A NEW AND IMPROVED VERSION
Ryan Fordman has lived next door to Steve Harrington her entire life. Her entire life, he'd always been a window away, occasionally shouting across the space between their houses. They were inseparable... at least, they we...
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Ryan leaned against the wall with Nancy, Steve swinging his bat in the kitchen as Dustin sat at the table. She looked around the corner, watching as he swung, thinking back to Nancy swinging the same bat before they went into the woods to hunt the demogorgan. Every swing was determined and flawless, she was surprised he didn't just join the baseball team.
She leaned back against the wall with a sigh, eyes falling on Max sitting on the floor with Lucas in the empty hallway. They talked in hushed voices, legs intertwined in a comfortable position as they stretched out. She couldn't help but smile, it was cute.
Ryan turned her head to look at Nancy, seeing her lost in thought, "You're with Jonathan now, aren't you?"
Nancy faced her, eyes wide in disbelief, "How did you-"
"I know you, and I know him." She shrugged, shifting her attention back to Steve in the kitchen. "It was all over your face when we ran into you outside the lab."
Nancy studied the way Ryan watched Steve, smiling softly. She had thought she had seen them holding hands outside the lab in the woods, but she wasn't sure. Ryan and Steve always had a bond she never understood, but now she knew for sure, "You're with Steve now, aren't you?"
"Um, yeah." Ryan shifted awkwardly on her feet, playing with the ballet slippers on her charm bracelet. Being in love with her best friend's boyfriend was hard enough, but actually getting together with him just a couple days after their breakup? She had no idea how Nancy was going to take it, and she did not want to lose her best friend. Not after everything they had been through. "I am."
"Good." Nancy said with a small smile. "Good, I thought it would take you guys forever to figure it out."
Ryan raised an eyebrow, "You're okay with this?"
"Are you kidding?" Nancy laughed quietly. "I am more than okay with this. If our world wasn't about to end, I'd probably be jumping for joy. I want you to be happy, and I know no one makes you happier than he does."
"Does Jonathan make you this happy?" She asked.
Nancy nodded, "Yeah, yeah I guess he does."
"Good," Ryan said with a straight face. "Because if he ever hurts you, I'll kill him. I swear I'll do it."
"Me too, me too." Nancy pulled Ryan in for a hug, Ryan letting out a small sigh of relief. They were still them. Nancy and Ryan, the monster hunting best friends. They were fine. When they pulled away, Nancy's eyes focused on the healing scar on Ryan's cheek, "What happened there?"
Ryan opened her mouth to give her lame excuse when the lights above them started to flicker. She turned around, walking to the door, Steve coming up next to her, taking her hand.
She glanced over at the tool shed, her heart pounding. Will was causing the electrical problems, meaning he was awake, stressed and scared. The thought alone was enough to bring tears to her eyes- then she remembered the three kids behind her, just as scared as she was, possibly more.
