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reysdriver · 7 months

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Foggy Windows | S.H.

Day 6 of Kinktober: Car Sex — steve x fem!reader smut

warnings: 18+, Minors DNI - smut, piv sex, car sex, semi-public sex, protected sex (cus they're responsible), praise kink

words: 1.5k

a/n: so... I disappeared. I know. Kinktober will go far into november so please don't hate me :(

Once you sat down in his passenger seat, Steve closed the car door and walked over to take the driver seat. He took his seat and leaned over to press a quick kiss on your cheek.

“What else do you have planned, handsome?”

You had just finished a great dinner at Benny’s diner; it’s not the most romantic restaurant in Hawkins, but it’s certainly your favourite, so Steve will take you there whenever you want.

Steve smiled at you as he clicked his seatbelt in place. “I was thinking we could go back to your place. Maybe watch a movie or…” He trailed off, but you knew exactly where he was going with that. Unfortunately, you had to let him down a bit.

“We can’t, my parents are home.” You said with a frown. “What about your house?”

“Same issue.” He slumped against his headrest, upset his plans were disrupted.

You looked around outside the car, confirming there was no one outside. You turned back to Steve, biting your bottom lip. “Well, we’re the only ones in this car. There’s nothing stopping us from keeping the night going here.”

Steve’s eyes lit up at your indirect—and indecent—proposal. His lips curled up into a smile as he slowly reached to take off his seatbelt, but he didn’t want to get his hopes up in case you were just teasing him.

“Really? Here?”

You nodded, then put on your best sultry voice. “Meet me in the backseat in about ten seconds, yeah?”

Like he didn’t have even a second to spare, Steve unbuckled his seatbelt, then rushed out of the front seat to oblige your request. You manoeuvred your way to the back by crawling over the console, and you sat down just as Steve closed the car door behind you both.

“Took you long enough.” You teased, pulling your boyfriend down to your height by the shirt collar—being gentle of course because you knew that was one of his good shirts.

“Don’t worry, I’ll make up for it by making this go as quick as possible.”

You let out a little giggle, really hoping it was a joke as you pushed Steve onto his back against the seats and leaned down to kiss him. And in the typical Steve fashion, he wasted no time taking things to the next level by adding some tongue into this makeout mix. You did nothing to stop him, especially since you knew how talented Steve could be with it.

Though your hands were comfortable as they were, one on Steve’s chest and one gripping the hair on the back of his head, you moved them down to paw at his jeans, sloppily undoing his belt with your right and palming his bulge with your left.

He let out a groan against your lips, which only made you smile into the kiss as you finally got his belt open.

“So, how do you want to do this? There’s not a lot of space back here for me to do my usual moves.” He was right, the back of his BMW was cramped, and there was no way Steve could do what he usually did when you two had sex, but you could live without it.

“I thought you could just lay back, and you could let me do all the work for a change, what do you think?”

He smiles softly, laying his head back. “I think that’s a fantastic idea.”

His voice sent a shiver up your spine and you tried to hide your giddiness as you pulled his pants and boxers down just enough to free his cock.

You pulled one of his hands off your hip for a moment and brought it to his now-uncaged dick. He stroked himself lightly while he watched you get your own clothes off. You started by rolling up the skirt of your dress, then you pulled down your underwear and dropped it to the floor so you could move your legs enough to properly straddle your boyfriend.

When you looked back at Steve, he had already pulled a condom out of his wallet and was already rolling it onto himself. Once the latex was on, you took his cock in your hand and lined him up with your slit.

“You're moving fast.” Steve commented.

You paused your movements for a moment. “I just need you so badly, Stevie.”

He looked at you knowingly, raising an eyebrow. “Or is it just because you don’t want anyone to see us doing this right now?”

“I can be in a rush for more than one reason.” You brushed it off, finally bending down and lowering yourself onto his erection.

You both started a string of moans and pleasured breaths, which only got louder and more intense when you started grinding your hips against Steve. Even though you had a lingering worry of being judged by some stranger walking outside and seeing the shaky car, making Steve feel good was the main thing on your mind at the moment.

And likewise, the main thing on Steve’s mind was making you feel good. He brought one of his hands—the hands that were one of your favourite things about him—and started rubbing your clit.

“Oh, Stevie, that’s perfect.” You told him breathily.

That had brought a smile to his face because he knew that he was doing things right. And that was really all he wanted with you tonight, to treat you right and make you happy.

“Yeah? Well then it’s just like you.” He breathed, keeping his pace at pleasuring you. “So fuckin’ perfect.”

You loved his praise. You eat it up and you’d have it for every meal of the day if you could.

And Steve loved that you loved it. He didn’t want to move a muscle since you had already told him he was doing so well. He just wanted to keep going in the way you liked.

“Oh, Steve.” You said, though it came out as an airy mumble. “It feels so good. I’m getting so close.”

And who was Steve Harrington to deny you from that release? So, he kept going, playing with your pussy like it was his only mission in life. And you sent him a signal that his mission was accomplished when your eyes tightened, your breath hitched, and the hand that you had pressed against his strong chest tensed and pressed even harder.

You kept riding him after you had come down from your climax, and Steve couldn’t get enough of it. But, he did want to give you a break from doing all the work from now on. He sat up, still keeping himself inside of you and started lifting your hips up and down on top of him.

You were about to protest or tell him he didn’t need to do anything—it was your idea to have sex in the tiny back of his BMW in the first place—but he clearly sensed it and defended himself before you could say anything.

“I don’t want you getting tired and making this a one-time thing, you know?”

You doubted that was his reason; you knew he was just putting on a selfish, cool guy act, but you didn’t argue. You let him fuck you without a care in the word about anything else because it was really all you both needed right now.

After just a few more movements, you could feel Steve’s cock twitch inside of you, then his movements slowed and you knew he had reached his release. They kept slowing, until he stopped moving you at all, but he kept you tight on top of him.

Both of you sat there breathing heavily with your foreheads pressed together. Eventually, he took one last breath and lifted you off of him.

“That was mind-blowing.” He told you. “But I’ve gotta get you home, little lady. Don’t want anyone worrying over you.”

You laughed lightly, watching him take off his sticky condom and discarding it in the empty bag of chips the nerds had left under the seats earlier.

Both of you put your clothes back on, then got out of the car to take the front seats again. Now noticing your surroundings for the first time since before everything just happened, you bit back a smile while Steve winced at the layer of condensation that covered his windshield.

He leaned forward to wipe it off with his forearm. “You couldn’t keep it in your pants, and now I gotta do all this extra work. You’re a temptress.”

“Oh no.” You said without an ounce of worry. “If you don’t want to do all that work, maybe you’ll just have to stay with me in this empty parking lot for the rest of the night…”

“Temptress!” He repeated, pretending like he wasn’t thinking about it"

#xena's kinktober celebration #kinktober #steve harrington #steve harrington smut #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington x y/n #steve harrington x fem!reader #steve harrington x you #steve harrington imagine #steve harrington oneshot #steve harrington fanfiction #steve harrington fanfic #stranger things #stranger things fic #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things smut

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strawberryspence · 1 year

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happy birthday, @withacapitalp! i hope im not that late! i am so glad to be your friend and i am glad you were born. ily! long islands on me! 🥂🍾💗

There’s this damn spring festival in Indianapolis. It’s pretty popular among young-ins and people from small towns come to visit it every year. There are local vendors, activities, mini concerts. It’s where Eddie thrives the most, he has gone every year since he can remember.

His first mistake was mentioning it to Dustin. The second was agreeing to his insistent pleading if he could come with Eddie to Indy.

Because after Eddie finally said yes. The news— unsurprisingly— reaches El, and wherever El goes, Will goes, and of course, wherever Will goes Mike goes. Then Max hears and also wants in and of course, Lucas also wants to go. So now, it’s the whole damn party. Of course, he can’t handle all the kids. So now, all the adult kids are coming too.

And listen, he thinks they’re all great. But he’s been wanting to get out of Hawkins and away from them to just— breathe. Also, that’s a lie. Eddie doesn’t want to get away from them. He specifically wants to get away from Steve fucking Harrington and all the confusing feelings he have for the very straight man.

Of course, that doesn’t work out.

Because now they're stuck in the middle of a crowd. Eddie has never really understood why people said they felt like a sardine in a can, but right now, he fully understands. He should have known it was going to be busy. It was a Saturday and it’s one of the biggest festivals in town.

He will never say it, but Eddie thanks Steve’s very strong maternal instinct. He can worry for himself right now, because he knows the kids are together due to the very strict buddy system Steve instituted. Now they just have to get to the damn corn dog stand, which Steve declared as their meet up place.

“Eddie.” Eddie whips his head to see Steve staring intently at him. Oh yeah, Steve’s his buddy. “We have to get out of here.”

Eddie nods faintly but doesn’t answer. He has to keep his breathing in check. They’re fine, and the kids are fine. There’s a crowd but they're not after the kids. They're not after Eddie. They’re not after him. It's not an angry mob. Not after him for killing Chrissy. Not—

“Eds.” Steve pushes against the people to get to him. His brown eyes track his face before he sighs in worry, “Hold my hand.”

“What?” Eddie croaks out in disbelief.

Steve looks around, before whispering, "Baby, I think you're one step away from a panic attack. It's too fucking crowded."

And before Eddie can say anything else, Steve captures his hand into his. He doesn't intertwine them together because they're still in public and though they're in the city, it's always good to be safe. But Steve still holds Eddie's hand so tightly, like he's afraid that Eddie's going to vanish from his sight.

"Don't let go, okay?" Steve asks, which is ridiculous, and crazy. Because now that Eddie's holding his hand, clasped together like two ends of the same parenthesis, he doesn't think he could ever let go.

Eddie nods, and Steve pulls him in front of him, shielding him with his arms so people won't bump into him. It weirdly feels like a hug. If he has to describe it, he will say it feels exactly like the moment Wayne hugged him after he came out to him. It's safety, warmth, and overwhelming love and protection.

Steve maneuvers around the crowd like a pro. He dodges people without hitting them and takes them out of the fucking crowd in the middle of the market.

Before he knows it, they're out of the crowd and sitting on a bench. His breathing is finally getting better, but Steve still hasn't let go of his hand. Not when he bought Eddie a drink, not when he instructed Eddie to breathe with him, not when the kids came and asked what was wrong, only to be shooed away.

Eddie's not sure why he's so shaken to the core by this certain touch. He's always been the touchy-feely one. He throws an arm on Steve's shoulders, pats his head when Steve does something ridiculously adorable, and nudges him by the ribs when he says something funny. Steve's never initiated touch, Robin says it's because of the "complete lack of love and care from his parents."

But Steve's right here. Squatting in front of him. Holding his hand as he waits for Eddie to calm down. Looking at him like he— loves him. How could Steve ever be the product of lack of love and care, when he seems to have an abundance of it?

"You doing better, Eds?" Steve asks, his eyes are bright against the lights. He's looking at Eddie like Eddie's something to be cared for, to be loved, like he's something precious.

Eddie wants Steve to look at him like this. Selfishly, he wants to have it for the rest of his fucking life.

Eddie blinks at him, and accidentally, intentionally, stupidly, spits out, "I think I am in love with you."

Steve freezes. He blinks at him.

The world behind them slows down. There's a kid winning a prize a few stalls down, and a man bargaining for a vase on the other end. Someone's order is ready at the food stand and someone just won the bingo. There's a band playing and they're fucking playing Whitesnake's Is This Love.

It's one of those simple, but beautiful moments. Those that make you feel like you're nothing but a small particle in this big, vast world. Eddie basks in those moments sometimes.

However, at that moment, Eddie doesn't. If Steve looks at him like that for the rest of his life, Eddie doesn't think he'll ever feel small again.

He lets the world fade into a quiet noise. Nothing else matters. Nothing, but Steve Harrington.

He just stares at Steve. He just stares as Steve's face breaks into the biggest smile he has ever seen and it quite literally feels like watching a sunflower grow right in front of him. It's a smile that overflows, from the way he beams at him, from the way his eyes wrinkle, the way his nose crinkles.

Eddie's never seen Steve smile this big before and its damn beautiful.

"You sure about that?" Steve asks. There's insecurity in it, but also hope.

Eddie's never been this sure about anything else in his life, so he says, "Yes."

Steve softens, "Alright. That's good."

"How is that good?" Eddie whispers.

"Because, I—" Steve turns over their hands on his lap, and finally— finally— intertwines them. And shit, maybe there is a God, because this feels sacred, a love made just for the two of them.

"Because, I think I am also in love with you."

"I wish I can kiss you here," Eddie says, making Steve laugh, and it spills out of his body so beautifully Eddie wants to keep doing it for the rest of his life.

"Slow down, cowboy," Steve giggles, but the way he tightens his hold on Eddie's hand tells the opposite of his statement.

"Steve! Eddie! Look at this!" Dustin screams from the nearby booth, where El just won him a teddy bear.

"Yeah, you have to come. El's not doing anything. It's just pure talent!" Lucas sarcastically shrieks back.

In the background, El's giggling like crazy. Which 100% means she's using her magic. Eddie can't help but smile at the kids. He's glad he bought them with him to have fun.

Steve immediately stands up at that, their hands breaking apart at the motion. "Oh God. I told her not to use her powers." Steve's about to rush to them— maternal instincts and whatnot— before he stops in his tracks and turns to Eddie.

Steve softens, holding out his hand to Eddie. Eddie takes it without hesitation.

"Don't let go?" Steve asks.

Eddie stares at him, before he whispers a vow just for the two of them, "I won't. I promise."

True to his word, he doesn't let go. Not ever.

Eddie has no intention of ever letting Steve go.

#this might actually be the most romantic ficlet i have written #i want what they have #please god ive seen what youve done for others #tw panic attack #just a tiny bit #im emotional #steddie #steve harrington x eddie munson #steve harrington x eddie munson fluff #steddie ficlet #steddie headcanons #steddie hc #dae writes #daeheadcanons

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jo-harrington · 3 months

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Developmental Achievement (A Store Manager Verse Story - Steve Harrington/Reader)

Previous Part: Incremental Planning

Pairing: Steve Harrington x HawkTheaterManager!Reader

Summary: Steve messed up and now he needs to fix things if he wants to win you back, hopefully for good.

Warnings/Themes: AU where the Upside Down doesn't terrorize Hawkins. November through January 1986, Steve and Robin work at Scoops (OR DO THEY?), Reader works at The Hawk Theater (formerly at Dippin' Dots AND Wicks and Sticks; you job hop...it's a thing), Relationship Break, Hopeless [Romantic] Steve, Tie in with the Store Manager Verse

Note: So this is the end of our Steve saga of the SMVerse, kind of wrapped up in a neat little bow. Is it the best? Probably not, but it's silly and corny and cheesy and I needed all of those things yesterday and instead of RELEGATING IT TO MY FIRST FAVE...I'll inflict it upon Stevie. Tagging @dr-aculaaa and @loveshotzz because COME AND GET HIM. (@deathbecomesthem ...and a possible Easter Egg?)

You can find my masterlist here for more fics featuring pretty much exclusively Eddie Munson content but also a little Steve.

Please do not interact if you are not 18+.

Enjoy!

---

Steve Harrington fucked up.

Ok. Ok. That’s not right.

Steve Harrington really fucked up.

If he was being honest, he always seemed to fuck up when it came to you, his...well...he could really only call you his ex now, couldn't he?

From rivals in ice cream where he missed every sign that you might like him, to sickeningly-sweet dates around Hawkins because he was being too boring of a boyfriend, and finally to Thanksgiving Dinner with his parents where he absolutely stuck his foot in his mouth.

He thought making a joke about your job-hopping was funny--from Dippin' Dots to Wicks and Sticks to KB Toys, it's lucky you decided he was worth sticking around for--but it only put you under his parents' scrutiny.

He got an earful as he walked you to your car after dinner was over. You stayed a few steps ahead of him until you got to the driver's door and turned to him with tears in your eyes.

"That was embarrassing, Steve," you said through clenched teeth.

"I'm sorry, I..." he was at a loss for words, especially making you cry. As strong as you were, you never seemed to be flustered at all; what was happening? "I thought it was a joke. We always laugh about it. I’m gonna work at scoops forever and you’re gonna work everywhere else."

"But it’s meeting your family, you shouldn't joke about...about what a huge flake I am that you're lucky I don't jump from boyfriend to boyfriend just like I go from job to job. They're never gonna look at me the same way again. You only get one first impression."

"You shouldn't worry about what they think about you. I've stopped caring about what they think about me too."

It went back and forth before you threw your hands up and got in the car.

You didn't even kiss him goodnight.

Then sometime during Black Friday weekend, you stopped by Scoops before your shift and broke up with him.

"It was nice, Steve," you said, barely able to look at him. "But uh...I don't know. I need to know I'm with someone who doesn't think I'm some kind of joke."

He chased after you, even with his manager screaming that if he left he'd be fired, and begged you to reconsider.

You didn't.

He watched you ride up the escalator to head to your shift.

And when he got back to Scoops, he was actually fired.

What a great day.

---

Of course, Robin quit as soon as Steve was fired.

"Can't stick it out without you dingus," Robin announced as she approached him in the parking lot shortly after, tossing her hat at him. "And you can't have Scoops without...Stoops. Get it? Because you're stupid. Scoops? Stoops? Stupid. Why aren't you laughing?"

It was pretty funny.

But Steve was heartbroken.

Unemployed and heartbroken.

Robin insisted that she could land them both jobs at Family Video--

"Keith hates me. Pretty sure he calls me Sleeze Harrington."

“Well he loves me. I can vouch for you, come on."

--but Steve was sure that he would have a better chance at winning you back if he kept working at StarCourt.

What an epic bust that was.

Not the job part.

Well, that too.

Most of the stores near the toy store were done hiring seasonal help, and the best that he could land was a temp job as a Mall Santa.

On the upside, it meant that he could walk around the mall on break in his Santa suit and watch you with you none the wiser until he could beg you to take him back.

"It sounds creepy," was the unfortunate response from Steve's newest friend and personal relationship expert, the Claire's Store Manager.

He stopped by before his shift to pick up some of his lucky strawberry lipgloss to make sure he was very pouty and puckery for the moment you realized you'd made a mistake...and after effectively getting it all over his fake beard, the Manager decided to take pity on him and listen to his woes while helping him clean up.

"I'm gonna need to start charging you for advice," she laughed and wiped him off with tissues from the ear piercing station. "You seriously need it if that's the idea you came up with."

"You're a real Lucy Van Pelt," Steve deadpanned. "I'll buy you cookies one day just...please...help me."

"Have you tried just talking?" she questioned. "Wasn't that your problem in the first place? Way back when? You didn't communicate."

"But they're mad at me, they don't want to talk. And I need to fix it."

"Then give them some space, and try again, ok? Give it a week or two. They probably just need time to cool down, sounds like you really hurt their feelings."

"And if they can't forgive me?"

"Then you move on," she sighed. "Sometimes things just don't work out and even though it doesn't make you feel ok, you have to be ok with it."

So he waited a week.

A week was long enough, right? His own personal Lucy said so.

He chose a day he wasn't scheduled at Santa's workshop and waited for you in the food court where he knew you'd seek refuge during your lunch break, just like the two of you had taken your breaks together. He wore his best polo, made sure his hair was perfect, applied some of his lucky lip gloss and waited.

And waited.

But you never showed up.

Not during your usual break. Not an hour later. Not even at the supposed end of your shift.

Maybe you were working a double?

So as much as he told himself he wouldn't follow you because it was creepy, he ran up the escalator two steps at a time to KB Toys where you would surely be.

Or not.

"They don't work here anymore kid," your former manager sighed after he asked about you. "I'm sorry."

"W-well where did they go?" he asked frantically, pathetically.

"Didn't say, not really my business to ask. Put in their notice...right after Black Friday, actually. Right before the Christmas rush too."

If he was heartbroken before...his heart was just gone now. Obliterated. Non-existent.

Along with any hope of trying to win you back.

---

Steve stuck through the rest of the holiday season at the mall; you could call him many things but a quitter wasn't one of them. However, come the new year, he needed a new job again, and he took up Robin's offer to butter Keith up and get in at Family Video.

He was offered an opening key shift, a decent employee discount, a better paycheck than both Scoops and Santa's workshop combined, and unlimited access to choose the movie playing overhead whenever he was in charge.

"You're lucky the other person I was about to hire bailed," Keith said after his first week. "Got a job at the Hawk or something. Can't blame 'em. Free popcorn and all that."

The distraction helped the heartache.

Surprisingly, he got a few phone numbers. Nothing ever came of them, nursing a broken heart the way he was, but it was nice. He'd been tempted to call you, several times in fact, but in the end he just decided fate knew better. Still, he denied himself the role of Hawkins' resident heartthrob.

"Are you hearing yourself right now?" Robin scoffed at him as he scrubbed off yet another phone number that had been written onto the palm of his hand by one customer or another. "Resident Heartthrob. Seriously? Ok Cassanova."

"What else do you wanna call it?" he asked, holding his arms out helplessly. "They can't resist the Harrington Charm, even when I don't want to use it."

"It's because you keep putting on sappy romance movies when you're here. Girls like that shit, a guy in touch with his feelings."

"First Nancy and then..." he trailed off, thinking about you sadly. He had to let you go.

"Are you kidding me?" Robin hit him upside the head and shoved him out of the way so she could start processing returns. "You can't even say their name? You need to get over it."

"It's hard."

"Were they your soulmate or something?"

"Robin, all men must...have someone who will never take advantage of a love bright as the sun."

"Love?"

"Someone to stand beside them."

"You're quoting the Monkees now."

"They were the one," Steve lamented. "And now they're--"

He trailed off as his eye landed on something outside the window.

"They're what? On the Last Train to Clarksville?" She made a buzzer noise. "Try again."

"No they're walking in right now, act casual," Steve announced and started typing away at the keyboard of the computer.

The doorbell chimed as you set foot inside Family Video and Steve glanced up to get a look at you for the first time in weeks.

Ok, so maybe he was being a little pathetic with this heartache.

Maybe it wasn't that bad for him.

It was pretty bad.

But when your eyes met, Steve could just tell...it had to have been just as bad for you too.

Because he knew you by now. How many months had you been dating? Dates and lunches and breaks spent together. Was it love? Maybe. Probably. Even if it wasn't, it was damn near close to it. So he knew the way your eyes lost their sparkle a little bit when they landed on him, knew the way your shoulders sagged, knew the words that refused to escape your lips when you saw him.

Stevie Stew. Pookie Bear. Dumb dumb. All the pet names he missed too.

Robin greeted you with an exaggerated lengthening of your name and a pointed glare shot directly at Steve.

"Hey Rob," you cleared your throat and offered a strained grin. "How are you? Didn't know you were working here."

Your eyes shifted to Steve and then back to Robin.

"Either of you."

"I've been here since before Christmas," Robin leaned against the counter as you approached and thumbed over her shoulder at Steve. "And of course dingus over here just couldn't stay away."

"You're the dream team, of course," you nodded. "Scoops Troop. But, uh, not anymore I guess."

"We're workshopping a new name."

The two of you laughed and then you excused yourself to peruse the shelves for a new movie. Robin even offered to show you some new tapes with a low pull it together hissed at Steve as she rounded the counter to show you a new display.

Steve willed himself to say something, Do something. Anything. Say hello, walk over and suggest a new movie, say that it was good to see you, that he missed you.

Communicate, god damn it.

But he was frozen.

Even more when you and Robin returned a few minutes later debating which John Hughes flick you should get: Sixteen Candles or Weird Science.

"You could always get both," Steve suggested, the words rocketing out of his mouth violently as you reached the register.

"Uh, yeah, actually..." you nodded. "That's a good idea, I think I will."

Steve typed in all the information and got your rentals rung out, and as he asked if you wanted candy or popcorn, you laughed.

"You know what, I'm actually all candy and popcorn'd out," your smile faltered when your eyes met again. "I'm...uh...you know."

"Know what?" Steve asked dumbly.

"I'm over at the Hawk," you nodded. "New shift manager and everything. I was...I was actually supposed to work here when Mr. Phillips offered me a dollar more at the theater. And the popcorn didn't hurt."

"I didn't know that," Steve shook his head.

"Oh."

"Yeah."

You and Steve stared at each other for another long, drawn out minute.

You opened your mouth to say something--

"Can we ta--"

--before Steve, idiot that he was, pushed your tapes across the counter at you and practically shouted at you.

"Your rental's due back on Friday by 2pm, enjoy."

Robin gave him the silent treatment for the rest of his shift.

---

"Do I show up with flowers?"

"Flowers?"

"What's that voice, you don't like flowers?"

"Not really."

There he was, back at Claire's the following day, sitting in the chair at the Ear Piercing Station as the manager restocked the jewelry wall. A bag of fresh chocolate chip cookies from the food court sat on top of the station and the two of them periodically reached in for a treat as Steve regaled her with his tale.

"I know they miss me, I just know it."

"Then why did you freeze up?"

"Because I'm an idiot. Help. Please."

So far, the manager hadn't really been able to offer him much advice outside of a shoulder to cry on and a listening ear. Especially now as he planned a way to win you back.

"Everyone likes flowers," Steve argued skeptically. "You're telling me Munson hasn't gotten you roses or something?"

The shop bell rang, a chain rattled, and leather squeaked, and instead of the manager answering with a gentle tone and an eye roll like she'd been doing all day, Eddie Munson himself chimed in.

"If I was a jealous man," he started with an exaggerated glare at Steve. "I would say you're here flirting with my girlfriend."

Eddie "The Freak" Munson was somehow the Dad to Steve's reluctant Mom when it came to the ragtag gang of Freshman that they shared role-model-ship of, and because of that their previous animosity had been turned into some kind of...agreement.

Could Steve say Eddie was a bad guy? No. Was he still wondering why the kids liked him so much? Yes. Could the two of them get along? Up for debate.

Which was why Steve wasn't so concerned when the metalhead was feigning some kind of intimidation tactic; they had an agreement that went from unspoken to shaken on come the new year: No fighting in front of the kids, no making fun of each other's hair, no stealing Eddie's girlfriend.

"What are you doing here?" the manager laughed at the two boys antics and crossed her arms over her chest. "Don't you have school?"

"I came to ask you a very important question," Eddie smiled a lovesick smile at her, Steve momentarily ignored. "But imagine my surprise when someone else is sitting in my spot."

"It's not your spot. And I'm giving him advice."

"Again?"

"He's hopeless, apparently."

"I'm right here," Steve exclaimed and got to his feet, ready to leave. "I didn't come here to be made fun of. I actually need help."

He didn't like the way Eddie clapped him on the shoulder, or steered him out of the store, or gave him a patronizing smile.

"Listen," Eddie started once they were out of the store. "I know you're having some issues but seriously, you need to get your act together."

"And how should I do that Munson? I've thought of everything and your girlfriend keeps telling me that my ideas are stupid."

"I'm sure they are stupid," Eddie nodded. "I trust her judgment."

"What would you do to win her back? If you fucked up?"

"I wouldn't fuck it up, Number one," Eddie smirked. "Even at the risk of jinxing myself there. Rule Number One in the Munson Relationship Doctrine, don't fuck it up."

"Well that page is missing from the Harrington Relationship Doctrine, because I clearly went and did that."

"Rule Number Two," Eddie continued, ignoring Steve. "Is by making a grand and personal gesture. Didn't you ask Nancy Wheeler to Junior Prom by having the cheer squad perform a routine just for her a few years ago."

"Yeah that took a lot of begging," Steve nodded eagerly, already formulating a plan. "But I could do it again if I--"

"I heard she hated it," Eddie shot a sour expression. "So no, not that."

"Then I'm out of ideas," Steve admitted.

Eddie threw his head back and groaned, and Steve was sure he heard him say something along the lines of and Buckley called him Hawkins Heartthrob.

"Listen," Eddie recovered, tightened his grip on Steve's shoulder with one hand, and jabbed him in the chest with the other hand. "Don't ever say that I didn't do anything for you ok? Where does your friend work? The Hawk?"

"How do you know that?"

"News travels fast when you're friends with 5 freshmen and Robin Bigmouth Buckley ok?" Eddie shook his head. "Now listen to me. Your friend works at the theater? Showing movies right? And what are movies made of?"

"Film?"

"Sure. And the kids...Dustin...what club is he part of at school?"

"Uh...Hellfire Club. Chess Club..."

"AV Club," Eddie insisted with an exaggerated nod. "And where do you work?"

"Family Video."

"And what is in a vid--you know what?" Eddie groaned. "I don't have time for this. How are you not putting two and two together Harrington?"

"I don't know what I'm supposed to be putting together."

"What they all have in common?"

Steve took a second as Eddie leaned closer expectantly, as though trying to transmit his idea through osmosis because Steve was just not getting it.

Until the osmosis was successful and Steve had his lightbulb moment.

"Oh!"

"There you go!" Eddie's face stretched with a feral grin. "I see the wheels turning. Ladies and Gentleman, I believe a plan is underway."

---

It took a little more than a week, the combined efforts of the AV Club and Hellfire Club, and a good chunk out of Steve's paycheck for supplies and to bribe them all and the projectionist at the Hawk.

But the plan was in place.

Steve found out your schedule, bought tickets for a 5pm show of Hey there, It's Yogi Bear.

There couldn't have been a worse movie to choose, but it was the only one he could buy out the theater for.

He showed up to the Hawk promptly at 4:30, got his soda and popcorn, and hung around the lobby impatiently. He was pretty sure he'd ruined his hair from the number of times he'd run his hand through it.

Slowly his friends started to filter in: The Sinclair kids and Max, Mike Wheeler and Will Byers with Nancy and Jonathan in tow--that wouldn't be nerve-wracking or embarrassing at all if the plan didn't work out. At some point, Eddie's van pulled up in front of the Theater and Dustin, Jeff, Gareth, and Dave all walked in bickering about nachos and sour worms, before Eddie and the Claire's Store Manager followed suit, Eddie telling his friends to shut up.

Steve was beginning to sweat at 4:55 when Robin ran in, hand in hand with a new girlfriend that he'd seen waiting for Rob when he dropped her off at school in the morning.

That he'd been maybe a little too in his own head about you to hear Robin rave about for the past few months. He really did feel bad about that.

"Thought you were gonna be late," he accused Robin.

"Me? Late?" she beamed. "Never. Do we have time to grab candy?"

"Just go," he waved them off, then shot Robin a secret thumbs up as she pointed to her crush excitedly, then got nervous when he spotted you across the lobby, talking to one of the ushers.

You faltered when you locked eyes with him, waved back when he sent you a little hello, and then you scurried into the box office.

He allowed himself one more moment of heartache. Then at 5 on the dot, Steve entered the theater and sat in the back row, as close to the projection window as he could get.

The previews started, and for a moment, Steve looked at all his...well, they were all his friends now, weren't they? Here to support him on this hare-brained endeavor. He suddenly felt loved in a way that he didn't think he'd ever felt before, not like this.

The only thing missing was you.

Suddenly the projection started skipping, and he could hear his accomplice in the projection booth shuffle around, then a door opened and closed.

"And so it begins," Eddie said dramatically a few rows ahead.

"Shut up, you're gonna give it away!" Dustin shouted at him.

Everyone started chattering until Steve sent them all a shhhhh when he heard the projection booth door open and shut again and your voice, clearly irritated, started speaking.

"What do you mean it isn't working? Did you try...I don't know...unplugging it and plugging it back in? Re-roll the film and try it again...here let me see..."

Steve felt himself shake with anticipation as the projector started up again, but the images on the screen were decidedly not Yogi Bear and Boo Boo.

"What the hell?" you exclaimed.

On the screen were pictures of you and Steve, all the polaroids and film strips from the little Photo Booth at Starcourt that you'd taken together over the months of your relationship. The ticket from the aquarium that he'd saved. The note you'd pinned to his back one morning when you hugged him before his shift that said "Steve Harrington is a loser."

He heard your snort as the scene panned up to a shot of himself sitting at the desk in his room writing a letter, shot on the Wheeler family's camcorder. The Steve on the screen looked up into the camera and startled.

"Oh," he laughed. "Didn't see you there. It's been a long time, hasn't it? I uh...I really wanted to talk to you and figured there wasn't a better way than writing a letter."

"Nerd," you called through the projection window, garnering laughs from his friends.

The scene faded to Movie Steve in a turtleneck skipping rocks at Lover's Lake in a very artistic shot that Director Dustin was apparently "proud of."

"But a picture is worth a thousand words so I'm pretty sure a video is worth a million." Movie Steve said your name sadly and looked deep into the camera. "I messed up, I was an idiot and a jerk and only took my own feelings into consideration when I made that joke to my parents. I don't care how they felt about you because I'm past the point of caring how they feel about me. My screw ups.

"And unfortunately I made the biggest screw-up of my life that night. I might not care what they think about me...but I care what you think about me."

The scene changed once again, Movie Steve leaning over the counter at Family Video filling out a form on a clipboard.

"There are a million better movies out there than this one you're watching right now Honey, but none of them are able to show just how truly sorry I am, and how much I miss you. I know that we still need to talk things out in person but I hope this shows how much I'm willing to put in the work so you'll forgive me."

A few rows ahead, he could hear Eddie speak along with Movie Steve, he leaned into his girlfriend and said "I wrote that line. Pretty good, right?"

"Uh huh," she pushed his head away from her. "Sap."

Eddie turned back to look at Steve and shot him a thumbs-up.

The scene changed one last time to a panning shot of Steve walking out of StarCourt mall towards his car.

"This is your chance to decide now. I wouldn't blame you if you chose never to talk to me again. I'll wait outside once your shift is over, but I'll respect your choice either way. I miss you Honey, and I love you."

Movie Steve got in the car and drove away into the sunset, only for the camera to pan over to Corroded Coffin playing a sweet ballad that Steve knew was your favorite.

The screen faded to black and the audience erupted into applause before the real previews resumed and the eventual movie.

Steve listened intently for some sign of life from the projection booth, but aside from a few footsteps and the door opening and closing again, there was nothing.

After the movie was over and all of his friends went their respective ways, Steve sat by his car until the end of your shift. When the last lights of The Hawk marquee finally turned off and the employees all started filing out, he knew he was holding his breath.

The last person out of the building was you, and as you turned around and spotted him, you stopped in your tracks.

Just like the other day at Family Video, it was a standoff between you and Steve, and although Steve wished that you would just come running into his arms to kiss him, insisting your forgiveness, he knew things were never that easy.

"That, uh...was something," you finally broke the silence.

"It was, wasn't it," he agreed.

"Was that your idea?" you asked. "Pretty sure those were all your friends in there."

"Yeah I bought out the whole theater."

"You bought...seriously?"

"I wanted to make sure you weren't embarrassed...in case anyone else saw."

"And I wouldn't be embarrassed by your friends?" you scoffed.

"Well they all helped me make it so I think I was more embarrassed asking them all for help than you." You let out a long sigh and put your face in your hands and Steve started talking rapid-fire. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I know that sucks when...when I already did. But I promise I'll do better. I'll be better. I'll be anything you need me to be, I just...I need you back."

You said something but it was muffled by your hands.

"What?"

"I said," you pulled them away and looked up at him with watery eyes, and he felt his heart drop again. "Do you really love me? You said so...at the end of that...whatever that was."

"I mean...yeah I guess I do."

"You guess?" you laughed.

"I do!" Steve said with more confidence this time. "I do love you. I'm...sorry I didn't say anything sooner."

"I'm sorry you didn't either," you muttered. You closed the distance and grabbed the lapels of Steve's jacket in your hands, as though you were about to shake him. "Do you know...the real reason I was upset?"

"There's...a real reason?" he asked.

"Why I broke up with you."

"Oh. Uh...no."

"I mean," you took a great breath of confidence. "Yeah I was mad because you made me seem like a joke to your parents on Thanksgiving, and I know...I know their opinion doesn't mean that much to you. But after I left it got me thinking...what if you made a joke like that...because I was a joke. And maybe thats why nothing was ever coming of our relationship because it was just...you didn't care about me. You didn't...love me, the same way I loved you."

Steve felt the invisible hand clench around his heart; it was like Nancy all over again.

"Loved?" he whispered weakly, the sense of deja-vu undeniable. "Honey..."

"So I had to end it. To protect myself. And I took a long hard look at myself when I got to work. The what? Third job I had since I started at StarCourt? I realized that maybe...I was a joke. Maybe you were right, that I was...this job-hopping, unreliable...thing and that's why I quit. And I started looking...for a management position somewhere so I could be better."

"But you were already great," Steve assured. "Can we get back to that...loved thing?"

"Steven..."

"Sorry."

"Let me finish."

"Ok."

"And you know what I found out since I've been here?" you asked. "I...kind of hate working at a movie theater. And I need to leave again. I'm...I'm a free spirit. I can't be tied down to one kind of job. I saw an ad in the paper for an arts and crafts instructor at the Park District and I sort of wanna quit before applying, I would be great at that."

"You would," Steve laughed, still unsure of where this was going.

It was always a bit of a rollercoaster with you though, and it was another thing about you that he loved.

"So...tonight seeing all of that," you waved an arm behind you at the theater. "Seeing you...realizing that you loved me all along...I don't know. I don't need your love to keep being who it is that I am, it's just nice to know that you love me, the same way I love you."

"Love me?" he asked hopefully.

"Yeah."

He whispered your name desperately and then cupped your face in his hands.

"I love you Honey."

"I love you too, Steve Harrington."

You pulled him into you and smashed your lips to his. The heartbreak faded away from both of you, and in its place, undeniable love and affection for each other.

Steve Harrington might have been many things, he might have fucked up.

But he was happy to say he was someone who could fix it.

With love.

#Steve harrington x reader #Steve harrington fic #Steve harrington fluff #store manager verse #stranger things fic #Steve harrington stranger things

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bylertruth3r · 1 month

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signs that Mike loves Will back in case you're having doubts

1 Mike keeps staring at Will's lips

2 his relationship with Willl has always been something more than platonic and you can tell by how much physical touch with Will he initiated and even the bullies know there's something more between them because when they were being homophobic to Will they said those things to Mike's face

3 Mike was the one more affected by Will's disappearance and even Hopper could tell because he was the first one he interrogated in s1

4 in the previous seasons he had no problem hugging Will and being more physical with him but after s3 things started getting awkward between them because of Mike and he hugged Will in that weird way (he doesn't know Will is gay), he took what Will said "and us?" at rink o mania romantically and felt the need to clarify that they're friends twice even though he views Will as straight and then "in the closet (at rink o mania) started playing while the camera was on Mike and he started talking again

5 Mike is the one who starts most of Byler's interaction and he has a soft voice he only uses for Will (his Will voice)

6 he got really jealous in s2 when Will agreed to let Max join them for Halloween because he thought Will also liked Max like Dustin and Lucas did, at the snowball he pushed Will into dancing with that girl and then he regretted it a few seconds after that and moped about it next to Dustin who was moping about Max dancing with Lucas, in s4 he got jealous and thought Will made a painting for a girl (Angela) but then when in the van he realized Will loves him back and that the painting was for him he got really happy about it

7 Mike wasn't able to say "i love you" to El because he's in love with Will just like Nancy wasn't able to say it to Steve in s2 because she's in love with Jonathan

8 he said that his friends are great but they're not Will and that Hawkins wasn't the same without Will "you know Max, Lucas and Dustin they're great, they're great it's just.. it's Hawkins it's not the same without you" and he asked Will to be a team which parallels Hopper saying "we make a great team" to Joyce in s3

9 he said asking Will to be his friend was the best thing he's ever done (he already knew El in s2 btw)

#stranger things #byler #mike wheeler #mike wheeler is gay #will byers #stranger things 4 #jopper #jancy #miwi #stranger things 2 #stranger things 3

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wheelercurse · 2 years

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The painting plotline

or how the narrative was built for byler endgame.

Back in July first, I was angry because I thought they had used the painting that was introduced as something important between Mike and Will's relationship to fix the straight relationship. But when I questioned the writing choices, I realized I was wrong.

Do they really end this plotline with a lie when the main theme of season 4 was about telling truths?

The answer is no, of course; it was just one more step in their journey. So, the truth has to come out, and we have two outcomes: they will get together, or Mike will reject him. And some people think Mike won't reciprocate, but that doesn't make sense because why would they build this complicated plot only to end in... nothing? And I said nothing because if they remain just friends and Mike is still with El, we're back at how this plot started.

Anyway, when you view all this storyline in retrospect, you can see the painting plotline was built as a love story. They even used some classic romantic tropes with this one.

So, let's explain this better.

They introduced Will's character with the painting. Through El's letter, the first thing we learn about him is that he's painting something, and probably it's for a girl that he likes. So we knew that he was interested in someone, and Mike knew about this painting because he was reading the letter.

The next scene with the painting in it is the airport reunion. Will is excited to see his best friend again; we can assume this painting was for Mike. But then Mike gave him an awkward hug (first romantic trope). It's too common to see an awkward reunion between two characters, repressing feelings for each other. So, there's tension, but this doesn't end with the awkward hug. Mike looked at the painting, dropped his smile and asked about it, and Will avoided the question, saying it was nothing. There's tension between them. It's so blatant, and it was thanks to the painting.

The tension finally explodes with their fight (in the closet at Rink o Mania). Yes, there's no mention of the painting, but Will's bad mood started because of the airport reunion. And yes, Mike was upset about the stressful situation with El, but also because Will wasn't talking with him. Remember Will told him during the fight: "Mad that I didn't talk to you?" Will knows him better than anyone.

In this fight, we have another basic romantic trope: one character insists they are just friends. And Will didn't insinuate that he wanted to be more than friends, but Mike took it with romantic connotations. It's a classic trope to state there's nothing romantic between them when they're repressing feelings.

To solve this conflict between them, Mike went to apologize. In this emotional scene, they shared an intimate moment that got interrupted. Oh yes, another classic romantic trope they have used many times in the show.

In this scene, Mike has some dialogues with romantic connotations.

"Max, Dustin, and Lucas, they're great. It's Hawkins. It's not the same without you." "I feel like I lost you or something."

At the end of this scene, they were closer, so Will decided to take the painting with him.

Another relevant scene it's the one when Will told El that Mike wouldn't like that she was lying to him. Will hadn't lied to Mike yet, but he was already hiding his feelings for him. This little interaction isn't just about Mike and El's situation but also Will and Mike's. And later, it will also become relevant to the painting plotline.

Let's also mention another relevant scene: Mike and El fight. At first glance, it seems like it isn't important to this plotline, but it is because it introduces their main conflict: Mike can't say I love you. This is just a surface level; their problems go beyond that, there are a lot of insecurities and misunderstandings around them, but I'm not going to dig into these.

This scene is relevant to the painting's plotline because this painting is the thing that makes Mike finally utter those three words to El. I will explain more about it later.

Another important scene in this storyline is Mike and Will heart to heart in the desert. They are burying a body, and Will is staring at Mike with a lot of yearning; then Mike glances at him, and when he gets caught, he tries to look away. Another classic romantic trope.

They talked in the top of a car about the thing that Mike couldn't say to El, but he never mentioned what it was. Will told him:

"Sometimes it's scary to open up like that, especially with people you care about the most, because what if they don't like the truth?"

This line also refers to Will because he is scared of telling Mike how he really feels; he's in love with him. So, we are expecting that he will overcome his fear and be honest about his feelings, but he ends up lying.

The van scene. Mike opened up about his insecurities, and Will couldn't take Mike talking so little of himself, so he decided to give him the painting. And he gave him a speech, telling him that Mike is the heart, and he's a leader, he's the one who inspires and guides their group of friends, but he lied, saying that El was the one who commissioned the painting. Then, Will kept describing his feelings for Mike but used El's name as a disguise.

Mike was moved by these feelings. Will's words reassured him. Will has the love that Mike is looking in his failing relationship.

But remember that Mike knew about this painting, that's why he looked confused every time Will mentioned El's name. He was trying to connect the dots.

Let's move on to the monologue scene. It's fascinating how this scene should be just about Mike and El, but Will's presence is palpable. He even is in the shot when Mike said I love you for the first time.

Mike stumbled on his words, and Will touched his shoulder and told him:

"Don't stop, remember you're the heart."

That line reminds Mike and us (the audience) about their talk in the van. These feelings weren't from El, and Mike is about to give this speech with the wrong idea. He believed that the painting was from El, that she needed him, but he was wrong. That's the whole point. That's why they lost.

I have read people saying that Mike would have told El that he loved her without Will lying, but that was not what happened. This was a specific writing choice. Not only they wrote, Will disguising his feelings as El's, but he also reminded Mike about the painting, telling him that he's the heart, seconds before Mike tells his speech.

So yes, Mike finally utters these three words thanks to Will and his painting.

Another classic romantic trope: that one character is moved by these words or feelings, but they misattributed them, thinking they came from another character.

For example, Beverly thinks the poem was for Bill but then learns it was from Ben, so they end up together.

Half of it: Ellie writes letters to Aster, pretending that they are from Paul, and Aster falls in love with these words, and she gets closer to Paul, but in the end, after learning the truth, Aster and Ellie kiss.

Gossip Girl: A character asks Dan to write his vows, and he does it, so these words move Blair, and she falls in love with them. In the end, when she learns they are coming from Dan, they get together.

There are more stories with a similar plot, but with these three examples, you get the idea.

They didn't mention the painting again in s4 because their plan wasn't to solve this conflict until the last season. But they ended the season with Mike and El barely talking to each other, even when Mike said these three words that El wanted to hear, there’s still distance between them. And Mike and Will are closer than the way they started this season. They got another important conversation, where Will confided in him about Vecna, and Mike reassured him.

So if the painting was the solution to fix Mike/El’s conflict why the ones who ended being closer are Mike and Will?

And if it was the solution, the plotline will be over.

With this outline, you can see that Will’s arc was about telling the truth about his feelings, but he was scared and most important, he thought that there was no chance for him, so he pushed Mike and El together. He sacrificed his own happiness for them. So, he has to be rewarded from the narrative. Again, remember they’re characters, not real person. Yes, I know that a real person isn’t due to reciprocate, but in a story there should be a good pay-off for your character. More, if he’s a kid that have been suffered all the show, and they have taken so much from him.

And with Mike’s arc is similar. He was also hiding feelings. You can infer it for his actions, that he has feelings for Will. Some romantic tropes apply to him (looking away, awkward reunion, just friends, he created the intimate moment). But anyway his pov was hidden from the audience. He never confirmed that he in fact loved El, until the monologue that it was pushed by Will. When El asked him if he still loved her, he AVOIDED the question

“Who say that I didn’t?” “I say it” “You know what I THINK of you.”

And when he’s talking with Will, he never said that he should have told her how he feels, he just keep saying “I should have said that thing.” “I should have explained myself.” His arc also ended similar. At the end he wasn’t completely truthful about his feelings.

Now you can see how the narrative was built up to make them endgame. The painting was a plot device to develop their relationship, and this story isn't over until the truth comes out. And when that happens, they will get together. It's inevitable. It's carved in the narrative.

#byler #narrative byler #byler analysis

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findafight · 1 year

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hiii so i just saw a post where you were answering an anon and you said you had a lavender marriage stobin au, one where children break into their house and then get adopted (??), and one where steve has a half sister. if it’s not too much trouble can i have the links for those fics cause they seem rlly interesting and i would love to read all of that? thanks!! - 💜

haha Sure! here are the tags big brother steve au

and Hollywood Studio Era Lavender Marriage Stobin au

but also. I will elaborate under the readmore for Lavender's Blue because I haven't said anything about The Children and I love them so so much haha

They eloped right after Robin graduated, 1936, and end up leaving hawkins in fall of that year, after more than a year has passed since the upside down (in this au, everything is 50 years ealier and it's done after s3 and also hop isn't dead) They get a ground floor apartment in a sketchy part of LA. It's kinda shitty, has all of three rooms (bedroom, livingroom/kitchen, and somehow a private bathroom) Steve is working as a server at a diner and as a sort of gofer/physical labour/just do what we tell you to for the day guy at the same studio Robin rambled her way into being an editing assistant at.

He comes home one day in early 1937 to find a kid, no older than eight, eating a hunk of bread at the table. The child says "you should probably invest in better window locks." Before going back to the bread.

Steve blinks. Huffs. Says "well don't you think it's rather rude to stay for dinner without introducing yourself?"

Which is how Robin finds him with Charmaine, all seven years and 40 pounds of her, eating beans and corn on bread at the table with Steve. She just sighs, because of course he'd acquire another child less than six months away from Hawkins. Of course.

So it becomes routine, Sherry (as Steve has taken to calling her) shows up every few days for a meal or a bath, and slowly they learn that she's an orphan (unsurprising) and is living with a few other street kids who fell through the many wide cracks the Great Depression caused. Robin immediately invites them all to come over, have Steve cook up a nice big pot of chili for them and get them all washed up a bit. Sherry seems weary, but says she'll see.

At this point, it's spring 1937 and Steve's been asked to do a couple walk-on parts, and the studio seems to like his All-America look so is starting to shift him from "guy who does stuff we ask" to "guy who does stuff we ask but in front of the camera this time", which means he's getting a raise and can probably quit the diner job soon, and he and Robin can start looking for a better apartment but don't want to move without letting their newest gremlin know and making sure she's safe.

The next day sees Sherry and the kids she calls her siblings, five altogether, mismatched skin tone and heights and ages, standing outside Steve and Robin's apartment door fumbling with the key Steve gave her in case she needed to get in when they're not there.

One is clearly a toddler being held by a young teenager, another has a visible limp, and they all look dirty and scared. But they came, because Sherry said the Buckleys are actually half decent and invited them all, and Robin said they were welcome to stay whenever and Steve gave her a key, so they obviously won't get in trouble and they can always leave early because she knows their schedules. Steve stumbles home after a double shift at the diner to find them sprawled on the living room floor, bundled in blankets, asleep.

He tucks them in and is sure to make enough eggs in the morning.

After that...they just. Don't leave. Robin and Steve have a lot of talks about what to do about the kids, if they should move, how to ask the kids if they want to move in if they DO move.

Robin is getting more responsibility at work, Steve's being looked at for a role alongside Mae West that isn't a gangster (it's a lead romantic interest), and The Kids are becoming more Their Kids. The tiny shitty apartment is crawling with kids and eventually they sit everyone down and say "Hey. We need to move if you guys want to stay with us. Do you want to stay with us? We could, if you wanted, officially adopt you..."

So they do. Steve gets the part, playing a young sailor who falls in love with older married socialite Mae West, and his career really starts. (it has an infamous scene in which West stands on steps, looking down on Steve, who looks up at her, all big eyes and floppy hair. She says, with that famous Mae West drawl, "I'll devour you, kid." to which he says, breathless, "Please do." which barely gets passed the censors) They get a bigger apartment, the kids officially move in, and everyone at the studio realizes that the buckleys have a couple of tagalong kids now. The fanmags eat. it. up.

#stobin #qpr stobin #robin buckley #steve harrington #stranger things #platonic stobin #stranger things au #lavender's blue au #finda writes stuff #anonasaurus #findaanswers #lavender marriage stobin #the kids are so chaotic too haha

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love-byers · 2 years

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breaking down mike's apology to will

mike goes into will's room on his own and closes the door, he intends on having a private conversation

"thanks by the way."

"for what?"

"for knocking some sense into me i mean i was being a total self pitying idiot."

mike has clearly thought about this a lot since the roller rink day. it was a big day for mike. i encourage you all to rewatch the airport/roller rink scenes knowing A) mike was being a self pitying idiot and B) will was knocking some sense into him during their fight

"i didn't say it."

"you didn't have to."

what will said to mike made him realize he was being a self-pitying idiot, without will having to flat out say it

"which is why you decided to be a douche to her all day? [...] you were! you were! you were rolling your eyes, you were moping, you were barely talking you basically sabotaged the whole day!"

"well she was lying to you, mike! straight to your face ever since you got here! and i've been a total third wheel all day it's been miserable. so sorry if i wasn't- if i wasn't smiling."

[...]

"and us?"

"we're friends! we're. friends."

"well we used to be best friends!"

(tense silence)

mike had been a dick to will all day, right from the second he landed in cali. it's likely that this is because will had been pushing him away over the 6 months and it hurt mike's feelings. so when he gets there, he acts like he doesn't care and pretends to ignore him because he feels bad for himself and want to give will a taste of his own medicine. (it's also because he likes will and doesn't know how to act)

however, mike wheeler is a dumbass and couldn't keep the act up. seeing will mope and not talk got under his skin in a way he couldn't ignore. wills moping. wills not talking to him. it makes mike feel bad. and he lashes out at will because of self pity. self pitying idiot.

will implying they're not best friends anymore made mike realize he'd been a jerk to will for pushing him away when in reality will feels the same way mike does about this. but he's mike wheeler so he self pities more because he realized he was being self pitying

"hey, also, about the- about the last few days-"

mike went right from acknowledging his self pitying behavior to the last few days, aka the time period where he was acting weird. remember, mike went in will's room knowing what he was going to say.

"you don't have to say anything. i was being a total jerk to el..i deserved it."

"no—no you didn't deserve anything."

remember when mike said "which is why you decided to be a douche to her all day?"

will says he was being jerk to el because he thinks that's why mike was being weird. he thinks that's what mike was about to talk about. he thinks this is about el, but it's not. and i know that because:

"listen, the truth is, the last year has been weird, you know?"

mike goes straight from talking about being a self pitying idiot, to the weird past few days, to how weird he's felt since will moved. which means all three of those are connected. mikes behavior was because of how he's felt since will moved. if will didn't cut him off when he said "about the last few days" mike would've explained how his weird behavior is because of how he's felt since will left.

and how has he felt? well:

"and you know, max, and lucas, and dustin, they're- they're great, they're great, it's just...it's hawkins, it's not the same without you."

i was being a self pitying idiot –> i've been weird to you the last few days –> it isn't the same without you and you're different from my other friends

home isn't the same without will to mike. not only was he hurting because of the move, but will was pulling away and not reaching out so it made everything hurt worse. mike was will-less for a whole six months and felt bad for himself.

"and i feel like maybe i was worrying too much about el...i don't know maybe i feel like i lost you or something. does that make sense?"

let's add to it:

i was being a self pitying idiot –> i've been weird to you the last few days –> it isn't the same without you and you're different from my other friends –> i feel like i've lost you since you moved

we don't need to Prove that mike was being weird because of how he felt after will moved, because he tells us himself

#byler #byler analysis #byler endgame

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the-lark-ascending69 · 22 days

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your nancy wheeler whump is incredible, ty for the food

— sincerely, a nancy wheeler fan who is also a whump enjoyer

About this post, I think.

Omg anon hiii i'm so happy you liked it!! 🥰🥰 Nancy is such a whumpeable character, maybe because shes so broken inside already 💕 she's just a scared wet cat who needs to be wrapped up in a warm blanket.

A few headcanons for youuuu 💕💕

Robin's parents will be out of town for a few months (they're visiting family far away), so she has the house all to herself, and since the Wheelers are gone and Nancy has nowhere to go, that's where they take her.

Steve and Robin spend a long time looking for the Wheelers. They make a hundred phone calls a day but they keep hitting dead ends. The Wheelers left Hawkins shortly after Nancy was "confirmed" dead, and Mike quickly lost contact with his friends. Finding them has become impossibly difficult, and Steve and Robin worry that they'll never get to tell them Nancy is alive. Nancy misses them like crazy.

The party gets involved super quickly - Lucas, Dustin and Will, as well as the two new kids, Max and El. The boys all cry when they see Nancy, and to Nancy it feels like having siblings again, three new little brothers to try to fill in the space left by Mike and Holly. Max and El just want to help - they're excited to finally meet Nancy Wheeler, Mike's famous sister - he never shut up about her. He always talked about how smart and brave she was and how nothing has been the same since she died. Nancy was a bit surprised to know Mike said that about her, and it only makes her cry. She misses her brother so much.

Max in particular spends a lot of time with Nancy. She helps take care of her when Steve and Robin can't.

Will makes a lot of drawings for Nancy, and she keeps them all by her bedside. She particularly loves the one portraying her family - Mom, Mike, Holly, yes, even her dad.

Nancy experiences a lot of ugly withdrawal symptoms after having been on drugs so heavily for so long. Lots of vomiting and headaches.

Hopper gets involved in her case. She tells him everything, and he begins his investigation. He visits every now and then - it's in his nature. Up until two years ago, he was a father without daughter, and Nancy is a daughter without parents and a sister without siblings. It's only natural when El shows up at Robin's house to spend more and more time with Nancy, happy to have an older sister figure, even if she takes care of Nancy more than Nancy takes care of her. And it's only natural for Hopper to visit a few times a week to ask how she's doing and make sure all her needs are met.

Joyce is overjoyed to hear she's alive, and soon joins Steve and Robin in their search for the Wheeler's new number. She brings food whenever she can and instantly takes on a motherly role in Nancy's life. She agrees that it's best for Nancy to stay at Robin's for the time being, since Joyce and Jonathan spend a great deal of time at work and she'd be all alone for most of the time, but she plans on taking her to live with them when Richard and Melissa Buckley come back.

Jonathan awkwardly tries to help as well - he's often busy with work, but he stops by whenever possible to see if she needs anything. Nancy appreciates that.

Nancy hates appearing weak, but she's set off by the smallest thing - the party's boys hi-fiving each other reminds her of the way soldiers raised their hands to hit her. Steve's loud laughter reminds her of the way the general used to laugh when she cried. Out of the house, she's terrified of needles and hates getting blood tests or vaccines, and going to the dentist is paralyzing - the clattering of the instruments on the metal tray, the shapes of them so similar to the ones they used to rip her nails out, the horrible feeling of foreign objects in her mouth... she has two reactions to these things: she either freezes or she breaks. Freezing includes being almost completely non-verbal, trembling slightly but obeying every order. Breaking includes a lot of crying and panicking.

Her sleep schedule is all messed up - sometimes she can't sleep for more than three hours. Sometimes she blacks out for 18 hours straight. She can never seem to go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day, and she often suffers from nightmares.

She likes cuddling with either Steve or Robin, or even better, both of them. Sandwiched between the two of them, she almost feels like a little kid sleeping between her parents.

Robin really really really didn't like bathing Nancy, or helping her dress up. It feels like she's taking advantage of her. She feels the same when she shares a bed with her. Steve is the one to largely take care of Nancy when it comes to those things. They're still dating, technically, though at this point Nancy can't say she feels love for him. She clings to him because he's familiar, and he loves her, and he makes her feel safe. She appreciates him and cares deeply about him, but if she's honest with herself... she can't love him. She can't bring herself to say that to Steve, of course - after everything he's done for her, she just... tries so hard to convince herself she loves him in the way she's supposed to.

She actually quite enjoys Robin's company, and in part, she'd prefer it if it was her doing all of this for her. Robin can't bring herself to refuse when Nancy asks. They've slept together many times, Nancy cuddled into her chest. It makes Robin's heart ache, but she pushes those feelings down - creep, she thinks to herself. Freak. Pervert. Last thing Nancy needed was a person she trusted secretly lusting after her like a... like the dyke she was.

Nancy realizes she's not having a nice dream at the end of her first day after being rescued. She's drinking a cup of tea with Robin, talking about mindless things - Robin just wanted to make her feel comfortable and she supposed keeping it simple would be best, so she tells her about band and the time she passed out during a school play audition from the nerves. And Nancy looks down at her cup, feels its heat in her hands and the sweet taste in her mouth, and the soft texture of Robin's clean clothes on her skin. She hears the crickets outside, the creaking of the wooden floorboards when Robin paces, and it dawns to her that she is free. She suddenly breaks into tears, and Robin freaks out - calls Steve - and they both try her best to comfort her. Nancy hugs herself - she wants her mother and brother and little sister, it breaks her heart to know they left, that they thought her dead. But somehow, in Robin and Steve's arms, she feels warm. Safe, for the first time in years.

#whump #whumpee nancy wheeler #my posts #she baby #ronance #<< target audience

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cygninae · 5 months

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You said you like Stranger Things in one of your asks, who's your favourite character? Also which character do you personally most relate to and which character do you find the most interesting and/or complex (and please feel free to elaborate in great detail!)

Hello, thank you for the ask! This is such a hard question but I'll try to answer to the best of my ability.

If I had to choose, my favourite character is probably Nancy. I mean, she's just really cool. I love how she's evolved over the seasons and how it reflects on her physical character design (hair, costume, etc). I love how she interacts with the people around her because it is so interesting. For example, in the fight she has with Jonathan in S3, she is trying to show him the misogyny she's been facing and is getting extremely frustrated at him for not seeing it, but at the same time she is blind to the classism he's facing and his difficulties with his poverty. She didn't have ill intentions, she just felt so so strongly that she became sort of tunnel-visioned. I love her passion, how she sees everything around her with a need for justice, how everything is worth her time because she wants to know things. I LOVE that her career goal is a journalist because I could truly see her thriving in that when she finds a niche. I can't wait for her to leave Hawkins and go to university and find herself because she has this potential, this spark that makes her so unique from the other characters to me. Whenever she's on screen it's HER scene, you know.

Funnily enough, the character I would say I relate most to is Jonathan. Or kind of a mix between him and Nancy. He also has this immense passion, like Nancy, but his is like a precise volt of energy into his photography and he hides this passion beneath a dark exterior that he hopes will ward people off. I may be a terrible photographer, but I relate to the concentration of all of your fervency into this one part of life that gives you a sense of being needed. Jonathan needs to feel needed. We can see that in how he's falling off the rails in S4, because his brother doesn't really need him anymore - Will is growing up, Nancy is busy in a whole other state, El has Will and Joyce - and Jonathan is lost without being needed by these people, so he turns to weed for an escape because it stops him thinking. (BIG FUCKING RELATE).

I fucking love Jonathan. I need him to catch a break because he's been through so much. Anyway, I'm not sure what else I can say about him, because there is SO much. I could make another post about Jonathan if anyone would be interested - I could make it far more organised than this.

You also asked who I found most fascinating, but I suppose I've sort of covered that, so I'll just ramble on a bit about some pairings I like? (You invited this I'm afraid.)

As one may guess I absolutely love Jonathan and Nancy. I don't think their relationship is the healthiest but that doesn't stop me being obsessed with everything about their pairing and the aesthetic of it. I think daily about that scene of them lining up their scars. What they want through was unique to them and they found themselves in each other when the trauma made them feel alone. They wound themselves together because all of their pain was reflected in eachother - and while that's not a great reason to start dating, I truly think they fell in love with eachother as they did this, and I can't blame them for wanting to find the slightest bit of comfort after what they went through. I love how dark and twisted the reason for their love is. I love how softly they hold eachother despite it. I love how they talk about the other when they're not there, how despite all of the darkness in their lives, they're eachother's anchor to the real world. I love how their career goals line up, the journalist and the photojournalist, and I love how Nancy brings Jonathan's passion out of him and let's him show it in front of her without being afraid of being judged, and he let's her follow her dreams, her thirst for knowledge, even if it means him losing the one girl who makes his life worth living. He's willing to leave her life if it means she can live it fully.

Anyway, some other dynamics I like are Will and Mike - romantically, Lucas and Max - romantically and Will and El - sibling dynamic. I really do hope Mike and Will can get together in the final season, because I think it would draw the show to this really nice close. Yes, the freak can have his true love. He can be loved because he is a freak, he is different - they're both different, but with eachother they're Kings of the world. Society's expectations don't matter when they have eachother.

With Max and Lucas, they are just so sweet. Lucas might not fully understand Max's depression and grief, but he wants to understand it. Something about that complete devotion, even when Max isn't being herself, just pulls at my heart. I really want an unconditional love like that. Max might've thought that Lucas was changing, that he wouldn't care about her after becoming popular - but then he's there, when she's almost died because of Vecna, and he's telling her I'm here, i'm here, I'm here, and he's holding her so tight that she can feel that he won't let anything happen to her. They are just like... soulmates. Seriously. They fit together like puzzle pieces and they NEED eachother. I really, really hope Max is cognitive in S5 because I need her and Lucas to just talk to eachother and hold hands and be teenagers in love despite the world falling apart around them. Yeah.

Sorry if I didn't make much sense, once again i wrote this all with no structure and just spoke my mind so it may seem disjointed. Hope I answered your question though and made it a bearable enough read.

#asks #stranger things #jancy #byler #willel #lumax #jonathan byers #nancy wheeler

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nowmemoriees · 2 years

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HOPPER'S LETTER × BYLER

- season 3 finale analysis

Now that y'all are bringing up Hopper's letter again, it's time to reinforce byler coding affirmations here.

We know there are some parts of this letter that are related to Mike's feelings, and part of this has already been pointed out before season 4. But this new season made this make much more sense.

- "Feelings.... Jesus, the truth is, for so long I've forgotten what those even were."

- "Lately, I guess I've been feeling.. distant from you. Like you're pulling away from me or something."

Season 4 perfectly demonstrates this is about Mike's feelings about Will. First of all, at the end of season 3, Eleven said "I love you" to him, so how could Mike think she was pulling away from him?.

But then we remember he had a fight with Will, a fight he could never apologize for, a fight that messed up all of those years they've spent together.

"Listen, the truth is the last.... year, has been weird. Max, and Lucas and Dustin, they're great. It's just, it's Hawkins, it's not the same without you".

That's why Mike says "the last year." because they haven't seen each other for 6 months, but Mike already felt he was losing Will even before that. When he was dating El.

Season 4 starts and Mike finds out (through another letter 👀) that Will may like someone else and is painting for someone else. Mike tried to call Will so many times, but Will never picked up the calls, so Mike thought he had already lost Will.

"I feel like I lost you or something."

Then we keep listening to Hopper's letter.

- "I miss playing board games every night"

The focus is now on the abandoned cabin. In season 3, Mike and Will's fight was because of this. Missing playing board games. Of course is something deeper than that. -Missing doing the things you love with the one you love, as it used to be.-

In season 4, we saw that Mike joined a DnD club. He was doing what he loved again, but not with the one he loved. Lucas and Dustin were great, but it was not the same without Will.

And Will also says something about this.

"We could play DnD and Nintendo for the rest of our lives". He still wants to spend the rest of his life playing with Mike. Nothing has changed.

We are shown the abandoned cabin as the letter voiceover keeps going. It looks exactly how we see it again in season 4... with Mike and Will in there, having their last heart-to-heart until the catastrophe starts again.

- "I know you're getting older, growing...

...changing" (and the focus is on Mike again)

"I guess, if I'm being really honest, that's whats scares me....

Here we have the demonstration that Mike was thinking about Will. He was looking at HIS house. Otherwise, he could have gone through hopper's cabin. but he didn't.

... I don't want things to change."

- "So I think that's why I came in here. To try to maybe.. stop that change. To turn back the clock, to make things go back at how they were."

And this is the confirmation. This scene perfectly parallels the scene in season 1 where Mike thought Will was d3ad.

In both scenes Mike believed he lost Will.

So, Hopper's letter hinted Mike's feelings towards Will and it explains Mike's behavior in season 4. But people still believe that Mike could not be bi/gay because that idea came out from no where? sureee....

#stranger things #byler #st4 #mike wheeler #byler is endgame #theories analysis

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dukeofspiders · 2 years

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"Sometimes I think it's just scary to open up like that. To say how you really feel, especially to the people you care about the most. Because what if they don't like the truth?"

"But the truth is, when I stumbled on her in the woods, she just needed someone."

"Listen, the truth is, the last year has been weird, you know?"

"Maybe I should've said something, and if I would've said that thing..."

"It's not fate."

"And I mean, you know, Max and Lucas and Dustin, they're great. They're great. It's just…"

"I should have explained myself. But I didn't know what to say."

"It's not destiny."

"It's Hawkins. It's not the same without you."

"I am scared that one day you'll realize you don't need me anymore. And I thought if I said how I felt, it would somehow make that day hurt more."

"It's just simple dumb luck."

"I feel like maybe I was worrying too much about El, and I don't know, maybe I feel I lost you or something."

Mike loves El, but not the way she wants him to. And Mike knows that. He knows that El isn't that scared little kid that needs him anymore, and if he tells her how he really feels, it would make the day she realizes that hurt more. Because Mike does care for her, so much. He thinks if he had said that thing, if he had explained himself, that she would still need him. But Mike doesn't like lying. By omitting the truth, he can still keep her by his side. He believes the only way he can do that is by reciprocating her romantic love for him, but Mike can't do that, so he didn't know what to say.

In his mind El only needs him now because she loves him, but if she knows that he doesn't love her back like that...she'll leave him. To Mike, El’s need for him hinges on their romantic relationship, and if that's gone then he’ll lose her. So in the end he encourages her with the words he thinks she wants to hear. He says that thing, because then she’d want him there with her—even if he didn't mean it in the same way that she does. Even if the person he truly wanted to say those words to was right behind him.

#oh the obviousness of it all #i know this has all been said a million times before #but i have mike wheeler on the brain and i had to write my thoughts down lmao #don't mind me just screaming into the void #byler #analysis #byler endgame #byler analysis #mystuff

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eclipsebyler · 1 year

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Mike and the “Truth” (A Long Analysis)

I always think about this S4 Byler heart to heart in the desert and how we understood the queer-coding of Will’s statements here:

And how Mike nods along with it, like he understands and agrees with the sentiment: "Because what if they don’t like the truth?”

Which will always baffle me because it doesn't make sense that he agrees here given the context of his problem.

Mike was opening up about his situation with El in this scene. How he wasn't able to tell everything to her. How he couldn't say I love you to her. He's thinking that maybe if he did do that, he would still have El by his side.

He didn't say the full details of the problem to Will. He keeps it vague. And Will tries to empathize with it anyway with his own thoughts. Something that he relates with about 'not being able to tell someone how you feel' and adding how 'scary it is because they might not like the truth'. And Mike nods in understanding.

But... why would vocalizing his love for his girlfriend a truth she wouldn’t like? When El herself has cried and confronted him about it and was asking him to reassure her that he still loves her. It’s something El has been waiting for and would love to hear. It shouldn't have made him feel scared or made him think she wouldn't like it or that it would hurt if he said it because it hurt her more that he didn't.

Unless this isn't what Mike is thinking about in this scene. Maybe he has another thing he is scared of her knowing, something she definitely wouldn't want to hear. Maybe there’s another reason why he’s having a hard time vocalizing his love for her — the full truth that he's holding back to say.

And what could possibly be a truth he’s scared El might not like?

In a few S4 scenes, we see Mike opening up about the truth to his feelings. He even starts his statements with it when he slowly gets vulnerable.

1 - The bedroom heart to heart scene

The truth: His best friends are great, but they’re not Will. Will’s presence in his life is different from the others. Hawkins, their hometown, isn’t the same without him.

If we recall in S1, Dustin insisted that Lucas was Mike’s best friend after they fought — Mike denies this and says all of them are important to him. Lucas, Will and Dustin are all equal in Mike’s eyes at this point of canon, they're all his best friends.

But then in S4, he says Max and Lucas and Dustin are different to Will. Will is in a tier higher than them now. There must be a gradual shift to how he sees Will through the years as they grew older. He’s more than a best friend to Mike now.

And then another truth he opens up about is that he felt like he lost Will because of worrying too much about El.

Being in a relationship with El made him lose Will, has affected his friendship with him— but not his friendship with the other party members. This is another proof pointing towards Mike seeing Will differently from his other friends.

Instead, Will’s always being compared beside El — his supposed love interest. Mike even makes the comparison himself in their rink-o-mania fight.

When Will asks why he's been distant and didn't communicate with him for the past year, no letters, little to no phone calls; Mike retaliates with the reasoning that Will’s not his lover (like El is) for him to do that. He emphasizes they’re just friends.

What’s interesting in this scene is that Will isn’t even implying that. He just wanted to be close to be Mike again, like they used to be — best friends.

Mike made the implication himself that if he did send a letter to Will, if he did call him as much — it would mean something more. Even though that’s a simple communication that should be normal you do with friends. Unless Mike has started thinking differently and have this exact train of thought when he thought of reaching out to Will.

It wouldn't be farfetched. Given that Will did the same thing — he didn’t reach out as much to Mike and we know why. He must have been scared Mike would catch up on his feelings, that Mike would notice he's acting weird. He pushed him away because he’s scared of losing him.

(Mike has also felt weird the past year. Mike has also pushed Will away on a few occasions. It's easy to assume and put two and two together.)

2 - The van scene

The truth: He doesn’t believe El needs him. He thinks she just needed someone, that anyone could have found her in that moment but he just got lucky that night. Their first meeting is not fate nor destiny, it’s just simple dumb luck.

Mike is having doubts about their relationship just like El is. El thinks he doesn’t love her, and Mike thinks she doesn’t need him. They don’t believe in each other anymore because they both see what’s happening in their relationship. Where Mike couldn’t say nor even write the world love to El even after being together for long, meanwhile there’s El who couldn’t depend on Mike and tell him the real situation of her life in Lenora.

They’re slowly losing trust in each other, or rather, losing trust in their romantic relationship. (Or maybe they have already lost it.)

3 - The pizza dough freezer scene

The truth: Mike doesn’t know how to live without El. His life only started to have meaning or purpose when they found her in the woods. He fell in love at her at first sight and has loved her every day since.

Mike’s monologue is an emotional speech of everything El needed to hear at this moment. Mike finally says he loves her, tells her that the reason why he couldn’t say it is because it would hurt at the end if she didn’t need him anymore, and not because he was scared of her (in relation to her worries of being perceived as a monster). He goes on a long list of how much he believes in El’s abilities and that she could do anything, that he loves and accepts her for who she is. But more than anything, El is his superhero.

Now I don’t believe everything he said here is a total lie like most people say it is. Mike does love and cares so much about El, he does believe in her and he’s scared of losing her. El is important to him, just as she is to everyone else she loves.

But some of the things he says here are very contradictory and doesn’t sound like the full truth — especially in relation to their romantic relationship. One of the biggest ones being how he says their first meeting is this fateful night where he fell in love with her. Out of all the sweet and cute moments between Mike and El, why is their first meeting (a horrible night for everyone no less) something he focused on and made it sound so romantic?

It’s hard to believe because previously he admits that their first meeting is just simple dumb luck and suddenly it’s this grand romantic night of him meeting his first love.

Nevertheless, this whole speech is Mike pouring out his love and care for El.

However, between these three major scenes where Mike opens up about his feelings — which of these sounds like a truth Mike is scared of El knowing, a truth she (and the people he cares for) wouldn’t like?

Definitely not his grand love confession, because everyone already knows he loves El. If anything, El is the only one left doubting it and waiting to hear it. Mike finally says it, and whether El believes everything he said or not, we’re not sure of yet. But one thing for sure is Mike said everything she needed and would love to hear, not the opposite.

“Sometimes, it’s just scary to open up like that. To say how you really feel. Especially to people you care about the most. Because what if they don’t like the truth?”

The only narratives that could fit this sentiment is the first two truths he says in his heart to hearts with Will.

Mike might be scared of admitting that Will is more than a best friend to him now. He already grew romantic feelings for him. His life isn’t the same without Will. Mike has felt like he lost him because of El. And he wants him back like they used to. To be a team together, again.

And it also fits with how Mike admits that his relationship with El isn’t fated to happen and that it’s not going to last any longer. That after everything is over, he believes El won’t need him anymore. That with her, he feels like he’s just some random nerd who doesn’t have anything worth loving about him. Mike feels inferior to El, the same way El feels with him. They’re both stuck in this relationship that doesn’t help them grow individually.

Both of these are neither of the things he admits to El in the pizza dough freezer. He didn’t tell her the full truth (and given the grave situation at hand, I can understand why he couldn’t. El needed encouragement, not more disappointments). But more than that, Mike might still be scared of fully admitting and coming to terms with everything he feels.

I truly believe that in S5, all of these truths will be unpacked and come full circle. The biggest catalyst of it would definitely be the painting and the "You're the heart" speech. And it would affect all relationships involved one way or another: El and Mike. Mike and Will. And maybe to some extent, Will and El.

#byler #mike wheeler #it's not a normal day if I don't overanalyse mike #and whatever goes on in his head #mike's going to come terms with the truth soon #the truth being: he's bisexual #or gay #both works for me but I'm a Bi Mike truther!#more importantly he's very in love with will #and he and el work better as platonic friends #platonic elmike in s5!!!

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