#parabathai : eddie munson

[halothief]

` ☆ @parabathai​​ feat. e.m for s.h : kissing prompts.

how’d he get here again? sitting on the bumper of eddie’s shitty van, doors opened to the universe by lover’s lake? hidden beneath the stars, joint half smoked and long-since-sober, there’s a part of steve that can admit it’s kind of romantic, this space they’ve found themselves fitting together. they’re laughing and oversharing in the way only trauma-bonded people can, shared horror muting other vivid memories into pastel similarities.

i don’t know, man. kissing seems kind of overrated, if you ask me. it’s like, wet face-mashing, right?

— and perhaps steve’s taking advantage of the moment, all of the questions answered between them in comfortable comradery building up a false sense of hope in his ribs, but it’s exactly the kind of ice-breaker he needs.

    ‘ i mean, there’s more to it than that. you’ve probably just kissed people that suck at kissing. here, just— ’    he stubs out his cigarette in the ashtray between them and shifts his legs from their carefree hanging to cross-legged, body now facing towards eddie. sweaty palms, racy heart; steve’s the master of masks, and now he relies on those age-old skills tenfold as he drinks in the doe-eyed source of his affections.     ‘ i’ll show you... if you—want. ’

risky play, but he’s always been the one running headfirst into danger. this doesn’t change tonight — not when it comes to eddie.

do i just... close my eyes and lean in?

under ordinary circumstances, that’s the kind of question that’d set of a fit of laughter — a pretty girl with a wicked grin making fun of the moment crossing into intimacy. but there’s nothing ordinary about this moment, and this time, there’s also no girl. though there’s certainly still someone pretty looking at him, and honestly, steve’s always been a sucker for pretty things. not that eddie’s a thing. he’s [...] a person, a pretty person. 

god, his brain is a mess right now.

     ‘ — yeah. yes...do that. ’

why did mr cool have to abandon him now? it’s comical, the way he releases a breath the second he no longer has to hide from that too-knowing gaze. a hand reaches up, catches on the side of eddie’s neck, noticeably different from the softness he’s used to feeling beneath his fingertips. different, but not in a bad way, just a new way. steve swallows thickly, mouth suddenly as dry as the sahara, as if all of the moisture had condensed and made its way to his sternum. a thumb skims eddie’s cheek affectionately, and he cannot delay it any longer, not when eddie is sitting right there, eyes closed, waiting.

steve steals his mouth like a master thief, takes to it with reckless abandon as a hand finds the back of his neck and keeps him there. he throws all of his skill into it: years of meaningless practice, a glimpse of a purposeful relationship, and long nights of heartache. fingers thread through that messy hair, and he kisses eddie like it means something, begs eddie to understand without him having to say the words.

the only reason they break apart is his desperate need for oxygen. a rookie mistake in all of his adulation; steve had forgotten to breathe. he laughs nervously then, eyes fixed to the rings lining eddie’s fingers as he pushes a shaky hand through his hair. his tongue feels heavy. he wants to kiss eddie again.

steve lifts his gaze.

     ‘ so... still think it’s overrated? ’

[halothief]

` ☆ @parabathai​ feat. e.m for s.h : ‘ fight me, you attractive stranger. ’

there’s a spark of something nameless, something dangerous, that licks up his spine like lightning. eddie’s all bravado and poise, wicked grin directed steve’s way like those sirens he read about in a book he borrowed from dustin last week. it isn’t fair, how easily the guy wields charisma like a weapon. that’s supposed to be steve’s thing. yet he can’t find a single shred of jealousy in his thoughts — perhaps the most surprising realisation of all.

no, instead he’s full to the brim with something sharp and warm; feels like he’s stuck his hands into the fireplace. feels like his fingers are made of lead. feels really hot, is the point he’s trying to make.

makes sense then, to push his hair back from his face and lick his lips. he’s obviously thirsty.

     ‘ you hear the stories about how i always lose, huh? ’     dark eyes wander the length of eddie’s body, clearly just to size up the difficulty of his potential opponent. there’s no other reason to be looking. and if his gaze sticks on those silver-ringed fingers, it’s because he assesses them as a threat. nothing more.     ‘ you know what i think? ’

finally, his visual scan drifts back to eddie’s face, though it’s caught on his throat, jaw, mouth, ugh. the simpering smile he arms himself with suits the moment, eyebrows lifting as he meets eddie with intention.

     ‘ i think you’re just looking for an excuse to mess up my hair. ’

[halothief]

- ̗̀  meme: five times prompts! ̖́ -    ╱     accepting (specify muse).    @parabathai​       — five times steve watched eddie and one time steve did something about it.

— i —

he’s fifteen and there’s a boy causing a scene, all wide eyes and wild hair as he stands atop a table playing the air guitar. steve’s caught in some kind of slow motion confusion, struck with the realisation that he’s trapped in the moment playing a supporting role as the lead actor reprises his famed lines. freak, they call him. a total headcase, they whisper in the hallways. all the same, he draws attention like the limelight was made for him, not the other way around like it is for steve. eddie munson lives life unashamedly.

why is that the thought that fills his sinking gut?

— ii —

steve really likes girls, but sometimes... sometimes boys are pretty too. sometimes they have dark eyes, messy curls, and lots of rings on their fingers. other times, they’re tall and lean with smirks that send his pulse racing like a hummingbird’s wings. he doesn’t know if there’s a word for it, but he knows it for what it is: attraction. 

but his father is home enough for steve to know that’s a really bad idea, attraction. his mother watches him closely enough to notice something isn’t quite right. so he dates lots of girls, and he joins the basketball team, and he spends time with tommy and carol, and he doesn’t think about eddie munson and his long guitar fingers when he’s all alone at night.

— iii —

he’s seventeen and in love with nancy wheeler. sure, she’s not in love with him too, but that’s kind of same-same, isn’t it? on par for the course. if even steve’s parents don’t love him, what hope does he have of anyone ever feeling the same as he feels?

eddie still hasn’t graduated. steve notices him sometimes, wandering around the halls with a mask so thick it feels familiar. all that false bravado fades away at the sight of that crippling feeling of disappointment, of expectations gone to waste. steve sees him and sees something familiar, and that’s confronting. king steve and the freak, both total burnouts. it makes him want to throw up.

— iv —

robin is everything steve could ever want in a girl. she’s clever, strong, quick-witted, and doesn’t think he’s a total asshole anymore. she’s also a lesbian. because king steve died two years ago, he takes it far better than she was expecting. he can’t tell her the real reason he’s so understanding. he doesn’t know what to do with that feeling constantly creeping up his throat, the urge to sometimes ask her if you can like both. 

eddie sometimes visits family video, seems to stick to the horror section which is exactly how steve had stereotyped him. way to go, high school tropes. eddie’s started hanging out with dustin too. it pisses him off, because he’s meant to be their token high school burnout turned babysitter. it’s the only thing he’s got.

he hates eddie munson for re-inserting himself into steve’s life. he hates thinking about that time, all those years ago, when his parents stopped coming home.

— v —

skull rock; it’s a stupid name, really, but it suits eddie to a t. aside from the hiding from cops who think you’re a crazed serial murderer thing, the guy seems to be doing pretty well. all things considered, learning about the upside-down and all the horrors that tag along is something of a mixed bag to react to. 

the nerds keep making references that fly over steve’s head, and then suddenly they’re in the upside-down again, and steve’s got a gnarly wound wrapped around his throat that stings like hell. all things considered, eddie’s been doing great. but he’s certainly out of his element, which means steve really pegged him wrong all of those years ago as a badass who gave no fucks about danger.

guess that’s steve’s thing.

now they’re hotwiring a car, and eddie’s leaning in close, calling him big boy, and oh fuck, there it is again, that feeling clawing up his throat. it doesn’t feel so raw this time. it doesn’t feel so dangerous. but it sure as hell feels pretty overwhelming, so he files it away with a big ‘TO REVIEW’ notice when they’re done saving the world.

+ one time he did something about it

four months after the world has been saved, they’re lazing beneath the stars sharing a cigarette, backs pressed to the bonnet of his car. eddie’s talking about some dnd bullshit, the kind of stuff steve pretends not to understand, but has formed some base level understanding of. he likes the way eddie gets so expressive when he talks about something he loves, gesturing wildly with his hands, mouth split with the dumbest grin. 

steve really likes watching him in these quiet moments. steve really hopes that one day, eddie will use those same hand gestures when talking about him to someone else. they’ve been seeing each other for about a month now, after that stupidly brave moment he’d had that set robin’s teeth rattling as she whacked him for being dangerous and careless.

steve knows that being with eddie will never be the same as being with nancy. the way they have to hide from the public always makes him feel like it isn’t enough, to have him bleed to save the world, and not let him have this too.

steve watches eddie, and he knows it’s kind of crazy, but he’s pretty sure he’s already in love. and when eddie pauses his raving about the curse of strahd, asks him ‘do i have something on my face or something?’, steve’s so totally, incredibly fucked.

‘ nah. it’s just missing something. ’     gripping the back of his neck, steve hauls him in close — kisses him beneath the moonlight, chasing the taste of nicotine on his tongue. when he pulls back, he’s smirking. of course he’s smirking.     ‘ there. all better. ’

things might not be perfect, but they’re near enough.