Pairing: Steve Harrington x female reader
Summary: Steve invented you to a party. Unfortunately you are not doing well in crowds so you start panicking.
Warnings: hurt/comfort. dating Steve. panic attack. no use of y/n.
Music thumped through the walls so hard you could feel it in your ribs. Someone shouted from the kitchen. A group of people burst into laughter somewhere upstairs.
The living room was packed shoulder to shoulder. Every few seconds someone bumped into you.
The air smelled like perfume, spilled beer, and smoke drifting in through the open back door.
Steve hold himself up with one hand against the wall your back was leaning at. He was so close that you could feel his warmth forming a shield around you. He leaned down so you could hear him over the music. "You okay?"
You smiled automatically. "Yeah."
He smiled back. "Good. I`m glad you came with me, sweetheart." He squeezed your hand once before Dustin called his name from across the room.
Steve sighed dramatically. "I'll be right back."
You laughed. "I'll survive two minutes."
"I make no promises." He pointed playfully at Dustin. "He usually finds trouble in thirty seconds."
You giggled nut it sounded a little forced. "I'll stay right here."
"You sure?" Steve asked with a cautious tone in his voice, like he was sensing the shift in the air.
He hesitated, just for a second. Then Dustin yelled again.
Steve finally let go of your hand. "I'll be back."
You watched him disappear into the crowd. Then you looked around. The music suddenly seemed louder and someone brushed past your shoulder.
Another person laughed right behind you. Voices overlapped, someone dropped a bottle and the sharp crack made you jump.
You inhaled too quickly. It's fine. I`m fine.
Someone stumbled into you with an apology and your heart lurched. Another burst of laughter. The room suddenly felt much too warm, too small.
You looked toward the front door but it seemed impossibly far away.
Your breathing became shallow. Not here. Please. Not here.
You slipped between people as quietly as you could. No one noticed that you crossed the front porch, then the driveway. You kept walking past the parked cars, past the mailbox.
Until the music was little more than a distant thump behind you. The edge of the woods waited across the road, wrapped in quiet darkness.
You stopped beneath the first pine tree. Your hands were shaking.
"No…" You pressed both palms against your face. "Come on."
Breathe. You knew how to, you'd done this before. But every breath seemed to stop halfway. Your chest tightened. Tears stung your eyes.
"I'm okay." Your voice sounded so small. "I'm okay." You didn't believe yourself.
Steve frowned. "…Where is she?"
Dustin looked up from whatever ridiculous argument he was having with Eddie. "Huh?"
Steve scanned the room again. You weren't by the fireplace, or the kitchen. Or talking to Nancy.
His smile disappeared. "You seen her?"
Robin shook her head. "I thought she was with you."
"I thought she was here." A tiny knot formed in his stomach. He set his drink down immediately. "I'll be back."
Robin watched him weave through the crowd. "…Uh-oh."
Nancy looked over. "What?"
Robin pointed at Steve. "That's his worried walk."
Steve checked every room first. Bathroom, kitchen even the backyard.
His heartbeat sped up. Then he noticed the front gate hanging slightly open. He felt it in his bones. You'd left.
He didn't think. He just ran. The cold air hit him the second he stepped outside. Steve called your name but there was no answer.
He walked farther down the road. Your name left his lips again. Still nothing.
Then…movement. Near the tree line. Someone sitting on the ground with their knees pulled tightly against their chest.
His heart nearly broke. "There you are."
You looked up. Your eyes were red. The moment you saw him fresh tears spilled over. "I'm sorry."
Steve frowned immediately. "For what?"
He crossed the last few steps without hesitation. Then, instead of sitting beside you he lowered himself onto the cold ground a few feet away.
Close enough that you weren't alone. Far enough that you didn't feel crowded. "You didn't ruin anything."
You sobbed quietly. "I left."
"Yeah because you needed to."
"You didn`t have to." He shrugged gently. "I think that was pretty smart."
You stared at him. "…You do?"
Silence settled between you. The wind stirred the pine branches overhead. Steve watched you carefully, not staring, just… making sure you knew he was there. You looked like a frightened animal and it broke his heart clean in two.
After a minute, he spoke again. "Can I sit a little closer?"
He scooted over slowly until your shoulders almost touched. "Thank you."
You laughed weakly. "For what?"
"For letting me be here with you, sweetheart." His voice was so soft it almost made you cry again.
"I didn't know I swear…" You wiped your cheeks. "…I thought I could do it."
"You realized you were overwhelmed." He looked at you. "Then you got yourself somewhere quiet." Another little shrug. "Sounds like you took care of yourself."
You shook your head. "I just ran away like a stupid child."
"You ran toward something that helped." Steve smiled gently. "I think there's a difference."
Your breathing had already begun to slow. Not because he had magically fixed anything. Simply because he hadn't asked anything from you. He was just there.
After another quiet minute, he asked, "Can I hold your hand?"
You nodded and his fingers slipped carefully between yours. You watched your joined hands for a long time.
Steve's eyebrows lifted. "Why?"
"You probably think I'm…" You couldn't finish.
His expression softened immediately. "I think…" He squeezed your hand ever so slightly. "…that I learned something important tonight."
"You don't like big parties."
Despite everything you smiled a little. "I guess not."
You nodded. "Too many people."
He filed every word away like it was the most important information he'd ever received. "Okay it`s settled then."
You frowned. "…What are you talking about?"
"Now I know." He smiled. So next time you feel like this…"
"There won't be a next time."
"There absolutely will be, sweetheart. And thats okay."
You looked at him in surprise. "But…"
"If you ever want to try again and it happens…" He shrugged. "…we leave the second it gets too much."
"No, I mean…" You searched his face. "You'd leave because of me?"
Steve actually looked confused. "Who else would I leave for?"
Your heart stumbled and without meaning to, you sink into his frame a little more. Steve is hyperaware of every movement but doesn`t mention it.
"I don't care about some party." He gestured vaguely toward the house behind you. "I came because you were coming."
Your eyes filled with tears again.
"So if you're out here…" He smiled. "…this is where I want to be."
You laughed through your tears. "You're making this very hard."
"Good." He smiled. "I'd much rather make you laugh."
You leaned your head carefully against his shoulder. He went perfectly still, not because he was uncomfortable, because he wanted to make sure you knew you could stay there as long as you wanted.
After a little while your breathing finally settled into an easy rhythm. The panic slowly melted away, replaced by the quiet sound of the wind moving through the trees.
"I'm sorry our date ended like this."
Steve turned his head just enough to look at you. "You think this isn't our date?" He smiled. "I'm sitting with my girlfriend under the stars." He glanced up through the branches. "…Okay, under mostly clouds."
That earned a small laugh from you, which made his heart beat even faster than before.
"I get to hold your hand." Another squeeze. "You trusted me enough to let me into your world a little more." His voice became wonderfully gentle. "And I just learned something new about someone I really, really like."
He looked at you with so much warmth that it made your chest ache. "I don't think tonight went wrong. I think…" His thumb brushed lightly over your knuckles. "…I just got to know you a little better."
A tear slipped down your cheek. This time not because you were overwhelmed. But because nobody had ever reacted like this before. "You don't think I'm too much?"
Steve's answer came without a second's hesitation. "No." He shook his head. "I think the world was too much tonight."
Silence. Then, after a thoughtful moment, he added with a little smile, "Besides…"
"I've fought interdimensional monsters." He looked down at you still leaning against him. "A noisy house party?" He nudged your shoulder playfully. "I think we've officially identified which one's actually scarier."
You laughed—a real laugh this time. Steve grinned. The sound he'd been hoping for.
He stood and offered you his hand. "Come on."
He pulled you close to his chest. His big, warm hands wrapping around your waist. "We`re going home, sweatheart."
"What about the party and your friends?"
He scrunched up his face dramatically. "I've had enough of that party."
"Mhm. Besides I know that my friends would beat me into oblivion if I drag you back there against your will."
You laughed at the thought of it and Steve pressed a gentle kiss on the top of your head.
He intertwined your fingers with his again. "I've got hot chocolate." He lowered his voice conspiratorially. "…Robin hid two bags of marshmallows in my kitchen because she says I buy the wrong kind."
"So…" He smiled. "…we can go home, steal Robin's marshmallows, watch a movie, and listen to absolutely nothing."
You squeezed his hand. "That sounds perfect."
Steve smiled so brightly it almost outshone the porch lights in the distance. He'd spent years thinking being a good boyfriend meant grand gestures.
Saving the day. Having the right words. Standing between danger and the people he loved.
Tonight, he realized sometimes it meant something much simpler. Learning where your safe places were.
And quietly becoming one of them.
Thank you so much for reading 💙 All interactions are highly appreciated!
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