Sunsetz | Steve Harrington

Running Up That Hill

Stephanie's POV:
Max. Max was going to be Vecna's next victim unless we figured out how to save her. That was going to be Robin and Nancy's job. They were going to visit Victor Creel in the mental institution. As we tried to sit and devise a plan, Max sat at a desk, writing things down on paper. Lucas stared at her, worry in his eyes. "They need to go." Steve said as he nodded his head towards my cousins. I looked over at them and said "one of us would have to drive them back. It's fine." Steve put his arm around me and kissed my head, holding me tighter than usual. "I'm fine." I told him. "I know. Everything that's going on scares me." I leaned into his touch as the two of us sat on the couch. Amanda had fallen asleep with Chrissy's file in her hand. Maisie was next to Dustin, the two of them whispering jokes to each other. We were currently in the Wheeler's basement. Alex stared at everything in the room, not having been here before. Frankly, I don't think I had either. "Can you guys not stare at me? I can literally feel all of you staring at me." Max said. Lucas and Dustin's eyes immediately went off of her. "Wasn't staring." Steve said as he looked away from her. He looked down at his lap but every once in a while, his eyes would flicker back up at Max. I felt awful that Max was in danger and we didn't know how to help her. Lucas looked as if he was having a battle inside his head. "Hey, you're here now. You can help now." I told him. Lucas looked up at me and said "I should've been here from the start." "That doesn't matter now. What matters is you're here now." Max's pen stopped moving as she heard those words. She quickly looked over her shoulder and then went back to writing. Steve grabbed a comic book and started flipping through it. I read over the pages with him, snuggling into him. I started to close my eyes, feeling Steve rub my back. "I'm cold." I said. I felt Steve moving around underneath me. "Here, babes." I felt a blanket being put on my legs and I sighed as warmth began to take over my body. Max then stood up, walking over to Steve. "I need you to take me somewhere." She told him. I opened my eyes and Steve said "no, we're supposed to stay here." "Fine, then I'll go alone." "No! We're not going anywhere." Everyone then looked at Steve. He looked around the room and said "no! No!" Then in two minutes we were getting into cars. Steve shoved a bottle of water in my hand and I furrowed my eyebrows and he did the same to Dustin. "I don't want to hear shit out of you, Henderson. And I need you to be ok." He said the last part quietly. "I'm fine. I promise." "What's that around your nose?" "It's cold outside, Steve. And my allergies are acting up which cause my nose to turn red. Pollen." I said with a shrug. Steve didn't seem convinced as we all got in our cars. I grabbed a tissue and wiped my nose, feeling insecure now. Steve was then tasked with taking Max wherever she wanted to go. She had also given all of us letters in case she died. I stared at the letter in my hand and turned around to look at her. She stared out the window, looking more solemn than ever. It honestly blew my mind that Dustin, Max, and Lucas fit in the backseat with Alex. We were on our way to Max's house. The drive was mostly quiet except for whatever was playing on the radio. When we arrived at Max's house she told us she'd only be a few minutes. Lucas sighed and said "she's stressing me out." "Me too. Holy shit." Steve added. I shook out my hair and sipped on my water. "Nancy and Robin better figure it out. I'll kill them if they don't." Dustin said. I nodded and said "me too. Nothing better happen to Max." "It won't." Alex tried to reassure. Steve then looked at me. "Hey, we need to be worried about Max. Don't worry about me, Steve. I'm fine." I told him. Steve nodded and then looked away from me. It took Max a few minutes and then she got back in the car, asking if Steve would take her to the cemetery. I immediately knew why she was going. "That's on the other side of Hawkins." Steve said. "Steve, like I said, I'll go by myself." Max looked down as she said those words. He shook his head and started up the car, starting the drive. Once again, the car ride was silent. I was slightly stressed about Max and then Amanda. I knew she was unbelievably tense and was worried about Chrissy. Once we got to the cemetery Max got out of the car. "Just give me a few minutes." Steve nodded and said "we'll be here." Max then walked over to Billy's grave. I looked back down at the letter in my hands, opening it.