Chapter Fifteen: Boobies

"You must be my lucky star! 'Cause you shine on me wherever you are..."

Robin's narrowed stare flickered up into the rear-view mirror, making eye contact with a grinning Lydia in the back seats. (To be fair, Lydia had actually called shotgun but Robin insisted on needing the passenger side mirror to do her makeup.)

Much to Lydia's own amusement, Steve's dreadfully out of tune singing voice continued to fill the car. "I just think of you and I start to glow, and I need your light and baby you know...starlight, star bright!"

"First star I see tonight," Lydia chimed in. Robin gave her an exasperated look. Lydia and Steve carried on in harmony, bobbing their heads to the music. "Starlight, star bright! First star I see tonight" Steve rhythmically drummed his fingers against the steering wheel whilst Lydia's shoulders swayed side to side. "Starlight, star bright, yeah!"

"Seriously?" Robin grumbled, fingers reaching for the stereo. She twisted the volume button, turning it down. "It is seven in the morning. We have the stupid pep rally, and I woke up looking like a corpse."

"You're worried about a pep rally?" Steve asked disbelievingly, sparing a glance at Robin as she attempted to put on her mascara. The last time Lydia had tried doing her makeup when Steve was driving she ended up with lipstick smushed against her face. Totally did not recommend. "Expect me to believe that?"

"Yeah, so?"

"We all know what this is actually about," Lydia stated.

"Yeah, we're not buying that," Steve added. "This is about Vickie."

"Absolutely not," Robin shut down, looking appalled by the insinuation.

Lydia scoffed disbelievingly. It was almost insulting that Robin had attempted to lie to their faces. "It definitely is."

"And you know what else?" Steve continued.

Robin sighed heavily. "I don't care."

"You gotta stop pretending to be someone else when you're around her," Steve said. "You just gotta be yourself."

"You're literally quoting me to me," Robin pointed out, lowering her mascara tube. "You do realize that."

"Maybe you need to listen to yourself," Steve countered. "Ever think about that? I listened. Look at me. Boom. Finally got Lydia to fall in love with me."

"I don't know," Lydia spoke teasingly. "Jury's still out on that one."

Steve's playful eyes met hers through the rear-view mirror. "Funny, that's definitely not what you were saying last night."

Lydia gave him a pointed look in response, to which he smiled. Ugh. She loved that stupid smile. She loved so much about him; the way the corners of his eyes would crinkle when he laughed, the freckles scattered like constellations on his back, even his bad singing. Lydia hadn't imagined ever being so utterly in love with somebody, let alone a boy she'd spent most of her life despising.

"Gross," Robin uttered. "Seriously, you two have got to stop being so...yuck."

Robin still hadn't quite forgiven them after an unfortunate incident a few weeks back, where she'd accidentally walked in on the couple in a slightly compromising position. All three of them vowed to wipe it from their memories, but Robin had claimed she was going to need professional help to rid the image of Steve's bare ass from her mind.

"Anyway, it's not the same thing, okay?" Robin carried on. "I ask out the wrong girl, and bam, I'm a town pariah."

"I'd buy that, except Vickie is definitely not the wrong girl," Steve argued.

Robin shrugged helplessly. "We just don't know that, do we?"

"Robin, no straight girl has a mullet," Lydia remarked. 

"And she returned Fast Times paused at fifty-three minutes, five seconds," Steve reminded. "Know who pauses Fast Times at fifty-three minutes, five seconds? People who like boobies, Robin!"

"Ew, gross. Don't say boobies," Robin chided.

"Boobies," Steve repeated. "Not a big deal, okay? I like boobies. You like boobies. Vickie likes boobies...It's boobies."

Robin groaned. "Lydia, please make him stop."

"I can't, it's his favourite subject," she told her. "Plus, he has a point. Vickie definitely likes boobies."

"Oh my God, stop saying boobies!"

Robin barely spoke to them for the remainder of the journey, and was in an even worse mood when they pulled up outside school.

Lydia slid across the backseats and climbed out the car as gracefully as she could in her plaid skirt. She headed to the drivers side, leaned an arm against the rolled-down window, and dipped her head down to kiss Steve.

Every time he dropped Lydia and Robin at school, they could count on prying eyes watching them. At first, Lydia absolutely hated it. People were whispering about their relationship in the corridors, girls were talking about Lydia in the bathrooms; it was practically her worst nightmare.

Eventually, Lydia learned to take it in her stride. And it turned out that she actually enjoyed being able to show off that, yes, she was dating the Steve Harrington.

"See you tonight," Steve said as Lydia leaned down to peck his lips for the second time. She drew back slowly, leaving Steve's eyes to trail over her. "You look seriously hot in that skirt, by the way."

"Ugh, we know, we know," Robin interrupted impatiently, gesturing with her hands to hurry them along. "Come on, let's go."

Lydia grinned back at her boyfriend. "Thanks for the ride babe." She wet the tip of her finger, wiping the red lipstick stain that had smudged against his mouth. "See you tonight."

At that point, Robin stepped in, practically dragging Lydia away by the arm and marching them towards the gymnasium.

Forearm leant casually on the windowsill, Steve waved with a simple open and close of his hand, catching Lydia's eyes once more as she glanced over her shoulder and smiled.

"God, I have never known two people hornier for each other," Robin complained, ushering Lydia up the steps.

"Look, when you eventually pluck up the courage to date Vickie..." Lydia lowered her voice upon the stern glower she received from her best friend. "You might finally understand."

"Stop taking about Vickie," Robin hissed, bumping her shoulder.

"Okay, okay, fine," Lydia relented, a few paces behind her Robin, who was stomping up the steps. "Hey, we haven't mentioned Marnie yet. I bet you're really looking forward to seeing her in that cute little cheerleader costume–"

Robin whirled around, jabbing a finger at her. "One more word," she warned. Lydia's lips curved into a smirk. "I should never have introduced you to Steve," Robin grumbled, shaking her head as she continued up the stairs. "Ever since you two got together all you've done is gang up on me."

"Dude, we're trying to get you laid."

Robin threw her arms out exasperatedly. "That's not the point!"

"I mean...it kind of is."

"Ugh, whatever!" Robin huffed. "I gotta get ready for this stupid pep rally." Lydia opened her mouth to respond. Robin immediately held up a hand to silence her. "Do not even, you are on extremely thin ice today." Lydia's mouth clamped shut. Robin's shoulders slacked in relief. "Okay, good."

They continued up the steps. Lydia couldn't resist the temptation. "Okay, but honestly? I was just gonna mention how adorable you and Vickie will be in your matching band outfi–"

"I will push you down these fucking stairs."

—

Lydia had finally discovered something she couldn't stand more than pep rallies, and it came in the human form of coifed blonde hair, irritatingly perfect straight teeth and a green Hawkins High letterman jacket – Jason fucking Carver.

"I mean, can you believe I used to go out with that turd?" Lydia complained, dipping her fries into the disposable ketchup pot. She was sat in the passenger side of Rich's police cruiser, food balanced on her lap. "Like, it's one thing to talk about the deaths of people you didn't even know and pretend they actually meant something to you–"

Lydia paused to stuff fries in her mouth. A spot of ketchup dribbled, landing on her thigh. Rich tossed another napkin at her. "Lyds, will you be fucking careful?"

"But to stand there in front of the whole school and use their deaths in a speech about basketball?" Lydia continued, aggressively wiping the sauce from her bare leg. Rich spared another glance at the mess she was making in his car and sighed. "As if those can even be a comparison. What an absolute cunt–"

"Hey, language," Rich chastised.

Lydia carried on, paying him no mind. "And in front of Max too? God, I could've killed him. Literally skinned the fucker alive."

Rich made a sharp turn onto the next exit, which would lead them into the centre of town. Lydia usually hitched a ride with him on Fridays whenever Robin had band practice. He would drop her at Family Video to meet Steve, then carry on to the police station a few blocks away.

"Carver..." Rich trailed. "He's my sister's friend, right? The one dating Chrissy?"

"Mhm."

"And you used to go out with him?"

"Why did you say that so judgementally?" Lydia accused, speaking through a mouthful of fries. "Like, what, am I not good enough for him?"

"I just thought you had better taste than that."

"Well, I regret to inform you that dumb jocks are totally my thing," Lydia replied, using the back of her hand to wipe the sauce staining her lips.

"So, does Steve know you used to go out with the star player of the basketball team you're watching on your date tonight?" Rich asked, casting a glance at her.

"...Not exactly..." Lydia confessed. "I mean, he knows about the bad date Jason took me on. He just doesn't exactly...know it was Jason." Rich's brows raised. "Look, it's not even important. I don't care about Carver. We're there to support Lucas. None of his friends are coming to watch."

"They're not?"

"Nope. They're doing some stupid role play game with Eddie Munson."

Rich looked over at her unsurely. "Should I be concerned about a twenty year old doing role play with teenagers?" 

"No, it's some legit club thing," Lydia said. "Dumb Dumbs and Dragons or whatever."

Rich's frown deepened. "Dumb Dumbs and Dragons?"

"I don't know, it's something like that," she dismissed with a wave of her hand. Lydia honestly didn't care about their nerd things. And she thought it was kinda shitty that Lucas' friends weren't going to watch his game.

"Right," Rich said unsurely. Lydia shrugged, scooping up the last dregs of ketchup with her remaining fries. "How are things going with you and Steve, by the way?"

"Oh, yeah, they're good," Lydia replied bashfully, fighting back the smile that always threatened to creep onto her face whenever his name was mentioned. It was like a damn curse, honestly. "It's been, like, seven months. Kind of a record for me."

"You seem happy," Rich noted.

Lydia glanced down, warmth spreading to her cheeks. "I am."

"He's uh... he's treating you well, right?" Rich asked. "Like, he's not pressuring you into anything or–"

Lydia halted before placing the last fries in her mouth, looking at him disapprovingly. "Dude."

"Hey, I'm just making sure," Rich defended. "I'm a cop, okay? I'm inquisitive by nature."

"Well, like, don't be. Steve is great." Lydia reassured. "You don't have to worry about that."

"And you're...you know," Rich cleared his throat. "Using protection and stuff–"

Lydia groaned. "Oh my God," she sank further down her seat. "Seriously?"

"What?"

"If you're going to have the safe sex talk with me, you're a little late for that."

Rich visibly grimaced. "That's not information I needed to know."

"Well you brought it up!"

"I'm just trying to be a good–" Rich cut himself off. "Look, my sister doesn't talk to me about anything, alright? So can you just humour me and let me feel as if I'm at least looking out for one of you."

Lydia's eyes flickered sympathetically towards him. She knew his relationship with Marnie was strained. Truthfully, Lydia didn't understand why. He didn't understand either. In fact, Lydia wasn't even convinced that Marnie knew why. The two siblings just never seemed to...gel.

Marnie was so withdrawn from everyone, so guarded, walls higher than the fucking Empire State Building. And she could be, like, super mean sometimes. It was honestly beyond Lydia how Marnie 'I fucking hate the world and everyone in it!' Bryant ended up with a sweetheart of a best friend in Chrissy Cunningham, a sensitive soul brother and the most doting parents of all time. Like, what even?

And Lydia would probably never say it to her face (mostly because Marnie kind of terrified her) but she thought Rich deserved some more fucking respect.

He'd always been an older brother to Lydia, the most stable male figure in her life since her father left; Rich used to babysit, used to help with Lydia's homework, taught her to drive, covered for her late curfews, gifted her first bottle of pepper spray...the list went on.

The point was, Lydia loved Rich with her whole heart. He would be the one walking Lydia down the aisle at her wedding, not her lame excuse of a father. And he deserved to feel like a big brother to his actual sister too.

"You're never not looking out for Marnie," Lydia said. "I think she knows that. Somewhere. Deep down."

"I don't ever assume Marnie thinks," Rich responded. Lydia cracked a half smile. "Thanks though. And I'm sorry if I overstepped."

"You didn't," Lydia assured. "I like knowing there's always someone in my corner."

"And I like being in your corner." 

Lydia exchanged a soft smile with him. See? How could Marnie not love her brother.

Turning her attention to the window, watching the streets of Hawkins drift by, Lydia noticed they were only a few minutes away from Family Video. Her stomach knotted in anticipation. She wondered when that feeling of butterflies would go away, or at least when it would mellow. Would it ever? Sometimes she just had to think about Steve and she'd melt.

"I'm gonna try and come to the game tonight, by the way," Rich stated, pulling Lydia from her thoughts. "I'm thinking of bringing the new officer."

Lydia's eyebrows quirked. "New officer?"

"Yeah."

"Is he cute?" She asked teasingly, crooked smirk resting on her lips.

"She," Rich corrected.

"Wait." Lydia sat up straighter. "We have a female officer in town now? That's fucking awesome."

"Yeah, her name's Alicia. She's cool," Rich remarked. "Like, super nice, you know? But she can also be kinda terrifying. The boys have been complete dicks to her but she holds her own."  

"Ugh," Lydia voiced her discomfort. "Of course it has to come with all the sexism."

"Well, hopefully it'll be the start of some changes around here," Rich said optimistically. Lydia nodded in agreement. Sometimes their town really needed to, like, get into the 20th century. "But yeah, she's completely new here so I've been trying to introduce her to a few places." Lydia wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. "No," Rich shut down instantly. "It's not like that. Wipe the grin off your face."

"I just think it's nice."

"No."

Lydia rolled her eyes. "You know what I don't get about you and Marnie?" She started. "You're like both objectively attractive, right? I mean, you're okay. Marnie's hot. But both of you vene–vemen– venisonly deny to date."

"You mean vehemently."

"That's literally what I said?"

"No, you said venison," Rich pointed out. "That's deer meat, dumbass."

"Who cares? The point is–"

"I haven't been actively dating because I'm focusing on my career," Rich interjected. "And I can't exactly speak for Marns, but for me I just...haven't found the right person yet."

"Okay, but–"

Abruptly, Rich slammed on the breaks. Lydia lurched forwards, the seatbelt digging into her shoulder.

"Mayfield!" Rich shouted, leaning his head out of the window. "Hey! Watch where you're going!"

"Sorry!" Max called back, continuing across the road on her skateboard. She indicated to the headphones that covered her ears, connected to her Walkman, and shrugged nonchalantly. Lydia grinned. Icon.

Rich shook his head, shifting gears before releasing the clutch again. "Kids."

"Hey, can you drop me a little further down here?" Lydia asked. Rich glanced at her questioningly. "Steve says you scare off the customers when you park the police car outside."

"Your shitty shop scares off the customers," Rich defended.

"Not true," Lydia denied. "We have a whole new female audience now that people know Steve works there. Robin loves it."

Rich pulled into a free parking space outside the laundrette. "This okay?"

"Perfect." Lydia unclipped her seatbelt. "Thanks."

Rich passed her the empty burger and fries wrappers. "Put these in the bin, will you?" Lydia huffed, scrunching the packaging so it was smaller in her hands. "Oh, and this." Rich drank through the straw of his milkshake until it was empty, only air passing through. He handed it to her. "Thanks. See you tonight possibly."

"Laters." Lydia pushed open the passenger side door and stepped out. She pulled down the bottom of her skirt so not to flash the entire road, then turned back around, hovering in the car doorway with a teasing grin. "Have fun with your girlfriend!"

"Not my girlfriend!" Rich insisted as Lydia shut the door.

She chuckled in amusement to herself, hopping onto the path and heading down the street, the heels of her black ankle boots thudding against the pavement.

When Lydia reached a bin, she shoved all her trash inside, and then turned the corner, walking in the direction of Family Video. Except, en route, she spotted a familiar ginger haired girl perched on the edge of the curb, headphones now resting around her neck.

"Yo, Max!" Lydia called out, sparing a glance both sides of the road before crossing. Max looked up and Lydia smiled. "Hey, how's it going? Sorry 'bout Rich almost hitting you back there. He's a shit driver."

"It seems to be a common theme whenever you're in a car," Max remarked, referring to their slight incident last year when Lydia almost ran her over. But, it was the start of their sort-of-friendship, so in a way Lydia was glad it happened. Even if Max would never let her live it down.

"I thought we were going to let that go?" Lydia teased. Max looked up at her, a glimpse of a smile ghosting her lips. But it faded almost as quickly as it came. That happened a lot nowadays. "How've your been? How's the new house?"

"Not sure I'd call it a house," Max grumbled. "But it's fine, I guess. Everything's...fine."

Lydia sat beside her. She knew that, for Max, everything was not fine. As much as the younger girl tried to hide what was going on, she was hurting, grieving. Sometimes Lydia just wanted to cover her in bubble wrap and protect her from the world.

"You know you can always come stay with me, right?" Lydia told her. "And I'm not just, like, saying that as a thing people say, I really mean it. If you want a break for a while, you're always welcome."

Max nodded, glancing down. "Thanks."

A brief silence lapsed between them. "Are you, uh, coming to Lucas' game tonight?" Lydia asked. She knew the obvious answer. No. Max had attempted to push almost everyone away, keep them at arms length so not to get too close. Dustin had said that Lucas was taking it the hardest.

"No," Max replied. "It's...better that I don't."

"Why?"

Max released a heavy sigh.

So, the thing was, Lydia and Max had gotten on surprisingly well ever since she, you know, almost killed her in the car. It ended up culminating in Max actually opening up to her several months ago. It was after Billy's funeral, a "moment of emotional weakness" (Max's words), but Lydia had been a shoulder to cry on and neither of them had forgotten that. Something about her being so vulnerable in that moment that had tethered them together since. Lydia was determined not to just let Max disappear on them, as much as the younger girl might have wanted that.

"I don't wanna talk about Lucas," Max asserted firmly.  "Or me."

"Okay," Lydia replied. She wasn't going to push her. Max lowered her head again, tugging the loose thread at the hem of her shirt. "Hey, you wanna swing by to Family Video with me?" Lydia asked, getting to her feet. "We just got Fright Night in and I know you said you wanted to watch–"

"Honestly, I should probably get going," Max interrupted. "I gotta get back for dinner."

Lydia nodded slowly. "Oh. Yeah, okay."

"Thanks though." Max stood, skateboard resting underneath her arm.

"Sure, anytime," Lydia said. Max placed the skateboard on the ground and stepped onto it. "Hey, Max?"

She turned around. "Yeah?"

"You know you can always talk to me whenever, right?" Lydia offered. "That time a few months ago...it doesn't have to be a one off."

Max swallowed thickly, averting her gaze. "I should go."

"Yeah. See you around," Lydia said.

Max nodded. "See you." 

Lydia couldn't help feeling a little defeated as she watched Max kick off and skate down the street. But she'd tried at least. And that was the best she could do. Even if it didn't feel like enough.

Lydia headed in the opposite direction towards Family Video, mood immediately lifting when she caught sight of Steve's frown through the window. He hated working there. Like, detested it.

Lydia felt bad for him, but it was quite amusing. Luckily for her and Robin, they only had to do weekend shifts, which were always a little busier. The weekdays were slow and dull and there usually wasn't anyone to keep him company. She honestly didn't know how he managed to get through each day. It would've  drive Lydia insane. 

The bell above the door jingled as she stepped inside. Steve was leant over the desk, eyebrows knitted together, jotting something down. He seemed deep in thought and she almost felt bad for interrupting. He lifted his head slowly, starting to deliver his usual line. "Welcome to Famil– oh thank god it's you."

Lydia chuckled as she walked towards the counter. "Hey."

"Babe, how do you spell Wednesday?" Steve asked, staring back down unsurely at the piece of paper in front of him. "Is it w-e-n or?"

"It's wed," Lydia corrected. "As in wedding."

"Wed as in wedding," Steve repeated under his breath, scribbling it down.

"Then n-e-s day," Lydia finished.

"Wed-nes-day," Steve slowly sounded out. He finished writing it and placed the pen down, looking up at her. "What a stupid word."

"Most words are stupid."

"True." Steve stepped out from behind the counter and peered around the other side of the shop. They were the only ones in store and it was nearing closing time. Lydia expected he was going to shut early. "How was the pep rally?"

"Insufferable," Lydia whined. Steve laughed as he reached her. She instinctively wrapped her arms around his middle, head pressing against his chest, and sighed dramatically. "I can't wait to leave that living hell behind."

"Yeah, can't say I miss it," Steve replied, grimacing at the thought of high school. "I did, however..." He drew back slightly, smile curving on his lips. His hands trailed down her back, resting on her waist. "Miss you."

"And I..." Lydia began, arms draping loosely around his neck. "Missed you."

They smiled as they leant in, noses grazing, lips inches away, almost touching when the bell above the door rang.

Stupid customers.

Lydia managed to resist a groan of annoyance at the frustratingly poor timing. Steve drew back, exhaling heavily through his nose.

"I fucking hate it here."

A/N

Happy Stranger Things eve/day depending on your time zone!!

As a treat here's my Vol I trailer!!

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

Just a surprise little introductory chapter bc I'm super excited to start writing season 4 and also super stressed about volume 2 coming out. Lydia and Steve are absolutely whipped for each other I love them so much. Also they invented carpool karaoke I don't make the rules.

Btw I have an Eddie Munson fic called Died In Your Arms out now – it connects to this story so go check it out besties <3

I can't wait to explore Lydia's dynamics further, esp with Max and also the new characters coming into the storyline.

Btw just so y'all know, if Steve, Robin or Max die then you will simply not be hearing from me ever again 🙃

me @ the duffer brothers if anything bad happens to my faves