Chapter Text
He's so stupid.
He should've never instigated anything. Now hes sitting in the lobby of his parents private doctor with a busted eye, lip and a bruise from his dad hidden by the fabric of his shirt.
Why wouldn't he just stop Tommy? Why didn't he just leave him alone? Why did he have to get so angry? He doesn't even think Jonathan is that bad. He's just a quiet guy who happened to make friends with Nancy. He's not even jealous just hurt that Nancy thought he would care. Maybe that's why he just got into his King Steve persona.
"Steve Harrington?" He lifts his head up as he's taken out of his thoughts. He stands up and smiles at the male nurse, walking to the back with him. The nice nurse leads him to the doctor's office and takes his vitals.
He also takes some of his blood as he hasn't gotten tested in a bit. That's something he forgets private doctors do since he doesn't like his parents knowing every time he gets hurt. He thanks the nurse and waits for the doctor to walk in.
Dr. Heavingson walks in just six minutes later and Steve still thinks his last name is absolutely ridiculous. "Good afternoon, Stephan." He greets him. Steve clenches his jaw at the attempt of his full name being said. He doesn't understand why adults have the need to call him by his full name all the time. "It's Stefano." He replies, the tinge of his Italian accent coming back.
He ignores the attempt to correct him and just sets down a clipboard. "I'll just call you Steve, alright?" He nods as he's very much used to that. "It says here we're testing your blood. Makes sense since it's been a while. I'm sure you know it's just part of my standard practice in case we find anything that correlates to your current state." Steve actually appreciates that as he realizes that they can find other things that might be overlooked.
"So you think your nose is broken?" He asks, putting on gloves and walking over to Steve after checking his clipboard one more time. He nods, smiling nervously. "Uh.. yeah. I've broken my nose one other time, and it feels pretty similar." He twitches his nose and blinks at the pain.
"Okay, we can get you an x-ray just to make sure. What else do you have?" He asks, now coming closer to examine his face. Steve turns his head to the right, showing him his busted left eye. "Just my eye. It's like a pulsating kind of pain. I can still see out of it, it just hurts." He explains as he closes his eyes while the doctor gently touches it.
He nods and grimaces as he pulls away. "Alright, it looks like a pretty bad bruise. It seems like it'll take a few weeks to heal. I'll get you some antibiotic cream for that bruise." He takes a step back, and then the nurse that gave him a check-up comes back in with a solemn looking face.
"Hi, sorry to interrupt. Dr. Heavingson, can I talk to you for a moment?" He turns around with a confused look on his face and nods. "Give us a moment will you?" And Steve can't do anything but nod and just sit there, hands on his thighs. Oddly he feels like a kid in trouble waiting for the principal to talk to his parents.
Only the doctor comes in and his demeanor has immediately changed. He went from slightly tired and irritated to sympathetic and Steve's heart nearly plummets to his stomach. He hates pity. Especially from people who are supposed to care for him.
"What is it?" He asks, tapping his fingers on his lap. The doctor just smiles and nods at Steve as he walks to the clipboard he left on the counter. "I'll um.. I told him to go get that x-ray ready for you. I'll be right back. Just give me another few minutes. I will let you know once we're a hundred percent sure." And as soon as he came he left.
A hundred percent sure of what?
Did they find something? What did they find? Is he sick? Does he have some sort of terminal illness? Cancer? What is it? And why does he have to make sure.
Steve never thought he could have ever guessed what happened next.
___
"B-But that's impossible?!" Steve replies, Somewhat panicking. He had so many plans for his future and having a big family is one of the most important parts of it. "I've just barley started puberty! I'm only 17!" He defends. As if that'll make his sperm useful. As if what he had just been told can change magically.
The doctor has since sympathized with him and the kind nurse who made him comfortable is right by his side, left hand placed gently on his right shoulder. "How am I infertile?! That doesn't make any sense!" He's dizzy and out of breath. This cannot be happening. His whole life he's dreamed of having a big family in the future. He's wanted to share the love his parents couldn't share and the love his grandma gave him before she passed.
"It's genetic. Maybe one of your parents had a dormant gene and it passed onto you. Regardless of that it doesn't change. I'm very sorry about this." Dr. Heavingson walks nods at him with a sympathetic smile. This may be one of the worst news he's ever gotten.
"We have that x-ray set up if you're alright to go but I understand if you need a moment to process this information. I'll be outside when you're ready, Nurse Darren will let me know when you're ready." And that's the last thing he says before he exists the room.
"I'd like to be alone please." Steve says after about ten minutes of the nurse rubbing circles into his back. The physical touch has been forcing him to close his eyes and ignore the burning sensations forming in them. The door opens and closes after a small moment of hesitation. Once he thinks he's completely alone he let's his tears fall. They burn as they come out, sparking little fires in his left eye and making the pain worse.
He never imagined something like this could ever happen to him. His heart feels like it's been ripped from his chest and torn to shreds. It's worse than seeing Jonathan with Nancy. Worse than any heartbreak he's felt. Because this can mean only one thing. If he ever gets married they'll never be able to have children. He'll die without having the joy of hearing little feet run on wooden floors, soft childish giggles echoing through house walls. He'll never be able to teach his own child how to play their favorite sport.
After about fifteen minutes of wallowing in the pain of knowing he'll never be able to his dream of filling a big home with love. He feels like his whole future just shattered and all he can think of is living and dying alone without having the chance to end this generational curse that he's apparently stuck with now.
Once the x-ray was taken they confirmed that his nose was in fact broken. Steve didn't care. All he wanted was to get his prescriptions and get the fuck out there before he has a genuine mental breakdown.
As soon he gets home his parents tell him they're going to leave in a few hours. He doesn't care, just flashes a smile and nods. "Have a safe trip, guys." He adds in that perfected fake enthusiasm he's mastered over the years. They thank him and he excuses himself to his room, something about being tired.
They wave him off and he slumps against his bedroom door as soon as he's inside. He let's himself cry until he's so exhausted he can't open his eyes. He shuffles and practically crawls over to his bed until he's laying on his stomach, face shoved into his pillow and falls fast asleep.
He doesn't go to school for a week. Not that anyone would care anyway. He got rid of Tommy, the one time he was brave enough to stand up for himself, and Carol.
Though Carol still calls every so often without Tommy noticing. He has deep love and respect for her for that. He always felt that she's been putting on a front just like him but he's never been able to ask her.
Maybe she just feels guilty. Regardless it makes him feel like a person.
It's Tuesday when he gets a call from his doctor offering to help him go through any types of treatments he needs. "I appreciate your offer, I really do but I'll have to think about it." He answers. The doctor hums in understanding and tells him he'll send over some pamphlets for him to look over if he's interested.
When they arrive he shoves them into a bin in his closet.