max safe). mike wouldn't fight with max when she's depressed though, i believe that's only a yearly occasion for the single week we jump back into these people's lives when tensions are high as a kite. if he was around during season 4 he would have fought with max over her willingness to self sacrifice (you know, like a hypocrite)

simply put, mike doesn't push because he gets it, which is exactly why max tolerates him more than the other two - she pushed through the crowd to stand next to mike at the pep rally while she ran away from the others when they seeked her out later - and might even open up a little. s2 mike and s4 max, both dealing with the trauma of witnessing a death (where the person's last words were directed at them) and feeling responsible for it while the world moves on and nobody else seems to care, are the same. mike knows that max doesn't want to hang out like everything's normal or talk about her feelings and admit that it's not. especially not with lucas, who has plenty of reasons to hate billy, and max is selfless enough to not want to add her own messiness into it. max's mother's distance would resonate with mike too

the thing about mike interacting with any of his friends is that he's the most persistent person who's ever lived. he called el every day for a year; he probably did the same for will after the byers moved; he wouldn't stop radioing lucas in season 1 until he answered; he would not shut up about trying to get in contact with dustin in season 3. mike doesn't give up. what this means for max, is that once he's sure she won't mind him being there (and even if she does, a little bit, but that might just be the Performatively Hating Each Other part before they get back to enjoying each other's company, so he's gonna stick it out regardless), he'd kinda just... be there. and continue to be there. they might talk, they might not, but he knows that it sucks to be alone like this and he's not gonna let that happen to max if he can help it

this last bit is kind of just a headcanon of mine, but i like to imagine that if mike ever searched for an Activity that max actually enjoyed (dustin's got the right idea, but at the same time the wrong idea), he would try to bug her into teaching him how to skateboard. their conversation in the gym was heading in that direction before el interrupted, so there's the connection to the Mental Health Trenches and implicitly returning the favour of that kindness and moment of connection (even though mike really wasn't doing great pre-s4 either, but whatever), and something about the "bambi on ice" line in lenora makes me think it could be something max said to him when he fell over once

[piratefishmama]

thoughts on elumax? (as in all dating eachother not just max dating el and lucas)

honestly i'm pretty solidly in the lumax lane when it comes to them, i think they're the only m/f ship i'm immovable on. Lucas has been through a lot for her, and yet he's always stood by her, he is ride or die for her, and while she struggles, and she might always struggle, she always goes back to him.

a girl who started out running away at every opportunity, always goes back to him eventually.

They're an endgame ship right there. I need them to be okay in the end.

With El though, i'm a lil bit of a henderhop shipper, i love the idea of El and Dustin together, i always have, they'd be so cute. It'd be such a supportive relationship, Dustin never holding back on saying how much he adores her, never letting her doubt for even one second that she's amazing.

Dustin is by far the best boyfriend for her i think.

[me1-atonin]

how certain i am these ships will be endgame:

(saw @theonebyler do this so i thought i would too!)

byler - 99.9%. the 0.1% of doubt is me being used to heteronormative stories

lumax - 1000% if max wakes up and i think she will bc the duffers basically said they don’t want any of the kids to die

jancy - 75%. nancy flirting with steve and 0 communication between them in season 4 is what that 25% of doubt is

jopper - 10000%. PARENTS

rockie - 90%. cute ship ig and it is very likely to happen

stancy - 20%. please duffers i really don’t want this to happen… they broke up for a reason and steve found a platonic relationship that is just as fulfilling as a romantic one.

duzie (i think that’s the ship name idk) - 95%. they seem to be going strong but they could eventually just drift apart bc of the distance

ronance - 0%. as much as i love this ship, nothing is gonna come out of it

milkvan - 0.1%. i’m really hoping that isn’t enough for them to be endgame

steddie -0%. eddie’s dead and a lot of y’all need to accept that

elmax - 0%. i love them so much but there’s no way that’s happening bc lumax is too good and i don’t think they’re bold enough for elumax (so 0% for that one too)

henderhop - 0.2%. idk i don’t really see it happening but i wouldn’t be mad

byclair - 0%. not happening at all but it’s cute

[elekinetic]

What are your hcs about the Stranger Things characters’ futures? Like concerning their careers, where they wind up living, pets, colleges, or anything else that you want to talk about!

ohhhh i’m torn. i want them to all end up in the same place. i don’t think this is the canon answer but this is what makes me happy:

the party ends up in california for college. they all go to uc santa cruz, cause they didn’t get a chance to do the whole college application thing while saving the world and owens pulled some strings. el and max are roommates. dustin mike and lucas get put in a triple, but if mike starts staying at a certain party member’s single most of the time…..that’s none of their business. max starts as a neuroscience major until she fucking hates it. she’s at the arcade one night and watches someone repair a broken machine and is like, oh shit. that’s kinda cool. she switches to computer science, then to computer engineering bc CS is for nerds. (dustin does CS.) lucas came in as a political science major, but he realized he was way more interested in helping max with her neuroscience homework. he ends up doing a double major in political science and human health sciences. mike majors in communication cause it’s a compromise between getting a business degree like his parents insist and studying something he’s actually interested in (this is the problem. mike has no clue what he wants to study). will is a visual arts major obv. el switches her major about seventeen different times (zoology, religion, international relations, mechanical engineering). she ends up graduating w mike in communication bc its the easiest to apply her various credits to. el and dustin get really into improv. el also does theatre, and mike ends up getting dragged into the tech scene. lucas plays club basketball and gets involved in student govt. he sets up a lot of food and blood drives. the party goes to a board game club, but will goes EVERY week and makes a bunch of great friends. max learns guitar and starts playing at open mics (el is the only one who knows. and lucas, a little later). they all join the college radio station. first its dustin helping a mutual friend fix radio tech, then its will filling in for a mutual friend’s missing cohost, then it’s will and lucas starting an advice show, and el and max starting a show where max makes the tapes and el just talks about whatever she wants, and mike fucking around in the background of all his friends’ shows and shouting out unsolicited comments. when they all move off campus, mike and will, dustin and lucas, and el and max get their own apartments respectively. lumax starts talking abt moving in together and el is like “i love you both but i am not trying to third wheel in my own home.” thus, henderhop house is born. these two were BORN to be roommates. they become such good friends and are so respectful of each others space and are so so communicative! and they both love to cook. henderhop lives together for like, six years post college. listen, they have two cats together. they don’t want to traumatize them with a divorce. mike and will get a dog when they’re older (late 20s, early 30s). they used to catsit for their neighbor, but mike is crazy allergic. it always sounds like he’s going through puberty again. the party ends up in southern california. el becomes an archaeologist and travels a lot. dustin lives in pasadena and works for JPL. max does some work with him, does some contacts for a few different companies. she eventually becomes a professor and spends her off time doing research. lucas becomes a pediatrician. later in life he serves on city council, then turns to non-profit work. will get a job as an illustration intern at a comic house straight out of college and works his way up from there. mike bounces around office jobs, does some time at a publishing house, and goes back to school for a creative writing MFA. he sells some original stuff but he ends up mostly writing comics for IPs with will. they make a name for themselves in the Star Wars EA and actually get invited to a couple comic-con panels. dustin flips his shit.

[lucassinclaer]

if that inspires you, can you do please lumax + 16 "things you said with no space between us" ?

helloooo nonny! this one's a few days late and i'm so sorry, but i finally got to finish this lil thing and now i'm having brainrot fr. (small cw for allusions to max's family situation)

lucas will NOT be seeing it (2017) in theaters.

16. things you said with no space between us

There’s this horrible quiet that comes with doom. 

Max knows it well at this point, actually finds some comfort in it now that she doesn’t have to drown out all her thoughts with music. It’s such a certain thing. The ultimate perspective on life, the knowledge of what’s important and what isn’t. Max maybe kind of likes it. 

Lucas, on the other hand, gets antsy. 

Silence, to him, isn’t a comfort. Maybe ever. Max understands it in a way – the Sinclair house is rarely quiet. Erica alone is loud enough to fill any room with life, but Sue isn’t far behind her either, a more comforting but steady stream of chatter she keeps up easy as breathing. Charles is the only reserved one but even he gets animated when the right subject gets brought up. Like planes or Lucas’ biology homework. (Erica once confided in Max that she’s 100% sure Lucas got his “nerd genes” from their father’s side of the family. “You should hear Uncle Jack go off,” she’d said with a long and meaningful look.) 

Spending time at the Sinclairs’ definitely shed some light on Lucas’ constant bickering with Dustin and Mike. There’s no fear in him that a simple argument can shift and shake in a single word. His parents built him and Erica a home where they never have to be truly afraid of their punishments. 

If Max had that, maybe she wouldn’t relish silence either. 

But she did, and so she does, while Lucas gets into his own head. He and Mike can give each other a run for the money in pacing.  

And sometimes, like now, Max can’t take it. She waits for him to pass her and stops him short, tugging at his sleeve. She’s sitting crisscross applesauce on the ground and at this point they’ve done this often enough, so he knows what she’s saying. 

With a sigh he abandons his route and lowers himself to sit in front of her. He spins himself so it’s his back to her and she uncrosses her legs so he can lean back against her while she brackets him, leaving little to no space between them. 

It makes her feel better, knowing that she's someone's resting place. Sometimes it's nice to feel relied on. 

“Do you want the Walkman?” she asks, hands hovering over it at her side. Sometimes that helps, to introduce sound into the dread. They’ve learned to communicate with the lights anyway, he doesn’t always need his ears. 

“No,” he says. “I just wanna get this over with.” 

Max laughs, a little bitter. “You know after this there’s just gonna be another one. And another. And another.” 

He tilts his head back. She’s already looking down at the top of his head, so their noses are almost touching now. The smell of him sits deep inside her chest, an automatic recognition of him. 

“Yeah, but eventually we’ll figure out how to get to the end,” he says and sounds wonderfully confident. Against her better judgment it warms Max from the inside out. His conviction is always so infectious, it’s hard to resist 

Still, she can’t resist challenging him just a little. “What if we don’t?” 

He shakes his head and she feels it against her torso and bumping against her legs. “We will.” He bumps his nose against hers. “And then I never wanna see a Stephen King movie again.”