Archive of Our Own

Steve held his breath as he watched Robin attempting to use her basic Russian knowledge to stop the guard from raising any further alarm. He swallowed anxiously, his hand twitching to the side of him in an attempt to hide Dustin from the guard’s view. He knew it wouldn’t work, but the thought of any of the Russians seeing Dustin or learning anything about him caused Steve to break out in a cold sweat. His eyes flicked between Robin and the guard again, and he saw the moment the guard realized that they were intruders as he reached for his gun. Steve’s blood froze in his veins, fear shooting through him.

What were they doing there? This wasn’t related at all to the upside down. No, this was a Russian base underneath a mall, and they could die down here, painfully, without anyone ever finding them. This was just stupidly dangerous, and Steve had let two kids and Robin come along with him. What on earth was he thinking? He couldn’t let anything happen to them. With this in mind, he yelled and charged the guard, trying to tackle him to the floor.

It wasn’t long before Steve realized that he was hopelessly outmatched, the guard punching him hard in the face. He collapsed against one of the tables in the room with those weird consoles and glowing buttons, but didn’t have much time to process the blossoming pain in his cheek (and seriously, why did people always aim for his face?) before the guard threw him against the next table. The corner of the table hit his stomach hard, and he gasped in pain, desperation flooding through him. He couldn’t lose this fight. Dustin and Robin and Erica would die if he did. This wasn’t like with Jonathan or Billy… Billy. The thought of the fight with Billy still filled him with anger: seeing him trying to choke out Lucas and hurt Max had made him want to kill the guy, but he had the upper hand in that fight until Billy decided to play dirty and introduce his head to a plate. Steve looked up and saw a radio receiver-looking thing. If there was any time to play dirty, he figured that a fight against a Russian guard was definitely the time. He picked it up, turned, and slammed it across the guard’s face. Steve watched in a sort of detached fascination as the guard spun around, then fell face first into the next table and then to the floor, knocked out. Steve panted, running a hand through his hair as he dropped the radio receiver as the adrenaline began to fade.

“Dude!” Dustin’s voice broke the silence. Steve turned, glancing at him for a moment waiting for his snarky remark about something. “You did it! You won a fight!” Dustin sounded so impressed, taking Steve aback for a second. He looked back down at the guard.

Huh, I guess I did, Steve thought in shock. He was absolutely relieved though and hoped that meant that the kids could just get out of there now. Robin, for her part, also looked stunned, like she couldn’t quite believe what she had just witnessed. Honestly, Steve couldn’t blame her, he could hardly believe what he had just done. Erica tried to look unimpressed, but her raised eyebrow gave her away. Steve resisted the urge to laugh at her.

Steve and the others continued searching the base and they saw the Russian’s stupid machine trying to force back open the gate. Steve could have ripped his hair out right then and there. They had done so much, nearly died, to try to close this gate and now people were trying to open it again? He grit his teeth in anger, knowing that there was no way Dustin wouldn’t tell his other friends and they would get involved with this, again. Their lives would be in danger, again. He forced himself to calm down for now. He could freak out later. He ushered Erica, Dustin and Robin down the stairs before following them.

“I don’t understand, you’ve seen this before?” Robin asked breathlessly as they hurried down the steps.

“Not exactly,” Dustin replied.

“Then what exactly?” Robin pressed.

“All you need to know is that it’s bad,” Dustin responded.

“It’s really bad,” Steve added in helpfully.

“Like, end of the human race as we know it kind of bad,” Dustin continued as if Steve hadn’t spoken, which was kind of rude of him but Steve let it slide.

“And you know about this how?” Robin asked, incredulous.

“Um, Steve,” Erica piped up, “where’s your Russian friend?”

Steve froze, looking at her before turning his gaze back to where the guard had been a minute ago. Dread shot through him, rooting him in place for a minute as an alarm went off. The lights lit up red. “Shit,” he sprinted to the door and looked out the door, panic welling up in him once again. There were so many. A guard spotted him, and Steve slammed the door shut. “Shit,” he muttered again, “Go, go, go, go, go!” He herded the kids out the nearby door, hoping that it wouldn’t lead to more guards. He made sure everyone was in front of him, “Move, let’s move!” he said again, adrenaline pumping through him. He was absolutely terrified.

Dustin was in the front, and Steve hoped that he picked good doors to run through. The alarm was still blaring in his ears, making it hard to think. The others slowed down in front of him as they went through another door, before turning and booking it down the stairs by the Russian’s machine again. Steve’s heart was pounding wildly as he kept shouting at them to move. Everyone was cursing now and Steve just hoped that the guards wouldn’t dare use their guns around such sensitive equipment. Visions of Dustin or Robin or Erica bleeding out from bullet wounds filled his thoughts, but he pushed them away. Now was not the time, he had to focus on getting everyone out safe.

Dustin was screaming his head off, which Steve could hardly blame him for, but it was making it really hard to think. Not that that had ever been his strong suit in the first place. They were right next to the incredibly deadly laser, but Steve looked around and saw more stairs leading down behind the machine. “This way,” he screamed in desperation, hoping that everyone heard him and that he wasn’t leading them to their deaths. Steve pushed past even more Russian guards, flinging an empty stack of barrels at them. Robin took the lead then, and Steve fell to the back of the line as she ran through another door. Dustin had turned around and stopped to help him, the idiot, so Steve pushed him through the door and slammed it shut behind him. The Russians were pounding on the door, making Steve’s teeth rattle with the brute force of it, but he threw his entire body weight against the door. He called out for Robin’s help because he could feel the door giving as Dustin and Erica found a vent.

Steve’s breath caught in his throat as he surveyed the room they were in. There was no other way out of this room. The second he or Robin moved away from the door, there would be nothing stopping the Russians from getting through. Even if he did make it to the vent, the Russians would continue to chase them, and likely kill them. They would be able to follow. At least this way, the kids could get out safely, and maybe call someone to help them later. He was terrified, but his resolve hardened. This was the only way. “Go, just get out of here,” Steve commanded firmly. He locked eyes with Dustin, forcing himself to convey certainty rather than the fear that was swallowing him whole. Steve knew Dustin would never leave unless he thought that Steve had a way out.

As expected, Dustin shouted, “No, come on, now!”

“No, just go get some help!” Steve pushed back, muscles straining hard against the door. He was losing his grip, and didn’t have long before it would be forced open. Dustin was halfway in the vent, staring at Steve with terror in his expression. “What are you doing?!” Steve shouted at him, but deep down, he already knew. Dustin was an annoying little shit earlier in the elevator, with the whole ‘you die, I die’ thing. While Steve had been oddly touched at the time, now he was deeply afraid that Dustin would simply… not leave. That he would stick with Steve, even if that meant being captured by the Russians. His heart pounded in his ears as the door was forced open an inch more. Sweat rolled down his temple as he screamed “GO!” again. Robin had also said it, which must have been the coaxing he needed.

“I won’t forget you!” Dustin shouted, his face twisting with an unreadable expression. Steve felt offended for a moment that Dustin assumed that he and Robin would die, but then remembered that it was far more likely than he was comfortable admitting.

“GO!” Steve and Robin exclaimed again, and Dustin disappeared into the vent, closing it behind them. Steve felt like he could sob in relief, because he was finally safe. However, the relief was short lived as the door was finally flung open. His knees crashed hard into the ground, along with Robin, and Steve looked up to see about twenty guns pointed at him. He raised his hands slowly in surrender, tensing. Blood roared in his ears and he closed his eyes, gritting his teeth as he expected a round of bullets to tear through him. It never came, and Steve opened his eyes as they grabbed his arm, forcing him up. They grabbed Robin too, and began forcing them out of the room.

Steve was led through the Russian base, eyes lowered to the floor, and honestly couldn’t believe the day he was having. It had started with scooping ice cream with Robin and now he was being led through a Russian base, likely about to be tortured. He swallowed at the thought.

Look, Steve wasn’t stupid, no matter what his grades in school were. He may not have gotten into any of the colleges he applied to and his parents may think he’s a failure, but Steve wasn’t totally oblivious. He knows that the Russians could have just killed them as soon as that door was broken down. The only reason they didn’t kill them was now likely because they wanted to know who they were and how and why they were in their base. Steve kind of doubted they would ask politely about it, though, hence the torture.

His eyes flicked up to Robin, who was being led in front of him. He thought about his fights with Jonathan and Billy, and his fight with the demogorgons, or whatever nerdy thing the kids had called them. Steve knew he could take a punch. He had to keep the attention focused on him, and hopefully they would leave Robin alone. Steve wasn’t stupid enough to believe that he could withstand torture for very long, but hopefully Dustin and Erica could get help in time to save Robin and what was left of him. He grimaced at the morbid thought before nearly running into Robin. They had stopped in front of a door. Steve swallowed nervously, glancing as surreptitiously as he could at the guards to his side. They poked him in the back with the tip of their guns and Steve stumbled, moving forward into the room with Robin.

The room was a small, grayish blue color with two chairs in the middle. There were lights in the corners of the room and dentist chairs and lights as well as a small table. There wasn’t anything wrong with the room per se, but Steve’s stomach still churned looking at it all. The guards tied him and Robin back to back in the chairs, the rope rubbing tightly against his wrists and legs. Steve’s hands were violently trembling, so he tightened them into fists as he watched the guards leave the room.

“Steve, what are we going to do, shit, man-” Robin whisper-shouted, panic evident in her tone. She was breathing fast, and Steve could tell she was about to start rambling, which while normally was kind of cute, he knew they didn’t have time for right now.

“Robin, breathe,” Steve cut her off quietly, thinking quickly, “listen to me, we don’t have much time. They’re probably going to ask a bunch of questions, but let me do the talking, okay, let them keep the focus on me,” Steve said, hoping that she would just agree.

“But, what if they are like, really, really aggressive with their questions or try to punch you or kill you or something,” Robin protested, voice shaking, “should I try to jump in or whatever-”

“No,” Steve hissed back at her, “trust me, I’ve been in situations like this before with the end of the world type stuff before. I know what I’m doing, I promise,” Steve said as confidently as he could. He was sort of telling the truth, he knew about the upside down and the demogorgons and stuff, but this was not exactly a normal situation.

“You’ve been held hostage by Russians before,” Robin huffed out.

Steve rolled his eyes, not that she could see him. “No, but I at least know what’s going on, so you’re going to have to trust me-”

Steve jumped as the door slammed open, and he and Robin both quickly strained their necks to see who was there. A scary looking Russian soldier stood there with two other guards on either side of him. Steve swallowed down a wave of nausea, because what was happening right now? He was eighteen years old, working at an ice cream parlor because he wasn’t smart enough to get into college. He wasn’t supposed to be underneath a mall, held captive by Russians.

His minor freakout was interrupted by the Russian stepping forward. “Who do you work for?” the soldier in the middle asked.

“Scoops Ahoy,” Steve blurted out before Robin had a chance to say anything. The Russian’s focus shifted to Steve, and he held back a sigh of relief. The soldier stepped in front of him, looking down at him. Steve fought the urge to squirm under his gaze, and locked eyes with him instead.

“I don’t believe you, but I will give you another chance to answer me honestly,” the soldier said slowly. Steve bit his lip, clutching the armrests of the chair so tightly his knuckles went white. This was bad. This was so, so bad. “This time, if you do not tell me the truth, we will have to… loosen your tongue in other ways.” The soldier leaned forward over Steve, and Steve tried not to cower from him. “Who do you work for?”

Steve looked down, taking a deep breath before looking up and meeting his gaze once more. “Scoops Ahoy, where we can sail away on a sea of flavors with our USS Butterscotch. Would you care for a scoop?,” he asked, proud of the fact that his voice didn’t tremble. He could feel Robin shaking slightly against him, and Steve realized that she was laughing. Emboldened by her laughter, he gave his most innocent grin at the soldier. The soldier considered him for a moment before speaking something in Russian and stepping back. The two guards stepped forward and one of them punched him across the face. Hard. Steve blinked back stars in his vision as they undid the straps and prodded him with guns out of the room. Steve looked back at Robin, who was staring at him with tears in her eyes, and he gave her a quick smile to let her know it would be all right.

The guards kicked him forward and he winced, following them to an empty room with just a bench on it. They flung him onto the bench and Steve grunted, the pain in his head from the guard’s earlier punch flaring for a moment. He squinted up at him as the main soldier approached him again.

What followed was some of the most brutal pain he had ever been in. The guards didn’t believe he was just some stupid kid who worked at Scoops Ahoy and found the base by accident. They screamed at him, punched him, kicked him, and even brought out a taser once or twice. Steve would never forget the way his body locked up in pain, refusing to listen to him as he convulsed under the electricity. The white hot pain and the way it tasted like metal. Steve had lost count of how many times he had been beaten by the guards, but he tried to hold onto consciousness. At least the kids are safe. At least they’re ignoring Robin. I have to keep the attention on me. Steve clung to these thoughts like a lifeline, refusing to succumb to the pain radiating throughout his body.

Suddenly, the soldier switched his question, turning Steve’s blood to ice. “Who were the younger kids with you?” Steve froze, blinking past the black dots in his vision to look up at the soldier. He could have sworn his heart had stopped with fear. Rage suddenly flickered through him so quickly it nearly gave him whiplash, but he pushed that aside. He licked his split lip and hissed at the pain before glaring at him.

“Who?” he asked, voice shaking with exhaustion. His ribs ached and his head throbbed, but he kept his focus on the soldier.

The soldier sneered and leaned over him, “I know who you are and claim to be, Steve Harrington. You and your friend Robin Buckley have those stupid name tags on.” Steve watched him warily, gut sinking. They knew their names. This was so bad. The soldier continued, “However, we saw two other people with you. We didn’t get a good glimpse of their faces, but surely you can help us. We just want the names,” the soldier dug his nails into Steve’s cheek, forcing him to look up at him.

Steve seethed, gritting his teeth hard in anger. How dare they try to get the kids back involved in this. Without thinking, he spit in the soldier’s face. The guard released him before wiping his face slowly. Steve’s eyes widened as he tensed, knowing he was in for it now.

“Make him pay,” he said in English, before repeating it in Russian. Steve drew in a sharp breath as the other guards approached him.

“No, no, wait-” the guards cut him off with a heavy punch across his face. Steve whimpered, spitting out blood onto the floor next to him. There was so much blood already. He saw another punch coming toward him and he shut his eyes, finally giving into the darkness. He passed out.

Steve woke up on the way back to the room with Robin. He was being dragged along the ground, but Steve let his head drop, his entire body pulsing in pain. He was so exhausted and quickly passed out again.

Steve woke up some time later to Robin’s voice shouting his name desperately. Steve groaned, her shrill voice echoing in his ears. His face throbbed and he tasted blood. His nose was definitely broken, and his ribs ached from keeping him upright. He inhaled deeply, trying to take stock of whether his ribs were broken or not. It didn’t hurt too bad, so he suspected they were just bruised, but badly bruised. He exhaled, leaning his head back against Robin’s.

“Steve, I thought you were dead,” Robin was saying as her voice flitted into her ears. “Are you okay, you looked awful when they brought you in,” she trailed off.

Steve huffed, laughing softly, “I’ve never been better, what do you mean?” Robin chuckled a little manically.

“Okay, okay, good. You see those scissors over there?” Steve glanced over to the table where the scissors were.

“Yeah.”

“I think if we hop at the same time, we can get there-” Robin was cut off as the door slammed open. Steve’s heart dropped. He couldn’t take it again, not so soon. The soldier entered the room, fuming, and holding what looked like a gun with a needle attached to it and a blue liquid on top.

“We’ve gotten sick of you not telling us anything,” the soldier said, stopping where both Steve and Robin were. He hefted the needle gun thing threateningly, and Steve kept his eyes fixed on it. He figured that whatever was in that liquid, it couldn’t be good. “We really only need one of you,” he finished.

Steve’s breath caught in his throat. They were going to kill him or Robin. They were going to kill one of them. Him or Robin.

Robin had clearly also caught on, as she had started breathing very quickly. “Woah, isn’t that a little hasty man? I mean, what if we each only have some of the information or something? I’m just saying, wouldn’t it be better to keep us both alive for the time being-”

“Shut up,” the soldier said, slapping her across the face. Steve’s blood boiled, but he remained quiet for the time being. “Stupid Americans. Now, one of you is going to die, unless you tell me exactly who you are working for.”

Steve took a deep breath, “I told you man, we work for Scoops Ahoy. We intercepted your transmissions and snuck into the base because we were bored. It’s the truth,” his voice shook, but he made eye contact with the soldier, desperately hoping he would believe them.

“So be it,” he said, approaching Robin. Steve’s world stopped. No, he couldn’t.

“Wait, wait, wait-” Robin was spewing, pitch rising in panic, “I’m too young to die, I can’t-”

“If you kill her, I’ll never tell you anything,” Steve blurted, chest constricting with raw fear, “If you do this, I will never ever tell you a thing. You can torture me to the brink of death a thousand times, and I will still never tell you.” The soldier paused the needle an inch away from Robin’s neck. Steve’s breaths were quick, as he forced himself to continue. “You need to kill me instead,” he finished.

There was silence for a moment before Robin spoke up, stunned. “Wait, what? Steve-”

“Very well,” that was all the warning Steve had before a deep needle was inserted into his neck. Steve gasped in shock as he felt the cool substance enter his bloodstream.

“NO!” Robin screamed in horror. Steve focused on the feeling, not dissimilar to an IV line, but it was getting hotter. Soon, it burned as it was carried throughout his body. Steve tried to fight the pain, but eventually he started screaming, pain burning throughout his body. His body felt like lava was coursing through it. He refused to die from this, forcing his eyes open and focusing on continuing to breathe. If he just stayed awake, it would be okay.

The soldiers had released him, allowing him to writhe on the cool floor. The coolness against his back was a small relief to the fire that coursed through his veins, but slowly the sensation began to vanish. At some point he had stopped screaming, and Steve tried to take in a deep breath. He was on his back, eyes fixed on the ceiling above, but found he couldn’t take a deep breath. He couldn’t move. His breath, where he should have been hyperventilating at this point, was instead so slow he wouldn’t have been able to tell he was breathing if he hadn’t slowly felt it. Where his head had throbbed earlier in time with his heartrate, he couldn’t feel any sort of throbbing. A dull thump pulsed in his ears, but then there was no more feeling. His heart rate had slowed significantly. He kept track and after another sixty seconds, another thump pulsed in his ears.

He would have laughed in relief if he could have. Sure, his heart rate and breathing had slowed to almost imperceptible, but he was alive. But as suddenly as he was hit with relief, guilt coursed through him. Robin’s screams and cursing filled his ears, and he realized that she had no idea he was still alive. Steve’s heart clenched in concern as he tried to move, to signal to Robin that he was okay, but he was truly paralyzed in his own body. He couldn’t even move his eyes, which were starting to feel very dry as he gazed unblinkingly at the ceiling.

“You will tell us exactly who you are working for, or we will hurt you more. We will find out, one way or the other. Maybe when we find the other two people you were working with, we will kill them in front of you too.” Steve’s blood boiled again and he mentally snarled at him. How dare they threaten the kids. They would never be in this psycho’s hands, over Steve’s dead body. Which, coming to think of it, was kind of ironic, but still.

“YOU BASTARD, YOU MURDERER, HE WAS TELLING THE TRUTH!” Robin was screaming and choking on sobs. She inhaled sharply for a moment before the sound of locks clicking reached his ears. Robin fell to the floor before she sprinted over to Steve’s side.

“We will leave you with him for a moment to reevaluate your… cooperation,” the soldier said before Steve heard the doors shut.

Robin’s face appeared in the peripheral of Steve’s frozen gaze. Tears were streaming down her face, and she looked absolutely disheveled. Steve’s heart tightened at the sight, and he wanted more than anything to comfort her. She placed her hands on the side of Steve’s face, and she was speaking through her broken sobs. “Hey, hey, are you with me? Come on, they left, wake up, we can escape now, please-” her words flowed out of her, and she placed a shaking hand on his neck, checking for a pulse. Steve saw the moment she felt nothing, and she covered her mouth with the back of her hand, scooting back from him momentarily. For a moment, Steve heard nothing but her sobs.

Eventually, she crawled back towards him and pulled him into her lap. Steve would have blushed if he had any blood pumping through his veins. It was definitely not something she would have done if he was still… visibly alive. She practically cradled him to her chest, rocking him back and forth gently. His eyes were still open, and his body was way too stiff for it to be comfortable, but even still it was kind of… nice.

When was the last time anyone had held him like this? Like he was worth something? His parents certainly hadn’t since he was a kid. He supposed Nancy had held him some nights, but ever since she had called their entire relationship bullshit he had wondered if she had ever actually loved him, or even cared for him. But Robin simply held him firmly, like she was never going to let him go. He felt himself relax mentally for the first time since they had entered this stupid Russian base, and he realized he was just… exhausted.

“You know, we were in Mrs. Click’s class together, sophomore year,” Robin’s voice startled him out of his thoughts as he listened in confusion. “I was so… obsessed with you, but you never even noticed me,” Her voice broke off in a sob before she continued, “you always brought in the same breakfast, always late, and you were such a jerk, you know that? I was so mad at you, but maybe not for the reason you thought.” Her voice trailed off, and she tightened her grip on him. “I was so mad because Tammy Thompson was always looking at you, and I wanted her to look at me like that.” Her voice was so soft, Steve had to strain to hear her. Steve would have dropped his mouth open in shock if he could, but instead had to just listen.

Steve felt really awful again. Robin absolutely would never have told him that if she hadn’t thought he was dead. He resorted himself to never speaking about it. Her secret would, and he laughed at the irony of it all, die with him. Robin continued speaking, voice shaking terribly, “I always wondered what she saw in you, but… you just sacrificed yourself twice over for us. You don’t even really know me, and you just let yourself be killed instead of me.” Her voice broke into another heavy sob, and a tear splashed onto his forehead. “Oh, shit, sorry,” she mumbled, wiping it off with her sleeve. “I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry…” her voice trailed off as she kept whispering apologies under her breath. Steve’s heart broke, because this was not her fault in the slightest. He should have never gotten her involved, he should have made sure he was quieter when he was speaking with Dustin about the code.

Steve wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but Robin was still gently rocking him. He really wished that she would shut his eyes, but he supposed she didn’t want to make his ‘death’ so… final. He couldn’t really blame her in that case.

Suddenly, the alarms blared again, and he felt Robin jump and tighten her grip on him to the point it was almost painful. Steve waited anxiously for something to happen, straining to hear anything.

The door slammed open, and Steve mentally winced at the sound of it slamming against the concrete wall. He waited for the guard to speak, but then another voice filled the room.

“Come on guys, we gotta go,” Dustin’s voice hit Steve’s ears, and he felt like he could both sob in relief and scold him for coming back.

“Yeah, for some reason this idiot wouldn’t wait for us to call actual backup,” Erica’s voice said, a scowl prominent in her speech.

“I’m sorry, did you miss the part where they are probably being tortured by Russians?” Dustin snarked back at her. Steve heard his footsteps approaching and suddenly knew with absolute certainty that there was something way worse than Robin believing he was dead. Dustin's footsteps suddenly stopped. “Robin?” His voice was so tentative suddenly, and dread filled every part of Steve’s body. “Robin, why-” his voice cracked, “why hasn’t Steve gotten up yet?”

Robin sobbed, before lifting her head up. “I’m sorry,” she said quietly.

“No,” Dustin whispered, collapsing beside Steve, and his face finally entered Steve’s vision. Steve was desperate to see him a few seconds ago, but now he wasn’t sure that was a good thing as he saw his face contort with panic, disbelief, horror, and then grief. “Steve?” he whispered, reaching out and touching his face before flinching back. “He’s so cold,” and that was all he was able to get out before Dustin sobbed, pulling Steve away from Robin into his arms instead. “Steve, Steve, wake up, please, come on,” he was gently slapping the side of his face. Steve winced as the pain shot through his many injuries, but he still couldn’t move.

“Guys, I know this is sad and all, but we’ve got to move,” Erica’s voice piped up again, still snarky but somehow softer. Steve couldn’t help but agree with her though, because if they got captured because they couldn’t believe he was dead, Steve was going to kill them himself.

“Shut up!” Dustin’s voice snapped back, with more vitriol in it than Steve thought possible. “He needs to wake up, he needs to-”

“Dustin,” and that was Robin’s voice, filled with tears, “Dustin, he’s gone-”

“No, no, he’s not, he can’t-” Dustin choked out, his hand reaching down and resting on Steve’s chest, searching for any beat, any sign of life. He couldn’t find it though, and he screamed, an absolutely heartrending sound. It sounded like his throat was being torn to shreds and Steve panicked, wishing that he could do anything to stop his anguish, but he couldn’t move-

His foot twitched. His foot twitched. Elation filled him, and he desperately tried to move something else, anything else, to let Dustin know he was okay. But try as he might, Steve couldn’t move, and he was forced to listen as Dustin pressed his face into Steve’s chest and sobbed, getting his shirt wet with snot and tears, and Steve wished that he could just say, ‘ew, gross, kid,’ and push him back but then wrap him in his arms and reassure him that he was okay. But he couldn’t move, and Dustin was still sobbing so hard Steve was afraid he was going to pass out because he needed to breathe.

“We’ve got to go, come on.” Robin had at some point moved over to where Erica had been.

Dustin looked up, and Steve’s imperceptible breaths caught in his throat as he saw the sheer agony in Dustin’s expression. His face turned red. “I’m not leaving him,” he croaked out, voice breaking on every syllable. Steve’s heart broke at his expression, his own eyes burning with unshed tears and pain because wow his eyes had been open for so long.

“Dustin, I can’t- I can’t carry him,” Robin’s own voice broke.

“Well you better,” Dustin hissed back, venom dripping from each word, startling Steve, “because I did not travel all the way back into this shitty place just to leave my brother behind.” A silence filled the room aside from Dustin’s heavy breathing, and Steve’s heart swelled with emotion. He had always wanted a younger brother, and Dustin had been that to him for a while, but Steve had never thought that Dustin would consider him his family too. Steve had never wanted to wake up more in his life. “If you won’t help me, I will carry him back by myself, no matter how long it takes. I will not leave him to- to rot in a stupid underground Russian bunker,” his voice spat. He was glaring in their direction now. “I love him, and I am not leaving Steve-” his voice broke on his name. Steve wanted to scream. I love you too, Dustin. I’m right here, I will do anything I can to wake up for you. His thoughts echoed torturously in his mind, refusing to push past his lips.

This was worse than any torture so far, and he cursed the Russians for this sick game.

“Okay, okay,” Robin had run back, placing a hand gently on Dustin’s shoulder, “okay, I can try, you have to help me maneuver him though,” she said, pulling him into a hug over Steve’s head. Dustin buried his head in her shoulder, letting out another sob, and Steve honestly thought that taking his heart out and stomping on it would hurt less than this.

Dustin eventually took a deep breath and pulled back from Robin, focusing his gaze back down to Steve’s eyes. His eyes filled with tears again, but he lifted a hand and shut Steve’s eyes. Steve could have gasped in relief because his eyes had hurt so badly. He was then awkwardly maneuvered over Robin’s shoulder, and he was kind of glad he could no longer see because it even felt awkward.

Robin eventually stood up, and they began to move. Steve’s heart clenched anxiously again because they had been down here far too long, but he was very glad Dustin insisted on getting his ‘body’ out. He couldn’t imagine being abandoned and forgotten in a Russian base, waking up alone and being tortured to death later. His stomach twisted at the thought and he made a mental note to thank Dustin later.

At some point, his hand had twitched along with his foot, but they were moving so much he wasn’t surprised that nobody caught it. Steve just desperately hoped he would wake up soon to alleviate the pain Dustin and Robin were both feeling. Steve could still hear Dustin’s sniffling as they were running along the path, and it was driving him crazy that he couldn’t give him any sort of comfort. He cursed the Russians again, his heart heavy.

Eventually, they escaped, and he thought he heard the Russians behind him, but apparently El had smashed a car into them? He couldn’t really tell, but Steve heard the voices of the other kids and he mentally sighed in relief. The other kids were safe. He inhaled slightly deeper, then was shocked when he realized that he was able to. Hope rose again in him, because maybe he could get their attention. His heart was beating slightly faster now too, not anywhere near normal, but maybe 10 beats per minute now. Steve wished he could cry in relief: the drug was wearing off.

Suddenly the kid’s happy reunion was cut short as Max gasped in horror? “Dustin, what happened to Steve? Did someone knock him out?”

Robin lowered him to the floor as Mike snorted, “He gets knocked out every time we fight these things. He should really start wearing a helmet.” Steve felt super offended at that, but then conceded that Mike had a point.

“SHUT UP!” Dustin roared, and Steve twitched violently in surprise.

“Woah, Dustin-” Mike started, tone obviously startled.

“No, no jokes about him. He saved my life, and sacrificed himself for us,” Dustin heaved out.

“No, wait, he’s not dead?” Max rushed over to him. The other kids all gasped in shock.

“Oh, Steve, no-” Nancy said softly, sounding absolutely devastated. Steve was kind of surprised at that, but was more concerned about the kids’ reaction to his ‘death.’

Mike inhaled sharply, “Dustin, I’m so sorry, I didn’t think-”

“No, you clearly didn’t,” Dustin replied, fresh sobs spilling out of him. “It’s all my fault, I intercepted a stupid Russian code and went to St- to him to ask him for help and then he sacrificed himself so we could escape.” Steve’s blood went cold. It wasn’t his fault. Steve couldn’t let Dustin’s guilt eat him alive. He wanted to scream. Steve was the one who had made the choice, Dustin had nothing to blame himself for. In fact, it was thanks to Dustin that he was even okay now.

“Dustin, this isn’t your fault,” Lucas said immediately, and Steve could have sobbed in relief.

“Yes it was, if I had just left it alone, or gone by myself-”

“Steve would have killed you if you went by yourself,” Robin immediately broke in. Steve wanted to give her a hug, because if Dustin had gone by himself and gotten himself killed Steve would have lost it. He couldn’t lose his little brother, he just couldn’t. It was his job to protect them, all of them. “I didn’t know him for very long, but he would want you to come to him with these kinds of things.” Robin said firmly.

“Well, I can’t anymore,” Dustin said bitterly. Steve’s chest constricted painfully at his words. There was silence for a moment before a giant roar came from above.

“The Mind Flayer,” Will breathed, “it’s here.”

“Robin, help me move his body somewhere safe,” Dustin commanded, and Steve felt him grab his legs.

“Right, yeah, okay,” she said, lifting under his arms, “just out of curiosity, where are you thinking?” They started moving into one of the stores.

“I don’t know,” Dustin grunted back at her, feet shuffling under him, “the clothing store in the back.”

“Okay, sounds good,” Robin breathed back, arms shaking with exertion.

Steve was gently set down in the back. He expected them to leave to deal with the Mind Flayer, whatever that was, but he felt Dustin’s hand on his shoulder. “I love you,” he whispered softly. Steve’s heart clenched again at Dustin’s soft confession. “I hope you knew that, I hope-” his voice broke, and he took several shaky breaths before pressing a kiss against Steve’s temple. Steve’s heart welled up with so much affection he was surprised it didn’t burst, and Dustin stood up and took off with Robin. I love you too, Dustin. Stay safe. Please, stay safe. Steve pleaded mentally.

The next few minutes were agony as Steve heard the sounds of El’s screams and the glass ceiling collapsing and fireworks? He had absolutely no clue what was happening, but he kept hoping that the kids would be alright. He didn’t know what he would do if they weren’t safe. Sometime during that time, his feet and hands also had pins and needles in it, and the feeling was spreading towards his chest.

Steve consciously took a deeper than normal breath and managed to move his feet and hands together. He slowly forced his eyes open, blinking slowly. He grunted, trying to force his body to move, to clear the rest of this drug from his system. After a few more minutes he eventually was able to force himself onto his side. He used one arm to try to push himself up, and after a couple more tries he was able to sit up and collapse against the wall. Steve smiled grimly at the success and breathed heavily at the exertion.

Max’s scream broke through his attempt to rest and recover, and she was shouting for Billy. Steve’s breath caught in his throat as he pulled his legs in closer and tried to stand up. He failed, collapsing in a heap on the ground. Steve huffed in frustration, forcing himself to get up again. His kids needed him. This time, he was able to stand leaning against the wall. By this time though, things had gone much quieter, and he started to hear the sound of debris collapsing.

Of course, Steve thought to himself. Why not? He forced his legs to start working as the ceiling creaked and groaned above him. Steve looked around sluggishly, seeing the entrance to the mall a good bit away from where he was. He heard Dustin’s voice suddenly above the sound of debris falling.

“No, we have to get back, we can’t just leave him- we have to have a body to bury, please-” Steve snapped his head towards the sound, trying to shout back, but all that came out was a garbled, unintelligible sound from his throat. He saw Robin, Nancy and Jonathan practically dragging him away from the store as the mall collapsed around them.

He mentally thanked them both before forcing himself to move towards the exit. He had to get out. He would not leave Dustin again. If he could survive the Russians, there was no way he was going to let a building take him out. Steve took another step towards the exit as a chunk of the roof nearly knocked him over.

Steve took a deep breath, limping as fast as he could towards the exit. He used the wall to support himself as he dragged himself along. He had no idea what had caused the mall to collapse, but everything was coming down with him in it. He snarled in frustration at his speed. He was an athlete, perhaps one of the fittest people in this town, and yet he was moving at a snail’s pace. Dustin, he thought, pushing himself to walk faster. Dustin would kill him if he died a few feet away from the entrance. He had nothing to support himself for the last few feet, and immediately collapsed over a piece of debris on the floor.

Steve hit the ground hard, stars swimming in his vision. His vision blurred, but the door was so close. He took a deep breath, pushing back the pain and dragged himself army crawl style towards the exit. He pulled himself out of the door with a pained scream, and rolled out of the way as the door collapsed. Steve trembled violently, tears prickling his eyes as he lay on his back just outside the door. He had made it. He wanted to sleep so desperately, but he wasn’t safe yet. Besides, he had a kid to find.

He pushed himself to his knees, and slowly stood up, knees wobbling. There were a whole bunch of ambulances, and Steve sighed in relief that the kids would be safe. He made his way to the nearest one, avoiding the medical professionals. He knew he needed help, but he had to get to Dustin first.

The first ambulance did not have Dustin in the back, but Robin. He supposed she was also the person he needed to talk to aside from Dustin, so he waited until the nurse stepped away. He waved his hands, trying to get her attention without the nurse seeing. He caught the moment she saw him. Robin’s face cycled through about ten different emotions, relief, shock, before landing on wariness. She stood up and approached him.

“Who… Steve? Is that you?” Robin asked, cautious. Steve swallowed, considering this from her perspective. He would also probably be wary of someone he watched die suddenly come back to life out of nowhere. “If this is some PTSD or upside down bullshit I am going to kill you,” she said, her hands shaking.

“Woah, hey,” Steve said, taking a step towards her, “I’m sorry, I get it. I promise you, it’s me.” He watched as her eyes knit together in confusion. “The Russians gave me a drug that slowed my heart rate and breathing down really slowly. I couldn’t move or do anything, I promise I tried.”

Robin’s mouth dropped open. “You tried… Does that mean you were awake? You heard everything?”

Steve sighed, running his hand through his hair. “Yes, and I was really hoping you know where Dustin is because I need to let him know I am okay.” He looked at her desperately.

Robin seemed to have gone completely pale. “You heard everything, oh, great, right, um…” she took a shaky breath. “If it is really you, then you heard what I said to you when I thought you were dead. I’m not letting you around Dustin until I know it’s really you. It will destroy him otherwise.”

Steve’s heart dropped. He had nearly forgotten about Robin’s confession. He worked his jaw, trying to figure out how to bring it up without announcing that she was gay to anyone who might be listening. “Uh, well… I want you first to know that I will never say anything to anyone, ever,” he said vaguely, watching her shoulders slump in relief, “but it was about… a certain Tammy Thompson. But, I have to say, I think you can do better. I mean, she kind of sounds like a muppet when she sings, don’t you think?”

Robin’s mouth dropped open, offended. “Excuse you, she’s great! She has dreams of becoming a fantastic singer!” Steve scoffed, shaking his head. Robin looked at him, tears welling up in her eyes before she suddenly rushed at him, clutching him in a tight hug. Steve let out an oomph, bringing his arms up and hugging her back. She sobbed, making Steve’s neck wet with tears.

“I’m okay,” he whispered.

“Shut up, you moron,” Robin mumbled back. She pulled away, glaring at him. “Steve Harrington, if you ever pull something like that again, I will kill you,” she snapped at him.

Steve snorted in surprise, “No you won’t, you love me too much,” he immediately retorted. Robin’s expression softened, as she leaned in to hug him again.

“Yeah, I guess I do,” she murmured back, almost too quiet for Steve to hear. A lump formed in his throat as he held her tighter. She suddenly jumped back, and Steve stiffened in alarm looking around warily.

“What?!”

“Dustin, oh my- we have to get you to Dustin,” Robin frantically looked around. Steve nodded, glancing around at the chaos.

“Do you happen to know which ambulance he’s in?”

“Actually, yes, we had to practically drag him out of the mall,” Robin replied, grabbing Steve’s hand and pulling him towards a set of ambulances.

“Thank you for getting him to safety.”

“Of course.”

They snuck past the rest of the nurses, and Robin smacked him on the arm.

“Ow,” Steve deadpanned. Robin just pointed.

“There.” Steve followed her finger and froze, mouth going dry. Dustin was sitting on the edge of the ambulance, idly swinging his feet. His head was cast down, and he seemed hunched in on himself. A shock blanket completely engulfed the rest of his frame, and Steve was struck with just how young Dustin really was.

Robin pushed Steve forward, and he stumbled towards Dustin before glancing back at her. She narrowed her eyes at him and gestured for him to keep going before turning and walking away. Steve swallowed tightly, slowly walking towards Dustin. He still hadn’t noticed Steve approaching, eyes unfocused on the street beneath him.

Steve approached him cautiously, stopping a few feet away. He cleared his throat, but Dustin didn’t react. “Hey Henderson,” he called softly. Dustin flinched, wrapping the blanket tighter around himself as he looked up. When he caught sight of Steve, he froze, mouth dropping open and eyes going comically wide. Steve couldn’t help it as a smile etched its way onto his face. He barely had time to move before Dustin launched himself out of the back of the ambulance, wrapping his arms around Steve tightly and burying his head in his chest.

Steve wrapped his arms around Dustin, one hand coming up to cradle his head protectively. Dustin started sobbing as his legs gave out. Steve was still weak, but he gently lowered them both to the floor, mindful of the child clinging to him as if he was going to disappear.

“Steve,” Dustin choked out, voice breaking. “How- what- I thought-” he stuttered, unable to get a sentence out. He started hyperventilating.

Steve shushed him, pulling him even closer. “I’ve got you, I’m okay, I promise. You’re okay, just breathe,” he rubbed his hand along Dustin’s back, exaggerating his breathing so Dustin could follow him. Dustin’s breaths came out choppy, much too quickly. Steve knit his eyebrows together in concern. “Hey bud, you’ve got to breathe for me.”

“C-Can’t,” he gasped, shaking violently in his hold. Steve drew back slightly, lifting one of Dustin’s hands and placing it over his heart.

“Yes you can. Feel that? I’m safe,” Steve made sure Dustin could see his face as he said so, still taking deep breaths for him to follow.

Slowly, Dustin’s breathing returned to normal, and Steve released a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding. Dustin looked up at him, face splotchy and tears streaming down his face. Steve’s heart broke at the sight. “How are you alive?” he whispered, voice cracking.

Steve sighed, rubbing his face before wincing at the bruises there. “Let’s just say don’t ever do drugs that the Russians give you,” he said wearily. Dustin looked highly unimpressed at the explanation, so Steve hurriedly continued, “they injected me with some sort of liquid that slowed my heart rate and breathing down to imperceptible levels.”

“How do you know?” Dustin breathed, still staring at Steve as though he was about to disappear.

Steve grimaced before narrowing his eyes at him. “You and Robin caught onto that much faster than I expected. I was still conscious, I could hear everything. I just couldn’t move.”

“Oh,” Dustin responded, voice incredibly small.

“Yeah,” Steve said, pulling Dustin back into a hug. “I’m so sorry.”

Dustin reared back in shock, spluttering, “Sorry? What are you sorry for?”

Steve blinked in surprise. “Uh, gee, let me think. For you thinking I was dead for a good two hours, for not being able to alert you that I was alive, that kind of thing.”

Dustin shook his head, eyes filling with fresh tears. “No, it’s not your fault, it’s mine-”

“Nope, we’re not doing this, I’m nipping this in the bud,” Steve interrupted, scowling at him. “You found a dangerous situation and brought it to an adult you trust, which you absolutely should have. You did nothing wrong, and you escaped when I told you to. I made the decision to stay behind to protect you, because I am responsible for you, got it? I’m the babysitter, remember? This was in no way your fault.” Steve watched as the tears fell down Dustin’s cheek, before wiping them away with his thumb. This only seemed to make Dustin cry harder.

“But it was all my idea in the first place, I nearly got you killed-”

“And then you saved my life,” Steve said firmly. Dustin stopped speaking in surprise and snapped his mouth shut, waiting for him to continue. “You convinced Robin to bring my… me out of the Russian base, and you set me in a safe place for the final boss fight against the demothingies-”

“Demogorgons, I’ve told you a hundred times,” Dustin huffed, annoyed.

“Yeah, that, so I was able to get out of the mall in time. You saved me, got it?” Steve waited for Dustin to nod slowly.

“Okay,” he whispered so quietly Steve almost missed it. Dustin cleared his throat, leaning forward and pressing his head into Steve’s shoulder. Steve adjusted his grip accordingly and Dustin breathed deeply. “What else did you hear?” he asked after a few moments.

Steve paused, then ran his fingers through Dustin’s hair and grinned. “I heard that you love me,” Steve said teasingly, and watched Dustin lean back, ears and face going a bright shade of pink.

“I thought you were dead,” he protested, crossing his arms and pouting slightly. “Give me a break.”

Steve gasped, putting his hands over his heart dramatically. “I’m wounded, Henderson. You mean that you won’t say it unless I’m dead?”

“Shut up,” Dustin snapped back, cheeks flaming even redder. He jabbed a finger into Steve’s chest. “I thought I lost you,” he paused, blood draining from his face as quick as it had happened. “I thought I lost you,” he whispered again, quieter this time.

“Shit, Henderson, I’m sorry. I wouldn’t leave you like that, I promise.” He moved to Dustin’s side, bumping his shoulder with his own. “You die, I die, remember? The reverse is also true.” Dustin looked up at him in confusion. “You live, I live,” Steve said, taking a deep breath. “I’m not going to leave you.”

Dustin swiped at his eyes, leaning against Steve’s side. “That makes no sense,” he muttered, “how is that the opposite of the phrase?”

Steve blinked, offended. “It- It works,” he rolled his eyes at him. “Look, what I am trying to say is that I love you too.” Dustin inhaled sharply, eyes widening and glistening with even more tears. He leaned his head on Steve’s shoulder.

“I love you so much, Steve,” he whispered. Steve’s heart swelled with affection again, and he chuckled softly, wrapping his arm around his shoulder.

“Hey,” a voice cut in. Steve and Dustin jumped, looking guiltily at the nurse. “You need to get to the hospital,” she said, pointing a finger at Dustin. “Let’s go.”

Dustin tightened his grip on Steve’s jacket as his breath caught, clearly not wanting to leave Steve’s side. Steve’s heart warmed at the motion. “I’m riding with him,” Steve called in his most authoritative voice.

The nurse raised her eyebrows at him. “Relation?” she asked.

Steve grinned. “He’s my little brother.” The blinding smile from Dustin was totally worth it.