❝the smile that you gave me even when you felt like dying.❞
i love you - billie eilish
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"So, what, there's zombies in Hawkins, too?"
Cass lazily turned her head to the ginger to the side of her, the two of them carrying scrap pieces of metal to the school bus. The young girl gave her a look that made it clear that she was joking.
"Huh?" Her words sounded like they were underwater to her, but the girl seemed to understand just fine. The teenager realized the concerned undertones to the girl's words, "Oh, no. I'm just... sick."
Cassie offered a smile, getting a hesitant one in return. They dumped the metal by the bus, both of them panting. A small hand was stretched out to her, the red haired girl giving the older girl a toothy grin, "I'm Max, I moved here with my brother a little bit ago, so you might not have seen me around."
Cass snorted, shaking Max's hand with her cold one. "Truthfully, I've never seen any of these little fucker's around before today." She looked at Max curiously, "Where'd you move from?"
The two got into a steady conversation until the other kids finally joined them. Cassie hunched over, leaning her elbows on her knees, sweat escaping her pores like a broken dam.
A tender hand met her shoulder, rubbing soothingly, "Maybe you should take a break, C."
The girl just groaned, her chest heaving. "Hey, Steve?"
The boy hummed in response, eyes watching her like she'd combust at any given moment.
"Remember in seventh grade," She took a shaky breath. "When you and Tommy H. snapped my bra strap in science and I clocked you in the jaw in front of everyone."
Steve let out a breathy laugh, winding his arm around her waist and helping her up, letting her lean into him. He looked down at her, meeting her eyes and offering a playful grin, "No, I don't think I remember that."
Cass smiled up at him, sweetly. "Need me to jog your memory?"
The group finished just as the sun was setting, pouring into the protected bus. Lucas climbed on top, being a lookout while the rest of them stayed inside. Steve sat next to Cassie as she slept on her stomach, mumbling incoherently and flopping around every so often. Max was seating to the side of him, facing him as he flicked the cap of a lighter with one hand, the other was absentmindedly rubbing circles into the back of the sweaty girl beside him. Dustin paced the bus, on edge.
"So, you really fought one of these things before?" Max asked, not entirely believing it. Steve simply nodded, continuing to flip the lighter cap.
"And you're 100% sure it wasn't a bear?" Dustin snapped at her, stopping his pacing. "Shit. Don't be an idiot, okay? It wasn't a bear."
