should I cool it or should I blow?

edited jan 5, 2026

give that to me! where did you find this?!

do you drink coffee or tea?

sorry– am i crazy, or have we met before?

do you trust me enough to close your eyes?

when were you planning on telling me?

at the risk of being a cliché, do you want to get out of here?

can i convince you to stay the night?

do i look like someone who knows what that means?

would you consider giving me a second chance?

do you really think that's helpful right now?

would you mind showing me around?

do you ever plan on forgiving yourself?

are you thinking what i'm thinking?

can we ... go out and do something crazy?

why are we whispering?

who exactly are you, anyways?

can't we just be civil for a minute?

does the past ever keep you up at night?

if you have nothing to hide, what's the problem?

how long has it been since i saw you last, [ name ]?

did the power just go out?

are we still doing the thing where we pretend not to care?

how should we celebrate?

can we just ... start over?

why is this so important to you?

how was i supposed to know that?!

do you want me to stay? it doesn't have to mean anything.

where are you? nobody's heard from you.

can you help me zip this up?

why do these things always happen to me?

you don't secretly hate me, right?

can i get you something to eat? –or drink?

ready to see what i've been working on?

where have you been disappearing off to?

what's that perfume you're wearing?

you're laughing?! do you really think this is funny?

are you planning to stay for dinner?

did you think it was going to be easy?

you see where you went wrong, don't you?

when did we become so cold and distant?

who are you working for?

did you really do all of this for me?

can i open my eyes yet?

haven't you heard the stories?

[ name ], what are you doing here?

what's it gonna take for you to trust me?

do you believe people can change?

how about we catch the ten o'clock showing?

don't you remember what happened last time?

why is it so unbelievable that i'd want to help you?

you're [ name ], aren't you?

who did this to you?!

how did you know i'd be here?

what's that supposed to mean?

do you think i'm irredeemable?

what kind of mess have you gotten us into?!

do you see anything you like?

what do i owe you for the food?

why won't this stupid thing work?!

does tonight really have to end?

holy shit. can you believe we really pulled that off?!

i can tell you're upset, [ name ]. what happened?

how long have you been standing there?

do you ever wish you could just ... run away?

haven't we been here before?

wait, shush ... did you hear that?

did i miss today's newsletter or something?

can we put our differences aside for a second?

what are you getting out of this, exactly?

you'd tell me if something was wrong, right?

are you willing to bet on it?

would you kill for me?

what made you think that was okay?!

do you believe people can change?

what's the worst thing you've ever done?

you were going to leave without saying goodbye?

[ name ], can you sit up for me?

can i kiss you?

where are your keys? you're not driving like this.

how's life been treating you?

where have you been?!

aren't we supposed to be alone tonight?

aw, has someone had a little too much to drink?

where are you going with this?

are we really doing this right now?

have you eaten today?

can i crash here for the night?

how did you learn to lie so well?

can i at least buy you a drink?

where should i meet you?

is that  ...  blood?!

are you trying to make me jealous right now?

what’s your problem? you're acting weird.

[ name ], you're ... real, right?

where’s your sense of adventure?

do you like horror movies?

what are you trying to prove?

can you give me a ride?

do you have any idea what you've done?

shouldn't you answer that?

why should i be the one to calm down?

have you been up all night?

why are you lying to me?

is that my [ jacket / hoodie / shirt ]?

what are you so afraid of?

do you want to grow old with me?

you’re gonna walk away from this?

are you nervous? your hands are shaking.

where am i supposed to go?

how many fingers am i holding up?

you want me to just walk away from this?

[ name ], slow down– what's wrong?!

are you embarrassed of me?

what's that smell? something's burning.

how can i make it up to you?

why can't you stay out of it?

is this some kind of trick?

come on, what do you have to lose?

do you ever still think of me?

idiot. why didn't you tell me?!

can we stop and think about this rationally?

how long has it been since you’ve slept?

what's your ideal first date?

are you ready to tell me the truth?

i almost died, and you're laughing?

what do you mean, "sort of"?

can we just stay like this forever?

when can i see you again?

can we put this behind us?

oh ... you thought of me first?

where did you learn to do that?

oh my god,  are you bleeding?!

where are you?  nobody’s heard from you.

[ name ], are you drunk?

how can i make this go away?

someone's jumpy today. are you feeling okay?

are we safe here?

what can i do to convince you?

what could possibly go wrong?

you have no idea who i am, do you?

how do you really feel about me?

why can't you look me in the eyes?

did you know you talk in your sleep?

were you following me?

can we just pretend this never happened?

are you just barely getting home?

are you even listening to me right now?!

where does it hurt?  can you show me?

are you trying to get yourself killed?!

how about we just forget the world exists?

how long have you been keeping this from me?

were you ever going to tell me?

what do you make of this?

[ name ],  what the hell?!

can we just be honest with each other, here?

are you trying to keep me a secret?

why does your story keep changing?

how long have you known?

it can't be that bad, right?

are you happy? i mean, really happy?

isn't this place amazing?

did i interrupt something?

how am i supposed to trust you?

are they still following us?

are you fucking serious?

do you remember our first kiss?

can we take a break for a minute?

how about we disappear for awhile?

you're going to walk away from this?

can you please just cut the crap?!

why didn't you tell me you were hurt?

how can i make this go away?

can you just look at me, please?

is there anything i can do to change your mind?

do you ever stop talking?

that depends. are you done lying to me?

are you sure this is legal?

how do you take your coffee?

can you keep your voice down?

Jonathan mentioned noticing Nancy's eyes before anything else, and realistically it should peeve Steve because the other is talking about an ex to both of them. Yet what he picked up on was more so the fact he was being compared to someone Jon dated in the past. Which settled oddly smack dab in the middle of his chest, and the put of his stomach. what the hell was that. . ?

Shaking it off, he decided to raise a brow and look on in an almost amused manner. A slight twitch to lips and dip to brows soon after that almost looked skeptical. "Eyes are the window to the soul -- and mine are good at that. What? Showing my soul?" Steve had to wonder what Jonathan was ever on, to say crap like that. . .

"Yeah  ...  ?"     Jonathan  gives  a  small  shrug,  realizing  with  it  just  how  strong  his  tolerance  had  gotten.    He's  already  in  the  comedown,    and  there's  little  else  he  can  do  beyond  sucking  a  breath  in  and  pointing  tired  eyes  to  the  end  of  the  rooftop.  There's  no  stopping  whatever  spills  out  of  him.   "Even  back  then  ...  "  There's  a  small  smile,  something  bittersweet.    "I'm  almost  positive  that  ---  okay,  well,  this  sounds  a  little  insane,  but  I  could  swear  that,  sometimes,  in-between  harassing  the  hell  out  of  me,  you  looked  ...  like  your  heart  wasn't  in  it?  Tommy  always  had  that  fucked  up  spark  in  his  eye,  like  he  was  at  least  having  fun,  but  ...  you?  I  don't  know."

Fingers  pick  at  his  mother's  old  shoes,  worn  and  tattered  against  his  touch.  "I  always  figured  you  were  the  sad  shitty  type."     An  admission  he  doesn't  know  how  to  justify  without  explaining  that,  no,  he  didn't  think  Steve  was  worse  off  than  him.  Jonathan  just  can't  help  the  part  of  him  that  sees   a  wounded  deer  and  wishes  to  drive  it  far  from  the  prying  road.    "...  or  at  least  that's  what  I  thought  your  eyes  were  saying."    He  catches  his  own  words,  then,  mustering  enough  composure  to  meet  Steve's  eyes.     "  –   I  wasn't  trying  to  look.  They're  just  not  easy  to  ignore."

the blonde aussie turns on his heel to see the owner of the voice, a grin spreading on his pale, lightly freckled features. it's not every day that he gets positive attention. it's certainly not every day that someone wants to take his photo!

It's  strange  to  hear  that  no  one  had  thought  to  ask  him  before.     It  only  seemed  natural  to  want  practiced  movement  immortalized,  particularly  if  he  could  time  himself  just  right  enough  for  a  mid-air  shot.  Stranger  yet,  though,  perhaps,  is  Jonathan's  eagerness  to  be  the  first.    Doesn't  that  make  the  picture  all  the  more  worthwhile?  He  decides  it  must,  and     smiles  lowly  in  his  own  imperfect  way.    "First  time  for  everything,  right?  ..."    Words  of  encouragement  said  with  lack  of  blare,  but  he  hopes  he's  doing  anything  akin  to  okay.

Slanted  shoulders  fail  to  even  as  he  aligns  his  camera,     directing  his  eyes  for  a  moment  back  to  the  stranger.    "You  can  just  go  ahead  and  do  what  you  were  doing  before."    Natural  element  and  all.     "Pretend  like  there's  no  camera  here.  Or  pressure.  Or   …  anything."     Easier  said  than  done,  he  figures,  but  fair  enough  to  voice.

"C'mon, don't put her down like that, man! My van's a busted pile of bolts but I still hype her up whenever I can, you know." Eddie said it around a grin that felt ready to split his face in two as they wandered out and made it to the car in question. Honestly, she looked in pretty good shape all things considered. Could be way worse, in his opinion. The door was held open and Eddie put a ringed hand on his chest like he was swooning a second. "What a gentleman," A tease of words as he hopped in, buckled up. He might be some deranged metalhead, but he knew safety. The car rattled to life and with it so did the radio with some oldies playing on it. A raised brow — was that Byers' taste in music? He kind of adored it. Leaned back, kicked a leg up so his ankle could rest on his own opposite knee. It made the perfect spit for hands to rest and drum on his own calf to the beat of the song mindlessly.

"Y'know, I've never been in one. Kind of feel like a little giddy kid right about now." A laugh, his eyes finding Jonathan's then without much effort at all.

"I  think  the  main  difference  here  is  that  it's  a  van  and  it's  yours."     He  considered  overthinking  this  -  assessing  every  word  as  though  it  may  spell  doom  upon  certain  Interpretation.  But  upon  such  came  the  thought  that  sincerity,  when  given  Eddie,  is  always  worthwhile.  So  what  if  it  sounds  a  little  weird?  (    So,  many  things.  So,  holy  shit.  So,  so,  so  and  so.  But  it's  okay,  right?  It's  okay.  It's  okay.   )      "Makes  it  cool  by  default."    He  tries  for  a  casual  shrug,  but  it  winds  up  some  vague  degree  of  stiff.  That,  too,  should  be  okay.  Made  further  comfortable  by  the  subject  at  hand.

Darkrooms  :   a  photographer's  tight  little  haven.     If  his  affections  lie  in  placing  eye  to  lens  and  snapping  steady,  his  satisfaction  thus  follows  in  the  viewing  of  his  work  -  a  tangibility  he  is  most  grateful  for.     Eddie  not  having  experienced  it  is  a  thought  that  almost  excites.    Of  all  the  people  to  enter  somewhere  so  comfortable  with,  there  is  simple  mirth  to  be  found  in  it  being  the  other.    With  that,  his  smile  loosens  in  quality.

"Seriously?  Shit,  well,  I  guess  I  better  show  you  the  ins  and  outs."    He  manages  to  spare  him  a  glance  in-between  keeping  to  the  road.  "It's  got  a  real  quiet  vibe  to  it,  but  I  don't  think  you'll  be  disappointed."     Or,  he  hopes  he  wouldn't  be.     He  can  see  their  destination  just  up  ahead,  now.  It's  far  too  late  for  bashful  retreat.

The fact Jonathan agreed so easily -- Eddie might just be in love with this guy. And wasn't that a thought. One that washed away the second it came because no, he's just -- it's just a joke of a thought, right? Had to be. Yet his heart kind of raced, and when he took the offered hand it felt like the single touch pumped so much adrenaline into his body he might implode with it. Jonathan was just the first person to be so kind to him in such a way. That was all.

"Joyride in the Byers-mobile? Count me in!" He said it with the same enthusiasm he said anything else thus far. Nothing changed, despite his internal monolog of sorts.

Chapped lips curl at Eddie's enthusiasm,   their dehydration far too apparent in how they inch towards busting.   "As much joy as that poor old thing can take, yeah."   He says, if only to keep his friend's expectations at bay. Though Jonathan has a sneaking, almost horrifying suspicion that even if he were to drive them up there in a dinged-up tricycle, his chest would flutter all the same. At some point he has to wonder whether years void of friendship are to blame for that glimmer, or if ...   would you look at that,   they've made it to the car.

The door clammers as he opens it for Eddie and holds it in wait for him to enter before switching over to the driver's side. A coughing rustle ignites the motor, and the poor vehicle is ready to set sail. Jonathan watches the road,   though he is unable to prevent the occasional glance from reaching Eddie.

"I miss darkrooms. Feels like it's been a while ... " 

The cold press to her cheek got a quick jump out of Nancy then. Just enough to shock some sense back into her, it seemed.

A glance over, up. A sort of small, half-smile given that was just her lips barely twitching upwards before she finally took the drink being offered to her. “You still know me so well.” It was very lighthearted. “Are you out here for a bit of distraction, too? Or. . .” Just for me, but that went unsaid. She knew Jonathan could be a worrier.

Everything is so easy with Nancy. He thought it would stop being that way once ... everything was said and done, changed feelings were voiced and everything seemed so tight and finished, somehow. But, no. Looking at her now he can hear her unspoken words and smile so easily, completely relaxed and sure of his words like it was natural for him to speak that way.

"The other thing."   He says.   "Was hoping to be the distraction... "  Yes, just for you.   "Or release or anything. Just because we - yeah - doesn't mean you can't talk to me, Nance. You know that, right? I'm never gonna stop being here for you."  

A nudge -- and Steve kind of gets it. That sense of ' we're good ' at least for that one, small moment in time they're sharing together now. Jonathan talked then. . . and continued to do so, actually. To a point even Steve had to look at him a little surprised. Little flabbergasted if you wanted to give it a name. Blinked those eyes of his that the other wanted to comment about instead of his hair -- and that was a new one. Another strike on the dart board of things other people had never mentioned, but for some reason Jonathan noticed. He might need to start keeping count.

"You gotta stop being the first person to say this kinda stuff to me, man." He tried to laugh it off. Felt oddly warm around the edges in a way he can't really describe or place. "Seriously, my eyes. . ? Where'd that even come from. . ." It wasn't a complaint. Curious, maybe. . .

It was somewhat saddening to hear, and it shows in the press of the photographer's lips against one another. Not quite a pout, but it did settle like the ghost of one. Jonathan wasn't often the first person to do much of anything, but it's particularly concerning to hear no one had noticed the very first thing - in between bashes, that is - he'd decided was good about Steve.

"Yeah, seriously."   He says it like he has to hammer it in.   "I thought that's why you were the local pretty boy?"   In this context, it's fine to say. A given title, not quite a compliment. Sometimes even an insult. "Maybe that's just me, though. Nancy's eyes were the first thing I noticed about her, too."   A beat. That couldn't have possibly been the right thing to say. Maybe if he talked over it ... "They're - They- ... They're just."   ( No, yeah, fucking smooth. ).  "Well, I happen to subscribe to the whole 'eyes are the windows to the soul' thing and ... well, um, yours are. Particularly. Good at that?" 

Eddie noticed. Course he did, at least with something like that. He was used to people staring for a lot of different reasons, couldn't quite place why Jonathan was doing so now. He wasn't all too bothered -- hell, maybe it was thanks to all the scarring now on show. He had it from shoulder, up to a neck now bare of any hair. Might make sense, having those big browns on him. He waved off the thanks, finally glanced away himself. Ignored the need to hide because what good would that do, right? "Just the truth, my dear friend! You're the closest friend I have, after all. Makes sense, right?" He sure fucking hoped so.

Hand to shoulder, and Eddie is forced to glance back over. To meet eyes and to catch those that almost sparkle when they look at him. Him of all people! He doesn't get it. . . "Well -- I appreciate ya' right back, Jonny boy! Seriously, I mean that." He did, more than Jon might know. "Now how's about we get this party started, yeah?"

It didn't sit quite right with him. Eddie hadn't really ... said anything, but Jonathan knows the boy had at least a thought or the other about his staring. Could he tell? The goosebumps trailing along worn skin at every nook of his features, like Jonathan had been struck by something in a moment of absurdity? Probably not. But what was it, then? It irks him that he can't read that. But it's fleeting, the other's words doing more than enough to deepen that heat along his neck and cheeks. ( Jesus christ, Eddie Munson. How do you not realize just how much you ... )

"You're mine, too. My closest ... "   trail off, eyes straying to the hand on his shoulder. A man can only take so damn much. There's little he can do to restrain the change in expression. If it looked gentle before, god how soft it must be now. It's melting------

"Y- ... yeah."   He snaps back into action at the last of the other's words, though not quite with the same tempo.   "Let's. Let's do that. Get the party. Started. Yes."   ( Get a grip, Byers )   He grips the vent, slipping lean form in with ease - though perhaps the haste of the motion is all fueled by his need to shove off whatever the FUCK his heart seems to be doing in his chest. 

"What are you, Snow freaking White. . ?" Steve said it like a huff, and more to himself than the other boy when watching just what the hell went down. Jonathan wrangling the wild animal, somehow. . . calming it. How in the world was his naturally gentle aura enough to even affect the wild animals? Seriously? Steve knew if that had been him, he'd have been eaten in two seconds flat.

Frantic words said as calmly as humanly possible, which made Steve kick into gear with another curse. "Right, uh. . . right, we. . . here --" He went searching, careful at least enough to not make sudden movements while he did. Managed to use his good arm to offer the flask over with slow movement. No need scaring the canine again. Last thing he needed to do, actually.

He looks at Steve when he speaks, brow quirked with some offense. What was that supposed to mean? If anyone looked like a princess, it had to be the pretty boy here. Not that he can say that. So he doesn't.   "We do have similar hair."   He says it with sarcasm, bit of a huff after.

He waits for the flask to be extended while reaching his own hand out. There's a quiet tremor in it, a mark of his fear at the proximity to a ticking bomb of an animal, but it's gentle and controlled. He takes it and slowly pours some water into the lid, placing it down in front of the Wolf and leading it slowly to drink.   "Here. I know you're dehydrated."   

He looks up again at Steve ... or more like grimaces a little bit as he surveys the boy with his eyes, but as the wolf continues to drink, he returns to it with a gentle gaze, hand ruffling through its fur. 

Jonathan is gone, and thus so is the warmth of him from Eddie's side. The curly haired boy wondered why that was such a bummer. Maybe he was a bit too touch starved for his own good. Not like he was that physically close with many people. . .

Ignoring it in quick favor of the conversation at hand -- "Wait, we can develop 'em right now? You're serious?" A smile breaking out, teeth on show, eyes disappearing with it. "Hell yeah I'm eager! We should totally do it. Right now." He wanted to see that history they made, after all.

The smile settles a warmth back into his chest, pulling one out of Jonathan himself. When was the last time someone got excited over his pictures like that? Someone he deeply admires, no less. Probably never. Which is why he's just as eager as Eddie to get it developed, even if his own energy is mellower.

"Yeah, I still have the keys from my internship so we'd just have to drive up there."   He taps his own pocket to demonstrate, walking back towards Eddie and extending a hand to pull him up standing if he takes it.   "Let's go?"