#wheelers and byers are meant to be i just shed a tear

[janeirl]

JOYREN JANCY AND BYLER TEMPORARILY LIVING UNDER ONE ROOF I SAID OH I’M SURE

[realwilliambyers]

do you guys think that when mike, will's childhood bestfriend, the one who he didn't forget while being posessed by the mind flayer, the one that promised to save him, the one that spent every day looking for him the week he went missing, said to him "it's not my fault you don't like girls," he got flashbacks to every insult, every accusation, every tear shed over the fact that for his entire life he was constantly harrased and bullied for his presumed sexuality all because he was sensitive and liked to draw. do you think that as soon as those words left his lips and he saw mike's expression as they did he began to think of every night he spent crying in castle byers while mike called everyone around them idiots, do you think he thought of the mike wheeler that he once knew, the one that wiped his tears, the one that was willing to get into fights for him, and the one that cared so incredibly deeply for will. do you think will realized in that moment that mike never knew how much will meant to him? because if he did he would never say that. but then shortly after that thought, the realization that it wasn't mike who was the problem here but himself. do you think he felt like a monster. that the only way to move on was to destroy a place that once he would spend nights feeling those feelings he had. do you think in his mind when mike said those words, he didn't feel safe for just a moment. as if mike was gonna turn on him or hit him.. do you think that he felt belittled by mike? like asking to hang out with his bestfriend was too much. can you imagine how alienated he must have felt in that moment from everyone else in the group? like the one place he was supposed to belong he just didn't.

cause i do.

hahahahaha.

[argylemikewheeler]

SO a lovely anon’s been asking for a screampost about season 2 byeler aaaaand guess who figured out what their screampost is gonna be about??? It’s ME, and it’s the freaking SHED SCENE. But I’m going to yell about it from the POV of an english major who’s writing an honors thesis and thinks they know shit about writing. OKAY LET’S GO:

SO. The main beef I have with the shed scene is: what the fuck was it for? Why was it so long and emotional and well done, if it was just to show the humanity of Will could be engaged/wants to get to showing he knows Morse code. Like, we see three stories told to him before we get him tapping out “HERE”. Why have those three? Why have everyone in the room? I understand the montage after with the music and the different stories is to keep the Mindflayer distracted and Will engaged. Makes sense!!! But that first part. That FIRST PART.

It’s extremely weird to think that it was just meant to be casual. Like. Of course I have time for character/dialogue analysis but first– as a writer (and this is just ME of course, I’m not an authority at ALL) I know that kind of scene. It’s where all the plot kind of lifts for a bit and you have this free spaces to create this MOMENT. It’s just for Will, it’s just shameless background– and it’s the most important moments of Will too.

It’s his Mom, his brother, and his best friend– who, no matter how you look at Mike, he’s been there the entire time. Mike’s plot started out being Minus One Eleven Plus One Broken Heart and became I’m Worried About Will and I’m Going To Make Sure I’m There For Him. I Said Crazy Together, Dammit. And that makes him logistically even with Will’s own mother and his brother speaking to him.

So the writers choose to have this moment for Will. It’s their chance to let these actors work their chops, get some background, let us feel SUPER invested in Will making it out Alive and Human, and also learn something about these relationships– before Will became Zombie Boy. Before the Upside Down. They know this is the moment to really just Go Off and Create. I mean, they have the open space! They can say whatever they want and make it canon! It’s a blank canvas of a scene that’s just WAITING to make us cry. And they tell three stories: Rainbow Ship with Joyce, Castle Byers with Jonathan, and Becoming Friend with Mike.

I’m looking at this like I was sitting in the writer’s room and I was thinking about what I would want to do and have each character say– and I acknowledge I do not write for a multi-million dollar netflix series and that shit is not easy. but WITH THAT SAID. I still, you guessed it, HAVE some THOUGHTS.

Jonathan’s story makes the most sense– very like Point-A to Point-B to me. It’s not a cheap shot or anything, but that story makes sense to tell. It’s something that 1. explains how Castle Byers came to be 2. gave us some timeline stuff 3. showed us how Jonathan dealt with the separation and 4. how close he and Will truly are, because most of the time Jonathan is just trying to save Will; they don’t really hang out, ya know? It’s a great story and writing wise it does a WHOLE BUNCH.

But it also does this really weird fifth thing of showing us that this is the first story that Jonathan thought to tell when faced with trying to reach Will. It’s the most emotionally rooted– I mean? That’s his brother! That was their father! And NOW, Will’s got a safe space! One that they made together. That’s so beautiful and human and definitely able to cut through The Mindflayer. Jonathan’s first story, and actually all of his stories, are rooted in things he did to get Will out of the abusive environment his father was creating. Jonathan’s first instinct and memory to bring Will back is: I know what you’ve been through and I know that you were scared, but you survived that. And you’re going to get back to us and survive this. Great writing, right? Good shit.

Then we get to Joyce and the Rainbow Ship! She tells this story of feeling SO proud of her son for creating something all his own. I’m not going to say anything about the, uh, rainbow thing, but we all know it’s there. They decided that not only was this ship just Different, it was Rainbow too. Crazy. But, the main point here is that the first story she chooses to tell Will to bring him back is probably one he doesn’t even think about often– which is a really great story for a Mom to have, when you think about it. What kid remembers what drawings they did– especially if they were embarrassed about it.

Well, Joyce comes through trying to pick at such a small and minute memory that only her Will would know. It’s the moment she, in a way, really started to see her son for what he is: creative and unrestrained by convention, bubbly and inventive, and just this happy joyous kid. This was probably one of those moments that she sat at the table alone, looking at the picture and hearing her son scribbling in the other room, and thinking oh i really have someone special here. oh i have to protect him.

For writing, Joyce’s moment was very detailed, completely new for the audience– but added a lot about Will’s childhood. The happy one that we know gets turned around down the line (before it goes Upside Down). Joyce misses her son and this story is a way for us to see that aching side of her and just CRY with her. It’s easy (not cheap though of course) tears and it’s incredible.

And then. And then the writers have Mike come into the mix. Like, we get the shot of Joyce and Jonathan together, wetly laughing at Will being “so bad at hammering” and the shot of Will’s hand trembling. And as a writer, I know, we’re there. We’re almost there. We set it up– Three’s a magic number. Send him over the edge let Will finally reach reality again AND–

It’s. It’s fucking Mike Wheeler. Bringing up the first day they met. Letting us in on the backstory we have NO primer to. Like, Byers Family Drama is semi-known; we know that there Is history there and it’s being given to us slowly. But how Mike and Will met? We have NO IDEA– we’ve just seen this boy calling when he’s out sick, being concerned when he’s quiet, assuring him he’ll keep him safe, “crazy together”, helping him explain his Bad Vibes with Dart without speaking over him, and just constantly thinking about Will’s well being while they’re fighting a literal monster.

So now, the writers have shown us this pure dedication and loyalty and go: they’ve known each other since they were FIVE. They make the decision in this moment that they want to tell us that Mike is literally Will’s longest and best friend. Nearly as long as this boy has been able to form memories he has known Michael Wheeler. That’s the move. That’s the info we get and that is chosen to be given. Mike’s friendship is turned into a center of Will’s formative years by simply implying that this story needs to be told to both Will and the audience. BUT THAT’S NOT ALL.

This story also, from a writing perspective, says a lot about Mike! They chose to have Mike remember the first day they met– not when the party all met or anything like that. No. Just the two of them. The writers don’t cop out on this moment at ALL. Like they take FULL advantage of this free moment and build such an intimate and short memory between characters you’re just supposed to Understand are friends. Like, the backstory isn’t always important sometimes– but right here, they tell us it is.

They tell us that Mike being alone and scared is something that stuck with him, it’s something he’s afraid of having happen again if he loses Will. They tell us that Will was a loner all the way back then too, but he doesn’t seem to mind being one (or being different). And then, mixed in with this backstory that shows both Mike and Will really haven’t changed they throw in that… uh….

Asking Will to be his friend is the best thing Mike has ever done. They wrote that sentence without any jokes, no laughs, no weak smile– Finn says that line and it’s dead. fucking. serious. The moment that speech was written into that scene, that entire relationship’s gravity changed.

And writers have to know that. They HAVE TO. Because of how close Will and Mike were the entire episode, there’s no way that this was a Red Herring– something just to throw us off the scent of… Will breaking through, I guess? Because he literally taps the chair in the next minute. It’s not a decoy scene or, as expected honestly, played for laughs. It’s a completely serious moment of an eighth grade boy, that has been emotional and angry and lashing out all season, stand in front of his friend and just CRY.

And what’s worse. Mike seems to only cry when El is involved (at the end of s1 and when Hopper tells him he was hiding her). And THAT’S a parallel, of course, but not only that, but the writers chose to show Mike having non-romantic emotional range. Which is GREAT, but dude this scene is SO… Tender??? Seeing a young boy cry at the feet of his best friend that he thinks he’s losing? And recounting the FIRST MOMENT THEY MET because that’s the BEST FIRST MEMORY? Like, literally just becoming Will’s friend is the best one because it allowed him to have every other memory? Dude that’s so profound. That’s so incredible to think of and to write.

And for no one in that room full of straight white dudes to say: Uh…. maybe that’ll seem gay in the 80s is CRAP. Sorry, not to be that piece of shit, but I know that they thought about it. So for them to still keep the speech in– even with their DUDE THAT’S GAY Monkey Brains going off– says something to me, as a writer. And not in a “they wanted to be progressive” kind of way.

They wrote a beautifully tender moment between Mike and Will, in a scene that could have been anything they wanted, with only Will’s family present. That scene was a creative writers dream! A free-for-all! A moment to just fucking make shit up and go crazy!!! and they decided to go with That…. BRO, ngl I’m kinda emo about it STILL….

Okay. I don’t know if this makes any sense, but as someone who’s writing a longer piece that has many character relationships to juggle and show the reader piece by piece, this moment of OH we can give Will some Memories and Audience Some Background is very clear to me– and I don’t mean that like, it’s cheaply done or it’s obvious in a bad way. I just know the vibe: when you get to sit and ask yourself WHAT do I want to say about my character here. It doesn’t have to be related to ANYTHING ELSE that’s happening. I get the reins back. What. Do. I. Want. To. Say.

And they chose. To Say THAT.

I’m not going to scream about season 3 because I think st3 needs st4 to make sense all the way. Like, I think it’s a set up for the Big Finale, so I won’t say they “didn’t follow through with ANY OF IT” because maybe they will. But let’s just say, if they do not. Please print this out and send it to the Duffer Brothers.

Alright. Word, thanks for reading this ridiculous rant

[loove-persevering]

Change My Mind (Part 1)

Description: You being a Byers automatically draws you to the chaos that is Hawkins Indiana. From your brother’s ‘’death’’ to him coming back to life, and then to his possession. You were practically sitting ducks waiting for the next mishap, cut to the summer of 1985 it was mid summer but it would definitely be one you’d never forget. Then throw in your hatred toward Steve Harrington and being trapped in a secret Russian Base with him, emotions are bound to come out. 

You sat in the living room your hand tired and covered in lead from the drawing you had been working on, it was a copy of something similar to what Will would draw absentmindedly just with your own artistic spin to it. You had the music blaring through the house as you did so, Jonathan and your mom were at work and Will was at Dustins for his welcome home surprise party so that left you to yourself. You enjoyed the time by yourself but it would be nice to have something to do when both your brothers left you alone, so you sat home waiting for something the slightest bit more interesting to grab your attention. 

 To your advantage the phone rang and you push the sketch pad off your lap onto the side of the couch getting up, you walk over to the phone on the wall and pick it up. ‘’Hello?’’ You ask. 

‘’Hey,’’ You hear Will’s voice as well as everyone else yelling in the background. ‘’Dustin wants us to go help him set something up can I go?’’ He asks. 

‘’What is it?’’ You ask him twirling the phone cord around in your hand. 

‘’Some type of radio thing so he can talk to his girlfriend,’’ Will says and you can hear the slightest bit of annoyance in his voice. 

‘’Girlfriend?’’ You say letting out a laugh, ‘’Dustin got a girlfriend?’’ You say wanting to clarify this was the same boy who went to camp, the boy who Will said is getting girl advice from Harrington of all people. 

‘’Yeah,’’ He sighs. ‘’But he needs our help and they’re trying to leave soon so can I go? Please?’’ He asks. 

 ‘’Of course! You don’t really have to ask every time Will just as long as your not by yourself,’’ You explain to him. Will seemed so cautious when it came to going out now, he of course wanted to go out by himself which Jonathan started letting him which was a step in the right direction. But Will still always made sure to ask before he did anything, he was such a good kid it literally made your heart swell at how sweet he was. You knew the whole upside down situation really took a piece of him away, a very important piece and that was his childhood. 

 It took away what should’ve been a happy time in his life and turned it into a traumatizing one, he hadn’t been the same since and everyone knew it. You hated that it happened to him and you would’ve taken his place in a heartbeat if that meant he could have a normal childhood, you’d give it all back to him. 

 ‘’Okay,’’ He pauses, ‘’Thank you! I gotta go now,’’ He says trying to rush off. 

‘’Just call me if you need me okay?’’ You tell him making sure he knew. 

‘’I know,’’ He says. ‘’Love you.’’ 

‘’Love you too,’’ You say back to him. You hang up the phone after that and stare back into the empty house realizing you were gonna be stuck here a few hours with no company. 

 Instead of staying by yourself you decide to head to the mall and thirty minutes later you once again sat at a table alone in the crowded area of the mall, it wasn’t as busy as usual but still enough people. People watching was your favorite thing and so an open canvas plus that gave you endless possibilities, you were drawing a group of girls sitting by the fountain now but you weren’t liking the way it turned out. You rip the page out of the book and crumble it in your hands letting out a deep sigh in frustration, you push back on the chair tilting it on the back two legs and throwing the piece of paper in the trash. You pick up your stuff and head towards Scoops Ahoy! Ready to grab your favorite ice cream, sadly that meant seeing Steve Harrington. 

 ‘’Back again?’’ Steve says a hint of a smile on his face as you walk in. You roll your eyes at him and set your things down on the counter. ‘’You’ve hit stalker status Byers,’’ He says looking proud of himself. 

 ‘’You wish I gave you the time of day,’’ You say to him crossing your arms over your chest. ‘’I want a scoop of mint chocolate chip,’’ You tell him getting out your wallet. 

 ‘’Who eats mint?’’ You heard Robin ask through the window as it slides open. 

‘’Me,’’ You say simply shrugging your shoulders. Steve just shakes his head and reaches for a cone and begins to scoop your ice cream. ‘’Don’t hold back on the ice cream Harrington,’’ You point out to him, he glances up at you annoyance written across his face and you just give him a wide smile. 

‘’Dollar twenty five,’’ Steve says handing the ice cream to you, you hand him two dollars and wait for him to give you your change before dropping the remaining change in the tip jar. You glance up seeing Steve hovering over the register watching you intensely. 

‘’Use that for a haircut,’’ You say and his mouth gapes open slightly as he puts his hand over his chest, you let out a small laugh and turn around walking over to one of the booths in the corner of the store. 

 Steve didn’t seem all that bad, the kids like him a lot which had to count for something. You however just seemed to always see him as that asshole that fought your brother and broke his camera, you could remember the day you got the call from your mom. 

*FLASHBACK* 

  ‘’Hello?’’ You answer the phone annoyed, math was frustrating you and as soon as you got on track with it something seemed to distract you right now it was this phone call. 

 ‘’Y/N, I need you to go down to the police station,’’ Your mom says sounding more panicked then usual. ‘’Jonathan got arrested,’’ She says to you. 

‘’What?’’ You practically scream. ‘’Arrested?’’ You ask her, what the hell? 

‘’I don’t know can you just go down there with him until I get there?’’ She asks. ‘’I’m with Jim Hopper we’re pulled over at a gas station.’’ 

‘’Of course, I’m leaving now,’’ You tell her rushing off the phone, you immediately grab you set of keys off the table and throw on a jacket running out to the back shed and grabbing your bike. You biked to the police station as fast as you could, you hadn’t saved up enough money for a car, so the struggle to get there was real. 

  You arrive there minutes later and don’t even bother locking your bike up you just sit it against the brick wall of the outside of the police station. You rush inside walking through the narrow hall back to the desks, you saw Nancy Wheeler sitting next to him she was holding an ice pack to his head. ‘’What the hell Jonathan?’’ You call out making both of them look up to you, Nancy gives you a small smile and Jonathan just looks annoyed. ‘’What the hell happened? Why are you in handcuffs?’’ You ask finally noticing the silver clasp around his hands, no wonder Nancy was holding the ice pack, ‘’No offense but what are you doing here?’’ You ask her. 

 She looks to Jonathan and then back to you, ‘’We were uh-’’ She looked nervous? ‘’We were out getting a few things,’’ She lets out a deep breath. 

 ‘’Mind if I talk to my brother alone for a second?’’ You ask her, she glances over at Jonathan who still had his head pushed against the ice pack, she nods and Jonathan takes the ice pack from her not looking up. You go over and take a seat next to him your hands crossed over your chest, ‘’Jonathan,’’ You sigh, you knew that this whole thing was taking a toll on him with Will and your mom, Hell it was on you too. It was hard hearing your mom talking about how he was alive, you saw his body how could that be? What could that be? ‘’What happened?’’ You ask him trying to sound as sympathetic as possible, ‘’You don’t do stuff like this.’’ 

‘’It was nothing,’’ He says and you let out a laugh. 

‘’Nothing?’’ You ask him. ‘’You’re in handcuffs! In the Police Station!’’ You shout trying to keep it as much of a whisper as possible. ‘’At least tell me the other guy looks worse,’’ You say sarcastically leaning back in the chair again crossing your arms. 

‘’He does,’’ Jonathan says. 

‘’What?’’ You ask leaning forward not believing what you had just heard. ‘’Who was it?’’

‘’Steve Harrington?’’ Jonathan says hesitantly. 

‘’Steve Harrington!’’ You yell in a whisper at him, ‘’You got in a fight with Steve Harrington?’’ You ask him. ‘’Over what?’’ You knew that Steve picked on him but what would they fight over? 

‘’He was just being an ass,’’ He says sos simply you widen your eyes at him encouraging him to tell you more, ‘’He said some stuff about Nancy, and then he started talking about like you mom and Will,’’ He says pushing the ice pack back to his eye. 

‘’What did he say?’’ You ask feeling slightly angry that Steve who knew nothing about you or your family had something to say. ‘’Jonathan what did he say?’’ You ask putting your arm on his pulling it so he would look at you. 

‘’Gosh Y/N! Nothing!’’ He yells at you. You felt a little taken back by his tone, Jonathan and Will were both the calm ones of the family, you were just like your mom in terms of freaking out, which happened to be a lot. ‘’I didn’t need you to come up here,’’ He sighs. 

 ‘’You don’t want me here?’’ You ask him. He doesn't say anything he just groans in response, which was enough for you. You stand up and notice Nancy coming back in the room two cups of water in her hand and she gives you a soft smile, ‘’You know what?’’ You say glancing at the keys on the table. ‘’Have fun riding home with mom,’’ You tell him and grab the keys off the table turning around and making your way out of the station. You hoped nobody would steal your bike, but maybe your mom would see it and take it home. You get into the car slamming the door shut and starting the ignition, moving the clutch in reverse you press your foot on the gas and swing out of the parking lot of the police station. Your tears were clouding your vision as you thought about how messed up everything seemed right now, one of your brothers was in the police station for fighting and another one was missing. It felt like everything was falling apart in your family, your mom was off chasing something as of now you were unsure what, and Jonathan was too preoccupied with Nancy to see that you were mourning the loss of Will, that this was the hardest thing you would probably ever have to go through. It was hard and you were tired of fighting back the sadness, you were tired of trying to be the strong one while everyone else seemingly had their own ideas of where Will was or what happened to him. 

 So that resulted in some anger, and then that progressed into the parking lot of a gas station. You notice that stupid head of hair belonging to no other than Steve Harrington, you pulled the car over getting out and walking straight up to him, the tears at this point were streaming right down your face. 

‘’Ah! There she is!’’ Tommy yelled out as you walked over to them. ‘’And look she’s sad,’’ He says laughing and fakes a pout. 

You ignore Tommy walking straight up to Steve staring him down though he couldn’t meet your eye. ‘’You had something to say to him, you can say it to me too.’’ He looks up at you a little shocked and Tommy walks over slinging his arm around Steve’s shoulder making Steve’s face scrunch up in disgust. 

‘’Listen, Harrington here wasn’t saying anything that wasn’t true,’’ He says. Steve moves his shoulder trying to shrug Tommy off from his side. 

‘’Shut it Tommy,’’ Steve groans. 

‘’All my buddy said was that your family is a bunch of screw ups,’’ Tommy says and your mouth drops slightly in shock, ‘’I mean you have Jonathan, your mom, you,’’ He pauses laughing, ‘’And now your brother?’’ Tommy says patting Steve’s chest, ‘’Right Steve?’’ 

 At that point you had lunged for Tommy ready to beat him for what he said, as you do though you felt arms around your waist holding you back. You turn around noticing Steve staring at you sympathetically, you reach your hand up slapping him across the face. You were shocked yourself you had done it but now you could hear Tommy and Carol gasping from behind you, you look at Steve who looked shocked, but not mad which also was a surprise. You stare at him and a tear falls down your face as you realize what you had done, ‘’I’m sorry,’’ You say soft enough for Steve to hear. 

 You turn around and hurry to the car and get in ready to once again just run away, life was easier when you did that so it was what you were used to. When you put the car in reverse you flinch noticing Tommy throw a can of coke which hit your window, you saw Steve glare at him and push him but by that time you just wanted to leave. You wanted to go home, you wanted everything to go back to normal and you wanted your brother home and safe. You wondered if you’d ever feel normal again, you could only hope you would.

*END OF FLASHBACK*

 Ever since that day you swore you’d never change your mind about Steve Harrington, you didn’t like that he judged before he knew. But then you think about that day how you slapped him and he didn’t even seem mad he just accepted it? Who just accepts a slap? 

 Ever since that day Steve still hadn’t said sorry, he practically avoided you at all cost and when he did have to talk to you all you both could do was bicker at each other. You start drawing absentmindedly not really sure what was going to come out about the art, but as you got closer to finishing you realized how much it actually looked like Steve, and instead of throwing that page away you kept it. 

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[drabbleshereandthere]

A Heartbreaker If I've Ever Seen One

Word Count: 1,060

Pairing: Steve Harrington x Reader, Slight Steve Harrington x Nancy Wheeler, Slight Nancy Wheeler x Jonathan Byers

A/N: peep the angst y’all 👀

Warnings: Cursing, the infamous disloyal Nancy, heartbreak, angst, cheating, implied smut, OOC steve

Summary: Steve was tired of being the heartbroken one, and as much as he knew what he was doing would probably break you, he wanted to break Nancy more.

Both you and Steve Harrington made mistakes, but when you first united, you never thought they’d regard each other. Steve Harrington’s first mistake was falling in love with Nancy Wheeler. Her dainty yet adventurous demeanor enticed him, and she let him come to her. And then, she sure as hell let him go.

When she did let him go, he fell into a pit of anger, sadness, confusion, and a certain jealousy that came with Byers. He’d never been hurt that badly, or worried that much over a girl- or anything at all, before. So, in retaliation for his broken heart, and his inner hurt, he found someone new. A nobody that everyone would react to since she wasn’t someone that reflected his usual selection. He was counting on it.

He chose you. That was his biggest mistake. The person he shouldn’t have. The person that would fall in love with him, because they’d never been chosen before, and the person that would thrive under the affection and attention. When he chose you, it was like a door had opened. You’d never been looked at with special interest, or any intention of affection or being pursued. But Steve- well- he told you from the get-go what he wanted. A relationship. With you. Steve was smart enough to build a relationship with you first. For a month or two, he pushed himself into your space. A bit touchy for your taste, but without having been with anyone else in the first place, how would you know what your taste was, anyway?

You were a fine, naive, Virgin Mary that was ready to be freshly tainted, and Steve vowed to be the first. From there, the news would spread, and Nancy would come right back to him. Thinking back, you accepted his proposal to start a relationship because of how certain and comfortable he made you feel, and the love that blossomed within the time he tainted you. It was reason enough, for you. But for him- you should’ve thought about what his motive was.

Nobody could’ve warned you enough to make you resist his temptations and what would happen as a result. He was in the process of breaking your heart while you were blissfully unaware. To be frank, Steve was tired of being the heartbroken one, and as much as he knew that what he was doing would probably break you, he wanted to break Nancy even more. He needed her to feel the anguish of a lost love when she looked at you and him together.

You never saw any of that. It was too hidden by the whispers of “I love you” in the sheets, or the warmth of his hand locked with yours when he showed you off. You were so happy that someone could love you and treat you well after so long of feeling empty. Years of being pushed away, being the second choice, being the laughable interest were over, because Steve Harrington loved you. You were sure of it. He would drive you to school and back home, proudly flaunt you for everyone to see, kiss you in a way that was so gentle and loving that you could’ve never guessed who he really was.

You started to become suspicious when everything loving and the life of being carefree with steve diminished behind closed doors. He’d drive you home and never touch you. Hours would pass where he would barely speak or acknowledge you. When the day came where you asked him why, the dam broke. “What do you want from me, huh? How do you expect me to keep this shit up all the time? Come on. Fuck off, honestly.”

Maybe you shouldn’t have asked him when he was agitated and drinking. Maybe you shouldn’t have cried yourself to sleep that night, or begged him for forgiveness. Maybe you shouldn’t have acted as if everything was forgotten when you came back to school, hand in hand with him the very next day. Maybe. But, Steve Harrington must have been in love with you. You were sure of it.

Steve wondered why he let it all go on you that night. He could’ve at least waited until he got what he wanted out of everything, and then blown up. That was if the plan was actually working. Nancy was still in love with Jonathan Byers and Steve was left in the dust. But behind Steve, was you. Dealing with something you had no part in. You weren’t stupid, you just made bad decisions. Each of them was a mistake.

It didn’t go unnoticed that Steve always looked at Nancy when you were holding hands, and his grip would get that much looser. He might have also moaned her name a few times when you were “making love”. You weren’t stupid, you just chose to ignore it. You chose to keep loving Steve Harrington, even as he left you in the dust as he had once been, and ripped your heart to pieces with all his heavy sorrows gone untreated.

Things kept getting worse. He never made the effort to drive you home anymore, he got lost in other girls at parties, and you continued to ignore it all, for the belief that somewhere inside him, he might have still loved you. You were sure that he did. For a while.

You chose to keep loving Steve Harrington, even when he left you and finally realized he wasn’t getting what he wanted. You kept loving him even with his last words to you. “You’re not Nancy. I’m sorry.”

Things were simple really. You kept loving him because that’s just how it went. That’s just how love was. You couldn’t just stop loving someone, no matter how hard you wanted to or tried. The fact that Steve left you with a half assed apology and no shed tears meant that he didn’t love you. It meant that everything you’d loved about him was meant for someone else, and he was never really yours in the first place. He used you, and yet you still loved him. You were sure of it.

“Did you hear how stuff went down with Steve and Y/N? It was brutal.” “Yeah. He’s a real heartbreaker if I’ve ever seen one.”

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A/N: hope this wasn’t too bad. i haven’t written angst in forever.

[eddieheart]

WORRIES

Fandom: Stranger Things

Pairings: NONE

Words: 536

Description: Billy comes to get Max, inspired by this post

Short, shaky, nervous breaths. Hands raking through hair. He'd been searching for her all night, the looming threat of Neil had forced him to cancel his plans and look for his little sister. Billy took in another shaky breath, his hand fumbled for a cigarette.

After stopping at all her friends houses and painfully flirting with Nancy Wheelers mom he'd come to his last stop. The Byers house, right in the edge of town. It was his last hope, if he didn't find Max here he couldn't go home.

Stopping out his cigarette he walked towards the door. Raising his hand timidly, Billy knocked. The door opened to reveal Mrs. Byers and he plastered his signature Billy Hargrove smile onto his face.

He spoke confidently, pushing down his nerves.

"Hello, I didn't realize Johnathon had a sister.." She laughed softly in return. Not like Mrs. Wheeler had, in a seductive way, but in a gentle way, like she was honestly flattered.

"I'm Johnathon's mother, Joyce and you are?"

"Billy, Billy Hargrove." He stuck a hand out for her to shake and he gently placed his free hand onto of their joined ones.

"You must be here for John, let me just get him."

"No actually, I'm looking for my little sister, Max. Goes by Maxine. She's been missing all day and to be honest with you I've been worried sick y'know so..." He trailed off.

Her face softened.

"She's here, I didn't know she snuck off, I'll give you two a moment."

As Mrs. Byers stepped away from the doorway she revealed the red headed girl he'd been searching for. Billy waited cautiously for the woman to walk away before turning to his sister. His eyes widened in shock, jerking forward he reached for her arm.

"Max where the hell have you been, I've been looking everywhere for you?" She yanked her arm out of his grip and scowled.

"I've been out, what do you care." Max snarled at him.

"Neil is asking where you are, if we don't go home now, I'm gonna get punished." The young girl scoffed and turned away.

“I’m not leaving Billy.” His breath shook and he turned desperate. If she wasn’t with him, he couldn’t go home. He’d have to sleep in his car again.

“Max please, we need to go.” His voice broke as he vaguely urged his sister to go. Joyce was still in the room and a young girl sat on a couch in the corner.

He focused down in the hardwood floors, begging his eyes to not shed any tears. Mac’s face suddenly changed, he was serious about this. Billy never showed any weakness, but she could tell that his voice was not meant to come out so shaky. She turned to him and nodded.

Joyce watched from the kitchen, the whole display struck her as odd. He reminded her of herself as a child. Scared and desperate, not wanting to go home empty handed and not wanting to go home at all.

She would remember this, she’d ask Max about it when this was all over. The older woman kept a watchful eye on the pair as Max collected her things, leaving with her brother.

Let me know what you think, anything I should add or change?

@buggylad

because my brain never stops thinking about harringrove fic ideas

i came up with this yesterday, no idea if its been done yet but imma just get it out there.

so what if billy got to the byers house a few hours earlier? when everyone else was still there in s2?

billy still telling max they need to go, but she isnt moving, and everyone yet again assumes the worst of him. billy starts getting desperate and basically pleads with her, telling her they have to go and that he’s not getting in trouble again for twice in a day.

joyce picks up something isnt right. and so does hopper

thats all ive got rn i’ll work out more later but i think it could be interesting with billy there from the start.