3.3k notes yall are crazy...
don't you (forget about me) | steve harrington x reader
âOh, great, sheâs here,â Steve says, stepping away from the door.Â
"First of all, Harrington," You scoff, glaring at that mop of hair with all the rage you can muster. "I have a name. Second of all, we are talking hereââ
Steve rolls his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whateverâ"
"You did not just roll your eyes at meââ
Dustin sighs. "Here they go."
(or:
You've always thought Steve Harrington was a weirdo. When you find out you might be in terrible danger, he might be just what you need.)
pairing: steve harrington x fem!henderson!reader (she/her pronouns used), lots of henderson siblings bonding <3
words: 13.9k
a/n: gif by @dailysteveharrington. thank you all for being patient and i hope you all like it<3 i loved this season and i love steve so i hope you enjoy this lil enemies to lovers fic. this fic is a one shot, but let me know if you'd like a sequel once vol 2 is out bc its a bit of an open, ambiguous ending ;) also some fun facts before this fic starts: dustin's dad appears at will's funeral in s1 and there are several theories about him-- officially, he and dustin's mother are divorced in canon. i'll explore that in this fic. ST4 SPOILERS. this is set in season 4 ep 3 "the monster and the superhero" and follows vol 1 canon also sorry if this doesnt follow canon pretty well i mostly did it from memory cause the wiki still isnt fully updated đ
disclaimer: this fic discusses the topic of an absent parent, please proceed with caution if this is hurtful to you. also warning for canon typical violence and cursing. english is not my first language so please let me know if there are any mistakes.
đŒ NOW PLAYING: Don't You (Forget About Me) by Simple Mind
Your mother had always been slightly overbearing and fearful, but the murder of Chrissy Cunnigham you think might actually kill her. Or at least will force her to lock you in your bedroom and flush the key down the toilet.
âYou canât go anywhere without telling me,â your mother tells you over breakfast, worriedly overcooking her bacon. âYou hear me? I donât want you running around town without me knowing. Or better yet, donât go anywhere at all!â
You glare at Dustinâs chair, where your brother is munching on toast and eggs, hoping your mother takes the hint. She does, and so she shakes her head and says, âDustinâs different.â
âYouâre kidding me, right?â
âMaybe this killer has a thing for pretty girls,â your mother shakes her head, shivering. âChrissy Cunningham was such a nice and pretty girl, right your age.â
âYou donât know what that killer was thinking!â You groan. âWhy can Dustin leave but I canât?!â
âDustinâs not an eighteen year old girl with an easily breakable neck.â
âHeâs easier to man-handle!â
Dustin frowns, finally looking up from his breakfast. âIâm not!â
âBesides, do you even know where he was last night?â You ignore your brotherâs protests, choosing to point at him as he scoffs in offense. âI bet you donât, because heâs always sneaking out!â
âIâm not always sneaking out!â
âI try my best with you, Dusty,â she sighs, finally sitting down. âBut your sister is right, youâre difficult to keep track of. Youâre always running around, like those little legs have minds of their own.â She points the spoon she was using for her coffee at your face. âDonât you throw that in my face, (Y/N).â
âMom, youâre right,â you nod, sipping your orange juice, trying to appeal to her soft spot. âHe is difficult to keep track off, and thereâs a dangerous killer on the loose. How about I keep track of him? Make sure heâs not getting into any trouble, hm? Iâll make sure weâre always safe, together.â
Of course, you were planning on bolting as soon as you were out of your momâs sight. You momâs cat Tews meows somewhere across the room, as if he knows not to trust you. That damned furball.
âWhat the fuck? No!â
âDusty! Language.â
âMom,â Dustin says, exasperated. âI donât need a babysitter. Much less a babysitter thatâs also my annoying older sister.â
âNo, you have Steve Harrington for that,â you mutter under your breath, and Dustin manages to kick you under the table. You glare at your little brother, then turn to address your mom once again. âI promise weâll stay together. I knowâ no, I understand that itâs scary out there right now, but I can take care of myself. And Dustin. You have to trust me.â
âI trust you. Itâs the murderer I donât trust.â
âMomââ
âLet me finish,â she stares pointedly at you, and you promptly shut up. âI donât want you two sneaking out. But, itâll make me feel better if the both of you are together.â
Dustin covers his face with his hands. âShit.â
âYes!â You squeal. You stick out your tongue at him, and he rolls his eyes. âGuess youâre stuck with me, Dusty.â
âScrew you.â
âDusty, itâll be fun. (Y/N), donât taunt your little brother,â your mom scolds both of you into silence. âItâll be like old times, wonât it? Aw, you two used to be thick as thieves back then.â
Dustin sighs, picking at his toast absent-mindedly. âWas there a murderer on the loose back then too?â
đŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒ
After breakfast, you give Dustin a ride until you arrive in a neighborhood that is most definitely not Lucas Sinclairâs like he told you it would be. You turn to stare at your brother before you unlock the carâs door, confused.
âWhere are we?â
Dustin looks at your shoes. âI told you. Lucasâs.â
âOkay, you might lie to me whenever you want, just not to my actual face, Dustin.â You roll your eyes, and he mirrors you. âSeriously, why did you make me come all the way down here?â
âWhy do you care?â
âI know weâre doing this to get mom off our backs, but there is actually a killer on the loose,â you say. âSo, excuse me if Iâm also a little wary about dropping you off at unknown locations, or whatever.â
âFine,â Dustin sighs. âIâm here to see Max and Steve.â
âSteve?â
âHarrington.â
You blink at him. âFucking Steve Harrington?â
âSee?â Dustin rolls his eyes again. âThis is why I didnât tell you! You are extremely uncool about Steve, you know.â
âIâm not!â You try not to dwell about how defensive you sound even to yourself. âIâm extremely cool about him. Iâm extremely cool about the fact you hang out with that douchebag with stupid hair.â
âHeâs not a douchebag! I donât get why you hate him so much.â
Because you remember him and his friends making fun of you all throughout High School, his sneering and stupid stares. Like your brother, youâd never fit inâ you never liked going to parties or drinking and you never made an effort to be liked by him and his group of popular dorks, instead you spent most of your days in the library, reading, hiding from Steve and his friends. Whatever honorable things Dustin saw in Steve Harrington you think he might have imagined them.
Now, in your last year of High School and with Steve becoming a social pariah, you donât have to hide the fact that you still dislike Steve as much as you did back when he was still King Steve. Steve, for however much Dustin insists that heâs changed, upon first meeting you had tried to sweet talk you as if he didnât know who you were. And you had barely kept it together enough to tell him to fuck off. Ever since then, you and Steve Harrington had hated each otherâs guts. Your mutual dislike of each other is not lost on Dustin, who continues to mostly ignore it and tiptoe around it as best as he can.
âHeâs not not a douchebag,â You murmur. âWhy is he hanging out with two fourteen year olds during spring break? Isnât the barf bag, like, supposed to be in college, going to frat parties, having a life of his own?â
Dustin doesnât appreciate the way you talk about him, clearly, but he still replies, albeit unhappily. âHeâs helping me with something.â
âWith what?â
Before Dustin can respond, someone knocks on Dustinâs window. You jump, surprised, but itâs just Steve and Dustinâs friend redhead Max, looking bored and impatient. You groan and reach over Dustinâs seat to roll the window down.
âDo you mind?â You say to Steve. âWeâre talking.â
âOh, great, sheâs here,â Steve says, stepping away from the door.Â
"First of all, Harrington," You scoff, glaring at that mop of hair with all the rage you can muster. You ignore Dustinâs groan. "I have a name. Second of all, we are talking hereââ
Steve rolls his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, whateverâ"
"You did not just roll your eyes at meââ
Dustin sighs. "Here they go."
âI did not roll my eyesââ
âYou absolutely did!â
âThere was something in my eyes.â
âThat something was lies!â
âJesus fuck,â Steve finally throws his arms up in exasperation and turns to your brother, ignoring your insults. âYou done talking to your lovely sister there, Henderson? We got a counselor to see.â
âWhat?â You frown at Dustin, irritation immediately melting into concern. âWhatâs he talking about?â
âSteve, shut your mouth,â Dustin glares at Steve, who shrugs and finally steps away from the car. âNothing, (Y/N), seriously. See you later?â
âNo.â You shake your head. âWhat does he mean a counselor? Are you seeing Ms Kelly?â
âNothingâs wrong, I promise. Itâsââ he looks like heâs scrambling to think of an excuse, then his eyes land on Max. Something flashes across her face and she speaks next.
âItâs for me.â she says, âChrissy died in my neighborhood.â
âSheâs kind of freaking out,â Dustin says, and when you finally turn to look at Max you realize how tense she is, her shoulders square, with her lips forming a straight line.
âOh. That sucks. Hey, Max.â
âHey,â she greets, awkwardly. Itâs part of her charm, you think.
âSee?â Dustin asks. âCan I go now?â
You nod, a little shaken up for some reason. Maybe Chrissyâs murder still made you feel slightly ill, and the mention of it made you feel even worse. You couldnât imagine what Max might be going through. It didnât help that they had found another body this morning, either.Â
âYeâ yeah. Sorry. I hope everythingâs alright, Max.â
âYeah,â she nods.
Dustin nods to the door. âCan you unlock the car, then?â
You wordlessly comply, and as your little brother steps out of your momâs blue Ford Cortina, you talk to Max once again. âMs Kelly is great help. Iâm sure sheâll make you feel better. She really helped me this year, you know, sheâs a great listener.â
âYeah, I know,â Max says. âIâve been thinking about seeing her for a while, aâactually. Iâve heard sheâs well⊠you know⊠fine, or whatever.â
âHey, thereâs no shame in that,â you shrug. âLots of people go to see Ms Kelly⊠Actually, now that you mention it, Fred Benson, the guy they found this morning, was seeing Ms Kelly too. And Chrissy Cunningham.â
Dustin pauses before closing the car door. âWhat do you mean?â
You blink, slightly confused as to why youâd even bring it up. âIâve seen them in Ms Kellyâs office before. Iâm not sure why Iâm even mentioning it, sorry.â
âNo, no, (Y/N), thatâsâŠâ Dustin says, then doesnât finish. âYouâve been seeing Ms Kelly too?â
âYeah,â you nod, a little ashamed. You think about telling Dustin about everything thatâs been going on, the nightmares, the guiltâ but then you glance at his friends looking expectantly at him and cower. So you donât continue.
Itâs Steve who breaks the silence. âHenderson, chop chop, letâs go.â
âIâll see you at home?â Dustin says, a little softer.
âYeah, yeah. I was gonna go to Dinahâs near Ave Park, but do you think youâll need a ride later?â
âSteveâs got his car,â he says. âDonât wait up, okay?â
You nod, watching him leave.
đŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒ
Itâs around eight PM, and Dinah is painting her toenails as you skim through one of her books, the soft hum of the TV in the background, entering through the open bedroom door. Her parents are watching the news, the news anchors are urging people to stay home and to lock their doors to be safe of this new serial killer.
Dinahâs house is your usual hangout spot beside your own. You donât have many other friends, and thereâs only so many times you can force Dustin to watch The Breakfast Club before heâs fighting you for the remote.
âIt was all Matty could talk about,â Dinah continues to rant. âI canât stand this murder talk any longer! I can only hear about Chrissy Cunninghamâs missing eyeballs so many times, (Y/N), itâs way too fucking gruesome, but itâs all everyone in this town seems to care about.â
âItâs a pretty pressing issue,â when Dinah glares, you shrug. âIâm just saying! You know I agree with you. I donât want to hear about it anymore.â
âChrissy was always so nice, wasnât she?â Dinah shakes her head, putting her nail polish back in her nightstand, then wraps her arms around her legs, hugging herself. âAnd Fred had a future in front of him. Itâs so unfair. They had a family that loved them.â
âDinah, I really donât wanna talk about it,â you say, feeling yourself shiver. You donât want to think about poor Fred or Chrissy, or the families mourning them. You try to focus on the book in your hands, but the words start blurring together, becoming harder and harder to read.Â
You blink, confused, then realize Dinah is still talking.
âItâs the truth, isnât it? I think about their dads too. Chrissyâs dad was crying so much at her wake. Do you think your dad would ever cry for you like that?â
You finally snap to look back at your friend. Sheâs staring at you like youâre small, like an insect she could stomp on. Youâve never seen her black eyes seem so soulless, so empty.
âMaybe theyâll be tears of joy, donât you think? After all, werenât you the one who made him walk away?â She tilts her head to the side, a sneer forming in her lips. âThey could be a family without you.â
Thereâs something wrong in Dinahâs eyes. Thereâs something wrong about all of this, but you canât point to what, where are you, when, whyâŠwhatâŠ?
When you blink, Dinahâs eyes look normal again.Â
â(Y/N),â She asks, frowning. âAre you there?â
You shake your head. What the fuck was all that?Â
âWhat?â
âYou were staring at me like you werenât all here,â she explains, grimacing. âWhere did you go just now?â
âSorryâŠâ When you speak you feel a dull ache around your temple, and you lift a hand to rest against it, trying to soothe the pain aimlessly. âI think I need some painkillers or something, my headâs killing me.â
âAgain?âÂ
âYeah,â even before spring break you had confided in your friend about the headaches and the nightmaresâ you never told her why, but she at least knew you were seeing Ms Kelly.Â
Dinah stands up, careful not to stain the carpet with her fresh black nail polish. âIâll ask my dad for some Tylenol. Stay here, Iâll be back in a sec.â
Before Dinah is out the door sheâs interrupted by the doorbell, which rings once, twice, three times and more. Dinah frowns, as her dad yells Iâm coming, Jesus!
âSomeoneâs impatientâŠâ you murmur, hand still resting on your temple.
âHey,â Dinah, who has always had great hearing, says. âI think itâs your brother.â
You frown, and when Dinahâs father confirms itâs your brother by yelling out that Itâs little Henderson!, you and Dinah head downstairs to find a heavy breathing Dustin, Max, Lucas and even Steve Harrington, looking as if they just ran a marathon.
Dustinâs eyes land on you. â(Y/N)!â
âDustin?â you say, âWhat are you doing here? You need a ride hoâ?â
Dustin runs to hug you by the waist, almost knocking the air out of you.
âAre you okay? Do you have a headache? Is your nose bleeding? Do you feelâ?â
âWoah, Dustin,â you donât know what to do with your handsâ you and Dustin hadnât hugged since he turned twelve and he and you both deemed it lame. âWhatâs going on? Did something happen?â
Dustin finally lets go of your waist to grab you by the face and inspect it properly. He roughly pulls your face down and tries to pull up your nose to look at your nostrils. âNo nosebleed yet?â
Steve tries to stop him. âDustin, buddyââ
Lucas adds a sustancial, âDude.â
âDustin!â you push his hands off your face, feeling your cheeks heat up when you notice everyone looking at you. âWhat the hell are you doing?â
Your brother opens his mouth to speak, but then seems to notice Dinah behind you and seems to think better of it. âWe need to talk,â he says instead, âLike, right now.â
âRight now?â You ask. âI already told Dinahâs mom Iâm staying for dinner. Dustin, what the hell is going on with you?â
Dinah clears her throat. âIâm⊠just gonna go get that Tylenol.â
âTylenol?â Dustin asks when she walks away. âWhat for?â
âI have a headache.â
âShit,â Max says, still by the door frame with Lucas and Steve.
âFuck, fuck, fuck,â Dustin curses, deep in thought. âItâs already started.â
âWhat?â You ask as Dustin starts pacing back and forth.
âWe need to find out how to stop this right fucking now,â Dustin starts pacing back and forth. âThink, everyone.â
âMaybe Robin and Nancy found something in the library,â Steve offers.
âYeah,â Lucas nods. âCâmon, man. Letâs go find them.â
âOkay, yeah. Okay, okay.â Dustin calms himself down, manages to stop his pacing. âLetâs go wait for them at the Wheelerâs. (Y/N), letâs go.â
You throw your hands up in disbelief. âCan someone tell me what the hell is going on?â
â(Y/N),â Dustin says, his voice unfaltering. Dustin is never serious about much, and this renders you speechless. âI need you to listen to me for once in your goddamn life, okay? We need to go. Now.â
âOkay, Jesus,â you say finally. âDinahâs mom is making Lasagna so this better be worth it, Dustin.â
đŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒ
On the way to Nancy Wheelerâs house, you learn two things: One, Dustin knows where a serial killer might be hiding, and two, your brother thinks youâre cursed and are going to die in, give or take, twenty four hours.
You glare at Steve Harrington in the rearview mirror. âWhat the fuck have you been giving him?â
âIâm serious!â Dustin yells. âI knew you wouldnât fucking believe me.â
âIâm sorry,â you say, because he looks genuinely frustrated, but a second dimension and a supervillain? Does your brother think youâre stupid? Just how many movies has he been watching? âI just think D&D might actually be getting to your head, Dustin. Thereâs no way what you just told me is real.â
âLucas and Max know itâs real too!â
Both of them nod furiously.
âAre the other two fourteen year olds your only source?â
âSteve too!â
Steve winks at you through the rearview mirror.
âEven worse,â you say.
âListen,â Lucas tries to reason when Dustin groans in frustration, cursing under his breath at you. âI know this sounds absolutely crazy, I wouldnât believe it either. But I promise you itâs all true, and if we donât do something soon about it youâll end up like Chrissy and Fred.â
An involuntary chill runs down your spine every time you think about them.Â
âGuys,â you say, slowly, âI know things are scary right now, but Iâm sure thereâs a logical explanation for the murders besides a demon supervillain.â
âI didnât believe it at first either,â Max shakes her head. âNot until I saw it with my own eyes.â
âDidnât Ms Kellyâs file say the others who were cursed were also having hallucinations?â Steve asks the kids, looking for a place to park. âSo, have you gotten any weird visions lately?â
Hallucinations? You think back, but canât seem to pinpoint anything similar to that. Except tonight at Dinahâs place, before Dustin and the rest had rung the doorbell. Suddenly you grow a little paler, uncomfortable at the memory being brought back. That had been weird, but you were exhausted and knowing a serial killer, Eddie Munson, who apparently your brother knew, was out there still was making you restless.
âI wouldnât really call them visions,â you murmur.
âShit,â Dustin breathes, looking at you with wide eyes. âItâs spreading faster.â
âListen, Dustin, I may be going through some shit lately, but I promise you Iâm okay. I just need some painkillers for my head, seriously.â
â(Y/N)!â Your brother takes you by the shoulders and shakes you. âYour life is in imminent danger! You donât need painkillers!â
âI do if you keep shaking me like a ragdoll!â
âListen,â Lucas says, grabbing Dustin and prying him off you despite his protests. âJust stay with us tonight, okay? Weâll sleep at the Wheelerâs and itâll make Dustin feel better, right? Weâre all tired.â
âDudeââ
Lucas cuts Dustin off and whispers, âWeâll wait for what Nancy and Robin have to say and then figure out how to convince her later, yeah?â
Dustin sighs. âThis was so much easier when El had her powers.â
âSo yeah? Youâll stay the night?â Lucas asks, hopeful.
You see all three of the kids staring at you and cave in. âYeah, yeah. Okay.â You say, at the same time Steve parks right in front of the Wheeler residence. Before you can even step out of the car another car pulls over by the garage and Nancy Wheeler and another girl you donât know step out of it.
âNance, Robin!â Steve exclaims as he stops the car and steps out. âHad fun at the library? I sure didnât.â
âIt went well, I thinkââ
âWe have a situation,â Dustin is quick to interrupt, reaching over your space and popping his head out from the open window. âItâs my sister. We think Vecna cursed her.â
âWhatever that means,â you mumble, getting out of the car, Dustin trailing behind you and slamming the door shut.
âShe doesnât believe us,â Max explains.
âWell, I personally would be more weirded out if she did,â The girl you donât know shrugs a little. You recognize her nowâ she worked with Steve at Scoops Ahoy last summer before the fire at Starcourt, and now works at Family Video. Youâve spoken a bit with her before.
âSheâs been having visions, headaches, nosebleeds,â Dustin continues, âlike Fred and Chrissy were, according to Ms Kellyâs files. I think Vecna is preying on vulnerable people, people dealing with...â he looks at you for a second, then back at the girls, settling on saying: âSome shit.â
âWe found some articles about Victor Creel at the library,â Nancy says, then motions at the house with her chin. âLetâs talk inside.â
đŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒ
Nancy and Robin turn out to be as crazy as the rest of themâ they tell the story of Victor Creel, infamous in Hawkins for murdering his entire family, and about how he was supposedly possesed by the devil according to some conspiracy newspaper. They want to talk to Victor, but the problem is that heâs now a patient at Pennhurst Mental Hospital and completely unreachable to the public. They plan to go first thing in the morning and the rest of the group seems to agree.Â
âWeâll need a disguise,â is Nancyâs big plan.
You never quite get that Tylenol, because the strongest thing Ms Wheeler has is green tea. You think everyoneâs lost their goddamned minds.
âSo what do you want me to do while all of you plan?â You ask, sitting on the couch. Nancy and Robin leave to Nancyâs room. Max and Lucas are by the desk in the corner speaking softly, Dustin is pacing around the room impatiently as he usually does when heâs this restless, while Steve is sitting on the couch beside you, playing with Dustinâs (or is it Mikeâs?) walkie-talkie. âAm I allowed to eat something? Because Iâm starving.â
Dustin snatches the walkie-talkie from Steveâs hand. âYouâre gonna break that.â
Dustinâs, then.
âWe donât know yet,â Lucas says, walking over to where you are, holding Maxâs hand gently. âWeâre hoping the girls find out something from Victor. In the meantimeâŠâ
âYou can eat,â Steve concludes. â... Right?â
âRight,â Max nods.
âWe have to do something soon,â Dustinâs the most anxious youâve ever seen him, even before you took him to see The Empire Strikes Back. âWe donât know how much time you even have once the visions and all the hallucinations start. We said twenty four hours but we canât be sure.â
âIf it helps, they started today. At Dinahâs.â
âYou snapped out of it, right?â When you nod, Steve shrugs. âHenderson, I think we have time to order some pizza, at least.â
âAnd a movie?â You ask, finally relaxing into the couch. You toss away your shoes and hug them to your chest. âDoes Mike have The Breakfast Club somewhere around here?â
âNot that movie again,â Dustin groans.
You throw a pillow at your brother, who manages to dodge it easily. âItâs a great movie!â
âIt lost its charm after the thirteen time you forced me to watch it with you.â
âThe Breakfast Club?â Steve asks aloud. â(Y/N) Henderson is obsessed with The Breakfast Club? Is that why Dustin is always renting it at Family Video?â
Dustin huffs, offended. âWhy else would I want to rent that stupid movie?â
âMolly Ringwald,â Steve answers, at the same time you yell out, âItâs not stupid!â
When Nancy comes downstairs she informs you that sadly no, she doesnât have The Breakfast Club, but that she should. She does have the soundtrack, however, and you think about asking to borrow it tomorrow before she goes back upstairs to order a pizza.
A while later itâs almost midnight, everyone around you is tired, except maybe for Dustin, but the majority wins and you all decide getting some sleep is the best option. You agree, but know that youâre probably not getting any sleep tonight, either; youâve been having nightmares every night for the past few days and you donât believe today is going to be any different.
When the lights go off and everyone is already starting to doze off, Dustin is quick to turn his flashlight on.
âDude! Turn that off!â Steve moans, launching a pillow straight into his face. Dustin doesnât dodge this one this time, much to Robin and Steveâs satisfaction, who chuckle lightly.
âCâmon, Dustin, what the hell?â Lucas groans.
âShut up! Iâm trying to see if I can find something else in Ms Kellyâs files!â
âDude,â Max sighs, âyouâve read them each four times already.âÂ
âYou wonât be able to find anything if youâre exhausted,â Nancy tries more softly. âJust try to sleep for a bit, okay?â
âDustin, câmon,â you reach for his handâ itâs a bit uncomfortable from your position on the couch and his on the floor, but you do it anyway. That seems to soothe him slightly, to see you still offering comfort, like youâre still yourself. He manages a weak nod, and he squeezes your hand slightly before turning the flashlight off.
After a few minutes, Dustin starts snoring loudly. Steve, who youâre unfortunately stuck sharing the couch with, chuckles.
âHeâs a good kid,â he says.
âYeah,â you canât help but agree. You wouldnât trade your dork brother for anything. âHeâs great. When he was little, he used to wet his bed all time after watching scary movies with me, and heâd wake me up to change his sheets so my dad wouldnât yell at him for ruining them.â
âSteve raises a silent eyebrow at you, sounding amused. âAnd you actually did that?â
âI forced him to watch them. I felt bad,â you smile at the memory. âHe would offer to wash the dishes for me, though.â
âYour moral compass is stronger than mine,â he hums.
âYou know, heâŠâ you start, unsure if Dustin would be upset if you shared this, then decide itâs not as embarrassing as telling him he used to wet his bed, and continue, âhe really admires you. God knows why, Harrington, but he worships the ground you walk on.â
âHenderson?â He asks, a little in disbelief. âI donât knowââ
âIâm serious, Harrington. He loves you,â You hoped you didnât sound jealous. There had been a time where you thought Steve was almost a replacement for you as an older sibling, but as time went on you realized how important Steve was to him.Â
âWell. Iâm pretty loveable.â
You roll your eyes. âSure.â
âHeâs pretty loveable, too,â Steve says after a few beats of silence, more softly now. âI donât have any siblings, did you know that? So itâs⊠uhm, really cool to have him around. Even if heâs kind of a little shit sometimes.â
âSuch a little shit,â you agree.
The rest of the group seems to be asleep already, or maybe they donât care about the conversation enough to join you. Steve starts telling you about the time Dustin burrowed his hair gel and almost set fire to his bathroom, and you have to cover your mouth to stifle your giggles.
Itâs not long before you start to feel abnormally cold, and canât keep your body from trembling. Steveâs gentle voice is gone. The room is dark around you, and realizing that you mustâve fallen asleep while talking with Steve at some point, you hug yourself trying to seek some warmth. You try to grab a blanket from somewhere. Jesus, itâs spring for fuckâs sake, it shouldnât be this cold. But you realize that despite the darkness you can see, and when you look up at the ceiling, you find a grandfather clock that most definitely doesnât belong in the Wheelerâs basement.
â(Y/N).â
The voice calling your name is unfamiliar and it makes you feel ill almost immediately, like your stomach has turned into nothing but knots. You try to speak, to ask who it is, but nothing comes out, you can barely even breathe.
âDo you think you could ever keep living with this guilt?â The voice asks, somehow you feel as if the voice is right behind you, whispering into your ear. Itâs like nails scraping against chalkboard in your eardrums. âKnowing what you did to your family?â
You want to turn around and find the voice, but you canât, you canât, you canât. The clock is ticking, haunting you, calling for you. You want nothing but to run away from it, but you canât moveâ youâre glued in place somehow, maybe in fear, you canât tell. Everything is uncertain, except for the clock. The clock, you know, itâs real.Â
Itâs counting down. You know what itâs trying to tell you. Itâs coming for you and you canât escape it. Itâs only a matter of time now.
âSoon, (Y/N)...â It whispers. âSoon, Iâll come for you, and no one will be able to help you, (Y/N)... (Y/N). (Y/N)!â
You open your eyes with a gasp to find Steveâs arms around your shoulders, shaking you slightly. His eyes are wide, a little frightened. When you look around you find Lucas and Max draped all over a chair, their chests rising slowly, asleep. Dustin is in a sleeping bag on the floor, near Robin and Nancy, hugging each other tightly in their sleep. Steve is the only one awake.
âShit,â you say, placing your hand in your heart. âDid I wake you?â
âWe were talking and then you just went somewhere,â he says. âYou donât remember?â
You suddenly feel very cold. âI thought I was sleeping. I sawâŠâ You think about telling Steve, but it seems pointless now, almost. What would you tell him? You saw a clock? âI think it was one of those hallucinations you guys keep talking about. Youâre really freaking me the hell out, you know.â
âFuck, I think Dustinâs right,â he says.
âAbout me being cursed by a being from another dimension? Are you kidding?â
Steve does manage to look apologetic. âI know it sounds bonkers, but thatâs because it is. Iâve seen it.â
âWhat? This other dimension?â You were starting to think Dustin and his nanny were just trying to play an extremely elaborate joke on you.
âThe Upside Down, but no,â he shakes his head, and then his eyes land somewhere around the room, focusing on one of Mikeâs many posters. âThe monsters.â
âVecna?âÂ
âOthers,â he says, then murmurs, âHavenât had the pleasure just yet.â
âThe demogerâŠ? What was it?â
âDemogorgon, yeah,â he grumbles. âThe Mind flayer too. Itâs all real. I wish Will and Eleven were here to actually explain this stuff; they are the ones who actually know their stuff about this.â
You have never seen Steve actually sound so⊠serious, before. Itâs all actually starting to freak you out, you decide, and you arenât sure if you actually want to find out if itâs all actually real or not. You stay silent for a few moments, sleep escaping you. You figure Steveâs fallen asleep until his voice startles you again.
âYou okay there, Henderson?â
No, you want to say. You canât shake the feeling that the voice is watching you, waiting to catch you by surprise. âYeah,â you mumble, sleepless, scared.
Steve doesnât seem to buy your answer however, because you feel his body shifting near your side of the couch, sitting right beside you. When you give him a look (heâs so close he can actually make it out) he clicks his tongue.
âSee, I donât really believe you, Henderson. So, Iâm gonna stay near you, just in case you get another vision. Or if you want to hold my hand.â
âScrew you, Steve,â You glare, turning to the other side so that your view is Harrington-less. If you do feel better with him beside you, thatâs between you and maybe Vecna, if heâs actually inside your head.
In the morning, when you wake up and Nancy and Robin are both gone (probably visiting a murderer in a mental hospital) and Steve is tangled up beside you, you decide youâve had enough.Â
âSo weâre just gonna wait around to see what happens?â Dustin argues, as Lucas and Max try to reason with him.
âWhat else can we do?â Lucas asks, frustrated.
âLiterally anything else, dude! My sister might die!â
âOkay, Dustin, you need to stop and we need to go home, now,â you tell him, looking around the basement for your jacket.
âNo!â he points at you. âYouâre not going anywhere until we know what to do.â
âDustin. Iâm four years older than you,â you glare, placing your hands on your hips. âIâm the older sibling. Iâve entertained this enough already, but I left momâs car at Dinahâs and we need to go get it and then get our asses home before mom loses her shit.â
â(Y/N)! Listen to me!â
âNo, Dustin!â You finally snap, taking Dustinâs walkie-talkie from his hand and shoving it into your bag despite his protests. âIâve had enough about monsters and other dimensions and whatever other nonsense Eddie Munson has been feeding you! Weâre going home, now!â
âI canât believe Iâm actually trying to help you!â Dustin screams, âYou suck!â
âWell, youâre stuck with me!â
âI wish I wasnât,â he says, his eyes cold. âI wish you werenât my sister.â
The chills return like a slap across your face, making you stumble backwards slightly. The room around you turns dark immediately, the only person left is Dustin in front of you. But itâs not him, it canât be, his eyes have never looked this lifeless.
âYou took his chance away, didnât you?â The unfamiliar, bone chilling voice returns. âHis chance of having a real family, or at least a father figure. Heâs right in wishing you werenât his sister. He deserves someone better.â
Again you want to scream, but itâs like your mouth is taped shut. Around you Mike Wheelerâs basement seems to fade away into blue, and suddenly youâre standing on your front porch, watching your dad walk away. Youâre saying the hardness around your eyes, your lips drawn into a tight line. You donât look like yourself; you look older, and tired, and disappointed, more like a woman than the girl you were when this happened, the girl you mustâve been.
âDonât come back again,â you tell your fatherâs retreating form. But your voice is distorted, so far away.Â
âHow many times has Dustin needed his father?â The voice asks. When you blink youâre somewhere else; not Mikeâs basement, not your home. Thereâs splinters of wood scattered by your feet, like a house just destroyed. Everywhere around you is red, like blood, like the blood in those horror movies you forced Dustin to watch because he made them less scary when he squealed. âAre you proud you broke up your family?â
âI was a kid,â you manage to say, and only now you realize youâve been crying all along, the salty tears wetting your dry lips. âI didnât want Dustin to know what he did. I would take it back if I knew he wouldnât actually come back.â
âBut you did it anyway. You did.â
I did, I did, I did, you think, over and over. You close your eyes, hard, ignoring how it almost hurts.
âYou miss him too, donât you? Despite everything. Youâre sadder about the fact that he left you, too. He left his daughter behind.â
âWho are you?â You hiss out, through your anguish.
âIâm part of you, (Y/N). Whether you want to or not.â
Youâre not alone. When you open your eyes you see him â a monster, vicious even in looks, like someone slowly peeled away his skin, and all that was left of him was muscle and meat, not even blood. Vecna. Around you there are two different bloody columns, and youâre quick to notice theyâre holding Chrissy and Fredâs bodies, like morbid museum displays, tokens. He was right, Dustin was telling the truth about everything, and now you were going to die because you didnât listen to him.
âNo,â you want to say, you want to scream. But youâre not strong enough, you canâtâ
Hey, hey, hey, hey
You blink through your tears. You manage to recognize that melody in this unfamiliar place. You want to run towards it, but youâre not sure your legs can even respond to your commands right now.
Vecna seems to think somethingâs wrong, too, because as the song progresses he grows more impatient. âYou think you can escape like this?â
Tell me your troubles and doubts
Giving everything inside and out and
Love's strange, so real in the dark
Think of the tender things that we were working on
His handsâ his claws are stroking your cheeks, an aborted tender gesture, like heâs trying to soothe his prey before going for the kill. Itâs over, you think, thereâs nothing but this certain death. But then; you think of the hundreds of times you forced Dustin to watch this movie with you; of you both playing with Tews until he scratches one of you in annoyance; driving Mike, Lucas, Dustin and Will to the movies; getting ice cream at Scoops Ahoy and guggling when Steve gets rejected once again; putting Dustinâs hair in braids and practicong makeup on him when he was younger; asking Will Byers what he was sketching at the park; Dustin and you laughing during dinner because of some stupid joke. You think about last night, sleeping beside Steve, and the way he made you laugh.
Don't you, forget about me
Don't, don't, don't, don't
Don't you, forget about me
You canât give up. You canât leave Dustin.
Somehow you manage to pull Vecna off you with a shove, and you run. You run, you run as fast as your legs let you, as your jeans stain with what looks like blood, as Vecna screams at you. You run like you've never run before.
And then you gasp and youâre falling.
âShit, fuck, shit!â Someoneâs arms are around you, and it takes you a second to calm down to realize itâs Steve, and that youâre in Mike Wheelerâs basement and youâre alive, somehow.
âHoly fucking shit,â Max is saying, but you can barely hear her over the rapid beating of your own heartâ erratic, but unquestionably alive.Â
âGod, god, (Y/N),â Dustinâs voice stands out from the others, and when you look at him there are tears streaming down his eyes, and you can barely process anything before youâre trying to reach for him despite feeling like youâre not even in your own body.
âIâm okay,â you tell him, wrapping your arms around his shoulders, Steve letting go of yours. âIâm okay, Iâm okay.â
âI thought you were gonna die,â he whimpers.
âIâm here,â you breathe out. âOh my God, Iâm here thanks to you.â
You realize that the song is still playing, only to notice the headphones in your ears. You see your scattered bag around the room, and the walkie-talkie that Dustin mustâve been looking for already on the floor. Donât You (Forget About Me) slowly fades to an end before the next song on the soundtrack starts.
âIâm sorry,â Dustin says into your shirt. âIâm sorry I didnât notice you were going through something, I shouldâve noticed. Iâm sorry.â
âItâs not your fault.â You shake your head, holding your little brother even closer. âIâm sorry I didnât tell you. And Iâm sorry I didnât believe you. Fuck, Dustin, Iâm so sorry.â
You stay like that for a moment, hugging Dustin on the carpet, Max and Lucas hovering near, and Steveâs hand on your shoulder, grounding you.
đŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒ
When you explain to Nancy what happened and what you saw once she comes back from Pennhurst sheâs quick to pinpoint the house you saw when you met Vecna as Victor Creelâs house. All of you grab your things and head to that location. You try to not feel so dreadful, and Dustin forcing you to listen to Donât You the entire car ride and holding onto your jacket sleeve helps soothe your nerves, at least a little bit.
But Victor Creelâs house is something out of a horror story, dark and abandoned as it is, and the only light source in the house seems to be the hole Robin made when she smashed the window.
âLetâs split up,â Nancy offers, and everyone seems to comply much to your dismay.
Lucas and Max leave to investigate with Dustin (reluctantly parting from your side) trailing off behind them, Nancy and Robin head upstairs and you and Steve are stuck together and instructed to stay downstairs by Nancy, the only thing illuminating your way being your flashlights.
You wander through hallways, staring at ruined wallpaper and dusty portraits. Victor and his family seemed so happy in their pictures, and you wonder why nobody, family or not, ever came to look for their things. The house seemed frozen in time, like one day the family had decided to get up and leave everything behind, the house nothing more than ghosts.
âI hate this place,â you comment, trying to hug yourself tightly to keep the cold at bay. âThinking that people died here isâŠâ
âHorrible,â Steve finishes for you. âYeah⊠Fuck this place, man.â
When you turn to a corner, you freeze in place.
âSteve.â
âYeah?â
âYouâre seeing this, right?â You point at a clock with your flashlight, unmoving. Itâs the same clock from your visions, the one you saw before meeting Vecna.
âYeah,â Steve frowns. âReal old. Why?â
âI saw it,â you try to explain through the rapid beating of your own heart. âIn my visions, I mean. This clock was in themâ well, the second one, mostly. In the Wheelerâs basement last night.â
âShitâŠâ Eloquent as ever, Steve Harrington. âHas to mean something, right?â
âIf anything it proves Nancy and Robin were right. It all started here.â You finally force yourself to look away and continue forward, ignoring the way you feel your skin crawling. You hold up your cassette before re-starting the song. âWhat would happen if I suddenly got tired of this song? Will it no longer work? Does this mean Vecna will⊠come back for me?â
âListen, Iâ Iâm not a genius at this like your brother, or like Nancy, or even Robin,â Steve admits, very honestly. âBut I promise weâll find a way, even if that happens. Besides, Dustin told us how much you love this song. Seems kinda impossible youâll ever get tired of it if you listen to it every day. And listen, I gotta ask. Breakfast club?â
âWhat?â You feel heat rise up to your cheeks, embarrassed. You start walking away from the clock, trying to get rid of the chills that had gotten ahold of you just a few moments before. âItâs a great movie.â
âYeah, absolutely,â Steve says, and even though you canât really see him in the dark, you can hear his smirk, picture his smile. Heâs teasing, and youâre kind of glad for it. It helps. âI just didnât think it would be your thing, is all.â
You raise an eyebrow. âOh? Whatâs my thing then?â
âI donât know. You seem like a Dune fan, maybe.â He wonders out loud, your flashlight lighting the way.Â
âI do like the book.â
âSee?â Steve points at his temple. âI knew it.â
âI think working at Family Video is finally getting to you.â
âIâm good at reading people,â he says, and you raise another silent eyebrow at him. He continues, âIâd always thought of you as a little brainiac, and that youâd liked movies that were kinda difficult. You were always reading in school. I didnât think youâd like teen flicks and Hughes.â
âDune is not difficult. And maybe you donât really know me enough to know what my thing is,â you shrug. â... Or maybe every girl is a little bit in love with Judd Nelson.â
âYeah,â Steve actually laughs. âCanât beat that hair.â
And you canât help yourself, you smirk. You think you might actually be dreaming, or maybe this curse made Steve seem more tolerable than usual. âYou give him a good run for his money.â
âWeâre still talking about hair here, right?â
Now you point your flashlight at Steve and elbow him.
âIâm just asking!â
âIt was a stupid question. And just so you know, thereâs nothing wrong about liking teen flicks,â you say, continuing to walk and not waiting to see if Steve follows. âPretty in Pink is my new favorite movie and my GPA is still 3.5.â
âOh wow. Pretty in Pink?â He whistles. âYou have a soft spot for Molly Ringwald.â
âWho doesnât?â
He hums in response.
You stay like that for a moment, walking through dusty hallways and trying to avoid spider webs. Even with the flashlights the place looks abandoned and lonely, and thereâs a coldness running down your spine that you canât shake off no matter how much you try. You focus on trying to catch the sound of Steveâs breathing to somehow ground yourself to reality. It feels like ever since meeting Vecna your grip on reality slowly fades away, like someone is unraveling the carpet from underneath you, trying to catch you by surprise. Like youâre falling into an abyss of darkness and you canât hold onto anythingâ because nothing around you is truly real. And so you bite your lip to keep yourself from reaching out to Steve and holding on. You canât think of a moment youâve felt as uncertain as you do now; but Steveâs teasing and your bickering back and forth is normal, makes you feel like youâre not actually in immediate danger. You figure if thereâs a different dimension called the Upside Down, then you can most definitely forgive Steve Harrington for being a jerk in High School. He has more than proven himself to you.Â
Because the truth is that maybe Vecna will win. Maybe you will never beat this curse. And youâll end up like Chrissy Cunningham, like Fred Benson, like Patrick McKinney; just dead bodies along the trail.
âHey, Steve,â you call, slowing down to walk beside him. He turns to look at you, but you canât bring yourself to look at him. âUhm. If something⊠like, happened to meââ
âWoah, woah, wait,â Steve shakes his head. âNothing will. We beat the curse, remember? With the song?â
âYeah, but we didnât actually beat it, did we?â Now you do turn to look at him, and his big eyes almost render you speechless. You donât know what to call the look on his eyes, but it makes you want to look away from him; makes you want to run. âListen, Steve, I justâ Iâm sorry.â
âDonât apologize,â he says, quickly. You think heâs noticed how embarrassed you feel, and you look away, embarrassed. âYouâre just scared shitless like the rest of us.â
âItâs not that,â you shake your head. âIâm sorry for being such a jerk around you and picking fights with you. Youâveâ youâve been there for Dustin when I wasnât, and I guess youâre not actually a bad guy. So⊠Iâm sorry I judged you. And thank you, I guess. For being there for Dustin. And⊠me.â
Steve doesnât say anything for a second. Youâre still looking anywhere but him, now focusing your eyes on a spider in one of the many spider webs in front of you. You feel embarrassed and stupid, but a little bit better. You know youâre doing the right thing by apologizingâ you know Steve now, better than youâve ever thought you would. You finally dare to take one look at him and his eyes are still on you, and when your eyes lock, he smiles softly.
âYouâre apologizing for that?â Steve asks, and when you nod matter of factly, he tilts his head to the side. âHuh. Never thought Iâd see the day Hendersonâs sister apologized to me.â
âDonât let it get to your head, Harrington,â you roll your eyes, but canât help the small smile forming on your lips. âIâm only doing this because I might die.â
Steve chuckles, nodding. âFair enough,â he says. âFor what itâs worth, Iâm sorry too, Henderson. To be honest, I think I kind of deserved it. I was an asshole in High School, so⊠yeah. I, uh, Iâm sorry it took me getting kicked off the clique to realize youâre not half bad.â
âWell,â Now itâs your turn to laugh. âIt took me almost dying to realize youâre not half bad either. I think weâre even.â
Steve stops in his tracks, making you stop, too, a little confused. You turn to look at him, and you donât think youâve ever seen him look quite so⊠earnest, maybe. You canât name the look on his face, but you canât look away, canât seem to be able to keep walking. Youâre frozen in place.
âYouâre not gonna die, Henderson,â he says, determined. âI wonât let you.â
Your mouth goes dry. All you can do in response is nod. You want to say something, but the words escape you, and so you stare at each other for a few seconds, neither of you saying anything. You wonder if Steve can hear the rapid beating of your heart, if he can make out the way your eyes drop to his lips for a slow second despite the darkness around you both.
Then you hear Dustin yell out, âGuys!â and the moment fades away.
đŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒ
Finding Eddie at Skull Rock seems to be harder than it should be, and once you find him youâre made to follow Dustinâs apparently broken compass. You feel like youâre wandering through the desert, with no clear path in mind. Dustin is at the front, with Lucas and Max following closely behind, Eddie (who you now have a hard time believing would ever be able to kill anyone), Robin and Nancy in front of you and Steve.
You find yourself time and time again choosing to spend more time with Steve, that he seems to be the one able to actually make you feel grounded, like youâre not gonna die in the next three seconds. You feel like yourself around him; but different. Steve is different. This whole experience is making you rethink everything youâve ever known.
You canât help but wonder in the silence about Dustin and the others, guiding the rest of you through the night time in the forest. Despite all of them being younger than you, they donât seem to need your help, especially Dustin, who you think is completely in his element leading the way.
After a while of walking in silence, Dustin announces that the compass seems to be going even crazier. At this, Robin pries it off his hands to confirm that itâs true. Eddie and Dustin argue for a second about following the compass and make another Lord of the Rings reference that has you smiling.
âHeâs not half bad,â you comment. âEddie, I mean.â
âI still donât know what the hell Modor is,â Steve mumbles under his breath.
You donât try to explain Lord of The Rings to himâ you donât think thereâs even enough time. But, maybe one day, when Hawkins isnât in imminent danger and Steve still wants to hang out with your uncool self for whatever reason.
âWhat do you think weâll find wherever this stupid compass is taking us?â You ask him, trying to avoid accidentally stepping on some poison ivy. Just your luck to get cursed and also poisoned on the same week. âYou know more about this than me.â
âIâm actually more like, the, uhm, action guy of the group.â
âSo youâre telling me you donât know where weâre going,â You conclude.
Steve nods. âNo damn clue, Henderson.â
âGreat,â you chuckle lightly.Â
âAll I know is that itâs probably a portal Vecna opened after killing someone.â
âA portal. To the upside down?â When Steve nods in confirmation, you sigh. âI still canât get used to how crazy this is.â
âThe third time you do this you kind of just start going with the flow of things,â Steve admits. âRussian spies, MK-Ultra, different dimensions, monstersâ it all just kind of starts to sound like background noise.â
âDustin and the kids seem to really know about all of this.â
âThey do,â Steve nods. âDustin is like, their leader. Our leader, I guess.â
âMy little brother⊠fighting communists and monsters.â You shake your head. âYeah, I donât think Iâll ever get used to that. How did Nancy? With you and Mike?â
Steve stops for a second to frown at you. âWith me?â
âYou know, with Nancy and you dating.â
âMe and Nancy?â he asks, then shakes his head. âNo, me and Nance just⊠we go way back, but sheâs with Jonathan. That ship sailed a long time ago. Weâre friends now. Besides, sheâs the one killing more monsters than me.â
âOh.â
Thereâs no way to ignore the way your heart skips a beat at this, or the hopeful glint in Steveâs eyes. The rest of the woods disappear and itâs only you and Steve and your rapidly beating heart. The others are lost to you, in their own little world, searching in the dark with their flashlights like fireflies.
âYeah,â Steve scratches the back of his neck. âAnd, just in case, me and Robin are not a thing, either. Just friends.â
âPlatonic with a capital P!â You hear Robin yell out in front of you.
You canât help the laugh that bubbles out of you at Steveâs blush. âYeah, yeah, think she got it, Buckley, thanks.â
âYouâre welcome!â
âThatâs⊠good to know,â you comment.
Steve raises his eyebrows at you, then scratches his chin. âIs it? Good to know?â
You nod slowly, avoiding his gaze. âMaybe.â
âMaybe. Okay. Maybe isââ he breathes out. âMaybe is cool.â
âMaybe is really cool,â you allow yourself a small smile.
âReally?â Steve inquires, and when he notices his smile he gifts you one of his own. âOkay. Thatâs great. Maybe is really cool. Cool. Cool beans.â
âYeah?â You bite your lip, finally daring to look at him.
Steve follows your movement with his eyes. âYeah,â he says, breathless.
âHey guys,â Dustinâs voice rings out, the moment gone. âI think we found the portal!â
You both follow Dustinâs voice until you reach a lake, where Eddie explains Vecna killed Patrick when he was running away from Jason and the rest of the basketball team.Â
âSo the portal is⊠what?â Robin asks, âUnderwater?â
Dustin shrugs. âWorth a shot.â
He starts climbing up the boat, and youâre quick to grab him by the sleeves of his shirt to stop him.
âJust what do you think youâre doing?â You ask him.
âLooking for the portal,â Dustin says, matter-of-factly.
âYou told me this portal is supposed to teleport you to another dimension, one Will Byers got stuck in,â you reply, pulling him away from the boat. âYouâre not going anywhere near that portal. None of you kids are.â
âWho died and made you the boss?ïżœïżœ
âThree people died,â you note.
âI made her the boss,â Robin quips. âWell, Nancy might technically be the boss, actually. Nance?â
Nancy blinks at Robinâs words. âUh, yeah. Sure.â
âNance says yes.â
Eddie frowns. âYes to being the boss or yes toââ
âLetâs just go,â Nancy urges, gesturing at Steve to help her drag the boat offshore. Steve complies, and helps Nancy climb into the boat, followed by Robin and then Eddie.
âBut what about the curse?â Dustin wonders, looking at you.
âI have this, remember?â You hold up the cassette player, and wink at your brother. âDonât worry about me, okay? Look after Lucas and Max. Nancy might be the boss, but youâre their leader.â
âOkay, yeah,â he nods, sounding more like heâs talking to reassure himself than anything.Â
âCompass, please,â you tell him, and Dustin complies unhappily. You canât help yourself from grabbing him by the cheeks and kissing his forehead like you did when he was younger. Despite being a good leader, a fighter, heâll always be little Dusty, who steals your waffles and makes really bad coffee. âSee you soon.â
Steve offers his hand to help you climb the boat and you take it with a tiny smile.
The trip on the boat is short and dark. Even with Steve using his flashlight to try and light the way, itâs barely enough to keep you from being engulfed in the darkness of the night. When was the last time the moon shone down in Hawkins? There are almost no stars above, the view chillingly dark. You fear what you might find. Nancy stares at Dustinâs compass, trying to give any semblance of direction when the compass starts going crazy.
Steve starts pulling off his socks.Â
âSteve,â Nancy says slowly, âwhat are you doing?â
âSomebodyâs gotta go down there and check this thing out. Was one of you four Hawkinâs Highâs swimming co-captain and a certified lifeguard for three years?â He figures, already working on his other shoe. âItâs gotta be me, no complaints, alright?â
Eddie chuckles nervously. âHey⊠Iâm not complaining. I do not wanna go down there.â
You watch as Eddie takes something off his pocket and throws it on the boatâs floor. You want to stop Steve somehow, irrationally, because as far as you know Nancy, Robin and Eddie canât dive, and you can barely float â but the words die on your throat when you look up and Steve is peeling off his shirt.
âHere,â Eddie says, and you realize now he had wrapped a plastic bag around a flashlight and is now handing it back to Steve. âGood luck.â
âThanks,â Steve says, taking it from his hands.
âSteve,â Robin rasps out before he dives, and Steve stops to look at her. âDonât⊠die?â
âGee,â he scoffs. âThanks for the encouraging speech, Robs.â
âYouâre welcome.â
âDonât die, seriously,â you manage to tell him, wanting to reach for his hand but stopping yourself. âOr Iâll kill you.â
Steve nods. He looks like he wants to say something else, but keeps his mouth shut before diving underwater.
The silence on the boat almost kills you, as it rocks quietly, everyone holds their breath waiting for Steve to come up once again. Your heart is in your throat, Donât You still playing softly in your eardrums, the cassette player still on, a constant to remind you youâre still here. Miraculously.
âHeâsâŠâ Eddie whistles. âHeâs got balls, King Steve.â
âYeah,â you nod, looking at the water like youâre hypnotized, waiting for his soaked head to pop up.
âNot what youâd expect,â he adds, a little quietly.
âNo,â Robin says, and the way she says itâ so fond, so genuine. You couldnât agree more. Steve is so much more than what youâd expected him to be. âNot at all.â
You stay silent for a few more seconds, all of you waiting for Steve to come back. When he does he emerges with a gasp for air, startling the rest of you. Eddie screams so loud you hear it perfectly well over the music.
âFound it,â Steve claims, holding onto the edge of the boat.
âYou found it?â Nancy repeats.
âIt was pretty wild,â Steve explains that he seemed to have stumbled into the portal, like an open gate illuminating the bottom of the lake and tinting it red. âIt was pretty damn bigââ
Before he can continue, Steve is pulled into the water once again, and you jump up instinctively, trying to reach for his hand, but he escapes your grasp quickly. He emerges again and you breathe a sigh of reliefâ but itâs short lived, because Steve is dragged under once again and heâs not coming up.
âSteve!â you yell. âSteve!â
âWhat the hell was that, man?!â
Between all the screaming going on, the only thing you can think about is Steve, Steve, Steveâ
And so you stand up.
âWait, (Y/N),â Nancy starts, âWhat are youââ
âYouâre not going in there!â Eddie screams, trying to grab you by the arm.
âIââ You start, but canât seem to decide on what to say. You donât know what youâre trying to do, but you know youâll do it anyway. You have no plan, that much is certain, youâve never fought a day in your life. âI canât just stay here!â
âAre you insane?!â
Robin pales. âNo, (Y/N), waitââ
With one last look at the rest of the guys, you dive into the water and swim. Youâve never been a good swimmer, but you find yourself swimming like youâve never had, quickly finding the red portal Steve had mentioned before being dragged down here. What you find on the other side reminds you of when you met Vecnaâ when he showed you your memories, cold, distorted and dark. You briefly wonder if Vecna had managed to drag you all the way here then, but you have no time to dwell on it too much.
Steve is laying on his back, as some creatures bite at his abdomen incessantly, like leeches. They are choking him, curling their tails around his neck. You stand up and run towards him, only to notice the others have followed behind you, their wet footsteps a reassurance.
â(Y/N)!â Nancy yells, making you turn. She throws one of the boatâs paddles at you, keeping one for herself.Â
You manage to catch it, God knows how. Steve is still struggling when you get to him, and the first thing you do is smack one of the things across the face, forcing it on its back and stopping it from further gnawing Steveâs abdomen. You see as Robin starts stomping on the one who has its tail curled around Steveâs neck, and Nancy takes on the other one.
âShit,â Eddie murmurs when he looks up the sky and sees even more of them approaching.
One of them starts going after Nancy, Eddie trying to come to her rescue by grabbing Steveâs still working flashlight and smacking it as hard as he can manage. You help Robin by hitting the one sheâs stomping on with the paddle, until Steve manages to bite its tail, forcing it to curl itself from his neck.Â
With more coming, you are distracted enough to barely notice when Steve manages to behead it, his lips stained with pitch black blood.
âJesus christ,â Eddie mumbles. âJesus H Christ!â
The adrenaline pumping through your veins, your heartbeat going fasterâ everything seems to go for so long, when in reality it mustâve been just a few minutes.
âSteve,â you manage to rasp out, walking towards him, only looking at his wounds, unsure of what you can do to help him. âShit, Steve, are you okay?â
âThey only took about a pound of flesh,â he says, making you sigh. âBut other than that⊠Yeah, never better.â
He stares at you when he says it, and you canât help the way your breath catches.
âYouâll need bandages,â Nancy notes.
âDo you guys know if these bats have like, rabbies?â Robin wonders aloud. Aware that everyoneâs eyes are on her, Robin starts rambling about rabies symptoms and death. You and Steve glance at each other.
Steveâs chest is still rising erratically, exhausted, when he asks, âWhat the hell are you talking about, Robin?â
Before Robin can go on any longer though, the sky is tinted red again, and the screeching of even more approaching creatures gets you on edge.Â
âWe need to get the fuck out of here,â you say, and the rest of the group seem to agree.
The five of you break into a run into the forest, as far as you can before Steveâs wounds start to appear more serious, and when Nancy deems it safe enough, you stop near a tree where Steve can lean against, still breathing rapidly. You remember that Nancy said heâd need bandages, and so you take the hem of your pants and start ripping them open.
âWhat are youââ Steve starts.
âBandages,â you say. âI saw this in Indiana Jones.â
âIndiana Jones?â Steve asks with a chuckle, looking up at the sky, smiling. âYour movie choices keep surprising me, Henderson.â
You tie the cloth around his wounds as tightly as you can, hopeful that itâs a good enough job to keep him from bleeding out until you guys get out of here. The wounds donât look too bad, but you have no idea how long you'll stay here for. Nancy, looking over your shoulders, seems to approve of your bandage work.
âThanks,â Steve rasps out.
âJust donât die on me,â you nod, staring at his eyes.
âIâll try not to.â
He holds your gaze, your mouth going even more dry than it already is. âIâll hold you to that, Harrington.â
Youâre interrupted when Steve catches something behind you. Itâs Eddieâs jean vest. When you turn, Eddie scrunches up his nose.
âFor modesty, man.â
âWe escaped now, but thereâs more of those monsters than what we saw,â Nancy interrupts, walking around, trying to think. âTheyâll come looking for us. We need to get out of here.â
âSo,â Eddie starts, running a hand through his mouth. âWhat the hell do we do now? How do we get out of here, exactly?â
âWe need to find another portal, right?â Robin replies. âThatâs the only way to get out of here. But we canât go back to Watergate, itâs probably full of those bats now. Those bats full of rabies!â
 âRight now, the most important thing is to defend ourselves,â Nancy says. âWe donât know what kind of monsters are down here. Maybe theyâre even worse than that.â
âHell,â Eddie breathes. âYou think Vecna is here?â
âI donât know⊠Maybe.â
A chill runs down your spine at the mention of Vecnaâs name. Your hand flies to your ear, and only then you realize youâve jumped in the water with your headphones on, and when you reach the player secured inside your front pocket itâs wet and broken. Through the adrenaline of the fight, you hadnât even noticed that the song was no longer playing.Â
âShit,â Nancy breathes out, looking at your ruined headphones. âThe player.â
âItâs ruined,â you lament, seeing the way itâs soaked. You toss the cassette player to the ground, near Steveâs feet, who pales even more, if itâs even possible.
âFuck,â he says, breathless, the slight reassuring smile heâd been wearing disappears in an instant. He stands up straight despite his body clearly protesting against it. âWe need to find another one before itâs too late.â
âWould it even work here?â Robin wonders. âIf itâs one from the Upside Down, I mean. Things seem to be⊠kind of broken here, donât they?â
âThen we need to get her out of here right now,â Steve urges, and when he starts trying to walk away itâs Eddie who stops him.
âDude, do you want your intestines to hang out of your abdomen like some shitty Nightmare on Elm Street scene?â he asks, âStay still! Those bats could be anywhere!â
âWe need to move!â
âSteve, wait a second,â you urge after him.
âWe could go to my house,â Nancy offers. âI have guns. We could use them to fend off the demo⊠bats, or whatever. And we need a player. We can use Mikeâs, he has one he didnât take to California.â
Eddie blinks. âYou, Nancy Wheeler⊠have guns.â
Robin grins. âFull of surprises, isnât she?â
Steve is already on his way despite his groans of pain, and even though the wounds had seemed pretty superficial to you when you wrapped them up, it doesnât mean that they donât hurt like a bitch.
âSteve, youâre just hurting yourself even more now,â Now Robin is sighing, exasperated. You briefly wonder how many times sheâs had to deal with Steve like this.
âLetâs go,â he says, ignoring her.
âSteve...â you try to stop him, but he turns around quickly.
âLetâs go!âÂ
Robin scoffs, crossing his arms. âWhere are we even going, oh great leader?â
âNancyâs!â
You all turn to look at each other, unsure if following Steve is the best idea, but with nothing else to do and no other ideas, thereâs only one thing to do.
And so you all start walking.
đŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒđŒ
Itâs a while before you arrive at the Wheelerâs, the five of you mostly exhausted from the fight, with Steve clutching his wounds but still leading the way, right next to Nancy. Youâre all on edge the entire way back, but despite the lack of music you donât feel different yet, and you donât encounter any more demobats, as Nancy had called them.
Nancyâs house seems haunted in this place, just as much as the rest of Hawkins seems to be. Despite housing monsters, the Upside Down looks more like a ghost town than anything. You couldnât help but wonder how tiny Will Byers had ever survived something like this so young⊠Nobody ever gives that kid enough credit.Â
Nancy wastes no time climbing up the stairs; she almost seems unaffected looking at her house like this, so⊠dead. She hovers near a door and turns to look at you.
âThis is Mikeâs room,â she nods at it. âHis cassette player should be in there. Me, Eddie and Robin will get the guns and look for the cassette in my room.â
You agree to it, and she disappears down the hallway along with Eddie and Robin. You and Steve enter Mikeâs room, start rummaging through cabinets. You work in silence. Youâve never seen Steve this quiet, this focused. You wonder if heâs mad at youâ he had to be. Now besides demobats and trying to escape, he had to help you too because youâd went and done something stupid and completely irrational.
Steve clears his throat, holding up something in his hand. âFound it,â he calls. âThink itâll work?â He wonders aloud, as you close the closet door before walking up to him.
âHere,â You say, then pull your ruined flashlight from your back pocket. You hit the back of it against the palm of your hand and the batteries come off. Youâre not sure if this might work since the flashlight got wet and stopped working once you jumped into the water, but once you plug them into the cassette player it seems to come to life. Steve sighs, relieved. âThank God that worked. Letâs get that stupid cassette and get out of here.â
âSounds good to me,â he quips. He wets his lips, looking around. âYou donât feel any different, though, right?â When you shake your head, he seems to be able to relax a bit. âWhen we were on our way here, Eddie told me you didnât waste a second to help me.â
You wait for Steve to continue, but he doesnât.
âIâve never been much of an adventurer when we were kids,â you say. âDustin wanted to climb trees and go camping, and I wanted to stay home and read books. We used to fight all the time because I never wanted to play outside with him, because I was scared of bugs and dirt and I just wanted to stay inside.â
Steve doesnât say anything to that, but heâs near you, hoving near your hand, like he knows you need the comfort, unsure if itâd be wanted from him.Â
âIf I donât make it out of this stupid curse, Steve,â you breathe out, legs feeling so shaky you want to throw up, âI need you to promise me youâll take care of Dustin.â
âHeâll kill me before I let you die,â Steve says, trying t sound lighthearted but failing.
âSteve,â you rag out. âPromise me. Please.â
Steve nods, his voice soft in the way it does when heâs trying to be gentle. âYâyeah. Of course. You know little Hendersonâs like my own little brother.â
âI know,â you acknowledge. âYouâve been a way better sibling than me. Iâve been such a shitty sister and Iâm⊠Iâm really glad Dustin has you.â
âThatâs not true,â he argues, reaching for your arm in the darkness of the roomâ you want to flinch away. âHe loves you, (Y/N). Seriously, you should hear the way he talks about you when youâre not around.â
You ignore the sting in your eyes and berate yourself for tearing up.
âItâs my fault,â you whisper.
âWhat?â
âItâs my fault my dad walked away,â you shake your head, tearing your arm away from Steveâs touch, feeling cold as soon as youâre away from him. But you deserve it, you deserve the cold. âI told him I hated him after I learned he cheated on mom and that he had another family, and he never came back. I told him I never wanted to see him again. Iâm the reason Dustin doesnât have a dad now. Butâ but I was just fifteen, I didnâtâ I didnât know what I was askingââ
âStop, stop,â Steve interrupts, and suddenly heâs pulling you close to your chest and holding you close.
And suddenly thatâs all you need to break down, tears flowing freely down your cheeks. You feel embarrased, stupid for crying about something like this when the world might be about to end, horrifyingly guilty for everythingâ but for the first time you feel like something has been finally lifted off your chest and you can breathe, here, with Steve holding you. Youâre glad Steve stayed behind with you. In truth, you think you might just be glad for Steve.
If someone had told you a week ago youâd be crying in Steve Harringtonâs arms you wouldâve smacked them. Life can change really fast, huh?
âNobody is going to die,â his voice is so soft. Youâd never thought youâd think of Steveâs voice as anything other than grating, but now you hold onto it like a lifeline. âI wonât let that happen.â
You breathe into his chest. You finally manage to let go of him, thanking God the others werenât near. You miss the warmth almost immediately, as much as you donât want to admit it. âShit, sorry, your bandages.â
âYou need to stop doing that,â he quips.
âWhat?â
âApologizing so much,â he reaches for your arm again before walking, and you thank him silently. You have to bite your tongue not to apologize again. âLetâs go get that cassette.â
When you both step into Nancyâs room, the silence is almost deafening.Â
âWhat happened?âÂ
âThe guns,â Nancy explains, her eyes focused on her nightstand, not looking up at either of you. âThey arenât here. But so many things that shouldnât be are. Likeâ like my curtains, and theseâ these toys I gifted my cousin Joanna. They havenât been here since 1983.â
âWeâre stuck in time, dude,â Eddie finishes for her.
âThree years, to be exact.â
âWhat?â Steve asks, confused. âThree years into the past?â
â... From when Will disappeared, you mean?â You question.
Nancy nods. âYeah, I⊠think so. But, (Y/N), If weâre three years in the past, it means The Breakfast Club isnât out yet,â Nancy swallows, hard, then finally looks up to stare into your eyes.Â
âWhat do you mean?â Steve asks, his chest rising erratically.Â
You bite your lip. âShe means the song doesnât exist, either.â
Nancy closes her eyes.
âIâm sorry, (Y/N).âÂ
âFuck!â Steve yells, âfuck!â
He kicks one of Nancyâs nightstands with so much force he manages to force it into the ground, Nancyâs belongings following suit, scattering around the carpet, making Nancy flinch.Â
âSteve,â you whisper, trying to reach for him. âStop.â
Steve sits on Nancyâs bed, hand covering his mouth. He lets you rest your hand on his arm, and he breathes out another curse. He almost looks frozen in place like this, and it reminds you that everything in here feels like it isâ ghosts, so many ghosts. You feel like youâre stuck in hell.Â
âMaybe any song will work,â Robin offers a little desperately, going through Nancyâs drawers, pulling out different cassettes and soundtracks, Duran Duran, Madonna, Elton John. âCâmon guys, one has to work.â
Eddie scratches his neck. âDoesnât it have to be her favorite song? Isnât that what Henderon said?â
âScrew it,â Nancy shakes her head, taking in a shaky breath. âWe have to try whatever we can. This is our only option.â
âOkay,â you nod, shakily, prying your hand off of Steveâs arm, reaching to cruch own next to Robin and look through the rest of Nancyâs cassettes. âOkay, letâsâ letâs try it.â
Robin holds up Total Eclipse of the Heart. âYou like Bonnie Tyler?âÂ
âSeems as good as anything,â you nod, taking it from her hands. As the first notes of Total Eclipse start playing, you gulp nervously, praying this might work, that you have at least enough time to get out of here alive.
Steve still looks miserable, but seems a little calmer now. âWe need to get out of here right now.â
âHow?â Robin sighs. âHow did Will ever manage to get out of this place?â
âThere has to be a way,â Nancy figures, then something seems to dawn on her. âWill. Will used to talk to Joyce with the Christmas lights while he was stuck in the Upside Down.â
âThe Christmas lights?â Eddie asks, incredulously. âWhat are you talking about?â
As she explains, you canât help but think that Nancy Wheeler is absolutely brilliant. You canât blame Steve for falling in love with her before. Sheâs interrupted by Robin rather quickly though, when she claims she can hear Dustinâs voiceâ soon enough, all of you start to hear him, distorted and distant, but it's there no less. Quickly Dustin communicates that he thinks there might be another portal in Eddieâs trailer and that seems to be your best shot at an escape.
Robin and Nancy leave to get some supplies for the tripâ whatever they can find to use as a weapon, while Eddie wanders off behind them, with the excuse of rummaging through little Wheelerâs action figures. Steve stays with you, as you stare at Hollyâs Lite Brite, unsure on what to do.Â
You trust Dustin and his plan, of course you do. Dustinâs done nothing but prove himself to you these past few days. Still, the thought that everything might go incredibly wrong is almost unshakable at this point. What was it Max said to you? Something about how Vecnaâs curse made people feel hopeless and lonely.
âYou okay, right?â Steve wonders aloud, searching your face. âYou havenât had any visions yet?â
You havenât felt Vecnaâs pull yet, but you donât want to be overly optimistic just yet. âIâm okay, I think. Are you?â
You glance down at his bandages, but he only nods. âYeah, they donât hurt anymore. Iâm more worried about you.â
Warmth spreads all over your cheeks and inside your chest, but nowâs really not the time for all of these feelings, and so you try to squeeze them out, to focus on something else.Â
âI just hope the plan works,â you mumble. âI want to get out of here.â
âYouââ Steve shakes his head, looks at you with a look you canât name. But he sounds frustrated, exhausted. âYou just jumped in after me? You didnât even thinkâŠâ he trails off. âEddie said you just jumped. Fucking jumped. Youâre unbelievable, you know that, donât you, Henderson? Absolutely fucking unbelievable.âÂ
You look down at your hands.
âIt was stupid, I know, Iââ
âThank you,â Steve murmurs, honesty bleeding into every word he speaks. You look up at him, surprised. âYou saved my ass back there.â
The truth is you hadnât doubted one secondâ you hadnât even stopped to think about what might happen to you. Helping Steve was more important to you than anything in that moment, and you didnât regret it, how could you regret that?Â
âYou saved my ass first, back at the Wheelerâs,â you smile at him. âEven later, in the woods, and at Creelâs house. I donât know if I could have kept going without you⊠so thank you.â
Steve stays silent for a few seconds, unsure of how to continue. You can practically feel him grow nervous now, when he clears his throat and begins speaking. âListen, I know we are on the brink of life and death and maybe world threatening danger, but I kinda need some motivation to get out of here.â
âYeah?â
âSo, now that you know me and Nancy arenât really a thing, and that me and Robin are platonic with a capital PâŠâ
âKeep going.â
âAnd since you know, maybe is really cool,â you nod, trying to fight off a smile. âWe should, maybe, go on a date together.â
âHmâŠâ you place a hand on your chin. âI donât know. Iâm not sure I can go out with someone who doesnât like Pretty in Pink.â
âIâve never said I didnât,â he shrugs. âI just havenât even seen it.â
âYou havenât seen Pretty in Pink, you monster?!â
âYou know, Iâm actively bleeding out here,â Steve gestures at your last minute bandages, his smile almost as handsome as him, even more so after tearing off a bat monsterâs head off. Even more so now that it seems you finally have a plan to get out of this goddamn place. âYouâre gonna make a dying man wait?â
âYouâre not dying, Harrington.â You smack him gently across the shoulders. âI wonât let you.â
Steve chuckles, his hand finding its way to yours, almost nervous, scared of rejection.Â
âSo? What do you say?â
âI say that if we get out of here alive, and it seems like kind of a longshot right nowâŠâ you acknowledge, holding onto his hand and squeezing. âI would really, really like that.â
âYeah?â
Youâre smiling. âYeah.â
You both might be the people with the worst timing in the entire worldâ youâre cursed by a demon villain from another dimension, and Steve is bleeding out while youâre both trapped inside the Upside Down, with no clue if youâll be able to actually escape. Not to mention this is all happening in his ex's house. And yet you canât help but laugh when Steve tries to reach for the back of your neck and fails miserably.
âI really want to kiss you,â he says, âbut my abdomen still really hurts.â
âI have to do everything,â you tease, before closing the distance between you, your lips pressing against his with a sigh.Â
Steveâs lips are chapped, bloody, raw, and yours must be equally as bad, salty, open and bleeding raw. But despite everything the kiss is perfect, as imperfect and uncoordinated as it is; the way your lips fit together, the way Steve cradles your cheek, and how you hold the back of his neck while Bonnie Tyler plays in the background of it all. Now, more than anything, you feel hope.
When you break off the kiss, Steve is smiling.Â
âLetâs get out of here,â he says. And you just might.
11K notes
·
View notes