#foreverwants

✉ → "i'm doing some of my best work here and you don't even have the decency to roll your eyes at me. honestly, it's hurtful." / @foreverwants

it isn't robin's voice that pulls him out of his thoughts, it's the way her eyes bore into him like he did something to personally offend her. ( in hawkins, you'd be a fucking idiot to not be aware of your surroundings. visually, he was there, but mentally? different story. )

"shit, sorry."

the apology comes quickly and it's muttered, straightening his posture after spending the last thirty minutes leaned over the counter of SCOOPS waiting for the next customer who, at this point, steve is starting to doubt exists at all. it's dead today, even more so than it usually is on a wednesday afternoon, and he can't seem to keep his focus on anything ( or anyone ) but nancy.

"i'm listening, you're hilarious, ha-ha."

the right side of his lips quirks into a half-smile, but it quickly fades off of his face. the same miserable expression he's been wearing all shift.

✉ → "it'd be a lot easier if i actually cared as little as i pretend to." / @foreverwants

steve reaches over to pluck the joint from her hand, dangerously close to the point that it'll start burning their fingers. he gives it three more puffs. he uses up one of them, his eyes slightly crossed from looking down at the cherry - red end. the ash falls onto his lap and he wipes it off of his jeans, but it fails and only smears more into the fabric. he's too high to care.

"i get that."

but does he? he shows it to his friends, his emotional side that has only recently made an appearance after years of fitting into a category that he didn't exactly belong to, but to everyone else? maybe. steve has the habit of caring too much and it scares people away. he's often described as sensitive, especially by dustin ( who isn't a good judge on too - sensitive, if we're being honest ) but by others, he could be considered an asshole. okay, he's thinking way too far into this. he passes the culprit of his over - analyzing back to nora, running a hand through his hair.

✉ → "i don't actually care, but i'm bored and i'm here." / @foreverwants

stiles raises a singular eyebrow, the right one ( in case anyone cares ), rolling his eyes in a nonverbal response towards her flippancy. but nonverbal isn't good enough for him, because being quiet is never in stiles' taste, so he pushes the book he has open to the end of the wooden library table, taps his pen on the page. the book, barely touched as evidenced by the lack of crease in the spine but still tinted with yellow thanks to its publication date, is open to a page that highlights the details of the mythical ( though nothing is ever really mythical in beacon hills ) creature, THE PHOENIX. the problem? it's a small one, really, but the book is written entirely in archaic latin. the library, understandably, has a disappointingly small selection of this specific genre. assholes. the first part of his sentence starts off sarcastic, and it definitely doesn't considerably taper off during the second half either.

✉ → "pretending you don't need people doesn't make you strong, it just makes you a jackass." / @foreverwants

ouch. the pointed insult comes after steve tells her that he'll go into the woods alone. it's not like steve doesn't trust max, or thinks she's incapable, but the plan was always to do this alone. the kids are already too fucking involved in this -- he seems to be the only one that has any regard for their safety.

"right to the heart, max. how long you been holding that one in?"

the exhale he releases lasts for several seconds, his uncomfortably full lungs deflating. shit, shit, shit. if max is here, it's only a matter of time before the rest of the scooby crew shows up. he needs to text nancy, let her know that there was a kink in their plan.