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Dustin’s mouth was frozen open in a scream. There was so much blood around them, Steve had fought off so many demogorgons. Tears streamed down his face, heart jackhammering in his throat as he wiped the blood off his hands.
Steve’s blood.
Steve’s blood from where he was standing protectively in front of him, trying to shield them both with just his nail bat.
The demogorgon swiped at Steve again, ripping through his stomach. The blood spattered up onto Dustin’s face, and he recoiled as he spat out the blood onto the floor.
Dustin choked on a sob, screaming hysterically as Steve fell to one knee, still trying to get back up, to protect Dustin. Steve rolled as the demogorgon charged past him, screaming in agony as fresh blood leaked from the cuts in his stomach. Dustin’s heart leapt to his throat, flinching against the cry as he desperately tried to stagger towards Steve. His leg had been mangled though, and Dustin knew he couldn’t do anything as the beast charged Steve again. He collapsed to all fours as he tried to crawl forward anyway.
Dustin held his breath desperately, jaw quivering as Steve looked back at him, eyes taut with pain. He gave a sort of sad smile, and Dustin’s heart stopped.
No. Please no-
He knew what that meant, he had seen that look before, on Eddie before he had died. Dustin’s breath came faster as he sobbed, vision clouding with tears.
The demogorgon swiped at Steve again, shredding Steve’s chest. But Steve had managed to get a final hit on it with his bat, killing the final one, protecting Dustin from being the next victim.
Dustin’s world froze as he numbly watched Steve’s body fall, hitting the ground with a dull thud. There was silence for a moment, then an animalistic scream tore out of Dustin’s throat as he pushed himself as fast as he could towards Steve.
Dustin crawled over to Steve, astounded to see him still breathing laboriously.
“D-Dustin-” Steve croaked, coughing up blood. Dustin shushed him, pulling him shakily into his lap. He sobbed, staring at the gashes through more and more tears. He couldn’t even try to put weight on them and stop the bleeding because there were so many wounds.
Fresh sobs bubbled out of Dustin’s chest as he met Steve’s gaze. His eyes were hazy with pain.
“D-Don’t t-talk,” Dustin hiccupped, frantically looking around for anyone to help.
“Y-you… You o-okay?” Steve groaned, lifting an arm heavily to try to reach Dustin’s face. He groaned and dropped his arm as white hot rage shot through Dustin.
“Are you kidding me?” he growled, voice picking up. “You- you just practically got torn to pieces, and you’re asking if I’m okay? Please, for once in your life, worry about yourself!” Hot tears streamed down Dustin’s face, and he hated him. He hated Steve at that moment, for getting himself killed. Deep down, Dustin knew there was no way he could find help in time, no coming back from this. How dare he leave him behind again, just like Eddie had-
But Steve was still looking up at him with those pleading brown eyes, desperate for an answer, and Dustin ducked his head, blinking back tears.
“Y-Yeah, Steve… I-I’m o- o- okay,” Dustin spoke, voice breaking as thick tears escaped from his eyes anyway. Steve had the audacity to look relieved at this, and closed his eyes as if hearing Dustin was alive was all the permission he needed to drift away.
Panic, raw, sharp panic shot through Dustin and he repeatedly tapped Steve’s face, eliciting a small groan from him. “N-no, stay with- stay with me,” Dustin choked out, wiping some of the blood around his chin away.
Steve blinked his eyes open again, eyes laden with exhaustion, but he held Dustin’s gaze. Dustin’s chest tightened as Steve smiled sadly, opening his mouth to say something. Dustin flinched at the blood staining his teeth red, and Dustin sobbed harder, clinging tightly to Steve as if he could ground him there, keep him alive.
“I-I…” Steve swallowed thickly, before coughing up more blood, practically choking on it. Dustin’s hands shook over him, panicked because he didn’t know what to do. Steve stopped choking and leaned his head back further, eyes crossing slightly as he forced himself to focus on Dustin. Dustin’s chin quivered as he looked into Steve’s eyes, desperately trying to take in every second Steve had left. “I… I’m s-sorry,” Steve finally managed to spit out, blood dribbling down the corner of his mouth.
“No, please-” Dustin begged, voice shaking. Steve’s hand, coated in his own blood, came up slowly and touched the side of Dustin’s face. Dustin broke at the contact, leaning desperately into the touch before Steve’s hand suddenly dropped. His eyes unfocused, taking on a glassy sheen.
“S-Steve?” Dustin asked, fear lancing through him so quickly he thought he might genuinely throw up. “No, no, please, please don’t do this, I can’t do this again, I can’t-” Dustin’s voice climbed higher and higher as he frantically shook Steve, breathing faster and faster. He held his breath for a moment before howling in grief, leaning down and pressing his face into the bloody mess of Steve’s chest.
Agony tore through Dustin, worse than any pain he had ever felt, worse than the pain from his mangled leg as he screamed, lifting his head to the sky as the sounds of grief escaped from his lungs. His throat soon went hoarse and his vision was cloudy with a lack of oxygen, but Dustin couldn’t stop, sobs of grief tearing themselves out of his throat. He collapsed forward, weak howls of grief shooting through him as he buried his head in Steve’s chest again. He could smell the metallic tang of blood as he lay there, wishing that Steve hadn’t died or that at the very least Dustin had died with him. And Dustin wept.
Dustin couldn’t do this again, he couldn’t lose Steve, he wouldn’t survive this. Dustin leaned back, picking Steve’s limp body up and holding him closer against Dustin’s chest. He tucked Steve’s head into his shoulder and rocked him gently, sobbing silently into Steve’s hair. Sobs wracked his frame as he gasped, unable to breathe through the tears and the snot pouring out of him faster than he could think. He choked on them, heaving desperate breaths as he cried hysterically.
I can’t lose you, Dustin thought dully, please, I’m sorry, I can’t take this- Dustin clutched Steve tightly against his chest breathing faster than ever. This isn’t fair, I can’t- I can’t breathe because- because you never will again-
Dustin crumpled inward, shaking violently as he pulled back from Steve’s hair. He couldn’t breathe, and the world was spinning, and he wished that he could just die already, because anything would be better than this-
Dustin screamed again, torturously. He wished he had never brought Steve into this mess, and it was all his fault. Dustin blew his nose into his sleeve, because he was so congested from his sobs that he was actually choking, the same way Steve was choking on his blood-
Dustin keened, a broken whine ripping through him. Why, why had he pushed Steve away this past year? He wanted Steve to leave him alone, to not care for him anymore because then he would never find himself in this exact situation where Steve sacrificed himself for him because Dustin was not worth this-
Dustin sobbed, heart shattering as he remembered every time he blew Steve off or attacked him with his words, trying to get him to see that Dustin wasn’t worth it, trying to prevent anything like Eddie’s death from ever happening again. Dustin whimpered, his chest feeling like it was being split in two.
Dustin was an idiot. He had tried to push Steve away, hoping that if Steve had ever died that it wouldn’t hurt as much, but it hurt, it hurt so much, and tears flowed faster down Dustin’s cheeks as he realized that it would have always hurt to watch Steve die, but he had pushed him away, afraid to let Steve in, afraid that if he did, he would die and Dustin couldn’t take another death like Eddie’s, he just couldn’t, and it didn’t matter at all because he was dead anyway-
Did Steve even know that Dustin loved him? The thought made Dustin’s insides freeze as dread lurched in his stomach. He had been so awful to Steve for the last year, and it wouldn’t surprise him if Steve thought he hated him-
Dustin’s breaths came out choppy as he struggled to breathe, heart aching as he realized he would never be able to tell him, never be able to tell him that he was his brother-
Dustin screamed again, but he had no energy left and his voice was so broken it came out more like a garbled coughing, and his heart twisted violently as he realized he couldn’t do anything more but hold him, and he was going to bring his body back because he wasn’t leaving his brother’s body there again, he just couldn’t do it, and he wept bitterly, tears leaking out of his eyes slowly.
Dustin’s head pounded, eyes scratchy and puffy as he exhaled shakily. His tears had slowed down because he simply had nothing left to give, but he sobbed again anyway, face dryer now.
He heard a chittering around him, and he warily looked up, seeing a demogorgon sniffing and walking towards him. Dustin held Steve closely as his stomach clenched with nausea, realizing that the demogorgon probably smelled Steve’s blood because there was so much-
The demogorgon snarled, opening its flower-like face and charged towards Dustin.
Dustin leaned over Steve’s body protectively. If you die, I die, he thought a little hysterically as he hunched over, feeling the sharp claws tear through him the same way they tore through Steve-
Dustin lurched up, legs tangled in something soft as he writhed on the ground. Something heavy and damp was pressed against his face and his head hurt badly now. Dustin gasped, unable to breathe clearly as he used his arms to desperately peel away whatever was blocking his face-
He inhaled, the cold air hitting his face, shocking him awake. It was dark, and Dustin panicked for a moment because he couldn’t see before his eyes adjusted. He blinked in confusion. He was staring up at glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling of his room. He sat up, bringing a hand to the back of his head, wincing in pain. He was on the floor. He was on the floor of his bedroom. He had fallen off of his bed in his sleep, hitting his head on the floor.
Dustin blinked, panic receding as he took in the gray sheets tangled around his legs that had caused such a panic. He looked around and saw his clock that read 2:42 am. He pressed his palms against his eyes, rubbing them softly and startled back when they came away wet, and he examined his sheet closer. The sheet was soaked where his face had been, which explains why it was so hard to breathe in his dream-
Steve
His dream.
Steve.
Dustin stood up so quickly he nearly tripped on his sheets. Raw panic flooded through him as he stumbled out of the room, collapsing near the top of the stairs. He was hyperventilating now, unable to breathe because he didn’t know if Steve was alive. Dustin logically knew it was just a dream, a nightmare, and Steve was probably fine but it had been so real-
He took a shaky breath, trying to calm himself as he forced himself to get up and stumble down the steps. He walked past the phone and radio and staggered out the door, not even bothering to put his shoes on. Hands shaking violently, he grabbed his bike and started pedaling hard, vision blurring with fear and panic. He couldn’t call him, couldn’t wait for Steve to pick up, if he did pick up. Dustin knew that he wouldn’t be able to breathe again until he saw Steve for himself, safe and healthy and alive-
Dustin pedaled faster than he had ever gone before, sweat dripping from his brow, but from exertion or fear he couldn’t say. His hands felt clammy as he gripped the handlebars tightly, still sobbing desperately.
What if something happened? What if this was a vision of the future? Do I even remember the last thing I said to him? Dustin’s thoughts bounced around his brain, tormenting him as he pedaled up the final street to Steve’s house. When Dustin saw his house he sobbed in relief, jumping off the bike and sprinting the final few steps up the sidewalk. His legs shook hard underneath him as he pounded on the door.
“Steve! Steve, open up! PLEASE!” Dustin sobbed, slamming his fists against the door repeatedly. Nobody responded, and Dustin ripped a chunk of his hair out in terror before sobbing harder. “PLEASE!” He screamed desperately. “Open the door, please-” his voice gave out, and he tried to take a deep breath but he couldn’t. Steve wasn’t answering, and what if it was too late? What if Steve was already bleeding out somewhere and Dustin didn’t know and he lost him for real this time-
The door opened. The door opened.
“Henderson, it is 3:00 am in the morning on a Tuesday, you better have a good reason for this,” Dustin looked up and his breath caught in his throat, because that was his voice and he was right there- “Dustin? Hey, Dustin, what’s wrong-” Steve was looking at him with so much concern and Dustin couldn’t stand there another second. He launched himself at Steve, colliding with him hard as Steve nearly toppled over with the force of it.
Dustin clung to him desperately, sobbing heavily into Steve’s chest. Steve instinctively brought his arms up around him and the feeling of Steve’s arms moving, alive, nearly sent him into another spiral.
“Hey, hey, what happened? Do I need to get my bat?” Steve carded his hand through Dustin’s hair as Dustin’s heart clenched, pained wheezes escaping him. “Okay, okay, I’ve got you,” Steve drew back for a second and Dustin’s heart stopped as he reached out blindly for him, but Steve had just scooped him up instead. If Dustin had been any more mentally present, he would have felt offended and embarrassed at the movement, but as it was he just wrapped his arms around Steve’s neck and sobbed harder as Steve held him closer.
Steve kicked the door close and he maneuvered them to his couch, gently setting Dustin down. Dustin refused to let go, latching onto Steve even tighter, hiccupping as he wept.
“Dustin, hey man, you’re really worrying me, what happened?” Dustin just shook his head, breathing faster and faster. “Hey, you need to breathe, you’re going to make yourself pass out,” Steve said so gently Dustin couldn’t handle it. He whined pathetically as he kept gasping for air that just wouldn’t come. Dustin felt Steve taking a few deep breaths from where he was pressed into his chest. “Just copy me, you can do it kid, just breathe.” Dustin took a few deep, shaky breaths, feeling exceptionally lightheaded.
“Good job, you’re doing great,” Steve whispered, murmuring encouragement as Dustin kept trying to breathe. Eventually, he was able to breathe again, and he took a deep breath and pulled back again, staring into Steve’s eyes. His breath hitched, because his eyes were so full of life, unlike the unseeing stare they had been not even an hour ago-
“It’s okay, you’re okay,” Steve was saying, his voice sounding like it was underwater. Dustin desperately clung to it though, not wanting to miss another word coming from Steve’s mouth. “Can you tell me what’s happening, did something happen?” Dustin closed his eyes, heart cracking in his chest as he leaned against Steve’s chest, taking in a few more deep breaths.
He hesitated, drawing back and looking up at Steve, jaw trembling. “I-I had a nightmare,” Dustin flinched as the words left his lips, raw and cracked. Steve’s eyebrows had knit together in confusion as tension released from his own shoulders.
Steve whistled, “must have been some nightmare,” Steve said, cupping Dustin’s cheek. It was so similar to his dream that Dustin sobbed again, and Steve’s face crumpled in sorrow. “I’m sorry kid, I know how much they suck.” Dustin nodded, exhaustion suddenly taking over. Steve hesitated. “...Was it about Eddie?” he asked softly.
Dustin inhaled sharply and burst into tears. He heard Steve cursing quietly and Dustin shook his head. Would Steve even consider that it might have been about him? Did Dustin push him so far away that Steve wouldn’t even think that he mattered to him? Dread shot through him like a bullet and he looked up at Steve.
“Promise me,” Dustin said, voice shaking, “Promise me that you’ll be safe, that-” Dustin’s voice broke, unable to continue, fresh tears pouring from his eyes.
Steve looked absolutely baffled, but he nodded. “Yeah, of course. I promise, I’ll always try to be safe.” A knot deep in Dustin’s chest loosened at the words, and he took a deep breath, steadying himself. “What is this about?” Steve prodded gently.
Dustin closed his eyes, then forced them back open when he saw Steve’s body flash through his mind again. “I, my dream, you-” Dustin took another deep breath. “You died, in my arms, protecting me, and I can’t do it again, I can’t lose you, please, Steve, please-” his voice cut off with a heavy sob.
“Okay, woah, hey, I’m okay,” Steve said quickly, pulling one of Dustin’s hands against his chest. Dustin sobbed in relief as he felt the steady beating of Steve’s heart pulsing under his hand. “I’m okay, I promise. It wasn’t real.” Steve pulled Dustin into another hug, cradling his head against his chest. Dustin melted at the touch, finally relaxing as he pressed an ear against Steve’s heart.
They stayed like that for a while before Dustin’s tears and shaking had finally stopped. Dustin finally pulled back, calm enough to feel embarrassed. His shoulders hunched down. “Sorry, I should have waited until the morning-”
“No,” Steve interrupted. Dustin swallowed, feeling guilty, but Steve gently lifted his chin up until he met his gaze. “I’ve always said you can come to me anytime, and I meant it.” Steve said firmly, resolutely.
Dustin’s eyes pricked with tears, because he knew that. He knew he was safe with Steve, and he crumbled under Steve’s kind and patient expression, looking down at his hands in his lap. Steve’s hand, solid and warm, rested on Dustin’s shoulder, grounding him as he inhaled slowly.
The words tumbled from his lips faster than he could think. “I-I was in the upside down again, and my leg was hurt and you were fighting off a bunch of demogorgons with your bat,” Dustin said.
“Classic,” Steve interrupted softly, a hint of a smile dancing on his lips.
Dustin laughed slightly, sniffling, taken off guard. “Yeah… yeah, sure. Anyway, you had almost killed them all when you were hit, and then you just… looked at me with such a… regretful look in your eyes-” Dustin met Steve’s gaze again, and it sent a wave of pain and nausea through him because it was the same soft expression. Dustin swallowed back the bile, stomach churning.
“You just- you just stood there and managed to kill it in one hit before it got you, and you did it so that it wouldn’t get me,” Dustin’s voice broke as he watched Steve’s eyes soften, and he continued, desperate for him to understand. “You just- you sacrificed yourself and then you were bleeding out and there was so much blood and you had the nerve to ask me if I was okay and then your eyes went blank-” Dustin’s ramblings, which had picked up speed again, were suddenly cut off with a sob as he pressed his palms against his eyes, trying to banish the image of Steve’s body again.
“Oh, Dustin, I’m so sorry,” Steve whispered, his gentle voice worming its way into Dustin’s head. Dustin steadied his breathing, looking back up at Steve’s eyes that were filled with his own tears now.
Dustin’s heart broke at the sight, and he kept explaining, trying to make Steve understand. “I just- after this last year, I- I’ve been pushing you away because it’s my fault you got involved with this in the first place and I didn’t want you to get hurt. But you’re always the one jumping into the line of danger to protect everyone else and it’s like you don’t care about your life at all, and I just can’t handle losing you, I can’t, but I thought if I pushed you away it wouldn’t- you wouldn’t do something stupid to protect me or it wouldn’t hurt so much if something did happen to you but it still killed me but I couldn’t even remember the last thing I said to you and I had to make sure you were okay and I couldn’t- I couldn’t let you- let you die without you knowing how much I love you-”
“Hey, hey, no, come here-” Steve broke in, sounding absolutely devastated. Dustin faintly registered his arms wrapping around him and pulling him onto his lap. Dustin threw his arms around Steve, clinging desperately to the back of his shirt and sobbed into his shoulder. Dustin was trembling again and Steve was rocking him slowly, a sort of mirror to Dustin’s earlier dream, but Dustin clung to the fact that Steve was alive and humming softly into his ear.
“That’s… that’s a lot to process, kid.” Steve eventually said quietly, sounding gutted.
“I’m sorry-”
“No, no, it’s not a bad thing,” Steve huffed, resting his head on top of Dustin’s. Dustin’s racing heart calmed slowly as he felt the vibrations of Steve’s voice rumbling through his chest. Steve was silent for a few moments before pressing a kiss to the top of Dustin’s head. “You know I love you, right?” he asked. Dustin flushed at that, heart swelling, but nodded against Steve’s shoulder. “You know I know you love me too, right?” He asked.
Dustin hesitated. “I- I’ve been a jerk though.”
Steve laughed. “Yeah, a right pain in the ass the last few months, but I know you still love me.”
A huge weight Dustin hadn’t even realized he had been carrying around lifted off his shoulders. “Good.”
It was Steve’s turn to hesitate now. “Dustin… look, I love you, so, so much. I really don’t blame you for getting me involved with all this crap. I definitely blame Jonathan though, you can tell him I said that the next time you see him.” Dustin snorted, not expecting that. Steve continued, more hesitant now. “People dying… it’s somewhat inevitable, I mean, we all die.” Dustin tensed, fear beginning to tightly curl in his stomach. “But people’s deaths are not your fault. People’s choices aren’t your fault.”
Dustin bit his lip, hard, trying not to say anything he would regret. “I… I know everything has been difficult, so difficult, after Eddie’s death, but he chose to save you.” Dustin inhaled sharply, eyes stinging and the fear started inching its way up into his chest. “That wasn’t your fault, do you hear me? And if something were to happen to me,” The fear stuttered in Dustin’s throat now, “and I really mean if, then it wouldn’t be your fault either.”
The fear melted and rage took its place, flooding through Dustin quickly at the words. He shoved Steve back, snarling at him. “Maybe you shouldn’t get yourself into situations where you might get killed,” he spat out.
Steve groaned, rubbing his temples tiredly. “Dustin-”
“No!” Dustin shot up off the couch, pacing back and forth. He felt Steve’s eyes trained on him warily. “It’s like you didn’t even hear me. You can’t die. You can’t keep putting yourself between us and the monsters, volunteering to get yourself killed!” Dustin turned and faced Steve, watching as he leaned into the back of the couch with a resigned sigh. Dustin started counting on his fingers. “Let’s recap, shall we? Walking out into the junkyard to use yourself as bait. Jumping between the demodog and Max inside the bus. Throwing yourself between Lucas and Billy and getting yourself beat up.”
“Dustin,” Steve said tiredly, pinching the bridge of his nose, “can we not-”
Dustin glowered at him, trying to hide the way his fingers trembled as he listed out the stupid ways Steve had tried to get himself killed in the last few years. “No, Steve, you’re going to listen to this. Covering me in the tunnels and making sure everyone else got out before you. Staying back with the Russians, slamming the car into Billy’s at the mall-”
That barely counts-” Steve protested.
Dustin glared at him and Steve crossed his arms, looking irritated as Dustin continued. “You jumped into a lake to see if there was a gate in there, then was the last one out of the Upside Down even though you were injured-”
“So what?” Steve threw his hands up in the air as he stood.
“Excuse me?” Dustin hissed, completely affronted.
“It’s better me than you or anybody else!” Steve held his hand out, gesturing at Dustin as though it was obvious. The words ground against Dustin’s ear drums as he opened his mouth to retort, but Steve’s next words caused him to pause, ice freezing in his veins. “I can take it, it’s my job. I care about all of you. You’re just kids, and if I have to take the hits, I will. I will throw myself in front of you guys every single time if it means that you’re safe, okay? I can’t stand anyone dying again, and I wish I had volunteered to be on distraction because if I had, maybe Eddie would still be here, okay?” Steve finished loudly. His hands dropped, and he sat back on the floor, leaning against the front of the couch.
Static filled Dustin’s ears as he looked down at Steve in shock, words rattling around in his skull. The cold fear that had been spreading through him earlier shot through him all at once with a vengeance. He stared at Steve, mouth open as he took in Steve’s face, bags heavy under his eyes.
“It should have been me, man. I’m sorry,” Steve said, voice laden with exhaustion. Steve shut his eyes and pressed his head against the seat of the couch.
The words thudded dully in Dustin’s brain, but he jolted as though a switch had been flipped. Exasperation mixed with panic as he trembled. Steve… Steve really thought that he would have preferred Steve to die that day. He was apologizing for not dying instead. Anger flooded through him again.
“Screw you,” Dustin spat out, clenching his shirt in his fist. Steve opened one eye and looked at him in confusion. The sight made Dustin even angrier. “Screw you,” he repeated forcefully, “if I can’t blame myself, neither can you. How dare you imply things would have been better if you had died. How dare you think of yourself as not as important as the rest of us!” Dustin said, voice shaking in rage.
Steve knit his eyebrows together. “You all have so much potential. I-I’m not even going to go to college. My parents haven’t been home regularly for years because they’ve all but given up on me. Nancy apparently never loved me, and I just-” Steve cut himself off with a huff, shrugging as he ran his hand through his hair. “It’s better me than you.” He finished lamely.
Dustin stared at Steve, breath hitching in his chest. Tears brimmed in his eyes. “No, you’re wrong. You are the kindest, most loving person I have ever met. Who cares if your grades aren’t the best? They’re a shit marker for intelligence anyway.”
Steve scoffed reflexively. “Come on kid, I’m not-”
“WHAT PART OF I LOVE YOU AND CAN’T LOSE YOU DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND?!” Dustin shouted, stamping his foot in anger. Steve jumped, startled at the sudden outburst. Dustin’s face crumpled and he walked over to Steve, collapsing next to him. He fell into Steve’s open arms and wept, tears staining Steve’s shirt.
“I-I didn’t… I’m sorry,” Steve whispered, holding him tightly.
“Please, please put yourself first sometimes,” Dustin begged, heart clenching as he thought about all the times Steve had almost died.
“I… I don’t know how to,” Steve admitted, an apologetic and uncertain tone reaching Dustin’s ears. Dustin tightened his grip around Steve as he tried not to vomit at the words, at the implications. “I will always do everything in my power to protect you and your friends. That’s just how it is.”
Dustin hated the words, hated how self-sacrificial Steve was, but also recognized that protecting people was a part of Steve’s nature. It was something Dustin loved about him, something that made Steve, well, Steve. “I know,” Dustin eventually whispered. “Just please, try to value your life the same way you value everyone else’s. Please.” He tilted his head up and met Steve’s pained expression. “For me?”
Steve bit his lip before nodding slowly and sighing. “I’ll try. I promise, I’ll try.”
It was the best Dustin was going to get for now, so he nodded and rested his head against Steve, finally relaxing as Steve ran his hand up and down Dustin’s back. They stayed like that for a while, and Dustin yawned, nestling himself further into Steve’s hold as he began to drift off to sleep.
The silence was broken by Steve’s chuckle. “Tired?” he asked teasingly.
“It’s 4 in the morning, Steve, why did you invite me over so early?” Dustin grumbled, keeping his eyes shut.
Steve laughed at that. “Okay, we’ll talk about you biking that early in the morning some other time, but let’s go to bed.” That was all the warning Dustin had before he was bundled up in Steve’s arms as Steve walked up to his room. Dustin just burrowed himself deeper into Steve’s arms, refusing to feel embarrassed.
Steve dropped Dustin into his bed and Dustin scowled at the sudden weightlessness, opening his eyes as Steve circled around to the other side of his bed.
“Asshole,” Dustin muttered. Steve laughed at his antics and Dustin scowled at him again.
“So grumpy,” Steve teased, “I invite you over, give you somewhere comfy to sleep, and this is the thanks I get?” He pulled back the covers and climbed into the bed, opening his arms up.
Dustin hesitated for a moment before clinging tightly to Steve, relishing in the safety of Steve’s hold as Steve wrapped his arms around Dustin. He inhaled, taking in the faint scent of his Farrah Fawcett hairspray.
Dustin opened his mouth to tease Steve about it, but something much softer came out instead. “Night, Steve.”
“Night Dustin,” Steve said softly. Dustin drifted off to sleep, safe in his brother’s hold, and they didn’t get up until noon the next day. It was the best sleep they had both had for a long time. He totally missed school, but it was totally worth it.