- 4 months later -
"And here's Corroded Coffin playing their new song-" Steve shut off the radio with a tired glare, shoving a hand through his hair and slumping against the counter.
"That's not the face of a happy birthday boy," Robin slid up to his side and poked him. He grunted, having not enough energy to jerk away from her. "What's got you all frowny?" She propped her chin on his shoulder. Steve looked down at the counter, tracing senseless patterns to occupy his hands. His head was heavy and his eyes were dry. He rubbed the ball of his hands against them to relieve some pressure.
"You know who called me today to wish me a happy birthday?" He asked.
"The queen of England?" Robin grinned. Steve raised an eyebrow but he didn't have it in him to laugh.
"My second cousin, Ginny, who I only see when someone dies. She called me to wish me a happy birthday. You know who didn't call me?" He asked.
"The guy on the radio?" She asked with a pinched frown. Steve deflated, looking towards the radio with a frown.
"I get that he's busy but it still feel shitty," he said. He couldn't help but reach out and twist the knob on the radio to turn the volume up. Eddie's voice came through right as they hit the second chorus. It was smooth and raspy and it made Steve's chest hurt. "I miss him."
"I know, buddy," she patted his shoulder sympathetically. "When's the last time he called?" There was a undertone of anger in her voice that has slowly increased over the past three weeks since Steve's phone calls have started to dwindle.
"Kaiden called four days ago when they landed in New York, and Gareth called two days to ask me what Eddie's anxiety meds are called. Eddie hasn't called for about six days," saying it out loud makes him feel pathetic. He spends his nights sinking into the couch or twiddling his thumbs at the table, staring at the phone and waiting for Eddie to call.
"How much longer is the tour?" She asked.
"Another 4 months," he said, voice soft with resignation. Robin ruffled his hair, opening her mouth to say something when the office door opened and Lucas, who they just recently hired, peeked his head in.
"Hi, sorry, Mrs. Benson is back and she's kicking up a fuss about the pride flag on the counter again," he frowned. "She's demanding to speak to the owner." Robin groaned, pushing herself up a pinched expression.
"I swear, that lady single-handedly makes me regret buying this place," she grunted.
"I'll handle it," Steve stood and tilted his head until his neck popped. "Maybe arguing with homophobic old ladies will cure my depression," he said. "Plus, it's my birthday. And nothing screams 'happy birthday, Steve Harrington' more than instilling tolerance in today's elderly." He grinned as he slid past Lucas, clapping his hands and shouting, "Mrs. Benson!" with a patronizing grin.
Robin and Lucas try not to laugh as Steve runs in circles with Mrs. Benson. He keeps his voice steady and a smile on his face as he lets her dig herself deeper and deeper, running her in circles until she's unraveling her own arguments. It's fun, and by the time she stomps out in frustration, Steve is actually smiling.
He works the rest of the day in Family Video, doing jobs that aren't really his job anymore as an owner. He wiped down the windows and rearranged the theatre section that they added when they expanded. Every Friday and Saturday they do a double-feature with an entire snack bar. It was Robin's idea but Steve dealt with all the smaller details that she didn't think about, like prices and seating and snacks in bulk.
He rearranged the bean bag chairs three times before putting them back where they originally were. He wrote the movies they would be playing on Friday on the chalkboard, then erased it and wrote it again, and repeated that three more times until his hands were covered in chalk. He stayed long past closing, doing meaningless tasks just to keep busy. He stayed locked in the office, going over new applications to find someone to help Lucas during the weekend shifts, which would become his and Robin's days off.
"Hey, Steve, can you grab the last stack of DVDs from the front? I'm buried back here," Robin yelled from the stockroom. Steve pushed up from the desk with a grunt, his back popping as he stretched his arms above his head.
"Yeah, I got it," he called back as he opened the office door. His back was stiff from sitting so long and his shoulders had a painful twinge in them. He shuffled out through the hall and headed for the front counter.
Then the lights flickered on and there was a shout of, "happy birthday!" and all of the kids were popping up from behind the counter. Steve flinched back in surprise, and a smile slowly took over his face. The tiredness and the sadness that he had been stewing in melted away as they all ran out from the front of the counter and squished him in a tight hug. His arms went instinctively around them.
"Oh my god, you people are insane," he chuckled. There was a small stack of presents next to a cake that said 'happy 100th, grandpa!' He chuckled as he swiped his finger against the side to collect some icing, then licked it off.
"Come on, come sit and open your presents," max smiled, tugging him over to the theater and shoving him down onto a bean bag chair. They gather around him like kids around a Christmas tree and it makes him feel a lot more important than he usually does. Max, El, and Will squeeze in on a beanbag beside him, Mike and Lucas sit on the floor, and Dustin and Robin take the small couch against the wall. They take turns handing out their presents, mostly stuff from around town or handmade. They eat the cake with a fork, foregoing plates, as they listen to music and the kids chat his ear off about everything.
He leaves the video store feeling lighter, but the second he steps into his apartment, the heaviness comes back in full force. He sets his presents down on the table, the picture frame Robin got him at the top. It was the day Max made black belt in her karate class. They'd all gone down to support her before taking her to lunch. They asked the waitress to take a picture, Eddie and Steve in the middle of the booth, their heads together and their arms wrapped around the kids.
He set the frame on the counter, running a finger over Eddie's face. With a sigh, Steve dropped down onto the couch and stared at the landline.
It never rang.
YOU ARE READING
A Rockstars Motto (the brain on love) | Steddie
Fanfiction"I was fucking embarrassed, Steve, and by the time I realized how fucked I was, it was too late." Steve couldn't breathe for a second. There were so many admissions in that one statement. Or: Eddie leaves for tour and neither one of them are prepare...
