#rottenwrites

"You were where last night?" Izzy asked her a bit too loudly as she and Y/N walked into the weapons room where Alec and Jace were working on cleaning their weapons used from the previous mission.

Y/N shushed her as the two boys looked over, "Seriously, whatever happened to private girl talk?"

Izzy rolled her eyes, speaking lower than before so the guys wouldn't hear, "What ever happened to cutting him out of your life? Finding a new guy to get in your bed to get over him, that's why we went to Pandemonium last night, remember?"

Y/N huffed in response. Of course, she knew that's why Izzy and Clary dragged her to Pandemonium. It was a plan that she had yet to be very keen on. Izzy had gone to powder her nose, and Clary went to dance when Demetrius Black approached her on the dance floor, convincing her to leave with him.

It never took much convincing. He never went to Pandemonium, so she thought it was safe, but alas, she woke up in his bed again with her favorite tea made just the way she liked it on the nightstand next to her. He was nowhere to be seen.

Izzy rolled her eyes at the lack of response, "I need to put a tracker on you, like an outdoor cat." She turned on her heels and walked away.

Y/N sighed, running a hand through her hair before leaving the weapons room. She needed to punch something, so she soon found her way to the training room, where a punching bag sat calmly in the middle.

Then she beat the shit out of it.

"Stupid Demetrius and his stupidly charming attitude."

One Two.

"Stupid me for falling for it, again."

One Two Three.

"And stupid Mundane girl who couldn't keep her grimy hands to herself!"

With enough force of one last punch, the bag flew backward, hitting the wall as she let out a long groan of anger.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" Jace's voice appeared behind her making her jump out of her skin.

"Jesus Christ,"

"Not exactly." He smirked, but she ignored his comment.

"Do you feel the need to scare everyone or just me? Am I that special?" Sarcasm dripped from her lips as she began walking over to the punching bag so she could put it back in its usual location.

"Stop dodging my question. Do you want to talk about why you punched the bag across the room?"

She signed, letting the bag stand back up, "Will you try not to make fun of me for at least ten minutes if I tell you."

He chuckled, leaning against a pillar with his signature smug look, "I'll try my very best."

She couldn't look him in the eye, but she told him everything. From Izzy's plan to it failing when she left her alone for not even five minutes to waking up in her ex's bed again.

His expression was stoic throughout the entire time she was speaking; all of Jace's smugness and ego quickly flushed away as envy flooded his veins.

She didn't notice his change in expression because she refused to look at him.

"I know it's stupid, but it's like he put a spell on me."

"You have a permanent ruin to block any Warlock from using that magic on you."

She groaned, "I meant metaphorically." She plopped down on the bench and ran a hand through her hair.

"Well, I don't even know what you see in the Warlock-"

"Alec is with Mangus, and you never have anything to say about that, but when I date a Downworlder who has helped us just as much as Mangus has, you suddenly have an issue?"

He didn't have a chance to think before he spoke, blurting out, "I can't stand to see you hurting yourself with someone who doesn't deserve you."

Her head snaps to finally make eye contact; she lets her emotions talk without knowing what to think, "You don't get to decide who deserves me, Jace. You're not my father, and you're not my brother. Don't act like it."

He stepped closer to where she was sitting, "He cheated on you. Remember that? You cried to Clary and Izzy for days about it, then you cried yourself to sleep after all that," He saw the shocked look on her face, "We share a wall, remember? The same wall both of our beds are up against. I heard it all and witnessed you tear yourself apart from all the insecurities he gave you. So yes, I may not be in a position to say it, but I can say for certain that he doesn't deserve you."

The tension between the two shadow hunters was so thick that you could cut it with a knife. Neither of them said anything else, just stared at each other until she stood up and brushed past him.

"Thanks for the reminder."

Jace only watched as she left the room, wanting to walk after her but feeling paralyzed where he stood. He cursed under his breath and looked down at his feet.

It was his turn to send the punching bag flying across the room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That night, the group went on a mission to track down a Vampire, killing humans left and right. Clary had poked around through the different nests in the city with Alec and Izzy, but none of them seemed to be acquainted with the rouge Vampire.

Jace and Y/N were tasked with searching Pandemonium for the Vampire or any information retaining it.

Things between them were still tense, and the others could see it, but Jace had been the one to wordlessly follow her to Pandemonium. The music was loud and beating through her head, making the memories from the night prior resurface, but she shook it off as she looked around for any suspicious Downworld behavior.

She and Jace had split up in the crowd, which meant she was alone when she felt her phone buzz in her back pocket. She pulled it out seeing a text from Demetrius:

Demetrius: I can tell you're working from how you dress tonight, but meet me at the bar. I might have the information you are searching for. ;)

Tensing up, she looks over at the bar seeing Demetrius leaning against it in all his glory, smirking knowingly at her. She pushed her hurt deep down and walked over to him.

"Well, you look lovely tonight, darling." He said, reaching out to touch her hair when she stopped about two feet away, but she smacked his hand away quickly.

"No time for pleasantries, Demetrius. Do you know anything about a Rouge Vampire, or are you wasting my time?"

"Playing hard to get tonight? Let me buy you a drink." He said as he waved to the bartender to get his attention.

She scoffed, shaking her head, "I knew this was a waste of time--" She stopped speaking when she backed into someone's chest; she didn't even need to look up to know it was Jace. She didn't realize he found them.

Jace didn't move at the contact; he only stared at Demetrius, who noticed he was standing there because she had stopped speaking.

"Oh look," he commented, bored, "It's the guard dog. Don't you have anything better to do than following her around like a lost puppy?"

"We're working, Demetrius." She spoke as Jace opened his mouth, cutting him off before a fight could break out, "Since you don't actually have any information for me, I am going to leave."

She brushed past Jace, leaving the two boys at the bar and disappearing into the crowd.

Jace followed her with his eyes until he knew she was out of earshot. Looking back at Demetrius with a glare that could kill a thousand men, he said, "If you come near her again, I will not hesitate to track you down and kill you myself."

Demetrius smirked, taking a sip from his drink, "And break The Clave's precious rules? From what she told me, you are one of those who respect the Covenant more than anything."

Jace took two steps forward, standing toe to toe with the Warlock, a look of pure hatred in his eyes, "I would break a thousand rules if it made her happy. I would break a thousand rules to make sure she is safe. Don't test me, Warlock."

Demetrius took another sip of his drink, "I always knew, from the moment I had the displeasure of meeting you, that you were in love with her. I watched as you protected her like a lovesick puppy even though she was head over heels in love with me. Now that she is single, why haven't you swept her off her feet to prevent her from falling into my bed?"

He leaned close to his ear, saying just above a whisper, "Maybe it's because you know she will never love you back."

Jace shoved him away, stalking off to get back to work. Only to watch as she left the storage room and in his direction; as she passed him, she said, "Threat has been neutralized, let's get out of here."

She was annoyed. Mostly at herself for thinking he wouldn't come back to her favorite club to antagonize her, but also at the fact that she had to take on a Vampire by herself because Jace decided to have a little chat with her ex.

At the same time, she was proud of herself for finally avoiding Demetrius' charm like the plague. Progress is Progress.

As she exited Pandemonium, she pulled out her phone and started texting Clary to let them know the Vampire was found and taken care of, but Jace pulled her phone out of her hands.

"I'll take that." He said as he went to her contacts lists.

Her jaw dropped, "Jace! Give that back!" She snapped, watching him smirk at her phone as he tapped the screen a few times before giving it back to her.

"First step, blocking your ex's number."

She rolled her eyes and brushed passed him. Raising her hand, a cab drove up to her almost immediately.

"How do you always get cabs so quickly?" He muttered loud enough for her to hear as he stood behind her protectively.

"It's a gift," she said flatly, getting into the cab and scooting over so Jace could get in, even though she wanted him to get his own taxi.

"You cant just avoid me forever." He said into her ear once she got comfortable after telling the driver where to drop them off.

She crossed her arms, staring straight ahead, "Watch me."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Jace, let you fight the Vampire by yourself?" Izzy asked her in the kitchen of the Institute, snacking on popcorn with Clary on the opposite side of her as the three girls usually did after a hunt.

"He didn't let me; he was at the bar talking with Demetrius. I thought he followed me into the crowd when I left the bar, but he wasn't behind me when I found the Vampire and pointed it out to him." She ran a hand through her hair and looked down, "I didn't want to lose him, so I followed the Vampire into the storage room, scared off the mundane that was with him, and killed the bloodsucker."

Clary laughed, "And you did it by yourself."

Y/N shrugged, "It was easy because he was a new Vampire who didn't have anyone to guide him."

"What did Jace say when you told him you took care of it?" Izzy tossed another piece of Popcorn into Clary's mouth, and she caught it successfully.

"He didn't react, just followed me out and got rid of Demetrius' contact on my phone."

Clary nearly choked on her popcorn before swallowing it, "He did what?"

Sighing, she nodded, "Yeah, talk about quitting cold turkey."

Izzy giggled, elbowing Clary lightly. "Maybe Jace will finally start courting her."

Y/N raised an eyebrow; Jace was into someone? That was new information, "Courting who? We don't come into contact with many shadow hunters unless he has a secret Mundane lover."

Blinking, Izzy looked from Clary to Y/N and back to Clary, "Is she serious?"

"I think she is."

"Okay, what are you two going on about?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest, blinking at the two of them.

"How do we put this nicely-" Clary began speaking, but Izzy cut her off, "Jace has been in love with you since we were thirteen."

Taken aback, all Y/N could do was laugh, "What? No! You guys are crazy. The only person Jace loves is himself." She rolled her eyes, grabbing a few pieces of popcorn.

Clary spoke up, "When I first learned I was a Shadow Hunter and Jace brought me to the institute, I thought he was cute, but then I saw the way he looked at you, and I thought you two were a thing for a whole month until I saw you making out with a mundane near Pandemonium."

"I remember that!" Izzy giggled, turning to Y/N, "Clary freaked out and came running to me saying that you cheated on Jace and that we needed to tell him. It was so funny trying to explain to her that the two of you weren't a thing."

"My point is," Clary interjected, looking at Y/N, "Jace Wayland has been pining over you for so long. He's extra protective of you. When you came home crying a few months ago because the dirtbag cheated on you, Alec had to stop him from hunting him down and killing him without a second thought."

Y/N sank in her chair, blinking, "I had no idea."

"You're just a little oblivious; it's okay," Izzy said, patting her head.

She shook her head, "It's late. I'm going to bed."

She exited the chair and said goodnight to the two girls before leaving the kitchen.

She was going to bed, but then her feet decided to take her to where she knew Jace would be at this time of night.

The garden.

She opened the door quietly, searching for the blond among the flowers and plants, when she spotted him sitting on a bench. He was reading a book that she couldn't read the title of because of how old it was. She walked over to him and placed her hands in her sweater pockets, "You know how to read?"

He looked up at her from his book, "Sneaking up on people is supposed to be my thing."

"You'll have to learn how to share. May I sit?"

He nodded, closing the book with a bookmark between the pages, and moved to one side of the bench to make room for her to sit, "Are you okay?"

She nodded, "I will be. Thank you for being there for me back at Pandemonium and in the training room earlier today. I needed to hear the truth. Even though my stance on the fact you need to work on your comforting skills stays intact." She teased him lightly, making him chuckle.

"I'm sorry you had to deal with the Vampire alone while I was defending your honor; it won't ever happen again."

"It better not." She chuckled, leaning back and relaxing on the bench, stifling a yawn, "Because I might just have to kill you myself, then."

"As if you would dare lay a mark on my greatest asset." He gestured to his face making Y/N roll her eyes and slapped his hand away.

"That ego of yours is going to be the death of me one day. Do I have to worry about you falling in love with your own reflection and drowning because of it like Narcissus?"

Letting out a laugh, Jace shook his head, looking up at the time on his watch, the very one she had gotten him for his last birthday, "It's getting late. You need rest."

"So do you," she fired back, standing up and glaring at him, "We need you at the top of your game, come on."

He chuckled, standing up and holding the book against his hip as they left the garden together and walked through the Institute.

"Do you need some tea to help you relax?" She asked, tilting her head up at him.

He smiled down at her, "No, I can manage."

They approached their rooms silently, he walked her to her door, and she nodded, "Goodnight, Jace."

He watched as she disappeared into her room, closing the door behind her, but he didn't move to his room next door, even though he should have.

No, he thought about how he realized Demetrius' words were true. He loved her and didn't know what to do with this information.

He raised his hand to knock on her door again, wanting to get the rejection over with, but just before his fist could make contact with the wood, the door opened, followed by her voice saying, "Jace, wait." before getting cut off by realizing he was standing there still.

The two stood there wordlessly, staring at each other. No one knew who made the first move that night, but soon Y/N felt his hands cupping her face as their lips touched.

It felt right, kissing Jace; he was gentle yet passionate, as if he were making up for the lost time, which he was. As it turned out, so was she.

When they broke apart for air, nothing could stop their mutual smiles from appearing on their faces as Jace rested his forehead on hers.

"Sleep in my room tonight? We can talk about this in the morning."

“No... not another Crystal.” She shuffled into the kitchen and placed the bag on the counter top so she could remove the items from her bag and place the plastic bag in the bag full of bags that the two keep under the sink.

“Let me guess, herbs?” Corpse asked, approaching his girlfriend with a small smirk on his face.

She shook her head, “Nope.”

“Candles?”

“Negative, ghost rider.”

“Please tell me it’s not incents again, last time you cleansed the apartment I sneezed like crazy for a week.” His pleading eyes made Y/N laugh in delight.

The pair have been dating for two years and have lived together for five months. The transition of living on his own to living full time with his spiritual witchy girlfriend had been kind of difficult. He wasn’t aware about how serious she was about her craft, so when he opened one of her boxes and found some kind of rodent bones in a small clear container, saying he was surprised would have been an understatement

Though as they started to get used to the new arrangement, he was able to learn a thing or two about what she does and how she lived. Kind of like how she just loved bringing home a new Crystal almost every time she stepped out the apartment. It was getting overwhelming at this point.

Y/N smiled up at him and pulled a small black velvet pouch out of the bag, “Okay, I lied, it is a crystal but it’s not what you think! I had something made for you!”

He rose an eyebrow and he smirked, “Oh yeah?” He held out the palm of his hand and smiled as she placed the pouch down gently.

He opened the pouch and carefully removed a black sleek ring from the pouch and his eyes lit up, “A ring? This is a crystal?” He asked and she nodded, excitement in her eyes.

“I know playing with your rings helps with your anxiety and Hematite, this ring, is supposed to help deflect negative energies in stressful situations.” She explained and put her hand into her pocket, pulling out one of his other rings that he thought he had misplaced a few weeks prior.

“I didn’t know your ring size and if I asked it would have ruined the surprise so I took one of yours to bring to Maggie.”

He chuckled, sliding the ring on his left ring finger, “I love it, thank you.” He mumbled, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her into his chest.

“Aren’t you playing Among Us with your friends today?” She asked as she took a glimpse at the time.

He looked at the clock on the oven as well, sighing as he placed his chin on the top of Y/N’s head, “I do. Are you going back out?” He asked letting her go and watching as she went back to the bag.

“Nope! I got a new Tarot deck while I was there because my old deck vanished. I need to break it in and cleanse the cards. I might try to communicate with Aphrodite or Hades, but they really liked my old deck so I am not sure if they’ll react well to this new one.” She rambled as she crumbled up the empty bag and placed it under the sink. 

“Be careful.” He said as he turned around and made his way to his recording room.

***

As the third game came to an end, a few of his friends were taking the time to talk with their streams, Corpse wasn’t streaming he was just there for his friends. He was talking with Sean, who was also not streaming at the time.

“Oh! Corpse! I found your girlfriend’s Instagram account! I didn’t know she was into Witchcraft.” Rae’s voice piped up as her little astronaut came running over to the two.

Corpse smiled at his computer monitor, even though they couldn’t see him, “Yeah she’s Pagan, I believe.” He said glancing over at the girl in question who had wandered into his streaming room, noise cancelling headphones on and Tarot Deck in hand. Her tounge was poking out from in between her lips as she concentrated on her reading.

“Her profile is so aesthetically pleasing! Can I follow her?”

He let out a small chuckle, “I’m sure she wouldn’t mind, just be wary if you ask her for a tarot reading; the cards can be quite cutthroat. She’s still doing research as to who her spirit guide could be, but whoever they are, absolutely brutal.” He shivered at the memory of when Y/N gave him a reading around when they first started dating, let’s just say it didn’t go too well.

“You seem to know a lot about this stuff.” Sykunno said and the others agreed.

“I just listen when she talks about it, because she enjoys it and it makes her happy.” He glanced over at the girl one more time as her phone lit up next to her.

“I followed her.”

“Me too!” Sean said and he laughed, “She bought you a ring? Dude she is so adorable.”

“Rae what’s her username?” Sykunno asked.

“I’ll text it to you.” Corpse said, grabbing his phone from the desk and glancing over at her once again; her eyes were still glued to the cards almost frozen in place.

"What else does she like to do?" Lily's voice popped up, he hummed lightly.

"Well she loves crystals and has been looking into palm reading, there's a shop nearby that she's been visiting recently and now my apartment is being taken over by crystals and incense." Everyone laughed at that.

Corroded Coffin's set was a half hour long, by the end of it I was busying myself cleaning the glasses left by customers and keeping an eye on my brother from my place at the bar.

Yes, he was old enough that he didn't need my protection anymore, but I knew what being in a bar underage was like and didn't want him dipping his toes in the wrong crowd.

Seeing the group he came with tonight, a bunch of young teens and some respectable-looking kids his own age, it seemed that they'd keep him out of trouble.

"We're Corroded Coffin, thank you and goodnight!" The bar cheered, but I could hear Dustin's voice over everything else going on, which made me chuckle as I started putting away the clean glasses.

Jim strolled over to me with a smile, stopping beside me as he leaned against the bar, "Don't you miss that? Your hometown cheering you on after you blew them away with your amazing vocals?"

I rolled my eyes, "It's not going to happen, Jim."

"But it'll be just like old times!"

"I haven't performed in three years. The only person who gets to hear me sing and play guitar is my dog. Besides, I left my guitar in California." I put the drying rag over my shoulder and crossed my arms turning to him.

It was Jim's turn to roll his eyes, "We have instruments in the back, Y/N, come one! Just one song, next Thursday, you've got me beggin' here!"

I pursed my lips; what could be the harm in performing one song? I doubted my presence in the bar would bring as many people in as Jim was claiming, but if he thought it would help him out, I was willing to give it a shot.

I breathed deeply, "Fine, you've worn me down. One song, Jim, ONE."

He nearly jumped for joy when I agreed, "I knew you'd come around, Harrington, I need to start advertising it." He turned on his heels and raced to the kitchen, where his office was hidden in the back corner.

Rolling my eyes, I turned back to begin cleaning behind the bar, only for my eyes to lock onto dark brown ones belonging to Eddie, who stood on the other side of the bar with a small smile on his face.

I rose an eyebrow and tossed the rag I was holding onto my shoulder, leaning forward against the bar with a small smirk of my own, "Hey there, Rockstar. What can I get you?"

I watched as his eyes widened, but his recovery was quick, "Just a Sprite, uh, yeah." He said awkwardly, running a hand through his long curly hair, "I'm only twenty, Jim would kill me."

I scoffed, grabbing a glass from under the table, "Please, you bring buisness, one drink isn't going to send me to jail. You just got off stage. You deserve a proper drink." I winked at him and started looking through the selection of liquor.

What would be a good drink to make for this guy?

"I don't want to get you in trouble." He said quickly, but I dismissed him.

"I've known Jim since I was sixteen. I'll just get a slap on the wrist. Relax, I'll make you a drink."

After the back and forth, he gave in, leaning forward as he watched me make his drink, "How long have you worked here? I've never seen you before."

"Tonight's my first day,"

"That'll do it." He joked and I slid his drink over to him. He looked at the drink and hesitated before looking up at me.

"It's a rum and coke, but if anyone asks, it's a coke." I winked at him again, leabinh firward to start shamelessly flirting, but in the corner of my eye, I noticed Steve rushing over to us with his eyes widened slightly.

"No no no–" He said quickly as he approached us, making me raise an eyebrow at his tense state. He pointed to Eddie, "No." Then he turned to point at me, "No." Finally, he threw both hands in the air, "Nope, I am putting an end to... whatever this is right now."

Eddie blinked while I was unbothered by his overdramatic tendencies, "What's the problem, man?"

"That–" he pointed to me, while looking at him, "Is off limits."

I smiled innocently, "Steve, why don't you introduce me to your friend?" I cocked my head to the side and watched as Eddie took a sip from the drink I made him.

Taking a deep breath, Steve reluctantly began to introduce me, "Eddie, this my sister. Y/N Harrington."

The sentence seemed to send a Shockwave through Eddie because the contents of his drink spewed from his mouth, droplets landing on the floor next to him as he turned to look at me. He glanced between the two of us and cleared his throat, placing the drink on the bar counter, "You have a sister?"

I chuckled, "He wishes he didn't, but alas, here I am."

Steve rolled his eyes, "I've never said that, but yes, Munson, I do have a sister. She's older."

"And better." I joked with a wink, making Eddie visibly flush, and Steve sent a glare.

"Not my friends." He snapped, pointing at me and I raised my full hands in surrender.

"Fine, fine. Have it your way, Stevie. I will be here, pretending I'm merely a background character in your heartwarming tale of self-growth and friendship." I turned away, sighing dramatically as I leaned against one of the support beams, cleaning a dirty glass in my hand.

Steve sighed, "I'm throwing an after-party thing for all of us at our house. Just thought I'd let you know."

"Keep them out of my room, Baxter isn't too keen on having guests."

Huffing, Steve grabbed Eddie by the sleeve of his leather jacket and pulled him over to the registers, away from me as I smirked.

I wasn't looking for a new relationship anyway, I had other matters to deal with before thinking about starting something new with someone else.

(❤️ ω ❤️)

The next day rolls around, and I sat in the doctor's office, kicking my feet as I waited for her to return.

She knocked on the door and strolled in with a big machine and a smile on her face, "Hello Y/N, now after your Physical that I did I noticed some healing bruises...may I ask where you got those?"

I took a deep breath, knowing that this conversation would've had to happen at some point during my stay in Hawkins, but I wish I could've settled down more before it did happen, "My ex-fiancé was physically abusive towards me. I packed my stuff and left him last week."

She pursed her lips, grabbing the clipboard and holding it to her, "Are you worried about him finding you after he learns the news?"

I shook my head quickly, "I don't plan on telling him at all; he doesn't have the right. As soon as I learned of it, I got out of there and came back here. I don't want to tell anyone else, so I plan on saving up and moving to Louisiana or something. Anywhere that has no ties to him or our past."

She tilted her head, beginning to prep the machine, "Is he from Hawkins, too?"

"Born and raised, just as I was."

"I will leave you with a card to call in the event that he decides to come back to try and find you," she grabbed a bottle of gel and gestured for me to lay back, "Lift your shirt."

I did as she asked, lifting my shirt, and she squeezed the cold gel and moved it around with the transducer, looking at the ultrasound machine and searching for the parasite that was placed into my body.

"I found the baby," she said as the heartbeat was heard from the speakers, knocking the wind out of me. I cursed under my breath and tilted my head to rest it on the bed, "You look about twelve weeks along and the baby looks healthy. We can schedule an appointment for your next ultrasound which will also be where we can find out the baby's gender, if you'd like."

I nodded slowly, "Yeah, that sounds great, doc." I gave her a tight-lipped smile and she nodded, grabbing a pamphlet and handing it to me.

"There's a long list of vitamins that you should be taking in there, you should be taking. Also, there's a support group for victims of domestic violence that meet every Monday if you need someone to talk to about all this."

The hideout was just as busy as I remembered.

Live music, the smell of weed and cigarettes lingering in the air, the bustling of customers and waitstaff, the unknown sticky stubstance that seemed to coat the floor, and Jim's voice hollering at the cooks.

Yep, same place, different year.

"Y/N Harrington as I live and breathe." Sarah, Jim's wife's voice came from the bar, gaining my attention quickly.

I smiled and waved, walking over to the bar with a small pep in my step.

She looked me over once, "When Jim told me you were calling our house that early to ask for a job, I thought we were being punked. What the hell are you doing here?"

A chuckle escaped my lips, and I ran my hand through my hair, "Stuff happened, and I had to come back. I'd rather not get into it if you don't mind."

She waved it off, "Understood. Come on, get back here and show me what you know."

♡♡♡

The night at The Hideout was in full swing, and I was mixing drinks for the bar patrons.

The night was still young, and once I got a chance to breathe, Jim was standing at the bar.

"There's a live band playing tonight. They're a cover band called Corroded Coffin. Pretty good group of guys." He explained, leaving against the bar, "I gotta warn ya, one of the guys, he's got these high school friends that like to come watch. They're allowed to be in here but no alcoholic beverages. Only food, water, soda, or a virgin drink if you're nice enough."

I nodded, understanding what he was telling me, "It's cool that you let them come watch."

"They bring business, and that's all I care about. Same reason why I let you perform whenever you wanted, starting at age sixteen."

I laughed, shaking my head as I handed one of the patrons their drink, "God, that feels like a lifetime ago."

He nodded, smirking as he sat in one of the barstools, "Why don't you help out your old pal and perform one of these nights, huh? I'm sure you'll get quite the audience when people realize Y/N Harrington has come back to town."

"People already know. I got five calls from people asking if she was performing or not." Sarah joked, which made me chuckle lightly, shaking my head.

"Sorry guys, my rockstar days are merely a distant dream."

Jim furrowed his eyebrows, watching me move from the bar to the sink as I started to clean the glasses, "Is that why you're back? Because you didn't get your big break in three years?"

There was a pregnant pause before I answered. I didn't want to tell the truth, so I didn't, "Yeah, that's it."

A group of young teenagers raced to the bar; the tallest had shaggy brown hair and looked very excited as he was bouncing off the walls, he had an anxious looking girl with long brown hair gripping his arm as she looked around.

"Hey Jim!" Another boy with curly brown hair greeted, before looking over at me, "You're new."

I shrugged, amused at the teens, "Not really, just moved back. Want some nachos?"

A read head nodded, glaring lightly, "You look familiar."

I shrugged, "I've got one of those faces; what can I say."

The curly-haired kid interjected, "Can I get a Sherly Temple?"

"You've got it," I said grabbing my notepad, "Anything else?"

The group of teens gave me their drink orders from various sodas, and the redhead asked if I could make her a fruity mocktail. I agreed as I loved mixing drinks of all kinds; it shouldn't be too difficult to replace tequila with Sprite.

"You guys find us a table; I'll wait for our stuff." The curly kid said, and they all nodded, moving off in separate directions to attempt to find a table big enough.

The kid turned to look at me as I was making their drinks, "What's your name?"

"Y/N." I said, moving my hip so he could see my name badge on the apron that was tied around my waist, "What about you?"

"I'm Dustin." He greeted, "It's nice to meet you"

I smiled at his kindness, "It's nice to meet you too."

A very familiar voice that approached the bar, "Henderson, where are the others?" Steve, in a bar, seemed to know many kids. I smirked, passing Dustin his drink as Steve made eye contact with me, freezing.

"Why, hello, Steve. What can I get for you?"

He blinked, snapping out of his shocked state, "What are you doing here?"

"What does it look like? Making your little friends Mocktails just as the good lord intended."

He rolled his eyes, "Really, Y/N, what are you doing here?"

"I'm working, Steve. Can't you tell?"

Dustin looked confused, looking between the two of us, "Do you know her, Steve?"

"She's my sister." He gritted out, not taking his eyes off me as I put the drinks on a tray so I could bring them to the kid's table.

Dustin blinked, "You have a sister?"

"Go find the others, Dustin." He said and the boys' eyes widened, scurrying off with his drink.

He sighed, "Put their stuff on my tab." He mumbled and some other older teenagers walked over to him, including Robin whose eyes widened as she saw me.

"Right on." I say as I write it down in my notebook, "Can I get you anything else? Sodas? Another plate of Nachos?"

He turned to his friends, and they ordered, and I wrote it down, "Cool. You can find a table, and I'll get right on it after I deliver these drinks."

Nodding, they all turned and walked off, and I grabbed the tray of drinks. Spotting the kids at the table, I saw Jim approaching them with the Nachos as I approached, "Alright! A Coke, Sprite, Fruity Concoction, another Coke, and water for the little lady. If you need anything else just come and find me, yeah?"

They all stared at me; Dustin must've told them I was Steve's sister. Apparently, it's uncommon knowledge. I wasn't too surprised.

"Alright, enjoy your night." I slipped off and back to the bar, a waitress was clocking in which meant I could stay behind the bar for as long as I needed.

I heard tapping on the microphone, and I glanced over at the stage, seeing the band that was playing that night. Corroded Coffin was written on the drums, and they seemed like they were a relatively normal rock band.

My eyes found the frontman right away.

He wore a Metallica shirt with the sleeves cut off, black ripped jeans with a studded belt, he held a beautiful electric guitar, and he had silver rings on his fingers on his hands. His hair was long and curly, and he had big brown eyes that excitedly looked through the crowd.

He had a stage presence like no other.

His eyes scanned the bar and they landed on me, where he stopped looking around. Our eyes met and I felt my stomach drop, so I looked away as a customer walked up to the bar.

I smiled at Robin, who greeted me as she sat at the bar.

"Sorry, Robin, I'd hook you up with something good if Jim weren't here." I said with a smile as I leaned against the bar, "Can I make you a fruity virgin?"

"I already am one." She joked, but her face turned pink, and she looked away from me, looking down at the ground, "Sorry, bad joke."

I smiled, laughing, "I spent the last three years in California, Robin; I don't care if you do swing a certain way." I winked at her and grabbed an empty glass from a customer returning it, placing it in the sink for later.

She nodded, tapping on the counter as the band started playing.

I looked at Steve's table, and they were all paying attention to the stage intently; they must know someone from the band; I decided not to inquire since Steve didn't seem to want me to know his business.

"I'll take whatever you made for Max, though," Robin brought my attention back to her, "Just so you know, I know that things between you and Steve are tense right now, but he loves you. He's just a dingus who can't healthily express his emotions."

I chuckled, nodding, "Cheers to our parents for that. Thank you, Robin. I'll get right on it; bring it to your table if you want to enjoy the show."

"Oh, we come here every Tuesday. Supporting the band and all," She turned, pointing to the first band member, "Jeff is on the guitar to the left, Gareth is on the drums, Dougie is on the Bass, and Eddie is the frontman, singing and playing the guitar. We're mostly here for Eddie."

Ah, so the man has a name.

I nodded, handing her the drink, "Enjoy the show."

She grabbed the drink and nodded, disappearing into the crowd.

Driving back to Hawkins, Indiana, was the last thing I thought I would do.

I wouldn't say I liked this hellhole and got away as soon as possible. I never wanted to see the all-too-familiar roads and trees filled with bad memories.

Why did I come back here if I hated this place so much? My life fell apart underneath my feet, and I had no choice.

The drive was long and taxing, but I had a caravan from the 60s that still worked beautifully, so I didn't have to stay in any motels. I left California with a few boxes of my possessions and my black and white Saint Bernard Baxter, and we hit the open road together. It was a long trip, but eventually, I pulled into the driveway of my family home, which was pitch black.

Being late into the night, I was not surprised that the house was dark. I pulled my van into the backyard so it wouldn't be seen by anyone who drove by. I turned my van off and climbed into the back of my caravan, grabbing my travel bag and waking Baxter up so he wouldn't be sleeping outside in the cold.

I tried the back door, but it was locked, so I had to grab the spare key that was always kept underneath my mother's favorite garden gnome. I scoffed, showing the key to Baxter, who tilted his head. "See? They're predictable."

Once I unlocked the door and returned the key to its hiding place, I crept into the kitchen slowly, with Baxter trailing behind me and lazily trudging around. I poked my head into the garage, seeing it bare of any cars, and scoffed, "Nobody's home? They're probably away on business again." I pulled myself back into the house and closed the door.

I started thinking about my little brother Steve. He must have been nineteen, probably off at some fancy university far away from this town. Good for him.

I found my way to my old bedroom, letting Baxter in with promises of bedtime, and closed the door behind me. The room had barely been touched, though my parents were never home enough to care about what had happened. My bed was a mess, my posters were still on the walls, my desk was nearly covered in junk, my old makeup lay on the dresser, and my records were still in a box I had put together.

Sighing happily, I put my backpack on a chair and watched as Baxter jumped onto my bed, making himself as comfortable as possible. I sat on the bed next to my nightstand, which held the phone I had begged my parents to put in for me. I picked it up, hearing the dial tone and beeping as I pressed one of the few numbers I had memorized.

I pressed the phone to my ear, listening to the ringing. Finally, after a few rings, there's a male voice coming from the receiver, "I swear to god, somebody better be dead if you have the bright idea of calling me at three in the fucking morning."

I held back a laugh, "Jim! Hey, it's Y/N,"

I could almost feel his mood lighten, "Y/N? I never thought I'd hear your voice again! How've you been, kid?"

"Could be better. it could be worse. I'm back in town wondering if the pub needs a bartender."

He hummed lightly, "Luckily for you, Paul retired two weeks ago, and I've been having trouble finding decent help. You got any experience bartending?"

I smiled, thankful that he didn't push my return further, "I was a bartender for three years. I kept my nights busy."

"Perfect, you're hired. Can I go back to bed now?"

Giggling, I nodded, knowing he couldn't see me, "Yes, yes, sorry for calling so late. Goodnight, Jim." I placed the phone in the receiver and began stretching, getting myself ready to sleep.

My peace didn't last very long as my door swung open, revealing none other than my little brother, who wasn't so little anymore, welding a baseball bat in his hands. I jumped slightly and held my hands up in surrender, "Whoa, whoa! Steve?"

He stared at me, his features melting into a look of surprise, "Y/N?" He kept the bat high up in the air.

The two of us spoke in unison, "What are you doing here?"

"I asked you first, twerp."

He looked at me with an exasperated expression, "I'm literally the one with the bat."

I scoffed, crossing my arms over my chest as the adrenaline died down, "I have an attack dog. Don't make me sick him on you."

He glanced behind me, looking at Baxter; smirking, he just looked back at me as he lowered the bat, "Oh yeah, he's an attack dog alright."

I looked over my shoulder and turned to look at Baxter, who laid there unbothered; passed out nearly dead to the world. If it weren't for the slow rise and fall of his upper body, I would have thought he was dead.

"I could be facing an actual murder right now, and you would just be blissfully aware until you woke up to see my dead body."

Steve sighed, "N/N, what happened?"

I turned back to him, "I'm back in Hawkins. Mom and Dad don't need to know. Hopefully, I'll find a place of my own soon. Trust me, you'll barely know I'm here."

He just stared at me, his expression unreadable as he contiplated my words. He grew a lot since I last saw him. His hair was shorter back then. He was shorter. He's no longer the scrawney kid I had to protect in my senior year, when he was merely a freshman.

I probably looked different, too, but in other ways.

"I should probably get some rest, I have an early shift." He awkwardly ran a hand through his hair. I nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, kid. We'll talk later,  I want to know everything I've missed." I smirked, grabbing the covers and pulling them over my legs, "Hit the lights on the way out?"

He chuckled lightly, nodding, "Yeah, goodnight, Melody." He baked out of the doorframe, flipping the lights off for me before closing the door, leaving me to stare up at the ceiling; which still had the glow in the dark stars on it.

I didn't sleep at all that night.

I wasn't sure if it was the nerves of being in my childhood bedroom after so many years or the looming anxiety of recent events following me to Hawkins. Still, either way, I couldn't sleep soundly like Mr. "I probably wouldn't wake up if you're screaming bloody murder," Baxter.

After a few hours of tossing and turning, I gave up, turning to one of my old books for comfort until Seven O'clock rolled around and Baxter stirred awake, making me close my book dramatically, "I knew Saint Bernards were a sloth-y breed, but come on man!"

He just stuck out his tongue as he panted,

I removed the covers from my legs and climbed out of bed, "Alright, let's go. You need to go outside, and I need to make some food." He perked up at the mention of food, jumping off the bed as I made it and waited not-so-patiently by the door.

I opened the door, followed Baxter down the stairs, guided him to the kitchen, and let him outside through the sliding doors. I opened the fridge and hummed, looking through it for something to cook.

I grabbed the egg carton and the gallon of milk, deciding to make some eggs and bacon for breakfast. It was the easiest thing to do in the morning.

I found the bacon and took out some slices, hearing someone walk into the kitchen.

"You're cooking?" Steve's voice met my ears, a joking tone erupting, "Are you really my sister, or are you a clone that was sent to kill me in my sleep?"

I turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow at his low blow, "I've been cooking since I was twelve, remember?" Then, I turned back to the pan to focus on what I was making, "I made you dinner all the time until mom hired that Nanny who made amazing lasagna."

I heard him snap his fingers in recognition, "Yeah! I remember her. They fired her after I turned thirteen; they thought we could start caring for ourselves."

I scoffed, "Yeah, leaving us all the time with a credit card was a great idea. I bought so much booze with that thing; it was ridiculous. Want some breakfast?"

He made a noise of acknowledgment, and I nodded, turning my body to talk to him, "So, catch me up on the fantastic life of Steve Harrington."

Steve chuckled lightly, running a hand through his hair, "Well, I was pretty popular in high school after you left; I was captain of the swim team and then became a babysitter to some incredible kids." He spoke so fast that I couldn't get a word in, "After graduation, I met my best friend working at scoops ahoy, a nearby mall until it burned down, and now my friend Robin  and I work at the family video."

I hummed, "No furthering your education? You have a chance not to follow in the footsteps of your big sister, you know."

"I'm taking some time off." He scratched the back of his neck, "I honestly don't know what I want to do."

I shrugged, stirring the eggs in the pan as they cooked, "That's fine! We all go through life at our own pace; for example, I'm right back where I started. This is just a setback." I turned around and put the eggs and bacon onto a plate before walking to Steve and placing it in front of him.

He mumbled a thank you as I gave him utensils, and I returned to the stove.

I remembered that I didn't see his car anywhere when I pulled in during the early morning hours, "Hey, where's your car? I thought Dad would take you to pick one out on your sixteenth birthday."

When I was sixteen, Dad did the same for me. I saw an old 65' Caravan at a junkyard my friend's dad owned and became obsessed with the thing. He found one in good condition and bought it for me; mom was apprehensive about letting her sixteen-year-old daughter drive around in a Caravan, but I still have it.

He took a second to respond, "The break-line snapped, I have a friend who is a mechanic, and he's fixing it up for me."

I hummed, "Need a ride to work? The caravan is old, but she still runs beautifully."

His lips formed a thin line, glancing down at his food before nodding, "Can we pick up Robin too?" 

"Yeah, that's not a problem."

"Cool, let me go call her." He stood up with his plate and moved to the other room quickly.

♡♡♡

It was an awkward silence.

I knew getting to know the brother I hadn't spoken to in three years wouldn't be easy, but I had hoped we'd be more civil than this.

"So, any girlfriends?"

I heard him scoff, "No, I dated Nancy Wheeler for a minute in school, but that ended, and she's now dating Jonathan Byers."

I rolled my eyes, "You talk as if I know these people."

I graduated when Steve was finishing his time in eighth grade, and as soon as I got my diploma, I ditched town with some less-than-lovely company. I wrote him a goodbye note and left.

"You would've known who they were if you stuck around."

I was taken aback by that response, "Whoa, dude -"

"I mean, you didn't call or write or come visit. You just left a note on my bed, and I never saw you again."

I kept my mouth shut and let him continue his speech.

"Mom and Dad were pissed, by the way. Tried to go to the Chief of Police about your "disappearance," but since you were eighteen and clearly stated you didn't want to come back, there wasn't anything they could do." He huffed, running a hand through his hair.

"Turn here."

I followed his instructions.

"I was worried about you until I heard from a repeat senior that you had skipped town with Ryder Daniels, who everyone told you was bad news, but for some reason, you loved him enough to run to god knows where with him."

There was a beat of silence, "Are you done?"

He paused, sighing lightly, "For now."

"I get you're upset, but this town is suffocating," I pulled up to the address he had given me.

"Then why come back?"

I saw a cute girl with short brown hair exiting the house, and I turned to Steve, "Get in the back."

He whipped his head to me, "What, why?"

"You know how to sit in the back, and she doesn't."

"But I'm comfortable -"

"Just get in the back, Steve."

He groaned, unbuckling his seatbelt, and climbed into the back of the campervan. He sat on the dining bench where Baxter loved to sit during rides and got comfortable as Robin opened the passenger door.

I smiled at her, giving her a once over, "Welcome to the Van; you get the music selection in the glove box."

"Please pick something decent; I can't stand the music she picks." Steve groaned, and I rolled my eyes.

"I-I'm Robin," She said, buckling her seatbelt as I drove off.

"Y/N." I greeted, watching her from the corner of my eye as she opened the glove box and picked through the selection of music.

"So, are you Steve's new girlfriend?" She asked me, and I jumped, nearly driving us off the road.

Steve and I started gaging dramatically in unison. Both were equally disgusted with the question.

"God, no," Steve said, shaking his head.

"Gag me with a spoon! No, like I'm his sister." 

Robin whipped her head around to look at Steve, "You have a sister? And she's crazy hot?"