Author's note: This is my first attempt at a Stranger Things fic. After the announcement about season 5 being delayed until the second half of 2025, I figured if we wanted to see some kind of resolution to the characters we all cared about so much, we'd pretty much have to do it for ourselves. If this is your first time reading something by me, the writing style can take a little getting used to. I prefer to stick with one POV through each chapter, giving the reader their view of what's going on and how they feel about it. Steve seemed the easiest one to catch the reader up quickly with what's been happening since the end of season 4. There are of course gaps here, but I promise everything will be fleshed out over the next few chapters. If Steve isn't really your thing, no worries, the next chapter will center around the Party and what they've been up to.
With no more rambling from me, I hope you'll enjoy my take on season 5. I try to answer all my reviews, and welcome any and all feedback.
Chapter 1: King of the Rubble
"That..." Steve Harrington trailed off as he drifted aimlessly towards the looming form of the Hawkins High School gymnasium, his hand fidgeting with his now half-mast tie to fight the almost uncontrollable urge to run it through, and thus further mess up, his hair, "Was NOT fun."
Still looking spiffy, if a bit rumpled, in his newly reissued uniform, Chief Hopper dropped a hand onto the base of the kid's neck with a deep chuckle as they walked, "City meetings usually aren't."
"I've never been interrogated like that in my life," Still looking a bit shell-shocked, the younger man gave up the ghost and dragged a slightly shaky hand through his locks, "And I've actually been interrogated!"
Shoving Steve forward a bit good-naturedly, Hopper smiled as he fell back into step with him. "Look, kid. When they started looking for firms to put this place back together, you had to know the idea of Steve fucking Harrington riding in to pick up the pieces?"
Stopping by the large doors to the gym, he pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and snagged out two, handing one off before lighting his own, "You had to know that was gonna be a tough sell."
Taking the offered lighter with unfocused eyes, Steve lit his own and took a long drag, "I did all the work, Chief! Trucks, crew, tools... I even got Henderson to estimate timetables and costs."
Letting his head fall back onto the wall behind him, he exhaled a long stream of smoke and hoped the stress of the day would go along with it, "I mean, I had to sell the house my parents left me, thrash my trust fund, and move into that shitty apartment with Robin to afford it all - they were THRILLED about that by the way - but I'm ready to hit the ground running."
Hopper nodded along as he ashed his cigarette. He'd admittedly been skeptical when approached with the idea, but I'm the end Harrington had made a damn compelling case.
Since the initial "eruption" had settled down, and the eerie quiet they were now enjoying had settled over the town, everyone had sort of been at a loss as to what to do.
Some had left, but the new military post that had popped up conspicuously right outside of town to keep tabs on the situation had brought money into the community. The guys on post needed food, supplies, entertainment, and in short order the now vastly underpriced real-estate had been snapped up left and right.
With a sizable military force nearby bringing at least the illusion of safety, even if the locals didn't know the real reason for it's presence, things had slowly returned to some semblance of normality.
Now they needed to clean up, and eventually, rebuild.
That's why Harrington had come to him with his 'big idea'.
They couldn't exactly allow just anyone to go traipsing through the rubble, completely ignorant of any of the potential dangers their wonderfully cursed home tended to contain in abundance.
As hard as it was for him to believe, Steve did have a good head on his shoulders most of the time. He could trust the kid to let him know if he came across anything that might be a threat, or any clue that the still very active powder keg beneath their feet might be set to go off again.
Apparently someone in the vast government bureaucracy now assigned to monitor Hawkins had agreed with the sentiment, too. Because Hopper had the distinct impression from the meeting they'd just left that the city council wasn't thrilled with the idea of using the young man's services.
Somebody in a black suit or Army green must have done some arm twisting. The Chief just wished he'd been there to see it.
He idly wondered if the same person was the one responsible for getting him his own job back, probably for the same reason they'd preferred Harrington - they were already in on the big secret and knew how to keep it just that - secret.
When he'd decided to resume his duties, mostly to keep an eye on El after she'd flat out refused to leave Mike's side again and Joyce had snatched up a piece of the wildly inexpensive housing now dotting the town, it had been more than a little surprising when Harrington had stepped up without even being asked to help.
Three nights a week they prowled the town after sundown, hitting spots he couldn't exactly explain to his deputies. It would have been maybe a step too far to say he liked the cocky bastard, but he had at least found a grudging respect.
He'd bailed his little girl out more than once, and that was good enough for Hopper any day.
"Come on, kid." Crushing the butt of his smoke under the toe of his boot, the Chief motioned to the door with his chin, "Might as well head in. I'll even look the other way if you feel like tying one on tonight. I'd say you've earned it."
Nodding along with the first enthusiasm he'd shown all night, Steve thought for a second about straightening his tie before abandoning the idea and barreling through the double doors, "Good call. Best call, actually. There should be medals for calls like that..."
"Deep breaths, kid." Tossing a wave to Joyce, Hopper decided to disengage as quickly as possible, "It's over now, so enjoy yourself. Happy new year."
"Yeah... Happy new year." Glancing around the dimmed space, it only took Harrington a few seconds before zeroing in on the refreshments and making a beeline for them.
With downtown still in shambles, it had been decided to hold the town's New Years Eve celebration in the largest venue available, which just so happened to be the school gym. The streamers and twinkling lights adorned nearly everything in sight and a local band was setting up on the makeshift stage under one of the folded up basketball hoops.
It wasn't even eight PM yet, and the room was already getting pretty loud. It shouldn't have surprised him. These people had seen their lives, and now their entire town, thrown into turmoil over the past few years, and were looking to blow off some steam and kick off what they hoped would be a far more pleasant new year.
Dodging between bodies already moving unsteadily under the influence with a practiced ease honed by years of massive parties thrown in houses far too small for purpose, he sniffed three different solo cups before locating one that burned his nostrils and headed off in search of friendly faces.
"Harrington!"
Speak of the devil.
Dustin almost tripped three separate times while scrambling down the bleachers, earning a cringe each and every one from the older man before he skidded to a halt in front of him, practically bouncing on his feet, "Did we get it?!"
Taking a long pull from his cup and casually checking the time on his watch, Steve looked at everything in the room while the rest of the group filtered over at a more leisurely pace, eventually turning to Mike as if he hadn't heard the question, "Nice threads, Wheeler. Where'd you get them?"
Leaning into her much taller boyfriend's side, El grinned while tugging on the tip of his tie, "Nancy took him shopping."
"Hey!" Straightening his tie while trying to fight off a smile, the teen glanced down at his shoes in embarrassment. "I picked it out. She just... helped."
"Yes. By picking it out." El rolled her eyes, "You look very handsome. Even if it did take you an entire hour to tie your tie."
"It wouldn't have taken me that long if someone hadn't kept messing it up every two seconds," Mike replied.
"Seriously?!" Dustin looked one step short of stomping his foot, "We're talking about clothes right now?!"
Steve barely fought off a smile while turning to Will as if nothing was amiss, "You guys getting settled back in okay? Like the new house?"
"It's great!" The younger Byers was grinning ear to ear, both at the way Dustin was losing his mind and the idea of his new digs, "Mom let me turn the entire basement into my room. It's like having my own little apartment all to myself."
"Well, it would be if I wasn't still sharing it with El." Grabbing the girl's hand, he gave it a squeeze to let her know it didn't bother him, "But that's just until she and Hopper find a new place. Apparently being legally dead for a while makes paperwork difficult."
El returned the squeeze, "I'm just glad I'm on a different floor for once, from there I can barely hear the snoring."
Dustin finally snapped, glaring at each of his friends in turn. His traitorous, traitorous friends, "If you all ignore me for ONE more second, I swear!"
"Oh," Glancing up from under his bangs with a look of feigned shock, Harrington's smile was as lopsided as always, "Didn't see ya there, Henderson. How are things?"
Dustin sputtered for almost ten seconds straight before El leaned forward and rested a finger on the boy's temple with a look of genuine curiosity, "I think you broke his brain."
"Damn, too bad." Steve snapped his fingers, "Now he'll never hear the good news!"
Breaking out of his daze and springing forward, he almost knocked the drink out of his friend's hand, "You got it?!"
"Was there ever any doubt?" Steve scoffed.
"Yes!" Poking the man in the chest, Henderson rolled his eyes, "Of course there was doubt. SO much doubt!"
Approaching the group with a swish of her skirt and a slight wobble that Steve noted with a little trepidation based on painful experience, Nancy rested a hand on Dustin's shoulder, "You should never doubt Steve Harrington when it counts. He's always surprising you."
"This!" Pointing at his former girlfriend, Steve tossed his empty into one of the gray trashcans dotting the room, "This is what I keep telling you all! You should listen to your elder."
Mike rolled his eyes at that, "You guys are like five minutes older than us."
Nancy tweaked his cheek, leaning into him a bit while nursing her own drink, "But it's a valuable five minutes."
"Crucial, even." Steve nodded his agreement, "It was the five minutes they covered all the important stuff."
"You two are so full of it." El scoffed.
Snagging another drink from the table at his back in preparation for an old fashioned King Steve drunk, said King graced her with a smile, "See, you only think that because you missed the important part. Just take our word for it, okay?"
"So, when do I start?" Ignoring literally everything else about the conversation, Dustin was practically vibrating by this point.
Nancy perked up a bit at that, looking between the teen and her former boyfriend, "You've got him working for you, now?"
"Pffffft. More like he's working for me! I applied for the permits, figured out the LLC, organized his payroll..."
"Yeah, yeah. You're a genius, we get it." Steve narrowed his eyes, "You can do weekends until school ends, IF your mom says it's okay. But you're sticking to office work until summer."
"That's totally unfair!" Henderson tossed his hands in the air, "And 'the office' is Robin's coffee table!"
"I'll have you know that coffee table is mine," Steve trailed off into mumbles, rolling his hand. "The couch is Robin's. But that's fine, I hear sitting is bad for you anyways."
Mike couldn't help but laugh at that, "Was that little tidbit part of the five minutes we missed?"
"Maybe." The older man shrugged, scratching the back of his neck, "Why is everyone ganging up on me, here? It's starting to feel personal."
"Yeah, leave him alone guys." Nancy polished off her own drink with barely a grimace, an odd look in her eyes as she caught his for just a moment, "I imagine he comes home to enough attitude already as it is."
"Uh... yeah?" Steve cast a confused glance at the back of her head as Nancy snagged another drink off the table and wandered off towards the other end of the gym. "Did I miss something?"
Mike thought his friend was missing pretty much everything these days, but it was hard to focus on that when El's fingernails were doing that thing at the base of his skull, "Jonathan had to head back right after Christmas."
El frowned, but kept up the motions of her fingers, "The school is letting him pick up the credits he needs by taking night classes."
Casting one last glance in Nancy's direction, Steve shook his head. "I thought he was transferring out here?"
"They won't let him until he's caught up." Will shrugged, not looking forward to the idea of his brother being clear across the country for the next few months, "Fall semester at the earliest."
"Well, shit." Harrington said, "Explains why she's in such a weird mood, at least."
Looking at the older man like he'd just told him that he juggled cooked trout as a hobby, Mike snarked, "Oh yeah. I'm sure that's the only reason."
Catching the gaze of a few passing girls, and grinning when they glanced away and fell into a fit of giggles, Steve shrugged out of his coat and started the process of rolling up the sleeves of his dress shirt, "That explains Jonathan, where's everyone else? I thought tonight was all hands on deck?"
El mumbled a bit as she stared longingly at the couples starting to make their way over to the dance floor, gripping Mike's hand. "Max said she didn't want to spend the entire night getting 'tripped over like a fucking speedbump'."
The humor of Eleven dropping an F bomb, something that was typically guaranteed to bring a smile to Steve's face, was replaced quickly enough at the thought of the spunky redhead's injuries.
Finishing off his second drink, Harrington grabbed one of the plastic liquor bottles off the table while ignoring the woman who seemed assigned to keep the children from partaking's glare.
With yet another reminder of all the times he'd been just a bit too slow, a bit too far away, or unable to help because his ass was just a little too kicked, Steve decided to accelerate his timetable for the evening.
He was supposed to be celebrating, not wallowing.
Unscrewing the cap from the bottle, he filled his cup roughly two thirds of the way with vodka before topping it off with what appeared to be some kind of dark fruit juice.
Catching the questioning looks and more than one pair of wide eyes belonging to his younger friends, Steve just shrugged. "Sinclaire chilling with her then, I take it?"
"You know it." Despite his history with this kind of thing, Will seemed to be far more understanding than he usually would have been at the circumstances, "We see even less of him now than we did when he was hanging with the jocks all the time."
Mike rested a hand on the other boy's shoulder, "What else is he supposed to do? It's not like her mom is a lot of help, working all the time to cover her medical stuff."
"Yeah, she said it was rough for a while, but people have been helping where they can." Dustin shrugged.
El smiled warmly as she looked over at her father and Joyce locked in quiet conversation, "Hop finished installing the ramp on her house last week, and put one of those swingy-doors on their bathtub. I thought she was going to cry..."
"Then she called Hopper an overprotective jackass," Dustin tossed an elbow into Will's side, "And a few more things I'm not repeating with my physics teacher ten feet away."
"Yep," Harrington nodded along absently, now clearly invested in scoping the talent. After all, it was New Years Eve. "Still Max."
"Dude," Mike tossed a finger in his direction, "If head trauma caused instant personality changes, by now you'd be a ballet teacher named Darlene."
Grimacing slightly as he took a drag from his cup, Steve flared his nostrils a bit, "Who says I'm not? Maybe I'm just a ballet teacher named Darlene on a deep, deep cover mission to discover the secrets of Byers next D&D campaign?"
"It'll take a lot more than you to make me crack." Will leaned away from his friend a bit, the acrid smell wafting off his cup literally burning his eyes, "But while we're on the topic, did anyone ever find out who keeps leaving groceries on Max's porch?"
Coughing in the back of his throat as he eyed a small throng of young women near half court, Harrington took another swig, exhaled sharply, and turned to Dustin, "How do I look?"
Resting his hand on his chin as he leaned forward thoughtfully, Henderson used his other to move a few bits of hair around in random directions, "Sorry, best I can do. The hair I can work with, but the face is as doofy as ever."
"I'll take it!" Slinging his coat over one shoulder, the older man slipped into an exaggerated saunter as he made his way towards the court, "Cover me, Henderson. I'm going in!"
The group watched the departing figure of their friend for a few moments before preparing to go their own ways to start the night.
Snickering a bit to himself, Mike took his girlfriend's hand and started leading her over towards the dance floor, "You think he'll ever admit it's him dropping off the groceries?"
"No." El let her head rest against the taller boy's arm as they walked, already swaying with the music. "I think Darlene is taking that one to her grave."
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"Wait!" The short brunette in the rather sickly yellow dress standing in front of his slowly blurring vision shoved an excited finger towards Steve's face, "That's where I know you from! You're the guy from Family Video!"
The taller blonde to her right tilted her head in confusion, "I thought I remembered him from the mall..."
Quickly moving the conversation along, Harrington pulled out his most winning smile, "I just have one of those faces. People think they see me, everywhere!"
"Yeah, that must be it." The brunette giggled into her hand, "Though you'd think I'd remember. You certainly make an impression."
"Well," Leaning in with only the smallest wobble, Steve dropped his voice like he was letting the girl in on a closely guarded secret, "So do you, Lacey."
Leaning back a bit, the girl quirked a brow, "It's Staci. With an I."
"Well, I still get partial credit, right?" Dropping puppy dog eyes so potent they even worked on Robin occasionally on the girl through his bangs, he brought out the big guns, "Especially considering it's just so hard to concentrate on a name when I've got those eyes to focus on."
The girl's eye-roll didn't stop the laughter from escaping her throat, "Oh, you are SHAMELESS!"
"You have no idea," Careful not to let the relief he felt dodging that bullet show on his face, Steve took the girl's empty cup from her hand, "But let me make it up to you."
Already wandering backwards, he tossed a thumb towards the tables, "What are we drinking, Staci with an I?"
Considering the question for a lot longer than a drink order usually required, she cast a meaningful glance at the friend at her side before turning back to him, "Punch... I don't think you're gonna be in any shape to drive yourself home tonight."
Having mastered a skill his best friend seemed physically incapable of, primarily shutting off the flow of words from her mouth when necessary, Steve just nodded before he turned a yes into a no and spun around towards the drinks.
"She's right, you know." Nancy slurred a bit from off his other shoulder, sidling up to the table beside him. "You are shameless."
His head flopping forward as he let a breath hiss through pursed lips, Steve answered as evenly as he could. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"I mean the triumphant return!" Nancy's voice ratcheted up in volume just enough to draw curious glances from a few of the closer occupants of the room and a blush to creep up Steve's neck, "The once and future king, am I right?"
"You think that's what this is?" He lowered his voice in the vain hope she'd get the message that they were being overheard, "That I'm trying to relive..."
"No! Not at all." Nancy looked only a hair shy of the venom she'd unleashed on him years earlier. The girl and booze were clearly not a good combination. "Frankly, I don't think that's enough for you anymore. King of Hawkins High? Why settle?"
"Jesus, Nance..."
"King of HAWKINS!" Nancy tossed her arms out to the side when he attempted to take hold of one of them, "Parading down the street, surveying your little subjects..."
"No, no... you're right. It's fitting." Having literally no idea where this was coming from, Steve narrowed his eyes at the slip of a girl in front of him. "King of the fucking rubble! Because that's what this IS, Nancy! THAT is what we 'saved'!"
She stepped back at that, head tilting curiously, obviously having difficulty willing her alcohol clouded mind to catch up, "Then why the hell are you still here, huh?"
Pinching the bridge of his nose, Steve snapped harder than he intended too, "Because the people I care about are here!"
Unsure if it was because he was hammered or just at the end of his rope, the man genuinely couldn't figure out what had set her off or why it seemed to be his problem, "You guys are my family... if I leave, I can't protect you all. So I'm staying, it's that fucking simple."
Nancy's voice was small, "She loves you too, you know."
Looking at the girl in front of him like she'd lost her mind, Steve shook his head, "What are you talking about? Who loves me?"
"Robin."
Starting and stopping no less than three times, Steve's face contorted in confusion, "I've talked to you about that. Hell, she said SHE talked to you about that!"
"Yeah, and you're both full of shit." Nancy seemed to be working herself back into a lather, much to her friend's annoyance, "If it's about saving my feelings or something, don't bother. I know what's going on even if you both insist on denying it."
Cutting Harrington off before he could interject, she pushed on, just wanting to say her piece and go home, "But she loves you, Steve."
"And you love her," Scoffing in his face when he went to reply, she was on a roll now and he was going to listen to her for once. "Trust me, I know the signs, remember?"
Finally slowing down a bit, Nancy's voice was a harsh whisper, "And you LIVE together. You can't keep doing stuff like this... people notice. People TALK."
Finally starting to see her problem, or at least imagining he had an idea, Steve cut her off, "I promise that you don't understand, okay? It's not what it looks like."
"Okay," Nancy flared her eyes, tossing her palms up. "Then how is it, really? Explain it to me."
What was he supposed to say? That Robin's parents had heard her on the phone with a girl she'd been seeing? That they'd freaked out so hard she'd had to live at his house until he'd sold the place?
Maybe he'd inform her that the only reason said parents were even speaking to her again now were because they'd rather have a daughter finishing High School shacked up with her coworker from Family Video than one who was attracted to girls?
Should he tell her about the nights she crawled into bed with him, when he had no idea if the tears were from some nightmare about the upside down or simply because she'd endured another phone call where her mother kept hassling her about when Steve was going to propose, and she just didn't have it in her to correct the woman because at least she was treating her like a daughter again?
But no. It wasn't his place. Robin was his best friend, quite literally the best thing in his life, and he'd protect her just like he did everyone else.
But Nance was right. It was a small town, and they lived together. People made assumptions and as long as those assumptions were helping his best friend live her life easier, the least he could do is not correct people about them.
"It just... isn't, okay?" Looking down at his shoes, Steve shrugged a bit like a scolded child, "Please. You have to trust me on this."
Nancy eyed him for a long moment before shaking her head, "You know, for a minute I almost thought you were trying to get back together with me?"
She swiped at her eyes angrily, smearing mascara and eyeshadow down her cheek, "How stupid was that?"
Exhaling through his nose, Steve did what he always did best - protect everyone but himself, "It would have been pretty stupid, yeah. You and Jonathan are great together... he can take care of you. Be there for you."
"He's gone." Nancy snapped, staring up at the ceiling to try and will the burn out of her eyes, "You're here. You're ALWAYS here, Steve."
Her former boyfriend nodded sadly, "There's a word for that, Nance. Stuck."
Reaching out slowly, he ran a hand over her arm, "Don't be stuck, okay? Get the hell out of here and never look back."
Sniffling a few times, Nancy brought her eyes back down, noticing a look on Steve's face she didn't think she'd ever seen before, "And what are you gonna do?"
"I'm gonna end it." He didn't even hesitate, "Or, more likely, do what I always do."
Despite everything, the eldest Wheeler couldn't help but chuckle, "Get your ass kicked?"
Shoving his hands into his pockets, Steve's shoulders nearly reached his ears as he shrugged sheepishly, "I always preferred 'go down swinging'. Sounds more... dignified?"
"Well, see... if you wanted me gone, you just screwed up." Nancy tossed her hands into the air.
"Oh, I did, did I?"
"Yep. You're forgetting who always has to bail you out when you get in over your head." Nance sighed shakily, "If you're gonna charge in like an idiot, I have no choice but to save you. Dustin would never forgive me."
"You're probably right about that." Steve cast a fond glance in the kid's direction just in time to catch an enthusiastic thumbs up he was flashing him over the shoulder of the girl he was dancing with, "I mean, how else would he have pulled that off?"
Snapping back into the moment at his words, Nancy pulled her purse off the table and slung it over her shoulder, casting a glance at the girl staring at Steve's back while twirling her hair a few yards away, "You certainly don't have a problem with that, do you?"
"Nance..."
"It's fine." She just smiled tightly, "It's none of my business. Enjoy your night, Steve... tell Robin I said hi."
Reaching out blindly, Steve snagged one of the cups off the table and nursed it while watching the woman weave through the crowd, having literally no idea what he was supposed to do about it.
"Ex-girlfriend?" Sidling up to his left, Lucy with a Y, or whatever her name was, ran the fingernails of her left hand lightly over the skin at the curve of his elbow.
Draining the remains of his cup in three long pulls, Harrington nodded numbly, "Yeah. Long time ago."
Casting a finger wave at her friend over his shoulder, Marcie with an IE curled into his side, "I think we should forget about that drink and you let me get you home and out of that stuffy suit."
Tossing one arm around the small of the girl's back, the other grabbing a drink for the road, Steve couldn't have agreed more, "Sounds like a plan. If we hurry, the pizza should still be warm when we get there."
Curling two fingers through the belt loop at Steve's back, Kacee with 2 Es was already running her nose along the curve of his neck, "Pizza?"
"Yeah," Shoving open the door and letting the girl lead him towards her car, Steve couldn't contain the fond smile spreading across his face, "My roommate manages a pizza place, and neither of us can really cook, so we ALWAYS have pie."
The girl chuckled to herself while opening the passenger door for him, "Pretty awesome roommate."
Steve slipped into the seat and let his head flop back onto the winter-chilled leather, "Yeah. The best."
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Between ingesting enough booze to power a transatlantic voyage and the hundred pound girl seemingly trying to crawl inside him to nest, Steve found the trek up the staircase leading to his apartment took a bit longer than it usually did.
Not that he was complaining about it, mind you.
"You seriously didn't think I knew who you were?" Pulling back long enough to catch her breath, Staci spun on her heels and tugged him up the last few steps by his tie, hips sashaying the entire way. "I was only a year behind you, not in a coma through high school, sweetie."
Trying not to fall forward while digging his keys out of his pocket was a feat Steve wouldn't normally have been proud of, but tonight he felt like pulling off both simultaneously was right up there with winning the World Series as he triumphantly raised the jingling mass in front of his face, "I really did work at Family Video, though."
"Sounds riveting." Stepping back up into his space, Staci pulled the taller man down by his tie while leaning him into the wall beside the doorway and dragging her lips along the curve of his jaw, "You can tell me all about it... after."
Finding her terms entirely acceptable, Steve swung them around while attacking her lips, fumbling blindly for the lock now sitting off to the right of the girl's hip.
"Just give me a second to... ooohhh," Feeling a shiver run through his back, Harrington had always found it incredibly hard to concentrate with a woman's fingers tangled into his hair.
Using his other arm to shove off the door and buy himself some much needed space to work, he quickly managed to slip the key into place and turn the handle, making sure to wrap both hands securely around her waist as Staci stumbled backwards into the apartment.
Kicking the door closed behind him and making a mental note to eventually retrieve the keys he'd just heard jangle against the other side of it, Steve was already back to her lips as she started making short work of the buttons on his shirt.
It was just about the time she was pulling the tails out of his pants that he felt her pause, head tilting to the side as her hands slowed to a crawl.
Pulling back and catching her eying something over his shoulder, Steve quirked a brow in question, "Something wrong?"
Chuckling to herself, Staci could feel her head tilt further to the side as she tried to take in the object nestled to the side of the door, "Um... what is that?"
"Ooohhhh," Still running his fingers in random patterns up and down the girl's sides, Steve laughed against the skin of her neck, "It's just my bat."
Eyeing the bright red box containing what appeared to be a baseball bat covered in nails nestled behind a glass sheet with white lettering reading: In Case of Emergency Break Glass, Staci was having a hard time concentrating herself as his tongue did THAT just below her ear. "Yeah.. I, I... remember you played sports..."
"Something like that," Sliding the straps of her dress down onto her arms, Steve ran an appreciative eye over the girl in front of him while guiding her down onto the couch, stepping back long enough to pull his shirt off and toss the garment over his shoulder.
Unfortunately, it was in that precise moment as she settled into the cushions and beckoned him forward with a crooked finger that the door to the bathroom opened up, Pat Benatar and Irish Spring flooding the apartment.
"Awesome! You're home!" Bouncing into the hall looking absolutely swamped in his old swim team hoodie, Robin was toweling her hair with a grin, "Considering the big meeting I was worried when you didn't show, so I broke open the champagne without you."
"Dont worry, though, I saved you some!" Clearly missing the deer in headlights look her best friend was shooting her as she rounded the corner into the kitchen, Robin tossed him a smile as the towel flipped back and forth in front of her face rapidly, "Well, a little, anyways. It's the bubbles, you know?!"
"Like, I know I should stop drinking but then I get tickles in the back of my throat which makes me drink more to make the tickles go away, which of course just prolongs the vicious cycle and like, now here I am with two inches of champagne left - champagne YOU bought I might add!"
"Um, Robs..."
"Not that it matters," Snagging a piece of pizza from the box on the counter, Robin took a large bite before continuing to speak around it, "Looks like you got a head start, anyways."
"Don't feel bad, my night sucked too." Tossing the towel onto the counter, she let her hair drip onto the shoulders of his already spotty sweatshirt, "I guess no one cooks on New Years and two of our drivers got stuck in the snow so we got all backed up."
Catching the ever-widening eyes on the girl still sprawled out on the couch in front of him, Steve ran a shaky hand through his locks, "Um, Robin..."
"I know, I know! I drank too much," Rolling her eyes, Robin shoved the crust of her pizza into her mouth, "But come on, it's not like we're exciting and fun and doing anything!"
Snagging the remains of the champagne bottle by the neck in one hand and the box of pizza in the other, she gave a clumsy twirl while making her way towards the living room, "Now it's almost midnight, so ditch the monkey suit, scarf some pizza, and pucker up because I am NOT ushering in the New Year without... oh. Hi?"
Having had more than a few near death experiences over the last few years, Steve was a bit shocked at how his heart rate didn't even pick up as he tossed a thumb over his shoulder, "Robin, this is Staci. Staci was just..."
"Just leaving!" Pulling herself up off the couch with a glare while straightening her dress hurriedly, Staci held her hands up apologetically towards the other woman now gawking at her from across the room, "I am so, so sorry! I didn't... Jesus Christ, Harrington! You haven't changed since fucking high school!"
Wondering if this was, in fact, what it felt like as the soul left one's body, Steve just sauntered in her wake until the door slammed in his face and rattled the walls.
Waiting a solid 10 count before opening it back up and calmly retrieving his keys from the lock, he pushed the door closed and flipped the deadbolt into place while bouncing his forehead against the cold wood a few times for effect. "Hi Robs..."
Hissing through her teeth while trying to school the grimace contorting her face, Robin wiggled the fingers she could spare around the neck of the bottle in greeting, "Hi."
Turning around with a shuddering sigh, Steve still hadn't let his eyes pop open, "I got the job."
"Um..." Robin forced a smile while rocking her hands up and down as much as the items in them would allow and letting out a tiny, "Yay."
Running both hands up into his hair while every feature on his normally peaceful face contorted, Steve slid down the door until his ass hit the floor, elbows resting on his knees.
Taking a step forward, Robin stopped when he immediately seemed to tense up, "Still not okay, though?"
Gripping his hair so hard he felt like the roots were giving way, Steve bounced his head off the door twice, hard enough to rattle it in it's frame. "No..."
"Not even a little."
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****** Six Months Later ******
Tink
Tink
Tink
Seeing the cracks forming along the lower section of the concrete foundation, Steve choked up a bit mid-swing and brought the sledge into the center of the spiderweb patterned deformation with a sharp exhale, smiling when it gave and the chunks tumbled down to join the growing pile behind them.
Slinging the wooden handle up and letting it rest along the flat of his shoulders, he let sore hands rest loosely on the warmed surface as he wandered towards the outer edge of the worksite, "Thank God. Was starting to think we'd need a tank to get the south wall out of the way!"
"That's funny," Tommy used the opportunity the interruption presented to pause in his loading of debris into the back of the pickup beside him, "I could have sworn I remembered some dickhead telling us we couldn't bring the dozer up here to do it for us."
"In fact," pausing for dramatic effect, Tommy rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "Looked a LOT like you. About yay tall, floppy hair..."
Steve rolled his eyes as he passed, using the sledge to pivot side to side in a vain effort to stretch out an aching back, "Yeah! Think I know who you're talking about! Gave you a job when the hardware store was smashed, right?"
"Same guy," Tommy conceded with a smirk, tossing another hunk of concrete into the back of the Ford. "Thanks for that, by the way."
Hopping up onto the gate of the blue F-150 he'd traded his beloved car for earlier that year, Harrington let the hammer slip back into the bed with a clatter, "Come on, Tommy... you were a dick, but what kind of guy would let that little nugget you and Carol have on the way starve over some high school bullshit?"
"A lot of guys," Tommy pointed out, leaving Steve with the distinct impression he was referring to himself, which was probably true.
Checking his watch, Harrington leaned back to grab the cooler resting beside the raised wheelwell, sliding it forward to join him on the gate of the truck, "So, any idea when she's due yet or... crap."
Glancing up from under the sweaty locks mostly plastered along his forehead, Steve chuckled, "Foreman's coming."
"Better get back to it then," Tommy adjusted his hard hat before grabbing his now empty wheelbarrow and shoving it back towards the remains of what once had been the Royal Furniture Company, "Before he starts cracking skulls!"
Shaking his head, Steve popped the top of the cooler and pulled a handful of ice out, rubbing it along the back of his neck with a groan, "Before you ask, wall's down. Took me all afternoon with that rebar cutting through it, but we're good to go."
"Awesome! We're two days ahead of the timetable I worked up," Checking a few items off on the clipboard in his hands, Dustin paused long enough to shove a few curls back under his hard hat before glancing up at the older man, "Steve..."
Not even bothering to open his eyes, Steve just allowed himself to enjoy the feeling of the icy water rolling beneath his collar and soaking his back, "Nope."
"Dude, it's OHSA!" Dustin tossed the hand holding his pen up in frustration, "Everyone has to wear their gear on site!"
"I'm sorry," Harrington finally bothered to crack a single eye, skewering his little buddy on the spot, "But did you SEE what that thing did to my hair? Small children cried. The women of Hawkins wore black for a week out of respect! I had to stop the town council from erecting a memorial in it's honor!"
Dustin looked unimpressed, "You sulked..."
"Hey!" That kind of offense deserved a consolation, Steve snagging a beer from the cooler and popping the top without hesitation, "I do not SULK, Henderson!"
"I was brooding," he justified while taking a long pull, "When attractive people do it, it's called brooding."
Hopping up onto the gate beside his friend, Dustin chuckled, "Really spicing up the vocabulary these days, huh? All that time around Robin really paid o..."
The younger man grimaced, realizing his mistake the moment Steve's easygoing smile dissolved into the blank mask he'd only recently started to let slip again, "Hey, I didn't mean to..."
"No problem." Digging around in ice almost as cold as his tone, he handed off a bottle of Coke to his 'boss'. "Since we're ahead of things, I'm gonna let the boys go early today. It's hot as hell out here and I'm starving. That work for you?"
Twisting the cap off his soda, Dustin eyed the recently painted Harrington Construction logo on the side of the other man's truck with a smirk, "Sounds good to me."
Still feeling like an ass, Dustin played with the bottle in his hand, watching the light play along the glass idly. "They finally reopened the theater last week. The guys and I were gonna catch a movie, then grab some pizza and hang out for a while."
"Sounds like fun," Finishing off his beer, Steve crushed the can in his hand before tossing it into a trash bag he had laying in the bed behind him, "Just don't party too hard, we've got an early start tomorrow."
"Yeah, because that's usually such a problem with us." Rolling his eyes theatrically, Dustin decided the subtle route wasn't going to do the trick, "Come on, man! Everyone's back in town for the summer and you haven't spent more than five minutes with anyone but me!"
Steve quirked a brow, "My life can only contain so much awesome, Henderson. Guess your presence in it just has me maxed out."
"While I know that basking in my presence can be a BIT taxing on mere mortals..."
Steve nodded in exaggerated agreement, "Taxing is a good word. Perfect even."
"Aaaaaassss I was saying," Dustin took a swig off his coke, eyeing one of the beers in the cooler longingly, "I feel like your 'routine' could stand a little modifying."
Closing cooler with a tut of his tongue, Harrington shook his head. "My routine is fine. In fact, it's better than fine, it's working."
"How, exactly?" Rolling his eyes at 'mom' bleeding back into what had become a mostly equal relationship these days, Dustin sighed, "You wake up, go to work, go to the diner, work out, then go to bed."
"See?" Steve smiled, "Working. Besides, I do other stuff, too!"
Giving the older man a look that just screamed 'really?', Dustin fought the impulse to return his friend's easy smile. It was hard to stay on task when Steve insisted on being so... Steve. "Patrolling with Hopper three nights a week doesn't count!"
"Does too!"
"No, it really doesn't." Dustin couldn't believe he had to spell this out to Steve freaking Harrington of all people, "You have like, NO life! I've been on more dates in the last six months than you have. Me!"
"Like I said," Steve patted him on the back with that same easy smile, "You're pretty awesome, Henderson. The chicks were bound to catch on to that one day."
Getting nowhere in a hurry, Dustin found it frustrating to the core how the older man always managed to do that. Any time he tried to get him to open up, even a little, about what was going on with him he'd just slip into that smile and charm his way out of the conversation.
It was as maddening as it was effective.
Well, as effective as it was usually, anyways. He had no intention of letting him weasel out this time, "You're coming."
"Oh, I am?" Steve leaned over to glance pointedly at his friend's clipboard, "Got that penciled in on your little schedule, do you?"
Shoving the brim of his hard hat up, Dustin tried to instill a sense of authority into his voice, "Sure do. Says so right here, so don't think you're getting out of it!"
"I have less than zero interest in trying to sit through a movie while you all talk over it and Mike and El dry hump," Steve wasn't budging.
It was almost like the older man had forgotten who he was talking to. Dustin had planned this out the same way he did their workload - methodically and for maximum efficiency, leaving him zero wiggle room, "I'd never dream of asking you to."
That gave Steve pause as he eyed Dustin with an increasing sense of suspicion, focusing in on his face. He knew that look.
He didn't like that look.
Popping the cooler back open, he snagged another beer and took a few long pulls before responding, the younger man's silence only furthering his apprehension, "You wouldn't, huh?"
"Come on, I know you've got this 'routine' that's 'working' so well for you," Dustin's verbal air quotes were as easy to pick up on as his sarcasm, "So I wouldn't want to mess with that. Think of this as an... addition?"
Steve tilted the can back with a chuckle, "An addition?"
"Yeah, an addition!" Henderson shrugged, "Go grab dinner, do your workout, grab a shower - PLEASE grab a shower..."
"Thanks, mom," Steve couldn't help but turn that one around on him, glad he finally had an opportunity to, "Would have never thought of that one without you!"
"Anyways", Dustin glowered, "You'll be done before we get out of the movie, which works great because someone needs to pick Max up from physical therapy."
The easy humor left Steve's face as soon as it had arrived, "You think she'd be... ya know, comfortable with that?"
Dustin hated using his friend's nature against him, but these were desperate times and he WAS just trying to help the man, after all. He'd known as soon as he'd brought up the request, Steve's protective instincts would kick in and override everything else.
He'll, he'd been counting on it.
"Are you kidding? It's better this way. That's why I asked." It was true, despite everything else, and like he tried to bring to Steve's new business venture, he was going for efficiency here.
He had two problems here, why not fix them at the same time? Max absolutely despised the state her therapy left her in, and hated the Party seeing her in it, and Steve's recent descent into social isolation was frankly, freaking everyone out on his behalf.
This worked out for everyone, even if it was a bit... manipulative.
Steve focused intently on the beer in his hand, the other rubbing idly at the wet spot on the back of his collar, "Better how, exactly?"
"It's Max." Dustin said the name like it explained his entire point by itself, which in a way it did. Still, he decided to elaborate, "Those sessions like... wreck her. She pushes herself so hard. When we pick her up, she's hell on wheels, literally!"
"Wouldn't say that to her face," Harrington chuckled.
"Oh hell no!" The younger man joined him, shaking his head, "But the point is, she doesn't like us seeing her like that. Especially Lucas, ya know?"
Nodding along, Steve could certainly understand that sentiment, "I get it."
Now, Steve might not have ever been the sharpest knife in the drawer, but reading people was a skill he prided himself on. Hell, you didn't get to be popular without knowing how to say or do the right thing at the time for the people around you, and it was something he'd always just sort of known instinctively.
At least he'd used to, anyways.
"So that's why you guys figured you'd be 'stuck' at the movies when she got off." Giving Dustin a look that let him know he wasn't fooling anyone, but he wasn't exactly upset about it, Steve continued.
"And you'd have to ask someone else to drive her over for the hangout tonight. Gotcha."
Dustin graced him with a toothy grin, not having expected even 'Mommy Steve' to have folded quite this easily, "It's only every Monday and Thursday."
"Dude, seriously?!" Harrington tossed his hands into the air, careful not to spill his beer in his clear exasperation.
"Yeah," Dustin decided to play his trump card, "Because, as we've established, you have SO much else going on."
"That's not the... well, you can't just expect..." Steve turned his glare towards the undersized pain in his ass currently smirking at him triumphantly, "I should have just walked away and let those 'dogs have you for breakfast. You know this, right? I regret it more every day."
"Dude..." Dustin's eyes widened a bit, "Too far."
Harrington considered it for a minute before shaking his head, "Nope. This time I'm okay with it."
"Naaaaaah." Dustin reached over and slapped his friend three times on the back, "Never happen. You love me too much!"
"Besides," He reminded him, "Who else around here could you find to handle all your paperwork? Do you even know where the permit office IS?"
Steve shrugged awkwardly, it not preventing him from adopting a cocky smile, "In town... somewhere. I assume?"
"I am gonna have to hire so much help for you before I leave for college." Dustin rubbed the bridge of his nose, "You have no idea."
"Actually?" He looked up curiously, "What IS it you bring to this operation, exactly?"
Steve did his best to look affronted, "Hey! I'm the Face!"
He slapped the logo on his truck to punctuate his point, "Like that show with the mohawk guy you're always making me watch. Every operation needs a face!"
"And honestly?" He pointed up to his grimey, sweat covered Visage with a lopsided grin, "You lucked out, there. This face could sell ice to Eskimos."
Dustin was unimpressed, "You were like, the only bidder, dude."
"Doesn't change the fact I landed us the biggest contract in Hawkins." He nodded idly towards the remains of the former furniture store, "And lets face it, we've got enough crap to clear out here to keep us busy for years. Know what they call that?"
"A literal disaster area?" Henderson ventured.
"Job security!" Knocking the helmet off his friend's head, Steve ruffled his curly hair, "With fat, fat, government contracts."
Grumbling to himself, Dustin pulled his hat off the tools in the back of the truck and set it on his lap, "It is a step up from slinging ice cream in the mall, I'll give you that. Though it would be nice if you could still score us free movies."
Finishing off his beer and tossing it into the trash bag in the back, Steve figured he'd better get to it if he was apparently going to be playing chauffeur to a grumpy redhead in a few hours, "Speaking of movies, what time am I picking up the wheelin' demon?"
"Seven." Hopping down alongside his friend, Dustin shoved the gate up for him, knowing this part was going to be harder to pull off than the first had been. "Ya know, Steve, the whole point of this is to keep Max from being all self-conscious and everything..."
"Yeah, duh." Unclipping his belt and tossing it into the bed with the rest of his supplies, Harrington shrugged, "I won't say anything."
"But Max isn't stupid," Dustin widened his eyes a bit, hoping the older man would pick up on his point, "If you just bail after dropping her off, she's gonna know we worked out the movie thing so you'd get her instead of us. Especially if you do it every time."
It was Steve's turn to rub the bridge of his nose, "Should have let them gnaw the flesh from your skinny little bones and made little Dustin toothpicks with your fingers..."
Glad his point had been made, and he'd locked the older man into getting out of his apartment and actually having some human contact at least a few days a week, he smiled triumphantly while turning to walk to his car, "See you around seven thirty, Harrington!"
Steve hopped into the driver's seat with a tired sigh, shouting out the open window at the retreating form with all the irritation he could muster at the moment, "There had better be extra cheese on my pie, Henderson!"
Turning the key with a glower, he muttered darkly to himself, "God help you if there isn't extra cheese..."
It wasn't ever day you got intellectually rolled by someone who couldn't even vote yet.
Well, for normal people anyways. But since when had anything about Steve's life been even remotely what one would consider normal?
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AN 2: I'll try to stick to a chapter a week, but with the holidays coming up I make no promises. Can't wait to hear what everyone thinks so far.
Dekard