we could be | ronance

ELEVEN

"i'm here standing in the same dress
you're in your apartment"

-

TO SAY MY heart was racing as i stepped up to nancy's house was an understatement. i could feel it pounding against my chest, as if it was being punched over and over again. i felt like it was going to burst out of me and onto the floor like a gory horror movie scene.

i raised an unsteady finger to the doorbell, pushing it in slowly. it felt strong beneath my fingertips, as if i was too weak to push it. i felt like i was going to faint as i waited on the front porch, giving myself a pep talk in my head.

you can do this.

it felt as if i was waiting for hours on her doorstep before the door swung open, revealing someone who definitely was not nancy wheeler. i quickly recognized him, and his once confused face relaxed into a smile when he saw it was me.

"robin, hey," he said.

"hey mike," i replied, nervously shoving my hands into my pockets.

"haven't seen you in a while. come in!"

i stepped inside, mike saying something about my month-absence from the house. all i could think about was nancy.

"does this mean you two are back together?" he asked in a whisper, and his tone almost sounded hopeful.

mike had known about me and nancy. he found out about two weeks into our relationship when he walked in to ask for a ride to school and saw us kissing. nancy pleaded him to not tell anyone, and he obviously complied.

mike had always liked me, and i thought he was pretty cool. he always made comments about us kissing- saying how he didn't want to walk in on any more makeout sessions.

he supported nancy unconditionally, especially because he had a boyfriend himself. will byers. i had met the kid when i was here at nancy's once, but that was months ago.

"nope, just friends," i whispered back, giving him a small, sad smile. "you still with will?"

he nodded, a genuine smile taking over his face. his mom called him seconds later, and he waved a goodbye before taking off down the hall. i went up the stairs and into nancy's room next, announcing myself as i entered.

"hey, sorry. your brother and i were talking," i told her, walking to her bed and taking a seat next to her.

she gave me a smile and laughed a bit, a sound that i had missed hearing. "he adores you"

i laughed too, and could already tell this was going to be a long night.

-

nancy and i didn't have the most interesting night, as we mainly sat around talking the whole night. it had been silent after our conversation ended, until nancy spoke again.

"totally random question," she started, peaking my interest. "can i do your makeup?"

i wanted her to, but i know i shouldn't. the thought of nancy's face, only inches away from mine...

"sure," i shrugged, immediately cursing myself for agreeing.

nancy jumped up and ran over to her makeup counter, waving me over excitedly to sit in the chair at the desk. i sat down in it, my body feeling heavy. i was dreading the start of her doing my makeup, but also over the moon about it.

"i'm not doing anything heavy," she assured me. "just...eyeshadow, mascara, eyeliner....ooh! maybe some blush too. and highlighter. i might add lipstick"

i should've never agreed to this.

she dipped a brush into a soft brown color, before practically demanding i closed my eyes to 'make it easier'. all i could think about the whole time was how close her face was to mine. to make it even worse, she kept mumbling something about how it had to be perfect, causing her to wipe it off and start over again.

after what seemed like ages, she told me to open my eyes.

"okay, i know you've probably never used mascara in your life, so just listen to me," she pulled the applicator out of the bottle, and it was covered in black. "okay ready? blink......blink.....blink"

i felt like she repeated the word 'blink' at least a dozen times on each eye, before announcing she was done. she picked up another makeup item and told me to close once again. i could feel her drawing two lines on each eye, connecting the two in a winged shape. she told me to open, and when i did, i swear i could hear her mumble 'perfect'.

she had me keep my eyes open as she grabbed a pink powder and a big, fluffy brush. she dipped it in the powder and tapped it off before touching it to my cheek. her free hand lightly tipped my chin upwards, a gesture that made my entire body heat up at the contact. i found myself staring at her face the entire time her eyes were fixated on my face, applying a shimmery powder next.

she announced that she was almost done, and grabbed a tube of red lipstick. i stared at it, my eyes going wide at the thought of having that on my lips. she chuckled lightly at my expression, touching the tip of the lipstick to my lips. i watched as she stared intently at my lips, my entire body feeling like it's been lit on fire.

"all done!" she exclaimed, backing up to admire what she had done. "you look great"

i felt heat rising to my cheeks, turning them even pinker than they were. i turned to the mirror to look at what she had done.

and i had to admit, i didn't hate it. and it didn't look bad either.

"turn back to me, i wasn't done looking!" she says, and i turn back to her.

"wait, i messed up the lipstick a bit," she said, moving back to me and smearing a bit she had got on my face onto her hand instead. "there"

she didn't back away from my face once she was done, and it felt almost like she was getting closer. her eyes flicked from my lips up to my eyes and back down, an endless cycle i never wanted her to break.

it did break, though. it broke the second she brought her lips to mine.