Chapter Text
One week later…
6:00 PM, Friday
Hawkins High School
Hawkins, Indiana
It wasn't the most ideal situation to be in for neither Joyce or Karen. Not only were they both in their final trimester of pregnancy, bloated and miserable, but they were surrounded by people in a cramped-up gym in May. The only thing that got them by was papers given to them when they walked in the door, ones that said the graduating kids' names in alphabetical order by their last names. Jonathan’s would be early on so at least there was that to look forward to, seeing him receive his diploma and move his tassel, but they'd still have to sit through at least another hour of it.
"This sucks" Karen groaned as she fanned herself.
Her makeup was beginning to slip and she was talented with cosmetics. She bought the best of the best and knew how to keep it on through any type of weather yet her face makeup was sweating off and exposing the small pores she had.
"Someone's cranky" Joyce muttered even though she felt the exact same way.
She tried to keep her complaining to a minimum because her baby boy was graduating high school. It was still really hard to be chipper when she was seven months pregnant, carrying a baby that was predicted to be quite big, but it was fucking hot in that small gym AND she'd caught several people staring at her since she was famous. She never viewed herself as famous so the looks still kind of freaked her out. She couldn't count how many men had looked her up and down with various expressions, some intrigued because they'd seen her body on tape before and some disgusted because she looked different than what she used to. She's also seen some death glares from their wives, but she ignored them. She ignored all of it because she was there with her family watching Jonathan graduate.
"Well, it's fucking hot" Karen whispered angrily.
"Calm down, I think it's starting" Joyce whispered back.
Jim was secretly enjoying their slight banter as he sat beside Joyce. He wasn't appreciating all the looks his wife was receiving, though. He really should be used to it and he was in a way, but not the disgusted scowls. He knew it was only because she was heavily pregnant and he found that so fucking stupid that they couldn't see her beauty. If she complained about it later to him, he'd just remind her that she was a famous name and had more money than them.
Will and El were just as miserable as their mom as they sat in front of the adults with Sara in between them. She was just bored and doing anything she could to entertain herself. Luckily, she'd brought a little plush bear with her. Nancy was probably the only excited one out of the kids because she was happy for the boy she'd been secretly dating the past few weeks.
She'd kept it a good damn secret, too, Jonathan as well. He really liked Nancy but him dating her didn't affect his decision to stay back at Hawkins and work his ass off to keep his childhood home. They hadn't had the talk about going long-distance because they knew it would be uncomfortable. They knew they'd have to soon because Jonathan made it clear he wasn't leaving Hawkins and Nancy was admitted to a university in Massachusetts. She'd be graduating high school in a week then spend the summer with Jonathan, then leave for college. Jonathan often tried not to focus on that because he felt like everyone was leaving him. He realized that a lot of his anger towards Joyce was because of that fear and once he realized that, he became more accepting with her. He'd still been distant the past week but not nearly as cold as he had been to everyone. Joyce wasn't sure what flipped the switch, but she was grateful for it. She had no idea it was because of Nancy, neither did Karen. No one did. They had a good idea of how much she liked the young man when his name was announced, though.
"Jonathan Byers."
Joyce cupped her mouth and screamed as loud as she could as her eyes watered with happy tears. She would have jumped up and down just like Nancy was but that wouldn’t have been a good idea. Every one of them clapped, even little Sara because the commotion was contagious. The rest of the hour was quite boring for the family since they didn't know any of the other kids except for Robin, whom they also cheered for.
After the class tossed their caps into the air, everyone on the bleachers met the kids they were there for and it was very overwhelming for Joyce, but she pushed through for her son. He was hugging Robin and Steve who had come there just for them and probably some new girlfriend since he always had one. The trio was jumping with their arms around each other and the sight made Joyce feel warm inside. Jonathan locked eyes with his mother and hugged her because he could tell that's what she wanted.
"I'm so proud of you!" She squeezed him a little too tight for her baby's liking because it kicked Jonathan. "Oh, sorry."
Jonathan laughed and pulled away and accepted his next hug from the many to come, this one from his stepdad.
"Congrats, Robin" Joyce told the girl.
"Oh, thanks" Her cheeks flushed as she smiled and felt bad when her eyes fell to Joyce's stomach. She quickly looked back up to her face. "Look at you" She laughed a little.
"Yeah, two more months to go" Joyce patted her stomach.
"Congratulations" Steve smiled at her which caught her off guard because she never did forgive that boy for bullying Jonathan at one point. "I don't know if I ever told you."
She acted civil because he was just a kid. That's what she told herself anyway.
Joyce smiled. "Thanks. I'm sure you guys have plans but if not, would you want to join us for dinner? We're just picking up a pizza but you're welcome to come over."
Steve and Robin nodded and smiled.
"Sure, thanks" Steve told her.
"Well, I'm definitely not doing anything" Robin laughed with no humor evident in her tone.
Actually, sadness was clearly on her face.
Joyce frowned and stepped closer to the girl so she could hear her lowered voice. "What's wrong, sweetie?"
Robin smiled softly and sighed. She was about to unload everything on this poor woman.
"Well, my parents kind of kicked me out."
Joyce gasped as she brought a hand to her mouth. "What? I am so sorry to hear that" She lowered her voice the best she could in a room full of crowded people, hoping the teary-eyed girl could still hear Joyce.
"Yeah um-" Robin wiped at her mascara-coated eyes, trying to play it cool but failing miserably. "-I'm… different."
Joyce knew what she was about to say.
"I'm different because I don't like boys, I actually like girls instead and they don’t like that" She spat out.
Joyce pulled Robin into a hug immediately. Robin let out a quiet sob that was muffled by the commotion in the room but the ache in her heart seemed to heal just a tad. She wished her own mother had reacted the way that her best friend's mother did. Joyce rubbed the girl's back and just let her cry but it didn't last for long because Robin hated showing emotion in front of others. She pulled away quickly despite feeling safe in Joyce's arms. She sniffled as she looked at the ceiling, hoping her tears would stop if she did that. Steve had gotten distracted by the conversation a few feet away from them or he would have tried to comfort his best friend. He didn't need to, though. She had Joyce.
Joyce was holding the girl's shoulders as she looked into her eyes. "Honey, I'm so sorry to hear that but you need to know something. Really listen to me. There is NOTHING wrong with you. You are how you are and you can't change that and anyone who thinks you can well- they're miserable and confused. Maybe they will come around but if they don't, you'll always have a home with us. It's a little cramped at the moment but I mean it."
Robin laughed a little because she didn't know what to say. She just appreciated Joyce's kindness so fucking much.
Joyce knew that her offer wasn't practical but she just couldn't stand the thought of that sweet girl being homeless. She had another idea.
"You know, Jonathan will still be living here in Hawkins and I'm sure he'll need some help paying bills."
"I know" Robin nodded and sniffled, trying to smile. "We've actually talked about it."
Joyce wasn't expecting that. "Oh?"
"Yeah. I've been staying with Steve since his parents are gone a lot anyway, but with Jonathan it would make more sense because the bills thing."
"I agree" Joyce sighed a breath of relief and smiled. "I think that's a wonderful idea, sweetie. I actually just signed the lease a few days ago and we plan on moving at the end of this month. Do you think you can stay with Steve for two more weeks?" She frowned because she wished she could offer more.
"Yeah! Yeah, that sounds great. Thank you, Mrs. Byers- I mean Mrs. Byers-Hopper, I mean-"
"You can call me Joyce, Robin" She giggled.
Robin smiled at her and softened her voice. "Thank you, Joyce."
"You're so welcome, sweetheart" Joyce squeezed Robin's arm and turned to find Karen snapping a picture of Nancy kissing Jonathan's cheek. "Oh!" She blinked.
"I was right, Joyce" Karen chimed as she took more pictures of the couple all over each other.
She'd always had a feeling that they'd get together. Joyce sort of did too but knew it would come with complications due to their family dynamics.
"So, there's two surprises you've yet to tell me about" Joyce told her son with a slight laugh.
"What do you mean?" He asked confused.
"You and Robin are going to be roommates" Joyce told him.
"You are?" Nancy asked, a hint of jealousy to her voice as she looked at him.
"Yeah… didn't I tell you that?" Jonathan swallowed nervously.
"No-"
"Don't worry, Nancy. He's not my type" Robin assured her.
"He's really not, trust me" Steve muttered.
Nancy seemed to have some sort of understanding. She thought about the way her mom was. She thought of Joyce, El and Max, then it clicked.
"Ohhh."
"Yeah" Robin nodded, happy that she didn't have to declare her sexuality to anyone.
"Well, then I guess I have nothing to worry about when you move in" Nancy giggled.
Jonathan wrapped his arms around her with a smile. "You wouldn't have to either way."
With that, he kissed her and it warmed their mothers' hearts. They continued to kiss and suddenly, Joyce and Karen felt how their children did when they showed too much display of affection. They didn't break it up, though because who were they to do that?
They did sigh though because they had the same thoughts. They looked at each other with concerned looks.
"Do we need to have a talk with them?" Joyce asked.
"Definitely."
-
9:00 PM, Saturday
Byers Residence
Hawkins, Indiana
Jonathan had graduated so they celebrated at home with four different types of pizza, liters of soda and a huge cake. Steve and Robin came over just like Joyce told them to. They played music and had so much fun for about two hours. The celebration was over after Jonathan's friends left and it was time for everyone to settle down. Will was in his room probably drawing or playing a game. El was in her bedroom laying down but not quite sleeping, sad because the school year was over and she wouldn't see Max for three months. Jim was in Joyce's room with his sleeping daughter. He could have come back out to the kitchen, but Joyce had told him beforehand to sit it out because of the conversation that was going to be had. It was going to be embarrassing enough for the teenage couple. They didn't need Jim at the table as well.
Jonathan and Nancy felt like dying. Anything would be better than the talk they were having with their moms.
"Since you two are dating now…" Joyce started.
"I knew it from the start. You two were drawn together from the moment you saw each other" Karen smiled with confidence.
That wasn't ENTIRELY true, though. Nancy had been cold towards everyone on that trip to the waterpark because she learned that her family was soon to fall apart. She couldn't believe that she'd once been angry about that. She couldn't imagine her life without her expanded family now. Jonathan couldn't either but he really wished that his girlfriend's mother wasn’t a part of giving him 'the talk.'
They were silent at Karen's statement, as was Joyce because it was irrelevant to the topic.
"Anyway, I know that you're teenagers- well, you're young adults now, and you have these feelings-" Karen continued.
"Sorry to cut you off, but do I really have to be here?" Jonathan asked his mom. "We've already had this talk."
Joyce sighed. "But you didn't have a girlfriend then, sweetie. That was also three years ago."
"I don’t see you telling this to the twins."
He had a point.
"You're right. I will. I probably should have a long time ago with El but that's not what we're talking about here. What we're trying to saying is I'm sure you guys are going to visit each other a lot."
"I don't think Steve is going to let me borrow his car to Chicago" Jonathan corrected her.
"I will be coming back here, though" Nancy told the mothers, like her and Jonathan planned.
"Okay great, but when you do, you'll be alone with the exception of Robin. Jonathan, I'm sure your mom told you about condoms and how to put them on" Karen spoke as plain as ever which Joyce admired.
Jonathan cringed and looked at his lap, red in the face. Nancy laughing at his reaction sure didn’t help. He recalled that talk all too well, better than he preferred. She'd demonstrated it with a fucking cucumber and he hated every second of it. He knew that she was just being cautious for his sake and he appreciated it on some level, but it really sucked at the time.
"Nance, have you considered getting on the pill?"
Nancy hummed as she thought about it. "Kind of? I'd have to talk about it with my doctor and learn about the side effects."
"That's smart" Karen nodded and Joyce hummed in agreement.
"Even if you're on the pill- Still. Use. Condoms. The more contraceptives, the better. You don't want to end up like us, do you?" Joyce laughed as she pointed at her pregnant stomach then Karen's.
Nancy smiled at that but Jonathan's cheeks were still warm with embarrassment.
"Nance, I don't know how you feel about it and we won't go too into detail about it, but abortion is also an option. Personally, I believe it's a person's choice to do what they want with their body. God forbid you get pregnant in the next few years, but if you do, if you feel that you're not ready financially or emotionally or whatever, abortion is an option. It's not an easily accessible or a cheap option, but it is still an option."
Nancy wasn't sure what to think about it. She'd never given it much thought and she definitely never imagined herself getting pregnant. Then again, she'd never met anyone that she considered having sex with.
Joyce nodded a long since she fully agreed and Jonathan seemed to as well.
"Jonathan, I know how you are, baby. You've always been respectful especially to women-"
Despite recent arguments with her.
"-and you wouldn't hurt a fly, but I still feel the need to say if Nancy says it hurts, then you stop. Okay?" Joyce spoke softly because she didn't want him to get any idea that she thought of him as some monster who would hurt women.
It was Nancy's turn to look away with embarrassment but Jonathan powered through.
"I understand. I would never hurt her" He nodded.
Nancy looked at him and smiled, her cheeks red for a different reason.
Joyce and Karen shared a sweet smile because their kids' puppy love was just so cute.
"Do you guys have any questions?" Joyce asked and received headshakes immediately.
She and Karen both laughed at that.
"It wasn't so bad, was it?" Karen asked as she smiled, holding onto Joyce's shoulder as she stood up.
"Yeah, at least we didn't go into detail about how to have sex" Joyce said as Karen helped her up. "I'm proud of us" She held up her hand and Karen gave her a high-five.
The teenage couple gave them confused looks because they found their mothers weird.
"It's not like we said words like 'orgasm-'" Karen started teasing and Joyce followed her lead.
"Or 'penis-'" Joyce added.
"Okay, you've made your point" Jonathan said as he was getting uncomfortable.
"Or 'vagina" Karen added and watched Jonathan flee the scene.
"I get your point!" He called out, leaving the women in the kitchen to laugh, even Nancy.
Nancy wasn't sure about following him, unaware of the rules since they were known to be dating now. The moms recognized her hesitation so they smiled at her.
"Leave the door open" They both said at the same time.
Nancy smiled with appreciation and mouthed a 'thank you' before leaving.
"Sorry, we don’t have any condoms" Karen called out to her and heard her daughter’s footsteps shuffle away faster.
Her and Joyce looked at each other and laughed, nearly falling over because they were both so funny.
"That was evil" Jim said from Joyce's bedroom after having listened to the entire conversation.
That spurred the women on more and had their laughter bouncing off the walls.