December 15th, 1984
HAWKINS MIDDLE SNOW BALL. ONE of the most anticipated events in all of the middle school years by the large variety of pubescent teenagers and ill-tempered teachers. It was a date to remember, so when the time came, of course the group of demo-dog hunters would be excited.
Max Mayfield was the only exception. She did love some things about the event, like the dancing around the ballroom and getting drunk off cordial, but she hated getting ready. She would've hated it more if her mother did it, but luckily Aven was there to step up. She'd always wanted to help Max get ready, and on the fifteenth of December, she finally got her chance.
"Anything particular? Have you seen any cool hairstyles in magazines, maybe?" Aven tried to brainstorm as she looked at Max in the mirror, watching as her face scrunched up with confusion.
"I don't look at those magazines, Aven. They're for decoration." She exaggerated to get her point across, one she thought she would never have to explain. The girl behind her held her hands up as if she were getting arrested before letting them drop with a light giggle. At the sound, Max couldn't help but let her smile run wild. It was supposed to be a good day, so why let it be sad?
"Do I have your permission to do whatever, I promise it'll look good." The eldest in the room asked politely with a convincing smile. Max rolled her eyes at the sight, but agreed nevertheless, knowing that her step-sister never broke her promises. It was like her thing, and everyone trusted her because of it.
After a while and a lot of curses, Aven had successfully recreated her favourite hairstyle on her little step-sister's head. It was a waterfall braid wrapping around the back of Max's head, twisting around neatly and ending just above her ear. The rest of her hair was let loose, rolling down in her natural curls with a touch of hairspray to stay in place. It looked good, and Max could do nothing but agree.
"Shit, Aven, when did you become a hairdresser?" Max gushed as she angled her hand held mirror to see the back of her ginger hair, widening her eyes with amazement at the pretty sight.
"Oh, you know, just a hobby of mine." Aven joked as she reached up and twirled a single strand of her hair around her fingertip, popping out her hip with a smile. The two step-siblings were happy, because they both had something to look forward to.
On the way out the door, Aven sneakily swiped Billy's car keys off the table near the entrance, shooting Max a sly wink as she snuck them into her pocket. They ran out the door laughing and stumbling over their own two feet, driving out in a fit of giggles as Billy chased them down the driveway.
"You bitch!" The girls heard Billy scream with frustration as they turned onto the street away from the boy. Max made sure she stuck her finger up at him far enough out of the window so he could actually see it, watching in the side-view mirror as he stomped his way back up to the house in a fit of rage. They were just glad they didn't have to deal with his anger. Now they just couldn't go back home.
Once Aven pulled up to the ball, she parked the car and walked Max to the door, seeing Dustin just hopping out of his car right in front of the entrance. Steve Harrington, the exact guy that she wanted to see, was driving, so she quickly rushed over to the driver-side window and stuck her head down, watching him jump with surprise.
"Meet you out here in a minute, all right?" Aven told him with a bright smile, her cheeks glowing in the night air.
"In a minute?" Steve questioned with a raised brow, tilting his head to the side with a pout.
"Yeah, I wanna go say hello to everyone. I'll be back soon, so don't drive off on me." She swore before reaching into the car and kissing him lightly, running through the school front doors with a wave in his direction.
She saw teenagers everywhere. Some were sitting on the bleachers, some were standing around the punch table, some were taking photos in fancy outfits, and some were dancing in the middle of the room. On that dance floor, she saw Lucas and Max with their hands around each other, Mike and Eleven slowly dancing through the large crowds, Will and a random brown-haired girl awkwardly rocking from side to side, but no Dustin. She soon spotted him though, sitting by himself in the corner of the room.
"You're looking dashing tonight, Sir Dustin." She joked as she approached him with a hand held out. He quickly wiped his tears and plastered on a smile, looking up at the girl through his blurry eyes.
"Aven? What are you doing here?" He asked with confusion as he abruptly stood up, adjusting his suit and small bowtie.
"I wanted to steal a dance with the coolest kid in town, come on." She muttered like it was obvious before leading him to the dance floor, placing her hands gently on his shoulders. He stood there with confusion until Aven, with a roll of her eyes, let go of him and placed his hands on her own hips. "Like this, see?"
He slowly nodded with a smile as she let her hands drop over his shoulders, looking around at all the younger girls now staring at the two of them.
"Now, I can't be here for long, because Steve will get mad. I don't want to deal with a mad Steve. But, girls this age are stupid. They don't know anything, especially their taste in guys. Soon though, they'll be all over you." She promised him with a comforting smile, him looking up into her bright blue eyes with his identical ones.
"You really think so?" He asked naively, like a child learning their ABC's.
"I know so. They're not worth it, wait until you find someone better." She advised him with a pat on the shoulder, swaying across the dance floor with the watchful eyes on them. Dustin hadn't seen them yet, but Aven was sure he would once she disappeared out the door. They would pounce on him.
"Like someone who's hotter than Phoebe Cates?" He suggested with a whimsical grin.
"Like someone who's hotter than Phoebe Cates." She confirmed with a giggle. They both started laughing with their heads tilted towards the floor before Aven pointed towards the food table.
"I heard there was some good food over there, you should try some. It'll be gone before you know it." Aven suggested with a soft smile, knowing that Steve was impatiently waiting for her out at the car.
"Do they have nougat?" He questioned rapidly as he stood up on his tiptoes, trying to see over the ocean of teenager's heads at the table.
"They definitely do."
And then, he was gone. Running over to the confections table with a beaming smile. On her way out, she made sure to say hello to the kids, all of them except Max and Lucas who were still dancing on the ballroom floor, lost in each other's eyes. She waved to Jonathan and Nancy who were busy doing their set jobs and rushed out the door, falling into the passenger seat of Steve's vehicle with a groan.
"Sorry, the girls were being bitches to Dustin so I danced with him." She explained as he started the car, looking over at her with a sly smirk.
"What a lucky kid." He whispered as a blush washed over the girl's nose.
The rest of the night was amazing for everyone. The kids had their dances and fun at the Snow Ball whilst Aven and Steve had a date at a small restaurant around the corner, sitting in their resigned booth for hours. It was fun, and what they all needed after the events of the Upside Down. They could only hope they'd done enough.
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