#long suffering jim hopper

[thefreakandthehair]

🏈

my football au partner in crime!! here's a longer snippet! I need you alllll to know that ori sent me five footballs so I'm just squeezing them all here!

football au (4-8/21)

“Why?”  “Why what?” “Oh, I don’t know. Why didn’t anyone tell the team? Why trade away half of our draft stock for him? Why trade for him at all?” Steve shoves his phone angrily back in his pocket. “We’ve had a really good thing going and��” Hopper sighs and looks up, chronic eye bags settling in beside laugh lines and crows feet. He ticks a finger up for each of Steve’s points.  “The deal was just signed last night so I was planning on telling the team today. Media just got to it first, fuckin’ vultures. He’s the best running back in the league so his trade value warranted those picks. I’m the coach, not you. We agreed that we need to get you some weapons for the run game. Well, here you go. Did I hit all of your questions?”

[stevieschrodinger]

TW for Eddie getting hurt (but he's okay). And Human Trafficking.

Link to part Two

Steve leans against Carol's desk, "here are your messages, I fobbed off the Times interview - they're going to email you their questions instead." He's listening to Carol, but he's watching, frowning.

There's a man in his office.

"Lunch call with the Singapore office is on. Your suite for the gala is back from the dry cleaners, it's in your bathroom."

"Right, the gala," Steve answers absently. It's a corner office, lots of glass, so it's impossible to miss the man in his office. The man who is calmly, right now, looking at the framed photo Steve has of his parents. It's basically a prop, Steve never got on with them, but that is not the point. Some random guy is touching Steve's shit.

"And my nine thirty?"

"Had to move it, don't worry, they were fine about it."

"Right," Carol's leaning over the desk now, watching the man right along with Steve, "I assume that's why you had to cancel my nine thirty."

"Uh hu," she's tapping her nails on the top of the desk, and she's so fucking infuriating, if she wasn't so fucking good at her job Steve would have booted her years ago.

"You're going to make me ask aren't you??

Carol gives him a massive shit eating grin, "ask what, sir?"

"Jesus fucking christ," Steve sighs, "who is that in my office."

"Not sure," Carol shrugs, grinning because she's pleased she's being such a dick, "security brought him up," she leans over the desk, whispering like she's imparting a secret, "pretty sure they said something that sounded like FBI."

And then she sits down, tapping at her computer and painting her nails or doing whatever it is she does all day. Harassing mail boys, probably. God she's like a fucking shark, but that what Steve gets, he wanted a competent secretary, what he got was a fucking guard dog.

Steve's not complaining. He'd been weary of hiring a female Alpha and then shoving her behind a desk, but it turns out Carol is terrifyingly efficient and fucking fearless, so it's kind of a win win.

Steve stares at the man in his office for a second longer, trying to figure out what the fuck he's done. he wonders if he's somehow accidentally committed major tax fraud, or something. He's pretty sure he hasn't, but the panic spiral is sitting there, looking inviting, anyway.

Steve goes into his office, and the man turns. He's tall, well built, kind of portly with age, maybe, but Steve still wouldn't fuck with the guy. He's not wearing blockers of any sort, so Steve's office now smells of strange, uninvited, Alpha. Great.

"Jim Hopper," he says, extending his hand, "FBI."

"Steve Harrington," Steve replies, even though he's certain it's pointless, this guy knows exactly who he is.

The guy is already producing paperwork as Steve takes his seat on the other side of his desk, "standard non disclosure, Mr. Harrington."

Steve gives it a once over, he's signed enough of these, and been involved with the legal team enough, that he feels confident enough. He signs it, knowing he won't get any answers until he does.

"I'll get right to it, time is tight. I've been working to dismantle an Omega trade ring for nearly eighteen months now. We're almost ready to move, teams are in place, inks drying on the warrants, cells are all picked out."

Steve nods, okay. He knew Omega trade was a thing, a barbaric, highly illegal thing. Human trafficking of the worst form, he gestures for Hopper to continue.

"If we go in now, we will likely get a few of the higher ups, we'll rescue approximately two dozen Omega, it'll be a success." Steve goes to speak, wondering what the fuck this has to do with him, Hopper waves him down, "we've been here before; I've made this mistake once before. If we don't get the people at the top, this thing will grow back in a years time. I want them all."

Steve gets that. His head is spinning a little. He knows things like this go on, you see about it on the news, but it does sound a bit...like a spy movie.

Hopper puts a photograph on Steve's desk, "you know this man?"

And Steve does. They're not what Steve would call friends; more of a good tempered rivalry. And yeah, Steve had Daddy's money, but Tommy had his Daddy's company. They came up at the same time, went after the same deals. Move in the same circles, Steve's known him for years. Steve's disliked him for years, "you're not suggesting Tommy Hagan is...the head of some sort of, human slavery outfit?" Knowing how ruthless Tommy can be, how questionable his methods are...Steve's still struggling to see him as...this.

"I'm not suggesting it. I'm telling you as fact. You've known him a long time, and we have to move fast. The charity gala tonight, you'll both be there."

"Right, sure, but I don't exactly see what I can do about this."

"Hagan moves the...high end product. Very exclusive, very expensive. They keep them at a ranch, just out of state," and that's kind of uncomfortable, because Steve's been to the ranch for a business lunch, so he knows exactly the place Hopper is talking about. And, jesus, Steve had thought at the time Tommy had a lot of Omega staff. A lot of really well behaved Omega staff - at the time, Steve thought Tommy was just being his usual dick self. Just showing off wealth. Fuck, if some of those Omega were actually, like, prisoners- "drop a hint to Hagan, tonight. Tell him you're getting itchy, fancy yourself an Omega. A traditional one, timid. Say whatever you need to say, get yourself an invite out there."

Steve takes a deep breath, nodding. He can do that. He can play that; he might have to wear blockers, his opinion of Tommy is in the gutter on a good day, never-mind this.

"That's all you need?"

Hopper shifts forward in his chair, "look, you're ideal. On the periphery, you've known each other a long time, but not well. He knows exactly the kind of clout you have, your bank balance, you're the perfect person to do this."

It's not hard to find information on Steve Harrington, he's thirty first on the Forbes 100 list, but clearly Hopper, at the very least, has taken notice.

"How do you know I'm not already involved?"

Hopper snorts, "kid. We know. Also, you just asked me that question, and your balls ain't that brassy."

Steve can't deny it, he shrugs, "so, what else?"

"Get an invite. Go there wearing a wire. Meet Tommy, pick an Omega. You'll be trusted; we will fit a listening device. Hagan's wriggled out of this sort of thing before; evidence like that, there'll be no court in the country that won't convict him."

Steve feels awkward. He knows there's a device on him somewhere; Hopper had taken his phone for ten minutes, and brought it back with a different suit jacket for him to wear.

That had been at half five this morning, standing on Steve's back porch. And as he pulls into the ranch, he has the air con on full blast because fucking hell, he's sweaty when he's nervous.

Hopper had made this sound easy; the ranch is pretty safe. Only a couple of armed guards. Plus, he's Steve Harrington; you can't just disappear a guy like Steve.

Hopper had sounded so certain, the cherry of his cigarette bright in the pre dawn mist. He'd even slapped Steve's shoulder, told him he was saving lives. Steve had felt like a fucking super hero for about twenty minutes, until reality and fucking nerves had swamped him.

But here he is, walking up the front steps to the ranch house, Tommy Hagan grinning big, "hope you brought the black card," Tommy jokes as they bro hug.

Because that's not creepy.

Tommy had given Steve a smirk at the Gala last night, was confident he had exactly what Steve was looking for. Knew, for the right price, exactly what would scratch Steve's itch. Not like he was talking about real fucking human beings or anything.

Steve's real glad he went thick on the blockers; he's certain Tommy would be choking on the scent of his disgust by now.

They bring them in during lunch. Steve sitting, eating fucking cornbread and home made slaw and he just can't. He nibbles, feeling sick with nerves. Tommy doesn't even seem to notice. Steve can't help but stare at him, someone he's known most of his life and now...he's been revealed as something vile and subhuman. Steve has to work hard to keep the disgust off his face.

Something that gets even more difficult when the Omega are brought it and lined up, all wearing the same diaphanous nightdresses regardless of gender. Every single one of them could be a contender for the most beautiful thing Steve's ever seen. Every single one of them could be a model, or something.

They're lined up in height order; the last one in, the tallest, a male Omega. He's limping.

He's leaving bloody footprints on the fancy parquet flooring.

Tommy must catch Steve's face, "the unruly ones need to be disciplined, and that one is more...difficult than most. Refuses to learn. And we don't want to damage the product anywhere that'll be visible, obviously."

Steve has to breathe through his nose so he doesn't throw up. All the Omega are wearing blockers; probably because the scent of Omega distress would be so off putting.

Tommy waves a hand, "get him out of here, he's bleeding on the rug," and the Omega winces, as he turns. he's got lots of shiny dark curls. Everything about all the Omega is pristine, perfectly maintained hair, nails, flawless skin. The smear of blood on his ankle is even more stark for it, and Steve can't help but stare as the Omega gamely takes what looks like a very painful, shuffling step away again.

"Him," Steve says before he can stop himself, "I want him."

The Omega turns back, looking at Steve with huge, beautiful brown eyes. He's hopeful and fearful all at once, and it tears Steve up inside. He wants to buy all of them, get all of them out of here, but knows he can't. If he does anything to raise suspicion he could fuck the whole thing.

At least he has Hopper's word that the rest of them will be out of here by the end of today.

Tommy scoffs, "Steve, come on, have a proper look. Don't pick that one. Get a pretty one."

Steve wants to swear at Tommy because they're all fucking pretty, ridiculously so, "no, he'll do."

"Oh," Tommy laughs, "I get it, just gonna' wreck him anyway, right? That's fair, can always get another," and he's laughing again and suddenly Steve is dragged into a very detailed conversation about how to move funds - from where and to where, which Steve does. It's an amount of money that under any other circumstances would make Steve's eyes water - but in the face of a human being in pain, Steve doesn't even blink.

It doesn't feel like Steve takes a breath until he's on the interstate, the Omega curled up on the seat next to him. No possessions, no clothes, no bag.

Nothing.

And that had gutted Steve as much as anything else.

"Look, uh, hey, you have a name?"

"Eddie," the Omega answers quietly.

"Right. Eddie. So. This is...well it's going to sound a bit wild but...I'm kind of here for the FBI. I mean. I don't work for them, or anything, but...I was...asked, I guess, to get evidence. So don't worry about everyone else, they're getting rescued later so. That's. A thing, I guess?"

Eddie's just blinking at him.

"Yea. Yeah, I guess that's a lot to take in. But we can talk about it...later? Do you have family? Like, shit, do you have somewhere to go? I'm pretty sure I wasn't supposed to actually like...buy, a person. Couldn't leave you there though."

"I've...I've got an uncle. Haven't seen him for years. I don't...know."

"Right, right okay. We can talk to Hopper about it," Steve spots a drive through, "you hungry?"

Eddie turns and sees the McDonald's, "oh fuck me yes," he breathes with such vehemence that Steve laughs, "I haven't left the ranch for two years, and they never let us eat anything like that, it's bad for our skin. Plus, we have to stay thin and pretty."

That kills Steve's laughter stone dead.

Hopper rubs at his forehead, "you were not supposed to buy a human being."

"I know but-" Steve turns, Eddie standing behind him, which on it's own makes Steve wince. Eddie's barefoot on the asphalt, half hidden behind Steve, still wearing nothing but that scrap of white fabric. It's now a little smeared with the fry grease Eddie had shamelessly wiped off his fingers. Steve hands over his phone and the suite jacket.

Hopper waves him off, "you did good."

Hopper does something to the back of Steve's phone, peeling something away from it, before giving it back, "somewhere I can take you kid? Any family?"

"I only have an uncle, but I don't...it's been years, I haven't seen him since I was little."

Hopper rubs is hand over his face, the rasp of stubble loud, before he lights another cigarette, "I'll have to find you a motel somewhere while we figure this out."

"He can stay with me." Steve's volunteering before he can really think it though, "I've got...a lot of space," he trails off. He did just rescue this Omega after all, he's not just going to abandon him to be alone somewhere. Somewhere that might not even be safe for a lone Omega.

Hopper raises an eyebrow at Eddie, Eddie shrugs, "not like I've had any better offers lately."

Hopper snorts, but he hands over a business card, "this is highly unorthodox, but...I don't care. I've got bigger things to worry about. Text me any details the kid can give you on the uncle. I'll be in touch."

And then Hopper just...drives away. It's maybe an hour and a half drive back from here, since Steve had to go out of his way for this clandestine meeting in an abandoned car lot.

"So is there anything you...want? Need?"

Eddie seems to think about it for a second, plucking at his nightshirt, "I mean, I don't have any cash, obviously, and I heard how much money you shelled out- I mean, do you think you can comp me from the FBI? Man, you didn't even get a receipt for me."

Steve starts laughing first, then Eddie joins in.

At Eddie's request they get milkshakes on the way home.

[call-me-little-sunshine84]

A Little Patience (Jim Hopper x f! reader)

Characters: Jim Hopper x fem! reader

Word count: 1.2k

Warnings: Smut! briefly mentioned self-esteem issues, unprotected sex, oral sex, multiple orgasms

Summary: reader has problems achieving the big O; luckily Hopper is more than glad to help

“Thanks for dinner, Jim,” you said, holding hands with him as he walked you to your front door. Awkward silence hung in the air as you unlocked the door, him looking at you with something like excitement, anticipation. “Umm, want to come in?” you asked nervously. “Sure,” he replied, following you inside. This was what you had been both looking forward to, and also wanting to avoid. You had been on several dates, and so far, he had been a perfect gentleman, only doing what you allowed and not asking for anything else. Perfectly patient, but that would only last for so long. You could tell that he was understandably wanting more . 

You really couldn’t blame him; you wanted it too. There was just one small issue you needed to discuss first, and you were dreading it with every fiber of your being. 

Sitting next to you on the couch, he leaned in and kissed you. The scent of him filled your lungs, heady and masculine. Before it could go much farther, though, you pull back, sighing. “Hop, I need to talk to you about something.”

 “That doesn’t sound good. Is everything okay?” he asked, concern in his eyes. Taking a deep breath, you decide to just get it over with. “I feel like this could really get serious between us, and before it does, I think I should tell you something. I have issues I guess you could say when it comes to sex. I…..I don’t know quite how to say this - I have a lot of problems climaxing. It’s always been that way, I don’t know why,” you blurted out, fighting the instinct to run and hide, heat flaming in your cheeks. 

Maybe it was a result of the incredibly low self-esteem you had suffered from since childhood, maybe you just hadn’t found the right person to help get you there, or maybe you just couldn’t get out of your own head during sex. No matter the cause, it always ended the same way. Whoever you were with took it as an affront, like you weren’t attracted enough to them. Your last relationship ended because of it, and you really wanted to avoid that this time. Hopper was different than any other man you had dated. 

Of course, you enjoyed sex, you just very rarely experienced the kind of toe curling, soul searing desire you always read about, that seemed to come so easily to everyone else.

He sat quietly for a minute, and you had to make yourself look at him. “Please say something,” you begged, dying to know what he was thinking. “Darlin’, that might be the saddest thing I’ve ever heard,”. What??   You didn’t know what you were expecting him to say, but that definitely wasn’t it. “What do you mean by that?” you asked, mildly insulted, arms crossing over your chest.

“I mean it’s truly a shame that no man has cared enough about your pleasure to help you with that. You deserve better,” he said, putting a hand gently on your thigh. Okay, that’s a good answer you thought to yourself. He moved even closer to you, brushing his other hand softly across your cheek. You shivered from his touch, goosebumps grazing your arms. Kissing his way across your jawline, his facial hair scuffing against your skin, he said one sentence that unraveled you entirely. “Let me show you just how good sex can feel,” he whispered, his voice dripping with lust.

Your mind reeling from his words, you led him by the hand to your bedroom. Clothes, both his and yours, went flying across the room to land in a heap on the floor. You laid back on the bed and he hovered over you, kissing you softly before moving lower. He landed on your breasts, his mouth searching, sucking, biting. Taking his time, his strong hands roamed your body, exploring, finding all the places that made you moan. 

His hand ran up your leg, settling on your aching center. Gently parting you, he put first one, then another finger inside. He somehow knew exactly how to work them exactly like you liked it, and you could already feel the pressure building inside you. He kept curling his fingers in you while lavishing one of your nipples and you wanted nothing more than to feel that ever-elusive release, but as fast as the feeling had overcome you, you felt it slip out of your grasp. 

Tears of frustration pricked the corners of your eyes. Jim must have felt your body tense from your anger, and he lowered his face between your legs. “Focus on me and what I’m doing,” he said as he began licking your slick heat. “Just let go.”

So…..you did. You let go of all your anxiety, all of the negative thoughts that always plagued you during sex, all of the worry that something was wrong with you and just zeroed in on the man that was eagerly eating you out. Surrendering to the feeling of his tongue slowly swirling, your back arched and you moaned loudly, which seemed to spur him on. He was a man on a mission.

Sitting up enough to be able to watch him, the look of total lust blown determination on his face was enough to make you feel that familiar tightening, the coil inside you that was threatening to snap. Tangling your hands in his hair, you yelled his name as he latched onto your clit and sucked. You gasped audibly as your climax took you by surprise, wave after wave of blissful pleasure surging through you. 

Once your thighs stopped shaking, Hop looked up at you, a ridiculously cocky grin on his face. You reached for him, wanting to touch his rock-hard dick, to please him also. “Not this time, tonight is about you,” he said as he aligned himself between your thighs. He entered you slowly, the delicious feeling of him stretching you out and filling you made you roll your eyes back in delight. He took his time, his thrusts hitting just the right places and making you see stars. 

Suddenly he pulled out of you, and you were ready to scream obscenities for the emptiness you felt, but before you could speak, he had flipped you over onto your stomach and was bottomed out inside you again. Grasping your hips, he showed no mercy with his frenetic thrusting. Your moans and cries only made him go deeper and harder. Your face buried in the pillow, the only thought running through your head was how does this feel so damn good.  

It was then that he began to hit that spot , the one that you could never seem to get on your own. He snaked a hand around your front, rubbing circles on your already sensitive clit. A second orgasm hit you, your pussy clamping down around him as he continued pumping into you while you rode it out. 

He came with one final groan, and you felt the heat from his release deep inside. Every one of your nerve endings felt alive, electric, and you never wanted to lose that feeling. He pulled out slowly and sank onto the bed beside you, that same cocky grin on his face. “What’s that look for?” you asked, already knowing the answer. “I told you darlin’, you just hadn’t found the right man for the job,” he replied, kissing you on the forehead. Laughing, you laid against him, your entire body more relaxed than it had been in years. “I think I have now though.”

[hbyrde36]

Life is a Game (and True Love is a Trophy)

Chapter 8

Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7 ao3 link

*Steve*

As soon as Steve set foot back into the trailer, Eleven launched herself at him. He wrapped his arms around her instinctively, feeling the way her body shook subtly under his grip.

Shit. 

He hadn’t thought about how it would feel for her to watch him walk right out of the house after Eddie, leaving her behind with total strangers after everything they’d been through. He suspected her reaction wasn’t only about him either. Eddie meant something to her, even if he didn’t remember, and she had been so little when they’d last been together. It didn’t change the fact that she had found this person again who she’d thought was dead for so long, and then he ran away. 

“I’m so sorry, El. I didn’t even think. I just wanted to make sure he was okay.”

She shook her head as best she could, while remaining tightly pressed to his chest. “It’s okay. I’m glad you went after him. He needed you. I just got scared.”

Steve’s eyes flitted to the kitchen where Chief Hopper now sat sipping coffee with Claudia, the man having arrived while he and Eddie were outside. He was sure that the sudden appearance of a cop had spooked El too. 

Steve pulled back a little from their hug so he could look her in the eye. “Still, I'm sorry. I’ll always come back to you, no matter what happens, I promise. We’re going to be okay. We’ll keep each other safe, and we’ll keep Eddie safe too.”

“How?”

“I haven't quite figured that part out yet, kiddo, but I believe in us.”

El cracked a weak smile. “Me too.”

He walked with her back over to join Dustin on the couch. The poor kid couldn’t stop staring at her, as if he couldn’t believe she was real. 

Which was fair. 

Dustin was also practically vibrating with the need to ask questions, but when he did finally speak, it was only out of concern for his cousin. 

“Is Eddie going to be ok?” He asked.

“Yea, buddy, He’ll be okay. It’s just a lot.” Steve said, trying his best to sound reassuring. He wasn’t sure he knew Eddie well enough to make that kind of assumption, but he did know for his own part, that he would do everything he could to make it true.

Dustin nodded like he understood. “Thank you for helping him. I know how Eddie looks, and how he can come off sometimes, but he’s a lot more sensitive than people give him credit for.”

They all looked up as Eddie and his uncle reentered the trailer. Steve met Eddie's gaze for a moment over the short distance of the room. His eyes were a little bloodshot, as if he’d been crying again, and Steve wished that they could let it all be, at least for the day. 

He wanted to give Eddie a break to try to process everything that had happened so far before piling on, but Hopper was there now for whatever reason, and there was still so much that they needed to talk about. Not to mention the ever looming threat of another attack on El from One.

Eddie glared at Hopper for a moment before addressing his Uncle. “You wanna tell me what he’s doing here?”

Wayne let out a long suffering sigh. “Jim’s known about you since the beginning, son. He helped to hide you and supplied us with the paperwork and whatever else we needed to sell our story and get you enrolled in school.”

It was apparent that knowing all that didn’t change Eddie's feelings towards the man at all. He scowled as Hopper approached. Steve got the sense that there was history between the two of them, and clearly not all of it good. 

“I know you’ve never trusted me, kid.” Hopper began. “And I'm sure that’s worse now because I tried to stop you from looking for Harrington here, but you have to know now that it was all for your own good. We couldn’t risk the wrong people noticing what you were up to and accidentally putting the pieces together.”

What? 

Steve’s heart started to pound as he stared at the side of Eddie’s face. “You looked for me?” 

“Oh yeah, he broke into your old house to investigate and everything” Wayne supplied with a wink, nudging his nephew’s shoulder.

Eddie’s cheeks turned red. 

“Wayne!” He hissed, finally turning his head to look at Steve with a sheepish smile. All he could do was stare back in amazement, because Eddie had been looking for him. This sweet guy, who barely knew him, had cared enough to not only wonder what had happened, but actively tried to find out. It did occur to Steve that it might not mean anything, and could have had more to do with El and the latent powers Eddie likely had that they were yet to really speak on, but for now he chose to believe that maybe it could mean something.

Eddie’s smile fell abruptly as he gave his attention back to Hopper. ”Wait, why would looking for him have put me in danger?”

The answer came to Steve in an instant, and he couldn’t stop from blurting it out at the chief. “You knew I was at the lab.”

Hopper squeezed his eyes shut and slowly nodded, guilt coming off of him in waves. “I didn’t know right away, it was a few weeks before I put the pieces together. Ultimately it was the security footage from that diner you went to that confirmed it for me. As you can imagine, after Eddie came along I did a little digging into Hawkins Lab to try and figure out what was going on there. I didn’t get very far before I was asked by an old military contact to drop it. Actually, I was told to mind my own fucking business, or else, but I did learn a thing or two along the way about the man in charge, Dr. Brenner. I recognized him on that tape, and when I saw you two leave with him, I figured I had my answer.”

Eddie’s eyes grew dark as he got up in Hopper’s face. “You son of a bitch! You knew he was there all this time and you didn’t do anything about it?!” What kind of cop are you?!”

Without hesitation, Steve stepped between them, lightly placing his hands on the other boy’s shoulders. 

“Eddie, stop. It’s okay. He couldn’t have gotten me out of there anyway. Not without getting himself killed. You don’t know what it’s like in that place. I’m glad you don’t remember. Part of me hopes you never remember because you deserve so much better than having grown up in that hell hole. I wouldn’t have wanted him to risk exposing you, they have to know you’re out there somewhere. I know it’s been years but these people don’t give up that easily.” 

Eddie’s eyes had gone soft again as Steve spoke, but he didn’t say anything. Steve wondered briefly if he had overstepped. He didn't think so, but it was hard to tell what Eddie was thinking.

“I’m sorry, Steve.” Hopper said, drawing their attention again. “More sorry than I can say. How’d you manage to get out?”

Steve gave them all a quick but detailed description of their escape, ending with running into Eddie at Skull Rock. He hesitated to mention the attack on El, not ready to get into that quite yet. He wanted to hear more about Eddie’s dreams, and this game he and the kids had been playing first. He had a feeling that Vecna, as Eddie had called him, was Henry/One, but he couldn’t be sure so he brushed past it, saying that something had gone wrong in the lab that day. El looked at him questioningly but said nothing, and neither Eddie or Wayne brought up that none of it explained why she’d been covered in blood.

“That’s amazing!” Dustin exclaimed when it was all done. He turned to Eddie. “And you just happened to be there at Skull Rock, what are the odds! What were you doing there anyway?”

Eddie shrugged. “I don’t know really, your dumb list probably put the idea in my head.”

“No, it’s gotta have something to do with your powers.”

Eddie stiffened, but tried to play it off. “Who said anything about powers?”

Dustin continued, oblivious to Eddie’s discomfort. “Well, it’s like our game, right? El can move stuff with her mind.” He said, waving a hand in the girl’s direction.

“What game?” Hopper asked, though his question went ignored.

“Yes.” El answered, raising her palm towards the coffee table and the several very breakable mugs that sat on its surface. Steve quickly reached out to push her arm down. “You don’t have to demonstrate sweetie.” He said. 

Dustin glared at Steve, betrayed at being denied the opportunity to see Eleven in action, before returning to his argument with Eddie. “How else would you have known about El and the lab? Boom! Powers.”

The kid wasn’t wrong, but his tone left something to be desired. 

“Don’t get cocky.” Eddie muttered. “It’s probably just subconscious memories or some shit.”

Steve caught Eddie’s eye and they shared a look. They both knew it wasn’t memories, but he wouldn’t push if Eddie wasn’t ready to deal with it yet. 

This kid, however, was stubborn and had no such misgivings.

“No, that doesn’t make sense. You knew about El’s escape in ‘83! That didn’t happen until way after mom…” Dustin trailed off.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up like a kid on Christmas.

“Oh. My. God. Are the demogorgons real too? And demodogs? Is the whole Upside-Down real?!” His face went through a complicated series of emotions, caught for a split second between glee at the idea that the world was suddenly far more magical than he realized, and horror, because, monsters.

“Demo-whats?” Hopper asked.

Dustin flapped a hand dismissively in his direction. “The monsters from our game.”

“WHAT GAME?!” Hopper bellowed.

The room fell quiet, finally giving the Chief the attention he wanted following his outburst. 

It was Eddie who broke the silence, taking the lead to explain. “There’s a game that the boys and I play, we, uh, well, it’s hard to explain. To make a very long story short, some of the things I thought I made up for the game are apparently... real.”

Hopper looked skeptical. “Like what?” 

“Eleven, for starters.” Eddie began. “The whole thing about the lab and her escaping? That was in there. It’s like..” He paused to think, and made a waffling motion with his hand. “We blended fantasy and reality, right? So we each play a version of ourselves, and all the other non-player characters are modeled after other people.”

Eddie’s eyes flicked to Steve right before he covered his face with his hands.

“God, this is so embarrassing. If I ever thought I’d have to explain any of this to other people…”

Steve couldn't bear to see Eddie spiraling again, so he tried to be supportive. “How bad could it be?”

Eddie raised his eyebrows and Steve almost laughed at himself. It had been a morning full of bad things and big revelations, so maybe that hadn’t been the smartest thing to say. Still, he needed to know.

“It could be important, who knows what else you picked up on that might turn out to be true or real?”

“I have notes for every part of the campaign so far but...” Eddie chewed nervously on his bottom lip.

“But?” Steve prompted.

Eddie blew out a long breath. “Fuck, I guess theres no way around this. You’re all in it.”

“Including you, Steve. You're one of the main characters besides the boys and El. You have been pretty much since the beginning. I’m sorry, I know that’s weird.”

It probably shouldn't have been such a surprise, what with everything else that had gone on so far, but Steve was shocked. A warmth blossomed in his chest at the idea.

“Don’t be sorry. That’s really cool.” Steve assured him.

Eddie’s mouth dropped open.

“Wait, really?”

Steve shuffled his feet, hoping that it didn’t show on his face just how pleased he was to know that Eddie had spent a significant part of the past two years thinking about and creating something that involved him.

“Yeah, it’s sort of flattering actually.”

Eddie grinned shyly and Steve couldn’t look away. 

Wayne loudly cleared his throat. “As sweet as this is to watch, boys, maybe you should go get those notes you were talking about, Ed.”

Eddie’s face went beet red, and he stomped off down the hall without a word. He returned quickly, with a noticeable blush still coloring his cheeks. He walked straight past Hopper, who was looking at him expectantly, and handed the short stack of notebooks to Steve before plopping down on the couch, trying not to look at anyone. 

Claudia got up abruptly, gathering her purse as she spoke. “Come on Dusty, we have to get going if you're going to make it to school on time.” The woman had been quiet for so long, Steve almost forgot she was there.

“Mom, are you crazy?” Dustin shouted. “We just found out that monsters are real. There's no way I'm going to school today!”

She opened her mouth to argue, but Hopper beat her to the punch.

“Oh yes you are. I don’t know anything about this monster stuff, but I do know a thing or two about the very real threat to all of us that is Hawkins lab. The best thing everyone can do for now to protect this whole... situation, is to go on about your lives as normal as possible, and do not draw attention to yourselves.” The last part was aimed at Eddie who pretended to ignore them all, suddenly fascinated with the hem of his own t-shirt. 

Dustin floundered. “Does Eddie have to go to school?” 

“Absolutely not.” Eddie said, finally looking up to glare at his cousin.

Hopper looked like he was going to protest that too, but then thought better of it and shrugged. “Eddie skips class enough that not attending school is just as normal as if he were to go.”

“Is that true, boy?” Wayne huffed.

“Unbelievable.” Eddie mumbled before getting up to open the door and usher everyone who wasn’t staying outside. “Okay Hop, well thanks for stopping by, don’t you have a job to get to - CHIEF?!”

Dustin begrudgingly agreed to leave with promises that he’d be back right after school to continue talking about this, and followed Hopper outside to the cars. Claudia hesitated in the doorway, smiling up at Eddie with shining eyes.

“I have never for one second regretted getting you out of that place and bringing you home. It’s the best thing I've ever done, right up there with having my little Dusty. You bring light into all of our lives and I'm so proud to call you family. I love you, honey.” She pinched his cheek and left.

Steve hung back, feeling like an intruder on the private moment happening so close by, but he couldn’t help listening. He was just so in awe of these people, of this unconventional family brought together by sheer chance, who’d protected a little boy no questions asked and loved each other so fiercely. 

Wayne yawned loudly. “Okay, kids, I'm gonna head to bed now before I keel over.”

“You’re not going to give me shit about skipping school?” Eddie asked.

“If you really think that’s the first I've heard of it then you’re thicker than I thought. I wasn’t born yesterday, I know what you get up to. I’m just happy that you stopped selling drugs before I was forced to knock some sense into you.”

Eddie balked. “You knew?!”

Wayne cackled as he turned the corner towards his bedroom.

“I would like to go back to bed too.” El said.

“You can take my bed again.” Eddie offered.

She looked at the two of them in turn. “Will you come with me? I don’t want to be alone.”

It was unthinkable to say no to her, so the three of them piled into Eddie's room. Eleven settled down on the bed and was out like a light almost immediately. At Eddie's insistence, Steve took the desk chair and readied himself for the task ahead, while the other boy paced and puttered around the room.

He wasn’t sure how long it took, but Steve read straight through all four notebooks without taking so much as a single break. It was riveting, the story that Eddie and his friends had weaved. He had already known a few of the parallels he was likely to find between his lived experience and the saga laid out before him, but it was so much more than he ever could have imagined. 

His heart broke all over again as he read about the three young boys finding Eleven in the woods, the same way he himself had done. He could remember with perfect clarity the fear that had shone in her eyes that first night, and how quickly he had come to the decision to take care of her as best he could, no matter the consequences. 

He noted the similarities between Eleven destroying the demogorgon at the school and thus saving the day in the big climax to the first part, and what he knew of her defeating the creature at the lab when they’d first been captured. It probably didn’t matter now, but he wondered if she really had gotten stuck in that other world for a while, and if that was part of why he hadn’t seen her for so long. She had never said, only told him she had needed a lot of rest afterwards. 

The second book came with more than one surprise. His own character, or ‘Game Steve’ as he was calling his doppelganger on the page, had gotten roped into helping Dustin search for an escaped creature that turned out to be a demodog. After a nail-biting confrontation in the junkyard with a small pack of the four-legged monsters, Game Steve cemented himself as the party’s babysitter and fierce protector. 

Steve was floored. He knew it was mostly make-believe, but still couldn’t believe anyone saw him like that, and he found his vision blurring more than once as he continued. 

He was intrigued by the reveal of Eleven, and how she had been off finding one of her escaped siblings and fellow numbers. He thought Eddie might have been trying to tell himself something with that little side-quest. 

They had already touched on the big battle with the demodogs in the basement of Hawkins lab while El closed the gate, and spoke a little about how it went down in both the real and fictional worlds. The scars on Steve’s back burned with the memory, and he allowed himself to skim that part, not wishing to fully relive the horror of that night when it wasn’t necessary. 

He started to take some notes of his own when it came to notebooks three and four. He had too many thoughts and questions to keep it all straight and things only got worse with the growing dread in his stomach as he neared the final pages.

There was no stopping the tears that fell in fat droplets to land on the back cover of the final black and white composition notebook when Steve was finished. His breath hitched as he finally lifted his gaze to look at Eddie, who was now sitting on the edge of the bed, for the first time in what felt like hours. 

“Steve?” Eddie stood, hovering over him with concern. 

Steve didn't know where to start. He needed to tell Eddie about Henry, about Vecna. That he was real, that it was all too real, how he was now terrified at the possibility that Eddie had predicted his own death. But Steve couldn’t form the words. Not yet. His throat was tight with pain and panic. 

When he didn’t respond, Eddie knelt down on the floor in front of him, bringing them eye to eye as he reached out a cautious hand. He gently wiped the wetness from Steve’s face with a brush of his thumb. Steve couldn’t help sinking into the touch, too far gone to care what it might imply.

During all of those long and lonely nights at the lab, Steve had started to suspect some things about himself. He realized, beginning with that first time when he told stories of old school days to keep El company in her coma-like state, that any time he spoke about the past, he never failed to find a way to bring up Eddie. 

They hadn’t been friends, though Steve would have liked to be. They were from two completely different circles of people, only speaking on occasion, when chance or fate served to put them in a room together, or set them on the same path down the halls, however briefly. Though he hadn’t realized their meaning at the time, Steve came to cherish those memories, their short but friendly interactions, and the flutter he would feel in his stomach whenever he was fortunate enough to lay eyes on the other boy. 

Steve knew what it was now, and that crush had only grown exponentially in the past 24 hours as he learned about what sort of person Eddie was.

Everything he had just read served as a stark reminder that you never know how much time you have left with someone, or when the next disaster is going to strike. So, while this was most definitely not the right moment by any rational person’s estimation, Steve gave in to the urge to lean forward, crossing the short distance between them, and joined his mouth to Eddie’s in a soft kiss.

After the all-to-brief touch of lips, Eddie pulled back with a sharp intake of breath, his hand still resting on the side of Steve's face. They stared into each other's eyes from inches away and Steve’s heart hammered inside his chest as he fought hard not to panic. Eddie searched his face, and he longed to know what the other boy was looking for so he could show it to him. 

Steve swallowed hard, watching as Eddie’s eyes flicked down to track the bobbing of his throat. A soft whine came spilling out of Eddie’s mouth a split second before he crashed back into Steve. He smiled into the kiss and pulled Eddie up into his lap. He licked along the seam of Eddie's lips, asking permission, and was immediately granted entrance. Eddie opened wide for him and Steve let out a low moan, reveling in the feel of their tongues sliding against each other. 

Eleven rolled over and let out a loud snore from where she still rested on the bed, and they sprang apart, both remembering suddenly that they weren’t entirely alone. 

Steve covered his mouth to stifle the giggle that he couldn’t stop from coming, and was relieved to see Eddie's eyes sparkling with the same amusement. He quickly took Steve’s hand and pulled him to his feet. The pair tiptoed out of the room, quietly closing the door behind them. 

They only made it two steps away from the room before Eddie had him pinned to the wall, overwhelming his senses with lips and tongue. He bit and sucked at Steve's lower lip until his knees went weak and they finally pulled apart, panting. 

As they both caught their breaths, Eddie ran his fingers through Steve's hair and said, “Not that I'm complaining, but what brought this on?”

Steve frowned, paling as he recalled the reason he was so willing to throw caution to the wind. He slid down the wall to sit on the floor, pulling his knees to his chest to fit in the narrow hall. Eddie sat down next to him, close but not touching.

“I’m sorry, I didn't mean to kill the mood. We don’t have to talk about it, it’s...”

Steve reached over and took Eddie's hand, raising it to his lips to brush a light kiss over the back of it. He couldn’t let Eddie get the wrong idea, not for a second.

“I really like you.” Steve said.

Eddie’s eyes went wide. “Oh.” He breathed. “Well, In case it was unclear, the feeling is mutual.”

“I’m glad.” Steve said, giving Eddie’s hand a squeeze. “But, as much as I would love to spend the afternoon doing more of that, I need to tell you about...”

“Vecna?” Eddie guessed.

Steve dipped his head in a solemn nod. He wasn’t surprised that Eddie had figured it out, he was smart, despite what his history at school would reflect, and he paid attention.

“Among other things.” Steve said. “You had it right, about the hive mind. Everything from that place, the upside down, is connected. The possession? The way it controlled that guy in the third story? That happened to me. Owens got it out by blasting me with heat. You got that part right too, all of their strengths and weaknesses are as you said. I don’t know if the bats exist. I haven't even seen the other world for myself, but I'd be willing to bet they’re real.”

“And Vecna, is he..?”

“Alive? Yes. His name really is Henry and he was the first number, One. I don’t know his backstory to tell you if you got that right or not, but he is responsible for the deaths of the other kids. I was thinking about that. The day El fought with him and sent him into that other dimension, it has to be the same day that you escaped. The alarm would have been going off, just like Claudia said, and everyone would have been too distracted to see you slip away.”

Eddie jerked his hand back, leaning as far away from Steve as he could and wrapped his arms around himself. “I’m so sorry.” He whispered. 

“What could you possibly have to apologize for?”

“Don't you get it, Steve? That means I left her there. I ran, and I let her fight that monster all alone. I mean, I always suspected I was a coward but here's the cold hard proof.”

“No. Don’t do that to yourself.” Steve pleaded. “You were just a kid, and we don’t know what the circumstances were. All that matters now, is that you both made it, you survived. If you had stayed behind, who knows what would have happened.”

Eddie clenched his jaw, clearly still upset with himself, but trying. “What else?”

“Brenner let Eleven think she killed Henry, she felt horribly guilty about it for so long. I figured it out a few months ago, that they suspected he was still alive and that they were using El to find him. I told her what I thought, we figured it would be easy for her to avoid him now that she knew what she was looking for but..”

“He found her. That’s what really happened yesterday.” Eddie finished for him.

“Yes. How’d you know?”

“The blood, the way it looked like it had been dripping out of her eyes. It’s exactly how I pictured it.”  Eddie’s eyes glazed over a little as he spoke.

“You said the most recent campaign, the notes in that fourth book, that was all you, right?” Steve asked.

“Yeah.”

“I’m worried about how much hasn’t happened yet, and what parts might be real.”

Eddie hesitated.“...Shit, I hadn’t really thought about it like that.”

“Henry just made his first attack, there's no reason to assume it’s his last.”

“What do we do?”

Steve sighed, tilting his head back to thunk softly against the wall. “I think we need to bring them all in, everyone from your campaign who was affected by the Upside-Down. Especially Vecna’s victim’s. I think we should tell them. If it starts happening for real, it’s the only way we’ll have a chance to protect them. It’s up to you though, Eddie. You’d be exposed.”

“So would you and El.” Eddie pointed out.

Steve already knew what his sister would say. “I know.”

Eddie picked at a loose thread on the carpet, thinking. Finally he nodded to himself and looked at Steve. “I can’t let anyone die knowing I could have stopped it. I’m in.”

Together they formed a loose plan. Eddie would pick the boys up from school, they would be the easiest to convince and he might be able to gather Nancy and Jonathan on the way. Chrissy too if he could catch her on her way to cheerleading practice. They’d start there, and get the rest of the group, assuming they believed them, to help to bring the others into the fold. 

They sat there in the hallway for a long time, with Steve resting his head on Eddie's shoulder as they talked. Steve didn’t want to think about the lab, and instead told Eddie about the few months he and El had shared at his old house. He could feel himself smiling like an idiot at the fond memories. Eddie shared more about Dustin, and the boys, about school and his fears that he was going to fail and have to repeat senior year again. 

Eddie snaked an arm around Steve’s back, holding him close, and he found himself nodding off as they settled into a comfortable silence. Eventually, Eddie was forced to wake him, when it was almost time for him to drive to the school. 

Steve yawned and stretched, rolling his neck from side to side. He might be stiff from sleeping that way, but waking up in Eddie’s arms was something he thought he’d pay any price for. 

“Hopper’s not going to like this.” Steve pointed out as he walked with Eddie through to the living room.

“I know!” Eddie grinned. “All the more reason to do it.” 

Steve rolled his eyes, but returned the smile anyway. “What should I tell your uncle if he wakes up?”

Eddie shrugged. “Just tell him and I ran to the store for smokes or something. I won’t be long.”

Steve blinked at him. He didn’t like the idea of lying to the man who was currently putting a roof over his head. 

“Don’t look at me like that, Harrington. If you tell him the truth, he’ll call Hopper, and like you said he’ll hate our plan. In this case I think we’re better off asking forgiveness than permission.”

He couldn’t really argue that, so Steve just nodded. 

There was a moment of awkwardness at the door, neither boy ready to part yet, even temporarily, and not knowing how to say goodbye. Steve wasn’t sure who moved first, but suddenly they were hugging. Eddie placed a chaste kiss on the corner of his mouth, and then he was gone.

Chapter 9

Special thanks to @penny00dreadful for all your help once again! 😘

@steddie-there @yeahhhh-suga @goinsteddie @brbsoulnomming @the-s-is-silent @paintsplatteredandimperfect @estrellami-1 @herebedragons404 @epiclazershark @mentallyundone @hardboiledleggs @manda-panda-monium @ellietheasexylibrarian @sofadofax @5ammi90 @meccaminayah @bestwifehaver @eddie-munsons-lunchbox @soaringornithopter @buckleybarnes @adaed5

as always, let me know if you want to be added or removed from the tags! 💜

[i-me-mine]

As time goes by | Chapter 4: Failure

Pairings: Eddie Munson x fem!reader

Word Count: 4.2k

Masterlist | Previous Chapter | Next chapter | AO3

“So, are we really doing this, or not?” says Eddie, with a mischievous, devastating smile on his face. 

You both were huddled under a tree, trying to stay away from the eyes of others while you surveyed the house in front of you. It had tall windows and a wide, wraparound porch, the yard overgrown and unkempt, showing that its owners had been away from it for quite a long time. 

“There is no one looking now; let’s go,” you said, picking the bobby pins out of your pocket, ready to start working on the lock. 

Sure, why not try to break into an empty house just for the challenge of it? This was one of the ideas that came out of nowhere in the middle of a conversation - finding a different place to hang out, including a bit of an adrenaline rush, seemed too tempting to let it pass. 

Eddie kept watch, his eyes darting back and forth nervously while you approached the main door, ready to start picking the lock, but it was not needed - you gave a triumphant cry and turned to tell him, “It wasn’t even locked” as you opened the door.

You two slip inside, closing the door behind you. You move quietly through the house, your footsteps muffled by the thick carpet, signaling to each other - Eddie will check the upper floor while you check the main one. Once you confirm that everything is ok, you make your way to the living room, opening your backpack to take the snacks and the six-pack of beers you brought.

“And that’s the kind of shitty things they have here…” Eddie enters the room, and you laugh upon seeing that he is wearing a top hat. “This is for you, sweetheart,” he says, tossing something at you. 

You catch and open it, seeing that it’s a silk robe. “Do you want me to wear it?”

“C’mon, I bet it will look good on you… you can wear it over your clothes, but if you want to undress and wear only it…” he smiles while raising his hands as if saying, “I wouldn’t mind.” 

A few beers later, you both sing loudly while Eddie is jumping on the couch. You are then interrupted by knocks on the door and by the voice of Officer Powell “Hawkins PD, come out, or we are getting in” 

Eddie stares at you with wide eyes. You take off the robe and extend your hand to him. “C’mon, Eddie, we have to go.” He freezes in place, so you grab his hand and pull him. “Let’s go, NOW!” 

He picks up your backpack with his free hand while you guide him through the corridors. You are rushing to the back door, hoping to be able to make your escape there, while Eddie is constantly looking back to see if you are being followed. 

You both leave the house, and you feel Eddie bumping into you as you stop. Officer Callahan is looking straight at you, saying, “Look who we have here…”

The ride to the police station is silent. The car seat is hard and uncomfortable, and the metal partition separating you from the officers does not appeal to you to engage in conversation. Thankfully Callahan did not make any of you wear handcuffs or any other restraints; he never does. You hold your hand without looking at Eddie, and your hands find each other, fingers intertwined.  

As you enter the station, you see Florence, the secretary, coming your way. “Hi, Flo,” you murmur. She looks worried, and you know that she genuinely cares about you. She knew and cared for your mother before you were even born, and when you were suffering from the loss of your mother, she also tried her best to comfort you, and you would always be grateful for that. 

“What happened this time, dear?” she asks maternally, hugging you.  

“The usual, you know…” you reply evasively, not wanting to go into details, giving her a one-arm hug as you still hold Eddie’s hand. You don’t see it, but she gives him a disapproving look that makes him let go of your hand while quietly saying “Madam” while lowering his head.  

One door slams open, and Chief of Police Jim Hopper storms out. “What is going on? I just wanted some time in peace before heading home!”  

You and Eddie look at each other; Hopper is not in a good mood. He then sees you and lets out a long sigh. “Not the double trouble again! Why does almost every problem here have to involve the both of you?” 

You try to repress a laugh and fail miserably, making Hopper angrier. Officer Powell is whispering to Hopper, and you are sure he is updating him about what happened. “To my office, NOW!” Hopper screams.

You don’t remember exactly how the nickname “Double trouble” started - only that when you got to know each other while kids and began to go into every kind of trouble together, people started calling you like that. The nickname stuck through the years, as you both never stopped misbehaving.

You got into your seat in the office, seeing Hopper looking at you accusingly. “Hey, chief,” you both said together, trying to ease the room’s tension, but it sounded as if you were making fun of the situation, so you went quiet.

“So you were caught by the officers right out of the house?” 

“Yes. That is correct.” Eddie replied calmly. You could never quite mimic the flow of his perfect, formal articulation that he puts up during the initial interactions with authorities. 

“Trespassing, really? What am I going to do with you?” 

“In our defense, the house was empty; there was no sign of ‘No entry’…” you try to argue.

“Yes, the door was already open; she didn’t even have to lockp-” Eddie says, cutting the phrase in the middle as you pinch him, as you didn’t want him to speak about your lockpicking skills to Hopper. 

“Do you know the concept of private property? Or respecting boundaries?” Hopper starts, and you see that Eddie wants to reply, and you pinch him again. 

You’ve been there before; you know that you and Eddie will have to sit through a long lecture about what you should and shouldn’t do from Hopper, and to stay quiet is the best approach. Then, after a while, he concludes:

“I think you both need to learn that actions have consequences, or this will never stop. I can’t let you continue like that. Maybe staying here for a while, until your guardians come to bail you out, would do good.” 

“Please, sir, no… Wayne is working, he needs to rest, he doesn’t need to get involved,” Eddie pleads in a humble voice.

Hopper rolls his eyes. Edward Munson is a nightmare, always giving him all sorts of troubles, but he knows that Wayne is a good man. “You should have thought about it before.”

“I hope you have space and food to keep me for a long time. You know my father is not coming for me.” you interrupt. 

Hopper sighs while looking at you. He was angry with you both, but the truth is that he felt pity for you. He remembers coming back to Hawkins years ago, devastated for losing his dear Sara and finding you, a kid that had just lost a mother and had to live with a drunk father that didn’t even care about you. It was unfair, he wanted to help you somehow, but he didn’t know how. The years passed, and he felt that he had missed the opportunity. And while he believes Eddie is a bad influence, he also knows that the Munsons are more family to you than your own, and they did more for you than he could. 

“C’mon kids, what are you going to do with all the problems you are causing?

“I can fix them!” you replied while Eddie said, “I can make them worse!”

Hopper closes his eyes, taking a deep breath, before starting again. “I need you to think about the future. You won’t be kids forever.” 

“I’m going to my senior year, sir. If I keep my grades, maybe I’ll be able to get some financial aid for college. In some months, I’ll be filling out my college applications, but what would happen if they review my records and find one from the Hawkins police department? It would hurt my chances… please don’t do it, I beg you.” You reason, trying to convince Hopper to let this go.

Hopper looked at Eddie, waiting for some form of defense, an act of disrespect, anything, but he was quiet and looking down at his hands in his lap. “Grow up, Munson. If you are going to be just like your father, don’t drag her down with you, she deserves better.”

Hopper gets up and says, “I’m personally taking you both home, and I’ll have a little conversation with the grown-ups there. I’ll get my keys, be right back.” 

You looked at Eddie, and he was quiet, sad. You ruffle his hair, saying, “Don’t listen to him, we can make each other worse, and everything will be fine.”. He laughs but stops when Hopper opens the door and signs you to follow him to the car. 

You ask to go to the washroom first. When you enter, you find Flo there. “My dear, you should be more careful. I don’t want you and your boyfriend to have problems.”

“He is not my boyfriend, Flo,” you reply - you know that you should ease her concerns, but the need to clarify the boyfriend assumption, as much as it hurts you, had priority.

“But there is love, dear. The eyes kiss way before the lips,” she says with a warm smile before leaving. 

You are still thinking about Flo’s words when you leave the station to meet Eddie and Hopper. You see that the back door of his Chevy Blazer is open. “What, you are driving us home in this?”

“Two little criminals like you don’t deserve comfort. Get in!” While you and Eddie try to settle in, he closes the door and goes to the driver’s seat. 

“Look at you… You are a menace to society - that’s why I love you,” Eddie says, making your heart flutter. You laugh and nudge him with your shoulder. 

When you arrive at the trailer park, you see Wayne coming out of the trailer in a hurry. “Hey Wayne, I’m sorry; you don’t have to worry about me,” Eddie says 

“You’re my boy, Eddie... Of course, I worry about you. What happened, Jim?”

“You two, go home now,” Hopper says.  

You unconsciously follow Eddie to his trailer, and Wayne pats you on your head as you walk past him.

“Each one in your respective homes!” Hopper yells when he notices you are still with Eddie.

“My father is not home!” You reply.

“I don’t care, young lady! You go to your home and wait for him there!”

You were going to yell back, but Eddie squeezes your hand as if saying, “do as he says,” and he replies, “Yes, sir,” while snapping a military salute to Hopper. 

When walking to your home, you overhear Hopper. “How can you stand them?” Wayne replies, “Well, they are both foolish, I know… but they belong together.”  

When you enter home, the emptiness makes you shiver. Because yes, you are the kind of girl who holds it all in and regrets it all later, and all the love, feelings, and thoughts you tried to repress the whole day while hanging with Eddie now overflow within you. 

You are glad that your father is not at home, so you don’t have to pretend everything is ok. You walk lazily to the bathroom to shower, still thinking about what Wayne said. Do you two really belong together? 

You would like to believe that this is true. Even taking romantic love out of the equation, he is your person. He has been since you were a little kid. Since you two met, you have always been inseparable. He had protected you from the bullies at school, taught you how to protect yourself, run and outsmart others, and you had always taken good care of him, especially when he didn’t care about himself.

You come back to your bedroom, and instead of putting on your pajamas, you pick some of his clothes that are with you and wear them, pieces that you borrowed from him and should have given back after washing them but that you kept helping you remember him. 

You crawl into bed, thinking about your situation. You are in love with him, although you know, he just sees you as a friend. You keep telling yourself that you are cool living with this constant pain because the alternative, losing him after a rejection that you are sure would come if you tell him how you feel, is unbearable. 

So you try not to think about how much you love him whenever you hang out together to keep things as normal as possible. But in those minutes that you are alone, you think. A lot. All you do is think about the feelings that you hide. And these thoughts are unmanageable. The room is silent, but your mind is so loud.

“Will somebody please quiet my mind so I can sleep?” you try to silence your voice in the pillow. You’ve tried to stop thinking, but it didn’t work. You are trying to get some sleep for hours without success. 

You are too tired to do anything but too awake to sleep at the moment as you are blaming life for being unfair, Eddie for not loving you back, and irrationally being angry with the world.

Still having trouble sleeping, you get up and look out your window and see Eddie’s silhouette, black against the lights of the trailer park, sitting at the top of his trailer. You don’t know where the urge to go to him comes from, but when you notice, you are already climbing the stairs he left at one of the walls.  

When you are at the top of the trailer, you start becoming unsure of what you are doing. You calculate that you could slip away without him noticing you; he doesn’t seem to have heard or seen you yet. But the outside air is so sweet that thinking about coming back is not a good idea. And you don’t want to miss the chance to stay close to Eddie, even for a bit. 

You try to move as soundlessly as possible, but you know that he notices you coming. “You should be getting some sleep,” he says while you sit by his side, just giving a slight shake of your head. 

“Couldn’t sleep either?” you ask.

“Couldn’t turn my mind off,” he replies.

You bite your lip, wondering what is keeping him awake at night. You are sure that it is not for the same reason that you are kept up all night. There must be something else going on, something important that you didn’t know. 

Suddenly you are ashamed of being angry with him for not loving you back. It’s not his fault that you caught feelings for him. He was living his life and minding his own business, and you are the one to blame, you that out of nowhere is all sad and angry, lamenting how much you yearn for him… For God’s sake, he is just literally existing; how is this his problem? Well, it’s not. 

You both stay next to each other in silence. Then, finally, you start thinking about the unexpected electricity flowing between you, the crazy urge you are feeling to touch him. You run your fingers through your hair, afraid that you are losing your mind and trying, unsuccessfully, to relax.

You allow yourself to glance in his direction and see that he does not seem relaxed either. Even if you feel this overpowering craving to touch him that refuses to fade, you try to focus on something more important. 

“How are you, Eds?” you ask tentatively. 

“I’m fine,” he replies with a sad voice. 

“Define ‘fine’ please,” you say, in a soft voice, trying to warm him. 

He crosses his arms and thinks about it. There is a long pause, and you are scared that he will not say anything. 

“Fucked up. Insecure. Neurotic. Emotional,” he says in a breath. 

You smile, but you see that he is not smiling yet; something else is happening. 

“I know this t-shirt,” he says, nudging you.

“You should; it’s yours, anyways.”

“Looks way better on you. Keep it. And all that is mine is yours, you know that” he replies with a smile.

“Not your heart, and I would trade anything for it,” you think. But you ask another critical question: “So, are you looking for answers under the stars? Are they being useful? Maybe I should do it too, and with their help, I can pass my final exams…” 

“That is one of the problems,” he replied.

“Which part, exactly?”

“Passing the final exams.” 

“I know you don’t expect much from me, but just a bit more, and I’ll pass… then ‘Hello, senior year,’ and I’ll be one step closer to being free of high school! Just because you are graduating this year does not mean that you can kill my vibe, Eds.” but as you were speaking, seeing his sad expression increasing, you noticed that you were seeing it from the wrong angle. He was talking about his final exams, not yours.

You hear him take in a deep breath. “I’m not graduating. I’ll fail this year, sweetheart… so see, I’m not killing your vibe.” Eddie tries to smile, but his expression breaks your heart. 

“Can’t we do anything about it? What about the assignments? Haven’t our studying sessions helped?”

“I haven’t really done any assignments or taken notes all semester…. You were so adamant that we had to study this year, and I didn’t want to spend time away from you, so I agreed with our studying sessions… But I kinda just.. scribbled shit down so it looked like I was working, but I didn’t study. It wasn’t fair, and I’m sorry.” 

“That’s ok, Eds… please, don’t be so hard on yourself; we’ll figure things out.”

“No, we won’t. I’m stupid; there is nothing that can be done.” 

“C’mon, Eds. Who cares if you know the exact date when a Civil War battle happened? Why does that matter? I know that you love to study the tactical and strategic reasons leading up to it, the reasons it was won and lost, the results it led to… You know those parts. You are great at calculating damage points and balancing attributes to your NPCs, and you can write epic campaigns… all these things show that you are smart as hell… it’s our fucked up school system that wants you to memorize a fucking date, or something like that because that’s easier to tick off on a quiz instead of exercising the true intellect of the students.” you replied energetically, truly irritated that Eddie could think something wrong about himself. 

Eddie locked those brown eyes on yours, and you think about taking a step back, but then you see that he is smiling. “You look great when you talk passionately about something; I should bother you more often.” 

You stick your tongue out, and he starts to laugh; it makes your heart melt. “Well, we’ll be together in our senior year... I can surely use someone experienced to guide me through that, you know...” 

He knows that you are trying to cheer him up. “I just… I don’t want to be a disappointment to you or Wayne… I don’t want to fail you.” he says, and you can feel the sadness again at those words.

“You have nothing to prove me, and I’m not here to give you approval, Eds… I’m here to give you support. No matter what happens. Wayne loves you unconditionally, too; you know that.” 

He looked down and rubbed his cheek for a second. “I keep thinking about what Hopper said about me becoming my father. I swore I would not become him… but what if I’m cursed?”

“You are not. And if you are, so am I. You are not the only one with a monumental disappointment for a father. You and I could write a book on that topic, but we are doing our best here.” 

“Do you think I am immature?” 

“Well, let’s see… you are a spontaneous, bubbly boy who gets easily excited over many things… and you are a chaotic, energetic person.”

“I knew it,” he starts, but you interrupt him. “But none of this is related to how smart or mature you are as a person, Eds… all these things are just you are. And you know what? I love who you are, and I wouldn’t change a thing.” 

You look at him dearly, wondering why suddenly, he is second-guessing who he is, doubting his essence, and worrying about fitting in with what people could expect of him… this does not sound like Eddie. It hurts you to see that today he is worrying about this type of thing.   

“I always have this fear that one day you will find out that I’m not as great as you think I am,” he says, twitching his hands nervously. 

“That’s just not going to happen, you hear me? So stop this conforming-society bullshit; this is killing you. You don’t have to be anything you are not or don’t want to be. So please don’t listen to them. I just want you to be you. That’s all I want, all I need. But at the end of the day, what matters is what you want and need, do you understand?” 

“Ok, so unfortunately for everybody, I will keep doing whatever the fuck I want, and I won’t apologize for who I am.” 

“That’s the spirit!” you cheer.

“But when it comes to you… I care about you, and maybe Hopper is right; I’m not a good person.” 

You roll your eyes so hard that it hurts. “Yeah, but I still love you, anyway.”

“Well, this makes me want to be better.” he chuckles. 

You stay there together, your shoulder and hip pressed against his. Finally, after a while in silence, you dare to rest your head against his shoulder and close your eyes. You feel his hand caress your hair. Eddie starts to think about how he would like to ensure that you always feel safe, protected, and cared for, as you always do to him.

People were always judging him, jumping to conclusions, and trying to change him… but not you. You were such a good friend. No, he shook the thought away. You were more than that to him. You both had grown up together, standing by each other through thick and thin. His sarcasm was never lost on you, and your wit made him smile every time. He wonders what he would do without you.

He feels you dozing off. “I really think you should get some sleep now, sweetheart.” 

You don’t like the idea but want to give him the space he needs; you don’t want to sound clingy. So you both climb down, and as you return home, he takes your hand, startling you a bit. “Would you stay?” he asks, with those pleading chocolate button eyes that you can’t resist, so you nod. 

An internal voice is screaming inside your head that you should go home. Sleeping over now is different for you; you are both older, you are in love with him, there are other implications, and it is not as simple, easy, or innocent as it used to be. But this didn’t bother you until you discovered you were in love with him, so you know that the problem is you, not the circumstances. How do you draw that line? You decide that you won’t worry about it today. 

You enter his bedroom and go to his bed, ignoring the mess. As you settle in, he pulls your head down to use his arm as a pillow, and the other arm rests protectively over you. Now that you are there, the thought of rejecting his invitation seems absurd. His arms make you feel safe like no other’s in the world, not since your mother was still alive, and being in love with him made it even more special.

You are tired, your eyes start to feel heavy, and you can feel yourself slipping away. Then, you hear him asking you: “Did you mean every word you said today?”

“Every single one of them,” you answer.

The ‘I love you’ included, you think, but you know that he has not paid attention to it or that it does not have the same meaning to him as it has for you. It does not matter, he is with you tonight, which is already more than you could ask for, so you allow yourself to feel all his warmth, inhale his scent and have a nice night of sleep.

Read next chapter

Notes: Sorry, it took a while to update the story - I made a pause for the end-year celebrations! Unfortunately, this also made the piece I'm writing a bit lengthy, so I decided to break it - the first part is in this chapter, and the good news is that the other part, which will be the next chapter, is almost ready too. :) Thank you for reading; feedback is always appreciated! I hope you like the story so far! Please bear with me as English is not my first language, and this had no proofreading, :)

@sidthedollface2 @bimbobaggins69 @roxy9295 @aftermidnightwriting @ghosttownwherenoonegoes

[umnitsa]

Deal with the Devil

Summary: You wake up and learn of your choices.

A/N: I'm sorry, it just took me over. I can't stop thinking of this mf, so we continue the Slasher!Hopper saga. Once more, inspired by the awesome @toxicanonymity, encouraged by @chaosclownzdaddy. Written with unholy eagerness and posted without any proofreading.

Pairing: slasher!Hopper x fem!Reader

CW: NON CON, gaslighting, not-so-veiled threatening. This is not a cute fic, it's pretty dark. Dead dove, for real.

You woke up in a bed. You didn’t know if you should feel thankful or worried. Taking deep breaths, you realized you were covered, and the covers were soft against your legs. You remembered the man cut your pants off your body. Something warm and heavy was wrapped around your ankle.

“There you are.” The officer said, sitting on the bed. You could take a good look at him, for the first time. He was incredibly tall and large; everything in him looked immense, his arms, his hands. He had deep set blue eyes, framed by thick eyebrows, his hair thinning.

He was smiling at you, fondly.

You almost doubted the memories of the assault, for one second.

“Your leg isn’t broken, by the way.” He took a drag from the cigarette he was holding, then put it in an ashtray beside the bed. “You just need to rest.”

You didn’t know what to say, how to react, so you just stayed there, frozen, looking at him.

“Name’s Jim.” He said, his deep blue eyes trained on you. He smiled at the whimper you didn’t realize you let out. His voice was deep, calming. It was unsettling, trying to reconcile such a soothing voice came from that man. Jim. “I don’t like lying, so I’ll give to you straight. You’re fucked.”

He paused, watching for your reaction.

“You have no idea how long you were unconscious. You could be anywhere. There is a chain, locked to your ankle. Your survival depends on me. Unless you want your life turning into a Stephen King novel.” He paused for a moment, got another cigarette from his pocket and lighted it, lost in thought. “Hell, it already did.”

You wanted to move, check your surroundings, but there was this feeling that if you didn’t move, he wouldn’t either. Or at least, he wouldn’t harm you. So you tried to calm down, and looked at the ceiling. It was a sturdy old wood ceiling, you realized you were in a cabin. Probably out in some woods. He was right, you didn’t know how long he drove. Or if he brought you there in some other additional way.

“You’re lucky. That’s all it is.” Jim exhaled smoke, then scratched his cheek, cigarette between his fingers. “The rules are simple. You don’t leave the house. The chain is there to ensure it. Don’t worry about answering the door, no one comes here. I’ll fuck you whenever I want.” He took another drag of his cigarette, exhaling slowly. “I’ll provide for you, whatever you need. You behave and everything will be fine.”

Jim licked his lips, looking at your body, then once again into your eyes.

“You can say no, don’t worry. You won’t suffer much if you do, I’ll make sure of it.” He stood up and moved to the door. He paused, before leaving. “The way you came on my cock… I don’t think it’ll be a hard decision for you.”

You realized you were holding your breath the moment he closed the door. You exhaled, your body relaxing against the covers. What made it worse was that he was right. You were wet.

You wanted to say yes, not just because it would keep you alive, give you a fighting chance.

A small, dark, twisted part of you wanted to feel him inside you again.

[thesadvampire]

If you were to make the Au of Vance being Hopper's son canon compliant, that would mean Vance died in 1977, a year before Sarah did, and his body was found the same year she died since Finney Blake was kidnapped in 1978. Can you imagine how devastating that would be, whether or not it was before or after Sarah's death. That, in between supporting his daughter through her illness, he's spending the rest of his time putting up missing posters and searching. No one else really cares, not after the first few weeks, because Vance was never that good a kid, but he can't stop, because what else is he supposed to do? And in the year of '78, Vance's body was found buried in the house just across the street where he had been kept.

Since it was in the same year, I don't know which would've been worse. Finding your son dead after being missing for a year, and having to break the news to your seven-year-old daughter who might not have much longer. Or watch her die in the hospital, and then finally, finally, finding your son and where he was this entire time, only to have to hold another funeral so soon and realizing both your children suffered a long, drawn-out death. Either way, he'd have to live with the fact of loosing two kids, except one he was at least able to hold and comfort in her last days while the other died scared and alone while waiting for someone to find him.

A little like how it could have added more weight to the reason behind Jim's protectiveness of El, it could add more weight to him continuing to help Joyce search for Will even after she'd been given evidence he was dead. Why he was the first to notice the signs Will was running from something and might have been taken. Because doesn't he wish someone had put in just a little more effort to find his son, and maybe if everyone hadn't given up so soon, they could have found him in time? And even if he didn't believe Will was still alive, he could understand that need and desperation to keep looking, because how were you supposed to just go about your day when your son could still be alive and waiting for you to bring him home?

And if Jim Hopper can't bring his own son home, he's going to make sure Joyce will.

Oh anon you just keep bringing me back to this au and making the angst even WORSE (affectionate) everything you write just makes it all fit together into Jim's characterization and his bond with Joyce and the desperation to find Will

Nobody helped to find Vance so he will be the one to support Joyce in finding Will 🥺🤲🏼

[hopewritcs]

hopper x reader #47?🙏🏼

“EPIPHANY MOMENTS.”

pairing: jim hopper x f!reader

song: epiphany.

notes: i say a “drabble” except i wind up with something longer than 1k words because the song simply demanded to be listened to and gave me such a muse for a longer story... i am so sorry ( seriously? but also i am not ). please enjoy. set pre & post s4 timeline -- that will make sense when you read. 

word count: 1.5k

part of spotify wrapped drabble night : accepting !

Had you been away from home for so long that you didn’t recognize Hawkins any longer? Or was it just that the town was absolutely destroyed that there was no way to really see the Hawkins that you had known. The past twenty-four hours were some of the worst you had experienced. 

While getting phone calls late at night were not unusual, you worked in a hospital--you weren’t a nurse or a doctor or even a technician like you had planned so many years ago in school--just a secretary for one of the medical suites open twenty-four seven, and your hours ranged so some nights you worked the overnight shift. 

It had been one of those nights when the phone rang in the office and you picked it up, like you would normally, but before you could even say who you were the words came flowing out of the other end on top of each other like there were several people on the line. 

“When was the last time you heard from your parents?” 

“Is there a spare room open? Turn on a tv to any of the news stations!”

“I think you need to get back to...”

“What about the guy?” Followed by a couple of shushes. 

“She said it would be a cold day in hell before she went back.”

“Well if...”

“Just turn on the news!” 

You didn’t know what they were talking about at all. When was the last time you’d spoken with your family back in Hawkins? You looked at a clock and realized you barely remembered the time. 

The last time you were in Hawkins was in 1983, and Will Byers had just been found. 

Hawkins 1983. 

It was home, and you were back to keep everything simple while you were in medical school -- the dream was to be a doctor someday. Everyone had known that while you were growing up in Hawkins, a couple of years behind Jim & Joyce in school but still friends with them. You’d been working as an EMT, spending a lot of time with the police chief now that you were back in town. 

He was not the same man you knew growing up. Then again, you weren’t the same person you were back then either. 

Maybe that was how you’d wound up in this back and forth with him, on and off. In a constant state of not knowing exactly where you stood with him. On reflection when you look back now you know you could have, should have talked about it--but you just didn’t. 

It was fine at the time, because you were so busy with work both of you that neither of you seemed to care about the relationship or the feelings under the surface. 

But, you couldn’t keep that buried forever. 

As the time went on, with Will being missing, it was hard to balance life in the small town as well as work and school and your feelings. Something had to go. 

Despite everything, it was your studies that suffered the most, in your attempts to help Joyce get through everything -- but you never told anybody that. 

Once Will was found, you moved away from Hawkins hoping to get away from everything that was a distraction. 

That included Jim, or so you thought.

Chicago, 1984. 

“Hey, newbie, there’s a phone call for you on line 2.” One of the nurses called over her shoulder as she put paperwork down on the counter in front of you. “He sounds handsome.” 

You had only been working at the hospital for six months at the time, so the nickname of newbie was kind of old. But it was said with affection with the nurse who spoke to you just then, not like some of the others who regarded you--a med school drop out, who was working the night shifts as a secretary while she worked her way through nursing school--as little more than a glorified paper weight. “If it’s the guy down in transport, tell him I’m ordering out for my break.” 

But she hadn’t left where she stood, tapping on the paperwork she had dropped off for you to sort through and looked impatient for you to answer the call yourself, “Come on, just answer it. I swear it’s not the guy down in transport. He says he knows you from home.” 

You looked up from what you were doing and paused at that, there weren’t many people who you had even given the information of your job from back home -- family, Joyce and her sons. Panic flashed in your eyes as you picked up the phone and the flashing number when you answered with your name and a rushed, “Who is this?” 

“Hopper,” came the quick reply of the gruff voice on the other end. You could picture him, probably with a cigarette in his mouth or fumbling with the case on his desk or whatever table he was near. “It’s Jim.” 

You have a lot of questions, but all you can manage to get out is a, “Hi.” 

“Hey.” he said back, and there’s a long silence, but you could hear him breathing. “I got a couple of questions about, uh, kids.”

“Wouldn’t Joyce be better to ask these things? She, y’know, has two, Jim.” 

“She’ll ask a lot of questions.” 

“I can’t promise I won’t ask any questions.” 

His laugh took you by surprise. You’re not sure the last time you heard it, and the smile that came on your own face because of it was just so natural. 

Damn it, you missed him. 

“I don’t know if I can answer all of your questions.” Jim said back after a moment. 

“Ditto.” you let you a small laugh of your own. “But I’m at work now, can I give you a call some other time? Is your number still the same?”

“Nothing’s changed, Y/N.” 

And there was so much more to that statement than either of you were ready to admit at the time. 

“I’ll call you in the morning. Goodnight, Jim.” 

After you hung the phone up it was like you remembered the world was around you. The nurse who had told you about the phone call was still standing by you and looked at you when the phone was hung up and was practically giddy with excitement. “Told you it wasn’t the guy from transport. But who was he?”

You held out your hand and looked at her, “Just give me the paperwork and let me work. Maybe I’ll tell you about him on my break later.”

It was the beginning of talking for the two of you. Just about anything and everything. You didn’t realize how much you had missed him, and pulling into the town you called home for so long made you think of it all. 

The summer of 1985 had been the culmination of a lot for you. You finally finished nursing school -- but had to make a decision between moving farther away from home to a place where you didn’t know one in an attempt to find a job, or keep the job you had and get a raise with the hopes of possibly getting a better position in the future. And, you were still talking to Jim every day, it was...surprisingly nice -- he continued to mention his daughter Jane. 

You were making plans to even go back to Hawkins sometime after the graduation from your class, after fourth of July craziness. 

Pulling into the familiar driveway of the Hopper house it was hard to think that you had planned to be here nearly a year ago and never managed to make it back. 

You thought he had died. You had lived with that feeling, that grief and those emotions for so long, and then the news station your old coworkers had called you earlier was showing him ( and sure, everyone else ) and it was like your heart stopped. 

It was like you had been pulled to Hawkins because you needed to be there. Needed to know what was going on and what to do. Had to be there. 

You’d wasted enough time without Jim Hopper, and having lost him once, you’d be damned if you were going to lose him again. 

When you pulled up, you could see that he was on the porch, almost like he’d been expecting you despite the fact that you hadn’t called anyone. Hell, you’d barely made it until the end of your shift and you were still in scrubs when you got out of the car and looked at him from a distance, shielding your eyed from the sun in the distance. 

The first time in three years seeing him, and he looked entirely different and altogether like the same man you knew. 

You wondered if he was thinking the same thing about you. 

With a half step away from the car, a move mimicked by Hopper as he walked down the porch of his home, you called out to him, “I don’t know what the hell you’ve gotten yourself and this town into Jim, but this time I’m going to stick around and help you out.” 

That was a promise. 

[lovemesomeeddiemunson]

The Proposal - Part 2

Summary: When Steve Harrington is threatened with deportation, he blackmails his long suffering assistant, Eddie Munson, into marrying him. Steddie! The Proposal Au, Modern Au, Part 2 of 7. 4252 Words

Series Warnings: Blackmail. Food mentions. Mentions of unhealthy relationship with food. Cursing. Self harm (by means of tattooing.) Homophobia. Death of a parent. Abandonment by parents. Shitty parents. Homophobic parents. Parents with entitlement. Classism. Eventual sexual situations (no actual smut!) Brief allusion to a panic attack. Minor spoilers for Flight of Icarus.

Authors Note:  It should be noted that this is a fully completed fic, I've just broken it up for ease of posting. I can be motivated to post faster, if readers find themselves engaged.

Also, credit and praise to @steddiecameraroll-graphics for the D20 crown header used from here on out - fyi, I’m obsessed.

Additional thanks and love to @be-my-wonderland for her help with the Italian translations.

When Eddie and Steve arrive at the immigration office, Steve immediately bullies his way past the line and to the front counter. 

Charming the disgruntled with carefully placed Italian, he offers more than one apologetic “Mi scusi,” the words flowing from his lips with a smile that makes several people swoon...

Eddie may or not be among them.

Once Steve’s secured his standing in line with his ill-gotten means, he then directs that same charm to the employee working the counter as he tells her, “I need you to file this fiancé visa for me, please.” 

After taking and looking over his file, the older woman addresses him, with an inquisitive, “Mr. Harrington?”

“Yes.” Steve nods.

She gestures for him and Eddie both to follow her, pushing her glasses up her nose as she instructs. “Please come with me.” 

As they leave the front counter, she leads them into an office where Eddie sits down as they wait by themselves. Steve’s still standing, lurking over by the door, glued to his phone, typing like there’s no tomorrow. 

Business as usual, his fiancé is. A thought that unsettles Eddie even more deeply as he whispers “I have a bad feeling.” 

His words precede a slight commotion outside, where both men can hear bantering coming closer to where they wait. 

The woman who had brought them in earlier appears to be conversing with an absolute mountain of a man, who can be heard insisting, “Flo we’ve discussed this…mornings are for coffee and contemplation…coffee and contemplation!”

Yanking open his office door to deal with his uninvited guests, Eddie nearly jumps out of his skin. With a donut and a coffee in hand, the immigration officer crosses the room as he greets them with a flat tone.

Introduces, “Hello. I’m Jim Hopper.” As he moves to sit behind the desk, setting his pastry and coffee down and scratching at the scruff of his beard. “And you must be Steve and Eddie. Sorry about the wait.” 

He lets out a small chuckle, before letting the file he holds fall onto his desk with no care at all, dismisses, “It’s a crazy day today. You know.” 

“Oh, of course, of course. We understand.” Steve has lowered his phone, but still cradles it in his hands as he spouts nonsense. “And I can’t tell you how much we appreciate you seeing us on such short notice.” 

Steve smiles at him, and Hopper smiles back. Both of them are as fake as the plastic chair that Eddie’s sweating into.

“Okay.” Hopper gets right to it then, looking over the file briefly.  “So,” He flips it shut with a noisy snap. “I just have one question for you.” 

Uh-oh. 

Eddie decidedly does not like the sound of that, trying to keep his expression neutral. Unsure if he’s succeeding.

“Are you both committing fraud to avoid his deportation so he can keep his job as a music producer?” Hopper asks sternly, looking pointedly at Eddie.

“Where did— Where did you hear that?” Eddie finds himself asking instead of answering, while Steve makes a sound that sounds scandalized at the suggestion. 

Oscar worthy. Truly.

“We had a phone tip this afternoon from a man named…” Hopper starts, looking down at his notes as Steve dramatically sighs, interrupting Hopper with a sympathetic smile. 

“Would it be a William Hargrove?” He asks him.

Hopper looks back up at them, “Billy Hargrove.” He finishes.

Steve shakes his head sadly. “Oh, Billy. Poor Billy. I’m so sorry.” Steve frowned, “Billy is nothing but a disgruntled former employee, and I apologize…But we know you’re incredibly busy with a long line of people to tend to. If you’ll just give us our next step, we will be out of your hair and on our way.” 

“Mr. Harrington, please.” Hopper gestures for him to take a seat. Steve does so warily. 

“Let me explain to you the process that’s about to unfold.” Hopper leans on his desk as the men both nod. 

“Step one will be a scheduled interview. I’ll put you each in a room, and I’ll ask you every little question that a real couple would know about each other.” He explains. As if that’s the easy part. “Step two, I dig deeper. I look at your phone records, I talk to your neighbors, I interview your co-workers.” He’s almost glaring at them now. 

“If your answers don’t match up at every point,” He points at Steve, “You will be deported indefinitely.” He turns to Eddie, “And you, young man, will have committed a felony punishable by a fine of $250,000. And a stay of five years in a federal prison.” He finishes. 

Eddie glances out the window of the office then, catching the sight of a handcuffed woman who protests loudly as she is escorted out of the building. Good God. 

Eddie can’t go to jail. He might look scary, but he’s not fit for prison. 

“So, Eddie.” Hopper continues, the other man’s eyes snapping towards him as Eddie inclines his head. 

“You wanna… you want to talk to me?” Hopper smiles, even winks at him, knowingly.

Eddie’s mind moves a mile a minute - he calculates, recalculates, and then he shakes his head in answer.

“No?” Hopper confirms.

Another head shake. “Well, not no…” Eddie clears his throat, “The truth is…” 

Steve’s eyes widen as he looks at Eddie. 

This is it. No turning back now. Eddie clears his throat, “Mr. Hopper, the truth is… Steve and I…” He turns to Steve, meeting his eyes, “…are just two people who weren’t supposed to fall in love… but we did.” 

Steve smiles at him in relief, nodding, before looking back at Hopper through his lashes. 

Eddie goes on. “We couldn’t tell anyone we work with, because of the record deal.” 

Steve’s expression flickers with surprise as the immigration officer probes, “Record deal?” 

Eddie nods, “Yeah.” 

“Your…?” Steve asks, staring him down.

Eddie beams at him. “We…We both felt that it would be deeply inappropriate, if I were to be offered a record deal while still holding the title of Steve’s executive assistant…” 

Steve huffs, masking it with a cough. 

“But with the wedding,” Eddie emphasizes the word for Steve’s benefit. A mild threat. “Coming up - well, I’m not going to be Steve’s assistant anymore. Right sweetheart?” He looks at his boss.

Steve is smiling, but there’s nothing behind his eyes. He’s trapped him.

Good.

“Yes.” Steve grits out.

Hopper clicks his pen. Seemingly satisfied. “So…Have the two of you told your parents about your secret love?” 

“Oh…” Steve laughed, “Impossible. My parents and I haven’t spoken in six years. Not since they found out I was bisexual and kicked me out of the house.” 

Eddie can’t help but glance at him. The way he says it so casually, the laugh that comes with it, how easy it was to say for him. Like it didn’t hurt…but Eddie knows better.

He finds himself taking Steve’s hand. Squeezing it. He thinks it’s the first time he’s ever intentionally touched Steve. It’s exhilarating. Especially when Steve looks down at the touch all soft, as if in awe.

“No brothers or sisters either.” Steve nods, like it’s nothing, like it’s not a big deal that he has no family to speak of. Hopper clocks it, hums softly. Asks Eddie, “And what about your family?”

“Mom passed. Dad is M.I.A.” He too tries to be casual. He can’t tell if he does it spectacularly or not, because Steve offers no condolence squeeze of his own, though he hasn’t dropped his hand. “I have an uncle though who may as well be my father...Despite accusing me for a very long time of wanting Steve, he doesn’t know that we uh, got together.”

Steve doesn’t like the look that Hopper gets when Eddie reveals that a man who may as well be his father wouldn’t be privy to such big news, and quickly interjects, “We’re actually going to tell him this weekend.” 

Eddie whips his head at Steve at that. He can’t be serious.

“It’s his 65th birthday, and we wanted to be there.” Steve explains. “We thought it’d be a nice surprise…and uh, as Eddie mentioned, he did suspect at least Eddie’s feelings for…quite a while.” Steve chuckles. 

Eddie wonders if Steve knows that his words ring with a word of truth, nonetheless perturbed at the implication, even as he watches his boss lie with so much ease. 

Hopper smirks, “And where is this surprise gonna take place?” 

“Eddie’s uncle’s home.” Steve gives Eddie a subtle glance, asking for assistance. 

“Where is that located again?” Hopper presses on. 

“Um…” Steve scoffs with a laugh. charmingly unprepared as he fixates on Eddie with a little quip of, “Why am I doing all the talking? It’s your uncle. Why don’t you tell him where he lives? Jump in.” 

Eddie grins sadistically, doing as he’s asked with glee. “Hawkins.” 

“Hawkins.” Steve confirms, looking back at Hopper. 

“Indiana.” Eddie finishes with a smile. 

“Indiana.” Steve repeats, and abruptly turns to him in surprise. Eddie is already looking back at him, giving his boss the sweetest smile he can muster. 

“Hawkins, Indiana. Real small-town America.” Eddie’s smile widens, sweetens.

“You’re gonna go to Indiana this weekend?” Hopper repeats, his doubts obvious. 

Steve nods, voice pained. “Yes.” 

“Yeah.” Eddie adds.

“We are going to Indiana. That’s where my little… that’s where my Eddie is from.” Steve is clearly thrown, and Eddie almost laughs in delight. 

Hopper sighs, “Okay. Fine. I see how this is gonna go. I will see you both…in two weeks.” He rips a piece of notepad to scribble on it, “At 11am, for your scheduled interview, and your answers better match up.” 

Hopper stands then, prompting both of them to do the same. They realize they are still holding hands, and drop them quickly. 

Steve’s already on his phone saying hello to someone as Eddie takes the piece of paper from Hopper with their scribbled appointment.

“Thank you.” He says, pocketing it as the officer teases him, “I’m looking forward to this one.” 

“We’re looking forward to this one.” Eddie replies as Steve greets the caller with an excited tone, waving a dismissive goodbye to Hopper and fleeing the room. 

“It’s gonna be fun! I’ll be checking up on you.” Hopper calls after them. 

By the time they’ve spilled out onto the street, and escaped the scrutiny of the feds, Steve is off the phone call, barking orders. 

“Okay, so, what’s gonna happen is we will go over there. We will pretend that we have been dating, tell your uncle that we’re engaged.” Steve continues to look at his screen, as if it’s all so simple. Making plans. “Use the miles for the tickets. First class, but make sure you use the miles. If we don’t get the miles, we’re not doing it. Oh! And confirm the vegan meal, okay? Because last time they gave it to an actual vegan, and they forced me to eat this gross salad thing, which was…” 

Trailing off, Steve looks up from his phone, blinking when he sees Eddie not taking him as seriously as he should be. “Hey, why aren’t you taking notes?” 

“I’m sorry, were you not in that room?” Eddie points his thumb at the building. 

“What? What?” Steve asks, looking genuinely confused as to what he’s worried about. 

Eddie blinks. Waits. It clicks a moment later.

“Oh! The thing you said about a record deal?” Steve nods with a smirk, “Genius! He completely fell for it!” 

“I was serious.” Eddie clenches his jaw, “I’m looking at a $250,000 fine and five years in jail. That changes things.”

Steve makes a face, “A record deal? No way.” 

“Then I quit, and you’re screwed. Goodbye Stevie, it really has been a little slice of heaven.” Eddie starts to walk away. 

“Eddie!” Steve calls back, chasing after him and oh boy does Eddie like that feeling. “Eddie! Eddie! Fine! Fine.” The other man halts, and turns back to face Steve. 

“I’ll give you a record deal. Fine.” Steve nods, agreeing to his terms even if it kills him. “If you go through with this weekend, the interview, and the wedding, I will give you a record deal. Happy?”

“Not in two years. Right away.” Eddie counters back, Steve rolls his eyes with a sharp breath. 

“Fine.” He huffs.

“And you’ll give me complete creative control.” He adds.

Steve pauses, looking baffled and conflicted, “Eddie…”

“Complete creative control, or I walk.” Eddie continues, “Also, we’ll tell my uncle about our engagement when I want and how I want. If I have to add lying to the man who saved my life in addition to this fucking shit show, then I want to do it on my own terms.” He feels really fucking good right now. Powerful even. So he demands, “Now, ask me nicely.” 

Steve stares at him, “Ask you nicely what?” 

Eddie smirks, “Ask me nicely to marry you, Steve.” 

“What?” He wrinkles his nose and Eddie shows his teeth. “You heard me. On your knees.” 

“Here?” Steve’s voice breaks and Eddie snickers, crossing his arms. Waits.

“Fine.” His boss finally grits out, kneeling down and holding out his hand expectantly for Eddie’s. Eddie is pleased, giving it over with a little wiggle of his fingers.

He’s kneeling like a beggar and not someone proposing, with both of his legs tucked under him, scowling so pretty that Eddie can’t stand it as Steve snarks, “Does this work for you?” 

“Oh, yeah. I like this.” Eddie nods in reply, smug, thinking to himself that Steve never needs to know exactly how much.

Steve is glaring daggers as he asks him flatly,  “Will you marry me?” 

Eddie offers a small shake of his head in answer. “No.” He’s firm. “Say it nicely. Say it like you mean it.” 

Steve breathes deeply, trying again, slowly drawing out his name as he asks,  “Eddie,”

“Yes, Steve?” Eddie smiles down at him. 

“Eddie, my darling Eddie.” Eddie has to ignore the way his voice lowers, pleading and yet commanding in a way that would have their roles reversed - Eddie on his knees - in a second. His answering tone he just manages to keep indifferent. “I’m listening.” 

“Would you, please, pretty please, with cherries on top, marry me?” Steve pouts, and his lips are so lush that Eddie might actually die.

Instead of doing that, or something equally embarrassing, Eddie purses his own lips, looking up, pretending that he’s thinking it over when really he’s trying to expel the mental image of Steve Harrington, evil incarnate, down on his knees for him. 

He caves then. “Okay. I don’t appreciate the sarcasm, but I’ll do it. Check your email for the travel arrangements.” 

Eddie turns to walk away, and then he pauses, turning back around.

“You know, that reminds me.” He grins wickedly. “You’ve never seen me outside of my work attire before.”

Steve looks wary, slowly rising from the ground and dusting himself off. “No, I have not.”

Eddie cackles. “Oh, Stevie, this is going to be so much fun. I’ll see you at the airport - I’ll be the one in black.”

Eddie is wearing black, to be fair. 

Painted on his nails without fear for the first time in six years. 

While previously he had always taken it off with remover before heading into the office on a Monday morning - or heading to do Steve’s errands on the weekend…Now he didn’t bother to conceal it.

Why would he? When he and Steve were so “happily engaged.”

So, yes. His nails are black. His jeans are black, ripped, a metal chain hanging from them with his old Hellfire Club shirt tucked in. Atop it he wears his black leather jacket, and his denim vest covered in hand-sewed patches. All of his rings adorn his fingers as he bounces on his white-Reebok clad feet.

Eyes peeled for Steve’s arrival, he’s positively giddy when the car he’d ordered approaches the curb. 

Waving it down, he greeted Steve’s chauffeur through the passenger window before going and opening Steve’s door himself. 

Once he does so, he makes a big show of kissing Steve’s hand as he pulls him from the town car, his boss’s jaw going slack at the sight of him as he exits it and rises to his full height, taking in Eddie’s appearance.

For a second. 

And then he composes himself, snatching his hand so he can rip the sunglasses off of his face and tuck them frantically into the collar of his dress shirt.

“You can’t be serious.” He says. 

Eddie stands his ground, taking a step back with a smile and extending the handle to the small suitcase he had with him on the curb with a click. “As the plague, baby.” 

Steve looks like he’s questioning his life choices - until Eddie turns to head to the terminal. “You’ll want to grab your things and hurry along, dear. We still have to check in.”

Surprised, Steve grabs his bags - way too many for a weekend trip but not if you weren’t expecting to have to carry them yourself - and scrambles after Eddie.

He’s clearly pissed when he catches up, his hands full as he reminds Eddie pointedly. “I am still your boss.” 

And, okay, yeah. So Eddie may have been pushing his luck lately. He was dependent on Steve to some degree in this arrangement as well, and it would definitely be worth it for the two of them to sit and hash out how their being fiancés would change their dynamic.

Soon. For now, Eddie grabs the bags. “I am nothing if not a good employee to my future husband.” He defends.

Steve forges on, unamused. They get through the check-in, and then they have some time to kill as Eddie settles his nerves with a rum and coke, courtesy of the private bar in the first class lounge. 

Before he can even move to pay for it, Steve slides his Black card over. Feeling generous it seems.

Eddie looks at him doubtfully, arms crossed as he leans over the bar. Steve isn’t smiling, just shrugs and explains only for him to hear. “My man wouldn’t have to pay for things.”

Surprised, Eddie takes his drink, rings clinking against the glass, unsure of what to say before Steve is leaving his orbit, wrapped up in his phone once again.

Eddie nurses the liquor until it’s time for them to board, finding their plush first class seats and settling into them, taking in all the amenities with barely contained awe.

Steve watches Eddie shed his denim vest and his leather jacket, getting comfortable and revealing the tattoos along his forearms, and he feels his mouth go dry. He swallows as he stares at his phone screen, unseeing.

Once he has to stow it, their phones set to airplane mode, Eddie commands Steve’s attention, pulling out a booklet.

“So, these are the questions that INS is gonna ask us.” Eddie says in explanation, “The good news is, I know everything about you, but the bad news is that you have two weeks to learn all this about me. So, you should…probably study.” 

Steve takes the booklet, skimming over it on his own, flipping through its pages, “You know the answers to all of these questions about me?” He presses. 

“Scary, isn’t it?” Eddie grins. 

“A little bit.” Steve replies, looking through them for a stumbling block before he quizzes his fake fiance. “What am I allergic to?” 

“Latex.” Eddie declares, no doubt at all in his voice, “And displays of emotion in the workplace.”

“Haha. That’s so funny.” Steve rolls his eyes. A little miffed that he got it right.

“Uhm… Here’s a good one.” Steve folds the booklet, “Do I have any scars?” 

“No, but I’m pretty sure you have a tattoo.” Eddie adds. 

“Oh, you’re pretty sure?” Steve shoots back with a huff of laughter. 

“I’m pretty sure. Two years ago, your dermatologist called and asked about a Q-switched laser. I, of course, googled what that is and found out that they do, in fact, remove tattoos. But you canceled your appointment.” He says smugly. Steve is baffled, and he presses on. “So what is it? A tramp stamp?” 

Steve doesn’t deny it, redirecting sharply. “You know, it’s exciting for me to experience you like this.” 

“Thank you.” Eddie replies. Focused. His eyes are locked on Steve’s and holy fuck, Steve doesn’t think he’s ever noticed how long his lashes are. “You’re going to have to tell me where it is though.” 

Steve turns his head to avoid eye contact, “No. I’m not.” 

“They’re gonna ask.” Eddie answers. “Come on. I’ll tell you all about mine - the ones you can see, the ones you can’t-” Eddie teases.

“We’re done with this question. We’re done with this conversation. Onto another question. Let me see, let me see.” Steve mumbles to block him out, making him sigh in defeat and sink down into his expensive seat. 

“Oh, here’s one. Whose place do we stay at, yours or mine?” Steve inquires, turning his nose up. “That’s easy, mine.” He answers without even looking back at him. 

Eddie is sufficiently distracted at that, tone clipped as he antagonizes him, “And why wouldn’t we stay at mine?” 

“Because I live in a penthouse on Central Park West.” Steve looks at him with pursed lips before turning back to the booklet again, “And you probably live in some squalid little studio apartment with a record player to impress your dates.”

Eddie’s tone is biting, a mocking smile on his lips. “You don’t have to sound so jealous about it, sweetheart.”

Steve stares at him unblinkingly. Asks, “What color is my toothbrush?” 

“Blue.” Eddie rolls his eyes.

Steve scowls - flipping through the book, pausing as he reads a question that makes him flush. He drops the book between them like it burned him. “Okay, that’s enough of that.” Steve says.

It makes Eddie curious so he grabs the booklet and starts looking for the offending question. Prodding and teasing him. “Oooooh what was it? Which question got you flustered?”

“Eddie.” Steve protests, his tone lacking his usual dictativeness.

“Was it sexual?” he wiggles his eyebrows. “Is the US government just itching to know how we perform the horizontal tango?” 

Steve glares. “If you’re not going to take this seriously-“

“I just assumed it would be like anything else with us.” Eddie cuts in. Steve waits for him to elaborate, and he lets out a huge breath, “We do it however the hell you tell me to.” 

Steve gawks at him, miffed. “That’s…you’re being unfair.” He settles on. 

“It doesn’t have to be a bad thing, Steve.” He soothes. And then thinks, fuck it. Lays his cards on the table.

“So, this is just me thinking off the top of my head - because I definitely haven’t spent a lot of time on this. Haven’t given any prior thought to - to how you might be. How we might be together.”

Eddie clears his throat as Steve gapes at him. Words spilling out. “No sir. Never ran your errands or emptied out your inbox and wondered, if after you’ve bossed me around all day, if you wouldn’t want to hole up in your office after everyone’s gone home and let me do the bossing around...Giving me the reigns to do whatever I want to you, just so you don’t have to be the man in charge. So you wouldn’t have to think and plan for a little while. Nooooo…I definitely didn’t spend way too long entertaining that thought, only to realize that it just doesn’t sit right. Because as much as I might like to imagine it - you - good and fucked, finally fucking satisfied, you’re way too mouthy and way too content bossing everyone around to give up all of your control when you go home, when you get taken to bed. So, it would have to be something more like what I said. Where you tell me what it is you want. What it is you need. And I, your ever humble servant, would be all too eager to comply.”

Steve’s voice is measured as he replies, “You haven’t thought about it, huh?”

Eddie steals Steve’s move as he rolls his eyes. “Don’t flatter yourself. We just…we spent a lot of time together.” He lies. Clears his throat. “So, do I have it right?”

Steve looks out the window - because of fucking course he has the window seat. He replies mockingly, “Yes, Eddie, once again, you have another one right.” And then, because he’s trying to kill him, Steve adds. “I keep control. I keep control and I tell my partners what it is I need. Even if what I need is to get railed like a cheap slut at the end of a long day.”

Jesus H. Christ.

It’s impossible to be smug. “I live to please.” Eddie responds, willing away the stirring in his pants at the thought.

Steve just sighs, rubs a hand over his face. “So…that’s, uh, one question answered about you, I guess.” 

Before Eddie can put his foot in his mouth - the flight attendant appears at their side, clearing her throat as she smiles and offers them snacks. 

The two men let her interruption end the conversation, Eddie popping his headphones in for the rest of the flight. Letting Metallica pour over his more loud thoughts until he gets his footing.

Series Masterlist

Next Part: Part 3

Previous Part: Part 1

[011tm]

PORTRAYAL NOTES.

#1: my portrayal of jane/el is canon divergent as of s4 in that she and mike are no longer together romantically, and decided to take a break from their relationship after she moved with the byers to california. mike can still visit el during spring break of 1986 as per the canon s4 timeline, but without the pressure of them being in a long distance relationship.

#2: to follow on from the first point, i am not particularly interested in exploring romantic pairings for jane/el. i am much more interested in her platonic & familial dynamics, and these will be the main focus of my portrayal.

#3: due to the nature of her character and the fact that i write her on a selective basis, i hugely prefer plotting when it comes to interaction.

#4: headcanon tag  /  meta tag 

BASICS.

NAME: jane hopper

NICKNAMES / ALIASES: el ( by close friends ), eleven, jane ives ( birth name ) AGE: 12-15 BIRTHDATE: june 14th, 1971 NATIONALITY: american GENDER & SEX: female SEXUAL ORIENTATION: heterosexual SPOKEN LANGUAGES: english OCCUPATION: high school student / part time superhero HOMETOWN: hawkins, indiana CURRENT LOCATION: lenora, california

PHYSICAL TRAITS.

EYE COLOR: brown HAIR COLOR: brown HEIGHT: 5'4" FACE CLAIM: millie bobby brown

RELATIONSHIPS.

PARENTS: terry ives ( birth mother ), jim hopper ( adopted father ), joyce byers ( adopted mother ) SIBLINGS: jonathan byers ( adopted brother ), will byers ( adopted brother ) SIGNIFICANT OTHER(S): n/a CHILDREN: n/a EXTENDED FAMILY: becky ives ( maternal aunt ), kali prasad ( adopted sister ) FRIENDS: mike wheeler, max mayfield, lucas sinclair, dustin henderson, argyle, nancy wheeler, steve harrington, robin buckley, erica sinclair, sam owens ENEMIES / ANIMOSITIES: dr martin brenner, henry creel, the mindflayer, billy hargrove ( sort of )

PERSONALITY TRAITS.

STRENGTHS: brave, determined, curious, kind, confident in her own abilities, protective of her friends, empathetic WEAKNESSES: moody, socially inhibited due to her upbringing LIKES: eggos, watching tv, hanging out with her friends, living an ordinary life DISLIKES: mouth-breathers, liars, not being in control FEARS: losing the people she loves, rejection SKILLS: psychokinetic abilities that allow her to move objects with her mind and "dream walk" into others subconscious and memories by entering the void, psychically projecting her consciousness to another location, opening and closing portals to other dimensions, morse code, survival skills ALIGNMENT: neutral good

TROPES: badass adorable, death glare, girliness upgrade, mystical waif, no social skills, the power of love, psychic nosebleed, the quiet one

D&D CLASS: sorcerer

BIOGRAPHY.

For the first twelve years of her life, she knew herself only as Eleven, called as such due to the tattoo on her wrist given by her papa, Martin Brenner, Director of Operations at Hawkins National Laboratory. She did not know that she had a mother, Terry Ives, who she was taken from shortly after birth — and who suffered greatly for trying to uncover the truth about her lost daughter. She did not even know that she had not been alone at Hawkins Lab, not for the entire twelve years. She had grown up around Brenner's other test subjects, and his pride and joy, test subject 001. All she could recall when she escaped the lab on the 6th November 1983 was that she had been raised to become a weapon, and that she had to escape.

It was when she bumped into Mike Wheeler, Dustin Henderson and Lucas Sinclair, kids looking for their missing friend Will, in the woods a couple of nights later that her entire life changed. She found belonging for the first time and, with their help, managed to apply her telekinetic powers to something good. Knowing that, under Brenner's instruction, she had opened a gateway to another, dark and twisted dimension, she used that knowhow to help Will's friends and mom reunite with him, as well as inadvertently exposing the sinister cover up by the US Department of Energy.

After a showdown with the monster she'd unleashed into Hawkins, El managed to escape into the woods, where she remained until she was found by Jim Hopper. He took her in, sheltering her in a cabin in order to keep her hidden from the outside world while trying to give her as normal a life as possible. It was a struggle: El was forbidden from seeing any of the friends she'd helped and grown to care about a year before, and what began as a few small acts of rebellion soon led to her running away. First to find her birth mother, Terry Ives, before she followed leads to one of the other test subjects involved in Brenner's experimentation. Upon reaching Chicago, she met her adopted sister, Kali Prasad — known in the lab as 008. El found a new sense of belonging with her group, but their quickness to right the wrongs of their past with violence, as well as signs from Hawkins that the Upside Down was once again resurfacing, led El to leave them and return to her friends. There, she reunited with Mike, Dustin, Lucas and Will, and helped close the gate in Hawkins Lab once and for all.

Or so they all thought. Arrangements were made by Dr Sam Owens, who had taken over the position of Brenner and was committed to understanding and fighting the evil posed by the Upside Down, for El to become Hopper's adopted daughter officially. She was given a birth certificate, an identity, and so long as she did not attend the local school or draw too much attention to herself, she could finally live like an ordinary teenager.

She did for the next year, until the Upside Down once again returned, resurfacing due to Russian interference in the newly built Starcourt Mall. Fighting that evil came at a greater cost this time: Hopper died at Starcourt Mall fighting the Russians, and her powers vanished after her own fight with the Mind Flayer. After suffering one tragedy too many, Joyce Byers and her family decided to move away from Hawkins entirely. El was adopted by the family and went with them to Lenora, California, where she assumed the identity of Jane Hopper truly, properly, for the first time. Here, she was a normal teenager, powerless, ordinary, and was enrolled at the local high school.

It was a struggle to adjust; without her powers, something was missing, and trying to fit in at school after such a different upbringing was almost too much of a challenge. Following an altercation with her school bully at the local roller rink, El was arrested — with charges only dropped after Sam Owens intervened. He had ominous news to impart: that the Upside Down was back again, and this time stronger than any of them had anticipated. Owens told El of a way to regain her powers, but it involved a top secret project in Nevada and coming face to face with her papa again — something she did not find out until she arrived.

El persisted, and in engaging with the Nina Project she uncovered memories long repressed: she realised that she had not been alone at Hawkins Lab, that something awful had happened to all of the other test subjects back in 1979, and that it was not she to blame for murdering them, but the fault of Brenner's first test subject, One, also known as Henry Creel. She had trusted him, and in helping him overcome his own restraints on his powers, Henry had unleashed his vengeance on the rest of the lab. El's only option was to defeat him — and in doing so, she had opened a gateway to the Upside Down and banished him there. He had become Vecna, the harbinger who now led the attack on her friends.

Stuck in California, hundreds of miles away from her friends preparing to fight Vecna in Hawkins, El did what she could to help them — entering Max's mind when Vecna did and trying to defeat him from inside of her consciousness. But it wasn't enough. Max became Vecna's fourth and final victim, allowing the Upside Down to finally break through into the real world. Only through willpower alone did El prevent Max from succumbing completely, but Vecna left her comatose, not just unresponsive but empty of her very essence.

Upon arriving back in Hawkins, any attempts El might have made to stall Vecna's progress was for naught. The Upside Down was descending into Hawkins, and it would be up to all of them to try to stop it once and for all...

VERSES.

season 1 timeline

After making contact with a strange creature through a gateway to another dimension, Jane takes advantage of the resulting chaos to escape the laboratory that had been her home for her entire life. She eventually encounters three boys, Mike, Dustin and Lucas, looking for their missing friend Will — and, while still on the run from government officials looking to recapture her, Jane becomes the key to his rescue.

season 2 timeline

Unbeknownst to the party, Jane survived her brush with a demogorgan, and is found in the woods by Hawkins police chief Jim Hopper. He takes her in, keeping her safe from the outside world in his cabin — but also isolated from it, too. Restless and anxious to learn more about the life she had been denied by Dr Martin Brenner and Hawkins Laboratory, Jane ends up on a path to her birth mother, and another escaped test subject, Kali.

season 3 timeline

After closing the gate to the Upside Down, and the closure of Hawkins lab, Jane continues to live with Hopper as his adopted daughter, now able to socialise with Mike and the rest of her friends. But in the shadow of the new Starcourt Mall, an army of servants to the Mindflayer are growing, with her new best friend Max's brother Billy at the centre of it.

season 4 timeline

After losing her powers in her fight against the Mindflayer, and losing Hopper, Jane is relocated to Lenora, California along with the Byers family to start a new life. She tries to be normal for the first time in her life, but bullies are the least of her worries; a familiar evil is returning to Hawkins, and she must confront her own past in order to become strong enough to fight it.

season 5 timeline

Follows the ( upcoming ) timeline of season 5.

[stevieschrodinger]

TW for Eddie getting hurt (but he's okay). And Human Trafficking.

Link to Part One

Link to Part Three

“Again? Seriously?”

Eddie knows he should keep his mouth shut. He knows he should. He just...doesn’t seem to be able to.

It probably doesn’t help that Eddie is one hundred percent done with this. This isn’t a life. A gilded cage is still just a cage, and Eddie’s getting to the point where antagonizing the guards is a hobby.

“Wear it, or I’ll make you wear it,” the lackey snarls, shoving the flimsy white fabric against Eddie’s chest.

“You fucking wear it!”

And that’s it. The guys an Alpha, he’s like, literally twice the size of Eddie, and it all happens so fast Eddie’s winded by the floor before he knows what hit him. And then it comes, the whistling noise of the cane singing through the air. Eddie is intimately familiar with the noise.

And just like usual, Eddie can’t keep his noises in, he curses, he calls the guard every name under the sun, he screams and starts to cry but in the end is reduced to a compliant heap, the same as every other time.

They strip him naked and splash freezing water on his face, gets rid of the snot and tears and no doubt the flush he has on his cheeks. His feet are burning, throbbing, and Eddie wants to collapse back to the floor to take the pressure off.

He’s shoved into the white dress, “you so much as blink wrong out there and you won’t be standing for a fortnight.”

Eddie dips his head; he knows it’s true. They’ve done it before. So he gives in. They’re breaking him more and more easily. Eddie doesn’t want to give up; he just doesn’t feel like he has the energy any more.

He’s been here the longest, he’s the only one that’s never sold. It’s only a matter of time before his body ends up in a shallow grave out on the ranch somewhere.

He limps into the dining room, freshly sprayed with heavy duty scent blockers. Eddie’s vaguely aware they’re eating lunch, and if his feet weren’t fucking stinging the way they are, he has no doubt his stomach would growl at the smells.

Eddie doesn’t make it that far before he catches Hagan waving a hand at him, “get him out of here, he's bleeding on the rug.” Eddie does his best to oblige, but he can only move so fast with the injuries on his feet.

Hagan, out of everyone here, is not someone you want to piss off. Eddie learned that too, very early on.

"Him," someone says behind Eddie, "I want him."

Eddie turns back again, despite the fact that it can’t possibly be him the Alpha is referring too, there are other male omega here, after all. But no. The Alpha is standing now, and he’s looking right at Eddie.

Well, fuck.

Because as much as Eddie has dreamed of this day, of getting the fuck out of here...that Alpha could be worse. The possibility is always there. This could be a frying pan into fire type situation, and there’s fuck all Eddie can do about that.

Hagan makes a noise, scoffs, "Steve, come on, have a proper look. Don't pick that one. Get a pretty one."

The Alpha is irritatingly good looking at first glance, and he becomes even more so in Eddie’s eyes when he flashes a look of irritated disgust at Hagan, "no, he'll do."

Oh, Eddie ‘will do’ will he? Okay, maybe the Alpha isn’t that good looking, after all.

"Oh," Hagan laughs, "I get it, just gonna' wreck him anyway, right? That's fair, can always get another," and he's laughing again and suddenly Eddie is ice cold with fear. Hagan called this guy Steve; clearly they know each other. Is that the type of Alpha this Steve guy is?

Everyone else is shooed out of the room, and Eddie stands there on his throbbing feet, hearing, to the dollar, how much he’s worth.

More than he thought, if he’s being honest.

Alpha Steve doesn’t even flinch at the price.

Eddie’s certain Steve must be doing fifteen over the limit, which, honestly, he doesn’t care. It means Eddie’s traveling fifteen over the limit away from a place he never wants to see ever again, so it works for him.

"Look, uh, hey, you have a name?"

"Eddie," he answers, but only because he genuinely doesn't want to antagonize this guy right out of the gate.

"Right. Eddie. So. This is...well it's going to sound a bit wild but...I'm kind of here for the FBI. I mean. I don't work for them, or anything, but...I was...asked, I guess, to get evidence. So don't worry about everyone else, they're getting rescued later so. That's. A thing, I guess?"

Eddie just sort of sits there for a moment, feeling stupid. FBI. Rescue??? Maybe he hit his head or he's dreaming or something but...no, his feet are stinging like a bitch and he can very clearly remember how the whole day has gone so far. He’s awake, and this is real.

"Yea. Yeah, I guess that's a lot to take in. But we can talk about it...later? Do you have family? Like, shit, do you have somewhere to go? I'm pretty sure I wasn't supposed to actually like...buy, a person. Couldn't leave you there though."

The Alpha’s...rambling. Which, Eddie kind of figures now that this guy wasn’t joking when he said he doesn’t work for the FBI. He looks nervous, actually, white knuckling the steering wheel. In Eddie’s experience, if something seems to good to be true, then it almost definitely is. This guy is giving off no scent, and there's no scent in the car anyway. Either it's a rental or something, or this guy wears blockers most of the time. There's even one of those fancy scent diffuser things plugged into the dash. So other than being visibly unsettled Eddie’s got nothing to go off of.

But then, why would he lie? He’s bought Eddie fair and square, and like most Alphas, he’s probably carrying double Eddie’s body weight, plus he knows Eddie's already injured. Eddie could be going from one prison to a...worse prison. But...again, this guy has no reason to lie, right?

"I've...I've got an uncle. Haven't seen him for years. I don't...know,” it’s pretty true, without giving too much away. The possibility that this guy could be serious is...it feels to big of an idea to absorb. Eddie might be free? He'll maybe see uncle Wayne again? This guy is going to just...let Eddie go? Eddie's known, for literal years, that he had two ways out of the ranch, out front, bought and paid for, or out back, in a body bag. The sudden possibility of a third option is so out of left field Eddie doesn't know what to do with it.

"Right, right okay. We can talk to Hopper about it," Steve spots a drive through, "you hungry?"

Eddie has absolutely no fucking clue what a ‘Hopper’ is, but at the sight of the beautiful golden arches, his priorities shift drastically, "oh fuck me yes," Eddie says it with such vehemence that Steve laughs, he’s got a nice laugh, this Alpha. And unless he’s playing the long con...why the fuck would he even worry if Eddie’s hungry? "I haven't left the ranch for two years, and they never let us eat anything like that, it's bad for our skin. Plus, we have to stay thin and pretty."

Steve’s expression changes in an instant, he looks genuinely horrified by what Eddie’s just revealed, “you can have absolutely anything you want.”

Eddie takes him at his word and orders half the damn menu.

Well, Eddie figures, the FBI thing is true, and this is a Hopper, and man he looks like he’s had enough, "you were not supposed to buy a human being," he very clearly tells Steve. Eddie’s feet are stinging a little on the asphalt, but as long as he doesn’t move too much, it’s bearable. And even though he’s still wearing the fucking nightdress, like hell was he missing this conversation.

"I know but-" Steve starts to protest, which Eddie thinks is kind of brave, because if Steve is twice Eddie’s weight, Hopper is basically a giant. Hopper stops him dead with a glare, and Steve hands over his phone and strips off his suit jacket and hands that over too, leaving him in a pristine white shirt.

Hopper waves him off, "you did good."

Hopper does something to the back of Steve's phone, peeling something away from it, before giving it back and then turning his attention to Eddie, "somewhere I can take you kid? Any family?"

"I only have an uncle, but I don't...it's been years, I haven't seen him since I was little."

Hopper rubs is hand over his face, the rasp of stubble loud, before he lights another cigarette, "I'll have to find you a motel somewhere while we figure this out." And that sparks a twinge of...fear. Eddie has lived with a group of Omega for years, and the ranch was a lot of things but...they had meals provided, they didn't have to think about money, or clothes, or anything mundane like that. The prospect of suddenly being completely alone...completely alone and potentially vulnerable, is not in any way appealing.

"He can stay with me." Steve suggests out of fucking no where, "I've got...a lot of space," he trails off, looking kind of sheepish that he even suggested it. At some point, somewhere between the rescue, the McDonalds, and right this moment, Eddie kind of decides, tentatively, at least, that Alpha Steve might just be an alright guy.

Hopper raises an eyebrow at Eddie, Eddie shrugs, playing down his relief, "not like I've had any better offers lately."

Hopper snorts, but he hands over a business card to Steve, "this is highly unorthodox, but...I don't care. I've got bigger things to worry about. Text me any details the kid can give you on the uncle. I'll be in touch."

And then Hopper just...drives away. Steve fiddles with the card Hopper just gave him, and Eddie can see it says FBI and all that good stuff on it. This is feeling more and more real as time stretches on.

"So is there anything you...want? Need?" Steve asks him.

Eddie feels kind of bad about the sheer amount of money he’s already cost Steve today, "I mean, I don't have any cash, obviously, and I heard how much money you shelled out- I mean, do you think you can comp me from the FBI? Man, you didn't even get a receipt for me."

And that...makes Steve laugh, like really, makes him laugh. And Eddie joins in, not that he thinks he’s funny particularly, but because Steve is just so...well. Maybe it’s a relief too, that Eddie is finally out of that place, and the truth of that is finally sinking in. He’s free. Feels a little delirious with the possibility of freedom.

And there’s only one way to celebrate something like that, “can we get milkshakes?”

@stylelovechild @steddieonthen @marklee-blackmore @sticknpokelightningbolt @resident-gay-bitch @somegirlsomewhere @mugloversonly @cryptid-system @weekend-dreamer7

[anim8edheart]

👣 + reverse because mike running away from situations sounds about right

Send 👣 for my muse to find your muse running away from a bad situation. Send 👣 +reverse for your muse to find mine. - always accepting

*****

"Do you think we can make it?" He got out in between pants, running as fast as he could, ducking his head from time to time to avoid tree branches.

The adrenaline coursing inside him made him feel light-hearted and young, like a boy, running away from some harsh reality. In this case, the wrath of a certain Jim Hopper, who'd suffered an ingenious prank at their hands. It was comical how a mutual need for childish revenge brought together this unlikely duo. He sensed this was the start of a good and long partnership.

[piratekenway]

BLACK WIDOW: SHADOW OF THE UPSIDE DOWN COMING 20XX


before she was an avenger, she was the red death, the slavic shadow, the black widow. before he was the red guardian, he was a police chief in hawkins, thrown into a russian cell and brainwashed by the red room. somewhere in that hell, they met and, against all odds, fell in love. their marriage was a place of peace neither was prepared to lose, but lose it they did in time—she was more loyal to their masters than he was, but let him go for the love they shared. later, she heard: he’d gone back home to america, to a family waiting for him.


now the red room’s back, and they want to finish what they started all those years ago, this time in the worst place possible: a small town in indiana called hawkins. natasha romanov finds herself in a race against time to find jim hopper, known to her as alexei shostakov, and his daughter jane, before it’s too late.


it’s the black widow’s toughest challenge yet.


and that’s before the extra-dimensional man-eating plant monsters come into play.

[gggoldfinch]

Cherry Kisses

Alexei “Smirnoff” x GN!Reader

A/N: Knee deep into the new season, a lovely anon suggested I repost this after having deleted it a while ago. The new characters are great and all, but I think we’re all missing sweet Alexei right about now

Warnings: gn!reader, no usage of y/n or pronouns, angst & fluff, clumsy make-out sesh, kinda spicy but not really, references to past injury/ recovery, friends to lovers

Word Count: 2,854

{AO3 Link}

Summary: Several months after saving the life of a charmingly goofy Soviet scientist who’d been left for dead at a carnival, you find yourself with a major crush. You’re afraid to act on it, lest your feelings be unrequited and your actions ruin your carefree friendship, so instead you resign yourself to suffer in silence. Fate has other plans, it seems.

Despite the occasional wince and hand pressed to his abdomen, Alexei’s healing process has come along quite nicely. Quicker than the doctors at the hospital had anticipated, too. In less than a month your new friend had bounced back, pacing bored circles in his hospital room until you'd finally caved and brought him back into the real world. You obliged only when the doctors said it was alright; you'd never seen a more thankful expression from anyone than when you'd tried your best to explain his release from the hospital. 

In all your time alive, you’d never seen anyone so eager and bright and curious as he— not even the most enthusiastic of children. Everything seems shiny and new to the man, his deep brown eyes twinkling with awe at any given moment. It's honestly the most endearing thing you've ever witnessed. Anything there is to explore he's there. His particular favorite spots consist of the Arcade, the Family Video (conveniently next door to it), and the radio store down on Main Street. He always receives odd stares from the kids, teens, and irritated parents at each location, but never seems to let it phase him. In fact, you always take more offense to it than he does, carefully trailing behind him and sending them bitter glares to ward them off. 

Sometimes, when you're not paying attention, his fingers intertwine with yours as he drags you to the next thing that piques his quick-to-wander interest. His warm hand in yours never fails to send the butterflies in your stomach wild. 

Granted, he can’t go many places. Not on his own, at least. Especially not with Cold War tensions running high and a potential hit on his back after valiantly defecting. No— everywhere he goes you go, and vise versa. He'd even become your impromptu roommate after being discharged from the hospital. Apparently, none of his "American friends" (a group consisting solely of Murray Bauman, recluse; Joyce Byers, moved away; and Jim Hopper, recently deceased) where willing or available to take him in. That left you, the guardian angel who'd found and saved him, to look after his fugitive self. Not that either of you ever really minded not going anywhere without the other, being practically attached at the hip from the get-go. However, due to the rather difficult language barrier and lack of proper translator, communication between the two of you is still a continuous struggle. You still don't really even have the full story on what led up to the events of last Independence Day. On the bright side, though, you’ve both come a long way in understanding each other since you'd first dragged him into the hospital that fateful day. Admittedly, he’s advanced far further than you have in the language department— not that you haven’t been giving it your all, of course. It just seems to come much more easily for him. 

Now, you sit together on a park bench beside the sidewalk, shaded by an oak tree overhead, people-watching the early afternoon small-town rush. A half empty lemonade cup sits beside your thigh, where drops of water bead on the sides and seep into the wood of the bench as they accumulate and trickle down. Alexei’s arm is slung casually around your shoulders, fingers absently drawing circles on your shoulder. You wonder if he realizes how intimate such a gesture is. 

He stares off at the pedestrians, cheeks pinched in a small smile as he sips his cherry slurpee through its red straw. Upon hovering at his bedside for weeks, you’d quickly discovered it's his favorite beverage behind Coca-Cola. Nothing can compare the way the colored dye stains his lips bright red, making his grin all the more perfect your eyes. It is a bit of a hassle having to drive all the way out to the far-removed gas station to get him one every time, considering it's the only place nearby that has one of the machines to make the beverage, but you put up with it for the sake of his contagious jubilation. 

You observe him observing the people. He'd blatantly ignored your fashion advice and chosen the most outlandish articles in the stores you'd taken him to, favoring loud patterns and bold, clashing colors. It's actually rather cute, and suits him well. His hair is a little longer than when you’d first met a few months ago, dark curls grown shaggy and even more voluminous. He’s insisted on keeping his face regularly shaven and sideburns well-groomed, though. Your fingers twitch in your lap, imagining how it would feel to run your fingers through his hair and ruffle his curls. Before you know it, you’re lost in another fantasy (a daily occurrence by now)— vividly picturing yourself clinging to him like a lover rather than a friend, holding him, touching him.

You blink back to reality when he tilts his head to look at you, stained lips pulling into a broad smile that illuminates the whole of his handsome face. His wire-frame glasses are slipped down the bridge of his narrow nose, and he swiftly pushes them back in place with his index finger to gaze at you properly. You love it when he does that. 

“You enjoying your slurpee?” you ask with a chuckle, gesturing towards the mostly-empty novelty cup. He fervently nods, offering it out to you for a sip. You laugh and shake your head, gently pushing it back towards him. “You finish it, I have my lemonade.” 

He shrugs, contently mutters an “Okay” and returns to peacefully watching the Hawkins residents pass by. You return to watching him, genuinely pondering what could be going on in that brilliant mind of his as he stares off.

A young couple pass by, no older than high schoolers; you'd heard them coming up from behind before you'd seen them. They giggle and mutter sweet nothings to each other as they stroll along. The girl walks with her arms hugged around the boy's waist, tucked snugly against his side under his protective arm. You can't help but feel a pang of jealousy, the pair looking joyous as can be and plainly expressing their love for each other to the world. Chancing a glance at Alexei, he seems enthralled— curiously observant of their affectionate behavior. You briefly wonder if such open affection is an uncommon sight where he's from, before turning your passive attention back to the couple. The continue to laugh with each other, the jovial sound only being broken when they move to kiss, fondly pecking each other on the lips over and over as they stroll past, giggling whenever they break. 

You feel odd staring at them so you break your gaze, instead opting to tap your heels on the sidewalk concrete and stare at the cracks where plants haphazardly grow. It’s bad enough to see other couples happy, but feeling Alexei’s arm wrapped around your shoulders is a different kind a torture. You know you shouldn't feel jealous; it's your fault you fell for the man whose life you saved. The burden of your blooming feelings rests solely on your shoulders. You would never want to risk ruining your carefully crafted and nurtured friendship over something that might change your dynamic for the worse. You would never take the initiative, and never find out if your undying love for the goofy scientist is requited. 

A tap on your shoulder draws you from your brooding. You perk your head up to glance at the man. His crimson-stained lips are pulled taut in that impish smile again as he tilts his head to get a better look at you. You feel blush prickling your skin the longer he silently watches you. You wait, anticipating a comment or question in that heavy and distinct (and oh, so lovely) accent of his, but it never comes. Instead he leans closer, free hand lifting to tilt your chin with fingers, chilled by the cool cup he's placed down somewhere. You’re speechless, no more than a hairsbreadth away from touching noses with the man you desire more than anything. This is the closest you’ve ever been to him, and from this perspective you can see every detail of his face up-close and personal, from the small scar hidden beneath the nose-piece of his glasses to the flecks of amber in his eyes.

Before you can fathom the events unfolding before you, he leans forward, closing the distance and planting his soft lips on yours. You can feel him smiling against your mouth. Adrenaline buzzes through every nerve and bursts like 4th of July fireworks in your head and the only thing you can think about is how strongly he tastes of sugar and cherries. The feeling is short-lived as he pulls away and releases your jaw from his gentle grip, still smiling like an idiot. When he hums gleefully and amusedly to himself and goes back to sipping his drink, the anguished realization that he may have only been fooling around hits you like a ton of bricks. Fighting the urge to smack him upside the head, you puff up in defense.

“What was that?” you bite out, adjusting yourself to sit facing him. He chuckles and shrugs, then replies in Russian. You can’t understand a word of it and only become more flustered at his complacent behavior. 

“You think that was a joke?” You feel your face growing hot, both with anger and embarrassment. 

You don't intend to be mean, but the abruptness of it has you wired. It didn’t feel like a playful kiss for you, nor do you want it to be in jest. It just makes your heart ache. He furrows his brows and turns to look at you, genuine confusion twisting his gentle features as he retracts his arm from around your shoulders. 

“Joke? No...” he mutters, cradling the cup in his hands. His playful demeanor shifts instantly, and he hunches, shrinking under your fierce gaze.

“Why would you kiss me then?” 

His confusion seems to grow exponentially and his eyes dart away. “They like each other.” He meekly gestures towards where the couple disappeared off to, “I like you. Is that... not what you do?” 

His mouth is pulled into the first real frown you’ve ever seen from him. Even through grueling physical therapy and the healing process of a bullet to the liver he’d never frowned. Your heart twists at his words, and you feel like you've been shot. Had you been wrong? Is this yet another miscommunication? Blush almost as red as his beverage creeps onto his face, beginning at his ears and spreading to his cheeks and nose. 

“You... like me?” you whisper, hung up on that one sentence. You could care less about the rest. The crease in his brow softens as he nods. 

“дa, yes, yes,” he mutters, sheepishly shrugging and shrinking away. "I thought... это было очевиднo." 

You don't quite catch the last part, but his bashful confession is enough proof for any residual distress to melt from your system. He's taken aback when you burst into an enormous smile and throw your arms around his neck, laughing with your nose pressed into the curve of his jaw. The swell of happiness in your heart is almost unbearable. This is quite possibly the happiest you've ever felt, as you delightedly pepper kisses against his full cheek. He manages to wriggle out of your latching grip and place his slushee cup down at a safe distance. He peers down at you with brows furrowed and mouth slightly ajar in what looks like a mix of shock and relief. His dark eyes twinkle with curiosity and you finally feel confident enough to slip you hand up the back of his neck, twirling your fingers around his curls. His glasses have slipped down his nose again and this time you do him the favor of pushing them back up properly. 

"You... like me?" he asks, a slight pout downturning his dyed lips. You lean up to touch your forehead to his, holding him close by the back of his head. Your other hand rests on his chest. 

"I have for a while," you sigh, forehead still pressed to his. "Now, kiss me again." A devilish smile spreads on your face as you bite your lip. A wave of visible relief washes over him as the tenseness in his shoulders dissipates. He giggles joyfully, gleefully obliging your request. His hands find your face and dark eyes flick to your lips— the object of his desire. You lean to meet him halfway, his cherry-flavored lips sealing against yours once more. This time it's more serious (as serious as the man could possibly be, that is), and he puts thought into the way his warm mouth moves against yours. He's gentle and tender, but he doesn't do well to hide his enthusiasm as he fervently leans against you. His hands glide from your heated cheeks to the space below your ears, thumbs brushing against your cheekbones. Your own hands remain where they are, one tangled in his heavenly hair and the other sandwiched between your chests, gripping the fabric of his garish striped button-up. 

He briefly breaks and you both take gasping breaths; the corners of his eyes crinkle with a smile before he captures your lips again. He tilts his head to get a better angle at you and a light moan is drawn from your throat, muffled against his plush mouth. He just about trembles with excitement under your hands at the noise. With every extra inch he eagerly leans into you, the further you're dipped backward, clinging to him as you're nearly laid out on the bench. His left hand separates from your head to grip the back of the bench, bracing himself so as to not tip you back too far. Your senses are invaded by his intoxicating scent; the cherry sugar of his lips mixed with the warm cologne that lingers on his form makes for a heady combination. Just as your lips part to allow him entrance, the small of your back bumps and subsequently topples something. Your hazy brain racks to think what it could be, when remember—

The lemonade! 

You break with a surprised gasp and twist to find your cup overturned behind you, spilled all over the sidewalk and part of the bench. Alexei peers over your shoulder, resting his chin on the slope of your neck as he surveys the mess. His large hands find your waist and you turn back to him, pouting in disappointment at having wasted the rest of your refreshment. He merely grins and goes back to kissing you, gingerly pecking your smiling lips over and over. 

After a moment you hear a huff somewhere to your left, and look up to see an older woman, frowning with arms crossed as she eyes the spilled lemonade splattered across the sidewalk. Her eyes trail to you in Alexei's arms, both red-faced and staring at her. She tuts in disapproval and steps over the dark patch.

"Delinquents," she mutters with a dramatic roll of her eyes as she passes the pair of you on the bench.

There's a pause as you and Alexei watch her walk away, amused and stunned speechless, before his face pinches in a grin and laugher roars from his chest. You follow suit, crumbling into giggles at the sheer ridiculousness of the event. You hook your arm around his waist to better hide your burning face in the crook of his neck, nestling against his chest. He presses his lips to wherever he can reach—your temple, the shell of your ear, the crown of your head—whispering in his native tongue between every sugary sweet kiss. 

"I still have to sleep on the couch?" he mock-innocently asks in a low, accented whisper, audibly grinning with his lips against your ear. Though you choke out a surprised laugh and swat his hard chest, you can't help but feel pleasurably enticed by the suggestion. 

Your grinning lips find his jaw and give him a quick kiss before slipping out of his hold, scooping up your empty cup in the process. You throw him a playful glance over your shoulder before skipping a few steps away.

"Come on, Lexi, we still have the rest of the afternoon!" you call behind you, laughing at the sound of him scrambling to collect his own cup and follow after you. You deposit your cup in the trash bin beside the sidewalk as you pass it, lingering to wait for him to catch up.

His hand finds yours as he returns to your side, fingers lacing with yours, and you look up at him. His warm eyes watch you from behind askew glasses, sipping through the straw once more. You've never been more overjoyed. Holding his hand feels different now as he cheerfully swings your joined arms. It's real now, and your love is requited. Warmth blooms in your chest, and you've never been more thankful to have gone to that carnival and saved a dying stranger. 

[jadeylovesmarvelxo]

Not a second choice

Hello!!! First off, love the fics you’ve been writing for Eddie! Angsty but still so cute!

Would love to request a Steve x reader one! Idea is reader often stops by Scoops Ahoy, after her job at the mall, to sit at a table and catch up on her reading (it’s the only place in the food court that she won’t get kicked out for sitting there a few hours reading and of course she buys ice cream or shakes).

After the events of S3, reader gets hired at Family Video but she’s a bit shy with Steve cuz you know King Steve and she was never the popular girl in school. But reader and Robin immediately hit it off and Steve gets a bit jealous thinking she doesn’t like him so he kinda acts coldly towards her.

Eventually she gets roped into the events of S4 and helps defeat Vecna and during that time her and Steve build an actual friendship that leads to feelings.

Request by @mrsjaderogers 💞 hope you like it 💞

Warnings; Angst, fluff, heartache, more fluff.

Eddie lives in this 💞 ( damn you Suffer Brothers 😅😞

💞💞💞💞

She relaxes in the comfy booth at Scoops Ahoy, this is the place where she loves to read and relax, except for home of course.

Every other place in Starcourt didn't allow someone to sit for hours and read and relax but in Scoops Ahoy she ordered an ice cream sundae and would relax for a few hours after work.

She worked in one of the clothing malls in the stores for a few hours at the weekend.

Steve Harrington and Robin Buckley were the servers at Scoops Ahoy and she couldn't quite wrap her head around the fact that it was King Steve working here, he seemed so different to when he was in high school.

Truly she would love to get to know him better but she was always to shy to approach him.

Maybe one day...

Six months later

Today she starts her new job at Family Video, her interviewer was a guy called Justin and she's very nervous.

It's her first job since the mall explosion last year, a gas leak the authorities claimed which claimed the lives of so many people including chief Jim Hopper.

As she heads into the store she feels her anxiety grows and Robin beams at her and she waves shyly.

"Hi, I'm y/n, Justin hired me on Friday to help out for a few hours at the weekend".

She shakes her hand.

"Hey, don't you work on the newspaper with Nancy?" She nods and feels nervous as Steve approaches, he's so handsome, she had such a crush on him in high school but she wasn't in the popular group so he never noticed her.

Also, he was dating Nancy and she was the only girl he had eyes for in his senior year.

"Yes, I work with Nancy, she's great". Steve reaches over to shake her hand to and the sparks she feels make her heart race.

Shit! She really hopes she doesn't make a fool of herself.

She spends most of the day learning the ropes with Robin who makes her feel at ease straight away, she still feels nervous and full of butterflies when Steve speaks to her so as a result, she finds it hard to speak much to him and mentally kicks herself for it.

He watches her talk to Robin with a frown on his face.

Then suddenly Steve grows kinda cold and she isn't sure why it makes her a little sad but she expected he wouldn't like her anyway so she gets on with work hiding the hurt on her face.

❤💞

A week passes and she's great friends with Robin but still is making little progress with Steve, she really wants to know what his problem is and she corners him one day after work tired of his silence and clipped tones.

"Steve. Do you not like me or something?" he looks up immediately defensive.

"You don't like me more like, you barely spoke to me when you first started, you took to Robin straight away but not me". She bites her lip flustered and sighs.

'' I do like you Steve, you were king Steve in high school, Mr popular and I wasn't sure how to talk to you" he softens.

"I've not been King Steve for a long time sweetheart, you don't have to feel nervous around me, ever".

The atmosphere lightens and she nods feeling a bit more confident around him now and after that, the coldness between them thaws and she's soon laughing with him and Robin and getting to know him a lot better.

He's grown up so much since high school and her feelings for him continue to deepen.

💞💞

Everything changes the next week as Max and Dustin come in looking for a way to contact Eddie Munson's friends and her and Steve's newly formed friendship grows even closer as they are thrown head first into danger.

He becomes more protective as this is her first time dealing with anything pertaining to the upside-down.

Her crush grows but she's worried about his feelings regarding Nancy.

During their time in the upside down, she saw how fast Nancy dove in after Steve during Watergate, and then she overheard what he said about having six little nuggets, how he always saw Nancy in his fantasy.

"It's you, it's always been you," he tells Nancy staring down at her, his features soft and her heart felt like it had broken in half as she heard this.

Eddie noticing her devastated expression gently holds her hand and squeezes it she smiles at him sadly, she always knew it would be Nancy for Steve, even with these feelings growing between them.

Steve must notice how quiet she is as they get on with the plan to defeat Vecna because he pulls her aside.

"Hey, honey. I've been wanting to speak to you, maybe when this is over we could go for a cup of coffee or a movie marathon?" He looks so hopeful and her heart yearns to say yes.

"Steve, I heard what you said to Nancy about your fantasy, six little nuggets, how it's always been her in your fantasy about that and I know if we got involved you would still be thinking about her"

His eyes flash with pain.

"Sweetheart, she's with Jonathan, I can't spend my life waiting for her to come around or put my feelings for you on hold because of her". She swallows and looks away from his gorgeous hazel eyes.

"Yeah and we all know how well her relationship with Jonathan is going Steve. I'd love to date you, you've been my crush for so long but I don't want to be a second choice when I know who you would rather be with even with these feelings between us.

"I don't want to fall in love with you and Nancy and Jonathan break up and you run back to her, I don't want to be even more heartbroken Steve" her eyes shine with tears and before they can talk any more the plan for defeating Vecna is going full steam ahead.

❤

It's done El has her powers back and The upside down and the mindflayer, they are all defeated and wiped out alongside Vecna.

Miraculously everyone was okay, bruised and a little blooded but okay.

All she wants to do is relax in a bath and watch as many feel-good movies as she could while munching on chocolates.

Anything to stave off the nightmares about those bats and what they did to Steve, the fact they almost killed Eddie.

She shivers and just as she is going to run the bath her doorbell rings.

It's Steve.

"What are you doing here?" She's confused shouldn't he be trying to get back with Nancy, she heard through Robin that she broke up with Jonathan.

"I did some thinking over the last few days, near death experiences do that to you, not the demo bats, almost being choked to death by those vines and a lot of those thoughts were about you".

She shakes her head.

"Steve, I don't want to be a second choice". He strokes her cheek.

"I'm an idiot, the world's biggest idiot. From the minute I met you I thought you were beautiful, a real sweetheart. I was so jealous of Robin when you bonded with her and not me then we got to know each other and I began to fall for you"

"Then Vecna happened and Nancy, my thoughts were all messed up because I was over Nancy, truly over her and then we got close again and yeah I told her she was in my fantasy but I shouldn't have said it's always been her for me because it isn't true"

This makes her curious and she moves closer to him as he takes her hand.

"The truth is you've been in my fantasies too and when I think of you everything feels right, Nancy is too complicated, we would never work but you... It feels like we fit"

Honestly, she feels that too.

"You do know Nancy broke up with Jonathan?" she tells him and he nods.

"We had a long talk and we both agreed that us together it doesn't work, she also saw the way I would look at you, like you hung the moon she said. I want to be with you sweetheart, I want to be with you. You're not a second choice baby, never".

He looks at her with those beautiful hazel eyes all hopeful and sweet and she smiles and kisses him, his hands caress her cheeks as he returns the kiss, it's slow at first but grows more passionate as it continues.

They break apart and his head rests against hers.

"Wanna cuddle up sweetheart? Have that movie marathon?" Steve asks her and she nods grinning.

"It's a date"

💞💞

[skinnywalker]

can i please request a jim hopper x fem!reader where reader sees the big gash on hopper’s forehead in the gif above and she’s mad but concerned at the same time. she helps him clean it and patch it up. just super fluffy stuff, i love a fluffy jim hopper ❤️

Of course my dear negan.

Stubborn (Jim Hopper x female reader)

"Jesus hop! Look at you!" Jim goaned slumping down deeper into his chair. He knew that Y/N was going to have a bad reaction. He knew she was going to go on a long rant about how he didn't take care of himself. But God, she was livid. "I can't believe you took so long to come to me! I don't understand how Joyce stands you" "yeah. She suffers so much- OW! Can't you warn me!" Jim swatted Y/N's hand with the disinfectant cloth. "Jim! It's just disinfectant!" "It's still hurts!" Jim grumbled and sunk lower in his chair. Y/N giggled "aww did I hurt you grumpy bear?" She kissed his head while applying the bandaid. Jim gave Y/N an eye roll before pulling her deep into his arms. With a little kiss, he picks her up and plop ls both of them on to the coach. Snuggling into her chest, Jim happily sighed "you do make a cute nurse" "SHUT UP JIM"