#every rose has its thorn | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

corrodedseraphine · 2 years ago

Text

every rose has its thorn | one shot

pairing: steve harrington x buckley!fem!reader

summary: Christmas is coming to Hawkins. It is a time of joy and forgiveness. It turns out that your sister's best friend is looking for a new place to live, and you happen to have a spare room in the apartment. It wouldn't be a problem if that friend wasn't Steve Harrington. A man whom the more you try to avoid even more often comes back like a boomerang. angst/fluff, slight enemies? to lovers

I got inspired while listening to the song "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" by Poison.

the one shot is also avaliable on ao3

10 695 words

It's a bit long, but I hope you won't get too bored!

steve harrington masterlist | general masterlist

"No way Robin." You said placing the plates on the table. "Where did you even get the idea that I would agree to this?"

"Come on, y/n!" she cried out in a pleading voice. "We have one room free anyway, think of the advantages, we'll split the bills among three instead of just the two of us!"

"You know very well that it's not about the very idea of renting this room, but you must have hit yourself really hard in the head thinking that I would agree to live with Steve Harrington."

"But he has changed! You know very well! He's a really good man now. Besides, I thought you were over him, after all, you saved him from disgusting monsters several times, you took care of him after he was attacked by demobats!"

"Just because I didn't want him to die doesn't mean that suddenly my attitude toward him has changed. I still don't like him and I still consider him an asshole in love with himself." You rolled your eyes.

"That was a few years ago, and people change! Give him a chance, I beg you! His parents kicked him out of the house and he really has nowhere to go! You can't let him spend Christmas on the street!" Robin was awfully determined and you weren't surprised by her at all, together with Steve they became best friends (which you couldn't quite understand), so it was normal for her to want to help him. Her pleading gaze burned a hole in the back of your head as you walked to the kitchen.

"Can't he stay at Eddie's?" you sighed, knowing it wouldn't be right.

"That trailer can barely hold him and his uncle, you know that well. I am begging you, I promise it won't be that bad."

"Fine! but one mean word out of his mouth in anyone's direction and he's out the door, understood?" you turned around with a serious face. "And until the end of the next year one of you will have to take my turn at washing dishes, I don't care how you share."

"Thank you!" she excitedly ran up to you hugging you, and a moment later disappeared into the hallway, where she quickly grabbed the phone and dialed some number. "Pack your things dingus! She said yes!"

You couldn't stop a smile creeping onto your face when you saw Robin so excited, but when you remembered what it was caused by, all your energy focused on the anxiety of having to see the person you wanted to avoid for the rest of your life from now on, day after day.

Less than an hour later, Steve showed up on your doorstep with several cardboard boxes. An overjoyed Robin was showing him his new abode while you were sitting on the living room couch watching TV. You couldn't focus on what was just playing there. The presence of a man in the apartment triggered mixed feelings in you. It was not the mere fact that it was a man. You were sure that if suddenly Eddie or Jonathan or even Argyle wanted to move in with you, you would feel comfortable with that. But this particular man who was just unpacking his things in an empty room made your hands sweat and your body tense up every time he was near you. You knew that the upcoming weeks would be nerve-wracking for you, and adapting to the new conditions would not come easily at all.

As you turned off the TV and headed toward your room you bumped into each other in the hallway.

"uh, hey..." he said in an uncertain voice. "t-thank you for agreeing, you're really a lifesaver for me."

"Not the first and not the last time Harrington." You rolled your eyes. "To be clear, I'm doing this only because of my sister. The fact that you live here changes nothing between us." You added frigidly and, without waiting for a response, locked yourself in the room.

Memories began to gather in your head, which intensified your irritation. Even though it was several years ago you remembered perfectly what made Steve Harrington someone you couldn't stand.

The winter ball at Hawkings High was approaching, everyone was excitedly talking about their partners and creations, as if everyone had forgotten that there were other topics to talk about. Everything about the event seemed overwhelming to you, you didn't want to admit it, but you were jealous that everyone had already found their pair, and you had no one to go with. To avoid all the fuss you decided to hide in the library and focus on your studies, it seemed the best way out.

"There you are! I've been looking for you everywhere." Steve's voice snapped you out of your concentration.

"I was just working on our project." you smiled at the sight of him. From day one, something about him made you want to get to know him better. It was a matter of time before your feelings developed toward him. However, Steve Harrington King of the School never looked in your direction. The queues of girls who lined up for him took up 100% of his attention, so when the teacher paired you up for a project you felt like you had won the lottery, because for the first time his attention was fully devoted to you.

"And that's what I wanted to talk to you about." he said, sitting down across from you. "I know we were supposed to meet tomorrow and prepare some things, but the coach is doing an extra training session for us and I can't miss it, sorry."

"Oh." you were disappointed, you had been looking forward to tomorrow's meeting for a long time, especially since it was to be held after school and at his house. You'd been wondering all week what to wear, how to style your hair, what his house looked like, since you'd never been invited to any of his big parties, so it was still a mystery to you.

"I'm so sorry! Maybe I can make it up to you somehow?" he sent you a smile that was capable of bringing anyone to their knees.

"But...how? So far I've done everything myself, you only signed your name on a piece of paper." you didn't hide the fact that you were upset.

"How about I take you with me to the ball as compensation?" he suggested. In that moment all the air went out of you and you had to suddenly remember how to breathe. Was this a dream? If so, you didn't want to wake up for all the world's sakes. "You okay?" he asked after a while seeing your shocked face.

"Yes!" you said too fast and louder than you wanted to. "I mean...yes, Steve. I would love to go with you."

"Great! So see you later?" He winked at you while heading for the door. If you hadn't been sitting there at that moment you would have been sure that his charm would have knocked you off your feet.

"Yeah..." you choked out still not believing what happened. By the end of the day there was only one thing on your mind already, and Robin couldn't handle the rush of joy you brought home with you that day.

The rest of the week passed quickly and pleasantly. Every day you saw Steve in the library doing a project, to which he suddenly started devoting a little more time than before. You had no idea where such a change came from, but it was obvious that you were happy with this course of events. Your happiness, unfortunately, did not last long. As Friday slowly came to an end you were walking towards the library with a smile on your lips when you noticed Steve with a group of friends. As you walked closer, hid behind a wall so they wouldn't see you and began to listen to their conversation.

"What do you mean we won't go to the ball together Steve?" Rachel was furious.

"Because I already have someone to go with." he replied quietly.

"After all, we agreed from the very beginning that we would go together!"

"I know!"

"Then who is the person you are standing me up for?" Silence. It was as if Steve had lost the ability to speak at that moment. "Steve?" Rachel didn't let go.

"I'm going with y/n."

"Y/n y/l?" interjected Hunter, his teammate. "Dude, have you lost your mind or what?"

"Tell me this is a joke and you're not shitting on me for this weirdo! You're way out of her league Steve, you know that perfectly well!"

"I know, but I had to think of something, she did almost the whole project for me, and that was the only thing that came to mind at that moment! I said it faster than I thought it through."

"You know that if you go with this loser, you won't win the title of king?"

"I know, Rachel." As if by the touch of a magic wand, all positive emotions fled from you in a flash. Sadness clenched your throat and made a sea of tears gather in your eyes. You had to get out of there, unfortunately, when you turned to go in the opposite direction someone bumped into you causing you to fall over and land right in front of the people you wanted to get away from so badly. Seeing this, the whole group burst out laughing.

"Get up, loser. We need to talk." Rachel stepped forward. "Our Steve sometimes doesn't think about what he says, so the fact that he invited you to the ball is one big mistake. How could you believe that someone like Steve would even want to look at you?" her venom-filled words made it harder and harder for you to hold back tears.

"Look, Steve! the loser really thought you liked her enough that you actually wanted to go to the ball with her."

"Steve would never look at you as anything more than a minion to do his homework for him. He needs someone by whom he's sure to win the title of prom king." Rachel continued. You dared to look at him. He was standing with his arms crossed, looking around at the faces of his friends and smiling at them. You couldn't believe that the whole situation was amusing him. It hurt you even more than the fact he was just toying with your feelings. The fact that the whole situation amused him tore your heart to pieces.

"Sorry y/n," he said seeing your heartbroken eyes. "But they are right." he shrugged his shoulders.

You didn't answer anything. With a quick step you left the school wanting to get home as soon as possible. Fortunately, there was no one in it. You spent the rest of the day in bed, accompanied by sadness and heartbreak, vowing never to let Steve Harrington get to your life again.

"Three minutes late!" your Aunt Monica shouted as soon as you appeared in the doorway of the pastry shop.

"I know, I know, sorry!" you said quickly stepping behind the counter. "A little trouble on the roads, people saw some snow and I think they suddenly forgot how to drive. But here I am, ready to work!" you lied. You couldn't admit that you overslept, your aunt, who was also your boss, had boundless patience however even she had some limits.

As soon as you were ready you got to work. You put fresh baked goods on the shelves, and when you were done, you switched with your aunt and together with the other cooks you took care of baking Christmas cookies, while she stood at the cash register. At first, working in a pastry shop didn't seem like the best thing for you, you had never been exposed to baking and didn't even feel much need for it. For the first few months you sucked at helping in the kitchen, it was as if you had two left hands and the only thing you were good for was lining up goods and cashing in customers. Your aunt, however, insisted that you learn at least the basics, and over time you actually finally began to get the hang of it to the point where no one was afraid to let you into the kitchen anymore. You were in the middle of preparing the icing when you were called to the cash register. On your way out of the kitchen you noticed that Steve was standing across the counter, the sight of which automatically made you feel your nerves tie a knot in your stomach.

"You have a visitor." said your aunt with a warm smile on her face.

"I'm at work, I can't have visitors." you replied dryly.

"You forgot to take breakfast from home... I thought I'd drop it off for you on my way to work." he said uncertainly placing a paper bag of food on the counter.

"Thank you. Now I have to get back." You quickly grabbed the bag and disappeared from their sight however, you heard him buy two more donuts for himself and Robin.

"What a lovely young man!" the woman said as she entered the room. "I see you've finally found someone who will take care of you."

"No!" you said exasperatedly. "Steve is Robin's hopeless friend who lives with us. He's a complete asshole and an idiot."

"The asshole wouldn't bring you breakfast, you know very well that Family Video is on the other side of Hawkins? He wasn't on his way at all."

You rolled your eyes and decided not to continue the conversation. You were furious. Another person around you had succumbed to Harrington's famous charms, and you didn't like that very much. Why was he even coming here? Does he think that bringing you breakfast will make you forget everything and let you be fooled again? That will never happen.

When lunchtime came you sat down with everyone at the table in the back room and opened your bag. In addition to the sandwiches you had made for yourself, there was your favorite chocolate, to which was attached a note saying "Have a nice day!". You looked at the bar with surprise when one of the senior cooks, Grace, leaned over your shoulder to read what it said.

"Someone here seems to have an admirer," she said melodiously.

"No." you said firmly feeling your cheeks burning. You didn't know why you felt embarrassed. Another wave of irritation at his behavior made you lose your appetite so you got up from the table, hid the sandwiches, and left the chocolate for your co-workers to share and eat. The rest of the day passed quickly however the mood remained the same. Still irritated, you couldn't stop thinking about the situation you were in. You knew that you had agreed to this yourself, but you never thought in your life that it would be so difficult and that it would get to the point where you would have to endure his presence even at work. Until now, even when you were forced to spend time with him, ignoring him was going fine. Now something had changed and you had no idea why.

Days passed, and Steve wasn't about to let go. Whenever you forgot to take your breakfast to work (and this happened quite often) he brought it to you. Every time there was also chocolate. When it was your turn to do your shopping for home, seeing you pull up in the parking lot he would come down and, without asking, take the bags from you and carry them upstairs to your apartment. When your favorite TV series was on, he always switched to the right channel at the same time so that you didn't miss an episode. When the kids visited you and ordered pizza he would always put two pieces on a plate and send Dustin up to your room to carry them to you, because he knew perfectly well that you would not accept them from him, and Dustin would not be denied. In mid-December when you and Robin were decorating your apartment he helped you, and the next day he brought the Christmas tree, which the three of you decorated together. He did many small gestures for you, which unfortunately did not escape your attention. You noticed each of them while trying with all your might to defend yourself from the affection that slowly began to appear in his direction. There were days when your anger and resentment toward him were dormant, and then you were grateful for the small gestures that relieved you. However, you didn't know why he was doing it. The purpose of it all was still a mystery to you, and that made you still feel insecure.

That morning when you woke up you had a feeling as if all your life had gone out of you. You were dizzy and felt an unpleasant nausea in your stomach. You also thought you might have a fever, but when you looked at your watch you noticed it was too late to look for a thermometer. You clumsily crawled out of bed and, fighting off all symptoms of feeling unwell, started getting ready for work. You could have taken the day off, but that would have meant that you would have had to spend the whole day alone with Steve, who also had today off and, as far as you knew, had no intention of going anywhere. Gritting your teeth, you left the house. Not wanting to drive in this state to work you took the bus.

"Hey, Halloween was already here, I don't recall hiring zombies! I'd sooner expect a Christmas elf here."

"I'm fine, I just slept poorly." You weren't fine at all. You felt incredibly weak. You were tripping over your own feet, unable to focus on anything, having trouble serving customers, not to mention that when you were in the kitchen the mere sight of food made you worse and worse.

"That's enough." Monica said in a firm tone as you once again stumbled over a chair. "Right now you are to go home and rest. If I see you here tomorrow I'll fire you, I swear."

"I can't go home now." you replied, feeling like you were in elementary school when your parents were angry about a bad grade in math.

"And why is that?"

"I took the bus today, the next one is only three hours away."

"Go to the back." She sighed, and you politely followed the order. The room was small and quiet. Sunlight broke through a small window, but it wasn't big enough to illuminate the entire room well. You sat down at a wooden table and hid your face in your hands. It's been a long time since you felt as nasty as you do today. When you rested your heavy head against the cold wall you felt relieved, but it didn't last long. You concentrated on your breathing, trying to make each inhalation deep in the hope that it would somehow help, but nothing came of it. You didn't know how long you spent there, it seemed like an eternity, when suddenly the door opened and your aunt and Steve appeared in it.

"What are you doing here?" you asked in a weak voice. You didn't even have the strength to sound angry.

"I called because I thought Robin would be there, but it turns out that Steve is off today and would be more than happy to take you home." her voice was very firm.

"I am fine." you replied.

"Stop being so stubborn y/n! You're off until the end of the week, I don't want to see you here until next Monday, now goodbye."

You hated that she was right. Reluctantly, you rose and shakily headed for Harrington's car.

"Do you want to stop at the drugstore and buy some medicine?" he asked as you buckled your seatbelt.

"No."

The rest of the road passed in silence. Out of the corner of your eye you saw him glance at you from time to time as if to check if you were okay. It was as if he was worried about you, however, you didn't want to let it sink in. He has never worried about you and never will. At least, that's what you told yourself. It was easier that way.

Climbing the stairs to your floor proved to be a huge challenge for you. The more stairs you climbed, the more dizzy you became, so when you finally found yourself in the apartment you breathed a sigh of relief leaning against the wall.

"Go lie down and I'll make you some tea maybe it will make you feel better." At that moment you didn't know what had gotten into you. You didn't need his pity and feigned care.

"You can stop." you retorted.

"What?" he was visibly puzzled which angered you even more.

"Stop pretending you care, Steve. I'm not falling for it."

"It hasn't crossed your mind that maybe I really care about you?" This question completely knocked you out of your rhythm. What the hell was he talking about? Were these hallucinations caused by illness? Or was he telling the truth? No. You couldn't afford such a moment of weakness.

"You never cared about me, Harrington. Don't pretend it's different now."

"I've always cared about you, y/n."

"Don't bullshit me, Steve!" you shouted. "You humiliated me in the worst possible way, because of you I had no life until the end of school! Until the last day of school they bullied me for that situation. I kept praying that they would finally change the subject, that they would find something to distract them, but it didn't do anything. And you just watched and let it happen. I will never forget your fucking smile that you sent to your idiotic friends, who never missed an opportunity to laugh at me."

"I'm sorry, but it wasn't at all like you think, I really wanted to go to that damn ball with you then!"

"I can't believe you're still lying" you felt tears fall from your eyes. You felt again like you did in that school hallway. Hurt and helpless. In addition, the fact that you were sick did not help at all in controlling your emotions.

"I'm not lying!" he shouted. "I wanted to go to the prom with you, I really liked you, I still fucking like you y/n, but then I panicked. I was an asshole, an idiot for whom the only thing that mattered was becoming the king of the ball, being popular and liked by everyone. I was so blinded by it all that at that moment I didn't have the courage to tell the truth, so I just started nodding at them. I was a coward!"

"In that case, congratulations, I remember that you got your coveted plastic crown then, just like at every other ball I didn't go to because of you. I hope it was worth it in your opinion." Your tone was full of anger and regret. However, you felt relieved that you were finally able to get it off your chest after so long.

"It wasn't worth it and I will regret it forever, believe me this is one of the many things I will not be able to forgive myself for. But... I have changed, y/n. I really have changed, so please give me a chance to make it up to you somehow, to make it right I beg you."

"The last time you had to make something up to me ended very badly, Steve. I won't make the same mistake again." Wiping the tears from your cheeks, you turned your back to him and, without waiting for an answer, locked yourself in your room. You quickly changed into more comfortable clothes and lay on your bed wrapping yourself in a blanket. Not wanting to think about anything else, you played music and concentrated on the words of the songs and let all the agitated emotions slowly leave you. Suddenly a horrible tiredness caught up with you, which, combined with sickness, quickly lulled you to sleep.

At the same time, Steve sat in his room fighting guilt and self-pity. He hated himself for what kind of person he had been in high school, hated himself for how many people he had hurt because he was afraid of losing his status as king of the school. Now he knew that none of those things mattered. What did matter, however, were the consequences of his behavior. He spoke honestly when he admitted that he really liked you. When he finished school and started working with Robin at Scoops Ahoy you reappeared in his life again but this time things were completely different. Instead of warm smiles sent his way all he could count on were stares full of contempt. In fact, most of the time you simply ignored his presence, which caused him slight pain because he remembered how you were always eager to talk to him when you met in the library or in class. Back then you listened carefully to his every word and laughed at every joke, even the weak ones. Now he could only dream about it. At first he wanted to do the same thing. To treat you as if you did not exist, however, he could not. Every time you visited Robin at work at the sight of you his heart sped up. Later, things became much more complicated. Russians, Mind Flayer, Vecna, everything related to Upside Down messed up your lives decently. The struggle for survival brought people together, but it didn't work on you. At least not in Steve's case, which was another blow to him. However, he remembered that during one of the fights when he was lying barely conscious you shielded him with your own body from one of the monsters. When he was attacked by a herd of demobats you were the first to rush to his rescue and then without a second thought you took care of his wounds by sending him cool glances. Moments like those gave him hope that maybe things would still be good between you two someday. He wanted that more than anything else. However, at times when you did not have to fight to the death with the other dimension and met in groups together with the kids everything returned to normal, you spoke and looked at him only when necessary, extinguishing the flame of hope that was already barely smoldering. Despite this, he still did not give up. No matter how coldly you treated him he did not let go. Something always attracted him to you, and no matter how many times he tried he couldn't just forget about you. He wanted to make up for all the pain and sorrow you felt because of him, instead he wanted to make you feel happy, he wanted to hear you laugh at his jokes again, he dreamed of seeing you smile in his direction at least once more. He was sitting like this contemplating when suddenly he heard you run out of the room and slam into the bathroom.

You were awakened from your nap by a terrible nausea. Your stomach ached mercilessly and you felt you couldn't stand it any longer, so you quickly ran to the bathroom and knelt in front of the toilet. You didn't have to wait long when your stomach decided to return all its contents. The worst part was that you didn't feel any better. Opening the door, you saw Steve standing in front of it with a cup in his hand. Not having the strength to argue again, you just sighed and walked back to your room and he wordlessly followed you. Already lying in bed, you watched as he hesitantly approached and placed a cup of tea on the bedside table.

"If you need anything..." he said quietly looking at you. "Just call me." You didn't know if it was because you were sick or tired, but you felt like all the walls you were building to ward off him at that moment weren't doing their job as they should. It was as if, during your earlier argument together with the words, you had thrown out all the negative emotions, cleared the atmosphere and maybe were able to accept him as someone other than an enemy. Warm tea was indeed like a salve for your irritated stomach, after drinking it you felt better however you were still tired, which made you fall asleep once again. You lay in bed all day waking up and falling asleep every now and then. You noticed that every time you woke up the empty cup turned into a cup full of warm tea, in addition, there was a small ham sandwich next to it, because despite the fact that your stomach was exceptionally capricious today you had to eat something and Steve knew it perfectly well. Taking advantage of the fact that today, unusually, the door to your room was not closed, but ajar, from time to time he would peek through the gap left to see how you were feeling. As soon as he saw that you were asleep he took the opportunity to clean the empty dishes from the bedside table and re-brew the tea so that it was already waiting for you warm when you woke up. He made no secret of the fact that taking care of you gave him pleasure. For the first time in a very long time, he could see slight glimpses of warmth in your eyes instead of cold, heartless hatred. Once when you passed each other in the corridor you sent him a slight smile, which was a thank you for his care. Seeing it his heart skipped a beat. He didn't expect it completely, but seeing it then on your pale and tired face made hope bloom anew giving him a huge amount of motivation to keep fighting for you.

"Were you just in my sister's room while she is sleeping, you creep?" asked Robin. At the sound of her voice he jumped up.

"Shit, Robin. Keep your voice down or you'll wake her up!" he whispered.

"What's going on?"

"Your aunt called for someone to pick her up from work today because she's sick, so I went. She's been sleeping all day and throwing up in shifts." he explained.

"And you, as a good roommate, sneak into her room when she's sleeping and make sure she's still breathing?" she raised one eyebrow.

"It's not funny Robin." he said, annoyed that the whole situation was amusing her. "I just make sure she's not missing anything. I'll bring her warm tea from time to time, after all, that's not a bad thing! Besides, I'd do the same for you!"

"Easy, tiger," Robin raised her hands in a defensive gesture. "I was just messing with you. Actually, I'm grateful to you, she's stubborn enough that she would never ask for help. Not even me."

Looking one last time in your direction, Steve closed the door of your room and headed for the living room. He sank into the soft cushions of the couch and sighed deeply, feeling disappointed because Robin's return home meant that she would now take the lead in caring for you.

For the next two days, you still didn't have the strength to get out of bed, so Robin took time off work to be at home if necessary. By the third day you were feeling better, so with a calm head she was able to return to work leaving you alone in the apartment.

Enjoying the peace and quiet, you took this time to do a little cleaning and later to prepare dinner, which was a form of thanks for the fact that she and Steve were taking care of you. Reluctantly, you had to admit that you were slowly beginning to see in him what the rest of them had long seen. When they returned home warm food was already waiting on the table. Seeing the three plates Robin gently poked him on the shoulder and sent him a broad smile, and Harrington responded with the same upon seeing this small gesture. Dinner passed as pleasantly as ever for you. They told you about the strange customers they had to serve today and the even stranger movies they were interested in. You listened to them and occasionally burst out laughing or injected some comment. In addition, your sister kept inundating you with her uncertainties about today's band meeting, as her relationship with Vicky had been quite complicated for some time. She couldn't stop wondering what she should wear for tonight how to behave, what to say. You and Steve sent each other a communicative look and began to calm her down. After dinner, they cleaned up everything, and in the meantime you sat on the couch watching them. Your eyes periodically met the hazel ones of your roommate, who always responded with a warm gentle smile. Then you felt a strange warmth on your cheeks, so you abruptly turned your head the other way just so he wouldn't see the red that flooded you. Finally, unable to bear the onslaught of strange tingling and rapid heartbeat in his presence, you decided to hole up in your room for a while.

A loud banging on the door sounded around the apartment. Before you had time to approach and open it Max was already inside throwing a red rose on the floor and then herself on the living room couch.

"Woah! Hey, what's wrong?" you asked walking up to the girl.

"Feelings suck!" she exclaimed and sank her face into a fluffy pillow. You sat down next to her and, stroking her back gently, waited for her to calm down.

There were quiet sniffles coming from the living room when Steve came out of his room and saw a flower lying on the floor. Startled, he followed the sound of sobbing. Max always seemed to be the toughest of all the kids. Rarely was anything able to get her off balance and make her cry, so the state she was in now worried you both a lot. From the thrown rose, Steve deduced that the matter probably involved Lucas. So he walked over to the refrigerator and pulled out the chocolate ice cream that he and Robin kept for tough and sad situations. This one was definitely that. On the way, he grabbed three spoons and took a seat next to Max, so that the girl would be between the two of you. Taking the box of ice cream from him, she placed it on her lap so that you all had easy access. You turned on the TV for a music program and in silence began to eat ice cream while watching music videos and listening to them. When you finished, you saw that Max had calmed down a bit.

"Are you going to tell us what happened?" you asked in a calm tone grabbing her hand, and she squeezed it tighter to pull you closer. Understanding what was going on, you sat down as close as you could and hugged her. Despite the tough girl she played, everyone knew very well that in difficult moments she loved to hide in the arms of people she trusted to feel safe. That's why Steve, after a moment's thought, put his arm around both of you. Feeling his touch made you stiffen. One part of you wanted to run as far away from this as possible, to get away from him and never be touched again in your life. However, the other part turned out to be stronger. It was the part that found a comfort you had never known before. Feeling you relax, he began to gently draw small circles on your arm. All three of you sat snuggled into each other now creating a very family picture. If anyone saw you now, they would never in their lives guess that Steve is the person you hate. But was hate still the only emotion you felt when thinking about him? Just a few weeks ago you would have been more than sure, but now? You were horrified by the speed at which your feelings were stirring and changing.

"Feelings are stupid." Max said tilting her head toward Steve.

"I can agree with that, but I need a little more detail." You laughed lightly.

"It's about Lucas and his stupid basketball. His stupid friends, his stupid parties. Everything is stupid!" she burst out. "It's the third time in a row he's forgotten about our date because suddenly some party with his team fell out. I keep seeing the cheerleaders drooling at the sight of him, he started sitting with them in the cafeteria, he left us!"

"I'm sorry..." you understood the feeling perfectly. High school was like a terrible jungle full of divisions and species, which poor Max now had to deal with.

"You know what the worst part is? That damn prom! Lucas got nominated as king, I heard the cheearlider captain, Triss, planning to invite him. I heard her laughing with her hopeless friends that Lucas will never get the title of king if he goes with me." her voice began to crack. "I don't even know why it hurts me so much, after all, I never cared about things like that stupid prom!" the memories began to come back to you at a deadly fast pace. Suddenly the touch you felt on your arm was no longer soothing, you felt it burning your skin, where terrible scars would remain. Under the pretext of going to get tissues, you quickly moved away from them, and when you returned you knelt down in front of the girl and put your hands on her legs which she was shaking nervously.

"Maybe it's about your fear that Lucas will choose Triss?" you asked quietly.

"I don't want the stupid plastic crown to be more important than me."

"I know, honey, I know..." Of course you knew. You knew exactly how she felt and you wanted nothing more than to protect her from those feelings. Max didn't deserve to ever feel inadequate and worthless the way you did back then.

Steve felt as if someone was sticking a knife straight into his heart and slowly twisting it in every possible direction without a hint of compassion. He hated the sight when any of the kids were suffering. In addition, looking at Max's glazed tears, yours from that day appeared before his eyes. The pain he saw in them when you looked at him haunted him until today. He imagined how awful you must have felt. It occurred to him that you must have looked like that too when you came home that day. Suddenly he felt tears come to his eyes too, he chased them away with a quick blink and grunted drawing your attention back to him.

"And what's with the rose?" he asked.

"He came to see me with it after school. I thought he was going to ask me to the prom, but he only came to say that once again we would have to postpone our meeting because he got an invitation to some idiotic party."

"Every rose has its thorn." you quoted a song you recently heard.

"What do you mean?"

"Every rose, no matter how beautiful, has thorns. Just like people, even the most beautiful ones have flaws." You explained. "Talk to him Max. You've been through so much together, I'm sure you can get along. Besides, I think that for Lucas you are one of the most important things he has in his life and he will never let anyone or anything take your place."

"He already allows it, he still chooses to meet with his teammates and cheeliders instead of me," she said.

"It seems to me that it's just a temporary admiration of popularity and he doesn't see things the same way you do."

"Y/n is right, you need to talk to him about it." interjected Steve. "The title of king is worthless, even more if he had to lose you because of it." Saying this he looked at you all the time, you felt his gaze on you however you did not dare to respond with the same. The tone of his voice, though, told you everything. You didn't have to look at him to notice how hard this topic was for him. You also noticed the moment when his voice broke slightly, as if Steve was about to join Max and cry with her. Maybe he was telling the truth and actually cared about you?

"I'll talk to him, but tomorrow, there's no time today anyway because they have a Hellfire meeting." sighed Max. "Can I stay here? I don't want to be alone right now." she asked.

"Of course you can. Why don't we order pizza for dinner and have a movie marathon?" you said enthusiastically. She only smiled slightly and nodded her head.

"I'll go get you some movies from Family Video." suggested Steve. "I still have to drive in somewhere on the way anyway." He said leaving the two of you in the apartment.

The road to Hawkins High passed quickly for him. All the time in his head he replayed the situation from a few years ago, then thought about how to lead the conversation with Lucas. Also, your words that every rose has thorns echoed in his head all the time. There was a time when he was like a beautiful rose to you, and when you finally managed to catch it, its thorns were sharp enough to hurt you so badly that they left scars. All alone, he allowed a few tears to run down his cheeks. The flood of emotions that were simmering inside him had to find some outlet eventually.

When he entered the drama room, they were just getting ready for the campaign. There were still a few people missing, but luckily Lucas was already there.

"We need to talk," he said, pointing at the boy.

"Something wrong?" interjected Dustin with a puzzled expression on his face.

"Dude, were you crying?" added Eddie seeing his friend's still glazed eyes.

"Max was at your place?" Lucas guessed immediately.

"Yes." sighed Steve ignoring Eddie's question. "We need to talk about the prom. Who are you going to go with?"

"Of course with her, I wanted to invite her on Monday after school to go for a walk and then ask her if she would go with me."

"So you had no intention of going with the cheerleader?"

"Of course not Steve! Why should I?"

"Because of the nomination for king."

"Dude, you don't think some piece of plastic is going to be more important to me than Max?"

"I hope not." Steve was glad Lucas was a lot smarter than he was. Feeling relieved, he plopped down in one of the chairs and hid his face in his hands.

"Steve what's wrong with you?" interjected Will who had been watching him for a long time.

"I just- just wanted to make sure Lucas doesn't do anything stupid," he said.

"And he won't tread in your footsteps?" Eddie's words were on the mark. Seeing the surprise on the boys' faces, he continued. "Do you think why y/n always avoids Harrington, and when she has to talk to him she spits venom?" Steve didn't want to raise his eyes. He was ashamed because he knew the kids had always admired him, now their opinion of him might change when they knew how he treated y/n a few years ago. "Once upon a time, back in the days of King Steve's reign in the kingdom of Hawkins High y/n only had eyes of him. Unfortunately, she was never very popular or well-liked, so she belonged to a group of outcasts who were forbidden to even come close to those in the royal group. When a ball at the castle was approaching, his highness Harrington saw in poor y/n a candidate for his partner. The girl delightedly accepted the invitation. The whole kingdom was boiling with gossip when for the next week the King and the peasant girl met in the library, spending long hours there. No one knew exactly what went on behind the library doors. However, everyone could see how the previously unnoticed y/n was up to radiating joy. No one had ever seen her so happy in her life, and some suspected that a local quack had treated her to some not-so-legal herbs, but they were wrong. The reason was King Steve, by whom she was finally noticed. Unfortunately, the good fairy spell didn't work for long. It turned out that the crown of the king of the ball was more important than anything else, so King Steve gave up the company of y/n and went to the ball that the noblewoman Rachel, breaking the heart of the peasant girl in the process. But that's not all, instead of refusing her in solitude King Steve did it in the presence of his army of half-wits, who already to the very end persecuted and ridiculed her at every possible turn, and our king never stood up for her."

"If that's true then I'm not at all surprised y/n couldn't stand you." commented Dustin. "But fortunately you've changed," he added.

"After all, y/n agreed for you to live with them, right? That means all is fine between you two?" interjected Mike.

"It's not that simple." Steve stood up. "Recently I have the impression that things are a little better, but not quite." he remembered the two of you arguing a few days ago. "I think she will always hate me." he added sadly.

"There is a very thin line between love and hate Steve..." Eddie laughed lightly. "You don't even know when they start to mix together until eventually one turns into the other. If you've managed to win her heart once before, why not try again?"

"How can I do that when most of the time she won't even talk to me? For several years I've been trying to show her that I've changed, that I regret all this, but she stubbornly refuses to let me."

"The apology must be as big as the mistake you made." commented Dustin.

"But I have no idea what to do! How do I apologize to her when there are days when she doesn't want to look at me? How do I get her attention? Today I really thought something would change. When Max came in and needed a hug we sat down so that I put my arm around both of them. For the first time in several years she let me touch her and didn't run away. I even got the feeling that she liked it, until Max mentioned the whole prom situation, how the cheerleaders said Lucas would never win the title of king if he went with her. That's when it all came flooding back and she ran away from me like she was burnt."

"Wait, they really said that?" interjected a shocked Lucas.

"Yes, that's why I came here. I had to make sure you were smarter than me.

"Of course I'm smarter Steve, I would never treat Max the same way." The boy's words hurt, but he knew they were true. He deserved them. After everything he had done to you, he knew he deserved a lot of hurtful words. "Even if I sometimes make mistakes it's never that big," he said.

"Yeah, Every rose has its thorn, right?"

"What?"

"She said that to Max today, people and their flaws are like a rose with thorns."

"I think I even know where she got that from." Eddie said with a smile. "It's the title of Poison's latest song. Dustin, do you remember? We were listening to it the other day as she helped us paint the figures."

"Yes I remember." The teenager nodded. "And I think I have an idea on how to get her to finally give you a chance to make things right."

As Dustin presented his plan, the rest of them got involved as well, adding their ideas. It was a plan that could either fix everything or completely destroy it, leaving nothing left to salvage. All the while thinking about it, Steve returned home with a couple of Christmas movies in his hand, but he lost track of time so much that when he entered the living room he found you and Max there, both of you asleep on the couch while watching TV. The girl, wrapped in a blanket, was lying with her head on your thighs and you were leaning slightly against the edge of the couch. Not wanting to wake you, he went straight to his room thinking about how to put Dustin's plan into action. It was risky, he knew it might be too much, but he had nothing else. He was desperate to get you back. Living together with you made him realize how much he wanted you in his life. You constantly occupied his thoughts, he had no peace from it even when he slept because then you visited him in his dreams. However, in dreams there was no trace of hate. In dreams you were again sitting together in the school library laughing and talking. In dreams you would let him grab your hand and when he did it you smiled broadly. In dreams he could hide you in his arms when you were again in the Upside Down hiding from the Demogorgon. In dreams he could kiss you. When, after defeating Vecna, you sat on the porch of Hopper's hut feeling relieved that it was over. You sat in silence, and as soon as he said your name you left. However, in his dreams you always stayed and listened to what he had to say. When he finished speaking and apologizing for everything he had done to you, you forgave him. With a slight smile, you placed your hand on his and he then moved closer to you and connected your lips. Later, he would wake up and try at all costs to fall back asleep to return to that beautiful moment.

The next few days flew by quickly and were filled with doubts. Robin suspiciously often left home leaving you alone with Steve. You stopped hiding all day in your room and spent more and more time together. Conversations usually started with small topics about Christmas plans and gifts. When Steve said that he would rather spend Christmas alone you felt sorry for him. No matter how much you defended against it you were beginning to like him and didn't want him to spend it alone in his room, so you suggested he join you and Robin when your parents came over on Christmas morning. After a moment's thought, he agreed and thanked you by sending a warm smile that made your heart beat harder. You felt the old feelings towards him returning and didn't know what to do to suppress them inside you again. As time went by, more and more thoughts about him popped up in your head, so you had to find something to do. You decided to clean the whole apartment, avoiding Steve and Robin's rooms. You started vacuuming, mopping floors and wiping dust while listening to music loudly, so you didn't hear your flatmates come home after several hours of cleaning. You were just standing on a wooden stool and cleaning the windows when Robin came behind you and shouted loudly. Frightened, you jumped up and, losing your balance, fell straight into the arms of Steve, who was standing next to you.

"I got you." he said clasping his arms around you.

"T-Thanks," you howled, exiting his embrace. Once you slipped out of his grasp you felt an unpleasant coldness envelop you. It was as if you were missing the warmth you had felt just a moment ago leaning against the boy.

"I'm sorry, I didn't think you'd be so scared." Robin said, however, a small smile was visible on her face. "I see you didn't wait to clean up for us?"

"I had to do something." you replied. "But don't worry, your rooms haven't even been looked at, so you'll have time to clean up."

"And I already thought that the magic of Christmas would work and you would do the good deed and clean up for me." she rolled her eyes dramatically.

"In your dreams!" you said and poked her lightly. "I'll finish cleaning the windows, and you will make dinner in the meantime. I'm starving!"

"Just try not to fall again you wimp, this time there will be no one to catch you." she said while winking at you. She wanted to let you know that she had noticed a change in the atmosphere between the two of you. Robin was a great observer, so she immediately noticed the warming of your relations.

"Shut up Robs." you said and quickly turned toward the windows so that neither of them would notice the redness on your cheeks.

The day before Christmas you were not given a rest. Suddenly everyone remembered that it would be appropriate to wrap presents, so Dustin, Will, Mike and Lucas begged you for help because it turned out that wrapping things with colored paper was too difficult. In time, you were joined by Max And El. That's how you just spent the whole afternoon hidden from the world in Mike's basement.

Unaware of the ruse, you didn't suspect that the kids were deliberately packing everything wrong so that you would stay put for as long as possible and not come home until the evening. When the packing was finally over Dustin caught you before you left the house.

"Can I have a request of you?" he asked quietly.

"Anytime." you replied seeing his nervous look on his face.

"Just... remember that Christmas is also a time for forgiveness, okay?"

"What do you mean?"

"Just Promise, please!"

"Okay Dusty, I will remember."

The boy hugged you tightly and only then let you go home.

At the same time, Robin was helping Steve put the finishing touches on Dustin's plan so that everything worked out perfectly.

"I'm really glad you're doing this." your sister said looking at the living room which was hung with little Christmas lights.

"Do you think this will work?" asked a confused Steve while nervously combing his hand through his hair.

"I have no idea. I think it will work, but there's also a chance that she'll get so mad that all the monsters in the Upside Down will look like puppies next to her."

"I really care about her, Robin."

"I know dingus. That's why I'm helping you. If it weren't for how much you've changed I would never in my life have let you get close to her."

"Yeah..."

"We need to think positively."

"What's going on here?" you asked as you entered the room. Robin wordlessly ran out of the apartment leaving you alone with the boy. The soft light of Christmas lights was spreading around the room, plus there were single roses scattered everywhere. "Steve, what the hell is going on here?" you felt your nerves rise to your throat.

"Before you leave and start hating me again I beg you to wait. Let me explain, let me try to explain," he said walking up to you and grabbed your hand. "Please." Disoriented you looked at him and then at your hand tucked in his. Later you looked around the room again connecting the dots. It was all planned, and everyone was involved in this intrigue. Now you understood what Dustun had in mind before you left the Wheeler house.

"Fine," you said quietly. The boy's face lit up as he pulled you toward the Christmas tree under which hung a small box.

"This is for you." He said pulling it off the branch and handed it to you. Inside was a silver necklace with a rose-shaped tag. Surprised, you looked at him and were about to say something however he immediately interrupted you. "I can't get your words out of my head about that rose when Max came. I know I don't deserve it, because my thorns hurt you badly, but I would like to use my Christmas wish for something I lost a few years ago." He walked over to the radio, from which, after a while, the sounds of a familiar song began to play.

We both lie silently still In the dead of the night Although we both lie close together We feel miles apart inside Was it something I said or something I did Did the words not come out right Though I tried not to hurt you Though I tried But I guess that's why they say

Still under the influence of shock, you didn't know what to answer. There was a void in your head, your heart was racing toward the boy, so it had no problem taking control, so when Steve extended his hand in your direction and asked you to dance you gave him yours. He pulled you close by gently placing his hand on your waist. His hands were pleasantly warm. As you swayed to the rhythm of the melody he did not take his eyes off you still smiling. He thought he couldn't feel happier than he did in that moment.

Every rose has its thorn Just like every night has its dawn Just like every cowboy sings his sad, sad song Every rose has its thorn Yeah it does

With each word you were closer and closer to each other, the gap between you ceased to exist. Your heart was pounding hard and fast. At first it was due to nerves, however, very quickly you relaxed and found comfort under his touch. Your brain told you to run as far away as possible, but your heartbeat drowned it out very effectively.

Though it's been a while now I can still feel so much pain Like a knife that cuts you the wound heals But the scar, that scar remains I know I could have saved a love that night If I'd known what to say Instead of makin' love We both made our separate ways

"How did you find this song?" you mouthed finally.

"I had a little help." He smiled. "Do you like it?" you nodded affirmatively. You didn't know what was happening to you, tears began to invade your eyes, you felt like you were about to explode. You had so many thoughts in your head that one merged with the other creating one big mess in which you couldn't find yourself. You rested your head on his chest so that he wouldn't notice what was happening to you, hoping that the swaying rhythm would calm you down.

And now I hear you found somebody new And that I never meant that much to you To hear that tears me up inside And to see you cuts me like a knife I guess Every rose has its thorn Just like every night has its dawn| Just like every cowboy sings his sad, sad song Every rose has its thorn

When the song came to an end you didn't want to pull away from him. You knew that when you did he would notice the tears streaming from your eyes. Feeling you still hiding your face in his sweater and not moving he worriedly looked down.

"y/n?" he asked quietly moving his hand to your back where he began to gently stroke you. "What's wrong?" in response he heard only a quiet sniff. He automatically hugged you tightly wanting you to feel safe in his arms. "Did I do something wrong?"

"I don't know Steve." Your voice was weak and squeaky.

"Talk to me, please."

"It's just...a few years ago it was all I dreamed about. I dreamed of you Steve, and then when I thought something had changed, that you finally noticed me..."

"I acted like a complete asshole." he finished for you.

"You broke my heart, Steve. For such a long time you allowed others to destroy my life. Day after day, the sight of you in the hallways reminded me that I wasn't good enough for you. What if it's the same now? If after time you find that I'm still not like that? That you can afford something better? I can't stand it a second time Steve. If I forgive you now this rejection on your part will hurt me even more than it did then."

"No y/n, no." said cupping your face. "I don't deserve you, it's me who is not good enough for you. You're a million times better, but I can't stand the way things are between us anymore. You're like the most beautiful rose in the world and I want nothing more than to make you mine, with or without thorns. I want to make you happy and show you that you deserve the best. I know you have every right not to forgive me, but I promise that if you do I will do everything in my power to make sure you don't regret this decision. I need you in my life y/n."

"You have to promise me that everything you're saying now is true." Seeing your heartbroken eyes, he felt his heart breaking into pieces. He was sick of watching you cry because of him.

"I swear. I swear on everything."

"Okay." You whispered after a longer moment of thought.

"Okay?"

"Yes, Steve, we can start from the beginning, but that doesn't change the fact that I will need a lot of time to fully trust you. It won't be easy."

"I'll give you as much time as you need."

"Fine." You smiled slightly. "Thank you, Steve..."

"For you, everything." He hugged you tightly, filled with joy. ""That means you'll accept my gift?" he asked after a while.

"Of course I will, it's beautiful." he quickly walked over to the table where you had left the box earlier and took out a necklace from it, which after a moment he fastened around your neck.

"I don't want to push or rush things too fast, but there's one more thing I've really wanted to do for a very long time." he said looking into your eyes.

"What is it?" with a movement of his head he pointed to the ceiling. When you followed your eyes there you saw how centrally above you hung a mistletoe.

"Am I to understand that this was also part of the plan?" you asked teasingly.

"I'd be lying if I said it wasn't..." responsible scratching the back of his neck with his hand. You chuckled walking up to him. You stood on your toes to reach his cheek and kissed him there.

"I think that's enough for now," he said.

"R-right...Uhm- Do you feel like a little movie marathon? I happen to have some movies."

"I would love to."

Forgiveness was never a simple matter, and you knew you still had a long and winding road ahead of you, but you had a feeling it was worth the risk. Steve, in turn, realized he was wrong. Sitting on the couch with you now, putting his arm around you and knowing that you had finally given him a chance after so long, he felt even happier. And happiness was the best motivation to always show you how much he cared about you.

74 notes · View notes