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Under the streetlights, cars were lined up on either side of the road and a littered trail of empty bottles led from under the flickering, old lights to deep within the woods of Hawkins. As you follow the footpath through the trees, the music gets louder and louder – seemingly shaking the ground. It’s there, in the middle of the woods, where hundreds of drunk teens flood a clearing. A makeshift stage stands tall in the natural opening, front and center, with a single old spotlight plugged into a battery focusing on the act playing. Rock music echoes throughout the woods as a sea of teenagers rock on – chugging beers, laughing, and dancing on one another to the beat.
As you made your way towards the stage where drinks were kept in an old Igloo, you brushed shoulders with more than one couple sneaking away from the concert and bumped into a few jocks. After a minute or two of fighting your way through the crowd, with a new found sense of purpose you gripped your flannel tighter and dragged your dirty chucks through the crowd; pushing closer towards the front.
Keeping your head down, you beelined for the cooler at the foot of the stage. Reaching in you grabbed a bottle and quickly turned to move towards the back of the crowd when you came crashing into someone’s chest. Time slowed as your drink fell out of your hand and you started going backwards.
“Woah woah woah there, you okay?”
You knew that voice. Everyone knows that voice. Fuck .
Becoming self-aware of what just happened, you could feel his grip around your waist tighten as he pulled you back up – conveniently back into his chest. You could feel the heat rising to your cheeks. Thank god it was dark.
This is so embarrassing.
“That was a close one!” He laughed, running his free hand through his hair.
Looking up in awe, you softly smiled as he put some space between you two.
Never releasing his grip around you.
“Thank you,” you said softly,
“that um..could’ve ended badly to say the least” you finished, relaxing a bit more.
“Oh no worries, it gets crazy over here so it was bound to happen to someone” he exclaimed confidently, “though I’m glad it was me with someone so cute” he mumbled to himself.
The two of you maintained eye contact as he very slowly unwrapped his fingers from your waist, letting them linger a bit longer where they still had remained. Your blush had darkened, and you began to fiddle with the sleeves of your flannel while biting your lip.
Unfreezing from your unconventional staring contest, the taller boy reached past you to grab two drinks. His mouth hotly brushed by your ear as he did so. Standing back up, he held a Bud Light out to you, he smiled expectantly. Your fingers brushed briefly as you took him up on the bottle and popped it open.
“Thank you” you smiled brightly. Any nerves you had promptly vanished.
The loud music dimmered down, and the boys on stage to your left screamed out as they closed their set. Both of you turned your heads swiftly to face the stage. This was the beauty of the woods of Hawkins on the weekends. Live music, total party zone, and in your case, talking with the Steve Harrington.
“Thank you everyone!”
A teen boy shouted from the makeshift stage into the mic.
Your focus shifted away from the stage.
Steve had taken a swig of his drink, turning back to face you, before holding out his hand.
“Hey if you like, I’d uh love if you’d come join me in watching the next band?”
You, embarrassingly, were quick to throw your hand into his.
“I’d love that” You smiled.
Interlocking your fingers, he led the way over to a more secluded area over by a huge boulder.
It was a little ways from the right side of the stage and pretty tall. Climbing up to the top first, he reached his hand down to pull you up with him. The two of you sat facing the stage, feet dangling off the edge. He pulled you closer to his side, smiling down at you as you chatted throughout the next set – every so often pausing to chug down some of your drinks.
“No! I’m serious! He really did. He just left me there!”
You were folded over, laughing, as Steve told you a story about his best friend Dustin.
“And you just let him?” you grinned,
“you're the big man, just take them from him or something”
“Look he’s smarter than you think, all those damn kids are” he grumbled,
taking the last drink of his beer.
“ Awww poor King Steve, getting played by middle schoolers!”
You giggled, shoving him playfully. He looked down at you, chuckling himself.
As you wiped some stray tears of laughter from under your eyes,
you noticed how Steve had gone quiet. Looking up you met his gaze.
“What- what’s wrong?” you asked, scrunching your brows at the expression he was wearing.
Raising your face up, Steve kissed the top of your head. Pulling back he fondly smiled,
“Nothing..just, I’m really enjoying this”.
You flushed and promptly looked away to hide the dusty pink coating your cheeks. He cupped your jaw, lifting it so you two were face to face. “Whatcha hiding from sweetheart, hmmm ?”
You shoved him back and he barked out a laugh, but you could see the red dusting on his upper cheeks and the tips of his ears. You smiled, “Me too”. Just as Steve was about to say something else, someone called his name from down on the ground.
The two of you looked down to see some kid from the basketball team calling up for him.
“Yo Harrington! They’re beggin for you out there man!” The kid yelled up, finger pointed to the crowd surrounding the stage. Steve sighed and shouted back, “Kay! Need a couple!”
The other walked off as Steve placed his hand on the back of your neck. You felt goosebumps dance on your body. “I’ll be back in a bit. I just can’t wait to perform this for you”, he let out an airy laugh.
“Me either” you smirked.
Giving you a slight shove, he slid down the side of the boulder and made his way over to the stairway at the back of the stage. You stayed on the rock, taking a long sip of your drink. Smiling at the close of the last band as they were cheered off stage. That’s when the boy from earlier walked onto the wooden planks.
“Ladies and gentlemen, you know him, you love him. Up next we have the one, the only,
King of Hawkins, Steve Harrington!”
The sea of teens screamed out, chanting his name over and over.
“Settle down, settle down” He laughed into the mic, waving his hand in a downward motion. He looked up towards you, smiling widely. “Tonight’s gonna be a little different you guys” Looking back at the band behind him, he motioned them a signal. Nodding, the group prepped their instruments.
“Grab a date Hawkins, it’s showtime!”
The crowd cheered louder. You watched from up above as pairs formed throughout the crowd, with the occasional all girl group, as the intro played. Steve chuckled out a breathy laugh from up on stage. He reached forward, wrapping his hand around the arm of the mic, and leaned in with an attractive gaze focused up towards you to sing the opening of the song, “Last night a little dancer came dancin' to my door”. You bit your lip as you swayed back and forth to the music from up above.
And as the song raged on, as cliche as it sounds, it was like nothing else mattered except him. He looked perfect and everything else just seemed to fade into a colorful blur.
You stayed up on the boulder, watching his every move. How strong he looked as his hand gripped the microphone, how his body moved (very attractively) to the music, and how each time the ‘she’ in the Billy Idol hit was mentioned his eyes flickered to you.
In the midnight hour she cried — “more, more, more”
His gaze caused a shudder to run up your back.
What set you free and brought you to me babe,
What set you free I need you here by me
Unlike the rest of the kids you were surrounded by or any of your friends, which was a very limited number to say the least, you weren’t born and raised in Hawkins. Moving to the small town only a little over a year ago was antagonizing; you’d left all of your friends and moved cross-country. But tonight, the anxiety and isolation you’d been feeling for so long simmered into a warm calm. You felt appreciated. Safe. And had an inkling that you were going to be taken care of and would have someone in your corner from now on.
I'd give you all, and have none, babe
Just to, just to, just to, to have you here by me
Tearing your eyes from Steve’s singing, you explored the group of teenagers below. You could see couples dancing, groups of girls laughing and talking, big groups of guys playing drinking games. It was ‘the classic teen experience’ and you were so glad you were here. Bringing your attention back to your newfound friend, you giggled watching him dance around the stage during an instrumental solo.
Oh yeah little baby. She want more.
More, more, more, more, more!
As the drums and guitar faded out, you didn’t think the crowd could get louder. They screamed with everything they had – and you did too. The cheers echoed throughout the woods. Steve let out a laugh before ‘woo’ing into the mic, throwing his right fist up into the air. The crowd followed suit, you included, cheering with your fists pounding the night sky. When the group died down, he thanked them and hustled off the stage.
Fighting his way through the mob of drunk teenagers, and after giving a lot of fist bumps, he finally made his way to the bottom of the boulder.
Peaking over the edge, you see him waving you down. So you twist around quickly and slide your way down. You take a second to regain your balance at the bottom before throwing your arms around his shoulders,
“That was awesome Steve! You’re like crazy good!!” you exclaimed.
Laughing he wrapped his arms around your waist, “Thank you y/n”.
You took another moment before putting some space between you two.
He looked down at you, smiling, “Hey…could I show you something?”
Nodding you winked jokingly,
“Of course. Anything after that performance, Harrington”
He shook his head at you, laughing under his breath. You beamed in response.
Pulling you along, he took you little ways away from the central spot and closer by the lake. Zoning out for a bit you allowed yourself to be tugged along. The whole time he held your hand gently, guiding you through the (frankly, very scary) forest at night.
You felt a squeeze of your hand and a small tug forward before Steve released his grip,
“And ta-da! We’re here!” He gave a less than graceful full 360° turn while approaching the giant…skull? rock? boulder? What was with this man and his rocks?
“You really love big rocks, don’t you?”
“Oh come onnnn” He said, dragging out the ‘n’ all whiny. Leaning on the rock, he grinned.
You laughed, “Sorry, sorry. It's wonderful Stephen Harrington. I love your big, scary, skull rock.”
Pushing off of the rock, he made his way over to you. Grabbing your wrist, he pulled you into the opening underneath the stone. The two of you sat close together, your knees touching ever so slightly, and that’s when you turned to face him again. He was just..so close. And there was a different look in his eyes.
His voice dropping to a whisper, he spoke, “Do you know why people come to skull rock, y/n?”
Cheeks flushed at the proximity and the rasp in his voice, you shook your head no.
“Can I teach you, baby?”
Not trusting your voice, you nodded softly.
Diving in, he connected your lips. Just like the movies had said, fireworks . You allowed your eyes to flutter shut, drowning in the warmth and wetness of his lips. He worked away, eating you up. He shifted, lifting you hastily onto his lap. His hands constantly move, pulling you closer before settling to grip your waist tight. You let your hands rest on his face, pouring everything into the kiss. He tightened his grip as he slowly rutted up against you. You gasped into the kiss, letting out a sweet moan as your fingertips fell from his jawline. You brushed your hand up against his neck and applied pressure. Immediately reacting to the choking, he pulled away slightly and let out a deep groan into your mouth. You let your hands fall to his shoulders as he dipped his head back down to collide your lips. Pulling your bottom lip between your teeth, he kisses you again and again. Pulling back first, you leaned your forehead on his.
“Holy fuck babe” he said lowly.
You dipped in kissing the corner of his mouth, then whispering out a ‘yeah’ in agreement.
One of his hands moved from its place on your waist, causing a whine from your throat, as it found home in your hair. Pulling on it and tilting your head back, he went in. Sucking, kissing, licking your neck. Leaving you bruised with his work littered visible to anyone who would take even a glimpse at you in the next week or two.
“Steve,” you moaned out softly,
“What is it sweetheart?” He mumbled as he examined his marks all over your neck.
“Kiss me, please .” you begged,
He pulled you down quickly, crashing his lips into yours for a searing kiss. The kisses you shared were long and passionate. You could feel all of him, and he could feel all of you. You pulled back, groaning as Steve bit your lip as you separated.
“Steve…I..”
Sensing your nerves, he rubbed circles into your hips where his hands were currently resting.
“What…are we?”
Realistically, you knew the answer. Nothing . This, fine, man didn’t owe you anything. You hadn’t personally known Steve Harrington until about 2-3 hours ago, but god, did you want to. You could picture yourself with him for a long time and that makes you feel crazy all things considered. So you brace yourself, for the ‘this is a one time deal’ response and prepare to just smile and nod.
“Baby, listen, if you think I’m letting you go after this, you’re sorely mistaken. We can take it slow, I promise, but you’re mine”. He finished, meshing your lips soft and briefly; he pulled back.
“Mine.”
Steve growled,
“Yours.”
You whimpered, before he plunged back in, hungrily interlocking your lips, but delicately cupping your face.
—————
You spent most of your time that weekend with Steve. Playing games over at his place, watching movies while cuddled up, and talking for hours to just learn more about one another.
It was comforting and you could tell he loved it as much as you did.
Sunday night rolled around and it was getting late, you two had been sitting on his couch with you tucked under his arm for a couple hours now. Just talking about anything and everything with a kiss sprinkled in here or there.
“Steve, I should be going home soon,” you frowned.
He followed suit.
You didn’t want to leave, but you had some homework you needed to finish up before school tomorrow and you were already growing tired. Luckily you lived about a 15, (maybe pushing it) 20 minute walk away from Steve’s neighborhood. You lifted your face up and kissed his downturned lips before pushing off of the couch and heading over to slip your shoes on.
“Just give me a second, it’s not safe out, I'll take you home!” He shouted as he headed upstairs to go get his keys.
The ride home was quiet, your hands were interlaced beside the gearshift, as you glanced back and forth between the darkness outside and Steve.
Pulling into your driveway, you leaned over and kissed him softly,
“Thanks Stevie” you whispered. He sighed happily, pulling you back in for a short kiss as he tucked a piece of hair behind your ear, “I’ll see you tomorrow okay?”
You nodded. Stepping out and running over to your front door, you watched from the window as he pulled out and sped back home.
————
Walking into Hawkins high school the next morning, it felt as if everyone’s eyes were on you. You made your way to your locker quickly, taking notice of how people’s heads turned as you passed by and the quiet whispers that followed you wherever you went.
Spinning your lock, you opened the old hunk of metal as fast as you could, sorting through your supplies, so you could rush to class. Everyone’s staring did not sit well with you.
On Friday you were a nobody, what could have possibly changed since then?
You paused.
Wait.
Oh .
The realization washed over you and your shoulders slumped almost immediately. Though you were still on edge, you felt a sense of relief and you were able to finally take a deep breath.
Being with Steve all weekend, you’d failed to realize that he is in fact the most popular guy in school which meant he most definitely had some plans during the time off from your classes. Plus, people probably saw him leave with you Friday night.
‘Y/n L/n, you are so fucking stupid’
While you were lost in thought, Steve had entered the school building. At the entrance, he took a sharp turn into the language hallway where he knew your locker was. Spotting you almost immediately, he could tell something was off. You were fiddling with your flannel sleeves again…and looking like you wanted to headbutt the metal wall next to you?
He made his way over to you swiftly, placing a hand on the small of your back, snapping you back to reality. Letting out a squeak, you spun around promptly and collided with his chest gently. He let out a chuckle and your face flushed red with embarrassment.
“Hi Steve,” you said meekly. Looking up at him and taking a small step back.
“Hey sweetheart,” he breathed, leaning down to kiss your cheek sweetly. “You okay?”
Nodding, you smiled tenderly. “Yeah, I’m good now.”
“Got everything you need for class?” He asked, looking up to eye your locker. “Oh! Yeah,”
you turned around and grabbed your psychology textbook and a couple notebooks. Steve tenderly rested his hand on your hip as you collected your things. While you were facing your locker, Steve glanced over to the crowd of girls a few lockers away and shot a glare.
“All set,” you smiled as you went to shut the door. Snapping him back into reality; he took a step back, detaching himself from you to allow you to re-lock your locker. You turned back to face Steve, he grinned.
“Ready?”
“Ready.”
“Let’s go then,” reattaching his arm around you,
the two of you set off for your classes on the second floor.
END.