#ch: jason carver

[samgelina-jolie]

[1-800-whatwouldbillydo]

Why not, Jason?

[ghostlynimbus]

For 'There's A Rumor', who do y'all have an interest in seeing Eddie interact with in a future chapter (besides Chrissy)?

[medusapelagia]

A Magnet For Trouble - Masterpost

Written for @billybigbang2024 Artist: @akichania Beta reader: @ghostdeb

[Link to the fic AO3], [Link to the art]

Being a policeman isn’t easy, but some days are extremely harsh. After a bad shift, Jason Carver finds himself wandering in a night club, trying to forget about his problems, and there he meets the most beautiful man he has ever seen.  Billy Hargrove is a tattoo artist, proud of his queerness, and even if he finds the young policeman attractive, he’s not going to fall for a closeted guy, but there’s nothing wrong with having some fun under the sheets. The important thing is to keep sex and love separated. Everything changes when an armed man tries to rob Billy’s tattoo shop, Jason gets hurt and the line between sex and love becomes blurred.

Relationships: Billy Hargrove/Jason Carver, implied Robin Buckley/Chrissy Cunningham Rating:  Explicit Warnings:  Graphic Depictions of Violence Additional Tags:  Alternative Universe - no upside down, Modern Setting, Angst with Happy Ending, reference to domestic violence, Tattoo Artist Billy Hargrove, Policeman Jason Carver, Chrissy Cunnigham and Jason Carver are cousins, Attempted Armed Robbery, Blood and Injuries, Whump, Injuries Recovery, Smut,  Falling in love, from friends with benefit to lovers, Tattoos, Max’s father is Italian because I say so Length: 27k

Aki's art: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 4, Ch 5

[softyolk]

I Knew You Were Trouble (ch 1)

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

Summary: A story about how Eddie Munson fell in and out of love with you. Angst ensues.

Word Count: 1.3k

Content Warnings: Strangers to Lovers, Swearing, Heartbreak, Angst

Author's Note: This is my first story, so please, be kind.

You have seen them before, but the sight always mesmerized you. They looked perfect together, like yin and yang, polar opposites completing each other.

He was tall, with a long messy curly hair, wearing a leather jacket and ripped jeans; bad boy-like style but had the sweetest smile. She was shorter than him, luscious hair in a high ponytail, long lashes and blushed cheeks, looking like a doll in her cheerleading outfit, holding his big calloused hand with her tiny manicured fingers. They turned heads whenever they strolled by the school’s halls.

Every morning, without fail, he would take her to her classroom before heading over to his own. You knew their path very well, after all, Chrissy’s classroom was just across from yours.

The rumors around the girl’s bathroom about their relationship were that after a few escapades under the radar, Chrissy Cunningham had finally broken up with Jason Carver to be with Eddie Munson.

Looking at him now, giving her a forehead kiss before taking off, you would’ve never imagined that you would be the one in her position pretty soon.

It never crossed your mind. You were happy for them, mostly because they looked as happy as one can be. And also because they just… fit, you know? Perfect match. But that wasn’t the reason you couldn’t stop staring at them. At him, to be precise. Of course you had a crush on Eddie, of all people. All available people.

It’s not like it was a big deal or anything. You have seen him around a few times, and something in him pulled your attention like a magnet. He was just an interesting guy to look at, especially when he was talking loud about stuff he was passionate about. It also happens that he has the prettiest smile, kindest eyes, great hair and dresses just like the rockstars on the posters you had in your bedroom. But again, it's no big deal.

That's what you keep telling yourself, anyway, when you overhear two girls talking in the bathroom between classes.

"I don't know what to tell you, but he isn't who people think he is–" says the first girl.

"Oh c'mon, the guy is known for being a freak. I don't know what you were expecting." says the other.

"That's not– I told you I don't like that damn nickname or whatever it is. Jason and the guys are such assholes for calling him that. Anyway–", the girl sighs heavily, "I just thought he was different, that's all."

"But different how? I'm still trying to understand why you thought it was a good idea to dump a quarterback to be with a long-haired frea–nobody! Don't look at me like that, I said nobody!"

You felt a bit of tension building between the girls, but the conversation was cut short by the bell. You left the bathroom wondering what must have happened, but you knew for sure they were talking about Eddie.

The jocks had called him "The Freak" mostly because he lives in the trailer park and likes to "play make believe" – that you were sure it was a nagging about his Dungeon & Dragons club. He wasn't great at school either, having repeated the senior year at least twice, but above all, he was so obviously in love with Chrissy, the guys thought he was delusional for thinking he could've a chance.

+++

You don’t know what happened, really. You weren’t sure how it happened either. You just remember seeing them apart. You noticed that Eddie was mostly with his DnD group and stopped being a frequent presence around your classroom hall.

Chrissy had reappeared hugging Jason's arm, her long ponytail swinging from side to side, while crossing the halls all giggly with him.

She wouldn't even glance at Eddie anymore. Sometimes during lunch time, you caught him looking at the couple every now and then. He seemed a little uncomfortable, you thought to yourself.

"Are you even listening to me? Hello???" your friend Betty said, looking annoyed at your lack of attention.

"S-sorry! Yeah, of course I am." you replied, trying to focus your eyes on something else than the heartbroken metal head on the table across the room.

"So what was I saying??" Betty huffed.

"You were complaining about the amount of homework we have this semester…?" You tried.

"Ugh, it's like talking to a wall. Have you finished eating? I wanna get out of here."

As you got up to leave, you decided to give Eddie a quick glance as a sort of silent goodbye. Realizing that he was already looking at you made your heart jump on your chest and you immediately felt your cheeks flush.

He gave you a shy smile, but you convinced yourself that it was definitely for someone else as you have never had any interactions with him so far. You quickly readjusted your gaze to your friend's direction and bolted out of there.

Since then, every time you shared a room with Eddie Munson, somehow you would find him in the crowd just a few moments before his gaze found you back.

You would stare at him as if it was some sort of competition or animal kingdom shit, where you would assert dominance by having him looking somewhere else first. But it never happened. He would smile and you would panic, immediately changing your gaze.

+++

You remember that morning as if it was yesterday.

It had started raining when you turned off your car in the school's parking lot. You knew it was gonna be a cloudy day, but there's was no mention of a freaking storm on the weather forecast the night before, or else you would've known since your mom always gave you a heads up before leaving for work in the morning.

Before grabbing your stuff from the passenger seat, you stopped for a bit to look at the sky and mentally prepare for how drenched you were going to be before the first period. And of course it looked like someone was power-washing the parking lot. You couldn't see shit. Great! Today's gonna be great, you thought.

If you considered your options too much, you were going to head home and call it a day. You HATED when it rained and you had to leave the comfort of your home, or anywhere with a roof, to be honest. But you couldn't skip class because you needed to keep your attendance under control – last year you almost didn't pass Chemistry.

So you decided it was now or never, and opened the driver's door with a jolt. You jumped out of the car with your bag over your head as a makeshift umbrella. Squinting your eyes, you sprinted to the school's entrance while you felt your feet landing on puddles here and there, your shins getting more and more wet.

You arrived at the school's hall shivering but pleasantly surprised for being less soaked than you thought you would be. Still, your legs and feet were wet and it would make you feel even colder and uncomfortable during the day.

As you were heading to your locker, you saw Mrs. Harris strolling across the hall. So you quickened your pace and made a detour to the Art's classroom, to ask her if you could borrow the hairdryer they had in there– it was supposed to help dry glue faster, but now it could be a great tool to help you dry your clothes.

She let you use the hairdryer for 7 whole minutes before the bell rang and she shooed you away to your own class. It was good enough though, now you weren't feeling as cold anymore and your clothes felt comfortable again. Maybe this could be a good day, after all.

You ran to your locker to grab your books for the starting class. When you opened it, a folded paper fell to the floor. You quickly picked it up as a reflex, but after analyzing it for a bit, you found it odd as it didn't look like the pages of the notebooks you own. It had blue lines, and yours were a dotted pattern.

You opened the paper.

"You have beautiful eyes. – E.M."

What the fuck–WHAT THE FUCK?!

[hellfire--cult]

Baring Teeth {Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader} - Ch. 5

Picture for Banner: pitifulbaby

Chapters: Masterlist (Go here to see list of chapters.)

Pairing: Eddie Munson x Fem!Reader

Tropes: Enemies to Lovers, Non-Traditional Omegaverse, Slow burn, Modern!AU

Warnings: Ab*se, Violence, Mental Health, Cursing, Smut (mild), treat it as a normal Enemies 2 Lovers book, but the A/B/O dynamic will appear at some point. Trauma, manipulation, dirty talk, omegaverse topics.

Crossposted on: Wattpad & AO3

A/N: All comments and reblogs help with the engagement, I appreciate every single one! ❤️

<- Prev. chapter - Next chapter ->

Chapter 5

“Baby, I know it’s painful… But we’re gonna be happy, so happy together.”

———————————

Your eyes jolted awake. Your stomach was in a turmoil of nausea and bad memories, the anxiety creeping in your throat as you stared at the ceiling. This was getting out of hand. All week. The dreams and memories happened all week, not leaving you one minute alone, one second, anything at all.

You looked to the side to see it was 4:42 AM, and it was friday. You really did not want to stay awake, but you knew that you wouldn’t be able to sleep, not after that. You sighed and sat up on your bed, rubbing your face in exhaustion.

You should call your mom. You really should, but calling home means going back to that place, to that hole you were in a year ago. Your mother is a saint, and she really doesn’t deserve your cold shoulder, and sadly, she understands it. You remember your late nights with her, watching Golden Girls, sitting and eating popcorn.

Sometimes, your best friend would join in.

Vomit.

You felt it, rising up, burning your throat slightly at the memories, but you swallowed it down, not wanting to waste the dinner you had. They don’t deserve your vomit, you have to realize that. You have to know that. You sighed as you looked up at the ceiling again. Would it be better if you opened up to someone? Would it be okay to do so? Would they pity you? Would they judge you? Would they resent you for not saying something sooner?

“Fuck no…” You sighed as you grabbed your phone from the nightstand to see a message on your instagram. You winced at the preview of the notification, seeing that Jason Carver had messaged you, once again. You didn’t want to block him, but you were already in a fine line between impatient and annoyed. So you opened Instagram, and went to his profile, instantly blocking the guy.

You looked at the stories of a few famous people that popped up in your home screen of the app, and then a story of Nancy popped up as you swiped through.

“Eddie, there’s no way you can eat that in a whole bite.” You saw her filming Eddie straight on while he held a hot dog in his hands. He wiggled his eyebrows at the camera and he immediately stuffed his face with the hot dog, making you go wide eyed as you snorted loudly at the screen. “THAT’S DISGUSTING!”

You hear Nancy cracking up as Eddie tries to swallow the whole bite but was cracking up so much that he couldn’t chew. They must have gone to have some dinner last night, just the two of them. Huh… Maybe they’re going out? You never noticed flirting between them though, but they might be just really good at hiding it.

You kept looking at the screen and decided to go back and then go forward to Nancy’s story again to replay it. You paused it when Eddie wiggled his eyebrows going up with a sly grin in his mouth. You wondered if you would have gotten to know this personality of his if your first meeting wouldn’t have gone the way it did. If your relationship didn’t crumble to bits the way it did. If your hatred for each other didn’t grow the way it did.

Just one time in his life he directed a genuine smile to you, and that was when he asked what you were doing in the city. That was the only time, in the year you’ve known him, that he smiled, not smirked, not grinned with hidden intentions, but truly smiled at you. Not that you were any better than him. Whenever you could you teased him, bothered him, and if there was a chance to bully him with something, you took it. Just like he did to you.

But you did wonder if you’ve done more to him than you thought. Maybe you bothered him with something way too deep that you shouldn’t have, and that’s why he is just that cold towards you. You do remember one time where he didn’t answer you. One argument that he didn’t snap back at you.

–

“No Robs, I don’t want to go watch Evil Dead. I am not fond of scary movies, you know that!” You said with a tremble in your voice. Horror movies terrified you, much more if they were gorey, or slasher, but the whole group was gonna go see the new Evil Dead and that would leave you out of the loop.

“I can hold your hand baby, and it’s just a movie! It’s not real.” She tried to persuade you as you both took a sip of your beer in the regular booth at the bar, the booth where you met everyone else. Steve nodded at Robin, tapping on the table.

“Most of the blood, it’s syrup! Like, literal colored syrup, and they say that plot wise is magnificent.” He says, trying to help his best friend and Robin appreciated it, clinking her beer bottle with his. You rolled your eyes and shook your head.

“Maybe I can go watch… something else while you guys are in there?” You tried to persuade them, trying to not show how uncomfortable the thought of sitting through a movie that will not let you sleep for two weeks made you.

“But then you won’t be able to include yourself in our conversations dudette.” Argyle says this time and you sigh, shaking your head again and the person at the end of the booth groaned loudly, rolling his eyes wildly.

“Let Princess Peach stay home, watch her soap operas that are a hundred years old, and we just go watch Evil Dead.” You glared at him from the other end. You hated the nickname he gave you. It happened once when in Steve and Robin’s home, you all decided to play some drunken Mario Kart. You immediately grabbed onto Princess Peach, because you always liked her, but of course, someone scoffed at that choice.

“Fucking obvious you would choose Princess Peach.” He had said, and you glared at him with your controller in hand and you went into a drunken debate if he had a problem with women behind a steering wheel and that you would kick his ass. He picked Bowser.

He won.

Since then, the nickname stuck.

“I don’t only watch Soap operas Munson.” You said through gritted teeth and he let out a scoff, and Robin immediately rolled her eyes with a sigh.

“Here we go again…”

“I don’t care what you watch, but you can stay home if you are going to be a nuisance there, screaming and complaining about anything and everything.” He said, taking a sip of his beer and you were enraged right now, gripping tightly onto the bottle of the beer.

“Oh, I am sorry I am not a big ass man, who loves watching people get murdered on screen!” You exclaimed and he chuckled sarcastically as he looked at you over Nancy who was sitting in the middle, not minding you both as she sipped on her tequila sunrise.

“You can’t blame anyone for your fear Peach. Like I said, stay home, don’t bother us, and we’re all happy, alright?” He said in a cheeky tone, and the fact that he is pushing you away from the group makes you even madder.

“You know what? I am going.” You said and his eyebrows shot up, as everyone else’s on the booth, looking at you. A sly smile started forming in his lips and nodded in thought.

“Did you watch the trailer for it?” He asked as he pulled the phone out of his pocket, and opened the youtube app on his phone, looking for the video. He opened it and tossed his phone towards you and you still had your stern look as you grabbed onto the device to look into the screen. You could feel the shakiness in your fingers as you grabbed onto it, but you cracked your neck to try to be brave.

Maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. Maybe it was all in your head too much. Maybe you could tolerate it. The lady was walking through an empty hallway in the trailer and your skin immediately got goosebumps. Even in the loud bar, you heard the immediate sound effect of a boom as a deformed and exorcist like face came on the screen. You tossed the phone to the middle of the table after shrieking, your heart going a mile per minute now, and you were trying to calm your breathing as much as you could but you were not being successful.

A laughter came from the end of the booth and you turned your head to look at him, your fury emerging, filling every blood vessel with pure fire and lava as you kept watching him smirk cockily at his phone, putting it away.

“Don’t be a bother to us. Stay home and let us enjoy something without your disturbance. We’re not your babysitters.”

You snapped. A laugh coming out of your chest as you took a long sip of your beer as everyone looked at you with confusion in their faces. Nobody had intervened in your’s and Eddie’s banter, because they knew better than to do that. They don’t want to side with either, so they just look as if they were the audience of a show.

You did however, when you threw the phone away, catch the background in Eddie’s phone, which was Michael Myers doing a pose, almost as if someone took the picture to a dressed up person.

“Of course, sorry for not being a fan of scary movies like you are Munson.” He rolled his eyes, but was surprised nonetheless that you discovered that of him, only to be completely stuck to the seat as you kept talking. “I mean, I should have known, the dark clothes, metal fan, probably studied satanism once, yeah…” You said, looking down onto your beer, licking the inside of your lip.

You heard Robin call your name, lowly, as if in warning, but you were fuming because you didn’t want this fucker to keep messing with you, making fun of you, belittling you.

“I get it, sorry I’m not a freak like you to like such things. Sorry for not being fucked up in the head I guess.”

Silence.

You were waiting for a rebuttal, something. Nothing, nada. Noone spoke, and it made you slightly confused instead of feeling victorious. You looked up and saw Steve was eyeing Eddie, so you turned to look at him. Your mouth went dry as you saw his vacant eyes, staring ahead, nothing in them, his profile in your eyesight. It was as if he was remembering something, by the slight flinches in his eyebrows.

A minute went by in pure silence, and you shifted in your seat, licking your lips and swallowing harshly. You have to remind yourself that this is Eddie’s group, not yours, and if you got into his bad side, then everyone might turn against you. So you decided to apologize, even if your gut was telling you to shut up, and your pride wanted to kill you for it.

“Um… I’m sorr–”

“Go fuck yourself.” And that was his last interaction with you for the night.

The next day they went to see Evil Dead. You stayed home, watching The Nanny.

–

You swallowed at the memory and clenched your jaw. You at least tried to apologize that time, even if it was for your benefit, you still tried. You really don’t care if he apologizes to you or not, but you would prefer he didn’t. You don’t know how you would react to that lie, and you don’t want to risk it.

You didn’t have the closest relationship to Nancy, and that’s probably because she is closer to Eddie than she is to you, and that’s fine. You actually do know that Nancy dated Steve once, in high school, as well as Jonathan. It was weird, yes, but you wondered how Nancy felt about his two exes dating now.

It also dawned to you once that she might not like you much because you did go out with Jonathan once, and even kissed him on the first date. Maybe, just maybe, that might be the reason. Either way, you really didn’t care about not being close to her, you were just happy for finding someone like Robin, and you can also say that Jonathan became the next closest friend to you.

You opened your direct messages and saw that there was indeed a message from Jon. You opened it to find a reel video, and going into it, it was the meme of a cat, and it made you giggle onto the screen. You scrolled down towards a random reel, and then another and then another.

Soon it was 6:00 AM, and you knew you had to start getting ready for the day, but one last reel caught your attention. It was a sponsored video of a fragrance. Bleu of Chanel, a fragrance for men, but what caught your attention was the male model holding the bottle while shirtless, dropped onto a blue leathered couch. The backdrop of it was a blue marble image that moved around. Your eyes were stuck into his abs, glistening with fake sweat, his jeans tight around him, a little bit of his boxer line showing above the belt.

“Fuck, he is good looking.” Billy Hargrove definitely looked like someone who knows what to do in bed, just by his stance, his body, and his demeanor when you met him, and you bit your lip at the images you were getting in your head. Maybe he was gay, maybe not, you didn’t know, but you didn’t care. You saw him once in person and he is as handsome and sexy as he looks in the sponsor on your phone. That was enough.

You licked your lips and stood up. You would have to take care of yourself in the shower, too many images in your head arousing you for your own benefit. Just from a model.

God, you needed to be fucked, like good fucked, like ‘can’t walk the next day’ fucked. It’s been too long since someone else made you orgasm, that someone else actually cared enough to make you feel good. It’s not like the partners you had for the past months were horrible, but… they didn’t pass the ‘one night stand’ category. No one turned into an usual hook up, but it was because of that really, because they didn’t care but their own dicks.

Only one guy had tried, and that was Carver, and he did it horribly, but points to him for actually trying even if it was for a simple minute. Then the girl you hooked up with was good, but it was her first time with another girl so, of course you were the one with the lead then.

You weren’t into dating a girl, but sexually you were open to try anything and anyone. You didn’t sleep with many women, just three in your lifetime, but you sadly, horribly, preferred men, for whatever reason that was. It was just your attraction and your hormones talking for you. Maybe a dildo would come in handy nowadays, and a vibrator, cause if someone could give you a mindblowing orgasm, for now, it was you.

But the removable head of your shower might have to do for now, and your imagination, until you find an actual person that would make you feel as good as you make yourself feel, or even better. A person that you wish will make you feel desirable again, and not just a hole to put it in.

But maybe you’re just asking for too much.

----------------------

End of chapter 5

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I know it's short, but I needed to show a flashback to make you guys see that reader is not a saint!

A/N: Please, comment or send me an ask if you desire to be put in the taglist ❤️

taglist: @enam3l @rainybakerypandaegg @katethetank @seatnights @oliskitten @bebe07011 @seventhlevelofhell

[hbyrde36]

Life is a Game (and True Love is a Trophy)

Chapter 12

Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch 4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7

Ch 8 Ch 9 Ch 10 Ch 11 ao3 link

CW: Smut/NSFW

*Steve*

“What about Billy?” Steve asked once everyone took a seat on the cabin’s front porch. 

It had taken a few minutes to calm Chrissy down and convince her that they didn't blame her for the trouble Jason had caused. Eddie kept assuring her that it was all okay, and of course she wasn’t responsible for anything her douchebag of an ex said or did, but it wasn't until Robin stepped in and pulled the other girl into a hug that she stopped crying. 

Even now the two of them were sat together cross-legged on the porch floor, knees brushing, holding hands. Steve would have liked to do the same with Eddie, knowing they could both use a little comfort and reassurance too, but that sort of casual intimacy just wasn’t done between male friends, and while Wayne knew about them, no one else did yet. So he held himself back from reaching out while other eyes were on them.

He and Eddie really needed to have a conversation about that at some point.  Preferably sooner than later.

Steve resolved to bring it up the next time they were alone. He was itching to tell Eleven about them. Robin too. His friendship with her might be brand new but if their barely coded conversation in the car was any indication, he was sure that she would not only be cool about it, but happy for them. 

Hell, if he was totally honest he wanted everyone to know, would shout it from the rooftops if he could. He knew It was a crazy thing to think, but everything else that was happening aside? He had never been so happy. Eddie made him happy, and he wanted the world, or at least their little pocket of it, to know. He could only hope his new boyfriend felt the same.

“I think Carver was hoping he would press charges,” Hopper began. “But Hargrove refused to corroborate the story. I don’t know what you boys said, but you must have scared the shit out of him. He wouldn’t answer any questions, just kept repeating that he’d been home all night and didn’t know what Jason was talking about.”

Steve choked back a laugh and fought not to look at Wayne, who was sharing a pleased grin with his cup of coffee, and he was pretty sure Eddie was doing the same. They both knew it wasn’t due to their efforts that Billy had kept his mouth shut. 

“Then these two showed up raising hell at the police station ready to defend you-” The chief continued, pointing at Eddie. “-to the death and give statements that Jason was making it all up.”

“What did you expect us to do?!” Robin yelled. 

“The whole school was talking about it! We had to take action.” Chrissy added.

Hopper groaned, raking a hand over his face. Steve felt for the man, truly. He had to be exhausted. “Not that it even matters if Carver keeps up his crusade, but statements equal paper trail and I don’t think I have to remind you that this evil wizard or whatever the fuck he is isn’t the only enemy we have.”

Everyone nodded in agreement, the girls a bit sheepishly, but the chief was right. Fire or not, the lab and whatever shadowy sector of the government was in charge of it, was as looming a threat as Vecna.

“Ah shit, the whole school? Do the kids know what’s going on?” Eddie asked, shooting Steve a worried glance. 

“You’re all kids.” Hopper muttered, mostly to himself, and sighed. “Claudia knows about this place, and I called her too when I realized how bad this could get. I wouldn’t be surprised if they all- “

As if on cue, Hopper's sentence was interrupted by the sound of leaves crunching under the wheels of a car, as a station wagon pulled in to park beside his SUV.

“-Showed up here at some point.”

Dustin, Lucas, Will, and Mike all clambered out of the car the second it stopped moving. Each one with a backpack over their shoulder and a sleeping bag tucked under their arm. They rushed through the trees, pushing and shoving each other as if in a race to be first to reach the house. 

Lucas won, an unsurprising turn of events considering he was the only one of them who played a sport, and threw himself down next to Max and El who were giggling at the whole display. 

Dustin was a close second, hitting the bottom step just behind his friend. What he lacked in physical fitness he made up for in passion. He and the other two younger boys took up posts against the railing across from Eddie and Steve. 

“What’s with the sleeping bags?” Eddie asked, though the answer was obvious.

Dustin rolled his eyes. “Look I know you're on the lam now and everything, but it’s literally been less than 12 hours and you’ve already lost track of the days? It’s Friday!”

“So?”

“So, we’re sleeping over! We have the whole weekend to come up with a plan to defeat Vecna and discredit Jason Carver so you can come home.” Dustin declared.

Eddie stilled, and Steve felt his own heart drop. He didn’t know how much hope Eddie was clinging to, but based on his reaction he had at least partially come to realize what Steve had known from the second Wayne told them they had to go. 

There was no coming home. They would never be able to set foot in the Munson trailer again. 

Now that Steve knew about Jason giving him away, he was even more sure of that fact. It would take nothing for what remained of Hawins lab to connect Steve and El to Eddie and put the full picture together. They were past the point of no return now. No matter what happened with Vecna, if they survived, Steve, El, Eddie, and even Wayne would probably have to run and hide for the rest of their lives.

Steve couldn’t help reaching out then, smoothing a hand along Eddie’s back. He hoped no one noticed, or that if they did Eddie wouldn't mind. He just couldn’t not offer what little comfort he had to give in that moment. 

There was no reason to burden the kids with those harsh truths though, not yet anyway. There would be time for that later. 

“That sounds great Dustin, thanks. I'm glad you guys are here.” Steve said, saving Eddie from having to respond, and he leaned into Steve’s touch as if to say thanks.

Claudia made her way up about a minute later, hefting a grocery bag brimming with snacks that she dumped into Wayne’s lap on arrival.

“Right.” She said, a little out of breath. “They’re your problem now, Wayne. I’ll be back to help out in the morning.”

Eddie’s uncle took it in stride. He was probably used to hosting the group of teenagers, at least occasionally. 

“Where are you going? Do you think it’s a good idea for you to be home alone right now?” Hopper asked her.

“Oh, I'll be fine Jim.” She said, waving him off. “I'm certainly not spending the night here. Also there's some sort of emergency meeting at the school tonight for the parents. Considering that it’s almost certainly about our boys, I think it’s best if I attend so we can see what people are saying about all this.”

Hopper huffed. “I didn’t hear anything on the radio about a meeting.”

“Be hard to when it's not on you.” She said, nodding down to the spot where it should have been attached to him. 

“Shit.” He said, patting himself down. “I better get back before this whole thing spirals even further out of control.”

The chief jumped up out of his chair ready to take off but Steve was right there, getting up from his own spot to grab the man’s arm.

“Wait! What about the fire?” Steve asked. He couldn't let it go. He’d been patient so far because they had more pressing concerns, but he needed to know.

“Honestly, kid, it’s probably not what you want to hear but there's not much to tell. There was no one standing around outside according to the first responders on the scene. The place was mostly deserted before the fire started, apart from a few cars in the parking lot. The building’s a charred mess. They had a hard time putting the flames out, blamed it on whatever chemicals that must have been in the labs acting as accelerants. No one’s been allowed to search inside yet for potential survivors or victims. At first because the fire department deemed it unsafe, then come morning a government agency, whose name I was informed is classified, showed up and said they’d be taking it from there.” Hopper shook his head. “I’ll keep my ear to the ground for any sign of your Doctor Owens, but if he was in there… “

“He’s probably dead.” Steve finished the sentence for him. 

“I’m sorry, Steve.’ He said, and it sounded like he meant it. “I’ll go check in at the station and then come back so we can figure out our next move.”

“Have you slept, Jim?” Wayne asked.

“It’s overrated.”

“Go home. Check on Joyce, get some rest, and come back in the morning.” Wayne said, and surprisingly, Hopper agreed.

He and Claudia said their goodbyes and left. The woman offered to give Robin and Chrissy a ride home but the two girls had decided to join in on the massive sleepover. 

“The more the merrier I guess.” Wayne said gruffly, but it was clear that he didn't actually mind. 

It had grown dark and a little chilly out as they talked so everyone piled inside and the negotiations for later sleeping arrangements began. Wayne split off to the kitchen, and Eddie, who had been uncharacteristically quiet since the boys arrived, quickly joined the fray, letting the kids know in no uncertain terms that the couch was Wayne’s and both beds were spoken for. Really they were just battling over floor space at that point.

It was loud and chaotic, and Steve took the opportunity to slip away from the group and retreat to the comparative quiet of his and Eddie's room, pressing fingers to his temples to try and relieve the pressure that had been building behind his eyes all day. He should have known a certain someone would notice his absence right away. 

“You okay?” Eddie asked, opening the door just enough to stick his head inside.

“Yeah, just a headache.” He replied, sitting on the edge of the bed.

“I saw a pretty impressive first aid kit in the bathroom. I bet there’s some sort of pain killers in there. I’ll be right back.” Eddie said, ducking out only to return a minute later with a bottle of aspirin and a glass of water. He shut the door behind him and shook a few of the pills out into Steve’s waiting hand.

“Thanks” He said, downing both the medicine and the water in one go. 

“You don’t think… Eddie began hesitantly after a beat of silence, and it took Steve a moment to realize what the other boy was getting at. 

“Oh! No, definitely not.” He said, shaking his head. He pulled Eddie down by the hand to sit beside him. “This is normal, for me at least. I get headaches all the time. It’s nothing. Besides, doesn’t Vecna usually go after people that are like- ” He paused, trying to think of the right way to say it. “Sad and depressed and stuff? People with real problems.”

“Steve, you were held prisoner for two years.”

Eddie had a point. 

The past few years of his life had been mostly miserable save for a few stolen moments of happiness with his chosen sister. Even now that they had escaped, they still weren’t safe. They were being hunted by a legion of evil scientists and a man turned interdimensional monster with an axe to grind against an innocent girl who’d only done what she had to do to defend herself. 

He shrugged it off, smiling despite it all as he wrapped his arms around Eddie’s neck, suddenly realizing they were alone, and he could do that. “Yeah, and now I'm here, and I have my sister, and you.”

Eddie’s hands found his waist like they were always meant to be there. “No need to get cute, Harrington. We’re already dating.”

Steve pouted. “But I'm always cute.”

Eddie laughed quietly. “You can say that again.” He whispered, pulling Steve into a deep lingering kiss. 

-

Steve exited the bedroom about an hour later when Eddie softly knocked to say that everyone was eating dinner. The other boy had convinced him to lay down until his head was feeling better. He was glad for it now, to be able to stand in the middle of things without pain while the teens loudly talked and argued over each other. They seemed to agree that Eddie was their secret weapon, or could be if he could remember what his powers were and learn to tap into them.

“I think I could help you with your memories. If you’d want that.” El said, bringing the conversation to a crashing halt. 

Everyone was quiet, waiting for Eddie to respond, and Steve had a bad feeling.

“I, um… I don’t, uh know if I- ” Eddie stammered.

“It’s not just about the powers either, it could help in a lot of ways!” Dustin chimed in, blissfully unaware of his cousin’s discomfort. “I mean, El remembers Henry from before and you’re older than she is. Maybe you know something she doesn’t. We need some kind of leg up here, and we can’t just assume that this Vecna is exactly the same as the one from the campaign. Who knows if he has the same powers, or less, or more. We’re fumbling in the dark here, and- ow! ” 

Max elbowed him hard in the ribs, effectively cutting him off.

Eddie's head was down, eyes screwed closed and he was breathing too fast. Steve threw a look at Robin, a silent plea to keep everyone busy and away while he helped Eddie through whatever he was feeling. He slid an arm around the other boy’s shoulder, guiding him to the kitchen and sat him down in one of the chairs while he knelt in front of it. 

Steve took both of Eddie’s trembling hands in his, and whispered to him softly. “Come on baby, you gotta breathe nice and slow for me, okay? Can you do that?”

Eddie kept his eyes closed but nodded slightly and tried to control his breathing. Steve ran his thumbs across Eddie's knuckles as they took deep even breaths together. It didn’t take long, just a minute or two and Eddie’s pulse slowed, but he still wouldn’t look up. 

“Eds, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. If you decide you want to recover your memories one day, I fully support that, but you should do it for yourself, because you want to. I don’t want to see you forced into it when you’re not ready.”

Eddie shook his head. “I don’t know why the idea of remembering scares me so much, but what if Dustin’s right? What if I… “

Steve squeezed his hands. “It's not worth it if this is what it's going to do to you, and there's no guarantee that it would help anyway. We have a little time. The music is working so far, and he hasn’t taken any other victims yet. We’ll figure something else out.”

Eddie finally looked up to meet his eyes, and smiled softly. “Thank you.”

-

It was decided unanimously that that was the end of strategy discussion for the night, and when Eddie escaped to the bathroom to shower no one stopped him or said anything about what had just happened. 

Steve helped the girls get set up in their room, digging extra blankets out of a closet and arranging them on the floor to make it a little more comfortable. Max and El invited Robin and Chrissy to crash on their floor so they wouldn’t have to deal with the boys. Robin kept trying to catch his eye. He knew she wanted to talk, to ask if he was okay but she accepted the little shake of his head without complaint. 

He tucked El in even though Max was there, and she really was too old for it these days, though she didn’t seem to mind. It almost felt like old times.

By the time he was done Eddie was out of the shower, and he gratefully took his own turn in the bathroom getting clean. When he emerged, Wayne was sound asleep on the couch surrounded by the whispering voices of the younger boys on the floor around him, zipped into their sleeping bags. It was quite a sight, Steve wished he had a camera.

Going to bed together was awkward in a way that it hadn’t been the night before. Maybe because they weren’t as bone tired, or maybe because they had actually established themselves as a couple now and neither of them knew what to expect. 

Whatever the reason, Steve didn't like the tension in the air when he’d come in from his own shower, but he thought he knew how to fix it. 

He made sure the door was shut and locked before crossing the room to stand in front of Eddie. 

They were alone again and Steve took full advantage of it, taking Eddie’s face between his hands and kissing him deeply while he pressed their bodies as close together as their pajamas would allow. Eddie tilted his head, melting into the kiss. He opened for Steve immediately inviting his tongue to lick in and explore. 

Eddie gripped his shoulders and Steve's hands wound their way into hisdamp hair as the kiss turned desperate. Finally he was forced to pull back or risk passing out from lack of oxygen. Eddie whined and tried to follow, but Steve, remembering that there was a gaggle of teenagers in the next room, chuckled and slapped a hand over Eddie's mouth. 

Eddie’s eyes widened and Steve brought his lips close to his ear. “If we’re going to do this we’ll have to be quiet. Do you think you can be quiet for me?”

He felt as well as heard Eddie swallow hard. He was breathing heavily through his nose, eyes dark and pupils blown. He nodded, chest heaving. Steve slowly removed his hand from Eddie's mouth and kept his voice at a whisper. 

“Will you let me take care of you tonight?”

“Yes.” Eddie breathed.

Steve crashed their lips together again as he walked Eddie back towards the bed, sitting him down on the edge of it. Eddie looked up at him questioningly but sucked in a sharp breath as Steve knelt in front of him, realizing what he intended to do. 

Steve looked down at the floor, confidence faltering a bit under the weight of nerves. “I want to… I mean, can I… ” 

He must have looked even more unsure than he felt because Eddie reached down to caress his cheek and tilted his head up to look at him. “Hey, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do.”

It was exactly what he’d said to Eddie earlier in the kitchen, and it made him smile, instantly more relaxed.  

“It’s not that, trust me. I really, really want to do this. I've just never gone down on a guy before and I guess I'm afraid it won’t be good for you.” 

Eddie quirked a brow. “Virgin, remember? I’ve never gotten a blowjob job before and I gotta be honest with you, just the idea of you putting your mouth on me has me about to cum in my pants, so I don't think there's any chance that it won’t be mind blowing.” 

Steve leaned up, pressing another kiss to Eddie’s mouth as he slid his fingers into the other boy’s sweatpants and started to work them down his thighs. Eddie was right, just the idea of what he was about to do had him hard and straining in his own pants, and he had to palm himself when Eddie’s cock finally came free. It was bigger than he expected, a little red and leaking at the tip.

He started slow, darting his tongue out to lick circles around the head before taking just a few inches into his mouth. The last thing he wanted to do was gag himself and throw up by accident. No matter what Eddie said, that would be decidedly unsexy. He bobbed his head a little, using his hand to work the remaining length the way he’d had girls do on him before.

“Oh my god.” Eddie moaned, just a little too loud, and threw his own hand over his mouth to muffle the sounds that followed. 

It was all a little intoxicating, to be surrounded by Eddie’s scent, the warmth of his thighs so close to Steve’s cheeks, the weight of him on his tongue, the taste. 

He loved it.

“Close.” Eddie whispered through his fingers before clamping his mouth shut again. 

Steve already knew he wasn’t going to pull off, not a chance. He wanted the full experience, not just for Eddie but for himself. He wanted to know what it felt like to have his boyfriend spill on his tongue.

He tested out hollowing his cheeks and bobbed his head a little faster. Eddie’s breath quickened and his hips jerked, cock pulsing between Steve's lips. His mouth was flooded with warm slightly bitter fluid and he moaned around Eddie’s length as he swallowed reflexively, so incredibly turned on that one touch and he’d be coming too. 

Eddie hauled him up into his lap, kissing him thoroughly, either not caring or not minding that he could taste himself on Steve's mouth. Without breaking the kiss he slid a hand into Steve’s pants, stroked him a few times, and that was all it took to have Steve seeing stars again. 

Once they’d come back down to earth, and Eddie had cleaned him up with one of their bath towels, they snuggled down into bed together under the covers. Steve sighed contentedly, wrapped up in Eddie's arms was quickly becoming his favorite place to be. 

“Do you think we could ever… tell people about us?” He asked softly, face pressed into the crook of Eddie’s neck. 

“Is that something you want?”

Steve nodded, running his hand up Eddie’s arm. “I’d like to be able to tell El, and Robin. If you’d be alright with it.”

“Yeah I think that would be okay.” Eddie said, squeezing him a little tighter. Steve couldn’t see his face, but he could hear the smile in his voice. “I’m pretty sure Dustin already suspects, and I think I’d like Chrissy to know, if that’s okay.”

Steve sat up a little, beaming. “Yes, of course. Eddie. I… “ He stopped short, afraid he was asking for too much too soon. 

“What?”

“I don't want to push you, if you’re not comfortable, but I don’t want to have to hide. Not here with our friends and family. If you would want to, I’d be okay with everyone knowing.”

“Oh. That's, um- ” Eddie hesitated. 

Steve tried not to look disappointed. “Too much?”

“No, not at all.” Eddie said quickly. “It’s just, that’s a lot of people to come out to all at once, but I think I want that too. I don’t want to have to hide how I feel about you. I want to hold your hand, and sit too close, and have you call me baby and whatever other names you want without feeling like you have to whisper.”

“Yeah?” Steve said, happy tears threatening to spill from his eyes. 

“Yeah, fuck it. We’ll tell them all tomorrow.”

“You think everyone will be okay with us?”

“I hope so, and if someone isn’t, then at least we’ll know.”

-

Steve woke with a gasp only a few hours later. Eddie was shaking him and shouting his name with an edge of hysteria to his voice that made it clear that something was very, very wrong. 

“What’s going on?” Steve asked, taking in the other boy’s wide, panic stricken eyes.

“El’s gone. She’s not in her bed or anywhere else in the cabin.”

Steve tried to remain calm even as his heart began to race at a frantic speed. Maybe she’d just gone outside to get some air, or it could even be something as silly as her being in the bathroom, and they had somehow missed each other along the way. A fairly unlikely scenario given the size of their hideout, but he wasn’t willing to jump to worst case scenarios just yet. 

He slipped out of bed, thankful that he and Eddie had slept in pajamas tonight. It saved him the time of having to find and put on pants in a tired haze. He opened their bedroom door quietly expecting to be faced with a room full of sleeping bodies, but the living area was empty.  

“Wait, where is everyone?” Steve asked.

“They must already be out looking for her. Come on, we should hurry up and join them.” 

Eddie was ahead of him now, holding the front door of the cabin open, waiting for him. 

He felt like he’d missed a step somewhere. 

Steve shook his head, trying to clear the sleep from his mind. He needed to get it together and find his sister.

He nodded to Eddie wordlessly and made a beeline for the door of the cabin. He flew down the steps and into the trees. It was dark out there in the middle of the woods, but he could see several beams of light in the distance from what he assumed were the other’s flashlights. He should have grabbed one himself, he realized, but he wouldn’t have even known where to look for it anyway. The moon was full, so he could at least see a little and it's not as if she would have gone far. 

“Over here!”

He heard Dustin call out to his right and raced toward the sound of the younger boy's voice, trusting that Eddie would be right behind him. He ran as fast as he could but it seemed like no matter how hard he tried, the light of the younger boy’s flashlight was always just out of reach. 

He glanced back to check on Eddie, knowing that his boyfriend wasn’t exactly an athlete, and skidded to a halt when he realized wasn’t there.

Steve turned a circle twice, squinting into the dark, but Eddie was nowhere to be found.

In the process of looking he lost track of Dustin’s light, or any sense of where he was in these god-forsaken woods. He was never going to find Eleven at this rate. Even if he did, he had no idea which direction would take them back to the cabin. 

How had he gotten lost so fast, and what happened to Eddie? He was sure the other boy had been right behind him, he’d heard his footsteps. 

Hadn’t he? 

He needed to find one of the others, and fast. 

“Dustin!” Steve shouted out for the last member of the party he’d seen, or heard anyway. Figuring he’d be the closest by and most likely to hear him. 

“Dustin!” He tried again. 

“Eddie!” He was getting desperate.

“Where did they all go?” He muttered to himself, worried and frustrated. 

“Steve! This way!”

That was definitely Eddie’s voice, he’d know it anywhere. He sounded nearby too.

Steve sped in the direction the sound had come from until a figure with extremely short hair stepped out from behind one of the wide trunks and took off at a sprint.

El, it had to be El. 

He adjusted course and ran after her, screaming her name until he was out of breath. She never turned around or even looked back. Why couldn’t she hear him? She must be terrified. 

Suddenly he burst through the tree line and came face to face with a familiar stretch of chain link fence. It was the exact spot they had escaped through only days ago. He had no idea what would have made El come here of all places, but he wasn’t about to turn back now.

He pushed through the opening in the fence just as the sound of a heavy metal door creaking open reached his ears. He rushed to the exit door, assuming it was the source of the noise and luckily managed to catch it before it fell closed and locked itself. She must have used her powers to open it.

He called El’s name over and over as he searched the building, realizing far too late that something didn’t add up about all this. He’d wandered the familiar halls and even gone down into the lower levels of the lab searching for any trace of her, completely forgetting that there had been a fire here last night. 

Yet there was no damage.

No burnt walls or signs of smoke. Hopper had said the place was a mess, surely it would take weeks if not months of cleaning and repairs to get it looking this good again. Steve's blood ran cold.

It could mean one of two things. Either he had never really woken up and was still in bed dreaming, or this was all an illusion. 

At that realization, the quality of the light around him changed, taking on a sinister red hue, while the air that he was pulling into his lungs became thick and stale.

There was only one person, if you could call him that, that he knew of with the ability to create such convincing visions. The type of thing that could perhaps lure someone out of bed, trick them into leaving the safety of their friends and loved ones, and end up in the last place they’d ever want to go alone. 

Vecna.

The crisp white walls of Hawkins lab fell away, leaving Steve in a place he did not recognize but had quite recently read an awful lot about. Particles fell from the sky like volcanic ash and crimson lightning flashed in the distance. Thick vines criss-crossed over the ground around him, seeming to come from everywhere at once. He had never seen the Upside Down with his own eyes before but he knew without a doubt that somehow that was exactly where he was.

Before he could get his bearings and figure out where in the alternate Hawkins he was, several of the vines came to life at once. Two of them wrapped around his ankles, pushing him off balance and sending him sprawling to the ground. Another set gripped him at his wrists, tugging them to either side, and a final tendril snaked its way firmly around his neck, pinning him to the dirt. 

He thrashed and struggled to no avail as the hold on his throat became tighter and tighter. A shadow fell over him as his vision began to dim, and a pair of disfigured legs with the appearance of raw meat came walking into view. Steve’s gaze rose up the figure above him and he took in the disgusting sight in the distant way of someone who was about to lose consciousness. He was even uglier in person than Eddie's description painted him.

Vecna crouched, scratching over his face with a single long claw.

“Hello, Steven.”

Chapter 13

Thanks forever to @penny00dreadful for being the best friend, cheerleader, and beta in the whole fucking world💜

Taglist: @newtstabber @goodolefashionedloverboi @adaed5 @buckleybarnes @soaringornithopter @eddie-munsons-lunchbox @bestwifehaver @5ammi90 @sofadofax @ellietheasexylibrarian @manda-panda-monium @hardboiledleggs @mentallyundone @epiclazershark @herebedragons404 @estrellami-1 @paintsplatteredandimperfect @the-s-is-silent @brbsoulnomming @goinsteddie @steddie-there @yeahhhh-suga @thestarslittleking

[binickandros]

Sharp as Nails, Soft as Honey

Ch 1: The Covenless Witch

A Hellcheer AU

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: None

Relationships: Chrissy Cunningham/Eddie Munson, Chrissy Cunningham/Jason Carver, Chrissy Cunningham/Male Original Character

Characters: Chrissy Cunningham, Eddie Munson, Jason Carver, Laura Cunningham, Original Male Character, Original Female Character(s)

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Vampire, Alternate Universe - Witchcraft, Witch!Chrissy, Familiar!Eddie, bat!eddie, Vampire Eddie Munson, Sort Of, Bat Eddie Munson, Vampire Bites, Blood Drinking, Masturbation, Cunnilingus, Oral Sex, Semi-Public Sex, Past Jason Carver/Chrissy Cunningham, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Mutual Pining, Slow Burn, Soul Bond, Bad Parent Laura Cunningham, No Vecna (Stranger Things), Explicit Sexual Content, Eddie Munson Has a Crush on Chrissy Cunningham, Dry Humping, Human/Monster Romance, Human/Vampire Relationship, Eddie Munson Has Powers, Chrissy Cunningham has Powers, Post-High School

Summary: Chrissy Cunningham has escaped Hawkins, escaped her mother's control and run away from her fiancé, and now she's making a life for herself as a solo witch. She has a home. A business. But she's still lonely, and when an old book of spells appears in her shop, she finally has the chance to summon a familiar. She's hoping for a cute kitty or a soft bunny, but she gets Edward, a disgraced bat who's spent the last 300 years imprisoned for the worst crime a familiar can commit.

As their bond strengthens, Chrissy is shocked to learn that Eddie can shift into a human-like form...and that four times a year, solstice and equinox, he'll need a few sips of her blood. She tries to deny her growing feelings, her dizzying attraction, but there's only so long she can resist accepting everything he's offering, teeth and all.

Featuring bat!Eddie/witch!Chrissy art by the wonderful @harritudur

[floggingink]

The Halter

Ch. 1: Alley sour

by @gingertumericlemon and @floggingink

Words: 14,676, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English

Fandoms: Stranger Things (TV 2016)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings

Categories: F/M

Characters: Chrissy Cunningham, Eddie Munson, Jason Carver, Laura Cunningham, Wayne Munson, OCs, Horses

Relationships: Chrissy Cunningham/Eddie Munson

Additional Tags: Dom/sub, Stare/yearn, Physical violence and accidents, Affairs, Hatefucking, Healing, Moby Dick posting, Moms, Class, Rodeo queens, The peerless pitiless gaze of the western sun, Whips, spit, bridle, and bit, Various smut and filth, Big girl fucking, What’s the horse whisperer, we’ve never even HEARD of the horse whisperer

There was always somebody she didn’t know hanging around her house, so Chrissy at first sight didn’t pay the man in black any mind. 

[justhere4thevibez]

Looking For Something Dumb To Do

cliffhanger resolution headed your way (and some more angst bc I am who I am)

Ch 9: What you wanna do?

“Miss me, sunshine?” he asked with forced cheer as he caught her mid-stumble.

She gasped, going rigid in his arms. But when he caught her startled gaze, he saw something like relief in her eyes as she recognized him.

“Hi, baby,” she stammered, quickly gathering her composure and sinking into their routine. Thank god they’d had plenty of practice over the past two weeks. “I didn’t know you were meeting me at school.”

“Figured I might as well,” he said, giving her a reassuring, if tight, smile before turning to Carver, who looked absolutely livid. “Heard you’ve been dealing with some asshole lately.”

“I’m just trying to have a civil conversation with Chris,” Jason said evenly. “So if you wouldn’t mind—”

“I would mind, actually,” Eddie said, pulling Chrissy closer. “I very much mind you harassing my wife.”

[samgelina-jolie]

[1-800-whatwouldbillydo]

//🎪 Tagslist always open just lmk//

@flashwaves @gracethieved @thatawkwardlittlefangirl @ashyyboyy @thecrabnebula @shieldofiron @femmebilly @nogitsunbae @spaceboxkitty @skyesayshi @hargrove-mayfields @dragonflylady77 @dragon1d @magellan-88 @ouizzyharringrove @suometar @usaqaix @cherixrosa @billyhargr-a-ve @jad3w1ngs @harringrovsonsworld @thebussynotes @raven2008 @anarcha-queer-horror @talesfrom-theupsidedown

[metallic-corvids]

Flustered Bats & Giddy Doves | Ch. 1

The hustle and bustle of Hawkins High school, really the only place that's super lively anyway. Especially during lunchtime. Chattering groups, full of gossip, casual conversation, and nerdy topics galore.

Amidst the "controlled" chaos of the lunchroom, there stood on top of one of the lunch tables was none other than the Hawkins resident freak; Eddie Munson. He was ranting in a lighthearted manner on how he himself and his group, or a fancier term—clique, was shunned for enjoying a fantasy game.

Eddie sputtered at the jocks who were mocking him a couple of tables over in front. He stepped off his chair but realized he was in the walkway of passing traffic. Eddie, although not admitting it out loud nor did many really care to notice, he was polite enough for manners. Eddie allowed passing cheerleaders through, even offering–albeit dramatic–bow.

He offered a smile to those passing by, but manners doesn't seem to prevent one from being oblivious. Because as Eddie went to walk back to his seat, he collided with someone. A clatter of a dropping tray and mess of food decorating the floor left Eddie frustrated but also worried about who he just blinding slammed into.

" You okay? " A familiar voice asked, beating Eddie to the punchline.

'Uh-oh' Eddie thought, immediately looking up and seeing who he just made a mess of.

It was the cheer captain of Hawkins High, Cordova Cecilia Hathaway, picture-perfect cheerleader. The long blonde hair and blue eyes; it was so cliché. She probably had everything handed to her on some gold platter. Beloved by all. ... Maybe even Eddie.

" I should've paid more attention, " She asked, her cheer uniform lathered in food and drink. Oh, that definitely left a stain.

" I uh- " Eddie blinked, looking down at himself and realized he didn't actually have any mess on him. Although, he also realized something else, " You're–.. not mad? " He added.

" Mad? " Cordova bounced back, clearly confused, " Why would I be mad at you? " She asked before she also looked down at herself. Cordova shivered in her spot, the textures feeling gross.

The whole ordeal didn't go unnoticed by- well- the whole cafeteria. It definitely stirred up the jocks, especially since they immediately began to blame Eddie.

" Hey! Freak! " Jason snapped, " What are you doing to her?! " He continued, moving up from his chair and going to beeline to Eddie and Cordova.

Ah. Jason Carver. The well-known jock and top of the list of people who terrorize Eddie Munson. Eddie went to defend himself, but it seems Cordova had beaten him to the punchline once again.

" He did nothing wrong— " Cordova interjected, stepping in front of Eddie, " It was my fault, I wasn't paying attention, " She explained.

Jason looked— confused? Disgusted? Angry? Maybe all the above, " You're defending this freak? He shouldn't have been near you- "

Eddie watched the interaction, subconsciously fiddling with his hands in a bit of an awkward mannerism.

" You attacking him because he isn't a copy of you doesn't mean he deserves to be harassed or take the blame for something I did— " She was pretty firm in her tone, putting her hands on her hips in a frown.

Jason grew even more frustrated with Cordova's stubbornness. He shot a glare at Eddie before scoffing and turning to leave, like a sulking child.

Eddie watched Jason sulk off before looking over at Cordova, his eyes a bit wide and his heart pounding. He couldn't remember the last time someone stuck up for him that wasn't his uncle; especially a girl.

" You okay? " Cordova asked again, looking back at Eddie with a softened expression.

Eddie's heart fluttered, smiling a bit at her consideration, " Uhm-.. yeah, " He nodded a bit before rubbing the side of his neck, " I'm sorry for making a mess of everything. And— staining your uniform- " He muttered that last part underneath his breath out of embarrassment.

Cordova looked at her uniform, pulling it forward a bit to look at the stains and mess that's basically dry at this point, " Bah- " She shrugged it off, having her hand dismissively, " It's just clothes, " She reassured with a smile.

When Cordova looked at Eddie, they had accidentally locked eyes. They both jumped in surprise before managing to laugh softly together. The lunchbell rang, which signaled it was time to scuttle back to class.

" Do- you want me to help you clean up? " Eddie offered,

" Nah, " Cordova assured, " I got it, thank you though, " She explained, crouching down to collect the milk carton and tray.

Eddie gave a nod, picking up a couple of bits of trash to help before Cordova gently shooed him off in a lighthearted manner.

Eddie skittered off, pausing to glance back at Cordova for a brief moment before turning his head to leave to class. A part of him hoped this wouldn't be the last time Cordova and him talked, but he wouldn't be surprised if it was.

Unfortunately, Eddie seemed to be right. Nothing came of their conversation, which did leave Eddie pretty disappointed. But oh–

He couldn't help himself. His gaze would linger on Cordova, but not in a lustful way. Eddie's gaze to Cordova was something soft, sweet, and full of memories when they were kids, and he would always try and play with her. It seemed old emotions die hard; or at least attempts were made to kill 'em, and they came back stronger.

It had been a couple weeks after the initial cafeteria incident, and it seemed it was all forgotten about. Which was good considering the mess.

It was the last class of the day, and Eddie was fighting himself to focus in Ms. O'Donnell's class. When the bell rang, it was like all pressure released from his skull. He didn't miss a beat in striding out of the class, making a sharp turn in beeline to the exit doors.

When he made it to his van, he paused mid-grasp of the door handle. There was a little note. Eddie peeled it off, it hanging on by a sticker. He frowned to himself before finally flipping it open.

He instantly knew the handwriting. No one writes their 'E's like that except Cordova. The note read that she was requesting to meet Eddie at the abandoned table that was tucked inside the thick of the woods.

Eddie gripped the note a little tighter. Was she requesting a deal? Was it something else? Was it a joke? No- she wouldn't play a prank on him, especially not a malicious one. Eddie huffed out, his breath blowing some of his bangs.

He folded the note, tapping it against the ball of his palm before crawling into his van and deciding to risk it and see if she shows up.

Eddie swung by his uncle's trailer, where he also lived, picked up his stash, and casually began to make his way to the little— open yet hidden area. He made sure to not draw attention to himself as he casually strolled over to the area.

Although, just straight ahead, he immediately saw that platinum blonde he loved. Cordova was a bit ahead, still in her cheer uniform and varsity jacket. So she wasn't just giving a red herring.

Eddie let her sit down, smiling to himself softly. That is- until he realized how insane he looked, and he began to crunch through the dead leaves again in trek to the table and Cordova.

Cordova shivered a bit, feeling someone else here and following behind her. The crunching of the leaves caused her stomach to drop in anxiety. She's never done this before..

When the sound of footsteps drew close enough, Cordova finally turned to see if she was just— losing her mind again.

Cordova jumped and squealed out of utter surprise. Eddie, who was just behind her, held up his hands in attempt to ease things,

" Woah, woah- easy- it's just me– like you requested, " Eddie reassured with a chuckle as he went around to the other side of the table and sat himself down, " Didn't mean to scare you, "

Cordova softened, wriggling around and facing Eddie. She got a little nervous and fell quiet briefly,

" I've– never done this before- " She finally muttered,

" Well, cash only. And uh- " He tapped the table top with a bag he pulled out, definitely full of weed, " No receipts. For.. uh, obvious reasons- " He added, " I can do.. a half ounce for twenty, more bang for your buck- "

Cordova blinked, absolutely bewildered. She shook her head in response, wondering why he would bring something like that. Although it wasn't hostile, it was just more confusion than anything.

" Eddie, I didn't ask you to be here to buy stuff from you- " Cordova tried to explain, now leaning a little forward in a bit against the table,

Eddie looked– surprised, but now a bit weary, " You didn't? " He asked, some embarrassment swirling inside, " Then, I uh- can leave-- "

" No- " Cordova blurted, gently laying her hand over his forearm. She pulled her hand back in her own embarrassment, " Please don't go- " She whispered, now rather slumped in her posture.

" I did ask you to be here for relief but not.. smoking relief or anything like that. Just- " Cordova gently shook her head, her mind going blank on what she was wanting to say. She fell silent, a bit awkwardly silent.

Eddie watched her mannerisms and how she would fidget with her hands. He hesitated, not sure how to handle this kind of situation before trying to lighten the mood with a bit of a different topic,

" Y'know.. this isn't the first time we've hung out, " Eddie started, holding his hands clasped together in front of him and letting his elbows rest on the table top.

Cordova looked up from her lap, puzzled again, " No..? " She whispered,

" You don't remember? " Eddie asked under his breath, maybe a little disappointed, but the wheels were turning in his braim

Cordova gently shook her head, watching him from where she kept seated, before her gaze dropped back to her lap, " I'm sorry I-- " She started,

" It's okay, " He reassured, the silence rising before Eddie pretended to be shot in the heart. He dramatically fell back into the leaves, leaves clinging everywhere before he scrambled to his feet in laughter while speaking, " Honestly, I wouldn't remember me either, Corvie, "

Cordova immediately cracked up, scrunching in her spot and dropping her head a bit in her laughter as she watched Eddie and his antics.

" Honestly, " Eddie started as he tried to mess with his hair, checking for anything that might be in it, " Do I have anything in my hair? " He asked, that dorky and dopey smile not leaving his face,

" You seriously don't remember me? " He quickly asked with a baffled tone yet still lighthearted tone as he crossed his arms and leaned a bit towards Cordova.

Cordova was still bubbly herself, little laughs still popping from her voice, " I'm sorry– " She giggled,

Eddie was beaming like the sun, happy to have eased her nerves and gotten out of his comfort zone to make her laugh.

" Middle school. Talent show, " He clued her in, his head dropping in giddy and flustered mannerisms as he looked off to the side,

Cordova knitted her brows in an attempt to focus and remember with the clues Eddie was giving her,

" You were doing this cheer thing- that you do, " He explained while giving a mock cheer shake with his hands,

Cordova giggled again, watching Eddie with a smile hardly leaving her face,

" It was kinda cool, actually, " He added before quickly tucking his hands back underneath his arms in a crossed manner, almost stumbling a bit amongst the leaves and semi-surfaced tree roots,

" And I–.. was with my band-- " He began,

" Corroded Coffin! " Cordova lit up in blurt at almost immediately in recognition, excitedly hitting her hand on the table top,

Eddie began to clap, almost spinning before pointing at Cordova, " You do remember! " He exclaimed, elated beyond belief with the biggest grin on his face,

" Of course! With a name like that, how could I forget! " She blurred her words with his amidst the excitement, shaking her head at her own forgetfulness,

" I dunno, you're a freak, " Eddie included, holding his hands in front of himself with that same smile, reeling a bit from the fact the queen of Hawkins seemed to be a freak herself,

Cordova opened her mouth in attempt to defend herself, a smile still trying to show through whatever other expression she was giving, " No- you just- " She finally let out her words, as if they finally broke through,

" You looked so‐- " She began again,

" Different? " Eddie interrupted, " Yeah, well, uh, my hair was buzzed and– I didn't have these sweet ol' tatties here, " He explained, revealing one of the inked arts on his chest,

" You– " Cordova shook off the tattoo thing, the thought of tattoos made her skin crawl and a bit itchy, her face a little scrunched in thought, " You used to play guitar, right? " She asked,

" Uh-huh, still do, " Eddie let his hands slip onto his lower back, turning a bit in a subtle fidget. He seemed to contemplate something, " Still do. You should come see us, " He finally suggested, a little more confident than prior,

" Uh, we play.. at the hideout, on Tuesdays. " He explained, slowly crossing his arms again, " It's pretty cool. We‐ we- we actually get a crowd of about.. five drunks, " He joked with that same smile,

Cordova couldn't help but softly laugh at his comment, her head tilting a bit in her scrunched laugh,

" It's not exactly a garden, but- " Eddie included, letting his arms fall, and he turned to the tree he was stumbling a little over earlier and began to loosely punch the tree a couple times. He was head over heels, and that was beyond apparent, " But you gotta start somewhere, right? "

" Y'know- " Cordova started as she watched Eddie turn back to her, " You're not what I'd thought you'd be like- " She admitted, her own smile not leaving yet

Eddie sheepishly pulled some of his brown hair up, fidgeting and hiding half his face, " Mean and scary? " He asked behind his hair, finally looking at Cordova in the face for more than a couple seconds,

" Yes- " She simply whispered under her breath, looking relieved as she further confirmed with a nod. Cordova felt-...

" Yeah- well- " Eddie began with a half chuckle, slowly dropping his hair from his face as he began to make his way back to the table a little rushed, crawling back into his original spot, " I actually kinda thought- you'd be mean and scary too, " He admitted whilst he was moving,

Cordova watched, looking up at Eddie face with a smile but also smidges of confusion. Mean and scary? Her?

" Me? " She faintly asked, still grinning at Eddie,

" Terrifying, " He mused, finally settling down in his spot,

When Eddie sat back down, it seemed to be equally acknowledged that the atmosphere had changed.. it was quiet, Cordova finally looking down at the table again,

" Eddie..? " Cordova finally spoke up. The whole time she had began rubbing her palm against her thigh in a soothing motion,

He looked up, not immediately saying anything. He knew the situation became vulnerable. Even with his heart ringing in his ears, he still wanted to be there for her. Even after the laughs,

" Yeah..? " He muttered,

" How- " Cordova blurted, as if trying to convince herself to impulsively ask so she didn't think about the question too much, " How do you do it..? " She asked. Well- that was vague.

Eddie stared at Cordova, a subtle knit of his brows in not understanding, " Do.. what? " He asked, one hand laying on his other wrist, carefully turning his watch around whilst he waited,

" How do you just be yourself? Without- fear of judgment? " Cordova finally clarified,

Eddie slowly sat up more. Maybe she really was a freak. He thought on his words as one of his hands cradled half his face, leaning against it. He fought against the initial thought to be jokingly sarcastic about it,

" It.. took a couple of years, " He mumbled, idly spacing out and watching Cordova fidget with her hands in her lap, " It got tiring, trying to conform to– molds that just weren't me, " He admitted,

Cordova was oblivious to being watched as she kept a hit curled in on herself, thinking about his words,

" Like- " She started, getting a little frustrated about her being tongue tied, " I don't want to get tattoos, actually they make me very uncomfortable, " Cordova admitted before looking up at Eddie, clearly a little guilty, " No- no offense- " She quickly added,

Eddie looked more intrigued. He didn't recall her being squeamish when he showed them to her earlier, " They make you uncomfortable? " He asked, " What? Some kinda mommy-daddy conforming thought process? " He gently joked,

" Uhm- actually my mom is– loaded with tats, " She admitted, " But the thought of- getting a tattoo... " Cordova slowly looked at her hand and arms, shivering a bit, " The thought of something being underneath my skin scares me. I already struggle sometimes thinking something is already underneath there- " She admitted,

Cordova quietly laughed at herself, " I probably sound insane, " She tried to lighten the mood a little,

Eddie blinked, not expecting that revelation before smiling at Cordova, " At least that makes two of us, " He teased, letting his hand fall from his face as he turned his focus to turn his rings on his fingers absentmindedly, " Two insane, totally not mean and scary, freaks, "

Cordova laughed a little again, really appreciating how easy it was now to talk to Eddie,

" Hey- " Cordova paused, her words getting caught in her throat, " Are- " She felt her face flush a little, whether shyness or embarrassment was up for debate. Or both, " Are you doing anything else today? "

Eddie's heart slammed into his ribcage, uncertain where this would be leading to, " Uh- " He tapped the back of his hand on his palm as he ran through his schedule,

With a suck of air through his teeth, he leaned back in an attempt to stretch, " I'm sure I can uh, clear my schedule for Miss Queen of Hawkins, " He teased with a grin,

Cordova gave a joking scoff before laughing at him, " Could- could we swing by the store..? " She sheepishly requested,

Eddie was surprised it was such a simple task she was requesting. He gave a shrug, " I don't see why not, " He explained, gradually getting up from the old picnic table, " You wanna go ahead and go? "

Cordova lit up, happy he agreed. She wasn't expecting him to want to go now as she looked at herself, as if she would accidentally leave something behind. When she was all clear, Cordova finally got up, following beside Eddie.

Eddie looked over at Cordova, and Cordova returned the look. The shared gaze alone gave away how both felt for one another, and this whole situation was like finally lighting a shared candle,

" You ready? " He asked, slipping his leather jacket back on, tucking his hands into his pockets. He had a cheesed grin on his face as he kept his brown eyes locked with her blue ones,

Cordova nodded, scrunching her face in appreciation at him, " Yeah, " She further confirmed.

They began to make the trek back to Eddie's van. The only thing left behind was fond memories, and- surprisingly, Eddie left his metal box of stash. Yet he didn't seem to remember to grab it at all..

[medusapelagia]

Separate Ways - NSFW -Ch 4/22

READ ON AO3

Under the cut a little snippet

“I didn’t know we met a VIP the other night.” Carver says bringing two cups of coffee to their car with a magazine under his arm.   “What the hell are you talking about?” Billy asks while taking one of the cups. “Look.”   Jason gives him a gossip magazine that has on the first page a picture of two guys fighting outside a club.   He knows the club, it’s the Broken Mirror.   Under the picture, a caption says:   ‘Steve Harrington fighting with his manager Tommy Hagan. Trouble in Paradise?’   “What the fuck?”   “He’s like a super famous model, and the other one is his manager and his lover.” Billy browses through the magazine until he gets to the article.   It says that the couple was at the Broken Mirror to celebrate but they got into a fight about a girl. Steve was jealous, apparently, and started arguing, but Tommy finished the fight with his fists and both of them ended up in prison. There is a picture of Hagan leaving the station, but none of Steve because he left with him.  “It’s the first time I’ve arrested someone famous! We should have asked for an autograph!” Jason says while drinking his coffee. 

[hawkinsborne]

@hvbris​ liked for a starter!

     He beams, the excitement rolling through his body. Tonight was the champion game and he was beyond pumped for it. He had given his speech. He had spent his time on the court. He had been preparing for this night his entire high school career. This was his ticket in to the next phase of his life. Sure, he had the money for college, he was rich, he could pay his way through, but to get in off a basketball scholarship? That was worthy of something. That was a further promise for his future. That was a thing he could write home about.

     Still, as school comes to a close, all he wants to do is spend time with Chrissy. He doesn't want to see anyone else. Talk to anyone else. There's no need for more practice, after all, it's already done. What happens tonight will be what sells him to the scouts. What sells him to the playoffs and his future careers to come. He has a plan.

     "Hey beautiful." He greets, that beaming smile still upon his features as he gazes at her. "How's my good luck charm? Are you ready for tonight?”-

[sp0o0kylights]

Like the Wolf Steve/Eddie Werewolf AU

I  have so much of this stupid thing written and it’s stuck on ch. 2 so imma just throw all the pieces up here now. 

This is a werewolf AU, not an A/B/O fic. My version of Alphas and Omegas runs like a mixmash of Patricia Brigg’s, Ilonia Andrew’s, and Carrie Vaughn’s. There is no second gender, werewolves establish a hierarchy within a pack by who is most dominant/submissive, with two Alpha’s to a pack and Omegas being an extremely rare gift.  Direct eye contact is considered a challenge and society has evolved to accept multiple types of Packs, including ones that include others beyond werewolves. All is explained in fic.

Warnings: Period typical homophobia, Eddie having trauma responses/being bullied/being hunted, mentions of Chrissy’s bones going snappy snappy,  and a general mention of the delightfully dumb social/moral/ethical issues that paranormal creatures raise.

Eddie Munson was not anyone's idea of a proper pack Alpha. 

Nor was he the kind of guy people wanted in a Pack, (capitol P intended, because “Titles are important, Edward.” and fuck did he hate when adults called him that. He went by Eddie for a reason.) or anywhere near them, period. 

Experience taught him that even in a traditional Shifter town like Hawkins, filled to the brim with werewolves and not much else, people would pick literally anyone over him when it came time to pair up.

Witches, the Fae, hell, even humans were better than him in the eyes of his peers. They wouldn’t pick him to be their PE tennis partner if he was the last guy left, let alone allow such deep and familiar actions like “treating him nicely” or “waving hello.” 

Letting him in their Pack? Any Pack, from a “true” one with the whole bond thing and fancy magic, down to the stupid social ones that did nothing more than let you know who your friends or coworkers were? 

Perish the thought!

“My mom says you’re a total freak.” One of the old-blooded, rich brats had said in third grade, and the nickname had stuck like glue ever since. 

It followed him throughout the years like it was branded on his forehead, accompanied by a steadily growing list of insults.

Weird. Faggot. Failure. Lone Wolf. 

Other.

Different.

He'd tried long ago to stop letting it hurt him. The way they made him aware that he fell so outside the realm of what others considered normal that they actively shunned him. 

It took until his sophomore year to get good at pretending it wasn’t painful, and at least by his third attempt at graduating, he had it down to where others believed it. 

Had even carved out a place for himself, starting with the Hellfire club. 

Gone about, rounding up all the other undesirables, the outcasted freaks who just didn’t fit into the stupid little social circles or dumb hierarchies of small towns the world over. 

Took in Grant the human, and Jeff the half vampire and Gareth, who was sick all the time even though he was a werewolf. 

Then the small group of incoming Freshman who’d been too loud, too proud, and far too nerdy to walk the halls without some kind of protection. 

It wasn’t much, but for someone like Eddie?

It had been everything. 

Too bad he was in Hawkins, Indiana, where people like him didn’t get to enjoy things.

Not without bad things happening.

Really bad things. 

Chrissy Cunningham pulling an exorcist level of demonic possession, dying on his ceiling, and crashing down like a broken porcelain doll to the floor of his trailer level of bad things. 

Suddenly Eddie wasn’t just the guy who couldn’t follow the same societal norms as every other bland teenage werewolf. 

He was dangerous. 

Satanic. 

His freak status elevated from “guy with long hair and weird clothes who wouldn’t stop acting like he was an Alpha” to “wolf willing to exchange his very soul in order to bring about the end of the world”-or something. 

Eddie hadn’t really listened much to Jason Carver’s rabid ranting, but he got the gist well enough. 

It didn’t even matter that for all the magic in the world, demons and satan were more of a human concept than anything that had proven, hard hitting magic sitting behind it. Satanic panic was just in, and Chrissy-

He couldn't think about Chrissy. 

Not that the  truth mattered anyway. 

No, the only thing that did was that one of their golden children had died in their town. A town they built, full of old werewolf families and a handful of powerful allies, that catered to them. 

They needed reparation for the insult that had been brought upon their power. 

Eddie was just the convenient lamb they had chosen to slaughter. 

So here he was, outcasted by the whole town. Watching as the people who hated him collectively lost their minds, regressing back to the days of one singular Pack hierarchy controlling everything. Two Alpha’s to rule them all, with Jason fucking Carver was taking on the role as one of them. 

Screw all the centuries of the world that had built past that. The way society was no longer “letting the inner beast win” but was instead getting along, moving forward. 

Eddie hadn’t needed whatever had actually happened with Chrissy to know how much of a lie it was, but then he hadn’t planed on pulling back the facade either. 

To bad for you, you idiot. 

Not that there was anything he could do. Not with his van, stupid idiotic, easy to spot van out of commission, blown up transmission leaving him stranded not even two miles from his house. He’d exhausted himself just to get to the boathouse, knowing damn well that it wouldn’t make one ounce of difference if he’d bolted or called the cops. 

They were gonna lay Chrissy’s death on his head, and now his chance to escape their wrath had all but dropped to zero. 

Best he could do was hide. Wait it out. 

Hope whatever the fuck had gotten Chrissy wasn’t going to come after him too. 

The reminder didn’t help, that he had no idea what the hell had even happened. His  mind ran in circles with his terror, trying to make sense of it, but all he could think about was how he could leave this damn boathouse. 

How he could get out.

Out of Hawkins, out of Indiana, just fucking out. 

It was that terror, the surge of adrenaline and the pure knowledge that if anyone caught him, his chances of survival dropped to damn near zero that he blamed for not recognizing Henderson’s voice. 

Hadn’t even picked up on the younger wolf’s scent, he’d been so freaked out. 

Wired with the intensity of a cornered animal, Eddie’s wolf staring out of his eyes and firmly in control the second he realized he wasn’t alone and whoever was here was calling his name, and all rational thoughts went right out the door. 

Add in Steve fucking Harrington, former King of Hawkins High and total asshole violently poking around, and well. 

There wasn’t a thought to be had at all. 

Not in Eddie’s head, anyway. 

He’d attacked when hiding no longer remained an option, proud of himself for pinning the larger wolf to the wall, snarling like the devil they thought he was. 

And Harrington-Harrington let him. 

Put his hands up as he crashed back against the wall. Kept his eyes off of Eddie’s, kept his throat exposed until Dustin could talk Eddie down. 

Explain some things.

Explain all the fucking things, which didn’t help his situation, at all, but did at least help his overall mental state. 

“We’ll work this out.” Henderson had said, voice confident, and Eddie, exhausted, starving, haunted by Chrissy’s bones snapping every time he closed his eyes-believed him.

Even if it was the stupidest thing to do. 

Because for all his bravado, all his jumping on tables and loud speeches, the Throne he DM’d from and the Hellfire Club he ran-Eddie Munson had a secret. 

He desperately, desperately, needed someone on his side.  

Anybody. 

Especially now, when he could feel himself seconds away from falling apart, life ripped out from under him a second time. 

Pity this time round he didn’t have yet another Uncle to run to. 

(It took Eddie a long time, in that same boathouse, to realize that Harrington had never retaliated against him for Eddie’s attack. For pinning him to the wall in front of his Packmate’s and making him look weak with a broken glass bottle, of all things.  

 Had in fact, backed down. 

Which was a hell of a thing, when Eddie had discovered that the damn freshman hadn’t been fibbing for fun.

They really did have a little established Pack, bonds and all, and Steve Harrington really was the Alpha in control of it. 

A born werewolf from one of Hawkins oldest families, with all their rules, fancy parties and refusal to be anything other than the best and he’d let Eddie, trailer park trash and son of two bitten, made, werewolves, pin him down like a puppy. 

If Eddie hadn’t been wrestling with the existence of a hell dimension, hand made superpowers, and the reality of a world where humans were experimenting on species of various kinds, the long held treaty laws be damned while they raced the Russians to do fuck knew what, he might have caught on that Steve was just as different as he was, a whole lot sooner. 

As it was, he just remained exhausted, hungry, and very, very grateful for the stupid freshmen.) 

                                                         xXx

Shit hadn’t really gone sideways in the boathouse until the third time Henderson's little crew had dropped off food. 

Dustin took in the look on Eddie’s face when Steve had unloaded the honeycomb cereal box, like the man had just seen water in a desert, and outright cackled. 

Eddie reached out automatically, hooking his arm around the freshman’s neck and pulling him taught to his side. Dustin shrieked as he was put into a nuggie, Eddie spinning them as the younger wolf pushed ineffectively at his arms. 

“Say uncle!” Eddie taunted with a grin.  

“Ow, ow, Eddie!” Dustin whined, before finally going limp and shouting; “Fine! Uncle!” 

Eddie dropped him with one last hair ruffle, grinning widely at him. 

Dustin grinned back, even as he pretended to fuss at his hair and clothes. “God, it’s not my fault you just realize Steve adopted you.” He said, rolling his eyes dramatically. “Why you gotta take it out on me?” 

Eddie went to automatically deny that he was taking anything out on Dustin. He was just the youngest wolf in the Hellfire Club which meant by all the rules in the universe, he was the automatic target for all teasing. 

The the kids words sunk in. 

Sunk in the same way fucking teeth went into a steak, all sharp and deep and pointed. 

Eddie froze so fast he almost nailed his face on one of the overhanging oars. 

“What?” He said, positive he misheard. 

“Those are your favorites right?” Dustin said, pointing at the offending cereal box on the ground. “He’s always been like, weirdly good at knowing what his packmates eat. I’d say it’s an Alpha thing but it’s totally not.” 

“What.” Eddie said again, his voice coming out as more of a surprised croak. 

“Max insists he pays super close attention but come on, it’s Steve. I once watched him trip trying to do the dance from the Breakfast Club. It’s absolutely just like, his weird little superpower.” Dustin hummed for a moment, face scrunched up in thought. “Like, snack-sense. Stevie Snack Sense!” 

Eddie stared, the words “Steve adopted you” and “weirdly good at knowing what his packmates eat” ping-ponging around his head. 

Henderson’s grin grew impossibly wider. “Get it? Like Scooby snacks?”  

Then he laughed his weird little cackle again, ignoring the way Eddie had crashed like one of the shitty computers their school was so proud of owning. 

‘Danger alert, the Freak is overheating. Danger alert, the Freak is-’ 

“Henderson are you coming or what!?” Steve yelled, causing Eddie to jump and Dustin to spin around, shouting something rude back.

“Keep your walkie on, okay?” Dustin said, turning back with a worried look that would have been touching if Eddie had been paying any attention at all, before scampering off to have an argument with his Pack Alpha. 

The same one who apparently, allowed such things from whiny, teenage puppies, and also, was trying to adopt Eddie. 

Into his Pack. 

Eddie just stared after them, feeling vaguely like the world no longer made sense.

Probably because it didn’t.