#nancy and her dads pls

[jonathanbyersphd]

SORRY I AM THINKING ABOUT NANCY SAYING COPY/PASTE FOR HER AND JONATHAN'S DAUGHTER AGAIN AND IIIII

[magniloquent-raven]

I am once again plagued with thoughts that aren't 100% coherent so imma just ramble for a bit, pls gather 'round for some stuff about Billy and body image issues cuz I'm in my feels rn.

Billy spends a lot of time staring at Nancy.

Enough that Tommy's noticed and he starts ribbing him about it. "That's one thing of Steve's you might want to stay away from," bitter and pointed. Enough that Jonathan Byers gives him the stink eye whenever he's within glaring distance. Enough that a handful of the more desperate chicks still high off the fumes of his New Kid smell have started dressing like fucking librarians in hopes of catching his eye.

He doesn't give a shit about any of it, if anything the rumour mill is helping him out for once. Less work involved in keeping up appearances if everyone just assumes he isn't sleeping around because he's too busy sniffing Wheeler's granny panties.

As long as no one guesses the real reason, it's fine. It's fucking peachy. It's one silver lining in this shitstorm of a situation.

He's so tired of his eyes inevitably being drawn to her barely-there tits and tiny waist. Every time he's bored at lunch, his gaze wanders. When he's in the library pretending to study, there she fucking is, even smaller when she's hunched over a pile of cue cards.

The longer he looks at her the more sure he is that Steve will never really want him.

Steve's slept with plenty of girls. A variety of girls. He probably couldn't afford to be too picky in this shitty little town. But he's only fallen in love once. One time. The only time it mattered what he was sticking his dick in was when it was in Nancy Wheeler.

And Billy...will never be her. Not even close.

He'll only ever be a warm mouth and a convenient hand, he'll never matter.

She's flat, and thin. Willowy, narrow-shouldered. Petite. Inches shorter than him and nearly half as broad. Thin fingers and delicate wrists. She fit comfortably under Steve's arm, she could nestle safely into his side.

And it was all so fucking easy for her. She never had to try.

She never had to piss off her dad so she'd be forced to skip meals. She never did laps around her neighbourhood until she was lightheaded and doubled over, dry-heaving in someone's hedge. She was never forced to sign up for baseball as a child, poked and prodded and guilted into it because a couple shirts were starting to get tight across the stomach, and being a momma's boy was bad enough, being a fat, lazy piece of shit too was unacceptable.

He used to think he'd done well, maintaining the physique he has. He's worked hard for it. Scraping together his savings for a weight set and keeping careful track of his calorie intake and never skipping a single fucking day of exercise, hangovers and broken bones be damned. And it's fucking useful, truth be told. More than keeping away the echo of old insults bouncing around in his head, it's made flirting that much easier.

But the more he looks at Nancy Wheeler, the more he hates the things he can't change. It gets into his head. Digs in deep, leaving scars on its way down.

He thinks Steve might've noticed.

He knows Steve has heard the stupid rumours about Wheeler, and probably chalked it up to Billy being an asshole, as usual. But it's harder to explain away his sudden tendency to go extremely still whenever Steve puts his hands anywhere on his torso. A palm pressed to his chest, slipped under his shirt, or fingertips digging into his back, or a casual fucking pat on the shoulder—whatever it is, he can't help freezing up, if only for a second, a sick feeling twisting his stomach, cold and shameful and clawing at his lungs.

And then, eventually, they argue.

It's over nothing. And everything. Billy can't explain what his fucking damage is, and Steve can't stop needling in the wrong places. They scream at each other until their throats are raw and Billy leaves when his knuckles start to itch.

He cries all the way home and doesn't eat for four days. Not on purpose. Not consciously. He's just. Fucking. Busy. He's busy. He's always gotta drive Max somewhere or dodge Neil's thinly veiled threats or lock himself in his room when bile starts to bubble up in the back of his throat and his head pounds and he doesn't think about why he's snapping at everyone constantly, he just pounds back a couple beers and goes to sleep. And then it's four days later, and he's flying off the handle at Neil, too sluggish and lightheaded to see the hit coming, and...

Steve comes to see him at the hospital. He hasn't told anyone anything but they've got him hooked up to a banana bag and the nurses keep making sad eyes at him when they come to check his stitches.

He hates it, sitting around doing nothing, being closely monitored every fucking second, it make his skin crawl, and he hates it even more when Steve's standing in the doorway looking at him.

Not for the first time, he's overwhelmed wondering what exactly Steve sees.

He's a fucking mess right now. Greasy hair tangled at the back, bruises peeking out from under the collar of his gross papery hospital gown, one eye swollen shut and a dark tangle of thread holding his eyebrow together. It feels stupid to get stressed about all the shit that usually bothers him when there's so many other things to worry about, but he still finds himself shifting in place, hunching his shoulders, hiding his hands in the crooks of his elbows.

It's sort of a disaster. Worse than last time they saw each other. Billy's not in the mood for Steve's apologies and Steve's at a loss for what else to say.

They don't see each other again for months. Steve graduates. Billy avoids anywhere he thinks Steve might be, and lies awake at night haunted by stolen touches.

He catches a glimpse of Steve through the red haze of storm clouds and cold lightning, tears blurring his vision, the Mind Flayer wearing him like a suit. Their cars collide, and everything whites out for a second.

He's in the hospital again when they finally talk. Billy rolls his eyes at "We've gotta stop meeting like this," and tries not to think about last time he was here. Steve seems more than willing to ignore it. Move forward. Guess demonic possession puts some things into a different perspective.

When Billy's released from the hospital he's seventeen pounds heavier than he was a few months ago. Every time the nurses did their check-ups and put him on the scale they'd pat his elbow, smiling encouragingly, telling him how good he was doing while he watched his stomach get softer, his biceps get less defined, watched himself disappear beneath a layer of fat.

The first thing he does when he gets home is throw up.

He doesn't make it happen. It just happens. And he blames it on the meds they have him on. It's a plausible enough reason, and it means he doesn't have to interrogate the tiny spark of satisfaction he got from losing his lunch.

His second day back home Neil asks him when he's going to start exercising again. His expression is pinched. Cold. His eyes are ice chips freezing Billy's skin wherever they touch, lingering on the softness under his chin, and where the hem of his sleeve pinches his skin.

He pushes his dinner away and grits out an answer from between clenched teeth.

He doesn't need the reminder that he's gotten weak while he was trapped in a hospital bed, but Neil gives it to him anyways. Tells him all about everything he should do to get things back to normal. Push past the pain. Work harder. He tunes it out after a while, and watches grease congeal on his meatloaf.

Eddie Munson is the first person to bring up the things Billy's never known how to talk about.

They started hanging out after Billy's most recent brush with death. Billy's not sure exactly how the got here, from buying the occasional painkiller and letting the guy wax poetic about his dumb band, to spending weekends getting high together at the trailer park. But as weird things in his life go, it's barely worth questioning.

This particular conversation starts with Chrissy Cunningham.

Specifically, Eddie's massive boner for her.

Billy's been noticing it for a while. He hasn't been letting it bother him.

He hasn't.

Maybe he likes the way Eddie smiles at him when they pass a joint back and forth, lazily stretched out and wearing three less layers than usual, and maybe he thinks about closing the distance between them when Eddie offers to shotgun, but it doesn't fucking matter. Just like it doesn't matter that Steve hasn't touched him since before the Mind Flayer and things are fucking weird now that they're on speaking terms again. None of it matters, he's just a fucking idiot.

Because Steve and his new best friend Robin are attached at the hip lately and everyone can see where that's going, and Eddie won't stop talking about tiny, pretty, perfect fucking Chrissy and her stupid ponytail.

And Billy...Billy gets winded walking up the porch steps at his house now. And he pulled a muscle in his back trying to lift half the weight he used to press. And last week he burned three pairs of jeans in the backyard because he kept grabbing them out of his laundry pile, not realizing they don't fit anymore until he was struggling to pull them up past his knees.

He's lost the one thing people used to actually like about him. Never the people he wanted, he was never enough for that, but it was something. Now he's just...

Now he's just listening to a guy he likes talk about some goddamn cheerleader like she personally hung the moon just for him.

And he's drunk. They're both drunk. Eddie in a soppy, embarrassing way, with a sparkle in his eye and a flush on his cheeks, an arm across the back of the couch, outstretched far enough that the tips of his fingers almost brush Billy's shoulder.

He wants to move closer. Thinks about shuffling into Eddie's space, curling into the warmth at his side. But it twists in his guts, sours, sickens—he couldn't, he can't. And he hates himself for wanting to.

"What do you see in her?" spills out of his mouth, bitter on his tongue and sharpened by anger he has no right to feel.

She's pretty. He expects it. She's pretty, she's perfect. She's a fucking angel even though her and Eddie only know each other because she buys drugs off of him. But she can do no wrong because she looks like a little china doll with sad eyes and everyone would be devastated if a single hair on her tiny delicate head was harmed.

Eddie only looks thrown off for a second. A moment. But he shrugs it off, leans his head back against the couch cushions and grins at the ceiling. "She likes my music."

Since fucking when.

"So, what, it's just an ego stroking thing then."

"Nah, man. I mean. Like. She's got this whole good-girl thing going on, but you should see her when I pull out my guitar, it's fuckin'...magic. When she lets herself just. Live." He wiggles his fingers in the air, arms spread, then drops them back down.

Billy's heart clenches, squeezes. It hurts and he doesn't know why. "Bullshit."

"Nah, nah. Seriously. The guy she's dating is a fucking asshole. And her mom..." he trails off, and rubs his eye. "She's just got all this pressure to be perfect, act a certain way, look a certain way, be a certain way, and I hate seeing what it does to her, man. I hate it. No one should have to deal with all that. So. I dunno. I like helping her cut loose. Sorta, find herself, I guess." He cracks a crooked smile, casting a glance in Billy's direction.

And his smile drops.

"Billy?" He sits up, cautious, eyebrows up and his eyes wide.

Billy turns away, shocked into motion, wiping at his face with his sleeve. "I'm fine. Fuck off."

He didn't notice he was crying until Eddie looked at him like he'd seen a ghost.

"Yeah, obviously."

"Fuck you."

Eddie doesn't get much more out of him that night. But he starts watching Billy like a hawk after that. Checking in on him at random. Calling if they haven't seen each other in a few days. It should be irritating as fuck, and he acts like it is, but he still basks in the attention.

Doesn't hurt that it seems to annoy Steve to no end.

Especially doesn't hurt when, in a fit of apparent jealousy, Steve shoves Billy into a wall and kisses him like his life depends on it.

The hurt comes when Steve starts to unbutton Billy's shirt and Billy reflexively shoves him away, when he wants to keep going but wants it to stop and can't tell Steve either of those things because he doesn't have the words.

So he gets angry. At Steve, for pushing it, crossing lines he can't even see. But mostly at himself, because it might be easier than standing there heartbroken but he knows it's the worst thing he could do.

And at Steve, again, when the he doesn't respond the way he should. Doesn't punish Billy for doing the wrong thing, reacting wrong, being wrong. He doesn't withdraw and save himself, he tries to understand, tries to talk it out, like this is something Billy can just say out loud and it'll all be fixed.

He doesn't explain. Not that day. But he lets Steve hold him while he cries, ugly gasping sobs into the front of Steve's shirt, curled up in his lap, collapsed on the floor and tangled together. Because despite everything he's told himself, he does fit comfortably in Steve's arms.

💜tag list ppl💜 @spreckle @growup-thatbeautiful @prettyboy-like-you @suddenlyinlove

[callhermyname]

you're not going | e.m. x reader - prologue

summary: you and Eddie meet for the first time (a few weeks before the start of s1);

pairing: eddie munson x fem!reader

word count: 2.6k

warnings: MDNI!! mostly fluff, just a tiny bit of angst, reader is Dustin's cousin, mentions of absent father, postpartum depression, parents death, self-esteem issues, bullying (let me know if I missed anything).

a/n: HEY so this is my first fic ever so even if it's absolute garbage pls be nice to me😭 also sorry for any grammar mistakes english is not my first language. this is supposed to be the start of a s4 rewrite series, so if you want more please like this post, reblog and let me know what you think. hope u enjoy it!

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

You've been living at aunt Claudia's since you were 14. After your mom died, you had nowhere else to go — you can't even remember the last time your dad was in the picture, so when your aunt took you in, you kinda felt thankful that you got to start over, have a fresh start in another town, away from your old life (that you hated). You were still grieving, but aunt Claudia was always very sweet and caring, and soon after you moved in you started to see Dustin as the little brother you never had. It felt a little weird at first — even though your mother did her best, she never really liked the situation you were both in. She never planned to have kids, at least not before graduating from college, especially if it meant being a single mom at such a young age, so you couldn't really blame her for drowning in postpartum depression after you were born until she passed away. So, when her older sister took you in, you didn't expect for her to be so different from your mom, so caring, so gentle, so loving, such a good mom for Dustin and now to you too. 

When you first got to Hawkins, you didn't really have any friends besides your 11 year old cousin. One of his friends had a sister about your age — Mike's sister, Nancy — but, although she was always nice to you, you never really quite hit it off. She was sweet, but you didn't have a lot in common and her friends could be really mean. Will's brother, Jonathan, was always very shy and quiet, never really made conversation and you were definitely not the kind of person to force social interaction with someone that obviously didn't care for it, so you just kept it to yourself for most of the first year you spent at Hawkins.

A couple of weeks before Will went missing, Nancy was picking Mike up at your place and invited you to a party at her boyfriend's house. Your aunt overheard the conversation and was very excited to see you were making friends, so you decided to go just so she wouldn't worry about you being an absolute loser. You were always quite self-conscious of your appearance so it took some time to pick out an outfit, but you finally settled for something comfy and not that flashy, but flattering: your best Queen shirt under your favorite jeans overalls and a flannel and your only pair of shoes — basic black chuck taylors.

It was late October and the air was chilly, wind blowing through your hair and cutting your face like tiny little blades as you rode your bike to Steve Harrington's house, hoping to god Nancy was already there so you wouldn't be alone and awkward. You could already hear the music from two blocks away, and when you got to the front door, Nancy was waiting for you with her friend Barb. You knew Barb from school, you took English together, but didn't really talk about anything not school related, but she seemed nice. 

"You made it! I was already getting worried you wouldn't show up" Nancy greeted you. "You know Barb, right?"

"Yeah, hey Barb" you agreed and Barb nodded. "Sorry it took me so long to get here, my bike has seen better days…"

"It's fine, don't worry. Let's get in, I'll show you around. You can leave your bike at the back of the garage, outside of the backyard fence."

You left your bike where Nancy told you to and followed her into the house as she showed you where the bathroom was, stumbling over people coming in and out of the house, up and down the stairs. The house was so crowded, it felt like people were coming out of the walls. When she led you to the back of the house, she sat down by the pool and introduced you to her boyfriend and his friends, who were around the pool. 

From the start, you felt out of place. Steve and his friends didn't know you, but you already knew them. It was ridiculous to you how those people had made fun of you more than once at school but did not remember your face when Nancy introduced you as her friend. Maybe because you weren't wearing your big squared glasses, or because you tried something different with your hair? It didn't really matter anyways. At least they were not making fun of you. Poor Barb wasn't so lucky — they gave her a really hard time, and Nancy was just completely powerless over the situation, too afraid to say anything to try and defend her friend. After an hour, Barb got fed up and left, leaving you alone with Nancy and those assholes who were absolutely wasted and wouldn't shut up about playing spin the bottle or truth or dare.

"Come on, what are you, twelve?" Steve protested, "We're not kids man, that's just boring."

"You're absolutely right Harrington. But, we could spice it up, ya know?" Tommy offered, trying to convince Steve to play the game "For every truth or dare you refuse to tell or do, you have to take a shot of tequila. What do you say, Harrington? Wanna get absolutely wasted?"

Next thing you know, you were excusing yourself to go to the bathroom while at least 10 people were gathering around forming a circle on the floor of Steve's backyard. You didn't really need to use the bathroom, you just needed to cool off a little before getting hammered — you were NOT about to tell any truths or do any dares around these people you barely knew. Before you could go back outside, you got yourself a glass of water in the kitchen. As you threw away the red plastic cup, now empty, you heard a conversation through the kitchen window that headed to the backyard.

"So, can we start the game already?"

"Wait, where's Wheeler's  friend?"

"Barb left like, half an hour ago, Carol" you heard Nancy reply.

"No, not the chubby one, the other one, the weird one with the ugly hair."

"I think she needed to use the bathroom…?"

"Oh my god do you think she's like, brushing her teeth or something? Thinking someone's gonna want to kiss her?" Carol laughed.

"We better not wait for her then, I do NOT want to spin the bottle and end up having to kiss that weird ass bitch!" Tommy said, getting a good laugh out of everyone.

Your eyes teared up as you backed away from the window, thinking about what to do. You thought you could just sneak out and go home, cry yourself to sleep, but then you remembered you had left your bike chained up by the backyard fence. There was no way you could get your bike without anyone noticing you sneaking out. Fuck, you knew you should've stayed home reading something or watching TV.

Since you couldn't go home without your bike, you decided to wait until everyone was back inside. It couldn't take that long, you thought, it was freezing out there. But you couldn't stay inside either. Not by yourself. So, you walked over to the front door and opened it, feeling the cold air hit your cheeks. You walked out of the house and into the woods beside the house, where you could still see the backyard, but would be out of sight, a little further from the backyard fence and hidden in the dark shadow of the trees that surrounded the Harrington's property. Once you were settled, seated on the ground, you bursted into tears. Hot, salty tears running through your face as you sobbed, hating everything about yourself, hating the fact that, no matter how hard you tried, you couldn't escape the fact that you were always different. Not in an obvious way — you didn't have that much of a fashion sense that was bold enough to earn dirty looks from old ladies —, but sometimes you felt like you didn't feel things the same way other people did. You felt fragile, small, vulnerable, like you were exposed all the time. It made you feel like shit.

You were so quiet, you couldn't help but to jump out when you heard footsteps behind you and then something snapping, like someone had stepped on a branch or something. You turned around wide eyed, heart pounding, just to see a silhouette standing behind you, holding a little metal lunchbox. It was a boy, shaggy curly hair down to right below his earlobes, Iron Maiden shirt, leather jacket and denim vest, dark loose jeans and heavy black boots.

"Dude, what the fuck" you panted, trying to not look as spooked and jumpy as you were "where did you came from?"

"Shit, sorry" he said, trying to hold back his laughter "didn't mean to scare ya, normally i don't run by anyone when i take this shortcut, though it has been a while since i actually used this shortcut — see, i usually drive mostly everywhere, but i ran out of gas money for the month and i thought 'hey, i could actually use a little walk through the woods to cool my head off a little' so i just decided to- whoa, wait, are you crying? I'm so sorry I didn't mean to scare you like that!" he stopped his rambling when he noticed you were drying your tears with the sleeve of your jacket.

"No, it's not- really, i'm fine" you panicked, noticing he seemed a little hurt by your reaction "i was already crying before you- sorry, it wasn't you, i'm fine don't worry"

He walked over to you and sat down beside you, a concerned look on his face.

"I don't wanna be nosy or anything, I know you don't really know me" he started, you now realizing you did recognise him from school, how could you not? He's always drawing attention to himself "but you can talk to me if you want. I'm guessing you were at Harrington's party? Everyone down there sitting at that circle in the backyard is kinda known for being a pain in the ass"

"What gave it away?" you brushed off your tears, slightly smiling at his comment "Just didn't wanna play truth or dare with… you know, those guys. But it seems they were glad I didn't join them, so they wouldn't have to kiss me if someone decided to play spin the bottle" 

"Wait, what?" he seemed surprised "They told you that?"

"Not exactly" you explained "I was at the kitchen and overheard someone saying that outside, so i bailed"

"What are you still doing here then?- Oh, I'm Eddie, by the way." he introduced himself, shaking your hand as you introduced yourself.

You explained the whole situation to him and he offered to keep you company until you could get your bike back and go home. After an hour of nonsense conversation filled with Eddie's dramatic sense of humor, you actually got to know each other a little bit. He told you about his band and how he really liked Lord of the Rings and fantasy RPG.

"I'm not really a huge fan of fantasy books" you shared, causing him to gasp, as he was offended by your comment.

"How dare you? Are you not a huge fan of happiness too? Or maybe you hate puppies and ice cream?" he said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "How can you not like the only way to escape this boring non-fictional world we are FORCED to live in?"

"Hey, don't get me wrong, I do like fiction. Just not... fantasy fiction."

"So what do you like then?"

"I really enjoy science fiction."

"What, like androids and shit?"

"No, not that kind of science fiction. I mean science fiction like... Clockwork Orange, or Flowers for Algernon."

"Oh so you're a nerd too!" he teased "I was almost buying all that 'not a nerd' act, but you're into Kubrick? That's so nerdy!"

"You do know Stanley Kubrick didn't write the book right?"

"Shut up, you know what I mean."

Once he started to talk about music, he just couldn't stop talking for a second. He told you about his band, and you felt as if he was the first person to ever understand your passion for music. After another 30 minutes or so of energetic conversation about how much you both liked 70s rock, he ended up telling you he only attended this kind of party to sell some weed and make a quick buck.

"Don't get me wrong, i fucking hate these people" he explained himself "but they ARE in fact my biggest costumers. Guess daddy's money might not be enough for them to feel loved, but it does buy whatever else they need to feel better about themselves. So, they always make sure I'm 'invited' to every party they want me to bring my little lunchbox to."

"Yeah, that makes sense i guess" you agreed, turning your head over to the backyard, people already heading inside due to the cold. You felt your heart sink, even though all you've been wanting was to take your bike and leave. You were actually really enjoying getting to talk to Eddie.

"Well, i guess this is it" he said, noticing as you watched everyone getting into the house "now you can go home and not listen to me and my rambling about whatever it is i was talking about. Hell, even i can't remember what the hell i was talking about most of the time" he laughed. 

"To be honest, it wasn't that bad" you laughed back "it was definitely better than spin the bottle!"

He chuckled, helping you get up and unchain your bike from the fence, giving you a dorky smile as you hopped up on your bike. 

"Well, I better get back to work huh? Got a lot of customers waiting on me" he gestured to the house as you secured your helmet under your chin.

"Yeah, I better get back home too. My aunt refuses to go to sleep until i get home safe, don't wanna keep her waiting"

"So, I guess I'll see you at school, huh?" he shifted at his feet and kicked the ground, stuffing his hands inside the pockets of his vest.

"Yeah, if there's any seats left for another nerd at your table for lunch" you chuckled awkwardly, looking at your feet.

"For a pretty one like you? Always."

You exchanged an awkward look and smiled at each other again, and with that you followed your way back home, feeling hopeful about how the next few weeks would play out. You thought you had finally found someone you could trust and spend time with, someone who got you — a friend.

For the next week or so, you and Eddie hung out a lot. Finally, you had someone you could call a friend, and things seemed to be going not so bad for the first time in months. He would always save you a seat at the table at lunch and walk you to your classes, he would even give you a ride every once in a while, when his van was not running out of gas. It was something you could get used to — at least until a couple of weeks later, when you, Nancy, Jonathan and Steve ended up trauma bonding over setting a demogorgon on fire. After that, your life had (literally) turned upside down and you didn't hang out with Eddie that much anymore. As the years went by, you would hang out more with Steve and Robin once Nancy and Jonathan started dating. You would still talk to Eddie though, just... not like you talked to your other friends. They were the only ones who actually understood what you were going through, and — even though you missed his company — it would be selfish to tell Eddie everything and drag him into that nightmare. Until of course, the nightmare caught up to him.

[reallyromealone]

Ok ok can you PLS do a part 2 of that ‘resilient’ Eddie fic I NEED to know what happens😭 (If your requests are open) -🥮

Title: resilient

Chapter: 2

Fandom: stranger things

Pairing: Eddie Munson x male reader

Warnings: mentions of rape, angst, omegaverse, mpreg, reader goes through it, breakdowns

Notes: this took way longer than expected

🌑🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘🌑🌒🌓🌔🌕🌖🌗🌘🌑

"uncle Steve!" (Sons name) giggled as he was lifted by the older alpha "you ready to hang out today!" Steve said to his god son who nodded "yeah!" The boy said as (name) handed Steve a cute backpack "you be good alright ducky?" (Name) squished his sons face playfully and kissed his forehead "I will!"

(name) was thankful for his dad, Hopp doing anything he could to help his grandkid and used the daycare that came with being the police chief for their kid till he gets to kindergarten.

Though Hopp would have liked if his kid and grandkid moved back with him, (name) would be able to save better.

"(Name) I know you want to be independent but think about saving money, that money can be used for anything (sons name) needs or wants" hopp reasoned with his son and (name) fidgeted with the mug "you really want me back don't you?" He asked quietly, the older man nodding at his pup and (name)s eyes watered "I just want my pup to be safe!" He said and Hopp felt his heart ache at his son and set the mugs down and held him close as (name) sobbed "don't worry (cute childhood nickname) I got you"

"We moving?" (Sons name) asked curiously as he sat in his grandpa's lap, hop letting the little guy take some of his fries, (name) letting his dad buy them dinner "I need some help so you guys will be moving with me, you think you can help me squirt?"

"Yeah!"

Eddie was a mess.

His... His sweet (name)...

"Holy shit dude, are you alright?!" Dustin wanted to gag at the smell of alcohol as Eddie sat on the floor, eyes tear stained "he was raped, he was raped and I just fucking treated him like shit" Eddie said emotionless as he stared off "he was pregnant with my kid, did you know that? No fucking doubt he's mine... He's literally me"

Dustin halted as Eddie let his head fall onto his knees, holding back a sob.

"I need to go to Hawkins..."

(Name) was banned from helping move their belongings, assigned to keeping his pup company and ordering lunch "papa get chicken chunk" (sons name) whispered and (name) smiled "sure baby" he added it to the order along with pizza, wings and drinks (and garlic bread for Robin). (Sons name) was excited to have a bigger room just for him, (name)s childhood room turned into the pups bedroom with a cool (cartoon/game) bedspread from his grandpa and (name) got the guest room, all his trinkets I'm there. "Chicken chunks? Aren't you already my little chicken chunk, half pint?" Hopp teased as the pup stuck his tongue out playfully at his grandpa, the adults smiling at this interaction.

Dinner, bath and bedtime were all it took as (name) sat alone in his bed staring up at his ceiling as the sound of the clock in the kitchen ticked.

Here he was.

Back Home, in his childhood home with his dad and pup.

Sitting up be walked to a small shoe box he brought in himself, opening it to reveal trinkets, photos and letters, picking up a photo of everyone together and happy as teens.

He glared at nancys annoying face, he saw her a few times around Hawkins when she visited family but never interacted with her and she didn't interact with him, she ruined his life and he kind of hoped she would drop dead.

(Name) didn't grocery shop with his son, he didn't need the boy hearing how people talk about him being a single parent, the snide comments and rude remarks as he tried to make himself invisible under the florescents as his sneakers tapped against the older linoleum.

"Did you hear? Eddie "the freak" Munson is back"

"Yeah, he's like super rich, maybe I can get a sugar daddy"

"But spending time with the freak? Is it worth it?"

(Name) froze as he looked at the nutritional values of two cereals, throat closing up at this information he heard.

Eddie was back?

Why?

He tried not to think about the letters, the emails and messages or the letter he had gotten in the mail a few days after the last email he sent from Eddie's lawyer's, threatening legal action if he doesn't stop trying to contact Eddie with the threat of a restraining order, he took that as Eddie's answer to the concept of meeting his son.

Snapped from his thoughts and continued his shopping, trying not to let anxiety flood him.

He was probably visiting his uncle, the uncle who despised (name) with every fiber of his being-- even publically shaming him for his "whorish behavior" when he saw (name) not long after the breakup, solemnly believing that the fetus inside of (name) was the product of his "cheating" thus till the rape investigation came to light and Eddie had long been gone from town everyone thought he was a cheating slut.

Yeah (name) totally toootally moved on from that, the Alpha who treated him like one of his own turning and Screaming at him to the point of (name) nearly drooping.

Totally...

He wonders if the band came with, thinking of how many people he has to avoid... He wonders if Dustin was with him.

His little sisters friend-- well once friend, Jane burning all communication with Dustin after the young beta made his bed.

He should call her sometime... The girl currently at university with his step brother Will, will was crushed that his best friends did that to (name) and just cut ties with the whole group-- save for Steve and Robin.

"(--me)" "(--ame)!"

"(NAME!)" (name) snapped to look around, when did he get home? The Omega was putting away groceries as his dad looked concerned "I take it you heard?"

"I- yeah... I did..." (Name) said meekly as he fiddled with a container of coffee "do you... Do you think you could pick up (sons name)? I need to start dinner" their code for "I really need time to process and don't have the capacity for anything else right now" and the older alpha pat his sons back "I got you bite size" he said as he went to go get his grandkid "you know no matter what, I got your back right? You can depend on your dad"

"Thanks dad..." (Name) said with a soft, sad smile before he was alone in the house to think.

"Maybe I should go on that blind date Robin was talking about"

[cacoetheswriting]

pearl: october 1985

pairing: eddie munson x fem!reader word count: 2.3k summary: rebuilding your friendship with eddie was easy. trying to remain just friends is hard, but how do you tell him that?

content warnings: best friends to lovers, slow burn, mutual pining, suggestive & mature themes, adult language, use of pet names, idiots in love, emotional hurt / comfort, self-doubt / insecurities, reader has nightmares - if i missed anything, pls let me know!

pearl masterlist

“Anything you need, you just call me, okay?” You say to the young girl, “No matter the time of day, no matter where you are or if you think you’ll be interrupting me, just call.”

“Thanks.” Eleven mutters and does her best to offer you a smile.

“You and I, we gotta stick together, El.” You pull her in for a short lived hug. “Only we know what this feels like and we gotta support each other.”

“I’ll call you. I promise,” she assures before walking over to say goodbye to her friends.

By the time the Byers’ house is empty, boxes and bags packed into the car, everyone is crying. There’s some more hugs and you watch them drive off, holding onto Nancy. Once the car is out of sight, Steve asks you both to come over, hang out with him and Robin for a bit. It’s a request you politely decline. Going through a rollercoaster of emotions this afternoon, there was only one place you truly wanted to be.

Things between Eddie and you were pretty much back to normal. Ever since the incident at Starcourt Mall, you two were inseparable. Everywhere you went, there the metalhead followed — as if he was afraid something would happen if you were apart.

Eddie only ever left you alone to sleep, but even then it was only a couple of nights a week. Convincing him to stay with you wasn’t hard, convincing him to share a bed with you was even easier, and having Eddie by your side most nights helped you not only fall asleep but also stay asleep.

The horrible dreams you had earlier this year of the Demodogs, as described to you by the kids, were nothing compared to the nightmares you had been having ever since the events from the start of July. Witnessing the horrors of the Upside Down first hand… no one could have prepared you for that. And now, almost every single night, you woke up panting or actually screaming.

The first time you had a nightmare around Eddie, you borderline gave him a heart attack. The poor boy jumped out of bed, ready to tackle whatever intruder he perceived had broken into your bedroom. What he found instead was you, sitting hunched over in your bed with tears streaming down your face.

To this day, you hadn't told the metalhead what actually happened the night of the 4th of July. You decided along with the rest of the group that it was better he didn’t know the truth. Not only was this your way of protecting him, you figured even if you did try to explain, Eddie probably wouldn’t believe you. 

So you lied and said you’d been having nightmares ever since your dad died and he was kind enough not to press on the matter further.

Life with Eddie was easy, it always had been. Aside from your persistent nightmares, you quickly slipped back into your best friend dynamic and the remainder of the summer was uneventful. Only your feelings for him grew stronger. Past the platonic mark you were hovering over when you left for college; when you first kissed him.

You didn’t know how to tell him or if you should say anything in the first place. After all, you just got your friendship back to what it used to be and you sure as hell weren’t going to be the one to jeopardise that. He had the letters. He read them. There was nothing more to it.

But Eddie Munson never made anything easy for you. With his lingering touches, heartwarming stares. If you didn’t know any better, you’d think he still loved you too.

And you say “still” because, even though the metalhead never admitted it out loud, you’re ninety-nine percent sure he once did — if the kiss you shared was any indication, however contrived it may have been, under the circumstances. 

“Say your goodbyes?” Eddie asks when you appear in his room. He’s sitting on his bed, legs spread out in front of him and a copy of Lord of the Rings in his hands. He sets the book to the side when you plop next to him, head instantly attaching itself to his shoulder like a magnet.

“Yeah,” you exhale, “I hate goodbyes.”

“Me too,” he mutters as he intertwines his fingers with yours. “But this time it’s for the best, you know? The girl needs to get away for a while. Honestly, I didn’t even know Hopper had a kid and then for him to just die in that fire, leaving her all alone—”

Eddie bites his tongue and glances down at you. “Let’s talk about something else,” he offers and you meet his gaze.

“Like what?”

He licks his lips, pondering the question for a moment. You can’t help but to avert your gaze to where his tongue pressed against his pretty mouth. A certain warm feeling settles in your core as you wonder what it would be like to kiss him.

“How about I read to you?”

You raise an eyebrow, but the metalhead doesn’t wait for your protest — not like he would’ve gotten one anyway. He reaches for the novel he previously set aside and opens to the desired page. He clears his throat while you settle your head back on his shoulder, patiently waiting for him to start.

“Beautiful she is, sir! Lovely! Sometimes like a great tree in flower, sometimes like a white daffadowndilly, small and slender like.” Eddie enunciates, the tone of his voice completely intoxicating.

“Hard as di’monds, soft as moonlight. Warm as sunlight, cold as frost in the stars. Proud and far-off as a snow-mountain, and as merry as any lass I ever saw with daisies in her hair in springtime…”

Every word that spills from his lips is like honey and you’re completely hooked.

“It strikes me that folk takes their peril with them into Lorien, and finds it there because they’ve brought it. But perhaps you could call her perilous, because she’s so strong in herself.”

Eddie pauses. You can sense him shift in his position ever so slightly to look at you, so you look up to meet his doe eyes, a smile creeping up on your features.

“Why did you stop? Keep going.”

He licks his lips although doesn’t say what’s on his mind. Instead, he continues with the book like you ask. “You, you could dash yourself to pieces on her, like a ship on a rock; or drownd yourself, like a hobbit in a river.”

And as he reads, you start to zone out. You can feel yourself drift away. The soothing sound of his voice is putting you to sleep, but just as your eyes are about to close, you hear something.

“But neither rock nor river would be to blame—”

You press your index finger to Eddie’s mouth, getting him to stop. He’s clearly puzzled, quickly taking it in his hand, moving it to the side, only so slightly since the sensation of your skin against his lips makes his heart skip a beat. But he doesn’t dwell on the feeling, afraid to ruin things when they’ve just gotten good, instead shooting you a quizzical look.

“Thought you wanted me to keep going, princess.”

You ignore him. “Can you hear that?”

Eddie’s silent for a split second. Then he says, “Oh, that’s just Wayne. He must have the radio on.”

“Yeah, obviously. I’m talking about the song that’s playing.”

The two of you shift your attention to the door separating Eddie’s bedroom from the remainder of the trailer, though still holding onto one another in some way. The physical touch making up for time lost, you tell yourself, but the reason is clearly much different.

Now that you’re both completely quiet, the unmistakable voice of Janis Joplin seeps in through the small crack. ‘From the Kentucky coal mine to the California sun. There Bobby shared the secrets of my soul.’

You look back at each other almost in an instant and Eddie chuckles, your own giggle follows shortly after. Lighthearted and pure. The situation isn’t necessarily funny, but in this moment, you are both so happy to simply be around each other, the laughter engulfs you whole. And as you’re laughing, you’re inclining even closer to one another.

Then the laughter dies down.

Eddie’s cupping your cheek while your fingers wrap around his wrist, holding him in place. His nose slides down the side of yours and his lips are inches away as they part. Yet it’s not until his hot breath sends a shiver down your spine that you realise what’s about to happen, and more importantly, how much you want it. You’re practically aching with anticipation.

Eddie’s got this look in his eyes, dark and needy. His pupils dilate the longer he stares and it makes you think he wants you too, desperately. You inhale softly, mind racing ‘cause this is a line that you only crossed once back in November and ever since then, you’ve been dancing around the topic, unspoken, untouched. Crossing it again had many possible outcomes — all equally terrifying and exhilarating.

His gaze drops to your lips and your heart flutters in your chest.

“Can I kiss you?”

It’s a whisper, but you hear it as loud as screaming. The question rattles through every fibre of your being and you nod, once, twice. Slow and steady, as you open your mouth to give him a verbal answer.

But before you get a chance, there’s a knock on Eddie’s bedroom door and he drops his hand from your face instantly before pulling away. He clears his throat and suddenly you’re hyper-aware of your surroundings ‘cause he slides off the bed completely avoiding eye contact, completely avoiding the question he’s just asked.

“Yeah?” Eddie calls out, getting up on his feet.

Wayne bops his head in, not fully opening the door. He glances between the two of you, a knowing smirk circling his moustache-covered lips, before his eyes settle on his nephew.

“Headin’ out for a little while. Need anythin’?”

Eddie says no, answering for the two of you. Wayne nods his head and following a swift goodbye, telling you both to be good, he disappears just as fast as he made his appearance. Door closing with a gentle thud.

An awkward silence settles in the air once you are alone with the metalhead again. 

Eddie scratches the back of his neck, gaze settling on the hem of your skirt, where the material ends and your bare leg starts. He swallows his breath, Adam’s apple bobbing. You watch your best friend attentively, afraid of being the first one that speaks. Afraid of asking what’s on his mind, if he wants to continue what you both started before you were unexpectedly interrupted.

That’s not to say the metalhead also wasn’t spinning out, ‘cause he most definitely was. His quiet demeanour was specifically to cover up the fact that he didn’t know what to say now that the moment was gone. 'Cause it was gone... right?

Can I kiss you?, his earlier question rattles inside his brain. Eddie thinks you would’ve said yes, after all, you were nodding. But if he asked again now, would you still want to do it? Would you let him kiss you?

Jesus, why was he so bad at this.

“Uhm,” he sighs, leaning against the edge of his desk. “I-I… Fuck, princess, I-I don’t want to do anything to ruin what we just got back.”

He finally looks up to meet your gaze. “I really, really don’t.”

“I don’t either, Eds.” You say to him and hope he can detect the honesty in your voice, knees now pressed to your chest, arms wrapped tightly around them. “We lost a lot of time.”

“That we did,” he agrees.

“I feel guilty about it.”

“Me too.”

He stares at you, brown-eyes full of sorrow. Your heart aches at the sad, puppy-dog face he’s sporting. All you want is to reach for him, but you’re frozen in place. Glued to the bed, holding your own limbs. And it’s moments like these that make you want to take back everything that’s happened this last year. The kiss, the fight, the months of not speaking. Take back the things that have now become topics you haven’t really talked about. Topics that you both brushed over, then brushed under the carpet.

You know it’s bad to hold shit in, but avoidance has been a third-party in your friendship with Eddie pretty much from day one.

“So, what do you wanna do, princess?” Eddie asks, hopeful.

“We can just take it day by day, I guess. I mean, I know how I feel about you,” you answer honestly, “I also know that it’s a scary world out there and I’d rather have you as just a friend than nothing at all.”

A smile breaks through the brunette’s features. He stumbles forward, settling back on the bed next to you with a small bounce. He reaches for your hand, forcing his fingers between your knuckles and squeezing gently. You tilt your head and he matches your movements, pretty eyes meeting yours.

“I know how I feel about you too, princess.”

pearl masterlist

& tagging some cool people that expressed interest in this lil series: @cactusangie , @spenciesprincess , @capitanostella , @ashlynnkennedy , @ms1oftheboys

[livwritesstuff]

Okay so, do you headcannon any of the girls as also being LGBTQ? If so which one (s)

yeah i've put a normal amount of thought into this? hopefully?

mostly because, as an lgbtq person who was surrounded entirely by straight adults, I sometimes wonder how being raised by queer people affects your perception of being queer yourself. if any of y’all were raised by lgbtq people, pls weigh in because i’d truly love your input, but i have to imagine that at a minimum, you might have a totally different view of sexuality in general. it might not be a whole thing or whatever for them to date girls as well as or instead of boys because not only are they being raised by two dads, but they're also close with their aunts Robin and Nancy, and practically half of their other aunts and uncles are queer in some capacity too, so being lgbt was never "out of the norm" for them.

i also think that “psychology guy”-steve took a “psych of gender” class in college (it actually would probably have been called something like “women’s psych” at the time but the coursework would be the same-ish) that changed his entire life, and he made sure that he and eddie weren’t raising their daughters to fall into those gender role traps. The girls played with toy trains and cars as much as they played with their pretend kitchen, didn’t get scolded for roughhousing unless someone was getting injured for real, and were always allowed to explore whatever interests they wanted without any regard for whether or not it was a "girl thing".

All in all, I think the girls just go through life liking who they like and not making the who part of it a big deal.

Anyway, to answer your actual question –

Moe is gay. 100%. Also – anyone who read this and caught a vibe between her and Gray. Y’all are spot on. I don’t think they’d date in high school though; it’d be more like the situation in this tiktok.

I feel like Robbie is the kid who tried on different labels like hats in high school, but once she hit her college years and mellowed out a little bit, she landed on ol’ reliable queer and stuck with it. She does date cis men, and could probably label herself pansexual if she wanted to, but she’s also pretty much the physical embodiment of this tiktok trend, so it’s rare for her to find a guy she can tolerate dating longer than a month (much to Steve and Eddie’s relief).

Also, if any of them experience any kind of gender fuckery, it's probably Robbie, but again, her dads never made gender a big deal growing up so she kind of just rides the wave of it as it comes (and plays around with her gender expression quite a bit – Frankie from Better Things vibes perhaps?)

I’m on the fence about Hazel. She could def give femme lesbian energy, but I also v much enjoy the idea of Steve and Eddie sweating over finding out she has a boyfriend. Bisexual maybe? idk idk i’ll keep you updated

[jadeylovesmarvelxo]

The Trouble With Love

Part One 🌸❤️

Based on an idea I had a couple of days ago ❤️🌸

Steve Harrington x Reader fic where he's married to Nancy but the fantasy he had in his head many years ago doesn't transpire and he's deeply unhappy as is she.

Both are too stubborn to admit anything is wrong. He's fine Dustin stop being a butthead okay?

Jonathan is around all the time and so are you... His next-door neighbour and his goddaughter's (Robin and Vickie's kid) preschool teacher who he can't stop running into, arguing with or thinking about.

Steve is 33, reader is in her 20's

Warnings; Angst, trouble in paradise, a bucket load of sexual tension.

Part one, possible series ☺️💕

Lmk if you want to be tagged x

I don't give anyone permission to copy, repost my work.

If you enjoyed this pls consider liking or reblogging.

💕

It was quiet this morning, too quiet, Steve didn't like when it got too quiet because the thoughts he so easily pushed aside came rushing to the surface.

Thoughts about Nancy and their marriage and the hopeless sense of despair he had been feeling for months maybe even longer now.

After a few years away from Hawkins with Nancy becoming a well-known journalist and Steve staying in Hawkins with Robin to help rebuild the town after its destruction by Vecna and The Upside Down's defeat, he and Nancy met again and took a second chance at dating.

This time things worked out at least for the first few years. Nancy's ambition grew bigger and bigger while Steve did his best to support her even though his dreams of discussing starting a family were out on hold again.

He had that fantasy, the perfect fantasy of him and Nancy with six lil nuggets in the summertime, on a road trip in a Winnebago.

He told Nancy that years ago and he was still hopeful that could happen. He was thirty-three and they had time to do it.

Well, maybe not six lil nuggets but even a few would be nice because Steve had always envisioned a big family for himself.

It's just he wished Nancy took his dreams seriously such as he did for her.

He grew up as an only child with a mother and father who thought throwing money his way for several years constituted as them being attentive.

The truth was he spent more time with nanny's and his grandmother than his parents and he knew that when he had kids he wanted to make sure they knew how loved and treasured they were.

He never wanted them to feel lonely as he did, in truth the only decent thing his father did for him now was get him a great job in his company, flex hours, benefits, amazing pay.

When a child did finally come along then he would be able to stay at home as much as he possibly could.

The thoughts of how he was going to broach the subject again to Nancy was fully in his mind once more but the phone ringing caught his attention.

It was Robin "Hey dingus, can you pick up Anna for me? Have to take Vickie to an emergency dentist appointment and she's fteaking out incase we're late to pick Anna up"

This brightens his mood considerably, he adored his goddaughter.

"Yeah, sure Rob, I'll pick her up" Robin briefs a sigh of relief.

"Thanks, Steve, I owe you one" With a click she's gone and he heads to Hawkins Preschool to pick up Anna.

His good mood lasts until he sees you, Anna's teacher and his next-door neighbour who drove him crazy.

Anna adored you and called you Miss Smiley because you were always happy, smiling and saccharine sweet to everyone in Steve's opinion.

It irritated Steve to no end because you weren't sweet as pie to him, you called him out on his bullshit all the time, and he had never known anyone to get under his skin quite like you did.

He reaches the preschool with time to spare and finds you and Anna waiting outside, she's holding your hand and babbling excitedly to you, there's a big grin on your face as you listen to Anna indulgently.

"Good afternoon, Mr Harrington," you say sweetly and he scowls because being called Mr Harrington makes him feel like his dad or some shit.

"It's Steve" he reminds you for the umpteenth time and you look all innocent and sweet but he's sure you're doing it to annoy him.

"Uncle Steve" Anna beams giving him a toothy smile and hugging his legs, his heart melts and the ache for a child of his own grows even more.

"Hi, Anna Banana, how's my best girl?" she shows him the drawing he did. A picture of him, Robin and Robin.

"See Mama, mama, and you" She beams and he picks her up and hugs her close, all his stress melting away for a second due to the picture.

It's all squiggles mostly but there are two figures holding hands, Robin and Vickie and then there's Steve, he identifies himself through the vast amount of hair that Anna has drawn.

"I love it, sweetheart" he assures her and he catches your eye surprised to see you smiling at him, genuinely.

"She got a gold star today for that drawing, well all the kids did but Anna's was a personal favourite" he cocks his eyebrow curious.

"Oh yeah?" you nod and gesture to the picture.

"Captured your hair and pose perfectly" pose?

"Mama!" Anna squeals and he sees Robin coming out of her car. She beams at him gratefully and takes Anna from him.

"Vickie said to catch up with you and invite you to dinner tomorrow. It's pizza night" That goes down well with Anna who claps excitedly.

"Yay! Pizza" He nods confirming this with Robin then turns back to you annoyed.

"What pose? I don't pose" you chuckle and Robin watches the both of you amused as Vickie comes to get Anna to take her to the car.

"Oh you know it's kinda like a scolding dad, hands-on-hips, I'm so over this shit look" His eyes widen and he hears Robin stifle her laughter.

"I do not... He realises he's doing the very same pose she was talking about and rolls his eyes. Great.

Robin realising that the two of them could argue for hours wisely decides to head to the car and go home.

She will hear all about it from Steve later, she always does.

Can you believe that yn said this? She's such a brat? Do you all believe this Miss Smiley shit? I can't stand her.

Lather rinse repeat. Blah blah blah. For someone he couldn't stand, he talked about you enough.

It did take his mind off him and Nancy though and while Nancy was her friend Steve was her platonic soulmate and she knew that his and Nancy's marriage wasn't as perfect as they tried to portray.

There were too stubborn to admit any problems and it didn't help that Jonathan was back in Hawkins again.

Dustin had tried to get through to Steve as well but Steve would insist nothing was wrong.

"I'm fine Dustin don't be a butthead" is all he would say, she wishes she could help but until Steve admitted there was a problem what could she do?

💕

"You need to relax a little you know Mr Harrington, stress isn't good for you, plus the kids pick up on it" you tell him.

He looks at you like you've grown two heads and counts to three to tame his irritation but it doesn't work.

"I am relaxed. It's you that drives me crazy, just cut the shithead antics yeah?" You're quiet and he turns away then you speak again.

"Yes, sir" It's a little taunt, teasing and he freezes at the sir. Freezes because the sir goes straight to his cock and he feels a wave of guilt wash over him.

What was this? You were irritating and nosey and he couldn't stand you and he had Nancy! He storms away from you and vows to stay far away from your annoying sweet smile.

💕💕

Nancy is back once he gets in from work, also Jonathan Byers's car is parked in their driveway and he puts a smile on his face not wanting to fight.

Jonathan is showing Nancy some of his photos of his various trips around America, and the two of them are laughing and drinking wine.

Jonathan gets up and picks up his jacket giving him a small smile.

"I better go, I'll see you later" Nancy nods and see him out, when she comes back inside she gives him a quick kiss.

"I've got some papers to write. Do you want takeout for dinner?" he nods and pulls off his jacket.

"Just spent some time with Anna, she drew the cutest picture, Nance" Nancy smiles at this and he feels his heart thump nervously as he broaches the subject of kids.

It's been a long time since they talked about it.

"Hey, Nance? It would be nice if we could think about having a little nugget huh?" she sighs and runs her hand through her hair.

"Not now Steve, I'm getting really far with this new story and I don't have any time to take off for maternity or even think about the amount of childcare we would need to think of" his heart sinks because it's the same thing she said almost a year ago.

"Right okay" He nods and she rolls her eyes.

"Don't do that okay, don't make me feel bad about it okay? I don't need you pressuring me" he gapes.

"Pressure you? We talked about it last year Nance! I barely bring it up because you get like this. You know having kids is a big dream of mine, you've always known that.

"I support every dream of yours 110% but mine? You just dismiss them." she shakes her head.

"You know what? This is bullshit. You're bullshit and I don't have time for this" she picks up her jacket and storms out.

"Nance wait!" she's gone before he can apologise or say anything to stop her.

💕

He heads into the garden just to take a minute, the argument with Nancy firmly in his mind.

The pain he's feeling is intense and he's so tired of the arguments, he massages his head feeling sick to his stomach.

"Are you okay?" he looks up and finds you standing near his fence. Your eyes are full of concern and he nods.

"I'm fine" He pinches the bridge of his nose to stop the tears from coming, a minute or so later he hears his gate open.

When he looks up you're beside him, and the alarm is written all over your face, you gently place an arm on his shoulder.

"Steve" your voice is kind and he's startled that you've called his name and not Mr Harrington.

"It's uh, just Nance and I have been arguing a lot, it's nothing" but that wasn't true when they were getting to the point that they argued frequently, that something was breaking between them.

"I'm sorry, really I am," you tell him sincerely and he is grateful. It's nice to have someone with him, it's nice not to feel this crushing heartache alone.

It feels like his whole life is falling apart and he doesn't know what to do. He would never ask Nancy to give up her dreams but would she want him to give up his?

Why couldn't they find some compromise?

"I want kids and Nancy is really focused on work which is amazing, I'm so proud of her it's just... She knows how I feel about having a family and yet when I bring it up she shuts down like there's no hope of a compromise or anything"

You don't say anything you just stay with him and after a minute or so passes you gently tug on his shirt.

"You look like you could use a hug and I've been known to give good ones" you suggest and Steve thinks that sounds pretty great, he could use a friend right now.

Your arms wrap around him and he finds comfort in your embrace for a moment, there's a weird tension in the air though and it makes him nervous and he pulls away giving you a soft smile.

"Thanks" He squeezes your shoulder and he heads back inside confusion racing through his mind.

💕💕

When you head inside your house your heartbeat is just returning to normal.

This couldn't happen you couldn't focus on these feelings for Steve. It was so stupid and reckless and for goodness sake, he was married!!

Nothing could happen between the two of you, you really needed to get over this stupid crush.

It wasn't like he liked you anyway. Even if he wasn't married he found you annoying, he said so himself.

Why did you have to be attracted to someone who was completely unavailable? It made you feel like an idiot and just very low.

It was imperative that you needed to get over this crush before you ended up very hurt.

💕💕

[spicysix]

anywhere u go

Argyle had no idea the living nightmare he was getting himself into when he first decided to follow Jonathan Byers. Well, he'd do it again in a heartbeat anyway.

rating: T

warnings: this fic includes weed, the teeniest hint of ptsd, questionable informations about the united states' AND the canadian's geography from a brazilian writer (so, probably, mistakes. look past them pls), also questionable english by a brazilian writer not beta-read, weather as a metaphor, and subtle pining.

word count: 5.6k

author's note: title from the song of the same name by Tove Lo. written for Lex's Spicy Six Summer Fanwork Challenge, for the dialogue prompt “I’m really glad we did this”. thanks for hosting this amazing event @thefreakandthehair ♡

↳ read on ao3

If someone asked him, Argyle wasn’t sure he’d be able to retell the whole thing.

And, sure, maybe you could blame the weed a little bit. He might have partaken in it a few times here or there during the whole thing. It was right there in the van! How could he say no? Not at any of the big moments, though, of course not. He’s a stoner, not an idiot. He only smoked twice on the road when Jonathan was the one driving, that hotbox he did with Eden, beautiful goth goddess of his dreams, and once to prepare the pizza during the whole freezer piggyback thing (he likes being high when working in the kitchen okay, don’t go away judging). When they got to Hawkins, he only collected mushrooms, didn’t do them. He didn’t even have the time.

It wasn’t any kind of substance that made the next few weeks go by hazily.

It was just too much.

Chaos was installed when they arrived in Hawkins. Earthquakes had ripped open wounds into the soil of the small town — living, squeamish, bleeding wounds. Argyle learned later they were portals to the dimension under their own, where all the problems surrounding his friend’s family came from in the first place.

People were missing and hurt, some even died with the way the gates tore through houses and buildings, and the mood around Hawkins as they drove through it was rightfully sour.

Jonathan drove to his girlfriend’s house, some other people were already there and it was a beautiful reunion, it really was, but Argyle felt out of place. They parted ways after, and the ones that had been there already headed to the High School to drop some donations — except for Nancy, who went inside the van and into the passenger seat as if she owned it.

It had been Argyle’s.

But it was okay, he stayed in the back with the kiddos.

They went to the hospital, one of them — the one Supergirl had mentally piggybacked on — was hurt and in a coma. Argyle waited in the van as the rest of them went in to see her — he didn’t know her, didn’t want to invade their space.

After the visit they headed to an old cabin in the woods, abandoned, destroyed, pieces of its ceiling missing. Jonathan said Supergirl used to live there with her dad, the dead cop, and while they all reconnected and cleaned up the place, Argyle found those mushrooms that he didn’t use.

Didn’t even have the time to, because suddenly it was snowing ashes and he found his friend and his friend’s family — including his mom and a tall skinny bald guy, where did they come from? — looking over the city from the hill and the open field, and the flowers were dead and there was smoke coming from the place where all the portals met downtown.

Too much happening at the same time, and suddenly Jonathan was grabbing Argyle’s wrist and pulling him back to the van, “let’s go get the others, oh and by the way the tall skinny bald guy is the dead cop, oh and by the way my mom went to the Soviet Union to rescue him, oh and by the way the world is ending.”

So they went back to the hospital, to warn the siblings that were keeping watch over the comatose redhead, but they didn’t wanna join them back. Told Jonathan to reach through the walkies if he needed them.

So they went to the school, found the pretty guy and the cute girl that looked and acted like siblings plus the small curly one, pretty guy told them all they could go to his house cause it was big and clean and empty and they could use it as headquarters. Nancy shivered at the suggestion, her jaw tensed and Jonathan looked at her with caution, but they all agreed anyway.

So they went to pretty guy’s house, it really was big and clean and empty — all sadly so. The ones coming from California took their much needed showers, un-dead cop called a friend of his and told him to come meet them, the kids reached out to the siblings in the hospital to let them know where they all were.

It was too much.

Argyle set the water of his shower to the coldest temperature he could bare to try and shock some sense into himself. Looked at his reflection in the mirror and if it wasn’t him, he wouldn’t know all the shit that guy went through that last week. Government agents dying in his work van that he ended up stealing, a superpowered girl he helped rescue, an evil dimension with an evil wizard, people in comas and people coming back from the dead, gates to the underworld burning through a small town — and how he got roped into all of that by following a friend across the country.

He’d say he was a pretty good friend at that point.

He waited in the living room with the others as everyone went through rotations of showers, and cute girl made him a sandwich and it was nice of her, Little Byers sat by his side cause he was one of the only people who knew Argyle, and it was nice of him. When Jonathan arrived all cleaned up and smelling soapy, he sat by Argyle’s other side and Argyle felt himself relax if only a little.

They waited until un-dead cop’s friend showed up, and for some reason he showed up with two other Russian guys and a government lady and oh boy was Argyle even more confused.

Everyone took their turns retelling their own stories and gluing all the pieces together, and it was a somber story, it was bad as a horror movie and Argyle kind of wanted to throw himself out the window and get in the first bus back to California but he had no one there and in here he at least had the Byers. They were a good family, the closest to one Argyle had. So he stuck around through the puzzle.

Once in a while they referenced something that had happened in the years before and Argyle didn’t get the references because he hadn’t been there but he was sure Jonathan could fill him in later. Or he wouldn’t, and Argyle wouldn’t mind that either because it would at least save him from nightmares.

There had been losses, some friend of theirs in Hawkins — small curly one seemed to be the most affected by it, and Supergirl’s boyfriend was also really upset when he learned the news. Besides him, other three teenagers were victims of the evil wizard, plus their friend who survived but was in a coma.

On their side, a doctor dead and a doctor missing — apparently captured by the side of the government that was trying to kill Supergirl, that government lady said. Not her side trying to kill Supergirl. Another side. But apparently the doctors could help and it was relevant to know about their situation. The parents didn’t seem to agree a lot, and neither did Supergirl.

Un-dead cop’s friend made a joke about how at least on their side only bad commies had died, but the joke didn’t land. They weren’t in a nice mood for jokes.

It was too much, everyone talking about terrible things happening and talking over each other and Argyle’s head was about to explode in pain so at some point when they were all going through the timeline for the third time, he escaped and headed outside through the front door.

Jonathan found him after a couple of minutes.

“Is this too much?” he asked, and Argyle nodded. “I’m sorry. Wish we could smoke right now,” he said.

Argyle hummed, “It’s gonna look real unprofessional of us if we do, though, right?”

“It really will.” Jonathan chuckled, but it was dry and humorless.

They just stood there in silence for a few minutes, and Argyle’s fingers were trembling a little and maybe it was abstinence, probably was, but the clouds were fucking red and the smoke still made ashes rain down and it was terrifying.

“We should go inside,” Jonathan said after a while.

Argyle sighed and followed him in.

Over the next week they all hung out almost exclusively in pretty boy’s house (pretty boy’s name was Steve, Argyle learned. He dated Nancy before Jonathan did. They had a weird thing going on) and planned for the next step they’d take into, hopefully for the last time, saving the world. Well, it was Argyle’s first, but it still counted right. The kids called their parents and they all seemed to trust the old teens to be good babysitters even during the apocalypse, plus Ms. Byers and the un-dead cop were of course to be trusted.

Argyle was mostly tuned out of everything, but that was okay, firstly because he was the last one to join the mess and didn’t know the details as well as the rest of them, and it wasn’t a good use of their time to explain it to Argyle time and time again when they could be plotting strategies. So Argyle took over pretty boy Steve’s kitchen and kept his battalion fed and strong for battle.

The other reason he kept tuned out was, of course, so he wouldn’t freak the fuck out.

Keeping himself entertained with cooking — and, not going to lie, a little weed here and there when they found it — was the only thing still keeping him from that original plan of throwing himself out the window and catching the first bus back to California.

Sometimes the rest of the Party — as they called themselves, what a weird bunch — would help or at least keep him company. Un-dead cop’s friend (un-dead cop was Hopper, friend was Murray) was a great cook as Argyle already knew from that risotto, but he was also really weird and gave Argyle the creeps. Ms. Byers kept telling him to call her Joyce, tried her best in the kitchen and her food wasn’t bad, but it also wasn’t good. He liked talking to her, though. Cute girl — pretty boy Steve’s platonic soulmate, Robin — was real funny and a delight to talk to, but a fire hazard personified and not allowed near the stove. Steve could bake some mean breakfast and he was also really cool, Argyle didn’t know why Jonathan was so adamant about keeping a grudge.

“You’d like Eddie, he was a dealer,” Steve said one night as they sat in the backyard staring at the pool and smoking what was left of Argyle’s purple palm tree delight. “And he for sure would like you, and this.” Steve waved the joint around before handing it back to Argyle. Steve’s smile was sad, and Argyle hadn’t known the guy so he didn’t know how to feel or what to say. So they just kept smoking.

Nancy was how Argyle found out about the whole story between her, Jonathan and Steve — and Argyle understood partly why Jonathan held a grudge. Steve was a nice guy now though, Nancy said and Argyle knew it was true because they talked and smoked a lot late at nights, but it wasn’t his place to tell Jonathan how to feel about his girlfriend’s ex who called him slurs, physically fought him and then saved his life more than once. It was a tough spot, alright.

The kids were something else. He barely saw the siblings — Lucas Erica, the ones at comatose redhead’s, Max, bedside. They were, all three of them, constantly brought up, though, and it almost made it seem like they were there all the time. The small curly one, Dustin, seemed to think he was touched by god’s wisdom at all times, and it could be funny but it could also be a little annoying. He was pretty Steve’s favorite, though. That was interesting. Little Byers (Will) and Mike — Supergirl’s now ex-boyfriend — had something going on but Argyle wasn’t sure if he wanted to know what. Jonathan went grumpy anytime they were together, and his older brother protective act was amusing.

Supergirl — Jane, El — was Argyle’s favorite though, and there was no competition there. She was weird and tiny and badass and adorable and a huge menace, not only in the way that she could literally blow things up with her mind, but because she could be a little troublemaker kid in the best way a kid should be a troublemaker in. She was sweet and delicate and just so fucking little, and her shoulders were too tiny to hold all the weight they carried, so Argyle did his best to bake her the frozen waffles she loved, told her funny exaggerated stories so she’d laugh, gave her tight hugs whenever she needed them. It was sad that she needed them a lot. But she always thanked him and told him his hugs were the best hugs ever, so he’d hug her once again before letting her go. He liked that she smiled a lot near him. The world owed her more smiles, and he was glad to take that task.

Jonathan did his best to make Argyle feel like he was part of it all. Argyle wasn’t so sure if he even wanted to be a part of it all in the first place, but since he was dragged to it without any other option, he was glad he at least had Jonathan by his side. He chose to pair up with Argyle when they were assigned guest bedrooms in Steve’s big house so Argyle wouldn’t be alone, even if he could be with Nancy. He never scolded Argyle for smoking because he knew Argyle did it to cope, to calm down, to get less stressed and anxious — and he knew the situation was stressing and anxiety-inducing as hell. He never complained if Argyle didn’t participate in their planning sessions because he knew Argyle’s lack of previous knowledge would probably just slow them down, and once during the night he said he’d do anything to leave Argyle as out of it as he could, that he felt guilty for bringing Argyle into all of it in the first place.

Argyle blamed him, it really was kind of Jonathan’s fault, but he also forgave him.

He forgave him the second after it all happened.

He would probably follow Jonathan anyway even if he knew beforehand where he was headed to.

He followed Jonathan into the final battle against that slimy, evil, twisted, disgusting son of a bitch. He followed Jonathan with homemade armor and homemade weapons, and a courage he didn’t really have. He followed Jonathan, El, Will, and Joyce — and all the rest of their weird, codependent, brought together by disasters, wrecked and beautiful found family. He was stuck with them now forever, he knew it. He wasn’t complaining. They were his family now, too.

But that specific day, that was the one that was the most blurred out. Maybe it was a coping mechanism that his fucked up brain came up with to give him a rest, or maybe it was his brain too fucked up from all the weed usage, but he was glad either way. If someone asked him, Argyle was sure he wouldn’t be able to retell the whole thing.

It was way too much. He was glad he didn’t remember.

They were all alive and sore and bruised and hurt after it, and they all still stayed in Steve’s big house — to make sure they were all together if it wasn’t really over, and because they healed better as a pack. The government lady had found her lost doctor sometime in the middle of it all, and the whole Party got some good deals out of everything. Argyle wasn’t even going to be sued by Surfer Boy Pizza for stealing a company van. He actually got to keep it, and he took out the surfboard from the roof, took out all the company stickers, cleaned it up real good and it ended up looking like a regular beautiful yellow van where no man had ever died inside.

El seemed to have lost her powers for good this time, but she was relieved. Will was never haunted by the creepy chills in the back of his neck again. Max woke up, and she was blind and would probably never walk again, but she was so grateful. Argyle cooked her favorite food — information provided by El — when she was released from the hospital, and of course she was led straight to Steve’s house. She didn’t know Argyle before the apocalypse almost took her away, but she thanked him with a beautiful crooked smile of a girl who defeated death, and everyone surrounded her with love and warmth and everything was almost perfect. They were acting like the kids they were. They were allowed to, now. The only thing they’d have to worry about from now on was school and homework, the occasional regular teenage problems. No more evil scientists, no more evil wizards, no more evil dimensions. Just, a bad grade in Latin, or having an unrequited crush, a pimple in the middle of their foreheads. Argyle was so happy for them.

Jonathan and the rest of the older ones also got to go back to normal. Steve and Robin’s only worry was finding a new job. Nancy and Jonathan finally talked it out and resolved their issues — by breaking up. Nancy would go to Emerson, Boston, as she wished, and Jonathan didn’t want to and it was fine. They had grown too much, apart from each other in the few months they were away. They didn’t need to be each other’s grounding points anymore, because they could find other people and find themselves and worry about regular young adult stuff like a bad grade in Journalism 101 or the fact they were out of weed or photographic film.

Jonathan wanted to go to New York.

Argyle could get on the first bus back to California, but he had no one there and that was okay, because here he had Jonathan. Jonathan, who Argyle crossed the country for, who Argyle walked into Hell for, who Argyle would probably follow anywhere.

So Jonathan decided to go to New York, and Argyle decided to follow him.

They took the renewed regular yellow van where no man had ever died, belts buckled in for the first time ever because they valued their lives a whole lot now. They took an atlas from Robin’s collection, a few pre-rolled joints Steve bought from god knows who, a bunch of snacks the kids gathered for them, clothes they borrowed because they ran away from California with no bags, and a tight hug from each and every one of their weird, codependent, brought together by disasters, wrecked and beautiful found family.

They took the I-69 to Indy, the I-70 to Pittsburgh, the I-76 to Philadelphia, and the I-95 to New York. Twenty hours on the road was nothing considering it took them three days to get from middle-of-bumfuck-nowhere (Nevada) to middle-of-bumfuck-nowhere (Indiana). They took turns driving, stopped for gas and lunch and dinner and a smoke session, slept in the back of the van in a parking lot until they weren’t high anymore, arrived in New York as the sky was pouring down on the city.

“The rain is nice,” Jonathan commented as he looked through the window in the passenger seat.

It hadn’t rained in Hawkins ever since the world almost ended. No matter how many times they showered, bathed, scrubbed all the grime and dirt and blood away, sometimes it still felt like they weren’t clean. The town was definitely still dirty.

“The rain is nice,” Argyle agreed.

They kept driving around, they got trapped in traffic, they got screamed and horned at, they laughed back because it felt nonsensical to be mad about cars in streets. They stopped at a diner, ate a bunch of eggs sunny side up, to counter the weather, watched the regulars and the waitresses and the cook in their routines, and they smiled at each other because it was so nice to see normal things for once. People living their normal lives. Not a single one of them aware that the two weird kids in the corner booth almost died so they could be spilling coffee on the counter and getting their mouths dirty with grease.

They asked for a cheap recommendation on a place they could rest, drove a little more, got a little more trapped in traffic, got a little more yelled and horned at, until they found the shitty motel that the waitress promised was decently cleaned no matter how fucked up it looked on the outside. But their expectations bar wasn’t high, anyway. They had two beds, separated by a tiny nightstand table, and they fell asleep turned to face each other, curtains open and bathroom lights on because the darkness couldn’t be trusted.

Next day emerged with the clouds all gone, the weirdest of contrasts, and a chilly wind kept throwing Argyle’s hair to all sides and Jonathan kept looking at him with a soft smile whenever it whipped his pale skin. They left the van in the motel and walked and walked and walked until their feet hurt, had no idea where they were going and no exact place to go to, a joint shared and their fingers touched and their mouths wrapped around the same paper. It was nothing, and it was everything.

They watched people passing by, everyone in such a hurry, people scowling and people smiling and people somehow with their expressions completely neutral. People living their normal lives, not a single one of them aware that the two weird kids walking shoulder to shoulder almost died so they could be running to catch the subway or signing for a cab to stop.

They managed to get back to the motel, took their showers, scrubbed scrubbed scrubbed and still felt unclean, collapsed on their separate beds again, turned to face each other, curtains open, bathroom lights left on.

Jonathan wanted to go to NYU.

Ever since he was six years old, he told Argyle. The Tisch Photography program was a big one, his dream ever since he had a bowl cut worst than Will’s, when his father was still home and his mom wasn’t overprotective because none of them knew monsters existed just under their feet.

Jonathan’s eyes gleamed as he spoke about the university, so Argyle offered and Jonathan agreed, and the next day Jonathan hopped on a subway train and Argyle followed him.

The subway was too much, Argyle noticed. He shared a look with Jonathan over someone else’s shoulder and knew they were thinking the same.

They went south south south to Greenwich Village with its pretty brownstones and its artsy students roaming around, so many of them, and Jonathan stopped across the street looking at the Tisch building for a long time, inconveniently in the middle of the sidewalk, his fellow hipsters having to walk around him. Argyle looked at Jonathan the whole time, saw it firsthand as his gears turned, as the gleam in his eyes faded, as the wrinkle in his forehead deepened.

“Too much?” he asked.

Jonathan nodded. “For now, at least.”

Argyle just started walking and Jonathan followed, and they just walked across Greenwich Village until they were at the pier and they looked at New Jersey from afar, all the ferries crossing the Hudson, people still in a hurry all the goddamn time and Argyle’s fingers tapped against the railing that was there to stop him from falling into the water. He kinda wanted to do it just to see what it would feel like. He lost track of time staring at the water, and the boats, and the people on the boats living their normal lives, not a single one of them aware of the two weird kids on the pier that almost died so they could cross the river on a daily basis; and he felt Jonathan staring at him and maybe it should’ve been the other way around.

“Wanna try again?” he asked after, maybe, hours, and Jonathan nodded.

They walked back, Jonathan stopped inconveniently in the middle of the sidewalk across the street, stared at the Tisch building for what wasn’t longer than a minute and a half.

“Too much,” he decided.

They took the subway back north north north to the motel, took their showers, scrubbed scrubbed scrubbed and still felt unclean, collapsed on their separate beds again, curtains open, bathroom lights left on. Jonathan turned away and slept looking at the wall. Argyle slept looking at Jonathan’s back.

Sun was still out bright the next day.

They went out silently for breakfast at a café a few blocks down, heard the weirdest fucking story told by the people sitting at the table next to them. One look at each other and they were back at the motel, into the van, across the bridge, east east east into Long Island and clouds started to appear the more further east they went.

Montauk sure had that creepy energy hanging in the air, as if everyone was constantly waiting for the shoe to drop, but it somehow didn’t feel as world-ending as Hawkins did. Jonathan whispered that if Will was there, he’d probably be scratching his neck by now.  They kept heading east, into the State Park, to the lookout, out of the van. Stared at the ocean. All that amount of water, the vast nothingness of the view and the wide greatness it contained, and it should’ve been too much but Argyle let out a long sigh and breathed in deeply, a single drop of rain touched his forehead and it felt good.

They went back to the van, back to Manhattan, back to the motel, took their showers, scrubbed a little less, collapsed on their separate beds, curtains closed, bathroom lights left on, turned to face each other again. They said nothing. There was a constant hum from somewhere outside the motel, in the neighborhood, that lulled them to sleep. Argyle thought he heard Jonathan call for him but when he opened his eyes again Jonathan was snoring lightly. Argyle smiled at the view and fell back to unconsciousness.

Clouds were back the next day.

They checked out of the motel, Jonathan took the seat behind the wheel, headed back to I-95 again and hit the pedal hard. They drove for about half the time as they did from Hawkins to New York, never leaving the I-95, looking through the windows as they drove past New Haven, Providence, Boston, plus some stupidly small and completely forgettable towns in Maine.

They only left the I-95 when they passed the border, when the Highway didn’t exist anymore.

“Will they know we have weed?” Argyle asked as they were growing closer to the customs. They only had a single joint left, but it was worrying anyway.

“Don’t think they’ll check,” Jonathan answered, and he didn’t seem bothered at all.

Argyle doubted they would be able to cross, he didn’t even have a passport, but Jonathan was thankfully right. The guard asked for their drivers’ licenses only, where they were headed and what they were doing —  Jonathan said they were on a roadtrip. When the guard asked how long they were planning on staying, Jonathan said “enough days to see a bit of the three east provinces”, and that’s when Argyle was sure the guard would tell them to turn around and get the fuck out, back to bumfuck-nowhere, Indiana. But he just nodded as he inspected the photos on their documents, and when he handed them back along with a pocket-sized canadian atlas he said: “Have fun.”

And that was it.

Argyle’s shoulders dropped from where they had situated above his ears as Jonathan waited until the customs couldn’t be seen from the windows anymore so he could hit the pedal hard again, this time on what they called the Trans-Canada Highway (information provided by the pocket-size atlas gifted to them by a random and kind government employee).

Jonathan drove for about an hour and a half after they crossed, and Argyle’s sudden drop of adrenaline made him doze off for a while before he woke up as Jonathan was parking at a motel. He looked around, saw some signs, picked up the pocket-size atlas from where it had fallen off to the floor of the van.

“You wanna stay in…” he checked the atlas, “Fredericton, New Brunswick? This was your destination all along?” he asked with a grin.

Jonathan chuckled. “I’m just tired for today. But I wanna keep going, actually. If that’s okay?” his eyes were suddenly filled with doubt, and oh no, Argyle couldn’t have that.

“Absolutely, my man. Point where and I’m headed right behind ‘ya,” he was smiling, and his tone was light-hearted, but he was being the most honest he ever was.

Jonathan seemed to get it, because he was looking back at him with that reserved soft smile of his and Argyle’s brain went a little fuzzy, but it was probably from the nap he took.

They went inside the motel, finally, got their bedroom with two beds, separated by nothing but a few inches, and Argyle’s first instinct was to actually bring them together so they’d be just one big bed, but he restrained. They took showers, didn’t really scrub a lot, collapsed on their barely separate beds, curtains closed, bathroom light left off, turned to face each other. Argyle fell asleep with a smile on his face, and if he didn’t dream it, Jonathan had one of his own on his lips.

Next day was more than cloudy, it was pouring rain again.

Jonathan sat behind the steering wheel once more, hit the pedal and they headed east east east, so far east that Argyle feared for a second that they were going to reach the border of the world or something. They crossed New Brunswick and almost reached Nova Scotia, but then Jonathan took a sharp turn north.

“An island, man?” Argyle asked as they crossed the bridge to Prince Edward. Jonathan just shrugged, but he was smiling wider than Argyle had ever seen him smile before. Not bothered at all. It was a good sight to see.

The capital city was on the southeast, but Jonathan kept going north again. It seemed like they were almost at the end of the island before he finally stopped, at some stupidly small and completely forgettable town.

“This place has probably half of the citizens of Hawkins,” Argyle noted.

“I need a phone,” Jonathan said.

His smile didn’t falter.

They found the single Bed & Breakfast the town had to offer, asked for a bedroom — it only had one bed, they didn’t mind and neither did the young lady in charge —, they asked to use their phone, “How much is a phone call to Indiana, you think?” Jonathan asked Argyle, smile turning into a wicked grin and Argyle had definitely never seen that, so the only answer he could come up with was a loud laugh.

Jonathan dialed.

Argyle saw the lady had a bong on her table, so he lit up their final joint.

They waited for the phone to be answered.

Jonathan’s eyes never left Argyle’s, and their wide smiles were like mirrors of each other. Argyle had no idea what Jonathan was up to, clearly no good, but Argyle was down to it anyway. He’d follow Jonathan in whatever disturbed plan he had, to whatever edge of the world he wanted to go to.

And, finally:

“Hop, hey, it’s Jon. I’m in Canada. Yeah, you heard it right, Canada. Do you think Owens’ FBI friends can do us a final favor?”

⟿

Argyle looks out the window.

In the reflex, he sees Jonathan, his head on Argyle’s shoulder, and he’s also looking out the window. It’s been like this for a few months now, just the two of them, in tandem, doing the same things. Synchronized. It feels good, the best he ever felt. Jonathan’s skin is warm against Argyle where their arms touch, and he smiles without even thinking about it. It’s been like this for a few months now, smiling around just at the thought or sight of Jonathan. It feels good. The best he ever felt about someone.

“I’m really glad we did this,” Jonathan mumbles against Argyle’s shoulder.

This: a trip along the coast to a different country? This: bribing the government for a new beginning in a town so small and forgettable that no monster, human or not, could find them again? This: getting a house of their own, a fucking boat and a fishing license, a truck they could drive down to Charlottetown on good days?

This: falling in love in the process?

Argyle’s not sure what Jonathan is referring to. He’s really glad too, either way.

Argyle looks at their small world out the window.

It’s Sunday morning, commerce is all closed, streets are empty. The sun is covered by clouds, a summer thunderstorm approaching, and he can see the sea from here. There’s no one at the beach. The waves look nice. All that amount of water, the vast nothingness of the view and the wide greatness it contains.

It’s not too much. It’s nothing at all, actually, and it’s everything.

And it’s perfect that way.

[nancysandoval]

NANCY SANDOVAL ( 30. CIS WOMAN. SHE/HER ) is here! They’ve lived in Asbury Park for 3 MONTHS and are originally from NEW YORK CITY, NY. They are UNEMPLOYED and in their downtime love GIVING SHITTY LIFE ADVICE and PULLING THE FIVE-FINGER DISCOUNT. They look a lot like MAIKA MONROE and live at MEADOWLARK APARTMENTS. The song that makes people think of them the most is RAGE BY RICO NASTY.

THE BASICS:

FULL NAME: nancy elizabeth sandoval, née wright

NICKNAMES: nan, nance

GENDER & PRONOUNS: cis woman & she/her

AGE & BIRTHDAY: 30 & july 12, 1994

ZODIAC: ☼ cancer ☾ leo ↑ aries

BIRTHPLACE: carson city, nv

MBTI & ALIGNMENT: enfp & true neutral

+ TRAITS: headstrong, spontaneous, creative, flirtatious

- TRAITS: hedonistic, fickle, manipulative, pessimistic

RESIDENCE: meadowlark apartments

OCCUPATION: broke bitch :( - hit up her depop pls !!!!

LINKS: pinterest / playlist / tasks

BACKGROUND & DETAILS:

surface level: nancy is very messy, sometimes rude, and often nude

deep down: ......... that’s still pretty much accurate lmao

born in nevada, her parents met thanks to a chance encounter while her mom was researching for an upcoming book. nancy was an unexpected surprise in their lives, but fast-forward 5 years and they were sealing the deal, getting hitched in nyc where her mom had the gaudy, mega wedding of her dreams.

photographic evidence of nancy being an angelic flower girl DOES in fact exist

and, as her mother would say, "thank god it does, because you haven't been sweet since."

nancy's formative years were a blur of questionable choices and dangerous stunts, running amok in the streets of new york on her parents' dime and never once considering the consequences. attempts were made to rein her in; freezing credit cards, grounding her (lol), and making hollow threats of sending her away to bootcamp or boarding school.

nothing stuck. over and over, nancy ran to her dad for an easy bailout and extra cash, fueling the growing rift between her parents as they argued about her future.

for real the anthem of her teen years

she hurt herself, she fell in with the wrong crowds, she found drugs and lost her mind a little. an addiction to pills spiraled and worsened, graduating to cheaper and quicker highs as time went on. it was a miracle that she ever graduated high school, see-sawing between sobriety and oblivion while treating rehab like a casual hotel stay, but her mom made sure it happened.

this carried on into her twenties. living under her mother's thumb was not fun. even in a high-rise penthouse with zero "real world" concerns, nancy felt like she was choking on her short leash. no booze, no visitors, no privacy from her parents - what was the point in living?? she tried to keep busy by half-assing therapy sessions, taking up yoga, and delving deep into the world of online academia (just to rack up a bill for the 'rents), but eventually she snapped.

nancy packed her shit and ran away to california. she settled in silver lake, living there for a good three years, but an attempted career in food service had her backsliding into addictive habits. eventually, she checked herself into an in-patient facility with a promise from her dad that he'd be there to congratulate her when the 3 month stay ended.

.... and he was......... but so was his hot young girlfriend that nancy had regular fantasies about bludgeoning to death.

she threw the tantrum of the century, only resurfacing from her rage blackout when she'd driven halfway to new york by herself, and car trouble stranded her in colorado. feeling reckless and spiteful (and just a tiny bit terrified of turning 30), nancy did the most insane thing she could think of - and got married to a guy that she met at a gas station.

okay, she got to know him first...... sort of. enough to find out that his name was cooper sandoval and decide that she could live with that last name, too. sadly, it didn't last. their honeymoon phase inevitably wore off, nancy turned 30 and didn't wake up an old hag, so the most sensible thing to do was call it quits.

it was the dual incompetence of cooper and his family's lawyer that had nancy gunning it to jersey, having to sort through the legalities in person to end their less-than-a-year marriage. and once everything was signed and dotted, she just... didn't leave. she's near enough to nyc now that her mom can visit whenever she gets the itch to be overbearing, and hey! nancy was always a big fan of snooki, so jersey can't be all bad, right?

she's still lowkey desperate to prove her independence (to herself, to her parents, to the world), but she's not totally opposed to roommates or longtime houseguests!!

always picking up random hobbies to keep her hands & mind busy, though they rarely last. her latest kick has been tie-dyeing and bleaching old clothes, so best believe that her place reeks atm

loves to claim that she's a child of divorce when her parents legit split up after she was well into her 20s, but whatevaaahhh

she's hugely into high fantasy & horror - the gorier the better

probably has some fucked up (meaning: bad) hellraiser tattoos

has a knack for ruining relationships, even ones that aren't hers <3

smokes 24/7. even if she doesn't have a cigarette in hand, rest assured that she's mentally taking a drag

POTENTIAL CONNECTIONS:

first and foremost, i love vibin’ off dash chem 💖 plz feel free to hmu at anytime for a completely random thread and i’ll jump!

neighbors  -  anyone else living at meadowlark apartments! nancy is really a terrible and noisy neighbor so yah, count me in for dumb vendettas

friends  -  THE most important connection okok. she’s been in town for ~3mo, which isn't all that long, but nancy's social ass would chat up anyone anywhere there's alcohol avail

work weirdness - nancy's currently unemployed and (kinda) looking for the work, so i wouldn't mind her already having a couple failed job interviews under her belt - or! someone who maybe put in a good word for her somewhere

one night stand / fwb / etc.  -  nancy’s a hoor so yakno.... can be something antagonistic too! luv the idea of a hook-up gone wrong ngl

fellow addicts  -  “recovered” or not. she doesn’t go often, but now and then nancy finds comfort in going to the occasional aa / na meeting. can’t get enough of listening to middle-aged men detail how they ruined their lives - really makes a girl feel good about her own shitty choices 💕

a mentor / unlikely friend  -  idk exactly what i mean by this lmfao, but i’m imagining someone older (or honestly, her age & just more settled) who does not run in the same circles in the slightest, but something just Clicks between them. a good influence really

a square  -  flipside of the last idea: someone nancy gets to corrupt <3

[toastedwrittenthoughts]

OKAY! I have been stressing about these titles all day and I need to say a few things about them.

Spoilers for the titles the rest is pure speculations and predictions!

Episode 9!

Okay... So to start my predictions, I have to mention where we were left at the end of Episode 8...

BOTH Buddy and Richie were arrested and are in Jail.

Jane was scolded for being indecisive about what she wants.

Olivia walked into Mr. Daniels house without her PL Jacket (cue aggressive vomiting noises).

Nancy was left to clean up the mess and looking broken. (Like the window. Symbolism!)

Cynthia probably feeling multiple conflicting internal feelings. (As she should.)

So here we go...

I would want the episode to start with a dark screen... the sound of a cell door closing and amongst several cells they pan over and inside one of them is Buddy and Richie. Not together, but separated...? Its like the saying "put them in a room alone together and let things sort itself out." I'd hope that its been a little while and Buddy has sobered up some but regardless, the two of them just sending scathing looks between eachother after maybe getting in a few actual hits against eachother. (Poor Dot)

Both of them showing signs of discomfort because they're still kids, IN JAIL. But out of the two of them, Richie is a little better at keeping his cool. After all, he's used to detention, fights and breaking rules. I know its not the same, but if anything... Id be willing to bet that in this situation, the other potential 'jail occupants' kinda look like him.. People from the 'wrong parts of town'. Kind recognizes kind. The other occupants hear Buddy's last name and start digging at him and his dad and Richie tells them to back off. Again, kind recognizes kind and they leave them alone. Buddy gives a halfhearted 'thanks' and Richie just shrugs.

Buddy would be pacing, no doubt muttering about how his dad was going to react about all this when he comes to get him. Richie is probably terrified at how his parents will react and coming from a European household.. Phew.. It ain't gonna be pretty. Richie would scoff, telling him to be quiet, that 'they wouldn't be here if Buddy hadn't been drunk and acting like an ass. Or if he had just come clean from the start."

"I didn't mean too. It just happened and.." Buddy's head would hang down, looking ashamed. Richie feels bad for him for just a second before Buddy finish with "I never wanted to hurt her, you know. I loved her. I still do."

That I could see would send Richie over an edge. He stands up and even with their height difference would level Buddy with a dead stare.

"That's. Not. Love. You don't let someone spread damning gossip around about someone you "love" and not clear it up because your worried about your own reputation. You don't take advantage of them and say you love them. Its not to be used as an excuse or reason why you think its okay to be an asshole." (Personal thoughts mixed in here.)

"What do you know about about it, Richie? You've never had your parents pressure you to be the best. And then to find out that what you are, what you thought you were, is only a fake image that wasn't even made by yourself. Jane was the only thing that was.. real to me. I mean.. really real."

"And instead of treating her like she deserves, even after you found out about the election and shit, you thought of just yourself and let her get buried." Richie scoffs and shakes his head. "Look Buddy, I may not have been born and raised on your side of town, I may not have been pushed to be the best because no one expects me to be; but we can both agree that Jane makes us want to be better. But if your dad is the one that's trying to mold your life in a way you don't want it to be, then maybe you need to take the wheel and go where his reputation hasn't reached and make your own."

Or something like that. Either way, I would want them to verbally have it out. And IF Buddy's dad comes to bail him out, because reputation and shit... Id want Buddy to look back at Richie in the cell and tell his dad that 'Richie wouldn't be here if it wasn't for me. Either we both go, or I don't at all." Buddy's dad sees that he doesn't budge and agrees. I like to hope that between Buddy and Richie, they aren't even, but it would be a damn good start.

Jane is going to do some repair work and I get the feeling that she will be one of a few people who will ask the question "You're dropping out of Rydell?" And potentially for a few people.

Nancy could get the urge to leave because of her fashion calling and the fact that the Pink Ladies are up in the air but is worried that because of her crush, she will lose sight of what she really wants to do and is tempted to just go. But instead of pulling a Frenchy, she stays.. I don't know how, but that's the feeling I get. (Like have your cake and eat it too.)

Olivia could think about leaving/dropping out to another school so she moves forward with Mr. Daniels (at his mentioning's or insistence) and to not 'jeopardize' his career, marry him but like in secret. Gil could hear word about this and HAULS ASS to find her and convinces her that she is worth more than that, that she is worth loving out loud and proud. Like He does. Something about the way Mr. Daniels acts around her now could make her feel uncomfortable and together, they go to McGee and get his predator ass fired. Done.

Cynthia would be torn about where she fits and after some agonizing, thinks she should leave and changes her mind when she gets her TBird jacket. And starts making things better by apologizing to Shy Guy because HE IS SWEET AND DESERVES AN APOLOGY!

Mrs. McGee could ask that to the Principle who is leaving because he got a different job opportunity and puts her in charge. Or Mr. Daniels because he also needs to go. (Im hopeful)

Over All...

I think Buddy will be the one to leave. Personally to me, it would make sense. Not because it would take him out of the whole Buddy/Jane/Richie triangle, though I would not be upset about that at all. (Richie is my boy and doesn't need to go, I will die on that hill). But from a realistic point of view... If I wanted to get out from my meddling fathers shadow, and I would after hearing everything he has done, I would say that leaving Rydell to go to another school to restart would be the way to go. Somewhere his father would have little to no influence over and he could start anew. It would also kinda go with Buddy's character since when the opportunity to fix things come up, he kinda detours and takes a road to avoid them and only comes clean when they fall all but at his feet and he's in a corner. (Frosty Palace.)

Episode 10.

Since I am unclear about the school timeline right now (like is it nearly thanksgiving for them as students? Is the year halfway done?) I would like to think that they have a fall fair or something. If my predictions are correct, Buddy will leave Rydell at the end of their first semester. But before they go, they gotta race.

Susan I think will race one of the Ladies, most likely Olivia because she looked MAD in both the trailer and pictures and Olivia would be the focal point of that anger.. Dot will be their flag girl because she supports Susan and the gangs will cheer for them as they race. Susan could lose because they need to bury their hatchet somehow. And with the Win, Olivia gets a car, and therefore the Pink Ladies get their own ride. Susan admits defeat, apologizes and like Buddy with Richie, isn't making them even, but it could be a place to start.

I still think Gil's gonna race, I almost say he needs to just for the classic victory (first) kiss between him and Olivia. (Fingers tightly crossed.)

But one thing I was saying when a friend of mine and I were in a debate was that there was talk about the title having two meanings. 'Racing For Pinks.'

Pinks is the Pink Ownership slip but it could also mean the Pink Ladies. Buddy/ Richie, Gil and Mr. Daniels (though I doubt it) and such. They could win the girl. And I gotta say both yes and no to this thought. One thing that I would want to be said, whether it be the TBirds, the Pink Ladies themselves or hell, why not both is that they can't be 'won'.

To be with a Pink Lady isn't part of some... game. You cant race and get a girl, I'm sorry but that to me just wouldn't be right. These girls are breaking norms and fighting the system, breaking stereotypical boundaries. Cynthia says that to have two people race for you is AMUSING. At the risk of sounding two faced, they aren't trophies to be won but.. they kinda are. But they cant be bought or traded.

No, the Pink Ladies are EARNED. Period.

The TBird and Pink Ladies alike EARN their jackets and reputation, so why shouldn't their affection (love, devotion, romance, relationship take your pick) be any different? You put in work, you get the girl. And so far, I think that some have. While others are still working things out.

We also haven't met the Scorpions, the rival gangs of the TBirds in OG Grease. Or Zuko and Kenickie for that matter. And if anyone reads my long posts, that's where the 'scenes' I think up could go here with Richie and Gil meeting them..

But if I follow my gut, I think that if Buddy leaves, he could go to a different school, start up the Scorpions because he's acting out against his dad and the beef between the Birds and Scorpions is pre-established for the future.

Regardless of how things go... JOIN ME IN HOPING FOR A SEASON TWO!

Again, this is a mixture of spoilers, speculations and predictions! Id love to hear yours! Comment or message me directly the door is always open!

[strangerthingslover69]

‘This is Enzo’ ~ Part 1 ~

Dmitri + female reader (mid twenties)

An unexpected parcel arrives for your step mother Joyce, your heart races when you see the stamps. Instead of showing it to her you quickly take it to your room. Opening it quickly you take out a strange looking doll, one thing lead to another and now you find your on a plane with Murray and Joyce ready to rescue your dad

‘I’ll get it!’ You shout opening the door whilst your step mum Joyce was taking a call. ‘Hey Y/N, can you let Joyce still no sign of Johnathan’s acceptance letter yet. They like to keep everyone on their toes’ the post man says to you hanging you a rather large parcel with some letters. ‘Sure Larry no problem. Thanks’ you say as he leaves. You move the letters and see who the parcels for ‘JOYCE BYERS’ you’re about to shout her but your heart races when you see the stamps. ‘Hey sweetie any news on Jonathan’s letter?’ You hear Joyce’s voice saying from the lounge. ‘Erm, no sorry, nothing yet! I, I’ve got a parcel just gonna open it in my room. It’s, it’s erm a present so you can’t come in okay!’ You shout throwing the letters on the floor and racing to your room before Joyce can even reply. Closing the door behind you, you put the package down on the bed, slowly backing away wondering if this is a good idea. Before you have too much time to thing about it your grabbing scissors from your draw and cutting the string. You stab open the box and rip it open. You find some packaging, buried under that is a weird looking doll. A Russian doll. You examine it, ‘what the fuck is this?’ You mumble to yourself. You turn the doll around to see if there’s anything on the back. Nothing. Quick thinking you lift up the dolls dress and see nothing again, sighing your about to throw it down when you see what appears to be a crack. Your fingers run over the crack, ‘weird, it’s like they’ve glue it back to together?’ You say looking more closely. That’s when the lightbulb in your head goes. ‘They did glue it back! So, so there must be something inside?!’ You say getting up to look for something to smash it open. Searching in all of your draws you don’t find anything but then you remember Johnathan having a hammer on his room from putting up that picture up of him and Nancy. You open your door quietly quickly making your way over to your step brothers room, luckily for you it’s on his bed. A minute later back in your room hammer in hand ready to smash the doll. You sit down on your bed, taking a deep breath you close your eyes and *smash’. The doll breaks into pieces. ‘Y/N, everything okay?’ You hear Joyce shout up. ‘Yeah, all good just knocked something. Sorry Joyce. Just going to clean it up!’ You about back down hoping she’ll believe you. ‘Just be careful’ Joyce shouts back and you hear her leave. Phew that was close. Moving the broken pieces you catch your finger on a shattered piece of porcelain. ‘Shit’ you say sucking the blood off. You notice something sticking up from the dolls stomach. You take out what appears to be a piece of paper and it out. Your hands shake a little as your unravel the letter.

“Hop is alive. He looks ford too date. Pleeze to make resarvazion, call 7-415-218-4642. Open twelve day P.E.T.T. No govt, pls. Kind regards, Enzo.”

As you finish reading it you can hardly believe what you are reading. You re read it again just to make sure you’ve read it right. Tears fill your eyes as there’s the proof you finally needed. Your dad is alive. You reach for your phone ready to call the number, but you don’t. You can’t. It’s not suppose to be for you. But Joyce has been through so much. You need to help her but you can not do this on your own. You hesitate as your press the buttons but you know who you need to call. Putting the phone up to your ear you wait for the answer.

‘Hello, who’s this and what do you want?’ you hear Murrays voice down the phone.

‘As pleasant as ever Murray’ you say rolling your eyes. You haven’t missed this man

‘Do my ears deceive me or it that Y/N Hopper?’ He says questioning you

‘It’s the one and only. Yup it’s me. Look Murray I’ll make this quick, it’s important. I need to wait till I’ve stopped talking to reply okay?’ You say holding the letter like your life depended on it.

‘Okay I’m curious now. I’m all ears’ Murray replies

‘Well here’s the thing’ -you take a deep breath- ‘Joyce received a parcel today and I opened it. I know I shouldn’t but I have good reason. The stamps they, they were from Russia Murray. Fricken Russia! So I opened it. Inside was this creepy looking Russian doll. At first glance looked fairly normal I guess but upon examining her more I noticed she was cracked under her clothes. She’d been glued back together. So, so I smashed her with a hammer. Inside was a note. A note from my dad! Well from someone who called Enzo. It reads, “Hop is alive. He looks ford too date. Pleeze to make resarvazion, call 7-415-218-4642. Open twelve day P.E.T.T. No govt, pls. Kind regards, Enzo.” Only Joyce and Hopper knew about that date. She told me about it a few days later after dads funeral. I knew they like each other he just never wanted to admit it the grumpy old git. But Murray he’s alive. Hopper. My dad. He’s alive!’ You say happily. You wait for Murray to respond but he doesn’t. ‘You, you still there?’ You ask hesitantly

You hear Murray sigh. ‘So Y/N you are telling me Joyce gets a package and you think it’s a great idea to open it knowing it’s from Russia? Then not only you see the dolls is cracked you think it’s a great idea to just smash it in your house. What if there was a bomb?! Jesus kid I didn’t think you were that stupid. And as for this letter. It just sounds, well terrible to be honest. And please tell me for the love of god you haven’t called it’ Murray says feeling very frustrated

‘What? No of course I haven’t! I’ll admit it was stupid of me to just smash it in my room but c’mon Murray surely this is proof my dads alive?!’ You say getting up from your bed with the letter scrunched up tightly in your hand. ‘Are you sure no one else knew about this date? I mean Jim could have told this ‘Enzo’ anything! You can’t trust the note Y/N I’m sorry but you can’t’ Murray says bluntly

‘I’d bet my life on it. I called you because I thought you’d be able to help me. If you can’t I’ll call the number-’ you reply but Murray cuts you off

‘NO! Do not call that number. For all we know it could be the KJB! The last thing we need is for them to track you and your family down. Look kid I’ll be on the next plane and on my way to you.’ Murray says hanging up

‘But!’ You try to reply telling him not to but the line goes dead.

You call again but no look. What the hell were you gonna tell Joyce about Murray’s surprise visit. Well you had at least until the next day to think about it.

That night you decided was best to stay in your room, you just said you didn’t feel well. You weren’t wrong since opening the parcel for Joyce from your dad you’d been riddled with guilt and it made you feel sick to your stomach. That night you didn’t really sleep. You had to face the facts. You had to tell Joyce about your discovery. You waited till the others had gone to the roller rink before you took the box down with the note and doll. ‘Joyce. I need to tell you something’ you say making your way over to her, hands shaking on the box. Joyce turns from the kitchen and looks at you. Her eyebrows frown as she sees the box you’ve placed on the table. ‘This the present you were talking about?’ She asks coming over. ‘Not exactly.’ You say. Telling Joyce was hard. So fucking hard. When you explained about the parcel and the stamps she looked surprised. Then you showed the broken doll and the note from your dad. As you pass it to her you can’t help but hate yourself from hiding this from her. You see her face as she reads the words. Her eyes fill with tears as yours did, she looks to you mouth open. ‘Y/N, I, I don’t know what to say. Did, did you call this number? How could you keep this from me?’ She says sitting down hands creeping through her hair. You sit next to her. ‘I’m so sorry Joyce. I, I don’t know. I don’t have a answer in all honesty. I saw the stamps and I could help myself. I am truly sorry. I did not call the number but I called someone who can hopefully help’ you say feeling as guilty as a sinner. ‘Who?’ Joyce asks leaning towards you. You open your mouth as your about to tell her.

*knock knock* You and Joyce turn to the door. The knocking comes again. ‘Y/N c’mon open up’ you hear Murray’s voice at the other end of the door. Joyce gets up and opens to door. ‘You didn’t think to call to tell me what Y/N has been up to? She’s just a kid Murray!’ Joyce says letting him in. ‘I’m not a kid! It’s not his fault. I called him for help he insisted on coming over.’ You say making you my way over to them. ‘Sweetie I didn’t mean it like that. But you are just a kid.’ Joyce says running your arm. ‘I’m twenty six. I’m not a kid. Ive seen so much! I’ve survived! I’ve shot a god damn demogorgan. I’ve crawled to tunnel to escape demodogs. I’ve been captured in a secret Russian lab and drugged. I’ve seen monsters. I’ve seen what you have. I’ve lived through it too. I’m not a kid.’ You say raising your voice louder. ‘Okay, okay your right. I’m sorry. But sweetie you will always be a child to me. No matter how old you are. You’ve been through too much just like the rest of us have’ Joyce says bringing you in for a hug. You hug her back and cry a little. ‘So now we’ve got the loving mother daughter stuff out the way. The letter?’ Murray says setting down his suitcase. You rush over and pass Murray the letter. He sits as he reads it out loud. ‘I like it even less now. I mean seriously. No government please?’ He says throwing down the letter. ‘I don’t trust it either but what other options do we have? Only Hopper and I knew about our date at Enzo’s. This is proof he’s alive. How do we not know it’s from a friend?’ Joyce says sitting down next to Murray. ‘How do we know it’s not KJB Joyce? We’ve got a lot to consider here. We did kill half a dozen commies!’ Murray says feeling frustrated. ‘Okay so we don’t know who the hell it is but like Joyce says it’s proof Hoppers alive. Now please make the damn phone call so we can get my dad!’ You says pleading. Murray gets up from the sofa and walks over to his suitcase. You and Joyce look at one another. ‘What are you doing?’ Joyce asks. ‘Well if we’re gonna call that number, we’re doing it my way’ Murray says opening his bag. You both appear in it. It looks like electrical equipment. ‘Well don’t just stand there. You need to help me set it up, c’mon let’s go!’ Murray says clapping his hands.

Half an hour later and everything seems to be set up ready to make this call to Enzo. ‘Okay, so now you’re calling from Dallas, remember make it quick and we need proof he’s alive’ Murray says reminding Joyce. She nods and dials the number, Joyce signals him and he presses the button ready to record and Joyce puts the phone on speaker. Looking at one another anxiously as the phone rings. After a few rings someone answers

‘This is Enzo’ you hear a man’s voice come through with a thick Russian accent

‘Yes hello Enzo, this is Joyce. I received your message and would like to make a reservation’ Joyce replies

‘Ah yes. Good. Good. But for reservation you need to make a deposit’ Enzo replies

‘Eurghh what kind of deposit?’ Joyce says looking at you and Murray confused

‘$40,000. You have it in Hopper trust yes?’ Enzo replies

‘Yes yes $40,000’ Joyce replies. You and Murray look at one another in shock still

‘Good. Bring to Yuri’s fish ‘n’ Fly in Nome, Alaska’ Enzo says

‘You want me to go to Alaska?’ Joyce says looking at you both

‘Yes. You give Yuri money. Yuri gets me money. I give him your friend. Simple trade. Understand?’ Enzo says

Murray mouths ‘proof of life’

Joyce begins to open her mouth but you speak up. ‘We need to talk to Hopper. We need to know he’s alive!’ You say with panic

‘You are not Joyce. Who is this?’ Enzo says quizzically

‘Y/N Hopper. Now let me talk to my dad’ you say becoming angry

‘Y/N. Yes your father has spoken about you. He said you had spirit but did no mention you were how you say. Feisty’ Enzo says in a teasing tone. You see red

‘Look here you commie bastard let me talk to him. Now!’ Joyce and Murray try to get you to calm but no use

‘Not possible, you see. He’s stuck. I get him unstuck.’ - there’s a banging from the other side of the phone with muffled speaking. ‘You have two days. Yuris fish ‘n’ fly. $40,000.’ -Louder banging and a woman’s voice but you do not understand her - ‘I wish I could to meet you Y/N, such a shame. Do not contact here again.’ Enzo says hanging up the phone

‘No no!’ You scream and the tears come rolling down. Joyce is quickly by your side hugging you. ‘Sweetie we will get him. Don’t worry. We will get that money’ Joyce says stroking you hair. ‘Let’s play is back and listen to make sure we’ve got all the facts’ Murray says rewinding the tape. You all listen to the message at least four times and you know the facts. You sigh getting up. Joyce rewinds it one more time. ‘You hear that?’ She asks you and Murray. ‘Hear what?’ Murray asks. Joyce rewinds the tapes again. ‘That, right there!’ She points to the tape. You can hear banging and a muffled voice. ‘It sounds like someone else is there?’ You say listening more carefully. ‘It’s, it’s Russian? Murray can you translate?’ You ask with hope. Joyce rewinds the tapes again and Murray listens carefully. He shakes his head. ‘I can’t hear it. It’s too quiet’ he says. Joyce gets up quickly taking the tape. You and Murray look at one another and follow her. You see her putting the tape into Jonathan’s record machine and passing Murray the headphones. ‘Joyce you genius!’ Murray says putting on the headphones. He listened carefully. ‘Okay turn it up’ he says. He winches but listens. ‘Okay so she’s mad at Enzo. She, she wants to use the phone. She calls him a ‘mooser’ Murray says. ‘What’s a mooser?’ You ask feeling confused. ‘It translates to English as trash or garbage. It’s like pig, it’s often insinuated at cops’ Murray says taking off the headphones. ‘Or guards?’ Joyce says with a small smile. ‘Hoppers stuck’ you whisper. ‘Enzo can get him unstuck’ Murray says. ‘Enzo’s a prison guard. Hopper bribed him’ Joyce says. ‘Sure does sound like dad’ you say with a small chuckle. Joyce gets up and leaves the room, you and Murray follow. ‘Where are you going?’ Murray asks. ‘To the bank. We’re going to Enzo his money and we’re bringing Hopper home!’ Joyce says taking her bag from the side and opening the door. You and Murray look at one another and follow. This was it. You were going to get your dad back. Little did you know what really lies ahead

[stevie-petey]

DARE I SAY THE BEST CHAPTER EVER!! (alongside w dear billy) oh my god oh my god oh my god stug in the upside down, the “im dust!” moment, slightly jealous steve, robin and bug cuteness, and my wife nancy being the best group captain?? i might just explode into tiny little bits m 😭😭😭 

i was gonna talk about this at the end but it CANNOT WAIT. bug’s visions were so bad it makes me want to throw up VECNA WHEN I CATCH U WHENNN I FUCKING CATCH YOU WITH THESE HANDS. him using her dad against her was so cruel and using her fear of losing steve was FUCKED the stancy vision scene made me feel sick. to. my. stomach. 

anyways! 😇 i love how eddie and bug’s conversation about dustin lead them to open up to eachother about how neither one of them truly dislike each other and that they were just envious of eachother cause who wouldn’t be? dustin’s the best kid ever 🥲 i know bug really needed to hear about dusty’s conversation with eddie about how much he appreciates her and adores her and how sad dustin will be when she leaves, bc bug was so sure that dustin has grown up to hate her and resent her which is so sad and so untrue :( so eddie assuring her that dustin talks so much about her with adoration made my heart melt 😭 such a sweet moment <33

steve’s little jealous moment made me giggle YES HE IS SO BOYFRIEND!!!!!!

(“Here, let me just–” He comes next to you and throws your arm over his shoulders before either you or Steve can protest. Immediately the pressure on your injured leg lessens. You sigh in content, and Eddie smirks. “There ya go, princess.” “Don’t call her that.” Steve snaps, but even he has to admit that Eddie’s help is needed.) 

calm down stevie they’re platonic besties.. (yes the 3 annoying siblings trope is very much canon in my head..and i can’t decide which ones the middle child bug or eddie)

i can’t even pretend to be mad at u for that cliffhanger it had to be done..

also how does one write such sweet tooth rotting moments only to make you feel violently ill the next second??? making direct eye contact with u cutie m..

I LOVED THE CHAPTER!!! pls pay for my therapy x

this chapter truly had everything ur so right LMAO.

and YES the im dust scene !!!! cutest siblings alive god i love them :( i was happy to finally shed some insight into dustin n bug like i promise guys im not just making dustin a dick for no reason (unlike the duffer bros ???)

and bugs vision was just a cultivation of all her deepest, biggest insecurities and fears weve seen over the last 4 seasons and i feel like its such a new insight into her character. will being her deepest regret, her father being her deepest hurt, and steve/nancy being her deepest insecurity like UGH !!!! my poor baby :(

the steve/eddie/bug scene made me giggle to write like eddie and bug are finally begrudging besties and steves just like ???? and eddie would def be the middle child, bug the oldest, steve the youngest. 100%

[scoops-aboy86]

more ravening pls pls 🤲

You got it! This is one of those things that I've had in the back of my brain since before I made this blog, but I never seem to be able to sit down and focus on it. (frankenwip game)

It feels like something’s been carved out of him ever since November of ‘83, and he doesn’t even know what—innocence, ignorance, complacency, something. Other people must sense it; that’s why his mom and dad took off, and Nancy left him, and the kids don’t call as often anymore. And now even Robin is gone, for all that she’d begged him to come with her. He can’t leave Hawkins, though, not permanently; every time he tries to imagine it his stomach twists hard and his head begins to hurt, triggering another migraine. 

So Steve pulls up to an empty house as always, and runs inside because ‘drive thru’ means not stopping to pee, and somehow he’s still thirsty, throat still aching but not quite so bad as it had on the road.

[cacoetheswriting]

I am loving Pearl so far, beautifully written, but WAIT because I have to know what the letters said 😭😭😭

thank you, anon! <3 i appreciate your sweet words 🥹 and thank you for asking, it inspired me to actually fill in this gap - hope you enjoy!

content warnings: best friends to lovers, slow burn, mutual pining, mature themes, adult language, death of a parent, topics of grief, emotional hurt / comfort, self-doubt / insecurities - unedited - if i missed anything, pls let me know!

pearl masterlist

November 19, 1984

Eddie,

Sitting back in my dorm feels almost surreal. Everyone around me is going about their lives as normal, and I know I can’t be mad because obviously to them nothing’s changed, but how am I expected to join in normality? To just pick up where I left off at the start of the month?

You know what my chem professor told me? ‘We’ve all lost someone. The trick is to not make it your whole personality.’ In a way that makes sense to me. It’s logical. I can’t let my dad’s passing define me. And he obviously would want me to move on with my life. But Eddie, my heart bleeds. 

This grief… This grief is swallowing me whole. This grief has embedded itself into my core being and on most days, it’s fucking consuming me. I lost a parent, a protector, a friend. There are memories I’ll never get to make because he’s gone. I really lost a piece of myself. How come no one seems to get that?

You get that, right Eddie? I know you understand. You always understand.

I miss you. I miss my dad.

P.S. Excuse this tear stained paper. It’s a mess. I’m a mess.

P.P.S I’m sorry for running off on you the day of the funeral. It was just… a lot.

November 22, 1984

Eddie,

Nothing makes sense anymore. (Also, I know I just wrote you, but I haven’t sent that letter yet so you’ll get both together and can respond to them as one.)

I’m trying to catch up on the material I missed and the words blend together before my eyes. Well, I only have myself to blame. My mom offered for me to take the rest of the semester off and start fresh from the new year, but I thought the distraction would help. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

I’m so sad all the time. And you know what the worst part is? Aside from the nightmares and this restlessness I’ve felt since the funeral, I just can’t stop thinking about you. What is Eddie doing, who is he with, does he think about me too?

Well, do you? God, this is fucking stupid. I know you do ‘cause you fucking call me everyday and I can’t bring myself to answer or call you back… Stupid…

I also think about our last moment together often… Actually, please ignore this letter, Eddie. Don’t respond. Like I said, nothing makes sense anymore, including my thoughts.

I miss you.

November 27, 1984

Eddie,

I’m sorry I’ve been ignoring your calls. I’m sorry I’ve had my roommate make up stupid excuses for me, that’s so lame. Most of all though, I’m sorry I haven’t called you back. 

You’re trying to be there for me and I’m pushing you away. That’s shitty of me and really unforgivable. But the thing is, I think I’m doing it because I know you’ll always forgive me. That’s even shittier of me. I’m awful.

You deserve a better friend, Eddie Munson. You deserve the world and I only wish I could give you that. Instead, you’re stuck with a girl who runs away from uncomfortable situations and hurts you in the process.

I wish I could go back to the day of the funeral and change

November 30, 1984

I spent the entire day listening to my mom cry over the phone — tell me, does it make me heartless for not shedding a single tear? Thinking now, this is the first time I haven’t cried since the funeral.

Anyway, I’m failing the semester. Surprise, surprise.

Also, Jonathan and Nancy came to visit. Why didn’t you come with them? God, why am I such a loser? Won’t speak with you over the phone, but gets mad when you don’t take time from school to come see me. I’m sick of myself.

P.S. Thank you for regularly doing the groceries for my mom and helping her around the house. You have no idea how much that means to her, and to me. I love— Thank you, Eddie.

December 4, 1984

It’s been a month since my dad died.

The grief hasn’t surpassed. If anything, it’s gotten stronger. My roommate has to force me to do basic human things like eat and sometimes even shower. She’s really been my rock here these last few weeks. You’d like her, I think. She couldn’t be more different than you in style, but she’s funny. 

I know you probably don’t have a high opinion of her now, considering she’s helping me avoid you, but—

I should really call you back. I’m sorry.

December 10, 1984

I haven’t sent a single one of these letters. You’ll probably never read them and know how truly awful I feel for ignoring you.

Eddie, how come things have gotten so complicated? You’ve done nothing wrong. It’s all on me. I wish we could go back to that day at Lover's Lake when you played your guitar for me. That was bliss.

I miss you, my Bobby McGee.

December 14, 1984

Eddie, you didn’t call today.

I shouldn’t be surprised. Not like I’ve given you a reason to call.

I wonder if you’ll even want to see me when I come home for the holidays. Probably not. That’s okay though. That’s okay…

December 19, 1984

Eddie,

Perhaps I’m saying this a little too late, but I appreciate you. Thank you for being my best friend and the entire reason why I know I’m going to be okay.

I think I’m in love with you. No. I know I am.

And I’m going to give you all these letters. Hopefully, you’ll read them in front of me so I can see your reaction when I say:

I love you, Eddie Munson. 

I’m coming home for the holidays. I’ll come see you and I’ll apologise. With any luck, you’ll forgive me for being a cold-hearted bitch. With any luck, although I probably don’t deserve it, you’ll be my person again.

I'm yours, forever.

thank you for reading <3

& tagging some cool people that expressed interest in this lil series: @cactusangie , @spenciesprincess , @capitanostella , @ashlynnkennedy , @ms1oftheboys

pearl masterlist

[livwritesstuff]

Follow up to the last one (it felt like it could be its own thing), is there something that the girls share that’s just for two of them? Like inside jokes or activities that Moe and Hazel or Robbie and Moe, etc will do? And is there something all three of them consider sacred amongst themselves that not even their dads can participate in (without an extreme amount of reluctance ofc)?

so sorry for the delay in answering these. I used to do all my writing at work bc they weren't giving me enough tasks to fill the day but then my boss got fired last week and everything blew up and now they're actually giving me work to do so there's gonna be an overall pls hold on the writing front

Anyhoo there isn’t really much overlap in Moe, Robbie, and Hazel's major hobbies/interests (which Steve & Eddie are extremely grateful for because they’re competitive enough as is). Like, Moe is way sportier than the other two, Robbie is the musically-inclined one, Hazel does ballet all the way through high school and also has the whole animal sciences thing.

I honestly think Robbie and Moe go through a pretty long phase of not spending a whole ton of “quality time” together. Hanging out for them looks like sitting on their phones on opposite ends of the couch occasionally tagging each other in memes and saying "you lol". They definitely break out their ancient Wii every now and then to play all the old games, and I also think they’d be fully involved in each other’s drama. If Robbie’s friend group is at war with each other (we’ve all been there), Moe is just as glued to Robbie’s phone as Robbie is herself, watching the group chat fall apart and telling her how to respond.

I also think Moe and Robbie would be concert buddies when they're older, and as for activities they bar their dads from -- I 100% think that Robbie and Moe give each other stick-and-pokes in high school, and Moe definitely assists in the (multiple) ear-piercings that Robbie gives herself.

If Hazel needs a sister to rope into filming TikToks, she’s definitely going to Moe first, but Robbie’s the one she’ll ask to go shopping with.

Robbie probably ropes Hazel into all her artsy stuff like, “I’m gonna make Aunt Nancy teach me how to crochet. Wanna come?” (and then they’ll come out the other side with completely different end products).

I'm not sure if there's anything super super sacred between them (though I did read The Penderwicks growing up and this made me think of the MOPS - Meeting of Penderwick Sisters) so they might have little movie nights where they all pile into Moe's bed with snacks and a laptop balanced on their knees, and Steve and Eddie are like...hello???

[stregoniconiconii]

steve for the the character ask <3

1: sexuality headcanon: I received a message from god in 2016 when Steve appeared on my screen. the message was that he was bisexual. and I never doubt god's good word ! anyway I dont think Steve is particularly angsty about being bisexual? like I think he was always somewhat aware of his attraction to both but knew stepping outside of the box would be dangerous . tbhh I think he prefers women most of the time and it takes a minute for him to upgrade from hooking up with men to dating men. most of all he's kind of a slut <3 matching with robin he is also a bit gender weird ! mostly cool with being a hot guy but on some level she is also a hot girl. sometimes that level is sometimes a girl, sometimes it's always a girl . depends on what im feeling <3

2: otp: I do enjoy a good steddie thank u Eddie for being a canon male character that I can actually see Steve with <3 there's also this one omc...Henry Sinclair you will always be famous. sometimes I forget that ur not canon...in my head one of his more long term girlfriends/maybe wife?? in adulthood is this really cool and hot paramedic called Lucille <3 she was his boss lol

3: brotp: now I wonder....it's robin it's always robin . platonically married he'd carry her kids if he had the equipment for it and they are everything to each other ! also I desperately want stobickie to be a fun little trio in s5 pls happen <3 ofc there are many platonic relationships for Steve that I love, his brotherly relationship with dustin and max is so <3 and he's a lil mentor to Lucas and bullied by erica <3 in my heart he is also part of the Byers-Hopper clan, particularly a fatherly relationship with hopper. I WISH stoncy actually developed a strong friendship but maybe there's still a chance in s5. also. I will forever be intrigued by his friendship with Tommy and carol I know they got up to some insane shit

4: notp: harringrove mostly I just think Steve finds racism extremely unattractive . I'd say stancy but the truth is I kinda like them in a fail marriage way. nobody gets them tho

5: first headcanon that pops into my head: mommy issues Steve my beloved <3 I think steve's relationship with his mother ended up informing so many of his future relationships. specifically I see a sort of emotional incest between them where Steve ended up kind of playing the role of husband to his mom since his dad was away being a bad husband. obviously not a good situation for a kid to be in with their parent bc it robs them of being a kid. but basically this put Steve in a position of providing even to the point of hurting himself, which ended up opening him up to being vulnerable to codependent relationships. I think elements of codependency follow Steve in a lot of his relationships, especially can see it with his friendship to Tommy and carol, a little bit with Nancy, and also a bit with robin too (I tend to exaggerate it with robin bc I think its fun lol)

6: favorite line from this character: aaaah one of my favourite Steve moments is s2 Steve with the kids at the junkyard I love him <3 also he's so funny I can't just pick one line

7: one way in which I relate to this character: I also miss a lot of stuff when ppl are speaking auditory processing disorder my beloved <3

8: thing that gives me second hand embarrassment about this character: nothing he's perfect and he's earnest and he's full of love

9: cinnamon roll or problematic fave?: problematic fave in the sense that he's done some problematic things but cinnamon roll because actually he's done nothing wrong ever