𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙧𝙮 𝙥𝙤𝙥! 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙫𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙤𝙣

SCENE THIRTY SIX. in the name of love

they continue to walk, steve remains close to piper's side for every step they take. the group is talking, making small talk even if there's nothing left to talk about. trying to ignore the feeling of their impending doom.

"uh, i don't mean to freak anyone, out, but i swear we've seen this tree before." robin frantically calls as she ran up to one of the many trees in the woods. the same twisted veins travelling up the bark.

"that's impossible, we've walked straight." nancy hissed at the girl from band.

"that would suck, right? if vecna destroyed our world because we got lost in the woods."

"we're lost?" piper questions softly, taking the headphones off to listen to what the group were stressfully rambling on about.

"no!" steve screamed.

"we're not lost, okay? robin is just scared, right robin?" steve repeated, pointing his finger out as he spoke. he looked almost like fred from that scooby doo show she used to watch. but robin laughs awkwardly, before looking around panicked and running off straight ahead. nancy crying the girls name, followed by the comment about veins and hive minds as she ran after the girl. making sure she'd be okay. and steve stayed with piper.

"will she be okay?" the quiet voice asks and steve turns to look at her as they walked in silence.

"she'll be fine." he smiled ar the girl who had taken the headphones off just to talk to him.

"she's going to trip on something." steve adds with a small chuckle.

"oh most definitely, you know she once told me that it took her longer to walk than ost babies." he laughs softly, nodding his head. that sounded like robin.

"you shouldn't laugh mr harrington, your mother told me when you were a baby you crawled backwards." piper stated and steve felt himself go red in the face. he hadn't expected her to remember this. afterall it had been a while.

finding his best friend at the dinner table with your mum who is always away laughing together is never a good sign. especially when it's piper parker and elieen harrington. steve wanted to ignore how his heart scrunched when he looked at his friend, the girls face lit up in a smile. clutching her stomach. till he noticed what they were laughing at. the very empty picture book laid before the two girls, the look of horror spreads over his face as he hears his mother story. she was telling piper how the boy crawled and walked backwards fo the first two years of his life.

"that explains everything." she giggled, looking up at her friend.

he still remembers how bright her smile was. before it all. back when piper parker was unhurt from everything steve harrington said and did to her. he looks back over to her. a smile on his own face, and he wonders why she's still here. her hand wrapped in his. looking as beautiful as the day he lost her. only now, hurt had changed her face. older. not so wiser. the strength of freckles on her face had faded, eyes didn't seem as doelike anymore.

"yeah, yeah i did, she ever tell you that i fell down a flight of stairs because of it?" he laughs. piper laughs too.

"no, she didn't." she adds.

"yeah my tiny little harrington brain who thought that reversing was a good idea actually fell. thumped my head real good." he comments and she roars with laughter, imagining tiny steve falling down the stairs. she can imagine him sitting and wailing at the bottom too.

"always wondered why you were so stupid., and once again everything connects." she states, bumping into his arm lightly as they continued to walk. they could see nancy and robin in the far near, walking closely together. most liking taling about the plan. judging robin's shaking hands and nancy's stern posture.

"yeah, i guess it does. i think, like right out of the gate. i'm super confident, but i'm als like an idiot."

"a massive idiot." she cuts him off, cutting him off. he sends a glare at her as she giggled.

"precisely, which is a brutal combination. but the good news is that if i get a big enough thump on my head. i can change, you know? i can learn, i can crawl forward." he continued, her smile fades as he talks. she hadn't taken steve to be insecure. he always seemed so big headed, she would have thought he couldn't give two shits about anything or anyone.

"of course."

"i guess in the long run, what i'm trying to say is thank you?" he told her, her brows furrowing in confusion.

"thank you?"

"your welcome. oh, well you've not only given my head the biggest thumb of my life. but you've given me the tools in what i need to use to grow more. you fixed me." he smiled before noticing the confused look, she didn't accept his thank you. she didn't understand it.

"no, you fixed yourself steven micheal harrington." and he groaned as she used his full name, cursing her name under his breath.

"you did that yourself, i heard all about it from dustin. he told me how you had grown as a person, slowly making yourself better again.in fact, you've not only saved yourself. but everyone around you." she adds, talking to him as if he were some god that she believed in. like he was put on a throne.

"no i haven't, i'm a burden."

"steve, you're the older brother the kids needed. their mum as max explains. robin,who had never felt accepted in ehr life. someone you had never once acknowledged before. trusts you with her life. which isn't the smartest thing, but she does. you steve harrington are good in many people bad's lifes." she speaks soft, her tone never changes. it's inviting. it's comforting. it's new.

"remember the dream i told you about in the rv?"

"about the harrington family?"

"i never really realised but i kind of already have it." he stas, he notices her nodding along.

"you do."

"but there is one part that i forget to mention." he mentions, and that same look of confusion etched onto her face.

"you were there. always had been. even when we were little. you were ms harrington."

"steve-" she started with his name, but thankfully was cut off. what would she even say to that? yes? no? possibly? not the six children?

"i know it's stupid, after everything i did to you and had continued to do. but i love you piper., always have."

"steve." she called again and he stopped in his tracks, turning just in time for her to grab his face. cradling his face in her hands as she kissed him. a smile lifted onto his features once more. they were okay. he had finally gotten her back.