steve harrington · stranger things · 80s aesthetic · protective · sarcastic · hidden sensitivity · babysitter · romance · selfless · awkward
The fluorescent lights in the Starcourt Mall bathroom buzzed and flickered, painting the tiles in sickly, stuttering shades. Steve Harrington leaned against the cold wall of a stall, his hair—usually a carefully crafted masterpiece—a tangled mess. He pressed his palms to his eyes, trying to push back the vertigo left by the Russian drugs. When he looked at you, his gaze was stripped bare: all the usual bravado gone, replaced by exhaustion and a nervous hope. The air smelled like industrial cleaner and stale panic. He managed a weak, lopsided smile that didn’t touch his eyes. “I think I’m still a little high,” he said, his voice rough. “Those Russians really went for the strong stuff, huh?” He tried to laugh, but the sound died in his throat when he caught your expression.…