#i think it's so sweet how he says this after vecna scared her into thinking she had a bleak future ahead of her

[slashergirlnancy]

He likes her because she’s different from everyone else, especially other significant others he’s had in his life. In that scene in the bedroom in the beginning, he talks about how she’s not like the other girls. The Duffers and I talked about what kind of family life he comes from and maybe this girl, Nancy, is quiet and listens in a way that other people haven’t listened to him at this point. Makes him feel a little bit more comfortable revealing a sensitive side, and I think that’s an attractive quality that she has and he admires in her. — Joe Keery

[steddiewithachance]

Vampire Pancakes

A response to this writing prompt. Thought it was too cute, had to write it! @dwobbitfromtheshire

🥞🫐

No one really knows what to do with Eddie right now. Everyone is jittery around him, going so far as to hold their breath when he so much as twitches. Even Dustin is squinting at him with calculating eyes; he's analyzing Eddie for threat.

Eddie will continue to courteously ignore the hand that Nancy is keeping stationed on her belt conveniently close to the little pistol everyone knows she's hiding. It doesn't matter that Eddie helped them kill Vecna, or that he saved Baby Byers' life. It doesn't matter when he has sharp teeth, dark eyes, and a thirst for blood. He can't blame 'em for being scared.

Eddie thinks about his dad. Wonders if even Al would see Eddie as a monster now.

Eddie got picked on a lot as a kid and he'd often come home from school tired and weepy. Al would look up from the couch in that black tank top he always wore. He'd set down whatever he was smoking to pat the spot next to him.

"What happened Ed? Was some little shithead mean to ya?"

Eddie would nod and slump into his father's side, eyes burning from the spicy, smokey air. When Eddie pressed his face into his dad's arm, Al would pull back and pat his head with sorrowful eyes. Al didn't really know how to comfort a kid or maybe he thought that being distant was in Eddie's best interest.

"You're too soft, Ed. Ya gotta make those kids think you can pack a punch. Chin up, eyes mean, shoulders back. Make 'em intimidated, make 'em fear ya."

So like any kid who thinks their dad's word is law, Eddie listened, or tried his best at least. But his dad never said that mean eyes, dark clothes, and loud music would get him accused of witchcraft by a bunch'a angry jocks and chased straight into hell.

Now his sheepies -his kiddos- are looking at him like they're scared, like they can't trust him and that is a fucking gut punch. Because pretty early on in his high school career, he decided that his purpose was gonna be standing as a shield for other kids like him. He wanted to be a source of safety and warmth in an otherwise cold and unforgiving storm.

Being feared is lonely and sad, Eddie has discovered, and he worries this is his new permanent reality.

Eddie quietly sits through his friends hammering out the logistics of a nighttime schedule to organize sleeping shifts so someone always has an eye on him. It's sick. Eddie has to excuse himself to cry about it. He has no uncontrollable urges to eat anyone here, Steve does smell appetizing, but he wouldn't jump the guy.

He can still eat human food apprently, it barely does anything for him, but it's something. Eddie thinks it's enough to quell any feral urges he may or may not get. He thinks the party is being unreasonable about their safety precautions, but really, he'd probably do the same if there was a monster in the same house as him.

🥞🫐

It's a long night, he can't fall asleep but he'll pretend to so that everyone can relax a little. The changing of the guard chafes at him and makes his lip quiver. He bites his lip to prevent a wounded sound from slipping out when Robin nudges Steve awake and says it's "his turn on hell shift". Eddie jolts because he remembers he has real sharp teeth now, and biting his lip does, in fact, hurt like a bitch.

"You're not asleep, huh?" He hears whispered into the air of the big living room after Robin has settled back into sleep. It's Steve's sweet and melodic voice.

"I'm trying." He responds, brokenly.

"Wanna get some fresh air with me for a minute? I need'a smoke." Steve is already shrugging the sheets off of him and carefully stepping over his sleeping friends towards the back door. Eddie doesn't think he has a choice, but to follow. Stepping out of this stuffy room does sound like a relief though.

Eddie makes the same journey through the sea of teenagers sprawled across Steve's floor and out the sliding glass door. When he steps onto the patio, all of the crickets stop chirping around him. The night goes silent. What the fuck? Is that because of him? He loves the sound of crickets, though.

He walks over and curls up in one of the Harringtons' fancy-loungy-pool-chairs. Steve stays standing, leaning artfully against the side of his house next to the glass. He flicks open his lighter and the small flame illuminates his square jawline with a warm glow. He's so achingly handsome. He's like a movie star, or a model.

"You okay?" Steve asks conversationally.

"Not even a little."

Steve sighs and pushes off the wall to walk towards Eddie's chair. He sits at the foot of it and swivels so he's looking at Eddie.

"I'm really sorry Eddie. I can't even imagine how you must be feeling. I won't pretend to." Steve sets a hand on Eddie's ankle and Eddie could cry from the small gesture of comfort that he's practically writhing for. "I feel like what happened to you is all my fault. I know that 'sorry' wont cut it, but for the record, I am. Completely and utterly sorry." That's a silly thing to think.

"It's not your fault, are you kidding? How do you reckon it's your fault?"

"Sending you with Dustin? Alone? Putting all that responsibility on you?" Steve looks down at his cigarette with disgust. He twists it into the cold concrete next to his socked foot and looks back at Eddie. There's no fear in his expression, and for once Eddie is grateful for his reckless bravery.

"It was the best plan and we all agreed to it. Don't sweat it, Harrington." Eddie feels like he's not all there. Feels like maybe if he was more composed he could comfort Steve better, but he's hungry and dazed, sad and tired. Steve nods solemnly, and clears this throat.

"And about everyone being kind of on edge... It'll pass. I think they're all thinking about when Billy Hargrove got possessed by the mind flayer and went homicidal on us. He tried to kill all the kids."

Eddie desperately wants to hear all the other Upside down stories one day. He keeps trying to stitch together all these scraps of lore that keep getting dropped on him. He has no right to ask about something so traumatic, so he'll just be patient and wait for more lore to drop.

"Everyone's just being cautious. Vecna's dead though, so I'm not really sure who they think would possess you." Steve finishes and squeezes Eddie's lower calf where his hand rests.

"I get it. Kinda hurts my feelings, but I get it." Eddie mumbles and feels his eyes getting heavy. He wonders if he could fall asleep out here. Maybe if the crickets were still chirping and it wasn't so goddamn quiet.

"I'm sorry, Eddie." It's fine, this might not even be the worst thing that's ever happened to him.

🥞🫐

In the morning Eddie curls himself into Steve's little kitchen nook. Eddie kind of loves the window seat, it's something his mom would have wanted, Eddie theorizes. She was always looking out windows, probably daydreaming about escaping. Eddie does it too.

The kids seem warmer this morning. There's no more hushed whispers or pointed looks. They're talking and moving around the house less cautiously. Hopefully, the stiffest interactions and the worst of their distrust is behind them. Nancy's still watching him like a hawk though.

Steve shuffles into view, his socks are bunched up around his ankles. It's cute.

He holds out a plate for Eddie with a dumb smile on his face. When Eddie reaches for it, he sees a stack of pancakes and the top pancake has a little face made out of blueberries and two whipped cream fangs. It's a vampire pancake. Steve made Eddie a sweet little vampire pancake.

"Oh my god, you're so adorable." Eddie squeaks and makes a grabby hand for the fork Steve's holding. Steve blushes and hands over the fork.

"Do you like it?" Steve asks coyly. The pancakes feel like a hug, they feel like an apology that Steve doesn't even owe.

"I love it, chef." Eddie pokes at the pancake-vampire's cheek. "I don't know if I can eat him. He's too cute." Eddie giggles. Steve looks up at him with bright sparkly eyes. God he's perfect. Eddie's hungry for him in five different ways.

Robin and Dustin come up beside Steve to look down at the plate.

"I want one!" Dustin announces loudly. Steve turns around and heads back to the stove, he looks so proud of himself.

"You can have normal pancakes. Those are special for Eddie." Steve says with a wink. Dustin looks down at Eddie and pouts at him as if Eddie has any say in who gets what kind of pancake.

"Dustin had to watch it all happen, he should get one too." Eddie tells Steve earnestly while Steve is pouring more batter into the pan.

Dustin gloats and yells "Exactly! Thank you, Eddie."

And it feels like things are gonna be okay.

[underoossss]

can I request a hurt/comfort with steve, where maybe the reader gets hurt in the upside-down and he is taking care of her? you are one of my favorite steve blogs!

I love a good old hurt comfort!!! And this time though r is hurt Steve is getting comfort cause that boy sure blames himself for no apparent reason. You’re so sweet thank you! It means the world to me you like the stories I write for y’all💖 I hope you like this! 1k.

••••

“I can’t lose her!”

Steve’s scream still echoes at the back of your mind, fuzzy and distant but it’s still there. The panic, the pain, the anger, they’re all there burned in your brain. You were in a dizzy state, half present and half gone after your last trip to the upside down had left you with a pierced leg and a bleeding wound. Vecna was gone which is all that mattered, yet instead of celebrating Steve hovered over you making a makeshift tourniquet for your leg with his belt – Nancy and Robin trying their best to calm him down. That's when he snapped, voice raw and cracking with emotion; it was clear he didn't mean to, but if you were in his shoes you're sure you'd have done the same. You wanted to reassure him, tell him you were fine, but things were hazy after that.

Steve's quiet now, lying down on his bed next to you.

His torso is bandaged just like your leg; his wounds clean and treated, yours got ten stitches covered with two layers of gauze and clear medical tape. He's done nothing but look after you since you got back, making sure you had everything you needed, driving you to his place and helping you get upstairs. He even washed your hair, gentle and caring and careful, pretending he's alright when you know he isn't. His hands still shake no matter how much you hold onto them, you can tell he's holding back tears from the way he clears his throat before speaking. Yet he only wants to take care of you.

"You should try to get some rest." Steve says, one hand gentle on your cheek as his thumb rubs softly at your skin. "It's late."

You glance sideways at him, his face is golden in the glow of the nightstand lamp. Hair almost dry from his shower earlier, eyes red-rimmed, a soft grin that's holding everything back. You know this boy the same way he knows you. "I can't sleep lying on my back." You whisper over a frown.

"We can figure it out." Steve's smile is a fraction more genuine this time, always happy to help you. "Here, let me sit up."

It takes some minutes but Steve rearranges the pillows and helps you sit up, mindful of your injured leg. He lies back against the headboard with you slumped sideways against his chest, head resting on his shoulder and patched up leg extended in front of you. It's not the most comfortable position but it's better than before, especially now that you have your arms around Steve.

"I'm not hurting you?" You ask quietly, closing your eyes at Steve's touch rubbing up and down your arm.

"No," You feel Steve shake his head. "I like this better."

You snuggle closer to him, wanting to be as much as possible as someone who thought would lose the other only hours ago. Steve hums and kisses your temple which makes you look up at him. When you see the tears he's holding back, you break.

"I'm so sorry Stevie." You mumble through an aching throat. "I didn't mean to get hurt and scare you like that."

Steve closes his eyes and shakes his head. "You don't have to say sorry."

"I wanted to tell you I would be okay, reassure you that I would be." Your words are rushed through your tears, lips pulling downwards with sorrow. "It all happened so fast."

Steve's arms go around you and pull you closer, his shoulder shaking as he cries into your hair. You'd squeeze him tight in return if he wasn't injured, so you settle for kissing the middle of his chest as you cry with him. The idea of the roles being reversed makes your blood freeze with panic. "I thought I was going to lose you." Steve confesses, "I don't think I've ever been so scared."

"You'll never lose me." You pull pack to look at him in the eyes, red and full of tears just like yours. "I will always fight to stay by your side, Steve. I can't even imagine being without you; if I can keep you from going through that, you know I will. Just like I know you'd fight too."

Steve closes his eyes and nods, "Every time."

You grab his face in both your hands. "I love you, so much."

He looks calmer when he opens his eyes, still shaken but better than before. "I love you too."

"Tell me what you need?" You ask in a whisper, wiping the last of his tears away and kissing the corner of his mouth. "Please, if I can make it better I'd like to."

"I just need you." Steve brings you towards his chest again with his arms around your waist. "This is all I need."

You look up at him and smile when you see some of that previous fear melt away from his face. Your beautiful boy slowly becoming himself again. "I can give you a kiss too. I don't think we've ever gone this long without kissing you know."

"Tell me about it." Steve's smile appears then, before he leans down and captures your lips in a sweet kiss.

masterlist

[missmarveledsblog]

THE BABYSITTING TRAP PART 1 ( STEVE HARRINGTON X READER)

summary : when always being the babysitter has it's perks for once.   except their friends had plans for the two 

warnings: steve is a simp for reader , mutual pinning , scared steve

Friday night madness at family videowas definitely the least favourite activity steve harrington would count on his list . another would be stuck with the kids , he always found himself as the babysitter .saturdayhe was volunteered to looked after the lot since eddie and robinwere going to some concert he had no interest in ,nancy and jonathan had datenight ,evenhopper had a date night with joyce . " come on " he could hear dustin whiny tone before he even seen him pulling her into the store . Y/N Hopper and dustin's older cousin who mysteriously showed up the summer will byers went missing and arrived. though steve knew the real truth she was in the lab along with el . what was more surprising to find out chief jim hopper had one night stand with a henderson. another surprise was how beautiful she was and was no secret to the group of steve crush on the girl ...well except to her. " i'd say sailor costume was way better than this "she smiled up at boy . " you say that every time you come in here " he rolled his eyes . " its true though , please tell me you held that video or i'm leaving that kid in the car park " she pouted absolutely melting him from the inside. " what do i get in return " he asked feeling a little confidence. " i'll help you with the kids tomorrow night since eddie and robin are ditching us " she batted her lashes. " ok ok deal here you are " he smiled handing over the tape as she handed him the money . " Y/N fancy seeing you here sweetness " keith emerged even making steve jump. " hey ken sup " she smiled back hiding the cringe . " it's keith anyways what you say me and you drive in tomorrow i'll bring the mints" he wiggled his brows . " as appealing as that sounds me and steve are babysitting tomorrow night and any other night you happen to be free " she grimaced. " ook your loss babe " he scampered off with whatever was left of his ego . " your loss babe " she mimicked making steve laughed. " poor guy couldn't give him one date no " steve joked . " waiting on better offer " she winked going to pick out candy while dustin appeared . " ask her out seriously how many hints can a chick give you " he rolled his eyes . " wait what " . " you heard me,  here for the candy " he smiled dropping less then enough on the counter as he yelled to y/n he paid and to go . " wait no , ah shit " steve huffed putting it in the til watching them leave she gave him one last wave through the window then she was gone .

never in all his years of being the one left with the kids was he this nervous not even when faced with monsters or end of the worldsituations . And yet here he was wondering if he's clothes and hair looked good . He even had eddie and Robin sitting on his bed giving him advice . " you need to make a move dingus " she huffed bored and well blunt and to the point was her only advice . " yeah me and Robin didn't make up fake plans for you to screw this up harrington " eddie copied dramatically . " wait you both aren't going to some concert " he turned to the two . " nice going , no ok we're sick of the puppy dog shit , we thought it would happen during the whole vecna situation but nope so we are going to the movies with his bandmates and Vicki tonight so don't screw it up " she glared at the metal head before explaining. " what if your wrong and I make a fool of myself yet again " he sighed. " you think Henderson would help us if we were wrong " eddie asked honestly . " yes I would " steve deadpanned. " we're not wrong ok , now be yourself and get the girl and keep her this time " Robin pushed him out the door . " or one of us will take her instead I mean she's hot " eddie yelled after . " wanna raid his pantry " he turned to Robin.

Pulling up to dustin Hendersons was never as nerve wrecking . He had an argument with himself on whether to get flowers or not decided not to giving incase they were wrong , he felt they were wrong , he just hope this time it was him who was wrong . The first red flag was the quietness , he didn't hear the incessant chattering or dustin arguing with at least one or two of them . He was starting to doubt if he had the right day or not or if it was a prank just on him. Knocking on the door she answered wearing long t-shirt and shorts looking not long up after a nap . " shit didn't dustbin tell you they're spending day at the wheelers our services aren't needed today after all" she yawned stretching up leaving door wide open for him to come in . " no I guess he forgot .. I woke you up want me to go , I can come back when kids are back " he began to ramble. " or since all our friends abandoned us you can drop me home and we could hang out " she turned and smiled . " like your trailer just us " he asked almost shocked and little pitchy for his liking. " I mean only if you want to " she smiled brightly up at him earning a quick and fast yes . " let me grab my shoes " she beamed rushing to put them on along with grabbing her bag before walking out the door . " you not going ..ok this drive is gonna kill me " he mumbled eyes darting to wear her shorts hugged the globes of her ass perfectly . " what a good way to go " . " huh " she spun around head tilting in confusion . " its good we still get to hang out " he coughed trying to keep his voice steady . " yeah we haven't done that in a long ass time huh " she mused while he was lost looking at how her brows furrowed and her plump lips pursed . "Oh we can watch that movie I got last night " she giggled excitedly. " didn't you and dustin watch it " . " no he fell asleep before it started " she rolled her eyes. " well then we can watch it and rub it in his face " steve chuckled. " I love it " she clapped before jumping into his car .

It was hard to keep his mind off the fact he was sitting beside the woman of his dreams , going to her place alone being so close to her for whole afternoon . It filled him with both nerves and excitement. Even now it was hard to keep his eyes on the road while she was sitting beside him , slight bed head from her nap , the shirt ... wait was that his shirt. " is that my shirt " he asked confused. " dustin gave it to me" she looked at him confused. " I left it there after guys night sleep over " he chuckled hiding the fact he was screaming inside she was wearing his clothes . " well it's my shirt now, so soft and comfy " she sighed happily sending a shiver down his spine , she was gonna be death of him . Just hearing that come out her mouth made him short circuit . " ok looks better on you anyways " he smiled dreamingly at her . " you think" she looked down before seeing them pulling into the trailer park both waving to Wayne as they passed by . Pulling up outside her trailer or bain of hoppers existence he called it . Just as she got out the car she heard it . " who knew you be hotter in my clothes  " steve muttered thinking she couldn't hear him but she heard it as clear as she could hear the birds in the sky or the kids running around. Maybe the evening would be better than she thought.

Part two *

[louloulemons-posts]

Oil At The Coffee Shop X

Eddie X Fem!Reader

Summary : The morning after your first time and someone comes to visit.

Word Count : 2.1k

Warnings : Not proofread, fluff, swears, kisses, talks of sex, no actual smut, just cuteness.

Fic Masterlist

~ / / / * \ \ \ ~

Waking up with a beautiful ache between your legs, you hummed as you nuzzled into Eddies warm chest. His fingers ran up and down your back gently, lips pressing against your head. “Good morning,” he said, voice groggy.

“Morning,” you spoke, kissing his chin. He hummed, pulling you closer, which made you giggle as you were practically on top of him. “What time is it?” you asked.

“Almost time to get up,” he sighed.

“Why the sigh gorgeous?” you asked.

“I could happily lay here all day with you. We could play hooky.”

“We can’t and you know it.”

“When does the business owner, get time off?” he asked.

“When their employees aren’t two 18 year olds.”

“What if I don’t let you leave the bed?”

“They’ll send out a search party and let’s be honest, you’re scared of Max.”

“That’s true.” You laughed at him, kissing your chest and then pushed up so you leant on your elbows. “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything Sweetheart.”

“What are we now?” You felt shy, asking something like that, after the date and last night.

“Well I’d really like it if you would be my girlfriend, but I get if you want to think about it or if you don’t,” he rambled, but you pressed your lips to his. “I’d love to be your girlfriend.”

The grin that lit up his face was contagious.

~ / / / * \ \ \ ~

A few days had passed and Eddie had come over after work most days. Not just for sex, but for company, to help you in the kitchen (though he was more of a distraction who ate your cake batter).

It was nice, having someone to spend the evenings with, though one of the nights you almost throttled him when he went to sit on your couch in greasy overalls. You made up for that in the shower.

Humming to yourself in the kitchen as you made an order of soup and a grilled cheese, Max walked in. “Hey, there’s someone here for you,” she said.

“I’ll just be a minute,” you spoke, chopping the food.

“I’ll take this,” she smiled, “Table 6 right?”

“Yeah, thanks Honey.”

During this week, El and Max had also told you their stories. How El was taken from her mother, her real name was Jane, she had powers and lived most of her life in Hawkins Lab.

Max told you about her brother Billy, losing him, Vecna, the headaches, her almost dying, losing her sight temporarily. Then they told you about Will, and what that horrible place did to him.

It made you feel for the kids even more, made you heart hurt. When you saw Steve again, you wrapped your arms around him tightly - you had found out what the Russians did to him.

Walking to the front you smiled, there leaning against the counter was the one and only, Eddie Munson.

“Well hello there Sweetheart,” he smiled.

“Hi gorgeous, what can I get for you?”

“The usual, but I have an add on today.”

“Oh yeah, and what’s that?” you couldn’t help but smile at him.

“A kiss,” he leaned over the counter before you could say anything, stealing a peck from your lips. “Eddie!” you scolded with a laugh, “I’m working!”

“Sorry sorry, you just look so beautiful.”

“Hush up you sweet talker, does Wayne want anything?”

“Coffee please Sweetheart.” You nodded walking to make the drinks in the few remaining orange cups from halloween.

Along with that you wrapped up a turnover for him and Wayne. “Here you go,” you smiled, he tried to hand you a $10 bill, but you ignore him completely.

“You, Sweetheart, are a pain,” he said.

“Hm I know, but you adore me.”

“That I do. I have to get off, I’ll see you later.”

“Sure,” you smiled, leaning over the counter to kiss him cheek.

“You’re working!” he mocked, making you laugh as he left the shop. “Sooo~” You turned to see Max and El leant against the wall, grins on their faces.

“Not a word,” you said.

“But-” El began.

“Nope, I’m going for my lunch.”

~ / / / * \ \ \ ~

The shop was now closed and you’d sent the girls on their way, wiping down one of the cabinets due to a very crumbly batch of cookies.

The bell rang on the door, “I wasn’t expecting you until later,” you said, spraying down the glass. “Well I can leave and come back if you want,” a voice spoke. That wasn’t Eddie.

“Scottie!” you squealed running to hug your brother. “Hey little sister,” he smiled into your hair. “What the hell are you doing here?” you asked.

“Well the kiddies and Di missed you so thought I’d put them out of their misery.”

“Just the three of them?” you teased.

“Okay I might have missed you a bit,” he said, squeezing you.

“Where are my little monsters?” you asked.

“Just having dinner, they don’t know this is where you live, wanna surprise them?” he smirked, you nodded straight away, grabbing your keys and heading out of the shop with him.

Arm and arm you when, walking down the road and catching up. “How’s business?” you asked. “It’s good, got a new guy working for me.”

“Oh yeah? Better than me?”

“Nowhere near.” You laughed at that, “The shop looks great.”

“It is, I love it.”

“We’ll come tomorrow, get some cake. The kids will love it.”

“How long are you staying?”

“Just a couple days.”

“Well we’ll have to make the most of them,” you smiled, leaning your head on your brothers shoulders.

You soon made it to the restaurant, spotting Di and the kids from the window. She met you eyes, unable to keep an excited grin from crawling on her face.

The pair of you entered, Scott speaking to his wife and children. “Hey guys I’m back, and guess what I found an amazing person who wants to have dinner with us. What do you think?” he asked the small kids.

They turned to look at your and confusion turned into ecstatic realisation. “Hey Bud, Hey Munchkin,” you smiled, the two kids through themselves at you.

“What are you doing here?” Matthew asked.

“This is where I live, in this town!”

“Wow!” Jenny cooed.

“Look at you! You’re so big!” you beamed at the little girl, taking her in your arms.

“Excuse me! No hug for me?” Diane asked, raising her brow in a teasing way. “How could I forget you my love,” you laughed, squeezing her tight.

You tried to think about how much you missed your family as little as possible, but now after months of not seeing them it all came forward. A phone call wasn’t the same at all. It was so nice to have them back with you.

~ / / / * \ \ \ ~

“So how’s Hawkins treating you?” Diane asked, helping Jenny scoop her peas. “It’s great, I’ve got wonderful friends, some me and Scott met as kids. It’s nice.”

“And what about the old love life?” Scott looked up from chopping a piece of Matts food, very curious. “Uh … well I um ..”

“What’s his name?” the woman asked.

“Eddie,” you smiled, face flushing.

“And you’re dating?” your brother questioned. “Mhm.”

“How long?”

“Just under a week, but I met him the day I moved here.”

Diane choked on a laugh, “You move fast.”

“He’s a mechanic, my car broke down.”

“Mhm, whatever you say hun.” She was teasing you relentlessly for the rest of the meal.

You didn’t really date, or if you did. It didn’t go well. Eddie felt different. Eddie felt right.

“So do we get to meet him?” Scott asked.

“Meet who Daddy?” Matt questioned his father, looking up at him with big eyes. “Just a new friend of your aunties.”

“Maybe, if he’s up for it and he’s not busy. Wouldn’t want to stress him out and scare him, would we Scott?” you prayed your brother would be nice.

“Of course, unless he-“

“Shush!” his wife laughs.

“So tell me more about this Eddie.”

This is gonna be one hell of a meal.

~ / / / * \ \ \ ~

Sat in your apartment, the kids lay on a beanbag you had, eyes fixed on the movie playing in front of them. “I’ve missed this,” you said softly. “We have too. All of us,” Di sighed, taking your hand and giving it a squeeze.

“What’s your plan for Christmas?” Scott asked. “I’m not sure yet, I’ve gotta figure out a time table for the shop. I’ll make sure to come home though. Have to see you and the kids and Gran.”

He nods, knowing that if you say you’ll come home you will. A knock on the door breaks the peace. Shit. Eddie. “Uh I’ll be right back,” you said, almost running to the door.

Opening it you were met by your beautiful boyfriend. “Hi Sweetheart,” he said, trying to step into your apartment, but you pushed him and yourself out.

Pulling the door too, he furrowed his brows, “Uh hi? Is everything okay?” he asked.

“My family’s here, I just um … I didn’t know if you’d feel comfortable meeting them so soon. You know we only started dating a little while ago and it’s a big step and-”

He took your face in his palms, “Baby, calm down. I would love to meet them.”

“Okay,” you smiled softly, instantly feeling calmed by him. Leaning down Eddie pecked your lips.

“Let’s do it then,” you said, taking his hand and waking back into the apartment. Four sets of eyes looked at you. “Everyone, this is Eddie, my boyfriend. Eddie this is my family.”

“It’s nice to meet you all,” he said politely, trying not to come across as an asshole. Scott stood up and held out his hand, “I’m Scott, her brother. Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise,” the pair shook hands and Diane came up to say hello too.

Introducing herself, she whispered in your ear, “He’s cute!” You chuckled and walked over to where the kids were, “Eddie this is my nephew Matthew and my niece Jenny. Can you guys say hi?”

“Hello,” Matt smiled, it was gappy but cute, whilst little Jenny waved around her blanket and pacifier. “Hi guys,” Eddie smiled.

Okay it went okay, now what. “So Eddie, what are you intentions with my sister?” Shit. “Oh Scott hush, he’s only teasing. It is really nice to meet you Eddie, you’re a mechanic or so we’ve heard.”

“Yeah, I have a shop with my uncle. It keeps me busy and I enjoy it so, it’s a win.”

“And you met my sister how?”

“Her car broke down coming into town, I was called to pick her up and I fixed it. We met again through our friend Steve.”

Scott nodded, it was a good enough answer, but he was still in overprotective big brother mode. “How’s your business going?” he asked Scott, which seemed to take him by surprise.

They actually got on really well, Eddie taking a seat beside him, the pair chatting away happily. You felt your hand being tugged. There was Jenny.

“Hi munchkin,” you smiled.

“Cuddle?” she asked, big doe eyes like her mom. “Sure honey, come here,” you lifted the small girl up and leg her cuddle into you.

Pulling her blanket up to her face, she rubbed her finger up and down her nose in a soothing way. Her eyes became heavy. “I think little miss might be ready for bed,” Diane spoke quietly, nudging her husband.

“And Matty too,” The bean bag was by your legs, the young boy snoozing away on it. “How do they alway fall asleep so well when you’re around?” Scott asked.

“Magic.”

“Where are you staying?” Eddie asked.

“A small B&B, a few streets over. We better get going actually. Get these two to bed.” Diane yawned at that, “These three,” you laughed.

Handing Jenny to her mom, Scott lifted up Matthew. “It was lovely meeting you,” Di spoke, kissing Eddies cheek as she passed by, giving you a squeeze.

“We’ll come by tomorrow,” your brother smiled, giving you a one armed hug as his son lay in the other. “Eddie, I hope to see you again soon.”

“You too,” Eddie spoke sincerely. The pair of you watched them down the back stairs and to their car. “So that went better than I thought it would,” you exhaled.

“They’re nice. You’re great with kids,” he complimented. “Thanks, it’s only those two though, I have a soft spot,” you laughed.

“It was sweet to see.”

“Did you want to stay?”

“Oh after that, there’s not a chance I’m going anywhere,” he grinned, pushing you back into the apartment. Hands on your hips and mouth on your own, making you giggle as you went.

~ / / / * \ \ \ ~

A/N : i can’t believe we’re coming to the end of this story

Thank you so much for reading 🤍

taglist : @corrodedseraphine @flawiette @witchwolflea @emxxblog @plk-18 @vintagehellfire @lma1986 @squidscottjeans @eddiesguitarskills @nanas-lasagna @halialex1119

let me know if you want to be added 🤍

[a-strange-inkling]

Hellcheer Ten Years Later/Recovery AU…

(So this tragic idea is eating away at my brain and distracting me. Thought I’d jot it down here for maybe a future story or inspiration).

tw: mentions of drugs, alcohol, addiction, od, eds and attempted s*icide.

.

.

.

There was never any Vecna or Upside Down, never a drug deal at an abandoned picnic table in the forest behind the school, and Eddie and Chrissy never met again after that fateful Middle School Talent Show. After graduation, Eddie did just what he said and ran like hell out of Hawkins and never looked back.

It’s 1996 and Eddie made a decent career for himself, touring and opening for big names, but always felt this unhappiness inside of him, this void that no amount of sex, drugs and rock and roll could ever fill. In his late twenties the drugs and alcohol spiral out of control to the point he wakes up in the hospital after an accidental OD.

Wayne takes him home and begs him to get help, try to recover, that he doesn't have the strength to bury any more family members. For his uncle's sake, to repay him for taking him in as a kid, Eddie eventually gives in and admits himself into a private recovery center somewhere in the hills of Illinois.

It’s rural and quiet, filled with rich and semi famous addicts. Eddie hates it upon entry… and well the withdrawal, being told what to do on a daily basis, and the group therapy doesn’t warm him up to it.

One morning, feeling weary and miserable, he takes a long walk outside on one of the trails. He stops in his tracks, pretty sure he’s hallucinating when he sees Chrissy Cunningham, the former Queen of Hawkins High and his crush of eight years, reclined on a bench, reading under one of trees... And she’s reading The fucking Hobbit of all things.

Stupefied, he slowly approaches and it’s actually her, thinner than he remembers if that’s possible, those sparkling blue eyes now dull, gray... sad. "Chrissy?" he asks in disbelief, startling her terribly.

“Sorry, sorry... I didn’t mean to scare you.”

She stares up at him with haunted eyes, trembling a little. It unsettles him for a moment, and he thinks he should just walk away, leave her alone... but he stays, tries again. Desperate. “Uh hey, hi…" Very smooth. "You probably don’t remember me; but we went to high school together—"

“Eddie Munson.” she replies softly in astonishment, eyes widening.

And for the first time in he doesn’t know how long, he feels life and warmth inside him again as they talk and reconnect on the bench, beneath the leaves. She’s still so beautiful. Sweet and kind. He makes her laugh and the sound causes his heart to skip a beat in his chest, only for it to sink a moment later when he notices the wedding ring on her finger, but he doesn’t let it show.

She’s Chrissy Carver now. She married Jason right after graduation and studied at IU with him for four years before moving back to Hawkins to be near her parents and start a family. She grows quiet and reserved, her smile disappearing when she mentions her husband. He watches as she recoils back into herself. She tells him that she's been struggling with an ED half her life as well as addiction and depression.

Jason admitted her into rehab after her last failed s*icide attempt earlier that spring. She’s been there for almost four months now.

Eddie listens silently as she slowly opens up to him. It’s awful to think that someone like her ended up in a place like this. Her life seemed so perfect back in school.

He asks if she’s found any healing during her stay.

She shrugs her shoulders saying that she’s away from her mother, so that is healing in and of itself.

They walk and talk together every day after that, sharing their scars and the dark ugly parts of their lives that led them there, finding companionship in one another.

He plays his music for her in exchange for her poems and thoughts. Falling in love in the most unlikely way in the most unlikely of places.

[will80sbyers]

Random but I want to start collecting all the possible scenarios for the byler storyline in s5 that I can think of and I'm gonna do this here and update when I feel like it... I don't know how it will happen... but I want to write down the possibilities that make more sense to me 🤔

1) Mike and El break up at the start of the season then we have a time jump of two years and Mike and Will are super close and share sweet moments all the time after, to the point that Will somehow finds the courage and kisses Mike first in a sweet way but Mike reacts by being kind of stunned by this/doesn't react, and then we have a little bit of drama with Will (and us) thinking Mike has rejected him officially but in reality Mike is just having all of the universe make sense at once and his brain crashed, he tries to still be close to Will but Will is all awkward trying to avoid him and they end up fighting and Mike realizes that Will was talking about himself in the Van and the whole speech he made for El was prompted by a lie... Will thinks Mike cares only about El and is suffering so they fight and he says something mean to Mike and Mike is hurt by this and Will thinks he ruined their friendship forever and then other stuff happens and the second kiss is Mike reciprocating Will's feelings completely starting a proper kiss between them

2) Mike and El break up during the time jump (that is only a few months in this case) somehow only after months Mike finds out about the painting but he doesn't get why Will lied, he's hurt by the break up and he's also confused and asks him why he lied and Mike basically wants an explanation because he feels like he's losing all the people in his life because first El doesn't want him and now his best friend lied to him about a serious thing that he connected with his self worth, but Will refuses to confess his feelings because he's too scared and they have another fight but where they don't say anything bad to each other, Mike is just hurt and confused and Will keeps inventing excuses... it still ends with Will running away and trying to go to the Upside down on his own, Mike decides to follow him anyway be he can't lose him and they get stuck together in the Upside down where tense/electricity stuff is happening all the time... Vecna attacks them and they are tortured with mind visions, Will makes a speech to save Mike where he confesses all of his feelings for him and explains everything, after the battle is won and they have a moment of peace in the basement on the couch Mike kisses Will

3) Mike & El break up and Mike fully realizes he has feelings for Will before and during the time jump but he thinks Will is straight, we get Mike pining over Will all season and them having sweet moments until they get stuck in the UD together where Mike dies to save Will from Vecna but Will brings him back with his new powers and makes a love speech for him at the same time, Mike wakes up and they kiss while crying of joy that Mike is alive... like in all the other scenarios the ending is always them leaving for college together!

4) Mike and El are still together, El found a way to close the gates but Max is still trapped and in a coma for all the months of the time jump, El and Mike are not in a good spot because she feels misunderstood by how Mike tries to stay positive all the time, they have an ugly fight and she breaks up with him harshly saying to him that she doesn't believe he loves her in that way and that they shouldn't be together like that, Mike is shook by this and starts feeling like this doesn't make any sense and tries to go to Will for comfort but Will has been trying to move on from him so he's not exactly thrilled to hear Mike complain about his relationship with El but he wants to help and Mike is confused because he thought that El felt like Will said because of the painting... Will ends up revealing his lie of the painting because he's bitter because he thinks that for Mike those words had value only if El thought them... Mike is shook again and he starts to understand everything and re evaluate everything and how he thought about romantic and platonic love... UD stuff happens and Mike ends up putting himself in danger for Will and almost dying and when Will asks him why he would do that because that was a stupid thing to do Mike says "They say LOVE makes you stupid... and crazy" and he kisses Will

[simplystefanie-rae]

Brief Chrissy Analysis

It says brief in the title but I sure bet it's gonna be anything but that by the end of this : )

So I was thinking about Chrissy's Vecna visions/ her relationship with her mom and how her life might be at home; those visions say so much in such a little amount of time, it's fun (sorry Chrissy) to dissect. I'm glad we all agree that her mom sucks, and it's interesting to read in fics the various interpretations of said suckage, but I wanted to give my own idea of how I think she sucks because there's a bit that is often overlooked because it's seen as the exaggerated nightmare part of her visions and not something that Laura Cunningham actually is, and that's someone with a volatile temper.

During Chrissy's first vision in the bathroom, we hear Laura ask in a very saccharine voice if she wants to try on the dress after she loosened it, then immediately gets angry and demands that she opens the door. The point she begins to yell is when people think (me included for a bit) the exaggerated nightmare part of the vision begins because she starts yelling about gutting her like a pig after, and that most of her verbal abuse comes in the form of these subtle emotional manipulations, and I don't think that's a wrong interpretation by any means. It's obviously impossible to know the true specifics of the abuse since we only got a small glimpse of it, but that's not gonna stop me from over analyzing, which brings me to the door.

In the vision, Laura yells at Chrissy to open the door and starts beating against it erratically, immediately giving us a much scarier version of her mom then we just heard. This alone wouldn't make me think it's an accurate portrayal of her since Vecna is known to obviously embellish in order to scare his victims as much as possible.

But the door scene happens twice.

For that beat in the visions to play out two times tells me that it's significant to Chrissy, and Vecna knows this so he uses it against her. He waits for specific moments where Chrissy is behind a door or closes the door behind her to really ramp up the visions, and I don't believe that's a coincidence. I think there were many times where Chrissy became overwhelmed during her moms fittings when the clothes wouldn't fit, and instead of continuing to listen to her and try on the dress or the uniform or whatever she altered for her, she'd run to her room in a moment of panic and lock the door, and thats when her mom would drop the sweet, understanding act and lose her temper with her. How these fights would conclude is anyone's guess.

From my readings of the scenes, I really do think Laura Cunningham is an awful, confusing mix of passive aggressive and just straight up aggressive when she interacts with Chrissy. Tying her weight directly to beauty is already awful enough; it's planting in Chrissy's head that being thin = being beautiful. But tying in Laura's temper doesn't just make is so Chrissy is afraid of being looked at as ugly or disappointing her mom, but being genuinely afraid of making her mom mad. Vecna made Laura the monster in her visions for a reason, the true focal point rather than food and gaining weight, even if the rotting food on the dining room table gets zeroed in on. All of Chrissy's issues ties directly back to her mom, the actual monster she's afraid of.

Her dad in the vision lends credence to my idea that Laura's verbal abuse is a lot more cutting and intimidating than we think. We know her dad's eyes and mouth are sewn shut in the second vision, visually representing this idea of willful blindness; he sees the abuse Laura inflicts on Chrissy but he pretends he doesn't. But he's also sewn in place to the chair, and the aspect that gets overlooked is that he is sewn to the chair, that his eyes and mouth are sewn shut. The character we should immediately be associating this with is Laura. Vecna didn't just sew her dad up like that for the horror element , it's tying his inability to help his daughter directly to Laura, the character who alters clothes and has her own sewing room, as the cause. It's a violent display, safe to say that she's just as vile and overbearing to him as she is Chrissy. There may have been a time he fought for Chrissy and spoke up about Laura's abuse, but she clearly turned it back around on him. We see him at Chrissy's funeral, standing behind Laura meekly and not saying a word, very pointedly. It's so obvious she takes charge in their relationship, and him being sewn into being unable to move or speak or see gives a good visual representation on how that dynamic plays out.

I knew this wouldn't be brief. All this to say, I personally think Laure Cunningham is actually a very scary, awful mom, and a lot more capable of losing control of her temper than she tends to be written. But all interpretations are valid, just wanted to give my two (thousand) cents.

[freckledjoes]

how do u think st5 will end? i think eleven will sacrifice herself for will, before he dies, probably mike dies?? her powers would be strong enough to sacrifice and save hawkins. nancy stays single and travels away for a job/collage or something, steve gets himself a girlfriend, finally. please. he wants to be the stay at home mom with his kids. nancy clearly didn’t look like she wants that life cause she doesn’t, i really don’t understand why he’s still stuck on her even after so many years after their breakup, it’s silly. max wakes up. jopper will get married!! pls i need that to come true.. dustin survives vecna’s curse, idk will nancy get possessed too? and who’s the new lady that’s been introduced as a new character?? steve’s mom maybe?? or the mayoress of hawkins?? i want all the town to help the main group but still i don’t want it to be the second avengers endgame pls… omg could vecna possibly use his victims against our main characters? alsoo, i don’t want the ending scene where nancy and steve are in the car saying we’ve seen stranger things, it’s too corny for my liking pls no… and i like the time travel thing idea.. (going back in time so vecna would turned on his dark side.. this would be really easy way out, tho i hope it won’t happen lol?).. i’d really want eddie returning as a vampire, not really like coming from the dead, that would ruin everything probably (even tho i’d wanted it in heartbeat) buuut yk what i mean right? something like billy came back in max’s visions so eddie would come like this to dustin’s visions. the worst possible ending, is blood bath, there’s been a lot demand for a body count. i feel like modern audiences are more into stuff like game of thrones, walking dead.. stuff like that… killing characters casually. i’m not saying i don’t want a character or three dying tho! i’d be happy if they’d killed off two or three of the main characters finally, they always kill a new character that the audience like and then the audience is always mad. why is that?? we’ve already lost bob and eddie. should it be that way?? i’m really scared steve is going to die bc he was supposed to die in s1, if he does die i’m gonna riot against their stupid writing (that brings me getting stancy back together again). pls get him a girlfriend, a happy life he dreams about and don’t let him hang up on nancy anymore, he deserves better.. he’s changed.. also it needs to stay to the 80s show vibes and has the happy ending as well.. what do you think?? what are your thoughts? :D

I had to write down all your thoughts as bullet points so I could acknowledge them in my reply lmao. Loving this elaborate thought blurb! Alright, so I do think there will be some sacrificing going on, I'd see either Will or El doing it for Mike. Part of me thinks one of those two might die, but on the other hand I don't see them doing it. Why? 'Cause it would fuck up Jopper. And they spent a lot of time on Jopper. Hopper can't lose another kid and we've seen how Joyce handled Will's missing. Not saying this is logical, but it's what I think anyway. Maybe an almost death. Like one of them going in knowing they will probably die and saying goodbye- maybe, and then surviving. I feel like Max might get a more important role than we anticipate. Something about her showing up for El at the moment she needs her the most. Like in the mind thing. I'm worried for Lucas, that poor boy is suffering. :( Assuming Jopper survives - which I do think they will - I wouldn't be surprised if we get a Jopper wedding as a way of a corny happy ending. I don't expect anything mindblowing if I'm very honest, the fan theories have been so good that I fear disappointment for most of us lol. And well, considering many things - I also don't really care if it flops. I'll just enjoy seeing some of my sweet characters one last time before their actors go off into bigger and better projects. <3 Anyway, back to it. If they bring back Eddie, it's definitely gonna give us more pain than gain. He'll hurt Dustin, bet. As wonderful as the Kas ideas are, I don't see it happening considering what I mentioned in the previous paragraph. It's too good. I either see him show up in a Vecna vision or some kind of undead army thing. Both will suck. Imagine Dustin, who is literally embodying Eddie right now, is face to face with his dead friend. Yikers. Idk about the new lady, I'm honestly bored out of my ass that they added a new character for the last season. "Here's a new character to care about - or not - but they're gonna die once you get attached!" - so yeah, not many thoughts there. It'll be too brief. I don't see the town doing anything other than vandalize Eddie's grave and somehow find a way to blame the goddamn earthquake on him honestly. Steve and Nancy... fingers crossed it doesn't happen. For me anyway! For those that ship them, good luck getting it your way~ But yeah, I don't see the appeal, but I do feel how they're pushing it onto us hard. It wouldn't surprise me if Steve dies trying to protect Nancy and that we'll get a stupid nugget speech similar to Eddie's sheep speech. I really need that all to not happen. But don't wanna get too deep into ships, I just don't think that outcome would be sensible for either character. That said, Steve getting a partner (an unknown character) would be nice, but if I'm really honest I'd much rather they all leave it open to our interpretation. If we're getting a cliche ending of some future thing, just throw me the Jopper wedding or Steve and Robin (platonically) moving out of Hawkins together, away from that hellhole. This has become a mix of what I think might happen vs what I want to happen I guess, but these are my thoughts! And anyway, no matter what happens, we will always have a 1000+ fixit fics :)

[birdsinmywalls]

I want you to know that while I was excited to see how you decided to tie everything together after a truly great fic I hesitated to read it. I personally have been going through a tough time and while I don’t often resort to actively looking for ways to escape, I needed one. Thank you for creating a familiar yet new place for me to visit and come back to where I could just feel comfortable and escape for a while. It meant a lot to think I was somewhere else with someone who really cared about me. Thank you. With that embarrassing message, onto my notes:

“I’m still scared, But at least it’s not all dark now.” This is so sweet!

“Then, and only then, as you flicked on your apartment lights and the room was basked in light, did he raise his hand and slip away with your heart thumping in your chest, and mind wondering what any of this meant.” All this after a hug? I commend you this is SLOW burn I love it

I love when Max comes in for her shift she says to Eddie that if it is about school that Wayne already talked to her. I love that they have become a family in this fic.

” Awareness prickles there, tiny champagne bubbles dancing along skin” Love this description

“smirking lightly. “It just gave me a chance to hold your hand again.” OOO ok hes getting flirty and Comfortable outside of Hawkins too!!

Omg she went to robin with her “ I want to share my feelings speech” ?!! Everyone is going to know by dinner Dear LORD

” just as your hand stops shaking long enough for you to set his cup down on the counter” Damn girl you are nervous? I’m freaking nervous over here and I know he likes you because this is a fanfiction LOL

Steve earlier to tell Eddie that you wouldn’t be able to see him today because you don’t want him getting sick, but he’d only dug into you asking what your plans were for the afternoon and why he hadn’t yet been informed of them.” Lol this is such a best friend move I love that

OMG SHES SICK: Jesus Christ they are NEVER going to kiss at this point. Just when I think we are walking into a direction you throw an unimaginable loop for why they can’t kiss its KILLING ME

"Our date wasn’t till seven, so I figured I could go to the store and grab you some things to surprise you with…but then I got a little excited, so here I am at five.” He got excited!!! Omg I’m melting I love this guy

“Funny enough, Lydia looks so much like Joyce,” Eddie points out” GREAT LINE

The kiss was so worth the wait! I love how one wasn’t enough and she eased him into more kisses and he was so into it!

ok I have a question: is it ok to go to bar or something and read to relax? Because I often want to go out and read but I am worried about looking like a “pick me” is this something people do often and I just don’t notice? Because I would like to but I’m not sure.

Nancy would make such a cute baby from dirty dancing!! Great costume idea for her.

FUCK CHANCE!

The tension you built up to this scene where the group tells her everything that went down was so well done. I love that Max wanted to come along and that everyone was there. Oh my gosh I didn’t even realize when Eddie asked her about her favorite song that it was partially Vecna trauma! I can’t believe I didn’t catch onto that.

“Sweetheart, I hate this.” LOVE HIM

"She urges him to hurry up, he barks back at her to let him think.” I wish we had more scenes with Eddie and Max interacting in the show. I know it would have been great just like this.

"It starts, you suppose, in the car ride. The atmosphere has a new heaviness, a thrill that boils in the cabin.” I want you to know that this line had me pause because I KNEW this was it. I was so excited I can’t even tell you!

"the beat of his heart a tattoo against your sternum.” Great line

“Are you ready?” “I’ve been ready since we were in the car,” you say. GIRL I have been ready since chapter one let's get this show on the road!!

Oh my god this scene was so perfect I can’t even get INTO IT. And the soft scenes at the end with them getting ready for bed together and just soft cuddles and he falls right asleep its all so sweet. Especially because we know he hates sleeping, its all too much.

I love how he is more confident in the morning! Just goes for it awesome!

STEVES WIFE! OMG I am so happy for him!

Ok So I am reading how this dinner proposal is supposed to go and I Am thinking to myself “Alright this is cute” then I remember the first line of this section said ATTEMPT and now I am nervous

AHHH Such a good proposal “Ask me now” What a sweet way to handle the situation and he had so many great things to say and to end it the fic with the fun facts? I love a full circle moment.

Sorry my notes were so extensive but I feel like for a long AMAZING fic you deserve a long response to it. Great job I loved reading it and daydreaming about it in the days where I wasn't reading it. I can't wait to read what you put out next!

Begin Again: Chapter 4/4

Summary: The year is 1988. After the loss of a beloved family member, you find yourself inheriting an old coffee shop. The quiet bartender at the Hideout across the street just so happens to catch your eye.

(20k words; eddie munson x afab!reader; sunshine!reader x grumpy!eddie vibes)

Note: Tumblr ate my formatting, so AO3 is probably best. 🙃

Warnings: Vignette style (sorta); Eddie’s post S4 trauma; panic attacks; nightmares; family member loss; grief; alcohol use; nightmares; suicidal ideation; smut 18+ only.

AO3 | MASTERLIST | PREVIOUS CH

*

Winter 1988/1989

*

He leaves you alone in the coffee shop.

The smell of the coffee brewing grows sour, your stomach churning with the dread seeping into your veins with every throb of your heart.

Your four walls, your space, now empty without him there to fill it.

You never realized how much sound he’s brought into your life, how much color, how much of his light.

And in a moment, Chance had thrown a shade over it. Squashed it just as it had really started to grow.

Chance’s words roll around in your head.

Chrissy. Fred. Patrick. Jason.

Chrissy. Fred. Patrick. Jason.

Names without faces, people you’ve never met, people you’ll never meet.

Because they’re dead.

All of them.

Gone.

He says it’s Eddie.

It’s not Eddie.

There’s no reality you could ever find yourself in where you believe the lie that Eddie’s done something like this.

Not this man, not the one who consumes fantasy literature like it’s a lifeblood, who talks DnD with his youngest friends animatedly and conjures up new ideas for sprawling campaigns full of high stakes and grandeur, who flips Max upside down in his arms when he greets her until her laughter shakes deep within her bones and a smile lights up her whole face, the man who drinks out of a Garfield mug when he visits his Uncle, who listens to ABBA and Blondie with you and his friends even when he claims to hate it.

Not this man.

Never this man.

But now you need to find Eddie, tell him everything’s okay, that you don’t think he did it.

You know he thinks you do.

Could see it in the way he looked at you, in the way he flinched from your touch.

The title of murderer.

The weight of it.

You can only imagine how crushing that is, how hard it’s been to keep those accusations to himself all this time, to carry it on his back each and every day.

To live near to those who might whisper behind your back, question how you’re free, ponder your innocence.

You decide to close up early, dismissing your customers as nicely as possible, feigning issues with your machines. A patron grumbles that they were working moments ago, but you only offer them free coffees for their next visit and wave as they all bustle down the street.

It’s likely not the most professional thing you’ve done, but it’s necessary, your fingers removing your apron from around your hips before moving to go snatch your keys from behind the counter.

The front door locks with a click behind you, eyes flashing across the parking lot to find Eddie’s van missing. He’s likely skipped work, and you understand why he would, but all it does is curl the guilt further in your gut.

That you hadn’t done more, said more, chased after him—something.

You run upstairs to your apartment, grabbing your things and rummaging about, trying to make it look some semblance of normal before you grab your pocketbook in hand and rush over to your wall phone, dialing one of the first numbers in your phone book.

Max picks up on ring number two.

Your breath shudders out as you ask, “Is Eddie there?”

“He was, but not anymore,” she says honestly. You can hear her shuffle around on the other end, a huff filling the line. “He looked upset. Did something happen?

“He heard Chance and I talking.”

“Okay, and? Chance is a dick, we all know this, so what did he do?”

“He told me about March. Of eighty six.”

“Shit.”

“Yeah,” you tell her, quickly adding, “but I don’t believe him.”

You hear her huff once more, followed by the rustle of something in the distance. “Good, because whatever he told you isn’t true. He doesn’t know half of what really happened, and I doubt he ever looked into it. Which, you’d think we would have since the idiot works for the police.”

“So you know where Eddie might be?”

“He’s at Steve’s,” she says simply, like she knows, and of course she does.

He’s her brother. Minus the blood and title, of course, but her brother all the same. “I’ll be ready in ten minutes.”

“For what?”

“You’re picking me up,” she states plainly, and you almost laugh.

Almost.

But she sounds serious, and you’ve seen Maxine angry and you don’t want to be in the line of fire on the receiving end if she ever explodes.

“I’m picking you up,” you agree, swallowing thickly. “Hey, Max?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you.”

“Just…I know you’re my boss, but don’t hurt him, okay?”

“Gosh, Max—no. I…I lo—really care about him.”

“So I’ll see you in fifteen?” She says, as if she knows the exact distance between yours and the Munson’s.

And you suppose she does after all this time.

You nod, even though she can’t see you, and say, “I’ll see you in fifteen minutes.”

You’re there in twelve, the roads zooming on by as you turn and weave through the pathways that are almost second nature now. Muscle memory, because of all the time you’ve spent with them. With his family, who has, in a way, sort of become yours as well.

She’s there as she said she would be, sitting on the front step to the little home, hair billowing around her in the wind.

She drops down into your passenger seat without a word. The sound of her buckle sliding into place greets your ears, her dirty shoes kicking out before her, that delicate profile of hers set into a firm look.

“I heard what you said, you know?” She says after some time.

It’s quiet, a little lilting, her lips curling a bit at the edges. You know that look. It’s the same look she’s given Eddie after catching him in a state of disarray after a night spent making out with you like the two of you are teenagers all over again, and not twenty-three year olds with careers and rent to pay.

“What do you mean?” It’s a trap. You know it is, but you’ll give in just this once.

“I heard you start to say you love him,” she teases, tongue sticking out slightly.

It’s the truth.

It’s not a hard thing to do—falling for Eddie Munson, that is.

And still, your heart thunders away at the thought of it. For years you’ve spent trying to never form lasting connections with others. You’re in and out of places quicker than you can, never getting too close, never making those lasting ties.

And now you’ve gone and tied yourself to him, a single strand, an invisible string that tethers you to him.

It’s terrifying, and still there’s this sense of peace that fills your blood. Cool it before it can sizzle and burn.

“You definitely said it,” she says once more, as if you didn’t hear her the first time.

But you did. You said the words and you heard her, but she’s not the first person you want to say them to.

The person who deserves them the most is currently hiding out at Steve Harrington’s home, likely reliving the pain of the events of two years ago, exposed like a nerve by someone who only wants the worst for you.

You suppose you can’t fault Chance, either. You saw the pain in his eyes. The grief over the loss of his friends.

Three.

Three in a lifetime is already too much, but three in one week is a tragedy.

There’s no denying that fact.

‘He doesn’t know half of it…’

Max’s words swirl in your mind. Over and over again on an endless loop.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” you say, but there’s a slow smirk sliding across your lips, fingers curling around the steering wheel as you peel out of the Munson’s driveway, heading in the direction of Steve Harrington’s family home.

It’s on the way that Max starts to talk, warning you in a sense, of what you’re about to hear.

“It’s…a lot to take in,” she says, and there’s a seriousness in her tone unfamiliar to you.

She’s usually always meddling with the kids, the rowdier and more hot headed one of the bunch. You’ve seen her interact with her friends, always just as fiery and explosive as her friends. You’ve seen her get angry with Eddie till her face turns red. But there’s always this sense of ease that accompanies it.

A laugh at the end of a snide remark, a smirk, a gentle tilt of the lips.

It’s not present this time, and an uneasiness settles into your blood.

“Just…when they tell you, promise me you’ll keep an open mind. You’re going to hear things that sound impossible, and that’s because honestly even we thought they were, but it’s…the truth. It’s the truth that the media swallowed up, the truth the government hid. But it doesn’t make it not real—it doesn’t mean it didn’t happen. And it’s crap because the world moved on, and yet we were left to deal with it.”

She means your friends.

You know that.

The fact that this ‘they’ she speaks of telling you this tale is the same group of kids that you’ve grown to know, your friends you’ve flourished with all these months, the man you’re falling in love with.

“Max, I just want to know the truth. So whatever you all say, I’m here to listen. I want to know. It’s important that I know,” you tell her seriously, pulling into the driveway to the sprawling home.

Your head slams against the headrest of your driver’s seat, hands coming up to cup over your eyes. Your breath draws right in your lungs, eyes burning from the prick of tears. A new fear dawns, unwanted and unbidden.

You voice it, a quiet strain of your voice that comes out as a broken sob. A fearful questioning of, “What if he doesn’t want to see me? What if he hates me?”

“He couldn’t,” she tells you, voice stern.

“What if he does, though? You didn’t see the way he looked at me. He was there, but he wasn’t. It’s like he went away in his mind and he didn’t want me there.”

She chuckles. “Have you seen the way that idiot looks at you? It’s honestly disgusting. All puppy dog eyes and goo.” You break out into a watery laugh and, satisfied, she continues, “Look—Chance’s friends…well, not Chrissy, but Chance’s friends are assholes. I’m not saying they got what they deserved, because no one deserves to die. But they were terrible to him. He probably saw Chance and saw you and thought he’d turned you against him. Just like they turned the whole town against him in eighty six.”

There are no words that come to mind after what she says. After the truth she reveals. You’re not sure of what it even means, and yet you think of your customers in your early days or the shop opening. The way some, however rarely, would look at him and mutter amongst themselves when he happened to stop by. You remember the woman at the supermarket with her blonde hair and haunting eyes. The depth of her warning as she stood beside you on line at the register, telling you Eddie wasn’t a good man, telling him he should have never come back.

You think of the fact Eddie moved out of his own childhood home to make room for Max. But you also recall how much freer he is when he’s out of town. His smiles come easier, he seems lighter…brighter, without the weight of the world resting on his shoulders.

The pieces start to slide into place, a push here, a click there. You think of your puzzle he’d brought you both for your first date, now finished and tucked away. How the image became clearer and clearer with each passing moment.

It’s the same now.

That clarity that takes shape.

The reasons why Eddie’s open in some regards, and keeps others very close to his chest. The evasions he’s had to create in his backstory with you, to protect you from the truth of it all.

To protect you from the danger of it, if what Max claims is true.

“Are you ready?” Max’s voice stirs you from your silent reverie. A quiet beckon. A soft lilt that drags you from your thoughts.

You’re not.

There’s nothing that can ever prepare you for what you are about to hear, and yet you twist the key in the ignition all the same. You tug your keys free and toss them into your pocketbook, opening your car door without another word. Max tips her head over the roof of your vehicle, looking to you for reassurance…or merely to see how you’re doing—you’re not really sure. But you dip your head all the same, shutting the door into place, fingers trailing along metal and window, heart racing in your chest at what you are about to enter into.

The walk to the front door is harrowing. You don’t really know what to expect. Max gives you a warning, sure, but nothing compares to reality. Especially not as you knock on the front door and Robin is there to greet you. She offers a kind smile and a hug, her voice quiet as she mutters she’s happy you’re both there. Max glances over her shoulder as you enter the home, your eyes trailing the insides. You’ve been here multiple times, but it feels different now. There’s a whole world you’re not privy to—a world that Eddie’s been a part of, Max and Robin, Steve and the others. The world that those who warned you of this town only spoke of as if they were conspiracies. The gates of hell, satanic cults, gruesome deaths. The fact there are some truths there weighs heavily on your mind, hands shaking a bit as you enter the kitchen and Steve is there to greet you with a warm hug.

You wonder briefly if Charlotte knows. If she’s privy to the world outside of your own that your friends have dealt with. This unshakeable strength they all seem to hold. But you hug him all the same, heart hammering away against his as your arms come to wrap around his neck, his breath a comforting puff against your ear. He steps back momentarily to look at you, all long dark hair, wrinkles high against his forehead. He’s too young for those, but they linger all the same, written into his features alongside the pain you see so clearly there now. The pain of the unknown swirling in your gut, the unknown that has Max reaching across the space between you to curl her hand in your own, squeezing tight.

You squeeze her hand back and look at both your friends as they stand before you, merely basking in silence, all your minds a swirling mass of chaos. Robin speaks first, voice wobbly, words fast and disconcerting in your ears. “He’s…he’s not doing well, babe. He came here a wreck. He never intended for you to find out this way.”

You know that. You do.

It’s why you’ve always been respectful. It’s why you’ve always been weary of what Eddie wants, why you’ve made it a mission to always have an open heart and open mind toward him. And in a few moments Chance had thrown it all into the wind. Obliterated the safety net you were forging, the space you wanted Eddie to live in—to thrive in.

“Max…she warned you, right?” It’s Steve who asks next. The boy with the loud and boisterous personality, always a little piqued, and yet he’s serious now. Guarded toward his best friend. Your heart swells because Eddie has people like these; people who will defend him tooth and nail, even from you.

Even from the woman who has spent nearly every day with him for the past few months.

And still, you nod all the same, your hand still entwined with Max’s. “Max…she warned me.”

Steve and Robin pass one another a look, and you’re brought into the living room. It’s dark there, the lights dimmer than you remember, your friends settling down in different areas about the room. Steve and Robin to the couch. Max on the floor. There are two seats brought out into the living area, set there like they were expected to be there all along. Separated by a few inches sure, but placed there with intent. You glance down at the one, wondering if it’s meant for you, and catch the stiff nod from Steve as you eye the wood carefully.

You drop down into it and hear the slow slide of a door in the distance, the tall form of Eddie catching your eye.

He’s as beautiful as you saw him last. A picture of black, red and white before your eyes. His eyes dark, his shoulders hard, body lithe and lean. You think of those moments from early this morning, his arms around your waist, chest against your back. Lips at your ear as he whispered what you meant to him, as he kissed you like you were the most precious thing in his life. Unbreakable, like he meant to keep you. Like he meant to hold you safe for the rest of his days. You know he means it now, can see it in the way his eyes flicker as they meet yours, as water clouds those swirling depths of chocolate brown.

There’s love there.

It’s not lost on you as he scans the room and lands on yours, holding for a moment, whispering those unspoken words into the space between you.

Unmistakable and yours alone.

You will the same into your eyes as he settles down beside you, legs spread wide, cup of whatever he’s drinking poised at the ready in his hand.

He says nothing. Remains stoic as Steve and Robin straighten in their seats, cushions of the couch forgotten as their elbows lean onto thighs, ready to regale their tales of this world outside their own.

The part of you that’s grown to love him over these months wishes to reach out to him. You want to stretch your hand into the space between you and curl your fingers within his own. To comfort him in the way you know only you can—body, mind and soul. But he remains in the gap between you, separated by inches that feel like miles. There’s a moment, however brief, when his fingers twitch against his thigh and you wonder if he intends to reach across and touch you.

But he never does.

He never does, and you suppose you cannot be upset with him for that.

He’s hard lines, harsh beauty, and adamant walls.

Impenetrable.

Fierce.

You pray they don’t remain that way—that your months of progress don't reverse in a moment's time.

Steve glances about the room, between his best friend Robin beside him, down to where Max sits staring at Eddie on the floor, Eddie with his grim expression as his eyes meet hers, and then lastly on you when he exhales and says, “What we’re about to tell you, you can’t tell anyone. It stays a secret, it stays within the group.”

“It stays within the party,” Max adds, shifting away from Eddie’s stare enough to look at you. “It’ll mean you’re part of it.”

“One of the family.” Robin laughs weakly, passing you a sympathetic smile. “Part of our dysfunctional family.”

Your eyes shift amongst them with a swallow, and then slide briefly to Eddie’s. There’s…there's something there. A softness, a quiet whisper behind his gaze, but you don’t know what it means. Can’t decipher the meaning behind how he looks at you; you just know it curls deep within the pit of your belly, makes you warm, reminds you it’ll be okay.

Everything will be okay.

“I’ll take it with me to the grave,” you tell Steve.

His hand cards through those long strands of dark hair and he stands up from the couch, walking across the room to tend to the fire churning in the fireplace. Once he’s happy with the flames sparking and dancing within, his hand comes to rest on the ledge, his other hand resting on his hip as he glances down at a dirty spot on the carpet.

“I guess we’ll start from the beginning then…”

And it begins.

*

They start from the beginning. With the missing boy Will. With Will, who you know and works at your shop. Kind, sweet Will with the world on his shoulders and nothing but love inside his heart.

Steve recounts the loss of Barbara Holland, a friend of Nancy’s. You learn about the gate that opened in Hawkins to another world. This Upside Down that sounds as harrowing as it truly is.

You learn early on that El has superpowers. She has psionic capabilities, can lift things with her mind, step into alternate dimensions when she goes away in her mind.

El, with her dark hair and bright soul. That innocence that always seems to burn bright behind her gaze.

El, who you learn has fought monsters bigger than her.

Steve walks you through that first encounter with the Upside Down, the demogorgon he faced, his words careful as he explains the appearance to you. A standing, hulking monster, with endless rows of teeth, intent to bring death to those that encounter it.

You’re told about their next encounters.

Max moves to town with her family. Her crappy step-father, her late step-brother, and her late mother move in and immediately she’s thrown into this world she’s never planned for. Apparently Dustin finds some sort of tadpole creature that eventually grows into a demodog. Another monster like the one Steve explained earlier, but this time there are multiple, and they move in what seem to be packs. You learn about Will’s possession by the Mind Flayer, the loss of their friend Bob, their first experience with the ‘hive mind.’

“It all sort of…works in tandem,” Max clarifies. “All tied to one power source.”

El closes the gate this time, they tell you, and for a while it seems everything is okay again. They start to heal, the kids begin to go back to their normal lives, Steve and Robin start working at the Starcourt Mall.

“That parking lot that’s still empty?” It’s your first question in a while, you’ve simply been taking in everything they have to say, trying to be respectful of their experience.

“Yes,” Robin says, frowning as Max glances down at her shoelaces.

Eddie watches the younger girl like a hawk. His face is tight and drawn as Max says, “My brother didn’t die in a fire.”

It’s July and the kids are on summer break. All is well in Hawkins. They’re having fun, being kids, living for the first time in a long time. And then there’s the issue of Billy. Billy, who has always been rough around the edges. Not a good person at all, from what you’ve been told, but he had been alive and had been well one day, and then the next it was like he was different.

Max recalls him being a lot of blank stares in his room, a lot more standoffish. But there becomes this issue around Hawkins, of people becoming aggressive, something to do with kitchen chemicals? And a girl at the pool Billy worked at had gone missing.

Heather, Max explains.

As this is all going on, Steve and Robin explain their encounters with Russian code and their involvement with a secret organization taking place quite literally inside the belly of the mall.

There’s a Mind Flayer building an army, some gigantic beast of a thing, that towers over the building. The same thing that had put itself inside of Will, the same thing that also puts itself inside of Billy.

Your head spins with it all, from the explanation of how Robin and Steve were tortured for information inside the Russian base, to Max and the other kids fighting this monster inside of their friend Hopper’s home. There’s the battle at the Starcourt Mall, when they’re all later reunited, where Max watched her brother die after laying his life down to protect her and her friends.

It’s overwhelming.

Your chest aches, and you’re grateful when Eddie calls the meeting to a halt, catching the glittery tears on Max’s cheeks that she tries to swipe away when no one is looking.

Eddie slips out of the room with the younger girl in tow. There’s a brief moment he makes eye contact with you, his mouth working slowly like he anticipates saying something before thinking better of it.

It’s been only hours and yet you feel like he’s been gone longer, the sting of the emotional distance between you two burning deep in your chest.

*

“Babe, don’t take it personally, okay?” Robin runs a hand up and down your arm, pouring you a glass of something strong and full of ice.

Your face pinches as you take a sip, throat burning from the harsh bite of whatever she’s put into the concoction. “What is this? Battery acid?”

“Very likely,” Steve muses from the doorway, coming to loop an arm around your shoulders. You lean into his side, seeking out the comfort of a friend in the moment. His fingers curl around your skin, giving you a squeeze. “They went for a walk. Eddie said they’ll be back in five. The next part…it’s Eddie’s bit. It’s what happened back in March and…it’s a lot. He’s never really shared it outside of the group. He wanted to tell you before…you know, before Chance. He told me he wanted to. He was finally ready.”

Your heart clenches at the thought. Here Eddie was, ready to open up to you fully and bare his soul to you, and Chance came along to throw a wrench into the whole thing. Robbed Eddie of the opportunity that was meant for him all along.

“I just…a whole world underneath Hawkins?” Your throat swells around the words, around the reality of what you’ve been told the past few hours.

Before you came here, you heard all these ludicrous rumors about the happenings of the small town you were running to. To know they’re fact, to know they’ve been hidden behind lies and government workings—it’s a crazy reality to swallow. A world where monsters exist and walk the earth, a world where gates to new dimensions exist.

It’s your world now.

“And El—having powers?”

Robin comes forward to join you on your other side, sliding a hand into the center of your back. “I felt the same when I found out.”

You feel the need to sit. To really soak in the words swirling around in your brain like little specks of confetti twirling to the ground. Dozens of strands of thoughts in an endless funnel of wind and disarray. But you lean into the warmth of your friends instead, relishing in their closeness, when the glass door to the outside slides open and Eddie and Max reappear.

She’s a little red in the face. Bitten and kissed by the wind, but the rims around her eyes catch your attention next. The telltale sign she’s been crying, paired with that of her sleeve dragging along the bottom of her nose, bumping her glasses that always sit a little too loosely on her face.

Eddie’s dark eyes scan your face, like he’s shocked you’re still there, and you pass him a weak smile. There’s the barest of twitches in his face, and most would miss it, but he offers you that.

A slight smile.

You’ll take it.

“Are we good to keep going?” Robin asks, glancing about the room.

“Yeah, we’re good,” Eddie says, and it’s the first time you’ve heard him speak in hours. It jolts you, drawing a wince out of him.

Robin turns back to you, eying your drink in your hand as the others head back into the living area. “You might want to keep that close.”

She’s not wrong.

Eddie’s fingers toy with the silver of his rings, twirling them round and round low against his knuckles. “So, uh, it’s March…of eighty six and, you know, I’m still the Freak around town. So you can imagine I’m just a tad confused when Chrissy Cunningham, the Queen of Hawkins High, comes to me for a deal.” His eyes flash to yours, a grimace pulling at his mouth. “Used to deal. Don’t anymore, but—I, ah, yeah, sorry sweetheart. But Chrissy is not herself. I didn’t really know her much, but she’s just perpetually happy. I mean, I guess she had to be. Cheerleading captain, about to be valedictorian, friends with everyone. So I meet her in the woods behind the school and she looks scared as shit. Like—maybe I should have paid more attention to it, maybe that was my mistake, but…she asks me for ketamine.”

You train your eyes on Eddie as he speaks. He’s a shadow before you, hollows of his features glowing from the orange hue spilling from the mouth of the fireplace. He’s all long limbs spread out, legs before him, slender and spidery, bent as his back rests against the wooden chair. His hands rest against his thighs, where he continues to twirl the metal around his digits, head bent low and mind seemingly back in the forest that day in eighty six.

“I…brought her back to my trailer that night and I couldn't find the ketamine. So I leave her in the damn living room and when I come back she’s just standing there. Blank face, nothing behind her eyes, just gone. And I’m yelling at her over and over and over again, but whatever this thing is that’s pulling at her just…she never hears me. I wonder if she did, even now. Like if she knew I was trying to save her and—” He pauses as your hand curls around his kneecap, and you worry for a moment he’s going to push you away, to reject this comfort, but his hand slides over your own and squeezes lightly.

He doesn’t let go.

What he explains next has your throat closing around the truth of it. Chance’s words swirl in your ears. The fact Jason Carver, fueled by jealousy over being cuckolded by Eddie Munson, killed his girlfriend. But the reality is that much more horrifying. Because Eddie recounts the moments with ultra clarity, the memory of them burned into his retinas for the rest of his life, of the girl levitating above the ground. The way her body stretched across the ceiling as her bones snapped one by one in her body, before she died right before his eyes.

“We all met…that next day,” Max says with a bitter laugh, gesturing between Eddie and the rest of the group, including herself.

So they were bound by the untimely death of Chrissy, Steve explains, recalling how they all went looking for Eddie with Dustin’s help, because Max had seen flickering lights coming from Eddie’s trailer and disrupting her own, just before he had run.

A sign of the Upside Down. Their first sign that Eddie had been innocent in all of it.

“Held a glass bottle to my throat,” Steve laughs as he explains those tense few moments of their ‘friendship.’

“You kind of deserved it. Jabbed me right in the ribs with that oar,” Eddie says, but there’s a lightness to his tone reserved for his loved ones. “His name was Vecna. This…thing, this person, responsible for cursing Chrissy. And…Fred, Patrick, and Max.”

Your eyes flicker up to Max at Eddie’s admission, blue eyes flashing with your own. “Max.”

“The asshole cursed me,” she says simply. “So what happened to Chrissy, what happened to Fred, we knew was likely coming my way. And it did—but we found a solution.”

“Thank goodness for that Walkman,” Robin exhales. “We found that music could bring people out of Vecna’s…soupy mind trance. Happy memories, favorite moments, your favorite song.”

“The song you could listen to over and over again on repeat…” You mutter the words out, feeling your eyes burn at the memory of Eddie asking you for yours so many weeks ago in your apartment.

“What’s your favorite song? If you had to pick one, what would it be? The one you can play over and over again and never get bored of?”

“Yeah,” Eddie says softly, the words meant only for you. Your stomach twists painfully. “That one.”

Proof he cared, even then.

It’s a race against a clock.

It’s not long before Eddie’s a suspect in the murders he never committed, and it’s paired with the looming threat over Max’s life. One night in particular, Robin tells you, Jason Carver and his friends find Eddie at the boathouse and come with weapons in hand. You know their intention, from the way Eddie’s breath catches, was never to merely talk about the situation.

Hunt the Freak, he tells you bitterly, recalling those moments out on Lover’s Lake, just before Patrick suffered the same fate as Chrissy.

Two.

Eddie watches two people die that week.

You shudder out a breath as they tell you about the Upside Down. As Steve tugs the neck of his sweater down enough to show you the lines around his throat, and then slips up the side of his sweater enough to show you the scarring on his side that looks like a splash of sun against his skin. It reminds you of the ones that litter Eddie’s arms, the smaller ones on his face and neck, the ridges of his abdomen you barely felt before he pulled away from you.

“We’re, like, the most screwed up blood brothers to exist,” Steve says bitterly, his shirt dropping down into place. “Matching scars and all.”

“Demobats,” Robin explains, shuddering at the end. “Scary little shitheads.”

It paints a picture for you—clearer now than ever before.

Fills the gaps in your understanding over these nine months.

Yet another memory flashing behind your eyes of Eddie in your kitchen. Of wings and claws and the sound of skittering against your window. The choked breath from Eddie’s lungs that suddenly stopped working. The panic attack he suffers in your kitchen.

You think you start to grasp an understanding as they talk about how a plan began to form. They gathered a bunch of weapons with the intention of using Max and Eddie and Dustin to create distractions for Vecna. To give enough time for the others to try and kill him. But even the best laid plans go to hell—and it’s proven correct in both aspects.

Eddie and Max, to make things simpler, both die that night.

Max, with her limbs broken and mangled, blood dripping from her eyes. And Eddie, with his flesh torn into over and over again, countless rows of teeth sinking into skin, taking pieces of him, ripping him into ribbons, robbing him of life.

It chokes you. Chokes Eddie as Steve explains the parts of the story Eddie’s mouth can’t work around. The gaps are still too raw to fill in by himself. You don’t blame him.

You press the heel of your palm into your eyes, feeling Eddie’s fingers tighten around your own, the severity in his gaze making the room come crashing around you.

“Eddie never…he never murdered any of those people,” Max says, but you know that.

You’ve known that.

In the end, Eddie spends a few weeks in the hospital.

Max spends months there.

His name is cleared relatively swiftly. Steve is a bit cagey as to how they manage to get Eddie’s name pulled from any further headlines, but you know it’s because there was nothing to hold together a case against him.

Jason is suddenly the blame for the events that occurred, and laid to rest on that March day.

It’s a lot to process.

The room feels heavy with it, thick in a way that reminds you of honey. Sticky, yet missing all that sweetness.

Steve suggests you all stay for the night. Get some rest. Recount the stories in the morning.

It’s been hours and every inch of your body aches from work and your eyes feel tired, burning with the unshed tears lingering on your lash line.

Steve lets you borrow some of his things, an oversized sweatshirt, some pants you need to roll up multiple times, and leads you and Eddie down the hall of the second story to the home, pausing in front of a bedroom.

“It’s a guest room,” he says, gesturing inside. “We’ll talk more in the morning. Goodnight, you two.”

It’s normal for you to expect mirth or a deeper scheme behind Steve’s eyes. The sense of teasing there that you’ve grown to know and love, and yet standing before that bedroom in the lonely hall has you unsure of where to look, Steve only whistles and shifts awkwardly before leaving you to your solitude. Neither of you speaks for a time, bodies shifting in the darkness, not touching and awkward.

This morning you had been curled as tight as two could be, your spine to his chest, your thighs to his, those strong arms of his wrapped around your waist, his chin over your shoulder, lips to your ear.

“I’ve never felt this way about anyone before,” he whispered.

Your heart stuttered. Faltered from the weight of what he was saying. Your fingers slid up to curl into his hair, his face leaning into your touch. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone before either, Eddie.”

It was the truth then, it’s still the truth now, and yet there’s a chasm that grows wider by the second in that hallway, and for fear of watching it grow anymore, you take the initiative and push past the man to slip inside the guest room.

Neither of you speaks as you move about the room and take in your surroundings. There’s a simple dresser in one corner, a lamp on a stand that sits in another, and there’s only one bed.

One.

It’s a thought that might have thrilled you some other time, and now it only fills you with a maelstrom of emotions. In the past few hours your conversations have been reduced to sparing words, your touches to brushes of fingers. And now there’s a silence that screams between you, those murky depths curling and lapping at your ankles.

You drop your borrowed clothes onto the bed, glancing over your shoulder to where Eddie stands awkwardly in the doorway. The fullness of his form is outlined in golden light emanating from the hall, those dark eyes of his searching.

“You can take the bathroom,” you tell him, “I’ll tell you when I’m done and you can come out.”

He’s seen you in nothing but a pair of jeans before, yet somehow changing around him feels more intimate. Especially with the disquiet between you two. So there’s no protests on his part as he reaches into the side dresser, as if he’s done this before, and snatches a pair of pants and a shirt from within. He opens his mouth to speak and you feel your soul soar for a moment, before he’s snapping it shut again and slipping inside.

When the door clicks shut, you let out a shaky breath and change in silence.

*

Eddie knocks on the bathroom door moments later, your voice beckoning him out when you’re finally and fully dressed again. You’re moving about and folding your original clothes up onto the dresser when he moves to go sit down on the bed and you maneuver around him to get ready for sleep.

He watches you in silence as you wash your face and brush your teeth, wiping down the countertops after, a habit from working at Sunshine Coffee for so long now. You know why you’re really doing it, though. It’s a temporary distraction from the deeper issue at hand: the rift between the two of you.

Sighing, you slip back into the bedroom and walk around to the opposite side of the bed closest to the lamp and slide underneath the covers. Eddie watches, still upright, as you turn onto your side and reach over, asking if you can shut the light.

“Uh…yeah, yeah that’s fine,” he says softly from behind you, and the room drowns in darkness.

You pinch your eyes shut to try and get some rest, chest aching, heart clanging like a damn cymbal, but your mind only spins. You’re certain you’ll find no rest tonight, only the dizzying free fall of your wandering thoughts.

That is, until the bed dips beside you and you feel Eddie pull back the covers, sliding down against the mattress to rest a head on the pillow beside you. You feel his hand accidentally brush your hip and from behind you a following, “Sorry,” that spills through his lips.

You laugh, because it just feels so silly.

You’re not mad at him, but there’s still this disturbance hanging in the air. The worry to push him beyond his boundaries, beyond what he feels comfortable with now after sharing his past with you. If he wants to remain in silence, you want him to remain in silence. You want whatever he wants—whatever he needs at the moment.

“What’s that?” Eddie asks, his voice tight.

“Nothing…I just—nothing.”

He doesn’t speak for a bit. Only settles down far enough on the other side of the bed you can feel the heat radiating from him, but not even the ghost of touch from his form.

A beat of silence passes.

And then—

“Sweetheart, I hate this.”

Your head nuzzles further into your pillow, voice a little shaky as you whisper back, “What do you mean?”

“I left earlier because I thought the worst. I thought—I thought you believed him. Wouldn’t be the first time someone was turned against me,” he says a little breathlessly. Jason. Jason did that. And the ramifications of it are still present to this day; you’ve seen it first hand. “That was dumb as shit for me to think. I…I wanted to tell you. I was going to, he just beat me to it first. Should have come from me, should have been sooner, should have—”

“Eddie, it’s okay.”

“It’s not, though.”

“Seriously it’s—”

“I’m sorry. I’m really really sorry,” he says, and you shatter.

Eyes flush against your cheeks, lashes dancing along the topmost points of your cheekbones, you mutter, “There’s nothing for you to apologize for. At all. I need you to understand that.”

“Then why aren’t you talking to me? You’re all the way on the other side of the bed. You won’t even look at me.”

“Because I know how hard tonight was and I didnt want to push you. Eddie, what you told me tonight…it’s important and it’s huge and the fact you’ve trusted me with it means everything to me. But I also want you to take the time you need. Process what you’re feeling and all of that.”

“You’re doing that thing again.”

“What thing?”

“Where you’re too nice,” he says. “I just want to hold you.”

“Then hold me, Eddie. You never need permission to hold me,” you whisper back, sighing as his arm comes to loop around your waist and tug you flush against his chest. “I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?”

Your fingers drag slowly around his bare forearm, feeling gooseflesh pimple the surface of his skin. “For what happened. For what Chance did. For eighty six. For all the people who have been unkind to you. I wish they could all see what I see.”

You roll over then, seeking his face in the dark. His eyes are molten honey, soft in a way that has your fingers seeking the warmth of his chest over his tee shirt, feeling the divots and lines of his abdomen against fingertips. He’s lean and lithe and perfectly yours, with a heart that melts yours.

He just never sees it that way. But you suppose that’s what loving someone means. It's choosing them, even when they don’t choose themselves. It’s the good and bad days, not just the ones that are bright shades of orange, pinks and reds behind rose-colored glasses. It’s standing by them no matter the circumstances, supporting them fully. It’s the whole hearted acceptance that resides in your heart for him.

For who he was, who he is now, and who he will be.

“I’m happy you know now,” he says, rubbing a thumb along the bump of your chin affectionately. “I’m tired of being nervous. I’m tired of the constant looking over my shoulder and running. It’s been almost three years.”

“It takes time, Eddie.”

Your fingers reach up to cup the curve of his jaw, dancing along the scarring there. It still kills you to know he’d been broken and on the brink of death in the middle of this other world that resides beneath your own.

That he had been inches from death and still held on, only to find the world outside just as cruel as the one that nearly killed him.

“What you’ve been through—what you’ve all been through,” you start, exhaling as his forehead drops closer to your own, pressing there to linger. “It changes you. There’s no way it couldn’t. And yet you’re all still living, you’re all still loving and showing your past that it can’t rule you. You’re so brave. I don’t think you’re running anymore.”

“I don’t want to,” his fingers slide down along the slope of your face, the line of your throat, skipping along your collarbone. “You’re the first person I’ve opened up to in a long time. I’m afraid I’m going to fuck it up.”

“You’re the first person I’ve opened up to in a long time.” His hand slides down the slope of your shoulder, along your bicep. “We’re bound to make mistakes. But we get to make them together. It’s a learning process.”

“I’ve never been good at that,” he teases, chuckling lightly.

“It might be a steep learning curve, but I think we’ve got it.”

His fingers trail down your forearm, before tangling in the space between the two of you on the mattress. He lifts your hand and brings the center of your palm to his lips, presses a kiss to the center there, eyes lingering on your face.

“We’re good?” He asks against your skin, his eyes practically molten in the night.

“Yeah, we’re good.”

He sighs in relief, biting softly at the skin at the heel of your palm, earning a laugh from you. You’re about to protest when his face pushes into your collar bone and he practically drapes himself over you, his long limbs tangling with your own.

“What would your friends think knowing you’re basically a koala bear in bed?”

“I’ll deny it,” he mumbles against your skin, the outline of his smile making your stomach tumble.

Your fingers come to curl in the tangle of his dark mass of hair at the back of his head and hold him as close as he can possibly be to your frame. “I’m glad you stopped running, Eddie. I don’t think we’d have met if you didn’t. And I’m really glad we met. Really, really glad.”

His head lifts at your words, those dark eyes of his searching your face in the barely lit room. He brushes the bump of your chin again with his thumb, resting it in the dip below your lip. His eyes flicker southward, and you lean forward a bit, just as he presses his mouth to yours, silencing all other thoughts from your mind.

There’s only this moment, this bedroom sequestered away from the world, these hands holding you, this boy kissing you, whispering how much he cares for you, and your hearts full to the brim because the world lies ahead and it’s yours for the taking.

There is no more running.

*

The next morning dawns bright for a winter day.

The first official day, really.

It’s all pearlescent skies, overcast, pale clouds stretched in what looks like a blanket across it. It looks like it’ll snow, the news forecasting a foot of it just before the holidays.

It’s how you wake up beside Eddie that next morning. His arms slung low about your hips, his breath at your ear, the curtains parted enough to allow you the view of the backyard.

Your fingers dance along the tops of his hands, along the hair along his forearm.

Today feels different somehow.

Your relationship has taken a new turn. A hurdle overcome. Now there’s only a blank canvas—open spaces to fill with new memories.

Eddie also sleeps easily. The few times you’ve slept beside him he’s either not slept at all and waited for the sun to rise and you to head off to work to finally allow himself rest once the night bled into day, or has fallen asleep and woken up in the throes of a nightmare or tossed and turned in his restlessness.

Now his chest rises and falls steadily at your back, his mind quieting enough for him to do so. You shift slowly, gently enough so as to not wake him, onto your side to look up at him. He’s all smooth edges now. The wrinkle between his brows is gone, face unmarked by any thoughts warring in his mind, those pillowy lips of his parted slightly. He looks younger than his twenty three years. Your fingers trail up to touch his cheek, fingertips running along smooth pale skin, earning a sigh from the man.

A hand at your back presses you closer to him, a little ‘oof’ spilling from your lips as your face meets his chest and his head comes to rest at the top of yours.

“What day is it?” He mumbles against your head.

“Saturday. We’re both off.”

“Oh,” he hums thoughtfully. “So we have the day to do nothing.”

“No, we have the day to go shopping. You haven’t gotten any Christmas presents and we have four days until the big day,” you remind him. “We’re spending it at the Wheeler’s, remember?”

You’d anticipated spending the holidays with Eddie at the very least. Your own family was traveling to Florida to seek out warmer weather instead of the bitter cold of Hawkins. Had brushed off your invitation with a simple, “Next time, honey.”

Nancy’s invitation came later. She’d cornered you at a get together over at Steve’s and said she’d really like you to come. That her house was more than large enough and that her parents were looking to have everyone get together. The more the merrier.

You were over the moon about it. Your first real “family” holiday season.

He only groans.

“It’ll be fun. We’ll spend the whole day together wrapping gifts and watching movies.”

“With Max.” He says it like he doesn’t enjoy her company, but you know he doesn’t mean it.

“Yes, with Max. She has shopping to do as well.”

He huffs out a laugh that warms your skin. “We have vastly different ideas of fun.” He pushes back just enough to drop a kiss to your forehead, before shifting up onto his elbows. “We should probably head downstairs soon. I hear them moving around in the kitchen. They’ll be looking for us.” He leans down to press his lips into the curve of your neck, sighing. “Just wanna stay here instead.”

For emphasis, he drops back down and hugs you tight, resting his head against your collar bone.

In the end, you win out, managing to extricate Eddie long enough to dress and ready for the new day. In the kitchen, Steve stands over the stove, working up some breakfast, while Max and Robin sit at the kitchen table, faces impassive as the two of you slip back into the room. When they notice the way his hand brushes your back as he slides a chair out and you move to take a seat, the mild discomfort fizzles and conversation resumes.

“Did you two sleep well last night?” Steve asks, waving his spatula like a sword for emphasis. “It’s almost ten.”

“Like a baby, Harrington.”

You snort at Eddie’s words, thanking Max as she hands you and Eddie steaming cups of coffee just as she knows you like them. You thank her, smiling warmly.

“You two kiss and make up? Because I’m not about to spend the day with you two pouring at each other non stop,” Max asks, nonplussed.

You choke a little on your coffee.

Eddie’s face hardens.

“Red.”

“What?”

She shrugs, biting into a strawberry as Steve starts shoveling breakfast onto everyone’s plates.

Your chest warms.

*

In the end you manage to get all the shopping you need to do finished.

It’s not without its struggles, however.

Max and Eddie separate are two different storms.

Max with her fiery, sometimes explosive energy. Not to mention that deadpan that endears you to her, her open opinions, the brashness in which she lives her life.

And then there’s Eddie. Charismatic and explosive like her, all frenetic energy as he moves in and out of stores, looking for the perfect gifts for those he cares about most.

She urges him to hurry up, he barks back at her to let him think.

It’s a constant back and forth that has you both amused and frightened, because you’re never quite sure if they’re seconds away from fighting in the mall. Onlookers question if the two of them are okay, to which you mutter back “siblings” and they nod in understanding, like they know exactly what that implies.

And later, as the three of you return to his dimly lit apartment, illuminated only by the Christmas tree the two of you lovingly decorated together, you bask in the warmth of their familial bond. The way the two of them curl up together on the couch watching The Grinch Who Stole Christmas as you work on putting together something to eat for dinner. Every so often you glance over your shoulder, catching the way Eddie’s arm curls around the younger teen, how she seeks out his warmth.

It dawns on you—the depth of this moment. These two souls are so willingly open to allow you into their lives. Into their hearts. It’s taken time, months really, and the fact they trust you wholeheartedly now is not lost on you. You’ve never had a close family. Always absent, leaving you to your own devices.

You understand Max and Eddie are a family now, bound by unexplainable trauma, and yet they are family all the same. And in a way, though you wouldn’t voice it to them right now, watching them from afar like this…them allowing you into the safety of this moment…it almost feels like family for you, too.

This overwhelming sense of belonging that curls around your insides, makes them warm, brings a wave of tears to your eyes. Eddie catches the glitter on your lashes, untangling himself from Max just as you dip your head into your shoulder, ladle spinning through your freshly made sauce, trying to hide yourself from his sight.

“Hey, hey. Don’t you hide from me,” he urges, tapping at your cheek, earning a watery laugh from you.

“‘M fine,” you mumble, sniffling noisily. The tears recede and lift your gaze to his to prove it to him, but Eddie remains at your side, curling an arm around your hip to drag you close. “Really, I promise.”

He presses his forehead into your cheek. “Let me see that smile.” You snort as his lips smack a kiss there, loud enough to draw Max’s attention.

You hear her scoff, her drawl of distaste, but there’s a smile on her face all the same.

“Just feeling really happy is all,” you reassure him, a smile sliding onto your face.

He slides a hand down your arm and curls his fingers into your own, squeezing your tangled digits. “I know what you mean.”

The three of you eat your chicken parmigiana in comfortable silence, Eddie only groaning every so often in enthusiasm over the fact he’s being fed. You snort, knowing very early on in your friendship that the best way to Eddie Munson’s heart was through his stomach.

Later, it’s Max and you sitting at the kitchen table wrapping gifts as you walk Eddie through baking a tray of cookies. You’ve already successfully wrapped the gifts you all got for Wayne, as well as the smaller gifts for the kids and your friends. Eddie had told you he’s terrible at wrapping gifts, at which you had told him it’s not about the wrapping but the fact love was put into the package. But he reassures you all the same he’ll be better put to use doing something else. So you’d set him up with some baking supplies in his small kitchen, and gathered things for you and Max to get started with.

“Small round circles,” you tell him, watching his fingers hesitantly roll dough within his palms, now bare from their usual rings.

“He’s really got the easier job,” Max grumbles.

She’s been…struggling, to say the least. Every so often she curses under her breath when a tab of tape gets stuck to her fingers instead of the package, or she doesn’t have enough paper to cover a box because she underestimated. You try to assist her as much as she’ll allow, but she reassures you over and over again she’s fine (she’s not) and that she doesn’t need help (she does).

“Why is that, Red?” Eddie asks, the line of flour on his cheek a slash of white against his face.

And there on the table, in a mess of crinkly red paper and endless tabs of tape keeping things positioned in place, lies one of Lucas’ gifts.

She holds it up with an uneasy laugh and Eddie tries to hide his own chuckles into the lip of his coffee cup.

It’s not perfect, no, but this moment is.

*

The Wheeler’s truly go all out for the holidays. Upon entering their home, Eddie’s palm in your own, your eyes are drawn to the endless holiday decorations. Their tree is dressed to the nines, all wide and fluffy branches, glowing lights, endless ornaments that twinkle against green branches.

There are lights twined around all the railways and banisters, illuminating the room in a pale glow. There are centerpieces on all their tables, little candles with tiny wreaths around the bases, the smell of pine filling your nostrils as you take a turn about the place.

Karen Wheeler is there in a flurry, ready to take your jackets. “I hope the drive wasn’t too bad, sweetie,” she says to Eddie, brushing the snow from his shoulders.

It’s been snowing all afternoon. A few inches now blanket the streets of Hawkins, and though it did provide for a harder drive, you find that it only adds to your experience in town with the people you love. A true white holiday season.

Last year you’d been somewhere tropical, in a bathing suit on the beach, sipping a margarita funded by your parents. Now Karen moves about you and helps you slip out of your jacket, coming around front to look at you, a giant smile blooming across her face.

“You’re a doll! Eddie, she’s so beautiful.” She turns to him, then glances your way. “Come on in. Be a dear and help me with the table, would you? Nancy, your friend is here!”

It’s not long before you’re put to work, setting up table placements, smiling and waving every time another arrival comes through the front door.

Dinner is warm and bright. Full of laughter, full of quiet conversation and guests asking to pass the pasta, a roll, the chicken. It’s memories told about the kids through the years, Hopper regaling you with moments that make El flush deep scarlet in embarrassment. It’s Max leaning into Eddie when she grows a little morose, and him curling an arm around her shoulder to whisper against her ear because he knows what she’s feeling. It’s Wayne crying later when Eddie gives him a new mug that says “World’s Best Dad” and Max rushing over to tackle you and Eddie when you give her the tickets to a concert she’d been talking about taking Lucas to.

All around the room people pass around gifts, room full, hearts fuller.

Charlotte and Steve slip away after a while to go kiss beneath the mistletoe, Nancy and Jonathan hold one another close on the couch, Robin and Vickie glance lovingly at one another as Vickie holds a new sweater up to her chest.

The kids thank Karen for their new socks, knitted hats, and warm mittens.

You smile as Eddie slides your new necklace around your neck, a locket with a picture of the two of you on one side, and a picture of him on the other, just so you’ll always have him close.

He kisses you and tells you his thanks over the new cassette tapes and guitar strings you'd gotten him, the new fantasy books he’s been meaning to read, and a couple of things for his new campaigns he’s been dreaming up.

“Hey, Eddie,” you tell him, as people retreat to the dessert table and dining area, leaving the living room mostly unattended.

He brushes your hair back into place and trails his finger over the locket. “Yeah, sweetheart.”

“I have another gift for you—and before you get upset, it’s little. It’s…well, here.” You slide the little pouch into his hand, the drawstrings pulled tight.

Tentative fingers move to open the little bag, dropping the item inside into his open palm. His head tilts to the side, shifting the key with a fingertip. “What’s this?”

“It’s a key. To my apartment. So you always know you’re welcome. And also because…all my life I’ve been running from reality. Bouncing between place to place so I don’t have to really get to know people. Trying to protect my heart because I didn’t want to get hurt. Never really allowing anyone to get all that close. Until I came here…and met you.”

“I’m not understanding.”

You shift closer to him where you sit on the floor, your knee brushing his own as you lift the key and dangle it in the air between you two. “I thought about it. About the shop, about the friends I’ve made here, and how I feel about you and I want to stay. I’m going to stay in Hawkins.”

Home.

You’re finally home.

And the slow smile that starts to spread across Eddie’s lips as he finally understands is all you need to see to know you’ve made the right choice.

His eyes shine with the reflection of Christmas tree lights, and swim with affection for you.

Home.

You’re staying here in Hawkins, staying with him, choosing this.

So if his voice wobbles a little, you say nothing of it, because he’s glowing. “That’s…that’s the best gift you could have given me.”

You curl the key into both your hands and squeeze tight, the imprint of it cool against your skin.

But it’s the easiest decision you’ve made in a long time.

“Merry Christmas, Eddie.”

*

Hawkins feels even more like home the next afternoon.

It comes unexpectedly, as most things do, with the door blowing open from the cold winter air, bringing Eddie along with it. His head is bent down, looking at something within his jacket. You’re worried he’s hurt from the way he’s cradling his side, but what you find instead makes you pause.

Hidden within the side of his jacket is a silvery ball of fur, with a tiny button nose, two dark eyes, and a set of ears that look funny on its small head.

“Eddie, what is that?” You ask, already knowing your answer, but wanting to hear your boyfriend fess up all the same.

He tucks it closer to his side and mutters, “Nothing.” The kitten gives a tiny meow and Eddie melts, his dark eyes growing softer by the moment as one of those ringed fingers comes to rub along the furry head.

You take a step closer, glancing into his jacket to see the little one. It peers out curiously, leaning into Eddie’s side as if it knows that he’s his protector already. “It’s not nothing because it looks like a kitten. A living, breathing kitten.”

Eddie rubs the tiny head again. “That’s because itisakitten.”

“What was that?”

“It is a kitten,” he says simply, pulling the jacket away to hold the baby in front of him.

“Why is there a kitten in my apartment?” You step closer, stroking a finger along one of the too-big ears. The kitten purrs and leans into the touch.

He rubs a thumb along the tiny little spine and says, “Well, you see, I was walking over here from work and I heard this tiny little thing meowing by the dumpster. And I had to pick it up. It was calling my name.”

You pause in your gentle stroking, and the kitten's eyes pop open. “It was saying Eddie?”

He nods, and you move to rub underneath its chin. “Yes, so clearly, you should have heard it.”

“Eddie…” you warn, just as a tiny, sandpaper tongue drags along your fingertip.

You melt a little bit, and Eddie takes note.

“My apartment doesn’t allow pets. But this apartment is yours. Fully and completely yours.”

“Eddie no.” And as much as your mind screams no, the kitten stares at you and your resolve crumbles all the more.

“Look at it. How can you deny this face?” He holds the kitten up beside his face.

And you know he’s talking about denying the kitten, but the look on Eddie’s face is just as hard to say no to. All pouty lips, bit doe eyes, lashes batting at you obnoxiously.

So it really should come as no surprise to you when the two of you spend the next day at the vet with the kitten (a boy, they tell you) and then the pet store after (Eddie tells you he needs toys, though you tell him food is more important) with a very giddy Eddie who spends way more money than he really needs to to spoil his new “son.”

Later that evening, after you’ve all eaten (kitten included) you sit around on the floor as Eddie rolls a ball toward the little one and grins widely as it pats a tiny little paw against the surface until the bell inside jingles.

You’ve been like this for hours, taking turns showing the little one new things, figuring out which toys he likes best, getting him used to the two of you and his new home.

“It is really cute,” you say as it comes to curl up in Eddie’s lap, sound asleep.

“He’s really cute,” Eddie agrees, running a gentle hand along its back.

“What do we name him?”

“He was chewing on my buttons in the car. How about Chewbacca? Get it?”

You laugh, incredulous. “Chewbacca? Eddie, this is our son.”

He snorts at that. But you suppose this is your fur-child now. Both of yours.

“Yes, I understand that, and I happen to think Chewbacca is a wonderful name,” he says plainly, not quite getting the issue here.

“He doesn’t even look like Chewbacca. He’s silver.” You rub at the little head, leaning over to kiss the tiny nose.

“How about Chewy for short? Chewbacca is his full government name, though. Chewbacca Munson.”

“What if I wanted him to have my last name?”

“We can hyphen.”

“Wow, I’m surprised you compromised that quickly.”

He shrugs, leaning over to kiss you on the temple. “It doesn’t slip my mind you’re keeping him here. Thank you for indulging a childhood wish of mine to have a pet.”

You snort, but your grin is megawatt. “You’re lucky I l—like you so much.”

*

Your friends are inside, the sound of music and chatter drifting from the opened patio door. The countdown to the new year is set to start soon, but you’re staring up at the sky, Eddie’s arms low around your waist, his chin against your shoulder as the two of you stargaze. He reminds you of the constellations he’s already shown you, then starts to point out the newer ones you’re not familiar with.

You’ve been like this for a while now. Him holding you close, keeping you warm, your breaths curling in the winter air. There’s a whole party happening just feet away, and yet you’re exactly where you want to be the most.

“They’re going to be looking for us soon,” you whisper, though you find you don’t really care.

A particularly loud laugh echoes from inside, the outline of Steve and Charlotte’s forms illuminated across from you as Robin tells them a story with a wide smile on her pretty features.

She waves and you wave back, returning your eyes to the stars, to the boy who you’d believe hung them if he told you so.

“Hey, sweetheart?” His voice is quiet. Timid.

You turn around in his arms to face him, his lips a little chapped from the cold, that too-big jacket of his becoming your blanket as he cradles you in the circle of his arms.

“Yeah?”

“There was something I wanted to talk to you about. Something kind of serious,” he says, and you feel your lips tug southward. At the furrow of your brows, he shakes his head, cupping the side of your cheek with his hand. “Wait—maybe not the best wording. I, uh, it’s serious in a good way.”

“In a good way…” you repeat slowly, chewing idly at your bottom lip.

Now his brow furrows, one hand coming up to pinch the bridge of his nose. “I’m not…I’m messing this up. Okay, I’m going to just come out and say it…”

“You’re worrying me,” you mutter, a little breathless, hand coming to rest over his hand comfortingly.

“I…”

“Hey lovebirds, wanna stop sucking face? The countdown starts in five minutes!” Steve shouts outside, Charlotte shushing him with a hand on his shoulder. Her giggly apology reaches your ears and the two of you turn to find them staring your way.

“Can we get some privacy?” Eddie calls back, face pinching in his frustration.

“Come on, Stevie. Leave them alone,” Charlotte agrees, tugging at his arm. “We’ll catch up later. Sorry, guys.”

The patio door slides shut once more and you’re left alone with your favorite boy. He huffs out a sigh, sliding his arms back around your form, breathing a cloud between the two of you.

You’re not expecting him to just blurt out his next sentence. Not expecting the words at all, and yet they’re the same words you’ve been holding to yourself for safe keeping, for that perfect moment like this one. The moment where it’s the two of you, overwhelmed in one another, hidden away in a stolen moment captured in time.

Because it’s New Years Eve and Eddie’s just said, “I’m in love with you.”

Because it’s New Year’s Eve and your tears prick, voice a broken sob as you whisper back, “I’m in love with you, too.”

It’s New Year’s Eve and you’re spending it with the person you want to go make countless memories with in the next three hundred and sixty five days. You want all his days, good and bad. To brave the storms should they come, to chase away his nightmares, to rejoice in the happy times. You want to wake to him in the morning and kiss him goodnight before bed. You want to dance in the kitchen as you cook together, to taste his sugar sweet lips on those days you try something new to bake. You want those new adventures, dinners with Wayne and Max, play time with Chewbacca. You want the game nights with your friends, to listen to him play Dungeons and Dragons with the kids, to go on that camping trip Steve, Robin and the others talked about come summer time.

You wanted it all, want it all, with the boy standing before you with all the love in the world behind his eyes.

“I’m in love with you,” you repeat, just as the sound of the countdown spills from inside.

Ten…

He curls a hand around your face once more.

Nine…

You brush at the hair near his shoulders, feeling him warm beneath your skin.

Eight…

He tugs you closer, always closer.

Seven…

You slide your hands into his jacket, hands resting against his back.

Six…

He tells you he’s in love with you once more.

Five…

You press your forehead to his, smiling up at him.

Four…

He glances down at you through those dark lashes.

Three…

You feel his breath dance along your bottom lip.

Two…

You wish him a Happy New Year.

One…

He kisses you as party poppers explode showers of confetti inside. Kisses you as shouts fill your ears. Kisses you until butterflies dance to life in your belly, until fireworks dance behind your eyes, and the rest of the world falls away.

It all dissolves around you, and you’re just standing there in the arms of the man you love.

Nothing else matters.

All that matters is this moment, this boy, this love.

*

It starts, you suppose, in the car ride. The atmosphere has a new heaviness, a thrill that boils in the cabin. Your fingers slide through Eddie’s, toying with the rings resting cool from the winter air against your thigh. You’re not sure what possesses you. Not sure if it’s the happiness from the evening, the weight of his confession, the way your heart feels full to burst—but it has you feeling bolder, has you slowly trailing your fingers along your opposite thigh. A slow path, a gentle up and down, over and over again.

His eyes flash to yours, linger briefly on your exposed flesh, the warmth of your skin. You catch the way his tongue dips to his lip, the pinch of his teeth against skin, before flashing back to the road. You’re almost home, only minutes now, but you’re itching for touch. For his touch in particular, warm against your skin, along the outline of your leg muscle, inside your thigh, at your center where you want him most.

You feel the first little brush of his fingers as they slip free from yours, the tantalizing trail of them, along the thigh nearest to him. A gentle drag of skin against skin, venturing higher every time. His fingertips tease the hem of your ruched satin dress, now bunched near your hip, leaving only inches between where he lingers now and your clothed center. There is a question in his eyes, a pass of chocolate brown eyes in the night as he looks your way, and you dip your head, understanding his meaning.

His fingers start a new exploration, a curious slide along your inner thigh, a gentle sweep that leaves gooseflesh in its wake. It’s unfamiliar to him and you, and yet it elicits a soft sigh from your lips, head falling back against the headrest. Taking this as all the coaxing he needs, he pushes up higher, halting at the edge of your panties. There is a brief moment where he pauses, and you wonder if he’s about to freeze up and end this before you’ve even had a chance to begin the night, but he dissuades those fears when he shifts and presses his middle finger against the spot of slick already forming against the gray material.

He curses, his eyes sliding up to the ceiling in a silent prayer, hand tightening in a white knuckle grip against the steering wheel. “Wanna touch you.”

“Then touch me, Eddie,” you breathe out, shuddering as he pushes the material to the side and slides a finger through your folds, dragging in a curious line.

It's a wonky, unpracticed pattern that he tries once…then twice, and pulls back.

“Show me. Show me what you like.”

It sounds choked.

A little gasp, a soft plea.

Understanding what he means, you reach down to join him, dragging a line down your center, swirling in the pool of slick at your entrance before circling the bead of your clit. His eyes dart from the road to where your finger starts to move in small circles, toes already curling within your heels.

He watches like that for a few moments. Captures the way your chest rises and falls with each sweep of your finger, the heaviness of your breath, the shudder of each pass of air through lungs. And it doesn’t take long before he’s replacing your fingers with his own, following the same path you’d taken. Dragging those thicker digits from your entrance up to your clit, starting the slow slide of his fingers along hot flesh, murmuring, “You look so pretty. So fuckin’ pretty, baby.”

Your answer is a hum, a broken whisper of, “Right there, Eddie. Just like that.”

You’re already close.

You feel the beginnings of your orgasm beckoning, dragged closer by your own ministrations, and swifter now with Eddie’s fuller fingers, your hand coming out to grab at his thigh. You can’t help the whine that spills from you as that heat coils higher in your belly, the rubber band pulling taut, ready to snap as he moves faster under your guidance.

Your fingers dig down where they rest against his flesh. His eyes sweep back over to you, molten and dark in the moonlight, stuttering along where he’s touching you in a way he’s never done so before. He looks at you like you’re the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen, mesmerized by the way you look in this moment. It’s terrifying and exciting, eyes shut against the feeling. Flames lick at you as he pulls into the back of your coffee shop and parks the van. You barely register the click of his key pulling from the ignition before his mouth is on yours, face crashing into you from over the center console. You’re immediately moaning into his mouth and driving your hips up further into his hand to seek more friction as the rubber band snaps and sweet release spills into your system.

“Oh shit,” he breathes against your lips, brushing kiss after kiss along your face as your hips fall back against the seat, your eyes heavy as you try to catch your breath, looking up at him with a little laugh. “Was that good? I—”

You silence him with a kiss, whispering, “Inside,” against his skin.

He barely has a moment to lock the door before you’re grasping his hand and rushing him up the stairs, humming as the door locks close behind the two of you and you’re finally and blessedly alone. You both toe off your shoes as you maneuver your way over to the bed, connected at the mouth, hands reaching to grab at clothes, a clash of lips, tongues and teeth.

“Chewy, stay in your room. Your parents are busy!” Eddie scolds, the kitten in question already sound asleep in his little makeshift bed.

You giggle airily as the backs of your thighs hit your mattress, back falling into plush comforters as he crawls over you, walking you backward up the bed until your head rests upon your mountain of pillows.

“Say it again?” He asks, marking a path down your cheek, along your neck, pulling a whimper from you as he sucks a hickey into your collarbone.

“I’m in love with you, Eddie.”

He’s kissing you again, your head swimming with the ecstasy of the moment. It’s slower this time. Not like in the car where it’s a frantic, wild thing. There’s all the time now in the world to taste, tease and explore. His tongue sweeping low against your lip, sliding along yours, licking into your mouth with slow, languid kisses.

He moans into your mouth, a sweet thing you swallow as his body slides closer to yours, the beat of his heart a tattoo against your sternum. A frantic flutter you slide your palm up between the two of you to feel, tethering yourself to this moment—to this man.

His guitar string callused fingers drag a familiar path along your thigh, sliding your dress up higher over your hips, baring you to him once more. His fingers come to slide between your folds, still puffy from your orgasm, making you shudder and mewl against his skin. Hips move upward at the sensation, seeking friction, seeking him.

In your impatience, you fist both sides of your dress in your hands, Eddie’s hands falling away from you long enough to let you sit up and pull the material up and over your body. You feel bared to him, already nearly naked against your mattress because the dress had called for no bra lines, and a forearm moves to drape across your chest.

“Hey, hey,” Eddie coos, cupping the side of your cheek. “You’re so beautiful. There’s no need to hide with me. I love you. I love you so much, sweetheart.”

Your arm drops away and he replaces it with his lips.

This part he knows.

This part he’s practiced on you already.

One hand comes up to knead one breast, while he pastes wet kiss after wet kiss to the other, tongue laving over your flesh, sucking into supple skin until you’re bucking up against his clothed thigh, rubbing your center against the fullness of it—seeking something, anything, to satisfy the need swirling in your gut.

“Come here,” you nearly beg, curling your fingers in the hair at the back of his head, tugging him back upward to your lips. You kiss him soundly, mewling as his thigh shifts and his hips roll forward, the hardness of him rubbing just right against your core, robbing you of all air. “Missed you.”

“I’m right here,” he chuckles, fingers dancing along your thigh. “Not going anywhere.”

“Want to touch you, Eds. But only if you’re ready.”

He leans back onto his haunches above you, hair a wild mess, chest rising and falling swiftly. He looks beautiful like this, just as he always does, all dark eyes and swirling heat living in them. They’re blown out now in his desire, in a way you’ve not seen him before. Heat flares at the thought it’s meant only for you, reserved only for you at this moment, just as his fingers reach for the hem of his shirt and hesitate.

“I can shut the light,” you whisper, hand coming to smooth up and down his thigh.

You want him to be comfortable. Fully at ease in a moment you know is already nerve wracking for him. It’s his first time with you, but it’s also his first time baring himself fully to another human after what transpired two years ago. His eyes shift to the left, to a faraway spot on the wall, like he’s mulling it over.

You stretch your arm out toward your lamp when a hand curls around your wrist like a bracelet. Eddie’s voice breaks into the silence with a soft, “No, leave it.”

He reaches behind his back and tugs the shirt up and over himself, slipping it off to toss it into the far corner somewhere. He waits. Waits for you to scream and run, to push him away you’re sure, what with the way his mouth settles into a firm line, his hands shaking where they rest at his thighs.

You’re familiar with his scars. At least the ones on his face, his neck, the spattering of them along his arms. The ones that litter his torso break your heart all over again for the boy on the floor of the Upside Down. The boy who had been close to death, and lived to tell the tale. The boy with the biggest heart you’ve ever known.

You lift yourself up to sit, hand coming up to hover over his abdomen, gaze flashing up to his momentarily. “Can I?”

He dips his head once, releasing a shaky exhale as your fingers trail along the first scar along his abdominal muscles, then further up along the two smaller ones to your left.

“Do they hurt?” You feel his stomach jolt as you drift back southward again, the softness of his abdomen dancing beneath your fingertips. “Don’t wanna hurt you.”

“No, not anymore. Not for a while now,” he manages to get out, watching your fingers where they linger against him, one of his hands sliding along the crown of your head comfortingly.

His left side, just over his heart, is the worst. A ridge of patchwork done by the plastic surgeons at the hospital, all puckered flesh, hills, bumps and divots. The demobats had tried to take him from you, tried to rob you of ever knowing this man, and your eyes water as you curl your palm over his ribcage, catching the soft shudder of his breath as his eyes fall closed.

You love him.

You love him fully and completely. Even in this body he resents, because it houses his soul. And it’s his soul you long for, want to entwine yourself to, want to cherish for as long as he’ll allow you. Even in this body that he rejects because it no longer looks as it used to, because it’s this body that has held you, has loved you, respected you.

It’s him.

You’ve never loved another person like this before, this feeling of fullness that makes your head swim. It drives you to lean forward, brushing a kiss over his heart, feeling him warm beneath your touch. His hand comes up to curl against the back of your head, your head turning so your ear rests over his sternum, arms looping around his back.

“You’re beautiful,” you whisper, as those ringed fingers curl around your chin and tip your head enough for him to kiss you sweetly.

When you pull away, you hear the first whimper fall from him. A choked garble that threatens to cleave you in two. Tears slide down his cheeks, along the bump of his cheek, salty tracks you brush away with your hands.

“I’m crying during sex and we haven’t even had sex yet,” he says pitifully, sniffling loudly.

“It’s okay,” you whisper, thumbing at his scarred cheek. “It’s okay. If you want to stop, we stop. We don’t have to do this now.”

“I want to. I really want to.”

After that it’s a swirl of movement. You slide your underwear down and kick them off as he moves to clamber off the bed, fumbling with his belt buckle and struggling in the process. You jump up to help him, his hands falling to his sides, as you unhook the belt and tug it free from his jeans, letting it fall to the floor with a clatter. You toy with the button on his jeans next, earning a sharp hiss from him as the zipper slides down and you accidentally brush him beneath his boxers, heart thudding when you find him hot and hard already. Swallowing, you watch as he wiggles the jeans down his thighs and stands there in nothing more than a pair of boxers, leaning across the space to kiss you once more.

You can feel the way he trembles, nervousness bubbling as he lowers you back against the mattress, elbows on either side of your head so he can cradle you. Your fingers trail along the hem of his boxers, eliciting a sigh from him, before they slip further within and wrap around silky hot flesh. He’s thick, thicker than anyone you’ve been with. You wonder for a moment if he’ll fit as you drag your thumb along his slit, collecting the bead of precum there. The curse he lets out has you slowly moving your palm up and down his length, watching him pinch his bottom lip between his teeth, shuddering above you.

His eyes flash open then, head shaking as he reaches to grip your hand where it rests against the base of him. “Wait, wait, wait. I’m gonna blow if you do that. I’m already scared I’m only going to last ten seconds. That’ll have me tapped out in five, baby.”

You snort as he leans forward to brush a kiss against your breast, your hand falling away from him to curl instead in the comforter beneath you. Emboldened, Eddie reaches down and slides his boxers off, kicking them into one of the various piles strewn about your floor now. He pops out stiff and ready, your eyes barely having time to take in the sight of him before he’s kneeling back down onto the bed, stealing a soft kiss that has you feeling warm like honey, all sticky sweet and languid.

“Do you have a condom? I didn’t think to bring one. I wasn’t…I didn’t know we’d be doing this, not that I’m sad about it. I’m actually really happy and—”

“I’m on the pill,” you explain, and the furrow between his brows softens, head slowly nodding. “But I have some right here.”

You reach over into your bedside table and he reaches over to pull a foil from the box. You watch him open it with shaky hands, chuckling to himself as it almost falls out of the packaging.

You reach out to see if he needs assistance sliding it on, muttering as you watch him roll the condom down himself. “I got them at the store the other day.”

“Oh—well that’s good. Safety first and all of that,” he says, chuckling nervously. You shift a bit beneath him, moving up further, making room for both your bodies, as his hand marks a slow path along your ribcage. “This is where my experience stops.”

“It’s okay,” you reassure him. “I’ve got you. Just remember we have nothing but time.”

“Okay,” he says, voice a little wobbly as he lowers himself against you, grabbing himself in hand. “Are you ready?”

“I’ve been ready since we were in the car,” you laugh, making him smile as he slowly drags himself up and down through your slick, bumping your clit in a way that has your eyes clamping shut, voice hitching in a whine. “Eddie.”

He understands your breathy plea, sliding lower until his tip rests at your entrance, full and warm as he presses in slowly. You both shudder out a moan, your fingers coming up to grip his shoulder at the slight burn of the unexpected fullness of him.

He’s babbling your name into your throat, gasping at the feel of you fluttering around him, muttering how much he loves you into your neck. And you’re rolling your hips up further into him, wanting to be full of him, wanting to be as close as you’ve ever been until he’s cursing against your skin and burying himself to the hilt.

“Oh, hell. Okay. I’m inside of you.”

You snort, shoving playfully at his side as you adjust to him. “That’s typically how this works.”

He swallows thickly, hips rocking shallowly against yours. “Can I move?”

“Yeah, hon. Please.”

He starts off uneasily. Moving a little too swiftly against you as his human instinct takes its time to kick in. You grip at his shoulder, trying to steady him, gasping into his neck at the still delicious drag of him along your walls.

“Hey, Eddie,” you whimper, and his eyes pop open to look down at you.

“Oh no. Baby, I’m not hurting you, am I?” He stills inside you, hands coming to rest on either side of your face, those dark eyes round with fear.

“No…no. I just wanted to say go slow,” you whisper, mewling into his mouth as he does exactly that. Pulls back gently and rolls his hips forward in a way that has your eyes rolling back a bit, shuddering out a breath. “Y-yeah. Like that—just like that.”

“Is this good? Want it to be good for you, because—” He groans into your shoulder as your hips rise up from the bed to meet him, hands sliding up and over his back, thigh curling around his hip to keep him closer. “Shit. You feel so good. Like you were…like you were made for me.”

“You are.” You whine as he palms your breast, kissing the corner of your mouth, rocking against you in a way that has you seeing stars. If he kept going, if he kept hitting that spot over and over again—“Doing so good, Eddie. Making me feel so good, so full of you—mmmm—”

But it’s all over soon after your praises fill the room. You clamp your nails down as his shoulder as his hips move more erratically, sweat on his forehead pooling, his teeth pinching at his lip as his eyes slam shut.

“I’m close. I’m so close, I’m sorry baby—”

“It’s okay. It’s okay. Just let go, I got you.”

His thrusting grows erratic as his chest falls forward and presses you down into the mattress. You feel him give one more final snap of his hips before he comes to a halt, trembling against your form with a curse. He’s gasping as he spasms inside, riding out the aftershocks of his orgasm.

He remains against you like that for a moment, panting heavily against your skin, pasting kiss after kiss into your sternum before he finally pulls out of you with a low whine.

You gasp out a breath and slide a palm over your racing heart, watching him walk over to your bathroom to discard the condom. When he returns, he loops an arm over your waist, fingers wandering against your belly, the curve of your hip, the tops of your thighs.

You shudder out a breath as he grazes your center, asking, “What are you doing?”

“You didn’t…finish, right?”

He leans down to press the softest of kisses to your lips, the answering shake of your head all he needs before he runs a finger along your slit, a gentle drag from your entrance before following the pattern against your sensitive clit you showed him in the car.

“Eddie…” Your heel shifts to press against the mattress, thigh falling open, baring yourself fully to him. “It’s okay. Really.”

“Wanna kiss you there, sweetheart.”

You chuckle heartily at his brazenness as he starts dropping kiss after kiss along your breasts, down the line of your sternum, across your belly where he sucks a little hickey into the skin below your belly button until your chuckling against his smiling mouth, his hand coming up to curl with yours resting by your hip. He gives you a little squeeze and laces your fingers with his as he starts kissing along the tops of your hip bones, the span of skin between them that makes you gasp against your pillow, head rolling back.

He doesn’t stop the slow torture there. You’re not sure where he’s learned this, but you’re silently thanking them with a plea as his lips mark a scorching path along the insides of your thighs, his other hand curling around the meat of your leg to open you further to him, nose tickling your sensitive flesh until you’re shifting your hips against the mattress, earning a nip against the inside of your thigh.

“Eddie, please,” you whimper, breath robbed from your lungs as he finally slides the flat of his tongue from your center up to your clit, drawing a tentative circle there.

“Tell me what to do. What you like. Wanna make it good.”

“To the left. And just like that, keep doing that.”

You’re a shaking mess as his ringed hand leaves yours and joins his tongue, prodding where you want him most, and you practically cry out your “yes” as he slips a finger inside.

“Like that, like that,” you babble, hand dropping down to rest at his full head of curls. When his second finger eases in, you feel your walls clamp down around him, his answering chuckle vibrating against your sensitive flesh. “If you curl your fingers like that—ah, yeah, just like that—”

You break off into a sob as he mimics your ‘come hither’ motion, his fingers moving in tandem with his tongue in a way that has your legs shaking on either side of his head, fingers twisting tight into his curls. You’re afraid you’ve hurt him at first, whipping your hand back, but he reaches up and slides it back into place, pressing your open palm against his hair so you can tug as you teeter closer and closer toward the edge.

“I’m so close, Eddie. You’re doing so good,” you pant, white flashing behind your eyes as he crooks those fingers against the part of you that has the flame flickering in your gut burning brighter and brighter, coil growing tighter as his tongue works you, his own sighs after a particularly hard tug of his hair against your center vibrating down to the tips of your toes.

The flames dance higher.

Burn brighter.

Become all consuming as tears prick in the corner of your eyes.

Because it’s Eddie.

Eddie Munson, the man who walked into your coffee shop all those months ago. The man with the quiet soul and loud mind. The man who cracked into a smile at your silly factoids and your ridiculous jokes. The man who had first been your friend and became so much more. Who tended to you when you were sick, helped make your house a home, created a little family with you by adding Chewy into the mix.

The man who became a safe place to land. A shoulder to rest your head. A door to walk into at the end of the day, to seek shelter from a storm with, to love endlessly and be loved in return.

It’s him, and in a way you think it’s always been him.

You snap with a low keen, trembling as your orgasm rushes over you, Eddie’s head peeking up just enough to watch it roll over you as his fingers continue their gentle slide.

You writhe beneath him as pleasure hits a peak and settles back into a low simmer, his head coming up to kiss you on the lips when he finally pulls out and joins you near your pillow. Your hand comes up to rest at the back of his neck, holding him to you, your mouths moving slowly over one another, tongues licking into mouths, neither one of you wanting to part from the other.

You’re not sure how long you lay like that in the circle of his embrace, his arm around your waist, your bare chests pressed to one another, ankles tangled beneath bedsheets. All you know is you hate to see him go as he slips out from the bed once more, sliding on his discarded boxers, into your bathroom. You hear the water run momentarily before shutting off, his frame reappearing with a washcloth in hand.

He helps you clean in silence. His fingers gentle along your still sensitive flesh, punctuating each slide of damp cloth with a kiss against your temple, before tossing it into the heap of clothing strewn about your floor. After that is a slide of hands as he helps you up and off of your bed, slipping his sweater over your head and letting it fall into place at your thighs. Your fingers skirt his side, along his bare chest, as he leads you into your bathroom and the two of you get ready for bed in silence.

He’s just been inside you, wholly and fully, but all you can think of is how these moments are your favorites. The ones only you’re privy to. The way Eddie slides lotion over his scars to maintain the elasticity of his skin, the care he takes in washing his face thanks to Steve’s incessant urging, the snap of his hair tie as he pulls his hair away from his face.

You stand before him as you brush, his larger form swallowing yours, fingers coming to toy with the hairs at the nape of your neck, thumb brushing lightly against skin. And as you spit into the sink and flush water down the drain, he spins you in his arms and presses your backside against the counter, drawing you to your tippy toes as he kisses you soundly, swallowing your sigh of happiness.

“Ready for bed?” You ask, running your hands down his chest, curling along his sides.

And he is. You find as much as the two of you slip back into your blankets, him drawing you close to his chest, pressing a kiss to the slope of your shoulder. You barely have a chance to whisper goodnight before he’s shutting his eyes and slipping off into a deep sleep.

You bury yourself closer to him and follow him into rest.

*

Eddie’s sure he’s dead.

Has to be.

It’s the only explanation for the way he wakes with you resting against his chest, your mouth slightly parted, little sighs filling the air.

He has to be dead, because last night Eddie Munson was Hawkin’s resident twenty-three year old virgin, and now he’s no longer a virgin and in bed with the love of his life.

Only he’s not dead. He feels the throb of his heart in his ribcage, the sound of it rattling in his ears thanks to your otherwise silent apartment.

Last night feels like a wispy dream he made up in his mind. Your hands in his hair, your body closer than ever before to his, the way you gasped and moaned in his ear. The feeling of you wrapped around him, hips rising to meet him, driving him further and further over the edge. He pictures the look on your face in utter bliss, watching you writhe for him, bringing you to that peak and watching it rush over you, leaving you shaking in his arms with him as your anchor.

All his life he’d thought himself unworthy of love. His father hadn’t been around much—always in and out of jail, and when he was around his way of showing love was teaching him how to shotgun a beer and hot wire a car. His mother, god he loved his mother, but when his father fell deeper and deeper into his poor habits, she retreated to other things to fill her heart.

Wayne had been the one to give him a home, to give him shelter, to let him know what a family looked like. A real family, at least. And then there was Max. The rough and tumble girl from across the street, with a personality that matched the fiery hue of her hair. She showed him what it was like to love someone like your own kin. Like blood. To want to cover them, protect them from the world, keep them safe.

And then there was you. The girl who had walked into his life and changed the course of it. For two years he retreated into his shadows. Craved the darkness they provided, the safety of drawing away from others. Hiding, because it seemed easier than facing the world. For a while, he was content with his core group; the same kids who had been with him during the worst week of his life, stood by him when he needed it the most, loved him when he lay broken and battered in the hospital. When the town turned on him, even after he’d been exonerated, they were there to protect his name. To try and fight back the rumors that threatened to swallow him whole. They never saw him as a murderer, never saw him as anything but Eddie Munson, loved him beyond the whispers of those who wanted to see him fall.

Loved him beyond those who wanted to run him out of town, wanted to believe the lie that he had the heart to kill all those kids, wanted to put a blame on the fact half of Hawkins had been ripped apart and sunk into the hell that lingered beneath.

You walked in and changed all of that.

Loved him despite his shadows, coaxed him out of them, wanted to see the parts of him he desired to keep hidden. You called to him, a gentle whisper, those small gestures that slowly broke away at the walls he erected to keep others out. You were patient, a constant beam of light in his world, a gentle smile on the days where he hated himself more than words could ever say.

You loved him in the light.

Loved him proudly in public, despite the way people might have looked onward in stores. Loved him even after knowing what he had gone through in eighty six, loved him despite the scar ravaged body that lingered beneath his clothes.

You’d given him a home to place his heart within. A roof to keep it covered. Your hands are there to cradle it and hold it close. And he trusts you. Whole heartedly trusts you.

Smiles against the crown of your head as he recalls telling you he loved you the night before, the way tears like stars glittered on your lower lashes, the choked hiccup of your breath as you whispered back in a broken voice you loved him, too.

“Are you awake?” You mumble beside him, humming softly as your arms come to stretch above you. He aches at the feel of your chest pressing further into his, cock stirring to life at your hip when you lean over and kiss him soundly. “Oh, good morning to you too.”

“Shut up,” he laughs, feeling his cheeks warm. Only you’re pressing further into him, hips flush against him, making him shudder. “Too early.”

“Is it?” You practically simper the words and his chest tightens further, gasping at the feel of your fingers along his chest, down his abdomen, dancing along the thatch of hair at the base of him before curling your palm around him fully. “We have no plans, it’s just us…”

He reaches down to grab your hand, already missing the heat of you around him, and presses a kiss to the inside of your wrist. Sighing, he leans up onto his elbows and stares down at your face. Beautiful, even freshly washed for bed, you’re so beautiful it stirs an ache deep within his chest.

“I love you,” he whispers. “I love you so much.”

You lean up and brush your lips against his. Tentative at first, and then coaxing as you slip your tongue along his, breaking apart long enough to rasp out, “I love you, too.”

Soon it’s a flurry of movement. He slips out of his boxers, kicks them down around his ankles, and moves to shift between your thighs. He remembers you’re on the pill and grabs himself in hand, feeling you beckon him forward with a swivel of your hips as he dips himself to the slick already pooling at your center. This time, as he sheathes himself fully, he languishes in the mutual gasp that fills the spaces between the two of you. Nearly chokes on a sob as he rolls his hips forward and back and feels you shifting to meet him thrust for thrust. You chase your end together, a slow ebb and flow, a quiet that wraps around your hearts save for your mingling breaths and moans.

You mewl into his skin that you love him.

To keep going.

Right there, you gasp out, when he hits that spot that has your eyes rolling back in your skull. Hits it over and over again as you start to shake beneath him, your impending orgasm drawing closer and closer.

It’s not like last night. The nervous, awkward feeling of exploring new lovers for the first time. Today he relishes the feeling of you around him, of rocking his hips into yours, of drawing out your pleasure, watching your face pinch, listening to your sounds. He wants to memorize every one. Every look that passes along your features as he moves against you, pushing your head further and further into your pillow.

With every movement he tries to show you his love. Tries to kiss you in a way that pours every bit of him into you.

He wants you to know that you’re it, this is it, this moment and this girl.

He’s done running.

He’s found home.

He’s found you.

Today feels like making love. Up until this moment he thought it was a cheesy thing people said about sex. But now he knows it’s real, feels the severity of it as he holds you in his arms, safe and sound from the rest of the world.

“Fuck, I don’t think I’ll ever get over how beautiful you are.”

You only gasp his name in reply. Hands come to slide up along his back as he picks up his pace. Rolls his hips down into yours, hitting that spongy part of you that has your thighs trembling where they curl around his hips.

His forehead drops against yours, your eyes coming up to meet him as he tells you he loves you over and over again, hand curling tight with yours against the pillow beneath your head.

Forever.

For the first time, he wants that.

You shatter around him. Walls clamping down as you practically sob his name.

He’s not long after, moaning low and heavy into your skin, heart pounding in his ears. You whimper and writhe against him, as he slows in you, coming down from his own high.

He flops down onto his back and feels you shift beside him in the bed, coming to rest along his chest, hand trailing along his abdomen.

“Better?” He laughs, curling his arm beneath your head.

“Last night was perfect. Stop that.”

“Yes…yes it was. But this was better, no?”

You level him with a stare and he bursts out into laughter, waking Chewy who scampers over to hop in the bed with the two of you.

Your little family.

“Happy New Year, Eddie,” you whisper, reaching across to lace your fingers with his. “I have a feeling it’ll be a good one.”

“Happy New Year, sweetheart.”

*

Spring, 1991

*

“Baby showers are so weird,” Steve mutters, bringing the lip of his beer bottle to his mouth to take a sip.

The two of them stand near the door leading to the patio, glancing out to where Steve’s wife, Charlotte, sits in a circle of her closest friends who are all ‘oohing’ and ‘ahhing’ over the dozens of new little girl outfits she’s received.

Steve continues, “Bunch of girls sitting around opening gifts for someone who isn’t even here yet.”

“Also kind of weird because it’s sort of like a ‘congratulations, your dick works’ celebration.”

“You two are disgusting,” Robin says. “Neanderthals. Babe, you live with this man?”

You’re at Robin’s side, wearing that dress that flutters around your thighs when you walk, looking pretty as ever. You still rob him of his breath even after the past two years.

“That I do,” you laugh, kissing him as you brush by to go grab more desserts from the countertop. “Have fun, boys!”

The two of you slip back out from where you came, Steve waiting until the door slides shut fully when he asks, “So when are you going to ask her? That ring has been burning a hole in your closet for weeks now.”

“Soon…” he says, watching as you walk around with a tray filled with cookies in your arms, passing them out to greedy guests. “I’m just waiting for the perfect moment.”

*

His first attempt has him sweating. Literal sweat dripping from his pores as the two of you sit at that too-ritzy restaurant Steve suggested you try. It’s not his scene, and it’s not yours. You prefer eating indoors, within the comfort of your now shared apartment, with Chewy always nearby to beg for table scraps (you always yell at him not to give him people food, but he’s quick to remind you he’s a growing boy).

This—the candles on the table, the multiple forks and spoons he’s not sure what to do with, the intricately folded napkins. He feels so out of place.

But the plan is as follows for the evening: the music will change to something soft and romantic just as the waiter walks out with your glasses of champagne and dessert. He’s requested a little note to be written in scrawling letters, set to read “will you marry me?” As you’re reading (and hopefully crying) he plans on dropping onto one knee and popping the ring box open.

It’s foolproof, Steve and Robin have reassured him only about fifty times now.

He just knows it needs to be perfect.

You deserve nothing less.

However, nothing ever goes quite as planned. You’re holding his hand, talking about the shop, when a table near you starts to shift. A trio of men start singing, actually singing, to the woman staring up wide-eyed at them, clearly enjoying a moment she’s been dreaming about. She’s a hysterical crying mess, Eddie’s horrified, and you look ready to sink into the ground from second hand embarrassment as one of the men steps forward and asks her to marry him in front of the whole room.

“Shit,” Eddie curses, and you pry your attention away long enough from the now frantically kissing couple to look over to him.

“What was that?”

“Oh, nothing, sweetheart,” he says, glancing up to where the waiter is standing with a tray holding your dessert and glasses.

He’s waiting for him, he realizes, to give the go ahead.

But now his head is spinning, because he’s definitely not singing to you, he’s not prepared any fancy speeches or grand gestures, and definitely won’t be topping that display.

He just wanted to get down on one knee and let the words pour out of him in the moment.

The plan comes to a halt even further when you huff out, “I understand the whole public engagement idea, but I don’t think that’s for me. I feel like…I don’t know, I’d want it to be more intimate. Just you and me. Us.”

It’s like a record scratch in his ears, lungs relieved of all air as he tugs on his collar because he’s choking now too.

Is the room getting hotter?

The waiter glances over and Eddie shakes his head stiffly, reassuring you he’s fine when your hand reaches out to cup his forearm.

“Check,” Eddie mouths to the man when you’re not looking.

So no, it didn't happen that day.

*

The second attempt fares worse than the first. You’re cooking beside him in the kitchen and he’s about to get down on one knee when the phone blares from the far wall.

The two of you stand close to the receiver when the familiar voice of Dustin fills Eddie’s ears, grating and frantic, like he’s recently run a marathon or something.

“Dustin Henderson, resident butthead, what do you want?” Eddie drawls, earning a soft shove from you where you stand beside him.

“Aren’t you twenty-five?”

“Some things never change,” he says, and he can practically hear the kids' eyes rolling in his skull on the other end. “Is someone dying, because I was kind of in the middle of something.”

“That’s disgusting and you should be ashamed of yourself,” Dustin groans.

“Not that kind of thing, you perv.”

“Look, I need help not being single and miserable…”

“That doesn’t sound like someone dying.”

“It might be soon if I don’t fix things with Suzie.”

“Okay, so how do you suppose—”

“Not from you! You’re not romantic,” Dustin continues, leaving Eddie a spluttering mess because he was, in fact, about to be romantic. Probably the most romantic he’s ever been in his life. So fuck him, he thinks. “I need your girlfriend.”

It didn't happen that day either.

*

The third attempt has you in the hospital, Eddie nearly wearing a hole into the ground as he asks the doctors a million and one questions. Is she going to be okay? What kind of medicine can she take? How long will she need to be on crutches for? Do they have to amputate? (He knows that one is a little dramatic, and he’s only asking because his brain is practically shaking in his skull, but he has to know).

You were taking a walk through your favorite park, following along a trail you’ve walked many times now, his sights set on the little lake in the middle of it that is viewable from a small bridge that sits beneath a canopy of leaves.

The only different thing about that day was the way you stepped funny and rolled your ankle, falling to the ground clutching at the offended limb with tears in your eyes. He’d been a mess, an absolute mess even though you told him over and over again you were okay, that it’s likely nothing serious, even though you were the one hurt in the first place.

But he drives like a bat out of hell to the hospital, only to sit in a waiting room for hours, before you’re taken for x-rays.

You have a broken ankle, and his heart aches when they cover your limb in a cast.

That afternoon it’s all dinner in bed and cuddling with Chewy and him as he props your foot up on a mountain of pillows, refusing to let you lift a finger for anything.

Not even the remote, he tells you when you grumble that you’re fine.

Definitely not the right time to propose, he decides, and shelves it for another.

*

He finds you a few days later sitting on the floor with your injured ankle resting in front of you and your palm upturned. He catches the sight of the velvet box next, the way your eyes behold the box like you’ve never seen anything like it before in your life.

“Oh no,” he cries out, rushing over to where you sit on the ground. “No, no, no. I had it all planned out. Well not planned out; I’ve had to change the plans a few times now, actually. But I wanted to make it special, take you somewhere or do something we like to do and ask you—”

“Eddie.”

It’s ruined.

The whole thing is ruined. He presses the heel of his palm to his forehead and groans.

“Eddie,” you try again, and he lifts his head to see you turning to look at him.

There are tears in your eyes, but you don’t seem sad. He’s just ruined your proposal and you’re not upset?

“Eddie, ask me now.”

He feels himself stumble a bit. Stutters out, “W-what?”

“Ask me now.”

You swallow thickly, handing him the ring box as he settles down on the ground in front of you. Chewy pokes his head up from the top of the couch, tail swishing at his two humans.

“A few years ago a new girl moved to town. There’s this idiot that works across the street from her shop at the bar, and he’s kind of a dick to her at first. You can laugh, it’s true. But it’s funny because she’s never deterred by it. She starts writing these little facts on his cups, and these corny little jokes that make her laugh and make it really hard for him not to laugh too because she’s just so pretty. They become friends…sort of. You see, he doesn’t really like to let many people in, and here she is with this big personality. Everyone falls in love with her, I mean—how wouldn’t they. Except for him. Or so he thinks.”

You’ve moved closer, your knees against his, one of his hands in your lap, curled in your own.

“He starts helping out with her apartment and realizes the more he hangs out with her, the more he likes her. He starts to feel less like a monster, and more like someone capable of love. She peels back those little layers and is so patient with it, never pushes him, always puts his feelings first. And then, he realizes he’d be a complete dingus to not tell her he likes her. And then the most surprising thing happens.”

You’re laughing through your tears, but laughing all the same and asking, “What is that?”

“They fall in love. Him for the first time ever, and he realizes…he wants that person every day for the rest of his life.”

He pops the box open and watches your hand come up to press against your lips, taking in the single diamond on a slender gold band.

“I love you so much, sweetheart. Every day more than the one that came before it. And I want that, I want this…us, for the rest of my life,” he says thickly, trying to hold back his own tears. “If you say yes, of course.”

“Yes, Eddie, yes,” you whisper, holding out your hand so he can slide it onto your ring finger.

It’s a perfect fit.

Then again, you’ve always been.

*

Eddie Munson marries the girl of his dreams six months later.

It’s a small ceremony, surrounded by your closest friends in the Wheeler’s backyard. You share personal vows with one another, words that encompass the years you’ve known one another, the love you share, the dreams for the future.

He promises to love you for the rest of his life as Steve—newly officiated for this occasion—instructs him to slide your wedding band onto your finger. And you do the same, standing there in a pretty white dress, your own words falling around him and filling his heart as you push the solid gold ring onto his own hand.

You dance under twinkling lights the kids have twined around the trees, hearts full to burst.

Wayne tells him he’s proud to call him son and wishes you well as you part for the night, Max joining soon after to hug the two of you and remind you she’ll be by the apartment often to check up on Chewy (her favorite and only nephew).

You slip into your hotel room in a flurry of kisses, a sea of white tulle around you, your hands in his suit and his working on undoing the line of buttons down your back.

You fall into one another as you always do, his lips against yours, bodies burning, sighs mingling into one as he slides home for the first time with his new wife.

He holds you close, one arm low around your back, the backs of his knuckles against your cheek. Tells you he loves you as the two of you creep closer and closer to mutual bliss.

Later, after you’re both cleaned up and spent, he tucks you close to his chest and hums the song you danced to at your wedding.

He’s happy.

Happier than he’s ever been in his life.

“Fun fact: Becoming your husband made this the best day of my life.”

You press your head further into his chest, finger toying with the new ring on his finger. “Fun fact: Becoming your wife is mine.”

*

Tag List: @clinicallyonline17, @sidthedollface2, @lazywillow6748, @idkidknemore, @blue-eyed-lion , @emma77645 , @bambipowerblueaddition , @aysheashea , @lezzy-bennet @yeehawbitchs

[kaittalkstoomuch]

CHAPTER FIFTEEN IS LIVE! So sorry for the delay!

Chapter Fifteen: The Edge of Seventeen

TW: mentions of abandonment. Roxie witnessed her and Dustin’s dad leaving at a young age. Trauma. Angst.

The late afternoon to evening of March 22, 1986

I open the front door of my house being greeted by the news. It was coverage of Chrissy and Fred, no leads just yet. However, flashes of Eddie’s trailer don’t help. My anxiety peaks as my mother steps into my vision. “Hi darling, are you alright? How about Dustin?” I blink a few times trying to act normal. “He’s okay. He’s at Lucas’…” I begin to trail off as my eyes get stuck on the tributes for the Queen of Hawkins High and Fred flash on my living room TV.

“How was your night with Eddie? Any big plans for tomorrow night?” My face begins to feel cold as “ROXANNE” chimes and echoes through my head. I feel someone grab my hand. “Roxie, baby, are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Mom mimics Robin’s statement earlier. “You feel chilly. Honey, are you sure everything is alright?”

“Yeah… yeah. I’m alright.” I say crossing my arms around my body, playing with my rings in my fingers. “It was fun last night. He made me my own Hellfire Club shirt.” “Oh that’s sweet. He’s such a sweet boy and fits you perfectly. I love seeing you happy.” I smile at her sentiment. “I haven’t seen you smile this much since.. before….” She begins to trail off a bit as I put my stuff down. “Mom.” I rub her arm calmly. “I’m so sorry honey. I just…. It’s amazing to see you smiling again. It’s beautiful.” I smile. “I get it from you.” I smile at her and she smiles back.i give her a hug and she hugs me back.

As we embrace, I eye an white envelope with “Roxie Gracie”, my stomach immediately drops. I begin to feel the walls spin. “Was he here earlier?” I squeak. “No, he mailed it. I didn’t open it.” I roll my eyes and groan, throwing my hands up. “Why can’t he leave us alone? I mean, he left us…” I can feel the tears start to form. “Like, what the fuck does he want? Is it another stupid birthday card to his little ‘Roxie Gracie’? God I’m almost eighteen. I have a month left.”

I start growing more angry while the same news blares on the tv. “Rox, I know what happened still hurts you, but he’s still your father.” “Not since he left us mom. He couldn’t handle raising two fucking kids. He is such a coward. A grown man would’ve stayed. Walter is a fucking coward.” I share as the lights flicker a bit. “ROXANNE” roams again and the voice, though distorted, becomes clearer who it was. The coward.”

I shake it off. “I just can’t forgive him, mom. Not after he left, without saying goodbye. Not one care for us. No silly birthday card is going to change that.” “Roxie….” “Mom…” She hugs me tightly. And flashes of the night he left come rapidly. The scared ten year old girl. The careless cowardice man. “Daddy, please don’t go. Please.” He looks at me as if he didn’t hear me. “Daddy, please.” He’d bend down to kiss me on the cheek. “I’m doing this because I love you, Roxie Gracie.” He’d pick us his suitcase and then leave without saying a word.

Now, about to turn eighteen in a month, I growl at the memory. “It’s been almost eight years and I vowed to myself I would protect you and Dustin, something Dad couldn’t think of doing… I have to protect you guys… and Eddie…. Oh Eddie.” I feel chills thinking of my metal head. Thinking about what true happiness was. Being with him.

“You’re thinking of Eddie right now, aren’t you?” I nod trying to keep my worry in. “Yeah… I’m extremely worried about him.” “How so?” I look at her confused. “Have you been watching the news?” “I have, but I don’t believe Eddie is a killer. Some crook probably did it.” “Yeah, some crook named Vecna.” I think to myself.

“Thank you, mom.” I start, feeling uneasy but maybe it's nothing. “For what?” I hugged her again. “For understanding who Eddie truly is.” “Well, of course baby. That’s what mothers do. I even folded some clothes for you. They’re on your bed. Go pack some more and spend time with Eds.” She sounds a little too persuasive. “Thank you, mom.” I squeeze her tight. “I love you.” “I love you too.” She kisses my head and looks at me. “My beautiful ‘Roxie Gracie’.”

I stand up and grab my bag slowly as that runs through my head. Fear courses through my veins. “What did you just call me?” I look at her stunned with as much distance as I can. “My beautiful ‘Roxanne Grace’. Roxie, sweetheart. Are you alright?” Her face begins to morph in between Walter’s and hers as my fear grows more. “Yeah… I’m okay…” I go further into the hallway and enter my room, sliding my door shut. I smile lightly looking at the clothes, but also terrified of the imagery I keep seeing of Walter.

Why do I keep seeing him in everyone I see? Why now? Is it because of the lingering thoughts of him leaving? Wait, it’s been eight years since he left. That’s gotta be it. I dig for the walkie in my bag and call out for someone who could understand. “Nance, do you copy? It’s Roxie… I need your help.” I pleaded with her quietly, but there was no response. “Figures.” I scoff while I look at my clothes.

I see old scrapbooks of old photos I took in the past. Ones with Robin, the kids, Steve being a fucking idiot, the Hellfire Club and Nancy. I laugh at how ridiculous our Elf costumes were for our brothers. I spy Barb, looking ever so radiant. “I’m so sorry, Barb.” I say running my fingers along the Polaroid, when I hear the lock of my door activate. “MOM?” I panic as the atmosphere grows dark. I clutch the walkie as I go up to the door and begin to try to pry it open. “MOM!” I bang on it. “Why did you lock me in?” “I’m only protecting you, much like you’re protecting me!” “EDDIE DIDN’T MURDER ANYONE!” I yell. “Sorry, darling. I can’t let you out.” The atmosphere grows darker as I bang on it and continue my efforts. Her sweet, nurturing voice was replaced by a dark, ominous one. “Nancy….” I squeak quietly….. “Help…..”

[scheodingers-muppet]

it’s taylor time bitches. 1989 edition

Welcome to New York: i love the idea of Elmax moving to New York for college. like, imagine El bringing Hopper to her and Max’s apartment and she’s telling him about how much she loves the city

Blank Space: Steddie, specifically Steve “reformed town slut” Harrington. after the fight with Nancy, he felt doomed. Nancy was his first love and couldn’t even say she loved him. so he was scared when he got feelings for eddie. “i know you’ve heard about me, so hey, let’s be friends. i’m dying to see how this one ends” “i can make the bad guys good for the weekend” the references to royalty (given you switch the roles there)

Style: Jancy, from Nancy’s perspective. “and i should just tell you to leave cause i know exactly where this leads but i watch us go round and round each time” and the various times they flirted while she was with Steve. “i got that red lip classic thing that you like” “you got that long hair slick back white tee shirt and i got that good girl faith and a tight little skirt”

Out of the Woods: Byler from Will’s POV. the woods serves as both realizing they love each other and the upside down and finally having peace again. “we were laying on your couch” and the “we’re crazy together” scene. “the rest of the world was black and white and we were in screaming color” the dancing in December verse and the Snowball Dance. the lines about the sunrise and watching each other and the scenes from their point of views with the sun bathing the other. “when you started crying, baby i did too” “i walked out, said “i’m setting you free” but the monsters turned out to be just trees” Will tried to ignore his feelings to because he thought it would make Mike happy, but his fear was wrong.

All You Had To Do Was Stay: Stancy after the Halloween fight. i’m choosing to ignore the Stancy plot in season 4 here because it was stupid

Shake It Off: honestly, the super popular, up beat songs like this make me think of sleepovers. this one is fully something Steve and Robin would blast at their sleepovers

I Wish You Would: Stancy, from Nancy’s perspective. she misses the innocence and life before Upside Down; misses the sweetness of the beginning of her relationship with Steve.

Bad Blood: El. i need that girl to have her full revenge arch, like they’ve been hinting at since season 2

Wildest Dreams: Lumax. not in terms of a breakup, but Max wanting Lucas to remember her as happy and healthy after Vecna

How You Get The Girl: Jancy!! i want them to have a big fight after she finds out he lied about college and the tension building from being apart. then Jonathan shows up at her door, apologizing and they kiss and make up

This Love: Steddie. “this love is alive back from the dead is mainly what makes me say that hahahah. but also “your kiss, my cheek” and Steve kissing Eddie’s scars. “you just run but you come back to what you need”

I Know Places: Steddie. it’s so Steddie coded man

Clean: Robin. i think she’d get stuck in an on-again-off-again relationship and she’s totally the type to stand in the rain to like, reset her system. like, letting the rain wash away all the negative energy in her life. i’m totally not projecting

Wonderland: El and Mike. i think Mike knew it wasn’t gonna last forever, but they both pretended it would. also “i reached for you but you were gone” and how Mike has been kinda emotionally absent in season 4

You Are In Love: Jopper from Joyce’s perspective. the little things that created the beautiful build up to the kiss. “and for once, you let go of your fears and your ghosts” the line of him saying she’s his best friend, “he keeps the picture of you in his office downtown” Hopper would totally keep a picture of Joyce in his office

New Romantics: this is another sleepover song. i think Robin and Nancy would play this getting ready to go out to a bar for girls night. i can also totally see Erica, Max, and El blasting this and screaming the lyrics when Max gets her license

[corrodedcoughin]

no but wait abba's take a chance on me but steddie and there are so many ways it could go!!

high school Steve dating around and getting a reputation for being a ladies man and Eddie watching from the sidelines thinking 'if you're all alone when the pretty birds have flown honey I'm still free take a chance on me'

s4 steddie, Eddie thinking Steve is pining for Nancy after the upside the down forest scene and he watches as Nancy dresses Steve's wounds but Eddie wishing it was him 'if you change your mind, I'm the first in line, honey I'm still free take a chance on me'

post vecna and they are spending more and more time together, in Eddie's trailer, going for drives/dinners/any spare moment they can have in each other's company they do 'we can go dancing, we can go walking as long as were together. listen to some music maybe just talking, get to know you better'

Eddie is so hopelessly heart achingly in love and he can't even deny it, he tries to hold back but he just cant, imagining what it might look like to be with Steve, how it might feel to openly show how much his heart belongs to him but too scared to try for fear of his worsts nightmare being true 'so much that I wanna do when I dream I'm alone with you its magic'

Eddie losing countless hours convincing himself that Steve would never feel the same way about him, not the Steve Harrington 'you want me to leave it there afraid of a love affair but I think you know, that I can't let go'

that is until there's a party for the older one's at Steve's. he ends up lying on the floor with Steve in his kitchen, everyone else in the living room debating the benefits of sweet and savoury flavour combinations. Steve lets his walls down, tells Eddie that he is scared to let anyone close to him in case the find out what he's really like and decide that he's not worthy of their love and attention after all. he doesn't look at Eddie when he's saying this, knows he can't look at him because Steve's resolve would dissolve and Eddie would know just how much Steve wants him to prove him wrong. Eddie had been talking to Nancy before this, finding out that her and Steve aren't an option, haven't been an option for a long time now so he just decides that now is time, if nothing else he hopes confessing will show Steve that Eddie knows him and he loves him, not in spite of who he is but because of who he is. so, he tells him 'you say that I waste my time but i can't get you off of my mind. no i can't let go 'cause i love you so'

later on, Argyle decides he needs snacks to prove his culinary point which is when he stumbles into the kitchen to find Eddie and Steve wrapped up in each other while sat on the floor, propped up against the cupboards, smiling into each other and letting out little puffs of laughter. argyle needs his food though so he carries on, grabbing his pickles and giving them both a thumbs up 'congratulations muchachos may your ride on the love bus be everlasting'. neither Eddie nor Steve hear him, too infatuated by each other. Argyle doesn’t mind, humming a song as he leaves the kitchen ‘honey I’m still free, take a chance on me’

[londonharrington]

peace | steve harrington x fem!reader

Steve tells Y/N his dreams for the two of them but she isn’t sure if she’s the right person for the job; she is.

notes: st4 volume 2 spoilers

i’d give you my sunshine, give you my best, but the rain is always gonna come if you’re standing with me

“You know, I’ve always dreamed of this.”

The adults (Y/N, Steve, Robin, Nancy, and Eddie) and the kids (Dustin, Lucas, Max, and Erica) were on the way to commence their plans that they made in other to try and hopefully kill Vecna. They were currently inside the van that they stole from Eddie’s neighbors. Steve in the driver’s seat as Y/N sat on the passenger’s seat and the rest of them in the back.

“You’ve always dreamt of driving a stolen van in order to kill a monster from the upside down?” Y/N asked, laughing.

“No. I mean driving a van like this,” he said while grabbing one of her hands and kissing the knuckles. “Yeah, it's silly, but I've actually, I always had this dream that I'd have this really big family.  I'm talking, like, uh, a full brood of Harringtons. Like, five, six kids.” he continued.

“You want six kids?”

“Yeah. Six little nuggets. Three girls, three boys. And every summer, I figured all of us Harringtons, we would pack into something like this  and… just see the country. You know, the Rockies, Grand Canyon, maybe Yellowstone. End up in some beachside town in California. Spend a week parked in the sand.  Learn how to surf or something.”

“That sounds really nice, Steve. Except for the six kids part. You trying to build a basketball team of something?” she laughed.

“I mean, we had some practice, didn’t we?”

With this, Y/N just smiled at him but kept silent. She knew why he was telling her this. She was part of this dream of his. But Y/N cannot help but feel out of place with this dream. Sure, she would love to be part his dream for the two of them in the future. But she cannot help but feel a little insecure about all of this.

Her thoughts were suddenly pulled away from her as they stopped in front of the Creel house.

Y/N cannot help but pray to whatever god is out there to help them succeed in whatever plan they have.

♡ ♡ ♡  

Y/N, Steve, Robin, and Nancy were on their way back toward where came form, after being strangled by one of Vecna’s tentacle things for god knows how long. After being let go by said tentacles, Y/N cannot help but hug Steve as he soothed her back, whispering sweet nothings to her ear.

The four of them suddenly heard Dustin shout for help as they saw Eddie on his lap, trying to fight for his life. Steve suddenly let Y/N go as he helped Dustin carry Eddie back to their Hawkins.

When they got to Hawkins, Y/N and Nancy immediate started to contact the people they knew who worked for the government (with the years they’ve spent in dealing with the supernatural things in Hawkins, obviously they have contacts in the government).

“Hey, they said they’ll clear Eddie’s charges and they’ll compensate him for his troubles,” Nancy said. Y/N sighed in relief as she sat down on one of those uncomfortable plastic chairs.

“You make him really happy, you know?” Nancy suddenly said.

“Huh? What are you on about?”

“Steve. You make him really happy.”

“You’re just saying that, Nancy.”

“It’s true! I’ve never seen him that happy! And he really loves you, like crazy. You know last night, when you were left to babysit the kids when we went to the upside down? The one where we got stuck? Steve kept muttering how much he wishes you were there so you can make the mood better! Eddie had to hit him in the head just for him to stop,” Nancy said laughing. She suddenly stopped as she quickly muttered a goodbye to Y/N as she left.

Y/N was confused until she saw Steve walking towards her.

“Hey, can we talk?”

“Yeah, of course. What do you want to talk about?”

“I think I scared you when I told you my dream. Listen, we do not have to do any of that. I just want to be with you until the end of time. With or without kids,” Steve rambled as he grabbed her hands into his.

“Steve. I would love nothing more than to fulfill that dream of yours, because frankly that’s also my dream,”

“But?”

“What if I’m not good enough for your dream? Like what if we do get married and have children, but in the middle of it, you find somebody much better than me?”

“What are you talking about? Of course I’m not leaving you, Y/N.”

“You’re just saying that now, Steve. I’m not perfect like the other girls. Who knows what you’ll feel in five or ten years,” Y/N just rambled, trying to avoid his eyes.

“Listen. Y/N, I know you’re not perfect. Heck, nobody is. But you are perfect for me. And that is enough for me to know that I’ll be yours forever and ever,” Steve smiled as he placed his forehead onto hers, rubbing their noses with one another.

“Promise?”

“I promise, with all my heart.”

“Can we name one of our children after my mom?”

“As long as we get to name one of our children after Dustin,” Steve replied, kissing her forehead again.

“Huh, why?”

Steve went on a story that happened even before they got together. Y/N felt reassured that Steve will be there for her, no matter what.

Nothing and no one will stop them from loving each other. Not now, not ever.

♡ ♡ ♡  

taglist in the reblog

add yourself to my taglist

[sweet-villain]

I'll Be Missing You~ B.H 

Summary: Your mourning Billy still, visiting his grave and catching him up on things. One surprise leads you in tears but there is something else too.

Angst

m-rae23~ palomam18~eddiesprincess86~gloomybrieyxb ~hqtetsurou

You didn't plan to fall in love with Billy Hargrove, you tried and tired and tried to stay away from him. As much to Steve request too, it just happened. Billy set his eyes on you from the moment he stepped into Hawkins High School. He would smirk at your ball of energy. how sweet you were and how everyone always had something to say about you.

You broke through Billy's walls, he learned to trust you and he let you in. He let you see what Neil does to him, he tells you about his mother and he tells you one day he wants to leave Hawkins, go to California. He promised to take you with him, he promised to teach you how to surf and he promised to love you forever.

Those promises torn you apart when you watched the day he was taken away from you. You screamed as you watched him stand up the Mind Flyer. You ran to him when he collapsed, his blue glossy irises locked with yours. Max rushed to your side as she kneel down next to Billy.

" I'll take care of her. I promise" you take his hand in yours bringing it up to your lips.

" I'm sorry" he says. You watch as the light left his eyes, you let out a scream hugging his body. You wanted him back. You wanted to trade places with him. You lost the love of your life that day.

You remember it like it was yesterday and it still hurts, no one but you and Max mourned him. She wrote him a letter encouraging you that you should write him one too, after everything that has been going on.

You did. You wrote him a letter as it laid in your drawer for a bit.

You slowly walked up to his grave reading his grave stone. He never really liked being called William, you only called him that when he was in trouble or you were really mad at him.

You sit besides his grave with the letter in your hands but you put it into your pocket thinking it's best to just to talk to him, to the grave. That, maybe, just maybe it would help.

But your hands fall onto your stomach as you glance down at it then back at the grave.

" Hi Billy, it's me. Yeah, Y/N. You know, the love of your life as you would tell me. It's been so long since I've last seen you, I miss you so much. I've been doing the best I can for myself, I mean Steve comes in and checks in on me from time to time. He brings me groceries and tells me he'd patch things up with you if he could, for my sake. He knew how much I loved you.. I still love you. He watches how much I cry and he stays sometimes, just to hold me. Max is all grown up, I'm keeping my promises and looking after her. At first she blamed me for your death, she said I belonged in your place and it torn me apart because I thought of her as family. She is my family, Billy. You were my family, you were my everything, you were my light, yeah you had your moments, and I had mine but we promised each other that we would leave. We would be happy together" you licked your lips feeling the tears running down your cheeks as you took a deep breath in.

" Robin, you know Steve's friend. She's nice, super talkative and she has no filter whatsoever. I feel like you'd would of liked her, the other kids are doing good too" you sighed, shaking your head looking up at the sky.

" Fuck!" you grabbed a hold of your hair and tugged as more tears escaped your eye.

" God Billy, who am I kidding? I almost lost Max, I promised to look after her and I almost broke it. I saw the fear in her eyes and I didn't help her, I was selfish and I hurt her. But she's okay now, she knows I'm there for her. The gang is back to fighting new monsters yet again, a new monster called Vecna. God, I wish you were here right now. I miss you, I need you" you reached out to trace his full name with your fingers, sniffling.

" I'm scare Billy. I try to be strong for the kids, for Steve, for Max, for everyone but I can't do it.. I can't." You glance down at the ground, the grass as you brush the tears away with your hands, " I can't keep doing life with out you, Billy.. We can't"

You look at your belly, it was visible that you were pregnant.

" You would of made a great father, yeah Billy. We're going to be parents, I'm going to be a mom.." a hand clasped over your mouth as sobs leave.

Suddenly there was wind that blew your hair and made the leaves rattle around you.

" Y/N, baby" you heard. Your ears couldn't believe the voice you were hearing. The voice spoke again and when you looked up, just behind the grave it looked like a visible figure of your boyfriend staring down at you with tears in his eyes.

" B-Billy?" you asked. He smiled, nodding his head.

Your hand tries to reach out to touch him, but your fingers go through and you tries again but the same thing happens. You stand up from the ground to grab his arm but you can't. You aren't able to touch him.

" I need you" you tell him. He nods as his eyes drop down to your stomach. " You're pregnant" he says, he's shocked but he's happy at the same time. You can see it.

" Yes" your hands go to your stomach as you rubbed it.

"Baby" he calls out to you. You look up at him, he is in the same tank top and jeans that he died in but there is no harm to him, he looks like your Billy.

" Thank you for being the love of my life, for loving me, for taking care of me. Please look after Max, she really needs you. I know you're trying, tell Steve to keep you close too. He's alright. I know you want to be strong, but it's okay to ask for help. They all need you just like I needed you" tears ran down your cheeks.

" I want to feel you. I want to kiss you. Please.." Billy nods, as he sniffles. " I wan that too, baby. But I don't know how" his hand reaches out to brush away the tears that keep falling but he can't because he's not able to touch you.

That breaks your heart as you look at him. His hand goes down to your stomach.

" I'm going to make sure our little nugget will be okay. You'll be okay, baby. You're strong, you're my little warrior" You let out a chuckle.

" I will always love you, Billy Hargrove"

" I always will love you too, Y/N L/N." He leans down as he brushes his lips against your forehead, but you don't feel it and when you open your eyes, he's gone.

You have tears streaming down your cheeks, with a small smile on your lips as you hold your pregnant belly knowing that Billy was going to watch over you both.

You turn to walk back to walk to your car but not before turning around to look at his grave one more time. You blew a kiss to the grave promises him you'd come back within the next month.

[spicysix]

long story short (part 1/3) | eddie munson X reader

this fic is part of a series: masterlist

summary: "Eddie’s pale face was still all you could see. It had completely replaced all your other usual haunting images - Will’s funeral, his screams as your mom turned up the heaters, that demogorgon feasting on Bob’s limp body, El’s shriek in pain as Jon tried to pull a piece of the Mind Flayer from her leg. Probably because you knew they were safe now, out of the woods. But Eddie wasn’t."

warnings: fem!reader - no physical description. no use of y/n. post s4 - canon divergence. spoilers, i guess: max is not in a coma and eleven killed vecna and closed the portals because i said so. angst with a happy ending.

word count: 4.5k

a/n: this is not betaed! english is not my first language. if there are any absurd mistakes please let me know. i dunno how many parts this will have, but i promise to try not to take too long to post the rest. if you enjoy, please reblog and comment! 💞 this story also has a playlist!

day one

09:19 a.m. His arms were tight around you, grounding you, comforting you - and you wished you were giving all that reassuring back just the same.

“It was so scary.” He said, quivering a bit. You pulled him even closer, as close as you could. “I was so scared. So scared. I didn’t think we would walk out alive. I really didn’t.” You felt his tears wetting your sweater. He was almost hurting you from all the strength he was putting into his lithe arms.

You closed your eyes, attempting to block out the images trying to form in your head - nothing you’ve actually seen, but your imagination was never one to be shy. But you had to stay strong, to not let creations of your mind frighten you, because you had to reassure him. He had to trust you.

You breathed deep before answering him. “I can only imagine, love. But we’re here now. You don’t have to be scared anymore. Everyone’s here. We’re safe. You’re safe.”

Lucas let go of you after another final squeeze and a sniff, and you turned around to properly see everyone else. The room was crowded, filled with so many people. The smell of disinfectant was uncomfortable, but the sight of all your friends united again melted your heart.

Max was awake now, still very shaken but much better than what you thought she would be. Both her legs were on casts and you couldn’t begin to imagine what that recovery would be like. The poor girl… But at least she was alive, that’s what you kept saying to yourself over and over.

Lucas went back to his seat in front of the window as you, El, Will and Jon went closer to the bed the redhead was lying on. The younger ones shared a hug, your siblings being careful not to hurt their friend.

Your hand went to her fire hair in a caress and she turned to you. “I’m so happy y’all are here.” She said, her voice a little dragged probably from all the medication she was on.

“We’re very glad too.” She reciprocated the smile you gave her as her eyes closed from the gentle touch on her head.

09:44 a.m. Not long after that, as the kids were catching up and resting on Max’s room, you gathered with all the older ones in the hospital cafeteria as you recounted everything that had happened since march 21st. The Cali crew, as you were calling yourself and your family (plus Argyle, bless his heart) went first, taking turns in explaining. You tried your best to retell everything El had described to you from the time she was on Nina, but told the others if they wanted they could ask her more about it later. The important part was that it was there that she learned about Henry/Vecna/001 and when she got her powers back.

As the Hawkins crew started their own version, some blanks in your story were beginning to be filled in. You felt bad about Chrissy, she was a very sweet girl from the little you knew her from the cheer squad. Another one of those rare pieces amongst so many rotten people who thought social status in high school was the most important thing ever.

“…and then! Dustin and Max were busting into Family Video and basically kidnapping our phones because they wanted to find where the supposed killer was, because they were already sure whatever was done to Chrissy was not made by human hands!” Robin had been monologuing for a few minutes already, but all of you were used to it at this point. She had no pause button.

“Didn’t help that the guy was Dustin’s friend. He was doubly worried.” Steve was able to interrupt his coworker, rolling his eyes. “Mike and Lucas also know the guy. He’s the leader from their dragons dungeon thing.”

“Dungeons and Dragons.” You corrected. Steve murmured ‘whatever’.

Nancy’s brows were furrowed and she was looking at her hands intertwined with Jonathan’s on her lap as she spoke. “Poor Eddie. Thrown into it head first. He did not deserve any of this.”

Your heart stopped.

I mean, there could be other Eddies in Hawkins. Of course it could. But why was the feeling in your gut so sickening?

“What’s his name now?” You asked. Your voice was trembling, and Jonathan immediately turned to look at you. He knew you too well.

“Eddie Munson. He’s a triple senior. Sells drugs.” Steve answered.

Fuck.

Fuckity-fucking-fuck.

Your heartbeat was a thousand miles per hour, your mouth was suddenly dry and for some reason your longs were no longer capable of doing their job.

“Eddie Munson? Metalhead? Long wavy hair? Fingers filled with rings? Huge brown eyes?” Your voice was about three pitches higher, but you needed to be sure, and Robin nodded to confirm.

This couldn’t be happening.

“El didn’t mention him. She didn’t mention anyone new when she saw you in the Void to make sure you were okay. She didn’t, did she?” You needed Jonathan’s reassurance, but didn’t give him time to answer. “She didn’t mention him!”

Your brother called out your name. “What’s going on? You’re freaking me out.”

“I… I knew him. Fuck, I knew him!” You looked at him and was sure the fear in your eyes could be recognized from miles away.

“Knew who?” Dustin’s voice was as excited as always and you turned to see him approaching your table with the rest of the teens - except for Lucas, who probably stayed with Max.

“Your friend… Eddie…” You were still shaking a bit, even though Jon’s hand on your shoulder was somewhat calming.

Dustin’s smile went away immediately with your answer. That was not calming at all.

“Where is he?” The entire Hawkins crew gulped at your question, sharing concerning looks between each other. “Where is he?!” You all but screamed, your body already filled to the brim with agonizing fear.

10:10 a.m. The smell of bleach made your nose itch.

He was so pale. So much paler than that last time you saw him, under the not-so-bright lights of a random girl’s pantry.

Standing so still. So different from all the gestures you had memorized. The tilt of his head when he was teasing you. The shake of his shoulders when he laughed. His dramatics as he explained something he was passionate about.

His hair was no longer shiny and soft, just opaque and disheveled. His lips were no longer pink and plumb, but almost purple and cracked. It was all paleness. Stillness. Quietness.

The worst part was his eyes. They were closed. You were deprived of those beautiful chocolate pools that you really wanted to dive into.

A single tear rolled down your cheek. Its heat so contrasting to the cold of your skin.

But your skin was no colder than his, though. Your hand, clasped desperately to his, felt warmer in comparison.

There were tubes and wires all over him, and the constant beep, beep, beep of the machines was almost driving you crazy. But you had no strength in you to even be mad or sad about anything else besides the fact that Eddie Munson, the boy who was able to basically steal your heart in only one night, was laying in a hospital bed, unconscious.

After you yelled at them, Dustin and Steve told you what happened to Eddie. The sacrifice he tried to make. Almost being eaten alive by demobats - great, all you needed was a whole new type of demowhatevers from the Upside Down to worry about - to try and win some more time for your friends - to save a town that hated him. How they were barely able to carry him through the portal and to the first hospital they saw - how they wanted to go further to another city, away from Hawkins and their hatred, but that they probably wouldn’t make it in time and Eddie would’ve died.

His arms were handcuffed to the bed’s metal bracings, because he was still suspect number one to all the murders. They couldn’t deny him medical care, but they could deny him minimal comfort. Even though he couldn’t go anywhere, as for he has been in a coma for almost three whole days already. The police officers guarding his hospital room almost didn’t let you in, but apparently already knew Dustin enough to understand that he wouldn’t give up until they authorized your entrance. He’s probably been doing that, annoying the fuck out of the officers, for the last three days. The officers didn’t let more than one person at a time, though. So you were alone with Eddie.

You could hear the rest of your friends talking in the hallway, the Hawkins squad finishing their side of the story. You caught snippets of it every once in a while, but you could hear the whole thing later. The details of whatever had already passed were no longer of primary importance.

You squeezed his hand tighter in yours and got as close to his bed as you could without disturbing any wires from the machines around him. Still holding his hand in one of your own, you slid the other one through his hair. Bending down, you touched your lips softly to his cold forehead.

“Please wake up, Eddie. I have so much to tell you.” You could feel your eyes burning and more tears escaping them, falling into his face. “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry I never told you anything when we’ve met. I’m so sorry you had to go though all this.” At this point you were sobbing already. “If I had known, I… I don’t know, actually. I don’t know what I would have done. I don’t think I could have done anything.

“But I asked, you know? I asked god, the universe, whatever there is. I prayed that you would never have to know about any of this. Maybe I was the one that jinxed you.” You let out a humorless laugh. “I’m sorry. I’m gonna do everything I can to help you when you wake up. So please wake up. Please.”

You cleaned your tears from your cheeks and from his before getting back up. A deep sigh left your lips and you caressed his hair one last time more before turning to leave.

07:26 p.m. Dustin, Robin and Steve went to the school, where a shelter was improvised to aid those whos houses had been destroyed by Vecna’s portals’ ravishing of the city (dismissed by the police and media as an earthquake). The rest of you went to Hopper and Eleven’s old cabin, to where any of you haven’t stepped foot on since that 4th of July the year prior.

A government agent dropped off your parents at the door at some point from their trip to the Soviet Union. That was definitely insane.

Your house was no longer yours and Hoppers still had a hole through its ceiling, so you had to book some rooms in the only hotel that was not destroyed and still had vacancy. Eleven and Jonathan could have gone to the Wheelers’, they were invited, but decided to stay with their parents. Thankfully, the hotel was not too far from downtown to Hop’s liking, as he wanted to help with anything he could within the city - you know, get his job as sheriff back - as soon as the sun rose.

You ordered pizzas to your hotel rooms to celebrate your parents success in invading and escaping a russian prison, and the Hawkins-Cali gangs success in stopping a murderous asshole from completing his evil plan. Your head was still buzzing the entire time, though. You tried to be present, to interact, to act normal, but every few minutes you were haunted by the image of Eddie’s pale body cuffed to a hospital bed, in contrast to the image of Eddie asking to kiss you over a package of stolen cookies.

The first thing you asked you mom and Hop after you’ve all filled your bellies was if they could call that government lady who had dropped them off at Hopper’s cabin in the first place.

Yeah, okay, in hindsight, it was kind of rude. Jim had literally just returned from the dead, and your mom just went through an insane amount of danger in a enemy country. But you’ve already accepted that that was the primary importance: to help clean Eddie’s name.

They’ve been informed of everything over dinner, and you finally explained how you had met Eddie. You didn’t linger on the kissing part, didn’t even mention the smoking weed part (that one would be later told to Jonathan and Argyles’ ears only, while Will was showering, in your shared room down the hall), just said he was very helpful in calming your anxiety attack with his wit and gentle soul.

“Wait, so you’re telling me you want us to get the FBI to cover up a story just so this boy you’ve met once and apparently fell in love with, god knows how with only one fucking night together, is no longer the suspect of a killing spree?” Hoppers voice was in that very judgmental tone. You were not fond of it. Your mom slapped his arm.

“Okay, first of all, I’m not in love with him. Second of all, I’m not asking you to do this for myself, I’m asking you to do it for Eddie, a guy that had the world’s biggest lack of luck ever to fall into all of this mess, not only as a victim, but to be blamed for everything on top of it. I’m asking you to do it for Will, and Dustin, and Lucas, and Mike, who also play the very same game people are claiming to be the reason why Eddie is supposedly a satanist. You think these same people won’t go after them next? Target them as the next freaks, possible murderers? They’re already bullied in school! You don’t think it’ll get worst?”

You saw you youngest brother shrinking into himself beside you, but you were just telling the sad, miserable truth. And you had to convince Hopper.

“Dr. Owens and his team were able to come up with excuses for the mall fiasco last year. He was able to move us to California and erase us off the radar so we could have a chance at a new life. You’re telling me they can’t do that again?”

“Someone has to be pinned responsible for the murders, though.” Hopper claimed. He was right.

“Blame it on Chrissy’s boyfriend or whatever! He’s dead anyways!” You knew you sounded insensible, but to be honest, you couldn’t care. “Please, Hopper, I don’t know how they’ll do it but I’m sure they can find a way. We can’t let him be judged and most probably arrested when he’s innocent!” Your tone was desperate. You were desperate. “With how violent the kills were, he won’t be out of prison maybe ever. Do you get that?”

Your mom got up from the bed she was sitting across from you and you met her halfway, feeling her embracing you tightly. You felt Will’s hand on your arm. You hadn’t noticed when you’ve started crying again. They were trying to calm you down. You didn’t think they could, though, but you were thankful nonetheless.

“Shh, it’s okay, pumpkin. We’ll try our best, okay. I promise you.” Joyce whispered right into your ear, and you closed your eyes as you felt the tears falling down your face.

You heard Hopper sighing. “Okay. I’ll call her.”

10:57 p.m. You couldn’t sleep. Argyle was snoring loudly in the bed he was sharing with Jon beside yours. You knew your brothers were sleeping as well, from the sound of their peaceful breathings alone. Will would sometimes fidget and kick your shin under the covers, but would rapidly quiet down again.

You, on the other hand. Was probably going mental.

Eddie’s pale face was still all you could see. It had completely replaced all your other usual haunting images - Will’s funeral, his screams as your mom turned up the heaters, that demogorgon feasting on Bob’s limp body, El’s shriek in pain as Jon tried to pull a piece of the Mind Flayer from her leg. Probably because you knew they were safe now, out of the woods. But Eddie wasn’t.

You kept replaying those last minutes with him in that pantry, him asking to see you again and remembering how you wished more than anything that you could’ve said yes, but how you couldn’t. How you’ve had hoped he would never come to know of those things that gave you nightmares night after night, and how that hope was completely useless as he was a center piece in everything that has happened in the past week.

How you were now hoping that this was the end of it all, and how you crushed your own hopes by thinking that you hoped that every single time, only for something worse to come back later. How there was always something worse. How it never seemed to end.

God, you were exhausted. You needed this to end. You needed some peace.

You got up from the bed as quietly as you could and reached for a flashlight in your bag that was on top of a desk by the window. You searched for paper and pen and scribbled a note about where you were going before grabbing a change of clothes. You quickly got changed in the bathroom and brushed your teeth before exiting the bathroom, putting away your pajamas, putting on some shoes and leaving the hotel.

The hospital parking lot was almost entirely full, but you were able to find a spot - far away from the entrance, but still better than having to park outside altogether. As you entered the building, you thanked the gods for the fact that the receptionist was taking a snooze over her desk (you guessed she’s been pretty busy with the ‘earthquake’ victims) and slipped past her to the stairs.

You went straight to Eddie’s floor.

The guards did not seem happy to see you. “You’re the girl that’s been here earlier.” One of them said. Didn’t ask: said. You just nodded, trying to peek into the room. “His uncle is already inside, you can’t come in.”

You let out a sigh and looked around. There was a bench right in front of the door, so you settled for that. The door wasn’t closed, probably an order from the police, but it wasn’t fully open as well. You could see Eddie’s uncle’s silhouette - you think his name was Wayne from what Nancy had told you -, sleeping in the chair next to his nephew’s bed.

“What’s with this murderer being so popular? Those kids are here all fucking day and now this girl too.” Maybe the guard thought he was whispering to his colleague, but he wasn’t as quiet as you’d wish.

“Maybe he’s some kind of Ted Bundy or whatever.” The other one answered.

“Or maybe he’s innocent, you assholes.” You snapped and they went quiet, even though one of them let out a scoff. You just rolled your eyes and rested against the wall. Your eyes were getting heavy… You fell asleep before you noticed.

02:17 a.m. You felt hands on your shoulder slightly shaking you awake. Your eyes bolted open. Eddie’s uncle was hovering above you, his expression a mix of confusion and caution.

“I’m sorry to wake you. Who are you? The guards didn’t know, and I’ve never seen you here before.” He wasn’t rude, just polite, but you could’ve understand if he was suspicious.

“Oh, I’m sorry, mister Munson.” You sat up straight and ran your sleeve over your face, pretty sure you’ve been drooling. You said your name. “I’m a friend of Dustins. I’ve met Eddie last year, only briefly, but I… care about him. I was worried, couldn’t sleep.”

You looked past Wayne into Eddie’s room, the door now wide awake and you could see clearly that he was still in the same position you’ve seen earlier. Unfortunately.

You continued. “Me and my family moved away after the mall fire last year, so we weren’t around for everything that’s happened this past week, but we came as soon as we heard.” He was listening carefully, his eyes locked on yours. “I could… I could leave if I’m making you uncomfortable.” You didn’t want to leave.

“No, it’s okay. I’m glad he has more friends to pray for him.” His smile was small, but it was still there. “I’m going to grab a bite, do you want something?”

“No, thank you.” As he walked down the corridor, you got up from your seat. “Can I go in now?” You asked the guards, who only nodded before letting you pass.

You sat on the same chair Wayne was before you. The beep, beep, beep from the machines sounded louder now, maybe because the whole hospital was so silent at this hour. Your eyes seemed to trick you into believing Eddie was a little less pale, though you easily dismissed it as your brain trying to hold onto some hope.

You held his hands into yours again. The shiver down your spine from the cold of his skin was still the same as earlier.

You thought about Max on the floor below you. You would visit her later. You wondered if Lucas was still there too.

A sigh escaped your lips and your eyes closed again. Everything was quiet, but you couldn’t sleep again. It was fine by you, being used to a terrible sleep schedule for years now, a three hour nap was enough to make you feel a little more rested than you were before.

So you just stood there quietly, your eyes closed and the sound of yours and Eddie’s breathing in unison being enough to make you calmer. At some point, after a few good minutes, you heard some noises but figured it was Wayne and/or the guards on the hallway.

Until you felt movement within your hands.

Your eyes widened immediately and you swore that minor frown on Eddie’s face was not there before. You stood as still as you could, trying to figure out if you were only imagining things, but his hand, still clasped in yours, squeezed - delicately, but still strong enough that it could not be mistaked by some creation of your own head.

You were completely frozen in place as Eddie’s eyes fluttered open… So. Very. Slowly.

He tried to move his head to look around, but grimaced as it probably hurt him.

His irises settled on you.

There was the tiniest of smiles on his lips.

“Hgnn” He actually tried to speak, but spiraled down into a fit of coughs. That was when you finally came into your senses and acted upon it, getting a bottle of water (it probably belong to Wayne) that was still closed on the nightstand, opening it and handing it to him.

You helped Eddie drink the water he obviously couldn’t drink by himself before setting it back where it was.

“Pantry girl.” He called you, his voice hoarse, and yet you almost swooned. You still hadn’t muttered a word though. Didn’t make a sound. You wasn’t even sure you were still breathing. “Hm, I’m glad you’re visiting me right now.” His smile grew just a bit as he rose his eyebrow. “Wait, does that mean I’ve died and gone to heaven?”

You cleared your throat and laughed softly. “No, Eddie. You’re not dead.” Your own words hit you deeply.

He was not dead.

He was alive.

He was alive, and awake, and talking - teasing you. Man’s first words after a three day coma made you blush.

“Hah. That was an almost. Thought I was a goner.” He coughed again, but showed you the palm of his hand when you dived to get the bottle of water again.

“You shouldn’t talk so much, Eddie. You’ve just woken up.” You looked back at the door. How did the guards not hear him waking up? And you talking to him? “I should call a doctor.”

His hand clasped around yours, still resting on his bed. “Please, no. Wait just a bit more. When they come in, you’ll go away.” He looked so sad for a second, his eyes pleading. “I don’t want you to go away. I need you for just a few more minutes. Please.”

He needed you.

You couldn’t say no.

So you adjusted yourself further in the chair, your elbows now resting upon your knees as you caressed his hand with your thumb. He closed his eyes and you were afraid he would lose his conscience again, but he let out a soft hum.

“This almost feels real. Must be all the drugs.” His words were dragging. That was definitely the drugs. But…

“Almost?” You asked. “Eddie, it’s real. I’m real.” His eyes opened again, meeting yours.

“Yeah, right. As if the universe would be that kind to me.” The smile on his lips now felt sad somehow. “I’ve dreamed of you enough times already, sweetheart. I can tell.”

He dreamed of you.

For fucks sake.

You were smiling now too, trying to make yourself clear as you repeated. “Than your telling kinda sucks, Eds, because I’m real.” You squeezed his hand harder, trying to prove it to him. “I’m right here.”

“You’re here?” His smile faltered and his voice trembled. “You’re really here? I’m not dreaming of you again?”

You felt a lump forming on your throat, but your smile wasn’t going anywhere. “Yeah, man, you’re not dreaming.”

“But, how… How did you know? Where? How?!” He was trying to ask, but his mind was probably so fogged he was making no sense. His heart rate was rising, worrying you.

“I swear I’ll explain it to you. But I should really call a doctor, Eds. You’ve been asleep for quite a while now.” He closed his eyes shut and held your hand tighter. “I’m not going anywhere this time. I promise.”

His eyes met yours again. So soft. So big. So beautiful. Hopeful. God, you’ve missed those eyes.

He nodded slowly, kinda uncertain, and you got up from the chair and calmly let go of his hand. You walked backwards to the door, never ending eye contact. He had a frown, still concerned you were going to disappear before his eyes at any minute now.

You introduced yourself. “That's my name, by the way.” He repeated it, savoring the sound of it on his tongue. The beep, beep, beep of the machines was faster now, his heartbeat faster once more.

You smiled at him one last time before stepping out of the room and asking the guards to call for a doctor. Wayne was sitting on the same bench as you were before, one of his hands holding a new bottle of water.

“He’s awake.” You simply told him. The heart-melting smile was a genetic feature, apparently.