I Wish You We're A Girl

Chapter 4

It didn't take them long to get there, seeing as Nancy still lived in the same neighborhood Steve did. But he hadn't been over to their house in so long, that he almost forgot about the short distance. He should have made an effort to befriend her more, after the rejection...The two of them knocked on the door at once, Mrs. Wheeler answered.

"Oh hello you two, come right in. I don't remember hearing about you coming over today."

"We just have something to ask Nancy, that's it, Mrs. Wheeler. Is she here?"

"Upstairs in her room, go ahead and find your way." She went back to sipping her half full glass of wine and walked to the living room.

"Thank you!" Robin ended the conversation before grabbing Steve's hand and pulling themselves upstairs. Steve knew how to get to Nancy's room, it isn't like he hadn't been in there before.

"Hey Nance?" Steve knocked a few times on her cracked open door before pushing it open.

"Steve?...Robin? What are you two doing here? Has something happened?" She had been reading on her bed before, stomach down and book propped up on a pillow. Now closed though, she sat up, alert and seemingly ready to fight.

"No nothing is wrong Nancy, the kids are fine, everything is fine. The only thing is, well, Steve has had an epiphany of sorts. He needs to talk to you and since I was the one who made him realize...something? I'm here too." Robin gave the cheesiest toothy grin to sell their story, even though there was no need to. Since she was just telling the truth.

"Alright? Um, the boys are playing some D&D in the basement, Robin. If you wanna join them while Steve and I talk?" Nancy returned the grin Robin had given her earlier, it was smaller and intimidated but still there. Robin gave two thumbs up to Steve before closing the door behind her.

"So, Steve, what's up?"

"When you said that I should find someone who doesn't make sense for me, who did you mean Nance?" He spoke slowly and looked down at the book cover on her bed as he walked closer. He talked with his hands, moving around to visually explain what he was saying. Her eyes widened a little, only a little, before she looked down at the book she had been reading. It was 'The Color Purple', one of her favorites, Steve knew that much. "I know you Nancy, you wouldn't have said that for nothing."

"...Do you know the way you used to look at me Steve? Not the way you look at the kids, or Joyce and Hopper, how you looked at me when we were together." Steve didn't know, and he had a feeling he couldn't exactly look back at the way Nancy looked at him for guidance.

"How did I look at you?" Steve finally sat down to listen closer.

"Like how Lucas looks at Max. Or how Will looks at Mike when he thinks no one can see him." That made his eyebrows raise, he wasn't sure if he had been looking too much into it, but Steve noticed that look Will had before they ever left for California. "Your face was always filled with this admiration, Steve."

"Nance, who were you talking about?" The way he looked at Nancy told her enough, she could see that there was someone specific he was searching to hear the name of. She knew that much, whether they were thinking of the same person, that was a little less clear. But still, she had a gut feeling they were on the same page.

"I think you know who I'm going to say, Steve...I want you to know too, that it's okay, for it to be him." That gave Steve enough context, the fact that she said 'him' said everything.

"Was it that obvious?" Steve kept his eyes on Nancy, fully engrossed in what she was about to say. Nancy held his hands sandwiched between her own.

"I've known you liked guys for a little while, maybe even before you did. Because, well, you kinda stare when you focus on things." Steve kinda started to notice that too, only more recently than Nancy made it sound like she was talking about.