#steve is good with little tiny kids is technically not canon but that man has babyfever so bad

[unfinishedslurs]

child lost in the grocery store (platonic stobin)

“Oh no no no no no,” Robin says, panicked. “Don’t cry, tiny child. Please don’t cry, oh God you’re crying, uh…Steve!” 

He rounds the aisle. “They’re out of Dustin’s favorite cereal,” he says sourly, before his eyes fall on the crying child Robin is kneeling by, and he raises his eyebrows. 

Help, she pleads with her eyes, and he sighs, setting the boxes he’s holding in the cart and crouching down next to them. 

“Hey there,” he greets warmly, so calm and caring it makes Robin want to throw herself into his arms and sob. “What’s wrong?”

The kid just shakes her head. 

Steve takes it with grace. “This is my friend Robin, I came here with her. Did you come here with anyone?”

“M-m-my mommy,” she blubbers. “But she’s gone.”

The sentence ends in a drawn out wail that makes her want to simultaneously hold the poor kid and slam her own head into a wall. Steve widens his eyes in sympathy. 

“That’s not good. Do you know where you last saw her?”

She shakes her head no again, and Robin stares at him, silently pleading for him to make the kid stop crying. 

He rolls his eyes at her before turning back to the kid. “That’s okay,” he soothes. “It happens sometimes. I bet she’s just as worried as you are right now. Do you want help finding her?”

A small nod, and she finally looks up, enough that Robin can see her big, bloodshot eyes. Are kids' eyes really just that big? They’re like tiny little aliens. 

“Okay, here’s what we’ll do,” Steve says confidently enough that both she and the kid relax. “We’ll go to the checkout with the nice lady, okay? And we’ll wait there for your mommy. That’s rule one of getting lost in the store, always go to the front desk.”

“Really?”

He smiles down at her, beginning to straighten up. “Oh, yeah. Sometimes I still have to do it, and I always find who I’m looking for.” He offers a hand, and the kid clings to it like he’s her last lifeline on earth. 

“What if she’s not there?” 

“Well,” he says, starting to walk towards the desk. Robin hurries to fall into step with them, and he smiles at her. “If she doesn’t come by the desk, my friend here will go find her, and tell her where you are.” He lowers his voice conspiringly. “She can be really loud.”

“Hey!” Robin protests, and the kid giggles. Giggles. If she were in any way, shape, or form attracted to men, she’d kiss him on the mouth. 

“Do you wanna tell me your name now?”

“It’s Jess!”

“Jess, huh? Short for Jessica?” She nods. “It’s a pretty name, it suits you.”

“Thank you,” she says shyly, pulling her dark hair in front of her mouth. 

“My name is Steve, this is my friend Robin.”

Jess perks up, even though Steve had introduced her earlier. Poor girl probably had bigger things to worry about. “Like the bird?”

“Exactly like the bird.” He grins. “Do you like robins, Jess?” Apparently Jess is really into birds. In the short time it takes to get to the counter, Robin has found out that robins hop on the ground to make worms think it’s raining, that you should feed ducks seeds instead of bread, and Jess’s favorite kind of bird is a woodpecker.

[sabbathbloodysabbeth]

Ok but this is how the store ends up coming up with the idea of a small daycare so the mothers can shop with a lot less stress on their shoulders and that’s how Steve gets him and Robin a job there (also Eddie coming in and dropping his kid off for them to babysit because he can’t afford to actually pay a babysitter, the store just pays Steve and Robin to babysit because kids have a tendency to ruin more items in the store and they are just annoying and bothering other customers) ((steve keeps Eddie’s secret. He keeps the kiddo in his arms constantly))

One day Eddie runs late and doesn’t get there before Steve’s shift ends so Steve just calmly locks up the babysitting area and sneaks Eddie’s kid to the front of the store. (He buys chalk and they play hopscotch on the sidewalk)

Eddie comes and freaks out when he doesn’t see them inside, comes out and sees his daughter is passed out in Steve’s arms while he’s fighting sleep himself.

Robin on the other hand, can’t stand any of the children she just does it because really it’s Steve babysitting her as well. She just sits down and has a small silent table where kids just color with her.

Mothers fall in love with Steve instantly and none of the children ever want to leave. Do mothers also buy him stuff in their grocery’s in thanks. Yes yes they do.

I kind of really want to make this into a one shot 🥺

child lost in the grocery store (platonic stobin)

“Oh no no no no no,” Robin says, panicked. “Don’t cry, tiny child. Please don’t cry, oh God you’re crying, uh…Steve!” 

He rounds the aisle. “They’re out of Dustin’s favorite cereal,” he says sourly, before his eyes fall on the crying child Robin is kneeling by, and he raises his eyebrows. 

Help, she pleads with her eyes, and he sighs, setting the boxes he’s holding in the cart and crouching down next to them. 

“Hey there,” he greets warmly, so calm and caring it makes Robin want to throw herself into his arms and sob. “What’s wrong?”

The kid just shakes her head. 

Steve takes it with grace. “This is my friend Robin, I came here with her. Did you come here with anyone?”

“M-m-my mommy,” she blubbers. “But she’s gone.”

The sentence ends in a drawn out wail that makes her want to simultaneously hold the poor kid and slam her own head into a wall. Steve widens his eyes in sympathy. 

“That’s not good. Do you know where you last saw her?”

She shakes her head no again, and Robin stares at him, silently pleading for him to make the kid stop crying. 

He rolls his eyes at her before turning back to the kid. “That’s okay,” he soothes. “It happens sometimes. I bet she’s just as worried as you are right now. Do you want help finding her?”

A small nod, and she finally looks up, enough that Robin can see her big, bloodshot eyes. Are kids' eyes really just that big? They’re like tiny little aliens. 

“Okay, here’s what we’ll do,” Steve says confidently enough that both she and the kid relax. “We’ll go to the checkout with the nice lady, okay? And we’ll wait there for your mommy. That’s rule one of getting lost in the store, always go to the front desk.”

“Really?”

He smiles down at her, beginning to straighten up. “Oh, yeah. Sometimes I still have to do it, and I always find who I’m looking for.” He offers a hand, and the kid clings to it like he’s her last lifeline on earth. 

“What if she’s not there?” 

“Well,” he says, starting to walk towards the desk. Robin hurries to fall into step with them, and he smiles at her. “If she doesn’t come by the desk, my friend here will go find her, and tell her where you are.” He lowers his voice conspiringly. “She can be really loud.”

“Hey!” Robin protests, and the kid giggles. Giggles. If she were in any way, shape, or form attracted to men, she’d kiss him on the mouth. 

“Do you wanna tell me your name now?”

“It’s Jess!”

“Jess, huh? Short for Jessica?” She nods. “It’s a pretty name, it suits you.”

“Thank you,” she says shyly, pulling her dark hair in front of her mouth. 

“My name is Steve, this is my friend Robin.”

Jess perks up, even though Steve had introduced her earlier. Poor girl probably had bigger things to worry about. “Like the bird?”

“Exactly like the bird.” He grins. “Do you like robins, Jess?” Apparently Jess is really into birds. In the short time it takes to get to the counter, Robin has found out that robins hop on the ground to make worms think it’s raining, that you should feed ducks seeds instead of bread, and Jess’s favorite kind of bird is a woodpecker.