Jonathan Byers x Reader

Take my picture? - P.25

Jonathan's body shook ever so slightly as the night began to move on despite still feeling like time had stopped. The extreme noise in the the rest of the house had eventually calmed down though Joyce could still be heard talking to herself between sobs as she roamed the house almost as if she had been looking for something. 

Jonathan kept his headphones on drowning out the world around him with his eyes still shut tightly making it difficult to tell if he was still awake or finally asleep. The tears he had shed not long ago had dried leaving behind a stain that could only be seen on his skin from a certain angle. Seeing him so openly broken made you want to scream and cry. Possibly even throw breakable things against a wall and trash a room. Though despite everything you managed to keep yourself together quite nicely letting Jonathan and his mom grieve in peace without you making things even worse. 

Suddenly, as you continue to lay there wide awake, an idea hit you like a moving train. Slowly and as careful as possible you removed your hands from Jonathan not wanting to disturb him though he showed no signs of acknowledging your absence giving you the confirmation that he was asleep. Twisting your body, you extended your arm to the lone nightstand beside the bed that had only a lamp, flashing alarm clock that seemed to have reset itself, and a precious camera. 

The camera was simple as it was already ready to capture the moment sealing a memory forever against a piece of paper to be viewed time and time again. He was an artist when it came to photography, always looking for the perfect shot and to catch people in a real moment that a posed picture just couldn't capture.

While he was guilty of taking a few photos without your knowledge, you were sure grateful now that he did. Those photos truly speak a thousand words catching you in a different moments from happiness to frustration. It was art and hopefully he would appreciate your attempt to create a piece of art yourself catching him possibly the lowest moment of his life for something to look back on. 

Rolling back toward him, you pushed the flash switch off not wanting to create a sudden burst of light for fear it would wake him up. The light from the small lamp on the nightstand had been enough to create the perfect filter for the photo. Positioning yourself by his side, you closed your eyes as well turning your face slightly to lean against him showing his lowest moment with you proving to be there for him no matter what had happened. When he would eventually develop his film roll at school he would see the picture in a private setting without your watchful eyes over him. This was definitely something that he needed to digest on his own. 

Placing the camera down on the mattress beside you, you re-positioned your hands gently back to him providing a sense of comfort even if he didn't immediately feel it. The room continued to be quiet giving you the perfect opportunity to listen to what Joyce had been saying to herself as she still continued to roam the house slowly losing her mind.

"Please, Baby..." she said out loud as she happened to pass Jonathan's closed door heading back into the living room. "Please talk to me." 

Just when you think your heart couldn't possibly ache much more, he pleas to her deceased son managed to create even more pain as you knew there was nothing that could be done. As you took a deep breathe, your eyes quickly shot to the ceiling as the Christmas lights that had been strung through the entire house turned back on creating even more light in Jonathan's room though he didn't seem to notice. 

"Come on...come on..." she began again as she appeared to still be in the living room. "Are you there, baby? It's mom. Come on talk to me." 

Tears began to form once again in the corners of your eyes attempting to force their way out into the open air. The salty water burned against your tired eyes forcing them to close as you still listened to Joyce make sad attempts to speak to her son. The slight sound of Jonathan's music coming through his headphones had been just loud enough for you to focus in on trying to distract yourself from the voice in the living room. 

Surely in the morning your cheeks would be stained as well matching Jonathan's though you were hoping to be awake in time to clean up before he noticed you had cried as well. His habit of putting you before him, especially in this situation, was almost too much to think about. 

Tomorrow would be a hard and long day for the Byers as funeral preparations would need to begin and surely an identification of the body by someone in the family. It was pretty obvious that the father would not be coming done for the occasion so the heavy burden would land on Joyce's shoulders. Though thankfully Jonathan was more of a man than his father was and would more than likely take the lead on anything his mother couldn't handle.

~~~To Be Continued~~~