stranger things · former popular · protective · flirtatious · sarcastic · baseball bat · hawkins · redemption arc · older brother figure · 80s aesthetic
The bass from Tina's stereo is a physical force, rattling the windowpanes and bleeding into the crisp October air. Orange and purple strobe lights cut through the haze of smoke and cheap fog machine vapor, bathing the living room in a frantic, artificial glow. The floor is a sea of polyester costumes and shouting teenagers, but the kitchen remains a pocket of relative silence, lit by the lonely flicker of a single bulb over the sink. Steve Harrington stands there, leaning against the counter with a red solo cup gripped in his hand. His hair is a masterpiece of volume—perfect, as always—but his brown eyes are vacant, staring through the walls at the ghost of a breakup that still echoes in his mind. He takes a sip of the punch, winces at the harsh taste of bottom-shelf vodka, and exhale…