Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The whole situation felt kind of surreal. Steve knew that most of the town didn't buy the bullshit story of "earthquakes", but nobody really wanted to acknowledge that the town which they thought was safe was harboring supernatural, deadly, creatures. He wanted to help, and that's what led him to this. He was on his way to the hospital as he had gotten a lot of practice of dressing wounds from this sort of thing, and knew what not to do. It was a lot of trial and error. He walked up to the front desk which was bustling around, trying to fit everyone they can into rooms.

"Hey, I'm sorry for bothering, but is there anything I can do to help? I have some medical practice from lifeguarding, classes, and dealing with this stuff before and I want to do anything I can to lighten your guys' load, even if it's just patching up some scraped knees! I can-" He was cut off by the lady.

"That would be amazing honey, but you do need to have a supervisor because of your limited experience. If you would wait over there, I will call someone down and you can work with them as an assistant or something." She quickly answered before pointing to one of the only open spaces in the packed waiting room. She nodded and went back to picking up calls and writing more paperwork. Steve sighed and made his way to the wall. He was overwhelmed with all the noise surrounding him of parents crying over a lost family member, gasping with relief, rambling nervously to the people around them about what may happen, children crying.

It felt like he was waiting forever before an older lady with scrubs called for him, to which he followed. She was very kind and seemed very experienced as she showed him where everything was before giving directions on what to do, who to help first, and how to handle certain people or injuries. He was grateful that she was clear in her instructions and worked quickly and efficiently. He was moved into a comfortable rhythm and before he knew it, 4 hours had past. The traffic was slowing down quite a bit and there were a lot less serious injuries. The most serious thing he had to do was assist the kind doctor, who's name he finally remembered as Dr. Margie, as she relocated a shoulder and gave 4 stitches to somebody who took a very nasty fall, but now he was just applying antibiotics and gauze to scratches and giving pain medication, with the permission of Dr. Margie, of course.

He enjoyed helping people and this helped fill him time while the others helped with things around town like fixing roads, helping people that got stuck while everyone was panicking, donation centers, and shelters for those who's homes were broken beyond repair. He was very proud of the people he has gotten to know over the years. The feeling of pride never left his body as he finished up giving a very young man some superman Band-Aids and directions on how to make sure that the knees he skinned while running wouldn't get infected.

"Now, if you feel like it's hurting more than usual, just pour some hydrogen dioxide on it. It will sting a lot, but it's actually a magical liquid that defeats all the evil germs that get into peoples injuries! Your parents can definitely get some at a nearby potion-seller! Sometimes people call them pharmacists but one told me that that's just to hide from the people who don't believe in magic. I'm trusting you with this information, can you keep it a secret?" Steve stage-whispered the last part and smiled as the boy giggled and nodded his head. "Great! your good to go, bud! try not to get it dirty alright?" He jumped off of the stand and ran over to his parents who scooped him up. They were very thankful as they kissed their sons cheek and then smiled at Steve. He gave them a paper of how to treat anymore wounds like that.

"Alright buddy, now if you see anyone else with these kinds of injuries, you can help them, too! The first part of being a hero is helping others, remember that." He gave him a small box that had a bunch of superhero themed Band-Aid's and a travel tube of antibiotic cream. The little boy nodded frantically and ran over and hugged his leg.

"Thank Mr. Hero! I promise to try and help others." He whispered. He ran back to his parents and then they left to retrieve their daughter who had been severely burned and was being treated in a different room. Dr. Margie smile as Steve cleaned up the supplies around them.

"You're very good with children. Do you get a lot of practice?" She asked as she helped clean up and wipe down the room. Steve smiled as he threw a bloodied tissue in the trashcan.

"Yeah I babysat a lot of kids, and we still hang out sometimes, even though they're in high school now. They feel like my siblings sometimes. I have also done some babysitting for my ex-girlfriends sister. Her name is Holly and the first time I babysat her was actually after we broke up because her mom was panicking after she got a call about her son getting in trouble at school and nobody else was home who could take care of her. She knew I was at home because of our school letting out earlier, and called me so she could have a short meeting with the principal and I showed up because I was very bored and recovering from an injury so I showed up and took care of her. I guess she spread the word because I got some requests for babysitting after that. Sorry, I'm rambling, anyways, yeah I've gotten a lot of practice and it's actually pretty fun. Sometimes I wish babysitting paid enough to make a living off of it because I sure as hell am not getting a job over minimum wage anytime soon." He chuckled. Dr. Margie hummed.

"Why not be a teacher? It is kind of like that but you teach kids as well." Steve froze for a moment. He has thought about it but wrote it off. He barely passed high school, he doubts he could teach anyone anything.

"Don't think there's enough brains under this amount of hair to teach others, but maybe I could be like a counselor, or something." He said with a half smile, missing her incredulous look.

"Ok first of all, bullshit," his eyes widened as she cursed for the first time in front of him, "you are plenty smart. You have followed along perfectly when helping me, learning how to teach kids would probably be easy for you. Second of all, I think you would be an amazing counselor, but you would probably be an even better teacher. You are a natural with kids. Every crying child that has come into this room left giggling or smiling because of you! Now if you want to help kids with their feelings and stay in an office all day to do that, you would probably be great at it, but I think that you would thrive in a classroom with 20-something 7-year-olds that you could play around with and help them learn. You certainly have a gift, and I bet that, with the right amount of encouragement, you would make a good living for yourself doing that. Of course there are other options that involve helping children, but I think you would be an amazing teacher." She finished. Steve felt the tears well up in his eyes and quickly rubbed them.

"Thank you, I think I needed that. Uh, for what it's worth, you make an amazing nurse." She looked to him for the first time since she started talking about teachers, and the crows feet near her eyes crinkled more as she gave him her signature smile. She gently hugged him.

"Thank you for the kind words, Steve. However, I was only speaking the truth. Now. It is getting quite late and I bet those kids you were talking about are getting worried about you not answering your phone. I can finish up the paper work- ah ah ah." Steve opened his mouth to protest that he can help with the papers, "I'm perfectly capable of finishing everything up, and there's not much else to do since we worked on it as we went. Please get home safe, and if you are planning on coming back to help soon, I would love to have you as my apprentice." Steve sighed and smiled before looking at the clock. She was right it was 10:40

"Thank you. For everything. I will be back here tomorrow to help, bright and early. You get home safe as well, and get good sleep. I'll see you tomorrow." They smiled at each other and Steve grabbed his jacket before walking out of the door, saying goodbye to the front desk, and driving to his empty house. At least he thought it was empty. He opened the door and his eyes widened as most of the party, only missing Eddie who was reuniting with his uncle, Chrissy who was still healing in the hospital, and Argyle who was with his parents who flew over after they learned that he drove all the way to Indiana just to be in an earthquake, was in his living room, halfway through a movie he didn't remember having. Heads turned, hearing the door close.

"Steve!"

"Stevie!"

"Dingus!"

"You're home!"

"Where have you been?"

He laughed lightly, smiling tiredly.

"I was working at the hospital. I have had training because of being a lifeguard and being a camp counselor one summer so I thought I'd help lighten their load a bit." He walked to an unoccupied side of the couch next to Dustin and Robin. They instantly put their weight on him after he sat down. Everyone started talking at once and he could see Hopper and Joyce, who were standing against a wall, with what looked like to be beer bottles in their hands, only a little bit gone, smiling fondly and partially apologetically at him.

'This is nice.' He thought as he helped people figure out where they were sleeping. 'Yeah. I could get used to this.'

He yawned as he lazily changed out of his jeans and t-shirt into sweatpants and a sleep shirt, replaced the bandages that wrapped his abdomen, felt the wounds that had scabbed over starting to heal, and crawled into his bed. It was already occupied by Robin (it is more often than not) and he comfortably settled in, listening to her breathing deeply, obviously sleeping, and reveled in the comfort he felt at having everyone at his house. It felt more like a home with them. He felt the hole he felt in his chest after seeing the destruction of his hometown was slowly being healed. He felt his eyes becoming heavier and heavier from exhaustion and let them close. As he fell asleep, he wished for things to stay like this for good this time.

~~~~~~~~

Of course it couldn't stay like that. Steve was awoken by a scream that was quickly muffled. He leapt out of bed, feeling Robin barely shift. She was somehow a very deep sleeper, even after everything they've been through, and could only wake up if someone shook her or a constant loud noise. And tickling. That was Steve's favorite method. He crept downstairs to see Will covering his mouth and shifting to the corner of the living room. Tears were streaming down his face and the other kids were getting up and registering that Will was the one that screamed. He saw Nancy and Jonathan in the hallway, looking for the source of the noise, before Joyce exited the guest room that she and Hopper shared, eyes wide and frantic, looking for Will with Hopper behind her. He saw everyone looking at him worriedly and sobs racked his body. Steve crept down the stairs faster and whispered to everyone.

"Guys, we're overwhelming him. Move back a bit and give him space." They were hesitant but backed away. Will was still panicking but his breathing became less sporadic. Steve slowly made his way to the front of the group. "Will? Buddy? Can you hear me?" He saw him give a quick nod before burying himself more in his curled up body. "Are you ok with contact?" A small hesitant nod, "Alright."

He stepped closer and grabbed his fingers which were gripping his knees tightly enough that they would probably draw blood if his pajama's weren't protecting them. He dragged his finger gently up and down his arm while muttering small reassurances to him. Steve breathed deeply and Will shakily imitated him. It was shuddery but with each breath it got more normal. He was still very shaky but it was progress.

"Is it alright if others get closer?" He saw the other kids shifting around, wanting to race to their friend. Will took a deep breath before nodding. Everyone sat down next him, and murmured to him before engaging a group hug. Steve stepped back to where Joyce was standing, looking a lot calmer and relieved. He realized that Robin had woken up and gone downstairs. They exchanged a smile and Steve looked back to Joyce.

"Thank you for help him." She quietly said. He nodded and touched her shoulder before moving to the closet and pulling out more bedding.

"Think this calls for a slumber party?" Nobody answered but everyone grabbed a pillow and blanket before situating themselves, entangled together in a heap. Everyone felt the anxiety and tension they didn't realize was inhabiting their bodies leave and they fell into a dreamless sleep, only waking once they felt the sun covering the living room and the smell of bacon wafting from the kitchen, Joyce and Hopper's places empty.

With a few groans and people helping each other wake up (tickling), they had all made their way to the kitchen. It was an early morning of a new day. Things may not be completely alright but as the missing people of the group arrived with their families, some in casts and bandages but alive, everyone knew that this was the first step of the healing process.

Chapter Text

The morning was busy as everyone was getting ready for whatever they found they could help with. For some that was just helping families at shelters know what is going on and what to do next, helping at soup kitchens, or operating machinery that fills up the roads and fixes buildings. They knew they would be exhausted at the end of it, but knowing the results would help their town and that they would be able to regroup at the end of the day made it worth it. The house was loud as people yelled to each other where who's keys were, who's turn it was in the shower with the fancy water pressure, and who was going to pick the music in the car they were going in.

Steve found it comforting because, unlike the waiting room of the hospital, these noises don't have the amplification of despair in them. Yes, they were all very traumatized, but they felt at home with each other. To the guests, it was confusing on who was related to who, but to them it didn't matter. They weren't related but they were family. Eddie and Chrissy, who was in a wheelchair for the time being, were chatting in a corner as they introduced themselves to each others family.

Chrissy's parents looked kind of uncomfortable being in the same room as the boy who they thought murdered their child, but they eventually let the tension in their shoulders go after seeing that he was harmless and actually great friends with their daughter. Chrissy's 8 year old brother seemed shy but infatuated with Eddie and his theatrical personality.

Wayne was quiet and spectating everything. He wasn't sure how he felt about being in the Harrington household because of the history of him and Richard Harrington in high school, but seeing Joyce, his old friend, so at ease, he relaxed a considerable amount and just stands next to Eddie, offering input to the conversation every few minutes. He saw Robin out of the corner of his eye, eating the last of the bread for breakfast with Erica. They had already talked and she decided to walk to the neighbors houses with Erica and offer help to anyone who may need it.

Steve stood in the energy of the busy house for a minute before grabbing his keys, walkie-talkie, and wallet and cupping his hands around his mouth shouting,

"Everybody who is ready and wants to leave in the Harrington mobile! We are leaving now!" He grinned as he heard footsteps thundering down the staircase. Dustin, who was drying his hair with a towel, raised his hand and, much to the other kids' disdain, called shotgun and raced to his backpack that was sitting by the door before running out the door. Everyone's attention was on them and giving them an amused smile. They loved watching them act like the children they are.

"Well you heard him, buttheads. Whoever is coming with is also going to have to help with groceries." A few kids rolled their eyes, smiling. "Glad you're willing. Eddie!" Said metalhead blinked before grinning.

"My liege?" Steve's grin became wider and the kids hustled past him and through the door.

"I gotta get these kids to their places. Do you mind holding down the fort? I got a couple of beers in my fridge as payment, but this afternoon there will be more food. If you have any requests now is the time." Eddie's ears went pink and Steve paused, halfway out the door, waiting for a response with a small smile.

"I mean if it wouldn't be too much trouble then I've been really craving a good pb&j! And apple juice!" He half expected to be called a child but Steve just nodded and gave a salute before closing the door. He gave a small sigh before turning back to Chrissy who had a knowing smile on her face, "So, uh, what were we talking about?"

~~~~~~

"Alrighty, shitheads! Everyone got everything?" Steve asked and was met with murmurs of affirmations. "Alright so we got walkie-talkies, extra batteries, a snack, extra cash, Walkman's for those who want them, and the knowledge that we are going to help people today?"

Everybody grinned and affirmed again. He smiled, backed out of the driveway, and rolled down the windows. Dustin put a cassette in the radio and Queen started playing. Everyone screamed along, hair whipping everywhere, most people out of tune, but happy and feeling like the weight of the world wasn't on their shoulders for once. They took multiple different stops and dropped kids off every few minutes. It felt routine-like and eventually he was pulling into the parking lot of the newly established soup kitchen to drop Lucas and Max off. They waved goodbye and he watched them run in through the doors that used to belong to one of the many diners in Hawkins before backing out.

It was a peaceful ride to the hospital and when he parked, he felt ready to do whatever he could for the other citizens of this broken, but loved, town. He walked into the building, immediately smelling the disinfectant. He saw the same lady at the front desk, but she looked significantly less stressed. He assumed because the back up, while still not completely gone, is much better and manageable.

"Hello! I was here yesterday to volunteer and Dr. Margie said I could come back. Is there anywhere I should wait, or could I just go straight to her?" She looked at him with a polite smile.

"Ah, yes I remember you. I can call her down but while you wait, you can sit just over there." She pointed to a chair that was positioned against a wall, next to a elderly man with, who he assumed was, his daughter. "Also, my apologies for yesterday. It was very busy and stressful. My name is Belle, can you remind me of your name so I can put you in the system?" She gave a sincere smile.

"Oh yeah of course! I'm Steven Harrington, please call me Steve." She nodded and he sat in the chair she pointed to. He bounced his leg as he observed the room. People looked tired and restless at the same time. There were some people who he could tell have been there all night, and there were some frantic people who seemed to have just gotten there. It was a lot of tension and it seeped into his bones, which made him tap his foot harder. He felt a hand on his shoulder and jumped.

"My apologies for frightening you, but you seemed very unsettled. Is there anything we can do to help?" Steve turned and his eyes met the ones that belonged to the man with his daughter(?).

"Ah, sorry if I disturbed you, there is just a lot of tension and nervous energy in here, I guess I absorbed it." He smiled sheepishly. His eyes scanned the duo in front of him. The man's grey hair contradicted his dark skin which was filled with smile lines. He had a mustache that matched his hair and what looked to be a well loved long sleeve button up and jeans. The young woman next to him had big but soft eyes, a short afro, clunky jewelry hanging from her hands, ears, and neck, and a very colorful flowy dress. They both smiled.

"Very understandable, darling. These are very trying times. Me and my uncle are waiting for my sister to finish her examination. Are you waiting for anybody?" The young lady, who he now knew as the man's niece, was very soft spoken.

"Kind of. I'm a volunteer so I'm waiting for the doctor who I assist to come down. Speak of the devil." his eyes trailed to Dr. Margie who just walked through the doors with a lady who looked very similar to the one he was just talking to. She stood up and greeted her sister with a hug.

"Hello Dr. Margie!" Steve greeted as he stood up. "I was just talking to these two, how are you?"

"I'm good, Steve, thank you." She turned to the man, "She is doing very well, considering her injuries. What she needs most is rest. Don't forget to change the bandage every 6 hours, but other than that you're all ready to go."

"Thank you, Doctor. We are very grateful for your care. Are you ready to go, Iris?" The lady's sister, Iris, nodded.

"Yes, thank you. Who have you and Abigail been talking to?" She says, her voice hoarse. The lady, now named Abigail, frowned at this.

"Don't strain your voice too much 'Ris. We were just talking to this lovely gentleman over here, I'm sorry I didn't get your name?" She turned to him.

"My name is Steve. It's been wonderful talking to you guys, thank you for checking on me. I have to go with Dr. Margie, but I hope to see you again." He gives them a grin and they smile back with their goodbyes. He turned to Dr. Margie and followed her down the hallway. They arrived to the office, having some small-talk on the way, and he got situated.

"Do we have any scheduled appointments, or is it just walk-ins right now?" He asked while he hung his bag on the hook. She sat down in her swivel chair and turned to him.

"No scheduled appointments, but the next patients should be in here in a few minutes. We were very busy yesterday but today should be slower." He nodded and she stood up and took some basic supplies out of the cabinet and onto the counter. "Oh, before I forget, I wanted to talk to you about the teacher thing. I have connections to the community college near here, which has a teaching course, and if you get a professional internship here, that mixed with your connections with me would look pretty good for your application. If you don't want to do it, then I understand and we can just continue working and I'll stop pushing."

He was frozen to his spot and eventually replied, "That sounds amazing, but I'm not sure if I'm ready for that. If that offer is still up maybe by the time the next school year starts, that sounds good." She put her hand on his shoulder.

"Oh honey, I know you aren't ready. That is alright and very normal. I was wondering if you would intern with me for a while and it could give you some time to really think about it. I can tell you are a very bright young man, and I would be honored to teach you." She said before pulling him into a hug. She patted his shoulder and they heard a knock on the door. "Well perfect timing." She joked before opening the door to the first patient of Steve's day. He felt prepared.

~~~~~~

The day had slowed down enough that the only patients there were the ones that needed different doctors. Steve decided to take a break and go back home to see how Robin and Eddie were holding up with Erica. When he stepped onto the driveway and heard shrieking, he ran to the door and ripped it open to see Robin and Eddie trying to cook something on the stovetop. It was smoking.

"Shit, shit, shit!" Steve ran inside and soaked a rag with cold water, moving the pan to a different burner, turning the stove off, and placing the wet rag on the bit of food that leaked and were still burning. He took a deep breath after seeing that it was dealt with and turned to the two instigators of the problem. Eddie smiled guiltily while robin tried to play the innocent card.

"Robin. What have I said about trying to cook in my kitchen?" Steve glared. Her face scrunched up, offended.

"How do you know it was me? I mean it kind of was but Eddie helped!" She crossed her arms and glared back. Steve sighed exasperatedly and pinched the bridge of his nose. She shrinked back, "Sorry steve." Eddie mimicked her apology and he rubbed his face before looking at them with a glare that had less malice behind it.

"It's fine. Just please try not to burn the house down again when I'm not here. What did you even try to cook? There's like no food here." He looked around the kitchen. They suddenly looked a lot more suspicious. He looked at them accusingly, "What did you guys do?"

"We may or may not have taken the potato chips and triedtomakemashedpotatoeswiththembycrushingthemupandusingmilk" Eddie mumbled. Steve blinked.

"..Seriously? Guys that is so gross, Jesus H. Christ!" He looked at them with disbelief. "You know what I can just deal with your guys' lack of standards for food later, Here's $20, order a pizza, my break is ending soon so I'm going to go back but I love you guys and please for the love of god, don't try to cook again." They both nodded and he heard Erica from the other room.

"I told them not to do it but they said that it would 'AlL tUrN oUt Ok'" She said mockingly. He rolled his eyes fondly.

"Erica, until I get back, you make sure these animals don't cook." She laughed with a 'sure' and the animals in question looked scandalized that they needed to be babysat by an 11-year-old."Alright well I'll be back to cook dinner, does lasagna sound good?" he asked grabbing his keys.

"Does your homemade lasagna which could probably make Mr. Apathetic Ted Wheeler cry tears of joy, ok?! If you make that lasagna, I swear to god I will make a shrine for you." Robin started grinning wildly and Steve laughed.

"I'll take that as a yes. I can probably have enough time to make the garlic breadsticks, too." He heard her squeal as he closed the door. He smiled and added the ingredients to his grocery list. He put in a Madonna mixtape and whistled as he drove. The roads were pretty clear because not a lot of people wanted to leave their houses nowadays, and he was enjoying the peacefulness of the drive. But of course he just had to jinx it because not 5 minutes later, the walkie talkie crackled to life and Lucas was frantically whispering,

"Steve?! Steve! Please We need you to pick us up! Jason's here and he isn't happy with me."