Steve discovered quite late that Max was a good liar. A very good liar. It wasn't until he saw her run off during one of their group hang outs that he realized that maybe she wasn't okay, like she had been saying all of this time.
"Steve?" Robin asked as she noticed his focus go elsewhere. "What's up?"
"Is Max okay? She just left in a hurry."
Robin frowned as she glanced in the direction the redheaded girl had run to, outside into the backyard. The whole group had gotten in the hang of meeting at the Byer's place, and Max was acting perfectly happy, helping El braid her hair as the boys played Dungeons and Dragons, well, up until that moment. Even El seemed surprised when she left in a hurry, but, after giving a quick glance to Robin, receiving a shake of the head from the older teen, turned back to the game reluctantly. It was as if she asked Robin for permission for El to go check on Max, and she had refused. Steve distantly wondered if they had better communication now, or if there were some telepathic powers at work. He also wondered how no one else noticed Max's abrupt leave.
"She has been a bit down lately." Robin replied softly after El had turned away. "I've felt that she has been for a while."
Steve turned to her, eyes wide. "You sensed that? And you didn't tell me?"
"She told me not to! And she's not the kind of person that I would break a promise with!"
Steve hated how much that made sense, but he had to know more. He had to help her. "Okay, but you told me now. Tell me more. What's going on with her?"
Robin sighed, lowering her voice. "She's been grieving. After what happened to Billy, all that I can feel from her is anger and sadness. I've been talking to her about it, but she's still not getting better."
"Okay." Steve replied, his heart breaking for the young girl. Of course. Of course she would still be grieving Billy. He was a jerk, but he was her brother, and he died in one of the most gruesome ways possible, it wasn't a wonder why Max still felt horrible.
A part of Steve wondered if his disappearance hurt her even more. He told himself to not think about that.
After making sure that the kids were still safely playing Dungeons and Dragons, Jonathan and Nancy sitting by them, Steve got up and made his way outside. He could hear Dustin ask him where he was going, but Robin thankfully replied for him.
As soon as he was outside, he looked around silently until he could see Max sitting by the shed, her knees tucked to her chest, her face hidden. It was a position that Steve never wanted to see any of his kids in; a position of hopelessness and despair.
He slowly walked towards her, whistling a soft tune to alert her that he was there. She tensed up, but didn't leave, only choosing to lift up her head to look at him.
Steve winced at how hooded her eyes were, whether with grief or exhaustion he didn't know, but he didn't bring it up. As he sat down across from her he mentally kicked himself, how could he not notice all of this before?
"Hey, Red." He said softly, and she curled in tighter into herself.
"Hey. She told you, didn't she?"
"I sort of forced Robin too, but if it makes you feel better, I promise not to tell anyone, either." Steve offered, and she slightly nodded.
"Thanks."
She sniffed, and wiped her nose, where a bit of blood began trickling down her skin. Steve took out some tissues from his pocket and gave it to her. Max took it gratefully, and pressed it against her nose, in hopes to stop the blood flow.
"Everyone's right." She commented quietly. "You really are the mom of the group."
Steve had to chuckle. "Well, with three of us having powers that give us nosebleeds, I figured that it would be good to have a couple of tissues handy."
Max nodded. "Good idea. Though, I'm pretty sure Hopper had been doing that for El long before you did."
"I wouldn't be surprised."
The two sat in an uneven silence, disrupted only by birds chirping, the rustling of leaves, and soft voices from inside. Steve felt wind of a warm, mundane temperature gently push through his hair, and he resisted the urge to speak. The silence made him uneasy, reminding him of white walls and empty rooms, but he knew that he had to wait for Max to be ready to talk. If she didn't want to talk, then he wouldn't talk. He would sit here as long as it took unless she was uncomfortable. She didn't appear to be yet, but again, Steve now knew that she was a good liar.
Steve didn't have to wait too long for her to speak up.
"Is it true?"
Steve waited a beat before responding. "Is what true?"
Max shrugged. "Being able to not feel temperatures and emotions and stuff. Will said something about it."
He nodded, looking up towards the sun that should've been casting heat on his skin but wasn't.
"Yeah, it's true. I can usually feel temperatures for a few seconds until I feel like I always do. And, emotions…that's a more complicated thing. It's only happened a few times, and everyone hates it when I do it."
Max's blue eyes stared into his, desperate. "But you choose to do it, right? You can choose to turn your emotions on and off?"
Steve knew that he couldn't lie to her, but the truth would hurt her. Did he risk it?
"Don't lie to me, Steve."
He sighed, defeated. "Yes. But it's not a good thing."
"I don't think that you believe that."
"I know that what you're feeling sucks." Steve said, ignoring her comment. "I know you want to stop feeling it, that you probably hate yourself for having those emotions. And, whatever it is that you're feeling, it's okay. You can be angry, sad, heartbroken, …you can feel whatever you need to feel and no one will be mad. You know that, right? You don't need to push down those emotions. It's something that I'm still trying to learn too."
Max deflated at the words, her lips forming a tight line. She took the tissue away from her nose, the white cloth now soaked with blood.
"It just doesn't feel right." She muttered, and Steve waited patiently for her. She looked up to the sky, as if the answers she wanted were among the clouds. "It doesn't feel right that I'm here and Billy isn't. That I hadn't even tried to save him. That he was a jerk but I still want him back."
Steve felt his own heart quench at the thought of Billy Hargrove again, sympathy for the pained life he lived, and the broken lives he left behind. He knew that Billy was one of the only reasons Max was upset, and he understood why she was. How conflicted she probably felt.
He hadn't witnessed what happened to him, but from what he heard, Billy had sacrificed his life to save El. That action alone would make anyone want to have him back from the dead. Have him not die at all.
"I can't pretend that I've been through what you have." Steve began. "I haven't. And, to be honest, I'm probably not the best person to give advice. But what you're feeling is completely normal. Even though Billy hurt you, he's still family. You're allowed to want him back. I mean, I want my parents back, I know they're not dead or anything, but even though they treated me like trash I still love them."
Max watched him tentatively, tears forming in her eyes.
"Your…your parents?" Her voice was small, and all he wanted to do was wrap her in a hug. But he didn't. He could tell that she wasn't ready for one yet.
"Yeah, I guess that you don't know. They blamed me for disappearing. They yelled at me over the phone, and basically left me behind. They didn't even come to see me. I don't think they'll ever come back for me again." Steve took a deep breath, breaking off a piece of grass and twirling it between his fingers.
"But…but you would see them again if you could?"
"Absolutely. They're still my parents, and I'm still their son. I love them. I'm super sad and disappointed about what they did, but if we got a chance to mend our relationship I would take it. That's how I feel, I guess."
Max didn't reply, and Steve wasn't sure if he had said the right thing. But, eventually, she got to her feet. Steve followed suit, and she gave him a small hug, one that he returned.
"I'm here for you, Max. We all are. If you need anything just let me know, okay?"
She nodded against him, and as she pulled away, Steve noticed some more blood falling out of her nose. He pulled out another issue, and she rolled her eyes playfully.
"Thanks, Mom."
"Just keep an eye on the nosebleeds, if it gets worse you might want to go to the doctor."
The young girl managed a small smile. "I will. Thank you, Steve."
"Of course."
With those words spoken, Max made her way back into the house, and Steve watched her go. He didn't know if what he said would make a difference, or even make her feel better. But he knew that he would do the only thing he could and try his best.
It was all that he could ever do.
The night of the big championship game was supposed to be a good one, and it was. Robin had fun playing with the band, Hawkins won, with Lucas throwing the final shot, and even the D&D players had a good night. Steve, after making sure Lucas would call him if anything went wrong with the basketball players and saying goodbye to his new girlfriend, had taken her, Nancy, and Jonathan to get milkshakes, with promises of a movie night in the future, and all seemed well. There was laughter. There were smiles. There was joy. Robin was convinced that nothing could ruin this night.
She hated how wrong she was.
Robin was just reading in the living room, already in her night shorts and shirt, when she felt it. The presence that had taunted her nightmares ever since they had helped Steve escape the cage of his own mind. Him.
"Robin? Are you okay, sweetie?" Her mother asked as Robin jumped to her feet, eyes blown wide and panic racing in her heart. She began breathing heavily as it spread, hoping to contain the fear within herself instead of sharing it with her parents.
"I'm fine! I just need to call Steve!"
"Okay, honey, but please let me know if there's anything wrong."
"There's nothing wrong! But, I promise!"
She hated the lies that she had to make, but there was no time to do anything about it.
He could strike at any time. People could already be dead.
Robin rushed up the stairs, taking it two steps at a time, until she got to her room, slamming the door behind her. She could feel One's presence become stronger around her, penetrating her mind like an ice pick through her skull, pushing and pushing relentlessly.
He was here. He was finally going through with his threats. He was going to destroy Hawkins.
"Please pick up, please pick up." She begged as she dialed Steve's number, hoping that Steve would be at his home, able to hear her call.
She needed him right now. She really needed him.
Steve picked up on the fifth ring.
"Hello, Harrington residence, Steve speaking."
"Steve!" Robin exclaimed, gripping the phone tightly in her shaking hands, "He's here! In Hawkins! I can feel him, it's so strong and he must be here to destroy everything! This is what we've been waiting for and now I'm pretty sure that we're not ready if we could ever be ready and I seriously have no clue what to do right now!"
"Whoa, whoa, slow down. What happened?" His voice was laced with worry, yet still had the tone that made everyone trust him. Strong and sure.
Robin forced herself to take a deep breath. "One. I feel him. He's close."
She could hear Steve take in a sharp inhale. "When did you feel this?"
"Just now."
"How strong?"
"Too strong. I think it's time. I think this is what we've been dreading. He's here. He has to be. He's going to kill us. He's going to kill us all! What are we going to do?"
He took a second before responding, an excruciating second that couldn't drag out any longer. "I'm coming to pick you up. I'll call Joyce and try to get in contact with the kids and Hopper, just to make sure that they're okay."
"How…how long will you be? What if he attacks someone, attacks you, or El, or the kids, or meー"
"We'll be fine, Rob. Just hang tight, and don't panic. I'm on my way. Remember, you're strong. You'll be okay."
She nodded, her body shaking with suppressed sobs. "Okay. Okay."
"Exactly. Hang tight. I'll be there in five."
Robin could hear the phone click, signaling that he hung up, and Robin dropped the phone back onto her bed, the chord making it snake to the ground with a bang. She didn't care if her parents heard, there were bigger problems that she was being faced with. That they all faced.
One's presence grew stronger in Robin's mind, and she tried to fight it, pushing her own feelings of fear into his presence, feelings of fear and worry. It didn't seem to help. She didn't really know why she expected anything else.
After writing a quick note to her parents letting her know that she was going over to Steve's place, she opened her window, climbing out onto the small roof that covered the patio. Robin hated the fact that she was sneaking out, but she couldn't answer her parents' questions if she ran out the front door. She wouldn't have been able to meet Steve, stop One, or make sure that everyone was okay. She could call everyone, sure, but that wouldn't stop her fear. A part of her wanted to open her mind completely, read everyone's thoughts, feel what they were feeling, but she knew that it would do nothing but hurt her.
So she sat on the roof, perched awkwardly as she waited for Steve to pick her up. She could feel a sick feeling of pleasure, of pride, of fulfillment, enter her mind, but she shook it away, knowing that it wasn't hers. But it got stronger, stronger, crashing over her like a wave, over and over again. She had to close her eyes, hoping that it would do something to illuminate the pain.
It didn't.
It's time for your suffering to end.
Robin held back a scream as the words slammed into her, penetrating all of her thoughts until there was nothing left for her to fight back with. Her hands clutched her head, willing the pain and agony to go away, her hair wound tightly in her fingers. She felt vomit rise in her throat, choking her, and she fell to her knees, the shingles of the roof rough against her skin, gasping for breath that she desperately needed. She was going to puke. She was going to puke and die right here on her own roof. She couldn't fight him. One was going to beat her.
"Robin!"
She let out a watery laugh followed by a sob as she opened her eyes, seeing Steve standing below her, his eyes wide with concern. She opened her mouth to talk, but for once she was rendered speechless, her voice gone because of the fear.
Steve somehow managed to get to the roof in a few seconds, first clambering onto the garbage can, stepping onto the porch railing, balancing on it unsteadily, and lifting himself up onto the roof as quickly as he could.
Robin watched him with a delirious giggle, tears falling down her face as shock set in.
"We're all going to die. We're all going to die." She muttered, and Steve wrapped her in his arms, letting her shake in his grip.
"No, we're not. We're not."
"But how can you know that?" She asked, her voice getting louder, "You can't feel him like I do! You don't know how strong he is, how much power he has! I can't stop him! All I can do is feel him and hear him as he does who knows what!"
"Robin!" Steve yelled, getting her attention, but he then softened his voice, rubbing her back soothingly. "Robin. I know it's scary, I know it's tough, but you can do it. We can do this. We haven't lived this long just to die because of this guy."
"You can't know that, Steve! For all we know we could all be dead this very night!"
"I'm not giving up, Robin, and maybe it's foolish of me to believe in hope but I do." His voice was sure, a stark contrast to her own, and she let herself listen to him. "As long as we have each other, our family, our friends, we can beat this. We just have to stay strong and keep on going. You have to believe that. Please. Believe it for me."
Robin took in a shaky breath as she processed his words, One's presence growing softer and softer with every moment. Was it because Steve had calmed her a bit, or had One finished his task and was finally leaving?
She had a feeling that she knew what was going on, and it terrified her.
"I'm so scared." She whispered, and Steve nodded solemnly.
"I am too. But everyone's okay. I called them all except Lucas, but he's with his basketball guys, I'm sure that he's fine. Us basketball players don't go down without a fight, and he's in a big group. Less of a target for any of the monster's we've faced."
Robin nodded along shakily, despite knowing that Steve was terrified for Lucas, because why wouldn't he be? One of his kids, unaccounted for?
Nonetheless, Steve continued.
"We're going to go to the Byer's place before work tomorrow, and talk over a plan. Hopefully whatever One's planning hasn't happened yet."
Robin frowned, anguish filling her heart and spilling into the world around her, knowing that Steve was wrong, Steve didn't know, he didn't feel what she felt, she didn't know what she knew. She knew that, in whatever One was doing, he had succeeded.
She met his eyes, her blue ones staring into his brown, and shivered.
"It already has."