Work Text:
Summer 1990.
The four walls of the room vibrated gently as soft tunes filled the space within them. Jane hummed to the playful rhythm that sent a ringing from her ears down to her fingertips, where she held her favorite pencil, rigid in her hands as she scribbled on the paper that sat on her lap.
She could never stay still when she was prompted with a task of this importance - shifting around her airy duvet, body moving from landscape to portrait as she worked. Mid-length hair brushing her shoulders gently, causing her to flinch every time she relocated. Her tongue finds the top of her teeth, with eyebrows furrowed into a perfect slant. She was fixed to the project.
Sat in front of her, a curious Max, glancing between the scattered marks forming on a once lifeless page, and back to the concentrated brunette that made it come alive. She watched patiently, arms resting on her legs as she sat in a criss-crossed position, palms lying on her face. She couldn’t make out the illustration that well yet, but she was ready to spill a jar of approvals.
Jane lets her concentration falter for a moment, meeting her gaze with a reassuring smile. Reminder that she was still aware of the ginger’s presence.
Max nearly flinches at the sudden recognition, afraid that her gaze had been burning too deeply into the younger. She straightens her position, suddenly aware of herself. “I—uh, did I distract you?”
“No.”
A call to relax again. Max nods, shifting back onto the headboard, knees meeting her chest, she places her head atop them for now.
“I’m almost done… you’re difficult to draw.” Jane huffs out a soft laugh, which Max smiles at.
“Just draw red hair and freckles and boom, it’s me,” a joke only she releases a laugh for. Her humor was pretty selective to Jane, she’ll try again next time.
Jane returns her focus to the canvas below her. She wasn’t an expert at drawing, only making a few sketches from time to time, always with the company of her fellow artist brother. But Max had asked her for a portrait. Which was an unfamiliar request. Max explained that she wanted to know how she looked on paper, by her. How do I look to you? Jane remembers her ask.
She accepted the invitation with no question. If it were to better improve her skills, why not?
She’s gotten the basics to her best ability, but the details were hard. It wasn’t the fault of Max. Jane knew her face fairly well, she’d sometimes catch herself unknowingly peering at the frame of her profile from time to time, noticing a new thing with every fresh gaze.
First, it was how the deep blue reflected brightly within her eyes, similar to the ocean. It reminded Jane of the beach. She’s only ever seen the ocean in person a few times, and every time she compared it, she’d come to the verdict that she’d rather swim in Max’s eyes. The water would certainly be warmer anyway.
Then, it was the slope of her nose. How it curved onto her face, it was small, didn’t take up much space, but prominent, like a small button that Jane found herself battling with the few times they’ve visited the arcade.
More recently, it had been her lips. They took the most time to study, as there were very few times when they were sealed shut. Jane could rarely take the time to get a good look at them. The best time when she could steal a glance was during their sleepovers, when night fell, and the two of them would fall onto their pillows. Max would always nod off first, but Jane would linger.
She liked to study more when Max slept, often spending the time she couldn’t get throughout the day to memorize her lips. How they’d form into a downturned shape, how they sat heavier on her face, almost in a pout. They weren’t full, like Mike’s, but they had a roundness to them, more prominent when Max was upset, when she’d make that face of annoyance, or contemplation.
Jane liked to be attentive, she wanted to know all the parts of her friends. She studied everyone often, but she enjoyed looking at Max the most, it was bewitching.
Almost like visiting a museum, but all the works were of a fiery red head, from every angle and perspective at which Jane saw her. If she could, she’d make the gallery herself. She’d voyage to the depths of her memory to carve out the face that held so much interest to her.
Jane wondered why she never drew her sooner, if that meant permanence rather than mundane blips that circled her imagination.
She holds her pencil away from the now lively picture, examining the drawing. Squinting to find any mistakes, imperfections that don’t match with the image she’s articulated unconsciously. “I think it’s done,” Jane says hesitantly.
“Really, let me see,” Max moves from where she sat, knees hitting the duvet below her, shuffling over to Jane excitedly.
She peeks over to the paper sitting loosely atop Jane’s lap, her grip on the drawing loosening to let Max review it. She doesn’t know if she’ll like it, but she feels sorry for making her wait longer.
Max takes the paper into her hands, eyes roaming from top to bottom, side to side, similarly to the way she reads her Wonder Woman comics. In complete awe. Jane wonders if she’s trying to leap into the page.
“Is it… Good?”
“What the hell. El—”
Jane winces.
“—It’s fucking amazing—”
Then a sudden feeling of tranquility. “Really?
“—you, Jesus, El, you drew me perfectly.”
Jane feels a warmth spread across her face, she can’t help but display a toothy smile. “I’m glad you like it. It’s not perfect, but it’s you.”
Max releases a breathy laugh, glancing happily at the paper that sits in between her fingers. “It’s me.”
Jane wonders if Max would be this happy if she saw the version of herself that lives in her mind, the one that Jane cannot put to paper, the face that she wishes to make galleries about. Jane can’t help but feel wrong about it, it sends an airy fuzziness to her stomach. She can’t tell if she likes it or not.
She tries to think about Mike, his face, how it’s stored in her mind. She attempts to retrieve it, appearing a little messed up at the surface. Nonetheless, it doesn’t give her the same feeling. If anything, she feels almost nothing.
Mike was one of the most expressive people she’s met, Max follows as the second. But, of all the expressions she’s seen him make, from silly faces to sad, annoyed, joyous. They don’t make her feel, she can’t share the same emotion, it’s a disconnect that always leaves her with confusion.
Alternatively, it’s different with Max. When Max laughs, she can’t help but let a smile creep onto her face. When Max is upset, the world stops for Jane, the only thing sitting on her mind is how to make her feel better, to make her smile again. She feels the fire in her stomach, eager to match Max’s energy; it’s never her that’s mad, it’s them.
It’s heavier when she’s sad. Jane has only seen Max cry a few times. Once, after Max had risen from her coma, the tears of a girl she hadn’t seen for so long fell onto her shoulder as they hugged for the first time in forever. Jane couldn’t stop the immense emotion she felt in that moment. She’ll always remember how warm Max’s arms felt wrapped around her.
Another being when she and Lucas argued, a very serious one. Jane knows they break up often, but this time she felt that it was the last. That night, she spent hours comforting Max, reassuring her that all would be fine. She tried so badly not to cry with her, she knew that would make her feel worse, but she wanted to let her tears fall so badly.
Most recently, it was the anniversary of Billy’s death. A memory that still makes Jane sick to her stomach. Each wail that Max released that night, the guttural screams that unleashed themselves from her chest, the hurt Max held, Jane felt it all.
After Max returned to Jane after visiting his grave, a stream of tears approached with her. Jane felt her heart break as she saw the devastation on her face.
Jane has lost many people, but somehow Max’s grievances of Billy hurt her more.
It was strange. How Max made her feel. It was so strong. Stronger than what her mind could do, stronger than the physical control she possessed. It’s like her telekinetic strength had been replaced with Max.
The music that once filled her ears falters, the sudden loss yanking her from her thoughts.
“Should we sleep?” Max says to her from where she stands by the portable boombox that sat atop Jane’s desk.
She nods.
It’s late, and they have plans with the party tomorrow.
That was the only frustrating thing about this entire thing, about Max, is that Jane couldn’t spend time alone with her eternally.
They’d have sleepovers as much as they could, but sometimes Max had to change plans when she had prior promises with Lucas. They were usually busy doing couple-y stuff together. Jane tries not to let it get her upset. It’s normal, they both have boyfriends. But Jane would ditch Mike anytime if that meant she and Max could have more sleepovers. Mike could care less anyway, and Max was way more fun than him.
Max crawls back into the bed, burying herself under the covers. Jane follows at her left side, matching her movements, and they split the covers equally between them. Body warmth fills the space between them as the cold wind exhausts itself from beneath the duvet. Max shuffles closer to Jane, resting on her side as she wraps her arm around her, dropping onto her back.
Max liked to nestle when they slept together, and Jane didn’t mind. Max was warm, her hands soft on Jane’s back. It was nice, comfortable. Jane would slip her head into the space between Max’s chest and chin, they acted as two teddy bears, radiating off each other's warmth. But tonight was different. Jane waited for her gaze to abandon Max. She just stared, letting herself take in the canvas that lay next to her for a while longer.
She didn’t care if Max noticed her staring. She was just curious.
Max luckily doesn’t mention her pointed gaze, more focused on ending the night. “Want me to turn off the lamp?”
Jane shakes her head, “Not yet.”
Max nods.
They lay there, glued to their sides. Jane holds her gaze, eyes wandering, trying to find new features to study. Max just lets her, eyes still with something expectant, but patient.
“You okay?”
“I don’t want to sleep.”
“It’s okay, we can talk for a while, if you want.”
A beat of disturbance is produced within her. She tries not to show it.
Jane doesn’t mind talking. But it’s boring.
They talk all the time, gossiping at every sleepover about something new. Most of the time, it’s their boyfriends, sometimes it’s music. They’ve been raving over Madonna recently. Overplaying her Like A Prayer record, it was their go-to song for hanging out now. If it wasn’t music, though, maybe comics, sometimes art Jane was working on. Other times, Max would complain to her about how she wanted to quit skateboarding, but that she couldn’t, she claimed she was on her way to becoming the best Zoomer in Hawkins. Jane believed her.
They’ve talked about everything Jane could think of.
She was tired of talking.
“It’s boring.”
Max softly chuckles at her wilfulness. “What’s boring? Talking?”
“Yes, I’m tired of it.” She shrugs.
“Then what do you want to do?”
Jane thinks. She’s never gotten this far.
Yes, talking was boring, and she didn’t want to talk now. But she didn’t know what else she could possibly want. She couldn’t stare at Max all night, well—she could. Then Max would probably find that equally as boring.
She’s been sitting with this question longer than she’s cared to realize.
She loved hanging out with Max, spending time with her like this. She enjoys her company like no other, but it was different. She tries to picture Mike again. She thought about what they’d do when they hang out together. It wasn’t much, never really interesting.
They listened to music similarly. Mike would also show her his new collection of comics from time to time, when she’d care to ask. They’d go on bike rides and occasional ice-cream outings. Sometimes, he’d ask if she wanted to learn how to play D&D, which always resulted in a firm no.
But this was half of the time, for most of it, they would kiss.
Jane didn’t complain about it, it’s what couples did, right?
She always wondered what the greatness in kissing was, after all the times she’s kissed Mike, it never felt like anything special. Just lips moving on lips. It was almost gross to her, but she figured it was something she’d grow to like, eventually.
Jane and Max weren’t a couple.
But Jane couldn’t help but think of what kissing Max would be like. Would it be the same, unimpactful like kissing Mike was? Or would it be different?
She could never bring herself to ask. Yes, they’d talk about their boyfriends, but not what they did with them. Jane thought about whether Max shared her experience.
If she could help her out.
“Have you—do you kiss Lucas?”
Max blinks, expression taken aback. Like it was the last thing she was expecting Jane to say. “...Yeah. Sometimes, why?” She replies calmly, a hint of confusion in her tone.
“I don’t know. I kiss Mike all the time, too, but I’m just not sure if I like it—
…Do you like it with Lucas?”
Max shrugs. Lips forming into that familiar pout, Jane can’t help but shift her gaze there. “It’s… okay, I guess. He’s like, way too sloppy about it, it’s kind of gross. I always have to tell him to kiss with less tongue.”
It’s kind of gross.
Jane ponders, words replaying in her head. She feels a beat of relief, she’s glad that she and Max can agree on one thing about their boyfriend’s being lousy kissers. It makes her giggle.
“What’s funny?”
“Nothing, I—it’s just, Mike is gross too, he doesn’t do the tongue thing but, his lips are always so wet.”
Max doesn’t respond, she just lets out a breathy laugh.
They laugh in rhythm together. Max leans into her, shifting more to the side she lies on, the distance between them growing shorter and shorter.
Jane follows her movements, oppositely, shifting closer to Max. Leaning into the hand that lies softly on her back, it sends that airy fuzziness back down to her stomach.
They break back into the gentle silence. Max finds her gaze again, smiling sheepishly. Jane blinks at her. A question sits on the tip of her tongue, waiting for itself to be released. It feels prohibited, like the earth would stop spinning if she were to ask it.
But, she could make it spin again, couldn’t she?
“Have you wondered what it would feel like to kiss someone other than Lucas?” It comes out scattered, rolling off her tongue faster than it appeared in her thoughts.
Max makes an unreadable expression, head quirking at the question. Jane feels shame pool into her stomach, replacing the fluffy feeling that sat there a moment ago.
“Sometimes… have you?”
“Yeah. Sometimes.”
Silence falls again. The two stare at each other, soft breaths reaching out to merge with the other.
It feels as if now, Max is studying her.
She’s become a spectator in her own game. The feeling is foreign.
With that, Jane becomes bolder. Clearing the doubt filling her mind. “Would you want to try—to kiss someone else?”
Max takes a moment to respond, eyes still detecting. The doubt is spreading again, and Jane feels her confidence grow low. Max doesn’t seem to be following her clues. She might as well give up.
Jane begins to speak, suggesting they just go to bed. But a pair of lips catches the words before they can exit her.
She didn’t even notice it.
Before she can process the ginger’s lips on hers, the softness is gone. She lets out a sound of disappointment.
Subtle guilt grows on Max’s face, almost like she made a mistake. She looks like a deer in headlights.
Jane takes the risk this time.
She presses her lips against Max’s. A deeper kiss, with meaning. Max returns the gesture, lips pressing eagerly back onto Jane’s. They move fast, as if they were wasting time, as if the kiss would expire.
Jane lets her mouth fall open, deepening it.
This didn’t feel gross or sloppy. It felt right. They kissed as if they had been doing this forever. Jane wishes that were the case, because kissing Mike has never felt anything like this. Max pulls her in closer, resting hand now guiding Jane to move over her. She places her discarded leg at Max’s side, settling on her lap. Max's other hand finds the hair that sits on her shoulder, tugging it gently to bring Jane lower.
It’s addicting, the way Max’s lips feel on hers. She can’t control her movements, hands wandering on Max’s waist, up to her face, fingers threading in her hair. She doesn’t know where to put them. This position was new for her, she’d only ever kissed sitting up, hands in her lap, but now she could move them freely, she could explore.
Their bodies move hastily against each other, with Max’s legs shifting up and down, knees slightly brushing Jane’s lower back.
Their mouths grow more eager. Tongues and teeth are joining the mix now. Jane tries it out first, taking Max’s bottom lip in between her teeth, biting down delicately. Max replicates her action, taking a small nip in the same manner.
Max was gentle, and she moved rapidly, but her movements meant something. The hands that grazed Jane were tender, it sent shocks through her body. It made her wonder how she managed to go this long without being touched like this.
Max advances further, brushing her tongue faintly over Jane’s lip, a request to be let in. She didn’t know much about how to kiss with tongue, but Max made it feel easy, she followed her lead, took whatever Max was giving her.
Their tongues brush gently over one another’s, it sends a twitch to Jane’s lower half. The wetness of the kiss, its addictive sloppiness, was driving her crazy. She moves her hips down onto Max, trying to feel a little friction. Max meets her halfway, expelling a soft whine against her lips.
This was better than flying, it was like she found a new mastery.
And Jane didn’t want to stop, she could kiss Max forever.
Max moves the heat from her lips, down to her neck, planting soft kisses all over.
God. This felt even better.
“Max, it’s—”
Max removes herself from Jane, looking up at her with worried eyes. “Do you want to stop? I mean, if you don’t like it, we can stop.”
“No, Max, I—it’s really good. I like it.”
Relief shows itself through her eyes, “Me too.”
“Keep going?”
“Yes, please.”
Jane’s hips brush against Max’s lap again, and she grinds deeper into the fabric that rests atop it. Getting a better angle, she tilts her head to deepen their kiss. Max follows her, allowing her tongue to slip farther into Jane’s mouth. She moans at the sensations from above and below.
Max places her hands on Jane’s waist, guiding her movements. She lets out a strangled whine, wetness forming in her underwear.
She takes a hand into Max’s hair, gripping the ginger locks more roughly. Max groans, biting her lip in return. They go back and forth. Max tugging at her lip, tongue invading her mouth, from time to time, kisses fall down her neck, alongside her jaw. The feeling is overwhelming. Max knows all the spots to kiss, all the parts to reach. It feels like Jane is living in another universe of satisfying sensations before they break away again.
This time, the two are panting, out of breath as they recover.
Max glances down at the spot of wetness that sits at the front of Jane’s shorts. Her eyes stop at the scene before she speaks.
“You’re wet.”
“Huh, what?” Jane looks down, her eyes widening in shock.
“Did I pee?”
Max laughs at her obliviousness, shaking her head. “No, El, it’s not pee. It’s normal, it happens when you get excited.”
“Oh.” Excited. She’s definitely felt excitement before, but she guesses this was another variation of it. “What do I do about it?”
“You need to come. I can help you with it, if you want.”
She bobs her head before she can even respond. If this meant to keep having Max touch her, she was all in. “Yeah. Yes, help me, please.”
Max nods, a tighter grip forming at her waist. She guides Jane down to the place where she found pleasure moments before. Grinding on the front of Max’s linen shorts, the fabric feels inexplicably good under her, she rolls her hips with haste. A soft moan escapes her lips.
“It—it feels good.” She says as she moves, gathering a steady pace.
“Yeah?”
“Mhm.”
Max continues to guide her. Thumbs circling at her hip, gently assisting. She looks at Jane with wanting eyes, she wonders if Max was feeling something too. She didn’t want to be the only one who was feeling good.
She brushes over Max’s front harder. Palms resting on her stomach, keeping her upright. She slides her hands over Max’s torso as she grazes the spot again, grinding down with all her might. Max quickly slots her bottom lip between her teeth to muffle her sounds. Jane swears she sees it bleed. Max’s hands find impatience too as they shift all over Jane’s hips, palms meeting her lower back and gripping eagerly.
Jane wasn’t used to seeing Max like this. She was always rigid, a shell harder to crack than the average person. Max had an edge to herself, but also a softness, which Jane caught onto not long after they met.
She’s seen Max in vulnerable states before, but it’s different this time.
Under Jane, she’s almost a different person. Her eyes soften in a way Jane hasn’t seen before. Dark blue iris’ appearing a lighter cool now. Her lips are still glossy from their kiss, a deep shade of red coats them. Her breathing is heavier, her body relaxing under Jane, but still worked up.
Jane would rather study her like this, the way she looks after kissing, it’s way more intoxicating.
“Yes, so good, El. It’s so good.” Max’s words cause a pool of wetness to coat more of her underwear.
Jane feels the fabric colliding with the underside of her dampen shortly after, hips moving swiftly at the feeling of pleasure.
It’s overbearing.
Jane feels heat rush into her stomach, she throbs inside her underwear. She follows Max’s action, bottom lip catching itself in between her teeth, trying to hold in her noises.
Her hips move faster, rolling at an impatient pace.
Whatever Max meant by come, she wants it to happen now. But she feels a weird sensation start in her stomach, after the rush of heat.
She freezes.
“Max, we have to stop.”
And Max does just that, meeting her gaze, concerned, her fingers loosen around her waist.
“Why? What’s wrong?”
“I feel, something. I might pee, for real this time.”
Max's voice softens at her protest. “I promise you won’t, keep going and let it go. It’s going to feel good.” She reassures her.
Jane obeys and continues. Building up her speed again, the pleasure starts flowing back. Wet folds that rub against the fabric in her shorts, accompanied by the body under her, providing another layer of satisfaction as her hips meet Max’s, she can almost feel their witnesses blend. Jane feels a sudden wave of shock that vibrates throughout her body. She can’t even keep her eyes open.
She loses strength, falling onto Max’s chest, finding comfort in her warmness. Max keeps her hands steady on her hips, now pushing them down harder onto her lap. Jane is about to lose it.
She feels a sudden buildup in her stomach about to release itself. She moans into Max’s shirt, muffled by the fabric.
Max works her through it, thumbing at the skin at her hip bone. Jane could tell she was doing her best to hold back, as her hips bucked up a few times to meet Jane. Slowing her movements, Jane shudders under her touch, limbs shaking all over. She’s never felt pleasure like this before, it consumes her like nothing else.
She lingers after the release, body falling limp over Max. She’s so tired, her body has met its full capacity tonight. “Tired,” she says lowly into the other’s ear with a haziness that fogs her brain.
Max leaves a soft kiss on Jane’s neck. Patting her head with gentle strokes, combing through her loose curls. Jane melted at the softness. “I know, me too.”
Jane could stay like this forever, but she can’t help the remnants of guilt that rest inside of her.
This entire situation was considered unloyal. A concept Max had explained to her before, when Lucas had let Tessa Williams sign his shirt after a basketball game.
Aside from how Jane felt about Mike in the current state of their relationship, she still felt terrible. Mike might’ve been a questionable boyfriend, but Jane hoped he’d never be unloyal to her like this.
She manages to lift her head from where it rested, giving Max a concerned look.
“Max, what are we going to do about…” She doesn’t finish her sentence, she can’t. She just assumes that Max has an idea of what she’s referring to.
She wasn’t sure about the rules of dating, but she knew that this wasn’t going to work with all of them. She couldn’t be dating Mike and Max, and Max couldn’t be dating her and Lucas, that would just cause too many problems.
“We’ll figure it out tomorrow, okay?” She replied softly. Max was probably just as nervous as Jane was, but if anything, they’d work it out together. They’ve counted on each other time and time before, and they’ll just have to do it again.
Jane nods at her reassurance, lying back down onto Max. She finally switches off the lamp, taking Jane in her arms after.
They shift their position so that their legs are intertwined, falling onto their sides again. They lay comfortably, arms attached around the other, and it’s like all of Jane’s worries dissolve under Max’s touch.
Jane follows her breathing, letting herself drift off with a clear head and an easy heart.