𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐫 | steve harrington

005| the way love works

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BRIAR FOUND HERSELF SPENDING THE MAJORITY of nights with Steve. They'd fall asleep in each others arms, probably waking up in wildly different positions because neither of them could stay still. She liked the comfort of his arms hanging over her waist, his skin on her skin. His lips pressed to her head. Although it wasn't every night, it was her best nights.

The nights Steve didn't come over, she found herself strangely lonely. It wasn't as though she was dependant on him but she did like the extra warmth stemming from his body, waking up to find she wasn't alone. Steve pretty much always woke up first and when Briar opened her eyes he'd be next to her, never getting bored of the silence as his eyes trailed over the room.

She was never very fast at waking up and he'd usually laugh at her bleary eyes and dumb questions and the world opened up around them. Briar was simply grateful to have him there, she wasn't sure she told him that enough. She couldn't imagine waking up everyday to an empty bed, not even creased sheets and a memory of a smile.

They often stayed awake for a while in each others company. A couple nights after Briar had leant the truth about her brother they'd done just that. Briar had been rested against a lot of cushions, slightly propped up as Steve lay his head against her chest. The weight was comforting, she had her fingers in his hair, playing with smooth strands as he lay with his eyes closed, very purely in a sense of bliss and he enjoyed the feeling of her touch on his scalp.

"You're quiet" he said after a while, squeezing her thigh with his hand.

"You're quiet" Briar said simply in response.

"I'm tired" Steve replied, "work was jarring today, you'd be surprised how busy that place gets on Saturday afternoons. There's so many screaming kids it makes my head ache. Not to mention the kids came in again today, desperate to see this new zombie film. It's stupid... I hate working there"

"I know honey" Briar sighed as she ran her hands through his hair. Scoops Ahoy was Steve's dads idea of a punishment. Since Steve didn't graduate he didn't have much else to do. He also wasn't planning on going back to high school, Briar wasn't quite sure why but she respected the choice. Yet the idea of Steve working in the ice cream parlour his entire life was stupid. He deserved more than that.

"It's just" Steve closed his eyes tighter, "I'm just not sure what I'm supposed to be doing"

"You're supposed to be doing whatever you want to" Briar murmured, stroking his hair continuously as he rubbed small circles on the side of her leg.

"I don't know what I wanna do" Steve mused, "I don't think I've ever known what... do you think about what you want to do a lot?"

"Sometimes" Briar shrugged.

"Tell me about it?"

"I'd like to paint I suppose" Briar smiled, "I'd like to paint illustrations for books... children's books or nature books... maybe even the covers of books I don't know. I'd like to paint something that other people could see but something more than a painting hanging on a wall. Something that... has more meaning I suppose. I'd like to live in the countryside, where it's peaceful... but close to a town because I wouldn't want to feel separated from the world you know? Maybe a small village or something, with a stream... and a quiet bar where everyone knows each other"