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Robin slipped through a new gate without realizing it.
One minute, she was shit-talking Keith with Steve, the next, she floated up to the Harrington’s backyard of ‘83. Robin shoved her panic deep into the future and scrambled out of Steve’s pool. Jumping in was a good idea when the ‘86 Hawkins was sunny and bright. Robin shivered as she traipsed through the ‘83 Harrington house.
Steve’s place always looked a little too put together, but somehow the perfection plus the vines and dusty atmosphere of the Upside Down made it eerier.
She pawed through Steve’s closet and layered herself in a Steve she never really knew: Mr. Funny, Mr. Cool. She barricaded herself in his closet, not eager to be face to face with a demodog or demobat if it came down to it.
The moving gates were a recent feature.
Will was the first to slip through one. At the time, the working theory was you had to have gone to the Upside Down before, but when Lucas fell through a gate the following week it was scrapped.
Robin just needed to stay calm and wait for a return gate to appear. Steve wouldn’t be calm. Robin never got the full story, but she knew Steve was touchy about the pool. That something Upside Down related went down before she was dragged into the Party.
She focused on her breathing and hummed. Everyone else had found a new gate within twenty minutes. She’d have to leave Steve’s closet, but she didn’t have to right now. Honestly, it was weird how much the Steve of the past was different to the Steve she knew and loved. More chinos and polos. Less sweatshirts and grubby tee shirts. The corner of a Playboy peeked out underneath a pile of sports gear (and thank God the stench of jock sweat was not recreated in the Upside Down). In a far corner, Robin found a faded blue and green puppy plush. Its red tongue and tiny black eyes made her mourn a younger Steve. She pet his floppy ears and hugged him to her chest.
Robin couldn’t trust her internal clock, but she pushed the closet door open. No monsters, no noises. She kissed the puppy plush on the forehead and returned him to his spot. She crept out of Steve’s room and down the hallway.
“Robin? Robin!”
Oh, God it was Steve. Either a gate was open or she could hear him like Steve heard Dustin. “Steve? Steve, I’m coming down the stairs.” Robin touched every light she passed, hoping to leave a trail for Steve to follow.
The gate was above the kitchen island.
“Robin? Can you hear me?”
She jumped up onto the island. “Here, in the kitchen.” She stretched her arms up towards the gate, but couldn’t get a good grasp through to the other side.
Steve’s head and arms popped through. “I’ve got you. I’ll break your fall.”
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
“I don’t care. Just trust me.”
Robin wasn’t great at rope climbing in gym and didn’t have a whole lot of hope lifting herself up on Steve’s arms. She braced herself against Steve’s forearms and lifted up as Steve pulled her down. The flip made her stomach churn, but she landed on top of Steve without crushing him. “Fuck.”
Steve curled his body around her and ran his hand through her hair. “I’ve got you. I’ve got you.”
Robin held him tight. She could cry about it in the shower later. This moment was for her and Steve. “I know. I’m sorry.”
“Hey, none of that. You couldn’t have known. This isn’t your fault.”
Robin watched the gate above her shrink as if it was never there.