After the father and daughter had talked, Christine had convinced him that they could argue about it when she wasn't on vacation, because she was trying to enjoy herself. A few days passed, the week flying by and the two teens having a pretty decent time in Denver. Christines father had showed them around like he had promised, but once work called he was gone most of the time for the rest of the week, leaving Steve and Christine to figure out what they wanted to do. They had seen the sights,  driven through some mountains, enjoyed their time together, and finally Friday had come. They were to leave at noon on Saturday, Phil getting antsy at the fact that he was going to have to say goodbye to his daughter again.

Christine Wheeler was getting dressed in her room, the room that was opposite to Steve's in the hallway. She looked at herself in the mirror as she pulled her pants up, the girl buttoning the jeans and then letting out a breath. She was also getting a bit antsy about leaving, but only because she had had such a good time away from hellish Hawkins with Steve that she wasn't ready to re-enter the fold.

Steve crossed the hall, opening the door without a knock, his eyes widening as he looked at the girl who was in only pants and a bra. He looked her over for a second, leaning against the door frame for only a moment before her head turned to him quickly, the girl immediately shouting at him.

"Jesus Christ!" Steve yelled, pulling the door closed and shaking his head. He scrambled to find words, the first ones popping into his head and flying out of his mouth. "There's a lock! Lock the door. You're-"

"Shut up. Move out of my way." Christine ripped the door open,  her cheeks a bright red. Steve almost laughed at how red she was, the boy dropping his hands to his hips and watching her walk off down the hallway. He followed after her a few moments later, his lips tipped upwards into an embarrassed smile as he joined her in the kitchen. She was putting cream cheese on a bagel, her hair falling over her shoulder and shielding her eyes.

"Cream cheese?" She asked, letting out a sigh and looking over at Steve.  He chuckled the tiniest bit, nodding his head as she pulled another bagel from the toaster. A few moments later she handed him the bagel, her eyes dull and irritated as he began to eat.

"So what's the plan for today?" He asked right before he bit into the bagel, his chewing making her lip curl up in disgust. She turned away from him, leaning against the counter and staring out the window above the sink, the girl lifting the bagel to her mouth as she thought about it.

"We're going on a hike."

"A hike?"

"Later today, so we can watch the sun set over the city. The neighbor told me it was one of the best things she's ever seen. She told me it actually is the sight that made her believe in God again, whatever that means. I don't know...it's supposed to be beautiful. You up for it?" Christine asked, her head turning to look at Steve, he had his eyebrows furrowed, the boy chewing his bagel and then swallowing and shrugging.

"I guess so. I don't know if it'll get me back in church but it sounds nice." Steve shrugged again at the end of his sentence and then took another bite of his bagel. Christine nodded, watching him with a curled lip as he devoured the rest of his breakfast. Finally  he gave her a satisfied look, Christine sipping her coffee and smiling at him.

"What are you thinking about?" Steve threw out, not really thinking much of what he was saying but still wanting to hear the answer. He stood from the table with his plate as Christine pondered his question, the girl scooting to the side so that he could put his dish in the sink.

"You." She said, and it was reminiscent of a conversation from the past. He was caught off guard for a moment, the boy leaning against the countertop and looking into the sink as she refused to look at him and instead stared into the creaminess of her morning coffee. Finally he turned his head, looking at her with a sideways glance, his eyes narrowing at her as he tried to think of what to say next.

"Me too." She gave him a hum of approval and then sipped her coffee, Steve watch her with a peculiar gaze because of how insanely interesting she was at the moment.  Why was she thinking about him?   The silence penetrated his thoughts about her and he couldn't stand it, the boy continuing to lean against the sink but moving his gaze towards the window above it before he spoke."I'm specifically thinking about why you gave up NYU for an internship with Hopper. Also...why Hopper gave you an internship. Lot of questions."

"I- NYU just doesn't seem like it's for me." Steve scoffed and shook his head, looking at her like she was crazy.

"You're the smartest person I know. And to get into NYU of all places? I know you had to have worked your ass off for it. I'm stupid but I'm not that stupid.  Even I know NYU is a big deal."

"You're not stupid Steve. Come on." Christine said, looking down at her coffee with a frown as she listened to her best friend antagonize himself.

"Fine, not stupid but definitely not as smart as you. Listen...I'm the—the less smart of the two of us but I'm still smart enough to know that you should get out of that stupid town and go live a life worth living. And don't worry about us—" He looked at her now, his right hand lifting from the countertop and resting on her shoulder. "—we're gonna be fine."

She considered just nodding and moving on, but he didn't seem to be getting the big picture of it all. Christine knew they would be find without her, so deep down a little part of her wanted to make it harder for everyone to be okay with her leaving. She wanted more time, more time to spend with everyone and more time to watch them grow. And as much as she didn't want to admit it...she knew leaving Steve wasn't an option.

"I can't."

"Yeah but why?" Steve asked, wanting to know what was keeping her from college. "If I had the chance to go to college I would take it in an instant. If I had the chance to go to NY-"

"Well that's you Steve. That's not me. Okay? Stop asking so many questions and trying to convince me. You sound like my dad. I'm-I'm not going." Maybe now wasn't the best time  to explain why she couldn't go. Steve raised his hands in surrender, realizing this must be a sore spot and deciding to save the lecture for later. For now he just retreated from the sink, looking down at the table as he sat at it. He felt like he'd done something wrong, so when she pulled the chair out from in front of him and sat down, he was the one who refused to look up at her.

"Do you wanna watch tv or something?" Christine pierced the silence between them, Steve looking up at her like a guilty child and then giving her a short nod. She nodded back, standing from her spot and  walking towards the living room.

On the tv they watched some sitcom, the tension easing between them now that they were settled. Steve was sat in a chair and Christine on the couch, but she was missing his presence and wished he was sitting with her. In an attempt to show him she wasn't mad at him she grabbed a throw pillow and flung it at him, the cushion hitting him in the face and making him look at her with faux anger and shock.

"What was that for?"

"For you being an assface." She laughed out, and Steve loved the sound of her laugh. He ignored the assface part, instead grabbing the pillow and  standing from the chair. Christine now realized her mistake, the girl recoiling in fear as he started walking towards her.

"I was just joking. Steve!" He lifted both of his arms over his head, pillow in hand as she laughed nervously below him.

"Too bad. You have to pay for what you've done." He said in some kind of ominous accent, Christine fighting back a laugh due to the fear in her heart.

"St-" Before she could even finish the sentence he brought the pillow down on her. He hit her three times, the girl groaning and Steve laughing as he accepted her olive branch. He laughed, running a quick hand through his hair and then crashing down onto the couch beside her, his lips turned up into a ridiculous smile.

"If you wanted me to be by you so bad you could've just asked." Steve said, giving her a raised eyebrow look. Christine scrunched up her nose, although there eyes gave her away, Steve snickering as she didn't deny anything. There was a humorous silence between them as their eyes both returned to the tv, a lighter air in the room. Steve had a thought, and without thinking of the consequences, spoke it.  "By the way...the pink bra...looks great on you."

Before he could even properly accept the consequences of his words she had brought a pillow up to hit him in the face, her cheeks a bright red as she laughed at his comment. She was embarrassed, but watching the way his own blush had grown as he said it was hilarious. He  was quick to react now, the boy standing quickly from the couch and reaching down to grab her. She shouted as he lifted her and then dropped her back down on the couch, loud bellowing laughter coming from both of them now as she pleaded for mercy and he pat his elbow, signaling that he was about to hit her with it.  She screeched but he didn't stop, both of them huffing and laughing a she jumped onto her. She groaned, Steve pushing himself up with his arms as she laughed.

Christine looked up at him as he hovered over her, the laughter slowly dying as they both realized the position they were in.  Steve had his hands on either sides of her head, his body on hers as their legs tangled together. His hair was hanging from his head and his smile was devious, it was outrageously charming. Steve felt his breath stop as he looked down at her, her fake hair spread around her, her face red and lit up. She looked amazing.

Christine felt the inclination to reach up, the girl putting her hand on the side of Steve's head. He slowly got the memo, gulping as he figured he would press his luck and see where he got. He slowly lowered his head, his eyes flitting across her features as the room glowed with sunlight through the window.  Just as Christine started to close her eyes there was a loud thump at the front door, Steve pulling back and turning his head to look in the direction of it. Christine held back a groan as she pushed him off of her, crawling off of the couch and standing up on the other side of the coffee table. She walked towards the door, her back turned so that she could try and regain herself.

She opened the front door, searching the porch until her eyes fell on a thick newspaper sitting on the welcome mat. She reached down and grabbed it, the girl quickly standing and feeling Steve standing right behind her. She turned, pushing the newspaper into his chest and then walking off towards the living room.

"In case you wanted to do the crossword."