Holding Out for a Hero {Steve Harrington}

009

Jack resented him because he felt more trapped than ever, now bound to his wife not only by their vows but by blood.

What was once a fairy tale had become a nightmare. The Harrington's love had burned too fast and too bright. Fueled by passion but snuffed out by bitterness.

Growing up, Steve was all too aware of these things.

Since they were so often away from home, Steve would hang on to his parent's every word when he got to see them. Even words exchanged during a fight. Especially those, really. They were the most honest ones.

The only time Alice bothered to talk to Steve was to occasionally spite Jack. She would make a cruel game of it by speaking only to him and ignoring her husband.

"Stevie, can you get this jar open for me?" She'd call out from the kitchen even though Jack was sitting at the table, perfectly capable.

"Did you hear the Peterson's were nearly robbed down the street? Ugh, this town is going to shit... But you'd protect me from a burglar, wouldn't you, darling?"

Jack would look up from his newspaper to see that she had been asking Steve, not him. He'd scowl, crumpling the paper in his fists.

It was toxic and ridiculous.

But Steve, obvious, would eat up the attention. Most of the time, his mother never even looked at him, let alone asked him for favors or called him pet names.

But those days would almost always end in an argument.

When listening to their fights from the other room, he often heard shouting and shattering dishware followed by the sound of sloppy, desperate kisses and hushed moans.

Steve learned that love leads to distrust, anger, and violence. The violence, in turn, leads to lust in a torturous cycle.

He decided then that it would be nothing like that when he fell in love. There would be no spark, no lustful flame eating away at his sanity.

No, when Steve fell in love, it would be calm. It would be cool, like a breeze at the first light of spring. There would be no infatuation but rather a purposeful devotion. Love would not simply happen to him; he would choose it. He would pick someone kind and gentle. Someone he liked but not too much. They would get married and have a whole brood of little Harrington's who would have a much happier childhood than he ever could. They would never fight, ever. It would be easy.

When you were kids, he'd considered you the most likely candidate. He'd never say it because he didn't think he needed to. It was unspoken. The two of you had everything he'd hoped for in those early years.

It was easy, just like he wanted. Effortless. You never fought. The two of you didn't even need to speak to communicate, even when you were no longer mute. It was easy - it was safe.

But then he got older, and so did you. As he grew, so did his emotions. They became hot and passionate - what he feared above all else. He found himself becoming angry and fearful for stupid reasons.

One such reason was Eddie Munson during the seventh-grade talent show.

Steve had been enjoying the performance at first.

Eddie was just a scrawny kid with a buzz cut at the time. He wore tattered, stained clothing that was far too big for him. His denim vest hung loosely on his bony frame like a blanket. But the strangest thing about the outfit was the amount of jewelry he wore for a guy. Both hands were decorated with chunky silver rings, and his left wrist was covered by a row of leather studded bracelets.