Beyond the Battle: Action & Consequence (Steddie, Stranger Things)

Chapter 38: Paternal

"Don't worry, Darling," his mom said as they all looked towards the doorway, "I've got this."

He trailed after his mother into the main part of the house with Eddie close behind him. It was ridiculous but he almost felt more nervous about his dad coming home than defending the house from Sullivan and his men. There was no one else to worry about when it came to his dad.

"David," his mom said, quickly walking over to where his dad was dropping his suitcase just inside the doorway.

"Sylvie, thank god," his dad said, immediately accepting a quick peck of a kiss and throwing his arms around his wife. "I saw one of the news reports after you called and when I tried to call back, I couldn't get through. What the hell is going on?"

"So much we have missed," his mom replied, "but, don't worry, I will explain it all like I promised on the phone. The lines are mostly up now, but they are still having problems with them."

It was when his parents broke apart that his dad finally looked up. Steve's breath caught in his throat when their eyes met.

"Hi, Dad," he said.

"Steve," his dad said, coming over quickly, "are you alright? I've been hearing terrible things ever since I landed."

Steve was more than a little shocked to be dragged into a hug before he could answer. They hadn't quite been back on hugging terms last time they had seen each other.

"I'm fine," he promised, automatically relaxing into his dad's arms like he had done most of his life. "It was bad for a while, but we got through it."

He was instantly distracted by a low-level pain, as his healing instincts fired.

"You're all in one piece though?" his dad checked when they broke apart.

He nodded.

"Kind of difficult not to be now," he said, distracted by what he had sensed.

It occurred to him he was picking up his dad's bad knee, an injury his dad had had since college from a bad jump playing basketball.

"What?" his dad asked.

"David," his mom said, rescuing him, "that's part of what I have to explain. I think it'll be easier if we do this in the study. Steve, why don't you and Eddie put on a new pot of coffee, I expect we'll need it."

He nodded, but didn't move as he watched his dad notice Eddie properly for the first time.

"Dad, this is Eddie," he introduced before his dad could ask. "He and his uncle Wayne are staying with us at the moment because their home was destroyed."

"Hello, Eddie," his dad said, extending a formal hand in greeting. "Have we met before?"

Eddie accepted the handshake like a pro.

"You might have seen my face on the news, sir," Eddie replied. "For a while the town tried to blame me for the murders that happened before the quake."

"There was a ridiculous Satanic panic, Darling," Steve's mom added, "just because Eddie runs the Dungeons and Dragons club at the High School. I always knew some people in this town were stupid, but it seems to have been worse than ever."

"Jason Carver has a lot to answer for," Steve said, not bothering to keep the protective tone out of his voice. "Shame he's dead."

His mom reached out and placed a hand on his arm. She had been horrified by his retelling of what had happened to Erica and Lucas when trying to protect Max. If it hadn't been for Carver, Vecna might never have broken through into Hawkins in the first place.