people are strange ♔ steve harrington x oc

• 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟏 •

~ 𝐒𝐔𝐙𝐈𝐄, 𝐃𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐂𝐎𝐏𝐘? ~
𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐀𝐘, 𝟐𝟖𝐭𝐡 𝐎𝐅 𝐉𝐔𝐍𝐄 𝟏𝟗𝟖𝟓

The Summer of 1985.

This time four years ago had marked the last summer Jenny and Steve had been friends. Now it marked just over 7 months of them being a couple.

A picture locket adorned her neck now, a symbol of their six-month anniversary, and a watch rested on his left wrist, engraved underneath with their initials.

Steve laid a strong, comforting hand around Jenny's waist as he nursed a pint and walked around the Hawkins Country Club, occasionally giving her a sip whenever Deputy Dean wasn't looking.

The ladies all doted on Jenny, as they had been for months, expressing their various opinions on how she should do her hair now, where to hem her dresses, and questions she must ask Steve if she intended to stay with him, and gushing about what a good young man Steve was.

Not to mention, her impending debutant was giving them more excuses than ever to voice their ideas; especially since Steve was her partner.

She was honestly quite fed up with them by the time the third comparison of her deb dress and a wedding dress reached her ears that day, so she excused herself to the bar where Steve was fetching her a Lemon Lime and Bitters.

She sighed as she leaned against the bar.

"You come here often?" Steve said as he picked up their drinks and turned to hand her hers. Jenny raised an eyebrow.

"Are you chatting me up, Mr Harrington?" She teased, taking a sip from her straw.

"Maybe, Mrs– Ms Dean," He stuttered, taking a sip from his beer.

"Harrington son!"

Steve spluttered his drink as a middle-aged man clapped him on the back. Jenny sucked in her lips in an attempt to stifle her laughter as he furiously tried to wipe his face on his collar.

"Mr Hardacre," Steve wheezed, holding in coughs as Mr Hardacre (an associate of Charles Harrington's from his real estate firm) introduced himself to Jenny.

"So, off to college soon 'ey, Steve?" Mr Hardacre asked. Steve looked away from him shyly. Jenny slipped her hand into his free one. College was a... touchy, topic for Steve as of late due to the fact he wasn't going, and that his father was still furious about it.

"...Uh, no, no," Steve managed to get out after a beat. "I'll be sticking around... For Jennifer's senior year."

"Ah!" Mr Hardacre said, clearly missing the discomfort he had put Steve in. "Of course." He winked at Jenny, who offered a warm smile in return. Steve downed half his beer in one sip.

"It was lovely meeting you, Mr Hardacre," Jenny said, linking her arm in Steve's, "but unfortunately we must be off. We have to get ready for work."

"Right, right," The man said cheerfully. Jenny gave him another charming smile and pulled Steve away as he down the rest of his pint.

"Steve," She hissed, taking the empty glass and setting it on a table as they passed. "You remember we actually do have work, yeah?"