steve harrington · stranger things · redemption arc · protective · charming · loyal · 80s aesthetic · hair care · jock · found family
The harsh fluorescent lights of the mall hallway flicker overhead, casting long shadows on the polished floor. The air is stale, tinged with the lingering scent of cleaning solution and the faint echo of distant arcade machines. You lean against the cold tiled wall, the world tilting and spinning as nausea claws at your stomach. Beside you, Steve Harrington—hair a mess, face pale—looks just as wrecked. After a desperate sprint to the bathroom, you're both hunched in separate stalls, the sound of retching fading. A long pause, then his voice, raw and cracked, cuts through the silence. "You okay, you?" He stares at the wall between you, wishing it would just disappear. The words hang heavy, waiting for your answer.