#no vacancy

[everything-is-contaminated]

[pamietniko]

No Vacancy

North Bend, Washington

[hbyrde36]

No Vacancy

Chapter 12: Checking Out

WC: 2983 | R: Explicit | CH: 12/12 | AO3 | COMPLETE!

Ch 1 Ch 2 Ch 3 Ch4 Ch 5 Ch 6 Ch 7 Ch 8 Ch 9 Ch 10 Ch 11

*STEVE*

Steve was a nervous wreck for the entire ride back to the motel after his interview. He’d gotten the job, just like he’d known he would. What he hadn’t expected was that they would ask him to start so soon.

As in, Monday morning, three days from now soon. 

The elementary school’s main building had undergone massive renovations over the break, and they needed all hands on deck to make sure the classrooms, gym, and cafeteria were all set up and ready to go for the students on their first day back.

Thankfully, Steve had put in his notice with the city two weeks ago, and already worked his last shift as a lifeguard for this year. He hadn’t even told Eddie yet. It was meant to be a surprise, leaving them free to spend as much time as possible together, at least when the other man wasn’t working, before…

Well, just… before. 

Before whatever happened next, happened next.

All this time Steve had been trying desperately not to jump to any conclusions. He’d been patient, giving Eddie space to figure out what he wanted to do without putting any pressure on him. From the moment they returned from their impromptu weekend in Hawkins he never brought it up again—was careful not to mention the future too much, or talk about school, or Fall, or Labor Day, the official unofficial end of the tourism season. 

But each day that passed without Eddie coming to a decision made it harder and harder to not start assuming the worst. In Steve's mind, if Eddie was going to stay he’d have figured that out already and said so, wouldn’t he?

Then they’d had that mind blowing encounter in the walk-in at Eddie’s bar the other night. Bringing out completely different sides of each other in the most exquisite, intense, and incredible way. It had felt important somehow, Eddie sharing himself—giving himself to Steve in that way, falling apart so beautifully for him, trusting that Steve would put him back together again, the way Eddie always did for him. 

As they’d come down, holding each other so tightly while sitting on that freezing cold floor, while he kissed the sweat from Eddie’s brow, Steve had been sure that was the moment, that Eddie would turn to him and say what he’d been waiting so anxiously to hear, but Eddie only told him he loved him, and when his legs stopped shaking had stood, helping Steve to his feet. They’d gone back to the party, as though nothing had changed, and Steve was forced to accept that maybe it hadn’t meant what he hoped. Maybe it had just been one last hurrah before Eddie told him he was moving on to his next adventure.  

Steve stood outside the door to their motel room, the place he and Eddie had called home for the last two months, the place Steve would soon be calling home permanently once he made the trek back to Hawkins to pack up his old place, and dreaded going inside.

He knew Eddie would be in there waiting for him. The other man was off for the night and the two of them were supposed to go out with Chrissy and Robin later. Steve really didn’t want to ruin their evening before it had begun, or burst the carefully formed bubble they’d been happily floating in, but his Summer was over come Monday morning. They were running out of time, and he had to talk to Eddie about it as soon as possible. 

Stepping quietly inside, Steve was surprised to find the room seemingly empty. He’d expected Eddie to be laid out on his bed, watching one of those so-bad-it’s-good horror movies that always seem to be on cable in the middle of the day, but he was nowhere in sight. 

Steve was about to leave, figuring his boyfriend must be down at the office harassing Chrissy, when he heard Eddie’s voice speaking softly nearby.

The bathroom light was on, its door open a crack, something Steve hadn’t noticed with his mind so preoccupied with worry, and he could just see Eddie through the small gap standing in there, looking at himself in the mirror, and talking to himself.

No, not just talking to himself.

Eddie was rehearsing.

Rehearsing a speech… to Steve.

“Steve, I know…” Eddie paused, shaking his head at his own reflection. “No, no.”

Steve crept closer, careful to avoid a spot on the floor he knew tended to creak underfoot so as not to give himself away.

Eddie cleared his throat roughly before taking a deep breath and starting again. “Stevie, I'm sure you’ve been wondering…”

With an adorable little growl Eddie cut himself off again, gripping the edge of the vanity tight as he prepared to give it another go. “Get it together, Munson.”

Steve threw a hand over his own mouth to stifle a snort. He felt a little bad for listening in, and thought about announcing himself or coughing to alert Eddie to his presence, but his curiosity got the best of him and he remained quiet, desperate to know whether the love of his life was preparing to make him the happiest man alive, or working out the best way to let him down easy. 

“Baby,” Eddie began, his voice suddenly sounding rough, as though his throat were tight with what he had to say. “I’ve spent the last few weeks doing what you asked, really thinking about what it would mean to stay here with you. To put down roots for once. To build a life with you—a real one that we make together on purpose. A relationship that doesn’t end or change when the season does. I worried for a while that I wasn’t ready. That neither of us were, really. That it was too new, too fast, too soon for all this. That it would burn hot for a while but end up just a flash in the pan…”

Eddie paused, hanging his head, letting out a huff of wry laughter.

“But, as has been pointed out by everyone with eyeballs, you’ve always had a piece of my heart, even when I wasn’t ready to admit it, and if what a certain little birdie told me is true then I think—maybe I’ve always had a piece of yours too?”

“Eddie,” Steve gasped softly before he could stop himself, and Eddie’s head snapped up, eyes comically wide as they met Steve’s through his reflection in the mirror. 

“So you probably heard all that, huh?” Eddie said after a long moment frozen in shock. He shook his head, lips curling up into a shy smile. “Man, I really gotta start paying more attention to my surroundings before I run my mouth.”

Steve pushed the bathroom door open slowly and stepped inside the small space. “I’m sorry, I-I shouldn't have eavesdropped… again.”

Not that it had been his fault the last time, for the record.

“Don’t be. The words were meant for you anyway, and who knows if I'd have been able to get the whole speech out if we were face to face.” Eddie turned away from the sink to face him. “You do have quite the history of distracting me.”

“Does this mean…” Steve started to ask but couldn’t quite get the question out.

“Yes, I’m staying right here.” Eddie said with no hesitation. “I’m so gone on you, sweetheart, and we both know I’ve never been one to think of the future much before, but, god—now I can’t imagine one without you in it.”

“Are you sure?”

Closing the distance between them, Eddie took Steve’s face in his hands. “Christ, baby. You have no idea how much you mean to me, do you? I actually can't believe I'm going to say this, but I've never meant anything more—if it was legal, and also not completely fucking insane after such a short time together, I'd probably ask you to marry me.”

Steve grinned, his vision blurring as tears sprang to his eyes. He reached up to cover Eddie’s hands with his own and leaned forward, pressing their foreheads together. 

“I’d probably say yes.”

Their double date that night wound up being a huge celebration all around. Robin and Chrissy were thrilled, and visibly relieved, to learn that Eddie had worked up the courage to admit what he wanted and commit, even if it had come out while Steve was listening in secret like a creep—in Robin’s words. 

The details didn’t matter, if anything it only meant more to Steve knowing those had been Eddie’s unguarded thoughts. 

The girls had their own good news to share too. After meeting Tracey at Chrissy’s party and getting a little friendly advice from the older woman, the two of them sat down together, wrote out a new business plan, and finally got approval for their sorely needed loan. Enough to get the past-due bills paid, boost their advertising, and get through the Winter if they were careful.

Steve and Eddie left for Hawkins the next morning. Dan was happy enough to let Eddie off for a few days once he learned his favorite bartender would be staying on year-round if they wanted him. 

They did.

With Wayne’s help they managed to get all of Steve's belongings packed up and shoved into the back of Eddie's van in a little over a day, dragging the old furniture he was leaving behind out to the curb for anyone passing by to take for free. 

It was strange to think he was finally leaving Hawkins for good. They’d come back to town as often as they could to visit Eddie’s uncle, of course, but this place would no longer be Steve’s home—and thank fuck for that. 

Wayne saw them off bright and early Sunday morning from the trailer, after convincing Eddie to pack up and take the rest of his own things along with them too, or at least whatever would fit in the BMW’s trunk for now, since he was “finally settling down” and all. Eddie had rolled his eyes dramatically, but Steve knew the move was only meant to disguise the way they’d gone all glassy when Wayne hugged him and told him how proud he was of the man Eddie was growing into.  

They returned home, finding the girls offering to move them into a different unit in the motel. Steve was hesitant at first, saddened by the idea of saying goodbye to the place where it had all begun, to the four walls and two very well-worn mattresses that held so many memories. But their new place was on the ground floor, a little bigger than their original room, and had a king size bed. It was also closer to Robin and Chrissy’s room—though not too close, because after Robin overheard them going at it that one time she swore she’d kick them both out or leave herself if she ever had to hear Steve shouting Eddie’s name that way again.

Steve couldn't even argue, he knew he was loud. 

Maybe he’d ask Eddie to start gagging him.

In the coming months he and Eddie fell into life together with natural ease, though it wasn’t completely without struggle. They hardly ever fought, and when they did it was almost always because they simply missed each other. Still working on fairly opposite schedules, it wasn’t unusual for them to go several days without seeing each other during daylight hours. In the end Eddie decided to stop working Sunday nights. The tips weren’t worth missing the time they could spend together on Steve’s weekends off, and Sundays became couple days. Sacred time for just the two of them to do whatever they wanted. To laze around in bed, fucking sweet and slow for hours on end, or go on dinner dates, or see a movie. An entire day every week completely devoted only to each other.

In their separate off time, they both did what he could to help Robin and Chrissy out around the motel. Once he’d proved himself, Steve took on the role of handyman and wouldn’t take a dime for his services, while Eddie took on the task of delivering the Buckingham’s newly designed brochures to every visitor's center and rest stop on the east coast within driving distance.

Their combined hard work paid off, and by the time Spring rolled around the motel’s future was looking bright, their reservations list as fully booked up for the coming tourist season as Robin and Chrissy had pretended they were the year before. 

It was late in the morning on Saturday, and Steve was busy installing a new air conditioning unit in the lobby, the temperature outside already reaching unbearable levels some days though it was only June first, when Robin asked him to come into Chrissy’s office for a minute.

Eddie was already in there with the two girls, looking just as confused and mildly  concerned as Steve felt. It wasn’t unheard of for the four of them to meet like this to go over what tasks needed to be done around the motel and divide them up accordingly, but Chrissy and Robin looked particularly nervous. It wasn’t a good sign.  Steve didn’t understand, he was so sure that things were going well.

“What’s wrong?” Steve asked, leaning down to drop a kiss on Eddie's lips before sliding into the seat next to him, their hands coming together automatically, fingers laced where they hung between the two chairs. 

Robin bit her lip, sharing a loaded look with Chrissy before turning back to answer him. “Listen, we may have, possibly, made a mistake with the bookings—again.”

Eddie leaned forward, eyes narrowing as he glared at the two girls. 

“For real this time!” Chrissy added quickly.

“Okay, well, we’re already bunking together so I don’t know what—” Steve began, but Robin cut him off before he could finish his sentence.

“I’m glad you asked, dingus.”

Steve frowned. “I didn’t—”

“We were thinking maybe, just for the Summer, that all four of us could share the two bedroom me and Chrissy are in.”

Steve’s mouth dropped open. He and Eddie both sat in stunned silence for a moment before exchanging matching horrified glances with each other.

Suddenly Robin burst out laughing, practically doubled over as her body shook with it. “Oh my god, your faces are priceless! I wish I had a camera.”

“Oh, you were kidding. That’s a relief,” Steve said, letting out the breath he’d been holding.

“Of course I was kidding.” Robin wrinkled her nose in disgust. “Do you honestly think I would voluntarily subject myself to three months of sharing walls, let alone a bathroom, with the two of you?!” 

Steve rolled his eyes. “It was one time! Are you ever going to let it go?”

“Pay for my future therapy and we’ll call it even.”

“Done.”

Steve thrust his free hand out and Robin stepped forward to shake it.

“Okay, so… what, this whole thing was a joke?” Eddie asked.

Robin shook her head. “Oh, no. Not at all.”

Chrissy leaned forward, raking a hand down her face. “I’ve already had to tell several callers this morning that we were full up for their travel dates. We’re extremely overbooked, and Robin and I were sort of hoping you guys might be open to the idea of moving out to free up space?”

“Like, as soon as possible,” Robin added.

“Wait, what?!” Steve shouted.

“Yeah! Isn’t it great?”

“Robin!”

Eddie’s grip tightened reassuringly, drawing Steve’s attention back as he raised their clasped hands to his mouth, pressing a soft kiss over Steve's knuckles. “Don’t worry, sweetheart, I think I know just the place for us.”

It turned out that Eddie had been eyeing up a slightly run down but adorable little cottage on his way to and from work every day for the last few months. Its windows had been boarded up all through Winter, the property overgrown and appearing abandoned, but a few weeks ago a for rent sign had appeared by the mailbox out of the blue, and Eddie admitted to letting his imagination run wild over the possibilities.

They called the number on the sign and scheduled a viewing for as soon as possible. 

The small three bedroom bungalow didn't look like much from the outside, or the inside for that matter, but Eddie was right, it was easy to see the potential. 

Steve could already picture the gardens he might plant. There was plenty of room to grow tomatoes and herbs in the backyard, and great big rose bushes would look amazing in the front, their color peaking brightly out from between the slats of an honest to god white picket fence.  There was even an old wooden arbor perched over the walkway just begging for some ivy to grow over it. 

The inside needed some serious updating. He wasn’t convinced the ancient appliances even worked anymore, but it was cozy, with so much character, and most importantly it had three bedrooms. One for them, one to double as an office and a place for Eddie’s books and guitars to live, and the last for Wayne.

Because Steve had fallen in love with this place at first sight, just like Eddie did. He already knew that the moment they had the money for a down payment they’d stop renting and offer to buy the place. And if Steve had anything to say about it, Eddie’s Uncle would always have a room in their forever home, a soft place to land should he ever need, or want it, just like he’d always made sure Eddie had. 

And they lived happily ever after, until gay marriage was legalized in their state. Then Eddie did propose, got down on one knee and everything right there on the beach by their beautiful home. Steve said yes, and they finally got married, and lived even more happily ever after as husbands. The end.

All my thanks and love to @penny00dreadful for being the best beta, friend, and cheerleader.

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@gregre369

[kiss-inthekitchen]

no vacancy 2 sneak peek !!

chapter dropping soon!!

“You’re not tired of me yet?”

The question hangs in the air between you, and you wish to god you could reach out and snatch it back up.

Spencer looks at you, blatantly calculating.

You feel his eyes on you, and you suddenly become extremely focused on reversing out of your parking spot.

He must’ve found that you were serious. He keeps his tone light when he says, “What a ridiculous question. I don’t have time to entertain such things.”

You try not to visibly exhale in relief.

“Why, are you tired of me?”

“No! No, of course not,” you insist.

“Wow, that’s kind of embarrassing for you actually,” he says, tucking his hair behind his ear. “You must really like me or something.”

Your mouth drops open in shock. “Shut up!”

[allthedesiredusernamesaretaken]

[suburbanscrimshaw]

Welcome no vacancy

[snappingthewalls]

[scpresearcharchives]

SCP-7819 "No Vacancy" was written by @rounderhouse.

Well, now an audio version of this exists. God speed to whoever needs to use it.

-Archivist Bertran

[alexanderplencner]

[christotokos]

for any timo fans, if you've been trying to watch no vacancy (1999), it's on ok.ru

[thedaily-beer]

Firestone Walker + Alvarado Street No Vacancy West Coast IPA (Picked up at Windmill Farms). A 3 of 4. Lots of bright tropical fruit, mostly pineapple, and some nice resinous and herbal qualities in the body. Lighter body and really pungent hops -- nice balance.

[astronoglow]

[hbyrde36]

No Vacancy

When Eddie Munson arrives at the Buckingham Beach Motel to spend the summer with his BFF Chrissy and her business partner Robin, the last person he expects to see waiting in the lobby is former king of Hawkins High and asshole extraordinaire, Steve fucking Harrington.

Chapter 1: Checking In

WC: 4547 | R: Explicit | CH: 1/12 | AO3| Now Complete!

Eddie grinned as he pulled his trusty van, the very same rust-bucket he’d been driving since high school that he liked to refer to as Van Halen, if only to elicit the groans of both friends and strangers, into the small parking lot of the Buckingham beach motel. He hadn’t been on vacation for…

Well, he’d never been on a true vacation before, actually, unless that one time he went fishing with his Uncle Wayne for a weekend counted. And sure, he was going to be working at least part time while he was visiting his best friend in her seaside paradise, but it was still the closest thing to a holiday he’d ever had. Needless to say, Eddie was hell bent on thoroughly enjoying himself this Summer. Sun, sand, and shirtless men in speedos? 

Sign him up!

He hopped out of the van, relieved to finally stretch his legs after the long drive, and threw open the back doors, staring down at the collection of boxes, duffel bags, and one large black trunk that made up almost the entirety of his worldly possessions. 

The day after he finally graduated from Hawkins High, back in 1986, Eddie had cut and run and not looked back. He’d been living as a kind of nomad ever since, never quite feeling comfortable enough to stay in one town or city for too long. He was usually able to find work as a bartender or bouncer to fund his stay at whatever hostel or efficiency he could find, and when all else failed he slept right here in his van. 

He still visited Hawkins on a rare occasion, a necessary evil to be endured only so he could spend time with his beloved uncle, but that place would never be home for him again.

It wasn’t a bad life. He’d seen a lot of cool places and met tons of interesting people, but lately he’d been missing something. The stability of a real home, perhaps. The kind you only really get when you put down roots. In his weaker moments he yearned for the support and community that could be found with friendships that lasted longer than a few months. 

With a sigh, he grabbed the two largest bags that held the majority of his clothes, and the backpack that held the rest of his day-to-day essentials and headed towards the lobby. He could always come back out for the rest later.

The first thing Eddie noticed when he walked in the door was the spectacular pair of legs and delicious ass in too-short shorts that belonged to a man who was leaning over the counter talking to Robin. Unfortunately, the second thing he noticed was that same man’s oddly familiar swoop of chestnut brown hair. 

Eddie’s stomach dropped. 

What in the world was Steve fucking Harrington doing here?

“You made it!” Chrissy squealed as she came barreling out of the office door, having spotted him through the reception window.

Eddie knew what was coming, but he was a little slow given the way the metaphorical rug had been ripped out from under him, and in his current shocked state only just managed to drop his bags in time to catch the former cheerleader as she launched herself at him, wrapping her legs around his waist. 

He held her tight, forcing himself to let go of all thoughts of former jocks and high school rivalries for a moment, and just enjoyed the fact that he was here with his best girl—finally seeing her in person after so many months apart. He inhaled deeply, appreciating the familiar scent of Ex'cla-ma'tion. He used to hate her cheap drugstore perfume, but it’s amazing what you start to miss when you're separated from your loved ones for so long. 

“Missed you.” Eddie whispered into her hair before finally letting her down.

She giggled as he swung her to the floor, and then proceeded to punch him in the arm as hard as she could, which was pretty fucking hard for such a tiny little thing.

“Hey! What was that for?” Eddie sputtered.

“For waiting so long to come visit this time! I missed you too, jerk.”

He rubbed at the spot where she’d hit him. Honestly It didn’t actually hurt all that much, but he liked to play along for the bit. “Jeez, Chris. Funny way of showing it.” 

“You love it.”

“Keep it in your pants, lady, you’re not my type.”

“Freak!”

“Priss!”

Eddie doubled over, cackling, and Chrissy laughed hysterically right along with him, the two falling into another hug just to keep each other upright. When they finally calmed down enough to behave normally again, Chrissy pulled back from his arms, her expression turned serious. 

After a glance back over her shoulder she spoke low, barely above a whisper, “so as I'm sure you noticed, we have another hometown guest joining us.”

Eddie rolled his eyes. “Yeah, Harrington’s kinda hard to miss. What's he doing here anyway?”

“Visiting Robin for the summer?” Chrissy said it as if it should have been obvious.

It wasn’t.

“Why?”

Chrissy let out a long suffering sigh. “He’s her best friend! You know this, how do you always forget?”

She was right, he did always forget that when Robin talked about her friend Steve, that it was Harrington she was talking about. It was such an odd pairing that Eddie just sort of blocked it out. He couldn’t reconcile the Steve from Robin’s stories with the prick he remembered from Hawkins. 

“Right, fine, sorry. What about him?”

“Well, you know this is our first season, and the booking system is so new and confusing. We may have accidentally overbooked, but it's okay! Because the three of us were talking about it before you arrived, and since the one room we do have left is a double queen we thought… ”

Absolutely not.

Eddie grabbed her by the hand, cutting her off and tugging her across the lobby as far from Steve and Robin as they could get.

“Are you crazy?! You want me to be roommates with King Steve?!” He hissed, throwing his hands around wildly. “Have you completely forgotten what a giant asshole he is?!”

“We’re not in high school anymore, Eds. I’ve spent time with the guy. He’s always been nice to me, and if what Robin tells me is true? Then not only is Steve not like that anymore, maybe he never really was.”

Eddie's jaw tightened. She could not be serious. Jock’s don’t change their stripes, or whatever.

“Right,” he spat.

“Look at me! I changed, and we became friends. Why couldn’t Steve be a good guy underneath it all too?”

He waved her off. “That’s different. You are the exception that proves the rule. And you were always a good person, you just ran with a bad crowd for a while, not to mention the boyfriend we do not speak of.”

“Exactly! So isn't it possible that Steve is the same?”

“No.”

Chrissy groaned. “I’m serious! Really think about it, do you remember him ever doing or saying anything shitty to you directly? Or was he just there in the background while his friends did?”

Eddie crossed his arms over his chest. “Assholery by proxy is still assholery.”

“I don’t think that’s a word.”

“Come on Chris!” Eddie whined. Had they been alone he might have even stomped his feet. “Don’t make me do this. Can’t I share with you?”

“You know I live with Robin.”

“Okay, and? It’s only for the Summer. She can stay with Steve and I can stay with you. It’s a perfect solution!”

Chrissy shook her head. “Our room is a single and I love the shit out of you, but I draw the line at sharing a bed.”

Wait, what?

Eddie’s eyebrows shot up. “How did I not know about this? Does that mean you finally got your act together and told her how you feel?”

Chrissy turned bright red and threw her hand over his mouth. “Oh my god. Shut. Up. Of course I haven't told her!” 

He tried to respond, but Chrissy refused to move her hand—so naturally, he licked it. 

“Gross!” Chrissy yanked her hand back with a look of disgust.

“Jeez, I know it’s not the tongue you were hoping for, but it wasn’t that bad!” 

Chrissy whirled around, probably worried that Robin had overheard them, and Eddie might not be the most present guy, but he was still a good friend. As much as he liked to mess with her, he’d been keeping a very close eye on the other side of the room and Steve and Robin were too engrossed in their own whisper-shouting match to pay them any attention.

Steve must be equally irritated by the girl's proposition. 

Eddie leaned forward, speaking close to her ear. “Are you telling me that you and Robin run this place together all day, share a bed every night, and you still don’t think she likes you back?” 

“It’s not like that!” Chrissy insisted. “We make more money from the doubles. Financially it made more sense for us to live in one of the singles. We’re just, uh—two really good friends having a never ending sleepover.”

Eddie wasn’t convinced and honestly it didn’t sound like she was either, but he’d drop it for now. “Whatever you say.”

“So, what do you think about sharing with Steve?” 

“I can’t believe you’re doing this to me,” Eddie grumbled.

“C’mon, it’ll be fun! I’m sure you two will get along fine. Who knows, maybe you’ll discover you have some things in common.” She sounded so optimistic, it was her one flaw.

And was it his imagination or did she just wink at him?

“Yes, I'm sure we’ll come out of this as the best of friends.”

“That’s the spirit!” Chrissy cheered.

“I was being sarcastic!!”

For whatever reason, Steve also agreed to this outrageous living arrangement—reluctantly, Eddie assumed, though the other man did an excellent job at hiding how unhappy he must be.

Harrington was all smiles about it. Eddie wanted to punch him in the face.  

Once the deal was in place, Chrissy announced she had to leave for a meeting with the bank, something about an additional small loan to make more improvements on the place or something, leaving Robin alone to show him and Steve to their room. 

Eddie liked Robin well enough, but he’d only ever hung out with her and Chrissy together. He was worried she might act differently or something with Steve around, but It became abundantly clear after he heard her call the guy dingus for the third time in their five minute journey, that his worry was unfounded. Robin was Robin, and she changed for no one. He appreciated that, and kept his guard up, ready to defend her if need be—in case Steve finally had enough and lashed out, becoming the mean girl Eddie remembered from years ago, but it never happened. 

Damn he was good. 

The Buckingham was the kind of motel where all the doors opened to the outside. Some towards the front street, giving a beautiful view of the ocean, others opened up to the pool area in the back. Eddie wasn’t sure if it was a perk of being friends with the owner, or a consolation prize for the mix up, but he and Steve were given a room on the second floor, ocean side. There was even a cute little wooden bench next to their door, "In case you two ever want to sit out and watch the sunrise,” or so said Robin. 

Eddie hadn’t woken before ten in the morning voluntarily since he graduated, and he didn’t think the lure of a few pretty colors in the sky was going to end that streak, but he very politely kept that thought to himself.

“That’s a nice thought, Robs,” Steve said, chuckling. “But I think I'll get to see plenty of sunrises at work.”

Robin shuddered. “You’re a better man than me.”

“What does that mean?” Eddie asked before he could stop himself. Not like he cared, it was just natural curiosity. 

“I’m working as a lifeguard on the beach, so I'll be up at the crack of dawn nearly every day anyway.”

Eddie grimaced. 

Jesus Christ, a dick and an early riser. 

Lovely. 

“Don’t worry though!” Steve added quickly. “I'll be careful not to wake you up. I know how to be stealthy, like a ninja.”

It was… the absolute dorkiest way he could have said it. 

Eddie almost cracked a smile, but held firm in his grumpiness by the skin of his teeth. “You’d better.”

Steve performed a little cross-your-heart gesture.

What the fuck.

“Seriously, my roommate in college was a really light sleeper,” Steve went on, “so I have a lot of practice sneaking out quietly.”

Eddie’s lip nearly betrayed him then, twitching upwards like a traitor. Luckily, Robin drew Steve’s attention away for a second, allowing him a moment to regain control.

“Oh, I’ll just bet you do.” Robin teased.

Steve’s cheeks flushed, but he ignored her comment and turned back to Eddie. “What about you? Are you getting a job, or just hanging out?”

“Hate to break it to you, Harrington, but I got a part time gig bartending at a place a few blocks over. Looks like we’ll be living on opposite schedules.” Eddie grinned, sounding gleeful even to himself. “We may never have to see each other awake.”

Steve’s smile faltered for a beat, but quickly returned to its full power. “Well, lucky for you I’m a very heavy sleeper, so you won’t have to worry about waking me up when you come home late.”

Eddie grit his teeth—he was getting annoyed. What did he have to do to get a rise out of this guy, huh? To get a peek behind the mask? And who did he think he was, saying ‘lucky for you’? The only person it was lucky for was Steve, because no way was Eddie going to be tip-toeing around in his own place. Not for anyone.

After asking if they had any questions about the place, Robin handed them each a key and took off, leaving them to it. If Eddie had a little less pride he might have begged her to stay, but he supposed he might as well start getting used to the situation.

The room was small.

Two queen beds made up the majority of the space, with a single nightstand wedged between them. A dresser sat across the way, with six drawers and a small T.V. on its top. The rest of the room was made up of a tiny bathroom, an even tinier closet, and an efficiency kitchen consisting of a sink, mini-fridge, microwave, two burner cooktop, and a little table with two chairs. 

Eddie dropped his bags in the middle of the floor. As much as he would have liked to just ignore Steve, the space was tight enough that they would have to dance around each other the whole time they were unpacking. They also needed to figure out how they were going to split the space.

“Alright, how do you want to do this?” 

The only thing Steve expressed a preference for was taking the bed closest to the door, which sounded like some alpha male bullshit to Eddie, honestly. As if Steve needed to be the first line of defense if someone were to break in while they were sleeping. 

The idea was ridiculous and definitely not at all hot.

But, Eddie wanted the bed by the window anyway, so it was fine.

Once that was negotiated, they began to put their things away. It was… suspiciously easy. Steve kept deferring to him, even offering to give up one of his three drawers when he realized how much stuff Eddie had. It was infuriating. What did Steve expect to get out of all this politeness and generosity? There were no girls here to impress.

Eddie curtly refused the offer, which Steve only shrugged at, saying there would be plenty of extra closet space anyway, as he only had a few dress shirts to hang up. Eddie gave up then, leaving about half of his band tees in one of the bags and kicked it under the bed before throwing himself on top of it. He’d finish unpacking some other time, when he didn’t have an audience. 

He laid there and watched through barely open eyelids while Steve pulled an extensive collection of very tiny swim trunks out of his bag, and contemplated the injustices of the world—quietly brooding as the other man found a home for every single item he’d managed to squeeze into his singular suitcase. 

It was impressive, rankly, not that Eddie would ever tell him that. 

Finally, Steve picked up a rather large toiletry bag and wandered away. 

Unable to resist, Eddie got up and followed. This was something he had to see. Steve hadn’t been called ‘The Hair’ half his school career for nothing. 

Eddie stood in the doorway, observing through the mirror as Steve hummed softly to himself, arranging his collection of hair and skin care products along one side of the sink and vanity, being ever-so-careful to only take up half of the counter space.

For some reason, that was the final straw.

“What’s your deal, man?” Eddie snapped, more accusation than question.

He hoped Steve might finally fight back, but of course he didn’t. Remaining frustratingly calm as he replied. 

“What do you mean?”

Eddie growled. “I’m not buying the nice act, okay King Steve? So you might as well drop it. I’d rather you be real and be a prick, than this fake polite bullshit.”

For half a second Steve looked almost… sad? like Eddie had hurt his feelings somehow, but it was gone so quickly—must have been a trick of the light.

Steve smiled and shook his head, finally glancing up to make eye contact with Eddie’s reflection. “I don’t know what to tell you. What you see is pretty much what you get. You wanna talk about King Steve? Now that shit was an act.”

Fine.

If Steve wanted to continue to pretend he was a good guy now? Eddie would just have to see how far he could push him. Sure his best friend was an out and proud lesbian, but how would he react knowing that the man he was going to share a room with for the next twelve weeks or so was gay?

“Whatever you say, Harrington.” 

Eddie tapped his fingers on the doorframe as he thought over his words. “Y’know, we should probably work out a system for when we want to bring dates home. I remember your reputation of course, and I know I'm hoping to bring more than a few guys back for a nightcap after the bar closes, if you catch my drift. So, what do you think?” 

He’d started out his little speech feeling brave and a bit cocky, but by the end of it there was sweat pooling on his upper lip, and he was thinking maybe this wasn’t the best way to come out to a former jock who could probably snap him in two with half a thought.

But—

The whole thing elicited exactly zero reaction. 

Steve didn’t miss a beat, didn’t even bat an eye before he asked, “What, like putting a tie on the door or something?”

Eddie wanted to scream. 

“I’m sure we can do better than that,” he huffed, stalking off to look around the rest of their room for ideas, quickly zeroing in on the set of hang tags sitting on the table in the kitchen area. 

Eddie beamed. Most hotels just had the standard 'please service' or 'do not disturb' messages on their tags, but of course the girls would try and get creative with it.

“Here, these’ll work.” Eddie said, barely managing to hold back a laugh as he held the first one up for Harrington to look at.

Steve read aloud. “Out to sea. Cute.”

“Right, so we can use that one when the coast is clear,” Eddie’s eyes sparkled as he raised the other sign, “and this one when one of us has a guest.” 

“My boat is docked. Do not disturb.” Steve said, cheeks flushing pink as he read.

Eddie ginned widely. “See? It’s perfect.”

As it turned out, Eddie had been right. 

He and Steve had been cohabitating for 4 days already and he hadn’t seen the guy awake once since they went to bed that first night after an awkward meal of Chinese takeout and a bad movie, watched without commentary from separate beds. 

Steve was always already asleep when Eddie got back from the bar at two a.m. each night, and was long gone by the time Eddie rolled out of bed the next morning. Though, in his continued campaign to act like a decent person, Steve had made a point of leaving half a pot of fresh coffee on the warmer every day. 

Eddie thought about dumping it out of spite, but it was king of… nice. 

It brought back memories of Wayne doing the same, leaving coffee and food out on the kitchen table for him to easily grab on his way out the door, because his uncle knew Eddie wouldn’t eat anything otherwise. It was comforting, and though he knew Steve didn’t really mean it that way, it made Eddie feel taken care of. He’d take that feeling where he could get it for now, even if it came from someone he couldn’t stand.

Work was busy that night. It was his first Saturday behind the bar, and the place was absolutely heaving with sweaty bodies grinding themselves together to the rhythm of whatever shitty top 40’s cover song the band played. On the rare occasion that he had a moment to breathe Eddie found himself scanning the crowd for anyone that might pique his interest. 

He wasn’t as subtle about it as he maybe should have been, but Chrissy had once assured him that their part of town was fairly queer friendly, though there was no actual gay bar to speak of, so he figured he was safe enough to look.  

He’d been looking every night since he’d arrived, actually, but had yet to notice a single guy that set his radar off, until now.

He was tall, blonde, insanely tanned, and not at all Eddie’s type—but when the pickings were slim, beggars couldn’t be choosers. The guy was cute enough, though, and he was looking at Eddie like he wanted to eat him alive. 

Perfect.

Eddie knew he looked good tonight. He’d purposely put a little more thought into getting ready than he had before previous shifts, knowing that the larger weekend crowd would give him a better chance at getting lucky. 

His black jeans were skin tight, and the boss had even let him cut his white uniform t-shirt into a crop top, showing off a strip of pale skin and trim waist anytime he raised his arms. To top it all off, he’d worn his hair up today with just a few tendrils falling around his face. Honestly, that had been more about the heat than anything else, but he also knew it was one of his best looks.  

Eddie met the nameless man’s gaze from across the room, holding it firm as he dried a pint glass and raising his eyebrow in silent question.

The man smiled glancing at his friends, who were far too busy chatting up a group of barely legal young girls to pay him any mind, before sauntering up to lean across the bar. 

“What time do you get off, gorgeous?”

Eddie smirked. “Meet me by the side door in an hour.”

The streets were quiet as Eddie and his new friend walked the few short blocks from the bar to the Buckingham. A fact they took full advantage of, stopping to shove their tongues down each other's throats at regular intervals along the way. 

So caught up in finally getting a little action, it wasn’t until Eddie was leading the way up the stairs to their floor of the motel that he remembered his unfortunate roomate. 

It was late, guaranteeing that Steve would already be in bed fast asleep. Somehow, Eddie hadn’t considered this little problem when they’d worked out the whole do-not-disturb sign system. 

Oh well, he’d just have to wake Steve up and tell him to get out for a while. 

After telling his… date to wait outside, Eddie slipped into the dark room and crept over to the closest bed. Looking down at Steve’s sleeping form, he almost changed his mind. It didn’t feel right to kick the guy out of his own bed just so he could get off with a stranger, but then Eddie thought back to the way Tommy Hagan—Steve’s former best friend and second in command—used to spit the word queer in his face like acid as he shoved him against the lockers before P.E., and he found all the motivation he needed. 

“Harrington?” Eddie murmured as he shook Steve's shoulder.

Steve stirred, waking slowly and frowning up at Eddie with heavy eyelids.

“Are you okay? What’s wrong?” Steve's voice was thick with sleep but also—genuine concern.

Eddie’s breath caught in his throat. 

Oh.

He hesitated to answer for a moment, but forced himself to shake it off—whatever it was

Don’t start feeling bad about this now, Munson, get your shit together. 

“Everything is fine. I just, um.. I need the room. For a bit?”

Smooth. Real smooth.

“What? I don’t…” Steve trailed off, frowning harder. 

Eddie saw the moment it clicked.

“Oh.” Steve breathed, looking more awake by the second. “O-ok, I'll just take a blanket down to one of the pool loungers I guess.”

“Cool, I-I mean, thanks,”  Eddie stuttered out as Steve got up and they both went for the door. “I’ll–uh–let you know when he’s gone.”

It was strange, he would have expected to feel a sense of satisfaction or something in this moment for managing a hook up before Steve did, but as Eddie watched him shuffle off wrapped up in a blanket after giving bar-guy an awkward nod, he just kinda felt like a jerk.

Then, bar-guy was hurrying inside, drawing Eddie into a rough, bruising kiss—crowding him against the wall before dropping to his knees, and he forgot all about feeling bad. 

The man made quick work of the fly on Eddie’s jeans and had them pulled down around his thighs in a matter of seconds. It all happened so fast he could do nothing but moan loudly as his length was engulfed by the warm wetness of an eager mouth—any lingering thoughts of Steve drifting away under the attention of this stranger's talented tongue. He came quicker than he would have liked, but eagerly returned the favor—happy to lose himself to the feeling of a cock down his throat for the first time in weeks.

After, when clothes were set to rights and no cuddling whatsoever happened, exactly how Eddie preferred it, bar-guy was gone. 

And Eddie went down to the pool to get Steve. 

Chapter 2

Tagging a few folks who I think were interested, just let me know if you want to be removed. If you'd like to be added to the tag list, i'd be more than happy to do so!

@penny00dreadful @every-aj-needs-an-angel @manda-panda-monium @hellion-child @dreamwatch @brbsoulnomming

[kiss-inthekitchen]

fuck it. no vacancy playlist

under the cut bc i don't want to link my spotify so they're all directly attached in this post

[allthedesiredusernamesaretaken]

... motel ...

📷Jacob Morel

[comicavalcade]

Sorry all no #SubmarinerSummer today, real life has me wiped out. We shall return tomorrow