Steve Harrington sighed and hit the steering wheel in frustration.
Bullshit.
The scene kept running through his head. Nancy, drunk, telling him that he was bullshit. That loving him was bullshit. That their relationship had been bullshit.
Bullshit.
Drunk people told the truth. That much he had learned over the years watching and listening to his parents' drunk arguing.
Running his hand through his hair, he looked at the front door of the dark, empty house. Of course, his parents were out of town on a business trip yet again, unexpectedly leaving him to spend the night alone. He had been planning on taking Nancy to his house after the party. Maybe watch a movie together, cuddle, kiss, the works. And maybe he could've even convinced her to spend the night and skip first period with him tomorrow.
He really did care for Nancy. Hell, he had even asked Jonathan to make sure she got home safely as he figured she wouldn't want him around right now. And it wasn't like he didn't give a shit about the whole crazy-ass situation they had found themselves in last year either, but he was still trying to comprehend everything and regain some sense of normalcy. It was just supposed to be a stupid Halloween party, for fuck's sake.
Sighing again, Steve opened the car door and stepped out on the concrete driveway. Walking towards the front door he couldn't help but think about how uninviting his destination actually looked. The only sources of light being the small bulbs above the big front door. He whipped out his house keys and unlocked the door. Stepping inside he dropped them with a clang in the bowl in the hallway. It sounded far too loud.
Not even bothering to take off his jacket he set course towards the kitchen. As he passed the living room he shook his head. He had really done his best to prepare for a nice night; candles, fuzzy blankets, a selection of movies to pick from. Alas, it had all been for nothing.
Steve grabbed a beer from the otherwise empty fridge. Typical, his parents rarely left any sustenance for him when they'd go away. Another sigh. He popped open the can and took a swig, feeling the cold liquid fill up his mouth before he swallowed. Taking another sip, he made his way over to the couch and plopped down, carelessly kicking off his shoes.
He sat leaning back in the dark for a while, finishing his drink, then closed his eyes. All he could see was Nancy's face, her expression, her eyes as she told him he was bullshit. His eyes shot open. He couldn't do this. He couldn't be alone right now. Leaning forward he put his head in his hands racking his brain.
He couldn't think of anyone he could call. Obviously, Nancy would've been his first choice. What he wouldn't give to have her sitting next to him right now, snuggled up under the same blanket. Tommy was also out of the question. Lately, he had realized more and more what a shallow jerk that boy was. And what a shallow jerk he had been for years. Being with Nancy had made him realize that and he was really trying hard to change his ways. For a split second he even considered calling Jonathan, even if it was just to check if Nancy got home safely, but he was too afraid to be even more disappointed. Even more heartbroken.
"Dammit," he muttered under his breath, getting up to grab another beer from the fridge. As he closed the fridge door he reached for the phone hanging on the wall next to it. Another name had suddenly entered his mind, but he couldn't possibly. They hadn't really spoken since starting high school. Sure, they still acknowledged each other in passing, but things just weren't as they used to be between them anymore.
He popped open the tab and downed the can, before reaching and picking up the horn. He held it to his ear and listened to the dial tone for a moment. Then he started dialing. He still remembered the number by heart.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Three rings and he hung up, putting his forehead against the cold exterior of the phone. He couldn't help but wonder why this name had popped into his head when he found himself in this situation. Yeah, lately he had thought about ringing and meeting up every now and then, for old times' sake, but he had always been able to stop himself before picking up the horn.
Ring.
Ring.
Ring.
Julie had just hit the pause button on the remote control when the phone stopped ringing. She glanced in the direction of the phone, her finger hovering over the play button to resume The Rocky Horror Picture Show, one of her favorite Halloween movies. She'd been out trick-or-treating with her younger brother, before dropping him off with her parents who were visiting some friends on the other side of town. Not really feeling like hanging out with them or going to Tina's party today she had decided to go home, watch a movie, and then head to bed.
She absentmindedly hit the play button, barely registering what was happening on the screen. Anyone else would've just shrugged the incident off as a wrong number, but she wasn't so sure about that. The phone had rung three times before the call was disconnected. Three times. That had been their silly secret code when they were younger. Three rings. Three rings in response and they'd be off to meet each other.
They used to be neighbors and their parents had built them a tree house between their back yards so they could play and hang out there. After Julie and her family had moved, she'd shown him Skull Rock - a neat rock formation she had found while exploring the woods surrounding Hawkins - and they'd meet up there. That was, until he hijacked it and turned it into his favorite make-out spot and the rings had stopped entirely.
Sighing, not even bothering to pause the movie again Julie stood up and walked over the phone on the wall. She dialed the number she'd dialed so many times before.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Ring.
Ring.
Ring.
He looked up and lifted his arm to pick up. Then the ringing stopped. Right. What was he expecting anyways? He yanked open the fridge door in frustration, grabbing the last beer. Great. Just fucking great. This was probably one of the worst nights in Steve Harrington's life.
Bullshit.
Making his way back to the couch he finally shrugged off his jacket, dumped it unceremoniously over the arm rest, pulled the ray bans from the front of his shirt, popped the movie at the top of the stack in the VCR and pressed play. He sat down, beer still in hand, and pulled an ugly, fluffy pink blanket over his body.
He felt like bullshit.
Ding dong.
"Ugh."
Steve turned to his other side, pulling the blanket higher towards his face.
Ding dong.
He pulled the blanket over his face.
Ding dong.
Followed by a faint knocking and a mumbled: "Steve! Open up!"
Nancy? He felt a little flutter in his stomach. Why would she be here? Pulling the blanket of him he shivered a bit as he realized just how cold the house had been. He ran a hand through his hair, sure he looked like a mess.
Ding dong. More knocking.
"Coming!" he shouted. He flipped on the lights in hallway, squinting against the sudden brightness. He made his way down the rest of hallway before reaching to open the door.
His stomach dropped. It wasn't Nancy. He stared at the girl on his doorstep for what felt like an hour.
"You look like shit," the short brunette said while looking him up and down.
He let go of the door and ran a hand through his hair again, before dropping it alongside his body in defeat. He couldn't think of anything to say. She was right. He looked like shit.
Bullshit.
He shivered again in the chill October air, turned on his heels and walked back towards the couch with his fluffy, pink blanket. He lay back down again and closed his eyes. After a few minutes he heard the front door closing and footsteps going down the hallway and into the kitchen.
He sighed as the tight feeling in his stomach loosened up a bit. At least he wasn't alone for the moment. He listened to the rummaging in the kitchen. The fridge opening and closing. The tap running and the stove being turned on. He knew he should probably get up and see what his visitor was up to, but his body wouldn't move. It felt kinda nice imagining the faint noises were being made by Nancy in their house. Who was he kidding?
Bullshit.
The sudden sound of the kettle whistling pulled him out of his pondering. With a groan he sat up and rubbed his eyes. God, he hadn't realized how exhausted he was. Hearing footsteps approach he turned his head in the direction of the living room door and couldn't help a quick, faint smile as he spotted two mugs damping with what could only be tea in the girls' hands. She put them down on the coffee table and sat down on the couch, kicking off her sneakers just as carelessly as he had a while ago.
They sat in silence for a while. It wasn't an awkward one per say, but it wasn't very comfortable silence either. He watched as the girl leaned forward and grabbed a mug. She blew on the hot tea, the damp fogging up her glasses as she leaned back again. Steve followed suit, grabbing his own mug and closing his hands around the hot ceramic surface.
She turned her head to look at him and he raised his mug slightly.
"Thanks," he said softly.
"Don't mention it."
She took a sip as she kept looking at him. He offered her a blanket as well. A fluffy brown one. She nodded as she took it.
"Tina's party?"
"Yeah."
"Wanna talk about it?"
He told her everything that had happened at the party. How he had just wanted it to be a fun night out for a change. How he had planned to take Nancy home after a while and how he had even prepared this mushy romantic setting, while gesturing at the unlit candles. How she had kept drinking, how he had tried to stop her, but she had gotten drunk and how it had all gone further downhill from there.
"She said I was bullshit," he said, looking down at his mug. "That we were bullshit. That we're just acting like we're in love."
He heard his voice crack and tears welling up in his eyes. He swallowed hard, keeping his gaze on his mug and hands as to not to show his feelings.
Then he suddenly looked up.
"Jules, I love her," he said, looking her into her eyes. "I love her and I asked another guy to take her home."
His shoulders slumped and put down his mug.
"They're probably at it right now."
He punched the couch.
"I don't know her very well, but I doubt Nancy's like that."
"Like what?"
"Like Lori or Amy or Becky."
Steve chuckled. "Not a slut?"
"Exactly," she said. "Why don't you just talk with her tomorrow?"
He looked at her, cocking an eyebrow. She shrugged, finishing her tea.
"You, Steve Harrington, need to finish your tea and go to bed. You'll feel better in the morning."
"And you, Julie Hills, need to learn that tea isn't an omnipotent solution for everything," he replied, picking up his mug and downing it.
He pulled the blanket off and stood up, holding out his hand to take her empty mug. She handed it to him, before getting up as well and following him into the kitchen. He put the mugs into the sink and motioned at a loaf of bread on the counter.
"I figured your parents would've left nothing to eat as usual, so I brought some bread, peanut butter and eggs," she stated matter-of-factly. "I couldn't sneak out anything else."
"Thanks," he muttered.
"Again, don't mention it. Just promise me you'll get yourself in bed."
"Yes momma."
She swatted his arm.
"I mean it, Steve," she said seriously. "Try and get some sleep. I'll let myself out."
Julie walked out of the kitchen to put her shoes back on as Steve stood at the counter for a moment before letting out a massive yawn and heading upstairs. He stripped off his t-shirt and jeans and hopped into bed, pulling the covers over himself as he heard the front door close in the distance and the faint sounds of a car starting in his driveway. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep, still alone in the empty Harrington residence but feeling a little less lonely.
Julie turned the volume of her car radio up as she pulled out of the Harrington residence driveway. She tried to drown out her thoughts with the noise, but it didn't quite have the desired effect. In fact, her thoughts were racing at a million miles per hour, going all over the place. She'd never seen him looking so defeated ever before. Ever since she could remember he'd always been a confident and charming, if slightly cocky, boy. Of course, that had been precisely the reason why they'd grown apart over the last couple of years as he had increasingly pulled away from her to hang out with the popular crowd. She'd gone her own way, making her own friends and focusing on school, her family and working at the arcade. She had figured that was just what happened, people grew apart when life happened.
That didn't mean she'd stopped caring about him. Growing up together did that to a person. Nancy's behavior had really done a number on him, but Julie wondered if that was the only thing bringing him down. Ever since the disappearance and the miraculous reappearance of that boy Will Byers the atmosphere in town had changed. An unexplainable chill constantly hung in the air, even on the warmest and sunniest of days. It was just an eerie feeling she couldn't explain, and she hoped she wasn't just imagining it.
She parked her car next to her parents' in the driveway and got out. The lights in the house were still on, which probably meant at least one of them was still up. As she stepped inside, she spotted her mom walking towards the front door, holding the note she had scribbled before leaving earlier.
"How was the party, dear?" her mother asked.
"Uh, pretty boring actually," Julie lied as she kicked off her shoes. "You know, lots of drunk people, not really my kind of environment."
She hated lying to her mother, but she didn't think she would understand.
"I'm tired, I'm just going to go to bed," Julie yawned before kissing her mother on her cheek. "Good night."
Inside her bedroom she stripped off her clothes, which she realized didn't smell like a party at all, put on her pajamas and brushed her teeth, before diving into bed, her thoughts still racing a million miles per hour - all over the place.