𝙗𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙢𝙚 𝙭 𝙚𝙙𝙙𝙞𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙣𝙨𝙤𝙣

1.

"See them walking hand in hand at midnight..." I hum out the words to the song on the radio as I'm looking in the overhead mirror of the car trying to put mascara on my bottom lashes without poking my eye out.

"Guys are you listening?" Steve's yelling breaks my concentration, effectively startling me and putting a black smudge on my cheek.

"Jesus Steve, you scared the crap out of me." I complain, looking over at the boy who's been talking animatedly about his dating life since the moment I got into the car.

"Well I wouldn't have to if you'd just listen to me!" He argues, and Robin's head pops up from the backseat to interject.

"We are listening!" The girl tries to cover up the fact that she also wasn't listening and was instead putting on eye shadow as we drive to school.

"Okay, then what did I say huh?" Steve questions, raising his eyebrow daringly as we both try to cover our asses.

"Something about sex?" I guess, wiping off the smudge on my face with a used napkin from Steve's glovebox.

"Yeah, with-with Linda!" Robin adds, and Steve nearly goes red in the face as he goes off on a tangent about how he broke it off with Linda ages ago.

"No! I'm talking about Heidi!" He waves his free arm in the air crazily to prove his point.

"Cut us some slack, please! Your life is one labyrinthian complexity and it is seven in the morning. We have to go to this stupid pep rally, and I woke up looking like a total corpse! It also doesn't help that Dylan called shotgun and I can't use the mirror to put on my makeup!" Robin rants, climbing over the console to hog the mirror and look at her under eye bags.

"Ouch! Get back in your seat, zombie." I jab playfully as Robin elbows me in the shoulder trying to look in the mirror. She throws me a grumpy look and plops black in her seat with a sigh.

"You're worried about a basketball pep rally? You expect me to believe that?" Steve continues and I close the over head mirror, finally finished with my makeup.

"Yeah, so..." Robin grumbles softly.

"So! We all know what this is about okay? I'm not buying that bullshit, this is about Vicky." Steve says confidently and Robin sinks into her seat like she's been caught.

"Ooh, how is the love of your life Robin?" I interject, looking back and wiggling my eyebrows at her with a mischievous grin. Robin has been drooling over her band-mate for the entirety of this year and I think they would make the perfect couple if Robin would just make a move already.

"She's fine, and this is absolutely not about her." Robin denies, distracting herself by putting on some chapstick.

"Yes it is, and you know what else I think?" Steve and Robin continue to go back and forth about her asking out Vicky for what feels like the hundredth time and I watch on in amusement.

Us three have been practically inseparable since the whole situation at star court this summer. After the mall burned to the ground and the mind flayer was killed, all three of us were out of jobs since Robin and Steve worked at scoops and I worked at Sam Goody.

So, Robin and I pulled some strings with our friend Keith and got all three of us jobs at the movie store.

We all became even closer, probably because of the shared trauma and our inability to talk about what happened with anyone who wasn't there. But I wouldn't change it for the world because these two idiots have been my best friends ever since.

"I ask out the wrong girl and bam! I'm a town pariah." Robin finishes her rant and I frown at how hard it is for her to hide who she is because of the assholes of Hawkins high.

"Yeah, I'd buy that except that Vicky is definitely not the wrong girl." Steve tries to persuade her to take a chance, but Robin is not having any of it.

"I agree, I mean come on Robin. She returned fast times paused at fifty three minutes and five seconds!"
I add, and Steve nods in agreement.

"Do you know who pauses fast times at fifty three minutes and five seconds? People who like boobies Robin!" Steve practically yells and Robin groans.

"Dude! Gross."

"Boobies!" Steve raises his hand in the air in emphasis and I can't help but snort at the word.

"Don't say boobies!" Robin scolds but he doesn't listen.

"Not a big deal, okay! I like boobies, you like boobies. Vicky likes boobies, definitely." Steve asserts and my sides hurt from laughing at how uncomfortable Robin is getting.

"Steve if you say boobies one more time I'm going to mess up your hair." I threaten as I continue to laugh and Robin cracks a small laugh at that.

"It's boobies..." Steve says quietly, shrugging and turning the car into the parking lot as we approach Hawkins high.

"What did I just say." I reach over and try to mess with Steve's hair while he drives, and he starts slapping my hand away in defense.

"Hey! Knock it off, twerp. Or I'll leave you on the side of the road." He slaps my hand away repeatedly until I retreat so he doesn't make me walk to school.

"Okay, get out losers." He says goodbye and Robin races out of the car to catch up with one of her band friends, ditching us already.

"Rude." He comments as we both watch her run away into the crowd.

I chuckle, looking over at Steve as we both laugh at Robin's craziness.

"Okay, I'll see you later. Thanks for the ride." I thank him with a smile and gather up my backpack.

"No problem, I'll see you at the work later." He smiles back at me and I nod, getting out of the car and waving at him as I head towards the school.

He waves back, then speeds away. I sigh, realizing that I actually have to get to class now. Kicking a rock with my shoe, I turn and slowly trudge towards the front door already waiting until this day is over with.