A/N

I'd like to give you all a bit of a warning before you read this chapter.

This chapter will contain Steve's dead name and a short overview of how his transition began. It'll also have a brief look into Steve's feelings as a child.

It's not too detailed (I hope) but I figured a warning wouldn't hurt.

Movie nights became a tradition between the party, they alternated between each other's homes and sometimes the kids joined in too. It was nice having something that felt normal, without the weight of monsters and saving Hawkins resting on their shoulders. They felt like normal adults and the kids could finally be kids without any threat looming over them.

Robin and Vickie were pretty much inseparable as the weeks went by, spending every movie night huddled together and whispering to each other when they thought nobody was looking. Robin came into work everyday sporting a massive smile and telling Steve all about their late night phone calls. It was as annoying as it was endearing.

He loved seeing his friend happy, she deserved it more than anyone he knew. She was constantly bubbling over with joy and going on long parades about how pretty Vickie is and how seeing her smile makes her feel warm inside. It was cute.

Steve sported a massive smile as Robin recounted their date to him. Turns out Vickie took his advice and their first kiss was on the feris wheel, Robin said it was magical. She told him all about the shooter games they played and how both of them won prizes, Vickie won a giant stuffed frog for her and she won a giant panda bear for Vickie. She told him how they shared some fries from the same box and got corn dogs and slushies.

While Robin was moving forward in her relationship, Steve was wallowing in self pity because he still hadn't done anything to further his relationship with Eddie. He also hasn't spoken to Robin yet and it was starting to eat at him. He really wanted to but he wasn't sure how to bring it up. How does one explain something like this.

Should he go with a simple 'Rob I was born as a girl and I have a vagina.' or should he ease into it and make casual mentions of having top surgery done? How does one make a conversation about top surgery simple though? He had no idea.

So he let it simmer, avoiding the topic like the pest even though it was harder to keep it to himself each day. He knew that he didn't have to tell her, it was his thing to deal with but he wanted to tell her. He wanted someone to support him, to understand what he was going through and how he felt sometimes. He wanted someone to talk to when his emotions got messed up, or when the body dysmorphia got so bad that he couldn't even look at himself in the mirror. He needed it.

So he spent the last month trying to build up the courage to say something and he was sure that he would tell her soon. He had to for his own sanity.

The only person who knew about it was Nancy, she found out while they were dating and she handled it okay. She was shocked and didn't really know what to say or do about it so she didn't comment on it. He remembered that day so vividly and constantly replayed it in his head.

Steve sat on the edge of his bed and let out a heavy sigh. Nancy was seated up against the headboard, a nervous look on her face after seeing her boyfriend freak out because she wanted to undress him in the heat of the moment. The air in the room felt heavy and she didn't know what to say so she stayed silent and waited until he was ready to speak.

"I'm sorry for freaking out like that," he started. His voice sounded wrecked, like he was on the verge of falling apart.

She let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding before moving forward and settling next to him. She sat sideways so that she was facing him and reached out slowly before slipping her hand into his.

"it's okay Steve" her voice was gentle, it sounded like she was talking to a baby trying not to scare it "you know I'll always be here if you need to talk about it. I just... I've never seen you like that before."

Steve kept his eyes fixed on their joint hands and let out a stuttered breath, his eyes were filled with tears and his chest felt enflamed "I don't know how to say this... I'm not exactly who you think I am."

"What do you mean?" her brow furrowed in confusion.

"I uh... I'm transgender." he stopped for a minute, taking a deep breath to steel himself so that he could get the rest of the words out. "My name was Stephanie and I had boobs." he chuckled softly at that, "I had surgery done to remove them. My parents agreed to that much and I had my name changed. They didn't want me to get bottom surgery done though and I didn't have the money to pay for it myself. That's why I uh"

She gave his hand a gentle squeeze to let him know that she was listening and that she supported him. No words were spoken between them for a few minutes, Nancy just sat and processed everything he said, "okay... That's. That's good I guess. I'm glad that you're finally your true self and I think Steve suits you better."

He chuckled at that, a small smile on his lips, "yeah me too... I've never told anyone that before. My parents told me not to and I was kind of scared that you'd be disgusted by me. I'm not exactly what people would consider a 'normal' boyfriend."

She placed her other hand on his shoulder, "you're a great boyfriend Steve and I'm not disgusted. I am a little shocked though, it's a lot to take in but I want you to know that I'm here for you."

Nancy took the news better than he expected her to, she supported him and respected him enough not to ask questions he wasn't comfortable with. They spoke for hours that night, both of them had smiles on their faces and the awkward air between them was gone.

He hoped and prayed that Robin would be the same. Supportive but not invasive, just allowing him to exist without stressing about someone else finding out his secret and outing him to the entire town. Nobody in Hawkins knew the truth about him, his family had lived in a smaller town for the first few years of his life. He remembers a six year old Stephanie running around in their backyard, his pink dress was covered in dirt as he played with the ball his neighbor had gifted him. His long brunette hair was tied back into a ponytail, which he quickly loosened; he hated having his tied back and he wished it was shorter. He hated the dresses his parents bought him and forced him into. His mother dressed him up like her real life doll, always in pink puffy dresses with those damn awful bows on the back of them or one of those stupid massive flowers stuffed front and center on the belt of the dress.

He hated it. He hated everything about it.

Their neighbour at the time, Mr Denley, noticed Steve's aversion to the dresses his mother bought him. He noticed Steve always tugging at his hair with a pout on his little face and how uncomfortable he looked when his mother shouted out a shrill "Stephanie, darling come inside. Dinners ready." He hated his name.

Mr Denley stood at his garden fence one afternoon and called Steve over, a soft smile on his face. "Hey kiddo, how're ya holding up?" Steve shrugged, his hands nervously tugging at the sleeves of his dress. "I'm okay, how are you Mr Denley?" A massive smile broke out on Mr Denley's face. "I'm alright kid. I wanted to share a secret with ya... D'ya know my name wasn't always George Denley?" Steve furrowed his brow, "What was your name then?"

"Georgina" he answered, giving Steve a minute to process what he had said.

A look of confusion covered Steve's face, he didn't understand. "So why's your name George now?"

He shrugged, "well kid I didn't really feel like a Georgina. I didn't feel like a girl. Hated those stupid ole dresses mum bought me and those stupid little braids she always made. Hated being pretty instead of handsome. It just never felt right." Steve nodded at that because he felt the same, he felt trapped in this stupid body that wasn't meant for him. "I like being called pretty... But I don't like dresses and I don't want to play with the dolls mum always gets me. Jus' wanna play with the boys outside, maybe they'll teach me how to play soccer with them."

Mr Denley let out a laugh at that, a glimmer of happiness in his eyes. "maybe ya will one day kid."

Steve pouted at that and let out a short huff, "I don't have a soccer ball and my mum says girls can't play with balls, they're only made for boys."

Mr Denley scoffed at that, "that's not true kid. A toy is a toy, it doesn't have all that gender shit these folks keep talking bout. 'S just a toy."

A few days after their conversation Steve's birthday came and Mr. Denley showed up on their front porch with a gift box in his hands. Steve watched as his father spoke to Mr. Denley, accepting the gift before calling him over to thank the older man. He rushed over and shot Mr. Denley his brightest smile, happy to see his new friend at his house. "Happy birthday kiddo. Ya getting all big and strong." he reached down ruffled Steve's hair, which his mother left untied. Steve let out a laugh at the action. "Thank you Mr. Denley, 's nice to see you here."

Mr. Denley had a soft smile on his face as he kneeled down in front of a now seven year old Steve. "I got ya a little gift kid. I hope ya like it."

"what is it?" he asked, bubbling over with excitement. His hands twisted together in front of his blue dress as he rocked back and forth on his heels.

The older man laughed at his excitement, "wouldn't be a surprise if I told ya what it is kid." He gave Steve a quick hug before standing up and shaking his father's hand "see ya aroun' Harrington. Enjoy ya day kid" he offered as he walked off and made his way down the road in the direction of the farmers market.

Mr. Henderson had a smile on his lips as he turned to Steve and ushered him back inside. "Looks like you got old George to soften up a bit. He even got you a gift."

Steve still had a massive smile on his face as he looked up at his father. "can I open it now?" he quickly add a "please father." If he had to butter his father up for this he would, he just wanted to see what his new best friend got him.

His father sighed before handing the box to the seven year old, "have at it Steph but don't let your mother see you. You know how she gets about opening gifts before a certain time."

The smile was wiped away at the mention of his name, he gave his father a firm nod before bounding off to his room with the box clutched in his arms. He rushed up the stairs before his mother could spot him and closed his bedroom door before sitting down on the carpet in front of his bed. His opened it and took the little card that sat on top of the gift wrap, opening it immediately. He knew how to read already, his parents sent him for reading lessons at the age of five, not wanting their daughter to be embarrassed when he finally went to school.

'Happy birthday kid. I got ya a little something I'm sure you'll like. Although ya mom might not like it all that much.

But hey, it's your birthday and I figured why not get the little squirt next door something cool. Enjoy ya day and enjoy your gift.'

The card was short and simple in a very Mr. Denley way. He didn't go on long over practiced speeches, he said what he needed to say and left it at that. Steve liked that. He liked Mr. Denley and liked talking to him, because for some reason little Steve felt like Mr. Denley understood him. Understood what he felt.

He placed the card on his bedside table before pulling away the wrapping paper and biting back a squeal of happiness at the sight of the black and white soccer ball. He gingerly reached for it, his hands shaking, fearing that it might not be real. That he was just seeing things that weren't there, but it felt real. He took hold of it and pulled it out of the box, his face lit up with the biggest smile he has ever sported. He loved it.

His mother hated it and she told him that he couldn't go out and play with it because he was a lady and 'ladies don't go around kicking balls in the street like some animal.' So he cried and begged his mother. It took an entire week before she gave in, on the condition that he only play in the backyard where nobody could see him and only when they didn't have guests around. He was okay with that, as long as he could play with his new favourite toy.

As the years went by Steve felt more and more uncomfortable in his body, he didn't feel like a girl. He didn't want to look like one either. So at the age of thirteen he told his parents how he was feeling and they didn't react the way he thought they would. He thought they would support him, but instead his father gave him his first ever beating and his mother grounded him. They didn't speak about it again until Steve refused to wear the dresses they kept buying him. He locked himself in his room for an entire day and told his mother that he wouldn't come out until she got him a normal pants and a t-shirt.

She did. She gave up on fighting him and got him a few different pants, some jeans, a few t-shirts and sneakers. He felt better in it, he felt right. Like he was finally starting to look like the person he should look like. Things progressed from there. What started with a change of clothing soon escalated to a hair cut that his father deemed a boys haircut. His parents didn't like the new look and constantly told him how they felt about it, he didn't pay attention to them though.

After school he'd play in the backyard or spend some time talking to Mr. Denley, who often said he looked cool.

Before they knew it Steve was fifteen and hitting puberty. Periods came and he cried every month at the reminder that he wasn't a real boy. Boobs started to form and he cried about that too. He hated his body and it started taking a toll on him. He ended up in a deep depression, something his parents ignored for a while. Soon he found out about something called top surgery and he begged his parents to let him get it. It took four months of begging before he tried a different approach, threatening to go out and tell all his mothers snobby friends that their child was a freak.

That did the trick and soon he got the surgery he so badly needed. He felt better, but it wasn't enough. Next came the testosterone shots, and those worked a charm because then he felt even more like himself. He wanted bottom surgery but his parents downright refused and offered him a name change instead. He accepted and that was the day he became Steve, a name he loved and felt more comfortable in.

His parents were embarrassed when people started questioning why their daughter looked like a boy. So they packed up all their belongings, sold their house and moved to Hawkins as a fresh start. They enrolled Steve into Hawkins high and kept his secret away from any prying eyes. Getting rid of any pictures of Steph. Nobody questioned it because he looked like a boy. He was a boy. He is a boy.

While he was happier than ever in this new town and his new life, his parents became more and more distant. They left the house and went on trips, leaving him to fend for himself for months on end. They gave him a card with enough cash on it and went away with a short goodbye, no indicator of when they would return. Steve didn't mind though because his friends thought it was cool that he had the whole house to himself and could throw parties whenever he felt like it.

He started hooking up with girls soon after moving in, refusing to do anything other than go down on them or finger them. It seemed like it was enough because he got the name King Steve. Hawkins most wanted boy. He got on the basket ball team and became captian pretty quickly. Life felt good.

Until he met Nancy Wheeler and found out about the Demogorgans and the upside down. Then his life was pretty much a mess, he had nightmares for months. His house was empty without those stupid parties and he kinda lost most of friends after the whole Jonathan fight. Then Billy Hargrove came along and he made Steve's life hell. Although it was easier to face because he became a babysitter to a bunch of kids who brought a lot of joy into his miserable life.

After graduation he got a stupid job at Scoops Ahoy because he had no idea what he wanted to study or if he wanted to go to college at all. He met Robin and then the whole Russian thing happened and then it spiraled to the whole Vecna thing and that's how he got to know Eddie better.

He liked getting to know Eddie, it was easy and fun. Eddie was a bit of a lifeline when things got too overwhelming for him, he could always count on the metalhead to give him some weed and talk some shit to get him out of his head. It always worked.

Please remember to leave a review.

What are your thoughts on Mr Denley?

I thought it would be important for Steve to have someone to let him know that what he was feeling was valid.

Friendly reminder to all my beautiful Trans friends out there: you are valid and you are valued.