HAWKINS, INDIANA — 1983.

STEVE STARED AT THERESA IN disbelief for a moment.

"Y-You want me to what?"

Tess rolled her eyes shortly. "Never mind. I knew it was gonna sound dumb."

She started back toward her house but Steve stopped her. "Wait, wait! Tess!"

He grabbed her arm gently, Theresa facing him with an expectant look.

"It's not dumb. I-I just wasn't expecting you to ask that."

Folding her arms, Theresa's expression slowly softened. She dropped her head. "Well I just– yeah. I'm worried about Priya. And I don't want to think that she might be..."

Steve understood what she was saying without Tess having to finish her sentence. He nodded, hesitantly reaching out and placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Hey," he spoke softly.

Theresa looked up, meeting his eyes.

"Of course I'll help you," Steve continued. "That's what friends are for, right?"

Tess slowly began to smile, poking her tongue in her cheek.

"Right."

She looked at him a moment longer, then drew in a sharp breath. "Alright. So we'll start looking tonight. Meet me at St. Mary Avenue at eight o'clock."

Steve stumbled on his words, taken by surprise at how quickly Theresa had thought this out.

"Tonight?" he echoed with uncertainty.

Tess shot him a look. "What, are you chickening out already? That's Priya's neighborhood. We'll start looking there."

"Don't you think the police have already looked there? I-I mean, why don't we look at my house and see if she left something behind?"

She frowned, eyeing Steve. "Why do I feel like this is just an excuse to get me to come to your house?"

Steve winced. "...Okay, I can see where you might have gotten that, but that's not what I meant. I swear."

Theresa broke into a laugh, replying, "I know, I'm just messing with you. But we'll still start at St. Mary, and then maybe... we can go to your place."

He raised his eyebrows, Steve's heart jumping.

"Oh– yeah. Sounds good."

Rubbing his neck awkwardly, he waved to Theresa as she started back to the front door of her house.

He was confused about where he and Theresa were headed, but he didn't mind it.

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BY THE TIME EIGHT ROLLED AROUND, Steve pulled up in his car to the St. Mary Avenue street sign.

He did not see Theresa, but he got out of his car nonetheless. Steve looked around, placing his hands on his hips.

"Tess?" he whisper-shouted, squinting in the darkness.

There was no answer. "Great," Steve muttered, kicking at the gravel on the ground.

Suddenly, he felt two hands wrap around his arms from behind and he nearly jumped out of his skin, turning to see a flashlight being shined in his face.

Theresa's laugh rang out. "Oh my God, it's so easy with you."

He let out an exhale of relief, placing a hand on his chest.

"That wasn't funny."

Theresa raised her shoulders. "If you could've seen how high you just jumped in the air, you would've laughed too. Anyway," Tess tossed the flashlight to Steve, "let's go."

He caught the flashlight and followed her at once, walking alongside Theresa. She had changed into a sweater, coat and jeans, which was not her usual attire.

"I don't think I've ever seen you wear jeans before," Steve remarked with a smirk, shining the flashlight on her.

Theresa rolled her eyes absentmindedly. "Will you please stop shining the flashlight on my ass and pay attention?"

Steve snickered to himself, but did as she said. They walked beside each other, reaching the woods that surrounded the cul-de-sac Priya lived in.

Frowning, Steve uneasily asked, "Uh... are you sure about this?"

Theresa cut her eyes up at him. "Don't be a wuss. Come on."

Sighing, Steve only followed her. He pointed the flashlight in front of them as they trudged through the woods, leaves crunching beneath them. Steve shivered, able to see his own breath as he exhaled.

"Aw, do you want my coat?" Theresa teased, noticing his shivering.

Steve rolled his eyes. "What are we even supposed to be looking for, anyway? Don't you think the police would have already found everything?"

"No," Tess simply replied. "I think they could've missed something."

They kept walking, Theresa keeping her eyes peeled. She was a keen observer, and Steve had not noticed until now.

She suddenly halted, Steve bumping into her. Tess rolled her eyes in annoyance, then squatted down. Steve shined the flashlight for her, Theresa picking up something.

There was a small strip of light green fabric in her hand. It clearly looked as if it had been ripped off of what it originally belonged to.

Theresa looked up at Steve. "Priya was wearing a green top the night of the party."

She stood up, pursing her lips. It was apparent how on edge she was now.

"Look, maybe we should just take this to the cops and let them handle it–"

"No!" Tess snapped her head over to Steve, clenching her jaw. "I said that I wanted to look for Priya for a reason. I think something might have happened to her that the cops won't be able to figure out."

Steve was confused. "Tess, what are you talking about?"

"The night I first came to your house," she continued. "I told you that I thought I saw something, right?"

He nodded.

Tess drew in a shaky breath. "I think that whatever I saw... it's got something to do with Priya and Will Byers."

Steve stared at her for a moment, considering whether or not Tess had gone crazy.

"Well... what did you see?" he replied at once.

Tess shook her head a little. "If I tell you, you're gonna think I'm certifiably insane."

He shrugged. "Try me."

She ran her hands back through her hair, taking a deep breath.

"It was like this... thing. It didn't really have a shape, but I looked up at the ceiling and whatever it was looked like it was trying to push its way through. That's when I screamed."

Steve stared at her blankly. "What kind of thing?"

Theresa threw her hands up. "I don't know, it was like some kind of... monster. It was like something out of that board game my brother and his friends play. Dragons and Dungeons, I think?"

He narrowed his eyes, placing his hands on his hips. Steve bit his lip.

"So you're saying that a dragon was coming out of my ceiling?"

"No!" Theresa placed her hands over her face with a deep sigh. "You know what, just forget it. We should be looking for something that could lead us to Priya."

Tess reached over to Steve and took the flashlight from him, starting off deeper into the woods. Steve quickly scrambled behind her, not wanting to be left in the dark. He had felt safer when he was the one holding the flashlight.

"You do realize we're out here with absolutely nothing to defend ourselves, right?" Steve said at once, keeping his head up and alert.

"That's not true," Theresa replied, reaching in her coat pocket. She flipped a switchblade open, shining the flashlight so Steve could see it.

"I brought a knife."

Steve's eyes widened a little. "You own a knife?" he finally replied.

Theresa placed the blade back in her pocket, rolling her eyes. "It's my dad's. I thought about grabbing the gun, but then I realized that I have no idea how to use a gun, so..."

"I know how to use a gun," Steve responded, placing his hands in his pockets.

She cut her eyes at him. "Yeah, I'm sure you're a real sharpshooter."

Steve scoffed. "I'm serious! I've got good aim."

"Alright, John Wayne, I believe you," Tess gave a snarky response, looking over at him while trying to hold in her laugh.

He gave her an eye roll. They walked in silence for a few moments, until Steve could not stay quiet anymore.

"You didn't happen to bring any food, did you?"

Theresa turned to him in disbelief. "Really, Steve? We're looking for a missing girl and you're worried about food?"

As Steve was about to reply, they both heard what sounded like a twig snapping. They both turned, Tess pointing the flashlight in the direction of the noise. This was beginning to feel like something straight out of a horror movie.

"You know what, we should go to a diner and get something to eat," Steve suggested, swallowing nervously and tugging lightly at Theresa's coat sleeve.

"Sh," she shushed him, taking a step closer to whatever had made the sound.

Steve did not budge, standing frozen with fear. He thought he might piss himself. Theresa inched forward, squinting through the thick brush in front of her. The chances of finding Priya in there were obviously slim to none, so Tess concurred that it was probably just an animal.

But a piercing shriek rang out from her mouth when an unformed mass jolted from the briars, Steve immediately running forward to grab Theresa. He pulled her back and got in front of her, reaching down for the flashlight that Tess had dropped.

In front of them was a deer, covered in what appeared to be its own blood. The deer was limp, laying there lifelessly. In the glare of the light, Tess could see its glazed over eyes. It was dead.

She suddenly felt sick to her stomach. Steve still held Theresa close to him, grimacing at the nasty scene in front of them. Tess brought her face to his chest, unable to look at it any longer without wanting to vomit.

"I think we should go now," she finally muttered.

Steve had no disagreements.

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     ALTHOUGH THE SEARCH FOR PRIYA had been unsuccessful, even Theresa decided to call it a night.

Steve pulled into the parking lot of a diner, shutting off the car engine. Tess stared numbly at the dashboard, blinking a few times when she realized where they were.

She got out of the car, and Steve as well. They walked inside, taking a seat across from each other at a booth.

The waitress came over at once, taking their orders. Steve practically ordered half the menu, whilst Theresa only got a coffee. She did not have an appetite after what she had just seen, and was not sure how Steve could have one.

"Well, we have some evidence," Steve spoke up at once, drawing Tess from her thoughts.

"Hm?"

He gestured, snapping his fingers. "You know, the– the piece of green fabric you found."

"Shit," Tess replied, feeling in her pockets. The fabric was not there. She had to have left it behind after what happened.

She looked up, swallowing. "I lost it," Tess muttered, dropping her head.

Steve's expression wavered with sympathy. "Hey," he said softly, "it's okay. I don't expect you to be an expert detective. And besides, it was just one little piece of fabric. I'm sure the cops have a lot more evidence to go off of."

The waitress returned then with the food, setting the cup of coffee in front of Tess. She wrapped her hands around the cup, bringing it up to her lips. It was hot, but it warmed her up.

Steve did not hesitate to dig in, taking a bite from a cheeseburger.

"Can I come over to your house?" Theresa finally asked.

He set his burger down, wiping his hands. "Uh– yeah. Of course. As long as you don't mind being snuck in."

She laughed softly, taking another sip of coffee.

"I just... don't want to be alone right now."

Their eyes met, Steve nodding slowly. "I think I can understand why," he said with a quick smile.

After finishing his food, the two left. Theresa hoped her mother would not go upstairs to check her room, but at the moment Tess felt like she had bigger problems.

She could not stop thinking about the deer. Something had to have attacked it, something bigger and stronger and... predatory. This was the only time Theresa hoped that it was a bear. Arriving at the Harrington residence, Tess snuck inside with no problem. She was skilled in the art of sneaking in and out of people's houses.

Steve led her up to his room, neither of them making a sound. Tess had removed her shoes and stepped exactly where he stepped, knowing to avoid the creaks in the floorboard.

He shut the door behind him with a barely audible click, letting out a heavy exhale. Theresa set her shoes on the floor, pacing a bit before she sat on Steve's bed.

"You can lie down if you want," Steve said, pulling off his shoes. "Or– whatever you want to do."

Theresa sat there for a moment and looked over at him, inhaling slowly.

"You should come lay with me."

Steve turned to her, trying to ignore the butterflies in his stomach. It was only Tess that could cause him to get so easily flustered. Had it been any other girl, Steve probably would have been the one in charge.

He listened to her, walking over at once and climbing into his bed. Theresa turned and got closer to him, laying back into Steve. He put an arm around her, Tess resting her head on Steve's chest.

There was nothing to be heard but the rise and fall of their chests, Theresa's breaths quicker than Steve's. But his heart was racing, and Tess could hear it. The longer they laid there, the steadier it became.

"Can I stay until the morning?" she abruptly asked, breaking the silence.

Steve did not know if that would be such a good idea. If they got caught, both of them would be in deep shit. But Steve was not sure he had the heart to say no, and Theresa did not really sound like she was asking anyway.

"Yeah," he replied, Tess tilting her head back to look up at him. She gazed into his eyes, giving him a complex look.

Steve frowned. "What's wrong?"

She gave a slight shake of her head. "Nothing. Well– nothing more than the problems that you're already aware of."

With a pause, Theresa continued, "You know, we've been 'friends' for about ten hours now. How do you think we're doing?"

Steve chuckled softly, looking up at the ceiling.

"I think... that middle school me would be very proud of how far I've made it with Theresa Sinclair. The hottest girl at Hawkins High."

Tess laughed a bit, shaking her head. "You should be honored. You're the only guy I've ever asked to come look for a missing person with me."

With another laugh, Steve replied, "One point, Harrington."

They went quiet again. Steve had a question on his mind that he wanted to ask Tess, but he was afraid of upsetting her. Yet, she seemed to be in a positively vulnerable state, so he built up the courage to ask.

"Why do you want everyone to see you as being mean?"

Theresa furrowed her eyebrows, holding his gaze.

"Why do you want everyone to see you as being cool?" she quickly retorted, arching an eyebrow. "The answer's simple. Power."

Tess shifted a little, continuing, "When you're in high school, you want to be powerful. And popularity is what gives you power, right? So, you can achieve it in one of two ways: making them fear you, or being a people pleaser."

Steve soaked in her words. Damn, he thought, she's right. He was a people pleaser.

"You know, I think we'd be the most powerful couple at Hawkins High," Steve remarked, looking down at her again.

Theresa raised her eyebrows, halfway smiling. "You think so?"

He nodded. She stared at him for a lingering moment, then reached up and placed a hand on his face, pressing her lips to Steve's. His hand automatically went to her waist, kissing Theresa back.

She pulled away, pushing off of the bed and throwing a leg over Steve.

"Well, I guess there's only one way to find out."

notes.
priya: is missing

theresa & steve: rip‼️😹👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨

no but they're so horny like my god... people are dying theresa!! can't say i blame her though, i support women's wrongs

so i guess they're going to become an official couple... at least until tess decides to be toxic and screw things up

okay i know we're a long way away but i'm curious... how do you think theresa and billy will interact?