Archive of Our Own

It’s been a week since Will came back from the Upside Down, and a week since Nancy learned that Barb would never come home. Nancy hadn’t realized what pain was before then. Her heart was a black hole sucking up anything good. Well, almost everything. She may have lost her innocence, her best friend, and feelings of safety, but she got to keep Steve, thank god. It’s almost surreal to think that a couple of weeks ago they were the stupid and stereotypical high school love bugs. The straight-A student, and the jock. The perfect pair, god, it’s cringe inducing. She’s always loved being with Steve, but it feels real now, like they could actually make a life together. He’s the one who’s helped her not drown under her own grief over these past few days.

However, he’s not the one who went monster hunting with her, he doesn't have a matching scar on his hand, and he didn’t hold her after she went to the Upside Down through the tree. That was all Jonathan Byers. She had hardly taken notice of him before. He was just the older brother of her little brother’s friend who happened to be in the same grade. Today was the first day that he’s been back to school, and she couldn’t stop noticing him. He had on an old pair of jeans with a hole on the front of the right knee, his Pink Floyd shirt was wrinkled, and the dark jacket he had on was frayed at the end of the sleeves, and the buttons were nearly worn off from use. He had large bags under his bloodshot eyes, and his hair was tussled. She noticed how pale he was or how he was always slouched over, avoiding eye contact, but it didn’t seem like any of it was new.

There was one moment when he looked up, saw her, and smiled and waved slightly. She waved back, and had a spark of joy in her core that was so foreign in her life now. She needed to feel it again, and she wanted so badly to go up to him and start talking, or something like that. She stops though, thinking of how Steve may react. He’d probably think she’s crazy, and she would probably agree with him. She wonders if she’s just trying to cling to the few okay moments during the events that happened a week ago and is projecting them on Jonathan. Hell, for all she knows, he may not even want to speak with her because it brings up too many bad feelings. Nancy is self-aware enough to know that she’s not exactly in a good state of mind where she can be objective. She decides to wait, and react from there.

By the time a month goes by, however, her odd and abnormal feelings towards Jonathan have only intensified. She knows that this isn’t just a broken mind clinging to what’s familiar. No, this is real, whatever this is. She finds that equally comforting and concerning. She’s not faking it, but she already has Steve. Shouldn’t he be enough? In a weird way, he still is. She still feels at peace and happy when she’s with Steve, but she also sees and notes all she can about Jonathan. She’s spoken to him, of course, but not half as much as she would’ve liked. He still seems skittish around her and Steve, like he’s expecting them to turn on him at a moment’s notice, and that summons a righteous fury in Nancy.

She’s not angry at him, heaven forbid it, but at the people who’re the reason he acts like that. They sneer at him and call him names, but he’d just keep his head down and walk away. Nancy’s impressed by that. She can hardly stand watching, but she’s lucky enough to not be targeted so directly. Sure, she’s talked about behind her back, but they’re never so brazen with her. One part of everything that makes her feel things she’s never felt before, is how Jonathan is constantly thinking of these people and their talk. Granted, he doesn't exactly think of them in a good light, but that means he’s not thinking of her and Steve. She nears a boiling point, and she knows she has to let off steam. She has to talk to someone.

She sits Steve down to talk with him in the early days of December. They’re at his house, alone, and they had just finished a study session to help with upcoming finals, but Nancy didn’t really absorb any of it. Steve puts on a movie, some recently released action movie, and sits on the couch with her. She’s tense, and not sure how to bring up the topic, so she stays quiet for now. After a few minutes, Steve notices. He nudges her, and asks if she’s okay, Nancy nods, and he turns back to the screen.

They make it about half way through the movie when Steve turns to her again. He places a hand on her shoulder, and looks at her with soft, concerned eyes. She can’t help the flutter of affection in her heart.

“Are you really okay?” Steve asks. Nancy hesitates, but tries to speak anyways.

“Yes, uh, I’m alright. I guess that...I’m a bit nervous.” Steve is clearly confused at her answer and tilts his head, and motions for her to go on. “I... want to talk to you about something.” Steve’s eyebrows raise, and he gets a worried look. “It’s not bad!” Nancy jumps in and raises her hands in front of her. “At least, uh well, I hope it isn’t.” She trails off. Steve isn’t as worried as he was before, but he’s still bewildered.

“Nance, can you please just tell me? I promise I won’t react badly.” He pleads, just wanting an answer. Nancy takes a breath.

“Okay, well, recently, I’ve been...thinking a lot about, uh, Jonathan,” She waits with bated breath, as Steve looks at her blankly, unmoving. Unable to take the weight of the silence, she rambles on. “It doesn’t affect how I feel towards you! But I watch him during school, and I really like when he hangs out with us-” Steve places his hands on her shoulder and makes her look him in the face.

“Nancy, Nancy, calm down, it’s okay.” He chuckles, which calms and shocks her. “I like hanging out with him too, why are you so worried? I don’t mind that we’re friends.”

“Because, the way I think about him isn’t how a normal person thinks about their friend! I don’t even think about him like I do you!” She couldn't stop herself from blurting. He needs to know. Steve’s face slowly morphs from shocked to understanding. Steve clears his throat.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but I may know what you’re feeling.” His eyes dart around not looking at her, as if he’s embarrassed. “Do... Do you want to have his attention on us at all times?” He trails off quietly, and looks at Nancy’s face. Seeing no opposition, he continues. “And do you feel so damn angry when others talk to him, or insult him? So much so that you would be willing to do almost anything to make it stop?” Nancy is too stunned to do anything but nod. "OH, thank god!” He sighs in relief. “I thought it was just me!” He laughs, and Nancy can’t help but laugh along as her nerves finally settle.

“I’m glad we feel the same.” Nancy smiles while she talks. “I’m actually so relieved, but what does that mean for us?” She asks innocently. To be honest, she was so concerned about Steve’s reaction, she’d hardly thought about what would happen if he was okay with it. “What do we do now?”

...

“What do we do now?”

The question is one that Steve doesn’t know how to answer. He’d only recently admitted to himself that he feels something special towards Jonathan. He’s not sure exactly what it is yet, but it’s there. He and Nancy fall into a moment of silence, and he thinks on those feelings, because this is the first time he can without guilt. He knows that Nancy should take up most of his thoughts, but recently, she’s shared that honor with Jonathan. Now he has permission from her to let Jonathan take up his portion of Steve’s mind.

If Steve had to guess, this all started a little after their fight. He was nursing his bruised face, and getting egged on by his ‘friends’, when he started to think about Jonathan. He’s always been a pretty decent looking guy, in Steve’s opinion, which was part of the reason he was Jonathan’s personal tormenter for so long. It was a way to keep competition down and away. Something was different now. Steve was meet with the sheer force of Jonathan's full attention for the first time. He’d thought he’d plagued Jonathan’s mind with a fear of Steve, but he knows that Jonathan has only given him a mere fraction of his gaze.

In the moment of the fight, Steve could only think about the pain being inflicted, but after, all he can see when he thinks back are those hard eyes. The force of Jonathan seemed like it was going to crush his lungs, but Steve found himself weirdly wanting it. It was like the feeling of anticipation when you’re in a roller coaster slowly climbing to the big drop. The fear and dread mixed with joy and a sense of being really alive. That want was part of the reason he went to Jonathan’s house to apologize. Steve felt horrible about what he said and did, but there was a small part of himself pushed to the back of his mind that was terribly excited over the fact that Jonathan wouldn’t have anywhere to run or anyone to turn to like he always did before in school. That was forgotten though, when his girlfriend turned out to be there, pointed a gun at him, and he smashed a monster with no face with a baseball bat with nails, but that’s neither here nor there.

After everything settled down and he was filled in completely, he still wished for that full attention from Jonathan. However, Jonathan didn’t seem to want anything to do with Steve, which, while hard, was understandable, but Jonathan didn’t seem to hate Steve. Eventually, he and Nancy roped him into spending time with them more and more, and Steve couldn’t be happier.

The only problem was that Steve always wrote those thoughts and feelings off as being friendly ones, or not really there. That plan fell through about a week before his talk with Nancy. Before then he refused to acknowledge the fact that normal people don’t hang around their friend’s car, just marveling at how their friend spends time in there, and how it must be filled with their scent. Steve tried not to think of why he’d watch Jonathan leave his car at the beginning of the school day and then walk to it, and touch it. He’d tried to get in the car before, but Jonathan was always diligent at locking it. Well... he was most of the time.

A week before the talk, Jonathan was late to school. He had sped into his spot, and practically ran into the building. He had fumbled with his key in the lock, before running off, but Steve wanted to try it. He walked as casually as he could manage to the car, and he looks around him when he reaches it. Jonathan parks in the very back of the lot, presumably to avoid people, and Steve is thankful for it. He doesn’t need anyone to see him and give Jonathan more hell. Steve circled to the driver’s side door and pulled on the handle, which clicked open.

Steve couldn’t believe his luck. He buzzed with excitement when the wave of still warm air hit him from inside the car. Steve slipped behind the wheel and closed the door. The cloth seat was worn and slightly scratchy, the seat was moved up just a little too much for Steve, and the radio knobs and steering wheel had spots of discoloration from sweat and body oils. For Steve, it was perfect. There was a lingering scent of musk, coffee, and pine, the smell of Jonathan’s cologne. The seat was still warm from Jonathan’s body heat. Steve simply sat, and soaked up everything, and tried to memorize every detail.

He sat there tracing a spilled coffee stain around a cup holder with his finger. Steve was content just being there, but his eyes began to wander towards the various small items littering the car. There was an empty thermos by the pedals, which hadn’t been used in a good few days, there were a few wrappers for various candies on the passenger side floor, and there was some chap stick in a cup holder. Steve reached over to open and look in the glove compartment. It was pretty barren, but there was a swiss army knife, a first aid kit, a few folded rags, and a pair of aviator sunglasses. There was also a towel that had obviously been stuffed in in a hurry. Steve carefully pulled it out, careful not to disturb anything else.

It was a simple red rag, and it fit nicely in Steve’s hand. It was rough and had multiple frayed strands sticking out of it. Steve ran his fingers over it, and brought it up to his face. It was dry, but he could see patches where it was darker. He nuzzled his face into it, and was engulfed by Jonathan’s scent. The world around him disappeared, and his mind was flooded with Jonathan and the sheer force that came with him. He didn’t care if Jonathan would notice, Steve was keeping the rag.

Steve was preoccupied with his new toy, but his eyes drifted to the chap stick he spotted earlier. He was still clutching the rag in his left hand when he grabbed it. He turned the small stick in his hand. It was cherry flavored. He maneuvered it in his hand so he could open the cap with his thumb. The tube was about ¾ full of the red goo, and Steve could already smell the vaguely fruity aroma. It wasn’t exactly cherry, but it wasn’t the most expensive brand either, so he shouldn’t have been surprised. He wondered when it was used, or how Jonathan’s lips would taste with it on. That last thought caught Steve off guard, and what made him truly start to question what he was doing and thinking.

Steve was broken out of his trance, and he realized that he’d been in there for hours, and all the warmth from Jonathan had been taken over by November cold. He looked upward and turned his head around. The parking lot was much fuller with cars than it was when he got there, but empty of people, since school started hours earlier. He looked back to the chap stick still in his hand. He knew that he needed to put it back. He was already taking one thing, if he took another, Jonathan might notice, but his heart was refusing to release his grip. Steve brought the stick over, and quickly swiped his tongue over the goo, and he shuddered at the thought that Jonathan’s own tongue and lips had been on it. After that, he didn’t have it in him to put it back. Steve put the cap back on, and moved to exit the car.

He still didn’t want Jonathan to notice, and seeing how he had already missed part of the day, and how his mind would be preoccupied he decided to not go in to school. Steve got back in his own car, which was much too cold and did nothing for the quickly forming hole in his chest, and drove to the local convenience store. He found the exact cherry chap stick Jonathan used and bought it. He drove back to the school and placed the new tube back in the cup holder where the used one was, and he hoped that Jonathan wouldn’t notice the difference.

When he got back home, Steve held his new treasures with extreme care, and hid them in an obscure drawer. He wanted to save them for as long as possible, and he was determined to not give into his impulses. He spent the rest of his day figuring out his feelings and what he wanted. He had even started to plan on when to bring this up with Nancy, but she beat him to the punch.

Steve remembered this when Nancy asked “What do we do now?” He tells her that he doesn’t know. Instead of talking about the future, Nancy starts going on about how she first started to notice Jonathan. After Nancy speaks about her sheer desire and her overwhelming emotions, is when Steve gains the confidence to tell Nancy of what happened a week ago. He begins slowly, stuttering, just waiting for Nancy to call him weird, but she doesn’t, and he gets more passionate and he uses his hands to speak as he continues. Nancy is unperturbed and asks questions like, “How did it feel under your tongue?” and “Could you taste him?”

He can see her eyes light up when he reveals that the rag and chap stick are in the very house they are. As he finishes up his story, both of them are quivering with energy and want. Steve’s jeans are too tight, and Nancy’s breasts ache. She clasps one of his hands in hers, and looks at him with cloudy eyes.

“Can I go see them?” She asks breathily. Steve just nods, not trusting himself to speak. He leads her by the hand up to his room. She sits on his bed with her hands between her legs. Steve can’t grab his prizes fast enough. He then gently places them in front of her, and he goes to sit beside her. She grasps at them desperately, and buries her face in them. She rubs the rag against her cheek, and rubs her thighs together. She opens the chap stick and lightly kisses the top savoring the artificial flavor on her lips. She stops and sets them down, partially because, like Steve, she wants to preserve them like priceless relics in a museum, and partly because she can’t fight the arousal anymore. She sets the items on the floor, and all but pounces on Steve.

It was easily the best sex they’ve ever had, and they wake up, still alight with the afterglow. That morning they plan. The gaping hole in their souls is clear as day now, and they’re not sure if they can go on with it there. They need him here, and they need him to be theirs. ONLY theirs. They want him to be focused on them, only. They’re the only ones who truly understand him, and they are the only ones who can love him in the way he deserves. He won’t be happy with anyone else. They will take care of him, and they can have him all to themselves. No one else is worthy of his attention after what he’s been put through because of the others.

Despite their passion, they know that everything has to be done right. They need to prepare, and they’ll have to live with the limited contact they have with Jonathan. It’ll be hard, but their patience will be rewarded.

They start to spend more time with him and get him gifts. They keep it subtle, getting him food, drinks, and other small things. The first big thing they get him is the camera for Christmas. The look of joy and adoration in his eyes is to die for, and their resolve to make everything perfect for him strengthens.

They start slowly accumulating the things they need, and everything is going smoothly until Tommy and Carol happen. Steve and Nancy would agree that the hardest part of their plan is having to watch Jonathan be treated like trash at school. He still doesn’t really have any friends, and a significant number of people still think that he was the one behind his brother’s disappearance. They even overheard some people say that Jonathan had used satanic rituals or evil magic to bring Will back from the dead, but these rumors are relatively rare. Most people don’t even acknowledge him with more than an odd look or glare, if they acknowledge him at all, unless they have to. This is hard to watch for the couple, but it’s better than the alternative, as they find out.

...

It’s the first week of second semester after winter break, and Nancy and Steve are at their usual lunch table, waiting for Jonathan. They managed to pull him away from the darkroom he likes to hide in to hang out with them, but he hasn’t shown up yet today. After a few more minutes of waiting, they decide to go look for him. They walk towards the darkroom, figuring he holed himself up there, but they don’t make it.

In an empty hallway, Jonathan is cornered by Tommy Hagan and Carol Perkins. Jonathan has his back against the lockers, and his hands are up with his palms towards the delinquents as if he’s trying to defuse whatever situation he’s in. Nancy and Steve aren’t close enough to make out the talking between the three, but they can hear the anger behind what Tommy is spitting out. Nancy and Steve begin to make their way over, but the other three don’t notice them yet. As the couple closes in on them, Tommy reaches forward, grabs the front of Jonathan’s shirt, and yanks the photographer closer.

“You think you’re safe cause Steve isn’t here?!” Tommy yells, Jonathan just shakes his head. “You may have been able to fuck him up, but you can’t deal with us!” Carol cackles at Tommy’s words, taunting Jonathan. “We’re going to make you pay for making Steve run away from us!”

Steve and Nancy are still too far away to stop Tommy from lifting his fist and slamming it into Jonathan’s face. Tommy lets go of the other boy’s shirt, letting the force smash Jonathan against the lockers. His head hits the metal with a horrifying clang. Tommy continues his rant.

“This is what you get for humiliating us!” Tommy raises his other fist and punches the other side of Jonathan’s face. This time, Nancy cries out in a wordless scream, making the three look at her. Carol scoffs.

“Oh, is the princess here to save you?” She asks with a sickly-sweet voice. Nancy’s face is bright red, and it almost seems like steam is about to blow out of her ears. The sight just makes Carol cackle. Tommy moves closer to Jonathan and pins him against the wall with his forearm. Jonathan’s face is dripping blood, and he’s making small noises of pain. Nancy is about to leap at Carol like a feral cat when Steve catches up with her. Tommy looks at Steve and his eyebrows raise.

“Oh, hey Stevie. Here to join in on the fun?” He motions with his free hand towards Jonathan. “It’s just as fun as it was before. Just leave out the screaming chick, Capeesh?” He makes a dismissive motion towards Nancy. Steve’s blood just boils more and more with every word. He can hardly see past the red rage, but he manages to grab Tommy roughly by the shoulder, and yank him away from Jonathan. Tommy and Carol’s faces fill with confusion. Steve leans down so his face is inches from Tommy's.

“Leave. Him. Alone.” He has to force out every word carefully. "If you don’t, you’ll regret it.” Steve’s voice is filled with more venom than either of his former friends had ever heard before. They are frankly worried by it, and of the fact that he doesn’t seem inclined to stop his girlfriend if she attacks.

“Alright.” Tommy concedes. “This one’s yours. I get it.” He says in a light tone, trying to mask his fear. He steps back and snatches Carol’s hand, pulling her roughly with him. “Ya know, Stevie, we could find someone else. I mean, this psycho isn’t the only weasel in this school. It’d be just like old times.” Tommy had assumed that Steve was just putting up a face for his girlfriend, who may or may not be cheating on Steve with Byers if the rumor mill is to be believed, to impress her. He thinks that Steve will tell him to go away, but then meet with him later to truly gang up on Byers or some other sap. He doesn’t realize how wrong he is until he’s lifted off the ground by Steve.

“It’ll never be like old times.” Steve whispers firmly. He’s holding Tommy by the shirt about 4 inches off the ground. Steve then throws Tommy backwards, making him land flat on his ass. Tommy scrambles up, and practically runs away with his girlfriend.

Nancy stands behind Steve with a steely-eyed look, and Jonathan watches the retreating forms with a dumbfounded expression. Once the couple are certain that the others are gone, they turn to Jonathan, and begin assessing his wounds. Jonathan tries to wave off their concerns weakly, but they ignore him. He has a gash above his right eye and on his left cheek, the back of his head is also bleeding from a cut where the grating on the lockers dug into his scalp. Nancy sighs.

“Those don’t look good at all. You need to get those cleaned up.” She states firmly. Jonathan’s eyes widen slightly.

“They’re not that bad. They’ll be fine.” He tries to dismiss them, but the pair are having none of it.

“Yeah, no.” Steve nearly scoffs. “Those aren’t exactly paper cuts.” He grabs Jonathan by the elbow gently. “Let’s go. If you let us clean those up for you, you won’t have to go to the nurse or hospital.” Jonathan wants to know how they know that that’s what he’s worried about, but he doesn't ask. Maybe he was more obvious than he thought, or they made the connection that he didn’t want to spend what he didn’t have to. Either way, it seemed there was no getting out of this.

The three move slowly towards the parking lot. The adrenaline from the fight is receding and leaving an immense pain in its wake. The blood from his wounds is also dripping into his eyes making his vision blurry and red. If they walked any faster, Jonathan is afraid that he’d fall on something and hurt himself even more. Steve is still holding his elbow, guiding him, and Nancy is on his other side with her hand hovering just over his back, ready to move him if he strays off course. Steve opens the door to the parking lot, and the rush of cool wind just blows more blood into his eyes, temporarily blinding him, but it’s getting harder to think about anything but the clawing agony in his face and head.

He notes that they’re walking to Steve’s car, which doesn’t surprise Jonathan, but it seems like a pretty far walk. He always thought that Steve parked as close to the school as possible, but today he’s almost parked right next to Jonathan. When they reach the car, Steve shuffles around for his keys, and unlocks the doors. Jonathan is almost shoved into the back passenger door as soon as it opens. The other two hover around the open door as he puts on his seatbelt, which is probably to make sure he can see it, Jonathan thinks, but they stand there for just a moment longer than they should.

They shut the door, and Nancy climbs in the passenger seat while Steve gets behind the wheel. Steve apologizes for the cold, which doesn’t exactly make sense, seeing as how they were in school, and had no reason to warm up the car before now, but Jonathan still appreciates it. Jonathan tries to focus on the movement of the car and the scenery to distract himself, but he’s only partially successful. They do get to Steve’s relatively quickly, thankfully.

Jonathan doesn’t even register that the car is stopped until the door next to him is pulled open by Nancy. She says something to him, but he can’t hear her over the pounding in his head. At this point, he’s more than a little thankful that they managed to pull him away from school. She reaches in and grabs his hand, unclipping his seatbelt in the process. He looks up at her, and blinks.

“Sorry,” Jonathan apologizes, “what did you say?” Nancy huffs through her nose.

“I asked if you’re okay. I guess I have my answer.” She rolls her eyes, but she can’t completely hide the spark of fear in her eyes. “C’mon, let’s get inside.” She tugs on his wrist, and he slowly moves to exit the car. The movement reopens some of the smaller cuts that had started to scab over, draining even more blood into his eyes. The sudden lack of vision causes him to slip on some of the January ice. He slips backwards and assumes he’s going to crack his skull on the metal car, but he’s caught.

Steve’s holding him from behind. When did he get there? Steve has his arms hooked under Jonathan’s, and his hands are placed on the injured boy’s chest and stomach. Steve’s holding him against his chest. Jonathan’s wrist is now being held in a death grip by Nancy. The three freeze for just a second.

“Thanks...” Jonathan says towards Steve. It’s odd being held like this, especially by Steve, but it’s better than a skull fracture.

“Don’t mention it, man.” Steve says lightly, like he’s not fazed by what’s happening. However, instead of moving, Steve just... stays. Jonathan could swear he feels Steve’s grip tighten. Jonathan’s shirt had ridden up his stomach from the fall, and Steve’s hand drifts ever so slightly downward, resting right where his shirt ends and his pale skin begins. Steve’s icy fingertips send small daggers of pain through his sensitive belly. Despite this, Nancy just smiles at them, like this couldn't be more normal.

“Can we, uh, go inside? It’s cold out here.” Jonathan asks, squirming in Steve’s grip. He just wants to stop being touched. He knows that Steve is okay now, but Jonathan can’t say he trusts Steve enough to be alone with him, never mind held by him.

“Oh, yeah, of course.” Steve says hastily, and his hands are off a moment later. The three continue into the house, and the odd interaction slips into the back of Jonathan’s mind, as the vice grip of pain reclasps itself around his head. He lays back on Steve’s very comfortable couch. The pain ebbs back just enough for his exhaustion and slight blood loss to make his eyelids become heavier, and he starts to doze.

Meanwhile, Steve and Nancy are in the main bathroom, getting a wet rag and a first aid kit. Nancy closes the door behind them, and lets out a frustrated sigh.

“I can’t, I just can’t believe Tommy did that!” Despite her anger, Nancy does all she can to keep from shouting. “He laid his dirty fingers all over him!” She points in the direction of the living room.

“You saw how he pressed up against Jonathan. He’s trying to get back at us! He wants our love to himself!” Steve says with more conviction than he’d ever mustered before. He and Nancy are exactly on the same page about why he hurt Jonathan. They’re both convinced that he just wants Jonathan’s attention, but only knows one way to get it.

“I know.” Nancy replies curtly “The real question is what to do now.” Steve nods along, and is about to say something when Nancy cuts him off. “Before we decide anything, we need to ask Jonathan about this.” At Steve’s incredulous look, she elaborates. “You know how he is, he doesn't ever want to bother or upset us, so he doesn't always tell us things. He’s so sweet like that, but there might be more to this.” She gets a fond look on her face. Jonathan’s always so good to them, and they’ll make him feel good in time.

“You’re right, like always.” Steve says with a grin. They quickly gather the rest of the needed supplies, and head to the living room. They can barely stop themselves from gasping out loud at what they find. Jonathan is laid back on the couch, one arm hanging off the edge, and the other draped over his chest. His legs are slightly spread, and they notice that he took his shoes are off. His eyes are closed, and his breathing is deep and even. The only thing hampering the image is the dried blood on his face and in his hair. He looks so peaceful, something that is exceedingly rare.

Nancy moves to sit on the floor next to his head, and Steve goes to sit against the arm of the couch, behind Jonathan’s head. He ghosts a hand over his hair, but flinches back at the gelatinous texture. Nancy brings up a damp wash cloth, and starts to wipe away the blood. Jonathan’s face twitches but he doesn't wake up. His eyes do open when she runs the cloth directly over the cut on accident. He lets out a small groan of pain.

“Sorry,” She whispers.

“It’s alright.” Jonathan says, equally quiet. Nancy lifts up a simple brown bottle in her hand.

“So, I have to clean those, make sure they won’t get infected.” Jonathan seems confused for a moment, before a look of dawning understanding comes on his face. He sighs, and leans back against the arm of the couch, giving her access to his wounds. He doesn’t resist when she lifts the bottle towards his face, and his eyes dully follow it. She splashes some of the hydrogen peroxide onto the cut on his cheek. The liquid instantly starts fizzing, and Jonathan lets out a hiss of pain. Before she can dwell on the fact that she’s causing him pain, she splashes the other wound by his eye, careful not to actually get it in his eyeball. Jonathan lets out a shuddering breath and grips the couch in his hands.

“I’m fine. Thank you for doing that.” Jonathan says to Nancy, seeing her guilty look. He tries to hide the fact that he can still feel the burning, but he still sounds somewhat pained. She then proceeds to use medical tape to close his cuts, and places bandages over them. As she’s finishing up, she decides to be blunt with her questioning.

“So... what happened with Tommy before we showed up?” The name is sour on her tongue.

“Well,” Jonathan averts his gaze, “not much, really. You two were there pretty soon after it started.” Steve gives him a look, “I swear! Nothing else happened today.” If it were anyone else, they’d be fine with that answer, but they’re hyperaware of what comes out of Jonathan’s mouth. Steve and Nancy glance at each other, having a silent conversation in the span of half a second.

“Today?” Nancy voices their thoughts. Jonathan’s eyes widen, and he sighs, knowing he wasn’t getting out of this. The couple waits.

“I mean, uh...” Jonathan stops, wets his lips and continues, refusing to look them in the eye. “This wasn’t the first time Tommy and Carol have, uh,” He searches for the right words, “made themselves known.” He says slowly. However, before the other two can start anything, Jonathan rushes to explain. “He’s never done this before! He just says stuff sometimes.” A thought occurs to Jonathan, which he voices, “Honestly, it’s just stuff about on par for what he’d say before when he hung out with you.” He glances over to Steve. “No offense.” He chuckles, trying to lighten the mood a little, but Nancy and Steve stay deathly still.

“Since when?” Steve’s voice is icier than the winter weather outside. Even at his worst, Steve was always jovial, even if it was fake, so this shakes Jonathan to his core. Jonathan’s heart rate spikes, and now he can’t take his eyes off Steve. His fight or flight instincts are making themselves known, but he’s essentially boxed in between them on the couch. He presses himself into the couch and swallows.

“I, um, don’t think he ever really stopped.” Jonathan knows that lying would only make things worse and more awkward. His arm starts to burn, and he turns to see Nancy gripping his forearm in a vice grip. However, as abruptly as the scene started, it’s over.

Nancy lets go of him, and her face turns pleasant and content again. Although the grin seems more plasticky. Steve is back to his jock like self as well.

“C’mon, you should go and clean that mop so we can finish up here. The main bathroom is down the hall. It’s the second door on the right. Feel free to use any of the products in there.” Steve playfully pushes his shoulder. The change about gives Jonathan whiplash. So much so that he wonders if he imagined what just happened, or at least blew it out of proportion. His anxiety has been on the fritz ever since he got Will back. On autopilot mostly, Jonathan walks over to the bathroom.

The rest of the day passes uneventfully. They bandaged the cuts in the back of Jonathan’s head, and he spends most of the afternoon with them at Steve’s house. Around 5:00, the pair drive him to the school to get his car, so he can drive home. The mood swings from earlier stick in his mind, but he writes them off and tries to forget them. Meanwhile, Nancy and Steve plan.

…

It’s 18 days later, and Tommy had made good on his promise to Steve. He’d left Jonathan alone, but Steve knows that he was just waiting for his guard to drop. Regardless, he and Nancy are going to make sure nothing can ever happen again. That’s why they’re out in the woods, miles from anything. It’s six o’clock, and the sun is beginning to set. It’s a pretty sight, but the pathetic whimpering of Tommy Hagan in the hole at their feet ruins the mood.

Steve and Nancy are standing on opposite sides of a ditch they made. It’s about 3 feet deep, 2 feet wide, and 6 feet long. Tommy is inside on his back, his wrists and ankles are tied up with thick wire, and his arms are tied to his chest. Globs of dark red splat onto the dirt beside the crack in his head. He’s crying like the bitch that he is, and his pleas fall on deaf ears. Nancy walks off to get to a duffle back set about 20 feet away by Steve’s car. Apart from the head wound needed to get him here, Tommy is unharmed. Nancy returns with a sledge hammer, switchblade, and shovel. She hands these items to Steve.

“Go get ‘em, tiger.” She says playfully to Steve, and steps back. Steve takes a long look at his options before setting the shovel and hammer down on the ground. He crouches down by Tommy’s face with the switchblade in hand. He lifts the handle so it’s in plain view, and presses the small button. The shining metal snaps out, and Steve laughs at the cry of fear. Steve presses down on Tommy’s forehead with one hand, making him still, and traces the knife around his victim’s eyes.

Steve digs the point of the blade into Tommy’s right temple, and relishes in the broken cry. Bright crimson flows down Tommy’s face. Steve twists the blade making wonderful squelching and scrapping. He pulls the blade back, and admires his handiwork. It’s not perfect, but it’s pretty good. With no hesitation, he plunges the knife into Tommy's left check. The delicate flesh gives way easily to the cold steel. The tearing is drowned out by the screams, but Steve doesn’t mind.

Unfortunately, the scum’s face is now covering in tears, blood, and snot. Steve doesn’t want to go near it, frankly. He gets up and walks away to grab the hammer. He spares a glance towards Nancy. Her face is red from how much she’s smiling. He picks up the hammer, and it feels right in his hands. It’s not the heaviest kind they could have bought, but it was light enough to be practical. He stands over Tommy. Tommy’s eyes blow up to the size of dinner plates, and he pulls desperately at his binds, but they don’t budge.

Steve hefts his tool over his head. Tommy cries, his shrill voice piercing the forest around them. Steve’s very being tenses in anticipation in time with his muscles. The world slows to a crawl as the weight cuts through the air. It makes contact right below the inside of Tommy's left knee. The hammer head digs into soft flesh as his tibia snaps like a twig. The lower half of the broken bone juts outward, almost bursting out of the skin on the boy’s leg. Steve can only imagine broken shards taking root in the sensitive tissue surrounding them.

Tommy writhes as Steve saunters over to his other side. Tommy is incapable of coherent speech and only cries at Steve when he raises the hammer for a second blow. Steve is proud of his aim, when he mirrors his first hit almost exactly. The difference, however, is that Tommy’s right tibia does break through skin, and the slightly off-white shaft of the bone digs into the dirt on the side of the hole, only causing Tommy’s screams to be even louder. Fresh blood starts to pool at the bottom of the hole, and Steve decides that enough is enough.

Steve walks over to Nancy trading his sledge hammer for the shovel. He promptly shoves it into the dirt pile by Tommy’s foot. The boy himself doesn’t notice past the fog of pain until the weight of the dirt hits his ankles. Tommy now knows that he’s lying in his grave, and they don’t have the courtesy to kill him before burying him. In the back of his mind, he had known he may not get out of this as soon as he saw the knife, but now it was undeniable. His mind is flooded with thoughts of what his life was and how it’ll never be anything more. He sobs brokenly as reality sets in. He’s not going to move away with Carol or even graduate. He’s going to die in the woods at the hands of the one good friend he’s ever had. He idly wonders if his body will ever be found.

The dirt is up to his knees now, but the pain is starting to fade. Tommy zones out, but is pulled back to the world when Steve slaps the flat back of the shovel against his still exposed chest. The dirt is up to his waist. The weight is final, and it’s the last thing Tommy will ever fear. Tommy begins to beg and plead one last time, hoping he might wake up or have Steve reveal that this was all a cruel joke, but he doesn't. Tommy starts yelling at Steve, but he doesn’t even seem to notice. The weight is now making it harder to breathe.

When Steve gets to Tommy’s face, he pauses. He smiles and crouches down.

“I’m sorry I had to do this, but you left me no choice.” Tommy can hardly process the words enough to react, but Steve continues. “I want you to know that you couldn’t have done anything differently. You signed your death warrant when you hurt our lovely angel.” Steve’s expression drops and he swiftly gets back up and grabs the shovel again. Tommy’s mind rushes to try and understand what Steve said, but as his eyes and throat get assaulted by loose earth, it’s forgotten. His eyes are on fire, and his lungs are getting clogged with grime. His body tries to violently reject the dirt, but more is just added on. He can’t breathe anymore, and he’s drowning on dry land. Tommy’s brain starves of oxygen and he starts to slip away, the only thing he can comprehend is the weight.

Steve finishes packing the last of the dirt back into the hole, and looks over it to make sure it’s perfect. He gets shrubs that he already pulled and places them on the disturbed earth. He’s drenched with sweat, and the ache of the labor starts to set in. He hears Nancy’s footsteps approaching.

“How’re you feeling?” She runs her hand gently over his back.

“Good. Tired, but good. We did a good thing.” Steve cares more about the satisfaction than the bone deep exhaustion.

“That’s good.” With that, Nancy silently picks up their tools, and puts them in the trunk of Steve’s car. It’s dark now, and she has to use a flashlight, but she doesn't mind. She drives them back to Steve’s house, and they get cleaned up before heading to bed.

…

Over the next week, they just wait for the newspaper to have an article about the body, or for Hopper to come knocking on their doors, but that doesn't happen. People wonder where Tommy went, especially Carol, but most assume it’s just Tommy being Tommy. Carol isn’t convinced, and she goes on about how he would have told her if he was going to leave. Nancy and Steve hardly pay her any mind, but she starts getting traction with her concerns as time goes on.

With all the shit that happened with Will and Barbra Holland being missing, people are a little more inclined to take things seriously. Students begin to agree with Carol, or at least hear her out. They know if anyone is going to be motivated to find Tommy it’d be her.

They need to take care of her. They cobble together a plan, and, while Nancy let Steve have fun with Tommy because of their history, Nancy wants this one. She’s always hated Carol in a special way. She’s always seemed more malicious and scummier than her boyfriend, even before Nancy stopped hanging out with them.

9 days after Tommy is killed, they put their plans in motion. They know Carol’s schedule very well by now, so they know she goes to a hidden corner to smoke after school. She’s smoking more than she did before Tommy’s disappearance. She goes through half a pack a day and reeks of cigarettes. Steve and Nancy head to her corner about 15 minutes after school ends, when the parking lot is almost deserted. She’s leaning against the concrete wall, cigarette held loosely between her fingers, and her feet are surrounded by fresh cigarette butts. She’s staring off into the distance, not looking at anything. The only thing letting the couple know she’s aware of them is how she tightens her jacket around herself as they approach. She looks up at them, but stays silent.

“Hey, Carol.” Steve starts softly.

“Hey.” Carol responds. Her voice is scratchy and a little too high pitched, but it’s okay to listen to. She clearly has no intention of holding a conversation, but Steve persists.

“Any news?” Steve puts on his best concerned face.

“Nope.” She’s not giving them much to work with, but they’ll manage.

“So, me and Nancy are going to go out with a search party tonight.” Carol hums in acknowledgement. “We were wondering if you would like to join us.” Carol’s head snaps up.

“What? Why do you care? I thought you hated us now.” She scowls at Steve.

“We may not have always gotten along, but we still care if he’s alright.” Nancy chimes in, Carol purposely ignores her.

“Why do you even think a search party would do any good? Tell me this, why in god’s name would Tommy just be wandering around the woods waiting for us to find him?” Carol leans forward and pokes her finger into Steve’s chest.

“Well, what harm could it do?” Steve reasons. “Maybe he’s lost, or something’s wrong in his head.” Carol pauses and sighs. She leans back against the wall and runs a hand through her hair.

“Is it bad I’m considering it? I just don’t know what to do.” Carol is quiet, and her voice shakes ever so slightly. She drops her cigarette onto the ground and puts her face in her hands. She shakes her head and sighs. “When do we start?” Steve and Nancy smile.

“Well, why not right now?” With that they lead Carol to Steve’s car to start the search. When she gets in the back seat, she takes note of bags of various supplies. There are walkie-talkies, flashlights, and extra jackets. They really are serious about this aren’t they? She’s honestly surprised and her eyes sting with unshed tears. She hates to admit it, but it’s nice to be hanging with Steve again. He was just someone who could lift the mood of anyone around him.

About 10 minutes later, the car stops on the edge of the woods. The three get out and get their supplies gathered and ready to use. Nancy has on a comically large backpack while Steve and Carol have simple satchels. Steve is in front followed by Carol and then Nancy. They search and call for Tommy, but there’s nothing. It’s not until they’ve walked for what feels like an eternity that Carol realizes that she doesn’t know where they’re going, she’s just been following Steve. They walk for a few more minutes when Steve stops and points.

“Hey! I see something!” He starts running and Carol about falls over herself to catch up. They push through some brush and come face to face with a generator. Next to the machine is a blue tarp, weighted down by rocks. Carol’s confused and disappointed until she sees a glimmer of red. She sets her back down and moves to the end of the tarp. Under one of the edges is a small pool of dark red. With no time to brace, a massive object smashes into the back of Carol’s head.

The girl collapses to the floor, but immediately tries to claw herself up. Carol is grabbed by the shoulders and is roughly flipped onto her back in the middle of the tarp. She blinks and her vision clears until she can recognize the faces of her search buddies. At first tension drains from her, she’s safe, but then she spots their smiles. Something’s terribly wrong. Carol attempts to push herself up with her elbows, but Steve lurches forward and presses his knee into her sternum, holding her down. Nancy moves behind her, and the sound of a zipper fills her ears.

“What’s happening?” She pushes at Steve’s knee, her eyes wide. There’s rustling behind her followed by metal-on-metal clinking. Nancy grunts with effort. Steve is ignoring her and looking at where Nancy is about. The generator whirs and rumbles with the inklings of life, but quits. After a pause the engine roars with vitality and purrs at a constant tone.

“Yes! There we go!” Nancy yells in triumph, and Carol doesn’t want to know what that means. Nancy comes back into her field of view, carrying what looks like large jumper cables. Carol’s breathing quickens. She digs her fingers into Steve’s thigh, but the pressure doesn’t give. Nancy sets the cables down, and reaches into her discarded backpack. She pulls out handcuffs and rope. Steve snatches Carol’s wrists and hold them behind her head by the generator. Carol is unable to free herself as Nancy comes over and cuffs her wrists around a leg of the machine, holding her down. Carol screams and yells, attempting to tear her wrists away from the machine with so much force that the cuffs dig into her skin and make her bleed.

Carol’s ankles are then bound with swiftness by rope. The girl screams and thrashes but to no avail. She sees something in Nancy’s grip. It’s a small piece of black plastic that fits snuggly in her hand. Nancy gets on her knees next to Carol, but she’s careful not to touch her. Nancy lifts Carol’s shirt and presses the cold plastic into the exposed flesh.

Stabbing pains shoots through her entire body. Carol shrieks as her body convulses and her muscles contract around her core like an alligator's bite. It stops just as quickly as it started. Carol gasps as her body relaxes. She realizes that that was a taser offhandedly. Nancy gets up as Carol collects her wits. When Nancy comes back, she’s holding a steel rods attached to the generator by a cord.

“This is a little project I made. I’m not sure if it’ll work, but we’ll soon see.” Nancy explains. Nancy moves the other girl’s shirt up more, revealing her entire chest. Nancy grins and brings the bar to Carol’s skin. The sizzling of flesh fills the air around them. Carol screams and cries as the stink of burning skin fills her nostrils. Nancy would like to make some sort of design, but the writhing makes that impossible. All that the rod is is a curling iron adjusted to be able to be plugged into the much more powerful generator, and she’s glad the connection works. Much of Carol’s stomach is sizzling and bubbling by the time Nancy decides that she’s done.

The twisted girl gets up and unplugs the device before turning to the jumper cables she left earlier. First, she flips a switch on the generator, and the current is cut from all objects plugged into it. Nancy takes a clamp in each hand, and she clamps one on Carol’s wrist, and the other on her opposite ankle. The crying girl hardly cares or notices. Nancy’s aware that she may blow out the generator, but as long as it does what it’s supposed to do, that’s alright. She reaches toward the switch, and flips it.

Carol croaks out a strangled noise followed by sounds that would make it seem like she’s choking. Her body jerks and convulses in an unnatural way as every muscle in her is overloaded. Her skin around the clamps starts burning. Nancy flips the switch again, and Carol goes limp. Nancy turns off the generator and feels for a pulse, but there is none.

Carol is then wrapped in the tarp along with all their used supplies except for the generator. They drag her body back to the car, cursing the long walk all the way. They stuff her in the trunk and take off. They end up about half a mile from where they buried Tommy, and they throw Carol in a different hole. They make quick work of refilling the grave.

A weight had lifted from the couple’s shoulders. They just got rid of their biggest problems, and they would never hurt Jonathan again. They’re tempted to call him, and go to him to celebrate, but they know they shouldn’t. The pacifist would have issues with it, and he won’t understand that this is for his benefit. He doesn't believe that people would do something this good for him yet. This makes it even harder for them to wait, but they have to. They just want to love him and keep him safe. Is that too much to ask?

…

Unfortunately for the lovers, Carol’s body was found a few weeks later by someone going on a hike through the woods with his dog. The small town was thrown into chaos from the discovery, and the urge to find Tommy and killer took over almost every aspect of life in Hawkins. Using cadaver dogs from a bigger police district, Tommy’s body was found a week later.

An assembly to both honor the dead and to update the high school was scheduled, and Jonathan is waiting to be dismissed to go, at the moment. He’s in his science class, and they just announced for the English hall to go to the auditorium. After a few more minutes of waiting, they are told to go. Jonathan picks up his stuff and walks. It’s odd being on the other side of the fence in a situation like this. He’s just an observer to the tragedy and not involved.

He walks up to doors, but is distracted by someone waving. He looks to his right and sees Steve. Steve starts walking next to him into the theater, and Steve points to Nancy and motions for Jonathan to follow. Jonathan ends up sitting between the two with his bag on the floor in front of him. None of them have spoken yet, it doesn’t feel appropriate.

The event starts with the school’s guidance counselors giving a speech about the two unfortunate teens. It was nice, if a little unimaginative. Just an ode about how they’ll be missed and how the town and school will be forever incomplete. Tommy and Carol weren’t exactly the kind of kids who went into their office for good reasons, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that they had to stretch for things to say. Jonathan scolds himself for that last thought. He may not have liked them, but they didn’t deserve this.

After the speech, Jonathan glances over to Steve. He didn’t leave them on good terms, but they were his friends at one point in time. Steve is somber and silent. The counselors gave the students a few minutes to mourn before the real announcements begin. Jonathan lightly touches Steve’s shoulder.

“You doing okay?” Jonathan asks softly.

“Yeah, I’m alright. Don’t worry about me.” Steve reassures with a small smile.

“Okay, if you’re sure. If you’re ever not okay, I’ll be here to, y’know, talk.” Jonathan finishes awkwardly and he can feel his cheeks heating up from embarrassment. He’s not used to comforting anyone outside his family.

“I’ll keep that in mind. Thank you.” Steve’s voice is tender and low. Jonathan’s not sure what to say next, so he’s glad when the principal walks on stage and commands their attention.

Steve wants to take Jonathan up on his offer, but not yet. Steve does miss Carol and Tommy. He wishes he didn’t have to kill them, but the teen next to him is more important than any lingering feelings. Steve can’t feel sorry for himself or Tommy when he’s met with that timid and beautiful face.

The principal is scowling when he walks onto the stage, he clearly doesn’t want to be there. He begins by giving his condolences to the loved ones of Tommy and Carol, but gets serious.

“I know you’ve all probably heard a lot of things about these students passing.” He adjusts his tie. “I’m here to say that they did not have the easiest of passing. If you’d like to know more, then you can find that information yourselves.” The older man strokes his small white beard and he scans the audience before continuing, “My main concern going forward is the safety of the students in this school.” There’s murmuring through-out the audience. “It’s been confirmed by the police that another person is responsible for what happened.” Teens turn to each other to ask questions.

The principal silences them by raising his hand. "I encourage everyone to take more precautions when interacting with other people. Be careful and make sure you’re always with someone you know and trust. Be on guard when out and about.” He continues on about specific ways to protect yourself, but not many are listening. They’re more focused on the newly implanted fear.

The assembly doesn’t last much longer and the school closes early for the day. Jonathan, Nancy, and Steve walk out to the parking lot together, with Jonathan still in the middle of them. The photographer considers the fact that they are the only ones he has that he could consider to be trustworthy. However, he’s also dimly aware that he’s probably going to be at the center of a few student theories, but he’ll deal with that when he comes in contact with them.

…

March is uneventful, but there’s an underlining hum of nerves. This wasn’t like Will Byers who fell in a hole, but it turns out it wasn’t him. Tommy and Carol aren’t coming back, and they suffered at the hands of someone who hated every fiber of their being. As the days tick on, some gain a sense of comfort, thinking that the killer left, or died, but others only get jumpier as the killer remains uncaught. Jonathan’s not sure where he stands, but he’d like to focus on his school work either way.

He’s in his English class and the teacher, a Mr. Gerard Terry, is passing back essays. The middle-aged man hands Jonathan a packet, which the boy takes. A rubric is stapled to the front. 70%. God, he doesn’t think he’s ever scored that low on an assignment, and he might have a B in here now. However, Jonathan doesn’t let his dismay show on his face. The teacher went to the front of the class after he was done passing back the essays.

“I know that some, a lot, of you aren’t happy with your grades.” The tan man rings his hands together nervously. “So, I’m going to give you all a chance to gain back some points. I’ll give you all a week to make corrections before turning in the essay for a grade. Please read the comments I made, and the final grades won’t be put in until you turn it in the second time.” Jonathan nearly sighs in relief, but he’s not looking forward to basically rewriting the thing.

The rest of class passes uneventfully like the school day itself. Today is a scheduled movie night with Steve and Nancy, which he’s excited for. If he remembers right, they’re going to be watching a new action movie that Steve’s been anticipating for a while. Jonathan tries to focus on that and not the C- sitting in his backpack. It was a miracle that he passed last semester with a 4.0; he doesn’t need to lose that now.

Inevitably, it does come up again. Steve and Nancy don’t have the same classes or teachers that he does, so they ask him about them. He casually brings up his grade.

“Yeah, Mr. Terry can be such a harsh grader. The things I got docked on were so nitpicky.” Jonathan is unabashedly whining about it, but it’s cathartic so he doesn’t stop. “I sometimes think he has it out for me.” Jonathan laughs.

“Really, now?” Nancy asks jokingly, but there’s an edge to her voice that Jonathan can’t name.

“Well, not really. I just don’t like English.” Jonathan says flatly.

The night goes smoothly with an action movie marathon. The three are staying at Steve’s house that, so they don’t worry about the time. They’re not their third movie of the night when Nancy and Steve go to the kitchen. They offered to make some tea, something the couple only care about because Jonathan likes it, and they want to test a part of their plan. They have the fruity tea in front of them on the counter, ready to be served. Nancy’s holding a repurposed round blush case. The small make-up container is perfect for storing the fine white powder. Nancy takes a spoon full of the non-descript substance and sprinkles it into the mug. A quick stir has the evidence disappear.

Steve is the one that hands the tainted liquid to Jonathan with a smile. The movie continues on, and the tea is great, but Jonathan starts fading. He didn’t think he’d be this tired this early, but he can hardly keep his eyes on the screen. Nancy and Steve aren’t even remotely sleepy yet. Jonathan’s laying on the couch with the other two on the floor in front of him. They’re all in their pajamas, and Nancy’s splayed out on her stomach while Steve is sitting up, completely absorbed in the movie.

In an effort to stay awake, Jonathan gets up and walks to the bathroom. The others glance over to him, but don’t say anything. He almost makes a mess of himself, but Jonathan manages to relieve himself. Knowing he won’t be awake much longer, he goes ahead and brushes his teeth and prepares to sleep. The world moves around him as he’s walking back, and he has to use the wall to keep from falling. However, this is louder than he hoped and the others notice. They get up and go over to him, asking him if he’s alright. A solid 3 seconds later he responds that he’s very tired. They escort him to the couch. There’s a plush pillow by the arm which he could’ve sworn was not there before. He lays down and is out as soon as his head touches the pillow.

“We may have overdone it.” Steve points out as he brings a spare comforter over.

“Yeah, probably.” Nancy agrees, looking at the unconscious Jonathan. You’d think he’s dead if it wasn’t for the slight movement in his chest and near silent breathing. Steve lays out the soft blanket over the other boy. The pair then step away into the kitchen. They’re certain he’s asleep, but they don’t want to disturb him.

“Should we do something about that Mr. Terry?” Steve asks his girlfriend.

“Maybe. I don’t think he’s as much of a threat as the others were, but we could make life a little easier for Jonathan.” Nancy is more or less thinking out loud.

“That’s a good enough reason.” Nancy nods. “But I don’t really want to go through the effort to do anything crazy.” Steve admits sheepishly.

“Then it’s settled. We’ll think of something later.” Nancy smiles and leans into Steve. “We’re so close, I can hardly stand it.” She says softly.

“I know. It makes me so nervous, but it’ll all be worth it. I know it will.”

“Just a few more steps.”

They stand there for a few more minutes before migrating back to the living room. The T.V is still playing, but quietly. Jonathan has turned on his side and is now facing the screen, but he’s still dead asleep. The blue light from the movie wonderfully highlights his jawline and sharp cheek bones. Steve sits down in front of the couch in front of Jonathan’s chest, and Nancy places herself by his head. Steve can’t resist, and he reaches his hand up to caress Jonathan's cheek. He ghosts his thumb over his jawline and simply takes in the feel of the skin beneath his touch. It’s even softer than he imagined and, without thinking, Steve runs his thumb over Jonathan's chapped lips, which part slightly. Steve’s heart just about stops. He wants nothing more than to kiss him and express the sheer love and adoration for this boy, but he can’t. Not yet. This isn’t the time to take Jonathan’s first kiss.

Nancy combs her fingers through his hair. It’s fine and well taken care of, not greasy at all. They both have seen this sight plenty of times. Jonathan’s bedroom curtain is open more often than not. However, neither of them has been close enough to even touch the glass, never mind the delicate porcelain skin of their beloved. The contact is so intimate and intoxicating; they never want to stop. They sit like this and simply touch for hours, relishing every moment he’s in their line of sight, not hidden by a comforter wrapped around him or the glare of the window in the moonlight.

Nancy leans in and kisses the boy’s forehead gently, grinning against the glowing skin. Steve playfully shoves her.

“You can’t do that. We’re supposed to wait.” He’s grinning

“It’s just a bit of a kiss.” She waves him off.

“Oh, really Ms. ‘If we wait, it’ll be better when he’s here’?” The banter is familiar and light hearted. That’s the only time they talk the entire night, too captivated with what will soon be theirs.

5 days later, Mr. Terry has a car accident. He was going a bit over the limit, but not enough to warrant a ticket, and as he approached a stop sign, instead of stopping, he continued forward at full speed, and collided with a telephone pole. He survives, but barely. However, he’s transferred to Indianapolis to go to a better equipped hospital, and to be with his sister who lives in the city. Regardless of where he went, he wouldn’t have been able to teach for the rest of the year, but, considering his condition and the fact that he has no other family living in Hawkins, people don’t expect him to move back.

While investigating the cause of the crash, the police discovered something interesting. While checking every aspect of the totaled vehicle they noticed that the main brake line had failed. Failures like this are extremely rare, and are a cause for suspicion. The thing is that the line is torn, not cut. There’s no reason why someone would do that, or target this man specifically. He’d been in Hawkins for less than a year, and he hasn’t made any enemies. In short, there’s no reason to think that this wasn’t anything but a freak accident. The man hit a 1 in a million jackpot, but on the wrong slot machine.

But as Hopper holds the halves of the broken wire removed from the car, he can’t help but get a knot in his gut. With everything that’s been happening, is a sabotaged car that outrageous? He’s sick and tired of all the questions, and how many are unsolved. He never thought he’d want to have his day to consist of reports of stolen gnomes or some other shit piled on his desk. God, he needs more coffee.

…

They decide that April 6th is the day. They have everything ready. They know that Joyce is working late, and Will is at the Wheeler house, leaving Jonathan home alone. They hide Steve’s car in the brush and wait for the right moment. He’s in his bedroom, reading currently. Nancy tries the front door, while Steve watches through the window, keeping track of Jonathan. Unfortunately, the door is locked, but the living room window gives easily. Jonathan hears the wood-on-wood grinding, and looks up toward his door, and makes a move to get up.

Steve whistles, signaling Nancy, who skitters to the kitchen, ducking under a counter. Jonathan comes out of his room, and moves slowly down the hall. He spots the slightly opened window, but before he does anything with that, he checks every corner of the living room, and goes to do the same with the kitchen. Nancy flattens herself against the wall, thankful for her smaller size. Jonathan walks in and stops a couple feet away. He’s wearing sweats, but no footwear of any kind. Nancy sees her opportunity to strike and pulls out a prepared syringe. She stabs the needle into the top of his foot, and pushes the plunger down.

The reaction is immediate. Jonathan cries out with surprise, and stumbles backwards, falling against the chairs around the dinner table, knocking one over. He grabs his now bleeding foot, and finally sees her. He’s paralyzed by shock as she climbs out from her hiding place. She’s much smaller and weaker than him, he should be able to fight her off to get to the phone, but as he tries to get up, he comes to a nauseating realization. His limbs feel like lead, and his mouth is too dry to speak. The injection sight, while not ideal, works well enough. His vision gets blurry around the edges, and no amount of fighting slows it down from taking over his entire view.

In the meantime, Nancy gets up and unlocks the door, and yells for Steve to come in. He walks in as Jonathan loses his grip on the last shreds of consciousness. Steve peruses the house, grabbing a few things: the camera, all the film he can find, books, a pair shoes, and a few pieces of clothing. They’ve already bought some stuff for him, but they can’t be too prepared. Steve places these objects in his car before coming back to assist Nancy with the lifting. It takes them a few minutes, but they lay the sleeping boy in the backseat of the car.

They can hardly contain their growing euphoria anymore. They start the car and begin driving. They’re not going to anyone’s house, but a new place instead. Using his allowance from his parents, Steve rented a cabin that’s as far away from Hawkins as something can be but still be in the town boundaries. There are no neighbors, and one way in or out, and as long as the technical owner gets his checks, he doesn’t care what happens there. It’s a bit expensive, but it comes with top-of-the-line conveniences, and is more updated than many of the houses in main Hawkins.

They arrive 15 minutes after leaving the Byers’ residence. It’s awkward to get Jonathan out of the car, but they don’t care. They walk in their new home. In front of them is a hallway leading further into the cabin, to their left is a fully stocked kitchen with modern appliances such as a microwave, stove, and even a kettle, to their right is a living room with a couch, loveseat, T.V., VCR, and a shelf of tapes ready to play. They go forward, careful not to bang Jonathan’s head against something. They pass by a bathroom on the left and a laundry room on the right. At the end of the hallway is a closet with blankets and towels stored in it, but on either side, two doors are open. The right one opens to Steve and Nancy’s room. It’s a dusty red color on the walls with a king-sized bed, a radio, a partially filled book shelf, a dresser, a night stand, and a box with various objects in the closet. There’s a large comforter and several pillows on the bed, and there’s a hard oak headboard with matching bed pole on each corner of the bed.

The couple walk into the room on their left. This is Jonathan’s light blue room. It’s a little bigger than the couple’s, but it's also much simpler and more barren. They didn’t know what he’d like to do with his room, and as he lives there, he can adjust it however he wants. What is there is an empty dresser, an empty night stand with a lamp on top, a desk with a chair, and an open closet. A bathroom is on the opposite side of the room from the bed, with a T.V beside the bathroom door.

Steve shifts so he’s holding Jonathan princess style, and Nancy moves the white comforter off of the mattress and Steve gently sets their love on his gray sheets. Nancy fetches the first aid kit from the bathroom, and bandages Jonathan’s foot. On each leg of the bed is untied leather restraints, which the couple fetch. They have a tie on each of his ankles and wrists with enough slack to move around, but not enough to move off the bed. They wish they didn’t have to do this, but they need him to stay, and they’re not certain he will. In time, he’ll grow appreciative of all this. Once they check again that the leather isn’t too tight, and cutting into his skin, they leave to go to the kitchen.

It’s almost 2 hours later that Jonathan wakes up. It’s a slow process as he fights off the drug’s effects, and his mind is still foggy when he opens his eyes. However, as he takes in the unfamiliar paint and barren walls that don’t match anything in his house, panic claws its way out of the murky recesses of his mind. Where is he? Memories of the last time he was in his house hit him like a truck. Oh god. Where are they?

He tries to move, but is only able to lift his arm about a foot and a half off the bed before the leather holds them in place. He realizes that all his limbs are restrained, and he’s on the verge of a panic attack. His breathing quickens and he desperately tugs against the bands, bit only ends up rubbing his skin under them red. He’s nothing more than a scared animal trapped in a cage, but he freezes when creeping footsteps start to come up the hall. The world slows as his mind runs with the possibilities of what might be coming. The door is pushed open, revealing two familiar faces.

A spark of hope shines in his gut, but fades quickly. They’re calm, relaxed, and smiling. It’s wrong, they are wrong. Jonathan doesn’t know what’s happening, but he knows that they are an integral part of it, and not in a good way. Those plastic faces are not the ones he came to know after they fought monsters of hell. They’re just off, and he’s not sure how else to describe it.

“Guys?” Jonathan’s voice is scratchy from being idle for so long. “What’s... what’s going on? Why am I tied down?” His voice shakes, and a part of him doesn’t even want to know the answer.

Steve and Nancy stay, unmoving, in the doorway, and Jonathan isn’t even sure they heard him, but when he’s about to repeat his questions, Nancy inches into the room with Steve trailing behind her. Her agonizingly slow movements do nothing to help the restrained boy’s anxiety, but she eventually stands next to the bed to his right by his hand, and Steve mirrors her position on the left. Jonathan’s eyes flick between the two of them, but train on Nancy as she moves her hand towards his face. Her right hand is cold when she caresses his cheek, and he flinches at the contact. She’s sitting on the bed, and leans some of her weight on top of him. She’s closer to him than she ever has been, and Jonathan hates it. His stomach flutters with nausea as she comes closer, and his guts churn as she presses her lips to his. He tries to pull away, but he has nowhere to go, and she’s holding his head in place.

It’s over as soon as it begins, and Jonathan turns his head away as soon as he can and into the mattress, desperate to get that heavy feeling off his lips. However, a different hand cups his face and makes him look up again. This hand is larger than Nancy’s and more callused, and he knows it’s Steve. He’s not sure if he’d ever felt Steve’s hand before this. The boy in question is looking down at him only a foot away. He has the same look in his eyes that Nancy did, and Jonathan knows what’s coming. Steve’s kiss is rougher than Nancy’s and his lips are chapped, but it’s still just a chaste kiss.

Jonathan has a sour taste in his mouth when Steve pulls away, and he’s not sure if that’s from the other boy’s mouth, or if he’s just tasting the thick disgust settling into his chest. His mind can hardly process everything. He just got kissed by his only two real friends while tied to a bed. He won’t lie and say he’s never thought of kissing Nancy before, but not seriously. She’s always been pretty, and he’s always been curious. He’s never thought of Steve in this context before. Jonathan has had thoughts about boys like he has about girls before, which only did wonders for his reputation, but he barely could stand being alone with Steve, never mind this.

Nancy’s still watching with that thin smile. She chuckles.

“Why do you think you’re here?” Despite her light tone, Jonathan’s toes curl when he can’t come up with an answer. “We love you, and you can finally be ours.” She runs her hand over his abdomen, causing him to shiver.

“Yours? Why can’t I get up?” He can’t comprehend what they mean, but he just wants free at the moment.

“Yes, you are ours.” She rolls her eyes amused. “No one else can have you.” An icy edge cuts through her soft façade. “I’m sorry about these, but we need you to be calm, and we need you to know that this is your home, no matter what you think.” Her reasoning is flawed at best, she clearly thinks they’re calming him down. He tugs at the leather once more, ignoring how the raw red skin protests. Steve sees his wounds.

“Oh, no. Nancy look.” He grabs Jonathan’s left arm and slides the cuff down a hair. She sighs.

“We’ll let you out soon I promise. For now, here.” She hands him the remote for the T.V. They leave then, and Jonathan turns on the television, but he can’t hear it over his own thoughts. What should he do? What can he do? Do his mom or brother know he’s missing yet? What are they going to do to him? Jonathan is still violated and has the urge to cover himself. He’s not even sure he wants to think about the why or how this had all been preplanned, just how long had they wanted to kidnap him?

Little did he know that, during his internal pondering, his mom’s car is pulling up to their house. Joyce knows that something is off right away. She’s always hypervigilant of her house now, and the open door and window scream at her. Her heartrate spikes, and her grip on the steering wheel tightens. Will is still at the Wheeler’s and Jonathan’s car is still parked in his spot. Joyce is gripping her bag as she walks up the porch and pushes the door open. There are muddy shoe prints on the carpet, and the dining table is moved with some of the chairs knocked over.

“Jonathan?” She calls, he has no reason to not be here. He even said he’d make dinner, but she gets no answer. “Jonathan!” She calls again and goes up the hallway. She looks in every room, but there’s nothing. Some of Jonathan’s stuff is gone though, including his beloved camera. Joyce is thoroughly spooked by now, and she goes back to the living room. From the new angle she gets coming down the hallway, she sees the thing that sets her into a full-blown panic. There's a trail of blood coming from the kitchen and to where it meets the living room. She can’t take it anymore and runs to the phone. She calls Hopper directly, and begs him to come over, she’s about in tears when he finally says okay.

The Sheriff arrives with Officer Callahan and a crime scene photographer. It seems like much for their little town, but considering the recent events, no one says anything. She shows them everything, and this time, they believe her. It’s pretty obvious that someone came in through the window, but what gets Hopper is the fact that the shoe prints have two specific patterns. Someone with smaller feet came in the window before someone with bigger feet came in the door. The most chilling aspect of the scene is what they find outside. The footprints lead to the side of the house, and the ground in front of the teenage boy’s window is tramped down with several footprints. This made more sense, because nothing valuable from the house was stolen other than the camera, and everything else taken was Jonathan’s. Whoever did this wanted Jonathan and nothing else.

Hopper has to steal himself as he walks up to Joyce. Why did this have to happen to this family again, to her again? She’s already been through enough, and the kid is going to have to know about it. Hopper has always had a soft spot for them, including Jonathan. He’d always felt bad for the kid, and hoped he’d go far and do well, especially after what happened, but now the teen is missing.

“Joyce, can we talk?” She’s a bundle of nerves and about jumps out of her seat.

“Yes, of course. Did you find out something?” She looks up at him with hopeful eyes.

“We did, but you’re not going to like it.” He takes a breath. “We believe that Jonathan has been kidnapped.”

“What?! Why?!”

“We have reason to believe that two people broke into the house and took him away. We also have reason to believe that they were watching him for some time. We don’t know why, but that’s why nothing else was taken.” Joyce’s mind is sent reeling. She can’t believe it; she won’t believe it. It feels like she just got Will back, she can’t lose Jonathan. He’s always been so strong and independent, always there to help her or Will, but now he needs their help, and she doesn't know where to start. Oh, god, how’s she going to tell Will about this? A horrifying thought goes through her head abruptly.

“Oh Jesus, could this, uh, could this, have something to do with what happened to...” She can’t finish the thought. She knows what happened to those other kids. All she can see is her oldest going through that hell, and she wants to puke. She pleads to anyone listening to let him be okay.

“We don’t have evidence to say so.” Hopper puts a hand on her shoulder. He wants her to have hope, but he’s not sure he has any himself. Tommy and Carol were kidnapped before being killed in the woods. Tommy was killed in his grave, and Carol was killed by a generator the police found a few days ago. It’s too much of a coincidence, and Hopper has a stone of dread in his stomach. He just doesn’t want to find the kid’s dead body.

Joyce about collapses in his arms, and cries. Hopper just holds her, not saying anything. He starts making a mental list about what he needs to do. Interview her, the brother, and some people at the high school. He’s become friends with the Wheeler and Harrington kids, right? Maybe they’ve spotted something or heard something. Hopper is able to collect evidence from the house including two sets of fingerprints. One set off the window sill, and another distinct set from the outside of Jonathan’s bedroom window. Hopper can’t do much with them right now, but he can go through the prints on file, but he has no direction, so it’ll take a while, if they are even on file.

He’s not sure what he’s going to do, but he’ll do something. Jonathan will be the last one affected by the pair of psychopaths terrorizing the town, whether he’s alive or not.

He lets the poor woman go so she can call Karen Wheeler and tell her about the situation. Joyce about sobs into the phone as she tells Karen what happened. The other woman immediately agrees to drive Will back to his mother. Hopper technically doesn't need to stay for this, but he wants to make sure they’re okay.

About 10 minutes later a distraught Karen brings in a confused Will, and explains that she didn’t tell him yet, and thought it’s be better if Joyce did it. Joyce wipes her face and gets down on her knees.

“Will,” She starts, “Your brother has been taken.” Will’s face warps as he thinks.

“Wait, what do you mean?”

“I mean that someone broke in, and took him.” He gets it after that. She doesn't need him to speak to know that he made the same connection as she did earlier.

“No... no! He’s not... it can’t...” He trails off before lurching forward into his mother’s arms and buries his face in her shoulder. Hopper’s not really sure what to do with himself as he watches, and Karen is on the verge of tears.

When Hopper does leave, his mind is racing. Questions swarm around him. Why him? How where they able to subdue a healthy young man with so little struggles? He has a feeling the fingerprints he found on the generator that most likely killed Carol will match one of the sets he found, but that doesn't get him a name.

…

The deranged couple release Jonathan from his binds around 8:00, and they bandage and put cream on the raw skin. Jonathan can hardly describe the relief he gets from being able to move his arms and legs again. He has the idea to fight, but Steve holds him in a bear hug as Nancy treats him, and he’s still weak from the drugs. He does shove Steve off when he starts to loosen his grip, but that doesn’t really do anything but make him feel a bit better.

Soon after, Nancy brings him some food. It’s just a bowl of a chicken soup of some kind, but it made Jonathan realize he hadn’t had anything to eat for hours. He doesn’t have much of an appetite regardless, but he eats it anyway. Nancy won’t leave until he’s done. She leaves him alone, and he explores his room more in the meantime.

The bathroom is fully stocked with hair and teeth products, and he does check the window, but it’s sealed shut and it doesn’t even seem to be normal glass. Jonathan’s heart drops at that, but he’s not exactly surprised. Sleep starts to pull on him not long after. He's sitting up on his bed watching some T.V, when he dozes off.

He’s not sure how long he’s been asleep when he comes back. At first all he can comprehend is movement, both around and on top of him. When he opens his eyes, his heart about stops. Steve is leaning over him. His first instinct is to shove the other body off, but his arms are held back by the reattached leather binds. His feet aren’t bound this time though. Jonathan’s breathing picks up, and Steve looks into his face.

“Hey there, sleepy head.” Steve smiles and runs the back of his gently over Jonathan’s cheek. “I was beginning to worry that you’d miss everything.”

Jonathan is confused by the statement, but his thoughts are interrupted by a cold hand moving up his chest. In that moment, he realizes that he’s shirtless, bringing him to a whole new level of uncomfortable. Jonathan writhes under the touch and turns his head away.

“No... stop.” Jonathan pleads

“Why would I do that? You’re so pretty like this.” Steve continues roaming his hands across exposed flesh.

“No, I don’t want this!” Jonathan tries to be as firm as he can past his terror.

“You don’t think you’re beautiful? We’ll fix that.”

Any hope of being able to reason with Steve then dies. There’s no room for doubt anymore. The people he once trusted more than anyone, who were his only friends, have gone mad. Steve moves from the side of the bed, and climbs on by Jonathan’s hip. Said boy tries to inch away and hold his legs shut, but Steve pushes his thighs apart easily. Steve resumes his touching after settling between Jonathan’s legs.

Jonathan’s at a loss for what to do. Steve’s hands get lower and lower, and Jonathan’s dread increases so much he’s nearly nauseated. Steve’s hands rest on the top of his bony hips. Steve stills, and leans over his beloved, and starts peppering his face with kisses. His lips trail down his jaw and along his neck. As much as Jonathan is violated and embarrassed, his body is starting to react against his will. Steve nips at his neck, and bites his earlobe, hard. Jonathan yelps in pain, and Steve smiles.

“You sound so pretty.” Steve whispers huskily. He supports himself with one arm, and with the other he moves his hand down under the hem of Jonathan’s pants and underwear. The boy gasps under his touch, but he turns away. This won’t do for Steve. He pushes himself up so that he’s practically laying on Jonathan's chest.

“Why are you always so shy? You’re so beautiful to us.”

“Let me go! Please! I just... want to stop!” That makes Steve frown.

“You deserve to feel good, and I’ll make sure you feel as good as you make us feel,” Steve unbuttons his jeans.

“No! Don’t!”

The rest of his beloved’s cries fall on deaf ears. Steve leans back and takes off his shirt before slowly pulling Jonathan’s pants down. Steve does the same, and then takes a moment to soak in everything. They’re both in their underwear now, and Jonathan is beautifully splayed out beneath him. Steve rids himself of his boxers, and moves to do the same for Jonathan, who flinches hard when Steve’s fingertips make contact with his pale skin.

“Nancy got your first kiss, which I wanted so badly.” Steve rubs the inside of Jonathan’s thigh, drinking in the sight that he’s been fantasizing about for months. “But she let me have this instead, so I’m not complaining.” He reaches down beside him, and grabs a bottle of lube. The puts generous glob on two fingers and reaches down to Jonathan’s hole. Jonathan gasps from the cold, and he yells when he gets penetrated. Tears start flowing freely down his face and on to the sheets.

“I’m sorry, baby. It’ll get better, I promise.” Steve licks his lips,

Steve preps him thoroughly, wanting his beloved to have the best time possible. Jonathan’s so tight, more than he expected. The boy had once told them that he hadn’t so much as kissed someone before, and Steve couldn’t be happier. Steve scissors his fingers one last time before pulling out. Jonathan groans and lets out a shaky breath. Steve lines up his cock with the other boy’s entrance and slowly pushes in. Jonathan arches his back with a strangled cry.

“You’re doing wonderfully, our lovely little virgin~” Steve purrs.

After what seems like an eternity, their hips are flush against each other. Jonathan’s silent tears are now sobs that break the quietness of the room. He mumbles incoherently as he cries. Steve breathes heavily and places his hands on the boy’s hips. He starts moving agonizingly slow, taking in the white hot tightness he’s engulfed in. However, he soon can’t contain himself and quickens the pace dramatically. Jonathan screams brokenly. The unfamiliar sensations and pain with the suffocating emotions wipe away any coherent thought or reasoning. The only things that he can think about is how wrong this is.

Steve brings up one of his hands and wraps it around Jonathan’s dick and pumps it mercilessly. Steve knows he won’t last long; he’s been waiting for this for too long, and the anticipation and euphoria almost push him over the edge already. However, he still wants his love to cum first. Speaking of his beloved, Steve steals a glance at Jonathan’s face. It’s tear-stained and bright red, but it’s still one of the most intoxicating sights he’s ever seen. That’ll be burned into his mind for the rest of time, and he has to concentrate on not blowing his load right there.

With no warning, Jonathan cums all over both Steve and himself with a shriek. Which surprises Steve and Jonathan himself. The clench around Steve pushes him over the edge, and he slams into Jonathan one last time, filling him with his seed. Steve gets some of Jonathan’s jizz on his finger and tastes it; it’s even sweeter than he imagined. He takes his time collecting all the sweetness he can get. Jonathan whimpers as he moves.

Steve would like to stay connected forever, but Jon’s a little too sensitive for that, so he slowly pulls out. This is a better angle to lick up all of his beloved’s gift, to be fair, so Steve won’t complain. His tongue makes quick work of the remaining sweetness. Jonathan sighs in relief when Steve exits him as the pressure and pain ebbs away.

Jonathan starts crying again, but this is from white hot shame and not the fear from earlier. He gave in, his body did. He shouldn’t have gotten off just like his attacker wanted. He shouldn’t have gotten anything from that, but he did. He cries harder. Steve doesn't notice, or if he does, he couldn't care less.

The combined emotional and physical distress are taking their toll on Jonathan and he starts fading from wakefulness. Steve notices and makes a mental note to adjust future doses for him. He turns and sees Nancy standing in the doorway, naked. She’s got one hand playing with her breasts and the other between her legs. She’s probably been there the whole time, which wouldn’t surprise him. Steve gets off the bed, and grabs Jonathan by the shoulders and shakes him.

“C’mon you’ve got more fun to have.” Jonathan blearily looks up at him with bloodshot and swollen eyes. Steve steps away and Jonathan sees their new guest. Jonathan seems to wake up more at this and the metal of the bed frame rattles as he tugs on his binds. Steve exits the room as Nancy comes up to stand next to the bed. He whispers something to her before he leaves, but Nancy knows he’ll be back to watch soon enough.

“No more, please.” His voice is now dry and rough. Nancy sweeps her gaze over him. He’s just perfect. He’s covered in a sheen of sweat, his tears only accent his face in just the right way, and his legs are still spread with Steve’s load leaking out of his hole. She crashes her lips against his, but he doesn't push back, a fact that she chooses to ignore. She about jumps on top of him and straddles his lap.

She attacks his neck with her mouth, adding to the already forming purple marks that Steve left. Jonathan still cries, weeping into the air. She uses the same lube that Steve did, but coats his own cock instead.

“Apparently, you don’t believe us when we compliment you.” She slowly strokes him as she talks. Jonathan is incredulous. She can’t be serious. That’s what she cares about, not his displeasure, his pleading, or the sheer evil and wrongness that consumes this entire situation, not just this most recent violation. Jonathan just wishes she would do whatever she’s going to and get it over with. He hates everything about this, why torture him by dragging it out?

“I want you to know that you are out world. We love you more than life.” Her voice is venomous and cold, and it seems that the clever and kind girl he once knew is dead. He hiccups and sobs, which she misinterprets.

“It’s such a shame that that’s so hard for you to believe.” She says quietly, mostly to herself. She reaches up and wipes away some of his tears with her thumb. “I’m sorry to keep you waiting, let’s continue.” With no hesitation she positions herself over him, and lowers onto him, while guiding his cock in with her hand. She pauses, adjusting, before slowly rising up and coming down again. Similar to Steve, her slow pace isn’t held for long. She rides him savagely, smashing her pelvis into him.

Due to Nancy’s sheer eagerness and Jonathan’s frayed state with his still ebbing sensitivity, this time is more painful than with Steve, somehow. His nerves are fried and he begs her to stop or slow down at least, but she doesn’t listen. Despite this, the familiar warmth begins to pool in his gut. Jonathan thoroughly hates his body.

He begs her to stop again, but she gives him a knowing look and keeps up the brutal pace. A few more thrusts later, he’s cumming inside her. His voice cracks and breaks as his body tenses. Nancy slows, but milks him through his orgasm. Once he’s done though, Nancy starts riding him at that same pace again. Jonathan is on fire from overstimulation, and he screams in pain.

He’s pleading with her until he hits his second orgasm. She doesn’t get off immediately, and stays sitting on his lap with his cock still buried in her pussy. As his mind comes back to him, he oddly finds himself wondering if she’s on birth control because he is not wearing a condom. She runs her hands over his abdomen and chest, taking her time with every crevasse and muscle.

Nancy had actually hit her peak right after he did the first time, and she reached her first climax watching Steve brutally fuck Jonathan, but she just couldn’t stop. To confirm what she already suspects, she looks up, and Steve is leaning against the doorway with his flaccid dick in his hand. They finally have him, and the built-up emotion from being forced to watch from a distance is finally seeing some closure.

She finally lifts herself off him, and she can feel his cum dribbling down her legs. The emotional and physical exhaustion are pulling Jonathan under into a trance like state, but he’s not asleep. Steve and Nancy crash into each other, making out passionately. They’re both too tired to do anything more, but this night will come into play many times in the future, they already know.

The couple go to undo one of their beloved’s binds each, and the bandages applied earlier are barely hanging on. If they weren’t there the binds would have bit into his skin and made him really bleed. They know how Jonathan values organization and cleanliness more than the average teenager, so they can’t just leave him here in his own sweat and spunk.

The main bathroom is roomy, and the bathtub in there is big enough to fit 3 people comfortably, which is why they're using this one. Nancy goes to get it ready, and Steve go gets the shampoo and conditioner from the kitchen that they forgot to put in the bathroom. They are the exact kind that Jonathan used before in his previous home, and after Steve goes to collect Jonathan in his arms.

Jonathan tries to wiggle out of his arms, but he doesn't have near the strength left to truly fight Steve off. Jonathan could walk but Steve cherishes the weight in his grip. It reassures him that Jonathan is really here and this isn’t a dream. As he holds Jonathan’s head against his bare chest, he can feel the wetness from his crying, but apart from the occasional hiccup and stray tear, he’s done.

When Steve walks into the bathroom with his little angel in his arms, Nancy is already waiting in the chest high water for them. Steve walks over, careful not to slip on the tiles, and lowers the other boy into the water, into Nancy’s waiting arms. Steve then gets in beside Jonathan. Jonathan tries to press himself into a corner of the tub, but is trapped between them. He folds his knees to his chest and covers his chest with his arms. He refuses to look at them.

This breaks Nancy and Steve’s hearts. He can’t still think that he doesn’t want this. In fact, they refuse to believe that he feels anything less than love and adoration for them. He’s just embarrassed, that’s all. Everything that people have said about him is just hard-wired into him in the form of insecurities and his chronic shyness. They’ll work through that though. However, if they’re honest with themselves, they find his shyness absolutely adorable.

Steve wonders if they should have held off on the sex. He knows that Jonathan loves them and wants to be connected with them, but maybe they should have built up to the sex. However, this is probably coming from Steve’s romantic side, and he’s not sure if he could’ve held himself together that long. He doesn’t regret what he did at all, and he’s sure the other two don’t either.

Jonathan is dosing off as the pair wash his body and his hair. Once they’re done, they don’t get out immediately, and just hold him on either side. When they do exit the bathtub and haul Jonathan to his feet, he sways a little, but he stays up. Jonathan figures that they’re going to walk him back to his room, but is swept off his feet by Steve again. He gasps in surprise. He’s cradled in Steve’s arms again, and Nancy comes over and starts drying him off with a towel. Steve nuzzles into the side of Jonathan’s head, kisses him and pulls back.

“Where would you like to sleep? Our room or yours?” Steve asks him softly. It takes a minute for his fatigued mind to understand.

“Mine.” He croaks. His voice is raw and strained from earlier. He’s somewhat surprised when he’s actually taken to ‘his’ room and laid gently on the bed. He doesn’t take in anymore because he passes out as soon as his head hits the pillow. He doesn't notice his captors getting in the bed with him. Nancy spoons him and Steve buries his head in the crook of Jonathan’s neck. Nancy brings the blanket over them, but neither her or Steve go to sleep yet. They stay awake for another hour before drifting off.

…

The next day, Hopper has the vague makings of a plan. He must interview all those who know Jonathan, and he’s already interviewed Joyce and Will. The next ones to talk to according to both Joyce and Karen are Nancy and Steve. Karen had insisted that they were both at Steve’s house that weekend, but when Hopper gets there, the place is completely empty and Steve’s car is gone. He decides to come back later, they’re probably just out and about.

However, when he comes back an hour and a half later, they’re still gone. He doesn't think they’re gone like Jonathan. He doesn't feel it, but that doesn't mean he didn’t walk around the house, but there were no footprints or any other evidence that someone else was there.

The only thing that’s odd that he finds is a pile of tools that don’t really fit together including: a sledgehammer, a pile of rope, a shovel, and a can of gas. There’s nothing outright suspicious about them, but Hopper writes it in his notebook anyway, something that he’s been doing a lot more these past few weeks.

Hopper leaves again after that, and tries to rack his mind for a possible motive behind all of this. He has many questions he can’t answer. Why have all the victims been from the high school? The same grade even? While the only official victims of these assailants are Tommy, Carol, and now Jonathan, Hopper still has a gut feeling that the incident with Mr. Terry is connected. If he is, that’s another person tied to that school and that grade. However, he only taught Jonathan out of the victims, but it’s still too specific to be coincidental.

What are the chances that all the teens also happened to know each other and have a long history of interactions? By that logic, Nancy or Steve should be next. He has a meeting with a few members of high school staff to ask about Jonathan and possible leads. He’s currently on his way to meet with the principal.

…

At the Byers household, Joyce is a nervous wreck and Will isn’t doing much better. Karen stayed over and is helping around the house and has already made them breakfast. She knows Ted will think it’s a waste of time, but Joyce is the closest thing she has to a friend and Jonathan has always been like a second son to her. She does her best to comfort Joyce, telling her how strong he is, and how he’ll be different, but she knows that almost nothing is actually sticking.

She’s starting to prepare lunch, and when she cooks is when she allows herself time to think. Her mind searches for differences having to do with Jonathan. Has he been doing something new that exposed him to new people? Not that she knows of. Has he angered someone dangerous? She’s not sure how he could have. More questions pass through her mind when she realizes something.

She has heard more about him lately, through her daughter. Nancy has been asking more about him and talking more about him over these past few weeks. When Nancy first started, she assumed she simply had a bit of a crush, which she still thinks, but that means that Nancy should know more about him than almost anyone. Karen can say, from experience, that it’s hard to think of anything else when you have a teenage crush.

She’s both relieved and terrified. On one hand, they can get more info from Nancy and they might be able to get somewhere with it, but on the other hand, she’ll be even more devastated when she learns of what happened. Karen’s not looking forward to telling her, or the aftermath if Hopper tells her.

...

When Hopper finishes the meeting, he wishes he had never started it. The man couldn’t care less about his individual students and didn’t even recognize their names and had to be given pictures of them. Although, he was very apt at telling the sheriff about himself and his accomplishments and the good the school has done under his authority.

His next meeting is with one of the school’s counselors. The middle-aged woman is at least more helpful than her boss, but that’s not exactly a high bar. She actually knows who Jonathan is, apparently, she knew him well because he would come in asking about scholarships and such occasionally, and he was always polite and amicable.

Although, nothing about him specifically seemed to be off at all. Hopper is about to write off this interview as a failure when the woman mentions something about Nancy and Steve. When asked to elaborate, the woman explains how it’s hard to find those three separated nowadays, but how she’s only seen contact initiated by the other two. The past week specifically, those two might as well have been his shadow.

With more pressing, she reluctantly tells Hopper about the fight between Jonathan and Tommy and Carol, which was stopped by Steve and Nancy. No one had told her or the police directly, but she hears talk, and the bruises on Jonathan’s face the few days afterwards spoke for themselves. She tells him about how Steve acted like a savage, allegedly. When asked why no one had brought this up with the police yet, the woman sheepishly explained that she didn’t want to disgrace the dead, and how she didn’t think it was related.

The rest of the conversation didn’t add much, but the gears were already turning as Hopper drives back to the police station. Any uncertainty that these kids were targeted is vaporized. It’s too perfect. There’s no way, but know Hopper needs to know just how Steve and Nancy fit into all this even more.

He has to wait for his schedule to be open enough to allow him to go get the interview he wants. So, he ends up pulling up to the Harrington house at around 6:00. The lights are on this time, and Steve’s car is back in its parking space. Hopper gets out of his truck and walks up the porch to the front door.

…

It’s one of the hardest things they have to do, but Steve and Nancy pull themselves away from paradise. Why did they have to be high schoolers? Why couldn’t they just be 18 already so they can move away and be happy? They had spent the day simply living with their beloved. They had woken up before him, and the morning light does him and his body so many favors.

They had left him his clothes and went out to make breakfast. He was up soon after, and was dressed when they came to get him. Steve had made fried eggs and toast. Nothing, gourmet but still good. Jonathan didn’t speak, just shaking his head yes or no when asked. That was alright though, he’s always quiet.

The day blurred by with movies, music, eating, and touching. Nothing strictly erotic happened, but there was more caressing and exploring than would be allowed in public. Jonathan seems to have an issue reciprocating these affections, but he just explained it as something he’s not used to. They knew, however that they should be back in town tonight in case someone wants to find them or Karen comes looking.

They planned this, and they would go back at 5:00. That means that they would have to leave their beloved behind and that put Nancy on the brink of tears, and Steve was openly crying. Before they left though, they gave Jonathan his camera back, and they told him the story about how it was a gift from both of them. He muttered a thank you, and kept it clutched to his chest the rest of the time they were there. They loved seeing him happy.

When the time came, the two of them about crushed Jonathan in their grip and promised to be back in the morning. He sat on the couch and waved as they left. Neither one of them mentioned how quiet the car ride back was.

When they got in Steve’s cold and empty house, their beloved was all they could talk about. Steve babbled on about what Jonathan might be doing in the meantime and how cute it would be. Would he be cooking himself dinner? Is he watching a movie, all bundled up in blankets? Eventually. The thoughts get more intense. Maybe he’s showering or bathing and letting the water run down his chest. Maybe he’s thinking of them and touching himself. How would he be touching himself?

Before these musings can get more graphic, there’s a knock on the door, making them both jump. Steve recenters himself as he goes to answer the door, and is surprised when Chief Hopper is on the other side of the door. Before Steve can even stutter out a greeting the man pushes his way inside. Nancy is just as bewildered judging by her expression.

“Where have you two been?” The question startles them, and Steve’s panicked mind can’t think of anything.

“We were just out having a day together.” Nancy covers. Hopper sighs.

“Well, you two just made my life harder.”

“Sorry? What’s going on?” Steve asks.

“I hate to be the one to say this, but Jonathan Byers has been kidnapped.” Silence meets his revelation.

“What?” Nancy asks numbly.

“Multiple people broke into his house and took him somewhere against his will. We have reason to believe that it was the same people responsible for the murder of Tommy and Carol.” He waits for the explosion but none comes.

“What more can you tell us?” Nancy speaks urgently.

“Nothing. It’s classified.”

“Are you sure?” Steve asks.

“Yes. Now I need to ask a few questions.”

The interview following is odd at best. They claim to know nothing about what happened, but when asked about their interactions with Jonathan they underexaggerated so much they bordered on lying. They pretended to forget completely about the fight with Tommy until pressed on. They were distressed, but not on the right scale. They seemed to react more like they learned a pet was lost rather than a friend was taken by people who have tortured and killed two people.

There was nothing incriminating per se, but it was just off. He needs more, which he just doesn’t have. His main fear is that he’ll get that ‘more’ in the form of a corpse. The news is going to go public with the missing boy, and he knows that him and his little town may get a lot of attention. The news is going to jump on the story of a serial killer in small town America. Hopper nearly groans.

…

Steve and Nancy pull up to their home a little after 9:00. Their excitement courses through their veins, and Steve’s hands tremble as he goes to unlock the several locks on the outside of the door. Luckily, they don’t have to look far for their beloved. He’s on the living room couch watching a movie. He’s looking over at them with wide eyes.

They about tackle him and smother him with kisses. He yelps and lifts his arms up to protect himself. The couple alternate kisses, allowing each other to taste their beloved. They calm down after a minute and just hold him. Every minute apart is agony for them, but heaven for Jonathan. For him, his moment of reprieve is over. He’s not sure if he can do this, if he can keep up appearances, if he can hold himself together.

Steve is sitting in front of Jonathan, trailing kisses across his neck and jawline. Steve leans back, just to be able to look in Jonathan's eyes. Steve runs his hands down Jonathan's arms, feeling the lean muscles under his fingers, and onto his hands. He grabs Jonathan’s rough and bony hands and brings them towards his face. He was going to pepper kisses over his knuckles, but he stops. Jonathan’s knuckles are bruised and scraped, and his fingertips are scratched too.

“What’s this about?” The gets Nancy’s attention, who peers over Jonathan’s shoulder to see.

“Yeah, what happened?”

“Um...well...” Jonathan stutters. Nancy tightens her grip around his midsection. Her presence is suffocating.

“Tell us, Jonathan.” She whispers coldly in his ear. Jonathan knows he’s not going to be able to come up with a convincing lie, and they’ll find out anyways, probably.

“I... I was trying to, um, open a window.” He just about whispers it.

“Oh. I see.” Nancy’s voice is ice and Steve’s silent expression matches it. “Why?” The question is a simple one with a simple answer. He wanted out.

“I’m sorry...” Jonathan says quietly. They both know exactly why. Nancy gets up from the couch to face Jonathan as well. Steve sighs.

“I thought you knew that this is your home now. You don’t need to be anywhere else.” The statement snaps something in Jonathan. Maybe it’s the last bit of denial in him that he could leave, or maybe it’s just his last bit of resolve.

“No, it’s not!” Jonathan yells in their faces, startling them. His face is red and his eyes are wild. Logically, he knows he should just shut up, but he can’t. “I want to go back to my real home with my mom and brother!”

SMACK

The back of Nancy’s hand slaps Jonathan on his cheek, hard. His head is thrown to the side and the whole side of his face stings like nothing else. Tears start flowing. Jonathan flinches back, and tries to bring up his hands to instinctively cover the pain, but Steve holds his wrists so tight they might bruise. Nancy grabs his hair and yanks it, making him look up at her and Steve. Her face is hard and unwavering.

“I’m sorry I had to do that.” Her voice is flat and controlled. “I just needed to make it clear how wrong you were. I know that these last few days have been a lot to take in, and you’re still adjusting, and I understand that, but you live here and only here.” Steve nods along, apparently in perfect agreement with her. “Did you know that I took a psychology class last semester?” Jonathan shakes his head. “It was pretty interesting, but there’s one part I specifically remember. It’s about behavior. Basically, to ensure that someone acts the way they should, good behavior is rewarded and bad behavior is punished. Now, neither of us want to punish you, but we will. We just want you to be happy, and we’ll show you the best way how.”

Steve lets go of one of Jonathan’s wrists to wipe away the tears. His hand hovers off to the side of his beloved’s face.

“Now, Jonathan. Is this your home?” Steve asks sweetly. Jonathan sobs and turns his face into the couch, not answering. Steve moves his hand to rest on the back of the other boy’s neck, which he grips.

“You’ve gotta say it, Jonathan; it’s true.” Steve’s grip tightens to a painful level. Jonathan presses his lips together and shakes his head slightly.

“SAY IT!” Steve shouts. He’s holding Jonathan’s wrist in a vice grip and his nails dig into the boy’s scalp. He pulls Jonathan's arm back, making the boy’s torso jerk forwards, but he pulls Jonathan's scalp, so his head will crane up at an uncomfortable angle. Steve twists Jonathan’s hand so much that he can feel his carpels shifting under his fingers. Jonathan cries out in agony.

“Augh! Okay! Okay!” Jonathan sniffles. “This is my home! My house! Augh, just please stop!” Steve immediately releases him, but he keeps his hand resting on the other’s neck. At this point, Nancy retakes her position behind Jonathan. He can feel her chest press into the small of his back. Her hands ghost down his sides and stop on his hips. Her fingers creep under his shirt and make small circles, which makes Jonathan tremble. Steve scoots towards him, and pulls Jonathan into his lap. Nancy adjusts too, keeping flush with his back so he’s sandwiched between them.

“There we go. That wasn’t so hard, was it?” Steve’s honeyed voice is like knives on a chalkboard. Jonathan feels him pulling on his head before Steve gently kisses him.

Steve can feel the quivering of his beloved in his lap, as well as through his lips. Steve hates seeing his beloved distressed and he hates that he technically caused it, but that’s nothing compared to the burning in his soul when he realized that Jonathan didn’t want to be here. Steve is so saddened at the state his lover is in. What did those people out there do to him to make him wrongly think he wants to go back? He and Nancy need to fix a lot more than they originally thought. They’ll wipe out all those horrible inclinations with time.

Frustration courses through Nancy’s veins. Why is Jonathan still so attached to the people out there? Doesn’t he realize that everything is better here? The fact that he’s obviously still thinking about his insane mother and fucked-up brother makes her blood boil. She knows he didn’t choose to be their family, but they never deserved him. They did nothing but hold him back. Just how many times was Jonathan not able to come over because he was babysitting Will while his mom was working late? She hates them both. She’s tempted to go out and do something soon, but if she does that, she’ll make Jonathan lash out and collapse inward on himself. However, that doesn't mean they always have to leave them alone. Once Jonathan’s connection to them naturally dies out as he realizes that this is what he wants, she can go and kill them, making sure that bridge stays burned forever.

Nancy and Steve share identical smiles as they hold their beloved. They will create plans, and, while it may be a while before they can truly cut any ties that Jonathan has left, they will make everything perfect.

…

It’s almost noon and Hopper is currently touching up the announcement of the disappearance of Jonathan Byers. It’s going to go up on local radio channels and the local news. For Hopper, it’s a bit too similar to when the younger Byers went missing, but there are some key differences. For one, Hopper never had to make the announcement himself, it didn’t warrant it, and they know that there is something actually behind this. No amount of denial can change the fact that the teen was kidnapped by a pair of psychopaths.

Hopper sighs, pics up a few papers and walks outside of the building where a camera crew is waiting for him. The sheriff clutches the papers, but he doesn't need to use them, He talks robotically as he goes through the vague details the public should know, where to contact them if they have any information, and a general warning to be safe. Once that’s done, he goes to the local radio station and repeats the message almost verbatim.

It’s a dreary task, but it’s better than what comes after it. After he’s done there is nothing more for him to do. He’s already analyzed all the evidence, interviewed everyone who’s relevant, and fried his brain trying to think of why.

In the meantime, he’s able to catch up on reports and small incidents that were put aside for the sake of this case, but he can hardly focus on them. The silent phone on his desk taunts him. He knows that neither broadcast will be out until later that afternoon, but he still wills the machine to ring with a voice that can give him exactly what he needs. He smokes more that day than he had the entire week before.

…

The rest of the day for those in the cabin ticks by. They have lunch, some pizza, watch T.V., talk, and cuddle. Around 1:00 they go let Jonathan have a nap in his room. He apparently had hardly got a wink of sleep last night, which they believe to be because they weren’t there to keep him company. While he’s sleeping, Nancy and Steve confirm their plans for this week and weeks to come.

However, the uneventfulness of the day only lasts for so long. Jonathan wakes up from his nap around 3:00. He stays in his room for a about another hour, watching a movie, but then he gets a knock on the door. It’s Steve, who tells him to come with him. Jonathan reluctantly steps into the hallway. Steve motions for him to enter their bedroom door, which Jonathan does.

His heart jumps into his throat when he sees what’s waiting for him. Nancy is sitting naked on the bed. He’s shoved completely in the room by Steve. Jonathan’s eyes are frozen on the girl as dread and terror pool in his stomach. He hears the rustle of fabric behind him, and he knows that Steve is stripping. Part of Jonathan wants to make a break for the door, another part wants to scream and attack, and another just wants to collapse. What he ends up doing is freezing in place, unable to speak or move.

His whirring thoughts are stopped dead as a pair of arms wrap around him from behind. His heart squeezes in his chest, and before he realizes it, he’s shoved Steve away and is now cowering on the floor in a corner of the room. He’s starting to have a panic attack, he knows. He’s shaking and he can hardly breathe. He vaguely hears movement elsewhere in the room.

A hand touches his shoulder, and he flinches back with a yell. He looks up and both Steve and Nancy are kneeling on the floor around him, stark naked. Steve’s the one who touched him. They’re talking to him, and he just starts to tune in.

“...okay. We’ll go slow.” Nancy says.

“Yeah, you’ll be fine once we start. I’m sure you’ll do great.” Jonathan’s heart drops when Steve says that. They’re still doing this it seems. Steve picks him up and places him on the bed without warning, making Jonathan yelp.

Nancy and Steve have both seemed to recover and have regained the lust in their eyes. They’re staring at him intensely.

“C’mon baby, take off your clothes~” Nancy purrs. Jonathan’s still panicked mind isn’t sure what to do, but he’s too emotionally fragile to make it seem like he wants this. Jonathan shakes his head.

“No, please.” Jonathan says quietly.

“No?” Steve questions and then laughs, “I’m not sure how you expect to do this with clothes on.”

“I don’t want to do this, please. I’d rather do anything else. Maybe we can go back out to the living room and cuddle, or something?” Jonathan wouldn’t really want to do that, but cuddling is a million times better than this.

CRACK

Jonathan shrieks as the belt gets whipped across his exposed arm. A red streak is already forming. Nancy has an unimpressed look on her face as she holds Steve’s discarded belt in her right hand.

“You would deny this chance to become even more connected? You would refuse us the chance to make you feel so good?” Nancy’s tone is accusing. “We do all this for you! You’ll learn to be grateful!” Jonathan tries to back away, but is held in place by Steve. Nancy breathes deep. “Steve,” she continues, “take off his shirt, please.”

Jonathan tries to squirm away, but his shirt is discarded easily.

“Put him on his stomach.” Nancy orders flatly. Jonathan’s face is promptly buried in the sheets. Steve straddles him, and sits on his thighs and ass to hold him down. Jonathan’s hands are also held behind him by Steve. Jonathan jumps when Nancy’s nails scrape down his spine. He whimpers and starts trembling.

“You know you’ve been bad, don’t you?” Nancy says slowly. Jonathan is fully shaking and weeping now. “I know you didn’t mean it, and I know you’re just scared, but you still must be punished. I love you, but I can’t just let you get away with things. But since this is your first offense, I’ll only give you, uh, let’s see... 10 lashes. Does that sound fair, Steve?” Steve nods. “Good.” Jonathan squirms and pleads under them which they ignore.

SMACK

White hot pain erupts from Jonathan’s right upper shoulder, and he howls in response.

SMACK

His right side, about halfway down his back.

SMACK

His right lower back, just above the hem of his pants. There’s a pause as Nancy moves.

SMACK

His upper left shoulder. Jonathan is no longer able to make coherent pleas.

SMACK

Half way down his back on the left side.

SMACK

Right where his hip bone juts out on the left.

SMACK

Jonathan screeches as his upper middle back is hit, overlapping the previous wounds.

SMACK

The small of his back is hit dead center.

SMACK

His middle lower spine is slashed.

SMACK

The highest one. Hits the very base of his neck.

Jonathan gasps, trying to get his breath back as the onslaught is finally over. He’s blubbering against the tear-stained mattress, but they can't quite understand him. All 10 of his lashes are starting to tear a bright red, and they are all slightly bleeding, especially the one on his neck. It occurs to Nancy that she had went a little harder than she had intended. Repeated apologizes tumble from Jonathan while Nancy motions for Steve to pull him up, which he does.

Jonathan is then sitting on the bed, his chest still heaving. His head is leaned back, and Nancy gently cups his cheek in her hand.

“You did good with your punishment. So much so that we’ll keep going.” Jonathan doesn’t respond to her, the fire in his back is too distracting. Nancy loops her fingers onto the waistline of his sweat pants, and pulls them down slowly, teasingly. Jonathan’s hands are still being held behind his back by Steve, making him unable to stop her. She tosses them to the ground, and works to do the same with his underwear. Soon enough, Jonathan is just as exposed as the others.

His breathing quickens and he wants nothing more than to curl up in a hole and die, but he’s not lucky enough for that. Steve peppers kisses down his neck and along his shoulders as Nancy’s hands roam around his abdomen and thighs. Jonathan knows what’s going to happen; there’s no point in denial anymore. He just hopes it will be over quickly with not much pain. He yelps as Steve presses his lips against one of the lashes. At this point, every slight movement of his back makes his nerves light up, which he’s actually okay with. He’d rather focus on the ache in his back than what’s happening lower.

One of Jonathan’s hands is released, but is grabbed by Nancy. He then hears a pop as the tube of lube is opened behind him. Steve kisses his neck and nips at him, and Nancy crashes her mouth on his as Steve starts prepping him with his fingers to swallow his scream. Jonathan’s not sure if he’d rather have no prep instead. On one hand I'd be done quicker, but he’d also be about torn in half. Nancy reaches behind him and takes the lube, of which she puts some in her hand and begins stroking him with it.

“Now, we’re going to let you go. Don’t make us restrain you again.” Steve whispers in his ear. With that his wrists are free. Of course, he has the impulse to start swinging, but he knows he’s trapped and that would only earn him and even worse punishment than a few swings from a belt. Even still, he’s not sure what to do with his hands, and he settles on trying to hide his face.

The other two don’t seem to notice, and they decide that they’re done prepping. Much to Jonathan’s dismay, his body is reacting again. However, if his choice is this or facing the wrath of people who consider physical abuse to be needed and not a big deal, at least with this, he knows what to expect.

Nancy smiles up evilly at him, and she lays down on her back. She lifts her legs to hook them around Jonathan’s hips so that his cock is aligned with her pussy. She’s fully spread and he can see everything. The sight makes him queasy. He’s actually glad when Steve moves his hands to Jonathan’s ass and pushes him inside her, because Jonathan’s not sure if he’d be able to do it himself. Steve takes Jonathan’s hands and moves them away from his face and places them on Nancy’s bony sides. Nancy is playing with her nipples and her smile about splits her face in two.

Steve inches forwards till he’s just about leaning against Jonathan’s back, but he doesn't touch him because of the bleeding gashes. His hands clasp on Jonathan’s ass and spread his cheeks before slowly pushing in. Jonathan’s hold on Nancy tightens as his body tenses. This movement causes more bleeding from his back and bright red droplets run down his shiny skin. The metallic scent of copper is thick in the air.

They pause as they become as close to each other as they physically can. There is nothing comparable to the ecstasy that the psychopaths are experiencing. Even their first time with Jonathan is somehow dull compared to this. It’s the three of them finally together, with no one held down or restrained, and, as far as they’re aware, everyone is willing. For Jonathan, there is little more than pain in every sense of the word. His back is crying hot red tears, begging for mercy, the pressure and friction inside him is suffocating, and Nancy is so hot and tight that he’s almost being burned by the friction alone.

There are differences between this time and the time before. When it was just one of them at a time, he wasn’t so overwhelmed. His body quivers with all the sensations being thrown at it. A whole new level of violation comes with the threesome, but there’s a sliver of security now that he’s done this before. It’s not much, but he’ll take what he can get. He nearly rolls his eyes at how desperate he truly is.

Steve starts moving, jerking Jonathan out of thoughts. The tearing is worse than it was before, and Jonathan’s not sure why. The thrusting causes Jonathan to start moving inside Nancy. Steve’s hands push and pull on his hips, making him thrust deep and hard into her. The pace escalates so much so that Steve is doing more to fuck into Nancy than Jonathan is. Nancy is moaning obscenely, and Jonathan just wishes she’d shut up. Steve’s kisses and nips evolve into much harder bites,

Jonathan knows he’s nearing his peak as warmth pools in his lower abdomen. Silent tears run down his face and he’s not sure if that’s because of the shame and hatred or the sheer pain, but it’s probably a bit of both. It occurs to him that he hasn’t cried this much in several years.

As Steve smashes into him again, burying him in Nancy’s tight heat, he cums with a scream. The muscles in his back tense and his entire being is in agony. He notes that he’s not wearing a condom again as he fills Nancy. Nancy shrieks under him, and he wouldn’t be surprise if the windows crack from the noise. Steve’s jaw clamps down on the end on his right shoulder where it meets his arm. Steve’s teeth tear into the soft flesh and crimson spills into Steve’s mouth. Jonathan howls and jerks away reaching up to desperately push Steve off. However, Steve releases him before he can.

Steve’s teeth are stained red, and a piece of flesh around 3 inches long and 1.5 inch across is gone from Jonathan’s body. Steve turns his head and spits, and a slap sounds on the floor beside them. Jonathan shakes and sobs as he covers the wound with his left hand. Steve pulls out of him and steps off the bed, and Nancy sits up on the bed in front of Jonathan, letting him slip out of her, and looks towards the injury. Blood is running out between her beloved’s fingers and his face is twisted in agony. Steve walks out of the room, presumably to get the first aid kit.

She holds his face in her hands and kisses his forehead. She comforts him, telling him that everything’s okay and that Steve didn’t mean it. Steve walks in with their med bag. Jonathan’s eyes widen when he sees him, and he inches back behind Nancy. Nancy gives Steve a look.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to! I... I just... you and Nancy were so beautiful... I just couldn’t help myself!” Steve babbles.

“Well, that’s nice Steve, but you did more than give a little nip.” Nancy scolds. She coaxes Jonathan into moving his hand. Steve winces at the sight, and apologizes again. Nancy just sighs and goes to clean the wound. They can’t exactly go to a hospital, so they have to settle for just cleaning it and using gauze and bandages.

“There we go.” Nancy mutters, as Jonathan’s shoulder is wrapped. “Now, I need you to lay on your belly.” She tells him.

“Why?” He asks quietly.

“We’re not just going to leave your punishment untreated.” She says softly. Jonathan nods and shifts so he’s on his stomach. It’s always nerve-racking when he can’t see them, but Nancy’s hands gently rest on his back. She takes a wet wash cloth and gently wipes off the blood.

“You were so good at taking us that we’re going to give you all the care in the world. Other times, we wouldn’t do this after the stunt you pulled at the end there, with shoving us off, but that wasn’t your fault.” The last statement is sharper, but not directed at him. “If you had done that on your own, we would have left you to deal with these on your own.”

She takes some lotion with aloe and starts gently massages it into his skin. The cooling is like heaven, even as his shoulder throbs. She gets every part of his irritated skin, and takes care not to hurt him more.

After around 10 minutes of massaging him, she stops and steps back, Jonathan figures they’re done and he will have to get up, but a larger more calloused hand rests on his back. He flinches hard and visibly at the touch, but stays silent. Steve sighs.

“That’s your fault.” Nancy all but whispers.

“I know! And I feel awful for it!” Steve whines. He runs his hands up and down Jonathan’s back. “I’m sorry, I know I scared you, but I promise I’ll never hurt you again,” Steve says lowly,

“... Okay.” Jonathan whispers. He doesn’t really forgive him, but he doesn’t want to know how they would react to him holding a grudge.

“Thank you! I don’t know what I’d do if you hated me.” Steve laughs, and Jonathan nearly does too. If only they knew...

Steve then proceeds to bandage the lashes and stop the bleeding. He hugs Jonathan from behind, and kisses his hair. He gets off after, and let’s Jonathan get off the bed. He waits for them to leave before going to his room and dressing. It’s a little difficult with a partially functioning arm, but he manages.

Once he’s alone, horror sinks into his gut. His thoughts drift towards his brother and mother again. He’s worried how they’re managing without him, but more than anything, he just wants to be around someone he can trust. He wants to be held in his mom’s arms like when he was young, and he wants to hear his brother’s sweet voice run on about his latest campaign again. Longing and loneliness curl around his soul, squeezing the air out of him. He has no idea what’s happening outside this cabin, and he has no indication on whether or not they’re close to finding him. Jonathan’s hope is crumbling, and he has the thought that he may have to just get himself out when he has a chance. But he’s not sure what that would be or when. He may be here for a long time.

Just like the day before, Nancy and Steve leave the house to go back to their lives, which is a luxury Jonathan hopes to gain. They promise him that they’ll be back around noon. They explain that they’ll go to school for only as long as they have to, and they’ll leave at lunchtime. Jonathan’s not sure whether it’s better that they tell him when they’ll be back. It’s like knowing when you’re going to die; the paranoia is overwhelming, but he also knows when he’s safe.

They’re out of the house by 5:30, and the house is drowned in silence. It’s soothing, and he loves it. This time is different than the first time he was left alone. Before he only had access to his room and the living room and kitchen; now, every room inside the house is open.

His heart races as he pushes the door to their room open. He doesn’t want to be in here, but he has to know if there is something to use to open the door or the windows. It still reeks of metal, and the sheets are spotted with a deep and rich crimson.

He checks the dresser first. It has 4 rows of drawers with 2 drawers in each row. Jonathan opens the top two first, and the left one is filled with Steve’s various underwear, socks, and the like while the right has Nancy’s. The next row has various shorts and pants, again split between Steve and Nancy by left and right. The third row has shirts. It’s not until he gets to the fourth that he finds something. The left drawer is completely empty, but the right has a small stack of papers.

Jonathan grabs these papers curiously. He thumbs through them and counts 5 pages. The first 4 have writing on them, but the last is blank. He scans the first page, and it contains a list of seemingly random items in Steve’s distinct sharp and neat handwriting. The top of the page is marked with T.H it lists “a hammer, a decent shovel, and remember to buy switchblade 4:00 Tuesday.” It doesn’t make much sense to the boy.

The next paper has a near identical format. However, this one is in Nancy’s loopy chicken scratch. In the top right corner, C.P in written with three lines under it. This one is a straight up bullet list. “-A tarp, -Jumper cables, -Gasoline, -Remade iron, -Taser, -take soon after school.” Jonathan doesn’t understand this either, but he knows it can’t be good.

Nancy wrote the third. This one is a few simple drawings with Mr. T in the top left corner. There’s a drawing of a regular car with a few notes on its model and color and such off to the side. At the bottom, “Break line” is circled and “Use screwdriver/something not obvious” is off to the side. Jonathan has an idea what this, and the previous ones, could mean, and he prays to whatever may or may not be listening for him to be wrong.

The fourth page is much busier than the rest, and both of them had written on it. Jonathan freezes, he knows exactly what this one is. It’s their plan to kidnap him. It lists when he would get home and where his mom and brother would be at what times. It talks about how Nancy would sneak in, and let Steve in behind her, and the date for last Friday is circled. Doodles of hearts littler the paper.

Jonathan puts down the paper and takes a breath. He glances back to the three other papers. Pieces are clicking in his head. Steve and Nancy are the ones behind the murders. He wishes that he could be more surprised, but after all they’ve done, who else could it be?

Jonathan crumples to the ground. He’s being held captive by a pair of murderers. Why are they keeping him? Why not just kill him? Are they dragging this out to torture him? They keep saying that they love him, and maybe in their minds, they do. Panic courses through his veins and he’s more desperate for a way out, but he also has half a mind to do nothing that could possibly upset them. They don’t try and hurt him if he’s ‘good’. It wouldn’t be a glamorous fate by any means, but if he can be their wonderful little sex toy, he might survive. He could be those psychopaths’ dirty whore just like they want him to be. The thought makes him want to die, which is ironic considering what might happen if they get bored of him.

He spends the rest of the evening searching the house for anything to use, but there’s nothing. If he’s learned anything in these past few hours, it’s that these people plan well. However, he knew them well before this, and he knows that both Steve and Nancy can be rash, and he knows that once they get comfortable, they'll slip. They’ll forget something or say something that gives him a chance. He can be patient. He just hopes that he doesn't have to be.

…

Robin Buckley would not call herself a stalker. Sure, she likes to listen to people but she’s never been malicious. Most of the time she just listens to know how to avoid those insufferable popular kids, or because she has nothing better to do. The stuff she hears tends to vary from the mildly interesting, to the unbelievable, to the straight up boring. Unless it’s from a certain girl, but Robin doesn’t need to be distracted right now. She’s currently thinking of something she heard last Friday.

She was in her history class, kinda boring, but not hard. Unfortunately, she sits directly behind Mr. And Mrs. Popular. To be fair, they’re far from the dumbest or most obnoxious people in the school, but that doesn't mean Robin cares for them. She hates the principles about the high school social structure they represent more than anything else, but she’s getting off track.

On Fridays, the teacher almost always makes it a work day, which is appreciated, but most kids just talk with their friends. That day was no different, and while Robin had her face buried in a book, Steve and Nancy were sitting and talking. If that’s all that was happening, Robin would never have even looked up. They were acting strangely. They were leaned into each other and whispering; they almost seemed to be nervous.

Robin didn’t know the context behind what they were saying, and she wishes she did. They were talking about a ‘him’ that they never called anything else. They spoke about when ‘he’ was home, and what they should do on their first night together. Robin almost moved away from her book at that. First night? She was pretty sure that, by now, nothing those two did together was ‘new’ or a ‘first’.

Robin listened more intently after that. She still wasn’t sure who or what they were talking about, but their words didn’t take long to fully move from odd to creepy. They talked about cute ‘he’ looked when asleep and that ‘he’d’ be completely alone apart from them. The class ended before she could hear more.

It’s just one of those things that sticks in the mind, even if it has no reason to. There’s nothing other than a gut feeling that’s making her skip the first part of school in favor of going to the police station, but if she doesn’t, she thinks she might burn up from the inside. She’s more thankful than ever that she hadn’t told anyone else yet. If this turns out to be nothing, if she just misunderstood a perfectly innocuous conversation, she’s the only one who will know, and she won’t have to suffer the ridicule.

She learned of Jonathan Byers’ missing status last night. Her mother had been listening to the radio when she tuned in on the call from the police and had dragged in her daughter to hear it to. Robin was hit with the memories of that conversation as her mother shook her head and muttered about how the world was going down the drain. Robin had spent most of that night in her bed, agonizing on whether or not to tell anyone, until she eventually decided that she’d always wonder if she didn’t.

She sits in her running car for a moment in the police station parking lot. She turns her key and pockets it as she gets out of the car. Her backpack is on the backseat, and as far as her mother is aware, Robin’s at school like normal.

When she walks into the building, it’s messier than she had imagined. Papers and old coffee cups are on almost every available desk. The place reeks of cigarettes, and the lights lightly hum with electricity. No one notices her at first, and she walks up to the nearest person, an older woman, who, if the name tag on the desk is correct, is named Flo. The woman looks up at the teen as she approaches, and her cold gaze is unnerving.

“What do you need?” Flo asks in her shrill voice. Robin swallows. No going back now.

“I need to speak to the sheriff.” She says firmly.

“What for?” The woman seems unimpressed.

“I think I might know something about Jonathan Byers.” Flo blinks, and her bored demeaner is replaced with something a little more urgent. She gets up from her desk and goes to an office. Robin is left standing for a few seconds before the woman pokes her head out and waves her over. Robin rushes over, and Flo holds the door open for her.

Robin has never had much of an opinion about Sherrif Hopper, but the man before her isn’t what she expected. He’s leaning forward with his chin in his hand, staring a hole in his desk. In his other hand, a lit smoke is sitting. There are several papers and files across his desk. He doesn't look like he’s slept in days. He has bags under his eyes, his clothes are wrinkled, and his hair is a mess. It strikes her that this is very serious stuff that she’s just waltzing into. Hopper looks up at her, and motions for her to sit. Flo leaves and closes the door behind her.

“So, you know something ‘bout this?” He speaks lowly and with a suspicious tone.

“Yes.” She nods.

“Okay, spill.” He leans back in his chair and pulls out a small notepad. He snatches a pen from a cup on the corner of his desk. He clicks the end of his pen, and waits for her.

“I believe that Nancy Wheeler and Steve Harrington have something to do with it, or know something about it, at least.” Hopper’s eyes blow up, and he sits up straight. He scribbles something in his notes. The reaction spurs Robin on.

“I have a couple classes with them, and I heard them talking in my history class on Friday.” She proceeds to tell him everything. He doesn’t stop her, and by the time she’s done, she’s on a roll. Now she’s telling him about what she suspects.

“I mean, what are the chances that everyone who’s been attacked has known Steve and Nancy? God, after their fight with Tommy, you shoulda seen how they looked at him with such hatred.”

Hopper is writing down everything he hears. This isn’t the first hint he’s heard so far, but it is the only one that seems to have something behind it. Now he’s certain that those two are behind this. He’s not sure in what capacity, maybe they’re covering for someone behind the scenes, or they might be acting all on their own. He still doesn't have a motive behind it that would make any sort of sense, but he can’t ignore the evidence all the same.

Robin leaves shortly after that, and Hopper is already in his vehicle. He speeds down to the Harrington house. He calls in for help to meet him there.

The house is empty, which isn’t surprising. The team that’s already there isn’t quite sure what they’re doing, and Hopper simply tells them to put on their gloves and be ready to start collecting evidence. He walks around the back of the house, and the tool pile is sitting exactly how he last saw it.

“This is what we’re here for. There may be some very valuable evidence in there. Get searching.” Hopper commands.

The team doesn’t take long to start taking apart the pile. Soon enough, they hit gold. On the tarp, there’s a few golden strands of hair stuck under the tools. They are taken away in bags. Out of the corner of his eye, Hopper spots a glint. It’s revealed to be a knife. The pile is taken away, and Hopper prepares to go collect his suspects.

…

What Hopper isn’t aware of is that his suspects are gone, Steve and Nancy had driven to Steve’s house at lunch to pick up a few things, but the cops were already there. Without a word, the pair continues driving, making a choice. They go to a gas station, fill up their tank, and grab some more food. They stop by the bank, and make a hefty withdrawal from Steve’s parents’ account. They know exactly what they’re doing now.

The pair is silent as they pull up to their house. They’ll ahead of schedule, but they can work with it. Before they go in, they talk, making sure that they’re on the same page.

They are going to be leaving Hawkins, and they never plan on returning. They are going to go far away, possibly over a border or two. They have enough funding to make it around the world. However, they think Canada would be far enough. They’ll never see their birth family again, the ones that would turn them in and betray them if they got the chance. The three of them can simply exist and create their own family. Nancy hasn’t taken her birth control is several months, and she and Steve haven’t had any vaginal sex, condom or not. She loves the idea of Jonathan’s sperm swimming around in her, impregnating her.

When they walk in the door, Jonathan is in the kitchen, eating lunch. He’s sitting on the couch with a simple ham and cheese sandwich. This reunion is much less energetic than the last one, mainly because they will not have to leave him again. However, there is still plenty of kissing and caressing.

They check over Jonathan and he doesn’t have any news wounds, and nothing is out of place. They make sure to reward him with love just bordering on the explicit. They would love nothing more than to fuck him into their mattress again, but they have to pack and get on the road. They do have to do something first.

Steve holds Jonathan while Nancy gets something from the car. They love him, but they don’t quite think he’s ready to be out of their sight. She comes back with a black leather collar and matching leash in her hands. Jonathan’s eyes widen when he sees them and his eyes flick from the items to Nancy’s face.

“Don’t worry. It won’t hurt, and you’ll look so cute.” She reassures him, and Steve rubs his back in comforting circles. She walks behind him, and his breathing becomes shallower. The cold leather presses against Jonathan’s neck. There’s a slight tugging as she adjusts it, and with a click it’s locked on. She uses a key so there’s no way he’d be able to take it off himself. There’s a small silver tag that sits heavily against his collar bone, and he’d later learn that it says “Property of Steve Harrington and Nancy Wheeler”.

Jonathan feels sick. He hates the thing with all his being. While he’d love to tear at it and scream at them, his will to live overpowers it. Compared to what they did to Tommy and Carol, a collar is like being treated to the fanciest restaurant in the state. His resolve is tested further when Steve clips on the leash on a metal ring on the front of the collar.

Steve simply holds the leash for a moment before yanking it. Jonathan gags and his head snaps forward. Steve grins wolfishly, and Nancy’s hands burn his shoulders through his shirt.

“On second thought, we can wait to start packing.” Steve says lowly. Jonathan wants to ask what he means by ‘packing’, but tugging on his leash stops him and makes him stand. Nancy is now the one holding it, and she leads him to his room.

“We’d do this in our room, but we haven’t cleaned up in there yet.” Nancy says. Jonathan’s shoulder and back seem to throb in response. She unclips the leash just long enough to take his shirt off before returning it. Steve also makes quick work of removing his pants and boxers. Jonathan goes completely red and turns his head away from them. He’s now standing in front of them completely exposed. He moves one arm to cover his crotch and the other goes over his chest. He glances back and meets their eyes for a split second. They’re sitting next to each other on the bed, and Nancy is still holding the leash. Their eyes are dark and focused directly on him.

“Wow,” Steve whispers breathily, “This might be the best decision we’ve ever made.” He says to Nancy, who nods in agreement. She leans over to Steve and whispers something in his ear, and the face splitting grin that Steve gets makes Jonathan tremble in fear.

Steve gets off the bed and sits on the floor in front of the other boy. He positions himself so he’s flat on the floor with his head pointed towards the bed a couple feet away. Steve then pats his stilled clothed chest, and tells the boy to sit, which Jonathan does hesitantly. He straddles Steve’s chest, and Nancy sits on the edge of the bed with her legs spread. She had taken off her underwear and folded her skirt up, revealing all her folds.

Nancy pulls on the leash so Jonathan will lean closer to her center, he chokes as the leather strains around his neck. Steve grabs Jonathan’s hips and ass roughly enough to bruise, and pulls him forward. He drags the boy closer to his face. Steve is able to kiss and lick the tip of Jonathan’s cock at this distance, but he wants more.

As Steve teases Jonathan’s cock, eliciting beautiful groans from him, Nancy tugs on the leash once more. Jonathan fully moves into Steve’s mouth and his own mouth comes in contact with Nancy’s vagina.

Jonathan almost wishes that she would just fuck him like how she’s done before. This is less painful than before, but at least he didn’t have to be an active participant. He could just be there and wait for it to be over, but if he doesn’t try to do this, Nancy will most certainly notice. He’s just petrified that he’ll not be good enough to please her. He just wants to not be hurt again.

Tears run down his face as he begins licking and sucking on her lips. The sour taste makes him want to vomit. His mind pounds in the fact that he’s trying to get a murderer to orgasm. He tries to shake it off though. It’s either this or being beaten within an inch of his life.

Nancy keeps all the slack out of his leash, and pulls his hair with her other hand. She moans praise and about how good he’s doing, which sits heavy in his gut.

Steve’s eagerness is obvious as well. He’s got one hand on Jonathan’s hip, holding him in place, and the other in his pants. Jonathan can feel the vibrations from Steve’s moans through his cock.

Jonathan can’t help but feel relieved as Nancy’s hold on his hair and her tugging on the leash increases, because that means she must be close. The only issue is that Jonathan is seriously struggling to breathe. His face is turning blue as the tears of panic run down his face, and he reaches up and starts to claw at the collar on his neck. Neither of them notice. When Nancy finally screams as waves of pleasure crash over her, Jonathan is passing out of lack of oxygen.

The next few minutes are blurry for Jonathan, and the next thing he’s aware of is him lying on the bed with Steve and Nancy both leaning over him, seemingly concerned. He starts remembering what happened. He tries to sit up, but a hand on his chest stops him. His heart seizes and he begins to hyperventilate.

“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to pass out! I’m sorry!” Jonathan rambles on. “Please don’t hurt me...” He trails off, weeping. He hides his face in his arms.

“Don’t you start that. You didn’t do anything wrong. I should be the one apologizing. I pulled too tightly.” Nancy says firmly.

“Yeah, if anything, you should be rewarded.” Steve starts while rubbing the inside of his thigh. “You still got us to finish, even though you didn’t.” Jonathan realizes that Steve is right. He never came, but he’s fine with that. He’s just happy that he won’t be punished.

Jonathan flinches when Steve’s mouth wraps around his length again. Steve holds his legs apart to give him full access to Jonathan. Apparently, he was serious about the reward. Jonathan doesn’t last long in his fragile state. Steve swallows everything.

“I’ve been dying to taste you again, and it’s even better than I expected.” Steve purrs.

They let him be in his room after that. He takes a shower in his bathroom before getting dressed. Whenever his hand brushes his collar, he’s reminded that he’s now an item, a thing to be owned. He can already tell that there’s going to be a mess of bruises on his neck soon.

Nancy and Steve are part way through their packing, but they’re taking longer than they thought they would. Originally, they thought they could knock this out in a few hours, even with their distraction with Jonathan’s new accessory. They won’t be done until late tonight or early tomorrow morning, and they’d rather do it tonight. They could move along faster if they had Jonathan help, but they forbid him to. He’s already done and accommodated for so much, and he’s made wonderful progress, so this could be another reward for him. They do get a bit sidetracked whenever they catch a glimpse of the black leather around his neck. It’s just so wonderful and attractive to have something tangible claiming him to be theirs. They continue to pack regardless.

…

Hopper has more than enough evidence to get a search warrant for the two teens, but when he goes to the high school, it turns out they hadn’t come back after lunch. He’s so close to getting them, but he doesn’t know where they could be.

After thinking on it, he figures a few things. One, they more than likely know the cops are onto them by now, and two, they need a place to have their base of operations. Hopper sends a team of his cops to the local gas stations and stores to see if they had stopped there. If they are running, they need gas and supplies.

Hopper thinks on how absent the two have been over the past few weeks, and he knows that they can’t just be sleeping in their car, especially if they have a kidnapped victim. That means that they have somewhere to stay. It has to be decently sized, but also relatively close to town. They could either be in an abandoned or uninhabited house, or they may be paying for some place.

He finds the numbers to all the real estate companies that operate in Hawkins and he gets the addresses to all vacant properties. This process takes a few hours, and the cops he sent to the stores and gas stations have returned. The only one that collected anything useful was a new recruit straight from the academy named Mallery Gunn who got a positive identification from a cashier at a 7-11 on the outskirts of town. Just like Hopper thought, the pair had gotten gas, water, and assorted food.

Hopper calls Gunn into his office to send him on a task. The sheriff orders him to the bank to collect Steve Harrington’s and his parents' financial records. If the funding to do this came from anywhere, it would come from there. Hopper and the rest of the police spread out to check the list of addresses across town.

They comb through every one, and they didn’t get done until dark. They find nothing. Hopper comes back and is met by a very excited officer Gunn. It didn’t take the recruit long to get the records, but they were thick, and he had only just gotten through them. He had found somethings of interest.

Apparently, since the beginning of the year, Steve had been taking out much more money than he ever had; to the point that it would be concerning to the parents. March, however, is the most telling. Starting on the second Friday of March, every week there was a withdrawal of $550 every following Friday. Except for this last Friday that Jonathan went missing, which had a transaction of $2200, exactly 4 times more. One more line gets his attention. Earlier today, Steve withdrew several thousand dollars. Hopper just knows that he just found out how they’re affording to hide and what they’re planning.

All of these transactions were cash withdrawals made by Steve, the only thing to do now is to find whom that money was going to. Luckily, Hopper has a few contacts that may be able to help. While small town Hawkins is nothing compared to the previous places Hopper has worked, but it still has its underworld. It’s not homicide or gangs, but it is drugs, meth and crack mostly.

Both those that make and take those drugs need places to do what they do. There is a small, but existing market for places where people don’t check in or ask questions as long as they get their checks. The people whom supply those shelters are not going to care about the details of why someone is buying.

Hopper and the rest of the police station have some people they know well that may know some names. Hopper calls in to the Hawkins jail, and asks to meet up with Amit Robin, a man whose been convicted of multiple drug charges, and is currently being held for possession of meth. Hopper doesn’t care about the hour when he demands to meet up with Amit as soon as possible. The poor secretary on the other end of the line hastily sends out orders to the jail workers.

Hopper gets to the jail at 8:00, and he about shoves past the workers towards the interrogation room. Amit is sitting at the desk, appearing rather bored until Hopper walks in. Amit is a tanned man with black hair and a scraggly beard. His eyes are sunken in and red.

“Well, hello there chief! What brings you here at such an hour?” Amit’s voice is smooth and playful.

“I have some questions for you.” Hopper replies coldly.

“Really? As far as I understand it, my case is pretty open and shut.” Amit is genuinely surprised.

“Not about that. I’m working on a different case, and you may be able to help me.”

“Why would I do that? Or even know anything?”

“This case is a big deal right now, and if you helped me, I could put in quite the word for you and your sentence.” Understanding floods on Amit’s face.

“This is about that high school killer, isn’t it?” Hopper just nods. “Listen man, I didn’t have nothing to do with that.” Amit raises his hands.

“I’m not saying you did, but you may know someone who could lead me to them.” Amit nods.

“Okay, what do you want to know?”

“I’m looking for someone that could provide a place that would be off the grid. Somewhere that no one would check in on. We think that this may be someone who provides places for drug dealers and makers. Would you know someone who would fit this description?”

Amit thinks. He hums as his hand is on his chin. After a minute of this, Amit clicks his tongue and snaps his fingers.

“Ah! I think I may know someone. Brayden Melton has helped out quite a few people like me. I’ve only ever met him once, but he led me to a house filled with other addicts. I couldn’t tell you where it is, but he always seems to know where everyone is.” Hopper writes down the name and the address Amit gives him.

“Thank you for your help. I’ll put in a good word.” Amit smiles.

“Any time, chief!” The door closes behind Hopper, cutting off anything more the man would say.

When Hopper gets in his car, he radios in for a unit to come meet him at the address. It occurs to him that it’s been a long time since he’s been up this late on a case, but this case is too serious. The killers seem to be gearing up to run, and they may still have Jonathan Byers. His chances don’t seem great, but he’s presumed to be alive until there’s evidence to the contrary.

They reach the house at 9:00. Hopper’s eyes flick to his car’s clock and his own watch multiple times. The other cop car is already there. The Sherrif pounds on the door. A large man in a tank top and shorts answers the door.

“The fuck you want?” The man rasps, not seeming to care that he’s talking to a cop.

“Are you Brayden Melton?”

“Yea, what of it?”

“We need you to come with us.” Hopper says simply.

With a bit of a struggle, they haul him off to the station for an interrogation. Hopper knows that there’s probably a better way to do this, and he may be cutting a few corners, but he can’t bring himself to care.

They wrestle him into an interrogation room as he swears up the place. Hopper gets straight to the point.

“Did you ever rent out a house to Steve Harrington or Nancy Wheeler?” Brayden is shocked.

“Did I do what?”

“Did you provide a house for them to use recently? We know you rent out houses to a crowd that isn’t exactly on the same side as the law.” That’s a bluff, they have no real evidence to that claim, but he doesn’t need to know that. Brayden’s eyes widen, and he starts sweating.

“Well, let’s not be too hasty! That’s a wild accusation!” Brayden is twitchier than ever, and Hopper knows he’s right.

“I don’t think it’s that crazy. But you could help me understand it more. Maybe we simply misunderstood your business.” Brayden stays silent. “Okay, in that case, we can just lock you away forever. According to the report, you’ll be the ultimate enabler for the worst people this country has to offer. You just sat back and counted your cash as people die and get tortured. You knew exactly what was happening and you did nothing!” Hopper yells at him.

“Fine! I may, uh, provide housing for people who need it for different reasons than what most people do. I don’t look into what they do, as per my policy, for their benefit.” Brayden concedes.

“So, how many properties do you have like this in Hawkins?”

“In Hawkins? Only 2.” Hopper jots that down.

“Has someone by the name Steve Harrington or Nancy Wheeler used those properties recently?”

“Names are rare in my business. I wouldn’t know.” Brayden says immediately.

“How about times? Did anyone start using one of these in March?”

“Yeah, my forest cabin. Rent’s 550 a week, which they’ve been faithful to, but recently they gave me a major advance for the next month.”

“Did you ever meet with the person who rents it?”

“Only once. It was strange. She was a tiny thing, all prim and proper, but she acted like she knew what the hell she wanted.” Hopper’s eyebrows raise at that. He grabs the case file in front of him and pulls out a picture of Nancy Wheeler.

“It wouldn’t happen to be this girl, would it?”

“Oh, yeah! That’s for sure her!”

Hopper gets the address for the house and directions, before arresting Brayden. He’s fairly certain that he doesn't have anything resembling the authority to be selling homes, and the oversight couldn’t be laxer. However, Hopper can’t bring himself to care much.

...

Hopper assembles his forces at the station to run forth to the cabin. He doesn’t know if they’re still there, but he’s not going to risk it. He also radios for an ambulance to arrive there, but it won’t be there until the police have already been there for several minutes.

The sheriff leads the charge, as red and blue lights light up the sleeping town. There’s almost no one on the road. The dirt road they turn onto is the definition of out of the way, but a rusted road sign at its mouth confirms that they are going the right way.

Meanwhile at the cabin, Nancy is loading a box into the back of Steve’s car, and they are almost ready to go. They have taken everything they own from this place and stored it away. However, something catches her eye. A flash of blue through the tree line, and as she stops, making no movement, the distant wail of sirens reaches her ears.

“Shit!” She curses. Their home is the only inhabited one on this road, so there’s no way the police are going anywhere else. The road is also the only one that connects to the house. There’s no way to drive away from the cops, and the terrain is too rough to even consider off roading. She knows what’s going to happen. She runs over the glovebox of the car and takes out a pistol and the ammo.

“We have a problem!” She shouts to Steve, who is emptying their fridge. Jonathan is in his room.

“What?” Steve asks alarmed at the sight of the pistol.

“Cops.” She says simply. Steve sighs.

“They just don’t know when to quit do they?” He asks.

“Nope.”

“I’ll go secure Jonathan, and then grab the rifle.” Nancy nods and starts locking down the house.

Steve grabs a thin rope from their room, and walks into Jonathan’s. Said boy is startled by the swinging open of the door. With no words, Steve shoves him onto his stomach and wraps his hands together behind his back. Jonathan is muttering questions, but Steve ignores him. He drags Jonathan off of the bed, and throws him to the floor in front of the foot of the bed. He attaches the leash, and ties it taught against one of the legs of the bed. Jonathan’s restraints make him incapable of unclipping the leather.

“You’ll be safe here, I promise.” Steve says to him before leaving the room and closing the door. Jonathan hears the clicking of locks on the other side of the door, trapping him.

Steve rushes out the door to get his rifle from his car. The cop cars are closer, he doesn’t have to listen for the sirens anymore, and the sides of the house get rhythmically bathed in blue and red light. He takes the gun from the backseat and a box of ammo. He runs back inside the house, where Nancy is waiting to lock the door behind him. They both load their guns, and wait.

Hopper can now see the house on the horizon, and he presses the gas a little more. He knows he shouldn’t on a thin dirt road he’s never driven on at night, but the adrenaline pumping through him says otherwise.

His breaks squeal as he pulls up to the house. In a few seconds, two other cars pull up behind him. Him and his other officers get out of their cars locked and loaded. They take cover behind their vehicles. The car sitting in front of the house, full of stuff, and the dim light coming through the windows is indication enough that they’re home. Hopper brings out his megaphone.

“Nancy Wheeler and Steve Harrington! Come out with your hands up!” He waits, there’s no response. “If you do not comply, we will use force!” Still nothing. Hopper signals to go forward. Officer Callahan slowly walks towards the house, pistol pointed up.

BANG!

Callahan screams, clutches his leg and falls to the ground. He crawls back towards his car, and just gets behind cover when another shot rings out. Hopper looks and sees two holes straight through the wall of the building.

A few more shots come from the house, when Gunn comes up to Hopper with an idea. Gunn and some other cops will go around the sides of the house and try and get them from there, or at least distract them so Hopper can come in from the front.

He does just that, and as shots ring out from the side of the house, Hopper creeps up to the front door. Hopper presses himself against the wall next to the door, and when the next shot rings out, he kicks down the door and runs in.

Steve Harrington is facing away from him towards the kitchen window where Gunn is. He spins to face Hopper and lifts the muzzle of his gun towards the cop, but Hopper is faster. The sheriff pulls the trigger and with a bang, Steve falls to the floor dead. The bullet went through his head, killing him instantly.

A scream of rage comes from his left, and he looks over to see Nancy lifting her gun towards him. The world slows and Hopper is certain that he’s not winning this one. He’s expecting agony to tear through him, if he survives at all. A bang just about deafens him, but there’s no pain. He didn’t even realize he had closed his eyes until he had to open them.

He looks over to his attacker, only to see her on the ground, clutching her chest in a puddle of her own blood. She gasps and groans before going limp. Hopper turns to the kitchen window, and Gunn is there holding his pistol. He gives Hopper a thumbs-up. Hopper makes a mental note to promote him or give him a raise at least after this is over.

Hopper checks the living room and kitchen before moving down the hall. He doesn’t think anyone else is here, but you can never be too certain. He ducks in the laundry room to find nothing. The main bathroom is also empty. The right bedroom is empty, but he spots dried blood on the bed, and he knows he’ll be coming back here. The last room to check isn’t like the others. This one is locked, but on the outside. He tells one of the cops to grab the keys he saw on the kitchen counter earlier, and once he has them, he unclicks the locks. He pushes open the door.

Hopper is both immensely happy and horrified but what he finds. Jonathan Byers is alive and well, but he’s curled up on the floor strapped to the bed, his hands behind his back, and he’s wearing a fucking dog collar. He’s whimpering, and not looking at them.

Without bothering to check the rest of the room, Hopper puts his gun away and rushes to the boy. He unclips the leash, and, using the keys he found, he unlocks the collar letting it fall to the floor. He takes out his swiss army knife and cuts through his binds. Jonathan finally looks up at him, and gasps.

“Hopper?” His voice is so quiet and scratchy, and his face is tear-stained.

“Yeah, kid, it’s me. You’re okay now.” Jonathan jumps forward and wraps his arms around the sheriff, and sobs into the man’s shoulder. On one hand, Hopper is ecstatic to be holding the teen, knowing he’s alive, but he knows that this boy has gone through hell, both physically and mentally. He doesn’t even know what happened fully, and he wants to kill those two bastards again.

Hopper hears the ambulance pull up outside, and he manages to get Jonathan to his feet. The teen refuses to let go of him. When they get out to the front, Jonathan’s grip gets even tighter. Hopper tries to get him to go to the EMTs, but he refuses.

“I’m fine. I don’t want to.” He begs.

“We don’t know that, c’mon.” Hopper tries to reason.

“Yes, I do! Please, I just want to see my mom and brother, and then I’ll go to the hospital.” Hopper’s heart breaks, and he relents. The medics aren’t happy with his decision, but as Hopper promises to take him to the hospital, they focus back on Callahan.

Jonathan only separates himself from Hopper long enough to get in the passenger seat, and once they’re both in, he grabs Hopper’s jacket again.

“You’re really here...” Jonathan mumbles, more to himself. Hopper radios in to the station and tells them to call the Byers and get them to come to the station. He doesn’t care how many calls it takes; he’ll get them there.

“Kid, can you tell me what happened?” Hopper asks once they’ve been driving for a few minutes. Jonathan takes a breath and nods.

Hopper didn’t expect him to be ready to talk, but he was wrong. Jonathan tells him everything from when he was taken to now. Everything from the drugs, abuse, and even rapes. He’s light on details on that last part, but Hopper knows enough to almost break his steering wheel.

“I’m glad they’re dead.” Jonathan finishes. He’s crying and shaking again, and while Hopper stays silent, he agrees with him.

They’re about to the station now, and Hopper feels tension lift off his shoulders when he sees Joyce Byers hunk of junk car sitting empty in the parking lot. Jonathan trails behind him when they enter the station. The one officer there says they’re in Hopper’s office. Apparently, they hadn’t been told why they are here, and Hopper realizes that that’s his fault because he didn’t say.

When Hopper pushes the door open and steps in, Joyce is holding Will in her arms, whispering to him, and she looks on the verge of tears herself. When she sees him, her head snaps up.

“What happened?!” She demands. That’s when Jonathan walks in the room. She stops dead. He’s bruised, beaten, and in anguish, but he’s alive. They found him. “Oh, my god...” She mutters before she and her eldest collide. They hold each other in a way that seems like they think the other will disappear if they let go. They fall to the floor, and they’re both crying. Will snaps out of his shock and rushes over and is engulfed in the embrace.

They stay like that for over 10 minutes. Jonathan rambles onto himself about how he and they are really here and out of the house. Hopper and sense Joyce’s rage building as she sees how much pain her son is in. When they finally move, it’s so they can go to the hospital.

Hopper drives them, with Joyce in the passenger’s seat and her two boys in the back. With some prompting from Hopper, Jonathan tells them what he told Hopper. Will hugs him tighter and sorrys tumble out. Joyce is so red hot with rage, it’s amazing how her seat isn’t on fire.

Even when they’re in the hospital, he always has to be holding someone, but no one says anything. The visit is going well until Jonathan has to take off his shirt. It takes all three of his family members reassuring him for him to do it. However, he’s still shaking and weeping as the doctor checks over his wounds.

The doctor pulls Hopper to the side and asks if everything is okay. Hopper just explains it as a ‘horrible experience that you’ll see in the news later’. The doctor doesn’t ask anything more.

Joyce is sitting on the bed with her son, and every mark that is now visible makes her want to put a hole in the nearest wall. Why did this happen? He doesn’t deserve this. Her thoughts briefly flick to Karen and Mike. They don’t know about Nancy. While she would love to see that bitch burn in hell, Joyce knows that Karen and Mike are good people that are victims of this too.

The doctor comes back and explains that Jonathan will need some stiches, and that they have two options. They can do it with a local anesthetic or a general one. Before the doctor can explain the differences, Jonathan cuts in and demands the local. The doctor doesn’t question the rashness, and when the others agree, the procedure begins.

Jonathan is heading home at 1:00 in the morning. When Hopper asks to stay the night, Joyce says yes. Jonathan thanks him for it. There is very little talking at the house. Jonathan falls asleep in his mom’s arms.

…

The conclusion to the saga of the Hawkins High School Killers, takes the town by storm. The breaking news story comes out on Tuesday, and all media is dominated by the story for many days after. No part of the truth could be predicted.

When the names and deaths of the Killers was revealed, the town and the high school lost their minds. Of all the people it could’ve been, it was them. The young teens who had everything and everyone at the tips of their fingers. Many people called the news fake and a hoax, but as the story remained unchanged, the reality became obvious.

Due to the deaths of the killers, the details of the murders and their connections soon came out, and anyone who wasn’t disgusted already would definitely. The story of Jonathan Byers is especially harrowing, and as the descriptions of the hell he went through comes to life, the more people are surprised that he’s alive.

Families were destroyed. The Harrington mansion was wiped clean and abandoned by the end of the week, and no one is Hawkins ever saw its former inhabitants ever again. The Wheeler family was in the unenviable position of mourning the girl that was once a part of their family while trying to distance themselves from the horror. People started to stare and make awful accusations and comments towards every member of the family.

The Byers family, conversely, became something similar to heros. They’re case stopped everything, and no more deaths came from it. They were victims of psychopaths that held out. Jonathan was the subject of many interviews, both local and national, and he never speaks ill of either family, apart from his captors. During one of his first interviews he said, “I’m just glad that they didn’t get bored of me so they’d find someone else. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy, so if I had to stay there to stop anyone else from being taken, I could live with that.” The entire town of Hawkins rethought every member of the family.

Never again were any of them looked down upon or given hell. Or, if they were, whoever said that to them would be ostracized. Past sins were forgotten as the Wheeler family took their place on the bottom of the social totem pole.

This case would stay relevant for years, and even decades later, criminologists would study this case, and crime fans would keep it alive on the internet. Jonathan Byers would be recognized all his life for something other than his photography. His life would never be the same, and while he would go to NYU and achieve his dream of being a famous photographer, he also becomes an activist for things like increased mental health screenings, and increased awareness of the tells of unhealthy obsessions.

Unfortunately, no one is truly aware of depts of the obsession and twisted love that drove Nancy and Steve to do what they do. Many of the true motivations were only ever spoken between Nancy and Steve and never written down. The official report is correct, but missing key details that only the dead are aware of.

The story as people understand it is as follows. Nancy Wheeler and Steve Harrington, lovers at the time, both went through extreme life changes events at the same time. For Nancy, her best friend Barb went missing, and Steve’s reputation and standing in the high school went down the drain. This possibly triggered some undiagnosed and underlying mental issues, but neither ever discussed it with anyone apart from each other. This put them in an echo chamber that radicalized them more and more, warping their thoughts. They blamed those around them and sought to take it out on those that their twisted mind blamed. They wanted people to hurt. Tommy Hagan was part of Steve and Nancy’s friend group before everything, and they may have blamed him for their fall from grace. Carol was taken for the same reason. Mr. Terry was attacked to act like a quick fix while they were preparing to torture Jonathan Byers. His fight with Steve was infamous, and was the center of several rumors about Nancy and her infidelity. He was taken and tortured to pay for this, and they would have run away to continue their streak after murdering Jonathan is they weren’t captured.

The small world of Hawkins and the people in them would forever be different. Healing is slow and painful, but life moves on. The wounds and the scars they leave fade. If circumstances were different, maybe the three of them truly could be happy together. As things are, evil rots away in vague graves in the middle of nowhere America, and the world is left to learn from it.