𝐢 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟

i. THE NEW GUY

IT'S A year or so later, and things have changed a lot. Icarus' hair had grown a lot, he changed a lot, he talks to more people in school, his best friend is Jonathan Byers, most especially with his sister going off to college, his wardrobe is definitely much more different, he no longer owned a leather jacket, now he owns a denim jacket he wears all the time, no more chains hanging on his belt loops, instead it was suspenders now he leaves hanging down, he didn't have black combat boots now, he wore bright red converse now, he didn't have t-shirts with bands on them, he had plain shirts, any colours and not to mention his hair was a much lighter shade of brown now and his mom says it's because it isn't as thick or long anymore like the year before.

He's even trying to diversify his music taste, listening to the Beatles, The Police, anything else he can find that isn't just the Clash, Queen or AC/DC, though those bands did hold a special place in his heart, but he wanted to listen to others too. He's still close friends with Nancy and Steve who were still dating, gross PDA and random declarations of love to one another and everything.

Icarus had to admit, it did bother him a bit and he tends to get jealous but he's determined that this year, he moves on from Steve, he finds someone new. Girl or guy, he just wanted to. He needs it. Not to mention, Jonathan keeps teasing him about it, saying he will never find anyone.

Icarus would only reply with an eye roll, and a bite me remark back at him. That's the only thing that didn't change about Icarus, his attitude and personality. He was still the smartass, humorous, optimistic and very caring guy he was.

Icarus woke up that day, drank coffee and ate oatmeal his mom made then quickly said goodbye, grabbing his backpack and walking out. He is surprised to see Steve parked on the road, "get in, Rus." He says and Icarus sighs. "Do I have a choice?" He asked as he walks over and Steve smirks as Icarus opens the car door. "No, not really," he says while Icarus got into the car, looking at Steve.

"Goodmorning, Stevie, what's up?" He asked and Steve sighs, driving off. "Well, since I am a Senior now and everything, my mom and dad keep talking to me about college.. so I wrote something up for the college application.. Can you read it? Nancy would just let me down easy if I asked her." He says and Icarus grinned widely before grabbing the paper. "Yay! I love being brutally honest about people's mistakes and dumb shit." He says and Steve rolled his eyes but still couldn't help but smile.

Icarus however waits until they reached the school and parked outside, where he opens his backpack and takes out a pair of glasses. He puts them on, glancing at Steve who was smiling. The frames were wire rimmed, the wire was gold, they were circle ones and he looked kind of adorable.

It was why Steve was smiling so much, he thought of how cute Icarus looked in them but Icarus thought he was just being a douchebag. "Let it out.." He sighs and Steve starts to laugh, covering his mouth. "Sorry, sorry, Rus, but you look like such a dork." He says and Icarus rolls his eyes.

"Bite me," he remarks before looking back at the paper in his hands. He starts reading, so the two sat in silence, Icarus sometimes humming and raising his eyebrows. Steve stares at him impatiently now, examining his face for his reactions and Icarus hums again, nodding slightly. "Ah.." He mumbled, his eyebrows furrowing together. "Okay.." He says then looks at Steve, their faces inches away as he points. "This sucks, dude." He admits.

Steve groans, snatching the paper from him. "I knew it.." He sighed and Icarus sighs as well. "You said to be brutally honest, Stevie. And yes, it does suck.. But we can work on it, alright? Let me help.. You just need more help with letting these flow together, sound more natural." Icarus said, reaching to the paper, his hand brushing against Steve as he grabs paper to take it away from him before he could ruin it because he was frustrated.