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July 25th, 1986
It was now officially summer in Hawkins, Indiana. The kids were finally free from school and its pressures. The work given was an unnecessary addition of stress. The kids and adults of the town were already plagued with stress and fear after the recent "earthquake," so work and school were no help. But for the select few who knew that this was no earthquake, the summer was going to be far from a relief...
Steve Harrington on the other hand was relieved that school had concluded. He may have graduated quite a while ago but he often found himself at the school anyway. During his time of knowing many of the freshmen, he had become some kind of babysitter. He was always their rides, breaking them out of detention, worrying about them. But now he didn't have to. Steve had seen a huge lack of children recently. His assumption was either their parents became stricter after recent...events, or they were all planning in secret, which was not uncommon. Either way, he didn't need to worry about watching over the little assholes. Don't get him wrong, he loves those kids with all his heart, but it would be nice to hang out with people his age for once.
That's why he decided to invite Robin over! Robin was his closest age-appropriate friend, which honestly, was kinda sad. And Steve knew that, Robin made it clear any chance she got. He had kept some contact with Nancy, it was mostly just hellos and goodbyes whenever they seemed to cross paths. Steve decided that it was probably due to Jonathan's return home. She was probably occupied with him. That is exactly why Steve decided not to invite her...at first. It wasn't his idea when he did invite her. It was Robins. She seemed to have had the speech prepared for a while because she spilled it to Steve with ease. He listened to it for around three minutes before giving in and letting Robin invite Nancy to join them. And along with Nancy, Eddie "The Freak" Munson.
The girls insisted that they couldn't leave him out. After all, he didn't have many friends after the Hellfire murder club situation, and he didn't have many, to begin with. Steve surprised himself with how quickly he allowed the other male to join. He used to think Eddie was a freak, a bad influence on Dustin, and much more...But after their walk in the upsidown and trailer hijack...I don't know, I guess something changed.
+
“Steve is going to be so mad at us! We are late…we are SO LATE!” Robin's voice frantically calls over to Nancy from the passenger seat in the car. She was staring out the window with anticipation. So much of it, she looked as if she could explode.
The two girls sat inside Nancy's car that was parked outside of Hopper’s cabin. This was where the group collectively decided that Eddie should begin staying. Although Jason did not appear to be a threat anymore, the town still was. The community still agrees with the idea that Eddie is some sort of satan reincarnate that would kill their kids. Of course, the primary search location for Eddie was his trailer, so it was decided he could not stay there. And, who would ever suspect he was hiding in a supposedly dead Sherrif's cabin, right?
Anyways, the girls were here to pick him up. Steve had invited them all over to his house for a...sleepover? It was shocking to all of them. They had started to assume Steve was always busy with Dustin and the other kids. So when he wasn't, it felt fake. But it was real, very real, they were here. Nancy and Robin agreed that this planned meet-up probably came to Steve's mind as a form of comfort. He had gone through so much the last few months, it was clear the events of the upsidown took and were still taking a toll on him. The three of them agreeing to show up was the least they could do for him. Especially after everything he did for them.
Nancy opened her mouth to respond to Robin's question but was cut off by the sudden opening of the cabin door. Finally, he was ready to go. Eddie “The Freak” Munson.
His arms were busy juggling countless bags of what appeared to be snacks, drinks, movies, and games. Nancy was much clever than that though. She knew for a fact that at least one of the bags had weed in it, if not a whole bag dedicated to just the drug.
The long-haired male made eye contact with the girls in the car. He tried to wave to them but that only caused almost every bag he had to fall onto the ground. Cautiously he began his travel down the old, cracking, staircase. It appeared as if it could break beneath him at any moment, the same could be said about the whole house in general. He sped up after conquering the stairs and jogged over to the car's door. He opens it while balancing the bags under his chin
"Hello Ladies," Eddie greets as he throws the bags onto the seats. His voice was quite distinct, it had this soothing rasp and he seemed to put a lot more volume on greetings.
"You made us late Munson," Nancy responds sternly. She didn't bother looking back at him while speaking, they needed to get a move on. So she turns the key and quickly pulls out of Hopper's driveway. "You know how Steve has been recent, Eddie. He is going to worry like crazy and then be pissed off at us for making him worry for nothing"
Eddie scoffed as he pet said paper bags beside him, "You can't rush fun sweetheart, I had to make sure I got all the goodies."
Nancy lets out an agonizing sigh, "Right, yes, of course."
And with that, they were finally on their way to Steve "The Hair" Harringtons' house.
+
30 minutes...they were 30 fucking minutes late.
Steve let his eyes glance up from his watch and back up to the front door. He had done this multiple times now. There was this hope that every new time he looked his friends would finally be at the door. But that wasn't the case, they still were not here and the worrying began to take over his body like a disease. His life these last few years had been nothing short of crazy, and the last few months were no different. His thoughts had become a tornado that trashed every positive thought In his brain.
'They never did see Vecna's corpse. What if he got to them, and killed them for revenge? What if they were dead...what if?'
Even just these small moments of silence were enough to send his mind spiraling.
Luckily for Steve and as if on cue, the sound of a car door closing was heard from outside. It pulled him out of his gruesome thoughts and back to reality. A wave of relief washed over his body like a warm shower stream.
'Finally.'
He sighed out the relief and pushed himself up off the couch to go open the door for his friends. When he did, Steve was met with the view of his friends reaching into the car and grabbing what appeared to be multiple bags of supplies. Like...an unreasonable amount of stuff. Did they plan to move in or something?
Nancy was the first to finish up in the car and meet Steve at the open door
He greeted her with a lean against the doorframe and crossed arms against his chest. "Hey."
"Hi."
"You guys are late."
"I know."
"Why?"
"Ask him" Nancy nodded behind her shoulder in the direction of Eddie.
'Of course.'
Steve rolled his eyes playfully over in Eddie's direction before they fell back on the female beside him. He couldn't seem to remove his eyes from her as she moved past him into the house. Seeing her here brought back some old memories, and he could not decide if they were positive or negative.
Shaking off the odd feeling Steve calls out, "Come on you two, get your stuff, speed up."
Those two always seemed to take forever to do something. It was always the case when they did something as a group. However, their speed did increase with Steve's command, and they entered the house within a good two minutes or less. Not awful. Steve let out a breathy laugh as he closed the door behind them. He hated to admit it, but he did love those idiots a lot.
Eddie appeared to be immediately hypnotized by the views inside. Compared to his trailer Steve's house was quite literally a palace. "Wow Harrington, quite a place you got here." He had hung out with Steve before, but they never chose his house as the location. Eddie didn't understand why not, Steve's house was...incredible
"Well that's the Perks of being a popular and rich white boy," Robin calls out from the kitchen where she and Nancy had begun working on unpacking the snack bags.
"You aren't funny Rob," Steve grumbles in annoyance.
"Mind if I make myself at home, Stevie?" Eddie jumps onto the couch without waiting for Steve's answer. The solution had already been decided so Steve didn't bother responding.
"So, what did you girls plan?" Steve gestures over to all the bags placed on his counter. "You brought a shit ton with you."
Nancy glances at Robin with a knowing smirk.
"Well, I am so glad you asked.." she reaches over into her backpack as he continues, "Robin and I did some planning...and we decided to bring, nail polish, and hair supplies. We also made a stop by your work to pick up.."
Robin smiles widely and reaches into the bag before Nancy can. She pulls out a DVD and forces it into Steves's face.
"Dirty Dancing! An immediate classic. It has the plot, the music, and Baby is one of the prettiest females of this century."
Steve snatches the DVD from Robin's hands and examines the packaging. "This looks like shit."
"Well, you just have shit taste," Nancy snaps back as she grabs the movie back from him. Back when the two were dating she spent a lot of time at this house, so she knew where everything was. That included the DVD player. "Eddie, Steve, you two grab all the snacks, drinks, and anything else we may need...Robin and I will get this bad boy set up."
+
"I know this is not a whole bag filled with drugs.."
Nancy and Robin had retreated to the living room to set up the movie and the furniture for the rest of the night while Steve stayed in the kitchen. Now he was joined by Eddie Munson who he sho a displeasing look after staring down into a bag of drug products ahead of him. When he looked in he assumed it was snacks, it wasn't packaged like the rest of Eddie's items, but yeah it was not snacks...Inside was bags of marijuana, already rolled joints, and even a bong. "C'mon man?"
Steve was able to catch Eddie's eye roll."Look, Steve. It is not an Eddie Munson sleepover," he gestures grandly over to the bag, "without his signature products." He flashes Steve a toothy smile.
Steve always heard from (shitheads) Mike and Dustin that Eddie had a great smile, a smile that just made others happy, but he never got to see it before. In his first interaction with Munson, he was an accused murderer, then attacked by a flock of demo bats, so...Steve never got to just see the real happy Eddie Munson he was told so much about. Here in this moment, however, he could tell this was the real Eddie. This was his personality. And, he couldn't help but smile back. He watched the other male go through so much pain, so seeing him enthusiastic about anything at all was...really nice.
"Okay well just, if you use any of these just please...do it outside."
"As you wish."
"Was that a princess bride reference?"
"Y'know it."
Steve let out a breathy laugh, somewhat a sigh. Man, Eddie was a huge fantasy nerd. As he shakes his head in disbelief he looks back over at Eddie and their eyes meet. In response, Eddie just smiles sweetly, and Steve returns it.
"Okay, boys we got it all set up!"
Nancy's yelling from the other room allowed the other two to break the eye contact between them. Steve laughs weakly and grabs the actual snack bags, not the drug ones. "Grab the rest dude," he orders Eddie and rushes into the living room to join the girls for the movie.
+
Nancy and Robin decided to sit next to each other on the floor while Steve and Eddie claimed the couch. At the beginning of the year, Steve would have complained immensely about being stuck sitting next to Eddie "The Freak" Munson for a whole movie. But things weren't that way anymore. He got to know Eddie over these last few months. He started attending some of Dustin's "secret" DND matches just to watch Eddie master and even hung out with him on his own without the others. He grew to learn that Eddie was a pretty chill and easy-to-talk-to dude. And tonight, he learned he was also a naturally very happy guy.
"Do you think any of us could accomplish the lift?" Robin mumbles through the last mouthful of popcorn. She nods her head to the TV screen where the iconic Dirty Dancing lift was being performed "I mean, how hard can it be?"
Steve scoffs. Lifting one of the girls would be the easiest thing he's done in years. Let's be real, cmon, he defeated monsters from another dimension with just a bat and nails! A single human's weight was nothing!
"I'll try."
It was Eddie. Eddie was offering.
"Wheeler, do you trust me enough to be baby?"
Steve shook his head no in Nancy's direction. Of course, he trusted Eddie...but he wasn't that strong looking! Just by examining him, it was clear he at least did not possess the same size muscles as Steve did. Eddie was a DND master and Steve was a sports player and monster slayer. The last thing he wanted right now was for this to go wrong and Nancy's head just breaks open all over his floor!
Nancy took notice of Steves's attempts to make her refuse the proposition. But the thing is, she did trust Eddie, she too went against a different dimension almost a hundred times, so yeah, movie lift won't be the end of her and she knows that.
"Let's do it." She shoots a smirk and a shrug in Steve's direction as she gets up off the ground. Eddie lets out a delighted little noise and rushes to take his spot opposite of Nancy. At this point, Robin had already joined Steve on the couch to be the audience. She seemed super excited to see if this would go well, even leaning forward a little. Steve on the other hand was just anxious, he did not need death in his house. The two watched as Nancy braced herself and began running at a squatted Eddie who opened his arms wide for her. They watched as he grabbed her waist and lifted her gracefully off the ground. They watched as they did the lift.
Steve could faintly hear Robin cheering beside him, but his focus was on something else entirely. Eddie's arms. Today the metal head was wearing a black Metallica tank top that exposed his arms completely. So when he lifted Nancy into the air his muscles stared directly at Steve, and he stared right back. It shocked him how strong this supposedly scrawny man was...it was even kind of attractive.
"Steve...Steve...Earth to Steve?!"
Steve is pulled out of his thoughts when he finally notices Robin calling his name. Who knows how long she had been saying that..."Yeah- sorry Rob what's up?" Shit, he looked like an idiot for sure.
"Uh- Nance and I were going to go do makeovers...I guess? I can't say I like the idea but she swears it won't be like last time and I am choosing to trust her...You and Eddie gonna be good alone?"
Steve quickly stole a glance at Eddie. They had hung out one-on-one before, so this time shouldn't be any different.
"Yeah, yeah go have fun. We'll be okay without you two. Maybe we'll have more fun this way." he gives Robin a teasing smile before using his hand to shoo her away. "Okay go! Have fun!"
Over the last few months, Steve took notice of how Robin talked about and looked at Nancy, it reminded him of before with Vickie. Eventually, he concluded that her crush must have moved from Vickie to Nance. Which meant he had another opportunity to play wingman. And that is precisely what he is doing.
Once the two girls disappeared upstairs, Eddie took the opportunity to ask him the question. "She got the hots for Wheeler?"
Steve jumps. When he looks over, Eddie is just right there, leaning over his shoulder and talking directly into his ear.
"Shit man don't do that...uh, yeah I think so-"
"How are you holding up?"
Robin had come out to Eddie not too long ago. Steve wasn't there when she did, but he was informed of it. One day she showed up at work ecstatic about it. Steve believed more happened during that conversation because she was way too excited.
"What do you mean by that? Look, I don't like Nance anymore. I moved on from that."
Eddie raises an eyebrow
"Seriously!! I have!"
"Right, right. Well, I don't mean to assume here Stevie, but that didn't seem to be the case just a few months ago. What's changed?"
Steve crossed his arms and looked to the ceiling. Eye contact was uncomfortable now. He was not enjoying this conversation so far. "I don't know. Uh.." He pauses to think over what his answer should be. He didn't realize how difficult that question would be to answer. "I moved on a while ago, just not completely. I guess after learning about Robin I just bounced back to Nance. But we wouldn't work, we didn't before. Plus Robin is my best friend, I can't just go after the girl she actually has a chance with."
Eddie nods rhythmically as he turns his whole body to face Steve. "You're a really good friend, Steve. It's kinda freaking me out. When I came out to my friends they all left me in the dirt, like shit...they hated me, man."
Steve froze...had he heard that correctly? Very slowly he turned his body fully to face the other male. "You're-"
"How'd you think I got the freak nickname, Steve?"
Oh. My God. Steve was taken aback, he had always just assumed the nickname came from his hobbies choices, not his love choices. That Is why they called him that... Seriously, what was wrong with people? Jesus Christ. I mean Robin was his best friend ever, she wasn't a freak, and he didn't care who she romantically loved. Eddie wasn't a freak for that reason either. Not to Steve.
Steve shakes his head as he lets out a breathy laugh. "Y'know it's kinda freaking me out too, man." Eddie already knew Steve was accepting of him, so Steve decided to just go on with the conversation, and be normal because this was normal. After some silence, he glances over to the staircase where the girls rushed up not too long ago. It gives him an idea. "Hey-" he looks back at Eddie. "Want to go to my room? It's more exciting than the living room."
Steve watched as Eddie took a moment to think. He was sure the recent confession was still on his mind. But eventually, he was given a response,
"Let's do it."
He smirks at Eddie and stands to begin leading the way, but before heading upstairs, Steve looks around the living room to check on its condition. It was messy, but not a disaster. He could clean it up tomorrow once the others left. "Okay, follow me." He commands, and Eddie follows. As the two walked to his room Steve could hear the muffled chatter coming from inside the bathroom. He couldn't help but smile to himself at the idea of Robin having a good time in there with Nance. Seeing Robin happy brought him some of the most joy in life.
The bedroom door is opened and Steve steps to the side so Eddie could enter first. He watched as the other took in the sight of the room.
"Never In my wildest dreams did I think I would end up in King Steve's bedroom," Eddie comments, his eyes not leaving the room ahead of him. "Mind if I look around?"
"Knock yourself out."
Eddie beamed and began rummaging through everything in the room. He was on a mission to find gold here and it amused Steve.
"Thanks for giving me another room to clean, Munson," Steve comments with an eye roll as he closes the door. No, he wasn't upset about Eddie making a mess, if anything he expected it. it was just fun to tease the other male. It felt so...natural now.
"Any time Stevie, any time." Eddie laughs out as he bends down to pick up the cassette player he spotted. It was sitting beside Steves's dresser, looking like it needed some attention. "You got any good music, Harrington? Like..real music?"
Steve nods over to the dresser beside Eddie where multiple tapes were stacked on top.
Eddie facepalms. Of course, the tapes were right in front of his eyes. He steps in front of the dresser and begins searching through the stack of tapes for a song he knew was good..or at least a song he knew. Tears for fears, expected. Jessie's girl...not awful....wait a minute.
Eddie picks up a singular tape and stares at it for what felt like hours to Steve. This freaked him out. What could Eddie have possibly found in that tower of tapes that were that awful? But when Eddie turns around, he understands. In his hands was the song Listen to Your Heart, by Roxette.
"Steve. Harrington. Are you a Roxette fan?!" Eddie looked...flabbergasted. His mouth hung open as if he had just seen a ghost. He knew Steve liked the basics but this was a whole new level. These were the female basics.
Of course, Steve was embarrassed, why wouldn't he be? He had this persona of being a big tough guy, and this was a girly romantic ballad. I mean he looked like some sort of freshman girl owning that. Maybe he could play it off as if it wasn't his, lie his way out..."No, no, it was Nancy's, and she left it here. just give m-" he goes to reach for the tape but Eddie swerves out of the way, dodging his attempt.
Eddie places the tape into the cassette player, "Nah- ah, we are playing this right now." with a sly smirk he joins Steve on the bed. "You know the words, Harrington? I'd love to hear you sing along." He presses play and the song's soft sound enters the bedroom.
"I know there's something in the wake of your smile"
Steve crosses his arms tightly against his chest. He resorted to looking up at the ceiling instead of looking at Eddie. He knew that the other was silently judging him, and seeing the look in his eyes would just confirm that. He usually kept his persona on when around Eddie, he didn't expect him to see the soft/romantic side of him this soon. Hell, it took Robin longer than this to get to see his soft side.
"I get a notion from the look in your eyes, yeah"
The song continued to play in the background, filling up the room like running water. Steve wasn't saying anything, and neither was Eddie. It seemed as if they both waited on the other to start a conversation again. This situation never should have happened in the first place. Steve rubs his face with his palm, his face tightens as he begins thinking of anything he could say. In a way, he did start this whole scene, so maybe he could end it.
"You built a love but that loves falls apart"
But just as Steve turns to speak to Eddie, the other turns as well. Their eyes meet each other in the middle, and their mouths close on the words they were originally going to say. At that moment, Steve forgot what he was going to suggest talking about. All he could focus on now was Eddie's eyes. This was the first time Steve ever got to just look at his eyes, really look. They were such a deep brown they were almost black and they seemed to mimic a dolls with how big and beautiful they were. Steve could have sworn that when he stared long enough the vision of a beautiful forest formed within them. A forest he never wants to leave. The tension between the two of them now was so strong a knife would not be enough to tear it. They stared at each other for what felt like hours.
Steve eventually decides to pull his eyes away from the others. He didn't want to, but this may get awkward. Going to speak, the words hesitated for just a moment. "Y'know, I don't know if I've made it clear but...what you did in the upsidown to save us, to save Dustin...It does mean a lot dude, seriously. I mean it was hella fucked up for me to tell you not to be heroes, to call you to bait." He runs a hand through his hair, pushing some loose strands out of his view. "I just didn't want to risk Dustin getting hurt..." a sigh. "You getting hurt. It may not seem like I care all the time Munson, but I do. A lot more than you may think."
"Your little piece of heaven turns too dark."
When Steve glanced back at Eddie to see his reaction their eyes yet again connected. This time Steve couldn't help but let a small smile form. After a moment Eddie returned it.
"I knew you cared a shit ton about that kid, but me? King Steve has grown a liking for The Freak?" Eddie laughs, sighs, and looks up at the ceiling. "Can't help but agree with you though Steve, I'm so fucking glad those sons of a bitches didn't kill me. It would have been an epic hero's death but man I was terrified..." Eddie seemed to pause and think about what to say next. "I don't regret what I did. If I didn't go back I would have never gotten these metal scars." Eddie lifts his shirt up to show the scars imprinted on the sides of his torso. "We got matching trauma, huh Stevie?"
"Yeah..." Steve gently runs his hand over the scars on his own body. "Matching trauma."
Eddie's smile widens at the other's response. The two felt a wave of contentment rush over them. A wave that carried away all the awkwardness that once existed. Now, if you had told Steve just a few months ago that he would be opening up to Eddie Munson in his bedroom he would have called you crazy. Yet here he was. And he enjoyed it.
The song continued to play, and for the first time, Steve listened to the lyrics.
"Listen to your heart. When he's calling for you."
Steve moves his gaze up and down Eddie. A part of him hopes that he notices. "Hey, Eddie?"
"Yeah?" Eddie's gaze remained on his eyes. His voice was softer.
"Do you want me to look away?"
"Not really."
"What do you want?"
"A lot Steve," Eddie nods. "A lot."
Eddie's eyes. Steve had seen that look before, in fact, he saw it often. He knew what it meant, what it was asking.
"Get what you want, Eddie."
Eddie's eyes widened. That was not the response he expected, he thought he was misreading this completely wrong. Since high school began Eddie had started gravitating towards males. Their faces...their hair, it was a stunning mix. Steve Harrington was no exception. He made eyes at Steve before, who in the school hadn't? He was perfect, he was the King. Hair, body, sex appeal. But Eddie? Eddie was just the freak, so he never spoke with him. Not until now. Now, that little schoolboy fantasy was back. And it felt real. He was lost in Steve Harrington's eyes, and Steve didn't seem to mind. There is only one way to test that theory though...
Eddie ever so slightly leans closer to Steve, his eyes not leaving the contact. "Are you sure about that, Steve?"
Eddie watched as Steve too leaned in, meeting him in the middle of the bed. "I'm pretty sure, Eddie. I'm certain," Steve replies with a nod and a small smirk.
That was all Eddie needed to hear to lean in that remaining distance and close the gap between them, his chapped lips pressing softly against the other's delicate ones. The kiss started as far from perfect, Eddie doesn't know what he is doing. Yes, he had kissed men before but not someone this..."Important." It is kinda terrifying, and he does not need to mess this up. So, it was just lips pressed against lips, and nothing more. Soft, small, and easy.
Fortunately for Eddie, Steve soon decides to take the lead. He feverishly pushes Eddie back down against the mattress and climbs on top of him, his hips fitting perfectly against the others. His hands slither up Eddie's body to his face. He cups it in a delicate grasp and pulls him in closer to deepen the kiss. Steve had made out with many people, so many, so kissing was not new, and he loved showing off his skill. He Pulls away to catch his breath, his chest rising and falling in heavy pants. He stares into Eddie's lovestruck eyes and the butterflies are released, the flutter so fast in his stomach. God Eddie was a gorgeous man. Without breaking eye contact Steve leans back down. He sweetly licks against the other red-kissed lips, asking for entry. Eddie parting them was the yes he needed. He doesn't hesitate a second to slide his tongue into the other's mouth. He feels around inside, wanting to know what every part of his mouth tastes like...cigarettes and popcorn. Instead of stopping when he next pulls away, Steve begins using his lips to press tender kisses against the other's neck.
Eddie's breath hitched as he felt the soft touch, this was insane, making out with Steve Harrington at a sleepover...but he didn't want it to stop. He pushes his hand through Steve's hair and gently pulls the strands. Steve seemed to get the idea and gently sucked against the sensitive skin of his neck. This caused Eddie to let a small whimper escape his throat. It sent shivers up Steve's body...he wanted to hear the noise forever.
"Do that again."
"Do what, exactly...?" Eddie manages out
"The noise," Steve mutters against his neck. He smirks up at him as he sucks against another spot of skin.
"You love feeling powerful h-" he cuts himself off with another gasp.
Steve was fully entranced at the moment now, stopping was the last thing on his mind...that was until the sudden sound of knocking rang from his bedroom door. Steve and Eddie look at each other, then at the position, they were in.
"You two in there?" Robins voice questions from outside.
"Shit." Steve rolls off of Eddie and crawls to the edge of the bed. Robin shouldn't have been able to hear them over the music which was good.."Sit up and fix your clothes." he whispers to Eddie before pausing the cassette player. "Yeah, yeah we are. Come on in girls."
Robin pokes her head into the room, Steve gives her an awkward wave. That proves to be the wrong choice because Robin smirks. She seemed to understand what was just happening here. He was going to get bombarded with questions later for sure.
"Roxette?" Nancy questions as she pushes past Robin and enters the room. "Didn't know you were into that type of music, Steve." she went to the cabinet covered in tapes and began searching within them for something specific. Again, she knew her way around Steve's items. Once she found the tape she waved it in front of Steve's face. "Remember this Steve?" In her hands was a mixtape of songs from the '50s-'60s. "We used to dance to this all the time, but Steve was awful at it."
"Hey, I am right here!"
"Sorry, sorry! Here, how about this." she swaps the tapes in the player and then extends her hand out. Steve looks at it curiously. "We can try again, maybe you're better by now." He stares at her hand for a few more seconds, then his glance moves to Robin who is sitting beside Eddie on the bed. He got an idea. It was time to be the wingman he was meant to be.
"Sorry Nance, I would but Robin has been wanting to learn to slow dance for ages now, and this is the perfect moment."
The glare Robin shoots Steve is terrifying, she looks as if she could stab him to death right at that moment. He smiles innocently before Nancy grabs the girl's hand and saves him. "Well, let's start then! So first your arms go here..." Nancy places Robins's hands on her waist and wraps her arms around her neck.
"Don't be nervous Robin, I'm not going to judge how good you are. Now, you just sway with me"
Steve smiles softly as he watches Nancy and Robin sway to the music. He loved this song, Puppy Love by Paul Ankha. He used to listen to it a lot with Nancy, but now, this wasn't their song anymore. It was her's and Robins, and you know what...he is completely okay with that.
"Well we can't let them have all the fun," Eddie speaks up from beside Steve. He smirks and stands in front of him, his arm extended to him the same way Nancy just had. "Won't you dance with me, King Steve?"
With an eye roll and a small chuckle Steve agrees and takes Eddie's hand.
The night had barely begun, yet Steve felt as if this was it, he would be okay. Because...he hadn't been this happy and carefree in months, and he didn't need anything more than this. Him, his best friends, and the music. He leans into Eddie resting his face in the crook of his neck as they swayed to the slow music. Eddies arm wrapped itself comfortably around Steve's waist and his hand held the others. The warmth between their bodies was so comfortable, so reassuring. It proved to both of them that they were here and that they were okay.
"Never took you for such a sappy person, Steve," Eddie whispers into his ear as they sway.
"Yeah, well," he chuckles, "neither did I."
Steve looks up and their eyes meet again in a delicate stare. A stare that was filled with so much comfort, and love.
And they smile, smiles that shone brighter than the sun in the afternoon.
Everything is okay, they're all here, happy and alive..and for the first time in a while, Steve has hope that it'll stay.