Twin Sized Mattress - The Front Bottoms

Currently going on a corndog-patrol rampage 👍

Enjoy croissant mic while I like all of their art 😌

croissant mic

i couldn’t decide which version was better so you get both

Steve hasn't left the house in six months. He hasn't left his bed in weeks. After Billy's death his mental state went into shambles. He'd wake up screaming, he refused to eat, and worse of all...he began secluding himself from all of his friends. Robin and Dustin have only ever seen him a couple of times in those six months but aside from that, his parents were the only ones who interacted with him.

Today, he spent most of the morning lying in bed wearing the yellow sweater Billy use to wear. His mom sits besides him caressing his hair which is now dry and tangled. It pains his mom to see him, she begs him to eat just a little bit of food but he still protests. After witnessing the love of his life get impaled by the creature that had possessed him, Steve feels like there's nothing left to live for, everything was taken away from him that night. All he wants to do now is lie in his bed, wishing to one day fall asleep, and never wake up.

"Stevie, honey please, you can't stay in bed forever." She pleads, "I know it's been difficult ever since Billy passed but you should at least speak to your friends."

"I'll phone them later."

"how many messages do you think are on this thing?" She leans over to grab his answering machine and places it on his bedside cabinet. "They're all worried about you. Just listen to some of these messages for me, please?" She gave him a kiss on the forehead before leaving him alone with the contraption. It takes him a while but eventually he shuffles forward on his bed and picks up the machine.

You have 10 new messages

Steve contemplates it for a second, but it not really like he's got anything better to do, so he places the answering machine beside his bed and presses play.

14:08 15 Jan-

Hey Steve, It's Robin. Just checking in again, guess what happened in family video today? So this old guy came in looking all suspicious and shit and he starts grabbing a bunch of VHS tapes, right? So just as he's coming to the counter his wife shows and he starts to FREAK OUT! he drops all the tapes, which happen to all be pornos and she goes off at him. Calling him a pig, saying he's a disgusting old perv, and I'm standing there like "uhhh...no one in this fucking place pays me enough to deal with this shit." Argh! Sorry. Rambling again. We all miss here Steve, just know that, I know you need your space right now I get it. But when you're to talk I'm right here. Okay, gotta go, Bye!

Steve smirks for the first time in the past few months. He wonders he how much it's been killing Robin not to have someone to ramble to.

12:54 25 Dec 1985-

Hey Steve! Merry Christmas!

Dustin yells out threw the machine as the static sounds of cheerful Christmas music invade the background.

Mom! Will you turn the music down please?! Sorry about that. I'm just calling to wish you a merry Christmas, I hope you're okay man,. I haven't seen you since...well...oh guess what? I finally got into the hellfire club! You know Eddie Munson, leader and dungeon master, he caused another scene in the cafeteria today even though it was totally justified. When the teachers came to question him, I decided to stick up for him and he liked my confidence. I've been waiting forever to join to his club and I finally got in...OKAY MOM! I gotta go have dinner but tomorrow I'll come by and drop off your gift. Merry Christmas Steve.

Steve still has his Christmas present, a framed photo of him, Robin and Dustin hiding in the back of scoops ahoy, their faces covered in ice cream. Steve will occasionally pick it up from the window sill and reminisce about those days. He picks up the photo and looks at it fondly trying to forget about the person taking the photo.

14:43 12 Sep 1985-

Umm...hi Steve. How are you feeling?

It's Dustin again only this time the tone of his voice is drastically different. He's less perky than in the previous voicemail. Dustin, Robin and Steve didn't have a proper conversation until late October so it's no wonder that he's a little timid here.

So it's been a while we last talked. How are you holding up? I've really missed you and I didn't know if I should come over or call or what. My mom said I should give you some space. But whenever you want to chat I'm right here... alright. Bye.

18:23 6 sept 1985-

STEVE! Hi, I don't know if you can hear me that well. Its Joyce Byers. Jonathan's mom.

The poor quality of the audio crackles through the machine as Joyce's voice enhances as it tries to automatically set the volume from the previous message. Steve lightly slams the machine which seems to stop the crackling a little.

Sorry if the sounds is not great. I'm calling on a payphone right now, the connection at this motel is horrible. Listen I don't a lot of time left on this thing but there's someone here who wants to speak with you.

There's a brief moment of dead silence with inaudible muffling on the other end.

Steve?...

He can't answer you sweetie.

Oh. Hi, it's El. Just wanted to see how you are. We'll be in California in few weeks, we're going to go down to Santa Monica pier. That was his favourite place to go to in the summer. When I was travelling through Billy's memories you were in a lot of them, you made him really happy you k--

Steve skips over to the next message. He knows how the rest of these are going to go, it doesn't matter how sincere they are, to Steve it's nothing but a million voices repeatedly pitying him. Well Steve doesn't want their pity. He doesn't want to be reminded of everything he's lost. He skips past the next five messages, only listening to them for a brief moment just praying it has nothing to do with Billy. But each one is the exact same with a new voice. He pictures Billy in his last few seconds of breathing as each new message plays and he hates it. Steve doesn't want to remember Billy like that, but the memory of that day has been plaguing his mind for so long it's all he can think about. He's about ready to throw the damn machine against the wall until he reaches the final message.

00:34 2 July 1985-

Steve...

That voice. He thought he'd never hear that voice again. Steve sits up in his bed astonished, tears already glazing his eyes, he lifts the answering machine onto lap. All others sounds around tune out, the world goes silent, expect for his voice. His scared little voice.

I know it's late. I would've come by scoops I just...I don't think I can be around right now. I can't be around anyone. I…I don't know what's happening to me, it feels like there's some kind of poison in me, I don't have any control of my own body anymore. I want to tell you everything, I swear I do, but he won't let me. This shadow. It's been following me, it suffocates me the second I try to tell anyone the truth. I know this sounds stupid but you have to believe me. He's making me do things...awful things. I want to see you but I'm afraid if I do, he'll make me do to you what I did to those people.

The pitch of his voice is high. He's trying his best not to break down into a blubbering mess. Steve remembers the time, around this time he was investigating a secret Russian base underneath the mall. Maybe if he had been smarter and decided to go home that night instead, he could've gotten this message and done something to prevent all the shit that went down. He lives with that guilt everyday.

I can't stop him. He's making me build something for him. I've helped created, I've seen it Steve, I know what will d--

Billy begins to choke on his words as the monster within him begins seeping through. He hears Billy pull the phone away from him and yell out to someone or something but there seems to be no response.

I feel like I've failed you. I feel like I've failed Max, failed everyone, I'm so so sorry. Steve...I don't think I'm going to make it out of this alive. If I don't...just know I loved you. I really loved you, baby, and tell Max I loved her too, I never got to tell her that myself. Listen Stevie, I need you to do something for me if I die...I need you to take care of Max. She doesn't have anyone to look out for her, she needs that, Max is a weird kid but she needs someone to love her just like any other kid. Don't leave her to turn into another me...Ok. I don't...I don't think I can hold him back much longer. Bye, Steve, I love y--

YOU HAVE NO NEW MESSAGES

The teardrops pool down Steve's cheeks. How could he be so selfish? For all the brooding and mourning he had been doing for the past six months, making everyone else feel like shit for going out of their way to cheer him up, Max has been going a similar situation. If not a worse situation. Billy was her brother, they of had a rocky relationship but he was trying to be a good brother, even if he had a weird way of showing it.

Billy would speak fondly of Max in private when it was just him and Steve but never to her face. He had been working up the courage to say I love you to her but now she'll never hear those words escape his mouth. Max will never truly know what she meant to Billy.

For the first time in weeks Steve gets out of bed. It's like a weird surge of adrenaline enters his body but he doesn't care, Steve throws the duvet off of himself and takes his dust-covered keys from his drawer, he bolts for the door ignoring his parents entirely. He drives around town for a good few minutes, his first instinct was to go to the Hargrove's residence but he remembered that Max was never home at this time of day. Eventually he makes it to the junkyard where a gloomy young redhead is sitting on a rotting couch with Billy's Walkman on.

"Steve?" Max utters slightly confused as she swears she told no one she would be here. Steve towers over her awkwardly, realizing he hadn't thought out what he was going to say. "How did you find me?"

"I had a hunch you'd be here. You mind if I join you?" Max shrugs and shuffles over to give him space to sit on the mouldy couch. "So... I know things have been pretty shitty and--"

"God, Steve really?!"

"I know. I know you don't want to hear the same, "I'm sorry for your loss" pity speech. I just came to apologize for the way I've been acting."

Max raises an eyebrow at him.

"Cause for the past six months I had been making this all about me. I've been acting like a child just sulking in my room all day and ignoring everyone that I didn't even stop to think about you. I lost my boyfriend but you lost your brother. I came here to tell you that...he loved you."

"what?"

"He loved you," Steve reiterates, "I wanted to say that to you for so long but never found the right opportunity. I know it didn't seem like it, but he thought the world of you, Max. He wasn't a perfect brother, sure. But he wanted to be better for you."

Max looks down at her feet speechless. She knows that she was his shitty little sister, but she never really thought Billy saw her as anything beyond that. To hear she meant so much more to him, makes the aching pain in her heart burn like wildfire.

"yeah so, anyways, I just thought you should know that. I'm gonna go but just so you know, from now on, if you need anything I am always here for you. Billy would've wanted me to take care of you so... I'll just...yeah." Steve can sense an awkward tension growing between them so he removes himself from the couch and makes his way over to his BMW.

"Hey Steve!" Max calls out just as he's opening the car door, "do you think you can give me a ride home?"

Steve gives Max a little smile before opening the passenger side for her. As he drives her through the streets of Hawkins he can see Max begin to fall asleep against the window in the rear view mirror. Steve remembers that has the keys to Billy's Camaro. Maybe when Max is older he can teach her to drive and then she could take ownership of the vehicle.

Billy wanted to have that sibling connection with Max for so long, he just had a bad time at opening up that it usually strained his relationship with others. Now he'll never get to have the chance to be a real brother. Steve knows he'll never be Max's brother but he can at least be someone she can rely on, someone who can look out for her, it's what Billy would've wanted. Someone to make sure she doesn't have the same childhood he did.

This fanart is the first of 3 or 4 that all belong to a little 4-Part Fanfic that I started to write a while ago! If you want to read the first part you can do that HERE! (Aaaand also a little reminder that the Pre-Order for VOL1 of my Comic is only up for a few more days now! So if you are interested, you can get the comic and other stuff HERE ! AND I also started a second Comic on Patreon, which is a S2 AU after the fight at the Byers soooo if you are interested in that one, you can click HERE!) Ok I am done with advertising now- I really hope you guys enjoy the fanart! ❤

This is the most terrifying thing Billy’s ever done.

Forget staring up at a wave twice your height, forget staring down demodogs with nothing but a crowbar in his hands. Forget his dad staring him down across the dinner table.

Billy turns the Camaro’s engine off and stares up at Steve’s house, every window in the house lit. Steve left the porch lights on for him. When he knocks, Steve’s voice calls out,

“It’s open!”

Billy follows the smell of food to the kitchen, where Steve is standing bare chested in front of the stove, wearing only basketball shorts and stirring something in a pan. Usually, Billy’s skin feels like there’s a colony of ants crawling under it, making him jittery and anxious and angry, but the sight of the expanse of Steve’s back, with his wide, relaxed shoulders and his creamy skin and his moles, it settles something deep inside Billy. It makes his anthill calm.

“Hey,” Billy settles against Steve’s back, feeling the warmth of his skin on his chest through his open shirt. His hair is damp and he smells like shampoo, fresh from the shower. Billy knows Steve likes to shower as soon as he gets home from the Mall, or else the smell of ice cream lingers in his nose. He slides his lips over Steve’s shoulder until he reaches his neck, where he kisses him, slow and wet, until Steve leans back against him with a groan.

“You’re distracting me,” Steve whines, and turns his head to kiss him back any way. “I’m gonna burn the sauce.”

Billy groans when their tongues meet, shifts them so he can lean Steve against the counter without risk of getting burned.

“You’re distracting me, princess,” Billy says against Steve’s cheek. “Come home to find you half naked making me dinner like that…” It slips out, just like that. Come home. Like the Harrington’s big house belongs to just them, to Billy and Steve and this thing between them that’s been growing for months.

Billy remembers what he needs to do tonight, what he needs to say to Steve, and it sits like a stone in his stomach.

“I’m making us dinner, shithead. And it’s gonna burn if you don’t let me go,” Steve’s arms tighten around Billy’s waist, fingers digging into his skin under his shirt.

Billy can only hold him back, stroke his thumb over Steve’s cheek. Kiss him again.

He lets Steve go with a slap to the ass that has him sputtering and laughing as he turns back to the stove. Billy grabs two beers from the fridge and cracks them open, setting one next to Steve.

Steve leans in to kiss him thank you. He’s too sweet.

The sauce turns out alright, and they eat their pasta by the pool outside, trading stories about their days at work. Steve likes hearing about the little kids Billy teaches at the pool, because he’s a sap, and Billy cracks up whenever Steve tells him about the way Robin’s always on his ass.

When Steve comes back with more beers for them, Billy can’t put it off anymore. He has to get it over with, even it feels like he’s stabbing himself in the chest.

“I gotta talk to you about something,” Billy says as Steve sits down facing him.

Steve’s face is open, trusting. “Yeah?”

“I, uh… I’m leaving Hawkins, at the end of the summer. I’m going back to California.”

Billy looks Steve in the eye as he says it. He’s no coward. So he watches Steve’s eyes dim and his lips go slack, curling around the soft “oh” that comes out of his mouth, dipping at the end in disappointment.

“I thought…” Steve starts, and Billy can’t let him finish, can’t let him say whatever it is he was about to. If Steve gets worked up this might turn into a fight.

“I can’t stay,” He forces out. Looks down at the beer can he hasn’t taken a sip of yet. “Not with- I can’t stay.”

“Billy-”

“But I thought maybe,” Billy stops, licks his lips. Takes a breath. This is scarier than the demodogs, the thought that Steve might say no, “I thought, maybe, you could come with me.”

His heart is pounding in his chest and the anthill has woken up, making Billy feel like he’s gotta get up and run to the Camaro and speed out of here, but he bugs his fingers into his knees and stares blankly ahead.

“You mean it?” There’s an edge to Steve’s voice that Billy hasn’t heard before. “You’re not saying that cause you think I’m gonna say no?”

Billy rears back, tries to make sense of what Steve just said and comes up empty.

“What the fuck, Steve,” He snaps. “Of course not.”

Whatever Steve hears in his voice seems to settle him, because his shoulders relax and he grins that big, goofy smile of his.

“Okay,” He laughs, giddy. “Okay, yeah.”

It takes Billy a second to get it, then he can only laugh with Steve.

“Yeah?”

Steve nods, and barely sets his beer aside before pouncing on Billy, laying him back on the patio floor and laying all his weight on Billy just to lay a searing kiss on his lips. The heat of Steve’s mouth is familiar and comforting, and Billy lets himself sink into the kiss like he’s done a hundred times before, lets it melt his spine and warm his chest like it always does. Let it call him home.

“I love you,” Steve says against his mouth, and Billy closes his eyes tight, nudges his nose against Steve’s.

“Love you,” Billy’s voice is barely a murmur, but Steve hears it anyway.

Billy’s heart is pounding for a different reason, now. There was no need to be scared at all. Nothing else feels scary, or like he can’t get through it, when Steve’s there. So they’re getting through this summer, together. And when it ends, they’re leaving Hawkins in the rearview mirror, together.

Deserved better squad

Miss them :,(

He can’t bring himself to say it

But he’s in love with him

The main characters in the last show or movie you watched now have to deep-clean your house for you. How does that go?

With Stranger Things coming back, I’ve got Billy and Harringrove on the mind so here are some doodles and sketches with more taking care of a flour baby shenanigans, and Billy’s mom singing to baby Billy :)

Also on ao3:

Billy Hargrove is a goddamn criminal!

He’s a mastermind in breaking and entering. Steve’s parents are part are the few wealthiest citizens of Hawkins, their house a literal target, so it’s no surprise that they would install the best security equipment they could find. It was to ensure not only their safety but Steve’s as well. Since they were always away for work Steve had the house all to himself.

Security cameras along the driveway, at the front of the house, by the pool, and alarms systems at every possible entrance. Unless you had a key it was physically impossible for anyone to make it to the Harrington residence without getting caught by security. But somehow Billy had found a way to bypass every single camera in the vicinity.

It was like he had a cloaking device. He couldn’t be tracked on any camera, Steve would always check the surveillance footage but would be no sign of Billy on the recordings. There were alarms installed in multiple places in the houses-they’d need to be switched off in the morning using a device plugged into the wall- Steve always checked to make sure the device was up and running before he slept or when he left the house. But it was as if Billy had some sort of clairvoyance about the whereabouts of each alarm.

There were some installed into the windows in the kitchen, which was the most common entrance for Billy, they were little things that could be hidden in the smallest of areas but packed a punch when it came to the noise. But when Billy used the windows they wouldn’t make a peep. Almost like they were aware of Billy and trusted him in entering the household. Steve would check the alarms to see if they were damaged or faulty, but they were untouched, completely efficient.

The same went for every other security system in the house. If there was an entrance with an alarm Billy knew how to bypass the damn thing with little to no struggle. What was concerning was that Steve’s parents had the alarms installed years before Billy came to town. So how the hell did he know where every system was if Steve never told him about it?

A part of Steve wouldn’t mind the criminal activity if it wasn’t for the way Billy went about doing it. When he broke in he wouldn’t just go straight up to Steve’s room, no! He had to make himself a snack, turn on the TV, use the bathroom, read any book that was lying about, and have a look through the family photo album. He made himself right at home like he practically lived there. It would always frighten Steve when he would hear a ruckus downstairs and find his boyfriend rummaging through the cabinets. He would prefer it if he used Steve’s bedroom window like a normal boyfriend.

Steve needed to put a stop to this menace. Once and for all.

—–

Steve didn’t sleep tonight. Instead, he sat in his bed waiting, listening for the sounds of a 5'10 beefy Californian breaking into his house. Tonight Billy took the kitchen window, as per usual, Steve waited until the static of the TV came on and the blaring sounds of MTV blasted throughout the household. Steve made his way downstairs to where he found Billy sitting on the couch, his legs on the coffee table snacking on a tuna sandwich.

“Making yourself comfortable?” Steve says sarcastically, his hands on his hips in that disappointed mother stance he would give to Dustin and the rest of the kids.

“Is it my fault that your house is so fucking lavish, pretty boy.” Billy mumbles whilst chewing on a large bite of tuna.

“This is the tenth time you’ve broken into my house, Billy!”

“Oh c'mon, you know you love it.”

“I’d love it even more if you used the goddamn door like a normal person. Christ Billy, what if someone sees you? Then they’ll know how to get in and steal god knows what!”

“I’d love to you use the door, sweetheart,” he replies, “but normal isn’t really my thing.”

“Well, maybe this will change your mind.” From his pyjama pocket, Steve pulls out a little black box being held together by a silver ribbon in a neat bow. He joins Billy on the couch and hands him the gift. “Merry Christmas.”

“it’s July.” Billy remarks.

“Just open the damn box!”

Billy takes the little box from Steve’s hands. He holds the present to his ear and jiggles is about but can’t make heads or tails about the contents inside.

He removes the ribbon delicately so there’s no damage and tosses it aside. He opens the lid to reveal and suddenly his eyes go wide and his mouth agape. It’s a small golden key, placed neatly into the cut-out of the Styrofoam packaging below. It’s connected to a key ring that is attached to a shiny red heart key chain with a bold glittery “B” in the center.

“the golden was specially designed for the security alarms on the front door. Now you don’t need to break in every time you want to come round. And you can use it any time you want. I know the key chain is a little tacky if you want me to return it–”

Steve is cut off at the sudden crashing of lips against. He leans into Billy’s hard kiss, he can feel the blonde smile against his lips.

“I love it.” Billy says. Immediately took the key and key chain off the ring and placing onto his own set along with his house and car keys. “You sure I can use it.”

“Any time. I want this to be a safe place for you. When Neil’s giving you shit or you just want to relax, you’re always welcome here.

They continue with their mini make-out session. Billy tucked his keys back into his pocket before wrapping his arms around Steve’s waist. Steve moans in delight; he can feel the joy radiating from Billy. There’s still one thing that lingers on his mind as they pull away for a brief moment.

“there’s one thing I gotta know,” Steve begins, pulling away from Billy for a brief second, “How did you manage to pass all the security? We’ve got cameras surrounding the entire backyard, and the driveway, they’re are alarms everywhere! And this is so high-tech stuff, so…how did you bypass it?”

“…you have security?”

i love soulmate aus. so, imagine that the universe has some way of showing you who your soulmate is, but no one is ever 100% sure because it depends on the pair. some people have the first or final words said to them somewhere on their body, other can see what their soulmates write on their bodies and others only see in black and white until they lock eyes with their fated other half, which is when they start seeing in color. some people have their soulmate's name or initials on their wrists and other have a spot of color on their bodies, which is where their soulmate will touch them for the first time.

steve had none of those. when he turned 15, he spent hours checking every inch of his body to see if he had any writing or spots of color. once he was sure that wasn't the case, he wrote on his forearms and the back of his hand with red pen in hopes of getting a response. his heart broke more and more the longer he went without a response until he eventually admitted it to himself: he was probably unpaired. meant to either stay alone or enter an unhappy marriage full of infidelity like his parents. he tried not to let the thought of that bring him down, even as everyone around him started finding their soulmates.

then one day, after he turned 18, he went to bed like normal and woke up confused. this wasn't his room or his bed or his house. he sat up to get a better look around him. the room was big and spacious, but unlike his, it was comfortable and felt like... home. the walls were painted light blue and filled with paintings of various ocean creatures. there were two comfy chairs looking towards a big window and the furniture was made of a light wood, making the room feel even bigger than it already was. the bedsheets were a darker shade of blue mixed with white and oh so soft and steve normally would've loved this place but this wasn't his fucking house. his room was ugly and boring and full of plaid that he desperately wanted to get rid of but couldn't because it sadly reminded him of his mom.

so instead of freaking out, he just sat silently and waited for someone to give him a clue as to where he was. as he waited, he happened to look down at his hand and his jaw dropped when he saw a ring. a ring on the fourth finger of his left hand. where wedding bands went. so it was clearly a wedding ring. he was married? jesus, did he get blackout drunk and get married to some chick and just forget about it?

before he could get up and look for the poor girl that was probably even more confused than he was, a door on the left side of the room opened and he heard a voice say "good morning, pretty boy.", a very familiar voice. he turned his head to see billy hargrove stepping out of the bathroom with a towel slung low over his hips, using a smaller towel to dry his hair. steve's heart started beating fast at the sight of him. billy looked to be a few years older, probably in his late 20s or early 30s, and his hair was shorter but he was still fit and so fucking hot. he tried to not think about the way his heart skipped a few beats when he saw the matching wedding ring on billy's finger.

steve was ready to drown billy in questions about where he was and what they were doing and why they were married, but when he opened his mouth, what came out instead was a tired "hey, handsome." that made him blush. the blonde seemed to find this funny because he chuckled quietly and stepped closer to pull steve into a deep and loving kiss, cupping his cheeks gently.

"you okay to walk?" billy asked him quietly and steve was surprised to find himself nodding his head and shifting to stand. billy simply gave him an amused look and stepped back a few feet to give him some space, but as soon as steve was on his feet, his knees buckled and he nearly fell to the floor. billy simply laughed as he caught him in his arms and swept him up into a bridal carry, pressing a kiss to his forehead and taking him to the bathroom. steve was once again surprised to find himself simply throwing his arms around billy's shoulders and snuggling closer to him. it was like he was stuck in his mind, able to think freely but not being able to control what he said and how his body moved.

when billy lowered him into a steaming tub, he sighed in relief and kissed back when the blonde pressed a kiss to his lips. "be nicer to me, i'm getting old." he grumbled and watched his husband(?) go right back to drying his hair, standing over him and looking down with dark eyes. his words made billy laugh again and steve made a mental note that the other male had a beautiful laugh. "you're only 28. besides," billy smirked, reaching down to run his fingers through steve's hair "i recall you enjoying every second and even begging for more all night." he hummed and steve's breath hitched for a second before he was scowling and pushing the laughing blonde away, desperately ignoring the crimson blush on his cheeks.

"just go wake up the girls! max is coming to pick them up at 11." he huffed and billy gave him a mocking salute as he left the bathroom, probably to get dressed. and steve- steve almost cried. he was apparently 10 years in the future, married to billy hargrove and with children? this was probably some amazing dream he was having- wait. dream. this must be a soulmate dream. from what he heard, they were rare and sometimes didn't come true at all but... this must mean that billy hargrove was his soulmate. the thought of that made him smile like an idiot and he promised to not think about that for now and focused on cleaning himself and getting dressed in some comfortable sweatpants and his favorite yellow sweater that was somehow still alive, taking his sweet time since he was in a lot of pain. it was like they went at it like rabbits the whole night, fuck.

when he slowly made his way out of the bedroom and towards the kitchen where he could hear a commotion, it was a few minutes until the clock struck 11. he was nervous and his thoughts were going a mile a minute but when he stepped into the kitchen, his body automatically went for the coffee and the two painkillers that billy had probably left out for him. after taking them and draining about half the cup in one go, he turned around and his breath caught in his chest.

the girls were beautiful. they were clearly twins, both with fiery red hair and emerald green eyes and about 2 years old, but one was quietly (and very clumsily) eating her food and the other was arguing with billy with her limited vocabulary. nicole and cynthia were their names. or so his brain told him. "let me help you, sweetheart." steve said and approached the quiet twin, wiping her mouth and feeding her the rest of the food that was on her plate. she simply grinned up at steve and gladly accepted the help with a soft 'thank you, dada'.

steve's heart melted in his chest at the sweet voice, but then the other twin was screeching "no, dammit!" and steve saw billy turn away to hide his laughter. asshole. "nicole!" steve scolded and kicked billy's leg under the table. the little girl turned to look at him and her expression went from angry to delighted in seconds, squealing in delight at the sight of him. steve smiled fondly at her and told her to let papa help, darling and she accepted easily, no longer arguing and letting billy feed her. billy kicked him back at that, flipping him off when both girls were distracted briefly.

after that, at exactly 11'o'clock, there was a knock on their door and lucas sinclair was letting himself in and greeting him and billy briefly before crouching to greet the suddenly very excited girls. "where's max?" billy asked as steve cleaned the girls' sticky hands and wiped their faces and made sure they had their bags with them, sneakily verifying that billy had packed everything properly as lucas told the blonde that max was waiting in the car along with jane. then they were saying goodbye to lucas and the girls after inviting him to go to the beach with them next weekend and then he and billy were alone, the girls going to spend the day with max and then stay over at her house.

they spent the day cleaning around the house together and occasionally kissing and every once in a while, max would send them pictures of her and the girls together at the aquarium, some with lucas in them and others with a smiling jane. after they finished cleaning, they made dinner and then curled up together on the couch to watch tv, with steve promising to clean the dirty dishes the next day and billy rolling his eyes fondly but accepting. as they watched tv, billy complained about the snotty kids he gave surfing lessons to and told steve that he didn't understand how he could work with rowdy children and pta moms five days a week and not go insane. steve simply chuckled sleepily and listened to whatever billy said, ecstatic that this was gonna be his future but tired from the emotional rollercoaster that the day had been.

before he fell asleep in billy's arms, he made sure to press a long kiss to the blonde's lips and whisper a quiet 'i love you'.

and then he woke up back in his bedroom with pain in his chest and tears in his eyes. he spent a while just laying in bed, simply trying to remember every possible detail of his dream- of his future.

sudden loud and desperate knocking on his front door made him jump out of bed and rush downstairs, already having a pretty solid idea of who was on the other side of the door.

and he was right. when he opened the door, billy hargrove was standing on his front porch and panting heavily. his clothes were wrinkled and askew, meaning that he had probably rushed to dress and make his way over to steve's house.

they stared at each other for a few solid seconds before they both moved forward at the same time, hugging each other tightly. "we'll make it happen. that's- our future. we'll make it ours." billy was desperately muttering into his hair and steve was nodding his head to agree, not being able to speak due to the knot of feelings clogging his throat.

and they did, they desperately tried to make that future theirs.

until billy died on the fourth of july, in the year 1985. and steve was left alone, haunted with the knowledge of what could've been, what he lost and what never got to truly have.

tagging: @every-dayiwakeup