#bc secretly Steve has always had a thing for Eddie too

[odderevents]

I have had a thought. Steve secretly knowing how to play the piano bc he learned as a kid and had to stop bc his dad's an asshole is lovely. I've seen this floating around a few times and I love it. Eddie catching him playing the piano and being so fucking in love with him will never not be perfect.

But.

Consider

Steve playing the Harp.

It's definitely a rich kid instrument. Big ass fucking impractical instrument. Absolutely beautiful to look at and listen to. Hands playing piano is great. But have you ever seen an accomplished harpist? It makes you think impure thoughts about what those fingers can do.

So. Steve secretly knowing how to play the harp

Maybe his mom used to play it, so there's a big harp (the ones with the columns and super intricate base board, not celtic) that's just gathering dust in the basement. Steve started piano lessons, loved learning how to pull music out of an inert object. But his dad decides it's to effeminate, makes him stop. And sure, a harp is a different beast to a piano. But you've still got cords, and Steve's got a pretty decent ear, and he can barely remember seeing his mom play. So one day when he has the house to himself, which isn't an unusual occurrence at this point, he tries it out. And he's admittedly pretty shit at it, but so was he at piano when he started. Only difference is he has no teacher.

So maybe Steve discreetly finds a way to acquire a beginner's practice instructional book for harp. And works on it when he needs to get his brain away from things.

He's even more careful with it than he is with any dirty mags he might later acquire. He knows that worse, much worse than piano, harp is not a masculine instrument and under no circumstances should his father find out about his affinity for it.

It's still his go to when he can't sleep even years later, pulling out the now old and battered booklet of sheet music and exercises. Especially once the upside down bullshit starts. It's soothing and mindless at this point.

The harp that was much too big when he first started with it is now just the right size, it's weight against his shoulder comforting. He can close his eyes and his fingers naturally find where to land and pluck.

Even when he becomes friends with Robbin and then Eddie, both musicians who he knows wouldn't give a damn about him playing a woman's instrument, he can't bring himself to mention it. If he did, they would want to hear him play and he's self-conscious about being self-taught. Both of them play well, they play with other people and people come to listen. He doesn't consider himself a "real" musician. It's just something he does to keep his hands and brain busy on nights where the sheets feel like they're strangling him and the dark reminds him too much of when he can't see not because it's night but because something's hit him in the head again and he can't tell apart the sound of his heartbeat from something pounding through his walls.

So he goes to the basement. Finds his stool. Removes the dust cover. Goes through the meditative motions of tuning it by ear, because that's how he's always done it. And then he plays until the tips of his fingers feel numb. Somehow, he always comes out of it peaceful enough to pass out on the couch in the basement for a couple more hours.

Steve is so used to keeping it a secret he doesn't even think about it when he starts dating Eddie. It's just a thing that's always only been his, and most importantly, it's been vital to keep it that way for so long it's the natural state of things for Steve at this point. It doesn't ever come up. When Steve gets nightmares when he's sleeping with Eddie all he has to do is curl into his boyfriend's chest and feel the warm heartbeat that's not his own to settle back into himself.

The problem arises on a night when Eddie was supposed to stay with Steve but he got held up in Indianapolis when getting a new amp for his guitar. He would come back to Steve but it would be late in the night. Steve has been keeping himself busy all day so he passes out in the early evening on the couch in front of a shitty sitcom he put on to try to distract himself from the empty house.

Nightmares find him, which isn't terribly unusual, but he doesn't have his usual method of coping so he resorts back to his previous habit.

Eddie walks in bone tired after many hours of driving to and from Indianapolis, waiting while the clerk figured out they didn't have the amp he'd been assured over the phone would be available for pickup today, waiting some more while they had the amp driven from a sister shop an hour away because no way was he driving back and forth again to Indianapolis on another day. So yeah. Eddie is beat. All he wants is to dive head first into his boyfriend's impeccable pecs.

He doesn't find Steve waiting with a welcome kiss like he usually would when he walks in. Instead he's greeted with a hauntingly beautiful rendition of the melody of Master of Puppets in a way he's never heard before.

He drops his stuff in the entry hall and goes down to the basement where the music is coming from, curious to see where Steve might have found the recording. Eddie doesn't quite know what to do with himself when he finally lays eyes on Steve, with dried tear stains on his cheeks and his eyes closed as his fingers pluck and strum without hesitation. He's rooted to the spot as he watches Steve work his favorite song in a new and completely heartrending way. He hasn't been able to listen to it since he played it in the upside down. It always brings up the bitter blood tang of the air and the hair raising shrieks of the bats. But this is somehow different, it's soft and melodious but it's still got the same bones.

Eddie feels tears on his own cheeks. He's missed this song goddammit. And he couldn't be happier that it's Steve that's given it back to him

Queue tears and fear and confessions and comfort. Somehow much later in the future there's inexplicably a harp in some of the corroded coffin tracks. And it shouldn't work but it does

[steveharringtonsstrugglemeals]

AU where Steve and Eddie met before the start of season 4… because Eddie was regularly getting pounded by members of the basketball team in exchange for free weed.

The rest of Hawkins (including Robin, because somehow Steve never thought to mention it) had no idea about this arrangement.

Steve was only Eddie’s ‘customer’ a few times, but secretly he was Eddie’s favorite. He has a thing for jocks, and Steve was the best Hawkins had to offer and Eddie might have had a bit of a secret crush

Of course, Jason put an end to it when he became captain, so Eddie has been having a harder time getting any decent action… until after Vecna, when Eddie, Steve, and Robin are talking about getting high and Steve casually asks if Eddie’s still ‘doing business’ like he used to, and if that arrangement extends to former athletes

Eddie is tripping over himself to say yes, Robin is gobsmacked when she figures out what Steve is asking. Steve doesn’t get what the big deal is, but he doesn’t hesitate to invite Eddie to meet up at his place later ;)

[guessthestrangers]

Dating Billy Hargrove hc PART 2

Billy Hargrove x f!Henderson!reader

Part one is here !!!!!!!! Part 3 is here !!!!!

If you don’t have anything ok to say about this character, please feel free to scrollllllll! Warnings: Insecurity. Please BE CAREFUL because I mention the reader being scared of being too heavy for Billy to hold!!!! Words like anxiety and swear words only a little. Squint for toxicity

Word count: ~0.7k

I don’t own any of the characters or stranger things; the directors/writers do…Plus, this is what I imagine dating Billy would be like.

Feedback appreciated. Thanks Strangers

-queue you being a bit shy because you don’t really get anyone interested in you like that

—but maybe you were waiting for the right person, a.k.a. Billy Hargrove 

-Billy’s ultimate life mission was now to make you the happiest you could ever be—every single day

-just to see that smile

-him being jealous a lot but you secretly love it(yay toxicity. Kidding?)

-especially when Eddie and Steve are around

-because they’re always around

-and Steve’s got a crush on you

-but you give him a kiss and look him in the eyes with so much love and adoration

-it makes Billy mELt and become soft!Billy

—he’s insecure, especially when it comes to you, bc he’s sometimes scared you’ll leave—

—but you remind him at least 50 times a day that you love him, so he doesn’t have to be worried—

-he’ll then carry you in his arms

-but bc of your anxiety you constantly ask him if you’re too heavy and often tell him he can put you down

-he just kisses you and tells you he’s fine, that you don’t need to worry because he’ll tell you if there’s a problem or if he’s tired, that he loves you and that he knows that you’re beautiful 

-wherever you go, no matter if you’re in public or not, you’re both hugging

-he has to know you’re real. He needs to know.

-bc he’s often scared you’ll disappear 

-his mind is set on thinking that all happiness comes to an end.

-and you’re his only happiness in his life

-with all the trouble at home and in his world, you’re his safe place.

he loves shopping dates

-seeing you try on some clothes for him 

-him LITERALLY hyping the sh*t out of HIS girl 

-getting to model for YOU as well 

-it’s the only time you actually giggle 

-because he’s there posing and dancing and doing these super intense seductive eyes to you in a playful way 

-and it makes you laugh; it’s Billy, ok?

-then he brings you to a hot dog stand because you probably insisted 

-and then you want ice cream, so naturally you go to Scoops, right? 

-let me tell you when manz saw that hair— he firmly locked his hotass hand on your hip where it belonged 

-Steve, as mentioned, was a little fond of you, but you were obviously oblivious—and Billy was not, since he had his own doubts on Harrington 

-When he sees you doing your stupid handshake with Steve, he gets unusually insecure. It’s not like Billy to get these feelings about such a small incident. 

-He goes quiet until you exit the store

-“Baby?” He asked.

-“Mm? You want to try mine?” You hand him the colourful cone you had.

-He ignored the offer, and didn’t meet your eyes when he asked, “Why aren’t you comfortable enough with me to have our own handshake?” He said really calmly, but like really sadly, too. 

-You were pretty shocked at his remark, “B…” Your eyes darted around, always a little panicky when he gets vulnerable (because it makes you happy and you don’t want to ruin it), “we have a special handshake, I promise.”

-Billy’s eyebrows scrunched, and you stop next to the mall’s wall, “The fuck d’you mean? We don’t have one.”

-You look up into his hooded eyes, “Well, I certainly won’t ever do it with Steve.”

-He looked so annoyed and confused— it was adorable. 

-You grab his hand and brush over his fingers softly, your left hand drops the icecream on the floor carelessly, reaching up behind his neck right after as you jump on your tiptoes

-“Wha-“ Billy starts.

-You kiss that man. You kiss your man with all of your might because, goddamnit, he deserves all the love he can get. 

-You kiss him until he can hear those f*cking fireworks, until he sees and feels and becomes them.

-You hook your hand in his curls tightly, holding his big, rough hand in your other. 

-He reciprocates the kiss even harder and squeezes your hand as a secret promise.

-He envelopes you with his arms and his love.

-Billy made everything better; your day, your outings, school, period pains, dentist appointments, gloomy days, the food on your dates, and even this magi-f*cking-cal kiss in Starcourt mal next to a hotdog stand. 

-He rips off his lips and gasps loudly, forehead on yours as he breathes out, relieved, “God, I love you, woman.”

Till forever falls apart :) (song suggestion for that last scene)

Part 3?

[catherinnn]

Three is a crowd

You and Eddie were secretly dating, but the thing about keeping it a secret for so long, is that if one of Eddie's friends finds himself crushing on you too, they'd want to tell you eventually, to see if you'd want to be with them too... or ...the one where Gareth likes Eddie's secret girlfriend.

Eddie Munson x fem!reader (with mentions of Gareth x reader)

warnings: implied sex but no smut, both angst and fluff, cursing, alcohol consumption, a little bit of insecure!Eddie at the end but she quickly makes him feel better, so much drama bc I am dramatic.

3.5 k words.

a/n: tumblr isn't showing my fics :'(((((

Eddie and you started dating a month ago. You didn't tell anyone yet because you were still on testing waters. Since you two had been very good friends before, you hung out with Eddie’s friend group a lot, not just with the guys in corroded coffin, but also hellfire, and you and Eddie hang out with your friend group, also known as Steve and Robin. You didn't tell anyone yet mostly because you didn't even know how serious your relationship was getting. You preferred to date for a while and see how it turns out, that way, if it doesn't work, you can just move on as always and it wouldn't be awkward since no one would be able to make it awkward, because they would never know something happened between you two.

Tonight, you were going to Eddie’s house for a movie night. When you got there, the guys from corroded coffin were still there too, they had been discussing some things about the upcoming shows they were doing at the hideout.

"Oh, hi guys" you greeted and they all greeted back with a hand-wave.

"Hey Y/n" Gareth also said.

"We were just finishing here, and then we can start a movie and order some pizza" Eddie told you. "Go on and pick one while we finish with the last details of the show"

You grabbed some of the movies that were next to the TV and sat on the couch next to Gareth, since it was the only one available.

"Oh, that's a great movie, have you seen it?" he asked you.

"Yeah, we saw it the last time we had movie night" you signalled between you and Eddie. "It's good but I prefer back to the future"

"Oh, yeah, I liked that one too, especially the part where Marty-"

"Gareth, are you even listening?" Jeff interrupted him.

"Sorry, yeah"

"Do you agree?" Eddie asked him.

"Umm, I mean..." he started.

"See? You weren't listening" Eddie smiled at himself for catching him. "Princess, stop distracting him or I'm gonna have to seat you somewhere else"

You only laughed and kept watching the options of movies for tonight.

"Alright, what were you saying?" Gareth said more seriously this time.

Eddie flirted with you in front of the guys often, even before you started dating. But only now, you complained about it when you were alone, fearing that they would start to get suspicious. But he didn't listen.

Like a few days later, at Dustin’s birthday party. Steve had brought some beer for the older friends of Dustin, obviously. The thing is, him along with your boyfriend drank more than they should.

You were talking with Robin and Max when Gareth came up to you.

"You want another beer?" he asked you.

"Oh, no thanks, I still have some left here" you lifted your cup.

"I could have some more" Robin told him.

"Oh um... OK" he wanted to share the bottle with you, but, guess it would be weird if offered you but refused to share with Robin. "So, um, Y/n, do you have any plans this weekend?"

"Yeah, we have Eddie's birthday, remember?" you said confused since Gareth was invited too. He couldn't have forgotten, right?

"Oh, yeah right! It just... slipped my mind for a second there"

Eddie and Dustin had almost freaked out when they found out their birthdays were a week away from each other's. And they promised that when Dustin turns an appropriate age, they would throw a party together.

"Do you have a present yet?" he asked again.

"Yeah, I got him another leather jacket, since the one he has now isn't fitting him anymore, and I bought him a cassette of a Black Sabbath album he didn't have"

"Oh, he's gonna love it! You're great at presents, I didn’t know that"

"No, I just think it’s because I know him enough to know what he likes"

"I'll make sure to get to know you enough so I can get you a good present too" he tried to be smooth, he really did, but he forgot a little detail.

"My birthday is in like... 8 months at least!" you laughed.

"Well- m-more time to get to know you then!"

"You already do" you didn't know why he was acting this weird, maybe he had had a little much to drink too.

And speaking of drinking a little much...

"Y/n!!!!"

You turned around at the scream of your name and you saw your boyfriend.

"Y/n, hiiiiii" He said coming closer to you while he tried to grab you by your waist. You moved his hands before he could though.

"Hey, Eds"

"Steve!!! Come here!!! Y/n's here!!!" he shouted.

"Heeeeyyy" a very drunk Steve showed up.

"Hi, Steve"

"She's so pretty" Eddie said hugging you. You tried go act surprised so it wouldn't be so suspicious.

"Well, aren't you drunk?" you joked.

"Maybe, but you’re still pretty"

"You know who's pretty?" Steve said. "Dustin is such a cute little guy!!! And he's getting so big, it's his birthday today!!!"

"That's true!!!! Let’s go get him!!!"

Thankfully, Eddie and Steve went running to Dustin before he could say anything else.

But still, later that night, when it was time for us to leave, Eddie was still flirty and tipsy.

"Eddie, you're not gonna drive like that" Jeff stopped him.

"I'm fiiineee"

"You can't even walk straight" his friend took the car keys from his hands before he could reach the van. "I'll drive you tonight, you can come and pick the van up tomorrow"

"But I told Max I was gonna take her home" Eddie complained. "And Y/n too"

"I'll drive them too, don't worry, I already have to take Gareth home, so it's no problem" Jeff said.

"No, Jeff, it's fine, I'll stay over at Eddie's tonight, someone should help him or otherwise, he's gonna end up sleeping on the floor and Wayne will be pissed" you offered.

You all got into Jeff's car. Max had called shotgun before we could even reach the car, so Eddie, you, and Gareth ended up in the back.

"You sure you don't want me to drive you home Y/n, it's really no problem" Jeff offered.

"It's fine really, I've already stayed over at his house a million times, so don't worry" you said.

Eddie laughed "Y/n's gonna sleep with me"

You looked at him weirdly and changed the subject before he would say anything else.

Until you got home, Eddie had already fallen asleep on your shoulder, you were talking with Gareth when Jeff announced that you had reached your destination.

Jeff accompanied Max to her door while Gareth and you woke Eddie up and took his hand to take him inside.

"You're gonna be alright?" Gareth asked you.

"Yeah, don't worry, once he sees the bed, he will be done for the night" You assured him.

"Alright, but if he gets too much just call me and I'll come help you"

"OK, thanks Gareth, and thank you Jeff for driving us!"

They said their goodbyes and went home.

"Alright, now, let's get you to bed" you said to Eddie.

"You gonna come with me, pretty girl?"

"Yes, honey"

"Alright, but don't tell anyone" Eddie whispered. "It's a secret"

"Alright" you whispered back and took him to his room.

He tried to throw himself into the bed but you stopped him.

"Eddie, you have to change first! You're gonna be uncomfortable in your jeans"

"Can I just take them off?"

"Sure, yeah"

He wiggled out of his jeans and proceeded to take his shirt off too. OK, just boxers it is then.

He laid on the bed but with his head slightly up, looking at your every move.

"Can I borrow a shirt to sleep in?"

"You already know you can, I'd prefer you naked, but do what you want"

"Thanks, Eds" you laughed and started to strip, since you're already dating and you trust him more than anyone, you didn't have to change in the bathroom. To this, Eddie stayed looking at you, he really thought he was being discreet, but it was the most he could do being drunk as he was, because in reality, he was staring with big doe eyes and his mouth slightly opened, as if he was in an awe.

"Don't drool" you joked once you finished and got into bed with him.

"Sorry" he whispered and then grabbed you by your waist to pull you closer.

You laid your head on his shoulder and his arms stayed at your waist hugging you. You fell asleep in his arms.

Once you woke up, you were obviously not in the same position, now on your side with his arms still wrapped around you.

You stayed like that for a while, until Eddie woke up too, a few minutes after.

He groaned and his hands went to rub his eyes.

"Hey, pretty boy" you whispered once you turned around to face him.

"Hi" he simply said before hugging you once again, cuddling and getting ready to sleep some more.

"Eds, we should get up already, we slept all morning"

"Let's sleep all day"

"If you get up and go take a shower, I'll join you" you offered and obviously, he got up immediately after you said that.

Once you got out of the shower with shaky legs and hickeys all over your cleavage, you started making breakfast, more like lunch since it was already noon, and you were both starving.

______

The night before Eddie's birthday, you went to his trailer to spend the night with him. You knocked on the door and your boyfriend opened up. You kissed him, already getting excited because in a matter of hours he will turn 20.

You heard a cough behind you two. You didn't realize Wayne was there too, of course he already knew about you two, it would have been impossible not to, giving that he lives with Eddie and he sees you at the trailer all the time, cuddling on the couch, sleeping over in the same bed, and all of those things. Your surprise of seeing him here was because he usually worked at night, but he had stayed tonight in particular to be with Eddie on his birthday, he changed shifts with one of his co-workers just for tonight.

"Hi Wayne, sorry I didn't see you" you greeted him.

"It's fine kid, It's good to see you"

"Yeah, you too"

"We were just about to have dinner, have you eaten yet?" he asked you while he stirred something in a pot.

"No, I haven't"

"Good, hope you like pasta"

"I love it"

You sat next to Eds and had dinner all three of you. At first you thought you were maybe interrupting a family moment between them, but Eddie had called you and invited you to come over.

The truth was, Eddie felt so happy at that moment, dinning with his uncle and girlfriend, because you hadn't really talked about you two yet, but he felt like you were one of the most important people in his life at the moment, and he really wished you would stay in that position for a long long time.

When the clock struck 12 am, Wayne hugged Eddie tightly and you showered him with kisses. After some minutes, his uncle said goodbye so he could go to sleep since he was very tired already. You stayed with your boyfriend, both cuddling in the couch, you were laid stomach up with Eddie lying next to--almost on top of--you, his head on your chest using your breasts as pillows. You were both chatting, you would give random kisses on his face sometimes while playing with his hair, you both felt so safe, so comfortable.

"I wanna stay like this forever" He admitted.

"Me too"

He lifted his head slightly so he could look at you. He wanted to say something, you could tell.

"What?" you asked. But he shook his head, brushing it off. "Come on, tell me"

He stayed in silence for what felt like eternity but in reality must have been a few seconds.

"I wanna tell everyone" he simply said. "Want you to be mine, officially"

"I'd like that" you smiled.

He sat up straight. "Really?"

"Yeah" you laughed and sat up with him. "I'd really really like that"

He kissed you sweetly, smiles on both of your faces. It almost felt overwhelming, but in a good way, it was hard to explain. Or maybe it wasn’t really, but you didn’t even want to think of the four-letter word that came to mind. Maybe it was too soon, you didn’t feel scared about the feeling per say, more of how he would react to it, to you feeling it.

The next day was spent tidying Eddie’s place up, decorating a bit with some balloons and stuff—you also spent some time ‘celebrating’ his birthday, showing the birthday boy how much you appreciate him, as one does.

That night, after all the boys from hellfire, along with Steve, Robin, Max, etc. arrived, everyone started eating, drinking—if they were the appropriate age to do so because Steve wouldn’t have let them otherwise—and just hanging out, having fun.

You were laughing at something that Dustin was arguing about with Steve and Eddie, what you didn’t realize was that you had an audience.

“Go on, talk to her” Jeff said to a rather nervous Gareth.

“She’s already there with them, I don’t wanna be so obvious”

“Oh, come on, you’re dying to tell her, go on man! Tonight is the night”

“Yeah, I know, I wanna tell her tonight but... let me wait a little more, I’ll talk to her in a while”

“Stop postponing it, you did the same in Dustin’s birthday and by the end of the night, you hadn’t told her anything” Jeff insisted. “Who knows? Maybe tonight you’d be the one who takes her home”

“Yeah, right” he brushed it off, but in his head, a little part of him was hoping for that to be true.

After some more convincing from Jeff, Gareth finally got up from the couch and approached you.

“Y/n? Can I talk to you for a second?”

“Sure, Gareth, what’s up?” you said and walked with him a little further from everyone else.

“Um… There’s- there’s something I’ve been trying to tell you for a while, but, I guess I’m tired of postponing it or trying to throw hints at you, and I should just… say it”

“Y-yeah, tell me” you got serious because of how nervous he looked. To be honest, a little suspicion of what he was going to say came up to your mind—but no, it couldn’t be that.

You could hear everyone in the living room from the trailer, maybe someone did something funny or Eddie was calling everyone for the cake. You didn’t pay it any mind, just stayed focused on Gareth rambling trying to find the right words, but you thought again—no, it wasn’t that.

“Y/n, I- I’ve- have”

“Everyone! Come here!” you could hear from the living room, but you both ignored it.

Gareth took a deep breath. “I like you Y/n”

You stayed there, looking at him.

“Y-Y/n?”

“You- what?”

“I like you, more than just like, I’m- really into you”

“Y/n, there you are! Come here” Eddie appeared and spoke before you could. He took your hand and took you to the living room where the cake was in the middle on the table, with everyone around it, paying attention to Eddie next to you. Gareth sighed and walked over to where everyone was, at the other extreme of the table where you and Eddie where, but he wasn’t looking at the birthday boy like the others, he was looking at you.

You were still in shock, not really paying attention to everyone singing Happy Birthday, nor to Eddie blowing the candles, you were just thinking—what. the. fuck.

You snapped out of it when you heard everyone clapping and you joined in slowly.

“Thanks guys, but um, before we cut the cake I wanted to tell you all something very important to me,” he looked at you “Y/n and I... we’re dating, we have been for a while but we wanted to make sure it was serious before we made a big deal about it. But we have been dating for over a month now, and we decided it was serious enough to tell you, finally”

“Oh my god!” Robin was the first one to react, before you even could.

“I fucking knew it!” Dustin shouted.

“Oh yeah, ‘cause you always know everything” Steve fought.

You stopped listening, everyone started talking all at once.

“Hey” Eddie whispered in your ear. “You OK?”

You saw his face of concern, forgot about everyone else there, Dustin’s and Steve’s shouts, Gareth’s confession, everything.

You smiled at him and kissed him.

‘Cause it was him, it had always been him, and you hoped that it would keep being him forever.

“I have to talk to you later” you whispered to him, lips still on top of his. “But I’m fine” you kissed his cheek. “God, I like you so much”

You parted, still looking at him smiling, his face now with a big smile thanks to your words, you winked at him and then proceeded to cut the cake so everyone could grab a slice.

“You never told me! I can’t believe it yet” Robin told you once you finished with the cake and everyone’s attention stopped being on you.

“I know but, we really wanted to see where it was going before we told everyone”

“He’ll treat you right, I’m happy for you guys” Steve stepped in.

Before you could respond him, you spotted from the window at Gareth being outside.

“Sorry, I’ll come to talk to you later, I have to do something first”

You went outside after him, and saw Jeff with Eddie and Gareth.

You walked closer to them.

But what you didn’t know was that Eddie had asked Gareth what happened when he saw his friend standing there with a serious face. Gareth just looked at him with regretful eyes. Thankfully, Jeff stepped in for him and explained to Eddie what happened a few seconds before he announced the big news.

“Seriously?” you heard Eddie ask.

“I’m sorry-“ Gareth started but then he saw you standing behind them.

They all turned around to look at you.

“I should… give you some privacy” Jeff excused himself and walked back inside.

There were a few seconds of silence, Eddie looking at Gareth and then at you, you looking at Gareth, and him at the ground.

“You- you like her?” Eddie asked again, still confused and in shock.

“I’m sorry man, I really didn’t know you were together”

“You don’t have to apologize” you assured him. “I’m- I am really sorry about this, and that you had to find out this way after you told me”

“You told her?” Eddie spoke again. “You- you told her… you-“

He realised what that meant, Gareth was just telling you because he wanted to know if he had chance to be with you.

“Eddie, I’m really sorry, I promise, if I knew about you two I wouldn’t have tried anything with her” Gareth assured him now.

“You-“ Eddie took a breath and ran his fingers through his hair, he turned to you this time, talking to you now. “You? What happens now?” you could hear his voice crack, he just got nervous. “What- what do you want now?”

“Are you asking me which one I want?” you asked him incredulously. “Eddie I- Gareth, can I talk to him for a second?”

Gareth nodded and went back inside, thanking you in his head for telling him to go away, he had an idea of what you were about to say, and he didn’t want to witness it.

“Eddie, I should have told you sooner, I should have told you when I first realized. I’m in love with you, you idiot”

He sighed again and immediately hugged you.

“Fuck, I got so scared there for a second”

“I don’t even know why” you laughed.

“Shhhhhh” he said before kissing you.

You stayed there, kissing, losing yourselves in each other.

“I love you too by the way” he said and pecked your lips. “Really, really love you so much”

After that—and a few kisses more—you went back inside.

You talked to Gareth properly, without making him nervous or uncomfortable. You had to tell him tough, you loved Eddie, and apologised for everything you made him go through tonight. He obviously said he understood and apologised to you too and later to Eddie.

After that night, every time you and Eddie were around Gareth you tried to be more subtle so you wouldn’t make anyone uncomfortable. And eventually, that awkward story between the three of you, became a funny story, something the guys would make jokes about, once they knew Gareth was over it.

[dontfeeltoohot]

for s/tranger t/hings prompts, could you possibly do e/ddie having an allergic reaction to something and not being able to get away from it for a while, so s/teve and r/obin have to help him? tysm and i love your writing!!

I know I just did a dust fic but oh well. This is one of the only valid ideas I could come up with. Normally I would do like...a dog or something? But with the fact he can't get away from it, dust seems more fitting. Also...this isn't fully following the prompt, bc feelings got in the way oops. But I still hope you guys enjoy. Warning for Eddie coming out to Steve and Robin in the most anticlimactic way possible.

X X X

When he agrees to help Robin and Steve clean out the back room of Family Video after close one night, he doesn't exactly think about the fact that cleaning usually means being subjected to dust. It's not that he would have declined if he'd realized, but it would have been nice to at least know to pop a Dimetapp or grab an extra bandana.

As Steve swings the door open to the back area, Eddie looks around curiously. He's never had a real job, always having been able to rely on selling drugs as an easy way of income. He's not sure what he's expected, but the dingy and dirty looking room with stacks of VHS tapes everywhere, boxes of candy in another and some promo signs against a wall isn't it. There's a table and three chairs in another corner, and Eddie plops himself down in one as the other two start moving tapes out of the way.

"Uhh, Munson, you gonna help?"

He looks up and his eyes narrow, staring at Harrington with a challenging look.

"I said I'd help you clean, not move things." Score one for Munson. He gives the other man a smirk and huffs when I broom is thrust towards him, hitting his arm and chest.

"There, then. Get cleaning."

Robin snorts and Eddie huffs in annoyance. Standing, the guitarist takes his signature leather jacket off, revealing a white and black striped t-shirt, something that almost looks too common place on him, considering all the other things he wears. Secretly, it's one of his favorite shirts- it makes him look hot, and he's worn it specifically for Harrington. Expertly, he gathers his curls in one hand from the nape of his neck upwards, then slips a hair tie on, a few curls falling and framing his face. He looks up, tongue peaking out of his mouth from concentration, and sees Harrington staring at him. Score two.

Grumbling to himself, Eddie starts working from the far left corner inwards, methodically sweeping the broom to catch all the small amounts of dirt, dust and garbage against it. Barely five minutes into his newly appointed task, the thin man feels an itch blossom in the back of his head. Ignoring it, Eddie keeps going, sweeping the crap into the muddle of the room, then going to the next corner. By the time the broom has officially swept half of the room, the oldest man can feel himself starting to sniffle, making him swipe his nose with his wrist more than a few times.

Each sniffle seems to make the tickle in his head a little worse. Eddie pauses the movement of his broom and grabs the bandana he keeps in his back pocket, pressing it to his face so he can wipe his nose and eyes. He's aware he stands there for a solid thirty seconds just rubbing, but his whole face is itchy, and he only stops when a hand sits on his shoulder. His bandana gets shoved back in his pocket, his eyes red and slightly puffy underneath now.

"Are you okay?" Robin looks worried, her brows drawn up, nose scrunched just slightly, making her freckles stand out more.

"Hmm? Oh yeah. Just kind of got lost in thought. Being around Harrington will do that to a guy," he says the last sentence louder, voice sweet and over the top with theatricality. Steve for his part blushes and rolls his eyes.

"Yeah yeah Munson, quit being such a sweet talker."

Eddie grins, thankful the banter stays light and Steve never seems to be weirded out by it. Maybe that means something, but he doesn't even want to give himself that flicker of hope. Steve Harrington could never like him like that. Sniffling again, Eddie rubs his face awkwardly on his stripe-clad shoulder, then gets back to his job, sweeping as though its his soul purpose in life.

As Robin and Steve finish clearing out the room so they can really scrub things, the guitarists nose gives an irritated twitch. He pointedly ignores it, trying to also not pay attention to the dust he can actually see getting kicked up as he sweeps. Finally, his nose is tired of sharing attention with everything else, and the prickle in his sinuses blooms. The itchy feeling is all encompassing, and it takes everything in Eddie not to just drop the broom.

"h'ghNXT! ih'gkst! h'Ngkkt'uh!"

Congestion explodes in his head, like it's been waiting for a sneeze to knock it all loose. He rubs his face with his bandana again, looking up to see neither of the others in the room with him. Thank god. He doesn't need Harrington mom-ing him to death. By the time he's almost done, Robin and Steve are back in the room, talking about Vickie and what Robin's going to do about her. Eddie freezes.

"Wait...you're into girls?"

The other two fall silent, and Steve steps forward, suddenly looking much more menacing than Eddie thinks he's ever seen, even fighting demobats.

"Is that a problem Munson?" The way he says his last name makes Eddie take a step back, raising his hands.

"Woah woah woah Harrington. I come in peace, Jesus. Don't bite my head off, leave that to Ozzy and the bats. I was juhhst asking for clarification."

Eddie scrubs at his nose, rubbing it upwards enough with the neck hem of his shirt that it leaves a small crease on the bridge, making it a little more pink than it already is. Steve stares at him, expression unreadable.

"Yes, Eddie. I'm into girls. It's why Steve and I don't date."

Wow. It all makes so much sense. He's about to say his thoughts out loud, but his nose has other ideas, once again demanding attention that's more than just a rub. Eddie contorts his face as the buzzing in his head grows, and then he's pulling the neck hem of his shirt back against his face.

"ihgNXT! hh'igKST! h'GXT'uh!"

"Bless you," Robin offers when Steve continues to just stare. Eddie swallows nervously and sniffles, wishing he had tissues to blow his nose. He could use his bandana, but that would make it pretty much unusable for the rest of the time spent in here.

"Harrington...I really don't care if Buckley's gay," Eddie tries again, rubbing his right eye. "I don't know why you'd think I'm homophobic, I'm gay too," he frowns a little. Not how he'd imagined coming out to them, but better now than never, he supposes. Before anyone can even take a breath to start to talk, the guitarist is turning away.

"h'Kgxt! ihh'gKT! ih'KSTCH'uh! Fuck," Eddie sniffles loudly and rubs his face again.

"You're gay too?" Robin's voice wavers just barely, but Eddie picks up on it and nods.

"Queer as a three dollar bill, as they say," he smiles in reassurance, then finally gives up and blows his nose into his bandana, cheeks heating up- he doesn't want to gross anyone out.

"Bless you. You sick or something?" Steve finally talks, and Eddie guesses this development will just be something they don't talk about. He'd rather that then get ridiculed by the man. He knows he's fine with Robin, but being the same gender and coming out is different, there's more struggle for power.

"Allergies," he shrugs it off and wipes his face with the same bandana he's just used to blow his nose, then grimaces a little.

"God, you're like a child. Hold on..." Steve rummages around in a cabinet and pulls out a new, still sealed box of tissues. Eddie grins.

"Thanks Harrington."