𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐌𝐀, 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐨𝐧 | 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐨𝐧𝐞

chapter thirteen; it's here

꒰꒰・┄┄・𓆩♡𓆪・┄┄・꒱꒱

"STEVE, YOU NEED TO LEAVE RIGHT NOW," Summer orders, her voice shaky with fear, and he's taken aback by her words, but quickly regains his composure. "You can't - you can't be here!"

"What? No. I'm not here to start anything. Listen, I - I messed up! I messed up, okay?" He shakes his head, wanting nothing more than to right his wrongs, and his hand gently collides with the door. He looks at the girl he had so badly mistreated, guilt in his eyes as he wondered if he would ever be able to fix the mess he had created. "... I just want to make things right."

There's a pang in Summer's chest and she knew that she couldn't, that she shouldn't, but she had never in her entire life wanted to give in to someone so badly. She wanted to pull Steve inside and tell him that it was all okay, that she forgave him, but alas, that wasn't an option. Not right now, at least.

"Steve, please just go." The desperation in her voice was evident, but Steve didn't want to leave with things unresolved.

There was a sense of anguish and sorrow as his features contorted, trying to come up with a way to make her let him stay, and when he returns her gaze once more, his eyes fall onto her hand. It was hard not to notice the bright crimson seeping through the bandage now that he'd had a chance to actually take it in.

"Hey, what happened to your hand?" He reaches forward out of habit, so used to being able to carelessly touch her, but she pulls away before he can make contact.

It may have just been a small gesture, but it was enough to make him realise just how different things were between them now. Summer never pulled away from his touch, in fact, she would typically lean into it. She loved it when he would rub her leg, play with her hair, or even just brush his fingers across hers, so this really put it all into perspective.

He opens his mouth to apologise, but before he can utter a syllable, Nancy appears by Summer's side, and his eyes are immediately drawn to the bandage on her hand as well. "What's going on?"

"It's nothing." Summer shakes her head and tucks her hair behind her ear.

Summer didn't know this, but that was her 'tell' whenever she lied, and so far, Steve had been the only one to figure it out. So, to see that she was lying to him while both she and Nancy stood there with matching wounds only made the crazy assumptions he had been conjuring up in his head seem all that more likely to be true.

"Wait, did he do this?" Without another word, Steve pushes through the door, ignoring the blatant objections from both girls. Shock ignited within him the second he sees the state of the house.

"Get out of here!" Jonathan yells, his arm colliding with Steve's chest.

"What is that smell? Is that... GASOLINE?" Steve shouts, ignoring the demands of the other boy. He was more concerned as to why his 'girlfriend' and ex-best friend were hanging out with a guy who had weapons, not to mention a gun, and an excessive amount of Christmas light just laying around the house.