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random-imagines-blog · 1 year ago

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Struck Blind {Steve Harrington x Reader, Part 6}

Wordcount: 2641 Chapter Summary: There's some strangeness around Billy. Steve-free chapter.

Previous Chapter can be found here. Next Chapter can be found here.

Something was going on with Billy. You couldn’t quite put your finger on what it was but he was spending more time out than usual. He was yelling back at Neil more than usual. He wasn’t playful with you or Max, he wasn’t teasing or offering to spend time with you. He only really came home to sleep. At first, you thought perhaps he found himself a girlfriend rather than fucking around all the time, that could be an explanation for being out at all hours of the night. But not the surly attitude. And not him ignoring you like this. He had never done that before. What if he had found out about your date with Steve - what if he had overheard Max asking you about it when you got home afterwards? No, even that wouldn’t account for this. He’d be mad but he’d most likely try to lecture you about it, to remind you of what a piece of shit Steve was. He wasn’t the type to keep it bottled inside - he took it out on the world.

But it also wasn’t as if Billy was the kind of guy who would let loose his feelings if he was pestered to. So you just watched him from afar, and hoped for the best. There was nothing else for it.

You grabbed a Popsicle and sat outside on the front porch, trying to catch any of the breeze that was supposed to be out here, according to the weatherman. But there was no breeze - just clouds starting to form, threatening a storm. You sighed and went over my options for the day - bus to the mall, bus to the library… all involving buses because Billy was MIA. There was only a small oil patch on the ground where his Camaro usually was. You licked the cherry Popsicle and stared at it, thinking about the night that we got into that accident. And how that really showed Billy’s character. That he just took off after that. Left you there because you wanted to help. Maybe you didn’t know your cousin as well as you thought that you did.

“Do you know where Billy is?” Max’s voice hit you. You looked up to see her and Eleven starting to walk up towards the house. Their expressions were extremely serious. Much more serious than someone their ages should be.

“No idea, he was gone before I was awake,” You said, looking between the two. “I don’t even know if he came home at all last night.”

Now the two girls looks at each other.

A moment later, after filling you in about what they had done last night, Eleven with her astral projection or whatever it’s called, you were in Billy’s room with them, keeping a look-out though everyone was at work. “Why do I get the feeling we’re going to find all kinds of wrong in here?” Max asked.

“Just don’t touch any tissues, they’re not used for sneezing,” You advised, wishing you had thought to put on some dish washing gloves. But you were too curious not to be in here. Too concerned not to.

Billy’s room was messier than it usually was - not that he kept it clean exactly but this was the room of someone that had been distracted. Dirty clothes spilling out of his laundry basket and onto the ground; his radio still on and playing metal music; his ashtray overflowing and so he started using a plate that still had sandwich crumbs on it. You remembered making him that sandwich. That was days ago.

Max went to his night table, opening it up and peering inside. “Ugh, gag me with a spoon,” She said, closing it back up quickly. You didn’t have to ask what was in there. Teenage boys. Disgusting.

You don’t find anything in the bedroom, other than the signs that he hadn’t been cleaning, so you three went into the bathroom. It had changed since you had taken a shower yesterday afternoon. The bathtub was filled with water, and empty plastic bags were swimming on the surface. Bags of ice from the corner store. The ones used to fill coolers and the like.

“Max?” El asks. Your redhead cousin stepped forward, grabbing one of the empty plastic bags.

“Ice,” She said, reading the bag. “It’s just ice. It’s probably for his muscles or something. He works out like a maniac, right y/n?”

“He does,” You had to agree with that, but the fact that he would just leave the mess in there despite knowing that Neil would get on his case about it … that was a bad sign. And then your eyes caught on another one. Blood. You definitely hadn’t noticed that today. El noticed too. Her breath was trembling, and you lightly put your arm around her, trying to reassure her that everything was going to be okay, that there was an explanation for this, a reasonable one, there had to be. But she pulls from you and opens up the cupboard beneath the sink. She pulls out the garbage bucket that was in there. The one that you cleaned a few days ago, emptying into the trash bin.

“What is it?” You ask with a tremor.

El pulled out the red lifeguard first aid kit, and then there was a lanyard, with a bright yellow whistle. Or it had been bright yellow. Now, like the lanyard, it was blood stained.

“Well shit,” You sighed.

And somehow, you ended up in the locker room of the pool, after discovering that Billy wasn’t there, and that the lifeguard first aid kit, and the whistle, belong to Heather Holloway. The locker room smelt like wet clothes and unwashed feet, something that was noticed by Max too as her nose curled up once you were in there. But there wasn’t much time to waste.

You start flooding the locker room, turning on showers, sink taps, everything that we can in order to help El find Heather. Find Billy.

“This could just be .. jerk Billy behavior right?” You asked Max, as El was putting duct tape over a diving mask. “You don’t think it’s…”

“I don’t know. He’s always been weird,” Max said, which you could understand. “But he was doing a lot better since you came here so…”

Although that was a really nice thing to hear, it didn’t help that much right now. “Wish it worked enough that he would actually talk to me when something is wrong,” You mumbled.

The two of you fell into silence when El put on the blacked out diving mask, and began to look for Heather. You sat on one side of her, Max on the other, your shoes becoming soaked by the flooded floor. You just looked at her. Her powers were fascinating to you. This was the first time that you had ever seen her use them.

“What do you see?” Max asked.

“A door. A red door.”

After another minute or two, El takes off the mask. Her nose bleeding. You immediately get up to find a towel while El collapses in Max’s hands. Your cousin and yourself look at each other, and you're both thinking the same thing.

Whatever this is - it’s not good.

She comes around a short time later, and she tells everything that she saw. The red door. Heather, the missing lifeguard, she’s screaming, she’s reaching to El for help, but then she gets quickly taken away by … something. And if it wasn’t something to do with the Upside Down, then El should have been able to see it. But it wasn’t clear what it was. Something was stirring in Hawkins again, and you were apparently going to be here for it.

In your still wet shoes, you flirt with the manager of the pool, and you get him to tell you the address of Heather. It took some eyelash batting but you got the job done, thanking him for being so helpful, and how he’s such a good man to do this favor, and you even wink at him, sticking your tongue out as you turn back around.

You take the address with me back to Max and El, who are getting ready on their bikes.. “Let’s go,” You said, jumping onto the back of Max's, holding on to her shoulders.

The streets aren’t flooded yet but if the rain continues, they just might be.

Max knew the city better than you or El, but the three of you were squinting through raindrops, trying to read the numbers on the mailboxes to find the right one and then - red door.

“Is this it?” Max asked.

El nodded and together, you three walked up. You felt responsible for these kids now. Was this how Steve had felt, when he watched over them at the junkyard? When he nearly sacrificed himself to take care of the demodogs, as Dustin had called them? Whatever, you just knew that you were going to go through everything that they did. Not leave them alone in the off chance that there was something, anything that you could do.

Especially if Billy was somehow involved.

We didn’t bother knocking. Or rather, El didn’t, since she somehow unlocked the door with her mind. You walked in behind them and noticed that the interior made everything really look like it was the perfect family home. As you walked down the hallway, you saw a large family portrait. Professionally done. Mother, Father, Daughter, happy posing smiles. Looking like something straight out of Leave it to Beaver.

You hear a laugh and the three of you looked at each other. It was the last sound that you expected to hear, if Heather was really in trouble. And then seeing the happy family together, with Billy sitting there, was the last thing that you had expected to see.

“Isn’t that cute, huh?” Billy was saying.

“He’s too funny,” Mother was saying to Father.

And that’s the scene that we walked in on. And just because we were in the shot of it now, didn’t mean that it was over, apparently. Billy saw you. He saw Max. He said your names out loud.

“We didn’t mean to barge in,” Max said, speaking for the three of you. El and Max both looked like they were in disbelief. You were studying Billy, trying to figure out what was so different about him. “We tried to knock, but maybe you didn’t hear us over the storm.”

“I’m sorry, who is this dripping all over my living room right now?”

“I’m sorry,” Billy said. That was one of the startling things right there. He didn’t apologize for anything. Not unless he was being forced to and even then, it only ever came out as sarcastic. “Janet, Tom, this is my sister Maxine, and my cousin Y/N.”

He stood up, and started to walk over to you, El and Max. You stood your ground, dripping but not moving, and you were looking straight into his blue eyes.

You had known Billy all of your life. You spent time together in the same crib. The same playpens. He was at almost all of your birthday parties until they had moved here to Indiana. He was the one that you went to when you were angry, because he either helped hype up that anger until you burnt yourself out, or he was able to help you, when he didn’t even know how to help himself. He was the boy that was only scared of his dad and of dark places, like caves, or even the tubes inside of McDonalds play-places when the lights were dimmed.

So essentially, you knew Billy. Better than his father did, better than Max did. The only person who might have known him better was his mother. The person whose eyes that you were looking into right now - you knew that it was not Billy. It might have looked like Billy. But it was definitely not him. Like someone made a doll of him, a puppet. There might have been a trace, far back, but right behind those eyes was someone else. Something Else.

“What on earth are you doing here? Is something wrong?”

Your immediate reaction was to protect these girls, despite the fact that Eleven was an actual weapon and that Max could definitely handle herself, as she showed Billy last fall. You are the adult here. You need to act like it. So you pushed yourself between the two girls, standing in front of them, even as they spoke.

“We just wanted to make sure everything was okay,” Max said, her confusion showing through her voice. And now here was fake Billy with his fake concern.

“Okay, why wouldn’t it be okay?”

“Where is she?” Eleven asked.

“I’m sorry, where is who?”

Coming out of the kitchen, carrying a tray of cookies, the smell hitting you before the realization of who it was that was carrying them, came Heather. Not a scratch on her. Almost too squeaky clean. Not at all the way that Eleven had described.

But because of how Billy was acting, you believed Eleven. There was something not right going on here.

“Well, they’re a little burnt, I’m sorry-” Heather said, in her usually sweet voice. It was definitely her own voice, her own face. But whether it was actually Heather, you didn’t know. This whole scene was looking a bit too.. domestic bliss.

“Heather, this is my cousin y/n, and my sister Maxine,” Billy introduced. “And I’m sorry, I did not catch your name.”

“That’s not important,” You spoke, staring at Billy. “What are you doing here?”

That’s when El spoke, not to say her name, but to stare at Heather. “I … saw … you -”

“Your manager, at the pool,” Max said quickly. “He said you guys didn’t come in to work today, so we got worried.”

“Heather wasn’t feeling so hot today, so we thought we’d take the day off to nurse her back to health. But you’re feeling just fine now, aren’t you Heather?”

“I’m feeling so much better,” Heather agreed.

Billy looked past you at Eleven. And the look that was in his eyes - it proved to you even further that this was not your cousin. This was not the Billy that you had grown up with. There was something else in there, wearing his skin. Pretending that this was Halloween and that this boy was simply a costume. The three of you were offered cookies by Heather and her mother but you weren’t going to take them.

You didn’t want to leave without Billy. “Could you drive us home?” you asked him, pleaded with the Billy that still had to be inside of there somewhere. You couldn’t believe that he was gone. “It’s raining pretty hard out.”

“I can’t be rude,” Billy said, which was … not true. Billy could be rude. Billy was rude. The light drained from your eyes then, and you turned to the girls behind you. “Let’s go.”

The three of you in disbelief, you headed back outside into the rain. You didn’t skateboard this time. You just tucked it under your arm and walked along with the girls as they moved slowly, not able to see too much as the fog rolled in with the pelting drops. You took one last look over your shoulder at Heather’s house, and saw Billy, watching through the window. The look that he exchanged with El was more chilling than the cold rain.

“That wasn’t him,” You said, as you made your way back to Max’s house. El looked at you, like she believed you. Like she had seen it for herself, even if she didn’t have the most experience with Max’s brother. But your red haired cousin - she didn’t look so sure.

#Steve Harrington x reader #Steve Harrington story #Steve Harrington #Stranger Things #Stranger Things story #x reader #Struck Blind #SteveH

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yeahwhatdidisay · 1 year ago

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Closed Wounds, Open Scars

A Prequel to 'The Hereafter' [AO3 Link]

Summary: The conversation you needed after an offhand comment from Dustin sent you spiraling.

Thank goodness for your best friend, Steve.

Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader, Steve Harrington, Duston Henderson

Warnings: Angst...the usual angst

A/N: Just like last time, took a quick break from my current story because inspiration hit. Hope you all like it.

“Are you okay?”

You quickly wiped away the tears that stained both your cheeks. Quieting your already hushed sobs and trying desperately to steady your breathing so your voice didn’t shake.

“I’m fine…” you managed to get out without your voice cracking while you continued to face away from him. “I’m fine….was I making too much noise?”

Steve stood for a moment in the doorway before slowly making his way into the back den in his parents' large home. Holding your now sleeping one year old in his arms.

“No…not at all.” he whispered, sitting down on the couch as gently as he could without waking the baby.

You took another moment to collect yourself before turning toward him, choosing to keep your gaze slightly away hoping he wouldn’t notice you were upset in the light of the single lamp.

It was obvious to him, even in the dim lights, that you had been crying pretty heavily just before he walked into the den.

Even without seeing you completely he knew. He always knew.

Steve had been making a point to have as many get-togethers as he could, especially considering a large chunk of the group were going to go off to college soon.

They were nice ‘get togethers’. Usually happening at the small apartment he shared with Robin and mainly consisting of pizza and movies. Sometimes dancing would erupt, or games would be initiated although when the boys would bring out their D&D pieces you usually opted to watch rather than play like you used to.

Playing the game was too hard now, but you did enjoy seeing the others play.

Even after you’d given birth to your little Edwyn the gatherings continued.

Steve made sure to let you know having a baby didn’t change your group dynamic. Especially since everyone adored the happy little girl.

Today’s gathering had been just like all the others had been but had taken a slight turn as the night came to a close.

It was getting late and the others had started to trickle out of Steve’s parent’s home.

A rarity as of lately but you all enjoyed taking advantage of the pool and the large space whenever they asked him to house sit.

Dustin had been holding onto his niece while you packed everything up.

He had been staring down at the calm baby and mentioned how much like Eddie she was starting to look. Moreso now that her hair was growing out.

It was a small, innocent comment. Sounding more like an inner thought that had managed to sneak its way out but it had caused the breath to be taken right out of you, nonetheless.

He was right.

Each day that passed brought more and more of Eddie’s features out onto your daughter's face.

Especially when she smiled.

You were sure that Edwyn had felt a shift in your mood because soon after she began to wail in the way that babies do which caused Dustin to panic.

“What did I do? I promise I was just holding her!” he began to blurt out.

“It’s alright Dustin.” You reassured, quickly regaining your composure. “Babies have the tendency to cry at the drop of a hat.”

You took Edwyn into your arms and began to lightly bounce, shushing as you did so to try and calm her.

“I’m sorry…I don’t…”

“Don’t be sorry. This is just what babies do sometimes. You should know, you’ve been over to our place enough to witness it.”

Your soft smile reassured him.

“Okay, um…we still on for the game next week at my place, right? You sure you don’t want to join? We miss playing with you.”

“I’m sure. I’ll be there, though. You guys want a pie this time or the cheese dip?”

“Dip please! Your pies are good but nothing beats your taco cheese dip.”

“You got it.”

“Alright then.” Dustin said, leaning in for a side hug like he always did when you both said goodbye. “Need help taking things out to your car?”

“I think I’ll stay here till Edwyn calms down. Nothing worse than driving with a screaming baby in the backseat.”

“Okay…I really am sorry.”

“Stop it, you dingus! This isn’t your fault! I’ll see ya.”

You laughed which invited Dustin to do the same.

“Okay, see ya, Y/N.”

Dustin walked down the walkway and into the car he’d borrowed from his mom.

As he drove out of sight your happy demeanor began to crack. The tears that you’d so skillfully hidden started to collect in your eyes as you continued to try and calm your baby.

“Man, she’s got a nice set of lungs on her. Doesn’t she?” Steve said, walking out from the kitchen where he was cleaning up.

You quickly regained your composure and turned to him with a smile.

“She really does…” you said without a hint of how you were actually feeling.

“Can I try?” Steve asked, outstretching his arms toward the two of you.

Steve loved helping out with Edwyn whenever he could. To the point where he would stop by just to hang out with the two of you so he’d had plenty of practice by this point.

“Be my guest.”

You handed her over to him. She liked Steve and would often smile as soon as he held her, but today his charms weren’t working like they usually did.

“She might be hungry. Is it okay if I stay a little longer to make her a quick bottle? We’ll be out of your hair in 20 minutes. Half an hour, tops.”

“Stay as long as you’d like.” he said, cooing down at her as he bounced her like you had been.

You walked over to her bag, taking out the formula and her bottle before going into the kitchen to prep it.

You’d been over at Steve’s parents a few times but it was enough to know where everything was. You quickly mixed the bottle and placed it on the stove without much fuss but it was as you stood by the stove that Dustin’s words began to repeat in your mind.

You kept thinking about what Dustin had said. How Edwyn was looking more and more like Eddie and before you knew it your thoughts were weaving through your mind to places you tried desperately to stay away from.

You realized it had been a while since anyone had brought up Eddie. Even when you visited with Wayne so he could see his granddaughter you were both careful not to bring him up.

At least not directly.

You would talk about him often but did so using other identifiers or pronouns.

‘He would have loved her’. ‘My boy would have been over the moon over her laugh.’ ‘That dork would have loved this movie…or that show…’.

The both of you sharing your thoughts and memories of him but not fully bringing him into the conversation.

Neither of you being able to say his name.

The realization brought another sharp pain to your chest.

Guilt.

“Eddie…” you whispered, repeating his name a few more times. “Eddie…Eddie…”

The tears began to well up in your eyes before trailing down your cheeks.

In an instant you began to crack again, bringing your hands up to cover your face as you began to cry.

“How’s the bottle coming along?” you heard Steve’s voice call. Getting closer to the kitchen.

You quickly brought yourself back to where you were. Taking the bottle out of the pot and jiggling it so a few drops fell onto your arm to test the temperature.

Edwyn had quieted but she was still crying when Steve walked into the kitchen.

“I was able to settle her down a bit but the little princess is hungry. Aren’t you you sweet little rockstar…everything alright?”

You turned quickly and handed Steve the bottle without lifting your face up.

“Yeah, I’m fine. I, uh, just need a minute. Is it okay if you feed her?”

Your words came out at an accelerated speed. Not waiting for Steve to answer before you walked out of the kitchen toward the hallway where the bathroom was.

Instead of locking yourself into it you continued to the den at the other end of the hall where you’d all been watching movies.

The lights were off except for the light coming from the single lamp that had been left on.

It was here that you were finally able to let yourself go. It was here in the dark that you’d walked over to the large window at the other end of the room, overlooking the pool, and quietly sobbed.

‘Why aren’t you here!?’ you pleaded in your mind. ‘Why did you have to…you idiot! Why did you have to…why did you have to be so…why did you have to play hero!?’

You wanted to scream. You wanted to scream louder than your daughter had! You wanted to scream so loud that your cries could be heard through time and space and maybe reach Eddie, wherever he was now!

But you didn’t. You kept it in like you always did, instead opting for quiet sobs.

This is how Steve found you not too long after. He’d managed to feed Edwyn and rock her to sleep. Now quietly sitting on the couch looking down at the baby but stealing quick glances in your direction.

“You don’t seem fine.” Steve finally said after a long silence.

“I am…I promise.”

“Yeah, I don’t buy it.” he motioned with his head for you to come and sit with him on the couch. “Come and talk about it. It’ll make you feel better.”

You continued to stare toward Steve, whose focus was down toward Edwyn.

Steve knew you better than anyone else in the group so it was pointless to try and convince him you were okay when you weren’t.

You slowly made your way over to the couch. Sitting right beside him and leaning over to rest your head on his shoulder while the two of you looked down at the sleeping baby.

“She put up a pretty big fight right now. Didn’t want to sleep at all…I think she was worried about you.”

You let out a deep sigh. Trying your best not to lose your composure again.

“So, wanna tell me why you’re feeling down?”

“Dustin made a comment about how much she looks like...about how much she looks like her father.”

Everything made sense to Steve in that moment.

Steve had been there since almost the very beginning of you coming to Hawkins.

He was there to see first hand all the heartache and turmoil you’d gone through at the hands of your abusive step-father and your mother.

He was witness to your relationship with Eddie. All the highs and lows that came and how much you two really and truly cared for each other.

You had shared everything with him. All your happiest memories of growing up with a father that loved you dearly and how it all changed when he passed away when you were 12.

How happy you had become after Mrs. Henderson took you in and eventually adopted you. Giving you the family you had missed so much for so long.

He was there to see first hand how much you loved Eddie and how hard his death affected you.

He knew almost everything about you. So he knew how deep Dustin’s words would cut you, even if you would try so hard to keep others from seeing it.

He knew.

“I see…It’s okay, you know.”

“What’s okay?”

“It’s okay to let yourself be sad about Eddie. You don’t have to be strong one hundred percent of the time. You can let yourself cry.”

You knew Steve was right.

A lone tear began to fall down your cheek but you quickly brushed it away.

You brought your hand up to gently brush a few stray hairs on your daughter's forehead before leaning down and giving her a soft kiss.

“Can I tell you something I haven't told anyone?” you whispered, continuing to brush aside Edwyn’s hair.

“Go ahead.”

“Sometimes I find myself hating him…like, with every fiber of my body. I just…I just hate him so much.”

Steve turned to look at you. His face showing the slightest amount of confusion.

“I know…” you continued, “how could I hate him after everything we went through. After losing him. How could I bring myself to hate him? I just do…sometimes I do. I hate that he did what he did. I hate that he…that he sacrificed himself for a town full of people that saw him as a monster!

If he could have seen everything they said about him after. How could he…how could he leave us?”

Your eyes again filled with tears and you could feel a few escape down the side of your face that you again quickly wiped away.

Steve gently maneuvered Edwyn so she was now resting against his chest, freeing up a hand to reach out and hold the hand that rested on your lap.

“He didn’t do what he did for them.”

You didn’t react or reply.

“Do you remember when we got pulled into the Upside Down through the lake and had to make our way back? Well, while we were wandering through the woods Eddie confided in me. You know what he called himself?”

You shook your head.

“He called himself a coward. Someone who would run at any sign of danger. It was only in his D&D games that he was the hero.”

You looked over at Steve, not sure where he was going with this story.

“Long story short, it wasn’t until after he found out that you were pregnant that he decided to stop running. Dustin told me later that the Demo Bats were going to break through the portal in his trailer and no doubt wreak havoc over here in our dimension. Eddie led them away. Eddie sacrificed himself to save you and Edwyn. He didn’t choose to save the world…he chose to save you. You two were the only ones on his mind, and you two were the last things he was talking about before…”

Steve let his words trail off while the tears began to well up again in your eyes.

“Why are you telling me this?” you asked. Your voice cracking slightly.

“So you know how important you were to him. So you know how important you are to all of us. So you can finally grieve. I know you haven't cried since you found out about him in the hospital.”

“I…I…”

“It’s okay to talk about him. It’s okay to let yourself cry and I hope you know you don’t have to do it alone…we’re here for you.”

“I know you’re right but…I’m scared…”

“Of what?” he asked, his voice soft and reassuring.

A long silence fell between you while you searched for your words and for the strength to get them out without faltering.

“I’m scared I’ll go back to that place. That place where I was just…lost. Where I couldn’t function or even breathe. That place where I didn’t want to live…even knowing I had a baby…his baby relying on me to survive. I just…didn’t want to. I’m scared I’ll go back there. ”

Steve squeezed your hand tighter.

“That’s why you have me…us. That’s why you have us. You have a whole mess of people who’ll be there for you in a heartbeat. Be there for Edwyn.”

You finally looked up at him. His big dark eyes and soft smile helping to lessen the pain you felt growing in your chest.

Again he was right.

Everyone had been there for you. At the drop of a hat, if you needed someone they were all there. Your friends, your new mother and brother, your honorary father in law, all of them. No questions or hesitations.

You weren’t alone.

You let out another long sigh that quickly broke into a shaking exhale. The strength you had to keep all your emotion inside of you finally broke and you began to sob.

Steve let go of your hand and brought it up around your shoulders. Bringing you in close to him, which you fell into.

There you both sat while you quietly sobbed into the chest of your best friend. Who held onto your daughter, allowing you to finally feel safe enough to let yourself cry. Which you did for as long as you needed with no rush.

He was happy to do so.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hours had passed and so had your needed emotional release.

Now you both sat quietly in the dimly lit room. You, now holding your baby while you rested against Steve who had his arm resting along the back of the couch. Just like the two of you had done so many times before.

You gently massaged the top of your daughter's head thinking about the past couple of years.

Steve’s words now being the ones repeating in your mind.

His reassurance that it was okay to cry. That missing Eddie was necessary to fully heal and how they would all be there for you. How he would be there for you.

Like he always had been.

“Do you remember when I ran away?” you finally whispered, breaking the silence.

“I do…” he replied, just as quietly.

The memory of the few months after Eddie passed came back to the two of you. How you fell into such a deep depression that you barely ate or slept. How you neglected taking care of yourself and your unborn baby until you finally just got up and left in the middle of the cold April night.

“How did you know where to find me?”

“Where else would you have gone? I figured you’d want to go to be with Eddie and since the portals to the Upside Down were closed then his memorial on Hopper’s land was the next place you’d be.”

“Do you remember what you did when you found me half frozen to death?”

Steve let out a breathy laugh.

“Yeah…I yelled at you.”

“You were pretty mad.”

“Of course I was! How did you think I was going to react? My best friend had been neglecting themselves and their unborn baby for months! Mrs. Henderson and Dustin had been trying so hard to bring you back and you up and walked out into the freezing night, barefoot and in only a t-shirt and shorts.”

“I’d never seen you that mad before.”

“Sorry about that…”

“Don’t be…it’s what I needed. You’ve always seemed to know what I needed.”

“Yeah…well. I wouldn’t be your best friend if I didn’t.”

“I don’t think I ever thanked you.”

“You don’t need to thank me.”

“I do…not everyone would yell at me for my own good or go out of their way to take extra care of me after. Not like you have…so thank you, Steve. For everything.”

Steve let out a soft sigh. He didn’t reply at first and it wasn’t from lack of knowing what to say. He knew what he wanted to say. He’d known what he wanted to say to you since you started working with him. Even after all this time, what he wanted to say had never changed but it never felt like the right time. And here, now, he knew what he wanted to say to you…but again, it didn’t feel like the right time.

“Don’t mention it…” was what he finally let come out.

Good thing you were better at timing than Steve was.

“Um…Steve?”

“Yeah?”

“Would it be okay if I have you over for dinner sometime? I can ask Mrs. Henderson if she’d like to watch her granddaughter so it can be just the two of us, if that’s okay?”

Steve tried to subdue the smile that was forming on his face, taking a minute to pull it back so the emotion wouldn’t sound in his voice.

“I think that would be okay…um, Y/N.”

“Yeah?”

“Just to check…this is a date, right? Are you asking me out on a date?”

Again, another silence fell between you.

“I think I am…is that okay?” You said, leaning your head back so you were able to look up at him.

Steve stared down and took in the view of you and your baby. Two of the people he cared about the most.

Steve smiled and leaned down, giving you a soft kiss on your forehead.

“Yeah…it’s okay.”

#Stranger Things #stranger things #st4 #st s4 #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things story #eddie munson x reader #steve harrington #duston henderson #stranger things angst

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strangerthingsmademebi · 2 years ago

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I’m thinking of writing a series where the MC is best friends with Jonathan and basically part of the Byers family but is also adopted by Hopper . It’s take place in series four but there will be flashbacks to give her backstory and so we can see her relationships with the other characters .Jonathan and her are 100% platonic but MC doesn’t like Nancy and I have already envisioned them having a massive argument .heheheh

But I don’t know who to make the love interest . Thoughts?

#stranger things x reader #stranger things angst #stranger things stuff #stranger things story #stranger things series #stranger things lgbtq+#questions #robin buckley x reader #steve harrington x reader #eddie munson x reader #chrissy cunningham x fem!#nancy wheeler x reader #jonathan byers x reader #robin buckley x female reader #female reader #eddie munson x female oc

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helfireclub · 2 years ago

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𝓓𝓪𝓷𝓬𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓓𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓵 {Eddie Munson x FEM OC}

Chapter: What to do Mr. Munson

'We fucking won!' Lilly yelled.Dustin, Mike, Gareth and Jeff were all staring at each other before they all went berserk and started jumping and screaming together.Lilly got caught in the middle but she didn't mind she joined them.Eddie was smirking while sitting back on his chair.

They all had something to drink and clinked their glasses. Lilly loved being around Dustin and Mike. They were nice and liked all the movies she liked.So they always had something to talk about. Eddie was still smirking at her on the side. And when everything was over and they all cleaned up. Lilly had brought Mike and Dustin home a little bit earlier. Mike needed to get on a flight to California tomorrow morning, and Dustin was on the route. She had promised Eddie to get back to maybe do a joint or have a beer together.

So when she drove back to the parking lot of the school. She saw lots of drunk and hyped people coming back from the gym.'They must have won.' Lilly said while rolling her eyes.

She jumped back through the school doors.When she saw Steve with Brenda giggling through the hallways. Steve saw Lilly and he nodded his head at her.Lilly raised her eyebrow to Steve before walking back to the classroom they just played Hellfire in. The light was off.

'He must have gone to the forest to smoke.' Lilly said to herself.But she still went to check.She opened the door where she found no one it was dark and empty.'Pfff.' Lilly said to herself. She did just in case check some corners and in a closet but he really was gone.

'Ass.' Lilly cursed as she walked out of the classroom. 'Sorry?' Eddie's voice suddenly sounded. He was standing with his back on the lockers and his feet up against it. 'That you're an ass.' Lilly said while closing the door.

'Sadly i'm supposed to do what you're saying tonight.' Eddie said.He put his feet back on the ground and walked over to her while pulling down the sleeves of his leather jacket.'I would have put you in place right here.' He said while standing in front of her. Lilly straightened her back and looked at the tall guy.She locked eye contact.

'I want you to fuck me Eddie.' Lilly said with a straight face.

Eddie's face didn't even change.'where?' He just asked. 'You've been here longer than me.' Lilly said. 'Probably got a lot of places you want to do something.' She told him with a wink.'Okay something i wanted to do for a long time.' Eddie said and he took her arm and pulled him with him. Lilly almost fell to her feet. But she catched herself and ran after Eddie.

'Watchout okay.' Eddie said while putting his finger on his lips.Lilly nodded to him and turned her back to Eddie looking around the hallways. Eddie took a bobby pin out of Lilly's hair to which she grabbed his hand turning around to him.he showed her the bobbypin and folded it out.'Got another one?' Eddie asked her softly. Lilly nodded and pulled another one out of her hair making her sidebang fall forward. She blew it out of her face and gave Eddie the bobbypin.He smirked and took it gratefully.

Lilly turned around again till she heard the door click. 'Got it.' Eddie said softly as he pulled her inside.Lilly felt him pull her around and in just a second. She was inside the classroom.And in another second Eddie had pushed her up against the door.

'God what were you even thinking tonight.' Eddie said as he looked her in her eyes. Eddie had Lilly's arms above her head. 'How can someone get me so fucking crazy.' he continued his sentence.'The fact that you came through that door had me extremely angry and goddamn arroused at the same time.'

'That was the whole idea Eddie.' Lilly suddenly said. As he looked down at her.a smirk on her face biting on her lower lip.

'You know where we are Lilith?' Eddie asked her.before he was starting to kiss the side of her neck.

'It's dark Eddie i can't see shit.' Lilly said to him.

'Wrong answer.' Eddie said between kisses. To which he suddenly bit her.

Lilly let out a soft moan when he bit her.

Eddie then let go of her and pulled her off the wall.

'Let me explain you what this is.' Eddie said. He put Lilly in front of the desk.And walked to the back of the class and sat down at the table.

'This is the place where I met someone who changed my world.' Eddie started. Lilly looked confused at him.'And this it the place you want to fucking fuck me?' Lilly said sarcasticly. 'I hate the class they teach here.' Eddie started.'This bitch made me fail 3 times.'

To which Lilly started thinking the only class he was failing was English.'She put me alone because of me failing so many times.And wanted to pay closer attention to me.''But then someone was added to our class and that person was put next to me.Wearing a fucking band shirt and listening to the best music.' Eddie said.

'Oh my god we are in Miss O'Donnel's classroom.' Lilly said looking at Eddie in the dark. 'And she was listening to fucking Led Zeppelin.She knew everything she needed to know about it. Hated school, loves good music, smokes weed, gives me a hot shower but also pulls me in a pool like a real bitch.' Eddie ended his story and stood up from his place.'From the moment i laid my eyes on you Lilith.' Eddie said shaking his head.

Lilly's heart was thumping out of control.This was the most romantic thing ever. And it was coming from Eddie the freak Munson.Before Lilly could even think straight she acted.

She pulled off his hellfire shirt and threw it on a table. As she sat on the desk of miss O'Donnell. Eddie stood between her legs putting her head between his hands. 'God I fucking adore you Lilith.' he said before she kissed him.And hard.

He was prepared because he took over dominance between their tongue's in a second and after a few minutes they broke apart. A trail of saliva between them. 'Let's fuck up this desk of hers.' Lilly said with a huge grin on her face.

She pulled Eddie closer to her by his shirt.And he took her chin between his fingers and pulled her face twoards him. Lilly stood her ground and kissed him on the lips. And she couldn't help it but she bit on his lower lip. To which Eddie backed his face away. Licking his lower lip to soothen the bite. 'A biter eh?' He said with a smirk before laying his arm around Lilly's waist and pulling her forward.

So she stood on the floor. He let go of her and leaned against the first table in front of the desk. 'Strip Lilith.' He said while crossing his arms. 'Isn't this my night?' Lilly said while crossing her arms. 'Don't you like it?I thought you like me being in control. So fucking strip.' Eddie said while pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. Lilly was going to complain but it was pretty hot.So she did what he asked.

She was already out of her shirt and wearing just her dark blue bra with some lace and a clip on the front. And she kicked off her dr martens. (towards Eddie of course)

and unbuckled her belt and pulling her pants down slowly. When it had fallen to the ground she picked it up and threw it at Eddie. 'Better?' Lilly said laying one of her arms over her stomach.She had matched her underwear with her bra. Which of course meant she had been thinking she would lose some clothes at some point. 'Don't hide from me Princess.You're gorgeous. ' Eddie said as he pushed himself off the table and lost his jackets. He lifted her up in his arms and put her back on the table sitting on the edge.

As he let his hands slide over her arms down to her thighs. His hands were letting off sparks on her skin everytime he touched her.And his cold rings gave her an even weirder sensation. He then sat down on one knee and bit in Lilly's inner thigh. Lilly jumped up but Eddie grabbed her tighs between his arms holding her down. 'Nah-ah Princess.' Was the only thing he said.He was softly biting and kissing her thighs.To which Lilly grabbed the back of the desk. with both her hands.'Eddie..' She brought out.To which Eddie looked up at her. Lilly was whimpering her chest was rising fastly. To which Eddie smirked and went back in, but this time he let one of his hands go and slowly pulled her panty to the side.Exposing Lilly to him.

The cold air was hitting her and she let out a sharp breath. Eddie smirked at her. Before he slowly let his finger slide over her pussy. Lilly softly yelped. 'Oh sweetheart i'm only starting.' Eddie said before he digged in with his tongue. Lilly felt his warm breath on her and then even his tongue. In just a second she let go of the task with one of her hands and it was in Eddie's hair. He groaned when she did that. Which for her made another sensation in her gut.

To which Lilly let out a moan. This time it was a bit louder then it was before.'You know where not alone Sweetheart.' Eddie said before putting his face back.In just a few minutes Lilly was dripping down on Miss O'Donnell's desk.'Cum for me princess.' Eddie said as he latched on her clit and even added a finger.

'Eddie please.' Lilly brought out.'I can't do it silently..' She said in between breaths and moans. 'Good.' Eddie said but he backed off her and stood up so he was on her eye level.Lilly was looking a mess. Her lipstick was smooched and her eyes were half closed.She was panting looking at him. 'God you're so fucking hot Lillith.' He told her as he kissed her hard. She could taste something on him. Probably herself but she took this kiss grate fully.

She added her tongue to Eddie's suprise but he agreed and let her. Lilly was calming down a little from her almost high.A little bit dissapointed he didn't let her scream.But understandable he didn'tThey couldn't get suspended. But boy was she wrong.

When they were kissing he was pulling off the ring on his middle and pointing finger. and slammed them on the desk. To which he pushed them inside of her. Making Lilly jolt up. She broke the kiss.

'what are you doing?' she asked him softly.'You dont think i wont let you cum princess?' Eddie said with his signature grin.As he kissed her again.And started moving his fingers together slowly moving in and out of her. To which Lilly arched her back and let out a soft sound.

'Harder Lillith' Eddie said between their kisses. As he started to move faster and his fingers seperatley.Lilly let out a louder moan and grabbed Eddie's shirt in her hands. 'Almost.' Lilly told him softly.She regretted that she had said that because Eddie pushed his thumb on her clit. Making her fall over the edge she was about to break the kiss from him. But Eddie didn't let her his other hand was sliding up to the back of her head pushing her to him. 'Cum Lilith.' Eddie said lowly before kissing her again.

And she did hard. When she was getting down from her high she opened her eyes finding him smirking at her. 'Was that any good?' He asked.

'Shut up.' Lilly said with a soft smile on her face. she jumped to her feet standing in front of him.'Oh she can stand.' Eddie said.

But Lilly turned around bending over the desk. 'Come on Eddie~ ' Lilly said while looking over her shoulder. 'Are you sure Princess?, you came pretty hard.' Eddie asked her genuinely.'You still need to drive home..' He added. 'Don't be a pussy Eddie.' Lilly said

'I know you want to~' She added. 'Well you started it.' Eddie said as he stood behind her letting his hands slide over her back to the small of her back.She heard him unbuckle his pants and then he bent over her. 'Are you ready Princess?' Eddie asked her whispering in her ear. To which Lilly answered in an 'mmmm~'

And in one swift move Eddie had entered her pussy. To which Lilly bucked up her head moaning.'Ssssh Princess.' Eddie said as he was still bent over her as he bit softly in her ear. Lilly had put her hands to the back on the desk so she had something to hold on to.She felt Eddie speed up his hips.

Eddie raised himself a little sliding his hands from her shoulders to her back. Making Lilly have goosebumps.With one hand he grabbed her hip and the other he spanked her. Making Lilly moan out gripping the desk tighter.

'Eddiee.' She brought out whining. 'You're doing great Princess.' Eddie said in between his thrusts.He sped himself up a little but he pushed her hips down a little so he was a bit higher up making him slam even harder into her. Making Lilly in a softly moaning mess. Lilly felt herself weaken in her knees. But she kept herself standing up. She felt fucking great.

'Oh god Lilith.' Eddie brought out he threw his head back.She could feel his thrusts get sloppy. Which could only mean one thing. She felt the big knot in her stomach grow bigger and bigger with each thrust and she came hard again.

Lilly bit down on her hand so she wouldn't moan that loud. 'I didn't say you could come yet Princess.' Eddie said. 'But my knees.' Lilly admitted before Eddie pulled out and wanted to support her.'Hey are you okay?' Eddie asked. But Lilly had other plans. She turned herself around before Eddie could reach her and pushed him to the table behind them.

she crawled towards him and let in swift move she was sitting in front of him.'Let me make you cum now~ ' Lilly said with a wink before she took him in her hand. Slowly pumping up and down. She knew Eddie was almost there by the hiss he let out when she touched him. Lily was fast as she sped up her pumping making him let out a groan. 'I didn't know you did this Lilith' Eddie said. 'Shut up you.' Lilly said before she licked the tip.Making him grab her hair. Lilly let her tongue roll over the length of his dick.

'Fuck Lillith.' She could feel him twitch and she didn't hestitate. Lilly took him in her mouth and bopped her head up and down. 'Fuu....ckk.' Eddie brought out before grabbing her hair with both his hands. 'Princess i'm gonna...' Eddie brought out before he actually came. Lilly took him down completely making him shoot his load in the back of her throat. She softly sucked on him before slowly pulling herself back. And when she let go she swallowed. Looking at him with a smirk.

He let go of her hair and rested his hands on the table behind him. Lilly licked her bottom lip looking at him.'For fucks sake Lillith you make me fall for you even more.' Eddie said with a smirk as he dressed himself again.

He helped her to her feet and put her clothes back on. They did however switch shirts. Because Eddie needed his Hellfire shirt back.She was wearing his long sleeve shirt. she tucked it in her pants.

'Are you okay to drive home?' Eddie asked her after they both came back to their senses. 'I'm fine Eddie.' Lilly said with a smile as they had locked the classroom and ran back to the front of the school. Eddie had walked her back to her car.

Lilly had opened the door but Eddie pushed it back. Turning her around putting his hands on her hips.

'Elizabeth Johnson.' He said looking in her eyes. To which Lilly looked up at him.

He had never used her full name. 'I know we hardly know eachother but god you have me in the palm of your hand' He said grabbing her hand.

'I'd like to know if you would want to see some more of me.' He said as he looked in Lilly's eyes. 'What do you even mean Eddie?' Lilly said smiling at him.'God Eddie you're the only thing i think about.' Lilly said smiling at him pulling him in for a kiss. she pulled her arms around his neck and he snaked his hands around her waist pushing her against the car. They broke the kiss. 'God Eddie please, you fucked me just ten minutes ago.' Lilly said with a smirk pushing him off her.

she opened the door and stepped in the car. 'But what does this even mean now..' Eddie asked a little confused.Lilly smirked and chuckled at him being confused.

'Just meet me tonight after your whole job aka drug deal thing.' Lilly said when she started the car. 'You can come up with the drainpipe right?' She said a huge grin on her face before backing up the car and winking at him before driving away. To which Eddie shook his head. How can someone make him feel like that. But god did he like her.

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liesareeasier · 2 years ago

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'Home To Hawkins' Chapter 10: Lighting Fires

‘Home To Hawkins' is an Eddie Munson/ Stranger Things Inspired Fanfiction

By: MoonFlowerWrites on WattPad

A/N: Hey everyone! Here’s another chapter of my Eddie Munson fan-fic! I’ll be posting a chapter for this every few days, so check for updates. :) This is kind of a strangers to friends to lovers story. There will be smut and mature content in this chapter/ story, so please stop reading if you’re not 18+. Thanks for checking out my story and I hope you enjoy it!! xx

~ Abbey, the writer. :) <3 xx

•••

Word Count: 8,000 words :)

•••

A/N:

A/n: Hello there! Sorry for a late update. I was busy tonight and meant to get it posted earlier, but wanted to make sure it was fully edited before putting it out. I hope you all are liking this story so far. I'm really having so much fun writing it. I was nervous to start writing this story, because I had been working on an outline for it for so long, but your support and reads mean so much to me. Every singe one of you who read my story make me feel so good, so thank you all from the bottom of my heart. I'll post a note on here soon with my social media links, so you can get updates before I post my chapters. Thanks for reading!!!

xx, abbey, the writer c:

•••

The piercing beep from the alarm clock going off was loud enough to wake the dead, so I couldn't help but laugh when Eddie slapped the clock to turn it off and pulled a pillow right over his head. He let out a series of adorable grunts before turning over a few times and falling back asleep. I wasn't as lucky as him since I had to get a shower in and be at work soon.

I softly kissed my sleeping Eddie on his shoulder before slipping out of bed. The room was nearly pitch black, so I turned on the small lamp on the desk to hunt for some clothes to wear. I couldn't help but smile when I saw the beautiful flowers that he had gotten me sitting on the desk.

The faint, floral aroma from their petals filled the room with the most delicious smell. Eddie truly surprised me last night with how thoughtful and sweet he was. I had suspected that he had this side to him and felt lucky that I was the one he allowed to see it. No matter how rough or spirited he usually came off, it felt like a front at times. He seemed to be his true, gentle self in front of me. I appreciated that side of him.

After going to stare at the flowers some more, I seriously needed to start getting ready. When I was trying to find an outfit, I suddenly realized how clean the room was. The shirts and pants that had been strewn about from last night's outfit search were folded on the plaid chair in the corner. My makeup that had been strewn across the desk was all back in its bag and the extra pillows from the bed were now stacked neatly next to the side of it.

Oh my god... Eddie cleaned the room after I passed out last night... The guy who barely cleans his own room did this for me...

A couldn't wipe the smile from my face as I dug through my bag for an outfit. Figuring that I would have some marks visible on my neck and chest from Eddie, I grabbed an orange turtleneck with a striped collar and cuffs, my black jeans, some back cotton underwear, and a matching bra. I gazed over at Eddie who was cuddled up in bed as I walked to the bathroom. I hoped that I wouldn't wake him but selfishly I wanted to see him before I left for work. I closed the door softly behind me and started getting ready for my long day.

I was a bit nervous to meet with Luke at the movie theater today. The pressure I was putting on myself was probably the source of my anxieties, and not based on any real reason for fear, but navigating being a business owner was proving to be even more stressful than I had originally thought. Not like I believed that it would be easy, but I had more riding on the video store being successful than I had first thought.

I didn't plan for this opportunity to turn into what it had. I met some incredible people in this town and now felt like I owed it to them for this deal to work out. We could make it on our own but I wanted something more, something meaningful to come out of my time here.

Coming here was only supposed to be temporary at first but it felt like my home again. What I was building with Robin, Steve, Eddie, Max, and the others was making it worth it to stay. I had never felt pressure like this before in my life and I was hoping that I was up to the challenge. I had people that were depending on me; I simply couldn't fail them.

•••

After taking a steaming shower and getting dressed, I made my way back out to the bedroom. I had my hair wrapped in my towel and sat at the desk to start doing a light face of makeup. Luckily, I didn't need to cover my hickeys since my turtleneck was doing the job. I loved seeing them on my skin but nobody else needed to. I could practically still feel Eddie's lips on me and wanted nothing more than to just stay in bed with him all day, but that would have to wait for another time.

Maybe after I hire a store manager I can finally take a day off to spend with him... I just can't leave the store when we only have a few employees on staff... Though, I would love to rile Steve up and schedule him alone with Keith for a day... Hmm...

When I was just finishing my mascara, I heard Eddie stirring over in the bed. I took the towel off of my head, shook out my already brushed hair, and went to lay with Eddie for a minute. I'd have to leave soon for work but I didn't want to start my day without cuddling with him. Eddie sleepily wrapped his arms around me as he cuddled up to my side. He looked up at me, flashed a cute, drowsy half-smile, and rested his head on my chest.

"Good morning, sweetheart," he mumbled as he struggled to stay awake.

"Good morning, Eds," I said as I leaned down to kiss him on his forehead. "I'm about to leave for work but I'm glad I got to see you."

"Mm, can't you just stay here?" He sweetly asked as he held me tighter to him.

"I wish I could, trust me I do, but soon I can," I answered, trying to hide my sadness. I wished more than anything that I could tear my clothes off and never leave this room but I didn't have a choice.

I continued as he gazed up at me, "I have to meet with a potential partner today and get interviews set up for this week. Once we have a manager and a larger staff, I can take a couple days off."

"I'd like that," he said as he leaned up to kiss me.

Our lips moved rhythmically together for a moment before Eddie pulled away and cupped my face in his hands, "well, what are your plans for tonight? Wanna stay over at my place?"

"I'd love to," I said as I kissed him once more before starting to get out of bed.

"Perfect. I want you to meet my uncle," he said with a budding grin.

"Doesn't he work nights?" I wondered as I grabbed my bag and started looking for my keys, which I was always losing.

"He does, he does," Eddie said as he sat up in bed and continued nervously. "He'll be home before you leave for work in the morning. I know it's kind of weird timing, and you don't have to say yes, but the offer is there."

"I really want to, Eddie. I've just been wondering when you'd ask me," I assured him as I grabbed my keys that were hiding on the corner of my desk and walked back over to the side of the bed.

I slipped the room key off of the ring and handed it to Eddie before continuing, "I'll come by after work if that's okay. I can't wait to meet him. And here, please take this. Stay here until you wake up some more and I can just get it from you later."

Eddie sat up on his knees in the bed, grabbed the key from me, and pulled me in for another kiss. I dropped my bag next to me and joined him in the bed for just a minute more. I wrapped my legs around him, straddling him while our lips moved together. He held me around my waist and tangled his free hand in my damp curls. I had to force myself to pull away, fearful that if I stayed for a moment longer, I would throw all of my responsibilities out the window.

"Fuck, baby... do you have to go?" Eddie teased as he held onto my hand as I stood up to grab my bag.

"No, let's stay in here forever and never leave," I joked.

"Sounds like a pretty good plan to me," Eddie said with that devilishly pretty smile of his. "No, but seriously, I'll drop your keys off to you today. What time is your meeting?"

"Noon, so I should be back to the store by one, but who knows... This guy didn't sound too thrilled on the phone so I might be back sooner than that," I said with an eye roll, dreading the potential failure that awaited me.

"I'm sure it'll go just fine. You have nothing to worry about, sweetheart. Don't doubt yourself," he said as he stood up out of bed to hug me.

I wrapped my arms around him, drinking in every last second before I left. This was just the boost of confidence that I needed. I was usually so sure of myself but just couldn't shake that mounting pressure that I had put on myself. Eddie's assurance truly made me feel like everything was going to work out.

It will... It has to...

"By the way," Eddie continued, "I'm sorry again about the fire last night. I really hope that didn't ruin it. I know you said that it didn't but..." he trailed off, trying to read my reaction but I couldn't help but smile.

"Please stop apologizing about it. It wasn't your fault. Like you said, we just didn't notice how windy it had gotten. I was a little preoccupied with how good you made me feel," I said as I leaned up for one more kiss. "You called Dustin last night, right?"

"I did, I did," he said as he sunk back into the bed and reached for the remote. "After you fell asleep, I remembered that I had to. I was so tired but I just couldn't fall sleep."

"Well, catch up on a little now. I'll see you at the store later, okay?" I said as I stood in the doorway to leave.

"See you later, Violet," he said with a wink.

"Bye, Eds," I said with a wave as I slipped out the door.

I started up my car and popped in some Fleetwood Mac to start my day. Still high from my night with Eddie, I made my way to the store. I was determined to make today work out for me. My grandparents were the kind of people who never gave up, and after all, I was doing this in their memory. I knew that they would be proud of me for taking on this challenge. I just needed to channel their energy and let it fuel me.

I've got this... I've got this... I've got this...

��••

When I pulled into the lot, I could see Keith's car parked out front. He wasn't sitting inside, so he must have been waiting for me out back. I was trying not to let Steve's judgment of him get into my head, but he was pretty boring. That kind of energy was exactly what I needed to relax this morning, though. I'd take boring any day over having someone like Paul back on our staff.

I made my way around to the back of the store and saw Keith leaned up against the wall. He gave me a wave and grumbled hello, seemingly tired, but trying to perk up judging by the coffee in his hand. I was jealous since I hadn't stopped at the diner today but I didn't want to be too jittery from caffeine at my meeting later.

Hopefully, I would be able to stay awake through the day without it. Robin and Steve were coming in at 11:30, so I'd be able to finish the shift with them. They always put me in a good mood, so regardless of how the meeting was going to go, I knew that the end of my shift would make me happy. I wished that I could fast-forward through time until after the meeting to when I had planned on getting a large coffee to properly wake up, but since I lacked the superpowers to do so, I'd just have to wait until then.

•••

The morning with Keith went by swimmingly. We had a few customers but nothing we couldn't handle. We spent the time tending to them, restocking the snacks that we had run out of because of the Halloween sale, and putting back all of the returns from the return box. There were a decent amount due to the holiday weekend but they were mostly horror, action, and kids' movies, so they were easy enough to organize.

With the clock ticking down the minutes to my meeting at the theater, Robin and Steve came bursting through the door a few minutes before their shift was slated to start. They were laughing with each other about something. I couldn't figure out what the source of their smiles was until they walked closer to the cash registers, where I was standing.

Clutched in Steve's hands was the Michael Myers mask that Eddie must have left in his bathroom on Saturday night. My heart grew hot with slight embarrassment as I tried my best to keep a reaction off of my visibly stunned face. Steve would just love it if he riled me up and I wasn't about to give him that satisfaction.

Steve greeted me with a smug smile and a wink as he and Robin approached, "hey there, killer. Think your boyfriend left this in my bathroom."

"Steve, I told you to leave that in the damn car," Robin said as she tried to snatch the mask from his hands but he kept a tight grip on it

"Ah, ah, ah, not so fast, Robin," Steve said as he held it out to me and I grabbed it from him.

Steve continued as he leaned against the counter and crossed his arms, "this belongs to Violet here."

"Hi Steve, thanks," I said calmly as I felt my skin flush. "Hey, Robin!"

"Hey! I'm gonna go put my bag away and get clocked in," she said as she turned her attention back to Steve. "I suggest you do the same and leave her alone."

"He's fine," I said before Steve could speak. "I'll get it back to Eddie."

Robin and Steve went to put their things away in their lockers while I waited for them in the front of the store. I tucked the mask into my bag before they got back. I needed to head out soon to get to the theater on time, since it was in the next town over, but I still had a few minutes until I had to leave.

Thankfully, Robin came back out before Steve. The action of him bringing that mask into work was starting to piss me off. We had such a good night the other night and the last time I saw him, he was thanking me up and down for helping him. Steve could be hard to read sometimes but I felt like he was annoyed with me or something. I was hoping that wasn't the case but I could tell that there was something up with him. Finding out what was wrong would have to wait until later and bother me until then.

"Hey, sorry about cranky pants. I don't know what crawled up his ass today," Robin said quietly as she came right up and gave me a hug after clocking in.

"It's fine," mouthed back as I pulled away and Steve approached.

After giving them the breakdown for the day, I continued, "so, you guys will be okay until I get back?"

"Yeah, we'll be fine, boss," Steve replied.

"We can handle anything! Don't worry about coming back in," Robin said with a reassuring smile.

"Well, Eddie has my keys, so he has to stop by the store today. I'll be back right after my meeting with coffees for you guys," I said with a slant smile, thinking once again about our wonderful night together.

"Your room keys?" Robin asked as she raised a curious eyebrow at me. "He stayed over again?"

"Yes. He um- he took me on a date last night and it was pretty late, so yes, he stayed over," I answered.

"Good for you," Steve grumbled under his breath, thinking I couldn't hear him but he was mistaken.

"Okay, in that case, you better come back here and tell me everything," Robin said.

"Will do. I have to get heading out now, but I'll be back as soon as I can," I said and turned my attention to Steve. "Everything alright Steve?"

"Yeah, fine," he said as he shrugged. "Can we talk for a sec before you leave, though?"

"Yeah, do you mind talking while I walk to my car?" I asked as I slung my bag over my shoulder.

"After you," he said as he held his arm out, pointing toward the door.

"Bye Robin," I said as we started making our way outside. "Iced mocha, right?

"See you later, with all the juicy details," Robin teased with a wave. "And yes! A large please."

"You got it," I smiled back as Steve held the door open for me.

"You two and your coffee addiction," Steve laughed with a joking eye roll.

At least I hope he's joking... I hate feeling like he's mad at me for something...

Steve stuffed his hands in his pockets as he walked with me out to my car. For the life of me, I couldn't gauge how he was feeling or where this conversation was going to go. I also didn't have much time to talk, but I wanted to hear him out. Whatever was bothering him, I owed him that much. He had been a good friend to me since I got into town.

"What's up, Steve?" I asked as I leaned against the hood of my car, its cold surface sending a slight chill through me.

"Nothing I- I know you have to leave but I was wondering if we could hang out later. I need someone to talk to about-" he said, stopping his train of thought as a puzzled look graced his face and I could instantly feel what this was regarding.

"About Nancy?" I boldly asked as I fished my keys out of my bag.

"How'd you know?" He asked as the confused look on his face grew even more.

"I just figured," I answered. "Are you okay?"

"I don't know... She called me yesterday and it's been driving me wild," he said as he ran his hands frantically through his flowing brown hair.

He continued as I started unlocking my car, "do you have time to come over today?"

"I'll meet you there after work," I said as I rated my hand on his arm.

"You sure? You and Max or Eddie don't have plans or anything?" He asked.

"Of course I'm sure. I'm hanging out with Eddie tonight but my afternoon is open. You'll be okay until then?" I reassured and wondered.

"Thank you so much," he said in a much lighter tone as he pulled me in for a hug.

I wrapped my arms around his slim frame and held him close for a minute. I knew that he needed someone to comfort him. It hurt seeing him so down and I would do anything in my power to help him.

He continued when we moved apart, resting his hands in his back pockets, "you guys seem really good, by the way. I've never seen Eddie so happy before."

"He's pretty incredible," I said, not able to hide my embarrassingly giddy smile. "He took me on the sweetest date last night. I um- I wasn't expecting to meet someone like him."

"I can't wait to hear about it when you get back," he smiled knowing that his friend was happy. "Now get your ass to that meeting before you're late! Good luck today."

"Bye Steve, and thank you," I said as I ducked into my car.

"Drive safe. I'll see you later," he said as he closed my door behind me and waved as I started up my car.

He stood near the front door of the video store as I started leaving the parking lot. I waved back to him and cranked the music in my car. I couldn't help but wonder how Steve's conversation with Nancy went.

What did she say?! Fuck... I hope he's okay... I hope he can open up to Robin a bit before I get back... How did it go?! Good? Bad? God... This is going to drive me crazy...

Thoughts about what they could have possibly talked about consumed my thoughts as I made my way to the theater. I tried my best to stay focused on the road, but the map I was following and my short conversation with Steve were taking up a lot of my attention. I bobbed my head aging with my music and tried to refocus on the task at hand. The sweet voice of Stevie Nicks was just the medicine that I needed to get me back on track.

•••

My nerves were flowing through me as I pulled into the parking lot of the movie theater. There were a few cars in the lot, presumably there for some matinee shows, and I hoped that they would still have enough time for the meeting. The tone of the guy on the phone was still ringing in my ears. I was probably just reading the situation wrong and I needed to shake off my hesitations so that today's meeting would be successful.

I pulled myself together, turned down the music in my car, and went to get out. Before I shut my door, I remembered the Michael Myers mask taking up a large space in my bag. I grabbed it out and whipped it onto the front seat. The last thing I needed in my meeting was to be reminded of Eddie. He'd quickly take up all my thoughts and I needed to try to be serious.

I'm a business owner now... I have to secure this deal for the store... Gag with me a spoon... I sound like such a square...

There wasn't anyone standing in the ticket window when I walked up, so I decided to just head straight inside. The delicious smell of popcorn smacked me in the face when I swung the door open. A few people were in line for the concessions and not many employees walking around, so I took my spot in the queue and waited for someone to be available to talk.

After the customers in front of me were done ordering their popcorn, candy, and sodas, I was next in line. I was greeted by a brunette, high-school-aged girl which a large smile. She asked me what movie I was here to see and what she could get for me, but I told her my real reason for being there.

"Hi, I'm actually here to see Luke. We have a meeting set up for noon," I said as I shifted nervously on my feet and clutched onto my bag.

"Okay, I'll go grab him. He's been in the office all morning," she said. "I'll be right back."

"Thank you so much," I said as I moved off to the side to stay out of the way of any other customers.

After a couple of minutes of waiting, the girl who greeted me took her spot back behind the concession counter and a man started making his way toward me. He was tall, mid-thirties, and had a video-game nerd meets hippie vibe about him. His long, black hair was twisted up in a bun and he was wearing a floral button-down shirt with brown slacks. He greeted me with a serious look and a firm handshake.

"Hello. Violet, I assume? I'm Luke," he said as he released my hand.

"Yes, hello," I said with a false sense of confidence. "Nice to meet you."

"You as well," he replied in a nicer tone than on the phone, making me drop my guard. "If you want to follow me to my office, we can chat in there."

"Perfect," I answered as I stared following him toward a red door in the back of the room, just past the row of theaters.

Luke closed to office door behind us, cutting us off from the low rumbles of the movies they had playing. I took a seat in one of the red leather chairs as he took his spot behind his black desk. Its surface was littered with papers and a few picture frames but they were turned around and I couldn't see what they held. I twisted my fingers together as we started what would hopefully be a fruitful conversation.

"So, you called talking about a partnership of some kind?" Luke started, not wasting either of our time by getting straight to the point of today.

"Yes, yes I did," I said as I relaxed my shoulders and tried to calm my nerves once more. "I'm the new owner of the Family Video over in Hawkins and we're looking for a theater to link up with."

"Hawkins? Okay, I thought you said that over the phone. Sorry, when you called the other day we were swamped so I apologize if I was a little rude or if I was short with you," he said as he leaned onto his elbows on the desk.

"Yes, Hawkins. My grandparents owned the store before me and they passed it down to me," I said. "And you don't need to apologize for anything. I understand."

"So, what would this partnership look like in your eyes? What would be the benefit for us to, say, join up with you?" He asked as he stared pointedly at me.

I took a breath and a moment to gather my thoughts before responding, "I know it's a little bit strange, out of the ordinary if you will, but we'd love to set up a regular movie night with your theatre. We could promote new releases for you in our store and I heard that you've also shown old movies here in the past. I think we could have a good thing going here if we could work out the logistics."

"I see, I see," Luke said as he leaned back in his chair and took in what I said. "We've never done anything like this before..."

"I figured, and I know it could be a lot to ask. I only want us to both be successful and collaborating with another local company could provide some much-needed entertainment in our towns," I said, trying my best to convince him but feeling slightly underwater. I'd never negotiated a deal or run a business before and I wasn't sure what I was doing. I just knew that I had to try, no matter how uncomfortable of forward this felt.

"So, what do you have in mind specifically?" He asked curiously as his eyebrows raised and he scratched at his untrimmed beard.

"Well, I thought we could start out with one night a month," I started, taking a deep breath before continuing. "There's been a rise in theaters showing old movies that people might have missed on the first showing. We could provide the reels of film we want to show, some food for the guests, and advertise for the event in our store. I was thinking that we could do a different genre each month, keeping with whichever are the most popular here."

"We don't show the mainstream movies that people around here seem to go nuts for. You know that, right?" He asked.

"I do. That's why I called you specifically," I answered with a smile as I finally felt myself relaxing. "You guys show mostly indie and horror films, correct?"

"We do, we do," he answered with a slow nod.

"Well, with our established client base and your venue, I really think that we could both benefit from this," I said confidently.

"I'll tell you what," he started ominously as he leaned back onto his elbows. "I think so too."

A wave of relief swept over my body. Our conversation had been nerve-wracking but now it felt like my fears were all for nothing. This is just what our store needed and it felt overwhelmingly good to feel needed as well.

He continued since I was too happily stunned to speak, "let's start with what you said, one night a month. You can even pick the first movie that we show. If it goes well, we can talk about doing this more often and, if it goes well, expand from there."

"Wow, thank you so much. This is- thank you," I said as I stood up to shake his hand before sitting back down in the comfortable chair.

"Like I said, even though we've never done anything like this before, you have me interested. I also went to high school in Hawkins, so I have a sweet spot for my hometown," he said with a kind smile as he turned around one the photos on his desk to reveal him standing in front of the high-school. "It's nice that you want to help spread some interesting media to a town that needs it."

"That's all I want. I'm not trying to change this town, I just want to help," I said as I started gathering my bag back onto my lap. "When do you want to set up the first night?"

"I'll give you a call tomorrow to nail down the details regarding the time, film selection, and food, but how does two weeks from Friday work for you?" Luke asked.

"That sounds perfect," I answered.

"Here, write down the number for the store and your information on this," he said as he handed me a ballpoint pen and a thick stack of blue post-its. "I'll call you around one tomorrow to get everything sorted out."

"Amazing, thank you again," I said as I scrawled down my name, the store's address, and phone number.

"Of course. Anything to help out another local business owner. Well, I'm only a part owner here but still," he said as he stood up and I followed suit. "Here, I'll walk you out the front, partner."

Luke held out his hand for me to shake again before he led me to the front of the theater. He sent me on my way with a smile and a wave as he held the door open for me. I returned his favor and headed back to my car. I had to fight the urge to literally jump for joy and scream with excitement but held myself back from overly reacting until I got back to my car.

I hopped into the front seat and kicked my feet as I started up my car. I felt like I was high. The meeting had gone better than I thought. I'd gone into it so nervous for no reason at all. It felt like my efforts here were actually going to pay off. After the robbery during my first week here, I didn't know how the store was going to recover. This expansion and exposure were going to be great for the both of us.

Luke seemed like a nice guy once I sat down with him. I couldn't fault him for being grumpy during our first phone call. We'd started off a bit rocky but we were already planning our first event together and all of that was out the window and forgotten. I headed back to the store as I jammed out to some Fleetwood Mac, per usual.

Now to just pick the perfect movie for our first night... Fuck!!! I can't believe I did it... I really fucking did it...

•••

I had swung by the diner on my way back to the store to grab coffees for us. Keith had gone home for the day, so I just ordered three, but I definitely owed him one soon. He had been such a big help to me. He didn't have to stay on staff after the robbery but he did. I was grateful to have him and Robin and Steve standing behind me. I couldn't wait to tell them all about our new venture.

When I pulled into the parking lot, my heart skipped a beat when I saw Eddie's van parked out front. I was thankful for my timing and that I didn't miss him. The meeting had gone on a little longer than I had planned so I was excited that we could see each other, if only briefly during my shift.

I made my way through the front doors and was greeted by Robin who had a worried look on her face. I could hear Eddie and what sounded like Dustin bickering off on the side of the store, while Steve tried to calm Dustin down. I could tell that he was worked up about something serious as I handed Robin her drink and went over to deliver Steve's.

"What's going on?" I asked Robin as we made our way across the store.

"I'm not sure really. They just got here and then I saw you pulling in," Robin said as she took a sip of her iced mocha. "Damn, this is good. But Dustin was saying something about the lake and Eddie being irresponsible, so I'm just as curious as you."

My stomach formed a pit and a rush of heat shot through my body. I swore that we had put the fire out last night but maybe we hadn't. There had been some damage from the embers that had caught on the blankets, but it wasn't anything too serious. I hoped that I was just jumping to conclusions but Dustin's panicked tone when I approached told me that we had royally fucked up last night.

"Oh, here she is. She can explain, Henderson," Eddie said in an anxious tone as Robin and I approached. "Tell him, Violet. Tell him we put that damn fire out."

"What fire?" Robin asked before I could speak.

Fuck, fuck, fuck...

"We did, we put it out, Dustin. I swear," I said before turning my attention to answer Robin. "We had a fire out by the lake last night and some of the embers caught the edge of the blanket we were on, but it was out when we left, I promise it was."

"Holy shit," Robin said as she took a long sip of her drink.

"Well, no you guys didn't," Dustin said frantically to Eddie. "The whole blanket, the pillows, and the base of the tree next to it were lit up like a damn Christmas tree when Mike and I went to clean up last night. You guys are lucky my generator was fine and the tv didn't explode. That would have made it even worse."

"Henderson, I told you. Violet told you. We put that damn fire out," Eddie said as he scooted next to me.

"Then why is he in here freaking out?" Steve wondered as I passed his black coffee to him and he took a swig.

"Because none of you are listening to me, seriously," Dustin replied.

"No, we are," I said as I put my hand on his shoulder. "Are you guys okay? You got it out, right?"

"Yeah, we did. It took almost the whole lake to put it out but thankfully Mike had some empty McDonald's cups in his car. We filled them up about a million times and got it put out eventually," Dustin said as he scratched his head.

"Eddie, how did it catch again? It was out when we left. I know it was..." I trailed off as a fearful chill crept up my spine.

"I don't know, sweetheart. I don't know," Eddie answered as he slipped his arm around my waist to comfort me.

"Well, someone needs to figure this out because this wasn't some normal fire," Dustin insisted.

"What are you saying?" Steve and Robin asked in unison as they stared at Dustin.

"I'm saying that something didn't feel right," he replied.

"So we're here fighting where we work because of a 'feeling' you have. Here we go," Steve said with air quotes as he dramatically rolled his eyes.

"Hear him out, Steve," Robin said seriously.

"Clarify, Henderson, clarify," Eddie suggested as he seemed to be taking Dustin's fears more seriously.

"I'm not doing this again. There are customers coming in that need help," Steve said as he brushed past us and went to help two guys who had just walked in

"The fire was bright red and took way more water to put out than I should have," Dustin started before continuing after taking a long breath. "At one point, it started to grow again right as Mike dumped a full, large cup of water onto it. I'm telling you, it was fucking weird."

"Language," Eddie scolded.

"Whatever. I need you guys to take me seriously," Dustin said.

"We are, Dustin. Here, go grab a movie and some snacks on the house," I said as I led Dustin over to the middle of the store before heading back over to Robin and Eddie.

Steve came back over since the customers were already checked out as Dustin perused the store for something to watch. I could tell that he just needed a distraction to calm down. I wasn't trying to manage him or push him out of the conversation, but we could figure this out without further stressing him out.

"So, the kid has a point, doesn't he?" Steve asked as he leaned against a display and crossed his arms.

"I think he does," I said as I rolled my lips nervously together. "Why does this keep happening?"

"What do you mean by that, Vi?" Robin asked as they all stared at me.

"Well, Dustin said that the fire was glowing red and it just kind of clicked," I answered nervously.

"What clicked, babe?" Eddie asked as he stood back and crossed his arms, matching Steve's worried energy.

"That first night I came to your house when I almost just that deer, I didn't tell you everything. Its eyes- its eyes were glowing bright red. I thought it could have just been because of my headlights or that I was seeing things but now..." I trailed off for a moment before continuing. "After the robbery, there were some bright embers in the trash can where Paul had burned our records. It looked kind of strange but brushed it off. And then last night, when Eddie and I were um- talking in the van, the fire picked up out of nowhere. We fully put it out. I know we did. This makes no sense."

"Jesus, Violet," Steve said as he threw his arms up. "Why the hell didn't you say anything until now?"

"Let up, Stevie," Eddie defended me as he mocked Steve.

"He's fine," I said. "You're right, Steve. I should have told you guys. I just thought I was making something out of nothing."

"What the hell do we do?" Robin asked. "I mean- it can't be... We can't do this again. It can't be..."

"It's not, Buckley, it's not," Eddie said as he tried to calm her down. "Look, it's just gotta be a coincidence. If something else happens, then we can do something about it."

"This seems like just a lot to ignore, Eddie," Robin said, unable to hide the worried quiver in her voice.

Their collective fear was palpable and I felt sick to know that I had kept this a secret from them. I truly thought nothing of the strange happenings until last night. I didn't want to worry them any more than they already were, but I couldn't brush this off this off any longer.

"No, she's right, Eds," I said as I went to stand next to Robin, wrapped my arm around her shoulders, and rubbed her arm with my fingers to calm her down. "This is all too weird to ignore now. I can't begin to imagine what you guys have gone through before, and I hope that this isn't that, but we can't just ignore all of this."

"Shit, no, I know," Eddie said as he rubbed at his chin nervously. "What the hell do we do?"

"Okay, okay... Fill Henderson in when you guys leave and try not to work him up too much," Steve suggested. "Until we know what this is, we need to try and stay calm. This could just be nothing, after all. I love Dustin, obviously trust the kid, but he does have a tendency to get a little too worked up sometimes."

Steve sounded like he was trying to convince himself as much as us. He patted Eddie on the shoulder as he went to help Dustin narrow down the selections that he was juggling at the front counter. I stood with Eddie for a moment as Robin pulled away from my touch and walked to the back room to collect herself.

I leaned over and wrapped myself around Eddie. He held me tightly as I tried to stay calm but I could tell that he was just as worried as I was. He almost felt like he was shaking and I held onto his hand as I pulled away.

"So, you guys think this is the Upside Down place, don't you?" I asked as I looked into his soft brown eyes.

"I really fucking hope not. I don't want to drag you into all of this. I never wanted this," he said as he brushed my hair behind my ear with his free hand.

"You're not, Eddie. If this is that, I want to help but I hope it's nothing," I said as I faked a smile.

"We're going to figure this out. I'm so sorry baby," Eddie said as we started walking to the front of the store.

I didn't want Eddie to leave but I needed to get back to work. We'd have all night to hang out and talk, even if it was about this. He made me feel safe and there was nobody else that I wanted to spend tonight with. We stood by the front counter for a minute while he gave me back my room key.

"I don't really want to give these back," Eddie teased as he fished my keyring out of his jacket pocket and reluctantly handed them over to me.

"You can stay over whenever you want," I said as I tucked them into my bag and took a sip of my nearly empty iced mocha.

"So, I'll see you tonight?" He asked.

"Yes. What time should I come over?" I asked.

"Whenever you're free. I'll be home all night," Eddie said with a pretty smile.

"Okay, well, I'm stopping by Steve's on my way home then I just have to pack a little bag and I'll be over. So, I'll probably get there at 6, if that's okay," I said.

"Perfect. See you then, sweetheart," Eddie said as he held my face in his hands and I leaned in to kiss him.

This was the first time that anyone had seen us kiss, so we had to keep it appropriate. Even though we were in my workplace, I couldn't help myself. I kissed him softly a few times before I forced myself to step back. Thankfully there weren't currently any customers in the store to see us but I couldn't ignore the stares from Robin, Dustin, and Steve. They quickly started to pretend like they were busy when I looked their way and my cheeks flushed.

"Shows over kids," Eddie said to them with a laugh before looking back at me. "And I'll see you tonight." He smiled at me and started holding the door open for Dustin to follow him.

"Thanks for these, by the way," Dustin said to me as he held up a movie and some candy he'd picked out. "Sorry for doing this here. These idiots just never listen to me."

"It's okay, Dustin and you're welcome," I said. "Bye Eddie."

Eddie winked at me before grabbing Dustin lightly by the shoulder and leading him back to his van. I was trying to process everything that happened but I still had to get some work done in the back before we left today. There were only a couple more open hours here and I wanted to get a jump on preparing for our store manager interviews this week. I wasn't sure if it could, but the fire issue would have to wait until later. I walked past Steve and Robin talking to each other and made my way into the office, trying to hide my worried expression all the while.

•••

When the store had been locked and the drawers were counted, we were all ready to head out. Steve just had to drop Robin off at her place and I was going to meet him at his. I still needed to fill Robin in on my date with Eddie, but that would just have to wait until tomorrow. She had heard the gist of it when Dustin was here earlier and my brain was in a million other places.

We all walked out the back and over to our cars together. I wished that Steve would open up to Robin about the drama with Nancy but I wasn't going to push him. He knew that Robin and Nancy were friends and probably just didn't want to make her feel like she was in the middle. Since I wasn't going to be seeing her until tomorrow, I pulled her in for a long hug before we left each other. I still hadn't told her about my meeting with Luke but we had others things to figure out, and it was far from my mind at this point.

"I'm so sorry about all of this, Robin. I promise I'll do anything to help, whatever this is," I said when I pulled back.

"It isn't your fault, Vi. I hope it isn't what we think because- because damn it that would fucking suck," Robin said as she ran her fingers through her messy hair. "See you tomorrow?"

"Yes, I can pick you up before work if you want me to," I offered.

"I'd love that," she said as she tried to smile but couldn't quite fake it.

"Everything is going to be okay, Robin. I swear we'll figure this out," I said trying to reassure her.

"Sure, sure. See you later," she said as she waved and ducked into Steve's car.

"I'll meet you at my place," Steve said with a slanted smile.

"I'll wait for you there," I said to him as I unlocked my car door. "Drive safe."

"You too," Steve said as he got into his car and turned it on as he closed his door.

Today had been such a long day and it was far from over. I switched from my Fleetwood Mac tape to a Metallica one. I needed to zone out before this inevitably heavy conversation with Steve. I tried as hard as I could to put the stresse of today far behind me, cranking up the heavy music as I made my way to his house.

Fuck... This can't be the Upside Down... It just can't be... From what Max said, they had destroyed it... Right?! Oh god... I don't want them to have to face this again... Can I face this?! Can I handle this?! Fuck...

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asthedeathoflight · 5 months ago

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I think an underrated angle on 2x05 is something that either Jacob or Assad said in some interview somewhere, which is that in that episode Louis is addicted to heroin. Thats why he has that whole stash of drugs that he gives to Daniel, that's why he gives Daniel the drugs even though he's already got him alone. He didn't just use those 128 boys for sex he was using them to get high. Bring them home, get them to shoot up, and then drain them to get that secondhand high.

It clarifies something that's always confused me about that scene, which is why Armand saves Daniel the first time. He wouldn't save Daniel as a person, he clearly knows Daniel needs to die, but he's not seeing Daniel as a person there. Daniel is just a substance. He rips him away from Louis to stop him from using.

And i think that adds a whole other layer to the fight he and Armand have to think that this is Louis on a bender, with Armand cleaning up after him because he's not stable enough to. Louis in the bed for a week isn't just healing from the burns, he's going through withdrawal. Him at the table with Daniel giving him the "bright young reporter" speech is probably the first time he's been sober in months.

It adds another layer to Armand's desperation, that Louis has been running from both Armand and himself in this way, and of course Armand wants to erase that memory. Of course he wants to pretend that that fight never happened. Not just to protect himself but in a way to protect Louis from having said those things. When he describes the fight to Louis afterwards, he says "you said the worst things you've ever said to me." And he doesn't really know how to forgive Louis for that so he just wants to bury this rock-bottom moment and move on like it never happened. After all, Louis was high, he didn't really mean it, but if he remembers then maybe he might think that he had a point. Better to wipe the whole experience away.

#imagine youre in an eternal spite marriage with your ex who you're in love with because he's in love with your other ex #who youre also in love with #and your spitehusband who hates you turns to drugs to cope with the traumatic death of his daughter (which you caused but who's counting)#and you just follow him around cleaning up his messes and propping him up and keeping him alive #because despite everything you do love him #and you find him mid bender and he's told his life story to a reporter and he didn't even mention you #and you're just trying to protect him from himself so he doesn't pass out in a pool of blood on the floor #and he tells you that you're a burden #that youre the thing thats killing him #that 10 hours with a stranger made him feel more alive than your whole relationship #and he says that youre BORING #that all your trauma and grief and fear made you UNINTERESTING #yeah id do some saw trap shit too #blorboposting #benni proof #interview with the vampire #loumand #iwtv

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steviesbicrisis · 1 year ago

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To me it’s the fact that Steve assumed Robin had a license but still woke up 3 hours before his work shift to drive her to school everyday.

That is not a plot hole everybody, that is just the kind of person Steve Harrington is.

#you dont understand #what a great friend Steve is #this is the main reason why I don’t want his story to revolve again around Nancy #it’s him and Robin and they have the greatest friendship in the show #these two mf will get married and live together and it’s going to be 10000% platonic #if you look up platonic soulmates in the dictionary SBAM just pictures of Stobin #Im done bye #steve harrington #platonic stobin #robin buckley #stranger things

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wheneverfeasible · 2 months ago

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Steve’s used to not being loved.

He’d known his parents didn’t love him since he was a young child. He’d known that the girls he casually took on dates and occasionally fucked didn’t love him. He’d known Tommy and Carol didn’t love him like friends were supposed to. They all loved his reputation, sure, but not him. It was easy though because he didn’t love them either.

He’d loved his parents once, a long time ago. Back before they were practically strangers, but that love had been the obligation of biology. He’d thought he loved Tommy and Carol, but it had all been too surface level and focused on popularity.

He had loved Nancy though. He finally found someone he could start to be his true self with and he loved her and he thought she loved him, only…only she didn’t.

He couldn’t blame her. After a while, when the same thing keeps happening, you kind of have to look for the common factor in all those loveless relationships and see what the real issue was. Simply put…

Steve was just unloveable.

Maybe it was his past. Not that he’d actually been a bully or anything, he’d actually shut down a lot of bullying even among his then-friends and teammates, but he had been kind of self-absorbed. Or maybe it was just the fact that he wasn’t as smart as the people he found himself surrounded by. Maybe it was just the fact that he wasn’t anything special, not at the end of the day.

Except he could take a punch.

And slowly, he found people that did love him. The other kids might tolerate him, might like him, but Dustin genuinely loved him, he knew that. Dustin was his original ride-or-die. Dustin might be a little shithead that constantly treated Steve like he was stupid, but he was like his brother. And Dustin also make him feel amazing and wanted and loved.

And then there was Robin. Most amazing of all really was that Robin loved him. His Platonic soulmate. His other ride-or-die. She saw him at his lowest and saw him at his highest, was there for him when he had stuff he didn’t want to drop on a teen boy who should be worrying about pimples and bad hair days, not interdimensional monsters and evil wizards. Robin made him feel loved too, even if she also sometimes teased him a little too sharply.

There was also Max of course. He’d been surprised at receiving a letter from her too, back when Vecna had been after her. He’d read it, back when she’d been in her coma. She hadn’t said she loved him, but it was there in other ways. The big brother she should have had all along.

So yeah, okay, Steve was loved. But it was platonic. It was friends, his new kind of family even, but it wasn’t the love he’d always wanted and never had. He just accepted the fact that people didn’t love him that way.

Which was why, when he realized he was in love with Eddie, he just sighed and accepted it and never changed anything in the way he interacted with the other man. He didn’t bother telling Eddie because he knew there was no point. Besides, Robin called him out on it, said he was being so obvious about his feelings, but Eddie never said anything too.

So okay. Steve was in love with Eddie, but Eddie wasn’t in love with Steve. Eddie also didn’t treat Steve any differently despite knowing that Steve loved him. After all, if Steve was so obvious about it, then Eddie had to know too already, right?

So Steve watched Eddie come out to them, had nodded along when Eddie nervously explained what bisexuality was, having already had his own crisis before though he realized he’d never officially come out either. But then if his feelings for Eddie were so obvious, he figured he didn’t have to, so he didn’t say anything and let Eddie have his moment.

And it didn’t matter that Eddie liked guys. He still couldn’t love Steve, so Steve just accepted it and let it be. He didn’t flinch when Eddie mentioned meeting a guy in the city, was even downright friendly when Eddie eventually brought the guy around to meet everyone.

It hurt, of course, but Steve’s feelings were his own problem; he wasn’t going to let the fact that he was in love with one of his best friends make things awkward. Eddie was nice enough that he never told Steve to knock it off when Steve got a little too touchy with him, though Steve backed off in his own when Eddie seemed a little panicked about it sometimes.

Steve was even there for Eddie when Eddie came over crying because he and guy broke up. He wouldn’t tell Steve why they broke up, not entirely, but eventually Steve learned it was because Eddie had feelings for someone else this entire time.

Steve wondered who it was, but in any case he just hoped Eddie got to be happy with them eventually. He later told Eddie one day when Eddie was over that he was a great guy, obviously, and anyone Eddie liked would be a lucky person. He hoped he didn’t sound judgmental about it, didn’t want Eddie to think he was being petty or whatever, but Eddie just looked sad again and left soon after.

Steve knew he had a problem about being too much sometimes. It had pushed Nancy away, and every girl he’d tried to date afterwards never really liked him enough either. It was still just his reputation and his hair that got him dates, not who he was himself. That was fine. Temporary companionship was better than nothing he supposed.

And life continued, and Steve kept loving Eddie, and he was content that Eddie let him love him, even if there was no hope of it being reciprocated.

And then Steve went on a date with a guy.

It was…okay. The guy was a lot handsier than Steve would like, and kind of boring when compared to Eddie, but Steve just shrugged and figured that at least it’s be someone else’s hand this time. And it was okay. No great spark or anything. More of a glorified one night stand than anything, but it was fine.

He knew he needed to get out dating again. Girls and guys. His love for Eddie wasn’t abating at all, so he couldn’t bring himself to actually date anyone, but he could do hookups.

Which was how Eddie found him one day, mouth around some guy at a bar in Indy because they had forgotten to lock the bathroom door. Oops. It was a little annoying though that Eddie looked as upset as he did. He appreciated the fact that Eddie didn’t call him out for his unwanted feelings, but it wasn’t fair that he thought Steve shouldn’t be able to move on.

They got into a fight.

They never exactly said what they were fighting about with words, but Eddie yelled at him for having unsafe sex, while Steve yelled at him for being a hypocrite, and then Eddie yelled at him for leading the guy on, and Steve said that that was a bit rich coming from him.

And Eddie was yelling and yelling and yelling about who knows what, telling Steve he shouldn’t be having random hookups in bathrooms when he wasn’t even gay, and Steve yelled that bisexual men can have bathroom hookups too, and that seemed to surprise Eddie for some reason.

In any case, it caused him to shut up for long enough for Steve to angrily tell him that just because Steve loved him, it didn’t give him the right to tell Steve what he could or could not do, especially when he knew Eddie didn’t love him back.

And then…

“You…you love me?” Eddie choked out, his eyes wide as he stared across the dark alley outside the bar, where he’d dragged Steve after catching him on his knees.

Steve rolled his eyes, jutting out one hip to place a hand on while the other hand ran aggressively through his hair. It was started to rain while they were in the bar, a light drizzle that was slowly weighing down their hair, not that either of them paid it any mind.

“Jesus, Munson, are you really going to make me listen to the whole spiel again?” He rolled his eyes, throwing his hands up in frustration. “This is bullshit, I’m bullshit, my love is bullshit, yadda yadda yadda. Or are we going the other way? The sad puppy eyes and the fact that you like someone else and it could never be me? I already know all this, Munson.”

Eddie continued gaping at Steve like a fish. It was starting to make him vaguely uncomfortable. Eddie shook his head, long strands of hair whipping wetly around him. “H-how long have you loved me?” Eddie whispered.

Steve’s frown deepened. “I don’t know, man. You probably clocked it before I even did. I just barely realized like a year and half ago.”

Eddie’s eyes bugged further. “You’ve love me for a year and a half?” he asked incredulously, making Steve’s frown turn from annoyance to confusion.

“You already knew this, Eddie.”

“I most certainly did not!”

And…oh. Oof. Okay. Steve grimaced and held his hands up suddenly in a surrender sort of way. “Yikes. Okay, well, this doesn’t have to change anythi—”

“This changes everything!” Eddie exclaimed in what others might cause a shriek.

Steve winced, taking a step back and hitching his shoulders up to his ears. “Eddie…Eddie, please, c’mon,” he tried to reason, feeling dread settling in the pit of his stomach. He was suddenly remembering all the times he’d invaded Eddie’s space, how many times he’d flirted back with Eddie’s fake flirting, thinking it was okay because the other man knew how he felt.

Fuck. Fuck, he’d fucked up again.

“Eddie, I know you don’t love me, okay,” he rushed to say. “I know you can never love me. I get it, okay? I’m not trying to force you to feel any way or anything. Just like with Robin and Nancy, the fact that I like you doesn’t have to change anything.”

“Not…Steve,” Eddie said, reaching up to grip and pull at his own hair as an incredulous laugh escaped him. “Steve, I fucking love you.”

Steve tried not to let that hurt. He knew Eddie probably didn’t get how much him saying that pained Steve since it wasn’t the kind of love he was talking about, so he wasn’t going to get upset at him over that.

“I know,” he sighed, slowly letting himself relax his body posture. “I know you love me in a friend way. And that’s enough for me, really! I love you like a friend too, so the fact that I also—”

“No Steve,” Eddie cut in again, and while he seemed exasperated, a wide smile was also starting to curl over his lips. “Robin was right and you really are a dingus. I mean, yes, I love you as a friend, but I’m also in love with you. Romantic styles.”

“I…” Steve blinked. He tried to understand Eddie’s words but they didn’t make sense. “What?”

Eddie snorted out a laugh, and the smile curled on his lips stretched out into a grin. He took a step closer. “I’m in love with you, Steve Harrington. I have been since…hell, probably since you went all Ozzy on me. But definitely since I woke up in the hospital to you holding my hand.”

Steve’s stomach swooped. “I don’t understand,” he said, and even to his own ears there was a small whine there. “You don’t…people don’t love me,” he pointed out. “They can’t. There’s something about me that just makes it impossible.”

Eddie scoffed, reaching out once he was closer enough to curl his fingers in the sleeves at Steve’s biceps. They were both now well and truly wet from the rain, but neither of them paid any attention to it at all.

“Now that’s bullshit, Harrington. You’re so fucking easy to love. As a friend and as something…more. I love you, Steve.”

Steve wanted to deny it again, wanted to say that that was impossible, because…because he’d never heard those words. Sure, Dustin and Robin told him they loved him, but romantically? Even Nancy had never told him that in those words. Not even in a lie. He couldn’t fully comprehend that he was hearing them now.

“Fuck, Steve,” Eddie breathed, his hands moving to cup Steve’s jaw. “I’m going to spend the rest of my life telling you that. You’re stuck with me now, big boy.”

And then Eddie kissed him.

Eddie was true to his words. He told Steve he loved him every single day, told him with his words and his actions and when it was legal, he told him again in front of all their friends and found family when he made a vow as a his husband.

And Steve? Well, it took a while for him for actually believe it, but nowadays? When Eddie kisses him good morning every day in bed, whispering his devotion, and every night doing the same, telling Steve he’ll see him in his dreams? Well…

Steve’s used to being loved. And he spends every day loving in return.

Hi hello I have no idea what this is but I just started typing and then I didn’t stop until this was completed lol

Hostage hotties: @derythcorvinus @katyawriteswhump

#steve harrington angst #angst and fluff #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie #stranger things #also there’s a hidden reference in the story lmao #kudos if you catch it #plot thots

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s9fti3 · 5 months ago

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‘I can fix him!!’

Him in question;

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strangelysamantha · 1 month ago

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drive in ❀

steve harrington x fem!reader.

warnings: pure fluff.

words: 650.

summary: going to a drive in theater with stevie!

request? no

a/n: cute lil fluff. i have two stories almost done, but i won’t be able to post them until tmw. i figured you guys deserved a wholesome cute fluffy story in the mean time. like and reblog if you enjoy. please follow if you enjoy! i appreciate you guys and am so happy you guys read my stories.

my masterlist https://www.tumblr.com/strangelysamantha/658838358462726144/samanthas

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steve had asked you on a date to the drive in theaters. he picked you up, eager to get to spend time with you. “okay i got your favorite snacks, and i brought pillows and blankets!” you smiled at his enthusiasm, “perfect! thank you! i brought us some drinks too!” he sets up the radio to pair it to the sound system. you situated your snacks, getting comfortable in your seat. the windows were rolled down halfway, allowing the nights air to creep in. the credits begin to play. you look over at steve, in awe of his beauty. “you’re sexy,” you reach up to cup his chin. “thank you baby.” you pull him towards you, pressing a soft peck on his lips, he sighs, “not so fast,” he pulls you into a deeper kiss, and places his hand in yours. “that’s more like it.” you grin. “i love spending time with you stevie.” he smiles at the nickname. “i’m very happy you came with me.” the movie begins to play, you feed steve some candy, engulfed with happiness.

you could spend every second of everyday with steve, and never get tired. he treated you with so much respect and kindness. he genuinely cared, and went above and beyond. he never put this much effort into anyone. he wanted to be the best version of himself for you, he couldn’t loose you. he’d do anything for you. “this was all so perfect. the snacks, the blankets, everything. i could never explain in words how much i love you.” his heart freezes. you hadn’t said the “L” word before. you knew you felt that way for awhile, but you wanted to be certain before you told him. his heart speeds up, a smirk rises to his lips. “i love you so much,” he kisses your forehead, one hand is holding your thigh. the other one grabbing your chin. “you’re perfect baby, i’d do anything for you.” your love was unconditional for steve, your heart warmed at his confession. “you’re too good to me,” you shake your head, wondering how you got so lucky. “i know it’s crazy, but you don’t deserve any less, i would do anything for you. you’re mine, and i don’t want to loose you.” you kiss him abruptly, “you won’t. i need you. i can’t even think about not having a life with you.” the idea of not having steve by your side was nauseating. “can i sleepover tonight?” you ask. he grins in response, “yes of course!” silence falls between the two of you as the movie continues to play. steve held your hand the entire time, feeding you some popcorn. you knew you loved steve harrington. you wanted to go on a thousand more dates. any moment you could be, you wanted to be by his side. you love him.

steve and you applaud at the end of the movie, the date went by smoothly. you enjoyed the movie, especially enjoying the parts where you could sneak a kiss on steve’s lips. steve tunes the radio back to his favorite station before starting the commute to his house.

after arriving at his place; you change into one of steve’s shirts. you sit carefully on his bed, waiting for him to join you. he turns out the lights, only leaving a small beam of light from his bedside lamp. you cuddle into his side, and he places a kiss on your temple. “you had a fun night?” he asks. you reach up to kiss his lips, “yes it was so much fun.” he smiles, feeling accomplished. “you ready for bed?” you frown, but the sleepiness is taking over. “mhm.”

he rubs you back, reaching over to shut the lamp off. “sweet dreams baby.” you nuzzle your head into steve’s bare chest. “goodnight stevie.” darkness surrounds you two, as you cuddle close while drifting off to sleep.

this is the cutest date idea everrrr. 🩷🩷 my requests are open :)

#steve harrington story #steve harrington x reader fluff #steve harrington x you #steve harrington fanfic #steve harrington fluff #steve x reader #steve fluff #steve harrington x reader #steve harrington #steve harrington x y/n #steve harrington fluffy #stranger things steve #stranger things story #stranger things fluff #stranger things fanfic #stranger things

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infinite-love-42 · 8 months ago

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Raise your hand if you’ve ever been personally victimized by tumblr refreshing while you’re in the middle of reading a one shot causing you to lose it forever. So many incredible stories that I never got to finish 😭😭

#eddie munson #steve harrington #stranger things #steddie #eddie stranger things #steve stranger things #steve x eddie #tumblr stories #oneshot #tragedy #cry myself to sleep

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eventually27 · 2 years ago

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Me reading fanfics when i should be asleep 💀

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timote-shalome · 6 months ago

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Me: *watching Stranger Things S5 Ep 1*

“Like, what do you mean Steve isn’t a bisexual hurt bbygirl with meanie parents and doesn’t have game nights with the kids in his big empty house and doesn’t have sleepovers with Robin and he isn’t in love with Eddie who came back from the dead as part monster with a split personality that’s also in love with Steve?!?!?!?!”

Me: *turns off TV*

#steddie #stranger things #steve x eddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #if it ain’t gay I don’t want it #ao3 fanfic #ao3 #ao3 writes it better #fanfic #OonionChiver #I forget the original plot of the story at this point #all said in one breath #it’s meant to be a run on sentence #it’s ok ao3 will fix it #you’re divine

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strangerthingsmademebi · 2 years ago

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✨Masterlist✨

I write for Stranger Things characters

Fluff 💗

Angst 💔

~ Chrissy Cunningham ~

Wicked Game 💗💔

Summary: You and Chrissy have been dating for a few months but when senior prom comes around you know you can’t go together. So you came up with a plan that will allow you to spend the night with the love of your life even if that means having to see Jason Carver dance with your girl .

~ Series~

Mind Over Matter

fem!adoptedhopper/byersreader X Undecided

Summary: after the events of summer 1985 Y/N is left alone to deal with the aftermath of her adoptive father dying in a “mall fire” and her best friend who was more like her brother moving away to California in search of an Upside Down free life. But when the nightmares won`t stop and killings start its up to Y.N and the gang to save the world. Again. But will she survive after barely escaping countless near misses?

Prologue (coming soon)

Chapter 1

#stranger things angst #stranger things lgbtq+#stranger things x reader #stranger things fic #stranger things fanfic #masterlist #stranger things fluff #stranger things story #stranger things series

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helfireclub · 2 years ago

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𝓓𝓪𝓷𝓬𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓓𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓵 {Eddie Munson x FEM OC}

Chapter: Hellfire club.

'Steve, can you drop me off at school?' Lilly shouted in front of the bathroom door. 'Why?

You aren't going to the game right?' Steve replied as he pulled the door to her room open so Lilly could come in.

He was completely smelling like aftershave and doing his hair as high as he possibly could. Lilly stood at the door opening. Her eyebrow raised looking at her stepbrother.She was wearing red and black checkered pants and a black plain tanktop.She added a leather jacket over it.

'No, I kind off made a promise to Dustin I would play DnD with him because you are too busy with your date.' Lilly said as she walked over to the sink to brush her teeth. 'Of course.' Steve answered.

'But I need to pick Brenda up to.' He told Lilly while brushing his teeth next to her. 'Can't I like drop you off at Eddie's?' Steve asked with his mouth full of toothpaste. 'No, he doesn't know I'm coming.' Lilly answered spitting out her toothpaste. 'I'll just ask for mom's car.' Lilly said as she put up her hair in a high ponytail.

She took her sunglasses and threw a mixtape in her bag before sprinting down the stairs to her mom. Her mom was nice enough to lend her the car keys.

She walked out of the house and saw Steve backing out of the driveway.He downed his sunglasses looking at her making sure she was able to leave, or if he was needed to still drop her off.Like the big brother he is. Lilly flipped him the bird and had the car keys on her middle finger. he shook his head and flipped her the bird to before driving off.

Lilly jumped in the car and put in the mixtape Eddie had given to her. It were his favorite songs so she was definitley listening to that.

*Iron man by Black Sabbath started playing*

Lilly backed the car out of the driveway and drove off.She put her sunglasses on her face and drove towards the Henderson's house. She had called Dustin and Mike when her mom had giving her the car keys. So it wouldn't be weird Lilly was at school, they would be entering Hell fire all three at the same time.

She drove up to Dustin's house and he jumped in the car.'The Trooper by Iron maiden came on.' And Lilly turned down the music a little. But Dustin was fast and put it up harder.'I didn't know you liked this kind of music Dusty bun' Lilly said teasingly.Steve had told him about the nickname they all gave him, and sometimes when they were alone she liked to tease him about it. Dustin rolled her eyes.'I love good music Elizabeth.' he bit to her.The both of them let out a laugh before driving towards Mike's house.

She stood in front of the Wheeler house. when she saw Nancy walking to the car and getting in. Lilly waved to her. and she nodded her head back. 'Where's she going?' Lilly asked Dustin.'I thought her boyfriend lived in California now.' Lilly said looking over her sunglasses looking at Nancy driving off. 'Mike's flying there tommorow morning, his girlfriend lives there to.' Dustin said.'But to get back to your question.I think Nancy is going to the game for the newspaper.' 'Hmmm, that's boring.' Lilly said.

Mike stepped in the car and Lilly waved to Miss Wheeler who was looking at them through the window before putting the music on louder and driving off.

'We're a little late.' Lilly said a smirk on her face as she drove towards school.'Oh Eddie won't like that.' Dustin said sadly.'Eddie doesn't have a choice.' Lilly said as she drove onto the school parking lot. The three of them stepped out.

Dustin and Mike wearing their hellfire t-shirts. 'Oh wait!' Lilly said as they wanted to walk off. she opened her bag and pulled out a tshirt.She had stolen Eddie's hellfire t-shirt last night. Lilly pulled off her leather jacket and pulled the hellfire shirt over her head. the leather jacket over it. And she tightend the elastic band holding her high ponytail. 'Let's go boys.' Lilly said smirking as she walked over to the trunk of her car and got her boombox out.she locked the door and smirked.The sunglasses still on her nose. Lilly walked past the boys and towards the schoolDustin and Mike were looking at each other.

'Let's say we put this right outside the room and play something right before we walk in.' Lilly said biting her lower lip as she ran through the school doors. 'Do you even know where we play hellfire?' Mike asked. To which Lilly let out a chuckle. 'Of course I do.' she answered.

When they arrived at the hallway where they play HellfireLilly put down her boombox and put her cassette in. 'I didn't want to play DnD at first. But this is the most amazing oppurtunity to tease Munson.' Lilly said smirking brightly. She clicked on play and the intro of Thunderstruck by AC/DC started playing.

'You go first.' Lilly said smirking.

She pushed both Dustin and Mike to the door which they opened.

'You're fucking late.' Eddie said. 'and what's with fucking AC/DC' he replied to himself. 'And did you bring a substitude?' Dustin smirked and let out a chuckle. 'And what kind of substitude.''Let's say she was in our favor.' Mike added.

To which Lilly walked in the room. 'Seems like yesterday I was in this room.' Lilly said.

Gareth and Jeff their mouth fell as they looked at their dungeon master. Eddie sat on the dungeon master chair and put his fingertips together.

'Abso fucking lutley not.' Eddie said.

'You asked for a sub and we delivered.' Dustin said.

Mike went to the hallway and collected the boombox and turned it off.

'This is Hellfire club.' Eddie said.

'So?' Lilly said putting up her sunglasses.

'So?' Eddie said as he stood up walking towards Lilly.

'Yeah so.' Lilly said as she crossed her arms over his hellfire shirt.

'This is gonna cost all night, I'm pretty sure you don't have the attention span for that Princess.' Eddie told her.

To which Lilly lifted her eyebrow.

'Yesterday cost me all night too, but I enjoyed that.' She pushed Eddie away with her finger on his chest.

Gareth and Jeff tried to hold themselves in.

'What's your class and level?' Eddie said as he pulled Lilly's finger off his chest and locked eyes with her.

'Level one hafling?' Eddie tried to mock her.

'You should not have done that hun.' Lilly said under her breath breaking eye contact with Eddie but getting it right back in a matter of a second.

'My name Mr Munson.' Lilly said pushing him back with her hand towards his chair.

'Is Lilith Goddes of death.

And I'm a chaotic good Wood elf, Level 15.' Lilly explained while making Eddie walk back to his chair backwards.

'Let's say i'm a druid with instead of a sword I have the looks of a siren and the power of poison making every man meld right in my hands.

quite literally actually.

Like poison Ivy.' She ended her rant and stood in front of Eddie with a happy fake smile on her face.

'So do you wanna play or are you to scared to loose to me Munson?' Lilly asked him.

Her tongue rolling over her lips waiting for his answer.

Eddie was frowning at her.

But his frown fastly turned into his signature hellish grin.

As he stuck out his hand to her.

'Welcome to Hellfire Lilith.' Eddie said.

Lilly shook his hand and smirked turning around to Dustin and Mike who were rooting for her.

And not just a little impressed.

She high-fived both of them and they all sat down.

Eddie started his intro and everyone was hanging on his lips trying to get a clue out of everything he was saying.

And when he was done and everyone was still writing things in their journals.

Lilly looked up to meet his gaze.

Eddie was sitting on that big chair they had fucking made out in yesterday.

Resting his face in his hands, his elbows on the table.

When they linked he mouthed to her.

'Nice t-shirt.'

'Stole it from some freak.' Lilly mouthed back and winked at him.

'The hooded cultists chant,

Hail Lord Vecna.' Eddie spoke clearly but slowly.

His eyes scanned the room.

'Hail Lord Vecna.' Eddie sounded again.

Lilly was rather impressed.

She liked this side of Eddie and she could see what got him so revved up about Hellfire.

'They turn to you.' Eddie suddenly said

'Remove their hoods.

You recognize most of them from Makbar.

But there is one you don't recognize, his skin shriveled, desiccated.

And something else.

He is not only missing his left arm... ' Eddie was speaking a bit louder by the second.

His left arm went up on his back.

As he slowly raised.

'But his left eye.' Eddie spoke putting his hand on his left eye

'F U C K' Lilly exclaimed.

Everyone was shouting and cursing.

At how they could have missed this.

'Vecna's dead! ' Lilly shouted.

'He was killed by Kas!' Mike agreed to facepalm himself.

'So it was thought, my friends.

So it was thought.' Eddie said calmly.

'But Vecna...

LIVES' Eddie said as he put Vecna's character back on the map.

Eddie was smirking and proud of himself for keeping this a secret while telling the story.

While everyone was still trying to recover their thoughts.

Lilly looked at Eddie.

And again they locked eyes.

Eddie smirked at her.

To which Lilly winked and licked her upper lip.

Eddie cleared his throat

'You are scared.

You're tired. You are injured.

Do you flee Vecna and his cultists?' Eddie asked the group.

'Or do you stand your ground and fight?'

'Come on.' Mike whispered to himself.

'I say we fight.' Dustin brought to the group.

'to the death.' Lilly added crossing her arms and sitting back on her chair.

'To the death indeed.' Dustin agreed and fist bumped Lilly.

'To the death.' Mike agreed.

'To the death !' Gareth said as he started hitting the table with both of his hands.

To all of them doing the same thing.

Eddie was laughing at their enthusiasm.

As he looked up to Lilly who this time was looking at him.

'If we win.' She mouthed to Eddie.

To which he raised an eyebrow.

'You do whatever I want tomorrow.' Lilly mouthed.

'And what if I win?' Eddie mouthed back

'You can take me anywhere you want tonight.' Lilly mouthed back.

'Deal.' he mouthed with a wink.

They all continued to play the game together.

But this to the death thing became rather serious.

First Mike died.

Then Jeff, Then Gareth.

Leaving Dustin and Lilly on the map with Lord Vecna.

'time - out! Time-out! ' Jeff said as the group all got together to try to speak tactics without Eddie.

'Guys, i hate to say this, but we've got to flee.' Gareth admitted to the rest.

'I concur.' Jeff agreed.

'Didn't we just agree to the death?' Lilly bit to both of them.

'That wasn't literal.' Gareth said looking at Lilly.

'Vecna just decimated us.

We can't kill him with two players.'

'You too?' Dustin started.

'He only has 15 hit points left.'

'Don't be pussies.' Lilly said.

'Pussies really?

Cause we're not delusional?' Gareth bit back.

'Delusional?' Lilly said raising her eyebrow.

'How about not cowards?' Lilly bit back at Gareth.

'Hey!' Eddie suddenly said.

'If I may interject, gentleman, Lilith.

Whilst I respect the passion, you'd be wise to take Gareth the Great's concern to heart.

There is no shame in running.' Eddie said as he opened his hands as a gesture to the door.

To which Lilly squinted her eyes at him.

'Don't try to be heroes.

Not today, Kay?' Eddie said with a smirk.

'One sec.' Dustin said

As they all regrouped again.

'What do you think Mike?' Dustin asked.

'How many hit points do you and Lilith have left?' Mike asked.

'twelve.' the both of them answered.

'It's risky as hell' Mike admitted.

'But you're the ones on the battlefield.

So it's your call.' Mike told them.

'What do you say, Lilith Queen of death?' Dustin asked her.

'Do you really need to ask?' Lilly said with a smirk on her face.

'Screw it.' Dustin said.

As they broke formation

'Let's kill the son of a bitch.' Dustin said.

To which Lilly agreed by patting Dustin's hat and walking back to her chair.

'You're mine.' Eddie mouthed to Lilith.

'Fuck you.' Lilly mouthed back and gave him a little middle finger.

'When I win yes.' Eddie mouthed.

'Chances of success are 20-to-1' Jeff said to Dustin.

'Never tell me the odds.' Dustin replied.

To which Lilly almost squeeled.

'That was so cool Dustin.' Lilly said softly as they sat back down.

'Give me the D20' Dustin said to Eddie.

Eddie threw the D20 to Dustin and he threw the dice.

Everyone was standing behind Dustin crossing their fingers.

And Lilly must say, she wanted them to win, she was hyped not only because if they lost she would need to do anything for Eddie.

But because she is hyped for them all the win.

Dustin threw and they all gasped when it fell on eleven.

'FUCK ME.' Lilly said hanging her head.

'That's a miss!' Eddie said while headbanging his hair around.

'My turn.' Lilly said as she got pushed forward by the guys.

She took the dice in her hand and let out a big deep breath.

All the boys were yelling at her.

As Lilly threw the dice.

Everyone went silent looking at the dice rolling over the map.

Even Eddie stopped himself to look at the dice.

And it turned to twenty.

Lilly's mouth fell open.

'Oh my god.' She said.

as the others started yelling and screaming they had won.

Eddie was processing.

'What? What?' He was saying.

He could not believe he had just lost there was just a one in twenty chance she could have thrown twenty.

and she fucking did.

4 notes · View notes