wildsupernova

[wildsupernova]

a secret gift.

prompt #3 on scealaiscoite’s christmas prompt list: “secret santa”

summary: another christmas spent with friends and loved ones means another annual secret santa celebration. but this year, steve has a special secret santa gift up his sleeve…

pairing: steve harrington x reader

word count: 3.5k

warnings: fluff, very mild sexual allusions

a/n: hey again everyone! i wanted to thank you guys so, so, so much for the love on my last christmas story. it was my first post back after a long hiatus and i wasn’t expecting to see it blow up like it did, but all of the reblogs really warmed my heart. this story was supposed to be uploaded on christmas, but time got away from me, so here it is a few days late. it’s not quite as good as i had hoped for, but it was an idea floating around in my head for a while, so i hope you guys enjoy. again, thanks so much for all the love on my last post, and thank you for reading this one! <3 — — nova

masterlist | prompt list

“Uhg, come on, do we really have to do this again?” Robin threw her head back on the back of the sofa, her skull slightly bouncing off the leather as she did.

“Yes, Robin, we’re doing this again.” Nancy shook the bowl full of little slips of paper in her hands for the third time, pulling one out and putting it in her lap. She passed the bowl to Jonathan, who also took one, and the chain continued until each person had a slip of paper. Robin was last to take hers, throwing the empty bowl on the small coffee table in front of her.

“But I hate Secret Santa.”

“It’s tradition, Robs.” You say with a smile, hiding your own slip of paper in your palm. “We’ve been doing it since high school.”

“Which is exactly why we should stop doing it. It’s so old.” The group laughs at Robin’s childlike tantrum, Eddie giving her a light smack to the back of the head.

Christmas time was something you cherished deeply, especially amongst your friends. Ever since you were a child, the magic of Christmas had always been something you held with you; the shimmering, multicolored lights wrapped around a freshly decorated tree, the smell of cinnamon mixing perfectly with the earthly scent of pine, and the way the sun shimmered opalescent as it beamed down on a fresh layer of snow. Christmas was a time to feel like a child again, no matter how old you were, and you would be damned if you would let Robin’s yearly tantrum ruin a 5 year long tradition.

You had been a late addition to the friend group you found yourself in now, not spending time together with everyone until your senior year at Hawkins High. You had kept to yourself for most of your high school career, not doing much in the way of extracurriculars or social activities. You had friends, of course, but none that spent much time going to parties or participating in sports, so your friendships never expanded much outside of the small circle of individuals you had known since middle school. At the beginning of your senior year, you had realized just how much you had missed out on, and vowed that you would put yourself out there more and make your own memories. So, when your new lab partner Nancy Wheeler invited you to a party at Steve Harrington’s house, you agreed, albeit with a small hesitation.

At the time, you wouldn’t have described your relationship with Nancy as being very close. It was primarily a professional one, with most conversations revolving around that day’s homework or the upcoming quiz at the end of the week. When you brought one of your favorite books to class one day, the conversation pivoted away from the usual topics, with Nancy noting that the book was also one of her favorites, and that she was happy to find someone who was willing to listen to her talk about it non stop. Soon enough, the conversations became more like the ones you had with your other friends, and that had led to Nancy inviting you to the party that weekend.

Being invited to a party at Steve Harrington’s house used to be the greatest honor anyone could achieve, but now it was something that was becoming increasingly rare. You’d never had any negative experiences with Steve during your shared years at Hawkins High; you were just in the right level of social standing where you were practically invisible to him and his old friends, so you’d never had any bad nor good experiences with him and those formerly in his circle. You’d heard that in recent years he’d changed his personality significantly from how he’d been at the beginning of high school, and you would be lying if you said you weren’t a bit curious to see the new and greatly improved Steve Harrington.

Party wasn’t exactly what you would have called the get together you attended that Saturday night. By technical standards, it was a party. Music, drinks, empty house, and room temperature pizza were all present, but what was missing was…the people. It didn’t take you long to realize that you hadn’t been invited to a party; you had been invited to a hangout amongst long term friends, which left you feeling just a little bit awkward.

That awkwardness didn’t last for much of the night, however, as Nancy introduced you to the rest of the group quickly. Her boyfriend, Jonathan, was rather quiet, shaking your hand and offering a nod of the head as introduction. Robin was much more upbeat and gave you a hug as her greeting, which her girlfriend Vickie quickly apologized for and introduced herself. The best way to put Eddie’s introduction was charming, grabbing your hand and pressing a kiss to the back of it in a rather extravagant gesture, before he began profusely apologizing for it after realizing that it might have been a bit much. You just laughed it off and told him you appreciated it, which barely eased his conscience.

Then, there was Steve. It was visible that he was a different man than the one you knew from high school, like he had an aura around him that had shifted from a bright, overbearing yellow to a more soothing cool blue. He offered up a kind smile, ran a hand through his hair and unconsciously showed off the shiny watch on his wrist, and held his hand out for you to shake, which you took enthusiastically. You struggled to hold back the blush in your face when you saw his eyes just briefly sweep over your body, his grip on your hand firm as he shook and released it a few seconds later.

Needless to say, you were smitten from first glance at the new and improved Steve Harrington.

After that night, you became a permanent fixture in the friend group. At the start, you had felt like a 7th wheel, always left out of inside jokes and unsure of the context behind the many stories they told amongst each other. It didn’t last that way for long, however, as everyone was more than happy to go into explicit detail explaining the history of the joke or recounting tales that were always shared during get togethers. Naturally, as your friendship with everyone developed, you found yourself gravitating more and more towards Steve, and he seemed to be doing the same.

It became a regular occurrence that you and Steve would be left to hang out alone due to conflicts from the rest of the group. There were periods where Eddie was hardly around due to touring with his band, Nancy and Jonathan often cancelled in favor of date nights or work conflicts, and Robin and Vickie had perpetual band performances that left them unable to make plans. So, instead of canceling plans altogether, you and Steve decided to just hang out between the two of you, which became more and more charged the more nights you spent in each other’s company.

Nancy had been the one to pitch the idea of Secret Santa for Christmas that first year. You were still a fairly new addition to the group and didn’t know the others as well as they knew each other, and being the thoughtful person she was, Nancy didn’t want you to stress about finding Christmas gifts for everyone, so she figured Secret Santa would be the best way to not only give gifts, but also get to know the others with limited stress. You had ended up with Steve that first year, buying him an expensive watch that was far out of your budget, an item that, in retrospect, might have been an unconscious effort to make a good impression on him. Nancy had been the one to pull your name, gifting you a rare copy of the book that had led you to each other in the beginning.

As time went on, something between you and Steve seemed to shift that summer. There had been a tension building between you two for quite a while, but it finally broke after a particularly rough shift at Family Video. One moment, you were seated on the hood of his car in the parking lot talking him through his horrific encounters with various screaming customers, and the next his hands were all over you while his lips worked magic against your own.

You kept it quiet, unsure if what you were feeling was true romantic attraction or just a summer fling, but Steve decided to make it official that coming Christmas. It was your second year participating in Secret Santa as a group, and you had gotten Eddie that year, buying him a new guitar strap and set of guitar picks after his old ones finally broke. When you finally opened your Secret Santa gift, a small square box messily wrapped in bright red wrapping paper, you knew immediately that Steve was your Secret Santa. Inside of the box was a delicate silver necklace, a small teardrop shaped sapphire sitting in the center of the pendant hanging from the chain. That night was the night Steve had officially asked you to be his girlfriend, a proposition you happily accepted with a kiss.

The tradition of Secret Santa continued even when many of you had moved far from Hawkins, Indiana and started new lives, everyone somehow always able to make time to convene to celebrate the holiday. Nancy and Jonathan had moved to Chicago to pursue their collective journalism careers, spending their days with noses buried in books to get them through college. Corroded Coffin had kicked Eddie into stardom, with he and his fellow bandmates never staying in one place long enough to call it home, always on tour and playing new venues. Robin and Vickie had followed you and Steve to Indianapolis, beginning their own lives as college students. You and Steve moved into an apartment not far from your shared campus, with Steve working several odd jobs while remaining undecided on a major, finally finding his place in the education program after volunteering at the campus daycare for an event. Despite life always getting in the way, all of you consistently met for the annual Secret Santa, hosting the entire group at your house for the week leading up to Christmas.

“It’s not old, it’s a classic.” Robin rolled her eyes as Steve shared his defense for the tradition, earning him a small eye roll. He slung his arm over your shoulder and rested it on the back of the couch, yourself not seeing him subtly trade his slip of paper for the one Eddie was holding.

“Okay, everyone knows the rules. You have a week to find your gift, no tags, all wrapped in the same wrapping paper, and we exchange them on Christmas Eve.” Nancy folded up her paper and slipped it into her pocket, Robin letting out another groan of protest at her reminder of their rules. The room filled with quiet conversation as Steve looked down at the slip of paper in his hands, suddenly feeling the nerves he had been trying to push away for days fill up his chest.

A week later and the living room of yours and Steve’s small apartment is festively decorated for the upcoming holiday, the tree in the corner of the apartment covered in tinsel garland and the floor below is littered with brightly wrapped gifts. The Secret Santa gifts all sit in one corner, all wrapped in matching green and red striped paper, the bows tied on each one a different color to designate their intended recipient. You and the rest of the group sit huddled around the coffee table, drinks in hand and laughing about whatever crazy tour story Eddie was telling this time. Your fingers are wrapped around the stem of a wine glass as you sip absentmindedly from the merlot inside, and Steve sits next to you with his hand lightly resting on your thigh, his other holding the crystal glass of cheap whiskey that he’s been nursing the whole night.

“Okay!” Nancy claps her hands together, making Steve jump. You look up at him and raise a brow, but he just waves it off and gives you the ‘I’m fine’ look he always does. You don’t buy it, but decide to drop it anyway; he’s been on edge all week, but every time you ask why, he just brushes you off and assures you everything is fine. “We should get to the Secret Santa gifts while we’re all sober.”

“Please, I can’t listen to another minute of Eddie’s ramblings about getting drunk on tour.” Robin rolled her eyes and threw back the rest of the drink in her glass, swatting away Eddie’s hands as he tried to mess up her hair in retaliation.

Nancy was quick in passing out all of the gifts, having long memorized the designated ribbon colors that you all had set after the first year you had decided to use the same color wrapping paper and mixed up all the gifts. She handed you yours last, a messily wrapped box tied with green ribbon, and you placed it in your lap, almost immediately noticing how the shoddy wrapping paper had been taped down to the box. It was nearly identical to the way your Secret Santa gift from Steve three years ago had been wrapped, and you smiled a bit at the memory.

Once everyone had been handed their gifts, everyone took turns opening them. Nancy went first and opened her gift from Robin, a fancy new notepad and pen set for her internship at the paper. Jonathan got a new set of camera attachments from Eddie, Robin a new jacket from Nancy, Vickie a new hairpin from Jonathan, and Eddie had been gifted a brand new custom embroidered Corroded Coffin patch from Vickie. Eventually, it came around to you and Steve, where it became obvious that you had received each other for the Secret Santa exchange (if it hadn’t been obvious already).

Steve opened his gift from you first, ripping the paper off the rectangle shaped black leather box. When he opened it, inside was a golden ring hanging from a polished golden chain, just long enough to be able to fit over Steve’s head without much effort. Engraved inside the ring and placed in just the right way where it was visible, were the words ‘Merry Christmas, my love. Take this ring as a promise for many more.’

“I know it’s more expensive than what we normally do for Secret Santa gifts, but I wanted to get you something special this year. I haven’t pulled you for Secret Santa since that first year, so I figured I should get you something nice.” Steve pulled the necklace from the box, holding it delicately in his hands as if he were afraid to break it.

“It’s beautiful, sweetheart. I don’t even know what to say.”

“I know you’re a big fan of promise rings, considering you’ve bought me, like, five, so I figured it was time for you to have your own.”

“I love it, thank you.” Holding it tightly in his palm, Steve leaned over and pressed a long, soft kiss to your lips, throwing the chain over his head when he pulled away. “Hopefully my gift can match up to yours.”

“I’m sure it’ll be fine, you always know what to get me even if I don’t tell you-” Your words died in your throat after you pulled all of the wrapping paper from the box and removed the lid, eyes growing wide as they landed on the small velvet box lying perfectly in the center. You looked at Steve, still wide eyed, who simply nodded for you to open the box, your hand shaking as you removed it from the cardboard box and flipped open the lid.

Sitting inside the box was a beautiful shimmering engagement ring, diamonds inlaid in the silver that weaved around in a beautiful vintage pattern. A single large, oval shaped diamond sat in the center of the ring, the ring’s band weaving around it to frame it just perfectly like the center of a flower. You felt your heart beating out of your chest, and as you looked at the way the ring shimmered in the dim light, you had to remind yourself to breathe.

“It’s been three years since I first asked you to be my girlfriend, and it’s been the happiest three years of my life.” Steve’s voice shook with nerves as he spoke, and when you looked up to meet his eyes, his face had turned a bright red. “When I first met you, I think part of me always knew that this is where we would end up. You didn’t know any part of me except for my reputation, but you gave me a chance anyway, even when I’m sure everyone you knew was telling you not to. That summer, when we started all of this and tried to agree that it was never something serious, I kept replaying these images in my mind of what a life with you would be like. You were just so unbelievably easy to fall in love with. No matter what you did, I could feel myself falling deeper and deeper in love with you until I just couldn’t handle it anymore and had to have you, totally and completely. Three years ago, I asked you to be my girlfriend with a Secret Santa gift, so, three years later, I have to ask you something again.”

Steve slid himself off the couch slowly, bending down on one knee in front of where you sat on the couch. You could barely contain the smile spreading across your face, and it seemed to spread to Steve’s own as he found it hard to speak.

“Sweetheart, will you marry me?”

Instantly, you were furiously nodding your head, jumping into Steve’s arms and nearly sending him tumbling back into the coffee table. All of your friends shared a round of applause as you pressed your lips to Steve fervently, Eddie letting out a loud wolf whistle when the kiss got just a bit deeper. When you finally ran out of breath and parted from him, you let Steve slip the ring on your left hand, pulling him in for one more kiss.

When everything in the room finally died down and you found your spot back on the couch, sitting as close to Steve as you possibly could, you looked at the beaming smiles of your friends who all threw congratulations your way. As they did, a thought hit you.

“Wait, how did you guys make sure that Steve got me for Secret Santa?” Everyone in the room went silent. “You guys knew?”

“‘Course we knew! How else would we make sure that someone else didn’t pull your name?” Eddie clapped Steve on the back, earning him a playful swat in return.

“Eddie was the one who actually pulled your name, but we swapped cards last minute.”

“If it helps, they didn’t even tell me until right before we pulled names.” Robin crossed her arms over her chest, pouting like a child. “Said they didn’t trust me to keep the secret.”

“And you did phenomenally well.” Robin sent a glare towards Nancy’s condescending remark, but laughed it off quickly.

“When Steve told us what he wanted to do, of course we had to help him out.”

“Thank you guys, really. It took a lot of the stress off of me.” Steve looked around the room, sending a thankful smile to all of his friends.

“Of course, man. Anything for you two love birds.” Eddie stood from the couch and walked behind it, holding both you and Steve in a wide embrace over the back of the couch. After a semi-uncomfortable few minutes, Eddie made his way to the kitchen, rummaging through the refrigerator in search of…something. “Now, let’s celebrate. Who's up for some homemade gingerbread cookies?”

“Oh god, I’d better go help him before he burns down the whole building.” Nancy jumped to her feet, rushing towards the kitchen and screaming for Eddie to put down whatever he was holding.

You let the sounds of your friends surround you as you looked up at Steve, who was already staring down at you with the softest eyes you’d ever seen.

“Merry Christmas, Stevie.”

“Merry Christmas, sweetheart.” Steve leaned down and pressed his lips against yours once again, your new engagement ring sparkling in the lamplight as you entwined your fingers with his own.

[wildsupernova]

i have been tagging wild wolves so they never disappear

all wolf names so far

[wildsupernova]

I want to write. I have ideas. I open document. I type four of the worst sentences ever created in the english language. I daydream the rest of the scene. I close document.

[wildsupernova]

complete masterlist

x reader prompt list | wattpad | ao3

long running series

cupid’s chokehold. | steve harrington x fem!oc

book length series. delphi walker’s world turned upside down when her brother was found dead. her entire life turned into a downward spiral into social suicide, from her mother’s self-destructive lifestyle and the steady loss of her best friend. when another boy goes missing a year later, she find herself caught in something far bigger than she ever knew, and she herself down a path to a brand new life.

short running series

summer, sun, and a smoking engine, pt 1

summer, sun, and a smoking engine, pt 2: summer nights

when your car breaks down on the side of the road in Hawkins Indiana, you don’t have many other options than to walk and get help. Thankfully, Steve Harrington is here to help.

prompt based oneshots

forget, but can’t forgive. | steve harrington x reader

angst prompt #13: “did you always know you were going to leave?”

counting calories. | steve harrington x reader.

trauma comfort prompt #13: “when was the last time you ate?”

standalone oneshots

sex.

steve harrington always wanted a relationship with the quarterback’s girlfriend, but when he finally gets what he wants, it’s not exactly what he expected.

waiting for this.

by the time you realized you were in love with your best friend, it was too late. when he shows up to your apartment one night heartbroken and lonely, you make what could be a huge mistake.

roses, chocolates, and a heart shaped box.

VALENTINE'S DAY SPECIAL valentine’s day had always felt like a joke to you. nobody had ever taken the time to do anything nice for you, but when the sickeningly romantic steve harrington falls in love with you, of course you’ll have the best valentine’s day ever.

a movie i’ve seen before.

you can’t stop playing it out in your mind like it’s a movie. but the ending is always the same, no matter how many times you wish it would change.

and you loved me still

the memories of their summers together would haunt her for the rest of her life, always leaving her to wonder what could have been. steve never realized how important those memories were to him until he couldn’t forget it.

mistletoe kisses

CHRISTMAS SPECIAL it’s christmas time in the city, a time full of holiday cheer and celebrations. when you refuse to do anything about your feeling towards steve, robin comes up with a festive way to pull you two together.

[wildsupernova]

mistletoe kisses.

prompt #4 on scealaiscoite’s christmas prompts list: “hidden bunches of mistletoe”

summary: it’s christmas time in the city, a time full of holiday cheer and celebrations. when you refuse to do anything about your feeling towards steve, robin comes up with a festive way to pull you two together.

pairing: steve harrington x fem!reader

word count: 2.4k

warnings: no use of y/n, fluff, some language

a/n: hey everyone! my sincerest apologies for my total disappearance from my blog for like 4 months. this semester absolutely kicked my ass and i’ve had no time or motivation to write much of anything, but now that i’m in my last two weeks for the semester i finally have some time and energy. i’ll be posting some small holiday stories likely until the end of december (if i can manage to stay consistent) and hope to get back into the groove of things. i hope you enjoy this little drabble, and thank you for sticking around! expect more in the future (if my brain allows it) —— nova

masterlist | prompts list

December. A month filled with festive decor, frantic holiday shopping, Christmas parties, and the same five holiday songs playing on every store radio. As annoying as it could be, it truly was a time that filled you with excitement and joy, especially now, after you had long since graduated from walking the halls of Hawkins high and moved to the cold and windy downtown of Chicago with your best friends. 

Christmas in Hawkins was definitely something special, but not like it was in the city. Back home, the small downtown squares decorated their exteriors for the holidays, sure, but here, where expensive department stores and extravagant cafes lined the seemingly endless streets that made up downtown Chicago, lights and music and tinsel were almost never out of sight. The lamp posts lining the sidewalk were wound with shimmering red and silver garland, nearly every storefront with a big front window had a Christmas tree on display, and street performers played Christmas carols on every corner. Even the subway cars had been decorated for the occasion, advertisements now covered with pictures of Santa Claus wishing all the riders a happy holiday. There was only one thing that put a damper on your holiday spirit. 

Not having that special someone to celebrate the holidays with. 

You had your friends, sure, but the holidays were supposed to be a time for romance, for spending the day trapped inside of your shitty apartment watching the snow fall with only a thick blanket and a loving body to keep you warm. It had been the subject of your frustration for a good few years now, and even became more frustrating after you finally came to terms with your feelings for a certain Steve Harrington. 

“It’s fine, Robin. The holidays will continue whether I have a boyfriend or not.” You sprayed a bit of perfume into the air in front of you and took a sniff, scrunching up your nose and putting it back on the shelf as the offensive floral odor invaded your nose. 

“But the holidays would be the perfect time to finally tell him how you feel!” You had to swerve the shopping cart around Robin as she stepped in front of you, a pointless effort as she simply ran right back in front of it. 

“He doesn’t like me like that, Robin.”

“You don’t know that! But, if you tell him how in love with him you are-”

“I am not in love with him.”

“Yeah, okay, sure.” You rolled your eyes at Robin’s teasing, threatening to run her foot over with the cart if she didn’t move out of the way. “All I’m saying is that you always complain about how you don’t have a date on Christmas and that now would be the perfect time to get one.”

“Look, Robin, I appreciate your focus on fixing my love life, but I’m fine, really. Let’s just get the rest of this shopping done before it gets too late, I don’t want to try to squeeze through all the late shoppers on the train ride back.” You picked up a box of Christmas ornaments off the shelf, ready to put them in the cart until you saw the price tag. Eyes widening and letting out a soft whistle, you put them back and continued moving down the aisle. 

“Both of you are completely insufferable, you know that? Always complaining to me about this shit and then when I give you an easy solution you just- OH MISTLETOE!” Rushing forwards like a little kid seeing a toy, Robin launched towards a shelf at the end of the aisle, nearly knocking both you and the shopping cart into a shelf full of Christmas lights. She grabbed several bundles from off the shelf and bounced on her toes in front of you, eyes wide and twinkling.

“Robin, we are not getting mistletoe to hang around the apartment.” Her face dropped into a pout and you swore you saw her eyes begin to get watery with tears. 

“Why noooot?” She dragged the last word out like a child, and you found yourself rolling your eyes at her like a scolding parent. 

“Because we don’t need to hang up mistletoe. This isn’t one of those cliche Christmas movies where the couple kisses in the doorway before a fade to black. Now put it back, we still have to find the ornaments.” 

Robin huffed, throwing the bundles back on the shelf. 

“Fine.”

As you turned your head to look at another box of ornaments, you didn’t see Robin take the bundle back off the shelf and hide it underneath the tree skirt with a smile.

Putting up Christmas decorations in you and Robin’s small apartment certainly wasn’t a task you needed more than the two of you for, but when Steve and Eddie offered their help, and Nancy and Jonathan showed up at the door with a warm batch of fresh Christmas cookies, it turned from a two person job to a six person job quickly. The sheer amount of decorations Robin had made you buy certainly made sure there was enough for everyone to do, and before you knew it, the apartment was busy with bodies hanging garland above the door and trying desperately to figure out how to put up the fake Christmas tree. 

Your task of helping Eddie put up the tree had kept most of your attention off of Steve, but the longer it took, and the more whining you heard from Eddie, the more your focus started to drift. He was just barely out of your line of sight, lingering in the corner of your eye as he climbed the small step ladder to start hanging the Christmas garland around the perimeter of the living room. Robin said something to him as she handed him the garland and whatever it was had him tipping his head back with a groan, hair flopping out of place and muscles in his neck straining as he did. He ran a hand down his face and then through his hair, and you nearly groaned when he balled it into a fist at his side, gold watch glistening on his wrist. 

As he reached up to hammer the nail into the wall, you saw the bottom of his tight fitting red sweater lift up past the waistband of his jeans, showing off the toned muscles on the side of his abdomen and just the smallest hint of his Calvin Klein boxers. You sucked in a breath as it kept creeping higher and higher the further up on the wall he tried to reach, and without thinking, your hands completely let go of the part of the tree you were holding. 

Which caused the whole thing to tumble over right on top of Eddie.

A muffled ‘help’ came from underneath the mess of fake pine needles, Eddie’s legs peeking out from underneath in a way that would certainly be comedic if you weren’t absolutely mortified. You were quick to rush to Eddie’s aid, face flushed entirely red with embarrassment, in the hope that you could get him up quick enough that none of the attention would be pulled towards you, but one look to your left showed you that all eyes were already on you. Steve's face looked more worried than anything, but Robin was behind him holding in a laugh, and you had to send a glare her way to get her not to say anything. 

Setting the tree back in its place and reaching down to help Eddie up, he mumbled under his breath, crossing his arms and glaring at you in annoyance. 

“Never asking you for help again, not until you can learn to stop staring at St-” 

“I should go get the ornaments now that the tree is set up!” You cut him off loudly, much to his dismay, watching as Robin kept trying to hold in her laugh from over Steve’s shoulder. Shooting her a sharp glare, you jabbed Eddie in the ribs when he tried to make another comment. “Robin, why don’t you come help me grab them from the closet?”

“Hmm, I don’t think I’ll be able to reach them. Maybe Steve should go help?” The Cheshire grin on Robin’s face paired well with the way she patted Steve on the back and nudged him forward, Steve’s eyes going wide and his cheeks quickly going red. 

“Uh, y-yeah, I can help, if you need me to.” He shoved his hands in his pockets, giving Robin a glare as she pushed him forwards again. 

“I could use the help, sure.” You gave him a smile, which he returned, and started heading down the hallway, throwing one last look to Robin over your shoulder. 

Digging through your bedroom closet, you tried to find the bags of Christmas decorations you had put there only a few days before, coming up empty handed after throwing nearly everything in it to the side.

“I swear, I just put it in here two days ago.”

“Maybe you put it on the top shelf by accident?”

“I doubt it, I can’t even reach up there.”

“I’ll look anyway, maybe Eddie moved it when he got the tree down-” Steve cut himself off abruptly, clearing his throat mid reach up to the top shelf of your closet. You threw a few more things to the side, not yet looking up. 

“What? Did you find it?” When you did finally look up, you saw Steve’s gaze trained on the top of the closet door frame, hands still reaching to grab the bag of Christmas ornaments you could see sitting on the top shelf. You pulled your eyes away from where his sweater was riding up again and instead followed his line of sight, eyes widening and face going even redder than before when you saw exactly what it was that had stopped Steve in his tracks. 

A small bundle of mistletoe, hidden just behind the door frame and hanging right above the bag of Christmas ornaments. 

“Oh.” Steve swallowed thickly when you spoke and he finally let himself move, grabbing the bag full of ornament boxes and handing it to you softly. “I told Robin not to buy that, she must have hung that up there to be…funny, or something.” You grabbed one of the boxes still inside the bag, the plastic crinkling as you gripped it tight. Steve’s hands remained hovering in the air after you took the bag from his grip, eyes soft as they looked down at you over his nose. 

“Yeah, sounds like Robin.” The air grew thick as you looked at him, clearing your throat to try and cut through the tension the best you could. You let out a dry laugh, turning away from him and starting to travel towards the door.

“Well, got the ornaments, we should probably get back out there-” You were cut off when Steve’s hand wrapped around your wrist to stop you, pulling you back just a few inches. 

“Wait.” You turned to face him again, the redness in his cheeks and ears not going unnoticed. “Can’t break tradition.”

“What do you mean?” He let out a low chuckle and flashed you a smile. 

“Come on, I know you know what I’m talking about.” When you didn’t respond, he pulled you closer, the bag of ornaments softly falling to the floor as you let go of the handle in surprise.

“I can assure you that I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You kept playing dumb, hoping it would let you talk your way out of the situation, but Steve’s grin only grew wider. 

“You know what happens when two people walk under the mistletoe.”

“Do I?” Steve took another step towards you and you could feel your heart skip a beat, his body so close that his own heat radiated onto you. 

“Yeah. Yeah, I think you do.” He was slow as he brought his hand up to the side of your face, gently tilting your head up towards him as he leaned down to meet you somewhere in the middle. You could smell the expensive cologne on his skin as he moved down closer and closer, your eyes darting across his face when you became unsure where to look. It felt like hours before your lips finally connected, slotting between each other like perfectly matching puzzle pieces. 

Your heart was beating out of your chest, so loud in your own ears that you weren’t sure Steve couldn’t hear it himself, but the way his hand had started to tangle in your hair pulled all of your focus entirely to him. Standing up on your toes to reach him, you let your hands fall naturally against his chest, fists tightly gripping on to his sweater for balance. The kiss was soft and slow, as if he were testing the waters, but when you finally had enough sense to kiss him back, it changed into something different. Butterflies swam in your stomach when his other hand came up to hold the other side of your face, and he let out a groan when you melted into him with your arms draped over his shoulders. 

The kiss lasted until neither of you could breathe, Steve chasing your lips as you lowered back down on your heels and pulled away. It was silent in the room for another minute, the only sounds that of the reverberating conversation down the hall and the shared rhythm of you and Steve catching your breaths. 

“Merry Christmas.” Steve was first to speak, words breathy and hands still holding the side of your face. 

“Merry Christmas.” Your hands traveled to the front of his sweater in an effort to fix where your hands had left it wrinkled, his own thumbs softly running along your flushed cheeks. You leaned up to meet him in another kiss, but just as your lips were about to touch, Robin’s voice echoed loudly from down the hall. 

“Did you find it yet?” You both stopped your movements with a laugh, pressing your forehead to his before finally taking a step apart. Picking up the bag of ornaments, you took one more glance at the mistletoe hanging in the closet, laughing under your breath. 

“Yeah. Yeah, we found it.”

[wildsupernova]

I’m so sad… time for an x reader fan fiction

[wildsupernova]

women in STEM (shitty posture, tired all the time, eyebags, miserable)

[wildsupernova]

happy touch starved emotionally deprived autumn to all who celebrate. Yay

[wildsupernova]

does anyone want to admit they have a crush on me? nothing will come of it but i'd like to know for validation purpose

[wildsupernova]

[wildsupernova]

summer nights

part 2 of “summer, sun, and a smoking engine”.

summary: after steve came to your rescue when your car broke down, he offers to take you out to dinner and show you around hawkins. you decide to take a chance, in the hope it could lead to something more.

pairing: steve harrington x fem!reader

word count: 2.5k

warnings: no use of y/n, fluff and awkward conversation i guess?

a/n: i know it’s been a while since i posted anything (like over a month but we’re gonna ignore that) but i’ve been super busy working practically every day and i have been insanely exhausted but i had a burst of inspiration the other night and finally got something ready to be posted. this is part two to my last little fic so if you haven’t read that and want the context, i’ll have it linked below. there may be a part 3 to this if i can get the motivation to do it so be on the lookout for that as well. like, comment, reblog (any little bit helps) and i hope you enjoy! :)

part 1 | masterlist | prompts list

“You mean to tell me you’re going on a date with a guy you just met? You? The girl who wouldn’t even go on a date with the guy she had a crush on since 8th grade?”

“It’s not a date.” You wrung out the rest of the water in your hair into the scratchy motel towel, phone pressed between your shoulder and your ear. Your best friend scoffed on the other end of the phone, prompting you to roll your eyes. “He’s just showing me around the city.”

“Yeah, okay. You don’t just show someone around the city at 7:00 pm when they’ll only be sticking around until morning.”

“Okay, so maybe it's a date.” Your friend chuckled on the other line, and you shifted the phone to your other shoulder while you searched through your bags to find something to wear. “It’s one date, not like it’ll go anywhere. I mean, when am I ever gonna be back in Hawkins, Indiana besides when I’m driving through to visit you?”

“You don’t have to be in the city to date someone, you know.” You could hear her rustling along on the other side, the sound of a duvet crinkling as if she were rolling over in her bed. “Long distance is a thing.”

“Yeah, I tried that, remember? He cheated on me within a week of being gone.” You pulled a dress from out of one of your bags, holding it up to your body as you looked in the cloudy motel mirror. 

“At least give it a thought. You always say that love will come along at the right time, maybe this is it.” You stayed silent for a moment, soaking in her advice. It was true, you did say that it was only a matter of time, but it was more a self soothing mantra to make you feel better about your shitty dating life. You never really meant it as anything more than that.

“Yeah, yeah. Look, I gotta go, okay? I’ll call you when I’m back on the road tomorrow morning.”

“You better call with good news, okay?” You could hear her laugh on the other end of the line when you let out a groan. “Have fun, love you.”

“Love you, too.”

You put the phone back down on the hook with a click, staring down at the mess of clothes now thrown across the small motel bed. Every combination you’d held to your body in the mirror just hadn’t looked right, making you run your hand through your still damp hair. Never once had you worried this much about what to wear, especially for some guy. Now here you were, worried about if you were dressing too casual or too fancy or too colorful. You took in a deep breath and dug to the bottom of your suitcase, pulling out a simple black skirt and plain lavender top, not too flashy and not too simple, either. Deciding it best to just settle for what you had in your hands and not overthink it, you shoved all the other clothes back into the suitcase and zipped it shut.

Next thing you knew it was 30 minutes later and you were rushing to finish putting yourself together, your hair never quite falling right and your makeup always seeming to be smudged no matter how much you tried to fix it. The knocking on your motel room door had your heart lurching in your chest, swiping on a quick stripe of lip gloss before you took a deep breath and opened the door. 

Steve was standing on the other side with his hands in the pocket of his jeans, an untucked polo with the first few buttons undone wrapped tight around his chest. Somewhere in the last hour he had taken great care to get his hair styled, and the expensive smelling cologne he wore wafted towards you when a warm summer breeze blew in from behind him. He smiled when he saw you open the door, shoulders relaxing as if he had been nervous that you wouldn’t answer.

“Hey.” His smile seemed genuine, not like the fake charming ones you usually got from the few guys you tried to date back at school.

“Hi.” There was a moment of silence where neither of you knew what to say until Steve cleared his throat. 

“Come on. I know a good diner that’s open late where we can grab something to eat.” He nodded his head towards the parking lot, taking a step back as you stepped out of the room and shut the door behind you. He walked with you down to his car while trying to make awkward small talk, opening the passenger side door for you and shutting it gently once you’d gotten settled in the seat. He climbed in himself and started up the car, engine humming as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the main road. 

The silence in the car was cut up by the occasional short conversation and the sounds of music softly playing through the radio, street lights illuminating the sharpness of Steve’s face as the car traveled down the road. After about 10 minutes, maybe less, you arrived at the diner, a slightly run down building lined in neon lights with three cars already in the parking lot. After pulling into a parking space right by the door, Steve turned the car off and ran over to your side of the car quickly, opening the door for you before you even had a chance to reach for the handle. You were thankful that the lights above you weren’t quite enough for him to see the blush forming over your cheeks. 

Inside the diner, the pair of you picked a booth over in the corner, far away from the other couples and families who had also decided to get a late dinner here. The waitress, a kind older woman with bright red lipstick and heavy blue eyeshadow, took your orders and left, leaving the two of you alone to sit in a lingering, slightly awkward silence. 

Each of you tried to start a conversation, but it felt as if you had no idea what to say, eventually sharing a choked laugh to fill the silence. Apologies naturally turned into conversation, and before you knew it, you were already halfway through your plate of burger and fries. 

“So, you said you go to school in-state?” You nodded, swallowing the fries you had been chewing.

“Mhmm. There were no good options back home, and I’ve got friends in Indiana so I figured it’d be a good choice.”

“What are you studying?”

“Chemistry.” Steve’s eyes widened for a moment and he let out a small laugh. “What?”

“You are way smarter than me to be studying something like that. I barely passed chemistry in high school.”

“I don’t know, you seem like a pretty smart guy to me.” He scoffed. “I’m serious! Maybe you just haven’t found what you’re good at yet.”

“Well, I’m glad you have so much faith in me.” You laughed, and another silence fell over the table.

“So, your boyfriend gonna be mad that I took you out tonight?” You choked a bit on your drink and gave Steve a small smile, eyebrow raised at his bluntness. He cringed at himself a bit, failing quite miserably at his attempt to subtly feel out whether you were single or not.

“He might be, if I had one.” Steve’s head perked up a bit. “Fortunately, my dating life is quite abysmal.”

“Really? Girl like you and no boyfriend?” Steve’s voice had a bit of a teasing lilt to it, lips upturning at the sides in a charming smirk. You felt your face heat up at the way his eyes scanned over your features, lingering a bit longer in some spots.. 

“Guys don’t really ask me out much, and as you can probably tell, I don’t really go around asking guys on dates much, either.”

“Well, what changed this time?” He leaned his elbows on the table, resting his chin in his hand. “I mean, you just met me and you let me take you out.”

“Well you never said it would be a date.”

“Would it have changed your mind if I told you it was?” You stayed silent for a moment, giving him a smile of your own as you sipped your drink.

“No.” Steve’s smile grew wider at that. 

“Good.” Steve fished his wallet out of his pocket and pulled out several bills, placing some atop the bill the waitress left at your table and throwing a few more in the middle of the table as a tip. He stood from the booth, reaching his hand out towards you. “Come on, I’ve got somewhere else I want to show you.”

You raised an eyebrow at him and sent him a curious smile, taking his hand in yours and letting him lead you back to his car.

The drive was probably 15 minutes, although it felt much shorter with the small talk that kept the two of you entertained the whole drive. You found out that he’d been working at the Family Video you met him in for a few years, he still lived with his parents even though they weren’t around much, and he spent a good chunk of his time looking out for a group of kids a few years younger than him. He was humble every time he was talking about himself but bragged on and on about his friends, and every time you asked him a question about his high school years he seemed to cringe and change the subject. 

You let out an airy laugh as he turned down onto a dark dirt road, ending abruptly a few feet into the woods surrounding it. 

“You know, if you were anyone else, I’d think you were a serial killer taking me out to the middle of the woods like this.” Steve kissed his teeth and his face flushed red. 

“Yeah, I really didn’t think about how that would seem when I thought about bringing you out here.” He turned off the car and undid his seatbelt, giving you a slightly apologetic look. “I swear, I did not bring you out here to kill you.”

“It’s okay, I trust you.” He gave you a smile before hopping out of the car, once again running over to your side to open the door for you. He held out his hand to you again and you took it, gripping it tightly as he helped guide you down a worn down path that snaked through the trees. 

His pace slowed as you came up to a small clearing, a collection of large rocks the main feature in the center of it. A warm wind rustled the leaves in the trees, and you gripped Steve’s hand a bit tighter when you heard some animal running across the leaves behind you. 

“So, this where you take all of your girls on the first date?”

“No, not anymore.” You wondered what he meant by that, but decided not to question it. “Just figured you’re a girl who likes to look at the stars.” You let out another laugh, probably your hundredth of the night.

“You’re pretty good at making assumptions about people, I’ll say that much.” You leaned against one of the rocks and turned your head up to the sky, looking up at the stars that dotted it and connecting the constellations with your finger. “They’re so clear here, nothing like Indianapolis.” 

You heard the leaves crunch under Steve’s feet as he came to stand next to you, barely a shoulder apart. 

“You can see them even better at Lover’s Lake, but I figured it might be too soon for that.” 

“Well, I guess you’ll have to take me some other time then.” You turned your head to face him, surprised at just how close he was to you.

“Yeah? You’d like that?”

“Yeah. I think I would.”

You felt crazy. You never went on dates, never asked a guy out, never even sent a slightly romantic glance towards a guy, and here you were, flirting with someone you just met today, who you may never see again, and blushing when he gave you those stupid soft eyes and that charming smile. You told yourself that dating was this long, drawn out process and that you would never date someone who you weren’t friends with first, but yet right now, staring at Steve and practically melting with the way he was looking at you, you were filled with this overwhelming urge to just grab him by the shirt collar and kiss him until you couldn’t breathe. It didn’t make sense, how you could go from being so scared of relationships one minute, to imagining what it would be like if you never met your friend in Indianapolis and just stayed here for the rest of the summer. It had your mind running through a thousand different questions all at once, the loudest of them being ‘do I kiss him?’

Nature made up your mind for you as a loud crack of thunder sounded overhead, breaking the staring contest the two of you had been having for the past minute. Steve muttered something under his breath and grabbed your hand again, pulling you behind him quickly in an effort to beat the rain that was sure to fall soon. 

You were able to make it back to the car before the first drops started to fall, but the drive back to the motel was filled with a tense silence accompanied by the sounds of heavy raindrops hitting the car from all angles. When Steve finally pulled the car into the same parking spot he placed it in when he picked you up, he broke the silence. 

“If you want, I can take you down to Eddie’s garage in the morning to check on your car. He rarely ever sleeps, so I bet he’s gonna be up all night working on it.” You gave him a tight lipped, unsure smile.

“That’d be nice, thanks.” He gave you a nod and a tight smile back, staring at his hands as you got out of the car and walked up the stairs to your motel room. Your key was halfway in the door when you stopped, hair and clothes dripping as you got more and more soaked with rain water the longer you stayed outside. 

You couldn’t let this chance go to waste. You just couldn’t.

Without enough time to stop yourself, you ran back down to Steve’s car, yanking open the passenger side door and leaning your top half inside. 

“Hey, did you forget someth-” You grabbed him by the shoulders and cut his words off with a kiss, a bit sloppy and unsure, but he didn’t seem to mind. After a few seconds, one of his hands came up to meet your cheek, and you found it hard to pull yourself away. 

“Goodnight, Steve.” He floundered for the words he wanted to say, smiling lips moving like a fish out of water when he couldn’t form the words. With one last laugh, you closed the car door and ran back up to your room, sliding the key the rest of the way in and taking refuge from the rain. 

Clothes still dripping and hair still soaked, you leaned against the door to collect yourself, then rushed over to the phone with a squeal. 

Your best friend was probably asleep, but she wouldn’t mind being woken up to hear about this.

< part 3 coming soon >

[wildsupernova]

I SWEAR GUYS IM NOT DEAD MY PHONE IS JUST A PIECE OF SHIT AND UNINSTALLED TUMBLR THEN WOULDNT DOWNLOAD IT FOR LIKE A MONTH I SWEAR ILL UPDATE SOON

[wildsupernova]

“i have the most handsome boyfriend in the world 😍😍” and it’s the ugliest mother fucker you’ve ever seen

[wildsupernova]

summer, sun, and a smoking engine.

summary: when your car breaks down on the side of the road in Hawkins, Indiana, you don’t have many options other than try walking and find help. Thankfully, Steve Harrington is here to help.

pairing: steve harrington x fem!reader

warnings: strong language, no use of y/n, little bit of mechanic eddie thrown in there (not really a warning but i have nowhere else to put this)

a/n: hello! this fic is a bit self indulgent, i guess you would call it. my love life has been quite terrible pretty much all my life, and i’m the kind of person who can’t help dreaming about a movie cliche type meet cute, so i wanted to write this fic to help quell my insatiable desire for a rom com romance. this is part one of what will probably be a three part series, so i hope you enjoy! :)

if you’d like to make a request, my inbox is always open. i also have my prompts list linked below so you request one of those as well.

part 2 (coming soon) | masterlist | prompts list

Stranded on the side of the road in Hawkins, Indiana was not the way you wanted to start your summer vacation. 

You should be in Indianapolis by now, lounging by the pool at your best friend’s house, raiding her parent’s liquor cabinet and getting drunk off your asses until you can’t remember anything the next morning. Not here, pounding against the steering wheel of your shitty rustbucket of a car wishing you’d actually remembered to do what your dad told you and take it to a mechanic before you made the trip. The horn honked as you slammed your forehead into it, but it was quickly swallowed up by endless fields on either side of you. 

The universe had a sick sense of humor when it came to you in particular, and it seemed the jokes never ended. Some vengeful god or cosmic plan had singled you out as the sole outlet for their aggression; just a girl with a particularly unremarkable life, desperate to escape the world just for a few weeks and forget about her ridiculously non-existent love life and only slightly above average academic career. 

Lately, your life has felt like one big joke. Everyday seemed to be the exact same mind numbing routine; wake up late, rush to make it to your 9 am lecture that left you falling asleep halfway through, eat the same shitty college cafeteria lunch you always did, spend three hours cramming for a test you know you’ll fail anyway, and go to bed at 2 am just to wake up and do it all over again the next day. You watched everyone else around you do something with their lives, whether they were partying all night or getting married. Everyone seemed to be having ten times more fun than you, and you were starting to think that you were just destined for a lonely, less than exceptional life. 

By the time you hit 20 with no long term relationships ever (none that really meant anything, anyway), you’d begun to think it was all futile. Maybe you were destined to be alone forever, maybe you just weren’t looking in the right places, maybe it just wasn’t the right time, but whatever the reason, it had you banging your head against the wall every time your roommate gushed about how sweet and sexually adept her boyfriend was. 

That’s why it really shouldn’t have surprised you that today of all days would be the one where you end up stranded in a town you’d never heard of until you saw the ‘Welcome to Hawkins’ sign a few miles ago.

You’d seen a few cars coming this direction before your car had broken down, so you knew there had to be some sort of civilization not far from here. You’d considered standing by your car and waiting in the hopes that someone would stop to help you, but the sun was already beginning to set and it didn’t really seem like the safest idea to be alone in your car at sundown, especially in some place you didn’t know. That’s what pushed you towards what you were doing now, walking down the long stretch of road and hoping that you’d find someone who could help you not too far down it. 

Somehow, it seemed to feel hotter now that the sun was beginning to set, blistering heat causing sweat to begin forming on your skin almost the minute you stepped out of your car. You’d chosen the wrong day to wear a sundress and sandals, the arches of your feet burning more and more the longer you walked. You swatted at probably thousands of mosquitos that began to swarm you as you walked, and by the time you finally saw the signs of the city, you could feel your hair sticking to your forehead from the thick coating of sweat collecting there. 

The sun was about halfway set by the time you reached the parking lot of the small strip mall, and when you looked at the watch on your wrist it blinked dimly at half past 5. Every store was closed already except for one, a small Family Video store with a single maroon BMW parked outside the door. Finding it the only option you had other than to keep walking, and hoping the AC inside would be working, you pushed your way through the door and hoped someone inside would let you use the phone. And the bathroom. 

“I’m telling you, Robin, I’m hopeless.” Steve struggled to hold the stack of tapes in his hand, almost sending all of them tumbling to the floor when he tripped over a bump in the carpet. 

“You’re not hopeless, you’re just looking in the wrong places.”

“The hell does that mean?”

“Maybe stop looking for the type of girl you had in high school? You’ve matured, so start looking for something new.”

“That's the problem, I don’t even know what my type is.” He placed the stack of tapes on the counter, picking up a few that fell over. Robin came to stand next to him, taking the tape off the top of the stack and starting to rewind it.

“I don’t know what to tell you, figure it out. Who knows? Maybe your dream girl will come walking right through that door any minute.”

The universe has one sick sense of comedic timing, doesn’t it?

Steve opened his mouth to offer up a rebuttal but was cut off by the chime of the bell above the door, hinges squeaking at it flung open then shut rather harshly. He turned towards the door and prepared to give his stupid, fake customer service greeting, but was cut short when he saw who it was that had just come through the door. 

He had never seen anyone like you. Hair a mess as if your hands had been running through it for hours, covered in sweat and rocking back and forth on your heels to stop your feet from hurting, he wasn’t sure he’d ever seen anything more beautiful. Wearing a black sundress covered in white daisies and flat brown sandals, you looked like something out of a rom com cliche, damsel in distress stumbling into his life at just the right time. You looked around the store almost frantically and visibly irritated, but the second you laid your eyes on Steve on the other side of the counter you breathed a sigh of relief. 

He had to snap himself out of whatever trance you put him in when you started walking towards him. 

“Hey, do you guys have a phone I can use? My car broke down like a mile from here and I really need to call a mechanic.”

“Uh, yeah, there’s a phone in the back you can use.” A stray strand of hair fell into Steve’s face as he physically shook himself back into reality. “My friend’s a mechanic, I can give you the number to his shop if you want.”

“That would be perfect, thank you.” The relieved laugh you let out made his face heat up a bit, and he quickly grabbed a piece of paper to scribble the number to Eddie’s garage down on. He ripped it off and handed it to you, nodding towards the door reading ‘Employees Only’.

“Phone’s back there, take all the time you need.”

“Thank you so much,” Your eyes flitted down to the name tag on his vest, flashing him a soft grin. “Steve.”

Once you disappeared into the back room, Steve leaned forward against the counter. Robin let out a whistle and hopped up to sit on the counter next to him, kicking her feet back and forth. 

“Man, I was kidding when I said she’d walk through the door any minute, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen you that starstruck by a girl you just met.”

“She’s probably just…passing through town. Who knows if I’ll ever see her again after this.” Steve popped the tape out of the machine and put another one in, trying to occupy himself with anything other than thinking about you. 

“So? When has that ever stopped you before?”

“I don’t know, Robin. It’ll probably end in disaster just like every other time.”

“I don’t care. If you don’t take your shot with this girl, I might just kill you.”

Almost on cue, the door to the back room swung open again, a visible shift in your demeanor than when you’d walked in. You looked far less tense, and Steve found it hard to keep his eyes off of you. 

“You are truly a life saver. With any luck, I’ll be out of here and back on the road before sundown.” 

“It’s no problem, really.” Steve turned his head away to hide the blush on his cheeks. He gave Robin a look as she silently pushed him to keep the conversation going, eventually holding his hands up in surrender. “My shift’s almost over so I can, uh, give you a ride back to your car, if you want. I’d hate for you to have to walk all the way back in this heat. Plus it's almost dark, I wouldn't want a girl like you wandering around out there alone.”

Steve pressed his lips together tightly when he realized what he’d said, but the smile on your face let him relax. 

“I’d like that, thank you.” You rocked back and forth on your heels while you waited for Steve to gather his things, dress swishing back and forth against your thighs. You laughed a little to yourself while he scrambled frantically, muttering something to himself while he flushed red up to his ears. You flashed him a sweet smile when he finally had all his things, following him out the door and into the beemer you’d seen parked outside when you first arrived. 

Steve was handsome, there was absolutely no denying that. Sunkissed skin that was likely the result of hours of relaxing by the pool, fluffy brown hair you couldn’t help but want to run your hands through and the kindest brown eyes you’d ever seen. You were sure that at one time in his life he was a heartbreaker with all those good looks and boyish charm, but the way he got flustered just talking to you made you believe that he had put those days long past him. 

He seemed almost nervous sitting in the car with you, doing his best to keep his eyes on the road while stealing a few quick glances at you. He adjusted himself in the seat and cleared his throat, trying to break the tension in the air. 

“So, uh, what brings you to Hawkins?”

“Just passing through on my way to visit a friend in Indianapolis.” You smoothed down the skirt of your dress to find something to do with your hands. “Was hoping I’d get there by nightfall but, unfortunate turn of events I suppose.”

“Where are you from?”

“Out of state.” You kept it vague, still not quite sure if you could totally trust him. “I go to school in Indiana though.”

A few seconds later, your car finally came into view, seemingly in much worse shape than you left it. White smoke now billowed from underneath the hood, and you leaned yourself against the dash to try to get a better look from inside the car.

“No, no no no.” As soon as Steve made a U-turn and parked his car behind yours, you opened the door and ran over, running a hand through your hair in a panic. 

“I’m sure it's not…that bad.” Steve tilted his head as he came up next to you, scrunching his face as he looked at the smoke continuing to spill from your engine. “Yeah, I don’t think it's supposed to do that.”

“Yeah, no shit.” You let out a groan before collapsing to the curb, head in your hands. “I should have listened to my dad when he told me to get it checked. Now who knows how long it’ll be before I can get back on the road.”

“Look, Eddie’s good at what he does.” Steve sat down next to you, nudging his shoulder into yours to offer some comfort. “He’ll have her back up and running in no time.”

“Yeah, well, it’ll take a miracle to fix all the problems with this piece of shit.”

Steve’s small chuckle was drowned out by the rumble of an engine, raising your head to see a tow truck traveling down the road towards you and your still smoking car. The red, hand painted detailing stood out against the black body of the truck, and as it got closer, you could hear the rumble of metal music blaring out of the open truck window. The driver, who you had yet to catch a glimpse of, backed the truck until the winch was close to the front of your car, the truck letting out one last puff of smoke through the exhaust as the engine shut off. 

“Always picking up strays, aren’t you Harrington?” The driver called out at Steve as he opened the truck’s door, a soft thud sound following after as he hopped out of the truck. Steve rolled his eyes. 

“I’m helping someone whose car broke down.”

“Mhmm. Bet you wouldn’t be helpin’ em if they weren’t so pretty though.” The man that had stepped out of the truck was the last person you’d expect to run a mechanic’s garage. Long, curly black hair down to his shoulders, arms covered in mismatched tattoos, and a cocky smirk on his face while he chewed on a toothpick. He looked to be only a few years older than yourself, and while you could tell that his disposition was likely off putting to most people he met, you found it oddly…comforting. Better a charming metalhead than a greasy bald guy drenched in sweat, you supposed. 

“You gonna get her car down to the garage or what?” Steve put his hands on his hips, earning a laugh from the other man. 

“Lemme assess the damage man. I gotta see what I’m working with.” He walked to the front of the car, playfully shoeing Steve away from it while he popped the hood. As soon as he did, smoke puffed out from around the engine, causing him to cough and wave it out of his face. He let out a whistle, leaning over the car to get a better look at the engine. “Good news, probably just a busted radiator hose. Easy and cheap fix, no biggie. Bad news? I won’t be able to fix it til’ the morning.”

“What?” You stood up from where you sat on the curb, leaning against the car. “I’m supposed to be in Indianapolis tonight. What am I gonna do?”

“Well, I’m sure ole Stevie over here can help you figure something out, can’t you Harrington?” He clasped his hand on Steve’s shoulder and gave him a rather rough shake. Steve sent him a glare before turning back to you, trying to offer up a sympathetic smile.

“There’s a motel a few minutes into town. Nobody ever stays there, so there should be room. I can give you a ride over, if you want.”

You took a second to take in your surroundings. Here you were, stranded on the side of the road in an unfamiliar small town, with a car that had no chance of working until morning and no way to tell your friend you wouldn’t make it to her house tonight. Your only other option was to start hitchhiking, so staying in a dead end motel sounded good right about now. 

“I guess I don’t really have many other options.”

“Don’t worry, sweetheart, Eddie’ll take good care of her.” Eddie winked at you playfully, bringing a small smile to your face. “And Stevie here will take good care of you.”

“Eddie, come on man.” Steve hid his face in embarrassment while Eddie snickered, clapping him on the back when he went to hook up the winch. You hide the redness in your own cheeks behind your hands.

“Sorry man, couldn’t help it.” Once the winch was hooked up and the front wheels of the car were off the ground, Eddie hopped back into the truck, leaning out the window to call down to you before he left. “I’ll get to work on her first thing in the morning, promise. She’ll be good as new before you know it.” 

He flashed you another smile before starting up the truck again, driving back towards town while you stood there watching your car get dragged along behind him. 

“Sorry about Eddie. He can be…alot, sometimes.” Steve leaned on the hood of his car, crossing his arms over his chest. You shrugged.

“S’okay. He reminds me a lot of a few of my friends back home, actually.” Steve chuckled a bit and nodded towards his car. 

“Well, you’ll be able to handle him better than me then. Come on, I’ll take you over to the motel.” You climbed back into the passenger seat of Steve’s car, sending him a quick thank you before he drove off. 

The sun was almost fully behind the horizon when you finally pulled into the parking lot of the ‘Stop Inn Motel’, a small, two story collection of motel rooms with a main office smack dab in the middle of it. There were only a few other cars in the parking lot, and the flashing neon ‘vacancy’ sign above your head almost made your head hurt in the dimming light. 

The girl behind the counter only looked up from her magazine after you rung the bell, rolling her eyes as she stood from her chair. 

“It’s $10 a night for a single, $15 for a double.”

“Just a single for the night, please.” You went to reach into your wallet for cash but Steve stopped you, handing over his own $10 bill to the desk attendant. “You didn’t have to do that.”

“You’ve already had a shitty enough day. It’s 10 bucks, no big deal.” Your shoulders relaxed at the soft smile on Steve’s face, kind eyes softening when he saw the way your mood rose a little. The girl behind the counter dangled a set of keys in front of you, which you took quickly.

“Checkout at 2 tomorrow. Stay after check out and it's a $5 fee per hour unless you pay for another night.” You gave her a nod and a thank you, which she ignored before heading back to her chair from before and flipping through her magazine again. 

Steve helped carry your bags from his trunk up to your room, standing outside while he passed you your bags over the threshold. You thanked him one more time before going to close the door, but he cleared his throat nervously to stop you. 

“Hey, uhm, you’re probably starving after everything today and I thought maybe I could…show you the best places to eat around town while you’re here?” The nervous wringing of his hand had your heart swelling in your chest. You were usually the one nervous around guys like Steve, and you simply couldn’t find it in yourself to turn down his offer. You’d always wanted to take more chances. Why not this one?

“I’d like that.” He raised his head as if he’d expected you to say no, smile curling his lips upwards. “Just give me an hour to get changed. I’m, like, drenched in sweat and dirt right now.”

“Yeah, yeah of course. I’ll be back in an hour.”

“Good. See you then.”

You watched Steve all the way back to his car, closing the door behind you once he got out of your view. You leaned against it for a moment and took a deep breath in, then frantically began opening your luggage to find something to wear. 

Hey, maybe your piece of shit car was good for something after all. 

⊲Part 2, coming soon⊳

[wildsupernova]

and you loved me still.

summary: the memories of their summers together would haunt her for the rest of her life, always leaving her to wonder what could have been. steve never realized how important those memories were to him until he couldn’t forget it.

pairing: steve harrington x fem!reader (no use of y/n)

word count: 1.7k

warnings: no warnings for this one, although i guess there’s mild angst

a/n: hey guys! yet another short song based fic after a way too long break lol. i just finished up my second year of college so everything’s kind of hectic right now, but i’m gonna try to get out some longer, non-song based fics here soon i promise. hope you guys enjoy this because i’ve been OBSESSED with this song for the past month, and if you do, feel free to comment, repost, like, whatever! any interaction helps :)

if you want to make a request for a fic, my requests are open, and i also have a prompts list linked below to make requests from as well. i’ve been talking too long, so thank you guys for reading and i hope you enjoy!

masterlist | prompts list

The aftermath of it all left her numb, even after summer was over. She wished she could get over it the same amount that she wished it would sting more, because feeling anything at all would be better than being stuck in this limbo she’d been suspended in since August ended. She couldn’t bring herself to smile, but she also couldn’t bring herself to cry, doing nothing but sitting and reminiscing about the past 3 summers they’d spent together. Every time she looked at him, every memory would replay in her mind, and then his eyelashes would blink it all away. 

They were memories she didn’t really want to forget, something that reminded her of the few times that she was really, truly happy about being stuck in Hawkins. They were the only thing pushing her through the monotony that was the first half of the semester, and the only thing that kept her sane while she was surrounded by the plain white walls of her small dorm room. 

The warm Indiana wind flowed through the spaces between her fingers, her hand tapping along to the music that played through the radio. He turned the volume dial until the sounds of guitar and drums drowned out the purr of the engine as they drove, and she mouthed along to the words almost absentmindedly. 

He was wearing his brand new Nike sneakers, still pristine white and shiny as if they’d just come out of the box. He blamed it on where they were going, told her that he could only wear his “best shoes” to go hiking in the woods on the outskirts of Hawkins, but she wasn’t stupid. He was doing it all just to show off for her, and she was eating up every last bit of it. 

He made some joke to her that she couldn’t hear very well over the radio, but she laughed anyway. He told her that he loved the way she sounded when she laughed, and she’d never forget the way he leaned over the center console and kissed her long and slow, car dipping lightly into the ditch as he did. 

Steve Harrington was absolutely untouchable in those high school years. Stubborn, arrogant, one of the most difficult people she had ever met in her life. But none of it mattered because he was King Steve, the invincible monarch that ruled over all of Hawkins high. No one dared tell him how much of an asshole he was, or how much they hated him, because one wrong move and he’d make you the laughing stock of the school until graduation. Girls fell at his feet and followed him wherever he walked, and he had picked her. 

Just for the summer, that's what they had agreed. Just one summer, that turned into two and then three. He kept every secret she had ever told him held close to his chest, never letting a single one slip out of the confines of his bedroom. He took every weakness she ever had and became it, from his stupid, perfectly styled brown hair to his honey colored eyes. He took every insecurity and flipped it on its head, always turning self deprecating jokes she made into compliments. But in the end, she just couldn’t fill the shoes he wanted her to. 

She told him she wasn’t all in, but she was. By the end of that first summer, she’d fallen so deeply in love with him that she couldn’t go one day without thinking about him, unable to look at any other guy the way she looked at him. She couldn’t be like all of the other girls before, the ones content with summer time flings and one night stands. She wanted it all, and he wanted something fun. He was the king of the jungle and she’d fallen right into her role as his prey, and the second she let her guard down, he went in for the kill.

Steve wanted to forget the past, but nothing he could do would ever make it disappear from his memory. He thought that, maybe, if he could just fall into the monotony of his job at Family Video, he’d eventually be able to forget about her, but it seemed like the more he tried to forget, the more he remembered. Trying to push the past away only made him yearn for a future where he had her again, somewhere away from all of this, her body curled up against his own while they watched all those cheesy vintage movies she loved so much. 

The thing that hurt the most was remembering their conversation of how they imagined their life would be after high school, so far removed from what their lives were like now. 

“What do you think you’re gonna do after high school?” She blinked as she looked up at him, her eyelashes tickling his jaw. “You know, when all of this bullshit is over?”

He blew out a breath through his nose.”I don’t know, never really thought about it.”

“Really? Never once thought about what you want to do with your life when you graduate?”

“I always just kind of assumed I’d work for my dad after high school, I guess.” She moved out from under his arm and rolled over onto her stomach, bare chest pressed against the mattress. 

“Okay, then if you could do anything for the rest of your life, what would it be?”

“I don’t know!” She let out a small laugh, slapping him lightly on the shoulder. 

“Come on, think! There’s gotta be something you’ve always wanted to do.”

“I guess if I had to pick anything, I’d be a teacher.”

Her eyebrows knit together. 

“Hmm.”

“See, it’s stupid-”

“No, it's not stupid! Just not what I expected you to say.” She flipped over to lay on her side, propping her head up with her hand. The blanket fell down and off her chest, and Steve had to stop himself from looking down. “What would you teach?”

“I don’t know, elementary school maybe? I like kids, so why not?”

“You want a big family, I take it?” He rolled over onto his back, staring up at the ceiling. Almost instinctively, she laid her head down on his chest, hand drawing circles along his skin while he talked. 

“I guess. House in the suburbs, picket fence, 4, maybe 5, kids.” She let out a loud laugh at that. 

“5? Seriously? You better hope whoever you marry is crazy because any sane woman would stop after 2.” He smiled at that. 

“It's a negotiable number.”

He was so difficult back then, so hard to love, but she did it anyway. He did everything he could to keep up appearances, to keep every girl he knew at arms length and never let them find a way into his heart, but somehow she made it in. She wanted him even when he was that arrogant asshole who wouldn’t even throw her a glance in the hallways, who wanted to keep their summer rendezvous a secret to save his own reputation, and found a way to bring out who he really was when they were alone. He kept every secret she told him locked up in his heart even though the guy he pretended to be would have aired it all out just to hurt her. He knew every one of her insecurities and weaknesses, and she knew all of his, but in the end, she just couldn’t fit the role of what he thought he wanted. 

Just another girl to occupy his time with, another girl to spend the summer with and forget about when the next one came along. Except one summer turned into two, which turned to three, which turned to watching her drive away with all her things packed up to begin her life. She had been all in for him, and he just wasn’t ready for that. At the time, he didn’t even know thats what he’d wanted, but now that she was gone and those summers were over, he wished he had, because all he can think about is how she had been nothing more than prey to him at the time, and he’d killed any chance at the life they’d talked about so many times. A life he kept trying to tell himself he didn’t want with her.

She wondered if it was all worth it, or if it had all just been a waste of time. A waste of time that left her wondering what could have happened if she’d just been honest, if she hadn’t lied to him at the end of that third summer when he asked her if she’d agreed that all of this was just for fun. She still knew all of his favorite foods by heart, still remembered his diner order and the movies he liked to watch when his parents weren’t home. She wanted to forget about all of it, but she couldn’t.

He wondered if it was worth it, hurting her like that. She’d always tell him that it wasn’t anything more to her, that she knew this was all just something to pass the time, but he knew she’d only said it to hide how real it all was for her. He wished he’d been able to recognize how real it had been for him just a little bit sooner, because maybe then he wouldn’t have to sit here and wonder what could have been. He wouldn’t feel like every date he went on was a waste of time, because the person who knew him best was long gone. 

She’d cling to the memories of her summers with Steve like something sacred and fragile, keeping them close as a reminder of when things used to be simple. When she could lie to herself about how she felt about him and still feel like she was telling the truth, when she had that false hope that maybe they could turn into something more than a summer fling. She heard from friends back home that he was a different guy now, but it seemed he was just that guy who would always come out when they were alone by his pool on those warm summer nights. The guy she fell in love with over and over again every summer. 

Maybe, if they met again, he’d be all in for sure, but she wasn’t sure she could be this time.

[wildsupernova]

too sweet.

summary: she was too sweet for him, everybody knew that. still, he couldn’t stay away, and neither could she, even when the sugar made his head spin and the bitterness burned her throat.

pairing: steve harrington x reader

warnings: brief mentions of sexual content, nothing too serious really

word count: 900

a/n: hey! just wanted get something up while i work on some longer pieces. i’m currently finishing up my second semester of my second year of college, so i haven’t had time or energy to write much of anything lately. figured i’d write a little blurb when i got the time to keep the content coming for you guys. anyway, hope you enjoy! hopefully new longer content will be coming soon. if you enjoy, leave a like, reblog, or a comment, whatever, any little bit of engagement helps. :)

masterlist | prompts list

She was too good for Steve, everyone knew that. She was a delicate, well groomed rose bush and he was the patch of weeds that grew in her planter box, stealing every last bit of water from her until her leaves turned brown and fell from her stem. He wasn’t someone a girl like her should ever be associating with, but something kept him coming back to her, and her to him. 

They didn’t speak in school, sharing stolen glances from across the hall, soft stares that turned desperate when they were filled with memories of two nights ago. To Steve’s friends, she was nothing more than a conquest, and to hers he was nothing more than a walking red warning sign telling her to run the other way. To each other, they were something they couldn’t quite name, unsure if it was love or boredom or something else entirely. But boredom wouldn’t have you running back to someone like this, wouldn’t have you lying awake thinking about them and your heart racing every time you shared a glance. 

He was the type to fall asleep when the sky was dark and wake long after the birds had already started singing, and she never crawled in or out of bed any later than the sun. He’d tried to see her once, crawl through her window after every streetlight had flickered on, but she hadn’t answered his taps on her window, duvet blocking out any sound that might disturb her early sleep. Two mornings later and he’s woken from his own sleep by the ringing of his phone, her sweet voice begging him to watch the sunrise with her at Lovers Lake. He had complained and told her it was far too early, but when she told him she got up that early everyday he simply laughed and grabbed his keys from the bedside table.

He asked her once if she’d ever thought about sleeping in, or staying out late to watch the stars around a bonfire. She’d shook her head, told him routine was what she needed, that she could get the most out of her day if she went to bed early, but that same night she’d made it back home long after the moon took its place in the sky, hair frizzy and skirt twisted sideways. 

She reminded him of when he’d drank a Screwdriver for the first time, far too sweet for him to handle without his head spinning, but giving him enough of a buzz that he couldn’t stop sipping it. He reminded her of the single sip of her father’s whiskey spiked coffee, the kind that turned her tongue bitter and burned her throat on the way down, but had her heart racing all the same. 

He always laughed at the way she’d scold him for his dirty mouth. He didn’t think he’d ever heard a single ‘bad word’ come out of her, and everytime one came out of him, she was quick to smack him on the shoulder and tell him off like a mother. She kept her body guarded, rarely letting his hands wander too far until it was two hours later and she was desperate for them to be anywhere else but on her face. He started to wake up earlier just to hear the birds sing about her. 

He started seeing her in everything. In the rainy days where the sun was still in the sky, the soft patter of raindrops hitting his window sounding more and more like her laugh every time. He saw her in the wisteria vines that climbed the trellis in his mother’s garden, in the sip of wine he stole from his mother’s glass. He told himself he could wait a few years until he didn’t burn so much, until he became a better man who could handle how sweet she was. She told him she didn’t mind the burn, didn’t mind the bitterness, but if he wanted to wait until he was smoother for her, she could do that. She could wait.

2 years later and she's still just as sweet, smooth like an aged bottle of wine but with that small bitter hint you don’t really notice until you’re two glasses in. He’s smoother, like the shot of bourbon sitting next to her on her kitchen counter, but he still burns just enough for her to recognize him. She downs the amber in the glass and tells him she can handle the burn, and he tells her that sweet still makes his head spin, even after all this time.

Suddenly he’s the one waking before the sun, slaving away over an oven and a glass of wine left out from the night before, birds singing the same song they used to years ago. He’s in bed by sunset because she’d pulled him to the bedroom by the arm, lips lingering on his skin in the same way he used to linger on hers. He finds himself watching his language and she lets a few dirty words slip now and then, and her hands move his lower when she gets tired of them on her waist. He still sees her in the rain and the roses outside of his apartment, down to the small thorns hidden just beneath the beautiful crimson petals. She sees him in the thunder storms and the dandelions, beautiful and dangerous all the same. 

Suddenly, Screwdrivers aren’t too sweet for him anymore, and whiskey doesn’t burn her throat quite like it used to.

[wildsupernova]

i thought people were joking when they said organic chem was hard but damn you guys weren’t lying 😭