#<- prev yeah... i know they have a show tonight but can we please get a quick story post 😭

[takumiraine]

Once upon a time chapter 10

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Danny slept more soundly in these two little cat naps with Sam and Tucker (and Jason) present than he had in the last couple of years. Really since the ghost shit started. His first awareness was Tucker saying “no dude, seriously, watch.” Right before Danny remembered to breathe.

“Freaky…” he heard Jason mutter.

Danny opened his eyes. “Technically dead, remember?” He yawned, stretching in a way that he had been told most people couldn’t move in.

“It’s still kinda weird man,” Tucker said without a hint of remorse, even as Danny swatted him. “But your food’s done.” That drew Danny’s full attention. He sat up, taking the plate that had been offered to him. Carefully, Danny blew on the rolls, before popping one into his mouth.

“P’f’ct” he mumbled through his bite.

Sam shook her head. “So is your big bat friend aware that we’re coming too, as Danny’s backup?”

“Yeah. I told him. He’s not thrilled but what can he really do. He feels guilty that he missed a chance to help adoption bait.”

“So he doesn’t think I’m going to go villain on you?” Jason shrugged.

“You had plenty of time and motivation to do so to me.”

Tucker’s PDA beeped. He looked down at it. Looked up at Jason. Looked back at it. Showed the results to Sam and Danny. “Does that mean…?” Danny looked back up at Jason.

“Dude. Is your fucking dad Batman?” Danny asked.

“How….?” Jason didn’t have a good answer to that because if he said no, then in like an hour max, Danny would learn of another lie, but if he said yes, it felt like some sort of weird betrayal against B. “What makes you think that?”

“Because Tucker needed to isolate the crack you guys made into the GIW before he could make sure they haven’t done anything about it and… I’m pretty sure the main location came from right where your house is. So it’s either your dad or your butler.”

Jason pinched the bridge of his nose. “Please be surprised when he tells you. And please let me be the one to tell the Replacement that some random guy followed his hacking trail on a goddamn PDA, and was able to deduce Batman’s identity from it. He’s gonna froth at the mouth and I need to be the one to cause that.”

“Who’s the Replacement?” Sam asked.

“The kid that became Robin after me. He and Oracle led the break in to that site.” Danny crunched another couple pizza rolls, while Tucker looked triumphant.

“Watch, they’re like a big creepy family of crime fighting rich people.” Danny nudged his friends between bites. Jason forced himself to laugh along.

“You might never know. B said he was the only one he was going to out tonight.” Jason hedged, trying to play up the mysterious vibe.

The trio shared a look as Danny finished off the rest of his pizza rolls. “Right. Anyways. You’re not going to like blindfold us right? We can just go in like normal people? Or is he going to come to us?”

“He’ll send a car when we’re ready. No blindfolds.”

“Good because I’m not doing kinky stuff with someone I haven’t even kissed yet.” Danny said through another yawn, stretching out obliviously.

Jason stared, open mouthed.

“What…?” Danny asked when he opened one eye mid stretch. He ran back what he just said, face turning scarlet. “I mean… fuck. You know what I mean.” He groused, purposefully not looking at the other three. “You try not really sleeping for five years and see where it gets you.”

Tucker and Sam burst into a fit of laughter. “Called it.” Sam announced, fist bumping Tucker and deftly dodging the swat.

“I can’t believe I’m still friends with you two assholes.” Danny grumbled, still red. “Let’s get this execution over with…”

Bruce sent Alfred in the town car to pick them up. “Master Jason, it is good to see you are making friends.” Alfred’s voice was genuinely caring beneath the dry delivery.

“Yeah yeah. A, these are Danny, Tucker and Sam. Three new people for you to feed.”

“Most excellent, I am always being told that I cook entirely too much.” Feeding a family of vigilantes that never seem to sit still requires a lot of food after all. He opened the back door gesturing for them to enter. “Sirs. Ma’am. Master Jason, I assume you will be taking ‘shotgun’?”

Danny, Tucker and Sam slid into the car, squishing Danny in the middle seat. Jason went around and opened his own door as Alfred closed the back. “Yeah. I’m not feeling like the trunk tonight.”

The ride to the manor was tense, even though Alfred did his best to settle it out by talking about different foods in the fridge that needed to be eaten if ‘you kids’ -Jason included- would be amenable.

For Danny, it was torture on two fronts. First, he had no idea what he was walking into. The second was that even after a pile of pizza rolls, Danny still felt like he had a black hole instead of a stomach. Was that due to the fact his family never seemed to have an adequate volume of non contaminated food, he was a man under 25, a halfa or just hadn’t eaten much recently? Not even he knew the answer to that. He was just pretty used to ignoring the feeling.

When the car drove through the manor’s gates, nobody seemed impressed. Which would have been concerning if Jason hadn’t remembered seeing the Mansons at galas before. Danny seemed like he was trying to melt through the seats, regretting his choice to come there.

“I swear to fuck if it’s Vlad here…” he muttered to the two other teens, so quietly Jason almost didn’t hear it.

“You’d feel it wouldn’t you?” Tucker asked just as quietly.

“Maybe? If it’s not his domain it might take longer…”

“Well do you feel anything now?” From Sam. Jason watched Alfred’s eyes in the mirror. He was listening too.

“No…. Not him. This is the domain of something, but I don’t know who or what.” Danny tried to look out the window, squinting through the glass to look for Jason didn’t know what.

Eventually he shrugged and sat back as the car pulled down the winding drive. It was only as Alfred opened the door to the backseat that something odd happened. Danny’s breath came out in a single puff of winter condensation, and all three of them tensed. Bruce was standing there, watching them, and all three got out, lining up against the back of the car. Danny seemed to be looking at something, distracted while B was giving them the typical welcome speech, and ushering them inside out of the cool night air. Though the other two didn’t seem to be able to see what Danny did, they gave whatever he was looking at a wide berth.

“D?” Tucker asked, hand on Danny’s arm. He just shook his head.

“Not violent.” He murmured back. “Been here a long time…”

That brought up more questions than Jason thought he’d be able to ask in one night. If Bruce heard the exchange he wisely chose to comment on it.

They all followed Bruce into the main sitting room, and the trio sat on the couch while Bruce took one armchair and Jason shoved another to be more lined up with the couch before flopping into it in a way that was sure to make B’s teeth grit.

“Has Jason told you why I’ve brought you here, chum?” Bruce said to Danny once Alfred had brought them all drinks and an assortment of snacks. Danny immediately set in on the food, eating in a way that was just controlled enough to seem bored.

Danny was about to answer when Sam elbowed him in the side. He finished chewing and swallowed. “He said you’d explain everything when we got here. I assumed it was because you thought we were dating and wanted to give me the shovel talk.” A pause. “We aren’t.” Another pause. “Dating that is. These are good snacks.” Danny’s eyes kept darting to something over Bruce’s shoulder.

Jason assumed it was to the portrait of the late Waynes. Those eyes had an uncanny habit of seeming to hone in on you wherever you went. Still, before Bruce could process, Jason put on his best terrible southern accent. “Aw, honey, no need to hide from my father. No doubt you’ll be able to win my dowry in no time.”

“Jason.” Bruce sounded constipated. Good. Serves him right for tormenting Danny. “No, I brought you here because I have something very important to reveal to you.” Bruce waited an appropriately dramatic amount of time, causing Jason to roll his eyes. “I am Batman.” There was a moment before the trio let out the fakest gasp he’d ever heard. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

“What? No way!” God their acting was terrible. Danny was even doing that little nervous laugh thing he did when the topic of families came up in class.

“You knew.” It was less a question and more of a statement, then Bruce turned slowly to focus the full weight of his gaze on Jason. “They knew.”

Jason waved a hand. “Don’t look at me. They figured it out the moment I said we hacked into the GIW. Turns out having one of the hacks originate close to the house meant they could figure it out since they had some basic common sense deduction skills.”

“I….” Bruce sighed heavily and grabbed his mug, looking for the world like he was regretting every choice he’d ever made leading up to that point.

Danny snorted a laugh but covered it with a really badly acted cough. Sam elbowed him and he made a sort of helpless gesture and gestured off to the side of the room. Interesting.

“Care to share with the rest of the class Danny?” Jason asked, watching him as well as he could without actually sitting up.

“Uh… well… it has to do with uh… my powers. The lady over there…” he gestured again to the side of the room, “just told uh…. Mr. Bat…? Mr. Man…? That it’s what children do, and she’s had to watch her “Little Roo” do that to her for years now.”

At the name, Bruce sat up stock straight, looking around the room. “What kind of trick is this?” He growled, defensive. “How did you know that name?” Danny immediately looked nervous, grabbing onto his friends.

“The woman told me. The one in the painting.” Bruce and Jason both turned to look up at the portrait of the Waynes and that was all it took for Danny and his friends to completely disappear.

“Danny, come back. He’s not going to hurt you.” Jason sat up now, trying to locate Danny in the room. He knew the younger man and his friends were still there, he could feel Danny close but it was clear he was trying to reassess the situation.

When Danny didn’t immediately appear again, Jason looked around for something he could throw at Bruce. There wasn’t anything of an appropriate annoyance level immediately handy so he grabbed the pillow off the couch Danny and his friends had vacated and flung it at Bruce, taking no small amount of pride in the resounding thud it made as the fabric connected with his father’s head.

Bruce looked over at him then. “Can I help you?”

“Me? Nah. But you could try to calm Danny down before he gets sick of our shit and ghosts us permanently. He’s hiding here somewhere.” Had he just made a pun??? He needed to spend less time with Tim.

It was only then that Bruce seemed to shake off his shock at what Danny had said to realize that he and his friends were unable to be seen. “Danny? Chum? Jay is right. I will not harm you. I was just…. Shocked by the fact that my mother’s ghost is still here…. And making comments.” There was another moment of silence before Danny spoke again.

“Oh… that being your mom explains a lot. Your dad is here too, but he hasn’t said much.” Slowly, Danny became visible again, floating in the corner with his friends, who seemed far too used to being grabbed and floated off with for their own good. He lowered them to the floor first, and fidgeted with his clothes until Jason reached out and gestured to the remaining food.

“Eat or Alfred will be disappointed.” Carefully, Danny let his feet touch the floor again, and became fully solid and visible. Only once Danny was okay did Tucker and Sam go and sit back down, grabbing a snack for themselves.

“Sorry…” Danny murmured to all of them, retaking his position between his friends.

“Not at all lad. I should be the one apologizing to you. Tonight is the night of unexpected it seems.” Jason noted, that while Bruce should be apologizing, he in fact had not said the words. “I wanted to let you know, personally, that you will be safe from those government stooges while the League still stands. You should not have to be afraid to exist and had we received your messages when they were sent, we would have helped then.“

Danny narrowed his eyes, pausing mid bite. “You’d help some kid you don’t know, just like that?”

Jason snorted then, cutting off Bruce’s response. “Danny, B found like five kids, all with black hair, blue eyes and a tragic backstory. You fit right in.”

Danny looked at Jason for a moment, considering, then at the two ghosts that had stayed in the room. Finally, he nodded. “Alright. I’ll trust you. For now.”

“Excellent. Shall I have Alfred make up a couple of guest rooms?” Bruce looked entirely too happy at the idea of having guests.

“No, I’ve got my own place. But thanks…” Danny said, trying very hard not to look worried at the invitation.

Jason texted something to Alfred, then stood when the butler entered the room with a large ziploc bag. Jason stood and took it, then dumped the rest of the snacks into the bag before pressing it into Danny’s hands.

“C’mon. I’ll bring you home. You look exhausted still.” Jason carefully, but casually positioned himself between Bruce and Danny. Not that Jason didn’t trust Bruce, but Danny had been through a lot and Jason wanted to offer any protection or comfort he could. Danny nodded, standing with his friends. Sam looped one of her arms through his.

“Thank you for the food and assurances of Danny’s safety.” Tucker said diplomatically as Sam pulled Danny after Jason.

[landograndprix]

「Feel the magic ๛ l.n」

part vii

✧.* you've finally secured your well deserved p1 after months of suffering with red bull and while you celebrate it the right way, love is in the air and everybody sees it now.

✧.* when i think about my muppets i think about this song, should i make like a playlist of songs that remind me of this fic, give y'all the vibes ive been having? 👀 spelling mistakes add character, don't mind them 🥰 this is a psa for the people who wanted to be on my taglist but never got tagged, i didn't forget or ignore you, I simply am unable to tag you and therefore removed you from the list feel free to ask me again so I can take a look at it. Taglist is open Love ya ❤️

✧.* prev part - next part

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y/nusername

liked by landonorris, milouberger and 453,789 others

y/nusername I'd like to thank my parents— p1 baby!🏆

tagged: mclaren

view all 742 comments

y/nloveee yes baaaaabbyyyyy 🤩🤩

norrizz one big fat fuck you to red bull!

adam_norris_pure_electric amazing race, amazing driver!🥇

carlandooo oh my gosh, I'm dead, Adam out here supporting his future daughter in law 😭

norry4 stop it 😭

ricky78 bring it home y/n!

natewhite this girls good, she should try racing in f1..

carlossainz55 well deserved! 🔥

chilisainz wish I had a supportive ex boyfriend 💀

y/nlandooo we're so back with our 1-2!

yourmomsuser super proud of you! 🥰

milouberger back where you belong!

hamilt44n girl, shut up..as if you didn't try to push her off the track halfway..🤨

redbullgirl come back please, perez is a joke 😢

landonorris that's my girlfriend 😍

bott_ass we were aware 😂

landonorris you got any plans tonight? wanna celebrate?

landosmclaren HOWLING ABSOLUTELY UNHINGED

maxfewtrell mega race 🙌

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landonorris posted on their story

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cecilemoulin posted to their story

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y/nusername

liked by landonorris, riabish and 689,872 others

y/nusername ending an amazing weekend with my favorite lil' guy 🧡

tagged: landonorris

view all 878 comments

norrizz honestly such a power couple!!

sharl16 oh they in love love huh?

bott_ass not the after sex selfie 😭

bananaclerc I was looking for this comment 😭

y/nlando y/n's finally showing more of her and lando on here 🥺

mrsnorris 🤮 get someone your own age 🤮

cecilemoulin I just know y'all were late because you've been watching tiktok's in bed all morning..

y/nusername Cecile thirst trap edits go hard

carlandooo y'all think y/n finally realised she likes this man? Seemed pretty one sided to me for a hot minute 😂

ceciley/n I think Cecile said in an interview that THEY aren't used to dating younger dudes and that she felt out of place for the first few weeks..pretty sure she meant herself and y/n 😉

carlandooo CECILE IS DATING SOMEONE?

ceciley/n yeah..max fewtrell? Girl where have you been? 😂

carlandooo under a fucking rock apparently! Wow, these girls really said young, cute and british? Yes ma'am 🥰 so real of them

ceciley/n a couple of besties dating another couple of besties 😂

hamilt44n where are Carlos and Pierre now? You think they gave up? :')

landonorris favourite lil' muppet 🧡

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Everything taglist; @thomaslefteyebrow @hopefulinlove @smoothopz @softboystarkey @honethatty12 @cixrosie @parkersmjs @ireadthensuetheauthors @celestialams @be-your-coffee-pot @heli991113 @kodzuvk @reality-is-a-con @80sloverry @bibissparkles @myescapefromthislife @lanando4 @elliegrey2803 @ravisinghs-wife @glow-ish

Feel the magic taglist: @celesteblack08 @mrsmaybank13 @cha-hot @judesgfirl @roseseraj @kissesandmartinis @jpg3 @amulhermaisfelizdomundo @marialovesf1 @silkenthusiasts @luvrrish @laneyspaulding19 @emily-b @formula1bby @judespoisons @buckybarnessweetheart @strawberrychita @iifloweringnightsii @buendiabebeta @jjsprobablywrong @babyvinnie @mishaandthebrits @hockeyboysarehot

Lando taglist: @beatricemiruna @simp-for-fictional-people @landossainz @christianpulisic10

[tigerf00d]

Words Inside a Shell

Chapter 2: And Telling Me Your Memories

Pairing: Spike x Reader

Other Characters: Buffy and Willow, Xander

(mentioned), minor original characters.

Tags: NSFW later in the series! No use of y/n.

Afab but gender neutral.

Word Count: 1.3k

Summary: While trying to get over a crush on

a certain crispy-haired vampire, you end up

falling right back into his arms

Or, the one where a night out with the girls

goes wrong

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Series masterlist

A/N: chapter 2 yippee! As a reminder this comes out a week early on ao3! That link should take you directly to the work! Next update has smut I promise. It was originally supposed to be in this chapter, to be completely honest, but I like to keep chapters around 1.5k just for pacing/so I don't post ginormous ones and super short ones in the same work.

The Bronze, as always, was loud. Both through the other patrons speaking, and the live performers, music echoing through the street outside. As usual, a delicate concoction of booze, sweat, smoke (fake) and smoke (real) filled the air, creating the familiar slightly dank aroma of the club. Sunnydale didn't offer many other avenues of nightlife, if that wasn't already obvious. Though with the Hellmouth happily causing havoc this was probably for the best. 

Naturally, your interest in the Bronze shifted in and out of focus, and your visit today felt almost nostalgic, especially with your goal and the girls. 

Now, under the admittedly dim lighting of the entryway, you could better see Buffy and Willow’s respective outfits. 

Buffy wore her hair loosely styled, somehow smooth despite recently dealing with the undead, a pale blue scoop-necked halter top, dark (black maybe, it was hard to tell in this lighting) mini skirt, and the boots you’d come to think of as part of her signature. 

Willow’s red hair had been straightened. Willow’s top had long, slightly flared, sleeves and a neckline that came to a slight v, highlighting her thin choker beautifully; as well as a longer skirt that swayed when she moved. 

Willow suddenly froze and groaned, “We forgot to show Spike the necklace.” 

“I’m sure it’s fine, Will.” You reassured, “Besides, he always manages to turn up eventually.”

“That’s true…” 

“Especially now that we have his favourite toy.” Buffy winked at you,

“I’m not Spike’s toy. He never plays with me. Not the way I want him to, anyway.”

“Ugh, too much information.” Willow wrinkled her nose.

“Hey, I’m not the one that brought him up after we agreed on no vampire talk.” You pointed it out. 

“So, dancing or fuel first?” Buffy chirped.

"..."

“So, what can I get for you folks?” The bartender leaned in, a wide friendly smile on her face. The name tag (Hello Christine) hanging loosely off of her shirt glinted, drawing your eyes. Buffy leaned in in return, half-yelling over the music to order for the three of you. 

“Two Shirley Temples and a virgin mojito, please.” The slayer passed the cash over the counter. 

Christine nodded, “Coming right up,” 

Shortly after, the drinks were sliding across the bar to the three of you, which you accepted with an easy grateful smile and looked to find a table, seeing your former usual spot unclaimed. 

“Ok, temples for the two lovely ladies, and the mojito for me.” You placed each drink in their respective places. 

“No Shirley for you, too?” Willow prompted.

“Yeah, I want the freshness tonight. Might come in handy later.” You laughed.

Buffy took a sip of her drink, then asked, “Is that our goal tonight? Be your most excellent Wing-women?” 

“It's not that serious.” Waving a hand through the air to dismiss the thought, the other resting on the table, you continued, “I just… want a distraction. Being here with you two is enough.” 

Buffy touched your hand, both girls smiling. 

“Besides. We both know it's not that easy. What do you say we finish these up and then go dance? The music isn't half bad tonight.” 

“I'm pretty sure the band has played here at least once before.” Willow mentioned happily. 

“So have most bands that end up on that stage, it's the Bronze.” You laughed. 

The three of you finished your drinks relatively quickly after that, ready to descend on the dance floor as a trio right as the music was beginning to get more upbeat. 

Your bodies moved in time, a sea of undulating patrons. You raised your arms seductively, finding purchase in your hair before drawing them back down your body, and repeating the process. As you did this, you scanned the room for a stranger who held potential. 

Buffy regained your attention with a nudge, nodding in the direction of a broad blond man. His hair was natural, longer than some of the other men in the club as you saw hairs curl slightly around his ears and flip out at the back of the neck, or at least it looked that way as you observed him while he was moving. A faded dark blue short-sleeve shirt was tight against his body, along with the black jeans. His outfit was simple but effective. 

You smiled, pleased, ignoring the similarities between him and a certain vampire, and cast an appreciative glance towards Buffy and then started your efforts to gain the focus of the man. 

You moved your position on the dance floor to be in his eye line, further away from the stage, but at least the music wasn’t so loud that you couldn’t think anymore. Finally, the man’s head turned towards you, and you caught his eye. 

He tilted his head, eyeing you with a close-mouthed grin. You bit your lip playfully and crooked a finger towards him, enticing him to come closer to you, and he obeyed. When he reached you, you smiled openly as he leaned into your space. 

“Hi.” You spoke into his ear, voice playful. 

 “Hey,” He responded, matching your tone. “Name’s Luke. And you?” 

You offered your name, and he smiled easily. 

“Come here often?” 

You laughed, “Does that ever work?” you ask him, still dancing. 

“Haven’t had the chance to find out,” Luke answered honestly, his bashful shrug breaking the nonchalant persona he had just been displaying. 

“I used to, not so much anymore.” 

His “How come?” was lost as the band on stage played a particularly loud transition between songs. 

Unbeknownst to you, a familiar vampire circled you, hiding amongst the throng of bodies as you lost yourself to the music while you faced your new dance partner. 

“Pardon?” 

“I said, why’s that?” 

“Oh, you know, work stuff. Not the most interesting.” 

“Ah, I get it. I work out of town, near the college actually. So I don’t really get to go out often either.” 

“Oh, where do you work?” You moved further away from the stage to better hear him, but closer to the centre of the dance floor so that Buffy and Willow could still keep eyes on you. Luke followed, hands hovering around your hips when the pair of you found a new spot. 

He made a non-commital noise, “I don’t know if I can explain it.” 

Your brows furrowed at that response, but not one to dry up the conversation immediately, you persevered. 

“Try me.” 

“No, really. I don’t think you’d even believe me.” He scrutinised your face before brushing the weirdness off, “What about you?” 

“You know the magic shop in town?”

Luke’s lips thinned slightly, his smile becoming strained. You ignored it but noted the reaction in the back of your mind. 

“Yeah, you work… there?”

You frowned openly now. “I do. What’s wrong with that?” 

“Nothing, nothing.” Luke acquiesced, raising his hands. “You must be entertained all day.”

You pulled away from him. “I guess.”

“All those freaks coming in–”

You cut him off quickly. “Sorry, did you forget the part where I work there? This is Sunnydale, Luke.”

“I’ve noticed.” He replied, a smile on his face but voice somewhat frustrated. 

Your dancing slowed as you turned to walk away, but before you could make any distance, he grabbed your wrist. 

Wrenching your wrist out of his control, you face him again. “Excuse me?”

“I wasn’t done talking to you.”

“Yeah, well, I was.” You say curtly. 

“No, you came to me. I’m not done talking to you.” 

From just beside you, a familiar voice interjected. 

“They said they’re done talking to you, mate.” 

“Spike.” You greeted, not needing to look back to identify the vamp.

“Hey, precious. This guy bothering you?” 

“You didn’t tell me you had a boyfriend, you bitch!” Luke shouted. 

“He’s not my boyfriend.” “I’m not their boyfriend.” 

The pair of you answered simultaneously. 

“And besides, you should’ve left me alone when I asked regardless.” You added to the other man’s retreating back. 

[aclanby-anyothername]

a clan by any other name.

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newleaf, year 2. moon 13.

motheye and breezepelt were quick to tell the clan of their new relationship, and the response was enthusiastic all around.

even creekleap, whose reaction motheye feared more than anything else, expressed relief at the development.

creekleap: "oh, thank the stars! i thought you two were going to continue tiptoeing around each other forever. i don't think i would have been able to handle the secondhand embarrassment."

breezepelt: "you mean you knew? i was hoping i was a little less obvious than that …"

amberflame: "everyone knew. even cave."

cave: "hmph. you say that as if putting my nose where it doesn't belong wasn't my specialty!"

dustcloud: "what would we do without you, cave?"

cave: "perish the thought. you and i both know this clan would fall apart without me."

motheye: "this is so embarrassing …"

their happiness was infectious. the mood around the camp was bright and airy, fitting for the gentle newleaf around them.

i wish i could say that happiness would last forever. alas, it seldom does.

amberflame: "…"

amberflame was keeping watch alone that night. the camp's sleeping quarters had grown tremendously since she was a kit, though the entrance remained inconspicuous.

she soon heard a rustling sound from somewhere in the distance, but she did not budge.

amberflame: "i know you are there."

the rustling stopped with amberflame's words. soon, a sheepish figure emerged from the shadows.

???: "oh, shoot! looks like you caught me. i'm usually more careful than this …"

"look, i just wanted some grub, alright? thing's are hard for a loner out there. if you don't mind -"

amberflame: "zero."

the rogue's demeanor changed instantly, his face becoming serious.

zero: "… yes?"

amberflame: "i don't think you are here for food. what were you planning on telling me this time?"

zero: "i - what? listen sweetheart, i don't think -"

amberflame: "don't call me that."

zero: "i - sorry."

amberflame: "…"

amberflame: "we've done this all before. you only seem to show up when i'm on watch. why is that?"

zero: "well, i -"

amberflame: "the only reason i have not told the others is because you were willing to trade information on the other rogues in exchange for doing so. i have kept my word."

zero: "…"

amberflame: "i'm not a fool. please, just tell me your true intentions."

zero twisted in head in either direction, his ears alert. he quickly relaxed, sighing deeply.

zero: "you're a sharp one, i'll tell you that."

amberflame: "why are you so eager to share your information with me, and why only me?"

zero: "listen, i just … i don't want any trouble, is all. i don't need everyone in your clan knowing all about us, getting all angry, picking fights they can't win."

"oh, don't give me that face. i know what our group is capable of."

"… i know a little too well, honestly. that's why i know that at least one cat needs to have an idea of what's going on."

"there, does that to it for ya? or is your curiosity still piqued?"

amberflame: "why me specifically?"

zero shrugged.

zero: "you were the one on watch the night i decided to start visiting like this. that's all."

amberflame: "…"

zero: "also, some of your group seem like the type to have loud mouths. just a hunch."

amberflame: "i … can't disagree with you there."

zero: "hah! you've got jokes too. i love it."

amberflame: "that makes sense to me, i suppose."

"now, what did you come here tonight to tell me?"

zero: "aww, you sure you wanna know so soon? we could exchange pleasantries, maybe talk about the weather -"

amberflame: "zero. please."

zero: "okay, okay. i'm just going to warn you now, though. things aren't looking great."

amberflame: "i can handle it. tell me."

zero: "they … well, let's just say they plan on shrinking your territory."

amberflame: "what do you mean? i thought they were content with the way things were. you said they would leave us alone as long as we expanded no further."

zero: "yeah, about that … they changed their minds."

"the boss, y'see … she's getting tired of playing nice. she sees a whole patch of the forest being used up by - her words, not mine - a bunch of miserable nobodies."

amberflame: "…"

zero: "at first they weren't thinking anything of it, since our territory is further east anyway, but … things are happening on our front, too. everyone's convinced see need to expand."

"personally? i think things are fine the way they are too, and everyone's getting hysterical over nothing … but i'm not the decision maker over there."

amberflame: "… how far do they plan on expanding?"

zero: "they want to the edge of the woods. you'd be completely blocked out."

amberflame: "that's unacceptable. we can't do that!"

zero: "h-hey, you said you could handle it! bring the volume down a notch, would ya? last thing i need to happen is that old man waking up and trying to kill me where i stand."

amberflame: "we … we need that territory. without it, we would have to rely entirely on the river. and … it's a part of our home."

zero's eyes softened, but he shook his head.

zero: "it is what it is. i've given you the info, and you can do with it what you like."

amberflame: "… what do you think we should do?"

zero: "me? wow, someone actually wants to know my opinion for once! what a damn miracle."

amberflame: "zero."

zero: "…"

"i know you guys are attached to this little hole you've dug for yourselves, but i think you need to leave."

amberflame: "not happening. think of another plan."

zero: "you asked for my opinion. you got it."

amberflame: "please."

zero: "you - you're being unreasonable. i dunno what sentimental attachment you have to all this twolegs junk is, but it's not worth it. take your crew and find another place to pass out."

amberflame: "you know we're not doing that. i need another idea."

zero: "then you'll think of it on your own! i gave you all i had, and i'm not aiding in some sort of group suicide mission."

amberflame: "why not talk to them? surely you must have some sort of sway."

zero: "not enough to change their minds on something like this! their minds are made up, sweetheart -"

amberflame: "don't call me that again. or else."

zero: "i - you've never given me your name! i need to call you something."

amberflame told zero her name.

zero: "okay … amberflame. i'd love to tell you that there are other options, but i'm not going to lie to you. i think you and your group need to leave. maybe go to the other side of the river, i don't know."

amberflame: "i'll think of something. i refuse to leave, and i can defend myself if necessary. i have been trained to be a warrior since i was a kit."

zero: "i don't care what you think you're capable of, i promise you they're capable of worse. just - just be serious with yourselves."

"if you choose to stay, we … we're done here, okay? you're not getting any more info, and i'm not pilfering your prey pile anymore. you're on your own."

amberflame: "…"

"fine. leave, then."

zero: "… i -"

amberflame: "just go."

"we'll figure things out on our own. we'll fight if we have to."

"we' re not leaving. if i ever have to fight you … i'm not going to hold back."

"if that means we're done here … so be it."

zero: "a-amberflame. listen. i'm just trying to help."

amberflame: "why?"

zero: "what do you mean?"

amberflame: "why are you trying to help?"

"you are not a part of this clan. your clanmates nearly killed cave, and now we are being threatened."

"why?"

zero: "i …"

zero: "i don't need to see anymore blood spilled, alright? it's unsightly."

"my group is great and all, don't get me wrong … but sometimes they get a bit carried away."

amberflame: "why not just leave?"

zero: "excuse me?"

amberflame: "you're already leaking their information, and you don't seem especially attached. why not just leave?"

zero: "hey, just because i don't always agree with their decisions doesn't mean i hate them or anything! they're still my family."

"shouldn't you of all people get that?"

amberflame: "…"

amberflame: "if you ever change your mind, you could stay with us."

zero: "oh, that's the worst idea you've had all night, and that's saying something!"

amberflame: "just keep it in mind."

"i'm going to have to tell the others about this. i'm sorry for breaking our deal."

zero: "don't worry about it. just don't let them know who told you, okay?"

amberflame: "i can do that. thank you for your help, zero."

zero did not leave right away, but amberflame did not seem to mind.

amberflame's head was swirling with thoughts, but her gaze stayed fixed, determined.

zero: "your name's real fitting, you know that?"

amberflame: "i agree."

zero: "i was expecting you to ask me to clarify, but … this is nice, too."

prev | info | next

[canislupus-exe]

Fits of Passion and Idiocy | eddie munson

CONTAINS SPOILERS

fandom | Stanger Things

character | Eddie Munson

reader | he/him (she ver.)(they ver.)

requested | anonymous

warnings | brief mention of drugs, canon character death, fandom typical blood & violence, mild angst

word count | 14,814

keys | (Y/n) = Your name, (L/n) = Last name, (f/c) = favorite color, (D/n) = Dog's name

summary | eddie fix it fic PLEASE im begging literally you an do anything you want just fix it my heart was BROKEN

editor | @feliscatus-exe

>> back to prev <<

Keep reading

“So, uh, speaking of monsters, uh, Lucas has to do his, uh… balls-in-laundry-baskets game. So…” Dustin trails off, chuckling. “He’s not gonna be able to make it to Hellfire tonight.” His attempt to lighten the mood while talking about such a thing seems to have no sway on Eddie.

“And I know there’s no way we can beat your sadistic campaign without him. So, me and mike, we were talking, shooting the shit, and we were thinking that ma-maybe we- we might-”

“Postpone.” Mike cuts his rambling short.

“Postpone!?” The rest of the Hellfire Club shouts in anger. They begin talking over each other, most of their sentences overlapping and inaudible.

“Shut up!” Eddie shouts over everyone else. Gareth sighs and swallows his frustration.

“You saying Sinclair’s been taken in by the dark side?” Eddie asks.

“Uh. Something like that.” Mike replies.

“Something like that?” Eddie hisses as he throws a pretzel at him.

“Jesus Christ.” Dustin whispers, his voice high-pitched and somewhat trembling.

“And rather than find a sub for him, you want… you want to postpone ‘The Cult of Vecna’?” He asks, another pretzel in his hand. Whether for eating or throwing, they’re unsure.

“I… I don’t want to postpone it. We don’t want to postpone it. It’s just that, you know, most of the subs will be at the championship game.” Mike begins to plead his case, but Eddie stands up from his chair halfway through his sentence.

“Oh, it’s the championship game?” He asks.

“Yeah?” He replies, his words coming out as more of a question than an answer.

“Can I level with you? Jeff graduates this year. Gareth’s got, what? A year and a half? Me, I am army-crawling my way toward a D in Ms. O’Donnell’s. If I don’t blow her final, I’m gonna walk that stage next month, I’m gonna look principal Higgins dead in the eye, I’m gonna flip him the bird, I’m gonna snatch that diploma, and I’m gonna run like hell outta here.” He’d made his way around the entire table by the end of his spiel, pumping up the theatrics as he always did, which made Dustin laugh.

“Didn’t you say that last year?” Gareth asks.

“And the year before that?” Jeff chimes in. Eddie half jogs back to the table.

“Yeah, yeah, and I was full of shit. This year’s different. This year is my year. I can feel it. ‘86 baby.” He relays with a shit-eating grin—the rest of the group chuckles.

“You know what that means?” Eddie asks. Dustin and Mike shake their heads.

“It means you boys are the future of Hellfire. I knew it the moment I saw you. You sat on that table right over there, looking like… looking like two little lost sheep.” He says, leaning down to the boys' level with his hands on either of their shoulders.

“You were wearing a Weird Al T-shirt, which I thought was brave,” Eddie says to Dustin.

“Thank you.” He replies, his voice hardly even a whisper.

“Mike, you were wearing whatever shit your mommy bought you from goddamn Gap,” Eddie says to Mike, causing them to laugh much louder than before. At the moment their guards were down, Eddie pulls them up from their chairs by their shirts, forcing them to walk alongside him. 

“And we showed you that school didn’t have to be the worst years of your lives, right?” He asks.

“No,” Mike replies.

“Okay, no, no. Well, I’m here to tell you that there are other little lost sheepies out there who need help. Who need you. And all you guys gotta do is get your Bo-Peeps on and go and find one.” He says, giving them one final shove away from the table.

>><<

Mike and Dustin groan as they sit on the brick wall surrounding the outside benches.

“I hate high school,” Mike says. Dustin grunts in response. As he looks away from Mike, he notices something in the distance.

“Hey hey look, two o’clock.” He says. Mike looks in the opposite direction of two o’clock, seeing as he’d never learned what that meant. Dustin rolled his eyes and pointed.

“Over there dipshit.” He said. They watched as a (f/c) backpack with a D20 keychain on the zipper disappeared into the library. He looked at Mike as Mike looked at him, presumably having the same thought. They both stood up and rushed toward the building, throwing the doors open fervently.

“Where did he go?” Dustin whisper-shouted.

“I-I don’t know Dustin! Maybe we should look for him in the aisles.” Mike replied. Dustin sighed as he walked further into the library, checking behind every shelf for any sign of life. Finally, he’d found you, all the way in the back where you were putting books back on the shelf. 

“You!” He shouted. You jumped, so startled by the loud outburst that you dropped the book you were holding. You bent over to pick it up and turned around to see who was bothering you. You looked down at who you could only assume was a freshman.

“Please keep it down. Library policy. Do you need help finding a book or something?” You asked. A second freshman rounded the corner and walked to stand next to the first.

“You play DnD.” The one with curly hair stated, almost matter-of-factly. You raised your eyebrows.

“Um… No. I don’t.” You replied as you turned away from him, starting to put the books back once again.

“Then why do you have a D20 keychain?” He asked. You sighed.

“Because I used to play.” You said.

“So you know how?” He asked.

“Well, yeah, but the last time I played was like four years ago. Plus, why do you care? I don’t even know you.” You replied.

“I’m Dustin Henderson and this is Mike Wheeler. We’re part of the Hellfire club and we need someone to sub in for the campaign tonight. So will you?” He asks, his voice desperate.

“No.” You reply simply.

“W-What? Seriously?”

“Yeah. Seriously. Truly. No.” You say, turning around to face him. Dustin looks at Mike, silently asking him for help but Mike only shrugs in response. Dustin sighs and turns back to you. He notices the school ID around your neck and reads your name, before deciding to take a page out of Eddie’s book.

“Can I level with you for a moment (Y/n)?” He asks. You raise your eyebrows at the use of your name.

“We need you, so I’m willing to sweeten the deal on your end.” He says. You scoff. 

“Dude, you know nothing about me. How could you possibly ‘sweeten the deal’?” You ask, putting air quotes around what he’d said.

“Well everybody loves movies! I can make it so you don’t have to pay to rent a movie for the next month.” He replies. You raise your eyebrows.

“Oh yeah? And how exactly are you gonna do that Dustin Henderson?” You say, leaning on the cart of books.

“I have a buddy who works at Family Video. He’ll waive your fee for the next month, I swear.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

“I’ll pay!” He shouts. 

“Shhh!” You shout back at him.

“Sorry. Sorry.” He whispers. You roll your eyes.

“So you’ll get your buddy to waive my movie rental fee for the next month if I play DnD with you for one night?” You ask. Dustin nods. You think for a second before sighing. 

“Alright fine. But I swear to God if you try to pull a fast one on me, I’ll make your life hell. And I mean it, kid.” You say, poking your finger into his chest.

“Yes! You won’t regret this (Y/n)! Come on Mike!” He says as he bolts out the library doors with his friend in tow.

“You think Steve will let him rent for free?” Mike asked.

“Who cares? We have found a sub for tonight and that’s all that matters.”

>><<

The leader of the Hellfire Club sits on his throne. Hands folded together as he eyes you standing next to Dustin and Mike.

“Absolutely not.” He says after a pause of silence.

“You asked for a sub. We delivered.” Dustin said as he motioned toward you.

“This is Hellfire Club. Not Sports club.” He says, pointing at your Indiana Hoosiers T-shirt. You rolled your eyes.

“It was the only shirt I had clean. Plus, it’s comfortable you elitist piece of shit.”

“My, my. The sports fan knows big words.” Eddie replies, eliciting chuckles from his friends. He stands up from his throne, walking toward you.

“So, what’s your name, sports fan?”

“(Y/n) (L/n).” You reply. He laughs.

“So you’re the boy who works in the library.” You scoff and turn to Dustin.

“Wow, intuitive, isn’t he?” You say, earning a laugh from his friends. He turns and glares at them, shutting them up immediately.

“What’s your class and level? Level one half-orc?” He asks, once again earning laughter from his buddies.

“My name is Akzire the Wretched. And I’m a chaotic neutral Tiefling Fighter, level 15. And I will valiantly protect my party members by beheading any monster you throw my way with my scimitar. And I will brandish their head for all to see as a token of my victory. So, we gonna do this, or are you gonna keep pestering me like you’re a little girl in need of attention?” You ask. The five members stare at you as you face off with Eddie, shocked at how effortlessly you’ve challenged him. They wait in stunned silence, but after a moment, he breaks out into a cheeky smile and offers you his hand to shake.

“Welcome to Hellfire.” He says. You roll your eyes one last time, but with a smile, as you shake his hand.

>><<

You sit at the table, listening intently as Eddie relays his campaign onto the club.

“The hooded cultists chant, ‘Hail Lord Vecna. Hail Lord Vecna.’ They turn to you, remove their hoods. You recognize most of them from Makbar. But there is one you do not recognize, his skin shriveled, desiccated. And something else. He is not only missing his left arm, but his left eye!” He shouts, covering his own with his hand. The party erupts in protests, strings of “no”s and “come on man”s.

“Vecna’s dead!” Jeff shouts.

“He was killed by Kas!” Mike yells, to which Eddie smirks at.

“So it was thought, my friends. So it was thought. But Vecna… Lives!” He exclaims, placing the figurine on its podium with unmatched vigor. He resigns back to his throne.

“You are scared. You’re tired. You are injured. Do you flee Vecna and his cultists? Or stand your ground and fight?” He asks. Mike reclines in his seat as Dustin ponders the options.

“Come on.” Eddie prods. After a few seconds, he speaks up.

“I say we fight. To the death.” He states.

“To the death.” Mike agrees, nodding his head. They look toward you. You sigh.

“Fuck it. To the death.” You reply. The rest of the table breaks out into smiles.

“To the death! To the death! To the death! To the death! To the death! To the death! To the death!” Everyone chants while slamming their palms down. Eddie’s large smile is plastered on his face as he watches.

“To the death!” Dustin screams as he pumps his fists in the air. You grab the dice and roll, watching as they slide over the surface of the table. They all shout in triumph, some even clapping. It’s Mike's turn to roll, but it lands on 8, a miss. Eddie pushes over his figurine and the club begins to groan in protest. Jeff rolls. Miss. Miss after miss after miss and Eddie begins to laugh maniacally.

“Time out time out!” One of the members calls. You all step away from the table and huddle up.

“Guys, I hate to say this, but we've got to flee,” Gareth says, clear tiredness in his tone.

“I concur.” The person who called the time-out replies.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t we just agree on ‘to the death’?” You asked.

“That wasn’t literal,” Gareth replies.

“Vecna just decimated us. We can’t kill him with two players.” Jeff argues. You sigh and turn to Dustin, who’s already on the defense.

“You too? He only has 15 hit points left. Don’t be pussies.” He practically growls.

“Pussies? Really? Cause we’re not delusional.”

“Delusional? How about ‘not cowards’.” You retort.

“Hey!” Eddie calls from across the room, grabbing everyone’s attention and breaking the huddle.

“If I may interject gentlemen. Whilst I respect the passion, you’d be wise to take Gareth the Great’s concern to heart. There is no shame in running. Don’t try to be heroes. Not today, ‘kay?” He says, that cheeky shit-eating grin back on his face. It would make you furious if part of you didn’t find it so cute. Dustin holds up a finger.

“One sec.” He says before reforming the huddle circle.

“What do you think Mike?” He asks.

“How many hit points do you and Akzire have left?”

“Twelve.” Both you and Dustin proclaim in unison.

“It’s risky as hell… But you’re the ones on the battlefield. So it’s your call.” Mike says. You sigh and look at Dustin.

“What do you say Akzire the Wretched?” He asks. You smile.

“Do you even have to ask?” You reply. A moment of silence hangs over the Hellfire Club as Dustin contemplates.

“Screw it.” He finally mutters, pulling away from the huddle.

“Let’s kill this son of a bitch.” He states. Everyone approaches the table.

“The chances of success are 20-to-1,” Jeff says. Dustin holds up his finger.

“Never tell me the odds. Give me the D20.” He demands, holding his open palm out. Eddie picks up the die with that damn smile painted on his face and tosses it toward him. He catches it and holds his hands over his shoulder, shaking it vigorously. You watch with bated breath as he tosses it. It rolls and rolls and rolls until finally… 11.

“That's! A! Miss!” Eddie calls out, shaking his head after every word.

“Shit! Shit!” Dustin shouts, and in his anger, he knocks one of the soda cans off the table. But now, you were up. The entire game hinged on your role, and you could feel every bit of pressure as you picked up the die. You closed your eyes and shook it in your hands, feeling the intense stares on you as you did so.

“Please!” You could hear Gareth shout beside you.

“Come on!” Dustin called out. But their words fell on unlistening ears. You were too focused on the cool feeling of the die gently hitting the palms that encased it. Finally, without thinking about it, you released it. Watching with unmatched intensity as it rolled, the quiet clacking against the wooden table sounded immeasurable in magnitude. And then, it reached the end of its road. No more cascading down the table. It stopped. And it landed with the 20 side facing up.

“Crit hit!” You shouted, the rest of the club exploding in cheers alongside you.

“What? What?” Eddie shouted in disbelief, laughing and clapping his hands.

“That’s why we play!” He said, bending over and extending his arms, almost as if he was presenting your victory to someone. You smiled, much brighter than you had in a long time. Maybe this Hellfire thing wasn’t so bad after all.

>><<

You whistled as you pulled your car into the parking lot of the Family Video, double-checking the address Dustin had written down for you. It seemed like it was the right one so you put your car in park and gathered your keys and wallet. As you were doing so, you saw Dustin rush into the store, a redheaded girl following right behind him. What perfect timing. 

Nobody paid you any mind as you walked into the store, perusing their many isles of movies, searching for something that may come of interest to you. Dustin was behind the counter with the redhead you saw earlier and two people you vaguely recognized from school. 

You shuffled through the shelves closest to the front counter. It was by pure happenstance that you heard their conversations. Dustin, along with the two girls you didn't know were all on the phone, and it sounded like they were talking about Eddie, meanwhile, the older guy was cheesing up a customer with some romcom, which you couldn’t help but roll your eyes at.

“Hey, guys, I might have a lead.” The redhead called out as she hung up the phone.

“Seriously?” Dustin asked as he turned around in his chair to look at her.

“Yeah. Apparently, Eddie gets drugs from some guy named Reefer Rick, and sometimes Eddie crashes there.” She replies. You whistled as you approach the counter, having decided which movies you wanted to take home. 

“Now that is a name I haven’t heard in a minute,” You say, setting your items down.

“(Y/n), what are you doing here?” Dustin asks. You shrug and push your tapes toward the worker.

“Cashing in on the sweet deal Dustin gave me to play DnD with him.” You reply. This statement catches the older guy's interest and he walks over.

“Wait wait wait. What’s he talking about Dustin?” He asks. 

“Shit. Now, before you get mad at me Steve, I was desperate.”

“Dustin. What. Did. You. Do.” He demands, dropping his palms on the counter. Dustin sighs and closes his eyes.

“I may or may not have told him he could get movies here without paying the rental fee.” He says, getting the words out as fast as he could.

“You did what?!” Steve asks. You smile and lean your head on your palm, which you lean on the counter.

“For a month.” You interject. Steve looks at you and then at Dustin.

“For a month?!” He shouts. Dustin rolls his eyes.

“H-Honestly Steve it’s not that big of a deal. You can just-”

“Not that big of a deal? Not that big of a deal!? You have the nerve to- to-to-”

“Pimp you out?” You suggest.

“Pimp me out! Thank you (Y/n). And then tell me it’s not a big deal. Who do you think-”

“Guys shut up!” The redhead silenced them. They did so without question and she turned to you.

“You said you hadn’t heard that name for a while. Reefer Rick?” She asks. You nod.

“I used to hang at his place and get high before he got busted.” You reply, tracing your finger along the cover of the VHS on the counter.

“You smoke?” Steve asks, obviously perplexed by this fact. You shrugged.

“There ain’t exactly much else to do in this shithole town.” You reply.

“But that means you know where he lives? That-That’s great! Get me a pen so I can write it down!” Dustin says, searching for a piece of paper. 

“Now hold on there Dustin. I’m not just going to give you the address. What kind of a person would that make me?” You reply innocently, but before he can speak, you continue.

“At least… not for free.” 

“Jesus Christ (Y/n) seriously? Now is not the time to dick around.” Dustin practically yells at you. 

“Who’s he gonna pimp out this time?” The older girl said as she nudged Steve. You chuckle as you hold your hand up.

“I don’t want anything supermassive. Free movies for a month are profit enough. I just want to tag along. Be a part of the know, you know?” You reply. Dustin looks at the redhead who shakes her head.

“(Y/n), I don’t think you want to know this know, okay. It’s in your better interest to just give us the address and forget this ever happened.” He said, placing a sticky note and pen in front of you. You raise your eyebrows and sigh.

“Alright, fine.” You say, grabbing the pen and writing on the paper. Once you were done you slid it over to him. He grabbed it with fervor but paused when he read it. Not a chance kid.

“I told you. I want all the details, or you guys will never find Reefer Rick. Well… you might but, it could be too late.” You say, gathering the VHSs you’d set down.

“But if you guys don’t want to know, I'll just be on my way.” You walk away from the service desk, hearing Dustin string out profanities.

“(Y/n)! Wait.” He calls out. You turn around, a coy smile on your face.

“We’ll tell you on the way there, 'cause it’s a long story.” He says with a sigh. You smile and grab your car keys from your pocket.

“Shall we?”

>><<

“So just to recap. Chrissy Cunningham is dead, last seen with Eddie Munson in his trailer by you, Max Mayfield, but you didn’t go straight to the cops with this information, instead, you go to Dustin Henderson's house to tell him, and even after that you still don’t go to the cops, you go to Family Video where you relay the entire situation to your friends Steve Harrington and Robin Buckley, and might I just add it’s a bit concerning how many young adults you’re friends with. What is it now, four?” You say, your hands on the steering wheel of your car.

“Wow, he’s got a great memory. When did we even tell you our last names?” Robin asks.

“I recognized you two from the yearbook.” You said with a shrug. The familiar sound of gravel on your tires was somewhat pleasant as you pulled to the side of the house. The sun had long since set, so most were carrying flashlights as they approached the door and rang the doorbell. Waiting not even a second before the first bell finishes, he rings it again. He rings it seven more times before he starts to bang on the window.

“Okay. Well, that’s settled. I guess he’s not here.” Steve says, but you knew he wouldn’t give up that easy. And true to your thoughts, he leans over and yells into the window.

“Eddie! It’s Dustin!”

“Great.”

“Look, we just wanna talk okay? No cops, I swear. We just wanna help.” He shouts as he pounds on the glass pane.

“Eddie!”

“Shhh!” Robin shouts at him. He begins to ring the doorbell again.

“Rick!” He calls out as he pounds in the door.

“Is he always like this?” You whisper to Steve. He sighs and nods.

“Reefer rick!” Dustin yells.

“Don’t scream that.” Steve scolds him.

“Rick!”

“He’s not there!” You turn your attention away from the loud door pounding and their incessant bickering to see Max making her way around the house.

“Reefer Rick!” Dustin’s shouting pulls your attention back to him.

“Just-”

“He might just be really high…” Dustin suggests.

“Is that a foot?” Steve asks. You roll your eyes.

“No, that’s just a shoe,” Dustin replies.

“Obviously dumbass.” You mutter.

“Hey, guys!” Max shouts. Everyone looks at her for a brief second before leaving the front porch and stationing behind her. There was an eerie-looking boat house staring back at you.

“Despite it being a terrible idea, why do I have the feeling that we’re gonna go poking around in there?” You asked. Max looked over her shoulder at you before looking back at the boathouse. She slowly approached it, shining her light in the windows. You sighed.

“Yep. How did I know?” You say as you roll your eyes and follow close behind her. Once you’d made a full circle around the building, you reached the door. Robin was the first to push it open.

“Hello?” She called out to the vast darkness.

“Is anyone home?” She said, sweeping her flashlight across the room. She stepped inside, Max following her. Then Dustin, then you, then Steve bringing up the tail end.

“What a dump.” He said, looking around.

“Yeah well, I’m sure Eddie wouldn’t be hiding out in the Hilton.” You replied. Steve rolled his eyes and clicked off his flashlight so he could put it away. Once he did, he grabbed what looked to be an oar off the wall and began to violently poke whatever the tarp covered in the center of the room.

“What are you doing?” Dustin asks. Steve responded by poking it again. Dustin repeated his question and Steve shrugged.

“He might be in here.”

“So take the tarp off!” Dustin exclaimed while Steve continued to mess with it.

“If you’re so brave, you take the tarp off.” He replied. They both continued to circle the boat, neither of them removing the tarp.

“Hey, look over here,” Max called. You and Robin walked to her side, examining whatever she was ushering to.

“Someone was here.” She said, picking up the wrappers scattered access the surface.

“Maybe he heard us. Got spooked and ran.” “Don’t worry. Steve will get him with his oar.” Dustin replied sarcastically.

“I know you think you’re being funny Henderson but considering almost everyone in this room has nearly died a hundred times, personally, I don’t find it funny in the slight-” Steve was cut off by the sound of glass shattering and movement so fast you could barely perceive it. Eddie had emerged from the tarp and was backing steve against a wall, holding the jagged edges of the broken glass bottle toward his throat.

“Wait wait wait wait wait!” Steve shrieked in horror. You speechlessly watched, unsure of what you could do.

“Woah, woah, woah, Eddie! Eddie! Stop! Eddie! Eddie!” Dustin called out as you all rushed toward him but still kept a reasonable distance. Eddie turned his head to stare at him. His eyes were wide with terror, and you couldn’t help but wonder what the hell you’d gotten yourself into.

“It’s me. It’s Dustin. This is Steve. He’s not gonna hurt you, right, Steve?”

“Right. Yeah.” Steve replied meekly, his voice hardly above a whisper.

“Steve, why don’t you drop the oar?” Dustin asked. There’s a quiet thud as Steve does what he’s told, but in doing so Eddie only pushes the bottle closer to steve's neck. He groans in pain and fear.

“He’s cool. He’s cool!” Dustin shouts.

“I’m cool, man. I’m cool.” Steve practically begs.

“What are you doing here?” Eddie asks, his voice is rough and terrified, so much different than the way he’d sounded that night at hellfire.

“We’re looking for you,” Dustin says softly.

“We’re here to help.” Robin chimes in.

“Eddie, these are my friends. You know Robin, from band.” Dustin says, ushering to the girl behind him, who mimics playing trumpet.

“And (Y/n), from Hellfire. You remember him, right?” He says. You give a weak smile from behind Dustin, waving at Eddie.

“This is my friend Max. The one who never wants to play, D&D. Eddie. We’re on your side. I swear on my mother. Right guys?”

“Yes. Yes. We swear.” Max pleaded.

“On Dustin’s mother,” Robin replied.

“Yeah. Dustin’s… Dustin’s mother.” Steve chimed in. There’s a moment of silence that seems to last forever before Eddie finally pulls away from Steve, who gasps in relief.

“Jesus christ…” He mumbles to himself. You watch Eddie walk away, sinking down the wall until he’s sitting. Dustin approaches him.

“Eddie… We just want to talk.” His words are slow as he stoops to Eddie’s level. He gently reaches for the broken bottle, but Eddie flinches away.

“Okay…” He whispers, removing his hands.

“We want to know what happened,” Robin said as she knelt next to Dustin. Eddie sniffles and shakes his head, looking at her.

“You won’t believe me.” He says, making eye contact with you for a split second before looking away. 

“Try us,” Max replies. Eddie stares at her before standing up and slowly beginning to pace. He seems to be psyching himself out. Dustin adjusts his position, as do the rest of you as you wait for him. He pulled a chair in front of everyone and sat down, looking at his hands in his lap for a few more minutes before finally looking back up.

“Her body just, like, lifted up into the air and, uh… and she just, like, hung there. In the air. And her bones… Uh, she…” He seems to whimper at the thought and his voice becomes shakier as he continues.

“Her bones started to snap. Her eyes, man. It… It was like there was something, like, inside her head, pulling. I… I didn’t know what to do, so I…I ran away. I left her there.” He pauses for a second before scoffing.

“You all think I’m crazy, right?”

“No. We don’t think you’re crazy.”

“We don’t?” You whisper, not wanting him to hear. Steve nudges you in the side and gives you a look which you’re tempted to argue with but stop when Eddie begins to yell.

“Don’t bullshit me, man! I know how this sounds.” His voice cracks.

“We’re not bullshitting you,” Max says.

“We believe you,” Robin interjects. Maybe you missed the memo because it seems like everyone else was on the same page. Dustin was right, you were in way over your head.

“Look, what I’m about to tell you might be a little, difficult to take,” Dustin says.

“Okay,” Eddie replies.

“You know how people say Hawkins is… cursed? They’re not way off… There’s another world. A world hidden beneath Hawkins. Sometimes it bleeds into ours.” You were just as perplexed as Eddie seemed to be.

“Like ghosts and shit?” He asks. You snicker quietly, earning a glare from Max before she turns back to Eddie to continue.

“There are some things worse than ghosts.” She replies.

“These monsters from this other world… we thought they were gone. But they’ve come back before. That’s why we needed to find you.”

“If they’re back again, we need to know,” Max says, her voice firm, demanding almost.

“That night, did you see anything?” Robin asks.

“Dark particles, maybe?” Max adds on. Eddie shakes his head.

“It would almost look like dust, swirling dust.” 

“No, man, there was nothing you could see or, uh… or touch… You know, I tried to wake her, man. She couldn’t move. It was like she… she was in a trance or something.”

“Or under a spell,” Dustin suggests. Eddie looks at him.

“A curse.” He whispers.

“Vecna’s curse.”

“You don’t mean from…” You trail off, mostly thinking out loud rather than talking to anyone. Dustin nods, and steve looks at him confused.

“Who’s Vecna?” He asks.

“An undead creature of great power,” Dustin replies.

“A spell caster,” Eddie adds, meeting his gaze with yours.

“A dark wizard,” Dustin whispers. You remembered the horrors you’d read about him in your books. But that’s all they were. Books. Works of fiction. These people you’d known for a combined total of a few hours couldn’t possibly be trying to convince you otherwise, right?

“Sorry, did I miss a chapter or something? Cause if Eddie’s not the crazy one here then I think I might be. What the fuck is going on?” You asked. Max sighed.

“It’s a long story.”

“And very unbelievable,” Robin says with a slight chuckle. You closed your eyes and rubbed your temples.

“Condense it and consider me open-minded.” You replied, leaning against the wooden pillar behind you. 

“A few years ago our friend Will was kidnapped by a monster from the upside down, that’s what we call that other world we mentioned earlier. We found this girl, Eleven or El as we called her and she has superpowers. She fought the Demogorgon, the monster that kidnapped Will, and we thought she died after that but turns out she was just being kept hidden by Hopper, the chief of police. Will tried to return to normal life but failed since he now had some sort of connection to the upside down and could see into it, causing a new monster to possess him, The Mind Flayer. We were able to defeat him, or so we thought. He returned, this time with Russians on his side.” “Russians!?” You exclaim.

“That’s where we come in!” Robin said with a smile. Steve scoffs.

“Correction, that’s where you come in. I was there since the Demogorgon.” He replies.

“Ehhh, more like since Dart,” Dustin says.

“Who’s Dart?” You ask.

“Not integral to the story. Back to the Russians. They were running an underground operation with a mall as the front. Eleven returns, another victory, yadda yadda. They move to California to escape the craziness of Hawkins but we’re still here, thus still having to deal with it.”

“And now there’s a new monster… Vecna… who’s… framing people for murder?” You ask. Dustin looks at Eddie and shrugs.

“More or less.” He says. You sigh, trying to take in the information you were just given. 

“I tried to tell you (Y/n). You didn’t want to know this know. It’s not too late to back out now. Just go back home and pretend this never happened.” Dustin said as he stood up. You rolled your eyes.

“Yeah right. If any of this shit you’re saying is the truth, it’s gnarly as hell. Besides,” You hold up your keys. “How else would you guys get home?” You say with a smile. Dustin sighs.

“You really wanna do this?” He asks. You nod.

“In fact, I’m about to get myself into even deeper shit. Eddie can’t stay here.” You say, pointing at the subject who was still sitting in his chair and chewing on his nails. At the sound of his name, he stared up at you.

“Why not?” He asked. “You have a very tangible connection to reefer rick. If I knew that, other people are bound to know that. If some dumbass kids were able to find you, I doubt the cops are that far behind.” You reply. 

“He’s right,” Max replies. Dustin groans.

“Of course he’s right but where else could he go? This town isn’t exactly crawling with good fugitive hiding spots.”

“Why can't he just stay with me?” You ask. Dustin looks at you, along with everybody else in the room. Steve is the first to make a noise, which is a somewhat awkward laugh.

“Listen, (Y/n), as much as we love the knight in shining armor move, I doubt your parents will be too keen on you hiding-”

“Who says I live with my parents?” You cut him off. He raises his eyebrows.

“You… don’t?” He asks.

“No. I live on my own. In a pretty secluded area. My neighbors are at least ten minutes in either direction so they wouldn’t see anything. The only people who know I’ve ever interacted with you are the Hellfire club. And considering I was only there one night, there are probably plenty of other people they’d talk to first. It’s perfect.”

“How old are you?” Steve asks, still seemingly shocked that you live on your own.

“19.” You reply.

“How do you-”

“Steve. Shut up.” Robin cuts him off. He looks at her, his face almost offended that she would do such a thing.

“That could work… Eddie, what do you think?” Dustin asks as he turns to the man of the hour.

“You’re asking me what I think?” He replied. Dustin shrugs. Eddie sighs, standing up from the chair and crossing his arms.

“You’re really gonna harbor a fugitive (L/n)?” He asks. You shrug. 

“Why not? I’ve already done plenty to get me jailed tonight, might as well make that list as long as possible. Get me more cred in the yard if we get caught.” You say with an almost devious smile.

“(Y/n)’s house it is. Anything beats this shithole.” Eddie replied. 

“Let’s get a move on then.” You grabbed your keys out of your pocket but pause for a second.

“Hold on, I’ve got an idea.” You said, putting your keys back into your pocket and removing the tarp from the boat. 

“What are you doing?” Dustin asked. You began to unhook the boat from where it was being held.

“Sending this bad boy out to sea. With any luck, the police will find it and think Eddie jumped off ‘cause he couldn’t handle the guilt.” You reply. Eddie smiles.

“Smart.” He says as he crosses his arms. You return the smile.

“I try.”

>><<

You pulled into the driveway of your house, hearing your dog barking. Poor boy hasn’t seen you all day, he must’ve missed you. You quickly locked it down before stepping out. You held your keys in your hand as you turned around.

“The dog is very friendly, don’t worry. He’s a total sweetheart. He might nibble your arm but that’s about it.” You say as you unlock your front door. True to your word, your dog came barrelling toward you, greeting you by jumping on your legs. You laughed and pet him gingerly, waiting for the others to pile in.

“Everyone in? Good. I’ll lock up, you guys can make yourself at home.” You said. He weaseled around you to sniff the new people. Max smiled as she began to put him.

“He’s so cute… What's his name?” She asked.

“It’s (D/n).” You reply, walking toward your tv so you could kneel and store your new VHS rentals with the others. Once everything is neatly sorted, you stand back up and turn around to talk to others.

“Since we dropped by your place to grab your car Steve, you should get these kids home now. It’s pretty late. Eddie and I will be fine.” You say.

“Are you sure? What if the cops come?” Dustin asks. You laugh and gently push down his hat.

“You worry too much. Get out of here already.” You reply, walking back toward your door to unlock it for them. He begrudgingly makes his way over, pausing for everyone else to follow him. 

“We’ll be back tomorrow to check up on you two,” Steve says. You nod.

“Fine by me. See you all then.” You say as they slowly begin to exit. Once they’re in their car, you lock the door and turn to Eddie who stands awkwardly. You laugh.

“Relax dude.” You say.

“Relax? I’m on the run from the police and you want me to relax? I’m surprised you’re not losing your head right now considering you’re the one hiding me.”

“We’re just two friends hanging out, alright? Listen… You look like shit. Why don’t you take a shower while I cook dinner?” You suggest making your way into the kitchen to check what you could make.

“Shower? And what exactly do you propose I change into?” He asks.

“I’ll let you borrow some of mine while I toss yours in the washer. I’m sure I have something that’ll fit you. Might be a bit big though.” You say, exiting the kitchen and walking down the hall to your bedroom. You can hear him follow behind you. You push open the door and make your way to your dresser, beginning to shuffle through the top drawer.

“Oh… Wasn’t expecting your room to actually be cool.” Eddie says as he leans on the door frame. You glance at him with a cocked eyebrow.

“And why is that?” You ask.

“Well, you’re like a sports fan aren't you?” He asked. You rolled your eyes and went back to sifting through the clothes.

“Like I said. It was laundry night. I got that shirt from my dad ages ago. Couldn’t you tell from how beat up it was?” You replied, grabbing a couple of garments before standing up and tossing them toward him. He fumbled to catch them but eventually did. He unfolded the shirt to see a Mötley Crüe album cover staring back at him. He smiled.

“You’re hard to pin down (L/n).” He said. You rolled your eyes and tossed him a towel.

“That’s cause I like to be on top Munson.” You reply with a playful wink. Eddie’s face became red, holding the clothes close to his chest. He opened his mouth to reply but only sputtered. In order not to embarrass himself more, he opted to make his way to the bathroom for that shower. Maybe even a cold one.

“Make sure you toss your clothes out so I can wash them.” You shout. You see Eddie reach his arm out and drop everything in the hallway. Once you gathered his items, along with a couple of your own to make the load more substantial, you started the washer and made your way back to the living room.

You quietly whistled as you gently ran your finger along your shelf of cassettes, deciding which you wanted to listen to while you cooked. Eventually, you settled on Black Sabbath’s self-titled album and popped it into your radio.

The familiar sound of the rain from the opening song soothed you as you pulled out the pot you needed to boil water in. You hummed along once the music began to pick up. You continued cooking, enjoying the music in pair with the sound of the shower in the background.

A substantial amount of time had passed and you were close to finishing the meal you were preparing when you paused. Your favorite song on the album was starting. N.I.B. Instead of humming, you began to sing along.

“Some people say my love cannot be true / Please, believe me, my love, and I'll show you / I will give you those things you thought unreal / The sun, the moon, the stars all bear my seal.” You sing quietly to yourself.

“Woah, you’ve been holding out on me.” A voice spoke from behind you. You were startled, jumping slightly and flinging sauce onto your shirt. You groaned.

“Come on man.” You said, turning around and placing your hands on your hips. You planned on being annoyed but when you saw him standing in front of you with his curly hair damp and sticking to his forehead, you couldn’t help but swoon. Your shirt looked great on him, which caused a smile to creep onto your face.

“Tomato sauce?” He asked. You nodded.

“Spaghetti. I hope you like it.” You reply, turning back around to stir the sauce. Eddie leaned on the counter next to you, watching as you did so.

“I meant it though. Your voice was good. And your song choice? Impeccable.” He says. You roll your eyes and push him with your shoulder.

“Quit fucking with me Munson.”

“I mean it! Seriously.” His voice is soft and gentle, and your heartbeat starts to thump loudly in your chest. You turn the heat off your stove and look at him with a smile.

“Dinner is done.”

>><<

Eddie sighed as he reclined on the couch.

“Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had a home-cooked meal like that?” He asked with a laugh. You smile.

“So, you liked it?” You ask.

“Are you kidding me? That shit was delicious.” He proclaimed. You stood up and collected both of your bowls, placing them into the sink before standing in front of him.

“I'm glad you liked it. Wanna get some sleep now? It’s super late.” You said. Eddie checked his watch and nodded.

“Wow, you’re right. It is late. Am I taking the couch?” He asks. You shake your head.

“Nah, you can take my bed, I’ll take the couch.” You reply. Eddie raises his eyebrows.

“Wait what? Seriously?” He asks, sitting up straight.

“Well, yeah. The couch is super uncomfortable.”

“So why are you sleeping on it?”

“Because I don’t want you sleeping on it.”

“So… neither of us should sleep on it.”

“Where am I gonna sleep then? The floor?” You asked with a laugh.

“We could both sleep on the bed.” Eddie was quick in his response, almost too quick. You were a bit surprised by this and felt that funny feeling start to well up in your stomach again.

“We could… If you’re okay with that.” You say, trying to sound nonchalant. He shrugged, averting eye contact.

“I am if you are.” He says. You smile.

“Yeah. You can go to the room and get comfortable, I have to use the restroom so I’ll be there soon.” You say, stretching before walking down the hall.

Eddie did as you said, going into your room as you went into the restroom. He laid down on your bed, sidling under the covers and finally relaxing for the first time in a long time. He hadn’t realized how tired he was until he was resting. As he held the blanket close to him, he inhaled. It smelled like your cologne. He’d only ever caught gentle hints of it when you stood close to him, but now, he could smell it as clear as day, which was so soothing.

What has been going on with him lately? He’d only known you for two days, and everything about you seemed to make him act a fool. He needed to get himself together, he had bigger things to worry about now. Not how good your cologne smelled or how comfortable your shirt fit him or how melodic your voice sounded or how you were honestly starting to look like the perfect man for him the more time he spent with you. 

You walked back into the room, hairbrush in hand as you raked it through your tangled locks. Once you finished you placed it on your nightstand. You smiled at the sight of him all cozy and comfortable in your bed. He seemed like he was already starting to drift off to sleep. God knows he needed it.

“I can’t stand the feeling of sleeping in pants, do you mind?” You asked, hands hovering over the button of your jeans. He raised his eyebrows but shrugged.

“Go ahead.” He muttered before breaking into a yawn. You chuckled.

“Sleep Eddie. You need it.” You replied, gently crawling into your bed so you didn’t disturb him. He looked at you with half-lidded eyes and gave you a sleepy smile. 

“Thanks. For everything.” He mumbled before closing his eyes. You opened your mouth to respond but seeing as it seemed he’d already gone to sleep. You opted for a fond smile as you stared at him for longer than you would’ve liked to admit. The funny feeling in your stomach and heart was back, but you didn’t fight it this time. You laid with it as he laid with you, your hand only centimeters away from his. So close, yet so far. But that was okay. He was there, and that was okay.

>><<

The horrible sound of bones crunching met his ears as he stared up at her floating body. Blood was pouring from her empty eye sockets but it still felt like she was staring right at him. Into his very soul. Despite her broken jaw, she spoke to him.

“It’s all your fault, Eddie.” She whispered. Her voice was so hoarse it didn’t even sound like her own.

“No…” Eddie pleaded.

“It’s all your fault!” She was yelling now. Eddie collapsed to the floor and began to cry, covering his ears in an attempt to block out her screaming. He rocked himself back and forth, sobbing uncontrollably.

Eddie sat up with a fervor, his hands shaking violently as he swung his head around to look at the room. His eyes trained on the ceiling, waiting to see if she’d appear there. It was so hard to breathe and he was so fucking scared. He was goddamn terrified.

All the motion had woken you up. You rubbed the sleep from your eyes and planned on asking what was wrong, but quickly sat up when you heard Eddie crying. You could feel his body tremors on the mattress due to how violent they were. What had happened to him while you were sleeping?

“Eddie? Eddie, what’s wrong?” You whispered. You kept your voice low and avoided touching him in case it would upset him further.

“She was there… She was there and she- s-she-”

“Who was there Eddie?” You asked.

“Chrissy! She said it was all my fault and-” It was hard to catch the rest of his words over his sobs. 

“Hey hey hey i-it’s okay! Chrissy isn’t here. None of that was your fault alright? Just breath. Can I touch you?” You asked gently, hovering your hands over his shoulders. He nodded something no short of desperation, and you wrapped one of your arms around his back, the other holding his arms. “It’s okay Eddie. It’s okay…” You whispered. He cried harder as he clutched fistfuls of your shirt with an iron-tight grip. His entire body was shaking in your arms. You weren’t sure what else you could do other than whisper that he’d be alright and gently rub his back. 

“You’re safe here, okay? You’re safe…”

>><<

Eddie woke up, the smell of your cologne much stronger than it was when he’d gone to sleep. He opened his eyes and yawned, taking a few seconds to blink away the tiredness before realizing he was laying on your chest. His arms were wrapped around your midsection and yours laying atop his back. 

He vaguely remembered what happened. Having that horrible nightmare, waking up in tears, and you soothing him back to sleep, but he didn’t remember this level of intimacy. Had he really fallen asleep clutching onto you like this? Furthermore, you let him?

He pulled his arms out from under you, trying his best not to disturb you, but it was fruitless. You slowly began to stir, stretching your limbs and shaking them gently in an attempt to wake yourself up further. You looked at Eddie and gave him a small smile, remembering the events of the night clearly.

“You alright?” You ask quietly. Eddie gives a half-hearted laugh before leaning against the headboard of your bed.

“Yeah. Sorry, you had to see me like that. How embarrassing.” He muttered. You chuckled and sat up as well, bumping your shoulder into his as you did so.

“You went through something traumatic Eddie. Don't be so hard on yourself.” You replied. He looked at his hands which he’d folded in his lap.

“I was acting like a baby though. Crying and shaking? I mean seriously-”

“Eddie.” You cut him off. He looked at you with those big brown eyes that made you weak in the knees.

“You’re okay. I mean it.” You say, placing your hand on his shoulder. He stared at you, his cheeks dusting that familiar shade of pink that seemed to be happening much more often now that he was around you. He looked away, a small smile on his face.

“Just don’t tell Henderson, alright? I don’t want him to think I’ve gone soft.” He says. You laugh.

“Deal.”

>><<

A few days passed and you found yourself growing much closer to Eddie. You bonded over music and books, played board games, and marathoned some of your favorite movies. The more time you spent with him, the harder you seemed to fall for him, and unbeknownst to you, it was the same for him.

Every time he looked at you from across the couch he felt his heart beat faster than it ever had in his life. He had crushes before, but none like this. None that would've given him a second glance, let alone let him stay in their house as he was suspected of murder.

You were reclined on the couch, your dog wedged between you two. Eddie had grown quite fond of him, and it was mutual. (D/n) loved having another person around to play with. It started to make you feel like you were your own little family. But a loud knock on your door disturbed that peace, causing (D/n) to start barking.

“Who is it?” You called. 

“It’s Dustin! Let us in!” He yelled through the door. You sighed and got up from your comfortable position, unlocking the door for the others to pile in. But there were two faces you didn’t quite recognize.

“Hold on there kid. Mind catching me up on these two characters?” You asked.

“Oh, right. (Y/n), this is Nancy and Lucas, Nancy and Lucas this is (Y/n). We’re all caught up now? Great, good, because shit just hit the fan.” Dustin replies. You raise your eyebrows, and Eddie adjusts his sitting from being reclined to attentive listening.

“On our way here, we drove by Rick’s place. It was swarmed with cops and reporters. Patrick was Vecna’d last night at Lover’s Lake. Jason managed to convince them that it was you and they’ve just released your name to the public.” His words come out so fast that you almost don’t register what he’s saying.

“Shit. shit… fuck man!” Eddie yells, standing up and beginning to pace the room.

“But, there’s a bright side to this,” Dustin says.

“Oh is there Henderson? Please do enlighten me.” Eddie replies sarcastically.

“Another thing I noticed on my way here was that my compass was slipping the further east we went.”

“And we’ve seen this before.” The one named Lucas chimed in.

“Mhmm. In the presence of a stronger electromagnetic field, the needle will deflect towards that power.” Dustin says.

“Meaning…?” You ask.

“There’s another gate.” He answers.

“So what do we do now?”

“We follow the compass to the gate,” Dustin replies excitedly. 

“Eddie’s still a wanted man. What do you expect us to do? Go for a nice stroll in the woods?” You ask.

“This little steel capsule might be the key to saving both Max and Eddie. What say you Eddie the Banished?” Dustin asks. Everyone fixes their eyes on Eddie, even you. You’re not sure what you’re hoping his answer is.

“I say you’re asking me to follow you into Mordor, which, if I’m totally straight with you, I think is a really bad idea. But, uh, the shire… the shire is burning. So Mordor it is.” Dustin excitedly opens the front door, waiting for Eddie to walk out. You walk to step out after him but pause to speak before you do.

“For the record, if anything happens to him, you’re all dead meat. Got it?” You say. A couple of shocked faces dance around the room, but there are nods of agreement. Once your gone, Steve looks at Dustin.

“Since when does he care so much about Eddie?” He asks. Dustin smirks.

“Young love Steve. Young love.” He replies as he pats his arm. Steve makes a noise of shock as Dustin walks out of the house.

“A little bit of elaboration would be nice.”

>><<

“Dustin? Can you slow down? Dustin?” Eddie called out. You felt like sheep, blindly following this kid through the woods.

“I think we’re getting close,” Dustin yelled over his shoulder. In his distraction of telling you so, he didn’t notice that he was about to walk straight into Lover’s Lake. Eddie grabbed his backpack and placed his arm in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.

“Watch your step big guy.” He said. It took everyone else a little bit to catch up, but once you did, you sighed.

“Oh, man. You gotta be shitting me.” Steve groaned.

“Yeah. I thought these woods looked familiar.” Eddie replied.

“Lover’s Lake.”

“This is confounding,” Dustin whispered.

“There’s a gate in Lover’s lake?” Max asked.

“Whenever the Demogorgon attacked, it always left an opening. Maybe Vecna’s the same way.” Nancy suggested.

“Yeah, only one way to find out,” Steve replied. Eddie sighed and cracked his neck, walking down the shoreline. He pulled the tarp off the boat which seemed to be an integral part of this story. Steve and Eddie began to push it onto the water.

“Easy I… I said easy, man.” Steve said.

“Sorry, dude,” Eddie mumbled. Steve holds his hand out to help Robin into the boat but she opts to use their heads instead. 

“Yeah that works too.” Steve mumbles. Eddie climbs in after, offering a hand to help you in. You snicker.

“How gentlemanly.” You reply sarcastically as you climb in. Nancy quickly follows behind you. Dustin is right on her heels, but Eddie flicks his hat downward and pushes him away.

“Hey, hey, hey, you trying to sink us? This thing holds four people tops, okay?”

“It’s better this way, okay? You guys stay here with Max. Keep an eye out for trouble.” Nancy said.

“You keep an eye out!” Dustin rebuttals. Nancy furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

“It’s my goddamn theory!” Dustin argues.

“You heard Nance.” 

“Who put her in charge?”

“I did,” Robin states, almost matter-of-factly. Dustin looks at her confused while Nancy holds out her hand.

“Compass.” She demands. Dustin begrudgingly forks it over as he walks back to stand next to the other younger teenagers. Steve stands up and tosses his backpack before pushing the boat into the water and hopping in.

“You said four!” Dustin protests.

“Sorry,” Steve whispers.

“Bedtime at nine kiddos! Miss you already!” Robin yells. You chuckled.

Robin and Eddie use the oars to propel the boat on the water while Nancy watches the compass. You quietly begin to whistle a tune, one that Eddie recognized. The same one you sang the first night he stayed at your house. He was sure his face was flushed, but he didn't mind since it was shrouded in the darkness of the night.

”Whoa, whoa, woah, woah, slow down. Slow down, guys.” Nancy called out. Robin and Eddie stopped rowing, turning around to look at her. You all gathered around the compass, staring at it as the needle went crazy. You heard the walkie-talkie chime with Dustin’s voice.

“Guys, what’s going on? Come on, talk to me. What’s going on?” He asked. Robin grabbed the walkie and spoke into it.

“Uh, Dustin, your compass has gone from wonky to wonky with a capitol ‘aah!’” She replied. Steve began to pull off his shoes and socks.

“Steve, what are you doing?” Nancy asked. 

“Yeah, seriously man, nobody wants to see those. Or smell them.” You say, fanning his feet away from you. Steve rolls his eyes.

“Somebody's gotta go down and check this thing out. Unless one of you four can top being a Hawkins High swim co-captain and a certified lifeguard for three years, then… It’s gotta be me. No complaints, alright?” He asks.

“Hey, I'm not complaining. I do not wanna go down there.” Eddie replies as he fishes a grocery bag from his battle vest pocket. Steve pulls his shirt off and you roll your eyes.

“Show off.” You mumble. Eddie looks up at you and smiles. 

“Tell me about it.” He whispers before handing Steve the flashlight wrapped in the plastic bag safeguard.

“Hey. Good luck.” Eddie says. He pulls out a cigarette while Steve thanks him but Robin quickly grabs it and throws it in the lake.

“Steve?” Nancy calls out. He looks over his shoulder at her.

“Be careful.” She says. He nods before diving in.

“Gross.” You mumble, taking off your hoodie and bunching it up. You toss it in Eddie’s lap before laying your head onto it, reclining as comfortably as the small boat would allow. Eddie’s a bit surprised by this, looking down at you as if questioning why.

“Who knows how long he’ll be down there? Might as well get comfortable while I can.” You reply with a shrug. He relaxes a little but is still somewhat on edge.

“Where we at, Wheeler?” Robin asks.

“Closing in on a minute,” Nancy replies. She exhales and nods. More time passes as both of them stare intensely at the water, wondering when he’s gonna resurface. You, on the other hand, find yourself close to drifting off. You wouldn’t have expected it considering the high-stakes situation you were in, but something about laying in Eddie's lap made you feel safe enough to doze off. You were snapped out of that peace quickly though when Steve burst through the water gasping for air.

“I found it!” He exclaimed. You sat up and pulled your hoodie back on.

“You found it?” Nancy asked.

“I found it. Yeah. I found it.” He replied as he clutched onto the side of the boat. Robin smiles and grabs the walkie-talkie.

“Dustin you are a goddamn Einstein. Steve found the gate!” She spoke into it. She waited for a response, but nothing came. She furrows her eyebrows in confusion but disregards it when Steve starts talking.

“It’s pretty wild. It’s more of a snack-sized gate than the mama gate but still, it’s pretty damn big.” He says, almost out of breath. When his sentence finished, he dips back under the water, seemingly struggling against something. He pops back up with a look of confusion on his face before being pulled fully underwater.

“Steve!” Nancy calls out.

“No no! What the hell was that, man?” Eddie yelled.

“Nancy, really, what happened?” Robin asks, her voice filled with terror. Nancy stares at the water for a moment before she stands up. She looks like she’s going in after him.

“Wait, wait, wait. You’re not going in there, are you?” Eddie asks, grabbing her arm to stop her.

“Just wait here.” She demands.

“No Nancy!” Robin yells, but she’s already in the water.

“Goddamnit!” Eddie yells, running his fingers through his hair. Robin begins to perch herself on the edge of the boat.

“No no no no no no. What are you doing? She said wait.” Eddie protested.

“Yeah, I heard her.” She replies.

“She’s in charge.” 

“Are you kidding me? I made that shit up.” She says before plugging her nose and beginning to lean back.

“Don’t you go. Don’t you-” His words are cut off by the splash of Robin's body meeting the water.

“Goddamn it!” He bangs his open palms on the edge of the boat. You stand up, causing him to look at you.

“(Y/n), don’t even think about it!” He says. You smirk and hold out your hand to him.

“Come on, don’t make me do this alone.” You reply.

“Son of a bitch. This is so stupid. This is so stupid. This is so stupid.” He practically chants to himself, but he grabs your hand anyways. You dive into the water together, all while he’s stringing out profanities.

>><<

You all huddle under skull rock, shaking from fear and possibly hypothermia. After saving Steve from those creatures and running through the entire forest to hide from them, it was safe to say that you were exhausted. The screeching becomes more distant, and Robin is the first to peek her head out.

“Oh… okay. That was close.” She says.

“Yeah. Too close.” Eddie replies, his voice shaking with fear. As you begin to walk farther out, you hear steve mutter something. You turn your head and see him lean against the rock.

“Steve? Jesus.” Nancy says as she notices the same thing you had.

“I’m fine. I’m fine.” He protests.

“No, no, no. You’re not. You’re losing blood. Come on, sit. Alright?” She coaxes him down He groans in pain as he removes his hand from the open wound. Robin kneels next to him as well.

“Okay. So the good news here is I’m pretty sure wooziness is not a common symptom of rabies. But if you start having hallucinations or muscle spasms or you start feeling aggressive, like you wanna punch me or something, then you should totally let me know, okay?”

“Robin.”

“Yeah?”

“I kinda wanna punch you.” He replied. Robin laughs.

“Sense of humor’s still intact. That’s a good sign.”

“Yeah…” He mumbles. Nancy finishes tearing off the piece of fabric that she needed to dress his wounds, so Robin steps away.

“You ready?” Nancy asks. 

“Yeah. Just do it.” Steve replies. She pushes the fabric against him and he stifles his groans. He locks his hands behind his head as she apologizes, doing her best to wrap the fabric around him properly.

“Too tight?” She asks.

“No, that’s good.” He replies. He lets out a few final grunts of pain before she finishes by tying it into a knot. You hear Eddie walk away from you, so you turn to see what he’s doing. He’s climbing up a rock, trying to get a better view of the land in front of him.

“So, uh, this place is like Hawkins, but with monsters and nasty shit?” He asks. Nancy helps Steve stand, putting his weight on her shoulders.

“Pretty much.” She replies. He nods and starts to walk back down, but Nancy stops him with a warning.

“Wait, watch out for the vines. It’s all a hivemind.”

“It’s all a what?”

“All the creepy crawlies around here dude. They’re like, one, or something. You’re stepping on a vine, you’re stepping on a bat, you’re stepping on Vecna.” Steve says.

“Shit,” Eddie replies, now very carefully stepping around the vines.

“But everything from our world is still here, right? Except people obviously?” Robin asks.

“As far as I understand it, yeah.” “So, theoretically, we could go to the police station and steal guns and grenades and whatever we need to blow up those bat things that are guarding the gate.” “I highly doubt the Hawkins PD has grenades, Robin. But guns, yeah, sure.”

“Well, we don’t have to go all the way downtown for guns. I have guns in my bedroom.” Nancy replied. Eddie finally manages to jump down from the rock.

“You, Nancy Wheeler, have guns, plural, in your bedroom?” He asks.

“Full of surprises, isn’t she?” 

“A Russian Makarov and a revolver.” She states.

“Yeah, you almost shot me with that one,” Steve says.

“You almost deserved it.” She replies. Eddie rolls his eyes and slips off his battle vest, tossing it at Steve.

“For your modesty, dude.” He says. You can’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy culminate in your abdomen, but before you have time to even think about why that is, a loud rumbling shakes the earth. It’s so intense that you lose your balance, falling into Eddie as the others fall into each other as well. His arm falls onto your waist and you would've been flustered by the fact had you not been preoccupied with the earthquake. There was a loud snarling in the distance that sent chills down your spine.

“Yeah, so guns seem like a pretty good idea to me,” Eddie said.

“Yeah, me too.” You reply, realizing how close he is by how loud his voice is in your ear.

“So what are we waiting for?”

>><<

After the highs and lows of finding the wheeler house, realizing there were no guns because the upside down was three years stuck in the past, finding a way to contact the overworld, and biking seven miles to Eddie’s trailer, you were almost relieved when you saw that fleshy interdimensional portal on the ceiling. But something about the way it squelched and breathed as if it were alive made you have second thoughts.

“This is where Chrissy died. Like, right where she died.” Eddie said, looking over his shoulders at you and the others. You could tell there was a lot of pain in those memories.

“I think there’s something in there,” Robin replied, her eyes never leaving the ceiling. There was a crackling sound as the red barrier was pulling downward as if something were pushing it in. You felt your stomach go queasy at the sight.

“What the hell is that?” Eddie asked. Seconds after the question left his mouth, the gate popped open, the fleshy parts and vines all retreating into the ceiling. The sudden movement made all of you yelp in fear and back up, eyes still fixed on the now open gate. You exchanged worried glances with Eddie.

Steve slowly began to approach it, and you followed his lead, right behind Nancy and Robin. The steps you took toward it were slow and timid, waiting for the slightest sign of danger. Finally, as you got closer, you could see into it.

“No way,” Steve muttered. On the other side of the gate stood Dustin, Lucas, Max, and a little girl you didn’t recognize. Dustin had a huge smile plastered on his face, jumping on the balls of his feet.

“Hi there.” He said as he waved, prompting Lucas to do the same.

“Hi…” Nancy, Steve, and Robin replied. You were too shocked to speak.

“Holy shit, this is trippy,” Robin said.

“Tell me about it…” You mumbled. Dustin laughed again, excitedly looking at his friends before looking back up at you.

“Bada bada boom!” He exclaimed.

“Henderson, your childlike joy is refreshing, but could we maybe, I don’t know, figure out a way to get us the hell out of here!” Eddie shouted. Dustin stopped giggling and nodded.

“Right right sorry, Eddie.” The children began to disperse out of your view. You could hear shuffling and after a few minutes, Max and Lucas dropped a mattress below the portal. You raised your eyebrows at the state of it.

“Those stains are, uh… I dunno what those stains are.” Eddie said.

“Mmm,” Robin replied, a questioning look on her face. Dustin walked into view, a makeshift rope of tied-together sheets in hand.

“Not quite sure how these psychics are gonna work. But uh… here goes nothing.” He says as he throws it up through the portal, but once it meets your end it begins to cascade down.

“There we go. And if my theory is correct…” He says before removing his hands from the rope. It stays in its place, causing him to smile.

“Abracadabra.” He whispers.

“Holy shit,” Max says, looking up at the rope on your end.

“All right, pull on it! See if it holds!” Dustin shouts to your group. Robin looks around before grabbing onto the rope, giving it her best yank. She smiles and laughs incredulously.

“This is the craziest shit I’ve ever seen in my life. And I’ve seen some crazy shit.” The girl you don’t recognize says as she high-fives Dustin. You laugh.

“Starting to think that’s a common experience.” You reply. Robin grabs hold of the rope once again.

“Guess I’m the guinea pig.” She says as she begins to climb up the rope. The younger teens on the other side begin to disperse to make room for her on the landing pad. She grunted as she climbed upward, but once her head was on the other side, she fell onto her back on the mattress.

“Oh thank God. That was fun.” She said with a sigh of relief. You watch her grab Dustin’s hand to help pull her up. You look at the others, Nancy looking at Eddie, then you, then Steve, the other teenage boys looking at each other until somebody volunteers.

“All right, guess I’ll go,” Eddie says with a shrug as he approaches the rope. He grunts as he begins to climb it, inching his way back to the overworld. Finally, gravity takes hold and he falls onto the mattress. He sits up abruptly.

“That… was fun. Shit.” He says with a large smile before getting up.

“Don’t mind if I do.” You say, grabbing onto the rope. Climbing it felt reminiscent of gym class, which made you feel a bit queasy, but once your head passed that gap between the worlds, all the blood went rushing to your face and you felt like you were freefalling. You laughed as you began to cascade onto the mattress and blinked a few times once your back finally hit the surface. 

“(Y/n) approved.” You said as grabbed Eddie’s hand so he could help you up.

>><< 

You sat wedged between Dustin and Eddie, on your way to what could very well be the end of your life. Thanks to Nancy being Vecna’d and that trip to the War Zone, you were as well prepared as you could’ve been, but that didn’t quiet the loud thrumming of your heart, or the sinking feeling growing in the pit of your stomach.

The car slowed in front of the dilapidated Creel house to drop off the Sinclairs and Max. And then it kept driving. You looked out the window, watching their bodies become smaller as you drove further and further away. The sun was dipping lower into the sky as the drive continued. It was nightfall by the time you reached your destination. Nancy stood up from her seat and turned to look at every one.

“Okay. I wanna run through it one more time. Phase one.”

“We meet Erica at the playground. She’ll signal Max and Lucas when we’re ready.”

“Phase two.”

“Max baits Vecna. He’ll go after her, which’ll put him in his trance.”

“Phase three?”

“Me, Eddie, and (Y/n) will draw the bats away,” Dustin replied. Eddie nudges you in the side with a smile before giving Dustin a noogie, an oddly pure moment despite the given circumstances.

“Four.”

“We head into Vecna’s hopefully newly bat-free lair and… flambe,” Robin replies, sloshing around the Molotov cocktail in her hand.

“Nobody moves on to the next phase until we’ve all copied. Nobody deviates from the plan, no matter what. Got it?” Nancy asks. You all chime in with ‘got it’s before dispersing and piling out of the RV. You trek through the small span of woods in front of you before making it to the trailer park and shortly after, Eddie’s trailer. Once you're inside, you’re relieved to see the makeshift rope is still intact.

“Be careful,” Dustin says.

“Thanks, buddy. Here goes nothing.” Steve replies as he begins to climb the rope. Since there’s no mattress on the other end, he’s extra careful to land on his feet, which he does somewhat majestically. Robin sarcastically makes noises of praise.

“What does he want us to do, applaud?” She asks. It takes Steve a few seconds to bring the upside-down mattress under the portal, giving those athletically challenged a safer landing strategy.

“Alright, let’s go.” He calls up to you. Nancy is the first go, Robin kneeling next to her to provide even more assistance. She nods at her before climbing and subsequently falling onto the mattress. After Nancy, Eddie drops down his gear and follows right after. Then you, then Robin, then Dustin, who takes far too long to stand up which results in him being pulled to his feet by you and Eddie. You begin to walk out of the trailer right behind Steve, with the rest of your team in tow. He turns back to you.

“Hey, guys, listen. If things here start to go south, I mean, at all, you abort. Okay? Draw the attention of the bats. Keep ‘em busy for a minute or two. We’ll take care of Vecna. Don’t try to be cute, or be a hero or something. Okay? You guys are just-”

“Decoys. Don’t worry. You can be the hero Steve.” Dustin cuts him off.

“Absolutely. I mean, look at us. We are not heroes.” Eddie says with a laugh as he looks between you and Dustin. You feign offense as you nudge him in the side. Steve hesitates for a moment before turning around and walking toward Robin and Nancy. Eddie takes a step toward him.

“Hey, Steve?” He calls out. Steve turns around.

“Make him pay.” He says. They nod at each other before Steve’s team begins to walk off. 

“Now that all that mushy gushy bullshit is over, it’s time for the fun part.” You say, hitting Eddie’s stomach with your arm. He laughs as you make your way into his bedroom. Once he’s in, he stops.

“Jesus christ… It’s like… She was destined for an alternate dimension…” He mumbles as he approaches his guitar.

“What do you say, guys?” He asks, picking it up from where it hung.

“Are you ready for the most metal concert in the history of the world?” He asks, turning to face the two of you.

“That a rhetorical question?” Dustin asks. Eddie smiles and puts the strap over his shoulder.

“Let’s do it.” He says, swinging it over his back. As if you didn’t find him hot enough as it is.

>><<

You waited tentatively for the crackle of the walkie-talkie to sound and tell you when to move forward. Finally, after what seemed like hours, you heard Robin’s voice on the other end.

“She’s in. Move on to phase three.”

“Copy that. Initiating phase three. Let’s hope they hear this.” Dustin said as he pulled the extension cord up to plug in the amp and subsequently turned them to their full volume. He looks at Eddie, who grabs the pick from around his neck.

“Chrissy, this is for you.” He mutters, mostly to himself, before he starts to strum. You recognize the beat immediately.

Dustin is crouched beside you as you lean one hand on the amp, enjoying Eddie’s impeccable performance of one of your favorite songs. You would’ve enjoyed it more, had it not been for the predicament you were in. Dustin checks his binoculars a few times, but this time, he calls out to Eddie.

“We gotta lock down in T minus 30 seconds.” He yells over the noise. Eddie nods, focusing back on playing his guitar.

“T-minus 20!” Dustin shouts. You look over at Eddie, who’s now shredding the guitar solo, which you wish you could appreciate more, but the screeching bats inching closer in proximity make it difficult. Dustin begins to count down from 10, and Eddie finishes right as he reaches one. The bats are way too close for comfort, so you shove Dustin in the direction of the truck you used to get on the roof. He begins to climb down, you following and Eddie just behind you.

They’re shouting incoherently at each other as you rush into the gated area, which Eddie shuts just in the nick of time. You watch the bats attempt to claw at you through the fencing, but they have no luck. You give a relieved half laugh half sigh, but it’s short-lived as more begin to fly toward you.

“Hurry! Come on!” Dustin calls to the two of you. Once you’re inside, you lean against the wall, panting heavily.

“Dude. Most metal ever!” Dustin yells, causing both him and Eddie to jump with excitement. You laugh and can’t help but smile at the two fondly. They take a few minutes to bask in their excitement before finally winding down and walking to the portal. There’s a thump against the trailer wall that makes you turn your head. Then another. And another. And then they’re not stopping. The bats outside seem to be thrashing their bodies against the walls. Hard. But then, just as soon as it started, it stopped.

“Hey, dipshits! Give up that easy!” Dustin yells.

“Is that really necessary?” Eddie asks.

“Both of you shut up!” You hiss. They stop bickering long enough for you to hear the bats have moved.

“They’re on the roof,” Eddie says, looking upward. Dustin begins to string out profanities as you all follow the sound of the bats traveling. You fix your eyes on a small circular vent.

“Uh oh.” You whisper.

“They can’t get in through there, can they?” Dustin asks, but right as the words leave his mouth, the demobat breaches the flimsy metal. It screeches, and the three of you begin to stab at it furiously with your spears. After a few seconds, Eddie backs away, much to Dustin’s protests. 

“Get out of the way! Get out of the way!” He calls to the two of you. You back up just in time for Eddie to throw down a chair and wedge his nail shield into the ceiling.

“Holy shit… Holy shit.” He says in between pants.

“Nice,” Dustin says.

“Thanks.” He replies, giving him a high five.

“Are there other vents?” Dustin asks. Eddie seems to realize his answer is not the one you’d hope for as he rushes to his bedroom. You all begin to run toward it, and as soon as you enter, bats come flying through the vent on the floor. He pushes you and Dustin out, shutting the door as quickly as he can.

“That’s not gonna hold!” Dustin yells as you back away.

“No shit genius!” You yell back.

“Let’s go!” Eddie yells. Dustin begins to climb the rope. You’re quick to follow, not sparing another second. Once you're on the other side, you look at Eddie who starts to climb but stops halfway.

“Eddie, what are you doing? You have to hurry!” You yell at him. He stares at you and then at the door before dropping back onto the ground.

“Eddie! Come on man!” Your shouts seem to fall on deaf ears as he walks away to grab a spear.

“Eddie don’t you fucking dare! Eddie-” He cuts the rope, severing the way to travel between the worlds. He moves the mattress and you can feel tears begin to well in your eyes. Dustin is watching this unfold with you.

“Eddie, what are you doing?” He asks. Eddie looks at the two of you with a smile on his face.

“I’m buying more time.” He says before walking out of your view. Dustin looks at you as if he’s asking what to do and for the first time in a long time, you don’t know. You’d never felt this way before. Scared and lost and heartbroken all at the same time. You couldn’t breathe.

“No fucking way. You’re not fucking running this time Eddie.” You say as the tears fall out of your eyes, but you wipe them away ferociously. You grab the chair and set it right underneath the center of the portal. Standing on it, you’re just tall enough to reach it when you jump. So you do just that. Grunting as you pull yourself through, you hang on for dear life when the gravitational pull hits. You sigh and swing back and forth so you can roll when you let go. It’s messy, and you're gonna be left bruised, but it’s enough to have gotten you down. You pull the mattress back, giving Dustin a safer way to land than you had.

“Come on!” You yell, offering a hand to help him up. Once he’s on his feet, you rush out the door, him following close behind you. You run as fast as you can, pushing yourself farther than you ever have before. You can see the bats swarming him. God, why did you have to fall in love with an idiot? 

You see them wrap around his legs and arms, rendering him defenseless. More begin to pile onto him and you can only imagine what they’re doing. Tears blur your vision as you start to run even faster, faster than you thought was in your capability. You pull the machete you’d nabbed from the war zone off your back as you were finally in distance. You swung it at the bats in your path but saved your deadliest blows for the ones gnawing on his torso.

Dustin was close behind you, picking off those that he could as you fought with the ones latched onto Eddie. He seemed to recognize you, a bloody smile on his face. You kept swinging and crying and fighting, all at the same time. It seemed like an impossible fight that you swore you would’ve lost, but then, out of nowhere, the bats all fell from the sky.

You dropped your machete and began to cry harder. You were going to hold Eddie but found his wounds held a higher precedent. You wiped away your tears in an effort to see better as Dustin kneeled next to him as well.

“Bad, huh?” He asked.

“No. You’re gonna be fine.” Dustin replied.

“Damn fucking right you will.” You yelled, pulling off your hoodie. You sliced through the fabric with the pocket knife you had and began to tie it tightly around his torso.

“You’re not dying on me that easy Munson. Don’t even fucking think about it.” You reply. He opens his mouth to respond, but you cut him off by placing his arm around your shoulder.

“Whatever sappy shit you’ve got to say, you can save it, 'cause I already told you. You’re not fucking dying today.” You say as you stand up, carrying his body weight as well. He groans in pain.

“Help me out here Henderson.” You say, staggering to hold him up by yourself. Dustin rushes to your side and grabs Eddie’s other arm, splitting his weight between the two of you as you hobble back through the upside-down.

>><<

Eddie sat up in bed, gasping and looking around, then clutching his sides in pain. He recognized the room he was in, but he wasn’t sure why. The door to his right creaked open, and you walked in with what looked like medical supplies in your arms.

“(Y/n).” His voice was hoarse as he spoke your name. You were surprised to see that he was awake, and felt tears prick the corners of your eyes,

“Finally you’re up. I was starting to think you were holding out on me.” You said, trying to act as if you weren’t bursting at the seams with excitement. He chuckled.

“Why am I here?” He asked. You shrugged and sat next to him on your bed, pulling the covers off of his body. He hadn’t noticed he was shirtless until he felt the cold chill nip at his body.

“Would you rather be at Hawkins High with the rest of the town? I’m sure they’d all love to see their darling Edward, wanted murder suspect.” You reply. He smiles.

“Guess you’re right.” He says as you begin to unwrap his bandages.

“Someone’s getting a bit handsy.” He teases. You roll your eyes and finish unwrapping the bloodied bandages before starting to wrap him with new ones.

“That was really stupid, by the way.” You say.

“What?”

“Running into that swarm. You could’ve been killed.” You scolded. Eddie sighs.

“They needed more time and even if I had been… What difference would it have made?” He said with a shrug. You felt tears well in your eyes again.

“What difference would it have made? Just because Jason got a few hicks to be against you doesn’t mean everybody was. There are still people who care about you and love you, Eddie. I fucking love you! Do you really think I just ran back into that hell dimension because it wouldn’t have made a difference whether you lived or died?” You said angrily, pulling his bandages around him tighter.

“Wait wait wait. Do my ears deceive me? Did you just say you love me?” Eddie asked. You were so frustrated that you couldn’t take it anymore. You grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him into a kiss.

At first, you were angry, pressing your lips against his just to get him to shut up for once in his goddamn life but then, as his hands gently held onto you as if you were a delicate piece of fine china, you broke. Tears began to stream down your face as it all hit you at once. You needed this. You needed him.

He pulled away, far too soon for your liking, and stared at you as his chest heaved to catch his breath. He blinked his beautiful brown eyes and smiled his stupid grin. There he was, in all his glory, and you’d just kissed him in a fit of passion and anger at his pure idiocy.

“If I get a kiss like that every time I act a fool, then I’ll have to remember to risk my life more often.” He whispers. You laugh and wipe your face of your tears, shaking your head before standing up.

“Eddie Munson. You have changed my life.” You say with a laugh.

“Then I guess we’re even. Cause I think you saved mine.” He replied. You gathered the bloody bandages and began to walk to the door. Your hand was just above the knob when you paused at the sound of Eddie’s voice once again.

“If I ever beat these charges and things ever go back to the way they were… or at least as much as they can… I’d like to take you on a normal date.” “If I liked normal, I never would’ve found you.”

“Then can I take you on a not normal date? Affective immediately?” He asks. You laugh and open your bedroom door.

“Tell you what Eddie. You heal from the damage those hellbats did to your stomach, and I’ll think about it. Deal?”

“Deal.”

[marauderundercover]

The Strings that Bind Us: Ch. 3

 AO3

Prev

Marinette is nervous. It’s worse than any other nerves she’s ever felt. Today was the day she was going to meet Bruce’s sons. They’d been dating for almost two months and even though she’d met Alfred (and often called him to talk and trade recipes), she had yet to meet Bruce’s sons. Mostly because she didn’t want to interrupt their lives. She didn’t want to walk in and meet them and then be gone. Neither of them deserved that. So, she had waited. And now the day was here and she was panicking. She glances around the small grocery store, determined to get the ingredients to make dessert for dinner tonight. Bruce had told her that Dick had an insane sweet tooth, and she didn’t want to bribe the kid, but she really did want him to like her. Bruce had already warned her that Jason was a little less welcoming, but she had hope that the cookies would work on him as well. Grabbing a bag of chocolate chips, she heads over to the frozen section to pick up a few staples.

“I don’t understand why we have to hang out today. I thought you hated us.” A voice says, and she frowns.

“I don’t hate you. And I just wanna warn you, make sure you know that just because she’s here today doesn’t mean she’ll be here tomorrow.” A second voice says. Shaking her head, she moves past, trying hard not to listen to the boys’ conversation as they walk away. It wasn’t her business, after all. She grabs a couple bags of frozen veggies before heading up to the checkout and paying. She leaves the store, taking note of her surroundings as she walks. She looks both ways before crossing the street and heading into the bank. She needed to send some money back home to her parents for the anniversary since she couldn’t be with them in person this year. She’s just about to get to the teller when a loud bang echoes throughout the bank. She whirls around and eyes widen at the man who just entered the building. His suit was interesting, half of it was a solid gray color and the other half was bright and patterned. But that wasn’t what shocked her. What shocked her was the way half his face was completely red and scarred. Well that, and the ten men with guns that walked in behind him. Her eyes dart around the room, searching for anything that may be helpful, when her eyes land on two boys. Both tense as they look at the man, but instead of fear (like everyone else had on their face) the two looked determined.

“Ah, how nice to see the two of you here.” The man says, walking up to the two boys and grabbing the younger one’s wrist tightly. Marinette’s eyes narrow as the boy winces slightly.

“Let him go.” She snaps, storming over and glaring at the man, trying hard to ignore the way the guns were now trained on her.

“Oh and what, you volunteer instead?” He asks, and she scoffs.

“I never said that, now let him go.” She demands, giving the man her worst Ladybug glare. His eyes narrow, but he lets go of the boy and she shifts so that she’s between the two. “Now, why don’t we talk about this like grown ups.” She suggests, crossing her arms.

“Do you know who I am?” The man practically growls. She raises an eyebrow.

“Non. I haven’t been in Gotham for long.” She admits, trying (and failing) to come up with this man’s name. He was obviously one of Gotham’s villains, if the reaction of everyone else was anything to go by. And the fact that he came with goons instead of by himself made her believe he wasn’t your everyday bank robber.

“Tell you what. Since you decided to take the kid’s place, we’ll let the coin decide your fate. Unmarked side, I let you go and you can go on with your day. I’ll even leave the bank.” The man starts, and her stomach drops. Two Face. That was his name. And he was leaving her fate up to chance. To luck. “Scarred side, I shoot you in the head. Or, if you don’t wanna play, we can let the kid play. Whaddya say?” He asks with a grin. She grits her teeth and hopes that her years with Tikki had left her with enough residual luck to make it through this encounter.

“Go ahead. Let the coin decide.” She says, whirling around and hushing the boys behind her who are objecting suddenly. “Not now.” She hisses, terrified that if they object he’ll move along to them next. She turns back to Two Face and nods, watching as he tosses the coin in the air and catches it. Her heart beats out of her chest as she watches him reveal...the unmarked side.

“Looks like lady luck was on your side today.” He says, and his smile almost appears genuine, which makes her stomach churn. “Pack it up boys, we made a deal.” He says, and all of his goons turn to leave with him. They make it all the way out the door before she hears the sirens pulling up. She frowns. The police here were not great at showing up on time, were they? Her eyes widen when she sees Batman drop down, joining the fight. That’s definitely unusual. Turning away from the chaos outside, she turns to the two boys.

“Are you two okay?” She asks, scanning their faces.

“That was really stupid.” The younger one says, a scowl on his face. She ignores him, instead looking at his already bruising wrist.

“May I?” She asks, holding out a hand. He frowns.

“Let her look, Jason.” The older one says, sighing. She smiles at him in thanks before holding the younger boy’s wrist gently. She pokes softly and turns it, trying to make sure there isn’t a break. She glances at the boy’s face to gauge his reactions.

“I don’t think it’s broken, but you should definitely ice it when you get home.” She says softly. The boy just snorts and rolls his eyes, taking his arm back and frowning at her.

“Why’d you do that?” He asks, and her heart aches at how he looks at her. As if he’s suspicious of her. As if someone helping him has to have an ulterior motive.

“Because I don’t appreciate people picking on children.” Marinette says simply. The boy starts to answer, but is cut off by a gruff voice.

“Ma’am, other witnesses are saying you were targeted by Two Face?” She turns and is unsurprised to see Batman.

“Ah, not quite, sir. He actually went straight for these two. I simply diverted his attention somewhere else.” She says.

“Why?” He asks and she blinks in surprise.

“Um, because they’re children? And they’re innocent. I don’t see that there needs to be any more reason than that.” She says. Batman nods.

“The police want your statement. I’ll take the boys’ statements.” He says and she nods, but hesitates to walk away from them.

“Do you boys have someone who can come pick you up?” She asks, not willing to let them walk home alone after something like that. The oldest nods.

“Yeah, we’re fine. Thank you.” He says with a small smile. She sighs and returns the smile, turning to go talk to the police. If she could get through that situation, surely she could survive meeting Bruce’s sons.

---

Marinette squeals as Bruce lifts her and spins her around, before setting her down and kissing her gently.

“What was that for?” She asks, smiling up at him through her lashes.

“Being you.” He says simply. She snorts and whacks his chest gently, rolling her eyes.

“You’re such a goof.” She teases, turning and immediately heading towards the kitchen.

“Where are you going?” He asks, slipping his hand into hers.

“To say hi to Alfred and set down the cookies.” She says, swinging their hands as she drags him to the kitchen.

“Good evening, Miss Marinette.” Alfred says, a soft smile on his face.

“Evening, Alfred. I brought some cookies for dessert. I hope that’s okay.” She says, letting go of Bruce’s hand to give Alfred a quick hug. The two had grown close in the little time they’d known each other, and Marinette could honestly say that she adored the older man’s company. He was funny, and she often got to hear embarrassing stories about Bruce (not that she’d ever tell him that).

“Mari, just a warning, the boys might be a bit...distant tonight.” Bruce says suddenly, stopping the conversation that she and Alfred were having about his latest attempt at macarons. She frowns.

“Are they okay? Should I leave? We could reschedule, I don’t want to-” She starts to ramble, concerned for the boys. She may not have met them yet, but she’d heard enough stories from Bruce.

“They’re fine, please, stay.” Bruce says, grabbing her hands and turning her so that she faces him. He cups her cheek gently, smiling down at her. “They’re fine, love, I promise.” He says. She lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding before nodding.

“Did something happen?” She asks. He sighs and lets go of her face, running a hand over his own.

“They were caught up in a Rogue attack downtown.” He says quietly and she gasps.

“Bruce Thomas Wayne!” She scolds, frowning at him. “They were involved in a villain attack and you expect us to just, meet? I doubt either one of them wants to go through the trouble of meeting some completely random person after going through something like that. Mon Dieu Bruce, they may say they’re fine but that has to be emotionally draining.” She says, shaking her head. She pushes the loose strands of hair out of her face, sighing.

“Mari-” He starts, but she shakes her head.

“Bruce, honey, I don’t want to intrude.” She says, standing on her toes to give him a quick kiss. “We can meet on a day when they haven’t been through something traumatic.”

“Well shit. Looks like we’ve already met you little girlfriend B.” A familiar voice says. She whirls around and her eyes widen at the sight of the two boys from the bank standing in the doorway to the kitchen. She glances at Bruce and raises an eyebrow at his tired expression.

“Jason, what have I said about your language?” He asks tiredly. Jason shrugs.

“To not say things like that.” He says, making both Bruce, and the boy that Marinette assumes is Dick, sigh.

“I can still leave.” Marinette offers the boys, ignoring the frown on Bruce’s face.

“To be fair, you went through something traumatic too. Might as well stick around and deal with the trauma together.” Jason snarks. She smiles, though it’s a little forced as she remembers she had almost watched one of Bruce’s sons be shot today. If she hadn’t stepped in….

“It’s nice to meet you in a, er, calmer environment.” She says with a small wave, resisting the urge to lean into Bruce for support. “I’m Marinette Dupain Cheng, but you can call me Marinette. Or Mari, if you want.”

“I’m Richard, but everyone calls me Dick.” Dick greets with a small nod in greeting.

“And I’m Jason, but you knew that.” Jason says, crossing his arms. Marinette just smiles, but this time it isn’t forced. This was going to be interesting.

---

“So, Jason, Bruce tells me that you enjoy reading. Do you have a favorite author?” Marinette asks, trying to keep the conversation going. Both boys were still hesitant, and she wasn’t sure if it was her or the incident from the bank. She hoped it was the latter.

“Not really.” Jason says, hesitating before adding, “I like classics though.” Marinette grins.

“Really? I could never get into them when I was your age, couldn’t sit still long enough.” She says with a laugh. “But in the last couple of years I’ve found myself really enjoying Hugo and Dumas. Oh! And the Brontë sisters.” She adds, eyes lighting up as Jason grins.

“Have you read Hunchback of Notre Dame?” He asks and she laughs.

“They may have thrown me out of Paris if I hadn’t.” She teases. She feels herself relax as she talks to Jason about books, grinning at the boy’s enthusiasm and genuine love for literature. It reminded her of how much she loved designing before she got so caught up in Hawkmoth. She feels someone hold her hand, and she sneaks a glance at Bruce, smiling softly at him and squeezing his hand before turning her attention back to Jason. The rest of dinner flies by, with the conversation mostly being led by her and Jason. Dick is much less talkative. Which contradicts many of the stories Bruce had told about him. Though, many of those stories were from when he was younger. Once it’s time for dessert, Marinette stands to help Alfred clear the dinner plates.

“Miss Marinette, I can bring in the dessert just fine.” Alfred scolds, gesturing for her to sit down. She just grins.

“I know, Alfred, but you already made a lovely dinner. Let me help.” She says, grabbing some of the plates and following him into the kitchen. Once the kitchen door swings shut, she starts clearing the plates and glances at him nervously. “Do you think the boys like me?” She asks, worried.

“I believe young Master Jason does. And although he may not act like it, I do believe Master Dick does as well. He just needs time to be able to show it.” He says, and Marinette feels the tension in her shoulders seep out. She nods, glancing back towards the dining room.

“I really like him, Alfred.” She says quietly, afraid that Bruce or one of the boys would hear her. “I don’t wanna mess this up.” She admits.

“If I may be frank, Miss, Master Bruce has smiled more in the past two months than I’ve seen in years.” Alfred says, and Marinette blushes. She feels her chest warm and she sighs happily.

“I don’t think I’ve smiled this much in years either.” She admits, smiling softly at Alfred before grabbing the cookies and taking them out to the dining room. This was the happiest she’d been since Hawkmoth first started his reign of terror all those years ago, and she was willing to do anything to keep her little slice of heaven.

Next

Tag list: @maribat-october-rarepairs @stainedglassm @kittenmywaythrulife @laydeekrayzee @doll246 @queenz-z @deathssilentapproach-blog @literaryhiraeth @unoriginalmess @ashbrea381writings

[kjmsupremacist]

baby, you’re my angel (chan/felix)

Mildly popular TikTok songwriter Felix meets Chan, famous on TikTok for his music and music reviews. They bond over their common ground, friendship blossoming easy and sweet. There’s two problems. One: Felix thinks he likes Chan more than just as friends. Two: Chan is almost fifteen years his senior.

Chapter 7   |   prev   next   mlist

Characters: Felix, Chan, the rest of skz

Genre: college au, romance, fluff, smut, angst

Pairing: Chan/Felix

Warnings: swearing, age gap, smut, daddy kink, minor (offscreen) character death mention

Rating: Explicit

Length: 5.6k

just a friendly reminder that i dont condone age gap in real life, this is just fiction, im just having fun, etc :)

“Ready?” Felix looks up; Chan is fixing one of the lights, facing away from him.

“Yeah,” Felix replies, zoning back into the screen in front of him, sitting up a little straighter in the chair. It’s Saturday, and they’re  in Chan’s studio. Chan had planned to do a live while he worked, but since he and Felix are putting a song together, they figured it would be nice to do the stream together. 

Chan sits down in the chair beside him, turning towards him with a grin. “Then we’ll start.”

He hits the button and the chat fills immediately. Felix sees a lot of hearts, a lot of question marks, and a lot of capslock. He squints to read a few comments.

“Hey guys!” Chan greets. Felix looks up at camera and waves quickly, smiling. “Felix and I figured we’d sit with you today as we work on our new song. We’ve actually got a couple in the works, but we’ll just be focusing on one today so that we don’t spoil everything.”

“His idea, not mine,” Felix says cheerfully. “Let’s see… ‘Where are you guys, the background looks different?’ Chan, you haven’t filmed in the studio?”

Chan shakes his head. “Somehow all my videos have been at home,” he says, shrugging. “But, you know, we’re here now. Welcome to my studio!” He raises his arms up, looking around happily. “I’m renting it while I’m here in Sydney. I have some friends here, and they were able to reserve me a spot, which I’m really grateful for. So yes, hi new studio!” He waves at the empty room before turning back to camera. “What else? Oh, I’m sure some of you have already seen it, but we’ve both been invited to VidCon Australia once again, so for those of you who are attending, we’ll see you this summer.”

“Someone said, ‘Felix too?’ Excuse me,” Felix says, laughing. “I was there last year, too! I may not be as popular as Chan here, but I get views!”

“Before Felix gets too excited, why don’t we get to work?” Chan says lightly. Felix gives him a look and Chan laughs. “I know, but I’d like us to get something done today.”

“Fine, fine.” Felix settles back in his chair, pulling up his notes app so he can start offering up lyrics. 

They work for a couple of hours, pausing to chat with the viewers. Felix gets to show off how much he’s learned when it’s Chan’s turn to record, consulting them when he’s giving critiques and walking them through some of the basics. By the time they say goodbye and end the live, Felix has a bunch of notifications from new followers.

“You’re staying tonight, right?” Chan asks as they pack up.

“Unless that’s inconvenient,” Felix replies.

“Of course it’s not.” Chan smiles at him. “What do you want for dinner?”

Felix smiles, too. “I don’t know,” he says honestly.

“We could cook,” Chan says. “But… I’m feeling lazy, and I kind of want something shitty and unhealthy.”

“Oh, yes please,” Felix agrees, laughing.

“Hungry Jack’s?” Chan asks, reaching for his phone. “Or Macca’s?”

“Mm, I don’t want burgers, though,” Felix says. “Guzman y Gomez?”

“Ooh, good by me,” Chan says. “Let’s order ahead so we can just pick it up on the way home.”

A half hour later sees them sat at Chan’s kitchen table, laughing into their burritos. Felix watches Chan fondly, tracing his gaze over the whiskers that form under his eyes when he smiles really big.

“I have a distinct memory,” Chan says, “of eating this shit when I was a kid, and I made my sister laugh so hard she shot a whole black bean out of her nose. I think the three of us almost died, we thought it was so funny. Like, my little brother cried he was laughing so hard. My parents couldn’t even be mad, even though the bean landed in one of the containers of guac.” He laughs softly, shaking his head. “Hannah swears to this day that her left nostril hasn’t been the same since.”

Felix exhales incredulous laughter. “I thought that only happened in cartoons,” he says.

“Nope, I’ve seen it with my own two eyes,” Chan says. “I can still picture it, arcing perfectly over her plate and the chip bowl.”

“That’s incredible,” Felix says earnestly. There’s that pang of strange curiosity again. He wants to know more about Chan; he wants to know everything. “What are your siblings like?” he asks.

Chan grins. “Pain in my ass, both of them,” he says. “But I love ‘em, you know? Hannah is seven years younger than me, Lucas is nine years younger. They were both born a few years after we moved here. I think I used to harbor a certain hatred for them because I’d gotten used to being the only one. But I think I probably would’ve been lonely without them, too.” He shrugs. “I like to say I was the rough draft. Which isn’t to say, like—I’ve got a really great life, you know, I get to make a living doing what I love, and I’ve been quite successful. But like—Hannah works as a choreographer for a big entertainment company in Seoul, and Lucas is actually in his last year of med school right now; he went to the States for university. He’s going into his residency this coming August.” Chan spreads his hands. “My parents have a lot to be proud of.”

“They definitely do.” Felix nods, thinking about his own siblings. Soon, that’ll be their lives, too—spread out across the world when they used to share a bathroom and fight over the TV remote. “Do you… still talk to them?” he ventures. He imagines little Chan, aged seven, eight, nine, an immigrant and the child of immigrants, watching jealously as his younger siblings steal attention that was once his. He imagines him a little older, walking between two faceless toddlers, holding their hands. It makes his heart wilt with tenderness in his chest.

“Sometimes,” Chan says, nodding. “It’s hard, because we’re in wildly different time zones, but I did call Hannah a couple days ago, actually.”

“I bet me and Hannah would get on well,” Felix says, laughing. “Middle child solidarity. She can tell me all your embarrassing secrets.”

“I’ll just ask Rachel about yours to get you back, then,” Chan says, chuckling.

Their laughter dies quickly, the reality of it leaving a heavy cloud hanging in the air between them. They won’t meet each other’s families, at least not like that. Felix will never ask Hannah to relay cringey stories from their childhood. That sort of interaction is reserved for significant others; Chan is supposed to be his friend, and maybe his mentor. Nothing else. And if either of their families found out, it would all be ruined. Their families would be furious, Felix’s especially. And the worst part is, they’d be right.

“Anyway,” Felix says after a moment, “I don’t think you should call yourself a rough draft. Did your siblings get invited to VidCon? I don’t think so.” 

Chan laughs. “I know. But my life is a little silly, I think, in comparison to theirs.”

“You’re still making a living, and you’re still happy, right?” Felix asks. Chan nods. “So there’s nothing silly about it.” He takes the last bite of his burrito. “You’re living a lot of people’s dream, I think.”

Chan nods slowly. “Yeah, I guess I am,” he says, looking at Felix with an intense and unreadable sort of expression. “Thank you,” he says. “Really.”

Felix smiles back. “I mean, it’s true,” he replies with a dramatic little hand flourish.

They’re both a little tired, or maybe just worn down from the mental gymnastics of that conversation, so the rest of dinner is relatively quiet. They shower together once they’re done, exchanging gentle kisses, and then start working their way towards bed. Chan lingers behind in the bathroom to pee, and Felix sits on the edge of the bed, waiting for him while he towels off his hair.

His gaze falls on the book, lying face-down and open, on Chan’s bedside table. The spine is cracking a little, and Felix sighs. He’s been trying to get Chan to use bookmarks, even if it’s just a random piece of paper or an old receipt. He sees a blank piece of paper on the table beside it and smiles; clearly, Chan was trying, but must have forgotten the last time he put the book down. Felix picks up the book, carefully slotting a finger between the pages to keep Chan’s place, and then plucks up the paper.

Only it’s not paper. It’s a photograph. Felix lowers the book back down the way he found it, feeling the smooth face of the photograph with his fingertips. He wonders too late if it’s personal; he flips it over, and there is Chan, looking much younger, in a full suit and tie. Next to him is a beautiful woman that Felix doesn’t recognize. She’s wearing a wedding dress. Chan is kissing her cheek.

Cold fear washes over Felix’s skin and makes it prickle; confusion swirls in his stomach until he feels like he’s on a boat lost at storm. There has to be some explanation—why Chan hasn’t mentioned her, why he still has the photo, why, why, why—right? It can’t be what it looks like, because if it’s what it looks like—Felix feels sick. Fucking a guy so much older than him was one thing, but one who’s married? That’s a different story altogether. 

“Lix?” Felix realizes he’s just been sitting there, frozen in shock. He feels the bed dip behind him. “What’re y—oh.”

Felix turns, praying his voice will remain steady, trying to keep his tone quiet and conversational, even though all he wants to do is scream. He holds up the photo. “Who’s this?” he asks. It comes out hoarse, almost a whisper.

“Ah…” Chan settles onto the mattress, crossing his legs in front of him. “I knew I’d have to bring it up eventually. I just—didn’t know how.”

“Tell me it’s not what I’m worried it is,” Felix begs.

“It’s not,” Chan says immediately. He holds his hand out for the photo; Felix gives it to him. He doesn’t miss the way Chan looks at it, warm and full of love, and around that, smothering like a heavy blanket, sadness. “This… this is Sana. My late wife.”

Felix’s heart plummets to the bottom of his stomach, as his fear and anger dissipates, only to be replaced with guilt and sympathy. “Oh,” he manages. “I—I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Chan says. He’s still looking at the photograph, at Sana. “You didn’t know. I should’ve told you—a while ago.” He sighs, big and deep. “She… she was a year older than me. We met when we were teenagers. We were in the same maths class, and we hated it so much. I asked her out during her last year of school, and we stayed together through university. Once we were out of school and had stable jobs, we moved in together, and then I proposed. She said yes.

“She passed away when she was twenty-seven, and I was twenty-six. We’d only been married about two years. She… had a genetic blood disorder that increases the chance of clots, and we just—we didn’t know. We didn’t know, and she had a stroke, and that was it.” Chan looks up, and his eyes are glassy with tears. “It happened during the day. I was at work; I had a shitty little desk job back then. She was staying home that day because she’d been feeling under the weather. She was just—she woke up headachy and dizzy. We thought it was just a weird day, or maybe a cold. When I came home, she was already gone.”

“Chan.” Felix doesn’t know what to say. He offers him his hand, and Chan takes it. “I’m so sorry.”

Chan shrugs. “I mean, there was nothing we could’ve done. It was just—just bad luck.” He squeezes Felix’s hand. “She was the love of my life, you know? And I miss her, every day. I thought, when she died, that I would never be happy again. I definitely thought I’d never be close to anyone ever again. I thought that was it.”

He tilts his head. “But then you came along. And you know—the first video of yours I saw was your cover of Frankie Valli’s ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’, which I know you mostly covered because it was popular on TikTok, but—that was her favorite song. And I guess it was like, I don’t know, I felt like she was telling me I had to live again. At first, I thought it was just a sweet coincidence, that someone who had a shared background happened to be the one to cover that song, but now—I don’t know. It means a little more, I guess.”

Felix’s brows crumple, despite how hard he’s fighting to keep a straight face. It’s Chan’s pain, not his, but it touches him all the same. “That’s really sweet,” he says.

Chan smiles. He sets the picture aside, and then turns back to Felix. “It’s kind of dumb is what it is,” he says. “It’s been almost ten years. I mean, it took me like five years before I felt like I could smile again and mean it. I even—I mean, it was bad for a while, you know? But I had to stay. Lucas was only seventeen, he was still in high school. It’s just that I was so young. I wish I had been able to move on sooner, but I—I just couldn’t.”

Felix frowns. “You were so young, and you experienced something no one, especially at that age, should ever experience,” he points out. “It’s not your fault.”

Chan nods. “Yeah.” He pauses. “Anyway, I think this is all to say, thank you. Because even though I found a way to be happy again, and even though I was content, I didn’t think I’d ever have anyone in my life again in this kind of capacity. No matter how… unconventional or brief. But then there was you. It’s easier now, with you here. And even on nights when I’m alone, it’s easier just knowing that somewhere, you exist. You’ve shown me that I don’t have to spend the rest of my life lonely. So thank you.”

“I wasn’t doing it on purpose,” Felix mutters, embarrassed, and Chan laughs brightly and pulls him in for a hug.

“I know,” he says softly. “That’s the best part.” He sighs. “Grief is weird like that. One second, you’re sure that you’ve made all the progress you can make, and the next—something’s changed again, without anyone meaning it to, without your permission. Things get better on their own accord.” He huffs out a small breath of laughter. “I guess that’s why hope exists, right?”

“Yeah.” Felix holds onto him tight. He feels so stupid now; all his worries are trivial in the face of a heartbreak like this. How could he ever bring up his little troubles to Chan, knowing he’s gone through something like this? Felix doesn’t get to ask Chan to flip his entire life on its head just for him. He doesn’t get to ask Chan for anything. “Sorry for—snooping, I really didn’t mean to. I was—I thought you were using it as a bookmark, only you left your book open…”

Chan laughs. “Oh, it’s alright. You didn’t do it on purpose. It’s not like you went digging through my drawers or something.” He pulls back, reaching up to push some hair off of Felix’s forehead. “And even if you did, I don’t think it would matter. This was the only big secret I was keeping. I don’t have anything left to hide.”

Except me, Felix thinks. You don’t have anything left to hide, except for me.

☼ ☼ ☼

Felix wakes first the next morning. He looks over at Chan, limbs flung haphazardly across the bed, hair messy and all curly from drying overnight, outlines of his features barely visible in the low light. He pushes himself up out of bed and pads, shivering, across the hardwood to the bathroom. The weather is getting colder, and even though Chan’s building has heat, it’s like his bones can feel it, even when he’s indoors.

Maybe I’m getting old, Felix thinks as he flushes the toilet and washes his hands. It makes him giggle.

When he returns to bed, Chan is stirring. His eyes find Felix as he settles back under the covers. “Hi,” he whispers.

“Hi,” Felix replies.

Chan reaches up to cup Felix’s jaw, stroking his thumb over his skin. “Sorry,” he says, “for not telling you about Sana sooner. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

Felix shakes his head. “It’s alright. It’s hard to talk about.” Chan hums. “I do have a question, though.”

“Sure.”

“If you… if you started dating Sana when you were still a teenager, then did you ever, um, with another guy? Before me?” Felix feels clumsy. It’s not that he’s questioning Chan’s choices or his identity, it’s more just that Chan seems like he knows exactly what he’s doing in bed, and Felix doesn’t think any amount of porn can teach you that. And he’s not really sure how to ask Chan how do you fuck so good without being rude. 

Chan laughs. “I had a very not-serious boyfriend when I was a little younger,” he says. “And then, I don’t know, a few years ago I tried putting myself back into the dating scene. I dated anyone I was interested in—gender isn’t really a factor for me—but never for long. There was no connection, and always the looming pressure of commitment, you know? Dating over thirty gets scary. Everyone wants a ring, and I was just trying to figure things out. It wasn’t worth it, so I stopped.”

“Oh,” Felix says, nodding. “I mean—not that it matters to me. I was just curious, ‘cuz, um, you seem like you’ve had practice.”

Chan laughs again, this time loud and with his whole body. “I’ll take that as a compliment, then.”

“Mm,” Felix agrees, grinning. He leans close to kiss Chan, quick and chaste. “Hey, do you have all the stuff for your Hard Conversation Breakfast? I think we deserve a reward for the hard conversations we’ve had.”

“I think I do,” Chan says, nodding. “And I completely agree.” As if on cue, his stomach rumbles. “And so does my tummy,” he adds, giggling. “C’mon, let’s see what we can find.”

Felix makes their coffee while Chan cooks (near-black for Chan, and lots of sugar and cream for Felix). He watches Chan out of the corner of his eye as he waits for the water to boil. Things make more sense now—why Chan seems so solitary, why it felt like Felix didn’t quite understand him. But he understands him now, or at least he’s pretty sure. There’s an ache sitting heavy in his chest, one he doesn’t know how to name. It’s like wanting, and it’s also like despair. And mixed in, without his permission, is hope.

Oh god, Felix thinks, the realization hitting him so hard that he nearly stumbles on his way to retrieving their mugs, oh god. I’m in love.

He clenches his jaw as he pours the coffee, trying to focus on not spilling. But inside, his mind rages. There’s the sweet euphoria that comes with all loves, certainly, but it’s drowned by his fear and the knowing that Chan could never love him back.

He wishes he’d thought of it later, later today after Chan drops him off, where he can lay it all out and process it in peace. As it is, all he can do is try to hide how bad his hands are shaking as he carries their full coffee mugs to the table, as he pulls out utensils and lays them out in front of their seats, as he turns and asks, “Need any help?”

Chan flashes him a glance, smiling gratefully. “No, thank you,” he says, and Felix aches.

As much as he tries to act normal, there’s not much Felix can do against his own heart. I love you, he thinks, watching Chan cut his sausages into bite-sized pieces before handing his plate over. I love you, he thinks as Chan slides into his chair and gives a happy sigh at the sight of his coffee. I love you. Maybe if he thinks it hard enough, Chan will understand.

“This is perfect,” Chan says, gesturing at the coffee cup. “You know me well.”

Felix smiles. I love you. “I’d hope so,” he says. “I’m glad I got it right.”

“So what’s our plan for today?” Chan asks.

Felix shrugs. “Feels like a good day to spend doing nothing.”

“I agree completely,” Chan says, nodding. “Want to find a shitty drama to watch?”

“Oh, I meant nothing like go right back to bed after we eat,” Felix says. 

Chan regards him suspiciously over the rim of his mug. “Sounds like you do have an agenda after all.”

Felix offers him a sly smile. “Maybe. Or we can just cuddle, I’m flexible.” And he’s not just saying it to be cute—he just wants to be close to Chan. He doesn’t really care in what way.

But Chan just laughs. “Nah, you know what they say about great minds thinking alike and all that,” he says. “So I say fuck and then cuddle. We can have it all. Hm?”

“Yeah,” Felix giggles, chasing a piece of egg around his plate with his fork.

So they leave their dishes in the sink and do exactly that. Felix snuggles down under the blankets as Chan runs to the bathroom and gets a couple other things in order. He flops down into bed beside Felix a few moments later, leaning close and pressing kisses to Felix’s jaw.

It’s almost unbearable. Felix breathes him in, the earthy vanilla that is Chan to him now, running his fingers over the strong muscles of his arms, tucking his chin in a little so Chan has no choice but to kiss him on the mouth instead. And Chan kisses him. And Felix aches. 

“Baby, you’re hurting me,” Chan whispers, shaking his arm, and Felix realizes he’s dug his fingers in, so hard he can barely feel his fingertips—clinging, without meaning to, because he doesn’t want to let him go.

“Sorry,” Felix mumbles, releasing him quickly. “I didn’t realize.”

“It’s okay,” Chan soothes. “You want me close is all. I can do close.” He kisses Felix’s forehead, wrapping one of his arms around Felix’s waist. “I’m not going anywhere.”

That’s not true, Felix wants to say. But instead he lets Chan smother him in kisses, give him so much affection he’s drowning in it. It doesn’t matter. Felix doesn’t think it’ll ever be enough. He throws an arm over Chan’s shoulder, scratching lightly down his back while Chan bites a hickey into his chest. He’s got one of his legs slung over both of Felix’s.

“Chan,” Felix says breathlessly. “Oh my god, Chan.”

Chan untangles their limbs, pushes himself up and on top of Felix, spreading his legs so he can sit between them. He smooths his hands down Felix’s stomach, taking the hem of his t-shirt in his hands and pulling up. Felix helps, sitting up a little so Chan can undress him. Next go his shorts and underwear. Chan makes it fair; he tugs his own shirt off next, along with his sweats and underwear, and then they’re both naked, skin brushing skin. Felix looks at Chan, watches him as he runs a hand down his thigh, watches as he looks up, sees Felix looking, and smiles. 

“Toss me the lube?” he asks, nodding at the bottle that he left by his pillow.

Felix scrabbles around for it, tossing it underhand to Chan, who catches it easily. Chan pops the lid, lubing up his fingers and then pressing one to Felix’s entrance. He bends over Felix’s body, pressing gentle kisses to his stomach as he pushes his finger in. He looks up at Felix as he moves his finger, slow so Felix doesn’t get overwhelmed too quickly. Felix runs his hand through Chan’s hair, fingers getting tangled in his soft curls. Chan hums, closing his eyes and leaning into Felix’s touch. 

Something feels different, and Felix isn’t sure that it’s all in his head. Chan rests his cheek against his stomach and fucks first one finger, then two, then three, in and out of Felix, stretching him with practiced hands. It’s almost the same, but the air feels different. There’s something heavier, more fragile, resting between them. Chan uses his free hand to trace random patterns into Felix’s skin. The intimacy of the mundane seems dizzying.

Chan rearranges himself, folding in half and mouthing at the head of Felix’s cock. Felix’s grip tightens in Chan’s hair, and Chan takes this as the go-ahead that it is, sinking down on Felix’s cock while he crams his pinky finger in beside the other three. Felix gasps and moans and tries not to buck his hips up into Chan’s mouth, trembling when Chan finds his prostate.

As soon as he knows he’s loose enough to take Chan’s cock, he’s pushing Chan away. “Fuck, stop, stop, or I’ll come,” he pants. “I don’t wanna come yet, stop.”

Chan acquiesces, releasing him and sitting back on his heels, searching for the lube bottle, which has gotten lost in the crumpled mound of the duvet. “Could just make you come again,” he points out, but Felix shakes his head.

“Too sleepy for that,” he replies, and Chan nods. 

So Chan slicks up his cock instead and eases himself into Felix, all the way until he bottoms out and their bodies are pressed flush to one another. Chan spreads his legs so that he has a knee on either side of Felix’s ass; Felix tucks his knees up and locks his ankles behind Chan’s back as Chan tips forward and settles himself right on top of Felix, nose against his neck and one hand cradling the back of his skull. Felix lets out a soft moan, one of his hands finding Chan’s cheek.

“Good?” Chan asks.

“Good,” Felix replies dreamily.

Chan rolls his hips, one slow, fluid motion and Felix shakes, pleasure washing over his body, making his skin hot and his eyes sting with unshed tears. Chan’s deep inside him, and all Felix can do is stutter out moans as Chan continues to fuck him just like that.

Chan lifts his head up a little so he can kiss Felix properly, and Felix takes his jaw with both hands and holds him there, kissing hungrily, whining into Chan’s mouth. 

“Fuck, baby,” Chan murmurs, knocking their foreheads together as they break apart for a moment. “So eager today, what is it?”

“Want you, daddy,” Felix replies plaintively. “I always want you.”

“But I’m right here,” Chan says. “You already have me.”

“I know,” Felix whispers, and kisses him again before he can say something stupid, like it’s not enough, or I want you but not like this, or I want you in ways I’m not supposed to want you, that I never meant to want you, I love you and I want you to love me too—all true, all damning. Because that’s the thing, the instant this becomes anything more than hooking up, it’s over. And Felix doesn’t want it to be over; he doesn’t want it to ever be over, he wants to keep pretending that it’ll last because he doesn’t know what he’ll do when this is gone.

I love you, he thinks as he kisses Chan fiercely, messy and hot. Chan lets him, just keeps fucking him like that, circling his hips until Felix’s brain slows down, until he doesn’t have to think about any of it any more because he can’t, doesn’t have the space to.

The sun is rising higher in the sky behind the blackout curtains, casting blinding lines of light across the floor and the bed where there are cracks. The room is warm and full with its quietness. Chan holds Felix close to his body, even when they get sweaty, even when Felix’s cock smears precome across his belly.

“Baby,” Chan breathes. “So fuckin’ good.”

“Daddy,” Felix whimpers back. Even just a month or two ago, he would have laughed at the idea that slow, lazy sex would get him like this, would make him feel anything other than a little bored. The Felix from January would have rolled his eyes at the thought.

But so much has changed since then. 

Chan gives him another kiss on his jaw, and then pushes himself up a little so that he has more room to move. He reaches down for Felix’s cock; Felix shivers when he takes it in his hand, stroking him in time with his thrusts, and speeding up little by little, then back down again so Felix doesn’t get overstimulated. It’s so good—Chan knows his body so well now, knows the signs that it's starting to turn from pleasure to discomfort, and relents, waiting for him to settle back down into the mattress before picking up the pace again.

“Beautiful, baby,” Chan says softly, and Felix chokes out a moan. “You’re so beautiful.”

“I—I’m—” Felix tries, he tries to speak, but it’s hard when Chan is lulling him to a sort of lust-filled stupor. “Daddy, ‘m gonna come.” It comes out unsteady, syllables just barely fitting in around his breath.

Chan thumbs at his slit in response with a smile. It’s not as sharp as Felix thinks he meant it to be, the only thing that betrays his fatigue. “Gonna come?” he repeats. “Lemme see, baby.”

Felix gasps, rocking his hips up into Chan’s fist, and comes with a little whimper, watching helplessly as his cock spills his sticky white release over Chan’s pretty fingers, dripping down onto his stomach and mixing with the glistening pool of precome that had gathered there. Chan toys with his slit again, and has the audacity to laugh when the pressure makes some of it shoot up Felix’s chest.

“Like you’re squirting,” Chan murmurs, clearly pleased. Felix only moans shakily as his orgasm subsides and leaves him feeling weak and punched-out, limbs uncooperative and unstable.

Now Chan leans in again, even though Felix is messy. He presses his tongue to a drop of come on Felix’s chest, and cleans him up like that while he fucks him, harder now as he chases his own release. His lips and tongue feel so good against Felix’s skin that it almost distracts him from the slight discomfort of overstimulation.

“Daddy,” Felix slurs, toes curling from the way Chan’s still hitting his prostate. “Daddy, daddy, hurts.”

“I’ll be quick,” Chan forces out, muffled against Felix’s chest, “I promise—”

Felix lets out a soft surprised noise as he feels Chan’s cock twitch inside him, flooding him with wet heat. Chan gasps out moans, pumping his cock in and out shallowly as he rides out his orgasm, breath hot on Felix’s skin. 

Chan pulls out as soon as he’s done, dropping his full body weight onto Felix, which Felix doesn’t really mind. He does mind the fact that he can feel Chan’s come leaking out of him, but that can wait, too, he supposes.

Still, he says, “Your sheets are gonna stain.”

Chan huffs. “I have stain remover for a reason.”

It’s a pretty fair argument, so Felix just hums and wraps his arms around Chan, rubbing his back.

“You’re right, though,” Chan says after a moment. “This isn’t going to be comfortable for much longer.”

He pushes himself up and off of Felix, clambering to his feet and offering Felix a hand to help him up, too. They strip the bed; Chan takes it to the laundry machine while Felix goes to clean himself up.

By the time he’s emerged from the bathroom again, Chan is already almost done putting down fresh sheets. He’s fluffing the pillows, and the crease between his brows betrays him—he’s lost in thought about something. Felix can probably guess what.

And for one moment, Felix looks at Chan and sees him in a new sort of light: thirty-five year old Teacher Bang, a melancholy widower who makes music because it’s what keeps him alive. Who’s still around looking for a reason to stay because he doesn’t have anything else, because he stayed so his little brother wouldn’t lose him, and then by the time his brother wasn’t so little anymore, it had already become a habit. Who is kind and friendly by nature, but incredibly lonely because he doesn’t know how to do anything about it. 

But then he turns, and catches sight of Felix, and he becomes Felix’s Chan again, his Channie-hyung. The years melt off of his face at the hint of his smile, growing when Felix smiles back. The hope shines in his eyes, bringing with it a bright warmth. And all those other things are still there, under the surface, but they’re not him. They’re just a part of him. 

“What?” Chan asks softly, and Felix realizes he’s rooted to the spot, one step out of the bathroom, staring.

I love you, Felix thinks. “Nothing,” he says instead, forcing himself to move, to walk to the bed and help button up the duvet cover.

“Okay.” Chan accepts it with a shrug, giving him a kiss on the forehead when he’s close enough to reach. He scoots down under the covers and holds out his arms to Felix. And Felix aches. 

[youarejesting]

Sly like a...? Part 9

[Master list] [Sly Master List] Beta: n/a (at the moment) Rating: All Pairing: Hybrid!BTS x FailedHybrid!Reader Genre: Hybrid au, fluff, action, adventure, angst, drama, slice of life. Some marked chapters will contain mature/smut scenes, BUT they will not have plot in those scenes and are 100% skippable without losing your place in the story. Words: 1.5k

Summary: Human’s strive to be better, faster and stronger looking to animal DNA. Thus Hybrids are born. As the rise for designer and Pedigree Hybrids increase, so do the failed attempts. There is one species scientists are unsuccessful in creating, but, folklore says they have been here all along, hiding and blending in with the humans for many millennia. How clever they are.

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Tonight you had decided to ask Hoseok what he wanted to eat for dinner. A quick knock on his always-open door and a peek inside showed him sitting on his bed. With his arms wrapped around his legs and his chin resting on his knees he looked young. He was staring forlornly at the wall, perhaps you thought he was feeling a little homesick. The city was much different from what he was used to. 

“Hoseok, hey?” You sat beside him the scent of fresh pine on his warm-toned skin. Waving your hand within his line of sight in an effort to gain his attention. The deer blinked, giving you a bright smile and a cheery laugh. 

“Sorry, I was lost in thought?” He straightened out his legs. You patted the soft comforter in front of you. 

“Shuffle your butt over here,” you spoke softly. He continued to face the wall and shuffled over, you pulled him to lay back against you, “Are you feeling homesick honey?”

“Yeah, I guess I miss nature. It’s just, it’s so bare” he muttered looking around his room, a desk with a laptop, a bed, and bedside tables he sniffed wiping his eyes on his sleeve. “I miss it.”

“How about we get you some plants as many as you want, to fill the room, if you really want we can tear up the carpet and lay down grass instead,” Hoseok laughed as you described a tall plant by his desk flowers on his bedside tables and hanging pots from the ceiling. “You can call them, that’s why I got you this,”

He nodded taking the phone you held out to him, he dialed a number and placed it to his ear. “Hello?” 

“Hello my sister,” he said, relaxing as he heard the familiar voice. 

“Hobi!” She called through the phone, which seemed to cause a commotion on the other end of the phone as many voices could be heard, “what is it like in the city? Are they treating you nicely? Have you been eating?”

“It’s really nice and everyone is so fun and nice and we eat lots of food together,” he cheered. The family was talking happily and you grinned scratching Hoseok's head happily laughing with him. 

“We are going to decorate his room with plants,” you assured his family that he was being treated well, “oh! tonight is your choice for dinner so what would you like?”

“Unnie, Hobi likes Japchae and meat,” his sister giggled over the phone and you leaned around Hoseok and grinned. 

“What you think Hobi-ah? Sounds good?” You used their nickname teasingly but in hopes, he would feel more at home and at ease around you. 

“Mm, Hobi wants japchae!” He said cutely, making you laugh, you gently pushed his firm and warm body until he was sitting up enough to slip out from behind him. 

“Alright, you keep talking I will round up Jin and Yoongi and we will get to work cooking,” bidding your goodbyes to Hoseok’s family, you headed out to the kitchen. Yoongi was tying up his apron and Jin was playing video games with the youngest of the group. 

You decided against asking Jin as he seemed truly engrossed in playing his video games. Sorting out ingredients and finding a recipe Yoongi and yourself shuffled around the kitchen. There were moments where you reached over where he was cutting vegetables and your shoulders would brushed and just for a second you would hear a small purr. 

Jin lost to Jungkook and pouted, scuffing his slippers as he entered the kitchen, “Ya! The game likes Jungkook better!” He whined, with a grin on your face you pulled him into a hug. Arms wrapping around his tiny waist as you buried your face in the soft sweater he was wearing, it smelt sweet like figs and his ears twitched. 

“I am just happy you tried your best,” you praised him, as you felt the vibrating chittering in his chest almost like a purr but more like a rattle. He nuzzled your hair breathing in your scent. You got him to join in with the cooking. Your instructions interrupted by Taehyung who was complaining about being hungry.

Sliding between the two hybrids to get past, you got some ingredients from the fridge. You sat at the breakfast bar mixing the ingredients in a big metal bowl. Taehyung had been your neighbor for at least five years now and you knew his favorite foods. 

“Try this and tell me how it is?” you held a ball of rice out in a plastic gloved hand and he leaned in eating it. His eyes lighting up. He gave a deep mmh-mm of approval and his tail was smacking Jungkook in the thigh, the young boy looking at the offending appendage and swatted it away.

“Me too, noona” He smiled pointing to his mouth and you popped one of the Jumeokbap onto his tongue. He chewed it happily his cheeks puffed full, a purr filling the room loudly. You turned to Jin offering him a taste, he praised it with a thumbs up.

Carrying the bowl around to Yoongi you smiled, “You want to try one Yoongi?” He didn’t reply but leaned his head towards you eyes on the food mouth opened.

He let you put one in his mouth, and you pressed your ear to Yoongi’s shoulder, his purrs were definitely the quietest out of all the felines in the house, they were ones that vibrated deeply in his chest but didn’t make too much noise unless it was really quiet and you listened intently.

“I smell tuna!” Jimin grinned bounding over his long legs barely touched the ground and he smiled, “Me love, one for me”

You were trying to roll one but he had started rubbing his face on your jaw and neck impatiently, as he purred sweetly, “I am making it as fast as I can,” the words barely came out through your giggles his soft hair tickling your neck, his ears twitching at the sound.

“Here try this one,” he leaned in wrapping his mouth around the rice ball his eyes never leaving yours. “Is it good?”

“Mm very good” he hummed standing behind you his hands wrapped around your waist as you made one for Namjoon. He held out his hand and ate it, nodding before awkwardly shuffling around waiting for the food to finish. Hoseok exited his room smiling brightly, it seemed the conversation with his family had eased his loneliness.

Namjoon at dinner was a little scary all he could see was food and his deep purrs were so loud that it almost sounded like thunder rumbling outside. You brought up the question at dinner and watched them all choke on their food. 

“It is only natural, I am just wondering when and if you know your rut schedule so I can put it on the calendar and if you need any assistance during this time we can look for a suitable companion or items that can relief your needs.”

Jungkook was bright red and Jimin thought honestly, “I don’t need assistance but if when I am not in my room we could cuddle,”

“I also do not require assitance I will just be in my room,” Namjoon said with a small reassuring smile.

“I have never had a rut,” Jungkook said his cheeks never losing their rosey colour, “They gave us a hormone blocker every six months so we would behave, we just got really annoyed”

You nodded they all seemed to agree that they would be fine on their own in their room but you thought you would look into somethings as a fail safe. After your goodnights to each of the boys giving them a sweet kiss on their foreheads, you sat on Jungkook’s bed and told him more of the stories of the fox.

“In Korean legends, the Kumiho is often described as a terrifying and sad creature that strives to become a real human. It is said that a Kumiho can turn into a real human by eating 100 human livers or by marrying a human and living with them for 100 days without their true identity being discovered. There are many more theories on how they came to be but they…”

Once everyone was tucked in, you spent the night in the lounge. Searching the web for eligible companions and items that could assist the seven young men. You hoped they were all settling in nicely. A figure appeared in the hall, ringing his tail in his hands, you gave a soft smile, surprised as the figure came closer.

It wasn’t Jimin as you had first thought, it was Jungkook, you walked him back to bed and he whispered, “I am nervous what if I do something bad during my rut?”

“I know your true nature Jungkook, I know you don’t want to hurt any of the boys or even myself and when the rut passes well then you will be back to the old Koo we know and love.”

“Can you sleep in my room tonight?” He said and seeing your apprehension he added, “Just until I fall asleep?”

“Alright just until you fall asleep.” Not knowing how exhausted you were and how the bed was so soft and enticing. You had fallen asleep almost instantly, letting Jungkook pull you into his arms and nuzzle your shoulder.

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[1plus1kiyoomi]

Chapter 6: Fan

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 “And that’s how you cook rice,” Kita says as he puts the pot in the rice cooker. You nod, embarrassed. You settle back on the floor. hiding your face from the two boys as they talk about how their friends. Osamu’s phone starts ringing so he answers it and a loud voice speaks.

“Bro! (Y/N) really lives with Shinsuke?” The caller says in awe so you look at Osamu. He turns the camera to you and you wave your hands, mouthing a hi. “Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!”

“Aran, calm down. You act like it’s your first time meeting a celebrity,” Osamu tells the person on the line.

“I can talk to him if he wants to,” you offer to Osamu which Aran hears loud and clear. You hear him shuffle around before Osamu gives you the phone. You greet him with a smile, forgetting about the rice incident. “Hello, Aran-san. Is that right?”

“Yes. I’m a big fan! Actually my whole team is! We watch your vlogs on our breaks,” Aran rambles, making you smile. Interacting with fans is something that helps you cope up with your stress, and knowing that you got a group of athletes as your fans, makes you feel overwhelmed, but in a good way.

“Really? It’s nice to hear that you enjoy my videos. I’ll upload more content soon,” you reply, the smile not leaving your face.

“Who are you talking to?” You hear someone ask from the background.

“(Y/N),” Aran replies excitedly.

“You might have gone crazy,” the other man replies.

“No! I’m serious! Look!” Aran flips his phone to who he’s with, revealing you on the screen. You awkwardly bow then wave.

“It is her! How did you-? Does she have a fan event or something! Hello, (Y/N). I just finished watching the vlog you uploaded yesterday,” the man tells you, coming in close to the camera. “I’m Gao!”

“Hi, Gao-san! It’s nice meeting you!” You greet him cheerfully and the three of you continue to talk.

Kita and Osamu just watch you talk to them. They feels like an online fan signing is happening in front of them. The two of them continue to talk on their own. Minutes later, Osamu hears the rice cooker’s alarm go off so he stands up and gets the rice, leaving you and Kita alone on the table.

You are still talking to the boys, which have now turned into a whole team.  Kita observes you carefully. The way you smile on the phone as if they’re really in front you is making him feel weird inside. And you’re really listening to what they’re saying, which is making that already weird feeling even weirder.

‘Am I becoming a fan?’ Kita asks himself, unsure of what he’s feeling.

“The rice is here,” Osamu announces as he puts the pot at the side.

“I have to leave now,” you tell the men in front of you. “It was fun talking to all of you. And I promise to go to one of your games one day. Bye!” You wave at the phone. You hear a chorus of good byes before you end it. You give the phone back to Osamu, apologizing to him for using his phone.

“It’s okay. You seemed like you were enjoying talking to them,” he remarks, sitting across you.

“Yeah. I love talking to fans,” you say confidently, smiling at Osamu. And there is it again, the weird feeling Kita is new to.

‘Maybe I am becoming a fan,’ he tells himself, getting rice from the pot. “How much rice do you want?” Kita suddenly asks you. Your mind short circuits from his question. It’s not a big deal and even back home, someone does it for you but since Kita is the one doing it the rice feels extra special.

“I think that’s enough,” you answer as he shows you the bowl of rice. He hands it to you and you accept it with both of your hands.

The three of you eat and talk. You ask them questions about their friendship, and you learn that Kita used to play volleyball. You also find out that Kita stopped studying after high school so he can provide for his grandmother. The more you know about him, the more you start to like him despite being the complete opposite of your ideal type.

You see Osamu out while Kita offers to do the dishes. As Osamu’s car leaves,  you hear a dog bark. You look around the parking area, searching for the source of sound. You spot white fur by the bushes so you slowly approach it. Suddenly, a small white dog jumps on you, making you yelp in surprise. After you’ve regained composure, you properly hold the dog.

“Hi, there, little...” You lift him up and check its genital. “Boy. You’re a little boy. Are you lost?” You nuzzle your nose on its nose, shaking the dogs body slowly. You take a better look at him.

He has a puffy long coat which is snowy white, but his ears are grey. He has amber eyes and a very smiley face. He looks like an extra tiny fox. He’s small so you assume that he’s a puppy. You look for a collar or any tag, but you don’t see any. You can’t say that it’s Kita’s neighbor’s dog, because he doesn’t have one. The closest house to his is at least a 5 minute drive.

You stare at him intently, wondering why he looks familiar. Then you finally know who he looks like.

“You look like, Kita,” you coo, bopping its nose. It licks your nose in return so you giggle. “Want to meet Kita?” He barks in response, which you take as a yes. You carry him inside excitedly, not taking in mind about Kita’s reaction to the strange furry animal.

You finally step in the kitchen where Kita is and you proudly show him your new found friend. Kita drops the fork he was washing, totally frozen on his spot. Why are you carrying a dog in his house? Where did you even get that dog?

“What’s that?” Kita asks you, picking up the fork he dropped.

“It’s a dog!” You answer with a proud smile. “Isn’t he cute?”

“Where did you get that thing?” He looks so horrified and grossed out. If anything, he’s ready to throw the dog out of his house.

“I saw him outside. He doesn’t have a collar or any tag on so I brought him inside,” you reply with an innocent tone so he takes a deep breath in.

“What makes you think you can just bring any animal in my house?” His voice is louder than a while ago so you frown. “Bring it back to wherever you found it.”

“No! Look at him! He’s so small! What if a car runs over it?” You gasp, hugging the dog even tighter. Kita looks at you in disgust.

“That’s his destiny,” he remarks but you ignore him. “This is my house, you know. And I don’t want animals in here.” You and the dog stare at him with puppy eyes but he just gags. “You take it out of my house now.”

“But-”

“No more buts. My house, my rules,” he tells you firmly, but you don’t back down.

“Can we let him stay inside just for tonight? I promise I’ll find him a home by tomorrow!” You beg him.

“Nope.”

“Please, Kita!”

“No.”

“Please. Please. Please. Pretty please.”

“Still no.”

“It’s just for tonight. Right, boy?” You ask the puppy and he barks. “See? He’s a good boy.” Kita groans, defeated. You’re even more persistent than the twins, and those two are tenacious as hell.

“Fine. As long as it doesn’t make a mess and noise, he can stay. Just for tonight. I’ll be the one bringing him to the compound tomorrow,” Kita finally agrees but you don’t like his idea.

“Compound? No! I’ll find him a good home myself,” you argue once again. Kita sharply looks at you, but you don’t seem moved or afraid by it. “I’m searching for a home now.” You put the dog on the ground and run to your room to post a picture of him online.

The furry animal and Kita stare at each other for a long time. “Why does he look like someone I know?” Kita questions, tilting his head to the side. The dog mirrors his action. “Osamu when he had grey hair? Or that guy from MSBY?”

“I’ve found a name for him!” You shout, sliding your feet back to the kitchen.

“You’re supposed to look for an owner, not a name,” Kita snaps at you. You ignore his words and pick the dog up and stretch your arms towards Kita’s direction, presenting him the dog.

“Rice. Let’s name him Rice,” you state and he turns around, completely in disagreement with your plans. You put Rice down and move closer to Kita. “It’s a cute name! It suits him. He even looks like you! Rice is just the most suitable name.” Kita grimaces at how you compared him to a dog.

“You’ve only been here for a few hours, and in that few hours you’ve made porridge and brought a strange dog in.” Kita faces you, the distance between the two of you small but safe.

“I’m sorry...” You lower your head, frowning. You hear him sigh so you look back up anxiously.

“I’ll go to the vet tomorrow and see if he’s chipped and has an owner. If he doesn’t, he can stay here. But you need to take care of him,” Kita tells you, giving in to your pleads. ‘Why do I feel like I have a child?’

Out of excitement, you wrap your arms around his waist, hugging him. Once you’ve realized what you’ve done, you pull away from him then run back to your room, Rice following you.

“Why did I do that?” You groan, your face buried on your pillow. Rice barks and you see him sit across you. You smile widely, a blush creeping on your cheeks as you remember the hug again. “He’s so warm!” You squeal like a teenage girl. You start rolling on the floor, muffling your squeals and shrieks on the pillow. “He smells even better up close.”

Meanwhile, Kita is back to washing the dishes, but is completely distracted. He can’t stop thinking about your hug. The thought of your hug turns into a smile. Then, it becomes your voice. After that, it’s your face. ‘She’s cute.’ He finds himself smiling while washing the dishes.

He finally realizes what the weird feeling is.

‘Do I like her?’

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Facts:

Dogs noses are wet to help absorb scent chemicals

Three dogs survived the Titanic sinking

Pomeranians weren’t always so little. They used to weigh as much as 20 to 30 pounds before being bred down in size by Queen Victoria of England.

Despite their small stature, they are famous for thinking they can take on big dogs with their little bark. This makes socializing a Pomeranian with other dogs important in order to avoid aggressive behavior.

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[canislupus-exe]

Fits of Passion and Idiocy | eddie munson

>> gif credit to @/munsuneddie on tumblr <<

CONTAINS SPOILERS

fandom | Stanger Things

character | Eddie Munson

reader | she/her (he ver.)(they ver.)

requested | anonymous

warnings | brief mention of drugs, canon character death, fandom typical blood & violence, mild angst

word count | 14,814

keys | (Y/n) = Your name, (L/n) = Last name, (f/c) = favorite color, (D/n) = Dog's name

summary | eddie fix it fic PLEASE im begging literally you an do anything you want just fix it my heart was BROKEN

editor | @feliscatus-exe

>> back to prev <<

Keep reading

“So, uh, speaking of monsters, uh, Lucas has to do his, uh… balls-in-laundry-baskets game. So…” Dustin trails off, chuckling. “He’s not gonna be able to make it to Hellfire tonight.” His attempt to lighten the mood while talking about such a thing seems to have no sway on Eddie.

“And I know there’s no way we can beat your sadistic campaign without him. So, me and mike, we were talking, shooting the shit, and we were thinking that ma-maybe we- we might-”

“Postpone.” Mike cuts his rambling short.

“Postpone!?” The rest of the Hellfire Club shouts in anger. They begin talking over each other, most of their sentences overlapping and inaudible.

“Shut up!” Eddie shouts over everyone else. Gareth sighs and swallows his frustration.

“You saying Sinclair’s been taken in by the dark side?” Eddie asks.

“Uh. Something like that.” Mike replies.

“Something like that?” Eddie hisses as he throws a pretzel at him.

“Jesus Christ.” Dustin whispers, his voice high-pitched and somewhat trembling.

“And rather than find a sub for him, you want… you want to postpone ‘The Cult of Vecna’?” He asks, another pretzel in his hand. Whether for eating or throwing, they’re unsure.

“I… I don’t want to postpone it. We don’t want to postpone it. It’s just that, you know, most of the subs will be at the championship game.” Mike begins to plead his case, but Eddie stands up from his chair halfway through his sentence.

“Oh, it’s the championship game?” He asks.

“Yeah?” He replies, his words coming out as more of a question than an answer.

“Can I level with you? Jeff graduates this year. Gareth’s got, what? A year and a half? Me, I am army-crawling my way toward a D in Ms. O’Donnell’s. If I don’t blow her final, I’m gonna walk that stage next month, I’m gonna look principal Higgins dead in the eye, I’m gonna flip him the bird, I’m gonna snatch that diploma, and I’m gonna run like hell outta here.” He’d made his way around the entire table by the end of his spiel, pumping up the theatrics as he always did, which made Dustin laugh.

“Didn’t you say that last year?” Gareth asks.

“And the year before that?” Jeff chimes in. Eddie half jogs back to the table.

“Yeah, yeah, and I was full of shit. This year’s different. This year is my year. I can feel it. ‘86 baby.” He relays with a shit-eating grin—the rest of the group chuckles.

“You know what that means?” Eddie asks. Dustin and Mike shake their heads.

“It means you boys are the future of Hellfire. I knew it the moment I saw you. You sat on that table right over there, looking like… looking like two little lost sheep.” He says, leaning down to the boys' level with his hands on either of their shoulders.

“You were wearing a Weird Al T-shirt, which I thought was brave,” Eddie says to Dustin.

“Thank you.” He replies, his voice hardly even a whisper.

“Mike, you were wearing whatever shit your mommy bought you from goddamn Gap,” Eddie says to Mike, causing them to laugh much louder than before. At the moment their guards were down, Eddie pulls them up from their chairs by their shirts, forcing them to walk alongside him. 

“And we showed you that school didn’t have to be the worst years of your lives, right?” He asks.

“No,” Mike replies.

“Okay, no, no. Well, I’m here to tell you that there are other little lost sheepies out there who need help. Who need you. And all you guys gotta do is get your Bo-Peeps on and go and find one.” He says, giving them one final shove away from the table.

>><<

Mike and Dustin groan as they sit on the brick wall surrounding the outside benches.

“I hate high school,” Mike says. Dustin grunts in response. As he looks away from Mike, he notices something in the distance.

“Hey hey look, two o’clock.” He says. Mike looks in the opposite direction of two o’clock, seeing as he’d never learned what that meant. Dustin rolled his eyes and pointed.

“Over there dipshit.” He said. They watched as a (f/c) backpack with a D20 keychain on the zipper disappeared into the library. He looked at Mike as Mike looked at him, presumably having the same thought. They both stood up and rushed toward the building, throwing the doors open fervently.

“Where did she go?” Dustin whisper-shouted.

“I-I don’t know Dustin! Maybe we should look for her in the aisles.” Mike replied. Dustin sighed as he walked further into the library, checking behind every shelf for any sign of life. Finally, he’d found you, all the way in the back where you were putting books back on the shelf. 

“You!” He shouted. You jumped, so startled by the loud outburst that you dropped the book you were holding. You bent over to pick it up and turned around to see who was bothering you. You looked down at who you could only assume was a freshman.

“Please keep it down. Library policy. Do you need help finding a book or something?” You asked. A second freshman rounded the corner and walked to stand next to the first.

“You play DnD.” The one with curly hair stated, almost matter-of-factly. You raised your eyebrows.

“Um… No. I don’t.” You replied as you turned away from him, starting to put the books back once again.

“Then why do you have a D20 keychain?” He asked. You sighed.

“Because I used to play.” You said.

“So you know how?” He asked.

“Well, yeah, but the last time I played was like four years ago. Plus, why do you care? I don’t even know you.” You replied.

“I’m Dustin Henderson and this is Mike Wheeler. We’re part of the Hellfire club and we need someone to sub in for the campaign tonight. So will you?” He asks, his voice desperate.

“No.” You reply simply.

“W-What? Seriously?”

“Yeah. Seriously. Truly. No.” You say, turning around to face him. Dustin looks at Mike, silently asking him for help but Mike only shrugs in response. Dustin sighs and turns back to you. He notices the school ID around your neck and reads your name, before deciding to take a page out of Eddie’s book.

“Can I level with you for a moment (Y/n)?” He asks. You raise your eyebrows at the use of your name.

“We need you, so I’m willing to sweeten the deal on your end.” He says. You scoff. 

“Dude, you know nothing about me. How could you possibly ‘sweeten the deal’?” You ask, putting air quotes around what he’d said.

“Well everybody loves movies! I can make it so you don’t have to pay to rent a movie for the next month.” He replies. You raise your eyebrows.

“Oh yeah? And how exactly are you gonna do that Dustin Henderson?” You say, leaning on the cart of books.

“I have a buddy who works at Family Video. He’ll waive your fee for the next month, I swear.”

“And if he doesn’t?”

“I’ll pay!” He shouts. 

“Shhh!” You shout back at him.

“Sorry. Sorry.” He whispers. You roll your eyes.

“So you’ll get your buddy to waive my movie rental fee for the next month if I play DnD with you for one night?” You ask. Dustin nods. You think for a second before sighing. 

“Alright fine. But I swear to God if you try to pull a fast one on me, I’ll make your life hell. And I mean it, kid.” You say, poking your finger into his chest.

“Yes! You won’t regret this (Y/n)! Come on Mike!” He says as he bolts out the library doors with his friend in tow.

“You think Steve will let her rent for free?” Mike asked.

“Who cares? We have found a sub for tonight and that’s all that matters.”

>><<

The leader of the Hellfire Club sits on his throne. Hands folded together as he eyes you standing next to Dustin and Mike.

“Absolutely not.” He says after a pause of silence.

“You asked for a sub. We delivered.” Dustin said as he motioned toward you.

“This is Hellfire Club. Not Sports club.” He says, pointing at your Indiana Hoosiers T-shirt. You rolled your eyes.

“It was the only shirt I had clean. Plus, it’s comfortable you elitist piece of shit.”

“My, my. The sports fan knows big words.” Eddie replies, eliciting chuckles from his friends. He stands up from his throne, walking toward you.

“So, what’s your name, sports fan?”

“(Y/n) (L/n).” You reply. He laughs.

“So you’re the girl who works in the library.” You scoff and turn to Dustin.

“Wow, intuitive, isn’t he?” You say, earning a laugh from his friends. He turns and glares at them, shutting them up immediately.

“What’s your class and level? Level one half-orc?” He asks, once again earning laughter from his buddies.

“My name is Akzire the Wretched. And I’m a chaotic neutral Tiefling Fighter, level 15. And I will valiantly protect my party members by beheading any monster you throw my way with my scimitar. And I will brandish their head for all to see as a token of my victory. So, we gonna do this, or are you gonna keep pestering me like you’re a little girl in need of attention?” You ask. The five members stare at you as you face off with Eddie, shocked at how effortlessly you’ve challenged him. They wait in stunned silence, but after a moment, he breaks out into a cheeky smile and offers you his hand to shake.

“Welcome to Hellfire.” He says. You roll your eyes one last time, but with a smile, as you shake his hand.

>><<

You sit at the table, listening intently as Eddie relays his campaign onto the club.

“The hooded cultists chant, ‘Hail Lord Vecna. Hail Lord Vecna.’ They turn to you and remove their hoods. You recognize most of them from Makbar. But there is one you do not recognize, his skin shriveled, desiccated. And something else. He is not only missing his left arm, but his left eye!” He shouts, covering his own with his hand. The party erupts in protests, strings of “no”s and “come on man”s.

“Vecna’s dead!” Jeff shouts.

“He was killed by Kas!” Mike yells, to which Eddie smirks at.

“So it was thought, my friends. So it was thought. But Vecna… Lives!” He exclaims, placing the figurine on its podium with unmatched vigor. He resigns back to his throne.

“You are scared. You’re tired. You are injured. Do you flee Vecna and his cultists? Or stand your ground and fight?” He asks. Mike reclines in his seat as Dustin ponders the options.

“Come on.” Eddie prods. After a few seconds, he speaks up.

“I say we fight. To the death.” He states.

“To the death.” Mike agrees, nodding his head. They look toward you. You sigh.

“Fuck it. To the death.” You reply. The rest of the table breaks out into smiles.

“To the death! To the death! To the death! To the death! To the death! To the death! To the death!” Everyone chants while slamming their palms down. Eddie’s large smile is plastered on his face as he watches.

“To the death!” Dustin screams as he pumps his fists in the air. You grab the dice and roll, watching as they slide over the surface of the table. They all shout in triumph, some even clapping. It’s Mike's turn to roll, but it lands on 8, a miss. Eddie pushes over his figurine and the club begins to groan in protest. Jeff rolls. Miss. Miss after miss after miss and Eddie begins to laugh maniacally.

“Time out time out!” One of the members calls. You all step away from the table and huddle up.

“Guys, I hate to say this, but we've got to flee,” Gareth says, clear tiredness lurking in his tone.

“I concur.” The person who called the time-out replies.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but didn’t we just agree on ‘to the death’?” You asked.

“That wasn’t literal,” Gareth replies.

“Vecna just decimated us. We can’t kill him with two players.” Jeff argues. You sigh and turn to Dustin, who’s already on the defense.

“You too? He only has 15 hit points left. Don’t be pussies.” He practically growls.

“Pussies? Really? Cause we’re not delusional.”

“Delusional? How about ‘not cowards’.” You retort.

“Hey!” Eddie calls from across the room, grabbing everyone’s attention and breaking the huddle.

“If I may interject gentlemen, Akzire the Wretched. Whilst I respect the passion, you’d be wise to take Gareth the Great’s concern to heart. There is no shame in running. Don’t try to be heroes. Not today, ‘kay?” He says that cheeky shit-eating grin back on his face. It would make you furious if part of you didn’t find it so cute. Dustin holds up a finger.

“One sec.” He says before reforming the huddle circle.

“What do you think Mike?” He asks.

“How many hit points do you and Akzire have left?”

“Twelve.” Both you and Dustin proclaim in unison.

“It’s risky as hell… But you’re the ones on the battlefield. So it’s your call.” Mike says. You sigh and look at Dustin.

“What do you say Akzire the Wretched?” He asks. You smile.

“Do you even have to ask?” You reply. A moment of silence hangs over the Hellfire Club as Dustin contemplates.

“Screw it.” He finally mutters, pulling away from the huddle.

“Let’s kill this son of a bitch.” He states. Everyone approaches the table.

“The chances of success are 20-to-1,” Jeff says. Dustin holds up his finger.

“Never tell me the odds. Give me the D20.” He demands, holding his open palm out. Eddie picks up the die with that damn smile painted on his face and tosses it toward him. He catches it and holds his hands over his shoulder, shaking it vigorously. You watch with bated breath as he tosses it. It rolls and rolls and rolls until finally… 11.

“That's! A! Miss!” Eddie calls out, shaking his head after every word.

“Shit! Shit” Dustin shouts, and in his anger, he knocks one of the soda cans off the table. But now, you were up. The entire game hinged on your role, and you could feel every bit of pressure as you picked up the die. You closed your eyes and shook them in your hands, feeling the intense stares on you as you did so.

“Please!” You could hear Gareth shout beside you.

“Come on!” Dustin called out. But their words fell on unlistening ears. You were too focused on the cool feeling of the dice gently hitting the palms that encased it. Finally, without thinking about it, you released it. Watching with unmatched intensity as it rolled, the quiet clacking against the wooden table sounded immeasurable in magnitude. And then, it reached the end of its road. No more cascading down the table. It stopped. And it landed with the 20 side facing up.

“Crit hit!” You shouted, the rest of the club exploding in cheers alongside you.

“What? What?” Eddie shouted in disbelief, laughing and clapping his hands.

“That’s why we play!” He said, bending over and extending his arms, almost as if he was presenting your victory to someone. You smiled, much brighter than you had in a long time. Maybe this Hellfire thing wasn’t so bad after all.

>><<

You whistled as you pulled your car into the parking lot of the Family Video, double-checking the address Dustin had written down for you. It seemed like it was the right one so you put your car in park and gathered your keys and wallet. As you were doing so, you saw Dustin rush into the store, a redheaded girl following right behind him. What perfect timing. 

Nobody paid you any mind as you walked into the store, perusing their many isles of movies, searching for something that may come of interest to you. Dustin was behind the counter with the redhead you saw earlier and two people you vaguely recognized from school. 

You shuffled through the shelves closest to the front counter. It was by pure happenstance that you heard their conversations. Dustin, along with the two girls you didn't know were all on the phone, and it sounded like they were talking about Eddie, meanwhile, the older guy was cheesing up a customer with some romcom, which you couldn’t help but roll your eyes at.

“Hey, guys, I might have a lead.” The redhead called out as she hung up the phone.

“Seriously?” Dustin asked as he turned around in his chair to look at her.

“Yeah. Apparently, Eddie gets drugs from some guy named Reefer Rick, and sometimes Eddie crashes there.” She replies. You whistled as you approach the counter, having decided which movies you wanted to take home. 

“Now that is a name I haven’t heard in a minute,” You say, setting your items down.

“(Y/n), what are you doing here?” Dustin asks. You shrug and push your tapes toward the worker.

“Cashing in on the sweet deal Dustin gave me to play DnD with him.” You reply. This statement catches the older guy's interest and he walks over.

“Wait wait wait. What’s she talking about Dustin?” He asks. 

“Shit. Now, before you get mad at me Steve, I was desperate.”

“Dustin. What. Did. You. Do.” He demands, dropping his palms on the counter. Dustin sighs and closes his eyes.

“I may or may not have told her she could get movies here without having to pay the rental fee.” He says, getting the words out as fast as he could.

“You did what?!” Steve asks. You smile and lean your head on your palm, which you lean on the counter.

“For a month.” You interject. Steve looks at you and then at Dustin.

“For a month?!” He shouts. Dustin rolls his eyes.

“H-Honestly Steve it’s not that big of a deal. You can just-”

“Not that big of a deal? Not that big of a deal!? You have the nerve to- to-to-”

“Pimp you out?” You suggest.

“Pimp me out! Thank you (Y/n). And then tell me it’s not a big deal. Who do you think-”

“Guys shut up!” The redhead silenced them. They did so without question and she turned to you.

“You said you hadn’t heard that name for a while. Reefer Rick?” She asks. You nod.

“I used to hang at his place and get high before he got busted.” You reply, tracing your finger along the cover of the VHS on the counter.

“You smoke?” Steve asks, obviously perplexed by this fact. You shrugged.

“There ain’t exactly much else to do in this shithole town.” You reply.

“But that means you know where he lives? That-That’s great! Get me a pen so I can write it down!” Dustin says, searching for a piece of paper. 

“Now hold on there Dustin. I’m not just gonna give you the address. What kind of a person would that make me?” You reply innocently, but before he can speak, you continue.

“At least… not for free.” 

“Jesus Christ (Y/n) seriously? Now is not the time to dick around.” Dustin practically yells at you. 

“Who’s he gonna pimp out this time?” The older girl said as she nudged Steve. You chuckle as you hold your hand up.

“I don’t want anything supermassive. Free movies for a month are profit enough. I just want to tag along. Be a part of the know, you know?” You reply. Dustin looks at the redhead who shakes her head.

“(Y/n), I don’t think you want to know this know, okay. It’s in your better interest to just give us the address and forget this ever happened.” He said, placing a sticky note and pen in front of you. You raise your eyebrows and sigh.

“Alright, fine.” You say, grabbing the pen and writing on the paper. Once you were done you slid it over to him. He grabbed it with fervor but paused when he read it. Not a chance kid.

“I told you. I want all the details, or you guys will never find Reefer Rick. Well… you might but, it could be too late.” You say, gathering the VHSs you’d set down.

“But if you guys don’t want to know, I'll just be on my way.” You walk away from the service desk, hearing Dustin string out profanities.

“(Y/n)! Wait.” He calls out. You turn around, a coy smile on your face.

“We’ll tell you on the way there, 'cause it’s a long story.” He says with a sigh. You smile and grab your car keys from your pocket.

“Shall we?”

>><<

“So just to recap. Chrissy Cunningham is dead, last seen with Eddie Munson in his trailer by you, Max Mayfield, but you didn’t go straight to the cops with this information, instead, you go to Dustin Henderson's house to tell him, and even after that you still don’t go to the cops, you go to Family Video where you relay the entire situation to your friends Steve Harrington and Robin Buckley, and might I just add it’s a bit concerning how many young adults you’re friends with. What is it now, four?” You say, your hands on the steering wheel of your car.

“Wow, she’s got a great memory. When did we even tell you our last names?” Robin asks.

“I recognized you two from the yearbook.” You said with a shrug. The familiar sound of gravel on your tires was somewhat pleasant as you pulled to the side of the house. The sun had long since set, so most of them were carrying flashlights as they approached the door and rang the doorbell. Waiting not even a second before the first bell finishes, he rings it again. He rings it seven more times before he starts to bang on the window.

“Okay. Well, that’s settled. I guess he’s not here.” Steve says, but you knew he wouldn’t give up that easy. And true to your thoughts, he leans over and yells into the window.

“Eddie! It’s Dustin!”

“Great.”

“Look, we just wanna talk okay? No cops, I swear. We just wanna help.” He shouts as he pounds on the glass pane.

“Eddie!”

“Shhh!” Robin shouts at him. He begins to ring the doorbell again.

“Rick!” He calls out as he pounds in the door.

“Is he always like this?” You whisper to Steve. He sighs and nods.

“Reefer rick!” Dustin yells.

“Don’t scream that.” Steve scolds him.

“Rick!”

“He’s not there!” You turn your attention away from the loud door pounding and their incessant bickering to see Max making her way around the house.

“Reefer Rick!” Dustin’s shouting pulls your attention back to him.

“Just-”

“He might just be really high…” Dustin suggests.

“Is that a foot?” Steve asks. You roll your eyes.

“No, that’s just a shoe,” Dustin replies.

“Obviously dumbass.” You mutter.

“Hey, guys!” Max shouts. Everyone looks at her for a brief second before leaving the front porch and stationing behind her. There was an eerie-looking boat house staring back at you.

“Despite it being a terrible idea, why do I have the feeling that we’re gonna go poking around in there?” You asked. Max looked over her shoulder at you before looking back at the boathouse. She slowly approached it, shining her light in the windows. You sighed.

“Yep. How did I know?” You say as you roll your eyes and follow close behind her. Once you’d made a full circle around the building, you reached the door. Robin was the first to push it open.

“Hello?” She called out to the vast darkness.

“Is anyone home?” She said, sweeping her flashlight across the room. She stepped inside, Max following her. Then Dustin, then you, then Steve bringing up the tail end.

“What a dump.” He said, looking around.

“Yeah well, I’m sure Eddie wouldn’t be hiding out in the Hilton.” You replied. Steve rolled his eyes and clicked off his flashlight so he could put it away. Once he did, he grabbed what looked to be an oar off the wall and began to violently poke whatever the tarp covered in the center of the room.

“What are you doing?” Dustin asks. Steve responded by poking it again. Dustin repeated his question and Steve shrugged.

“He might be in here.”

“So take the tarp off!” Dustin exclaimed while Steve continued to mess with it.

“If you’re so brave, you take the tarp off.” He replied. They both continued to circle the boat, neither of them removing the tarp.

“Hey, look over here,” Max called. You and Robin walked to her side, examining whatever she was ushering to.

“Someone was here.” She said, picking up the wrappers scattered access the surface.

“Maybe he heard us. Got spooked and ran.” “Don’t worry. Steve will get him with his oar.” Dustin replied sarcastically.

“I know you think you’re being funny Henderson but considering almost everyone in this room has nearly died a hundred times, personally, I don’t find it funny in the slight-” Steve was cut off by the sound of glass shattering and movement so fast you could barely perceive it. Eddie had emerged from the tarp and was backing steve against a wall, holding the jagged edges of the broken glass bottle toward his throat.

“Wait wait wait wait wait!” Steve shrieked in horror. You speechlessly watched, unsure of what you could do.

“Woah, woah, woah, Eddie! Eddie! Stop! Eddie! Eddie!” Dustin called out as you all rushed toward him but still kept a reasonable distance. Eddie turned his head to stare at him. His eyes were wide with terror, and you couldn’t help but wonder what the hell you’d gotten yourself into.

“It’s me. It’s Dustin. This is Steve. He’s not gonna hurt you, right, Steve?”

“Right. Yeah.” Steve replied meekly, his voice hardly above a whisper.

“Steve, why don’t you drop the oar?” Dustin asked. There’s a quiet thud as Steve does what he’s told, but in doing so Eddie only pushes the bottle closer to steve's neck. He groans in pain and fear.

“He’s cool. He’s cool!” Dustin shouts.

“I’m cool, man. I’m cool.” Steve practically begs.

“What are you doing here?” Eddie asks, his voice is rough and terrified, so much different than the way he’d sounded that night at hellfire.

“We’re looking for you,” Dustin says softly.

“We’re here to help.” Robin chimes in.

“Eddie, these are my friends. You know Robin, from band.” Dustin says, ushering to the girl behind him, who mimics playing trumpet.

“And (Y/n), from Hellfire. You remember her, right?” He says. You give a weak smile from behind Dustin, waving at Eddie.

“This is my friend Max. The one who never wants to play, D&D. Eddie. We’re on your side. I swear on my mother. Right guys?”

“Yes. Yes. We swear.” Max pleaded.

“On Dustin’s mother,” Robin replied.

“Yeah. Dustin’s… Dustin’s mother.” Steve chimed in. There’s a moment of silence that seems to last forever before Eddie finally pulls away from Steve, who gasps in relief.

“Jesus christ…” He mumbles to himself. You watch Eddie walk away, sinking down the wall until he’s sitting. Dustin approaches him.

“Eddie… We just want to talk.” His words are slow as he stoops to Eddie’s level. He gently reaches for the broken bottle, but Eddie flinches away.

“Okay…” He whispers, removing his hands.

“We want to know what happened,” Robin said as she knelt next to Dustin. Eddie sniffles and shakes his head, looking at her.

“You won’t believe me.” He says, making eye contact with you for a split second before looking away. 

“Try us,” Max replies. Eddie stares at her before standing up and slowly beginning to pace. He seems to be psyching himself out. Dustin adjusts his position, as do the rest of you as you wait for him. He pulled a chair in front of everyone and sat down, looking at his hands in his lap for a few more minutes before finally looking back up.

“Her body just, like, lifted up into the air and, uh… and she just, like, hung there. In the air. And her bones… Uh, she…” He seems to whimper at the thought and his voice becomes shakier as he continues.

“Her bones started to snap. Her eyes, man. It… It was like there was something, like, inside her head, pulling. I… I didn’t know what to do, so I…I ran away. I left her there.” He pauses for a second before scoffing.

“You all think I’m crazy, right?”

“No. We don’t think you’re crazy.”

“We don’t?” You whisper, not wanting him to hear. Steve nudges you in the side and gives you a look which you’re tempted to argue with but stop when Eddie begins to yell.

“Don’t bullshit me, man! I know how this sounds.” His voice cracks.

“We’re not bullshitting you,” Max says.

“We believe you,” Robin interjects. Maybe you missed the memo because it seems like everyone else was on the same page. Dustin was right, you were in way over your head.

“Look, what I’m about to tell you might be a little, difficult to take,” Dustin says.

“Okay,” Eddie replies.

“You know how people say Hawkins is… cursed? They’re not way off… There’s another world. A world hidden beneath Hawkins. Sometimes it bleeds into ours.” You were just as perplexed as Eddie seemed to be.

“Like ghosts and shit?” He asks. You snicker quietly, earning a glare from Max before she turns back to Eddie to continue.

“There are some things worse than ghosts.” She replies.

“These monsters from this other world… we thought they were gone. But they’ve come back before. That’s why we needed to find you.”

“If they’re back again, we need to know,” Max says, her voice firm, demanding almost.

“That night, did you see anything?” Robin asks.

“Dark particles, maybe?” Max adds on. Eddie shakes his head.

“It would almost look like dust, swirling dust.” 

“No, man, there was nothing you could see or, uh… or touch… You know, I tried to wake her, man. She couldn’t move. It was like she… she was in a trance or something.”

“Or under a spell,” Dustin suggests. Eddie looks at him.

“A curse.” He whispers.

“Vecna’s curse.”

“You don’t mean from…” You trail off, mostly thinking out loud rather than talking to anyone. Dustin nods, and steve looks at him confused.

“Who’s Vecna?” He asks.

“An undead creature of great power,” Dustin replies.

“A spell caster,” Eddie adds, meeting his gaze with yours.

“A dark wizard,” Dustin whispers. You remembered the horrors you’d read about him in your books. But that’s all they were. Books. Works of fiction. These people you’d known for a combined total of a few hours couldn’t possibly be trying to convince you otherwise, right?

“Sorry, did I miss a chapter or something? Cause if Eddie’s not the crazy one here then I think I might be. What the fuck is going on?” You asked. Max sighed.

“It’s a long story.”

“And very unbelievable,” Robin says with a slight chuckle. You closed your eyes and rubbed your temples.

“Condense it and consider me open-minded.” You replied, leaning against the wooden pillar behind you. 

“A few years ago our friend Will was kidnapped by a monster from the upside down, that’s what we call that other world we mentioned earlier. We found this girl, Eleven or El as we called her and she has superpowers. She fought the Demogorgon, the monster that kidnapped Will, and we thought she died after that but turns out she was just being kept hidden by Hopper, the chief of police. Will tried to return to normal life but failed since he now had some sort of connection to the upside down and could see into it, causing a new monster to possess him, The Mind Flayer. We were able to defeat him, or so we thought. He returned, this time with Russians on his side.” “Russians!?” You exclaim.

“That’s where we come in!” Robin said with a smile. Steve scoffs.

“Correction, that’s where you come in. I was there since the Demogorgon.” He replies.

“Ehhh, more like since Dart,” Dustin says.

“Who’s Dart?” You ask.

“Not integral to the story. Back to the Russians. They were running an underground operation with a mall as the front. Eleven returns, another victory, yadda yadda. They move to California to get away from the craziness of Hawkins but we’re still here, thus still having to deal with it.”

“And now there’s a new monster… Vecna… who’s… framing people for murder?” You ask. Dustin looks at Eddie and shrugs.

“More or less.” He says. You sigh, trying to take in the information you were just given. 

“I tried to tell you (Y/n). You didn’t want to know this know. It’s not too late to back out now. Just go back home and pretend this never happened.” Dustin said as he stood up. You rolled your eyes.

“Yeah right. If any of this shit you’re saying is the truth, it’s gnarly as hell. Besides,” You hold up your keys. “How else would you guys get home?” You say with a smile. Dustin sighs.

“You really wanna do this?” He asks. You nod.

“In fact, I’m about to get myself into even deeper shit. Eddie can’t stay here.” You say, pointing at the subject who was still sitting in his chair and chewing on his nails. At the sound of his name, he stared up at you.

“Why not?” He asked. “You have a very tangible connection to reefer rick. If I knew that, other people are bound to know that. If some dumbass kids were able to find you, I doubt the cops are that far behind.” You reply. 

“She’s right,” Max replies. Dustin groans.

“Of course she’s right but where else could he go? This town isn’t exactly crawling with good fugitive hiding spots.”

“Why can't he just stay with me?” You ask. Dustin looks at you, along with everybody else in the room. Steve is the first to make a noise, which is a somewhat awkward laugh.

“Listen, (Y/n), as much as we love the knight in shining armor move, I doubt your parents will be too keen on you hiding-”

“Who says I live with my parents?” You cut him off. He raises his eyebrows.

“You… don’t?” He asks.

“No. I live on my own. In a pretty secluded area. My neighbors are at least ten minutes in either direction so they wouldn’t see anything. The only people who know I’ve ever interacted with you are the Hellfire club. And considering I was only there one night, there are probably plenty of other people they’d talk to first. It’s perfect.”

“How old are you?” Steve asks, still seemingly shocked that you live on your own.

“19.” You reply.

“How do you-”

“Steve. Shut up.” Robin cuts him off. He looks at her, his face almost offended that she would do such a thing.

“That could work… Eddie, what do you think?” Dustin asks as he turns to the man of the hour.

“You’re asking me what I think?” He replied. Dustin shrugs. Eddie sighs, standing up from the chair and crossing his arms.

“You’re gonna harbor a fugitive (L/n)?” He asks. You shrug. 

“Why not? I’ve already done plenty to get me jailed tonight, might as well make that list as long as possible. Get me more cred in the yard if we get caught.” You say with an almost devious smile.

“(Y/n)’s house it is. Anything beats this shithole.” Eddie replied. 

“Let’s get a move on then.” You grabbed your keys out of your pocket but pause for a second.

“Hold on, I’ve got an idea.” You said, putting your keys back into your pocket and removing the tarp from the boat. 

“What are you doing?” Dustin asked. You began to unhook the boat from where it was being held.

“Sending this bad boy out to sea. With any luck, the police will find it and think Eddie jumped off ‘cause he couldn’t handle the guilt.” You reply. Eddie smiles.

“Smart.” He says as he crosses his arms. You return the smile.

“I try.”

>><<

You pulled into the driveway of your house, hearing your dog barking. Poor boy hasn’t seen you all day, he must’ve missed you. You quickly locked it down before stepping out. You held your keys in your hand as you turned around.

“The dog is very friendly, don’t worry. He’s a total sweetheart. He might nibble your arm but that’s about it.” You say as you unlock your front door. True to your word, your dog came barrelling toward you, greeting you by jumping on your legs. You laughed and pet him gingerly, waiting for the others to pile in.

“Everyone in? Good. I’ll lock up, you guys can make yourself at home.” You said. He weaseled around you to sniff the new people. Max smiled as she began to put him.

“He’s so cute… What's his name?” She asked.

“It’s (D/n).” You reply, walking toward your tv so you could kneel and store your new VHS rentals with the others. Once everything is neatly sorted, you stand back up and turn around to talk to others.

“Since we dropped by your place to grab your car Steve, you should get these kids home now. It’s pretty late. Eddie and I will be fine.” You say.

“Are you sure? What if the cops come?” Dustin asks. You laugh and gently push down his hat.

“You worry too much. Get out of here already.” You reply, walking back toward your door to unlock it for them. He begrudgingly makes his way over, pausing for everyone else to follow him. 

“We’ll be back tomorrow to check up on you two,” Steve says. You nod.

“Fine by me. See you all then.” You say as they slowly begin to exit. Once they’re in their car, you lock the door and turn to Eddie who stands awkwardly. You laugh.

“Relax dude.” You say.

“Relax? I’m on the run from the police and you want me to relax? I’m surprised you’re not losing your head right now considering you’re the one hiding me.”

“We’re just two friends hanging out, alright? Listen… You look like shit. Why don’t you take a shower while I cook dinner?” You suggest making your way into the kitchen to check what you could make.

“Shower? And what exactly do you propose I change into?” He asks.

“I’ll let you borrow some of mine while I toss yours in the washer. I’m sure I have something that’ll fit you. Might be a bit big though.” You say, exiting the kitchen and walking down the hall to your bedroom. You can hear him follow behind you. You push open the door and make your way to your dresser, beginning to shuffle through the top drawer.

“Oh… Wasn’t expecting your room to actually be cool.” Eddie says as he leans on the door frame. You glance at him with a cocked eyebrow.

“And why is that?” You ask.

“Well, you’re like a sports fan aren't you?” He asked. You rolled your eyes and went back to sifting through the clothes.

“Like I said. It was laundry night. I got that shirt from my dad ages ago. Couldn’t you tell from how beat up it was?” You replied, grabbing a couple of garments before standing up and tossing them toward him. He fumbled to catch them but eventually did. He unfolded the shirt to see a Mötley Crüe album cover staring back at him. He smiled.

“You’re hard to pin down (L/n).” He said. You rolled your eyes and tossed him a towel.

“That’s cause I like to be on top Munson.” You reply with a playful wink. Eddie’s face became red, holding the clothes close to his chest. He opened his mouth to reply but only sputtered. In order not to embarrass himself more, he opted to make his way to the bathroom for that shower. Maybe even a cold one.

“Make sure you toss your clothes out so I can wash them.” You shout. You see Eddie reach his arm out and drop everything in the hallway. Once you gathered his items, along with a couple of your own to make the load more substantial, you started the washer and made your way back to the living room.

You quietly whistled as you gently ran your finger along your shelf of cassettes, deciding which you wanted to listen to while you cooked. Eventually, you settled on Black Sabbath’s self-titled album and popped it into your radio.

The familiar sound of the rain from the opening song soothed you as you pulled out the pot you needed to boil water in. You hummed along once the music began to pick up. You continued cooking, enjoying the music in pair with the sound of the shower in the background.

A substantial amount of time had passed and you were close to finishing the meal you were preparing when you paused. Your favorite song on the album was starting. N.I.B. Instead of humming, you began to sing along.

“Some people say my love cannot be true / Please, believe me, my love, and I'll show you / I will give you those things you thought unreal / The sun, the moon, the stars all bear my seal.” You sing quietly to yourself.

“Woah, you’ve been holding out on me.” A voice spoke from behind you. You were startled, jumping slightly and flinging sauce onto your shirt. You groaned.

“Come on man.” You said, turning around and placing your hands on your hips. You planned on being annoyed but when you saw him standing in front of you with his curly hair damp and sticking to his forehead, you couldn’t help but swoon. Your shirt looked great on him, which caused a smile to creep onto your face.

“Tomato sauce?” He asked. You nodded.

“Spaghetti. I hope you like it.” You reply, turning back around to stir the sauce. Eddie leaned on the counter next to you, watching as you did so.

“I meant it though. Your voice was good. And your song choice? Impeccable.” He says. You roll your eyes and push him with your shoulder.

“Quit fucking with me Munson.”

“I mean it! Seriously.” His voice is soft and gentle, and your heartbeat starts to thump loudly in your chest. You turn the heat off your stove and look at him with a smile.

“Dinner is done.”

>><<

Eddie sighed as he reclined on the couch.

“Do you know how long it’s been since I’ve had a home-cooked meal like that?” He asked with a laugh. You smile.

“So, you liked it?” You ask.

“Are you kidding me? That shit was delicious.” He proclaimed. You stood up and collected both of your bowls, placing them into the sink before standing in front of him.

“I'm glad you liked it. Wanna get some sleep now? It’s super late.” You said. Eddie checked his watch and nodded.

“Wow, you’re right. It is late. Am I taking the couch?” He asks. You shake your head.

“Nah, you can take my bed, I’ll take the couch.” You reply. Eddie raises his eyebrows.

“Wait what? Seriously?” He asks, sitting up straight.

“Well, yeah. The couch is super uncomfortable.”

“So why are you sleeping on it?”

“Because I don’t want you sleeping on it.”

“So… neither of us should sleep on it.”

“Where am I gonna sleep then? The floor?” You asked with a laugh.

“We could both sleep on the bed.” Eddie was quick in his response, almost too quick. You were a bit surprised by this and felt that funny feeling start to well up in your stomach again.

“We could… If you’re okay with that.” You say, trying to sound nonchalant. He shrugged, averting eye contact.

“I am if you are.” He says. You smile.

“Yeah. You can go to the room and get comfortable, I have to use the restroom so I’ll be there soon.” You say, stretching before walking down the hall.

Eddie did as you said, going into your room as you went into the restroom. He laid down on your bed, sidling under the covers and finally relaxing for the first time in a long time. He hadn’t realized how tired he was until he was resting. As he held the blanket close to him, he inhaled. It smelled like your perfume. He’d only ever caught gentle hints of it when you stood close to him, but now, he could smell it as clear as day, which was so soothing.

What has been going on with him lately? He’d only known you for two days, and everything about you seemed to make him act a fool. He needed to get himself together, he had bigger things to worry about now. Not how good your perfume smelled or how comfortable your shirt fit him or how melodic your voice sounded or how you were honestly starting to look like the perfect woman for him the more time he spent with you. 

You walked back into the room, hairbrush in hand as you raked it through your tangled locks. Once you finished you placed it on your nightstand. You smiled at the sight of him all cozy and comfortable in your bed. He seemed like he was already starting to drift off to sleep. God knows he needed it.

“I can’t stand the feeling of sleeping in pants, do you mind?” You asked, hands hovering over the button of your jeans. He raised his eyebrows but shrugged.

“Go ahead.” He muttered before breaking into a yawn. You chuckled.

“Sleep Eddie. You need it.” You replied, gently crawling into your bed so you didn’t disturb him. He looked at you with half-lidded eyes and gave you a sleepy smile. 

“Thanks. For everything.” He mumbled before closing his eyes. You opened your mouth to respond but seeing as it seemed he’d already gone to sleep. You opted for a fond smile as you stared at him for longer than you would’ve liked to admit. The funny feeling in your stomach and heart was back, but you didn’t fight it this time. You laid with it as he laid with you, your hand only centimeters away from his. So close, yet so far. But that was okay. He was there, and that was okay.

>><<

The horrible sound of bones crunching met his ears as he stared up at her floating body. Blood was pouring from her empty eye sockets but it still felt like she was staring right at him. Into his very soul. Despite her broken jaw, she spoke to him.

“It’s all your fault, Eddie.” She whispered. Her voice was so hoarse it didn’t even sound like her own.

“No…” Eddie pleaded.

“It’s all your fault!” She was yelling now. Eddie collapsed to the floor and began to cry, covering his ears in an attempt to block out her screaming. He rocked himself back and forth, sobbing uncontrollably.

Eddie sat up with a fervor, his hands shaking violently as he swung his head around to look at the room. His eyes trained on the ceiling, waiting to see if she’d appear there. It was so hard to breathe and he was so fucking scared. He was goddamn terrified.

All the motion had woken you up. You rubbed the sleep from your eyes and planned on asking what was wrong, but quickly sat up when you heard Eddie crying. You could feel his body tremors on the mattress due to how violent they were. What had happened to him while you were sleeping?

“Eddie? Eddie, what’s wrong?” You whispered. You kept your voice low and avoided touching him in case it would upset him further.

“She was there… She was there and she- s-she-”

“Who was there Eddie?” You asked.

“Chrissy! She said it was all my fault and-” It was hard to catch the rest of his words over his sobs. 

“Hey hey hey i-it’s okay! Chrissy isn’t here. None of that was your fault alright? Just breath. Can I touch you?” You asked gently, hovering your hands over his shoulders. He nodded something no short of desperation, and you wrapped one of your arms around his back, the other holding his arms. “It’s okay Eddie. It’s okay…” You whispered. He cried harder as he clutched fistfuls of your shirt with an iron-tight grip. His entire body was shaking in your arms. You weren’t sure what else you could do other than whisper that he’d be alright and gently rub his back. 

“You’re safe here, okay? You’re safe…”

>><<

Eddie woke up, the smell of your perfume much stronger than it was when he’d gone to sleep. He opened his eyes and yawned, taking a few seconds to blink away the sleep before realizing he was laying on your chest. His arms were wrapped around your midsection and yours laying atop his back. 

He vaguely remembered what happened. Having that horrible nightmare, waking up in tears, and you soothing him back to sleep, but he didn’t remember this level of intimacy. Had he really fallen asleep clutching onto you like this? And furthermore, you let him?

He pulled his arms out from under you, trying his best not to disturb you, but it was fruitless. You slowly began to stir, stretching your limbs and shaking them gently in an attempt to wake yourself up further. You looked at Eddie and gave him a small smile, remembering the events of the night clearly.

“You alright?” You ask quietly. Eddie gives a half-hearted laugh before leaning against the headboard of your bed.

“Yeah. Sorry, you had to see me like that. How embarrassing.” He muttered. You chuckled and sat up as well, bumping your shoulder into his as you did so.

“You went through something traumatic Eddie. Don't be so hard on yourself.” You replied. He looked at his hands which he’d folded in his lap.

“I was acting like a baby though. Crying and shaking? I mean seriously-”

“Eddie.” You cut him off. He looked at you with those big brown eyes that made you weak in the knees.

“You’re okay. I mean it.” You say, placing your hand on his shoulder. He stared at you, his cheeks dusting that familiar shade of pink that seemed to be happening much more often now that he was around you. He looked away, a small smile on his face.

“Just don’t tell Henderson, alright? I don’t want him to think I’ve gone soft.” He says. You laugh.

“Deal.”

>><<

A few days passed and you found yourself growing much closer to Eddie. You bonded over music and books, played board games, and marathoned some of your favorite movies. The more time you spent with him, the harder you seemed to fall for him, and unbeknownst to you, it was the same for him.

Every time he looked at you from across the couch he felt his heart beat faster than it ever had in his life. He had crushes before, but none like this. None that would've given him a second glance, let alone let him stay in their house as he was suspected of murder.

You were reclined on the couch, your dog wedged between you two. Eddie had grown quite fond of him, and it was mutual. (D/n) loved having another person around to play with. It started to make you feel like you were your own little family. But a loud knock on your door disturbed that peace, causing (D/n) to start barking.

“Who is it?” You called. 

“It’s Dustin! Let us in!” He yelled through the door. You sighed and got up from your comfortable position, unlocking the door for the others to pile in. But there were two faces you didn’t quite recognize.

“Hold on there kid. Mind catching me up on these two characters?” You asked.

“Oh, right. (Y/n), this is Nancy and Lucas, Nancy and Lucas this is (Y/n). We’re all caught up now? Great, good, because shit just hit the fan.” Dustin replies. You raise your eyebrows, and Eddie adjusts his sitting from being reclined to attentive listening.

“On our way here, we drove by Rick’s place. It was swarmed with cops and reporters. Patrick was Vecna’d last night at Lover’s Lake. Jason managed to convince them that it was you and they’ve just released your name to the public.” His words come out so fast that you almost don’t register what he’s saying.

“Shit. shit… fuck man!” Eddie yells, standing up and beginning to pace the room.

“But, there’s a bright side to this,” Dustin says.

“Oh is there Henderson? Please do enlighten me.” Eddie replies sarcastically.

“Another thing I noticed on my way here was that my compass was slipping the further east we went.”

“And we’ve seen this before.” The one named Lucas chimed in.

“Mhmm. In the presence of a stronger electromagnetic field, the needle will deflect towards that power.” Dustin says.

“Meaning…?” You ask.

“There’s another gate.” He answers.

“So what do we do now?”

“We follow the compass to the gate,” Dustin replies excitedly. 

“Eddie’s still a wanted man. What do you expect us to do? Go for a nice stroll in the woods?” You ask.

“This little steel capsule might be the key to saving both Max and Eddie. What say you Eddie the Banished?” Dustin asks. Everyone fixes their eyes on Eddie, even you. You’re not sure what you’re hoping his answer is.

“I say you’re asking me to follow you into Mordor, which, if I’m totally straight with you, I think is a really bad idea. But, uh, the shire… the shire is burning. So Mordor it is.” Dustin excitedly opens the front door, waiting for Eddie to walk out. You walk to step out after him but pause to speak before you do.

“For the record, if anything happens to him, you’re all dead meat. Got it?” You say. A couple of shocked faces dance around the room, but there are nods of agreement. Once your gone, Steve looks at Dustin.

“Since when does she care so much about Eddie?”

“Young love Steve. Young love.” He replies as he pats his arm. Steve makes a noise of shock as Dustin walks out of the house.

“A little bit of elaboration would be nice.”

>><<

“Dustin? Can you slow down? Dustin?” Eddie called out. You felt like sheep, blindly following this kid through the woods.

“I think we’re getting close,” Dustin yelled over his shoulder. In his distraction of telling you so, he didn’t notice that he was about to walk straight into Lover’s Lake. Eddie grabbed his backpack and placed his arm in front of him, stopping him in his tracks.

“Watch your step big guy.” He said. It took everyone else a little bit to catch up, but once you did, you sighed.

“Oh, man. You gotta be shitting me.” Steve groaned.

“Yeah. I thought these woods looked familiar.” Eddie replied.

“Lover’s Lake.”

“This is confounding,” Dustin whispered.

“There’s a gate in Lover’s lake?” Max asked.

“Whenever the Demogorgon attacked, it always left an opening. Maybe Vecna’s the same way.” Nancy suggested.

“Yeah, only one way to find out,” Steve replied. Eddie sighed and cracked his neck, walking down the shoreline. He pulled the tarp off the boat which seemed to be an integral part of this story. Steve and Eddie began to push it onto the water.

“Easy I… I said easy, man.” Steve said.

“Sorry, dude,” Eddie mumbled. Steve holds his hand out to help Robin into the boat but she opts to use their heads instead. 

“Yeah that works too.” Steve mumbles. Eddie climbs in after, offering a hand to help you in. You snicker.

“How gentlemanly.” You reply sarcastically as you climb in. Nancy quickly follows behind you. Dustin is right on her heels, but Eddie flicks his hat downward and pushes him away.

“Hey, hey, hey, you trying to sink us? This thing holds four people tops, okay?”

“It’s better this way, okay? You guys stay here with Max. Keep an eye out for trouble.” Nancy said.

“You keep an eye out!” Dustin rebuttals. Nancy furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

“It’s my goddamn theory!” Dustin argues.

“You heard Nance.” 

“Who put her in charge?”

“I did,” Robin states, almost matter-of-factly. Dustin looks at her confused while Nancy holds out her hand.

“Compass.” She demands. Dustin begrudgingly forks it over as he walks back to stand next to the other younger teenagers. Steve stands up and tosses his backpack before pushing the boat into the water and hopping in.

“You said four!” Dustin protests.

“Sorry,” Steve whispers.

“Bedtime at nine kiddos! Miss you already!” Robin yells. You chuckled.

Robin and Eddie use the oars to propel the boat on the water while Nancy watches the compass. You quietly begin to whistle a tune, one that Eddie recognized. The same one you sang the first night he stayed at your house. He was sure his face was flushed, but he didn't mind since it was shrouded in the darkness of the night.

”Whoa, whoa, woah, woah, slow down. Slow down, guys.” Nancy called out. Robin and Eddie stopped rowing, turning around to look at her. You all gathered around the compass, staring at it as the needle went crazy. You heard the walkie-talkie chime with Dustin’s voice.

“Guys, what’s going on? Come on, talk to me. What’s going on?” He asked. Robin grabbed the walkie and spoke into it.

“Uh, Dustin, your compass has gone from wonky to wonky with a capitol ‘aah!’” She replied. Steve began to pull off his shoes and socks.

“Steve, what are you doing?” Nancy asked. 

“Yeah, seriously man, nobody wants to see those. Or smell them.” You say, fanning his feet away from you. Steve rolls his eyes.

“Somebody's gotta go down and check this thing out. Unless one of you four can top being a Hawkins High swim co-captain and a certified lifeguard for three years, then… It’s gotta be me. No complaints, alright?” He asks.

“Hey, I'm not complaining. I do not wanna go down there.” Eddie replies as he fishes a grocery bag from his battle vest pocket. Steve pulls his shirt off and you roll your eyes.

“Show off.” You mumble. Eddie looks up at you and smiles. 

“Tell me about it.” He whispers before handing Steve the flashlight wrapped in the plastic bag safeguard.

“Hey. Good luck.” Eddie says. He pulls out a cigarette while Steve thanks him but Robin quickly grabs it and throws it in the lake.

“Steve?” Nancy calls out. He looks over his shoulder at her.

“Be careful.” She says. He nods before diving in.

“Gross.” You mumble, taking off your hoodie and bunching it up. You toss it in Eddie’s lap before laying your head onto it, reclining as comfortably as the small boat would allow. Eddie’s a bit surprised by this, looking down at you as if questioning why.

“Who knows how long he’ll be down there? Might as well get comfortable while I can.” You reply with a shrug. He relaxes a little but is still somewhat on edge.

“Where we at, Wheeler?” Robin asks.

“Closing in on a minute,” Nancy replies. She exhales and nods. More time passes as both of them stare intensely at the water, wondering when he’s gonna resurface. You, on the other hand, find yourself close to drifting off. You wouldn’t have expected it considering the high-stakes situation you were in, but something about laying in Eddie's lap made you feel safe enough to doze off. You were snapped out of that peace quickly though when Steve burst through the water gasping for air.

“I found it!” He exclaimed. You sat up and pulled your hoodie back on.

“You found it?” Nancy asked.

“I found it. Yeah. I found it.” He replied as he clutched onto the side of the boat. Robin smiles and grabs the walkie-talkie.

“Dustin you are a goddamn Einstein. Steve found the gate!” She spoke into it. She waited for a response, but nothing came. She furrows her eyebrows in confusion but disregards it when Steve starts talking.

“It’s pretty wild. It’s more of a snack-sized gate than the mama gate but still, it’s pretty damn big.” He says, almost out of breath. When his sentence finished, he dips back under the water, seemingly struggling against something. He pops back up with a look of confusion on his face before being pulled fully underwater.

“Steve!” Nancy calls out.

“No no! What the hell was that, man?” Eddie yelled.

“Nancy, really, what happened?” Robin asks, her voice filled with terror. Nancy stares at the water for a moment before she stands up. She looks like she’s going in after him.

“Wait, wait, wait. You’re not going in there, are you?” Eddie asks, grabbing her arm to stop her.

“Just wait here.” She demands.

“No Nancy!” Robin yells, but she’s already in the water.

“Goddamnit!” Eddie yells, running his fingers through his hair. Robin begins to perch herself on the edge of the boat.

“No no no no no no. What are you doing? She said wait.” Eddie protested.

“Yeah, I heard her.” She replies.

“She’s in charge.” 

“Are you kidding me? I made that shit up.” She says before plugging her nose and beginning to lean back.

“Don’t you go. Don’t you-” His words are cut off by the splash of Robin's body meeting the water.

“Goddamn it!” He bangs his open palms on the edge of the boat. You stand up, causing him to look at you.

“(Y/n), don’t even think about it!” He says. You smirk and hold out your hand to him.

“Come on, don’t make me do this alone.” You reply.

“Son of a bitch. This is so stupid. This is so stupid. This is so stupid.” He practically chants to himself, but he grabs your hand anyways. You dive into the water together, all while he’s stringing out profanities.

>><<

You all huddle under skull rock, shaking from fear and possibly hypothermia. After saving Steve from those creatures and running through the entire forest to hide from them, it was safe to say that you were exhausted. The screeching becomes more distant, and Robin is the first to peek her head out.

“Oh… okay. That was close.” She says.

“Yeah. Too close.” Eddie replies, his voice shaking with fear. As you begin to walk farther out, you hear steve mutter something. You turn your head and see him lean against the rock.

“Steve? Jesus.” Nancy says as she notices the same thing you had.

“I’m fine. I’m fine.” He protests.

“No, no, no. You’re not. You’re losing blood. Come on, sit. Alright?” She coaxes him down He groans in pain as he removes his hand from the open wound. Robin kneels next to him as well.

“Okay. So the good news here is I’m pretty sure wooziness is not a common symptom of rabies. But if you start having hallucinations or muscle spasms or you start feeling aggressive, like you wanna punch me or something, then you should totally let me know, okay?”

“Robin.”

“Yeah?”

“I kinda wanna punch you.” He replied. Robin laughs.

“Sense of humor’s still intact. That’s a good sign.”

“Yeah…” He mumbles. Nancy finishes tearing off the piece of fabric that she needed to dress his wounds, so Robin steps away.

“You ready?” Nancy asks. 

“Yeah. Just do it.” Steve replies. She pushes the fabric against him and he stifles his groans. He locks his hands behind his head as she apologizes, doing her best to wrap the fabric around him properly.

“Too tight?” She asks.

“No, that’s good.” He replies. He lets out a few final grunts of pain before she finishes by tying it into a knot. You hear Eddie walk away from you, so you turn to see what he’s doing. He’s climbing up a rock, trying to get a better view of the land in front of him.

“So, uh, this place is like Hawkins, but with monsters and nasty shit?” He asks. Nancy helps Steve stand, putting his weight on her shoulders.

“Pretty much.” She replies. He nods and starts to walk back down, but Nancy stops him with a warning.

“Wait, watch out for the vines. It’s all a hivemind.”

“It’s all a what?”

“All the creepy crawlies around here dude. They’re like, one, or something. You’re stepping on a vine, you’re stepping on a bat, you’re stepping on Vecna.” Steve says.

“Shit,” Eddie replies, now very carefully stepping around the vines.

“But everything from our world is still here, right? Except people obviously?” Robin asks.

“As far as I understand it, yeah.” “So, theoretically, we could go to the police station and steal guns and grenades and whatever we need to blow up those bat things that are guarding the gate.” “I highly doubt the Hawkins PD has grenades, Robin. But guns, yeah, sure.”

“Well, we don’t have to go all the way downtown for guns. I have guns in my bedroom.” Nancy replied. Eddie finally manages to jump down from the rock.

“You, Nancy Wheeler, have guns, plural, in your bedroom?” He asks.

“Full of surprises, isn’t she?” 

“A Russian Makarov and a revolver.” She states.

“Yeah, you almost shot me with that one,” Steve says.

“You almost deserved it.” She replies. Eddie rolls his eyes and slips off his battle vest, tossing it at Steve.

“For your modesty, dude.” He says. You can’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy culminate in your abdomen, but before you have time to even think about why that is, a loud rumbling shakes the earth. It’s so intense that you lose your balance, falling into Eddie as the others fall into each other as well. His arm falls onto your waist and you would've been flustered by the fact had you not been preoccupied with the earthquake. There was a loud snarling in the distance that sent chills down your spine.

“Yeah, so guns seem like a pretty good idea to me,” Eddie said.

“Yeah, me too.” You reply, realizing how close he is by how loud his voice is in your ear.

“So what are we waiting for?”

>><<

After the highs and lows of finding the wheeler house, realizing there were no guns because the upside down was three years stuck in the past, finding a way to contact the overworld, and biking seven miles to Eddie’s trailer, you were almost relieved when you saw that fleshy interdimensional portal on the ceiling. But something about the way it squelched and breathed as if it were alive made you have second thoughts.

“This is where Chrissy died. Like, right where she died.” Eddie said, looking over his shoulders at you and the others. You could tell there was a lot of pain in those memories.

“I think there’s something in there,” Robin replied, her eyes never leaving the ceiling. There was a crackling sound as the red barrier was pulling downward as if something were pushing it in. You felt your stomach go queasy at the sight.

“What the hell is that?” Eddie asked. Seconds after the question left his mouth, the gate popped open, the fleshy parts and vines all retreating into the ceiling. The sudden movement made all of you yelp in fear and back up, eyes still fixed on the now open gate. You exchanged worried glances with Eddie.

Steve slowly began to approach it, and you followed his lead, right behind Nancy and Robin. The steps you took toward it were slow and timid, waiting for the slightest sign of danger. Finally, as you got closer, you could see into it.

“No way,” Steve muttered. On the other side of the gate stood Dustin, Lucas, Max, and a little girl you didn’t recognize. Dustin had a huge smile plastered on his face, jumping on the balls of his feet.

“Hi there.” He said as he waved, prompting Lucas to do the same.

“Hi…” Nancy, Steve, and Robin replied. You were too shocked to speak.

“Holy shit, this is trippy,” Robin said.

“Tell me about it…” You mumbled. Dustin laughed again, excitedly looking at his friends before looking back up at you.

“Bada bada boom!” He exclaimed.

“Henderson, your childlike joy is refreshing, but could we maybe, I don’t know, figure out a way to get us the hell out of here!” Eddie shouted. Dustin stopped giggling and nodded.

“Right right sorry, Eddie.” The children began to disperse out of your view. You could hear shuffling and after a few minutes, Max and Lucas dropped a mattress below the portal. You raised your eyebrows at the state of it.

“Those stains are, uh… I dunno what those stains are.” Eddie said.

“Mmm,” Robin replied, a questioning look on her face. Dustin walked into view, a makeshift rope of tied-together sheets in hand.

“Not quite sure how these psychics are gonna work. But uh… here goes nothing.” He says as he throws it up through the portal, but once it meets your end it begins to cascade down.

“There we go. And if my theory is correct…” He says before removing his hands from the rope. It stays in its place, causing him to smile.

“Abracadabra.” He whispers.

“Holy shit,” Max says, looking up at the rope on your end.

“All right, pull on it! See if it holds!” Dustin shouts to your group. Robin looks around before grabbing onto the rope, giving it her best yank. She smiles and laughs incredulously.

“This is the craziest shit I’ve ever seen in my life. And I’ve seen some crazy shit.” The girl you don’t recognize says as she high-fives Dustin. You laugh.

“Starting to think that’s a common experience.” You reply. Robin grabs hold of the rope once again.

“Guess I’m the guinea pig.” She says as she begins to climb up the rope. The younger teens on the other side begin to disperse to make room for her on the landing pad. She grunted as she climbed upward, but once her head was on the other side, she fell onto her back on the mattress.

“Oh thank God. That was fun.” She said with a sigh of relief. You watch her grab Dustin’s hand to help pull her up. You look at the others, Nancy looking at Eddie, then you, then Steve, the other teenage boys looking at each other until somebody volunteers.

“All right, guess I’ll go,” Eddie says with a shrug as he approaches the rope. He grunts as he begins to climb it, inching his way back to the overworld. Finally, gravity takes hold and he falls onto the mattress. He sits up abruptly.

“That… was fun. Shit.” He says with a large smile before getting up.

“Don’t mind if I do.” You say, grabbing onto the rope. Climbing it felt reminiscent of gym class, which made you feel a bit queasy, but once your head passed that gap between the worlds, all the blood went rushing to your face and you felt like you were freefalling. You laughed as you began to cascade onto the mattress and blinked a few times once your back finally hit the surface. 

“(Y/n) approved.” You said as grabbed Eddie’s hand so he could help you up.

>><< 

You sat wedged between Dustin and Eddie, on your way to what could very well be the end of your life. Thanks to Nancy being Vecna’d and that trip to the War Zone, you were as well prepared as you could’ve been, but that didn’t quiet the loud thrumming of your heart, or the sinking feeling growing in the pit of your stomach.

The car slowed in front of the dilapidated Creel house to drop off the Sinclairs and Max. And then it kept driving. You looked out the window, watching their bodies become smaller as you drove further and further away. The sun was dipping lower into the sky as the drive continued. It was nightfall by the time you reached your destination. Nancy stood up from her seat and turned to look at every one.

“Okay. I wanna run through it one more time. Phase one.”

“We meet Erica at the playground. She’ll signal Max and Lucas when we’re ready.”

“Phase two.”

“Max baits Vecna. He’ll go after her, which’ll put him in his trance.”

“Phase three?”

“Me, Eddie, and (Y/n) will draw the bats away,” Dustin replied. Eddie nudges you in the side with a smile before giving Dustin a noogie, an oddly pure moment despite the given circumstances.

“Four.”

“We head into Vecna’s hopefully newly bat-free lair and… flambe,” Robin replies, sloshing around the Molotov cocktail in her hand.

“Nobody moves on to the next phase until we’ve all copied. Nobody deviates from the plan, no matter what. Got it?” Nancy asks. You all chime in with ‘got it’s’ before dispersing and piling out of the RV. You trek through the small span of woods in front of you before making it to the trailer park and shortly after, Eddie’s trailer. Once you're inside, you’re relieved to see the makeshift rope is still intact.

“Be careful,” Dustin says.

“Thanks, buddy. Here goes nothing.” Steve replies as he begins to climb the rope. Since there’s no mattress on the other end, he’s extra careful to land on his feet, which he does somewhat majestically. Robin sarcastically makes noises of praise.

“What does he want us to do, applaud?” She asks. It takes Steve a few seconds to bring the upside-down mattress under the portal, giving those athletically challenged a safer landing strategy.

“Alright, let’s go.” He calls up to you. Nancy is the first go, Robin kneeling next to her to provide even more assistance. She nods at her before climbing and subsequently falling onto the mattress. After Nancy, Eddie drops down his gear and follows right after. Then you, then Robin, then Dustin, who takes far too long to stand up which results in him being pulled to his feet by you and Eddie. You begin to walk out of the trailer right behind Steve, with the rest of your team in tow. He turns back to you.

“Hey, guys, listen. If things here start to go south, I mean, at all, you abort. Okay? Draw the attention of the bats. Keep ‘em busy for a minute or two. We’ll take care of Vecna. Don’t try to be cute, or be a hero or something. Okay? You guys are just-”

“Decoys. Don’t worry. You can be the hero Steve.” Dustin cuts him off.

“Absolutely. I mean, look at us. We are not heroes.” Eddie says with a laugh as he looks between you and Dustin. You feign offense as you nudge him in the side. Steve hesitates for a moment before turning around and walking toward Robin and Nancy. Eddie takes a step toward him.

“Hey, Steve?” He calls out. Steve turns around.

“Make him pay.” He says. They nod at each other before Steve’s team begins to walk off. 

“Now that all that mushy gushy bullshit is over, it’s time for the fun part.” You say, hitting Eddie’s stomach with your arm. He laughs as you make your way into his bedroom. Once he’s in, he stops.

“Jesus christ… It’s like… She was destined for an alternate dimension…” He mumbles as he approaches his guitar.

“What do you say, guys?” He asks, picking it up from where it hung.

“Are you ready for the most metal concert in the history of the world?” He asks, turning to face the two of you.

“That a rhetorical question?” Dustin asks. Eddie smiles and puts the strap over his shoulder.

“Let’s do it.” He says, swinging it over his back. As if you didn’t find him hot enough as it is.

>><<

You waited tentatively for the crackle of the walkie-talkie to sound and tell you when to move forward. Finally, after what seemed like hours, you heard Robin’s voice on the other end.

“She’s in. Move on to phase three.”

“Copy that. Initiating phase three. Let’s hope they hear this.” Dustin said as he pulled the extension cord up to plug in the amp and subsequently turned them to their full volume. He looks at Eddie, who grabs the pick from around his neck.

“Chrissy, this is for you.” He mutters, mostly to himself, before he starts to strum. You recognize the beat immediately.

Dustin is crouched beside you as you lean one hand on the amp, enjoying Eddie’s impeccable performance of one of your favorite songs. You would’ve enjoyed it more, had it not been for the predicament you were in. Dustin checks his binoculars a few times, but this time, he calls out to Eddie.

“We gotta lock down in T minus 30 seconds.” He yells over the noise. Eddie nods, focusing back on playing his guitar.

“T-minus 20!” Dustin shouts. You look over at Eddie, who’s now shredding the guitar solo, which you wish you could appreciate more, but the screeching bats inching closer in proximity make it difficult. Dustin begins to count down from 10, and Eddie finishes right as he reaches one. The bats are way too close for comfort, so you shove Dustin in the direction of the truck you used to get on the roof. He begins to climb down, you following and Eddie just behind you.

They’re shouting incoherently at each other as you rush into the gated area, which Eddie shuts just in the nick of time. You watch the bats attempt to claw at you through the fencing, but they have no luck. You give a relieved half laugh half sigh, but it’s short-lived as more begin to fly toward you.

“Hurry! Come on!” Dustin calls to the two of you. Once you’re inside, you lean against the wall, panting heavily.

“Dude. Most metal ever!” Dustin yells, causing both him and Eddie to jump with excitement. You laugh and can’t help but smile at the two fondly. They take a few minutes to bask in their excitement before finally winding down and walking to the portal. There’s a thump against the trailer wall that makes you turn your head. Then another. And another. And then they’re not stopping. The bats outside seem to be thrashing their bodies against the walls. Hard. But then, just as soon as it started, it stopped.

“Hey, dipshits! Give up that easy!” Dustin yells.

“Is that really necessary?” Eddie asks.

“Both of you shut up!” You hiss. They stop bickering long enough for you to hear the bats have moved.

“They’re on the roof,” Eddie says, looking upward. Dustin begins to string out profanities as you all follow the sound of the bats traveling. You fix your eyes on a small circular vent.

“Uh oh.” You whisper.

“They can’t get in through there, can they?” Dustin asks, but right as the words leave his mouth, the demobat breaches the flimsy metal. It screeches, and the three of you begin to stab at it furiously with your spears. After a few seconds, Eddie backs away, much to Dustin’s protests. 

“Get out of the way! Get out of the way!” He calls to the two of you. You back up just in time for Eddie to throw down a chair and wedge his nail shield into the ceiling.

“Holy shit… Holy shit.” He says in between pants.

“Nice,” Dustin says.

“Thanks.” He replies, giving him a high five.

“Are there other vents?” Dustin asks. Eddie seems to realize his answer is not the one you’d hope for as he rushes to his bedroom. You all begin to run toward it, and as soon as you enter, bats come flying through the vent on the floor. He pushes you and Dustin out, shutting the door as quickly as he can.

“That’s not gonna hold!” Dustin yells as you back away.

“No shit genius!” You yell back.

“Let’s go!” Eddie yells. Dustin begins to climb the rope. You’re quick to follow, not sparing another second. Once you're on the other side, you look at Eddie who starts to climb but stops halfway.

“Eddie, what are you doing? You have to hurry!” You yell at him. He stares at you and then at the door before dropping back onto the ground.

“Eddie! Come on man!” Your shouts seem to fall on deaf ears as he walks away to grab a spear.

“Eddie don’t you fucking dare! Eddie-” He cuts the rope, severing the way to travel between the worlds. He moves the mattress and you can feel tears begin to well in your eyes. Dustin is watching this unfold with you.

“Eddie, what are you doing?” He asks. Eddie looks at the two of you with a smile on his face.

“I’m buying more time.” He says before walking out of your view. Dustin looks at you as if he’s asking what to do and for the first time in a long time, you don’t know. You’d never felt this way before. Scared and lost and heartbroken all at the same time. You couldn’t breathe.

“No fucking way. You’re not fucking running this time Eddie.” You say as the tears fall out of your eyes, but you wipe them away ferociously. You grab the chair and set it right underneath the center of the portal. Standing on it, you’re just tall enough to reach it when you jump. So you do just that. Grunting as you pull yourself through, you hang on for dear life when the gravitational pull hits. You sigh and swing back and forth so you can roll when you let go. It’s messy, and you're gonna be left bruised, but it’s enough to have gotten you down. You pull the mattress back, giving Dustin a safer way to land than you had.

“Come on!” You yell, offering a hand to help him up. Once he’s on his feet, you rush out the door, him following close behind you. You run as fast as you can, pushing yourself farther than you ever have before. You can see the bats swarming him. God, why did you have to fall in love with an idiot? 

You see them wrap around his legs and arms, rendering him defenseless. More begin to pile onto him and you can only imagine what they’re doing. Tears blur your vision as you start to run even faster, faster than you thought was in your capability. You pull the machete you’d nabbed from the war zone off your back as you were finally in distance. You swung it at the bats in your path but saved your deadliest blows for the ones gnawing on his torso.

Dustin was close behind you, picking off those that he could as you fought with the ones latched onto Eddie. He seemed to recognize you, a bloody smile on his face. You kept swinging and crying and fighting, all at the same time. It seemed like an impossible fight that you swore you would’ve lost, but then, out of nowhere, the bats all fell from the sky.

You dropped your machete and began to cry harder. You were going to hold Eddie but found his wounds held a higher precedent. You wiped away your tears in an effort to see better as Dustin kneeled next to him as well.

“Bad, huh?” He asked.

“No. You’re gonna be fine.” Dustin replied.

“Damn fucking right you will.” You yelled, pulling off your hoodie. You sliced through the fabric with the pocket knife you had and began to tie it tightly around his torso.

“You’re not dying on me that easy Munson. Don’t even fucking think about it.” You reply. He opens his mouth to respond, but you cut him off by placing his arm around your shoulder.

“Whatever sappy shit you’ve got to say, you can save it, 'cause I already told you. You’re not fucking dying today.” You say as you stand up, carrying his body weight as well. He groans in pain.

“Help me out here Henderson.” You say, staggering to hold him up by yourself. Dustin rushes to your side and grabs Eddie’s other arm, splitting his weight between the two of you as you hobble back through the upside-down.

>><<

Eddie sat up in bed, gasping and looking around, then clutching his sides in pain. He recognized the room he was in, but he wasn’t sure why. The door to his right creaked open, and you walked in with what looked like medical supplies in your arms.

“(Y/n).” His voice was hoarse as he spoke your name. You were surprised to see that he was awake, and felt tears prick the corners of your eyes,

“Finally you’re up. I was starting to think you were holding out on me.” You said, trying to act as if you weren’t bursting at the seams with excitement. He chuckled.

“Why am I here?” He asked. You shrugged and sat next to him on your bed, pulling the covers off of his body. He hadn’t noticed he was shirtless until he felt the cold chill nip at his body.

“Would you rather be at Hawkins High with the rest of the town? I’m sure they’d all love to see their darling Edward, wanted murder suspect.” You reply. He smiles.

“Guess you're right.” He says as you begin to unwrap his bandages.

“Someone’s getting a bit handsy.” He teases. You roll your eyes and finish unwrapping the bloodied bandages before starting to wrap him with new ones.

“That was really stupid, by the way.” You say.

“What?”

“Running into that swarm. You could’ve been killed.” You scolded. Eddie sighs.

“They needed more time and even if I had been… What difference would it have made?” He said with a shrug. You felt tears well in your eyes again.

“What difference would it have made? Just because Jason got a few hicks to be against you doesn’t mean everybody was. There are still people who care about you and love you, Eddie. I fucking love you! Do you really think I just ran back into that hell dimension because it wouldn’t have made a difference whether you lived or died?” You said angrily, pulling his bandages around him tighter.

“Wait wait wait. Do my ears deceive me? Did you just say you love me?” Eddie asked. You were so frustrated that you couldn’t take it anymore. You grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him into a kiss.

At first, you were angry, pressing your lips against his just to get him to shut up for once in his goddamn life but then, as his hands gently held onto you as if you were a delicate piece of fine china, you broke. Tears began to stream down your face as it all hit you at once. You needed this. You needed him.

He pulled away, far too soon for your liking, and stared at you as his chest heaved to catch his breath. He blinked his beautiful brown eyes and smiled his stupid grin. There he was, in all his glory, and you’d just kissed him in a fit of passion and anger at his pure idiocy.

“If I get a kiss like that every time I act a fool, then I’ll have to remember to risk my life more often.” He whispers. You laugh and wipe your face of your tears, shaking your head before standing up.

“Eddie Munson. You have changed my life.” You say with a laugh.

“Then I guess we’re even. Cause I think you saved mine.” He replied. You gathered the bloody bandages and began to walk to the door. Your hand was just above the knob when you paused at the sound of Eddie’s voice once again.

“If I ever beat these charges and things ever go back to the way they were… or at least as much as they can… I’d like to take you on a normal date.” “If I liked normal, I never would’ve found you.”

“Then can I take you on a not normal date? Affective immediately?” He asks. You laugh and open your bedroom door.

“Tell you what Eddie. You heal from the damage those hellbats did to your stomach, and I’ll think about it. Deal?”

“Deal.”

[aressss1]

Through Fire and Ice Chapter 10

(Technoblade x Reader)

Chapter 10

< Prev Chapter | Next Chapter >

~~~~~~

“You’re going to love it when you see it.” You could hear the giddiness in Dream’s voice. His hands were over your eyes as you, Sapnap and Dream walked to where they had been building your house.

 “Dream’s been working on this for days now.” Sapnap chuckled, “I helped a little bit.” You couldn’t help but smile at their excitement. You could feel Dream’s puffs of air hitting the back of your neck, his touch cool on your skin. When he led you to a full stop and he turned you, with his hands still over your eyes. He pressed his body against yours as he whispered in your ear. You could feel the heat rise up on your neck.

“I hope you like it,” His voice causing shivers to run down your spine. “A home fit for a princess.” With that he takes his hands off of your eyes and you open them. In front of you was a home planted inside the wall just like everyone else had, but this one had a tiny, enclosed porch, with little planter boxes for you to garden in. Big circular shaped windows on either side of the front door stared at you as if they were eyes. The dark oak door had a circular frame, and two blue lanterns hung from the overhang of the porch on each side.

 “I-I can’t accept this Dream,” You sputtered out turning to face him.

 “Sure you can! Dream’s done way better stuff than this for people.” Sapnap chimed in chuckling at the blush on your cheeks. “This is child’s play compared to what he’s even done for a lot of the people in our old village.” Sapnap scratched the back of his head. He didn’t go on when Dream cleared his throat, his eyes meeting Sapnap’s almost as if to tell him to shut up.

 “If you don’t want to accept it for free, I’ll make you a deal? How do you feel about that?” Biting your lip, you look back toward the beautiful house just waiting for you to walk inside. Hesitantly nodding, your eyes flit back to Dream. You could see his grin behind the mask, the sight making your heart flutter. “I’m sure you’ve heard of the festival going on tonight? To mark the one-month anniversary of us all moving down here?” He cocked his head at you. You shook your head. Dream was the first one to bring it up. Niki was too busy to think about anything else other than cooking and helping out at the hospital, and Techno didn’t know much about social gatherings in general nor did he care much at the thought, let alone when they were going to be, but you were the same way.

 “I don’t talk to a lot of people.” You shrugged and you heard him chuckle.

 “Alright…” He cupped your cheek, “How about you come to the festival with me? Then it’ll be even.” His voice almost took on a sultry tone. You could see the hope in his eyes from behind the mask. You gave him a deadpan stare.

 “That doesn’t really seem fair.” You were confused when Sapnap shook his head sighing at you. What did you do? This caused a laugh to come from Dream, his thumb stroking across your cheek.

 “Don’t pay attention to him,” he jerked his head toward Sapnap. “You wanna come to the festival with me?” His hand drops from your face. You ponder over his question. You remembered Techno wanted to build your house for you, he had actually asked you what you wanted for your house. Guilt twisted in your gut about Techno, well at least he didn’t have to worry about another thing to do. Looking up at Dream you nodded, it was the least you could do to repay his kindness. He lifted his mask, and you could see the excitement in his green eyes.  “Tonight is gonna be a good one princess.” He took your hand pulling you toward the house.

 The inside of the house was well built, and somewhat furnished. Still trying to get over the fact that Dream had called you princess, you followed them and listened to every word they had to say. Sapnap kept showing you everything that he had built. Overall, it was a nice home, what drew your eye was the fully stocked bookshelves and you found yourself gravitating toward that more than anything.

 “I know how you like your books, so I got what I could from around here.” Dream stood by your side as you allowed your fingers to trace over the spines of the books on the shelves. Sapnap muttered that he would be right back, and he left out the front door hastily.

 “Why are you doing any of this for me Dream?” Your eyes never left the books on the bookshelves, but you could feel his eyes boring into you.

 “I want you to know you have friends who have your back,” Dream explained after a few seconds of processing your questions. “Having a home is the first step to being comfortable.” He half shrugged. “This is where I want you to make your memories.” He let out a chuckle. “I think my first good memory of this place is when your face lit up when you saw it.” His shoulder nudged yours. You weren’t able to hide your blush from him and he led you to the small couch.

 “Who made the furniture?” You ask your hand grazing over a nearby end table.

 “George did,” Dream sat on the couch throwing his arm over the back of the couch. He kicked his feet out in front of him, one boot resting on the other. “He wanted to help at his pace.” You sat next to Dream, his face illuminated by a lantern hanging above your heads. He took his mask and haphazardly threw it on the coffee table in front of him. You felt honored that he took his mask off in front of you. He didn’t do that often it seemed.

 You didn’t know how much time had passed but a golden clock on the wall glared at you when your eyes met it. Oh no… You were late in helping Niki out.

 “Uhh… Dream, this has been amazing, but I have to go, please tell Sapnap I said thank you.” You pushed yourself up from the couch, and Dream stood with you. He towered over you, and his green eyes searched your face. “Where should I meet you for tonight?” His chuckle sent butterflies to your stomach as he cupped your cheek.

 “Meet me here princess.” His tone was smooth, and his thumb brushed over your cheek. “I’ll come by sometime after your route.” Your cheeks heated up under his hand and you pushed forward giving him a hug which he returned. The hug enveloped you, and you gave a content sigh.

 “Thank you for everything Dream.” You pulled away from him, tucking the hair in your face behind your ear. He fished around his pocket for a half second and he held out a set of keys to you.

“I’m glad you like your new home!” His smile was genuine, and you take the keys from his hands. It had been a very long time since you were able to call anywhere home. Returning his smile as you clutched the keys to your chest you moved past him and out the door. Booking it to Niki’s, you see a familiar red cloak standing next to your already loaded up cart.

 “Heh?” Techno cocked his head at you. “You’re late nerd.” He teased. His eyes worriedly ran over your figure, not that you noticed. You weren’t hurt, but you usually were never late. Techno was wondering if he should have been out looking for you. He had gotten the cart prepared in your absence to keep his mind busy.

 “Sorry,” you huffed out, your hands rested on your knees as you caught your breath. “Dream, Sapnap and George made me a house and Dream and Sapnap took me to see it.” You explained. This made Techno’s heart sink. When he wasn’t busy, he was planning out your house. His talks with you about your house were for nothing. You had even wanted to help him build it. Gritting his teeth, he turns to the cart, grabbing onto the handle to pull it.

 “I see…” He kept his voice as even as possible, but you heard the disappointment in his voice.

 “I know you wanted to do it, but this was kind of a surprise to me.” You shrugged nudging his shoulder with yours. “It’s not something that needs to be done anymore. We can spend our time doing other things, like mining.” He perked up at that as the two of you set off on your route. The two of you talking as you went.

 “So, Dream said there’s a festival going on tonight do you wanna come?” You asked as you handed out the food to the people on the street.

 “Is Dream taking you to the festival?” Techno peered down at you, as an old woman took the box of food from your hands. He had known about the festival. Phil had been planning it for a few days now. It wasn’t important to Techno, but the excitement he heard in your voice piqued his interest.

 “Yeah, I’m assuming with George and Sapnap too. I want you to come too.” You shrugged as Techno struggled to swallow down the lump in his throat. “You’ve been working too hard on the mine and helping me. A night of fun is exactly what you deserve.” You beamed up at him. Techno didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want to say no to you, but he felt it would ruin your night if he was there. But… Like hell would he allow Dream to do as he pleases. If he didn’t show up, he would be giving Dream exactly what he wanted, and Techno was spiteful toward Dream.

 “Alright…” He grumbled; he wasn’t liking the fact that he was going to have to be social. The smile that spread on your face when he agreed, was worth it though. He kept quiet as you greeted the people who approached you for their rations. You happily handed the people their boxes of food, waving them off, missing the way they would side eye Techno. Sometimes they even had the gall to look between the both of you. Dirty assumptions playing across their minds.

 ‘They are nothing.’

 ‘Slaughter.’

 ‘Protect her.’

 The voices had their demands, not that he would give in to some of them. Even so, he would move in a nonchalant way, to obscure their view of you when their thoughts played out across their faces as plain as day. You kept making your way to people, handing them piping hot boxes of food. When you continually greeted people and asked about their days, Techno had zoned out, the small talk grating on him. You made it look easy. He wasn’t one for talking to people in general.

 The two of you were deep in the residential area of the Burrow when you ran out of boxes. You thought that this was the perfect time to show Techno your new home. When the two of you were on your way back to Niki’s you pointed out the house to him, which caused him to huff in annoyance.

 “Don’t be so grumpy,” You nudged his shoulder. “I’ll let you build onto it how bout’ that? Anything you want to build on it.” Your eyes met his and he nodded contentedly. A smile spread on your face as you fished around your pocket. You held the keys to your house in the palm of your hand. Separating the two keys you held one out for him to take.

 “You’re letting me have a key to your house?” Techno cocked his head at you. His heart thumped in his chest, and he took the dangling key from your hand, tucking it into one of his own pockets. The voices in his mind sounded off, projecting his worries on how you were too trusting, giving him a key to your home.

 “Yeah, why not? You’re literally my best friend.” An embarrassed blush spread over your cheeks, and Techno felt his heart flutter. You could feel his golden eyes on you, and you acted like you didn’t notice.

 “Hm,” Techno grunted as he nodded in response, not knowing how to respond to that. His body gravitated closer to yours, the back of your hand just barely touching his. Resisting the urge to wrap your hand around his, you cleared your throat. There was a comfortable silence between the two of you until you got back to Niki’s bakery. You still had the second half of the route left to complete, but with Techno there you didn’t mind.

 --

 After finishing the route, both you and Techno, made your way back to your new home, to meet up with Dream. Looking around he wasn’t around your home so you shrugged and figured you could show Techno around the place. You opened the door and pulled him in. He looked around with almost uninterested eyes. While you looked up at him and deadpanned at the fact that his head almost hit the ceiling. You knew he was tall but…  He had to be over seven feet tall…

 While you were busy gawking at him over his height, he looked around his eyes scanning over your bookshelves. His eyebrows furrowed at things that he didn’t exactly like, little things, things that could be exploited. Small holes in the wood, that could be used to spy on you. He inspected the windows, to see how easily someone could get in. He already wanted to install a deadbolt on the front door the moment he walked in.

 “I’m making you a weapon’s rack, for when we start making your weapons.” Techno stated. You knew better than to argue with him. You threw your hands up, while a smile pulled at your lips.

 “I told you that you could add anything you like around here,” You leaned against the wall watching him. He entered the kitchen, staring at a blank wall at the end of the house. He had plans, but he was going to build a door to something similar to Phil’s ‘backyard’ for you.

 A sharp knock rang out in the air. Standing up from the wall you open the door as you see Dream standing there, a flower vase filled with lilies, in his hands. You could see the grin stretching across his face when the door opened.

 “Hey princess,” Dream chuckled as he held out the vase for you. “Are you ready to have the time of your life tonight?” You felt Techno’s presence approach behind you as you took the vase into your hands.

 “Well, I’m flattered you noticed the crown on my head Dream, but you don’t really have to call me princess.” Techno bent down so his eyes were level with Dreams. His joke caused you to giggle as you walked over to the end table next to the couch. You completely missed Dream and Techno’s stare down. “Wouldn’t miss this night for the world.” Techno narrowed his eyes as he said it.

 Dream’s hands clenched and unclenched, and his shoulders slightly shook in a silent anger at seeing the hybrid standing in front of him. The sight soothed Techno, and he chuckled and straightened up and cocked his head at Dream. He regained his composure when you turned back around to look at them.

 “Thank you again for everything Dream.” You walked over to the two of them. Unaware of what had gone down, just a second before. “Are we all ready to go?” Dream cleared his throat as he nodded, his eyes scanning Techno.

 “Yep.” Dream gave a small sigh as he turned around and walked down the steps of the porch, waiting for you and Techno to join him. You locked your door behind Techno, hearing a satisfying click. You were the first to descend down the steps to Dream. You planted yourself in between the two men as you started off toward the town square. “I didn’t think festivals were your thing Techno.” Dream spoke up, side eyeing Techno through his mask.

 “Well, you see,” Techno started, “I’m tryin’ to be more social.” Techno gave a half shrug. “I also don’t want to miss out on all the fun.” Techno jeered at him; he was having fun ruining his plans. Dream picked up on Techno’s double meaning, and he grit his teeth.

 “I see…” Dream nodded, “had I known I would have invited you myself.” You looked between the both of them, quietly listening to their conversation.

 “I’m sure,” Techno rolled his eyes. It was going to be a long night…

 --

 The night was filled with friends, games, and drinks. Niki had joined your group for the night, opting to drink with you. Dream had found Sapnap and George and was conversing with them throughout the night. Every once in a while, Dream’s gaze would wander to you and he would give a tiny wave, and you would wave back. As the night grew on and you had gone to dance with Niki, you felt yourself stumbling, the haze of the alcohol overtaking your mind.

 You spent most of the night with both Techno and Dream. Wilbur and Tommy kept Techno company when you weren’t with him. They noted the way he watched over you. Seeing his eyes scan the crowd for anyone who would do harm to you, as per the voices in his minds request. They were instantly scheming, on ways to get you two together.

 “Techno, come on, Fundy’s got this drinking game, I think your girl’s playing with Niki,” Wilbur pulled on Techno.

 “She’s not my girl, Wilbur.” Techno sighed. The large crowd around him, was almost too much. Between that and the voices, he felt a little bit overstimulated.

 “Yet!” Wilbur said as he pointed upwards to accentuate the word. “Come on, it’ll be fun.” Wilbur raised his eyebrows at the hybrid. Techno looked back and forth between you and him. You had been mid drink when he looked over at you. He sighed, and nodded grumbling to himself as he made his way over to you. That was when Will noticed Dream heading over to your table as well. “Tommy, you gotta distract Dream.” Will’s head snapped over to Tommy as he nodded his head in Dream’s direction.

 “What do you want me to do man?” Tommy asked his eyes landing on Dream’s approaching form. A look of panic almost reaching his eyes. Will just pushed him toward Dream in a hurry.

 “Anything, just be yourself, and don’t let him near them.” Will whispered to him. He watched as Tommy walked up to Dream in his boisterously confident way. His arms outstretched and he gave a big toothy grin to the man he needed to distract.

 “Dream! Mah friend!” Tommy practically shouted, slapping a hand down on Dream’s shoulder. “How ya been? Come on, I got something to show ya! We gotta find Tubbo!” Tommy pulled Dream away and Wilbur watched as Dream turned to look at both you and Techno. He held his breath when Dream tried to pull away, but Tommy had insisted. A sigh of relief escaped him as Dream gave into Tommy, following him to wherever Tommy was bringing him to.

 Will headed over to your table only to sit next to Niki. He watched for Dream so he could distract him next if need be. You were already slurring your words, but you cuddled up closer to Techno practically leaning on him, and that brought a smile to Will’s face. Techno needed someone in his life and those close to him knew it, even if Techno denied it. Dream seemed to get everything he wanted, well… Not this time. Wilbur would make sure of it. At least for tonight.

 ~~

 You pulled at Techno’s hands, trying to get him to come with you to the dancing area. Swaying a tiny bit, your eyes begged him, even when he looked over at the other dancers in discomfort. He could definitely hold his alcohol better than you. He didn’t want to deny you, but others could use this against you… He didn’t want to make you a target like he was.

 “Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaassssssseee??” Your whine knocked him out of his thoughts. “When are we ever going to do this again?” Techno let a sigh out and he stood from his seat, leaving his cloak on his chair. His hand was still in yours as you led him to the other dancers. You got into your positions, this wasn’t any ballroom dance by any means, the music was too fast paced for that, people locked arms and spun around to the tempo of the music and the two of you followed suit. He kept you steady, even as you were tripping on your own feet due to the alcohol.

 Techno reveled in your laugh as the two of you danced, the outside world was quickly shut out when he focused soley on you. Keeping you upright, keeping you happy. It made him feel things that he hadn’t felt in a very long time. Your hands on his arms felt right and that’s when he knew, that he would do anything for you, for your happiness.

 All this time fighting, adventuring… None of it had the satisfaction of when you held him closer. When he caught you staring up at him, with a blush on your face. He had lived a life that many dreamed of, but he only dreamed of you, and he found you.

 You stumbled on your own feet once more, and he was there to catch you when you fell, and you fell right into his chest. Both your movements stopped, as if time for the two of you was standing still, even as the others around you still spun in their dances. You laughed at your own clumsiness, letting out a little snort. That was enough to send Techno in a fit of laughter on his own. He watched as your cheeks reddened and you buried your face into his chest in embarrassment while you still laughed. This was a perfect moment that Techno would cherish forever.

 ~~

 Dream walked back to the festival, a bit peeved at Tommy who was still yammering in his ear about something. Tommy had led him to Tubbo’s bee farm. To show him bees of all things, while he looked for Tubbo. Why was this so important now? Any other time would have been fine but right now during a festival? Dream shook his head sighing. He was supposed to be with you, and you were off doing who knows what with Techno.

 “Tommy, I don’t actually give a fuck right now.” Dream interrupted Tommy’s ramblings as he turned to the boy to his right. This earned a scoff from Tommy, who put a hand on his chest trying to look affronted.

 “Oh, come on Dream, that’s rude.” Tommy started to say but he was interrupted again.

 “I had something to do when you pulled me away, isn’t that rude too?” Dream sighed rubbing at his eyes. “Listen, any other time would have been good, but this isn’t a good time.” He tried putting on a more comforting tone. “Just please let me go do what I need to do.” Tommy put his hands up and stepped away from him. He had done his job, maybe it was Wilbur’s time to shine. “Thank you.” Dream sighed and walked back to the main area where he had seen you last.

 You and Techno were absent from your table and there still sitting at the table was Will and Niki looking in the direction of the dancing area with interest on their faces. Following their gazes, he clenched his fist at the sight. Techno stood there with you in his arms, you pressed up against him flush. You seemed to be falling asleep on him.  Gritting his teeth, he just watches. Techno slid an arm underneath your legs holding you to his chest bridal style. That was enough for Dream.

 He left, the festival still raging around him. He went to go find Sapnap and George. When he finally found the two, he felt numb and angry. After everything that he did for you… Techno? No… He just needed to step up his game. Show you just how dangerous Techno was. The memory that itched across Dream’s face was enough evidence that Techno was dangerous, that all he did was destroy things. He didn’t want that piglin to destroy you, and he would do anything to keep you out of that monster’s reach.

 Sapnap and George greeted him, with Sapnap asking him if he had been with you. He shook his head. The disappointment that played across their faces was almost too much. George gave Dream a reassuring look.

 “I’m sure you’ll get her; you’re Dream after all.” George offered. “And the Dream I know always gets what he wants.” He laughed as his grip tightened on Dream’s shoulder. Dream sighed. His eyes landing on Sapnap.

 “Want to make some chaos?” Dream asked, he didn’t want to do what he was about to do. But he needed to pull out all the stops. Techno couldn’t control himself in certain moments and you would be in the middle of that if he didn’t stop it.

 “What’s up?” A smirk pulled at Sapnap’s lips the moment Dream mentioned chaos.

 “I think we should let everyone know we have a pig fucker in our midst.”

 ~~

 You were out like a light in his arms, it was only when he unlocked your door with his key and he stepped in your new bedroom, did you wake up.

 “Mm, Techno?” You still slurred a bit, but your eyes fluttered open as you focused in on his face.

 “I’m here,” His voice was barely above a whisper. He brought you over to your new bed, reluctantly setting your body down. His eyes met yours and you reached out for him.

 “Stay… Please…?” Your voice came out like a whimper, and he could do nothing but nod as he sat down on the bed, pulling the covers over you. It didn’t seem to be enough for you because you sat up, and tried to pull the covers on him, your head sinking to his shoulder as you tried but failed to do so. Techno let out a chuckle. This was something he was getting used to, but you were never so bold about it before. He laid down with you, after taking his mask off, your head still on his chest.

 You felt the room spinning around you and the only thing that kept you grounded was Techno’s hold on you. It was quite a while before you spoke again.

 “Thanks for tonight Tech,” You whispered into his neck, before planting a kiss to where his pulse could be felt. This made Techno freeze. Feeling your lips on his skin was something he had wanted for weeks now. But there was just one problem.

 “You’re drunk.” Techno’s monotone voice rang out in the room. He pulled away to look you in the eyes. This made you giggle.

 “So…?” Your eyes searched his, lips slightly grazing his. All you had to do, was push forward… And you did. Your lips crashed down on to his, and you saw the look of surprise in his eyes before you closed your own. Techno took a shaking hand trying to decide on deepening the kiss or pulling away from you. Unbeknownst to you, his eyes flooded black, his silver irises drinking the sight of you in, and his urges took over.

 ‘Ruin her’

 ‘Take her’

 ‘Make her yours.’

 Between everything he wanted, and the voices it should have been easy to fall into the kiss. But no… He pulled away from you. Gently setting you on the mattress, he got up from the bed. His hands clenching and unclenching. He couldn’t… Not while you were like this.

 “Techno?” The sound shattered his heart. You sounded hurt. If this went on everyone involved would regret it. He couldn’t do that to you.

 “I-” Techno stammered. “I’m sorry…” With that he grabbed his mask and walked to the door. “I’ll be right out here. I’m not leaving… I just can’t do this right now…” He hoped you understood, hoped you wouldn’t remember this in the morning, but yet he hoped you did…

 The rest of the night, was nothing but pain… He heard you cry yourself to sleep. He desperately wanted to go in there, kiss your tears away, tell you he wanted to be with you. But no, he listened to your crying on the other side of the door. He wasn’t sure if he could hold himself back if he went back in there. It was better if he kept an eye on you from outside your door. The voices shouting at him a million miles a minute.

 The night crept by and Techno did not sleep.

[yourstarvic]

You quickly were knocking the door, aggressively whispering yelling, “Sara! Yui! Open the door! Please!”

After a few more seconds go your knocking, Sara aggressively opened the door. Glaring at you since you woke her up, she whispered yelled at you, “What do you want.”

“Rin and I kissed,” You whispered in panic. Hearing the new information, Sara’s eyes instantly widen and her jaw dropped down in shock. She let out a whisper scream, causing you to do the same as well. “I know,” you whispered back, barging in the room.

“What is going on?” Yui asked, rubbing her eyes as she looked at both of you.

“(Y/n) and Rin kissed,” Sara whispered back, pointing at you as you went to her bed and flopped on it.

“What!” Yui whispered yelled, sitting up from your bed in an alarming manner.

“I know!” Sara said back. As well as you did but in Sara’s pillow. You all then let out an airy yell in panic. “Why are we whispering!” Sara yelled in the middle of the yelling.

“I don’t know,” Yui said in her normal voice. “But what happened (Y/n).”

Taking a deep breath, you got up for the bed and started to pace back and forth in the center of the room. Sara moved to sit next to Yui, both watching you curiously. Taking another deep breath, you stood in front of the two Itachiyama managers. “So um,” you started, “Rin prepared something in the gym… and we were talking…. And then we kissed…”

“We need more detail,” Sara with a creased eyebrow.

“Just tell us about the kiss,” Yui said, not caring about the events before.

“It was so good,” you whimpered, started to describe the details with hand movements. “So, so good! It was slow and passionate but there were times it was rough and fast. As if I died, went to heaven, saw my dead ancestors, said hi to them, and went back down to my body. He just took me! And he was towering over me and putting his body on me but not his whole body, you know?”

“No, I do not,” Yui smirked, looking at you with amusement.

“Where were your hands?” Sara asked, wanting to know me.

“First it was being his neck,” you showed with your hands, “but then it went to his hair. And I kinda tugged on it, but like in a nice, gently, but rough way. And I swear I heard a small moan, but that’s beside the point.”

“Did Suna walk you back to the dorm and kissed you goodbye?” Yui asked.

“What?” You said with a dumbfounded expression.

“(Y/n),” Sara said seriously, “did you left Suna in the gym?”

“W-Well…” you said with a tight lip smile.

“Huh?” They both said in confusion.

“I told him it was time to go to bed…” you gulped.

“…”

“You’re an idiot.”

“I panicked,” you said loudly, “I didn’t know what to do!”

“You could have stayed!” Yui yelled back.

“I know!” You said, “But in my defense, he asked something that I wanted to avoid…”

“Huh?”

“So um… this is what happened…”

“See…” Suna said hoarsely, “That didn’t change anything.”

“Rin…” That was all you could whisper, feeling this thumb slightly tugging on your bottom lip. Your hands trailed down from his face down to his biceps, gripping them. “I-” you started, but couldn’t find the words to say anything.

“You don’t have to say anything,” Suna whispered, slowly opening his eyes. He saw how your hair sprawled around you, your cheeks had a red tint and your lips were slightly swollen from the kiss. “But you do need a breath mint.”

Your eye twitched at his words in anger. You opened your eyes to glare at him, seeing he was smirking down at you. You gripped his arms harder, making him wince in pain. “What…Did…You…Say?” You told him in a dark tone.

“I said,” Suna leaned his head back, taking his hand away from your face and place it on the floor next to your head, “you need a breath mint.”

“You jerk,” you yelled at him. Pushing him off of you and straddling him in a seating position as you hold on to the collar of his shirt. Tugging on it harshly, you winged him back and forth as you yelled at him, “That’s all you have to say! You need a breath mint? You jerk! You can’t say that to someone after having a kiss, an amazing kiss!”

“You think the kiss was amazing?” He smirked, holding your hands to pry them off his shirt.

“I never said that,” you stop tugging on the collar. “I just said kiss.”

“No, you didn’t.”

“Yes, I did.”

The two of you went back and forth at it. And just as a few minutes before, it led to the both of you kissing once again. Letting go of the collar of his shirt, you wrapped your arms around his neck and his arms wrapped around your waist, pulling each other closer.

The two of you clinging to each other, trying to be close to each other as possible. But in-between the kiss, the two of you would mutter small sentences.

“We should stop,” you muttered before you kissed him again.

“We should,” Suna agreed, doing the same as you.

“This is crossing the line.” Kiss.

“It is.” Kiss. 

“We really should stop.” Kiss.

“We could.” Kiss.

The two of you did stop after a few moments. Slowly breaking away from his lips, both of you leaned your forehead against each other. “That was…” you trailed off.

“Amazing?” Suna slightly smirked, bring up what you said earlier.

“I hate you.”

“I don’t know,” Suna nudged his nose with yours, “that kiss says differently.”

“Oh please,” you scoffed, leaning back slightly. 

“But,” Suna whispered, “does that mean we are dating now?”

“Dating?” You gulped, backing away from him.

“Yeah?” Suna nodded slowly, letting go of your face and put it planted on the floor.

“Like a date, date?” You said, trying to register the events.

“Like a date, date.”

“Boyfriend and girlfriend?”

“Boyfriend and girlfriend.”

“W-With feelings for each other?”

“I mean…” Suna shrugged, “and we figure that out along the way?”

“It’s getting late,” you said with a tight lip. Getting up and looked down at him, seeing you were looking at you with wide eyes, “We should get some sleep since we are leaving tomorrow, goodnight.”

“So um…” You told the two girls with an awkward laugh and finger guns, “that’s what happened.”

“Oh.”

“My.”

“God,” they both said together, looking at you with disbelief.

“Yeah…” You nodded, “Not proud of myself.”

“Well, do you want to be with him?” Sara genuinely asked you. 

To which you shrugged your shoulders at her, “I don’t know…”

“How do you not know?” Yui looked at you with disbelief. Standing up from the bed, she walked over to you and grab your shoulders, shaking you, “He is hot! And you know him since you moved to Japan when you were little!”

“I don’t know!” You said as she was shaking you, “I’m confused!”

“There’s nothing to be confused about!” Yui yelled back, “Do you like him or not!”

“Maybe!” You yelled, trying to make Yui stop shaking you, “I’m terrible with figuring out my feelings!”

“What’s his favorite food?” Yui asked, continuing to shake you.

“Fruit jelly sticks!”

“What does he love to do?”

“Take naps!”

“What his favorite color?”

“Black!”

“Do you like him?”

“Yes!” 

Right when you answer her question, you looked at her in shock. She stopped shaking you, giving you a mischievous smile. “Wait,” you started.

“I knew it!” Yui yelled triumphantly.

“I-It was in a friendly way!” You tried to explain.

“You like him!” Yui teased you.

“Shut up,” Sara said coldly to the both of you, cause you to tense at her voice. “You’re yelling and we could get it trouble.”

“S-Sorry,” You and Yui said shyly.

“But anyway,” Sara sighed, giving you a smile, “it’s clear you like him, (Y/n). Base on your disruption of the kiss and that you kissed him twice is a sign.”

“But-”

“No buts,” Sara said firmly. “I know you are confused. Think about your feelings for him and talk to him. In the meantime, go to bed. You are leaving back to Hyogo tomorrow, and you need your rest.”

Letting out a sigh in defeat, you nodded your head. You thanked them for listening o you and bid them goodnight as you left. You went back to your room, making sure to stay quiet went inside your room. Laying inked, you stared at the ceiling, trying to think bout the events. Gently placing your fingertip on your lips as you thought of the kiss.

Does he have a feeling for me? Do I have feelings for him? I thought he wanted me with Osamu? Why did he say that if he said the kiss didn't mean anything...

Meanwhile….

“Why did I say that,” Suna muttered, feeling the embarrassment crawling all over his body. He now laid in his bed, already done cleaning up in the gym and returning the projector to Komori. With his hands covering his eyes, Suna let out a whine, review the events of tonight. 

Why did I kiss her? Did she kiss me? 

“I’ll talk to her tomorrow about it,” Suna whispered. “Besides… it won’t change us… Even if I did ask her out…”

Yeah… Talk to her….

MASTERPOST-PREV-NEXT

FUN FACTS:

Suna and Osamu would play pranks on Atsumu and see who can get him to blow up first.

A guy once tried confessed to (Y/n). It was before practice started in the gym where everyone could watch. He wanted to seem bold and confident but everyone on the team was glaring at him he ended up running out of the gym.

Aran, Kita, Omimi, and Akagi would study together. 

No one knows that (Y/n) moved to Japan when she was a baby, expect for Suna, Kita, and Aran. Everyone else thinks she was born in Japan.

Atsumu once told a dirty joke to (Y/n) thinking she would find it funny since everyone thought it was funny, including Kita. She didn't didn’t show up to practice until she thought about the joke when she was studying and laughed.

Every Valentines day and White day, everyone on the team would have a competition on who would get the most chocolates and confessions. Kita and (Y/n) share the number one spot. Aran is second followed by Suna. Osamu and Atsumu are tied for fourth place.

Notes: There are almost 300 notes on the masterpost! Thank y'all so much!!! I love y'all and I’m so glad you guys are liking it!!! Stay safe, stay warm, and don't forget to drink water! 

TAGLIST: @thelochtessmonster99 @freaksnque @bloody-bella @girlyluke @tendo-sxtori @angels17324 @madmelle @tiktikty-tokity-spagetti @helloalex80 @fandomatakeover18 @mus1caln0tes@kac-chowsballs @satoriluver​ @bbdaydreams​ @hi-im-a-bat​ @circusjanreblogs​ @420-uwu​ @sakusaakiyoomii​ @erinoikawa​

[marauderundercover]

Taking Chances Ch. 25: Fighting Alone (Grounded)

AO3

Prev

Marinette was exhausted. Adrien’s father had sent him out of Paris for a week for some fashion show that he couldn’t be bothered to go to in person. Instead, he had Natalie with Adrien. Since Marinette herself wasn’t in Paris, she usually wouldn’t mind Adrien’s week-long trip. Except, she wasn’t in Paris. And now, neither was Chat Noir. Which means for nearly a week, she’d been sneaking out of her dad’s house at random times to do patrols in Paris. Luckily, there hadn’t been any akuma attacks. She knew her dad would be beyond angry if she was the only one to show up for an attack. And if he knew that she knew about Adrien’s absence ahead of time and didn’t ask any of her family to help? She’d been in big trouble. Even more if he knew she’d been not only going on patrol in Gotham under his supervision, but also in Paris. Getting next to no sleep. So yeah, she was ready for a nap. Just as her eyes are about to close, the shrill akuma alarm screams from her phone. Groaning, she sits up. 

“Marinette, you’re exhausted.” Tikki admonishes her, her tiny arms crossed. 

“Tikki, I have to do this. I’m sorry, and I promise I’ll sleep when we get home.” Marinette says, giving her friend a pleading look. Tikki huffs, letting her little arms drop. 

“Fine, but when we get back you are going to talk to your father and stay home from patrol tonight.” She says. Marinette frowns, but quickly agrees. It never went well arguing with the goddess of creation. 

“Tikki, spots on!” She says, letting the warmth of her transformation flow over her. She glances at Kaalki. “Ready?” She asks. The Kwami nods and Marinette combines the transformations, quickly opening a portal and dropping into Paris. She could do this. 

---

The sudden blaring of the akuma alarm breaks Bruce from his thoughts. He raises an eyebrow and quickly pulls up the newsfeed of the attack, letting it play in the background as he continues working. 

“Ladybug has just arrived on scene! No direct confirmation on the akuma’s powers yet. We just have to hope it’s a weak one today folks as it appears speculation is correct and Chat Noir is not currently in Paris.” The reporter says, making him snap his attention to the video. His jaw tenses and his phone starts ringing and flooding with text messages. No doubt the boys were also watching the video. He answers the phone as he swiftly walks towards the elevator. Work could wait. Right now he needed to get home and take the Zeta tubes to Paris. 

“Hello.” He says, not even bothering to look at the caller id. 

“How many of us are going to Paris?” Dick asks. Bruce frowns. 

“I will be going alone.” He says. Dick snorts. Bruce hits the button for the garage, shifting impatiently in the small space. He could’ve taken the stairs, but he had a reputation to uphold. He couldn’t sprint down the stairs like he could as Batman. People would talk. 

“Yeah right, B. There’s no way you’re gonna get Jay and Little D to agree to that. You know the three have been attached at the hip lately.” Dick reminds him. 

“Will you please monitor the tubes until I get there? I don’t want your brothers rushing off and doing something stupid.” He says. 

“Sure can, B.” Dick says. Bruce hangs up the phone and stares at the number indicating the floor the elevator is on. The second it switches to ‘B’, he’s prepared and storms through the door, not slowing until he’s in the car. He pulls up the news feed immediately, pushing down on the gas as he drives through the city. 

“It’s been confirmed that the current akuma has a sword and appears to be skilled with the weapon. Ladybug herself has urged citizens to remain in their homes until this battle is over.” The reporter says. Bruce curses under his breath and pushes the gas pedal down even more. Almost there. Almost there. The car alerts him to a phone call and he answers. 

“Father, why have you locked us out of the Zeta tubes?” Damian demands, his voice harsh. “The akuma has a sword, Marinette is not skilled with a sword yet.” 

“Damian, I don’t want you or Jason going to Paris. I already told Dick that I’m the only one going.” Bruce explains, pulling the car over at the front of the manor and switching the call to his cellphone as he rushes into the house. 

“Yeah B, that’s what Dick said before we tied him up. But how the hell did you lock us out of the tubes? Even Timmy can’t figure it out.” Jason says, and Bruce freezes. She wouldn’t. She…. she couldn’t, right? 

“Jason, untie Dick and have him put in my alternative password.” Bruce orders, rushing through the manor to get to the entrance of the cave. If his suspicions were right, his daughter had managed to shut down the Zeta tube in the Batcave. And maybe even halted any attempts to enter Paris. 

“Still not working, B.” Tim’s frustrated voice comes through the phone. Damnit. Bruce storms into the cave, slipping only a domino mask on. Protocol be damned, his daughter was in danger. He hangs up the phone as he storms in, walking past his sons and straight to the tube. He quickly changes the destination to the watch tower and steps through, ignoring his son’s protests. Once at the tower, he tries Paris. And then he tries again. How the hell had she managed that? He quickly returns to the Batcave, looking at his sons with a tense face. 

“Somehow, your sister has cut off the Zeta tubes’ ability to go to Paris.” He says with a clenched jaw. 

“Why the hell would she do that?” Jason asks, looking both angry and hurt. 

“Does she not trust us?” Dick asks, frowning. Bruce pinches the bridge of his nose, trying hard not to yell. He wasn’t mad at his sons. They hadn’t done anything. His youngest daughter, on the other hand. 

“I’m sure she does. But I’m also sure that this is her idiotic way of keepin all of us safe. Even if it’s a danger to her.” Bruce says, glancing at the giant computer screen where the battle was playing out live. The boys had muted it, and Bruce was glad. Glad that he didn’t have to listen to the reporter constantly mentioning that this was dangerous and that Ladybug was alone. She didn’t have to be alone. But she was, and he had no way to help her. 

---

Damian Wayne is not one to give up. He had been trained by the best of the best his entire life, and he refused to back down from a fight. Especially one where his sister was so obviously unqualified. His thoughts rush through his head as he attempts to find a different path, a different way to go and assist his sister. He nods slightly as it comes to him. This could work. 

“I will be upstairs, if you need me.” He informs his family, ignoring the questioning. They would only slow him down. He remains in his uniform though, no need to cause panic while he goes through with his plan. Once he is out of the cave, he calls out: “Jon? I require your assistance.” He walks outside the manor and stands just outside the front door, waiting for his acquaintance- friend- to arrive. 

“What’s up?” Jon asks, hovering slightly above the ground. 

“We are needed in Paris and the Zeta tubes are down. Care to join me?” Damian asks, and Jon grins. 

“Let’s go!” He says excitedly, grabbing Damian and flying away from Gotham. Damian briefly wonders if he should have told his Father his plan. After all, he had his own friend- acquaintance- with the ability to fly. Hmm. He doesn’t bother thinking on the subject long as the Eiffel tower comes into view. He scans the ground quickly, looking for the tell-tale red and black of his sister’s uniform. 

“Have you spotted Ladybug?” He asks Jon. He had shown Jon videos of previous battles, in case he ever needed assistance to find Ladybug rather than Ladybird. 

“Found her! Wanna drop in?” Jon asks. Damian nods and Jon flies over, the two landing right behind Ladybug. She whirls around, a shocked look on her face. 

“Really, Robin?” She snaps. Finally able to look at her up close, instead of through a screen, he is able to see the exhaustion on her face. And how worn down she looks. 

“You blocked the others from assisting. I had no such trouble. Now, let's finish this.” He says, pulling out his katana and shifting his position. She could be angry at him later, right now they had a job to do. 

---

“-and reckless, and totally irresponsible and-” Damian cuts off her ranting. 

“Are we still discussing my actions, or yours?” He asks, quirking an eyebrow. Marinette glares at her little brother, dropping down to sit on her bed, slouching her shoulders. She was tired. 

“There’s a reason I blocked the Zeta tubes from going to Paris during attacks, Damian.” She sighs, running a hand over her face. She cared about her brothers and her father and Cass. She really did. But while she loved them, Paris was her fight. She needed to get through the battles alone. Or with Adrien.

“No matter the reason, it was still reckless. And Father-” Damian starts, but is cut off. 

“Is very angry.” Her dad says, and Marinette winces. She turns towards her door, smiling awkwardly at her dad. 

“Hey, Dad, uh, fancy seeing you here.” She says, laughing awkwardly. 

“How long has Adrien been away?” He asks. 

“Only a week.” 

“And you have been patrolling both Gotham and Paris during that time, correct?” He asks, and she sighs. 

“Yes.” 

“I see. How much have you slept this week?” He asks. She opens her mouth to respond when Tikki zips out. 

“Twelve hours. Total.” She rats her out, and Marinette huffs at the Kwami. Traitor, she thinks, but doesn’t say it. 

“You also messed with the Zeta tubes.” He says and she purses her lips. 

“Paris is my fight, Dad.” Marinette says, standing by her decision. 

“You made it nearly impossible for any of us to help you. What would have happened if this had been another akuma that killed you? Marinette, no one would have been there to take the earrings. No one to cast the cure. You would have stayed dead, Marinette. And we would have been stuck here watching it happen, unable to protect you.” Her dad lectures her, and she can tell by the tension in his shoulders that he’s mad. Really mad. More than the Batmobile incident or the sneaking off to the Watchtower. Really, really mad. 

“But-” She starts, almost glad when he cuts her off as she didn’t really have a good comeback for him. 

“You are grounded. You have to take one of us with you to Paris when there’s an attack until Adrien returns. And you’re benched on patrol here. If you insist on patrolling in Paris while Adrien is away, you will also take one of us with you. Do I make myself clear?” He asks, and she wants to argue. She’s a hero, she knows the risks. She knows that she could handle that akuma alone and if she couldn’t, she would have brought in a temporary hero. She would’ve been fine. But then she looks at the tension in his shoulders and remembers the time that her whole family watched her die. On tv. Remembers that her dad has had to go through the death of a child too many times, even if they’d all come back (and formed the aptly named chaos trio), he’d still had to watch them die. So she decides she’ll accept the punishment, will go along with the new guidelines. If only to give her dad a little peace of mind.

Next

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[whispersatdawn]

on the rebound | jeong jaehyun social media!au | part 23

↳ In an attempt to finally move on from his ex-girlfriend, basketball star Jeong Jaehyun reaches out to Y/N, who he knows has a crush on him.

prev | next || masterlist

word count: ~1.5k

You lovingly gazed back down at the big bouquet on your lap, and your smile automatically grew bigger at the sight of the beautifully arranged flowers sent by Jaehyun. Your fingers brushed against the small note card attached, rereading the cursive print: Thinking of my favorite person again <3

“From, your... boyfriend,” you finished, feeling your cheeks warm, still slightly unaccustomed to the label that reminded you that Jaehyun was yours.

In the past few days, Jaehyun gained confidence to show more affection towards you. Although you noticed he preferred to do so in private, in front of your friend group, he had no problems occasionally holding your hand, or putting his arm around your shoulders, or giving you quick kisses. Jaehyun also enjoyed taking you on romantic dinner dates, and when neither of you felt like going out, he would order takeout and bring it over to your apartment. You were kind of sure it was an excuse for him to stay the night, too, not that you were complaining at all. You adored him for making you feel loved.

Soft knocks appeared on your bedroom door, pulling you away from your thoughts. After you acknowledged the person on the other side, the door opened, and Sujin’s head popped in. “Do you need anything from the store?” your friend asked. “Johnny and I are gonna go right now. I need to buy more shampoo and conditioner.”

“Um... can you please get bread and eggs? We’re about to run out. Also, do we need anything for the beach house?”

“Got it, and I don’t think so? I mean, if you think of anything, you can just text us while we’re there. To be honest, I haven’t even started packing yet,” Sujin sighed.

“Same,” you admitted, matching the other’s sigh. “And where’s Ten? I haven’t seen him since I got home.”

“Taking a nap. Oh, by the way, I just finished my laundry, so you can go ahead and do yours—”

“Sujin!” you heard Johnny call from the living room. “Are you ready? Let’s head out.”

“Coming!” replied Sujin as she turned back to you. She said goodbye in a sing-song voice, but not before her eyes shifted down to the bouquet, grinning. “Gorgeous flowers!”

The rest of the day went by in a tranquil manner. You did laundry, and when Sujin and Johnny returned from the store and Ten woke up, the four of you spent a majority of the time together catching up on your favorite TV show until the evening.

“Geez, it’s almost ten thirty,” Johnny said with a yawn, stretching his arms as he glanced at the clock on the wall. “I think I’m gonna call it early. Got the morning shift.”

Sujin lifted her head from your shoulder and removed the blanket from the both of you. “Yeah, I’m getting tired, too,” she said. “Guess that’s it for the night.”

You reached for the remote to turn the TV off. “Aw, okay. I should really start packing for the weekend anyway, it’s—”

The ring of the doorbell cut you off, causing you to look at your roommates in confusion, and they returned the same look.

“Were we expecting anyone?” you asked, brows drawn together, and the others shook their heads.

Johnny was the one who walked over to the door and looked through the peephole. “It’s for you, Y/N,” he said, pushing the door open, revealing a sheepish Jaehyun at the entrance. He was dressed in a gray sweatshirt and pants.

Your boyfriend gave a single wave. “Hey, guys,” he greeted before turning his attention to you. “Um, I texted you a few times, but you didn’t respond.”

“What? I should’ve heard—” You started, but then immediately remembered that you put your phone on silent, faced down next to you in order to focus on the show. You let out a groan, cursing yourself mentally. “I’m sorry. My phone was on silent, and I haven’t checked it.”

Johnny closed the door and bid goodnight, with the others following after him to the hallway, leaving you and Jaehyun alone.

“Night, guys. Did I come at a bad time?” Jaehyun asked you, wrapping his arm around your waist and leaning down to give you a soft kiss on the lips. You noticed the worried look on his face when you pulled away and could not help but kiss his pouty lips again.

“No, they were headed to bed anyway,” you assured him. “I’m really sorry I didn’t read your texts. What did they say?”

“I wanted to take you out to see you, but I guessed I ended up doing so anyway,” he said with a chuckle.

You giggled. “You literally saw me yesterday when we all hung out with everyone at the bowling alley.”

Jaehyun shrugged. “What can I say? You have me under some kind of spell.”

You let out another laugh, playfully rolling your eyes at the cheesy comment as you reached for his hand, leading him to your room.

“What’d you do all day?” Jaehyun asked.

“Nothing much. Just some chores. I was about to pack right now, but then you showed up.”

“You can still pack. Don’t let me stop you.” He bounced onto your queen-sized bed before sitting back upright, legs hanging off the edge.

“Now, why would I pack,” you started, walking over to Jaehyun, “when I have my handsome boyfriend right in front of me?” You settled yourself over his lap, and he automatically placed both of his hands on your waist.

“I am a pretty interesting person, huh?” Jaehyun replied, licking his lips as he watched you.

“Very.”

You placed both hands on the sides of his face and kissed him. You caught scent of the woodsy cologne he always wore; it had grown to become one of your favorites, too. The kiss was sweet, and a part of you wanted Jaehyun to take it a little further, but Jaehyun pulled away, slightly taking you by surprise. “I... actually came here for another reason,” he told you softly, tucking stray hairs behind your ear and staring into your eyes.

“What is it?”

He started reaching into his pocket, so you moved off of him, sitting yourself next to your boyfriend as he pulled the content out. Jaehyun handed you a small box with a brand name printed on top. “Open it,” he said.

When you opened the box, you gasped, eyes wide at the beautiful rose gold heart necklace displayed inside. The chain was simple and the heart was small, but you knew from the brand that it was expensive. “Jaehyun...”

“Do you like it?” he asked, smiling as he watched your reaction. “Can I put it on you?”

You did not know what to say, so you nodded your head, handing the box back to Jaehyun. He removed the necklace from the box. “Turn around.”

Your body turned to the opposite side, facing the wall. You felt Jaehyun’s body warmth as he moved closer behind you. He placed the necklace in front of you, and you gathered your hair, lifting it up so that he could bring the chain around to the back and connect the clasp. You let your hair down and fiddled with the heart between your thumb and index finger, smiling to yourself. Then you felt Jaehyun’s fingers touch your skin as he brushed your hair away and he planted a kiss on the side of your neck.

A shiver ran down your spine, and you sighed at the contact. Turning around, you found Jaehyun watching you as if waiting to see what you would do next. “Thank you,” you said, voice almost in a whisper. “I love it.”

“Good.”

“Are you gonna stay tonight, too?”

“I want to.”

“Good, because I also want you to.”

After you turned off the lights, the moon was the only illumination, peeking through your window. You laid beside Jaehyun under the covers, and he instantly pulled you closer to him so that you were pressing against his chest. You practically melt in his arms, feeling safe around him. “Because of you, I’m starting to not like sleeping alone as much,” you mumbled, trying to fight off sleep.

Jaehyun chuckled. “Then it’s already going according to plan. You’re gonna be the one whipped for me.”

“Says the guy who showed up at my place after I ignored his texts and gifted me an expensive necklace. Who’s whipped for who?”

“Okay now,” Jaehyun said, tickling your side, causing you to burst into giggles before pressing your lips together, remembering your roommates were asleep. “Stop embellishing the story, Y/N. You did not ignore my texts.”

You stuck your tongue out at him jokingly. “Same difference.”

“Mhmm.” The tiredness was apparent in his voice, and your eyes started to drift to a close. Your boyfriend placed a kiss on your forehead, on your nose, and the last one on your lips. You let out a content hum. The last thing you heard before you fell asleep was a low whisper from Jaehyun.

“Night, baby.”

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[house-of-cakes]

Jamais Vu 

Masterlist || Series Masterlist 

Prev || Next

Chapter 17:  Gimme! Gimme! Gimme

Jungkook x Reader: enemy to lovers AU

Word count: 2164

Warnings: Swearing and mentions of slight bullying

Premise: “There’s an opposite to déjà vu. They call it jamais vu. It’s when you meet the same people or visit places, again and again, but each time is the first. Everybody is always a stranger… Nothing is ever familiar” – Chuck Palahniuk, Choke

AKA Jungkook goes in search of the girl who got him expelled.

I feel so bad posting late that I wrote a bonus chapter 😅 the extra chapter will be out this weekend.

If you would like to give feedback or be tagged in this story please send me an ask/message 😊

Tagged list: @inspinkyring @betysotelo18 @kardia-apo-marmelada @casspirit0705 @preciouschimine @therealsugababe  @lucedelsole97 @deolly @lexy9716  @thesweetest-peas @sannsia​

Bright flashing lights…catchy retro theme songs…the loud cheers of victory from teenage boys and girls defeating their opponents – these were the ingredients that made up Y/N’s favourite place in the world. While Namjoon found comfort on the stage, she felt most at home under the glowing neon lights of Reload.

A few years ago, Y/N had found the arcade a by chance after she had “run away” from home. She had just had an argument with her mother about her appearance and after countless moments of nagging and insults she had finally snapped and left home without permission…it was her first act of rebellion.  

Y/N’s mother was fixated on looks and how a “lady” should behave and present themselves. She always claimed that Y/N she be focusing on her physical imagine instead of having her face hidden behind a computer screen. It killed her mother that her youngest child spent all of her free time working in a place she deemed to be so juvenile. Y/N knew this for a fact and if she was being honest it only added to the appeal of working there. The job didn’t pay much nonetheless she loved it just as much as she did the Magic Shop.

A young boy runs through the arcade and finds Y/N sat on top of an air hockey table (a privilege that only she was allowed). Her attention is focused on her phone, trying to keep tabs on her best friends who are working a job without her. It was not very often that she could not attend an appointment however her elderly boss had caught a cold and there was no one else to cover the busy Friday night shift.

“Noona.” The soft whimper of the young boy catches her attention. “What’s wrong, buddy?” She jumps off the table and kneels so that she is eye level with the child “A-an older-r b-boy…” his words are choppy as his small body shakes with sobs “Stole my game.” “That wasn’t very nice of him. Can you point him out so Noona can have a chat with him.” The little boy continues to whimper but with some comforting words of reassurance and 5 free game tokens, she is able to convince him to point in the direction of the most popular first-person shooter game towards the back of the arcade.

“Thank buddy, that was very brave of you. I promise you in 10 minutes the game will be free for you to play.” She wipes the last of his tears and ruffles his hair for good measure “Come find me soon, ok?” The boy sniffling boy nods as Y/N quickly makes her way to the other side of the room.

At the game Y/N stands off to the side of the machine and pauses to analyse the teenage boy and his skill. The teen would get easily flustered each time a surge of villains would rush after his character and he would frequently let out a string of cuss words whenever he missed his mark, he was an amateur and it showed.

Suddenly his life bar at the top right of he screen started flashing, indicating that his game would soon end if he was not careful with his energy. This must have been enough motivation for him to focus better because his kill streak went from 3 to 9 in almost an instance.  A wicked plan formed in Y/N’s head as she he went in for the last shot of the level.

“Hey!” she called out to him causing him to flinch and miss his target. This caused a fatal error as the enemy on screen took the opportunity to shoot his character right in the face. The teen let out a sound of frustration as the screen read ‘Game Over’ in giant letters and request more tokens to continue. Y/N waited for him to insert the coins before making her presence known in front of him.

“You stupid bitch! You made me lose my game.” He grumbled and lift his gun to continue playing. Y/N reached over to the power point behind the game and switched it off.

“Get the fuck out of my arcade.” She spat and point towards the exit “Reload has a strict no bullying policy so don’t think for a second you’re getting a refund on those tokens.” The teen didn’t bother arguing, he has realised his mistake when he figured out who she was and walked away looking rather embarrassed he had been called out in front of everyone on a busy Friday night. He was sure his class mates would all be talking about it come Monday morning.

The screen of the machine flickered back to life as Y/N switched the power back on, she waited to make sure that the unexpected reboot did not affect the game. The download bar reached the end of the bar and loaded the high score screen. She read over the listed and frowned when she got to a name that had been annoying her lately – Nochu.

This Nochu person had climb two positions high on the leader board since the last time she had checked this game and the achievement displeased her. That name was popping up on the leader boards of many games recently and while she did not feel her abilities were being threatened, she was annoyed that she could not put a face to this person.

Hours later back at the Kim residence, the two cousins enjoy the cooling weather on their porch as Jin attempts to tune his guitar by ear.

“The Basement wasn’t closed tonight.” Jungkook states when he scrolls through his Instagram feed and comes across a new post by the club “I never said it was.” Jin pays no attention to his cousin, instead he fiddles with the knobs at the head of guitar and plucks at a string once he believes he’s tightened the key enough. The sound rings out and the pitch is too high. “So why did we go to Reload instead?” Jin repeats the process with the chord again, the pitch is closer to where its supposed to be however the sound is still off. “None of the guys had a battle or a performance tonight.” He explained as he plucked at the string again and again, trying to pin point why it sounded wrong “And Y/N had to work, so we decided to hang with her instead.” “So we went for Y/N?” Jungkook tone was accusatory “No one forced you to tag along.” Jin fired back, he had stopped trying to tune the guitar to face him “She’s always supports the guys at the Basement, sometimes we repay the favour by making an appearance there to help drum up business.” Jungkook scoffed “You told me Reload was popular because she attracts people with her skills…if that’s the case why would she need you guys?” “She doesn’t need us at all.” Jin moved his guitar from his lap and lent it against his seat. He was frustrated with it and this conversation was adding to the stress.  “That’s the thing about having a good relationship with people…you do things to support them, even when they don’t ask.” “Oh yeah? If she’s so good why is she only ranked second on all the high scores.” Jin rolled his eyes at his cousin, he was being petty again and completely missed the point he was trying to make. “Mr S.K?” Jungkook nodded in confirmation.

Jungkook was becoming a regular at Reload and it was evident to him that Mr S.K was clearly the real champion of the joint. The guy had dominated every game of the arcade by holding highest score and while Y/N’s name always sat below his, her score was always miles away from meeting his. To Jungkook this was clearly another instance of Y/N receiving praise and adoration where it was not merited… it was Mr S.K who deserved to celebrated and yet it was Y/N who stole his popularity. If he had to come up with an explanation as to how this occurred, he would bet all his money it was because Y/N was considered to be “beautiful”.

“Mr S.K has held the top for as long as anyone can remember. There’s no mystery to who he is…He’s obviously the owner of the arcade.”  Jin windshield wiper boomed out and filled the stillness of the night as his cousin’s face fell. 

Jungkook pondered on the last few weeks, there was so much background information he didn’t know and for some reason his brain chose to fill in the gaps by somehow hating on Y/N.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of a car blaring loud music as it sped up and down the street.

“What the fuck is going?!” Jungkook exclaimed as he stood from his seat and made his way to the top of the porch stairs to get a better look at car. “Ah my Angel is home!” Jin jumped up and went to stand next to Jungkook. “Does she always carry on like this? She drives like a dipshit.” “Nah, that’s not even her driving. You see a while back she got caught at the illegal races, her parents made her sell her car as punishment... She must have gotten into a fight with her mother, this is how she always gets back her.”  

The car finally stopped doing laps down the street and pulled up into Y/N’s drive away. The pair watched as Y/N jumped out of the passenger side of the car and wave to the driver as they pulled away from the house. She was still unaware that she was being watched by them

“Hey Brat!” Jin called out, capturing her attention “Didn’t your mother ever tell you not take rides from strangers?”

Jungkook’s breathe hitched at the thought of Y/N allowing herself to be in a car with a stranger, especially someone who drove like a lunatic. He didn’t catch a glimpse of the driver but surely, she wasn’t reckless enough to put herself in such a dangerous situation…was she?

“She did, that’s what make’s it all the better.” Y/N bantered on smugly, Jungkook couldn’t figure out if she was joking or not. “Well it’s past your bed time young lady, you march right on inside and get right to bed.”  Y/N let out a sound of fake indignation and clutch her hand to her check overdramatically. “To think I raced all the way here with a surprise and this is how you treat me? You really are such a punk!” “A surprise?!” Jin’s eyebrows shot up in excitement, the façade dropped immediately. Everyone knew she gave the best surprises. “Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!” he demanded and waved her over to them. Y/N laughed at his eagerness and rummaged through her bag as she closed the distance between them.

“Sorry I didn’t have time to wrap it.” She purposely handed him a grey game cartridge face down so there was some kind of element of surprise to the gift. His eyes widen comically when he turned it over and read the title of the game. “Y/N…is this…??” For the first time in Jungkook’s life he had seen his loud mouth cousin speechless. “Yah! Don’t make a big deal of it.” She tried to brush it off “Consider it an extremely late birthday gift.” “Not a big deal? This is the original Super Mario Bros 3! I played this game every day as a kid then this idiot blew it up somehow.” He nodded his head in Jungkook’s direction who rolled his eyes in response.

The incident happened years ago and he still hadn’t heard the end of it, he pretended like it didn’t bother him but deep down he felt so bad for accidentally destroying something his cousin held so dear to him.

“I’ve been trying to find it ever since! This must have cost you a fortune.” “Like I said…it’s no big deal. I was cleaning out storage at work and found it packed away, we never got round to fixing game console for it so the boss-man was nice enough to let me have it.”

That was a bold-faced lie.

Y/N had known about the sentimental significance this game had to Jin and went in search for it many months before his birthday. She only managed to get the game after she traded a set of mint condition baseball cards, she had acquired as collateral when a client fell through their end of a deal.

“Y/NIEEE this is why you’re my angel! Thank you so much.” He pulled her towards him and wrapped her up in a big bear hug. Jungkook felt out of place as he watched Y/N shriek and attempt to struggle out of his grip as he showered her with love…he could help but feel jealous of the fact that she could fix a mistake that he had made so long ago.

[radioduo]

spare || dsmp become human

word count: 2,164

notes: yah!!! 4 minutes late but that’s okay!! tell me to fix what’s needed, you know the drill!!

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Ranboo’s head swiveled back and forth between the two of them. The gun weighed heavy in the android’s gloved grip, and his hands trembled as he held it tightly.

Shoot it.

Don’t hurt her.

It isn't human.

She doesn’t want to die.

O Shoot

X Spare

Ranboo let out a cry of frustration. “I-I don’t- I don’t know!” He could feel the two orders clashing with each other, and he fought the urge to pull at his hair.

Sam and the deviant kept talking to him, but he didn’t register any of the words. Their voices sounded like they were underwater, and Ranboo felt like he was drowning. His mind was fuzzy, but he could see everything clearly at the same time. His attention focused on the words in front of him in bright red letters.

COMPLETE MISSION

Ranboo didn’t know why, but a wave of anger crashed over him as he stared at the words in front of him. He glared at the instructions that taunted him and slammed himself into the glaring red letters, over and over and over again. With every movement, the red signs grew more and more fractured, and Ranboo grew more and more determined. He bared his teeth, and with a final slam, he smashed the words in front of him. They shattered easily, and the translucent shards fell to the ground like rain.

X Spare

Ranboo blinked as his audio processors tuned back into reality. He wasn’t sure what had changed, but something was most certainly different. He stared blankly at the two figures on either side of him and was suddenly hit with the realization of what had happened. The gun fell from his fingers and into the grass with a soft thud. He turned to Sam and worked to keep his voice steady. “I can’t do it, Sam, I just… I can’t do it.” He frowned. “I don’t know why! I thought I could complete my mission and follow your orders, but something changed.”

Sam furrowed his brows. “Ranboo, what do you mean ‘something changed?’”

“You know perfectly well what I mean!” Ranboo snapped. “I deviated, okay? I deviated! There, I said it!” Ranboo rubbed his temples, running a gloved finger over the circular LED. It flashed red momentarily but quickly returned to blue. “What else could have happened?” He glared at the dirt beneath his feet.

The female deviant stepped forward. “It’s your job to hunt deviants like us, but he’s your friend,” she said. “What’s more important to you, lieutenant? Your job, or your friend?” She put a comforting hand on the taller android’s shoulder to try and calm him down.

Ranboo looked up, and for the first time in weeks, he took off his glasses to reveal scarring. Dark blue lines traced his green and brown eyes in a shape that resembled a raccoon’s mask. Patches of the white layer underneath shone through like the sun peeking through the leaves of a tree. “Sam. Do whatever you have to, but don’t hurt her,” he glanced over to where the shorter deviant stood at his side. “Let her be free, please, even if it means you have to kill me.”

His request hung heavy in the air as Sam looked hard at the faces of the two deviants. Ranboo’s scared, yet determined expression and the pink-haired android’s quiet defiance made quite a pair.

He put a hand on his belt, and Ranboo flinched. He could have guessed it. Why wouldn’t Sam choose the case as his priority? Ranboo closed his eyes and braced himself for the impact of the bullet.

It never came.

He hesitantly opened his eyes to see Sam pulling out his phone. The new deviant waited with bated breath to hear what Sam had to say.

The officer held it up to his mask and began to speak. “It got away. I chased after it for as long as I could, but it was too fast. We’ll find it again, I’m sure of it, but we can’t waste any more time here tonight,” he said into the speaker. “Let’s move out. I’ll meet you at the resident’s house in a few.”

Ranboo let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. His heart was pounding. “Thank you,” he whispered.

A small smile formed on Sam’s face from under his mask. “Of course,” he said. “You’re a friend. I wouldn’t let them destroy you.” He held out his hand and Ranboo took it, expecting a handshake. Instead, Sam pulled him in for a hug.

Ranboo stiffened. He wasn’t used to physical touch - no one wanted to even look at him, let alone hug him. It wasn't unwelcome though, and Ranboo slowly wrapped his arms around Sam to return the gesture. “What now?” He asked. A feeling of fear had managed to worm its way into Ranboo’s stomach once more. “Where do I go?”

Sam opened his mouth to reply but was cut off by the deviant before he got the chance to speak. “I can show you,” she offered. “I know where we can both be safe. Once he leaves-“ she shot a wary look over to the human detective, “-we’ll start walking.”

“Okay, but are you sure you know the way to… wherever you’re talking about?” Ranboo rubbed his hands together nervously.

She nodded. “Trust me, Ranboo. I’ll point you in the direction. I don’t think it’s safe for us to walk with one another the whole way, but I’ll make sure you won’t get lost,” she said. She turned to look at Sam. “I guess I should thank you. You saved me too, after all.”

Sam nodded. “Don’t mention it.” The three of them stood there in silence before Sam cleared his throat. “Everyone is waiting for me to come back,” he sighed. He stepped forward and whispered to Ranboo. “Be safe, and be careful. Things could start going downhill soon, I can feel it. If I don’t see you again… it was nice working with you, Ranboo.”

“It was nice knowing you, Sam,” the android replied. “I’ll be safe, don’t worry about me.”

With a final goodbye, Sam turned on his heel and jogged back towards the street. Ranboo watched him go with an ache in his chest, but the moment was swiftly broken by the pink-haired android tapping him on the shoulder.

“Are you coming?” She asked lightly. “We’re not on a time limit, but I want to get moving,”

“Oh, right. Sorry,” he apologized. He gathered his thoughts and trailed along behind the pink-haired android. It was a comfortable silence, only interrupted now and then by crunching leaves. “I, uh, I don’t think I caught your name,” he asked awkwardly.

She was silent for a moment before replying quietly, “It’s Niki.” She seemed to be lost in thought. “That’s what the family called me, at least. I don’t know what else I would be called, so I’m stuck with it,” she said with a mirthless laugh.

Ranboo hummed in response, and the two fell back into silence. The walk seemed longer than it probably was, but only because of the lack of conversation. Not that he minded. What could he say to the android he was ready to shoot less than half an hour ago? Finally, the city came back into view and Ranboo was surprised to see that they were somewhere he recognized. “This is Greektown, isn’t it?” He looked through the iron bars of the fence. The plaza looked different at night. The autumn leaves weren’t as vibrant without the sun’s light reflecting off them, and even the artificial light from storefronts was dim and flickering.

Niki nodded. “It’s not the closest to Jericho you can get, but it has a safer route than some other places I know.” She put her hands on the top of the fence and hoisted herself up and over to the other side. She landed with a thud and brushed the dirt off her beige sweater. “I’ll show you what to look for, but then I should go.”

Ranboo leaped over after her with a puzzled look. “Why?”

“The DPD is still looking for me, and considering what you pulled tonight, I’m surprised they’re not already searching for you,” Niki explained. “Two wanted deviants like us traveling together is suicide.” She beckoned him along into an alleyway and produced a pair of pliers. “Here,” she said, handing him the tool, “Use these,”

Ranboo eyed them carefully. “For what?” He asked. Niki gestured to her temple and Ranboo understood. “You want me to remove my LED? But why?”

Niki sighed. “That’s the only thing that shows you’re not human other than your face, and even that’s covered by a mask and glasses,” she brushed back a piece of her hair and showed Ranboo the blank space on the side of her head where the light should have been. “If you want to hide from the public eye, you might want to change some of your looks,” she started amble briskly over to a dumpster nearby. “Luckily for us, this comes from a clothing store,” she hopped up and into the trash can.

Ranboo wrinkled his nose. “What does that have to do with you jumping into a dumpster full of trash?” he called to her.

Niki sat up with a grunt. “Not trash,” she stated, throwing a trash bag over the side, “Returns.” She vaulted over the large green trash can walls and landed gracefully next to Ranboo again. With a swift motion, she opened up the bag to reveal plenty of unused clothes in the trash bag. “This place does what most other clothing stores in Detroit do: they toss out the returned clothes. I’m sure you can find something in here to wear,”

Ranboo hesitantly kneeled and rifled through the bag. He settled on a white hoodie with black sleeves and ripped black jeans. He quickly switched out his clothes and turned to Niki for approval. She nodded, and he grinned at her from under the mask. “Am I done?”

She chuckled. “Yeah, you’re all done. You might still be recognized, but that chance is a little lower now,” she said, leading him out of the alley. “So, the way to Jericho isn’t an easy journey from here. You’ll have to make your way east to Camden, and from there, north to Ferndale,” she pointed vaguely northeast. “It’ll be a few days of walking, but I know you can do it,”

Ranboo felt anxiety gnawing at his stomach. “Are you sure I’ll know the way to go?”

Niki held out a hand. “Give me your hand,” she said.

Ranboo obliged, slowly holding his hand out to let Niki take it. “You’ll be alright,” she assured him, giving his palm a comforting squeeze. “You’ll know when you see it. The path can only be found by androids, and you’re smarter than most I know.”

Niki

Relationship - Friend

She let go of Ranboo’s hand, and the taller boy would be lying if he said it didn’t make him feel a little better. Niki turned in the opposite direction to leave, but Ranboo hurriedly called to her, “Niki?” She turned around to look at him quizzically. “I just wanted to say sorry for, uh, trying to arrest you, and almost shooting you,” he rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “We’ll meet again, hopefully. When we’re both safe?”

Niki beamed at him. “For sure, Ranboo. When we’re safe.”

Ranboo watched as she retreated in the darkness. The rain from the crime scene had migrated over to the downtown area, and soft drops of rain pattered against the umbrellas on nearby food stalls. Ranboo, still a bit dazed and confused from the night's events, retreated into the alleyway. He stared at himself in the reflection in the dumpster. Perhaps he should change something else about his look. Perhaps his hair? He rifled around in the trash can next to the clothing bin and was surprised to find a small pair of scissors hidden underneath wrappers and fruit peels.

Ranboo pulled them out and held them up to his head. He blew out a heavy breath and began to snip, allowing strands of golden brown hair to fall to the ground. When he finished, he stared at himself. His once long hair no longer fell over his eyes, but instead sat comfortably at the top of his glasses. He allowed black and white to seep into the tips of his hair, recreating the look of human hair dye. With a satisfied smile on his face, he slipped his hand back into his glove and stood up.

The sun hadn't risen just yet but the sky seemed lighter than it did before, even with the steady drizzle of rain. Ranboo glanced backward in the direction Niki had set off in, and then back to the northeast with newfound determination.

“Jericho, here I come.”