Love Is A Battlefield (A Stranger Things/Steve Harrington Fanfiction)

Chapter Fifty: The Week Is Long

Steve and I walked across the parking lot alone. Robin and Dustin had both ridden their bikes there and insisted on doing so again, and Steve and I had parked beside each other somehow, which led us to walk to our cars in silence.

"I'm still mad at you, don't get me wrong," I said, earning a glance from him, "But that in there...that is what I was talking about, about Education versus Intellect? You took something that everyone else overlooked and you used it to uncover a massive clue about the message. Three straight-A students, and we never would have figured that out." He nodded. 

"Yeah...I guess it was pretty smart of me." I nodded, looking away from him, slowing to a stop as we reached our cars.

"Are we really not gonna talk about this?" He asked. I shook my head.

"No...no, we're not." I whispered. "We're not, because I know what you're going to say, and I'm not ready to hear it."

"No, Riley, I don't think you do know what I'm going to say-"

"Steve..." I squeezed my eyes shut, looking down at the ground. "Its been a long day, and I really, really don't have the energy to have a long relationship conversation so can we please just not do this right now?"

"Ok, fine, but...just promise me we'll do it sometime, please, because I have something I really need to talk to you about." I nodded.

"Yeah...I promise." He nodded.

"Ok. Be careful getting home, ok?"

"You too." He leaned in to kiss me but I took a step back, looking down at my feet. He nodded, climbing into his car. I got into my tuck and waiting for him to pull out of the parking lot before laying my forehead on the steering wheel.

I know what he wants to talk to me about. He knows I'm onto him. That thing he wants to talk about is him breaking up with me because he knows that I know that he doesn't like me as much as he said he did, or he just thought he did like Nancy, or he never did at all and he's been lying to me this whole time so that I wouldn't find out that I'm just his rebound girl, but regardless of what the reason is, I know what he wants to talk to me about and I'm sorry...

But I'm not gonna make it easy for him.

~~~

There was music blasting from our room when I got home that night, which usually only happened when Mike was here. And not only was the door all the way closed, my Dad was not here, which was a major violation of rules. I shook my head, opening the door, fully prepared to give her another speech about boundaries when I saw that she was sitting on her bed, looking at Teen magazines, and Max was dancing around in her socks. I smiled.

"Hey, guys." I greeted.

"Hey."

"Hi, Riley." El replied, looking down at her magazine again. "Max wanted to have a 'sleepover'."

"That's fun," I said, glancing between them, "Well, in that case, I will leave you guys alone then." I turned to leave the room, when Max's voice stopped me.

"You could stay?" Max suggested, causing me to raised my eyebrows and turn to face her. 

"You want the 'older sister' crashing your sleepover?" I asked.

" Well you aren't the traditional 'Older Sister', now are you?" She questioned. "Come on, it'll be fun." I shrugged, walking over and sitting on my bed as Eleven looked back to her Magazines and Max came over to join her.

"Oh, you've found Ralph Macchio." She pointed out, causing me to laugh.

"Macchio?"

"Yeah, he's the Karate Kid. Hai-yah!"  They both laughed, and I smiled, but it soon fell as I was unable to stop the memories that flowed in with that statement.