VIRGINIA SINCLAIR AND STEVE HARRINGTON BROKE UP ON NEW YEAR'S DAY, 1986.
It was a tough decision for them both, but ultimately the one they made. When Ginny left Hawkins for school a good three hours away, things slowly descended into shit. Or really, worse than shit, because on top of not being able to see each other more than one weekend every few months, each goodbye was worse than the last, more tense, more resentful.
Ginny loved Steve with all her heart, but it was just too much.
He agreed, of course, because he felt it too. Things were different.
When she was away, Steve got antsy. He worried and got insecure, thinking she'd leave him— which led to late night phone calls debating the state of their relationship. Ginny never judged him for feeling insecure, but wished he felt comfortable enough to tell her this. She only found out because Robin told her.
So they decided to start fresh in '86. Ginny had switched her major to nursing and it was a lot damn harder than it seemed. She was swamped with school work and ultimately a little relieved she didn't have to worry about a relationship on top of it all. She still loved him, but from a distance.
She was good at that— loving from a distance. It might've been their downfall, because it bugged Steve to no end to be away from her.
They laid together on the last day of 1985, savoring the last moments of the year. At 11:34, Steve suggested they take a break.
At midnight, she kissed his cheek and disappeared into her car.
That was the last time Steve saw Ginny, over three months ago.
Now it was March 21st, the last day of school before Robin's spring break. He couldn't lie and say he was relieved to only have a best friend to worry about spending a little quality time with. He tried to move on, accepted a few dates with girls he met at the video store.
None of them compared to the memory of her.
So, as spring break swiftly approached, Steve was glad to be in Hawkins, Indiana, far from
his ex-girlfriend whom he was still
helplessly in love with.
What he didn't know, is that she wasn't so far at all. And Ginny Sinclair was less than ecstatic to be back in Hawkins. Bad memories lurked around every corner.
Max Mayfield and Robin Buckley were the only reasons she had come back at all this particular week. One of her college buddies, Ian, had invited her to come the beach, but she declined, opting to spend the time with Max, maybe the only person in the whole world who knew how she was feeling.
Eight months later and Ginny still couldn't get Iris out of her head. Max knew what it felt like— she hadn't been doing well since losing Billy.
Max's nightmares stopped a few months ago, and even then, they were inconsistent. The last time Ginny saw her, she'd said they stopped completely.
But Ginny's hadn't. Even after months of seeing the therapist on campus, she still had the nightmares— or a nightmare, she supposed, since it was the same one every single night.
The same gravelly voice in her ears, coming out of Iris' mouth. Most times it was Lucas or Erica's bones snapping in front of her, sometimes Max, sometimes Robin, Nancy, Dustin or Mike. It was always Steve getting pulled away into the darkness by some unknown force.
Max and Ginny were really good at pushing people away— their boyfriends, their friends, their parents— but neither could seem to get rid of the other.
And Ginny was eternally grateful for Max. After she broke up with Steve, Max spent nearly every night with her on winter break, calming her when Ginny's nightmares struck.
Part of Ginny thought breaking up with Steve would make him stop appearing in her nightmare, but she really should have known. Her feelings towards him hadn't changed, only their status together. She still loved him and he still screamed for her when he died every night.
So Ginny was not thrilled to be back in Hawkins. Lots of bad memories were harbored there— of demodogs and evil Russians and a meat creature— of Hopper and Bob Newby and Billy Hargrove and Iris.
But there were some good ones too. Max and Erica dumping water on Lucas' head when he fell asleep during Karate Kid once. Robin laughing so hard that milkshake shot out of her nose. Nancy and Jonathan getting high for the first time with Ginny and Steve and accidentally ordering four pizzas and not-accidentally eating every bit of it. Anything with Steve, pretty much.
So Ginny came back. It was only for two weeks before she had to return to her dorm room in Indianapolis.
She'd woke up early so she could meet Lucas and Erica before school and was making great time driving through Hawkins in her father's oldest car. It was a piece of junk, not worth the gas she put in it, but it was hers and all she had.
Everything was going great until something slammed into the back of her car, jostling her forward. Ginny gasped, looking away from the stop sign in front of her to the car that had crashed into her bumper.
"You gotta be kidding me..." She groaned and turned off her car, clambering out as the driver of the other car did.
It was a younger girl, one Ginny recognized, with pretty blonde hair and blue eyes. She was sobbing, Ginny quickly realized, as she walked towards her. "Hey, are you okay—" she started to ask, wanting to check on the girl before she checked on her car.
"I am so, so sorry!" she cried, smoothing down her skirt. Black mascara ran down her face. "I swear, I looked away for a second and then I just..." She burst into louder sobs, rubbing at her eyes. "I haven't been sleeping well and so I've been kinda freaked out lately and—" She broke off into a sob.
A bit stunned, Ginny didn't know what to say at first. She glanced at her car, noting a deep dent in the bumper, then at the other girl's car. Her nice Chevy was unharmed and shining in the morning sun.
"It's Chrissy, right?" Ginny asked gently touching her arm. She remembered her, a cheerleader at Hawkins High, a year younger.
Chrissy whimpered and nodded.
"Don't worry about it, okay?" Ginny said. "This things a piece of shit anyway, trust me..." She chuckled, making Chrissy smile a bit through her tears.
"I'm r-really sorry," the blonde hiccuped.
Ginny squeezed her shoulder. "Seriously. It's cool, I just want to make sure you're not hurt. Are you okay?"
Chrissy nodded, wiping her tears. "I'm... I'm not hurt." She tilted her head as if finally recognizing her. "You're Lucas' sister, right? He's on the basketball team?"
"Yeah, that little shit's mine..." Ginny smiled. "I'm in town for the game tonight, even though he's a benchwarmer."
That made Chrissy laugh wetly again, sniffing. "Yeah, my boyfriend's the captain and..." She glanced at her dainty gold watch. "And shit, I'm going to be late—"
"Go ahead," Ginny told her with a smile. "I'll just... tell my dad I backed into a tree or something."
"Really?" Chrissy asked, her blue eyes wide.
Ginny nodded. "Yeah, go ahead. I don't want you to be late for your pep rally." She smiled.
"Thank you so much, I-I promise I'll return the favor some day. Thank you!" Chrissy said, darting towards her car.
Ginny watched her go. Chrissy seemed sweet and she was so upset about the fender bender that Ginny felt bad about it, when she didn't even do anything.
Just as she was thinking it, and watching Chrissy's car fade in the distance, her stomach sunk and a cold feeling overtook her.
Ginny was no stranger to the feeling. She felt it every night, when Nightmare Iris touched her face and made her watch what was happening to the person she loved.
It felt like falling, she realized— your body falling so quickly that it takes a second for your stomach to catch up. It always spread throughout her body like lightning, all the way to her toes.
Watching Chrissy walk away was the first time Ginny had ever felt it when she was awake. But she shook the feeling off and turned the key, but the engine stalled.
"You're fucking with me..." Ginny muttered to herself, turning the key again. It stalled once more, and smoke emerged from under the hood. She hit the steering wheel angrily.
Of course the moment she's back in Hawkins, things start going wrong.
Clambering out, Ginny popped the hood and starting cursing. "Stupid piece of shit!"
A little ways down the road, Steve Harrington talked animatedly to Robin Buckley, who was not listening to him at all.
"I mean, the date with Heidi last night was fine, it was fine," he said, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. "But the problem with Heidi is that she's going out of state for college. So, it's like, do I really want to start another relationship that's going to be ruined by college? I mean I don't know!"
He put his head in his hands. Robin continued applying her mascara. "I thought I was over Ginny, but maybe not? But I mean, no one I've been out with since has felt right, you know? Like, none of them are her. Does that make any sense to you?"
Steve glanced at his best friend and noticed she was, in fact, not listening. "Robin, are you even listening?"
"Uh, yes, I'm— I'm listening—"
"What did I just say?"
"Something about Linda—"
"No! I'm talking about Heidi, and Ginny and the inescapable heartbreak she has put me in!" he cried.
Robin scoffed. "Cut me some slack, please. Your love life is one of labyrinthine complexity and it is 7:00 in the morning and we have the stupid pep rally, and I woke up looking like a total corpse!" She dragged her hands down her face.
Steve laughed. "You're worried about a basketball pep rally?" he asked, "You expect me to believe that?"
"Yeah, so?"
"So, we both know what this is about," Steve answered. "I'm not buying that bullshit, this is about Vickie."
"You expect me to believe that none of your Heidi and Linda problems are about Virginia Sinclair?" Robin countered, tilting her head.
Steve stared at her. "That's literally what I just told you!"
"Well— Stop expecting me to listen to you this early in the morning!"
"This is so about Vickie, and you want to know what else I think?" he spat.
"I don't care!" Robin said, smudging on some lipstick with her finger.
"I think you gotta stop pretending to be someone else when you're around her," Steve told her, running a hand through his hair. "Okay? You just gotta be yourself."
Robin glared at him. "You're literally quoting me to me, you do realize that?"
Steve shrugged. "Well, maybe you need to listen to yourself. You ever think about that, smarty-pants?" He smiled. "I listened to you and look at me! Boom, back in business."
"Oh, yeah, back in business pining over your ex," Robin spat. "It's pathetic, really, Steve. You need to pull up your diaper, wipe your nose, and stop— oh my God." Her sentence cut short, eyes focusing on something in the distance. "Oh, this is too good."
Steve frowned, glancing at her. "What? What are you talking about—"
"Speak of the ex-girlfriend and she shall appear!" Robin cried. "Stop the car, dingus!"
Steve turned back to the road, spotting a car in front of them on the side of the road, the engine smoking. "Oh, damn—" he said, pulling onto the othe shoulder. "That car is definitely leaking coolant, look at the white smoke—"
"Ginny!" Robin cried, throwing open her door and running over to the smoking car.
Steve's brow furrowed and he watched his friend run over.
And then suddenly, like an angel from the clouds, Virginia Sinclair appeared out of the smoke.
Steve's heart dropped into his stomach.
"Robin?" she cried in disbelief. Her face lit up in that sparkling smile he always loved. "Oh, my God, Robin!"
The two girls colliding in a bone crunching hug, Robin's face disappearing into Ginny's beautiful curls. He could hear their laughter from the opposite side of the road and his stomach danced at the sound.
Oh, God, Robin was right. He's so in love with her.
"You look amazing!" she chimed, beaming at Robin as they parted.
Steve closed his car door, but was frozen, unable to move towards them. He'd been dreading seeing her again everyday since their break up, but he knew she'd come back to Hawkins eventually. But it was March! He hadn't mentally prepared to see her again.
But the sound of the car door closing got her attention, and soon her pretty brown eyes were focused on him.
She looked different, older, in a good way. Her hair was longer and curlier, stopping at the base of her shoulders now. But her smile was the same, and that was enough to have his knees weak.
"Hey Harrington," she said, smiling softly.
Robin caught the dreamy look that passed through his eyes.
"Hey Gin," he answered, waving awkwardly.
"What the hell happened to your car?" Robin asked, laughing and waving smoke out of her face.
Ginny finally tore her eyes away from her handsome ex-boyfriend to look at her car, and she shrugged. "No clue... I'm used to it, though. It breaks down at least once every few weeks," she laughed, kicking the tire weakly.
"We could give you a ride," Steve said, maybe a little too eager.
Robin shot him a knowing look. He tried to ignore her. "I mean, my dad has a guy who could tow it to the shop for you." He scratched the back of his neck. "We could... you know. Take you wherever you need, catch up."
Ginny hesitated, glancing between Robin and her smoking car. "Oh, um..." She looked at Steve again and her facade melted. "Yeah, that'd be great, thanks. I was just going to meet Lucas and Erica before school, but they're probably already there..."
"Awesome," Robin chirped, skipping away to the car. "I call shotgun!"
Steve and Ginny watched her go with smiles, before awkwardly meeting each others eyes. "Thanks for the ride," she told him again, as they walked back to his car.
"Of course, yeah..." he smiled. They clambered into the car and Steve started it up again, taking off down the road.
"So, how's Hawkins been?" Ginny asked, leaning up between them. "How's Family Video?"
"So boring," Robin whined, continuing to apply her make up.
"Robin's got a crush, and it's not Tammy Thompson," Steve chimed, looking at her through the rear-view window.
Ginny's eyes sparkled. "What? Do I know her?"
Robin narrowed her eyes at Steve and slumped in the passenger seat. "Her name is Vickie... She plays the clarinet," the freckled girl said. "But I can't ask her out, I can barely even talk to her!"
"Come on, Robin, I think she likes you! Who cares if you get rejected?" Steve wondered aloud.
Robin clamped her compact shut. "It's not the same thing, okay? You ask out a girl and she says no— big deal. Nothing happens, maybe your ego's a little bruised," she explained. "But I ask out the wrong girl, and bam! I'm a town pariah..."
"Oh, yeah I'd buy that, except Vickie is definitely not the wrong girl," Steve said. Ginny got the feeling she walked into the wrong conversation.
"We just don't know that, do we?" Robin said, shaking her head. She sprayed some breath spray into her mouth, gagging on it.
"She returned Fast Times paused at 53 minutes, 5 seconds," Steve said, grinning to himself. "You know who pauses Fast Times at 53 minutes, 5 seconds?"
Robin shook her head ruefully.
"People who like boobies, Robin!"
Her jaw dropped. "Ew!" Robin gasped.
"Boobies!"
"Gross. Don't say boobies!"
"It's not a big deal, okay? I like boobies, you like boobies." His eyes flicked to Ginny in the back. "Ginny has boobies, right?"
"You say that like you haven't seen them," she snorted.
Steve tilted his head and shrugged. He looked back at Robin. "Vickie likes boobies! Definitely."
Robin shook her head in disbelief, staring at the dashboard. Ginny was holding back laughter.
Steve just shrugged again.
"It's boobies."
a/n:
SEASON FOURRRR
do u hate me yet?
u will