"Come on, I need to show you something." Dustin pulls Steve into the kitchen where all the boys were waiting for him. "Look at this." He pulls out a big serving bowl from the cabinet.
"What is this?" Steve pulls out a piece of paper. "Are all these numbers? I'm proud of you buddy." He patted the young boy on the back.
"These aren't mine." He slaps the older teen's hand off of him. "These are Lyn's. Boys give them to her at work when she walks the dogs." Dustin shook the bowl in his face.
"What?" Steve scream, feeling his heart sink to his stomach.
"This is your wake up call." Lucas hops off the counter he was sitting on and put a hand on each of Steve's shoulders. "Prom is two months away. It could be you or one of those guys." He nods his head to the bowl.
"If you wait until the last minute you'll be going as her friend, not her boyfriend." Mike pointed out there was no time to waste.
"I can't guys, alright. I ask her out a hundred times before and I got reject every time." Steve pulls away from Lucas, shaking his head at them.
"That was when you were douche bag Steve, now you're cool Steve." Mike reminds him.
"Just yesterday she was telling my mom, she's happy that I have you as a role model. But I think she meant we," Dustin wiggled his eyebrows. All the guys in the kitchen look at him with narrow eyes.
"Dude shut up, you're not helping." Lucas slaps his arm.
"You were supposed to get something to prove that she likes him back." Mike glare at his friend.
"You try to get that woman to tell you something she doesn't want to tell you." Dustin defends himself.
"She likes you," Will spoke reminding everyone he was still in the room. "She stares at you a lot when you're not looking. She laughs at all your jokes and most of them aren't funny. She always suggests for Dustin to invite you along. And, if she knows you're coming, then she dresses nicer." He had been noticed for a while now that Rosalyn was taking a liking to Steve.
"So, you're saying I have shot." Steve leaned back against the counter as he suddenly felt out of breath. To think the moment he has been waiting almost four years for was here.
Lyn enters the kitchen in her scrubs. "Morning guys," She waved to them as she went straight to the coffee machine. She pours herself a cup and turns back around to face them. "What are you gu…. I thought I told you to throw that away, Dustin." She was about to ask what their plans for today were when she saw the bowl of numbers. She took the bowl off the counter and dumps the numbers in the trash.
"So, you're not interested in any of those guys?" Steve mentally curses himself as his voice went a few pitches higher than normal.
"Of course not!" She turns to yell at him. He put his hands in the air, letting her know he wasn't trying to fight her. "It's so disgusting. What kind of sick-o pulls over, speaks vulgar to a woman, and gives her their number like it a million dollars? Some of these perverts don't even stop. They wolf whistle and throw their numbers out the window." She grimaces.
"Then why do you keep their numbers?" He tilts head in a way that reminds Lyn of a puppy. Every time he did it, she just wanted to squeeze his cheeks.
"To get the boy to write their numbers on the wall in men's restroom to call for a good time, but I've done that already." She pours some coffee onto the number, hoping that would be enough to keep her brother from digging them out of the trash again.
Steve laughs at hearing her explanation. She laughs along with him as they imagine the kind of calls the men got. When the laughter dies out, they notice that the boys left them. "I wonder where they ran off to." Lyn ponders looking around.
"I have to ask you something." Steve blurted out. She watched as he took a deep breath. "I was wondering if you wanted to go on a date." He ran a hand through his hair.
"A date?" She croaked out.
"Yeah, I figure we could go to the new mall." He shrugs like his heart was beating rapidly in his chest awaiting her answer. She stares at him not knowing what to say. "You can say no, it's fine. It won't ruin our friendship." He reassured her. If she didn't want to go out he didn't want it to ruin the close friendship that they had.
"Can I give you my answer after work?" She said it so quickly that Steve wouldn't have heard her clearly if he wasn't focused on her like he was.
"Yeah, sure," He nods, relieved that it wasn't a rejection.
"Okay, I'll call your house after." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and ran out of her house. She turns Darling on and pulls out of the driveway. "I can't believe I wanted to say yes. I want to go on a date with Steve Harrington. Oh my god, I want to go out with my best friend. I want to go on a date with one of Dustin's best friends." She said it in so many different ways as she drove to work.
Lyn went through the motion of her job in a daze. She still couldn't believe that she was so stumped by Steve asking her out. She wanted to scream yes when he asked, but there were other factors to consider. She had to put the needs of the many over the wants of the few.
"Alright, what wrong?" Dr. Penelope Myung stood in front of her youngest employee with her hands on hips.
"I'm fine. Why did you ask?" She put the Rottweiler back in his cage.
"If everything is fine then why did you take Bruce on his third walk in a row?" She smugly smiles at her.
Lyn stares down at the dog that was passed out on the dog bed. "I'm sorry. I guess I'm a little distracted today." She shrugs.
"I know. I want to know why. Come on. Don't make me have to twist your arm." She grabs the girl's arm to pull her into the break room.
"Steve asks me out." She drops into one of the chairs around the table.
"That is a problem, why? I thought he does that all the time." Penelope fills up two cups of coffee.
"It's been a year since he has. Things are different now. Thanks." She took a cup from her boss.
"I would think you liking him now, would make it better but you look like you swallow a lemon." She took a seat across from the troubled teen.
"I do not like him." Lyn shook her head furiously.
"Your denial is adorable." The doctor giggles.
"Does everyone know?" She slumps down in the chair.
"It's hard not to. The way you smile every time you talk about him. You talk about him a lot lately." She smiles at the teen's blushing cheeks.
"Well, he's over at the house almost every day now. I'm not obsessing." She defends herself. She did not want to be known as some boy crazy teenager.
"I didn't say you were. Now, what is the problem?" She pushes them back to the matter at hand.
"What if things don't work out with Steve and me? Then, I would have ruined a male figure for Dustin to look up to." She admits to one of her worries.
"Dustin came in with your mother for Tews checkup. The way he gushes about Steve, you should worry that his image of you will be ruin if things don't work out with Steve." She chuckled, remembering how he went on about Steve teaching him how to smolder.
"I guess if Dustin doesn't mind. But, it wouldn't be fair for me to go out with Steve or anyone, not with my mom." Lyn took a sip of coffee.
"Why, cause of your mom?" She arches her eyebrow.
"I will probably be taking care of her for the rest of her life. What man is going to be okay with their in-laws living with them?" She sighs. Sometimes it felt like she was destined to be alone.
"In a lot of cultures that the way of life," Dr. Myung was not going to let her leave the break room until she agrees to go on this date.
"Not in this one." She shot her boss an unimpressed look.
"That's not for you to decide, it's for Steve. Tell him your concerns if he agrees with them then you stay friends. If he doesn't, then you owe it to both of you to give it a shot." Penelope stood up before her employee that she come to think of as family could protest anymore.
"Fuck, I have a shitty aim." Lyn curses herself as the pebbles hit the wall below Steve's window. She couldn't believe that she was doing this. She went home and picks the phone up to call him like she said she would. But, she couldn't dial the number. She couldn't talk to him about this over the phone. She needs to see his facial expression to know that he was really fine with what she was going to tell him.
She would have rung the doorbell, but she didn't want to face Steve's snobby parents. Last time she did, they made offhand comments about her clothes and weight. They didn't get to go any further than that, because Steve put his foot down.
"One last throw, if this doesn't make it I'll deal with the snobs." She picks up a few more pebbles. She knew he was in there, she could see his light on. She groaned when it went a little too much to the right, hitting the wall by the window. She drags her feet to the door.
"What the hell are you doing?" Steve was leaning out his window to stare down at her.
"OH, Steve." She looks up smiling at him. She didn't think she was throwing it hard enough to be heard through the thick walls. "Come down, I want to talk to you." She waves for him.
"Okay, alright, I'll be right down." He pops his head back inside. He throws on a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. He was getting ready for bed, so he only had his boxers on. He walks past his parents who didn't look up from the wheel of fortune to notice him going by. He went out the front door to see Lyn waiting for him. "What's up?" He closes the door and wipes his hands on his sweatpants that went clammy on him. He knew she was here to give him her answer, he wasn't sure if he was ready to hear it.
"My answer is yes, but I have a condition and a warning." She blurted out. It seems to be the only way she knew how to deliver any news.
"Okay, I'll take the condition first." He shrugs. He never had a girl give him a condition and a warning before a first date, but that was Lyn for you. Everything was a unique experience with her.
"No matter what happens between us even if it gets really ugly, you can't abandon Dustin." Lyn made sure to keep a stern voice to let him know this wasn't negotiable.
"I would never to that to Dustin." Steve shook his head, looking offended that she thought that he would do that. "What's your warning?" He let out a sigh, trying to remember that she wasn't being rude to him. She was being protected over her brother.
"It's a little presumptuous, but the first date is what leads to a more serious relationship. I would rather you know this now than later because it could be a deal-breaker." She looks over at Steve to make sure she wasn't scaring him too much. If anything he looks to be getting a little impatience with melodramatic, but he didn't seem put off in any type of way. "I'm a package deal. I come with my mom and Dustin." She let out a big breath after she laid it out there.
"Is that it? Cause I knew that already." Steve shrugs, not understanding why she was making a big deal of it. He loves her brother and mom. They made him feel like family more than his own did.
"Do you get what that means? I won't be leaving Hawkins, at least not until Dustin graduates. Even if I move after that my mom would have to come along with me. She's never going to be able to support herself, especially when the child support and alimony checks stop. She's going to be with me for the rest of her life." She narrows her eyes at him. She couldn't believe that he was taking this so well, this was the shit that sometimes drove her crazy. The thoughts that made her feel like she was suffocating in her own skin to the point that she wanted to claw her way out. He was making like it was a walk in the park.
"So presumptuously speaking, I could have the coolest brother-in-law ever and the sweetest mother-in-law that will be cooking me delicious dinner for the rest of my life. Sounds like you come with a sweet deal. I think I would take you even if you were rotten." He wraps his arms around her waist to pull her close.
She wraps her arms around his neck to pull him down to push her lips on his. After the shock wore off for Steve, he began kissing back making it intense. "I'm free all Saturday." Lyn pulls back enough to tell him.
"I'll pick you up at noon." He told her before connecting their lips again.
Lyn gave herself a look over in the mirror. She wanted to be perfect for her first date. She was wearing a high waist acid wash fitted jean skirt that ends at her knees. She had on a tank top with an acid wash jean jacket over it. She wonders if she was doing too much with the five necklaces. They were all different lengths, so they layered nicely. The first was a black chain choker, follows by three different lengths black necklaces, and the last was the longest that had a black cross on it.
She reaches up to tightly her scrunchie that kept her hair up in a high ponytail, leaving two loose pieces of hair to frame her face. She used a curling iron to give her hair the right amount of waves. She kept her makeup natural with pink lip gloss, pink blush and went light on the mascara and eye shadow.
"You look beautiful," El told her from her spot on the bed.
"Really? I look casual enough to be going to the mall, but still good enough to make his jaw drop." She turns around to the two girls.
"Oh, his jaw will be hitting the floor." Max gave her two thumbs up.
"Good, this date is over three years in the making." She took a deep breath, not believe she was so nervous. She tried to tell herself it was like hanging out with him, which she did a hundred times before. But, this was different, this was a date. There would be holding hands and kisses.
"Steve's here," Dustin yells to his sister.
"Here you go." El passes the black leather purse to her.
"Thank you." She swings it over her shoulders. "Thanks for helping me get ready." She smiles at the two.
"You're welcome, now go get them, tiger," Max stood up to push her out the door.
Lyn felt her heart pounding harder in her chest every time her white Adidas sneakers touch the ground. She turns the corner to see Steve in a pair of jeans and a black long sleeve shirt. "Lyn, go over them by him." Dustin shoves her.
She rolls her eyes and walks over to Steve. "You look pretty." Steve smile at her.
"Thank, you look good too. But, you always do." She winks at him.
"Okay, you can do your cheesy flirting later. Now, turn around to face the camera." Dustin demands. Lyn and Steve roll their eyes as they turn to him. "Alright, Steve put your arm around her. Big smiles you two. This will be the picture your kids look at years from now. Let it years from now, okay Steve, I'm not ready to be an uncle yet." Dustin took picture after picture.
"You were worried that he wouldn't want us dating." Steve snickers into her ear.
"Okay, that's enough." Lyn snaps, not sure if she was talking about Dustin speaking or the picture taking.
"I always knew you would be a part of the family Steve, ever since I saw you two cuddle up on the couch last Halloween." Her mom gushes from behind Dustin.
"Oh my god," Lyn waves her hands for them to stop. She had never been more mortified by them before. Steve was beam with pride next to her. He loves coming there because of the warm welcome he got every time. "This is a first date, not a wedding reception." She snaps at them.
"We should start preparing those speeches." Dustin turns to his mom.
"We are leaving, you loonies." She drags Steve out of the house. They got into his BMW. "I'm sorry about them. Next time you can honk the horn and I'll come out." She put on her seatbelt.
"They're just excited about our first date, I'm sure by the third they won't care." He shrugs and pulls out of the driveway.
She turns on the radio and they sang along to Tina Turner What's Love Got To Do with It and then Ain't Nobody by Chaka Khan. Steve turns into the mall's parking lot as Madonna's Like A Virgin played.
They got out of the car and made their way into Star Court Mall. Steve wraps an arm around her waist as they walk around the mall looking at all the stores. "Oh, Waldenbooks," She pulls him into the store.
"Ew, a few more months and we never have to look at another book again. Why would you want to be here?" Steve pretends to gag.
"I want this to be a good date, so I'm going to ignore that comment." She picks up a book and read the back for the summary. She put it down and did the same to another book that was further down the shelf. She took out a small book and pen from her purse.
"What are you doing?" Steve looks over her shoulder to see what she was writing.
"I'm writing down the title, so I remember it when they have their summary reading sale." She put her notepad and pen back in her purse.
"Do you need to get anything while you're here?" He asks.
"I want to get makeup starter kits for Max and El from Claire's." She led him out of the store.
"Max isn't the type to wear makeup." He places his arm back around her.
"Why cause she's a skater?" She looks up at him.
"No, because she's an unapologetic tomboy, even at the Snow Ball she was wearing a sweater, jeans, and no makeup." He points out to her.
"Then what do I get Max?" She would feel funny only getting El something. She wanted Max to feel like part of the group, especially with all the attitude Mike gave her in the beginning.
"Hair clips or something, she is going to need it with those wild red curls." He shrugs.
"That's a good idea." She nods. They went into the store and got the girl's things.
"Should we get something for the boys?" He carried her shopping bag out of the store.
"Why?" She shrugs. There was a lot that came with becoming a woman. She wasn't sure what came with becoming a man.
"I don't want them thinking we're playing favorites. I love all my kids equally." Steve told her in a matter of fact kind of way.
"You are such a liar, Dustin is your favorite." She laughs, shaking her head at him.
"SSSSHHHH, no one supposes to know that." He put a finger against his lips.
"I'm pretty sure everyone knows that. Oh, look Chess King is having a two for one sale." She points to the man's retail store. Steve drags her in and they pick out four shirts for the boys.
Steve held the two bags in his one hand and held Lyn's hand in the other when they walk out of the store. "Oh, look Lovelace Lingerie." He wiggles his eyebrows.
"Let's not get ahead of yourself," She rolls her eyes.
"Who said it was for you?" He scoffs.
"In that case, I think you would look great in a red lace thong." She giggles. A loud throat clearing made the young couple look over to see an elderly couple glaring at them. Steve and Lyn began laughing loudly making the elderly pair walk away grumbling under their breath.
"Come on, it's not a date unless I feed you." Steve pulls her to the food court.
"I like the sound of that." She looks around the food court. Lyn went to Panda Imperial. She got chow fun and sesame chicken. Steve got a burger and fries from Wyatt's Cafeteria.
They sat down at one of the many small tables that were in the middle of all the restaurants.
"Did the guys tell you about the new thing they're building?" Steve asks.
"Let not talk about kids… oh my god, it's our first date and we already sound like an old married couple." Lyn giggles. Steve joined in, laughing. He never felt more comfortable on a first date before. Normally, it was an awkward interviewing process over the food, but he already knew her favorite color, movies, and how she took her coffee.
"Tell me something I don't know." He shoves a fry into his mouth.
"When I was a kid I was obsessed with Winnie the Pooh. Every Halloween I was a character from it. I was Pooh, Tiger, Piglet, Eeyore, Rabbit, and Christopher Robin." She lists them.
"Christopher Robin, why didn't you go as Owl or Roo?" He raises an eyebrow.
"I felt bad that no one ever dress up as him." She uses the chopsticks to put a piece of chicken in her mouth.
"That's so cute." He reaches across the table to pinch her cheek.
"Your turn," She slaps his hand off of her face.
"A facial is part of my night routine." He told her.
She moves her chair, so she was next to him. She cups his face and runs her thumbs along it. "I want to know your secret because your skin is silky smooth. Which is incredible since you got it beat in twice already."
"That feels good." He leans into her hands when she rubbed his temples. He let out a moan making her laugh.
"I haven't even got you in the bedroom." She moves her chair back in front of her plate.
"Says the virgin," He teases.
"You'll be surprised what you can learn from books." She winks at him.
"So, here we are at your front doorstep." He sways on the spot. "What will it be, a handshake, a hug, a kiss?"
She laughs and pulls him down by his collar to give him a kiss.
"Come on sis, at least make him work for it." Dustin opens the front door to break them up.
"Stop spying you creep." Lyn pushes him by his face inside and slams the door shut.
"Do you think it would break his heart to know that you kissed me before the first date," He laughs.
"What?" Dustin yells through the door.
"I'm going to kill you." Lyn opens the door. He falls face-first on the doormat. "Serve you right brat." She steps over him.
"I don't know why you guys are hanging out here anyway. Steve is staying for dinner." Dustin got up and dusted himself off.
"I can't wait for you to get a girlfriend, so I can interrupt your fun." Steve gave him a thud on the back of the head as he went inside.
"Oh, come on man." Dustin ran inside after his friend.