𝐌𝐄𝐒𝐒 𝐌𝐄 𝐔𝐏, ronance ¹

𝟎𝟕. 𝗦𝗜𝗡𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗚

The night draped Nancy's apartment in an enigmatic aura as they sifted through the labyrinth of notes, maps, and evidence sprawled across the table. The dim lamp cast elongated shadows, weaving a tale of mystery as they delved into the heart of Hawkins' secrets.

Robin's eyes were alight with the fervour of Hawkins' mystery, "This is brilliant," she whispered, holding up two pieces of paper under the lamp, "It's like a hidden story of Hawkins that we get to put together!"

Nancy couldn't help but smile as she watched Robin in her element. The way her eyes lip up with each revelation, each connection of dots— it was a side of Robin that, a few weeks ago, Nancy hadn't cared for.

But their relationship had evolved, and Nancy had grown to appreciate the nerd inside of Robin. She even found it— cute.

"You really get into this, don't you?" Nancy teased.

"Are you kidding? Of course!" Robin grinned, not taking her eyes off the evidence before her, "We're about to blow this thing wide open!"

"I never realised how adorably nerdy you are," Nancy said, smiling at her.

"Adorably nerdy, huh?" Robin repeated playfully, "I'll take that as a compliment."

Nancy leaned against the table, her gaze fixed on Robin. The weight of their recent challenges seemed to fade away as she appreciated the genuine enthusiasm radiating from— her girlfriend.

Nancy's heart skipped a beat at the word. She'd never, in a million years, think that a girl could like another girl in this way.

She smiled to herself, thinking about how she felt at that moment. It was a feeling she hadn't really felt when she was with Steve or Jonathan. She had been content but not happy. She had liked them but not loved them— not in the same way she loved Robin.

"You're like a detective from those old noir films," Nancy said, "It's cute."

Robin laughed, looking up at Nancy, "Well, I don't have a fedora or a trench coat, but I can work with cute."

"Want to take a break for a bit?" Nancy asked with a sparkle in her eyes.

"Sure," Robin replied, dropping the two pages of notes she was reviewing on the table, "I'll make coffee?"

"Sounds good," Nancy said, unable to contain her smile, "I think we could use a moment away from all this—" Nancy gestured wildly to the notes on the table.

Robin laughed, then leaned across the middle cushion of the sofa toward Nancy, "As you wish," she said, giving Nancy a quick kiss.

Before Robin could stand up, Nancy pulled her back down by the collar and kissed her again, then smiled, "Hurry back."

Robin couldn't help the blush rising on her cheeks, and she nodded with a beaming smile.

In the kitchen, the low hum of the coffee machine provided a brief respite. As the aroma filled the air, Robin couldn't help but feel a new kind of warmth bubble up in her chest.

Once the coffee was done, Robin handed Nancy her mug, their fingers brushing as she took it.

"You know," Robin said as she settled beside Nancy on the sofa, "We make a pretty good team despite how much we hated each other a few weeks ago."