#the thing about Tommy and Carol is that they're like Jonathan and Nancy but in a different font to me

[jonathanbyersphd]

His wife has filled his house with chintz To keep it real I fuck him on the floor.

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

Have you ever thought about Steve and his popularity? Like, really thought about it? As someone who's autistic, I've had people sit there and pretend to be my friend while bullying me straight to my face, but I didn't pick up on it. Not until someone told me what they were saying behind my back. The more I think about it, the more I realize why I could never get behind Tommy and Carol because I feel like they're those kinds of people. We don't see Steve hang out with anyone else. I think there are so many things that Steve couldn't pick up on, and they used that to their advantage. Steve has the big house, the pool, the parents who are away a lot. . .to me, Tommy and Carol just come off as leeches. Like Steve stuck with Tommy because he thought for the first time ever someone wasn't interested in him for his name, or money, or popularity. . . You can see in certain situations where Steve looked at Tommy and thought, "This doesn't seem very funny," and then tells him to knock it off. Then here comes Nancy, who shows him what it actually means to care for people. . .then Steve realizes, on his own, that yeah, none of what Tommy and Carol were doing were right, and the more he thought about it, they would never come looking for him, not like Nancy would. Him breaking the camera wasn't him being a bully. The theater thing was bad, but he apologized for that, and clearly, Jonathan has been bullied, but it was never by Steve. It's just clear to me that Steve’s been bullied, too. Maybe it's just me, I don't know.

[sidekick-hero]

(steddie | teen | 2.5k | tags: different first meeting, emotional hurt/comfort | summary: What happens when Steve meets Eddie Munson, who has just failed his senior year for the first time, during one of his nightly drives? | @steddielovemonth prompt Love is asking, "do you want a blanket?" by @thefreakandthehair | AO3)

Steve's life was completely turned upside down (theoretically he sees the humor in this, but in practice the trauma trumps the pun) six months and six days ago when he came face-to-face with a honest-to-God inter-dimensional monster and barely survived to not tell the tale thanks to an airtight and frankly scary NDA.

He should be over it by now, right? He shouldn't be waking up screaming, drenched in his own sweat and shaking all over, his heart racing in his chest and his stomach in his throat.

Right.

Well, he's not. He doesn't get over it. The nightmares don't go away. If anything, he feels like they're getting worse, his mind adding horrible details and things that didn't happen, but could have, to keep torturing him.

He's a fucking mess.

Steve Harrington is a mess. His grades are slipping, on their way to joining his social status at rock bottom, and even his performance as co-captain of the swim team and basketball team is suffering from lack of sleep.

The only thing he has going for him is Nancy. Nancy, who doesn't understand that Steve just wants to get over the horror and the paranoia, just wants his life back, just wants to be normal again.

She doesn't say it outright, but he knows she thinks he's selfish, too self-centered to care about anything but himself. Sure, he's made amends with Jonathan and cut ties with Tommy and Carol, but deep down, Nancy doesn't think he's changed all that much. He's not Jonathan, he's not mature and monosyllabic and introspective. Just dumb little Steve, pretty to look at but not much else to offer.

These are the things he ponders during his late-night drives when another nightmare keeps him awake. It's impossible to fall asleep with terror pumping through his veins, so instead he climbs into his car and just drives. Some nights he will drive for hours, music playing softly from one of his tapes, Queen, Springsteen, Tears For Fears, Bon Jovi.

Tonight his drive takes him to the edge of town, right where a dirt road leads to the quarry. Steve has no idea why, but something makes him actually leave the main road and turn onto it. He follows it where it leads into the woods, slowing down on the bumpy road until he sees the dense cluster of trees open up to reveal a glimpse of the starry night sky. The path seems to open up into a clearing, and just there, to the right, Steve spots an old van.

He knows the car, has seen it often enough in the parking lot of Hawkins High to know that it belongs to none other than Eddie Munson, local drug dealer and freak.

At least that's what everyone keeps calling him, and sure, the guy seems a little weird, with his speeches on cafeteria tables, his dramatic antics in and out of class. He certainly doesn't look like most of the other kids, with his ripped jeans (clearly from wear and tear rather than fashion sense), long, unruly curls, and loud shirts advertising bands Steve has never heard of. People also shit on him for his father and for living in a trailer park, but none of that sounds particularly freaky to Steve.

Knowing what he does now, though, it worries him to think of Munson all alone out here where anything could happen to him. He doesn't know Munson, just about him, but Steve couldn't live with himself if he came to school on Monday and found Munson missing. One person has already died because of his carelessness, and no one deserves to suffer the same fate as Nancy's friend Barb.

Parking his car right next to Munson's, Steve climbs out and walks around the car to the trunk to pick up the nail bat that saved his life and the lives of Nancy and Jonathan. Then he makes his way to the opening of the clearing ahead.

Stepping out of the trees, Steve stops to take in the sight before him.

Above him stretches the inky expanse of the night sky, a seemingly endless void painted with a myriad of distant stars. The moonlight danced along the jagged edges of the quarry, revealing the vastness of the rocky landscape below in a silvery glow. The only sound that broke the silence of the night was the occasional soft rustle of leaves. The air was crisp and clean, carrying with it a hint of earthiness from the rocky terrain. In this secluded enclave, far from the lights of the city, the stars were front and center, and Steve felt unbelievably small.

With his shoulders hunched over his ears and his arms slung protectively around his knees, the figure sitting on the edge of the cliff looks even smaller than he feels.

It seems that Munson didn't even hear his car approaching, and that makes Steve's hair stand on end because it means that anyone, anything could have snuck up on him. It's not safe.

Steve approaches cautiously, trying his best not to startle the other boy and cause him to fall to his certain death.

"Munson?" He asks softly, quietly, but to no avail. It still causes Munson to flail in surprise, and only Steve's quick reflexes keep him from falling over the edge. With his knees still smarting from the sudden drop to the ground, Steve has his arm wrapped around the other boy, and both of them are panting from the shock.

"Fuck, man, are you trying to kill me?" Munson's voice quavers too much to be truly biting.

Steve carefully loosens his grip on Munson and leans back to sit on his haunches. Running a slightly trembling hand through his hair, he can't help but bite back. "If you paid more attention to what was going on around you, you would have heard me coming. I wasn't really trying to be subtle. It's like you want to get killed."

Munson scoots away from the edge of the cliff and climbs to his feet to look down at Steve and the nail bat he dropped when he made a grab for the other boy. He raises a judgmental eyebrow, causing Steve's defenses to go up in an instant.

They look at each other, brown meeting hazel, until Munson breaks the silence. "By someone walking around with a nail-studded bat, you mean?"

"I wasn't going to hit you with it!" And crap, abort Harrington, abort.

Now both eyebrows look at him questioningly. "And who, pray tell, pissed off King Steve enough to deserve this kind of treatment?"

"No one! For God's sake, I thought you might be in danger and wanted to be prepared in case you were." Then he adds, "After what happened to Will Byers and Barbara Holland, you'd think people in this town would be more careful instead of hanging out in the woods in the middle of the night."

Ed-No, Munson's eyes soften at his explanation. "Shit, sorry man. You're right, I guess." Shuffling his feet, he offers his own explanation for his harsh reaction. "Just had a shitty day, I guess. I shouldn't have bitten your head off for trying to look out for me. Although I never thought King Steve would ride in on his white horse to save the school freak from unimaginable evil."

"White horse? What, like a knight? Does that make you the damsel in distress, Munson?"

Munson gets a strange look on his face at Steve's words, and before he knows what's happening, the guy pretends to faint right into his arms. He catches him just before he hits the ground and feels how cold the boy's body is in his thin t-shirt. "My savior," Munson croons, and Steve rolls his eyes at his antics. Still not a freak, but definitely weird.

Instead of dignifying this with an answer, Steve says, "You're freezing, man. What are you doing out here in the middle of the night anyway?"

Dark brown eyes search his, and Steve thinks he's never seen such expressive eyes. He can read a myriad of emotions in them and he doesn't even know the guy. Sadness, caution, defeat, and something he's seen in the mirror a lot in the last few months: fear.

"I bet you have better things to do than listen to my sad little problems. Can't imagine you're just running around town rescuing damsels in distress now, I'm sure you have places to be, a kingdom to rule..."

"Could you just drop the whole 'King Steve' crap, man? I'm not him. Not anymore. Even if nobody seems to have gotten the memo."

"Okay, woah, sorry, man. I didn't know this was such a touchy subject."

"Do you want me to call you a freak and make assumptions about you based solely on high school gossip?"

"I don't know, don't you?"

"I'm trying not to. You don't have to tell me what's going on if you don't want to. I'm just saying... I know what it's like when you can't stand lying in your bed staring at the ceiling any longer. Wanting to get out and leave whatever it is that's bothering you behind, but no matter how fast you drive, it keeps catching up with you."

He's rambling, he knows he is, he didn't plan on unburdening his heart to Eddie Munson of all people, but here they are.

"I failed senior year." Eddie finally admits in a small voice, not meeting Steve's eyes.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

"Fuck, man. That sucks. Can you repeat it?"

"Sure. But I... God, everyone was right all along. I'm a failure, a fuckup. Just like my dad. A good-for-nothing waste of space. I haven't even told Wayne, I can't stand the look in his eyes when I tell him". There are tears in Eddie's eyes and Steve's heart breaks for him.

"Fuck!" Eddie shouts across the quarry and a flock of birds takes flight somewhere in the nearby woods. He's shaking again, and this time it's not from the adrenaline. Steve can't really take away any of the things that are weighing on Eddie, but he can offer him something else.

"Do you want a blanket?"

Eddie's doe eyes blink at him slowly, as if he's not sure he heard him right.

"You're only wearing a T-shirt, you must be cold." Eddie doesn't deny it. "Let me get you a blanket, then."

Another slow blink, and then, "If you're...sure?"

Steve gives him a smile that he hopes is warm and reassuring. "I'm sure." He walks over to his BMW and takes the nail bat with him, exchanging it for the blanket that he keeps in the trunk of his car at all times. Tommy H. calls it the "baby maker blanket," which is so typical of Tommy that Steve wonders why he was hanging out with him at all. Maybe because he was a friend to Steve when no one else would be.

But maybe he won't tell Eddie about the blanket's history. Anyway, it's freshly washed and smells only of his detergent.

Handing it to the boy, Steve says, "There you go," before turning to walk back to his car.

"Where are you going?"

When Steve turns back, Eddie is sitting on the ground with the blanket around his shoulder, one end held open as if inviting Steve to join him.

"Back home?" It's not supposed to sound like a question, but some of his reluctance to leave seeps into it anyway. He doesn't want to go home to his empty house and bed, afraid to close his eyes in case the nightmares come back.

"Look, you don't have to, of course, but if you want, you can stay and tell me what brought you here in the middle of the night. Or not. We could just sit here in silence, totally fine with me."

Steve snorts, because even though this is the first time he's had a conversation with Eddie, he can already tell that silence doesn't come easy to him.

"If you're sure," he repeats Eddie's words back to him as he makes his way over to him.

"I'm sure," Eddie says firmly, wrapping the blanket around Steve as soon as he sits down next to him.

Many things surprised Steve that night, but most of all how comfortable the silence between him and Eddie had felt as they watched the stars until they gave way to the rising sun.

They never talked about that night again, the polite nods in the halls all the acknowledgment they allowed for what had happened.

But when Steve walks across the stage to receive his diploma in 1985, he notices Eddie's absence and his heart aches for him. He had been looking forward to seeing Eddie walk across the stage next to him, to give him a smile, a wink. Maybe even ask him out for a celebratory beer, if he's being completely honest with himself.

The sad truth is: Steve had no one to spend his graduation with, no girlfriend, no friends, just a 13-year-old know-it-all whose bedtime didn't really allow for any kind of grown-up celebration. Eddie was his only hope of not being alone tonight.

That's probably why he's heading out to the quarry again that night, bat and blanket in tow.

It's a shot in the dark, and at the same time it's not. Because there Eddie is, sitting on the edge again, small and defeated, and just as alone as Steve. Without a word, Steve joins him on the ground and wraps the blanket around them both.

"I'm sorry."

Eddie's warm weight settles against him. "Me too." Silence falls between them, and Steve thinks that's all they'll say, but then Eddie nudges his shoulder with his own and says, "I'm sorry, too. About Wheeler."

"Me too."

Steve thinks that even if he's not a poet, there's something symbolic in the way they both watch the sun rise again over the quarry.

The next time he wrapped the blanket around Eddie, it was again in the middle of the night. Only this time, Eddie is unconscious in the back of his car while Steve races to the hospital, praying to any God who will listen that this will not be the last time.

It isn't. Not by a long shot. Getting the blood out is not easy, but with Joyce's help he manages. The blanket is there when physical therapy is especially grueling, when they both sit on the porch of Eddie's new trailer, Steve holding Eddie under the blanket's protective cover.

It's there when Steve moves in with the Munsons and gets a special place on Eddie's bed, though they never make love on it. The blood was hard enough to get out, and the material doesn't look like it can take much more deep cleaning.

They take it with them when they move to their apartment in Chicago, and it's there for every bad day either of them has.

Their blanket finds its final purpose, however, with the arrival of their daughter, April. From the day their little bundle of joy moves in with them, she sleeps wrapped in the foundation of Steve and Eddie's love.

Steve may not be a poet, that's Eddie's job, but he appreciates the symbolism all the same.

[solwhynot]

Hello tumblr, i give you this Stranger Things x Percy Jackson Au because i love both and with the show coming out i had to finally draw it

After the thingy there will be my headcanons/how i imagine the Au plus some closeups ^^

So i separrated the seasons as years, yes i did it so every season gets its own bead (also will make it easier to navigate the timeline lol) For now just byler in this au, but if y'all like it i'll talk more about it, so, ekhem:

• In this Au both Wheelers and Byers still live in Hawkins, i wanted to highlight that these two have been friends longer than others and overall just spent more time together (Yes, this will make the California move way more painfull than if they had never lived close, yes i do love my angst)

• Both Will and Jonathan are sons of Poseidon (it just makes sense to me idk why, i will not elaborate further rn)

•Mike and Nancy are actually children of Nike (You can't look me straight in the eyes and tell me that Karen had never been with a woman) but because its the 80s and PJO plot is like semi canon in this Au, the minor gods still weren't claiming their children, and both of them will stay unclaimed until i feel like writing an arc. But it will 100% give them a feeling like they're lesser than others and the need to prove themselves. Which i feel like is pretty close to the way they act in the canon

•In the Au The Upside Down is just Tartarus, so yeah, basically hell

•The story itself is similiar (almost the same) as the show just happening in the PJO universe

•Since Mike is unclaimed and has to sleep in the Hermes Cabin (for context Steve, Carol and Tommy are all kids of Hermes, so its kind of a nightmare to stay there, especially in the first few years) he often sneaks into the Poseidon Cabin and has sleepovers with Will

• '83 is actually their second or third (i didn't think this through yet ) year at camp, cause thats when they meet El, and the Party knows each other for some time now

•Hopper is a horse ( a centaur technically but it sounds funnier), this has nothing to do with Byler but i just find that really funny

After all that reading have some nice closeups as a reward

Also prepare yourselves for absolutely horrendous low quallity horses

[findafight]

Just wanted to let you know that I have not been able to stop thinking about your Steve/Barb au it's so good!! and so interesting to think about how that would change things!! Idk rare pairs are so fun to think about!

Forgive me if this is not where you were going with this but I'm thinking about Barb surviving the demogorgons attack because she's not in the pool with a cut hand. Barb doesn't know where she is or what happened to her, but she's scared and she knows that /something/ is hunting her. Everything smells like rot and decay and all she's focused on is survival. Her glasses are broken and gone, and she's sprained an ankle, but she's alive. Steve's sweatshirt is warm and still smells like him. It's a comfort, she thinks, as she runs and hides in the woods behind Steve's house.

Topside Steve is getting sucked into the Upside down stuff way earlier because his sort of (they haven't made it official yet) girlfriend is missing after leaving his house and she wouldn't just dissapear like that. And he's scared but he has to do /something/.

After some time in the Upside Down, God knows how long, Barb hears something. And it doesn't sound like the monster that's hunting her. So she stays silent, grabs hold of a stick or something to make herself feel safer, and peeks. And it's a boy. Alive. Human. Trapped just like her. And then for a while it's her and Will Byers, growing weaker and trying so hard to stay alive and let people know they're there.

Eventually, they get out. And she's sick and barely holding on and traumatized but she's alive and in the hospital recovering. As soon as Steve's allowed to see her he's there. He's bought flowers and a fluffy teddy bear. He calls her Barbie because he knows she'll roll her eyes fondly at him. He kisses her forehead and holds her hand.

Sorry this isn't more coherent I'm just !!!!!! Thoughts!!!!!

Are you in my brain?? Because exactly. (I have been holding on to "steve is the only one allowed to call her barbie" for way too long. not even romantically just in "barb lives au" they deserve to be annoying friends to each other haha) In the show Barb almost got away, and possibly would have it weren't for the fact she was in the pool, so I don't think it's too far of a stretch for us to say she survives in this au (there is a version where she dies and it's just. Angst. But that's not this one!)

I think the potential for Nancy to suspect Steve of doing something (even when it was Jonathan who is officially the last person to see her) would lead her to Jonathan. Similar to the show, she sort of just...brushes off the creepy pictures (it's both easier and hard for her here because it's not her in the pictures so who cares...but it's Barb [and Steve] so she cares very much, actually) and they go monster hunting without Steve and see the deer and Nancy gets pulled in through the tree etc.

Steve, who's definitely freaking out that is (basically) girlfriend is missing and her best friend is mad at him and won't talk to him, uses his ninja skills to check on her to see if she's okay, and sees her with Jonathan. Nancy isn't his girlfriend so the only thing he's mad about is her hanging out with the perv who took pictures of him and Barb and specifically a picture of her almost in her car which they know she never got into. So he knocks on the window and they jump but let him in. And that's how Steve gets into monster hunting. (idk if Tommy and Carol also join...maybe Steve waves them off through the window, maybe he gestures for them to come to...idk. much to think about. Maybe they don't join the upside down gang but they remain friends with Steve and know Something Happened, but he can't tell them what)

blah blah blah it all basically goes the same except because no cheating allegations there's no graffiti or fight, Steve 100% gives a backhanded apology for breaking Jon's camera "Hey, man. I shouldn't have broken your camera like that even if you deserved it..." or something. The trio fight the demogrogon, even if Steve is a bit, ah, weary of leaving a bunch of twelve-year-olds who have proven that they don't listen to grown ups when they say to leave well enough alone even for their own safety...but leave them he does. Fight an interdimensional monster with a nailbat he does. Dies, he doesn't.

Meanwhile, now that our girl Barb has survived he initial confrontation with the monster with no face, she's wandering, hiding, around the woods behind Steve's house except...it's not actually Steve's house. It's some twisted up version, and it's dark and creepy and oh so scary. Her glasses are cracked through one lens but it's better than not being able to see at all or not feel the comforting weight on her nose, and Steve's sweatshirt is big, comfy, and smells like him. She holds onto these tiny bits of home as she tries to figure out how to get out of...wherever she is.

At some point, she hears shuffling in the woods, but not from the monster. It's definitely smaller, and...there's a voice. Singing. She walks over quietly, and says "hi". the little boy jumps and stares, wide-eyed. They stick together, she holds him close.

When all is said and done, she and Will end up sharing a hospital room, due to Upside Down convenience. She;s older and wasn't in it for as long, but she's still weak. Her parents are besides themselves, having been told it was a gas leak that led her to be disoriented and lost in the woods, only by grace of god did she find and help Will.

Steve is behind them, with scratches on his face and a haunted look in his eye, but he smiles a little, and wiggles his fingers at her. She wiggles hers back. Her parents shuffle around, and leave the room to talk to the doctor. He sits beside her and reaches out to gently fiddle with her fingers.

"Hey," she says.

His voice is soft, when he responds, "hey," and doesn't take his eyes off her face.

She squeezes his fingers a bit. "heard you fought an interdimensional monster with, like, a lot of teeth for me."

He shrugs, squeezes back. "also to get Will Byers back."

"He's a good kid." she flicks her eyes to where little Will is being smothered by his gaggle of friends who nearly died trying to get him back.

Steve blinks rapidly, and tucks his chin to his chest. "I was so worried, Barbie." the nickname usually annoys Barb, too baby-ish, too connected to the doll, too...a lot of things. But Steve says it like it's precious, like she's precious, and she thinks letting her boyfriend (because that's what he is, isn't he? What's a boy you kiss and who would fight monsters to find you?) can call her Barbie.

"I'm back. I'm okay now."

"Yeah. But. Christ, things could have gone so much worse." He pinches the bridge of his nose, squeezes his eyes shut.

"Hey." she rubs the back of his hand with her thumb. "Hey. It didn't though. The government goons will be on us, sure. But Will is safe. I'm safe. All those kids and Nancy and Jonathan are safe. You're safe. Okay? And, when I get out of here, you're taking me out for burgers and milkshakes."

He smiles, actually smiles all squinty-eyed and toothy, "Yeah. okay. It's a date."

"Yeah, it is. I've got high expectations, Harrington. Killing a monster for a girl really sets the bar high, you know."

He laughs, and presses a kiss to her cheek, smiling.

(later, he tells her everything that happened on the rightside up, and she tells Jonathan to burn the negatives and that her boyfriend has a nailbat he's pretty good with, so he better not try to trick her...)

and idk. i think they're cute. They bicker, and Steve chooses topics just to rile her up so she'll roll her eyes at him but then explain why exactly he's wrong in step-by-step detail, and he also scoops her up and twirls her around and kisses her in the halls. they're gross and in love. In s2, i think Nancy still wants to expose the lab (other people did die, those hunters? what happened to them?) and both steve and barb are like "they will kill us" (pragmatic duo) so that's why they both go to nancy's to try to talk to her about it, which is how dustin kidnaps them, etc.

s3 we get scoops troop except robin is just tallying how many times Steve sighs dreamily until his gf comes by and he turns into a golden retriever and robin is like. ew. straight people (they are not, actually. I have a coming out scene between starb (seriously i need to figure out a ship name for them haha) that involves barb telling steve she once had a crush on nancy and steve's like yes obviously everybody has crushes on their best friend of the same gender you just don't do anything about it...like buddy...do i have news for you...bi4bi starbara) anyways the five of them get stuck in the elevator, stobin still hold the door, get tortured, etc, but this time dustin and erica have Angry Protective GF on their side. They get out, steve and robin have bathroom confessionals, which involves robin asking if steve's ever been in love and then immediately realizing he's going to wax poetic about Barb and steve also being like "i wanna be your best friend sooo bad barb said i maybe have a crush on you but i don't i wanna be like, the best man at your wedding, y'know? you're so fun and make me laugh and I want you and Barb to get along because I love Barbie and omg you could be my kids' auntieeee..." and robin tells him that he doesn't know her, and if he did he wouldn't want her around any of his hypothetical future children, tells him about tammy, and they sing total eclipse of the heart when dustin erica and barb bust in, and steve is like "barbie, honey pie, robin is gonna be our kids' godmother." as though that makes any sense. everyone else is like ????

idk i just like monster fighting power couple barb/steve a lot i think theyre neat.

[strangerwheelerthings]

Just saw an ask about Nancy’s lack of social behaviors that inspired some thoughts. I didn't want to intrude on them with my disagreements. They make a couple of reasonable points, but I believe they're missing some aspects of Nancy’s personality to interpret them. Obviously, some of this comes down to personal interpretation, but this is my understanding of Nancy Wheeler.

Addressing their points: Canonically, Nancy isn't a social person. She didn't reach out to Robin at all in the year after Starcourt Mall. The only people we see her regularly hanging out with, after Barb's death, is whoever her current boyfriend is. These are all facts. I personally feel her questioning Robin's presence in season 3 was less a 'I have absolutely zero idea who you are' reaction, and more of a 'why the heck is this new person helping us fight a monster and making comments, since when?' type reaction. This is up for interpretation though, so I won't argue that point.

However, Nancy’s lack of social life is not an indicator of a lack of desire for friendship. Nancy struggles with opening up to people. She finds emotional vulnerability and genuine connection both difficult and terrifying. We see this aversion present itself in her relationship with Mike, as well as signs of it presenting in her dysfunctional family. 

Barb was her only real friend in the beginning of the show. We see her change herself, to try to conform to Steve's group, but even then she is very distant from everyone but Steve and Barb. She relied on previous bonds in a social situation, and made no attempts to create new ones. Granted, Tommy and Carol weren’t people she cared to be friends with. However, this seems to be a pattern of behavior, as indicated by her social situations throughout the show. Another example is the party in season two, when she got drunk and only actually talked to Steve.

Nancy stays inside a social comfort zone. She is not outgoing without a purpose. She’s good at listening, but she doesn’t talk to people without an external reason, such as a story. What some people may forget, is that once Nancy is comfortable with someone, many of those barriers go away. She actually stays quite close to people she likes and feels comfortable with, especially in a distressing situation. She made Barb come to the party for this exact reason. 

The Upside Down dangers created the perfect situations to create deep bonds with Steve and Jonathan. They were forced into situations that lowered guards and allowed them to be genuine with each other. There’s a reason she ended up dating both of them, and essentially relying on them for connection over the years. It wasn’t just trauma bonding, but also that barrier free connection. 

Jonathan was the one to distance himself from Nancy in between season one and two. We see Nancy still reaching out at the beginning of season two. He had been placed in the comfortable zone, and as such, she was quite social with him, despite not dating yet. She ends up distanced from Steve because ex status took him out of that zone, alongside lack of communication in their relationship and the inability to be emotionally vulnerable with him. 

Then we go into post-season three territory. Nancy and Robin don’t talk after Starcourt. Why would they? The two saw each other in a dangerous situation, but they never actually connected. There was no bond, and I highly doubt that Robin took the initiative to attempt to develop one afterwards. Steve started dating Nancy because he put persistent effort into showing his interest. She’s not exactly the type to reach out first. Once within the trust and comfort zone, then yeah, she will initiate contact with a person, but she struggles before then. 

As for people outside of the Hawkins Gang, alongside her natural social aversion, there’s also the barrier of being unable to be completely honest with them. This is a major thing for Nancy, who likely values genuine friendships, and has little respect for superficial ones. This, alongside the trauma surrounding Barb, hinders her quite a lot.

After Jonathan moves away, Nancy is left relatively alone. She has working relationships with people in the newspaper, but not much beyond that. Perhaps there was the possibility of a friendship developing over time with Fred, but that was cut short. Even then, once again, the person she’s closest to got there because they were placed in a situation where she had an external reason to initiate contact.

Does that mean she doesn’t really care to make any more friends aside from Jonathan? Turn now to the famous line: "Does that make us friends? As in, officially?"  

Look at that smile, and try to tell me that she isn't ecstatic to have Robin confirm their new relationship.

This girl desperately wants a friend. She just doesn’t know how to make one. Looking just at that scene, Nancy is visibly nervous. She doesn’t say anything until Robin drops the friend-word, and then she feels the need to confirm it with her. She wanted it so badly, and was so relieved when Robin revealed that she felt the same way. This wasn’t a little thing to her.

How do they even get to that point in season four? First, Robin puts herself in Nancy’s orbit, despite Nancy’s discomfort. People have a tendency to discount her ideas and not listen to her. She was an unknown variable in a stressful situation. However, the situation allowed them to really talk and the start of a connection was created. Robin had listened to her, and had validated her theory. 

Nancy was starting to like her.

What did she do next? Take advantage of the situation they were in, to sneakily attempt to grow closer. It wasn’t just the fact that Robin was competent and Nancy respected her after the library, but because she wanted to spend time with her. There were plenty of options within the group of competent people, yet Nancy repeatedly singled Robin out. Nancy was trying to become friends.

I say take advantage of it though, because it is a lot less stressful to initiate conversations with someone if you have an excuse. ('They were in a dangerous situation, it wasn't about wanting to be her friend, whaaatt.' Lies.) Suddenly a lot of the normal social pressure and anxiety around initiating contact is decreased. And look at what Nancy does in that scenario, she immediately reaches out. 

Give her a reason, or a purpose, and she can go up and talk to anyone about anything. Take that away, and she gets too stressed or anxious to be the first. 

Anyway, to sum up, Nancy sticks to people she’s comfortable with. Robin, and maybe Steve depending on how the romance is handled, have managed to maneuver themselves into her comfort zone by the end of season four. She has confirmed friendship with Robin, and as previously established, once Nancy likes you, she is social. She will reach out to you, and spend time with you. 

Outside of danger, she likely takes a while to trust people, so anyone who wants to join in the hangouts would need to be willing to put in some effort and be patient with her, but it isn't impossible. She wouldn’t avoid them, just stick close to comfort people.

She's not completely anti-social. Nancy is an introvert who struggles to trust, but once you have that trust, she is a reliable friend.

[kurokoros]

One fundamental writing flaw with S4 is that it simply holds the viewers hand too much and overexplains things. Which is total normal for an early draft of a written project! In early drafts you tend to overwrite and give information that isn't needed simply because you're putting all of the pieces together in your head at the same time you're putting them into the story. The Duffers clearly had more time to revise S1 than they did S4, and it shows in the sloppy writing and too long runtime.

Take, for example, S1E08: The Upside Down in comparison to S4E06: The Dive and S4E07: The Massacre at Hawkins Lab. Specifically, take the scenes paralleling Steve going back into the house to save Nancy and Jonathan in comparison to Nancy, Robin, and Eddie going into the Upside Down to save Steve.

To be clear, I think this was a fantastic parallel made by the Duffers (Steve is being mauled by bats when a bat is what he used to save Nancy and Jonathan. It's clever, if a little on the nose). They're very good at paralleling previous events and calling back to their own plot points. In general, as the show has gone on, I think they're much better at over-arching ideas and thematic parallels than they are at crafting individual scenes, but that's a different post.

S1E08: The Upside Down is very snappy when it comes to Steve going back into the house. He runs outside. He fumbles with his keys. And then he turns back to the house and:

There's no dialogue here. We don't need anything more than this shot to know that Steve is going to go back into the house. Joe Keery's acting and prior setup do all of the heavy lifting here. The last we saw of Steve before he came to the Byers' to apologize to Jonathan is him arguing with Tommy H and Carol, which ends with Tommy H telling Steve to "run away like [he] always [does]." Steve has to go back into the house. The narrative tells us as much. This single shot tells us that it isn't up for debate. It isn't even really a choice. Steve is going back into the house.

And it's not a surprise when less than a minute later Steve saves Nancy and Jonathan . We don't need to actually see him run back towards the house, or pick up the bat. He doesn't need to say anything to announce his presence. The scene doesn't need to halt to dramatically reveal that Steve came back.

S4E06: The Dive and S4E07: The Massacre at Hawkins Lab have the same general premise of characters making a choice to put themselves in danger to save someone else. Unlike the scene in S1, this scene is overdramatic, played with an edge of comedy, and it gives us too much information.

Steve is dragged underwater and then--we get about almost a minute worth of clips showing Nancy, Robin, and Eddie all jumping into the water. And it's all filled with characters yelling about what just happened, and quippy dialogue ("She said wait!" "Yeah, I heard her." "She's in charge!" "Are you kidding me? I made that shit up." / "[indistinct swearing] This is so stupid!") as each character dramatically dives into the lake one by one.

We don't need this information. We already know that Nancy and Robin are going to jump into the lake. We know that Eddie is going to jump into the lake because they put him on the boat in the first place, and if he was really a coward he would have stayed on shore with the kids.

It's Chekhov's gun logic in both scenes. Steve is told to "run away like [he] always [does]" and we, the audience, know he won't run away despite being given the chance. Eddie gets on the boat to go towards the potential danger and we, the audience, know he isn't going to be the only one that doesn't jump into the water to save Steve. We don't need to be explicitly told this. This is almost a minute worth of scenes that we don't need. We don't need to see Nancy, Robin, and Eddie jumping into the lake, just like we didn't need to see Steve run back into the house and pick up the bat.

What's even more pointless to me is the dramatic entrance the Nancy, Robin, and Eddie make upon saving Steve:

One of the bats it hit and goes flying, and then the camera does a slow pan up Nancy, with Robin and Eddie standing behind her just waiting for the directing cue for them to do something, but first Nancy needs to drop a one liner ("Hey there."). I was going to try and gif Steve coming back to save Jonathan and Nancy for a comparison to this shot, but I couldn't. Because when Steve goes back into the house it's fast paced, there's no pointless dramatic pauses, and the scene is simply too chaotic to actually clip anything halfway decent. And that's good! That's how you make an action scene have weight and realism (and yes, you do need a degree of realism in shows, even if those shows are about sci-fi monsters).

And the problem with S4 is that every single scene is like this. The writing holds your hand through every shot. The directing is lacking. Every scene feels like it's 30 seconds to a minute too long. And the show feels like it's trying to be a Marvel movie, rather than Stranger Things.

[onstrangerthighs]

👑 After Billy encounters a demodog while on his way to pick up Max from a sleepover, Steve takes a walk to Cherry Lane with a flashlight to check on him, and it soon becomes an unintentional routine. Billy has yet to call him out on it, so Steve isn't sure if he knows (he does). Steve doesn't know how to bring up what he's seen through Billy's window. He's starting to understand what Billy meant when he said that he's no stranger to monsters. He also starts leaving a light on in his house to let Billy know he's always welcome. Steve may be facing a different kind of monster, but they're all the same in the end. They thrive in the dark and prey on the lonely. Billy won't be lonely anymore; he'll make sure of it.

📸Jonathan sees the bruises that Billy's jacket can't hide. He follows Billy whenever he can, like a friendly shadow. If Billy notices, he doesn't say anything. He does, however, walk around with a small smile and a pep in his step. He's a walking masterpiece that sticks out from the drab background plaguing everyone else in Hawkins.

🤝No one understands Billy better than Patrick and Jonathan when it comes to his life at Cherry Lane. They just get it. Patrick has a curfew, so he can't stay up late, and both Jonathan and Billy have work, but they find a way to meet up whenever they can. Patrick and Billy are partners in lab and in pranks. Patrick calls Neil regularly, pretending to be a scorned ex-lover. Billy calls Patrick Senior at his job (accountant) just to annoy him. They're also on the basketball team together. Patrick secretly enjoys watching Billy get under Jason's skin. Jonathan occasionally stops by to watch them. Billy asks him if he wants to join the team. Jonathan looks at he and Patrick, all sweaty, and goes right back to his sketchbook.

📔Nancy meets Billy at the library every night at a certain time, so if he doesn't show then she'll know something is wrong. She also gives him Murray's address just in case he needs a place to go. She and Billy have a book club with Patrick and Eden, where they suggest different books to read every Wednesday. Sometimes they read to the little kids.

📢Heather covers for Billy at work if he can't come in. She'll stay with him at the pool after closing times. She helps him with his injuries and doesn't ask questions. When he's ready to talk, she'll be there. She switches shifts with him so he won't have to deal with Karen and the other creepy mothers.

🍍Argyle is always up for talking with Billy. Most of the time, it's just Argyle going on about the first thing that pops into his head. Billy chimes in whenever he feels like it. Argyle always has a story about annoying customers, and of course, everything is funnier when they're both high as hell.

🫧Carol lets Billy borrow her makeup. She takes him to the mall and they try on clothes together. Sometimes, they sit in his car, and she tells him he can let it all out.

🥋Tommy takes him to their favorite diner. Whenever Billy is filled with extra energy, Tommy lets him use his punching bag. They watch cartoons and throw chips at each other.

📣Chrissy fixes his hair into braids and ponytails. Billy reminds her that Neil doesn't like that, and she replies, "You want it. Do you really care what he wants? I don't." If he wants a hug, then she's more than happy to give him one (or three). Chrissy is also kind of a cuddle bug, and Billy is her favorite person to cuddle with because he's warm. They both talk shit about their parents. "Neil's mustache looks fake," or "Are you sure your mother's hair isn't a dead skunk?".

She drives Billy to her safe place, a hill under the stars. She says they can share it. She tries teaching him cheer routines and even gets out a uniform for him whenever they sneak into the gym. Patrick occasionally joins them to practice his free throws.

🍨Robin lets Billy into Scoops Ahoy, and they eat ice cream. They talk about crushes. They have inside jokes about their fellow classmates. Sometimes, Robin brings alcohol from her mother's stash and puts some in the ice cream for them to enjoy.

[stranger-rants]

I know they wrote him apologizing for the following and that he did better, but Steve brushing off Nancy's, his then and still girlfriend's grief, trauma and guilt over Barb's death in S2, as he told her to pretend things were good - as much as i can get it was his own coping skill, him in S1 allowing Tommy, Carol and Vicky to spray paint his then girlfriend's name with the word 'slut', in one of the most degrading and demeaning ways to exist, just because they all thought and assumed she slept with Jonathan, canonically setting a false acussation about both of them, is also horrible, unfair and fucked up.

While i don't care about Nancy and i can get critical of her flaws, i personally think that also needs to be brought more often when it comes to this when talking about her. Which it rarely happens.

I've talked about this quite often, actually...

This whole thing gets messy because it becomes a matter of keeping score rather than understanding the flaws in either character - and I have certainly talked about Steve's flaws, especially the slut shaming.

I have little interest in having this discussion right now, though, as it's just snowballing now from a very simple observation - the Nancy fans who made and participated in that specific "which teen is straight" poll can't comprehend anyone thinking Nancy is straight.

From there, I mentioned choices made in the narrative that would lead on to believe that. I also, in a separate post, dragged Steve a little bit because people put him on a pedestal as a queer character or ally... but he wasn't... while denying the kind of queerphobic violence Billy canonically faced.

Now, it just feels like people are using my ask box to argue over who was right or wrong in Steve and Nancy's relationship. I don't care, personally. I think they're both stupid teenagers who said and did harmful things to one another and I wish that people could be normal about that.

I don't disagree with what you're saying... I just fail to see the point in this back and forth right now as that had nothing to do with why I was criticizing Nancy's characterization to begin with. The plot here has been lost.

"How could anyone think Nancy is straight?" became Nancy spends most of her screentime flip flopping between guys while her female friendships suffer became What do I think about the whole Nancy and Barb situation became Nancy is/is not guilty of killing Barb and it is/isn't fair to bring Steve into that now becomes Who Is The Real Bad Guy In Their Relationship... which I'm sure someone else is gonna have an opinion on.

I simply don't care about all that. They're stupid teenagers and their relationship sucked. End of.

[starlightshadowsworld]

I know that Steve loses his crown but I love playing with the concept that he doesn't.

That King Steve doesn't fall despite fundamentally changing.

If anything Steve becomes more likable.

A nerd walks into him and drops his books and is frantically apologising.

Steve simply kneels down, picks the books up and and hands em over to the dumbfounded kid.

He walks away before they can get a word out.

Steve continues to hang around with Nancy but he also bumps shoulders with Jonathan.

He pulls silly poses for photos and is seen listening intently when the other rambles.

He's completely lost but there's not a shred of annoyance on his face.

Steve remains on the swim and basketball teams, he brings snacks and give tips to those struggling.

Even offering to practice with them before games/ swim meets if they want.

They improve and are suprised when he doesn't ask for anything in return.

A game finishes late and Steve offers to drive some of the girls back. Nancy always goes with him when he does.

It becomes a routine.

He doesn't throw parties anymore but he's let kids who've partied to hard to crash in his guest room.

He once practically dragged one of his team mates back with him, hand on hip insisting they couldn't be in school in this state.

And Steve doesn't care for his popularity. He's doing these things because they feel right to him.

He wants to change, to be better than he was and he is.

And than Billy shows up to take his crown.

With Tommy and Carol backing him.

Steve doesn't pay him any mind, he doesn't care about his so called crown.

So Billy's basically won.

Except he hasn't.

Because everyone follows Steve's lead.

This is Steve Harrington, this is the guy who broke Jonathan Byers's camera and got his ass handed him.

The same guy who Jonathan has clearly forgiven and are more often than not arguing over top 40 hits in the cafeteria.

Nancy dumped him and she's still a close and good friend of his.

This is Steve who applauds when Eddie's making his lunch time call outs.

Getting a thrilled dramatic bow from the self appointed jester.

The guy who is seen time after time herding middle schoolers around like a stressed out mother of 7.

If Steve is looking at the new guy with contempt, rolling his eyes in an effort to look unbothered but is clearly holding back rage.

... Yeah everyone takes a hard left on that one.

And they're proven right.

Billy may act charismatic but he's an absolute asshole to anyone who he views a beneath him.

And anyone on the basketball team can tell you he plays dirty.

And he absolutely has it out for Steve.

Pushing him down, knocking him into his locker.

But through it all Steve doesn't fight back.

He gets bitchy about it but he never takes the bait.

And stops anyone else from trying to get between them.

Eddie once was snout to deliver the absolute verbal equivalent of a throat punch to Billy on his lunch time rants after the guy started talking shit to Steve.

Steve made eye contact with him and shook his head, eyes pleading Eddie not to.

Eddie made a show of huffing, he tried not to worry about the sheer relief on Steve's face.

It all goes to shit when Steve ends up stumbling into school one morning.

Looking beat to hell and back.

And with Jonathan shooting him worried looks, everyone knows it wasn't a round 2 between them.

Nancy looks pissed which is absolutely terrifying.

No one puts the pieces together until Billy trips Steve over in the hall.

"You forgot to plant your feet, amigo."

He walks off with a smirk.

But Steve doesn't get up.

Jonathan drops to his knees, beside him. "Steve? Steve! Hey, hey you good with me bud." Lightly shaking him.

Nancy was right behind him, getting a pen torch from her bag. "Did he hit his head again...."

Both exchanged worry looks.

"Ugh..." Said Steve, shutting his eyes at the bright light.

"Steve" said Nancy, relieved. Jonathan sighing softly.

"Nance... Jonathan?..." Asked Steve, squinting at them. "Why am I on the floor?"

"Billy tripped you, you fell." Explained Jonathan.

"I did? Why am I on the floor?" His confusion was worrying them and the small crowd around them.

"Yeah... I'll get the nurse.." Said Eddie, speed walking away.

"Steve you have a concussion, why did you come here today?" Asked Nancy, confused. Steve hummed for a few months, snapping his fingers when it figuratively hit him.

"Didn't wanna miss the debate teams match." He said with a nod, before frowning in pain.

"Wait... What?" Asked one of the members, who was also part of the basketball team.

"Yeah, yeah Gavin looked nervous so I wanted to come and see him. I was gonna bake cookies but than, Billy kicked my arse and the egg broke." He added.

"The egg?" Asked Jonathan, completely lost.

"The egg, when you have that project to keep the egg safe and not break it. It's me, I'm the egg." Replied Steve, sagely even though no one knew what he was on about.

Except Robin who snorted.

"Oh man you are such a dingus."

Eddie returns, Agnes the 80 something nurse takes one look at Steve and sighs, hands on hips.

"Harrington."

Steve eeps, trying to hide behind Nancy who is both amused and concerned.

"She's going to kill me Nance."

"Harrington, I'm not going to kill you get to my office now."

"She is, she said if I end up there one more time in dead. I'm already a broken egg, I can't be dead I'll miss debate."

Gavin, touched kneels beside Steve "its okay, hey the sooner you go the sooner you your back?"

Steve considers this and allows Jonathan and Nancy too lead him away without another word.

Billy didnt get in trouble as none of the teachers saw what happened but a couple days later, he was storming out of gym holding his shampoo.

And his blonde mane was bright pink.

Shame no one saw who do it and no one got caught.

And if they rescheduled the debate match and Steve was sat watching in the front row, no one mentioned it.

[ihni]

Tagged by @ratbastardbilly (a WHILE ago; thank you!)

Note before we start: a few questions below are about ships, and if there's one thing you need to know about me is that I'm not in it for the SHIP, I'm in it for the CHARACTER. And that character is Billy Hargrove.

1.ride or die ship (your otp): Harringrove

2. most annoying ship: Depends on how they're framed, honestly. Any ship can be annoying when done right (or wrong).

3. second favourite ship: Idk, probably like Mungrove or Harringroveson?

4. favourite platonic relationship: I want Billy to have ALL the friends, so put him with just about ANYONE as a friend and I'm a happy gal (Steve, Jonathan, Eddie, Chrissy, Robin, Nancy, Patrick, Tommy, Carol ... just give the guy some friends!)

5. underrated ship: Bob and Benny. Come on, imagine Hop's reaction, it would be glorious.

6. overrated ship: I don't know, because I don't read or look at ships that don't interest me. (But I imagine any that involve Mike Wheeler. Whoever he is shipped with probably deserves better.)

7. one thing i would change in canon: ONE thing only? Okay: Billy lives. But like, I can fill a book with the things I would change in canon.

8. something canon did right: Season 1 in general, Robin's coming-out scene in season 3, most of the soundtrack.

9. a thing i'm proud of creating for the fandom PLEASE BRAG ABOUT YOURSELF I WANT TO SEE/READ YOUR ART: I sometimes doodle? And I sometimes write? And I'm pretty happy about doing both of those things actually. (Also one time I did cookie doodles which was fun and should be a thing)

10. a character who is perfect to me (wouldn't change a thing): Mr Clarke. Underrated, knowledgeable, cool Mr Clarke. They should bring him into things. Dude has unknowingly provided them with vital information for several seasons.

11. the character i relate to the most and why: ... probably Mr Clarke, too? No fashion sense, good taste in music, weird special interests, creative/likes fiddling with little creative things that takes time, good at one's job, supportive, happy to explain things and rolling with weird questions, and also happily not involved in any drama.

12. character(-s) i hate the most and why: Neil Hargrove (should have gotten what was coming for him, and luckily he WILL). Brenner (should have died for real that first time around). And I might not hate them, but I dislike several Wheelers (Karen bc of the whole flirting-with-Billy thing, Nancy because of the holier-than-thou attitude, Mike because of his general existence). Am also not too fond of Hopper in season 3. He was an asshole there, and I felt nothing for his supposed "death". Also, since Billy's my favorite, I must admit that I have lost respect for most of the supposed "heroes" of the show since they showed themselves so unwilling to try to save Billy.

13. something i've learned from the fandom: One doesn't have to create stuff to be in fandom. Someone's gotta be the audience, too. (And I'm very good at being the audience, because I love everyone's stuff.)

14. three tags i seek out on ao3: Billy Hargrove, hurt/comfort, Realizations

15. a song i strongly associate with my otp/favourite character: Jaymes Young - I'll be good ... K.Flay - Blood in the cut ... Troye Sivan - Talk me down ... Queen - Good old-fashioned lover boy ... among others ...

Tagging: @weird-an @callieb @cherrydreamer @billyharringson @lazybakerart @missroserose @disdaidal @dragonflylady77

[inklessletter]

Can we please talk for a second about Steve's trauma? It's heartbreaking that in the show he only mentions that losing Nance was what made him "crawl forward", when he's been through SO MUCH.

We don't know much about his upbringing, but we do know that in s01 his only two friends were Tommy an Carol, and he spends the whole season cleaning up their messes and trying to be the better version of himself, and no matter what he does after that, he is still reminded by absolutely everyone season after season how much of an asshole he was in highschool... And he never even argues that. He never defends himself, he never even try to justify his actions, although he had a pretty strong reason to snap at Jonathan after he found out about the naked Nancy pictures, for example. He goes along with whatever shitty opinion his friends have about him, and they have no problem whatsoever expressing them. Robin's way of expressing her affection is calling him dingus, Dustin keeps treating him like an idiot, Nancy had the nerve to be annoyed when he dared to be hurt the morning after the awful break up. And it makes sense that he internalised that, that his emotions and his trauma are worthless. That way of belittling him constantly by his loved ones must be... dehumanizing.

And that's not even the worst part. A girl died in his backyard and he's not allowed to be affected by that, because that's Nancy's trauma, not his. He gets brutally beaten to the pulp by Billy to protect Lucas and Max, uses himself as a fucking human bait with the demodogs, gets tortured by evil Russians and nobody (not even himself) ever mentions that again. Like, ever. All of this happens and nobody even says thank you to Steve. Nobody has a heartfelt conversation with him after. Nobody even acknowledge what he does for them in a regular basis, like driving his best friend to a school he doesn't attend to anymore, or showing for Lucas' basketball game, or risking his job by letting the kids sneak in the cinema. No, he keeps getting rewarded with shady comments and low-key insults.

Honestly? The closest to a rendition to Steve comes from Eddie in the Upside Down woods, and they're not even really friends at the moment. And it's odd, right? It must be odd hearing nice things from someone that he doesn't really know, someone he's jealous of because he's afraid that his fifteen-year-old friend is going to replace him with Eddie. Eddie, who is pulling the most vulnerable, soft expression on Steve's face that we get to see in the whole show by telling him that he's unambiguously loved. It just makes sense that he simply doesn't believe it.

So, yeah. I don't really think that Steve's trauma is only Nancy's fault. Steve's trauma has deeper, darker roots, and they all end in feeling worthless of love, because no matter how hard he tries, how much he proves that he's not that person anymore (if he ever was), how much effort he pays to fix it, to be acknowledged, he can't get rid of King Steve. Not even with his closest friends. No matter the concussions, or the dead girl in his backyard, or the many, many acts of service.

As much as I love ST characters, I truly hope that in s05 his friends get to acknowledge him somehow as for what he is at the moment, regardless of the past. I would hate to end the series thinking that Steve Harrington deserved better friends.

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

Dancing in the Moonlight

A Stedancy fanfiction based on the Breakfast Club

Nancy wasn't sure how she got detention. It was Carol who had started it. . .talking shit about Barb. Nancy had seen red, and the next thing she had known, she was beating the shit out of Carol. Carol had fought back, but somehow, she had escaped getting in trouble, running away yet again before the teachers had seen her face. Anyway, there she was, walking into the library to serve her detention on a Saturday, no less. Principal Higgins told her she should be grateful that she didn't get more time or expelled, but because of what happened with Miss Holland, they were letting her off easy.

"Asshole," she muttered under her breath.

Nancy was surprised when she saw Steve sitting at the table. His bruises were starting to fade from when Jonathan beat the shit out of him, but he also had new ones.

"Are you here to study, or is Nancy Wheeler actually in detention?" Steve asked in disbelief.

"Carol," she explained as she sat down next to him.

"Hm, Tommy," Steve said.

"Did they have a meeting to talk about who's going to take who?" Nancy asked.

"Probably. I just wanted Tommy to stop fucking with Jonathan," Steve said.

"He was messing with Jonathan?" Nancy asked.

Just as Steve was about to open his mouth to say something else, Principal Higgins came dragging Eddie Munson in. He tossed Eddie into the chair next to Steve.

"I keep telling you that she wanted me to clean her classroom so I could use it for Hellfire!" Eddie exclaimed.

"Her locked door that you tried to break into says otherwise. Now, you three are going to stay here, and you will write an essay on how sorry you are for your rotten behavior. Am I clear?" Higgins asked.

"Crystal," they said in unison, and Eddie cackled.

Higgins glared at Eddie before walking out the library door and locking the door behind him.

"Why would he bother locking the door? Didn't he catch you picking a lock?" Steve asked.

"Excellent point, King Steve," Eddie grinned.

"I hate that nickname," Steve said.

"It seems a touch better than the Hair," Eddie said.

"I mean, it's true, I do have hair, so is it really an insult?" Steve asked.

"You got me. . .okay, what is Nancy Wheeler in for?" Eddie asked. "I assume you got into a fight. . .wait, was it with each other?"

"No," Nancy said, rolling her eyes. "Carol Perkins is a bitch."

"I heard you two went a few rounds in the hallway," Eddie said. "Didn't believe it, but judging by the shiner, I guess it's true."

"It's my fault. They're pissed at me," Steve said. "And they're taking it out on both of us, on Jonathan too."

"Well, that's petty of them. You had every right to walk away," Nancy said. "They're assholes."

"I should have done it a long time ago," Steve said. "I just kept waiting for him to be the same old Tommy again, like when we were kids. Then he left me for this summer camp his dad wanted him to go to and he came back with a girlfriend. He was just this asshole. He didn't even want to cuddle anymore."

"You and Hagan cuddled?" Eddie asked.

"Yeah," Steve said. "Don't you cuddle and share the bed with your friends?"

"No," Eddie said, said looking at him oddly. "Not with my friends."

"I used to cuddle with Barb all the time," Nancy said.

"That's different," Eddie said, and then he looked at her. "Or maybe it's not."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Nancy asked.

"Boy, you two are a lot more interesting than I thought you'd be," Eddie said, flashing his dimples.

"You know, maybe we should get to work on this essay," Nancy said.

"Where's the fun in that?" He asked.

"It's not supposed to be. It's our punishment," Nancy replied.

"Please, we have plenty of time. Higgins is always busy during this time. It's the only time Higgins can fuck his secretary without his wife finding out," Eddie said.

"Bullshit," Steve scoffed. "You're making this up."

"Well, come on, I'll show you, big boy," Eddie winked. "You're welcome to come too, princess."

"No, thank you," Nancy scoffed. "And don't call me princess."

"Ah, come on, you don't want to find out if I'm right or not?" He asked. "Not even a little curious? Come on, we'll be back before you know it. They take a nap on his couch right after, and they're pretty much out for a long time."

"Here's a question: Why don't you just leave?" Steve asked.

"Where's the fun in that when I can run around the place like I own it? Plus I like to leave little presents in people's lockers," Eddie said and then paused, wincing. "Which is how I inadvertently got you together."

"What?" Nancy and Steve asked.

"Okay. So, I put a note in your locker, and I put a note in yours but turns out neither one of the lockers was the right one," Eddie said. "Instead of the people I was hoping for, you two waltzed into the library and assumed that you two were each other's secret admirers. It wasn't even supposed to be like that. These two assholes had assumed that I sold drugs, so I had to mess with them."

"Why would they assume that?" Steve asked.

"Because I'm pretty sure that my father is friends with Reefer Rick and they just assume that it's going to be in my future. . .which they're probably right," Eddie said. "I haven't gotten that desperate yet, though."

"So, you put the notes in our lockers?" Nancy asked in amusement. "I was wondering why your handwriting suddenly changed."

"I was wondering why yours changed," Steve blinked rapidly.

"And neither thought to ask each other about it," Eddie said, laughing. "Excellent detective skills. . .you should join the force."

"You know what? Let's go," Nancy scowled.

Eddie laughed after them and hurried to the locked door, pulling a bobby pin out of his hair, shaking his hair like he was doing a sexy modeling shoot. He winked at them and then stuck out his tongue as he went to unlock the door. Nancy stared at this man. She wasn't sure what to think of him. His energy was that of a puppy who might have gotten into the sugar. He was wild, and his limbs moved as if they weren't totally attached to his body. His wide brown eyes were cute and earnest with cute dimples to match. Nancy could tell that Steve liked him, too.

"Voila!" Eddie exclaimed. "Yeah, he definitely shouldn't have left me alone with you two. I'm going to corrupt you before the day is over. You two need a little spice in your relationship, anyway."

Eddie wrapped his arms around the both of them, leading them down the empty hallway.

"Yeah, we're not really together," Steve muttered.

"Aw. . .why not?" he asked. "After all that hard work that I did?"

"What work?" Nancy asked. "It was an accident."

"Yeah, I totally messed it all up," Steve shrugged.

"Is it because of what happened at the Hawk?" Eddie asked. "Yeah, everyone heard about that. Nancy the Slut Wheeler. Hey, do you want to switch nicknames because I think I might actually prefer that over freak?"

"Seriously?" she asked.

"Okay, big thing about asshole bullies is that it takes away some of their power if you laugh with them and you make them more uncomfortable than they made you. I wear the mantle of freak proudly and I actually like it," Eddie said.

"Yeah, but slut. . ." Nancy trailed.

"Is a word that misogynistic assholes made up to make women feel bad about enjoying sex as much as men do," Eddie said. "Wear it proudly, and they'll eventually realize that it can't hurt you. They're going to use it, anyway, might as well make it more uncomfortable for them, but that's your choice. . .just like you choosing to sleep with Harrie here."

"You are NOT calling me that," Steve scowled.

"Powers all in the game, baby," Eddie smirked. "It only bothers you if you let it. . .sweetheart."

"Okay, you're doing this on purpose," Steve blushed and then paused. "So. . .like, I don't think I ever had a problem with people calling me something, not like it bothered you. Jesus, maybe I should just bully myself then. . .just to make it even."

"I'll be your bully, big boy," Eddie said, squeezing his shoulder. "I'll call you all sorts of names."

"Steve, you more than made up for what happened at the Hawk," Nancy said. "You don't need to apologize for it, anymore. Besides, Tommy and Carol were the ones who spray painted those words."

"Yeah, but I didn't stop them," Steve said.

"Steve, you did so much for me and Jonathan," Nancy said softly. "You saved our lives from the . . . wild dog. It was rabid and it would have killed us."

"Damn, you did that?" Eddie asked.

"She also saved us, too," Steve said. "She's badass."

"Really?" Eddie asked.

"Yeah, I mean, she also almost took my head off," Steve said.

"Heat of the moment," Nancy said teasingly. "And you almost deserved it."

Nancy peered around Eddie, gazing at Steve with her eyes twinkling.

"Okay, you guys have to stop being so cute," he grinned. "Also, turn down this hallway and out this door. Higgins does not keep the blinds all the way closed."

Eddie turned them down the hallway and out of the door that led outside. He led them to a window with slightly opened blinds. He pushed them down and guided their eyes to the fornication that was happening in Higgins' office.

"Oh my god!" Nancy exclaimed.

"Jesus!" Steve said.

"Yeah, it's horrible, isn't it?" Eddie asked.

"Why are they doing it in that position?" Nancy asked. "It looks so uncomfortable."

"Apparently, Higgins likes it like that," he replied.

"It doesn't look like she does," Steve said. "Yeah, she's definitely faking."

"What the hell are we doing here?" Nancy asked. "We shouldn't be looking at this. . .but I can't look away."

"It's like a train wreck," he said. "Plus, someone needs to know when they fall asleep."

"But why is she letting him do that if she doesn't like it?" Nancy asked.

"It's all about power, Wheeler," Eddie said. "The thrill that she gets from this is that he's in a position of power and she's using that to make her feel special. Even more special is if she's doing something that he won't do with his wife. . .she gets off on it."

"This feels like an animal documentary," Steve said.

"Not even animals would do it like that," Eddie cackled.

"I'm sorry but I can't look at this anymore," Nancy laughed and slid down against the wall. "Tell me when it's over. Hey, would this be enough to get him fired?"

"Probably," Eddie said. "But we have no proof. I doubt anyone would believe even you."

Steve slid down next to Nancy, who smiled at him.

"This is weird," Nancy said and he laughed.

"By the way, you pay up, Wheeler, I was right!" Eddie exclaimed.

"We didn't make a bet, Munson," she said in amusement.

"Damn," he cursed. "Okay! They're done. They're now lying down. Let's go fuck shit up."

"Or we could work on the essay," Nancy said.

"You're only young once, Wheeler. How many times are you going to run around the school and cause chaos without worrying about the consequences?" Eddie asked and bent down to her level. "Live a little, Nancy."

Eddie held out his hand, and she stared at it before looking up at him.

"What can we put in Carol's locker?" Nancy asked.

"There she is," Eddie cackled as she took his head. "Come on, Harrie."

Eddie grabbed his hand and dragged them back inside. They followed him to a locker that was obviously Eddie's. It had a warning in the front: Beware all Ye Who Enter Here. He dropped their hands, popping open the locker as he winked at them.

"This guy thinks he's the Fonz," Steve said to Nancy and she laughed.

"Please, I'm nowhere near as cool," Eddie said, grinning. "Okay. . .what do you think? Fake spider or fake snake?"

"Oh, definitely go for the snake. Carol is afraid of snakes," Steve said.

"Okay, show us the way to her locker, my liege," Eddie said, bowing to Steve.

"Don't do that," Steve said, and Nancy giggled.

Steve showed Eddie Carol's locker, and they watched as Eddie figured out the combination. Nancy thought it was cute that Eddie poked his tongue out whenever he was doing something like that. Steve clearly thought so, too. Nancy enjoyed the way Steve blushed when Eddie called him by a nickname like baby or sweetheart. She wasn't sure what was going on here, but something about it felt right. Finally, Eddie got the locker open and held out the fake snake for Nancy.

"You want to do the honors, princess?" Eddie asked.

"Don't call me that," Nancy said, but there wasn't any heat behind her words.

"Alright. . .slut then," Eddie said and Nancy laughed.

"Freak," she said affectionately.

She grabbed the snake from Eddie and placed it in Carol's locker. She giggled as she closed the door and locked it back.

"Nancy Wheeler, official menace to society," Eddie said.

"Do I win anything?" Nancy teased, and he laughed.

Eddie flashed his dimples at her before pulling a rainbow pin off of his vest and pinned it to her jacket.

"You'll figure it out when you figure it out," Eddie said patting the pin.

"What?" Nancy and Steve asked.

"Just keep walking down that road, man, you'll get there eventually," Eddie said.

"You're annoyingly cryotic," Steve said. "I can't figure you out."

"Isn't that the fun of it?" Eddie asked, throwing his arm around Steve. "Life is just full of surprises. For instance, I thought you two were going to be a lot more scarier."

"Yeah, we thought the same thing," Nancy said.

"Well, that figures. . .and it's not very surprising considering I enjoy scaring the shit out of people," Eddie said.

"Ally didn't appreciate it when you jumped out of the closet as she was about to go to the bathroom," Nancy said.

"I just like to keep people on their toes," Eddie said. "Anyway, Steve. . .let's do something wild and crazy."

"I don't know, it seems like you've done some pretty wild and crazy things. What haven't you done?" Steve asked.

"I haven't played basketball, that would be pretty fucking wild," Eddie said.

"Well, first time for everything," Steve grinned.

This time, it was Steve grabbing Eddie and Nancy's hands, leading them towards the gym. Eddie whistled and tilted his head.

"Nice view," Eddie said, and Nancy laughed.

"Shut up," Steve said.

Steve threw open the gym doors with a confidence that Nancy hadn't seen in a while, but it was certainly appreciated. He swaggered into the gym, Nancy was pretty sure they were both watching Steve’s hips move. Suddenly, she wondered if she was going to have to fight this guy for Steve’s affection, and she fought back a giggle at the thought.

"Alright, teach us, Master," Eddie said.

"I'm playing?" Nancy asked.

"Can't leave you out. I want to see your moves," Steve said as he grabbed a basketball.

Eddie grinned, grabbing his vest and his jacket. He did it in one fluid, quick motion. He took them both off, slipping out of them as though an invisible force had helped him out of his clothes. He was wearing a red crop top with ripped off sleeves. On his arm was a tattoo of a scary looking man holding a puppet.

"Because you're no one's puppet?" Nancy asked.

"Also, because he does move around like a marionette," Steve said with a grin.

"Fuck off," Eddie said. "That's a big word for a jock."

Steve laughed and threw the ball hard at him. Eddie managed to catch it, but it had knocked some wind out of him.

"I'm full of surprises, remember?" Steve asked.

"Well, show us how it's done, Harrie," Eddie said. "You do seem to know a thing or two about handling balls."

Nancy let out a loud snort of laughter and clapped a hand over her mouth as Eddie tossed him the ball back.

"Yeah, and you definitely seem to know how to take them," Steve said as he threw the ball to Eddie again.

"Oh, I take them very well. . .amongst other things," Eddie said, winking at Nancy. "My pretty mouth was definitely made to take it all."

"Let's play," Steve said, his face red and his eyes dark.

The next thing she knew, she was being taught by Steve the proper way to toss a ball into the basket. Nancy knew more about how to throw a ball than she let on. She just enjoyed the feel of Steve’s hands on her hips. It seems like Eddie had picked up on her trick, and she watched as he leaned further into Steve’s touch, backing up against him. Pretty soon, they were getting into playing the game. After a while, though, Eddie had to pause for a minute to catch his breath.

"That's what happens when you smoke," Nancy had taunted, and she laughed when Eddie had managed to flip her off.

"Goddamn it, this is actually fun," Eddie pouted. "I feel like Bilbo discovering he actually likes adventures. Don't tell anyone."

"Yeah, wouldn't want to ruin your precious reputation," Steve had mocked.

Once Eddie had caught his breath, he took off after him. Eddie managed to successfully catch Steve, wrapping his arms tightly around his waist. Once he had him secure, he lifted Steve up off the ground. Steve hollered.

"Yeah, I'm stronger than I look," Eddie said and spun Steve around.

"Let me go, asshole!" Steve laughed.

Eddie laughed and set Steve on the floor, smacking his ass. He glanced at Nancy, looking amused, and his smile widened.

"You're next, princess," Eddie said.

"No!" Nancy shrieked and took off.

Eddie managed to catch her and spin her like Steve. She laughed and didn't fight him too hard. Eddie ran towards Steve.

"Does this count as traveling?" Eddie asked with Nancy still in his arms.

"Oh, yeah," Steve laughed.

"What do you say?" Eddie asked. "Toss her in the basket?"

Steve nodded and moved to help boost Nancy onto their shoulders. She was laughing so hard she could barely breathe. Somehow she managed to hold onto them.

"Don't you dare!" Nancy shrieked.

"Oh, come on, you're definitely worth more points," Steve said.

"No!" Nancy said.

"The lady does not consent. . .we should release her back into the wild," Eddie said.

"I am not an animal," Nancy giggled.

"Oh, sweetheart, we're all animals," Eddie said. "Anyone who tells you otherwise is probably selling you something."

Eddie and Steve let her slide down into their arms to ease her back on the ground. Nancy found herself sandwiched between the two of them, which she found wasn't a terrible situation to be in. She slapped Steve’s chest playfully before doing the same with Eddie.

"Miss Wheeler! Mister Harrington! Mister Munson!" They heard a yell from the doorway.

Higgins was standing there, looking wide awake and rather pissed.

"Morning, sleeping beauty?" Eddie asked. "Your back okay?"

Once again, they found themselves locked inside the library. Except somehow, this time, Higgins had put something in front of the door.

"Does this seem like child abuse to you guys?" Eddie asked.

"A little bit," Nancy said.

"Let's sue!" Eddie exclaimed.

"Let's not and say we did," Steve said. "My dad would love to take people for all their worth. Wouldn't want to take money from other kids."

"Fair point," Eddie said. "Although, we could just sue Higgins and not the school."

Nancy watched in amusement as they discussed in detail how they would get back at Higgins. They ended up crashing with their heads on the table. They had played harder than she had with all the wrestling they had done. Nancy had tried really hard not to find that arousing. She had failed. Did she really try that hard, though? This detention was certainly turning out to be a lot more interesting than she thought it would be.

While they slept, Nancy pulled out a sheet of paper and a pencil. She stared at the paper, finally finding a time to work on the essay, but found she couldn't think of a thing to write. She stared at the page for a long time, tapping the eraser against the table. The adrenaline started to fade from the excitement of the day, and it really sunk in that this had been the most fun she had since Barb had been alive. Nancy couldn't help but feel guilty about that. It's not fair. . .She should be here. . .she should know how great Steve is and meet Eddie. Would she actually like them, though, or would she judge Nancy for changing just a little bit?

"This isn't you, Nance," Barb's voice whispered in her ear.

Nancy's bottom lip trembled, and a tear slipped from her eye, dropping on the blank piece of paper. Well, at least there was something on it now. She couldn't stop the tears from coming once they came. Nancy's shoulders shook, and she stuffed a knuckle into her mouth so she wouldn't wake the boys. The library was big and quiet, though. Every sob she made could be heard, and it startled Eddie awake. He quickly moved to her side.

"Hey, what's with the tears, princess?" Eddie asked.

"I miss Barb," Nancy said.

"Right, she's the one who - " Eddie started to say.

"Don't say she ran away!" Nancy yelled, startling Steve awake.

"Nance?" He asked, moving to her other side.

"She died, and they covered it up! I can't do anything about it!" Nancy sobbed. "And I had fun today. Without her and I just feel. . .I just feel so guilty. I'm here, and she's not. It doesn't make sense."

"I'm sorry," Eddie said softly.

Nancy stood up from her chair, knocking it back, and she began to pace.

"It's not fucking fair and I know we can't say anything," Nancy said. "What do I say to her parents?"

"What's stopping you?" Eddie asked. "Is it those "Department of Energy" people?"

Nancy and Steve shared a look with each other. They looked skeptically at Eddie.

"That's a really good guess," Steve said.

"Well, you have a suspicious looking building like that in Hawkins with creepy looking vans. . .well, of course, it's going to make you wonder about what's in there," Eddie said. "My uncle has all sorts of theories."

"Well, we can't tell you," Nancy sniffled.

"But you know?" He asked.

"We wish we didn't," Steve said.

"Okay. . .so if you can't tell me, then you can't tell me," Eddie shrugged. "I'm curious as hell, but I'm a big boy. . .it's fucked up that they covered up your friend's death by saying she ran away."

"She wouldn't do that," Nancy said.

"Well. . .shit. . .I'm not very good at this sort of thing. . .comforting and all that," Eddie said. "Uh, let me try. . .hold on. . .uh, fuck, just wait a minute. . . Nope. I don't know what to say."

Nancy laughed and wrapped her arms around his middle.

"Thanks for trying," Nancy whispered.

Eddie squeezed her tightly. Nancy felt Steve touch her shoulder for a moment, and she nodded, letting him know that she wanted him to join in on the hug as well. Steve wrapped his arms around the both of them, pressing his chin to the top of her head. She never felt so safe like she did just then. It was weird how she hardly knew the guy but at the same time she felt so utterly safe and comforted in his arms. She had missed Steve's touch and the warmth of his hug. It was so overwhelming, exploding all of her senses all at once. The floodgates opened and she sobbed harder than ever before.

She didn't know how to deal with Barb's death, how to deal with her absence, and she had hoped that Jonathan would be there for her. She understood, though, that his brother and his mother needed him as well. Nancy thought it was probably for the best because there was a terrible part of her that was jealous that Barb hadn't come back, but Will had. Why couldn't she have lived as well? Every time she thought of Jonathan, she thought of Will. They had him back, but why didn't she have Barb? Is it because of what she did with Steve? Is it because she had been so wrapped up in wanting to be with Steve that she had just abandoned her best friend?

"I left her there. . . All alone, and I didn't even know. I was too busy thinking about Steve. It's all I cared about, and she was left alone by the pool. Whenever I think about you, Steve, I feel guilty. I'm sorry because you don't deserve that.," Nancy cried..

"Hey, you don't deserve that either," Steve said softly. "If I did nothing wrong then you didn't do anything wrong either."

"I just don't know why," Nancy said.

"Because she's here and you're not," Eddie said. "Life is always going to find a way to screw you over, to knock you down, and really make you hate yourself. You got to find the moments to grab a slice of life and enjoy yourself. I think if she was really your best friend, she'd want you to be happy. Was there anything that you could have done?"

"I mean, if we had known . . . " Nancy trailed off.

"Was there any way for you to know?" Eddie asked.

"Not unless we saw the future," she sniffled.

"Then there's nothing that you could have done," he replied. "Did you kill her?"

"No," she said.

"Then it's not your fault," Eddie said. "Unless you being with Steve somehow caused her to magically drop dead, you couldn't have done anything about whatever happened that night."

"I don't know how to stop blaming myself," Nancy sniffled.

"It just takes time. I still blame myself for the assholes who go after my friends," Eddie said. "By association, they suffer because of me but my friend Ronnie keeps telling me that they wouldn't have a place to go if it wasn't because of me and Hellfire. I'm not sure if I believe her or not. I don't know how to stop blaming myself. I guess the only thing we can do is find something good to do with all the shit that we go through. I still haven't figure that how to do that, yet. It makes me want to run away sometimes but then I realize that if I do that, those assholes get exactly what they want."

"You have to stand your ground," Nancy whispered.

"Or stand up on lunch tables," Steve said and Nancy laughed.

"Thank you both," Nancy whispered.

"I'm here if you need me, Nance," Steve told her.

"I know," she replied.

"You know what we need to do. . .dance it out," Eddie grinned.

He ran to the librarian's desk and dove over it, knocking shit over. He popped back up, carrying a radio. He plopped it onto the desk and turned it on. He hopped off the desk and started wiggling his hips, beckoning Nancy to come over to him.

"No!" she laughed, shaking her head.

"Come on, Wheeler," Eddie said, and moved close to her, touching her forehead gently with his. "I don't think Barb would want you to forget how to live."

Nancy sighed, staring at him for a moment. She smiled and took his hand, letting him pull her into his arms. They danced wildly about the room, Nancy throwing her head back and laughing as he spun her around. She could feel Steve watching them and as Eddie dipped her, she saw how fond he looked at them both. The music stopped for a moment as the person on the radio began to speak.

"How come you aren't dancing, Steve?" Nancy asked.

"Maybe he can't dance," Eddie said and Nancy gasped mockingly.

"Oh, I can dance," Steve scoffed. "I can't definitely dance."

"Then show me your moves," Nancy said and holding out her hand.

"Dancing in the Moonlight" came on and Steve stared at her with a soft smile. He took her hand and pulled her close. Nancy smiled as she looked up at him, taking notice of the green in his eyes and how they twinkled at her. He didn't dance wildly as he did Eddie but as he moved Nancy around the room, he sang to her. Apparently, he knew the words very well. Nancy grinned as she remembered the time he sang Bob Seger to her. She had been very distracted at the time, but she had liked it. Suddenly, he was spinning her and he let her go. He took Eddie's hand and pulled him into his arms.

"Oh!" Eddie exclaimed and Nancy laughed.

She watched as Steve did the same thing with Eddie; an arm wrapped securely around his waist. Steve made sure that Nancy knew that he was putting on this show just for her. He dipped Eddie much like Eddie had dipped Nancy. All three of them ended up collapsing onto the floor, their heads touching.

"Okay. . .who drew that dick on the ceiling and how the fuck did they do that?" Steve said. "Or is this like cloud watching? Am I just seeing dicks?"

"I did that," Eddie said. "And I've got skills, baby."

"With dicks?" Nancy asked, snorting with laughter.

"Along with other things," Eddie cackled.

"Okay, let's talk about something else," Nancy said.

"I'm curious to know more about Stevie here," Eddie said.

"Oh, good, another nickname," Steve said. "What do you want to know?"

"Are your parents as charming as you are?" Eddie asked.

"I wouldn't know," Steve said.

"You do know who your parents are, right?" Eddie asked.

"I know of them," Steve said. "I know that when my parents remember that I exist, my mother is flighty, and my father is an asshole."

"You act like you live alone," he said.

"Basically. My dad's away on business all the time and my mother follows him to make sure he doesn't cheat," Steve said.

"Shit, man, that sucks," Eddie said.

"I didn't think. . .I thought maybe you were exaggerating about that," Nancy said softly. "What about Christmas, your birthday, or other holidays?"

"Well, they come home to take the Christmas card photo but they leave right before Christmas, they fill the house up with dad's business partners on Thanksgiving, and my mother has said repeatedly that my birthday was her accomplishment, so I always buy her gifts," Steve said.

"Oh, that's fucked up," Eddie said.

"Come to my house for Christmas," Nancy said. "My parents would love to have you."

"Um, thanks," Steve said. "I would love to."

"I always thought that you had it all. . .that money would make things better," Eddie said.

"I mean, I get why you would think that but, man, I would give it all up to have parents who gave a shit," Steve said.

"Damn. . .I get what that's like. I keep hoping that my dad will give up his life of being a conman to stay here and be my dad," Eddie said. "I would give anything to have him give a shit too. I don't even know where he is now. He could be in prison for all I know and I'm pretty sure that that's why people hate me. All they can see is my dad."

"I'm sorry, Eddie," Nancy said and she laced her fingers through both of theirs.

"Your mom?" Steve asked.

"She died when I was six," Eddie said, his throat tight with emotion. "Cancer's a bitch."

"Sorry, Teddy," Steve whispered.

"Oh, I get a nickname, too?" Eddie laughed, sniffling.

"Oh, yeah," he said.

They fell in silence for a while, letting the music wash over all of them.

"My mom used to call her records her plane tickets. . .she'd listen to them, and they'd take her anywhere. It was my dad who taught me to play the guitar, but it was mother who taught me to love music. I remember when she'd place me on her feet, and we'd dance around to the music," Eddie said. "I'd give anything to have her here, too."

There was another lull in the conversation as the radio played song after song. They were so quiet, she wondered if the boys had fallen asleep again.

"You know, before Nancy, I didn't know what was truly important. All I had was popularity and friends who only cared what I could do for them. I never knew what it was like to care for someone like Nancy cared about Barb and about other people," Steve said. "It was like I was asleep and suddenly, I was awake. I know I probably could have gotten there on my own, but you pushed me to realize that I deserve more. . .that you deserve more too. I'm so grateful that I got to know you, Nancy Wheeler."

Nancy smiled. Laying here with them, she didn't feel as alone as she did before. Of course, Higgins had to burst in at that moment and ruin it. He practically turned red at the sight of them laying on the floor.

"Do you want another detention?!" he yelled.

"Let me just add one more thing to the essay, Principal Higgins," Nancy said. "I wanted to get it just right."

"Alright, but I'm going to watch you," Principal Higgins said.

"Probably what you should have been doing, huh?" Eddie asked and Higgins glared at him.

Nancy quickly wrote on the blank, tear-stained paper. She smirked and handed it off to Higgins. The three of them watched as his face changed different colors.

Don't forget to live. Also, don't forget to use protection when you can't watch your students because you're too busy fucking your secretary on school property. Sure, they might not believe me but are you willing to risk me telling the school board about your inappropriate actions? How secure do you feel in your job? Secure enough to keep giving us detentions? I'm sure they'd love to know how you have it out for one of the students, how you constantly ignore the bullying that goes on in this school. . .in fact, you encourage it. I'm sure you'd prefer to keep things quiet. The three of us would prefer just to keep on living our lives. . .peacefully.

Sincerely,

The Slut, the Freak, and the Hair.

"You think this essay might win awards?" Nancy asked, innocently.

"GET. OUT."

Nancy, Steve, and Eddie raced out of the school whooping with excitement. They burst out of the doors, breathing in the fresh air. Eddie picked Nancy up and spun her around before setting her down and doing the same with Steve.

"So, are we going to do this again?" Steve asked hopefully.

"What? Detention?" Eddie asked.

"Yeah no, hanging out," Steve said.

"Well. . .I think we should leave that up to fate, shall we? Isn't that more exciting?" Eddie asked, shoving his hands into his pocket. "If we were meant to be in each other's lives the universe will show us the road. More adventurous that way. Oh, I have something for you, Harrie."

He pulled another rainbow pin out of his pocket and pinned it to Steve's sweater.

"You had an extra?" Steve asked.

"Oh, I have quite a few," he said.

"Are you ever going to tell us what they mean?" Nancy asked.

"No, you'll figure it out," Eddie said. "Close your eyes. Do it."

Nancy and Steve closed their eyes. They waited and waited for Eddie to say something else but when they didn't hear him, they opened their eyes again. Eddie was gone and Nancy couldn't help but feel a little disappointed.

"What do you think it means?" Steve asked.

"I don't know. . .that we're gay?" Nancy asked.

"Woah! Hey, I like women!" Steve exclaimed. "I mean, not there's anything wrong with that."

"And I like men!" Nancy exclaimed. "I meant gay as in happy."

"Oh, you mean like finding gold at the end of the rainbow?" Steve asked.

"Exactly," Nancy said. "We're very gay."

Yes, at least for this moment. Nancy took his hand and interlaced their fingers together. She didn't want to forget to live, and she couldn't deny that that she had feelings for Steve. She gazed at him. Yes, he was worth fighting for. They could work things out. . .couldn't they?

BONUS SCENE:

Fast forward to 1986. . .

"Steve Harrington, why do you have this pin?!" Robin yelled as she dug through his drawer.

"Because I'm gay, Robin!" Steve yelled.

"What?!"

"Oh, come on, you knew this!"

"The fuck I did! You like women!"

"Yeah, I'm very gay about liking women!"

"That doesn't make sense! I think something's getting lost in translation here!"

"What's confusing about me being happy?"

"OH! You absolute dingus! This pin is for gay people like me!"

"What?! Oh. . .fuck! I am a dingus. That means Nancy's a dingus as well. . .oh. . . I finally, figured out what the hell Eddie was talking about. . .yeah, okay, turns out I'm not so straight!"

"What the hell kind of conversation did you and Munson have? WHEN did you have it?"

"Uh, it was when Nancy and I served detention with Eddie in 1983."

"Tell me the whole fucking story."

"Once upon a time, there was a very hot metalhead that I didn't realize I thought was hot until this very moment. Much like Nancy, he taught me how to live. . ."

Dancin′ in the moonlight

Everybody′s feelin' warm and right

It′s such a fine and natural sight

Everybody's dancin′ in the moonlight

[meangirlstobin]

hi sorry i hardly have any other st mutuals but i've been thinking about a s1 au all day that i need to talk about lol where steve goes missing instead of barb. and its still jonathan & nancy looking for will and steve but its ALSO tommy & carol looking for steve.

maybe nancy leaves with barb that night and she feels guilty about leaving steve alone to like, get kidnapped (or whatever happened to him oOohHhh its a mystery lol). and jonathan obviously is looking for will too and things mostly play out like they did on that front. steve's car shows up at the bus station and the government plants evidence that he left town. but nancy is like "but he said he would see me tomorrow >:(" and knows something is up. like its just her gut feeling, she just KNOWS something is wrong.

opposite side, tommy and carol were fucking in steve's parents' room when he went missing. maybe they heard him shout or something when he was taken. and they're both just like "he would not fucking take the bus >:(" lmao but they also know something just feels wrong in their guts. maybe the monster left something behind or one of them caught a glimpse of it that night but thought they were just drunk. and they start scouring the woods looking for it and just so happen to figure out some stuff with the lights like joyce does. like tommy is sitting by steve's pool one night kinda talking to himself but as if he was talking to steve. "where the hell are you man?" kind of stuff and the porch light gets insanely bright. and tommy brings carol the next day and steve does the "one blink for yes two blinks for no" thing.

idk how it all comes together at the end but maybe jonathan and nancy have the byers house showdown like usual but its spliced with tommy & carol having a similar showdown at steve's with the monster going back and forth between the two. or all four of them somehow come together and end up at the same house for the final distraction so hopper and joyce can get to the boys.

omg please don’t apologise!!!!!! i love this! my turn to apologise in fact, because this reply is ALL over the place <3

i love that this would focus on tommy and carol. mean girls can miss their friends too 💜. like most people i see steve tommy and carol as childhood friends, it’s been the three of them for so long. steve going missing would disrupt their easy belief that it’s always the three of them, that they’re untouchable. popularity protected them at school but what does that mean in the real world? sure, more people would probably care about steve’s disappearance than barb’s or will’s but it would be shallow and he would still be missing.

i think steve going missing would force tommy and carol to reckon with their behaviour. here they are experiencing the very thing they made fun of jonathan for the day before. they’re being very bitchy about it though… jonathan byers gets the worlds most backhanded apology maybe?

crying at tommy and carol being like the bus???? steve???? yeah no. 😭 it’s funny because steve’s car would be more distinctive than barb’s so that cover up would actually make sense from an outside perspective but then tommycarol come in with the steel chair of he would not fucking do that actually :/

i think i could see the four of them coming together via nancy. she’d be the first to be like what if they’re connected.

maybe she shows them the pictures? torn as to whether tommy and carol have communicated with steve yet. if they haven’t they’re like okay. one. this is creepy. two. our best friend and your boyfriend is missing be serious do you even care 🙄 they go back to steve’s and the pool scene you describe happens?

if they have already spoken to steve, they hear her out, but they’re like sure freaky monster took steve but byers is a creep we’re not working with him ugh. they accuse her of not really caring about steve since she’s been splitting time between them and jonathan. they go back to steve’s. the two teams stay separate until tommycarol end up at the byers through some chain of events i havent thought of yet?

do steve and will find each other in the upside down? that could be a reason. not sure how this would get communicated to tommycarol and also the byers/nancy since they’re separate. idk but i am picturing tommycarol in the byers living room defeating the demogorgon through the power of friendship and bullying like it chapter two lol

where is barb in this? does she get pulled in? there’s probably an argument between her and nancy because barb is like he ditched you i told you so and nancy is like no he is missing??!

idk. regardless tommycarol fought a monster for steve. he is never hearing the end of it 💜

this is so fun i’m so into this if you have more ideas please send them!!!! mean girl monster hunters <3

[heavencasteel420]

Definitely director's commentary that you would have for Tonight, tonight the highways bright

Thank you for your ask! I figure I'll talk about how I introduce Nancy and Jonathan in the first few paragraphs of their respective first chapters.

Under the cut: discussion of the first couple of chapters of the story, including of a sexual relationship between a seventeen-year-old and a thirty-seven-year-old who's also his boss.

Nancy

Before Nancy had started dating Steve, she’d assumed that all parties were like in the movies: wild and free and full of possibilities. Barb had laughed at her when she’d talked like that. Even the most popular kids, she’d said, seemed to do nothing but drink cheap beer and screw in the backseats of cars. Not exactly glamorous.

Of course, Barb had been right. Nancy had been to a handful of parties like that—pretty much all of them thrown by Tina Cline, who planned them like battle campaigns—but most of the time you were lucky if the beer was cold, you had a dry place to sit, and nobody there actively hated you.

Nancy's chapter, of course, begins with Barb, and an early-high-school memory of thinking that there had to be an amazing party happening somewhere, if only they could be invited. Her disappointment at the reality isn't a big deal by itself--plenty of parties are just kind of whatever--but Barb's opinion hangs over everything, and Nancy is dismissive even of the parties that are objectively enjoyable. She's just not in a place where she can see the good in things.

Case in point: tonight, she and Steve and Carol and Tommy were driving out to the old Byers place to get loaded and see if the Ouija board was still painted on the wall. On a Saturday night. And three out of four of them were seniors. They were supposed to be having more fun than anyone in this dead town, and this was the best they could come up with.

Nancy is also so angry and so brittle that, even though she knows how gross this activity is, it doesn't occur to her to suggest something else or beg off. I also wanted to establish very quickly that nobody is living at the Byers house and make the reader wonder where they all are.

To make matters worse, Steve’s parents had, in a rare gesture at discipline, taken his BMW away for the weekend because he’d flunked a chemistry test. Which was bullshit, because they ignored Steve doing worse stuff all the time, and she knew for a fact that Steve had at least tried to study, but more to the point, they were all stuck cruising around Hawkins in Tommy’s pickup. Which meant that Tommy and Carol and Steve were all crammed into the bench seat up front, and she was folded up in the jump seat.

My vision of Steve and Nancy's relationship for this fic kind of came from the horror movie Midsomar, where the grief-stricken heroine clings to her disinterested boyfriend because she's too numb and depressed to move on. Steve is just canonically not as much of a dick as the boyfriend in that movie, so he's really trying to be a good boyfriend to Nancy, but he's still way in over his head and internally a little uneasy about their relationship. Nancy, for her part, does care about Steve. She notices that the academic part of school is genuinely pretty miserable for him, and she feels indignant on his behalf that his parents are being unfair and unhelpful. Yet, emotionally, she can't truly connect with him.

“You okay back there, Wheeler?” Tommy asked, grinning broadly in the rearview mirror. He was obviously embarrassed by the truck, a rusted veteran of actual farm labor belonging to his grandfather, and he’d been needling her all night to compensate. “Got enough room to stretch out those looong legs?”

I see the Hagans as being farther down the social scale than the Harringtons (who are high society by Hawkins standards) or Carol's family (I headcanon that her dad is a doctor, so not as flashy as Steve's folks but very respectable). They're not poor or struggling, but they're more working-class and things are less fancy. Because Steve, Tommy, and Carol are the kinds of friends who make fun of each other, Tommy knows it's possible they'll go in on the truck. He likes Nancy a little bit more than she believes--they have some overlapping defense mechanisms and he has an appreciation of her more unhinged moments--but they're in the habit of picking at each other and he does think she's kind of a bummer a lot of the time.

Nancy had come prepared for this, of course. “This” meaning both Tommy’s dumb jokes, and the shitty twelve-pack of Miller stowed inches from her feet on the floorboard. She drank from her flask: a birthday present from Steve, filled with bourbon from her parents’ liquor cabinet. Her dad was a Scotch man, and fell asleep after very little of it, and her mom preferred wine. They wouldn’t miss it until Christmas, which was about six weeks away.

Steve got her that flask and was kind of like "is my girlfriend a sophisticated party girl, or does she have a problem?" But he didn't know what to do with the second possibility, so he ignored it.

“I’m doing great,” she said, completely deadpan. “This is a great truck, Tommy. So comfortable.”

Nancy's not afraid to be a Mean Girl among Mean Girls! Part of this is just a way of adapting to her clique, but this kind of sarcasm is also more comfortable for her than more sincere forms of interaction.

Jonathan

Gloria’s side of the bed was empty when Jonathan bolted awake from a dream about the old house, almost an hour before his alarm was set to go off. The room looked unfamiliar for his first few seconds of consciousness: the blue roses climbing up the wallpaper, the white wicker rocking chair piled high with discarded blouses and slacks, the gold-framed Sears portrait of Gloria’s daughter Sherry in her Easter dress on the vanity. He’d woken up to the same view for the past six months, but on mornings like these it still felt like waking into another dream.

I wanted to establish a few things here.

First, Jonathan is living with a girlfriend, not his dad, and she is way, way too old for him. She has a name that peaked in popularity in the late 1940s; she wears blouses and slacks; and she has a daughter. This isn't just a case of him, say, meeting a twenty-year-old at work and connecting over common interests; this woman is old enough to be his mother, she has way more life experience than he does, and they don't actually have much in common.

Second, the apartment is a pleasant space. It's not super-fancy, but Gloria has chosen a soothing color scheme and has obtained some basic working-class luxuries. This a relief to Jonathan, who is coming off of months of sleeping in Lonnie's dirty house, a hospital bed, or his own deteriorating home with Joyce.

Third, the apartment cannot be trusted. It feels unreal to Jonathan at first and, although that's caused by his nightmare, he's also not really safe there. Gloria is exploiting him emotionally, sexually, and financially, and she won't even keep Lonnie out.

Fourth, he's having repeated nightmares about the house back in Hawkins. He's doing better than he was a few months ago, but he's still not doing great.

He felt the sheets where Gloria had slept, soft and still warm, until his heartbeat slowed and the room began to look real again in the gray morning light. Then he rose from the bed and padded into the kitchen, where Gloria stood at the counter, drinking a cup of coffee. She was already dressed, in an orange blouse and pleated brown slacks, with her flossy yellow curls held back with a tortoiseshell clip.

“Do you like it?” she asked, turning to smile at him. She fluffed her hair. “I was trying to copy Princess Diana.”

Princess Diana would have given birth to Prince Harry a couple months before this chapter takes place, so she would have been very present in magazines at the time. Gloria's imitating one of her longer-haired moments, post-shag but pre-High-1980s-Big-Hair.

“You look nicer,” Jonathan said sincerely.

Gloria didn’t look much like Princess Diana, any more than he resembled Michael J. Fox. She was thirty-seven to Diana’s twenty-three, and short and sturdy where Diana was tall and angular. Even her blonde hair clearly came from a bottle. But he preferred her sunny, laugh-lined face, the kindest he’d known in Indianapolis. Diana looked so bored and uncomfortable in photographs, anyway; Jonathan always thought of “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now” when he saw her face in the magazines that covered the coffee table. Maybe she’d like the Smiths if she heard them.

Jonathan doesn't kid himself that the age difference isn't significant, but he is not very clear-eyed at all about other aspects of the situation. He feels like the oldest seventeen-year-old in the world after his experiences, not someone who needs protection, even though his grief and trauma and unstable material circumstances make him more vulnerable, not less. The good news is that he's feeling better enough to take an interest in music again, which is a fairly new development for him.

Gloria giggled and reached out for him, catching him around the waist and pulling him close enough to smell her orange-blossom perfume. He leaned down and kissed her scarlet-lipsticked mouth.

“You’re way too sweet,” she told him, as he pulled away. “Are you hungry?”

“Not yet,” he said. He went over to the kitchen table and took a seat. “I’ll eat something at school.”

“Oatmeal Creme Pies are not a breakfast food just because they have oatmeal in them,” she teased.

This is supposed to be really uncomfortable because (kissing aside) it's reminiscent of Jonathan and Joyce's breakfast interaction early in S3. Not that caring whether someone eats breakfast is the exclusive province of mothers, but she is old enough to be his mother and he almost certainly wouldn't be living with her if he had even one parent looking out for him.

[threewaywithdelusion]

Queer Stranger Things Characters

I think it's very odd and interesting how the Stranger Things fandom interprets its characters' sexualities. Like there's this really big push to make all the characters queer, and while I'm a big fan of stories about queer friend groups, I don't think Stranger Things is that story. Especially in canon.

I divide the characters into four groups, based on how likely I think it is that they're actually queer (referring mostly to canon, and a little bit to common Fanon).

Characters That The Narrative Confirms Are Queer: Will. Robin. Vickie. Billy. Eddie. Barb.

Characters That Are Easily Read As Queer: Steve. Tommy. Argyle. Nancy.

Characters Who Can Be Made Queer For Stories: Max. Mike. Jonathan. Chrissy.

Characters Whose Straightness You Can Pry From My Cold Dead Hands: Dustin. Lucas. Eleven. Nancy part 2. Joyce. Hopper.

There are characters who make no list, such as Erica, Murray, Jason, Carol, and more minor characters. This is because we don't know enough about them to fit them into any one category.

First the characters who are confirmed queer:

Will has an entire plot around being in love with Mike.

Robin is openly a lesbian.

There's no way Vickie isn't bisexual, even if Robin has doubts, because narratively her character makes no sense if she isn't a love interest for Robin.

Billy has to be into men in some capacity because otherwise the way he just to bully Steve is just really fucking bizarre. Like cornering this dude in the showers is just really strange behavior and Billy's really intense masculinity is obviously compensating for something (probably partially to meet his father's standards, but it would make a lot of sense if he's gay and trying to hide it).

In my reading of canon, Eddie has to be bisexual. There's no way he wasn't flirting with Chrissy, so I think he's into girls. He also doesn't understand personal space when it comes to Steve, which could be a sign of neurodivergence, but if you add how he treats to Steve to the fact that he's literally flagging then he has to be queer in some way.

Barb is interesting because I don't think the show does anything to indicate she's a lesbian, but the book Rebel Robin sure does and I'm choosing to count it.

Next the characters who are easy to read as queer, but whose queerness isn't necessarily confirmed in the text:

Steve is interesting because I think a large part of the reason people are eager to read him as queer is that he's the male lead. (Kind of. Arguably that's Will or Mike, but when it comes to the older and thus more shippable characters, it's definitely Steve). Also, this man attracts queer people like a flame attracts moths. Both in the sense of them literally being attracted to him (Billy, Eddie, Tommy) and in the sense that he surrounds himself with queer people without seeming to realize it (Robin and Tommy as his two long-term best friends). Seems kind of gay. So his interactions with all of these people make it very easy to read him as bi/pan/queer.

Tommy's actor explicitly said he played him as having a crush on Steve, which has largely influenced the Fanon interpretation of Tommy. Also it explains a lot about his extreme jealousy towards Nancy Wheeler.

Argyle's motto is "try before you deny" and he grew up in California. This dude has at the very least experimented with guys before and in my mind he's pan/generally queer.

Nancy. Nancy is interesting because she makes this list twice. She's commonly portrayed as bisexual (at least in the parts of the fandom I see) but I think she's either a lesbian or a straight girl with no in-between. There's this one post talking about how Nancy comes across as a lesbian suffering from comp-het because the Duffer brothers are two guys who don't know how to write attraction to men from a women's perspective, and I agree. So in that sense, Nancy is either ace or a lesbian. However, if you're reading this on the level of what the writers intended, then Nancy is straight, so she makes this list twice.

Characters who are often/can easily be made queer for stories:

I don't know why Max feels right here, but she does. Maybe I just like bisexual Max head-canons. She obviously loves Lucas, but I think her tomboyishness, her feminism, and her being from California (and thus exposed to more open-minded people growing up) make her easy to make bisexual.

Someone is going to kill me for putting Mike here, but I think it's true. I don't think Byler will ever be canon, not in the least because the Duffer brothers didn't set out to write a queer show. They're going to think that they already have two/three openly gay characters getting screen time next season (depending on if Vickie becomes a real character) and that they've done their duty to the gay community or whatever. I do think Mike is repressed in a lot of ways, but in an "I was raised by Ted Wheeler" way and not an "I'm secretly pining for my best friend way." And I think he and Eleven will be endgame. (I also prefer Mileven over Byler, though I think either way Mike should do a bit of self-improvement first). But I think people like writing stories where Mike is queer for obvious reasons: to put him with Will and because this boy is absolutely lying to himself about SOMETHING and that something being his sexuality makes sense. You could definitely make an argument for moving him up a category. But for me, he is in this one.

Canon Jonathan can't be into boys, because if he were he would have said something to Will by now. That being said, I think Canon Jonathan could be on the ace/aro spectrum and just not realize that's also a type of queerness. Fanon Jonathan is often bisexual and into Nancy/Steve/Argyle.

Chrissy barely appears on screen, so I guess she could go anywhere/nowhere. But because she's a fan-favorite and is commonly shipped with Eddie or Robin, I'm putting her here. We just don't have enough information about her, though I like to think she was flirting with Eddie. (I also like Buckingham quite a lot, but they never spoke in canon and are a purely Fanon invention).

Lastly, characters whose straightness you can pry from my cold dead hands:

Dustin just does not give off queer energy in my opinion. I think he would absolutely sleep with a guy in college as an experiment, but ultimately conclude he likes women. (though you could make an argument for ace-spec Dustin. I just think he's too young for it to be solid yet).

I love a good bisexual Lucas fanfic/headcanon as much as the next girl, but I think Lucas is pretty straight. His interactions with other boys in canon just don't indicate any sort of queerness and I think this man is going to be devoted to Max until he dies (or she dies, if that comes first).

Lesbian Eleven is something that drives me crazy. Obviously to each their own and do what you want, but I hate it. I think what Mike and Eleven had in at least seasons 1 and 2 in undeniable. Whatever happens with them in the future, they did genuinely love each other at one point. And I understand that a lot of people ship her with Max, but I feel like that misses the point of season 3. What El really needed was a friend. Not a boyfriend, not a romantic partner, a friend. And Max was that for her. (Could Eleven realize she's into women later in life? Sure, I guess. But I don't see any grounding for it in canon now).

If Nancy is not a lesbian with comp-het, she has to be straight. Like I said above, to me, those are the only two options.

Hopper is a white small-town cop in the Midwest and he chose to be there doing that job. He's straight.

Joyce has to be straight because of how she acts towards Will's queerness. The way she doesn't understand him in S3 when he says he'll never fall in love. The way she whispers the words Lonnie used about Will like they're bad (and they are Bad, but because they're mean, not because of what they mean, and the way Joyce whispers makes me think she doesn't know the difference).

Like I said, these are all my readings of canon. It's fine if you disagree. Some people have very specific readings of particular characters, but I think these are broadly what the text supports or what fanon agrees on (with the exception of Mike and Eleven maybe, where I think I differ from the general fanon consensus).

I have Thoughts about how the Stranger Things fandom interprets its characters' sexualities, but I don't know what they are or how to articulate them. It's just different from other fandoms I'm in. I'm also new to the Stranger Things fandom (as in, after S4Vol2 had aired) so I don't have a good sense of what has changed over time. But its fascinating!