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It all comes to a head just over a week after their initial fight with Vecna. Ever since the Byers/Hopper family rolled back into town the group had been working together to try and brainstorm ideas on how to finally defeat Vecna once and for all, while also work on restoring the town of Hawkins and try to hide the truth from the rest of the Hawkins residents, or the ones that had stuck around that is.
During this time, Nancy had pretty much remained by Jonathan’s side, while Steve tried his best to stay out of the way of the couple, not wanting to face anymore embarrassment or humiliation when it came to Nancy Wheeler and the feelings he just couldn’t seem to shake. Luckily for him it wasn’t too hard to keep his distance, between trying to help where he could with the plans for Vecna and trying to support Dustin through his grief for Eddie, Steve was able to remain busy and occupied.
Unfortunately for him however, he was present when the impending argument finally happened. Nancy had gone off that morning with Jonathan, Steve not catching where the two were heading and not that interested. Joyce was at the hospital with El, Lucas and Erica who were all sat by Max’s bedside in a hope of catching some sort of improvement from her. Steve had stayed behind at the cabin along with Robin, Hopper, Dustin, Will, Mike and Jonathan’s friend Argyle. Steve didn’t really know Argyle but he seemed pretty chill and was unfazed by everything going on around him, and he had helped the Byers get from California back to Hawkins without issue so Steve had nothing against him. He was currently helping Will, Mike and Hopper with something in the kitchen, while Steve, Robin and Dustin remained in the sitting area discussing what the plans were for later and if they were going to head over to the community centre at some point to help out. They all heard the voices before they saw the two behind the voices.
“How could you not tell me?” Nancy’s voice fills the space and it is obvious to everyone that she seems upset, Steve catches Robin’s eye over the top of Dustin’s head.
“Because I knew it would upset you and with everything going on right now I figured it wasn't the best time.” Jonathan’s voice comes next before the door is banging open and the pair walk in, paying no mind to the rest of the occupants in the room as they continue the argument. Nancy looks mad, but there is also a hint of sadness behind the anger. While Jonathan looks torn and also a little upset. Everyone else in the room falls quiet.
"So, what was the plan then? Tell me in the summer when it got too suspicious that your acceptance letter still hadn't turned up, wait until we were due to head to Emerson to break the news or just never tell me? Let me keep believing you wanted to attend college with me until you just never showed up in the fall?" Nancy yells, her voice remaining steady despite the fact she looks ready to cry at any moment.
"No, I swear I wanted to tell you as soon as we got here, but with all this mess happening it just didn't feel right to come out and say, Oh hey Nancy, by the way I've decided that Emerson is probably not the right place for me next year because I figured I should stay and help with my family. Yeah that was a bombshell I was going to drop right now." Jonathan replied back as the awkwardness continued to cover the rest of the people in the cabin, no one even attempting to try and hide the fact that all attention was on the argument unfolding in front of them.
"Don't blame you lying to me on the fact Hawkins is in a mess right now because you have had all year to tell me you didn't want to attend Emerson, but you chose instead to lie about it and pretend that you had sent off the application. For what?" Nancy tells him, her voice lowering a little although the anger was still very present.
"I didn't want to upset you. You had this big dream about us heading off to college together, of us driving off into the sunset. I love you Nancy, I didn't want to hurt you by telling you that I no longer had that same dream." Jonathan tells her, a look of utter defeat on his face.
"Well congratulations, mission accomplished." Nancy tells him, her own voice full of defeat as well before she turns back round, fleeing the cabin once more, the door swinging shut behind her. Everyone remains quiet, waiting for something to happen. After what feels like forever but can only be around 30 seconds to a minute, Jonathan turns and heads back into the room that was once El's, avoiding eye contact with everyone and they all take that as the signal that it was fine to get back on with their previous tasks. Steve meets Robin's eye over Dustin's head once more before the other girl nods her head as she stands and follows Nancy out the door. Steve going back to his conversation with Dustin while Hopper, Will and Mike go back to whatever they were doing and Argyle heads in the direction his friend went.
Robin returns five minutes later, alone, and just shakes her head towards Steve who just nods slightly, it's not like this concerns him in anyway. He knows what it's like to have an argument with Nancy and how heartbreaking it can be. The last time he had an argument with Nancy she had called both him and their entire relationship bullshit and then a few days later it was over. The finality of her words to Jonathan had almost felt like the ones that had pierced his own heart. He had been in the same shoes as Jonathan was currently in, and he didn’t want to also be in the same shoes that Jonathan had been in following the argument between himself and Nancy, it felt almost too much like dejavu.
Over the last few days, Steve had figured out that it made no sense or helped no one, for him to continue trying to pursue Nancy Wheeler. Steve figured that he was always going to be a little bit in love with Nancy Wheeler, and while those feelings had come rushing back after they were once again thrust together after little to no contact for over a year, getting the chance to step back these last few days had made him realise what a mistake it would be to try something with Nancy again. It had been a little hard to admit, but it had also felt a little freeing as well.
Nancy doesn’t return for the rest of the night but no one is surprised, Jonathan doesn’t exit the bedroom either, all of them leaving the other teen to be, even Hopper doesn’t disturb him when the distinct smell of weed fills out, even though the older man had spent the last few days chastising the two teens about the habit. The argument isn’t mentioned again, Steve drops Dustin off at home later that night before heading back to his own place with Robin in tow, his best friend spending the night at his as already planned as her parents, who had been spending the week of Spring Break with relatives across the country, had yet to return and neither of them particularly enjoyed having no company right now. Robin doesn’t mention Nancy and Steve doesn’t ask.
When they return to the cabin the next day, Jonathan is no longer cooped up in the bedroom, and Nancy returns with Mike. Neither of them glance in each other’s direction, no words are passed between the two and there is some tension in the air that no one mentions it. Hopper asks Steve, Robin and Dustin to head out, scope around some of East Hawkins that they haven’t covered yet, see what damage has been done. They agree and then Nancy is volunteering to join them and the four are heading out together, another strange sense of dejavu settling in.
Dustin currently has permeant shotgun rights on the passenger seat of Steve's car as it allows him to stretch his bad leg out instead of having it squashed up in the back. Steve has never been so grateful. They drive out to East Hawkins before parking up and getting out the car, grabbing the equipment from the boot, none of them comfortable wandering around the town without some sort of protection. Steve tries to stay in step with Robin and Dustin because, with the way she keeps glancing at him, he has this feeling in the pit of his stomach that Nancy wants to talk and he's not really sure he wants to have that conversation. But somehow, despite his efforts he somehow ends up out of step with his two best friends and instead in step with Nancy Wheeler.
"So, are we ever going to talk about the confession you unloaded on me when we were in the upside down?" Nancy asks after a few moments, looking behind them as she does like she is checking how far away Robin and Dustin are, Steve wonders if she is hoping that they are within earshot or not. Steve decides not to glance back and check for himself. He isn't sure if he wants them to hear or not.
"Hey look Nance, there isn't really much to talk about, I was probably high off all the upside down fumes we had been breathing in and so I didn't really know what I was talking about." Steve tells her, trying not to make eye contact with her, desperate to brush it all off, not really interested in getting into it too much with his ex because he knows it might turn difficult.
"Steve." Nancy breathes out and he recognises that tone almost straight away, the soft almost sympathetic tone that she has used with him on several occasions and Steve finds himself shaking his head as she speaks.
"No Nance, look it was stupid and I only said it because I was unsure if we were even going to get out alive that night. But we did, we got out and now it just doesn't matter." Steve tells her, looking up at Nancy as he speaks, he notices the moment that she goes to say something else and makes the decision to continue before she can say anything. "I crossed a line, I never should have brought up stuff from the past. You have a boyfriend and I should have respected that." Steve says, looking back down at the path in front of him.
"Yeah well, I’m pretty sure me and Jonathan are over.” Nancy tells him and suddenly Steve feel like he is transported back two years ago, however this time he has swapped places. This time, instead of the boyfriend mourning at home, he’s the guy that’s there to catch the girl, except he’s not really sure he wants to catch the girl this time. It is happening all over again, same scenario but different take and he wonders if Nancy has picked up on it as well, if she realises she is also stuck in a loop and maybe it’s time to try to finally cut away from the loop they have created.
Two years ago, him and Nancy had an argument that will forever be ingrained in his memory. Nancy saying things that broke his heart, but the two of them never officially broke up before Nancy was running off with Jonathan, and by the time she returned, Steve had resigned to the fact it was over between them. Now it was happening all over again, only this time Nancy had had an argument with Jonathan. And, unless Nancy had gone back and spoke to Jonathan after they all left yesterday, they hadn’t officially broken up yet and here Nancy was trying to talk to him about feelings, and it almost felt like she was trying to start something again. Steve feels like this is an even worse idea then when he decided it was a good idea to tell her he wanted a future with her.
“Nance, we can’t do this ok. It was a mistake, I never should have said what I said in the upside down, I overstepped and I recognise that. Just because you and Jonathan had a fight, it doesn’t mean we have to talk about some imaginary fantasy I unloaded on you when I thought we were mere moments away from death.” Steve tells her.
“You basically tell me you still love me and you want me to just forget about that, what if I don’t want to forget about that?” Nancy tells him, her tone isn’t as soft anymore.
“You have a boyfriend Nancy, yes you should forget everything I said to you.” Steve tells her, his own frustration starting to show.
“You were there yesterday Steve, you witnessed that argument between me and Jonathan. He has been lying to me for months about his college applications. You really think we are going to just patch things up following that?” Nancy tells him, her own voice laced with frustration.
“That doesn’t mean that we need to dredge stuff up from the past. Look Nance, I’ve been here before, two years ago when we had an argument and you disappeared with Jonathan for a few days; only this time our roles have been reversed and you seem to think the answer to your problems with Jonathan is to come out here and talk to me about some lingering feelings I mentioned in a literal moment of life or death.” Steve says, he doesn’t want to come across as harsh towards Nancy as he doesn’t blame her for her actions, isn’t even sure she realises that what is currently happening between them is like history repeating itself.
"That is not true, this is nothing like what happened between us two. I just think we should talk about everything.” Nancy tells him, she seems to have an angry edge to her voice and Steve worries he has struck a nerve, but then maybe he needed too because this can't keep happening.
“Really, because it’s funny that you haven’t wanted to talk to me all the much over the past week. That since Jonathan returned to Hawkins you’ve only wanted to spend your time with him, but now that he isn’t an option anymore you are suddenly interested in talking to me about my feelings and what I said. You really think I would believe this conversation is high on your priority list? Because I don’t.” Steve says, keeping his voice calm and level because the last thing he wants is to turn this into an argument, that is not what he set out to do when he woke up this morning.
“What are you saying Steve? That I only care when it is convenient for me? That’s not true at all.” The angry tone is still evident in Nancy’s voice as she speaks and Steve wants to let out a sigh because how did he get into this situation.
“Look Nancy that is not what I am saying. What I am saying is that I overstepped when I spoke out in the Upside Down and I never should have opened my mouth. It doesn’t matter how I feel because you are in a relationship and even if you weren’t it’s not like it would change anything. I am always going to have some form of feelings for you Nancy, but we tried it between us and it didn’t work out. We might be different people now compared to two years ago but as much as it pains me to admit it, it still wouldn’t work out between us because we want totally different things. You have this big dream, heading off to Emerson and sparking up the journalist world. That is great and you are going to achieve so much but I just don’t fit into that world.” Steve tells her, meeting her eyes once again. It had been difficult to admit to himself, to come to the realisation that he would never fit into Nancy Wheeler's world no matter how much he tried. They were just two different to ever make it work.
“You aren’t going to want to hear this next bit and I think it’s going to piss you off a little." Steve continues, "but I think a part of you is scared, scared of the idea of been alone. I'm not sure if it stems back to the loss of Barb or not, but I think somewhere along the way you've become scared of the idea that you might end up alone. Maybe this is the reason why you held onto me and our relationship for so long following Barb's death even though you weren't ever really that invested in the relationship to begin with." He watches as Nancy goes to try and say something, but he continues his speech before that can happen, he needs to finish this.
"It's also why you were so quick to head off with Jonathan as soon as we had an argument. Why you have clung to this dream of heading to Emerson with Jonathan for so long, refusing to piece together the clues that were pointing towards Jonathan's dream not necessarily been the same as yours anymore. And why, now after having an argument with Jonathan, you think the best solution is to try and get me to have a conversation about some feelings that don't really matter in the long run." Steve tells her, he knows that his words have struck a nerve, he can see it in her face but he really does believe she needs to hear it because as much as he has always dreamt about a future where Nancy reveals that she still has feelings for him, he knows in his heart that it would not be good for either of them to start something up again.
"But what if it's not about that? What if this is about something else, we aren't the same people we once were Steve, the ones from all those years ago." Nancy tells him, like she is clinging to straws.
"No, we aren't, neither of us. But we still want different things, you want to study Journalism, and your dream college is Emerson. It's all you've ever talked about, it's the reason why your current relationship is falling apart right now. And I'm not Jonathan Nancy. I just about managed to scrape enough grades together to graduate from high school, I got rejected from every single college I applied for including Hawkins Community College. I am currently working full time at a shitty minimum wage job because I have absolutely no idea what I want to do with my future, I just know I don't want to work for my dad. How is that supposed to work?" Steve tells her.
"You don't need to stay in Hawkins forever Steve, just because you didn't get into college doesn't mean you are stuck in this small town forever." Nancy tells him, her voice doesn't seem as cold anymore.
Steve knows what she is saying is true, he had the exact same conversation with Robin when she asked him to move to California with her following her acceptance letter from Berkley. He doesn't want to share this with Nancy though, doesn't want to tell her that he is seriously considering a move to California because he's worried it might end up with her even more pissed at him than she already is. He also doesn't want to rub too much salt into wounds by telling her that even if California wasn't an option, he can't see a future where he would follow her to Boston.
"I know that Nance, and I don't plan on staying in Hawkins forever. But that still doesn't mean I would fit in with your life at Emerson, or that I would want to. I get it okay, been alone sucks. I've been alone for a long time. I never realised how lonely I was until we broke up and suddenly all my life consisted of was attending school and giving rides to a bunch of middle schoolers. And honestly, it sucked, and for a long time I wasn't sure it would get any better. I tried for so long to combat the loneliness, thought I could flirt with a bunch of girls, go on as many dates as possible and that might fill the void. Turns out I was wrong, I never expected I would find the answer to my loneliness working a shitty summer job at an ice cream shop, but I did. That will happen for you to Nancy, and it will probably happen when you least expect it just like it did with me. But the answer to your loneliness isn't in the form of high school boyfriends that you have history with." Steve tells her, and he sees the walls go back up around Nancy, knows that he's struck a nerve once more.
"I'm not lonely Steve, I have plenty of friends who I can rely on and who I can spend time with." Nancy tells him, her voice cold. Steve wants to disagree, knows that Nancy had distanced herself from the majority of her friends following the death of Barb and her quest to get justice for her friend became priority. Steve hadn't understood at the time, sure he had carried the guilt surrounding Barb's death with him, was still carrying that guilt around, but hadn't been able to understand why it had consumed her so much. Why she was so obsessed despite the fact she knew the truth and knew that she couldn't do anything about what had really happened. He could understand now, two years later, thinking about if something were to happen to Robin how he would want to make sure justice was served. But none of that is going to help so he can't say that to her. Nancy has put up her defences and Steve has said what he wanted to say, anything more would just be rubbing salt into wounds and he doesn't want to do that.
"Look Nance, I don't want to fight with you. I've said what I wanted to say and I hope a part of you has took it on board. I don't want to upset you or hurt you, I honestly believe your next chapter is just about to start, and I don't think it needs to involve either me or Jonathan to be a success. Part of me is always going to love you Nance, but I think we need to keep that chapter closed, I think we've moved on and I don't think we need to move backwards." Steve tells her, and he hopes his tone has a sense of finality in it because he doesn't want to get into a backwards and forwards argument with Nancy right now. Nancy looks like she wants to say something else, but in the end, she settles for,
"Okay, fine." and that is it over, the conversation is done. Steve turns away, facing forward and continuing with the task they were sent to do. From his peripheral vision, he watches as Nancy drops back, moving away from him and Steve figures she has moved to join the other two who are trailing behind and who Steve almost forgot about. He figures she's probably moved to talk with Robin, the two having struck up a bond over the last few weeks. Old him would have maybe been jealous; but he knows that even if Nancy is friends with Robin, it won't affect his friendship with Robin. He continues forward, more than fine to have a few moments to himself.
However, a moment later he feels a tug on his arm, and turns as his best friend loops her arm through his.
"Hey." Robin says, "I thought I talked a lot but man does Dustin ever shut up." she continues and Steve huffs out a laugh, the two of them falling into a comfortable silence for a moment as they continue walking forward, arms still linked together.
“Proud of you, you know.” Robin says after a beat and confusion fills Steve as he turns to his best friend because he doesn’t exactly know what he has done to take pride in. Not at this precise moment anyway.
“Not sure what for Rob, I am literally doing the exact same job as your right now.” He tells her, which earns him a soft chuckle from his friend.
"That is not what I am talking about dingus.” She says, a smile on her face as she continues, “Dustin may have been chatting my ear off but I still caught the majority of your conversation with Nancy.” And ah okay, he hadn’t been sure just how far back the other two had been, what with Dustin's bad leg, clearly, they had not been that far.
“I know that was probably hard for you to say, but I definitely think you made some excellent points and I am proud of you for following your head instead of your heart for once.” Robin tells him with a smile, and Steve feels something ache inside of him, maybe it’s the fact no one has ever said they were proud of him before, or that he had made the right choices.
“I thought you were all for a reunion now that you and Nancy are besties.” Steve can’t help but add, a teasing lilt to his tone that earns another laugh from Robin before she replies.
“Hey, Nancy’s great and I am super glad to have formed a friendship with her. But you are always going to be my number 1 dingus. I’d have been happy for you if something had happened between you and Nancy again, I’ll always be your number one cheerleader and I just want you to be happy. But I do think it’s a good idea that she tries to find herself again, and I do think you were smart to not attempt building something back up with her.” Robin tells him, and Steve can’t help the smile on his face. He still can’t believe he was lucky enough to find Robin.
“Thank you.” He replies, and Robin smiles back at him as they continue through East Hawkins, “And I am happy by the way, Vecna and end of the world stuff pushed aside that is.” Steve adds on, because he is happy. He’s incredibly happy in his friendship with Robin and the party, he no longer has that aching feeling in his stomach when he thinks about his future and he can’t remember the last time he felt lonely. He counts them all as wins.
In the end, Nancy and Jonathan have a heart to heart three days later. They talk everything through and in the end it’s like a weight has been lifted. They both make the difficult decision to call time on their romantic relationship, neither one of them feel like it’s going anywhere anymore and that they both want different things in the long run. A few days after the breakup, Steve finds a note stuck to his windshield, the simple words Thank You scribbled across it in Nancy's neat writing. The pair never speak about their conversation out in East Hawkins again, but that note is more than enough.
The fight with Vecna is hard and long but eventually by some miracle and some team work, they manage to defeat him, all of them getting out alive with only some minor injuries and a few broken bones. The story that is spun is that a series of radioactive devices had been planted underground when Hawkins Lab was still in operation and that is what had caused such damage. They use this to explain the deaths of people like Chrissy, Eddie and Jason, saying the radioactive substances caused them to suffer and become mentally unwell. It's not the perfect story, it has its holes but it does at least clear Eddie's name much to the relief of his Uncle and the party.
With the help of Murray, they bring in some experts who survey Hawkins before deeming it completely safe to live in and that all left over chemicals from Hawkins Lab had now safely been removed. Not all residents move back though, and by the end of it all, Hawkins is probably surviving on around a 55% population to what it once was.
Max eventually wakes up from the coma around nine weeks after her attack, much to everyone’s relief. Even though she is awake, she still has a lot of healing to do, thanks to her broken legs she needs to learn how to walk again, and her eyesight will never be as good as it once was. The doctors say she will probably have to wear glasses for the rest of her life if she does want to continue living life as she once was.
The Byers and Hopper family return to Hawkins, Hopper spins the story that he lost his memory in the fire at Starcourt and had disappeared following his own confusion, which had led to everyone believing he was dead. The residents don't question it, out of everything they've recently learnt, that is probably the most plausible. They manage to get their hands on a house near the centre of Hawkins, it's pretty cheap having been abandoned when the previous owners fled the town, the two families moving in together now that Hopper and Joyce have finally made it all official.
Jonathan returns to California with Argyle following Vecna's defeat, he needs to complete his Senior Year and he can only do that from his school back in California. He graduates with ease, and accepts a place at NYU for the fall, deciding to go to his dream college now that his family are settled and safe. Robin and Nancy also manage to graduate around the rebuild of the school which was torn down in the wake of Vecna, both of them getting their diplomas and ready for the next stage of their lives. Nancy is heading off to Emerson, by herself and ready for her next chapter. Robin accepts her own place at Berkeley University, ready to study languages. She will be heading there in the fall, she is more than ready to enjoy the sunshine and her new life in a little two-bedroom apartment just off campus that she will be sharing with Steve.
It was a difficult decision for Steve to make, leaving the party behind. But in the end, he knew that they would still keep in touch, he would still come home to visit. But at the end of the day, he needed to finally try and work out his future, make decisions about what his future might include and where he wants to be in 5 years’ time; and it doesn't feel like he should be doing that from Hawkins. He needs to see what life can offer him outside of Hawkins Indiana. It feels like finally, life is moving forward, and for once, everyone was feeling happy and optimistic about their future.