The Boy Next Door - Steddie

9

Steve was not prepared to go to school for the next few days. It felt like everyone was going to know what he's done and they were going to judge him. His parents thought that he was avoiding them because of their previous argument but little did they know that was far from what was on Steve's mind.

When he woke up that morning he looked out his window to see if Eddie had already left for school. His room was dark and from Steve could see pretty empty also. Eventually they needed to talk about what was on that tape. Steve hoped that he didn't buy it intentionally or if he did that it was a joke that went extremely wrong.

This morning Steve's parents wasn't in the kitchen and he thanked god that they weren't. He made his usual breakfast before heading out and picking up his friends.

Robin and Nancy sensed that something was off with him but they hesitated to ask. Steve's palms were sweating as he gripped the steering wheel tightly. He was swerving off the road a little bit which was really unusual for Steve since he was probably the best driver at school.

"If you don't mind me asking, are you alright Steve?" Nancy asked from the passenger seat. Robin leaned up from the backseat and placed both of her elbows on each side of the car seats. Now he was really feeling anxious as if he was being interrogated for committing a crime.

"You know we're always here for you right? Well I can't really talk to anyone outside of school because I still have that assignment to do and recently my parents are being a pain in the ass lately which I think-"

"Robin!" Nancy cut off Robin in the middle of her rambling. She immediately stopped talking and whispered an apology.

"What we're trying to say is that you don't have to hide anything from us." Nancy smiled at him trying to reassure him. Steve started to relax after listening to his friends comforting words. As much as he adored their kindness he highly doubted that they would understand his situation at hand. It wasn't the most normal thing to share about what you've done with your free time.

"I really appreciate you guys, I really do, but I don't think that what I'm going through is the most appealing to share with anyone." Steve said disappointed. Robin and Nancy looked at each other with a certain look that only they could understand. Steve was left out of most of their conversations and he got used to it for some time now.

"Is it a boy thing?" Robin randomly blurted out. Steve thought that Nancy would scold her for asking that but it seemed like she was also very intrigued. Even when he didn't tell them anything there was still a way for them to find out some how.

'Is it a boy thing?'

Steve could say that it was a "boy thing" or it did have something to do with boys. More specifically about how a certain boy got him a tape that made him question himself and made him even more confused than before. So in simple terms, yes, it is a boy thing.

"I guess you could say that." Steve tried to joke about it. To be honest he was being a little overdramatic and all he could is laugh at himself.

"Well if that's the case why don't you just ask Eddie? I'm pretty sure he would-"

"Now that I think about it I'm starting to feel a lot better and I'm sorry for worrying you guys with my behavior earlier. I've never been better so there's no need to bother Eddie about my issues." Steve said quickly as they entered the school parking lot. Confusion was written all over the girls face and Steve felt like he was dying if he stayed in the car any longer.

Steve rushed his goodbye to them and sprinted to his first class. Until lunch came around at least he had a few hours to spare to not think about anything that has occurred.

-

Lunch came around faster than what Steve wanted and there was nothing he could do about. He sat down at the table where Robin and Nancy were already eating their lunch. Eddie was still talking to Chrissy and majority of the cheerleaders a long with their boyfriends. Jason was no where to be found once again, Steve wondered what was going on between all three of them.

Steve watched all of them interact with each other as if they were the best of friends. It was obvious that Eddie was the one that brought the light into their world whether they wanted to believe it or not. Steve was still unsure about how he felt about Eddie even after they spent a few hours in the car together.

It was like Steve didn't want to get to know him but it was killing him that he didn't know much about him either. He wondered did Chrissy and the other cheerleaders know much about him, hell even Jason might know more than what he lets on.

"Steve, are you sure you're alright?" Nancy's voice interrupted him from his thoughts.

"Yeah I'm fine. I'm serious guys it's just a personal thing, don't worry about me." Steve gave them a small smile. They didn't  try to ask him about it anymore after that and they started talking about random topics.

Eddie walked over to the table to join the three of them and he looked a lot happier than usual. Steve tensed up when he sat beside him making their knees touch underneath the table.

"So what did I miss?" Eddie said while reaching over the table for Robin's food. She gave him a glare but he didn't care and stuffed his face with the little piece of food he could grab.

"Nothing really. Just talking about school." Nancy said quietly. Eddie could tell that something was wrong with them and he couldn't figure out what it was. He focused on Steve for the most part, today he noticed a huge change in his demeanor.

"Well Steve, I was wondering if after school you could give me a ride home from school also. Maybe I could be a part of the routine with you guys." Eddie pitched the idea to the group. Robin and Nancy looked on board but it was silent on Steve's part. He was fiddling with his fingers which wasn't normal for him to do.

"Steve is that ok?" Robin asked him in a soft tone. Steve didn't want the spot light to be on him right now especially when it came to Eddie. If he started riding with them to and from school that would mean they would spend even more time together.

"Steve?" Eddie put his hand on Steve's shoulder and Steve couldn't handle it. He slapped Eddie's hand so hard that it started turning red. The sound echoed through the cafeteria making all the students stare at them. He was embarrassed and angry all at once.

"Why don't you just ask Chrissy to take you home? You're always with her anyways or is it just a one night thing? That's typical." Steve spat at Eddie as he stood up from the table and he stormed out of the cafeteria. He went into the bathroom with his face burning up and tears forming in his eyes.

Steve looked at himself in the mirror and he couldn't recognize who he was looking back at him. Not only did the entire school see him flip out but he yelled at the only person that he wanted to be close to. Steve regretted letting his thoughts and his emotions get the best of him, Eddie didn't deserve to be treated like that.

"What did I just do?" Steve sobbed over the sink. He didn't even try to stop the tears from coming out. Everything just came out of him and he wasn't strong enough to stop it.

-

So.... School is back in my life, but luck for me I have senior dismissal 🥳

I hope y'all are still interested in this story and it didn't scare you away. Thank you for reading 🥰