#flippyspoon

Thank you to Harringrove fans for coming together and creating this amazing fic starter pack and to our endlessly talented creators for giving us so much to choose from! Forty-one votes were cast and across the 119 nominations, the number of votes received by the fics overall amounted to 397 (!!!!). The chosen fics had a combined total of 126 votes. The doc with the list of nominees will stay active in case you want to check out the rest. 

Here are the 14 fics chosen by Harringrove fans as the best place to start for those looking to dabble in the community (you can also see these fics in the ao3 collection) - in alphabetical order:

◢ Billy Hargrove Needs a Nap - lilpeas [74,312; E]

It’s one thing to be a light sleeper in this shitty town that won’t shut up at night, but it’s another thing entirely to fall asleep on Steve Harrington’s shoulder during last period English.

◢ break (like waves) - @witchsickness​ [93,187; E]

‘We’re good together,’ Harrington says to the darkness above. Not a question. Matter of fact. He turns to Billy, a smile sweet enough to make Billy want to do something reckless. Something stupid. ‘I’m telling you, heartbreaker. We’re gonna be unstoppable.’

Billy wants to ask. If he means tomorrow. If he means just for the game.

Wants to ask if he means forever.

He’s never wanted anyone to mean forever before.

or; falling (in love), the hard way

◢ break up with your girlfriend (’cause i’m bored) - @the-copperkid [15,604; E]

@umissedconnections: Bambi eyes. m4m. i was rippin cigs in the sae p-lot. u made urself puke 2 make room 4 more beer. incredible? ur my hero PLS say ur into guys

* Steve finds he has a secret admirer who's continuously hitting on him via his university's Missed Connections Twitter account. // Tommy and Billy are the worst roommates ever.

◢ Cherry - @lazybakerart [58,061; E]

They’ve got ten minutes before Steve’s break is up and he has to go back to wishing for death with a smile.

◢ cherry pie - @brawlite and @toast-ranger-to-a-stranger [133,828; E]

Billy Hargrove lives for summer. Endless sunshine, heavily chlorinated pools, roaming ice cream trucks, and unencumbered freedom? There’s nothing better.

Even being stuck in Hawkins can’t ruin the summer for him. He eats it up, devouring every day whole.

◢ dried up, half full - @lymricks​ [60,016; E]

Steve’s been coming out here searching for a monster in the woods. He’s finally found one.

“What do you want, Hargrove?”

◢ falling for you in hawkins, indi-fucking-ana (series) - @lazybakerart​ [294,822+; E]

Billy gets his shit together. Steve figures some stuff out. They fall in love.

◢ in waves - @lymricks​ [45,095; M]

It’s March and it’s too cold for Billy to be shirtless and wearing shorts, but he hadn’t noticed until Harrington appeared and made him hold still. Harrington can’t seem to stop looking at the bruises. “What’s it to you if I miss a little school, Harrington?” Billy asks. He feels goosebumps rising on his skin.

“I don’t know,” Harrington snaps back, looking uncomfortable. He shifts his weight from one foot to the other. Plant your feet, Billy wants to scream at him. I’m going to bowl you over.

◢ Incident at Castle Byers - @flippyspoon [3,639; G]

Will learns something about Billy Hargrove and feels a little less alone.

◢ Under the Covers - @toast-ranger-to-a-stranger​ [87,788; M]

Steve is (maybe) a little bit still in love with Nancy Wheeler and (maybe) trying to figure himself out-- between the night terrors and the babysitting and the general weirdness that is Hawkins, Indiana-- before he graduates.

Billy Hargrove fits in there somewhere (probably).

◢ when the bones are good - @un-buttoned​ [28,411; E]

‘So,’ Tommy says around a mouthful of fries, ‘what the fuck is the deal with you and Hargrove?’

And that’s really the goddamn question, isn’t it?

He wants to know Billy. Wants to know why he is the way he is. Wants to be able to figure out what the fuck he’s thinking when he looks at Steve like that, when he touches him like it doesn’t mean shit and like it means everything all at once. Wants to know why he talks so much shit, why he needs to fight, where all that fire comes from. Why he’s so volatile, why he’s such an asshole, how he can be so fucking mean and so fucking sweet in the span of seconds, at the same time, even.

◢ you’ll lose the blues in chicago (series) - @lymricks​ [101,188; E]

Steve takes a second to feel relieved it's not Dustin getting all sorts of arrested in places he shouldn’t be, then he goes back to staring.

It's Billy, who looks as good now as he did the last time Steve saw him: three years ago. He looks just as complicated, too. He’s got bruises on his face, a split lip.

The officer clears her throat, slowly, awkwardly, and Steve realizes they’ve been staring at each other for a while, now. He imagines, for a moment, saying that he doesn’t know this person, this stranger, pretending that Billy Hargrove was someone he used to know and kind of remembers, but--no, he’s not willing to sign for him, or whatever. To vouch for him. “Mr. Harrington?” the officer prompts.

Steve runs a hand through his hair. “Steve,” he corrects, a little absently. “Yeah, I’ll--yeah. Do you have a form, or something?”

Three years later, Steve Harrington signs Billy Hargrove out of a police station. This, it turns out, is only the beginning.

◢ you’re cold (and i burn) - @keroujack​ [55,919; E]

Move on. Let it heal.

Maybe that’s why Steve said yes when Max asked him to help move boxes out of Billy’s room after the dust settled. He could hear her voice. Too many. Too heavy.

Just like his wounds. His grief. Too many. Too heavy.

(Or, Steve steals the glass ashtray from Billy's bedside table and things start to go bump in the night.)

◢ Yourself or Someone Like You (series) - halfempty [792,802; E]

Maxine looked happy as they parted from Steve and walked down Main Street away from the theater. She slid into the passenger seat of Billy’s car. 'That was really fun,' she said. She looked at him like a gremlin and then smiled real cutesy. 'Did you and Steve hold hands in the popcorn?'

Text convos with @usstrashbarge <3

They are too powerful!

For @flippyspoon, who supported Harringrove for Palestine in exchange for this doodle. Prompt: “dance battle”, based off a conversation on discord.

Poor Dustin. XD

30 Days of First Kisse: Day 12

In celebration of Ossoff and Warnock’s win in Georgia, I’m writing 30 days of first kisses for harringrove <33

~*~

Steve bit back a smile as he drove over to the animal shelter to pick up Billy. He tried to force the giddiness to return to normal levels because only one thought ran through is mind as he turned the Beemer off of Main Street: Billy likes it when I flirt with him. I’m gonna make a move. 

It was becoming increasingly clear since Billy’s release from the hospital that the more time they spent together, the more Billy opened up when Steve was friendly toward Billy. And the more pointed that friendliness, the more Billy tried to hide a shy smile. 

So Steve started pushing it a bit. He would make a bit of a production when he visited Billy at the coffee shop where Billy was working -- told him he looked as good in an apron as he did in tiny shorts at Hawkins High. He would reach over to touch Billy’s arm and brush off a few stray coffee grounds too slowly, letting his touch linger too long and Billy would blush 18 shades of pink. 

When they hung out Steve would sit a little closer to Billy on the couch each time he returned from some feigned reason to get up, and Billy didn’t scoot away -- he leaned closer to Steve until their shoulders pressed together while they shared a popcorn bowl and watched  Alien and Steve would lean closer even and sniff and say you smell like coffee still -- you smell really good. 

Can hardly wait to see you again, Steve said quietly that night when he dropped Billy off. 

Billy sat silent for a moment, fingers touching the edge of the console between them. Me too, pretty boy. 

Steve thought about all of that as he pulled up to the animal shelter. He parked the car and sat for a few moments and formed an entire plan about how to best do this -- to make the first move. 

First, he’d walk in with that million dollar smile that charmed half of Hawkins and ask how’s it goin, goldilocks?

Then he’d lean against the counter and do that eye contact thing -- sultry eyes, almost half-lidded, making it clear with his gaze that he wanted to do very, very naughty things with Billy.

Then he’d have Billy come look at Sammy with him. Sammy was Billy’s favorite chocolate lab, and after fussing for a moment, with both of them reaching to pet Sammy’s head, the electricity would be just right and Steve could press that long-awaited kiss to Billy’s lips. 

Steve walked through the door resolved in his course of action. Billy, though wasn’t behind the counter. Steve looked around. 

He heard three happy barks followed by Billy’s voice saying “Thatsa good boy Sammy!”, so Steve rounded the corner to the cages to see Billy taking a tennis ball from Sammy’s mouth, rubbing his head a few times while Sammy humphed excitedly with a wagging tail, and finally tossing the ball down the long hallway for Sammy to retrieve it.

Billy’s eyes were bright with happiness. They sparkled blue, and his smile reached his eyes as he watched Sammy bound after the ball. 

Steve’s entire plan flew out the window, He took three long strides and took Billy’s face between his hands, crashing his lips to Billy’s in a move completely unplanned and lacking any type of finesse whatsoever.

The kiss landed partly on Billy’s nostril. It was not Steve’s finest attempt at a kiss. 

Luckily, though, Billy was more composed. Hepulled back softly and recentered Steve’s mouth on his own -- he tilted his head up in a kiss so sweet and gentle that Steve thought he’d melt directly into the shelter floor. 

Steve took control, though, changing the angle, listening to Billy’s soft sounds and feeling Billy’s breath fan across his chin. 

When Billy’s fingers touched under the hem of Steve’s shirt, Steve decided that his original plan sucked anyway and all of this was much better and thought he would never, never stop kissing Billy Hargrove. He’d dedicate his life to finding new ways to kiss Billy and make him smile like that over and over.

An annoyed huff of air camed from their shins and they broke apart to see Sammy waiting impatiently, tennis ball in his mouth. 

“Ah. Sorry buddy,” Billy said down to the dog and tossed the ball once more. “That was good, Harrington. We can, uhm -- can we do that again at your place?” 

@flippyspoon ‘s headcanon here