chapter twenty-six , At least we weren't naked, right?

a/n : Jonathan and Gus this chapter >>>

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"Dammit!"

Gus tangles her hands into her hair. "I can't believe you won again."

"Connect four." Eleven smiles.

Gus slightly opens her mouth. "You do know you don't have to say Connect Four every time you win, right?"

Eleven blinks. "But it's fun."

"It's fun when you're the one winning." Gus murmurs. She lays on her side, against the hardwood floor. Eleven lays on her side against the couch and looks at Gus.

"What time does Hopper get home?"

Gus' eye twitches. "Uh, I don't know. He might be late again."

"Oh..." Eleven frowns. "What about you?"

Gus sits up. "I'm going out tonight."

Eleven presses her lips together and stays silent.

"But, I'll be back later tonight." Gus sits up. "I promise."

The teenager stands up and stretches before she walks into her shared room. Eleven gets off the couch and stretches the same way Gus did before following after her. The young girl goes into the room, just in time to see Gus looking at herself in the mirror. Eleven tilts her head as Gus pinches at the skin on her thighs.

"What are you doing?"

Gus jumps and turns to the curly-haired girl. "Dude!" She covers her face and crouches down. "I think one day you might give me a heart attack."

"Sorry."

Gus takes her hands off of her face and looks at the girl. She stands up and sighs. Eleven rocks back and forth on her heels, like she has seen Gus do many times before. "What were you doing?"

Gus scrunches her brows together. "Nothing...just looking at myself. Liking what I see."

Eleven chews on the inside of her cheek. "Gus...sisters don't lie."

Gus glances at the ceiling. "Uh, okay—I was looking at myself in a negative way." She twiddles her thumbs. "Maybe not 'negative' but nervous." She clears her throat.

Eleven pulls her brows together as Gus shifts nervously. "Why?"

Gus slightly opens her mouth. "There are times when I..." she sputters her lips and scratches the side of her nose. This was so hard to talk about and Gus didn't want to introduce Eleven to the negative thoughts that go through the average teenager girl's head.

"...I am not confident."

"But...you're pretty." Eleven says. "And you're the coolest."

Gus presses her lips together. "Sometimes, I just get in my head a little bit." She lets out a soft chuckle.

"Why are you getting in your head now?" Eleven asks.

Gus' stomach flutters and she feels her face get hot. "I'm meeting a friend today."

"The boy with the big hair." Eleven raises her brows. "You told him how you feel?"

"Steve?" Gus scrunches her nose. "No!" She laughs softly. "I mean, I told him how I feel. But he's not my friend, not anymore."

"Oh...I'm sorry."

"Don't be. It was for the best." Gus inhales. She looks back at the mirror and exhales a sharp breath. Gus' eyes shift to her frizzy hair and she raises her brows. "I think I'm gonna straighten my hair."

Gus looks at Eleven's timidness in the mirror. "Do you...want to help me get ready?"

Eleven raises her brows. A small smile forms on her lips. "Yeah."

Gus motions her head forward, "Come on!"

Eleven let's out a soft chuckle and fully enters the room. She stands beside Gus and looks at the teen. "Do you know how to straighten hair?"

Eleven presses her lips together and blinks, revealing her confusion. Gus laughs softly.

"Hey, that can just be one of the things I teach you."

...

The boy's door opens and his eyes meet the brunette's.

"Hi."

A strained, yet bashful smile forms on her lips. "Hey." she laughs softly.

Jonathan looks at Gus' outfit and pulls her brows together. "Nice...outfit?"

Gus looks down at the rainbow sweater under her black jean overalls. "Thanks." She presses her lips together. "I kinda just, threw something on."

The truth is, Eleven picked the outfit out for the girl. Gus was going to tell Eleven she couldn't wear the long sleeve sweater and long-sleeved overalls in the Summer. But Eleven was so proud of the outfit that Gus couldn't say no.

"I've never seen you wear a sweater in summer before." Jonathan slightly tilts his head. "Are you burning up?"

"Oh, yeah! Definitely!" Gus nods. She then slightly lifts her satchel. "I brought a t-shirt."

Jonathan nods his head. "Nice."

They both stand in silence and Gus rolls her lips into her mouth. "Can I come in?"

Jonathan raises his brows, "Yeah! Yeah, of course!" he steps aside and Gus walks into the house. Jonathan closes the door behind Gus and she takes her shoes off, leaving her in mismatched socks. The brunette makes her way to Jonathan's room. Jonathan stands at the front door for a moment, his heart beat echoing through his ears. He inhales a deep breath, hoping to calm himself down. He then makes his way to his room.

"So, where's Joyce?" Gus asks, her hands folded in front of her.

"Work."

"Aaand Will?" Gus examines the room.

"The Party is having a campaign at Mike's."

Gus bites her lower lip. "Cool." she drops her bag and turns toward the boy. The brunette cups both sides of Jonathan's neck and pulls him into a rough kiss. Jonathan stumbles back and his back comes in contact with the wall. He grips Gus' waist, making sure she doesn't fall, and kisses her back.

The brunette's hands slide to Jonathan's jacket and she tightens her hands around it. Gus wasn't an expert when it came to making out. But Fallon has given the brunette advice. Gus had to be confident. Gus had to know what she wanted and she wanted this...right?

Gus lightly bites Jonathan's lower lip, causing a groan to come from his throat. She slightly pulls her parted lips from his and opens her eyes. "Is this okay?"

Jonathan inhales a shaky breath and nods his head. "Yeah, yeah. I'm good."

A smile forms on Gus' lips and she chuckles. "Cool."

"Very cool." Jonathan chuckles, he leans down and smashes his lips onto hers. He touches the back of Gus' neck, then slides his hand into her hair. Gus' whole body starts to tingle. Gus feels Jonathan's heartbeat quicken against her hand. she slides her hands into Jonathan's and he slightly jumps from the comforting interaction.

Jonathan pulls his hands away from Gus and he separates from the kiss. "What was that?"

Gus opens her eyes and blinks. "What was what?"

"The hand thing?"

Gus arches her brow. "The hand thing? We haven't done any hand things yet—"

"No! Why did you hold my hand?"

"Did you not want me to hold your hand?" Gus purses her lips.

Jonathan shrugs a shoulder. "I mean, it was good. I liked it, but it didn't seem...normal for you."

Gus scratches her arm. "I just wanted to comfort you when in a comforting way." She presses her lips together. "Was it...comforting?"

Jonathan frowns, "Yeah. It was pretty comforting. Thanks."

Gus shrugs a shoulder and smiles. "No problem."

"Do you want to go to the bed?" Gus rocks back and forth on her heels.

Jonathan swallows, "Yeah. Let's go to the bed."

"Okay...pal." Gus lightly punches his arm.

"I thought you said you weren't gonna make this awkward?" Jonathan asks.

Gus raises her brows. "Sorry." She bunches her shoulders. "Can we go back to smooching?"

Jonathan winces from the word. "Out of all the words—"

Gus stands on her toes and reconnects their lips once again. Jonathan freezes for a moment before kissing the brunette back. He keeps his shaky hands on Gus' waist and takes a step forward, while Gus takes a step back. They continue to do that until the back of Gus' legs hit the bed.

Gus slightly turns her head and looks at the bed. "Oh."

"What's wrong?" Jonathan asks.

Gus looks at Jonathan. "If we lay on the bed right now. We would be...horizontal."

Jonathan slowly nods his head. "Do you want to switch?"

"Yeah—that's good." Gus nods her head vigorously.

The friends stand in front of each other, now beside the bed. "Okay." Jonathan shrugs. "Now what?"

"We...lay down?" Gus raises her brows.

Jonathan slightly opens his mouth. "Right—okay." He scratches the side of his neck. "Did you want me to lay down first or you?"

Gus raises her brows. "Oh yeah...that's a thing..." Top or bottom.

A small whine leaves Gus' lips. Why is this so complicated? "I'll lay down first." She raises her brows. "No biggie."

"Are you sure?" Jonathan asks.

"Yeah. Why wouldn't I be sure?"

Jonathan opens and closes his mouth as Gus lays on the bed while staring at him. "You just seem like someone who would want to be...y'know." He motions his hand up.

Gus frowns, "Top?"

"Yeah—yep."

"Well, thanks." Gus places her hands behind her head in a confident manner. "But, you don't have to be on top to call the shots."

The smug smirk on the brunette's lips made Jonathan's stomach twist. Jonathan never thought that he would be in this position. Especially, with his friend. Is this even something he wanted? Both of the teens felt unsure, but they also felt like this was something they needed. I mean, the people they liked weren't interested in them. So, what else could they do?

Jonathan nervously rubs his palms against his jeans. He walks closer to the bed and makes his way over to the brunette. Gus props herself onto her elbows as Jonathan hovers over her. The brunette lifts her head and connects their lips once again. Jonathan's body starts to tremble as the kiss continues for several seconds. Gus' eyes fall shut and she feels her body start to get hot. Jonathan slides a hand to her waist and gently grips it.

The two fell into a rhythm that quickly became filled with a fiery passion. Gus slides a shaky hand into Jonathan's hair and lightly tugs at it. Jonathan groans into Gus' mouth and he pulls away from her lips. He moves his lips to the brunette's jawline and she exhales a soft breath before inhaling a quick one. Gus slides her hands between the inside of Jonathan's jacket and his shirt. She slowly starts to peel his jacket off his shoulders. Jonathan takes one arm out of his jacket sleeve. He pulls his lips away from Gus and fully takes his jacket off. Gus opens her eyes, meeting his piercing brown eyes.

Gus keeps her eyes on the boys for a moment, neither of them making a move. Gus inhales a soft breath, trying to regain her confidence once again. She cups the side of Jonathan's neck and pulls him into a gentle kiss, causing his heartbeat to increase. But not in the way he had hoped. Jonathan gingerly kisses Gus back and she slides a hand under his shirt. The boy quietly shivers and Gus smirks. She slowly raises his shirt and Jonathan quickly pulls away from her.

Gus immediately stops her movements and looks at the boy. Jonathan knows that this isn't meant to be anything serious, but it still was making him nervous. Especially, with Gus staring at him like that. Like he was someone she could rely on. How could Jonathan go through with this knowing that he didn't feel this way about her and vice versa with Gus?

"You okay?"

Jonathan blinks and refocuses on Gus' starry expression. But now her expression had a mixture of worry in it. Jonathan stands up from the bed and Gus follows suit.

"Gus...you don't like me." Jonathan states.

Gus raises her brows and lets out a soft chuckle. "What? Of course, I like you. Why else would I be here?"

"You don't like me like that." Jonathan emphasizes.

Gus slightly opens her mouth, guilt rising in her. "Jonathan, I'm--"

"And it's okay." Jonathan chuckles. "Because...I don't like you in that way either."

Gus glances at the ceiling, confused. "What the hell?--Okay, so what if we don't like each other like that?" she holds her arms out. "This is good--I mean, we make sense, right?"

Jonathan tilts his head and raises his brows, waiting for Gus to come to the realization by herself. The brunette inhales, "Okay." she slowly nods her head. "One day, we might resent each other to the point I bash your head in, but--"

"I'm sorry--what?" Jonathan cranes his neck forward. "Gus, I think we make perfect sense. To other people. They expect us to be together, but that doesn't mean we have to listen to them."

"Okay, as much as I love talking and shit. This is getting confusing." Gus presses her hands together. "What is the point--"

"You like Steve."

Gus feels like she got punches in the stomach. Her back straightens and her jaw clenches. She folds her arms and quirks a brow, annoyed. Gus didn't want to talk about Steve and Jonathan knew that. He knew that Steve was one of the reasons Gus was doing this. She wanted to run away from her issues.

"You want to be with him--"

"Jonathan. Steve does not like me." Gus cuts her friend off. Her throat tightens and her eyes start to burn. Just because the girl gave up on him, doesn't mean she still didn't care about him. "He literally invited me over to hang out at his house, just to end our friendship. Because he thought I was gonna make a move on him."

Gus shakes her head, still in disbelief about what Steve told her. "I would never do that to Nancy." she pulls her brows together and snaps her eyes over to the boy. "Why are we only talking about me? What about you?"

"What about--"

"Nancy Wheeler?" Gus arches a brow. "Wait, were you thinking about her while we were making out?"

Jonathan purses his lips, "Well--"

"Unbelievable..." Gus scoffs.

"I'm pretty sure you were thinking about a certain person while we were--"

"No, I wasn't." Gus places her hands on her hips. "I was actually thinking about how good you were at this."

Jonathan's jaw goes slack and he looks at the ground. "Oh..." he sheepishly looks back at the brunette. "...sorry."

Gus chews on the inside of her cheek and her face starts to get hot with shame. "I hope, you didn't feel pressured by me or anything. That's the last thing I want--"

"No, August." Jonathan quickly assures the girl. "I didn't feel pressured. I wanted to have sex with you. But, I some point I got too in my head about it and now I think that was a good thing."

Gus frowns, "I don't really understand it. Not now anyway..." she exhales. "Is this gonna be one of those things I thank you for later?"

"Maybe?" Jonathan bunches her shoulders.

Gus quietly chuckles and she pulls her brows together. "I'm just glad you said all this before we got to bumping and grinding."

"Oh, My God!" Jonathan laughs. "How many of these terms do you even know?"

Gus rolls her lips into her mouth and shrugs. "You'll never know, Jonathan Byers." she shakes her head. "Sucks, because I know a lot too."

☆

Gus stares at the ceiling with her back against the mattress, while Elton John plays from the record player. Nancy keeps her eyes on her notebook and sputters. "I think my head is going to explode."

"It's called writer's block," Gus speaks. "Everyone goes through it."

"Even you?" Nancy inquires.

Gus quietly chuckles, "Of course. Well, only when I'm trying to find some new way to apologize to someone in a letter."

Nancy lets out a soft laugh and looks back at the paper. She inhales a breath and closes her notebook. "I'll come back to it later."

"You need to just...open your mind, Nance." Gus waves her hands toward the ceiling.

"You mean take drugs?" Nancy tilts her head. "Yeah, I'll pass."

"You know, that's crazy, because your mom also said she would pass and yet--"

"Oh, gross, August!"

Gus quietly laughs and lays her hands against her stomach. Nancy lays next to the brunette, her eyes now on the ceiling.

The two girls lay in silence as 'I'm Still Standing' plays in the background. Gus quietly hums to the song and drums her thumbs against her stomach.

"So, anything exciting happening in your life?" Nancy asks.

Gus frowns, "Nah." she raises her brows. "I've just been working on Summer School work, picking Sofia up, carpooling for all the kids, trying to find a job, almost had sex with Jonathan a few days ago, been staying in shape just in case I ever get back on the track team, and--"

"Wait, wait, wait--hold it!" Nancy quickly sits up. "You and Jonathan almost had sex?"

Gus bites her lower lip and tilts her head side to side. "Well, we were just making out intensely with the intent to move on to sex."

Before Nancy could say anything else in an urgent tone, she remembers. She has a boyfriend. So Nancy inhales a soft breath and looks over at Gus. "I didn't think you guys...liked each other like that."

"We don't." Gus sates. "It was just a spur-of-the-moment kind of thing."

"Was it awkward?" Nancy asks.

"I mean--yeah. But I tried to make it as unawkward as I possibly could." Gus sits up. "I think Jonathan's awkwardness just overpowered me though."

Nancy softly chuckles and Gus smiles. "Did you know what to do?" she asks. "I mean, have you done it before?"

Gus shakes her head, "Nah. I'm a virgin. Hence the nickname 'Virgin Guster'."

Nancy raises her brows. "Well, you've also had the 'town slut' nickname. So, I was just wondering."

Gus slightly opens her mouth. "Ah, right. Forgot about that for a moment." she looks at her hands for a moment. "It was tiring," she admits. "Pretending to be confident, especially with something I've never...experienced or done before."

"At first, I was confused as to why Jonathan didn't want to have sex. But now, I'm glad we didn't do it." Gus nods her head. "Neither of us knew what we were doing. And my erotica expertise slipped from my brain."

Nancy frowns, "Erotica, huh?"

Gus looks at Nancy and lightly nudges her. "Shut up."

They both laugh. "No, but seriously, August. You'll know who the right person is for you. Just...be patient." Nancy presses her lips together. "The sign will be as clear as a telephone ring."

Nancy's landline rings. The Wheeler girl gets up and answers the phone. "Hello?"

Gus looks back at her hands.

"Oh, hey, Steve."

Gus looks at Nancy and raises her brows.

Nancy looks over at her friend. "Now, actually isn't a good time--"

"No, no. I think I should be heading back home anyway." Gus stands up from the bed. "Hopper's making spaghetti and he most definitely is going to need my help." August didn't know shit about cooking food. She was actually pretty terrible at it.

Nancy pulls the phone away from her ear. "Are you sure? We can still keep talking? Really, I don't mind."

Gus softly smiles. "I'm sure. We can catch up some other time, all right? It's not a big deal, Nance."

Nancy gives Gus a small smile. "Okay, I'll call you later, okay?"

Gus nods her head, "Yeah, sure. Tell Steve I said 'hi'." she turns on her heel and walks out of the room with her bag.

...

"I can't believe this--I cannot believe this!"

Fallon looks over at the short-haired girl with a smile.

"Someone's excited, huh?" Fallon raises her brows.

Robin slightly opens her mouth, "Yeah, well. I think this might be the first time that someone has talked about me to their parents and their parents sounded interested in meeting me." she shakes her head and chuckles.

Fallon nods her head. "You look good by the way." she looks over Robin's outfit. Robin was wearing a button-up shirt tucked into her khakis while a vest was over her button-up. The short-haired brunette laughs. "Me? Well, what about you?"

Fallon shakes her head, "You know, Gus does that same thing."

"What?"

"Whenever someone compliments her, she draws attention to someone or something else." Fallon pulls her brows together. "But not in the way you do it."

Robin raises her brows. "Well, how do I do it?" she fully turns to Fallon. Fallon fully turns to Robin.

"Gus takes the attention off of her, because she just loves to make other people feel good." Fallon shrugs a shoulder. "She doesn't need to be recognized."

"But you, you just don't like the attention."

"Gus is humble and you Robin Buckley..." Fallon points at Robin. "...are awkward."

Robin's eyes widen, "Oh, My--Awkward? Me? Me Akward? Who finally told you?"

Fallon quietly laughs.

"Was it my mom?" Robin shakes her head. "I told her, I was going to tell you when I was ready..." she places her hands on her hips and sighs.

"Right, and you're a theater kid." Fallon nods.

"That's how Gus and I met, y'know? In the theater!" Robin holds her arms out.

The door swings open, revealing Fallon's mom. Cynthia keeps her eyes on the short-haired brunette, who's arms were still out in a dramatic manner. Robin slowly turns her head and looks at Cynthia. She drops her hands to her side and turns to the woman. "Hello, Mrs. Price. I'm--"

"Robin Buckley!" Cynthia shakes Robin's hand. "My daughter has told me so so much about you!"

"Uh--not really." Fallon chuckles. "She's exaggerating."

"And now she's lying." Cynthia states. "Oh, come in! Don't let the good air out."

Robin looks at Fallon and the curly haired girl motions her hand toward the door. The Buckley girl enters the house with Fallon behind her.

"Fallon hasn't had any guest over for dinner in so long. So, I apologize for my excitement." Cynthia makes her way to the dining room, where her husband already was.

"Oh, don't apologize Mrs. Price." Robin says with a small smile.

"Greg, Fallon's friend is here."

Fallon and Robin glance at each other before looking away. The word friend was a term that Fallon and Robin used quite often to describe each other. And it was a term that both girls really hated to describe each other. Whatever was going on between them was deeper than 'just friends'. Both girls felt it engraved in their bones that this was different. But neither of them could make a move. Not with the doubt and pessimism swirling through their heads.

Greg walks over to Robin, "Miss Buckley. It's nice to finally meet you."

Robin shakes Greg's hand. "Hi, Mr. Price. It's nice to finally meet you too."

"Fallon, sweetheart, can I talk to you?" Cynthia touches her daughter's back.

Fallon turns to her mom, "Yeah, of course." she looks at Robin. "I'll be right back."

Robin nods her head and watches Fallon walk away.

"Miss Buckley, take a seat! Tell me about yourself." Greg motions to one of the chairs.

Fallon and Cynthia go to the living room. "So, do you like her?"

Cynthia looks at her daughter and blinks. "Oh, yeah--sure."

Fallon pulls her brows together. Cynthia lightly touches Fallon's hair. "Your hair. It's curly...did it rain today or something?"

Fallon opens her mouth. "No, not exactly." she shrugs. "I just...like it like this."

Cynthia slightly tilts her chin up. "Is that right?"

Fallon smiles sheepishly and nods her head. Normally, Cynthia would reprimand her daughter and tell her to go upstairs and straighten her hair. But things were different now in the Price household. Cynthia softly smiles, "As long as you like it, Lee-Anne. I'm okay with it."

Fallon smiles. They were all trying their best to communicate with each other and tell the truth. The mother and daughter especially with Greg heavily guiding them. The two would be lost without him.

"Thanks, mom." Fallon walks back into the dining room to hear laughing. The curly haired girl smiles softly. "What are you guys even laughing at in..." her smile drops when she sees the photo album Robin and Greg were looking through.

"You were such a cute baby, Fal!" Robin gushes.

"Dad!" Fallon runs over to the photo album. Robin quickly grabs the album and stands up from the chair. Robin holds the album up and Fallon reaches for the album. "Robin—"

"This—this is amazing," Robin exclaims. "Look at this Fallon!" She points at the other picture. "You're parents are Civil Rights Activists."

Fallon smiles softly. "Yeah, when we lived in D.C. that was where all the 'magic' happened." She tilts her head from side to side. "If magic meant tear gas, batting rams, and racists. Then yeah—magic."

"Mr. and Mrs. Price you guys are awesome!" Robin exclaims.

"That's how they met." Fallon states. "At a protest."

"But, that was a long time ago." Cynthia sighs. She walks over to the girls and looks at the picture. Fallon's smile becomes small and her throat tightens.

Robin looks at each member of the Price family. She notices their solemn expressions. Robin knew that Fallon's parents were having marital issues. But Fallon never got into detail about everything. Fallon just wanted to push that stuff into the back of her mind. She wanted to pretend that there were no problems. They were a happy family. That's what she tells herself every day.

Robin closes the album and holds it out to Fallon. The curly haired girl blinks, her eyes land on the closed photo album. She shifts her eyes to Robin's bright blue ones. Robin presses her lips into a small smile and shrugs a shoulder. Fallon lets out a soft chuckle and slightly shakes her head. Her stomach flutters and she grabs the album from Robin, her fingers brushing against hers. Robin's heart jumps into her throat.

"So!" Cynthia claps her hands together. "Everyone ready to eat?"

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author's note.

Gus telling Jonathan that she can make this situation 'unawkward' and yet she was the main reason it was AWKWARD LMFAO

No, but seriously. How are we feeling about the kissing scene? I need genuine feedback if it was written accurately or not. There may or may not be more scenes like this in the future...

Also Robin and Fallon are just so...AHHHHHHH

Words : 4454