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#max adores Nancy
strangerwheelerthings · 11 months
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Do you ever think about the fact that Max and Nancy are the only two for whom the Upside Down deaths have been personal? For Nancy, it's more than once, really. Like, ST has been absolutely traumatizing for everyone, but they are the only two to have lost. (Before the end of S4)
The way they dealt with that trauma is both so similar and completely different. Max shut down and completely pulled away from everyone. Nancy actually semi-reached out to both Jonathan and Steve, but THEY shut her down that first year. Otherwise, Nancy has repressed and hidden from it every year since. They are both so unimaginably angry, but despite outside perceptions, much of that anger is directed inwards. They never took that trauma and frustration out on others, not really, in an incredible show of goodness.
Anyway, I could go on and on, but my point is really... I wish they had real scenes together. They should be allowed to sit down together and talk and cry.
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kennahjune · 1 month
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Teen Dad AU
Part 6!!!
@cam-cat-writer @jackiemonroe5512 @finntheehumaneater @irregular-child @grimmfitzz @fantrash @bookworm0690 @fiddledeedee85 @hunterbow04 @strangeforest @just-a-tiny-void @jaimeweasley13 @thelittleclare @rebellatio-03 @sirsnacksalot @geekyfifi @sapphireoceansoc @salty-h0e @dragonmama76 @mentallyundone-blog @lingeringmirth @moomkin77 @netflixisacopingstrategymom @jaytriesstuff @goodolefashionedloverboi @hellfirebaby-86 @blu3stars @blackpanzy @strawberryyyenthusiast @lololol-1234 @thestarslittleking @silenzioperso @forest-fogg @bebopbabyy @lawrencebshaggoth @stevesbipanic @dauntlessdiva @live0rdive @y4r3luv @jonesn4coffee @sofadofax @sensationalsunburst @scarlet-malfoy @l393ndjean @asspirin-s @fandomz-brainrot @mugloversonly @virginlemontea @littlebluejane @paintsplatteredandimperfect @astrid-nomically-steddie @maferisa-7 @phantomrose17 @thoughtfulbreadpolice @fandomnerd103 @atemisiscursed @croatoan-like-its-hot @myownworstenemyyy
(Sorry to anyone who’s tags are messing up, I’ll try tagging you in the replies when posted)
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The Universe had a strange way of making Steve Harrington hate Life.
Like waking up in a hospital after simply trying to pick up Louie.
Ugh.
Because it was never “simply” anything anymore, right? Now it was monsters and other dimensions and asshole blonds with pretty eyes who liked to beat him half to death.
Oh. And a bunch of mouthy middle schoolers.
“Dude, you up yet?”
“Give him a minute, Mike! He was literally half-dead not even yesterday!”
“Well if he keeps groaning like a zombie I’m gonna assume he’s become one!”
Steve found his voice, although crackly and rough from disuse, just to say “Shut the fuck up.”
“He’s alive!” One of them shouted instead.
Steve peeled his eyes open and immediately groaned at the harsh lights. Blinking against the stark white hospital walls, he turned his head to look at the kids piled in the chairs of the room.
Max and Lucas were squished together in one chair, Mike and Will taking the second. Baby Byers must’ve already been let out. Dustin was sat cross-legged at the foot of Steve’s hospital bed, that El girl right next to him. Steve felt like he was in the middle of an interrogation with how she stared him down.
Steve sat up, ignoring every bodily protest telling him to lay the fuck back down. Dustin grinned wide at Steve, and Steve gave him a very weak smile in return.
“So are you actually alive, now? Cause you still look half-dead,” Max teased, smirking at him. Steve rolled his eyes and flipped her off, snorting when she gave it right back.
“Yay he’s alive wooo!” Mike snarked sarcastically.
Steve huffed, but Mike reminded him of Nancy which then reminded him of how he got dragged into this shit when then reminded him of—
“Fucking shit,” he swore under his breath.
“Are you ok? Do we need to called the nurse?” Will asked tentatively. All the kids suddenly looked on edge at Steve’s perceived pain.
He shook his head quickly and then immediately winced. It felt like his brain was jumping around his skull. “No, no I’m fine. Just— Wheeler where’s your sister?”
Mike stared at him funny. “Dude there is no way you’re thinking of my sister after climbing out of your deathbed.”
“What? Of fucking course I am! She was watching Louie and I never got chance to pick him up or ask her about him—“
“Whoah hey— who’s Louie?” Lucas spoke up.
“He’s—“
“Oh!” Dustin perked up. “Is he the baby my mom’s watching? Little chubby thing that looks like a cute little raisin? He’s got your hair, dude!”
Steve visibly relaxed back into his pillows. “Oh my God. Ok. Ok.” It was fine. Louie was fine. Everything was fine—
“Oh the kid Nancy’s been watching?” Mike perked up. “He’s real cute.”
“Is he your little brother?” Will asked.
Steve was steadying his breathing still, so he shook his head and smiled weakly. “No. No he’s, uh— my son.”
El tilted her head. “You are his Papa?”
Steve looked at her, really took her in; her curly hair, her worn and a little too big button up, her curious head tilt, her big eyes. He smiled at her. “Yeah, sure.”
She smiled back at him, small and shy.
“You have a kid?” Lucas asked.
“Aren’t you like— 15?” Dustin accused.
“He’s like 18.” Max corrected. “He and Billy are in the same grade.”
“17, actually.” Steve informed. “But I’ll be 18 in July.”
“Who’s the mom?” Mike asked.
“Nobody you need to know,” Steve shot back. Mike huffed.
“Why was he at Mike’s?” Will asked. The kid was quiet, much like his older brother. Baby Byers only spoke up after talking to Mike, as if needing reassurance. A massive pang of guilt ran though Steve, remembering all the shit he’d said to Jonathan last year.
Steve cleared his throat. “Nancy was watching him for me for a bit cause I had work.”
Dustin perked up, grinning mischievously. “Where do you work?”
“Yeah, no. You’re not coming by to harass me.”
“Booooo!” Max shouted.
“Party pooper!” Lucas joined, sticking his tongue out. El grinned and stuck her tongue out, too.
It was then that the nurse walked in with Hopper and Mrs. Byers.
Thank God. Because it was seriously starting to feel like an interrogation.
.
Hopper stole his car.
He stole Steve’s car and refused to let him drive it.
Steve was discharged later the same day he woke up. They gave him some medicine, some papers, and sent him on his way.
But he couldn’t leave because Hopper stole his car.
And then forced Steve to sit in the passenger seat of his stolen car.
Steve had never sat in the passenger seat of his own car.
“Stop huffing and puffing.” Hopper grumbled.
“I’m not huffing and puffing.” Steve (didn’t) huffed.
“Then quit sulking.”
“It’s my own car,I’ll sulk if I want to.”
“You get beat half to death and suddenly gain an attitude.”
Steve smirked out the window. “You and I both know I’ve always had an attitude.”
Hopper made a gruff sound that could’ve been a laugh, probably thinking of every time he’d had to break up one of Steve’s parties or drive him home cause he’d been wandering around drunk off his ass.
Steve perked up when they skipped the turn to go the trailer park.
“Uh, Hop? Where we goin?”
“Relax, brat. Your kid’s still with the Hendersons.”
Oh yeah. Maybe he was more out of it then he thought. Steve relaxed back into the seat a bit more than before.
“Still don’t see why I couldn’t just drive myself,” he muttered, just to be a shit.
Hopper groaned.
.
When Hop pulled into the Henderson’s driveway Steve wasted no time in getting out. Hopper yelled from somewhere behind him about waiting for the car to stop next time. Steve payed him no mind and ran up the porch stairs to hastily knock on the door.
Mrs. Henderson opened up soon enough, a smile on her face and a hand on her hip.
“Steve, dear, hi!”
Steve smiled shakily down at the short women, pleased to see her but desperate to see Louie.
“Hi, Mrs. H. Is Louie here?”
“Of course, sweetie! He’s with Dusty and his friends, come say hi!” She left back into the house without another word. Steve followed after with Hopper.
Just as Mrs. Henderson claimed, Little Louie was in the living room with The Party. There was a light yellow knitted blanket spread on the floor where they all sat together, except Max and Will, who sat on the couch.
Louie was sat in Mike’s lap, Lucas right in front of them letting Louie play with his fingers. Dustin sat right next to Mike, pressed into his side and cooing down at Louie with a wide grin.
The moment Louie caught sight of his dad he let go of Lucas’ fingers and reached for Steve, bringing the attention of the Brat Brigade onto him.
Steve bent to grab Louie from Mike, his focus solely on his son being back in his arms. Louie babbled happily, his chubby baby hands making grabs for Steve’s hair and tugging lightly. Steve ignored the ache in his head in favor of smiling wide at the babbling baby.
“Hi sweetie, how you doin’ baby?”
Louie’s response was a gummy smile and one of those weird baby gurgle-trills. Steve’s grin only widened.
“Yeah I bet you’re having fun with the brats, huh?”
“Hey!” Dustin scoffed on the floor, pulling Steve’s attention back to the room.
Mike and Lucas were silently pouting, seemingly at the loss of the baby. Dustin looked downright offended at being referred to as a brat. Will and Max were kind of staring at Steve, but he ignored them for the most part outside of shooting them a small smile.
“Oh I’m sorry, did I interrupt your time with Louie?” Steve teased, chuckling at Lucas’ bottom lip sticking out. Mike made more of an effort to hide his pout but wasn’t very effective.
“Yeah, jerk. We were having a conversation.” Mike snapped, though there was no real venom in his tone.
Steve snorted, letting Louie pat at his face and ignoring the sting of the bruises. “I sincerely apologize for taking back my son from you heathens.”
“We’re not heathens!” Dustin protested.
“Yeah right! You kids would be the worst bad influences on my baby boy!”
Louie added his two-cents in the response of a squeal and particularly hard hit to the face, unfortunately right on a still healing cut on Steve’s cheekbone. Steve hissed under his breath.
“Alright—“ Mike suddenly appeared in front of Steve and took Louie. “—he’s ours again.”
Steve chuckled. He melted a little inside seeing Mike hold Louie so tenderly. He was so gentle with the baby, such a stark contrast to his usually loud and brash demeanor.
Dustin and Lucas were both up immediately to get the baby’s attention. Steve smiled as much as he could with the now slightly reopened cut, finally relaxing with seeing Louie.
“So when we’re you going to tell us you were a dad?” Max spoke up from the couch.
Steve glanced at her and placed a hand on his hip. “Who’s ‘we’? I met you like two days ago.”
Max rolled her eyes and brought her feet up to sit crisscross on the couch. “Well Billy hasn’t said anything about Louie so I assume you’re on the down low about being a dad.”
Not really, Steve thought. He just hasn’t brought Louie to school with him since Hargrove started. Mason and Gran had no problems helping out so that he could continue senior year without interruption.
But Steve didn’t tell the kids that, simply nodding and smiling.
.
Mrs. Henderson was reluctant to let Steve leave.
“I mean it, Steve. You have my number, you call me if you need anything at all.” She made him swear.
Dustin was even more reluctant, going as far as to cling to Steve’s sweater.
“You have to give us your address! Come on, man! We wanna see Little Louie!”
So Steve gave in and wrote down the address to the trailer, if only to get Dustin to stop whining. Mike grumbled about how they could’ve just asked Nancy.
Again, Hopper drove. Which absolutely irritated Steve but he wasn’t about to sit and argue with the Chief of police with his baby in the back seat.
But Hopper agreed that Steve could be back to driving himself in the next couple of days— which Steve immediately protested.
How was he meant to get to and from work if he couldn’t drive?
Apparently, Hopper took it upon himself to settle that.
“What do you mean I’m not going to work?”
Hopper grumbled and wiped a hand over his face. Steve might’ve thought he looked pissed, had he not known that’s just Hop’s face.
“I mean you’re mot going to work. I already called your boss, gave them a rundown— the government one with the wild dogs— and she said it’s fine.”
Steve threw his arms out. Was it dramatic? Yes. But Steve deserved to be dramatic after the time he’s had. “I need the money! I fucking live off of those tips, Hop!”
“I know that and I already talked about that, too. You’re still getting paid, don’t worry.” Steve tried to protest again but Hopper gave him this look that made his mouth snap shut. Steve shot his gaze to the floor and crossed his arms.
.
It was a weird 3 days of no work. Steve spent it at home in the trailer with baby Louie and— occasionally— Gran and the twins.
Eventually, it was time for him to go back.
Steve knocked on the Wheeler’s front door bright and early on Saturday, surprised when Mike opened the door instead of Nancy.
“Hey, Wheeler. Where your sister?”
“In the kitchen. Is that Louie?” Mike grabbed the car seat from Steve without waiting for an answer. Steve shrugged mentally and followed Mike into the living room with the diaper bag.
Color him surprised when he sees the rest of the kids sans El crowded around Little Louie, cooing and grinning while the baby thrives in the attention.
Steve smiled.
Yeah, alright. It was admittedly a very sweet sight.
Maybe everyone knowing about Louie isn’t too bad.
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AGH I DID IT!! OMG ITS OUT
I’m so sorry this took so long LMAO
Fuck mental health, my PHYSICAL HEALTH has gone to absolute shit recently. And I’m also dividing my time between Stranger Things and ATLA atm and it’s taking 200% of my motivation lol
Next part should be longer in length and have more Steddie interactions. I’m finally making some progress 😭🙏
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dxnyarya · 2 years
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Stoncy Week 2022 Day 5 July 28th: “Do you trust me?”
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ronanceluvrr · 1 year
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Do you guys ever just wake up and remember that Dustin had a crush on Max? Like Dustin was devastated when he saw Lucas and Max holding hands. He looked so sad when Lucas asked Max to dance with him, but he got to dance with THE Nancy Wheeler and she made his night better.
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lesbianremu · 2 years
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stranger things characters as evermore songs
mike: evermore
“grey november, i’ve been down since july.”
“i replay my footsteps on each stepping stone, trying to find the one where i went wrong.”
“writing letters, addressed to the fire.”
“and i couldn’t be sure. i had a feeling so peculiar...” 
“i rewind the tape, but all it does is pause on the very moment all was lost.”
“i’m on waves, out being tossed.”
“in the cracks of light, i dreamed of you. it was real enough to get me through.”
will: tolerate it
“i sit and watch you. i notice everything you do or don’t do.”
“use my best colours for your portrait... and watch you tolerate it.”
“i know my love should be celebrated, but you tolerate it.”
“i greet you with a battle hero’s welcome.”
“i take your indiscretions all in good fun.”
“while you were out building other worlds, where was i?”
“where’s that man who’d throw blankets over my barbed wire?”
“i made you my temple, my mural, my sky. now i’m begging for footnotes in the story of your life.”
“drawing hearts in the byline. always taking up too much space or time.”
el: marjorie
“never be so kind, you forget to be clever.”
“and if i didn’t know better, i’d think you were still around.”
“what died didn’t stay dead. you’re alive, you’re alive in my head.”
“never be so polite, you forget your power.”
“you loved the amber skies so much.”
“you’d always go past where our feet could touch.”
“should’ve kept every grocery store receipt, cause every scrap of you would be taken from me.”
“watched as you signed your name maxine.”
lucas: dorothea
“do you ever stop and think about me?”
“when we were younger down in the park, making a lark of the misery.”
“you got shiny friends since you left town. a tiny screen’s the only place i see you now.”
“and if you’re ever tired of being known for who you know, you know you’ll always know me.”
“when it was calmer, skipping the prom, just to piss off your mom.”
max: happiness
“i was dancing when the music stopped.”
“and in the disbelief, i can’t face reinvention. you haven’t met the new me yet.”
“there is happiness. past the blood and bruise. past the curses and cries.” 
“beyond the terror in the nightfall, haunted by the look in my eyes that would’ve loved you for a lifetime.”
“sorry i can’t see facts, through all of my fury.”
“they’ll be happiness after me, but there was happiness because of me.”
“i can’t make it go away by making you a villain.”
jonathan: willow
“the more you say, the less i know.”
“you cut through like a knife.”
“wherever you stray, i follow.”
“i guess i should’ve known from the look on your face.”
“they count me out time and time again.”
“you know that my train can take you home, everywhere else is hollow.”
nancy: cowboy like me
“you’re a bandit like me. eyes full of stars, hustling for the good life.”
“it could be love. we could be the way forward and i know i’ll pay for it.”
“and the skeletons in both our closets plotted hard to mess this up.”
“and the old men that i’ve swindled really did believe i was the one.”
“but that was all before i locked it down.”
“forever is the sweetest con.”
“i’ve had some tricks up my sleeve. takes one to know one, you’re a cowboy like me.”
robin: ivy (lesbian anthem for my fav gal <3)
“your touch brought forth an incandescent glow. tarnished but so grand.”
“my pain fits in the palm of your freezing hand.”
“taking mine, but it’s been promised to another.”
“my house of stone, your ivy grows, and now i’m covered in you.”
“your opal eyes are all i wish to see.”
“he wants what’s only yours.”
“what would he do if he found us out?”
“crescent moon, coast is clear. spring breaks loose, but so does fear. he’s gonna burn this house to the ground.”
“i’d live and die for moments that we stole, on begged and borrowed time.”
“so tell me to run, or dare to sit and watch what will become, and drink my husband’s wine.”
“it’s a war, it’s the goddamn fight of my life and you started it.”
steve: tis the damn season
“there’s an ache in you, put there by the ache in me.”
“so we could call it even, you could call me babe for the weekend.”
“i’m staying at my parents house, and the road look taken looks real good now.”
“and it always leads to you in my hometown.”
“the school that used to be ours.”
“and wonder about the only soul who can tell which smiles i’m faking.”
“time flies, messy as the mud on your truck tires.”
“now i’m missing your smile, hear me out. we could just ride around.”
“sleep in half the day, just for old time’s sake.”
“i won’t ask you to wait, if you don’t ask me to stay.”
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wordsofthefanfic · 1 year
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Robin huffs, "Isn't that a felony?"
"We're all practically collecting felonies at this point," says Erica.
"What's a felony?" El asks, "is it like stamps?"
"No," says Max.
“Yes, absolutely," says Erica, immediately.
"Dear god," says Nancy.
— no boys allowed, pukner
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thegetdownrebooter · 1 year
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will would definitely text jonathan "ok boomer" in a response to something, but jonathan points out how nobody under 30 knows the difference betweeen gen x or boomers anyway.
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And what if I said werewolf Nancy? What then?
Art block disappeared, have werewolf Ronance and their favorite kids, Elumax of course.
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bogwitchlesbian · 1 year
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I know I love like, super heartbreaking secret family reveals (see my Lisette Adler post for Billy’s long lost cousin) but also there’s something insanely funny to me about just. Super casual family reveals.
Like Steve’s having a get together at his house with everyone and some random woman in a Metallica shirt just walks downstairs, says hi, grabs something out of the fridge and then goes back upstairs.
And everyone’s like “who the fuck is that does Steve have a girlfriend” and Steve just goes “ew fuck no that’s my sister.”
And everything just explodes and Steve is super confused as to why they’re freaking out and he just says “yeah my dad only fought for custody of me bc he wanted a son, and he’s rich as hell so he got what he wanted. She lives with our mom”
And that starts a WHOOOLE other thing bc everyone’s met Mrs Harrington at some point or another and no one ever realised she was Steve’s stepmum bc his dad makes Steve call her mom.
Steve is just so confused like “did you guys rlly think I didn’t have any family? Is that why none of you ever asked me anything about myself?”
And they all just realise that no, they haven’t ever asked Steve about his life or family.
His sister comes back downstairs bc she heard the yelling and hands Steve her phone saying that their younger siblings want to talk to him and everything explodes AGAIN bc what the fuck does she mean Steve has more siblings
It’s chaos for a WHILE after lmao
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anironnn · 2 years
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But do we all agree that the film scoring of vol2 was epic-
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bowiebond · 2 years
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Lucas is Autistic. I will not be taking criticism ❤️
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zkretchy · 2 years
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Pausing my Witcher fanart trip and crawling out of my no-content break due to //waves hands at this sized-down so i can post it on tumblr- monstrosity
Did you know that everyone is fine during Season 4 and nothing bad happens ever and everyone is great friends and having a fun time meeting up and all that :) it’s fine, i’m fine-
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stranger-places · 2 years
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Peggy doesn't have a little sibling or any reason to ever be around the middle school so she doesn't know about the kids' existence until she befriends Jonathan and Nancy and they introduce her to them, but as soon as she does she basically goes "mine" and that's that. She's claimed them. Nobody's touching the party on her watch
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catknives · 9 months
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soulmate-esque au where steve is born with a psychic power where the first time he touches someone who will be important to him, he gets flashes of future moments between the two of them.
the first time he touches nancy he sees flashes of the two of them happy together, then an argument. the flashes clearly jump ahead a few years, as if they maybe stopped talking for a while, but they still look happy in that future. he thinks that maybe they get in a big fight, but clearly they’re still in each others lives for a long, long time.
when he ruffles dustin’s hair looking for dart, he gets flashes of laughter and jokes and a long life of brotherhood. he sees secret handshakes and little plastic dice and being invited to thanksgiving.
they’re not always positive. the first time he brushes past billy in the locker room, he’s filled with flashes of anger and dread and pain, and none of what he sees makes sense in the moment.
on his first day at scoops, he shakes robin’s hands and gets his biggest vision yet. there’s so much love and happiness and joy there, including a montage in which they seem to work a frankly absurd variety of jobs. but he gets stuck on an image of himself in a tux, robin in a wedding dress, and thinks this must be my future wife.
it isn’t until much later, on a dirty bathroom floor, that he realizes he was standing behind robin in that vision of her in a wedding dress, and, oh, he’s her best man.
almost a year later, when eddie pushes him against a wall with a broken bottle to his neck, steve is almost convinced he’s passed out because of the sheer number of visions running through his head. some of the flashes are innocent happy moments—sharing a joint, laughing at a movie, making dinner—but there’s also flashes of pleasure and adoration and devotion on a level that steve’s never felt before.
he sees flashes of waking up next to eddie in bed, walking a dog around a lake hand in hand, watching eddie perform on stage, a soft kiss to a bare shoulder.
and suddenly steve yearns, thinks he’s never fully known the meaning of that word until now. he tries to play it cool, doesn’t want to freak eddie out, but he’s seen so many visions of them holding hands that his fingers itch with the need to interlace with eddie’s.
when eddie is attacked by demobats, everyone tries to get steve and dustin to leave eddie’s body behind, because clearly eddie is dead. and steve can’t explain to them why he knows that can’t be true, he just stubbornly insists and drags eddie to a hospital as he promises again and again to dustin that eddie is going to make it.
everyone but steve is shocked when the doctors find the barest hint of a pulse.
it’s touch and go at first, but they put eddie in a medically induced coma and he starts to improve. steve is there the whole time. he tells the unconscious eddie about all of the things they still have to do together, about how he knows eddie will live a long, happy life because he’s seen eddie with gray in his hair, laugh lines etched into his face, as they welcome their first grandchild to the world.
and eddie makes it, and when he was up eddie tells steve he heard everything. steve steels himself for denial or disbelief, but eddie tells him that it’s the first thing he’s heard in the past month that actually makes sense.
they share their first kiss right there in the hospital room, and even though steve has seen this moment before, it still takes his breath away.
as he grows older, steve notices more and more of the moments he’s seen in visions as they happen. he happily discovers that there’s so much the visions don’t show, and there’s still so much to see.
because yes, just like he saw all those years ago, he stands behind robin at her wedding, and it’s as moving and special as it always looked. but he also gives max away at her and lucas’s wedding, and he helps dustin propose to suzie, and he helps erica pick out her wedding dress. and, of course, robin stands behind steve at his own wedding.
steve lives a long happy life, with so many memories—seen and unseen—to look forward to.
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thelostmagicians · 11 months
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Booksmart | Steve Harrington
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Summary: Steve Harrington’s head may be full of air, but his heart is full of love. [4.4k]
Fluff, comfort, slight angst, insecure Steve
Steve Harrington isn’t a genius. He barely passed his classes in high school, couldn’t get into college, and can barely keep his minimum wage job. He’s been belittled by his parents too many times to care about their opinion and he knows compared to his friends he isn’t as clever or witty, but he’s okay with it - at least he thinks he is. It might sting when Robin and Eddie tease him for being too slow or when Dustin sighs in frustration because he can’t keep up, but the ache dissipates when they look at him in adoration. 
He blames his failing love life on his lack of intelligence. Although girls find his himbo-ness endearing, his relationships never last long.  Most of the dates he goes on end up as dirty hookups in the backseat of his car and on the off chance a girl stays longer than a month he can slowly see the irritation replace the endearment in her eyes. He was just something to do during the inbetween phase of graduation and moving out of Hawkins, a trophy to conquer - to finally have slept with the previously known King. He used to be okay with that at the beginning, he got his needs met while girls crossed him off their list, but over time he craved more. He saw how Nancy looked at Jonathan, how Joyce laughed with Hopper, and how Robin blushed around Vickie. He was desperate for that feeling of being wanted and loved. 
Even though he's surrounded by people who love and accept him as he is, he can't help but wonder if things would’ve been different if he was just a little smarter. 
_
“Robin I’m telling you she started speaking a different language halfway through dinner,” Steve grumbles as he’s shelving the horror section. 
Robin rolls her eyes at him, “Just because you don’t understand the words she’s using doesn’t mean she was speaking a different language, Steven. I don’t even think she knows anything but English. 
Steve sighs under his breath. 
He had gone on another date last night, but didn’t even make it past the appetizers before he made up an emergency and left. The night started off great, the Indiana summer evening had a cool breeze, he opened the door for her, and was rewarded with a kiss on his cheek when he presented her with  flowers. Valerie had been nice, beautiful, and smart - maybe a little too smart for Steve. Don’t get him wrong, Steve loves strong, smart, and capable women. He loved hearing Valerie speak about physics and graphing linear equations, he loved learning about what interested her, but as the night went on he could see the light in her eyes fading as he kept asking her questions. The final straw had been when he told her he hasn’t read a book since high school and she laughed lightly before saying “you really are only a pretty face.” 
“Maybe, I’m just destined to be alone, or like a back up plan for girls who come back to Hawkins after giving up on their big city dreams.”
Robin sighs and gives him a reassuring pat, “Steve, you’re a good man. You’ll find your one, trust me on this.”
Before he can say more the bell jingles as a gust of hot air is let in. Steve groans as he spots Dustin’s mop of curly hair and hears the chatter of 6 other teens. He holds the door open with his arm as he sees Lucas struggling with Max’s wheelchair. 
“You guys can’t keep coming in here, Robin and I actually have work to do you know.”
“We wanted to pick a movie for movie night,” Max says. 
He sighs softly as he meets her eyes. Steve’s always had a soft spot for Max ever since they’ve met and it’s only gotten softer since then, everyone knows this, but the kids tend to take advantage of this and use Max to get their way. 
“Alright two movies max and no rated r ones.”
As he hears the bell jingle again he starts his greeting in a monotone voice, “Welcome to Family Video, my name is St—” he chokes. 
“Oh my god, are you okay?” you ask softly. 
He’s still coughing and panting slightly as he tries to give you a reassuring nod. Robin makes her way to the front to hand Steve some water and finish introductions. 
“What he means to say is his name is Steve and I’m Robin. You can come get us if you have any questions.”
You nod politely, finally tearing your gaze away from Steve as you start browsing through the racks. Steve, however, can’t seem to stop looking at you. He’s seen a lot of beautiful women in his life, but none of them held a candle to you. Everything about you was just perfect to him and he didn’t even know you yet. His eyes repeatedly traced the slope of your nose, down to your plush lips, and back to your furrowed eyebrows as you read the back of a tape. 
You lift your head up and he blushes as you make eye contact. 
“Do you have any recommendations for sci-fi, I just moved to town and need something to keep me from getting bored?” you ask shyly. 
“Err- We have a sci-fi section over there” Steve points to the rack behind him where the kids are gathered and quietly arguing over which movie to pick. 
You speak as you make your way over, “Yeah, but do you have any recommendations for me? I feel like I’ve seen all the good ones already.”
Steve's face falls as he tries to come up with an answer. 
“Have you seen Star Wars?” Dustin speaks up
Max and El groan loudly as you shake your head. 
“I tend to stay away from franchises, but what’s it about?”
Before Dustin can answer, Mike beats him to it, “It’s about galactic adventures of these characters, it’s pretty cool.”
“We were planning on watching it tonight, we always have movie nights at Steve’s on Friday. You should join us!” Dustin exclaims as he tries to shoot Steve a sly wink. 
Your eyes grow wide at the sudden invitation as Steve rests his head in his hands too embarrassed to speak. 
“Is that alright with you, Steve?” You ask kindly. 
Steve’s breath hitches as he hears you say his name, he slowly meets your gaze as he gives you a slight nod trying to avoid choking on air again.
Robin smirks at Steve as she hands you a post-it, “Here’s Steve’s address. Movie starts at 7 and bring as many snacks as you’d like!”
You grab the post-it and shoot everyone a small wave “I’ll see you guys then!”
Steve feels like he can finally breathe after he hears the soft slam of the door behind you. 
_
“I can’t believe you would do that, just invite a stranger to my home like that,” Steve groans as he fixes his hair, again, in the hallway mirror. He glances down at his polo debating if he should change his shirt for the fourth time. 
“Steve, she agreed to come while seeing you in a Family Video vest, I don’t think your outfit is what you should be worried about,” Jonathan teases him as he passes him a coke. 
Steve shoots him a sarcastic smile before checking his watch. It’s 7:02, you should’ve shown up 2 minutes ago and he’s a nervous wreck. He sees your headlights before anyone else does and trips over Will’s backpack as he waits to open the door on the very first knock. 
“Sorry I’m late, the petit fours took longer than expected.” You smile at him holding out a large container filled with small cakes. 
He gives you a confused look too embarrassed to ask what petit fours are, so instead he takes the container and waves you in. 
“What brings you to Hawkins?” Eddie asks.
“I actually came here for work, Hawkins laboratory needed another scientist to look at all the crazy stuff that’s happened here.”
Everyone basks in the uncomfortable silence as you mention the lab before Nancy speaks up, “You work as a scientist? You seem pretty young.”
You hesitate slightly, folding your hands in your lap, “I am young, but I graduated college at 16 and recently got my PhD and my advisor recommended me for this job, so here I am.”
Steve’s heart falls to his stomach, you were a genius, a child prodigy of some sort and you’ve accomplished so much at such a young age. There was no way you would even be slightly interested in him, but part of him was willing to take that risk - be okay with whatever you spared him because it was better than not having you in his life at all. 
The movie is ignored as everyone pays more attention to you and your genius-ness. He hears voices all at once but all he can focus on is yours. The way your laugh ends in a higher pitch than it starts in, the way you softly reassure Nancy that college isn’t hard, but his favorite is when you say his name when you ask for his opinion on the theories the kids present to you. It makes him feel important like you care about what he has to say and you value his thoughts just as much as you would anyone else’s. 
Steve might’ve only met you today, but he was already enamored. You might’ve knowingly opened the door only to Family Video, but you also unknowingly opened the door to his heart and started to fill every corner of it with you. 
_
Steve doesn’t think he’s read this much in his entire existence as he has this month.
The first thing he did the morning after movie night was go to the library and check out as many books as he could about everything that sounded smart. He’s inhaled almost every book on poetry (specifically Shakespeare), astrophysics and European history. You’ve come to every movie night since the first one and you try your best to visit Family Video after work just to chat with Steve and Robin. He was slowly falling in love with you and he wasn’t going to let his dumb brain be the reason he lost you. He forcefully read every book from cover to cover, prying his eyes open with the memory of your impressed smile anytime he fell asleep. He’s made countless flashcards and pesters Robin to quiz them during their shift. 
After two months of revising and memorizing he thinks he finally finds the courage to ask you out. You’re the last one to leave tonight, helping Steve clean up after everyone either left or claimed a spare room. 
Steve’s hands are clammy as he ties the trash bag into a pretty bow, “I was wondering if… I mean you don’t have to… but umm, like if you wanted to go out. With me, I mean.”
Your eyes trace his face as you clench the empty red vines wrapper, “You mean like a date?”
Steve nods, unsure of your reaction. Part of him hopes you’ll say no and put him out of his misery, so he can finally stop learning, but a bigger part of him hopes you’ll give him a chance. 
Your lips upturn in a shy smile as you fiddle your thumbs, “Yeah, I’d like that a lot. What did you have in mind?”
“How about next Friday, we ditch the losers and have our movie night? I’ll pick you up at 7 and we can catch a movie?”
You respond with a quick kiss on his cheek as you grab your purse and head out. Steve rests his head on the back of the door as he pumps his fist in the air and tries his hardest to not  wake Robin and Eddie with his cheering. 
_
You’re nervous as you pace in front of your door. Steve makes you nervous, but you don’t hate the feeling. You’ve never felt this way about a boy before, boys always had a competition with you, a majority of your dates ended up with the two of you trying to up each other with accomplishments, but with Steve everything is different. Even though the facts he tells are wrong, it was still endearing to watch him try. 
You’re broken out of your thoughts with a knock on your door. You smooth down your dress and look in the mirror once more before swinging the door open. Steve stands there in all his glory, hair perfectly done, snug jeans, and a bouquet of flowers covering his stupidly handsome face. 
“These are for you,” he pushes the bouquet towards you with a surprise force that you have to step back to avoid them pressing into your nose. 
“Thanks Steve, they’re beautiful.” You set them down gently at the nearby table mentally making a note to find a vase after you come back home. 
He opens his car door for you, waiting until you’re settled in before jogging back to his side. “There’s a French movie playing tonight, I think it’s about Marie - Annette, you know the queen who liked cake?” 
You giggle quietly but opt to ignore his mistake because he just looked too fucking cute with furrowed eyebrows and a nervous smile. 
“And after the movie I was thinking we can stop by somewhere for a late night snack?”
You nod excitedly eager to finally spend time with him far away from the eyes of your prying friends, “I didn’t know you knew French?”
“Uh, yeah.”
The movie was… boring and bland. Steve didn’t understand anything happening so instead spent the entire time admiring you, the furrow of your eyebrows, the tilt of your head, and the gentle bite of your lip. He remembered you mentioning to Robin that you were fluent in French, so thought a foreign film would be a good idea for a first date, but now he regrets his choice especially since you spent the drive to the diner asking him questions about the movie. Questions he didn’t know the answer to. Steve has charmed his way through life, but he wasn’t sure how much longer his charm would last with you, he had an inkling that sooner or later you would be able to see through his facade and you would see him as a disappointment.
_
You had a hunch that Steve was lying about knowing French and your hunch was confirmed when his shoulders tensed as the ticket guy told him the movie didn’t have English subtitles. He played it off with a laugh and a wave of his hand, but you could tell it made him nervous. You thought the movie was alright, but your favorite part was feeling Steve’s eyes on you. You try to be mindful when asking him questions, keeping them vague and more about opinions rather than asking him questions that have a right or wrong answer. He responds as vaguely as possible, gauging your reaction to see if you’re pleased with his answer or if he needs to backtrack and fix his opinion. 
Your conversation at the diner starts to get more personal as you ask each other about your likes and dislikes. You learn that Steve broke his arm learning to ride a bike, his favorite color is green, and he’s always wanted a dog. Everything you learn about Steve just makes you like him even more and the potential of falling in love with him makes you giddy with happiness. Your hands brush occasionally as you walk back to his car. He bites his lip hesitating to grab your hand as he peeks at you from the corner of his eye. You make the decision for the both of you and take a hold of his hand swinging both your arms as he blushes. 
“You’re really cute Steve Harrington,” you say as you force him to face you before gently pushing your lips to his. 
_
You spend every free time you have with Steve now. It’s been a month since your first date and since then you’ve gone out plenty of times and if you’re not physically together then you’re talking for hours on the phone. Steve’s able to open up to you more than he has to anyone else and it’s only been a few months of knowing you but he knows he’s in love, yet he can’t ask you to be his girlfriend. He does everything a boyfriend should do, calling you during breaks, kissing your bad days away, and hugging you just right when you’re on the verge of tears, but he still can’t find the courage to ask you to be his, officially. 
You express your concern to Nancy and Robin at an impromptu girls night, thrown together after a rough week for all of you. 
“I just don’t know why he won’t ask me, I always want to ask him myself before I see him, but then I lose my nerve. Maybe he doesn’t even like me like that and I’m just reading into things,” you whine as you smear a homemade face mask on Robin's face. 
“Trust me, Steve is a goner for you,” Nancy replies as she squints to make sure her brushes on the nail polish perfectly. 
“Nance is right, Steve is in love with you, but you just make him nervous.”
“I don’t understand why though, how do I make him nervous when he’s Steve Harrington,” you sigh dreamily. 
Nancy and Robin giggle as they see the childish frown on your face. You push your face into a pillow whining into it like a petulant child. 
Nancy rubs your back gently, “Look it’s not my place to say, but Steve isn’t the smartest tool academically. And you’re this child prodigy and that makes him nervous.”
Robin nods in agreement, “Yeah, you do know he spent months reading all sorts of books just to impress you right? He isn’t actually as smart as he pretends to be. He just memorizes a bunch of stuff the days leading up to your date.”
You huff in annoyance, “Yeah, I knew that on our first date when he took me to that French film. But I don’t love him because he can tell me facts about the mesozoic era. I love him because he’s him.”
Nancy and Robin share a knowing look.
“You love him?” Robin whispers.
“What?”
“You just said you love him,” Nancy clarifies.
You breathe in deeply before letting it out, the weight of what you said finally sinking in. “Yeah, I do. I really do.”
Both girls squeal as they pull you into a hug, face masks and nail polish quickly forgotten. 
You fall asleep that night knowing the next time you see Steve you’ll tell him. Tell him how much you love him and how he means to you.
_
Unfortunately for you and Steve, you aren’t able to spend any time alone lately. Work is crazy for the both of you and any time you have off it’s spent with the group. While you love spending time with your friends, you’re dying for a second alone with Steve. A second that only you both can cherish when you finally tell him how you feel. 
You’re hoping you can finally catch a moment alone with Steve at the summer bonfire by Lover’s Lake. Almost every young adult in Hawkins comes out of hiding for this annual bonfire, usually thrown by college kids as a final hurrah before summer break is officially over. You hung out with Nancy and Robin for a while and meet some new people, but you’re aren’t able to find the one person you want to see. You finally spot him parking his car and hurriedly shoving his family video vest in the trunk, but before you call out to him you’re blocked by a freckled boy wearing a smug smile. 
“Well if it isn’t the new genius of Hawkins,” the boy teases, voice filled with malice.
You smile politely, “I’m sorry you’re–”
“I’m Hagan. Tommy Hagan, surprised Steve hasn’t mentioned me considering we used to be the best of friends before he became a loser.”
You’ve heard about Tommy, mostly through passing from Nancy and Jonathan and based on Steve’s disgruntled face every time his name was mentioned, you decided Tommy Hagan wasn’t worth your time. 
“How can I help you?” You ask in a monotone voice to show how disinterested you are. 
Before Tommy can start you feel a pair of arms wrap around your waist and lips brush against the side of your head. You turn to see Steve’s grimace at Tommy before his eyes soften landing on you. 
“Hi hon,” he whispers gently, his left arm moving from caressing your hip to soothing the ache in your shoulder. 
“Hey baby.” For a second it’s just the two of you lost in each other’s eyes, you wonder if everyone else can see how lovesick you are for Steve. Before you can whisk him away for yourself Tommy interrupts again.
“Damn, Harrington. Didn’t think I’d see you go all soft again after what Wheeler did to you.”
You rolled your eyes at the mention of Nancy. It’s been years, both Steve and Nancy were over it, being happy for each other and supporting each other as friends. Yet everyone still brought it up because they had no other dirt on Steve. 
“Didn’t know you were home for the summer Tommy,” Steve replies ready to end the conversation with his former friend. 
At this point you see Jonathan and Eddie glancing from their spot near the fire. Both of them looking at Steve, silently asking him if he needed them. Steve shakes his head at them and squeezes your shoulder readying to lead you away. 
“Yeah, summer is the only time I have off now. Between college and my internship. It’s hard out there man, but you wouldn’t know that, would you?” Tommy smirks knowingly as he pushes Steve’s buttons. He knows college has always been a sore spot for Steve especially since he was still stuck working at Family Video. 
Steve grunts in response hoping his disinterest is enough to stray Tommy away from the both of you, but with Steve’s luck Tommy turns his attention to you. 
“Surprised he can keep up with a genius like you sweetheart.”
You wrinkled your nose in disgust, the term of endearment turning sour coming from a mouth other than Steve’s.
Tommy continues to go on, swaying from the few too many drinks he’s had. “Did he tell you he barely passed high school? His dad complained to mine about how much of a disappointment he turned out to be. Can’t even get a job at his dad’s firm with the brain he has.”
Steve loosens his grip around your shoulder, cheeks flushing in embarrassment. 
“You’re telling me your girl hasn’t caught on to the kind of screw up you are Harrington? You sure she’s a genius, or maybe you found someone that aligns with your IQ.”
At this point everyone is watching the words fly out of Tommy’s mouth, some snickering others shooting Steve looks of pity. Tommy Hagan is ripping him to shreds in front of everyone and yet all he can focus on is you. A look of disappointment mixed with frustration glazing over your otherwise sweet disposition. He sees his friends pushing their way through the crowd but before they could defend him he hears your honey like voice calling out for Tommy. 
“What university did you say you go to, Tommy?” you ask sweetly.
“Indiana University of Business,” he smirks behind his beer.
“And I’m assuming your daddy paid for it? Cause you sure as hell didn’t get into school by your merit, considering you spent most of high school with your head so far up people’s asses that you couldn’t get enough oxygen to your brain. Hence, why you and your stupid ass are still playing into high school politics at your grown ass age.”
The smugness on Tommy’s face disappears. 
“And what do you want to do with your future Tommy? Join daddy’s business? Turn out exactly like him? Cause last I heard he spends more time with his new family than he does with you. Maybe he finally got a child he actually loves.”
You knew it was a low blow, bringing up Tommy’s family issues, but you couldn’t care less. After everything he said to Steve, he had it coming and you only wish you were around in high school so you could’ve put him in his place earlier. 
You heard a low whistle from Eddie, “Well guess the shows over folks. And looks like we have a clear winner.”
People start clearing out going back to mind their own business and you grab Steve’s arm leading him far away from Tommy’s frozen stance. 
“Guess the secret’s out,” Steve mumbles.
“Huh?”
“Now you know I’m not really smart, so..” he trails off.
You smile, arms twisting around his waist pulling him close. “You know, I’ve met a lot of smart people in my life, but don't you dare, even for a second take Tommy’s words to heart. Because I know you, and I know that you’re the greatest person I’ve ever met.”
Steve pinches your chin, holding your gaze before whispering out a shy “yeah?” 
You hear the insecurity laced in his voice as you nod fervently. “I kinda figured you weren’t as smart as you let on from our first date, but I said yes because even though you aren’t a brainiac you have a heart of gold. I see the way you take care of the kids, how you take care of your friends. And I love how you take care of me. I love you and everything about you, Steve Harrington.”
Steve blushes, his cheeks turn a rosy hue as he grabs your waist pressing his lips to yours in a kiss so sweet you think you’ll get a toothache. 
“You really love me?”
“I really do.”
Steve presses another kiss before murmuring out an I love you against your lips.
Yeah, Steve Harrington is stupid. Stupidly in love with you. 
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Text
Everyone jokes about Steve being the babysitter or the mom friend, but no one actually appreciates everything he does until he gets sick. Steve is the epitome of a doting parent; sure, he's only twenty and the seven kids he's adopted aren't actually his in any legal way, but those kids are his pride and fucking joy. Anyone who sees Steve with those kids can tell that he loves them deeply, which is why Steve is the only person in the Party that can convince their parents to allow anything- their parents KNOW that their kids will not only be well looked after, but they'll be genuinely enjoying themselves too.
Because he's a single mom except he's actually just barely out of his teenage years with no kids, he gets a lot of shit from everyone about it; he's known almost exclusively to the Party as Mama Steve (when he isn't in earshot of course). That's all fine by Steve, he always wanted a big family and now he has it. The problems start to appear when the Party realizes that Steve Harrington flat out ignores his own needs until they're so pressing that he's physically unable to do anything.
It all starts when Robin is told by Keith, of all people, that Steve has called in sick. Robin, of course, panics and calls him, and when he doesn't answer she calls Eddie to check on him. He and Steve had gotten closer since spring break, so it wasn't unusual for a member of the party to call either Eddie or Steve to check in on the other.
Eddie checks in to find Steve Harrington, badass warrior prince incarnate, sobbing from a blanket mountain on the couch in his living room. No one has ever actually seen Steve cry before, so Eddie freaks out, but it's just the result of a high fever and watching Old Yeller by himself. After calming the sick man, Eddie managed to coax some medicine into him and call Family Video to let Robin know that, yes, Steve is alive and no, he wasn't going to die of fever, but he only manages to get Steve to sleep by reading to him (Eddie finds it disgustingly adorable, even more so later when Nancy mentions that Steve loves stories but struggles with what he calls "moving letters"). And for the next two weeks, Steve is down for the count. Joyce and Claudia Henderson take turns making sure Steve is alright (Joyce because Steve is one of Her Kids, and Claudia because Steve is the Older Son she never had) while Eddie, Nancy, Jonathan, and Robin all try to take his place.
By the end of the first day, Nancy calls it quits: Mike is a bullheaded terror who only ever seems to like Will, El, or Eddie, and even then he doesn't always listen to them, so the Wheeler siblings fight even more ferociously than usual. She can't get El or Erica to listen, either; Erica is a force to be reckoned with, and El will only nod passively before doing what she wants anyway. By the end of day three, Jonathan is out. He won't say what happened, but he told Max to be nicer to the Party one time and, ten minutes later, he was tearfully saying that the kids were little monsters.
Robin lasts longer, almost an entire week, by chattering at the kids until they give up and listen to her. She meets her match when Dustin and Erica try to commandeer the Family Video computer again: Dusting sneaks past and almost breaks the computer just trying to get to it while Erica does Erica and argues until Robin the Rambler runs out of words. The morning of day seven is very dark for her.
Eddie, through what he believes to be the universe's acknowledgement of the depth of his affection for Steve and also sheer force of will, lasts the whole two weeks, but just barely. Mike argues over everything, no matter what; Will is skittish at the best of times and disappears constantly (thankfully, not like his Upside Down episodes - the boy just can't stop getting distracted and wandering away from the group), only to reappear directly behind Eddie and scaring him into an early grave; Lucas gets frustrated easily and can never seem to find the right words to communicate his thoughts and feelings, so he snarks and lashes out before awkwardly trying to mend the situation; Erica is so completely herself that it can be dizzying when the full force of that hurricane is directed towards Eddie; Dustin practically follows Eddie around like a little duckling, demanding updates on Steve or ranting about one of his many interests; El spends most of her time with the Party learning about how girls her age act through Max or practicing her braiding on Eddie. The worst of them all, though, is Max. Despite having healed up, she's still in physical therapy to rebuild her muscle strength and dexterity, and her eyesight is bad enough now that there's talk of her getting a service animal. It isn't that she needs a little extra attention that makes her the worst, though: it's that somehow, she still chases the most mischief. Eddie has only narrowly managed to keep her from assaulting no less that nine people in the two weeks that Steve is sick, and he knows she's definitely tried to commit arson at least twice that often.
Finally, after two weeks, Steve feels better enough to return to his usual activity, and Eddie begs him to never get sick again.
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