CHAPTER 17
VULNERABILITY

THEY had somewhat of a plan. After inspecting the garage, Hopper decided to insulate it. They threw out most of the belongings in the garage, except for the bright lights and heaters. They covered the walls with blankets and cardboard, as well as a chair for Will to sit in. In order for Will not to know where he was, they needed to remodel the tool shed. This will block the Mind Flayer from spying on them.

The kids were in charge of getting everything out of the garage, while Veronica and her father had to search the house for more heaters and lights. Nancy and Steve taped blankets and towels to the old walls. This was the main way to insulate the entire shed.

Steve stood on top of a stool to staple a brown tarp on the top of the wall. Nancy pulled off a piece of duct tape and placed it on the sides of the tarp. She cautiously looked up to her ex-boyfriend as he hopped down from the stool. She swallowed down the anxiety that lumped in her throat. "Hey," she called out. Steve's gaze met her own. "What you did – um – helping the kids, that was ... really cool."

Steve laid his arm on a random shelf in front of him. He stared at Nancy with a bit of skepticism, but took her words as genuine. He'd never show that though. "Yeah," he replied, "those shits are real trouble, you know."

Nancy watched Steve step up on the stool again. She laughed softly. "I know," she answered. Her eyes wandered up to him again, and she found herself wringing out tape without realizing. Nancy pulled out more duct tape and stuck it to the wall. "So ... are you ..." She breathed in deeply through her nostrils, unaware of Steve's eyes on her. "Are you now, like, into Veronica Moreda?"

"Are you now into Jonathan Byers?"

Nancy blinked at his question, leaving Steve to shake his head. He released a chuckle. "I don't know," he finally answered. "She's a cool chick."

"You two would look good together," Nancy said with an awkward beam. Steve only nodded and sent her the same smile. The two exes worked in an uncomfortable silence, and that was good enough for Nancy.

Inside the house, Veronica was turning over Joyce's entire room to find another heater. Eventually, when she looked in the bedroom closet, she found a small, compact heater in the corner. While she tugged it out, Edward was unplugging and picking up a few bedroom lights. A sweat broke out on Veronica's forehead, and she stood up straight to wipe it off.

"I can't believe I got myself into this," Edward muttered.

Veronica laughed. "You and me both, dad."

Edward turned to face his daughter and held up both lights. "All of this is completely ridiculous," he said, "but I saw the hole to that other side. Shit is insane."

"Have you seen the Demodogs yet?" She asked.

Both nodded their heads and said in unison, "Crazy."

Veronica laughed at their likeliness. She nudged her dad in the side, and for the first time, she felt a general connection with him. She hadn't felt this in a long time and it was probably due to her gratefulness for Edward surviving the lab.

"Maybe ..." Edward sighed. He thought for a moment, lowering his two hands. "Maybe, when this is all over, we'll get the answers we always wanted."

It took Veronica a second to realize what he was saying. She approached her dad, looking into his somber eyes with confusion. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

"We never got the actual answer to Louie's death," he whispered. His mustache twitched slightly. "Maybe we will now."

"You think Louie is trapped in the Upside Down?"

Edward shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe we'll never know."

Veronica ran a hand over her face and looked away. Anxiety began to cling onto her back like a shadow. "Hey," her dad said, "don't stress yourself out over it. Our main goal is to finish this, okay?"

She gave him a knowing glance. Asking Veronica to not stress out was like asking for a miracle. The last thing Veronica wanted was to find her brother in another dimension inhabited by monsters. She was happy not knowing the answers to his death, because she didn't want to think about her mistake. Veronica didn't want to mourn her brother all over again.

•••

It took hours to insulate the shed and move all the lights inside, but it was still night once it was done. They insulated a chair for Will to sit in and positioned bright lights right in front of the chair. Hopper carried an unconscious Will into the shed, sitting him down on the chair before tightly wrapping white rope around him. Veronica felt nervous at the sight of Will tied to the chair, his head hanging down as he slept.

Soon enough, the adults ushered both the teenagers and kids out of the shed. The only young person that got to stay was Mike. The rest stayed inside the house, waiting impatiently. Veronica sat on the floor in the kitchen, her skin itching with nerves. Whenever she got extremely worried, she felt itchy. Her skin burned as she scratched it over her clothes. She leaned her head back against the cabinet behind her.

Steve sighed before taking the spot beside her. He watched Dustin walk away from the kitchen window, and then his eyes met Veronica's. He pushed her hands away from her skin, stopping her scratching. Veronica huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. After a long moment of silence, she muttered, "So you dealt with all of this shit last year too?"

Steve nodded slowly. Veronica felt oddly comfortable with the silence. She watched his dark eyes fill with panic, causing her to wrap her arm around his own and place her head on his shoulder. The contact felt like slow-motion, and Veronica felt weird doing it herself, especially knowing that Steve – maybe, kind of – liked her. She wanted to puke, but she wouldn't do it on his Nikes. His shoulder was warm, which made the contact calming.

"We live in a small town. Why can't we live in a small town and be normal?" She whispered. "Why can't we just be seventeen?"

Steve wished he had an answer for her. They sat in an eerie silence, both eyeing Nancy, who was pacing down the hall. Her boots squeaked against the tile floors. Veronica's grip on Steve grew tighter when a sound was heard from outside the house. She swallowed hard.

"Christ," she muttered, closing her eyes, "we're only young for so long. We don't choose who lives or dies. We shouldn't have to think of that decision."

"Sometimes we grow up too fast," Steve said, his voice barely above a whisper.

His voice was warm against her ear, but it had an oddly cooling effect. It sent shivers down Veronica's spine, ones she tried to ignore. "I wish we could be normal. I wish we could be vulnerable, and not full of paranoia." She replied after a few minutes.

Steve gulped, and Veronica heard it loudly in her ears. She sat up then and turned to stare at him. Her conscious was screaming. It was shrieking for her to just do it, to just kiss him. But the fear of making yet another big mistake lingered, like a blanket covering her entire body. Veronica was young; she was a teenager, and like most teenagers, she couldn't stop her impulsive, childish decisions when she looked into the eyes of a cute boy. Her heart began pumping at full volume. The butterflies were hitting her like a train, and she felt uncomfortable.

Steve knew he should kiss her then, but he didn't. He sat perfectly still, trying to swallow down his fear of rejection in front of the snarky, blue-haired girl. The two teenagers didn't know what to do, as if this was their first time kissing anyone.

"Can you do something for me, Harrington?" She finally whispered.

Steve nodded quickly.

"Can you let me be vulnerable for a sec?"

And it was then that Veronica Moreda – impulsively, thoughtlessly, unwarily – kissed Steve Harrington. She had quickly leaned in, pressing her chapped lips to his own. She felt her heart beat out of her chest, practically touching his own. Steve pulled her in closer by the small of her back, and the other went to twirl one of her faded blue locks. Her olive-toned hands burned his pale cheeks, and for the first time, Veronica felt young again.

She was truly in for it this time.

•••

A/N: I can't believe I'm posting the most important chapter on CHRISTMAS, of all days. IT'S A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE HO HO HO BIH

Anyways, no matter what you celebrate, happy holidays!!!!

( made by JustSav )