#stednathan

[your-stranger-halfblood-things]

Steve always wanted to be a singer- it was his dream since he was a child, but his parents were always against it. In middle school, Steve and Jonathan would meet up in the would and walk back to Steve's house to listen to the playlists Jonathan made. They always talked about what it would be like to actually sing for people.

One day, Steve and Jonathan were listening to music and they heard the doorbell ring. It was Eddie "the freak" Munson from Hawkins High. He was there to sell chocolate bars.

The three of them just stared at each other before Eddie bit into a bar and asked what they were up to. Jonathan and Steve had heard rumors of Eddie starting a band, even though the older boy was only in freshman year.

"We're listening to music," Steve said.

"The Cure, The Smiths, David Bowie, The Clash..." Jonathan added. "Are you actually in a band?"

Eddie grinned at them. "Are you guys fans of my music?" They shook their heads. "Oh. Well, you will be. I need to play for you one day. I swear."

Steve's eyes widened. "You'll play for us?"

Eddie nodded. "Yeah, of course. I hope you like metal."

Steve furrowed his brows. "Metal? Like the demon stuff?"

Jonathan nudged him. "Metal is not demon stuff! I mean, it could be, but so can any other type of music."

Eddie laughed. "I know a few Satanic metal bands, but I'm more of the fun type of metal- like Motley Crue, and Dio, and Ozzy Osbourne. You know, fun," he finished with a shrug.

The next day, he came over to Steve's house with his guitar. "I'm gonna play a song that I'm still writing." And he started to strum, and the two younger boys fell in love with his music. When he was does, he brushed away their praise, "It doesn't even sound good yet. I still need a drummer, a pianist, and another guitarist."

"But that was amazing!" Jonathan said with wide eyes. "You should record yourself and sell it."

Steve nodded. "Yeah! And you need to play for us more often!"

And ever since then, Eddie has been coming over to play for his two biggest fans. Once Eddie gathered his band together, the other two already joined high school.

Steve was with the popular people, but he would meet Eddie in the empty music room to listen to him play. And then Jonathan offered to be the band's photographer, to which Eddie was happy. Steve was jealous- he wanted Eddie. He didn't know why he wanted Eddie, but it wasn't fair that Jonathan got to spend more time with him then he did.

So then Steve started picking on Jonathan and calling him names. They'd get into fights, and Eddie tried to stop them, but he never knew the cause of them.

One day, Steve and Eddie were alone in the music room and that's when a thought entered Steve's mind. A bad thought. He couldn't push the thought away.

"Eddie," Steve started slowly.

Eddie hummed in acknowledgement.

"Is it normal to want to kiss your friends? Especially the ones who probably don't like you back?" he asked with a red face.

Eddie looked at him. "Steve, you're not friends with any girls..."

"I know," Steve whispered.

"Who...who is it?" Eddie asked casually, though his heart beat fast.

Steve leaned in close to Eddie. "It's you."

Eddie swallowed. "Steve, what about Jonathan?"

Steve froze. "What about him?"

Eddie sighed. "He likes you, Steve. A lot. And he's never going to stop liking you, no matter how much you bully him. You were his first friend, you mean to much to him."

Steve felt like shit. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean-"

"Talk things over with Jonathan and then come back to me."

So, Steve confronted Jonathan at his doorsteps a few days later. "Jonathan!" Steve yelled as he ran up the Byers' walkway. "I need to talk to you."

Jonathan turned to him. "What? What do you want?"

"Do you want to listen to music?"

So they lay together, just like they used to, on Steve's giant bed. They were listening to The Clash. The music eased the tension.

Steve and Jonathan lay, facing each other, and Steve reached out for Jonathan's hand, just like he used to do as a kid all the time. Jonathan let him take it.

"What do you want, Stevie?" The nickname came out before he could stop himself.

"Stevie? I like it when you call me that," Steve said softly. He looked at Jonathan. He always thought the other boy was pretty, really really pretty. Not handsome, not feminine, but pretty. Pretty is an understatement- he is gorgeous, Steve thinks as he caresses Jonathan's hand.

"I'm sorry, Jonathan. Please listen to me. I talked to Eddie earlier and he told me that you like me. And the thing is, I like him. But I think I also like you. And I always have liked you, ever since we first met that day in the woods. You always made me smile and made me the happiest person alive. But then Eddie started doing that too. And then he gave you that job and I was so jealous-"

"Steve," Jonathan says calmly. "Have you ever heard of polyamory?" And Jonathan explained it to him. Things made so much more sense for Steve.

"That's me!" Steve said. "We need to talk to Eddie."

And they did. They did talk to Eddie, and that's how Steve ended up dating his two amazing boyfriends during highschool and after highschool and they lived happily ever after :)