~x~
There is something exciting about sneaking around in your own home. Secret touches and kisses, mouthed ‘I love you’s when heads are turned. Trying to keep up the charade that nothing has changed, that everything is the same as it's always been. Liza, Steve and Eddie had made it into a game, taking bets on which of their two housemates would notice first; Dustin or Robin. The best part was that the lines had already been blurry when it came to Liza and Eddie, their past and flirtatious personalities meant it was harder to spot unless you were really looking. Steve and Eddie, however, were having the time of their lives trying to keep up the appearance that Steve only tolerated the Metalhead. Especially when he would ruffle Steve's hair or pucker his lips at the boy.
Liza had put her money on Dustin noticing first. The boy was extremely perceptive and the slightest change in behaviour or atmosphere had alarm bells ringing in his mind. He had been the first one to notice not only Steve's feelings for Liza but Eddie's as well, so the blonde expected him to pick up on the changed dynamic between the three. She wouldn't be surprised if the boy said something within a day.
Both Steve and Eddie had chosen Robin, saying that she would notice by accident. Steve pointed out that the girl noticed the little things when it came to Liza and despite her inability to keep them, Robin was a bloodhound for secrets. Eddie agreed with every part his boyfriend made, adding that since Liza and Robin were soulmates, the girl would see that something was up.
The boys thought that they had won when on her first night back, Robin had found the trio cuddled up in Liza and Steve's bed. Both boys were shirtless while the blonde was only in her underwear and one of Eddie's shirts. The Metalhead held on to Steve's hand - under the blanket - excitedly as Robin stared at them with a gobsmacked expression for a moment. They expected her to have a fit but instead she huffed out that she couldn't believe they started the cuddle-puddle without her.
As the days went on, neither Dustin nor Robin had noticed anything. Not when Liza had been sandwiched between Steve and Eddie during the group's movie night, a blanket thrown across their laps as the blonde leaned into the Metalhead while her legs were on Steve's lap. Not when Eddie tilted Liza's head back to kiss her on the forehead when he went to work in the morning, moving to ruffle Steve's hair and ‘accidentally’ getting his fingers caught so he had to tug his hand causing Steve to cough to hide a groan. Not when Steve had wrapped his arms around Eddie's waist when the boy was cooking only to act like he had forgotten something on the counter when Dustin walked in. Everything seemed to come off as normal to their friends and in a way, showed them that their dynamic was inevitable.
They never once thought that their little bet could possibly backfire on them and in a big way.
~x~
Laying on the couch in his room, Eddie had his feet kicked up on the arm as music drowned out any other sound in the house. His eyes were shut as he tapped along to the song playing, his mind elsewhere as the song was on the playlist from the night he, Liza and Steve got together. He didn't think he had ever been happier than he had been in the last two weeks. Not only did he finally get to call Liza Henderson his girlfriend, get to kiss her and hold her and love her but he had the biggest shock in calling Steve Harrington his boyfriend, getting to kiss him, hold and if he was honest, love him.
Eddie was thankful that despite them getting off the wave, Liza had continued to have a rather affectionate and boundary-obscured friendship with him. It meant that not much had to be adjusted when they started to date. Steve, however, was a whole new experience for him. The first two days of the new dynamic were hesitant, both boys not quite sure what the other was comfortable with. It took Liza rolling her eyes and calling them out on their stupidity for them to realise that they were very similar in love languages. Physical touch, meaningful words and quality time were their main ones, there was very little difference in what they wanted and needed out of a relationship. After that it had been smooth sailing between the three. Eddie's mind was brought back to reality when he felt someone straddle his waist and cover his eyes before he could see who it was.
“Guess who.”
“Too light to be Steve, skin's too soft to be him as well.” Eddie grinned as he slid his hands up the person's thighs. “So I'm gonna go with . . . My favourite Witch?”
“Correct you are, Rockstar.” Liza said, moving her hands to rest on his cheeks. She leaned down to press four quick kisses to his lips that had Eddie smiling. “Why are you down here all by yourself?”
“Well, it's my day off but my boyfriend has to go to work and my girlfriend was supposed to be at work.” Eddie raised a brow at her whole reaching up to tug on a curl before tucking it behind her ear. “I'm assuming Mick sent you home?”
“I swear if that man keeps sending me home while paying me like I have worked a full shift, he's going to put Dexter's out of business.” Liza rolled her eyes, giggling when Eddie grabbed ahold of her waist and sat up so they were now face to face. “One of these days I'm going to tell him no, just to see what he does.”
“Well considering he treated you like his daughter, I'm pretty sure he'll just ground you.” Eddie chuckled, earning him a light smack to his arm. “Hey! I'm telling Mick you hit me!”
“He's not gonna do shit!” Liza scoffed. A copy smile spread on her lips as she hung her arms on Eddie's shoulders, getting closer to his face. Lowering her voice, she spoke again. “Are you?”
“Right now? No.” Eddie shook his head, wrapping his arms around her so he could pull her flush against his chest. “No, we can wait until Stevie gets home. I'm sure he'd love to join in.”
Unbeknownst to them, they were not the only ones in the house. Dustin has been in his room for most of the day and now boredom has set in making him want to spend time with Eddie. He made his way down to the basement only to stop on the steps. His eyes widened slightly at the scene on the couch. Eddie held Liza's face as she sat straddling his thighs, the pair were talking but Dustin couldn't hear them over the music. The way that they were gazing at each other set Dustin on edge and he didn't know what to do, so he turned around and made his way back up the stairs quietly.
~x~
Pacing back and forth in his room, Dustin thought over what he just saw. He was sure it was a fluke, a trick of his overactive imagination. He also had no clue what kind of boundaries Steve had when it came to Liza and her friendship with Eddie. What he saw may be perfectly okay and he wouldn't know it. Dustin recalled every interaction between Liza and Eddie since she had gotten back with Steve that he could and found there seemed to be a very fine line on what was and wasn't okay. He could see the look Steve would give when Eddie got too handy or when Liza got too close to crossing a line and there was no pattern.
Hearing Liza and Eddie in the kitchen, Dustin decided to investigate further before jumping to conclusions. Last time he had done so, it ended up hurting his sister and friend and he didn't want to do that to them again. Sneaking down the stairs, Dustin peered into the kitchen to find an image that would be into his brain forever. Liza was sitting on the counter with Eddie between her legs, clearly kissing without a care in the world if they got caught. Liza's hand was buried in Eddie's hair as his were placed very high in her thighs. That was enough for Dustin.
Tiptoeing to the front door, Dustin opened then closed it loud enough to alert them. It seemed that they were operating on the assumption that they were alone so he had to make it seem like he just got home. Making his way to the kitchen, he found the pair now split apart. While Liza was still on the counter, Eddie was now leaning against the fridge with a can of coke in his hand. Dustin could see the blush on the metalheads face and Liza trying to discreetly wipe the smudged lipstick from around her lips.
“Hey guys, what are you two up to?” Dustin asked, accusation heavy in his voice.
“Oh, just hanging out.” Liza shrugged, glancing over to Eddie with a small smile.
“Yeah. What about you, Little Henderson?” Eddie came to lean against the counter beside Liza, his own grin as Liza shifted slightly to grab the can out of Eddie's hand to steal a sip. Eddie looked at her with a playful glare. “Would you like your own? Cause I can get you your own.”
“You could, but yours tastes better.” Liza mused, pouting slightly when Eddie took the can back.
“Because I did all the work! I walked to the fridge, opened it, got the drink and opened it.” Eddie explained, repeating the actions to grab Liza her own can then handed it to her. “There ya go, Doll. Should taste just as good.”
“Anyways!” Dustin interrupted, bringing the pair's attention back to him. He eyed them as they shared an unreadable expression. “To answer your question, I just got home.”
“Welcome back.” Liza said with a grin.
“Uh huh. Hey, Eddie?” Dustin turned his focus solely on the Metalhead. “Wanna go work on some campaign stuff? With Will being back I figured I'd give you two a chance at playing instead of always leading the game.”
“Sure thing, Dude.” Eddie nodded, pushing away from the counter. He turned slightly and offered his hand to Liza. “Care to join, Witch.”
“Nah, you two have fun.” Liza declined as she took Eddie's hand to help her off of the counter. She smiled at him as he bowed before she walked away. Once she was sure that Dustin wouldn't be able to see her, she turned with a look that said ‘you're missing out’ as she made eye contact with Eddie. “I think I'm gonna take a shower.”
“You alright man?” Dustin asked Eddie when he saw the boy's face drop slightly.
“Yeah, I'm great.” Eddie huffed, sending a discreet glare at Liza. “Let's go.”
~x~
The next day, Dustin waited until Robin was home for a few minutes before flying into the kitchen where she was grabbing a drink. She turned to face him with raised brows as he came towards her. He had only looked at her like this in times of world ending peril, so she assumed that they were completely out of the woods yet and it made her heart sink.
“Robin, we need to talk.” Dustin said urgently, his eyes wide as he shifted from foot to foot. “Like right now.”
“Yeah, of course!” Robin nodded.
The pair went outside, all the way to the other side of the pool so no one could walk into their conversation. Dustin sat on the ground and gestured for Robin to do the same. They didn't speak for a while as the boy tried to formulate the best way to work his statement. Robin watched anxiously, waiting for the other shoe to drop and her world be at risk once again.
“I think Liza is cheating on Steve.” Dustin said finally, waiting for the girl's reaction.
“What? With who?” Robin gasped, leaning forward in shock.
“Who do you think?” Dustin rolled his eyes. “With Eddie!”
“No! No way! First of all, Liza would never cheat on Steve, she's head over heels for him!” Robin began, shaking her head at the accusation. “Second, Eddie and Liza ended whatever was going on between them. I mean sure, they still call each other pet names and are all cuddly and shit but Liza treats him the same way she treats me! If she's cheating with Eddie, then she's also cheating with me.”
If that was all the evidence he had to go on then sure, Dustin would have dropped it. However, he had caught more than that. He had caught them in positions he didn't think the two girls would ever be in. Not to mention that Liza had been getting a little too affectionate towards the metalhead lately. More kisses on Eddie's cheeks that seemed too close to his mouth to be platonic or an accident, holding hands under the blanket while Steve was oblivious beside them and he was sure he saw Liza sneaking out of Eddie's room in the morning.
“No, it's more than what she does with you!” Dustin huffed, looking to the house with a grimace.
It seemed to be the exact right - or wrong - time for him to do so as it gave him more evidence. Grabbing Robin's face, he turned it and pointed to an upstairs window. There they saw Liza and Eddie in the girls shared room with Steve. Dustin and Robin watched closely, at first all they saw was the pair talking as Liza grabbed something. However that quickly changed when Eddie grabbed her and spun her around, pulling her into a soft kiss that had Liza wrapping her arms around his shoulders. When she pulled back, Liza said something that had Eddie picking her up and walking out of view.
“Oh, shit.”
“If you and Liza do that, I'd hate to know what else you two do.” Dustin stated with disgust.
“Okay, there has to be some kind of explanation for this.” Robin huffed, looking back to Dustin with a grimace. “Maybe she has like. . . Amnesia and forgot that she got back together with Steve?”
“Wrong. You know as well as I do that if she lost enough of her memory to not remember that she's with Steve but kept just enough to think she was still with Eddie then she would still be pissed at Steve.” Dustin continued, clapping his hands together as he made his point. “Don't you remember the boat house? She was scary mad. She wouldn't casually be living with Steve if she was still there mentally. She would have gutted him and used him as a flag by now.”
“Then what? We just accept that there's no explanation?” Robin shot back, crossing her arms. “We just live with the fact that she's cheating?”
“No, we have to tell Steve.” Dustin sighed and dragged his hand down his face. “It's gonna kill him but he deserves to know.”
“That's your sister though. Don't you want to at least try and talk to her?” Robin asked quietly, eyes going back and forth from Dustin and the house hesitantly. “She could end up getting really mad at you.”
“That's a risk I'm going to have to take.”
~x~
When Liza and Eddie said they were going out for a few hours, Robin and Dustin waited for Steve to come home. They sat nervously in the dining room, both worried about how Steve was going to take the news. Dustin has the forethought to hide any and all things that could be used as a weapon while Robin had brought out a box of tissues. The boy was just about to ask Robin to stop bouncing her leg when the front door opened then shut. Steve came into the room, heading straight for the refrigerator before spotting his friends at the table staring at him.
“Woah, what's got you two so stressed?” Steve asked as he took in their faces. “Don't tell me the world is ending again.”
“Not our world but maybe yours.” Dustin mumbled, watching as Steve tilted his head in confusion. Sighing, Dustin gestured to the chair across from them. “You should sit down for this, Buddy.”
“Okay. . .” Steve said, moving to sit down. “What's going on? Is it Liza? Eddie?”
“Just know that we love you and we aren't telling you this to hurt you.” Robin stated, a hesitant smile on her face that Steve was sure was supposed to be reassuring. “We are telling you this because we are your friends and you deserve-”
“Liza's cheating on you with Eddie!” Dustin blurted out.
Robin glared at Dustin as she smacked him on the back of his head for being so indelicate before they both looked at Steve. His expression was unreadable as he stared back at them in silence. There was no indication of what he was feeling or thinking in his body language. In fact, he was practically a statue. Dustin was waiting for it to fully hit Steve, for it to sink in and the rage to fill the boy. Robin was waiting for Steve to break out into tears, she remembered what had happened before and this was his worst fears and insecurities come to life.
What neither Robin or Dustin expected was for Liza and Eddie to come home early and their voices to float into the dining room. They were talking and laughing about someone they had seen, completely oblivious to the situation they were about to walk into. With their eyes still on Steve, they waited for the guilty party to enter the room. When they did, their joking demeanour dropped as they saw the three at the table. Liza and Eddie shared a look of confusion before turning back.
“What's going on in here?” Eddie asked, leaning against the wall with a coffee in hand. “Did somebody die?”
“Or a new gate pop up?” Liza added, coming to stand behind Steve. She placed a cup in front of him and kissed his hair.
“I don't know, Liza. Eddie. What is going on here?” Dustin asked, glancing between the two as he clasped his hands together on the table and leaned forward. He was giving her the chance to come clean, he was hoping she was smart enough to take it.
“Coffee?” Liza furrowed her brows as she lifted her cup.
Steve stood up abruptly, causing Liza to take a step back. He turned his back to Dustin and Robin, his body language screaming that he was pissed off but his face told a different story. He shifted his eyes between his girlfriend and boyfriend before winking. The pair looked at him in confusion, though Eddie caught on after a moment. Liza was still in the dark as she took a step towards Steve, her hand coming up to touch his face but jerked it back when Steve smacked it away.
“When did it start?” Steve practically growled, placing his hands on his hips. Liza opened and closed her mouth, her brows furrowed in confusion. “Huh? When did you start going behind my back?”
“I don't know what you're talking about!” Liza huffed, putting down her coffee so she could cross her arms. “When did what start?”
“Don't play dumb with me!” Steve raised his voice.
“Calm down, Stevie.” Eddie stated, his voice holding a teasing lilt. “Use your big boy words.”
“Don't you fucking start, Munson. I'll get to you in a minute.” Steve narrowed his eyes at the metalhead before pointing at Liza. “This is between her and I right now.”
“What is?!” Liza exclaimed, throwing her hands up. “You still haven't told me!”
“You're cheating on me with him!” Steve finally said the words. Dustin grabbed on to Robin's arm in worry, this was exactly why he hid everything. “Go ahead and admit it!”
“What?” Liza asked before it clicked in her mind what was happening. Finally playing along, she took another step back, putting her closer to Eddie. “and where did you get an idea like that?”
Robin and Dustin's eyes bounced back and forth as Steve continued to yell at Liza to admit it and she kept denying. Eddie seemed to be content in watching the show, a small grin on his face as he chuckled every once in a while. Both were worried that maybe they had been wrong and had just imagined the whole thing with how much conviction Liza had in her voice. Her steadfast denial was convincing until Eddie joined in.
“Why deny it, Doll?” Eddie said, pushing himself from the wall so he could come stand behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist, lowering his head to place a lingering kiss to her cheek. “Tell him every last detail of how we've been sneaking around in his own house.”
“At least one of you admits it.” Steve scoffed, thankful that his face wasn't able to be seen by his friends because he had a giant smile.
“Tell him about how much you love me, how you couldn't stay away, how you kiss me.” Eddie continued, eyes locked on to Steve as he spoke. “It's been what? A week now?”
“Steve. . .” Liza forced a crack into her voice.
“You have a lot of nerve!” Steve said, charging towards the pair.
Dustin and Robin let out yelps when Steve grabbed Eddie by the shoulder, pulling the metalhead off of Liza to push him into the wall. Liza screamed out a no and slid in-between the two boys and that where the charade seemed to end. Liza leaned back against Eddie who had to hold her up as they both struggled to stand while laughing. Steve hung his head to rest on Eddie's shoulder, clutching on to Liza's waist. The two at the table had never felt more perplexed, it was clear that they had missed out on the joke but they weren't sure what could be so funny during this.
“I'm sorry, what is happening?” Dustin asked, looking at his sister who seemed to be calming down from her laughing fit.
“You guys actually thought. . . Whoo!” Liza snorted, wiping tears from her eyes as she emerged from between the two boys. With the blonde no longer between them, they fell into each other still laughing. “I'm not cheating on Steve!”
“But we saw you guys! You were kissing and all over each other!” Dustin exclaimed, pointing at them.
“You saw that? Well, I can understand where this is coming from.” Liza glanced over to Steve and Eddie with a sigh. The boys gestured for her to lead the conversation, both knowing that she would handle it better than they would and that Dustin and Robin would probably rather hear it from her. “Alright, I guess it's time to come clean on what's actually happening.”
“So wait, if you aren't cheating on Steve. . .” Robin pointed at Steve, then at Eddie. “But you did kiss Eddie. Then what-” Robin cut herself off, her eyes widening as she slammed her hands on to the table. “Oh!”
“Oh? What do you mean oh?” Dustin asked Robin, frustrated that she seemed to have caught on while he was still lost.
“Dust, I need you to keep an open mind.” Liza began. She sat down in the chair that Steve had been in previously. She looked at her brother nervously as she took in a deep breath. “You already know that I'm dating Steve, that I love him.”
“Yeah. . .” Dustin said sceptically.
“And you know that I almost dated Eddie and despite everything, I love him too.” Liza continued. Dustin nodded, his brows furrowed as he followed along. He glanced at Steve to gauge his reaction to the blonde's words but found that he was leaning against the wall practically pressed against Eddie as they listened. “Well, now I'm also dating Eddie.”
“And Steve is just. . . Okay with that?” Dustin furrowed his brows, not comprehending what Liza was saying. “You're actually okay with them dating?”
“I mean, yeah.” Steve rolled his eyes with a smile. He leaned his head against Eddie's shoulder. “It would be a little hypocritical of me if I wasn't.”
“Why would it be?” Robin asked, her eyes narrowing at her friend as she watched his body language.
“Because Stevie here is also dating me.” Eddie grinned, placing a kiss on Steve's hair.
“No shit! Harrington's got himself a boyfriend!” Robin gasped, her eyes lit up in amusement. “Never thought I'd see the day.”
“So let me get this straight. You are dating Steve and Eddie, Eddie is dating you and Steve, Steve is dating you and Eddie? Am I understanding that?” Dustin looked at Liza as he spoke. She nodded and waited for what she thought would surely be disgust. Dustin was stone faced as he sat in silence, clearly mulling the information over in his head. “Then what the fuck did you break up for?”
“What?” Liza asked in shock.
“You and Steve! If this was an option then why the fuck did you two have this big explosive break up, hate each other for months and date other people?” Dustin threw his hands in the air, exasperation written on his face. “You could have avoided all of that drama if you had done this in the first place!”
“In my defence, I wasn't a fan of Eds in the beginning.” Steve answered, pulling Eddie over to the table so they could sit on either side of Liza. Steve's hand immediately went to Liza's thigh while Eddie rested his arm along the back of her chair. “I would have rather died than even be friends with him.”
“Yeah and I thought Stevie here was a massive tool until you Henderson's changed my mind.” Eddie added in, winking at Liza. “Didn't help that he also managed to be friends with Liza and date her while I was still trying to figure out how to get her to have more than a passing conversation with me.”
“I also didn't know I had feelings for Eddie until Mick called us oblivious and kicked us out of Dexter's to get our shit together.” Liza shrugged, leaning back in her chair. “Either way, we didn't know it was an option until about two weeks ago.”
“How did you manage to make this happen?” Robin asked, haunched over the table in excitement. “How did you not only get Steve to agree to you dating Eddie but him dating him as well?”
“Actually, it was my idea.” Steve grinned, enjoying the shock on Dustin and Robin's faces “It was supposed to be a one time thing.”
“Our girl.” Liza wagged her eyebrows at Robin whose mouth dropped open.
“Then I realised that I wanted it to be more. So, we agreed to all date.” Steve finished. He has given the trimmed down version since the full one would be a little too much to tell Dustin.
Dustin blinked a few times as he tried to wrap his mind around the information. He knew that Liza was with Steve, knew that she had been happy with Eddie. He saw how ecstatic she had been when she realised that she was able to have both in her life at the same time. Now he could see that she wasn't just happy, she was practically glowing as she looked at the two boys. It was going to take some getting used to but if it made his sister happy then Dustin wasn't going to do anything to sabotage it. It was no secret that Liza took his opinion to heart and if he showed any form of displeasure towards her new relationship, she would be devastated.
“Just. . . Try and keep the lovey shit to a minimum when I'm around. At least until I can comprehend it.” Dustin sighed, standing from his seat. He went to leave the room but stopped and leaned his weight on his hands on the table. He set his face in a serious glare that he directed towards Steve and Eddie. “If either of you fuck up and hurt my sister, I will make your lives a living hell. If I catch her so much as sniffling because one of you got your panties in a twist over some shit you've agreed on, then I'm going to suffocate you in your sleep. Do you understand?”
“We won't-”
“Nod if you understand!” Dustin ground out.
“Yes sir!” Eddie nodded, slightly afraid of the boy. Dustin turned to Steve who rolled his eyes and nodded, he had heard these threats more than enough times. “See? We will be on our best behaviour.” Dustin sighed but left the room.
Liza patted Steve's leg before looking at Robin. The girl was practically vibrating with how hard she was trying to keep her words in. Liza gestured for her to go ahead and the questions came flying. The blonde answered every one, a wide smile on her face. Steve tried to intervene at one point, saying that one of Robin's questions was bordering on private information. Eddie had been the one to lean around their girlfriend to remind him that the girls were soulmates and didn't keep secrets. If Liza didn't tell Robin now, she would tell the girl when they were alone. Steve sighed but relented, hiding his laugh at Robin's reaction behind his hand.
While Liza spoke, Robin watched as the trio interacted. At one point, Eddie looked back at his coffee that was on the counter next to Liza's and let out a whining huff. Steve caught the sound and without looking to see what the Metalhead needed stood and grabbed both cups. He brought them over and placed them in front of their respective owners. Eddie tilted his head back to smile at his boyfriend who bent over to give him a quick kiss. Liza barely spared them a glance but Robin gasped loudly.
“Calm down, Buckley. It's just a kiss.” Steve joked.
“Yeah, see?” Eddie said before turning Liza's head to bring her into a sweet kiss. Steve copied the action making Liza giggle and roll her eyes. “Just a kiss.”
A/n : so I'm in love with this dynamic and will probably write a few more things about Stediza.