steve harrington loves being called pretty

sometime after season three

none!

pretty boy by the neighbourhood

- please read to the end of the chapter for my 300k celebration and thank you :,)

it was no secret that steve harrington was gorgeous. everyone knew it, including him. though he would often try to deny it, it seemed there was no one in hawkins who wasn't attracted to him.

meadow henderson loved her boyfriend, and thought it was hilarious how many girls would obsess over him. he always figured it made her jealous, but she continuously consisted that it didn't. "why," she would reason, "would i be jealous of other girls? you already are dating me, it isn't like you like any of them more."

now, the couple were not shy of making everyone aware of their relationship. if steve had learned anything from his past relationships, it was that he loved to show off what was his. he loved letting everyone know that his girlfriend was hotter and cooler than theirs.

once he started dating meadow, this only excelled. he was so proud of her, and he loved her so much. this is why he wanted every single person who walked by to know that he was the lucky guy. the guy who got to be with this gorgeous, funny, and badass girl.

in lame man's terms, he was a simp. and he was proud of it.

what steve loved most about pda was getting compliments on the relationship, or on meadow. when people would tell them that they were an adorable couple, his heart would soar. because, yeah, of course he already knew that. but it made him so happy that other people would see it, too!

now none of this was to say that they didn't have their private moments. steve was extremely vulnerable around meadow, in a way that he had never been with anyone else. he knew that there was no judgement between their relationship, and that he could be as open as he wanted.

steve loved to just lay his head on her stomach, one hand on her waist and the other on the bed. he loved the way his body melted into hers, and how comfortable and safe it was.

most of all, steve loved getting his hair played with. meadow, he often said, was the boss at playing with hair. she loved to just run her fingers through it, and he loved it, too. she often compared him to a little puppy dog, and she liked calling him "golden retriever boy" when he'd simply beg her to play with his hair.

"please? it feels so good when you do it." he'd pout.

"that's what she said." meadow would reply with a roll her eyes, an adoring smile on her face. "fine, golden retriever boy."

steve's hair was no doubt known throughout the lands, but it truly was his pride and joy. he wouldn't let anyone touch his hair unless they were meadow, which she found funny because he always wanted her to be playing with it.

he also loved the simple things in their relationship. specifically, he loved when they would watch the other get ready for the day, or get ready together.

after he'd sneak in through her window (reasoning that he couldn't sleep anymore unless he could feel her in his arms, which wasn't entirely untrue), they'd cuddle until they fell asleep. then, when they woke up, they'd get ready for their days.

one specific time, when steve's parents were gone, meadow had spent the night. they had been watching horror movies all night until they fell asleep, passed out on the couch. when they woke up, steve went into his bathroom, brushing his teeth and combing his hair.

meadow walked in, brushing her teeth before hopping onto the counter where she sat and watched. now, steve styling his hair was a lengthy process. he had to gel everything just right, and get everything damp (not wet, damp) enough to style. she watched him as he combed his fingers through his hair.

"you're so pretty." she said, watching as he turned his head to look at her. she almost wanted to correct herself and tell him that she meant to say handsome, but she knew that would've been a lie.

"what?" he asked, wanting to hear her say it again.

she looked down for a moment before meeting his gaze. "steve, you are so pretty." she said as he moved closer to her, brushing a piece of hair behind her ear.

"i love you." he said, pressing a gentle kiss to her nose and then an equally soft one to her lips.

she hummed contently, opening her eyes again. "i love you, too, steve."

this was how she had realized that steve's favorite compliment ever was being called pretty. he liked that it felt unique to just him specifically. any boy could be called cute, and any boy could be called handsome. but steve relished in the ideal that he was the only boy he knew that had ever been called pretty.

and so, meadow began to say it more. often it was only a nickname that she used when only he could hear it. she didn't want to take away the happiness that it gave him when he heard it. "pretty boy" became more of a constant, and it was one of his favorites.

"come here, pretty boy", "hey, pretty boy, can you get me my book from the dresser?", etc. he loved the way she would just throw it into a sentence casually, and she loved the grin that would spread across his cheeks.

one night, steve and meadow were going out on a date. since the two rarely spent much time apart, they didn't often spend time setting up dates that were actually.. dates. but steve always loved to take her out at least once a month. maybe it was just to the movie theater, to the drive in, or to a restaurant, but he wanted to make sure that they did the things a normal high school couple would've done.

this specific night, steve had payed reservations for a more expensive restaurant. "steve, seriously," meadow had told him, "we don't have to go anywhere fancy. you know i just love being with you, we don't need to-"

"no," steve insisted, "i want to take you somewhere nice."

and so, meadow found herself in a maroon dress and heels, escorted by a steve in black dress pants and a maroon button up.

when the two arrived at the restaurant, hand in hand, steve introduced himself to the woman up front, explaining that he had called in for a reservation. she found the information she needed before turning to the two.

"by the way, you are.. you are such a pretty couple." she said, smiling at them and leading them to their seats.

as soon as they sat down, a big grin spread across steve's face. "she thinks we're pretty." he said, unable to contain his pride.

"okay, pretty boy, focus on your menu."

i'm imagining she got a good camera for her birthday and then just took photos of her dumbass brother and then of her dumbass boyfriend and their dumbass kids