Chapter Text
Nancy Wheeler had come back to Hawkins. The town wasn’t the same small place she had left years ago. It was growing now — slowly, but enough to feel different. New stores, new faces, new opportunities. And somehow, right in the middle of it all, the radio station still stood as one of the town’s beating hearts.
When the opportunity came to manage the newly revived local station, Nancy didn’t hesitate.
It was the kind of challenge she had always been drawn to — organization, responsibility, building something meaningful. But what made it even more exciting was that she wouldn’t have to do it alone. The new owners wanted fresh energy, a new vision… and they trusted her to build the team.
And Nancy knew exactly who she wanted.
Who better to start something new with than the people who had been part of her life for so long?
Jonathan Byers.
Steve Harrington.
Robin Buckley.
One by one, she called them. And one by one, they said yes.
Just like that, they found themselves stepping into a new chapter — running a small radio station together in the town they had all grown up in. Old high school rivalries, teenage romances, complicated friendships… all of it was supposed to be in the past now.
They weren’t kids anymore.
They were adults with jobs, responsibilities, and a shared goal.
At least… that was the plan.
‧₊˚♪ 𝄞₊˚⊹
“Good morning, Hawkins!” the bright, upbeat voice rang out across the town’s radios. “It’s your daily companion, Rockin’ Robin!”
Steve arched a brow and tapped a button on the soundboard. A wildly over-the-top applause track filled the studio. Robin pointed at him. “Thank you, thank you. I know you’re all on your feet in your kitchens right now.”
She adjusted her headphones. “And today is a very special day, because we’ve officially been on air at Squawking Radio for one inteirely month! One month of bringing you the best music to soundtrack your coffee, your workday, your dramatic small-town life…” Steve hit a crisp rimshot.
Robin lifted her hand in mock grandeur. “These tracks, of course, are carefully curated by our very own music mastermind, Jonathan Byers.” Jonathan, seated farther back with a stack of vinyl records arranged in near-obsessive order, didn’t look up, but the faintest hint of a smile tugged at his mouth.
“And we also have to thank my dear friend Steve Harrington, who joins me every single day to deliver the most questionable sound effects in the entire state of Indiana.” Steve immediately blasted a honk in protest. “And obviously, none of this would run without the incredible Nancy Wheeler, who keeps everything organized and makes sure we don’t get sued or go bankrupt.”
Across the room, Nancy glanced up from an open folder, shaking her head, though she was smiling. Robin took a deep, excited breath. “So, Hawkins, to celebrate two weeks of pure sonic excellence, we’re kicking things off with a special pick from Jonathan. Crank it up, Harrington.”
Steve pushed the slider. “Radio Ga Ga” by Queen started to play for five seconds;Then came static. Robin blinked. Steve froze.Jonathan looked up.Nancy was already standing.The static roared back, louder this time, then cut out again. Robin leaned toward the microphone, still smiling as if everything were perfectly fine. “And it seems our technology has decided to celebrate with a tiny existential crisis.”
Steve was already frantically tugging at cables. “It’s fine. Totally under control,” he muttered. It wasn’t.
“Why isn’t it working?” Robin whispered, pulling off her headphones.
“I don’t know! It worked yesterday!”
Jonathan stood. “I told you that cable was acting weird.”
Steve turned to him. “And I told you that you didn’t need to mess with it last night.”
“I was organizing.”
“Guys,” Nancy cut in firmly. “We’re still on the air.”
Silence. Robin leaned back toward the microphone, forcing brightness into her voice. “While we sort out a small… technical adjustment, please enjoy some contemplative silence.”
Steve was already heading for the phone. “I’m calling Dustin.”
Jonathan closed his eyes. “Of course you are.”
Steve ignored him and dialed. “Hey, Dustin. Morning.”
On the other end, an eager, impatient voice answered, “Harrington, if this is about the radio, just read the manual.”
“The sound isn’t working.”
“Did you read the manual?”
“Dustin.”
“It’s not written in Greek.”
The line went dead. Steve stared at the phone. and raised an eyebrow. “Did you hear that tone?”
Robin shrugged.
Nancy was already heading toward the equipment room. “Let’s go downstairs and fix this. Before the ten o’clock sponsor finds out we’ve turned into a silent radio station.”
Robin took a deep breath,one month on air and it already felt like a lifetime. The four of them spread through the station like they were on a particularly irritating treasure hunt. Drawers opening. Papers flying. Boxes being dragged out. Robin slammed a drawer shut. “I swear it’s not here. It’s not here. There’s no way a manual just evaporates.”
Jonathan and Steve looked up at the same time, then went back to searching. “Maybe it’s where manuals are supposed to be,” Steve muttered.
“And where exactly would that be?” Jonathan shot back.
“In a logical place.”
“Right.”
Before the argument could escalate, Nancy appeared in the doorway of the file room. Wearing a victorious smile. Holding the manual. “Here.” The three of them look immediately.
“You’re kidding,” Robin said.
Nancy lifted the booklet. “Maintenance file, literally labeled ‘Tower Manual.’”
The four of them gathered around the table. Nancy opened the manual and began flipping through it with surgical precision. “Here,” she said, pointing. “If there is a complete transmission failure, check the main tower connection and restore the…”
“Restore the what?” Steve leaned in to read.
"The transmission system," Jonathan finished.
Steve blinked. “Okay. Great. And where exactly is that?”
Robin was already reading over their shoulders. “In the tower.”
Slowly, they all turned toward the door. Outside, the red tower rose against the morning sky, tall, imposing, irritatingly tall.
Robin crossed her arms.
“Right. So someone’s going to have to climb.”
Collective silence.
Steve stepped forward with perhaps slightly exaggerated confidence.
“I think this is clearly a job for Steve Harrington.”
Jonathan rolled his eyes. “Of course it is.”
Steve ignored him. “Stay here. I’ve got this.” He headed toward the tower.
Robin called after him, “Turn off the power first! You don’t want to become human barbecue!”
Steve lifted a hand without looking back. “I know! I’m not an idiot!”
“Debatable,” Jonathan muttered.
Steve ducked into the small shed beside the tower to shut off the power.
Nancy sighed. “Can’t they just… talk like adults?”
Robin tilted her head. “Where’s the fun in that?”
When Steve came back out, satisfied that he’d done everything correctly, he froze. Jonathan was already climbing the metal ladder of the tower. “Relax, Harrington,” he called down from above. “I’ve got it.”
Steve stood there for half a second. “You’ve got to be—” And then he bolted toward the other side of the structure. “Oh, no. Absolutely not!”
Nancy and Robin exchanged a perfectly synchronized look. There they were. Competing. Climbing faster than necessary. As if the stability of the radio station depended on who reached the top first.
“Boys,” Nancy muttered.
“Pathetic,” Robin added.
They reached the base of the tower almost at the same time. Their hands landed on the metal structure, almost touching; they both noticed and pulled away at the same time. When they finally stood upright on the narrow platform, they looked around and froze — all of Hawkins looked tiny from up there. The wind hit harder, and the world felt far away.
“Whoa…” Steve said. “Yeah,” Jonathan breathed. For a second, it wasn’t about competition. It was just the height. Jonathan moved first, leaning down to search for the loose cable among the wires. “Found it.” He fitted the connection carefully and tightened it firmly.
Then Steve gave the metal unit a small tap. The green light flickered, then turned on. He lifted his chin, satisfied. “Works every time. A little tap never fails.” They exchanged a quick look — small, too brief — and then, as if remembering they were supposed to be competing, they both rushed to the edge of the platform.
“I fixed it!” Steve shouted.
“I fixed it!” Jonathan shouted over him.
Down below… nothing. They frowned. No reaction. No waving. No Nancy with crossed arms. No Robin teasing them. “They—” Steve started.
Jonathan leaned a little farther over the edge, squinting. The station door was closed. “They already went back inside.”
Silence settled between them as the wind moved through the space again and the adrenaline began to fade. Just the two of them. They sat back down on the narrow base, this time with no rush, no rivalry. Their breathing was still heavy but slowly evening out, side by side, shoulders nearly aligned, legs almost brushing. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable — it was… strange. The wind lifted a few strands of Jonathan’s hair, and Steve noticed, looking away too quickly. They stayed there until their heartbeats slowed, until their breathing steadied, until the energy of competition shifted into something else.
‧₊˚♪ 𝄞₊˚⊹
While Steve and Jonathan competed like two seventeen-year-olds trapped in adult bodies, Nancy and Robin had already given up watching. Nancy went straight to the booth. She turned the knob precisely. The music came back on. Nancy smiled. "It's back on."
“What?” Robin appeared in the doorway.
“Go.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m going!” Robin said, rushing toward the booth and tripping over her own feet.
Nancy laughed. “Careful!”
Robin lifted a hand without looking back. She slipped into the booth seconds before the silence on air turned awkward. She put on her headphones, took a deep breath, and switched on the microphone. “I’m back, Hawkins! Hope you survived those dramatic minutes without me. We had a few small technical…” She shot a sideways glance as Steve walked in, adjusting knobs on the soundboard as if nothing had happened. “…annoying issues,” she finished.
Steve pointed subtly at himself, offended. Robin smiled into the mic. “But Rockin’ Robin is officially back, and I promise I won’t abandon you again. At least not today.”
Nancy stepped in behind her, arms crossed, satisfied. Jonathan came in a few seconds later, quieter than usual, his hair slightly windswept. Robin raised an eyebrow. “Special thanks to our tower heroes, who risked their lives—and probably their pride—up there.”
Steve hit an over-the-top applause effect. Jonathan rolled his eyes, but there was the faintest smile at the corner of his mouth.
“And now,” Robin continued, “back to the music.”
She gestured to Steve.
The music started, perfect this time — Freddie Mercury’s voice singing “Radio Ga Ga.” For a few seconds, the studio fell quiet. Jonathan moved to the table to line up the next record. Steve stayed where he was, watching. Jonathan felt it and looked back. Steve looked away and pretended to be extremely busy adjusting a knob that was already perfectly set.