When Eddie is introduced to Jonathan, they both give each other a look that says “if you say anything, you’re dead” and naturally, Nancy clocks it immediately.

“What was that?”

“Nothing,” they said at the same time, only growing the suspicion.

“Seriously? Do you know each other already?”

“No!”

“Yes, but-“

They glare at each other, but Eddie speaks up again.

“He bought from me a couple times. No big deal.”

Nancy looks between them, shakes her head. “There’s something else going on. But we’ve got bigger problems.”

And they did.

For months, their problems seemed to get worse by the day. It was a great distraction.

But honestly, anytime Eddie spent more time with Jonathan, it got harder not to say how they actually knew each other: a make out session in a bathroom at a party when Jonathan was yearning for Nancy.

He told Steve eventually, had to with the way he kept finding ways to avoid being around Jonathan and Steve got suspicious.

“If he said something to you about us, I’ll take care of it. He doesn’t get to say shit about what makes us happy.”

And Eddie couldn’t have Steve lose another fight, so he told him.

“So wait. You and Jonathan…”

“Made out. Yes.”

“Like…with tongue?”

Eddie rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I remember tongue being involved.”

“And hands?”

“They were there too.”

Steve puts his hands on his hips, lifts one to wipe over his face, then settles it back on his hip. “And you liked it?”

“Considering at the time my options were Jonathan or the girl in Hellfire who insisted I wasn’t gay because I looked at her during campaigns, yeah. It wasn’t the worst thing I’ve been through.”

Steve huffed. “Yeah, but like. Compared to me-“

“Oh my god.”

“What?!”

“I cannot believe you’re jealous of Jonathan Byers. Again.”

“I’m not! I’ve never-“

Eddie raised his brows. “Never? Not once?”

“That was different!”

“That was worse.”

“I dunno, finding out your boyfriend has made out with the only other guy in Hawkins who’d be up for it is arguably worse.”

Steve pouted for hours. Eddie let him.

It was cute, alright?

And when he got over it, they made out for hours in his bed.

Steve, of course, was the one who told Nancy.

In his defense, he was very high, and Nancy had been pushing him all night, from the moment she caught wind that he might know how they knew each other.

Eddie went inside to grab them all water, and she pounced.

By the time Eddie got back, Steve was half asleep and Nancy was smirking at Eddie.

“You could’ve just said.”

“He’s never getting high for free again.”

“He’s your boyfriend.”

“He’s back to being a paying customer, too.”

Nancy laughed, startling Steve into opening his eyes. He smiled up at Eddie, no clue he’d just given up one of their secrets.

“Hi, baby. You know Nancy didn’t know about you and Jonathan?”

Eddie glanced over to see Nancy rolling on her side, laughing hysterically.

“Yeah. I’m sure that was on purpose. How about we get you to bed, superstar?”

He managed to get Steve onto the couch, where he immediately passed out.

Nancy hugged him, kissed his cheek, like she always did before leaving.

“It’s not a big deal, you know. He’s mentioned that he isn’t only into women. We’ve talked a lot about the Argyle situation.” She walked towards the door. “Steve will get over the jealousy eventually. It’s not like Jonathan wouldn’t have made out with him if he could have.”

She left before Eddie could respond.

Eddie suddenly understood exactly what Steve was feeling.

“Not gonna happen,” he mumbled to himself before joining Steve on the couch and pulling him close.

The Dating Odyssey: Steve

Eddie Munson/Billy Hargrove/Steve Harrington/Jim Hopper/Jonathan Byers x fem!reader

2.8k word count

fluff, idiot reader, reader who can't say no, choose your own adventure-ish

Part 1 / Eddie's Ending / Jim's Ending

 Sleep that night was a stranger to you. You tossed and turned nodding off only to be jerked back awake by the consequences of your actions. Before long the first light of day was breaking through your window. You decided to abandon sleep and instead start getting ready for work. You showered, dressed and collected the large pile of assignments before loading them into your car and driving to the school. You made it through the day by drinking copious amounts of coffee and plastering on the best fake smile you could manage. Making it home that night you abandoned all thoughts of food and went straight to bed. Yet once again in your quite apartment you were meet with the thoughts of the decision looming over you. Maybe the best solution was to leave Hawkins. Move somewhere new and try again after all isn’t that why you moved here in the first place, for a fresh start. You quickly abandoned that idea, you didn’t have the money and it was hard enough landing the teaching job in Hawkins let alone looking elsewhere.

And so you went another night with very little sleep. Your week went by at a snail’s pace. You thought you were doing a good job hiding your inner turmoil but apparently one particular student had noticed something was a miss with you and decided he needed to check in.

“Hi Miss Y/L/N I was just wondering if your okay you seem very distracted this week, I mean normally you laugh at all my jokes but you haven’t even laughed at one, I’ll admit some weren’t that funny, but I thought a few were pretty good” Dustin rambled standing in the doorway of your classroom

“I’m fine Dustin just some adult drama you don’t need to worry about” You smiled at the curly haired boy

“Is it to do with Steve?” Dustin pushed “Cause his like my best friend I can talk to him if you like”

“No it’s not Steve, but thank you Dustin”

“Well the offers there, see you next week Miss” Dustin smiled walking away

“See you next week” You smiled

You finished packing up your desk glad it was Friday and walk out to your car. In the parking lot you found Dustin, Lucas, Will and Mike goofing around with Eddie who looked like he was picking the boys up from school probably to go play Dungeons and Dragons. You wanted to hurry to your car to avoid being spotted by him. But you stared in the boys direction just a little too long. Eddie looked up from loading the boys into the back of his van just long enough to see you watching. He said something to the boys that you were too far away to hear before jogging over to you. You froze in place, wanting to run but your feet not allowing you to.

“Hi” Eddie smiled coming to a stop in front of you

“Hi Eddie” You gave a small smile back

“Uh oh someones not happy, kids give you hell?” Eddie chuckled

“Eddie” You looked to the ground “I…”

“Y/n whats the matter?” Eddie became serious

“I’m so sorry” You whispered

“What was that?” Eddie asked placing a hand on your elbow “I didn’t quite catch that”

“I’m sorry” You looked up at him

“Sorry? For what?” Eddies face was filled with worry and concern

“Last weekend…I loved our date I really did but I also went on a few other dates and now I don’t know what to do, I messed up and I don’t know what I’m suppose to do, I’m so sorry Eddie” You rambled a few tears escaping to run down your face

“Jesus H. Christ” Eddie turned away from you running a hand through his hair “How many other dates?” Eddie asked still facing away from you eyes closed

“4”

“4!” Eddie shouted turning to face you as he did “4 fucking dates and you didn’t think to at least have the decency to tell me”

“I wanted to but I was scared of this” You said

“Look I’m sorry” Eddie tried to calm down “I just thought a girl finally might give Eddie ‘The Freak’ Munson a chance, I guess not”

Eddie stormed off back to his van while you stood in the parking lot and sobbed. You really had fucked up. You needed someone to comfort you right in that moment but at the same time you didn’t really know anyone here. You hoped into your car and decided to go find the one person you had been honest with right from the start. You drove the busy after school streets all the way to Family Video knowing today being Friday that Steve would be working. You walked in the doors looking immediately to the counter for Steve. But he wasn’t there. You began looking down the aisles hoping Steve was just out the back and would be back out soon. A woman you knew to be Robin soon came from out the back having heard the door chime.

“If your looking for Steve his not here” Robin walked over placing a few DVDs on the shelf.

“Is he home sick?” You asked

“I honestly have no clue. Mr Perfect called to take the week off for family reasons” Robin scoffed “Like we all don’t know his parents are rarely ever home and his never mentioned any other family”

“Oh okay well thank you Robin I guess I’ll be going” You managed a smile heading for the door

“If you see the dingus tell him he owes me for working all his shifts” Robin said

“I will” you chuckled

You made your way back to your car and began driving mindlessly around town. You had no clue what to do, no idea where to go. A small piece of you wanted to drive to Steves but you didn’t want to be a burden on him. You drove and debated with yourself on if you should go to Steves or not. It would seem that your unconscious mind made that decision for you because before you could process where you were driving you found yourself in front of Steves. You would have kept driving if it wasn’t for the fact that Steve was sitting on the front step having a smoke. He stood up and waved at you. You silently cursed as you pulled up in front of Steves house. You braced yourself and climbed out of your car and walked towards Steve. At some point between your car and Steve you had begun to shake. By the time you got to Steve you were completely sobbing. Steve pulled you into his arms, gently shushing you and rubbing small circles into your back.

You stayed like that for quite a while before you were able to compose yourself enough to move away from Steve. He guided you into his house, leading you to his lounge room where he had you sit on the lounge while he fetched you something to drink. Part of him was glad you had come to him, yet part of him was scared you where only here to tell him you had picked someone else over him. He came back into the lounge room carrying a glass of water which he handed off to you. Steve sat silently by your side as you sipped at your glass of water waiting for you to speak when you were ready.

“I think I really fucked up” You said after a short but comfortable silence

“Well you don’t say” Steve gave a small smile “What happened?”

“I told Eddie everything” You sighed

“Only Eddie?” Steve questioned

“Yep and given how he reacted I’m not sure I could tell anyone else”

“How did he reacted?” Steve asked

“He snapped at me, he screamed at me, he was very angry”

“Honestly knowing Eddie I’m not at all surprised that that’s how he choose to act”

“What am I suppose to do Steve?” You asked

“I can’t answer that I’m afraid, it’s your choice” Steve sighed running a hand through his hair

“I can’t make a choice Steve, I don’t know even know what I want but it certainly wasn’t this”

You began to sob, dropping your head into your hands. Steve pulled you into his arms. You rested your head on his chest while he rested his chin gently on top of your head. He began to rock the both of you slowly. He truly felt bad for you but at the same time he wanted to be selfish and tell you not to worry about the others and just choose him. But he knew he couldn’t do that, it wasn’t his choice to make. During Steve’s inner turmoil he missed the slowing and evening out of your breathing and the occasional hiccups you made. It wasn’t until he went to ask you if you wanted him to cook you both some dinner that he realised you had fallen asleep. The stress and panic had finally worn you down and you had passed out in the safety of Steves arms. Not wanting to wake you Steve pulled you onto his lap and stood up. He carried you upstairs to his room and place you on his bed. As he went to stand up you clung to his shirt as if he was your life line, your safety net to the situation you found yourself in. Steve tried several times albeit not very hard to get away from you. When he realised he wasn’t getting away from you he moved you further across his bed before joining you. He made a silent prayer to whatever possessed him to wear sweatpants instead of his normal tight jeans before pulling you close to him and falling asleep himself.

The next morning you woke up when sunlight filtered though a nearby window hitting you in your face. You blinked taking in the plaid walls and matching plaid curtains. You started to internally panic, how had you ended up in Steves bed? If you fell asleep why didn’t he just wake you? Better yet why was Steve holding you in his arms. You tried to keep your breathing calm as you attempted to free yourself from Steves arms. You placed a hand on Steves wrist that was currently draped over your waist and tried to slowly lift his arm up. You managed to successfully move his arm from your waist but as you went to move his arm to the bed you lost your grip. Steves arm came down on the bed with a thump startling the man awake. He groaned and you froze. Steve brought his arm up to his face and rubbed his eyes before looking at you. He gave you a half awake smile. In that moment something happened you weren’t quite expecting. Your heart started to race and you couldn’t help but smiled back.

“Morning” Steve yawned

“Good morning, uh, why am I in your bed?”

“Well I didn’t want to wake you up or risk you trying to drive home with how upset you were” Steve shrugged

“Okay and why are you in your bed with me?”

“That would be your fault” Steve smirked poking your nose “You refused to let me go so I had no choice but to stay, I was going to be a gentle man sleep on the floor again”

You started laughing at the absurdity of it all and pulled Steve’s blankets over your face. Steve quickly pulled the entire blanket away from you wrapping himself up like a burrito in the process. He gave you a big goofy grin from inside his burrito causing you to laugh even harder at the man.

“And this is for being the worlds worst blanket hog” Steve got out between his own laughter

Steve unwrapped himself before holding out a hand to you. You gladly accepted it. Steve pulled you from his bed and guided you down stairs to the kitchen where you took a seat at the kitchen island. Steve began running around the kitchen making you both a simple breakfast of bacon and eggs. He poured you a glass of orange juice which you took with a thank you. You sat in relative silence and watched the man work hard on making you both what your sure from previous experience would be an excellent breakfast. At one point Steve spilt some oil on the floor, waved it off and then almost immediately slipped on it. He landed with a thud directly on his butt. You couldn’t help but laugh at him even if he did seem a little mean. Steve quickly stood up and gave you the most over exaggerated look of betrayal. You tried to apologise between laughs but Steve just waved his arm around while saying he would never be able to forgive you. All in good fun of course no actual feelings where hurt. You found yourself deep in thought as Steve finished cooking the bacon and plating breakfast. Steve placed the plate of now ready bacon eggs in front of you. He took a seat beside you and began eating his breakfast. This seemed to bring you out of your head and cause you to start eating for your own food in response.

“So I feel like we need to talk about this situation” Steve said after taking a bite of a piece of bacon and swinging it around in the air

“Uh we’re two adults eating breakfast what is there to discuss?” You tried to avoid what you knew was coming “No y/n I mean this situation you’ve found yourself in” Steve sighed

“I really don’t know what to do” You sighed

“You can’t just avoid everyone forever”

“I’m not avoiding you”

“Y/n no that’s” Steve groaned in frustration

“What do you expected me to do Steve I screwed myself over is that what you want to hear?” You sighed

“You can say that again” Steve sighed “Look I can’t tell you what to do or who to choose and yes I know its hard and it would be easier if I made the decision for you but it doesn’t work that way I’m afraid”

 “Can I just have today and then I’ll make my decision tomorrow?” You asked

“Sure but I’m going to subject you to the worst romantic comedies I can find” Steve smirked moving to put his plate in the sink

After breakfast was finished the two of you moved to the lounge room where Steve quickly picked out Grease as the first of your movies. You settled down on the lounge while Steve went to get snacks and drinks. By the time he came back Danny and Sandy where in the middle of singing about summer love. You had left some space between you and Steve so as not to create any awkward situations. As the movie played on you could feel Steve looking at you. You turned to look at him and he quickly looked away. You shrugged it off and went back to the movie. Several more times during the movie you could feel Steves eyes on you but anytime you looked to him he would be back looking at the movie. Steve even started singing along to the movie at some point. Then as the final number started Steve stood to dance around.

“Come on y/n join me” Steve smiled grabbing your hand pulling you up from the lounge

Steve spun you around while you laughed your way through the song. As the song and the movie came to its close you found yourself in Steves arms smiling from ear to ear and trying to catch your breath. This was the man you wanted to began with. The guy you had basically been crushing on since you got to Hawkins. Would you really be happy with someone else knowing you never gave him the chance? You didn’t want him to be the one who got away.

“Steve I made my choice” You said

“Really? I thought you were going to wait until tomorrow?” He said getting nervous

“I was but I changed my mind” You shrugged

“Okay well what have you decided”

Rather then giving Steve an answer you grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him into a kiss. He was shocked at first but soon settled into the kiss. He wrapped his arms around your waist and pulled you flush against him. Your arms wrapped around his neck. You smiled into the kiss. He stole your breath away just like the first time you’d kissed. You pulled apart for air resting your forehead against his. This felt right. Steve felt right.

“So this mean your choosing me?” Steve asked

“No doy” you giggled

No real st spoilers here but I loved parts of Vol 1 of this season - like I loved the Hawkins group and all their plot lines (Max basically carrying, Nancy and Robin being like detectives, Lucas getting a plot line that focuses on his actual character and his wants/desires etc). But I also didn’t really care about the rest of the season? I thought some of the Russia action scenes were cool, and Murray was funny, but that’s it. And don’t get me started on how wasted I feel Will, Mike and Jonathan were. I think the show just has too many characters.

(MAJOR SPOILER WARNING sorry for stranger things posting again i fell asleep yesterday and didnt answer this and i like to talk about stuff)

i feel like with a big main cast like that it's kind of normal not to be invested equally in all the storylines or that some get inevitably developed better than others. but i still think vol 1 had a pretty solid set up overall. mostly because imo what kinda drove my interest away from the show after the third season is that it didnt seem like there was much development at all - after each season id be like cool you defeated the monster and guess what there's another monster waiting to attack no way! yeah the monster becomes bigger and scarier or whatever but it doesn't feel like the stakes get any different. this season though had some elements that made it stand out to me like 1. the fact that the attacks are connected to the past of the characters so it's not just a matter of throwing fire at the guy to defeat him but like max did you have to choose to live and find what makes you attached to life the most to survive which for a suicidal character especially is really impactful 2. the fact that vecna himself had a backstory that we learnt by piecing together all the information from the different storylines (so that even if the cast is very divided it still has a common line) and that he had a personal connection to el . but then i feel like vol 2 just fell flat in a sense bc there wasnt really a satisfying closure to any of the arcs or characters. like max was the character with the most development and look how she ended, eddie's death was just so dumb that i dont even feel bad for him ("i' didn't run this time" BROTHER what kind of point are you making you just ran into a swarm of deadly bats for no reason other than shock death quota what shame there was in running from THAT) and he and hellfire didnt get their name cleared at all and there isnt even a hint to fixing that. so while after vol 1 i was like this is sick i cant wait to see how this goes after vol 2 im just like how i was after s3 so whatever

ST 4 SPOILERS & MY OPINION+THOUGHTS.

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I started at 3, on the dot. Ended the entire show at 1pm. I’m not really sure what to say other than I love the horror aspect, very much needed, I'd say...? Feel bad for the people of Hawkins, they really be going through it... lmao.

Anyhow, I love Eddie, didn't think I would like him as much but I do !! Which is surprising because when a TV show introduces a new character, it's a hit or miss. BUT!!

I fuckin love Argyle, too! Him and Jonathan are funny as fuck together, even if they are high most of the time, it's hilarious to see. I really liked the new characters which again, very shocking that I do because once more, it's always a hit or a miss.

NOW!!!!!! For the things I didn't like was that there's so many fucking PLOT HOLES. How did Brenner come back alive when he had gotten eaten previously in s1? Did I miss something or did he explain that or like what the fuck. Speaking of s1, how come Mike got angry that Eleven smacked tf out of Angela (much deserved, by the way, I don't care) yet didn't get angry when she broke that kid's arm in s1...? Is it because it was for his gain, his safety? Like, okay, sure... I guess...

Moving on, I don't really think Joyce would've dropped her kids like THAT over Hopper. That girl really wanted sum fuck, huh? Especially with everything that happened in s3.... she was putting herself in more danger and had she not returned, the kids would be in the stoner - Jonathan - 's hands....?? I don't think she was clearly acting with her thoughts but with her hormones, miss girl really wanted that dick which is understandable, it's Hopper but like.... eh. (half joking, may I add.)

Don't get me started on Steve & Nancy. I hate it. I hated it in the first seasons. Nobody asked for that. It's her own damn fault for going after then-creep Jonathan who snapped pictures of her when Steve, WHO WAS RIGHT FOR ACTING THE WAY HE HAD (other than the fighting, sure) was protecting her and was making sure Jonathan wasn't messing with her...? AND NOW SHE WANTS STEVE BACK? I THOUGHT IT WAS "ALL BULLSHIT" NANCY...? Fuck off. I cannot stand her, I'm fucking sorry. If she died, I would care fucking less. I'd whoop and holler, sorry not sorry. She has no real character development. And in s4, I feel like they lost all that development that they had...? AND FOR WHAT REASON!?!

Speaking of the topic that is being out of character, I don't think Lucas would ever turn his back on his friends. In the end, he came back together with them, yes... but I don't think he ever would do that. Nonetheless, they're teenagers now and they have a lot of hormones and shit changes but I don't know... It made me angry on the others' behaves. Regardless, they came back and grouped but still.

The stars of the season, in my opinion, is the gang from Indiana. (minus the shebang that's Steve and Nancy.) Sadie's portray on Max is, as always, INCREDIBLE. Dear Billy has to be one of my favorite episodes, just for her acting there alone.

(Plus, I got to see Billy again for like 5 minutes which was nice... Still wish he would've survived somehow but I guess not... despite, y'know, Brenner being alive and whatever the fuck. WHICH AGAIN CAN SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN IF HE HAD MENTIONED HOW HE CAME BACK... DID I MISS SOMETHING?)

The plot twist of the finale was so good, though. My only complaint was the villain's speech was TOO FUCKING LONG. IT TOOK UP HALF THE FUCKING EPISODE AND IT WAS JUST... "Oh, that's how we're ending this volume? Okay." Also wish Robert Englund was in more than one episode, seeing as they had made such a big deal that he was there..? But whatever, I guess.

TL;DR --

I enjoyed it for the most part. I just wish TV shows (and movies) wouldn't fuck up their character's arc and development so badly, lol.

Bitch (affectionate) I was till like 4 am re-reading everything I could from your ao3. Sorry that I haven't left comments yet but I will, I promise, I'm just too stunned to form coherent thoughts and then write them down. "That backseat afterglow" took my brain away, it was so good, I love when Steve doesn't completely freak out (I know they were a bit high but still), he does clinge to some stereotypes in the series (like when he said he wouldn't date Robin because she's in band hdhshs this poor stupid man) but he's not entirely brainless, he's actually very smart for some things and he's good at kind of guessing how to reassure other people (again with Robin and him cracking jokes to make her feel safe when she came out to him). I feel like his freak outs last for like 30 seconds and then he takes everything with a "it is what it is" and "bring it on I guess" attitude. I would love to read something from you were they discover they truly love each other, I adore your smut, it's perfectly written, but I'll like to see more of that "I will apologize to the dude that beat my ass and is now with my girlfriend because is just the right thing to do I GUESS" directed at Eddie. I'm sure Eddie still has class resentment (I have that) and Steve would be totally the type to hurt him by accident because of his rich boy inability to put himself in other people's shoes... Not that Steve's life is perfect (he did said his dad is an asshole and he's getting minimum wage now) but Eddie has no way of knowing that unless they talk... Anyways, this is so long already, love all of your fics and you are, above all, extremely funny in a somewhat dark way that I can't get enough of, may you always have a confy place to rest. Also, I see you agree with ADHD Eddie and I'm elated about it *neurodivergent wink*

omg this was. VERY NICE TO WAKE UP TO 💙 taking time to re-read is such high praise imo but i really hope you got some sleep!! 😭

he's not entirely brainless, he's actually very smart for some things and he's good at kind of guessing how to reassure other people

this made me laugh 😭 why is our boy so stupid (but he's trying). like even when he succeeds, it's like 60% luck.

I'll like to see more of that "I will apologize to the dude that beat my ass and is now with my girlfriend because is just the right thing to do I GUESS" directed at Eddie

oooooooo. steve is impulsive, both in how he hurts people (nancy, jonathan) and how he attempts to reconcile (showing up at jonathan's at night?? to say sorry).

Steve would be totally the type to hurt him by accident because of his rich boy inability to put himself in other people's shoes

this is a good point. i think stranger things started to acknowledge that with jonathan and nancy, but the class difference is real and it's kinda easy to tiptoe around in the fandom too (i'm guilty of it). and like you mention, steve works at scoops ahoy - pretty much the only place he could meet someone like robin, who is poor - and even then, him taking an ordinary, low-paying job isn't really at odds of his upbringing, but a facet of it: he specifically says that it's a punishment. instead of just, a job. his father (and him) sees working at an ice cream store as a *bad thing*. with the moral judgement attached.

this is such an intriguing concept and i will absolutely try, i think i hinted elements of class separation in ink you up (and maybe again in pt 3) but i haven't gone any further with it yet. and i'm a little worried about handling it well, either there or in another story.

(rambling ahead) i also have major class resentment and i find steve to be such an unsympathetic character in that specific regard. like... if i write about that dynamic of their relationship, i'm not sure how to reconcile that within a piece of work. ¡personal share! there is one person i dated who came from generational wealth, and it was such a huge divide between us and is ultimately why it didn't work. ¡end personal share! i don't want to create circumstances in which steve's life is made harder (such as being disowned/kicked out) just to 'balance out' that extreme side of privilege he has. i think that's why so many of us give steve nightmares/ptsd, because trauma is a way to create more depth in steve, but also....... being poor is its own trauma! not to mention eddie saw multiple people die in a very gruesome way

another possible route would be to have steve mess up and hurt eddie re: class, and then have to go through the internal work of unlearning & apologizing, but like. how do i write that!! i have 0 experience with that perspective, could i make it believable? is that possible?? can wealthy people like steve actually understand the perspective of someone in poverty? AM I OVERCOMPLICATING THIS? (i might be, i'm sorry, this was just very thought provoking!).

you have given me much to think about. i'm curious to hear more of your thoughts on this!! so sorry for taking a tiny snippet of what you said and blowing it up into all ^ that. 💜💜

Name ten favourite characters from ten different things (books, tv, film, etc.) 

Then tag ten people

Tagged (ages ago, whoops!) by @castiel-saved-me-from-myself 

(I’m sorry, I got distracted!)

1.Supernatural. Castiel.

Obviously. I may be out of the fandom now, but I’ve never loved a character as much as Cas, and probably never will.

2. Good Omens. Aziraphale.

Thought I’d put both my darling angels at the top :) I suspect that without Zira there to pave the way Castiel may not even have existed, so I love him double - for himself and for Cas as well :p 

While really quite different when it comes to their personalities (just think how Zira would SHUDDER at Cas’ trenchcoat), they share a lot of character traits and tropes (mini-series!Zira anyway, maybe less so in the book, or less obviously anyway), so, no surprise that I should adore them both. I’ve also said before, and I stand by it, that Aziraphale is sort of a combination of my favourite aspects of both Cas and Dean in one, with Cas’ struggle with Heaven/god and trying to be a good angel and finding he loves humanity/earth more, plus Dean’s whole ‘performing Dean’ thing and repression of queer feelings he is scared to admit to (out loud) because he believes they are somehow ‘wrong.’ 

...just to give a little insight into my feelings about these two that was neither needed nor asked for...

4. Hellblazer. NBC Constantine. Legends of Tomorrow. John Constantine. 

Aaaand the other guy I love twice because Cas, and indeed spn in general, kinda owe their existence to him. Though in turn his fabulous live action portrayal by Matt Ryan probably owes its existence to spn and Castiel’s popularity. So... there’s a weird ouroboros situation happening with my favs here that makes my head spin whenever I think about it, but I love it - stories within stories built on stories feeding off stories, which connects to wider themes of story and storytelling being vital and intrinsic to life and stuff.

Anyway, despite his wardrobe, Johnny is NOTHING LIKE CAS. He is, in fact, a lot like Dean. But I like him more. Maybe because he’s British :p He has the whole ‘repressing his feelings’ things, a bit like Zira, but it’s not because he thinks they are wrong, it’s more of a coping mechanism to deal with the constant tragedy/trauma his life/lifestyle/fate causes him to suffer. But whatever the reason, I like my characters facing that struggle :) (actually the British element is probably way more significant to my enjoyment of him than I’ve been fully aware of... that’s probably why I loved Zira so fast as well... obviously they are both a completely different class of British, literally, but the fact they ARE British is INTRINSIC to both their characters, and I guess a little, vaguely patriotic part of me is excited by that... :p)

4. Gotham. Edward Nygma.

Since I’ve started giving explanations - I love Eddie because he’s also got the whole ‘emotionally repressed’ / out of touch with (his) emotions thing going on (as seen in Zira and Cas), but with the addition of various geeky / ‘tech guy’ character traits that I also love.

5. Doctor Who (Classic). Vislor Turlough.

I waxed poetic once about how I liked Gotham’s Edward Nygma because he reminded me a bit of Turlough. That was early on in my Gotham days though and given how Eddie developed I don’t see as many similarities now. Turlough shares some of Eddie’s ‘dark’ traits however - self-centered, often lacking in empathy for others and nonplussed (sometimes even happy) to see them get into trouble or hurt. But ultimately his attempts to be self-serving and cowardly end up thwarted by him developing feelings for specific individuals despite his best efforts, which is what I enjoy about him (and actually that’s a lot like Eddie still, huh... their endgame’s are opposing though ofc - while Eddie goes on to embrace being a villain, Turlough gives up on villainy and even becomes a bit of a hero, now and then). Plus, Turlough is the ONLY Companion (IIRC?) to have joined the Doctor specifically in order to MURDER him and... idk, I just think that’s cool :P

6. Doctor Who (New). Donna Noble.

(I’m trying not to double up on fandoms/shows so I can cover more, but New and Classic Who count as different things, kinda, right...?)

Donna doesn’t really fit any of the character traits I’ve talked about above, though I guess her low self-esteem is something that all my other favs share in various ways (though it’s not such an EXPLICIT aspect of their characters and story arcs as it was for Donna I’d say). What I first loved about her was that after YEARS of New companions (and other randoms) being literally in love with the Doctor, she had a strictly platonic relationship with him. Yeah, I think maybe the show was a bit heavy-handed about it, but even so it came as a huge breath of fresh air and frankly a RELIEF to me. Not that I’m opposed to the Doctor having romantic/sexual  relationships, it was just that... coming from a childhood love of the Classic series where that just... didn’t happen (save a fleeting kiss in the TV Movie - which I actually enjoyed fyi!), it just... idk, was starting to stretch my credulity that EVERYONE seemed to be falling for him maybe? Or at least for me it was growing tiresome. So the fact she didn’t have that element to her character/story was a plus. Then I just adore how loud and brash she is when calling anyone, including the Doctor, out on their shit (I envy her that maybe). Plus I like the way she isn’t... traditional TV pretty, you know? (ie. young and slim, like a lot of other companions).

...or maybe I just like redheads *shrug emoji* 

7. Spartacus. Naevia.

(she has two actresses okay? and they both deserve kudos!)

Truth is I love FUCKING EVERYTHING AND EVERYONE IN THIS SHOW. Spartacus is like... my PERFECT SHOW. There isn’t a single moment, a single plotline, a single character that I don’t enjoy. I have never even CONSIDERED looking up or writing fic because the finished product is completely satisfying exactly as it is. God. But I wanted it represented in this list so I had to pick someone!

Considering the time period there couldn’t really BE a ‘geeky, emotionally repressed with low self-esteem’ character :p BUT nearly ALL of the characters have the whole ‘struggle to understand/discover who they are’ thing and the ‘who I am and want to be is counter to who I’ve been told I am / should be’ arc, on account of the main cast being rebelling slaves (though the other characters are equally complex and compelling and I love them too - Lucy Lawless in particular is incredible!). Anyone who’s seen me blog about the show before might have thought I’d pick either Agron or Nasir as my favs, since I do like to squee over their romance. But whenever I think about the show it’s usually Naevia who I remember first, because her character arc/development just BLEW ME AWAY. She went from someone I’d kinda dismissed at first as a typical het love interest to a WARRIOR GODDESS and you SEE all the key moments of that growth, you FEEL it, it makes ALL THE SENSE. And her romance with Crixus, which again I was initially a bit dismissive of as a typical, sudden, weak het romance, grows into, imo, one of the deepest, most developed, most believable love stories in the show. So yeah. Naevia. Amazing.

8. Due South. Ray Vecchio. 

(he’s the guy not the dog - gifs were limited! ...also the dog is actually a wolf, it’s a whole thing... that doesn’t need exploring at this juncture)

Ray was my first TV crush :P He had a bit of a sidekick vibe to him I guess, which I like (lead characters tend not to interest me as much). He wasn’t ‘geeky’ exactly, but he def had the ‘trying to look/act cooler than I am’ thing going on... also an obsessive attachment to his vintage car... meanwhile his partner Benny was the stoic, ‘British, stiff upper lip, keep emotions in check’ one who was always trying to live up to the ideal persona dictated by his people/employers, in this case the Royal Canadian Mounted Police... HUH, so... it’s actually SUPER WEIRD that I ended up loving Cas and Zira over Dean and Crowley when it seems pretty clear suddenly that my first big fictional fav was CLEARLY the Dean-Crowley to Benny’s Cas-Zira......?? Ray was FUNNY in a way Dean and Crowley aren’t though, I think? He def filled a ‘comic relief’ slot on the regular and I liked that a lot (it also made his serious, angsty moments EXTRA serious and angsty, and extra angst is something I always love!)

9. The Librarians. Eve Baird.

Remember this little show? It was... is... sorta ridiculous. Not amazing. Based on some... very cheap, very OBVIOUS Indiana Jones rip-off films, that were also ridiculous and... not... great (the third one is the best, with an awesome performance by Stana Katic aka Kate Beckett as a vampire, but I digress). But... idek, I am EXTREMELY FOND of the series for some reason :p

There are a WHOLE BUNCH of characters that fit my ‘type’ more than Eve tbh... in fact... probably every.single.other.main.cast.member (save perhaps Jenkins?) shares the traits above that typically make a character my fav. But... EVE! I just... think she’s neat! ...maybe it’s BECAUSE all the others are main/lead characters that makes me gravitate towards her? In a cast where ‘geeky, socially awkward, struggles with emotions’ is the norm, Eve being the no-nonsense, socially competent, badass soldier type therefore becomes different and thus more interesting to me? Also, much like with Donna, I appreciate that she’s an older woman who gets to have a full character and plot of her own. There’s also something about her romance with Flynn that... makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

10. Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Jonathan Levinson.

(tumblr gif search failed me so I had to grab from elsewhere...)

Listen. Look. Okay. Buffy is pretty old school these days so, for anyone not in the know, as a character, originally, Jonathan... he wasn’t even a side character, he wasn’t even REOCCURRING, he was barely a background character. For several episodes he didn’t have a name and it wasn’t until several seasons after he became ‘Jonathan’ that he actually got a surname. Danny Strong was just an actor who happened to be occasionally on-hand when the script called for a random to have a line, until eventually that happened often enough for Joss to think ‘hey, you know what, let’s make this guy an actual part of the show...’ 

He got a couple of episodes focused on him in S03 and S04 respectively, but didn’t become a regular until S06 (and wasn’t in S05 AT ALL). Other than that he had a HANDFUL of ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ moments here and there, not even full scenes for the most part, usually lasting no longer than the above gif.

I tell you all this so that when I say childhood me (well... somewhere between 12 and 14 years anyway) was OBSESSED with this character in the show, and I mean O B S E S S E D (to the point of spending hours painstakingly making VHS recordings purely of the episodes he was in), you understand how UTTERLY BIZARRE that was. Because this obsession pre-dated S06. Was, in fact, in full swing during the airing of his S04 episode - which was, like, a fucking DREAM COME TRUE for freakily obsessed me fyi, because the whole episode was constructed with him as the LEAD CHARACTER, because he’d performed a spell to make him super awesome. They even changed the title sequence to read ‘Jonathan’ instead of Buffy! And while other fans were no doubt just lol-ing at the random I was bouncing about on my sofa all ‘MY TIME HAS COME!’ and fucking SWOONING over seeing MY CHARACTER suddenly in the spotlight and getting to do crazy fun OOC shit like this -

Then when S06 rolled around and HE WAS A LEGIT REGULAR, omg, I was in HEAVEN! First TV boxset I ever bought that - Buffy S06 :P

So... yeah. A bit of a fav. Geeky. Outcast. Slowly grows more morally grey, what with that spell I mentioned and also the fact he was teamed with the ANTAGONISTS in S06. I guess you could say he was the beginning of a lot of my fav fictional character traits/tropes (though looking back - I think his ‘villainous’ teammates in S06, Andrew and Warren, are more my ‘type’ these days, and I did end up loving Andrew especially a whole damn lot, but at the time I’d been a Jonathan fangirl for so.fucking.long. there was just no chance anyone else in the show was ever gonna come close to my heart!)

THE END.

Sorry not sorry for the tmi. I got a bit too into this one.

Actually sorry I have so few women on the list :( Internalised misogyny/sexism is a real thing and I spent a lot of my life being... somewhat unfairly dismissive of female characters or at least prioritising male ones over them. I’m working on it.

Ten people is SO.MANY. to tag. But I might as well do this right this time, since I’ve come so far. But if you’d rather not play, no worries! <3

@enchantersnight @momecat @bold-sartorial-statement @vampirebillionaire @edwardnashtons @miss-olivia-cellophane @knightinpinkunderwear @supes9 @leaper182 @hamburgergod

Honourable mentions (because I CAN):

Gotham. Lucius Fox.

Gotham. Fish Mooney.

Gotham. Tabitha Galavan.

Doctor Who. The Doctor.

Doctor Who. The Master/Missy.

Supernatural. Hannah.

Supernatural. Naomi.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Andrew Wells.

Hey could I get a match up for it and stranger things? I'm like 5'3" and bi. I've boy short, bright blue, and and deep brown eyes with big glasses. I've asthma so I don't really play sports but I'd love to. I love drawing and making things and reading. Holy shit I'm a fucking nerd. I'm usually labeled the mom friend and care alot about those I'm around. I'm very protective but also terrible with feelings lol I've been told I'm a flirt but also and angry chihuahua who can stop cursing lolol

First of all you’re like the Reddie love child we’ve all been looking for and I love it.

IT:

I ship you with Mike!

God we would love his smol fiery mouthed chihuahua. You and Mike met when you were riding home one day. You say Mike getting beat up by Bowers. It was just him but by how bad Mike looked you guessed that the others were there earlier and Henry just stuck around to kick Mike while he’s down. Of course — being the decent person you are — you couldn’t stand for it. “Hey, Bowers! Cut it the fuck out you freak!” Bowers turned around and sneered at you, “Why aren’t you a pretty thing. Maybe I can have some fun with you instead of the low life.” “Do not fUCKING TOUCH ME!” Right after you screamed Bowers fell face first onto the ground, behind him a bruised and bloodied Mike stood over him holding a large stick. “Thank you...” “You too...” Needless to say the two of you felt a strong connection after that. You’re actually the reason he got so into books. The two of you would read the same book then have in depth conversations about it once you finish. You’d always ride your bike to his house after school and draw while he finishes his chores. Your excuse was that you like the landscape but really you’d take any excuse to be around him constantly. Your sketchbooks are filled with cute drawings of him and his animals. Mike always knew he cared about you he just wasn’t sure how much he really did — since you guys met and started hanging out before the IT summer. When you all were in the sewers at IT’s lair he noticed how protective he was, how close he was, how his heart started pounding whenever you shifted your stand slightly away from him out of fear of you wandering, how when Bowers attacked him you were the thought in the back of his mind that made his will to live even stronger. He didn’t feel that with any of the other Losers. A few weeks after everything was over he told the other boys about it during a sleepover at Bill’s house. Richie laughed in his face, “You like her, man!” “No… no she’s my friend. You’re all my friends.” Richie scoffs, “Who’s the first person that comes to your mind when you wake up in the morning?” “Y/n…” Stan injects, “What about when you go to sleep?” “Y/n…” Ben smiles, “Do you want to sing but throw up all at once?” Bill adds, “D-d-does your stomach tie into knots when she l-laughs.” Eddie gives him a knowing glance, “Does your heart to backflips and breath catch in your throat when she smiles?” Richie smirks, “Does your groin start to tingle when she stands close to you?” “Richie!” He laughs, “Do you do any of that stuff when it comes to any of us? Or even Bev?” Mike blinks and shakes his head. Richie grins, “Well there’s your answer!” Mike stands up slowly, “I, uh… I have some place to be.” Stan winks at him knowingly, “We know.” With that Mike smiled at them and ran out the door. MEANWHILE: Bev had just convinced you to let her look through your sketchbooks and she can’t stop smiling, “These are fantastic!” You smile shyly, “Thanks.” “But like all of them are of Mike…” You guys widen a bit and heart lurches. She smirks, “Do you like him?” “Fuck off! Of course I don’t! We’re just friends.” Bev gives you a look, “Just friends don’t draw just friend in flowery heart crowns sitting on your porch.” Oh shit. She’s got you there. “If you like him why don’t you just tell him?” Bev continues. “Easy for you to say,” You scoff, “Every boy in town has liked you at some point. You’re pretty and smart and—” “Stop. I’ve seen the way he looks at you.” You bite your lip, “Really?” Bev smiles, “Go get him.” So you run to his farm. By the time Mike got home you were asleep in a pile of hay in the barn with two sketchbooks on your lap and a origami heart in your open hand. Mike smiled softly and picked the sketchbooks up from your lap carefully sitting beside you. You never let him look through your sketchbooks for now painfully obvious reasons. He couldn’t help grinning as he flipped through the pages. The pictures gave him confidence — some proof that you like him too. He was halfway through the second sketchbook when you opened your eyes. Horrified and embarrassed that he was looking through the last thing you’d want him to see right now. “Oh God…” You gasped sitting up, “I can explain those. You see— I— I just—” You sigh in embarrassment and frustration. Mike open his mouth to speak but you cut him off. “I like you a lot okay?!” You blurt out, “And I made this for you,” You hold out the origami heart, “I’m terrible with this stuff I’m sorry. I know you probably don’t feel the same way I just love you a—” Mike cut you off with a kiss. Your eyes widened but them you melted, leaning into it. “I love you too,” Mike whispers, pulling away.

ST:

I ship you with Jonathan!

The two of you are hella compatible. You have similar interests but your personalities are just different enough for the two of you to benefit from the relationship. The two of you met in woodshop. He was having trouble so you helped him and made sure he didn’t fail the course. Neither of you had too many friends so you kinda stuck by each other. You were at his house a lot and his family loved you. He introduced you to different music and you introduced him to good literature. You and Will bonded over art and would draw and listen to music all the time. Joyce just loved that her oldest hs somebody. You were sweet and protective — you remind Joyce a lot of herself when she was younger. When Will disappeared you were there. You knew that Joyce and Jonathan would be destroyed so you needed to be strong. You let Jonathan talk and cry — even if you weren’t sure how to comfort him it was comforting for Jonathan just knowing you were there. You lost your shit when Steve started harassing him in the school parking lot. Screaming profanities he didn’t know existed. When Will came back you gave Jonathan space and time — something Nancy couldn’t — you knew he needed time to settle back into things about you knew it was comforting for him knowing you’d be there. And you were. Jonathan and you were back to normal in no time with the exception of Nancy. He started to see you in a new light during this time. You were strong, smart, caring, protective, creative, beautiful, funny, and the only person outside his family willing to wait for him. You waited. And got along with his family like they were your own. You noticed him acting slightly different around you but didn’t let it bother you. You were spending a lot more time at the Byers’ house when Will started getting worse. You wanted to help him. You knew Joyce and Jonathan mean well but you also know how suffocating they can be. Helping Will escape is one of your many hobbies. You and Will were sitting on his bed drawing when Will suddenly spoke up, “Do you like my brother?” You froze for a second before responding without looking up, “Why do you think that?” “It’s just… the two of you are always around each other. He cares about you a lot. He’s always talking about you,” Will glances up at you, “And I’ve seen the way you look at him.” “You’re a very observant kid,” You comment in a slightly annoyed tone. Will chuckles, “Thank you.” Will really made you think. You and Jonathan have been there for each other for a while. And you knew you both cared about each other… but you guess there’s something else there if a part of you melts whenever his soft brown eyes been yours. When everything went to shit — Will’s a spy, a creature’s after Hawkins again, everything is more dangerous than ever before, and now Jonathan has to leave you to go burn out Will while you stay with Steve — Jonathan couldn’t let anything else happen without letting you know. Before he got into the car he ran back and kissed you. It was explosive, powerful, electric, soft… it was everything. “He pulled away breathless and rested his forehead on yours, “I love you…” Joyce honked the horn of the car to tell him to hurry up, “I have to go. Don’t die.”