Work Text:
Steve had been roped into driving the kids home yet again, not that he really minded. The party piled in at the arcade and started their usual chatting. Will got the front seat as Dustin, Mike, and Eleven clambered into the back.
“Sharing a straw is gross!” said Mike, insistently.
“It is not,” countered Dustin. “You and El do it.”
“Well duh, but we’re dating.”
“So?”
“It’s gay if two dudes do it!”
Steve looked at the two of them arguing through the rear view mirror. “Wheeler, being gay isn’t a bad thing. Got it?”
It might have come out a bit harsher than he intended because Eleven’s head shot up from its place on the window. “What’s being gay?”
“Two guys can be in love or two girls can be in love. It’s normal. They just can’t get married because the government is bullshit sometimes.”
Eleven nodded. “The government is bullshit sometimes.”
Of course that’s what she got from this. “Wheeler, you got it?”
Mike nodded silently. Good enough. Dustin looked pleased at his apparent win on the straw debate. Will, now that he glanced over, seemed a bit pale.
Still, the normal chatter resumed as Mike, Dustin, and Eleven were dropped off at their respective homes. Steve always liked to give Will a little time alone in the car to decompress. The kid didn’t talk much, but he always flipped through the radio after the others were dropped off.
Today, though, Will let the car stay silent. Steve glanced over.
“Steve, I think I’m gay.” Will stared at the car floor between his beat up little shoes. “I kind of want to kiss Mike.”
Steve smiled. “It’s alright if you are, but everybody wants to kiss certain guy friends, man. It’s just one of those things.”
He dropped the kid off with a soft pat on his back. Gay or not, wanting to kiss other guys was always rough.
———
Two days later, Eddie showed up at the Family Video.
Steve and Robin were manning the counter like always. She’d been poking him for the past fifteen minutes under the counter, so he’d finally given in and started the inventory count.
The store was completely dead. Steve was glad to see Eddie, even with the whole wanting to kiss him thing. You win some and you lose some, he supposed.
“My lieges,” said Eddie with a more serious nod than his usual flourish. “The store is clear?”
Robin gave him a nod to continue.
“Are you aware of the Will situation?”
Robin grinned. “Has he finally come to you?”
“He came to Steve first, which I’m here to discuss.” Eddie walked up to the counter. Where was his cute little saunter? He looked so serious.
Steve just stared as Eddie stared into his soul “Did you or did you not tell Byers that it wasn’t gay to want to kiss a dude?”
Robin turned towards him, “Steve!”
“What?” asked Steve.
“Why would you tell him that?”
Steve just shrugged. “That wasn’t my exact wording, but everyone wants to kiss dudes every now and again. It’s not like it makes him gay.”
Why was Eddie looking at him like that? Hell, why was Robin looking at him like that?
Eddie very slowly opened his mouth. Then he shut it again.
Robin turned her whole body towards him. “Steve, do I ever want to kiss dudes?”
Hmm. That did make some sort of sense. “No, but you’re a lesbian.”
“Right… and if I were a boy…”
“You’d be straight?”
Robin sighed. Steve turned to Eddie. “Come on man, back me up. Dudes just get crushes on their friends occasionally, right?”
And suddenly Eddie wasn’t talking. Great.
“Who have you had a crush on, Steve?” asked Robin.
“I mean, they’re not really crushes. Because they’re not girls, right? But like Tommy and some middle school friends and like,” he looked at Eddie. Shit, he shouldn’t freak the dude out. You don’t just tell a dude you want to kiss him. Right?
Eddie looked back at him. Shit. He’d freaked him out.
Robin gave a tentative laugh, “Steve, honey, do you remember bisexuality?”
“Obviously.” Oh shit. “Most dudes don’t want to kiss guys, do they?”
Eddie momentarily recovered. “Nope, but I do,” he said.
Oh. OH.
“Cool, man,” said Steve. Dumb. Dumb! Dumb! Oh my god, he was so dumb. He liked Eddie. Liked liked him. Heat rushed to his cheeks.
Eddie gave an absolutely adorable chuckle. “Smoke break?” he offered.
Robin practically shoved Steve out the back door.
And then Steve and Eddie were kissing behind the Family Video. Steve was pressed up against the wall. He could feel Eddie around him, his smoky scent and his denim jacked and those lips crashing into his.
Yeah, Steve might just be a little bit gay. He also might be very happy with that revelation.