It was particularly on brand for Tina to throw a party every holiday, aside from Thanksgiving of course.   She had arranged an ugly sweater party and promised alcohol and a party better than Halloween's. The party was coming a few nights after the Snowball dance at the middle school. Steve and Christine had planned to go, the two of them  finding some very ugly sweaters  and commissioning the help from Dustin to make them even worse. The time with Dustin was spent gluing their fingers together and some of the best laughs they had had by far and by the end of their  session they had some of the ugliest sweaters they had ever seen,  and they were happy.

Steve Harrington pulled up down the street a good ways away from the house, his head turning to Christine Wheeler as she stared down the road with a certain excitement that only came from the thought of getting drunk.

"Alright Steve so what's the plan again?"

"Get as ridiculously drunk as we can and then walk back to my place." Steve said with a smile, his face lighting up at the sight of how excited she was. She gave him a nod and some raised eyebrows, the girl continuing to look at him as she got out of the car. She stretched when she got out, her sweater coming up at the bottom and showing her stomach, Steve averting his eyes as he tried not to think of her in that way. He had vowed to stop thinking about her like that, because she didn't feel the same. He figured it had been for the better though, because he was still getting over Nancy. It had only been about a month, but that entire  month had been centered around  Christine and him, because they spent every waking second together.

Christine linked her arm with Steve,  pulling him away and towards the music at the end of the road at Tinas house. One person that Christine was worried about seeing was Billy, another being Nancy.  Nancy and Christine had said a solid 10 words to each other since  everything with the mind flayer went down. So Christine really didn't want to see her here.  Especially with Steve.

The two friends got to the door, both of them taking in the sight as they stepped through the doorway. Half the people there were wearing ugly sweaters, the other half just regular clothes, and a handful of people had dressed like Santa Claus. The music that was playing was in no way Christmas music, and Christine had already laid eyes on the punch that was sitting on the kitchen counter.

Steve looked down at the girl, the girl giving him an optimistic look and a scrunched nosed smile as she already started to pull him towards the alcohol. Steve's eyes caught onto the green liquid in the big bowl, having a rush of deja vu and then feeling his stomach churn. Maybe he wasn't going to be drinking tonight.

Christine pushed a cup into his hand, the girl hooking arms with him again and tipping her cup back, chugging it as he just looked at her with wide eyes. She brought the cup down from her lips, a green mustache on her top lip as she shook her head at him.

"Come on grumpy...drink with me!" She said, dipping her cup into the bowl again. She used her hand to push his cup closer to his mouth, his lips touching the side as he groaned and whined. A few years ago he would've been completely fine with getting shitfaced, but something about drinking now didn't really sit right with him. However she tipped his cup up, a smile on her lips as he chugged the cup down. She cheered as he did so, chugging her own and then laughing at the face her made when he finished his own. "There you go! Oh I'm so glad we're here."

Steve shook his head, saying fuck it and dipping his cup back into the bowl. He finally hooked arms with the girl, her grin widening as she realized she had gotten him on board with drinking. They both chugged it at the same time, the cups emptying pretty quickly and both of them having a green mustache as they pulled them down. Steve wiped his mouth with his sweater sleeve, his hand quickly going up to her face. He put his fingers under her chin, using his thumb to wipe the green residue from where it was adorning her lips. His finger dragged across them, Christine feeling something ignite in her at the small gesture. She ignored it, the girl giving him another smile before pulling out of his grip. Steve's face slightly dropped at this, the boy refilling his cup again and starting to drink it. Christine was quick to do so as well, the girl hoping that she would be able to do something that she had always wanted to try.

She headed into the small crowd, the girl dancing a little to the music and just hoping that Steve was following. But he wasn't, Steve was socializing, he knew more people than she had and he was utilizing that by trying to get Christine out of his head. Christine headed outside, finishing off  her cup again and setting eyes on on the keg. This was the thing she had always wanted to try. She stood out there for a little while, striking up random conversation and drinking cups upon cups of beer before finally she felt the urge to use the bathroom, the girl excusing herself from the conversation she was having. She stumbled inside, the alcohol definitely inhabiting her as she could literally feel her vision getting blurrier as she walked. Steve caught sight of her as she stumbled through the living room, the boy tipsy but not drunk. He was drunk enough though to excuse himself from his conversation and follow the girl towards the bathroom. Before she could reach the door her grabbed her arm, the girl looking really excited to see him.

"You alright Chris?" He asked, grabbing the red cup form her hand and sitting it down on the table. He watched as she swayed, realizing she was ridiculously hammered and thinking that he should probably stop drinking.

"Yes I'm fine! I really have to pee though, I cant find the bathroom." She whispered the last part, a giggled coming out of her mouth as she closed her eyes, pushing her forehead into Steve shoulder. He pushed her back a little, turning her around and leading her towards the bathroom. He opened the door for her, pushing her inside but she didn't let go of him, the girl pulling him in with her. Steve didn't like this bathroom for very specific reasons, Nancy had broken his heart in this bathroom, something he would never forget.

"I cant go in the bathroom with you Chris."

"Please Steve. I want your company." She slurred, her eyes wide and puppy-doggish as she spoke. He looked over her face, finally letting out a sigh and entering the bathroom with her. He got inside, locking the door and keeping his back to her as she used the bathroom. She hummed to herself as she did it, Steve almost wanting to laugh at that.

"Are you having fun Stevie?" She asked, the girl finishing her business and flushing the toilet. He turned around then, turning the sink on for her and giving her a short nod. She washed her hands, her eyes catching him in the mirror and a smile crossing her face. She dried her hands quickly, turning to him and grabbing his face in her hands and squeezing his cheeks a little bit.

"God you're so handsome Stevie. Really. Like just pretty hot." She admitted, a small smile coming to Steve's lips as he trying to contain his laughter. However she was studying his face, her fingers suddenly pushing back a little, knitting comfortably into his hair and changing the air in the bathroom. Her eyes glued to his lips, her drunken thoughts taking over as she pushed forwards a little bit, Steve's eyes widening as he did nothing to stop her. The movements were painstakingly slow, Steve lifting his hands but not quite knowing where to put them. Just as their lips brushed together there was a scary loud knock on the door, Christine jumping back from him. She leaned against the counter as Steve opened the door almost angrily, his face dropping even more as both of them saw who was on the other side.

"Nancy?" Christine asked, her eyes widening as she took an unconscious step away from Steve.

"Christine?" Nancy said, her eyebrows furrowing as she looked at the sight of her ex-boyfriend and her cousin sharing the bathroom.

"Jonathan." Steve deadpanned, his face not very happy as he acknowledged one of the people he disliked the most in the world.

"Steve." Jonathan greeted, his face also not very pleased. Christine saw someone past Nancy, an unmistakeable man making his way into the party and making her blood run cold.

"Billy?" She said to herself, her eyes closing briefly before she pushed past Steve, Nancy, and Jonathan. Steve followed after her, looking at the couple in front of him as he slid past them, the couple in question sharing a look as he passed.

Steve met Christine at the punch bowl, the girl throwing back cups as fast as she could. Steve grabbed the cup from her hand, ignoring her whining as he poured it into the sink.

"Enough. Let's just get out of here?" He asked, watching as Christine turned her head. She caught Billy's eye, the man winking at her and then looking to Steve, his lips slightly lifting at the corners as he did so. She crossed her arms over her chest as she looked back at Steve, seeing the pained look in his eyes as he leaned a little closer to her, his voice dropping down to a whisper. "Please."

"Alright let's just go." She slurred, turning on her heel and making her way through the crowd to the door. She sent one last look back at Nancy, the girl watching as Steve and Christine left together, her stomach dropping as she did so. Nancy had known that they were hanging out, but she hadn't realized it was matching sweater, sharing a bathroom, and leaving together hanging out.

The two started to walk, Christine hugging her arms to her body as she tried to keep warm. She figured that her body heat from being plastered would be enough but there was something so draining about leaving that party that she felt as if nothing could warm her. Christine didn't want to say the night was ruined, but the party had been, and they both knew it. Steve caught up to her, letting out a tense breath and then looking at her.

"God I don't think I'm gonna get used to seeing them together." Steve said, chewing on his bottom lip as Christine looked up at him.

"Some people just move on really fast huh? I'm sorry Steve I looked in her room yesterday and didn't see a sweater and I just assumed she wouldn't be there." Christine apologized, the girl breathing in between every few words. She was definitely drunk, and they were walking a little too fast, so staying off the ground was her main priority.

"Hey it's not your fault. Not your fault." Steve said, shaking his head at her apology. The walked in silence for a few minutes, Christine now trying to hold in the urge to vomit, and Steve trying to figure out what to say next. He wasn't nearly as drunk as her, but he didn't want seeing Nancy and Jonathan to ruin the night.  So Steve decided on figuring out how to make her laugh. He watched as Christine shivered, feeling bad for not having a jacket or anything to give her so instead walking up to her and putting his arm over her shoulders. She accepted the warmth, the girl putting her arms around him and gripping the front of his sweater.

"This is nice. It's like a hug." Steve said, looking down at the girl as she spotted his house. She let out a short giggle the girl letting go of him and  standing in front of him so he would stop. "What are you doing?"

Christine answered him with action, the girl wrapping him in a tight hug, a hug that they hadn't shared since Christine had been terrified that Steve was going to die in that hole. Steve accepted the hug, wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her a little bit. He ran with it, spinning her around and earning another laugh from her. He loved the sound of her laugh, the boy gaining the liquid courage when needed to do his next move. He use his arms to hoist her over his shoulder, the girl letting out a short yell  as she gripped the back of his red sweater. He took off running, their laughs mingling in the cold still night air as he brought her up to his front yard.  He grabbed her by the waist, sitting her back down on his doorstep and sharing a huge grin with her as  he tried to catch his breath. The two of them stared at each other for a second before Christine let out another laugh, Steve joining her soon after. The two of them laughed for a second, Steve enjoying this moment more than he had enjoyed  any other moment between them. For a second he didn't feel heartbroken or scared or like he had fought actual monsters before. For a second he felt pure genuine happiness, he stared it in the face, and he accepted it.

"That's fine Steve I didn't want to walk the rest of the way anyways." Christine said, shaking her head as Steve's laughters died out. They still shared a grin, both of them turning towards the door as they waited to go inside.

Steve unlocked his front door, grabbing Christine by the hand and pulling her inside and out of the cold.  She instantly felt better, the warmth from the heater and from his presence making her feel like perhaps she had never been cold.  Another wave of alcohol finally hit her as she followed Steve up the stairs, the girl feeling the world around her start to spin.  He pulled her into his room, the girl immediately kicking her shoes off as she tried not to fall. Steve stood back, watching her struggle with her shoes, her face overly concentrated as she used her foot to take her other shoe off. Before Steve could even say anything Christine was pulling her sweater off,  his eyes widening as he realized she was fully undressing right here. He pushed past her, going to grab a shirt from his dresser for her and then throwing it behind him, the girl muttering a shirt 'ow' as the shirt hit her.

"Steve help. Please help." She whined, Steve turning around with wary eyes, his suspicions being confirmed when he saw that the sweater was stuck around her chin.  He tried not to look over her body as she continued to  whine. Steve grabbed her by the arms, letting her know he was helping before grabbing the sweater and pulling it off of her. Her face was revealed under the sweater,  Steve holding in a laugh at how scared she looked from not being able to get her shirt off.  He couldn't help himself as he gave her a sheepish grin, his eyes  dropping to look over her face as she suddenly lost all the words she could think of. She had a single thought, only one,  and she wanted nothing more than to act on that thought. But then Steve pushed the shirt he had gotten for her into her chest, his face looking sorry, almost as if he knew exactly what she was thinking.  She grabbed the shirt, taking a few steps back before  pulling it on and refusing to look at him.

She had only felt that way a few times with him,  and now it had been multiple times in one night and Christine figured something inevitable was  going to happen. But at the same time she had no apparent clue if she was the only one feeling this, or if he was also feeling it too.

Steve threw a pair of pajama pants at her, the girl pulling them on rather quickly, Steve refusing to look at her this time. Finally she was dressed in comfortable clothes, Steve running to the bathroom to change and then returning to the room, his eyes on the girl who was laying on his bed, her gaze fixed on the ceiling as one person coursed through her mind over and over again.

"Are you tired?" Steve asked as he laid his clothes on a chair. Christine turned her head to him, her hair spread out around her as she gave him a half smile.

"Not really." She said, patting the spot on the bed beside her. Steve sucked in a breath, rounding the bed and laying down beside her, his head in turning to look at her. She looked at the ceiling for only a few more moments  before she fully turned onto her side, her hands going under her head as she gave him a perplexed look. He turned on his side too, mimicking her hands and then giving her a look as if he had something on his mind.

"What are you thinking about?" Steve asked, wondering what exactly was going through her head.

"You." She said without missing a beat, Steve's heart rate jumping as he heard what she said. He sucked in a breath, his eyebrows furrowing the tiniest bit as he felt his entire soul shake at what she had said. Her lips lifted slightly at the corner, Steve breathing out as he scooted a little bit closer to her.

"Me too." He said, telling her the truth. Everything in his body screamed of him to do it, to just kiss her, but he held back on that, not knowing entirely if she was okay with it. He thought back to when they went to the movies, the boy closing his eyes momentarily before reopening them and giving her a smile back.

"I think about you all the time Steve. I'm so happy you came into my life." Christine whispered between them, as if it was a deep dark secret that she didn't want anyone else to know. Steve once again felt her words hit him right in the chest, his heartbeat quickening as Christine pressed one of her hands to his heart. She gave him an optimistic look, a nervous one, but a genuine one, Steve returning the nervous one and trying not to ruin this moment they were sharing.

"I don't know what I'd do without you." The words fell idly off of Steve's tongue as if they had been waiting a lifetime to be heard, Christines face contorting into one of surprise and also of pure admiration. She pulled her hand back from his chest, lifting it to his hair and caressing the side of his hair.   He truly had no idea what he would do without her, she had been a light in the darkness that was his past month and a half, the girl hardly leaving his side through it all. He had only known her for that month and a half but it was almost intimidating how well they worked together, how perfect they were when it was just the two of them. The fun they could have, the way they could spend hours together doing nothing but talking or just simply sitting together, and still never get bored of each other.

Christine pressed forwards, putting her forehead to Steve's and closing her eyes, he followed suit, his hand going up to grip her wrist that was holding his head.  Christine licked her lips, letting out a short almost humorless chuckle, the girl speaking so low between them that  even Steve could hardly hear it.

"I wish I wasn't drunk. I wish we were sober." Christine said, never meant any words more than she meant those ones. Steve agreed, because the doubts in his head from Christine being drunk we're starting to litter his brain and he wasn't sure if she meant the things she was saying or if it was just the alcohol speaking.  Steve was sure that he was almost completely sober now, he had never felt more sober than he did when she was touching him. Both of them knew deep down that there were too many things holding them back from it. Christine and Steve were amazing friends, and the boundary of friendship was one that they weren't sure they wanted to cross. Steve let out his own humorless chuckle, the tension between them literally almost able to be seen because of how thick it was.

Steve opened his eyes, Christine following suit, his thumb rubbing across her wrist as he nodded at what she had said.  He moved closer to her, lifting his forehead from hers and pressing a kiss there, his heart breaking a little bit that  they never seemed to get their chance. He removed his hand from her wrist, something unspeakable passing between them as Steve grabbed her, pulling her closer and pulling the blanket over them.

"It's okay. Let's just go to bed, yeah?" He said, pulling her head to his chest and resting his head on the top of hers. Christine felt the tears gather in her eyes, her heart breaking as she breathed him in, slightly nodding her head so that he knew she was alright with that.

The two of them laid in bed that night, neither of them falling asleep as they just stayed in the comfort of each others arms and imagined a world where loving each other wasn't as hard as it was already shaping up to be.