[major ib sm1 on tumblr]

“What exactly am I looking at?” Lucas asked, eyes squinted.

“You're looking at operation: get me on a date.” Mike stood in front of the whiteboard. There was plan ‘kidnap Steve’, only kidnap had been scribbled out and ‘distract’ put in place.

“Uh, what?” Dustin asked, sharing a ‘he’s crazy’ look with Lucas and Will.

Mike turned to the three boys, hands in front of him so he could start explaining with wild hand gestures. “Look, me and {{user}} have been trying to go on a date for months. But every time we get so much as close to one, Steve just… appears. The cinema, Starcourt, Enzo’s… the list just continues.”

Dustin clasped his hands together. “Well, he’s committed; I’ll give him that.”

Mike just looked annoyed, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, committed to making mine and his siblings’ life hell. Look, please, I just need you to distract Steve so me and {{user}} can get some alone time.”

“It’s for a good cause, I guess,” Dustin tried to defend Mike, staring at Lucas and Will. Will frowned. “Mike’s love life?”

“No, the money he is paying us to do it.”

And, hey, that’s what friends were for. So the plan was put into action.

Steve was in the kitchen, sleeves rolled up to his forearms as he mashed a weird substance of food together. He hummed under his breath, occasionally snapping his fingers to the song on the radio.

When the phone rang, Steve rolled his eyes, too caught up to care. Steve glanced at {{user}}’s slouching figure on the couch, sighing and running a hand through his hair. “Can you get that for me, {{user}}?”

{{user}} stood up, mumbling under their breath and walking over to the phone. “Who is it?”

‘It’s Mike. Don’t tell him it’s me.’

Steve glanced over at {{user}}’s sly smile, hands on his hips as he mouthed: ‘who is it?’

{{user}} mumbled words of acknowledgement into the speaker before looking at their brother and mouthing: ‘Stacey’.

Steve nodded, thankful it wasn’t Mike as he went back to stirring his strange concoction and humming.

‘Date night. You and I, tonight.’

“I don’t know, Stace, my brother might not let me go out; it’s getting late,” {{user}} murmured, glancing up every few seconds to see if their brother was fooling for it. “Let me ask.”

{{user}} nestled the phone into your shoulder, cringing. “Stacey’s just been through a real bad break up, really bad with... Brad. She’s asking if I can go see her, you know, paint nails, read magazines.”

He checked the time on his watch. “I mean, it’s a little late and I was... cooking…”

“Please, she’s inconsolable and home alone.”

Steve’s hands fell onto his hips again. “All right, only for an hour or two.”

{{user}} nodded gratefully, turning their concentration back to the phone. “Hey, Stacey?”

‘Stacey? Oh yeah, me!’

“I’ll be there in ten.”

Mike sighed dreamily on the other end of the phone. “I love you.”

{{user}} bit down on the bottom of their lip. Their boyfriend was a genius. “Love you too, Stace. Hold on tight, I’ll be right over.” They slammed the phone back onto its handle.

“I’ll just bike. She only lives a few houses down,” they said quickly, already running off before Steve could protest.

—

Mrs Wheeler opened the door. “Hey honey, I didn’t expect to see you tonight. Come in.”

“Hi Mrs Wheeler. Mike invited me; I hope that’s all right?”

“Of course, he’s down in the basement.”

“Thank you, Mrs Wheeler,” {{user}} smiled. {{user}} was a Harrington; charm was like manners to them. They’d learnt from the best how to make the moms love them. Even, sometimes, the dads. “How’s the score looking, Mr Wheeler?” {{user}} called as they passed his slouched figure in the chair.

He huffed. “Not good, kid.” It was more than his own kids got sometimes, so that was more than enough as {{user}} headed down to the basement.

{{user}} pushed the door open slowly. “Mike?” The place had been tidied up, well, tidier than Mike’s usual mess. The table where the boys typically played DnD was completely clean, and the room smelled of overbearing cologne.

Mike stood up from the couch when he saw you. “You made it.”