stonathan week

The kisses exchanged in the dark at the saloon were not discussed in the morning. Nothing was mentioned during their ride back to Hawkins, either, since Jonathan didn’t bring it up and Steve wasn’t going to press. He feared doing so would risk the new-found friendship they had woken up with. The easy conversations and shared looks were enough.

Except, in the few days it took to return to Hawkins, that friendship deepened the attraction between them. The conversations fit edges to grooves, while shared looks revealed parts of themselves rarely let others see. Finally, on their final night on the trail, Jonathan tentatively sat down beside Steve.

“I’ve been thinking,” Jonathan whispered just above the crackle of the fire. He turned to Steve. “About…”

He let the admission hang unfinished between them, his dark eyes silently asking Steve to hear what he was reluctant to say.

“I can’t make an honest man of you,” Steve responded. His gaze flicked to Jonathan’s sun-chapped lips for just a moment.

“I know.” Jonathan shifted his weight to lean the slightest bit closer. “That doesn’t mean there can’t be, I don’t know, benefits to our friendship.”

Steve wet his lips. He didn’t miss the way Jonathan watched the movement of his tongue.

“Benefits?”

A blush darkened Jonathan’s cheeks in the firelight.

“You know what I mean.” Jonathan muttered. “I’ll take even just sleeping beside you, if you don’t want anything more.”

“I want more,” Steve assured.

He pulled Jonathan to him with a warm, sure hand folded over the back of his neck. There was a lot more that he wanted from Jonathan than friends with benefits, but he was willing to take whatever he was being offered. He claimed Jonathan's lips. Jonathan kissed back, his hand steadying himself against Steve’s thigh as he leaned in. 

The space between them closed as the kiss deepened, a desperate desire to touch and taste growing with his press and part of their mouths. Buttons and belts were undone to allow access to skin, though nothing beneath their top layer of clothes was shed, given their location. 

Steve mouthed and licked his way down the column of Jonathan’s neck, the sweat of the day salty against his tongue. His hands smoothed over denim-clad thighs, his calloused fingers pressing into firm muscles developed by years of riding and hard labor. He grasped Jonathan’s ass to haul him closer.

“We should go to the river in the morning,” he murmurs against Jonathan’s neck. His words caress the tender skin stretched over Jonathan’s jugular. “Get washed up before heading into town.”

Jonathan made a sound that roughly translated to agreement. They both knew it was an excuse, and he was as amiable to the idea as Steve was.

They moved together in pursuit of their mutual pleasure, spit-slicked hands eventually slipping into clothes and Steve’s handkerchief implemented to catch their spend. He held Jonathan as their breaths even out and heartbeats calm. Jonathan’s fingers lazily carded through his hair.

“That’s some benefit,” Steve idly commented to remind himself that this wasn’t anything more than that. He rubbed the small of Jonathan’s back and tried not to think of the little house they could build on some corner of the Byers’ land to make a home.

Jonathan's thoughts unknowingly aligned with Steve’s. He craved a partner to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, but he was too much of a realist to believe that was something two men were allowed to have. There were also things he knew Steve wanted that Jonathan could never give him, like children or a life not lived in secret.

"Hey, Steve. What's up?" He asks, closing his locker, smiling at the other guy. He and Steve are in a relationship limbo. They're not friends, but aren't boyfriends yet. To Jonathan, it is complicated. To Steve, they're "almost-boyfriends." And these two almost-boyfriends are yet to kiss. No worries, Steve's going to deal with that right now. It's about time he feels Jonathan's lips against his, anyway.

He smirks and leans forward, "You're up, Byers." He says in a charming tone, wiggling his eyebrows. "I have something I need to tell you."

"Oh?" Jonathan raises an eyebrow at that, having a feeling of what Steve's implying. "And what would that be, Harrington?" He leans closer to Steve to meet him halfway.

"It's a surprise—" Their lips are about to connect, when...

"YO, HARRINGTON!" Jason Carver comes crashing in like a meteor, obliterating the moment like the meteor that made the dinosaurs go extinct, slapping the back of Steve's neck, making him yelp in surprise. He turns away from Jonathan, glaring at Jason, who smirks at him. "You're late for practice. C'mon, dude! That championship's not going to win itself, y'know?"

"Yeah, yeah, gimme a minute, will ya?"

"Nope!" Jason grabs him by the strap of Steve's backpack and starts dragging him away from Jonathan, much to his dismay.

Jonathan sighs in slight disappointment, but chuckles at seeing Steve pout like a baby at being dragged away by his friend and waves at him. Steve's practice will only end by 8:00 PM, and he won't see Jonathan until tomorrow morning.

Fine, then, tomorrow he's kissing Jonathan!

***

2nd Attempt

"Shit, shit, shit, shit!" Steve's late, as usual. He hoped to arrive early at school and catch Jonathan before class, but forgot to change the batteries in his alarm, meaning he woke up a mere 26 minutes later. His hair is disheveled, looking like a rat's nest, his shirt wrinkled, his belt loosely buckled, and his shoes unlaced.

He sees Jonathan in the distance, ready to enter the English Classroom. He's close. He's gonna make it! "JONA—"

"Mr. Harrington!" Steve flinches when Mrs. Click materializes in front of him like a demon invoked from hell—though a creature such as her undoubtedly came from a place far worse than there. The woman stands in front of him, her classroom door open, her bat-like arms crossed, and staring at Steve like a coyote with rabies. "You're late. Get inside. Now."

Steve pouts and points down the hall, in the direction where Jonathan disappeared. "But I need to—"

"Inside, Harrington. Now!" Steve grunts under his breath, mentally cursing at the old witch, but complies, not wanting to get detention. Again.

"And you got detention!"

"WHAT?!" His eyes widen. If he gets detention, Steve won't be able to see Jonathan today! "But I did nothing wrong!"

"You're late and talking back! Now get inside!"

Steve groans and stomps inside her classroom. "This is why your husband cheated on you with that younger woman, you old bat."

"MR. HARRINGTON!"

Steve flinches. Oops. He forgot bats have good hearing.

***

3rd Attempt

After one week of detention and another week of being grounded, Steve's ready to kiss his almost-boyfriend! He's reserved a table just for him and Jonathan in the cafeteria and is waiting for his prince charming to come. Ah, speaking of him, here he comes, walking graciously like an angel, holding a tray of food. Jonathan smiles as he sees Steve waving at him and walks towards his almost-boyfriend and sits in front of him.

"Hey, Steve." He smiles, and Steve smirks charmingly, leaning forward, resting his chin in his palm.

"Hey, handsome. Missed me?"

"Definitely." Jonathan chuckles, taking a bite from his sandwich, swallowing before continuing to speak. "Everyone's talking about what you told Mrs. Click. I don't know if I should congratulate you for your courage or scold you for your stupidity."

Steve grins like a fool and steals a fry from Jonathan's plate. "How about I make up for lost time instead, hm?"

"Make up for lost time and for that fry!" Jonathan feigns irritation at having one of his fries stolen, making Steve chuckle and steal another one, winking at his almost-boyfriend.

"Deal, handsome." He smirks and winks at Jonathan, leaning forward slowly, and Jonathan does the same, their lips getting closer by the second. 30 centimeters. 20 centimeters. 15. 10. 5. 4. 3. 2—

"BYERS!" Jonathan flinches in surprise and jerks back as Robin slams her hands on the table. Steve groans again. "I NEED YOUR HELP. NOW!"

"Wha—?! Robin... H-HEY!" Robin grabs Jonathan by the arm and starts dragging him away, not giving him an explanation.

Steve bonks his head against the cold metallic surface of the table. He thought 3rd time was the charm.

Maybe the 4th time will do?

***

4th Attempt

Robin dragging Jonathan away won't stop him. Steve knows Jonathan has a free period after lunch, and he sneaked away from class to meet his almost-boyfriend—it's not that Ms. MacElroy will realize he's missing, anyway. I mean, it's been three days and she still hasn't noticed that piece of lettuce between her teeth. Yikes. Steve shakes that awful image away and focuses on the task at hand, kissing the boy who owns the key to his heart. 4rth time's the charm, Harrington!

He approaches the table where Jonathan sat, a confident smirk on his face.

"Hey, hands—"

"Shhhh!"

"'Shhhh!' You, Benson!" He snaps at the guy, sending him a glare. He turns to Jonathan, smirking again. "Y'know, you forgot something in the cafet—"

"Shhhhhh!"

"Benson!" Steve snaps again, glaring at the boy. "I'm going to shove those glasses of yours in a place you're not going to like!"

Jonathan pinches the bridge of his nose and sighs, shaking his head. He can't believe Steve's about to cause trouble in the library of all places... Actually, no, that's totally plausible. Still. "Can't it wait?"

"Wait?!" Steve's been waiting for this for millennia (only a few weeks, but let him be dramatic)! "No, it can't wait, Jon! I have something I need to do—" He starts leaning forward towards Jonathan again.

"SHHHHHHHH!"

"BENSON—!"

"MR. HARRINGTON!" Uh-oh. The librarian, Ms. Hutchins, stomps towards him, grabbing Steve by the shoulder and pulling him away. "OUT. NOW!"

"But—"

"DETENTION! NOW!"

Ah, shit, not again.

***

5th Attempt

Okay, fifth time is the charm. Definitely! Do it right this time, Steven Harrington! No more getting detention. No more letting a good chance pass up. You are going to kiss Jonathan Byers, or the world might as well end here and now. His mission? Kiss the boy. Step 1: Approach the house. Step 2: Knock on the door. Step 3: Kiss Jonathan the second he opens the door. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. Jonathan rarely leaves his house, which means there's a 99.99% of him being inside those four walls. Alright, it's Harrington time!

Steve turns off the engine of his car, stepping outside to the cool afternoon weather of Hawkins. He zips on his jacket and walks to the front porch, knocking on the door three times and waiting for someone to answer. He's sure as hell it's going to be Jonathan and he's sure as hell is going to kiss him—

The door opens, and Steve immediately lunges forward.

"Oh, hey, Steve—!"

ABORT! ABORT! ABORT! DO NOT KISS MRS. BYERS!

Steve jerks back, his cheeks blushing like crazy at his almost horrifying mistake. "U-uh... H-hey, Mrs. B.!" He scratches the back of his neck, looking around, finding the dry branches of the trees more interesting to look at than Joyce. "I-is Jonathan there? I need to... Y'know, speak to him."

Joyce shakes his head, a small apologetic smile on her face. "Jonathan left for work, honey."

"Work? But I thought he got the day off?"

"He did, but the theater said they needed extra help. Someone was absent from work, and he had to cover for them."

What. The. Actual. Hell?! The odds of Jonathan NOT being home were 0.01%!

"Okay, thanks! Bye, Mrs. B.!" Steve leaves in a hurry, bolting towards his car and slamming the door shut. He leans his forehead against the steering wheel, letting out a groan. "The Universe hates me."

***

6th Attempt

Okay, someone should have told Steve that Jonathan was a major fan of horror movies, because what the hell, man?! Who picks up horror movies to watch on a movie night?! Steve's clutching on his bucket of popcorn like a lifeline. And Jonathan? He looks so unamused, like he's watching the Golden Girls, and not a movie where an interdimensional demon haunts a family for seven days and seven nights.

Well, on the bright side... They're together in a dark room, and everyone says movie theater rooms are the most romantic place in the world. Or is it Paris? Meh, it's the same thing. What matters is that he has the perfect chance to kiss his almost-boyfriend. And better do it now that the movie's not in scary time.

"Hey, Jonathan."

"Hm?" The other boy hums back, turning to face Steve, their faces illuminated by the giant screen. Okay, time to be suave, Harrington.

"You have... something in here." He gestures to his own cheek. Jonathan runs his fingers through his cheek, where Steve pointed, but doesn't find anything.

"Did I get it?"

Steve smirks to himself. Oh, Jonathan's so gullible. He shakes his head and leans forward. "Nope. It's still there. Lemme get it off for you..." He puts his hand over Jonathan's cheek, fingers brushing against the other boy's soft skin. So smooth, like a baby's. Steve smiles, his eyes locked on Jonathan's, leaning even closer, their lips almost touching.

"Steve..." Jonathan leans closer, closing his eyes, feeling Steve's fingers touching his cheek and Steve's breath against him. The tips of their noses are now touching. Finally, Steve's going to make it. He's going to kiss his prince! He's going to kiss Jonathan Byers—

AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

"JESUS CHRIST!" Steve jerks back, jumping two feet off his seat. Accursed horror movie and its jumpscare moments! He was so close. So close, he even felt Jonathan's mint-scented breath.

"Oh, come on!" Jonathan groans in annoyance and grabs Steve's collar, yanking him forward.

"H-hey! What—" Steve gets cut off as Jonathan's lips crash against his, effectively silencing him for good. His brain melts like ice cream on a summer day and oozes through his ear. His heart was beating fast like a cheetah when hunting a gazelle.

Okay, this wasn't how he intended things to work out, but Steve's definitely not complaining.

They can't talk to each other in class, can't go to school together, Steve has to sneak inside Jonathan's room after midnight, and Jonathan can only go to Steve's house when his parents are away. Both Steve and Jonathan know it's necessary, but they're not happy with it.

Jonathan turns around on the corner, spotting Steve leaning against the wall, next to a trash can. How romantic. Steve grins once Jonathan approaches and meets him halfway. "Hey, handsome."

"Hi, Steve." Jonathan forces a smile, not wanting Steve to see his inner turmoil. "You wanted to meet me. Why—?"

Steve cuts Jonathan off, grabbing him by the collar of his shirt and pulling him forward until their lips connect in a passionate kiss. Jonathan stifles a hum of surprise while Steve moans, his eyes closed. He pulls from the kiss after some 30 seconds, though keeping his forehead pressed against Jonathan's. "I wanted to see you." He whispers, and Jonathan sighs, closing his eyes as well and leaning against Steve's touch.

"You could have waited. Period ends in 15 minutes."

"Jonathan..." He sighs, breaking apart from Jonathan and opening his eyes. "You know we—"

"Can't. People will see. It's bad." Jonathan can't help but roll his eyes a bit at that and mutters "bullshit" under his breath, and Steve hears him. The other boy sighs and closes his eyes, shaking his head. He tries reasoning with Jonathan.

"Jonathan, you know I'd love for us to act normal—"

"Normal," Jonathan scoffs a bit. These things irk him—"normal," meeting in a dark alleyway like they were criminals, and hiding, and it's annoying—and Jonathan's had enough of it. And he's had enough of pretending everything's fine.

Steve groans a bit and throws his head back. "Look, Jonathan, I know you don't like normal things, but—"

"There's no such thing as 'normal,' Steve! I don't want to fit into any bullshit stereotype of high school to be friends with Tommy or Carol or anyone else! I want to be me. And I want to be with you!" Steve flinches internally at the emphasis of Jonathan's words, feeling a pang of guilt. Still, Steve remains stubborn out of fear of having his reputation damaged.

"Look, I want to be with you, too, man, but we can't—" Jonathan groans in frustration, throwing his arms up and turning around. He's had enough. Steve's eyes widen as he sees the other boy walking away. He wants to run away after Jonathan, but doesn't want to leave the safety of the alleyway and be seen by someone. "H-hey! Where are you going?!"

"Back to class!" Jonathan turns around on the corner and vanishes from Steve's sight, leaving the King of Hawkins High behind. Steve groans in frustration, leans back against the wall, and buries his face in his hands.

"God, I hate this." He hits his palm against his forehead multiple times, repeating that phrase like a mantra. He shares Jonathan's frustration, but he's Steve Harrington! The most popular guy at school! He can't ruin his reputation and out himself to the world to please Jonathan. Right? Yeah, Jonathan's a nice guy, he's handsome, charming, soft, kind, sweet, loving, attentive, great— "Fuck, I'm so whipped for him," Steve chuckles to himself. He's too far gone for Jonathan. And he's being a jerk to the guy he loves by wanting to hide what they have, and for what? For reputation? To avoid being made fun of by that angry chihuahua named Tommy Hagan, his wet poodle of a girlfriend, and their spoiled shih-tzus of friends?

Steve suddenly stands up from the ground, a resolute expression on his face.

***

Jonathan sighs in relief once the final bell rings. He swiftly grabs his things and makes a beeline for the parking lot, dodging the other teens and keeping his head down to avoid being seen by his classmates or worse, by Steve. He's not in the mood to see the other guy after what happened behind the gym. He knows Steve will crawl into his room after Joyce goes to sleep and beg for an apology, like he's done in previous times, but Jonathan's not in the mood for that at the moment. He knows Steve's right about having to keep their relationship a secret, but it's tiresome and annoying, and Jonathan feels like what they have is more of a burden to him than a relationship. Alas, Jonathan knows he and Steve have different views on things; he doesn't mind being outed by others, but it would change the way people see him, anyway. But Steve has a "reputation" to maintain. And there's no meeting in the middle in this case. It's either out to the world or forever hidden.

Whatever. That's not something Jonathan wants to think about right now. He just wants to go home, lock himself in his room, and listen to music. That's all—

"Hey, handsome." He freezes. Not right now.

"Steve—" Jonathan looks up, his eyes widening at seeing Steve leaning against Jonathan's car, those stupid sunglasses in his face, as well as a dumb, charming smirk, but what catches Jonathan off guard is the bouquet of pink carnations in his hands. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE PARKING LOT! WITH EVERYONE WATCHING! "W-what... What are you doing?"

"What do you think, handsome?" Steve lowers his sunglasses to wink at Jonathan, approaching him in slow but steady steps. "I'm showing everyone how much I love you."

"Wha—?" Jonathan gets cut off as Steve grabs him by the collar of his shirt and pulls him forward until their lips connect. Jonathan gasps in surprise, his eyes looking around, seeing the shocked expressions of the nearby students, but that doesn't bother him at all as Jonathan melts against the kiss, leaning against Steve, his hand instinctively going to rest in the back of Steve's neck.

Steve breaks from the kiss first, his forehead leaning against Jonathan's, and he lets out a soft breath of contentment. "I love you, Jonathan."

God, those words. They make Jonathan melt into a puddle of goo. He feels his knees getting weak, his heart beating like the first time he went on a rollercoaster with Will. "I love you too, Steve."

Steve grins like a lovesick dumbass at hearing those words. He looks around, noticing Tommy, Carol, Nicole, Jason, Andy, Patrick, Barb, and everyone else. But all he does is smirk at them, as if saying, "You seeing this, assholes? He loves me! He's mine! Jonathan Byers is my boyfriend!"

Actually, he did say that! Steve's too in love with Jonathan to notice he accidentally verbalized—shout, actually—his thoughts, which makes Jonathan blush furiously, both in embarrassment and happiness.