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dwobbitfromtheshire · 9 months

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Stuck Between a Jock and a Metalhead

Summary: Nancy, on a whim, decides to visit Steve at Scoops Ahoy, which leads to her overhearing confessions from Steve that leads her to think about the decisions she's made. A few days later, she decides to come back. She finds him being hit on by the town freak. What's a girl to do? Oh, get stuck in a freezer with the both of them.

@nightmareglitter

Warning: Very Anti Billy Hargrove. Lucas talks about his feelings on the subject like he deserves, too. Angst all around as the kids talk about their feelings.

Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six - Chapter Seven - Chapter Eight - Chapter Nine - Chapter Ten - Chapter Eleven - Chapter Twelve - Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Nancy paced in front of her boyfriends and Robin nervously. The piles of notebooks on the table seemed to be staring at her. They all stood in Steve's mostly clean apartment. There was still a lot of work that needed to be done, like getting a new AC unit and appliances for the kitchen as well as new furniture. In order to do all that, Steve needed a new job. He was managing to cover most of it with the compensation money, but most of it was going towards the furniture. Steve was going to have pay for the AC unit and things for the salon downstairs, which meant getting a job, something he was looking for with Robin.

"Whatcha thinking about, Nancy?" Eddie asked.

"Steve," Nancy replied.

"Aww. Me too. He is looking particularly handsome today," Eddie cooed at him. "Look at those pretty pink lips. I think somebody put on their lip gloss today. Our boyfriend is insanely hot. Stop it, Steven. Distracting Nancy like that. Can't you see she's trying to think?"

"I'm sorry. Next time, I'll put a bag over my head," Steve said sarcastically.

"Well, that's a bit dramatic, but now you're thinking ahead, baby," Eddie said.

"No," Nancy laughed. "I was trying to stop myself from overthinking this whole thing with the kids, so I started thinking about the things that need to get done around here."

"Did it help?" Robin asked.

"I don't think so. Do you think we're doing the right thing here? What if they hate us?" Nancy asked.

"I think what they're going to see is us trying our best to help them get through this," Steve said. "They're probably going to be little assholes about it at first, but they'll come to their senses."

"I hope you're right," Nancy said.

"You're doing the right thing, Nancy," Eddie said. "These kids need people to talk to."

Before they could say anything else, they heard the sounds of footsteps, and then there was a knock on the door. Nancy opened it, and one by one, the kids came in. The only one who was missing was Max.

"No Max?" Nancy asked Lucas.

"Uh, Billy's dad skipped down, so she's helping her mother pack up," Lucas said. "They're moving to Forest Hills."

"That is where we live," El said and smiled before frowning.

"Yeah, kiddo," Eddie said. "Don't feel bad about being excited about seeing your friend more. You're allowed to be happy."

"Okay," El said softly.

"It's going to be right across from you guys. Your uncle is helping them," Lucas said and paused. "Even if that wasn't the case, I'm not sure Max wants to see any of us right now."

"That's understandable," Nancy said.

"Why have thoust summoned a council meeting, milady?" Dustin asked.

"I can see why he's your favorite," Nancy heard Eddie whisper to Steve.

"I thought we should touch base and see how everyone is holding up. We went through a lot of shit recently, and I know it hasn't been easy for me. I just wanted to let everyone know that we're here for you if you need to talk about anything. This is a safe space," Nancy said.

"I'm fine," Mike shrugged.

"You're fine?!" Eddie asked, his eyebrows raised. "Nancy, I think your brother might be a psychopath. I am so sorry you had to find out like this."

"Okay, you don't have to talk about it, but there's no way you came out of it fine," Nancy said, rolling her eyes and ignoring her boyfriend.

"Okay, I don't want to talk about it," Mike said.

"That's okay. Like I said, no one has to talk. We're going to talk, and if someone wants to speak up afterward, then that's okay too," Nancy said.

"I'll go first," Steve said.

"Are you sure?" Nancy asked.

"Yeah," Steve said. "You know, most of the time, I can't sleep now. It was bad before, but never this bad. I lay awake, wondering if the Russians are going to break into my house and come for me or if they're going to come for Dustin and Robin. . . Just everyone I care about. And when I can't go back to sleep from the most God awful nightmare, I go out in my car and drive down everyone's street, just to make sure you guys are safe. And the nightmares. . . I dream that they come for me, and they take me away to a dark place where they take me apart piece by piece. Sometimes, it's the Russians. Sometimes, it's a demogorgon, and sometimes, it's my parents. When I wake up, I have to go out and make sure we're all still here."

"Holy shit, Steve," Eddie muttered and placed a comforting hand on his back, leaning heavily against him.

"I don't know how to make it all better except when I see all of you guys again, and I know you're safe," Steve said. "I know I complain a lot about doing things for you guys, but the truth is I love doing them. You're my family, and my biggest fear is that something will happen to you. I can't let that happen," Steve said.

Dustin suddenly threw himself into Steve’s arms, hugging him tightly.

"It's my fault you got hurt, Steve," Dustin said, sniffling. "I should have left the Russian transmission alone, and you wouldn't have gone down there."

"That's dumb, I made my own choice to go down there, and if we hadn't gone down there, then the others wouldn't have known where to go to shut off the machines," Steve said.

"Hopper died," Dustin sobbed.

"He made his own choice, too," Steve said softly. "He chose to save Hawkins. We wouldn't have made it out of a lot of situations without you."

"Yeah, but we wouldn't have gotten into certain situations if it hadn't been for me like when I tried to keep Dart. What if he had killed my mom and not my cat?" Dustin asked.

"But he didn't," Steve said.

"Sometimes, I have nightmares about him eating mom, my friends, and you. Now, I also dream about the Russians hurting my older brother," Dustin said. "I don't know what I would do if you died because me."

"You are not responsible for what happened. The Russians are and the mad scientist who started all of this," Steve said softly and clutched him tightly to his chest.

"I know it doesn't look like it, but I question myself all the time, and I wonder if I'm making the right decisions," Dustin said.

"We all do that, Dustin," Nancy said softly. "You're not alone in that."

"Even you?" Dustin sniffled.

"Especially me," Nancy said. "I've made decisions that could have the cost the lives of this entire town. I know what it's like to feel responsible for the decisions you've made. The minute you realized that you messed up with Dart, you tried to fix it. I mean, you did it by yourself, and he ended up escaping, but you did try. You ended up reaching out for help, and in doing so, you got a big brother out of it. Sometimes, the only thing you can do is take responsibility and do better rather than stewing in the regret of the decisions you've made. It took me a while to even realize that I messed up. Even longer than you. I still feel like I have so much to make up for. You're not alone in feeling like that, and you're not alone in feeling like everything is your fault either. Just because you were responsible for one thing doesn't mean that you're responsible for another."

Dustin moved from Steve’s arms to Nancy's and hugged her tightly. Nancy sighed and removed his hat to kiss the top of his curls. She put his hat back on his head and pinched his cheeks. Dustin scowled and sat back down. He cracked a smile as he adjusted his hat.

"I feel small," Robin blurted out. "Like, I saw everything, and I just felt so much smaller now that I know what's out there. I just feel like everything in my life doesn't matter, or at least that's what I think, but then it's like maybe it matters even more now, to live your life the way you want to without anyone's expectations bringing you down. Just when I think that I'm going to do that, the feeling of being small comes back, and I think about all those people stuffed inside that fucking monster. It honestly scares me that your life can just be snuffed out like that. If that makes sense."

"It does. On one hand, you want to be true to yourself, but on the other hand, you're afraid that your truth might scare the people you care about most away," Will said. "Even if you know that they wouldn't care, there's still this irrational fear that they might be carrying that secret like the secret you carry."

"Exactly," Robin agreed.

"And at the end of the day, you have to risk trusting them because you want the people in your life to know you," Mike said. "Because you never know, they might understand more than you think."

"And you just have to decide if they're worth the risk," Robin said, smiling at Steve. "It's all about perspective."

For several moments, no one said anything until Lucas started sniffling and shaking his leg.

"What's up, Lucas?" Steve asked.

"I just - no, it's too awful," Lucas sniffed.

"Hey, safe space here," Nancy said. "We're not going to judge you."

"It's just that I'm glad that Max isn't here, that she broke up with me because I'm not sure if I'd be able to look at her if she knew what I was thinking," Lucas said. "There's a part of me that's glad. . . That's glad that Billy is dead because at least he can't hurt anyone anymore. The monsters, they're scary as shit but Billy scared me more than anything else because he wasn't a monster from another dimension. He was just a person who targeted me because of the color of my skin. He held me against the wall, and he threatened to break me. I still have nightmares about him holding me there, and what if Steve hadn't intervened in time? What if he held me to the ground and beat me until I couldn't wake up? Then I dreamed about him going after my dad, my mom, and my sister. He makes me watch and tells me he's going to break us, that we don't belong. . . then I'm back at the Byers again, and he's holding me in the air, threatening to break me as Steve lies dead on the floor. Billy scared me more than anyone or anything because before he got possessed, he was a real monster, and there's more people like him out there who wanted to see people like me dead. It scares the shit out of me. I feel like I should feel bad, though, that he's dead, but I don't. I only feel bad for Max."

"Lucas. . . You're not a bad person for feeling the way that you do. Billy Hargrove was a terror, and you're right. He was a monster. You had every right to be scared of him, and you have a right to be relieved that he's not around to hurt you anymore," Nancy said softly.

"He scared the crap out of me, too. Remember when he tried to run us over and he almost killed Steve? I am super glad he's not around to hurt my friends anymore. Do I feel bad for Max? Yes. Do I feel bad that Billy's gone? No. In my book, that's another bad guy who's not around to hurt our family anymore," Dustin said.

"I felt sad that his father was so mean, and that his mother left him alone, but that does not mean he should act like Papa. I am sad for Max, but I will be glad that he will not be around to hurt Max or any of my friends," El said. "He will not be missed, which is sad, but he made his own choices, and he chose to be bad."

"I'm glad he's gone even more now that I've heard what he's done to you kids. He was a psychopath. You could see it in the eyes. He definitely had it in for my friend, Jeff, which is further proof that he's a racist shithead," Eddie said. "Fucking sexist too."

"See? You're not alone in feeling that way, Lucas. It doesn't mean you're a bad person," Nancy said.

"Then why do I feel bad about not feeling bad?" Lucas asked.

"Because you're a better person than he was," Steve said.

"He saved us, saved El," Lucas said.

"A bad person can do one nice thing his entire life, but it will never make up for all the shitty vile things he's done. . .that takes constant work," Nancy said. "It took El digging in his head to pull out the one shred of decency that he had buried deep inside."

"You can either end the cycle of abuse your parents' beat into you, or you can pass it on. Billy chose to pass it on, man," Steve said. "He had every opportunity to give Max the older brother she deserved, but he waited at the very last minute to do the bare minimum. You're not a bad person, Lucas. Billy was, though."

Steve got up to hug the crying Sinclair, but Erica had beat him to it. She threw her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly.

"You're my brother, and you can be such a dumbass but I love you. I'm glad he's not around to hurt you anymore either," Erica said softly.

Lucas sniffled and hugged his sister back just as tightly. Everyone fell quiet as they watched the siblings hug. They sat back down, and the silence continued as they let Lucas mull over what's been said. Nancy pulled out a box of tissues and laid them on the table. Lucas gladly helped himself to some.

"I don't want to move to California," Will blurted out.

"Have you told your mom about that?" Nancy asked.

"No. I know how much she wants to leave, and I get it. She was put through hell here. We all were, but this is our home, too. All of you are here, and what if something happens again? I also don't want to be the one to make my mother miserable here," Will said. "I just wish I had a choice like El did. I want to stay here too."

"I think maybe you should tell your mom that. I think she'd understand about you wanting to stay," Nancy said. "I think she'd be happy with whatever choice you wanted to make."

"I mean, it's not like we'd never see each other again if we did move to California," Will said.

"I don't want you to move either," Mike blurted out. "You're my best friend. You're our best friend. Why does it have to be all the way in California? I mean, can't it be somewhere closer? First, we lost Hopper. Now we're going to have to lose you? You have to lose us? It's not fucking fair?! It's not right! And what about us? What if something happens again? We're just on our own again?! It's not fair!"

Will stood up and pulled Mike into his arms, squeezing him. Mike sobbed and hugged him.

"I'll talk to my mom, okay. I'll talk to her," Will said softly.

Lucas stood up and joined the hug. Dustin soon followed, and then it was El who joined the hug after them. Dustin cleared his throat and looked over at the others. Nancy moved with everyone else, and soon, they were all holding onto each other. They all stayed like that for a while until Dustin let out a gaseous cloud that dispersed them immediately.

"Oh my God! Steven! What are you feeding that child?!" Eddie exclaimed.

"I'm sorry! So many things were released today! What's one more toxic thing?!" Dustin exclaimed as everyone gagged.

El started giggling, which set off a chain reaction that caused everyone to laugh. They laughed harder when Robin dramatically threw open the windows. They didn't stop laughing until they all collapsed on the ground.

"I have to ask though, what's with all the journals?" Lucas asked as they all stood up.

"I got those for all of us to write our thoughts, feelings, and dreams down in," Nancy said.

"I do feel a little better now that I got some stuff off my chest," Lucas said.

"And I got stickers for you to decorate your journals with," Eddie said.

"Why are there so many My Little Pony stickers?" Mike asked.

"The question is: why isn't there more?" Erica asked.

"That's all they had in the store," Eddie said. "I LOVE My Little Pony."

Nancy and Steve shared an amused look as Eddie got into a heated debate over My Little Pony with Erica and Dustin. It had been a good idea to do this because it was another step forward to moving on and receiving the proper healing that they all needed. Nancy only hoped that they could keep this up. She knew that there were still hardships ahead, but as she gazed at them all, she could feel hope on the rise.

Chapter Fifteen

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thefreakandthehair · 2 years

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Dialogue Prompts

(Find Inspiration Prompts Here!)

(Lex's Spicy Six Spring Fanworks Challenge Rules)

“Hey! Wait up!” - @slavicviking (fic, steddie)

“I don’t let people touch my hair, so you better feel honored.” - @stargyles (fic, stargyle) / @manda-panda-monium (fic, steddie)

“No, but you invited me this time, so it would be rude of me to not show.” - @seidenbros (fic, steddie)

“Should I…? You know what, I can just… go.”: @stevesbipanic (fic, steddie)

“Have I told you already how cute you are?” - @itsfreakingbats (fic, buckingham)

“Grass stains. Typical.” - @starryeyedjanai (fic, steddie)

“I had no idea you were so allergic to these.” - @unclewaynemunson (fic, ronance)

“How many plants do we have to kill before we acknowledge that we’re plant serial killers?” - @anything-thats-rock-and-roll (fic, platonic stobin)

“I was really hoping that your hands were only that cold in the winter. Apparently not.” - @gothbat99 (fic, steddie)

“Do you know that you have like, a trillion freckles on your shoulders?” - @stevethehairington (steddie, fic)

“This is the third time this week you’ve asked for flour. What the hell are you baking and why are you baking it in such high quantities?” - @maxineholtzmann (fic, steddie) / - @nightmareglitter (fic, spicy six + chrissy)

“I think I know what that smile means. And I’m terrified.” - @sorbsahoy (ronance, fic)

“Isn’t that what spring’s all about? Beginnings?” - @henrystars (fic, steddie)

“What’s that old rhyme? April Showers bring May Flowers?” - @hammity-hammer (fic, jargyle)

“Oh my God, I can feel the winter sadness melting off of me.” - @figthefruitfaeth (platonic stobin, fic)

“It’s been cold for so long, I actually forgot that my car windows go down. Fresh air!” -@horsegirleddiemunson (fic, steddie)

“Wait, wait, wait. Butterflies? Butterflies are your biggest fear?” - @is-emily-real (spicy six, fic) / @hitlikehammers (steddie, fic)

“Listen, I’m a fern, okay? I need sunlight.” - @hotluncheddie (steddie, fic)

“I like that color, it really suits you.” - @daysarestranger (fic, steddie)

“Huh. I don’t think I knew this part of town existed. It’s beautiful.” - @mrharringtonifyanasty (fic, steddie)

“You really didn’t notice that I’ve been flirting with you for the last year?” - @fruityfourgalore (fic, steddie)

“Come lie down with me, I’ll read it to you.”- @punkharringtxn (steddie, fic)

“C’mon, it’s raining!” - @hexiewrites (fic, steddie)

“Do you, uh… do you want to come with me?” - @stevecarrington, (fic, steddie)

“Here, I brought you an umbrella.” - @strawberryspence (fic, steddie)

“What? I can’t just bring you something because it reminded me of you?” - @bmodiwrites (fic, steddie)

“Sure, sure, it’s just allergies.” - @princessstevemunson (fic, steddie)

“Am I reading this all wrong?” - @fastcardotmp3 (fic)

“I feel like a kid again.” - @sharpbutsoft (fic, steddie)

“Of course I can smell when it’s gonna rain, you can’t?” - @itsfreakingbats (fic, stargyle)

31. "Do you trust me?" 32. "You know, I've never met someone so optimistic." - @spinmewriteround (fic, steddie) 33. "Is this how you are with all of your friends, or am I just special?" - @hellfireloserclub (fic, steddie) 34. "Wanna know what I think?" - @allerask (fic, steddie) 35. "I’ve never really done this before. I'll probably be bad at it." - @withacapitalp (fic, steddie) 36. . "Wait, what? What does that mean-- you kinda like me?" - @fruityfour (fic, steddie) 37. "I have a feeling you’re trying not to kiss me, but I'd really like it if you did." - @aringofsalt (fic, steddie) / @starrystevie (fic, ronance/steddie) 38. "You wanna dance? Here? Now?" -@stevethefreakharrington (fanart, platonic stobin) / @hbdttg (fic, steddie)

39. "Pretty good. I would've slept better if these damn birds didn't insist on singing the song of their people at sunrise." 40. "See? My hands are bigger than yours!" - @toburnup (fic, steddie) 41. "It's weird, isn't it? It's so... quiet." - @nancywheelersgirlfriend (fic, ronance)

#lexsspringfanworkschallenge

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frankenstein-ate-my-left-shoe · 2 years

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Hi! I was wondering if I could please be added to the tag list for your Secret Admirer fic? Leaving red roses with handwritten notes is just such a Steve thing to do, and Eddie's reactions to finding them are so sweet! I love this fic! @nightmareglitter

Sure!! I always try to tag as many people as i can but you can only mention up to 50 blogs 😭

And yeah, Steve’s a regular sap 🥰

#secret admirer au #asks

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totallycorrectjediorderquotes · 2 years

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Obi-Wan, on a holo-call with Satine: My apologies, my dear, but I can't talk right now. Anakin is missing.

A few hours later

Satine: I have good news and bad news.

Obi-Wan: Oh?

Satine: The good news is I found Anakin.

Obi-Wan: Oh thank the Force! And the bad news?

Satine: Your padawan is an idiot.

Obi-Wan: Um...

Satine: He tried to ship himself from Dex's Diner to the Temple.

Satine: Mislabelled the package.

Obi-Wan: And ended up on Mandalore?

Satine: And ended up on Mandalore.

Obi-Wan: *sigh*

Submitted by: @nightmareglitter

#submission #Submitted by Nigthmareglitter #Obi Wan Kenobi #satine kryze #anakin skywalker #incorrect star wars quotes #star wars #star wars: the clone wars #star wars: the expanded universe #star wars the prequel trilogy #Source: @nightmareglitter

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dwobbitfromtheshire · 9 months

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Stuck Between a Jock and a Metalhead

@nightmareglitter

Chapter Fifteen

Two months after Starcourt. . .

Eddie's POV

He was standing in the Upside Down, Steve looking at him with wide expressive eyes, giving him an imploring look.

"Don't be cute," he had said as though he were begging him not to do something, and suddenly, Eddie heard the sound of Nancy screaming his name.

The scene changed. He was on the ground, and he was being eaten alive by the bats. The next thing he knew, he was being held in Dustin's arms.

"I didn't run away this time," Eddie said. "I love you, man."

You can't outrun your fate, Eddie. You will be mine. All roads will lead you to the same end. YOU WILL BE MINE.

Suddenly, Steve was lying on his back, squirming underneath him as Eddie wrapped a clawed hand around his throat.

"Eddie, please, it's me. It's Steve," he whimpered.

A figure came at him and tried to pull him off of Steve. Eddie growled and slashed out. His claws inserted himself into Nancy's stomach, sliding into her like butter. Nancy cried out in pain, and Steve started struggling harder.

"You deserve this," Eddie hissed. "You left me."

Eddie woke up with a start, drenched in sweat. He rolled out of the top bunk and stared at El, fast asleep in the bottom bunk, for a moment before running to the bathroom. He took a quick shower, got dressed, and headed out the door. He paused when he saw that it was still dark outside, and he looked at his watch. It was three in the morning. He hurried back inside, left a note for Wayne as well as El, and left the trailer park. He parked his van down the street from Nancy's house and jogged the rest of the way. Eddie quickly scaled up the side of the house, hoping he didn't get arrested. He tapped on the window as quietly as he could, wincing as he thought about how mad she was going to be. Yep, she was mad. She flung open the window, her eyes full of sleepy annoyance.

"Eddie, it's 3 a.m.," Nancy said.

Oh, she was so cute when she was angry. Eddie shook his head. Focus.

"I, uh, needed to see you," Eddie said.

"As sweet as that is - what's wrong?" Nancy asked.

He must have made a face or something because suddenly Nancy was pulling him inside and closing the window.

"I had another nightmare. I was in the Upside Down again being eaten by the bat creatures again, but this time, I died in Dustin's arms. The next thing I knew, I was trying to kill Steve. I was a monster, Nance. You tried to stop me, but I - I stabbed you with my claws. I killed you. I killed you," Eddie shook, his bottom lip trembling.

"Eddie, I'm here, I'm alive," Nancy said.

She cupped his cheek with one hand while she grabbed his other hand and pressed it to her chest, letting him know that her heart was still beating.

"You're alive," Eddie said. "You're alive."

He cupped her face and pulled her into a desperate kiss, his face dripping with tears. She pulled him in closer, wrapping her arms around his neck, and stumbled back against the bed. She pulled him on top of her and deepened the kiss, licking into his mouth. Eddie broke the kiss with a sigh and buried his face into her neck. He shuffled down and placed his ear against her chest, listening to her racing heart. He smirked for a moment before sighing against her.

"Alive," he whispered.

"Take off your shoes," Nancy mumbled.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah," Eddie said.

He took off his shoes, and Nancy pulled him back down to his spot before throwing the covers over them.

"What if we get caught?" He asked.

"I'll push you out the window before that can happen," she replied.

"That's sweet," Eddie chuckled before sighing again. "Hmm, this is nice. If only Steve was here. Do you think he'll be jealous that we had our own little sleepover without him?"

"No, he would think it's sweet that you needed to see me. Now, if you can be good and not tease him about it, then we'll all have a proper sleepover," Nancy said. "Now, go to sleep. We have to help Mrs. Byers pack."

"I'll be good," Eddie mumbled sleepily and fell asleep to the sound of her still beating heart.

The next morning, Eddie woke up to find little Holly Wheeler blinking curiously at him. It wasn't long before Nancy had awoken, too.

"Holly, how did you get in here?" Nancy asked.

"I saw Mommy pick the lock on Mike's door once," Holly said, and Eddie snorted. "Nancy, if you needed a teddy to sleep with, you could have borrowed one of mine."

She said it so sweet and innocently that Eddie couldn't help but bury his face into Nancy's neck to laugh.

"Holly, please get out, and please don't tell mom or dad about this," Nancy said.

"What's in it for me?" Holly asked.

"I'll buy you all the ice cream you want," Nancy said.

"Okay," Holly said brightly and skipped out of the room.

"She heard about Steve’s deal with Erica, and she was waiting for the right time to strike," Eddie cackled. "Your parents are going to have their hands full when she's a teenager."

"Definitely," Nancy snorted.

Eddie managed to escape out the window successfully, kissing Nancy deeply before he left, and drove back to the trailer park. Wayne was still asleep, but El was wide awake and sitting on the counter, stuffing her face with a frozen waffle. El froze for a moment before she started chewing again before handing Eddie a waffle. He cackled, grabbed it, and hopped up beside her on the counter.

"Where did you go?" El asked.

"I needed to see Nancy," Eddie said.

"Bad dream?" El said, her cheeks full of waffle.

Eddie stared in amusement. His little sister was too damn adorable. She looked like a little squirrel.

"Yeah," Eddie said honestly.

"Why did you not wake me?" El asked.

"Ah, this was the kind of bad dream I needed to see my girlfriend for, you know?" Eddie said.

"I understand," El replied. "Was it a vision?"

"I don't know. I hope it wasn't," Eddie said. "It kind of feels like it was."

"You do not think it is over," El said.

"Honestly?" Eddie asked, and she nodded. "No, it doesn't feel over. I want it to be, though."

"I wish I still had my powers," she said.

"I wish my powers were more physical," Eddie sighed and paused. "I'm glad you made the decision to stick around. It was very brave of you."

"You are my family, my brother. I love you, and Uncle Wayne," El said.

Eddie grinned, his heart warming like the sun. It was the first time she had said that.

"I love you too," Eddie said and hugged her tightly. "I'm going to squeeze you until you pop!"

"Do not make me pop," El said seriously.

"Alright, how about we go read some more Lord of the Rings until we have to go to the Byers?" Eddie asked.

"Can I bring the waffles?" El asked.

"You better," Eddie said.

A little while later, as they were about to leave, Max stumbled out of her trailer and walked towards theirs. She stood timidly in front of them for a moment, her arms crossed.

"Can I catch a ride?" Max asked. "I want to help."

"Of course," Wayne said. "It's no problem."

Eddie grinned and held the doors open for the girls to climb into the back of his back.

"You better not kill us, Munson," Max warned. "I've seen you drive."

"Nah, you're in safe hands," Eddie said. "Uncle Wayne is driving."

Eddie grinned as he leaned back against his seat as he watched from the rear view mirror as Max tied her green scrunchie into El's hair. Adorable little shits. When they pulled up to the house, the kids and Nancy were already there to begin helping.

"Thank you guys for coming," Joyce said.

"It's no problem," Eddie said. "Glad to be of help."

He hugged her quickly and skipped over to Nancy.

"Long time no see," she said in amusement.

"Very funny. Where's our Stevie bear?" Eddie asked.

"Oh, he called a little bit ago. Robin might have found them a job, so they're going to see about that. Maybe even get an interview," Nancy said.

"Oh, well, here's hoping," Eddie grinned.

"You ever thought about getting a job?" Nancy asked.

"If you wanted me to spoil you, all you had to do was ask. How many kisses do you want? I'll give them all to you," Eddie said.

"No! If anyone is going to be spoiling anyone, it's me spoiling you," Nancy said.

"Do whatever you need to do to me, baby, I'm yours," Eddie grinned, and Nancy giggled.

"Idiot. Have you seriously thought about getting a job besides drug dealing?" She asked.

"Yeah, but who would hire me?" Eddie scoffed.

"Well, I know Thatcher's Tire is hiring, and I know you like to work with your hands. Also, the music store is hiring," Nancy said.

"They are? I've been waiting for them to open up a position! I would love to work with music," Eddie said. "Going to have to check that out."

"And if they don't hire you, I'll threaten to write a strongly worded news article and have Lily add it to the Post," Nancy said.

"My girl, threatening to destroy someone's business for me," Eddie said with a dreamy swoon. "So romantic."

"Get to work, Romeo," Wayne said, passing him by.

"He's just jealous. He's lonely. Bless him," Eddie said. "I found romance novels squirelled away in the trailer."

"Boy!"

"Damn him and his bat like hearing!" Eddie exclaimed, and Nancy giggled.

Eddie and Nancy worked together for a while to help Will pack his stuff up. At some point, they got separated due to Eddie getting distracted, and he found himself in the living room with Dustin. Max and Lucas started to sing the song from the Neverending Story, a movie that always scared him. They seemed to be mocking Dustin.

"I guess I was knocked out for that part," Eddie said when they explained it to him.

"Hey, you fought well, big guy," Dustin said.

"Thanks, man," Eddie said and ruffled his hair.

"So, Mike said that you run a D&D club at school," Dustin said.

"I do," Eddie said. "And you guys are welcome to join. . . You know, as long as you don't abandon us for better things like for girls, for instance."

"Yeah, I kind of feel bad now for ignoring Will all summer," Lucas winced.

"Okay, but what if Nancy and Steve asked you to drop everything, including D&D, to be with them?" Max asked.

"Well, that's not fair to use them both," Eddie frowned.

"I would never expect him to do that unless it's an emergency where one of us is in the hospital," Nancy said, walking into the room. "I know how important it is to him."

"You are so fucking gorgeous," Eddie beamed.

"Okay, but what if Lucas wants to explore other interests outside of D&D, but he still wants to play?" Max asked.

"Well, that's okay too as long he stays true to himself, and he doesn't make himself smaller to fit in," Eddie shrugged.

"What if it's basketball?" Max asked.

"Max," Lucas hissed.

"What? We're just going to pretend that you haven't been practicing with Steve?" Max asked.

"You have?" Dustin asked.

Eddie was surprised to find this out from Max and not from Steve.

"What? Why didn't he tell me?" Eddie asked.

"Maybe because you like to rant about the jocks on the basketball team, and you demean the game he's interested in," Max said.

Eddie's eyes widened in realization. He had been nervous about going back to school, but he hadn't realized that he had been making Steve feel bad about the things he likes. He collapsed on the ground, his face in his hands.

"I am a shitty boyfriend!" Eddie moaned.

"You've just had shitty experiences with basketball players who gave it a bad name, and it left a bad taste in your mouth," Max said. "At least you recognized your shitty behavior. Are you planning on doing something about it?"

"Getting him flowers isn't enough. I mean, I will get them, but I'll also let him teach me how to play," Eddie said.

"That's not a bad idea," Nancy said. "I would pay to see that."

"I just I have never been a boyfriend before. I've been used by people and used people before when it was mutual, but I have never been in a serious relationship before," Eddie said. "I feel like I'm going to fuck this all up."

"As long as you keep thinking you're going to mess it all up, you're probably going to wind up doing so," Nancy said. "We're all still figuring it out together. Now, stop moping and get back to work."

"Yes, darling," Eddie said softly and smiled when she gave him a peck on the lips. "Hey, Mayfield, how did you know all of that stuff about Steve?"

"I overheard him talking to Robin about it and some of it came from Lucas," Max shrugged.

A little while later, Eddie found himself outside with Joyce, helping her load up the truck.

"Are you sure about this?" Eddie asked. "I don't think it's too late to back out."

"Absolutely, too much has happened here," Joyce said.

"And you're afraid things might happen again?" Eddie asked. "Yeah, the kids are afraid of that too."

"I'm sure things will be fine," Joyce said.

"If you believe that, then why are you leaving?" Eddie asked. "I had another dream last night. There was a voice this time. . . "

"I'm sure that it was just a nightmare," Joyce said, trying to reassure him.

"You're probably right," Eddie said with a tight smile.

"Don't bother wasting your breath, Eddie," Will said and wedged himself between them to put a box in the truck. "I already tried talking to her."

He sighed, rolled his eyes, and stormed off.

"I'm sure he's just upset about leaving the only friends he's ever known behind to move to a place where he has no one," Eddie replied cheerfully, and for a moment a flash of guilt appeared on her face.

"Oh, Wayne, I was hoping to talk to you and Eddie for a second," Joyce said, relieved at the sight of his uncle.

"Something wrong?" Wayne asked.

"No, in fact, it's a good thing," Joyce said and pulled out an envelope. "The deed to the house and the keys are all inside. I'm giving you guys the house."

"Why?!" Eddie exclaimed.

"You have El now. You guys are going to need more room," Joyce said.

"Thank you, Joyce, this is awfully kind of you," Wayne said, taking the envelope.

"She would have loved California," Joyce said.

"Yes, well, she didn't want to leave everyone she loved behind," Eddie said.

"Eddie," Wayne said with a warning tone.

"Right, sorry, thank you for the house, Joyce," Eddie said and jaunted into the house.

He went looking for El and found her laying on the ground, crying over a letter.

"You okay?" Eddie asked softly.

"It's a letter from my dad," El said and wiped her face. "I am fine."

She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly.

"Are you sure?" He asked.

"I miss my dad," El said softly, and Eddie laid his head on top of hers with a sigh. "I will miss them too."

"And you're sure that staying here is something that you absolutely want?" Eddie asked.

"Yes," El said. "This is my home, and you guys are my family. I do not want to leave."

"Okay, just had to make sure," Eddie muttered softly. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

Once the packing up was done, everyone gathered outside to say goodbye to the Byers. Eddie stood off to the side as he watched everyone say goodbye to them. There wasn't a dry eye amongst them. Even Nancy was shedding tears for Jonathan and hugging him tightly. Eddie was glad that Nancy was slowly moving forward, but there was a small, childish part of him that would be glad that Jonathan wouldn't be around. He knew it was irrational, but he was working on it. The worst part of all of this was seeing how sad these kids were. He wondered if Joyce knew she breaking their hearts along with her son's? His eyes watched Nancy as she hugged Will, her own tears spilling over. The Byers loaded up in their vehicles and started pulling out of the driveway. Nancy wandered over to Eddie and slipped into his arms as they watched them leave Hawkins.

"Joyce gave us the house," Eddie said.

"She did?" Nancy sniffled.

"Yeah."

He didn't say anything else after that. The sound of the kids sniffling amongst themselves was breaking his own heart a little bit. He was a coward on more than one occasion to understand the need for running away to protect himself, but he also watched his dad back out of his life enough times to feel bitter about this move especially seeing the heartbreak on the kids face. Oh, Steve would not be able to handle seeing them cry. Nancy turned around in his arms, burrowing her face into his chest. Yeah, she couldn't handle it either. Jesus, hasn't these kids been through enough? He should buy more tissues because it looked like they were going to have to have another session.

He couldn't help but wonder when the time came and something did happen, would they be able to handle it? The image of him choking Steve and killing Nancy entered his mind again. His stomach churned, and he had the sudden urge to run away. Maybe he could avoid all of that by leaving, too. Maybe he couldn't hurt anyone if he wasn't around to do it. As he glanced around at the hurt look on the kids' faces, he knew that wasn't an option either. He needed to stick around and fight for these lost sheep. . . Fight for his hometown.

Chapter Sixteen

55 notes · View notes

dwobbitfromtheshire · 10 months

Text

The Right Place in Time

Summary: What if Steve was in the woods with Chrissy and Eddie getting weed for his headaches?

@disrespectedgoatman @estrellami-1 @darkrose517 @panicatthediaz @mandriice @nightmareglitter @limpingpenguin @wonderland-girl143-blog

Chapter Nineteen

Tw: Laura makes one final appearance. I had to make Eddie do this. 😆

Two days later. . .

Things had settled down a little now, although everyone was still pretty jumpy, and they would probably never stop looking over their shoulder. There was a sense of relief, though, knowing that Vecna was dead and that Chrissy had felt him die, so there was no doubt about it. According to Chrissy, El, Will, Mike, Jonathan, and a guy named Argyle were on their way back to Hawkins. Currently, they were helping Chrissy move out of her house and into her uncle's. They were packing up her things and her brother's. Steve had thought it was hilarious when Chrissy pulled up the floorboard of her brother's room in front of Laura and found all the things Matty had hidden from his mother. The look on Laura's face was priceless, especially when Chrissy flipped her off. Laura was standing off to the side, watching through pursed lips as they moved the last of their stuff out.

"Oh, I've got one thing to say," Eddie said, setting a box down.

Steve and Chrissy watched as he started licking all the things in her tidy kitchen. Laura shrieked when he pulled his pants down and started wiggling his naked butt on her counter.

"Get out!" Laura yelled.

Eddie grinned and quickly pulled up his pants before grabbing the box. He hightailed it out of the house, giggling with Steve and Chrissy.

"Eddie!" Chrissy shrieked with laughter. "I can't believe you did that!"

"I'm sorry, was it wrong of me?" Eddie asked, batting his eyelashes at her.

"Okay, what did we miss?" Dustin asked as he stopped loading boxes into Eddie's van.

Chrissy and Steve laughed harder when Eddie wiggled his butt.

"Oh, you know, just me being a pain in the ass," Eddie laughed.

Max rolled her eyes as she took the last box from him and loaded up in the van. She immediately headed for Steve’s car and slid into the passenger's seat.

"Shotgun!" Max called out.

"That's not fair! I was distracted," Dustin said. "Steve!"

"What? I'm not actually your mother. Get your ass in the car before she calls the cops on us," Steve said.

Chrissy's belongings were packed away into Eddie's van, and she crawled into the passenger's seat of his van, laughing. Eddie climbed into the driver's seat and peeled out of the driveway, allowing Steve out in front of him. Steve watched from the rear view mirror as Chrissy stuck half her body out of the window, raising it above the van. She raised her middle fingers at the house.

"Fuck you very much!" They heard Chrissy scream.

Steve laughed as Max, Dustin, and Lucas cheered for her. When they pulled up to the Fisher household. Vickie, Robin, and Matthew were unloading some more of Chrissy's things that they had rescued from the church donations. Steve scowled for a moment, remembering the look on Chrissy's face when she found out that her mother had donated some of her stuff. Luckily, the pastor thought it was odd and set the stuff aside. As they were unpacking Chrissy's things, Max and Lucas started bursting into song. Steve laughed, and Dustin groaned when they realized it was the Neverending Story song. Steve couldn't help but join in with everyone else looking on in confusion except for Robin. She rolled her eyes and started singing as well with Dustin burying his face in his hands.

"I hate you," Dustin said, without heat.

"Someone let me in so I can also tease the butthead," Eddie said with a grin when they finished.

"No!" Dustin shrieked.

"I'll tell you guys later," Steve whispered to Chrissy and Eddie.

Once they unpacked all of Chrissy and Matty's things, Matthew clapped his hands together with a grin.

"As a way of welcoming Chrissy home, I figured that I would make us a celebratory lunch, and you're all - ," Matthew started to say and then the phone rang. "Goddamnit."

Matthew disappeared and came back a few moments later with a frown on his face.

"Bad news, my dears, I have to go into work," Matthew sighed. "A difficult patient has come in, and he's a bit paranoid, so he only trusts me to work on him. As difficult as he is, I do like him, and I want him alive so . . . "

"It's okay, Daddy, we get it," Vickie said.

"Yeah, nothing to apologize for when you're saving a life," Chrissy said with a smile.

"It's okay, Mr. Fisher, we'll go over to Steve’s and I'll make us something. I'm more familiar with his kitchen," Dustin said.

"Stop offering up my place like it's yours!" Steve exclaimed, half joking.

"Well, it's not my fault that you made it so homey when my mother and I lived there when our house was being fumigated!" Dustin exclaimed.

"Yeah. My place is fine. He does make the best pizza," Steve said, affectionately ruffling his hair.

"And I have just the movie to watch when we get there," Robin said and looked at Vickie with a smile. "I rented it special for a certain someone."

Vickie looked confused at first, and then she made a squealing sound when she realized.

"You didn't?! The Wizard of Oz?!" Vickie asked.

"I did!" Robin exclaimed.

Vickie squealed again, hugging her tightly and kissing her cheek.

"Well, I'm glad you guys have a backup plan," Matthew said, pulling Vickie and Chrissy into a hug. "Even if I can't be there."

"Oh, Uncle Matthew, we can celebrate with you anytime. We should have dinner just the three of us," Chrissy said.

"That sounds like a plan, too," Matthew grinned.

He said goodbye to Vickie and Chrissy, then to everyone else before leaving. Shortly after, everyone left for Steve’s place. As soon as they got there, Steve called Nancy and the rest of Hellfire to invite them over. Steve then groaned, clutching his stomach. He collapsed onto the couch.

"You okay, baby?" Chrissy asked.

"Yeah. I think I overdid it," Steve said.

"Well, you just relax, sweetheart," Eddie said. "We'll supervise the butthead in the kitchen."

"You mean annoy him," Chrissy giggled and Eddie shrugged.

Eddie pushed his hair back, kissed his forehead, and then his lips. Chrissy leaned down to kiss him too and then started to walk towards the kitchen.

"Wait," Steve said, and they stopped. "You guys free a couple of Saturdays from now?"

"Yeah," Chrissy grinned.

"Yes, quite busy, I have this thing - oof, Chrissy! I'm kidding, kidding. Absolutely free for you, big boy," Eddie grinned.

"Well, I was thinking since I'd be in much better shape by then, I'd figure that's when we have our first official date," Steve said. "What do you say?"

"Definitely," they said and kissed both his cheeks.

As they were leaving, Vickie, Robin, Max, and Lucas were entering the living room.

"Good luck. He wouldn't let us help," Robin scowled.

Eddie just cackled and dragged Chrissy into the kitchen.

Robin plopped down next to Steve while Vickie sat against her legs. Max sat down next to her and pulled Lucas into her lap, pressing her cheek against his chest as he wrapped an arm around her.

"How are you doing?" Robin asked Steve.

"Good, I mean, my bites are feeling itchy, but Matthew says that's good. It means it's healing. Still hurts like a bitch though as well as the road rash and my throat," Steve said.

"Man, life just keeps kicking the shit out of you, doesn't it?" Robin asked.

"Out of all of us, but I feel like some good luck is being sent my way," Steve said, smiling.

"Eddie and Chrissy?" Robin grinned.

"Yeah, our first official date is in a couple of weeks," Steve said.

"Ooh, what are you going to wear?" Robin asked.

"Well, I was thinking Eddie's vest, Chrissy's cheerleading skirt, and nothing else," Steve said.

"Good choice," she said wisely while Vickie giggled at her feet.

"I do not want to be hearing this," Lucas groaned.

"So, if I asked you to put on a skirt, you wouldn't?" Max asked.

"Well, uh, I - " Lucas stuttered.

"Relax, stalker, I'm fucking with you," Max laughed and Lucas breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, there was screaming coming from the kitchen and the sound of metal kitchenware crashing. Eddie's laughter soon followed.

"I'm not even going to worry about it," Steve said, leaning against Robin.

A moment later, Eddie entered the living room and plopped down on the floor at Steve's feet, next to Vickie.

"I have been banned from the kitchen for life," Eddie said with a scoff. "Can you believe that?"

"Yes," Robin, Steve, and Max said.

"Whatever. Chrissy can stay forever, apparently. She reminds Dustin of his mother, and he's a huge mama's boy," Eddie said, rolling his eyes but smiling fondly.

Eddie had just taken off Steve’s shoe and began rubbing his feet when they heard the front door open. Nancy came in with Jeff, Frank, and Gareth. She was holding a notebook in her hand and beaming with pride.

"I finished it. The article," Nancy said.

"The article?" Eddie asked.

"On you and Hellfire," Nancy said.

"Oh, is that what all those questions were about yesterday?" Eddie asked.

"Yes," Nancy laughed, and she gave him the notebook.

"It's really fucking good, man," Jeff said as he plopped down on the floor and pulled Gareth against him.

Eddie's eyes scanned the page and he beamed with pride, kissing the paper.

"Oh, Wheeler! Marvelous! We should have this framed!" Eddie exclaimed.

"I still need to turn it in," Nancy said, laughing.

"Right," Eddie said, handing her back the notebook, and then his head snapped to look at Jeff. "When did this happen?"

"Oh, you know, it just happened," Gareth said, blushing.

"Cute," Eddie grinned, and Gareth scowled, flipping him off.

A few moments later, Chrissy came bounding into the living room with a smile on her face.

"The first batch of pizzas are in the oven," Chrissy announced.

Just as she said that, a knock on the door sounded. Steve watched as Eddie jumped up and began to count.

"We're all here, right?" Eddie asked. "I mean, besides Uncle Wayne and Matthew, they're both working."

Nancy was the one who went to answer the door, and everyone listened carefully as they heard the door open. Nancy let out a happy shriek. Suddenly, Nancy was pulling El, Will, and Jonathan into the living room. Behind them was a man with long hair. Steve assumed it was Argyle. As soon as El spotted Chrissy, she smiled and pulled her into a hug.

"Sister," El said.

"Sister," Chrissy grinned. "I'm glad we're finally meeting face to face."

"Me too. How are you?" El asked.

"Adjusting," Chrissy said. "Still not used to the fact that I have powers."

"I will help," El said.

"Thank you," Chrissy said softly.

Lucas had pulled himself off of Max long enough to hug Will and Mike tightly while Max moved to hug El. Dustin skidded into the living room, covered in flour.

"Will! Mike!" Dustin screeched and joined the group hug.

"Ugh, you're covered in flour. What have you been doing?" Will asked.

"Making pizzas," Dustin replied. "I have enough to make another one."

"Do you have pineapples?" Argyle asked.

"I think so," he said. "Pineapples on pizza?"

"Try it before you deny it," Argyle said. "It's okay, I'm a professional pizza maker. I'll show you how it's done, my little Hobbit friend," Argyle said.

"I like you already," Dustin said as they walked into the kitchen.

"Unbelievable, replacing me with another long-haired guy?" Eddie muttered. "Does he also smoke weed?"

"Actually -," Jonathan started to say, but Steve gave him a warning look, smirking.

"I would never put pineapples on pizza," Eddie muttered.

Steve knew he wasn't really jealous of Argyle, just still a little bitter about being kicked out of the kitchen. He smiled when Eddie slumped against his legs. Steve smiled and ran his hands through Eddie's hair. Will looked at him in surprise.

"Oh, Eddie's my boyfriend," Steve exclaimed.

"And mine," Chrissy giggled. "We're all dating."

"You can do that?" El asked.

"You can do whatever you want, sweetheart. . .well, within reason," Eddie grinned.

"Dustin's making pizzas, we're going to watch them while watching the Wizard of Oz," Chrissy said. "You should join us."

"I have not seen it," El admitted.

"Oh, you're going to love it," Vickie beamed.

"Alright, settle down there, Glinda," Robin said fondly as she ran her fingers through Vickie's hair.

Everyone got resettled in the living room as everyone made introductions that needed it. Just as the first batch of pizzas got done, someone knocked on the door.

"My turn! I'll get it," Eddie grinned.

He hopped up and bounced into the hallway. A moment later they heard him squawk loudly.

"Hey! Aren't you supposed to be dead?!"

A moment later, a figure appeared in the doorway. Steve didn't recognize him at first because he had lost a lot of weight and hair. He was also wearing a baseball cap. It was Hopper.

"Dad!" El sobbed.

She jumped up off the floor and threw herself into his arms. Joyce was watching fondly from the doorway. El cried heavily into his arms. Everyone let them have their moment, watching them in awe as father and daughter were reunited. El pulled away from to hug Joyce.

"I am glad you went to your conference," El said.

"How?" Will asked.

Hopper looked around the room with caution.

"Yes, everyone in the room has been through the recent shitstorm and has, in fact, been caught up," Eddie said, sitting back into his spot.

"I was held captive by the Russians for months," Hopper said.

Steve winced and rubbed his neck, remembering what they did to him and Robin. He couldn't imagine being with that for months. Jesus. There was a new respect for this man, a thousand times greater than the one before. How the fuck did he survive? As he watched El introduce Chrissy to Hopper and Joyce, he realized how he did it. He must really love them a lot to have helped get him through all that. There's nothing like the bond of family, and as he sat here surrounded by all these people, he realized they were his family. Home was anywhere, as long as you had the people you love by your side or in your heart. The same thought ran through his mind even two weeks later, as he sat at the picnic table with Eddie and Chrissy, having a picnic in the woods. There was no place like home.

And they lived happily ever after. . .

59 notes · View notes

dwobbitfromtheshire · 10 months

Text

The Right Place in Time

Summary: What if Steve was in the woods with Chrissy and Eddie getting weed for his headaches?

@disrespectedgoatman @estrellami-1 @darkrose517 @panicatthediaz @mandriice @nightmareglitter

18+ MINORS DNI because Steve, Chrissy, and Eddie take a shower together, but nothing really sexual happens.

Chapter Sixteen

Steve was openly crying as he and Eddie held an unconscious Chrissy in their arms. He didn't understand what the fuck just happened, only that they almost lost Chrissy for a second time. She had powers? What the fuck? Steve wasn't sure his heart could take it anymore. It was too much. They deserved to have a quiet life now.

"Son, I think the cops are coming," Wayne said. "Let's get out of here. Chrissy has your keys."

Steve could hear the sirens coming closer, fully aware of them now. He fished his keys out of Chrissy's pocket and moved to pick her up into his arms. He groaned, and Eddie made a disapproving sound before pulling Chrissy in his arms.

"We have to get you to my dad," Vickie said. "You're bleeding!"

"No hospitals," Steve said as Nancy took his keys from him.

"Okay, well, we'll get you to my house, and if he's not there, then we'll call him," Vickie said.

It was a tight fit with only two cars. Max sat on Lucas's lap in Wayne's truck while Dustin squeezed in beside them. Nancy climbed into the driver's seat while Eddie took the passenger's seat with Chrissy. Gareth was pulled into Jeff's lap while Frank politely offered his lap to Vickie. Robin crawled into next to them and pulled Steve into her lap.

"This isn't the first time that Steve’s sat in your lap?" Vickie asked in amusement as they drove off.

"Nope!" Robin and Steve exclaimed.

When they got to Vickie's house, her dad's car was in the driveway. Matthew came walking out of the house, having heard them pull up. He looked frantic.

"Vickie! Thank God! I was just about to call the police. Where the hell have you been? You know, I don't have a lot of rules, but I do ask that you call to make sure that you're not - what's going on?" Matthew rambled.

Vickie and the boys had climbed out first. Nancy helped Eddie out of the car with Chrissy while Vickie helped Steve out. Wayne walked up behind them.

"Let's get everyone inside, and then we'll talk," Wayne said.

Steve clutched Robin and Vickie, suddenly very tired as they moved him inside of the house. He just wanted this all to be over with. Matthew guided them toward the kitchen and pointed him to the kitchen table with the light hanging directly overhead. Was it really just the other day that they were here having breakfast together?

"You really should go to the hospital," Matthew frowned.

"No, no hospitals," Steve said.

"Why?" He asked.

"Jason and his friends are hunting us," Vickie replied casually.

"What?!" Matthew asked.

"They think Eddie is the one who broke Chrissy's arms with the power of his mind and that he also killed Patrick and Fred," Vickie said.

"Well, that's ridiculous. It was principal Higgins who killed those two. I always thought there was something off about him. Me and a couple of other parents tried to get him fired," Matthew said with a sigh and a pause. "It was Higgins, wasn't it?"

Steve watched Vickie look at her dad and then looked at Nancy. Nancy shook her head at Vickie.

"I can't lie to him," Vickie said softly.

"Tell me all about it while I patch up Steve," Matthew said with a sigh as he went to his med kit.

Vickie started telling him everything from the night Chrissy broke her arm, to them being hunted, to Fred dying, them being cursed, and to now, when Chrissy's powers had been unleashed. . .closing the gate. It was perfect timing, really, when Vickie finished and Chrissy woke up with a gasp. Steve was lucky that Matthew had been done stitching him up.

"What's going on?" Chrissy asked. "Uncle Matthew?"

Suddenly, Matthew was by her side and checking her eyes.

"You okay, sweetie?" Matthew asked.

"I have a little bit of headache, but I'm fine. I'm a little tired," Chrissy said as she sat up in Eddie's lap.

Matthew was about to open his mouth to speak when there came a pounding at the door. Steve watched as Wayne went to the door. The gun Nancy had given him was held carefully in his hand. Steve hopped off the table, wincing at his sore feet. He moved over to Chrissy and Eddie, wrapping an arm around them both. Wayne hid the gun behind the door.

"Can I help you?" Wayne asked.

"My name is Agent Ellen Stinson, I'm here to help," a woman with short dark hair said.

"How can you do that?" Wayne asked with a snort. "What is it that you think we need help with?"

Steve didn't blame him for not trusting the woman, especially given all the stories he had been told.

"Well, we know that the gates are opened again, and from what I just saw, you have someone else with powers on your side. You have every reason not to trust us, but your friend El, she's chosen to work with us to give you guys a fighting chance, and you need backup. She said that we should tell you one thing: friends don't lie," Agent Stinson said.

It was Dustin who pushed himself to the front of the group.

"Alright, where are we going?" Dustin asked.

"You're not going to like it," Ellen said.

"Hawkins' Lab," Nancy muttered sourly. "Well, it's not like we have anywhere else to go."

"Chrissy, Vickie, go grab some clothes. I'll go grab some clothes and medicine for you guys," Matthew said.

"You're coming with?" Chrissy asked.

"Of course," Matthew said.

When Chrissy and Vickie came back, they had a couple of back packs over their shoulders. Matthew came back in with a bag in one hand and a shotgun on his shoulder.

"Daddy!" Vickie exclaimed. "I didn't know we had a gun."

"I took an oath to do no harm when it comes to my job, but when it comes to protecting my daughter and my niece, I took no such oath," Matthew said.

"Your uncle is awesome," Steve said to Chrissy.

They didn't have to sit on people's laps this time. . .well, except for Eddie being pulled into Chrissy's lap when she crawled into Steve’s passenger seat. Steve didn't argue with Nancy when she wanted to drive and slid into the back with Robin and Vickie. Jeff, Frank, and Gareth rode with Ellen and her partner. Pulling up to Hawkins Lab, and suddenly, Steve was more scared than ever before. He wished he had gone to the hospital. For some reason, he felt like he was back in Starcourt in the underground Russian bunker. When he glanced at Robin, she was thinking the same thing.

"I'm grateful that Erica isn't here. I wish the other kids weren't here either. I wish . . . ," Robin whispered to Steve as she helped him out of the car.

"I know," Steve said softly.

"This place creeps me out," Chrissy said as she looped her arm through Steve’s.

"We should burn it to the ground," Eddie said.

"Definitely," Nancy said.

"I have a friend who works in construction," Wayne said.

"Is this the friend who likes to call you - "

"Edward," Wayne said sternly.

"No, that's my name, Uncle Wayne," Eddie grinned.

Steve and Chrissy giggled. Eddie was such a little shit but then again, so was Dustin and the other kids. Steve watched Wayne ruffle Eddie's hair affectionately much the same way that Eddie does with Dustin sometimes. He grinned at the pair of them, but the grin quickly slipped off his face when they walked into the lab. Dustin, Max, Lucas, and Nancy were rooted to the spot in the lobby as Ellen flicked the lights on.

"What?" Eddie asked.

"This is where Bob died," Dustin frowned.

"Bob Newby," Lucas said.

"Superhero," Max said.

"He gave Joyce and Hopper enough time to get out with Will," Nancy said.

"Then the demodogs got him," Steve frowned.

This place was haunted, Steve could feel it in his bones. He squeezed Chrissy to his side, his fingertips brushing against Eddie's shoulder.

"There are rooms back here, along with some bathrooms and showers," Ellen guided them after their moment of silence. "There are some more medical supplies left behind that should be good to use."

"I do need to check all of you out," Matthew frowned. "Steve, you need to get cleaned up, especially your feet and your road rash. All of you need to get cleaned up."

"Do we really smell that bad?" Dustin asked as he smelled his own armpit. "Oh! Yep! That's ripe!"

Eddie and Chrissy insisted on helping Steve shower, receiving no complaints from Steve. Matthew handed them some clothes, bandages, and ointments for Steve to use.

"I also got you some socks and shoes," Matthew said. "Hopefully, they'll fit."

"Thanks," Steve said.

"I should be thanking you for looking after my girls," Matthew said, clapping his hand on Steve’s shoulder.

Eddie and Chrissy led Steve to one of the showers. There was a small bench nearby, and Chrissy dragged it over to the shower stall, directly under the shower head. She turned it on, letting it warm up. It was quiet as they helped Steve carefully undress and set him on the bench. He sighed as he sat under the warm water, letting it wash over him. He closed his eyes for a moment and then reopened them. Eddie and Chrissy were undressing each other quickly until there was nothing left between them except for Chrissy's wrapped cast. They were both so perfectly pale and beautiful. Steve couldn't stop staring at them, particularly at the tattoos on Eddie's body. He wanted to reach out and touch them, the way Eddie was touching Chrissy's arms so gently. His gaze wandered over to Chrissy, his eyes roaming over her body, the swell of her breasts, and her soft stomach that led to her dark tufts of hair that was tucked safely between her legs. That's when he spotted the tattoo on her hip.

"You have a tattoo?!" Steve exclaimed.

"Of course, I have a tattoo. Where have you been, Steven?" Eddie asked.

"No, Chrissy," Steve scoffed, rolling his eyes.

"What?!" Eddie asked and glanced down at her hip. "A dandelion?"

"It represents freedom, survival, and rebellion. It's a plant that refuses to follow the rules. It also represents hope and healing," Chrissy said. "At least to me."

"Sexy," Eddie grinned and then he leaned down to bite her tattoo.

"Eddie!" She giggled.

"Sorry, couldn't resist," Eddie grinned. "You can bite one of mine. Go ahead."

Chrissy giggled again before she bit down on the tattoo above Eddie's nipple. Steve laughed at both of them. Chrissy grabbed the soap and shampoo they had given them and walked over to Steve. She slid behind him, letting the water wash over both of them. Eddie grinned and put his hands on his hips. He shook his waist, wiggling his dick in their direction. Steve and Chrissy laughed at the sight.

"Get over here, you idiot," Steve said.

Eddie joined them under the spray and let Steve place his hands on his waist. Steve stared at him, and he could feel his eyes growing dark.

"I don't think we have time to play, big boy," Eddie said. "Hmm. . .an apt nickname."

Chrissy's fingers curled into his hair, and she pulled his head back gently until his head was resting against her naked breast.

"Let us take care of you, okay?" Chrissy said in a soft but seductive voice.

"Okay," Steve replied, and she kissed him.

It was so intimate, the way that Eddie and Chrissy washed him carefully. They were very gentle and caring, making sure that they were careful with his stitches. Once they were done with them, he watched as they washed each other, and they were just as gentle as they were with him. They dried and dressed each other first, then did the same with him. Before dressing him, they rubbed ointments into his wounds, including the ones on his feet, and wrapped them. Once they were done, Steve stared at them fondly.

"What?" Eddie and Chrissy asked in unison.

Steve pulled Chrissy into a deep kiss before doing the same with Eddie. Once everyone was done cleaning up, they found their way to a mess hall.

"What's the plan now?" Eddie asked.

"We go into the Upside Down, and we kill Vecna," Nancy said.

"I don't think there's anything that I'm going to say or do that will stop you, is there?" Ellen asked.

"No," everyone in the room said.

"It's just as well. With Miss Hopper still trying to get her powers, she's not going to be back in time to put an end to this monster. I hate the idea of it, but I'm afraid that it's going to have to be Miss Cunningham, who has to step up," Ellen said.

"No!" Steve and Eddie exclaimed.

"Nope! Nope! No!" Eddie yelled.

"Yeah, that's a fucking hell no," Steve said furiously.

"Steve, Eddie. . . You know that she's right. No one else in this room has the power to stop him, do they? This fucker has to be stopped and it has to be me. I have to fight, not just for everyone I care about but for myself too. This is my choice. My choice," Chrissy said softly.

Steve sighed, his eyes prickling with tears. She was right. It was her choice, and there was nothing that he could do to stop her.

"I'm going with you," Steve said.

"Me too," Eddie said.

"No," Chrissy said softly.

"Our choice, remember?" Eddie asked, and Chrissy cursed.

"We're going have to do it while he's remote traveling like El," Dustin said.

"And you're going to need bait," Max said. "Which means using me to call him out."

"No!" Lucas yelled.

"My choice, Lucas," Max said softly.

Lucas deflated instantly, his shoulders sinking. Steve gave him a look of sympathy.

"You're going to need a distraction while you're in the Upside Down, and we're going to need weapons," Nancy said.

"That won't be a problem," Ellen sighed. "We'll figure the rest out tomorrow. Until then, get some rest. There's a room down the hall with beds."

Eddie and Steve watched as Chrissy pulled Max into a tight hug. It lasted a while before Chrissy was pulled into a hug by her cousin and uncle.

"We're not going to let anything happen to her, right?" Eddie asked, slipping his hand into Steve’s.

"Right," Steve promised.

His stomach churned as he watched Chrissy laugh at something that Vickie had said. Why did it feel like it was a promise that he couldn't keep? They could save the world tomorrow, but Steve and Eddie could lose Chrissy. No, he wasn't going to let that happen.

Chapter Seventeen

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dwobbitfromtheshire · 11 months

Text

The Right Place in Time

Summary: What if Steve was in the woods with Chrissy and Eddie getting weed for his headaches?

@disrespectedgoatman @estrellami-1 @darkrose517 @panicatthediaz @mandriice @nightmareglitter

Tw Laura is only in memory, but she does hit little Chrissy.

Chapter Fifteen

Chrissy's POV

Chrissy slid to the floor of the kitchen, having just said goodbye to her boyfriends. She hated parting with them, but she knew that they needed confirmation and that someone needed to be here for Max.

"You didn't have to stay here for me, you know?" Max said as she slid to the floor next to her.

"I wanted to," Chrissy said and squeezed her hand. "I'm just worried about them. I'm worried about all of us."

"Me too," Max said softly.

"It's just utter bullshit that we had to be benched!" Dustin complained.

"Oh, man, come on. You know that Steve was right," Lucas said.

"I know, I just want to be helpful," Dustin said. "I hate the waiting around."

"You have been helpful, son," Wayne said. "And there's nothing to be done about the waiting around part."

Vickie joined Chrissy and Max on the floor.

"We have yet to talk about you and your new boyfriends," Vickie said and paused. "I like them much better than Jason. You seem happy."

"I am. They're both very kind, not to mention dashing. . .," Chrissy said.

"Eddie? Dashing?" Lucas snorted. "That's not the word that I would use."

"Hush, you," Chrissy said playfully. "Anyway, they're both handsome and funny. Although, Eddie can really go on about the things that he likes, which I find very endearing."

"You think he talks a lot now, just you wait," Wayne said, scoffing. "Boy even talks in his sleep."

"He does? That's so cute," Chrissy grinned.

"I'm glad you like him so much," Wayne said in amusement. "I'm glad he's found someone like you two."

"We wouldn't change a thing about him," Chrissy said, and then she paused. "Well, he can be a little set in his ways sometimes, but it's nothing we can't handle. . . Vickie, tell us about you and Robin."

"She's so great! She rambles on just like me when I get nervous, you know? It's so cute when she does it. Did Steve tell you that they've talked about opening their own buisness together?" Vickie asked.

"Yeah," Chrissy said in amusement. "Kind of like us wanting to collaborate on a book together."

"You guys want to write a book together?" Max asked.

"Well, it would be Vickie doing the writing and me doing the illustrations," Chrissy said. "I love to draw."

"That's actually really cool," Max said.

They all talked about their hopes and dreams for a while until they all nodded off, the moonlight streaming in through a crack in the curtains and casting a line on the wall. She watched it for a while, watching the tiny dust particles float through the air. Eventually, sleep caught up with her, and she closed her eyes, her cheek pressing against the top of Max's head. She wasn't sure how long it had been, but Chrissy and the others had awoken to the sound of their secret knock coming from the front door in very loud bangs. Wayne opened the door for Jeff, Frank, and Gareth. Their faces were bleeding and bruised.

"Jason and his friends are coming. We stole Nancy's car," Frank said. "The others got pulled into the lake when they showed up. Jason and his goons must have been patrolling the area. We got away and tried to turn them away, but Nancy's car is low on fuel, and we needed to get to you guys. They're coming! We need to leave now."

"Okay, we'll take Steve’s car, too. Grab what you need. Turn on the lights and pull down the curtains. Rearrange the blankets," Wayne said. "And let's go."

"Steve gave me his keys before they left," Chrissy said.

"Good. Do you know how to drive?" Wayne asked, and Chrissy nodded. "Let's go!"

"Where are we going?" Max asked.

"The other gate. At the high school," Dustin said. "I'm hoping that's where they'll be."

It wasn't as difficult as she thought it would be driving with her cast. Max and Lucas had squeezed into Wayne's truck with Wayne. Vickie was sitting up front with Chrissy while Jeff, Frank, and Gareth squeezed in the back of Steve’s car. Chrissy's tape was blasting in Steve’s stereo, drowning out any possible conversation, not that Chrissy had anything to say. All she could think about was Steve and Eddie. Were they okay? Were they still alive? Chrissy suddenly imagined Steve’s body being broken in the sky, and she bit her lip to hold back the sob. No, Vecna wasn't going to kill Steve. She wasn't going to let that happen. Their tires screeched as they pulled into the parking lot. They all ran towards the spot where Fred died and stopped when they saw the gate stretched out on the ground.

"Fuck," Jeff muttered.

Dustin scurried off and came back with a big stick. He moved toward the gate, but Chrissy stopped him, pushing him back. She gestured for the kids to move back while Wayne grabbed the stick. He started pushing through the skin like texture spread over the gate. Soon, it was open, and she was in the arms of her boyfriends. Then suddenly she wasn't.

"Chrissy. . .Chrissy Cunningham. You and Max escaped me once before. . .You won't do it again. . . Chrissy. . .let me end your suffering. . . "

Chrissy was standing in what looked like a hospital hallway or a lab, possibly. There was a set of double doors at the end of the hallway. She ran as fast as she could and burst through the doors into a blue Victorian style house. It was beautiful and new. A family was moving in, and on the outside, they looked beautiful, happy. . .almost too happy. Chrissy could tell when people were trying too hard. She had seen enough of it from her mother. The girl was dancing through the hallway. The young boy looked bored, and there was something off-putting about him. The wife called her husband Victor. Chrissy's eyes widened. This was Victor's family. She could only watch as the family was haunted and then brutally killed. The only one who was calm amongst them all was the boy, Henry. The scene ended with Victor cradling his little girl in his arms.

It changed, and she was back in the lab again, watching as a creepy looking doctor tattooed Henry, looking at him like he was a weapon to be used. 001. The look on the doctor's face was absolutely gleeful. The creepy feeling she got from the kid was similar to the one she got from the doctor. Dr. Brenner, she later learned, was his name. The scene changed again. A girl, her head shaved, was sitting on the floor in a rainbow painted room. A blond haired man was sitting next to her. He looked familiar to her, and as Chrissy moved closer, she realized that the man in front of her was Henry Creel. He was clearly manipulating the girl.

"Chrissy," a familiar voice called out.

She looked up to find Matty standing in the doorway.

"Matty?"

"You have to fight him. You have to fight it," Matty said.

He turned and ran down the hallway. Chrissy ran after him, and she was reminded of all the times that they played tag together. She followed him through one door and found herself in her house. She was looking at a younger version of herself. She was four, maybe five. Laura was trying to make her wear an ugly, frilly orange dress. Young Chrissy hated it.

"I don't wanna!" Young Chrissy screamed.

"Christine Cunningham! You will listen to me!" Laura exclaimed.

"No!" She shrieked.

To Chrissy's surprise, the lights flickered, and the dress was torn out of Laura's hand. It was flung against the opposite wall by an invisible force. Young Chrissy's nose started dripping blood. Chrissy's eyes widened. She did not remember this at all. Laura's hand shot out and slapped young Chrissy's face.

"What did I say about using the devil's magic?!" Laura yelled. "Get on your knees."

"Mama!" Young Chrissy cried.

"On your knees," Laura said softly.

Young Chrissy got on her knees while Laura did the same. Laura took her hands in hers, gripping it tightly, and started to pray. Young Chrissy continued to cry. Suddenly, Chrissy was standing in her living room watching the TV. It was showing Hawkins being split wide open. It was like hell on Earth. Matty was standing beside her again.

"You have to fight it, Chrissy. Stop him. You have the power. You've always had the power. You don't have to run from it anymore," Matty said softly.

"Are you really Matty?" Chrissy asked.

"Yes and no. I'm the part of him that you keep alive inside of yourself, and I'm the part of you who wants to keep fighting. Chrissy, you fought for me every single day of my life. It's time you fought for yourself too," Matty said. "Do you remember how I died?"

"It was an asthma attack," Chrissy said.

"That's what mom told you," Matty said.

The screen flickered, and it was early November 1983. It was right around the time Will Byers had gone missing. Chrissy was doing her homework when Matty screamed. She watched herself run out the door and out into the backyard. A shadow loomed over Matty, his body still. The creatures head snapped up, its lower part of the face dripping with blood. The face opened up like a deformed flower, and it screamed at Chrissy. She hadn't used her powers in a long time, but she tried to use them then, and she did everything she could do to blast it away from Matty. She pushed it away from him with her powers and watched as it ran off. She collapsed to the ground, Matty's lifeless eyes staring at her.

"It came for you that night. Henry came for you. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Mom told you it was an asthma attack because you couldn't remember what happened after. She thought you killed me. You thought so too, I think. You tried to save me, and you've always tried to save me. You don't need to be afraid of your powers anymore, Chrissy," Matty said and took her hand. "Save us."

Suddenly, she was standing in pitch blackness and in water. A girl stood before her, the same girl from earlier, but she was older now. Her head was still shaved or maybe it was shaved again.

"I'm Eleven, but my friends call me El," she said.

"Chrissy," she said softly. "You're friends with Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Mike is your boyfriend?"

"Yes," El grinned. "You are friends with them too?"

"Yes."

"You're like me and Henry?" El asked.

"I'm like you, yes," Chrissy said. "And we do have powers like Henry, but we're not monsters like Henry or like Dr. Brenner. We don't have to be their puppets, not for either one of them."

"No, we're not puppets," El said determinedly.

Chrissy smiled and took her hand.

"Let's cut the strings then," Chrissy said. "Together."

"Sisters," El said nodding.

"Sisters," Chrissy agreed.

Suddenly, the connection with El was cut off, and Chrissy was standing in the rainbow room again. Henry was standing in front of her, a crooked smile on his face. It was twisted just like he was.

"Join me, Chrissy. Your suffering will end, and you will be stronger than ever," Henry said.

"You only want one thing from me: my power," Chrissy said.

"A power that you didn't even know you had," Henry said. "I showed you that."

"You're getting nothing from me, from El, or from this town," Chrissy said.

She dug down deep, letting the anger take control. The door that she kept locked burst open, and she felt the power building up inside of her.

"Chrissy. . ."

Matty stood next to her, slipping his hand into hers and holding on tightly. The power inside of her grew bigger, and Henry scowled at her.

"GET THE FUCK OUT!" Chrissy screamed.

Suddenly, she was floating in the school parking lot. Her boyfriends and friends were screaming her name down below. She raised her hand and pointed it at the gate, blood gushing from her nose. It started stitching itself closed until there was nothing left but the smooth pavement. She could feel the other gate still wide open, but she was too tired to close it from here. Suddenly, she was aware of just how tired she was, and it was like the strings were cut. Then she was falling and fell right into the arms of her lovers. She clutched Eddie and Steve, exhausted but still holding on.

"I'm not a fucking puppet," Chrissy said and then she fell asleep.

Chapter Sixteen

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dwobbitfromtheshire · 11 months

Text

The Right Place in Time

Summary: What if Steve was in the woods with Chrissy and Eddie getting weed for his headaches?

@disrespectedgoatman @estrellami-1 @darkrose517 @panicatthediaz @mandriice @nightmareglitter

Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six - Chapter Seven - Chapter Eight - Chapter Nine - Chapter Ten - Chapter Eleven - Chapter Twelve - Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Eddie's POV

Eddie watched, his heart seemingly stopping for a moment, as Steve was yanked underneath the water by some unseen force. He didn't even hesitate. He pushed past the girls and dove straight into the water. His frantic thoughts were of Steve, the other half of his heart, and Chrissy, the second half waiting for them back at the house. How would he be able to explain it to her? How could he tell her that he lost Steve? He couldn't do it. They couldn't lose Steve, not now. It's only been a handful of days, but he feels it deep in his gut that they had a future together. Chrissy was it for him, and so was Steve. He knew the minute they both stepped foot into the woods. He had felt the change in the air. He wished he could go back, and they could stay at that picnic table, frozen in time forever.

Eddie broke through the gate and saw the emptiness that was the Upside Down's Lover's Lake. Red lightning flashed overhead. He didn't have time to be overwhelmed by the fact that he was in another dimension. He picked up an oar and ran over to where bat like creatures had dragged Steve. He started screaming and swinging at the creatures chowing down on his boyfriend. Robin and Nancy soon joined him in the fight. They beat at the bats that were attacking Steve, but others soon started attacking them as well. Finally, Steve freed himself. He beat the bat on the ground, swinging it by its tail, and stepped on it with his bare feet. He ripped it in half, blood dripping from his mouth.

"JESUS H CHRIST!" Eddie shrieked.

"We need to get back to the gate!" Nancy yelled.

Just as she said that, more bats flew in front of the gate and surrounded it. Of all the rotten luck.

"There's more coming!" Robin yelled.

Sure enough, when Eddie glanced up at the sky, there was more coming towards them above the trees. Suddenly, Steve stumbled, and Eddie caught him around the waist, quick to press a hand to his bleeding stomach.

"Oh, baby!" Eddie exclaimed.

"Skull Rock isn't far," Nancy said as she helped Eddie with Steve.

They hurried off toward Skull Rock, setting Steve on a rock underneath the odd looking stone formation. Eddie helped Nancy bandage Steve while Robin hovered over them frantically, muttering about rabies. Once the makeshift bandage was secure, Eddie helped Steve up and wrapped an arm around him. He kissed him deeply, caressing his cheek.

"I'm okay, I'm okay," Steve whispered as Eddie leaned his forehead against his.

Eddie both wished Chrissy was here and was relieved that she wasn't. He needed to wrap his arms around both of them. Eddie sighed and pulled back. He shook off his vest and helped Steve slip it on.

"So your tits don't get cold," Eddie said, and Steve laughed.

"Thanks," he said.

"You know a metalhead's battle vest is important. You put a lot of time and effort into it . . . Sometimes blood if the stitching goes wrong. It means a lot that I'm letting you wear this. You're important to me, you and Chrissy both. I just want you to know that I plan on putting a lot of time and effort into being with both of you. I just wanted you to know that," Eddie said blushing.

"You're important to me too," Steve said softly. "The both of you."

"You better not die," Eddie said.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Steve said.

Eddie crushed his lips to Steve’s, pouring every single emotion he had into the kiss. When they broke the kiss, the ground shook. Eddie fell to the ground, clutching Steve tightly in his arms.

"If Dustin's theory is right, then there should be a gate where Fred died," Nancy said. "But we need weapons. If this place is exactly like Hawkins, then my guns should be at my house. We need to stop there and get them."

"Just one minute," Eddie said softly as he held Steve close to him. "Okay."

He helped Steve up, lacing their fingers together.

"Let's go," Steve said.

"So, this is the Upside Down Hawkins, huh?" Eddie asked as they started walking.

"Yeah, careful of the vines. It's like a hive mind. You touch the vines, you wake up Vecna," Steve explained.

"Shit," Eddie cursed as he carefully avoided the vines.

Robin was walking on the other side of Steve, clinging to him as Nancy led the way to her house.

"So, we never really got the chance to talk about your new beaus," Robin said teasingly.

"Kind of been busy," Steve said.

"Just a bit," Robin said. "So?"

"It's okay, you can talk about me in front of me," Eddie said.

"Okay, so, Eddie is totally hot, but God, can he talk," Steve rolled his eyes.

"Hey! Good things, Stevie. All good things," Eddie replied and Robin laughed.

"No, but seriously. They're great. They make me laugh, and when I'm with them, they make me feel. . .happy. They're like pieces of a puzzle I didn't know I was missing," Steve said.

Eddie blushed and slipped an arm around his waist, kissing his cheek. He felt very much the same.

"Aww," Robin said. "I'm glad."

"What about you? Tell me all about Vickie," Steve said.

"Oh my God, she's so amazing. She's funny and sweet. She cares so much about people, and she wants to be a writer. Did I tell you that? She loves telling stories, not so much outlook because sometimes she can be quite shy, which I find adorable," Robin said.

"Yeah, Chrissy likes to draw. She said she always talked about writing a book with Vickie," Steve replied with a smile.

"That's right! We're dating cousins!" Robin laughed.

Eddie was listening to them talk, grinning as he did so. The grin slipped off his face when he realized something. He gripped Steve’s waist.

"Shit! Steve, we left your Walkman on the boat," Eddie said.

"Fuck!" Robin exclaimed. "What are we going to do?!"

Eddie was about to go into full panic mode when he made another realization. He was a singer and guitarist in a band. Eddie grinned madly and started to sing, 'Keep Yourself Alive' by Queen. Robin and Steve stared at him for a moment before Eddie nudged them to keep on walking. Steve was smiling fondly at him. Eddie wasn't surprised when Robin soon joined in, but he was surprised at how well she could sing. It was almost like they were Steve’s headphones. They eventually made it to Nancy's in one piece. Eddie noted that it would have been a nice-looking house had it not been covered in creepy ass vines.

"Jeeze, Nance, it looks like you need to do a bit of tidying up," Robin said when they stepped through the door.

"Ever heard of spring cleaning, Wheeler?" Eddie snickered.

"Just a little bit of dusting here and there," Robin laughed with him.

"You guys are very funny," Nancy said. "Focus."

When Nancy turned her head a little, there was a small smile on her face. Eddie grinned. Score, Nancy Wheeler thinks they're funny. They made their way up to Nancy's bedroom, only to discover that her guns were gone, and the reason for that was because the Upside Down was stuck on the day that Will Byers went missing.

"Zombie boy?" Eddie asked.

"Yeah, he doesn't really like that name," Nancy said.

"No, I know. I met him once," Eddie said. "Seems like a great kid. His mom cut his hair?"

"Oh, yeah," Steve replied with a snort. "He doesn't have the heart to tell her that he doesn't like it."

"I guess the same goes for his brother too," Eddie said, grinning at Nancy.

"It's not. . .it's not that bad," she said, struggling not to laugh.

"Lies," Robin grinned.

"We're just going to have to walk to the high school without weapons," Nancy frowned.

"You still have bikes in 1983, right?" Robin asked.

"Oh, yeah," Nancy said.

So, here they were riding bikes to the high school. Eddie, of course, got stuck with the smallest bike. Go figure. It wasn't all bad, though. He got to stare at Steve's perky ass while they rode off into the. . .darkness? Eddie was breathing heavily by the time they arrived at the vine covered parking lot. He really should give up smoking. They approached the spot where Fred died, and Dustin had been right. There was a red oozing gate stretched out on the parking lot like an open wound.

"This is where Fred died," Nancy sobbed.

Steve wrapped his arms around and pulled her in tight. Eddie wasn't jealous at all. He was glad that Steve was there for her.

"My friends. . .they just keep dying, and I . . . ," Nancy sobbed. "I can't lose anymore."

Eddie stepped up on her other side and put his arm around her.

"Hey, you're not going to lose any of us. We're your friends, too, I hope. It's definitely not going to take a lot more than what this asshole's got to keep me out of Nancy Wheeler's life," Eddie grinned. "And I'm not just saying this so you can do a spread on the Hellfire Club."

"I'm definitely doing one after this," Nancy said, laughing, and then her face hardened. "All of you. . .you're my friends, and I'm not going to lose any more. Fuck this guy."

All of a sudden, a large stick came bursting through the gate, and they all screamed. Once it was done, they slowly crept over to the gate and looked down into it. Chrissy's relieved face was looking up at them as well as Vickie's and Wayne's. Jeff, Frank, and Gareth's face popped over their shoulders, looking relieved themselves. Whatever reason, the boys' faces looked beaten to hell and Eddie frowned.

"Steve, baby, what the hell happened to you?" Chrissy frowned.

"I can answer that later. Can we get out of here?" Steve asked.

All they had to do was lay on the ground and climb through the gate. It was disgusting, but they did it. Robin went through first and was immediately pulled into Vickie's arms. As soon as Eddie and Steve came through, they had a small strawberry blond cheerleader sobbing in their own arms. Eddie sighed and held onto them both tightly.

"I'm never letting either of you guys go ever again," Eddie said.

"Okay," Steve and Chrissy said.

Suddenly, Chrissy's arms dropped to her sides.

"Chrissy?"

Chrissy was still, her eyes a weird shade of blue as she stared off into the distant.

"Chrissy?!"

Chapter Fifteen

64 notes · View notes

dwobbitfromtheshire · 11 months

Text

The Right Place in Time

Summary: What if Steve was in the woods with Chrissy and Eddie getting weed for his headaches?

@disrespectedgoatman @estrellami-1 @darkrose517 @panicatthediaz @mandriice @nightmareglitter @ilikeititspretty

Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six - Chapter Seven - Chapter Eight - Chapter Nine - Chapter Ten - Chapter Eleven - Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

There had been a lot of arguing, but everyone agreed that the younger teens needed to stay at the Byers' house while the older teens searched the area around the lake.

"It's my goddamn theory!" Dustin had complained.

'We can't be worrying about you guys while also searching the lake for a gate," Steve said, shutting it down. "Please."

Pleading with him had done the trick, and Dustin had shut up. Chrissy had agreed to stay there with Max and Vickie.

"Are you sure?" Steve asked softly.

"Yeah, she needs someone to be here for her who's also going through it," Chrissy replied, and then she raised her cast. "Plus, I have this."

Steve had cupped her face and kissed her deeply before releasing her into Eddie's open arms. He had watched in amusement as Eddie dipped her and kissed her soundly. Suddenly, Max pulled him aside.

"You remember that you're cursed too, right?" Max asked.

"Yeah, of course. Kind of hard to forget," he said, pointing to his head phones.

"It's sometimes you spend so much time taking care of everyone else that you forget to take care of yourself," Max said.

"Max. . . ," Steve trailed off.

"Please, take care of yourself," she paused. "I need my big brother to come back to me."

"Yeah, okay," Steve said, struggling not to cry. "Of course."

Max threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly. Meanwhile, behind them Frank started to sniffle.

"She called him her brother!" Frank said.

"Oh, come on, don't this to me. If you start crying, I'm going to start crying, and then Gareth starts crying. We all know what he's like when he cries!" Jeff exclaimed.

"Eddie, there's something wrong with your - nevermind," Max sighed.

To Steve’s amusement, Eddie was crying softly into Chrissy's shoulder. How can anyone think that they're mean and scary? They were all a bunch of softies. Steve laughed and hugged Max tightly, pressing a kiss into his sister's hair. She huffed and rolled her eyes before pulling away.

"Okay, so it's me, Eddie, Robin, and Nancy then?" Steve asked.

"And you're taking us as backup just in case you guys run into Jason," Jeff said, nodding at Frank and Gareth.

"My noble brethren!" Eddie grinned. "Knights of the Round Table! My sturdy protectors - !"

"Enough, boy," Wayne rolled his eyes. "I suppose I should stay here since I have the other gun."

"We'll be back before we know it," Eddie said cheerfully and hugged his uncle tightly. "I mean, before you know it."

"Stay safe," Wayne said softly.

"You too," Eddie said.

Eddie whistled for everyone to gather around, yanking people into a group hug. Chrissy was giggling under Eddie's other armpit.

"Feels very much like when we huddle during a basketball game," Steve said sharing a grin with Lucas.

"This is not a sports game, Steve," Dustin grinned.

"I beg to differ," Eddie said with a wide smile. "What are we going to do?!"

Blank stares blinked at him, and Eddie rolled his eyes. He whispered into Chrissy's ear, and she smiled before whispering to the next person, then the next. Everyone smiled.

"Okay, so, what are we going to do?" Eddie asked again.

"Kick Vecna's ass!" Everyone exclaimed.

"And break!" Eddie yelled, clapping his hands.

As Steve was moving away from the group, he felt a pair of hands slap his ass. He turned around to find Chrissy and Eddie grinning at him.

"Good game," she said and giggled.

"Stop objectifying our babysitter in front of us!" Dustin said.

"Sorry, couldn't help myself," Chrissy said.

"Neither could I," Eddie grinned.

They decided it would be easier to just use Nancy's car, which meant everyone climbing in the front of her car while Eddie and Steve climbed into the very back. Just as Steve was about to climb into the back seat, Lucas and Dustin came out.

"We just wanted to tell you to be careful," Lucas said.

"All of you," Dustin said.

"Both of you have kind of been like brothers to us," Lucas said. "Especially, you Steve."

"And we don't want anything to happen to you," Dustin said.

Steve pulled Dustin and Lucas into a tight hug before releasing them to let Eddie to do the same.

"Keep an eye out for each other," Steve said.

"We always do," Dustin said.

Robin popped her head out the window with a cheeky grin on her face.

"And remember, bedtime at 9, kiddos!" Robin said, laughing when Dustin flipped her off.

"And no parties! Grandpa Wayne will tell us all about it once we get back," Eddie said.

Lucas rolled his eyes as Steve laughed, grabbing Dustin and pushing him inside. Eddie climbed into the back and pulled Steve with him, pulling him in between his legs. Eddie closed the door.

"Alright, let's go!" Eddie hollered and pulled Steve back against his chest.

Steve smiled as Eddie scratched his stomach as he wrapped his arms around him.

"It's weird without Chrissy," Steve said.

"Yeah," Eddie said softly. "Do you miss your parents?"

"Uh, yeah," Steve said as he played with the rings on Eddie's fingers. "Why are you asking?"

"I was just thinking about Wayne, my dad, and my mom," Eddie shrugged. "Is it still crazy that I miss my dad after everything he put me through?"

"No, I think we never stop missing our parents even after they're long gone or after they left," Steve said. "Plus, I think you have a big heart, and you love deeply. It's probably why it hurts so much when you get, well, hurt."

"Talking from experience, big boy?" Eddie asked softly.

"Yeah," Steve replied.

"Does it bother you that they left you for Florida?" Eddie asked. "Your parents, I mean."

"No. It's what they've always wanted to do after they retire. Why would I be mad for them doing something that they wanted to do for a long time?" Steve asked. "We both made our choices."

"That's either really healthy behavior, or you've buried your feelings so deep that it's become unhealthy," Eddie said.

"Jesus. I mean, what do you want me to do? You want me to get mad right now? It's not going to do anything," Steve said. "It's not going to be very helpful."

"I want you to be honest with yourself and admit that you wished that they had stayed for you," Eddie said. "That you wished you had asked them to stay."

"Okay! Okay! Fine! I wished they had stayed! I wished they had chosen me over their careers for once or what they had wanted! I wished they were here and I wish that they knew that I might fucking - that I might. . . that I might die," Steve said weakly.

He turned and sobbed into Eddie's chest. Eddie held him tightly, running his fingers through his hair.

"Oh, baby," Eddie said softly.

"I'm scared. I don't want to die. I don't want to leave Robin, I don't want to leave the kids, I don't want to leave you or Chrissy," Steve sobbed. "I don't want to leave."

As Steve cried, he heard the sound of the others cursing and the sound of people moving around. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his back. He looked up to find that Robin had climbed in the back with them.

"Steve?" Robin asked.

"I think it's finally hitting him," Eddie said softly.

"Oh. . .," Robin paused. "I think I might have accidentally kicked Nancy in the face when I was climbing over the seats."

Steve snorted with laughter and pulled Robin into his arms, hugging her tightly. Now, they were both lying awkwardly on top of Eddie.

"I'm scared, Robbie," Steve said in a small voice.

"Me too, Stebie," Robin said. "We won't let anything happen to you, dingus."

Steve, Eddie, and Robin groaned as they rolled out of the back when Nancy pulled up to Lover's Lake. It had been very uncomfortable with all three of them in the back. Nancy stood at the edge of the lake with Dustin's compass in her hand.

"Your face okay, Nance?" Robin asked.

"I've had worse," Nancy said in amusement. "You were checking on your best friend. Are you okay, Steve?"

"Yeah, we'll be fine. So, the compass?" Steve asked.

"Dustin's definitely onto something," Nancy said as she frowned at the compass. "There's definitely a gate here. I think it's inside the lake."

"They did say they found Patrick's body in the lake," Steve frowned.

"We need to find a boat," Jeff said.

"Well, we're by a lake, so there's a possibility there might be one lying around here somewhere," Frank said.

"You think, Frank?" Gareth asked sarcastically.

The group began to move around the edge of the lake, using the moonlight streaming through the trees to light their way. They did bring flashlights, but they didn't want to use them in case it gave away their position. Jason was still on the loose. They found one lying close to the shore, making it easy to push into the water. Steve and Eddie held it down, so it was easier to get into the boat. Steve held out his hand to help Robin into the boat, but she just grinned. Steve groaned as Robin used his head and Eddie's to get into the boat. Eddie just laughed.

"Seriously?" Steve asked.

Nancy giggled at Steve as Eddie helped her onto the boat. Eddie held out his hand to Steve with a grin, and Steve blushed as he took it, getting into the boat. Eddie jumped in and turned to the others.

"What about you, boys?" Eddie asked.

"We'll stay and guard the shore, m'lord," Frank said.

"For not all of us will fit on the boat," Jeff said.

"Safe passage, return to us and our Lady of Hellfire," Gareth said.

The three of them bowed, and Steve laughed when Eddie could only nod, waving his hand at them.

"Nerd," Steve said affectionately.

"Dork," Eddie giggled as he brushed his nose against Steve’s.

They pushed the boat to the middle of the lake, and the compass started going haywire. Steve stood up.

"What are you doing?" Nancy asked.

"Someone has to go down there to make sure," he said.

"And it has to be you?" Eddie asked.

"Anyone else on the swim team or work as a lifeguard for three summers?" Steve asked and paused. "No? It has to be me."

"Is there anything that I can say or do to talk you out of this?" Eddie asked, and Steve shook his head. "Ooh, what if I offer to give you - "

"No!" Robin and Nancy yelled at him.

"I was going to say give him a really good kiss," Eddie said, rolling his eyes. "Jesus, get your head out of the gutter, ladies."

Steve laughed, bending down to kiss him deeply. He stood up as Eddie blushed and began wrapping a flashlight in a bag. Steve took off his socks, shoes, Walkman, and then, finally, his sweater. He could feel Eddie's eyes on him, and he smirked. He tossed the sweater at him. Eddie scoffed and handed him a flashlight.

"Be careful," Eddie said, taking his hand and kissing it. "Come back to us."

Steve knew he was talking about him and Chrissy.

"Always," Steve said, and then he dove into the water.

He started swimming down with the light guiding his way. He didn't need it for long because a moment later, a red light started coming into focus. Steve swam all the way down and came face to face with the gate itself. A weird feeling came over him, a feeling he couldn't quite describe. He held out his hand toward it, a move that he knew was stupid. Suddenly, he saw some move underneath the slimy red skin of the gate, and he swam backward. Steve was quick, and he started moving back towards the boat. He resurfaced, gasping as he breathed in the fresh hair and held onto the boat. Eddie looked relieved.

"Yeah, there's a gate down there, but it's not a full sized gate. It's more like a snack sized gate - woah!" Steve exclaimed when he felt something brush against him.

"What?" Eddie asked. "What is it?"

"I thought I felt - "

Suddenly, something wrapped around his ankle and pulled him down beneath the water. Whatever it was, it was yanking down and quickly, too. Steve was moving his arms, trying to get away, but it was useless. He couldn't fight against whatever was trying to pull him away from everything and everyone he ever loved. As the darkness took him, he wondered if his parents would miss him or be relieved that he was gone. Would they even care?

Chapter Fourteen

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dwobbitfromtheshire · 11 months

Text

The Right Place in Time

Summary: What if Steve was in the woods with Chrissy and Eddie getting weed for his headaches?

@disrespectedgoatman @estrellami-1 @darkrose517 @panicatthediaz @mandriice @nightmareglitter

Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six - Chapter Seven - Chapter Eight - Chapter Nine - Chapter Ten - Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Eddie's POV

Jesus H Christ! He buried his face into Chrissy's neck as they drove back to the Byers. It was completely quiet. The only sound was Steve fingers tapping against the steering wheel. Even Dustin was quiet in the back seat. Lucas chose to ride with Wayne and Max. Chrissy had her feet in Steve's lap again so that she was touching him. Eddie was pretty sure they were all shaking. He never wanted to see Red like that again. He remembered the first time he really talked to her and how she was sitting on the steps of her trailer, trying to act like she hadn't been crying. He approached cautiously, but she still looked skittish.

"Just because we listen to the same music doesn't mean that we are the same," Eddie had said and paused. "Not to speak ill of the dead or anything."

"Wouldn't have anything nice to say about him anyway. . .except for the fact that he saved my friend's life in the fire," Max said. "How do you know?"

"He brought you once to pick up his drugs. You were asleep. I thought it was shitty of him to leave you sleeping in the car without rolling down any of the windows. Didn't say anything, though. One look from that dude scared me shitless," Eddie told her and paused again. "You can still hate him for what he did, you know? One good thing doesn't necessarily erase all the bad. It would take a lot more good things to do that. Holding onto that hate, though? Means he wins, he got under your skin. If you ever decide to forgive him, it should be on your terms. . .not on his."

"Aren't you a thousand year old senior? How the hell are you so smart?" Max said, and Eddie had laughed. "My mom is snoring. I think she's asleep. She drinks a lot, I hate it when she drinks."

Eddie let her know then that they kept the door unlocked, so if she had ever wanted a place to hide out at their place, it was available, as was Granny Ecker's. After that, Wayne would walk out of the trailer for a "smoke break" whenever she did come over and would clean up her mom so she wouldn't have to. Both Max and Eddie knew immediately what he was up to. Like his uncle, apparently, Eddie was a sucker for lost sheep, and Max Mayfield was a lost sheep. He wasn't going to lose her.

"Whatcha thinking about?" Chrissy's voice broke through his thoughts.

"Max," Eddie said, his voice thick with emotion.

"Me too," Chrissy said.

"We're going to stop this bastard," Steve said, his voice thick as well.

Eddie glanced at him, and he could tell Steve was seconds away from crying. He placed his hand on the back of Steve’s neck and watched as he leaned back into his touch. Steve sighed as Eddie caressed the back of his neck. When they pulled into the driveway, Wayne was pulling in behind them, which was crazy because he had left with Max first. The explanation came when Max climbed out with Lucas, licking an ice cream cone. Eddie raised an eyebrow at his uncle.

"What? She was upset. When you're upset, you get an ice cream cone," Wayne said. "I don't make the rules, son."

"If you wanted an ice cream cone, you should have gotten possessed by an evil wizard," Max shrugged and stuck her tongue out at Eddie.

She was still shakey and pale, but Eddie could tell the ice cream was helping. He laughed and ruffled her hair before walking back into the house. Of course, Gareth opened his mouth to complain about the ice cream, but when he saw the serious look on Eddie's face, he stopped.

"Shit. What happened?" Gareth asked.

Eddie gave them the rundown on what happened, and Gareth cursed.

"You okay, Red?" Jeff asked, and Max shrugged. "Yeah, I get that."

"So, now what?" Frank asked.

"Now, we wait until the others get back," Wayne said. "Decide what we're going to do next."

They waited for them in a tense but comfortable silence. Max was finishing her ice cream while leaning against Wayne's arms. Eddie smiled softly. It was nice that Max had an adult to lean on, and Wayne was a good parental figure to have around. The secret knock came a few moments later, and the others came into the house.

"I'm just thankful I'm back in my own clothes again," Robin said.

"You definitely look a lot better," Vickie said with a grin. "Very se - oh!"

Chrissy had gotten up and thrown herself into Vickie's arms, hugging her tightly.

"What happened?" Nancy asked.

"Vecna tried to come after Max," Steve scowled. "Luckily, she had her Walkman with her."

"Yes, you were right about the music connection, Wayne," Nancy said.

"Pretty smart for a Munson," Wayne said proudly.

"Probably the smartest in the room, I'd say," Max said, and Nancy laughed.

"Hey!" Eddie exclaimed. "You're lucky you get a pass, Red."

"Vecna is definitely the one who killed Victor Creel's family. He went after Victor's trauma from World War 2, and from the way Victor described it, his family was killed exactly the way Fred was," Nancy shivered, and Vickie squeezed her shoulder.

"Why the hell is he doing this?" Frank asked.

"Do you think maybe he's trying to get into our world from the Upside Down?" Dustin asked with a frown.

"You think he's possibly using people to form gateways?" Nancy asked.

"Maybe," Dustin shrugged.

"When Barb disappeared, it was quick. I didn't even hear her scream. She was sitting by the pool, and then she was gone. He could have used her to open a gate," Nancy said. "And then a demogorgon dragged her in the Upside Down. I never wanted to look at Steve's pool after that so I didn't."

"You think he's been trying to get out since then," Dustin said.

"Wait, what about in 84? Why didn't he try to get out then too? When the sickness was spreading and the demodogs created those tunnel things?" Steve asked.

"Maybe it wasn't big enough," Dustin said.

"Shit," Nancy cursed.

"What?" Eddie asked.

"No, it's a stupid theory," Nancy said.

"There's nothing stupid here, darling," Wayne encouraged. "Go on."

"I think it's possible that he might be trying to bring the Upside Down into Hawkins," Nancy said. "Make this place his own or maybe build it for El. That's what the Mind Flayer said before. That he wanted to build it for her."

"Shit," everyone cursed, and they went silent as it sunk in.

"When exactly did he get trapped in the Upside Down?" Frank asked.

"Does it matter?" Lucas asked.

"It does!" Nancy and Dustin said together.

"El never told us how she escaped Hawkins Lab," Dustin said.

"Because she doesn't remember," Max replied.

"Exactly. She was weak and disoriented, which meant that she had already used her powers. It had to be something big," Dustin said.

"Like trapping someone in the Upside Down?" Nancy asked.

"I think. . .I think he might have been trying to use Barb and Will to open the gates, or maybe they were his first expiriments," Dustin said.

"No, because Will was being kept alive, remember?" Nancy said. "And then Barb was killed. He didn't need her."

"Okay, so he needed Will alive. Why?" Dustin asked.

"I don't know," Nancy said.

"Maybe he's trying to build an army," Eddie said.

"Could be. For El, maybe?" Dustin asked. "Like a weird twisted way of courting her?"

"No, I think it's her power he admires," Nancy said.

"She doesn't have any powers," Max said. "Not anymore."

"Maybe not now. Has anyone tried calling the Byers?" Nancy asked.

"Tried calling them when we were at Steve's, but I didn't get a hold of them. Joyce has that telemarketing job, so she keeps the line pretty busy," Dustin said.

"Well, we'll wait until night fall, and then we'll check out Lover's Lake," Nancy said. "Check and see if there's a gate. There are trees so it would be more secluded than the parking lot."

"How would we check for a gate in Lover's Lake?" Jeff asked.

Dustin grinned and pulled out a compass. Eddie drowned out Dustin's explanation as he went over everything in his head. If this fucker was as powerful as they said he was, how the fuck were they supposed to defeat them without superpowers? Holy shit. Has it really been only like two days since he met Steve and Chrissy in the woods. It felt like a lifetime ago. Fuck. They both took his hands in his, as if reading his mind. All of this was just happening way to his fast.

Chapter Thirteen

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dwobbitfromtheshire · 10 months

Text

The Right Place in Time

Summary: What if Steve was in the woods with Chrissy and Eddie getting weed for his headaches?

@disrespectedgoatman @estrellami-1 @darkrose517 @panicatthediaz @mandriice @nightmareglitter

Chapter Seventeen

Steve was the first one awake, and it was quite early. The three of them were sharing two beds pressed together, and surprisingly, they had their own room. Steve was as far back against the wall as he could possibly get while Chrissy was up against his chest with Eddie curled up around her, snoring into her hair. They both looked so beautiful while they slept, especially Chrissy, with the way her bottom lip kind of poked out a bit. Steve brushed his fingers against her forehead, sweeping her bangs back with a few gentle strokes. He moved to cup her cheek, rubbing her soft skin with his thumb. Chrissy's eyes opened, and she smiled at him.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" Steve asked.

"Yeah, but it's okay. It's a good view to wake up to," Chrissy whispered.

She pulled him into a kiss, cupping the back of his neck. Her lips were soft and wet against his. They were properly hydrated now, so there was a little more saliva involved now when their mouths came together. Chrissy slipped her tongue into his mouth and threw her leg over his hip to move closer to him. Steve tried hard to keep from making a sound, but it slipped out.

"What a sight to a wake up to," Eddie croaked.

Steve broke the kiss and watched as Eddie attached his lips to Chrissy's neck. Her eyes fluttered, and her mouth fell open. She looked at Steve with heavy lidded eyes, her mouth open, and he felt his cock twitch in his pants. Fuck. She had to stop looking at him like that. They couldn't do this here, no matter how much they wanted to. Plus, even pushed together, the beds weren't that big. He was about to say something when a knock sounded at the door.

"There's breakfast!" Dustin's voice came through the door. "If you guys haven't already devoured each other."

"He's such a little shit," Eddie laughed once they heard him walk off.

"I have to go to the bathroom," Steve blushed.

"Hey, me too!" Eddie exclaimed with a grin. "Maybe we can - "

"No! No taking care of each other. We don't have time for that, and honestly, if I can't join you guys, then what's the point?" Chrissy asked and laughed when they pouted at her. "No!"

They watched her walk out of the room, and they gave each other a look.

"I want to even more now," Eddie whined.

"Are you twelve?" Steve scoffed. "Probably shouldn't do that here anyway."

"Now you're telling me not to take care of it now?" Eddie scowled. "This is yours and Chrissy's fault. . .waking me up like that."

"You could help me change my bandages," Steve said, whipped off his shirt, and Eddie brightened considerably.

When Steve and Eddie approached the mess hall, Chrissy was arriving as well. She stared at them for a moment, her head tilted to the side. Steve tried to hide his guilt, but like Eddie, he didn't do a good job. Chrissy laughed.

"You guys did it anyway," Chrissy said, and then she smiled coyly. "Knew you would."

"Really?" Steve asked.

"Why do you think I told you not to?" Chrissy asked.

She laughed and moved into the mess hall. Eddie groaned and buried his face into Steve’s neck.

"She's going to be the death of us, Stevie," Eddie said.

"Not a bad way to die, though," Steve said, and Eddie laughed in agreement.

They walked into the mess hall where Chrissy was sitting with three plates of food. She patted the seat beside her, and Eddie plopped right down, pulling Steve gently into his lap.

"There are other chairs," Dustin scoffed, but he was struggling not to grin too.

"And I found one. With pretty great hair too," Steve said and kissed Eddie's forehead.

They all ate in silence with music playing from the speakers over head. Eddie ate with one hand and gently caressed Steve’s stomach with the other. Once they all finished, Ellen stepped forward to go over the plan. Max, Lucas, Dustin, Gareth, and Jeff would go to the Creel House to draw out Vecna. Nancy, Vickie, Robin, and Frank would be in the Upside Down to set up the speakers as the distraction as well as Ellen's partner, Agent Rodney Ford. Ellen would be going with Chrissy, Steve, and Eddie to Creel's House in the Upside Down.

"I'm going with you guys, too," Matthew said to Chrissy.

"Uncle Matthew!" Chrissy exclaimed.

"You're my little girl too, Chrissy. There's nothing that I can do to stop you. You're old enough to make your own decisions, but I can be there to guide you," Matthew said.

"What he said," Wayne spoke up. "Except you're my boy, Eddie. I'm going with you too."

"I guess I can't stop you either," Eddie said in amusement.

They spent the day gathering supplies, going over the plan, and enjoying each other's company. At one point, Ellen and Rodney went to the War Zone to get more weapons and other supplies. When they came back, their arms were full of supplies as well as clothes. Eddie cheered when he found a pair of black pants and a red t-shirt. Rodney tossed Steve a brown leather jacket and Eddie a belt made of bullets.

"I thought you guys might look good in these," Rodney said.

Steve was closer to him, and he could see how young he was underneath his scruffy red beard. He wasn't that much older than they were, and his brown eyes were twinkling at the both of them. Oh. Chrissy cleared her throat and stared Rodney down.

"Thanks, Robert," Chrissy said stiffly.

"Rodney," he corrected.

"Right," she said and continued to stare at him until he walked away from them.

"You're so cute," Steve laughed.

"What?" Chrissy asked.

"You were jealous," Eddie said in a sing song voice.

"Shut up," Chrissy said blushing.

They leaned down and kissed her cheeks.

"We know who we belong to," Eddie joked. "If you wanted to, you could get us matching dog collars. . . Ooh!"

"No," Steve said immediately.

"Damn."

"You know, he was right. You guys would look great in these," Chrissy said. "Ooh, Steve, the camo shirt with the brown jacket."

"She's right, babe," Eddie said. "I guess we should suit up, then."

Everyone began changing, most people putting on their protective wear immediately. Eddie changed into his jeans and shirt, then pulled on his leather jacket. He tied his bandana around his head and then slipped on his new bullet belt. Eddie's other vest was tucked safely in Steve's car. Chrissy was already wearing her protective vest with a black beret nestled upon her strawberry blond curls. Steve was about to put on his own vest when he and Chrissy glanced at Eddie.

"Shirts a little small, isn't it?" Steve asked, glancing as his treasure trail.

"Just because you're saving the world doesn't mean you can't look hot, and we all do," Eddie said. "You're keeping that jacket, Stevie."

Steve rolled his eyes and began helping Eddie put on the protective vest. He zipped it up all the way to Eddie's chin. Eddie grinned, rolled his eyes, and unzipped it. Steve scowled and zipped it back up. Chrissy giggled.

"I don't want that pretty tummy of yours getting fucked up like mine," Steve said. "Okay?"

"Okay."

Steve pulled Eddie into a rough but gentle kiss before doing the same with Chrissy. Steve wrapped his arms around both of them, and the three of them stayed like that for a long time until the sound of someone hammering interrupted them. The three of them headed back into the mess hall to find Dustin and Lucas hammering nails into a trash can lid.

"What's happening?" Eddie asked.

"They wouldn't let us have guns, but they did let us do this for you guys, and they also gave us knives," Dustin said, and then he grinned. "It's like your bat, Steve, except it's a shield."

"I see that," Steve said in amusement. "Oh, speaking of the bat. It's still in my car."

Steve left the mess hall and walked put into the parking lot. He walked back into the mess hall, twirling the bat in his hands. Eddie whistled and winked at him.

"Ooh, even hotter," Eddie said, fanning himself. "So, does the bat have a name?"

"No, why would it?" Steve scoffed.

"Because it's like a sword, Stevie, and every good sword needs a name like Excalibur or Sting," Eddie said as he grabbed a shield and raised it in the air, striking a pose.

"Sting?" Steve asked.

"Bilbo's name for his sword from the Hobbit," Chrissy replied, and Eddie looked her, nearly dropping the shield. "What? Did I not mention? Matty used to love it when I would read it to him when he was little, and then he discovered comic books. I like the book too."

"Have you read the other books?" Eddie asked.

"There are more books?" Chrissy asked.

"Oh, Chrissy, Chrissy, Chrissy," Eddie said, shaking his head.

"You have no idea what you've just done," Gareth asked with a grin.

"That's all you're going to be doing after this," Jeff cackled.

"And don't think you're getting out of this either, Stevie," Eddie grinned.

"Getting out of what?" Steve asked.

"Reading the Lord of the Rings. Although you haven't read the Hobbit, we should probably start with that one," Eddie grinned. "And then work our way up. I'll gladly do all of the reading if you want me to."

"Okay," Steve said, shrugging.

"What?!" Dustin shrieked. "I've been trying to get you to read it for years now!"

"Yeah, but you've never offered to read it to me," Steve said and then paused. "Plus, Eddie's so pretty."

He grinned as Eddie preened, his cheeks pink.

"So, the name for the bat?" Eddie asked.

"I don't know, why don't you come up with a name for it?" Steve shrugged.

"Oh, now you've done it, Steve," Frank said.

"Hmm, how about Ozzy? In honor of the metal way that you took out the bat in the Upside Down," Eddie grinned.

"Ozzy?" Steve asked.

"You know, Ozzy Osborne? Black Sabbath?" Eddie asked.

"I've got no idea who you're talking about," Steve said.

"He bit the head off a bat on stage," Eddie said and sighed. "No matter, I'll educate you later. Ozzy is a great name, I think."

"Ozzy, it is then," Steve grinned.

Eddie gave him a quick kiss and leaned down to coo at Ozzy.

"Who's a good little slugger? You are, Ozzy," Eddie cooed.

"Okay, now you're just being crazy," Steve said and Chrissy giggled.

It was now in the middle of the parking lot where everyone gathered together, and the late afternoon sun was starting to sink down into the sky, that they started to part ways. Jeff would be driving Matthew's car with Dustin, Gareth, Lucas, and Max. Nancy would be driving Steve’s car again with Eddie, Chrissy, Steve, and Robin. Ellen and Rodney would be driving their own car with Frank while Wayne drove Matthew and Vickie in his truck with the stereos strapped to the back of the truck.

"So, you guys are just going to go down through the lake?" Dustin asked.

"We've prepared for that, yes," Ellen said.

"Right," Dustin frowned.

Max, Lucas, and Dustin looked nervously at Steve. He strode forward and pulled the three of them into a hug.

"We're going to be fine. Just fine," Steve said.

He held onto them tightly. He didn't want to let them go, but he also needed to go with Chrissy. Oh, how he wished he could be in two places at once.

"Come on, Mama," Eddie said, clapping his hands on his Steve’s shoulders. "Big Daddy's turn."

He pulled Steve out of their arms and swung him around into Chrissy's arms with Steve protesting loudly.

"Ugh, please, never call yourself that again," Max said. "I am not hugging you now."

"I could have been talking about Chrissy," Eddie said and turned to pull Chrissy into their arms.

"You're so fucking weird," Max laughed.

"You're one to talk, Red. What's normal anyway?" Eddie said. "Never change, not a single one of you, not unless you want to and not like in a bad way, like in a true to yourself way. Yes, be true to yourself!"

"Jesus, you really needed a road map for that one," Max scoffed.

Steve scoffed and rejoined the hug, pushing his way into the group.

"I love you guys," Steve said softly.

Max, Lucas, and Dustin shared a soft smile before grinning wickedly at him.

"Love you too, mom!" They said in unison, causing Eddie and Chrissy to laugh.

"Alright, assholes, fuck off," Steve laughed.

Eddie moved over to Nancy and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"Wheeler - ," Eddie started to say.

"I'm going with you to the lake," Nancy laughed.

"Right, just wanted to include you in this chapter," Eddie said.

"What?" Nancy asked and looked at Wayne.

"Don't look at me, I only catch half of what he's trying to say to me," Wayne said.

Eddie rolled his eyes and turned to hug Gareth and Jeff. Finally, they all parted ways. Steve sat in the back seat with Chrissy and Eddie while Nancy drove with Robin in the front seat. Chrissy was using her Walkman while Steve’s new tape played in his car stereo. Chrissy was in between Steve and Eddie, her back to Eddie's chest while her legs were thrown into Steve’s lap. He was rubbing her leg, caressing it gently with the tips of his fingers. Steve watched as she bobbed her head to the music. The afternoon sun shone down on her, making her strawberry blonde hair glisten like gold. Her eyes were shimmering pools of blue, matching perfectly with the long sleeve shirt she was wearing under her vest.

Eddie pressed his cheek against her head, rubbing her arm. His hand moved down until it was pressed against her stomach. Suddenly, Eddie grinned wickedly as he started to tickle her sides. Chrissy snorted with laughter and started hitting him as she leaned further back. Eddie continued to tickle her as he placed a quick, sweet kiss to her lips and brushed his nose against her cheek. Her body shook with laughter. There was this moment of realization for Steve as he watched them. Oh, god, he loved them. He loved them so much. It was too soon, wasn't it? Yeah, too soon to tell them.

"Oh, children, behave!" Robin called from the passenger's seat.

The group pulled up to the lake and climbed out of the vehicles. Everyone clutched their weapons as they moved toward the glowing lake. Eddie was holding a spear and a shield that Dustin had made. Robin and Vickie had spears of their own while Nancy held a shotgun. Grant held a knife in his hand as well as Chrissy. Wayne and Matthew had guns of their own. They moved to the edge of the lake and gasped at the sight of the entire lake glowing red. The reason for that was because the gate had stretched out further. In his anger, Henry must have widened the gate, causing an opening to appear on the shore.

"Aw, hell," Wayne cursed, summing it up perfectly.

Chapter Eighteen

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dwobbitfromtheshire · 7 months

Text

Stuck Between a Jock and a Metalhead

Chapter One - Chapter Two - Chapter Three - Chapter Four - Chapter Five - Chapter Six - Chapter Seven - Chapter Eight - Chapter Nine - Chapter Ten - Chapter Eleven - Chapter Twelve - Chapter Thirteen - Chapter Fourteen - Chapter Fifteen - Chapter Sixteen - Chapter Seventeen - Chapter Eighteen - Chapter Nineteen - Chapter Twenty - Chapter Twenty-One - Chapter Twenty-Two - Chapter Twenty-Three - Chapter Twenty-Four - Chapter Twenty-Five - Chapter Twenty-Six - Chapter Twenty-Seven - Chapter Twenty-Eight - Chapter Twenty-Nine

@nightmareglitter

Chapter Thirty

Steve’s POV

Eddie burst into the apartment with a crown of flowers on his head, tracking mud in with Mayhem. Steve remembered how cute he looked with the flower crowns. It was impossible to be mad at him for tracking in the mud. . .plus, he even made a small flower crown for Mayhem.

"Mayhem and I have made flower crowns for us all. . .well, I did. Mayhem didn't do shit," Eddie replied as he placed a crown on Steve’s head. "Much better crown for you, sweetheart."

"Thank you," Steve beamed and kissed him. "I don't think Mayhem likes her's."

Mayhem pawed at the crown on her head and meowed when she successfully got it off.

"Everyone's a critic," Eddie said. "Well, maybe Nancy will appreciate it. Nancy, my love?"

She was sitting at the kitchen table, pouring over her school books.

"I doubt she's going to notice," Steve snorted.

"Oh, she's so cute when she's not aware of what's going on around her," Eddie sighed as he placed the crown on her head. "My dear, I've placed a crown of bees on your hair."

"That's nice," Nancy said, and then her head snapped up. "Eddie, you should be studying if you want to walk across that stage."

"Goddamnit," Eddie cursed before plopping down next to her while Steve laughed. He watched them for a while as they put their heads together, Eddie scowling while Nancy rolled her eyes affectionately.

Steve sobbed as his hands shook as they strung the flowers together. When he was finished, he walked into the dining room where Eddie's body lay across the table. Nancy stood with Dustin, her arm wrapped around him while Robin stood behind them. He hated how sad and broken they looked. This shouldn't be happening. He walked over to the table and raised Eddie's head as he placed the crown upon his hair.

"He would have loved that," Nancy sobbed.

"I'm so sorry," Dustin cried and threw himself into Steve’s arms.

"It's alright. It wasn't your fault," Steve said.

"You lost Eddie, you and Nancy both," Dustin sniffled.

Nancy wrapped her arms around the both of them and pressed her cheek against Dustin's hair.

"You lost him too," Nancy whispered. "We all did."

Robin threw herself into the hug, her own body trembling. Suddenly, the sound of the front door opening startled all of them, and they quickly broke apart.

"Hello?" Max's voice called out.

They ran into the hallway and watched with wide eyes as Max came in with her mom and Lucas. Nancy rushed forward and hugged her tightly.

"We heard the chimes - we thought you were - " Nancy started to say.

"It was Jason. Jason was always his backup plan," Max said quickly.

Steve hugged her tightly before reaching Lucas and hugging his other brother. His face was bloody and starting to bruise. Susan's was as well.

"What the hell happened to your face?" Steve asked.

"Jason, he tried to kill Susan and Mom," Lucas said. "I stopped him, and then Vecna got him. Where's Eddie?"

The question hit Steve like a blow to the chest, and he squeezed Lucas's shoulder. He didn't have to say anything. He could feel it all over his own face.

"He's in the dining room," Steve muttered.

Lucas ran into the dining room with Max, and he let out a holler.

"No, no, no, no! Eddie!" Lucas exclaimed. "He's sleeping, right? He's just - "

They watched from the hallway as he clung to Max, sobbing.

"Oh. Baby, I'm so sorry," Sue said and pulled Steve into her arms.

"Mom," Steve said weakly.

Sue hugged Steve tightly, and he could feel her hold her other arm out for Nancy. She pulled her in, allowing Steve to wrap his arms around his mother as well as his girlfriend. The pain of the bats biting into his stomach had been the worst sort of pain, but nothing hurt as much as this did. Normally, a hug from one of his parents would make him feel better during times of crisis, but not this time. It hurt so much that he wanted to claw the pain out of his chest. He wanted to rip out his own beating heart and give it to Eddie. . .he'd give anything to get Eddie back.

Steve moved out of Sue's arms and headed towards the living room when he heard Lucas crying. He was weeping over Eddie's body with Dustin and Max. Steve moved over and pulled his brothers into his arms, hugging them tightly. Max moved to hug a crying Nancy. They stayed like that for a while until he looked over their heads at Robin, who seemed to know exactly what he needed.

"Come on, everyone, let's give Steve and Nancy a moment," Robin said softly. "Besides, I think Tommy's going to need some help patching Walter up."

"I'm so sorry, the both of you," Susan told them as she started to follow everyone out of the room.

Steve and Nancy each pulled a chair up near his head. They started to caress his hair, reaching for their hands to interlace them over his heart.

"I don't know if I can do this, Steve," Nancy cried. "I can't do this without him. I feel like a piece of us is missing."

"A piece of us is missing, Nance," Steve muttered.

"What are we going to tell Wayne? Eddie. . .he's never going to see his cousin. He's never going to see El. . .oh God! How are we going to tell El?" Nancy yelled as she started to hyperventilate.

Steve watched in alarm as Nancy pulled away from the table and Eddie's body. She started pacing as she struggled to catch her breath. He stood up and gently grabbed her arms.

"Nancy," he said softly.

"I can't keep going through this shit, Steve. I can't keep losing people. We lost, we lost, Steve! I lost Barb and Fred! We lost Mayhem! We lost Eddie! My parents. . .I don't know where they are! We lost, and Hawkins is going to - we're all going to - I can't!" Nancy wailed and collapsed sobbing into Steve’s arms.

Steve’s knees buckled, and he collapsed on the floor with Nancy as he cried with her. They heard the front door open, and Steve saw Robin run into the hallway.

"Mom! Dad!" Robin cried as they hugged her.

They entered the dining room with Agent Stinson and Lily. Nora gasped.

"Oh no," Nora said. "Oh. I am so sorry, honey."

She knelt down next to Nancy and stroked her hair. Nancy pulled out of Steve’s arms and turned to Nora.

"Have you seen my parents?" Nancy asked.

"No, sweetie," Nora said softly and pulled the both of them into her arms.

"Goddamnit," Lily cursed as she stood next to the table.

"We failed," Nancy whispered. "We failed."

"Max?" Robert asked with horror.

"She's alive. Apparently, Jason was always his backup plan in case he couldn't get to Max," Robin muttered.

Robert put his arm around his daughter and kissed the top of her head, squeezing her tightly. Suddenly, the ground began to shake, harder than it ever did in the Upside Down. It felt like Hawkins was being split down the middle. Everyone screamed and held onto each other. Steve pulled Nancy to his chest, trying to hold onto the wall as Nora did the same on Nancy's other side. The shaking lasted a while, and Steve tried not to throw up as he listened to the kids' screams from upstairs. This was it. This was the end.

Finally, the shaking stopped after several minutes. The windows had broken, and the front door had blown open until it blasted into the hallway. Lamps had fallen, and shelves had toppled completely open. The dining table had turned on its side, Eddie's body had slid to the floor. The kids rushed downstairs, their eyes wide. Steve and Nancy immediately went to them to check them over. Steve turned to the open doorway and gasped at the sight of red lightning flashing outside. He rushed outside, and everyone quickly followed him. The sky was red, while flurries from the Upside Down danced in the air. Smoke billowed from the tops of the trees, and bats flew in the air as the howling of Demogorgons was heard off in the distance.

"Oh, we're so fucked," Dustin said.

"Get inside. Now!" Lily exclaimed.

Everyone rushed inside, and they all worked together to put the door back in place. They also pushed furniture in front of it to hold it in place. It was Dustin who moved back towards the dining room.

"Steve! Nancy!" Dustin shrieked.

Everyone ran into the dining room and gasped at the sight. Eddie's body was no longer lying on the floor. Nancy rushed out of the room, and a moment later, she was calling for Steve. He, along with the others, ran into the kitchen. The back door was wide open, and on the floor next to it was Eddie's broken flower crown. Nancy gasped and immediately rushed upstairs. Steve immediately chased after her and found her in her room, gathering her weapons, redressing in the gear that she wore in the Upside Down.

"What are you doing?" Steve asked.

"I'm going out there to look for him. He's out there, and so is Mayhem. My parents are out there as well," Nancy said. "Are you going to stop me or help me?"

"Like I could stop you from doing anything. Besides, I want to look for them too," Steve said and didn't realize he was shaking until Nancy took his hand.

She pressed her forehead against his and breathed with him.

"We're going to find them and bring them home," Nancy said and kissed him. "And then we're all going to save Hawkins."

It's not that Steve didn't believe in her. He always did, but he was finding it hard to do so with what was going on outside. He got dressed and grabbed his gear. They headed back downstairs and started gathering the batteries as well as the flashlights. They also packed some hairspray and lighters.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked.

"We're going to look for Eddie and my parents," Nancy replied.

"Like hell you are," Lily said. "We need to remain in one place. We keep splitting up, and quite frankly, I'm sick of it. We're all staying here - ,"

"And what? Wait for all of us to die? I'm not sitting here knowing that my parents and Eddie are out there. We have to do something and what are you going to do to stop me?" Nancy asked. "So come with me or stay here, I don't care."

"Fine," Lily said. "I'm going with you."

"We're coming with you too," Dustin said from behind her.

"Uh, yeah, that's a no," Steve scoffed.

"Steve’s right. You guys need to stay here. There's wood in the shed. Dad was supposed to build Holly a tree house. You need to board up the house and defend it. Defend yourselves," Nancy said. "We need to focus on finding the others, and we can't worry about losing you put there."

"I don't want to lose you either," Dustin said softly.

"We know," Steve said softly and pulled him to his chest.

Nancy hugged them both, and they opened their arms to allow Max as well as Lucas. Robin looked torn, staring at Steve with wide eyes as she also looked at her parents. Steve walked over to Robin and placed his hands on her shoulders.

"It's okay if you want to stay here with your parents. They need you right now. I think they forgot they're bleeding," Steve said.

"You're my best friend, Steve. My platonic soulmate. My other half. You better come back with my soulmate in laws," Robin said.

"I'll do everything that I can," Steve whispered. "I love you."

"I love you too, dingus," Robin said and hugged him tightly.

When Steve broke the hug, Tommy was standing on the stairs.

"I'm going with you, man," Tommy said.

"What about Walter?" Steve asked.

"He's upstairs resting. Plus, I think he'd give me hell if I didn't go with my best friend," Tommy said. "I'm ready, man."

Steve pulled Tommy into a tight hug. He was immediately yanked out of it by Robin and pushed to the side as Robin hugged Tommy.

"Keep him safe, Hagan," Robin said.

"Keep yourself safe, Buckley," Tommy said.

Steve rolled his eyes but smiled as he moved on to hug Sue, then Robert and Nora. He hugged the kids again before heading out with the group. They decided it was better off that they didn't use the car due to the fog and the smoke. It was going to take longer to search, but at least they weren't taking the risk of crashing. They decided to head toward the apartment, hoping that Eddie would go there. They had to take several detours when they stumbled upon the splits in the ground. . . So far, they had managed to avoid the bats and the demogorgons, successfully making it to the salon. It had managed to avoid falling into the pit closer to the middle of town, but the tree that had stood in the back had fallen upon his grandfather's store.

"We can always rebuild. We can always rebuild," Steve muttered, closing his eyes.

He couldn't stop the feeling in his stomach or the tears springing to his eyes. Nancy put a hand on his arm, and he looked at her. She had tears in her eyes as well, and he remembered that this was her home, too. He took her hand, and they managed to squeeze inside the building together. The mural that had been on the wall had been struck by the branches and destroyed. Another blow to his already broken heart. Steve climbed the stairs with Nancy and found that most of their stuff was okay, that they could clear it out easily later. Mayhem's favorite chair was broken, though, much to Steve’s disappointment. Nancy squeezed his hand tightly.

They searched the apartment while Tommy and Lily stood near the door. Steve felt some glass crunch under his feet and found a picture on the floor. It was a picture of his grandparents: Irene, Otis, and Steven. There was a crack separating Steven from Irene and Otis. Steve dropped to his knees, pressing a knuckle to his mouth as he sobbed. Nancy wrapped her arms around his shoulder and cried with him. After crying for a minute, they got up and turned around.

"He's not here," Nancy said, wiping her face. "Let's check Hopper's cabin."

"Good idea," Steve said.

Of course, it was after they left the apartment that they ran into trouble. They were heading in the direction of the cabin when they heard a scream. It seemed instinctual for Nancy to run toward it. Everyone took off after her. They found a car in a ditch, and it was surrounded by demobats. Nancy whistled, and suddenly, the bats' attention was on her. Lily reacted quickly when the bats flew towards them, pulling out a hairspray and a lighter before blasting them with fire. Tommy, with the axe and Steve with his bat, quickly took out the rest. They rushed to help the people out of the car. It was Vickie and her dad. . . Matthew Fisher? Yes, that was his name. Dr. Fisher.

"Steve!" Vickie exclaimed.

"Are you guys okay?" Steve asked.

"Yes, thanks to you guys," Dr. Fisher said.

"What's happening?" Vickie asked, and then her face paled. "Where's Robin?"

"Oh, she's fine! She's fine! She's at Nancy's house," Steve said. "She's taking care of her parents."

"Are they hurt?" Vickie asked.

"Yeah," Steve replied.

"Anyone else injured?" Dr. Fisher asked as he managed to pull a bag out of the car.

"Yeah, we wrapped them up as best we could," Nancy said.

"I think they could use a doctor's opinion. I have plenty of medicine in my bag, too. It's the least I could do after you guys saved us," Dr. Fisher said.

"We'll escort you there," Nancy said. "After that, we need to go back to looking for my parents and Eddie."

"I hope you find them," Vickie said softly. "Do you know what happened?"

"It's a long story," Steve said.

"I think we have time," Dr. Fisher said.

It was Nancy who told them the story of how what happened, how it all started with Dr. Brenner and a boy named Henry Creel. It took a while, but Nancy finally finished with Starcourt mall.

"Damn," Dr. Fisher cursed.

"Oh, Robin must have been so terrified," Vickie muttered, and then her eyes widened. "I mean, you guys as well. I wasn't just thinking of Robin. I'm glad you guys made it out."

Steve smiled knowingly at her. Of course, his smile slipped off his face as soon as a single demobat swooped down and dove for Dr. Fisher. Lily reacted quickly and pushed him to the ground. Tommy swung his axe and split the bat in two. Meanwhile, Lily was still on top of Dr. Fisher and looked down on him.

"Are you okay, Dr. Fisher?" Lily asked.

"Fine! Fine! Um, but you can call me Matthew," he said. "Um, you can all call me, Matthew."

Lily realized their positions and stood up, blushing.

"Alright, let's get going," Lily said.

It seems like Vickie and her dad share the same look when they get enamored with women. It looked like it was something that Vickie knew too because she was struggling not to laugh. Meanwhile, Matthew's face was as red as his hair. They continued on without further problems and escorted them to the house.

"We'd go in with you, but I doubt they'll let us leave again," Nancy said.

"Thank you so much," Vickie said and hugged her.

"Yes, thank you. And when you get back, I'm checking on those bits," Matthew said. "Don't think I've forgotten."

"Yes, Dr. Fisher," Steve laughed.

"Matthew," he corrected.

They waited until they got inside before walking towards the direction of the cabin. Steve wasn't sure what time it was or how long they had been walking. He had lost his watch somewhere in the Upside Down. He wasn't even sure what day it was. His bites were definitely hurting him, but he was determined to look for Eddie and Nancy's parents. He liked Ted and Karen. Ted was a funny man, especially when he was arguing with Dustin, and sure, he could speak without thinking sometimes, but then again, so could Mike. Even Nancy had her moments where she could be a little blunt at times. Karen was loving, just as fierce as Nancy, and could be afraid of her own feelings just as much Nancy could. Nancy and Mike were the best of both of them, so perfectly imperfect. They were great parents who were willing to make the sacrifice to protect their kids and support them in whatever relationships they had. Steve remembered them welcoming him into their home for the first time. It had thrown him off when Karen pulled him off to the side and let him know she knew about him sleeping with Nancy. She also let him know about the gun she kept upstairs. Did he forget to tell Nancy that? Anyway, he let them know that they had nothing to worry about, and they grew to love him so much. They also grew to love Eddie. . .Eddie.

"Hey, isn't Gareth's house somewhere near here?" Nancy asked, breaking him out of his thoughts.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I think so," Steve replied. "Should we check there too?"

"Might as well," Nancy replied.

When they got to Gareth's place and knocked on the door, no one answered at first. Steve and Nancy paused before pounding on the door again.

"Gareth! It's Steve and Nancy!" Steve yelled through the door.

They paused again and moved to step back from the door when it suddenly opened. Gareth stood there with a kitchen knife, his other hand wrapped up in a cast and a bruised eye adorning his face.

"What's Hagan doing here? Come to finish off what Jason started? Think we're the ones responsible for ending the world?" Gareth snapped.

"Gareth, you know me and Steve. We would never let him hurt you. Besides, he grew up, and he almost ran Jason over when Jason tried to kill us," Nancy said. "Did he do that to you?"

"Yeah," Gareth said.

"Well, you don't have to worry about him anymore. He's dead, and that's what ended the world, apparently," Steve sighed.

"How come Eddie's not with you?" Gareth asked, and Nancy's fell. "Nance? Please tell me that he's not. . . "

"No! Well, we don't know," Steve said.

"What do you mean you don't know?" Gareth asked.

Suddenly, the growl of a demogorgon sounded nearby.

"Maybe we should talk about this inside," Lily said.

Gareth stepped aside and let them all in, including Tommy. Jeff and Frankie were sitting in the living room when they walked in. Gareth opened his mouth to speak, but Steve pressed a finger to his lips and then pointed outside. They could all hear the sound of the demogorgon getting closer, and they all went quiet. Steve was sure they were spotted by the creature, but a moment later, a loud boom came from off in the distance. It sounded an awful lot like an explosion. It drove the demogorgon off, and they all breathed sighs of relief.

"We were all hanging out when everything happened. My mom's at work, and the phones aren't working, so I don't even know if she's. . .what the hell happened with Eddie?" Gareth said furiously before softening into fear and desperation. "Please."

Nancy took Gareth's uninjured hand and started explaining things to him as well as the others. It was silent for a while as the story sank in.

"So, Eddie. . .might not be Eddie?" Jeff asked.

"We don't know," Nancy said, her bottom lip trembling.

"Well, we're not going to let that fucker use Eddie's - use Eddie for anything," Frank said. "I'm going with you to look for Eddie."

"So am I," Gareth said.

"Me too," Jeff said.

"I have some stuff in the garage," Gareth said and left.

When he came back, he had a hatchet, a crowbar, and a baseball bat. Gareth kept the hatchet, gave the crowbar to Frank, and gave the baseball bat to Jeff.

"Let's go," Gareth scowled and squeezed Nancy's shoulder gently before doing the same with Steve.

As they got closer to Hopper's cabin, they tried to ignore the vines that were wrapping themselves around the trees, but it was hard when they were moving. Was this even Hawkins even more, or was this the Upside Down? They were all getting tired, he knew, after all that walking and Steve's bat bites were killing him but they couldn't quit now. They were so close to Hopper's cabin now, just a few more miles. Steve had to stop. He bent over with a gasp.

"Steve, are you okay?" Nancy asked.

"My bat bites are hurting a little, that's all," Steve said. "I'll be okay. Let's just keep going."

"Are you sure?" Nancy asked.

"We don't have far to go," Steve said. "Let's get to the cabin."

Nancy gave him an approaching look before wrapping an arm around his waist.

"Lean on me," Nancy said, and he opened his mouth to protest, but she gave him another look. "Steve."

It wasn't long before Tommy was on his other side to help him as well. It was useless to argue, so Steve nodded, and they started moving again. Steve tried to ignore the feeling like someone was watching them. When they made it the cabin, Nancy immediately got them inside and set Steve on the couch with the help of Tommy. Nancy raised Steve’s shirt and frowned.

"I'm not saying that you're not in pain, but your stitches look good, and they don't look infected," Nancy said and paused. "My bat bite is hurting, too."

"Do I get a lolly pop, Dr. Wheeler?" Steve asked.

"You definitely deserve it," Nancy said, smiling weakly. "Sorry. I just - I'm so tired."

"Yeah, me too," Steve said and cupped her cheek, smiling softly when she leaned into his touch.

"I'm going to look around for Eddie. I love you, Steve Harrington," Nancy said softly as she stood up.

"I love you, Nancy Wheeler," he replied.

She leaned down and kissed him deeply. God, he could still feel the love, but he could also feel how tired she was. She moved about the cabin, looking into the back rooms before moving outside with Lily and Jeff. When they heard them holler, they were both quick to get to the porch, Steve leaning on Tommy and Frank for support. Gareth followed them. The others were looking out into the tree line.

"What?" Steve asked.

"I thought I saw - ," Nancy said, holding her neck.

"There was definitely something there," Jeff said.

There was a sudden movement among the trees, like a blur, and then a loud screech as if it were a warning sound. Steve could see it. They could all see it. . .the bright, red eyes. Nancy and Steve looked at each other. Suddenly, they knew. Eddie. Another smaller pair of eyes winked into being, so close to the other as though it was sitting on someone's shoulders. Mayhem.

Chapter Thirty-One

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dwobbitfromtheshire · 9 months

Text

Stuck Between a Jock and a Metalhead

@nightmareglitter

Chapter Twenty-Four

Nancy sat in the living room of her house, everyone pale as Max told them what happened. Max was being held tight by her mother but this time, Max was holding her back just as tightly. Agent Stinson was back at the house now, recounting what happened with Victor Creel but not before Eddie and Dustin had interjected with their own names for whatever was haunting them. Apparently, they had some time on their hands. Vecna, the dark wizard from Eddie's campaign, with untold powers, was cursing these people. . .was cursing them. Agent Stinson had silenced them with a look before talking again.

"Yes, Victor Creel's family was Vecna's first victims in 1959. Victor believed that his home was haunted, possessed, and even called an exorcist. Later, when his family's bodies were crushed as well as their eyes, he believed it to be the work of a demon. After inheriting some money, the Creels moved to Hawkins to start their new life, and they had one month of peace, and then it all went to hell. Dead animals, tortured, were left near their home. They all began to hallucinate. Victor had said that the demon seemed to take pleasure in tormenting them, and Victor soon began to have hallucinations of his own. He seemed to be able to sense that the demon was close and believed he was hiding in their house, that it cursed everyone in Hawkins. It took Victor's wife, Virginia, first. He tried to get the children out, and then he started to hallucinate. He was back in the war and being taunted by the demon. He was pulled out of the hallucination by the music that was playing on the radio, only to discover that his children had been taken by the demon. Henry had slipped into a coma, and a week later, he died," Agent Stinson finished.

"Jesus," Ted said.

"What does this mean?" Karen asked. "For Max."

"Keep her Walkman on her at all times, keep it playing, and you keep that asshole out of your head," Nancy told Max.

"Okay, well, she can't keep this up forever," Sue said.

"We need to find this guy and kill it," Nancy said.

"Well, we still don't know where he is or why he's waited so long to do this and why he's doing it now. Hell, we don't even know why he is doing all of this," Steve said.

"Excellent point, Stevie," Eddie said.

"Okay, where is the Creel House? Maybe we can search for clues there," Nancy said.

"According to his file, it's located on Morehead Street," Agent Stinson replied.

"Maybe Vecna's still hiding in the house," Nancy said. "So, let's check it out."

"You guys are staying here," Lily said. "We'll check it out."

"I don't work for you anymore," Nancy replied. "So, you can't bench me. We're all in this together, and I'm going to help out whether you like it or not."

"I can't really argue with you, can I?" Lily sighed. "Fine, take Stinson."

"I'm going with you," Robin and Steve said before looking at each other. "Jinx!"

"Robin!" Nora exclaimed.

"Mother!" Robin exclaimed.

"Robin!" Robert scolded has daughter.

"Eddie!" Eddie burst out, causing them to look at him. "I'm sorry, I thought we were doing something here."

"Sorry, mombie, but I have to go. What if Steve trips on like grass or something, which I'm sure is all that's going to happen? You know how he is with the concussions," Robin said.

"He does get those a lot," Nora said and frowned. "I suppose some people do have to stay here. Although, I wish it were you two. I wish none of us were going. Hell, I wish none of this was happening!"

"Mombie! We got this," Steve said and flashed her his most charming smile.

"Oh, my babies!" Nora exclaimed as she hugged them tightly. "I know it's not possible, but sometimes it seems like I pushed you out together myself and at the same time with the way you two act. Look after each other."

"I'm going with you too," Dustin said.

"And I don't think my mom is going to let me go anywhere," Max chuckled.

"I'll stay here," Lucas said.

Suddenly, Holly came into the room with Mayhem and Tews following after. She quickly jumped into Eddie's lap while the cats did the same.

"Well, I guess I'm staying here too. Sorry, my loves," Eddie said.

"Mayhem says you're not allowed to leave," Holly said.

"Is that so?" Eddie asked in amusement.

"She said so, Teddy!" Holly exclaimed.

Karen stood up, her head held high as she gazed at her daughter. Nancy's eyes widened.

"I'm going with you too," Karen said.

"Mom!" Nancy said.

"I'm not taking no for an answer. You need a parent with you all if you're going. It's time you kids stop going through this by yourselves," Karen said. "I know you're all more than capable of doing this by yourself, but that doesn't mean you should."

"Like mother, like daughter," Eddie said and Ted snorted.

"Isn't that the truth," Ted said. "I couldn't stop you two even I wanted to which I don't. Our daughter is going to do this whether we like it or not. She's going to follow through, and you're going to follow her. Please come back in one piece. Like Mike, I like to keep the complete set and in pristine condition. Shit, he's not here to hear that."

Karen squeezed her husband's arm gently. Nancy guessed over the years that she learned when to tell when her husband was worried. Karen surprised them all by kissing Ted in front of everyone and then kissed his broken nose. Nancy wondered if, after 20 years , could someone finally fall in love with their spouse? She noticed now that there was a definite twinkle in her mother's eyes whenever she looked at Ted.

"We'll be fine, Ted. You worry too much," Karen grinned, and Ted actually laughed.

Nancy was surprised. She had never seen this sort of interaction from her parents before. Mike will never believe it until he sees it. She grinned and gave Eddie a kiss before moving aside to let Steve do the same. Eddie grinned at Steve and then down at the yellow sweater that he had slipped on last night. Steve rolled his eyes and pulled it off, revealing a blue polo underneath. He handed the sweater over, and Eddie quickly slipped it on, purring happily.

"You're so cute," Steve said fondly.

Karen disappeared up the stairs and came back down with a gun. It was a 45. Nancy looked at her mother in surprise.

"What? You're not the only Wheeler who can hide guns in her bedroom," Karen said.

"Where did you learn to shoot?" Nancy asked.

"I didn't learn from anyone. I taught myself," Karen replied.

"Hey, Nance," Eddie grinned. "What did you get from Ted? . . . No, offense, Mr. Wheeler."

"None taken, son, you're only telling the truth," Ted replied, and he smiled at Karen.

Jesus, they must have found some time to have a serious discussion because there was more life in her parents' relationship than she had ever seen before. They went outside and decided to take Nancy's car. Nancy stepped back and frowned. Didn't she leave her car at the apartment?

"Oh, Ted drove it back when Steve went to pick up Mayhem while you were and Eddie were busy," Karen smirked. "We need more vehicles, just in case."

"Mom!" Nancy exclaimed. "Okay, I really wish you were getting onto me instead because I don't like this. What's gotten into you?"

Karen smiled as she slid into the driver's seat. Nancy slid in next to her while the others slid into the back. Steve waved the shotgun and the bat he pulled from his car. Nancy grinned as she glanced at him from the rear view mirror.

"I know it's going to sound sappy, but I think of this is making me realize what's truly important," she said. "And I realize now that the one who's been holding me back wasn't Ted. . .it was me. If I want to change anything about my life, it has to be me who puts that step forward, and I know Ted isn't going to stop me. I never thought to ask for what I wanted because I didn't really know. For the longest time, I thought it wasn't Ted, I always doubted myself because I thought I only married him because everyone was telling me not to. I realized that the one other person who was telling me not to love him was me. It only took me 20 years, but when I imagined him dying like those kids, I realized I really loved him. I also realized I was making myself and Ted unhappy because of my own shortcomings."

"Oh, mom, that's great. I'm really happy for you and dad," Nancy said, tears welling up in her eyes.

"You know, it made your dad realize some things too. Like he spent his whole life fighting other people, and he fought in the war too that after a while, he kind of stopped trying to do, well, anything. He didn't realize he's kind of been slacking at home, too. He says he wants to try more and work on this relationship, too. I told him he's done so much for this family, and he works so hard, but he still thinks he can do more. In fact, he's asked me . . .," Karen said, biting her lip.

"What?" Nancy asked.

"He wants to do a vow renewal," she said. "You know, after this."

"That's great, Karen!" Steve interjected, his eyes lighting up.

"I think Steve wants to plan it, Mrs. Wheeler," Dustin said.

"Shut up, man," Steve hissed.

"I was planning on asking you, anyway," Karen said in amusement.

"Yes!" Steve exclaimed.

"Low key, though, nothing fancy. Casual with a few family and friends," Karen said, and Steve saluted.

Nancy smiled at her mom. She realized that for the first time, she was seeing her mom really happy. Her hair wasn't up in a perfect updo. It was actually in a messy ponytail, and she wasn't wearing any makeup. Still, her clothes were bright, but they were also casual, perfect to run in. Maybe it was the fact that Karen had been trying so hard to be picture-perfect to the world that had made her miss out on so many wonderful things. There were bigger things to worry about now, and Karen didn't need to worry about those things anymore. At least, they're not the most important things to worry about anymore. Nancy and the others jumped when someone tapped on the glass. She turned around to find Lucas peering into the window, and she rolled it down.

"Oh, good, you're still here. Max said to tell you that she saw in Vecna's mind a stained glass window with a rose on it. Maybe look for that when you try to find the house," Lucas said and then handed her a bag. "Flashlights."

"That's helpful, thank you," Nancy said and waved at him.

"Good luck," Lucas said.

"You too," Nancy said.

Karen pulled out of the drive and started heading towards Morehead Street with the help of Agent Stinson's directions. As they road down Morehead, they found the house almost immediately. Not only did it look abandoned for years, but it also gave off some creepy energy, almost as if it were announcing that something bad happened here. Nancy shuddered at the sight of it as the sun sank down behind it. Shit, it was almost nighttime again. Has it really been almost two days since Chrissy Cunningham died? It certainly felt longer. She grabbed her shotgun and her flashlight as they moved toward the house. As they moved, the memory of Hopper presenting her with the shotgun popped into her head, of Hopper telling her to keep it from her parents and laughing at his guilty look that this had to be necessary. God, she missed him.

Steve stood at her side, his own bat raised as he looked at her. It almost seemed as if he knew what she was thinking. It seemed like that a lot, actually. She was glad that he was here but at the same time she wished he was safe. She was glad Eddie was back at her parents' house. She wished they were all safe, but it didn't really matter where anyone was. No one was safe. Wasn't that the illusion? No one is ever really safe. She calmed her swirling mind and moved forward. The six of them walked up the porch steps of the run-down Victorian house. The front door was all boarded up, but luckily, there was a hammer lying around. Nancy and Steve pulled the board away, revealing the stained glass window. Yeah, this was the house.

"Well, this isn't creepy at all," Steve said as they walked in, and he stood staring at the clock in the hallway.

"It's just like the clock from Max's hallucinations," Nancy muttered.

"Jeeze, he's obsessed with clocks. Is he some sort of clockmaker?" Steve asked.

"I think you cracked the case, Steve," Dustin said sarcastically.

"It's not totally far off, Dustin," Nancy grinned.

"Really?"

"You can believe in another dimension, but you can't believe that this guy is a clockmaker?" Nancy asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Shit, you may have a point," Dustin said.

"She may have a point? She does have a point," Robin said.

"I love it when you come to my rescue," Steve whispered in Nancy's ear. "It's so sexy."

Nancy giggled and kissed him quickly before moving to look around some more with Robin.

"They just left everything here," Nancy said.

"Including the mice!" Robin screeched as she wrapped her arms around Nancy as one ran in front of her. "Where's Mayhem when you need her?"

"Oh, Mayhem is useless with catching mice," Nancy said in amusement. "She always tries to befriend them."

"And then Eddie tries to keep them," Steve rolled his eyes.

"Your cat is failing at her job, Steve," Robin said.

"Maybe we should dock her pay," he said sarcastically and Nancy giggled.

"Roaches and spiders are the things she's good at catching. She hates them," Nancy said.

"What are we looking for here?" Karen asked Nancy.

"Any sign that this asshole is hiding here," Nancy said.

"And if he's hiding in that place that you mentioned?" Karen asked. "The Upside Down?"

"Well, then we find a way to lure him out and kill the son of a bitch," Nancy said.

"How are we going to do that without El?" She asked.

"I'm hoping that maybe we can buy El some time until she gets her powers back and comes back home," Nancy said. "I still haven't quite figured out how to do that."

"We'll figure it out together," Karen said.

"We should split up," Nancy said. "Cover more ground."

"But remain in screaming distance," Robin said. "Come on, Karen."

"I guess I'm with you," Dustin said with a grin to Agent Stinson, and she just blinked at him. "You don't say much, do you? It's okay, I'll talk enough for the both of us."

To Nancy's amusement, Agent Stinson rolled her eyes up to the ceiling before following the young boy. They left Nancy and Steve downstairs. Nancy leaned her shotgun against the wall and wrapped her arms around Steve’s neck before pulling him into a deep kiss. He kissed her back, smiling into it, as he used one arm to support her. Nancy pulled back with a smile.

"For good luck," she replied.

"We're definitely going to need it," Steve said and looked at her with soft eyes. "I love you."

"I love you too."

Nancy picked up her shotgun, and they began moving upstairs. They remained in the same hallway, but both checked two different rooms. Nancy was moving out of one room when Steve came stumbling out of the other room, trying to brush something off of him. Nancy steadied him by placing a hand on the small of his back.

"Yeah, don't go in there," Steve said, his face ashen. "Black widows."

He was still trying to get them off, brushing the back of his neck and his head.

"Hold still," Nancy said as she tried to pull the cobwebs out of his hair.

"You're won't find the spider eggs nesting in all that hair until they hatch, and all the babies start spilling out," Robin cackled evily as she entered the hallway.

"Robin!" Karen exclaimed.

"Seriously, Robin, what is wrong with you?" Steve asked, and Robin laughed again.

Nancy glared playfully at Robin and pinched her neck.

"You know he's scared of spiders," Nancy said.

"Ow!"

"I'm not scared of them per se, I just respect them too much to not go anywhere near them," Steve scoffed, and Nancy rolled her eyes.

They continued on with the search, and the lights from their flashlights eventually led them to the attic. It made Nancy think of Joyce with the Christmas lights and how she had communicated with Will when he was the Upside Down.

"He's here," Nancy said. "And he's there."

They stood in the middle of the attic and watched as their flashlights grew brighter until finally they exploded. Suddenly, Nancy was falling into darkness. She was falling and falling until she fell all the way into Steve's empty vine covered pool.

"You know, I usually remember all the people that I kill," a deep dark voice spoke to her in the darkness of the Upside Down. "You, Nancy Wheeler, seem to have forgotten."

There was a figure leaning against the wall. Nancy moved closer, only to find Barb lying dead at the bottom of the pool. Vines were spilling out of her open mouth. She stumbled back in shock, sick to her stomach.

"Barb," she gasped, and tears prickled beneath her eyelids before letting them burst open in anger. "Her death wasn't our fault!"

"Is that you tell yourself to make it feel better?" Vecna asked.

"How were we supposed to know what was out there in the dark?!" Nancy exclaimed.

She struggled to remember what her favorite song was, but there were so many of them that she liked. It was hard to choose.

"Oh, Nancy, Nancy, Nancy. . .Excuses!" Vecna snapped.

"What do you want from me?!" Nancy screamed.

"Patience. . . We have so much in common, Nancy. . . I truly do not care who I hurt to get what I want. People, they're nothing but ants to us, right?" Vecna asked.

Nancy looked for a way out and found the ladder. She jumped up and tried to climb out, but a vine wrapped around her waist. Suddenly, she was standing in front of the open gate in the Hawkins' lab.

"You wanted justice, but what you really wanted was vengeance. You wanted them to suffer the way you that you were. The one thing that's different about us. Guilt. . .it's such a trivial emotion. Why let that stand in the way of greatness? You almost set me free. . . Oh, Hawkins would have been mine, and if El hadn't come home then. . .what would have happened? Your mother, your sister. . .your brother. . .oh, I would have enjoyed toying with them. . .Together, you and I could be great together. You didn't even have any powers, but somehow, with pure determination, you brought the lab to their knees. Join me, and I can give you power," Vecna said. "You can stand beside Eddie when the time comes. You two will be my greatest creations."

"And Steve?" Nancy asked, her jaw clenched.

"Oh, I have plans for Steve. Don't you worry about that," Vecna said.

Suddenly, she could see it now, Eddie was straddling Steve’s waist in the Upside Down. Eddie's eyes were red, and wings sprung forth from his back. Blood dripped from his fangs. His clawed hands gripped Steve’s head, and with one quick motion, he snapped Steve’s neck. Nancy screamed. Eddie stood up, another version of Nancy was by his side, her own eyes red. The real Nancy turned and ran.

"Steve is nothing but a man, and much like Papa, he too sought greatness in others, but he is nothing. . . Nothing compared to you and Eddie," Vecna said. "Though, I suppose I wouldn't have known about Eddie if it weren't for you. If it weren't for your change of heart. In a way, the only good thing that Steve Harrington did was lead me to both of you. . .if Eddie Munson hadn't inadvertently called out to his own sister, I wouldn't have known about him. He didn't even know what he was doing."

Suddenly, she was standing in the freezer again, and it felt strange to be back here after so many months. It was even stranger to be looking down on her, Steve, and Eddie.

"I don't want to die. I don't want to leave Wayne all alone," Eddie whispered softly. "I'm sorry."

Nancy felt like someone was squeezing her heart, and she reached out to touch Eddie. She wanted to tell him it was okay. Her fingers brushed his cheek, and the image of them evaporated. She turned around to find a slimy, vine covered monster standing in the doorway. He walked closer to her, reaching out with his long clawed hand.

"Join me, Nancy," Vecna said. "There's so many things that you still need to know before we get started. There's something that you need to tell El."

His clawed hand was reaching for her, and there was nowhere to run to. Suddenly, Steve’s voice came through crystal clear. He was singing, and there was panic in his voice. He was crying too.

"I hear the drums echoing tonight, but she hears only whispers of some quiet conversation. She's coming in at 12:30 flight. The moonlit wings reflect the stars that guide me towards salvation."

Nancy smiled. Africa by Toto. Of course. He remembered. A doorway opened up behind her, and she glanced at it for a moment before turning back to Vecna. He already knew what she was thinking.

"You will be back to hear the message. It's in your nature," Vecna said. "So curious. Just like me."

For a moment, an image appeared in her mind. Four gates opening up and spreading throughout Hawkins, dividing the town. Four chimes rang put like Max's hallucinations. Four gates. Four chimes. Four victims. Nancy gasped and then glared at him.

"Go to hell," she said, flipping him off as she fell backward into the open doorway.

She let Steve’s voice guide her home. Suddenly, she was in the arms of her sobbing mother and boyfriend. Nancy burst into tears as she held onto Steve.

"Steve," she gasped.

"I'm here, baby, I'm right here," Steve said.

Then she screamed.

It's gonna take a lot to drag me away from you

There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do

I bless the rains down in Africa

Gonna take some time to do the things we never had

Chapter Twenty-Five

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dwobbitfromtheshire · 8 months

Text

Stuck Between a Jock and a Metalhead

@nightmareglitter

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Nancy walked through the door and was immediately pulled into her mother's arms. Wayne and Claudia were in the living room, saying their goodbyes and talking to the Sinclairs. She had hoped that they would be gone by the time they got back to her parents' house. She knew that Wayne was going to freak out about what Eddie had done for her. It seems odd that it was only this morning that they had gotten pulled into the Upside Down. It seemed much longer than that and now it looked like Tommy Hagan as well as his boyfriend had been pulled into all of this.

"Oh my God, your face," Karen sobbed.

"Mom, I'm fine. Steve has it worse," Nancy said, and Karen gasped before going over to Steve. "Mom, gently."

She smiled as Karen pulled Steve into a hug before hugging Eddie as well. Ted came over to Nancy and pulled her into a hug. He cradled the back of her head and kissed her hair.

"I'm fine, daddy," Nancy said.

"You may be fine, but I am not," Ted replied.

Suddenly, Holly bounded down the stairs with a bag and her doll in her arms.

"I'm ready to go, mommy," Holly said.

"What's happening?" Nancy asked.

"I'm going on a special trip with Aunt Claudia and Uncle Wayne," Holly said. "I love Uncle Wayne! He's funny!"

"He sure is," Eddie grinned.

"And I'll be taking Erica to Sue's parents," Charles said.

"That's bullshit, why does Lucas get to stay?" Erica asked.

"I can't drag him away from Max nor do I want to," Sue sighed. "I just need to know that one of my children is absolutely safe. It's bad enough that I have to worry about Steve and Lucas."

Nancy watched Erica study her mother for a moment before accepting the fact that her mother needed to depend on her to stay safe. Erica sighed.

"Alright, fine, but I'm going to complain the entire time," Erica said.

"I except nothing less," Sue said pinching her cheek and hugging her. "Thanks, baby, I know how hard you're trying to hide the fact that you're worried too. We're going to fight like hell to make sure we come back to you."

Erica hugged her mother tightly, sniffingly. She hugged everyone else before she went off with her father. Nancy had noticed that she had lingered a bit longer with Lucas and Max.

"You're both staying?" Nancy asked her parents.

"We argued about it and debated with ourselves, but we just can't leave you guys, especially with Mike somewhere out there," Karen said. "We trust Wayne and Claudia to look after Holly."

"May I ask why Tommy Hagan is here?" Ted asked.

"Jason and his crew got out of jail. They came after us at the hospital," Nancy replied. "They would have killed us if Tommy and Lily hadn't showed up in time. They had guns and they were ready to kill Eddie."

"Now, where did they get the guns from?" Ted asked.

"Probably from the War Zone," Eddie said. "Just outside of Hawkins. I've been there before."

"Let me guess, with Al?" Wayne asked, and Eddie looked guilty for a moment.

"Anyway, they saved our lives and Eddie's. Lily caught them up on the way over here," Nancy said. "I think they're still in the disbelief stage."

Walter was a man of few words, a shy man who saved his words for the people who were important to him. Tommy had said so many times in his phone calls and letters sent to the apartment. He was even more silent than Tommy had described, not even leaning to whisper in Tommy's ear. Tommy was just as silent as they both thought about what Lily had told them. To be honest, as much as it would have pissed her off before about people not believing them, Nancy realized now that it was a normal reaction when people heard shit like this. You really couldn't believe it until you saw it, and even then, your brain tries its very best to make shit up in order to protect you from the trauma.

"You okay, son?" Wayne asked Eddie.

"I'm fine, Uncle Wayne," Eddie said.

"Do you need me to - "

"No, you need to get Aunt Claudia and Holly out of here," Eddie said. "They need you more."

Wayne pulled Eddie into a tight hug before doing the same with Dustin and Steve. Claudia burst into tears before pulling Eddie into her own arms and giving him kisses before moving on to the others. Claudia hugged Nancy tightly.

"Keep them safe," Claudia said as she kissed her cheek. "And yourself too, dear."

"I promise," Nancy said.

"Bye, Nancy," Holly said.

Tearfully, Nancy scooped her little sister into her arms, wondering when or if she was ever going to see her again. Eddie and Steve thought the same thing, too, because they suddenly joined in on the hug. She eventually had to let her go, though, and set her back down.

"Stay safe," Nancy said tearfully.

"Don't worry, Nancy, I'll protect Uncle Wayne and Aunt Claudia," Holly said.

"We don't doubt that you will, darling," Wayne chuckled as he took her hand.

Claudia's eyes twinkled at the sight of them, and Nancy smiled. She was definitely picturing them having a little girl. Eddie smiled and rested his head on top of Nancy's as they watched them leave.

"I definitely feel better now that I know that they're in good hands," Eddie said.

Once they all left, Nancy took a mental headcount of everyone in the living room. Lily and Agent Stinson were leaning near the door. Tommy and his boyfriend were sitting on the fireplace. Robin was once again wedged between her parents, but she wasn't complaining this time. Ted had one arm wrapped around his wife as she stood behind the recliner that Dustin was sitting in. Sue was sitting on the other couch with her son, Max, and Susan. Fourteen. Add Nancy, Steve, and Eddie that made seventeen. Nancy moved to the middle of the room and cleared her throat. Everyone's attention was now on her.

"We have to go back to the Upside Down," Nancy said.

Like she thought they would, everyone exploded into anger and confusion. It was mostly the parents. Nancy rolled her eyes, crossed her arms, and waited for them to calm down. She shared a pleading look with Steve. He walked over to her and stood by her side. He whistled loudly and clapped to get their attention. Everyone quieted down.

"Everyone should listen to what Nancy has to say before yelling," Steve said.

"Thank you, baby," Nancy said. "Look, I know we don't like it, but Vecna needs to be defeated before he gets to Max. This isn't just about her anymore. This is about the entire town, the world. There isn't a choice here if we all want to continue to live. He has to be stopped. I know right now we don't have the power, but we have to at least try, right? If we don't do everything that we can to stop him then there's a greater chance that he wins."

"Okay, but how would we even get one chance to stop him? He's going to see us coming," Robin said.

"Unless he doesn't see us coming," Dustin said.

"How would that happen?" Steve asked.

"Well, if he's like El then there's a chance that he has the same weakness, right? When El remote travels, she's in the same weakened state as Vecna," Dustin said. "We go after him then."

"How would we know when he does that?" Robert asked.

Max stood up, drawing everyone's attention. Susan looked at her daughter curiously.

"We draw him out," Max asked.

"And how would we do that?" Susan asked, guessing what Max was going to say next.

"We use me as bait," Max said.

"NO!" Susan yelled out and stood up.

"You don't get a say in my decision, mom. I'm sorry but you don't. No one does. This is my choice, and this is our only chance without El to save the world," Max said.

"It shouldn't be you," Susan said, tears welling in her eyes. "It should be me."

"None of this should be happening. This is going to work and when we do make it out of this, we're going to have plenty of time for you to make it up to me," Max said.

"I love you so much," Susan said and hugged her.

"I love you too," Max said.

"We're going to need a lot of weapons," Nancy said.

"Well, Eddie mentioned the War Zone," Ted sighed. "And we have plenty of vehicles."

"I let Wayne take my car, and he gave us the keys to his truck," Karen said.

"The War Zone it is," Nancy said, and her eyes widened as everyone stood up. "I guess everyone's going with."

The War Zone was exactly what Nancy expected it to look like, a perfect place for rednecks and survivalists. It was exactly what they need, and she hoped that since the jocks had already stopped there, that they wouldn't run into them again. They were piling things into the cart when Steve's eyes spotted something, and his eyes lit up. He grinned as he held up a bullet belt.

"I don't think I'm going to pull that off," Nancy said.

"No, for Eddie," Steve said. "They would look great on his hips."

"What's for me?" Eddie said as he walked away from Dustin and Lucas.

"This. I'd be so metal," Steve said.

"God, I love it when you talk metal to me," Eddie said. "Do it again."

"The first time you started playing Master of Puppets, I couldn't look away from your hands. The way you played. . .it was so hot. . .so metal," Steve said, biting his lip as they moved closer. "James Hetfield's got nothing on you."

"Woah, I was totally into it until you said that," Eddie said. "I've got nothing on James Hetfield."

"Well, it's a good thing that he said that. You guys do realize that this is the most conservative place in Indiana?" Nancy asked. "As hot as that was. Steve's right, that bullet belt is going to look totally hot on you."

"Like I'm your very own Eddie doll," he cooed at them. "I have to get this now."

"You don't have to if you don't want to," Steve blushed.

"It's a must," Eddie grinned. "It's going to go great with my pink fuzzy pajama pants. Ooh, Steve!"

He grabbed a brown leather jacket and shared a look with Nancy.

"For you?" Steve asked.

"For you," Nancy and Eddie grinned.

"Alright," Steve said and pulled it on. "What do you think?"

"Oooh."

"Very hot," Nancy said.

Suddenly, Robin came up to them wearing a red beret. She plopped a matching one on Nancy's head.

"I got one to match with my sister," Robin said and bumped her hip with Nancy's.

"Are we playing dress up here? I thought we were getting weapons," Ted said as he passed them by.

"Dad!" Nancy exclaimed, but she was grinning.

"Busted," Eddie said, cackling.

"No, but he's right. We should focus," Nancy said.

She looked over to find Robin and Steve striking a pose with each other like they were models. They finished by standing back to back with their arms crossed. Eddie wolf whistled while Nancy giggled. Idiots. They continued with their original goal, Eddie leaning on the cart with Nancy's arm through his while Steve and Robin discussed their potential future in modeling.

"And here I thought he was going to reopen Otis's salon," Eddie said.

"He still is, and he could do both if he wanted to," Nancy said.

"That's true. You know, Jerry's talked about selling the music store one day. I mean not now, but one day, and I think if I started to really save up, then it could be mine one day," Eddie said.

"That's nice. Maybe I'll take over the Hawkins Post, make it more balanced," Nancy said.

"Me owning the music store, you owning the Hawkins Post, and Steve owning the salon. . .hell, I think we can work together to make this town a little less conservative. . .through the power of love!" Eddie grinned.

Suddenly, Steve popped his head in between them.

"Then, one day, we get an RV, pile up the kiddos, and take them anywhere. Maybe up the coast to California, and we can teach them how to surf," Steve said. "Kind of had that dream when I was little, I was hoping to share that with someone I loved someday."

"It sounds very nice," Nancy said.

"And very doable," Eddie said.

"God, I want that," Nancy said.

"Me too," Eddie said.

Once they bought the weapons, ammo, and gear, they packed it all up before heading back to her parents' house. They quickly got to work to plan and make the preparations that they would all need to head into the Upside Down. They gathered ammo, loaded guns, and made spears and shields. The spears and shield would be for Eddie, Dustin, and Agent Stinson. Steve would be wielding his bat as well as an axe. Robin and her parents would also carry a spear as well as handle the bag with the Molotov's. Ted had his own rifle and a machete. Tommy would be continuing to wield the bat and carrying some Molotov's. Walter also had a shield and a machete, but they also had several bottles of hairspray along with several lighters. Everyone was dressed in thick vests with hoods and hats to protect their faces as Nancy started going over the plan again.

"Okay. Phase one: we meet Lucas as the playground. He'll signal Max, Sue, and Susan when we're ready. Phase two: Max baits Vecna. He'll go after her which'll put him in his trance," Nancy said.

"Phase Three? Me, Eddie, Agent Stinson, Tommy, and Walter draw the bats away," Dustin said.

"Four," Robin said. "Ted, Karen, Steve, Lily, Nancy, my parents and I head into Vecna's newly bat-free lair, and . . . flambe."

"Nobody moves onto the next phase until we've all copied," Nancy said. "Nobody deviates from the plan, no matter what. Got it?"

"I don't know why you're looking at me, sweetheart," Eddie said. "You know me, I'm no hero."

"Your dream, remember?" Nancy said. "I think we're getting closer to it. I think it's here."

"I won't be a hero, I promise, I'll do everything that I can to get back to you as long as you do the same. The both of you," Eddie said taking her hand and Steve's. "If anyone's more likely to make the sacrificial play, it's you two. Isn't that right, General Nancy?"

"I can't believe my dad told you that nickname," Nancy groaned and glared at Ted.

"It's cute. You were his little general," Eddie grinned.

"Let's move out," Nancy said.

"Yes, sir!" Steve and Eddie saluted.

"Idiots," she said affectionately.

Nancy, Eddie, Robin, Steve, Dustin, and Robin's parents took Nancy's car. Steve let Susan, Sue, Lucas, and Max to take his car. Everyone else would be following Nancy to the Hendersons'. By the time that they had moved out, night had fallen which felt ominous to Nancy. Steve was in the seat next to her while Eddie sat in the back with Dustin while Robin was once again wedged between her parents. As much as Robin had complained about it, Nancy knew that Robin was really grateful for their presence. As they drove to Dustin's, Nancy couldn't help but think of Mike and Holly. She hoped they were safe. They were doing this for them. . .for all of them.

Here we stand

Worlds apart, hearts broken in two, two, two

Sleepless nights

Losing ground, I'm reaching for you, you, you

Chapter Twenty-Nine

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