Zccming·:

zccming·:

WHO: max mayfield && open.

WHERE: outside of melvald’s general store.

this wasn’t max’s most…well-thought-out plan, but she had ransacked the trailer for anything she could bring to the wheeler’s barbecue. and she was pretty sure cereal or swanson’s tv dinners wouldn’t cut it.  as she skated her way downtown in hopes of a miracle, she brainstormed what she could bring that wouldn’t be too complicated. she came up with the likes of doritos or boxed pasta salad. of course, when max pulled up to melvald’s and tugged at the doors, they were locked. melvald’s, like the hawk, and every other godforsaken business in this town just had to be closed. “shit…” she breathed out, scanning her surroundings. not a car in sight…not a person … but there was a rock. maybe if she just…she could get away with it…

max scooped it up from the ground and raised her arm to chuck it through the window, but she felt these eyes on her.  turning around, max initially jumped at the sight of another person. hadn’t she checked for people? in a swift recovery, max rolled her eyes and frowned, “asshole. you can’t just sneak up on people like that.” as if to explain herself, she stepped forward and gripped the handles once more, “it’s locked.”  after chucking the rock out into the road, max placed her hands on her hips, then eyed the other, “i need in, like now.” then as a hint to help or get lost she asked, “got any better ideas?” 

+++

well, wasn’t this one hell of a way to say ‘welcome back’? eddie raised his brows, sighed heavily and over-dramatically as he buried his hands in his pockets, lazily crossing the road to make his way over to max. “’hello’.”, he said, pursed his lips. “’welcome’. ‘hi’. ‘how’s it going, man’. ‘sup’ . even ‘good day’”, said with a bow of sorts. he came to a halt before her, brows pulled together to a frown. “out of all the phrases and greetings to choose from she settles on ‘asshole’. classic max mayfield.”

his stern expression quickly fades into a wide smile, eddie’s face practically lit up, as he surged forward, scooping max up into a tight hug. he’d only just gotten back into town yesterday, hadn’t had a chance to say hello yet, and out of all the people he wanted to check in with - which didn’t consist of a lot of people, seeing as he was still shunned by most of the population of hawkins - her name was at the top of his list. “so, what’s up, you little shit?”, he asked once he’s set her down again. “getting yourself into trouble again, same old, same old. what ever could be so pressing you need to break into melvald’s for ?”

colemontgomeryx·:

xx. 

Cole didn’t waver under Eddie’s gaze. If he was correct, Eddie’s behavior made sense. Cole felt it too, the fear of being found out by someone who wasn’t safe. It was the reason Cole and Adam snuck around for the three years they were together– to avoid the football jocks and the band geeks and the teachers berating them and calling them names. Only it never stopped there; it often got physical, violent. Of course Eddie was afraid.

It was like they were playing chicken, like they were standing in front of a train for as long as possible and pulling back at the last second– exhilarating, maybe, but not satisfying. Something about being in the mall, all his thoughts about Adam… it was the perfect concoction for a confession. “I like guys,” he said, meeting Eddie’s eyes again. “Adam was my boyfriend.”

And then: relief. Cole felt like he’d recovered part of himself, like he’d regained a phantom limb. He hadn’t been able to talk about his feelings this openly since, well, Adam. It was refreshing, rejuvenating even. “If you want, I’ll prove it,” he teased, giving Eddie a once-over. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so open about it, but what’s the worst that could happen?

+++

see, cole could’ve hit eddie flat in the face with a giant metal sign that said ‘i’m into guys’ and he still wouldn’t have taken the hint. just...the thought of someone else in hawkins that was like him. surely not - or well, they just wouldn’t come right out the gate and say it. no, being...different, whatever kind of different, and living in that godforsaken town - for some people that was comparable to a death sentence.

still, his eyes widened, blinking at cole with that ‘deer caught in the headlights’ look as he hastily in- and exhaled the smoke. not that that did anything in terms of calming him down. on the contrary, eddie just started to fidget more. “as in....you like them or...like, like like them....” he felt like a fucking middle-schooler. but he just continued. “your boyfriend. you mean like when ... wheeler and buckley or like, i dunno, girls call each other ‘girl-friends’ or like....like if...like, when wheeler called harrington her ‘boyfriend’ when they were still a thing?”

as confused as eddie was about the whole situation he apparently still had it in him to blush and get insanely flustered at cole’s....suggestion? if that’s what it was? lips parted, mouth dropped open slightly, he took another drag. his eyes never left cole’s, only once to go look around them, see if anyone was in earshot. negative. “h-how....”, his lips formed around words he didn’t say, a thousand scenarios flashes in his head. eddie blinked.”...how would - you, uh, prove....it?”

EDDIE THROUGH THE YEARS + THE SONGS HE LISTENED TO

freshman year ‘80 - ‘81 : blank generation - richard hell (1977) ; god save the queen - the sex pistols (1977)

sophomore year ‘81 - ‘82 : search and destroy (bowie mix) - iggy and the stooges (1973) ; breaking the law - judas priest (1980)

junior year ‘82 - ‘83 : paranoid - black sabbath (1970) ; crazy train - ozzy osbourne (1980)

senior year #1 ‘83 - ‘84 : cum on feel the noize - quiet riot (1983) ; holy diver - dio (1983)

senior year #2 ‘84 - ‘85 : for whom the bell tolls - metallica (1984) ; a little bit of what you fancy - saxon (1984) 

senior year #3 ‘85 - ‘86 : she sells sanctuary - the cult (1985) ; 2 minutes to midnight - iron maiden (1984)

spring break ‘86 and beyond : shot in the dark - ozzy osbourne (1986) ; master of puppets - metallica (1986)

chicago ‘86 - 87 [trauma era] : i could have been a dreamer - dio (1987) ; flood II - the sisters of mercy (1985)

chicago ‘87 [coping era ]: animal (fuck like a beast) - w.a.s.p. (1984) ; sex dwarf - soft cell (1981)

back to hawkins ‘88 : rainbow in the dark - dio (1983) ; round and round - ratt (1984)

*bonus: songs he listens to with steve: head over heels - tears for fears (1985) ; (i’ve had) the time of my life - bill medley, jennifer warnes (1987)

stevehharringtcns·:

.

steve smiled at eddie’s reaction, and he couldn’t blame him. steve himself was a little surprised that he was dating eddie. he was dating him. that was real. king steve wouldn’t believe it either if this had happened during high school, but he was too busy being an asshole to eddie. to everyone. it was weird to think about how he used to do that. he didn’t like looking back to high school and be remembered of all of that. while in the end of their friendship he had blamed tommy hagan and carol for everything, the truth was that he was as much to blame as the two of them. he didn’t even know why eddie had chosen to forgive him for allowing his friends to torment him, but… this was definitely going well for the two of them now. they were dating. and for as long as steve could predict, there was nothing that could separate them. and steve liked the idea of that - with nancy, there had always been doubts. with eddie, there was nothing in their way.

he had been lost in his thoughts. he kept his eyes glued to eddie. it was addicting to look at him and he couldn’t get enough. he was glad that no one else had access to his thoughts, because he was pretty sure people would make fun of them. but steve really did like looking at eddie - and before all of this, he would do it when no one was watching. or at least, when he thought no one was watching. and now he was all his to look at for as long as he wanted. a small smile formed on his lips, not leaving his face for a long time as he watched his now boyfriend so close to him.

“i am not… a dork, eddie munson. i was popular because i was… co-captain of the swimming team and i was also in the basketball team. and… i had and still have great hair.” he said with a small chuckle, looking over at eddie with a smile. “i would have never joined hellfire club back then… but now, maybe… i would. for you. and you know, i would have to say that it was because of dustin too, or else he would be jealous.” he said with a small chuckle again, holding on to his chest for a few moments as he took a deep breath and looked at eddie. “speaking of… dustin… have you talked to him? he seemed… pretty upset last i saw him.” he said with a sigh. the two cared too much about the kid, he was family for both of them at this point and they both hated when he was down, although it was sort of impossible not to be after what happened.

steve didn’t like talking about his family, in fact, he hated it. he knew that eddie had meant well when he had brought it up, but he couldn’t help but to be a little sad about it. he knew that most parents would visit their kid if they were in the hospital, but steve’s parents weren’t like most. but that was another story for another day. he didn’t feel like talking about. he looked over at eddie as he talked about wayne and his casserole, a small smile forming on his lips again as he heard him talk. steve knew that eddie’s parents weren’t that present either, but at least eddie had wayne. and wayne was a sweetheart, from the interactions steve had with him. nodding his head with a smile, he looked at the other. “i… i would like that a lot, eddie. you can tell him… but only if it’s not… a burden to come visit me or whatever. i don’t want to bother him.” he assured the other with a sigh.

+++

eddie waved it off with a dramatic eyeroll. “yeah, whatever you need to tell yourself, man. though i gotta agree with the great hair part. can’t deny it, much as it wounds me.” a melodramatic sigh, it soon shifted and made way for a light-hearted chuckle as he lifted his hand to gently card his fingers through steve’s hair. awfully careful, so as not to pull too much and end up hurting him. “i’m afraid that best feature of yours has seen better days, sweetheart...”, he muttered, lips twisted into a pitying crooked smile as he absent-mindedly scissored his fingers to detangle a knot in his hair. “but i got a couple of tricks up my sleeve. don’t you worry, we’ll get you back that title of steve ‘the hair’ harrington in no time.”

he kept his hand there for a moment, contuing to detangle steve’s hair, eddie grinned, all wide and toothy. “you would willingly join hellfire, huh?” the thought alone seemed outlandish, with a stifled chuckle eddie recalled the wheeler’s bbq, when steve had sat on his lap, looking all sorts of lost while eddie had attempted to explain the rules of dnd to him in hushed whispers. “you know, there’s no need to sweet talk me anymore, harrington. already got me wrapped around your finger.”

the mention of dustin brought that same worry wrinkle to his brows that was seemingly ever present on steve’s face, he nodded. “i’ve seen him, yeah. he came by. he’s - he’s alright, i think. seemed fine. considering.” he twisted his lips into what was supposed to be a reassuring smile, yet eddie couldn’t completely shake his worries off. the second he’d seen him and suzie go into that tent his heart had dropped, a feeling he’d not forget too soon. there was no parallel universe where eddie wouldn’t worry about dustin. there was none in which he wouldn’t care. there was a running joke, about how steve and later eddie had sort of adopted dustin. eddie didn’t have any siblings, or none he knew of, but he rather thought that this was how one felt about a younger brother. a son, even, if you will.

eddie mirrored his smile, nodded too. “i’ll let him know. it’s on his way, anyway. and he offered, so.” a shrug, eddie fell silent for a moment, simply looked at steve. it was as if he could feel his heart swell, and he wondered if it would always be like this when he looked at steve. when eddie spoke a couple of beats later his voice was soft, low. “you’re so beautiful, steve.” and, adding a pained timbre to his voice, he added: “i was so worried. i ... still don’t - i’m afraid this isn’t real. does that make sense?”

xihopper·:

-

Eleven beamed happily when he complimented her roll, although she really hadn’t had much to do with it. It was all luck. But still, it was definitely exciting to think about it, and to hear again how great it was from someone who knew what he was talking about. “Thank you!” she said brightly. She thought about it for a second. “My friends like to play,” she said. “I would play with them. I think they would like it if you played, too.” She paused, looking up at him. “If you wanted to play,” she added. Just to be polite. 

El understood what it was like to be judged by something far less than your actual self. When she had first started school, everyone had treated her like she was…well, a freak. And she could understand that, in part. It wasn’t like she was normal. But she was more than what she had gone through, more than the vestiges of trauma – of living like a rat in a cage, with no autonomy, no future, no love – that it had left her with. Underneath all of that, like Eddie, she was a good person. She was soft. And all she wanted was the opportunity to be soft, to find others to cushion the blows from the world, people she could offer the same protection. 

She couldn’t help but giggle at his reaction. “Yes,” she said, clearly pleased. He thought she was a superhero – only superheroes had superpowers, after all. “I can show you?” She sounded eager to do so, especially since he was clearly so excited. El gave another little giggle. “It’s lovely to meet you, Eddie,” she said, with the good manner that Joyce and Hopper had taught her.

+++

and this was why he played, why he’d dedicated every lunch period to scanning the cafeteria for lost soulds. that smile, that happy beam. the excitement so clearly audible in her voice. god, yeah, he fucking missed it. “well, i’ll have you know that i would like it if played too. i used to run hellfire, you know. and  - don’t tell anyone this - “, he wiggled his brows suggestively, put one finger over his mouth in a ‘shh’ motion - “but i may or may not have been planning another one of my notoriously and epically sadistic campaigns these past few months.”

though even the thought of playing dnd or proposing another campaign of his own had been pushed far, far into the background by the continuous tragic events befalling the town. and it was refreshing, talking about something so normal for a change, admist all the crazy that was going on.

not that eddie would necessarily deem the topic of ‘superpowers’ normal but hey, this was hawkins, after all, and superpowers seemed somehow more ordinary than half the stuff that was going on. he eagerly nodded at her suggestion, an excited glint in his eyes. “would you? i mean, you don’t - like, you totally don’t have to. i mean, i bet there’s loads of people asking you to show them your tricks or something, right? so, totally up to you, kid.” throwing her a look that both said ‘i respect whatever choice you make’ and ‘ please, please, please show me your superpowers’.

stevehharringtcns·:

.

steve couldn’t quite wrap his head around on whether eddie was flirting with him or not. he couldn’t be, right? after all, eddie had never mentioned anything about being… you know. or given him any sighs, so he didn’t want to risk it. what if he ended up insulting him in some sort? either way, steve shook his head as in a way to shake those thoughts away, letting out a small chuckle. “you know, you’re not actually the first person to tell me that! apparently the girls love looking at my face, but that’s it, they actually give up after the first date… i wonder why that is.” he said, as he thought to himself and thought back on the failure that was his love life. and even know, it didn’t seem like it was going to get better.

rolling his eyes slightly as eddie brought up the conversation about dungeons and dragons, steve sighed as he stared at the other. “you know what, you’re starting to sound exactly like henderson. maybe i should call him so you can… annoy him about that game instead of me. full offense.” he said with a small smirk forming on his lips, before shaking his head and leaning forward on the counter as he looked over at eddie. at the invitation to join the game, steve immediately shook his head. “first of all, i do have fun, i just don’t have fun playing games that make no sense and that take up most of the time. and second, no, i’m not going to join your little club. but you guys have fun, i’m sure it’ll be fun.” he said with a small chuckle, before running a hand through his hair - it wasn’t going to get any messier than that either way.

okay, now eddie was definitely acting weird. steve could have sworn that he was blushing, but then again, he was too. he wondered if eddie had noticed that and what he thought about it. maybe he hadn’t thought that much about it as steve was, but seeing him blush meant that he still had the old harrington touch in him, capable of making anyone swoon over him. he liked that, in a way. “tattoos? nah, i don’t think i’m the type of guy who can get tattoos and rock them. you definitely are though, really.” he said with a smirk, nodding his head slowly. this didn’t count like flirting right? at the comment about girls liking it, he shrugged his shoulders slightly. “i mean, i wouldn’t know, i don’t think girls… pay that much attention to me anymore. it’s really not the same as before.” he said, deciding to let that stay there, not sure if he should continue talking or not.

letting out a laugh at eddie’s comments, steve just shook his head. he really liked the other’s company, so much that he grabbed the keys from the video store from his back pocket and looked around for keith before calling out for him, tossing him the keys. “you’re closing today, an emergency came up.” he said, before turning around the counter and grabbing eddie by the shoulders and leading him out of the store. just touching him felt like electricity, but he wouldn’t say anything. “see, you should feel even more special now, i got off work sooner because of you.” he said as he almost started running still grabbing eddie by the shoulders as they got out of the store. he probably would get in trouble the next day with keith, but he didn’t care about that right now. “c’mon, get in the car, munson.” he said with a smile as he unlocked the car and got in quickly.

+++

see, eddie didn’t know whether to be incredibly frustrated that steve kept pushing his advances into a platonic light or if he should be grateful that he was talking to him in the first place. maybe it was for the best. not that steve would be the kind of person to bash his brains in if he found out about his ‘preferences’, but that didn’t mean that steve wouldn’t be weirded out or feel alienated by him. and with the whole summer left to spend in hawkins eddie couldn’t afford to lose another friend.

however much steve kept discarding his advances as platonic, he didn’t seem particularly uncomforable by them either. which gave eddie a sudden boost of confidence. “don’t let it get to you, player.”, he said and reached out to give steve a comforting pat on the back. “girls are stupid. they don’t know what they’re missing here.”

steve leaned forward and eddie blinked nervously. “ hold up - this was definitely not an invitation, harrington. you’d bring down the whole vibe and - well, quite frankly- “, it was his turn to lean a little closer now, he looked steve up and down skeptically “ you’d suck at dnd. full offense.”

without realising, eddie had mirrored steve’s movements, running his hand through his own hair, fingers getting tangled in the frizzy mess of curls. and he foolishly allowed his mind to wander, imagined what it would be like to run his hands through steve’s hair, always shiny and soft and big. god fucking dammit. their dynamic was off, he suddenly realised. in the past it had always been eddie who showered steve in compliments, watching his face light up as he accepted them graciously. now it was the other way roun, all twisted and upside down. and quite frankly, eddie was way out of his comfort zone here, reduced to a blushing squirming mess. he just wasn’t used to being on the receiving end of a compliment.

“well, i’d hope so. almost got a full sleeve going on, would be a shame if i only now figured out i wasn’t the type to rock tattoos.”, he said and, with something that resembled a bow, added: “compliment accepted, harrington.”

steve’s next comment made his eyebrows raise, he straightened up, his interest piqued. feeling bolder now, which was perhaps foolish for him but hey, if it turned sour he could always say it had been a joke all along. “well, as i said, girls are stupid if they don’t see you for what you are, stevie - a fine, fine piece of local man.”, eddie said with a chuckle, he bit his lip. “and well, i wouldn’t know either, ya know. girls have never payed me much attention but i guess that’s...reasonable.” he was toeing a very fine line here, eddie knew. looked up at steve with that deer caught in the headlights look.

and next thing he knew there was that laugh again - fuck, he could listen to that sounds for ages - and suddenly his shoulders felt all hot because steve was touching them, ushering him out of the store. it was over as soon as it had begun but eddie had leaned into the touch and when steve’s hands were gone there was still static and a fait buzzing where they’d been. eddie grinned, climbed into the passenger seat eagerly. “oh, you sure know how to make a gal feel special, stevie.”, he laughed, fingers drumming nervously on the dashboard, waiting for him to start the car and drive away. “if this is only the beginning then shit, i can’t fucking wait to see where this date’s going.”

You’re home. (via pinterest)

colemontgomeryx·:

Cole hadn’t realized what he’d gotten himself into by volunteering to bring a keg– scratch that, multiple kegs– to this shindig. It might not bother everyone, but the sticky beer dripping on the linoleum made Cole’s spine shiver, so he dug into his backpack for something to clean it up with. Digging to the very bottom, he found a black handkerchief. Perfect. Cole wiped down the side of the keg and the floor beneath it, and decided to perch nearby in order to nag people not to let it drip on the floor. Really, how hard was it?

In his bag, Cole caught a glimpse of his cigarettes and felt a familiar pang in his gut. Surely it wouldn’t be in bad taste to smoke inside, given the circumstances? Absentmindedly, he tucked the bandana in his back pocket and grabbed a cigarette. “Hope no one minds,” he mumbled, mostly to himself, and lit up.

Shutting his eyes, Cole allowed the blaring music to distract him from the fact that he was inside the mall where the love of his life died. Light stuff. He wasn’t mad at the music choice, surprisingly. Cole tried not to be pretentious about music, but he could only take so many days of people coming into the Music Center asking for the new Rick Astley or Whitney Houston. Thankfully, this music had some teeth. He wondered who’d been recruited to play it. 

When Cole opened his eyes to take another drag, he was shocked to see Eddie Munson running right at him. Cole leaned back instinctively, confusion written on his face, “Uh, sorry. What’d you call me?” He followed Eddie’s eyes to his pocket and pulled out the handkerchief. “Wait– flagging? I’m cleaning up the keg because these goddamned kids can’t be bothered to catch their beer…” he paused, suddenly curious. “What did you think?”

+++

shit. shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. he should’ve known, should’ve known that this was a bad idea, should’ve known better than to ask a current resident of hicksville, indiana if he was flagging. stupid, stupid, god, what had he been thinking? nothing, apparently, and now his mind was wiped empty once more as he stared at cole blinking at him in confusion - and, what was that, curiosity? - as eddie scrambled for something to say. he cleared his throat. 

“never....mind.”, he said slowly, cautiously, tongue pressed to the roof of his mouth. shit. eddie shook his head. “nothing, nothing. i just thought -” oh my god, munson, shut the fuck up. “i just - “ no matter how hard he tried to stop himself the words now fell freely from his lips. “well, i wondered if you...well, do you know someone named - “ if he didn’t stop talking right then and there he was going to explode. well, spontaneous human combustion it was, as he simply carried on. “are you...perhaps a friend of, uh. of dorothy’s ? “ a beat passed, eddie sucked on his bottem lip nerverously. he waved it off. “you know what....nevermind. nothing. it was stupid.”

he flashed him a pained grin, nodded, ‘right, then’,  and turned on his heel. already squeezing his eyes shut because oh, the embarassment now creeped up on him, made his cheeks flush. at the last minute he decided to turn back, walk back to cole. “can i bum a cig off you?” please, please, heaven, god, if there is one - eddie thought to himself as he stared at cole expectantly -  please just don’t let him bring it up again.

zccming·:

.

max squinted in eddie’s direction, communicating all she didn’t say. the main take away being, are you stupid? “i do do this for myself, like most nights out of the week.” her mom worked the night shift most days, it had been that way for years, max had learned how to fend for herself. sure, it wasn’t always a hot homecooked meal, but she did know how to feed herself, and she definitely knew how to use a knife without nearly losing a finger. “but you have a point.” max sighed, carefully avoiding the words you’re and right. “next time i’ll cook for us.”

at the end of the night, it didn’t matter whether or not eddie had made a five star meal or the inedible mush on their plates. the principal of sit down dinners was never about the food served, or each participants etiquette. they were about spending quality time with one another, and making an effort to connect. 

she hadn’t grown up with the most functional family and max never had a halting revelation that she wasn’t miss american pie and they weren’t the brady bunch. it was known in the same way she learned to walk or talk. she was born into chaos, from her parents divorce, to having billy hargrove and his insufferable dad as her new family members, then moving to hawkins. max seemed destined to walk a rocky path, but with eddie around, the idea of family stopped feeling so painful. it wasn’t how she always pictured it to be, but it felt nice when there were nights like these. 

unsolved mysteries prompted max to wonder if all of them were real, but that wasn’t of concern right now. she dismissed eddie’s thanks man with a, “shh! … you’re welcome.” as her eyes glued to the screen. it was going to be a long wait for their food if she couldn’t immerse herself into the show. at eddie’s assessment of incompetent law enforcement, max gave him a look, “if it seems that way then it definitely is that way.” she rolled her eyes, “we’d know living in hawkins… did you know they tried to give me a traffic violation for skateboarding on the side of the road?” groaning, max had to admit, “i’m so jealous that you don’t live here anymore. and you know, it’s only getting worse the older i get.”

+++

eddie rolled his eyes, over-dramatically but hummed in agreement, carerful not to let his pleased grin show because thats what he’d hoped max would suggest. not that he wouldn’t help her prepare the mayfield-munson-found-family-tv-dinners, he’d definitely help! just not...do them all by himself. because, as it turned out, he sucked at it. 

he settled further into the couch, idly sipping on his beer, dragging his upper lip mindlessly across the rim of the can as he let himself be engulfed by the storyline. eddie was a bit of a restless spirit, always fidgeting, never quite able to direct his attention on one sole thing for more than a few minutes. always looking for another distraction. it had been like that for as long as he could remember, though it had worsened significantly after their trip to the upside down.

as if on cue, he felt a phantom burn where his scars were located. a constant reminder that he’d been through hell and survived. “huh?”, he frowned, tore his eyes away from the screen to look at max. “for skateboarding? jeez, man. whats next, tickets for walking down the street? breathin?” eddie threw his hands up in theatrical mock outrage. “alas, we keep being oppressed by the man! sickening.”

he took a pointed gulp of his beer, wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “you know, you can always get outta here, max.”, he said, mood a little sobered now. “offer still stands, kiddo. come back to chicago with me. i mean, yeah, my apartment’s like half the size of this trailer and a fucking shithole but we’ll make do. we can figure something out.”

stevehharringtcns·:

.

steve nodded as the other said that water was good, but he didn’t move. for some reason that he couldn’t explain, he didn’t want to leave eddie alone in the room. not because he didn’t trust him, but because he felt like he couldn’t just leave him like that. and he doubted that he wanted to be alone too. so he just stood there, staring at eddie as he waited for him to relax a bit, but it seemed like panic was going to consume eddie and steve didn’t know what to do. he looked at eddie to see the look that he sent his way once steve made the joke, but in all honesty, he was just trying to calm the other down in the best way he could.

“i leave town for a week and you guys… manage to set fire to a whole diner. how is that even possible?” steve asked, knowing that it probably wasn’t anyone’s fault, but he thought that if he were there, that everything could have been avoided. after all, he was a pretty damn good babysitter after all, and he could have prevented the whole thing - that’s what he thought anyway, because he clearly didn’t know what had happened at benny’s diner.

he couldn’t help but to notice eddie’s hand ghosting his own hip, which made him frown slightly. he was hurt. steve didn’t even think about his next move as he grabbed the edge of the other’s shirt and lifted up slightly only to reveal eddie’s bruise. it looked painful, steve thought to himself as he looked back into eddie’s eyes, only to realize what he was doing. “eddie, you should… go to the hospital and get this checked out. it looks… bad.” he said, looking over at him, his face turning slightly red by only looking at eddie’s bareskin, even if it was bruised.

steve kept his other hand, however, on eddie’s shoulder, giving it small reassuring squeezes as he was trying for the other to feel better with just his touch. he didn’t move when he felt eddie’s hand on his own, but it didn’t help with his blushing. he kept his hand there, nodding his head slowly as he heard the other talk. “i believe you, eddie… i mean, it would be stupid not to believe you, we’ve all seen shit… i just don’t know what it could be. we closed the gates. all of them… it can’t be vecna. he’s dead.” he reassured the other, hoping that he wouldn’t end up regretting his words. “you’re not alone, okay? we’re all here for you… i’m here for you, and we’ll figure everything out. you just need to rest or something.” he said, nodding his head.

“i just came back two days ago, it couldn’t have been me, eddie… i’ve been out of town.” he said, letting out a sigh as he grew concerned about people seeing him around town when he clearly was out.

“i’m sure… my parents are out of town again, so it doesn’t matter, we don’t need to worry about them… coming back or something of the sorts.” he said with a small sigh, looking over at eddie with a small smile on his lips. hearing that the other wanted to make sure that he was safe made him smile, nodding his head slowly. “don’t get all soft on me now, munson… i’m fine.” he said with a chuckle. “you can stay in my room, i can stay in the guest room. c’mon.” he said as he finally moved his hand from eddie’s shoulder and grabbed the other’s hand without thinking as he started leading the other up the stairs to his room. “you’re lucky, most girls don’t get to see my room until the third date.” he teased.

+++

“see, you can’t just leave town for a week, harrington. we need our fearless leader.you’re lucky the town still stands, actually.”, eddie muttered, a small grin tugging at his lips - not that he wasn’t spooked anymore, oh no, he absolutely was, but steve’s company did wonders for calming his jangled nerves. and that fact was definitely something to unpack another day. although, thinking about it, there wasn’t really that much to unpack, other than the fact that eddie’s big fat schoolgirl crush on steve harrington was slowly but surely resurfacing. clawing its way to the surface and growing stronger with every day he spent in hawkins.

though, could anyone blame him, when steve went ahead and did things such as yanking his shirt up to reveal his bruise? eddie’s breath hitched in his throat, eyes widening as he glanced between steve’s eye and his hand, fingers not quite touching his bruised skin but ghosting over it, hovering and even that made eddie’s heart hammer in his chest. he gulped, managed a weak smile. “ah, no, no, it’s nothing. nothing to worry about. i’m just clumsy.”, he waved it off with a shrug.

 “i’ll live.”, he repeated “i mean, i’ve survived worse.” and the memory of the swarm of demobats circling above him made him grimace, slightly, he hoped that steve didn’t notice. eddie leaned into steve’s touch, relaxing with every little squeeze he gave his shoulder. he hummed and nodded, more to himself. “yeah. yeah, you’re right...i’ll be fine.” eddie swallowed. “sorry, i - i shouldn’t’ve come. it’s stupid. i woke you up, didnt i? i’m sorry.”

chewing on his bottom lip nervously, eddie looked up at steve again, considered just...leaving instead of making things awkward. but the look on steve’s face, the smile, suggestes that he hadn’t just offered for eddie to stay simply not to be rude. it seemed genuine - he relaxed, slightly, nodded again. fingers tracing over steve’s hand on his shoulder as if to ground him. 

steve took his hand, led him up the stairs - eddie nearly forgot to breathe as he stumbled up. forgot to walk, too. he’d only ever imagined this scenario in his dreams, though with a vastly different premise and outcome. he grinned, wide and toothy. “well,well, well, aren’t i a lucky gal.”