#fic: Green is just not your color Eddie | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

caesariawritesstuff · 3 months ago

Note

for the follower event ! prompt: discreet sexual tension 4 and/or 9 with detective reader and scarecrow (or eddie if you’d like). i was so excited to see you update cat & mouse, it’s definitely one of my favorite fics ever. keep it up and congrats!! <3

Learning to Share

Summary: Edward and Jonathan have come to an arrangement...one that involves sharing you.

Content Warning: P in V sex, MFM threesome, sexual punishment, begging, jealousy, masturbation, fingering, spanking, discussions about fear. Slight continuation of Damaged Goods.

Word Count: 15.7k

A/N: @a1atheias also requested the “i want you” “then take me” prompt with reader and scarecrow ☺️. This fic got so out of hand and I'm so sorry it's so long!!!! I had an idea and RAN with it. I really hope you enjoy and hope this doesn't suck lmao. Also special thanks to @jkcreation for helping me a bit to figure out how I wanted this to go. Fic is not canon to the official Cat&Mouse!Verse.

Being involved in law enforcement in Gotham ends in several days: death, burn out, turning to drugs and alcohol, being involved in some twisted experiment, or quitting the force entirely seemed to be the usual ways out – so when a member of the GCPD officially made it to retirement after a long, lustrous career – it was something of a celebration.

With a heavy sigh, you looked up at the Cyrus Pinkney Institute for National History and frowned, disdain clear your eyes. Bright lights surrounded the stone building, bathing it in a yellow glow. All around you, Gothamites came and went, laughing and chatting, dates on their arms. Right about now, you’d much rather be in the bubble bath, face mask on and a good book in hand, but alas, being invited to the retirement party of Sergeant Groszek felt a bit like a summons. There would be quite a large number of officers and detectives there, and you did not want to give off the wrong impression and come off as rude – so that was how you found yourself now, wearing an emerald green dress that reached just shy of your fingertips, hugging your curves in all the right places; the balloon sleeves were tight around the wrist and airy around your arms, hanging off your shoulders, revealing your smooth skin. Across the neckline, it dipped low to reveal a tasteful amount of cleavage – one appropriate for an outing like this. Your gaze slid to the left, where Edward tightly had one arm wrapped around your waist, wearing an identical, green-colored suit that complimented your own dress well. He looked quite handsome in his green suit, the material sleek, and his grip tightened around your waist, fingers digging in. You had assured Edward he didn’t have to come with you to this little event, but he insisted. Quite a bit more than usual, but you shrugged away the thought.

Sighing, you looked at him and said, “We don’t have to stay long. Just enough for me to mingle, drop off this card, and then we can get out of here.”

Edward quirked a brow at you, a slow smirk creeping along the edge of his lips. “Don’t worry, detective, I’m sure I can keep myself occupied while you mingle with these simpletons.”

You smirked back, shaking your head, but walked in tandem with him up the stony steps and into the museum, a spring air gusting across your exposed skin. There were signs posted about with arrows leading you towards the private room where the retirement party was being held, and you and Edward followed them with ease, passing by a myriad of exhibits within glass cases. But as you came to the doorway, you sucked in a breath, silently prepping yourself for the onslaught of small talk you were sure you’d be dragged into. This really was the last place you wanted to be. Narrowing your eyes, you looked around at all of the party goers, already chatting up a storm and congratulating Sergeant Groszek on his achievements over his long career. Along the back wall was a display of food catered in: meat and cheese and fruit platters, chips, small finger foods and sandwiches, and a large custom cake. But your eyes instead caught on the bubbly wine being laid out by a caterer – and a sigh of relief escaped your lips. Well, at least there was something you could look forward to here.

You wandered over, slipping out of Edward’s grasp, and snatched up a glass of wine, bringing it to your lips and sipping slowly. When you pulled the glass away, a smudge of bright lipstick stained the rim. Everyone around you was already engaged in hearty conversation, dressed in suits and ties, women in gorgeous dresses. You glanced down at your own, a small smile curving at the edge of your mouth; Edward had handpicked it just for you, just for this occasion. He’d chosen it with quite great care, you’d noticed, and that simple fact made your heart flutter thunderously in your chest, a warmth pool deep in your stomach. Your thoughts were already straying to what it would be like for him to peel it off you when you got home.

“Give me a moment, will you?” Edward asked, his breath at your ear, tickling your skin. You nodded, watching him slip away, somewhere down the hall where the bathrooms were located.

You turned away, gripping the stem of your glass tightly, and wandered over to one of the shadowy corners away from prying eyes. Ever since you started dating Edward, fitting in with your coworkers had become more difficult. Not like you’d ever fully fit in with them in the first place. Frowning, you took an even deeper sip, draining almost half the glass in the process.

“Careful, detective,” a deep, gravelly voice said from beside you, getting your attention. “This is a party, not a brewhouse, correct?”

You lowered your glass just in time to see Jonathan Crane walk up beside you. Your mouth fell open slightly in surprise; you had not expected to find him here, out and about and surrounded by actual people and not vials of chemicals, especially after the…little incident down in the forensics lab at the GCPD a few weeks ago. An incident that had not only left you slightly shaken, irritated, and annoyed – but also turned on. More than you cared to admit. But ever since that moment, you hadn’t been blind to the way Crane watched you with a slow intention, a careful gaze whenever he did manage to come up from the lab. He only ever exchanged a few words for you, but you could feel the tension between you two, crackling like lightning just under the surface. You were not entirely sure what it was about him that drew you to him, but something did, something you were so desperately trying to fight down and not make known.

You studied him closely, taking in his brown suit and tan colored tie, but your eyes lingered for a little too long on his reconstructed face, and the delicate lines etched into his skin, remnants of multiple surgeries he’d been through. But your gaze met his for a slight moment, and you turned away, taking another sip, as if to prove a point.

“Aren’t parties to be enjoyed, Dr. Crane?” you asked, keeping your voice level.

“Parties such as this bore me,” he said.

You smirked, looking down for just a moment. “Yeah, I don’t exactly enjoy parties like this either,” you mumbled. But when you looked up, you scanned the sea of faces for Edward, but found no sign of him. Where is he when I need him? you wondered.

“Why is that?” he asked after a beat.

You scoffed under your breath, once more taking another sip of your drink. “I guess you could say they bore me, too,” you finally answered. At least coming here with Edward was one thing – if only he would turn back up again. Your gaze searched for him once more, but when you saw no sign of him, your heart sunk, a strange aching in your stomach.

“Something bothering you, detective?” he asked.

“I’m fine,” you said, quickly, not wanting to show him an ounce of your discomfort. You certainly didn’t want a man like him getting under your skin. Again.

“Your body language betrays you,” he said. “Are you afraid of something?”

“Yeah,” you scoffed. “Afraid my boyfriend is getting himself into trouble. You know how Edward is.”

“I walked past him moments ago,” Crane said. “He’s involved in quite the conversation with the Commissioner and the Mayor. Perhaps it will be a while. Why don’t you sit and enjoy yourself for the time being?”

You hesitated, your grip on your wine stem tightening, but you studied him carefully, before your gaze strayed back to the other side of the room. Well…you supposed he was right. Standing here rocking back and forth on your heels wasn’t going to do you any good. It would only serve to make you grow more agitated. Taking another sip of your wine, you sighed, but walked past Crane, searching for an empty seat – and you spotted a small table off to the right, hidden away in a shadowy corner. You quickly sat down and crossed one leg over the other, leaning back in your seat. But to your surprise, Crane followed you and sat at the seat opposite of you. You frowned, your heart leaping into your throat. You immediately looked away, even though you felt his eyes burning holes in your skin.

“Can I help you, Dr. Crane?” you asked after a long moment of silence.

“I’d like to continue our discussion from a few weeks ago,” he said. “I believe it was left…quite unfinished.”

“Ah,” you said, twirling your glass between your fingertips. “Another therapy session.” You leaned back, meeting his gaze, not wanting to back down from his questions. Not this time – you would not give him the satisfaction.

“All right,” you said. “Ask me whatever you want. I’m an open book.”

A low rumble emanated from deep within his throat. “Be careful what you wish for, detective. You seem to have forgotten who you’re talking to.”

You smirked. “Try me,” you said. You had been through enough as is over the last few months – some big scary words from Jonathan Crane couldn’t possibly be any harm, now could they? Especially when you already knew his own game, his own obsession with fear – you simply had to keep from falling into his trap, and everything would be fine. If you could handle Edward, then surely you could handle Crane.

“Very well,” he said. “Does it frighten you? Belonging to a man like Edward?”

“No,” you answered, even though that was a bold-faced lie. Being with Edward did frighten you, but you could not allow Crane to know that.

He raised one brow, an impassive look on his face. “Really? Even after all he’s put you through? Even after every single way he’s made you suffer?”

You paused, letting his words sink in – because you couldn’t deny that you had been through a lot with Edward. A lot. And as much as you didn’t want to admit it, there was still that tiny bundle of fear knotted deep in your belly, threatening to rise to the surface. Frowning, you sipped your drink slowly, not breaking eye contact with Crane. His gaze remained just as fixated on you, not giving an ounce of his attention anywhere else.

You lowered your drink back to your lap and said, “Surely it must not bother you to watch people suffer. I’m sure you get off on that sort of thing.”

His head cocked slightly to the side. “Rather crude choice of words, detective.”

“Well, am I wrong? I mean…you put people in horrible, fear-toxin induced experiments for what? For fun? You must find some kind of pleasure in that,” you said.

“I find fear fascinating. It controls every aspect of your life. Every thought, every move you make, every decision,” he said. “You came to this party because you feared what your coworkers would think if you did not show up. You came dressed like…that because you feared making the wrong impression. You drink because you’re afraid if you don’t loosen up, you will not be able to enjoy yourself. Do I need to go on?”

You shifted slightly in your seat, holding back the frustrated scream threatening to tear from your throat, biting down on your tongue. You weren’t sure what, exactly, it was that allowed him to so easily pick you apart and claw your fears from in the inside out – but you knew that every single damn word out of his mouth was true.

But you would not give him the satisfaction of knowing that.

Instead, you set your drink on the table and leaned forward slightly, resting your chin between two fingers. “And what if I said you were wrong? That I’m not afraid?”

“Then I would call you a liar,” he replied.

“And what are you afraid of, Dr. Crane?” you asked, a bite in your voice now.

“I fear nothing,” he said. “I have mastered my fears long ago. You, however, wear them on your sleeve for the whole world to see.”

You were quiet for a moment, considering his words. You had not realized just how much, perhaps, you did show off your emotions. Leaning back a little further in your seat, you studied him, carefully choosing your next words, refusing to let him get under your skin. You leaned forward a little more, not breaking eye contact.

“Let me ask you this, then,” you said. “Why are you so interested in my fears? There are plenty of other people at this party you could be bothering. So why me?”

“Curiosity,” he answered. “Fear is my specialty. My life’s work. I have spent years studying what makes people afraid, what their darkest fears contain. And you…you exude fear. It’s practically radiating off of you, like a flame in the darkness.”

You held your tongue, trying so very hard to give him an ounce of what you were feeling right now – that his words were cutting deep into you, making a bubbling hot anger burrow under your skin. Instead, you took another sip of your drink, draining the glass.

You met his eyes again. “And what do you think my fears are, Dr. Crane?”

“You’re afraid of being vulnerable,” he answered. “Of being exposed. Of losing control of the carefully crafted image you have built for yourself.” He paused, his head cocking slightly to the side. “And most of all, detective, I think you’re afraid of me.”

Your breath caught in your throat at his words, at that one notion – and the awful, horrible truth was that he was right. Edward had done many terrible things, but he’d never bathed Gotham completely in a cloud of fear toxin or driven people to madness, or been the man to unmask Batman and cause so much death and destruction like Crane had. Crane was…different.

And he terrified you.

“Did I strike a nerve?” he asked when you said nothing, his eyes slowly scanning every inch of your face. “Your silence speaks volumes. You present yourself to the world as though you are unbothered, but deep down, you fear how people perceive you. And most of all, you’re afraid of what I’m capable of. You’re afraid of what I might do to you?”

“And what might you to do to me, Dr. Crane?” you asked, your voice low. And in that moment – there was nothing and nobody else in the room. It was just you and him, alone, the air sucked from your lungs, a strange bundle of warmth melding together with the fear in your stomach, shooting all the way down to your clit. The sounds of the party drifted into nothing but faded whispers, long forgotten.

“There are many things I could do to you, detective,” he said, his eyes never once breaking from yours, his voice low. “Things that would have you trembling in fear, quaking underneath the effects of my toxin, begging for mercy. Would you like me to tell you some of the things I could do to you?”

“Very well,” you said – because you refused to budge. You refused to show weakness, especially to someone like him. He could try all he wanted, but he would not frighten you, make you run screaming like a child in the night.

“Seeing is much more effective than hearing, now isn’t it?” he asked.

You sucked in a sharp breath, your eyes finally pulling away to glance down at his hand – as if steadying yourself for the moment he had a vial of his toxin at the ready – but his hands were completely empty. Your gaze shifted back to him again, and underneath the table, your legs began to tremble out of your control. Fear was a cold knot in your stomach, turning your blood to ice, causing a clamminess to crawl across your skin.

“You’re trembling,” he noted, his gaze lowering slightly. “Is it fear, or something else?”

“I’m just cold,” you said quickly, attempting to brush him off.

“Is that so?” he asked, one of his brows raised in clear disregard for what you said. “Your body is showing signs of clear distress. Dilated pupils. Flushed skin. Or is it not distress you’re feeling, detective, but something…else?”

Shit. How was he so capable of reading you so easily? You narrowed your eyes, anger rushing hot through every limb, spreading like wildfire through your veins – but beyond that, there was a spark of something rippling just under the surface, something dark and wicked stirring to life in your heart, reawakening your darkest fantasies.

“Something akin to arousal?” he continued.

You sucked in a sharp breath, swallowing the lump in your throat. “That’s a ridiculous insinuation,” you murmured, the lie tasting bitter on your tongue.

“Fear and arousal often go hand in hand,” he said, his voice low, smooth.

“Or, perhaps, you’re completely misreading my physiological responses,” you said.

“Ah, yes,” he said, almost with a bored sigh. “And what, pray tell, do you think is causing this…physiological response of yours?”

“Adrenaline,” you answered, quickly. “It makes your heart beat faster. Makes you shake, makes your pupils dilate. That sort of thing.”

“But that’s not what this is, is it, detective?” he asked, raising his brows. “You’re not in any danger. You’re not preparing to flee. No, this is something much more…intimate.”

There was something in the way the word intimate rolled off his tongue, so full of dark possession, that your insides squirmed, that excitement rushed through your veins, molding together with a hot anger burning brightly inside of you.

“I doubt you’re one to talk about the specifics of intimacy, Crane,” you said, finally.

The corner of his mouth quirked upward, burning that flame even brighter inside of you, causing it to stir to life. The way he was looking at you – studying you – as if you were a lab rat, made your skin crawl. But it wasn’t just the way his cold, calculating gaze studied you, it was the way his words dug into your skin, picking you apart piece by never-ending piece. And here you were, finding yourself sucked into his words, into his every display of intelligent superiority, in a way that was not boastful or full of ego – the complete opposite of Edward.

Edward. Shit. Where even was he? You suddenly backed away, looking around the room once more, searching for him – but still, you saw no sign of him. No green suit stood out amongst the sea of black and blues and browns. And instead of going off to find him, you were sitting here in your own little bubble with Jonathan Crane, feeling a pulsing in your clit, a dampening between your thighs – because he was right. So fucking right.

You were completely fucking aroused.

And you were done with this conversation.

Scowling, you quickly stood up. “Thank you for this enlightening conversation, Dr. Crane. But I’m going to find my boyfriend now,” you said. Turning on your heels, you stormed across the room and searched for any sign of Edward, but there was still none.

Groaning under your breath, you made your way back over to the drink table and snatched up another glass of wine, sipping slowly, trying to clear your mind and body of all thoughts of Jonathan Crane. Bastard, you thought. How dare he put you in such a compromising position, make you feel so vulnerable, as if you were on display for the world to see? You took another sip of your drink, relishing in the taste, when you suddenly felt a presence behind you – a different one, an unfamiliar one, and you glanced over your shoulder to find Crane standing behind you, just inches away. Nerves trickled up your spine and you shuddered, that delicious heat once more pooling in your belly at his proximity, at the smell of his cologne, at his cruel gaze, which was once more fixated on you.

Suddenly, you felt his hands on your hips: a soft, featherlight touch, but enough to make the breath catch in your throat, a small gasp escape your lips – especially when you felt him brush against your backside.

His lips were suddenly at your ear, “Come with me.”

He glanced over his shoulder at you, and for the first time, you saw the very delicate hint of a smile curved at the edge of his lips. Barely there, but noticeable enough – and there was something in his gaze that made warmth pool in your belly, made your heart thump so quickly you could hardly stand it.

Follow me, his cruel gaze said. But it was not a suggestion. It was a command.

Hesitantly, you set your drink back down, searching the crowd once more for Edward, but you could not find him. You were growing angrier by the second, a hot prickling underneath your skin like you were being stabbed by a hundred knives. Following Crane was a stupid idea, but you needed to put an end to this…whatever this strange attraction was, and you did not want to make a scene here, in front of all of these people. They already thought badly enough of you as is.

Jonathan slipped through the crowd, disappearing out of your view, but you weaved through the sea of people to follow him, coming to one of the quiet halls of the museum. He was already ahead of you, leading the way, and you scowled, stomping after him, fire burning in your veins, turning your blood to molten liquid. He wandered down one corridor, disappearing around one corner, and you quickened your steps – but just as you came around, his hand was suddenly on your wrist, the other at your throat, pushing you gently against the wall. You gasped, a wave of fear washing over you as he pressed you against the glass of an exhibit.

“Ssh,” he said quietly, deep in his voice. “You don’t want the others to hear us, now do you?” His cold, blue eyes studied your face with a strange intensity.

“What game are you playing at, Crane?” you hissed. “If Edward finds out about this—”

“Edward already knows about this,” he said, cutting you off.

You blinked, surprised, taken aback by his words. You sucked in a slow, steadied breath, trying desperately to control your breathing, your heartrate, your fear. “What?”

“I have asked for his permission,” he said lowly, his breath tickling at your skin.

“To do what?” you whispered, terror clawing up your throat.

“To share you,” he answered without hesitation.

If this was any other man, you might have laughed. Might have believed this was some sort of sick joke – but this was no ordinary man. It was Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow, and he was not a joking man. Every inch of his expression was passive. Emotionless. Serious.

He was utterly, utterly serious.

“Edward would never share me,” you whispered, feeling hot defiance rise in your belly.

“Perhaps not with any of the other denizens of Gotham,” he said. “But with me…I’m a different matter entirely.”

You couldn’t help it – your jaw dropped open as confusion and terror and all clawed at you at once, digging into your insides, causing that horrible warmth to pool in your stomach, to travel its way down to your aching clit. Being pinned against the wall like this – trapped – it sent you spiraling, in that way that flared to life your darkest desires, fanning the flames of pleasure and excitement and wanton need.

“You don’t believe me?” Jonathan said after a moment. “Perhaps you should ask Edward yourself.” His fingers finally loosened from around your neck, the digits sliding off delicately, taking his time as he let you go. He took one step back and gestured to a private, out of the way office, far from the festivities taking place.

You hesitated, curling your hands into fists, digging your nails into your palms. You had every reason to smack him right then and there – but you would not allow him to see your fear, to see how frightened you truly were. If this was true…you wanted to hear it straight from Edward’s own mouth. Turning on your heels, you stormed into the office – and sure enough, you found Edward sitting in the chair, leaning back, one leg crossed over the other in a lazy-like position – the very epitome of a man with too big of an ego. And the boyfriend you kind of wanted to knock over the head right about now.

You narrowed your eyes and crossed your arms over your chest. “Edward,” you said, a bite in your voice. “Is what he says true?”

A hazy look filled his eyes, and he smirked. “Yes, detective. Crane is telling the truth. We have…come to an arrangement.”

“What kind of arrangement?” you asked carefully. As the words slipped from your mouth, you glanced back to find that Jonathan had shut and locked the door behind him. Another bolt of fear and excitement rushed through you as a thousand questions rang through your mind. This couldn’t possibly be going where you thought it was going, could it?

“One that involves you, my dear,” Edward replied. “You see, Crane here has taken quite an interest in you. He finds you…how should I put it, fascinating? You know Crane, always needing to study everything around him.” He waved his hand, scoffing under his breath.

“I’m not something to be studied,” you said, angrily.

“Come now, detective,” Jonathan said, stepping forward until he was standing side-by-side with you, his arms crossed behind his back. His gaze roved carefully over you, inch by inch, making your skin crawl with a delicious heat.

“Edward is right. I find you quite fascinating,” he continued, taking a step closer to you. One of his hands snaked out, grasping your chin between two fingers. “There’s something about you that has Edward so trapped under your spell. You have a power over him, a power I can’t explain. And I need to know why. I need to understand it…to taste it. To taste you.”

You shuddered against his touch, the urge to step back all consuming, but when your gaze slid to Edward – it was as if he pinned you there completely, not daring you to budge an inch. As if he wanted you there, in Crane’s grasp, in this very moment, at their mercy. Jonathan’s grip tightened on your chin, forcing you to look back at him.

“You’re not something to be studied, detective,” Crane said. “You’re something to be enjoyed. And Edward here has finally learned to share.”

His words were like lightning through you, sparking to life a powerful heat in your belly, an aching, a desperate need to be consumed. But no words would come out of your mouth, and you stood there in silent horror and awe, completely unable to process what was happening in this moment. You could not believe their boldness – to think how easily they lured you away to have this discussion, to be used as if you were some kind of plaything.

Your gaze flicked to Edward again. You should be enraged. Insulted. But instead, you’re standing here, your mind completely blank of what to do or even say – the only coherent thought you can even come up with is the very real realization that your clit is throbbing, aching, at the very thought of being taken by these two men – these two very dangerous men – and used in whatever way they desire. The very idea that they both were fascinated with you left a fire burning in your belly, stirring awake those dark desires in your heart.

“Is this true, Edward?” you finally managed to ask.

He nodded, slowly. “Admittedly, I would prefer not to share you, but…” He paused, as if choosing his next words carefully. “Crane can be quite persuasive, and I find myself curious to see what the Master of Fear is capable of doing to you. Can he touch you the way I do? Make you cum the way I do? Make you scream his name the way I make you scream mine?”

Your breath caught in your throat, and you shivered at his words – because you can’t help but he just as curious, too. Your gaze strayed back to Crane once more, finding him continuing to study you with a close eye, a curious gaze, as if wondering the same thing Edward was.

You shook your head, scoffing under your breath. “And how long have you been having this discussion behind my back?”

“Long enough,” Crane answered. His grip never lessened on your throat.

Long enough. His words echoed on a loop in your mind. You did not appreciate being spoken about behind your back – and as outraged as you should have been, you could not help but feel just a bit drawn to this situation entirely, to the possibilities that could arise from such an…arrangement. But you were supposed to be with Edward. He was your boyfriend. Something about doing this did not feel right; it felt like a betrayal, in a way. Your gaze flickered back to him, studying his face, but you had come to know Edward well enough that he was completely and utterly serious.

“What if I say no?” you asked.

“If you were going to say no, you would have walked out of this room already, detective,” Crane said. “You would not have followed me into a dark, secluded hallway. You would not have followed me into this room. You would not be here now, allowing me to touch you.” As if to prove his point, his fingers slid down your throat in a smooth motion, once more grasping the question mark pendant draped around your neck. He stroked it with his thumb, but once he let it go, he reached out with two fingers, placing them onto your pulse point.

“Racing heart,” he murmured. “You’re not afraid of us, are you, detective?”

“No,” you said, perhaps a little too quickly. Your fears about being around Edward had faded away into whispers long ago. But…

“Or,” Jonathan continued. “Are you afraid of me?”

The breath caught in your throat, your pulse quickening. Because, the truth was right there, staring you right in the face: you were afraid of Jonathan Crane. He terrified you, caused horror to race through you like lightning, to bundle up in a cold knot in your stomach. Finally, you took a step back, needing a moment to distance yourself. You crossed your arms over yourself, shaking your head as another low scoff escaped your mouth. This was an absurd proposition. Asinine. What they were asking…what Edward was asking…

You spun around on your heels, walking away from Jonathan and over to the desk, wearing Edward remained, still watching you carefully. You opened your mouth to say something – anything – any kind of insult or rage-filled words. But nothing came out. Because as angry as you were, you still felt it: the strange, magnetic pull to both of these dangerous men. And as afraid as you were, your own curiosity could not be ignored.

“What are you afraid of, detective?” Jonathan asked, his cool voice filling the quiet room. “Being shunned? Made to feel like our plaything? Losing your precious paramour in the process as another man claims you for himself?”

“Another man,” you said silently, glancing over your shoulder. “Meaning you.”

Jonathan only answered with a sly smile curving at the edge of his lips.

“I know this is quite a lot to ask of you so suddenly,” Edward said, his voice gentle. “But I assure you, detective, nothing will change between us.”

So suddenly, you wanted to say, but held your tongue – as a slow realization washed over you. Over the last few weeks, your sexual tension around Jonathan had been growing more than you realized – perhaps because they’d been planning this moment for some time. The looks Jonathan had given you over the last few weeks, the words he’d spoken – it had all been a part of their plan, and you’d been blind to see it. You glared down at Edward, anger rushing hot through your veins like a wildfire.

Footsteps behind you got your attention, and before you could react, Jonathan was suddenly behind you. You felt his breath on your neck, before one of his hand snaked around your shoulder, once more grabbing at your chin, forcing you to look into his eyes. Another bolt of worry shot through every limb – but what was worse was the heat that traveled all the way down to your groin, aching, dampening arousal between your thighs.

“I can see it in your eyes, detective,” Jonathan said. “You want this as much as we do. You need this. To be wanted. Needed. Craved.” His breath tickled at your skin, each word out of his mouth making chills run up and down your spine.

Because the goddamn truth was that he was right.

All your life, you’d dreamed of being desired, wanted, needed. Feared being unloved, used, cast aside as nothing. And now, to have two dangerous men wanting you, so much that they were willing to share you…it caused a ripple of delicious heat to pool in your core. It stirred to life all of this wicked desires in your heart, driving you to the brink of madness. And the worst part was that Jonathan Crane had you completely and utterly figured out. It was like he could see straight down into your soul, finding your fears with just one look, and whisper them in your ear, revealing them to you in all their frightening glory.

Angrily, you scowled, yanking your chin from his grasp once more, crossing your arms over yourself. As much as they wanted you to play this game with them, you would not give in so easily – not without understanding the terms of this…arrangement. Slowly, you turned back around, glancing at both of them; they stood there with hungry looks in their eyes, as if waiting for your next move, the next words out of your mouth. You wandered back over to the desk and hoisted yourself onto it, crossing one leg over the other, placing your hands behind you to keep yourself propped up. Jonathan regarded you with a raised brow, as if interested in your next move. Good, you thought. If they could play this game, you could play it, too.

Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed Edward sit up a little straighter from his spot at the desk. You glanced at him, then back at Jonathan; both their eyes were narrowed, full of curiosity, mirroring the same expression of patience and hungry interest.

“Well,” you finally said after a long moment. “What exactly are the terms of this arrangement you two made behind my back?”

Edward pushed back from the desk, quickly standing as he said, “The terms are simple, my dear. I am so generously sharing you with Crane – with your approval, of course. He must ask for my permission if he would like to have you for an evening.”

He took a step closer, reaching forward, capturing your chin between his fingers, running his thumb along your bottom lip in a way that made heat pool in your core. “And you, my dear, are not allowed to play favorites. We both shall have equal access to you – at all times. Whenever we want. How we want. Wherever we want.”

You sucked in a slow, controlled breath, letting his words wash over you as that delicious heat throbbed between your legs. The very idea of being taken by these two men – one who had a hold on your heart, the other you still weren’t sure yet – but the very idea excited you.

And angered you.

You narrowed your eyes, meeting Edward’s gaze. “I’m not a toy to be passed around,” you said, a bite in your voice now.

“Of course not,” Edward said, his thumb now slowly stroking right below your bottom lip with care. “This is an arrangement that will benefit all of us. “Our curiosities will be satisfied, and you shall be quite satisfied, detective.” He smirked, that tricky glint in his eyes gleaming.

You looked away again, your gaze straying somewhere far across the other side of the room. A thousand words hung on your lips, but you could not seem to get them out. You had so many questions, but your mind was drawing a blank, too wrapped up in your own terror and excitement and desire. To be so…needed. Wanted. Desired. By these two men…it alighted a fire within you, awakening so many dark desires in your heart, bringing to life a darkness that resided in the very depths of your soul. You shivered against Edward’s touch, trembling, fear and desire pooling in your stomach, melding together as one.

“Is it fear or desire that makes you tremble so?” Jonathan asked, stepping forward.

“Both,” you answered, because that was the honest truth.

They exchanged a look, and Edward’s hand slipped from your chin. He finally took a step back, disappearing into the dark shadows of the office to lean against the wall and cross his arms, making room for Jonathan to step in front of you now. He studied you with a careful eye, his gaze roaming every inch of your skin.

“Dilated pupils. Flushed skin,” he said quietly, as if more to himself, but his gaze dropped to your chest, pausing there for a moment; you glanced down, realizing that your nipples had hardened, slightly poking through the fabric of your dress.

Jonathan glanced back at you. “Signs of your arousal are clearly evident.”

Your gaze slid from Jonathan back to Edward, who was watching the entire interaction silently, his head cocked slightly to the side. You could feel your heart pounding in your chest, the blood rushing through your ears, the warmth between your legs – Jonathan was clearly right. You were aroused. You were terrified.

And you were also completely at their mercy.

Your gaze shifted back to Jonathan. “And what exactly do you want out of this, Crane?”

He took another slow, calculated step forward until he was but millimeters from you. Slowly, his hand reached out once more to capture your chin between two fingers, slightly lifting your face to look directly into your eyes.

“I want you,” he said, his voice dropping lower. “But I will not unless you give me permission. Such brutalities are far beneath me. I will only touch you if you say so.”

He was but millimeters away from you, and you hesitated, a sharp breath leaving your lips. You glanced over Jonathan’s shoulder once more, searching for Edward, and he gave you a slow nod. Giving his permission. But if you went down this route, you knew the utter truth: there would be no going back. There would be no way to forget this happened. Edward already had his claws in you, and if you allowed Crane to do the same…there would be no changing that. You would be theirs – both of theirs – completely.

And, perhaps, the truth was that you wanted to be.

You glanced back at Jonathan. “Then take me,” you whispered.

That was all he needed. In an instant, his lips were on yours, crushing, bruising. One of his hands grabbed your hip, fingers digging into your flesh. His other hand snaked up, threading itself in your hair, tugging lightly. His kisses were not gentle – they were rough, possessive, his tongue invading your mouth with almost a brutal possessiveness. You gasped lightly, your tongue meeting his, sending a shiver down your spine. Your hands gripped his shoulders tightly as his mouth moved from your lips, across your jaw, down your neck. His lips were rough from scarring, and he smelled of a strange mixture of musk and woods, the scent invading your nose. His teeth nipped at your neck, his tongue snaking out to massage each small bite, as if soothing your flesh. Slowly, testing, you spread your legs slightly, allowing him to nestle himself in between them – and you could already feel the hardness of his own arousal suddenly pressing against your core. You leaned into him, arching your back, a soft moan escaping your lips as his mouth and teeth found that sensitive spot on your neck – the one that made you crumble beneath him. You shuddered against him, his body hard and lean – leaner than Edward’s, and you found yourself comparing the way Jonathan kissed you to the way Edward did.

A low rumble escaped Jonathan’s mouth, and his onslaught of kisses continued, working their way across the delicate flesh of your collarbone. He brushed your necklace aside and let his tongue drag across your skin, causing a shudder to pass through you. His tongue was warm, wet, sending a delicious heat rippling across every inch of your body, shooting pleasure all the way down to your clit. You gasped as he brought his lips up the other side of your jaw, as if to savor the other side of your face, his teeth nipping once more at your skin.

Opening your eyes slightly, you found Edward continuing to watch with a strange curiosity in his gaze, his eyes narrowed and focused on the scene at hand. At watching another man touch you, have his way with you – sending another tremble through you, bundling fear deep in your core, tightening in your stomach.

Just then, Jonathan’s hand gripped your chin once more, forcing you to look back at him, his eyes cold and calculating. “Don’t look at him, pet,” he said quietly. “Focus on me. Or are you afraid of what he might be thinking?”

The sharp intake of breath made you tremble again, and you licked your lips before saying, “Yes…I’m afraid.”

“No need to be afraid,” he said, his voice dropping lower. “Fear is good. It reminds you of the dangers that surround you. After all, you’re here with us, aren’t you? You have every right to be afraid.”

You were quiet for a beat – because you were afraid of where this would lead, what would come of it, what Edward would think to watch as you were ravished by another man. But your own curiosity, your own pull towards Jonathan, was too much to bear, too confusing, further drawing you into that darkest part of yourself that you did not want to admit to.

His grip on your chin tightened. “Fear governs everything you do,” he continued. “And it also gives way to more…primal desires, detective. Desires you try to deny yourself. Desires you do not want to admit to, that frighten you. Am I correct?”

“Yes,” you whispered, knowing every word out of his mouth was right.

His cold eyes narrowed, and he backed away slightly, studying you carefully. His cold, cruel gaze was enough to cause your trembling body to tremble even more, to cause panic swelling in your stomach. A part of you desperately wanted to bolt out of this room, to flee, but you were glued to the spot – your desire too great to ignore. You fought the urge to look over at Edward again, despite how great your curiosity was, and kept your eyes fixated on Jonathan instead, watching as his hand snaked up to stroke at your face, in a motion that could be disguised for gentle, but you saw it for what it was: complete control. His hand brushed across your cheek – before suddenly gripping into your hair once more, tangling in your strands, his nails digging slightly into your scalp in that painful, pleasurable sort of way. A soft gasp escaped your lips as his roughness, and you trembled against him.

His eyes roved over you carefully, as if taking every inch of you in, as if trying to figure out what to do with you next. You couldn’t help but wonder how experienced he was, how many men or women he’d been with, what kind of things he was into. You smirked, a heat of desire pulsing in your belly at the way he looked at you with such primal intention.

“Undress,” he finally said, a low command, leaving no room for arguing.

You blinked, a bit taken aback, but your gaze slid to the door. “What if someone—”

“It’s been taken care of,” Edward spoke up. “No need to worry, my dear. No one will be coming into this room to disturb us.”

Your gaze flickered back to Jonathan. His expression was emotionless, unyielding, not giving away anything to what he might be thinking. He was completely and utterly controlled. Fear knotted in your stomach, but with trembling hands, you slipped out of your dress. The cool air brushed across your naked skin, your nipples growing hard; you shimmied out of the dress and let it pool at the bottom of the desk, leaving you in nothing but a lacy green thong that you’d specifically picked out for Edward. The heavy swell of your breasts were revealed for both men to see, and Jonathan’s eyes immediately dropped to your pert, pink nipples. You squeezed your thighs together, feeling the dampness of your own arousal between your legs. Every part of you was on high alert, on edge, teetering over the precipice of fear and terror. You had never done this before – never had sex while another man watched, especially if that other man was your own boyfriend, and you were in a room with two of Gotham’s most dangerous men, but that was beside the point.

Slowly, Jonathan reached out, testing the weight of your left breast in his hand, his thumb stroking over the nipple gently. You sucked in a soft breath at the small jolt of pleasure that radiated through your breast. His hands were rough, calloused, and he pinched your nipple between two fingers, earning another gasp from you. You trembled at his touch, at the fire his fingers left in their wake across your skin. His eyes were narrowed, studying your reaction, and you titled your head back slightly, arching your back so he had better access to your breasts. He cupped the other breast in his hand, needing and palming at it, his touch growing rougher and more needy by the second. A low whine left your lips, and you closed your eyes, relaxing into his touch – but just as you did, you felt his hand at your throat again.

“Eyes on me, pet,” he said, and your eyes snapped open, another jolt of fear radiating throughout your body. You met his gaze again, studying the emotionless expression on his face, as his fingers trailed downward, carefully grazing down your stomach to the hem of your thong.

He glanced at you again, then back down, before slowly lowering to his knees. Your breath caught in your throat, and you shuddered as his gaze never left yours. Your breaths were shallow, uncertain, nerves and fear writhing in your belly like a parasite. Slowly, he leaned in, snaking his tongue out to delicately brush across your inner thigh – only inches away from where you most wanted him to be. His tongue ran lines down your inner thigh, tracing in circular patterns, before reaching back up to the bend of your leg – and then, suddenly, he bit down.

You gasped at the sudden pain, jolting slightly, trembling in both pain and pleasure at the sharpness of his teeth. But as quickly as the bite came, so did his tongue once more, swirling around the bite as if to soothe it. You glanced at Edward once more, finding him still standing there, watching with a curious, lustful gaze in his eye. You glanced down at his groin, noticing the hardness of his own erection in the confines of his trousers, and your insides warmed at the idea of him being turned on by this entire interaction – even if there was a lingering jealousy in his gaze. You smirked slyly, spreading your legs a little further for Jonathan to have access to. He glanced up at you from in between your legs, before rising back up. The look in his eyes was full of a cold, cruelness to them, not a hint of warmth in his cloudy gaze – and just that look made you tremble more, made the hairs on the back of your neck rise on end. You were sure if he could devour you whole, he would.

Suddenly, his hand shot out once more, and his hands tangled in your hair once again, fingers digging tightly in. “Show me how you pleasure yourself, detective.”

His words took you aback, but your mouth fell open slightly in surprise. You hesitated, but slowly reached in between your legs. Pushing your thong aside slightly, you dove two fingers into your own wetness. With your other hand, you used one finger to swirl around your clit in slow, meticulous motions, causing a bolt of pleasure to shudder through you. It surged through your thighs, down to the tips of your toes, across every inch of your skin, and your mouth dropped open silently as you continued to fuck yourself with your own fingers. He watched silently, before he leaned forward, his lips at your ear.

“Does it frighten you, detective? To have two men watch you while you pleasure yourself?” he whispered lowly. “To see you completely unraveled, vulnerable, at our mercy?”

You shuddered at his words, trying to fight the fear coursing through your veins. Trying to keep some shred of dignity you still had left. As if in answer, your gaze flickered past Jonathan and over to Edward, who still remained bathed in the shadows, watching with strange look in his eyes.

“Don’t look at him,” Jonathan barked out, his voice low and cruel. “Focus on me, pet.”

Your eyes snapped back to him, and a low gasp escaped your lips as ripples of pleasure bundled underneath your skin. Every inch of you was on fire, your brain going fuzzy from the pleasure of your own fingers working their magic against you in just the way you liked. You could feel yourself builder higher and higher towards a release – and having two men watch you made it all the more sweeter.

Jonathan reached forward, snaking his hand through your hair once more, tightening his fingers at your scalp. You gasped as he pulled onto the strands, tilting your head back slightly, his cold gaze never leaving yours for an instant.

“Is it the thrill of being watched that makes you tremble like this?” he asked lowly, his voice a deep, gravelly rumble. “Or the danger?”

The only answer you gave was a soft gasp. Heat flushed across your skin. Here you were: propped up on this desk, your legs spread wide, revealing the most vulnerable part of yourself for both men to see. Wetness coated your fingers, and you pumped two fingers in and out of yourself, gasping in tandem at the way your other finger swirled around your clit. Pleasure bundled in your stomach, tightening in your abdomen, knots of pure ecstasy rising higher and higher with each stroke, each thrust, each motion.

Jonathan studied you carefully, his eyes roving over every inch of your body, pausing to watch you fuck yourself. He showed no signs of emotion across his face, and you couldn’t even tell if he was enjoying watching this. Your fingers began to slow slightly, wondering if he was growing bored with this, but his cold voice filled the room once more.

“Does it scare you, detective?” he asked, leaning forward, his lips just brushing the shell of your ear. “To be so completely at the mercy of two men who are watching you right now?”

His words sent another rippled of fear down your spine. It tightened in your stomach, molding together with your pleasure, causing your heart to beat like a wild animal against your ribcage. Sweat beaded on your brow as your entire body flushed from head to toe, sending a shiver across your skin. Your breath quickened at his question, your fingers slowing their movements as you considered his question—

“I did not say you could stop,” Jonathan said, his voice a low command.

The words out of his mouth made you pause for a millisecond, before you resumed the work of your fingers: pumping in and out of yourself, swirling your finger around your clit. You leaned back a little more against the table, but his fingers in your hair did not let up, only tightened harder, sending a small ripple of pain across your skull. You were completely at his mercy, just his words enough to edge you closer to the brink. Your fear melding together with the pleasure in a strange kind of concoction – somehow enhancing your pleasure in a way you’d never experienced before. You snuck another glance at Edward, and he stood back, his eyes narrowed, and lips pressed into a thin line. But that look – of knowing your own boyfriend was watching another man do this to you, it sparked another bolt of fear down your spine, and yet at the very same time, it turned on you to heights you’d never experienced before. Jonathan’s hands released from around your hair, and he stepped back slightly, just enough to take in the full sight of you in your needy, wanton mess.

“Find your release, detective,” he said. “But keep your eyes on me as you do.”

You nodded, barely, breathless as your eyes found his cold, cruel gaze once more. He was staring at you as if you were a bug under his feet, something to be squashed entirely. Fear knotted in your belly, creeping up your spine – but you continued to fuck yourself with your fingers, quickening your pace as your climax teetered right on the edge – and suddenly, the little bundle of pleasure grew higher and higher – before exploding throughout your body. You gasped, crying out as wave after wave of indescribable pleasure coursed through your body. Your legs and hips bucked as you continued to work your fingers against yourself, chasing the rest of your high. But as the sensations trickled away, you finally removed your hands and relaxed against the desk, sucking in slow, deep breaths. Every inch of your skin was on fire, and a flush crept across your skin. You raised your eyes to him, looking back and forth between the two men, feeling completely exposed and raw and vulnerable. You’d never…touched yourself in front of two men before, not like this. Not when there were two pairs of eyes to look at you.

“Very good, detective,” Jonathan said quietly, but his voice held no ounce of praise. Just that patented cold, calculating nature to it. “Now. On your knees.”

You sat up a bit, sucking in a breath, a funny feeling at what he wanted next arising within you. You fought against looking at Edward once more, despite your every instinct screaming to, and slowly, you pushed yourself off the desk and lowered to your knees in front of Jonathan. Your knees knocked together, your entire body trembling. It wasn’t like you’d ever given a man a blowjob before – but something about this…about giving it to a man like Jonathan while Edward watched…it was frightening. Terrifying.

And exhilarating, all at the same time.

Jonathan was quiet as he reached down, undoing the buckle of his belt. With only a few smooth moves of his deft fingers, he slipped his cock from his pants: engorged, glistening with precum at the tip. Your eyes widened at the sight. He wasn’t quite as long as Edward, but he was a bit girthier, and thin, throbbing veins ran along his shaft. The hairs on the back of your neck stood on end, your body prickling with heat as you gazed up at him.

“Open your mouth,” he said, another command. “And let me in.”

Your mouth opened slightly, a moment of hesitation, before you opened your jaw a little wider. His tip approached you carefully, before his cockhead slid into your mouth. Inch by inch, he slid himself inside of you. You wrapped your mouth around him, breathing through your nose as you massaged the underside of his member with your tongue. One of his hands came to tighten itself in your hair again, his nails digging into your scalp. He tasted of salt and sweat and skin, a brown patch of curls poking through the confines of his pants. He filled your mouth completely, and he slid in and out of you with careful strokes.

“Detective,” he said, almost a groan. “I believe you know what to do, yes?”

You nodded, gazing up at him while he remained in your mouth. Using your other hand, you wrapped it around his shaft, pumping slowly in combination with your mouth and tongue. A low groan escaped his lips as you worked against his length, taking him deeper and deeper into your mouth until he hit the back of your throat. You gagged slightly at the intrusion, but breathed through your nose. Soft groans escaped his lips, and when you looked up again, you found his head tilted back slightly, still gazing down at you, watching your every move. You moaned softly around his member, taking him all the way in, over and over again. His fingers tightened in your hair as a low, guttural groan escaped his lips, and you smirked, watching him come undone. It was quite a sight to behold: the Master of Fear with his head titled back, losing himself to the pleasure you offered. You moaned against his length again, taking him deeper, faster, and he slowly bucked his hips into your mouth in tandem slowly and meticulously, every movement of his precise and controlled. Your core warmed, arousal dampening in between your legs, and your gaze flickered to Edward, still standing in the shadows with a narrowed, lustful gaze. Warm pleasure pooled in your core, and you fought the urge to reach down and touch yourself again, too busy giving Jonathan the pleasure he so craved at this very moment.

Just as you began to quicken your pace, he suddenly pulled back, slipping himself from your mouth. You glanced up at him, a bit surprised at how he’d pulled away, and a bout of disappointment rippled through you. His member was coated in your saliva, glistening in the light. You sat back on your knees, his taste lingering on your tongue.

Jonathan reached down, placing a hand across the top of your head, trailing his fingers down your cheek and to your chin, where he lifted your head up slightly. “That pretty mouth of yours has certainly had a bit of practice, now hasn’t it?” He glanced at Edward for a moment.

Edward’s smirk grew, his lustful gaze twinkling. “Jealous, Crane?”

A bolt of pleasure knotted in your stomach again, and a sense of pride swelled inside of you, as if happy to be pleasing Edward by doing this – even if this was sucking off another dangerous man, one who made you tremble with fear. You weren’t sure what Crane was going to do next, but that fear further increased inside of you, balling into a cold, hard knot at the center of your ribcage. But more than that, you feared how Edward was thinking, feeling, if he was going to lash out in a jealous rage and take you for his own.

“Look at me,” Jonathan said again, forcing your eyes back to him. His head cocked slightly to the side, as if studying you with cruel intention. “Do you fear what he might be thinking? That you’re here, servicing me instead? Or…do you wish it was him in my place?”

You can’t help how much your trembling, a cold chill brushing across your naked flesh. Your teeth are practically chattering with the fear – and you can’t even bring yourself to answer him, to make your terror known. But you can see it in his eyes: how much he’s enjoying your fear, your terror, and you can’t pull your eyes away.

His grip tightened on your chin. “Answer me,” he said.

“I…” you struggled to find the words. “I…I’m afraid of what he’s thinking. I’m afraid he’s going to look at me like…” You paused, the words stilling in your mouth, heavy on your tongue. Like I’m nothing but his plaything. Like a whore. Like a toy to be passed around.

Jonathan quirked a brow, seeming to understand what you were going to say. But his hand finally dropped from your chin, and he took a step back, tucking himself into his pants. “Like what?” he asked, a cruel smirk twitching at the edge of his lips.

Great. He was going to make you say it. Of course he was.

“Like I’m a whore,” you whispered. “Like I’ll be…tainted after this. Like he won’t want me anymore.” The words tumbled out of you, and it took you a moment to realize you were shaking, your fears bundling deep in your stomach, spreading a coldness through your limbs.

“Tainted?” Jonathan asked, his head tilting slightly to the side. “My dear, you were tainted by Nigma the very moment you let his cock enter you. The moment you spread your legs for him, every inch of you was poisoned by his narcissist, egotistical nature.”

Edward scoffed under his breath, a sound of disgust. “I’m sure that speech will really get her going, Crane,” he said.

Jonathan glanced back at Edward. “Why don’t we see, hmm?” His gaze shifted back to you once more. “Back on the desk, pet. And remove that silly little thing.” He nodded to your thong, now soaked through.

Nodding, you stood and slowly slipped out of the thong, stepping out of it one leg at a time. You let it fall onto the floor atop your dress, heat burning your cheeks, spreading through every inch of your flesh. Your skin was on fire with desire and terror and everything in between. You hoisted yourself back onto the desk, using your arms to prop yourself up behind you.

Jonathan met your gaze once more. “Spread your legs.”

His command was not gentle. There was no warmth to his voice, no seduction, just a pure, calculated coldness. Swallowing the lump in your throat, you listened, spreading your thighs apart, revealing your most intimate spot. His gaze rove over your naked body, before landing on your womanhood. He took a step closer, resting one hand on your thigh, his fingers digging in. With the other hand, he tentatively reached forward, stroking at your wet folds with a curious carefulness. You sucked in a breath, preparing yourself for what he might do next; he brushed aside your folds, toying with them, before he slid two fingers into you. A soft breath escaped your lips as his long digits filled you, and slowly, he pulled them back – and then inserted them again, repeating the motion over and over again in a slow manner.

“So wet,” he mumbled, as if he was making an observation and you were an experiment. He continued the slow motions of his fingers, in and out, in and out, and you tilted your head back slightly, soft gasps escaping your lips.

“Touch yourself, detective,” he said, his voice once more a command. “I want to see you find your release on my fingers.”

You didn’t hesitate – you were too caught up in this, in the heat and desire, to argue. Your finger immediately found your clit, and you began stroking yourself in the motion you enjoyed. As you did, his fingers began to pump out of you harder, faster, at a furious pace, fucking you. You gasped at the sensation of his fingers and you stroking your clit – together in tandem, slowly bundling pleasure in your core. Sweat beaded down your brow and soft gasps and moans escaped your lips out of your control. You titled your head back, not daring to shut your eyes, fearing Jonathan would simply command you to keep them open. But as he fucked you with his fingers, your legs began to tremble and shake, your whole body tightening with the pleasure he gave you. Your gasps grew louder as you felt that pleasure building inside of you, rocking your core, igniting a fire in your belly. God, you were close – so fucking close – and just as you swirled your finger around your clit again – that band inside you snapped, releasing a wave of ecstasy across your skin. A loud cry escaped your lips, and Jonathan’s fingers only continued to work their magic inside of you. Your fingernails dug into the table as you bucked your hips into his hand, chasing the finality of your orgasm.

As the last of your climax washed over you, you slowly removed your hand, resting it atop the desk, panting as his fingers came to a slow, before he removed them entirely. Jonathan brought his two fingers up, studying the wet sheen coating his fingers, before he opened his mouth – and he licked his fingers clean. The motion made your insides clench and tighten with another bolt of heat, watching with desire as he licked himself of your juices. Your mouth fell open slightly, and your skin prickled with a delicious desire, a desperation to continue this. His eyes never broke from yours as he licked each digit clean, his eyes roaming over you. You couldn’t help but steal a glance over at Edward, who continued to watch with that lustful, jealous gaze burning in his blue eyes. The room was so quiet, all you could hear was the thundering of your heart beating like a rabid animal against your breastbone.

Edward took a step forward, a scoff escaping his lips. “Making her work for it, Crane? The least you could is use your own mouth. Here, why don’t I show you, since you can’t even make her cum properly.”

The breath caught in your throat as you glanced between both men, a bundle of heat stirring within your core. Jonathan glanced at Edward, his eyes cold and narrowed, but he stepped aside and said, “Be my guest, Edward.”

Smirking, Edward approached you, wandering over as he studied you, his eyes roving over every inch of your body. His gaze was full of desire, and you noted the obvious erection pressing against the confines of his pants.

“Edward,” you whispered, but he cupped your face in between your hands as he shushed you, pressing his lips to yours. His kiss was passionate, greedy, as if a clear display of his ownership over you. Like even though he had agreed to share you tonight, you still belonged completely to him.

As he pulled away, his hands dropped down to your thighs, gripping them tightly as he pulled them apart eagerly and lowered to his knees. In an instant, his mouth was on your clit, sucking gently, and you gasped, shuddering at the sensation of his tongue and mouth working against your overly sensitive clit. With two fingers, he inserted them into you, curving them, until he found your G-spot, stroking against the sensitive spot. A low whine escaped your lips as you tilted your head back, practically melting against his mouth, losing yourself to the pleasure he offered. Stars danced in your vision, and your entire body trembled with need and heat – but you were so preoccupied, lost in the feel of Edward’s tongue lapping against your clit, that you didn’t realize Jonathan walked around the side of the desk, coming up behind you.

You felt his breath suddenly at your neck, and he brushed your hair aside, exposing the left side of your neck. Jonathan’s lips were at your ear, his voice a cruel, cold whisper, “Do you fear being at our mercy, detective?” he asked.

As he spoke, his fingers pinched at your nipples, tugging lightly on the swollen bud. You gasped, jerking slightly into Edward’s mouth, but his grip on your thighs tightened, digging his fingers in as he continued to work you with his mouth and tongue. Jonathan rolled the soft bud of your nipple between two fingers, playing with it, twisting lightly. Another soft gasp escaped your lips as your head fell back further, resting against his shoulder.

“Knowing that you’re completely powerless to stop us?” he continued, his breath tickling your skin. “Powerless to the way your body responds to us?”

A low whine escaped your lips. Your brain was a fog of complete pleasure, all thoughts vanished somewhere far away, where you may never find them again. Edward’s fingers moved at a furious pace inside of you as his tongue continued to lick at your clit in slow, meticulous strokes. Pleasure bundled in your core, spreading a wildfire across your skin. You couldn’t form any words, any thought, any care other than drowning in the way Edward fucked you with his tongue while Jonathan played with your breasts, toying at your nipples, his breath hot in your eat. His other hand grabbed at your chin, his fingers trailing upwards towards your mouth.

“Open,” he said, a sharp command.

You obeyed instantly, opening your mouth, and he stuck his first two fingers inside. You could taste your own wetness on his fingers, sweet.

“Suck,” he said.

You closed your lips around his fingers, swirling your tongue along the long, dexterous digits, continuing to taste your own juices on his fingers. His other hand continued to palm at your breast, twisting your nipples in a painful, yet pleasurable way that made you gasp around his fingers. Suddenly, he pulled his fingers from your mouth, his hand resting once more around your throat, and he squeezed lightly. A bolt of fear ran down your spine, melding together with the pleasure growing and bundling like a tightening rubber band in your core, threatening to snap, to make you come undone for a third time.

Jonathan looked into your eyes; his own were dark and clouded, filled with that same cold cruelty, as if you were nothing but his own toy to play with. His grip on your throat tightened, and the pleasure in your clit only surged higher. With one hand, you reached forward, gripping your hand tightly into Edward’s hair, urging him to continue as you arched your back, beckoning your soaking cunt further into his mouth. He continued, eagerly sucking on your clit now, and you felt that little bundle of pleasure grow – before it burst completely.

A low cry escaped your lips as your whole body wracked against his mouth, hot-white ecstasy surging through your entire body. You cursed under your breath as your body shook and writhed, your orgasm washing over you, making your toes curl. You tugged at Edward’s hair, whispering his name, losing yourself as you relaxed against Jonathan’s chest, crying out. But just as quickly as it came, the pleasure began to wane. Edward pulled away after a moment, gazing up at you, his lips coated in your wetness. He smirked as he stood up, looking rather pleased with himself.

His eyes flickered to Jonathan. “See, Crane? I didn’t hear her crying out your name.”

Your eyes fluttered closed, and you swallowed, trying to gain your composure. Heat bundled in your womanhood, a pleasurable sensation tingling at your clit; your whole body felt spent and worn, and sweat beaded down your forehead, between the valley of your breasts.

Jonathan made a sound of amusement. “No need to compete, Edward. I’m sure your little toy has enjoyed both of us. Isn’t that right, pet?” He squeezed at your throat again.

Your eyes snapped open, and you looked between them, unable to find the words as you continued to try and catch your breath.

“Well?” Jonathan asked, raising a brow, an expectant look on his face.

“Yes,” you whispered, struggling to find your voice.

“But who did you enjoy more?” Edward asked, raising his own brows. You could see the look in his eyes – the desperation for your approval, for you to choose him.

Well, you had to admit, there was something more pleasurable about him using his tongue instead of making you do it yourself. His question caught you off guard, but you couldn’t help the sly smile that curved at the corners of your mouth. Meeting his eyes, you said, “You, Edward. I enjoyed you more.”

“Ha! Take that, Crane!” Edward cried, smiling triumphantly.

A laugh threatened to bubble up out of your chest, but you swallowed it down. Jonathan made a sound, almost of disapproval, and his fingers only dug further into your throat, making you squirm. It was a little painful, just enough to cause you to tremble in fear, but not enough to frighten you completely. You just felt the tips of his nails grazing against your soft skin, threatening to scrape against your flesh.

Jonathan’s mouth was suddenly at your ear, his teeth grazing your skin. “Such a naughty pet, playing us against each other…is that anyway to behave?”

You pursed your lips. A thousand words hung on your tongue, but you couldn’t help yourself – you were in too deep, too far gone with pleasure and lust and desire to think about anything else other than what was happening right now, in this very room, with these two men. They offered you something you’d never been given before: pleasure and attention like you’d never had, never seen, as they worshipped you like you were something to be cherished.

But you couldn’t help the bratty remark that left your lips, “It is when you two decided to go behind my back and make this little arrangement,” you said, quietly, voice barely a breath.

That made a low chuckle rumble from Edward’s throat. “Fair enough. But now I believe you’re just being a naughty little tease, aren’t you, detective?”

“Maybe,” you replied, your smirk growing. You couldn’t help it – the very idea of being here with both of these dangerous men, who both wanted you…it was terrifying and exciting all the same, and a part of you wanted to see just how much you could push their buttons.

It was Jonathan’s turn to let out a sound of amusement, as his lips reached the shell of your ear once more, his tongue snaking out to brush across your ear, making you tremble as he said, “On the couch now, pet.”

Your gaze flickered to the other side of the room, where there was a small couch resting in the corner. Edward took a step back, helping you to your trembling feet, as you wandered over to the couch. You felt the dampness between your thighs, and your breasts hung with a heavy swell, your whole body flushed, nipples pert and pink.

“Sit,” Jonathan said. Another sharp command.

You nodded, turning back to face them, and you sunk onto the couch. Just as you did, Jonathan walked forward; he got down onto his knees and grabbed your thighs, spreading them wide, once more revealing your wet cunt to him. You gasped slightly as his nails dug into your flesh, and he glanced up at you.

“Now, pet,” he said. “I want you to stay focused. No getting distracted now.”

As he spoke, you watched Edward unzip his own trousers, pulling his own engorged, swollen cock from his pants. Your breath hitched in your throat as another wave of desire passed over you, making you shudder. Edward took a step closer, holding his shaft in hand, as he gave himself a few slow, measured strokes. But before you could say anything, Jonathan’s mouth was suddenly at your clit now, sucking the swollen, over sensitive bud.

“Fuck,” you cursed out, jolting back, but his hands dug further into your thighs to keep you still. He glanced up at you, his eyes cold and cruel, the warning within them clear.

Your gaze shifted back to Edward again; his cock was swollen, precum dripping from the red tip. You immediately opened your mouth, greedy, and grabbed onto his shaft, taking his head into your mouth. You licked at his head while swallowing him as deep as you could go – but at the same time, Jonathan continued to lap at your clit like a starved animal, greedy and sloppy, his tongue working overtime. Small bursts of pleasure bundled in your core, alighting a fire in your belly, and your already sensitive clit was at it’s peak. Edward tasted of salt and skin, and you groaned as Jonathan sucked on your clit. A soft curse escaped Edward’s lips as he titled his head back, one of his hands tangling itself in your hair, pulling tight on the strands.

You pulled back for air, a low curse escaping your own lips, “Fuck…”

Just as you stopped, so did Jonathan. He pulled back slightly, glancing up at you, one brow raised in curiosity. “I believe I didn’t tell you to stop, yes?”

“I—” But before you could get a word out, one of his hands came up and smacked at your clit. You yelped in pain and pleasure, too overstimulated to think straight.

“Continue,” Jonathan said. There was no warmth in his voice.

With just that one command, his mouth latched onto your clit again, and you took Edward back into your mouth. You worked him with your tongue and hand, groaning and moaning around his cock in tandem with the way Jonathan sucked and tongued at your clit. Heat ignited inside of you, burning like a wildfire in your belly, spreading through your every vein and muscle, clouding your every thought. Jonathan’s fingers entered you slowly, pumping in an out of you slowly, fucking you, and you pulled back for air again, gasping, a low moan escaping your lips – but once more, he smacked at your clit, and you cried out. An embarrassed flush crept along your skin and up your throat, burning your cheeks.

“She likes it when you smack her ass,” Edward said, rolling his eyes at Jonathan. Smirking, he grabbed onto you, guiding you onto your hands and knees. You held your breath as you braced yourself against the couch, and for a moment, all you felt was air – before Edward’s hand came down in a swift smack on your left ass check. You cried out, gasping, as the sound of skin on skin echoed throughout the room.

A ripple of delicious heat bundled in your core, and you held back your smile. There was something so naughty about being punished like this – being punished between them. Jonathan gripped your chin, turning your head slightly, and you realized he’d pulled his own cock from the confines of his pants, stroking himself now. You greedily took him into your mouth next, tasting the familiarity of skin and salt and sweat. Edward’s lips and fingers found themselves once more at your dripping hole, lapping at your clit, fucking you with his fingers. Another low groan escaped your lips as you felt Edward’s fingers curl inside of you, finding every delicious spot of pleasure that made you moan against Crane’s cock. Jonathan stared down at you, showing no sign of emotion on his face as you took him as deep as you could, almost gagging in the process. As you pulled back for air, you gasped, trying to fill your deprived lungs of oxygen – but the hesitation was enough, and you felt a second swift smack to your ass.

“Ah!” you cried out, shuddering at the pain radiating through your ass cheek. You let out a soft whine, before your mouth found Jonathan’s cock once more. This time, he began thrusting his hips slightly, using your mouth as if it was his own personal fuck toy.

You groaned around his cock again, tightening your hands into the couch, as Edward sucked on your swollen, sensitive bud, furiously pumping his fingers in and out of you. But just as you felt that bundle of pleasure building inside of you, Jonathan pulled back, his cock glistening with your saliva. At the same time, Edward paused his own movements, one of his hands gently gliding over the smooth slope of your ass in a comforting, soothing motion. You sucked in air, nerves tightening in your belly, wondering just what they had in store next. Edward slipped away from you, rising to his own feet, his swollen cock hanging in front of him. You watched as Jonathan reached into his suit coat and pulled out a condom from his pocket. He quickly ripped the foil, and rolled the condom onto his cock, until it was at the base of his shaft, where a soft patch of brown curls was. When he looked back at you, you averted your gaze, almost shyly, knowing what was coming next. Jonathan walked over to the couch, positioning himself behind you, one knee resting on the couch while his other leg steadied himself. He rested one hand on your hip, gently trailing along the curve of your ass, before he gripped tightly, nails digging in. You hissed between your teeth, a soft moan of pleasure escaping your lips as the pain made way for pleasure and heat. And that’s when you felt it – the head of his cock pushing into you, slowly, as he teased himself against your folds.

“Beg, detective,” he said, another order. Another cruel command. “Beg for it, pet.”

You were trembling now, bracing yourself, fingers digging into the couch cushions. You felt his body hovering over yours, warmth radiating off his skin, his breath heavy and ragged. You could just feel all the raw, primal energy coiled tightly inside of him, waiting to be unleashed upon you. There was no room for refusal in his authoritative, animalistic tone, as if he was barely containing himself any longer. Fear erupted in your core, causing goosebumps to rise on your flesh and a chill to creep up the back of your neck. There was something about the change of tone in his voice, how low it had dropped, that made your insides coil with terror. You glanced up to find Edward taking his place at your front, his cock just at your mouth, awaiting you to take him back in and suck him off.

Jonathan teased the tip of his cock at your entrance again. “Come now, pet,” he said, almost a cruel purr. “You want this, don’t you? To be needed and craved and wanted by both of us at the same time?”

“….yes,” you whispered, almost choking out the word. “Please, please fuck me…”

“Say my name,” Jonathan said, his lips at your ear, body hovering over yours.

“Jonathan,” you whispered. “Jonathan please…” You squeezed your eyes shut, feeling his fingers digging tightly into your hips.

“Not that name,” he hissed, tightening his grip.

You paused, feeling the breath knock from your lungs as you realized exactly what he wanted. Slowly, you peeled your eyes open, and you whispered that name he was so desperate to hear, “Please…Scarecrow, please…”

With just that one word, a deep sound of satisfaction rumbled out of his mouth – and he thrust into you. You gasped, crying out at how easily he filled you, how full he made you feel.

You felt his mouth at your ear as he whispered, “Good girl.” A sigh of pleasure escaped your lips, trembling, as his hands roamed over you, before he grabbed onto your hips again. He pulled out slowly – almost completely – before slamming back into you again. You cried out at the thickness of him, at how he took you with an unrestrained desire. He slammed into you again and again, and you glanced up to find Edward watching, holding his cock in his hand; his gaze dropped to you, and you opened your mouth, allowing him to push his cock into your mouth. You relaxed your jaw, allowing him to buck his hips into your mouth as Jonathan fucked you from behind. Your mind went completely blank as you were fucked relentlessly – you could think of nothing but their mouths and tongues and hands and cocks – completely filling you with pleasure, making you see stars. Edward bucked his hips into your mouth, and you breathed through your nose, trying to control your breathing. Low grunts escaped Jonathan’s lips as he slammed his hips into you, rutting into you with the desperation of a man chasing his own release. With each thrust, he filled you completely, slamming right into that spot inside of you. The sound of skin on skin echoed throughout the room, melding together with each gasp and grunt and groan. The sounds of pleasure out of their mouths was like music to your ears, filling you with your own satisfied pleasure at knowing you were the cause of their undoing’s, that you had turned these men into such messes. You were the very reason they were here, wanting you, needing you, craving you, desiring you – and in that moment, you never wanted it to end. The couch creaked with each movement, each thrust, and you felt Jonathan’s balls slapping against your ass while Edward’s slapped against your face. They both grabbed at you, pawing at you with almost a primal need, as if they couldn’t get enough of you – as if their own obsessions with you were growing more dangerous, more unbridled, more desperate.

And somehow, someway, you began to feel it in return. A desperation for both of them, to be at their mercy, to be used like their own plaything and toy. You gasped around Edward’s cock again as Jonathan continued to fuck you, his hips bucking into you, and you felt yourself spiraling out of your own control, out of whatever shred of sanity you had left. Jonathan hissed between his teeth, slowing his thrusts, now taking you deeper, pushing himself all the way inside of you. Edward pulled out of your mouth enough for you to get air, sucking in a deep breath, and you hung your head; it was taking every ounce of your control to keep yourself propped up on your hands and knees, to keep yourself from falling into a heap of pleasure and exhaustion. The room was thick with hot tension and desire, a heavy heat radiating across every inch of your sweat, flushed skin. It was as if their silent agreement extended into each other, as if they were one mind, using you in tandem, taking what they wanted from you.

Edward shoved his cock into your mouth again, and you swallowed with greedily, sucking him off, licking your tongue up and down his shaft. He bucked his hips into your mouth and grabbed onto your breasts, fondling them, pinching and pulling at your nipples. You felt his thrusts suddenly become more sloppy, more desperate, and you felt his cock twitch in your mouth as he came – spilling his seed down your throat. A loud groan escaped his lips as he tilted his head back, his eyes fluttering closed. You swallowed his cum, feeling some of it dribble down your mouth as the rutting of his hips stilled as deep into your mouth as he could go. The bitter taste of his seed filled your mouth, and you swallowed as much of him as you could before he pulled out. His cock was covered in a mix of his own release and your saliva, and he sat back, gasping, trying to gain his composure, a sheen coating across his forehead.

It took you a moment to realize Jonathan had paused his thrusting, as if to allow Edward to finish, before he resumed. One of his hands tangled itself in your hair, pulling your head back, his teeth nipping at your ear as he hissed, “Does it frighten you, detective? To be taken by the Scarecrow?”

His words made you tremble, and a low gasp escaped your lips. His words were possessive and dark, like he was staking a claim over you, letting you know that you were his just as much as you were Edward’s. You couldn’t form a coherent thought or sentence, too caught up in the way his cock continued to buck in and out of your dripping, wet cunt.

“Or does it excite you?” he continued. “Knowing you belong to both of us?”

In response, all you could give was a low whine, a gasp, and you squeezed your eyes shut. His words made you tremble, made your skin prickle with delicious heat. His words seemed to wrap around you, blanketing you in the fear and realization of what you were doing – and who you were doing it with – but at this moment, you didn’t even care.

“Answer me, pet,” he purred.

“Yes!” you gasped out, cursing under your breath once more as he pounded into you with a relentless frenzy. “Yes – fuck…please…”

“Good girl,” he whispered again. His hand loosened from your hair, traveling down to the base of your neck, where he gripped tightly. With a careful grip, he forced your head down, burying your face into the couch cushion. You gasped, gazing up at Edward as he watched, his cock now softening and hanging limp. You gritted your teeth, and with one final thrust, Jonathan groaned low and deep in his throat as he shoved himself as far into you as he could go. You felt his cock twitch, and warmth fill the end of the condom inside of you. You collapsed onto the couch, utterly spent, unable to move. Slowly, you felt Jonathan slip himself out of you, leaving you feeling empty.

“Such a good girl, detective,” Edward murmured. “Taking us both so well.” There was thick, dark satisfaction laced in his voice.

His words made your heart flutter with pride, as if you’d done something so good and well for them, satisfied them both, alighting a desperation inside of you that you didn’t even know you wanted. You laid there for a moment, trying to adjust to the afterglow and the mix of pleasure and pain swirling inside of you, trying to regain some sanity over the moment. You felt Jonathan shift behind you, and when you glanced back, he stood up. The condom was filled at the tip with white cum, and he wandered away, off towards a garbage can on the other side of the room. A quiet stillness filled the room, but the air was still heavy with tension.

“Are you all right?” Edward asked as Crane cleaned himself up.

“I’m…okay,” you whispered, trying to regain your composure. With Edward’s help, you lifted yourself up. Every part of your body was spent and sweaty, and you maneuvered yourself into a sitting position. You still tasted Edward’s cum on your tongue.

The moment almost didn’t feel real now that it was over. There was a strange absence inside of you now as you tried to register what you’d done, and the new dynamics between the three of you now. Slowly, you ran a hand through your hair, smoothing out the tangles. An embarrassed flush crept along your skin, and you looked down at your shaky, trembling legs. There was a part of you that was absolutely excited over what just happened – and just as equally terrified by the encounter, too.

A moment later, you finally lifted your eyes to see that both Edward and Jonathan had tucked their cocks back into their pants. You found Jonathan reaching down to gather up your thong and dress, and he approached you, holding them out for you. You mumbled a quick thank you, before Edward helped you to your feet, giving you the space to shimmy back into your clothes. As you did, you felt both their eyes on you, and you couldn’t help but notice the little bruises and teeth marks in your skin at their touches. A rumble of satisfaction erupted deep in your core, and you couldn’t help the soft smile that spread across your lips.

“Well,” you said, once you were dressed. “So…that happened.”

Edward chuckled deep in his throat. “Yes, detective, it did. Now, perhaps we should get you home, yes?”

You shot him a look, but nodded. You were desperate for a shower to wash off the sweat, but your gaze flickered back to Jonathan for a quick moment. He straightened out his suit coat and adjusted his tie, appearing as if this entire interaction had never happened at all.

“Until next time, detective,” Jonathan said, his voice dark and possessive. He turned on his heels and opened the door of the office, stepping back out into the hall.

You followed after him, but before you could step forward, Edward’s hand gripped your arm tight, his fingers digging into your skin. He lowered his mouth to your ear and whispered, “Just because I’ve agreed to share you with Crane doesn’t make you any less mine, do you understand?”

“Yes,” you murmured, a tingle creeping up your spine.

“Good,” he replied. Then he let you go and gave your ass a gentle smack. You shot him a look, smirking, but stepped into the hall. Edward followed you and shut the office door behind him. Quietly, the three of you walked back down the hall, an odd tenseness filling the air between the three of you, too many unspoken words dangling in the air.

But as you came back towards the party, you noticed Commissioner Cash peek his head out, searching both ways down the hall before his eyes landed on you. “Detective,” he said, raising his eyebrows. “I was wondering where you’d run off to. These two aren’t giving you any trouble, are they?” He glanced between Edward and Jonathan with suspicion in his eyes.

You smiled. “Not at all, Commissioner. Not at all.”

#caesariawrites #cat&mouse!verse #the riddler #edward nigma #arkham riddler #arkhamverse riddler #edward nygma #scarecrow x you #arkham scarecrow #arkham scarecrow x you #scarecrow x reader #the riddler x y/n #the riddler x you #the riddler x reader #riddler smut #scarecrow smut #jonathan crane x y/n #jonathan crane x you #jonathon crane x reader

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bloodibambiidoll · 1 year ago

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American Idiot: King!Steve Harrington x Goth!reader.

Summary: Enemies (kinda?)to lovers, opposites attract, early 00s college AU. Steve Harrington had it all. Money, popularity, the perfect girlfriend. He had his whole life planned and laid out for him, and he accepted that. Working for his dad and marrying his collage sweetheart wouldn’t be so bad, right? That’s what he thought at least, until he got paired to do a project with you and you turned his world upside down. WK: 6.1k 18+ MINORS DNI

Warnings: angst with a happy ending, steve is still “king Steve” in the beginning, reader kissing someone other than Steve, oral(M&F receiving) unprotected sex(reader is on birth control), lil bit of daddy kink, Steve and reader kiss before he dumps his gf but he does it like right after though, reader smokes a lil weed. I think that’s it? Lmk if I missed any!! My masterlist

A/N: this was born from something I was tagged in where you saved the last character and song you listened to and I got Steve and American idiot and the fact that I have seen so many Eddie opposites attract fics and not enough about Steve with an alt GF. The reader is very much self indulgent for me but I left her description as vague as possible. I think the only thing I mentioned is the shirt she’s wearing and the fact that she’s wearing a skirt. Also I added “Dylan” because I really wanted to make him Eddie but I knew I’d end up involving him too much if he was in it at all lmao. I hope you guys like it!! I’d love feedback so much!✨

You aren’t exactly sure how you let Robin talk you into coming with her to this party but you are deeply regretting it. You were standing in a corner of the packed living room with a red solo cup that you took one sip of and then gagged because whoever made the punch was probably already wasted. Robin was dancing with Vickie, which made you smile. She told you all about how she had the biggest crush on her in highschool and when they both ended up at the same college she took it as a sign and finally made a move.

You glanced around the room and rolled your eyes at what you saw. You really thought by your third year of college the whole “clique” thing would be behind you. But no, for whatever reason the people here still wanted to abide by the conformity of the highschool food chain. You weren’t popular in highschool and you aren’t now, you made friends with Robin your freshman year when you were assigned each other as roommates but you honestly don’t have many other friends.

It’s not like people straight up bullied you like in highschool but the atmosphere was very much the same with the “popular” crowd. They all thought they were better than everyone else. You let your eyes wander to the cluster of people all dressed in the black, white, and green Chicago state colors and scoffed. At the center of it all was the bane of your existence, Steve Harrington.

He thinks the world revolves around him just because everyone in this stupid school kisses his ass. The teachers, all the students, even ROBIN is friends with him. She worked with him the summer before they left for college and she INSISTS that he isn’t actually as big of an asshole as he seems.

Steve Harrington had it all. Perfect car, perfect friends, perfect grades, he was the star of the Chicago state basketball team, and he had the perfect girl. Steve and Veronica had been together since freshman year. They met when he was leaving basketball practice and she was starting cheer practice and the rest was history. Yes Steve Harrington had it all, the perfect American life for the perfect American boy but apparently that wasn’t enough. He needed you too.

It started off when you had been partnered for a project in your English class and you spent some time together working on it. It was all going way more smoothly than you anticipated, you guys were getting along surprisingly well aside from you not being able to hold in your eye rolls and passive aggressive remarks towards him when he said something meat headed. But he would just laugh it off. On the last day of the project things changed drastically. One second you were finalizing your notes and the next thing you knew Steve’s lips were crashing into yours. You were so confused at first, frozen in place.

Then after a second you pushed him off “What the fuck are you doing Steve?? Is this some kind of joke to you? I think I’ve made it pretty fucking clear that I’m only toleranting you for this grade so I don’t understand where your wires got crossed thinking you could just kiss me?” He stared at you wide eyed before catching himself and scoffing “what? Don’t act like you didn’t want it, I could see how you were looking at me.” he gave you a smug look. “This is exactly why I didn’t want it, you ever thought not every single person wants to worship the ground you walk on? Has no one ever rejected you in your life? Get over yourself Harrington, I’ll see you tomorrow for the presentation” you grabbed your notes and swiftly exited the library after that.

That was two months ago, and since then Steve couldn’t let it go. You weren’t wrong, no one had ever rejected him and you continued to over and over again every time he would try and talk to you or approach you in any way and it was doing things to him. It kind of felt amazing, you couldn’t lie. The golden boy chasing after you like a little lost puppy. Especially since you were very much his opposite. You weren’t anywhere near rich, your car was an old piece of shit, and you definitely weren’t preppy in any sense of the word. So yeah, Steve Harrington pining after the quiet goth girl was kind of giving you an ego boost.

You watched him shotgun a beer while everyone around him cheered him on, tossing the can on the ground when he was done. He must’ve felt you looking at him because his eyes locked with yours and he smirked. As you were rolling your eyes Veronica’s arms shot around his neck and she started sloppily making out with him right there in front of everyone. It was honestly pretty gross to watch, you felt like you could hear their tongues and lips smacking from across the room, it made you want to gag.

Just as you were turning to head outside for a smoke break you felt a hand on your arm. When you looked up your breath hitched, because god damn this man was beautiful. It was like he was crafted with Peter Steele from Type O Negative in mind when they made him. “Hey, I like your shirt” he smiled sweetly at you. Suddenly you couldn’t remember your own name let alone what shirt you were wearing so you looked down and saw your Deftones baby tee before you looked back up at him and smiled “oh, thank you. I like yours too!” You pointed to his Korn shirt “their self titled album will always be one of my favorites of all time” he sent you another sweet smile “hell yeah, me too. I’m Dylan.” He held his hand out for you to shake and you took his much larger hand in yours and shook it for maybe a second too long before telling him your name.

“Pretty name for a pretty girl” you suddenly felt a little shy, it’s been a while since anyone (besides Steve, unfortunately) had really given you the time of day and this beautiful goth rock god just started chatting you up so you were a little nervous “do you smoke?” He pulled a joint out from behind his ear, offering it to you. “Yeah, totally, I’m down.” You tried your best to sound nonchalant but you were screaming inside. You decided right then that if this man wanted to take you home? You were fucking going.

You guys passed the joint back and forth and chatted for a bit, he was really cool, you had a lot in common and you enjoyed talking to him. When the joint was almost gone he held it up to you and raised his eyebrows “shotgun??” You bit your lip and nodded. He took the last large pull off the joint before cupping your cheek in his hand and leaning forward to let the smoke into your mouth. You inhaled and let a giggle out on the exhale, his face was still so close to yours, he smelled really good, and the weed was giving you confidence so you grabbed him by his shirt collar and brought his lips back to yours. His hands went to your hips as he kissed back passionately, pushing you up against the wall and deepening the kiss.

You guys had just started really making out, his knee pushed in between your legs under your skirt, his hand groping your chest over the shirt and your fingers tangled in his hair, not even caring that you’re in the middle of a packed party. Then he was suddenly ripped off of you. “What the!?” You opened your eyes in confusion and were met with Steve, shoving Dylan away from you “can we talk??” You scoffed “are you fucking serious right now Steve? I’m obviously busy, so you can get lost now. Dylan? Let’s go.” You started to walk past him but he grabbed your wrist “I want to talk to you. Alone. Please?” His demor changed by the end of the sentence and you saw a softness in his eyes you’d only ever seen a few times when you worked together on your project “Dude. She literally said she was busy, why don’t you just back off?” Dylan came over and stood next to you again glaring at Steve.

“Okay?? And I said I want to talk to her so you can get fucking lost before I make you” Steve got in Dylan’s face and basically growled at him before he shoved him against the wall and grabbed your arm, dragging you through the party and into one of the empty rooms and shutting the door behind you. You ripped your arm out of his grasp “What the fuck do you want Harrington!? You are being a serious cock block!! Did you SEE him?? I could slap you right now!”

“I didn’t like it. Seeing him kissing you like that when I want to be the one kissing you like that! I honestly couldn’t fucking stand it!!” He ran his hands through his hair and dragged them down his face in frustration.

“Okay Steve, I don’t know what your sudden fucking obsession with me is. If you’re just trying to prove a point to yourself that you can have any girl or if this is some kind of bet you have going with your stupid fucking friends but it has GOT to stop!! This is TOO FAR!! You’re keeping me from getting dicked down now and for what? Just let it go, you better hope he’s still out there or I’m going to track you back down and murder you!!” you go to walk past him and leave the room but he grabs your hand, making you turn to face him.

When you look at him you see that same look you saw a few minutes ago, the normally smug look on his face replaced with something softer. “Wait, please? Please just hear me out and then I’ll never bother you again.” You ripped your hand from his grasp and rolled your eyes. “Oh my god. Okay, you have two minutes, that’s it.”

He sighed deeply “Okay. I’m sorry, I know I’ve been bugging you a little-“

“PFT!! A little?” You rolled your eyes again, you honestly think if you have to talk to him much longer they’re going to get stuck in the back of your head.

“Oh my god. Can you just let me talk without interrupting me for two seconds?”

“Okay, yeah, sorry. Continue”

“Anyways… I know I’ve been bothering you a lot since we finished our project… and it’s not just because you rejected me, yeah that didn’t help, it just made me want you more but I wanted you before that. When we were working on our project together I just.. I started to fall for you. You were just so real compared to everyone around me. You made me feel like a person, you didn’t treat me like ‘king Steve’ or just do things how you thought I’d want you to. You told me like it is, and that was so refreshing to me.” He let out the deep breath he felt had been holding since you were still working together and waited for you to respond.

But you didn’t right away, you just stared at him with wide eyes stunned at his confession. “Please… say something, anything.” He gave you that pleading puppy dog look again.

“I… Steve you don’t mean that. You have everything. You’re popular, rich, you’re the star of the basketball team, you probably have some fancy office job lined up with your dad for after you graduate, and you have Veronica. I definitely don’t fit into that equation in the slightest.” You looked at him confused, searching for any kind of explanation that would make this make sense.

“Okay? Yeah I have all those things but I don’t WANT them. Most of those things are what my parents want for me, what my DAD wants. Basketball is fine, I’m good at it so it’s cool I guess, but did I really want to spend all these years just doing that? Not necessarily. And yeah if I work for my dad’s company I’ll be financially stable for the rest of my life but is that what I want to spend my life doing? No, it’s not. And Veronica? We may seem perfect to you but we aren’t. We fight all the fucking time and she’s honestly only with me because of who I am, because I’m king Steve. She doesn’t love ME, she loves the basketball star, she loves daddy’s money, she loves the extravagant wedding, white picket fence, and 2.5 children that we don’t know how to love because no one ever showed us so we just fill that void by showering them with material things. I had that life growing up, and I hated it. But you? You’re different. You’re free. You don’t care what anyone thinks and if you do, you don’t let it change who you are. You’re true to yourself, you don’t treat me like I’m some kind of god, you treat me like a person. THAT'S why I want you.” He took a step closer to you and grabbed your hands, ducking down so you’re forced to look him in the eyes “also you’re so beautiful, like so beautiful I feel like I can’t even breathe when I look at you.”

You looked into his eyes, searching for any kind of falsehood in his words but you didn’t find any. Instead he was looking at you adoring, hopeful. “Steve, I…” you didn’t really know what to say, you had never really entertained the idea that he might actually like you. You didn’t want to even have an ounce of hope in that aspect, because of course you thought Steve was hot. You also couldn’t deny that you did sort of like the side of him you saw during your project, and you liked what you saw now. Maybe you liked HIM and you didn’t even realize it. Maybe you did see the real Steve and maybe you liked that person. Before you could truly think about it you put your arms around his neck and pulled his lips to yours.

You had never had a kiss like this one, Steve’s lips were so soft, and he brought his hands to your face and cradled it like you were something precious. You got lost in the kiss for a moment but soon pulled away from him entirely, bringing your hand to your mouth and staring at him wide eyed “we shouldn’t… we shouldn’t have done that. This is a bad idea. I have to go find Robin.” You turned to leave and once again you were stopped by his hand in yours. “I honestly think this is the only good idea I’ve ever had actually” is all he said before putting his hands around your waist and pulling you into another kiss. Rationally you knew you should pull away, but your heart and body had other ideas.

Suddenly you absolutely needed him to touch you, anywhere and everywhere. You wrapped your arms around his neck and licked into his mouth, deepening the kiss. You went on standing there making out until you were both pulling away breathless “Fuck. You are so amazing.” He pushed some of your hair that fell in your face over your shoulder and left a soft kiss on your jaw. You tried to hold in the little whimper that escaped, but you couldn’t and just hoped Steve didn’t hear it. But he did, and he looked into your eyes again and gave you a mischievous smile before ducking his head to place more little kisses along your jaw.

You let out more little breathy whines and it was the sweetest sound he had ever heard. You grabbed his face, pulling it from your neck so he would look at you “I think… since you DID totally ruin what I had going with that guy out there, you kind of owe me now” you smirked at him and bit your lip.

“Yeah? You want me to make it up to you baby? Bet I can make you feel better than he ever could.” He ran his hands down your shoulders and around your back, sliding them down until he had two handfuls of your ass, your skirt riding up. “Yeah? I bet I fuck way better than Veronica. What’s she into? Missionary and reluctant blow jobs? Girls like that never like giving head” you smirked at him, not even feeling bad for shit talking his girlfriend. She didn’t deserve him anyways, Steve was yours now, you weren’t giving him back after this.

You were more spot on then Steve liked to admit but he can’t deny hearing you say those things was doing something for him. “Yeah? You like doing it then? You wanna get on your knees for me, pretty girl? Is that what you’re saying?” That’s exactly what you were saying, so instead of responding you dropped to your knees and looked up at him through your lashes while you reached for the button on his jeans, pausing before actually unbuttoning them “I’m going to give you the best blow job and fuck of your life, but only on ONE CONDITION”

“Okay, anything, whatever you want honey, it’s yours.” The nickname sent chills down your spine, you wanted to hear him call you every pet name under the sun. “You’re gonna go out there, and you’re gonna fucking DUMP Veronica, and then when you come back to me, I’m going to blow your mind Steve Harrington.” You stood up from the ground and booped his nose “Can you do that? Or were you bluffing when you said ‘anything?”

He meant it. He would quite literally do anything for you, not only in this moment but just in general. “Okay, I’ll do it.” Was all he said before he walked out the bedroom door, closing it behind him. You stood there stunned for a moment, mouth hanging open, staring at the closed door. You couldn’t believe that actually worked, Steve Harrington was about to throw away his “picture perfect” life for YOU of all people. If he even wanted to be seen with you. If he even did it, if he even came back.. His friends would never approve... God, his PARENTS would never approve of you. Before you could start to fully spiral you heard yelling coming from the other room.

“YOU CANNOT BE FUCKING SERIOUS!!!!?? THIS IS A JOKE RIGHT!!???” Veronica. You walked closer to the door to try and get a better listen but all you could hear after that were jumbled voices. So you decided fuck it, and walked out of the room into the crowded living area. Except people weren’t partying like they were before, pretty much everyone was silent, gawking at the couple they all thought were perfect. When you pushed through some of the bodies and were able to see them your breath caught in your throat. Veronica looked fucking pissed, she had her hands balled into fists and she stomped her foot on the ground several times like a toddler throwing a tantrum.

“What the fuck are you talking about THERES SOMEONE ELSE!? Are you serious right now? Who is she? Some other bitch on the cheer team? Swim team?” She scoffs and then makes a gagging noise “oh god, is she in the DRAMA club? Or some nerdy girl you tricked into doing your homework since you can’t do it for yourself?” That last comment had you seathing, giving you insight into how she probably talks to him all the time.

“God Veronica, can you be any more shallow? Not everything is about popularity or some fucking club. We aren’t in highschool anymore, grow up.” You looked over at Steve who honestly looked like he would rather be doing anything but having this conversation right now. “That’s rich, coming from you, KING STEVE!!! Since when do you not care about all those things? I thought that was our whole thing?” She let out a dry laugh “you think anyone else really wants to deal with you? I only dealt with you because of all the perks that came with having a life with you. You think I actually loved you? You think anyone will really love you and your pathetic, whiny, daddy issues bullshit??” Steve looked stunned, he knew she felt that way but hearing it coming out of her mouth hurt a little. He never really loved her but there was a point when he did at least actually like her.

You couldn’t take it, between what she said to him and the look on his face you snapped. You walked over there without even caring about the consequences and got directly in her face. “You’re. Wrong.” You snarled at her.

“Excuse me, what? And what the fuck does it matter to you, mistress of the dark??” She looked you up and down with disgust.

“It matters a whole lot to me actually, because I DO like Steve. I don’t give a fuck about his popularity, or basketball, or how much money he has. I don’t need any of those things because he’s so much more than that!” You thought back to when you worked on the project together, at the time you hadn’t really allowed yourself to notice how different Steve was with you but he was. He told dumb jokes, he smiled sweetly at you and fumbled over his words. When you would tell him like it was, or act annoyed by him he didn’t say anything, just took it. You guys would talk sometimes for an hour or more after you had already finished working, and In that moment you realized that he let you see parts of him he probably didn’t show to anyone, you were just too dumb to see it. “He’s funny, like the stupid kind of dad funny that’s kind of embarrassing but down right endearing at its core. He’s sweet, caring, and listens to me when I talk. He’s not stupid, he’s incredibly smart. You just never took the time to see him and you’re the biggest fucking idiot for it!!” You didn’t move, stayed directly in her face, staring into her eyes daring her to do something.

Her eyes widened and then slanted into a glare “HA!!! Oh my god!!! You’re dumping me for this freak!? You’re even more of a joke than I thought Harrington! Talk about a downgrade, you really think your parents would ever approve of HER? Your dad would cut you off as soon as he saw her, your mom would-“

“THAT'S ENOUGH!!! Just SHUT. UP. For once in your fucking life Veronica stop talking! Don’t talk to her like that, you don’t know anything about her. Or me for that matter. Stay the fuck away from us.” Steve grabbed your hand and started dragging you away towards the front door “come on baby, we are leaving” you let him drag you to the door but before you walked out you turned around and flipped Veronica off “I win, you lose! Dumb bitch!” You stuck her tongue out at her and started cracking up at her stunned face on the way out.

•

Steve took you back to his apartment, your immediate reaction was to feel uncomfortable because of course even his apartment was way nicer than yours. But before you could even really get a look around he was on you. Kissing you in a way that made you feel like you were going to melt into a puddle on his carpet. You pulled away from him and smirked at him before dropping down on your knees in front of him and he felt himself starting to get hard instantly. “I believe I promised you the best blow job of your life, did I not?”

He reached down and caressed your cheek “Yeah you did pretty girl, but honestly you don’t have to, we can just watch a movie or cuddle or something. I wanna do this right with you. I don’t want you to think that’s all I want, ya know?”

“Hey Steve?” You smiled up at him sweetly “yeah sweetie?” You reached for the button on his jeans and popped it open before pulling his zipper down, placing a gentle kiss on the small sliver of skin exposed where his shirt rode up “Stop talking. I want to, I like doing it. If I’m being honest I wanna suck your cock so so bad Stevie” he groaned at that “fuck, yeah, okay baby. Whatever you want.” You smiled at him triumphantly before grabbing his pants and boxers and pulling them down in one swift motion.

His cock sprang out and you forgot how to talk for a moment because holy shit it was the biggest and most beautiful cock you’ve ever seen. “Wow…” was all you could manage, spitting on your hand and wrapping your hand around his girth, giving him a few strokes before leaning up to kitten lick the salty precum from his tip. “Oh shiiit that feels so good” you gave him a few more licks before abruptly taking as much of him as you could at once. He involuntarily jerked forward sending his cock further down your throat, causing you to gag before he pulled back “oh shit, I’m so sorry”

“Don’t be, I like it” you said before you took him back down your throat as far as you could, causing yourself to gag again before pulling back and repeating the action causing spit to drip down your chin and all over Steve’s cock. Steve was a mess, he was making whining sounds he’s never heard from himself and he seriously needed you to stop soon or he was going to bust before he even got to fuck you.

You pulled off and looked up at him “I want you to fuck my face, daddy” that was it, he was obsessed with you. “Oh god, I want that too baby girl but I will seriously cum if I do that right now and I really really want to fuck you.” He pulled his pants up before pulling you up on your feet grabbing your hand and walking towards the bedroom. He closed the door behind him and turned to place a gentle kiss on your lips when he pulled back you pulled your shirt over your head and his eyes nearly popped out when he saw you weren’t wearing a bra “holy shit honey… these are the best fucking tits I’ve ever seen” he grabbed them in his large hands, squeezing them before he leaned down to take an already hardened nipple in his mouth. “Mmm daddy, your mouth feels so good.” He groaned at the sound of you calling him daddy again. He’s always wanted a girl to call him that, it’s just no one he’s been with has been into it and you calling him that in your own accord was making him crazy.

“I know where it’ll feel even better.” He said before pushing you back until you were laying on his mattress with your legs hanging off. You propped yourself up on your hands so you could look at him. “God, you are so fucking gorgeous I’m not sure how you’re real. Sitting all pretty on my bed with those beautiful tits out. I can’t wait to see the rest of you” He pulled his shirt over his head and you didn’t even have time to properly ogle him before he got down on his knees in front of the bed and ran his hands up your legs until he was at the bottom of your skirt. He looked to you for permission, and you nodded excitedly. That was all he needed before he was pushing the front of your skirt up to reveal your red lace thong that had a very obvious wet patch.

“Look at these pretty little panties… too bad they have to go.” He looped his fingers in the band and ripped them off, throwing them over his shoulder. “This pussys is waaaay prettier than those panties anyways, god damn.” He started kissing your calves and the inside of your knees, leaving soft kisses and little bites as he made his way up to your thighs. He bit into the meat of your thigh before soothing it with his tongue and repeating the action on the other side. He left little kisses and licks down your inner thighs until he reached the spot you wanted him most. He kissed the top of your mound and then held his mouth over your clit for a minute letting his breath hit you while he looked you in the eyes “I’m going to fucking devour you”

He licked a stripe all the way up your entrance and to your clit, circling it a few times before sucking on it. Your hands reached down and tangled in his hair and your back arched immediately. “Jesus Christ Steve, your mouth feels so fucking good.” You whined.

He unlatched from your clit to look up at you “Steve? There’s no Steve here right now, only daddy.” You outright moaned at that and he smirked, circling a finger around your entrance before pushing it inside you. “Fuuuck daddy, that feels so fucking good. Put your mouth back on me, please?” You looked down at him with big round eyes and he felt like he was actually going to cum in his pants this time. His tongue started circling and sucking on your sensitive clit, he slid a second finger inside you and that was it for you.

You came so hard, probably the hardest you’ve ever cum in your life. Your grip on his hair tightened and you rocked your hips against his face “oh f-fuckkkk fuck, holy shit.” You pushed his face away “s-sensitive, come here” you reached your arms out for him and he put his arms on either side of your head, looking down at you adoringly. You wrapped your arms around his neck, pulling him into a heated kiss, groaning when you tasted yourself on his tongue. “Please please fuck me now, I want you so bad” you couldn’t even believe you thought you hated him just a few hours ago and now you were laying under him begging for his cock. He stood up and took his still unbuttoned pants off, now standing completely naked before you.

“God damn.. you are so fucking HOT holy shiiiiit, get over here and fuck me right now.” You pulled your skirt off and scooted up to the head of his bed and spread your legs wide open “how do you want me, daddy?” You giggled a little, feeling high on him. “Fuck, baby, will you ride me?” He walked over to the side of the bed and looked at your naked form, biting his lip. You grabbed his wrists pulling him down on the bed, pushing him on his back and climbing on top of him. You ground down on his dick, sliding your pussy easily up and down his length with your wetness. “Condom?” He asked, raising an eyebrow at you. “I’m on the pill, I wanna feel you, I want you to fill me up.” His eyes rolled in the back of his head “oh goddd, fuck. Yeah? You want me to fuck you full of my cum?” You didn’t even answer, just raised yourself up so you could line his cock up with your entrance and began to sink down on it.

“Holy fuuuck baby, that feels so good.” You were still holding his cock, sliding the head in and out of you slowly adding more of him inside you with each thrust until he was fully inside you and you could feel his hair at the base rubbing against your clit. You just sat there for a second, adjusting to his size. “Oh shit, you are so fucking tight oh my god.” You move back and forth, just the slightest rock of your hips. “Fuck daddy, you’re so big. I feel so full.” You whimpered. You raised up until you reached the head of his cock and then slammed back down out of nowhere and he let out a moan that you wanted to record and use as your fucking alarm clock. That egged you on, you started riding him hard and fast after that, sitting up fully with your hands on his chest to stabilize you. His hands were on your hips, head thrown back, he felt like all he could do was moan. He was pretty sure you were sucking his soul out of his dick and he had never felt this good in his entire life.

“Jesus Christ, you are such a good girl. You look so fucking beautiful riding my cock.” He moved his hands to your ass and slammed up into you, quite literally fucking the shit out of you. He moved his thumb up to your lips “Suck.” You took it in your mouth and swirled your tongue around it a few times before he pulled it out with a ‘pop!’ And brought it to your clit. Rubbing tight slow circles on the bud. “F-fuck, I’m g-gonna I’m gonna cum” he started fucking you faster, the circles on your clit got quicker “cum for me, cum on my cock like a good girl” your orgasm hit you hard, falling forward on Steve’s chest, letting out loud moans and pulling on his hair. That combined with the feeling of you clenching around him had Steve cumming right after you, filling you up just as promised. “Holy shit, holy fuck, I’m fucking cumming! God baby you feel so fucking good!”

You both just laid there for a moment, catching your breath and coming back into your bodies. You placed a soft kiss on his chest and sat up to look at him. “Wow Stevie. That was amazing, seriously.” He gave you a huge smile “Yeah it was. Holy shit. I’m obsessed with you.” You sent him a shy smile and tried to hide your face on your shoulder but he put his hand on your chin and made you look at him “Hey” he said your name softly “I mean it, I really fucking like you. I really do think you’re beautiful, you literally ruined me for any other woman ever. I’ve never met anyone like you. I’d really like to take you on a real date, like you deserve. If you’ll let me.” He gave you the most bashful adorable smile ever but you couldn’t help the little laugh that escaped you “Steve. You’re literally still inside me right now and you think I don’t want to go on a date with you?” He shrugged and chuckled, “I just wanted to make sure, I didn’t want to assume anything, ya know?”

You rolled off of him to lay next to him, resting your chin on his chest. “Of course I want to go on a date with you silly. It took me a minute to realize it, but I think I’m kind of obsessed with you too, Steve Harrington.” You tilted your head up to kiss him, soft and sweet, different from all the other kisses. “I just hope I didn’t ruin everything for you. I feel like you threw everything away for me.” You sighed and looked down at his chest, running your fingers through the hair there. He said your name more sternly than you were expecting “Look at me.” You looked up into his eyes and suddenly felt extremely shy under his intense gaze. “You didn’t ruin anything, you made everything better, you saved me from a life I was miserable in. I’ve never been more happy than I am at this moment. I don’t give a fuck what my so called “friends” or my parents think anymore. I did it for you, of course, but also for the first time in my life I did something for myself too. I’m not sure what exactly my life is going to look like now, but I know if you’re in it, it’s going to be beautiful.”

You felt tears welling up in your eyes at that, no one had ever said anything like the things Steve had said to you tonight. He kept talking so much about how you see him that you didn’t even realize how much he saw you too. “I think so too Stevie.” He saw you and you saw him, and the rest you would figure out together.

#steve harrington x reader #steve harrington smut #steve harrington x goth reader #opposites attract

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rogueddie · 1 year ago

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Soulmates Steddie Recs

Important: READ THE TAGS! Also, leave a comment and kudos! These fics are amazing and I love them and I hope y'all do too 🧵

And Death Stands So Small In The Face Of Love

writersagainstwritersblock

Soulmate AU where soulmarks don't turn until the person actually loves you, rather than upon meeting. Unturned marks are just ink until the person who loves you touches them and turns them into bright, colorful tattoos. Or a character study on Steve, the people he loves, and the people who love him.

Words : 14,514 Chapters : 1/1 Rating : Teen And Up Audiences

AO3 : x

Find the words and talk to me

daytimedreamer

In a world where a tattoo-like mark appears on your left wrist when your soulmate is relatively close to you, Eddie Munson doesn't have one.

But he's fine with it. Completely fine. Who needs a soulmate... Right?

He has his whole life figured out already and the lack of a soulmate hasn't affected his plans at all.

That is until a mark does appear and Eddie discovers he can't run from fate.

Words : 72,470 Chapters : 11/11 Rating : Explicit

AO3 : x

color me in danger

SolariaLunar21

The first time Eddie remembers a major change in the color of his meter he’s 11 years old. For most of his life the bar on his wrist has sat firmly in the green sometimes on very rare occasions darkening to a green blue color. That is until that day when he’s 11 and he watches it change to yellow for the first time.

Words : 4,755 Chapters : 1/1 Rating : Mature

AO3 : x

Your skin and bones turn into something beautiful (You know I love you so)

ChristinMKay

Steve Harrington is born with a scream on his lips and so much love in his being that his body is covered in it. An abundance of moles, freckles, and birthmarks are speckled across his skin, painting him in constellations and stardust and affection.

The nurses and doctors are congratulating Steve’s parents as they place him in the arms of his mother. They say he is blessed. Lived so many lives filled with people who loved him so much that the press of their lips against his skin had to echo through time and leave a mark.

Words : 4,209 Chapters : 1/1 Rating : Mature

AO3 : x

so we must meet apart

leah_btw

He sometimes imagines how it would feel to be in Munson's orbit. Sometimes imagines where his words would be. Hopes they'd curl along Munson's cheek bone where Steve could brush his thumb so easily. Or in the junction between his neck and shoulder, a place where Steve could drop kisses. Or along the curve of his hip, where Steve's palm could settle.

None of it matters because Steve never says anything.

Words : 15,437 Chapters : 1/1 Rating : Teen And Up Audiences

AO3 : x

Heart on Your Sleeve

Anonymous

Steve Harrington doesn’t know how to love right. He knows he loves his parents, but their soul marks have turned to scars on his skin. He doesn’t know what he’s doing wrong. With some help, he figures out it's not his fault.

Inspired by a kink meme prompt where your soul mark appears when you realise you love someone.

Words : 22,816 Chapters : 1/1 Rating : Explicit

AO3 : x

Error Option Romance

thankyouplease

Eddie imagines that Steve Harrington probably thinks that he is real hot shit. On top of being a rich prom king, he is also an eroptomancer. A love seer. A soulseer, some people call them – someone able to see the weird magic that connects people in a predestined shit storm of a craps game. He probably thinks he’s real goddamn special. One in a million special.

It’s actually closer to one in five million, but who’s counting?

Words : 61,348 Chapters : 6/6 Rating : Teen And Up Audiences

AO3 : x

Platonic with a capital "P"

fucktacles

Robin Buckley was betrayed by the universe twice in her short teenage life. Once when she was born a lesbian in a homophobic little town. Again, when it shoved Steve Harrington into her life. Worst of all, he was starting to grow on her. She might even be, gods forbid, fond of him.

Words : 8,429 Chapters : 1/1 Rating : Teen And Up Audiences

AO3 : x

as you bleed your deepest feelings here

hitlikehammers

“My first fucking tattoo, hell,” Eddie sniffles and sneers and neither sentiment really lands, it’s more just…devastating. “Thought about covering it up, soon as anyone would let me into a parlor. Tried to stick-and-poke it, so I couldn’t tell what it was anymore but I couldn’t even get past a single little dot, like a full inch away,” he presses Steve’s hand closer, the skin so smooth and so fucking warm; “made my,” Eddie’s voice cracks then, and sounds almost like it bleeds around the last wet whimpers that fall forth:

“Made my heart hurt.”

Fuck, but it makes Steve’s heart hurt, too.

“But it was a whole new hurt when there was you, you understand?” Steve freezes, scared for half a second until Eddie reaches for his chin and lifts his gaze, stares utter devotion and maybe a little disbelief straight into Steve’s veins just with a look that full, then Eddie licks his lips and there’s a hint of a smile that dares to breach the cloud cover.

“You made my heart kinda,” and oh, yeah, a smile: “sing.”

Words : 3,096 Chapters : 1/1 Rating : Teen And Up Audiences

AO3 : x

#stranger things #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie #fic rec #ficrec

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ladydorian05 · 1 year ago

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Tease tidbit Tuesday and WIP Wednesday

I got tagged by @disasterbuckdiaz @daffi-990 @forthewolves @wikiangela @hippolotamus @jesuisici33 @callmenewbie @loserdiaz you dearies!!!❤️

Yeah so, I still haven't written much, but here a (very rough first draft, very unedited) little bit from Green is just not your color Eddie, the Buck dates Josh + jealous Eddie fic.

Maddie deals the cards. They play two games that Buck predictably loses, before Maddie brings up Taylor. “So, I heard from a little bird that you were going out with Taylor, how’s it going?” “I bet it was more like two little birds, Hen told Chim and Chim told you.” “Was it a secret?” (Maddie) “No, not at all.” (Buck) “Wait, I’m lost. Who’s Taylor?” (Josh) “Taylor Kelly, th-” (Maddie) “The reporter!?” (Josh) “The one and only.” (Maddie) “Oh my God, I need to hear this.” (Josh) Buck sighs. “I’m going to tell you what I told Hen and Chim. And I really hope that at least you two will actually believe me.” He chucks down what’s left of his wine before continuing. “We tried and then we realized we were better as friends, that’s it.” “Then why do Hen and Chim believe that you’re still dating?” Maddie asks, confusion written all over her face. “Maybe because I keep inviting her to charity events and I was thinking too hard on what to give her for Christmas. In my defense I was trying to help her get some stories for work while promoting the events to get more help and it was the first time I was buying a gift for a woman that wasn’t my sister or someone I see as family.” “Well, it sucks that it didn’t work, but it’s nice that you could remain friends. Men and women can be just friends. To think otherwise is rather archaic.” (Josh) “Thank you!” Josh raíces his glass towards him.

Listen, I'm great at dialogue, I freaking suck at descriptive text... the struggle is real.

No pressure tags for Wip Wednesday!

@made-ofmemories @wikiangela @wildlife4life @thewolvesof1998 @your-catfish-friend @hippolotamus @disasterbuckdiaz @diazblunt @eddiebabygirldiaz @crowleywasagryffindor @theotherbuckley @forthewolves @jesuisici33 @missmagooglie @daffi-990 @pirrusstuff @giddyupbuck and anyone who wants to share their WIP!!!

#tease tidbit tuesday #wip wednesday #fic: green is just not your color Eddie #buddie #evan buckley #eddie diaz #maddie buckley #josh russo #buck x josh #ladydorian writes

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eddiexmunsonlover · 7 months ago

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One Step Away From You (Chapter 5)

BSF!Eddie Munson x PlusSize!Fem!Reader

Follow my new blog for future chapters & fics @cherryxhaze

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Chapter Summary: It's your 18th birthday and you celebrate by going to get a new piercing with Robin, and a small get together with your friends at Steve's house. This is just a mostly fluffy, light, and fun chapter after all the angst and heaviness of the previous ones. WC: 7.1K Warnings: MDNI. Explicit language. Underage drinking. Brief mentions of toxic parents, alcoholism.

Saturday, October 12th, 1985

“A-Are you sure you want me to go with you for this??” You can hear the panic in Robin’s voice over the phone, making you smile as you imagine her pacing around her bedroom with a white knuckle grip on the phone.

“Yes, Robbie. I want you to come with me.”

“But it won’t be like, weird? Given my… ya know”

“Robin, you know that doesn’t bother me. Besides, who else could I possibly ask? Not Steve or Eddie… for obvious reasons. Nancy and I aren’t close enough for me to ask her. You, however, are one of my closest friends.”

You hear her release a short exhale before she responds.

“Okay, as long as you don’t think having me there will be weird.”

“Oh my god Robin, it won’t be weird as long as you don’t make it weird!” You laugh out and smile when you hear a small laugh in return, breaking through her anxious energy.

“Okay, okay. I promise, no weird stuff.”

“Good, I’ll pick you up in 15!”

You roll over to your bedside table to hang up the phone, huffing before you get out of bed to get dressed. You throw on a pair of leggings and a baggy t-shirt. You glance in your mirror, deciding to keep your hair in a bun and go barefaced, knowing you’d have time to come back and get ready before your party at Steve’s later.

As soon as you walk out of your bedroom door, your mom flashes you a smile and comes to wrap you in a hug.

“Happy birthday, sweetie” she speaks softly through the embrace. “Finally 18!”

She pulls back and notices the purse on your shoulder and keys in hand. “Where are you heading?”

“I’m just going out with Robin for a bit, I’ll be back before my party at Steve’s later.”

“Alright, you wanna open your gift first before you go?”

You spot the gift bag on the coffee table and nod before beginning to pull out the stuffing paper, mind wondering what she could’ve gotten you.

Maybe a new pair of boots? Some new guitar strings? Some new cassettes or VHS tapes?

Your excitement falters when you spot the neon colored clothing. You force the smile to remain on your face, choosing to avoid an argument as you pull the neon green sweater out of the bag and hold it up. “Do you like it?!”

“Oh yeah, for sure!” You try your best to feign genuine excitement, unsure how effective it actually is.

“Promise you’ll actually wear it? Wouldn’t hurt to dress more like a girl…”

“Yes, mom. Thank you!” You answer quickly, flashing a smile her way before neatly folding the sweater and putting it back into the bag. That seems to satisfy her as she hums in agreement before turning to walk back to the kitchen.

As soon as the gift is back where you found it, you quickly leave the trailer. Groaning and rolling your eyes as soon as the front door shuts and you saunter down the steps to your truck.

Can’t even keep the nitpicking at bay for my birthday, let alone give me a gift I’d actually like.

Your mom’s not all bad. She does a lot for you and you know her heart is mostly in the right place, but her executions of showing care and concern for you often have the opposite effect, coming out critical and scrutinizing.

You shake off the interaction, not wanting it to hamper on the good day you plan to have as you back out your driveway to pick Robin up. Smiling as you look over to Eddie’s trailer before pulling out of Forest Hills.

It’s been almost 3 weeks since the night on the playground when Eddie forgave you, allowing your close friendship to resume. You had intended to take it slow at first, let you both take time to warm up to each other again, but after a few days it was almost as if nothing had happened. Like no time at all had passed, let alone almost 3 years. You can’t really say you’re surprised considering how close you and Eddie were before the move, but you hadn’t expected your friendship to go back to ‘normal’ so quickly. You and Eddie fell back into the comfortable rhythm of your friendship, your usual banter and inside jokes quickly resuming.

You’d even started joining the Hellfire table at lunch in the past week, though you haven’t accepted the invite to join the club just yet. You’d hung out a few times at his trailer too, listening to albums that’d come out in the time you’ve been gone and playing songs together on your guitars like you used to, only now you shared a joint while doing so.

You sigh in content as you drive down Hawkins backroads to Robin’s house. You’ve been happier in the past 3 weeks than you have in the past 3 years. Everything feels like it’s finally come together.

You eye the brick building in a stretch of businesses on the outskirts of Hawkins as you park the truck. Tattoos and Piercings displayed in big orange letters in the front window. A mixture of excitement and nervousness fills your stomach as you turn to Robin with a smile. Forcing back a laugh as you see her nervously biting her bottom lip as she warily eyes the shop.

“Come on, let’s go!” you encourage as you hop out of the truck. Robin shortly catches up to your quick strides as you cross the street.

“W-What if the piercer is like, a major creep? Maybe we should have done like a background check or something first…”

“Well what do you think I have you here for? I need a protector… for my hoo haa’s” you tease her playfully, a devilish smirk pulling at your lips as she looks at you wide-eyed. “Robin, everything will be fine. You don’t have to come back with me if you don’t want to.”

She shakes her head quickly, taking a deep breath as she faces the shop door.

“Nope, we’ve got this. I got your back, or well uh…” Her eyes briefly glance down to your chest before quickly looking back to the shop. “nevermind.”

She opens the tattoo shop door, letting you go in first. For a Saturday business is slow, only one other customer inside getting tattooed. You approach the front desk where a middle aged man with shaggy hair greets you. You tell him what piercing you want and give him your ID, quickly signing the waiver for piercing and aftercare information and handing over cash for payment. With all formalities settled, he leads you and Robin to a room in the back of the shop.

“Alright uh, just go ahead and remove your shirt and bra.” He states, turning his back to you as he gathers his needles and cleaning supplies. Once you’ve taken off your upper layers and wait for him to begin, you look next to you to see Robin’s back is also towards you, standing rigidly as she faces the wall. Eyeing the seemingly very interesting cracks and chips in the wall’s red paint. You snicker at the sight.

“Rob, you can look ya know. You promised you wouldn’t make it weird.”

“Right, right.” She says quickly as she turns around, eyes refusing to meet you or your exposed chest, deciding to now stare at the wall opposite of you. You shake your head at her as the piercer turns around and walks toward you.

“Alright, I’m gonna mark with a pen where I’ll pierce, then you can look in a mirror to make sure it looks alright.”

He does as said, marking both sides of both your nipples, ensuring they look even before backing away so you can check for yourself in the mirror. Satisfied at the placement, you nod at him before sitting on the laid back chair.

“Good, now go ahead and lay back and I’ll get started.”

“Have you uh-pierced many nipples before?” Robin asks with a high-pitched squeak as she watches him bring over his tray of supplies.

He gives her an exhausted look before answering, “This ain’t my first rodeo, hun.”

She purses her lips, nodding her head at his answer as she continues looking around the room at anywhere but you.

“Alright, I’m sure you can imagine this is gonna hurt a bit.”

“Uh, Robin?” you ask as you extend a hand out to her, “Gonna need some support here.”

“Oh, right!” She answers after a moment, quickly taking your hand as her eyes finally meet yours, refusing to stray further south as she mouths a ‘sorry!”.

“Take a deep breath aaaand exhale”

As you exhale, a sharp pain spreads through your left nipple. You yelp out something like a mixture of a loud moan and scream, quickly grabbing Robin’s hand tightly. Curiosity gets the best of her and she finally looks, eyes going wide and mouth falling open at the sight.

“First one done, best to do the second one right away while you still got the adrenaline kick.” He states as he maneuvers to the other side of you, forcing Robin to shimmy over to the side he just occupied.

“Give me another deep breath”

You squeeze both Robin’s hand and your eyes shut as you take another inhale and exhale, a duller pain spreading through your other nipple. After some more deep breaths, you’re greeted with the news that you’re all finished.

You sit up fully, wiping your eyes as you stand and walk over to the mirror. A big smile creeps onto your face as you look at your newly pierced nipples. You’ve never felt particularly confident about your breasts. They aren’t big but they aren’t little either. You never felt like they were anything special. Ever since you first saw an image of a woman with her nipples pierced in a tattoo magazine your older cousin had a year ago, the image and idea of doing the same to your own hasn’t left your mind since.

As you eye yourself and your chest in the mirror, the new addition to your nipples gives you the boost of confidence you hoped it would. You turn around to face Robin.

“What do you think? Do they look good?”

Her head moves like a bobble head, nodding and shaking in every direction as she stares at your chest before looking up to meet your eyes.

“Uh yup. They look great” She muses, putting extra emphasis on the ‘p’.

You carefully put your bra back on, taking extra caution not to hit or snag the new barbells adorning your breasts.

After a few minutes you and Robin are back in your truck and pulling onto the road. After making a quick stop for at the gas station for slushies, you head down the route to drop Robin back off at her house before Steve comes to grab her for help in setting up for your party.

Between sips of cherry slushies and singing along to Easy Lover by Phil Collins and Philip Bailey, Robin speaks up.

“You know, I think this whole ordeal has really added another layer to our friendship. Brought us closer, you know?” You smirk in response to her comment, and to the reaction you know your next words will elicit.

“Oh yeah, I mean now you’ve seen my tits and you now know what I sound like in bed.” you muse nonchalantly, failing to hold back the shit-eating grin plastered on your face.

“OH MY GOD” she groans loudly, covering her face with her hands as you cackle in satisfaction.

Eddie’s already waiting for you, leaning against your truck with a lit cigarette in hand as you shut your front door behind you.

“There’s the birthday girl!” he yells with a bright smile on his face. You roll your eyes but are unable to hide the blush on your cheeks and soft smile as you approach him.

“Happy birthday, sweetheart” he hums softly as he wraps his arms around you in a tight embrace.

“Thanks, Eds” You return the embrace, never tiring of the feeling of his body against yours, long arms wrapping around your frame. You gladly ignore the soreness of your chest as it presses against his. You let yourself inhale his scent, the faint smell of apples from his shampoo, cigarettes, and musky cologne flood your senses. You sigh softly at the intoxicating smell and feeling of him against you before you break from the embrace.

“Ready to party?” He asks with a cheeky smile.

“Hell yeah, hop in” He jogs over to the passenger side as you turn the ignition.

Within 10 minutes, you’re pulling into Steve’s driveway, parking next to his car. Thankfully, it happens to be one of the many weekends that Steve’s parents are out of town, leaving the house to all of your friends to have a nice little get-together for your birthday. It’s nothing short of a miracle that you, Steve, and Robin managed to get a Saturday off together too. You can only imagine what they had to do to convince Keith to cover their shift.

“So this is Harrington’s humble abode huh?” Eddie mumbles with a hint of sarcasm as you begin walking up the driveway.

“Best behavior, Munson. Remember?” Eddie scoffs in response.

“I am always on my best behavior, thank you.”

“Who are you trying to fool?” you tease back playfully as you open the front door and let yourself in.

You look around the empty living room, eyeing some liters of soda sitting out on the kitchen counter. As Eddie looks around curiously, you notice shadows and hushed voices near the sliding glass door to the backyard. As you open the door, you’re immediately greeted with a chorus of shouts, “Happy birthday!”

You hate being the center of attention, but you can’t help but smile and laugh as you look at the smiling faces of your friends, Steve, Robin, Dustin, Mike, and Lucas all waiting to celebrate you. You step out onto the back porch with Eddie following behind.

“Thank you, guys. This is so sweet!” You gush as your eyes look around, catching the Happy Birthday banner and table filled with snacks and drinks. You go to greet your friends one by one starting with Steve who already has an arm outstretched for a hug. You gladly abide, giving him a hug as you thank him for hosting and the effort he’s put in, leading him to scoff lightly in response.

“Of course, Y/N. I’m glad to.”

You move to hug Robin, who hesitates for a second as she eyes your chest.

“I said don’t make it weird or obvious” you whisper through your teeth, staring at her wide eyed. She moves into action, quickly pulling you into a hug a little too eagerly to make up for her hesitation. “Don’t make it hurt either, goddamn.” you wince before you both laugh.

You move on to the younger boys whom Eddie has already joined and squeeze their shoulders lovingly.

“I’m glad you turds are here too.” you tease as you smile brightly, spurring groans and eye rolls from them.

“Okay, that’s offensive.” Mike states matter-of-factly before breaking out into a smile.

You wish Max would be here to celebrate with you all. You invited her, but when she heard of who all would be here, she quickly fumbled her way to an excuse, a commitment she made to her mom. You don’t hold it against her, but still, as you look among all your friends, her absence is noticeable.

After a little while of mingling and snacking, Steve suggests a game of soccer, corralling all the boys out into the backyard. You and Robin sit at the edge of the porch, watching as the boys run around the yard, snacking on chips, and listening to your mixtape playing on the stereo.

“So uh, how do they feel?” She asks quietly. You peek a look at her as you pop a chip in your mouth.

“They fuckin burn is how they feel.” you sigh, watching as Dustin begins to accuse Steve of playing dirty.

“Burn?! I-is that normal?” She nearly chokes on her chips, causing you to laugh as you shake your head.

“I don’t know, Rob. I’m sure it’s fine” you shrug as she looks lost in thought and you’re sure, anxiety.

“Hey Y/N! Why don’t you come join us!” Dustin shouts out to you.

“Yeah, you too Rob come on!” Steve adds as his chest heaves slightly, hands on his hips.

“No, absolutely not.” Robin states plainly.

“Eh, I don’t know”

“Oh come on, don’t be chickenshits!” Dustin exclaims, causing your eyebrows to raise as you give him an ‘oh really?’ look.

“I think I’m totally fine with being a chicken.” Robin states unphased, looking at you. You share a look with her before standing up.

“Hold my beer.” You say as you begin walking out to meet the boys in the yard.

“But you’re not even drinking a…” Robin begins as you walk away, completely lost, joke flying over her head and landing somewhere in the front yard.

You fall into a 3v3 game; Steve, Eddie and you vs. Dustin, Mike, and Lucas, despite the latter's complaints of it being unfair. You’re not athletic and never considered yourself a fan of sports, but you find yourself having fun and laughing as you kick the soccer ball around and between each other. Not to mention you joined this game with a mission, make Dustin eat his words. Having Steve and Eddie on your team helps, their tall stature and long limbs aiding in bypassing the younger boys’ attempts to intercept the ball. When Steve kicks the ball toward you, you don’t hesitate. Kicking the ball as hard as you can, going airborne in Eddie’s direction for him to secure a goal. Only Mike’s big ass head gets in the way. You have to turn away to try to stifle your laughter when you see and hear the soccer ball audibly thunk! against the side of his head.

“Ow!” he exclaims dramatically, hand holding the side of his head. You bite back your laughter as you face him, the snickering laughter from everyone else doing little to help.

“I’m sorry, bud. You were in the way!”

“In the way?!!” he shrieks in response, leaving you to only shrug apologetically.

“Alright, walk it off. Don’t be dramatic. Here, we’ll even give you the ball!” Steve attempts to mediate, his offer seemingly settling Mike as the younger boys get back in formation. It does little to help though, as Steve shortly reclaims the ball for your team.

A moment later you’re all huddled close with the ball stuck being kicked around in the middle, waiting for someone to manage to kick it out. In a moment of an innocent mistake and careless obliviousness, Dustin accidently pushes back against you and elbows your chest as his attention and body follows the movement of the ball.

Your face scrunches in pain and your hand shoots out to grip the back of Dustin’s shirt. The rest of the boys go on unfazed, the distraction allowing an opening for Steve to kick the ball out of the circle. You take a deep breath before opening your eyes and meeting Dustin’s wide-eyed gaze, knowing he’s in deep shit.

“Oh, you better run.” You whisper with a sinister smile on your face. You loosen your grip enough to let Dustin pull away and get a head start as he sprints off before you set off after him. After Steve scores another goal for your team, everyone watches in amusement as you briefly chase Dustin around the yard. You may be a bigger girl and not the most athletic, but you can still run pretty damn fast when you want to.

“Who’s the chickenshit now?!” you yell out teasingly as you begin to gain distance on him, holding back your laughter as he screeches out “I’m sorry”s. When you’re close enough, you wrap your arms around his midsection, lifting and spinning him around in circles as he screams, before you put him down and give him a good noogie. After you both regain your breath, you wrap your arm around his shoulder and give it a light squeeze before you walk back to rejoin the group.

“Well I guess that’s a good point to end it on,” Steve begins as he laughs softly. “a 6 to 2 victory!”

“A proper victory for the birthday girl.” Eddie smiles at you. You give him a bashful curtsey in return, making him laugh before you all return to the porch to lay back and relax.

You and Eddie sit next to each other on one of Steve’s outdoor loveseat chairs, smirking as the younger boys bicker about the soccer game. Eddie lights up a joint, taking a hit before passing it to you. Extending his arm to rest behind your head.

“Listen, you little shits lost fair and square.” Eddie states with a self-satisfied smile.

“Yeah, well I’d wonder who’d win if the two oldest and tallest people here weren’t on the same team.” Lucas pushes.

“Yeah, a rematch of sorts” Dustin adds in agreement. Causing you to laugh as you exhale your hit.

“That’s about as much running as you’ll get out of me for the next month so, maybe next time fellas.” You state simply with a smile.

The conversation thankfully changes topic as you and Eddie continue sharing his joint. You let your head rest back gently against his arm as you relax from your physical exertion, letting the small touch ground and soothe you as you look around, watching your friends happily. Steve steps out of the house with a platter full of hamburger patties and hotdogs ready to be grilled. You smirk at the image of Steve standing at the smoking grill, in Dad at a cookout mode.

“Only thing missing is a ‘Kiss the Cook’ apron.” you quip toward Robin, whose eyes follow yours before breaking out into a giggle with you.

“Oh, I’m definitely getting him that for Christmas.” she hums in amusement.

Everyone is buzzing in conversation and light-hearted laughs with each other as music plays in the background. The beginning of a particular song catches your attention. Lucas’s eyes turn to meet yours at the exact moment yours turn to look at him as Let’s Groove by Earth, Wind, and Fire begins to play. Neither of you can resist the temptation, standing from your seats to sing and dance along together. Smiling and laughing as you break out into a half choreographed dance you’d done many times before.

In the years prior, you’d loved babysitting Lucas and Erica the most. Beyond Lucas’s well-mannered but playful attitude with you and the similar sass as you that Erica embodied, going through Mr and Mrs. Sinclair’s collection of funk and RnB records was one of your favorite things. That, and the 3 of you spending all afternoon coming up with your own dances to the songs, often mimicking moves you’d seen on Soul Train. Everyone is all smiles as Dustin decides to join, doing his own rendition of the robot dance as he slots in next to you two.

Eddie watches the scene from his seat. It’s honestly heartwarming for him to witness first-hand the relationship you have with the younger boys. How you handle their attitudes and join in on their antics. Watching as you take on the fun but sassy older sister role gives him hope he can have a similar close friendship with them too, given his own still new but growing friendship with the new members of the club.

At first, he tries not to let his eyes linger on you too much, not wanting his desire for you to be so obvious. But your body is calling out to him, pulling his eyes back to you as he watches your hips sway, the jiggle of your thick thighs, and with the way you shake your ass Eddie swears he’s going to die on the spot. He’s all of a sudden getting hot, and the already cooling temperatures from the quickly setting sun can’t be to blame. The slightest movement in his jeans sends him scurrying inside for a ‘bathroom break’ as he pleads to the gods there aren’t any more dance songs on the rest of your mixtape.

When the song ends and the boys sit down to take a breather, you venture over to Steve who is intently focused on the hot dogs and burgers sizzling on the grill. You take a sip from the can of Cola you carry before clearing your throat.

“So uh, how’s your wieners looking, Steve?” You hold back a laugh as you see the spatula he holds go still and his head slowly turns to look at you, giving you a ‘really?’ look as you stare at him with a coy grin. You hear a snicker from Dustin before he joins in.

“Hehe yeah, Steve. Are they nice and juicy?” he asks, sending the other boys into a giggling fit as Steve groans.

“Ah great, look at what you’ve started!” he says to you dramatically in a serious tone, but the slight upturn of the side of his mouth doesn’t fool you, breaking out into a full blown smile when you poke his side.

You stand there with him, teasing him with comments like “Oooh, nice flip there” every time he turns over a burger. Shimmying and singing I Can’t Go For That to each other when it starts to play, a tradition of sorts started during numerous car rides before.

When Eddie returns from the bathroom, he spots you and Steve at the grill, standing particularly close, singing to each other. He can’t deny the ping of jealousy he feels at the sight. Suspicions of what kind of friendship you and Steve have exactly continues to brew ever since he first saw you in the Hawkins parking lot with him. He decides it’s time for a drink, grabbing a can of beer from the 6 pack he brought out of the cooler and resuming his previous seat. He’s thankful when the boys pull him into a DnD conversation that keeps his eyes from lingering on you two.

When the burgers and hotdogs are done, everyone digs in. The early evening hour and soccer game working up everyone’s appetite. After the food is all settled and everyone involved in conversation, you feel a light nudge at your side from Eddie, who greets you with a smile.

“Drink for the birthday girl?” He asks, a cold unopened beer in hand pointed toward you. You hesitate for a second as you eye the can, never having drank alcohol before. Growing up with your Dad had been enough to keep you away from it.

“Come on, you’re in a safe place with friends.” Eddie gently probes.

“Yeah, you know the spare room’s open for you too, don’t have to worry about going anywhere.” Steve adds.

You notice that Steve and Robin are already sipping on their own beers and with one last look back at Eddie you decide to let your guard down. Nodding at him as you take the beer from his hands and open it.

“Hey, can I have one too?” Mike asks enthusiastically, “I mean what safer place to do it than here?”

“Nice try, Wheeler. I don’t think so.” Steve quickly answers before taking a sip from his own beer. You hear the boys’ groans in the background as you take your first sip, Eddie’s eyes watching you before your face turns and you stick out your tongue.

“Ugh, that tastes like shit!” You’re met with laughter by the 3 older teens, “How the hell do you drink this?”

“Oh come on, it’s not that bad.”

“Well it certainly isn’t good.”

“I’m pretty sure I’ve got some rum and pineapple juice inside. I could make you a sweet drink?” Steve offers as he’s already rising from his seat to go inside.

“As long as it tastes better than this!”

And that it does. You hum in approval at the first sip, barely noticing the faint taste of alcohol over the sweet flavor of pineapple juice.

As the sun finally sets and a cool breeze flows through the air, the group moves out into the back yard where Steve has set up wood for a bonfire. Steve, ever the Dad of the group, comes prepared with supplies for s'mores. Insisting there had to be some kind of dessert considering you didn't want the traditional cake and candles, not wanting your friends to make too much fuss over you.

You bask in the warmth of the bright flames, aiding in the warmth already flowing through your body from the alcohol as you move on to your 2nd drink. That warmth grows as you look around at your friends circled around the campfire, smiles on their faces as they roast marshmallows that end up sticking to their lips, and Lucas dramatically telling his best rendition of a ghost story to the group.

What a perfect day. This is everything you could ask for for your birthday. Nothing extravagant. Just quality time with your favorite people in this world.

You let your eyes linger on Eddie as he watches and laughs along to Lucas’s story. Watching the flickering warm glow and shadows that the fire casts on his face. You admire the dimples in his cheeks and his plump, pink lips. His warm chocolate eyes as they look to meet yours, feeling your eyes on him. You blush and smile back at him, hoping the alcohol in your system and warmth from the fire are good enough cover for your red cheeks as you tune back into Lucas’s story.

After a while the younger boys opt for going inside to set up their blankets and pillows in the living room and watch tv before bed.

Now on your 3rd drink, you’re feeling what you assume people call ‘tipsy’ at this point.

“Goodnight, Dusty bun! Goodnight, Mikey! Goodnight, Lukie! Don’t let the bed bugs bite!” You call out lovingly after them as they walk the short distance back to the house.

“Dusty bun, huh?” Eddie asks curiously with a cheeky smile.

Steve almost excitedly spurs into telling Eddie about Dustin’s girlfriend in Utah, and their favorite song from The Neverending Story. You smile as you watch them interact. You’d initially been worried about having the two together, once being on opposite ends of the social hierarchy at Hawkins High. But given Steve’s personal growth over the past few years, you knew it was a matter of time before Eddie warmed up to him and saw him for who he is now, not the “King Steve” he’d known before.

You fish out a cigarette from your pack and light it, sinking into your chair as you take the first inhale. Your eyes shoot open as you hear the opening bass line to one of your favorite songs, Eyes Without a Face by Billy Idol.

“Oh my god I love this song!” you practically whine, standing up from your seat to dance along, eliciting a laugh from Steve.

“Uh yeah, we know. You only insisted on playing it every time we’d go for late night drives this summer.” He smirks as he takes another drink from his beer.

“Uh yeah, because it’s one of the best songs ever!” you insist as if it’s obvious before you move a step away from the fire, hips swaying with the beat. Drink in one hand, cigarette in the other.

“I will admit it has grown on me.” Robin adds looking at Steve before smiling as she watches you.

I’m all out of hope

One more bad break

Could bring a fall

You sing along as your body moves with the beat, putting your cigarette in your mouth to let your fingers play along to the bass line and guitar solo on your air guitar. You can really feel the alcohol now, the way your limbs feel both heavy and light at the same time as you move through the cool breeze, the giddy and sentimental energy flowing through you.

“Oh Robbie, come join me!” you plead, motioning her to you with your free hand. You’re lucky she’s just drunk enough to agree and join you in her best attempt at dancing along. Eddie and Steve watch with bright smiles, Eddie’s heart warming at the sight.

He didn’t think his feelings for you could deepen any more, but here you are once again proving him wrong. Watching you be so carefree and playful, the way you passionately sing along to every word, the sway of your hips. He can’t get enough.

It’s all gone too soon as the song ends, leaving you pouting before you pull Robin in for a hug. The alcohol also working to numb your nipples, you discover.

“I love you, Robbie. Thanks for coming with me today.” You mumble in her ear as you embrace her tightly.

“Anytime.” she whispers back, returning your embrace.

“I love all of you guys” you say as you turn back to face the two boys sitting by the fire, only slurring your words slightly. “This has been the best birthday ever.”

You give a lopsided smile as you walk to Steve’s side and wrap your arms around him.

“Thank you, Stevie. So so much.” you mutter into his side as he laughs softly, rubbing your arm.

“Anytime, hun.”

You stumble slightly, losing your footing as you pull away from his hug.

“I’m good, all good!” You slur as you steady, putting your arms up and giggling.

“Maybe it’s time we call it a night, the fire’s starting to die anyway.” Steve suggests as he sees how much the alcohol is hitting you. You groan and pout in response but ultimately agree when your body continues to sway as you stand in place, Steve asking Eddie if he can take you inside.

“It’s the first bedroom on the right up the stairs.”

“Come on, princess. Let’s get you to bed.” Eddie says softly as he wraps an arm around your waist to support you, fingers lightly digging into the soft flesh there. You smile, giggling to yourself at the pet name as you put your arm around his shoulder, letting him lead you into the house and up the stairs.

As soon as you catch sight of the bed you plop face down on it, sighing in pleasure as you nuzzle your face against the soft pillow, eliciting an airy laugh from Eddie. You turn on your side to peek at him.

“Who you laughing at?”

“You, silly. You gonna sleep with no covers on?” He asks, motioning to the comforter you’re laying on top of. You groan in annoyance before standing up, quickly flipping up the comforter and crawling underneath and settling back in. You watch as Eddie takes off his vest and jacket, laying them on the end of the bed before going back downstairs to get you a glass of water.

You sigh and find yourself staring at the wall as your body sinks into the bed. You think back over your good day spent with your friends, and finally having your first drink to celebrate your 18th birthday. You aren’t sure what triggers it, but your mood quickly takes a turn as you begin to hear inklings of your mom’s voice in your head. Warnings and cautions thrown at you over the years about drinking, about your Dad. Pressures to be responsible and not follow in your father’s footsteps.

You need to be careful. Alcoholism runs in the family, you know.

You don’t want to end up like him.

The thoughts weigh on you heavily, worry and guilt quickly overtaking your mind. You’re so consumed by it you don’t hear Eddie’s footsteps coming up the stairs, only taking in his presence when you see his jeans enter your vision as he stands in front of you, putting the glass of water down on the bedside table. At first he thinks maybe you’ve fallen asleep, until he looks down at your face and notices the look in your eyes as you stare off in the distance and the frown set on your lips. He quickly squats down to be face level with you, eyes searching your face as his hand reaches out for your shoulder.

“Y/N, what’s wrong? Are you okay?”

You take a shaky inhale before you look at his worried face.

“W-We’re not gonna end up like our Dads are we?” you ask quietly, sadness seeping through your tone as you look deeply into his eyes.

He looks at you confused before it hits him.

“Hey hey. No.” he reassures you, softly rubbing his hand up and down your bicep. “Just because you let yourself have fun and drink a bit with your friends doesn’t mean you’re going to be like your Dad, okay?” He watches as your expression begins to soften, taking in his words. “And you tell that little voice in your head to fuck off alright?” You give him the exact reaction he wanted, breaking out into a smile and giggling at his words.

He always knows how to make you feel better. His reassurance and touch helps to calm your worries, but as you look into his eyes, guilt hits you again at your own words. Your insinuation that Eddie could end up like his father. You shake your head at the realization.

“That was a silly thing to say, I’m sorry.” Eddie watches you as one of your hands reaches out to his face. His breath hitching as he feels the pads of your fingers graze his cheek, moving strands of hair out of his face and tucking them behind his ear. “You could never be like him, Eds. You’re too good.”

Eddie stares into your eyes for a moment. Your words, your touch, the look in your eyes as you stare into his has a grip on his heart, squeezing it as he’s overcome with it all. He struggled to believe those same words when he told it to himself, but hearing them fall from your lips is different. Helps him to believe it’s true. That, and the way you always saw him, when all anyone else in town saw when they looked at him was Al Munson. Casting a shadow over him. A shadow you’re familiar with.

He smiles softly at you before looking down at the floor, taking a deep breath and gulping before he speaks.

“I know you uh- said no presents but I’ve got something for you.”

He looks up to meet your eyes again, taking in your curious look before he reaches his hands behind his neck and unclasps his necklace, holding it out to you. Your mouth falls open at the gesture, eyeing his red and black guitar pick necklace he’s worn for years that’s now resting in his hand, outstretched toward you. Your heart flutters at the sight.

“E-Eddie, your necklace?”

“I want you to have it, so you’ll always have a piece of me with you. Honestly should’ve given it to you a long time ago but, better late than never.” He offers you a shy smile.

You quickly sit up and wrap your arms around him as you try to stop your bottom lip from quivering at the sentimental gesture, the alcohol making it much harder to do so. There’s so much you want to say, so many thoughts running through your head but none of the words meet your lips. You’re left speechless as Eddie returns your embrace before he pulls back and stands up, putting the necklace around your neck and clasping it in place. You look down at the pick now resting against your chest, your thumb caressing it.

“Thank you, Eddie. It means alot to me.” you gush as you look up at him, mimicking the wide smile already on his face.

“No need to thank me, sweetheart. Looks better on you anyway.”

You roll your eyes at him before resting your head back on the pillow, fingers still lingering on the pick around your neck.

“Alright, I’ll let you get some rest.” He sighs before walking to the end of the bed. When he reaches for his vest and jacket, you speak up.

“Wait… why don’t you just stay in here with me tonight?” He stares at you for a moment, mouth hanging open slightly as he thinks of your proposition. “I mean, unless you want to sleep on the floor with the kids in the living room. Come on, it’ll be like old times.”

He caves in a little too quickly, giving you a nod and a soft smile as he moves his vest and jacket to a chair in the corner of the room. He turns off the bedroom light before walking over to the other side of the bed. You’re ashamed at the little wave of excitement that rushes over you when you hear the metal clink of him undoing his belt buckle, undressing down to his boxers before he climbs in under the covers next to you.

You settle into the bed facing each other, sighing in content as you get comfortable. Though you aren’t touching, you can already feel the warmth radiating from his body inches away. It isn’t long before you’re slipping under, dozing off into a deep sleep as one hand grips the guitar pick hanging from your new necklace.

Eddie’s fingers twitch at the close distance to you. Watching you through the faint moonlight shining through the window as you drift off to sleep. Though it’s not the first time you've fallen asleep next to each other, it’s the first time you’ve done it in years. The same thoughts and temptations he’d held at each sleepover before haven’t changed now.

He wants nothing more than to caress your bare skin and pull your body against his. Rest his head on top of yours and inhale the scent of your shampoo as his hand softly rubs your back, soothing you to sleep.

He lays there watching you, wondering if he’ll ever get the chance to do it. Wondering if he’ll ever have the guts to tell you how he feels and make you his. If you even want him like that. If you even see him as anything more than just your best friend.

He sighs before settling into his spot in the bed, deciding that being here with you like this is enough, for now.

#eddie munson fic #eddie munson x plus size reader #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson x female reader #eddie munson x plussize!reader #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson x you #bestfriend!eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #one step away from you

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randomwelcomehomestuff · 1 year ago

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Unfinished Business: a Welcome Home Corpse Puppet AU fanfiction

A/N: Just here to let you know that I'm not creative. Like, at all. This is a fanfic of a fanfic inspired by a fan-made AU of a completely unrelated work, but I couldn't get it out of my head so maybe now my brain will be at peace so I can work on my original story (or it will come up with fifty other fanfic ideas because that's more fun than editing).

Anyway, Welcome Home belongs to Clown/partycoffin, the Corpse Puppet AU belongs to @sketchquill, and the fanfic this is based on is a Corpse Bride/Nightmare Before Christmas crossover fic called The Undead Groom by moviefan_92 on Ao3.

Spoiler Alert for all of that media, plus a little for the novel The Pumpkin Queen just because there's a reference here and there, but not too much.

Also C/W: There's a lot of major character death in here.

I may add more to it later if inspiration strikes. Let me know in the comments if you are interested in that.

Okay, I'll shut up, now. Here's the fic.

The carriage jostled down the muddy dirt road. You wrung the handkerchief in your hands as you gazed out the window at the grey sky, occasionally distracted by the raindrops trailing down the glass. Try as you might, you just couldn't cry. You wanted to, but no tears would come.

At least the dreary weather was appropriate for a funeral.

Howdy was watching you. He wasn't one to judge his spouse's appearance, but he did decide that funeral black did not suit you particularly well. Not when he'd seen you in so many other bright, cheerful colors, when you had been happy. When you were like this—mourning—the sparkle in your eyes was gone. He thought you were beautiful when you were happy, somehow still hauntingly so when you were sad, but he would be lying if he said he didn't prefer seeing you smile or laugh.

“Are you alright?” he asked. “I know you and Eddie were close.”

You sighed. “I'll be fine. This isn't my first time dealing with grief.”

Yes, Howdy knew that all too well. The first several days of your marriage had been more awkward than they probably should have been for... obvious reasons. Any time he caught you staring despondently out the window, he knew deep down that you were thinking of Wally.

That didn't have a negative impact on your marriage, though. You were strong and optimistic, and Howdy shared many happy memories with you. You taught him how to play piano, and he in turn taught you how to garden. You even started a small orchard together. Howdy couldn't think of many more signs of a happy home than the smell of apple blossoms in the garden and hallways filled with the sounds of music and laughter. You were comfortable, and your fortunes were secure, (that was the most important thing to both of your parents, and neither of you could ask for much more than your parents' satisfaction).

Most of all, you and Howdy loved each other. Howdy had accepted long ago that yours was a love built off of friendship and mutual respect rather than romance, but it was enough for him, (considering what he grew up witnessing from his parents, he counted that as the greatest success of them all). You recently celebrated your copper anniversary, which baffled Howdy. How could seven years fly by so quickly? Thinking back on everything, he knew that he was completely satisfied with where his life was, as long as you were by his side and happy.

Which is why he hated to see you so sad. He wouldn't rush you through your grief, but he could at least help lighten the load. “Would you like to talk about it?” he asked.

You looked down at the handkerchief in your hands, wadded up beyond recognition, but still as dry as it was when Howdy handed it to you. You smoothed it out over your lap and stared at Howdy's initials embroidered in green in the corner.

Howdy watched you, patient. A deep rumble of thunder rolled through the sky outside.

“I just... hate how somber it was,” you said.

“Funerals typically are.”

“I know, but Eddie wouldn't have wanted that. He was so much more cheerful and... and colorful than that. He'd want people telling funny stories about him and celebrating his life, not... just standing in silence while the dirt is thrown over his casket.” Your shoulders stiffened. “I should have said something.” Now you could feel the tears building up, but they simply would not come. I should be crying. Why am I not crying?

Howdy leaned forward and took your hand, and you finally looked into his eyes. He was smiling. “He's in a better place, now.”

You smiled at that. Seven years ago, those words would have felt like a hollow attempt at consolation, but now they were a real comfort. Howdy was there when the dead came up to the Land of the Living. He witnessed Eddie and Frank briefly reunite. Now they would never be separated again, and he knew it as well as you did.

Perhaps that was why you couldn't cry: you knew that good things were waiting for Eddie on the other side.

The tears finally spilled over and rolled down your cheeks, but they were not tears of sorrow. You were happy.

Howdy used two of his free hands to cup your face. His smile was soft and understanding as he thumbed away your tears. You stood and shifted over to the seat across from you so you could sit beside him, and his four arms wrapped you up into a tight hug. He pressed a kiss into the top of your head, like he had so many times before. “Everything will be alright,” he whispered.

“I know,” you mumbled into his shoulder.

Lightning flashed outside, followed by a loud clap of thunder. You gripped at Howdy's coat as he leaned forward to look out the window. “That storm is getting much worse.”

“Should we stop somewhere?” you asked.

He nodded. “Most likely.” He reached up to knock on the ceiling of the coach. “Johnson? How are the roads looking?” he called.

Johnson, the driver, shouted something back to Howdy, but his voice was drowned out by a deafening crash. A blinding white light flooded the carriage and the horses whinnied outside in terror. You tried to lean forward to look out the window, but the horses bolted and the momentum sent you crashing to the floor of the coach. You could hear Johnson yelling. Howdy grabbed your arm and tried to haul you back into the seat, but when you looked out the window, what you saw made you freeze.

Lightning had struck a nearby tree. It was on fire. Johnson seemed to have lost the reins, because you could see them flapping in the wind by the window. Howdy was calling your name. Johnson was screaming at the horses to stop.

The carriage was passing the flaming tree right as it started to crackle and groan.

You jumped back into the seat and grabbed Howdy. One of his hands grasped the back of your head and his body tensed around you as if he was bracing himself.

It only took a few seconds—three at most—but it felt like an eternity.

Wood splintered around you as the carriage shattered. A heavy weight came down on you and Howdy, and for a brief, macabre moment, you were amazed by how fragile your bodies really were.

Then everything went black.

There was nothing but darkness for a long time. You tried to move, tried to call out for Howdy, but nothing happened. You were just... nothing.

That thought scared you. There was so much more than that. Light. Color. Noises and smells. Life. You couldn't be nothing, that just wasn't possible. You had memories and goals. You had a spouse and a family. You had an estate to attend to you. You couldn't just... not be.

Panic twisted your stomach into knots, clawed its way up your throat, and came out of your mouth as a scream: “Help! Help me!”

“Alright, alright! Calm down!”

You stopped. That voice sounded familiar, but you couldn't quite put your finger on who it was.

Then you heard another, timid voice. “Is it always like this?”

That one you did recognize, because you had just heard it a few days ago. It was Eddie. Your instinct was to gasp, but you couldn't. I can't breathe. Oh, God, I can't breathe.

The first voice spoke again: “Often, yes. It all depends on the person and how at peace they are.”

There was a shuffling nearby. It was odd, despite the panic coursing through you, your body was strangely... calm. You expected your heart to be thumping fast and heavy in your ears and for your palms to be sweaty, but there was nothing.

The space above you shifted with a low creak and light stabbed your eyes. You flinched, blinked, then stared at the two faces above you blurring into focus.

Eddie and Frank were leaned over, looking down at you. They both offered you sad, soft smiles.

Your neck was stiff as you looked around. Your were laying in some sort of bed. It wasn't comfortable; even though it was all silk, there was no cushion, and the pillow at your head was much too small. Your mind was sluggish like you had just woken from a long nap. You had to blink several times and crane your neck to the left before you realized that Frank was holding open a lid.

You were in a casket.

Your tongue felt like cement in your mouth as you stammered, “Am... am I d-dead?”

Eddie gave you a pitying look. “Oh, Y/N.”

“Come on,” Frank said, “the sooner you get on your feet, the better you'll feel.” He and Eddie grabbed you under your arms and hoisted you out of the casket, which was sitting on a table. They helped you find your footing and Frank instructed you through some stretches to shake off the rigor mortis. You took a moment to look around.

You were in a sort of cavern, full of other caskets sitting on tables. Some looked new, others old and decayed.

“Where are we?” you asked.

“The Land of the Dead. Specifically, an offshoot of our village, just below the graveyard where you were buried,” Frank said.

You felt dizzy. “So... the crash... I didn't make it.”

Eddie put his hand on your shoulder. “No one made it except the driver. When the tree fell, he got thrown off, but he survived. Poor man blames himself for what happened. Thinks he should have kept better hold of the reins or suggested you leave sooner to avoid the storm.” He squeezed your shoulder. “They say you and Howdy died in each other's arms.”

“Howdy...” Your stomach was churning and you wondered if you could still get sick even if you were dead.

Eddie nodded. “Frank had to break a couple of rules, but we went to the Land of the Living to see your funeral—”

“From a safe distance, of course,” Frank interrupted.

“Of course. Your parents spared no expense. They got you a big, beautiful gravestone and there were flowers everywhere. You and Howdy were buried next to each other in the outfits you got married in.”

You glanced down at yourself for the first time and realized he was right, you were wearing the outfit your mother had picked out for your wedding, complete with your wedding band on your left hand.

Not only that, but you were also wearing the other wedding band on your right hand. Wally's wedding band. It was the same ring Wally had worn all those years ago, after you had practiced your vows in the woods. You ended up keeping it for myself since Howdy's mother insisted that you purchase new rings for your next attempt at getting married, (”I'll have no cursed rings at this ceremony,” she said). You could never bring yourself to get rid of it, though, and eventually fell into the habit of wearing it on your right hand while you wore your actual wedding ring on your left.

You were surprised that you had been buried with it, considering everything. Perhaps your family decided that since you wore it all the time, it held sentimental value to you and you'd want to keep it. Or, you shuddered to consider this, your hands were too swollen to get it off.

You shook those thoughts away and looked back to Eddie. “Where is Howdy?” you asked. “If he was buried next to me, shouldn't he be here?”

Frank and Eddie exchanged a glance. “We aren't sure where he is,” Eddie said.

“We've been keeping an eye out for him, but we think he's gone to the upstairs,” Frank added.

“The upstairs?”

“Heaven, Paradise, Nirvana, whatever you call it. You can go to whatever version of the afterlife you choose once you pass on. Unless you're someone like Julie.” They frowned. “Someone like that who has caused suffering for others doesn't get a choice. She's downstairs.”

“So, if there's an upstairs and a downstairs, where are we? The ground floor?”

Frank's mouth twitched into a smile. “Something like that. The people who end up here usually either can't make up their mind where they want to go or have unfinished business. You could join Howdy upstairs, if you wanted.”

You considered this, but the idea made your head spin. Where exactly did Howdy go, and how would you go about joining him?

Frank nodded to a nearby hallway. “We can talk more about this, later. Come on, the others are waiting to see you.”

The others. You perked up a bit remembering them. Sally, Poppy, Barnaby, even your old dog, Scraps. You followed Frank out of the cavern, and Eddie fell into step beside you, whistling a cheery tune as you walked.

The bells were already ringing by the time you reached the village, and as you got closer to the old tavern you could hear a chorus of voices all calling out, “New arrival! New arrival!”

Eddie chuckled beside you. “Poppy is up to her ears in cooking. They just had a Welcome Feast for me the other day.”

You tried to swallow, but your mouth was too dry. God, Eddie's, funeral was just the other day, and now here you were. You weren't sure if you could take part in any kind of feast; your mind was still reeling from everything that had happened.

You entered the tavern and were immediately greeted by Sally, the tragic Shakespearean actor, who gripped your hand and was roughly shaking it as soon as you stepped through the door. “Well, it's about time you showed up!” she said.

“Easy, Sally. Y/N is still adjusting,” Frank said as they came in beside you.

“Yeah, yeah,” Sally said as she tugged you across the room and sat you down at a bar. “So how'd it happen?”

You cleared your throat. “Um. A carriage accident.”

She whistled. “Wow, that's a rough way to go. Do you remember any of it?”

“Not really. I got knocked out pretty quickly.”

There was a loud thud beside you as a familiar, tall blue dog plopped down in the seat on your other side. “Welp, that's good at least,” Barnaby said as he handed you a frothing mug of beer.

“Sure is. Not remembering violent deaths makes the transition a little easier.”

Barnaby leaned over, his eyeball rolling into his right socket, and peered at you. “And judging by all the schmutz on your face, I'm guessing it wasn't a pretty sight.”

“Schmutz?” You gently touched your face and realized that you had a very thick layer of makeup on.

“Oh yeah! We need to get that off you right away. It looks awful.” Sally stood up and cupped her hands around her mouth. “Poppyyyyyy! I need a mirrooooooooor!”

“One moment, please!” a high-pitched, crow-like voice squawked from the kitchen. “Goodness me, I'm going to start molting again from all these feasts.” Poppy walked into the space behind the bar, wiping her wings on her apron, and she looked up at you. “Oh, my dear Y/N. I heard the rumors, but I didn't know if they were true. I'm so sorry.”

You couldn't help but smile at Poppy, remembering the way she comforted you when you first came here and were scared out of your wits. “I'm fine. It's good to see you again.”

She smiled back at you before digging through her apron pocket. “Let's see, I think I have a mirror in here, somewhere. Ah!” She withdrew a tiny hand mirror and handed it to you. “Please don't be insulted, but whoever did your funeral makeup certainly did you a disservice.”

You looked into the mirror and blanched when you realized that they were right. The makeup didn't match your skin tone and made you look horribly discolored, and they seemed to try and make up for that by applying huge splotches of rouge to your cheeks and lips. You grimaced at your reflection.

“Uh huh. Here,” Sally said while handing you a rag.

You went to work cleaning up your face and neck, scrubbing the makeup away. You froze when you glanced at your reflection again and noticed just how much you had changed. Your skin had taken on a bluish tint, and you had massive stitches across your neck and down your right temple. You gently prodded at your temple and flinched when a fraction of your skull shifted under your touch. No, the accident wasn't pretty at all.

Sally noticed this and took the rag and mirror from you. “Here, I'll finish,” she said.

“You'll get used to it,” Barnaby said as Sally got to work. “Imagine how Poppy was when she first got here and saw that half of her face was missing.”

Sally finished and nodded with satisfaction. “There. Now you look like one of us!”

“The stitches are a nice touch, too. Makes you look like a pirate,” Barnaby said.

Sally gasped. “Oooo. We could do a production of The Pirates of Penzance! Are you a good singer?”

“Me? Well, uh—”

Barnaby laughed then stood up. “Care if I go ahead and audition?” He started singing “I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General” before anyone could protest, going out of his way to use a silly voice and make larger-than-life funny gestures.

Eddie took Barnaby's seat beside you and helped himself to the drink that Poppy put down in front of him. “So, what do you think you're going to do now?”

You pondered this for a moment. “I'm not sure. What can I do?”

“Whatever you want, really. You could move on to another afterlife upstairs, or you could stay here. Take care of whatever unfinished business you have.”

You shrugged. “I guess that's why I'm here, huh? I just can't make up my mind?”

Poppy leaned against the bar and giggled. “Oh, no. I think you do have unfinished business.”

You tilted your head. “What?”

Sally's attention was brought back to you and she propped her elbows on the bar, giving you a sly smile. “Oh, yeah. And I bet we all know what it is.”

“I'm confused,” you said.

“Oh, come on. Do we really need to spell it out for you?” she said with a groan. “How about the guy you almost drank poison for?”

Your eyes widened. “Wally?”

Sally and Poppy both nodded. Barnaby gave up on his performance when he realized no one was watching him juggle three empty beer mugs and approached you again. “Sounds about right,” he said.

“But that's not possible. Wally, he... he's gone. I saw him disappear.”

Frank approached you from behind and placed their hand on your shoulder. “He's not gone. Souls don't just disappear like that.”

“Yeah, and he visited us a couple of weeks ago,” Barnaby added.

You felt something deep within you—your heart, maybe? even though it wasn't beating anymore?—jump up at the revelation. “Where is he? Upstairs?”

“Nah, I think Poppy would have let us know if he was living in the attic.” Barnaby laughed when Frank gave him a sharp glare.

“Not precisely. Last I heard, he's residing in another in-between kind of place. It's a little bit harder to get there since it's separate from our world, but he's figured it out well enough that he still visits us from time to time,” Frank said.

Your throat clenched like a fist and your eyes were stinging. You pressed your hands against your mouth and sniffled.

Poppy grinned. “I knew it.”

“Please. We all knew it,” Sally said.

“How do I find him?” you said.

Frank put a hand to his chin. “Well, he told me that there are a couple of ways to get there, but for most of them you have to know what you're looking for. I haven't been able to go there, myself, so I won't be very much help, there.” They tapped his jaw and hummed a bit in thought. “I suppose I could give you the spell I gave Wally before. It's a bit of a gamble, but I'm sure it won't be much of a problem for you. It's a spell to help you find your heart's desire. I gave it to him when he first got here in case he ever changed his mind about that unfinished business of his, and he kept it with him for years. Didn't use it until that day in the Land of the Living.”

You remembered that moment vividly, when you watched as Wally's body dissolved into hundreds of blue and grey butterflies. “That was a spell? I thought he was gone.”

Frank shook his head. “I think once he decided that he was satisfied, he needed something to help him move on. He's happy where he is now, if not a little lonely.”

You hugged yourself. You had never considered the possibility of seeing Wally again, and now that you were told that it was possible, your heart seemed to sing at the idea. But something was holding you back.

“What about Howdy?”

Frank sighed. “I can't help you with that. I'm afraid that's a decision you'll have to make on your own.”

“If it makes you feel any better,” Eddie said, “you're not limited to one place. You can visit each afterlife whenever you want. I visited my parents in the upstairs the other day, but I'm staying here to be with Frank.” As he said this, he took Frank's hand and gave them a sweet smile. “So, uh, if you want to see Howdy again, you can. But you don't have to stay anywhere. You're free to do what you want.”

That seemed to loosen some of the tension in your chest. You took a deep breath and let your heart take over. “Okay. How do I use that spell?”

Frank smiled. “We'll need to get some things out of my office.”

You stood and followed Frank out the door. Sally whooped behind you, “Woo hoo! Lover boy's getting his partner back!”

“We'll have that Welcome Feast another time, alright?” Poppy called.

Barnaby just hummed to himself, considering adding another verse to “Remains of the Day” so that the story would have a happy ending, after all. Then again, he'd probably have to sacrifice the catchy instrumental part in the middle so the song wasn't too long, and he wasn't willing to do that.

You and Eddie stood in silence as you watched Frank dig through his various supplies. He scrutinized their spell book as he carefully measured and combined the ingredients. When they were finished, he handed you a small capsule the size of a marble.

“This is it?” you asked.

He nodded. “It looks unassuming, but it is a very powerful spell. All you have to do is crush it in your hand and you'll be sent to wherever your heart's desire is. Though, you may need to try and focus on one thing, or else you may get sent to the wrong place.”

“But don't worry. If you get lost, just find a graveyard and enter a crypt to go underground, and you'll find a village associated with that grave yard. You should be able to find your way back from there,” Eddie said.

You nodded, staring at the capsule in the palm of your hand.

Without warning, Eddie pulled you into a hug. “Take care of yourself, okay, bud? And you'd better visit us all the time, or I'll come find you, myself.”

You smiled and leaned into his hug. “I will. I promise.”

Frank sniffed and cleared their throat, trying to hide the fact that you reminded him of themselves when he was young and fell in love with Eddie for the first time. “Alright, go on before Eddie decides to make you stay here.”

You turned to Frank and gave him a hug, too. “Thank you,” you whispered.

They awkwardly patted your back. “Of course.” He led you out to his balcony that overlooked the village. “I will warn you, it may be a bit of a bumpy ride.”

You walked to the edge of the balcony, looked back over your shoulder at them as Eddie put his arm around Frank. You took a deep breath—just out of habit at this point, and it was an odd sensation to feel your lungs stretch for the first time in a while—then turned your face up. You closed your eyes and pictured Wally, wherever he was, then you squeezed your right hand until the capsule burst and a fine powder spilled out between your fingers.

Nothing happened, at first. You opened your eyes again and looked down, wondering if you'd done something wrong.

But then you felt another strange sensation: an unraveling, like your body was falling away from you. A gust of wind swirled around you, your feet and the tips of your fingers tingled, and your body transformed into hundreds of butterflies.

Just like Wally.

Normally, you would have been frightened. You weren't. Your heart jumped up in your throat with excitement. You almost laughed, but your face and mouth had been transformed by then.

You were jumbling, fluttering, riding on the wind current, spread out in a great cloud of delicate wings. You tumbled through the air, trying and failing to grasp what was happening and where you were going. The world flew past you in a blur. You felt free.

You jolted when your feet suddenly met solid ground. You blinked, held your hands out in front of you and found them whole again.

You were in a circular clearing in the middle of a grove of trees. You spun around in a circle, taking in your surroundings. The trees were all tall and dark, and each tree on the edge of this clearing had a door carved into it. A four-leaf clover, a big red heart, a Christmas tree? An Easter egg? These were all symbols associated with holidays.

“Oh!” a quiet voice sounded behind you. You turned to face them and stared, slack-jawed, at the person who met you. She was a tall, slender woman standing at the edge of the grove. Her skin was made of a blue fabric and she had long, red hair and wore a colorful, patchwork dress. A small basked was hanging from the crook of her arm, stuffed with sprigs of lavender. Her round, glassy, babydoll eyes blinked at you. She smiled and dipped her head down. “I'm sorry. I wasn't expecting to find anyone else here.”

You struggled to find your words as you were still wrapping your head around the concept that a giant rag doll was talking to you. This was all a lot for you to take in one day. You coughed and said, “No, I'm sorry. I'm just... looking for someone.”

The woman tilted her head. “Is that so? Who are you looking for?”

“A man named Wally Darling. He's a...” You hesitated, unsure how foreign this would be to her.

But she finished the sentence for you. “A corpse? Like you?”

You smiled bashfully. “Yes.”

The woman grinned even bigger. “Then it's a good thing I found you. He's from the same town as me.”

That jolt of excitement shot through you again. It seemed like the spell that Frank made for you worked like a charm. “Really? Can you take me there?”

“Of course.” She walked up to you, her stride small and with a noticeable limp, thought she didn't seem to be in pain. She held out her hand. “My name is Sally, by the way,” she said.

Another Sally, you thought. You shook her hand and introduced yourself. She nodded, then motioned to the side toward a tree with a door shaped like a jack-o-lantern in it. “We'll be heading to Halloween Town. This is the fastest way there,” she continued. She limped to the tree, turned the knob that was disguised as the jack-o-lantern's nose, and the door swung outward. You cautiously approached it and looked down into the hollow tree. There was nothing but darkness, and the door opened to a steep drop-off that you couldn't see the bottom of.

“I find it easiest to just close my eyes and jump,” she said. “I know it can be a bit intimidating sometimes, but I promise, it's perfectly safe. My husband and I come through here all the time.”

You swallowed, grabbed hold of the doorway, and shut your eyes. A gentle breeze blew through, carrying the comforting scent of fallen leaves and caramel apples. A smile crept onto your face, and you pulled yourself through the doorway and jumped.

There was only a second of free fall before you landed smartly on your rear end in a giant pile of leaves. You grunted and clambered to your feet.

Sally appeared beside you. “Are you alright? That happens a lot for first-timers.”

You straightened up and said, “Yeah, I'm fine. Not like I can get much worse.”

She giggled at that and motioned for you to follow her. You walked together down a dirt path that cut through the woods and she asked you about where you came from and how you got here. She was a good listener as you told her everything.

“How do you know Wally?” she asked.

“We, um...” Your face heated up and you found yourself fiddling with the band on your right hand. “It's a long story. Let's just say we're... old friends.”

“I see,” she said with a knowing look that made you blush more. But then she looked forward and said, “Here we are.”

You both crested a hill and looked down on an archway with “Halloween Town” spelled out in black, iron letters. A large town bustled with activity down below. The architecture was conflictingly made of a combination of twisting, curving lines and jagged, sharp angles, and the citizens seemed to enjoy and monochrome color palette with occasional splashes of bright color. You followed Sally down the path and entered the town.

You had to keep yourself from gawking when you saw the first couple of citizens gathered in the town square: a wolf man dressed in tattered flannel chatting with a bulking man dressed in overalls with an axe stuck in his head. They both gawked at you, though, when you came into a view.

“Look! Queen Sally has brought in someone new!” the wolf man exclaimed with a gravelly voice.

You glanced at her. “Queen Sally?”

She blushed. “Ah, yes, I didn't mention that. I'm the Pumpkin Queen.”

“Oh!” You fumbled and started to bow, but Sally stopped you.

“Please, don't. That's exactly why I don't go around announcing that to everyone. Just treat me like you would anyone else.”

You nodded. “Sorry.”

“And don't apologize, either.” She hooked her arm around yours and said, “Now, let's go find Wally.”

She led you away, but not before you noticed that a trio of women, (witches, you guessed, based on their clothes and pointed hats) had gathered around the wolf man and were whispering conspiratorially.

You hadn't gone far before you stumbled upon two more citizens: a man wearing a long trench coat and tall, thin top hat, and an even taller, thin, and gangly skeleton dressed in a pin-stripped suit with tails on his coat and a bat bowtie. They were both leaned over something on a table.

Sally perked up a bit beside you. “Oh, that's my husband over there. He may know where Wally is.” She waved her free hand and called, “Jack! Jack!”

The skeleton looked up and his face split into a wide, toothy grin. “Sally! Perfect timing! Mr. Hyde and I were just testing out his newest creation. Would you care to see?”

She nodded and walked to the table, where Jack presented her with a large, orange bowl of candy with a small sign taped to the front that read “Just Take One.”

“A seemingly normal bowl, yes? Perfectly welcoming to trick-or-treaters.”

“Of course,” she agreed.

“Go and take a piece. Just one.”

Sally did as he said a delicately picked up a wrapped piece of butterscotch. She waited a moment, then raised a brow at him. “Is that all?”

“Precisely, because you were good and only took one. Now, pretend you are a greedy trick-or-treater and try to grab a handful.”

Sally nodded and drove her hand into the bowl, grabbing a large handful of candy, when a ghostly hand jumped from within the depths of the bowl and grabbed her wrist. She gasped, startled, then laughed. “What fun!”

Jack clapped Mr. Hyde on the back. “You see? A brilliant idea! I knew you were an excellent choice for the knew town scientist. Well done!”

Mr Hyde chuckled, pleased with himself. “You flatter me, Jack.”

Sally gently tugged at Jack's arm and whispered to him. He looked at you and his eyes lit up. “Oh, my apologies! I was so caught up in my work, I hadn't noticed you there.” He swept into a low bow. “Jack Skellington, Pumpkin King and Co-Representative of Halloween.” He stood upright and draped an arm over Sally's shoulder. “And you've already met my wife and partner, Sally.” He looked you up and down, then beamed. “We don't get very many new faces, but you seem like you'll fit right in, here.”

You cleared your throat and said, “Actually, Mr. uh, Skellington—”

“Please, Jack is fine.”

“Jack,” you corrected, “I'm actually looking for someone. Wally Darling?”

He raised a brow and glanced at Sally, who only smiled up at him. “Your name wouldn't happen to be Y/N, would it?”

Your eyes widened. “Yes. Why?”

“He talks about you all the time. Oh, he'll be over the moon when he sees you!”

You could have sworn that your heart thudded hearing that, but that couldn't have been possible, could it?

Jack tilted his head and hummed. “I just saw him a moment ago. I may know where he is. Follow me!” He let go of Sally and strode away. You glanced at Sally and she nodded to you, urging you forward, then you jogged to follow the skeleton.

Jack led the way down a twisting cobblestone path that led out of the town and into farmland that mostly consisted of pumpkins. He led you through a graveyard and up a steep hill, and his long strides took him up the hill faster than you could keep up with. You couldn't run out of breath, anymore, but that didn't stop your muscles from aching as you hiked after him. As you reached the top of the hill, you could see another hill in the distance that made the shape of a spiral. As you took in the view, your gaze wandered from the massive spiral and down to the bottom where another there was another pumpkin patch.

You froze when you saw him. There was no mistaking him with his blue, patchwork skin and signature hair style. He wasn't wearing the wedding tuxedo anymore; now he donned a simple white shirt and blue striped pants. He was seated at a stool in the middle of the pumpkin patch with an easel in front of him, hard at work on a painting. You would have gasped if you still had breath, and your body moved before you completely comprehended what you were seeing.

Wally.

As you came closer, you could see that he was recreating the view of the spiral hill on his painting. His back was to you, and he hummed quietly as he worked, so deep in thought that he didn't notice you and Jack approaching until Jack called his name.

“Wally! I thought we'd find you here.” Jack leaned over Wally's shoulder and looked at the painting. “Ah, is this my commission? It's coming along swimmingly.”

All you saw was Wally's side profile as he smiled up at Jack. “Thank you. I'm just touching up a few details, right now. It should be finished in a day or so, when it dries.”

“It will be a wonderful anniversary gift. Sally will love it!”

Wally turned back to his painting, and Jack glanced at you like he'd just remembered you were there. “Actually, Wally, I needed to speak to you.”

“Hm?”

“It seems,” Jack said, putting his hand on Wally's shoulder, “that someone is here to see you.”

Wally gave Jack a confused look, then turned.

His eyes widened, and the paintbrush fell from his limp fingers.

Neither of you moved. His eyes trailed up and down your body. He stood, took a few hesitant steps forward, and said, “Y/N?”

You smiled. “Hello, Wally,” you said.

Jack was beaming.

Wally blinked, then shook his head. “I'm dreaming.”

You almost laughed. Your hands were shaking. “No, you're not.”

“I am. You... you can't be here. It's not possible.”

“Wally...”

“I'm going to open my eyes, and you'll be gone.”

You approached him, took his hand, and pressed it against your face. His eyes dilated and his mouth fell open.

“I'm here,” you whispered.

He studied your face, and his fingers trailed down your jaw and to your neck, where they found the stitches. He glanced at them, and his mouth opened wider. “Oh...” His other hand found your neck and he gently traced the stitches. He gently turned your head from side to side as he looked you over like he was just noticing the bluish tint your skin had taken, and his gaze fell on the stitches on your temple. “What happened?”

“A carriage accident.”

He covered his mouth. “Oh, no...”

You took his hand again. “It's alright. I don't remember anything.”

You noticed tears forming at the corners of his eyes. “I'm so sorry.”

You cupped his cheek. “Don't be. I'm alright.”

Jack coughed. “I believe you two will be wanting some time alone?” He leaned down and whispered to Wally, “I recommend the top of Spiral Hill. Very romantic spot.” He winked, and Wally started to blush.

“Thank you,” he mumbled before he gripped your hand tightly and led you toward Spiral Hill. You trudged to the top together, hand in hand, and you looked out over the view of the graveyard and pumpkin patch, grey and black with dots of orange.

Wally turned to you and took a tight hold of both your hands. “Tell me everything.”

You didn't speak, because with him holding your hands I noticed something for the first time. When you had met before, when you were still alive, whenever he touched you his skin was always freezing cold. Now it wasn't. You realized it was because we were the same temperature. It made you want to hold him closer.

“I already told you, I was in a carriage accident.”

“No, no. I mean... tell me about your life. What happened after I left?”

“You want me to tell you all of that? Right now?”

He nodded. “We have all the time in the world, now.”

You grinned, and then you did just that. You told him about your marriage to Howdy, the relationship you had formed, the good and bad times, and you told him that during those seven years, you never forgot him. You were afraid that he would be upset or sad when you told him about your marriage, but he seemed to be the contrary.

“I'm glad,” he said. “I was hoping I was making the right decision. It's good to know that you lived a good life after I was gone, even if... even if it was a short one.”

He had looked away, and you gently cupped his cheek so that he would look at you. “The others in the Land of the Dead said that the reason I stayed behind was likely because I had unfinished business. At first, I didn't know what they were talking about, but I think I do, now.” Despite building up to that, you suddenly became bashful and couldn't quite find the words.

Wally touched your hand on his face and leaned into it. “You were looking for me?”

You nodded. “The thing is... I missed y—”

He interrupted you by pressing his lips to yours.

He had only ever kissed you once before, that night on the bridge. You weren't sure if that even counted since you fainted when he did. You remembered being terrified back then, your stomach swirling and your heart thumping so hard and fast you thought you were about to have a heart attack. You remembered how cold his lips were, and how dizzy you were from the fear.

This was different. Obviously, you weren't afraid, now, but it was more than that. It was rushed and passionate, not the formal seal of the vows that Wally had done before. And it was warm. You still felt dizzy, though.

When he pulled away, you stared into each other's eyes for a moment, then you took his shoulders and pulled him back to you for another kiss. Your hand went to the back of his head and your fingers tangled into his soft hair. His hands trailed up and down your back. You gripped each other as if the second one of you let go, you'd be lost forever. You finally pulled away again when you heard the sound of an applause in the distance.

At the top of one of the nearby hills, a small crowd of monsters and ghouls had formed, and they were whooping and cheering. Jack and Sally stood at the center of the crowd, smiling up at you as Sally leaned into Jack's shoulder.

“So much for alone time,” you muttered. You turned back to Wally to see him beaming up at you. His eyes sparkled.

He wrapped his arms around your waist and lifted you up into a twirl. You yelped in surprise and gripped his shoulders. He laughed heartily as he set you back down, then he leaned his forehead into yours, and for a moment you simply relished in each other's company.

“Thank you,” he said. “I've missed you, too. I know that I was selfish before, but I really am glad that you came to find me.”

You were surprised to feel your heart melting a bit when he said that—it seemed that even if your heart didn't beat anymore, it was still capable of swelling and melting with emotion.

The ring on your right hand glinted in the moonlight. A knot formed in your throat. “I think... I think I know what my unfinished business is, now.”

Wally tilted his head, curious.

You took the ring off your finger and held it up to him. “I want to try again. Properly, this time. Nothing in our way, and no interruptions. I want to give you the wedding you deserve.”

Wally's eyes widened a bit, then he chuckled and shook his head. “It was never just about the wedding, you know. I wanted true love. A happy ending.”

“Exactly,” you said. “I want to give you that. A big, beautiful ceremony to celebrate true love, and a real happily ever after.” You cleared your throat, suddenly nervous. “If you'd like that, I mean.”

He broke into a wide smile. “Are you asking me to marry you?”

You nodded. “Yes. Will you marry me? Again?”

He laughed again and pulled you into a hug. “Yes. If you will have me.”

You closed your eyes and leaned into the hug. “Of course I will.”

You finally pulled apart once again to slip the band on Wally's finger, right where it belonged.

A/N: Yes, I already know I'm cringe. Don't look at me.

#welcome home fanfic #corpse puppet au #wally darling x y/n #wally darling x reader #nightmare before christmas crossover #jack x sally

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thruheavenandhighwater · 1 year ago

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Nightmares

Pairing: Eddie Munson/ Reader

Word Count: 2,333

Summary: Eddie comforts you after a nightmare of an abusive past relationship wakes you in the middle of the night.

Content Warning: Trauma, nightmares, mentions of past abuse (SA specifically), Eddie lowkey threatening someone who hurt reader in their past.

This is based 100% on my own nightmare last night. The nightmare portion of this fic is like 95% exactly what happened in my own dream. All I wanted was someone to hold me and make me feel safe and cared for. I didn't have that, so I wrote this instead.

He was yelling again. Unintelligible on the other side of the bedroom door, but he was definitely yelling. Fear gripped you- an ice cold hand like a vice around your chest. His voice is cut off by the slamming of the front door and you beg your heart to stop beating like a kick drum against your ribcage. You will the tears to stay behind your eyelids. The bed you're in is suffocating. The sheets and blankets you'd chosen only months before have now seen you at your worst more often than not. You're disgusted by the bluish green sort of color. You'd chosen them in hopes of happier times. You'd been mistaken.

The moment you heard his car start up outside, you held your breath. Listening. Waiting. Finally, mercifully, you hear the sound of snow crunching beneath tires due for a rotation. You hear the car backing out of its assigned spot just outside the window of your apartment. Your ears strain to follow it as it stops at the entrance before turning left. You follow the sound until eventually it blends in with the rest of the noise of a college town in the middle of the night. He's gone. You have no way of knowing for how long, but for now he's gone.

You pull back the edge of the curtain just enough. You confirm what you'd heard, that his car is gone. That you're safe even if it is for just a moment. He's gone. You pull yourself away from the bed sheets that feel irreparably soiled and redress in the pajamas you'd pulled from the dryer just a few hours ago. Opening the bedroom door feels more like walking into a warzone than into your own living room. Something brushes against your leg. Something small. Black and white fur, a purr vibrating against your shin.

Luci.

Sweet Lucifur. Your little angel. Your sweet boy. The only good thing in the small apartment you shared with the man who was supposed to be the love of your life. You reach down, hands under his butt and his belly as you gather him up, holding him to your chest. He rests his head on your shoulder. You swear it's like he knows what happens behind that closed bedroom door. Like he knows you're hurting in so many ways. Like he knows that he has the power to make you feel a little better just by existing. He allows you to hold him, crying into his fur as his purr soothes your heavy heart.

Something clicks. Something tells you, finally, that you can leave. That you can go somewhere else. Somewhere that you can be safe for more than a few fleeting moments. You press a kiss to the top of Luci's head before setting him on the couch.

Your hands shake, more tears falling to your cheeks as you make your way through the apartment. You need to pack. You need some clothes and some money and something to carry Luci in. In the living room is a small metal cage. The former home of the hamster he'd gotten you for your birthday two years ago. When he was still pretending to care. Pretending to be what you had always hoped he would be. You could have sworn you'd thrown that cage away. But there it was, tucked beside the TV stand like a beacon. An option, though you know it's not a good one.

Random pieces of clothing are thrown into a bag. You toss your wallet on top of the heap before lugging it over your shoulder. It's heavier than it looks. You spare a glance through the window over the sink. When did it start snowing again? And why is it coming down so heavy? Fat, white flakes fall gently, coating every visible surface. You see your own car in the lot, right beside the empty space that his usually occupies.

He's still gone. You're still safe. You still have to leave. Opening the closet to retrieve your coat, you're met by something you'd all but forgotten about. There on the floor is the small, black cat carrier. Picked up for a buck at a garage sale shortly after Luci had come into your life. A ray of sunshine right there in your hallway closet. You quickly put Luci into the carrier. You tell him it's going to be okay. That you're going somewhere good. Somewhere better. Somewhere safe.

You hear them suddenly. Footsteps coming down the hall. It's the middle of the night. There's nobody else it could be. Fear settles into your bones once again as you watch the handle of the front door turn-

Your eyes opened almost painfully wide. You feel sweat covering every inch of your body. A deep, gasped breath settles in your lungs as you take in your surroundings. It was dark, but you could see. You see your bedside table, alarm clock with angry red numbers announcing that it was nearly 4 in the morning. The book you'd started two days ago. A framed photo. Eddie's smiling face right beside yours, his chin resting on your shoulder as he wrapped his arms around your stomach from behind you.

Eddie.

You felt those same arms wrapped around you now. Only this time, they weren't pulling you into him like they'd been in the moment that Jonathan snapped that photo last summer. No, now it was more like they were there by muscle memory alone. Loosely draped over you as soft snores fell from the slightly parted lips of the man they belonged to.

It was a dream. Just a dream. You were safe. You were in your own home with Eddie. You were safe. Eddie would never do the things the other man had done to you. He'd never touch you the way that he did. He'd never yell at you or slam doors or do anything to make you feel that kind of fear that seemed to overtake every other emotion. He would never. You knew that. But knowing those things couldn't stop the way your heart was beating too fast in your chest. It didn't stop you from feeling like you were going to cry. Like you needed to be out of this bed immediately.

You moved as slowly as you possibly could, pulling yourself away from Eddie. Usually his embrace was welcomed. Craved, even. But right now, moments after waking from a nightmare about a situation that was supposed to be nearly a decade in the past, it felt wrong.

Luci greeted you in the living room. He'd been roused from his own sleep by your footsteps down the hallway. He rubbed his side against your leg the same way he had in your dream and you felt tears begin to prickle against the back of your eyes. You reached down to scratch his furry head for just a moment. You couldn't help but smile to yourself when his little eyes fell closed as he pressed further into your touch.

You shrugged into a flannel of Eddie's. He'd worn it a few days ago, but it had been tossed on the couch and more or less forgotten ever since. You pulled it tighter around your body as you stepped out the front door of your home. The seasons were well on their way to changing. Warm summer nights had officially given way to chilly September nights. The fireflies were gone. Nobody was out doing clandestine bonfires at 4 am. It was just you and your thoughts as a cool wind blew around you. Eddie's cigarettes sat on the small table on the porch. You settled into the chilled cushion of the loveseat style seat and pulled a cigarette from the pack, thankful that he left them outside when you realized you hadn't grabbed your own.

You don't even know how long you sat outside, the dream replaying on a loop in your mind as the cigarette burned down to the filter. It was strange, to say the least. That entire situation was supposed to be in your past. It wasn't supposed to creep up on you like this. You hadn't dreamt about it for years. But it all felt so real. So fresh. So terrifying. You pressed the cigarette butt into the ashtray on the table and took a deep breath. You rested your elbows on your knees, doubling over as your face fell to your hands. You wanted to cry. To purge the bad dream from your mind. But you couldn't. The tears just wouldn't come.

You heard movement inside the house. You knew it wasn't Luci. He was too quiet, too small to make the amount of noise you heard. You kept your face buried in your hands as Eddie slowly opened the front door. You heard the bottom of his slippers against the porch as he pulled the door closed behind him.

"'S goin' on?" He asked, voice gravely and deep. You finally pulled your head from your hands to look at him. Black sweatpants hung low on his hips. His favorite grey sweatshirt thrown over his chest. His dark curls, undoubtedly unruly from sleep, were contained beneath the back of the neck of the sweatshirt as he rubbed his left eye with a tired hand.

"Bad dream," you admitted quietly.

Eddie nodded and stepped towards you. He fell into the seat next to you, his arm over the back of it. You scooted closer to him as his arm rested over your shoulders. He held you tightly with one arm, the other hand placing a cigarette between his plush lips.

"Wanna tell me about it?"

You held your breath for a moment. "Promise you won't get mad?"

"Why would I get mad?"

"Just… please? Promise me?"

He took a hit from his cigarette. The smoke floated out into the cold air around you as he rested his hand on the arm of the seat. "I promise I won't get mad." He finally answered.

"I dreamed I was with my ex," you told him.

"Which one?" He asked. The name of the man who had hurt you came out almost embarrassingly quietly. Like you were as afraid of his name as you were of him. You felt Eddie tense around you. His arm tightened around your shoulders. He seemed to hold his breath as his chest stilled beneath you. You waited for him to relax before you kept telling him about the dream. You'd told Eddie about him at the beginning of your relationship. Eddie had promised you that day that if he ever got your ex boyfriend alone, he'd make him sorry for what he'd done. He told you he'd make him regret it and you believed him.

"He was screaming at me and I was so scared. Then he just left. He just slammed the door and I swear it sounded exactly like it did when it actually happened. And Luci was there."

He pulled away from you just enough to look down at you. His eyebrows raised in his forehead. "Our Luci? But we got him together."

"Yeah, it was weird. I was going through the old apartment trying to figure out how to leave. I packed up some clothes and put Luci in his carrier and then…" You paused. Stopped, really. The same fear you felt in your dream threatened to swallow you whole again. Eddie pressed a kiss to the top of your head. His hand on your shoulder gripped just a little tighter. He told you to keep going when you were ready. That he was here. He was listening. He cared.

"I was trying to leave before he came back and right when I was ready to go he came back. God, it felt so fucking real. The door knob turned and then I woke up. I was all sweaty and shaking and scared. I don't even know why I came out here," you admitted with a wet chuckle.

"Just needed some fresh air."

"Guess so."

You sat in silence with Eddie for a few minutes. He leaned forward, dropping his own cigarette into the ashtray in front of you. He brought that now empty hand up to join the other that was still around your shoulders. He enveloped you completely in a warm, safe embrace.

"I'm sorry you dreamed about that," he told you softly. "It sucks that even now that scummy little creep can still make you feel like this."

"It's not fair," you sniffled into his chest.

"No, it's not," he agreed. "But you know he's gone, right? I swear that as long as I'm around he won't ever get near you again. And I'm sorry to say that you're stuck with me for life, baby."

You looked up at him with a smile. His face was half shadows, a street light in front of your neighbor's house lighting the other half. You could see his own smile, soft and loving.

"'M not stuck," you told him. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

You sat outside for a few more minutes. Eddie lit one last cigarette, passing it to you to help calm your nerves before heading back inside. Luci joined you in bed as you snuggled into Eddie's bare chest. His skin warm and comforting. Luci got comfortable pressed into your back. Eddie reached around you to pet his head.

"Me and you are protectors, huh buddy?" He asked as Luci soaked up the attention. "Kick ol' boys sorry ass if he ever tries to come around here."

You smiled as your eyes began to feel heavy. You were able to fall back to sleep, Eddie's arms around you as your darling cat purred behind you. You wouldn't be able to remember your dream when you woke up, but you were sure it was better than the first. You were safe. You were cared for. You were loved.

You were safe. Finally.

#eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson fanfiction #eddue munson/ reader #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson hurt/comfort #eddie munson/reader #eddie munson/you #eddie munsonxreader

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corroded-hellfire · 2 years ago

Text

Big Brown Eyes - Eddie Munson x Reader, Part 4

Summary: It’s time for your first date with Eddie and your nerves almost get the better of you. Everett also becomes a big hit at the kid’s high school graduation. You can read part three here!

Note: I feel like I need a permanent spot in all of my fics to thank @munson-blurbs for all her help 💚

Warnings: language, anxiety, near anxiety attack, I think that’s it?

Words: 9.5k

[Big Brown Eyes masterlist]

“This one? No, wait. This one?”

Nancy rolls her eyes at you as she sits cross-legged on your bed. She watches as you dig through your drawers and closet, tossing different articles of clothing around the room. A pair of shorts have landed in her lap, two bathing suits are flung over your mirror, and a pile of t-shirts sits by your feet.

“Do you really want my opinions?” Nancy asks. “Or are you just talking to yourself and I’m fortunate enough to be here to hear it?”

“Help me,” you beg, turning from your closet to face her.

“Okay, okay.” Nancy pushes herself off the bed and walks over to you. She guides you by the shoulders and gives you a gentle shove until you’ve taken her previous spot in the bed. The blue and green bathing suits are pulled from your mirror and Nancy tosses the green one to rest on your dresser and the blue one on your lap. “This one. First of all, the color looks perfect on you. Second of all, Eddie won’t be able to stop staring at the cutouts where your skin will peek out.”

“Now what do I wear over it for lunch?” you ask.

There’s a squeal from down the hall and Everett’s ferocious giggling brings a smile to your face. When you left them in the living room ten minutes ago, Steve and Everett were surrounded by Legos and toy dinosaurs. You’re afraid to see the state of the room now. Steve may be an amazing dad, but he’s a horrible maid.

“Simple denim shorts,” Nancy says, bringing you back to the matter at hand. There are a few pairs scattered around the room, so you take a look around and decide on a pair that landed just short of the bed. You scoop them up and put them in the pile with the bathing suit in front of you. “Now, tank top or tee?”

“Um… T-shirt,” you decide.

“Here. This Grateful Dead one.” Nancy tosses it to you, and you catch it with a smile. You weren’t a big Grateful Dead fan, but last Mother’s Day Everett saw the t-shirt with the colorful bears on it at the store and told Steve that’s what he wanted to get you.

Nancy leaves the room so you can change into your outfit for the date, and you quickly apply some waterproof mascara once you’re dressed. The living room is noisy as you walk in. Nancy’s on the floor with Everett and Steve and you’re sure all Everett had to do was flash those wide doe eyes at her and she agreed to play as the T-rex.

“The bears!” Everett says when he sees your shirt.

“They look good, right?” you ask him, looking down at your outfit.

“Yeah! Pretty!”

“Thanks, baby.” You kneel down to give your son a kiss, but he tries to thrust a Stegosaurus doll into your hand. “Aw, Ev, I can’t. Remember? I told you I’m going out and you’re going with Daddy and Nancy tonight?”

He huffs, dropping the toy to the floor, and you know he’s more upset that you won’t play than the fact that you’re going out.

“Want us to head out?” Nancy asks and you shake your head.

“No, just lock up when you leave. I think I’d get a hissy fit if I insist the dinosaurs be moved elsewhere.”

“Have fun,” Steve says, accepting a Pterodactyl from your son.

“Yeah. Have fun,” Everett echoes.

He reluctantly takes his attention from his playtime to give you a hug and kiss goodbye. Nancy squeezes your arm and gives you an encouraging wink before you stand. As you head for the door, you can’t help but wonder how Everett would react if he was a little bit older. He’d never known you and Steve together as a couple, so the concept of Daddy having Nancy and a different home has always been normal to him. But in a few years, he’ll come to realize that his home life isn’t typical. Would Everett be mad you’re going out on a date? Would he throw a fit? Cry?

You realize you’re borrowing unnecessary trouble and force your thoughts to stop where they are and head out the door. Jogging down the steps and walking over to your car, your mind decides it needs to stress out about something. Not only is this the first date you’re going on since you had Everett, but it’s the first date you’re going on that’s not with Steve. Who you already knew before you dated. This is a brand new experience and you don’t do well with those.

Turning up the radio as you pull out onto the road, you’re hoping the music will let you relax a little. The hope was futile though, as you feel your heart rate increase and your breathing speed up. Part of your brain is yelling at you to turn around, go home, where it’s nice and safe, and hide away from the world. But that’s not what you really want.

“Shut up.” Talking to your anxieties out loud might not be very helpful, but what’s the harm in trying? You want to see Eddie. You want to spend time with him. You’re not going to let your traitorous brain deter you from that.

Thumbs beating an erratic rhythm on the steering wheel as you pull up to Lover’s Lake, you can physically feel the adrenaline pumping through your veins. With a deep breath, you put your car into park. A movement out of the corner of your eye catches your attention, and you turn your head to see Eddie climbing out of his van. He’s wearing black swim trunks and a black Black Sabbath t-shirt. He hasn’t seen you yet, so you take the moment to just look at him. He’s so effortlessly beautiful. You study from his slightly frizzy hair down to the old canvas sneakers he’s wearing on his feet. When you’ve finished admiring him, you’re startled to realize that your body feels perfectly calm. There was no more rapid heart, shallow breathing, or dizzying feeling of anxiety. It brings a smile to your face, and you take it as a good sign that just looking at Eddie has a calming effect on you.

At the sound of your car door opening, Eddie turns and a grin lights up his face when he sees you. He comes over to meet you halfway, instantly pulling you into a hug.

“Hey there, beautiful,” he says as he squeezes you against his chest. “How are you?”

“Much better now,” you tell him truthfully. You pull back and the way he looks into your eyes makes your legs turn to jelly. “How are you doing today?”

“Also much better now.” He hasn’t taken his arms from around your body, and you don’t mind one bit. Deciding to take advantage of it, you lean into him and are rewarded by his smile becoming even brighter.

“So, what’d you bring?” you ask. “If I recall, you said it was going to be something even better than fast food.”

“I am a man of my word,” Eddie says. He slips your hand into his and brings you over with him to the back of his van. The doors are already open and there’s a blanket neatly folded next to a large picnic basket. “I’ve got bread with all the sandwich fixings you could want. Potato salad, white wine - or lemonade, because I wasn’t sure if you drink or not. And, not to brag, but I actually made our dessert from a recipe I found.”

He hands you the blanket and he slides the basket over his arm so he can close the doors.

“I’m impressed,” you tell him as the two of you walk closer to the water’s edge. “What did you make?”

“Cherry cobbler bars.”

You shoot him a smile as you spread the blanket down over the grass. Eddie sets the basket down on one corner and you take a seat opposite each other. The yellow blanket is softer than it looks, the cotton comforting against your bare legs.

“How’d you know cherry is my favorite?” you ask.

“I must just know you,” he says with a wink.

A flush comes to your cheeks as Eddie starts to unpack the food from the basket. He gives you a choice of drink and you decide to have one of each. Eddie mixes the wine and lemonade together, saying he’ll see how it tastes, but the face he makes when the concoction touches his lips has you giggling so hard your stomach hurts. He pours the cup out on the grass and refills it with just lemonade.

Making sandwiches with Eddie shouldn’t be as fun as it is, but he makes you laugh constantly as you both sift through the meats and toppings scattered around the two of you. He scoops some potato salad on your plate, then his, and you both tuck into your food as you keep up a stream of steady conversation. Eddie tells you about his old job back near Evansville, how much of an asshole his boss was, and how the garage here in Hawkins was Heaven compared to that place. You tell him how you always had your nose in a book in high school and how that naturally led you to start your job at the library, since the staff there had known you since you were about six.

“What’s your all-time favorite book then?” Eddie asks. “Or is that too hard for you to pick?”

“Oh no, it’s definitely Pride and Prejudice. Is that too cliche of an answer? Aw well, it’s the truth. What about you?”

“Another cliche answer coming at you,” Eddie says between bites of his turkey sandwich. “The Hobbit.”

“Oh, I’ve been wanting to read that to Everett at bedtime,” you tell him. “He’s in his Dr. Seuss era though, so I think we’re still working our way up to Tolkien.”

Dirtied plates back in the basket, you and Eddie stay on the blanket talking well after the thirty minutes that are needed before you go into the water. The day is warm with a nice cool breeze, only a few wispy clouds in the bright blue sky, and the surface of the lake shines and glitters like it’s been sprinkled with thousands of small diamonds.

“Would you like to go for a swim?” Eddie asks, tilting his head at you, his dark eyes drawing you in.

“That sounds nice,” you say.

Eddie stands and strips his shirt off, leaving you speechless. It’s not the first time you’ve seen him without his shirt, thanks to the surprise visit by his place yesterday, but seeing him in all his ridiculously gorgeous glory would take you a lifetime to get used to. He glances down at you, doing a double take when he sees you staring. A smirk dances on his lips and there’s a dusting of pink over his cheekbones.

“Staring might not be polite but it sure is flattering.”

“O-Oh, sorry,” you stutter, an embarrassed smile coming to your face.

“Please, don’t be.” Eddie offers his hand down to you, which you happily accept. He helps you stand, but you're suddenly self-conscious about stripping down to your swimsuit. Eddie stretches his arms over his head as he looks out at the lake and you’re not sure if he’s giving you a moment of privacy on purpose or not, but you take advantage of it and slip out of your t-shirt and shorts.

When he turns back to you, he’s a gentleman, not obviously ogling you like you’d just done to him. But he does smile, pulling you closer to him and resting his hands on your hips.

“You look good in blue,” he says. His thumbs rub over bare skin where they come across a cutout in the bathing suit, and it sends a rush of goosebumps over your skin.

“Thank you,” you say softly. Your hands have nowhere to rest but on his bare skin, so your fingertips brush over his collarbones. The black widow spider tattoo attracts your attention and you run your forefinger over it.

“You like spiders, too.” The words are almost mumbled under your breath, but Eddie catches them.

“Hmm?” he asks.

You blink a few times, eyes coming up to meet his.

“That was the first thing I heard you say,” you explain. “Everett told you he wasn’t afraid of spiders, and you told him that you like them too.”

“Oh yeah,” Eddie says as he remembers. “He said that Spider-Man is his favorite.”

“He is.” You look back down to his tattoo and rub your finger over it again. “That why you got this tattoo? Because you like spiders?”

“Partly.” There’s a mischievous glint in Eddie’s eye that makes you raise an eyebrow at him. He shrugs sheepishly. “One of my buddies from high school, Jeff, thought it was weird that I liked spiders. Because he’s afraid of them. So, I got this like a few months before I knew his family was having a Fourth of July barbeque at his house. Then I whipped my shirt off and he looked like he was going to shit himself.”

“Such a good friend,” you say with a giggle. “Teasing the poor guy like that.”

“Mm, he got over it,” Eddie says with a shrug. He starts walking backwards towards the lake, leading you along by your hands. “Come on, let’s get in.”

Eddie’s feet hit the water first and his face scrunches up, making you laugh.

“Cold?” you ask.

“Only a little,” he says, but he keeps walking backwards. Soon the water hits your toes and you let out a small squeal at the cold bite. It really wasn’t too bad, more of a shock after sitting in the nice warm sun for so long.

Eddie lets go of your hands once the water reaches his small waist, and he has to wade further. He doesn’t take his eyes off of you though, and the moment that you’re at the same level as him in the water, he swims over and wraps an arm around you.

“Hi,” you say as you relax your body against his. He feels warm and safe, and it makes you never want to let go of him.

Eddie pulls you out until it’s a little deeper and your toes have to stretch more and more just to be able to walk along the riverbed. When it’s starting to become too hard for you, you pout, and Eddie is instantly there, holding you up to his level with his arms around your middle. He starts to keep moving deeper though, bringing you out where he knows you can’t touch the bottom. You’re about to huff at him for it when you catch sight of the smirk he’s trying to suppress. He likes that you can’t touch here. That you have to hold onto him for support. Deciding to give into him, you wrap your arms around his neck and bring up your legs to wind around his hips.

“This what you were looking for?” you ask.

“Pretty much,” he admits.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” you tell him as you rest your forehead against his.

“How many guys do you say that to?”

“Two. You and a three-year-old.”

“So, I’m in good company,” he says.

Eddie slides his thumbs over the cutouts in your bathing suit, hands holding you firmly by the hips. It’s nice to just wade out in the water together like this, enjoying the nice weather and being held by one another.

“I’m glad we’re finally on a real date.” Eddie breaks the peaceful silence after a few minutes.

“Me too,” you tell him. “To tell you the truth though, I was nervous on the way here.”

His brow pinches together in a frown as he looks up at you. “Why? Nervous to see me?”

“No, no,” you say with a shake of your head. “Me wanting to see you is basically the only thing that was able to break through my anxieties and get me here.” You shrug and start to play with the wet hairs at the base of Eddie’s neck. “I’m not very good with ‘new’ in my life. It stresses me out. Even the good new, like this. But honestly? Once I pulled up and saw you, that all went away. I didn’t feel stressed or anxious. Just excited to see you.”

The smile that lights up Eddie’s face has your stomach doing somersaults. He takes one hand from your hip and cups your jaw with it.

“I was really excited to see you, too,” he says. “More excited than I’ve been for anything in a long time.”

“Yeah?” you ask as you rest your forehead against his.

“Mhmm,” he hums.

Eddie’s thumb strokes over your cheekbone a few times before he leans in and softly presses his lips against yours. It feels as if your heart has stopped in your chest as you move your lips against his. Eddie’s arm tightens around your waist, and you pull yourself closer to his body with the arms you have wrapped around his neck. The feeling of Eddie’s tongue swiping across your top lip has you instantly parting them for him, letting him lead this kiss deeper. You and Eddie only break the kiss because you can’t stop smiling, but you quickly lean back in for another taste of his lips.

“I feel like a teenager again,” you muse. “Just making out wherever and whenever I get the chance.”

Eddie smirks, but it’s endearing, never mean. “Well, if you want the full experience, we can always makeout in the back of my van.”

You gasp. “Eddie!” you scold him, swatting at his bare chest.

“Is that a yes?”

“What happened to ‘there were never any girls in high school,’ Mr. Munson?” you tease. “Doesn’t sound like it was your full teenage experience.”

“Well, maybe I have some making up to do,” he says with a waggle of his eyebrows. It makes you giggle and lean in to press another kiss to his lips. The jolt it sends through your body is so strong that you wouldn’t be surprised if Eddie could feel it coursing through your body under his fingertips.

“Mm, okay,” you hum against his lips. “Let’s go make out in the van. But then we have the cherry cobbler bars.”

“Deal.”

Don't need nothin' but a good time

How can I resist,

Ain't lookin' for nothin' but a good time

And it don't get better than this

Everett dances in his car seat, banging his little head to the Poison song playing on the radio like he was born to be in a mosh pit. It makes you chuckle when you watch him over your shoulder in the passenger seat. Steve keeps glancing at him in the rear-view mirror, bringing a smile to his face as well. The little boy looks even more like his dad’s mini me in their matching green polo shirts. You hadn’t planned on dressing him identically to Steve, but it was the only way to convince him to wear a nicer shirt than an old Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle tee.

Telling him he was going to see his aunts and uncles graduate got about the reaction you expected it would. He’d asked if that meant he could play with them. When you explained that he was going to sit with you, his dad, and some of his other aunts and uncles to watch them walk across a stage, he seemed to care less than he already did. You already knew he wouldn’t sit still through the long ceremony, out in the heat of the June Hawkins day, sitting on uncomfortable bleachers. But you were hoping there were enough people in the crowd that he knew that would be able to keep him occupied. Hopefully they’d humor him as he bounced from familiar face to familiar face.

Nancy had stayed the previous night at her family’s house so she could help set up for the graduation party taking place there this evening. But as soon as Everett gets out of the car, she’s the first face he sees. She’s getting out of her dad’s car with Holly right behind her and Everett starts bouncing on his toes in excitement.

“Nanzy!”

She looks at the call of her name and smiles when she sees the miniature Steve excitedly waving at her. You scoop him up in your arms and meet Nancy halfway in the parking lot, handing Everett over as he makes grabby hands for your best friend.

“You missed me? You saw me yesterday,” she tells him.

Everett just shrugs and lays his head on her shoulder. “Yeah.”

“Are you and Daddy matching today?”

Her notice of this gives him an extra boost of energy and he nods his head enthusiastically.

“Yes! I look like Daddy!”

Steve gives Nancy a kiss hello and you walk with them and the other Wheelers to the football field, where the ceremony will be taking place. Robin, Vickie, the Sinclair’s and Mrs. Henderson are already there, so your gang joins up with them. Everyone fawns over Everett, much to his delight. He soaks in all the compliments about how cute he is and shows off his dimples just to prove everyone’s point further. Joyce and Hopper join you soon, Jonathan trailing behind them, and Everett makes his move on them as well. He happily sits in Hopper’s lap and asks to see the shiny badge he knows the police chief always has on him.

“This seat taken?”

You look up, having to squint because of the sun, and see a familiar face smiling down at you. It’s pure instinct to stand up and wrap your arms around Eddie’s neck. He chuckles as he hugs you back, pressing a kiss to your cheek.

“Hello to you, too,” he says.

“I didn’t know you were coming,” you say. And it wasn’t from lack of communication. You and Eddie had talked on the phone every night since your date last weekend. He even came by for lunch at the library on Wednesday.

“Thought I’d surprise you.”

“Mission accomplished.”

Max’s mom comes up behind Eddie, along with an older gentleman that Eddie introduces as his Uncle Wayne.

“I’ve heard a lot about you,” Wayne says, making a pink tinge appear on Eddie’s face. You’re about to respond when there’s a bump against your thigh. Everett’s holding onto your leg, peeking out shyly at the man he’s never met. “And you must be Everett.”

The boy hides his head fully behind you and you give his hair an affectionate pat.

“C’mere you.” You pick Everett up and hold him on your hip. “This is Eddie’s Uncle Wayne. Can you say hi?”

The toddler perks up, just realizing that Eddie’s standing there. You’re a little surprised he remembers him after that brief encounter a few weeks ago. But his eyes light up and he gives Eddie a big grin.

“Eddie!” His voice is full of joy, and it warms your heart.

“Hey, little dude! I missed you.”

“Missed you,” Everett replies, causing you to get slightly misty eyed.

The speakers crackle to life, the feedback making Everett cover his ears. The Vice Principal approaches the podium, and you take your seat on the bleachers. Steve is on your left, Eddie on your right, with Everett perched in your lap. He’s already antsy and wiggling around so you can only imagine how restless he’s going to get over the next two hours.

Eddie’s lips against your ear surprise you and you let out a little squeal, making Everett look back at you and Eddie chuckle.

“I missed you, too, you know.”

“That’s good,” you tell him. “Because I missed you. Are you here for any graduate in particular?”

“Um, I think the only one of the gang I haven’t met is El. But I’ve heard about her from everyone. Plus,” Eddie pauses and leans in closer to whisper directly to you, “Wayne is pretty in love with Max’s mom. He doesn’t believe me when I say the feeling is mutual, but it definitely is.”

You giggle and sneak a peek over Eddie’s shoulder where Ms. Mayfield and Uncle Wayne are talking, heads close together.

“That’s adorable,” you say.

Everett hops off your lap and moves onto Steve’s, little face already painted with boredom as some school official drones on. Steve looks at you and raises his eyebrows. It takes you a moment to realize what he’s trying to communicate.

“Oh!” You lean back so the men on either side of you can see one another. “Eddie, this is Steve. Steve, this is Eddie.” They’ve heard enough about each other that they need no more introduction than that.

“Nice to meet you,” Eddie says, extending his hand to your ex.

“Likewise,” Steve says as he shakes his hand.

Everett catches sight of Eddie’s rings again and leans across your lap to grab his hand before he can take it away. Eddie chuckles and lets him inspect them, watching him with an adoring expression on his face. Your son doesn’t seem to notice that his bony little elbows are digging into your thighs.

The speaker at the podium switches out for another and the list of student’s names starts rolling.

“Gotta pay attention now,” you lean down to whisper to Everett. “They’re going to call names and we’re going to clap.”

He reluctantly lets go of Eddie’s hand and straightens himself in Steve’s lap. His brown eyes stare out at the field, waiting for a name he knows.

“William Byers.”

Everett doesn’t realize he knows that name until everyone around him starts to cheer. But he quickly gets into the spirit and claps his hands together so fast he stings his own palms. Now that his interest has been piqued, Everett is anxious for the next person he knows to walk across the stage. He squirms in Steve’s lap, small attention span kicking in.

“Hey,” Steve says in his ear. “Do you see Aunt Max out there?”

His little eyes squint as he scans over the sea of students donned in green caps and gowns. After a quick assessment, he pouts and shakes his head.

“No?” Steve asks. “Look for her red hair. I think she’s the only redhead out there.”

Everett takes another look and gasps when he spots his favorite aunt, pointing at her and bouncing up and down on his dad’s legs.

“Aunt Max! I see her!”

“Good job, buddy,” Steve says.

“Dustin Henderson.”

That name Everett recognizes right away and beams as he watches his Uncle Dusty Buns, unruly curls tucked in his cap, walk across the stage and take his diploma.

“Yay!” Everett yells out as the rest of you clap and cheer.

“He’s about the cutest thing ever,” Eddie says to you.

“Dustin?” you reply with a playful smirk. “Adorable, right?”

Eddie rolls his eyes, a fond smile gracing his features, and knocks his shoulder against yours. His hand twitches where it sits in his lap and your eyes notice as he goes to reach for you, but quickly pulls his hand back. It’s understandable. The two of you hadn’t talked about any affection shown in front of Everett because you hadn’t thought they were going to be in the same place at the same time for a while.

“El Hopper.”

As you clap for your friend, your son wriggles his way out of Steve’s lap. Hopper lets out a loud whistle as his daughter makes her way to get her diploma, and Everett giggles at the sound. He turns towards you and you’re ready to help him into your lap when he walks right past you and stops in front of Eddie. He smiles up at the man in front of him, big brown eyes meeting bigger brown eyes. Eddie doesn’t hesitate and helps Everett onto his lap when he struggles to climb.

“Hey, buddy,” Eddie says.

“Hi,” Everett answers.

Out of the corner of your eye you see Steve watching Everett. Or is he watching Eddie? You lean in to whisper in Steve’s ear.

“Everything okay?”

Steve nods and leans in to reply.

“How many times have they met?” he asks.

“Just once before.”

“And Everett isn’t still shy around him?” Steve asks.

“He never has been. Walked right up to him at Dustin’s like he’s known him all his life.”

“That’s weird,” Steve says.

Your face pinches up in a frown as you turn your head to look at Eddie with your son again. Everett is as happy as could be, talking animatedly about something - you’re not even sure what he’s going on about, so you know Eddie has no clue - but Eddie is listening intently, smiling at the babbling boy.

“Why weird?” you ask, turning back to Steve.

“He’s always shy around new people. Why not Eddie?”

“You’re making this sound like a bad thing,” you say.

“Just weird,” Steve says with a shrug before returning his attention to the ceremony.

A sigh escapes you as you look back over the field as well. Steve’s always had a jealous streak in him. It didn’t rear its head often, but you could tell that’s what’s happening here. Not jealousy over you dating Eddie, but of Everett showing Eddie so much attention so quickly. Sure, Steve’s never been the only adult man in his son’s life; he has more uncle and grandfather-like figures than you could count. But Eddie is someone Steve’s age and he isn’t “Uncle Eddie.” He’s just Eddie. A guy who is dating his mom, even if the toddler doesn’t understand the concept of dating. But you’ve been on one date with the guy. You’re not putting all your eggs in one basket when it comes to being with Eddie, no matter how much you like him, so why is Steve acting like Eddie’s about to become Everett’s new dad?

“Maxine Mayfield.”

Eddie’s cheering alerts Everett to his aunt’s name being called. He claps his little hands together and lets out a string of “woo woo woo’s.”

“Want me to take him?” you ask Eddie as Everett keeps wriggling around his lap.

“No, I’m okay,” Eddie says with an easy smile. “Unless you want him?”

“No, you’re fine with him as long as you’re okay with his squirmy little butt.”

Everett wrinkles his nose up at this term and you boop the tip of his nose with your finger. Your son shakes his head, as if to dispel your touch from his face.

“Lucas Sinclair.”

Erica’s loud cheer from the row behind you catches Everett’s attention and he looks at her over Eddie’s shoulder. She gives him a wink that makes him giggle and start to clap his hands along with everyone else.

You’re surprised at how well behaved the little boy is being. He’s generally a well-tempered child, but a graduation could be boring for adults, let alone small kids. You were afraid you’d miss some of your friends’ names being called because you’d have to take Everett out into the parking lot or bathroom.

“Mommy?”

Maybe you thought too soon.

“Yes, baby?”

“M’hungry,” Everett says.

This you were prepared for. Everett’s favorite snack was always packed in your purse. You’d only made the mistake of not having food for the hangry toddler once, and it’s not something you’d ever want to repeat.

Everett’s eyes get wide when he spots the small red box of raisins. He makes grabby hands for them, but you hold them back once you’ve opened it, raising an eyebrow at him.

“Please?” he asks.

“There we go.”

“Thank you,” he sing-songs.

Little fingers go digging inside and he sighs in contentment once he’s popped one in his mouth. He fishes out another one and you’re about to remind him only one at a time, but he lifts the raisin up, offering it to Eddie.

“Aren’t you the sweetest?” Eddie asks. “But those are yours, you enjoy them. Thank you for sharing, though.”

Everett just nods his head as he finishes chewing what’s in his mouth.

“Michael Wheeler.”

Mike takes his diploma and fist pumps in the air as he comes across the stage. You hear Holly giggle somewhere around you, and you don’t even have to be looking at Nancy on the other side of Steve to know she’s rolling her eyes at her little brother.

Finally, the ceremony comes to an end and Everett watches in delight as all the green caps go flying into the air. You scoop up Everett from Eddie’s lap when you all start for the exit. He struggles in your arms, wanting to be put down, but there’s too many people to let him wander freely - even if he was holding your hand.

Once the group of graduates that he knows meets you in the parking lot though, he’s like an entirely new kid. He wants to be held by all of them. He wants to give each of them a hug and try on Will’s cap. It’s far too big for him, obviously, but it makes for a funny picture as Karen Wheeler snaps the camera as the cap falls over his eyes.

Everyone takes photos with each other; their families, friends, and each graduate wants a picture with Everett as well. He’s delighted by the attention and giggles as he’s passed from uncle to aunt to uncle to aunt. Max presses her lips against his cheek for their picture and Everett squeals in pure delight.

“Can I keep him? Please?” Max asks once the photos are done. She’s still holding him and he’s happily fiddling with the tassel from her cap.

“Sure,” you tell her. “But you’ll give him back.”

“Never,” Max declares.

“Try and get him to go to bed on time and see how well that goes. Then we’ll talk.”

“Nah, I don’t believe that,” Eddie says from next to you. He’s giving Everett a playful smirk, who giggles in return. “Everett, you’re always a good boy, aren’t you?”

“Yep!”

“You can help Max out then,” you say, nudging Eddie with your elbow. “But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“We’d have fun!” Eddie says. “Play some guitar.”

“Guitar?” Everett’s interest is piqued and he’s staring at Eddie with wide eyes.

“I told you,” you say to Eddie. “Guitar is his favorite.”

“Yeah!” Everett cheers.

“I’ll play it sometime for you, little dude.” Eddie’s grin at the boy falters and he turns towards you. “Uh, I mean, if that’s okay with your mom?”

Part of you doesn’t want Everett to get too attached in case it doesn’t become something more serious between you and Eddie. But another part is saying that he’s already so engrained in your friend group, that even if it doesn’t work out for some reason, he’ll still be around and in Everett’s orbit.

“That sounds nice,” you say, giving Eddie a reassuring smile.

His dark eyes light up and his body relaxes in relief. You didn’t realize how anxious he was for your answer to that question. He knows how much Everett means to you, and he clearly has an affinity for the little boy as well, so it makes sense that you being okay with him and Everett interacting takes some weight off of Eddie’s shoulders.

“Hey, stop hogging my God son.”

Dustin walks over and puts on a pout as he looks at Everett in Max’s arms.

“I’m his favorite aunt,” Max says.

“I’m his favorite uncle,” Dustin shoots back.

“Don’t put my poor boy in the middle of your squabbling,” Steve says, walking up and slinging an arm around Dustin’s shoulders.

Everett watches all of his favorite people around him with wide brown eyes, looking from person to person. He seems content in Max’s arms, but you’re pretty sure he’d be happy in any of the people next to you’s arms.

Nancy comes up behind Steve and puts her hands on his hips. She peeks her head around his torso and smiles.

“Everyone ready to go?”

“We’re heading to your place now?” Max asks.

“Mhmm,” Nancy hums.

“You’re riding with me, Red,” Eddie says.

“Why?”

“Because I drove your mom and Wayne here. Forest Hills carpool.”

Max sighs and squeezes Everett in her arms, making him protest when she hugs him too tight.

“I’ll see you soon, kid,” she tells him. She sets the toddler down and he’s immediately unhappy.

“Want Aunt Max!”

“You’ll see me in a few minutes, Ev,” she tells him. “We’re going to a party together.”

His face lights up like a firework.

“Party?”

“Yeah, buddy,” Dustin adds. “We’re all going.”

Everett claps his hands together and does a happy little wiggle.

“Come on, you,” you say as you pick him up. “Let’s get going.”

Instinctively, Eddie leans in to kiss you goodbye, but stops, again unsure of what you’re comfortable with in front of your son. Not quite ready to answer any questions Everett might have before you can sit down with him and talk about Eddie being in his life more, you turn to give Eddie your cheek to kiss. He happily does so, a smile on his face. Everett wants one as well, and sticks his cheek out towards Eddie, who obliges him with a chuckle.

You catch Steve watching the interaction - Nancy as well, but she seems to think it’s cute, while her boyfriend has a look on his face like he’s trying to do calculus in his head. He’s your ride to the party so you’re sure some sort of conversation will happen on the ride over.

Max heads off with Eddie, Dustin to find his mom, and Nancy to catch a ride with her parents. She may have been intending to drive with you and Steve, but she clearly senses there’s going to be a talk happening as well.

You make sure Everett is buckled in tight and hand him one of his toy dinosaurs to keep him occupied. It was unlikely there was going to be a full out argument, but you still didn’t want Everett to be listening in. Once you’re buckled into the passenger seat and Steve has pulled out onto the main road, he opens his mouth.

“So, uh, we should probably talk,” he says.

“Okay. I don’t really know what to say, though.”

“Well, I mean.” He sighs and runs one hand through his hair while keeping the other on the wheel. “Is he, like…your boyfriend?”

“I don’t know,” you tell him honestly. “We’ve technically only been on one date, but we talk every day and he drops by my work for lunch sometimes.”

“And you’ve, um…” Steve waves one hand in the air, making a vague gesture, and your face blooms scarlet.

“That’s none of your business.” It comes out sharp, maybe the harshest you’ve ever spoken to Steve.

“Jesus, no, not that! I was going to say kissed. Cause I saw him lean in and then not know what to do.”

“Oh,” you say, face cooling down a bit. “Yeah. But he and I haven’t talked about how we’re going to be in front of Everett yet. I wasn’t really planning on him being around Everett yet, but I didn’t know he was coming today.”

“They seem to like one another.” Steve doesn’t sound particularly happy about admitting that.

“What, you’d rather they didn’t?”

“What? Shit - uh, sugar. No. That’s not what I meant.” He lets out another sigh and you can see the frustration drawn on his face. “It’s just kind of weird for me.”

“He’s not trying to be his dad, Steve,” you tell him.

“No, I know. I just-I guess I just never really thought about this before. Like, how you felt when Nance and I got back together.”

“No,” you say with a frown. “Didn’t really bother me. Only in the very beginning when she came home for the summer and was around him so much. I felt like this surge of protection and wanted to be like, that’s my baby. But it passed pretty quickly. She’s never tried to be his mom; she’s just someone else in his life who loves him. I like seeing her and Everett together.”

“She’s also your best friend,” Steve says with a shrug, as if he’s explaining this to himself. “Jesus, I don’t know why I feel like this. I know it doesn’t make sense.”

“Feelings sometimes don’t make sense,” you say. “Hopefully this passes quickly just like mine did.”

“I guess,” Steve mumbles.

“You could always try getting to know Eddie,” you offer. “Or you could wait until he and I are more serious.”

“So, you think it’s going to be a serious thing?” Steve asks.

You can’t help the grin that tugs your cheeks up.

“I think so. I don’t want to jinx it, though. But I really like him.”

“Good. I’m happy for you.” He reaches over and gives your leg a pat. “You deserve it.”

Thank God that the Wheeler’s have a huge backyard. There’s enough room for the tables and chairs set out for the guests, the food tables all set up, and for Everett to run around without knocking anything over. Yet.

The three-year-old tornado tears through the yard, stopping at every familiar face to say hi or to see if they’ll play with him. Holly is kind enough to get out her old Hungry Hungry Hippos game and play it with him for a while.

The small round table you’re seated at holds a few toy dinosaurs that you’re sure he’ll come back to eventually. Steve, Nancy, Robin, Vickie, and Eddie are the others at the table with you. Eddie’s arm rests against the back of your chair and you take advantage and lean into his body.

“Would you look at them?” Eddie says with a shake of his head. “They’re like clueless teenagers.”

Everyone at the table keeps stealing glances at Wayne Munson and Susan Mayfield sitting next to one another a few tables over, smiles on both of their faces as they’re immersed in their conversation.

“Having Max as a cousin should be fun,” Robin says to Eddie with a teasing look.

“She and I kept giving one another looks on the ride over here, trying not to laugh at their attempts at flirting.”

“Not everyone is good at flirting,” Vickie says, and Robin’s jaw drops open. Vickie laughs at her girlfriend’s affronted face and ducks out of the way as Robin tries to playfully smack her arm.

Steve’s unusually quiet and your awareness of that keeps you slightly on edge. There’s nothing you can do about it, but you blame your maternal instincts for just wanting to make everything okay. Or maybe that was your anxiety. Either way, you try to let it roll off your back.

“Burgers are done!” Jonathan calls from over near the grill. Everett barrels over to you as you and your friends stand to go get your food.

“Whoa, easy there,” you say. He raises his arms up and you let out an “oof” as you pick him up. You walk behind Nancy towards the grill, but Everett leans in to whisper in your ear.

“Gotta go potty.”

“Okay, babes,” you tell him and press a kiss into his hair. “We’ll be right back, just going to go inside to use the bathroom.”

“I’ll grab Ev’s burger,” Steve says. “He still doesn’t like-.”

“Pickles, right,” you finish for him.

“Want me to grab yours?” Eddie asks, and the offer damn near melts your heart.

“Yes, please,” you tell him. “Ketchup and lettuce, please!”

“Got it.”

“Thank you!” you call to him as you disappear inside the house to find a toilet for the toddler.

Vickie and Robin are filling their plates when Karen taps Nancy on the shoulder and asks her to come help her bring something out from the kitchen. It leaves Steve and Eddie alone, waiting in line for food.

“So, uh,” Steve starts. “You two have another date planned?”

“Oh, no, not set in stone. But I was going to ask her before the party ends,” Eddie tells him.

“And you’re like…serious about her?” In his gut, Steve knows this is wrong. He knows he’s overstepping; he knows it’s not his place. But it doesn’t stop him.

“Well, yeah,” Eddie says. “I mean, as serious as someone could be after really only having one date and knowing each other for a few weeks.”

“Good,” Steve says as he grabs two hamburger buns: one for him and one for his son. “It’s just I see how Everett really likes you. I don’t want him to get hurt, you know, if he becomes too attached and it doesn’t work out.”

Eddie hadn’t thought about it that way. Yes, he had every intention of being with you for as long as you allowed him to be, but things happen. Life happens, as Eddie knows far too well. Just the very thought of hurting you made his stomach sick, but he didn’t think about how Everett might feel if something were to go wrong. Eddie knows he and Everett have been getting along great, but it never occurred to him that Everett might already be becoming attached. So attached that it would hurt if Eddie just disappeared from his life. Hurting either of you was the last thing he ever wanted to do.

The sound of Robin’s raucous laughter jars Eddie out of his thoughts and back to the task at hand. He grabs two buns and two hamburgers, building them for the both of you. He adds ketchup and lettuce, just as you requested.

When you come back to the table with Everett, Eddie’s arm is no longer hanging off the back of your chair. You think that maybe he’s waiting for you to sit down first, but when you do, he still doesn’t put it back up there. He hunches forward over the table and takes a bite out of his burger. Everett climbs onto Steve’s lap and munches on his food right alongside his dad.

“You okay?” you lean in to whisper in Eddie’s ear.

“Mhmm,” Eddie assures you through bites. It doesn’t convince you, though.

He remains quieter for the rest of the party than he had been before. He’s more subdued, looks less comfortable being here. Yeah, today was the first time he met Robin and Vickie, but they were chatting away like old friends only an hour ago.

As the sun begins to set, Wayne and Susan say they think it’s time for them to head out. They say their goodbyes to everyone, as do Max and Eddie, but you pull Eddie off to the side before he can leave.

“Hey,” you say, pulling his hand into one of yours. “Um, I was wondering if you wanted to go on another date? You know, whenever you’re available?”

“Oh, well, sure,” he says, but he won’t meet your eyes. “What did you have in mind?”

“Wait,” you say, gently grasping his chin and making him look at you. “What’s wrong?”

He almost says it’s nothing. It almost comes out, but he doesn’t want to lie to you. You deserve so much more than that.

“It’s just, I’ve never dated a mom before,” Eddie says with a shrug. “I, uh, I mean that I’m not sure about…” Eddie’s brain has lost the ability to make words function properly. I don’t want to move too fast for you or Everett. I’m scared he’ll become attached to me and it would hurt him if things don’t work out. But those thoughts won’t form on his tongue. “I like you a lot. A lot. It’s just…”

Your heart drops in your chest. Of course this is happening. It was too good to be true, this thing you had going with Eddie. He’d not seen you really be a mom before today. Yeah, briefly when you first met, but today he had an up close and personal look at the mom part of your life. Obviously, he didn’t like it, right? That’s why he’s saying all this? He’s realizing the full weight of what dating a woman with a child is like and it probably intimidates him. You don’t blame him though, that’s a lot of responsibility and baggage to chain yourself to at 23.

“It’s fine, Eddie.” You let his hand drop from yours and you stick both of yours in your back pockets. If you look him in the eye, you know you’ll cry, so you focus on the front of your sandal digging into the grass below you. “I get it. It's a lot.”

“Yeah, i-it is,” Eddie says. He takes a deep breath and licks his lips. Slowing things down with you is hard because you’ve already become such a presence in his everyday life. But he knows it’s the right thing to do for everyone involved. Best just to come out with it, he figures. “That’s why I think we should sl-.”

“Right,” you interrupt him. Hearing him say the words out loud would absolutely crush you, so you don’t give him the chance. Knowing Eddie doesn’t want to be with you is hard enough but hearing that voice you’ve come to love so much to actually say it would erase all the sweet things he’s ever said to you in your mind, only to be replaced by the searing painful goodbye. “Eddie!” Max calls impatiently, waiting by the Wheeler’s gate. Eddie glances at her over his shoulder but turns back to you and opens his mouth to speak.

“You should go,” you say, still not letting him talk. “They’re all waiting for you.” Your voice is wobbly, and you reach up to wipe away a traitorous tear that’s escaped. Eddie’s eyes track the tear down your cheek, and he frowns, both in confusion and concern. He leans in to reach for you, but you step back and out of his grasp.

Head ducked, you turn away from him and make your way back over to Steve at the table. Eddie watches you walk away, wondering what just happened.

“I want to go,” you tell Steve quietly. Everett is fast asleep in his arms, but he manages to rise from his seat without disturbing him.

“What?” Steve asks.

“I want to go home,” you repeat. “Now.”

“Um, okay,” Steve says, frowning at you. “Let me go say bye to Nance.”

“Fine. I’ll take him to the car.” You open your arms and Steve carefully transfers your son to you. “Tell everyone I said bye, okay?” You don’t wait for an answer before you head into the house with Everett, making your way through the house and out the front door. Going out of the gate would’ve been quicker, but Eddie was over that way. Trying not to jostle the sleeping boy too much, you manage to open the backseat and buckle him in. Steve approaches the car as you slide into the passenger seat. He eyes you warily as he gets in and starts the car. Arms tucked across your chest, you stare out the window.

“Everything okay?” Steve asks. Obviously, he knows it isn’t. He knows you better than almost anyone in the world though, so he knew you wouldn’t just come out and say anything without a little prodding.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” you say as Steve pulls the car out onto the road.

He gives you a few minutes. Clearly, you’re trying to work through something, and he decides to give you a little time to digest it before he tries again.

“Eddie, what the hell was that?” Dustin asks after he watched you hurry out of the house with Everett in your arms. “Is she okay?”

“I don’t know,” Eddie says, ignoring Max’s huffiness from the gate. “I’m not sure what just happened.”

“What’d you say to her?” Dustin asks.

“She didn’t even give me a chance to finish talking.” Eddie rubs his hands over his face. “I might’ve fucked up, man.”

Dustin sighs and motions for Max to hold on for a minute.

“Tell me what happened.”

Eddie doesn’t feel like he should reveal what Steve said. Next to his parents, the person who loved Everett most in the world was Dustin. Of course Dustin would agree with what Steve said; that going too fast and having Everett become attached could end up being terrible. It makes total sense, after all. Eddie doesn’t want to seem like he disagrees and thinks he’s trying to move in on Steve’s place as his dad or anything.

“I was just trying to tell her that maybe we should take it slow because of Everett, you know? I don’t want him to be confused or think I don’t care about him if this doesn’t work out.”

“Is that what you said?” Dustin asks.

“Not really,” Eddie admits. “I wasn’t sure what exactly to say and then she cut me off and seemed to get upset. I was telling her how I like her a lot.”

Dustin closes his eyes and rubs at his temples.

“What the shit is happening?” he asks no one in particular.

“You can talk to me, you know,” Steve says once you’re about halfway home.

“What’s to say?” you ask, eyes never leaving the road in front of you. “I got dumped.”

“What?” Steve asks, too loudly with a sleeping child in the back. He winces and glances in the rearview mirror to make sure he didn’t disturb him. Ev’s still out like a light, though. “What are you talking about?”

“Eddie started saying how he likes me a lot but how dating a mom is hard, so…” You trail off and shrug your shoulders, refusing to cry before you get into your apartment.

Steve’s brow furrows as he turns the car into your apartment complex. Shit, this may be my fault, he thinks to himself.

“It’s whatever,” you continue when Steve stays silent. “Should’ve known, right? Who’s going to want to date a young mom?”

“Hey,” Steve says, your words breaking him from his previous train of thought. “Don’t say that.”

“Why not? A young dad is cute to girls. They fawn all over him when they see him simply taking care of his own child. But a young mom? Guys don’t want to be tied down like that. Be with a girl who has so many responsibilities and they can’t just swing by whenever they want to hook up.”

Steve doesn’t have an answer for that. He parks the car in front of your building and turns off the engine.

“Do you want me to take him tonight?”

“No,” you answer. “I’ve got him.”

As gently as you can, you get out of the car and maneuver Everett out of his seat without waking him up. His head lolls on your shoulder and you shut the back door with your hip.

Steve steps out of the car but you only call out a quick goodbye over your shoulder before you’re headed up the stairs to your apartment. It’s hard to unlock the door, but you manage, and get you both inside. You kick your shoes off and head to Everett’s room. You’re about to set him on his bed when you realize you don’t want to let go of him. The rocking chair in the corner of the room catches your eye and you make yourself comfortable in that, adjusting Everett where he lays against your chest.

His hair is soft where you press soft kisses to it. It smells like his bubble gum shampoo, and you close your eyes and focus on it. You wrap your arms around the small boy and hug him to your chest tightly, without squeezing him too much. Tears start to leak down your face and drops plop into his inherited Harrington hair. Releasing a shaky sigh, you rest your cheek against the top of his head. Rocking yourself back and forth in the chair, you’re not sure if you’re trying to keep Everett soothed in his sleep, or you in your current state.

You’d really had hope with Eddie. He seemed as close to perfect as possible, which you guess should’ve been your first clue. But maybe this is for the best, you try and tell yourself. Maybe you’ll be a better mom on your own. Alone. The tears start to fall heavier, and you squeeze your eyes closed, focused on feeling the warmth of your child in your arms. His soft breathing is the only sound in the apartment, other than the occasional sniffle from you. He makes a soft cooing sound and snuggles his face into your neck. It makes you smile, and you press another kiss to his head. Everett was all you really needed after all. If life is just you and him, you think to yourself, that wouldn’t be so bad.

#eddie munson #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson x you #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson fic #eddie munson fan fiction #eddie munson fanfic #bbe

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