Stare. [Steve Harrington x Reader]

Chapter Two: Getting Sheet Faced

Wednesday, October 31, 1984

I took my bike to school the next morning, taking in the quiet morning as I rode through town.

A few hours later at school, I sat with Nancy and Steve in the library studying. Nancy got up to sharpen her pencil, and I worked on my math homework while I also helped Steve with his.

I looked over at Nancy and she looked like she was zoning out on something, so I got up.

"Nancy. Nancy." I said, she still hadn't snapped out of it. "Nancy." She turned to me finally. "What's going on? Are you okay?" I asked.

She looked over at a redhead who was getting a book from the shelf. Then I pulled her into a small room to talk.

"I can't keep doing this." She said to me.

"Doing what?" I said with furrowed brows.

"Pretending like everything's okay."

"What are you talking about?" I asked her, shaking my head slightly.

"Barbara. It's like everyone forgot. It's like nobody cares. Except her parents. And now they're selling their house."

"Wha-"

"And they're going to spend the rest of their lives looking for her. It's destroying them."

"I know, I know, I get it. Okay? I get it. But listen, there's nothing we can do about it." I said to her.

"Yeah, we could tell them the truth." I took a step back.

"Well, you know that we can't do that. Not after everything."

"We don't have to tell them everything."

"This isn't some game, Nancy. If they found out that we told anyone..." I stopped talking and walked over to close the curtains so no one could see us talking. "They could put us in jail. Steve, you, me. Okay? Or worse, they could destroy our families. They could do anything they want. Okay? Just think about what you're saying." I explained to her.

She stayed silent. I sat down on the table. "Okay, you know what? Let's just go to that stupid Halloween party and wear our stupid costumes and just pretend we're stupid teenagers, okay?" I said to her.

"Okay." She said to me quietly.

"Come here." I got up and hugged her.

I was at home after school, getting ready for the Halloween party later tonight. I was going to dress up as Wendy from The Shining since that was the first horror film Nancy and I had ever seen together. In the movie, Wendy wore a green and white checkered shirt, a brown overall dress, kneehigh brown boots, and, of course, the baseball bat.

Mom and dad were waiting in the living room for me to come out and show them.

I looked at myself in the mirror and added a bit more makeup, then I grabbed the bat that was sitting in the corner of my room to finish the look.

I opened my door and walked out. I could see Mom turn around to face me. "Oh, look at you." She said to me. I walked into the living room. "You look so beautiful." She said, "Give us a twirl." I turned around in a circle, showing off my costume with a laugh. "You look great, sweetie," Mom said again.

I smiled, "Thanks. Steve and Nancy are here to pick me up." I said to her as I grabbed a few of my things. "So, I'll see you later."

"Okay, honey. I'll see you later."

"Okay, bye," I said to her and walked out the door and down the driveway to Steve's car that waited for me on the side of the road.

It had gotten darker outside, and we were all at the party now. I stood with Nancy and Steve in the crowded house. The music was too loud, and the house smelled of alcohol and cigarettes.