Chapter Nine: The Gate

chapter forty-one , I wish it could always be like this

a/n : last chapter of season two 🫶

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One Month Later.

"Chief-o."

Hopper sits down in front of Owens. "How's the leg?"

"Better. Pretty sure my football career is over." Owens quips.

Hopper laughs at the man's comment. Owen's grabs half of his sandwich. "Hey, you want some of this? No way I'm gonna finish it."

Hopper shakes his head, "No. I'm, uh...on a diet. Gus would kill me if she found out I cheated."

"Well, you're a better man than me." Owens raises his brows. "Hey? Got two little something's for you." He pulls a bag from bedside him and slides it to Hopper.

Hopper opens the bag and pulls his brows together. "What the hell are these?"

Dr. Owen's shrugs his shoulders. "Just a little something I put together for your oldest." He waves a dismissive hand. "She sprained her wrist from using her abilities before, right?"

Hopper looks at Owens, waiting for him to continue.

"Well, these gauntlets should ease her pain when using her abilities." Owens says.

Hopper chuckles, "Thanks, doc. She'll love this."

"I hope so, spent hours on end working on those. And..." Dr. Owen's slides an envelope over to Hopper.

Hopper grabs the envelope and pulls the paper out of it. He looks at the birth certificate inside and his jaw goes slack.

"Congratulations, Pops."

Hopper looks at Owens, "I thought—"

"Sometimes I impress even myself." Owens says. "Still, I'd let things cool off for a while, if I were you."

"How long is a while?" Hopper inquires.

"Want to be safe? I'd give it a year." Owens states.

Hopper cranes his neck forward, "A year?" He lets out a harsh sigh. He instinctively grabs half of the sandwich and takes a bite out of it. Hopper raises his brows as he looks at the sandwich, he realizes what he's doing and he groans. "Shit, Gus is going to kill me."

"What about one night out?" Hopper asks.

"One night?"

Hopper nods, "Yeah. How risky would that be?"

"What's so important about one night?"

Hopper chuckles, knowing what he's going to be greeted with when he gets home.

...

"You've never danced before?"

Sofía stops petting the bunny in her lap and looks at the girl. She presses her lips together. "The only dancing I've been doing lately is going to Gus' at-home practices."

Eleven thinks back to all the dance training Gus has taught her and Sofía. "She's bossy."

Sofía chuckles and nods her head, "That she is."

Eleven looks back at her blue dress and touches it. Sofía notices Eleven having second thoughts and the Alvarez girl speaks. "It's a pretty dress, El."

Eleven inhales a breath, "Do you think...other people will think it looks pretty?"

Sofía smiles softly, "Mike is going to love it."

Eleven turns to her new friend and they both smile. After closing the gate, Sofía and Eleven had become closer. Sofía would come over from time to time and hang out with the Hopper family. They all enjoyed having the Alvarez girl over.

"And Dustin will love your dress."

Sofía raises her brows and her jaw goes slack. "Oh, no. He doesn't...like me like that."

Eleven tilts her head and blinks. "Why not? You're amazing."

A smile forms on Sofía's face. "Thanks, El."

"Ellie, look!"

Eleven and Sofía the teenager.Gus was standing in the doorway of their shared room. Her hair was slightly past her shoulders now. She hasn't gotten to cutting it yet. She's been keeping up with school and who knew that Gus would actually enjoy it this time around? Gus has always been an intelligent girl, but she never put her all into school, because she didn't see the point in it. Now, there was a point and she she saw it clearly. Gus wanted to make a life for herself and the first thing she had to do was graduate high school.

Gus holds up two pairs of matching shoes with a smile. "I got us shoes!"

Sofía raises her brows. Eleven shifts her eyes from one pair of dark green Chuck Taylors to the next pair. A small smile spreads across Eleven's lips. "You got them?" She quickly walks over to Gus and grabs the smaller pair.

Gus smiles proudly and rocks back and forth on her heels. "Mmhmm. Are you proud?"

Hedwig hops off of Sofía's lap and eats the strawberry that was on the bed.

Eleven wraps her arms around Gus' waist. "Thank you, August." She looks up at her sister. "We will match everyday!"

"Yeah, we will!" Gus ruffles Eleven's hair. Sofía laughs softly at the sister's excitement. Gus shifts her eyes over to her bed. "Don't they look good, Hedwig?"

The Bunny continues to eat his strawberry. Gus purses her lips, "Oh, don't get all mad." She digs in her jacket pocket and pulls out a dark green sweater. "I got you a little something too." She hands it to Eleven, who gasps. Eleven grabs the sweater and runs over to Hedwig. She slips the sweater into the bunny's body.

Eleven picks up Hedwig and reveals him to Gus. The teenager presses her hands together and placed them against the side of her face. "Perfect!"

Eleven smiles and turns him to Sofía who gives the bunny a thumbs up. "Looking good, Hedwig."

Eleven chuckles and pets Hedwig. Beeping is heard in the living room. Eleven and Gus look at eachother. Gus runs into the living room. Eleven follows after Gus with Hedwig in her arms. Gus and Eleven walk over to the radio and look at the Morse code chart. Sofía follows after the two sisters.

Gus' smile grows as she reads the message. "Well, you heard him, El." She looks at her nervous but excited sister. "It's time to get you dressed for a ball."

Gus then turns to Sofía, "Call Ms. Gretchen and tell her you're getting ready over here."

Sofía raises her brows, "But, I don't have my dress with me—"

"I'll send a message to Hopper and tell him to get it." Gus waves a hand. Sofía twiddles her thumbs. "I don't want to intrude on your...family time—"

"Hey, none of that, all right?" Gus crouches in front of Sofía and softly smiles. "And you want to know why? Because you're our family."

Sofía slightly opens her mouth and looks at Eleven. Eleven nods her head, "You should stay Sofía, we want you to."

A lump forms in Sofía's throat. All her life she felt like she was unwanted. She has been at that orphanage for so long, she doesn't even remember her own mother and father. But now, there were people that actually brought her into their own small family. It made Sofía feel whole.

After hours of ordering Hopper around and helping Eleven and Sofía with their makeup and accessories, Gus finally finished. Gus let's out a content sigh as she finishes placing the blush on Eleven. "Done." She closes the compact mirror. Gus holds her hands up, "You two come look at yourselves in the mirror. Look at my work."

The two girls walk over to the mirror and look at themselves. Sofía was wearing a pink floral dress with her hair pinned back. She smiles softly. Gus stands behind the girls and tilts her head. "Pretty."

Eleven turns around and hugs Gus. "Thank you, Gus." She then grabs Sofía's arm and pulls her into the hug. Sofía grunts softly but chuckles before hugging them back.

Eleven looks at the dark red knitted sweater Gus was wearing. Gus paired the sweater with black ripped jeans and white combat boots. Gus' hair was curled and hanging down, she had her signature black eyeshadow compacted on her lower and upper eyelids. But this time Gus was wearing lipgloss instead of chapstick.

"You look pretty as well, August."

Gus smiles softly, "Thanks, Ellie."

"Steve will like it." Eleven smiles.

"You better tell him to keep his hands to himself."

The three girls turn to Hopper, who was leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded.

"If not. I'll shoot him." Hopper grumbles.

Gus rolls her eyes and smirks, "Yeah, I'll be sure to relay that message to him."

A knock is heard at the door and Gus' heart instantly drops into her stomach. Her face starts to get hot and she nervously chuckles. Hopper wrinkles his nose at Gus' reaction. "Are you...blushing?"

"What? No!" Gus rubs her cheeks. "Why does it look like it?" She nervously asks.

Hopper and Eleven look at each other. While Sofía snickers.

Steve and Gus' first date was three weeks ago. They went to an arcade. Believe it or not, Steve had never been to one before. Gus felt personally offended by it. Steve always knew Gus was competitive, but she was a scary kind of competitive when it came to arcade games. She lost the first round of Pac-Man and almost broke the machine. There was a lot of playful fighting, teasing, and flirting. Most of the flirting came from Keith. It came to a point where Steve and Gus had to leave the arcade early because Gus almost punched the daylights out of him.

The two then got slushies and went back to Steve's house to watch Star Wars. Gus had finally finally gotten the Harrington boy hooked on the franchise. Her life was complete! Gus and Steve have had at least 4 dates and neither of them had popped the question. They both wanted to. But they didn't know when the right time would be.

Gus walks out of the room and makes her way over to the front door while rubbing her hands together. She stands at the door for a second to catch her breath, then she unlatched all the locks on the door and pulls it open. Gus' eyes meet Steve's and she smiles. "Steve, hey."

Steve's heart skips a beat and he smiles. "Hey, August. You look...majestic."

Gus knits her brows together and snorts. "Beautiful is cool too, y'know?"

Steve inhales a breath, "I don't know if you know this, but you're kind of indescribable." He takes a step closer to her.

Gus raises her brows, "Oh wow. You know what? I like that. You should use that one more often." She steps closer to him.

Steve leans down to kiss her, but out of the corner of his eye, he sees Hopper shooting daggers at him. The Harrington boy freezes and kisses her cheek instead. Gus chuckles, "He's standing right there, isn't he?"

Steve presses his lips together, "Yep."

Gus turns to Hopper and presses her lips into a tight smile. Hopper points at Steve, "Have her home by 10:30."

Steve nods his head, "Yes, sir."

Eleven and Sofía walk out of the room and smile at the couple. "Hi, Steve." They say in a teasing tone.

Gus' face heats up and Steve blinks, confused. Steve holds a hand up and waves back. "Uh, hi...?"

"Scram, you two." Gus seethes.

Sofía and Eleven go back into the room and laugh. Gus looks at Hopper, "You know where the ball is, right?"

Hopper nods his head, "Yes, and I will get them there. I promise."

Gus exhales through her nose. "Okay, well..." she sends him a two-finger salute. "I'll see you later and please come back home after you drop El and Sofía off. Don't stand outside the school like some lurker."

Hopper frowns and shakes his head. "Of course, not."

Gus squints her eyes, unconvinced. She then rolls them. She walks out of the house with Steve beside her. "So, where are we going tonight?" Gus looks up at him.

Steve smirks, "Well, first, we have to pick someone up and take them to the dance."

Gus slightly tilts her chin up, "Dustin?"

Steve nods, "Dustin."

"He's taken a liking to you, you know?" Gus intertwines her fingers with Steve. "He thinks you're the coolest person ever!" She then tilts her head. "If you're not counting me."

"Right. Because you're cooler than me?" Steve snickers.

Gus arches a brow and meets Steve's eyes. "Do you really want to debate that?"

Steve thinks for a moment. He looks away from Gus, "Never mind."

Gus smiles triumphantly. They get to Steve's car and the boy opens the passenger door for her. Gus thanks Steve and goes to get into the car, but Steve stops her by lightly grabbing her wrist. "Before you get into the car...I want to give you something."

Gus raises her brows, "Food?"

"No. Something you forgot." Steve rolls his eyes playfully.

Gus smirks and flits her eye to Steve's lips, understanding where he was getting at. "Oh really? And what exactly did I forget?"

Steve closes the car door and Gus leans against it. She tilts her head and quirks a brow. Steve gently grips Gus' waist, he leans down with his nose brushing against hers. Gus' breathing hitches before their lips connect. She cups Steve's neck and stands on her toes. Steve chuckles against her lips and threads a finger through one of her belt loops. "You're so short."

Gus knits her brows together and pulls her lips away from Steve's. "Yeah? And you're so tall." She pokes her pointer against his chest. Gus gives Steve a chaste kiss then she lightly pats his face. "Now, get in the car, Harrington. We've got places to be."

Steve raises his brows and rounds the car. "Yes, ma'am."

Gus smirks and gets in the car with Steve. She looks over at him. "You know, you should be obedient more often. Makes me feel all tingly inside."

Steve's eyes widen and his face gets hot. Gus snorts, "Relax, Steve. It was a joke." She looks forward. Steve slightly opens his mouth. "Oh. Right...of course it was."

Gus smirks once again, "Partial joke."

Steve snaps back over to her, "P-Partial? What does that mean? So—"

"I think that means you should drive, Harrington." Gus raises her brows. Steve squints his eyes at Gus and she gives him a cheeky smile.

Steve can't help but chuckle, "You are so lucky you're cute."

Gus mushes the side of Steve's face which causes the boy to laugh.

☆

"This is ridiculous..."

Fallon rolls her eyes, "Oh, come on. It's community service hours." She walks beside Robin while they make their way over to the school. "Besides, you look good."

Robin adjusts her black tie and looks at the curly-haired girl. "Really?"

Fallon giggles and nods her head. "Really Really."

Robin looks at Fallon's outfit. The Price girl was wearing a grey-blue satin dress. The straps were spaghetti thin and there was a slit on the right side of her dress, revealing her thigh. She paired the dress with silver opened-toed pumps. Fallon's hair was wand curled and bouncing against her shoulders.

Robin's face heats up, "And you look..." she swallows as they get to the door. "...uh, you...I mean, you always look..."

Fallon stops at the door and opens it for the short-haired girl. She and Robin were always close to height, but now Fallon was wearing heels. So, she was slightly taller than Robin. She tilts her head at the girl and Robin's nerves rise. Fallon looks down at Robin's shaking hands and her eyes soften. She looks around the area, not spotting anyone near. Fallon takes a step toward Robin and slips her hand into hers. Robin's body relaxes and she stops stammering. Her icy blue eyes meet Fallon's brown ones.

Robin lets out a soft breath and a calm washes over her. "You look amazing, Fal."

Fallon raises her brows and a timid smile forms on her lips. "You sure do know how to woo a girl." She lightly nudges Robin. Fallon gently tugs Robin into the middle school. They reluctantly take their hands away from each other and turn their tickets to the front table. The two girls walk over into the gymnasium.

"So, what exactly do chaperones do during a middle school dance?" Robin inquires her hands in her pockets. Fallon bites the inside of her cheek and watches as the kids dance. "Make sure the kids don't sneak off to make out, get drunk, or high."

Robin raises her brows and she turns to Fallon. The curly-haired girl already knew Robin was going to be looking at her with an 'are you kidding me' look. There was no way these kids were going to be doing any of those things. Fallon beams a smile at Robin. "It's easy service hours. Good for college applications."

Robin smiles at the girl, "Of course it is."

Fallon's eyes travel to the punch bowl and she scrunches her brows. "I'm gonna go check if the punch is spiked."

"It's not."

"Never hurts to check." Fallon shrugs, and she starts to walk over to the bowl.

"If it's not spiked can you bring me one?" Robin calls out.

Fallon turns to Robin while still walking and gives her a thumbs up. The curly-hairs girl walks back over to the bowl and she smiles, seeing Nancy. "Well, well, well..."

Nancy smiles softly, "Wow, Fallon! You look beautiful!"

Fallon smiles, "Me? What about you?" She motions her hands to Nancy's dress. "You look so good!"

"And you know there's someone else here who thinks you look good..." Fallon glances at Jonathan and Nancy looks over at him too. Nancy's face gets hot and Fallon chuckles.

"So, how's it been going with you guys?" Fallon asks.

Nancy looks away from Fallon and smiles giddily. Fallon raises her brows at Nancy's sheepishness. "It's been good. Like really good."

Nancy looks over at the Buckley girl. "So, you came here with Robin?"

"Uh, yeah. I managed to convince her to chaperone with me." Fallon inhales a sharp breath. "Don't know how, but I did."

"I know how...you guys are like two peas in a pod," Nancy says with a chuckle.

A smile twitches onto Fallon's lips. She looks over at Robin. The girl was standing near the bleachers with her hands in her pockets. She was rocking back and forth on her heels, while anxiously looking around. Fallon's face gets hot and her stomach begins to flutter. "Yeah, I guess we are..."

The car slows to a stop and Steve puts it in the park. Gus allowed Dustin to sit in the passenger seat next to Steve. The brunette was sitting in the backseat with a Twizzler between her lips.

"All right, buddy, here we are." Steve looks at Dustin. "So, remember, once you get in there..."

"Pretend like I don't care."

Gus shifts her eyes over to Steve with her arms crossed. Steve feels Gus' eyes on him and he swallows nervously. "Uh, no. Just...ask her to dance."

Dustin slightly opens his mouth and nods his head. "Oh...okay."

"And...tell her how you feel." Gus voices with a shrug. "Whether it's Max or...you know, whoever."

Dustin's eyes widen. He snaps his eyes over to Steve. "You told?!"

Steve holds his hands up, "N-No, I didn't—"

"You're lying!"

"He didn't tell me."

Dustin and Steve look at the girl. Gus smirks, "Look, D. It's kind of obvious you fell for Sofía—"

"I didn't...fall for her!"

Steve clicks his tongue. "Nah, man, you definitely fell for her."

Dustin's face becomes red hot. He pulls the mirror down and fixes his hair. Dustin's worry grows. He wanted things to be perfect when he asked Sofía to dance. But his nerves were getting the better of him.

Steve and Gus noticed that.

"Hey, come on..." Steve closes the mirror. "...you look great, okay? You look...you look great."

"Okay? Now you're gonna go in there..."

"Yeah." Dustin starts to hype himself up.

A smile grows on Gus' lips.

"You look like a million bucks."

"Yeah."

"And you're gonna slay 'em dead," Steve says.

"Like a lion." Dustin purrs.

Gus winces. She and Steve look at each other. "Yeah..."

"Don't do that," Gus says.

"Definitely don't do that," Steve adds.

Steve holds his hand out to Dustin and the boy shakes it. "Good luck."

"Yeah. I'm sure you'll be great." Gus gives him a soft punch on the arm.

Dustin gets out of the car and walks to the school. Gus crawls into the passenger seat and she sits down with a huff. Gus looks over at Steve and his eyes were already on hers. The girl's face heats up and she chuckles softly.

"You should...start to car and drive, Harrington." Gus points forward.

Steve smirks, starts the car, and drives down the street.

☆

"You know, I'm usually a judge-free person but..."

Fallon looks over at Robin who was wincing. Robin motions her head over to a kid. "That kid's outfit is insane!" She giggles.

Fallon rolls her eyes, "Oh, come on, that's mean." She lightly elbows the girl. "You should judge anyone because of their clothing, especially a child..." she trails off as soon as she sees the kid with a bright red blazer paired with yellow polka-dotted pants. Fallon slightly opens her mouth. "Oh No..."

Robin's laughter increases. Fallon lets out a small laugh but she covers her mouth. "Oh wow...polka dots that's a—that is something." Her laughter grows. Robin looks to her side and watches as Fallon laughs. The short-haired brunette's heartbeat begins to increase and her face gets hot.

"Hey, Fal?"

Fallon's laughter dies down and she meets Robin's blue eyes. "Yeah?"

Robin slightly opens her mouth, and she then closes her mouth. She rubs her palms against her slacks. "Do you...I mean—would you mind if we. Can you..." she looks off to the side and clears her throat. Robin inhales a breath and looks at Fallon again. A giddy smile was on Fallon's lips.

"Do you want to dance...with me?"

Fallon bites her lower lip and raises her brows. She looks down at Robin's hand that was held out towards her. Fallon's heart rams against her rib cage and she interlocks her fingers with Robin.

"I have been waiting all night for you to ask me." Fallon lets out a timid chuckle.

Robin smiles and she laughs softly. "Oh, wow. Okay—this is really happening—you said yes." She vigorously nods her head.

Fallon laughs at Robin's mix of excitement and nervousness. "Okay, okay. Come on." She stands up from the bleachers and tugs Robin onto her feet.

Robin softly grunts, "Yeah, right behind you."

Both the girls stand in front of each other. Robin timidly places her hands on Fallon's waist. Fallon's back straightens and a chill shoots down her spine. A smile twitches onto her lips and she rolls her lips into her mouth. Fallon lifts her hands up and wraps her arms around Robin's neck. Robin inhales a soft breath and shifts. "Uh, so...do you know how to dance?"

Fallon nods her head, "Yeah, my parents forced me to take ballroom dance lessons." She chuckles with a shake of her head. She slowly starts to move her and Robin to the rhythm of the music "I hated them."

"But in this case...I'm glad I took them." Fallon tilts her head.

Robin snorts, "Is there anything you can't do?"

Fallon softly blows air out of her mouth. "Uh, well, I can't sing."

"What?"

"Seriously." Fallon bunches her shoulders. "I mean, I took all the lessons. It's just those high notes and my voice would get wavering and..." she chuckles. "...it's pretty awful."

Robin laughs, "I am gonna have to hear you sing one day."

"No, no, no..." Fallon shakes her head. "I wouldn't want to burden you with such a torturous talent."

"Would it really be called a talent if you're bad at it?" Robin asks.

Fallon pulls her brows together and thinks. "Huh...that is a question, isn't it?"

Robin slightly shakes her head. "Anyway, it wouldn't burden me. You're singing."

Fallon's face heats up and she nervously laughs.

"I mean, would it make my ears bleed? Probably but—"

"Shut up!" Fallon laughs.

Robin laughs along with her. Both of their laughter settle down and Fallon sighs. "Thank you for coming with me today. I appreciate it."

Robin clears her throat, "I needed more community hours anyway so..." she shrugs.

Fallon's eyes flit to Robin's lips then back to her eyes. She parts her lips, "Well, I'm glad I could give that to you."

Robin softly smiles. Fallon didn't want to push her luck. But the way Robin was looking at her and how she was gently holding her waist...

Fallon takes one small step closer to Robin. The Buckley girl's back straightens and she inhales a breath. "Uh, you smell like...strawberries."

Fallon raises her brows, "Thank you. You smell like leather."

Robin's face becomes a deep red, embarrassed. Fallon's eyes widen, "No, that's a good thing! I like the leather smell."

"Really?" Robin asks, she holds her breath.

Fallon softly smiles and nods. "Really."

Robin lets out a small breath with a chuckle.

Neither Sofía nor Eleven didn't show up.

And no one else wanted to dance with Dustin. They all laughed in his face or physically turned their nose up at him when he was walking towards them.

Was he really so awful?

Dustin was sitting on the bleachers with tears in his eyes. All he wanted was to dance with Sofía. But maybe he developed feelings for her too late. Maybe Sofía didn't even feel the same way he did.

Sofía and Eleven enter the gymnasium side by side in their dresses. The Alvarez girl looks around and she sees Will dancing with a girl. She raises her brows and then quickly furrows them together. Sofía shifts her eyes to Max and Lucas, a smile grows on her lips. She looks over at Eleven, "Mike's over there, you know?"

Eleven looks over at Sofía. She then follows Sofia's view and her eyes fall on Mike's. Sofía chuckles softly and she continues looking around the gymnasium, hoping to find the boy she was searching for.

Sofia's eyes suddenly stop on the crying boy sitting on the bleachers. Her brows raise and her eyes soften. Sofía feels a lump form in her throat from seeing Dustin cry. She couldn't go over to Dustin on the verge of tears. Sofía was going to be the strong one this time. She was going to lift his spirits. The girl clears her throat and straightens her dress. Sofia's short heels click against the wood planks as she makes her way over to the boy. She stops in front of the boy and clears her throat dramatically.

"Dustin Henderson!"

Dustin lifts his head up and looks at Sofía. He quickly wipes his eyes with his heartbeat accelerating in speed.

Sofía holds her hand out to the boy. "Would you care to dance with me?"

Dustin pulls his brows together, "Wait--really?"

Sofia opens her mouth, "Uh, hell yeah! Let's show these losers how it's done!"

Dustin snorts softly and giggles. He grabs her hand and Sofia tugs him toward the dance floor and they both laugh. Sofia interlocks her fingers around Dustin's neck and he places his hands on her waist.

Sofía raises her brows from how quickly Dustin picked up the dancing.

"So, you dance often?" Sofia asks.

Dustin slightly opens her mouth. "Uh, nope. Gus and Steve taught me."

Sofia raises her brows, "Mrs. Wallace taught me!" she exclaims. "Then I realized she was doing some old old-school dancing so, I asked Gus for help."

Dustin and Sofía laugh.

"Okay, so, did Gus do that thing when she was dancing...and she tried to spin--"

"The spin?!" Sofia's eyes widen. "And then she tripped!"

"Yes! Oh, My God! I can't believe it happened twice!" Dustin snorts. "And Steve?"

"Wait, what happened with Steve?" Sofía wheezes.

"He tried to catch her, but then he tripped too! And they both fell to the ground!"

Sofía throws her head back and laughs even harder.

"Then we spent the rest of the time trying to fix the crack in the floor."

Sofía shakes her head, "That's insane, but kinda funny."

"Kinda? You were laughing pretty hard there."

Sofía bites the inside of her cheek. "Yeah, I laugh at pretty much anything. Even if people don't find the joke funny."

"Oh, I know you laugh at anything." Dustin says. "Anytime Gus makes some corny pun, you laugh!"

"Gus is a genius when it comes to comedy, okay?" Sofía giggles.

Dustin laughs softly and he meets Sofía's dark brown eyes once again. His heart begins to accelerate. "Uh, I didn't say it yet, but...you look really pretty, Sof."

Sofía raises her brows, "Really?"

Dustin's face becomes a deep red and Sofía tilts her head with a soft smile. "Well, you look pretty too, Dustin." She then raises her brows. "Um—I mean...you look—"

"No, no, you're right. I do look pretty." Dustin says with a smile which causes Sofía to laugh.

"And your hair?" Sofía knits her brows together.

Dustin's smile drops and he waits for her to make fun of him just like everyone else.

"I dig it."

Dustin's eyes widen and he smiles. "Really?!"

"Hell yeah! I use Farrah Fawcett spray all the time!"

Dustin's smile drops, "How did you know that?"

Sofía shrugs a shoulder, "I know Farrah Fawcett when I see it." She smirks. "You look really nice, Dustin."

"Thanks, Sof."

Dustin looks to the side and his eyes land on Lucas and Max dancing. All her life Sofía was silent. She let people make decisions for her and she late people talk for her. Sofía never made her own decisions. She was too afraid of the judgment she would gain from others. But in this moment and after everything she has been through, Sofía didn't want to let anything go unsaid. Especially since she never knew what other dangers were around the corner.

Sofía needed to take a leap of faith.

"Dustin?"

The boy focuses back on Sofía. "Yeah?"

Sofía slightly opens her mouth and her face starts to get hot. "I just wanted you to know that...I l-like you." She then glances away from him.

Dustin's jaw goes slack.

"I've liked you for a while now. I think you're really smart and funny. Your laugh is super cute and you are so kind. Now, I know you like Max. I just wanted to tell you, because I'm trying to be b-brave." Sofía explains. "So, yeah. I like you...a lot."

Sofía focuses back on Dustin and his face was pure shock. "I hope this doesn't make things awkward..."

"You like me?"

Sofía presses her lips into a firm line and she nods her head. "Mhm."

Dustin blinks and he stays silent. He couldn't believe that someone as great as Sofía could like him. "You're the awesomest person I've ever met, Sofía Alvarez."

"And I've met a lot of awesome people."

Sofia's eyes widen. Holy shit!

"And I don't like Max," Dustin says. "I like you."

The girl's mouth opens. "Oh..." she then closes her mouth and purses her lips. "I wasn't expecting that."

"I mean, Max is amazing—"

"But she's not you." Dustin cuts Sofía off, his eyes are starry. Sofía closes her mouth and her eyes widen.

"You said that you have liked me a while now." Dustin bites the inside of his cheek. "The night with the Demo-dogs. That's when I started liking you. And I'm sorry that it took me so long to see you."

Sofía swallows the lump in her throat. "You see me now." She shrugs. "That's all I care about, Dustin."

Dustin giggles with a small snort and Sofía's heart jumps into her throat. Dustin lightly taps his finger against Sofía. "Sof? Can I...May I—"

"Yes. You can." Sofía says, her cheeks flushed.

Dustin's shoulders slump with relief. He adjusts his hands, not knowing how to even engage in this. "Sorry, I've only seen Han Solo and Leia kiss."

Sofía bites the inside of her cheek. "It's okay. We can figure it out together." she bunches her shoulders. "So, maybe some other time when we aren't in front of everyone."

Dustin exhales softly and nods his head. "Yeah, that's...I'm okay with that."

Sofía and Dustin keep their eyes on each other. Dustin then starts laughing which triggers Sofía to laugh as well.

☆

Anytime Gus and Steve wanted to get away, even before they started going out on dates; they would park on top of a hill overseeing the town. It was a lot better than Skull Rock. That's for sure. Gus had a strawberry milkshake in her hand while Steve had an Oreo milkshake in his. There were white lights sprinkled across the town. It was so easy to see them from how bright they were.

"Oh, I got you something." Steve looks over at her.

Gus turns to Steve while drinking her milkshake. She raises her brows and softly hums. Gus pulls the straw away from her lips. "What? Why?"

Steve raises his brows and chuckles. "You asked why? Not, what is it?"

"Right. Sorry." Gus' back straightens and she folds her hands. "What'd you get for me?" She then holds her hands out.

Steve laughs and digs in his jacket pocket. He pulls the mixtape from his pocket and holds it out to her. Gus slightly parts her lips and raises her brows. "A mixtape. Again."

Steve's expression drops. She hates it. He then opens his mouth, "I-I mean, I just thought that—"

"I love it." Gus turns to him with a smile. She then pulls her brows together, seeing the nervousness across Steve's face. She tilts her head. "What, you thought I would hate it?"

"Uh, no..."

Gus rolls her eyes with a smirk on her lips. "Steve."

He slumps his shoulders, "Okay, for a second, I thought you hated it. I mean...the way you said "again" sounded like you hated it."

Gus purses her lips, "Well, I don't hate it. Because I haven't even listened to it yet."

Steve opens his mouth and nods his head.

"Also, you giving me mixtapes is kind of our thing." Gus' face gets hot. "It's nice."

Steve softly laughs. Gus puts the mixtape into the radio and plays it. She leans back in her seat and goes back to drinking her milkshake. A smile forms on her lips when 'Never ending Story' starts to play. Her eyes shift to Steve and he looks at her.

"How do you know what songs I like?" Gus tilts her head.

Steve purses his lips and shrugs, "I just...know you." He softly smiles. "Is that okay?"

Gus knits her brows together and chuckles. "Steve, that's more than okay."

Steve chuckles nervously and Gus watches as he relaxes. She tucks some of his hair behind his ear. "You are so cute."

"Yeah? And you're not too bad looking either." Steve lightly touches her face.

Gus squints her eyes at Steve and lays her head against his shoulder. Steve inhales a deep breath and drops an arm over her shoulder. He traces his thumb across her arm. Gus focuses on the overview of the town and a smile ghosts her lips. "I've never noticed how beautiful Hawkins is..."

"Well, makes sense since this town has been absolutely terrible to you." Steve frowns.

Gus lets out a soft chuckle. "Yeah...I kind of hate this town."

Steve kisses the top of her head. "You have every right to." He keeps his eyes on the lights across the town.

"I mean, Hawkins is pretty beautiful, sure. But it's got nothing on you." Steve says.

Gus raises her brows. She lifts her head up and turns to Steve, her face inches from his. Neither of them moved toward one another, but both of them had the same thought in mind.

"Would you like to be my boyfriend?"

"Do you wanna be my girlfriend?"

Both teens asked at the same time. Gus presses her lips into a smile and Steve raises his brows.

"Yes."

They both speak.

Gus chuckles softly and bites her lower lip. She places her cup into the cup holder on her side. She then grabs Steve's cup and puts it in the cup holder. Steve pulls his brows together when Gus turns back to her. She arches a brow and hastily places her lips onto Steve's. Steve inhales a soft breath and his heart begins to quicken. He cups her neck and deepens the kiss. Gus' stomach twists, and she crosses over the seat and sits on his lap.

The kiss quickly becomes intense and Steve slides his hands between her jacket and shirt. Gus slightly pulls her lips from Steve's to catch her breath. She takes her jacket off and Steve places his hands on her thighs. Steve kisses her with more force this time.

Gus slips a hand into his hair and lightly tugs at it. Steve's hands slide under her shirt which causes her to shiver. He moves his lips to her jawline then her neck. Gus tilts her head to the side and a small breath slips from her lips. Her head starts to feel dizzy and a ticklish sensation forms in her stomach. Gus cups the side of Steve's neck and pulls his lips away from her neck.

"You aren't giving me a hickey."

Steve sputters his lips and scoffs. "I am a professional, Gus. I would never!"

Gus deadpans and he sheepishly smiles at her. She grabs her milkshake and drinks it. Steve clears her throat and lightly taps his fingers against her thigh.

"Hey, Gus?"

She softly hums. Steve swallows, "You're still sitting on my...I mean on me."

Gus raises her brows and tilts her head, which causes Steve's body to get hot. He watches as Gus smirks mischievously which causes him to squint his eyes. "You know what you're doing."

Gus giggles, she pulls herself off his lap and sits in the passenger seat. Steve exhales softly from the pressure relieving.

"I could go for another milkshake," Steve says, his voice cracking. Gus snorts, her eyes shift to his milkshake and she raises her brows. "You didn't even drink yours."

"Well, it's melted now," Steve says.

"It's melted now." Gus mocks him in a deep voice. She scoffs and bunches her shoulders. "So? Gimme it."

Gus grabs the Oreo shake and drinks it. "More for me."

Steve rolls his eyes, "Whatever. I'm getting myself another milkshake."

Gus softly hums, "I could go for burgers too."

"With fries?" Steve adds.

Gus points at him, "Have you ever dipped your fries in a shake before?"

Steve's eyes widen, "No. you can do that?"

Gus pouts her lip, and she then squishes Steve's face. "Oh, Harrington...I have so many things to show you."

Steve smiles, "Why don't we start now?" He starts the car.

Gus takes her hand from his face and returns a smile to him. "After dinner, right?"

Steve scoffs, "Yes, after dinner. Who do you think I am?"

Gus laughs softly and Steve's heart flutters. She kisses Steve's cheek and he pulls the car away from the hill and starts down the road. Steve turns the knob on the radio up, increasing its volume. Gus laughs softly and she drinks her milkshake. Her eyes fall shut and she leans her head against the window. She felt a warmth wash over her and for the first time in a while, Gus felt at peace. She wished it could always be like this.

Sadly, it wouldn't.

━━━━━━━━━━

author's note.

Steve and Gus are crazy for each other...you'll see that soon enough hehehehe 🤭

That's the end of season two! I hope you all enjoyed this act! Thank you for the support! 🫶🫶

Seasons 3&4 are going to be EMOTIONAL y'all. Prepare yourself 👀

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