I rolled over on my side, my eyes felt like they were glued shut, never to be opened again. And I was okay with that, I think. Until the rolling to my side didn't stop, and I felt my stomach lurch as I slipped from my side of the bed and on to the cushions beneath me.
I grunted in pain, and then my eyes wrenched open in realization: someone slept on these cushions beneath me last night. I scrambled up, half expecting to see Steve's face even more smashed underneath my weight, but he was gone. There was light seeping in through the window's shutters, so I new it wasn't an ungodly hour of night.
I peeked over the edge of the bed to see Nancy still sound asleep. Good, I didn't accidentally wake her. I grabbed a blanket from Steve's makeshift bed and stood up, passing both Johnathan and Nancy asleep as I left the room. I caught a glimpse of their hands clasped together over the side of the bed and smiled to myself. I just hope Steve didn't see when he had woken up, it would crush his little heart.
I crept into the kitchen; the kids were still asleep in the living room. Dustin and Lucas were a tangle of limbs; Dusty was always quite the cuddle-er, and Lucas seemed to be the only one who would tolerate it. Mike's arm was slapped over Dustin's face, dangerously close to falling into Dustin's open mouth, through which he was lightly snoring. Max was sleeping on the other side of Dustin and Lucas, curled up with her back to the rest of them. They all looked so peaceful. Relatively. I don't think I could clearly make out the rise and fall of Lucas's chest underneath Dustin, but I'm sure he was fine.
I turned my back on the kids to see an unexpected sight. Steve and Mrs. Byers sitting at the table, chatting softly over morning coffee.
"Good morning, sweetheart," Joyce said as she noticed me walk into the room. "Did you sleep well?"
"Fell off the bed," I shrugged with a smile, "So you tell me." Steve laughed, his shoulders shaking as he bowed his head. My eyes were drawn to him, and I didn't look away; even when I asked Joyce, "How long have you two been up?"
"He was already up when I came out here, which was at least 30 minutes ago," Joyce explained, taking a sip of her coffee.
Steve looked up, and our eyes met. He threw me one of those stupidly attractive smiles as he said, "I'm a morning person."
"Somehow that makes you even more insufferable," I grumbled, breaking eye contact with him and letting out a breath I had locked in my lungs. I sat down in the chair next to him, bundled in the blanket I grabbed.
"I love your little cocoon," Steve commented smiling into his mug of coffee.
"Shut up."
"Are you not a morning person, Y/N?" Joyce asked with a smile.
"Not in the slightest," I said, rubbing the sleep from my eyes with the heels of my hands. "What day is it," I mumbled.
"Sunday," Joyce answered with a laugh.
"Ohhh no," I said with a groan. I rested my head on the table. "That means tomorrow is Monday."
"Well, that is usually how weeks work, sweetie," Joyce said, still in her lighthearted tone.
"I don't think any of us have the mental capacity to go to school tomorrow. Especially with Will, and the loss of Bob..." I trailed off.
Joyce nodded. "I talked to Hop. He has arranged so that every one of you kids gets this week off, and you don't have to go back to school until after thanksgiving break."
"How do we even explain that to our parents?" Steve asked, his knee bouncing.
"I thought they weren't in town?" I asked him.
"They're back Thursday, just in time for Thanksgiving Break," he said with a sarcastic smile. Spending thanksgiving break with them sounded like torture. I made a mental note to keep him from being alone with his parents too often next week.
"Well then we only have to avoid them on Thursday and Friday, and then we'll be free," I reassured him.
"And if they give you any trouble, call me and I will give them a piece of my mind," Joyce threatened.
"Thank you, Mrs. Byers," Steve smiled, but it was a bit weaker this time.
"I keep telling you, It's Joyce," She corrected.
"Sorry, that'll take some getting used to," He apologized.
"You kids hungry? I sure am," Chief Hopper grunted as he walked into the kitchen from the back yard, letting the morning air in as the door swung open and closed. The chill was enough to have me scooting closer to Steve and wrapping myself tighter into my blanket cocoon.
Joyce stood up to greet him, and poured a pot of coffee for him. "The biscuits are in the oven, and I'm about to start on the bacon," she said as she passed him the mug.
"Where did you come from, Chief?" I asked him.
"I was cleaning up all the shit in the back yard and putting it back in the shed before the weather got too bad. I think we're going to be expecting some rain soon," He explained sitting down at the table. "Now, down to business. You two are going to talk to that Billy Hargrove kid, right?"
I glanced at Steve to make sure he was still okay with it, and he nodded, so I turned back to Hopper and agreed.
"Do you have a list of demands? Boundaries? Rules he needs to follow?" Hopper asked. I furrowed my brow.
"We.. hadn't gotten that far yet," I admitted.
"What, you were just going to waltz into his house, drop off his sister and say 'Stay the hell away from us bitch' and see what happened?" Hopper scoffed.
"Well maybe not as aggressively as that, but you know..." Steve grumbled.
"I'd suggest taking him somewhere public to talk. He can't lash out if there's other people around."
I saw Steve look at me out of the corner of my vision, before he turned back to the chief. "You think it will be dangerous to talk to him?"
"I think you can never be too careful," Hopper answered, drinking down his coffee and standing up. "I'm going to head to the station, Joyce. Thanks for... yeah, thanks." And with one weird glance at Steve and I, he left.
"What was that?" Steve asked when the door closed.
"I think the chief has a little crush on Mrs. Byers," I grinned wickedly.
"It's Joyce, and he does not. Hop isn't very in-tune with his emotions, that's all. 'Thank you's are not in his vocabulary."
"Sure, Mrs. Byers," I grinned. "Come on, Stevie, let's wake Max and get this over with."
I saw Joyce share a meaningful glance with Steve before she shooed him away and towards the living room where I was, shaking Max lightly on the shoulder.
"Hey kid, let's get you home," I smiled as she opened one eye, and then the other.
"My back is killing me," She said once she had gotten up and off the bed. Dustin stirred next to her, but ended up rolling off of Lucas and taking up the space where Max originally was.
"Yeah, I doubt that bed was comfortable,". I smiled apologetically.
"It's whatever. Is it time to go now?" Max said, grabbing her shoes and lacing them up.
"Have some breakfast first," Joyce called from the kitchen.
"You eat some breakfast, and Steve and I will get ready. And then we can go," I promised, leading Steve back down the hall and into Johnathan's bedroom.
Luckily, Johnathan had dropped Nancy's hand throughout the morning, but her hand still dangled over the side of the bed toward him. I tried not to think about the fact that Steve froze for a second when he saw them.
"Our clothes are still dirty," Steve realized.
"I'm sure nobody will mind if we just stay in Johnathan's clothes," I shrugged, putting on my shoes.
"It's kind of weird," Steve admitted. And well, for him it really was. Him going out in public in his ex's new boyfriend's clothes was kind of weird.
"I know, but I'd rather you wear that instead of your stinky Upside Down clothes," I admitted.
"You think I'm stinky?" Steve teased.
"Yes," I teased back. "You reek of Pretty Boy smell."
"You think I'm pretty?" He rephrased his question, a teasing smile on his face that had my brain screaming: oh shit oh shit oh shit!
"Especially with those rainbow bandaids on your forehead," I pointed out. Nice save.
"Oh shut up," He grumbled, tying on his shoes. "Ready?"
"Not really," I said, but I offered a hand to him anyways to help him up. He stood up easily, but neither of us let of the other's hand. He stood, our noses so close I could almost feel his breath gently on my cheek. His eyes wandered all over my face, but when they reached my neck, they were seeped in concern.
The silence made me hold my breath, especially when he raised his free hand and reached out towards my neck, to which I flinched away from.
"I'm so sorry," He spluttered, "but you just... It's bruised."
"Well that's just great, isn't it?" I scoffed unconsciously pulling the sweater up as if to try and hide it.
"It's not- I mean it isn't bad. You'd only notice if you were looking really hard. Otherwise I think Mrs. Byers would have had a heart attack." Why was he nervous as he spoke? As if to answer, he shook away my hand in his, and Ouch. That hurt more than the bruise.
"Okay," I nodded, still pulling at the sweater slightly. I only stopped when he swatted at my hands.
"I promise you look fine," He swore, and my lovesick brain listened to him.
"Then, let's do this," I said, trying to sound optimistic, but it came out tired.
We grabbed Max and threw a quick wave to the boys before heading out the front door. Max was just as eager to get this over with as we were, to just go home and have things be normal again. At least as normal as things could be. We drove basically in silence, still in Billy's car, and you could tell it made her pretty uncomfortable. So when we stopped by at my house first so that Steve could get his car and she got to move into the front seat with me, she seemed relieved.
"I didn't realize you and Steve knew how to separate," She teased once it was just her and I in the car.
"He'll be okay for half an hour," I smiled fondly.
"Okay," She nodded. And that was it. That's all we said to each other, and then the car ride was filled with long silence. She didn't want to talk, and that's okay. I just wanted to let her know I was there for her at any time. Steve's red car pulled into Max's drive the same time Billy's blue one did, and I could see the gears working as she realized that something was probably up. "Are you two trying to protect me or something?" She rolled her eyes. "I can handle myself."
"We know you can," Was all I said, never answering her question. Steve walked with me to the door, and her mom answered it the moment we knocked.
"Oh Maxine, sweet baby I was so worried," She said, burying Max in a suffocating hug.
"I'm fine mom," Max grunted into her shirt.
"Sorry," I smiled respectfully to her mother. "She and her friends were having game night last night, and we let her stay over. Only, by the time we remembered to call and tell you where she was, she was asleep." I added a lighthearted laugh to the end, and it only sounded slightly forced.
"I'm sorry, who are you?" Max's mother asked.
"Oh, I'm Y/N Henderson, and this is Steve, my younger brother is in Max's grade." Max's mother almost seemed to buy it, until She glanced at Steve, who's face was still black and blue. He gave her a charming smile, accentuating his split lip.
She squinted her eyes at him and turned to me again. "Call me next time," She said firmly, pulling Max behind her and attempting to close the door.
I held out my hand. "Excuse me Miss, we were just wondering if we could talk to Billy before we go. I think he has the Chemistry homework I need," I threw on the excuse at the last second, to which the mother looked even more confused. Billy was clearly not the 'work on homework with his classmates' kind.
She closed the door and we heard her yell for him on the other side. Moments later, the door pulled open again, revealing an exhausted Billy in the doorway. His bored expression quickly turned into recognition as he eyed the two of us.
"What the hell are you two doing here," He whispered forcefully, closing the door behind him as he stepped on to the front porch with us.
"We wanted to talk," I answered shortly.
"Want to go to breakfast?" Steve asked. Billy narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
***
"Either of you want to tell me what you're trying to do here?" Billy said angrily, sitting across the booth from Steve and I at the local diner. Steve was staring at Billy intensely, and I was trying to break the tension by getting them to order literally anything.
The waitress came around and asked for drinks, and she was drop-dead gorgeous. Even in the plain black apron and jeans, she smiled radiantly. She had a purple eyeshadow brushed over her eyelids that brought attention to these gorgeous green eyes, and her brown hair framed her face in perfect ringlets. We all looked at her like she was a goddess from another planet.
Steve and I both stuttered through orders of coffee, but Billy ordered 'His usual' sending the waitress away with a wink. She reappeared with two mugs for me and Steve, and a strawberry milkshake that she passed to Billy. She gave him a look as she left that made it seem like those two had a past. Steve and I glanced at each other, but didn't say anything.
"We're friends with the chief of police," I began once the waitress was gone, but winced at my own words. That's really what my opening line was? I brushed my own thoughts away and continued. "He suggested a restraining order over what happened last night, but I think you and I both know that that's unnecessary."
Now would have been the time for Billy to get on his knees and beg us for forgiveness, apologizing for all the harm he had done to us and the kids. But He just went right on glaring at me, and I saw a flash of pride in his eyes every time he saw Steve's beaten face. It was enough to make me want to flip the table and rage right then and there, but then I would be just as bad as him. I took a deep breath to settle my anger, and Steve took over.
"Our goal here is to leave with a civil agreement. You don't have to be our best bud. But if I hear that you've gone anywhere any of those kids ever again, we get the police involved. For real this time," Steve said firmly.
"What are you, their mommy?" Billy scoffed, taking a sip of his milkshake.
Steve flexed his hands but said nothing.
"Look, Billy. If it weren't for Max, your ass would not be here right now. But she doesn't need an older brother on probation for the physical assault of two of his classmates, does she?" I asked. Billy dropped his straw, and maybe just maybe, I may have seen a bit of remorse at the mention of his step-sister's name. "You need to leave us alone. Understand?"
"Can I have my car back?" He asked with an eye roll.
"Swear it," I said, holding on to his keys tighter.
"This is ridiculous," He growled.
"Hey!" Steve said, causing the people behind us to turn around slightly. "You heard them. Swear to leave us all be. Including Max."
"Whatever, I swear it. Now give me my keys," Billy demanded, holding out his hand expectantly. I didn't expect him to agree so easily, and so every muscle in my body screamed DON'T DO IT as I dropped the keys in Billy's open palm.
He gave me a grateful smirk, took one more sip of his drink, and was already crawling out of the booth. "Thanks for the milkshake, Harrington. See you at school." On his way out, he rang the bell at the counter, and our waitress giggled from behind it.
I sat there in stunned silence. I mean, there wasn't anything left to say to him so there was no problem with him leaving, but still. He just up and left.
"I think I'm going to get the 'grand slamwich'," Steve said, picking up a menu and glancing it over like we were just out for Sunday brunch.
I laughed in a way that sounded borderline hysterical. "You're so stupid, Steve," I said fondly, resting my head in my hands.
"Yeah, you love me," He teased, and I think my brain short-circuited. He didn't mean it like that.
"In any case, I'm starving," I said, changing the subject to something slightly more tangible. I slid around to the other side of the booth so that we were facing each other.
"Now it's like we're on a date," Steve pointed out, his voice even. Not a hint of anything there, which made me so frustrated I could have ripped his hair out. No embarrassment, or teasing, or even disgust. His emotions were so cooled and under control, in a way that was so unfair. How come he got to act all confident and cool, but when I'm around him all I am is flustered and flirty and blushing like a maniac?
"You want it to be a date, Harrington?" I asked boldly. Just to see how he would react. I wanted him to react so desperately.
He gave me a smirk and leaned in close. "I think you might, Henderson," He said, in that stupidly hot low voice.
"I think that you're delusional," I quipped back leaning just as close, so that our noses were almost touching. Ridiculous move, because I quickly realized how round his brown eyes could be, finding the flecks of light in them like second nature. Steve leaned back into his seat, crossing his arms and staring at me like I was a difficult math question or something.
The waitress came around breaking whatever tension we had. "What can I get for you two?" She asked, tilting her head softly towards Steve. He glanced quickly at me before going full Steve 'The Hair' Harrington on her, flirting aggressively as he ordered for both of us. I couldn't watch or listen if I tried. It felt like my brain turned to mush, and their words to each other turned into white noise in the back of my head.
I said not even one sarcastic comment for the rest of the meal, and when Steve got the bill, the waitress's phone number was written on the back. He looked at me with a nervous smile, hoping for any sort of joke or annoying remark, but I just shrugged, still stuck in my own head.
Just because he's not dating Nancy anymore doesn't mean he's magically going to fall in love with me.
It was stupid to think so in the first place.