EPILOGUE IN THREE PARTS

( part un: summer nights c. 1988 )

FEATURING:

Timothée Chalamet as Mike Wheeler

Tarjei Sandvik Moe as Daniel Jacobs

"ONE MORE YEAR, THEN WHAT?" Daniel mumbled, fiddling with his boyfriend's fingers. They were laying on Mike Wheeler's bed, Daniel laying in between the boy's legs with his head on his chest, his boyfriend's arms wrapped around the blond; holding him tight with no want to let go. The fall of their rapidly approaching senior year would make almost five years since they were together. Daniel remembers their first kiss like it was yesterday, which was weird since usually, he couldn't remember things for shit.

"Then we go to the same college or a college near each other," Mike began, whispering into the other boy's ear and causing him to let out a few giggles, "Then, we graduate with flying colors and the world is ours."

Daniel sighed, his mind relishing in the blissful future they could have, "A whole world just for us, if only." It went silent, the room heavy with Daniel's words, "They're never going to accept us. We're going to have to hide from the world for the rest of our lives..."

"I'm never hiding from the world, you know why?" Mike whispered.

His voice barely audible, Daniel asked, "Why?"

Without skipping a beat, his lover said, "Because you're my world."

Daniel couldn't help but burst out laughing, turning around and propping himself up on the bed so he was hovering above his boyfriend. "That was corny as fuck, I can't believe you just said that."

"You loved it!" Mike said through laughs, his face inching closer to Daniel's, "I wasn't lying, though."

He couldn't help himself, he never could around Mike. With a sly smile, Daniel leaned in and kissed his boyfriend. Every time they kissed felt like the first, no matter how many years passed. He still got the same butterflies in his stomach from when Mike kissed him in the hallway of Hawkins Middle School during the end of the world. The same butterflies from when Mike kissed him in front of burning headlights as their closest friend, Eleven, destroyed the Mind Flayer. Every time they kissed, Daniel was just that stupid kid again. That stupid kid that was wholehearted, hopelessly in love with Mike Wheeler. No matter what, Daniel knew he would always be that stupid kid. Right here, kissing Mike Wheeler, was where he always wanted to be. Sure, there was the looming threat of their senior year of high school and their subsequent college years, but this was right here, right now. Right now, during a hot July night, kissing his boyfriend, allowed to be whoever he wanted to be within these walls. He was who he was, unapologetically, he wasn't ashamed of who he loved and he wished that one day he could be free in a place outside of his own little bubble with Mike. One day they would be free. There were things in the universe that were always going to be certain: Everyone would die one day, the sun will always rise and set, and Daniel Jacobs would always be in love with Mike Wheeler.

( part deux: independence is overrated c. 1989 )

FEATURING:

Yara Shahidi as Heather Jacobs

Joe Keery as Steve Harrington

HEATHER NEVER THOUGHT HER AND STEVE WERE MADE TO LAST. This was especially true when the summer of 1985 came to an end and Heather got accepted into a dream college... that was all the way in California. Steve wanted to go with her, after all, he wasn't going to college, just working for his dad's company in Hawkins. He was willing to throw it all away for her, just to follow her to the ends of the Earth. Heather, being the sensible one in the relationship, didn't let him. Instead, she cried and kissed him goodbye, promising to write him a million letters until the school year ended and she could come back home.

Now, in 1989, as graduation drew nearer, Heather was especially missing her boyfriend. She had expected him to give up on her, to let her go, to live his own life. Yet every summer she came home to Hawkins, he was always there waiting for her. She would turn the key of her childhood home with her bags in hand, seeing her mother making tea in the kitchen, her teenaged brother either watching TV or upstairs making out with his boyfriend, and she would see Steve Harrington waiting on the couch. Steve was always there for her. He was there for her after the events of the fall of 1984. Eleven, a dynamic young girl Heather was honored to know, killed a creature from another dimension, Steve had just blown up tunnels into the Upside Down, yet he was rushing to the hospital with a car that wasn't his and a group of kids. He cried with her mother as she was rushed into surgery, coming out with only one and a half legs. He still loved her, even through months of learning how to walk with a prosthetic, even through all the times she yelled at him out of pure frustration with her situation. She had always deemed herself to be powerful and independent and she hated that she was rendered powerless and needy all because she hadn't gotten on the bus fast enough. Through everything, he still loved her.

As summer approached, Heather found herself impatient. Sitting at the desk she shared with her roommate, Martha, tapping her pencil on the dark wood, unable to think of a single word for the essay she was supposed to be writing. She got a letter from Steve yesterday, one of what had to be hundreds, and now he was all she could think about.

"Dude, if you aren't gonna write anything, scoot over I hate studying on the floor," Martha sighed, a smile hinting at the corners of her mouth as she pulled Heather out of her trance. The two of them had been roommates for two years and she remained to be one of Heather's closest friends at the school.

Heather laughed at her own antics, grabbing her blank notebook and tossing it on her bed before settling down next to it, "Sorry, I just can't stop thinking about..."

"Your boy toy, I get it," Martha chuckled, moving her stuff to the top of the desk, "I got someone at home, too, being this close but so far from going back to her is killing me."

"Her?" the girl raised an eyebrow with a smirk. "Two years we've been living together and you never told me this?"

"You got a problem?" Martha asked, but there was no concern nor any malice behind it. "I mean, you better not because I know your best friend and your brother are both gay, so you got no excuses."

Heather raised her arms in surrender, "No problems, you know me, I just can't believe you never told me. I think I'ma get ready to go to bed, it's getting late."

Martha was about to respond when there was a knock on the door. Her roommate nodded towards it, unmoving, clearly telling Heather to answer it. "If it's a serial killer, tell him to get me first."

The girl, who was just getting ready to take off her prosthetic, a true sign she was turning in for the night, scoffed and rolled her eyes as she stood up and walked to the door, "Dork."

Her hand twisted the doorknob and opened the door, and if Heather was holding anything there was a certainty she would have dropped it. Standing in her doorway was none other than Steve Harrington.

"Steve!" she shouted, jumping and wrapping her arms around his neck. He grabbed her by the waist and spun her around in the hallway, putting her down and kissing her. When they pulled apart, she said, "I can't believe you're here!"

"I know you'll be home in a month, but I couldn't wait!" Steve exclaimed, kissing her again, "Also, when I told Veronica I was coming, she said if we don't drive up to visit her and Nancy she's coming down and killing us."

Heather just laughed, missing having her best friend by her side. At least Veronica was still close, only a few hours north living in San Francisco. That was better than nothing, she supposed.

Taking one look at the happy couple, Martha began to pack up her stuff, "Yeah, I'll study in the library. You two have fun."

With a wink, Martha squeezed past them and left the dorm room. Heather laughed, watching her friend go. After she was gone, she grabbed Steve by the collar of his shirt, pulling him into the room and shutting the door behind them.

Looking into his eyes, all she could say was, "I love you so much, Steve Harrington."

"I love you, too," Steve said with that same stupid smile from when they were just teenagers, "Always."

( part trois: soulmates c. 1994 )

FEATURING:

Barbie Ferreira as Veronica Montgomery

Natalia Dyer as Nancy Wheeler

SUMMER IN SAN FRANCISCO WAS VERONICA'S FAVORITE THING. The year was 1994 now, Hawkins was far behind in Veronica Montgomery's rearview mirror. At almost 27 years old, her heart still belonged to Nancy Wheeler and that was all she cared about. The two were sitting on the beach, in a cove they were pretty sure only they knew about. Veronica was laying on her back in the sand, her head in her girlfriend's lap with cold waves brushing her toes, sending chills down the spine. They weren't married, they weren't allowed to be, but that didn't stop them from wearing engagement rings on their left hands. It was just a piece of paper, their love was all that mattered. Saturday mornings like this were all that mattered.

"Was that Heather on the phone earlier?" Nancy asked, her fingers entangling with the girl's long, dark hair.

Veronica nodded, a large smile on her face as she announced, "Her and Steve are finally gonna tie the knot. She said she wants me to be her maid of honor. You get to be her bridesmaid."

"That's insane to think about," Nancy laughed, "I mean, it feels like just yesterday I was dating Steve and she was hating my guts. I still feel like we're just teenagers."

"I feel like some stupid teenager when I'm with you," Veronica attempted the cheesy line, giggling before she could even get the rest of the sentence out. "You know, Mike will probably be at the wedding. When was the last time you saw him and your parents?"

"Not since Christmas," the girl shrugged, "I don't mind. Mom and dad tried their best, but all they did was ignore me or yell at me. You know Mike still calls every Friday night. Besides, all the family I need is right here."

Veronica sighed, "You're sweet, but everyone within a five-mile radius knows you miss Mike. Are him and Daniel still together?"

"They broke up for a bit, apparently, while Daniel was away for school," Nancy explained, "Remember? I think I told you about it. They reconnected and got back together a little over a year ago, I think. It's so weird to think that my brother met his soulmate and almost lost him."

"I couldn't fathom losing you," the girl in her lap spoke solemnly, her eyes trained on the steady waves coming in and back.

Nancy smiled, leaning down and pressing a kiss to the girl's forehead before whispering, "Does that mean we're soulmates?"

The brunette sat up and turned to face Nancy, grabbing her by the face and pressing a soft, sweet kiss on her lips. "Nothing less than. You know that. I mean, you were my lesbian awakening, Nance, that will always hold a special place in my heart."

"You know, one day I'm gonna tie you down, for real," Nancy claimed with a laugh, kissing her girlfriend again, "One day it'll be legal, I swear. I'll become a politician and make it so myself, just watch me."

"Oh yeah? Am I even worth that?" Veronica asked, her voice teasing as they pressed their foreheads together, nothing but their voices and the sounds of the water shifting.

"You are worth everything," the girl admitted, masking her seriousness with a falsified laugh, "You mean everything to me, Veronica."

"You've always been my everything."

( note! )

i didn't intend for heather & steve's to be the longest but there was a lot more to explain since her ending was left rather untied in the last chapter so if you weren't paying attention: she did lose her leg after the Demo-Dog attack! I know it's brief, but I think disabled characters are way important and way underrated, so even though it's just a glimpse, I absolutely made sure to include it! Also, I know it's unrealistic to have them still be with their middle/high school S.O.s but I'm a sucker for a soft ending so y'all get happy endings! Daniel and Mike were broken up for like 3-4 years when Daniel went to college but in case y'all were wondering: Daniel dated one guy for like a month and Mike didn't date anyone while they were broken up; they reconnected when Daniel came back to Hawkins after graduation and saw Mike and was like "yup, definitely still in love with him" so they still got their happy ending! Once again, I can't fucking believe this is over, it doesn't feel real, and this story will always be a huge part of me, love y'all!

( also, check out my other Steve Harrington fic called Like I Can, thx )