𝗨𝗚𝗟𝗬 // 𝗦𝘁𝗲𝘃𝗲 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗼𝗻

030

"It was just so tone death you know!"
Steve laughs as we walk out of the gym, door swinging behind us as he loosely holds it open for others passing by.
"I know! I know!" He chuckles out, "you've said three times now Rubes."

I stop abruptly in the hallway, letting people walk past us as me and Steve stand face to face, he's smiling at me, that same smile he always has when staring into my eyes.
"I just.. I miss when you played."

He laughs and a familiar air rushes through my chest.
Pretty laugh.
Pretty boy.

"I miss playing too. And hey.." he moves closer, reaches out and places a hand on my shoulder, "I would've never made a speech like that." He reassures me with a polite, calming tone.
I believe him.

"I know."
A sense of relief washes over Steve's face and he lets out a small sigh, as if my words were confirmation of something more.

"Okay, now get to class nerd!"
He plants a small kiss on my forehead before pushing me away playfully and lightly. When he kisses me, it's like the world has slowed down, the stares of passing classmates blurred in the motion.

I'm happy.

***

The colour green never looked good on me, whether it be on a pair of tights or a letterman jacket, so as I walk the hallways of Hawkins High I can't help but feel sad at the motif of colour.
Green was everywhere.
I used to think it was a metaphor, that the colour green not suiting me meant the school wasn't right for me either, that I'd never fit in.
I try to shake off those feelings nowadays.

My feet trip over one another as I knock into someone in front of me and they fall to the ground, fragile like a porcelain doll.
It's only when I blink back into reality I realise it's Chrissy Cunningham.

"Oh my gosh I'm so sorry!" My words squeak out as I speak to her for the first time, a girl so beautiful like a painting, a girl so admired. There's the old part of me that still yearns for that feeling, but I like that I don't need it so badly anymore.

I reach out for her hand to help her back up and she gladly accepts, holding on tight and lifting herself off the ground before wiping down her skirt.
"It's- ok.."

She looks up and has a moment of realisation, gasping out loud in a small squeak, "oh! You're Steve Harrington's girlfriend!"

The title still made me blush.

"It's Ruby." I smile at her and she returns the gesture, but her smiles not as bright as usual.

Her eyes glance down to the baseball shirt I'm wearing, glimmering with curiosity, "hell.. fire?"
A mix of fear and embarrassment rushes through me, Chrissy's boyfriend was known to hate the Hellfire Club.
But Chrissy, she didn't even seem to know what it was?

It made me question what the pair talked about.

"It's a.. nerd thing," I awkwardly chuckle, unsure how to grasp the situation I'm in, "it's actually really fun! It's run by Eddie Munson.." my words trail off as I remember her boyfriends words thrown across the lunch hall, but she simply snaps her head up, "Eddie Munson?"

She seems to think for a moment, as if ideas are forming in her head, yet her brain seems fogged.
There's a small moment where I realise she could be recalling the way Jason acts, and out of fear she'll replicate his actions, I quickly pipe up again.

"Yeah, it's pretty great!" She snaps back to reality, glossy look still over her eyes, but she's listening to me intently.
From this brief conversation alone I can tell she's nothing like her boyfriend. I question if she even knows the way he really is.