#loserarc

She felt strange. In fact she had been feeling not like herself for the past year or so. Billy's death anniversary was coming up on a year and she dreaded it the more it crept closer.

It also felt weird without El. Along with the Byers, she upped and left with the Byers, their house sold and all their belongings gone. It felt so incredibly bittersweet after they loaded the last box onto the truck.

Everyone seemed so split apart which made it all the easier for her to drift away. Dustin and Mike had their dnd club, Lucas had his sports, and her? Well, she had her board and her music. Sometimes they'd reach out, say hi either in person or by phone but she just shut them out.

Well, except maybe for one.

They all tried to get together for a movie night. Whose idea it was first she couldn't remember; maybe it was Dustin's. He and Steve were the closest out of the group. It took every tooth and nail to get Mike to agree but he ended up bailing.

And it was like a domino effect; suddenly Dustin couldn't come, something about his mom wanting to help around the house. Lucas' practice was happening and they wanted to push the date but it got pushed further and further..

until she found herself right on Steve's doorstep. She never had come here alone before and despite all he had done for her, it felt so odd to be there. Almost like trespassing.

She swallowed thickly as she knocked the door with a shaky hand. Why was so she nervous? Her hands became a tad clammy as she held the bag of rented videos and snacks. There was a slight thud and the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs.

She woke up with a startle, heart racing. The hospital looked strangely dark and what little light there was had started to flicker. Pain seared through her body as she let out a pained hiss. The familiar but blood-curdling sound of the demogorgans filled her ears and she gently turned her head to see Steve and Lucas looking concerned. Was this real? It almost didn't feel like it.

"Guys, I-I.. It hurts to move." she tried to walk but even getting out of bed made her wince with pain. She clung to Steve's back as he carried her out, the smell of his hairspray filling her senses. God, she missed that smell, that comforting smell. Max held tightly onto his bomber jacket as he rushed her out the hospital, the demogorgans racing after them in the poorly lit area. It felt bizarrely empty besides the monsters and them. Were was everyone else? The staff? The patients? Were they dead?

She wished she could've woken up under better circumstances, but seeing his and Lucas' faces was still worth it. Speaking of which, the elevator was getting scarily close to closing. He held the doors open with his hands but they were closing steadily. "Hurry, hurry!"

ding.

(. ... are you fucking kidding me you ... ) he's just a kid Joyce , back a notch --- ❝ no , not worse , not even close to being ---- ❞ sucking in her cheek , trying to starve off the need to clamp a cigarette tight between her jaw . ❝ worse ? you want to know what's worse than fighting hell ? having it fall out of your fridge when you get home . ❞ imagine burning the skin off your son , looking death in the eye , your boyfriend massacred before you , only to return home to a MONSTER IN YOUR FRIDGE . it didn't take long to learn who's responsible .

they're at the cabin , plan b through z in action , when he begins to store the fridge with molding delights Murray's delivered ( where the hell does he get such things ... ) , when he dares to critique the molding fruits and milks her boyfriend's stored there , ❝ trust me , that ... thing was worse , Steve . ❞

The ring of the doorbell wasn't necessarily out of the ordinary, but generally she knew who was behind the door when she went to open it. Today she'd been finishing washing breakfast dishes after the Byers clan and her kids were out the door, sighing to herself and deciding if it was too early to have a glass of wine already or not. However, as those thoughts were crossing her mind was when the doorbell sounded. She paused and called out to Ted trying to see if he could answer it, but the sound of the TV said enough without a verbal response. She rolled her eyes and set down the plate she was washing so she could wipe her hands off on the towel hung in her apron. Her house shoes carried her to the front door and she undid the deadbolt before pulling it open, eyes landing on @loserarc. Her brow instantly furrowed with confusion and she was quick to fix that, not wanting to appear anyway beyond glad to see a familiar face. "Steve?" She relaxed her face, softening her expression, "What are you doing here?" She glanced past him to see if anyone else was with him, but then settled her gaze back on him, "Nancy isn't here. Neither is Jonathan... or really anyone," she let out a short laugh, "Just me and Ted."

♡

@loserarc LEFT A LETTER: ❛  i think that’s the worst thing i’ve ever heard.  ❜

                             ❝   It was a lot of fun, actually...   ❞ Chrissy admits, reflecting back on her time at cheerleading camp. It was true, some of the girls had attitude problems, and it was hard work, it was competitive as hell, but Chrissy tried to look at the bright side of things: Cheerleading camp gave her the opportunity to make new friends, and learn new skills.

❝   Have you never been to summer camp ?   ❞

~~📷~~ His initial reaction was to say no ... no, he didn't want to talk about it. what was there to talk about anyway? Between the two of them...he really didn't think they'd have a mind-blowing conversation.

On the other hand --- they did have some traumatic togeether-apart experiences. Shared a pretty scary moment. But never had they talked about it. not one on one. So yes, he might be intrigued to why Steve was interested in talking to him after all this time....

"Depends on what you want to talk about".