hi!! i've got a lil request for a oneshot: fake dating steve???
he's tired of robin & the kids laughing about his dating life and also wants to make clear he's over nancy so he asks reader (the cute girl who used to go to school with him and now works there as a TA) to be his fake girlfriend. she's all in bc how fun!! (and she's not shy so doesn't care about pda, iykwim) and is great at 'pretending' because she is actually into him. finally steve falls hard for her and asks her out for real.
❤️🔥
Just For Show: Steve Harrington X Reader
Word Count: 3.8K
Warnings: Underage Drinking
A/N: Hi love! Sorry this took me a little while, I really hope you enjoy it, any feedback is appreciated. <3
Steve pulls into the Hawkins High School parking lot, tapping his thumbs against the steering wheel in time with the music lightly humming through his radio. He waits outside of the school entrance as droves of students emerge from the double doors, and after a few moments he can see Dustin coming out towards his idling car.
“What’s new Henderson?” Steve questions, looking at Dustin through the rearview as he slings his backpack into the car and situates himself in the back seat.
“Well, I’ve got a Geometry test this Friday, so aside from Hellfire I can look forward to inevitably bombing that! unless Suzy can coach me through my study guide.” Dustin shoots back in an ironically chipper tone.
Steve lets out a breathless laugh as he turns around “Hey man, at least you have a smart girl in your life to help you with stuff like that,”
Dustin playfully raises his eyebrows at him, “Oh…You mean someone like Nancy?”
“Cut it out Henderson, I just meant that you’re lucky is all. Nancy and I barely-”
Steve is abruptly cut off by Robin poking her head into the open passenger window,
“Oh, we’re talking about Nancy again?”
“-Jesus Robin, maybe a hello or something first?!” Steve scolds, startled by her abrupt appearance.
“Oh, I’m Sorry! it just seems like every time I see you the first thing I hear about is Nancy this, Nancy that-“ Robin teases, knowing how easy it is to get a rise out of him.
Steve quickly shuts down Robin’s heckling, starting to get irritated and slightly raising his voice, “seriously? you’re gonna join in on this with him now? I’ve moved past it. Are we clear on that? Now get in, I don’t want to be late for work.”
Robin looks over at Dustin, the both of them grimacing, silently communicating that they both knew they set Steve off for real this time.
The drive to Dustin’s house is uncharacteristically silent. Steve hits the brakes just in front of Dustin's driveway, saying nothing, but promptly unlocking the car.
Dustin tries to cut through the tension, “Thanks for the ride man, I’m-uh sorry for bringing her up...just joking around y’know…” Letting out an awkward laugh as he opens the car door.
“Don’t worry about it, I know you and Robin aren’t being serious, and I’m sorry for kind of acting like a dick about it.”
Steve pursed his lips, pulling them into a half smile. He felt obligated to apologize despite the fact that his friends' constant teasing was starting to take a blow at his confidence. The second Dustin enters his house, Steve hits the gas, eager to get to Family Video. Robin looks over at him to notice he now has a concentrated expression. Although curious, she decides it’s best to save any conversation for when they get to work, when things have simmered down.
It’s a fairly slow shift for both Robin and Steve, having very few customers to attend to. The only responsibility left for them to focus on is stocking the shelves with new inventory. Steve hovers over the horror movie section, mindlessly holding a tape as his thoughts wander. Robin and the kids making his love life a punchline had him considering all sorts of ridiculous schemes, literally anything to prove to them that he was over Nancy and still in fact, had game. He already had his sights set on someone, but he would keep that to himself until he knew he could convince her to agree to his heinous plan under the guise of a “joke”. His contemplations are cut short by the chime of the store entrance, looking up to see (Y/N) walk right in, as if he manifested her presence at this exact moment.
Steve’s eyes light up the second he sees her, quickly stepping over to the register, “(Y/N)! Long time no see! In the market for some movies?!”
She was startled by Steve’s intense greeting, although happy to see him outside of the school parking lot for once.
“Well, people come here to rent movies, right Harrington?” She chuckled, looking at him with a bright smile.
“Uh-yeah, usually. You know I was hoping I’d run into you actually.” Steve admits, looking down, rubbing the back of his neck. (Y/N) didn’t think anything of what he had just said, assuming it was a typical favor a distant acquaintance might ask.
“Oh yeah? You looking for a new job or something? I mean I could put in a good word for you at the high school-“
“No, I’m not asking for any favors like that! Well, it kind of is a favor but-oh geez, this is going to sound extremely idiotic at best….”
Steve leans over the counter lowering his voice, so Robin won’t overhear his outlandish proposition, “I was thinking that maybe you could help me out with this sort of…prank I have planned out. I would need you to pretend to be my girlfriend for it to make sense...” Steve trails off, looking up at her, brows scrunched as he chews on his lip. He thinks he’s already blew his shot, but before he can dwell on his nervousness, (Y/N) leans into the counter, inches from Steve’s ear,
“Really? Well tell me, what’s in it for me if I play along with this so-called prank of yours?”
Steve’s face grew hot from the closeness and playful tinge in her voice.
“Whatever you’re comfortable with really, I mean I’d take you out of course, buy you dinner…you name it.” He held his breath, waiting for some sort of response. (Y/N) straightens back up, arms crossed, looking him up and down. a few moments of silence floating past.
“Eh, what the hell, you’ve got yourself a deal Steve Harrington!”
Steve’s eyes widened in shock at the lack of convincing it took for her to oblige him.
“Wait, you’re actually agreeing to this?”
She shrugged at him, trying to hold back the grin forming on her face.
“Why not? Sounds like free entertainment to me. You and I would look pretty good together I think. Also while I’m here can you like, actually help me find a movie?”
She motions him to follow her over to the horror section, and he trails closely behind. Robin peers over from the edge of the sci-fi aisle, confused as ever after eavesdropping on the entire interaction the two of them had just had. Biting her tongue, she continued to organize the tapes, not sure whether to be embarrassed or impressed at Steve’s boldness. He sends (Y/N) off with a copy of Body Double, feeling giddy that his stupid plan went over so well. As the night came to a close and he was finally home, Steve found himself tossing and turning in bed. His head is filled with potential scenarios between (Y/N) and him. He pondered over how much she would be willing to commit to this act…How much would be allowed. Eventually he is able to silence his somewhat salacious fantasizing, and knocks out for the night.
Friday rolls around in a flash, and yet again Steve is driving Robin and Dustin home from school. He has to contain his excitement for the “date” he has planned with (Y/N) as well as the satisfaction of finally telling the gang he’s won the affection of someone new, or so it would appear.
“A girlfriend?! No way! Well good for you man.” Dustin commends Steve, Robin side-eyeing both of them.
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that yet Dustin, if my guess is right I think this would be their first date.” She smirks, knowing Steve will inevitably clap back.
“No! We’ve been talking for like, weeks. I even met her parents already! This is a sure thing, I’m telling you.”
Steve cringes at his own haphazard defense but figures Dustin is trusting enough not to question it, and he knew Robin would hyper analyze him no matter how solid of a story he had. After dropping them off, he starts heading toward (Y/N)’s neighborhood, the anticipation making his heart skip. Steve pulls into the driveway, quickly getting out and marching to the front door, ringing the doorbell right away. He steps back in awe as (Y/N) opens the door, wearing a white three quarter sleeve scoop neck top that hugged her figure, tucked into a black silk skirt. Her hair cascaded around her face that was adorned in a bright blush and cherry stain on her lips. Steve doesn’t bother hiding his blatant ogling,
“Wow…you look amazing.” His compliment earning a smile from her.
“You’re pretty easy on the eyes yourself, Harrington. ” (Y/N) closes the door behind her and grabs Steve’s hand, leading him back to the car.
“Where are we going?”
“You’ll see,” He hints, backing out of the driveway.
(Y/N) is quite surprised when Steve ends up taking her to a little dive bar just outside of town, the brick building looking aged but brightened by the neon signs surrounding the entrance. She turns to Steve, eyebrows raised and curious,
“Although this is a fun idea, you know I don’t have a fake, right?” Steve chuckles, “What? You nervous? Look, I’ve been here before and they don’t card, you’ll be fine! Besides, I brought you here to dance, not just for drinks.”
(Y/N) gives Steve a skeptical look, but figures there’s no harm in trying.
“Whatever you say, baby,” she says in a saccharine tone, Steve taken aback by the pet name. The two of them exit the car and (Y/N) grasps Steve by the hand as they enter the bar. From the looks of the rather youthful clientele, it seemed like no one would bat an eye at the two of them up by the bar. Still, (Y/N) decided to look for a less populated corner for them to sit. She finds a small round table to situate herself and a few moments later Steve sits down, two cans of Miller Lite in hand. Although she wasn’t much of a beer drinker, she went with the flow. She scoots her chair closer to Steve, grabbing the beer.
“So what made you decide to work at the high school? It feels like we were students there just yesterday.”
Steve asks, leaning back in his chair, one leg crossed over the other. (Y/N) puts an elbow on the table and rests her face in her palm, sipping her drink with the other hand, “Well, you don’t need a degree and the pay is a little better than most of the work we have around here. I like it a lot actually! The days go by pretty fast since I’m always running errands. I will say though, it is a little weird being on the other side of it after just graduating.”
Steve chuckles at her confession, “Well I think it’s admirable, definitely a step up from scooping ice cream or working at a video store!”
His self deprecation striking a chord with (Y/N),
“Cut yourself some slack Steve, you’re doing just fine. I mean, you’ve been through so much more than most people our age and…”
She stops, worrying that bringing up what happened last summer at the mall would make things tense. Steve looks up at her with vulnerable eyes, feeling a sudden wave of emotion. He was surprised that she was willing to hear about that side of him, the parts of his life that most people brushed off. It was strangely disarming.
“Hey, it’s okay. I appreciate that you don’t pretend it never happened like everybody else. Even my parents act like nothing has changed, but…I’ve moved on from it for the most part.”
He reassures her, trying to put on a brave face and hoping things segue back into something more lighthearted.
The conversation starts flowing more easily as the night goes on, a few drinks in. They discuss movies, (Y/N) being very well versed in the subject, Steve a more casual movie goer despite the fact he worked at the video store. Although their tastes differed, Steve would be more than eager to watch some obscure giallo film or grindhouse shlok if it meant he could spend more time with her. He felt his stomach flutter every time his ludicrous movie theories got a laugh out of her. Suddenly, (Y/N)’s eyes go wide as “Drive” by The Cars comes on, other patrons making their way to the dance floor.
“I love this song! You are gonna dance with me right now, Harrington.”
She gleefully rises from her seat, a hand outstretched to Steve. He obliges, fingers intertwining as she raises their joined hands in the air, leading the way. She playfully twirls around to face him, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Steve’s breathing hitches at the contact, slowly lowering his arms to her waist. They gently sway back and forth to the music, their faces inches from each other. Steve’s eyes trail down to her lips, desperately wanting to bridge the gap between them, but his thoughts are halted at the sound of a familiar voice. He looks over to see Eddie Munson, third time senior, strolling into the bar with a few of his goons. (Y/N) turns to look at them, a lightbulb going off in her head. She looks back up at Steve with a smile on her face, ”Hey, Steve?”
“Sorry! I didn’t mean to get distracted, I can be a terrible dance partner sometimes-”
He’s cut off by (Y/N) grabbing his face and pulling him into an intense kiss, making sure there were plenty of eyes on the two of them. It was an electric shock to his senses, something he had wanted to do himself all night. His grip on her waist tightened as she pulled away. He had to remind himself it was simply for show now that they had a familiar audience, but he couldn't help wanting her to do it again.
“That’ll get them talking, huh?”
(Y/N) laughed, her eyes glistening and reflecting the glow of the green and purple colored lights above the dance floor. They kept on dancing, Steve absolutely mesmerized by her face in the dim lighting. Perhaps it was his slight drunkenness, but he couldn’t stop thinking of kissing her all over right then and there on the dance floor.
He thought about that kiss for the rest of the night. Once the bar died down and he had sobered up, they began the drive back to Hawkins. The ride was rather quiet aside from the sound of the radio and engine. (Y/N) had her head leaned against the window, visibly tired after an exciting but long venture. She smiled to herself, thinking that she could get used to sitting pretty in Steve’s car all of the time, even if it was just to keep up his act. Steve had thoughts of his own, feeling foolish as ever for finding himself under her spell. It felt irresponsible, he told himself that he only wanted to get everybody off of his back, that he didn’t actually want to get this close to someone again, and that despite her playing the part perfectly, there was no way that (Y/N) would be interested in actually dating him. He turns up the radio, trying to drown out his self doubt. A few miles later, they pull into her driveway, Steve making sure to shut off his headlights so he doesn’t disturb her family inside. They both look over to each other, Steve still gripping the steering wheel with one hand. (Y/N) can see the thoughts racing through his head from the look on his face alone. She leans in to give him a light peck on the cheek, quietly opening the car door and whispering,
“I had a wonderful time tonight. Drive safe, okay?”
Steve watches her unlock the front door of her house, pulling out of the driveway once she was inside. He kept replaying the moment in his head on the way home. Was she just being polite? She didn’t have to kiss him goodnight, but she did, even when there was no one to see. Was she just fully committed to playing the role? If only (Y/N) knew how oblivious he truly was, perhaps the coming weeks would have been a lot less confusing for both of them.
As the weeks went by, almost everyone in Steve’s social circle was convinced that the relationship was legitimate, and he had no plans of telling his friends the truth. He took (Y/N) on movie dates, roller skating, and even attempted to make dinner for her. He may have been a subpar cook, but (Y/N) was very flattered by his efforts. Their public displays of affection weren’t slowing down either, (Y/N) finding any reason she could to steal a kiss or have his hand in hers. Every time she was around Steve, she could feel herself wanting to get even closer to him. She felt like their “relationship” was becoming something real, and tangible, but she wondered why he hadn’t made a move yet….surely her hints were coming through? She knew that she wasn’t imagining the new level of intimacy between them. The way their kisses lingered, how he looked at her with longing eyes, listening to every word she said when she spoke of her passions and fears. She desperately wanted to know that he felt it too, but something was pulling at her within, telling her to wait it out. It all came crashing to a head later that week.
Another Friday, another date night. This one more casual than the usual, Steve renting a tape of After Hours and ordering a pizza. As he’s tidying up the living room, the doorbell rings and he drops everything to answer it, knowing it’s (Y/N). He was practically vibrating from his nerves, but he tried his best to mask it when he opened the door.
“(Y/N)! I think you’re really gonna like the movie I picked for tonight,”
She flashes a soft smile at him as she enters his home, the two of them heading over to the living room. (Y/N) makes herself comfortable on the couch, Steve going into the kitchen to grab two plates and dimming the lights in the living room when he returns.
The faint glow of the television lit their faces as Steve popped the tape in, taking a close seat next to (Y/N) on the couch.
“Have I influenced your taste in movies, Steve? Or did you just happen to know this is one of my favorites?” She questions playfully, knowing that it probably wasn’t a coincidence.
“I may have asked around for this particular occasion aha, I-uh I actually did wanna see this one though,” Steve confesses, shuffling around on the couch, trying to get comfortable. He felt a lump forming in his throat as he tried to contain what he wanted to say, stalling for the moment to feel right. His plans to wait it out would be quickly thwarted by (Y/N), as she could sense that he was on the cusp of finally saying what they were both thinking, if she could work it out of him. She could admit to herself that she was just as, if not more stubborn than Steve, but she was going to get it out of him first, regardless. She turns to face him,
“What does this particular occasion happen to be?”
Steve Freezes. She puts him on the spot, and he realizes he’s already been caught. There’s a few beats of silence between them, Steve taking a deep breath before letting everything spill out.
“(Y/N)....There’s been something on my mind a lot lately….I um, I just don’t want to freak you out or anything, but it’s been driving me crazy hiding it from you. I know that this whole thing we’ve been doing is just for show, and maybe you just agreed to it purely for entertainment, or maybe to have a crazy story to tell later on, but-”
(Y/N) grips him by the shoulders, looking him dead in the eyes,
“Steve! Please, for the love of god, just say what you really want to say! You can tell me anything, really.”
“I don’t want to pretend anymore!” He blurts out, looking away for a moment, pinching the bridge of his nose between his index finger and thumb.
“I just-I don’t want it to be pretend anymore, okay? The time we’ve spent together has been so wonderful, I can’t remember the last time I’ve had so much fun with someone. I know at first it was just to make me look good to my friends, but somewhere along the way I let myself get so caught up in it….so obsessed with you, that I forgot you aren’t actually my girlfriend.” Steve drops his hands to his thighs, lowering his head in embarrassment. (Y/N)’s hands trail down from his shoulders to clasp his hands,
“Steve….I stopped pretending a while ago.”
He looks up at her, mouth half open. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“Wait, so you’re telling me that I’m not crazy?! You feel it too?”
“Yes, Steve. I thought it was obvious. I was just waiting for you to say something!”
Steve’s hands release from hers to dramatically smack his forehead,
“Why didn’t YOU say something?! I was over here thinking you had no interest in actually pursuing me!”
(Y/N) laughs at Steve’s revelation, rolling her eyes and crossing her arms.
“Oh, come on! Was making out with you every chance I got not clear enough? Or, you know, hanging out with you….ALONE! The whole point of your “prank” was for people to see us! I just wanted to hear you admit it first.”
Steve can’t help but laugh and shake his head at his own cluelessness.
“Wow, and I thought I was hard headed! You are something else (Y/N).”
(Y/N) smiles, suddenly pushing Steve down on the couch to hover over him,
“And that’s exactly why you’re….what was it you said? Obsessed with me?”
The two of them laugh into each other as Steve cups his hands around her face to kiss her. They were all over each other for what seemed like the rest of the night into dawn. Any doubt Steve had of (Y/N)’s feelings towards him melted away, and (Y/N) herself was ecstatic that they were finally on the same page. Everything seemed to fall into place, and for the first time in what felt like an eternity, Steve wasn’t afraid to give himself to someone again, to let someone see every part of him. He wanted that someone to be (Y/N), always.
