YOUR SONG | steve harrington

004

trigger warning for mention of ed

Beverly examined her short dress in the mirror with tights underneath to keep herself warm. She knew it was just gonna be the few of them tonight at Steve's, but she still wanted to look a little good for Chris. And she liked to dress up sometimes for the fun of it.

As she looked in the mirror, her mother walked by her room, noticing her daughter since the door was open. "That's a pretty dress," Lisa spoke up, making Beverly turn and smile at her, not used to the compliment. "What's the occasion?"

"Uh, Steve Harrington invited me and Chris to his house for a little get together. It's nothing big, but I felt like dressing up a bit," she told her mother, hoping she would still let her go since she wasn't planning on saying anything.

"Oh, how fun," her mother said, walking into the room. She would always let her daughter go to parties if that meant her daughter was popular, just like she was in high school. "You know, I always wanted you to date that boy."

"Chris?"

"No. Steve," she corrected and Beverly made a face, turning away from her mom so she didn't see. "His mom and I were friends in high school, both on the cheer squad. We still talk now and it would be wonderful to have a mom that likes you."

"Mrs. Wheeler likes me," Beverly pointed out.

"Yes, but she isn't too fond of me, now, is she?"

"That's not true. She doesn't even really know you that well."

"And you would think that she would reach out to the mother of the girl who her son is dating," Lisa argued with an arched brow.

"Well, to be fair, you haven't reached out either," Beverly said slowly, not sure if she should have said that or not.

Lisa narrowed her eyes, walking over to her daughter. "Suck in. We don't want any rolls," she told her, changing the subject.

"I-I don't have any," Beverly said, looking in the mirror self consciously to see if she missed any hidden rolls. Ever since she started to the lose weight over the summer before ninth grade, she had become totally strict about her weight gain or loss — thanks to her mother.

"Just in case."

"Well, I've lost a lot of weight since I was younger and I...I think I'm good now, Mom."

"I still think you should be on a stricter diet. Nothing is worse than a fat flier," her mother said, referring to her daughter's position on the cheerleading team. Beverly swallowed hard, not meeting her mom's gaze. "What did you have for lunch today?"

"Uh...a slice of pizza," Beverly answered quietly, knowing her mother wouldn't like that answer. It was hard for Beverly to even eat the slice with her mother's voice in the back of her head, but Alicia encouraged her to eat it.

"Why not a salad?"

"They ran out."

"Maybe you would've gotten there quicker if you didn't have the extra weight," her mother pointed out, and Beverly bit the inside of her cheek. "Be careful what you eat tonight. Especially in front of Christopher. I'm sure he wouldn't want to date a pig." Her mother then left, shutting the door behind her.

Beverly released a breath, licking her lips nervously. Her mouth had gone severely dry from that conversation, so she drank out of the water bottle on her bedside table. She then looked back in the mirror, sucking in her stomach and forcing a pretty smile onto her face.

"Perfect," she whispered to herself before she heard Chris honk the horn outside, signaling that he was at her house to pick her up. She quickly grabbed the bag she packed with clothes to sleep in, and her things she needed to have to get ready in the morning since she would be sleeping over. She then rushed out, saying goodbye to her stepfather, but not her own mother.