I Wish You We're A Girl

Chapter 1

The months after everything happened were rough for everyone, not just Steve. Max was in the hospital for weeks after Lucas had carried her out of the house, still in a coma. Eddie had been admitted too, for a week and a half, after Steve found Henderson hunched over his body, keeping him awake through choked sobs. At first he thought Eddie had died and that Dustin had to watch, but when he sprinted up on them and saw shallow breaths leave his otherwise still body, he went into mother mode. Pulling Dustin in a tight hug and asking what happened after parting from him, continuing to pick up Eddie as carefully as possible. It was traumatic, even through everything he had already experienced, he hadn't seen anyone that close to death. To where he held the chance of life for a person in his own hands.

At first he had gone back because he left the upside-down with Nancy and Robin, and when he tried to get in contact with Dustin, he didn't answer his walkie-talkie. Steve didn't know where he would have been, other than the upside-down, where he wouldn't answer. So he went back into it, leaving the girls behind to go find his younger friend. Eddie of course had come to his mind, but he thought he would've been fine. That he may have even left the upside down first to find his uncle or something.

He should've known better though, since the town was still against him and his only saviors were his uncle and his group of hooligan friends. Which happened to include Steve now, apparently fitting under the umbrella of being actual friends with Eddie 'the freak' Munson. Even after getting threatened with a broken bottle at his neck by him. His past self could have never seen it coming, but now, it made sense. At least as much sense as anything else in his life.

Now, Eddie was out and had been for a few weeks. Stitches dissolved and wounds closed. While Max finally awakened, and though she was still covered in casts on each limb, her vision was intact and her mood unbroken. She even got along with Lucas again, as if there was never a break in their relationship. Steve was almost jealous of it...The way that he was always there for her now that she was in a wheel chair and she didn't mind his presence at all.

Okay, maybe he was definitely jealous of it, but there's no way he would admit it, not even to Robin. Especially when she was finally getting somewhere with Vickie. It was small steps, sure, but it wasn't stumbled over conversations or sadly staring at her anymore. Which of course he was proud of her for, but it didn't exactly rub him the right way all of the time. Because he was undoubtedly and miserably single with no one else in sight. Not anymore anyway.

Ever since the schools in Hawkins announced that the rest of the year would be postponed and the underclass men given automatic passes. Considering the damage Vecna had done and the people he killed, Nancy chose to take a gap year before college. Even though the residents of Hawkins didn't know the details of everything, they could see that time and money had to be spent rebuilding the town more than finishing the children's education, when that could be dealt with later. Miraculously, everyone agreed for once and chipped in. Especially when the cracks in the ground sealed themselves up and so many people left, they needed as much help as they could get.

One volunteering shift at the 'emergency wing', as they called it, he was working with Nancy. It was probably a month, give or take, after the end of Vecna. After the day they finally saw him dissipate, when she brought it up first.

"Steve, do you remember when you told me about your dream?"

"Of course I do? Why?" To be honest he had wanted to talk to her about it again for a while, but could never find a good time now that Jonathan was back. Not to mention the whole restoration project too. Which should have been a hint in itself looking back, to not get any hopes up. Whether he wanted to or not.

"I think it's a lovely dream to have Steve, only not with me..." Steve's heart dropped into his stomach as he just kept doing his task, before nodding for her to keep talking. He surprised himself when he kept actually listening and processing what she was saying after that, instead of zoning out. He had an idea of where the conversation was going now and didn't exactly love the direction.