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isimpfortoomanypeople · 1 year

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Lucas asks Billy if he can marry max

High school sweethearts one shot Billy Hargrove x female reader

During dinner you all grow concerned over Lucas who looks like he’s going to pass out from his nerves, wondering why he’s so worked up

Warnings: mentions of hospitals and so much fluff

A/N: I literally wrote this fic as soon as it entered my head as it was too cute not to write it. I’m so glad that people have been liking high school sweethearts enough for me to be able to create a series of one shots. Sorry if some parts sound overly British as I’m from the U.K. apologises for all spelling and grammatical mistakes as I’m super dyslexic, enjoy.

“Well she’s finally down” Max gently sighed as she pulled a chair from under the dining table.

“Thanks Max for doing that, Kelly couldn’t stop talking about how she missed her auntie” you smiled at her as you dished a pile of pasta on to her plate. Finally sitting down on your seat next to Billy who pulled you close to his side, gently kissing your cheek as he complimented you on how delicious the meal looked.

“It was no problem, I love Kelly even when she makes me read good night moon for the one hundredth time” Max joked as she twirled the pasta on her fork, she lent into Lucas’s side nudging him with her elbow.

Lucas looked at Max with a questioning look as he watched her mouth turn into a crafty smile. He reached out for his glass, bringing it up to his lips weary about whatever his girlfriend is about to say.

“She’s so cute, she makes me want to have a kid”

Lucas spluttered and choked on his water, regretting to choose that exact moment to take a sip. His eyes grew wide as he processed what she had just said to him.

Billy’s eyes narrowed in an over protective manner, locking Max into his gaze. Biting his lip, trying to compose his words before he said the first thing that came to his mind. She was his little sister (still a kid in his eyes) there was no way in hell was she going to have a kid.

“Maxine no kids till you graduate college or even then! Actually don’t have kids till you’re married” Billy sternly spoke, drawing out each word so that she would get the message. His mouth slightly twitching as he brought his fork to his lips, forcefully swallowing the food down his throat.

Max cringed over Billy’s use of her full name, she rolled her eyes back at him as he was still holding his stern look.

“Okay dad I’ll wait till marriage” she sarcastically muttered back to him

“So Max and Lucas how is college?” You quickly chimed in, awkwardly laughing as you tried to defuse the atmosphere. Saving poor Lucas who was still frozen to the spot still in a complete state of shock over Max’s comment, you were pretty sure that he hadn’t even blinked yet still processing what the fuck just happened.

The rest of the meal ran smoothly, Max and Lucas updated you both about their lives since you last saw them at thanksgiving. Living in California sometimes felt isolating being so far away from Hawkins, but you loved your new life you built with Billy and having a beautiful daughter. Plus Max was only a phone call away.

You developed the unlikely friendship with Max during hospital trips to see Billy during high school. You gave her rides to the hospital, Max at first was standoffish, but could you really blame her? That poor kid has been through a lot in the first few years of moving to Hawkins, fighting monsters who came from god knows where, having an abusive step dad and watching as her own brother got possessed and nearly died. But slowly after a while she warmed up to you, Laughing as you both sang along to her cassettes that you let her play in the car. It wasn’t long before she started coming to you for advice and confiding in you about what had been bothering her that day, she soon saw you as the sister she never had.

This confused Billy at first in his heavily medicated induced haze, but seeing how you two got along warmed his heart.

This still continues to this day, Max will still call you weekly telling you about her life in college or asking you for relationship advice with Lucas.

She was overjoyed when she found out that you were pregnant and swore to be the best auntie to your child. Which explains why whenever Max is around Kelly is always attached to her hip.

“Billy can I talk to you?” Lucas nervously stuttered looking at the ground not daring to look him in the eyes.

“Sure?” Billy questioned as he watch the uneasiness wash over Lucas’s body as he started to shake with his nerves.

Billy got up and pushed his chair back under the table, he walked towards the living room door, his face stuck in a baffled expression confused to what Lucas was about to ask him? Especially in a different room away from Max, didn’t those two tell each other everything? So why was Lucas being so god damn suspicious?

Lucas quickly followed suit still shaking with nerves, the room started to feel like it was closing in as he started to feel queasy.

“Should I be worried?” Max asked you as the two men closed the door behind them.

You shrugged, shooting max a reassuring smile. But you too was asking yourself the same thing

——————————————————————————

“What’s up?”

“Well erm I..” Lucas stuttered feeling sweat pool at the top of his brow. Was the room getting hotter?

“Spit it out kid” Billy looked at Lucas with concern as he started to look faint, his eyes couldn’t keep still as they switched from different areas of the room.

Lucas allowed himself to breathe, trying to compose himself before he asked Billy the second biggest question of his life.

“What I’m trying to say is that I love Max, I truly love her with all my heart. I’m mad about her, I honestly can’t picture a future without her in it, so I want to ask for her hand in marriage?” Lucas asked, finally looking Billy in his eyes. He nervously held his breath awaiting Billy’s response.

Billy’s face relaxed, he chuckled as his face grew into a warm smile. He crossed his arms trying his hardest not to sound too overjoyed for his little sister otherwise he would spoil the surprise.

“Of course”

Lucas released all the tension from his body as he sighed a breath of relief upon hearing Billy’s words.

“I can see how well you treat her and how happy she is when she’s with you. But as much as I like you Lucas, I have no problem with doing something stupid that Y/N won’t like if you ever do anything to hurt her”

“So what did you two talk about?” You asked when the guests left. Looking at Billy with suspicion as you brought the plates to the sink. You saw how visibly relieved Lucas looked when he reentered the room while Billy looked visibly overjoyed, they both pushed off all questions you and max asked them about their talk.

“Lucas asked if he could marry Max”

You pressed your hand over your mouth to muffle out a loud squeal to avoid waking up Kelly. Your lips grew into such a big smile that your cheeks started aching. You were so happy for them both, remembering the day Billy proposed to you.

———————————————————————————

“Hello?”

“Y/N he proposed! Can you believe it? Oh my god I can’t stop shaking. I’m going to be Max Sinclair, oh my god!” Max squealed, her voice raising in pitch with each word, that you had to hold the phone away from your ear.

“I’m so happy for you max” you beamed feeling your heart swell over their young love

“ I wish you could see the ring Y/N it’s beautiful, I still can’t believe it”

You chuckled at her giddiness as it reminded you of how you felt when a beautiful diamond ring was placed upon your finger.

——————————————————————————-

“Well Max said yes”

“I knew she would, they’re both crazy about each other, reminds me of us” Billy smirked as he pressed his lips to yours into a soft gentle loving kiss.

“Looks like Max doesn’t need to wait much longer to have a baby” you joked laughing as you saw Billy groan, rolling his eyes at you.

“Y/N don’t even joke about that”

A/N: did I purposefully leave our details of the reader and Billy’s proposal just so I can write a one shot about it? I’ll never tell ;)

#stranger things fanfic #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things imagine #billy hargrove x female reader #billy hargrove x you #stranger things billy #billy hargrove #billy hargrove imagine #billy hargrove x reader #billy hargrove fluff #billy hargrove x yn

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starkstruck27 · 3 months

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Was listening to Skyfall by Adele last night and thought of this. Enjoy!

This place, whatever it was, was gross. Slimy, cold, dangerous, and gross. It reminded Billy of that one part of that Jim Henson movie that'd just come out that he'd taken Max to see, the Labyrinth. There was a part where the girl and some of the other characters almost slipped and fell into the Bog of Eternal Stench, and that's what the place was like. Well, if the Bog of Eternal Stench were shaped like Hawkins, Indiana.

And not only did it stink, but it was cold. Billy had never liked the cold, but this was nearly excruciating, as if he'd gotten locked in a giant freezer. Max had apparently been here before, because she had told him to bring a heavier jacket, but Billy had insisted he would be fine with just his bomber. He privately wished he wasn't so stubborn when it came to listening to Max, but that was something to unpack at a later time. Right now he was too focused on trying to get her and the other nerds to where they needed to be without any of them getting eaten by any freaky creatures.

When they were still back on planet Earth, before diving headfirst into the literal Hell hole in the Police Chief's living room, they'd all been assigned tasks to try and get this shut to stop. The Chief and his old lady had been designated ground support, since they weren't as young and spry as everyone else, so they stayed topside, guarding the hole and doing what they could on earth to help guide them. Jonathan and Nancy had been assigned as patrol in the Upside Down (that's what the kids called the place) so that if any creatures tried to attack, they could try and stall them while Steve, Robin and Billy did their jobs.

Theirs were arguably the most important, other than the kids' jobs, of course. They were assigned to protect the little brats as they did their thing, helping them to get from place to place safely and do whatever needed to be done to get this pocket of the underworld closed off again. Robin was supposed to stay with Erica and Mike in the zombified version of the Wheeler's place, relaying the messages to the real world and the Upside Down world between people so that the signal would reach. They were also look outs, so that if any monsters slipped past Jon and Nancy, they could warn the others. Billy was tasked with guarding Max, Lucas and Dustin at the junkyard, also to relay messages, but also as a last line of defense between the last group. Steve's job was going to be the hardest. He had to make sure Eleven and Will were protected, but he also had to get them to the source of all this madness and hold off all the nasty vines and creatures so that they could do their thing to end this. He also had to make sure they all got out before it was too late, which would be easier said than done when you consider he'll have to tote out two pre-teens who have a penchant for fainting after overexerting themselves to save the world. It was certainly not an easy job for any party concerned, and there was no guarantee that any of them would make it out alive.

That was all Billy could really think about as they snuck around through the muck and debris of their alternate town, the fact that they could fail and potentially all die. He didn't really fear dying itself, but he wasn't exactly ready to die yet, either. Especially when he knew that if he died, everyone else could end up dead, too. He didn't want that to happen. He'd become strangely fond of everyone that had become involved in this shitshow, and he didn't know if he could handle being responsible for their demise. Still, it was all he could think about, how they might die and he would never get to see them or talk to them again. And there was still so much he wanted to tell some of them. If he or they died, he'd never get the chance, and that didn't sit right with him.

His mind was so clouded as they marched through the barren landscape that he almost didn't notice when they got to the Wheeler's house to drop off Robin and the two kids. He only came back to himself as he nearly tripped on a vine on the way down to the basement, just barely catching himself before he took out the lot of them in a domino effect. After that, he forced himself to be in the moment, if for no other reason than to keep them from getting found and being put in danger.

"Alright, you guys got your walkies, your weapons and you're gonna be okay down here, right?" Steve asked as Robin nodded, Mike and Erica rooting through their backpacks to make sure they had everything they needed.

"Yeah, but just an fyi, if I die, I will be back to haunt all your asses," Erica said, sass dripping from her words, as usual. Billy wasn't even sure she could speak any other way.

"You're not gonna die," Steve said, rolling his eyes fondly, "As long as you stay with Robin and don't trip any vines. And don't forget, I promised an ice cream party at my house once this is all over, so there's some extra incentive to protect yourself and these other two. Do that, and you'll make it to Uncle Jack's, I promise."

"I better," Erica said, giving Steve a half-hug before settling on the couch next to Mike. Nobody but she, Robin, Steve and Dustin seemed to understand that code, but it always helped Erica to calm down whenever things got weird in Hawkins, so none of them questioned it when Steve always brought it up.

"Steve, come on! We don't have all day!" Henderson called from the steps, already halfway back up them as Steve seemed to linger for a second longer.

"I'm coming, Dustin!" Steve yelled, then turned to Robin again. "You're gonna be okay with these two?"

"Yeah, I just gotta keep them both in my line of sight at all times and make sure none of us gets killed. Piece of cake," she said, shrugging before yanking Steve close and hugging him hard. "Be careful, Dingus. You know I'll kill you if you die, right?"

"I know Robbie. We'll be okay, I swear. Rendezvous at Hop's cabin in two hours if you don't hear anything on the walkie, alright?" Steve said, hugging her just as hard.

"Got it," she said, and finally, the two parted.

As they crept back up the stairs and out into the ugly, awful world again, Billy marched at the back of the remaining brood of kids, making sure none of them strayed away or got lost as they trekked to the next spot. Steve was at the front, leading the way and letting them know if there was something to watch their step with or something to duck away from. Billy was kind of disappointed that he couldn't get close to Steve, he wanted to talk to him, but instead he had to listen to Max and Lucas jabber on with Henderson about something they planned on doing when this was all over. The other two kids would interject a comment here and there, but for the most part, they kept quiet, the boy's hand often coming to touch the back of his neck and the girl almost constantly wiping at her nose.

Soon enough, they were at the next point, the junkyard. There was an old school bus there, even more decayed in this world than in the real world, but it was the only structure big enough and with enough shelter for the four of them that were going to stay here, so it'd have to do. They all clambered inside, Dustin, Max and Lucas immediately starting to set up their things among the empty seats and Eleven and Will waiting at the front for Steve. He and Billy were standing in the center of the bus, going over the game plan one more time and waiting until the kids gave the OK before starting to part.

"You gonna be alright?" Steve asked, looking at Billy with an intensity the other boy could only hope to understand.

"Yeah. The brats seem to have their stuff covered, so all I gotta do is keep 'em alive. Easy as pie," Billy said, his heart rate picking up as he tried to keep up the illusion that he wasn't nervous.

"And don't forget, you gotta keep yourself alive, too, understand?" Steve asked, putting a hand on Billy's shoulder.

"Who do you think you are, Freddie Mercury?" Billy asked back, trying to make him smile. It only half worked.

"I know I'm being overbearing, but I always get worried when my friends are in dangerous situations," he replied, and Billy nodded.

"I know. I promise you, we'll both make it out of here alive. I'm gonna make absolutely sure of that," Billy said, his voice strict, as if there were no room for argument.

"Okay," Steve nodded, smiling a little more as he turned to go, "Same rules as with Robin: If nobody says anything in two hours, head to Hop's cabin. Stay safe, alright?"

"You got it, Pretty Boy," Billy said, but he could feel a sharp tug in his chest as he saw Steve head for the doors. He knew he had to do something. He still had so much to say to him, had so much to tell him and he didn't have time to say it all, he barely had time to scratch the surface. But he had to at least try. After all, this might be his last chance.

"Steve!" He called, catching him just before he left, the two final kids in tow.

"Yeah?" Steve asked, turning around, his face full of worry.

"It's just- um," Billy was floundering, and he was running out of time.

"What is it, Billy?" Steve asked, stepping closer.

"I-I," he swallowed, steeling himself. "Just, you made me remember a bunch of shit, I need you to remember a few things, too."

"What?" Steve asked, his eyes locked on Billy's. It was now or never.

"Just this," Billy said, "Plant your feet. Draw a charge. And I'm only doing this because I might never get another chance."

Billy didn't wait anymore. He wasn't going to be scared about it. He didn't have time for fear, and it had no place in this fucking hellscape. And if Steve reacted badly, well, there were probably a lot of those hungry demo-thingies that were just itching for a Billy-shaped midnight snack. So he just did it. He grabbed Steve by the front of his jacket, yanked him in close, and kissed him with everything he had.

It didn't last long. They didn't have time for that. But it was everything. Billy didn't care if the world ended anymore, not if he could be kissing Steve while the sky fell down. He couldn't hear the shouts of the kids, he couldn't smell the mold and decay of the rotting bus, he couldn't see the red lightning and disgusting grays that colored the outside world, all of his senses were flooded with only one thing, and it was divine. But he knew he couldn't let it go on, so he pulled himself back, letting go of Steve and stepping back to encourage him to leave now.

"Go," he said, "Go put an end to this shit. But for fuck's sake, don't you dare die on me, you got that?"

Steve just stared at him a second, but he seemed to snap back to reality as Billy turned to go back to the kids he was in charge of, hunkering down with them as Steve just gave a small nod and led his own charges back out into the danger zone.

Billy ignored Max's pestering about "whatever the hell that was between you and Steve" for as long as he could, shutting out anything that wasn't an outside noise or the crackle of static from the walkie until Steve's voice came through, telling them they were finally at their destination. Lucas relayed the message to Mike and he then relayed it to Jonathan, who finally got the message to Hopper and Joyce. After that, all they could do was wait.

It seemed to take forever. Billy had been ignoring Max and her friends so well that they'd started playing some sort of game to try and pass the time, but Billy still didn't pay them any attention. Instead, he paced throughout the bus, twisting the axe he'd chosen as his weapon in his hands and keeping an eye out for anything outside. His mind was racing again, but this time it was less thoughts of death and more thoughts of 'what the fuck did I just do?' There was still some death mixed in there, but it wasn't nearly as much as before. Now he was more worried about what this would mean if they made it through. Would Steve hate him? Would he let it go if Billy apologized, saying it was just pressure of the moment and paranoia and he forgot himself? Would he forgive him, but then things wouldn't be the same between them again? And worst of all, would he survive the desolate terrain, the freaky creatures, the government cover-up and the probably cancerous fallout, only to be killed by a bunch of small-minded hicks for kissing the wrong boy at the wrong time?

"Billy, calm down! You're making us nervous with all that pacing! And we can practically hear the gears turning in your head! Just come sit down, we only have an hour left until we have to go and meet up with everyone else, it'll go by quicker if you'd just rela-" Max tried to tell him, but she was interrupted when everything started to move.

The ground was shaking. The kids clung to the seats they were sitting in, and Billy gripped onto a few of them before he lost his balance. His axe clattered to the floor, just barely missing his toes. The Earth was screaming as if in pain, and dust and debris were falling from the decrepit ceiling as the earthquake ripped through the place.

"Guys!" Steve yelled through the radio, barely audible through the static and the noise around them. "El and Will closed the gate, but Will fainted, and it tripped a vine! Get to Hop's place, now!"

Billy didn't need to be told twice. As soon as the shaking stopped, he gave the kids the two seconds it took for him to relay the message and find the axe again to get their shit, then he practically dragged them out of the bus. He held onto Lucas's hand, pulling him along through the place, and in turn, dragging the other two as well, as they were all holding hands and forming a human chain to make sure no one got left behind. They ran like Hell through the place, doing everything they could to not trip, but they didn't care anymore if they stepped on the squishy vines that littered pretty much the entire ground. All bets were off with them now that one had been tripped, so Billy hoped that at least if everyone stepped on them as they ran to Hopper's cabin, whatever creature was coming after them would get confused and wouldn't be able to pinpoint the exact location of any of them.

It felt like hours of running. Days even. They had to stop every so often when another earthquake hit, but they would take that time to at least catch their breath before continuing on. Finally, the cabin was becoming visible on the horizon, and they could see Robin, Nancy, Jonathan, Mike and Erica waiting for them just inside. But there was no sign yet of Steve, Eleven and Will.

Still, the sight of the rest of their friends seemed to give the kids an energy boost, and Dustin, Lucas and Max broke away from the chain to run forward, hugging their friends and catching their breath before Nancy herded them inside, she and Robin helping them to start climbing back through the portal and into the real world.

"Where's Steve and the others?" Billy asked Jonathan as he finally met him in front of the cabin.

"They didn't get here yet," Jonathan answered, shaking his head with a nervous expression.

"Then we gotta go find them! He's trying to tote two exhausted kids alone, and they were at the epicenter of the chaos! Fuck, why did we let him go alone?!" Billy rambled, shoving a hand through his hair as he struggled to catch his breath.

"Because there wasn't enough of us and the radio signals don't reach far enough for us to eliminate one of the other groups. But you're right, we gotta go find them. I'm not leaving Will down here again, and I'll be damned if the other two get stuck with him," Jonathan said, taking the shotgun Nancy had loaned him and following Billy into the trees.

They didn't want to stray too far from the cabin, but both of them were determined to find Steve and the kids. They went as far as they could before they could hear screeching from some kind of creature, and then they fell back a little, both of them raising their weapons in anticipation.

"Billy, what if-" Jonathan started, but Billy cut him off.

"No! Don't say it. Don't even think it. They're fine, we're gonna find them, we just have to keep looking," Billy said, gripping his axe tighter.

"Dude, I want to believe you, but we gotta go back! If not, they might not end up monster chow, but we will!" Jonathan tried to reason, but Billy wasn't having it.

"None of us is gonna end up monster chow! Just- We just gotta- Fuck! We just gotta think-" he rambled, fear crawling up and making a home in his spine. But then he saw it. A flash of yellow through the trees. Yellow like the shirt Will had been wearing.

"There!" He yelled, pointing, grabbing Jonathan's arm and yanking him along through the trees, going as fast as he could and shouting Steve's name.

The trio stopped in their tracks and turned to see Billy and Jonathan speeding towards them, and they took off as well, meeting them halfway. Eleven was crying a little bit and her nose was bleeding again, and Will was barely conscious, but they were all alive, and for the most part, unhurt.

"Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit!" Jonathan said as they met, hearing another screech in the distance, only a lot shorter of a distance than the last one.

"Yeah, I know. But the gate is closed and now all we have to do is make it out alive," Steve said, adjusting his hold on Will and making sure El was okay beside him. Another screech sounded, and the little girl went white.

"They are coming," she said, her eyes wide with fear. "They don't know where we are, but they know we were all going to the cabin. They are going to attack soon."

"Fuck!" Billy yelled, then remembered it was probably their best interest to keep his voice down.

"El, how much time do we have?" Steve asked.

"Not long. Maybe thirty minutes," she said, swaying a little on her feet. It was clear she was tired, but she was pushing herself to keep going.

"Okay. I think I have an idea," Steve said, his face going as serious as possible. "Jon, Billy, you guys take Will and El and make sure they get through the portal safely. I'll hang back and cover you, just in case."

Jonathan nodded, handing Billy the shotgun to hold so that he could take Will from Steve, then took it back as El stood closer to Billy.

"Hold on, wait," Billy said, stepping closer to Steve, "You can't stay out here and fight these things on your own."

"Billy, we don't have time to argue about this," Steve said, clearly annoyed that he wasn't just taking El's hand and walking away.

"I know that, but what do you want me to do, leave you out here by yourself?!" He asked, exasperated.

"Yes!" Steve said back.

"Like Hell I will! Jon can handle the kids. I'm not leaving you out here alone!" He said, crossing his arms and staring Steve down. They stared at each other for a tense moment, but finally, Steve broke, they didn't have time to be fighting about this.

"Ugh, fine! Jon, take the kids and get home. We'll be right behind you. If we aren't back within fifteen minutes of you, or if anything happens within those fifteen minutes, help El close the portal."

"But what if-" El tried.

"It doesn't matter. You all get out safe. Whether or not we make it back, fifteen minutes and then it's closed. If anything happens that puts you and everyone else in danger, it's closed. Understand?" Steve told her, but then his voice softened. "We'll make it back, El. This is just a precaution, just in case. I promise you, we'll make it back, but on the off chance that we don't, you gotta promise me you'll close it so that everyone else is safe, okay?"

Eleven looked terrified, but she sniffed, swallowed, and looked Steve in the eyes as she nodded. "Okay."

And with that, Jon made sure El had a good grip on him, that he had a good grip on Will, and then they left. They didn't run this time, it was kinda hard to do that, and they had to be more aware of the vines now, but they still rushed as fast as they could. Billy and Steve hung back, giving them a bit of a head start before starting after them, keeping their weapons close as they continued to hear the screeching getting louder and louder, closer and closer.

"Shit!" Billy tried not to yell as the earth began to shake again, more violently than ever. The sky was angry and throwing a fit in the form of red lightning and freaky bats flying towards them. The monsters kept screeching and it was close now, almost on them, and the vines seemed to be retracting, being pulled into their source as the ground began to split open in places. Billy was glad he wasn't going to have to worry about them anymore, but then he saw one wrap around Steve's ankle as it was pulled back, and his heart stopped.

"Steve, look out!" He screamed, no longer concerned about his volume as he jumped over to nearly tackle Steve, swinging the axe wildly and praying that it would cut the vine with just one swing. Steve was screaming by this point as he was pulled down, being dragged along the ground until he was able to hold onto a tree, hoping his grip would stay strong until Billy could cut him free. It finally happened, he was free, but more vines were trying to grab them as they were able to get back up, and they knew they had only two choices: Fight or flight.

"Come on, come on!" Billy yelled, pulling Steve up with all his strength and gripping his hand hard as they began to run. Jon and the kids had to be safe by now, and if they weren't back yet, they were at least close. That meant that Steve and Billy had about fifteen minutes to get back before they got stuck here. They figured it was more than appropriate to start running for their lives.

"Fuck! Come on! We're almost there!" Steve shouted, seeing Hopper's cabin just over the horizon.

"Can you see Jon?" Billy asked, his legs burning from running so much.

"In the window, they're inside! I think he's about to climb through! We're gonna make it!" Steve said, hope and relief clear in his voice. Billy could see it, too. Jon had just climbed through the hole in the floor. It was almost over. They were going to make it.

A loud screech stopped them in their tracks as a demogorgan came out of nowhere, standing between them and the cabin and seemingly trying to decide which way it wanted to go. It was growling and even though its tulip-shaped face was closed, it's nasty drool and a few teeth were still visible as it stood in a stand off with Billy and Steve.

"I want you to run to the portal as fast as you can," Steve whispered, not looking away from the horrifying creature. "Don't stop, don't look back, and make sure El keeps her promise. If I'm not back in a few minutes, close it."

"But-"

"Don't fucking argue with me," Steve hissed, "Just fucking run."

"No, sorry, can't do that," Billy mumbled back, "I gotta keep my own promise before I worry about anyone else's. We're both getting out of here alive, Steve. I'm gonna make sure of it."

Billy glanced over at Steve, too afraid to move anything but his eyes, and he squeezed the hand that he still held in his own, adding another promise to the one he'd already made. Steve didn't look away from the creature, but he gripped his bat harder, and he squeezed back.

And then, it was as if everything moved at once. He and Steve dropped each other's hands in favor of brandishing their weapons, and they ran towards the creature, fear coursing through them as it charged right back.

When his axe made contact with moist, saggy flesh, it set something off in Billy, and he fought as hard as he could with every ounce of energy he had left in him. He was deaf to the screams of agony the thing was letting out, and only fought harder as it began to thrash around under their blows. Steve hacked away at its face with his bat, ripping out chunks of flesh, teeth, and black, sticky guts with each strike. Billy was hitting as hard as he could at what he assumed would be the weak spots, the spine, the neck, the stomach, the ankles. Anything he could get at, really. Until finally, the creature stopped screeching, and it fell down limp between them.

Billy didn't even notice it was dead at first, and he just kept hitting it, until finally, a noise cut through the ringing in his ears, and he looked up.

"Come on, Billy, it's dead! We have to go, now! We only have a few minutes!" Steve yelled, grabbing Billy around the waist and hauling him backwards until they were a few feet away from the creature, and Billy finally stopped swinging, taking a second to reorient himself as he caught his breath.

When he finally had it, he looked up to see Steve in front of him, gripping his shoulders and making sure Billy was back with him.

"Hey, you okay?" He checked, leaning down to look Billy in the eyes as he tried to steady him. Billy nodded, breathing heavily. "Good. Now let's haul ass, El's about to close the portal."

Steve grabbed Billy by the hand again and ran with him to the portal, both of them feeling like their lungs were about to explode. Even during basketball games they never ran this much, and with both of them having been smoking since they were the kids' age, they were not exactly fans of cardio.

They had just made it to the door when another gut-curdling screech sounded through the air, and the two turned their heads just in time to duck as a few of those disgusting bats flew in after them. They couldn't tell how many there were, anywhere from three to five, but they were too all over the place for them to count properly. Their hearts sank as they saw them, though, and they picked up their weapons again, beginning to swing.

They were so close.

They just had to jump through the floor.

But they couldn't let these things get out.

They had to stop them.

Steve was able to punt a few away with his bat as he and Billy backed towards the hole, but it wasn't so easy to hit these things with an axe. And just before they got to the edge of the hole in the floor, one managed to wrap its nasty tendrils around Billy's neck and start to drag him back in.

"Billy!" Steve yelled, hitting bats out of the way as he tried to fight his way back to Billy. They could hear more screeches coming, meaning more bats were on their way, and Billy was already starting to feel lightheaded as he struggled against the bat as it choked him. He waved his arms at Steve, trying to signal for him to just go, but he knew that no one could match his stubbornness like Steve could, and he wasn't gonna go anywhere.

"El!" Steve shouted as he finally got to Billy, the rest of the bats knocked away for now, but they didn't have much time, maybe a few seconds before the next wave hit. This was it. "El, close it now!"

"But Steve-" She shouted back, a sob clear in her voice. It broke Steve's heart.

"NOW!!" He screamed back, his throat hurting from the combination of yelling so hard and the emotions crashing over him, but he shook it off. He only had one shot at this, he couldn't afford to be emotional now. He could save that for if his plan didn't work and he and Billy got eaten by bats or severed in half by the closing portal.

His heart rate spiked as he heard El screaming again, but this time it wasn't words, and he knew she was closing the portal. He had maybe five seconds.

He grabbed the bat with his bare hand and pulled with all of his might.

Four seconds.

Billy was choking, eyes rolling back into his reddened face, but he was still shredding at the tendrils around his neck.

Three seconds.

The hole was already closed about halfway.

Two seconds.

Steve screamed as hard as he could as he finally ripped the bat in half, tossing it to the side.

One second.

He didn't think twice as he tackled Billy through the tiny portal opening that was left, just barely making it through as El finally sealed it up. They missed the girl only by a hair and fell in a heap on the floor of Hopper's cabin. They were tired. They were in pain. But goddammit, they were alive.

"Holy shit!! Are you guys okay?! What the hell happened?!" Nancy asked, she and the rest of the group crowding around the two as they tried to get ahold of themselves. Steve rolled off of Billy and sprawled out on his back, his heart, lungs and stomach all in his throat as he tried to make sense of everything. He took a mental inventory of his body, but found it was futile, everything hurt just about the same. Except for his elbow, which is what he and Billy had landed on when they torpedoed through the portal, everything was just one dull, continuous ache. His elbow felt like it was on fire, and honestly, Steve wouldn't have been surprised if it was, but he knew it was more likely that it was just broken and that he'd need to get it looked at sooner rather than later.

Billy wasn't faring much better. His throat was raw and tender to the touch, and it was already forming a deep purple bruise. His shoulder hurt to move, most likely a pulled muscle from swinging that axe around so much. His entire body ached from overexertion, and he had a bad headache from being deprived of oxygen for so long, but nothing too serious.

"Um, hello?! What the hell just happened, Dingus?!" Robin was asking now, leaning over Steve and blocking his eyes from the bright lights. He was glad for that at least.

"Demobats," he finally croaked out, his throat sore from yelling. "They started swarming us just as we got to the cabin. We were fighting them off, but one got Billy and was dragging him away. But more were coming and we didn't want to put you all in danger, so I told El to close it up. We got him free at the last second and I threw us through the portal just before it closed."

"Jesus Christ, you're both nuts for even attempting that stunt!" Hopper said, shaking his head as he knelt down over them, too. "But I'm goddamn glad you did. This town has seen too many funerals because of this shit already, we don't need any more. Come on, I'm gonna get you to the hospital."

With the help of Jonathan, Robin and Nancy, the two boys were helped off the floor and into the back of Hopper's police car, then buckled, then whisked away down the road complete with lights and sirens. They pulled up to the ER and there were already doctors waiting for them, thanks to Hopper calling it in as a hit and run accident he'd happened to witness. They put the two on stretchers and took them inside, taking Steve to get his arm put in a cast and Billy to get a head scan and make sure getting "strangled by his seatbelt" didn't cause any real damage. After that, they were each carted off to be assessed for any other injuries, but other than a few scrapes and bruises, they were pretty much okay. Finally, after all of this, they were put into a room for observation, and were told to just relax and get some rest.

Steve got to the room first, the cast taking a lot less time than the head scan, and he closed his eyes to try and sleep, but it was no use. He needed to know Billy was okay. He needed to make sure their friends knew they were okay. He needed something to eat. Then he could rest.

After what felt like forever, Billy was finally brought into the room, and Steve could feel his heart beating faster as the nurses set up his IV and heart monitor. He had been given one of each, too, but the doctors had assured him that it was just a precaution. Billy, on the other hand, looked like he actually needed them, and it made Steve nervous. Billy looked nothing like his larger-than-life self lying there in the hospital bed, and he wasn't sure he wanted to know the reason for that.

"Okay, you're all set," the nurse said after a minute of fiddling with the buttons and wires of Billy's monitors. "If you boys need anything, just push the button."

"Oh, uh, can I ask you a favor real quick?" Steve asked, making his best sad puppy eyes at the woman. "Our friends are probably out waiting to see us, would you mind bringing them back to see us? They should be with Chief Hopper."

"Sure thing, sugarplum," the nurse said, and with that, she was gone.

"Hey," Steve whispered over to Billy as the nurse left them, "Billy? Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Billy wheezed, nearly inaudible, "My throat hurts, but no brain damage they said, so I guess that's something. Lost my voice, though."

"Yeah, I could tell. It sounds awful. We don't have to talk then, I just wanted to make sure," Steve said, smiling over at him.

"No, no, I'm okay. I wanna talk. Makes it easier to stay awake," Billy said, his voice still tiny. "How's your arm?"

"It'll be fine, just need to keep a cast on it for like three months. But I'll take a broken arm over being stuck in the Upside Down and dying by bat bites, so," Steve shrugged, going for funny, but Billy hardly smiled.

"Yeah, me too," he said, then went quiet, and so did Steve. It was the kind of silence that was charged, like the words unsaid made the air thicker than the ones that were. The nurse hadn't returned with the rest of the group yet, and they were both tired, so Billy figured if he wanted to talk to Steve, now would be the time. Still, it was hard to figure out where to start.

"I'm glad this is all over," he started, testing the waters, "but there was one part of the whole ordeal that I didn't mind. I actually really enjoyed it."

"Really? What?" Steve asked, confused for a moment, but then it hit him, just as Billy said it.

"When I kissed you. I never would've had the balls to try if I wasn't convinced I was gonna end up dead by the end, so I guess that place wasn't all bad," he said, swallowing thickly and clearing his aching throat. He really should stop talking, but he had to know what Steve was thinking.

"I guess when you put it that way, it really wasn't," Steve chuckled, tapping his fingers on his cast nervously. "In fact, it was a really good thing that it happened."

"What do you mean?" Billy asked, his voice somehow even smaller, as if he were afraid of the answer.

"I mean that it gave me an extra incentive to fight, to make sure we both got out of there alive... so that I could, maybe... do it again?" Steve bit his lip, gripping the plaster on his arm tightly as he glanced over to look at the other boy.

"Really? You mean it?" Billy asked, his voice cracking in excitement as he sat up quickly, and regretting it just as quick as his body zinged with pain. Steve couldn't help but smile a little.

"Yeah, I mean it. But why don't we wait at least until we're out of the hospital, okay? Don't want to give the poor nurses a heart attack if they walked in to take our vitals and caught us necking," he smiled, reaching out between their beds with his uninjured arm and holding it up for Billy to take. He did, reaching out and holding Steve's hand, giving it a squeeze.

"Okay, Pretty Boy," he said, smiling brightly at him.

They dropped each other's hands as the nurse finally returned with all of their friends, all of them having taken the time they'd been spending in the hospital to clean up and change clothes, and apparently, Joyce had even found time to make some kind of casserole, which she brought for them since she thought they needed something more nutritious than hospital food. She dished it out onto paper plates as everyone else milled about. Hopper had taken up the one chair in the room and was quickly falling asleep. The kids were all sitting on one of the two beds, jabbering on about how awesome it was the way Steve saved them or how brave Billy was for refusing to leave him behind by himself. They'd also each taken a turn with Will's markers to sign Steve's cast, adding drawings or little messages, just filling the ugly thing up with color. Nancy, Jonathan and Robin were all standing around making small talk, clearly exhausted, but listening intently as Steve told them about the demogorgan they'd taken down before the thing with the bats. They were all impressed, and even though Billy was trying not to talk, he couldn't help but keep smiling as they told him how insanely ballsy he was to stick it out with Steve, even though he'd never really dealt with one of those creatures before.

Finally, it was starting to get late, and visiting hours at the hospital were ending, so everyone had to start heading home. They all hugged the boys as they left, telling them to get some rest and they'd all be back at some point or another to see them again. And after the last few lingering hugs from Dustin and Max, it was just them left in the room.

"I guess we should try and get some sleep," Steve said finally, after neither of them made a move to get up and hit the lights.

"Yeah," Billy rasped, clearing his throat again.

"You don't sound too excited about that," Steve observed, glancing over at Billy again. He looked nervous.

"I'm not," he admitted, "I just know I'm gonna dream about flower faces and teeth and wings flapping all over and I'm not exactly looking forward to that."

"I know how that is. The first time I went through this, the nightmares seemed unbearable. At least, they were if I was on my own. Nance and I were together at the time, and as long as she was with me, I wasn't afraid, and it kept the nightmares away," Steve said, finally getting up and moving to the light switch to turn it off. His heart stuttered as he heard Billy squeak once they were in the dark.

"Hey, it's okay," he said, coming back over to the beds, but instead of climbing back into his own, he sat on the edge of Billy's. "I know we probably shouldn't be sleeping in a cramped little bed like this when we're both recovering from injuries, but it's better than getting nightmares, right? Scoot over."

Billy did as told and scooted a bit to the side, finding a position of relative comfort on his side as Steve settled in behind him, laying his casted arm gently over the both of them and getting as comfortable as he could under the thin, itchy hospital blankets.

"If this ends up not working and you want me to go back to my own bed, just let me know," he whispered, his eyelids already beginning to droop. "Sweet dreams, Billy."

"Okay," Billy murmured, "Sweet dreams, Steve."

When they woke up the next morning, their bodies were still sore and aching. The cramped positions they'd been in certainly didn't do their physical selves any good. But Steve had been right. Neither of them had a single bad dream wrapped in each other's arms. And even if a demogorgon or a demobat or anything else did appear, it was quickly vanquished by a knight in shining armor. Only, instead of a sword, the knight always fought with a nail bat in Billy's mind, and an axe in Steve's.

#harringrove #billy hargrove #steve harrington #stranger things #upside down #fanfic #the party

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lxstbxyscave23 · 2 years

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Harsh Meetings ~ Billy Hargrove x f!Reader~

Currently punching the air rn, just forgot to save this draft after I finished it! It came out so good and now it deleted!! Rewriting this so I hope you all enjoy<3

Part two here<3

𝔇𝔢𝔰𝔠𝔯𝔦𝔭𝔱𝔦𝔬𝔫:

Reader goes out to Starcourt Mall for self care and treatment when she is verbally and physically assaulted and bullied by the teenage jocks and nasty girls from Hawkins High, only for Billy to step in and defend her.

𝔚𝔞𝔯𝔫𝔦𝔫𝔤𝔰:

Foul language, physical assault, fluff, aggressive Billy, soft Billy, words such as “Slut” and “Whore” are used and more. Mention of abuse. Brutal fighting. A bit OOC

If I missed anything for Warnings please let me know!!

Requested? No.

The sun was still high and bright. The last two weeks weren’t the best for you. Same ol’ bullying from the jocks and their girlfriends. It was now Friday and you were heading to your car, sun beaming on you. Billy was parked right next to your hot rod. His Camaro and your 1976 red and white Ford Mustang. You saw him leaning on his car waiting for his stepsister Max/Maxine.

You’ve met her before hanging with your little brother, Alex. Your whole family has gone to Hawkins high. It was now your turn and you were on your last year. Senior year. Prom was coming up, Tina voting to be Prom Queen. Chrissy as well. Tommy H, her boyfriend was voting to be prom King. You sometimes thought about being prom queen with the hottest guy in school. Billy Hargrove, who was currently staring at you with a smirk. You made it to your car and unlocked it.

“Nice ride, doll.” Cigarette in his mouth, puffing here and there. “Thanks.” You said shutting your door in his face. He chuckled to himself and let you ride off blasting Mötley Crüe. Your favorite, or at least Vince was. He was hot, his voice was gorgeous. And he had a killer bod. You may or may not have a poster of him on your ceiling, right above your bed. You’ve been to one concert of theirs and you absolutely loved it. He would look at you from time to time and wink.

Best day of your life.

You were speeding down the street right now. People staring. You reached home and ran up your stairs plopping onto your bed. Staring up at Vince..

“Today was hard Vincent..Tina and Carol..” You groaned rolling over and putting on your head phones, this time listening to Joan Jett.

“Midnight, gettin uptight. Where are you?!” You yelled as you sang her song. Getting up and dancing. “I hate myself for loving you!! Can’t break free from the things that you do!” Shaking your hips and kickings your legs while nodding your head. Whipping it every which way with a stank face. Her music is the shit!

“I think of you ever night and day!” You shouted earning a laugh. You spun around seeing your oldest brother, Lunar. Odd name yes but he was actually pretty cool. You took off your headphones with embarrassment spread across your face. “What?” You asked setting them down and staring at him confused. “Danny wants you to help us with the car.” He shook his head still laughing a little.

“Okay fine.” You nodded as he walked off and you shut your door, getting ready to change. This was gonna be messy. You shedded your clothes and threw on an old Led Zeppelin shirt and put on some baggy overalls. Leaving one strap hanging you put on some converse laying on your floor. You tied your hair up a little and jogged down the stairs and out into the front yard. Seeing Danny with the hood popped and a roller on the floor.

“What’s up?” You asked concerned about the car. It was a Mustang convertible. Your family are huge car people. All of you had your own hot rods except for Alex he rode his skateboard. Speak of the devil. Alex came riding down the street with Max and Lucas. Dustin riding his back a little behind trying to catch up. Where was Mike and Will? Whatever. “Okay well I was driving and heard something blow, the hood started smoking.” “Radiator?” You questioned. “Didn’t think about that..” He pursed his lips and laughed as he avoided eye contact knowing you were giving him a sharp glare.

You walked over as Alex’s friends came up the driveway. “What’s up Y/n.” Dustin gave a toothy smile as he raised his eyebrows in a funny way. He had a little thing for you but you never payed mind to it. “Hello, Dustin.” You smiled at him. “Your hair looks amazing today.” He complimented. “Dustin stop hitting on my sister!” You chuckled and patted Dustin on the back as you took a look under the hood. Touching a few things and taking close looks you finally figure out the problem.

“Yeah it’s the radiator.” You shrugged grabbing the rag that sat on the car and wiping your hands from the oil. “Can you fix it?” “Hell yeah I can.” You rolled your eyes and got to work. “I love a girl who can fix a car.” Dustin breathed out and fanned himself as if he was gonna faint. “Let’s go Dustin, we need to get him out of here before he decides to ask my sister out.” Everyone laughed and they ran into the basement. Mike and Will finally showed up.

“Hey, Y/n.” You waved to him with a smile still working on the car. You gave Will a generous smile in which he returned. “They’re in the basement.” You said and they thanked you before running into the house. “Wrench.” You said as Danny handed you a wrench making sure you knew what you were doing and not just messing his car up even more.

He turned on the radio as Quiet Riot started blasting for most neighbors to hear. You and Danny laughed when a neighbor came out and shouted at you guys, yeah your family wasn’t the most liked of the town. “Pliers and a screwdriver.” He handed them to you. “I heard about that Billy kid.” He said looking at you. “Yeah? What about him?” You asked really not caring just making small talk. “I heard his father abuses him.” He said with a straight face. You looked over at him with disbelief roaming your eyes. “No shit. Really?” You asked concerned. “Yeah man, Heard Max mention it to Alex when she came over one time.” Your mind was racing and your heart ached for him. “Who knew such a tough kid had that going on at home.” He said shaking his head.

“Poor Billy” You mumbled as you thought about the times whenever someone bumped into him he’d clutch his side. Man, everything’s coming together. You tested the radiator making sure it was good and started the car, giving it a few revs. Danny came around as you both grinned at each other seeing as the car looked and sounded badass. “Alright man, thanks!” He high fived you and pushed the hood back into place.

“Alright ima head out to the mall” You said as you ran inside rinsing your hands off with oil free soap. You ran downstairs and into the basement. They all looked up at you. “Anyone wanna come to the Mall with me?” Dustin was first to raise his hand smiling. “C’mon buddy.” You smiled as he stood up and grabbed his radio that they all had except Max.

“Anyone else, I have room for two more.” You asked. Max and Lucas raised their hands their hands. “C’mon.” You motioned your arm and jogged up the stairs together. “I’ll drop them back off here don’t worry guys!” You shouted from upstairs to hear them say okay. El came walking through the house looking for the basement. “Hey El.” Everyone said and she smiled and waved. “Hi guys, where’s the basement?” You pointed to the door and she opened in jogging down the steps.

“Alright kiddos.” They weren’t that younger than you but you liked seeking them as your younger siblings. They were the same age as Alex. 15.

You hopped in the driver seat as Max and Lucas got in the back. Dustin of course sitting next to you. “How was your guys day at school?” “It was okay until I saw you.” Dustin said giving a cheeky smile. You rolled your eyes and laughed. “You’re such a flirt.” You never saw Dustin that way, and never will. “Stop flirting with Y/n, Dustin.” Max said defending your honor. You chuckled and arrived at Starcourt Mall. Quickly parking you got out letting Lucas and Max out from your side.

“What store are we going in first?” Max asked low-key pumped to be here. “Well I was going to go into the beauty care store if you’d like to join? Dustin and Lucas can tag along or head to the arcade or something?” You looked towards them. “I’m down.” Max said as you guys headed to the store on the second floor. Lucas got distracted and walked off towards the food court. Dustin stuck by your side looking at everything in the store. “Whatever you’d like you can get Max, everything’s on me don’t worry.” You smiled at her in which she returned. “Thank you.” She looked around the store. “So what’re you doing after this?” Dustin asked looking at you. “Was planning on hanging out with Eddie, maybe have a “Girls night”.” He chuckled. “Can I join?” You nodded your head and continued on looking around. “Isn’t Eddie like your best friend?” You asked him as he picked up a face mask and quirked a brow at is causing you to laugh. “Yeah pretty much, we always play D&D together.” “That’s cool, he talks about you a lot y’know?” You looked at him to see he was smiling like a mad man.

“Really? What does he say?” You thought to yourself, he definitely looks up to him like an older brother. “That your his favorite in the group, he couldn’t imagine having any other friend than you.” Dustin smiled to himself looking at the ground. He was really thinking hard about your words. Did Eddie really say that about him? Eddie was like his role model, he wants to be just like him.

You nodded your head and picked up four face and lip masks. You grabbed some lip scrubs that smelled appetizing. Anything really related to skin care you grabbed. Loud footsteps heard- behind you. You turned your head to see Tina and Carol. Great. “Look who it is..Freak one and Freak two .” Tina said laughing with Carol. “Don’t talk to him like that” You defended Dustin who didn’t look phased by the words. “Look who’s finally taking action on her ugliness, honey these won’t do nothing for you.” Carol laughed out. “Leave her alone!” Dustin seethed out.

“Oh look the freak is getting mad.” Max came over and defended both of us. “Get out of here plastic bitches.” She said with an angry face. “Whatever.” They both said walking off. “Thanks Max.” You smiled at her. “Anytime, I always hated those skanks.” “You and me both” You laughed.

“You good Dustin?” You asked him concerned as you saw him look a little down. “I’m good.” He said smiling. “Okay bud.” You patted his shoulder and began getting ringed up. Max placed what she wanted on the countertop and smiled. You payed and grabbed the two bags heading off to look for Lucas. You found him at the food court sitting down eating a hot dog. He’s been quiet the who day, wonder what’s gotten into him.

“What’s up Lucas.” You said sitting down across him setting the bags down. Max and Dustin taking a seat as well. “Nun much, You guys hungry?” He asked pulling food out a bag. “I’m good thank you though.” You said with a smile and he nodded offering them food in which they took. “Do you think girls will be into me?” Dustin said. “No.” Lucas joked laughing. Max laughed a little. Dustin rolled his eyes. “Not with that thing you do.” Max joked.

“What thing?” You questioned, they all looked at you and laughed. “Lemme work my charm on you” Dustin said spreading his lips showing off his teeth. Making a sound that sounded like Chewbacca was here. “What in the what?” You laughed watching as he laughed too. “Don’t ever do that again!” Max said. “Why not? Don’t the ladies dig it?” He said smiling cheekily. “No!” Lucas and Max said at the same time. “I think it’s cute! Leave him alone.” You said rolling your eyes laughing to yourself. Dustin blushed and Max gave Lucas a look. Oh no. They probably think you like him!!

“Told you she was here!” Carol said from behind you guys. Timmy and his friends were behind you. “Such losers.” Tina said rolling her eyes. “What are you doing with these losers Lucas?” Tommy questioned. “Uh..Nothing.” He said defending himself. “Really Lucas?” Max said in disbelief. Lucas was a wanna be. Everyone knew that. “Come with us, leave these weirdos.” He said making Lucas stand up and walk over to them.

“You’re lost Lucas, you need to find yourself.” You shook your head telling him. He looked at the ground with saddened eyes. “Shut up bitch.” Carol said to me. You stood up and turned to them. “Watch what you say to me Carol!” You said to her making her roll her eyes at you. “Don’t threaten her” Tommy shoved you causing you to hit your back on the table. You just knew there was going to be a bruise. You rubbed your back a little and gritted your teeth.

Billy was sitting far behind you guys. He didn’t know what he was doing there just staring at how hot you looked. He always wanted a girl who could fix cars and you did just that, to be honest he had his eyes on you for a while now. He saw the way your voluptuous hips swayed when you walked. The way your thick thighs jiggled and looked so silky in your bathing suit when you came to the pool with your brothers.

He was dying and itching to get his hands on you. To make you his. He wanted to be able to sneak into your window at night and you two have make out sessions that got a little too heated. He wanted you. So so bad. He continued to look your way as he saw his step sister and her friends with you. You were always great with kids. His heart jumped and his blood ran cold when he saw Tommy push you backwards. He never stood up so fast in his life. It was like a fight or flight moment and he of course took fight. He always did. Dustin and Max stood up and helped her back up. Making sure she was okay.

Tina slapped you in the face causing you to immediately sock her right in the jaw. You had three older brothers, of course you knew how to fight. No little smack was gonna hurt you. “Go Y/n!!” Max and Dustin cheered for you. You could even see Dustin trying to hold back a smile. She grabbed her jaw and fell to the floor on her knees, that’s when Tommy leaned in and punched you in the stomach, it was the hardest punch you have received in a while. Not since you and your brother Danny would fight. You knew it was going to leave the biggest and purplest bruise.

No two piece bathing suits for you.

You fell backwards again and Dustin helped you stand as you bent over out of air.

Billy was furious, how dare they lay a hand on you! He lunged at Tommy and socked him right in his nose, everyone heard a loud crack and a groan from him. You were dry heaving, he had just knocked the wind out of you..Literally. Max was looking after you and she sat you down checking on you. Billy was now on top of Tommy, punching his face in. Blood was on his knuckles. Tommy’s friend grabbed Billy from behind and landed a blow to his back. That didn’t stop Billy though, he’s too tough for any of them.

You heard people shouting for security and that’s when you took it as your sign to round up all the kids and get the hell out of there. “C’mon let’s go!” You shouted to them and they started running. Lucas staying back a little and just staring at the mess. Tommy’s face was beaten to the bloody pulp. You handed Max the keys and told them to wait in the car. They ran and you went back for Billy and Lucas. Lucas ran up behind Tommy’s friend and ripped him off Billy as you ripped Billy off of Tommy. “C’mon let’s go before you spend the rest of your night in Hoppers office!” You yelled to him and grabbed his bloody hand. He finally moved back from Tommy.

“Touch her again and I’ll end you!” Billy yelled at him. You could see security rounding the corner as Robin and Steve walked out the ice cream shop to see what happened.

Holy shit Billy had just beaten the crap out of Tommy H.

You pulled his hand with you as you two bolted down the escalators pushing past people, you excused yourself and ran outside the building towards your car. Billy stopped you and turned you around to face him. His face inches from yours just ready to be kissed. “You okay, doll?” He put a hand to your face and rubbed your reddened cheek. “Yes..Thank you for what you did back there.” Lucas came running out of the building, towards you guys.

“Of course darling.” He said making you blush and look away, his finger bringing your face back up to look into his vibrant beautiful blue eyes. He leaned in, you felt yourself wanting to. But Billy wasn’t good for you, and you knew that. So you pulled away and turned on your heel. Opening your door you got in and Max handed you the keys. Dustin and Max in the back Lucas opening the door.

“You coming?” Max asked him shouting through Lucas’s open door. He shook his head with a chuckle and walked over to the car. Lucas pulled the seat back and Max scoot over. “Max sit on Lucas’s lap.” You said looking at her. She stared at you blankly. Then looked at Lucas who nodded slowly. She pushed herself up and sat on his lap. Me and Dustin made eye contact in the mirror. Giving a knowing smile.

You pulled the seat back for Billy, who jumped in and shut his door. He looked over at you and smiled. You started the car as he looked into the backseat. “Fuck no!” He said trying to turn in his seat and grab Lucas. Max yelped when he missed and pushed her back into Lucas.

You grabbed him by his wife beater and pulled him foreward so he sat right in the seat. “Don’t touch them Billy, or i’ll have to deal with you myself, trust me I have three older brothers.” You glared at him. He snarled before staring out the window. The snarl was hot but we needed to get the hell out of here. You revved your engine and skirted off, drifting down streets to get to your house. Billy gave you a smirk as he challenged you.

“Race me sometime.” He said giving you a flashy smile.

“I might just have too..” You winked at him and continued driving.

Part two, different day?? LMK if you guys would like to see this as a story continuing on in parts<3

Please enjoy, I honestly liked the first one better but it deleted and so I had to write a different version..

#stranger things #billy hargrove #billy stranger things #billy hargrove x y/n #billy hargove x reader #follow 👑 share ❤️ enjoy 🍑#love ya <3

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apiratecalledav · 2 years

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Quick note: I’m not back; I’ve got too much to deal with but I figured it’s only fair I post my thoughts about Stranger Things 4 volume II since I shared part one. I also might have a couple of jokes/shit posts to make if I can summon the energy in the next few days.

Anyway—

Whew 😅 What a ride. Overall, an incredibly epic finale for a mostly spectacular season. But. Well… shit happens, doesn’t it? And crappy, forced love triangles are the worst. Spoilers, obviously.

The Good

First of all: Eddie. Eddie. EDDIE.

I originally thought he was going to play a song to save Nancy from Vecna. But when the longer volume ii trailer made it clear that Nancy’s capture was only temporary, I thought for sure he’d play Master of Puppets aka the original title of episode nine. I was soo hyped. Then when the episode dropped and they changed the title, I thought there must have been a last minute issue with the rights or something and I was bummed. When it started playing, I nearly levitated with excitement. “This is for you, Chrissy.” 🥺 I also love that he and Dustin got to have a moment afterwards to just fanboy together.

When he cut the sheets down and stayed in the Upside Down after Dustin was safe, I had Finnick flashbacks from The Hunger Games. Glad he got to have a proper fight scene and final words. I really would have lost it if he just got engulfed by monsters and vanished.

I knew he was gonna die but honestly, I thought they’d try to soften the blow/make it a little lighter by having Eddie sacrifice himself for Steve and crack a few self deprecating jokes along the way. But when he told Dustin to “never change” I said, “Oh, no” out loud. I knew then they weren’t going to show mercy so I did my best to prepare myself. It was beautifully done and I got teary eyed, especially when When It’s Cold I’d Like to Die started playing. But Dustin talking to Eddie’s uncle made me sob. I was not expecting any of that. Ugliest of ugly cries, okay?

Bonus points for a truly heartfelt, non-joking exchange of platonic “I love yous” between two young men.

I definitely understand why some are angry that Eddie’s name wasn’t cleared but tragedy is part of his character… And there’s also a really powerful message— Eddie did things his way and he did them for himself and the people he loved. He found what made him happy and didn’t care what anyone else thought. He never once succumbed to “might as well be bad since everyone already assumes it anyway.” He never stopped reaching out to lost sheep. Not to get all evangelical or anything, but Eddie was a true shepherd of the Lord; despite being branded as a devil, Eddie was more righteous than his “godly” neighbors, many of whom were more concerned about appearances than actual good. Eddie saved Dustin, did what he could to avenge Chrissy, and was metal AF until the end. That’s what was important to him, not what a bunch of strangers thought. I know that he and Chrissy are at their picnic table in the sky, living their best afterlives while they wait for Uncle Wayne and the rest of Hellfire. That’s what matters.

The world would be a better place if we were all a little more like Eddie Munson. And music would be better.

And if Hawkins is really getting introduced to Upside Down monsters and whatnot, there’s still hope for Eddie to get the recognition he deserves… fingers crossed.

——

I was expecting the body count to be higher… thought Argyle might have to go to give Jonathan and Nancy some more shared trauma. Or Dmitri would die with his son thinking he was a traitor or maybe Murray would volunteer to be a decoy or something. But I’m glad they kept it lower. I think— especially in this show— it’s more effective to have only one really heartbreaking death at a time rather than a slew of moderately sad ones.

———

Once again: Max. Lucas. Lumax. 😭 I’ve been trash for these two since day one but this season went above and beyond a billion times over.

Lucas asking Max if he was in her happiest memory. And the season two throwback. “Presumptuous.”

Widdle Max at the skate park was too cute for words!

Max’s selfless bravery while Lucas tried so hard to come up with an alternative.

Passing notes. The movie date drawing. The scene. You know what I’m talking about. All the awards for Sadie and Caleb. All. Of. Them.

The parallel to season 1 with Sarah dying and Hopper reviving Will with Eddie dying and El reviving Max while When It’s Cold played. BRB once I salvage my heart after it went through this cheese grater.

Like with Joyce and Hopper, Lucas and Max have a date they need to get to. Surely a good sign.

—-—-

Music in general was especially great in these last two episodes. Separate Ways! Erica, Lucas, and Max stepping off the RV with each “you” in the song was so good. The versions of Dream a Little Dream of Me at the Snow Ball will haunt me forever. Running Up That Hill was incredible once again. I love that it was originally Max centered but it extended to the rest of the characters.

It’s a perfect foil to Vecna— his army is all one because they’re his puppets, while our heroes are one unit because they love each other and care about others.

——

Steve

Him wanting a big family to go on road trips with. 🥹 He’s really the only one without any siblings besides Dustin (who has a very loving mother plus several pets). I’ve long headcanoned Steve as a lonely-ish latchkey kid and finding out that he grew up wanting a bunch of little ones someday hit me right in the feels.

His friendship with Robin has somehow reached new heights of adorable. The way he was just so happy for her and Vickie... Precious.

Glad he’s rabies/infection free and his face was spared for once.

——

Robin’s character was a little wobbly for me this season but at the end of the day, I was happy. I loved her talk with Steve; I’d been missing their friendship after 4x02. Her hand on his back after Jonathan and Nancy reunited was subtle but so sweet. Robin and Vickie were very cute together. Plus, their ship name is Rockie (edited, eff you autocorrect). How awesome is that??

—-

A proper Will/Jonathan/Joyce hug. I always felt like there’s a rule somewhere that only two Byers are allowed to be emotional together at a time and it’s been a huge pet peeve of mine.

—-

Will!! I thought I heard somewhere that he filmed a scene with a harness so I was worried Vecna would try something. Glad he got a (at least supernatural) break this season.

His speech to Mike and the painting. Maybe a little cheesy but in a good, very ‘80s movie way.

His love for El. That hug was exactly what I needed between the two of them.

I know how badly this situation hurts him and I’m so proud of him for how he’s handling it. Plenty of grown-ass adults could learn a thing or two from Will.

———

Jonathan back in Big Bro mode. That scene was so sweet. I really like that Jonathan didn’t push Will to share or try to pry. Just said exactly what Will needed to hear.

———

Speaking of siblings, Erica and Lucas were so adorable. The spear scene. The way she tried to save him from Jason even though she’s tiny and middle schooly. How she won’t leave his side at the hospital.

———

Mike and El. My emotions. The pizza box goggles/ “try before you deny bit” was so cute. I had high expectations for his first “I love you” and damn, did they deliver.

———-

El and Hopper reuniting. It really got to me. But my grandfather passed away almost a year ago, so when I watched it again with my mom, we both lost it ( but in a really good way)

———

Murray with that flamethrower was badass as fuck and kinda hilarious at the same time. I loved it.

———-

I think they did a great job balancing the darker stuff with comic relief in these last two episodes. Some of it felt forced earlier in the season to me.

——

Joyce and Hopper finally kissed! 🎉

Breadsticks and lasagna!

—-

It wasn’t quite what I wanted, but overall, I’d say I like what they did with Brenner. They humanized him enough to make him interesting but they didn’t try to brush all his shit under the rug. It was a good mix of El caring about him— and in a way that said more about El than him— but not forgiving him or excusing him either.

———-

Dmitri and Yuri’s scene was unexpected and really nice. I saw a few people saying it was too easy but c’mon. This wasn’t “hey, you remember what it’s like to be good. So stop being a dick.” It was “holy shit, literal monsters are going to literally EAT! US! ALL! This so not the time to be a douche.”

———-

Jason was… interesting. I guess I like that that he didn’t totally fall into the usual tropes. He was neither entirely “well meaning but misguided” or purely “he who hunts monsters...” When he went full asshole on Nancy, I thought he was totally over the edge. But then he seemed genuinely concerned for Max. I liked seeing that bit of humanity still there, even though he ultimately couldn’t reach into it enough to see the light. While horrific, I like the way his death symbolized the way he’d been torn apart by Upside Down-ness.

His death made me realize I have an inner momma bear. I had felt very bad for him— his girlfriend and one of his besties died in such horrible, unholy ways. That’d mess anyone up. But once I got over the shock of how he died, I was just kinda like, “Yeah, let that be a lesson to anyone who lays a hand on my babies.”

——-

I really liked having a brief break between episodes. I think Eddie struck more of a chord with me than Barb, Bob, and Alexei because I got to know him for longer than a day or two.

———-

Doctor Owens. First of all: What a BAMF. Standing up to Brenner for El, trying to protect her from Sullivan. I really like that he strives to balance his teleological, “greater good” mindset with sensitivity and consideration. He wants El to be his teammate rather than a mere means to an end— a lab rat or a weapon.

———

The Mind Flayer. Yessss. I got chills and said holy shit out loud when young Henry drew it.

———

Flambé. And Nancy blowing Vecna out the window. Epic.

———-

Sometimes, you gotta wholeheartedly embrace the tropes outright. And Hopper literally slaying the monster with a sword was fantastic.

———-

Karen telling Mike he couldn’t have any more vacations or go to college. Haha.

———-

Jonathan and Nancy’s reunion. Still not happy about all the messiness but “kiss on the forehead” is my favorite. 🥰

——-

Mike and Hopper being on good terms again.

———

Are Hopper and Joyce and the kids just gonna live off the grid at the cabin? I’m super excited if that means they stay in Hawkins again.

———

Shout out to Jamie Campbell Bower to his commitment to Vecna; spending hours getting covered in prosthetics and locating whatever depths of hell he pulled his Vecna voice out of. It adds so much to the character that we can see Henry/One in Vecna’s eyes and body language.

———

I don’t usually like when “all hell breaks loose” and the secret stuff gets out in the open. However, I think this show can pull it off…

——-

I feel a little more confident that this show isn’t actually going to hurl itself down the fan service cliff. 😅

The Bad

This really isn’t anyone’s fault but one reason why I love Steve so much is because he reminds me sooo much of my brother. However, in the last couple of years, Joe Keery at certain angles (especially his eyes) has started to remind me of my husband. Steve’s battle clothes were a lot closer to my husband’s style than Steve’s usual outfits which REALLY amplified it. So yeah, shit got distractingly weird for me a few times and I definitely could have lived the rest of my life without knowing what it’d look like if my husband and brother had a Freaky Friday thing. Haha.

———

I REALLY wanna know what the hell exactly has Mike told his parents about El. Is it some version of the “official” story? That Hopper had an affair when he was married and El is his daughter and she was visiting him in secret when Mike stumbled on her in the woods and fell hopelessly in love with her? Something else? Have his parents met El? Why is this curiosity door to potential comedic gold still closed? Picture El and Ted having a blank faced staring contest.

That reminds me… No cameo from Mr. Clark. 🙁

——-

Is Doctor Owens okay??? Is he still handcuffed to a pole in the desert?

———

Um, I don’t like how blatantly cliffhangery the ending is. There has always been an unsettling element to the endings but there was enough peace/closure that the hiatuses were more bearable. We’re looking at fall of ‘23 at the most outrageously optimistic earliest and I dunno… just feels a bit shitty. It’s not like they needed to fish for renewal…

———

Definitely sad we didn’t see a Hopper/Byers family group hug. I also wanted El to call Hopper “dad.”

———-

Eddie’s death did feel a little stand-in-ish for Steve. I don’t know if they were just piggybacking (see what I did there?) on his bond with Dustin or if they were just trolling, or if it’s a hint that maybe they did wanna kill him off and Netflix said no. Well, just in case, I’d like to thank all the millions of people who’ve canceled their Netflix subscriptions in the last couple of years. You might have saved Steve.

———-

I have a lot of feelings about the state Max is left in. I mean, I really, really don’t want this show to get too dark and given the way her journey has been a metaphor for depression, I feel like it’s extremely fucked up— borderline irresponsible— if she doesn’t come back from this. And I am fairly confident that she and Lucas will have their movie night. But I also feel like if they’re going to prolong the ambiguity of her fate in this way, there should be some kind of long term consequences?

——-

It felt kinda lazy not to have more downtime between the earthquake and the shit storm. A convenient way to avoid Nancy and Jonathan having a good talk and Max’s prognosis for sure.

The Ugly The Absolute Shit-Hideous

Same song as part one but different verse:

Why, oh, why are they prolonging this bullshit love triangle? Yes, there was a recurring theme of mirroring season one and it could have been decent-ish. But this was just crap. Incredibly lazy, contrived crap. I’m torn between thinking they really do need to fix it next season and hoping that the (from what I can tell) generally negative reception will make them drop it.

Having Steve confess his feelings started to tip me into despair— he hadn’t really done anything “wrong” this season in that regard until that moment. But then just as quickly, I started seeing light at the end of the tunnel:

Robin interrupted S/N having a moment with “looks like we weren’t going the wrong way after all”

Nancy donating yet more old things from her pre-Upside Down life… including Mr. Rabbit who’ll “be more loved in a new home.” My mom and I affectionately call Steve “harebrain” sometimes (both for “hair” and because Hare-rington) so that rabbity connection jumped out at us.

Then the way she looked at Jonathan when he reappeared. Like Steve didn’t even exist anymore. Which Steve definitely noticed and was pretty damn brutal. Are we really supposed to pretend that anyone thinks that kinda thing is shippable? **Or that Nancy could be happy with a small army of children and most likely no career??? Or how clearly Steve wants someone to laugh at dumb muppet jokes with him (and Robin and Vickie.) I don’t see Nancy completing that adorkable foursome any more than I see her signing up for more than one or two babies.

After Robin and Vickie had their moment, I kept waiting for one of Vickie’s friends to appear next to Steve and throw out there that she’s glad Vickie and Dan broke up because he always reminded her of Big Bird or something but nooo. Then they had to have Jonathan and Nancy once again avoid their problems.

All three of them traumatized as hell, plus we really only see them in life or death situations and that is the only reason I can give them a pass. In normal circumstances, they’d be kinda assholey.

I get that writing established couples sucks but there are so many more original paths to take. I also get that executive meddling is a thing and maybe they’re the ones pushing this crap. But in that case, you take pride in your work and respect your audience and your characters and you at least strive to make it understandable/believable. You do not do… this.

The worst part about this whole storyline is that it doesn’t feel like they even care enough about it to waste even the slightest bit of brain power on it.

Like, why couldn’t Jonathan and Nancy have agreed at Christmas to “hit pause” and then reevaluate when they reunited at spring break? It would have made way more sense that Jonathan going MIA freaked her out so much.

Or at the very least, couldn’t Steve and Nancy have a scene together before the trailer park so this shit didn’t feel so out of left field? She could have run into him while he was picking Robin up from school. Steve could have asked about Jonathan and Nancy could have admitted that things were rocky and Steve coulda told her how if she can help him learn to “crawl forward,” she can surely help Jonathan fly. Or she could have opened up about how afraid she is to leave home next year.

Something.

Instead, they just took advantage of the fact that Jonathan’s life was really painful even before/without monsters and hell dimensions, Nancy has a history of bottling things up until she bursts, and Steve has a fantastic “puppy that’s just been kicked” expression.

It also seemed like they knew it was kinda icky for Nancy to have all these moments with Steve so they tried too hard to make her perfect in every other way, and it frequently came at the expense of other characters (especially Robin becoming a “super klutz” after an entire season of playing it cool).

Ah, fuck it, I’ll just come right out with it: Lucas should have been the one Vecna chose to deliver the message to El. For multiple reasons: revenge for taking Max back from the curse, he’s not only closer to El than Nancy is, it highlights how much their friendship has grown since the initial strained days in season one; it’s so fitting with Running Up that Hill and asking God to trade places with someone else in order to better understand them. 😭😭

TL;DR

I mostly loved it. This is by far the most emotional experience I’ve had with Stranger Things, and in fact, any show in a good two or three years. There were a few surprises and most of them were pleasant ones. They’ve continued with their trend of taking familiar tropes and adding unique twists. But I dislike how much they left unresolved before a very long hiatus. Also, love triangles are still garbage, especially when they crap all over multiple characters and eat up screen time that could have gone to more interesting possibilities.

#stranger things #stranger things spoilers #eddie munson #steve harrington #max mayfield #lucas Sinclair #lumax #el hopper #jim hopper #jopper #will byers #robin buckley #mileven #jonathan byers #jane hopper

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theswampspirit · 2 years

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More Stranger Things S4 Vol 1 Stuff: Fav Lumax Scenes!

This is an outline of some of my favorite scenes involving the Lumax ship. Some background on my feelings toward the ship; I think it is a good ship. I wasn’t a fan of how they wrote Lucas’ initial interactions with Max (the whole “watching her through binoculars” with his friends), but they also did that with Jonathan and Nancy in season 1 (which one was worse is up to you to decide). I guess the writers are keen on using that trope for their characters, or maybe that’s what the kids did back then (still not a good thing to be doing though). Despite that, I do feel that Lucas and Mac had a great rapport following the rest of season 2. Do I feel that they could’ve used more interactions in season 3, yeah, but I feel that Lucas wasn’t a part of that season’s focus, and their relationship did feel typical of middle school tweens. In season 4, they took it up a notch, having Lucas truly care for Max’s well being and only being able to reach so much, and Max slowly realizing that it’s okay to let in the people who care about. It gave me some strong season 2 Lumax vibes.

So, now that the lengthy context is out of the way, let’s dive into some of my favorite Lumax moments.

Moment 1. Lucas waving at Max and Max giving him the cold shoulder. This really sets up the fact that a drift has occurred between the two. This wasn’t a silly little break up where Max was tired of whatever antics Lucas was doing that week and Lucas managed to get right and smooth things over with her. This was a serious breakup. Lucas still cared for her, but she was putting distance between her and him (and the world). At this point, we had no clue what was going on, and only had watch more to piece things together.

Moment 2. Lucas knowing Max’s favorite song and the Vecna attack flashbacks. This part of Vecna’s attack really showed us two things: Lucas really knew Max and cared for her more than we may given him credit for, and for Max, all of those moments with Lucas really meant something to her. Would I dare to call it love...only if the cast members, writers, and characters themselves would. But you cannot deny the bond these two share (yes, I’m aware that El, Dustin, and Mike were apart of those flashbacks too which I greatly enjoyed, but this is a Lumax fav scene review).

Moment 3. The laugh in the Creel House. So, this scene was also a major favorite. Just because of Sadie Sink’s nonverbal acting. When Lucas makes Max laugh, and he tells her he missed that, you can see through Sadie’s acting that something is going through Max’s head, something that to me looked like longing and wanting express some kind of feeling she has towards Lucas. I’ve seen some that said it looked like they should’ve kissed there (which they may or may not have been serious), but I don’t necessarily think she would’ve done so. But she definitely wanted to do or say something.

Moment 4: The walk (and talk) in the woods. While searching for Eddie, Lucas and Max are paired up again and they are talking. Here is a Caleb McLaughlin shine as I feel that he delivered perfectly how many have felt when we try to understand what was going with a friend or family member who’s going through rough time, only to be rebuffed and then deciding to give them space and let them come to you, then when you do see what’s going on, you feel such guilt over being so blind that you want them to know that you’re aware of their pain and are truly here for them. They way Lucas tells Max “I see you” and the look she gives back is just so good acting and emotional wise. To top it off, the fact that Max still genuinely shows concern for Lucas at the start of the conversation is just another way of showing how much she truly cares for Lucas, even if she doesn’t exactly admit it out loud. Plus, I really loved Robin’s reaction to their conversation. She really is one of the greats.

So, yeah, there goes some of other thoughts on Stranger Things 4 Vol 1. Just gonna sit here and wait for the second volume like dog waiting to be fed. Lumax is great, may end doing another piece on my thoughts on shipping in general sometime though. Expect more things in the future. Have a good time out there!

#stranger things #stranger things s4 #stranger things s4 vol1 #Lucas Sinclair #lucas stranger things #Max Mayfield #max stranger things #lumax #lumax s4 #cool ship #young love #robin stranger things #caleb mclaughlin #sadie sink #vecna stranger things #running up that hill

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hawkinsschoolcounselor · 4 years

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“Why do you lie?”: A look at a gay Mike Wheeler

This is a sort of a companion post to Will Byers and Growing Up Gay in the Pre-Internet Era, which I posted last year. I looked into what could have possibly been going on with Will as someone with a gay identity at a time when there was little support. Now I’d like to look at Mike, who would have his own unique challenges towards accepting a positive identity. This isn’t meant to be a post for why Mike is gay, as I (and several others) have already addressed that. Instead, I want to look at some of the psychological processes that may be at work in how Mike develops through the series. I will be treating Mike as if he were a real person, rather than a fictional character, and, so, I will attempt to ignore narrative devices (foreshadowing, parallels, etc.) as much as possible.

“Friends don’t lie” is one of the prevailing messages in Stranger Things. It more or less becomes El’s personal motto, so it ultimately became associated more with her than the person who taught it to her: Mike. Despite attempting to instill this value onto El, Mike himself is shown to have a lot of trouble living up to it. While Mike spends quite a lot of time in Season 3 lying to El, she is not the biggest victim of his lies. No, the one he lies to the most is himself, and he seems to have been doing that since Season 1.

According to the Cass Identity Model, a journey to a positive gay identity requires several steps: confusion, comparison, tolerance, acceptance, pride, and synthesis. This is not a perfect model, but it is one of the better attempts to create a general framework for how it worked for many gay individuals, at least in the time it was created (1979). A general way to look at it is that, at least at the time, individuals would work their way through this process as they engaged with the gay and lesbian community and started to see it as less of a bad thing and more as something to be proud of until it finally becomes just another part of who they are.

As I mentioned in my Will post, there is little opportunity for a kid in Hawkins to engage with the gay and lesbian community. There is no internet, nor is there any (known) place for local gays to gather in Hawkins. This results in the only real mention of homosexuality being the slurs thrown around by school bullies and people like Lonnie. A town like Hawkins would be a very difficult place for a young gay person to grow up. This makes it hard for even the initial stage, confusion, even occurring. Mike has deep feelings for Will, but the confusion stage requires that he acknowledge his feelings as homosexual in nature. Instead, I think Mike has been hiding from his own feelings, and it may not have been until the finale of Season 3 that he finally acknowledged them for the first time. So what comes before the first stage?

Lies! Well, sort of. Defense mechanisms are how our minds protect us from the anxiety and social consequences of unwanted thoughts and desires. We all use them, unconsciously, to some extent. The next time you come home from a hard day at work and yell at a family member, ask yourself why you’re angry. Odds are it’s nothing the family member did. Getting angry at work can be a risk to your employment, so, instead, you unconsciously find a “safer” target. In this case it’s still bad, but getting forgiveness from a family member is easier than talking a boss into rehiring you. Mike has similar processes going on to protect him from his budding attraction to Will.

It’s impossible to tell when exactly Mike started thinking of Will as more than a friend, even if he doesn’t label the thoughts as such. He already shows an intense concern for Will in Season 1. When the boyish-looking El shows up and provides an opportunity to find Will, Mike risks his friendships to make use of her powers. He also goes over the top in disguising her as, well, a girl. It probably would have been easier to disguise her as a boy, but Mike decided to put a wig and dress on her, and then apply makeup to her. This could be a combination of displacement and reaction formation. Mike is redirecting his feelings for Will onto El, and also making her as obviously female as he can.

Mike’s bond with El came very quickly, and even caused a rift within the Party. While Dustin and Lucas would come around and value El as a trusted friend, their process with her is more natural than Mike’s rushed, forced relationship with her. Dustin and Lucas had no weird feelings to hide from. Their search for Will contained no unwanted implications, they simply wanted their friend back safe and sound. Still, we would see Mike on the opposite end of this type of interaction in Season 2.

Max is the first “normal” girl to show interest in the Party. Mike reacts to her presence and attempts to join the party with hostility. There is little reason for this, as he was more than willing to allow El to be their friend. He doesn’t truly hate her, and in his own words he can’t hate her as he doesn’t even know her. He simply wants nothing to do with her. His only given reason is that the party is full as it is, which seems to fall flat. It could be that the presence of a girl reminds him of El, but we don’t see him acting hostile to girls in general. It seems, instead, to be his friends’ interest in her that gets Mike to dislike her. While the theory that he is jealous at Will’s interest in Max is intriguing, there isn’t much to go on aside from Will showing a curiosity about her and then letting Dustin and Lucas bring her along for Halloween. Instead, Mike may be projecting here. He shows incredulity that Dustin and Lucas could be so interested in Max despite never having talked to her, suggesting that he thinks getting to know someone is important in regards to being romantically interested. This runs counter to his interactions with El in Season 1. He resents his own behavior, but takes his anger out on his friends and Max instead when he sees them doing something similar.

Mike is very protective of Will throughout Season 2. He also spends a lot of time reaching out to El via his SuperComm, though he admits it’s likely a fruitless effort. His guilt over what has happened to the both of them is another sign of his mixed up feelings for Will and El. On Halloween, Mike and Will open up to each other about how crazy they feel, and they share a smile at the end of a conversation that is arguably a masked love confession. However, as Mike twice brought up El as a part of their conversation, it further reinforces the displacement of Mike’s feelings to her. However, soon after this, Mike finds himself caught up in another Will-related crisis, and El is out of his thoughts until her return at the end of the season.

Mike also shows a lot of willingness to allow himself to be vulnerable with Will in Season 2, something which isn’t seen in his interactions with anyone else. In these moments, Mike’s body language shifts. His tone becomes softer, his head dips slightly, and he peers at Will through his lashes. His aforementioned conversation on Halloween is just one example, but it is also seen when Will is asked if he remembers Mike, when Mike recounts meeting Will as they try to break through to him, when they’re at the movies, and when Will is packing at the end of Season 3. The moment in the shed is perhaps Mike’s most vulnerable moment. He shares a cherished memory, and unashamedly cries while doing so, perhaps even so lost in the moment that he forgets other people are in the room. His feelings, driven into overdrive by the fear of losing Will for good, are beginning to overwhelm him, but he still maintains his “Will behavior.”

This shows an uncharacteristic degree of trust and/or submission. In interactions with other characters, even El, Mike often displays assertive, or even aggressive, tones and stances. Mike doesn’t realize he does this, but we do see him sometimes use similar body language with El, further suggesting that he is redirecting his affections.

Perhaps the biggest moment we see him act this way around El is at the Snow Ball at the end of Season 2. Mike had been having a great time at the dance until Will had gone off to dance. This is strange considering Mike seemed to urge him to go with the girl in the first place. He appears shocked as the pair walks to the dance floor, his mouth agape, and wide eyes staring off into space. This isn’t the body language of someone expressing pride at a friend’s unexpected boldness, but rather it suggests a disturbing revelation. It is at this point that Mike could potentially have moved into the Confusion stage of the Cass model, as he sits on the sidelines (despite Dustin briefly there for company) watching Will dance. Any progress he may have made is instead halted when El arrives unexpectedly. This allows for him to continue using her as an outlet, and gives him a convenient escape from where his thoughts would likely take him.

Season 3 is the first time Mike had to deal with having both El and Will in his life at the same time, and it’s where his defense mechanisms begin to break down. In therapy, the goal is to shine light onto defense mechanisms in order to deconstruct them, so the patient can see and deal with what is actually going on.

We find out Mike has been largely ignoring his friends and spending most of his time with El. He makes a big show of his relationship with El, including leaving early after Dustin had returned from camp under the false pretense of a curfew. The others don’t buy it, and Mike likely knew this. He wanted them to know he was going off to make out with El. When we actually see them alone, they do indeed make out, but, curiously, Mike twice takes steps to make it less intimate. He stops to sing along to the music, for example, despite El not enjoying it. He also removes El’s hands from her face, leaving them both simply leaning forward at each other without additional contact. There is a suggestion here that Mike is not enjoying what he is doing and limiting just how intimate they get.

We continue to see his lack of a desire to be close to El. For her part, El shows behavior that could only be considered clingy. It is she who initiates nearly all of their physical contact, and, at one point, she even literally clings to Mike as Dustin is showing off his gadgets. A close inspection shows that Mike is standing with his arms crossed during this, making no active attempt to return the physical contact. None of this physical intimacy is for his own benefit. While being with El means he doesn’t have to worry about his feelings for Will, it does not really allow him to express those feelings to his satisfaction. This may be why he goes on movie “double dates” with Will, Lucas, and Max in between spending time with El.

The occurrence we see at the movies is clearly not the first due to Steve’s frustrated reaction and their familiarity with his threat. They are late, so there are not enough seats, but there is no hesitation as Mike goes with Will to sit apart from Max and Lucas. Mike is so comfortable with reaching into Will’s bag for the snacks that it suggests it’s happened multiple times before. We also see that, despite his reclusive behavior with El, Mike still has Will on his mind when he asks if Will is ok. His tone again soft, head slightly dipped as he peers up through his lashes. He glances briefly down, possibly at Will’s lips, suggesting he needs to remind himself that it’s not El he’s with at this moment. He is otherwise very content to be “alone” with Will at the movie.

Mike ultimately needs the relationship with El to protect himself against his feelings for Will, and it all comes to a head when they fight after Will’s attempt at a campaign. Mike’s continuous theatrics lead to not only Hopper forcing him to spend less time with El, but to him getting busted as he allows Lucas to lead him through a plan to get El an apology gift. We later see that he has no difficulties apologizing when he feels he should, so his grand gesture is another sign that his relationship with El is more of a show. He puts up no fight when El dumps him, acting annoyed and accusing Max and El of conspiring against him. He’s hiding from his own complicity in order to avoid acknowledging that it doesn’t really bother him as much as it should. He wants El to come back to him to continue his show, but he can’t do anything about it without confronting his feelings. El leaving didn’t hurt him; it just made him angry. This complicates things for him. It was easier for him to shift his feelings to El when he didn’t actually need to do anything about it.

Will loses it at Mike’s disinterest in his campaign, particularly his attempt to abruptly end it. Mike seems to be trying to be just another too-cool ladies man, and he is disallowing himself to enjoy the game. Still, he can’t bare to have hurt Will, and he chases after him when Will tries to leave. Mike struggles to maintain the lie while trying to placate Will. When Will accuses him of ruining everything to make out with “a stupid girl,” we see Mike lash out, saying it’s not his fault Will doesn’t like girls. While this hurt Will, it was likely another case of projection. Mike hates himself for spending all of his time with El because he doesn’t actually like girls. He can’t even stay angry at Will when he sees how hurt Will was with what he said. He tries to explain that this is just how it needs to be, and he appears sad as Will leaves. Unlike with El, Mike is hurt when he loses Will, and he chased after him to apologize. We don’t actually get to see him apologize, however, as the threat-of-the-season kicks into gear, resulting in Mike needing to get El.

Mike thus is able to bounce his feelings back to El. He maintains a physical proximity to Will, but also tries to avoid interacting with him. The apology he never gets to make to Will ends up clumsily being offered to El. Mike’s vulnerable, genuine behavior is absent as he goofily attempts to make nice with his ex-girlfriend. He awkwardly attempts to invoke previous conversations with Will, suggesting an increasing desperation to re-establish El as the safe target for his affections. Cracks had already been forming in his carefully constructed subconscious defense mechanisms as a result of the contrast in how El and Will dumping him made him feel. Mike is starting to see the truth, and he needs to fix it.

Ultimately, the Byers decide to move away. A few months pass between the end of the season and the epilogue where they actually move. Mike seems to be on good terms with both El and Will, but we don’t really know what happened in the interim to get him there. Mike has conversations with both El and Will. His demeanor in each again demonstrate that, despite what he wants others to think, it’s Will who Mike can’t bear to part with. With Will, Mike again shows his vulnerability when Will goes to give away his D&D books. Mike is clearly afraid at the implications, that Will will move on from him, but Will is able to allay his fears, assuring him it’s “not possible” for him to find a new party, and that he expects to just use Mike’s set when he returns. Mike shows no vulnerability with El. In fact, he seems quite at ease as he explains how they’ll talk all the time, so everything will be ok. El suddenly attempts to bring up his previous attempts to talk about feelings, and he feigns ignorance, seeming uncomfortable. There’s a suggestion that they never re-established a romantic relationship. She says she loves him, and he seems perturbed. She kisses him, and he stands there, unresponsive. As she leaves, Mike stands confused and disturbed. He was not expecting that, nor did he enjoy it. Previously, after such a vulnerable moment with Will, Mike would have jumped at the opportunity to shift his feelings to El. Now it seems that he is finally accepting the truth. Defense mechanisms, being elaborate unintentional lies, only work when the individual remains unaware of them. Insight results in the truth being revealed.

As the Byers leave, Mike stares longingly at the cars. His friends all bike away, but he hangs back momentarily, looking back at Will’s house one last time with a pensive look on his face. All his walls have come crumbling down, and he can’t deny it anymore. He can’t pretend it’s El that he loves. He rides home, walking into his home in a daze. We last see him seeking comfort in his mother’s arms, seeking that unconditional love he craves so much. Mike is now confused, consciously aware that he loves Will, dealing with not only losing him, but also the acknowledgement that he’s likely gay. He’s no longer lying to himself, though it remains to be see how he reacts to the truth.

From here it’s all speculation, as we have little to no knowledge of Season 4. Based on the Cass model, Mike needs to explore his gay identity by meeting other gay people. He needs to see that not only is he not alone, but that being gay isn’t a bad thing. This process isn’t easy, and he will need to deal with the social implications of what it means. He may well choose to attempt to maintain a straight image. El being away means he can claim her as his girlfriend without them needing to be intimate. On the other hand, with support, he could work his way through the model and learn to love himself as he is.

Note: I tried hard to stick to a conceptualization of Mike, but this does not mean this is how the writers see him.

#stranger things #byler #mike wheeler #gay mike wheeler #byeler

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plus-size-reader · 4 years

Text

Holloway

Billy Hargrove x Plus size!reader

Word Count: 1541 words

Warnings: none

Summary: Max giving you dating advice when you and Billy fight

Losely based off of this imagine by @myriadimagines. Check out their blog because I love it.

——————————————————————————————————

“Why don’t you go ask her?!”

Your voice reverberated through the entire house as you slammed the door, huffing with upset as you tried to clear your head.

Fighting with Billy wasn’t new.

You frequently got into little tiffs about stupid stuff, and in this case, you were fighting about Billy getting a little too comfortable with his coworker. He wouldn’t cheat on you, you knew that, but he shouldn’t be so friendly with her.

You were his girlfriend and he should have respected that but when you tried to inform him of that fact, he just got defensive and tried to tell you why you were wrong.

Which resulted in this ‘conversation’ in the first place.

“Holloway again?” Max asked, a mild humor in her voice as she addressed you, letting her know she’d heard the whole thing. Though, in her defense, it would have been impossible not to.

You and Billy were so loud that you could probably be heard all the way down the street.

Her words made you turn your attention to her instead of the male who had previously had it. You hadn’t meant for her to overhear all of that, but instead of telling her that, you nodded.

It couldn’t hurt to talk to her.

If nothing else, it would get your mind off of how her stepbrother was being right now.

“Yeah, he was ten minutes late to pick me up because he offered to drive her home. Can you believe that?” you sighed, sitting down on the couch beside her, content with the fact that Billy was going to pout in his room for a while.

He had to let you cool down before trying to talk about it again, not to mention the fact that he wasn’t quite sure what to say.

You didn’t think you were overreacting. After all, when Billy offered to pick you up from your shift, you had the audacity to assume he would be there when your shift ended.

Naturally you would be upset when that didn’t happen, not to mention the fact that he wasn’t there because of another girl. Anyone in their right would react the way you did, as far as you were concerned.

Not that Billy thought that was the case.

“He did? That’s so stupid” the redhead laughed, setting her magazine to the side in favor of the new drama that you’d brought into the living room. She wasn’t about to pass up on participating in this conversation.

You nodded, glad she was willing to participate in this. You needed someone to be part of this with you that was on your side. It made you feel better to know that you weren’t overreacting.

If this was up to Billy, he would assure you that you were overreacting.

“I know it is. Why would he do that? And then when I asked about it, he made it seem like I was crazy for asking” you hummed, rolling your eyes as you replayed the conversation in your head.

Clearly, he shouldn’t have acted that way.

...And Max knew that pretty well too.

She had been having her own boy problems with Lucas lately and she could sympathize with what you were going through right now. Though, she never really understood why you were with Billy in the first place.

After all, he was kind of an asshole, and it didn’t surprise her that he would act that way, even with as much as he loved you.

“Lucas does that sometimes. Like I’m overreacting even when he’s in the wrong” she shrugged, feeling similarly to what you were describing more than she would have liked to admit.

It must have just been a guy thing because she had never seen you try to do that with Billy and that wasn’t something she ever felt the need to try. Though, she didn’t have too much experience.

Not that she needed personal experience to know what she was talking about.

Max, in her youth, had access to something that you didn’t right now. She had several stacks of teen magazines her mom signed her up for in monthly subscriptions.

So, she knew a little bit more than maybe she would without them.

“Don’t worry about it though. Sometimes they just don’t think about what they do before doing it. He probably didn’t even realize it would bother you” she tried, doing her best to make you feel better.

Talking to her clearly made you feel better, as it got your mind off of what you’d been dealing with since you got off work, but you couldn’t help but be amused by her.

Max was so young in your eyes, and sometimes it was hard to remember that she was as mature as she was. Never did you think you’d be in a position for her to be giving you dating advice.

...But you weren’t complaining.

If anything, talking to Max had really helped you understand where she was coming from. Maybe she had a point, maybe Billy just didn’t understand that it would upset you.

He had always been flirty in nature and sometimes it bordered on inappropriate now that he was in a serious, committed relationship.

“You know what, I think you’re right Maxy, thank you” you hummed, getting up from the couch to press a gentle kiss to her forehead before heading back down the hall toward Billy’s room.

You still weren’t happy with him for doing what he’d done earlier, but getting angry wasn’t going to change what had already happened. If nothing else, maybe you could talk it through like adults.

After all, if Max could fully understand Billy’s intentions, then you could too. You just had to do your best to stay calm.

…

You pulled the door open with little hesitation, after a slight pause at the door.

Billy was still just sitting on his bed when you entered, huffing on a cigarette as upset as he was. You could practically see the smoke there, entering and exiting his lungs in haste.

“Hi”

His voice was hefty, filling the room immediately when he saw you. It wasn’t much, all things considered, but you didn’t care.

Max had really helped you put everything into perspective, and you weren’t angry anymore. At least, you weren’t going to get into another screaming match over it.

“Hey”

It was much smaller in comparison, your voice and his. However, that was enough for Billy to relax a little bit more. If you were still upset, you wouldn’t have come in at all. Let alone talk to him after all that.

Usually, you would give him the silent treatment for a few hours after a big fight until you really cooled down.

“Did you forget something?” he wondered, trying to break the ice without letting you in that much more. Billy wasn’t sure where he was standing right now in your books and he didn’t want to push his luck.

Not that you could blame him.

“Nope, but I realized something while I was talking to Max” you allowed, plopping down beside him on his bed, all hesitation melted away by this point.

You realized now that you and Billy hadn’t been listening as well to each other as you should have been. You realized that you shouldn’t have been as upset, and he shouldn’t have been as blind.

Perhaps you were both in the wrong.

Now, Billy was confused by that, seeing as you had just admitted to talking to her after all that, but he didn’t say anything about that. Instead, he chose to keep quiet as you spoke.

That was one of the things he had a hard time doing normally, but things had calmed down a lot since you two took a little break.

“I realized that you and I really need to listen to each other more” you hummed, reaching over to take the cigarette from his fingers, making room for you closer to his side.

After you’d put it out on the ashtray on his dresser, you turned back to him and found him there waiting for you to continue.

You had a point.

The whole time you were fighting earlier, it was over how you thought he had gone behind your back and betrayed you while he didn’t even understand why you were upset.

He was lost the whole time but that didn't stop him from being defensive over it.

“I shouldn’t have taken Holloway when I was supposed to pick you up. I’m sorry baby” he muttered, ever so dramatic.

In all the time that you’d known Billy, he’d never been all that good at apologizing or admitting when he was wrong but that was okay. Looking at him now, you knew that he was serious.

He felt bad, and so did you.

“I shouldn’t have accused you of something you didn’t do. I’m sorry too” you allowed, leaning into his side to snuggle up to him. You two had been arguing for what seemed like hours, but it seemed now that all was forgotten.

After all, being angry wasn’t going to do anything when you really loved each other.

You had learned that from watching Max and Lucas.

#Billy Hargrove #billy hargrove x ps reader #billy hargrove x plus size reader #billy hargrove x reader #billy hargrove imagine #stranger things #stranger things x reader #stranger things 3 #stranger things x ps reader #stranger things x plus size reader #stranger things imagine #st #st x ps reader #st x plus size reader #st x reader #st imagine

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willel · 3 years

Text

On this day, I’d like to talk about my feelings on Season 3.

I know I know. You roll your eyes. You’ve seen me talk about it before. But actually you haven’t. Not totally. If anything, you’ve just seen my inquisitional frustration now and then on how they decided to write it.

Make no mistake, I think Stranger Things 3 is the worst of the 3 seasons. Is it the worst tv ever? Nah.... though this is someone who doesn’t really watch tv other than Stranger Things (more of a reader myself). I usually watch youtubers rip tv shows apart instead.

So based on that, do I think Stranger Things 3 is worse that 13 Reasons Why, Riverdale, or uh.... hm.... oh! the last seasons of Game of Thrones? Well, no.

So how do I truly feel? Weirdly enough, I feel the same as I did when I finished watching it the whole time. I felt like... I was waiting for the ball to drop, episode to episode. I can’t pinpoint exactly what I was waiting for, but whatever it was didn’t come.

I didn’t.... FEEL as much as I did the first 2 seasons? And I felt like that was by design. They didn’t bring in the heartfelt stuff until literally the VERY end and by then, it was too late for me to feel invested in all these characters I genuinely like.

I never truly felt like anyone was in danger, especially not the Scoop Troop. Even as Steve was being tortured and had his daylights knocked out... it was just a *shrug* like moment for me.

Even when Hopper supposedly died.... I was kinda feeling like “meh. I doubt it.”

And I’m not trying to say someone HAS to die for me to feel something. No one died in Season 2 (except Bob) and I was still on the edge of my seat while they were interrogating Will or when they started panicking cause the Mind Flayer found their location. I was concerned that maybe El wouldn’t be able to close that humongous gate and Hopper would get eaten by demodogs before they even made it there. I was worried possessed Will would get loose before they managed to exercise the Mind Flayer and maybeeee he’d die or suffer more or something.

So for months, I guess more than a year now, I’ve just been debating my feelings on things. I’ve come to this conclusion.

Even though I didn’t really like the season overall, there were too many things in the season I did like to make me actually hate it.

Will’s arc that lasted about 3 episodes was off to a great start. I was really looking forward to it until it disappeared.

Murray’s friendship with Joyce... I dunno. I actually really loved that. They’re kinda similarly paranoid investigative people who bother Hopper in their own little way. It’s cute, like they’re long lost siblings.

Even if they laid it on a little thick, El and Max’s friendship was much needed and I’m glad that even though El was still trying to copy Max a little too much, Max was also doing her best to remind El now and then to find herself and no one else.

I like that El is now living with the Byers and that they’re moving away. It makes TOTAL sense that Joyce would pack up and leave Hawkins. Too much shit has gone down there, she needed to go for her and her kids sake + El.

Even though I wish the resolution had been different, Jonathan and Nancy clashing due to their backgrounds (being a woman vs being poor) was very interesting to me. I would’ve loved to have more of it. Not more arguing, just more talking about it other than the apology.

I love love love, first of all, Lucas reaching out to Will multiple times after the huge blow up trying to make amends. Some of it is in the background. And that CUTE HUG AT THE END. I love Will and Lucas. <3 Lucas is such a good friend even with a few screw ups there and there.

Jonathan for at least a second taking the big brother role for El and trying to cut that thing out of her leg. Trying to reassure her it’s gonna hurt but it’s gotta be done. So sweet even if gross

And then there’s the things I didn’t like that just... brought down my mood. Here’s a few.

Hopper was just... look. I don’t hate his character. I see this solely as a writing issue, not necessarily a character issue. I feel we could’ve ended up with the exact same plot if we cut out about 50% of Hopper’s snark. I get being overprotective of El and the old “Dad hates the boyfriend jokes”. Whatever. Would’ve been better if Mike ACTUALLY screwed up all by himself and Hopper was just enjoying the moment rather than Hopper being the cause of it.

And I get the whole Hopper really wanting to date Joyce stuff, but... I just can’t see how we go from season 1 and season 2 Hopper who was ready to throw hands with his deputies for implying Joyce was crazy. And the Hopper that really truly completely understood what Joyce was going through (anxiety,depression, and loss). How did that guy turn into someone trying to rush Joyce’s mourning along (after he mourned for his daughter for like, 6 years) and him being the one implying she’s crazy? It’s just weird. I can’t deal. It’s WEIRD.

No Jonathan and Will scenes. They’re finally on the adventure together and there’s still NOTHING. In the mall, Will is damn near having a panic attack hardly able to keep quiet and JONATHAN DOESN’T EVEN GLANCE IN HIS DIRECTION

No Jonathan and Joyce scenes. Mother and son who?

No Nancy and Mike scenes. They didn’t do it for season 2. Surely they won’t forget this time and give the siblings some screen time??? Nope. Bet 75% of the fandom forgot they’re even related.

No Max and Billy scenes. Not a fan of Billy, but Billy is her step brother. Why the hell wouldn’t the writing put a little more focus on that? Surely Max would be more suspicious of Billy acting weird or even nice to her? Surely they’d give her more moments of showing... something over the fact that her step brother is the big bad?

No Will and El scenes. Obviously I’d be annoyed at this. But you’d think the monster radar and the psychic girl would be butting their heads together a bit more to figure out what’s going on? This ties into Will’s evil senses only working 5 minutes too late. How did he sense the Mind Flayer smoke from 10 miles away, but now he can’t sense the huge flesh monster until it’s a couple meters above him?? No logical sense.

Complete erasure of Kali. I didn’t miss the fact that when El was having flashbacks of her mom, they pretty much cut out any mention or thought of Kali. Surely after that heartfelt goodbye, El would at least think of Kali for a moment and get distracted. She decidedly hid the fact that Kali exists from everyone else, wouldn’t it be nice if we saw her character still thinking about that secret from time to time??

And the final point that I feel like typing out tonight, too much focus on El. And I don’t mean it in the way you’re probably thinking. I mean that basically NO ONE is able to save El. EVER. She has to do everything up until the final moment. Mike and the gang isn’t allowed to save El from Billy choking her out. She ends up having to save them. No one can save El from the flesh eating vagina monster. She has to defend herself completely. Jonathan isn’t allowed to get the worm thing out of her leg, she has to pull it out herself. Mike and Max can’t do anything to protect her from Billy again. They all fail and she yet again has to save herself.

Ok, that’s all I wanted to say.

ST3 is like a..... 45 / 55 scale for me, and the 55 is the bad part.

#stranger things

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skullrock · 4 years

Text

the campers, chapter seven

chapter seven - the fight

series summary: Steve gets a job as a camp counselor at Camp Know Where, intending on using the summer to discover himself. When things start to go wrong at camp, the only people that can help him are the Party, Hopper, and his mortal enemy - you. [Enemies to lovers, angst, fluff, hurt/comfort]

chapter summary: Steve, Hopper, and the Party talk theories while you and Steve engage in a feud.

warnings: swearin’ <3 angst <3

word count: 2.8k

a/n: you can catch up on the series here! I changed two whole words in the summary to make it more accurate <3

===

The camp was on a full lockdown after the second camper went missing.

Campers now had to be escorted everywhere by a counselor. Counselors also had to escort each other. There was a sinister feeling in the air, one that left everyone uneasy. One camper going missing was one thing; two going missing was another thing entirely. It didn’t seem like an unfortunate coincidence anymore. It seemed intentional and evil.

The people who thought this most were, of course, The Party, Jim Hopper, and Steve Harrington. The evening the news of the second camper broke, everyone squished themselves into a double bedroom, theorizing and planning.

Steve came late - he had to escort campers to the dining hall. His mind hasn’t thought of anything except the missing camper. No one Steve talked to knew who it was, and he had no time to talk to you or any of the kids, beyond Mike telling him to meet in his room at nine. His chest felt tight all day, worried it was someone in the Party. Someone who had been trying to play hero and got caught up in whatever this all was. His heart hammered as he rushed towards Mike’s cabin, slipping into the crowded room with his head spinning.

The room falls silent as he barges in. Hopper is sitting at Mike’s desk while everyone else is spread around the beds and the floor. Everyone looks fearful, and as Steve’s eyes scan the room, he notices the lack of Dustin. Suzie is there, but no Dustin.

Steve’s heart drops.

“Where’s Dustin?” he asks, voice cracking.

“Relax,” Max says. “He snuck out to get pudding from the cafeteria.”

“Snuck out?” Steve hisses, but his body relaxes in relief. “He can’t be out there right now -”

“Steve,” Hopper cuts in, and beckons him to take a seat.

Steve figures that if Hopper’s not concerned, then he shouldn’t be, either. He sits beside El and Mike on Mike’s bed, staying close to Hop as he waits for information.

Hopper keeps his hand over his mouth for a moment, deep in thought, before speaking, directly to Steve, the only other adult in the room. “The camper that went missing was the same age and size as Will.” He tilts his head towards Will, who seems almost catatonic in fear. “And the last camper that went missing was also the same age and size as Will.”

“Well, what do you think that means?” Steve asks. “Do you think it’s looking for him?”

“Will said he can’t feel the Mind Flayer,” Mike interjects. “Right, Will?”

Will goes pale, eyes darting to the floor.

“Right, Will?” Mike repeats, a bit of an edge to his voice.

Will looks back up, shaking his head a little bit. His hand goes to the back of his neck and he shakes his head some more. “I can’t feel him, but I can feel him.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” Max says, brows furrowed.

“It’s like… it’s like he’s not here, he’s there,” Will explains. “But there is close.”

“The Upside Down?” Lucas asks, and Will nods.

“I think it’s close, but I don’t know how close,” he explains. “I can’t feel him in this realm, but I think I can feel him in the Upside Down.”

“I can feel it, too,” El says quietly.

Mike and Hopper look at her, scandalized.

“You can feel it? Feel what?” Hopper asks.

“The Upside Down.” El shifts, pulling her legs up to her chest. “I can feel it nearby, but I can’t see it or find it.”

“Jesus,” Steve mumbles, running a hand through his hair. “So you think the Upside Down isn’t in Hawkins, it’s here?”

El and Will nod in unison, frowning.

“Well that’s just great,” Steve says, standing up. “That’s good. That’s great. So it followed us.”

“Maybe it knew El and Will were here,” Lucas tries to explain, but Hopper shakes his head.

“Why would it want Will again?” he asks quietly. “It doesn’t make sense.”

“If they feel something, then it has to be nearby,” Mike says. “Why would both of them feel it at the same time?”

“I don’t know,” Hopper says harshly. “But I’m taking you two -” he points at El and Mike, “back to Hawkins.”

“What?” everyone asks in unison.

“It’s not safe for them here,” Hopper explains, raising his voice over the racket.

“It’s not safe for anyone here,” Steve says, putting his hands on his hips. His heartbeat accelerates at the thought of you being here when this shit is happening. “We need to get to the bottom of this before anyone else gets hurt.”

The room falls quiet. Steve knows, Steve understands that no one wants to deal with this shit again. He gets that. But someone has to, and if it has to be him, then so be it. That’s usually how it goes, anyway.

“I’m not leaving until we figure this out,” he says. “So if -”

The door opens and Dustin walks in, you on his heels, looking frazzled. Dustin has a copious amount of pudding cups balanced in his arms, and you’re carrying two - the ones he managed to drop. You’d found him sneaking around on his own and accompanied him, irritated that no one else went with him.

Everyone freezes at the sight of you, bodies going stiff. Your eyes scan the room, confused - there are way too many people in here, and you don’t know who the hell this grown ass man is. Your eyes fall to Steve, brows furrowed, and then you say, “Why didn’t anybody go with him?”

“Didn’t know he was going,” Steve says, pulling Dustin into the room.

Steve’s irritated - enraged, maybe. You weren’t supposed to be here - Suzie wasn’t, either, but he could at least control what you were a part of. Dustin allowing you to come so far, literally into the room where they’re referencing things you could be killed for, makes his blood boil. Dustin groans at the feeling of Steve’s fingers burying into his arm and he drops the pudding cups.

“God dammit,” Dustin says, shrugging out of his grip and rubbing his arm. “What the hell was that for?”

“It’s curfew,” you say awkwardly, not understanding what’s going on. “You should all be -”

“So should you,” Steve snaps.

You straighten at his tone, glaring at him. Steve sighs and steps towards the door, holding his hand up to the Party before slipping out with you.

“What the hell?” you whisper. “Why are you so pressed and who the hell is that guy?”

“It’s nothing,” he lies. “I need you to go back to your cabin.”

You cross your arms. “Don’t talk to me like that.”

“Like what?”

“Like I’m one of those kids,” you say, beckoning towards the door. “I can take care of myself.”

“You shouldn’t be out -”

“I wouldn’t be out if you’d just taken Dustin -”

“I didn’t know he was going!” he whisper-shouts, becoming more irritated. “Go back to your cabin.”

“You’re not the boss of me -”

“Right now, I am.”

You scoff, your own rage building. “Tell me what’s going on.”

Steve shakes his head and licks his lips, looking over your shoulder. “I can’t.”

“Why?”

Steve sighs heavily, running a hand through his hair again. “It’s complicated.”

You frown and your eyes soften, letting your shoulders relax. You can see how stressed he is and you step forward to reach for him, but he steps back, out of your reach. You frown further and your shoulders slump. “You can talk to me. You know I’m here for you.”

Steve’s inner turmoil reaches a near-boiling point here. He wants to tell you, just like he wanted to tell you at the waterfall. He wants to be like Dustin, he wants to trust and assume things will work out. But he doesn’t want you dead, and he doesn’t want you hurt. He doesn’t want you caught up in any of this. Steve feels his chest tighten, fighting with himself, before he makes the decision to push you away.

“You can’t be right now,” he says. He steps forward and puts his hands on your biceps, pushing you towards the exit. “You need to go.”

“Steve!” you nearly shout, pushing him off of you. “Do not touch me like that.”

Like muscle memory, Steve’s angry venom takes hold of himself yet again, just as it did in high school. Without thinking, he snaps, “You didn’t say that last night.”

You pause in shock, his words running through your head. You scoff and shake your head. “What does that mean?”

Steve feels bile rising in his throat, and he swears he can see Nancy standing before him, not you. He puts up the wall in a desperate attempt to not break down, his jaw clenching and fists balling up. “Don’t you ever stop to think why I don’t tell you things? Why I don’t trust you? Why I didn’t want to touch you last night?”

“Shut up,” you whisper, feeling your chest twist. “You’re being an asshole.”

“I’ve been pushing you away my whole life, why don’t you get the message?”

You know it’s a bluff, but you don’t understand why. You don’t get the total 180 he’s pulling, but you have a bad feeling in your gut. Like maybe he’s involved in shit he shouldn’t be involved in, or maybe he knows too much about the missing campers. Steve doesn’t seem evil, but his inability to open up to you makes you feel sick, and angry, and hurt.

“Stop,” you beg. “Stop being… stop being… you’re bullshit.”

You know it was a mistake the moment it left your lips, and Steve’s eyes hardening and welling with tears reinforces that. But you’re still mad, and you don’t think he has the right to be tearful right now, and it enrages you so much that you repeat it. “You’re bullshit.”

Steve feels the wall crashing down and he does everything to keep it up, locks his knees upright, clenches his fist, grits his teeth. “You think I’m bullshit?”

“You really don’t care about me, do you?” you ask, trying to keep your own wall up, trying to not let the tears fall freely down your cheeks. “Is that why you can’t remember any good thing about me? Because you don’t want to? Because you don’t care?”

Steve doesn’t know what to say, because it’s all a lie. Of course he cares about you, of course he remembers you fondly. Of course he regrets the way he treated you. Of course he’s proud of the person he’s become, and of course he owes that to you.

But he can not and will not admit that right now.

“I don’t,” he says quietly, not even understanding the words leaving his own mouth. “I don’t.”

You weren’t expecting that.

“You don’t?” you repeat.

“I don’t.” He says it louder this time, trying to convince himself it’s true. But he’s still mad, and he wants what he says to hurt, because you hurt him. “And you know what I think is bullshit?”

You don’t answer - you can only stare while forcing the tip of your tongue into the roof of your mouth.

He still remembers the words he told Nancy in the alley by the gym two years ago. I think you’re bullshit. He remembers the anger and heartbreak behind the words, how they hurt to come out, how they made his mouth dry and knees weak.

“I think you’re bullshit,” he says, and then he walks back into Mike’s room, slamming the door behind him.

You stare at the pattern in the wood of the door, mind blank after that, before walking out, trying to push your tears back in with the heels of your palms.

===

Everyone looks up when Steve reenters, noticing how his cheeks are pink and splotchy and his eyes are wet and red. He speaks immediately, scared that someone will ask him about the talk they almost certainly heard through the door. “What’s the plan?”

“You and me,” Hop says, standing from his chair. “We’re going into the woods to see if anything’s going on, or if we can find any… portals.”

“And if we do?” Steve asks.

“I close them,” El says quietly.

“We have to find out if there are any, first,” Hopper says. He heads to the window and opens it, pulls out a cigarette and then lights it. “And if there are, we close them.”

Steve wonders why it sounds so easy, but maybe it’s because he’s suddenly not the only adult in this situation.

“I’ll get my bat,” he says, eager for the comfort of the heavy weapon in his hand.

Dustin hops up and follows him out, making Steve irritated once again.

“I’m not talking about it,” Steve hisses.

“You just sabotaged your entire relationship with Y/N for what?” Dustin asks, pulling on Steve’s arm to make him stop walking.

“So that they don’t die,” Steve says, yanking his arm away. “Maybe you should try having some discretion for once.”

“I told Suzie because I love her,” Dustin explains, fighting to keep up with Steve’s long strides. “And if she knows the kind of trouble she could be in, then that’s to her advantage.”

Steve whips around, pupils flaring. “How would knowing about this help? Did you forget about the entire stack of papers we had to sign? Did you forget that they could kill us and our families and the people we love if this shit gets out?”

“So you don’t trust her then?” Dustin asks.

“Of course I do,” Steve says, feeling sick again.

“Then why don’t you tell her?”

“Because I am not like you.” Steve reaches his arm out, holding Dustin at bay, two fingertips digging into his chest. “Now back off. I’m not explaining myself again.”

Steve continues to walk towards his car, abandoned in the parking lot, but Dustin keeps up with him. Steve turns around again. “I’m serious, back off -“

“I’m not leaving you out here alone,” Dustin says quietly, looking a bit hurt at Steve’s rejection.

Steve sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose before taking Dustin under his arm, walking slower so Dustin doesn’t have to run.

Nothing is said, but they both understand.

When Steve opens the trunk to his car, a wave of hot air hits him in the face, making him cringe and step back. He leans in for it and pulls it out, smiling fondly as he does, the familiar weight of it comforting. He’d packed it just in case - maybe he’d see a bear and would need it. He never thought he’d potentially have to use it on another Demogorgon.

“You still know how to use that thing?” Dustin asks.

Steve smiles and twirls it in his hand, giving it a few practice swings. “I didn’t score the winning shot on my fourth grade pee-wee team for nothing.”

Steve and Dustin walk side by side as they head back to Mike’s room, both feeling much better with the addition of the bat. Steve’s mind runs off towards you, his stomach twisting again as he processes what he’d said to you. He feels embarrassed and disgusted. He felt like he’d come so far since high school, that he’d gotten over Nancy since October ‘84. It’s a let down for himself, but surely for you, too.

He convinced himself it was the right thing, though. He doesn’t need you to be caught up in this. And once they figure out if the Upside Down has something to do with this, he’ll apologize and come clean. He’ll tell you he was trying to protect you. He’ll tell you he cares about you.

He’ll prove it.

The door creaks open as Steve and Dustin come back in, Hopper finishing up another cigarette. He flicks it out the window and pulls it down, locking it into place.

“Let’s go over this again,” Hopper says.

Steve and Hop are to go into the woods to search for any type of portals or other things that are amiss. It’s a bit of a long shot, since there have already been search parties out for the two missing boys, but maybe they’d find something that the others looked over. The kids were to stay put until Steve and Hop came back. After that, they’d reassess and complete the mission, if there is a mission at all.

Steve silently hopes that there’s nothing out there.

“Ready?” Hopper asks, his hand gripping his pistol.

“As I’ll ever be,” Steve replies dryly, his own hands gripping the shaft of the bat.

===

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#steve harrington #steve harrington x you #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington fic #steve harrington au #the campers #my fics

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thecreelhouse · 4 years

Text

only for you

Paring: Robin Buckley x Reader

Summary: You’re still in the closet, and so is your relationship with Robin, and you do everything you can to be extra careful the truth doesn’t slip out. Fate during a night roller skating challenges that, though.

Word count: 2.5k

Warnings: some language, mostly a whole lotta fluff!

A/N: changed this up a little from the original request, but I hope y’all still enjoy! <3

“You think today’s the day?”

Robin’s question pulls you from your concentration over lacing up your skates. You quirk a brow at her.

“The day that you stop falling on your ass every five seconds?” You teased, and Robin sighed loudly as she rolled her eyes.

“I mean, you didn’t have to be so harsh, but yeah.” She said, flipping you off. You grabbed her hand, pushing her finger down before letting your hand slip in hers, since no one was around the table you sat at.

Your hands intertwined hung low below the table’s surface, a quick rush surging through you at the subtle sign of rebellion against society’s standards. You’d do anything to live in a world that was comfortable with your love for Robin, but you knew keeping the relationship secret protected the both of you in the long run.

Robin quickly pulled her hand away from yours when Steve strolled up to the table, giving the two of you a curious look before sitting across you. The kids scrambled in shortly after him, rushing to the rental booth to grab their skates for the day.

The skating rink was relatively quiet today, aside from a few couples already making laps on the floor. Your heart sank at the sight of them, hands laced together as they skated side by side, smiles brighter than the lights hitting the disco ball in the center of the room. You wondered what it was like to be so carefree in displaying your love without consequences. You wondered if you’d ever see the day things would get better, where you wouldn’t have to hide away like the monster society saw you as.

“Hellooooo, Earth to Y/N,” Robin waved a hand in front of your face, breaking your stare over the happy couples. You twisted to face her, eyes locking and feeling your heart leap all over again, just like the first time you saw each other. Your gaze strayed to her freckles, glittered across her face, and felt the world melt away as you silently admired your girlfriend.

Steve cleared his throat, glancing at you two with an odd, suspicious look. You snapped yourself out of your trance, relieved you didn’t do anything obvious in public.

“So,” Steve started awkwardly as he got up from the table. “You think Robin’s gonna finally make a full lap around safely?”

Robin sighed, throwing her head back in annoyance. “God, give me a break, guys! It’s hard!”

You giggled, shaking your head, “I dunno, Rob, you freeze up every time you hit the floor.”

Steve smirked at the banter between you two before heading to the rental booth. You sighed in relief loudly as soon as he was out of earshot.

“You’re gonna get us in trouble one of these days, I swear.” Robin teased, voice softer, pinching your side. You squeaked before pouting.

“Maybe, but today’s not the day for that.” You shrugged, trying to let it go, while Robin smiled softly at you.

You got up and pulled Robin along the carpeted sitting area, heading for the opening towards the floor as ABBA’s ‘Dancing Queen’ flooded out of the speakers.

The kids were already a few full laps in on the floor, with El happily being pushed by Mike for a head start, giggling at the feeling of gliding across the floor. Max wanted to hold hands with Lucas, but Lucas was more concerned about showing her the new dance moves he learned last week. Will skated cautiously, smiling at his friends as they passed, linking arms with them from time to time before skating off on his own. Steve was watching over all the kids, but mainly had Dustin glued to his side, talking his ear off about Star Wars theories as they cruised on the floor.

Robin’s arm was linked into yours, gripping onto you for dear life as you gracefully glided the both of you along the floor. The reflections off the disco ball danced across the two of you as you rounded the curved edge of the room.

This was the thing you loved about roller skating with Robin; the two of you could be close like this without raising suspicions. You could link arms, hold her hand, pull her close, all under the guise of keeping her from falling, keeping her safe. Just being a good best friend, showing her how to skate.

You wished you could be open about your love together, but this was the next best thing, at least. It was like getting away with something, and that was better than absolutely nothing.

You picked up the pace, swaying your hips and legs to the music, and Robin giggled before slipping, her skates sending her rolling back quickly. You moved fast enough to catch her before she could hit the ground, holding her up as you hovered over her. The two of you caught your breath at the close call.

“I’d kiss you right now if I could,” You mumbled, just loudly enough for her to hear, and Robin blushed before you pulled her up.

Steve skated past the two of you, cocking a brow as he noticed the moment linger a second too long before rounding the curve, continuing down the floor.

“Jesus, I swear he knows.” You said, slowly skating again, locking your arm in Robin’s, tugging her along.

Robin gained the tiniest amount of balance back before nudging into you softly, “Y’know, Steve knows I like girls, right? I told him last summer.”

“I know, but—“ Dustin whizzed past the two of you, startling Robin before she broke out into more laughter. “— I just- It’s not— What if they hate us? What if they all find out and hate us?”

Robin shrugged, biting her lip softly, “Steve wouldn’t, and I doubt the kids care, they’re just kids, you know.”

You grew quiet, lost in the doubts and ‘what ifs’ that surrounded the mere thought of coming out, even to your friends. Despite all the weird shit you’d all been through, you couldn’t help but worry this was still the weirdest thing. That fighting monsters could somehow strengthen bonds, but the truth about you and Robin would shatter that all. It even sounded ridiculous to you, yet you just couldn’t help but be nervous.

The worrying clouded your concentration, and you felt yourself begin to fall, but couldn’t react quickly enough. All the ways you learned how to “fall safely” were so far out of reach with all your current thoughts spiraling around your brain, and Robin wasn’t experienced enough to catch herself, let alone to catch you.

So you fell, and you fell hard, landing face down as you slammed your nose against the floor. Stars exploded behind your eyelids, making you feel dizzy. It didn’t take long for blood to start flowing, and it stung. You tried your hardest not to cry, unsure what hurt worse, the physical damage or the embarrassment.

Robin slid to the floor, pulling you up gently. She gasped at the sight of your injured nose, wincing at the blood dripping down your face.

“Guess this is karma for making fun of all the times you fell, huh?” You grumbled, smiling through the building tears and the pain that radiated far across your face, now.

The kids slowed in their spots on the floor, looking over to make sure you were okay, and Steve glided over to the two of you, helping Robin pull you up and off the floor. You collapsed onto a heavily carpeted bench- it matched the flooring, with the tacky neon designs. Steve muttered something about an ice pack, and ran off to the rental booth. Robin sat next to you, helping you get your skates off as she offered her flannel sleeve to stop the bleeding.

“This is the gayest sign of affection you’ve ever shown me,” You joked softly, gratefully taking it and holding it to your nose. Robin rolled her eyes.

“Alright, maybe you did deserve that karma.” Robin teased, poking your side playfully. You lazily flipped her off before Steve came back with an ice pack, handing it over to you.

Robin went to lift the flannel to check on the bleeding, and cringed at the sight of dried blood all over your face.

“Okay, yeah, we need to wash your face.” Robin said, sticking her tongue out. She got to her feet before pulling you to yours, waving to Steve quickly as she pulled you towards the bathroom. “We’ll be back!”

When the two of you got into the bathroom, Robin brought you over to the sink, before quickly checking the stalls to make sure the room was empty. She worked quickly to scrub the blood off your face with a wet paper towel, and you squeezed your eyes shut any time she got too close to your nose; it still stung badly.

“Sorry, babe.” Robin mumbled, frowning as she threw the paper towel out before grabbing a new one. She continued to wipe away the last of the blood, smirking at you. “This is definitely karma at work.”

“Shut up,” You huffed, looking away as you crossed your arms. Robin pulled back to check once more that she didn’t miss any spots. Your nose was swollen and red, but the bleeding had slowed enough, at least.

You tore a smaller part of the paper towel off before pressing it to your nose, blotting it again. Robin watched you cautiously, making sure you were okay. Her face scrunched up, eyes falling across your lips. “Oh, god, wait, I definitely missed a spot.”

Your eyes went wide, “What? Where?” as you tried to turn to the mirror to get a closer look, but Robin reached for your chin, gently holding it in place as she smirked.

“Right—“ Robin kissed your jawline softly, quickly moving a little higher, “- here. And here-“ another kiss, closer to the corner of your mouth, making your stomach flutter. “Oh, and here, too—“ she kissed the tip of your nose softly before pulling away, eyes landing on your lips again.

“Robin, someone could see us!” You hissed, though unable to hide your growing smile. Robin shrugged, kissing your cheek, then finally kissing your lips, soft and sweet. She was careful to not press her nose against yours too hard. You knew the risks of being close in public like this, but couldn’t resist her pouty, pillowy lips against yours, or the way she always tasted like strawberries. You wanted more, but Robin pulled back slowly, causing you to whine a little before she rested her forehead against yours.

“We’re the only ones in here right now, and no one uses these bathrooms anyway,” Robin dismissed, leaving a trail of gentle kisses across your face as she smiled playfully. “I’m just checking on my girlfriend, making sure she’s safe, that’s all.”

Robin leaned in to kiss your lips before a harsh, sudden bang! echoed against the door startled the two of you, frozen in place, followed by an “I knew it! I called it!”.

Your eyes fell wide as your gaze never left Robin’s, also filled with fear before moving towards the door. You followed close behind, palms sweating as she opened the door. All of the kids and Steve were squished into the short hallway just outside the door, looking at you and Robin like deer in headlights.

Other than the music playing on the floor, still, the silence among everyone was painfully loud. Eyes darted left and right, waiting for someone to say something.

Dustin was the first to speak up, quietly, “So, does this mean I lost the bet?”

Steve elbowed him, mumbling a “Shut it!” but you and Robin still heard it. Robin scoffed, crossing her arms as she stepped a little in front of you protective.

“So, what’s the bet about?” Robin asked, irritated. Dustin’s face grew red as he shyly stepped back behind Steve, and Steve began stuttering wildly.

“Uh- well you see- the thing is- it wasn’t like a bad thing—“

“These dinguses took a bet on if you two were dating or not,” Max deadpanned, throwing a thumb their way as she rolled her eyes. “Steve thought so but Dustin thought you just liked each other and didn’t say anything.”

“Are you all in on this?” You asked quietly, peeking over Robin’s shoulder. Some of the kids blushed, others shrugged while the rest shook their heads.

“So- so you all knew?” Robin asked, holding her breath. The kids stayed silent, but Steve nodded slowly.

“We kinda knew something was going on, just wasn’t sure what,” Steve said, fidgeting with his hands before shoving them in his pockets. “We’re sorry we eavesdropped, we’ve just been- we all— you know—.”

“We’re happy for you.” Will spoke up, saving Steve’s sinking words. Lucas nodded, smiling.

“You can see how much you care about each other,” He added. “It’s kind of obvious.”

Max nudged his arm lightly, frowning before adding, “It’s cute. We’ve seen the way you fall asleep on each other during sleepovers.”

“We support you.” Mike said, and El nodded with a grin.

“Safe.” She spoke up. “Safe, and happy.”

“That’s all that really matters.” Dustin chimed as he poked his head out from behind Steve.

Robin didn’t realize she was tearing up until you reached out to gently wipe the tears away. She smiled at you before reaching out for your hand, softly lacing her fingers between yours.

“We love you guys, we just don’t want you to feel like you have to hide around us.” Steve reassured, smiling as his gaze wandered to your hands intertwined. “We’ll kick anyone’s ass that says anything, too.”

“If anyone messes with you two, they have to go through us first!” Dustin agreed, and you couldn’t help hide the laughter that bubbled out of you, brushing your own tears away.

“Even if the world’s not safe right now, you always are safe with us.” Steve said, and the kids all chimed in, agreeing and assuring it was absolutely fine to be yourselves around them.

The heavy weight you carried on your shoulders finally lifted, not completely, but enough. You could tell how relieved Robin was, too.

“I think this calls for celebratory slushies,” You said, giggling, and the kids cheered at the idea, racing back to the food stand. Steve laughed as he followed them, turning to you and Robin, waving you along.

Both of you lingered in the hallway a little longer, enjoying the blissful feeling of acceptance among the Party while hiding from any wandering eyes as you held each other’s hands.

You glanced out, making sure no one was in view, just the kids and Steve, and you quickly pressed a kiss to Robin’s lips, smiling against one another. Squeals of excitement across the room echoed from the kids, pulling laughter out of the both of you.

Robin teased, “And you thought I was bold, huh?”

You let go of her hand, already longing to hold it again, but didn’t want to keep the group waiting.

“You know what they say about love,” you joked as she walked side by side with you. Robin bumped her hip into yours.

“That it makes you a total dingus?”

“Only for you, Robin.” You giggled, nudging back into her. “Only for you.”

——

Taglist: @harringtown @jxnehxpper @harrington-ofhawkins @ilovebucketbarnes

@whimsicalwoodlands

#robin buckley x reader #robin buckley x you #robin buckley fluff #stranger things x reader #stranger things x you #stranger things fanfic #my fics #only for you

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imaginingmarvelandeverything · 4 years

Text

The Next Steps

Pairing: Billy Hargrove x Reader

Warnings: Spoilers for season 3

Word Count: 1777

A/N: So, here is part 17 of Nightmares and Bruises. Sorry for the wait, it’s been a really busy first year at uni but I only have three more exams to go so I should be back permanently in two weeks. The taglist is open so drop me an ask or a comment! I won’t reply to comments because this is a side blog but know that I see and read them all. Also, I still don’t know if I managed to sort the issue with my taglist, so if you aren’t tagged and want to be message me and I’ll try to fix it.

Series Masterlist

Masterlist

Y/N was woken up the following morning by Max. Her head was throbbing even more than the previous day as she sat up on the sofa she had been sleeping on. To make matters worse her arm was aching and her throat felt so tight she wasn’t sure if she’d be able to speak.

“Here, you should take these.” Max said holding out a pack of painkillers and a glass of water.

“Thanks.” Y/N’s voice sounded rough and she struggled to swallow the painkillers. She got to her feet, grabbed her bag off the floor and ruffled El’s hair before passing into the bathroom.

A quick look in the mirror told her she looked as bad as she felt, if not worse. Her cast was covered in dust, making the blue bandage look more grey; the bruise on her head had darkened overnight and the mark on her neck had turned from red to purple. The mark Billy’s hand had left. She pushed that thought away as soon as it appeared. It wasn’t Billy. She bit her lip to hold back the tears that threatened to fall as she reached into her bag. Luckily, she’d stopped off at her house and Max’s on the way to Mike’s the night before to get her, El and Max some spare clothes and toiletries. She changed and freshened up before walking back into the main room.

“What do we do now?” Max asked.

“We need to find Hopper.” Y/N sat on the sofa arm as the kids all looked at her. “But I couldn’t find him anywhere the other day when I was looking.”

“I can find him.” El spoke up

Everyone exchanged a glance before they all nodded. It was easier to get everything set up in Mike’s basement than it had been in the swimming bath changing rooms. The TV was easily turned to static and Mike already had a bandana. When everything was set in place, they all sat around the coffee table and let El do her thing.

After a few minutes, El broke the silence. “I found him.”

“Where is he?” Max asked as blood started running from El’s nose.

“Woods.”

“Woods?” Lucas echoed.

“He’s with… Will’s mom.”

“My-my mom?” The confusion very evident on Will’s face.

“What are they doing?” Y/N asked, wondering if this was why she hadn’t been able to find anyone when she was looking.

“Ill-annoy, they’re going to ill-annoy.” El sounded out.

A sudden knock on the door made them all jump. “Mike! Breakfast!”

“Not now mom!” Mike screamed back before turning back to El. “Illinois? Illinois, like the state? The state of Illinois?”

“Il-ill-annoy.” El shrugged.

“Awesome.” Y/N muttered as she laid back on the sofa and slung her good arm over her eyes. This week just kept getting better and better.

Max took El into the bathroom to clean up the blood from her nose as Mike got up and started pacing. “Something’s not right. I can’t get Hopper off my back all summer and now, all of a sudden, he’s hiking with Will’s mom to Illinois? And Dustin’s MIA too? I mean this can’t be a coincidence.”

“What does it matter?” Lucas interrupted. “Bottom line is, they’re not here. It’s up to us.”

Mike shot him a glare. “Up to us to do what exactly?”

“Find Billy and stop him.” Lucas glanced at Y/N as she sat up and ran her good hand over her face.

“Okay, yeah, that’s a really nice sentiment, but even if El could find him again, and that’s a pretty big if, then what?” Mike looked from Lucas to Y/N.

“We find a way to save him, like we did for Will.” Y/N said, shooting Will a glance. He’d been very quiet throughout all of this.

“Yeah, we burn the shit out of him and make sure he doesn’t escape this time.” Lucas said grabbing the box of cocoa puffs off the table and taking a couple.

“Okay, then what?” Mike challenged.

“Then we win.” Lucas stated.

“No, see, that’s the problem. We don’t. We don’t win.” Mike was getting more agitated. “We got the mind flayer out of Will before and he just came right back. We don’t just have to stop Billy; we have to stop the mind flayer.”

“How in the hell do we do that?” Lucas asked.

“I don’t know.” Mike sighed.

Will spoke up for the first time. “Maybe El does.”

The three boys all got up and looked at the bathroom door.

“What are they still doing in there?” Mike huffed.

“I don’t know, girls just like hanging out in bathrooms.” Lucas said through a mouthful of cocoa puffs.

“Why?” Mike asked.

“Because they don’t want you to over hear them.” Y/N told them as she grabbed a handful of cocoa puffs from Lucas.

“They’re conspiring against me.” Mike said with complete seriousness.

Y/N snorted and Will turned to Mike in disbelief. “That’s what you’re concerned about right now?”

“It’s not my main concern. It’s just a sub concern.” Mike defended himself.

“I thought it was already over.” Will shot back.

“It’s not over okay, we’re just taking a break.” Mike didn’t sound convinced.

“She said she dumped your ass. That doesn’t sound like a break.” Will whisper-screamed.

Y/N snorted again. “Sounds like it’s over.”

“Yeah! Listen to Y/N!” Max’s voice came through the door. “You guys do realise we can still hear everything you’re saying right?”

Max and El started laughing and Y/N had to join in.

“Conspiring.” Mike whispered to the boys. “I told you they’re conspiring.”

Someone loudly knocked on the door.

“Not now mom!” Mike screamed.

“Mike, open the door!” Nancy shouted back.

Mike ran up the stairs and flung the door open to reveal Nancy and Jonathan. They moved past him and descended the stairs as Mike shut and locked the door again.

Y/N got straight to her feet and threw her arms around them both. They both took one look at the state of her and quickly returned the gesture. They pulled back with a shocked look.

“What happened to you?” Nancy said, her eyes going wide as they bounced from her cast to her head to her throat.

“I was in a car accident caused by the mind flayer and now Billy’s possessed and then he tried to kill us because we locked him in a sauna and now we don’t know where he is and Hopper and Joyce are apparently walking to Illinois and I can’t find Steve anywhere.” Y/N knew she was rambling but she it was just the relief of finally seeing them both. “Where the hell have you both been? I’ve been looking for you for two days.”

Nancy and Jonathan just looked at her with wide eyes before looking to the five kids behind them.

“We’ve seen it too.” Nancy said before she launched into a full explanation about rats eating fertiliser and an old woman doing the same and being taken to hospital. “It was the same thing, the exact same thing that happened to Will last year. And look at this, look at the body temperature.” Nancy handed Y/N a medical sheet.

“Did you steal this?” Y/N asked as she took a look at the scarily low numbers on the sheet before handing it to the kids.

“He likes it cold.” Will said.

“Okay,” Mike started. “so, this crazy old woman who was eating fertiliser,”

“Mrs Driscoll.” Nancy interjected.

“Right, yeah, Mrs Driscoll, what time was this attack?”

“Last night.”

“Right, but what time last night?”

“Around 9.”

“You waited all night to call?” Jonathan suddenly butted in.

“I-I was waiting for the doctors to run some tests.” Nancy said. Y/N glanced between the pair, it looked like Mike and El weren’t the only ones having relationship issues.

“You weren’t there?” Will sounded personally offended.

Jonathan threw his hands up in surrender. “Well, I’m here now, aren’t I?”

“Hallelujah.” Nancy rolled her eyes.

Everyone else shared an awkward glance as Lucas muttered a soft “oooh”.

“Um, so, wha-what time was your… sauna test?” Nancy said ignoring the awkwardness and getting back to the real issue.

“Around 9.” The five kids and Y/N said at the same time.

“Well that proves it. That proves my theory.” Nancy seemed pleased with herself.

“She’s flayed, just like Billy.” Mike said.

“Flayed?” Jonathan raised an eyebrow.

“The mind flayer, he flays people. Takes over their mind. Once they do that, they basically become him.” Mike explained.

“If there are two flayed-” Lucas started.

“We have to assume there are more.” Will finished.

“The other people on the road.” Y/N suddenly realised.

Everyone turned to look at her as Nancy spoke up. “What?”

“After we crashed, Billy started yelling at something in the middle of the road, but there was nothing there. So, I walked up to him and as I got close, he said ‘to build what’. I took his hand to try and get him back in the car and we weren’t alone anymore.”

“What do you mean?” Jonathan asked.

“Everything flickered and got dark and there was another Billy standing across from us with all these people behind him.”

“Okay, but I still don’t get it.” Nancy said.

“The other Billy answered Billy’s question. He said ‘what you see’. He wants to build an army of flayed for something.” As Y/N finished the room got very quiet.

“Heather.” El broke the silence, her eyes going wide. “Billy was doing something to her. She was scared. She was screaming. Bad screams.”

“What’s a good scream?” Lucas seemed genuinely curious.

“Max said-”

“Doesn’t matter.” Max quickly interjected with an embarrassed look to Y/N. Who just looked as puzzled as Lucas.

“I’m sorry, I’m lost, who is Heather?” Nancy asked.

“Heather Holloway.” Y/N answered. “She works with Billy at the pool.”

Nancy and Jonathan’s eyes got wide as they spoke together. “Tom.”

Part 18

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#Billy Hargrove #billy hargove x reader #billy hargrove imagine #stranger things #stranger things 3 #stranger things 2 #Nancy Wheeler #jonathan byers #mike wheeler #Lucas Sinclair #Max Mayfield #eleven #dacre montgomery #dacre montgomery imagine #imagine #x reader

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flyinghome-againstthewind · 4 years

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the best by far is you: chapter 8

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For all the things my hands have held The best by far is you - Cecilia and the satellite

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Summary: An exploration of Claire & Jamie’s story if their firstborn had lived and they had the chance to be parents together of wee Faith Fraser before the Battle of Culloden.

Special thank you to @let-the-dream-begin for the beautiful moodboard for this chapter!

Chapter 8

Late August 1745

Jacobite army encampment, near Kingussie

“Mo nighean donn?”

It was his voice that yanked her sharply back to him. He could see it in her eyes, how they went from vacant and far away to truly seeing him for the first time. He’d watched her crumble beside the wagon, out in the open here where the men were training, but her mind hadn’t been here. For several days now, he hadn’t known what it was to have his wife present with him.

“Claire.” He pulled her up into a sitting position from where she still laid on the damp, cold ground and wrapped her in his arms. His heart ached for how he couldn’t seem to reach her, even now as he held her. When the distance in her eyes appeared, he thought at first that it must be Faith ‒ that missing their baby was taking its toll.

She had assured him she was fine, brushed off his concerns the handful of times he brought it up. Kept moving, as was expected in this place.

But seeing her sink to the ground and curl in on herself for no visible reason made him damn sure that she wasn’t fine.

“Tell me,” he uttered hoarsely. Her hands grasped tightly to him, holding his arms about her. And it was like this, with her back pressed to his chest and the wind whipping around them, that she started to tell him about the war she’d already fought in France, the men she’d met as eager young soldiers, and the ways she saw so many of them lost to the world.

At some point, he brought both of them to their feet, not wanting the dampness of the ground to sink into them. And she started to tell him about two American soldiers in particular, about one night that she could never forget, as hard as she tried.

When it was over, the haunted look in her eyes still lingered. He tried to assure her it wasn’t her fault, but he watched her carry on as if she hadn’t heard him.

“I should have tried to get him.”

“If you had, you would be dead,” he said firmly. His hands squeezed at her upper arms subconsciously to feel her very much alive and real under his palms.

“I know that. Because I told myself the same thing right after it happened. And I just… closed the door on that night and walked away. I haven’t looked back ever since until now.” Her eyes were seeing him again, but the darkness of that night was still trying to push in on her, he could see. Christ, he hated that such darkness had ever touched the pure light of her. “Now I look at Ross and Kincaid and all the others… being turned into soldiers, being trained, putting up a brave front. All I can hear is Max Lucas crying out for his mother in the dead of night. And for two years, I’ve tried to stop this war from coming. Now that it’s here, I’m not sure I’m ready to go to war again.”

“You don’t have to.” His words came swiftly in a response that had been building since she started to describe that night on the side of the road. Since she first started to withdraw from him, if he was being honest. Shame sank heavy in his gut that he had brought her here, that because of him she was reliving the horrors of another war. “You fought your war. We’ll fight this one without you. I’ll have Ross and Fergus take you home to Lallybroch.”

“No.”

“Claire‒”

“I can’t do that either. Listen to me, if I‒ if I go back, then it will just be like lying in that ditch again, helpless and powerless to move like a dragonfly in amber, except this time it will be worse. Because I’ll know that the people out there dying alone are people I know. People I love. I can’t do that, Jamie. I won’t lie in that ditch again. I can’t be helpless and alone ever again. Do you hear me?”

“I hear ye.” He breathed out, slow and steady. His fierce lass... “I promise, whatever happens, you’ll never be alone again.”

“I’m going to hold you to that, James Fraser.”

Despite it all, he felt the tug of a small smile at his lips. “You have my word, Claire Fraser.” He kissed her then, soft and with the promise of his words, and he held her tight, too, not caring if his men were watching.

“Jamie,” she said so quietly, he almost didn’t catch it. He felt her straighten up in his arms, steeling herself, but as she drew back to look at him, her hands came to rest gently on his chest. His hold on her lower back never loosened. After all she’d just said, he couldn’t possibly let go of her.

She kept her gaze on the collar of his coat where her fingers were worrying the fabric between them, smoothing it out, tugging it into place. Buying time while her head sorted out the right words. He could see it all there in her face.

“Don’t offer me the chance to go home again. Not even one more time. I meant what I said… I can’t be helpless like that again. But I‒” Her lip trembled and she tucked it between her teeth.

“I won’t,” he promised. His hands slid up her spine and pressed her close, meeting no resistance as she burrowed back into his embrace. “I’m sorry.”

He felt the shudder of her cry against him and bent to kiss her neck. The temptation ‒ the physical ache in his chest ‒ to abandon all this and to hold Faith again was overwhelming for him. He couldn’t imagine how it was for Claire. No, he wouldn’t dangle that in front of her. It had been cruel of him in the first place to offer that.

“What d’ye think she’s doing right now?”

She eased back only enough so she could look at him. Her eyes were watery with unshed tears and the depth of longing there was almost enough to bring him to his knees. This was killing her, this time apart. Out of instinct, he kissed her forehead and felt her lean into it, taking his comfort to soothe the empty arms where their baby should be.

“I’ve been trying to imagine how she spends her days at home.” He nuzzled in against her temple. “I ken she misses us, but I like tae think she’s still happy wi’ Jenny and Ian and her cousins.”

They hadn’t talked like this, not in the past several weeks since they left Lallybroch. The subject of Faith was a wound too raw and exposed to touch at first, but she’d never been far from either of their minds. And as soon as Jamie had broached the subject, he felt the sharp jab to the open wound, still too tender, but he needed to speak of her, and with the only other person who loved Faith as much as he did.

“It’s mid-day,” Claire surprised him by uttering softly, opening herself up to a conversation. “And it’s gorgeous out, even with the wind. I bet she’s outside with Maggie. They’d be… well, it’s almost harvest season. I’m sure the girls would try and get involved somehow, though it would probably result in them getting in the way and needing to be removed.”

“She is a verra curious lass.” He chuckled lightly. “Aye, I can see it plain as day. Our stubborn wee thing. Mind the time she was starting to pull herself up and stand, and she saw the basket of clean laundry that Jenny had just pulled off the line?”

He couldn’t see her face still, but he felt the soft exhale of what he knew to be a laugh, pained though it was. “She didn’t know that the basket wouldn’t hold her weight,” Claire replied. “She and the fresh linens tumbled over into the dirt when the basket tipped. She was so quick, I didn’t notice until it was happening.”

The memory was so achingly normal and he clung to it. They’d lived the life of their dreams once and if they could make it through this war, Jamie knew what would be waiting for them when they returned.

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September 21, 1745

Jacobite army encampment, near Prestonpans

Claire never knew a greater feeling of relief than she did that day, watching Jamie burst into the cottage where they’d set up a field hospital. He’d never looked more alive to her in that moment, never felt stronger or steadier under her touch than when he wrapped her up in a tight hug. They’d won ‒ as she knew they would ‒ but that fixed number of 30 casualties had hung over her head like a dark cloud. They had won, but more importantly to her, this battle hadn’t claimed her husband or Murtagh or‒

Fergus.

She slipped out his grasp when he told her to look outside. Squinting against the sudden light, it took her a moment to find him. Sitting there, still as a statue, he looked perfectly fine.

“Fergus! Oh, you wretch!” She pulled him into her arms, relief and concern and disappointment all coursing through her. “What do you mean by sneaking off like that? I should box your ears until your head rattles,” she threatened, but only held him tighter.

“Milady,” he said very softly while she eased back to look at him. She cupped his face gently in her hands, fighting back tears at how close she’d come to losing him, unable to put to bed the worst thoughts that kept her company while she waited for news.

“Do you have any idea‒” She broke off abruptly to stop the cry that threatened to break loose. “I’m already separated from one child, you can’t just risk your life like that, Fergus!” She held his face a little firmer, gave it the slightest shake as though it might allow him to absorb her words better, to understand what he’d put her through. “I can’t lose you!”

Her chest was heaving from her outburst and Fergus only stared down at her, completely dazed and teary-eyed. The relief of finding him alive was short-lived as alarm over his appearance and demeanor quickly took over. “Say something. Are you alright?”

“I… I killed an English soldier, Milady.”

Her eyes went wide with horror at his revelation. “Don’t tell me that.”

“I think I killed him,” he amended, rather calmly. Shock, she noted in some part of her brain. “He-he fell down. I had a knife. I struck him.”

“Oh, god, Fergus.” She clutched his head against her, wanting to erase that moment for him. “Oh, I’m so sorry.” Sorry for the memory that would surely stay with him for his whole life. Sorry that he was anywhere near this hell of a war at all.

She jumped suddenly, realizing she hadn’t actually checked him for injuries yet. “You aren’t injured, are you?”

“No,” he said softly but she ignored him, turning him by the shoulders and looking him over for any apparent wounds. “I’m just… tired. Very, very tired.”

She felt the pressure of tears building up in her eyes and pulled Fergus’s head back under her chin, tucked safely against her. The fear that had gnawed away at her all evening and into the morning finally began to dissipate. He was here. He was safe. They’d deal with the rest later. “Come with me. I’ll get you some food and somewhere to sleep.”

It felt as natural as breathing for Claire as she fell into the fast-paced rigor of triaging in a war zone. She was proud of her small band of women, all of them mothers or wives who had followed their men and refused to sit by the wayside. None of them had major experience in dealing with the casualties of war, but they’d followed her lead and when the injured came streaming into their small cottage-turned-field-hospital, they’d risen to the challenge.

By late-afternoon, they’d cleared out those with minor injuries who had been properly tended to. Though after Angus, Claire had insisted on personally giving each man a thorough physical exam before letting them exit, which had left some of them waiting if a more serious patient took a turn for the worse.

When her mind finally swam to the surface, escaping the chaos of hemorrhaging wounds and shredded limbs, it was growing dark outside. Jamie, whose urine had come back clean and who was thus allowed to leave the cottage, had returned to her. She wasn’t sure how long he had waited, sitting patiently near the front door and keeping an eye on her, but when she finally had a moment to breathe, she found his tired gaze and ached to leave all this behind and be with him, to have the comfort of his warm embrace.

Instead, she sequestered Jamie to a quiet corner of their field hospital and sat him down next to the pallet where Fergus slept. She brought a basin of warm water and a clean cloth and after wetting it, she proceeded to wipe at the blood and dirt caked to his face. Blood that had been there since the early morning.

“Can’t believe you were stepped on by a fucking horse today and you’re just fine, bruises not withstanding. Do you know how lucky you are?”

He chuckled mirthlessly at this and watched her carefully. “It wasna a very pleasant experience, all the same.”

“Yes, well, next time… try not to throw yourself into the path of a trampling horse, thank you very much. I’d like to avoid tempting fate again.”

“I’ll do my best, Sassenach.”

She sighed and swiped at his cheek, a little softer this time.

“Have ye had anything tae eat?” He asked.

“Oh, um…” Her brows wrinkled together as she thought about it. “Not since you brought me some bannocks and fruit earlier, whenever that was.”

He looked displeased with that answer and she knew a proper meal was in her near future, however it could be scrounged up within their camp. She wouldn’t turn it away, not with how she suddenly felt her stomach’s empty quaking at the mention of food. “Bring something for Fergus, too. He’s slept the day away and I’m sure he’ll be hungry when he wakes.”

At the mention of their boy, Jamie’s gaze flicked down to the sleeping ten-year-old. His jaw clenched under her fingers as she finished wiping his face clean. After the relief of finding Fergus just outside, physically unharmed, she hadn’t let herself dwell on the horror of his words ‒ hadn’t had the time to dwell on them, honestly. But now, each word felt like a punch in the gut as they ran through her mind once more.

He fell down… I had a knife… I struck him.

She breathed in sharply and blinked quickly, trying to stave off the rush of tears she felt building behind her eyes. “What are we going to do about Fergus?” She whispered in a tight voice. “Do you think he’ll try to fight again?”

He stole the wet cloth from her and dipped it into the bowl of water. With one hand holding her chin steady, he brushed at the skin of her forehead just below her hairline. From her fingertips up to her elbows, she had scrubbed herself clean several times today, but she hadn’t looked at her reflection once since well before the battle and wondered now just how much blood was there.

“The only reason I let him come along is because I knew if we told him tae stay and he didna want to, he would’ve tried to find his way to us on his own, stubborn wee fool that he is.” She had wondered… from the moment he had allowed Fergus to join them, she had wondered why. Jamie was seldom careless and certainly never in regards to those he loved. But his assessment of Fergus rang true, especially with the day’s events in mind. “I thought if we brought him along on our terms, we could keep him safe.” His jaw clenched again and he didn’t continue right away. He tilted her chin to the side as he found a spot just below her ear that needed cleaning.

“No, I dinna think he’ll fight again, Claire,” he said at last. “He’s had his taste of war and the romance of it always dies once ye’ve had to see it up close. I’ll talk wi’ him tomorrow.” His gaze swung back to her and he smiled gently, though it was tinged with sadness. “Make sure he kens I dinna appreciate how he made us worry.”

He then dabbed gently at a spot on her neck and she realized she knew when that one had occurred. It was Angus’s blood on her neck.

Thirty casualties sounded like nothing when only focusing on the number. She knew it was an impressive feat, an unlikely victory that stunned and impressed even in her time. But of those thirty had been Angus and Kincaid, men that she knew well. Of those thirty, she’d been at the sides of more than half of them as they slipped from this world. She could put names and faces to that number now and when she thought of the possibility of facing Culloden, of the thousands of losses—

“Dinna go there, Sassenach,” Jamie said softly.

She blinked slowly, puzzled.

“Whatever dark thought ye’re havin’...” His thumb brushed over her wrinkled brow, trying to smooth out the worry there. “Dinna let it linger.”

Despite his attempt to soothe her, she felt the toll of the day finally catching up. Her brave front was beginning to crumble and without any resistance, she found herself gathered into Jamie’s lap like a child. He tucked her head under his chin and murmured a soft string of Gaelic words, as comforting to her as his touch was, even if she didn’t understand it all.

“What do you think she’s doing right now?” Her voice wobbled as she asked the question that had become something of game between them, a way to escape from the horrors around them if only for a moment, and think about one of the very best things to ever happen to them, tucked away safely at Lallybroch. But it was a stupid time to ask, she realized, because it was night and there was only one answer. Still, Jamie hummed softly and rested his head against hers.

“I think she’s dreaming of our family, Sassenach, and she kens that she is loved.”

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January 1, 1746

In retreat, near the Scottish Border

The Prince’s army had been encamped in the north of England when their wave of victory finally crested and broke. Retreat would be their next step. For Jamie, that moment also marked the first buckle of doubt in his previously unflagging belief that he and Claire would be successful in their own cause.

That string of victories followed by the decision to retreat had happened exactly as Claire had recounted to him. His strongest chance at changing the outcome slipped right through his fingers when he was unsuccessful in rousing the others to join the Prince’s call and march on London.

As punishment for his insubordination, a new directive was issued to him: to lead his men ahead of Charles’ retreating army and prepare provisions for them in Inverness.

They left within a day of the order, their small band of Lallybroch men skirting quickly but carefully back toward Scotland with no small amount of fear that they would encounter English forces on their way. No one spoke of it. But it wasn’t far from anyone’s mind, on enemy soil and woefully outnumbered in most encounters with the British so far.

That encounter with the British came about a week later. The first of their journey’s delays started with Claire being taken to Belmont by British forces. And with Jamie and Murtagh’s retrieval of Claire came the second delay: returning Mary Hawkins to her family’s estate. They had decided altogether to set Mary up in the nearest town to her estate and hire a lady’s maid there to return with her in the morning to her family and avoid causing any further scandal for poor Mary by being escorted home by none other than Red Jamie.

By the time they reunited with their men in Keswick and marched for the border, Dougal greeted them with news that they had actually fallen behind the rest of their retreating army.

Claire lost track of their days by the second week. There was nothing to mark where one week ended and the next began. Not for a while at least. But because she was traveling with Scotsmen, it didn’t escape any of their notice when Hogmanay arrived while they were still on the road, back on Scottish soil at last.

It was nothing like the way that Claire and Jamie had marked the holiday just one year prior, in the comfort of their home, alight with a naive hopefulness for what was ahead and an appreciation for what the year prior had given them.

Instead, there was the passing of whisky around an open fire in the woods. Rupert’s long-winding stories told in his lilting, pleasant voice. A few toasts to the new year, led by one James Fraser after a small amount of cajoling. The small party stayed together well into the night, though no one could say with exact certainty when one year bled into the next.

But the feelings of joy and expectation never quite saturated the group as it had for many in every year prior.

In the harsh light of the morning on the first of January, nothing about the year felt shiny and new, brimming with hope.

Despite the ruckus that was made around the fire the night before, nobody made a sound at daybreak, lest it draw unwanted attention from possible nearby soldiers.

Jamie built a small fire near their tent for warmth and Claire and Fergus flocked to it, pressed so close together that Fergus was practically in her lap. They waited for their breakfast while rubbing the sleep from their eyes and stifling yawns. It was cold enough to see their breath linger in the air, but they created their own pocket of warmth between them and the fire.

She turned and pressed a kiss into Fergus’s curls, her heart a bit heavy. “Happy birthday, Fergus dear.”

“You remembered?” He sounded delighted by this and she felt a wave of tenderness and protectiveness for him. He deserved so much more than whatever they could give him today.

“What would you like for your birthday?” She asked. “Keep in mind this will have to wait until we return home.”

Jamie added a log to the fire and caught her eye, a curious glance there for her to see. Yes, they never did plan for themselves past this bloody war, but Fergus was only a boy ‒ he was their boy ‒ and he deserved the hope of something on the horizon. She shrugged one shoulder at Jamie. He gave her a tight-lipped smile in return. They’d make it work, somehow.

Fergus, on the other hand, pondered Claire’s question very seriously, oblivious to their nonverbal back-and-forth. “A horse,” he said at last.

“What?”

“My own horse. To have at Lallybroch when we return. I want Milord to pick it, though.” His gaze flew to Jamie and to his credit, there was nothing amiss in Jamie’s expression as those words landed.

“A horse, ye say?” A teasing glint shone in Jamie’s eyes as he moved toward them to squat down on the other side of Fergus. “Rather stubborn creatures sometimes and an awful lot o’ work. Ye sure ye dinna want something more manageable, like a pig? Or mebbe a dog?”

“No,” Fergus laughed and Claire wanted to bottle the sound, save it for later. “I want a horse. I’m certain, Milord. And you will pick the best one for me.”

Jamie grinned broadly at him and ruffled his hair affectionately. “Aye, I ken ye’re sure, mon fils. And ye’ll get yer own horse someday, I promise.”

Murtagh appeared, moving quietly through the trees, and walked toward their small campfire. He held something behind his back and as he reached them, he stopped in front of Fergus and dangled a fresh-caught rabbit. “How’s that for a breakfast feast, hmm?”

“Thank you, Murtagh.” Fergus beamed up at him.

“Well done, Murtagh,” Claire added. Jamie stood and clapped him on the back. To all of this, Murtagh grunted softly and moved off to skin and cook the rabbit, apparently flustered from all the praise.

They fed him rabbit for his birthday, which he relished, and never once acted as though there should’ve been a better alternative. As they packed up camp and headed out, Jamie made a show of telling all of the men during the march that the day was Fergus’s eleventh birthday.

His very presence created a lightness among them. But it wasn’t until that day, trudging against the bitter January wind with hardly anything in their bellies, that she saw how beloved he was by the men. How they welcomed the chance to return that joy to him for his birthday.

When everything else felt cold and hopeless, Fergus had helped to ease the burden of war just by being present with them, a child who was still brave enough to wish for better things despite their dire circumstances.

And at the same time, it was its own kind of torture for Claire to have Fergus there. While she ached to see Faith again and hold her, she knew in her very marrow that her daughter was safe from the dangers they faced. And though Fergus had never again stepped onto a battlefield since Prestonpans, there had still been a number of close calls during the war, not to mention the very real risks of starvation and sickness. The fear that something should happen to him… that he might be taken from them…

“Sassenach?”

She startled out of her reverie and forced a tight smile ‒ for no one’s benefit. Jamie always saw right through that. “Don’t mind me. It seems I can’t help but think about the worst, even on a good day. I’m fine, Jamie.”

“We’ll reach Edinburgh in a few days. It’ll be easier once ye’ve had a night’s rest in a real bed and have eaten to yer heart’s content.” He smiled at her, a touch sadly, and she knew he didn’t believe that to be a balm for her heartache, but it was all he had to offer.

“I’m sure you’re right.” It was all she could offer in return, to pretend that if her basic human needs were met, then surely the slow and painful breaking of her soul would stop.

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February 15, 1746

In retreat, north of Edinburgh

They’d reunited with the rest of the Jacobite army in Edinburgh and it was there that they held their claim over the city until Cumberland and his men laid siege on Edinburgh. From there, the Jacobite army pushed further north, eyeing Inverness once more as refuge. But for Claire and Jamie, it felt like surrendering themselves to the verdict of history, for every step toward Inverness in the name of retreat felt like a step toward the Battle of Culloden, powerless to stop the trajectory of events.

“What d’ye think she’s doing right now?”

Claire’s footsteps faltered in their pace against Jamie’s. “I don’t know.” Her voice was soft, almost drowned out by the rustle of movement around them and the clomping of horse hooves. “It’s been months, Jamie… maybe she’s running to meet her cousins for breakfast instead of walking, talking to them in short sentences with words she didn’t know before we left.” She stopped in her tracks, causing Jamie to cease as well. “I know she’s safe. But I can’t picture how she spends her days anymore, because I can hardly picture her. Has she changed so much since we left? She’s growing every day and we’re‒ we’re missing it.” She swallowed roughly, heart in her eyes. “So I don’t know what she’s doing right now. I can’t even guess.”

It was the last time the question was asked by either of them.

They stopped at the nearest tavern for the night, the temperature too cold to brave making camp under the stars. They had scraps for their dinner, for it was all they could afford with dwindling supplies and funds. Six months at war was taking its toll in more ways than one, but the most pressing to Jamie was the gaunt frames of Claire and Fergus.

“Come warm me up,” Claire called to him from under a pile of threadbare blankets as he built up the fire in their room. “And where did Fergus run off to?” She asked suddenly.

“The lad wanted tae stay up wi’ the men a little longer.” He caught her soft snort as he moved toward the bed.

“Are you sure he’s alright in their company?”

“Aye, he’s Murtagh’s charge for tonight. If they get too rowdy, Murtagh will send him up to bed.” He crawled under the covers and gasped suddenly when Claire’s icy hands slipped under his nightshirt and pressed against his back, trying to draw him in towards her. “Christ, ye’re freezing, lass.”

“Mhmm.”

He sank down beside her and felt the tip of her cold nose nuzzling in at his neck. “My puir lass,” he started to tease her, only to gasp again at her cold hands drifting lower on his back. “I ken what ye have in mind. Ye better warm those wandering hands first or it willna have the effect ye’re hoping for.”

“Oh really?”

Christ, the teasing lilt of her voice already had his blood rushing south. He yelped and jerked away from her when he felt those icy fingers wrapped around his cock.

Claire laughed and withdrew her hand from him. “See? That was exactly the effect I was hoping for.”

“Ye’re a wicked woman, Claire Fraser,” he growled at her, though his own smile peeked through.

“What are you going to do about it?” She murmured, looking up at him through hooded eyes. He drew himself up over her, seeing the look of pleased anticipation cross her face. She tugged the blankets back up over his shoulders, keeping them cocooned with what warmth they’d managed to create.

“Well,” he dipped down and stole a kiss from her. “I dinna see that I have any other choice but tae warm ye up myself.”

She sighed happily at the prospect, her mouth chasing up after his. “I think that’s a very wise choice.”

She was light and warmth for him in the middle of a godforsaken war. And for as much as he wanted to lose himself in her, the reminders of their circumstances were never-ending, constantly plucking at their shared joy. The bed that was not their own, the raucous sounds of the tavern below them, the hunger pangs in their bellies from never quite having their fill to eat… small as they were, those things chipped away at him.

“Jamie,” she called to him, in the midst of their lovemaking, when she must’ve felt the change in him, the drift of his mind away from their connection. Her voice was the only siren song that could reach him. “Come back to me. Back to us.”

He dropped his head to the juncture between her neck and shoulder and shuddered a sigh there. Her fingers curled into his hair at the nape of his neck, held him there.

He wanted more for her. He wanted her to have plenty where everything was sparse ‒ food, warmth, shelter, safety, love. Instead, she was half-starved of all of those. She was his light when everything else was darkness ‒ his sorcha ‒ and he couldn’t even feed her well enough that the notch of each of her ribs wasn’t visible to the naked eye. Seemingly all he could do for her was to love her, keep her warm, keep her safe… and even that didn’t feel like enough. He didn’t feel like enough.

In the afterglow, he held her, their foreheads touching, their exhales mingling. She curled into him, still seeking his heat. “Are ye warm enough, mo ghraidh?”

She hummed an affirmative and her fingers came to rest alongside his jaw, gently framing his face. They were warm to the touch. He turned his head into the heat of her palm and kissed her there.

“Good,” he sighed.

At some point in the night, he fell asleep curled around her, his knees following the bend of hers, his arm holding her protectively. His body was so entwined with hers that he woke promptly from the slight shake of her shoulders.

“Mo nighean donn?”

The room had grown dark and the sounds below them had fallen to a dull rumble. So even though Claire tried to muffle her cries, the stillness of the room gave her away.

“Claire,” he whispered tightly, trying to sit up, to see her better, but she held fast to his arm that wrapped around her, keeping him in place. “What’s wrong?”

“Don’t…” she cried. “Just hold me.”

He was powerless to deny her that one simple request and settled back in behind her, holding tight. “Was it a dream?”

Claire shook her head. “No… I just‒” He felt the sharp, shuddering breath she drew in. “I miss her.”

With that, her stronghold broke and the tears came, after months of quietly grieving the separation.

“I’m sorry I took ye from her.” He said softly into the stillness of the night, when her tears had ceased and the room had grown quiet again. He wasn’t even sure if she was still awake until she tilted her head back to look at him.

“You didn’t.” She said firmly, though there were still tears in her voice. “If I blame anyone, it’s Prince Charles. Not you.”

He huffed a cheerless laugh and fell silent, his thumb wiping at her tears. “Still. Ye are a brave wee thing. My Sassenach.” His inhale was sharp and bracing for the words he knew he needed to get out. “You could’ve stayed. At Lallybroch. Would ye? If I had insisted, would ye have stayed with Faith?”

“No.” Claire whispered hoarsely. Her arms tightened around him reflexively. “My place is here with you. I couldn’t have stayed, knowing what I know of the rising. And knowing what I know of war from a healer’s perspective.” She rolled onto her back so she could look up at him. “And I couldn’t have lived with not being with you. Never knowing if you were safe… it would’ve eaten me alive.” She snuffled quietly. “It does all make me sound like a rather terrible mother, though, doesn’t it?” She tried to pass it off with a laugh, but her lip quivered and Jamie was quick to cover her body with his own.

“No, Claire, never. I’m sorry I posed the question. ‘Twas foolish of me. I’m sorry.” He kissed her hair and felt her clinging to him. “My place is with you, too, and I couldna be where you aren’t,” he assured her. “But I promise ye, Claire, I’ll see you and our lass safe and back together. No matter what comes.”

She turned back on her side and he curled around her, his body again molded to the slope of hers, engulfing her. His arms stayed secure around her and she sighed and relaxed back against him.

“I’ll see ye safe.” He repeated, holding tight to Claire and, unknowingly, the small spark of life they’d created between them.

#outlander #outlander fic #OL fic #Jamie x Claire #Faith Fraser #my fic #tbbfiy #the best by far is you

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okwillthewise · 3 years

Text

In absolute honour of Will Byers birthday though also because i just really want to post a section of it I'm posting a section - though to be honest, it's a oneshot in itself - of my Will Byers fanfic wonder if he'll ever know.

In this section, Will knocks on Jonathan's door one night after The Snowball and they have a little discussion.

(It's still a little bit of a work in progress, so somethings may change but there we go. I hope you enjoy!)

It’s not particularly late though it’s not particularly early either when he knocks on his brother’s bedroom door and Will hopes that Nancy isn’t here tonight. They’re home alone this evening, their mom visiting Hopper and El at the cabin. She’d been visiting a lot since her arrival to their house in November (not that Will was remotely aware of that El had done so) insisting that there was no reason she couldn’t give Hopper some help now that the secret is out. El still wasn’t allowed anywhere but the cabin - The Snowball being an exception to the rule - so Will hadn’t had much interaction with her, though he supposed that he was content to learn about how she’s doing and what’s she’s like from The Party and his mom for now. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to see her, but more that he was increasingly aware that El wasn’t his friend, not really. He didn’t have the shared experience that she did with his friends, despite their lives being so closely intertwined and, if he’s being honest with himself, right now he’s not sure if it’s something that he’s longing for.

“She does want to talk to you. Properly. I think you’d really like her”

Mike often said after his secret visits to the cabin. And Will is sure he would but for now, he’d nod, listen to Mike sing her praises and subtly suggest that maybe they could do something else now.

On the subject of secret visits, Will wondered if maybe his brother was the only one that wasn’t aware that the household knew of the, now regular, nighttime visits of Nancy Wheeler. It seemed to happen all of a sudden if he thinks about it - somewhere between possession and The Snowball just a few days prior, he can’t quite pinpoint when. Did I really miss that much? It was odd to think about - just as it was odd to consider that maybe this time it was over.

There haven’t been any surprise blips into the Upside Down either.

So did this mean they could move on? He guesses it did, his friends were clearly doing as much and he was happy for them, he was. Maybe it was selfish but it felt weird seeing them move on from everything - or maybe everyone’s actions at The Snowball being something to latch onto in an attempt to say ‘Look! See! We’re fine! Everything's a-okay’

There’s no answer from Jonathan, his music a little too loud. Maybe Nancy is there, gross.

“Jonathan? Can I talk to you - (and please say you’re alone) -” He knocks again, and puts his ear to the door. He hears the music soften, the shuffling of papers and Will exhales knowing it’s just him. He doesn’t have a plan, not really, and part of him wonders if just maybe he wishes Jonathan were busy with something.

“Hey.” his brother pulls open the door fully, leaning against the frame, “You ok, bud?”

Will nods, raising an eyebrow at his casual pose “Are you?”

“What? Yeah, of course I am. Want to come in?”

With no affirmation, Will enters his brother’s room, taking everything in - his record player playing David Bowie, the poster decorated yellow walls. Jonathan’s room, just like Castle Byers was a safe space, if he thought about it maybe safer than his own. Through everything with their dad, readjusting after The Upside Down, the one thing that had remained consistent was his brother, and for that he he was grateful.

“I’ve got some really good photos from the dance - stayed late in the dark room the other day after school. Want to see?”

“You willingly stayed past school hours just to process some photos?” Will smirks, pushing himself onto Jonathan’s bed a little further, now more situated in the middle, and crossing his legs. “Haven’t you got anything better to do?”

“Hey, I used it to process some of ours too. My life isn’t just extracurricular.” He laughs before his expression turns to one more serious. “I remembered, on my camera I took a few of mom and - well, you know. I’m not sure if she’d want them after everything but it’s coming up to Christmas and - I don’t know, it might be a bit too soon. What do you think?”

Bob Newby: Superhero.

There’s an indescribable guilt that Will feels he can’t shake, not really. It was peculiar; he knows it wasn’t really him at least that’s what they’re telling me but there’s this part of him that can’t shake the feeling that it was. Him in mind but Will in body; who was in control really? He was in control enough to tell his mom that he was sorry, in control enough to tell them to leave, in control enough to know what you did. His mom has spoken with him about it since, as much as she could (and as much as Will would let her). He didn’t like to hear her talk about Bob, not just for himself but her too - his mom’s smile never quite meeting her eyes whenever she mentions the good times and the crack in her voice in casual conversation. Yet, despite her reassurances that -“It wasn’t you. It was that thing inside you”

He sometimes wondered if there wasn’t even just a few times in which she felt differently.

Jonathan asks again, concern now laced on his face and Will becomes increasingly aware that maybe he let down that guard just a little too much.

“I- I don’t know. It’s not the easiest subject for mom right now-”

Jonathan hums in response, picking up the photos from his desk and joining Will on the bed.

“-but maybe her birthday? He filmed loads on his video camera. We might be able to give her both?”

And Jonathan smiles, simply saying “Sounds great Will”

Jonathan looks down at the photos in his hand, shuffling them a few times before passing them over to Will, “Here. I’ve got some great ones of you and that girl” he nudges him and Will grimaces.

She was nice enough, well nice enough for someone that called him Zombie Boy as a means of getting him to dance with her. He studies the photo, zoning in more than anything at the expression on his face - he doesn’t look uncomfortable per se, but there’s a definite underlying feeling of ‘I want to be anywhere but here’. He switches the photo, flicking through and Will thinks back to the day, thinks back to looking around the almost unrecognisable school gym and seeing his friends so happy - Dustin grinning though there’s an almost bewildered look on his face as he holds onto Nancy’s waist; Lucas giving him a waggle of his eyebrows as he catches Will’s eye as he dances with Max, her head on his shoulder; Mike, resting his forehead against El’s, a stupid look on their faces.

And then there’s Will, arms outstretched, loosely placed on the girls hips, her hands firmly on his shoulders.

“Hey, Zombie Boy?” - It’s Will - she’d said a few minutes into Every Breath You Take. “This is fun, right?”

“Um - yeah, sure” Will had replied, forcing a grin. His eyes flicker to his friends again before his focus is immediately pulled back to the girl in front of him, her face edging nearer to his own.

Oh god. Is she? Um.

He’d felt frozen, as her eyelids fluttered, beginning to close, edging ever more closer towards him. You could just get it over with is one of many thoughts spiralling around his mind. Get it done and then that’s it. He looks over to Mike, his eyes still on El, only El, then to Lucas who’s now attempting to flirt (“wow stalker, what a line”). Sighing, about to pull his attention back to the girl, there’s Dustin, giving him a look he can’t quite decipher. Will didn’t know what he expected, after Mike’s heavy encouragement to dance with her earlier, but as Dustin’s eyebrows furrow, he knows his answer.

“I said no” Will mutters as he reaches another picture of himself, this time in mid-conversation with Mike and Lucas. “Should I have said no?”

“Kind of hard to answer that if I don’t know the question”

He snorts, placing the photos down next to him on the bed - between himself and Jonathan . Will shifts slightly, one leg on the bed, so he can face Jonathan a little more. “She tried to kiss me. I said no. Should I have said yes?”

“Did you want to?”

“I don’t know. Everyone else was doing it” Will shrugs, pushing the photos closer to his brother, who picks them up and shuffles through, until he’s back and the picture of Will dancing with the girl.

“Who’s everyone?”

“Mike and Lucas - don’t worry, Dustin didn’t try anything with Nancy”

Jonathan gives him an incredulous look, “Will, I am not worried about Dustin dancing with my girlfriend” he scoffs - so he finally admits it - “Besides, I’m pretty sure Mike and Lucas don’t count as everyone”

“You know what I mean”

Jonathan sighs standing from the bed. Will watches as he puts the photos down on the desk before picking up a vinyl and slipping it out of the case. He takes the disc and slots it into place on his record player, carefully placing down the needle. Jonathan picks up the, now empty, sleeve once again, showing it to Will. “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust? I know you like this record” and Will just nods.

Five Years rings out and Jonathan makes his way back, and takes to sitting cross legged on the bed, now fully facing Will.

“Do you remember what I said? It was a few years ago now, but do you remember?”

“Kind of hard to answer if I don’t know what you’re talking about” Will throws back, echoing his brother’s earlier remark who simply rolls his eye in response, though a smile is evident on his face.

“You shouldn’t like things because people tell you you’re supposed to. I know it’s not completely the same but it works. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do Will, or feel like you should be doing something just because everyone else is. If no-one else was doing it, would you have kissed her?”

“No, I don’t think so, no.”

“And that’s fine.” Jonathan reaches out and places a reassuring hand on Will’s shoulder squeezing it slightly.

Bowie’s vocals ring out throughout the room and Will can’t help but really take in the lyrics. People, places, all caught up in time, the end of days and he can’t help but draw comparisons to what they’d all been through. A Soldier with a broken arm, the nobody people, the somebody people, if Will’s being honest, he doesn’t quite know who he is. Nothing quite fits into place. But he wonders if maybe that’s ok for now, it’s ok knowing some things and not others. He’s still got time.

More than Five Years anyway.

“You ok, bud?”

“Yeah, of course. Just thinking about things.”

#will byers #stranger things fanfic #stranger things fanfiction #wonder if he'll ever know.

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