#baker steve

(no Upside Down AU, meet-ugly, Baker!Steve/wedding singer!Eddie)

--

Eddie is a wedding musician and it's pretty great actually. It's not the rock star life he dreamed of but it's a damned sight better than most people including him expected of Al Munson's little boy.

Eddie gets to play music. For a living. And he does pretty well. He gets to dress up a little snazzy. He gets free fancy food and a couple of drinks. And he gets to shoot his shot with anybody that looks like fun.

He's good at it too. That's the best part. His younger years spent being a low level drug dealer and a high level weirdo mean he can read a room in an instant. He gets the playlist from the bride usually, presses for some other song ideas, and he can tell who to take requests from at six paces. And who to ignore from across the room.

It's a good time.

Unfortunately not all ceremonies can be winners and based on the tension Eddie has felt from almost everyone involved in today's wedding it was going to be a tough gig.

Steve had always been in charge of feeding the kids, a self appointed position that didn't do anything to stop the mom jokes but Steve liked making sure his kids were happy and fed. He knew what it was like to come home from school and have to fend for yourself in terms of food, he didn't want that for the kids.

He had taught himself to cook and bake as he grew up, quickly getting tired of heating up spaghetti-os or TV dinners. His parents always left the house well stocked with ingredients even though they weren't there so he had to make do.

Steve liked baking things for the kids, he knew everyone's favourite cookie and cupcake flavour and made sure he made them if he heard one of them had had a bad day.

Max had been the one to ask him originally. The high school was having a bake sale and Max's mum wasn't around enough to give her the flyer and Max had asked him if he'd make those caramel brownies that she loves. He agrees as long as she learns to make them with him which she had happily agreed to.

To Steve's suprise his brownies had been a hit at the bake sale. There were a few stink eyes from some of the moms there but mostly there were big smiles and punched cheeks and "aren't you just the sweetest boy" from everyone there. The kids had nagged him for cash for the sale which they mainly used to get his brownies even though he'd told them he made extra at home.

After that, it just became a thing. Whenever there was a bake sale one or more of the kids came to ask him to make something for them, some half baked (excuse the pun) excuse as to why their own parents couldn't do it.

"Mum always burns her cupcakes."

"Dad says he only knows how to grill."

"I swear she put salt in them last time."

"Do you want to give the school food poisoning?"

"Yours are just better." Steve liked that one.

Soon the kids didn't even have to ask him, he had moms putting the flyer in his mailbox. Once he opened it to ten of the bright pink papers shoved in there. It wasn't even just bake sales. The PTA moms had practically adopted him and wanted him at all the school events, sports carnivals, school musicals, pep rallies. Everyone wanted Steve's baked goods.

"I swear you're at the school more than I was in all my senior years, Stevie."

"You're just jealous that the moms love me."

"I've always thought you're sweet, sweetheart."

Steve had even started experiment with his recipes. Robin and Eddie were more than happy to be his guinea pigs.

"Steve if I liked dudes I would marry you to eat this cupcake everyday."

"Fuck you Buckley I'M marrying him AND I'm getting to eat this brownie til I die!"

"You don't need to marry me for me to bake for you two."

"Yeah but then I'd get to brag to all the PTA moms that I have Stevie Harrington's sweet goods and sweet cheeks."

"EDDIE!"

Steve had been struggling with what he wanted to do with his life, he didn't go to college, he worked minimum wage and his parents had practically cut him off. It was at the last bake sale before spring break that one of the moms Steve had gotten close to approached him.

"Steve, honey?"

"Hey Mary, what can I do for ya?"

"Well, you know I'm in real estate and there's this sweet lil storefront down on Maple that recently flooded but it's got good bones just needs a lil love and I'm rambling but I saw it and I knew it would be perfect for you."

"Perfect for what ma'am?"

"For your bakery, hun!"

"Oh ma'am I'm not opening a bakery."

"Why not honey? Everyone loves your sweet treats and with the flooding the place is basically being given away, I didn't wanna sell it til I talked to you first, so what do you say?"

"Can I give you an answer first thing tomorrow."

"Sure hun, but don't wait too long, things like this don't come around often."

Steve had been pacing the apartment by the time Eddie got home from the shop.

"Stevie, baby what's wrong?"

Steve stopped pacing and turned towards his boyfriend.

"If you were really good at something and every said you were really good at something and someone gave you the opportunity to do that thing every day would you do it?"

"Um probably, do what you love and everything right?"

"Mary stopped me today and says there's this store that needs work but could be worth it and I could open my own bakery there Eds, mine, all me doing something for me, but money would be tight for a little while and I don't want to do anything rash and if you think it's not a good id—"

"STEVIE! Sweetheart breathe. Does baking make you happy?" Eddie had put his hands on Steve's shoulders trying to calm him.

Steve nods.

"Then do it baby. Sure money might be tight for a bit, but we have some savings, and I've got my job pretty stable now, so fuck it if it makes you happy of course I want you to do it."

Steve pulled Eddie into a hug whispering a soft thank you.

The following day Steve signed the deed for the shop on Maple St and Eddie and the party and Hopper and Wayne and the girls and everyone helped him him clean out the debris and put up new walls and paint until two weeks later it was finished.

Steve's Sweets was finally open. Robin had been hired to work the coffee to go with Steve's treats and the kids got part time jobs after school and on weekends working the register. Robin and Eddie still helped try out new recipes and soon the whole town knew about Steve's new store.

(Don’t answer that)

“Oh wow”. Bucky’s eyes widened as he opened the door of his garage, struck by the sight in front of him.

The man in front of the door was a petite omega man, with light blond hair, round blue eyes framed by long lashes. His face burned at Bucky’s mutter, looking down at what he had in his hands.

“Uh hi,” he cleared his throat. “My name’s Steve, my ma and I just opened a bakery across the street.” He raised what turned out to be a plate of brownies, “ she sent me around to send something sweet to our neighboring businesses.”

Bucky was finally able to take his eyes off of the omega, turning his sharp blue eyes towards the plate.

He smirked, “well if these are half as sweet as you smell, I’ll be sure to become a regular” leaning against the door frame and holding his hand out for the food.

Steve’s face burned brighter and quickly handed over the fresh baked goods. “Of course thank you bye!” He stammered out as quick as he could and turned towards his bakery across the street.

Bucky watched as the omega managed to safely cross the road and duck into his own shop. He smirked again and before he turned around one of his friends and employee caught up to him.

“Woah, what’s up with the brownies?” Timothy, or better known Dum dum, looked over his shoulder at the treats. “You getting food without us Barnes? I thought I could trust you.” He grasped his shirt dramatically.

Bucky rolled his eyes, “ it’s from across the street, new bakery opened up”. He pointed behind his shoulder at the shop.

“Prettiest omega I’ve seen came over to hand us some freebies.” He handed off the brownies so Dum dum could take them back for everyone else to have.

“Pretty you say?” Dum dum twirled his mustache, playing as if he was a detective set on his next clue. “ well shoot Barnes, you’ll let me know when the wedding is won’t you? You never talk omegas being pretty.” He spoke excitedly slapped the brunet on the shoulder as they walked together to the break room.

Bucky shrugged him off, “ there ain’t gonna be a wedding dum dum, s’just something I noticed and that’s it.”

————————

Steve’s heart was pounding as the door closed behind him, his face still hadn’t cooled down from the man across the street.

With a small look behind his back at that alphas garage he made his way to the back of the shop where his mother should be.

“Oh sweetheart, you’re back!” His mother, Sarah looked up from her baking sheet, her apron covered in flour. “ how’d it go hun, you’re red as a cherry.” She set what she was working on down and walked over to her son.

She placed her hand on Steve’s cheek, ignoring the flour on her hands in favor of checking on her precious son.

“It’s nothing ma, s’jsut the garage across the way.” He held his mother’s cooling hands to his face.” Sarah immediately perked up, her eyebrow twitching up.

“What about it? Do I need to speak with them?” She was officially irked, ready to roll up her sleeves and gladly send a can of whoop ass to anyone who dare upset her darling boy in any capacity.

Steve knew what she’d meant by that and quickly shut it down. “Ma! Nothing like that, the man who answered was an alpha, and he may or may not have called me sweet.” Well smelling but he wasn’t going to tell his mother that. He could feel himself blushing again

Sarah’s demeanor completely flipped, if Steve hadn’t come in, in a fit of rage then he was ok with the alphas advancement. “Oh?” She hummed trying to be nonchalant at the conversation.

“Uhn uh, none of that mom, it was nothing, he was nice and he took the brownies.” He crossed his arms, “So I have nothing to tell, don’t you have something baking right now?” He playfully bumped past his mother back to check on the baked goods.

“Okay dear, if that’s what you say but it does look like someone’s coming our way.” Her words made Steve jump and look to the front only for it to be the other employee Sarah hired for help.

Steve tried not to show his disappointment, sucking his teeth and side eyeing his giggling mother. The bell above the door jingled as Darcy came in.

Darcy and Steve had met their freshman year of college and got along like a house on fire. When Sarah mentioned anything about starting a business, that friendship mad Darcy a shoe in to help them with Sarah’s venture.

“What is up with my favorite gals?” She practically cheered as she came behind the counter, making Steve smile and getting a hug from Sarah. “Hi Darcy, glad you could make it, now we can both bother Steve.” Sarah’s eye gleamed with delight.

“Ooo~ what happened, give me all of the details stat.” She leaned on the counter, resting her chin on her intertwined hands, making a funny face with a raised eyebrow.

Steve groaned and covered his, for the third time today, red face. “You two are the worst, I’m going to go to my job unlike someone!” He looked at Darcy pointedly, getting a laugh and a shooing motion for his efforts.

Steve hurried back to work before he heard his mother tell Darcy, dramatically knowing her, what little Steve told her. Found himself rolling his eyes at any over the top gasps and and “hmms” Darcy let out.

“Steven Grant Josephine Rogers!” Darcy held her hand to her chest in play despair. “How dare you not tell me about your husband?” She grabbed Steve by his lapels and gently shook him playfully.

Steve couldn’t help but laugh at his friends antics. “Okay, one, that’s not my middle name, and two, he’s not my husband I don’t know what lies that woman has fed you.” He could barely get his words out through his giggling and her shaking.

“You’re a damn lie, any other alpha woulda talked to you like that I’d have to help you hide the body.” She let go of Steve’s sweater and smoothed out the front.

“So what gives, this man had to be drop dead gorgeous.” Nosy as ever. “ I mean, I can always go across the street and see for myself, and you and I both know you don’t want that.” Steve quickly gave into her goading, knowing very well how that interaction would go with his very, very extroverted friend.

“Okay! Okay, he was handsome, gosh his eyes were such a beautiful stormy gray. He had the long hair beard combo going on and when he said I smelt good I literally could have died.” He paused to breathe, “Darcy.” It was his turn to grab Darcy my her shoulders, “this man literally said ‘wow’ when he saw me, do you know how hard I had to hold back from tearing this man up?”

Darcy let Steve finish his rambling and couldn’t help the excited smile show on her face. “So you’re totally gonna go to him and say something right? He’s obviously into you babe.”

She was quickly shut down when Steve took his hands off her shoulders like he was burned, a sharp ‘oh’ let out. “Oh absolutely not.” Steve scratched his cheek and pursed his lips.

Darcy let out a loud groan and rolled her head back. “Why did I know you were gonna say that? You are so lame-uh!” At Steve’s pathetic attempt to explain himself Darcy cut him off.

“No ma’am, don’t wanna hear it, I’m gonna go work unlike someone. Come talk to me when you’ve come to your senses.” She threw the same pointed look Steve had at her earlier and walked back to the front counter.

———————

Steve yawned as he unlocked the front door the next day. It was a quiet morning, barely even dusk the moon low in the sky, ready to set and be taken over by the light of day, a nice cool breeze blowing softly around him.

The bell above the door jingled as Steve walked through flicking on the lights and taking chairs off tables and he made his way through the store.

Once his before opening procedures were finished he made his start on baking the first treats of the day.

“Good morning Stevie weenie, didja sleep alright?” Darcy greeted him as soon as she joined him in the kitchen. She had a knack for coming up with dumb nicknames for the small blond off the top of her head and that lead to him being called many things by the extroverted woman.

“I slept fine Darce, you? I know how much you hate gettin up so early, figured I’d set you some coffee aside as soon as I got here.” He flicked his head in the direction of aforementioned coffee. Darcy fist bumped and with a kiss on the omegas cheek, made her way to the pot to pour a more than normal amount into a large mug.

“Well if I have this coffee to look forward to every morning I have no problem getting up so early.” She sipped her coffee and seemed to catch herself, “and because I love you and your mom of course, duh, that’s the only reason actually I just decided.” Steve giggled at the poor attempt at a save.

“Yeah huh, now get over here and help me roll this dough ya coffee stealer.” He held up a rolling pin to her, uncovering a large bowl of dough that was sat to rise overnight.

Opening a bakery is hard work and takes a long time but Steve loved every second, it helped that he had such a great friend to help him every morning.

Hours passed before Steve was finally able to breath a sigh a relief, he was done making everything he needed for the day and the prep for the next.

Looking out through the windows at the front, the sun rising in the sky and a handful of people were finally walking about, some even waiting out front for his shop to open. He was so happy his mother’s idea has come to fruition, she’d always wanted to open a bakery and finally in her older age decided to go through with it.

After he unlocked the door and greeting the early risers, getting them each one of the array of treats set out in front of them.

He said goodbye to his last customer for right now and made his way around wiping things down, trying to stay busy when the bell rang once more.

“ I’ll be right with you!” On his toes he spoke over his shoulder, not quite being able to reach a nook that needed to be cleaned. He jumped at the voice that spoke behind him.

“Do’ya need any help with that, doll?” A familiar deep voice filled the empty space between the two, making Steve whip around to face the alpha from yesterday.

Making eye contact with those stormy eyes, Steve could feel his face warming up.

“Hey, just wanted to thank you for the brownies the other day. Name’s Bucky by the way, couldn’t tell ya yesterday what with you running off like ya did.” The alpha, Bucky, said with a flirtatious smirk on his face.

Bucky held his hand out to shake, letting Steve put his much smaller hand in his, his grasp strong and Steve could could feel the callouses he must’ve gotten from working on cars all day.

“Yeah, sorry about that, I’m not too great at meeting strangers, my ma got all that extroverted stuff to herself.” Steve laughed awkwardly once he let go of the alphas hand.

“Yeah? I remember you telling me you was working with your ma, figured I’d come through and say hi, maybe take something for the boys back at work.” He said poking a finger back towards his own business.

“Oh! Right of course what would you like? Everything here is fresh made by my ma and I.” He brought the alphas attention to the treats laid out behind the glass.

“How ‘bout another batch of your brownies? Knew they’d be as sweet as you, can’t get enough of ‘em.” Bucky smirked, pulling out his wallet to pay.

Steve’s face burned as he choked on his own spit, quickly trying to distract himself with bag up the alphas order. He stood back up with a small box with a few brownies laid inside.

Before he could tell Bucky his total the man interrupted, “The whole batch doll, those heathens would tear each other apart over just a few’a those.” The brunet watch’s again as Steve fumbled around to move the brownies all to a bigger box for him.

“Alright, sorry about that, that’ll be $28.16 for all those, did you want anything else?” Steve asked awkwardly trying to get back into customer service mode, his sentence stuttered.

“‘Preciate it doll, I don’t need nothing else unless you got anything for me?” At Steve’s confused look Bucky chuckled and took a fifty dollar bill from his wallet and handed it over. “You can keep the change sweetheart, you have a good one.”

———-/- ———

“That’s the guy you were talking about?!” Darcy looked at Steve incredulously, walking to him from the back.

Steve jumped and turned towards his shouting friend, red in the face, like he had been caught doing something he wasn’t supposed to.

“I suddenly have to get my brakes checked, I’ll see you guys later.” She joked, looking back over to the garage across the street while fanning herself with her hand.

“Steve he totally wants you, if you don’t give him your number I will girl, you can’t fumble this for the both of us.”

“Do it for you mother Steve, that poor woman needs some grandkids.” With her hand on Steve’s shoulders begging the smaller omega to with a little shake.

“Oh my god Darce, knock it off, he probably acts like that with everyone. And I’m only 24 she is not getting grand babies any time soon.”

“Stevie baby, I can guarantee he does NOT act like that with everyone. How about this I’m going to man the counter tomorrow when he gets here and if he does flirt with me I’ll owe a million dollars.” At Steve’s raised eyebrow she corrected herself, “fine fift- twenty five dollars and a crisp high five.” She settled with her eyes narrowed and lips pursed.

Steve laughed at his friends antics, “ and what do I get if he doesn’t?” He quickly caught himself, “not that he won’t, he probably will we don’t know.” He cleared his throat and immediately got back to filling up the display case in front.

“Good now both of you kids get back to work!” Sarah spoke from the back making them both jump out of their skin with matching curse words leaving their mouths.

————•————

rated t | 1.2k | ao3

For @steddiemas, prompt: baking, eggnog

**

The bell dinged above his head as he opened the door, immediately smelling the wafting scents of blueberry, lemon, chocolate, and gingerbread, overwhelming his nose with the sweet scents. Eddie could already feel his mouth watering, his sweet tooth on the prowl for something good. The variety of pastries and desserts were never ending, all of them stacked behind the glass counters. His eyes scanned his options, but had no idea where to start. Everything looked so good, he could hardly decide.

“Be with you in a minute!” A voice called from the back.

Eddie took his time walking up and down, peering through the glass, trying to narrow his options down.

“Hey, find what you’re looking for?” The voice said from right in front of him.

Eddie looked up to see a fucking Adonis of a man, he had gorgeous eyes that were shining brightly, chestnut hair pushed back with smears of flour in it and a light dusting of white on his cheek. The man seemed to be doing a lot of activity in the back since he had splotches of red along his neck and jawline. Eddie wanted to see how far down they went.

“Yes, absolutely.” Eddie gazed intently into this beautiful man’s eyes.

“Great! What can I get you?” The man grinned, his face radiating, and making Eddie positively weak at the knees.

“Your name.” Eddie breathed out. He flushed, not meaning to have said that out loud.

“Oh!” The man parted his lips in surprise, looking confused for a split second before turning his lips up into a soft smile. “It’s Steve.”

A Good Tart - a great brittish bake off stucky fic

For the lovely Kalika_999 and @marveltrumpshate (from 2021... shhh just pretend 3 years have not gone by)

Summary:

Steve is elbow deep in flour, hair falling relentlessly into his eyes, tonguesticking out in concentration, so of course this is the exact moment today's Bake Off guest judge decides to enter the tent, swaggers really, dramatic and dark in a black on black suit and sunglasses that likely cost more than Steve's car.

Steve doesn't know how this man is famous. Doesn't know why he qualifies as a guest judge. Doesn't recognise him as an important culinary figure.

He only knows he's hands down the hottest human being that Steve has ever seen in reality. And that he happens to be the only one night stand Steve has ever had.

Which happened to be last night.

And, oh shit, his caramel is about to burn...

by rocketshiptospace

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Archive Warning: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationship: Steve Harrington/Eddie Munson Character: Eddie Munson, Steve Harrington, Gareth the talking cat, Chrissy Cunningham, Robin Buckley, Nancy Wheeler, Vickie (Stranger Things) Additional Tags: Mutual Pining, Idiots in Love, Tea Shop Owner Eddie, baker steve, sentient building, haunted building, Whatever you want to call it, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting Words: 8,849 Chapters: 1/1

Summary

In which Steve is the proud owner of Frost; a semi famous local bakery in D.C. And despite the overwhelming insistence that it’s about time he start dating, Steve swears up and down he isn’t ready for that. Or as of recently, just doesn’t have the time because of Mr. Barnes. The highly demanding wedding planner on the phone who keeps asking for nearly impossible deliveries and maybe Steve would like to personally strangle him. Maybe.