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Jonathan flipped over the small mixtape in his hand as he patiently waited for Steve to come out of the back room. No idea what he was doing back there that was taking him so long, Jonathan didn’t question about it.
He could hear him back there, only making out a few words of the conversation. It sounded like Dustin was back there, which wasn’t surprising with him being friends with Steve. Besides those two, he could also hear Robin, he had met her once or twice over the increasingly more frequent visits he had been taking over to the Scoops Ahoy. Jonathan wasn’t going to interrupt, idly messing with the tape in his hands.
He included songs Steve knew and some that he might hopefully like. He knew Steve liked Old Time Rock and Roll by Bob Seger and Walk This Way by Aerosmith, and other songs that Jonathan didn’t name in his head because he had forgotten.
The song he was most sure Steve would like was Rebel Yell by Billy Idol, despite him not knowing who Billy Idol was before hanging out around Jonathan. I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll by Joan Jett & the Blackhearts, Jessie’s Girl by Rick Springfield, and My Sharona by The Knack was also on the tape. He thought Steve might’ve already known the last song, but wasn’t completely sure. He still added it anyway.
The mixtape he had made, which took him a surprisingly long amount of time—was around seventeen or eighteen songs, though it could’ve been more and he definitely knew it was no less.
-
“It sounded familiar.”
“What?”
“The music, the music right there at the end.” Steve said, wiping his lip and stuffing his face with more of the banana he held. “Why are you listening to the music? Listen to the Russian! We’re translating Russian-” Dustin yelled but was cut off by Steve.”
“I’m trying to listen to the Russian but there’s music playing-”
Their argument was abruptly interrupted by Robin, who barged into the back and spoke, “All right, babysitting time is over. You need to get in there.” She spoke, Steve moved to make room and stood beside the table with Dustin.
Robin looked at her whiteboard, viewing the Russian alphabet the two guys had replaced her tally marks with. “Hey, my board!” She said, angrily turning around to face them. “That was important data, shitbirds.”
Dustin chimed in, “I guarantee you, what we’re doing is way more important than your data.” She nodded her head once mockingly, walking over and standing across the table from him. “Yeah? And how do you know these Russians are up to no good anyways?”
Dustin looked up at Steve accusingly. “How does she know about the Russians?” He barely whispered as if she couldn’t hear him if he did so.
“I don't know.” Steve replied with banana still in his mouth
“You told her about-”
“It wasn’t me.”
“Hello? I can hear you.” She said, giving them a look that called them both idiotic without saying it. Mostly because they were acting like it right now. “Actually, I can hear everything, you are both extremely loud.” She said and paused to take a breath.
“You think you have evil Russians plotting against our country on tape, and you’re trying to translate, but haven’t figured out a single word because you didn’t realize Russians use an entirely different alphabet than we do.” Robin looked from Dustin to Steve. “Sound about right?”
She smiled and suddenly reached for the recorder, though Steve was quicker and grabbed it before she could. Surprisingly he did not drop his banana or lose any of it in the process. “Wooaah! What do you think you’re doing?” He asked.
“I wanna hear it.”
Spoken simultaneously by Dustin and Steve was, “Why?”
“Cause I can help.” Robin spoke, for a moment she talked with the boys about her languages that she was educated on and spoke alongside her band experience, it was credible and would help them, Steve was still unsure though and wouldn’t hand over the recorder. “Ehh. Uh.” Steve said skeptically, not meeting her eyes.
Robin sat across from Steve now, “Come on it’s your turn to sling ice cream, my turn to translate. I don’t even want credit I’m just bored.” She reasoned.
Behind her, the bell at the counter rung repeatedly. Steve hesitated noticeably at Robin handing over the ice cream scooper to him. He eventually just sighed and gave in, swapping the recorder for the scooper with her. After that, he walked out.
-
It wasn’t Jonathan who rung the bell, another customer who Steve served casually and went on about his day. He stood there in his stereotypical sailor outfit just looking around and waiting until he spotted a familiar face in the nearly empty ice cream shop.
Jonathan was jerked out of his thoughts suddenly when he heard “Byers?” and he looked up from his hands.
His resting face always looked slightly angered, and Steve could never tell if he was or wasn’t; however, he did know that when that pink tint crossed Jonathan’s cheeks and dusted over his nose, that he was not angry with him or at anything.
Which is what happened when he went up to the counter to greet Steve.
“What’s that?”
“It’s uh, for you.” He said, reaching across to give it to Steve, who took it and read the label which lazily had written on it ‘Steve’s Mixtape’. “Like the creative name.” Steve said said sarcastically. Jonathan didn’t really care about the name’s and didn’t usually name mixtapes he made if they were just for someone such as Will, but he wanted people to visibly see that this was Steve’s. It wasn’t just for anyone to listen to.
Jonathan’s face softened and he smiled. “Thanks.”
He was untensed, in contrast to how he usually was. “Keep looking at me like that and you’ll look almost approachable.” Steve bantered, his voice was quieter than usual and mostly because he didn’t want Robin or Dustin to hear their conversation. Dustin still thought they were enemies and he wanted to keep it that way, he didn’t trust anyone enough yet to tell them about him and Byers relationship.
“You want any?” Steve asked, holding up his scooper with a chunk of vanilla ice cream in it.
“Yeah, how much?”
“Don’t worry about that.”
Steve put three large scoops of the basic vanilla into a waffle cone, “I’ll take this as payment.” he remarked, holding up his newly received mixtape. Jonathan didn’t mind playing along with this, “Will it pay for some sprinkles?” he asked with that same happy grin from earlier.
“Sure.” Steve playfully said, his tone was as if it was common knowledge he was talking about.
He added sprinkles onto the ice cream, some of them falling on the floor carelessly. After adding what he felt like was more than enough, he topped it off with a cherry. Which he knew was a waste of time because Jonathan was just gonna pluck it off and throw it away in the nearest trash can. Steve just enjoyed making the ice cream prettier, and Jon never complained about it.
Since the Scoops Ahoy was nearly empty, other than a couple people who they did not know and weren’t paying attention to them, Jonathan leaned over the counter, grabbing the neckerchief Steve was wearing for only a moment to tug him closer. He couldn’t stop himself from smiling after making that move.
“Woah.” Steve said as if they hadn’t kissed before; however, It was rare it public for them to do so. “Shut up.” Jonathan snickered, glancing away and then back again.
Ever so quickly Jonathan pressed his lips to Steve’s cheek softly, and he did the exact same thing back—except that he had nothing to pull him closer by so his hands ended up staying rested on the counter.
Jonathan was finally given his ice cream, which he thanked the handsome man behind the counter for. Barely noticing when a younger customer appeared behind him, looking impatiently at his back. She was practically staring through it.
He figured he should leave before she got the courage to say something to him for holding up the line.
“I’ll see you.” He said
“Looking forward to it.” Steve replied.
His eyes trailed Jonathan as he walked out of the ice cream shop. Obviously not paying no mind to the customer right in front of him, not until he zoned back in at the sound of Erica’s voice that is. “You gonna stand there with your thumb in your ass or are you gonna give me some ice cream, like you’re supposed to do?”
“Yeah, alright.” Steve spoke, “What do you want?” He tried not to sound rude.
-
After unwillingly serving Erica, he stood at the counter, waiting for someone else to walk in before he turned around to check on what the two others in the back were up to. If they had figured out anything at all. Steve put his scooper down and before he could slightly turn his body,
“No way.” Robin’s voice came from behind him.
“Please, don’t tell me you saw that.” Steve begged, even if he already knew the answer. Dustin was behind her, “Wait, you’re dating my best friend’s brother?” He spoke, he seemed more surprised by the fact it was Jonathan and much less by that it was a guy.
Steve leaned against the counter behind him, “None of your business.” He said, glancing away. “Uh, yeah it is.” Before Steve could snap back a replied Robin had began to talk, “Is that why you’re bad at taking to girls? Is it on purpose?” She asked.
“Do you guys ever shut up?”
Robin and Dustin glanced at one another and Dustin shrugged, “I thought you and Jonathan like— hated each other?” he asked. “Stop talking, Dustin.” Steve dragged out each word slightly. There was a pause between the three and almost an awkward silence if Robin didn’t speak up, “Is that why you give him free ice cream?”
“You know about that?”
“Well, duh. I work in the same place as you less than three feet away and it’s not the first time.” Robin wasn’t gonna tell him to stop giving his own boyfriend free ice cream, she was just always curious as to why when Jonathan came in, he left without paying a dime.
“I was thinking you wouldn’t date someone unless they were all high school reputation. Pretty sure Jonathan is everything besides that.” Dustin said, Jonathan was probably the last person he expected Steve to get with, he didn’t even know they were friends, much less together. He might’ve believed it if he was told he hallucinated the entire thing.
Steve shrugged, “We used to hate each other, we got over it and got together that’s all you need to know.” He said. “Aw, Stevie doesn’t want just talking about his boyfriend.” Robin joked, Dustin laughed along with her.
“Shut up, did you translate anything or did you waste all the time spying on me?”
“Well, you can’t say anything about us when you’re spying on Russians, and yes, we did. A sentence.” Robin said. “Oh, seriously?” Steve replied, she replayed the first part of the recording in response and stopped it suddenly. Translating.
“The week is long.” Robin imitated a Russian accent.
“Well, that’s thrilling.” Steve said sarcastically.