#they're idiots with terrible communication skills it's canon

[unclewaynemunson]

Pt2 to this post

'Is something wrong?' Nancy asks, not long after the two of them have taken their familiar spots on the hood of Steve's car. They're basking in what might be the last warm sunlight of the year, looking out over the quarry, at a safe distance from the edge.

It's become a tradition the two of them share, ever since they reconnected back in March. It calms them both, to just sit here and take in the view, no one around but each other. Nancy is one of the few people Steve can share a comfortable silence with: sometimes they sit here quietly for what feels like hours, side by side, listening to music or to nothing but the birds singing around them. But they also have their best conversations here: it's the place where Nancy entrusted him she wanted to break up with Jonathan; it's the place where they talked about their shared past and decided they would always love each other as friends; it's the place where they finally talked about Barbara in a way they couldn't when they were younger. It's where Nancy talked about the ghosts still haunting her and Steve talked about how lonely he sometimes felt.

Steve huffs. 'How did you guess?'

'When you frown, you always do it with your whole face,' Nancy notes. 'So it's hard to miss, really.'

Steve glances at her side profile. There's a serenity to her features that's still relatively new. It means she's healing, slowly learning how to be happy again. It means she stopped waiting for the end of the world and started believing in a real future again. It makes Steve proud of how far they both have come.

'I had a fight with Eddie,' he confesses. 'And with Dustin, I guess.'

'What happened?'

He sighs. 'It's complicated.'

'Wanna tell me about it?'

The look in her eyes is kind and inviting. Steve hesitates. He wants to, but he doesn't know if he can. It's a risk. It's scary.

But he can't imagine Nancy Wheeler ever being careless with his secrets. He can't imagine her judging him, can't imagine her being as small-minded as most people in this town.

He was planning on telling her anyway, because things had been going so well with Eddie lately and – no, he shouldn't think about that right now. But maybe it would actually be nice to talk about it with Nancy.

'So, um...' His throat feels tight and his hands are sweaty. 'I recently discovered some things about myself. I-' The words get stuck somewhere on the way to his mouth, and he clears his throat.

Nancy doesn't push, but only gives him an encouraging nod, waiting for him to find his voice again.

'I found out I like boys,' he finally manages to confess. 'And I need you to know that – that that doesn't mean that what I felt for you wasn't real. It was. I loved you, and now I fell in love with a boy. And-'

'Steve.' Nancy's hand suddenly covers his, causing him to finally jerk his head away from the view over the quarry, to focus on her face again instead.

Her eyes are wide, and she squeezes his hand.

'You don't have to explain yourself to me,' she tells him. 'We're good. But thank you for telling me. For trusting me with this.'

Steve heaves out a relieved sigh, and Nancy smiles; it's that genuine kind of smile which reveals all kinds of dimples and soft lines across her face.

'We might be more similar than you thought,' she tells him, a faint blush spreading over her cheeks.

'Really?' Her words make his breath catch in his throat. He squints at her, trying to see her in this new light. 'Are you saying what I think you're saying?'

She shrugs. 'I don't know. I'm not sure yet,' she admits. 'Still figuring things out.'

'Take your time, there's no rush,' he tells her. 'But...' He bumps his shoulder against hers. 'When you're done figuring it out, talk to me, okay?'

She nods. 'Okay.'

For a while, it's quiet between the two of them. Some kind of raptor circles high above them in the sky. They both follow it with their eyes until it disappears among the tree tops west of the quarry.

'Is it Eddie?'

Steve blinks dumbly a couple of times.

'Wha- what?'

'The guy you were talking about. The one you fell in love with. It's Eddie, isn't it?'

'Jesus, Wheeler, what kind of sorceress are you?' Steve exclaims.

Nancy laughs again. 'You're not being as subtle as you think,' she tells him. 'The two of you have been hooking up for a while now, haven't you?'

Steve huffs dramatically. 'This is unfair. You know everything; I can't even tell you my own secrets anymore!'

'So what happened?' Nancy asks. 'You said you had a fight with him?'

'It's fucking stupid,' he sighs. 'Dustin was getting way too excited about the fact that I was gonna be hanging out with you, so I told him I was seeing someone. Next thing I knew, he was telling Eddie all about how I was seeing a girl.' He waves his hands around to make annoyed air quotations. 'I wanted to tell Eddie it was a misunderstanding, but Dustin was there, so I couldn't out us just like that, and he looked so betrayed and heartbroken... He didn't wanna listen to me.'

Steve sighs; he still can't manage to forget that look in Eddie's eyes when Dustin delivered the big news. 'I wish I would've talked about what I felt for him earlier. I should've been honest when I had the chance, y'know. But I was afraid he wouldn't wanna label what we had, that he wouldn't feel the same way – and now we're in this whole mess. God, he must hate me right now, Nance.'

To his surprise, Nancy gives him an unexpected slap against his arm.

'Ouch, what the hell was that for?!'

'What are you even doing here with me, Steve? You should've gone after him, tell him how you feel!'

'I tried, obviously, but he didn't wanna listen to me!'

'So make him listen! You're in love with him, he obviously feels the same way about you, and you let him leave to wallow in a broken heart he doesn't even need to have!' She rolls her eyes and slides off the car, adding something under her breath that sounds suspiciously like an exasperated 'Boys!' before she pulls Steve off the car as well. 'C'mon, time to get your ass over to the trailer park. Right. Now,' she says through gritted teeth. And, well, Steve knows better than to argue with a determined - and truthfully quite terrifying - Nancy Wheeler.

Read the last part here Taglist: @withacapitalp @ultimatedreamer104 @irregular-child @jcmadgirl @estrellami-1 @myguiltyartpleasure @hallucinatedjosten @jaybren @thew1ldblueyonder @melodymeddler @alycatavatar @zoeweee @lolawonsstuff @fairy-princette @saramelaniemoon @phirex22 @krazyperson @xxsky-shockxx (I only put people on this list who explicitly asked to be tagged. That's really no problem, I love to do that so dw about asking, but I got a lot of relatively vague reactions to the previous post that i'm not gonna dissect and interpret, bc I don't wanna clog anyone's notes unwanted. So just to be clear: i consider it a huge compliment if anyone asks for a tag but please do it clearly if you do!)

#look i can and i will exploit the miscommunication trope until yall are sick and tired of it #bc steddie is actually the perfect couple for keeping that trope believable #they're idiots with terrible communication skills it's canon #they WOULD #“can't you just talk to him?” “wait what i can????” IT'S SO THEM OKAY #nancy is the only sane person here i don't make the rules #don't mind me rambling about stranger things #steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #nancy wheeler #platonic stancy #(i love platonic stancy they mean the world to me) #(i truly didn't mean to trick anyone into reading about them this just kinda. happened. idk) #this is making me wanna write more about their friendship actually they deserve their own fic #stranger things #fruity ficlet

[lollytea]

Darius n willow dynamics hc please

Hunter stayes at darius s place quite often (post canon) so they have small talks while willow waits for Hunter to get ready etc

(obsessed w her as darius s equivalent in dana s art)

Ohhhhhhh I have SO MANY Darius and Willow dynamic headcanons

I think it's so funny to imagine Darius and Willow having a frenemy-type relationship. Partly because Darius is just Like That with all children cuz ew children and partly because Willow is literally never going to get over their first meeting and refuses to let Darius forget it either.

She frequently reminds him of just how terribly he handled that whole situation. She's mad about how many hours it took her to wash his stupid abomination goo out of her hair. She cannot BELIEVE a grown man seriously botched what should have been such a simple task to such fantastically idiotic proportions. All he had to do was employ some basic communication skills. HOW did he fuck this up so bad? Willow isn't even all that angry. She doesn't really hold grudges (anymore) but she's so just astounded by his audacity that she can never let it go.

Everytime she gets started on this Darius is like "Really? Really? We're still on this, are we? Haven't you ever considered finding something else to get riled up about? I hear they're raising the price of griffin eggs. Where's the rage for the failing economy?? Kids these days get abducted on an evil government airship once and its all they talk about for the rest of their lives."

Darius never admits to any mistakes on his part and insists he had the situation entirely under control. But if she weren't in such a hurry to abandon ship...Oh, this gets Willow hopping mad. Darius will dig his heels in further until they're having a full blown debate.

Whenever the conversation even begins to steer in this direction, Hunter desperately attempts to change the subject. If he doesn't, he knows this could go on for hours.

They're fond of each other, they really are. And they enjoy the passive aggressive quip battles. But they'd never admit it.

Darius absolutely uses the nickname "Little Princess" for Willow and he says it with a smile but god....GOD, so much bitchiness in his tone. Its wonderful.

"Darius." Willow will greet him in return, also smiling sweetly and her tone makes his name sound the way cursive looks. And he immediately knows she's calling him a bitch too.

Oh Willow loves to be a little shit and get under Darius's skin. She loves it so much. And Darius, in turn, likes to exaggerate what a pest she is.

Hunter will be staying at his place and Darius will answer the door to Willow.

"Uck. You again." He says, exasperated.

"Me again :)" Chirps Willow, delighted that she received such an On Brand Darius greeting. "I am Hunter's girlfriend after all :)"

"Yes, I'm well aware of that. You won't shut up about it."

"And I don't intend to :) Would you be a sweetie and fetch him for me? :)"

"Do I look like a butler to you?"

"No. You look like a maid :) I really like your frilly apron :)"

"Alright alright, give it a rest. I'll go get him."

"Thaaaaaank you, Daaaaaarius :)"

"You're a nuisance, little princess."

Darius loves to insist that Willow is a terrible influence on Hunter, though he doesn't actually believe a word of what he says. Darius puts a lot of value on spunk and rebelliousness and has never believed in that "kids should respect their elders" nonsense. No, kids should should always speak their mind. At least that's what he always did as a kid. Darius has never been all that impressed by manners and obedience.

Willow is wild. She's outspoken. She's got flair. She's tough. She's confident. Quite frankly, she reminds him a lot of himself. And he truly hopes her best traits will rub off on Hunter. He has no intention of ever saying it aloud (maybe some day. If he is talked into doing a wedding speech of some sort.) but he believes they're a perfect match. They bring out the best in each other.

Although that won't stop him from groaning loudly and being like "Must you do this now?" When Willow gives her boyfriend affection while Darius is standing right there. Come on!! Come on!!! He doesn't need to see this!!!

"Ohhhhh I'm sooo sorry," Willow says with a theatric pout, still cupping Hunter's face after smushing her lips to his cheek. "This is just what wicked girlfriends do. They kiss in public :( Can't be helped :(" Because she thinks getting called a terrible influence is the funniest shit ever.

Willow especially likes to roast Darius when Hunter is around because she loves making him laugh. And like. He will sincerely TRY to hold back giggles when she's joking at Darius's expense and Willow considers that a challenge. So the three of them will be having dinner together and Willow will be cracking jokes, Darius will be making the most ridiculously offended expressions and noises and Hunter will just be suffering. Just trying to hide his face in his hands, his whole frame buckling, desperately trying not to burst into hysterics.

Then Willow is like "What's the deal with your hair? It looks like a lava lamp." And Hunter completely fucking loses it.

Darius blinks. "What's a lava lamp?"

That only makes Hunter laugh harder.

"He'll suffocate because of you." He says dryly to Willow. "And then you'll be sorry."

But if Darius is being honest....he likes that she makes him laugh so hard. He might have been exaggerating his faces just to add to The Bit. He's pretty sure Willow had figured that out.

I'm recycling this as something we talked about on discord once. So, in the same vein that Willow won't let their first meeting go, Darius also has his own incident where Willow fucked up and he never lets her forget it.

At some point after she and Hunter started dating, she came down with the common mold. And you know how that is. She got super loopy and clingy. And when Hunter showed up at her place to check up on her (being warned by her dads to keep his distance) she was immediately "Hunterrrrrr!!! I love you!!! Kisses?? Can I have kisses??? I haven't seen you in a DAY and I MISSED YOU and I want to KISS YOU. I think if I don't get kisses I'll DIE!!!" And like. What was Hunter supposed to do? You think he has the willpower to say no to that? Really? Honestly?

Anyway it just so happened that Hunter was scheduled to stay at Darius's place that weekend. And so sick cranky moody disgusting germ bucket Hunter immediately became Darius's problem.

Obviously Willow showed up to see her lovely boyfriend and the moment she stepped into the house, Darius was like "YOU!!!!!!!!!!"

At least Willow had the decency to look ashamed. She actually gets really embarrassed when Darius reminds her of the time she wasn't in her right mind and got Hunter sick. So, of course, Darius brings it up constantly.

Darius hates sports. Always has, always will. Too barbaric, too much dirt, too much sweat. However, he now has no other option but to attend every match the Emerald Entrails plays. And he also has no option but to cheer the loudest out of everyone in the crowd.

("Out of everything in the world you could have seduced him with, did it have to be sports?"

"Yeah :) Have a nice day :)")

But the first game he attends is memorable. Because it's the first time in years he bumps into his old abomination teacher, Professor Hermonculous.

And of course Hermonculous is delighted to see Darius again. Why wouldn't he be? Not only was he the best in his track but he may have been one of the greatest students Hexside has ever known. He accomplished so much!! Invented so many new techniques in abomination magic!! He wrote a book!! He became a Head Witch!! (Back when things like Covens actually meant something. Some witches still saw them as status symbols.) In his old professor's eyes, Darius was everything he could have ever wanted in a student.

Darius, on the other hand, did not greet Hermonculous half as warmly. It was quite a short grape vine. A girl tells her boyfriend and her boyfriend tells his former co-worker/current weekend roommate.

Yes, Darius was a success. But he knew full well how Hermunculous treated students that disappointed him.

"Once the Emerald Entrails have annihilated the competition, I think there's something you and I should discuss." Said Darius icily. "Professor."

Willow is immediately on the defense when she shows up at school the next day and her former abomination teacher calls her into his office for a private conversation. But she is completely floored when she receives a completely unprompted formal apology from miserable old Hermonculous himself. She leaves the office in a daze.

However, once the bewilderment wears off, Willow begins connecting dots. She's no idiot.

"Darius." She whispers the next time she sees him, tugging at his forearm and beckoning him to come closer.

Assuming she has some confidential info to share, Darius crouches to Willow's height and is surprised when she presses her hands to his shoulder to keep her tippy toes balanced and pecks him on the cheek.

"You have a pretty big heart for a bitter old man." She says.

Darius squints at her witheringly. "Did you just call me old?"

Willow beams.