#VHS tapes will not fit in Steve's back jeans pocket

[s-wordsmith]

Something I really need Stranger Things fic writers to know is that no one in rural America was locking any doors in the eighties apart from the government and businesses. I remember when there was a big stink about "we gotta start locking our doors now how am I supposed to remember that every time I leave the house." People didn't lock the doors when they were home until at LEAST the mid-aughts, a lot of people STILL don't. "Oh we can't get into so-and-so's house/car because we don't have the keys!" You do not need the keys, just open the door. "I'm alarmed because I went over to so-and-so's house and their front door was unlocked so I instantly knew something was wrong." It would be much weirder if it was locked. If I showed up at my friend's house and the door was locked I would immediately assume something was wrong. If I lived in a town regularly invaded by monsters and patrolled by mobs of government agents/Russian spies/jocks with guns, I would assume my friend was currently being hunted.

#stranger things #pretty sure Will just walked into his house in the first episode #I know Mike did when he brought Eleven home #None of these doors are locked #Please stop including it as plot points because it takes me right out of the story and leaves me staring into space #Also while we're at it: #VHS tapes will not fit in Steve's back jeans pocket #That's not happening #And it is completely normal for the Wheelers to not know where their two oldest kids are #Parents in the eighties expected you to show up for breakfast and for dinner and that's it #Sometimes you bike to the other side of town to get up to trouble with your friends and that's just how it is #If you were inside they were concerned about your health #And no one was particularly stressed about being able to reach anyone because that was the usual state of things #Sorry for the rant #So many of you are too young to have known the carefree days of the height of serial killers lol #Kids rarely went missing and most people had only ever heard of murders and other serious crimes in the big city #No one in Hawkins is concerned except the people who have dealt with the monsters

[fanficsfromyesteryear]

DOUBLE TROUBLE

A STRANGER THINGS ONE SHOT

— PAIRING: Steve Harrington x Reader + Dustin Henderson — WORD COUNT: 1,027 — WARNINGS: Steve getting bullied again- None?? Like, one curse word- — REQUESTED BY: Anonymous

Hey if you dont mind I got a fallow up idea to movie buff? The reader and Dustin met for the first time and drive steve crazy cuz now theres two people making fun of his movie knowledge

— A/N: Sorry for the wait on this one!! It’s not the best thing I’ve ever written, but I think it turned out ok?? Something’s better than nothing, though, right? It was a fun concept, I just went through a period of writer’s block, but I finally pushed through. Anyway, I hope you guys like it!!

Steve knew he was in for trouble when you and Dustin Henderson walked into Family Video side-by-side. He had no idea how the two of you knew each other, but as far as he was concerned, it was a match made in Hell. Actually, you didn’t have a clue as to who the curly-haired boy was who had held the door open for you, but much to Steve’s dismay, you were about to.

You didn’t have a movie to return this time, so just to humor Steve, you went to peruse the shelves before making a beeline to the counter with the sole purpose of bugging him. Dustin, however, wasted no time making his way over to where Steve stood, carefully watching the two of you.

As you half-heartedly scanned the movie selection, it hadn’t been your intent to eavesdrop on the conversation between the two boys, but it was nearly impossible not to—they weren’t exactly trying to be quiet, so their voices easily carried through the otherwise empty store. You couldn’t tell what they were saying, though—Steve and Dustin were talking over each other to the point that their words mingled and overlapped to form a jargon indiscernible to anyone but them. Every once in a while, however, you picked up bits and pieces of sentence fragments.

“—not even that good!” the curly-headed kid was saying. “You just think Molly Ringwald’s hot!”

Steve scoffed. “Oh, come on,” he said, throwing his hands up in exasperation. “What’s wrong with the Breakfast Club?”

“What’s wrong with the Breakfast Club?” Dustin repeated. “Are you shitting me? There’s no plot, and—”

“No plot? You’re joking, right?” Furrowing his eyebrows, Steve leaned forward to study the younger boy. “The Breakfast Club, like, defines our whole generation! We’re all caught in these social constructs, but with the power of friendship, we can overcome our differences!”

“Since when do you,” Dustin said, jabbing a finger towards Steve accusingly, “care about overthrowing the social hierarchy? Last time I checked, you wouldn’t date a girl because you thought she’d bring you down a rung.”

“I’m a changed man!” Steve placed a hand to his chest to punctuate his words with conviction.

“Oh, sure,” Dustin answered dubiously. “Either way, the Breakfast Club is so slow I’d rather watch paint dry.”

“He’s got a point.”

The two boys turned, clearly startled, as if they’d forgotten you were there, and stopped their bickering to look to where you were leaning against the end of the counter.

Steve groaned. “Oh, no,” he said. “Don’t you start up, too!”

You held your hands up defensively. “All I’m saying,” you said, “is that the Breakfast Club isn’t nearly as good as everyone makes it out to be.”

“There it is,” Steve muttered as he dragged a hand through his hair, his voice barely audible above the large sigh that followed his defeated statement. 

Dustin, ignoring Steve’s already fed-up attitude, extended an arm to you and raised his eyebrows at Steve as if to say, ‘See? I told you so.’

“After what happened with St. Elmo’s Fire,” you continued, focusing your gaze on Steve, “I’m a little surprised you’re not upset over the fact it’s not about a club for people who like eating breakfast.”

“What happened with St. Elmo’s Fire?” asked Dustin, a toothy grin spreading across his face in excited curiosity.

You opened your mouth to explain but were cut off by the sound of Steve’s hand as it loudly slapped against his forehead. “Jesus, Y/N. Are you ever gonna let that go?”

“Probably not,” you said, smiling smugly. “I mean, you thought Elmo was gonna pop over from Sesame Street to make a surprise appearance.”

“Seriously?” asked Dustin, his tone wavering as he held back a laugh.

“Oh, yeah. I couldn’t make something like that up.”

“Alright, are you guys done?” Steve said, nearly shouting to be heard over Dustin, who was doubled over in a fit of giggles. “Because believe it or not, I actually have stuff to do, so, if you guys are through being little dickheads, I’m gonna be on my way.” Instead of walking away from the conversation, however, Steve simply crossed his arms with a frown and puffed out his chest to give himself the appearance of a man who meant business.

Reaching across the counter, you grabbed one of Steve’s arms and gave it a tug. “Aw, Steve, don’t be like that,” you said. “We’re just messing with you. Right—” Turning to Dustin, you realized that you had no idea what his name was, despite your immediate connection. After an awkward moment’s hesitation, you finally settled on, “—kid?”

“Totally!” Dustin agreed, offering a reassuring smile to Steve. “Your redeeming qualities definitely outweigh the bad ones.”

This seemed to appease Steve, but before he could properly accept your apologies, Robin appeared from the back of the store, her arms laden with VHS tapes. She looked between you and Dustin with raised brows. “Did you losers even come here to get anything?”

Dustin snorted. “No,” he answered.

Robin shook her head in amusement. “Scram,” she told the two of you with a small smile. “We’ve got work to do. These videos aren’t gonna shelve themselves.”

When Steve’s shift ended a few minutes later, he found you and Dustin seated on the curb in front of the store. “What are you guys still doing here?” he asked as he approached.

“Hm?” Your conversation with Dustin came to a screeching halt as Steve joined in. Resting your chin on your shoulder, you peered up at the older boy. “Oh, we were just talking about going to catch a movie.”

“They’re showing Alien downtown,” Dustin chimed in.

Steve grinned. “Cool!” he said. “I’ll drive.” He dipped his hand down into the pocket of his jeans to fish around for his keys while you and Dustin exchanged a look.

“Don’t bother,” you said, getting to your feet. The hint of a playful smile flashed across your lips. “It’s a grown-up movie. You probably won’t understand it.”

With a roll of his eyes, Steve threw his head back and let out a groan like a temperamental child. “Oh, come on—”

#steve harrington #dustin henderson #stranger things #steve harrington x reader #stranger things x reader #steve harrington one shot #stranger things one shot