#season 3 pining
Explore tagged Tumblr posts
annabethpursuit Ā· 8 months ago
Text
Tumblr media
i need them back real bad i need season three in particular to be announced right NEOWWW
109 notes Ā· View notes
iheartbookbran Ā· 6 months ago
Text
My favorite part about the Debling plot was Penelope and Cressida doing the most over there top cat-fighting in order to win him over, not because they genuinely liked the guy, but because they wanted to escape their families and also lowkey just hate each other.
2K notes Ā· View notes
c0ffinfl0p Ā· 6 months ago
Text
Tumblr media
1K notes Ā· View notes
hotshotsxyz Ā· 16 days ago
Text
hope for the future (got me on my knees)
(buddie) (s8 spec) (2.4k words) car crash spec <3 title from bastille's hope for the future, which, imo, is one of the eddie songs of all time cw: blood (like. a lot)
Eddieā€™s not supposed to be here. Heā€™s notā€”
Heā€™sā€”
God, heā€™s not supposed to be here again. Heā€™s not even on shift. But Buck is.
It was a favor. Heā€™s covering for a last minute absence on C shift. So now heā€™sā€”
Heā€™s on shift and heā€™s lying in the middle of the road and heā€™s not moving. And Eddie. Canā€™t. Breathe.
ā€œBuck!ā€ someone shouts, and Jesus it sounds like their entire world just crumbled. Eddieā€™s throat feels raw likeā€”
Oh.
Heā€™s the one screaming.
Buckā€™s three feet away from him, sluggishly bleeding out on the pavement. Shannonā€™s six feet under in a graveyard halfway across the city. Buckā€™s ribs are giving way beneath Eddieā€™s hands. Buckā€™s blood is soaking through his jeans. Itā€™s staining him, his skin, his mind.
Heā€”
ā€œSir!ā€ Someone snaps. ā€œYou need toā€”shit, Diaz?ā€
No, thatā€™sā€”itā€™s not Eddie whoā€™s broken and unmoving on the ground. Itā€™s not Eddie whoā€™s going to die with or without a tube down his throat.
Itā€™sā€”
Itā€™sā€”
Two pairs of hands grab him, yank him away.
ā€œNo!ā€ Eddie screams, thrashing wildly at whoever it is that thinks they can keep him from Buck.
ā€œDiaz, stop!ā€
He canā€™t. He wonā€™t.
ā€œYou have to let them help him.ā€
They wonā€™t do enough. Only Eddie will fight for him hard enough. Only Eddie knows how to bring him back. An animalistic snarl climbs out from his chest.
ā€œIā€™ve got a pulse!ā€ a paramedic Eddie doesnā€™t recognize shouts. Sheā€™s a floater, probably.
A floater is holding Buckā€™s life in her hands. Does she even know? Does she know that the world will stop turning if heā€™s not in it?
Eddieā€™s knees hit the pavement. Distantly, he feels the sting. Mostly, though, he feels Buckā€™s blood. Itā€™s on his hands and soaking through his clothes, painting him red, red, red.
Two firefighters carefully roll Buck onto a body board and lift him to the stretcher. For a split second, itā€™s 2019. Eddieā€™s watching his wife die. Heā€™s holding Buckā€™s hand and trying not to stare at his mangled leg.
ā€œDiaz! Now or never, are you coming with us?ā€
He doesnā€™t feel himself move, but between one blink and the next he finds himself in the back of an ambulance staring down at hisā€”
Hisā€”
Buckā€™s eyelashes flutter and Eddie canā€™t do this.
ā€œPlease,ā€ he sobs, clutching Buckā€™s hand. ā€œYouā€”you have toā€”ā€
Heā€™s squeezing too hard. So hard he might break Buckā€™s hand, but heā€™s terrified that if he lets go, so will Buck.
The floater moves to intubate, but before she can Buck heaves a shuddering breath and opens his eyes.
Eddie thinks he might be screaming again, only this time the sound is trapped deep inside him.
ā€œEdsā€¦ hurt?ā€ Buck manages.
He must be. Heā€™s dying maybe, because thatā€™s the only explanation he can think of for the creeping numbness in his limbs.
ā€œHeā€™s fine, Buckley,ā€ the floater says.
Sheā€™s wrong. She doesnā€™tā€” how could she? She doesnā€™t know that every piece of Eddie thatā€™s worth anything is dying right alongside hisā€”
ā€œI canā€™t wait any longer,ā€ she says apologetically before shoving a plastic tube down Buckā€™s trachea. He chokes on it, and oh, Eddieā€™s choking too.
The ambulance slows and Eddieā€™s about to bang against the wall, about to demand they keep going, when the doors are flung open revealing an entire trauma team dressed in pristine scrubs.
The floater rattles off Buckā€™s vitals and the injuries they know of.
As they pull Buck from the back of the ambulance, one of the doctors catches Eddieā€™s eye. He nods, and Eddie hopes to God that means he knows that Los Angeles will be swallowed by the sea if this man doesnā€™t live.
All at once, Buck is gone and Eddieā€™s left standing next to an ambulance that could be the last place he ever hears Buck speak.
ā€œDiaz, you okay?ā€ The C shift captain whose name Eddie canā€™t be bothered to remember right now asks.
No.
No.
No.
He doesnā€™t answer.
ā€¦
Thereā€™s blood on his face. Buckā€™s blood. Eddie doesnā€™tā€” heā€™s not sure how it got there, but now that he sees it, he can feel it too. Itā€™s tacky and drying and God, thereā€™s so much.
Gentle hands turn him away from the mirror.
ā€œNo,ā€ Eddie says as his sluggish brain recognizes Bobby. ā€œNo, no he canā€™tā€”ā€œ
Bobby was there whenā€”
He held Eddie. Let him weep into his shoulder. Stood steady as Eddieā€™s world crumbled to pieces.
ā€œHeā€™s in surgery,ā€ Bobby says.
ā€œThey donā€™t know,ā€ Eddie babbles.
Bobbyā€™s face creases in concern. ā€œKnow what, Eddie?ā€
ā€œHeā€™sā€” heā€”ā€œ He canā€™t force the words out.
ā€œEddie,ā€ he repeats forcefully.
ā€œI love him,ā€ Eddie croaks.
Bobby, steadfast and solid, cracks.
One sob escapes his chest, then another, and soon theyā€™re both sliding to grimy bathroom floor, trying not to shatter entirely.
ā€œI canā€™t lose anotherā€”ā€œ Bobby gasps.
Eddie squeezes his eyes shut. Bobby canā€™t lose another child. He canā€™t lose another spouse. Not now, not when heā€™s just begun to understand the depth of what heā€™s been denying himself for what feels like his entire life. Not now, not ever. Notā€” not, Buck.
The bathroom door bangs open and Hen steps in. Tear tracks stain her cheeks, but Eddie canā€™t bring himself to analyze her expression further. If Buckā€™sā€” Eddie wants to live in a world that hasnā€™t quite ended as long as he possibly can.
ā€œNo update,ā€ she says quietly.
She grabs a few paper towels and wets them in the sink. She kneels in front of Eddie and brings one to his face. He flinches back.
ā€œEddie?ā€ she asks.
He swallows past the lump in his throat. ā€œWhat ifā€¦ā€
What if the blood staining his skin is the last piece of Buck he gets to keep? What if he dies on the operating table? What if heā€™s already dead? Eddie canā€™tā€” he wonā€™t let anyone take the last of him away.
A harsh sob drags itself past his lips.
ā€œOh, Eddie,ā€ Hen whispers, and why do people keep saying his name?
No oneā€” heā€™s never heard it so many times from anyone but Buck. He doesnā€™t want to hear it from anyone but Buck. He shakes his head and presses his hands to his ears.
Hen says something else, but all he can hear is the whoosh of his own pulse, and itā€™s so unfair. Shouldnā€™t his heart know not to beat until heā€™s sure Buckā€™s will again?
ā€œEddie,ā€ Hen says, taking his hands. ā€œLet me, please.ā€
He canā€™t bring himself to agree, but he doesnā€™t fight back when she raises the paper towel to his face again. She pulls it across his skin in gentle drags, but itā€™s cold and Eddie canā€™t help but think uncharitably that Buck wouldā€™ve waited for the water to warm before he wet the towels.
When sheā€™s done with his face, Hen guides him to the sink to wash the blood from his hands too. For a split second, Eddie wonders if Buck washed his blood away in this same sink after Eddie was shot. He wonders if Buckā€™s hands shook the way his are shaking now.
ā€œThatā€™s good Eddie, there you go,ā€ Hen encourages him softly.
He bristles at her careful tone. Nothing she says can make any of this better or worse, not unless she can tell him with absolute certainty whether or not Buck will survive the night.
ā€œI grabbed your duffle from the station,ā€ she continues, and itā€™s only then that he notices his own bag slung over her shoulder. ā€œThink you can get changed?ā€
Eddie nods mutely. Distantly, it occurs to him that this is part of what makes Hen such a good paramedicā€” her ability to meet someone where they are. He peels off his henley and exchanges it for the long sleeve LAFD crewneck she hands him.
He swaps his pants next, and for the first time, wearing a piece of the uniform feels wrong. He couldnā€™tā€” he wasnā€™t a medic today. If it had just been him and Buck out there, Buck would be dead already. Heā€™d, what? Held his torn skin together? As if that was the wound that was going to kill him. Shannon didnā€™t even bleed when she died.
ā€œMaddie and Chim are waiting for you,ā€ Hen says, nodding toward the door. ā€œIā€™m going to sit with Cap for a little while, okay?ā€
Again, Eddie nods. He stumbles through the door and into the arms of a woman who, for all they share, he barely knows.
He canā€™t bring himself to look her in the eye. Sheā€™ll know, he thinks, know that he didnā€™t do enough. Know that he failed one of the three people she loves most in this world.
ā€œIā€™m sorry,ā€ he croaks into her hair.
ā€œFor what?ā€ she asks shakily.
ā€œI shouldā€™veā€” I didnā€™tā€”ā€œ
ā€œYou were there,ā€ Maddie says. ā€œYou made sure he knows heā€™s not alone.ā€
Eddie swallows harshly.
ā€œHe knows what heā€™s fighting for,ā€ Maddie continues. ā€œThank you.ā€
He wants to shake her. He shouldā€™ve done more. Heā€™d demanded it once of a different team of doctors, and then he couldnā€™t evenā€”
He was there and it didnā€™t matter. Buckā€™s still dying in a sterile operating room.
Maddie pushes him toward a chair next to Chimney in the waiting room, then sits on his other side. They talk to him, Eddie thinks, but he doesnā€™t hear a word.
ā€¦
ā€œFamily of Evan Buckley?ā€
Eddieā€™s on his feet before heā€™s even made a conscious decision to stand. Maddie follows quickly behind him, andā€” oh, Bobbyā€™s in the waiting room now, too.
The doctor smiles at them, and while Eddieā€™s sure itā€™s meant to be reassuring, every second that passes without news is more excruciating than the last.
ā€œMr. Buckley did well in surgery,ā€ she says.
Eddieā€™s entire body sags, like a marionette with its strings cut. Henā€™s subtle but steadying hand on his back is the only reason he doesnā€™t collapse to the floor right then and there.
ā€œHeā€™s not out of the woods yet,ā€ the doctor continues, ā€œbut his CT was clear and we were able to locate and repair the source of his internal bleeding.ā€
ā€œHeā€™s going to be okay?ā€ Maddie asks, high and watery.
The doctor nods. ā€œWeā€™d like to keep him a few days for observation, but barring unforeseen complications, we believe heā€™ll make a full recovery.ā€
Maddie presses a hand to her mouth and nods, eyes shining.
ā€œThe effects of the anesthesia should be wearing off soon, I can take two of you to his room.ā€
To Eddieā€™s surprise, Maddie takes his hand. ā€œWeā€™llā€”us,ā€ she says.
Eddie looks at Maddie, then Bobby. ā€œAre youā€”are you sure?ā€
ā€œGo,ā€ Bobby says. ā€œHe needs you.ā€
Eddieā€™s not sure thatā€™s true, but he sure as hell needs Buck and heā€”he thinks this is probably one of those times when heā€™s allowed to be a little selfish.
ā€œThrough these doors,ā€ the doctor says, leading them back with a wave of her key card.
ā€¦
Heā€™s pale, unnaturally so. Itā€™s like, despite the massive transfusion he received, there still isnā€™t enough blood pumping through his veins. Eddie wishes he could wring out his shirt and return every drop he took.
ā€œEddie, what happened?ā€ Maddie asks softly.
Eddie shakes his head. ā€œI, uh, I wasnā€™t supposed to be there,ā€ he says haltingly.
Maddie takes his hand with the one that isnā€™t holding Buckā€™s and squeezes.
ā€œI donā€™t think he knew I was there,ā€ Eddie continues. ā€œIt was justā€¦ God, Maddie, it was a coincidence.ā€
Eddie closes his eyes and takes a steadying breath.
ā€œIt came out of nowhere. They were responding to a fender bender, wouldnā€™t have even been a call except one of the drivers was stuck in their car, I think. He was helping someone when itā€”there was a car. And then he was justā€”I couldnā€™tā€”heā€”ā€
Maddie squeezes his hand again. ā€œYou know, Iā€”ā€ she hesitates, then nods like sheā€™s made a decision. ā€œIā€™ve never seen him happy the way he is with you.ā€
Against Eddieā€™s will, a pained noise escapes his throat. ā€œI donā€™t know why,ā€ he admits. He looks down at his feet.
ā€œSure,ā€ Maddie says, blowing out an amused huff.
ā€œHeā€™s so good. He walks into a room and everything gets brighter. Heā€™s the sun,ā€ Eddie says helplessly.
Maddieā€™s smile turns impossibly fond. ā€œYou love him,ā€ she says. Itā€™s not a question.
A smile of his own spreads unbidden on his lips. ā€œHow could I not?ā€
Thereā€™s a sharp intake of breath.
Eddie whips his head around and sees Buck, eyes open, lips parted.
ā€œEddie,ā€ he breathes.
He should be panicking, maybe. Throat closing, heart racing, butā€”the singular feeling in his chest is relief.
ā€œHey, Buck,ā€ Eddie says, incapable of and unwilling to keep the warmth from his voice.
ā€œYouā€”ā€ Buck blinks twice, slow, like heā€™s trying to keep himself awake.
Eddie lays a hand on his ankle and squeezes. ā€œRest,ā€ he says. ā€œIā€™ll stay.ā€
ā€œStayā€¦ sā€™nice,ā€ Buck slurs as he slips back into sleep.
ā€œFor what itā€™s worth,ā€ Maddie says after a long moment, ā€œpretty sure he loves you, too.ā€
Eddie watches the slow rise and fall of Buckā€™s chest. ā€œYeah,ā€ he says, biting down on a grin thatā€™s far too wide for the ICU, ā€œI think he might.ā€
ā€œCould take a second for him to work that out for himself,ā€ Maddie says.
Eddie lets out a soft chuckle. ā€œOh, I know,ā€ he says. ā€œGives me time to pick out a ring,ā€ he jokes. Kind of.
Maddie laughs and shakes her head. ā€œIs this your way of asking for my permission to propose?ā€
ā€œWell Iā€™m not going to ask your parents,ā€ Eddie replies, wrinkling his nose.
Maddieā€™s eyes twinkle with amusement. ā€œCould you imagine if I said no after all of this?ā€
ā€œIā€™d ask him anyway,ā€ Eddie admits.
ā€œGood answer,ā€ Maddie says.
Eddie laughs. ā€œOh, so that was a test?ā€
ā€œNo,ā€ Maddie replies, shaking her head. ā€œBut he deserves someone that chooses him no matter what.ā€
ā€œI do,ā€ Eddie says with conviction. ā€œI will.ā€
ā€œThen yes,ā€ Maddie says. ā€œJustā€”donā€™t ask him in the hospital.ā€
627 notes Ā· View notes
lukewarmoverthinker Ā· 3 months ago
Text
Idk how many people noticed this but while rewatching gravity falls, in ā€œCarpet Diemā€ when they find the secret room the first thing Stan notices and grabs are a pair of Fords glasses. Later in the episode we see him cleaning them on the couch.
Tumblr media Tumblr media
649 notes Ā· View notes
ladyamortencia Ā· 6 months ago
Text
HOLD UP HOLD UP
This author was watching this for the bazillionth time for blocking notes and OMG
Colin's breath legitimately hitches after the first kiss (13 secs) AND THEN he's the one to initiate the next kiss (16 secs)!!
Tumblr media
He is the one breathing her in like his life fucking depends on it (24 sec) and when they pull away THIS MAN TRIES TO GO IN FOR MORE (34 sec) BUT PEN PULLS AWAY
Tumblr media
This man's whole worldview just shattered and this is the first time he has wanted to kiss someone like this and then SHE PULLS AWAY AND THANKS HIM. My poor boy had no choice but to be absolutely devastated. Sure he's kissed a lot of girls (or so he says) but NONE have ever left him reeling. NONE have ever made him wish there was more like this one.
I think this definitely goes with the theory that Colin is demisexual because my man has always loved Penelope. There is no doubt in that logic at all because it's evident how he cares for her. But the moment that man's lips touched hers, he knew he was IN love with her. Colin is extremely in touch with his feelings and the minute he felt that tug of his heart, he was destined to be down bad.
He already loved Pen's mind but society reinforced that she wasn't a prospect for him with every little comment. Every sense of social norm went out the fucking window after this kiss for Colin. All he knew is that he loved Penelope Featherington and fuck anyone who was going to get in the way of what he wants.
1K notes Ā· View notes
hkthatgffan Ā· 6 months ago
Text
Tumblr media
I really did not wanna talk about this stupid topic, but with so many people falling for it, I figured I should; THE DIRECT ARTICLE ABOUT A GRAVITY FALLS REVIVAL IS A FUCKING LIE!! Lemme explain below why!!
Ever since this article by The Direct was published, way too many people are thinking Gravity Falls is really coming back and the usual season 3 belief is spreading yet again. And of course, YouTubers who should know better made videos on it and other "journalists" are spreading this lie. Here's the real facts! The executive in the article NEVER alluded to a revival. All they said is that Alex is publishing a book (The Book of Bill) and there's some shorts being made. All this article is basing its claim on is the phrase, "Never say Never!" Alex has had a deal with Netflix since 2018. Under that deal, he cannot make new cartoons for other networks, including Disney and Gravity Falls. He can voice on non Netflix shows and help in small ways like he did on TOH, but he cannot make a new show outside Netflix.
The shorts they are alluding to are confirmed to be likely stuff like the Broken Karaoke series on Disney Channel's YouTube page or theme song takeover stuff. Disney TVA News, while not 100% the most reliable source, has suggested that as the case and given Alex was at DTVA in April recording something per an Instagram story he made, it makes the most sense. What's more, there is a rumoured short being made for The Book of Bill which this could be meaning. Notice how it has no indication of a revival? Alex Hirsch has said he has ideas for GF stories, but they are more book centric. Heck, in me and Hana's interview alone he alluded to Stan and Ford stories he'd wanna do if given the chance to make another graphic novel. That is all!
And speaking of Alexā€¦he's not said shit on this! He's not tweeted about it or liked any tweet about it. And Alex has said in the past to not believe anyone claiming Gravity Falls is coming back unless he says so himself on Twitter. So, take a guess what I did? I messaged him!! I was in talks with Alex recently for another video I'm making later in the future and asked him about this article during it. Without leaking our DM's, Alex said straight up, this article is all "just talk!" It's clickbait! Alex Hirsch confirmed it is clickbait!!
Direct is lying to you and so is anyone else saying this is real or that Gravity Falls is coming back! It just isn't. The only person who you should believe about this stuff is Alex Hirsch himself and he clearly has said it's not. And even supposing Direct is telling the truth about this executive saying something is possible, it's just gonna be book or small shorts stuffā€¦NOT a season 3 or reboot, or revival or spin off series. I know that stuff is pretty popular to talk about, hell, I'd kill for a Gravity Falls prequel story myself. But it's not happening.
But with that said, I hope this post helped you better understand what is up. This article is a sham and a joke to the field of journalism. Do your damn job and tell the truth instead of making clickbait shit that will get you ad revenue! People who write articles like this are a joke and I feel bad for anyone who falls for their BS! These articles will never stop being made, so it's up to you all to be smart and not fall for them.
Remember, if Alex Hirsch doesn't say anything about it, it's not legit!!
Stay informed properly out there! New videos coming soon :)
Tumblr media
484 notes Ā· View notes
optimist-pine Ā· 8 months ago
Text
Cramps
Summary: Daryl helps soothe you to sleep
Warnings: Menstruation?
Word Count: 551
Era: Between seasons 2 & 3, on the move
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
It didn't take much conscious effort to pick up on the girls' cycles. When you spend every waking (and non-waking) moment with the same ten people for multiple months, you learn more than a few things. Like how Beth has Maggie to take care of her, and Maggie has Glenn, and Lori, well, she's not in that boat currently of course. But you don't have anyone to fall back on, although, he's sure if you asked Carol she'd be more than willing. Instead, you just dealt and powered through and the others might not even notice except for how quiet you'd get.Ā 
Until tonight.
He hasn't let sleep claim him, though soft snores fill the room, mingling with the moonlight. Yours has yet to join, in its place, a frustrated huff slips out as you turn over again. It's the third time. Not that he's counting... He hadn't missed earlier how your hand would momentarily drift to your middle or your back accompanied by pursed lips and tense breaths.
For a moment he tries to imagine what you're feeling, but the closest he comes up with is the memory of a solid punch to the gut. If it's anything like that then it's no wonder you can't just drift off.
In the pale silvery glow, he faces your back just barely making out the outline of your arm rubbing tired circles on your abdomen. An idea begins to tug at the back of his mind; the desire to help - the need to be useful. The itch to do something compels his fingers forward until they bump into the warm exposed skin of your hip. Your back instantly straightens, a sharp pull of air, but his hand doesn't stop. It slides tentatively under your own smaller digits and begins to move on your lower stomach in slow rhythmic circles of its own accord.Ā 
You're still, unmoving. What if he's totally just screwed up? It suddenly hits him how intimate this is, how many lines he's just crossed with this one action. You've had plenty of physical contact but most of it's been joking and playful. And sure, you've rolled over into one another in the middle of the night, but that wasn't a conscious decision. That wasn't anything remotely near this. He scoots his body closer to yours. "This okay?" He whispers.
You finally breathe. "Don't stop. Please." The warmth of his hand is the best relief.
His concerns evaporate, thoughts turning to the softness of your skin and the pleased little noise that comes up out of you. Something inside of him is beginning to ache less too. Something he's become so adjusted to that he hasn't even considered what its absence could feel like.
His nose brushes the back of your neck, but your lungs continue their steady, gentle motion. Impressive. You're out like a light already. The chilly air seems to retreat in the comfort of your warmth.
It's the moments like this, as sleep overpowers him, that he feels the guilt creep in. That he's grateful. Grateful that the world fell apart. Grateful that he ended up here, with these people. Grateful that he no longer has to be the man that he'd been before. And especially grateful for the proximity of your heartbeat to his own.
553 notes Ā· View notes
mispelled Ā· 4 months ago
Text
Tumblr media
What do you guys think of my designs for Billie Holiday, Spooky Middleton, Davis Lee-Jackson and Reggie "Regular" Pine
172 notes Ā· View notes
the-case-book-of-fanfiction Ā· 1 year ago
Text
The Only Tally Mark
Ship: Steve Harrington x reader
Summary: The 'You Suck' tallies are getting pretty high, but there's a girl in Scoops Ahoy who knows Robin in wrong. If she can just get the courage to open her mouth, Steve's luck is about to change.
Word Count: 7,250 words
Warnings: Robin's a bit mean, she also has no filter, pining, Steve's failed flirting attempts, blatant staring/pining, implied confession, first kiss
Note: Set pre-s4 and the day Dustin comes back, before the Russian code is cracked.
Tumblr media
ā˜Ÿ Continue below the fold ā˜Ÿ
July had only just begun in Hawkins, and you could already tell it was going to be a hot one. Less than twenty-four hours in, temperatures had already hit record-breaking highsā€”at least, that was according to the weatherman on the television you were sat in front of, sweating and feeling relief from the heat only when the fan beside you swiveled back toward you.
ā€œEvery July is this hot,ā€ your father said from the kitchen, where he was drinking his second glass of water in five minutes.
ā€œOh, sure, but never this early,ā€ your mother retorted. ā€œItā€™s only the first, and already weā€™re melting out of the house.ā€
Sensing an irritable argument birthed from the nearly unbearable heat, you left the living room and headed up the stairs to your bedroom. You picked up the phone youā€™d begged your parents to let you have years ago, dialing the number of your best friend of four years: Robin Buckley, the band dweeb to your theatre kid.
It was her mom who answered the phone, several dial tones later. ā€œHello?ā€
ā€œHi, Mrs. Buckleyā€”is Robin home?ā€
ā€œOh, hi, sweetie! Sheā€™s at work right now, her shift ends at seven.ā€
You stopped yourself from swearing. ā€œOh, right, I forgot. Thank you!ā€
ā€œNo problem, dear,ā€ Mrs. Buckley said before hanging up.
You leaned against the wall. How could you have forgotten? Robin had been telling you about her new job in the mallā€”and the sailorā€™s uniform she had to wear. Youā€™d seen her get ready for work once and had burst into giggles the moment she put the hat on her head.
You glanced at the digital clock next to your bed, checking the time. There was still several hours before the mall closed. You might as well visit Robin and abuse your friendship to get some free ice cream at the same time, right?
So you grabbed your wallet and shoved it in your pocket and bounded down the stairs.
"Hey, I'm going out!" you shouted to your parents.
"Where do you think you're going, young lady?" your father asked, appearing in the doorway between the living room and the kitchen.
"To the mall? Robin works there and I'm going to visit."
"Don't spend too much, dear!" your mother called.
"Sure, Mom!"
You hopped in your car and headed for the mall, following the thick cluster of traffic that always lined the streets leading to the mall, passing through the streets lined with empty, hollow shops.
~āŠ~
The mall was crowded, as busy as it had always been since the day it opened. You pushed your way through the crowds gathered around storefronts and display windows, trying to remember which floor Scoops Ahoy was on.
You took the escalator down to the first floor and scanned the shops surrounding you. When you spotted the sign for the ice cream store, you headed toward it, maneuvering past a group of pre-teens cackling about manipulating the store's workers into giving them free samples.
There was no one at the counter when you walked in. A majority of the tables were occupied by groups of teens. As you approached the register, you could hear faint bickering from behind the pebbled glass windows, Robin's distinct voice floating out to you.
"...do the job you're supposed to do, I've been scooping so much ice cream my hand's cramped," she was saying.
You stifled a giggle and tapped your hand lightly against the bell in front of you, wincing when it was a little louder than you had been expecting.
The swing door on the left opened with a bang, revealing the back of a boy who was gesturing at Robin, who was quite literally pushing him out the door. She disappeared before you could catch her attention, and the other attendant took up his place in front of the register.
"Ahoy, sailor! Would you like to set sail on this ocean of flavor with me? I'll be your captain, I'm Steve Harrington."
You blinked at him. "Is that company policy like the hat and the outfit?"
He stared at you. "I'm sorry, what?"
You shrugged. "I'm a friend of Robin's, she complains about the, and I quote, stupid company rules that make everyone look stupid."
He stared at you. You stared at him. Awkward silence settled between the two of you.
The introduction hadn't been necessary. You had spent most of your high school experience listening to Robin complain about Steve Harrington and his stupid perfect hair and his stupid easy charm and his stupid actual stupidity. The Steve she'd painted matched up perfectly with the kid you'd seen around in the halls, dressed in his ironed polo shirts and pleated khakis or that stupid basketball uniform and letterman jacketā€”and Nancy Wheeler on his arm.
You and Robin had watched his life crash and burn with malicious gleeā€”and all the while you had tried to ignore that this was the very same boy you'd crushed on in middle school, and had been so shocked to find out had changed so much when you got to the high school, a year after he did.
Steve cleared his throat, his gaze dropping to the register, firmly away from you. "Um. What can I get you?"
"Uh..." Every ice cream flavor you had ever liked instantly disappeared from your head. It wasn't like the usual mind-blankness that came from being asked a question about your favorite anything. It was like your entire body had stopped, freezing in the pretty face of Steve Harrington, ridiculous as the uniform was. Especially with the hat, which Robin hadn't told you about.
The door swung open again. "Jesus, Steve, what's taking you so damn long?" Robin froze where she stood. A smile lit up her face. "What are you doing here?!"
You grinned. "Visiting!"
Robin hip-checked Steve out of the way. Steve glared at her while she grabbed the ice cream scoop from the pocket at his side.
"Jesus, do you have to be so brutal?" he snapped.
Clearly fighting the urge to roll her eyes, Robin turned back to Steve. "I'm sorry, would you please get out of the way so I can serve my best friend? Thanks," she said, her customer service smile plastered to her face.
Muttering under his breath, Steve pushed away from the counter, leaning on the sill of the window behind him. He crossed his arms, still staring resolutely at the floor.
Robin grinned at you. "I wasn't expecting you toā€”"
"Be here?" you finished. "I called your house before I realized you were working, so I thought I might as well come visit."
"Glad you did," she said. "You would not believe how much of a headache it is working with dingus over there."
You glanced over her shoulder at Steve, his pink lips forming a pissy pout. Oh, yeah. Still pretty, still a bitch.
"You didn't tell me you worked with him," you said under your breath.
Robin shrugged, shooting you a knowing smile. "Yeah, well, I knew you'd show up and find out for yourself eventually." Her eyes slid to the corners, as if she could see Steve sulking behind her. "We'll talk about him later. What ice cream do you want? On us."
You giggled. "How did I know you'd say that?"
She snorted. "Oh, so you're abusing our friendship for free ice cream?"
"Maybe," you said. "Just this once."
Robin rolled her eyes and grabbed an ice cream cone. "Hereā€”I'll grab your favorite."
And, without you needing to remind her, she lowered the scoop into the tub of ice cream that you got every time the two of you had gotten ice cream after going to see a movie, back before the mall. You wondered how you could have forgotten, until you looked over Robin's shoulder again and found Steve looking up, lips parted and eyes fixed on you. The minute you caught his gaze, he blushed and looked away.
You took advantage of his embarrassment, admiring the pink in his cheeks and how he awkwardly licked his lips. He toyed with the watch on his wrist, crossed and uncrossed his legs. Was he nervous? An even better questionā€”had you ever seen Steve Harrington nervous before?
While you studied Steve, Robin made a second cone of ice cream, a different flavor than yours.
Robin looked behind her. "Heyā€”man the counter, will you? I'm going on break."
Steve spluttered. "You just came back from break!"
"No, we just finished our lunch break. I still have my federally-required thirty minutes to take. So I'm gonna take 'em." She shoved the scoop at Steve's chest and stepped out from behind the counter.
The pair of you took an unoccupied table near the counter, in case she was needed.
"Should you be leaving him to do it by himself?" you asked, glancing back at Steve one last time.
"What, are you worried about him? He'll be fine," Robin said. She shrugged with a sigh. "He's...he's not as bad as we thought he was in high school. He's less of a douche now, at least."
"Just a dingus?" you asked with a smile.
She nodded. "He's still as stupid as we always thought."
You turned your attention away from Steve at toward your ice cream. "Why didn't you tell me he worked with you?"
She rolled her eyes. "Let's not have that conversation while he's here, okay? For your dignity's sake. I know he's far away, but he's got impressive hearing." She shrugged. "Blame it on four years of listening for gossip, I guess."
Your gaze shifted back to Steve as he raked a hand through his hair, stretching enough for his shirt to lift. Heat rushed to your cheeks and you crossed your legs. Now that he wasn't surrounded by assholes who mocked you and Robin and your friends for their own personal entertainment, it was easier to appreciate how he'd grown into himself since middle school. Taking care of himself had made him a whole new level of handsome.
Robin giggled. "Yeahā€”that's why we're not gonna talk about this while he's around. You still have a thing for him, don't you?"
Steve relaxed against the countertop, fixing his hair and putting the hat back on with a scowl. You cleared your throat.
"I was hoping you'd forgotten about that."
"Me? Forget about you having the most embarrassing crush on him for years? Only to get to high school and find out he'd become a dick? Never."
You groaned. "Oh, stop rubbing it in!"
A gaggle of girls walked into the store, four of them giggling and talking and rolling their eyes. Immediately, Steve stood up a little straighter and fiddled with his uniform.
Robin snorted. "Oh, watch this. He's been failing catastrophically with every girl that walks in. I keep count."
"You keep count?"
She nodded gleeful, pointing with her chin in the direction of the counter.
"Ahoy, ladies!" Steve said, leaning on the counter. His attempt to be attractive failed dismally, however, when his hand slipped off the side and he lost both his balance and his composure for a moment.
One of the girls giggled with her friend. Steve's cheeks darkened.
"I'm Steve Harrington, I'll be your captain on this ocean of flavor. What can I get you lovely ladies today?"
You glanced at Robin. "I don't see what he's doing wrong."
"That's because this is scripted," Robin whispered back.
The first girl stepped forward. "One scoop of chocolate and one of vanilla, please."
Steve tried a debonaire smile. "Oooh, classic, I like it. I'm all for vanilla myself, you know, all the time."
You winced. "Was...was that supposed to be a double entendre?"
"Yep," Robin said, popping the p with a smirk.
"I see what you mean now," you said. The girl was making a face that said she caught Steve's drift and found it rude. Steve cleared his throat and moved on, scooping ice cream into a cone and handing it to her with a mortified whisper of "here you go." His gaze flicked over to you and Robin, at which point his mortification seemed to grow.
You watched the exchange grow steadily worse. Steve stumbled over his words and tripped over his feet and dropped an empty cone twice. Customers who had already gotten ice cream became onlookers who left, one by one, as the secondhand embarrassment grew.
"God, he's hopeless," you whispered. "Whatever happened to the Steve in high school?"
"You mean the one with a new girl on his arm every week? I'd say that stopping can be blamed on one Nancy Wheeler," Robin said.
You rolled your eyes. "While they were dating, obviously. But now? One relationship shouldn't make him incapable of flirting with a girl."
Robin watched the girls leave, snickering behind their hands. A moment later, Steve groaned, wiping a hand over his face. "You know what I think his problem is?"
"What?"
"He's trying to flirt all of them into submission, not just one girl he likes out of the group."
You nodded slowly. "Sounds about right. I mean...if he flirted with me one minute and then you the next, I don't think I'd want to jump his bones, exactly."
Robin rolled her eyes. "What are you talking about? You've always wanted to jump his bones."
"That was middle school, and that was before any of us gave a shit about sex."
"Yeah, keep telling yourself that," Robin teased. "I saw how you looked at him during gym class."
You shrugged, trying to hide your face behind your hair. Robin knew your expressions better than anyone; your embarrassment was going to be obvious the minute she caught sight of you. "It's gym class! Guys don't wear shirts ninety percent of the time, they practically invite girls to stare." Your gaze slid back to Steve, who was once again staring at the floor. His cheeks were still red, and that pretty mouth of his had once again formed a pout. "Jesus, I don't think I've ever seen him so...despondent."
"He's like that at least five times a shift," Robin said. She played with a small red plastic spoon she had pulled from her pocket. "You know... You could come work here with us. Then you'd get to see Steve every day."
"Robin, you're constantly complaining about how much you hate working your, and I quote, pitiful minimum wage job."
"Yeah, but you like Steve, and eye candy makes the day go by faster."
You swatted her arm discreetly. "Don't objectify him!"
She rolled her eyes. "Hey, Steve!"
Steve looked up so quickly you swore you heard his neck crack, even with some distance between your table and the counter. "What?"
"Come convince her to work with us!"
You glared at her. "Robin, I already have a summer job!" you protested, trying to stop your heart from racing as Steve approached the two of you. You looked anywhere but him, knowing a soft smile and a well-timed flutter of his eyelashes was all it would take for Steve to convince you to do anything he asked.
Steve pulled a chair from the other table for two next to you, spinning it unnecessarily in his hand and dragging it to the edge of your table. He straddled it, leaning his arms against the backrest. Your heart climbed into your throat.
Steve's eyes met yours and every thought melted from your brain. Brown had never been such a pretty color. Although his eyes weren't just brown, they were hazel, mottled with soft greens and blues and greys. You'd never seen such beautiful eyes before, so expressive and kind and interested and attentive andā€”
"Tell her why she should come work with us," Robin said, breaking your focus on Steve's eyes.
You rolled your eyes. "Robin, I already have a job," you repeated. "A job I like that pays well that I can work at year-round."
Steve snorted, shaking his head absentmindedly. "Then don't come here, that's for sure. The pay is shit, the job is just as bad, and nobody likes ice cream in the winter."
Robin glared at him. "What part of convincing her do you not understand?"
Steve shrugged, ignoring her. "But, then again, you'd get to work with Robin and you might alleviate my boredom from dealing with her all the time." He jerked his head toward Robin. "You wouldn't believe how mean to me she is."
You stifled a giggle as Robin huffed. An easy grin reminiscent of the king he once as slid across Steve's face. You felt slightly giddy, knowing you had been the one to put it there.
More people walked into the store and Robin shot to her feet. "Come on, dingus. We have a job to do." She dragged him to his feet, ignoring his hiss of complaint. He shot you an apologetic shrug as she pulled him behind the register again.
While the two of them got back to work, you sat back in your booth table and finished your ice cream. Once you were done, you discreetly snuck out of the store, leaving a note for Robin at the counter promising to call her after her shift.
As you wrote the note and taped it to the register, you failed to notice Steve pause where he was scooping ice cream to watch you, or that his gaze stayed on you until you left the store and Robin had to snap him out of his reverie.
~āŠ~
Though it seemed utterly impossible, the next day was even hotter than the last. You lasted all of two hours at the community pool before you got tired of the screaming children and moms flirting with Billy Hargrove and you went home.
You changed out of your bathing suit, dressing more consciously than you had since the eighth grade semi-formal. You selected your jewelry carefully before hopping in your car and heading to the mall for a second time that week.
Scoops Ahoy was significantly less busy when you walked in. Robin looked half-asleep where she stood at the counter, but she brightened when you walked in.
"You just couldn't stay away, could you?" she asked, leaning on the counter with a grin.
You shrugged. "It's hot, ice cream is a solution."
She studied you for a moment. "The pool didn't solve that?"
You scoffed. "Hell no. It's full of tiny children and middle-aged moms and girls who only go so they can take up space and stare at Billy."
"And there's no Steve there, is there?" Robin teased.
You rolled your eyes. "No," you admitted. "Or you."
Robin scooped your ice cream and passed it to you over the countertop. "He'll be back soon, his break ends in a minute. He went to go grab us food."
"He what?"
Robin shrugged. "Yeah, he does that a lot. I hate to say it, but he's actually a nice guy. I think we might have been wrong about him."
You grinned. "So I was right back in middle school! I told you."
Robin rolled her eyes. "Yeah, you did." She cleared her throat. "Behind you."
You heard Steve's footsteps approaching a split second before he said, "Hey, you're back! Applying?"
Turning to face him, you snorted. "Absolutely not. I'm here for ice cream and ice cream alone."
Steve frowned. "What are we, chopped liver?" he asked, gesturing between himself and Robin.
"I'm surprised you know that phrase," Robin said.
Steve made a face. "I do know some things, Robin." He turned back to you. "I told you she's mean to me."
You laughed. "She's mean to everyone sometimes, it's nothing personal."
"Yes it is, dingus," Robin said, and you remembered she had plenty of reasons aside from Steve's years mocking her and her friends to be angry with him.
You just shrugged at him when Steve looked at you for guidance. He copied your shrug and passed Robin a plastic bag that smelled heavenly.
"If I'd known you were coming to visit, I would have gotten you something," Steve said apologetically.
"Oh, it's fine," you promised. "I've got ice cream." He smiled at you, his laughter shining through. "Honestly, I'm surprised you two don't exist off of ice cream."
"We used to," Robin said.
Steve nodded. "It got pretty tiring after a week. It's like when they told us in health class that energy from sugar doesn't last very long. Or something like that."
Robin squinted at him. "You can't remember enough of high school to get to college, but you can remember health class?"
"I remembered enough to graduate," Steve mumbled, cheeks turning pink once again. You were starting to get used to Steve's embarrassment. It was as cute as he always was.
"Stay and eat with us," Robin said, turning back to you. "I'll split my fries with you. You did remember the fries, didn't you, dingus?"
"Of course I remembered the fries," Steve snorted. He dropped the Closed for lunch! sign on the counter and held the swinging door open for you. You thanked him as you walked by, aware of his eyes following you.
You sat in the seat Robin pulled out for you and finished your ice cream before stealing some of the previously offered fries.
"I think we're closing early, Robin," Steve said, glancing out the cracked window. "We've had, what, three people all day?"
"Four if you count the Radio Shack employee across the way," Robin said. "But I don't, because they get it for free."
You frowned. "Do I not count as a customer because you give me ice cream for free?"
Steve shook his head a bit too quickly. "No, you count, Robin just doesn't like the Radio Shack employees."
"Because they're rude," she complained. "They complain about everything and change their minds three timesā€”but always after you've already started scooping, and even when you're done, they don't like it!"
"Sounds like a regular day in customer service," you said, feigning cheerfulness.
"Yeah, a shitty day," Robin said.
"Where do you work?" Steve asked. "I don't think I've ever asked."
"The record store down on Main," you said.
"You know, the one I said I had been planning on working at," Robin said. "But Scoops hired faster."
"Maybe we should switch jobs," Steve muttered.
Robin snorted. "Yeah, like that'll go over well."
"The store won't hire more people, anyway," you cut in. "It got rid of most of the staff, especially the new people, to cut costs because of the mall."
"Is there a record store in here?" Steve asked.
"No, but there is a Sam Goody and a Camelot Music in the mall. We used to have a partnership with the Sam Goody on Main, but then it closed due to the mall, and we started losing business to the one in the mall." You sighed. "I hear about it all the time. It's all the owner ever talks about these days."
Steve munched on a fry, staring at you as you spoke. His eyes were stuck firmly on you. You tried not to squirm under his intense gaze.
Robin leaned back in her chair. "One of these days, I'm gonna visit you at work instead."
You rolled your eyes. "If you ever have a day off," you said.
"Kinda hard to have a day off when we're the only two working here," Steve said.
You nodded. "The constant problem of being short staffed."
"That would be solved if you just came and worked here," Robin muttered into her wrap. You rolled your eyes again, stealing another one of her fries.
"No, Robin."
Robin harrumphed and took a bite of her sandwich more viciously than twas strictly required.
Steve faked a pout. "You just really don't like us, do you?"
"She doesn't," Robin agreed, smirking. You knew that smirk; she was going to do her best to guilt trip youā€”using Steve, which was perhaps the only way to guilt you into doing what she wanted.
You rolled your eyes. "It's got nothing to do with you, I promise."
"Ouch," they said in unison.
You frowned. "What are you, the same person?"
They both shrugged.
"Alright, that's just weird," you sighed. You glanced down at your watch. "How long does your lunch break last?"
"Thirty minutes. Why?" Steve asked.
You shrugged. "Wouldn't want you to get fired because I'm here distracting you."
Steve propped his head up on his hand. Stray curls of hair fell into his face. Your heart twisted in your chest. He was beautiful. How could he be so beautiful?
Robin watched as you and Steve stared at each other. You were aware of her gaze bouncing back and forth between the two of you, observing the way you were melting under his gaze, your lips parting the longer he looked at you, the barriers you'd put up slowly crumbling. Steve was no better, staring at you with open, asking eyes. He moistened his lower lip with his tongue and it took everything in you not to whimper.
Out of the corner of your eye, you saw the look on Robin's faceā€”the look of disgust that crossed her face every time she was disgusted by public affection from straight couples. Your heart did flips at the sight of her expression.
"Would you guys stop that?" she groaned, getting up from her seat.
"Doing what?" Steve asked, still looking at you. You tore your eyes away from him and back to the half-empty container of fries.
"Making eyes at each other," she said. Steve spluttered, instantly losing the lovey look in his eyes.
"Making eyesā€” Robin, what are you talking about?"
You cleared your throat. "Hey, um, what's the board for?" You hoped your question would steer the conversation away from the feeling bubbling in your chest at the sight of Steve.
Steve groaned, hiding his face in his hands.
"I told you I was keeping score of Steve's failing dating life. This is my scoreboard."
You nearly choked. "You keep track of it on a whiteboard at work?!" You looked at the neatly drawn board, the 'You Rule' and 'You Suck' columns divided by a line.
"Actually, I have to put the one from yesterday on here."
Steve groaned again, cheeks burning very red. He looked like he wanted to crawl under the table and stay there.
You watched her add a line. "Robin..."
"She's right, I suck," Steve sighed. "My luck's been pretty shit recently."
"You don't suck, she's just being mean," you said. You sent her a look, shaking your head slightly. She just shrugged.
"You don't have to be nice about it," he said. "I know how bad I am at this. I haven't gotten laid in months."
"Okay, too much information, Steve," you said with a little laugh.
"Oh, so this suddenly isn't a safe place to talk about all our life troubles?" he teased.
You laughed fully. He smiled, and the room seemed to light up with the glow emanating from him.
"Get a room," Robin groaned.
Steve turned around. "I'm not flirting, Robin!"
"Yeah, right," Robin smirked. "It's just working this time."
You coughed. "I, um, I have to go."
They both turned back to you, as if they'd forgotten that you were even there.
"Shit, hang on," Steve started, but Robin cut him off.
"No, wait, I didn't mean it like thatā€”" Robin said, realizing she'd practically told Steve you liked him.
"Yeah, right, I know, I just have, uh..." You fumbled for an excuse for a minute. "I have to go drive a friend home! I'll call you later, Robs!" You rushed out the swinging door just as the bell at the counter rang.
Steve pushed his hands through his hair. "Shit."
"Oh, no," Robin whispered. "Steve, ignore that, ignore all of that, I screwed up, I shouldn't have said anything, she's going to be so pissed. It's just that she's liked you since middle school and it's gotten worse now that you're not a douchebagā€”" Robin clapped a hand over her mouth.
"I won't tell her you said that," Steve said quietly. "Oh, Jesus, Robin..."
"I'm sorryā€”"
"Stop apologizing to me," Steve said. "If you hadn't said anything, I never would have realized."
Robin made a face. "See, that's why you suck, not because you're bad at flirting with girls. You've just been flirting with the wrong ones, because you're oblivious of the ones that actually like you."
Steve was quiet for a moment. "Yeah. Thanks for pointing that out." He peered out the window, watching you leave the mall, wiping at your eyes and pushing your hair out of your eyes.
Simultaneously, Steve and Robin whispered, "Shit."
At the counter, Erica Sinclair tapped the bell again. "Hello? I want some samples!"
They shouted, "Shut up!"
Steve slammed the glass doors shut.
~āŠ~
Steve unlocked his front door, stepped inside his house, and put his back to the closed door. He slid down the door with a heavy sigh.
"Jesus Christ," he muttered under his breath. All he had been able to see since you left Scoops was your stricken face, horrified and embarrassed that Robin had spilled your biggest secret. (Which Robin had told him after, in bits and pieces, while they closed up the store.)
Steve couldn't believe it. How had he never noticed? Granted, he hadn't been the most observant for, well, the majority of his life. And his middle school years had been fairly dull, unmemorable. But wouldn't have noticed if youā€”you, out of everyone in Hawkins Middleā€”had been crushing on him?
To his utter shame, the most Steve remembered of you in middle school was how you had been a good friend to him, long before any of his high school friends knew who he was, and that he'd ditched you once he got to high school. You'd helped him study a few times, too. He wasn't sure what year it was, but he knew you'd helped him pass both English and History in the same year.
He'd shared a handful of classes with you, too, when classes had been so small they'd mixed grades. Sixth grade science, when the two of you had worked on a minor chemical project together. In seventh grade, you'd had two classes together. Gym, which had been downright brutal so early in the morning, especially when the teachers split up the teams as boys against girls. He remembered you had gotten nailed in the head with a basketball once, and that he'd been asked by your teacher to take you to the nurse. Then there had been math class, where he'd sat behind you, asking you questions and begging you to explain the concepts he didn't understandā€”even though you didn't understand it much more than he did. Eighth grade history, where Steve had done a presentation on his grandfather's experience in the World War, and you had been the only to actually raise your hand to ask a question.
Steve got up from the door and went up to his bathroom, stripping out of his uniform to take a shower. While the water soaked his hair and skin, warming him up, Steve's mind turned back to youā€”not that it had ever really left you.
You had been his first crush. Well, his first real crush. You'd been pretty, even when you were young and curious and a year younger than he was. Most of his friends had said that the younger girls were cute, but embarrassing to like. So Steve hid that he liked you. It wasn't until Nancy in high school, when it became cool, that he dated anyone younger than himself.
He wished he'd said something to you then. Would it have saved him a world of hurt? Or would it just have been an even worse broken heart waiting for him?
Steve recalled the way you had looked at him earlier, your eyes practically sparkling and your lips stretching into a gorgeous, content smile. It had stopped his heart to know that he was the reason you looked so happy, that he had brought that smile to your lips and that he had made those smile lines around your eyes appear and that he had been the reason your pupils were blown wide.
Steve shut off the shower and pulled on a new pair of boxers, flopping onto his bed with a content sigh, which matched the happy smile on his face.
You liked him.
Feeling like a teenage girl, Steve rolled until he could hide an excited squeal in his pillow.
You liked him again.
Steve was certain that's what made him so giddy. You'd liked him before he'd become King Steve, before the popularity made him interestingā€”and you liked him again, now that he'd changed and learned and grown up. Now that he'd learned to be himself without a care in the world for anyone else's opinion.
It was like redemption, but it felt so much better than that.
A sudden feeling overwhelmed Steve.
The next time he saw you, he needed to tell you how he felt about you. He needed to make it clear that Robin's slip-up had not ruined the slow banter, the friendship the two of you had been dancing around.
Resolved, his thoughts stopped spinning. He turned off the lamp on his nightstand and shut his eyes.
Please come back tomorrow, he thought, before falling into a gentle sleep, full of dreams of romanticized meetings, confessions, and kisses.
~āŠ~
You avoided Scoops for several days, choosing to tough out the warm weather in the overcrowded community pool until your mortification subsided. Robin had called repeatedly to assure you Steve wasn't weirded out or annoyed or embarrassed by your crush on him. In fact, she almost made it sound as if he was pleased by it.
But you still couldn't make yourself go to Scoops Ahoy. Even the mental image of walking in and seeing Steve's face twist with some kind of disgust made your stomach twist.
But a girl could only take so much of Billy Hargrove. So, after nearly a week, you drove to the mall instead of the pool. It still took you nearly ten minutes to force yourself out of your car.
You had thought seeing Steve and Robin in their sailor uniforms had been strange, but there was a far stranger sight directly ahead of you: Robin at the counter, staring in absolute confusion, and Steve jumping with joy at the sight of the small child in the front of the store.
"Henderson!" Steve's smile was huge. The sight made you smile, albeit a bit more confused. "Henderson! He's back, he's back!"
"I'm back! You got the job!"
"I got the job!"
And then, just when you thought this strange scene could not get any weirder, Steve mimed playing a trumpet and both he and the child did a strange miming handshake, giggling all the while.
Robin leaned forward. "How many children are you friends with?"
Steve's overjoyed smile slipped from his face. He gestured to Robin with a strained look on his face, as if he were signaling See what I have to deal with?
"You mean there's more children?" you asked, walking up to them with a shy smile, almost embarrassed to make your return. Your stomach dipped as Steve turned to you, but his smile was back.
"Hey, you're back!" Steve said. "I thought we'd never see you again!"
You shrugged. "Yeah, well, I got tired of Billy flirting with me."
"Max's brother?" the child asked.
You stared at him. "I don't know who that is. Or who you are, actually."
"Oh, I'mā€”"
"This is Dustin," Steve interrupted. "Dustin Henderson. He's, uh, he's one of my friends." He went behind the counter and started making an ice cream sundae.
You gave Dustin your name and offered him your hand. "Pleasure to meet you."
"How do you know Steve?" Dustin asked.
At the same time, both you and Steve pointed to Robin. She waggled her fingers at him.
"I'm going on break," Steve said, handing the sundae to Dustin. "Your turn to man the counter. Come on, Dustin, my treat!"
The two of them slipped into a booth. You leaned against the countertop with a heavy sigh.
"There's like...five or six of them," Robin said. "Kids, I mean. That he's friends with."
"Jesus," you muttered. "How old are these kids?"
"Like...thirteen, maybe?"
"Oh, boy."
Robin giggled. "Looks like you gotta share your man with children now."
You choked. "He'sā€” He's not my man, Robin!" you hissed, your entire body burning. You glanced at Steve, but he was too engrossed in whatever story Dustin was telling him.
"But that's why you're here, isn't it?" Robin asked. "You came back because you're ready to talk to him again, knowing that you like him and he likes you."
You glanced over at Steve. While you observed him, Robin slipped out from behind the counter, quietly humming to herself as she worked.
"Yeah, I mean, sure," he was saying to Dustin. "It's not really a good idea for me though, gotta keep in shape for the ladies." Was it just your imagination, or did his eye stray over toward you?
"Yeah, and how's that working out for you?" Robin teased.
"Ignore her," Steve said quickly.
"She seems cool," Dustin said.
"She's not," Steve said, even quicker. "But, uh, the girl you just met? She's cool. She's really cool." A smile tugged at your lips. You pushed it away as you looked down at the floor, completely missing Steve's lovestruck glance toward you.
Dustin, however, missed nothing, and raised his eyebrows. "Oh, really, Steve?"
Steve cleared his throat. "Anyway. So, uh, where are the other knuckleheads?"
"They ditched me yesterday," Dustin said.
"No," Steve said, his face falling. Your heart squeezed at the sight of his empathy. The Steve from high school never would have cared about a kid whose friends had abandoned him, but this Steve did.
"My first day back! Can you believe that shit?"
"Whoa, seriously?!" Steve demanded, incredulous. Your heart warmed once again.
You turned back to Robin. "In answer to your earlier question," you said under your breath, "yes, that is exactly what I'm here to do."
She giggled. "I knew it! I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!" She paused. "Was Billy Hargrove really flirting with you?"
You nodded. "I guess he doesn't really care about high school social status, as long as he gets laid." You shuddered. "I've never felt more objectified in my life, and I pranced around on stage in fishnets and a bodysuit in front of the entire school last year during Chicago!"
"I'm still convinced that was our best show," Robin said.
"I'd like to know how we got the rights to it," you snorted.
"I'd like to know how we convinced Principal Higgins to let us perform it."
You snorted. "Yeah. Has anybody heard anything about next year's shows?"
"Nothing yet," Robin said.
You harrumphed, your gaze sliding back to Steve and Dustin and found them talking in hushed tones. Steve's face was fixed into an expression of embarrassed confusion.
"Oh, got customers, hang on," Robin said, and served them while you moved off to the side, watching Dustin speak behind his hand. Steve just blinked at him and told him to speak up.
"I intercepted a secret Russian communication!" Dustin said, far too loudly.
The entire store went quiet. You and Robin exchanged a glance.
"Jesus, shhhh!" Steve hissed. "Yeah, okay, that's what I thought you said."
Business as normal resumed and Robin's customers headed for their own table.
You cleared your throat. "Well, I guess I should head outā€”"
"No, no, no, wait! What about Steve?"
"He's busy, Robs," you said, gesturing to him. Your stomach did flips at the cute, teasing little expression on his pretty face as you caught him saying American heroes. You weren't sure you wanted to know what mischief they were getting into. "I'll just...come back tomorrow."
Robin sighed. "Fine. As long as you let me play matchmaker!"
You rolled your eyes. "You've been doing that for the past, what, four years?"
"Yeah, but this time I might actually be successful!"
You shook your head with a smile. "Catch you later, Robin. Bye, Steve!" you added as you walked past.
Steve's head snapped up. He scrambled up from his seat at the booth. "Hey, wait, wait, where are you going?" He caught your arm and your eyes darted to his fingers on you. Every possible excuse was wiped from your head. "I thought you were gonna stay and...hang out for a little while."
You smiled apologetically. "Yeah, I was going to, but your friend just came back, so I figured I'd just come back another time. So you don't have to...divide your already divided attention, y'know?" You gestured back to the counter.
Though there was understanding in Steve's eyes, he still looked disappointed. "Oh...um... Would youā€”" He cleared his throat, his cheeks gaining a deep pink shade. "Would you maybe wanna hang out togetherā€”" He stopped again. "Would you wanna go on a date? With me? Sometime?"
You couldn't stop the smile that stretched across your face. "When?"
"Oh, you know, whenever you want? If you want to, I mean."
You stopped his rambling with a finger against his lips. His eyes widened. "I want to, Steve. I really, really want to. I always have."
He beamed. "Really?"
"Really," you promised. You patted his chest. "Even in this stupid little uniform."
He laughed. "What do you say to...two days from now? Meet me here at the end of my shift so Robin can make fun of us like alwaysā€”" You laughed with him. "ā€”and then we can go see a movie?" His thumb caressed the skin of your arm. That single touch alone sent butterflies through your stomach, not to mention the beautiful, sappy look in his eyes.
"I'd like that," you said. "I'd like that a lot."
"And, um, if you'd like, there's a little dinner about ten minutes from here with awesome milkshakes we could go to after."
You beamed. "Oh, Steve."
"Yeah?"
"You're absolutely perfect," you said to him, cupping his cheek and smoothing your fingers over his skin. He hummed happily. "Steve?"
"Hmm?"
"Can I... Do you... Can we kiss? I know it's soon, it's just... I've wanted this for a long time."
Steve beamed. He leaned in, cupping the back of your head and pulling you into him. His lips touched yours, and you swore your body crackled with electricity. A feeling similar to pins and needles, but far more pleasant, spread throughout you.
He made to pull away. You brought both your hands to his cheeks and held him to you, kissing him for all you were worth.
In the booth, Dustin's mouth dropped open. A grin spread across his face.
At the counter, Robin, who couldn't see the kiss but saw your hands slide into Steve's hair, pulled out her whiteboard and added a singular tally into the 'You Rule' column.
She glanced back at you and Steve. Steve had broken the kiss to tug you close to him, hugging you to his chest. You twisted your hand into his hair, smiling over his shoulder, your eyes closed against the rest of the world.
Robin grinned; she guessed the 'You Suck' tallies didn't matter anymore. Steve had found the one his charm worked on.
ā˜ž āŠ ā˜œ
Tumblr media
Stranger Things // Steve Harrington
part 2 coming soon!
Taglist: {comment and let me know if you'd like to be added to the S.H. taglist!} @ohatropa@nix-rose@live-the-fangirl-life
603 notes Ā· View notes
dearestgentlereaders Ā· 5 months ago
Text
Tumblr media
ā€œAnd so, on an otherwise unremarkable Friday afternoon, in the heart of Mayfair, in a quiet drawing room on Mount Street, Colin Bridgerton kissed Penelope Featherington.
And it was gloriousā€
~ romancing mr bridgerton
145 notes Ā· View notes
celestialrealms Ā· 5 days ago
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
what do you mean "Because it's you." ?????
107 notes Ā· View notes
genersones Ā· 2 months ago
Text
Hey guys guess who just finished season 1 of Gravity falls
Tumblr media Tumblr media
(Tried to personalize Stan's design in this one)
75 notes Ā· View notes
solarsimblr Ā· 2 months ago
Text
Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media Tumblr media
Just kiddingā€”after everything that's happened in just 2.5 seasons, there was no way I wasn't getting Celine and Jonah married! šŸ„°
Despite some day-to-day silliness between them, they're by far the most wholesome couple in Emerald Pines. And despite Celine's recent crimes against environmentalism, I wanted to throw her a big colourful fall wedding, fit for a nature-loving hopeless romantic. I know the TS4 wedding pack was controversial, but man, those converted objects from it are breathtakingly beautiful!
(Sorry to Jonah's sweet, music-loving soulā€”I'm pretty sure that speaker plays shopping music? Objectively the worst possible wedding playlist, but it was the most visually appealing...)
70 notes Ā· View notes
radicalbears Ā· 13 days ago
Text
Tumblr media
HEY Here's a lil sneak preview of the piece I made for @gf-seasons-zine !!
Preorders have been extended until Nov. 21st, so if you haven't gotten a copy already I definitely recommend it! A lot of super cool people worked on this, and all of their pieces turned out AMAZING!
Additionally, this is a charity zine! Any surplus will go to The Oregon Conservation and Recreation Fund. So you can get a cool zine AND support a good cause! Definitely worth checking out :D
55 notes Ā· View notes
old-skyguy Ā· 3 months ago
Text
Rewatching Gravity Falls for the who-knows-what thousandth time and I. I have. A thought.
The website that alluded to (not confirmed, as far as I know) of a season three. And this is a big deal.
Since it's pretty much a given that if this does end up happening, Bill WILL be a part of it and they'll need some way to stop him. So I figured, since Mabel destroyed the memory eraser and Bill would probably not have fallen for the same thing twice anyway, the obvious choice is the zodiac wheel again.
BUT.
What if instead of it all being the same person in the same spot as they were in the finale, why not have their positions switched around a bit. The obvious examples being Wendy as pine tree since she and Dipper swapped hats and Soos since he took over as owner of the Mystery Shack and also Stan's iconic hat. I *may* try to plot out who would go where and share the rest of that stuff on here, but I think this idea would work really well when you contextualize it with the concept that even though time has passed and people have grown and changed and are no longer the same as they once were, they're still just as strong and still care for each other and their bond will never be broken.
Much like the people who loved this show.
74 notes Ā· View notes