Zccming​:

eddiemcnson​:

+++

his eyes flicked between cole’s - jesus, how did he have lashes like that, it was unfair - as if searching for even the slightest hint of uncertainty that would make him pull back, apologize, would make them part ways. but cole’s hand was still in his shirt, he was still so intoxicatingly close and now he had verbal confirmation, too.

eddie looked around one more time, hating how nervous and paranoid he got everytime he went back to hawkins, a shaky exhale drawn from his lungs, the air was clear. and still he felt himself hesitate, eyes meeting cole’s again, and the thought of how bizarre this was, how this wasn’t even the guy he’d spent his waking moments fantasizing about while sat in the back of ms. o’donnell’s class.

no, no, he nipped that strain of thought in the bed, no, this wasn’t the time to dwell on past crushed. to hell with it. eddie gave a weak nod, grin pulling at his lips. “yeah”, he breathed, “’m sure”, and dove in to connect their lips.

xx.

Instinctively, Cole’s hand snaked around Eddie’s neck, a desperate attempt to pull him closer. Cole sighed into Eddie’s lips, allowing his chest to rest on Eddie’s. Tilting his head, Cole brought his other hand to Eddie’s face, cupping his jawline and stroking his cheek.

It had been a while-- a few months, at least-- since Cole had been kissed, and the clandestine nature of their meeting didn’t help the fluttering in his stomach. He knew he and Eddie would never be together in any real sense, but right here, right now, the future didn’t matter. As far as he was concerned, the future didn’t even exist.

Cole pulled away, just for a moment to catch his breath, and ran his thumb over Eddie’s lips. Lifting his gaze to meet Eddie’s eyes, Cole’s mouth twisted into a smile. “You’re pretty good at this, Munson,” he remarked, pulling his face back to Eddie’s-- daring him to lean in again. 

who: Cole & @drewcampbell​​

where: The Music Center

It was inventory day, which was easily Cole’s least favorite day of the month. Since he’d become manager of The Music Center a few years back, he’d been delegated the task of coming in on his day ‘off’ and checking the in-store inventory versus their log. Basically, to see what Max had stolen. Or anyone else, but usually Max.

Today, though, the new guy was working-- Cole hadn’t hired him or even met him yet, so he was curious as to what he was like. Cole stepped into the store and immediately spotted the employee over by the records. He smiled, walked over, and stuck out his hand. “Hey, man. I’m Cole, one of the managers here. You’re Drew?” 

“How are you settling in?” he asked, as he pulled out his inventory sheet and skimmed the list. “I heard you were new in town, and all.” 

eddiemcnson​:

+++

droplets of nervous sweat starting to appear above his brow, eddie’s eyes darted down to where cole pulled out that blasted bandana before he took both the cigarette and lighter from him. he clicked it a couple of times, no light appeared, eddie nervously glanced back up at cole, down at the lighter. violently shook it around for a moment, another attempt - it thankfully lit this time and he handed it back to cole.

he was a bundle of nerves. the previous pleasant buzz from the alcohol had almost entirely disappeared, he flicked  the cigarette’s filter repeatedly, fidgeted with his rings on his other hand. as if he was almost….waiting for cole to ridicule him. instead, however, he said something completely unexpected and eddie chocked on his own breath, sputtering cough.

he looked up to lock eyes with him. i am, too. the fuck did he mean? and ‘too’? was this some sort of trap? or was he literally genuinely saying what…eddie thought…he was saying? hadn’t he not gotten any of his surely widely popularly used phrases moments ago? he quirked a brow, took a drag once his coughing had subised. “you are….what?”, eyes narrowed, voice low in case this was, indeed, a trap.

adam richards was mentioned and, oh, jeez, it all made sense. eddie almost instantly felt bad, a guilty nauseau creeping up on him. way to go, munson, way to go. “your best friend, wasn’t he?” brows pulled together, lips twisted into a sympathetic smile. of course, max hadn’t been the only one who’d lost someone on the very ground they were standing on. “listen, man, i’m so…sorry - like, that’s gotta be rough, like, being here and everything. sorry. i can go and  leave you alone if you want to.”

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?

who: Cole & @mmuscles​​

where: the Montgomery residence

Cole had thought about calling off the repair about a hundred times, given everything that happened at the impromptu keg party in the woods. The last thing he wanted was to give Adam another reason to be upset. Not upset, but more confused. But, he didn’t have a phone number for Thad, and... his mom’s car was borderline undriveable, so he was stuck.

He’d been a bundle of nerves all morning: worried about what Adam thought of him, worried that maybe Adam wasn’t thinking of him at all, worried about what Thad would do or say. It was all unreasonable, he knew that, but if Cole had a talent for anything, it was catastrophizing. 

Just twenty minutes before Thad was scheduled to arrive, Cole had finally peeled himself out of bed to move from wallowing in the dark to wallowing in the shower; drama was another one of his talents. He trudged down the stairs and opened the garage door. Two beers in hand, he plopped down in a lawn chair with sunglasses hiding the remnants of his nasty hangover.

And waited, for thirty extra minutes, in the heat. By the time he heard Thad pull up, Cole had gone through both beers. “You’re late, guy,” Cole called, gruffly. Though, he supposed he couldn’t be too upset-- free labor and all. He stood up, pushing the lawn chair with a loud screech-- and gestured for Thad to step inside the garage. “’m gonna get some more beers, but, uh... make yourself at home, I guess.” 

Cole slipped inside and exchanged the two empty bottles for two fresh ones. Shutting the door behind him, Cole stretched his arm out to offer Thad the bottle. After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, he kicked some leaves to the side. “So, you met my boyfriend.”

Every now and then, on a day he didn't have to work, Cole found himself wandering aimlessly around the main attractions of Hawkins; like he was taking a tour of his hometown. Today, somehow, he ended up at the high school. He couldn't decide if it was self-sabotage or nice to remember, but everywhere he looked he could see him. Lost in thought, it took the girl's deep sigh to shake him out of the fog. "Damn. Should've known the school was that broke," he joked, trying to plant himself firmly in the here-and-now.

Cole walked closer, peering at the girl. They definitely went to high school together, but weren't really friends. "Ginny, right?"

WHO: ginny sprat & open.

WHERE: the hawkins high tennis courts. 

she sat on the picnic table, head bent as she re-wrapped her racket’s handle. sweat dripped down her forehead and stung her eyes, but she hardly stopped to wipe it away. glancing up at the person nearby, who’s repeated pushes of the button indicated a familiar frustration. 

“water fountain’s broken,” she sighed, “so don’t even bother.” 

Timmy things in movies 5/x: crying

xx.

Cole had always been a loner. It never bothered him, really-- in school he was content to sit by himself at lunch with a book and in the back of every classroom to share the occasional snarky comment. But because of that, he really didn’t know how to handle conflict. He’d never really cared enough before to be bothered if he happened to piss someone off. But now, after everything he’d shared with Max and she’d shared with him, he felt pretty shitty about the way things had been left.

Not shitty enough to apologize-- he didn’t think he was wrong for sticking up for Adam-- but shitty enough to jump at the chance to talk to her. When Max called, he closed out his tab at The Hideaway and thanked his lucky stars that he’d skated instead of driven. An easy smile slid onto Cole’s lips at the familiar sight of Max skating in the dark. “Hey, Maxine,” he greeted, tucking his skateboard under his arm. His expression darkened as he got closer, immediately clocking the state of her face. “What the fuck?” he exclaimed, wrapping an uncertain arm around her in the half-hug. “Shut up. What happened?” he asked, ignoring her question. Things were weird, but he was still concerned about her. He’d always worry, probably. 

WHO: max mayfield & @loverboymontgomery​ WHAT: vibe check! WHERE: the skate park (where else)

although it seemed like neither one of them wanted to say it, things had been weird since they went to the weapons store with chance and adam. there weren’t any lines drawn in the sand that night, but max hadn’t been the most stoked to find them with such differing opinions of what was going on. she also hadn’t gone out of her way to talk to cole between then and now. but since she kind of got her shit rocked? rocked her own shit? at the junkyard, max was maybe able to chalk up that whole experience to tensions being high after a funeral. she didn’t fully buy into her own narrative though, so, she supposed she would have a more clear picture of where they stood after today. 

max finally swallowed her pride about the whole scene cole had made in adam’s name and called him up to meet her at the skatepark, after hours, of course. she was skating in and out of the empty bowl and blaring tina turner from her headphones when she spotted cole approaching. she stopped at the top of the bowl, paused her music, and slid her headphones off. “yo, walden.” she met him, trying to be as normal as possible. gently as possible, max scratched the side of her broken nose and asked him, “notice anything different?” she didn’t wait long for an answer before pulling cole into an uncomfortable side hug. did they hug often now? “what’s happening with you?” max asked, sitting down on the concrete. 

goldenboyrichards​:

Home had always been a safe place for Adam. It was a place full of laughter, of love, a place where he could mostly be himself. Even once Adam had realized he was gay, home hadn’t felt scary or unfamiliar. He hadn’t told his parents or sisters - although, he was pretty sure at least Beth knew - but he hadn’t felt weird about bringing Cole around, either. They were friends first, Cole was technically even Adam’s tutor, so it was never weird having him around. He’d fit into their family seamlessly, almost. Adam could even pretend that it would still be like that if his family fully knew the truth. 

Come home after…. whatever had happened to him over the last three years was the first time things felt off. Something had shifted within the Richards’ household once he had left, something he never could have anticipated. Adam knew that when he and Cole ran away, his family would be hurt. But then Adam hadn’t run away with Cole - he’d gone to live in the forest around Hawkins, apparently. And while he was gone, his family had fractured in small ways. Like the result of an earthquake, the foundation had cracked and changed, and the happy family of five was now a sad family of four. 

Now they were a family of five again, if Adam could just figure out how he fit into the new picture. But it felt like maybe he was too jagged now; his pieces didn’t fit anymore. 

Going out in public seemed too scary these days. Everyone knew his face, knew his name, knew the golden boy he’d been before. And they all wanted to know just what the hell would make someone like him, someone seemingly perfect, disappear for three years. And the worst thing was, Adam had no answers. He didn’t know. Because he just couldn’t wrap his brain around the idea that he would run away and leave Cole behind. 

He sat on his front porch, baseball cap pulled low and sunglasses on to hide his face from prying neighbors. If Mrs. Sanders asked one more fucking time how he was feeling, he might actually explode. As someone approached the front door, Adam was ready to bolt back inside, warm weather be damned, when he heard a voice he knew as well as his own.

“Cole?” He asked, looking up at him to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. But standing there in the flesh was Cole Montgomery. Adam’s heart fluttered at the sight of him standing there with his skateboard, exactly as Adam remembered him. 

Pulling the sunglasses off, Adam tossed them aside carelessly to show Cole that it was him. “Cole, I’m so sorry.” He apologized, slowly standing up and taking a cautious step towards him. Adam didn’t know how upset Cole might be with him; he’d just abandoned him for three years, after all. But… if he was mad at Adam, why was he visiting Adam’s house? “I swear, I don’t know what happened. I didn’t mean to just leave you. I’m so sorry.” 

xx.

Cole’s arms went slack and the VHS tape clattered to the ground. His jaw dropped and he was sure he looked like a cheesy cartoon character. He couldn’t believe he was having another vision, like what happened at the graveyard last week. Only, this time, he knew he had come to the Richards’ house. If nothing else, the VHS was evidence of that. And, besides, if this was a vision-- why would Adam be apologizing for leaving him? As if he had a choice?

If this was a vision, Cole knew it would quickly turn dark-- he’d watch Adam die, again-- so he should just turn around and leave. But Cole couldn’t resist just a few more moments together, one last kiss, even if it was fake. So he closed the distance between them and wrapped his arms around Adam’s torso. Burying his face in Adam’s chest, Cole’s tears pooling against the other’s t-shirt. He squeezed his teary eyes shut and waited for the dark eyes, the “I’m sorry,” the body bursting into flames...

Only, it didn’t. Cole’s death grip around Adam loosened and he peered up at the familiar face. Everything was the same: same lips, same nose, same eyes-- though they looked sadder. What if this was real? He searched his lover’s eyes, looking for answers. If this was real, what did he mean he left? Cole had seen his body, had gone to the funeral, had grieved the death of the only person he could ever love for three years. What kind of sick joke could this be? Cole untangled his hand to swipe at his face and finally choked out: “Are you really real?” 

bethkrichards​:

“You know, just because you’re sick in bed, it doesn’t give you a free pass to talk about how attractive you think my brother is,” Beth teased, giving his shoulder a poke with her finger. “When I come back, I’ll be throwing popcorn at you the whole movie.” Cole wanted to try something new, and this was it. They’d never really talked about Adam in this same light in years. It was strange, getting used to talking about him in the present tense, leaving out the part about his death like it’d never happened. Ever since Adam had come back, they’d never discussed why or how his sudden reappearance came to be: it just was. That seemed to be more than enough for both of them.

Still, she sauntered off to the kitchen, throwing in a bowl of kernels to microwave, just as Cole had asked. Beth noticed that there was a photo of the three of them in there again, perched on a shelf, from Adam’s football days. One that made her smile now, instead of wanting to cry. “Here’s your snack, my liege,” she offered upon reappearance, sitting down on the couch beside him with a bowl full of warm popcorn. “Forgive me for a moment until I get up again and put the movie in, will you? I want to hear about how you’re doing without the voice, and face, of Link Larkin distracting us.”

xx.

“What, I need a pass now? Being the love of his life suddenly isn’t enough?” Cole pouted, leaning his head back dramatically. “Count your blessings, Elizabeth, because if he hadn’t met me do you have any idea how many guys he would’ve gone through looking like that?” He was intentionally laying it on thick, and the grin showing through his hand was evidence enough. As Beth stood up to get the popcorn, Cole couldn’t help the content smile on his face. Sure, things were complicated with what happened at the carnival and how Adam came back in the first place, but he couldn’t help how right this felt. How this was always what life was meant to be. 

Cole took the bowl, ignoring the pang in his ribs as he stretched his arm out to grab it. At this point, the pain was all the same, just a dull, nagging ache. “Woah, no need for formalities. I’m still the same old Cole,” he teased. He took a few pieces of popcorn and smiled agreeably at her proposition. They did have a lot to catch up on. “Link Larkin can wait.” Cole shifted his body so he could face Beth head-on. “I’m okay. I mean, I’m worried about him, you know? He’s gonna carry that shit-- the guilt-- no matter what I say.”

mmuscles​:

WHO: thad bradshaw & @loverboymontgomery​ WHAT: it’s like, collateral. WHERE: the meteor shower 

thad was ashamed to admit he’d thought about cole since he cornered him in his garage. he wished he could say it was a time or two, but when he laid on the hood of his car outside of the motel 6 and moping about his life soundtracked to elvis each night, he found his thoughts drifting to cole, kissing cole. fuck, this was bad. he knew he had to say something next time he saw cole, and not kiss him this time, actually say it. there was no accounting for when he would see him next and secretly thad hoped it would be never, but of course the cookie just didn’t crumble.

he had gone to nancy to the meteor shower the next time he saw cole. he was there with some other guy and thad knew he had to act. quick. he told nancy he was going to take a leak and walked up to cole, who was newly alone and looking in the direction of the boy he was walking off, “hey, pretty boy.” he greeted, gesturing with his head to a less congregated area of the field, “wanna walk with me? i gotta talk with you.” 

xx.

Being in public with Adam again was weird. Good weird, but weird. After they’d spent the last few days alone, making up for lost time, Cole found it difficult to keep his hands off Adam now. Not in a trashy way-- all he wanted to do was hold Adam’s hand, brush the same pesky hair out of Adam’s eyes, press a reassuring kiss to his shoulder. But Cole knew Adam was already on edge given, well, everything, so he was on his best behavior. Besides the two sharing a blanket and a few stolen glances, an innocent bystander would hardly know Cole and Adam were together.

When Adam left to go catch up with a friend, Cole’s eyes followed him. The fear that Adam would disappear still hadn’t gone away. He’d long given up trying to reason it away, because there was frankly nothing reasonable about anything in this situation, and sat lost in thought until he was approached by a familiar face. At Thad’s customary greeting, Cole couldn’t help but laugh. He figured this was coming, at some point, but he still didn’t know what he was going to say. The fear Cole had felt after Thad kissed him came rushing back; he was grateful they were in public, because he wasn’t sure what to expect-- anger, shame, aggression, even. “Uh, sure, guy,” Cole said, hoping his nerves weren’t apparent in his tone. Pushing himself off the ground, Cole followed Thad to a more private corner of the field. “What’s up?” he asked, glancing anywhere but Thad’s eyes. Instead, Cole skimmed the crowd and took momentary comfort in seeing the back of Adam’s head.