Say Anything | Steve Harrington |

Ch. 22 Episodes

November 1st, 1984
Hawkins High School

   I spent the last hour of the class staring out the window to the left of me that looked out into the school parking lot, time seemed to pass by faster when I finally gave up trying to pay attention to whatever part of history Mr. Matthews was instructed to teach us. I hadn't even realized the bell had rung until my frozen gaze on the parking lot was broken by the movement of students as they moved toward their cars.

   Lightly rubbing the haze that had grown over my eyes, I stood from my seat, pulling my bag off the floor before rushing out of the class and down the hall towards the stairwell. The halls were practically bare by the time I made it to the first floor, allowing for a clear path to my locker but it also meant I couldn't pretend not to notice the figure that paced the space in front of my locker.

   Rolling my eyes to myself as I spotted the unwanted visitor, I came to a stop in front of my locker. "Need help, Steve?" I cocked an eyebrow at the boy as I put in the combination to my locker, not bothering to look at him as he stopped his pacing to lean against the locker beside mine. "There you are, I've been waiting for you... Have you seen Nance?" He asked, awkwardly scratching the back of his neck as I threw my books in the locker.

   Biting my tongue to stop myself from saying anything I didn't mean, I offered him a quick nod. "She left early." I stated, slamming the locker shut and turning to make my way toward the school's entrance.

  "What, why? She never leaves early." I shrugged him off, "I don't know, Steve. Your girlfriend, your business." I mumbled, continuing on my path with him following close behind. "Hey... Nell, wait up." Steve said as he pulled me back by my shoulder. "Steve, seriously. Not right now, I gotta go." I groaned, tilting my head back before coming to a stop in the middle of the hall. 

   Scanning his wide eyes over my hard features, he struggled to find the words for what he wanted to say, opening and closing his mouth before finally finding the words. "Did I do something? Why are you acting so off?" He asked, the question seeming genuine as it fell from his lips, and that only intensified whatever feeling he had brought out in me. Whether that was sadness or anger, I couldn't tell. 

   "I'm-- I'm the one that's off?" I questioned with an annoyed chuckle, trying to figure out if he was lying to me or just himself. "Yeah, off." He mumbled, crossing his arms over his chest before peering down the hall behind me. "What? Scared of what everyone's going to think about you for talking to me? Hate to say it but it's a bit too late for that." I scoffed, moving past him and towards the school doors. 

   Not seeming to take the hint, he continued to follow after me. "No, it's not like that... And look, if this is about last night, don't take it seriously." Coming to a sudden halt, I let out a sigh as I pinched my eyes shut. "What's there to take seriously? It was nothing. Right, Steve?" 

   Taking his silence as an answer, I turned to look up at him, and ignoring the look in his eyes, I offered him a final shrug. "Look, I'm going to try and just focus on myself... I suggest you do the same." I mumbled, offering him a small nod to say goodbye before pushing through the doors of the school.

~~~

   Walking up to Hawkins Middle, I came to a stop in front of the bike rack that rested in front of the school steps to find that the party's bikes were still locked in place. Only, they were nowhere to be found. Looking down at my watch, I figured at first that it wasn't too bad for them to be a few minutes behind. But soon ten minutes turned to twenty and it seemed the last of the students had finished leaving.