#bc the cut is in the worse spot that its difficult to use a regular bandage and liquid should solve that issue

[hairringtonsteve]

three little words.

(steve harrington x reader)

request: Steve Harrington x Reader where the last time you talked to Steve and Johnathan (you three + Nancy were really close but you still hang out with Nancy) was defeating the demogorgon for the first time, but you drifted apart bc you started dating Billy and it’s like lowkey a pretty toxic and controlling relationship but Y/N is blind to it and eventually Steve, through Nancy, reveals to you that Billy’s cheating on you and he’s in love with you

summary: billy hargrove is a cheating asshole. steve harrington is not. in fact, steve harrington is pretty great.

word count: 2,769

warnings: billy’s controlling and manipulative, so there’s definitely a toxic relationship going on. teenage drinking, but idk if that’d be a warning??

a/n: so like, i tweaked it a tiny bit, just with why the reader drifted apart. otherwise, everything is in there. i started this prompt like a week ago and finished it today. i didn’t think we’d end up here. i’m kinda digging it, though.

Billy Hargrove wasn’t that bad.

You would be the first to admit that he had some anger issues, but there was more to him. You knew that there was. Billy had been the one to notice you when he and his little step-sister had moved to Hawkins. Billy had been the one to befriend you and make a move on you. Billy had never once laid a hand to you, and sure, you’d heard the stories about him, but you’d never seen him lose it with your own eyes.

“You’re going to Tina’s Halloween party tonight, right?” Nancy was leaning against the locker next to yours, giving you a pointed look as you put some of your books on the shelf, replacing them with your biology textbook and notes.

“Yeah. Billy really wants to go, so…”

Parties weren’t really your thing. You much preferred to just go to a diner with some friends late at night, sitting around the table eating and laughing and telling stories of all the stupid things you’d done together. But that hadn’t happened in ages, for a lot of reasons. Your chest gave a little ache at the thought, but you pushed it away. The party wouldn’t be so bad.

“Do you want to go?” Nancy was giving you a pointed look. “I know you’re not that into parties. I’m sure that you don’t actually have to go if you don’t want to,” she said, fixing you with that look that she’d been giving you more and more.

She’d tried talking to you exactly once about your relationship with Billy, and it hadn’t gone over so well. Sure, Billy was pushing you out of your comfort zone a little with some things - like going to parties, or staying over at your house despite the fact that you told him you didn’t want him to and it made your heart beat fast (and not in a good way). But he was helping you grow as a person. These were all regular teenager things.

And regular teenager things were exactly what you were craving after everything had gone down last year.

You weren’t sure how everyone was coping after last year. It was as though everyone had moved on just fine, and you were the one that was still stuck in Joyce Byer’s house, watching that thing emerge from the wall as the Christmas lights flickered violently in the dark. It was kind of impressive, really. Jonathan and Steve had moved on without another word about it - and without another word to you, really.

It had started off slow in the beginning. Jonathan was hanging out with Will more, which made total sense, and you hadn’t wanted to intrude. Steve was dating Nancy and was focused on being with her. You hadn’t wanted to be a third wheel, so you’d held back, figuring that Steve and Jonathan would eventually make their way back to including you once more.

But they didn’t.

Instead, they were off doing their own thing while you slowly closed in on yourself. Barb was dead. An entire other dimension apparently existed, and yet not one of them discussed it. You were positive that you were the only one that wasn’t sleeping at night, that you were the single person out of the entire group that woke up screaming because the demogorgon was chasing after you or Nancy or Steve or Jonathan or one of the kids, and eventually, it got its prey.

You blinked your thoughts away, focusing in on her statement.

“Nance, I want to go. It’ll be fun,” you told her, giving her a small smile. You glance behind her and see Steve making his way towards the two of you. “I’ve got to run, though, okay? I’ve got to -” Your words cut off when you felt a pair of hands wrap around your waist, pulling you into someone’s chest.

“Where are you running off to, babe?” You tilted your head up to greet Billy’s smirk with a small smile of your own. You went to respond when Steve approached, stopping just beside Nancy. His eyes moved between you and Billy, a frown settling on his features. Billy’s fingers tightened their grip on you, digging in almost painfully.

“Hargove. Y/N.” Steve’s gaze settled on you, his frown deepening.

“Hey, Steve,” you said, your voice quiet. Billy’s fingers dug in harder. “I, uh, I’ve got to go. To class. Before I’m late.” You spoke in halted sentences, your panic growing the longer Steve stared at you. Didn’t he get that Billy was right there and wouldn’t be thrilled to have him looking at you like that? You slipped out from Billy’s grip, offering him a weak smile. You gave the same one to Nancy, not even bothering to look at Steve before darting off down the hall, your panic still making your chest twist up.

“Drink up, babe.”

You scrunched up your nose at the cup that Billy was holding out to you as you shook your head.

“No, I’m good. Shouldn’t one of us stay sober?” Billy rolled his eyes and sighed, a small frown settling onto his lips.

“You’re more fun when you drink, though,” he whined. “We’ll be fine if we both drink. I can handle the both us, cut you off when you’ve had enough.” Your stomach fell. Billy always had a hard time telling whenever you hit your limit, often encouraging you to drink more.

He always apologized after, though, which was nice of him.

“I - uh - okay,” you eventually said, heart lifting just as his face did the same. He always looked his best when he was like that, happy and light whenever you agreed with him. It was easier too, to just go along with whatever his plan was than to try and argue with him. He handed you the plastic cup, grabbing one of his own as he motioned for you to drink. It burned as it went down your throat. It must’ve been a strong drink, for the warmth that flooded your cheeks came faster than it usually did. Billy took your cup and refilled it, nodding for you to drink again.

After that, things settled into a nice haze. The two of you danced for awhile, his hands on your hips as he pulled you into him. You only took breaks when he deemed it time to drink again. After awhile, you stopped really noticing anything except the feeling of him holding you.

You definitely didn’t notice the way he perked up when a certain blonde walked through the door.

“I’ll be back in a bit, alright, Y/N? I’ve gotta take care of something,” Billy murmured. You just gave a hum of consent, blinking up at him bleary eyed.

As Billy made his way towards the yard or upstairs or wherever he was going - your brain was too foggy to really pick up on any of that - you headed towards the wall. You leaned against it, watching as the room practically vibrated with the mass of teens.

But then there was a shout, and all fell silent. You turned your head to the sound, furrowing your brow as Steve and Nancy shared some words before she stormed off, Steve following after her.

Sometime later, Steve shoved his way through the crowd, elbowing past you and hitting your shoulder hard.

“Dick!” You yelled, the word coming out slurred and louder than you’d meant to. The annoyance was gone as quick as it had come, and you instead focused your attention on Jonathan, who was slowly moving Nancy through the crowd.

Nancy motioned her hands at Jonathan, who looked confused until his gaze settled on you. The two of them walked towards you, Nancy swaying on her feet as she came to a stop.

“Y/N, I gotta… Steve saw,” she slurred, her words coming out even worse than your’s had.

“Saw what?”

“Billy. Steve said he saw Billy, saw Billy sleeping with you! But it wasn’t you! Steve said he ‘as, he was cheating.”

The words were ice down your spine, sobering you up faster than you’d ever experienced it before.

“What?”

“He kept - he kept saying that he saw Billy cheating on you. Wouldn’t stop talkin’ about it. Prob’ly because he’s in love with you.”

The information was too much at one time. So you did what you do best - ran away. You shook your head and darted from your spot, ignoring Jonathan’s calls as you wove your way through the crowd. You made your way up the stairs, having to grab the railing twice since the room decided that it would just start spinning.

After some time, you made it to the only closed door on the second floor. You went to open it when someone else beat you to it. A tall, blonde girl shot you a grin as she left the bedroom, adjusting her shirt on the way out. Behind her was Billy, who still lounging shirtless on the bed, jeans undone.

“Billy?” Your voice broke. He sat up in a flash, staring at you like you were the last person he’d been expecting.

“Babe…” He trailed off, holding his hands out in a helpless motion. “It didn’t mean anything.” The words fell flat. They almost hurt more than an actual explanation. But then the kicker came:

“It’s just… You don’t put out, babe.”

You just stared at him. It was difficult to say as to whether it was your drunkenness that was making it hard to comprehend, or the fact that he’d just said that to you. The tears stung at your eyes. You raised your hand to cheek, only to realize that it was wet as well. At some point, you must’ve started crying.

You couldn’t take it anymore. You looked at Billy for a moment longer before heading out the door, ignoring his shouts. You made it down the stairs in record time, shoving through the people as you looked for Jonathan. You lived a couple of miles away, it was cold out, and Billy had driven you there. But the longer you took to look for him, the louder Billy’s shouts got.

“Move outta the fuckin’ way,” you heard him mutter somewhere behind you. You made it out the front door, the frigid air making you tense despite the jacket that you had on. “Y/N! Just listen to me,” he shouted, just as you closed the door. You headed down the steps, using your sleeve to wipe the tears away from your eyes.

“Y/N?”

That familiar voice shook you to your core as Nancy’s other words came barreling back to you - he’s in love with you. You glanced to your left, noting that Steve’s eyes looked like your most likely did - bloodshot and glassy. There were even a couple of wet tracks down his cheeks.

“You okay?” You couldn’t get any words out, instead opting to shake your head. “You need a ride home?” At that, you nodded. “Let’s get you home, kid.” The old nickname made your heart ache more than it had in a long time. You started to follow him towards the street when a large hand gripped your forearm.

“We need to talk, Y/N.” Billy’s voice was desperate. As you turned to look up at him, you could smell that stale stench of alcohol and cigarettes lingering on his breath. His words were slurring a little, but it was that intense look in his eyes that told you just how drunk he was. When he got really drunk, he was nothing but intensity and desperation, and some lingering sadness that you’d never been able to put your finger on.

“No, we don’t. I just wanna leave, Billy.”

“Then let me take you home. I just need to explain myself.”

“I think she said to leave her alone, asswipe.” Steve’s voice sounded closer than you’d realized. You glanced behind you, watching as he glared at Billy with all he had in him. “Let her go, man. You’re going to give her a fucking bruise.”

Billy’s jaw clenched but he did what Steve said, letting you go with a yank of his arm.

“Maybe you should mind your business, amigo. My girl needs a ride home.”

“Yeah, well, my friend needs a ride from someone that’s not going to hurt her.” A look passed across Billy’s face at Steve’s words, causing him to pause.

“I’ve never laid a hand on her, Hargrove,” he growled out.

“You don’t need to do it physically for it to be abuse, dumbass.” Billy stepped around you, getting right into Steve’s face at those words. “You want to punch me? Do it. I dare you. You punch me and I guarantee that I will make your life a living hell for every day from here on it. Don’t try me, Hargrove.” There was something in Steve’s voice that made him pause. Something that was reminiscent of what had happened at the Byers’ house, something that made you think of Steve wielding that nail-bat and throwing himself in front of you so the thing couldn’t get you. He looked to you, his gaze softening in an instant. “Do you want to come with me, Y/N?”

It was kind of sad that him just asking you a question instead of telling you to go with him made you want to cry with relief. You gave a short nod of your head as Billy looked over to you, his eyes softening.

“Don’t, Billy.” The words were soft and watery, but they were something. You stepped back, out of his reach, and started towards the road. You could hear the soft pat pat pat of someone jogging to catch up with you, and only relaxed when it was Steve who slowed down at your side.

“I’m just parked down here.” You let out a soft mhmm as you walked towards the car. “Did, uh, did you see Nancy?” There was something in his voice that made you realize that his feelings might have been similar to yours.

“Yeah. She and Jonathan were headed out.” You waited until Steve climbed in and unlocked your side of the car before sliding into the seat. It felt good to be back in that car, like you were returning home after having been gone for so long.

It was quiet as Steve pulled away from the curb and onto the road. There were a couple of houses still lit up, their owners having forgotten to switch the lights off before heading to bed. It was kind of nice, in a way. A precursor for when the lights would switch from orange to red and green, and Santa’s face would be plastered everywhere.

“You alright?”

No.

“Uh, yeah. I am.” You waited for a second. “Are you?”

“I mean, I’m not, but… Is what it is.” Steve shrugged his shoulders, heaving out a sigh. “I think we broke up, me and Nance.” You glanced over to him. The street lights illuminated a tear that was running down his cheek. “I should’ve known, you know? That she… That we… I should’a see it coming.”

“You and me both, man.” Steve jerked his head towards you for a moment, eyes wide. “Where did your sunglasses go?”

“Uh, in my pocket? How much did you drink tonight?”

“I dunno. Billy gave me a lot.” You might’ve still been feeling the effects of the alcohol, but this time, you didn’t miss the way his fingers clenched around the steering wheel. “I’m afraid to break up with him.” Your tongue felt loose for the first time in ages. You’d forgotten what it was like to be around someone that you didn’t have to watch what you said.

“Y/N, I swear to God that I won’t let him do anything to you, okay? If I can keep you alive from a demogorgon, pretty sure I can handle Billy Hargrove.” His words brought a sharp laugh from you, but you didn’t say anything else. It fell silent for a few beats, the two of you lost in your own thoughts. The next words he said, though, came out soft, almost hesitant. “I missed you.”

Those three little words sounded a whole lot close to three other words, but maybe that was just your drunken self assuming that. Maybe Nancy had just been trashed when she’d come to that conclusion, of him loving her, and was wrong. Or maybe she was right. Either way, you knew that you wouldn’t bring that up any time soon. Because, for the first time in a year, it felt like things were starting to look up - if only a little.

“I missed you too, Steve.”

#steve harrington x reader #steve harrington imagine #steve harrington #stranger things x reader #stranger things imagine #stranger things #stranger things 2 #reader insert #reader fic #stranger things fanfic #stranger things fic #billy hargrove #nancy wheeler #jonathan byers