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“God, Steve. I cannot believe that Mrs. Click wouldn’t let us be partners on this stupid geneaology project,” Tommy H groaned, as he stared down at the scrap of paper Mrs. Click had handed out a few minutes ago. “You were my first choice. You, or Carol. But Joanne? I mean, she’s a weirdo.”
Tommy H looked over his shoulder, staring at Joanne Kulinski. She was furiously writing Star Trek fanfiction in her spiral notebook, chewing on the frayed end of her damp ginger braid. She was a tall, quiet girl, and definitely not one of the popular girls in the class. Kids made fun of her for a lot of reasons. There was no way that Tommy H wanted to spend hours with her, plotting out their stupid family trees together, learning their roots. Mrs. Click was a bitch, for refusing to let them pick their own partners. She said that she wanted them to broaden their horizons, but he thought that maybe the teacher just didn’t want friends to pair up together because sometimes, the class could get loud and chaotic.
“Who did you get?” Tommy H asked. He glanced over at Steve Harrington. “We could trade, if you want. You can work with Joanne, and I’ll take whoever you’ve been stuck with.”
“I got Robin Buckley,” Steve said, unfurling the small piece of paper, and showing it to him. He didn’t look upset, or annoyed about his choice in project partner. Steve gave his friend a slightly confused look. “Who the hell is Robin?”
“Oh, uh – “ Tommy H frowned. He looked around the classroom, seeing how a lot of their classmates were already sliding their desks together, to start working together on their project. Some of them looked enthused, others looked annoyed at their forced pairings. He’d been hoping to dump Joanne on Steve quick, and take his partner. And he’d been hoping it would be one of the cute girls – like Martha, or Sherry Anne. “Robin? I’m not actually sure.”
“Is there even a Robin in this class?” Steve asked. “That could be a guy, or a girl. I don’t know who my partner is.”
Tommy snatched the piece of paper from him, and stood up. “Robin? Robin Buckley?” he called out, waving his hand to get the class’s attention. “Is there anyone in here by that name?”
“I’m right here,” a voice called out. “I’m Robin.”
Steve whipped around in his seat, and stared at the girl sitting directly behind him. She was hunched over her three-ring binder, wearing a dark blue corduroy jacket with a few patches sewn onto the material. Robin had blonde hair with streaks of dark brown, and a great deal of freckles. Her blue eyes had hardened into tiny sharp diamonds, as she scowled at Steve and Tommy H with a death glare.
Even though this girl was sitting directly behind her, Steve had never laid eyes on her. At least, he didn’t think so. She was entirely unfamiliar to him. Which he thought was weird, because he thought he knew all the girls in their class. He liked going around, and talking to them. Robin was pretty, but there was something so horrible about the way that she was glaring at him like that. He quickly turned around in his seat, and raised his eyebrows at Tommy H.
“Guys,” Mrs. Click called out. “For the rest of this class, I want you sitting with your assigned partners. This project is going to be worth twenty percent of your grade. Tommy, Steve, you are not partners. Move your desks, please.”
Tommy H rolled his eyes, but he grabbed his desk, and hauled it closer to Joanne. He sat down, and slouched down in his seat, clearly upset that he was paired up with one of the weird kids. Joanne didn’t look up from her notebook, refusing to acknowledge his presence. Steve knew that his best friend was not happy about the situation, and that it wasn’t going to go well. It wasn’t so great on his end, either. They had both been paired with weird girls. Only his partner seemed excessively hostile towards him, for whatever reason. At least Joanne was quiet about her great dislike for Tommy H.
Steve grabbed his desk, and moved it around, so that it was facing Robin’s. They were sitting across from each other. He could see that she was still glaring daggers at him, her arms crossed over her chest.
“Okay, so – introductions. I’m Steve Harrington, and –“
“I know who you are,” Robin said, hotly. And then, under her breath, she whispered, “Dingus.”
“Oh.” Steve didn’t know what this girl’s problem was. Normally, girls loved him. He’d lay on the charm, flash them a big grin, and he’d have them swooning. Girls loved his charm, his hair. But this girl, for whatever reason, she was pissed off at him. Steve’s smile faltered. “Sorry – it’s just, being that you’re like, new, or whatever – “
“I’m not a new kid.” Robin gave him an annoyed look. “I’ve literally been in this class with you all year.”
“Oh.” Steve frowned. He gave her a bemused look. “Really?”
“You know what, Harrington?” Robin said. “Let’s just work on this project together, so we can both make a good grade. And then, we’ll never have to talk to each other again for the rest of our lives, how does that sound? I know you’re not a great student academically, but I happen to really care about grades, and scholarships, and everything. And I have to get into a good University, got it? If you fuck up my chances on getting into a good school, because of this project, I will make you regret it every day of your life.”
“Okay, Jesus.” Steve gave her a look. “It’s just Mrs. Click’s class, don’t take it so seriously.”
“I take all my classes extremely seriously.” Robin turned to a fresh page in her binder, and tapped her pen against the page. “Steve, you and I need to get excellent marks on this project. Don’t mess this up for me. So, we need to research both sides of our family trees, and find some interesting stories about our ancestors to share with the class when we present in front of everyone. And we’ve got to have some sort of visual guide – photographs, a home movie, a Bristol board, that sort of thing. Extra points for creativity, and all that. Okay, let’s get started. How much do you know about your family’s history?”
“Not much.” Steve laughed. “I mean, I know my parents, and grandparents. But going back further than two generations, I don’t really care about it.”
“You don’t care about your family history?”
“No. Why would I?” Steve asked. “They’re all dead, and everything. I’ve never met most of them.”
“You’re not curious?” Robin asked.
“Not really.” Steve shrugged. “I live in Hawkins. So do my parents. What else do I need to know?”
“Well, I guess we have our work cut out for us.” Robin frowned. Getting paired up with Steve ‘The Hair’ Harrington was going to be a complete disaster. Why him, out of all their classmates? She figured that it was better than Tommy H., or Carol. But still. Steve? As soon as she’d seen his name on that little slip of paper, Robin’s heart had sunk to the lowest of depths. She’d known that most of the work would fall on her shoulders. “Well, it’s a good thing that I know a few generations of my family history. My dad’s really into genealogy. He’s got this huge binder at home, and he’s been working with his brothers on the weekends to track our roots.”
“Yeah?” Steve asked. “Where are you guys from?”
“Boston, Massachusetts. But before that, my great-great-whatever-parents, and their seven children were fishmongers in England, and they were really poor – but they wanted to have a better life for themselves. Robin’s expression softened as she talked about her interest, and she almost smiled, before quickly catching herself. “So, they made the journey, and when they arrived, most of them started working at the docks.”
Steve was nodding. “Huh. That’s really cool.”
“We have to present our family histories in front of the class, so we’ll have to know more than just ‘the Harringtons live in Hawkins’.” Robin wrote down his full name, and tapped the page again. “So, you’ll need to go home, and interview your parents. Start digging around. I’m sure your parents have photo albums, or documents, or something.”
“Yeah, okay.” Steve nodded. “I’ll talk to my mom. She’s in town this week, but my Dad’s in Zurich. I don’t know when he’s returning. And I can try and call my grandpa, and talk to him. He’s in a retirement home in Chicago, and his memory’s kind of going, but he could probably help me out.”
“Okay. Good,” Robin said. “Write down everything you learn. Take plenty of notes. We need to be as thorough as possible. And tomorrow during class, we can go over everything you’ve learned.”
“Sounds like fun.” Steve grinned at her, but he was met with another of Robin’s hard stares. Steve faltered for a second. “You’re good at notetaking. And you’ve got really nice handwriting. It’s going to take me forever to write down everything my mom says when I interview her, because I write really slow. Maybe you should just come by my house tonight for dinner, and we can interview her together.”
Robin hesitated. The last thing that she wanted to do, was go to Steve Harrington’s house. But then she thought about how important the project was, and how getting a bad grade in this class would really set her back. And Robin knew that Steve really did have bad handwriting.
“Ugh, fine.” Robin rolled her eyes at him. “What’s the address? I’ll come over tonight.”
As she biked through Loch Nora later that evening, Robin couldn’t believe that she was doing this. They had two weeks to get their project done, and she’d been hoping to only meet up at school, or maybe during lunchtime at the library. She didn’t want to go to his house. And she certainly didn’t want to meet Steve’s rich mom, and have to sit through dinner with either of them. Robin imagined what Steve’s mother must be like. Probably a bossy woman, who would look down her nose at someone poor like Robin. She was probably a real snob. Someone that Robin definitely didn’t want to spend the whole evening with, interviewing her about her family roots.
But, as it turned out, Steve Harrington’s mother was actually a real sweetheart. Denise Harrington was pretty. That was one of the first things that Robin noticed about her, when she arrived at Steve’s house. She had the same broad smile as her son. Denise was tall, with thick auburn hair, and dark brown eyes. As soon as Steve introduced Robin to his mother, the woman was friendly as hell. Steve had introduced Robin as his friend, and classmate – and Denise had begun asking her all kinds of questions about school, and her classes, and everything, wanting to learn more about her.
And as much as Robin had been initially dreading going over to Steve’s for dinner that night, she was having a fun time. Denise was chatty. And she could cook up one hell of a dinner. Robin let her guard down, as she dug into her beef Wellington, green beans, and rice pilaf. Denise had even made dessert – little fruit tarts, with whipped cream. It was too bad that Steve was one of her mortal enemies, because Robin loved his large house, and his mom’s cooking. It was a hell of a lot better than her mom’s TV dinners, with the sodium-filled meatloaf, and soggy brownie, while they watched ‘The Price is Right’ reruns.
Once they had finished off dinner, and cleared the plates, Robin took out her binder. She wanted to get down to business. They had an interview to conduct, and she was going to take notes while Steve talked to his mom. Robin wanted to get as much information as possible that night, so they could make good headway in their project.
“Your grandpa Otis, he married his first wife in the middle of the Great Depression,” Denise said, as she glanced down at the photo in front of her. She held it out so that Steve and Robin could both see it. “They were next-door neighbours, and madly in love. I’ve only seen a few pictures, but Hettie was such a pretty young girl. It was so tragic for both families, when she died in childbirth.”
Robin wrote everything down, listening to Denise’s story. They had been sitting there for an hour already, as Denise went through the photos she’d stored in the small shoebox. They were slowly building a profile for different relatives in Steve’s family history.
“Now, Otis met his second wife a few years later – your grandma Clara,” Denise said. “My parents got married in the summer. They had four kids – your uncle Tom, uncle Jack, me, and aunt Stacy.” Denise showed them a photo of a young couple, with a handful of small children sitting together on the front stoop of their single-wide trailer. “That one, in the overalls – that’s baby Tom. He died when he was two. Tom got really sick.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry.” Robin gave her a sad look. “I didn’t know.”
“Yeah. My parents were devastated. But that’s how it was back then. Lots of babies died young.”
Denise continued talking, explaining to Robin about how Otis and Clara had been quite poor when they had first started out. They had barely been able to pay for rent, and bills. This was something that shocked Robin, because she presumed that Steve and his family had been dripping with money for generations. But Denise told her that when she was a young girl, her parents had struggled. Clara had raised her children, while working from home. And Otis had begun working as a mechanic, fixing cars, and motorcycles. And over time, he was able to buy his own shop. And he was able to eventually save up enough money that they could move out of their trailer, and move into a nicer place.
Robin became invested in Steve’s family history. His mother was a great storyteller, and she liked listening to all the stories. Time flew, and before she knew it, Robin realized that it was dark out. Shit. Her mother would be worried about her. Robin quickly stood up.
“I have to go,” Robin said. “Sorry – it’s late.”
“Oh, let me drive you home,” Denise said. “Look at me, talking your ear off. It’s late – and it’s a school night.”
“No, I’ve got my bike. It’s not far.”
Denise gave her a small foil-wrapped plate of fruit tarts to take home with her. Steve walked her to the door, and they quickly said their goodbyes. Robin biked home, feeling surprisingly good about her dinner at Steve’s place.
Over the next week, Steve and Robin worked on their project at school, and she went over to Steve’s house again for dinner. Denise had a lot of stories to tell them, and she was extremely helpful. Robin was starting to get more comfortable with spending time with Steve. They weren’t friends, but she was thinking that maybe he wasn’t her mortal enemy after all. Just a slightly annoying jock classmate, who was actually funnier than she’d originally given him credit for.
One morning, Robin was going to her locker, when she saw to her surprise that Steve was leaning against it. He was clearly waiting for her, because he quickly straightened up when he saw her, giving her one of his easy grins.
“I have something to show you,” Steve said. “It’s about our project.”
“What is it?” Robin asked. “More of your mom’s photos?”
“No. Something better. I know I’ve told you a few days ago that my dad’s been out of town. Well, he comes back home tonight. I decided to do something – and I know he’s not going to like it. I broke into his office last night, and went through his desk. And I found this huge folder.”
“You broke into your dad’s desk?”
“Yeah. He’s always been a very private guy, keeps his documents under lock and key. And in the past, whenever I’ve tried to ask him questions about our family history, he gets a bit cagey. So, I decided to take matters into my own hands. I found this folder in the bottom drawer, and it’s full of articles about Dad, and his side of the family. I mean, my Mom’s been really helpful, but we need something about his side, too.” Steve reached into his bag, and pulled out a thick folder. He opened it for a few seconds, showing her the contents. It was stuffed full of paperwork, yellowed newspaper clippings, and a few photos. “I thought we could go over it together, and make some notes, or whatever. I need to put it back where I found it before he comes home tonight, because he hates it when I snoop in his stuff. He can’t know that I have this.”
“Yeah, sure,” Robin said. “Meet me in the library at lunch, and we’ll take a look.”
The folder was disorganized. Some things were stapled together, and there were a few bundles of paperwork that were paperclipped together, but most of it was just chaotic. Steve took half, and Robin took the other half. They started poring over the old documents. Robin started writing down everything she’d need for the project – birthdates, first and last names, that sort of thing. She knew that they would need to work fast, if Steve was going to return the documents on time.
And then, Robin saw that there was a piece of paper tucked into the back pocket of the folder. She pulled it out, and unfolded it. Puzzled, Robin stared down at the document. It was an adoption certificate. For Steve. Robin frowned, surprised at this new piece of information. Steve hadn’t mentioned this, and neither had his mother during their multiple interviews. Seemed pretty pertinent.
“Steve, you didn’t say you were adopted,” Robin said, glancing up at him. She held up the certificate. “I had no idea.”
“Of course I’m not adopted.” Steve laughed. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
Robin’s frown intensified. There was no denying that she was holding a very legitimate-looking certificate in her hands. Steven Daniel Harrington – adopted son of Denise, and Richard Harrington. It certainly looked real.
“No, this isn’t real.” Steve gave her a funny look. “If I was adopted, my mom would’ve told me. This must be a joke, or something. Did you slip this into the folder? You’re messing with me, because you’re still mad that we have to work together on this stupid project.”
“Steve, I wouldn’t do that. I just found it, tucked away in the back here,” Robin said. “I didn’t plant it to mess with you.”
“This is saying my mom and dad aren’t my real parents, and I find that really hard to believe,” Steve hissed at her. “Everyone always says I look just like them. If I was adopted, mom would’ve told me. Why would she hide this from me?”
“Well, what about your birth certificate?” Robin asked. “Who’s listed on it?”
“I dunno. I’ve never seen it.” Steve shrugged. “I think my mom has it in her purse, or something.”
“Well, what about your aunts and uncles? Grandpa Otis, and Grandma Clara?” Robin whispered, leaning closer to him. “You’re close with them. Did they ever say anything to you about this?”
“No, nobody’s ever said anything about me being adopted.” Steve looked pissed. “This isn’t something they should keep from me. If I’m adopted, then I have a right to know. I don’t know any of the details. Did it happen when I was a baby? How old was I? I only have memories of my mom and dad, not any other parents.”
“So, you were probably very young,” Robin said. “Well, maybe this is the reason why your dad didn’t want you to snoop around in his desk. Maybe he didn’t want you figuring it out.”
“So, my whole life is a lie? I don’t even know who I am!” Steve said, raising his voice at her. A few students turned in their direction, curious about their conversation. Steve ran a hand through his hair, grimacing. He quickly lowered his voice. “Sorry. This is a lot to take in.”
“I’m sorry, Steve.” Robin could see that she had struck a nerve with him. “I didn’t mean to find that document. I wish I hadn’t. I was just trying to be thorough.”
“When my dad comes home tonight, I’m going to ask him about this. I need to know if this whole adoption thing is real,” Steve said. “Because if it’s true, then who are my real parents? Who am I?”
“You’re Steve Harrington,” Robin said. “That doesn’t change.”
“Everything’s changed.” Steve stared down at the adoption certificate. “Can you come over tonight? I don’t want to face him alone. You’re my friend, and I trust you. I need you to be there for me tonight.”
“We’re friends?” Robin asked, crinkling her nose at him.
“Of course.” Steve nodded. “Please, Robin. I really want you to be there. I could really use the support.”
“Okay.”
That day after school, Steve drove Robin to his house. Denise was still at work, and his father hadn’t come home yet. So, they had the place to themselves. Steve brought Robin into his dad’s study, and showed her where Richard kept all his files locked away. He had a large wooden desk, with three large drawers on one side, full to the brim of paperwork. And he had a large filing cabinet stuffed full of paperwork – mostly for work.
“Alright, let’s dig in,” Steve said. “I want to go through his desk, and find any other paperwork about my alleged adoption. I need to know what’s going on.”
A few hours later, Steve’s mother came back from picking her husband up at the airport. Steve and Robin could hear his parents as they came in, setting down his luggage in the front hallway, calling out for their son.
“We’re in here!” Steve called out.
Denise and Richard followed his voice, and found the two teens sitting on the floor of Richard’s home office. The room was a shambles. Steve and Robin had pulled out everything from his desk, and had spread it out on the floor. They pored through it, looking for more evidence to prove that Steve was adopted. And Robin had gone through the large photo album Denise had been showing them all week. She looked for any photos of Denise pregnant with Steve, but there weren’t any photos of her with a baby belly, or in the hospital after giving birth. The earliest photo that Robin could find in the album, was of Denise holding Baby Steve in her arms, and he already looked a few weeks old by then. Either that, or she had given birth to a very fat baby.
Denise and Richard stared at the teens, and they both had shocked expressions on their faces. Steve wasn’t normally even allowed in the office, and he certainly wasn’t supposed to be going through all his father’s private paperwork like this.
“Steven, what the hell is going on here?” Richard shouted out, as he stared at the mess they’d made in his office. “What have I told you about going through my things?”
“Am I adopted, Dad?” Steve asked, as he stood up. He picked up the adoption certificate off the desk, and held it up for his parents to see. “Is this real? I need to know.”
Richard Harrington didn’t say anything. He had a stricken look on his face, as he stared at his son. He slowly glanced over at Denise, his eyes wide.
“Did you tell him?” Richard asked. “You did this?”
“No.” Denise shook her head. “Of course not.”
“Then how the hell would he know?” Richard asked.
“We found the adoption certificate tucked into the back of a folder, filled with Steve’s family history,” Robin said. “We’re doing a project together, for school. It’s about our family history.”
“Who are you?” Richard asked.
“Honey, that’s Robin,” Denise said. “Steve’s friend.”
“That’s right. I’m Robin Buckley.” She gave him a stern look. “Is Steve adopted?”
“Buckley?” A funny look flashed across Richard’s face. “Melissa’s daughter.”
“Yeah.”
Richard and Denise shared a look. Robin didn’t understand what the look meant, but they had very grave expressions. Denise stepped towards her son, reaching for him, but Steve took a step back from her.
“Please tell me you’re not dating my son,” Richard said. “God, this can’t be happening.”
“I’m not dating Steve,” Robin said. “I’m not.”
“Yeah, we’re not dating,” Steve said. “We’re just friends. I asked her to be here tonight, because I wanted to confront you guys about this whole adoption thing. I have a right to know.”
“Yes, Steve, you’re adopted.” Denise began to tear up. She wiped her eyes on her sleeve. “I never wanted you to find out. But seeing has how you already figured it out, we’ll come clean.”
“Who is my real mother and father?” Steve asked.
“Melissa Buckley.” Denise glanced over at Robin, then back at Steve. “And your father is Richard Harrington.”
“I-I don’t understand.” Steve frowned.
Robin didn’t understand, either. Her mother only had one child, and that was her. Melissa had always said that she didn’t want to have any other children. There was no way that her mother would have a child with Steve’s father. No way. That was just weird. Her mother should’ve told her that she had a sibling – especially since she had been going to school with him for years. None of this was right.
“I don’t believe you,” Steve said. “You’re lying.”
“Robin’s mother, Melissa, worked for us years ago. She was our housekeeper. She and Richard had an affair, Steve,” Denise told her son. “Your father and I, we were going through a rough patch. Our relationship was strained, and we had taken a break. I had gone to visit my sister for a few months, after I had a miscarriage. That was my fifth miscarriage, and I took it really hard. We had been trying for a baby for years, and it was a devastating loss. And when I came back, I found out that Melissa was pregnant with Richard’s baby.”
“You knocked up my mother,” Robin said. “And you stayed with him, Denise? Jesus.”
“I didn’t love Melissa, not like I loved my wife. I was just grieving, and turning to her because Denise had left me. Melissa was only twenty, and she said she didn’t want to keep our child. She didn’t feel ready to be a single parent. But she didn’t believe in abortion,” Richard said. “And so, Denise and I decided to adopt you as our own. We had always wanted a child, and we were prepared to give you a bright future.”
“I’m the housekeeper’s son?” Steve said. “But wait – if Melissa Buckley’s my mother – then I-I-“
“Then I’m your sister,” Robin said. “Half-sister.”
Steve turned to look at her, frowning slightly, as he processed what they were telling him. “I have a sibling?”
“Yeah, Steve,” Robin said. “You have a sibling.”
Steve gave his parents a hurt, betrayed look. “I can’t believe this.”
Robin would never have imagined in her whole life, that she would uncover a deep family secret during Mrs. Click’s geneaology project. And she’d never imagined that she would discover she had a sibling – and King Steve Harrington, no less. It all just felt surreal. Like a very strange fever dream. Her mother, and Richard Harrington? She knew that her parents had only met about a month before she was conceived, when they had gone to an outdoor music festival. It had been a whirlwind romance. They had both been young, and in love. And they still were. Robin wondered if her mother had ever revealed to her husband about her secret Harrington love child.
Steve and Robin continued to talk to his parents for a few more minutes, as they continued to explain the details about his adoption, and his birth. But eventually, Steve had heard enough. He asked Robin if they could go up to his room to get away. This was all too much.
“Well, I guess that we’ve got an interesting story to tell during our presentation,” Robin said, as she followed Steve upstairs to his bedroom. “Secret love child, affair with the housekeeper, the discovery of a new sibling. I bet that’ll top everyone else’s story.”
Steve turned to her, his eyes red rimmed from crying. “Hell, no. This stays between us. I’m not getting up in front of the class, and –“
“Relax, Steve,” Robin said. “It was a joke. We should talk about Otis’ mechanic shop. I think that would be a much better story.”
“Yeah.”