STARCROSSED ▷ steve harrington

01. suzie, do you copy?

CHAPTER ONE - SUZIE, DO YOU COPY?

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SUMMER HAD ROLLED around in Hawkins, and it surprised Jackie with how hot the weather was. It definitely wasn't as warm as California, but it came pretty damn close. Jean shorts, tank tops, and ponytails were in her regular attire, the heat of the summer making it impossible to wear anything else. Color stained tongues from daily popsicles, the lingering smell of coconut sunscreen, tanner skin, and more freckles popping up left and right was how the summer started, and how Jackie was sure it would finish.

Jackie leaned up against the side of her house as she watched her sister climb onto the back of Lucas's bike, giving Max a look as he began to petal down the road. "Be safe!" She ordered lightly, smiling when Max nodded in response. "And tell Dustin I said hi!"

"We will!" Mike called back, looking at the older girl over his shoulder, nearly crashing into a trash can on the street during the process. She pursed her lips to not laugh. "Promise!"

She watched them go, and soon she had climbed into her car, driving herself to the mall, where she'd spent most of her summer to begin with. There were multiple reasons to that, but the main one was focused around a certain individual. Jackie swung her purse over her shoulder, glancing around the building that was crowded with people, before turning on her heel and walking towards the escalator.

If she wasn't spending time with Max, she was at the pool, or she was annoying Steve at his job, which was currently where she was heading off to. He'd starting working at an ice cream parlor almost a full month prior, and that was the exact reason why her visits to the mall were so frequent. But today, annoying Steve wasn't the only thing on her agenda. She had a job interview.

Though, she had yet to tell Steve that she was back in town. After taking a small vacation to the beach with Nancy and Jonathan, she decided to keep her return a secret for one sole reason.

"You know that means you suck, right?" Robin's familiar voice asked just as Jackie stepped into Scoops Ahoy.

"Yeah, yeah. I can read, too."

"Since when?" Jackie teased, announcing her arrival as she dropped her heavy ass purse onto the counter.

Steve whirled around, and his face lit up. "You're back!"

She grinned. "So you've noticed."

Steve threw his hands up in annoyance. "I cannot take the constant harassment from you two, it's going to drive me insane."

"No offense, babe, but I think you were already there." Steve rolled his eyes as he leaned over to give his girlfriend a kiss on the cheek. She smiled and dropped her purse onto the counter.

"Finally!" Robin came out from behind the break room. "I was getting sick of seeing Steve's children. Minus your adoring sister, of course."

Jackie laughed as Robin wrapped one arm around her shoulder, and the two of them faced Steve with raised eyebrows. "There are many words I would use to describe Max," she replied. "I'm not sure adoring is one of them." Her eyes found the board laying down on the back counter. "So what was the competition for today?"

"To see how many people Steve could scare away with his dumb jokes."

"They aren't dumb," he replied, shooting them both a pointed look. "It's just my elite sense of humor. You two wouldn't get it."