Joe Keery Imagines Vol. 2

The Bookworm and The Basketball Player - Steve Harrington

"Just go talk to him."

I jumped, involuntarily letting out a small shriek. I didn't recover before Steve came jogging over.

"Everything okay over here?" He asked, looking between me and Robin.

"We're fine, Harrington," Robin said, not looking away from me. "I just scared Y/N. My bad."

Steve glanced at me, his eyes softening. "So you're okay?" He asked me.

"Yeah," I said, my voice soft. "I'm fine, Steve."

Steve looked between me and Robin before clearing his throat and fixing his vest. He sent me one more look before going back to work. I turned toward Robin, the butterflies in my stomach disappearing when I saw her smirking at me.

"Please don't say anything," I whispered as I glanced at him walking into the back office. "I know how pathetic this is, okay? I know how sad and pathetic I'm being. Of course, the one guy in all of Hawkins that I happen to fall for is Steve Harrington."

"Y/N," Robin sighed but I was on a roll. I have been holding this in for too long.

"And what's worse is the fact that he would never be with someone like me. Before you give me the 'you're a great girl, why wouldn't he like you' speech, it's useless. There is nothing that you could say to convince me that I'm exactly the kind of girl he'd go for. I'm quiet, introverted, antisocial. The list goes on. I'd rather stay at home and watch a movie than go to a party. I'd rather drink a smoothie than a beer. I'd rather read a book than go to a high school basketball game. Trust me, I'm not the kind of girl Steve Harrington would fall for."

"If I could say just one thing," she said hesitantly. "The guy you're thinking about is the Steve Harrington from high school. He's not that kind of guy anymore, Y/N. He's changed."

"But I haven't."

Robin studied me. "That doesn't matter," she said, her voice dropping. "Y/N, Steve's a great guy. If you like him, you should tell him."

"Steve would never go for someone like me," I said, pushing down the pain. "So I might as well forget my feelings."

I grabbed the box of returns and started putting them back on the shelves. I tried to ignore the feeling in my stomach when I saw Steve walk over and start talking to Robin.

Robin didn't talk to me for the rest of our shift. Instead, she kept talking to Steve. That stupid feeling in my stomach kept coming back every time I looked at them talking to each other.

Robin and I are good friends. Robin and Steve are good friends. Me and Steve, however, act as if it's our first day working together.

At closing time, we went about our usual routine of closing up shop. Something about the smirk on Robin's face made me nervous for our shift together tomorrow.

* * * * *

I walked into the empty video store, not paying attention to who was already in the store. When I looked up and saw who was here, my breath got caught in my throat.

"Morning, Y/N."

"Morning, Steve," I stuttered. "I thought Robin was working the opening shift with me."

"She asked me yesterday if we could switch," he shrugged as he powered the computer on.

"Was this before or after. . ."

"Before or after what?" He asked when I didn't finish my question.

"Never mind," I said a little too quickly. I went into the back room and dropped off my bag. I pulled my vest on as I walked back out to the store.