I Know The End ✸ Steve Harrington

i. ice cream and gossip

chapter one . . . ice cream and gossip

       THE OMINOUS SKY SPARKED WITH FLICKERS OF red lightening. The place was familiar, somewhere she had stumbled upon before. The all too familiar alternate dimension that hid beneath the town where her and her family had lived for years and a place where she had been visiting within her dreams for weeks stood before her. Rumbling hit her ears as well as her own heartbeat and the echoing of her footsteps as she felt herself sprinting away from the monster that continued to haunt her. She was alone, trapped inside her own mind unable to comprehend what was going on and why she couldn't stop ending up back into the Upside Down.

However, she was thankful that her eyes were shooting open, pulling her away from her thoughts and away from the figure she would always end up seeing. Josie woke up in a sheen of sweat as the summer heat of Indiana lingered in the room.

The two months after graduating high school, Josie was hoping for a slumber of relaxation as spring quickly turned into summer vacation. The girl thought she had the freedom of forgetting everything that had happened a few months ago, but it started to come back in her dreams, taunting her. Even though she knew it was the upside down, it felt different. Not only that, she fought with her mind to ignore the daunting fact that she was moving across the country for college in just under a month. Away from Hawkins, away from everyone.

Steve Harrington's room felt like a sauna as Josie sat up in his bed, her chest aching at the sight of him sprawled out, his hair mussed, his mouth open slightly with soft snores escaping. She felt calm at the sight of her boy, sleeping peacefully and knowing he was safe. The girl gently removed herself from the nest of white sheets and moved toward the window where the velvety, summer breeze poked through the gap, drifting into the bedroom — her skin screaming in relief at the cold hitting her sweaty, warm body.

The Henderson girl didn't realise how long she had stood there for until comforting and heavy arms wrapped her waist, turning her body to meet the soft, brown eyes of her boyfriend. Josie involuntarily hummed at the feel of Steve, still warm from sleep, his hands moving to bunch up her shirt, exposing the bare skin of her stomach.

"Can't sleep?" He softly asked, smoothing his thumbs over her ribs.

"Bad dream." She mumbled back, winding her arms around his neck to hold herself closer to the boy. Steve's gaze roamed over his girlfriend's features, his knowing brown eyes catching the dark circles that shadowed under her tired eyes. He frowned.

"C'mon, let's get to sleep, baby." Steve whispered, kissing Josie's forehead and guiding her back to his bed. Her head ended up under his chin as the couple now practically shared a pillow, seeking each other's body heat. "It's okay, I'm here." His sweet voice had Josie holding him closer, her fingers finding the soft strands of hair at the nape of his neck.