#jim hopper and steve harrington

[persage]

I Promise I'll be worthy- S.HARRINGTON

Steve Harrington x Hopper!Reader

Part 2 of Can I stay with you tonight? ( don't worry it is perfectly understandable without having read the first part)

Summary: After being kicked out of his home, you and your father offer to help Steve, but it's not always easy to save someone, especially when they don't think they're worth it. Things don't go as planned.

Words Count: 6.6 k

Tags: Hopper!Reader Angst with fluff, Jim Hopper being the best dad, Jim Hopper being a father figure for Steve Shitty Harrington's parenting and very traumatized Steve Harrington.

Thanks again to @loving-and-dreaming

It's ironic how in a reality of monsters and dangers, in the ranking of the things that Jim Hopper despises most in the world there are two relatively anonymous and  useless people like Mr and Mrs Harrington, and not even in such a low position to be honest. As he watches Mr Harrington throw a  bag out the front door in anger, soon followed by none other than his son Steve, Hopper feels a visceral urge to get out of the car and grab the man by the shirt exactly like he is now doing with the boy. He holds him by the jacket, brutally pushing him out of the house. "I'm tired of your headbutts Steven! Come back when you will become a man" Mr. Harrington shouts. Hopper never liked the man. The kid's dark eyes rest on the police chief's car parked nearby and as he is literally thrown out of his own house, Steve shakes his head motioning Jim not to intervene. This however attracts his father's attention, he notices Hopper's car and the two people inside it. You and your dad helplessly watch the scene.

Steve picks up the bag from the ground and walks away with small steps turning back from time to time, looking for the gaze of his own mother who has taken refuge in her house, sobbing and crying as if she really cares about that only son hers. Yet she doesn't intervene. She never did anyway. Steve doesn't blame her, you do. You can't help it.

Steve looks his father in the eye and for the first time in many years finds the courage to answer without apology. "I look like you more than you think dad .... You know, miserable" There is no expression on his face, motionless, impassive even when his father raises his arm with the clear intention of hitting him. With your eyes wide open and your heart pounding in your chest you get out of the car, immediately followed by your father who tries to stop you, to overtake you, to prevent you from being the first to get in the way. But before you or Jim can reach them, Steve has already caught his father's arm in mid-air and is staring at him without daring to say anything. Now that you can observe the way they look at each other, something in you breaks down, because the guy in front of you doesn't even seem the same as always. The sunny, cheerful person, able to calm you down in every situation, has left the place for someone different, as if a part of him - who knows how big and how important - has broken forever after being hit for so long. Slowly Steve lets go of his father's arm, turns around and without daring to look at you or Hopper starts walking towards the car. "Let's go" he whispers. You clench your fists, trying to appease the need to break Mr. Harrington's face and you stand still and observe him for longer than necessary, the old man reciprocates, scrutinizing you from top to bottom like you are scum.

The second in which you get distracted to look around you, it's enough to miss the exact moment in which Mr. Harrington grabs his son by the arm forcefully, with a sort of controlled but scary violence "You wretch!" He screams, squeezing him tighter and tugging at him. "You got the police in, you stupid boy" he shouts on and on, his face red with rage, an expression of pure fury you've never seen before on such a serious and composed face. Steve has his back to you and you're glad you can't see the way his face becomes a mask of sadness, the way his eyes fill with a pain no one has taught him to voice and that once again will make him feel so damn wrong. "What will people say about us huh? Isn't everything you've done to us  enough Steven? Sometimes I doubt you're even my son, so stupid, so....miserable."

If you were in another time and context, Steve would laugh to notice you and your father lined up in the exact same position, with the exact same expression on your faces addressed to nothing less than his own dad. His fucking father. Steve actually manages to smile a little, because with the possibilities that nature has given him - after all, he shares that cursed man's genes - he could have been a much worse person. Also he's lucky enough to have you two to worry about him, and Dustin and Rob. That's enough for now. But the thought brings with it a new fear: Steve Harrington, in times he doesn't like to remember, not even too far away, was like his dad and he was proud of it, he did everything to be exactly what his father wanted (without ever succeeding to be honest, grades and intelligence, are things he could not pretend), but what if he is really like that? What if this is his true self? What if  all his failed attempts to improve, all the effort he is making to demonstrate in every way that he is a better person, in the end it's only an act great enough to even convince himself? What if, after all, he is just a reflection of the man who he most hates - and loves, at the same time, however absurd it may seem - in the world?

The thought paralyzes him, terrifies him but he is more terrified by the chill between all of you, the immobility of these infinite moments and it scares the shit out of him to see you so close to his father. He knows that Hopper is there and if Hopper is there nothing bad will ever happen to you, but there is no rationality in Steve's mind right now, so he comes back and grabs your hand with sweetness and decision at the same time.

"Let's go" He murmus, his voice is calm and gentle enough to turn you towards him. His cold hands manage to loosen your grip still in a fist, you intertwine your fingers with his, letting them slide slowly, in a light, delicate but firm grip that seems to mean "I'm here, I'm always here ". This is enough to calm down the crazy beating of your heart, it's enough to bring back a shred of light in his eyes, it's almost imperceptible, but it's enough to give you hope that all the wickedness in the world won't be enough to take away the Steve you know.

For the first time since you were born, and even worse since losing Sarah, Jim Hopper doesn't hate seeing you with someone else, a boy. He feels no jealousy, nothing but blind anger and a deep sense of injustice for the poor kid: Jim Hopper hasn't always been a perfect father. To be fair he has been a shitty father for a long time, letting himself go, making many mistakes, and yet he always loved you and  this is a certainty that no one will ever be able to take away from you: you've been loved. Apparently Steve Harrington hasn't been so lucky. The idea that this young man who now walks with his head down with you, dragging you along as if he's the one to hold you up- while it's obvious from the way his feet shuffle that he's the one about to collapse- the idea that this boy who has seen death with his own eyes more times than anyone his age should, has never received the comfort of a hug, a pat on the back, a word of reassurance, pisses him off in a terrible way and causes him a deep sadness. With one last look Hopper starts to leave, then turns one last time. "You know Mr. Harrington, you're right about one thing. That boy over there can't be your son, he's far too smart to be"

"Steve" You whisper as you open the car door for him. Steve shakes his head, tries to smile but what comes out is just a distorted expression that doesn't look like a smile at all. "Steve" You repeat, grabbing his face in your hands and caressing it gently. The hint of a beard to be redone, the scars under his skin tell the story of his existence and you feel like it's your story too, cause he is part of you. The most important now. "Please" He replies in a hushed voice. Please, I need time. Please leave me be. Please, I don't deserve you. And Steve doesn't say it, you wouldn't understand, but terror blocks him and he sees himself old, with a few extra pounds, identical to his father, it seems to him an inevitable destiny, and for an instant he wishes he had died in that cursed Russian laboratory.

To convince Steve to stay with you, Hopper had to get his service pistol and threaten him. It was also quite amusing to see him surrender with his hands up and his face white with fear.

"You know boy, I thought I should have pulled a gun on you to keep you away from my daughter, not force you to stay." Jim says, chuckling under his mustache. "Dad!" You exclaim trying to hide your embarrassment, but your face, unlike Steve's, has turned such a deep red that it's impossible not to notice. Now, Jim Hopper has never been a fool, let alone a blind man: he knows perfectly well that you have a crush on this  Harrington boy, it's so obvious that if Steve hasn't noticed it, it must be because of all the beatings on the head he's taken over the years. And let's be clear, he normally wouldn't let him get close to you, not even under torture, let alone live under the same roof, yet there is something about the way he treats you that erases his jealousy. Sure, when he finds you snuggled up to him on the sofa watching tv he wants to kick him out of the house and he certainly isn't happy to see the way you curl up against his body in search of a hug, but there's something very respectful and pure in the way he hugs you. Jim then, looking closer, notices he's doing the same with El, like a brother would. He's protective, caring with both of you but Jim notices the way Steve keeps a wall between you two. It's a thin wall, barely visible in his hesitations, which Jim appreciates and acknowledges. It's the wall broken people put up to protect the ones they love, to save them from their problems at least until they're solved. You don't notice all this, too divided between the elation of having Steve Harrington - your beloved Stevie - in your house and the sadness for the circumstances that brought him to you. Oh and also the fact of having left your room to him and having to share one with Eleven, a teenager in full hormonal and sentimental crisis who spends all her time fantasizing about her little boyfriend. It's a punishment, a hell on earth that you endure only because you obviously love your sister very much and also you love the boy who sleeps on the other side of the wall. 

"Where are you going little lady?" 

You've tried sneaking into his room—yours—sometimes to be honest, legs shaking, wracked with fear of his reaction. You have done it without any specific reason, simply driven by a desire to check that he is doing well, that he is able to sleep peaceful dreams, that he is not troubled by nightmares. Since the day he has definitively left his house, Steve has closed himself in an overbearing silence on the subject, pretending a serenity that he doesn't possess and avoiding you as much as possible. If he's not at work, he's hanging out with Dustin or Robin and if he's not with them you find him chatting with your dad like he would with a close friend, like he should do with you. When he's with you, then, he does everything to get Eleven to be there and it freaks you out. It's not that you expect something from him, but he's your friend,  the same person who ran to your house under the flood because he needed you and now that you live together he almost seems like a stranger and it hurts you. That's why you have tried to sneak into his room so many times. Some of them you were stopped by your father, awake in his armchair watching the umpteenth episode of Magnum PI, or rather keeping watch over you two even if he'll never admit it.

"I'm thirsty" 

"You have a bottle of water in your room on your nightstand, go back to bed y/n"

Other times you have bypassed your guard dog, just to go back in your room without the courage to enter. Then it happens. Your legs are shaking so hard it's diffult to even walk. Steve has been particularly distant all day and you have heard him crying, locked in the bathroom, still he haven't said anything to you, pushing you away, closed in a silence that continues to hurt you deeply. You finally enter his room and find him awake, sitting cross-legged on the bed with the head in his hands. You approach on tiptoe and he only notices you when you sit on the bed, mattress folds under your weight. He jumps back a little, startled by your unexpected presence. "You gave me a stroke" he whispers, In the moonlight coming through the window you notice that he has no signs of tears on his face and it relieves you. You don't think you can bear to see him in that state again without being able to do anything. Without him letting you help him. "What are you doing here?" He asks. You just smile and with all the spontaneity of the world, while  properly hiding your fears and your concern and the very stupid idea that maybe Steve seems so far away from you because he has understood that you have feelings for him and he doesn't reciprocate them or, even worse, 'cause he has started dating Robin in the end. To be honest, you are not even interested in the romantic sentimental part of your relationship, that could easily be exclusively your problem, what matters to you is him just being here, being your friend Steve, a person you care about, who has experienced more trauma in the last few months than a normal person in a lifetime and who won't let you help. You hust want him to talk to you, he has been living with you for the past three weeks and he doesn't seem happy about it.

That makes you angry and sad, you really want him to start seeing himself as part of the family  somehow, in any way he wants. In short, you would like him to realize the way your father looks at him, with admiration, affection, esteem. The, way you look at him like he is the fuckin sun, shining above you, keeping you alive.

He doesn't seem happy about anything anymore to be honest. Every now and then you see him looking at you, your father and El with a nostalgic smile on his face and you know exactly what he's thinking, because you know him enough to understand it. He is happy to have you, to be with you, but at the same time he feels like he doesnt' belong here: this is not his family, it's yours, and he is a guest. He has never had what you have, he never will. 

"I missed you" You reply.

"And El doesn't want to turn off the light and sleep. She's scribbling something for Mike in her diary."

"Such a sweet little girl," Steve comments. "Wheeler is a lucky boy" "She's gooey and drives me crazy" You reply "But she's my babysister and she's really really sweet and she cares about Mike a lot, sometimes I'm almost afraid it's too much for such young kids." He shakes his head. "I suppose growing up in a lobratory, then defeating Demogorgons and the damn Mindflayer gives you a slightly different perception of things." 

Steve looks into your eyes, wonders what you were like at El's age. He can't remember and he hates it. At the time he still didn't have the courage to talk to you, Tommy H. would make fun of him, 'cause your father was a alcoholic and you used to come to school with weird combinations of colors and old clothes. No one was really taking care of you during these long years and he was so... silly. Steve wonders if you wrote your crush's names on your diary too. He wonders if you have ever written his stupid name.

"You know, sometimes I forget that we are so young too, I feel already old." You continue. He lets out a little puff, his gaze is lost in nothingness. "I feel at the end of the line, y/n" he affirms.

"Is that why you weren't sleeping?" You ask. He nods, without adding anything else. You lie down next to him, slowly, almost expecting him to pull you away at any moment, but he doesn't and you find yourself with your head against his chest and his hand in your hair, caressing you as gently as it hasn't been in a long time. "That's why you were crying today" You continue, your voice trembling, afraid of ruining everything and finding him distant from you again. But he doesn't chase you away, he doesn't move, you feel him hold his breath before answering. "I've been living here for three weeks, but the money I earn at Family Video isn't enough to pay you a decent rent, to support myself, not to weigh on you. But not even to leave. And I don't know what to do with my life, I have no prospects y/n and I....I'm scared." He confesses. You hold him tighter. "No one expects you to pay us Steve, your contribution is enough, and above all it is enough for us that you are well, even dad thinks so. We will help you and when you will be back on your feet, when you will understand what to do and how, we we will support you. I swear.  Until that moment we will take care of you. Please Steve, let us take care of you"

"I'd be lost without you."

Steve sighs. "That's what scares me, I don't want you to do that..." You cut him off, standing up to face him, a suddenly serious and furious expression on your face. "Don't  you dare. Don't you dare say you don't deserve It" He looks at you in shock, as if wondering how you know what he thinks.  "Steve, if anyone deserves it, it's you. Allow yourself to be helped and loved, for once." Steve can't find the courage to reply this time, he nods, and you lie down next to him again trying not to think about the unfortunate choice of terms you've made. Love. You hope he hasn't noticed it and that he doesn't get strange ideas because now, surrounded in his warm embrace as you feel your heavy eyelids closing and his lips placing sweet kisses in your hair, you couldn't stand a rejection. Not now that you're deluding yourself and imagining and letting go to a distant fantasy in which  Steve Harrington loves you and this is just yet another night you spend together in your country house, after making love for hours. It's such a beautiful idea that you fall asleep smiling, not worrying that your father will find you together. You even imagine Steve's voice muttering something in your ear.

For the first time in three weeks Steve Harrington falls asleep without his  nightmares and for a moment forgets the fear of being like his dad. To be honest, while he hugs you and whispers sweet words in your ear, he feels profoundly different from him, he has never done certain things with his mother. And then another thought takes over to keep him awake: Steve is thinking of you like his own wife and while he watches you sleeping peacefully next to him with an expression of pure serenity on his face, he realizes something he may have known all along. Steve Harrington is hopelessly in love with you. And he's not his father, he never will be as long as he has a good reason to be better. The reason is you, y/n Hopper.

Your father doesn't notice your nocturnal escapes to Steve's room, he never does. This makes you suspicious to be honest because Hopper has always been quite careful about this kind of things but you don't think too much about it, you have other priorities right now. The nights with Steve are beautiful, you spend them hugging each other on his bed, trying not to make noise and not to wake anyone up, playing, joking, listening to music, anything but sleeping. Talking, mostly, but never about all the terrible things you've experienced like Billy or the Russians, but about simple, normal life. About El and Mike and their  relationship, about Nancy, Jonathan, Dustin and sometimes even Robin. Apparently there is nothing between her and Steve or at least he says so. You don't think that's all, there's probably something he's not telling you and you feel curiosity dug in because there isn't a single good reason for those two not to be together: she's beautiful, smart and brave and they have a crazy chemistry, they've shared a trauma, they are always together. Honestly, It makes no sense. Furthermore she is perhaps the only girl in Steve's life who can easily compete with Nancy Wheeler, both so perfect even if different. You sigh, curled up on Steve's chest. Certain thoughts hurt you, they scratch your stomach and chest and lungs and you are gripped by a jealousy that makes you feel bad, an envy that makes you despise everything you are and possess because if Nancy Wheeler is his standard, then you will never have Steve, not the way you want.. Yours isn't anger, you don't wish them - Nance and Rob- anything but good, you're just... Sad.

Maybe Steve Harrington has a sixth sense for your needs because he seems to notice it right away, your change in mood, the way your little hands have begun to grip him tightly without you realizing it, to tremble imperceptibly. He worries about you immediately, ha wants to hold your face between his hands and force you to talk to him like you have done so many times because he knows you enough to understand that something is bothering you, but you're not him, you wouldn't talk, you would keep it all to yourself because that's what you do. You believe your problems are stupid and your thoughts irrelevant and your traumas aren't that bad. Steve realizes you and him have more in common than he thought. Probably that's why, while lying in each other's arms, you fit so well, like your bodies are made to be together, close.

"hey hey" He repeats while you're clinging to him like a little girl, in desperation, you stretch out your arms to hug his neck, you curl up on yourself, you hide your head in the crook of his neck, you breathe his perfume and soak the edge of his pajamas with tears without being able to stop. "Sorry". You Repeat obsessively, like a prayer.

"Everything okay?" You can feel his warm breath in your ear. Shivering, you stay silent, your hands loosen their grip on him, but the shaking, that doesn't stop. It can't be stopped. It's not just about Steve, it's that the weight of always being the last choice, the discard, the second place falls on your shoulders all at once. No matter how hard you try, you're nobody's favorite: not the kids, not Steve's, nobody's. At Starcourt you had to save your own ass, you weren't saved, no one came for you until you were already free from Billy's clutches. Even with your father, deep down you never feel his first place, his priority: you have to compete with a dead sister who will always be the ghost of your lives. Thinking these things makes you feel rotten, bad, corrupt inside. You feel so damn guilty. You burst into tears without warning like a raging river, your shoulders shake with violentl sobs and it looks  like to Steve that your bones are about to break. He is taken aback, he doesn't immediately hug you, his hands, are still on your trembling body. He wonders why you're crying, then he remembers that after everything that's happened he's never seen you do it and he wonders what you're not crying about.

"You couldn't be bad even if you wanted to y/n" He replies, with a serious and sincere tone. He wishes you could see yourself through his eyes, he wishes you realized how absurd what you're saying is: you have forgiven all of his stupid mistakes and if you're bad he then, what is he? With all the petty things he's done, he should be a monster. But for you he never was. Steve knows it and he wishes he could give you the same comfort.

He squeezes you tightly, as if he wants to engulf you in himself, to keep you away from anything that hurts you. "Sorry about what honey?" Steve asks kissing your temple with a softness that makes you feel even worse. "I'm bad Steve...I think bad things"

He catches is breath against your mouth, you no longer know where he ends and you begin and there is something violent, ferocious, urgent in the way your mouths and your teeth collide, in the salty taste of this kiss, in the tears that keep flowing as your brain screams, screams that it won't last much longer and when you break away you will have to face reality.

"You are not in my head Steve you don't know... You don't know the terrible thoughts I have" Steve now stands in front of you, grabs your face with both hands, runs his thumb over the smooth skin of your cheeks, wipes away the silent tears, then runs his finger along your chin, jaw, lips. "You will never be evil in my eyes. I don't care what you think, I don't care what you do. You are and always will be the most amazing woman on earth and if there is something beyond the earth, then you will be the most incredible creature there too" He whispers to you. His words collapse on you like a boulder and honestly Steve is surprised at what he's saying because he didn't even know he could use such true and complicated words, that he could formulate such a deep thought. You feel like dying under his lucid, excited gaze, which seems to read you inside and not be afraid of what he might find. He lets his eyes travel from your face to your lips, where he continues to caress your bottom lip with his thumb. With a sigh, he approaches you and you remain petrified in front of what is happening because you have  dreamed about it so many times that now it scares you, it terrifies you indeed. Steve places his lips on yours in a chaste kiss that you don't have time to respond to and just moves away, as if to ask permission before continuing, and without your brain being able to take control you find yourself with your lips glued together again to his in a hungry kiss, he lets your tongue meet his own, bites your lip, your hands run through his soft hair and squeeze them as if they are the only foothold for life. Maybe that's not such a big lie after all.

You're taking advantage of him and his weakness.

Days later things are worse than you've expected, the disappointment in Steve's eyes at your rejection is something you don't think you can erase, because your only certainty has always been one: you wouldn't  hurt him. Ever. Yet here you are, both of you closed in a silence that no one can explain except you and him. Since you've talked, you've put up a wall to protect him, or maybe that's what you like to think when in reality you're only thinking about yourself, because you're afraid you're not strong enough to make a point with Steve, not without putting a distance, pretending that your kiss was a mistake.

Steve Harrington is kissing you because he's grateful, because you're helping him, because he's lonely and he tends to confuse feelings, he always has after all and you know him enough to be sure that no matter how much it hurts you'll have to make the right choice for both of you: walk away and give him time to understand. But now, you let him kiss you again, wondering how you're going to live without his lips on yours now that you've discovered the sweet taste and heady sensation of them.

"It's not a mistake, how could it be?" he asks when you put your hand on his chest to push him away from you, muttering a series of no's and "that's wrong"

"Because it's not what you want Steve, it's not what you want and I know it and I can't, I can't take advantage of it."

"You don't decide what the heck I want y/n, I want you!" Steve raises his voice just before you silence him with your hand by pointing to the door your father slept through. He shakes his head, regaining his composure to whisper again, trying to caress you.

"I... I want it, I swear I want what happened" You walk away shaking your head and god knows how you don't cry.

"Not now Steve, I want to make sure you don't do it out of gratitude." He is annoyed, you see.

"Fix everything and we'll talk about it, I swear"

Steve looks at you, let his eyes run over you as if he were seeing you for the first time. "I'll wait for you, if you still want me I'll be there" you continue. He caresses you again, this time you don't move, you can't, you don't want to. Like a cat, you let yourself go against his hand. "I know what I want, it's not solving my problems that will change anything. But I swear that in this time I will become the best version of myself so that you have no doubts. I swear." He confesses, placing the ghost of a kiss on your lips, so light you might have imagined  it.

You don't claim that you don't want to it, that every version of him is the best version for you and he doesn't confess that he doubts the best version of himself will still be enough for someone special like you.

"Just promise me until we clear things up between us, it won't be weird," he say. You hug him, but you don't answer. You don't want to lie to him.You can't.

Everything falls apart and when it does, it happens bad and you can't be there for Steve.

The call catches him off guard, like a bolt from the blue as soon as Steve's life seemed to start moving in a better direction. Hopper had offered him a job with him at the station, to support  Flo and was starting to think about trying to make things right with you. And then there it is, the cold voice of a lawyer who is calling him on behalf of his client, Mr. Harrington, to tell Steve that he had been disinherited by his parents. Damn he don't even care about the family business or their money or the house because to tell the truth he never felt any of it was his own, which more than anything makes him want to die, to rip his heart from the chest. is the fact that his father doesn't have the courage to call him, or perhaps the desire. Not even a word from his mother. The lawyer asks him what his new address is, so that he can deliver his last personal belongings, and Steve gives it to him in a cold and apathetic tone under your and Hopper's perplexed gaze. His face an impenetrable and emotionless mask, his skin pale and sweaty, his eyes dull and empty. This is the image you have of Steve Harrington before he runs away from your house, without saying a word, deaf to your words, to your screams. "What's up Steve?" You ask, following him, grabbing his shoulder only to be swept away without a single look, a word, an explanation.Your father puts a hand on your shoulder.

"Let him go" he tells you. "He will be back soon"

But the day after his bed is still empty, his car - the only thing he has left - is not there. It does not take much for Hopper to find out what has happened to upset him so much and when your dad confesses it to you, before going out to look for the boy, you imagine what Steve might have thought: his parents didn't even wanted of saying it to his face, of speaking with him, to treat him as a person and not a practice to be resolved quickly. He will think that's because he is not enough, he has no value or quality that distinguishes him from the garbage that is thrown away in the morning. You know he thinks it, you know he will always think it no matter how much you try to tell him otherwise and you know, above all, that now he will feel guilty for having reacted like this, for having felt emotions, for being human and he will call himself idiot because with everything he's seen and experienced he collapses from a stupid phone call, his heart give out and his strength suddenly failes as a whirlwind has sucked it all away.

Silly, pathetic rich boy.

What you don't imagine he has been thinking obsessively in these hours is your face. As soon as he closes his eyes you're here and you tell him he doesn't know what he wants and Steve isn't able to convince you that he wants you and now, now realizes it's pretty obvious why you don't believe him: after all he was a liar, he was a fool, someone not to trust and maybe in your heart you still see him in this way, an unreliable douchebag. The same douchebg that doesn't deserve you and never will. You're too good and kind and special to admit it or more simply you just haven't realize it, it's your subconscious that knows-really knows- how terribile Steve Harrington is. Steve believs you are trying hard to look for the good in him, but deep down you see what's underneath, a poor asshole with no prospects who has now lost everything. 

He lets a hand slide over his face, the bat gripped in the other hand and with a cry he starts hitting his beloved car. He doesn't want anything from his father, nothing, not even a memory, not even that mass of iron that he loves so much. And he screams, he screams so loud that he gets people's attention and he dosen't care at all.

 When Hopper receives a call in the middle of the night about an unidentified subject, a boy, who is breaking up a car near the Harrington's house, Hopper interrupts his search after so many hours and reaches Steve as any good father should do, ready to bring him back to their home.

"That's not my last name anymore" Steve replies chuckling, completely gone, he drops dead weight against the man's body. "You're comfortable" he comments, to hide the apathy he feels with a laugh so fake that Jim's heart skips a beat. He looks at him so battered and thinks he's really sick. If he had I found him like this a few years ago, he would have thought it was the whim of yet another spoiled child, but now Jim knows and respects his pain and if he weren't a big tough and mean big man he would feel it too in part. Or so he likes to believe, he doesn't want to admit that he's attached to him to the point of feeling his pain. 

He finds him sitting in the middle of the road, so stupidly drunk that if he woulnd't even notice a car running over him. He doesn't notice Hopper's car stopping near him , or maybe he's pretending. The kid is great at acting.  He doesn't even say anything when the man lifts him off the ground and drags him into his car. "What are you doing Harrington?" Hopper mutters

Steve gets into the car next to him and is silent again. "Are you all right boy?" He asks. Steve shakes his head. He laughs again, but tears roll down his face silently from him. Steve doesn't notice. "I no longer have a family don't you know chief?" Hopper shakes his head. 

"That Family never deserved you anyway Steve" Steve doesn't seem to hear him and continues "And I don't think I'm going to college. Ever. I don't think I can leave this place. I will die here, just stupid and poor Steven without a family."He's so drunk. He doesn't know why he is saying certain things. His mouth moves by itself. "And young. I'll die young" Hopper turns to him, seriously worried "Don't talk shit boy. You'd break y/n's heart by leaving her too soon, then I'd have to kill you again."Steve shakes his head, smiles thinking of you and Hopper sees something change in his gaze, a light, something melting inside him.

"She would be better off without me"

"I'm a father, Steve. I'm a jealous father and you know it kid, but I have to tell you, my daughter would die without you." the boy lowers his head.

"I wish it weren't like this, chief. I'm sorry. "

"Not me my boy. You make her happy and you're our family now. You're not alone. Also don't think I could bear to see her with someone else" Steve shakes his head, sniffs at him and his cheeks flush as he realizes he's been crying in front of Jim Hopper. "It'll be fine son" the man tells him, and there's such a certainty in his words that Steve Harrington decides to believe it for the first time. "You're a good person Steve."

Jim sighs. Sorry for what? He thinks, for having people caring about him? This time he reaches out and ruffles Steve's hair in an affectionate gesture. 

He will be fine. He's fine.He'll get better, he'll do it for you and when Hopper'll bring him home he'll hold you in his arms and repeat you that he knows what he wants, he's known it since the beginning. He loves you madly and he'll get better for you, but by your side , because that is his place, a small space in the world that was created just for him. You'll cry a little hugging him in the middle of the night, you'll think about all the times you've come close to being his -all the almosts, the maybes buts that have kept you apart until now - and the times when you suffered knowing you'd never have him and the ones where you felt your heart skip a beat seeing him with anothergirl and you'll know it was worth it. For him, for your perfect Steve. He'll took you to his bed at night, hiding from your dad, he'll lie down next to you and you'll just to listen to the furious beating of his strong heart and everything will be worthy this moment. And you'll love him and you'll feel loved by him, which deep down, even if he'll never understand it, is the greatest privilege of your life. You hope that one day your love will be enough to convince him of this.

[bethsvrse]

pov: I find a good smut fic but it includes a daddy kink

[igotthejob]

this is every fanfic i read

[bruhaalla]

Right now i need a fat blunt in between my lips a twisted tea in my left hand and a hot 6'5 short tempered man in the right hand and then i just maybe i can go to sleep

[morganbritton132]

Eddie goes up to Hopper like the world isn’t about to end and is like, “How’d you bag a babe like Joyce Byers? She’s so out of your league. How’d you do it?”

Hopper just sputters because rude and he knows. Before he can even answer, Murray’s annoying ass cuts in, “They argued all the time until the sexual tension got too high.”

“Arguing,” Eddie nods, taking that in. “Got it, I’m on the right track.”

Then he turns around and yells on the top of his lungs, “Harrington! I think Abba sucks!!”

“Are you kidding me right now, Munson?!”

[livwritesstuff]

i went on a deep dive of the Steve & Hopper ao3 tag yesterday and and it got me thinking about what would happen if Chief of Police Hopper ran into Steve and Eddie while he was on patrol after pseudo-adopting Steve, and it’s been long enough that Hopper is sort of a safe-person for Steve so Steve goes into full-fledged bitch mode when Hopper tries to pull cop stuff on them, and Eddie (who knew about none of this because Steve is a chronic under-sharer) is so totally baffled.

He’d spent years watching Steve sweet-talk his way out of trouble. Even before they started hooking up it used to drive Eddie goddamn insane, because if (when) Eddie pulled any of this shit Steve gets away with, he’d be totally screwed, but all Steve has to do is flash a sheepish grin and run a hand through his hair once or twice and say, all baleful, “I really didn’t mean any trouble,” and he’s home free.

It has its perks though, or so he's learned during his last few months of hanging around with Steve, so when Steve and Eddie’s make-out session is interrupted by the tell-tale red and blue lights of a cop car pulling up behind where Steve parked the Beemer a few hundred yards down a maintenance road, Eddie’s not all that worried. In fact, he’s got a pretty good amount of faith in Steve’s ability to spin up some story to keep them out of any real trouble, and as Chief Hopper ambles over to them, Eddie prepares himself for a whole show of, “Yes Chief, sorry Chief, it won’t happen again Chief.”

So imagine Eddie's complete and utter surprise when Hopper barks, “Hey, morons! What the hell do you think you’re doing?” and Steve only rolls his eyes and says, “What’s it to you?”

Eddie feels his jaw drop.

“Steve,” he mutters through gritted teeth. He tries to elbow Steve into shutting the hell up, but he misses because Steve has already taken several steps forward to meet Hopper, his face turned up in a kind of defiance Eddie doesn’t think he’s ever seen on him before.

“What’s it to me?” Hopper repeats, glowering at Steve, “It’s midnight. I’m on patrol. You’ve got one of the most recognizable cars in this entire damn town parked in a restricted-access zone with this idiot–” Hopper gestures at Eddie (Eddie didn’t think the pointing or the idiot were necessary, but clearly, clearly, he’s missing something here), “–who’s been dragged into my station more times than I could count.”

“The town line, Hop, is over there,” Steve says, pointing at an indiscriminate spot over Hop’s shoulder that may or may not be part of the Hawkins town line, “We’re not even in Hawkins anymore. You’re totally out of your jurisdiction.”

“You wanna know something about jurisdiction, smart-ass?” Hopper asks, “If my report says shit happened in my jurisdiction, it happened in my jurisdiction.”

“Wow,” Steve deadpans, “Way to not sound totally corrupt. Nice work, Chief.”

Hopper’s jaw twitches for a second, and he’s clearly debating if he wants to keep arguing with Steve who, to Steve’s credit, looks like he’s got debate in him for days. Ultimately though, Hopper decides against it and stalks back over to his squad car.

“If you’re not home by one there’s gonna be hell to pay. You hear me, Harrington?” Hopper yells, “One AM. Hell to pay.”

“Oh, sure,” Steve rolls his eyes, “Totally hear you. One AM. Loud and clear or whatever.”

Steve flips the cruiser both birds as it peels away, which Hopper only flashes his high beams at a couple times before he’s gone, kicking up a bunch of dirt and mulch and leaves in his wake, and Steve is wearing an exasperated expression as he turns to face Eddie again.

“God, he’s so annoying. Let’s just go to my house.”

Eddie gapes at him.

“What the fuck was that?”

“Huh?”

“What the fuck was that?” Eddie repeated, gesturing wildly towards where Hopper’s car had just been.

“Wha– you mean with Hop?”

“Uh, yeah?!?”

Steve just brushed him off, “Whatever, just ignore him. He’s basically my dad.”

“What?”

[will80sbyers]

OH MY GOD

[princessdave]

Hopper accidentally becomes the biggest ally in Hawkins out of hatred for Mike Wheeler. El wants to date Max? Perfect, Mike is terrified of Max. El wants to date Max and Lucas? Even better, more people to keep Mike away. Will comes out to Joyce and Hop? Hopper is immediately studying up on gay culture and flagging so he can find him a Hop ApprovedTM boyfriend. He sees that nice boy Gareth cuff his jeans one time and starts inviting him to family dinner. Mike seems annoyed that Steve is spending more time with Munson? A pamphlet titled “Accepting your Bisexuality” finds its way into Steve’s jacket pocket. Hopper has never seen Mike as furious as the day Steve and Munson arrive at dinner holding hands. It’s a good day. Hopper isn’t sure how Nancy dating the Buckley girl will annoy Mike, but he’s willing to give it a shot.

[nothingtoseehere00-00]

Need Hopper and Wayne to have a petty rivalry because they both think the other's kid is not good enough for their boy. They're constantly picking fights with each other.

Wayne knows the Harrington's and their reputation and therefore can't trust Steve. He remembers how slimy and manipulative Richard was and he thinks Steve's just putting on an innocent act. Plus he wouldn't be surprised if the Harrington's are paying off the police department to overlook their white collar crimes or some shit and that's why Jim is so protective of the boy.

Hopper knows about the Munson's, oh yes he does. He knows about all the shit that Al did to land him in jail and he's not stupid enough to not know that Eddie is a dealer. He doesn't need that around Steve or, God forbid, El. Eddie's not just trouble, he's dangerous simple as that.

Of course they end up interacting because of Eddie being in the party now. The two stay away from each other at first. But one of them ends up making a comment about the others son and, oh boy, it's on. They hate each other. And that hatred only grows as Eddie and Steve hang out making them see the other's kid more and more.

When news breaks out that they're together, Hopper goes right to the Munson's trailer to get his hands on Eddie. There's this whole fight between the two that eventually get broken up by Steve and Eddie.

After everyone calms down, Hopper and Wayne have a truce. They can hate all they want but they can't get in the way of the two's relationship. It takes awhile. Like a long while, but they actually see that they were wrong about the other's kid and end up really good friends. Surprising everyone .

Eddie and Steve joke about it constantly much to Hopper and Wayne's chagrin.

[runraerun]

Hopper: Are any of you straight?

Will:

Robin:

Max:

Steve:

Steve: [Raises hand slowly]

Eddie: [Grabs Steve's hand, interlocks their fingers, and brings it back down]

[natti-ice]

18+ mdni

Imagine:

He spreads your pussy lips open “ah, there she is” he chuckles softly as he finds your swollen clit. “Looks like this needs a good sucking” he smirks up at you then drops a dollop of spit onto your sensitive clit. He leans in and circles your nub teasingly with his tongue before attaching his lips and lightly sucking, his eyes never leave yours as you arch your back and moan.

[kennahjune]

Teen Dad

Quite surprised there’s not a lot of these AUs considering how much Steve apparently sleeps around but anywho.

Teen Dad Steve who finds out one of the girls he’d slept with pre-Nancy is pregnant and he damn well intends on helping out however he can.

Turns out; helping means taking his son (his SON) and having full custody because the mom, no matter how much she wants to be involved, can’t take care of him.

Steve’s alright for the first 6 months of little Louie Harrington’s life.

But then his parents come home and shit hits the fan.

Which— fair enough. He was only 17 and already had a whole ass son, they were gonna freak out.

But kicking him AND aforementioned son out? With no where to go? No money? Barely a job?

That’s just fucked up.

But Steve makes do, and lives out of his car for no more than a month before finally landing his hands on a cheap trailer in Forest Hills.

He and Louie move in and sure, it’s rough. But he’s got a nice paying job at the Diner and yeah maybe he has to skip some classes to get extra money but it’s fine. It pays his bills and rent and that’s all that really matters.

It’s fine.

And then the second wave of Upside Down fuckery hits, and Steve’s suddenly in the hospital with a grade 4 concussion (whatever that means) and his top priority is to make sure someone is with Louie.

Enter Claudia Henderson, Dustin’s mom.

She takes care of Louie for as long as Steve is in the hospital and then some when Steve can’t be left unsupervised in case his head worsens.

And that’s how the Party is introduced to little Louie (as they all call him).

Steve’s stunned to find out that Mike and Lucas are so good with little kids, but the two of them love stopping by the Henderson’s (and later on the trailer) to see little Louie and offer to babysit for him whenever.

The other kids take a little bit of time to warm up to Louie (and the fact that Steve’s actually a parent) but when they do Steve never ceases to have at least one of them over.

And with all the racket brings in the attention of nosy neighbors.

Steve is well accustomed to nosy neighbors. Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln next door to his parents were always looking to snitch on him for something or other.

But Miss Bottomette and her grandchildren Noah and Casey were sweethearts. Steve didn’t mind having them over for dinner or going over there. Miss Bottomette was the one to teach him how to actually put his cooking skills to work.

Linda and Tom, a newly married couple down the road, were quite eccentric but that’s what made them charming. Steve found their dog, Dasher, quite the sweetheart.

And even Mr. Knowles, the grouchy old man next door to Miss Bottomette, seemed to take a liking to Steve and Louie.

It wasn’t long before the story behind the new boy in 2718 New Bird Ave was revealed: Teen Dad Kicked Out.

Then the whole town knew. And while most people were nice about it, even supportive of how he had taken a step into his child’s life, there were always those people who sneered.

Steve ignored them, loving the life he was working on making for himself and Louie in the trailer park.

The only neighbors he never seemed to meet, despite the looming presence, were the Munsons, right across the street.

Steve knew about the Munsons. Well— he knew about Eddie Munson; drug dealer who was on his second run of senior year. Steve actually shared a few classes with him.

He’d yet to meet the mysterious Wayne Munson, but that was to be expected with work schedules.

And then Steve was graduating, and his parents didn’t show up.

But that was totally fine. Cause the kids, Claudia, Joyce— even Hopper with El— were there. They held up little baby Louie while Steve walked the stage.

He’d heard rumors of Eddie Munson having to retake senior year for a third time— but he didn’t dwell on it for too long. Because sure, he missed more than his fair share of classes and scraped by with a C+ average.

But he did it.

And then summer hit, Dustin left for camp, and the mall opened up.

Steve picked up a job at Scoops Ahoy, cutting back on his hours at the Diner but still staying there because the money was needed and the tips were lovely.

And he meets Robin Buckley, and actually talks to Eddie Munson every once in a while when he stops in with his band, and lets the kids sneak into the movies because he’ll be damned if he robs them of a normal summer.

And then Dustin comes back and their reunion is short-lived because Russians are hellbent on torching non-existent information out of Steve and he’s busy getting his third concussion and then there’s a fucking flesh monster and Billy and Hopper for protecting them and—

It’s not a good night.

But then he’s rushed to the hospital and he tries to call Miss Bottomette only for the call to refuse to go through and shitfuckgoddammit.

Because what about Louie?

Miss Bottomette said she’d be alright watching Louie until Steve got home, but Steve wasn’t able to go home until someone was able to make time to take him home.

Usually, he’d lean on Hopper for this stuff, since his parents were out of the question. But—

But Hoppers dead.

So he’s stuck at the hospital for another day or two until finally, Claudia comes to pick him up.

He’s with Dustin in the backseat of the car, anxiously bouncing his leg and biting at his fingers and nails until Dustin gives in and just holds his hand. Robin’s there to, having been able to leave after the first night but coming with Claudia to pick him up. Steve’s relieved to have them both close by, even if his hands reach for Erica subconsciously.

His trailer’s empty when he gets home, and Miss Bottomette isn’t answering the door.

Steve’s on the brink of a full blown breakdown before Mr. Knowles— bless his heart— points them across the street.

The Munsons apparently have his son and have for a bit now since Miss Bottomette had a minor seizure and couldn’t be left alone with Louie. Mr. Knowles assured Steve that she and the kids were fine and staying with him for the moment.

Steve wasted no time afterwards sprinting to the Munsons and knocking on the door. Dustin and Robin are close behind him, Claudia waiting patiently in the driveway.

The door is answered by a gruff looking old man that’s taller than Dustin but slightly shorter than both Robin and Steve.

“You Harrington?”

Steve nods so fast he faintly wonders if that’s how bobble heads feels.

They’re let in in no time and the old man— the infamous Wayne Munson— calls out of Eddie.

Eddie Munson emerges a moment later with little Louie in his arms, bouncing softly on his feet to keep the baby calm.

Steve is in front of him in a second, scooping Louie gently out of his arms and into his own.

He doesn’t realize he’s crying until Dustin’s rubbing his arms and Robin his back. Claudia is talking to Wayne, explaining what had happened (or the cover story version at least) and Eddie is hanging back a few feet from the three of them.

Robin takes little Louie in her arms and shoos Steve to the couch to calm down.

“Let him meet his auntie, Steve. You take a minute to breathe now, yeah?”

Steve was led to the couch with a soft hand on his shoulder from Eddie Munson, and they sat side by side while Steve worked on easing his breathing and to stop fucking crying.

Eddie’s shushing him and after a moment (and a clearly pointed cleared throat from Robin) Eddie wraps his arms around Steve’s shaking figure.

They leave the Munsons’ trailer is promises of new babysitters and a new friendship.

And then the fuckery that’s 1986 happens.

.

First Part:

[plasticcrotches]

Wayne Munson helping a wolf out of a bear trap, only for said wolf to start bringing him deer and rabbits and sometimes weirdly cash? And none of the raccoons have been digging round his trash like they usually do…

He gets a knock on the door one day and it’s his old buddy Jim Hopper with that Harrington kid standing sheepishly behind him, with his arm wrapped up in bandages and a long cut running through his brow. Hop cuffs the kid on the back of the head and then the boy is stepping forward and apologizing, then saying “thanks again, sir.”

It takes Wayne a few days to piece together that the boy is his wolf.

[estrellami-1]

How Steve Harrington Gets a Family

The first time it happened, Steve didn’t remember. He had no idea why Hopper was acting so weird until Joyce took him aside, sighing softly.

“Oh, honey,” she murmurs. “You don’t remember, do you?”

He frowns at her. “Remember what?”

“You called him dad, Steve.”

“I-” he gapes. “What?”

It goes like this.

He’d been hospitalized, after the Russians; he doesn’t know all the details, won’t for years, but Hopper had escaped from the reactor, thrown his weight—and title—around until someone had put Steve in a room, in a bed, gotten an IV into him, run whatever tests doctors run.

He was delirious with the truth serum still in his system and the adrenaline wearing off, groaning in pain and mumbling nonsense.

Hopper had put a hand on his head, said, “I’ve got you, Steve. You’re safe. It’s okay.”

“Dad,” Steve had mumbled, shifting into Hopper’s hand, and promptly passed out.

“Oh,” Steve whispers after Joyce tells him. He runs a hand through his hair. “Well, no shit he’s been acting weird, I mean why would he want me as a kid- shit, I need to apologize-” 

“Whoa,” Joyce says seriously, hands on his shoulders. “Slow down, Steve. You know Hopper loves you, right?”

Steve bites his lip on the snark that wants to come out, instead choosing to just blink at her.

“Christ,” Joyce laments, “I’m going back to school, everyone need so much damn therapy.” She takes a breath and looks Steve in the eye. “Hopper loves you, Steve. He’s considered you his kid for a long time now.”

Steve gapes at her. “No he hasn’t!”

Joyce raises a brow. “Uh-huh. And how many parties has he busted, exactly? And how many marks do you have on your record?”

Steve snaps his mouth shut. “Oh, shit,” he whispers, looking up at Joyce. “He- he does? Really?”

“Really,” Joyce confirms, pulling him into a hug.

“Oh,” he mumbles, before letting himself enjoy the hug.

Later, when he’s about to head home, he stops in front of Hopper, glancing nervously over to Joyce, who nods encouragingly. “Can I, uh. Talk to you? For a second?”

Hopper narrows his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

Steve’s eyes widen. “No, nothing! Just-” he sighs, runs a hand through his hair, gestures Hopper out the door and around the side of the house. “So, Joyce and I were talking, right? And I was wondering why you’d been acting weird around me, and I didn’t even remember what I said in the hospital, so Joyce told me, and- and I don’t expect anything from you! At all! And it- how I feel doesn’t have to change anything-”

“Christ,” Hopper says, but he’s smiling. “I think you’re worse at emotions than I am.”

“Well I’ve never had to tell anyone I think of them as more of a father figure than my own father before!” Steve blurts out, then freezes.

Hopper bursts out laughing. “Jesus, kid, do you think before you talk?”

Steve’s not hurt. Really. “Sorry,” he mumbles, looking anywhere but at Hopper. “I’ll leave.”

A hand on his wrist stops him. “C’mere, kid,” Hopper says, pulling him into a hug.

Steve stiffens. “What?”

“Boy, you’ve been my kid since the third time I didn’t write you up for one of those damn parties,” he grouses.

Steve relaxes into the hug. “So. If I, uh. Were to, maybe, call you dad again…”

“Just see what I’ll do if you don’t,” Hopper says gruffly, and it’s really not that funny but Steve’s just so relieved that he cracks up anyways.

They pull apart after a minute, and Steve has a giddy grin on his face as he backs up. “Bye, Dad,” he says, before turning and running to his car. Hopper’s laughter follows him.

He’s been close to Dustin for a while now, but still refuses to call his mom Claudia. The most he’ll do is Mrs. H, even though every time she sees him, she tries to get him to call her by her first name.

He can’t do it. He can’t make himself. Maybe it’s the manners instilled in him, maybe he’s just awkward as fuck, who knows. But he chickens out every time.

That’s why, when she answers the door, he smiles. “Hey, Mrs. H.”

“Steve,” she greets him warmly. “Come in, come in. Call me Claudia. Oh, what is this? I told you you don’t have to bring anything!”

“Just some cookies,” he promises her, putting them down where she directs and falling into the hug she gives him.

“Dear,” she asks him later, when they’re sitting at the table with Dustin, “call me Claudia, please?”

Steve can’t look at her; passes the butter Dustin’s silently asking for. “Sorry, Mrs. H.”

“Jesus,” Dustin groans, buttering his roll. “If you can’t even say her name then at least call her mom.”

Steve’s cheeks are on fire. “That’s not exactly up to me, Dust,” he grits out.

“Oh, dear,” Claudia sighs. “I would love for you to call me mom.”

“Then we’d be brothers,” Dustin adds, “which we basically are anyways.”

Steve snorts. “I don’t think that’s exactly how it works,” he tells Dustin, but takes a breath and smiles at Claudia. “Thanks, Mom,” he says quietly. Claudia beams back at him.

“I don’t give a damn!” Claudia yells at the hospital receptionist, who really just looks exceedingly bored.

Steve knows the look of someone who’s grabbing their pepper spray. “Mom?” He calls, wet and wobbly, and Claudia spins around, running to his side.

“Oh, Stevie,” she murmurs, gently cupping his hands. “Oh, goodness, your face- have you gotten looked at? Has someone come to see you? Where’s Dustin?”

Steve opens his mouth to answer and promptly bursts into tears. “He’s f-fine,” he manages. “Ankle. Getting- getting helped. But- Mom-”

She hushes him, pulling him down into a seat next to her. “Let it out, Steve, there you go. Mom’s here, I’ve got you.”

He finally composes himself enough to pull back and look at her. “It’s not good, Mom,” he whispers. “I tried, I really did, and I know CPR but he was losing so much blood-”

“Steve,” she stops him, “I thought you said Dustin was fine?”

“He is, it’s just his ankle, but Eddie, Mom… he’s back there, they’re doing surgery, but he- I felt-” he grabs at his own chest, and somehow Claudia knows what he means. “Oh, dear,” she murmurs, pulling him into another hug. “I’m so proud of you,” she whispers into his ear. “You did what you could, you kept him stable until the doctors could do their job, and now it’s their turn, okay? Let them take care of it. They’re gonna do everything they can.”

His eyes well up again. “He didn’t kill anyone, Mom.”

“Oh, I know that, sweetie. It’s okay. I never thought he did.”

“But they do!” He sniffs, wipes at his face. “And what- what if-”

She pulls his attention back to her with a hand on his face. “Did I tell you about the time a known serial killer came in?” She whispers. He shakes his head. “He’d been in an… altercation, with the police. Shots had been fired. We all knew who he was, but when he flatlined on the table, we got his heart beating again.” She grips his hand tightly. “Doctors take an oath, Steve. They’re going to do everything they can. Okay?”

“Okay,” he mumbles, letting her pull him into another hug.

“Y’wanna tell me about Eddie?”

“You know Eddie.”

“Mhm, from Dusty. I’ve never heard about him from your perspective before.”

“I didn’t really know him before today,” he admits. “I knew of him, in high school, a little bit, but then I graduated and he didn’t and then Dustin started raving about him and… I got jealous.”

“Oh, Steve.” She cards a hand through his hair. “You know Dustin will always love you. You’re brothers.”

Steve sighs. “I know, but… we’re also not. I love you more than I love the woman who birthed me, and I love Dust as much as I’d love any biological sibling I could ever have, but-”

“I know,” Claudia says. “It’s okay, dear. Keep going. Tell me about Eddie.”

“Right. So I got jealous, and then I really didn’t wanna meet him, ‘cause he actually sounded kinda cool and I’m just… me. And I know what you’re gonna say, but you’re biased as my mom.” Claudia just chuckles. “But then I met him, and… he’s really nice, Mom. He really loves the twerps. And he’s, like… kind? And I know nice and kind are synonyms but it’s different. Like he’s just… an inherently good person. That’s kind. Nice you can fake. But you can’t fake kind. Y’know?”

“I know what you mean,” she agrees.

“Okay, good. Well he’s kind. He-” Steve sniffs. “He called me a good dude.”

“Well,” Claudia says, smiling, “you are.”

Steve chuckles wetly. “I am now, maybe, but I wasn’t when we knew each other in high school, and I didn’t really expect him to say anything. And he’s so passionate, Mom, and he’s talented, and he’s selfless, but that backfired because it landed him here-”

Claudia hums, strokes a hand through his hair. “How long have you liked him?” He stiffens. “Oh, please, like I haven’t known this entire time. Honestly, Steve, I’m not an idiot. And I’m not some backwards idiot especially who thinks two boys who love each other are the greatest sin.”

“No, it- Mom, you love Robin, of course you’re fine with it, I just- I didn’t… I didn’t realize.”

“Oh, Stevie,” she sighs, running her hand through his hair again. “When he gets out, are you gonna do something about it?”

“I don’t know,” he says quietly. “Maybe. If- if he even wants to be friends-”

“Okay, now I know you’re talking crazy,” she teases him, grinning.

Just then Hopper walks in, looking around with wide eyes, stopping when he sees Steve. “Dad!” Steve yelps, standing and walking quickly towards him, stopping about three steps in. “Oh, fuck,” he mutters, because he knows the way the room is spinning and his vision is going out.

He’s out before he hits the ground.

He wakes up later to find he didn’t hit the ground, actually; Hopper had leapt forward and caught him the second he’d stopped walking and started swaying.

He blinks bleary eyes open and finds himself looking at a ceiling tile. “What-”

“Don’t move,” comes Hopper’s voice from beside him.

He turns his head to frown at him. “Dad? What happened?”

“You passed out. Jumped outta Claudia’s arms like she’d burned you when you saw me. Much as I love you, kid, the parent’s gotta go first this time, ‘kay? No more self-sacrificing bullshit and not getting medical attention when you need it.”

“M’kay,” Steve says. “Sorry, Dad.”

Hopper puts a hand on his head. It’s comforting. “Go to sleep, kid.”

When he wakes up again, he’s more lucid. He looks around, sees Claudia asleep in the chair next to him. Looks on his other side, and his breath catches when he sees Eddie. His eyes are closed, he’s still asleep, but he’s alive.

“Mom,” he whispers, tearing his eyes away from Eddie to look at her. He feels bad, a little, waking her, but only a little because he knows she’d tear him a new one if he didn’t. “Mom.”

She starts awake and tears up when she sees him. “Stevie,” she murmurs, cradling his face with her hand.

“Mom,” he says again. “He’s here.”

Claudia chuckles. “You can thank your father and I for that one. We raised hell.”

“I bet you did,” he says appreciatively.

“And you, young man,” she says, too full of love to really be mean, “next time you tell me when you’ve been half eaten, okay? Or have you forgotten I’m a nurse?”

“Didn’t forget,” he murmurs, nudging her hand with his face. “Just wanted to stay with you.”

“Oh, Steve,” she murmurs. “You beautiful boy.”

He falls asleep again.

He wakes up again later and looks over to see Eddie also awake, and also looking at him. “Eddie,” he breathes.

It’s hard to tell from where he is, but it looks like Eddie’s blushing. “Looks like I’ve got you to thank for saving my life.”

Now Steve’s blushing. “Ah,” he eloquently says. “No, I mean, just- what anyone else would do?”

“Are you asking me?”

Oh, god, is he teasing? Steve barely survived the flirting before, but now there’s nothing else to keep his attention off Eddie, nothing else he can blame the blush on. “…I just didn’t do much,” he belatedly says.

“Bullshit.” He shifts and hisses in pain. “Fuck, those bastards got me good. But that- that’s proof, y’know?”

Steve blinks. He doesn’t know. “What?”

Eddie grins at him. The stitches in his cheek pull, but don’t tear. “That you saved me.”

Abruptly, Steve tears up. He looks away, up at the ceiling, wills the tears to stay inside. “Steve?”

“Yeah?”

“Are you-”

“No,” he answers quickly. Too quickly. There’s an awkward silence now. “Fuck,” he mutters. “I- I felt your heart stop, okay?” He looks over again, knows the tears are there, knowing they’re leaking into his hairline and across the bridge of his nose. “I wasn’t sure the doctors were even gonna try that hard to save you. And now you’re joking with me, and-” he takes a quick breath, holds it. Releases it slowly. “‘M just glad you’re okay,” he finally says.

“Oh,” Eddie says quietly. “I, uh. Didn’t think you really… cared. About me.”

“I think I care more than I should.”

Eddie takes a breath. “I’m about to say something way too brave, and I’m only saying it ‘cause we’re both in hospital beds and I’m assuming you can’t just, like, walk over and punch me.”

“Even if I could, I wouldn’t.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep. But, uh. Anyways. I don’t… people don’t care about me. My uncle Wayne does, sure, and the kids, but that’s different, and- well. I’ll take whatever care you wanna give me. It won’t be too much.”

“Okay,” Steve says, “well I definitely don’t want to punch you for that, what the hell, but I hope you know you’re gonna get hugged for that as soon as I figure out how to undo all this shit.” He gestures to the tubes in his arms, and Eddie starts to laugh, then stops just as quickly with a hiss.

“Okay, abs got eaten, no laughing,” he mutters, mostly to himself. “Shit, dude, stay in bed, you had like five people in here earlier who all told me specifically to not let you out of bed, though how I’m supposed to do that I dunno.”

Steve blinks over at him. “Five?”

“Well- four, now that I count. Dustin was here with his mom, he’s getting released later but was allowed out of bed for a minute and came to see us. Robin, and she looked angry, are you two, like, okay?”

Steve snorts. “Yeah, she’s just worried.”

“And then Chief Hopper, which- do you wanna explain why the actual Chief of Police was in here?”

“Ah,” Steve says, and blushes again. “He kinda, like… adopted me? Not officially, obviously, but he’s… well, I call him dad, so-”

“And Claudia?”

Steve hums. “‘S my mom. Dust’s my brother.”

Eddie snorts. “Jesus, Harrington, d’you just go around collecting people to call your parents? How many d’you have now, four?”

“Nah, just two. My parents fucked off pretty permanently by the time I was nine. And before that I had nannies when they were gone.”

Eddie blinks at him. “You- wait. Back up. You’ve been alone for the entirety of high school?”

Steve thinks. “I mean, I had Hopper, kinda, but that was before he became Dad, so… I guess?”

“Goddamn,” Eddie whispers wonderingly. “And you’re still sane?”

Steve snorts. “Jury’s out on that one, I mean I do willingly hang out with the twerps, so-”

“Fuck, don’t make me laugh, man.” He sighs. “I get it, though,” he says quietly. “Mom was an angel, but… Dad got to her, y’know? Tore her wings off, rubbed her halo in the dirt. Poured alcohol down her throat until she was dependent on it. And him. And when she-” he shakes his head. “Then it was just Dad, and he got sent away ‘cause apparently his new car wasn’t his, y’know? And I went to live with Wayne at twelve.”

“But now you’ve got Wayne.”

“Mhm.” He smiles a little. “Call ’im pops sometimes, ‘cause he’s my real dad now. Sometimes Wayne, sometimes Uncle Wayne. He doe’n’t care much.”

“What’s it like? Living with him?”

“It’s been a dream, honestly. He’s the nicest person I’ve ever met, and he’s got patience to rival a saint. Doesn’t care when I play my music loud, or forget to eat, or bring boy—uh, girls—over.”

Steve hums. “There’s still the house in Loch Nora, but I stay with the Hendersons most days. I tend to bring people I meet to Loch Nora, just ‘cause it’s empty, y’know? I mean, Dust’s a little shit, and he’d tease me regardless of who I brought home. Mom wouldn’t care. Hell, she’d probably give me a condom and lube,” he laughs. “And she’s teaching Dustin to be the same way. He’ll get there one day.”

“He’s a twerp,” Eddie agrees. “I didn’t know you, uh-”

“Mhm,” Steve answers. “Robin says I’m like Bowie.”

“Like Bowie- you’re bisexual?”

“That’s the one!” Steve says happily. “I can never remember the name.”

Eddie looks at him wonderingly. “Who are you, Steve Harrington?”

Eventually they get out of the hospital, and eventually they stop circling around each other. Eventually they kiss, and fall asleep on the couch, and make each other breakfast, and do certain things behind closed doors that Steve still can’t think about without blushing.

Eventually they’re outside the Munson’s trailer, working in the garden that Eddie, surprisingly, loved.

“Imma go in,” Steve says eventually. “Get a drink.”

“Alright,” Eddie says, not looking up from where he’s pulling weeds near his tomatoes. “I’ll be here.”

Steve has a bit of a headache already, and he knows drastic temperature changes don’t help. He didn’t think the trailer was that big of a difference, but it’s cool enough he’s got goosebumps breaking out along his arms almost immediately. Then he’s hit with a blast of freezing air when he opens the fridge, and his head begins to throb. “Fuck,” he mutters, shutting the door and grabbing for a glass, hoping the sink water isn’t too cold.

It’s cooler than he’d like, but it’s all he’s got right now, and he knows if he doesn’t hydrate it’s going to end up worse. He chugs two glasses, sets the cup down, and goes to sit at the table, rubbing his eyes.

It gets worse almost without him realizing: one second his relatively fine, the next he’s groaning in pain, trying to block out all the light by laying his head on his forearm.

A hand on his back startles him. “Dee?”

“Wayne,” comes the gruff voice. “Not Eddie. Y’got a migraine?”

“Mhm.”

“Y’take anything for it?”

Steve waves a hand. “Had water.”

Wayne leaves for a minute, comes back and presses two pills into Steve’s hand. A glass of water is placed in front of him.

He takes the pills, squinting, and lays his head back down.

“Nuh-uh,” Wayne says, “up you get, c’mon, you’re sleepin’ this off.” Hands at his shoulders guide him out of his seat, shuffle him slowly down the hall to Eddie’s cool, dark room. Lay him down and pull the blankets over him.

Steve sighs and relaxes into the bed, cracking an eye open to look at Wayne. “Thanks, Pops,” he murmurs, then winces when Wayne freezes. “S’rry. Wayne.”

Wayne pets a hand through Steve’s hair. “Pops works just fine,” he says. “I’ll tell Ed you’re in here.”

“M’kay,” Steve breathes, and lets himself fall asleep.

They’re at Hopper’s cabin, an annual We Saved the World semi-party that usually ends in at least one disagreement.

Eddie’s got most of the kids corralled away in the living room, with promises of an epic one-shot. The adults, Steve, Max, and El are in the kitchen.

He doesn’t know who started it, but someone teases him, and Hopper ruffles his hair with another jab. “Dad,” he complains good-naturedly, laughing.

“Steve?” El asks.

“Yeah?” He looks at her.

“Hopper is your dad.”

Steve glances at Hopper, who’s listening, but making no move to answer. “I mean… not, like, biologically, but yeah.”

“Me too,” El says. “Are you my brother, then?”

Steve flounders. “I- I guess if you want me to be?”

“You’re a good brother to Dustin,” she answers. “I haven’t had any good brothers besides Will, and we are the same age. I would like a good older brother.”

He smiles, tugs her into a hug. “I guess I’m your brother, then.”

She goes willingly. “Does that mean Joyce is your mom too?” She looks up at him, big eyes serious. “She is a good mom.”

“Uh,” Steve says, “that’s kinda up to Joyce.”

“Oh, honey,” Joyce says, because of course everyone had stopped talking the moment El had started. “Why don’t you call me Mama J?”

Steve smiles bashfully, accepting her hug. “Sounds good to me.”

When he tells Eddie later, his boyfriend laughs. “You really do collect parents!”

[morganski-19]

part 1

The next day, there’s someone new to visit Steve. Making Wayne stop in his tracks on his third coffee run. The rumors were true, the Chief isn’t as dead as he was a year ago. Just lost what looks to be half his body weight and all of his hair. Looking gaunt and malnourished. 

But he’s alive. That has to count for something.

Wayne wishes the Chief was there to see him. Give him the key to unlock the chain around Eddie’s wrist. So he’d be able to wake up to a clean slate. That his record will be clear and he won’t get carted off to jail as soon as he’s stable. So Wayne will be able to bring him home. 

Once he has a home to go to. Not just a shitty hotel room that costs more than it should for a night. But it’s right next to the hospital, so Wayne can be here in five minutes if something happens. When his boy wakes up. He has to wake up. 

It’s been five days since Eddie was brought in. Twelve since Wayne saw him last. All he wants is to hear his obnoxiously loud music blaring down the hall while he’s trying to sleep. Or the laughter that could make him smile even when he didn’t want to. Wayne wants his Eddie back, the boy he watched grow all of these years. He’s not ready for the day Eddie wakes up and the light is gone from his eyes. 

Because it will be. Wayne’s seen enough people come back from combat a completely different person. With the scars that are sewn into Eddie’s torso, up his neck, one on his cheek. There’s no doubt that he’s been through something unimaginable. Life changing. 

As much as Wayne wants Eddie to wake up. He’s not ready for him to wake up changed. 

There’s a knock on the hospital door before it opens. Wayne’s expecting a nurse to check Eddie’s vitals, tell him the same shit they have for days. That all is good and he’s progressing. It should be any day now that he wakes up. If the damage to his body wasn’t too much for him. Those words of hope lack their meaning now. 

But instead of a nurse walking through the door, it’s the Chief. 

“Can I sit?” He motions to the chair next to Wayne.

“I suppose.”

The Chief sits next to Wayne, not looking at him. “I hear he’s been in a coma for a few days now.”

Wayne nods, not much in the mood for talking. Civilly at least. Push the right button and the volcano is about to burst. 

“I’ve known a few people who’ve been in medically induced ones like this. They all wake up in the end.”

“I’d like for the cuffs to be off his wrist when he does,” Wayne snaps. Knowing that the Chief has the key to unlock them. “That way he can recover as an innocent man. Like he should.”

The Chief takes a deep breath. “I’m not fully reinstated yet. I don’t have the authority to do anything about that. Even if-”

“Even if what?” Wayne looks at the Chief. Anger filled his voice. “Even if he’s innocent. I know he’s innocent. My boy, my boy could barely hurt a fly, let alone a living, breathing person. He was kinder than people gave him credit for. This town gave him so much shit that he didn’t deserve. Still is. When I’m afraid he might never wake up the same again. So I’d like the cuffs off, so he knows that some part of this town sees him as something other than a villain.”

Finally looking Wayne in the eyes, the Chief takes a second to think. Nodding his head in thought. “You smoke?”

Wayne scoffs. “That really what you're thinking of right now?”

“Answer the question.” Something about the Chief makes Wayne believe there’s more to his words. 

“I do.”

“Great,” he stands, waiting for Wayne at the door. “Come on, let’s go.”

Wayne gets up, mainly because he doesn’t really have a choice but also because he wants to see where this is going. They pass Harrington in the hall, talking to someone on the phone. 

“Yeah, I’m free tomorrow. Can’t wait to sleep in my own bed. No don’t do that. Cause I don’t think it’s time to throw a party yet, not while.” He makes brief eye contact with Wayne as they walk by. Before turning away. “Just won’t feel right without all of us.”

Wayne has no clue who he’s talking about, but it’s probably not Eddie. Hopes it isn’t. He still doesn’t know how he feels about this kid, even if he knows Eddie’s innocent. Doesn’t forgive him from his past, if rumors are true. And knowing who his dad is, Wayne wouldn’t be surprised if they all were true. 

The Chief leads him to the side of the hospital, where there’s no foot traffic. No one around to hear. Wayne suddenly understands what this might all be about. Something not for wandering ears. 

“What I say does not leave this conversation,” he starts, handing Wayne a cigarette. Lighting his own before passing the lighter to Wayne. “Got it?”

Wayne nods. 

“I know Eddie’s innocent. But there’s some weird shit that was happening around then that I cannot tell you about it. All you need to know is that the Feds are involved, and they’re looking for a fall guy. And I’m trying my hardest to make sure that the fall guy isn’t your nephew. So while it might not seem like it, some progress is being made. Your nephew will be a free man when he wakes up. I give you my word on that.”

“I don’t even know how to start processing what you just said.” Wayne takes a long drag from the cigarette, letting the smoke blow out into the alleyway. 

The Chief laughs. “That was all of us the first time this happened. I’d say it gets easier but it really doesn’t.”

“The first time?”

“There’s a lot more to this town than meets the eye.”

“How do I know your word is any good?”

The Chief considers this for a moment. “You don’t really. But who else do you know who can fix this?”

With that, the Chief nods goodbye and heads to the parking lot. Leaving Wayne with more questions than answers, and a little flame of hope he’s wishing won’t get put out.

part 3

I don't know how many parts this will be but I do know they will be posted sporadically whenever I have time to write them. So, no promises of consistency.

also, tag list. I tagged anyone who asked/seemed interested in a part two. please let me know if you would like to be added or removed: @the-they-who-nerded, @insteviewetrust, @croatoan-like-its-hot, @jettestar, @tinyplanet95, @steddie-as-they-go, @slv-333, @littlecelestialmoth, @thatonebadideapanda, @fandomsanddeath, @marismorar

[morganbritton132]

When Steve and Eddie announce to The Party that they’re dating, Hopper is surprisingly more chill than anybody expected him to be. He actually is thrilled about it because Eddie Munson is a menace to society at large and a major annoyance to Hopper specifically. He thinks that Steve will even him out.

And he is wrong!

Turns out the only reason that Hopper thought Steve had matured was because he only ever saw him when the world was ending. Compared to Mike, Dustin, and the suicide mission the kids were always trying to go on, Steve looked like a saint.

Now he’s sitting in his truck, watching out the window as Steve and Eddie throw rocks through the windows of an abandoned house and remembering just how many times he broke up parties at this kid’s house.